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Russia steps up its aerial barrage of Ukraine as Kyiv officials brace for attacks on infrastructure

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:19:04 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia unleashed a wave of nighttime drone and missile attacks across 10 of Ukraine’s 24 regions, Ukrainian authorities said Friday as they prepare for another winter of infrastructure bombardment by the Kremlin’s forces.Ukraine’s air force said it intercepted 24 of 38 Shahed drones and one Kh-59 cruise missile launched by Russia.The attacks caused fires in homes and public buildings, especially in the southern Kherson region which Moscow has increasingly targeted in recent weeks, emergency services said. Authorities reported that two people were injured.“We understand that as winter approaches, Russian terrorists will attempt to cause more harm,” Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Telegram after the attacks, employing his usual choice of words for the enemy’s forces.Last winter, Russia took aim at Ukraine’s power grid in an effort to deny civilians light and heating and chip away at the country’s appetite for war. Ukrainian officials accused the Krem...

AP Election Brief | What to expect in the Texas general election

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:19:04 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Topping the list of notable races in Tuesday’s election in Texas are races for mayor of Houston and Uvalde, as well as 14 proposed changes to the state constitution.Residents of Uvalde will elect a new mayor for the first time since a gunman killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in May 2022. One of the candidates is Kimberly Mata-Rubio, a former news reporter whose daughter was killed in the shooting. Former Uvalde Mayor Cody Smith is also running, as is elementary school teacher Veronica Martinez.In Houston, 17 candidates are vying to replace term-limited Mayor Sylvester Turner. Among them are longtime U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee and state Sen. John Whitmire, both Democrats. Many of the candidates met at a televised debate last month. More recently, Jackson Lee expressed regret over an audio recording purported to be her berating staff members. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote on Tuesday, the top two finishers advance to a r...

Israeli troops tighten encirclement of Gaza City as top US diplomat arrives in Israel

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:19:04 GMT

Israeli troops tightened their encirclement of Gaza City on Friday as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Israel to press for a humanitarian “pause” in the fighting with Hamas and for more aid to be allowed into besieged Gaza.Tensions continued to escalate along the northern border with Lebanon ahead of a speech planned later Friday by Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, a Hamas ally. It is his first public speech since Hamas attacked Israel last month, stoking fears the conflict could become a regional one.Roughly 800 people — including hundreds of Palestinians with foreign passports and dozens of injured — have been allowed to leave the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing under an apparent agreement among the U.S., Egypt, Israel and Qatar, which mediates with Hamas.Israel has allowed more than 260 trucks carrying food and medicine through the crossing, but aid workers say it’s not nearly enough. Israeli authorities have refused to allow fuel in.The Palestinian d...

Friday Forecast: Temps in upper 50s with cloudy conditions

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:19:04 GMT

CHICAGO — Mainly cloudy Friday with a slight shower chance. Winds: SSW 15-20 G30. High: 57. Interactive Radar: Track showers and storms here Mostly cloudy tonight with slight shower chance. Winds: N 5-10. Low: 41.Saturday Forecast: Mostly cloudy, AM iso shower, decreasing clouds, N 5-10 G15. High: 56.Full forecast details and more at the WGN Weather Center blog

Is there hope for the Bears in the 2nd half of the 2023 season?

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:19:04 GMT

Taylor Doll of Windy City Gridiron joined "9 Good Minutes" on WGN News Now to talk about the Bears as they reach the halfway point of the 2023 season this week.CHICAGO - There are some fans who are hoping this is a "darkest before the dawn" situation for Chicago's NFL team.But there have been plenty of times in 2023 where it seems the light simply might not shine on this regime of the Bears. This week in particular is one where it seems like the team might not get out of their rut anytime soon.Starting quarterback Justin Fields is still injured and watched the team lose by 17 points to the Chargers on Sunday Night Football. Many were conflicted when the 2-6 team traded a second round pick to acquire talented defensive end Montez Sweat while allowing cornerback Jaylon Johnson to seek a trade.As he returned to the fold after no deal was made, another assistant coach, David Walker, was fired under suspicious circumstances. All of this comes as the team approaches its ninth game of the ...

Del Valle ISD breaking ground on new high school in midst of growth

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:19:04 GMT

TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) -- Del Valle Independent School District leaders will break ground Friday morning on the second high school in the district as the community grows exponentially and student population expands every year. The district currently has just one high school, Del Valle High School, with an enrollment of 3,500 students. That is 800 more students than the official operating capacity of the school, according to Del Valle ISD superintendent Dr. Annette Tielle. Dr. Tielle calls this exponential growth at the school district the 'Tesla effect,' more families moving in for jobs and growing the student population. "Being able to have a second high school to be able to minimize that large number of students at the high school is extremely important," Dr. Tielle said. The superintendent had been pushing for funding to build a new high school for years now. She advocated for the new high school in 2019 but did not have the community's support just yet. In 2022, the distric...

Increasing warmth and humidity this weekend

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:19:04 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Our warming trend is only getting started with temperatures nearing record highs by early next week.Southerly winds have replaced the cold northerly direction, warming days and nights through the weekend and into next week. There are no more freezes expected in the near future as overnight lows step up noticeably, and daytime highs return to the 80s in many areas this weekend.Daylight Saving Time comes to an end early Sunday morning, so don't forget to let your clocks "fall back" one hour. BLOG: El Niño into 2024: What that means for winter and spring BLOG: NOAA releases winter forecast Austin Interactive Weather Stats (2023) FIRST WARNING WEATHER: Stay up to date with your Central Texas forecast, sign up for our weather newsletter at kxan.com/newsletters Stay up-to-date with the First Warning Weather teamFollow the KXAN First Warning Weather team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.You can also follow our meteorologists' individual accounts for livestreams a...

Rensselaer County toy drive kicks off Friday

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:19:04 GMT

RENSSELAER COUNTY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The season of giving is upon us. The 27th annual Rensselaer County Toy Drive kicks off Friday at 11 a.m. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! There will be multiple donation locations across the county announced in a press conference on Friday. The drive will run through December 20 and will ensure kids have an enjoyable Christmas.

Suspect claims self-defense in fatal north St. Louis shooting

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:19:04 GMT

ST. LOUIS - One person is dead after an overnight shooting in north St. Louis. On Friday morning, police already had someone detained in connection with the incident.Authorities informed FOX 2 that this is not a typical homicide investigation because the shooter is claiming self-defense. Police got the call to the 4400 block of San Francisco Avenue just after 1:00 a.m. The scene was just north of Natural Bridge in the Penrose neighborhood of north St. Louis.We're told it was an inside scene. Our Nissan Rogue Runner reporter, Nic Lopez, who was there overnight, revealed that he saw police going in and out of a home on San Francisco. The police explained that the person who was shot and killed was an adult male. Authorities added that he was shot in the head and was pronounced dead at the scene. The alleged shooter remained at the scene, according to investigators, and then police detained him. Florida kidnapping victims rescued from downtown St. Louis hotel Again, we're told t...

Metallica fans swarm St. Louis ahead of weekend concerts at the Dome

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:19:04 GMT

ST. LOUIS - This weekend, metalheads are getting ready to take over Downtown St. Louis. The iconic band 'Metallica' is performing not one but two concerts at the Dome at America's Center, and their fans are already making a lot of noise in the Lou.It's a weekend year in the making, and fans and businesses alike are ready for it. Employees at 'Vintage Vinyl' in the Delmar Loop have already seen a surge in Metallica fans coming in ahead of the big weekend."We love Metallica, and we love Metallica fans," said Vintage Vinyl employee Kevin Darnold. "You can tell when they come in because they've got the Metallica t-shirts on."While at the shop, we ran into Metallica fanatics John and Terra Paddock. Friday's show will be John's 75th Metallica concert."I guess we were doing the 'Swiftie' thing before Taylor came around," John Paddock joked. Florida kidnapping victims rescued from downtown St. Louis hotel "This is what life is all about," Terra added. "These shows and the family we have c...