Transcontinental Inc. Announces Results for the Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2024The Los Angeles Kings look to match their longest winning streak in over three years when they visit the New Jersey Devils on Thursday night in Newark, N.J. The Kings extended their run of good fortune to six games on Tuesday when they opened a seven-game road trip -- matching a season high -- with a 3-1 triumph over the New York Islanders. A victory on Thursday would allow Los Angeles to claim a seven-game run for the first time since Oct. 30-Nov. 11, 2021. Adrian Kempe converted a feed from captain Anze Kopitar to open the scoring for the second consecutive contest on Tuesday. Kempe has scored nine of his team-leading 14 goals over his last 11 games. Kopitar, who is riding a four-game point streak (one goal, four assists), boasts club-best totals in assists (24) and points (32). "We've played together enough to where he knows what I'm going to do and I've got a pretty good idea with where he's going to be and how he's going to react in certain situations," Kopitar said of Kempe. "So, yeah, I mean, the chemistry has been there and, hopefully, we can keep it going." The addition of Trevor Moore hasn't slowed the line one bit. Moore, in fact, has three goals and two assists over his last four games. "The last few games, (our line) has been going pretty good," Kopitar said. "It always takes a few games to get adjusted, with Trevor coming in on the line and Adrian (Kempe) and me making sure we know where he's going to be. Right now, it seems like the plays are clicking." The fast start was quite the sight for Kings head coach Jim Hiller, who admitted he wasn't sure what he'd see from his team as it started the lengthy road trip. "You know, you're not sure how you're going to come out. We flew all the way out here, all that kind of stuff, and (the first) was probably one of our best periods of the year," Hiller said. New Jersey won 13 of 18 games before dropping back-to-back contests at home this week. The Devils were shut out for the fifth time this season in a 4-0 setback to the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday. They dropped a 2-1 overtime decision to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night. Jesper Bratt boosted his team-leading totals in assists (25) and points (38) after setting up Ondrej Palat's goal in the first period. Bratt has 10 points (three goals, seven assists) over his past six games. New Jersey carried the majority of play and held a decisive 39-17 edge in shots in what turned out to be a deflating loss. "It's a great game by our guys and they deserved a lot more than one point," goaltender Jacob Markstrom said. "I thought we lost one point (on Tuesday). You don't build off losses, you build off wins, so that's a sour one." The Devils will conclude their five-game homestand on Saturday afternoon against the Chicago Blackhawks. --Field Level Media

EU raises cash offer to poor nations in climate talks

Ed Sheeran has apologised to Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim for interrupting him during a live TV interview. The 33-year-old pop star interrupted Amorim's interview with Sky Sports after Ipswich Town's 1-1 draw with United on Sunday (24.11.24). - but Ed has now taken to social media to issue an apology, explaining that he just wanted to greet Sky pundit Jamie Redknapp and that he didn't realise he was even on the air. Ed - who is a minority shareholder of Ipswich - wrote on Instagram: "Apologies if I offended Amorim yesterday, didn’t realise he was actually being interviewed at the time, was popping to say hi and bye to Jamie. Obz feel a bit of a b****** but life goes on. Great game though, congrats to all involved x (sic)" Ed bought his minority stake in the English soccer team earlier this year. The pop star - who is a life-long fan of the team - has sponsored Ipswich since 2021, and he agreed a deal to acquire a 1.4 percent stake in the club. He said in a statement at the time: "I am really excited to have bought a small percentage of my hometown football club. "It’s any football fan’s dream to be an owner of the club they support, and I feel so grateful for this opportunity." Ed also revealed that he was looking forward to seeing his beloved team back in the Premier League league, after they achieved promotion to the top division. He shared: "It’s such a joy to be a fan of Ipswich Town. There are ups and downs but football is all about taking the highs and the lows. "I’m not a voting shareholder or a board member, this is just me putting some money into the club I love and them returning the gesture, so please don’t get onto me with signing suggestions or tactics to play!"

Littelfuse, Inc. (NASDAQ:LFUS) Stock Holdings Decreased by Mutual of America Capital Management LLCTRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — Libyan military officials said Monday they apprehended hundreds of migrants traversing the country’s vast desert hoping to ultimately cross the Mediterranean Sea in pursuit of a better life in Europe. The 444 Brigade, a powerful militia group that operates under the auspices of the Libyan army, said in a statement that its patrolling commanders detained more than 300 migrants and referred them to authorities. The group in a post on Facebook condemned smuggling and human trafficking and said its patrols would continue efforts to block smuggling routes. It posted satellite images of the desert and pictures of what appeared to be migrants sitting in rows in front of armed and masked militants. The apprehensions come as Libya remains a primary point of departure for men, women and children from the Middle East and Africa aiming to reach Europe. Many are escaping war or poverty and many employ smugglers to help them negotiate treacherous deserts and sea routes. Roughly 38,000 people have arrived in Italy and Malta from Libya this year, according to UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency. The overcrowded boats used by migrants and smugglers are known to routinely capsize and a key priority for European leaders has been to encourage North African countries to prevent migrants from reaching the sea. But unlike in Morocco and Tunisia — where tens of thousands of migrants also attempt to pass through en route to the southern shores of Europe — fighting between rival governments in Libya has added additional challenges to migration management partnerships. Migrant apprehensions are rarely reported in Libya, though the country’s state news service LANA reported more than 2,000 arrests in July. plunged into turmoil after a NATO-backed uprising toppled longtime dictator Moammar Gadhafi. Since then, the country has been divided between dueling governments in the east and west, each backed by militias and foreign powers. Human traffickers have for years benefited from the political chaos. United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in July said migrants in the country had been subjected to torture, forced labor and starvation while being detained.Germany is to vote in an early election on February 23 after Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s three-party governing coalition collapsed last month in a dispute over how to revitalise the country’s stagnant economy. Mr Musk’s guest opinion piece for Welt am Sonntag – a sister publication of Politico owned by the Axel Springer Group – published in German over the weekend, was the second time this month that he has supported the Alternative for Germany, or AfD. “The Alternative for Germany (AfD) is the last spark of hope for this country,” he wrote in his translated commentary. He went on to say that the far-right party “can lead the country into a future where economic prosperity, cultural integrity and technological innovation are not just wishes, but reality”. The Tesla Motors chief executive also wrote that his investment in Germany gives him the right to comment on the country’s condition. The AfD is polling strongly, but its candidate for the top job, Alice Weidel, has no realistic chance of becoming chancellor because other parties refuse to work with the far-right party. Billionaire Mr Musk, an ally of US President-elect Donald Trump, challenged in his opinion piece the party’s public image. “The portrayal of the AfD as right-wing extremist is clearly false, considering that Alice Weidel, the party’s leader, has a same-sex partner from Sri Lanka! Does that sound like Hitler to you? Please!” Mr Musk’s commentary has led to a debate in German media over the boundaries of free speech, with the paper’s own opinion editor announcing her resignation, pointedly on Mr Musk’s social media platform, X. Eva Marie Kogel wrote: “I always enjoyed leading the opinion section of WELT and WAMS. Today an article by Elon Musk appeared in Welt am Sonntag. I handed in my resignation yesterday after it went to print.” A critical article by the future editor-in-chief of the Welt group, Jan Philipp Burgard, accompanied Mr Musk’s opinion piece. “Musk’s diagnosis is correct, but his therapeutic approach, that only the AfD can save Germany, is fatally wrong,” he wrote. Responding to a request for comment from the German Press Agency, dpa, the current editor-in-chief of the Welt group, Ulf Poschardt, and Mr Burgard – who is due to take over on January 1 – said in a joint statement that the discussion over Mr Musk’s piece was “very insightful. Democracy and journalism thrive on freedom of expression.” “This will continue to determine the compass of the ‘world’ in the future. We will develop ‘Die Welt’ even more decisively as a forum for such debates,” they wrote to dpa.

Defense fund established by supporters of suspected CEO killer Luigi Mangione nears $200KSavings targets could cost 10,000 civil service jobs

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DALLAS (AP) — Juan Soto gets free use of a luxury suite and up to four premium tickets behind home plate for regular-season and postseason New York Mets home games as part of his record $765 million, 15-year contract that was finalized Wednesday. The Mets also agreed to provide personal team security for the All-Star outfielder and his family at the team’s expense for all spring training and regular-season home and road games, according to details of the agreement obtained by The Associated Press. Major League Baseball teams usually provide security for player families in seating areas at ballparks. New York also agreed to assist Soto's family for in-season travel arrangements, guaranteed Soto will have uniform No. 22 and included eight types of award bonuses. Soto's suite will be valued at the Mets' prevailing prices, presumably for tax purposes, and after 2025 he can by each Jan. 15 modify or give up his suite selection for the upcoming season. He can request the premium tickets, to be used by family members, no later than 72 hours before the scheduled game time. The Yankees had refused to offer Soto a free suite. “Some high-end players that make a lot of money for us, if they want suites they buy them ... whether it's CC (Sabathia), whether it’s (Aaron) Judge, whether it’s (Gerrit) Cole, whether it’s any of these guys," general manager Brian Cashman said. "We've gone through a process on previous negotiations where asks might have happened and this is what we did and we’re going to honor those, so no regrets there." Cashman said the Yankees have a shared suite for player families and a family room with babysitting. Soto gets a $75 million signing bonus, payable within 60 days of the agreement’s approval by the commissioner’s office. The deal for the 26-year-old, which tops Shohei Ohtani's $700 million, 10-year contract with the Dodgers, was reached Sunday pending a physical that took place Tuesday. Soto receives salaries of $46,875,000 each in 2025 and 2026, $42.5 million in 2027, $46,875,000 apiece in 2028 and 2029 and $46 million in each of the final 10 seasons. Soto has a contingent right to opt out of the agreement within three days of the end of the 2029 World Series to become a free agent again, but the Mets have the an option to negate the opt-out provision by increasing the yearly salaries for 2030-39 by $4 million annually to $50 million and raising the total value to $805 million. If the club exercises its option to negate the opt-out provision, Soto can make his opt-out decision by the fifth day after the World Series. He has a full no-trade provision and gets a hotel suite on road trips. Soto would receive a $500,000 bonus for winning his first Most Valuable Player award and $1 million for each MVP award. He would get $350,000 for finishing second in the voting and $150,000 for finishing third through fifth. Soto was third in the AL voting this year. He would earn $100,000 for each All-Star selection and Gold Glove, $350,000 for World Series MVP and $150,000 for League Championship Series MVP. Soto would get $100,000 for selection to the All-MLB first or second team, $150,000 for Silver Slugger and $100,000 for the Hank Aaron Award. Award bonuses are to be paid by the Jan. 31 after the season in which the bonus is earned. ___ AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb Ronald Blum, The Associated PressKings look to keep win streak going in visit to Devils