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Attacks on US troops in Middle East rise over the weekend

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:13:50 GMT

(The Hill) -- U.S. troops were attacked again over the weekend across the Middle East amid Pentagon fears that Iranian-backed groups may seek to undermine the American presence alongside the Israel-Hamas war.The total number of attacks has now risen to 38, according to the Defense Department, including 20 in Iraq and 18 in Syria. That's up from 32 at the end of last week.Iranian-backed militant groups have launched drone and rocket attacks at U.S. bases, injuring several people but not killing anyone. US bolsters Middle East presence as attacks rise Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters the attacks are "harassing" troops while resulting in 45 injuries of varying degrees. That includes at least 24 servicemembers with traumatic brain injuries and the rest with minor injuries such as shrapnel wounds, rolled ankles or headaches.The rise in the overall number shows U.S. forces were attacked six times over the weekend alone, indicating that militant groups are not...

Iowa man charged with threatening Niles police, village officials

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:13:50 GMT

NILES, Ill. — An Iowa man has been charged with threatening Village of Niles police, school resource officers and elected officials over a series of bizarre incidents amid the month of October.Adam T. Provost, 31, of Council Bluffs, Iowa faces multiple felony charges, including threatening a public official and disorderly conduct. According to police, Provost made a string of threats via posted mail, e-mail and telephone. Provost was taken into custody in Iowa on Oct. 16 in connection with Niles police's ongoing threats investigation.SEE ALSO: FBI-Chicago warns of charity fraud amid ongoing conflict between Israel, HamasAuthorities first learned of a threatening e-mail sent to a Village of Niles elected official on Oct. 6. Provost also allegedly made phone threats toward members of the Niles Police Department. Police said their investigation revealed the suspect was located in the area of Council Bluffs, Iowa.Days later, on Oct. 11, Niles police said the department received a threat...

FBI warns of charity fraud amid conflict between Israel and Hamas

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:13:50 GMT

CHICAGO (WGN) — The FBI is warning the public about scammers working to siphon off some of the donations people are giving during the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.Robert Wheeler Jr., the special agent in charge of the FBI's Chicago Field Office, said criminals are using the tragedies unfolding in the Middle East to solicit fraudulent humanitarian donations. Instead of donating to charities, Wheeler said these criminals are using the money for their own expenses or to support criminal enterprises.What is charity fraud?According to the FBI, charity fraud, which is also known as "disaster fraud," can come in many different forms.  US bolsters Middle East presence as attacks rise Special agent Wheeler said some perpetrators taking part in these types of crimes may prey on victims within the local community by claiming to collect funds for victimized families abroad. Foreign terrorist organizations may also take part in these types of crimes by establishing fake chari...

2 in custody in connection with deadly south suburban shooting

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:13:50 GMT

COOK COUNTY, Ill. — Police say two people are in custody in connection with a deadly shooting that unfolded in the south suburbs over the weekend.According to Worth Police, the shooting happened in the 6800 block of West 111th Street on Saturday afternoon. Chicago City Council committee holds hearing on Peoples Gas rate hike request Officers were called to the scene on reports of someone "in need of assistance," but when police arrived on the scene, they found a person who had been fatally shot. The South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force then began an investigation into the deadly shooting.Officers say the next day, two people from Harvey, Ill., who police believe are linked to several armed robberies in Chicagoland and northwest Indiana, were taken into custody.Police say several firearms were recovered during their arrests, including a gun that officers believe was the weapon used in the fatal shooting. The weapon is now undergoing ballistics analysis. FBI-Chicago warns of cha...

Dog rescued as AFD crews responding to structure fire on Guadalupe Street

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:13:50 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A dog was rescued by fire crews and reunited with its owner as the Austin Fire Department is working a structure fire at an apartment complex on Guadalupe Street, just south of Martin Luther King Boulevard, the Austin Fire Department said on social media Monday.Shortly before 6 p.m., AFD crews responded to the fire in the 1800 block of Guadalupe Street for the fire, where smoke and flames could be seen from the third floor, the agency said. Austin Fire Department crews are responding to a structure fire on Guadalupe Street | Courtesy Austin Fire DepartmentAustin Fire Department crews are responding to a structure fire on Guadalupe Street | Courtesy Austin Fire DepartmentAustin Fire Department crews are responding to a structure fire on Guadalupe Street | Courtesy Austin Fire DepartmentAustin Fire Department crews are responding to a structure fire on Guadalupe Street | Courtesy Austin Fire DepartmentAFD previously said a person may have been trapped in the building....

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick diagnosed with 'viral pneumonia'

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:13:50 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- An announcement on Monday from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick's office said he was diagnosed with "viral pneumonia" last week.The announcement said Patrick is recovering and working from home. Furthermore, Patrick canceled all his scheduled meetings, which included "both official and political engagements."Members of the Texas Senate "are fully prepared to address any issues" Gov. Greg Abbott may have, including a fourth special session, and will "move promptly to pass substantial legislation in the House," the release said.

Tupac Shakur has an California street named for him 27 years after his death

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:13:50 GMT

OAKLAND, Calif. — A stretch of street in Oakland, California, was renamed Friday for Tupac Shakur, 27 years after the killing of the hip-hop luminary.A section of MacArthur Boulevard near where he lived in the 1990s became Tupac Shakur Way, following a ceremony that included his family members and Oakland native MC Hammer.“Let his spirit live on the rest of these years in these streets and in your hearts,” Shakur’s sister Sekyiwa “Set” Shakur told the crowd, wiping away tears at the end of a nearly two-hour ceremony. The sign for Tupac Shakur Way was unveiled moments later.MC Hammer, the “U Can’t Touch This” rapper who spent many of Shakur’s final months with him before his 1996 shooting death at age 25, said in his remarks that Shakur was, “hands down, the greatest rapper ever, there’s not even a question of that.”Shakur collaborator Money-B and Oakland hip-hop legend Too Short also spoke at the ceremony.Shakur was born in New York and was raised there and in Baltimore, but he move...

Catholic group that wanted Wilder Forest youth camp now plans to purchase Wisconsin resort

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:13:50 GMT

After working for more than a year on an unsuccessful bid to buy land and build a Catholic summer youth camp in the Wilder Forest in northern Washington County, the Minnesota Catholic Youth Partnership is turning its sights to northwestern Wisconsin.Youth Partnership officials recently signed a letter of intent to purchase the 700-acre Heartwood Resort and Conference Center in Trego, Wis. The sale is expected to close in mid-January.“We have found a beautiful property that is going to work great for our needs,” said Tim Healy, the partnership’s president. “What is so amazing about it is that it already has almost everything we wanted in a camp.”Plans call for the Heartwood Resort, which includes a lodge with 12-foot pine rafters, cabins and dormitory-style buildings, to be used as a Catholic youth camp in the summer, and for conferences, family camps, men’s and women’s retreats and “Faith and Science” camps during the school year, Healy said. It has ample rooms for the campers, and ...

Dane Mizutani: Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell is among the best in the NFL at what he does

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:13:50 GMT

Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell always asks his players to be at their best when their best is required. It’s a turn of phrase he has leaned on ever since taking over in Minnesota. That specific sentence has been referenced by O’Connell so many times that it has become a cliche in and of itself.He practiced what he preaches on Sunday in Atlanta as the Vikings earned a 31-28 victory over the Falcons.Though journeyman quarterback Josh Dobbs emerged as the story of the game, and rightfully so, O’Connell was the mastermind behind everything that took place on the field. He kept the Vikings calm in the storm and continued to steer the ship forward regardless of circumstance.“That is what coaching is,” O’Connell said. “Just doing what you can do to control the mindset of the players.”There have been so many examples of that from O’Connell over the past couple of seasons with the Vikings. Whether it was the utterly nonsensical ...

Olmsted County sheriff’s deputy charged in online child sex sting

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:13:50 GMT

ROCHESTER, Minn. — A law enforcement sting to catch child predators netted one of their own last week when, court documents allege, Olmsted County Sheriff’s Cpl. Mathew Richard Adamson attempted to lure an undercover cop posing as a 13-year-old girl into sexual acts.Adamson, 44, is charged in Olmsted County District Court with attempting to hire a child under 14 years old for prostitution, soliciting a child through electronic communication to engage in sexual conduct and engaging in electronic communication relating to sexual conduct with a child, all felonies.Judge Jeffrey Kritzer on Friday ordered Adamson to be released on $10,000 bail provided he not use the internet, have no contact with children and abstain from controlled substances and alcohol. Kritzer also ordered that Adamson can be released on $100,000 bail with no conditions.Olmsted County Attorney Mark Ostrem has recused himself from the case and appointed Assistant Mower County Attorney Megan Burroughs to lead Ad...