e-sports league
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Symposium calls for safeguarding universal and sustainable maritime securityBrazilian police indict former President Bolsonaro and aides over alleged 2022 coup attempt
Joe Biden begins final White House holiday season with turkey pardons for 'Peach' and 'Blossom' WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has kicked off his final holiday season at the White House, issuing the traditional reprieve to two turkeys who will bypass the Thanksgiving table to live out their days in Minnesota. The president welcomed 2,500 guests under sunny skies as he cracked jokes about the fates of “Peach” and “Blossom.” He also sounded wistful tones about the last weeks of his presidency. Separately, first lady Jill Biden received the delivery of the official White House Christmas tree. And the Bidens are traveling to New York later Monday for an early holiday celebration with members of the Coast Guard. Bah, humbug! Vandal smashes Ebenezer Scrooge's tombstone used in 'A Christmas Carol' movie LONDON (AP) — If life imitates art, a vandal in the English countryside may be haunted by The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. Police in the town of Shrewsbury are investigating how a tombstone at the fictional grave of Ebenezer Scrooge was destroyed. The movie prop used in the 1984 adaption of Charles Dickens' “A Christmas Carol” had become a tourist attraction. The film starred George C. Scott as the cold-hearted curmudgeon who is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve who show him what will become of his life if he doesn’t become a better person. West Mercia Police say the stone was vandalized in the past week. Megachurch founder T.D. Jakes suffers health incident during sermon at Dallas church DALLAS (AP) — The founder of Dallas-based megachurch The Potter's House, Bishop T.D. Jakes, was hospitalized after suffering what the church called a “slight health incident.” Jakes was speaking to churchgoers after he sat down and began trembling as several people gathered around him Sunday at the church. Jakes' daughter Sarah Jakes Roberts and her husband Touré Roberts said in a statement on social media late Sunday that Jakes was improving. The 67-year-old Jakes founded the non-denominational The Potter's House in 1996 and his website says it now has more than 30,000 members with campuses in Fort Worth and Frisco, Texas; and in Denver. Warren Buffett gives away another $1.1B and plans for distributing his $147B fortune after his death OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Investor Warren Buffett renewed his Thanksgiving tradition of giving by announcing plans Monday to hand more than $1.1 billion of Berkshire Hathaway stock to four of his family's foundations, and he offered new details about who will be handing out the rest of his fortune after his death. Buffett has said previously that his three kids will distribute his remaining $147.4 billion fortune in the 10 years after his death, but now he has also designated successors for them because it’s possible that Buffett’s children could die before giving it all away. Buffett said he has no regrets about his decision to start giving away his fortune in 2006. At the crossroads of news and opinion, 'Morning Joe' hosts grapple with aftermath of Trump meeting The reaction of those who defended “Morning Joe” hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski for meeting with President-elect Trump sounds almost quaint in the days of opinionated journalism. Doesn't it makes sense, they said, for hosts of a political news show to meet with such an important figure? But given how “Morning Joe” has attacked Trump, its viewers felt insulted. Many reacted quickly by staying away. It all reflects the broader trend of opinion crowding out traditional journalist in today's marketplace, and the expectations that creates among consumers. By mid-week, the show's audience was less than two-thirds what it has typically been this year. Pop star Ed Sheeran apologizes to Man United boss Ruben Amorim for crashing interview MANCHESTER, England (AP) — British pop star Ed Sheeran has apologized to Ruben Amorim after inadvertently interrupting the new Manchester United head coach during a live television interview. Amorim was talking on Sky Sports after United’s 1-1 draw with Ipswich on Sunday when Sheeran walked up to embrace analyst Jamie Redknapp. The interview was paused before Redknapp told the pop star to “come and say hello in a minute.” Sheeran is a lifelong Ipswich fan and holds a minority stake in the club. He was pictured celebrating after Omari Hutchinson’s equalizing goal in the game at Portman Road. A desert oasis outside of Dubai draws a new caravan: A family of rodents from Argentina AL QUDRA LAKES, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A desert oasis hidden away in the dunes in the far reaches of skyscraper-studded Dubai has drawn a surprising new set of weary world travelers: a pack of Argentinian rodents. A number of Patagonian mara, a rabbit-like mammal with long legs, big ears and a body like a hoofed animal, now roam the grounds of Al Qudra Lakes, typically home to gazelle and other desert creatures of the United Arab Emirates. How they got there remains a mystery in the UAE, a country where exotic animals have ended up in the private homes and farms of the wealthy. But the pack appears to be thriving there and likely have survived several years already in a network of warrens among the dunes. Pilot dies in plane crash in remote woods of New York, puppy found alive WINDHAM, N.Y. (AP) — Authorities say a pilot and at least one dog he was transporting died when a small plane crashed in the snowy woods of the Catskill Mountains, though a puppy on the flight was found alive with two broken legs. The Greene County sheriff’s office says Seuk Kim of Springfield, Virginia, was flying from Maryland to Albany, New York, when the plane crashed at about 6:10 p.m. Sunday in a remote area. Officials believe the pilot died from the impact. The surviving dog was hospitalized, while a third dog was not located. The flight was connected with a not-for-profit group that transports rescue animals. New Zealanders save more than 30 stranded whales by lifting them on sheets WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — More than 30 pilot whales that stranded themselves on a beach in New Zealand have been safely returned to the ocean after conservation workers and residents helped to refloat them by lifting them on sheets. New Zealand’s conservation agency said four whales died. New Zealand is a whale stranding hotspot and pilot whales are especially prolific stranders. The agency praised as “incredible” the efforts made by hundreds of people to help save the foundering pod. A Māori cultural ceremony for the three adult whales and one calf that died in the stranding took place Monday. Rainbow-clad revelers hit Copacabana beach for Rio de Janeiro’s pride parade RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Thousands of revelers have gathered alongside Copacabana beach for Rio de Janeiro’s annual gay pride parade, many scantily dressed and covered in glitter. Rainbow-colored flags, towels and fans abounded among the crowd mostly made up of young revelers, who danced and sang along to music blaring from speakers. While the atmosphere was festive, some spoke of the threat of violence LGBTQ+ people face in Brazil. At least 230 LGBTQ+ Brazilians were victims of violent deaths in 2023, according to the umbrella watchdog group Observatory of LGBTQ+ deaths and violence in Brazil.None
CLEMSON, S.C. (AP) — Clemson reserve guard Trent Howard will miss the 12th-ranked Tigers game with No. 16 South Carolina after tearing the ACL in his left knee at practice this week. Tigers coach Dabo Swinney announced Howard's injury Wednesday. The 6-foot-3, 295-pound fifth-year graduate has been a backup much of the season, but had to step into a starter's role due to injuries along Clemson's offensive line. “My heart breaks for him,” Swinney said. Howard came in on the second snap in a 24-20 win at Pitt two games ago when lineman Elyjah Thurmon was hurt on the first play. Thurmon had an ankle injury that required surgery and will not return this season. Howard got his fourth career start last Saturday in a 51-14 win over The Citadel. and was in line for another if injured starter Marcus Tate was unable to go after missing the past three games. Howard was listed as a backup at both right and left guard on this week's depth chart. The Tigers (9-2) face the rival Gamecocks (8-3) on Saturday. —- Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here . AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
Princeton 66, Rutgers 49
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New York Mortgage Trust, Inc. (NYMTM) To Go Ex-Dividend on December 31stNEW YORK (AP) — Having waited 63 years for an Ivy League football title, Columbia had to stand by for another 40 minutes. The Lions had beaten Cornell 17-9 but needed a Harvard loss against Yale to secure a share of first place on the season’s final day. So Columbia players retreated to their locker room on a hill a few hundred feet from Wien Stadium to watch the game in Boston on TV as a few hundred fans remained and gazed at the gold-and-orange foliage of Inwood Hill Park glowing in Saturday’s afternoon sun. When Yale recovered onside kick with seconds left to ensure a 34-29 Harvard defeat, players let out a scream and streamed back onto the field to celebrate, smoke cigars, lift a trophy and sing “Roar, Lion, Roar” with family and friends. Who would have thunk it? “You had the realization of, oh, I’m a champion, which is something that hasn’t been said here in a while,” co-captain CJ Brown said. Harvard dropped into a tie with Columbia and Dartmouth at 5-2, the first time three teams shared the title since 1982 — the conference doesn’t use tiebreakers. “It was nerve-wracking, for sure, but definitely exciting because that’s something that not a lot of people have experienced, especially here,” running back Joey Giorgi said. There have been several top players at Columbia — Sid Luckman, Marty Domres, Marcellus Wiley among them — but the school is perhaps better known for owners such as the New England Patriots’ Robert Kraft and former Cleveland Browns head Al Lerner. Columbia’s only previous championship in 1961 also was shared with Harvard. That Lions team was coached by Buff Donelli, a former Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Rams coach who scored for the Americans in soccer’s 1934 World Cup. Columbia set a then Division I-AA record with 44 consecutive losses from 1983-88, a mark broken by Prairie View’s 80 in a row from 1989-98. Since 1971, the Lions’ only seasons with winning records until now were 1994, 1996, 2017, 2018, 2021 and 2022. Al Bagnoli, who won nine Ivy titles in 23 years at Penn, couldn’t manage one at Columbia from 2015-22. He quit six weeks before the 2023 opener, citing health, and was replaced on an interim basis by Mark Fabish, his offensive coordinator. Jon Poppe, now 39, was hired last December after working as a Bagnoli assistant at Columbia from 2015-17 between stints at Harvard from 2011-14 and 2017-22, plus one season as a head coach at Division III Union College. He led the Lions to a 7-3 record overall, their most wins in a coach’s first season since George F. Sanford’s team went 9-3 in 1899. Poppe had wife Anna and 7-year-old daughter with him in the locker room watching the countdown to the title. “Sixty-three years of whatever into now,” he said. “Just seeing a lot of that history myself, personally. This is a hugely — a feeling of elation, seeing my dad on the field, a lot of emotional things with that.” Before a crowd of 4,224, quarterback Caleb Sanchez’s 1-yard touchdown run put Columbia ahead in the second quarter. Giorgi’s 1-yard TD run opened a 14-3 lead in the third and Hugo Merry added a 25-yard field goal in the fourth, overcoming three field goals by Alan Zhao. Giorgi rushed for 165 yards and finished his career with 2,112, second in school history. He and Brown missed what would have been their freshman season in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. Given Columbia’s athletic history — the most successful sport is fencing — it is not an obvious football destination. “I saw the dedication, whether it resulted in wins or losses,” Brown said. “I saw their dedication to the product that they put out on the field and also the athletic department, the facilities that we had here, the busses on schedule and stuff, I was like, OK, they care about their athletes. People here want to win and it doesn’t matter what’s happened in the past, it matters what we’re going to do now.” Poppe cited a mindset. “You get 10 opportunities, unlike other sports, it is a grind to play this sport and prepare the way we do just for 10,” he said. As the final whistle sounded in Boston, Brown noted an unusual initial reaction in the locker room. “It was like kind of awe when they recovered the kick,” he said. “It was a lot quieter than you would think it would be, but you could feel the joy and the elation.” They accomplished what more than six decades of their predecessors had failed to. As the players headed out, Poppe had a final word. “Day off tomorrow,” he said. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up . AP college football: and
AMMAN, Jordan — President Joe Biden on Tuesday announced Israel and Lebanon have reached a ceasefire agreement meant to pause fighting between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah. The 14-month conflict has left more than 3,000 people dead. “Effective 4 a.m. tomorrow local time the fighting across the Lebanese-Israeli border will end. Will end,” Biden said from the White House. “This is designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities. I applaud the courageous leaders of Lebanon and Israel end the violence.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said earlier Tuesday he had recommended that this government approve the agreement. Though the deal does not involve the separate conflict in Gaza Strip, Biden administration officials said they hoped it would lead to an agreement to end fighting there, too. Even as the deal was finalized, Israeli warplanes launched a series of airstrikes across Lebanon, striking areas in the country’s southern and eastern regions, along with the suburbs of the capital — areas where Hezbollah holds sway. Several airstrikes also hit the heart of Beirut, killing at least 10 people, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. In a televised address on Tuesday evening local time, Netanyahu said he would present the outline of the proposal to the government, pushing his ministers to accept the move despite reservations from far-right leaders who are integral members of his coalition. “The length of the ceasefire will depend on what happens in Lebanon,” Netanyahu said. He added that Israel would maintain freedom to act against violations. “If Hezbollah breaks the agreement and seeks to arm itself, we will attack,” he said. The agreement would not immediately affect the fighting in Gaza Strip with the Palestinian militant group Hamas. Netanyahu pushed his ministers to accept the agreement, arguing it would allow Israel to focus its attention on the threat from Iran, give Israeli troops an opportunity to replenish their stocks and isolate Hamas. The agreement will initiate a 60-day truce that would see both sides withdraw: Israeli troops out of south Lebanon to Israeli territory, and Hezbollah to areas north of the Litani River, some 18 miles north of the Lebanese-Israeli border. During the truce, a monitoring mechanism would be established that would ensure Hezbollah is not able to reconstitute itself or wage attacks on Israel from southern Lebanon. A U.S.-led committee would oversee implementation of the withdrawal. Lebanese officials say some 5,000 soldiers from Lebanon’s army — which has remained neutral during the conflict — would then enter south Lebanon, along with U.N. peacekeeping forces. Lebanon’s caretaker government is set to meet Wednesday morning to discuss the proposal; it is widely expected to be approved. Despite the optimism, many elements of the ceasefire proposal — which came about after vigorous negotiations brokered by the U.S. and France — remain unclear. One of the larger sticking points is whether Israel would be able to continue striking Hezbollah throughout Lebanon if the group attempts to reestablish a presence south of the Litani River, or if it continues to wage attacks on Israel or smuggle weapons. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz told the U.N.’s Lebanon envoy Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert on Tuesday that Israel would act “forcefully” against any breach of the ceasefire agreement. “If you do not act, we will do it, forcefully,” Katz said in a statement. “Any house rebuilt in south Lebanon and used as a terrorist base will be destroyed, any rearming or terrorist organization will be attacked, any attempt at transferring arms will be foiled, and any threat against our forces or our citizens will be immediately eliminated.” Lebanese leaders have dismissed such an agreement as an unacceptable breach of Lebanon’s sovereignty. The ceasefire would officially be an agreement between Israel and Lebanon. It includes a Lebanese lawmaker who has been negotiating on Hezbollah’s behalf. But Hezbollah, a paramilitary faction and political party which is backed by Iran, is not officially a party to the agreement. Another question is the fate of Hezbollah’s weapons. Before the war, the group was considered one of the world’s premier paramilitary factions, with an arsenal more powerful than that of the Lebanese army. The ceasefire agreement, which is based on a U.N. resolution that established a ceasefire in the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel, has provisions that would force the group to surrender its arms. A ceasefire would end a 13-month conflict that began a day after Hamas attacked southern Israel, when Hezbollah initiated a rocket campaign in northern Israel in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. In the months of tit-for-tat strikes that followed, some 60,000 people from northern Israel and approximately 100,000 Lebanese from southern Lebanon were displaced. In September, Israel escalated its attacks, conducting thousands of airstrikes on Hezbollah-dominated parts of the country and starting an invasion that saw Israeli troops enter southern Lebanon for the first time since 2006. It also assassinated Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah . Since Oct. 8, 2023, more than 3,823 people have been killed in Lebanon and 15,859 injured, according to Lebanese government data, the majority of them in the last two months. More than 25% of those killed were women and children, according to the government data, which do not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Meanwhile, some 1.2 million people — almost a quarter of Lebanon’s population — have been displaced, with wide swaths of the country destroyed. The Israeli government said on Tuesday that 78 Israelis have been killed in attacks by Hezbollah and its allies, including 47 civilians. Even as senior Israeli ministers were meeting at Israeli military headquarters in Tel Aviv, Israeli warplanes launched some 180 airstrikes across the country, according to a statement from Israel’s military. It issued evacuation warnings for some cities. The military said it was targeting Hezbollah’s infrastructure, including the group’s financial arm. Among the targets were four neighborhoods of central Beirut with which had previously been spared from the fighting. One raid hit Hamra, a popular shopping district in the capital which in recent months has become a sanctuary for hundreds of thousands displaced from the Dahieh, the constellation of suburbs south of Beirut where many of Hezbollah’s offices are headquartered. The Dahieh too was pounded by an intense barrage of more than 20 airstrikes, leaving the area obscured by a curtain of smoke and rocking buildings in adjacent neighborhoods. “The hysterical Israeli aggression this evening on Beirut and various Lebanese regions, which specifically targets civilians, confirms once again that the Israeli enemy does not respect any law or consideration,” said Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati in a statement on Tuesday. He called on the international community “to act quickly to stop this aggression and implement an immediate ceasefire.” Meanwhile, Hezbollah continued its barrage against northern Israel, lobbing dozens of projectiles across the border. ©2024 Los Angeles Times. Visit at latimes.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.Harris has ‘no knowledge’ anyone tried to get RTE to take down viral clipOKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder won their 11th straight game, beating the short-handed Memphis Grizzlies 130-106 on Sunday night in a matchup of Western Conference leaders that turned lopsided before halftime. Rookie Ajay Mitchell scored 17 points, Aaron Wiggins contributed 16 and Jalen Williams added 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Thunder (26-5), who opened a five-game lead over second-place Memphis. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Get updates and player profiles ahead of Friday's high school games, plus a recap Saturday with stories, photos, video Frequency: Seasonal Twice a week
By GABRIELA SÁ PESSOA and MAURICIO SAVARESE, Associated Press SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s federal police said Thursday they indicted former President Jair Bolsonaro and 36 other people for allegedly attempting a coup to keep him in office after his defeat in the 2022 elections. Police said their findings were being delivered Thursday to Brazil’s Supreme Court, which must decide whether to refer them to Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet, who will either formally charge Bolsonaro and put him on trial, or toss the investigation. The former right-wing president has denied all claims he tried to stay in office after his narrow electoral defeat in 2022 to his rival, leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Bolsonaro has faced a series of legal threats since then. Police said in a brief statement that the Supreme Court had agreed to reveal the names of all 37 people who were indicted “to avoid the dissemination of incorrect news.” The 700-page police document likely will take several days for the court to review, Supreme Court justice Alexandre de Moraes said. Dozens of former and current Bolsonaro aides also were indicted, including Gen. Walter Braga Netto, who was his running mate in the 2022 campaign; former Army commander Gen. Paulo Sérgio Nogueira de Oliveira; Valdemar Costa Neto, the chairman of Bolsonaro’s Liberal Party; and his veteran former adviser, Gen. Augusto Heleno. The investigation started last year. On Tuesday, four military men and one federal police agent were arrested as part of the same probe . Other investigations focus on Bolosnaro’s potential roles in smuggling diamond jewelry into Brazil without properly declaring them, and in directing a subordinate to falsify his and others’ COVID-19 vaccination statuses. Bolsonaro has denied any involvement in either. Another probe found that he had abused his authority to cast doubt on the country’s voting system, and judges barred him from running again until 2030. The far-reaching investigations have weakened Bolsonaro’s status as a leader of Brazil’s right wing, said Carlos Melo, a political science professor at Insper University in Sao Paulo. “Bolsonaro is already barred from running in the 2026 elections,” Melo told the The Associated Press. “And if he is convicted he could also be jailed by then. To avoid being behind bars, he will have to convince Supreme Court justices that he has nothing to do with a plot that involves dozens of his aids. That’s a very tall order,” Melo said. On Tuesday, the federal police arrested four military and a federal police officer accused of plotting to overthrow the government following the 2022 elections, including alleged plans to kill Lula and other top officials.The finals countdown: Mead football charges into semis against PomonaTrail Blazers injury updates: Clingan, Williams, Thybulle to miss time
