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Guatemala’s pick of independent anti-corruption progressive as president may face challenge

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:28:37 GMT

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemalans overwhelmingly picked an independent progressive to be the country’s next president but his opponent remained silent Monday morning, leaving open the possibility of a challenge to landslide results that resoundingly rejected the country’s elite. With 100% of votes counted, anti-corruption crusader Bernardo Arévalo got 58% of the vote to 37% for former first lady Sandra Torres in her third bid for the presidency. The results still have to be certified to become official, an open question as the attorney general’s office attempts to suspend his party’s legal status.“We know that there is a political persecution underway that is being carried out through the institutions and prosecutor’s offices and judges that have been corruptly co-opted,” Arévalo said Sunday night. “We want to think that the force of this victory is going to make it clear that there is no place for the attempts to derail the electoral process. The Guatemalan people have ...

Haiti and Dominican Republic warn of floods and landslides as Tropical Storm Franklin nears

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:28:37 GMT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Tropical Storm Franklin churned through the Caribbean Sea on Monday as authorities in Haiti and the Dominican Republic warned residents to prepare for floods and landslides.The storm was located some 240 miles (390 kilometers) south of Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic and had maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (85 kph). It was moving west at 6 mph (9 kph) and was forecast to make a sharp turn north late Monday or early Tuesday.Franklin is expected to strengthen before making landfall late Tuesday in Hispaniola, the island shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The storm is forecast to drop up to 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain in both countries, with up to 15 inches (38 centimeters) in isolated areas. Heavy rainfall is of great concern to Haiti, given that the country floods easily in many places due to severe erosion. More than 40 people died in June following a day of heavy rain from a thunderstorm.“The mudlslide risk there i...

Smoke aids B.C. fire fight, as BC Wildfire Service warns about Hurricane Hilary

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:28:37 GMT

VANCOUVER — The BC Wildfire Service says weather across British Columbia will be impacted by a hurricane in Southern California, challenging firefighters already battling hundreds of fires that forced 30,000 people from their homes and caused a provincial state of emergency.It says the Bush Creek East wildfire in the Columbia Shuswap region, which merged and encompassed the Adams Lake wildfire this weekend, is now about 410 square kilometres in size. The Service warns that Hurricane Hilary is expected to bring 20 kilometre per hour winds moving east across the province, with gusts up to 40 kilometres per hour.But, it says wildfire smoke may help temper the flames as 2 to 3 millimetres of rain is forecast in the region tonight.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the federal government is closely monitoring the fires in B.C. and the Northwest Territories, noting that will be a main topic at his cabinet retreat this week.He says the federal government is also hosting another Incident Re...

Greece hosts meeting of several Balkan leaders; Ukraine’s Zelenskyy also will attend

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:28:37 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The leaders of several Balkan countries gathered in the Greek capital Monday along with top European Union officials to discuss the region’s European future, and Ukraine’s president was to join them later in the day.Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was to host an informal dinner Monday evening in Athens for the top officials from nine Balkan nations as well as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council head Charles Michel.Mitsotakis’ office said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also would attend the dinner, following talks with the Greek prime minister. Zelenskyy also was scheduled to have talks with Greece’s figurehead president, Katerina Sakellaropoulou.Zelenskyy was in Denmark earlier Monday, where he thanked Danish lawmakers for helping his country resist Russia’s invasion, a day after Denmark and the Netherlands announced they will provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets.The Athens dinner was being host...

Stock market today: Wall Street is mixed as rising bond yields keep cranking up the pressure

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:28:37 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is mixed on Monday and holding a bit steadier after sliding for three straight weeks through what’s been a dismal August.The S&P 500 was virtually unchanged in midday trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 183 points, or 0.5%, at 34,317, as of 11:15 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.4% higher.Putting more pressure on the stock market were rising yields in the bond market, where the 10-year Treasury yield touched its highest level since 2007 and rose above 4.34% That’s up from 4.25% late Friday and from less than 0.60% in 2020.Higher yields are good for bond investors, who get paid more in interest for their investments. But it also makes investors less willing to pay high prices for stocks and other investments that are less steady than U.S. government bonds.A swift rise for yields globally has shaken stock markets worldwide. It’s added to concerns that stock prices overshot during their strong run earlier...

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy visits Athens to attend meeting of Balkan leaders with top EU officials

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:28:37 GMT

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy flew to Greece on Monday for talks with the country’s leadership and to attend an informal meeting of Balkan leaders with top European Union officials.Zelenskyy met with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, and also was scheduled to meet the country’s figurehead president, Katerina Sakellaropoulou.In the evening, Mitsotakis’ office said, Zelenskyy was to join in an informal dinner organized by Mitsotakis for top officials from nine Balkan nations as well as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council head Charles Michel. The dinner was scheduled to discuss the Western Balkans region’s future in the EU, which many countries have already joined and the rest are jockeying to enter.Greece has joined its NATO and EU partners in strongly backing Ukraine against the Russian invasion, and has provided material military assistance in the form of armored personnel carriers and ammu...

S&P/TSX composite down in late-morning trading, U.S. stocks mixed

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:28:37 GMT

TORONTO — Losses in the utility, financial and telecommunications sectors weighed on the Toronto Stock Exchange in late morning trading as Canada’s main stock index moved lower, while U.S. stock markets were mixed.The S&P/TSX composite index was down 67.76 points at 19,750.63.In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 192.28 points at 34,308.38. The S&P 500 index was down 1.74 points at 4,367.97, while the Nasdaq composite was up 51.85 points at 13,342.63.The Canadian dollar traded for 73.78 cents US compared with 73.79 cents US on Friday.The October crude contract was up seven cents at US$80.73 per barrel and the September natural gas contract was up six cents at US$2.61 per mmBTU.The December gold contract was up 20 cents at US$1,916.70 an ounce and the September copper contract was up a penny at US$3.71 a pound.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 21, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD=X)The Canadian Press

Group calls for Facebook, Instagram boycott on Aug. 23 and 24

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:28:37 GMT

TORONTO — An advocacy group is calling on Canadians to boycott Facebook and Instagram later this week.The Friends of Canadian Broadcasting group is asking people to stop posting content on Meta’s platforms on Aug. 23 and 24.The group says the move is meant to show that Canadians won’t be pushed around by Meta, which decided to pull news from Canadian publishers from its platforms in response to legislation that recently passed.The Online News Act requires tech giants Meta and Google to make deals with news publishers whose work they link to or repurpose on their platforms.So far, Meta has shown an unwillingness to cooperate on a potential deal.The group’s executive director Marla Boltman says the boycott will show Meta that if news leaves the platform, so will users.“Eyeballs on their platforms are the most valuable commodity Meta has,” she added in a statement. “Losing many Canadian users, even for a short period of time, will get their attention. But ...

TVO workers walk off job in station’s first-ever strike

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:28:37 GMT

Unionized workers at TVO walked off the job on Monday morning, marking the first strike in the publicly-funded television network’s long history.The Canadian Media Guild (CMG), which represents the workers, announced the strike effective as of 10:30 a.m.Workers are currently picketing outside of the station at 2180 Yonge St. in Toronto.“We are deeply saddened to have not been able to reach a fair and reasonable agreement with our employer,” the union said in a brief statement.Last February, unionized employees voted unanimously in favour of strike action if negotiations failed to address job security and pay wage issues.Their collective agreement expired in October 2022.TVO employees and supporters rallied on Friday ahead of the work stoppage.Interim Liberal leader, John Fraser, was among those on hand supporting the workers. He called TVO “a public good.”“It’s about education, it’s about making sure political news in this province can be disseminated. What they si...

36-year-old motorcyclist killed in front of Midway

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 15:28:37 GMT

CHICAGO — A motorcyclist was killed Sunday night in a crash in front of Midway Airport.Just before 10 p.m., authorities responded to the 5300 block of West 55th Street on the report of a crash involving a motorcycle.CPD said a 36-year-old motorcyclist collided with a black SUV in the intersection of 55th and Lockwood.The motorcyclist was pronounced dead at Christ Hospital.The 39-year-old driver of the SUV was not injured.