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Russian attack damages critical Ukraine port infrastructure

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 01:00:58 GMT

By Hanna Arhirova | Associated PressKYIV, Ukraine — Russia unleashed intense drone and missile attacks overnight Wednesday, damaging critical port infrastructure in southern Ukraine, including grain and oil terminals, and wounding at least 12 people, officials said.The bombardment crippled significant parts of export facilities in Odesa and nearby Chornomorsk and destroyed 60,000 tons of grain, according to Ukraine’s Agriculture Ministry.It came days after President Vladimir Putin pulled Russia out of its participation in the Black Sea Grain Initiative, a wartime deal that enabled Ukraine’s exports to reach many countries facing the threat of hunger.It also followed a vow by Putin to retaliate against Kyiv for an attack Monday on the crucial Kerch Bridge linking Russia with the Crimean Peninsula, which the Kremlin illegally annexed in 2014.The Agriculture Ministry, citing experts, estimated it would take a year to restore the damaged facilities. The destroyed grain was s...

Got milk in school? Farmers fight health advocates over the creamy ‘whole’ variety

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 01:00:58 GMT

By Phil Galewitz, KFF Health NewsAmanda Condo works at her family’s Pennsylvania dairy farm, but her son often won’t drink milk at school. He doesn’t like the flavor.That’s because the cafeteria at his elementary school serves only skim milk and 1%, which he contends tastes too watered-down, she said. “It’s a bad experience for kids who are our future milk drinkers, and it’s leaving a bad taste in their mouths.”Blame Congress for the absence of full-bodied, creamy whole milk from school cafeterias. In 2010, lawmakers revamped the National School Lunch Program, which led to a whole-milk ban for participating schools two years later. The goal was to reduce childhood obesity.Now, lobbyists for the milk industry are pushing to bring it back. And their campaign is supported by a bipartisan House effort and a growing number of studies that call into question long-held beliefs about the negative health effects of whole milk.The dairy industry is also trying to stave off a Department of Agr...

Bicyclist killed in Oakland hit-and-run is identified

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 01:00:58 GMT

OAKLAND — A bicyclist killed July 12 when he was hit by a stolen car in the Fruitvale district was identified by police Wednesday as Ricky Bryant, 62, of Oakland.The driver of the stolen car fled the scene and is still being sought, police said.The fatal collision happened about 9:30 a.m. July 12 at the intersection of 29th Avenue and International Boulevard.Police said a Hyundai Elantra, which was stolen earlier in Fremont, was going eastbound on International Boulevard  when it collided with a van  going in the same direction. The van driver was not hurt.The impact caused the Hyundai to spin out and strike Bryant at the intersection of 29th Avenue and International Boulevard, police said.Bryant, who had a West Oakland address and who was riding westbound on International, was ejected from his bicycle onto the pavement. He was taken to a hospital, where he later died.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Fatal Tesla crash in Lake Tahoe draws federal investigato...

Kevin Costner’s estranged wife could ‘be financially wiped out’ — even with $129,000 in child support

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 01:00:58 GMT

To many people, it sounds like Kevin Costner’s estranged wife Christine Baumgartner will be sitting pretty the rest of her life, now that a judge has agreed that the actor should temporarily pay her $129,000 a month in child support as they await a final settlement in their divorce.But not so fast, according to family law experts. Believe it or not, Baumgartner “could be financially wiped out” in the future, given a number of factors, one expert said.These factors include the way child-custody and California divorce laws work, the strange reality of the Costner family’s extravagant life-style, the vast power differential between the estranged spouses, and Baumgartner’s aggressive, “extravagant” demands for money from her rich and powerful husband.“It’s a very dangerous game she’s playing,” said Christopher Melcher, a Los Angeles-based family law attorney who has worked with a number or high-profile clients. “She has a...

Review: Acclaimed rock act is at the height of its powers at sold-out Bay Area show

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 01:00:58 GMT

Margo Timmins looked over at the lovely bouquet of fresh-cut flowers that sat next to her onstage on Tuesday night (July 18) and thanked the fans who sent it to her.“I wish I had a happy song to sing for you,” said the vocalist, who then added with her traditional self-effacing deadpan humor: “But there really is nothing.”And that was perfectly OK with the listeners who filled the Freight and Salvage in Berkeley for the first of two sold-out shows by the Cowboy Junkies. They didn’t buy tickets to hear radio-friendly joyous ditties, but rather to be run — once again — through the emotional ringer in ways that are both devastating and transformative.They came for a dose of “Such Ferocious Beauty” — which is the title of the Junkies’ most recent album, but also as accurate a description as one will find of the band’s music.Related ArticlesMusic | Yes, people of Toronto, this amazing Canadian band is stil...

Warriors: Poole’s dad, Draymond trade Twitter barbs over punch

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 01:00:58 GMT

The tension that remained following Draymond Green’s preseason punch of Jordan Poole last year was, at least, part of the reason for Poole’s trade to the Washington Wizards for Chris Paul. Green appeared to rekindle some of those tensions in a social media back-and-forth with Poole’s father on Wednesday morning.In a clip posted from an appearance on NBA player Patrick Beverley’s podcast, Green alluded to some of the backstory behind him punching Poole in a preseason practice last October.“I don’t just hit people,” he said. “Dialogue happens over time. You ain’t just triggered by something that fast to that degree. This is a team, ain’t nobody on my team triggering me in an instant. We know stuff that you don’t say amongst men. We know things you have to stand on.”Anthony Poole, Jordan’s father, replied to the clip on Twitter rebutting Green’s statement, calling it “BS”.“(Jordan) was...

Stanford president announces resignation over allegations of manipulating data

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 01:00:58 GMT

(KRON) -- Stanford University President Marc Tessier-Lavigne announced his resignation Wednesday over allegations of misconduct related to his scientific research and papers that he authored or coauthored. In a letter addressed to the Stanford community, Tessier-Lavigne maintained that while he has consistently denied the allegations, he would be stepping down as president.The resignation follows the release of a report released by a special committee after the university's board of trustees initiated a review last December. 4 Bay Area restaurants receive new Michelin stars "As I have emphatically stated, I have never submitted a scientific paper without firmly believing that the data were correct and accurately presented," Tessier-Lavigne wrote. "Today's report supports that statement."Tessier-Lavigne, a Canadian-American neuroscientists went on to say that while the "report clearly refutes the allegations of fraud and misconduct that were made against me," he would be stepping d...

Air quality advisory issued for Bay Area due to Oregon wildfire smoke

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 01:00:58 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- An air quality advisory has been issued for the Bay Area for Wednesday afternoon and evening due to wildfire smoke from southwestern Oregon. Smoke from the Flat Fire is forecast to blow into the region this afternoon and evening, according to the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, which issued the advisory."Smoky, hazy skies may be visible across the Bay Area and the smell of smoke is possible at higher elevations, especially the East Bay, North Bay and Santa Clara Valley regions," the BAAQMD said. 4 Bay Area restaurants receive new Michelin stars No Spare the Air Alert has been issued however, because pollutant levels aren't expected to exceed the national 24-hour health standard, BAAQMD added.The air district said it will closely monitor air quality throughout the region for smoke impact from the Flat Fire and other wildfires.If the smell of smoke is present, the BAAQMD advises Bay Area residents to take the following precautions:If possible, stay ...

Ex-Alameda County prosecutor says accusations against him are 'baseless'

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 01:00:58 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- The Alameda County District Attorney's Office filed a misdemeanor charge Monday against a longtime prosecutor over "unlawful and unethical interference."The veteran prosecutor, Butch Ford, is one of District Attorney Pamela Price's most outspoken critics. Ford told KRON4 Tuesday evening, "I've done nothing wrong, but in her world, it doesn't matter. She wants to charge me with something because I've been outspoken. The entire thing is political."Ford resigned from ACDAO earlier this year. He was recently hired by the San Francisco District Attorney's Office as a homicide attorney.According to a press release issued by Price's office, the misdemeanor charge filed against Ford stemmed from an incident in late April, when he allegedly provided "confidential work product information" to a police officer's defense attorney.In April, Ford was already on administrative leave -- a decision Price made just days after she took office in January.In May, Ford resigned f...

Guatemalan election observers’ report cites interference from parties, justice system

Published Tue, 24 Dec 2024 01:00:58 GMT

GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Some Guatemalan political parties and other actors unnecessarily dragged the country’s June 25 elections into the courts in an attempt to ignore the will of the people, the Organization of American States observation mission has concluded.“The mission considers that the abuse of legal instruments by actors unsatisfied with the results introduced a high degree of uncertainty in the electoral process and put at risk the country’s democratic stability,” the election observers wrote in a report released Wednesday.For more than two weeks, the election results that put conservative former first lady Sandra Torres and progressive former diplomat Bernardo Arévalo in a runoff together went uncertified. Several losing parties requested injunctions and the Constitutional Court ordered a review of challenged precinct vote tallies.The observers said some political parties tried to use very isolated errors to sow doubt about the trustworthiness of the election and suggest th...