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Florida’s 2nd back-to-school sales tax holiday underway

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:25:25 GMT

FLORIDA — Just in time for the impending return to school, Florida kicks off its second “Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday” Monday, lasting through January 14. The initiative contains a range of essential items, offering tax-free status on various school necessities.Under the tax exemption, clothing and footwear under $100, school supplies under $50, and electronics, including laptops, tablets, and select accessories priced at $1,500 or less, are all eligible for the tax-free benefit.With the combination of the current tax holiday and the one held in July, experts project that Floridians stand to collectively save over $160 million. This substantial relief aims to ease the financial burden on families preparing for the upcoming school season.

Alleged child abduction attempt ends in arrest at Lee County Walmart

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:25:25 GMT

LEE COUNTY, Fla. (WSVN) — Pablo Hernandez is waking up behind bars Monday morning following an incident at a local Walmart. Deputies reported that Hernandez attempted to abduct a 4-year-old child inside the store last week, prompting an intervention by a vigilant family member.Hernandez now faces charges of false imprisonment in connection with the attempted abduction at the Lee County Walmart.

1st New Year’s baby arrives at Baptist Health South Miami Hospital

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:25:25 GMT

Baptist Health South Miami Hospital celebrates the arrival of Gia, the first baby born at their facility in 2024. Gia made her debut at 1:35 a.m. Monday, weighing in at 8 pounds and measuring 20.25 inches—a true bundle of joy for her ecstatic parents.As the first cries of Gia echoed through the maternity ward, the atmosphere at Baptist Health South Miami Hospital was filled with joy and anticipation. Mother and baby are reported to be happy and healthy, setting a positive tone for the beginning of 2024.Happy New Year indeed, as Baptist Health welcomes Gia and extends warm wishes to all families embracing new beginnings in the year ahead.

Jeremy Renner almost died last New Year’s Day. Since then he’s been leaning into life

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:25:25 GMT

(CNN) — In the year since Jeremy Renner almost lost his life in a freak New Year’s Day accident, the Marvel star has proved himself just as much a superhero offscreen.It was on New Year’s Day 2023 that the “Avengers” actor was crushed near his Nevada home while trying to stop his snow-removal tractor from sliding and hitting his adult nephew.The accident broke several of Renner’s bones including eight ribs broken in 14 places, an eye socket, a knee, along with a collapsed lung and his liver pierced from a rib bone.Renner literally came close to death as his doctor said at the time that the snowplow came within millimeters of hitting a vital organ or major nerve.Since that traumatic time, Renner appears to have been making the most out of his second chance.He recently confirmed that he has a new album coming out. Earlier this month, he shared what appeared to be the cover to an album titled “Wait” to his Instagram, and in the caption he referred to it as a “New musical diar...

Look out for a total solar eclipse, full moons and meteor showers in 2024

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:25:25 GMT

(CNN) — The night sky will have a multitude of delights in store for stargazers in 2024.Full moons and meteor showers will light up the sky. An increase in solar activity is expected to cause auroras that will create colorful displays. And eclipse chasers have been counting down to 2024 since the “Great American Eclipse” of 2017 — because a total solar eclipse will travel across the United States in April.Many nights, there will be opportunities to spot different planets or look for the International Space Station as it orbits Earth.Keep your telescopes and binoculars at the ready, and don’t forget to snag a pair of eclipse glasses so you can safely watch the total solar eclipse.Full moons and supermoonsTwelve full moons will occur during 2024, and September and October’s lunar events will also be considered supermoons, according to EarthSky.Definitions of a supermoon can vary, but the term generally denotes a full moon that is closer to Earth than norm...

The USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier is returning home after extended deployment defending Israel

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:25:25 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — After months of extra duty at sea providing protection for Israel, the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier strike group will be heading home, the Navy announced on Monday.The Ford and its accompanying warships will be replaced by the amphibious assault ship the USS Bataan and its accompanying warships, the USS Mesa Verde and the USS Carter Hall. The three vessels had been in the Red Sea and have been transiting toward the Eastern Mediterranean over the last few days.The Ford was sent to the Eastern Mediterranean to be within striking distance of Israel since the day after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks. The carrier stayed in the Eastern Mediterranean while its accompanying warships had sailed into the Red Sea, where they repeatedly intercepted incoming ballistic missiles and attack drones fired from Houthi-controlled Yemen. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited the Ford last month.Since it was extended in the Eastern Mediterranean, ...

2 men arrested in connection with Ugandan Olympic runner’s killing in Kenya, police say

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:25:25 GMT

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Two men were arrested in connection with the killing of Ugandan Olympic runner Benjamim Kiplagat, who was found fatally stabbed in a car in Kenya on New Year’s Eve, police said Monday.A knife suspected of being used in the killing of the 34-year-old Kiplagat was found on one of the suspects, Moiben sub county police commander Stephen Okal said. The motive for the killing appears to have been robbery, he said, because money and a cell phone had been taken from Kiplagat.Kiplagat’s throat was cut, police said. He was found dead in his brother’s car early Sunday on the outskirts of Eldoret, a high-altitude town in western Kenya renowned as a training base for elite athletes.Kiplagat competed in three Olympic games and six world championships in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. He won a bronze medal at the 2012 African championships.Kiplagat is the fourth athlete to be killed in the area in recent years.Two-time cross country world champion Agnes Tiro...

More Americans think foreign policy should be a top US priority for 2024, an AP-NORC poll finds

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:25:25 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — In this time of war overseas, more Americans think foreign policy should be a top focus for the U.S. government in 2024, with a new poll showing international concerns and immigration rising in importance with the public.About 4 in 10 U.S. adults named foreign policy topics in an open-ended question that asked people to share up to five issues for the government to work on in the next year, according to a December poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. That’s about twice as many who mentioned the topic in the AP-NORC poll conducted last year. Long-standing economic worries still overshadow other issues. But the new poll’s findings point to increased concern about U.S. involvement overseas — 20% voiced that sentiment in the poll, versus 5% a year ago. It also shows that the Israeli-Hamas war is feeding public anxiety. The conflict was mentioned by 5%, while almost no one cited it a year ago. The issue has dominated geopolitics ...

Marsha Warfield, bailiff Roz Russell on ‘Night Court,’ returns to the show that has a ‘big heart’

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:25:25 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Fans of the rebooted hit NBC sitcom “Night Court” might have been forgiven for tuning in all season long and asking “Where’s Roz?”Roz Russell — played by comedian Marsha Warfield — was the salty, no-nonsense bailiff alongside Bull Shannon who had a world-weary view of the shenanigans in the courtroom during the show’s original run from 1984 to 1992. But Roz wasn’t in the reboot that aired at the top of 2023. John Larroquette as prosecutor Dan Fielding was the only full-time cast member to return. So fans were excited when Roz popped up in the season one finale, surprising Fielding as a defendant. “Roz?!” he exclaimed in disbelief. Seconds later, the screen went dark.The reboot has been spearheaded by Melissa Rauch, a former star of “The Big Bang Theory” who is the new night court judge and the sunshine to Larroquette’s gloom.The revival earned the highest ratings for a comedy series on the network since 2017. Season two begins Tuesday with Warfield&...

Pakistan human rights body says an upcoming election is unlikely to be free and fair

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 15:25:25 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s independent human rights commission said Monday there is little chance of free and fair parliamentary elections in the country next month because of “pre-poll rigging.” It also expressed concern about authorities rejecting the candidacies of former Prime Minister Imran Khan and most other members of his party. At a news conference in Islamabad, the co-chairperson of the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, Munizae Jahangir, said other political parties have been subjected to similar tactics to varying degrees. “At this point, there is little evidence to show that the upcoming elections will be free, fair or credible,” Jahangir said. She said Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI, was “being dismembered in a systematic manner” and that the rejection of nomination papers for most of its candidates raised questions about the country’s Election Commission. People should be allowed to vote for their candidate of choice on February 8,...