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Gabon election results were a ‘smokescreen’ for soldiers to oust unpopular president, analysts say

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 13:12:33 GMT

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — The ouster of Gabon’s president by mutinous soldiers appears to have been well organized and capitalized on the population’s grievances against the government as an excuse to seize power, analysts said. Soldiers on Wednesday ousted President Ali Bongo Ondimba, whose family has ruled the oil-rich country in Central Africa for more than five decades. The coup leaders accused Bongo of irresponsible governance that risked leading the country into chaos and said they put him under house arrest and detained several Cabinet members. The head of Gabon’s elite republican guard, Gen. Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, was announced on state TV as the nation’s new leader hours after Bongo was declared the winner of a weekend presidential election that observers said was marred with irregularities and a lack of transparency.While there were legitimate grievances about the vote and Bongo’s rule, his ousting is just a pretext to claim power for thems...

Iran accuses Israel of supplying potentially exploding parts for ballistic missile program

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 13:12:33 GMT

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran accused Israel on Thursday of trying to sabotage its ballistic missile program through faulty foreign parts that could explode, damaging or destroying the weapons before they could be used. Israel did not immediately acknowledge the accusation, made in a report aired on Iranian state television. The report described the alleged Israeli operation as “one of the biggest attempts at sabotage” it had ever seen. It accused Israeli Mossad agents of supplying the faulty parts, which the state TV report described as low-price “connectors.” Footage aired by state TV showed the alleged parts, some of them popping up into the air. The report did not say when authorities discovered the faulty parts, nor if they had been installed in any ballistic missile prior. In May 2022, an explosion at a major Iranian military and weapons development base east of Tehran called Parchin killed an engineer and wounded another. Other blasts have struck the program as well. Israel ...

Nissan is reusing the batteries from old Leaf electric vehicles to make portable power sources

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 13:12:33 GMT

YOKOHAMA, Japan (AP) — Batteries in older Nissan Leaf electric vehicles are getting a new life as portable power sources that can be used to run gadgets on the go or deliver emergency power in disasters.Japanese automaker Nissan Motor Co. has sold more than 650,000 Leaf EVs. Their batteries often retain a charging capacity longer than the car’s life span.Nissan says it is using the old batteries in portable power sources it developed with electronics maker JVCKenwood Corp. and 4R Energy Corp., a company co-owned by Nissan and Sumitomo Corp. which works on ecological vehicles and power storage systems.The 14.4-kilogram (32-pound) power source sells for 170,500 yen ($1,170) in Japan. Overseas sales are not yet set.Each Leaf uses 48 battery modules. The portable power stations contain two modules.Nissan officials said they are testing the batteries in Leafs after their owners stop driving them, and reusing those that can still hold a charge.EV batteries use expensive rare metals ...

Some in Africa are celebrating the coups. Many are fed up and desperate for change, analysts say

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 13:12:33 GMT

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — After mutinous soldiers in Gabon announced they had deposed the country’s president, many residents danced in the streets and declared themselves free from the presidential family’s 55-year rule. It’s becoming a familiar scene in West and Central Africa, which has recorded eight coups since 2020.“It is an expression of the popular dissatisfaction,” said Hermann Ngoulou in the Gabonese capital of Libreville. “The country has been experiencing a deep crisis on all levels due to bad governance, the rising cost of food (and) the high cost of living.”There have been about 100 documented coups across Africa since the 1950s. This resurgence of military takeovers is often prompted by diminishing democratic dividends, according to analysts.In Gabon, the coup occurred shortly after the president was declared the winner of the election from which international observers, for the first time, had been barred.That’s not unusual in a region where elections are often alleged t...

Building fire in Johannesburg leaves at least 73 dead, many of them homeless: authorities

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 13:12:33 GMT

A nighttime fire ripped through a rundown five-story building in Johannesburg that was occupied by homeless people and squatters, leaving at least 73 people dead early Thursday, emergency services in South Africa’s biggest city said.Some of the people living in a maze of shacks and other makeshift structures inside the derelict building threw themselves out of windows to escape the fire and might have died then, a local government official said.A witness said he saw people throwing babies out of the burning building in an attempt to save them and that at least one man died when he jumped from a window on the third floor and hit the concrete sidewalk “head first.”As many as 200 people may have been living in the building, witnesses said, including in the basement, which should have been used as a parking garage. Others estimated an even higher number of occupants.Seven of the victims were children, the youngest a one-year-old, according to an emergency services spokesperson.Cit...

5 people shot, 2 in critical condition, in Peoria

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 13:12:33 GMT

PEORIA, Ill. (AP) — Five people have been shot in Peoria and two of them were in critical condition, police said.The wounded, as well as a sixth person who suffered a laceration, were taken to a hospital following the shooting, which happened about 9 p.m. Wednesday, the Peoria Police Department said in a news release, saying 29 rounds were fired.The wounded were men and juvenile males, police said. With the exception of those in critical condition, police described the injuries as non-life-threatening.In addition to local police, members of the Peoria County Sheriff's Department, the Illinois State Police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives responded.No information about a possible suspect or suspects was immediately released. The shooting was under investigation.The city has had four shootings in four days, leaving two people dead and a 17-year-old charged in one of them, the station reported.

Thursday Forecast: Temps in mid 70s with sunny conditions

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 13:12:33 GMT

CHICAGO — Temperatures in the mid 70s Thursday with sunny conditions and cooler lakeside. Winds: SE 5-10 G15. High: 76/70. Interactive Radar: Track showers and storm here Clear tonight. Winds: SSE 5-10. Low: 56.Friday Forecast: Sunny, cooler lakeside. Winds: S 5-10. High: 85/80.Full forecast details and more at the WGN Weather Center blog

Food fight! Streets awash in tomato pulp during Spain's Tomatina party

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 13:12:33 GMT

BUÑOL, Spain (AP) — Some 15,000 people, including many tourists, pasted each other with tomatoes Wednesday as Spain’s annual “Tomatina” street battle took place in the eastern town of Buñol.Workers on trucks tipped 120 tons of overripe tomatoes into the main street of the town for participants to throw. Nebraska volleyball match draws 92,003 to set attendance record The street fight leaves both the street, its houses and participants drenched in red pulp.Tickets for the festival start at 12 euros ($13).The town hoses down the area and the revelers shower off within minutes of the hourlong noon battle finishing.Revellers throw tomatoes at each other during the annual "Tomatina", tomato fight fiesta, in the village of Bunol near Valencia, Spain, Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2023. Thousands gather in this eastern Spanish town for the annual street tomato battle that leaves the streets and participants drenched in red pulp from 120,000 kilos of tomatoes. (AP Photo/Alberto Saiz)Revellers thro...

Round Rock focuses on water, traffic, and public safety in proposed budget

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 13:12:33 GMT

ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) -- Round Rock city council approved the first reading of its proposed budget and is set to retain one of the lowest property tax rates in all of Central Texas. The budget puts an emphasis on traffic, water, and public safety as the city continues to grow. Sara Bustilloz, the city's communication director, said traffic is the main priority for Round Rock residents. The city is investing more than $100 million on road improvements to help with traffic. More than 50% of the city's general fund is going toward public safety. The city will hire six new firefighters this year and will finish the construction of Fire Station No. 1. The station, and two future stations, were approved by Round Rock voters during a bond election in May. "As we continue to grow to the north, we know we are going to need more fire stations to the north," Bustilloz explained. The city does not have a specific location for its next two fire stations, but are looking at areas in northeast ...

Shots fired in ceiling during robbery attempt at Lakeline Mall, APD says

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 13:12:33 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – Austin Police are investigating after they say gunshots were fired during an attempted robbery inside Lakeline Mall Wednesday evening. According to APD, the shots were fired into the ceiling during the robbery at the jewelry store inside the mall.Police said they were notified around 7:15 p.m. Police told KXAN the robbery suspects left before officers arrived. No one was hurt, APD said.