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Patriots QB Mac Jones on whether he will start against the Giants: ‘Hope so’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:53 GMT

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Mac Jones didn’t have any answers about who the New England Patriots’ starting quarterback will be against the New York Giants on Sunday, either.A day after Patriots coach Bill Belichick stonewalled in his media availability about whether Jones would be benched, the 2021 first-round draft pick said he is preparing as if he will start, even though the coaches appear to be undecided.“Hope so. I mean, that’s the plan,” Jones said when asked directly if he will start. “A lot of that decision-making is things I can’t control, but I can control my attitude and my effort.”Just as Belichick repeatedly fell back on “everybody needs to be ready to go” in his availability on Tuesday, Jones pulled out the standby, “I’m focusing on what I can control.” The third-year quarterback said the word “control” 13 times during his 8 minute, 23 second media availability on Wednesday; Belichick dropped “ready” 14 times on Tuesday in 8:21.“We’ve had good conversations,” Jones ...

Deadly green mamba snake on the loose in Dutch city

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:53 GMT

(CNN) — A highly venomous snake is on the loose after escaping a home in Tilburg, the Netherlands on Monday afternoon, a municipality spokesperson told CNN on Wednesday.Local authorities are warning people to keep their distance and avoid approaching the poisonous green mamba, which is between 1.8 and 2 meters (6 to 6.5 feet) long.In the unlikely event someone is bitten by the snake, they should immediately call the emergency services, the spokesperson said.The tropical snake has a fondness for warm, dark spaces, the spokesperson added, saying it is unlikely the runaway mamba has slithered out of its owner’s house to face the cold Dutch winter.There are three species of green mamba, all native to Africa – one is found in the east and south of the continent, another in the west and another in the center. The municipality spokesperson did not specify which species the missing snake belonged to.Normally found in trees, this timid snake produces a fast-acting ve...

Recalled applesauce pouches still on some store shelves, FDA says, as more illnesses reported

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:53 GMT

(CNN) — Cinnamon applesauce pouches that have been recalled after reports of high blood lead levels in children are still on the shelves at some Dollar Tree stores, the US Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday.Cinnamon applesauce pouches sold under the WanaBana, Weis and Schnucks brands have been recalled, and the FDA is screening shipments of cinnamon from multiple countries for possible lead contamination. The agency says that it’s working with Dollar Tree on getting those products off shelves but that, in the meantime, consumers should not buy them.The FDA, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state and local partners have been investigating reports of high blood lead levels in children who consumed the pouches, which were manufactured in Ecuador. There have been 52 reports of illness among children under age 4 in 25 states as of Wednesday.In one product sample of a WanaBana Apple Cinnamon Puree from Dollar Tree, the level detected was 2.18 p...

Fire erupts at San Diego funeral home

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:53 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Firefighters on Wednesday are battling a fire at La Paz Funeral Home in the Logan Heights neighborhood.The fire occurred around 4:22 p.m. at 2601 Imperial Ave., according to San Diego Fire-Rescue Department. Driver of stolen truck dies in head-on crash SkyFOX was over the location where thick black smoke could be seen spewing from the building.A total of 77 firefighters have been assigned to the fire, per SDFD.There are no reports of any injuries.It is unknown how the fire started at this time.Check back for updates on this developing story.

Israel unveils what it claims is a major Hamas militant hideout beneath Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:53 GMT

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Israeli military on Wednesday unveiled what it claimed was a Hamas military facility under Gaza’s largest hospital, showing what appeared to be a subterranean dormitory to a group of foreign journalists who were given a rare glimpse inside the besieged enclave.Dozens of soldiers escorted journalists through a narrow stone tunnel — which the military said stretched 150 meters (164 yards) — to a series of underground bunkers beneath Shifa Hospital in a shattered Gaza City. The living quarters, located at the end of the tunnel, had an air conditioner, kitchen, bathroom and pair of metal cots in a room fashioned from rusty white tile. They appeared to be out of use.Since Israel declared war against Hamas on Oct. 7, it has repeatedly accused the Islamic militant group of using Gaza’s hospitals as cover for military use. It has paid special attention to Shifa, saying Hamas has hidden command centers and bunkers underneath the hospital’s s...

How the hostage deal came about: Negotiations stumbled, but persistence finally won out

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:53 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The negotiations hardly ran smoothly. But in the end, persistence paid off.Six weeks ago, not long after Hamas killed more than 1,200 Israelis and took scores of others hostage in a surprise assault, the government of Qatar quietly reached out to the United States to discuss how to release those who had been taken captive by the militant group.But the mission demanded extreme sensitivity. It was so secret that U.S. officials established a communications cell to reach Hamas directly, and kept those negotiations tightly guarded throughout the U.S. government. Only a handful of people were aware of the talks, according to a senior White House official.For weeks through the cell, which allowed the small circle of negotiators to speak regularly without additional bureaucracy, U.S. and Israeli officials would scramble to put together a deal that would release dozens of hostages held by Hamas. The White House saw that as the only realistic way to halt the bloody combat th...

Animal welfare advocates file lawsuit challenging Wisconsin’s new wolf management plan

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:53 GMT

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Animal welfare advocates filed a lawsuit Wednesday seeking to invalidate Wisconsin’s new wolf management plan, accusing state wildlife officials of violating the state’s open meetings law and disregarding comments from wolf researchers and supporters.The lawsuit reflects how contentious the debate over wolf management has become in Wisconsin. Farmers in northern Wisconsin have complained for years that the population is multiplying too quickly and preying on their livestock. Hunters argue wolves are devastating the deer population across the northern reaches of the state. Conservationists believe that wolves have yet to firmly establish themselves in Wisconsin and need protection.The Great Lakes Wildlife Alliance, also known as Friends of the Wisconsin Wolf and Wildlife, filed the latest lawsuit in Dane County Circuit Court. The organization describes itself as a statewide group of hunters, farmers, politicians, business owners and animal welfare adv...

Peru lost more than half of its glacier surface in just over half a century, scientists say

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:53 GMT

LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peru has lost more than half of its glacier surface in the last six decades, and 175 glaciers became extinct due to climate change between 2016 and 2020, Peruvian scientists from the state agency that studies glaciers said Wednesday.“In 58 years, 56.22% of the glacial coverage recorded in 1962 has been lost,” said Mayra Mejía, an official with Peru’s National Institute of Research of Mountain Glaciers and Ecosystems, or Inaigem.The factor that causes the greatest impact is the increase in the average global temperature, causing an accelerated retreat of glaciers, especially those in tropical areas, Jesús Gómez, director of glacier research at Inaigem, told The Associated Press.The South American country has 1,050 square kilometers (405 square miles) of glacial coverage left, an area representing about 44% of what was recorded in 1962, when the first glacier inventory was carried out.Mejía, an expert in glaciology, said there are some mountain ranges in Peru w...

Aurora teen to play in the Macy’s Great American Marching Band at the Thanksgiving parade

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:53 GMT

CHICAGO -- A hardworking teen from the Chicagoland will make the trip to New York City to perform with the Macy’s Great American Marching Band on Thursday.Aurora’s Marmion Academy Junior Tommy Chapski will soon board a plane to New York City to play in the Macy’s Great American Marching Band as part of the iconic Thanksgiving day parade.Tommy actually found out he made the cut for the Macy's Parade when he was away at band camp in June. Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade 2023: Which performers, balloons can viewers expect to see? Tommy’s parents and extended family members will be along the parade route come Thanksgiving morning as well.Tommy's band director Rene Rosas said to excel at band you have to have talent for sure if you have to have an equal amount or more of dedication. Tommy he says has shown that from the get go.WGN's Patrick Elwood has more.

60 years later, Bozo Show contestant remembers the moment President Kennedy was shot

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:17:53 GMT

Everyone of a certain age remembers exactly where they were when they heard president John F. Kennedy had been shot, Friday, Nov. 22, 1963.But few have a story like Mary Jane Joyce-Byrne, who was at the WGN TV studios when the news broke. WGN's Dean Richards helps deliver the memory, 60 years to the day.