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UN urges Afghanistan’s Taliban to end floggings, executions

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:02:53 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A U.N. report on Monday strongly criticized the Taliban for carrying out public executions, lashings and stonings since seizing power in Afghanistan, and called on the country’s rulers to halt such practices.In the past six months alone, 274 men, 58 women and two boys were publicly flogged in Afghanistan, according to a report by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, or UNAMA.“Corporal punishment is a violation of the Convention against Torture and must cease,” said Fiona Frazer, the agency’s human rights chief. She also called for an immediate moratorium on executions.The Taliban foreign ministry said in response that Afghanistan’s laws are determined in accordance with Islamic rules and guidelines, and that an overwhelming majority of Afghans follow those rules.“In the event of a conflict between international human rights law and Islamic law, the government is obliged to follow the Islamic law,” the ministry said in a statement.The Tal...

Pakistan, Afghan Taliban agree to boost trade, lower tension

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:02:53 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan and Afghanistan’s Taliban-appointed government have agreed to boost trade and lower tensions along their border amid a surge in militant attacks on security forces, officials said Monday. Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Afghanistan’s Taliban-appointed foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, struck the deal Sunday in Islamabad, according to Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry. The agreement is designed to improve bilateral trade, combat terrorism and boost bilateral ties.Earlier, Bhutto Zardari and Muttaqi also held talks with China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang, a departure from recent years when such dialogue had been on hold, according to analysts, who say China is expanding its influence in the region. China also has played a role in the resumption of Saudi-Iran diplomatic ties. In Pakistan, Beijing is bankrolling the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, or CPEC — a sprawling package that includes such projects as road a...

Yoon, Kishida vow better Seoul-Tokyo ties following summit

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:02:53 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Monday called for officials to map out specific steps to hasten security and economic cooperation with Japan following his weekend summit in Seoul with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Kishida during Sunday’s meeting expressed sympathy toward Koreans forced into industrial slavery during Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula as the leaders vowed to overcome historical grievances and strengthen cooperation in the face of the North Korean nuclear threat and other challenges.The summit, which was the second meeting between the leaders in less than two months, drew a mixed reaction in South Korea. Critics, including Yoon’s liberal opponents who control majority in the National Assembly, said Kishida’s comments fell short of a meaningful apology and accused Yoon of letting Japan off the hook over its past aggressions while pushing to repair bilateral ties. Others saw the summit as a sign that the two ...

Fire deep in gold mine in southern Peru kills 27 workers

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:02:53 GMT

LIMA, Peru (AP) — A fire broke out deep in a gold mine in southern Peru and killed at least 27 workers during an overnight shift, Peruvian authorities reported.The Yanaquihua mining company said in a statement that 175 workers had been safely evacuated after the accident, which happened late Friday or early Saturday. It said the 27 dead worked for a contractor that specializes in mining.Government officials said the cause of the fire was under investigation. Some news reports said preliminary investigations indicated an explosion might have been set off by a short circuit in a part of the mine about 100 meters (330 feet) below the surface.Relatives of the victims were brought by buses to the mine in Yanaquihua in the Arequipa region, where they were briefed by security agents. Some sat in front of posters at the entrance to the mine to wait for the bodies of their loved ones.Marcelina Aguirre said her husband was among the dead. She said he had told her there were risks at the mine....

Teacher appreciation? Try better pay, more governors say

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:02:53 GMT

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — As schools across the country struggle to find teachers to hire, more governors are pushing for pay increases, bonuses and other perks for the beleaguered profession — with some vowing to beat out other states competing for educators.Already in 2023, governors in Georgia and Arkansas have pushed through teacher pay increases. Ahead of Monday’s start of national Teacher Appreciation Week, others — both Republican and Democratic — have proposed doing the same to attract and retain educators.More than half of the states’ governors over the past year — 26 so far — have proposed boosting teacher compensation, according to groups that track it. The nonprofit Teacher Salary Project said it is the most it has seen in nearly two decades of tracking.“Today we have governors left and right from every political party and then some who are addressing this issue because they have to,” said founder and CEO Ninivé Caligari. “We’ve never seen what we are seeing right now. Neve...

Why so many mass killings? Families, experts seek answers

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:02:53 GMT

More than five years after his son was gunned down in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, Richard Berger still asks why.Why Stephen Berger was killed the day after celebrating his 44th birthday. Why the gunman rained bullets over the Las Vegas Strip in 2017, turning a country music festival into a bloodbath. Why the massacre’s death toll didn’t shock U.S. leaders into doing more to prevent that kind of violence from happening again and again.Why?“It’s just a hole in our hearts,” Berger said. “We just don’t know, and we just don’t know what to say.”For the Bergers, the families of the other 59 victims in Vegas — and relatives and friends of countless others slain in mass killings across the country in the years since — the questions loom just as large now as when the crimes happened. Yet the carnage continues.Over the first four months and six days of this year, 115 people have died in 22 mass killings — an average of one mass killing a week. That includes the bloodsh...

Five injured in weekend Redwood City shooting

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:02:53 GMT

REDWOOD CITY — Five people were hospitalized for treatment of serious injuries after a weekend shooting, and police were seeking a single suspect, authorities said.In a statement Sunday evening, police said they responded to the shooting around 4:30 a.m. in the 400 block of Redwood Avenue in the city’s Palm Park neighborhood.After officers arrived, they learned that a male suspect walked up to a group of people drinking on a sidewalk before firing a 9mm handgun.Four men and a 16-year-old boy were hit by gunfire, and first responders took them to an area hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. Their conditions were not immediately available late Sunday.Police said there have been no arrests, and did not share any description of a suspect or associated vehicle.Anyone with information may call Redwood City police Det. James Schneider at 650-780-7607 or call the department tip line at 650-780-7110.Contact George Kelly at 408-859-5180.

Oakland teachers strike will continue Monday, district says

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:02:53 GMT

(BCN) -- The Oakland Unified School District announced at 6:43 p.m. Sunday it did not reach a contract agreement with teachers and the Oakland Education Association (OEA) will continue its strike Monday. The district said "As was the case the first two days of OEA's strike, schools will remain open but it will not be school as usual. Nutrition services will still be provided as will other needed support for students and families. 5 injured after early morning shooting in Redwood City We regret the continued challenges this causes for our community." The strike involves about 3,000 teachers and other employees and affects about 35,000 students. Teachers and their supporters picketed at about 80 schools across the district Thursday and Friday. Teachers represented by OEA are striking over wages and issues such as safety and racial justice, for which they want concessions in any contract. District officials say they are prioritizing wages in contract negotiations because they wa...

Mark Zuckerberg wins medals in Bay Area jiu-jitsu tournament

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:02:53 GMT

(KRON) -- You probably didn't know this. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg competes locally in jiu-jitsu, a form of martial arts from Japan.Zuckerberg won multiple medals at a jiu-jitsu tournament in the Bay Area, the Facebook CEO posted Saturday on social media. He included silver and gold medal emojis in the post's caption. Curry cracks Forbes’ list of highest-paid athletes for second straight year The tournament, which was Zuckerberg's first, took place at Woodside High School in Woodside, just north of Silicon Valley. Zuckerberg competed for the Guerrilla Jiu-Jitsu team -- a gym with Bay Area locations in San Jose and Pleasanton.Zuckerberg's medal-winning performance caught the eye of a number of star UFC fighters. Current champions Israel Adesanya and Alexander Volkanovski congratulated Zuckerberg in the comments section of the tech tycoon's Instagram."When the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world gives you shorts, you wear them!" Zuckerberg replied to Volkanovski's comment...

Reportan más de 50 muertos y 23.000 desplazados por la violencia étnica en Manipur, India

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:02:53 GMT

Nueva Dehli (CNN) — La violencia étnica en el estado de Manipur, India, ha causado más de 50 muertos, cientos de hospitalizados y 23.000 desplazados, según funcionarios hospitalarios y el ejército indio.Al menos 55 personas han muerto y otras 260 han sido hospitalizadas desde que estalló la violencia entre miembros de las etnias kuki y meitei a principios de esta semana, según informaron el domingo responsables hospitalarios de la ciudad de Imphal.El ejército indio, por su parte, declaró que 23.000 civiles habían huido de los combates, y que los desplazados estaban alojados en bases y guarniciones militares del estado.Los dos grupos étnicos se han enfrentado en las calles de Imphal, en el este de la India, y en otros lugares.ANÁLISIS | Una controvertida caricatura sobre India reabre las viejas heridas del que ahora es el país más poblado del mundoLas heridas de bala son las más comunes, según los funcionarios de los hospitales de Imphal, el Instituto Regional de Ciencias Médic...