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DC area leaders say stay indoors, avoid unhealthy smog. What should homeless people do?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:47:52 GMT

During the Wednesday morning commute through haze along Georgia Avenue in Northwest D.C., the region’s drivers smelled smoke in the air and kept on moving. Alan stayed put.At the intersection of Missouri and Georgia Avenue, the “homeless and hustling” entrepreneur behind the self-named ‘Alan’s Oasis’ offered drivers water and cool beverages for car change while he stood in the smog.“I’ll get you an ice cold water. Any cash will do,” Alan said on his way up the street.Drivers passed him as they headed home, listening to the radio or a favorite podcast, but Alan remained on the street for hours. Aside from taking brief breaks for food or water, Alan spent hours walking up and down the line of cars, breathing in the smog that officials said no one should linger in.Wearing a neon green shirt with his business’s name handwritten, he waved at passing drivers. Another lane began to pile up at the stop light just moments before he ...

‘All life should be valued’: Volunteers rush to save animals after Ukraine dam collapse

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:47:52 GMT

KHERSON, Ukraine (AP) — The rescue volunteer holds out his hand, but the dog, stranded on a floating island of debris in a southern Ukrainian city inundated by flooding, is too traumatized to approach. Volodymyr Holubnichii offers the scared animal some food; the dog sniffs and relaxes.“Don’t be scared,” Holubnichii soothingly tells the animal, which eventually accepts a leash and being carried to safety.Holubnichii, a volunteer with Animal Rescue Kharkiv, spent days cruising the flooded streets of Kherson city after the Kakhovka dam collapsed on Tuesday and submerged entire towns. He is one among the organization’s 70 volunteers determined to rescue as many animals as possible, plucking them from the rooftops and garages of flooded homes before they die of dehydration and hunger.The flooding has killed civilians, ruined crops, displaced landmines, and caused widespread environmental damage. Kyiv accused Moscow of blowing up the Dnieper River dam and its hydropower plant, whic...

Extremist rebels kill at least 15 civilians in eastern Congo, rights group says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:47:52 GMT

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — At least 15 people were killed by extremist attacks in eastern Congo’s North Kivu province, a rights group said Friday. Fighters with the Allied Democratic Forces —believed to have ties with the Islamic State group — attacked people for multiple days this week in the Ruwenzori sector of Beni territory, said Meleki Mulala, a coordinator for the New Congolese Civil Society group, a local rights organization. “They (also) seriously injured several other civilians who were dispatched for urgent care,” he said. The attackers executed the victims with knives, and the bodies of the dead were taken to the morgue and will be buried, Mulala said.Violence has simmered for decades in eastern Congo, where about 120 armed groups fight over land, resources and power, and some to defend their communities.Attacks by the Allied Democratic Forces have increased recently. This week’s violence comes days after at least 18 people were killed by the group in neighb...

Trump indictment unsealed in documents case | Live updates

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:47:52 GMT

MIAMI (AP) — Follow along for live updates on former President Donald Trump, who has been indicted on charges of mishandling classified documents at his Florida estate. The indictment marks the first time in U.S. history that a former president faces criminal charges by the federal government he once oversaw. Trump faces the possibility of prison if convicted.___TRUMP KEPT CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS IN BATHROOM, SHOWER OF CLUB, INDICTMENT SAYSThe indictment alleges Trump kept classified documents in the bathroom and shower at his Florida estate, as well as various other locations that included a ballroom, storeroom, office and bedroom.Prosecutors noted that “tens of thousands of members and guests” visited the “active social club” of Mar-a-Lago between the end of Trump’s presidency in January 2021 through the August 2022 search. They argued that “nonetheless” Trump stored documents “in a ballroom, a bathroom and shower, and office space, his bedroom, and a storage room.”The indictment cla...

READ: Trump indictment in classified documents case

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:47:52 GMT

Donald Trump was indicted Thursday in a case involving his handling of classified documents, making him the first former U.S. president to be faced with federal criminal charges.The Department of Justice unsealed the indictment Friday, ahead of Trump's expected appearance in court next Tuesday. Trump indicted on 37 counts in Mar-a-Lago case Read the indictment below. gov.uscourts.flsd.648653.3.0 by Brandon Conradis on Scribd

Ukraine says it intercepted call in which Russians admit they blew up dam

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:47:52 GMT

KYIV ­— Days after the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam, Ukraine’s security service (SBU) published what it said was an intercepted call in which Russians admit they were behind the devastating attack.In an intercepted call, two males with Russian accents — identified by SBU only as two Russian soldiers — speak about how the Russian military wanted to blackmail Ukraine by attacking the dam, but things did not go according to plan as the waters of the Dnipro River spilled across the region, flooding dozens of settlements and destroying ecosystems.“It wasn’t the Ukrainians who blew up the dam. It was our sabotage group. They wanted to scare people with this dam [attack]. It didn’t go according to plan,” says one of those identified as a Russian military officer. “This dam was constructed in the 1950s, so it quickly collapsed.”During the call, one of those identified as a Russian soldier complained that Moscow-installed authorities in the occupied ...

READ: Full, unsealed 49-page indictment against Former President Donald Trump

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:47:52 GMT

A full link to the unsealed indictment can be found here.

Officials: Worker falls from 2nd floor at construction site, suffers serious injuries in Norwood

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:47:52 GMT

A worker is in serious condition after falling from the top of a construction site’s second floor in Norwood, according to officials.The Norwood Fire Department said it was around 10 a.m. on Friday when crews received multiple calls for a construction accident at the site of Norwood Hospital at 800 Washington Street.First responders arrived at the scene five minutes later, according to officials, where a police officer working a detail nearby directed crews to the injured worker.“The patient was treated and packaged by Norwood Fire paramedics and transported to Boston Medical Center in serious condition,” the fire department stated in a news release. “Norwood Police is currently handling the investigation into the accident.”No additional details were given.

What to watch: ‘Crowded Room’ a gripping true-crime story, thanks to Tom Holland

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:47:52 GMT

Tom Holland scales new acting heights in one of Apple TV+’s most anticipated new series, the 10-part “The Crowded Room,” debuting with three episodes this week.We do a deep dive into the psychological thriller co-starring Amanda Seyfried as well as one of 2023’s best films of the year, “Past Lives.” And there’s a terrific stand-up-and-cheer feature debut from Eva Longoria.Here’s our roundup.“The Crowded Room”: Tom Holland flings himself into any role, from Spider-Man to his latest — as a troubled crime suspect in a gripping Apple TV+ limited series. It’s one of his most demanding roles — requiring a greater level of commitment than what was demanded of him in Apple TV+’s terribly overblown “Cherry.” Thankfully the 10-part “Crowded Room” is worth his considerable talents and versatility. Holland is an actor who makes you want to see his character do well, no matter all the bad stuff happening around him. It is that relatability, and Holland’s fierce commitment to lose himself in his ...

Take a tour of the pink and fab World of Barbie exhibition in California

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:47:52 GMT

When Barbie goes camping she does it in style, riding out in a customized pink camper van with sweet rims, purple front seats, pink headlights, plus a hammock, her own kitchen and TV.Fans of the famous Mattel doll who attend the recently expanded World of Barbie immersive experience, which will now stay at the Santa Monica Place mall through Sept. 4, can hop inside her van, sit behind the wheel, honk the horn and pretend they’re cruising down Pacific Coast Highway thanks to a famous local car shop.“We got an actual Mattel Barbie camper, we 3D scanned it and then we essentially exploded it into this life-size Barbie camper,” said Lorenzo Strong, vice president of sales and brand partnerships for West Coast Customs, which is famous for customizing cars for musicians, actors and athletes.“This is super wild and off the wall for us because we’re used to building real, actually functional campers and cars and trucks and all that,” he added.Lorenzo Strong, vice president of sales and bran...