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A Christmas rush to get passports to leave Zimbabwe is fed by economic gloom and a price hike

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:32 GMT

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Atop many Christmas wish lists in economically troubled Zimbabwe is a travel document, and people are flooding the passport office this holiday season ahead of a price hike planned in the New Year.The desperation at the office in the capital city of Harare is palpable as some people fear the hike could push the cost of obtaining a passport out of reach and economic gloom feeds a surge in migration.Nolan Mukona said he woke up at dawn to get in line at the passport office but when he arrived at 5 a.m. there were already more than 100 people waiting. Some people had slept outside the office overnight.“The only thing that can make my Christmas a cheerful one is if I manage to get a passport,” said the 49-year-old father of three. “I have been saving for it for the last three months and I have to make sure I get it before January.”At $120, passports were already pricey for many in a country where the majority struggle to put food on the table. The finance ministe...

A weekend of combat in Gaza kills more than a dozen Israeli soldiers, a sign of Hamas’ entrenchment

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:32 GMT

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — More than a dozen Israeli soldiers were killed in combat in the Gaza Strip over the weekend, the Israeli military said Sunday, in some of the bloodiest days of battle since the start of Israel’s ground offensive in late October and a sign that Hamas is still putting up a fight despite weeks of brutal war.The mounting death toll among Israeli troops is likely to play an important factor in Israeli public support for the war, which was sparked when Hamas-led militants stormed communities in southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 and taking 240 hostage. The war has devastated parts of the Gaza Strip, killed more than 20,000 Palestinians and displaced nearly 85% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people.Israelis still stand firmly behind the country’s stated goals of crushing Hamas’ governing and military capabilities and releasing the remaining 129 captives. That support has stayed mostly steady despite rising international pressure against Israel’s offensive and the soari...

Bears will kick off with temps in the 50s on Christmas Eve; Rains arrive for Christmas Day

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:32 GMT

No Snow For Christmas, but mildThe magic of Christmas will have to provide temporary snowy rooftops for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve.  Under mostly cloudy skies, Chicago area temperatures are expected to be in the lower 50s at midnight. We won't see a white Christmas this year and it's likely to be dry through the night, with temperatures only dropping into the upper 40s by Christmas morning.The Arizona Cardinals will see some pretty hospitable weather when they visit the Bears on Sunday afternoon at Soldier Field.  When the Buffalo Bills came to town a year ago, the high temperature along the lakefront was only 14º.  This Christmas Eve, the Bears and Cardinals will kick off with temperatures in the 50s.  Fans will be much more comfortable tailgating outside the stadium before the game and they, along with the players, won't be shivering during the game either.  Annual probability of a "White Christmas"

Timberwolves use ‘complete performance on both ends’ to down Kings in Sacramento

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:32 GMT

So often after wins this season, Timberwolves coach Chris Finch pinpoints a couple areas in which Minnesota struggled or must improve upon moving forward.That was not the case after Minnesota’s 110-98 victory Saturday in Sacramento.“A complete performance for us on both ends,” Finch told reporters.There simply wasn’t much to nitpick. Not on a night where Minnesota only trailed 2-0, then never again. The Timberwolves jumped out to an early advantage and never really relinquished control from there, building a lead as big as 22 points.The Timberwolves (22-6) tamed Sacramento’s high-powered offense, holding the Kings (17-11) to their second-lowest point total of the season in games in which star guard De’Aaron Fox played.Fox was hassled by Jaden McDaniels all night. The guard finished with 27 points on 10 for 23 shooting. As a team, the Kings shot 24 percent from distance.“I thought we took pretty good shots throughout most of the night that di...

Daily horoscope for December 24, 2023

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:32 GMT

Moon Alert: After 3:30 a.m. EST today (12:30 a.m. PST) there are no restrictions to shopping or important decisions. After that, the Moon moves from Taurus into Gemini.Happy Birthday for Sunday, Dec. 24, 2023:You are loyal to your loved ones. You are also dramatic. This has been a year of learning and hard work. Fortunately, in 2024, you will get recognition for all your effort! You might win an award, get a raise, get a better job — something. You will be acknowledged. Yay!ARIES(March 21-April 19)★★★★You can get a tremendous amount done today because you’re focused; plus, you have the support of bosses, parents, teachers and people in authority. They will stand by you with practical assistance. Tonight: You’re empowered. This Week: You impress others! Generosity abounds!TAURUS(April 20-May 20)★★★Travel plans will go well today because you’re on top of things. This is a good day for writing, studying and taking care of last-minute obligations. Relations with ...

Dear Abby: I think she meant to humiliate me at her child’s birthday party

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:32 GMT

DEAR ABBY: I was invited to a child’s birthday party that included the adults in the family, and was given specifics about what time to arrive, etc.Related ArticlesAdvice | Dear Abby: My mother-in-law hit my kids, and I’m being pressured to reconcile Advice | Dear Abby: I want to have a talk with my wife’s co-worker, but she says she’s handling it Advice | Dear Abby: Am I awful for living well while my daughter flounders? Advice | Dear Abby: My husband is desperate for women’s attention, and I don’t know what to do Advice | Dear Abby: I’m sure it’s the bride who made this hurtful decision I arrived on time. As I started to put out the food I had brought (after spending hours shopping and preparing it) the hostess told me in front of the guests that there was too much food and to put mine away. I complied because it was the mannerly thing to do.The next day,...

On Christmas Eve, Bethlehem resembles a ghost town. Celebrations are halted due to Israel-Hamas war.

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:32 GMT

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (AP) — The normally bustling biblical birthplace of Jesus resembled a ghost town on Sunday, as Christmas Eve celebrations in Bethlehem were called off due to the Israel-Hamas war.The festive lights and Christmas tree that normally decorate Manger Square were missing, as were the throngs of foreign tourists who gather each year to mark the holiday. Dozens of Palestinian security forces patrolled the empty square. The gift shops were slow to open on Christmas Eve, although a few did once the rain had stopped pouring down. There were few visitors, however. “This year, without the Christmas tree and without lights, there’s just darkness,” said Brother John Vinh, a Franciscan monk from Vietnam who has lived in Jerusalem for six years. He said he always comes to Bethlehem to mark Christmas, but this year was especially sobering, as he gazed at a nativity scene in Manger Square with a baby Jesus wrapped in a white shroud, reminiscent of the hundreds of children killed ...

Baby boom of 59 pups helps endangered Vancouver Island marmot toward recovery

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:32 GMT

A tenacious Vancouver Island marmot’s long-distance quest for love may help explain how the endangered animals are bouncing back from near extinction. Adam Taylor, executive director of the Marmot Recovery Foundation in Nanaimo, B.C., said Camas the marmot wandered for 35 kilometres over mountains and down valleys looking for a mate. “There are not many marmots. It’s a pretty small community. So, finding a partner can be a challenge. He’s really kind of gone the whole nine yards to track somebody down,” said Taylor. Camas was released by their program last year, but they lost track of him over the winter. When he reappeared last spring he wandered from marmot colony to colony. “We actually got a phone call from a farmer in a little town called Barrington to say, ‘I’ve got a marmot in my backyard,’” Taylor said, confirming it was Camas.“He is a survivor, he has undertaken this incredible journey, you know 35 kilometres up and down liter...

Man killed and a woman injured in a 'targeted' afternoon shooting at a Florida shopping mall

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:32 GMT

OCALA, Fla. (AP) — A man died in a shooting at a shopping mall in central Florida two days before Christmas in which the victim was “targeted” for the attack, police said. Ocala Police Chief Mike Balken told reporters Saturday evening that the man was killed after he was shot multiple times in a common area at Paddock Mall in Ocala, located about 79 miles (127 kilometers) northwest of Orlando. A woman also was shot in the leg. She was treated at a local hospital and expected to recover, Balken said.The suspect fled the scene and left behind the firearm, Balken said.Police arrived at the mall around 3:40 p.m. after a call of multiple shots being fired at the mall. “Officers immediately made entry into the mall (and) ultimately discovered that this was not what we would consider an active shooter,” Balken told reporters.The attack was likely a “targeted act of violence” against the man, Balken said. Several other mall patrons suffered injuries during the shooting, with one person havi...

US warship shoots down drones as Red Sea crisis deepens

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:31:32 GMT

An American destroyer intercepted four drones fired by Houthi militants into the busy shipping lanes of the Red Sea, as the escalating crisis saw two commercial tankers hit in one chaotic day.In a statement issued Sunday, U.S. Central Command said its navy had “shot down four unmanned aerial drones originating from Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen that were inbound to the USS Laboon” the day before. The American destroyer had been patrolling the area as part of Operation Prosperity Guardian, the Washington-led mission to prevent violence spilling over into the strategic waterway.On Saturday, the Pentagon announced that a Japanese-owned, Liberian-flagged chemical tanker, the Chem Pluto, had been struck by a drone in the Indian Ocean, stating that the attack was launched from Iran. According to data from analytics platform Kpler, seen by POLITICO, the Chem Pluto had been carrying almost 43,000 of highly-flammable benzene en route to the port of Mangaluru at the tim...