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Schools near a Maui wildfire burn zone are reopening. Parents wrestle with whether to send kids back

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:15:51 GMT

LAHAINA, Hawaii (AP) — Children take their places at folding tables on a church patio several miles from where their school burned down. Plastic tubs hold brand new textbooks quickly shipped from a publisher. Recess is on the resort golf course across the street.The wind-driven wildfire that leveled the historic Maui town of Lahaina this summer displaced many pupils not just from their homes, but from their schools, forcing their families and education officials to scramble to find other ways to teach them.Now, more than two months after the Aug. 8 wildfire killed at least 98 people, the three public schools that survived are set to reopen this week, posing an emotional crossroads for traumatized children and their families as they decide whether to go back to those campuses or continue at the other schools that took them in.Some parents said they won’t send their children back because they worry the fire left toxins behind, despite assurances from education officials that the campu...

Azerbaijanis who fled a separatist region decades ago ache to return, but it could be a long wait

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:15:51 GMT

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — As a young man starting out as a dentist, Nazim Valiyev was forced to flee his home as ethnic violence roiled a separatist region inside Azerbaijan. More than three decades later, with his medical career over after a stroke, the 60-year-old hopes he can return there, now that it is back under Azerbaijani control.It could still be years, however, before he realizes his dream.Valiyev is among the estimated 700,000 Azerbaijanis who fled or were forced out of the region they call Karabakh amid violence that flared beginning in 1988 and then grew into an outright war.That conflict ended in 1994, with the territory under the control of ethnic Armenian forces supported by their neighboring country. A subsequent war in 2020 returned control of much of the area to Azerbaijan, and a lightning offensive last month forced the Armenian separatists to relinquish the rest of the region known elsewhere as Nagorno-Karabakh.Within days of the capitulation, ethnic Armenians str...

Ecuadorians electing new president, choosing between an heir to a banana empire and an attorney

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:15:51 GMT

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Frightened by unprecedented violence on the streets and within prisons, Ecuadorians have a universal demand for the president they will choose Sunday — safety.The runoff election in the South American country pits an heir to a banana empire, Daniel Noboa, and an attorney, Luisa González. Both have limited governing experience and will undoubtedly have their work cut out.The election comes as more Ecuadorians become victims of drug-related violence that erupted roughly three years ago and intensified in August, when a presidential candidate was assassinated in broad daylight. People continuously watch their backs and limit how often they leave home. The uneasiness even pushed Noboa to add a bulletproof vest to his daily outfit.Whoever wins with a simple majority of votes will govern for only 15 months, until May 2025, which is what remains of the presidency of Guillermo Lasso. He cut his term short when he dissolved the country’s National Assembly in May as ...

In Hamas’ horrific killings, Israeli trauma over the Holocaust resurfaces

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:15:51 GMT

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Women, children and older adults hiding in safe rooms gunned down mercilessly. Homes set ablaze with terrified residents still inside them. Children, some bound, forced into a room and slaughtered. Jews, helpless.For many Israelis and Jews around the world, the horrors committed by Hamas militants during their stunning onslaught on southern Israeli communities is triggering painful memories of a calamity of a far greater scale: the Holocaust. Long seen as a catastrophe so horrific nothing else should be compared to it, Israelis are now drawing direct parallels between the murder of 6 million Jews in Europe eight decades ago and their most recent tragedy, underscoring how traumatic the attack has been for a country that rose from the ashes of World War II and was created as a safe haven for Jews.“I have been strict about not using the word ‘Shoah’ in any context other than the Holocaust,” political commentator Ben Caspit wrote in the daily Maariv, referring to...

State Fair of Texas evacuated and 1 man arrested after shooting in Dallas injures 3 victims

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:15:51 GMT

DALLAS (AP) — Three people were injured Saturday night in a shooting resulting in the evacuation of the State Fair of Texas in Dallas, police said.Police responded to a report of a shooting in the fair’s food court at about 7:45 p.m., the Dallas Police Department said.Investigators determined one man shot at another man, resulting in three victims being shot and sustaining non-life-threatening injuries, police said. The conditions of the victims were not immediately known.A suspect, who was not immediately identified, ran from the scene but officers located and arrested him. A gun believed to have been used in the shooting also was found, police said.An earlier social media post by the Dallas police confirmed the park was being evacuated while the department investigated the shooting.State Fair of Texas also posted a social media notice confirming the evacuation and the police investigation into the shooting.Dallas City Council member Adam Bazaldua, whose district includes the...

The Loop Fantasy Football Update Week 6: Last-minute moves

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:15:51 GMT

UPDATE: 11:19 p.m. SaturdayThe fantasy news tonight is dwarfed by a couple of breaking news items concerning the local team in purple:1. Vikings star receiver Justin Jefferson is now expected to miss anywhere from four to six weeks, according to ESPN. We’re guessing that his absence might be extremely longer if the Vikings are out of contention in four to six weeks, which they very well may be.2. ESPN is also reporting that Kirk Cousins has no plans to waive his no trade clause, which actually might be worse news for the New York Jets than it is for Minnesota.In fantasy news, I’d argue the biggest news tonight is the ruling out of Jets cornerback Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner for Sunday’s game. This could mean a BIG day for Philly receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, as New York is already missing its other cornerback, D.J. Reeder.The only other big note tonight is that Chargers RB Austin Ekeler has been cleared to return after a three-week absence Monday night against Dallas. Still a mu...

Concert review: A distracted, slow-moving Luke Bryan phoned it in at the X

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:15:51 GMT

Has Luke Bryan peaked?Judging by his concert Saturday night at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center, it seems like a real possibility.Bryan, 47, is one of the most successful country acts of his generation and enjoyed a 28-song run of Top 10 singles, nearly all of which landed in the Top 5, with many topping the chart. He was the first musical act to play U.S. Bank Stadium when it opened in 2016 and he’s the only person to have headlined all three metro stadiums (USBS, Target Field and the former TCF Bank Stadium).Yet after playing the biggest stages in the metro, Bryan returned to the much-smaller Xcel Energy Center and drew a crowd roughly half the size of his 2018 Target Field show, with pockets of empty seats in the 200 section. In 2021, his single “Up” was his first in a dozen years to miss the Top 10 and his latest effort “But I Got a Beer in My Hand” also faltered at radio.To be sure, the guy is still popular. Nearly selling out the X is no small feat. But perhaps audien...

St. Louis-area activists condemn violence in Israel-Hamas conflict

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:15:51 GMT

ST. LOUIS - Regional activists from the National Campaign for Human Dignity gathered Saturday in St. Louis to address the Israeli-Hamas war.A group addressed the conflict during a news conference downtown on Spruce Street. They are calling on Israel to halt the bombing of Gaza and to end the blockage.But one of the spokesmen, Walle Amusa, also reserved some criticism for Hamas as well. St. Louis football coach shot by parent shares his comeback story "We believe that no amount of terrorism or justification for terrorism is acceptable," said Amusa. "We oppose Hamas killing innocent civilians in Israel we oppose the bombardment by the Israeli government of civilians in Gaza both acts of terrorism.” Elliott Davis responded with this question. "You would not classify what Israel’s reaction as terrorism in as much as they are responding to the Hamas attack? Amusa answered, "The Israelis did not start the attack by Hamas are innocent Israeli people and innocent civilians. Hamas started ...

Surviving the unprecedented: Family describes life amid Israel-Hamas conflict

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:15:51 GMT

TEL AVIV, Israel - As the war between Israel and Hamas continues to intensify, a family in Israel shares their daily struggles a week after the surprise attack.Uri Shafir lives in Tel Aviv with his wife and their three kids. Each day brings new dangers as rockets are raining down all over Israel."We just got a notice, 'Enter your protected room and shelter now.' So we'll do that," Shafir said.Before they had to leave for their safety, we talked extensively about the terror they've been experiencing day in and day out. St. Louis football coach shot by parent shares his comeback story "Everybody knows somebody that was either killed or kidnapped," he explained. "My neighbor downstairs, her grandmother got shot in the stomach while she was rescued from her shelter in Kibbutz Saturday morning. She's still very in a tough condition."The massive attack carried out by Hamas militants came a day after Israel marked the 50th anniversary of the surprise invasion on Yom Kippur. It caught peo...

Rapids Takeaways: Rafael Navarro scores first goal for Colorado in tie vs. FC Dallas

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:15:51 GMT

The Colorado Rapids had MLS Cup hopefuls FC Dallas on the ropes in the penultimate game of the 2023 campaign.At full time, the Texans will still be holding on to dear life heading into Decision Day as they barely sit above the playoff line, while the already eliminated Rapids felt they should’ve taken all three points on the road in a 1-1 tie.Here are three takeaways from the draw down in Frisco, Texas.Navarro scores first goal for ColoradoBrazilian designated player Rafael Navarro at last got off the schneid, scoring his first goal for the Rapids. Navarro, 23, signed a year-long loan from Palmeiras in July and could be a record transfer fee next summer. In the 25th minute, Navarro took matters into his own hands as he was first to a Cole Bassett free kick, which bounced down off the crossbar and right into the Brazilian’s path as he stabbed it home to make it 1-0.Go crazy, Burgundy and Blue fans. The DP No. 9, Rafael Navarro, on loan from Palmeiras until 2024, has his f...