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Man fined $50K in Vermont for illegally importing carvings made of sperm whale teeth, walrus tusk

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:24 GMT

BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — A California man has been fined $50,000 in Vermont for illegally importing carvings made from sperm whale teeth and walrus tusk across the U.S.-Canadian border, federal prosecutors said. The man and his wife arrived at the Highgate Springs border crossing after buying nine Inuit carvings from an art gallery in Montreal, according to court papers. He told a U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer that he was bringing back one stone statue from Quebec, court papers said. The officer inspected the trunk and found nine statues, including four made of ivory, the Vermont U.S. attorney’s office said. The man, who was living in Cambridge, Massachusetts, at the time, admitted that the four were made from walrus tusk and Customs and Border Protection seized them. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service later determined that three of those carvings were made of sperm whale teeth and the fourth was made of walrus tusk, prosecutors said. The 69-year-old man on Tuesday ...

Canada ‘firm and steadfast’ in call for two-state solution for Israel, Palestinians

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:24 GMT

OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada remains “firm and steadfast” in its commitment to a two-state solution to the Arab-Israeli conflict.He says the Middle East, and the world, needs both a Palestinian state and Israel to exist alongside each other in peace, safety and prosperity.Canada has long called for a negotiated two-state solution in the region, and considers the West Bank and East Jerusalem to be occupied territories.Trudeau is reiterating this position in the context of the latest Israel-Hamas war, which began after militants from Hamas, which Canada considers a terrorist organization, killed 1,400 Israelis in a brazen attack on Oct. 7.Israel retaliated with airstrikes in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, where it has also cut off the Palestinian territory’s access to water, food and electricity.Trudeau, who says Israel has the “full right to defend itself in accordance with international law,” is not saying what plan Canada would ...

Trucks mass at Gaza border as they wait to bring aid to desperate Palestinians

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:24 GMT

Satellite photos analyzed Friday by The Associated Press show a long convoy of trucks filled with humanitarian aid waiting to cross the border from Egypt to the Gaza Strip. More than 200 trucks carrying roughly 3,000 tons of aid were positioned near the crossing, according to aid officials. The provisions are intended to bring some relief to the Palestinians in Gaza, which is being blockaded by Israel in response to the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants on towns in southern Israel. Many in Gaza, reduced to eating one meal a day and without enough water to drink, are waiting desperately for the aid. It was unclear whether fuel would be allowed across to power hospital generators. On Friday, workers began repairing damaged to the crossing caused by Israeli bombings. Officials hoped to open the crossing on Saturday.The Associated Press

A man, a plan, a chainsaw: How a power tool took center stage in Argentina’s presidential race

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:24 GMT

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Politicians usually talk about belt tightening, or trimming wasteful spending with scissors. Argentine presidential candidate Javier Milei is ready to attack the system with a chainsaw. The self-declared anarcho-capitalist totes a power tool at some events as a symbol projecting defiance and strength to disaffected Argentines. They see themselves in Milei’s crusade to shred the bloated state and what he calls “the political caste”. Most polls show him winning a presidential vote Sunday and going to a runoff next month.“The caste is trembling!” he yelled while brandishing a chainsaw spewing diesel fumes on a crowded street last month. In the poor, northwestern province of Salta last week, his caravan was welcomed by a group of workers waving their own buzzing chainsaws in the air.Argentina’s economy has been engulfed in crisis for years, but lately people feel they are being pushed to the brink: I nflation has rocketed into the triple digits, pove...

Hunter Biden prosecutor to appear for closed-door Congressional testimony

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:24 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The special counsel overseeing the Hunter Biden investigation is expected to testify before a Congressional committee behind closed doors as a GOP probe into the Justice Department’s handling of the case continues to unfold. In a rare step, David Weiss is set to appear for a transcribed interview before members of the House Judiciary Committee on Nov. 7, sources told The Associated Press Friday on the condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door appearance. It comes months after an Internal Revenue Service agent testified as part of a GOP probe that the investigation into the president’s son was “slow-walked” and mishandled. Weiss has denied one of the more explosive allegations by saying in writing that he had final say over the case.Questions about Hunter Biden’s business dealings have been central to a GOP-led impeachment inquiry into the president. That’s been led in part by Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, who was also running for spea...

S&P/TSX composite down more than 150 points, U.S. stock markets also lower

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:24 GMT

TORONTO — Canada’s main stock index was down more than 150 points in late-morning trading as losses in the base metal, financial and telecommunications sectors helped lead the way lower, while U.S. stock markets also fell. The S&P/TSX composite index was down 159.54 points at 19,189.27.In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 185.75 points at 33,228.42. The S&P 500 index was down 42.69 points at 4,235.31, while the Nasdaq composite was down 190.17 points at 12,996.01.The Canadian dollar traded for 73.02 cents US compared with 72.91 cents US on Thursday.The December crude contract was up 83 cents at US$89.20 per barrel and the November natural gas contract was down five cents at US$2.91 per mmBTU.The December gold contract was up US$23.70 at US$2,004.20 an ounce and the December copper contract was down two cents at US$3.58 a pound.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 20, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD)The Canad...

Central America scrambles as the international community fails to find solution to record migration

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:24 GMT

PASO CANOAS, Costa Rica (AP) — The fleet of buses roared past the Panama-Costa Rica border.Hundreds of Venezuelan, Haitian and Ecuadorian migrants pressed their faces to the windows as they looked out onto a sign that read “Welcome to Costa Rica.” But few of them will see more of the country than the winding roads through foggy glass.That’s because last week Costa Rica and Panama announced that, amid a historic crush of people headed to the United States, thousands of migrants a day would be bussed from the jungle-clad Darien Gap through their territories to the Nicaraguan border.The move is the latest patchwork solution by governments in Central America that often have appeared more concerned with lessening the impact on their own nations than complying with pressure from the Biden administration to keep migration levels in check. Regional leaders will seek longer term solutions at a migration summit in Mexico on Sunday.For many undertaking the dangerous journey north, like M...

Cleveland museum sues to stop seizure of statue believed to depict Marcus Aurelius

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:24 GMT

CLEVELAND (AP) — The Cleveland Museum of Art has sued New York City authorities over their seizure of a headless bronze statue believed to depict the Roman emperor and philosopher Marcus Aurelius.A warrant signed by a judge in Manhattan on Aug. 14 ordered the seizure of the statue, which the museum acquired in 1986 and had been a highlight of its collection of ancient Roman art. The museum argues in its suit that the statue was lawfully obtained and that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office has no legal authority to seize it.The warrant was secured as part of an ongoing investigation into a smuggling network involving antiquities looted from Bubon in southwestern Turkey and trafficked through Manhattan, a spokesperson for Bragg has said. The 76-inch (1.9-meter) statue dates from A.D. 180 to 200 and is worth $20 million, according to the district attorney’s office. The suit filed Thursday asks a judge to declare that the museum is the rightful owner of the statue, which i...

Jordan seeks Speakership in third floor vote; He's expected to fall short: Live coverage

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:24 GMT

GOP Speaker nominee Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) on Friday said he would try again to break the two-week-long Speaker stalemate that has plunged the chamber into chaos.“Our plan this weekend is to get a Speaker elected to the House of Representatives as soon as possible so we can help the American people," Jordan said when asked what his plan is for the weekend.The Ohio Republican scrapped plans to hold a third vote on his bid Thursday after opponents came out of a meeting saying they would maintain their resistance to him and at least two lawmakers who voted for him previously said they would switch their votes.Jordan lost 20 and 22 Republican votes on the first two ballots, respectively.The Republican conference on Thursday also swatted down a proposal to temporarily empower Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.), which was viewed by many as a last-ditch way to resume business in the House as the Speaker race continues behind the scenes.The House is scheduled to reconvene a...

Gun safes recalled nationwide from Naperville company

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:12:24 GMT

WASHINGTON — A nationwide recall of gun safes has been issued originating from a company in Naperville.The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Fortress Safe, based in Naperville, announced Thursday that nine models of gun safes have been recalled.The reason is due to 39 incidents of consumers reporting that their safes have been accessed by unpaired fingerprints. A recent lawsuit was filed alleging a 12-year-old boy died from a firearm obtained from a safe.Consumers can believe they have properly programmed the biometric feature when in fact the safe remains in the default to open mode.Consumers should immediately stop using the biometric feature, remove the batteries from the safe, and only use the key for the recalled safes being used to store firearms, according to the recall.The following models are affected.11B20Fortress Portable Safe with Biometric Lock44B10Fortress Personal Safe with Pop up door and Biometric Lock44B10LLegend Range & Field Personal Safe with Pop u...