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Somalia secures $4.5 billion debt relief deal with international creditors

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:18:22 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Somalia on Wednesday secured a $4.5 billion debt relief deal from its international creditors, the International Monetary Fund and World Bank said, which will allow the nation to develop economically and take on new projects. The deal comes as part of a debt forgiveness program —called the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries initiative— overseen by both organizations. As a result of its participation in the program, Somalia’s external debt will fall from 64 percent of GDP in 2018 to less than 6 percent of GDP by the end of 2023, the IMF and World Bank say in a joint news release. Somalia’s national debt currently exceeds $5 billion, according to official figures.“Somalia’s debt relief process has been nearly a decade of cross governmental efforts spanning three political administrations. This is a testament to our national commitment and prioritization of this crucial and enabling agenda,” said Somalia’s President, H.E. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in a statement.U.S. Treasur...

B.C. police seek Interpol notice for return of cocaine smuggler who escaped to India

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:18:22 GMT

SURREY, B.C. — Police in British Columbia are asking Interpol to post a red notice for the arrest and return of a Surrey man who escaped to India after being convicted of smuggling cocaine into Canada from the United States.RCMP say 60-year-old truck driver Raj Kumar Mehmi was sentenced in absentia by a B.C. provincial court judge to 15 years in prison in November after his arrest in 2017 for smuggling 80 kilograms of cocaine.A red notice asks member countries to help locate, arrest and extradite a person to face criminal charges, and India is a member of Interpol. Police say the 80 sealed bricks of cocaine were hidden inside a truck owned and driven by Mehmi while he was at the Pacific Highway border crossing into Metro Vancouver.Mehmi was convicted of smuggling and trafficking in September 2022, but police say he boarded a flight from Vancouver to New Delhi a month later before he could be sentenced. Police say a Canada-wide warrant for Mehmi has also been issued, and they are see...

WATCH: Fed Chair Jerome Powell discusses latest data, key interest rate projections

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:18:22 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Will the Federal Reserve cut its key interest rate sometime next year — and, if so, by how much?Wall Street investors have been obsessed with such questions since a top Fed official hinted last month that rate cuts were at least possible as early as March.The Federal Reserve kept its key interest rate unchanged Wednesday for a third straight time, a sign that it is likely done raising rates after having imposed the fastest string of increases in four decades to fight painfully high inflation.The Fed’s policymakers also signaled that they expect to make three quarter-point cuts to their benchmark interest rate next year, fewer than the five envisioned by financial markets and some economists. The relatively few number of rate cuts forecast for 2024 — which may not begin until the second half of the year — suggest that the officials think high borrowing rates will still be needed for most of next year to further slow spending and inflation.Still, in a statement it is...

House moves closer to Biden impeachment vote

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:18:22 GMT

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) - The Republican-controlled House is poised to pass an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden tonight.Lawmakers wrapped up their floor debate on whether to launch the investigation, and even with their slim majority, Republicans promise it'll pass.The credibility of the House's impeachment probe into President Joe Biden depends on who you ask, but Republicans argue an inquiry is necessary to get to the bottom of everything."Our investigation has revealed how Joe Biden knew of, participated in and benefited from his family cashing in on the Biden name around the world," said Rep. James Comer (R-Ky).Comer was hoping President Biden's son, Hunter, would be a key witness to support Comer's claims that while vice president, he used his political power for personal gain.But on Wednesday, Hunter Biden, defied a congressional subpoena and made a rare public statement."There is no evidence to support the allegations that my father was financially involved in my bus...

Marine killed, several injured in training incident at California military base

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:18:22 GMT

SAN DIEGO (KSWB) — A U.S. Marine was killed in a tactical vehicle rollover during a training exercise at Camp Pendleton in California on Tuesday, base officials confirmed to Nexstar's KSWB.The incident occurred around 6 p.m. as an amphibious combat vehicle (ACV) was making a ground movement during training, according to the U.S. Marine Corps. What caused the vehicle to overturn remains under investigation at this time.Officials said 14 other Marines were in the vehicle when it rolled over. They were transported to nearby hospitals and Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton for evaluation and treatment. California man shoots bear after it charges, bites him in his yard The current conditions of the other Marines or severity of their injuries are not yet known.The identity of the Marine is being withheld by Camp Pendleton officials pending notification of next of kin. The Marine was described as a member of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit.No additional details about the incident were imm...

What’s happened in the 3 years since Jason Landry’s disappearance?

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:18:22 GMT

Editor’s note: The above video shows KXAN’s morning headlines for Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023.AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Texas Office of the Attorney General (OAG) provided an update Wednesday on its investigation into the Dec. 2020 disappearance of Texas State University student Jason Landry.The office said it had an unwavering commitment to the investigation and was pursuing all credible information it has received. RELATED: Reward doubled to $20,000 to find missing Texas State student Jason Landry Landry was last seen Dec. 13, 2020, and his abandoned vehicle was found the following day on a rural road just outside of Luling, Texas. OAG said its Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit has dedicated hundreds of hours of investigative resources to the case, including forensic testing, issuing search warrants, interviewing witnesses, and enlisting the assistance of experts.The office said in November, its Cold Case and Missing Persons Unit held a case review. RELATED: Volunteers for Jason Landr...

Metro Transit targets fare evasion with non-criminal fines on light rail trains

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:18:22 GMT

With a citation book in hand, Metro Transit Community Service Officers Vy Vang and Chi Vang boarded a westbound light rail train at the downtown Union Depot station on a mission to discourage — but not detain — fare evaders. Mostly, they wanted to be seen and heard.“Metro Transit Police,” announced Chi Vang, in a commanding voice, as at least two passengers on Tuesday morning hot-footed themselves off the Green Line train car. “Please have your fare out. We’ll be checking tickets.”What followed was part enforcement action, part delicate dance, with compliant passengers offered a chance to dismount at the next transit station rather than take home a $35 non-criminal citation. Sleeping passengers were roused, in part for their own safety to ensure they hadn’t overdosed, explained the two student officers, who are not related.Those cited were informed of ways they could get the tickets waived or reduced, such as by adding cash to a fare c...

Movie review: ‘Boy and the Heron’ is another masterpiece from legendary Japanese animator

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:18:22 GMT

Katie Walsh | Tribune News ServiceIn 2013, legendary Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki claimed he was retiring after the release of his film “The Wind Rises,” which was nominated for an Academy Award for best animated feature. It’s a common refrain for Miyazaki, who said he was retiring after “Princess Mononoke” and the Oscar-winning “Spirited Away.” But he has yet to stick with retirement, as evidenced by the release of his first film in a decade, the enchanting “The Boy and the Heron.”Based on the 1937 book “How Do You Live?” by Genzaburo Yoshino, which was given to Miyazaki in his youth by his mother, “The Boy and the Heron” is a deeply personal project from the animation auteur. Like his other work, it is a fantastical and wildly imaginative film that straddles the spirit and human worlds, with a story rooted in deeply relatable emotion, threaded with an enduring sense of hope for the future despite the harshness of everyday reality.Set in the waning days of World War II in a rur...

With less to do, and stress over, Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson is back on track

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:18:22 GMT

There’s no secret to John Hynes’ coaching goals. He tells you, straight up, every time he’s asked.He in fact summed it up nicely just two days after becoming the Wild’s seventh head coach on Nov. 28. Things tend to go well, He said, “if you can defend 200 feet from your net.”That, of course, isn’t an uncommon goal, but the Wild have taken to a series of changes in how the team plays that Hynes is still tweaking seven games into his residency., and the coach spent a lot of time Wednesday reinforcing — on the ice and in the video room — what has helped Minnesota recover from a stretch in which they lost 11 of 13 games.Changes are coming “little pieces” Hynes said after a 40-minute practice at TRIA Rink on Wednesday. But they’re adding up to an effective whole.Minnesota heads into Thursday night’s 7 p.m. start against the Calgary Flames at Xcel Energy Center with a 5-2-0 record under Hynes after completing a 2-2 road trip through four Pacific Division cities.It started with a 5-2 victo...

RPI imagining the future of tech with AI Alliance

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:18:22 GMT

TROY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- RPI is taking a first-hand approach with the future of artificial intelligence -- joining Meta, IBM and others to form an alliance focused on developing tools, reducing risk and creating a secure future for tech. Get the latest news, weather, sports and more delivered right to your inbox! “The alliance is really trying in a sense, to do that on a much larger set of things," Dr. Jim Hendler, Director of the Future of Computing Institute at RPI, said. "It includes education, includes tools, it includes policy. It's really very much in a formative stage.”Hendler said AI has always been present in our tech, from the first GPS to Siri, but as it grows exponentially, it's important to help people understand what AI is and how it works. “One of the things we're trying very hard to work in the education space is to get people to understand the technology," Hendler said. "When should you trust it? When can't you trust it, what you can trust, and how do you use it pr...