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Five Americans detained in Iran walk free, released in deal for frozen Iranian assets

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:17:04 GMT

By JON GAMBRELL, LUJAIN JO and MATTHEW LEE (Associated Press)DOHA, Qatar (AP) — Five Americans detained for years in Iran walked off a plane and into freedom Monday, many arm-in-arm, as part of a politically risky deal that saw President Joe Biden agree to the release of nearly $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets owed by a third country, South Korea. The successful negotiations for the Americans’ freedom brought Biden profuse thanks from their families but heat from Republican presidential rivals and other opponents for the monetary arrangement with one of America’s top rivals.“Today, five innocent Americans who were imprisoned in Iran are finally coming home,” Biden said in a statement released as the plane carrying the group from Tehran landed in Doha, Qatar. A plane carrying the Americans home to the United States was due to land Monday night.Iran’s hard-line President Ebrahim Raisi, on hand for the United Nations General Assembly in New York, ...

Quick Fix: Scampi-Style Chicken and Linguine with Zucchini full of classic Italian flavors

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:17:04 GMT

Linda Gassenheimer | Tribune News Service (TNS)A garlicky wine sauce is well known as the basis for the classic Italian dish, shrimp scampi. The sauce is delicious and perfect for sopping up with some crusty bread. For this recipe, I thought the sauce would be a great preparation for chicken thighs. Lots of garlic, some red vermouth and fresh parsley coat the chicken and add flavor to the linguine.Helpful Hints:— You can use dried linguine instead of fresh. Boil for 8 to 9 minutes.— You can use red or white wine instead of red vermouth.— The quickest way to chop parsley is to snip the leaves with a scissors.Countdown:— Place water for linguine on to boil.— Prepare all ingredients.— Make chicken.— Cook linguine and zucchini.Shopping List:To buy: 1 pound skinless chicken thighs with the bone, 1 bottle red vermouth, 1 container fresh linguine, 1/2 pound zucchini, and 1 bunch fresh parsley.Staples: olive oil, garlic, butter, salt and black peppercorns.—SCAMPI-STYLE CHICKENRecipe by Lind...

On Nutrition: Sunflower season

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:17:04 GMT

Barbara Intermill | Tribune News Service (TNS)This time of year, the sight always takes my breath away: acres and acres of sunflowers in full bloom, smiling at the sun as we drive through rural areas of our state.The cultivated beauties are related to the smaller and more prolific sunflowers (they’re too pretty to call weeds) that pop up along roadsides and hills throughout much of North America.Native Americans were the first people to domesticate wild sunflowers for their seeds, according to the National Sunflower Association.Today, there are two basic varieties of commercial sunflowers: one that produces the typical black-and-white striped seeds we eat for snacks, and another that bears smaller black seeds used to make oil.And just so I get my semantics right, there is a difference between a sunflower kernel and a sunflower seed. The kernel is the “meat” that has been removed from the outer shell (or hull) of a sunflower seed, say experts. When we eat sunflower seeds,...

Wild black bear at Walt Disney World in Florida captured after search

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:17:04 GMT

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — It wasn’t an escapee from the Country Bear Jamboree attraction, but a wild black bear managed to be the star of its own show Monday at Walt Disney World.The presence of the black bear in a tree in the Magic Kingdom delayed the opening of three lands Monday morning — Frontierland, Liberty Square and Adventureland.Staffers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission were at the park, attempting to capture and relocate the bear, Disney World said in a statement. The bear was eventually captured Monday afternoon.The bear was likely in search of food as it looks to pack on fat reserves for the winter, the wildlife commission said in a statement. “In most cases, it is best for bears to be given space and to move along on their own, but given this situation, staff are working on capturing and relocating the bear,” the wildlife commission said.The Associated Press

Removal of B.C. MLA Adam Walker from NDP caucus unrelated to police, harassment: Eby

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:17:04 GMT

RICHMOND, B.C. — British Columbia Premier David Eby says a complaint by an employee in late July led to the removal of MLA Adam Walker from the New Democrat caucus, but the issue doesn’t involve police or sexual harassment.Speaking to reporters for the first time since Walker was kicked out over the weekend, Eby says he decided the member could no longer be part of the group after a formal investigation by NDP caucus.Eby says he wishes he could share more but rules related to human resources and privacy prevent him going into specifics about the accusations, which are not a criminal matter.The premier says he doesn’t believe what the investigation found could be remedied by a training process for Walker, who will now sit as an independent.An emailed statement from Walker’s constituency office says it does not have a comment to provide on the situation.The premier says the situation was “challenging” and informing Walker he was being removed was “n...

Netanyahu talks to Elon Musk in California about antisemitism on X and artificial intelligence

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:17:04 GMT

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu kicked off a U.S. trip in California to talk to billionaire businessman Elon Musk about antisemitism on his social media platform X — while Musk asked him to address his judicial overhaul in Israel. The two also discussed artificial intelligence in a sparsely-attended livestream event Monday.Netanyahu’s high-profile visit to the San Francisco Bay Area comes at a time when Musk is facing accusations of tolerating antisemitic messages on his social media platform, while Netanyahu is confronting political opposition at home and abroad. Protesters gathered early Monday outside the Fremont, California factory where Tesla makes its cars.The video livestream kicked off shortly before 9:30 a.m. with Netanyahu and the Tesla CEO. Netanyahu’s official X account posted that he is holding a “one on one conversation” with Musk. The number of viewers hovered around 700-800 people. The two kicked off with a joke about dee...

Couple, 2 children and 3 dogs found shot to death in suburban Chicago home

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:17:04 GMT

ROMEOVILLE, Ill. (AP) — A couple, their two children and three dogs were found fatally shot Sunday in a suburban Chicago home.The bodies were found about 8:40 p.m. in Romeoville by officers sent to the home by concerned relatives of the victims to conduct a well-being check, Romeoville Police Deputy Chief Chris Burne told reporters Monday.The victims were believed to have been shot between Saturday night and early Sunday, Burne said. The deaths are being investigated as murders, he added.The adults were identified as Roberto Rolon and Zoraida Bartolomei. The names and ages of their children were not immediately released.“A member of the family did not show up for work at 6 a.m. Sunday and did not respond to phone calls throughout the day,” Burne said. “Family members became concerned.”Romeoville is about 30 miles (48 kilometers) southwest of Chicago.The Associated Press

Ex-DOJ official Jeffrey Clark acted within the scope of official duties in Georgia case, lawyer says

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:17:04 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — Former Justice Department official Jeffrey Clark was acting within the scope of his official duties when he wrote a letter expressing concern about alleged problems with the 2020 election in Georgia, his lawyer said Monday as he sought to move charges against Clark to federal court.Clark is charged along with former President Donald Trump and 17 others, accused of participating in a wide-ranging scheme to overturn Democrat Joe Biden’s presidential election victory and keep the Republican Trump in power. All 19 defendants have pleaded not guilty.U.S. District Judge Steve Jones presided over the hearing on Clark’s attempt to move his case to federal court from Fulton County Superior Court. Jones earlier this month rejected a similar effort from Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows. Unlike Meadows, who testified at his own hearing last month, Clark was not in court as his lawyer argued on his behalf.Clark’s attorneys last week submitted a declaration...

Gusty winds complicate B.C. wildfire fight, but human-caused blazes also a factor

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:17:04 GMT

VANCOUVER — Gusty winds and unsettled weather in parts of British Columbia helped kick up several wildfires over the weekend, forcing a number of evacuation orders and alerts.Four regional districts, from the Sunshine Coast to the Cariboo, central Okanagan and Peace River, issued or upgraded evacuation orders between Friday and Sunday.The most recent order covers the Glen Lake fire west of Peachland, a suspected human-caused blaze spotted on Saturday that the BC Wildfire Service says has burned more than four square kilometres and forced the evacuation of eight recreational properties.The other three evacuation orders affect a total of 54 rural properties around the Horn Lake fire west of Williams Lake, the Clowhom Lake blaze northwest of Sechelt, and the Stoddart Creek fire north of Fort St. John.As a gusty cold front swept through B.C. over the weekend, the Peace River Regional District upgraded orders and alerts on the northeast corner of the Stoddart Creek blaze, which has charr...

‘El Chapo’ son Ovidio Guzmán López pleads not guilty to US drug and money laundering charges

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:17:04 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Ovidio Guzmán López, a son of former Sinaloa cartel leader Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán, pleaded not guilty Monday to drug trafficking, money laundering and other charges during his first court appearance since being extradited to the U.S. from Mexico. Guzmán López was extradited Friday, five months after U.S. prosecutors unsealed sprawling indictments against him and his brothers, known collectively as the “Chapitos.” The indictments laid out how following their father’s extradition and eventual life sentence in the U.S. in 2019, the brothers steered the cartel increasingly into synthetic drugs such as methamphetamine and the powerful opioid fentanyl.Mexican security forces captured Guzmán López, known as “the Mouse,” in January in Culiacan, capital of Sinaloa state, the cartel’s namesake. His arrest set off violence that left 30 people dead, including 10 military personnel. Mexico's army used Black Hawk helicopter gunships against the cartel’s truck-mounted .50-caliber...