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Thai police arrest 2 German suspects in the abduction and killing of a German businessman

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:22 GMT

BANGKOK (AP) — Thai police have arrested two Germans in connection with the abduction and slaying of another German, whose dismembered body was found in a freezer in a southern Thailand home, authorities said Wednesday.A 52-year-old German man was apprehended Tuesday evening in Bangkok, and a 47-year-old German woman turned herself in to police earlier in the day, according to the Khaosod newspaper, citing Tawee Kudthalaeng, the police chief in the town of Nong Prue where the victim’s body was found.Reached by The Associated Press, Tawee confirmed the arrests and said the two had been charged with murder. He said a third suspect was still being sought but provided no further details. He had previously said his office was looking into both German and Thai nationals as suspects in the case. The body of Hans-Peter Mack, a 62-year-old real estate broker, was found Monday night stuffed into a chest freezer in a home in Nong Prue, an upscale settlement popular with foreigners northe...

The Manson ‘family’: A look at key players and victims in the cult leader’s killings

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:22 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — In 1969, Charles Manson dispatched a group of disaffected young followers on a two-night killing rampage that terrorized Los Angeles. The killings remain etched in the American consciousness.On Tuesday, Leslie Van Houten was released after spending more than 50 years in prison for two of those murders. She’s the only one of Manson’s followers who participated in the infamous Tate-LaBianca murders to go free.Members of the Manson “family” arrived at the Hollywood Hills home of Sharon Tate on Aug. 8, 1969, where they stabbed, beat and shot to death the young actress and her friends — celebrity hairstylist Jay Sebring, coffee heiress Abigail Folger and aspiring screenwriter Wojciech Frykowski. As they made their way to the house, they encountered a teenager, Steven Parent, who had been visiting an acquaintance at the estate’s guesthouse, and shot him to death.The next night, Manson led a handful of followers, including Van Houten, to the home of wealthy g...

Kerry to visit Beijing for climate talks amid efforts to revive relations between US and China

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:22 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry will travel to Beijing next week to discuss strategies for limiting global warming, amid a push by the world’s two largest economies to reengage on multiple issues following a sharp decline in contacts.Kerry’s office said he will arrive Sunday and depart July 19. He is due to meet with his counterpart Xie Zhenhua, with whom he has established a strong working relationship.“During meetings with PRC officials, Secretary Kerry aims to engage with the PRC on addressing the climate crisis, including with respect to increasing implementation and ambition and promoting a successful COP28,” Kerry’s office said in a press release, referring to China’s formal title, the People’s Republic of China, and the UN Climate Change Conference scheduled to be held in the United Arab Emirates in November and December. Kerry’s visit comes on the heels of one by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who appealed to China on Satur...

After half a century, Israel moves to evict squatter from his cave home on the beach

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:22 GMT

HERZLIYA, Israel (AP) — Over half a century, Nissim Kahlon has transformed a tiny cave on a Mediterranean beach into an elaborate underground labyrinth filled with chiseled tunnels, detailed mosaic floors and a network of staircases and chambers.He lives in the one-of-a-kind artistic creation, which is a popular destination for local curiosity seekers, and Kahlon, 77, is quick to welcome visitors into his subterranean home.Now, Israel’s government wants him out.Fifty years after Kahlon moved into the home, Israel’s Environmental Protection Ministry has served him an eviction notice, saying the structure is illegal and threatens Israel’s coastline.“Instead of encouraging me, they’re denigrating me,” Kahlon said, sitting in his mosaic-tiled living room, rolling a cigarette. The sun glimmered on the sea outside his west-facing windows.Kahlon was living in a tent along the Herzliya beach north of Tel Aviv in 1973 when he says he began scratching into the sandstone cliffs and moved into ...

Chip maker Foxconn exits a semiconductor joint venture with Indian mining company Vedanta

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:22 GMT

NEW DELHI (AP) — Electronics giant Foxconn backed out of a $19.5 billion semiconductor joint venture with Indian mining conglomerate Vedanta Ltd. due to “external issues unrelated to the project.”Hon Hai Technology, known internationally as Foxconn, and Vedanta Limited announced their joint venture to manufacture chips and display panels in India in February 2022. On Monday, Foxconn announced it mutually agreed to part ways with Vedanta Limited. “This is not a negative. There was recognition from both sides that the project was not moving fast enough, there were challenging gaps we were not able to smoothly overcome, as well as external issues unrelated to the project,” read a statement released Tuesday from the Taiwan-based company.Vedanta said it has lined up other partners to set up India’s first semiconductor foundry to create the chips that are used in mobile phones, refrigerators and cars.Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government gave top priority to chipmaking as part o...

Deputies who reported a Texas sheriff to public corruption investigators say nothing was done

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:22 GMT

DALLAS (AP) — A Texas sheriff who’s been the subject of years of complaints about dysfunction and corruption was repeatedly reported to state and federal law enforcement by his own deputies — yet an outside investigation never gained momentum, according to interviews and records reviewed by The Associated Press.Two of San Jacinto County Sheriff Greg Capers’ former deputies said they tried to get the Texas Rangers to look into wrongdoing in the sheriff’s office when they worked there, but the state’s elite investigative agency did little to pursue a case. One of them later gave a detailed interview to an officer with the FBI’s regional public corruption taskforce but said it was met with the same result. Despite the reports from members of law enforcement, the state and federal agencies appear not to have pursued what an AP investigation found were longstanding accusations that Capers’ office has ignored misconduct and neglected basic police work while p...

Vermont slowly turns to recovery after being hit by flood from slow-moving storm

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:22 GMT

ANDOVER, Vt. (AP) — Floodwaters receded in Vermont cities and towns pummeled by a storm that delivered two months of rain in two days, allowing officials to focus on recovering from a disaster that trapped residents in homes, closed roadways and choked streets and businesses with mud and debris.In the capital city of Montpelier, where streets were flooded Tuesday by the swollen Winooski River, officials said that water levels at a dam just upstream appeared to be stable.“It looks like it won’t breach. That is good. That is one less thing we have to have on our front burner,” Montpelier Town Manager Bill Fraser said.Fraser said the dam remains a lingering concern but with the water receding the city was shifting to recovery mode. Public works employees were expected out Wednesday to start removing mud and debris downtown and building inspections will start as businesses begin cleaning up their properties.The slow-moving storm reached New England after hitting parts of New York ...

China sends large group of warplanes, navy ships towards Taiwan in forceful display

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:22 GMT

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China sent navy ships and a large group of warplanes, including fighter jets and bombers, toward Taiwan over two days, the island’s defense ministry said on Wednesday, before its annual military exercises aimed at defending itself against a possible invasion.The Chinese People’s Liberation Army sent 38 warplanes and 9 navy vessels around Taiwan, between 6 a.m. Tuesday to 6 a.m. Wednesday. From Wednesday morning until noon time, the military flew another 30 planes, among which included J-10 and J-16 fighters.Of these, 32 crossed the midline of the Taiwan Strait, an unofficial boundary that had been considered a buffer between the island and mainland. Later on Wednesday, another 23 planes crossed the midline. Taiwan is scheduled to hold the annual Han Guang exercise later this month, in which its military will hold combat readiness drills against preventing an invasion. It will also conduct the annual Wan’an exercises aimed at preparing civilians for ...

NL snaps All-Star Game losing streak, tops AL 3-2 behind Elias Díaz homer

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:22 GMT

SEATTLE (AP) — Shining brightly in the Emerald City, the National League snapped a losing streak that lasted more than a decade.An unheralded catcher from Colorado delivered the big blow.Elias Díaz hit a two-run homer off Félix Bautista in the eighth inning, and the NL snapped a nine-game losing streak in the All-Star Game with a 3-2 win over the American League on Tuesday night.The NL won for the first time since an 8-0 victory in 2012 in Kansas City, and Díaz became the first Rockies player to win the All-Star MVP award.“It feels incredible. When we all got here, we all talked about how we were going to bring home the win," said Díaz, who was non-tendered by the Pirates at the end of 2019. “I just didn’t realize it was going to be me to bring home the win.”Díaz drove a 2-2 pitch from Baltimore's hard-throwing closer deep to left to put the NL in front. Díaz was the lone representative for Colorado in his first All-Star Game appearance.“It does matter. We wanted...

Crews battle brush fire burning near Castaic Lake

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 20:59:22 GMT

Crews battled a brush fire that ignited in Castaic on Tuesday night, shutting down roads near the area.Firefighters first responded to the blaze, named the “Dry Fire,” around 9 p.m. as the flames continued spreading toward Castaic Lake.At the time, the flames were at a moderate rate of speed and grew from three acres in size to around 14 acres by 9 p.m., according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department.Firefighters work to extinguish the “Dry Fire,” as the flames continued spreading toward Castaic Lake on July 11, 2023. (OnScene.TV)Firefighters work to extinguish the “Dry Fire,” as the flames continued spreading toward Castaic Lake on July 11, 2023. (OnScene.TV)Firefighters work to extinguish the “Dry Fire,” as the flames continued spreading toward Castaic Lake on July 11, 2023. (OnScene.TV)Firefighters work to extinguish the “Dry Fire,” as the flames continued spreading toward Castaic Lake on July 11, 2023. (OnScene.TV)Firefighters work to extinguish the “Dry Fire,” as the flame...