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Comments on the EU Commission’s proposal for a framework for forest monitoring

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:29 GMT

The Swedish Forest Industries Federation supports the ambition from the European Commission to ensure the availability of quality data on forests in the EU. However the proposal presented today on a new monitoring system of the Union’s forests risks not delivering on these expectations. It is not obvious how the proposal adds relevant knowledge of the functions of the forest, at least not for countries with national inventories that already exchange data within international initiatives, and in relation to mandatory monitoring already set in EU-legislation.“We welcome the ambition to improve knowledge about the state of Europe’s forests and greater accessibility to comparable data, and to extended use of satellite monitoring to improve fast access to data on on-going natural disturbances. At the same time, it is, at a first glance, difficult to discern a clear purpose for all of the suggested indicators” says Viveka Beckeman, Director General of the Swedish Forest Industries Federat...

91st Hollywood Christmas Parade rolls through the streets of Tinseltown

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:29 GMT

Thousands of people lined the streets Sunday night to watch the 91st annual Hollywood Christmas Parade make its way through Tinseltown and end with a very special visit from Santa Claus and his reindeer.  The festivities, which benefit the Marine’s Toys for Tots charity, kicked off at 6 p.m. with the 3-mile route getting underway at Hollywood Boulevard and Orange Street, then traveling south on Vine Street to Sunset Boulevard and back to Orange Street.  In all, some 5,000 parade participants took part in the event, including 90 celebrities, 14 parade performers, 10 bands, 39 cars from movies, three floats and six four-story-high character balloons.  Thousands lined the streets to watch the 91st Hollywood Christmas Parade roll through Tinseltown on Nov. 26, 2023. (KTLA)The Grand Marshal of this year’s parade was Retired U.S. Army Col. Paris D. Davis, who was awarded the Medal of Honor in March, some 60 years after being nominated for his heroism in the Vietnam War, City New...

Crowds hit LAX as Thanksgiving holiday travel comes to an end

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:29 GMT

With an estimated 2.5 million travelers passing through Los Angeles International Airport between Nov. 16 and Thanksgiving weekend, according to officials, it’s one of the busiest travel seasons of the year.  Add service dog into the mix and the frenzy of travel can be even more hectic.  “She’s been kind of glued to us because it’s overwhelming, how busy it is,” Merna Michael said of her dog named Maya.  At LAX, Michael, her family and their pet were on their way back to Arizona after a visit to Southern California.  “It’s definitely busier. It's way more crowded,” she told KTLA’s Omar Lewis. “It’s still pretty easy because we have pre-check getting through security. That, honestly, has been a big help for us, but other than that, I think there’s just more people traveling now than there were last year.” Doug Shupe with AAA told KTLA that they’re projecting this Thanksgiving holiday to be the third busiest on record due to the number of travelers they haven’t see...

Zay Flowers catches and runs for TDs, Ravens force 4 turnovers in 20-10 win over Chargers

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:29 GMT

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers (4) celebrates his touchdown run with wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (3) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 26, 2023, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)(AP/Ryan Sun) Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers (4) celebrates his touchdown run with wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. (3) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 26, 2023, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)(AP/Ryan Sun) INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Lamar Jackson has been waiting for wide receiver Zay Flowers to have a breakout game.On Sunday night, the Baltimore Ravens rookie finally seized his opportunity on a national stage.Flowers had a touchdown catch and r...

Avoiding relegation was Girona’s goal this season. Now the Spanish title contender has bigger dreams

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:29 GMT

GIRONA, Spain (AP) — Girona’s chief executive isn’t hiding his surprise.At the start of the league season in August, Ignasi Mas-Bagà was hoping his team could avoid a costly relegation from Spanish soccer’s top tier that would badly damage the club’s growth plans for years.Few people are more pleased — and genuinely shocked— than Mas-Bagà to see the team from the northeast corner of Spain leading the standings ahead of powerhouses Real Madrid and Barcelona one-third of the way through the season. Girona entered the latest round as the outright leader before Madrid provisionally moved top Sunday. Girona can recover first place when it plays Athletic Bilbao on Monday.First or second place, it’s still a dream for Girona. “The goal was non-relegation. That has been the target since we arrived,” Mas-Bagà told The Associated Press at Girona’s training ground with the snow-capped Pyrenees in the distance.“Leading the table is like a dream for us. But it’s not an obsession...

Bills defensive end Shaq Lawson confronts, appears to shove fan during loss to Eagles

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:29 GMT

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Bills defensive end Shaq Lawson confronted Eagles fans and appeared to shove one of them in the waning moments of Buffalo’s loss to Philadelphia on Sunday night.Lawson, defensive tackle Jordan Phillips and other Bills players walked from the sideline toward the front row of stands at Lincoln Financial Field and started jawing at Eagles fans. Phillips got close to the face of one fan before Lawson walked up and seemingly made physical contact with the spectator, according to video circulating on social media. Security eventually intervened and the fan continued to shout toward the Buffalo players. Defensive end Leonard Floyd tried to defuse the situation and walked the players back to the sideline.The Bills did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment Sunday night.The Eagles beat the Bills 37-34 in overtime.___AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFLSource

'I'll be doing this as long as I can': Why Knob Hill light display in San Marcos isn't on this year

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:29 GMT

SAN MARCOS, Calif. -- Christmas on Knob Hill in San Marcos has become a tradition for thousands of people to drive or walk and see the dazzling lights, which have been on display for the last 36 years. If you stand outside 1639 Knob Hill Road in San Marcos as soon as it gets dark, you will quickly start to see cars drive by, or people walk by, wondering why the light display isn't up this year. Instead of the winter wonderland, people are met with a sign that tells people the owner of the home had an unexpected surgery and wouldn't be able to put the lights up this year.“I get so much satisfaction out of doing that, to see that I can make people that happy," said Bill Gilfillen, the mastermind behind the usual display. ‘Jingle Jets’: Celebrate the holiday season at USS Midway Museum “It’s a lot of fun. I enjoy doing it so much, and I feel really sad that I couldn’t do it this year," he added.Bill Gilfillen has been called Mr. Christmas for decades, and this year is recovering fro...

'Jingle Jets': Celebrate the holiday season at USS Midway Museum

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:29 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- San Diegans can kick off the holiday season at the USS Midway Museum's new holiday light experience "Jingle Jets."The aircraft carrier has been transformed into a winter wonderland for all ages to enjoy this holiday season. "Jingle Jets" opened the Friday after Thanksgiving and runs on select nights from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m. through Dec. 23. Full Moon: When to see November’s full beaver moon Lights adorn the aircraft carrier at the inaugural holiday event. Those in attendance can send letters to service members, enjoy music from a live DJ, dancing, photo ops, meet Santa Claus, enjoy holiday food and cocktails, and listen to their favorite holiday music from a trio of carolers.The USS Midway Museum is a historical naval aircraft carrier museum located on the Navy Pier in downtown San Diego. The USS Midway was the longest-serving aircraft carrier in the 20th century, according to the USS Midway Museum's website. Santa speakeasies to winter wonderlands: 7 holiday pop-up ...

6 teenagers go on trial for their alleged role in the 2020 beheading of a French teacher

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:29 GMT

PARIS (AP) — Six teenagers go on trial Monday in Paris for their alleged roles in the beheading of a teacher who showed caricatures of the prophet of Islam to his class, a killing that led authorities to reaffirm France’s cherished rights of expression and secularism.Samuel Paty, a history and geography teacher, was killed on Oct. 16, 2020, near his school in a northwest Paris suburb by an 18-year-old of Chechen origin who had become radicalized. The attacker was in turn shot dead by police.Paty’s name was disclosed on social media after a class debate on free expression during which he showed caricatures published by the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, which triggered a newsroom massacre by extremists in January 2015.All hearings at a Paris juvenile court are to be held without media in accordance with French law regarding minors. Among those going on trial, a teenage girl, who was 13 at the time, is accused of making false allegations for wrongly saying that Paty had aske...

Most leaders of the attacks on Sierra Leone’s military barracks and prisons arrested as curfew eases

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:57:29 GMT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Sierra Leone’s president said most leaders of attacks on the nation’s main military barracks and prisons had been arrested and normalcy had returned across the country after a 24-hour curfew was relaxed to a dusk-to-dawn lockdown.The attacks early Sunday morning surprised residents and security forces in the West African nation and raised fears of a possible coup in a troubled region.But “most of the leaders” of the attacks now have been arrested and “calm has been restored,” President Julius Maada Bio said in a Sunday night address. Residents in the capital city of Freetown were awoken by sounds of heavy gunfire as gunmen tried to break into the key armory in the country’s largest military barracks, located near the presidential villa.They engaged in sustained gunfire with security forces and targeted major detention centers – including the central prison holding more than 2,000 inmates – and freed or abducted an unconfirmed number of people,...