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Japanese court sentences ‘Joker’ to 23 years for stabbing passenger, setting a fire on a Tokyo train

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:30:02 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese court sentenced a man to 23 years in prison on Monday for stabbing a passenger and setting a fire on a Tokyo express train while dressed in a Joker costume on Halloween two years ago, officials said.The Tachikawa branch of Tokyo District Court found Kyota Hattori, 26, guilty of attempted murder for stabbing and seriously injuring a male passenger in his 70s and of spraying lighter fluid in the train car and then lighting it to try to kill others. Twelve people were injured by the fire, most of them not seriously.During the trial, Hattori told the court he was so shocked when he learned that his girlfriend had married someone else only six months after they broke up that he decided to carry out the attack so he could end his life by receiving the death penalty, NHK public television reported.In the ruling, Judge Yu Takeshita said the attack was an “indiscriminate crime with a selfish motive that targeted many passengers who happened to be on the train.”Prosecu...

Police searching for two young girls who went missing in North York

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:30:02 GMT

Toronto police have setup a command post in North York as they search for two missing children.Police say 10-year-old Kitana and 12-year-old Tiyanna were last seen around 6 p.m. Sunday in the area of Driftwood Avenue and Jane Street.A police command post has been setup at Driftwood Community Centre and investigators say they are concerned for the pair’s safety.Kitana is described as four feet seven inches tall, weighing 100 lbs., with brown eyes and shoulder length hair. She was last seen wearing a pink shirt, blue denim overalls and blue sandals.Tiyanna is described as four feet eight inches tall, between 110 and 120 lbs, with brown eyes and long brown hair. She was last seen wearing a white dress, blue denim jacket and pink shoes.Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-3100, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477), or at www.222tips.com.

Europe’s economy grows a bit after months of stagnation. But rate hikes are weighing on businesses

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:30:02 GMT

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Europe’s economy has grown modestly after months of stagnation, but higher interest rates designed to fight inflation are casting a shadow as they make it more expensive for households and businesses to borrow, invest and spend.The 20 countries that use the euro currency and their 346 million people saw 0.3% growth in the April-to-June period, compared with the first three months of the year, the EU statistics agency Eurostat reported Monday. That’s an improvement over zero growth in the first quarter and a slight decline in fourth quarter of last year — but not by much. Plus, one-time factors and an outsized bump from Ireland made things look better than they really were.The eurozone got a boost by 0.5% growth in France and 0.4% in Spain, where lower inflation has helped lift consumer spending power.Yet the French figure was increased by the delivery of one very large manufactured item — a cruise ship. That statistical quirk flattered French growth but doe...

Dispute over Persian Gulf gas field poses early challenge to Saudi-Iranian rapprochement

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:30:02 GMT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — An escalating dispute over a gas field in the Persian Gulf poses an early challenge to a Chinese-brokered agreement to reconcile regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran.Saudi Arabia and neighboring Kuwait jointly claim the offshore Al-Durra gas field. Iran says it has rights to the field, which it refers to as Arash. The two sides held talks in Iran in March but were unable to agree on a border demarcation.Nasser Kanaani, a spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, said on Monday that it would not tolerate any infringement on its rights, echoing remarks by the country’s oil minister the previous day. Last week, Kuwait’s oil minister told Sky News Arabia that his country would commence drilling and production without waiting for a deal.Saudi Arabia has sided with Kuwait, saying the two countries have exclusive ownership of the field, and has called on Iran to return to negotiations.Saudi Arabia and Iran, which have backed opposite sides in co...

French daredevil who climbed towers around world believed to have fallen to his death in Hong Kong

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:30:02 GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — A French man is believed to have fallen to his death from a high-rise residential building in Hong Kong last week, police said on Monday, with local media outlets identifying him as daredevil Remi Lucidi. Police said a 30-year-old man’s body was found on a patio in the city’s upscale Mid-Levels area. He was believed to have engaged in extreme sports, police said, without identifying him.Officers conducted an initial investigation and said he apparently fell from a rooftop. No suicide note was found at the scene, they said. The cause of his death would have to be verified by an autopsy, they added. Local media, including the South China Morning Post, said the man was Lucidi, 30. The Post cited an unnamed source saying he was last seen alive knocking on a penthouse window on the 68th floor of a residential tower on Thursday evening. The Associated Press has not been able to verify his identity. Lucidi, who used the name “Remi Enigma” on social media, last ...

Man United renews Adidas partnership by 10 years in deal worth more than $1B

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:30:02 GMT

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester United announced a 10-year extension to its partnership with Adidas that the English club said Monday will be worth more than $1 billion.United’s deal with the German sportswear brand as its official uniform supplier runs to 2035 and “has a minimum cash guarantee of 900 million pounds ($1.15 billion), subject to certain adjustments,” the team said, making it the most lucrative in Premier League history.“It is very natural for us to continue our cooperation,” Adidas CEO Bjorn Gulden said. “We will combine tradition and innovation to please both the players and the fans.”“We look forward to continuing our partnership with one of the most iconic clubs in football.”The deal for the club’s single biggest source of revenue provides stability at a time when it is up for sale, with United’s American ownership weighing up offers from Qatari banker Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani and English businessman Jim Ratcliffe.Adidas supplied United’s unifor...

Port Hope officer struck with ricocheting bullet while attempting to stop stolen vehicle

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:30:02 GMT

The province’s police watchdog is investigating after an officer was struck by a ricocheting bullet while responding to a stolen vehicle in Port Hope.Port Hope Police Service says officers on patrol were notified of a suspected stolen vehicle in a McDonald’s drive thru near Highway 401 and Ontario Street around 5 p.m. Sunday.Police say one of the responding officers was injured and taken to hospital. The Special Investigations Unit (SIU) has confirmed the female officer was struck by a bullet that ricocheted after being fired by police.Investigators say the officer was conscious and talking when taken to hospital, and she has since been released.“We are extremely fortunate and appreciative that our officer will recover from her injuries,” reads a statement from Port Hope police on social media.The male suspect in the vehicle fled the McDonald’s following the shooting.Police are now searching for an older model GMC Canyon pickup truck with the Ontario li...

Customers want instant gratification. Workers say they're on the brink

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:30:02 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Six straight days of 12-hour driving. Single digit paychecks. The complaints come from workers in vastly different industries: UPS delivery drivers and Hollywood actors and writers.But they point to an underlying factor driving a surge of labor unrest: The cost to workers whose jobs have changed drastically as companies scramble to meet customer expectations for speed and convenience in industries transformed by technology.The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated those changes, pushing retailers to shift online and intensifying the streaming competition among entertainment companies. Now, from the picket lines, workers are trying to give consumers a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to produce a show that can be binged any time or get dog food delivered to their doorstep with a phone swipe. Dozens of former Trump Cabinet officials won’t publicly support his 2024 reelection bid Overworked and underpaid employees is an enduring complaint across in...

Dozens of former Trump Cabinet officials won't publicly support his 2024 bid 

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:30:02 GMT

(The Hill) - Dozens of former Cabinet officials under former President Trump’s administration declined to publicly support the former president’s third bid for the White House, NBC News reported.NBC News reached out to 44 people who previously served in Trump’s Cabinet during his four years in office to gauge whether they would support the former president during the 2024 presidential election. The outlet reported that most of the people declined to comment or ignored the requests and that only four said publicly they would support Trump for the presidency.Trump’s Cabinet saw a higher rate of turnover compared with many of his predecessors, with many new officials rotating in and out of his administration over the four years. The only four former Cabinet members who NBC News reached out to who said they would support Trump are former acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, former chief of staff Mark Meadows, former Office of Management and Budget (OMB) director Russell Vought and ...

'We're just too poor': Record heat waves reveal plight of Americans without air conditioning

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 12:30:02 GMT

DENVER (AP) — As Denver neared triple-digit temperatures, Ben Gallegos sat shirtless on his porch swatting flies off his legs and spritzing himself with a misting fan to try to get through the heat. Gallegos, like many in the nation's poorest neighborhoods, doesn't have air conditioning.The 68-year-old covers his windows with mattress foam to insulate against the heat and sleeps in the concrete basement. He knows high temperatures can cause heat stroke and death, and his lung condition makes him more susceptible. But the retired brick layer, who survives on about $1,000 a month largely from Social Security, says air conditioning is out of reach.“Take me about 12 years to save up for something like that," he said. “If it’s hard to breathe, I’ll get down to emergency.”As climate change fans hotter and longer heat waves, breaking record temperatures across the U.S. and leaving dozens dead, the poorest Americans suffer the hottest days with the fewest defenses. Air conditioning, once a ...