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North Korean missile launch ‘risks destabilizing’ the region, White House says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:43 GMT

White House officials condemned North Korea for launching an intercontinental ballistic missile on Wednesday, saying it “needlessly raises tensions” and “risks destabilizing” the region.Pyongyang test-fired its first ICBM in three months days after it threatened “shocking” consequences because of Washington’s military presence along the peninsula. The missile flew about 620 miles before landing in the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan, South Korean and Japanese officials said.“The United States strongly condemns the DPRK for its test of a long-range ballistic missile,” National Security Council spokesperson Adam Hodge said in a statement, using an abbreviated name for North Korea. “This action demonstrates that the DPRK continues to prioritize its unlawful weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs over the well-being of its people.”North Korea has long lambasted the U.S. for its military ties with South Korea, deploying dozens of rockets over the past ye...

UK delays ‘Great British Nuclear’ launch

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:43 GMT

The U.K. government has delayed the official launch of a major arms-length body intended to support the country’s nuclear industry.Energy Secretary Grant Shapps had been due to give a heavily-trailed speech at London’s Science Museum on Thursday, setting out his plans for Great British Nuclear and its role helping the U.K. hit its net zero goals.But in an email to attendees, seen by POLITICO, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) confirmed the event was being rescheduled “due to unforeseen circumstances.”Shapps was expected to use his speech to outline the next phase of a planned competition for manufacturing firms — including Rolls Royce and GE Hitachi — vying to develop small modular reactors (SMRs). The government hopes the new technology will provide cheaper, more flexible atomic power to help the U.K. hit its target of 24 gigawatts of nuclear generation by 2050.The reasons for the cancellation were not immediately clear. One government official, granted a...

No jackpot winner in Tuesday’s Mega Millions drawing, new jackpot is estimated at $560 million

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:43 GMT

(CNN) — There was no jackpot winner in Tuesday night’s Mega Millions drawing according to the lottery’s website, prompting another drawing scheduled for Friday at 11 p.m. ET.The estimated jackpot is up to $560 million, Mega Millions said.There were at least three ‘Match 5’ winners from Tuesday’s drawing, with one in California, one in South Dakota and one in Wisconsin. The Match 5 winners each won $1 million, the Mega Millions website said.The Mega Millions jackpot is one of two substantial lottery prizes on offer this week.The next drawing for the Powerball grand prize jackpot, estimated at $725 million, is scheduled for Wednesday at 11 p.m. ET, according to its website.It’s the seventh largest Powerball jackpot, according to lottery officials. There were no jackpot winners after Monday’s Powerball drawing.There have now been 35 consecutive Powerball drawings without a big winner.

Dangerous pregnancy outcomes doubled in Mass. over the last decade, DPH says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:43 GMT

Despite the state boasting world renowned medical care availability and nation leading rates of health insurance coverage, Massachusetts is still struggling to combat some seriously dangerous medical outcomes associated with being pregnant and having a child.According to a new report released by the Department of Public Health, the rate of maternal morbidity among pregnant patients in Massachusetts has soared in the last decade, especially among the state’s most vulnerable populations.“The data show that the rate of severe maternal morbidity for all birthing people in the state nearly doubled during (a) ten year period,” DPH Commissioner Dr. Robert Goldstein told reporters. “The most troubling finding was that for Black, non-Hispanic birthing people the rate of severe maternal morbidity in 2011 was twice that of white non-Hispanic birthing people. But by 2020 it was two-and-a-half times higher.”The report, An Assessment of Severe Maternal Morbidity in Massachusetts: 2011 to 2020, ex...

Music streams top 1 trillion at the fastest pace yet, reflecting more global industry, report finds

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:43 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Is non-English language music the future of the music business? Perhaps.The global music industry surpassed 1 trillion streams at the fastest pace, ever, in a calendar year, Luminate’s 2023 Midyear Report has found. The number was reached in three months, a full month faster than 2022. Global streams are also up 30.8% from last year, reflective of an increasingly international music marketplace.Additionally, Luminate found that two in five — or 40% — of U.S. music listeners enjoy music in a non-English language. And a whopping 69% of U.S. music listeners enjoy music from artists originating outside of the U.S.According to the report, Spanish, French, Japanese, Korean, Italian, German, and Arabic are the most popular languages for non-Anglophonic music among U.S. music listeners, with Latin genres and K-pop leading the charge.“Specifically, our streaming data shows that Spanish and Korean language music are the most popular when taking a look at the top 10,00...

Fidelity signs private real estate investment deal with Brookfield Asset Management

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:43 GMT

TORONTO — Fidelity Investments Canada ULC has signed a deal that will offer investors exposure to private real estate investments through Brookfield Asset Management.Under the agreement, Brookfield Asset Management will invest in and manage a portfolio of Canadian real estate assets on behalf of Fidelity.The company says it plans to allocate the portfolio to a number of Fidelity private investment pools and is exploring other opportunities.Fidelity says the agreement with Brookfield will allow it to continue to grow its alternative investment offerings and broaden its overall investment capabilities. Fidelity Canada president Andrew Wells says the move adds another tool to its tool box as it plans to expand its offerings and build a new private real estate market portfolio.Brookfield Asset Management has more than $825 billion of assets under management including renewable power and transition infrastructure, private equity, real estate, and credit. This report by The Canadian Press...

Aryna Sabalenka reaches Wimbledon semifinals. Queen Camilla sits in Royal Box

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:43 GMT

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Aryna Sabalenka reached the semifinals at Wimbledon for the second straight time, with a one-year break in between because she was banned from the tournament in 2022.Sabalenka, a Belarusian who is seeded second at the All England Club, had to sit out last year’s competition along with other players from her country and from Russia because of the war in Ukraine. She advanced Wednesday by beating Madison Keys 6-2, 6-4 on No. 1 Court.“It really feels amazing to be back in the semifinals. I can’t wait to play in my second semifinal at Wimbledon,” said Sabalenka, who lost to runner-up Karolina Pliskova in 2021. “Hopefully I can do better than I did last time.”The victory improved Sabalenka’s record to 17-1 at major tournaments this year. She won the Australian Open and reached the semifinals at the French Open before her five wins so far on the grass at Wimbledon.Sabalenka also improved her record to 6-0 in Grand Slam quarterfinal matches, and she di...

Stop attacks against interim AFN chief, New Brunswick leader implores at assembly

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:43 GMT

HALIFAX — A First Nations leader from New Brunswick is imploring others to help stop social-media attacks targeting the new interim chief of the Assembly of First Nations.Terry Richardson, chief of Pabineau First Nation in northern New Brunswick, addressed leaders gathered in Halifax today for the assembly’s annual meeting, held weeks after the ousting of former national chief RoseAnne Archibald. Archibald attended the three-day meeting virtually on Tuesday and was eventually barred from participating after pleading with chiefs to challenge the organization’s leadership, whom she accused of orchestrating her removal. Joanna Bernard, a regional chief from New Brunswick tapped to serve temporarily as interim national chief, told leaders the decision to remove Archibald was “not taken lightly,” and acknowledged it has thrown the assembly into a period of transition. Richardson requested today that chiefs reach out to their members to stop social media attacks ag...

Raging conflict in Sudan displaces around 3.1 million people, UN says

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:43 GMT

CAIRO (AP) — A raging conflict in Sudan has driven around 3.1 million people from their homes, including more than 700,000 who fled to neighboring countries, the United Nations said Wednesday, amid growing concerns that the country is sliding into a “full-scale civil war.”Sudan has plunged into chaos since mid-April when monthslong tensions between the military and its rival, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, exploded into open fighting in the capital, Khartoum, and elsewhere across the northeastern African nation.The conflict derailed Sudanese hopes of restoring the country’s fragile transition to democracy, which had begun after a popular uprising forced the military’s removal of longtime dictator Omar al-Bashir in April 2019. A coup, led by the military and RSF, disrupted the democratic transition in October 2021.More than 2.4 million people have fled their homes to safer areas inside the country, according to the International Organization for Migration. Around 738,000 othe...

Prosecutors rest sexual assault case against Kevin Spacey in London court

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:43 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Prosecutors rested their sexual assault case against Kevin Spacey in a London courtroom Wednesday after four men testified in the past two weeks that the Oscar winner preyed on them. Prosecutors read jurors statements Spacey gave investigators denying that he aggressively grabbed three men by the crotch and performed a nonconsensual sex act on a fourth. The defense is scheduled to begin presenting its case Thursday in Southwark Crown Court. The stakes are high, with Spacey facing a possible prison term if convicted. The 63-year-old American actor has pleaded not guilty to 12 charges that include sexual and indecent assault counts and one count of causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent. The allegations date from 2001 to 2013 when Spacey was working at the Old Vic Theatre. None of the alleged victims knew each other but each testified that they went to police after Spacey was accused of sexual misconduct in the U.S. in 2017 as the #MeTo...