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EU pledges to join US-led Red Sea patrol effort

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:20:43 GMT

The European Union said tonight that member countries will contribute to the U.S.-led Operation Prosperity Guardian aimed at protecting commercial shipping in the Red Sea from attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels from Yemen.“Irresponsible Houthi actions are a threat to freedom of navigation in the Red Sea,” tweeted Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, after an emergency meeting of the bloc’s Political and Security Committee.The EU’s endorsement will make it easier for countries to join the American effort.The U.K. has joined, while Italy is sending a warship. France, which has a destroyer in the area, said on Tuesday it was interested but had not yet committed to joining the operation.Other countries were waiting for the EU to move. The bloc is already running the Atalanta anti-piracy mission off the coast of Somalia, which is led by Spain and has included vessels from countries like Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden and Italy.Spain was mentione...

Dunkin’ is eliminating a plant-based milk from its menus

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:20:43 GMT

New York (CNN) — Dunkin’ is eliminating coconut milk from its menus less than three years after the chain added the plant-based dairy alternative as an option for drinkers.Dunkin’ confirmed to CNN that it’s “bidding farewell” to coconut milk from US locations in the coming days but noted that the chain will still have almond milk and oat milk as dairy-free creamers.The elimination of coconut milk means the end of its Coconut Refreshers lineup, which were colorful drinks mixing coconut milk and flavored iced tea, also added to menus in 2021. Refreshers can still be ordered with a green tea base.Dunkin’ didn’t specify why it’s reducing its selection of plant-based dairy alternatives, but chains regularly adjust offerings if an item isn’t selling or becomes too expensive.Both are likely reasons why Dunkin’ ditched coconut milk, according to Robert Byrne, director for consumer and industry insights at Technomic. He told CNN that the cost of coconut milk “pl...

Brookline teenager who had ‘magic mushrooms’ jumped from 6th-story window: Police

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:20:43 GMT

A Brookline teen was severely injured after he had “magic mushrooms” and jumped from a sixth-story window, according to police who arrested a drug dealer accused of targeting local kids.Brookline Police are now warning parents after this incident and the arrest of a 22-year-old man in Brookline Village.Based on a tip, Brookline detectives began investigating a suspected drug dealer who goes by the name Niko. He was allegedly selling drugs to underage teens.Some of the products were purchased at local marijuana dispensaries, where Niko allegedly bought the products that are legal for those 21-plus.Many students at Brookline High School have reportedly been caught with items that Niko sold.“One particular minor suffered severe physical injuries after ingesting magic mushrooms allegedly bought from Niko,” police said in a statement.“These psychedelic mushrooms are suspected to have caused this minor to become so disoriented that he jumped from a sixth stor...

EU takes aim at online porn giants

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:20:43 GMT

LONDON — Three of the world’s biggest porn websites face new requirements in the European Union that include verifying the ages of users, the 27-nation bloc said Wednesday, expanding the reach of its digital law designed to keep people safe on the internet.Pornhub, XVideos and Stripchat have now been classed as “very large online platforms” subject to more stringent controls under the Digital Services Act because they each have 45 million average monthly users, according to the European Commission, the EU’s executive branch.They are the first porn sites to be targeted by the sweeping Digital Services Act, which imposes tough obligations to keep users safe from illegal content and dodgy products.Violations are punishable by fines of up to 6% of global revenue or even a ban on operating in the EU. Some 19 online platforms and search engines have already been identified for stricter scrutiny under the DSA, including TikTok, Amazon, Facebook, Instagram, Google an...

US home sales end 5-month skid

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:20:43 GMT

LOS ANGELES — Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes rose in November, ending a five-month skid, as easing mortgage rates provided some breathing room for homebuyers.Existing home sales rose 0.8% last month from October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.82 million, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday. That tops the 3.78 million sales pace economists were expecting, according to FactSet.Sales were still down 7.3% compared with November last year, and are down 19.3% through the first 11 months of 2023 compared with the same period last year.The pickup in sales helped push up home prices compared with a year earlier for the fifth month in a row. The national median sales price rose 4% from November last year to $387,600.The modest increase in sales arrives with mortgage rates in decline after a sharp runup that sent borrowing costs on home loans higher. The rising cost of borrowing money compounded hurdles for buyers because there are so few homes on the market...

Best and worst days for air travel this holiday season

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:20:43 GMT

Laurie Baratti | (TNS) TravelPulseChristmas is just around the corner and, yes, you probably should have booked your flights months ago, but, hey, you might be among those who are still weighing their options. Or, perhaps you’re one of those who’ve already booked their tickets and simply want to know what to expect upon reaching the airport. Either way, it’d be good to know when might be the best and worst days to fly this Christmas season.According to online travel guide The Vacationer’s 2023 Christmas Travel Survey, 50% of American adults plan to travel to a vacation destination or holiday gathering for Christmas this year, whereas only 43% did the same last year. And, according to comparison site Hopper’s 2023 Holiday Travel Outlook, 59 percent of those travelers aim to spend time with friends and family, while 33% are planning a vacation on their Christmas breaks.Despite the forecast for increased travel volumes, this holiday season might offer some relief from the maddening cro...

Watchdog flags ‘scary’ MBTA capital needs ahead

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:20:43 GMT

The financial and policy analysts at the Mass. Taxpayers Foundation have mapped out how “the path to a safe and reliable transit system just got a lot longer” thanks to a ballooning price tag for bringing the MBTA’s infrastructure into a state of good repair.The MBTA updated its state of good repair measurement last month — using a slightly different calculation than resulted in the 2019 estimate of about $10 billion, as MTF explains in the brief it published Wednesday — to show that it would now cost $24.5 billion to fix all MBTA assets that are not in a state of good repair, which is almost two-thirds of them.And that figure includes only the cost of addressing current problems, not “needed investments in modernization, electrifications, accessibility, climate resiliency or expanded services” including those that the T included in a 2021 framework unconstrained by available funding, MTF said.In order to make those investments and eliminate...

Trump’s lawyers tell Supreme Court to stay out of immunity dispute in 2020 election case for now

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:20:43 GMT

By ERIC TUCKER and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawyers for former President Donald Trump urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to stand down from a dispute over whether he can be prosecuted on charges he plotted to overturn the 2020 election results.Special counsel Jack Smith’s team last week urged the nation’s high court to take up and quickly consider Trump’s claims that he enjoys immunity from prosecution as a former president. The unusual request for a speedy ruling seemed designed to prevent any delays that could postpone the trial of the 2024 Republican presidential primary front-runner, currently set to begin March 4, until after next year’s presidential election.But Trump’s lawyers told the Supreme Court that there was no reason for them to take up the matter now, especially because a lower appeals court in Washington is already considering the same question, and has scheduled arguments for Jan. 9.“Im...

Wisconsin elections commission rejects complaint against Trump fake electors for second time

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:20:43 GMT

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin’s bipartisan elections commission, for a second time, has unanimously rejected a complaint against fake presidential electors who attempted to cast the state’s ballots for Donald Trump in 2020.The Wisconsin Elections Commission first rejected the complaint in March 2022. But a judge in May ordered the commission to rehear the complaint, this time without one of its members who served as one of the fake electors for the former president.The commission released its unanimous 5-0 decision to reject the complaint Wednesday without explaining why. The elections commission’s discussion of the complaint, as well as its vote on Tuesday, was conducted in closed meetings.The complaint asked the elections commission to investigate the fake electors’ actions and declare that they broke the law.Last year, when it rejected the complaint the first time, the commission attached a letter from the Wisconsin Department of Justice that said that Republicans who attempted ...

The Colorado ruling against Donald Trump once again compels his rivals to rally to his defense

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 18:20:43 GMT

AMES, Iowa (AP) — With less than a month to go before voting begins, Donald Trump ‘s Republican rivals are once again rallying to his defense, this time after Colorado’s Supreme Court ruled to remove him from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the U.S. Constitution’s insurrection clause.Just as they had following Trump’s successive indictments as he racked up 91 criminal charges, the GOP front-runner’s opponents cast the landmark decision — the first time in history the 14th Amendment has been used to disqualify a presidential candidate and one the former president has vowed to appeal — as inappropriate, a “stunt” and an “attack on democracy.” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis charged the court’s ruling was a plot to ensure Trump wins the nomination because Democrats view him as the weakest Republican candidate.“Look, it’s unfair. They’re abusing power, 100%,” he told an audience in Urbandale, Iowa, on Wednesday morning. “But the question is: Is that going...