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Photos: Wet winter gives way to colorful ‘Superbloom’ in US West

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:58:52 GMT

By JULIE WATSON | Associated PressThe tiny rain-fed wildflowers, no bigger than a few inches, are so vivid and abundant across California this year that their hues of purple and yellow look like paint swatches from space.From the mist-shrouded San Francisco Bay Area to the Mexican border and across the deserts of Arizona, there are flashes of color popping up after an unusually wet winter helped produce a so-called “ Superbloom.”A series of powerful storms dumped record amounts of rain and snow across California, replenishing reservoirs, bringing an end — mostly — to the state’s three-year drought, and setting prime conditions for millions of dormant seeds to sprout. Botanists say wildflowers are expected to be blooming well into May, with some areas just starting.“One of the things unique about this year is how incredibly widespread it is,” said Naomi Fraga, director of conservation programs at the California Botanic Garden. “It’s pretty spectacular.”Superblooms often follow wet wi...

Man wore armor in Northern California hostage killing, report says

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:58:52 GMT

ROSEVILLE  — The suspect in a Northern California shooting last week was wearing body-armor vest when he took two hostages in a public park, killing one, wounding the other and opening fire at California Highway Patrol officers, authorities said.The CHP officers approached suspect Eric Abril on April 6 near Mahany Park in Roseville, northeast of Sacramento, authorities said. He was wanted for questioning in connection with a freeway shooting.But the situation turned violent. The officers confronted Abril — in a park where families played nearby at baseball fields and children attended camp — and he took two hostages in response and opened fire, prompting a gun battle that became deadly, authorities said.Investigators are “confident” that Abril fatally shot James MacEgan and wounded his wife, Patricia MacEgan, according to Roseville police and court documents filed by the Placer County District Attorney’s Office.The criminal complaint filed against Abril says Officer Matthew Hiatt wa...

US Coast Guard, Mexican officials search for 3 American sailors last heard from 11 days ago

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:58:52 GMT

By Melissa Alonso | CNNThe US Coast Guard is assisting Mexican navy crews in the search for three American sailors, last heard from on April 4 near Mazatlán, Mexico, according to a Coast Guard news release.Kerry O’Brien, Frank O’Brien and William Gross are all “experienced sailors,” according to a joint statement from their families. They were aboard the Ocean Bound, a 44-foot La Fitte sailing vessel, when they left the Mexican city of Mazatlán en route to San Diego, the Coast Guard said.“The sailors planned to stop in Cabo San Lucas on April 6 for provisions and to report in before continuing on to San Diego,” the news release said.“However, there was no record of them arriving in Cabo San Lucas or a report in of their location.”Rescue coordinators have contacted marinas throughout Baja, Mexico, but there have been no sightings of the vessel, the news release said.“Urgent marine information broadcasts have been issued over VHF r...

Top Kremlin critic convicted of treason, given 25 years

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:58:52 GMT

A Russian court convicted a top opposition activist of treason on Monday for publicly denouncing Moscow’s war in Ukraine and sentenced him to 25 years in prison. It was the latest move in the Kremlin’s relentless crackdown on anyone who dares to criticize the invasion.Vladimir Kara-Murza, Jr., an activist and journalist who twice survived poisonings he blamed on the Kremlin, has rejected the charges against him as punishment for standing up to Russian President Vladimir Putin and likened the proceedings to the show trials during the rule of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin. Human rights organizations and Western governments denounced the verdict, and Amnesty International declared the 41-year-old a prisoner of conscience.The charges against Kara-Murza, who has been behind bars since his arrest a year ago, stem from a March 2022 speech to the Arizona House of Representatives in which he denounced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and other speeches abroad.Days after that invasion, the country...

Rebeldes que tienen como rehén a piloto de Nueva Zelandia afirman que han matado al menos a 13 soldados indonesios

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:58:52 GMT

(CNN) — Rebeldes separatistas en la región de Papúa en Indonesia dicen que han matado al menos a 13 soldados militares indonesios después de que el ejército envió tropas en busca del piloto capturado de Nueva Zelandia, Phillip Mehrtens, quien fue tomado como rehén en febrero.El Ejército de Liberación Nacional de Papúa Occidental (TPNPB) dijo que sus soldados atacaron dos puestos militares indonesios en los distritos de Yal y Mugi en Nduga Regency durante el fin de semana, según un comunicado.El documento dice que los rebeldes mataron a tiros a 13 militares y policías indonesios en el distrito de Mugi. El ejército indonesio había evacuado un cuerpo, pero los rebeldes todavía estaban en posesión de 12 cuerpos, agregó el comunicado, sin proporcionar pruebas.En una conferencia de prensa televisada este domingo, el ejército de Indonesia dijo que uno de sus soldados había muerto mientras peinaba el área cerca de donde se cree que se encuentra detenido Mehrtens.Algunos soldados estab...

La Fiscalía de Los Ángeles examina las acusaciones de agresión sexual contra el actor Armie Hammer

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:58:52 GMT

(CNN) — La Fiscalía de Los Ángeles está revisando las denuncias de agresión sexual presentadas contra el actor Armie Hammer, según pudo saber CNN.“Puedo confirmar que la Policía de Los Ángeles ha presentado un caso relacionado con Armie Hammer a la LADA. El asunto está actualmente bajo revisión”, dijo CNN la directora de comunicaciones de la oficina, Tiffiny Blacknell.CNN se puso en contacto con Hammer para que haga comentarios.Hammer ha negado anteriormente las acusaciones de violación y, en una entrevista concedida a Airmail en febrero, declaró: “Llevaba un estilo de vida muy intenso y extremo, y recogía a estas mujeres, las metía en él –en este torbellino de viajes y sexo y drogas y grandes emociones volando por todas partes– y luego, en cuanto terminaba, las dejaba y pasaba a la siguiente mujer, dejando a esa mujer sintiéndose abandonada o utilizada”.Aunque el portavoz del fiscal del distrito no especificó la identidad de la denunciante o denunciant...

National Guard member accused of applying to work as hitman on website

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:58:52 GMT

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A National Guard member in Tennessee who is accused of sending his resume to a website called Rent-A-Hitman is facing federal charges.According to a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, Josiah Ernesto Garcia, 21, of Hermitage, is believed to have submitted an inquiry to the website on Feb. 16 indicating he was interested in working as a hired killer. The website was originally created in 2005 to advertise a cyber security startup company, but the company never took off, and over the next decade, it reportedly received many inquiries about murder-for-hire services. 2 dead, 4 injured in Louisville shooting days after mass shooting at bank The website's administrator then converted the website to a parody site that contains false testimonials from those who have claimed to use hitman services, an intake form where people can request services and an option to apply to be a hired killer. One of the fake tes...

McDonald’s is upgrading its burgers

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:58:52 GMT

(CNN) — McDonald’s, which has been focusing on upgrading its core items to boost sales, is rolling out a series of changes designed to improve its signature burgers.Buns will be softer. Cheese, gooier. Onion will be added to patties right on the grill. And the Big Mac sauce? There will be more of it.“We found that small changes, like tweaking our process to get hotter, meltier cheese and adjusting our grill settings for a better sear, added up to a big difference in making our burgers more flavorful than ever,” said chef Chad Schafer, senior director of culinary innovation of McDonald’s USA, in a statement Monday. The upgrades apply to the Big Mac and the McDouble burger as well as the classic cheeseburger, double cheeseburger and hamburger.The improvements were first made to burgers in international markets, the company said, and have already arrived in some US cities, including Los Angeles, Seattle, Phoenix, Las Vegas. They’ll be available natio...

Macron’s China remarks are a ‘disaster’ for Europe, EU conservative leader says

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:58:52 GMT

European People’s Party chief Manfred Weber took a jab at French President Emmanuel Macron’s controversial comments on China, the U.S. and Taiwan, saying they highlighted the bloc’s lack of a common China policy.“Macron’s interview has been a disaster, and made clear the great rift within the European Union in defining a common strategic plan against Beijing,” Weber said in an interview published Monday with Italian daily Corriere della Sera.Weber called on European leaders to “find an agreement” on China during the next European Council in June. Macron triggered outrage among Western allies after a recent interview with POLITICO, in which he said that Europe should steer clear of becoming a follower of the U.S.’s China policy — including on Taiwan. China claims the self-governing island as part of its own territory. “The question Europeans need to answer … is it in our interest to accelerate [a crisis] on Taiwan? No,” said...

Rishi Sunak facing ethics probe over declaration of interests

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:58:52 GMT

LONDON — The U.K. parliament’s standards watchdog has launched an investigation into whether Rishi Sunak broke the code of conduct for MPs by failing to declare a relevant interest. The standards commissioner’s investigation does not detail the specific interest under investigation, but the prime minister has recently faced questions over his wife Akshata Murty’s stake in childcare business Koru Kids following a £4bn boost for the sector in last month’s Budget. Sunak wrote to the House of Commons liaison committee earlier this month saying his interest in the firm had been declared in the yet-to-be-published list of ministerial interests. It is not currently listed in the separate register of interests filled out by each MP. In the letter, written on 4 April, Sunak noted “media interest” in his wife’s “minority stake” in the firm, adding: “I would like to clarify for the parliamentary record that this interest has ...