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The Foreign Ministry says China will drop its COVID-19 testing requirement for entry starting Wednesday

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:29 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — The Foreign Ministry says China will drop its COVID-19 testing requirement for entry starting Wednesday.Source

DeSantis abandona la campaña electoral y regresa a Florida en medio de varias crisis

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:29 GMT

(CNN) — Con una tormenta tropical intensificándose en el golfo de México y la ciudad más grande de Florida tambaleándose por un ataque por motivos raciales que dejó tres personas negras muertas, el gobernador Ron DeSantis abandonó la campaña electoral este domingo y regresó a su estado para sortear la crisis.DeSantis habló este domingo por la tarde desde el centro de operaciones de emergencia del estado en Tallahassee para preparar la costa del golfo de Florida para la tormenta tropical Idalia, que podría tocar tierra como huracán este miércoles.Antes de hablar sobre la tormenta, DeSantis leyó un comunicado sobre el ataque en una tienda Dollar General en Jacksonville. El pistolero blanco, a quien DeSantis llamó “escoria trastornada”, usó insultos raciales, dejó una perorata racista y dibujó esvásticas en su arma de fuego, dijeron las autoridades.“Perpetrar violencia de este tipo es inaceptable”, dijo DeSantis. “Y atacar a las personas debido a su raza no tiene cabida en el est...

Montgomery Co. nonprofit ‘Story Tapestries’ transforms students into creative artists

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:29 GMT

Local students draw using the “Story Tapestries” art kits. (Courtesy Jessica Wallacj) toggle audio on and off change volume download audio WTOP's Jason Fraley salutes Story Tapestries (Part 1) $(function () { $('.wtop-audio-container .fa-play').on('click', function(){ var audio_filename = $('div.wtop-audio-file').data("mp3-url"); ga('send', 'event', 'Audio', 'play', audio_filename); }); }); Monday marks the first day of school for many public schools in the D.C. area. That means the local nonprofit “Story Tapestries” is ramping up efforts to inspire kids’ creativity.“We partner with schoo...

Atlanta takes on Phoenix, looks to halt 3-game slide

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:29 GMT

Phoenix Mercury (9-25, 2-15 Western Conference) at Atlanta Dream (16-19, 10-9 Eastern Conference)College Park, Georgia; Tuesday, 7 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Atlanta will try to break its three-game slide when the Dream take on Phoenix.The Dream are 9-8 in home games. Atlanta is 8-12 in games decided by 10 or more points.The Mercury have gone 1-15 away from home. Phoenix ranks third in the Western Conference allowing 83.5 points while holding opponents to 43.8% shooting.The teams square off for the third time this season. The Mercury won the last matchup 91-71 on Aug. 4. Diana Taurasi scored 42 points to help lead the Mercury to the win.TOP PERFORMERS: Allisha Gray is averaging 17.3 points and 3.2 assists for the Dream. Cheyenne Parker is averaging 17.2 points over the last 10 games for Atlanta.Brittney Griner is averaging 18 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.7 blocks for the Mercury. Taurasi is averaging 15.5 points over the last 10 games for Phoenix.LAST 10 GAMES: Dream: 2-8, averaging 76.7 po...

Washington faces Minnesota after Delle Donne’s 21-point outing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:29 GMT

Minnesota Lynx (17-18, 11-8 Western Conference) at Washington Mystics (16-18, 8-10 Eastern Conference)Washington; Tuesday, 7 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Washington hosts the Minnesota Lynx after Elena Delle Donne scored 21 points in the Washington Mystics’ 78-62 victory against the Las Vegas Aces.The Mystics are 11-7 on their home court. Washington is sixth in the Eastern Conference in rebounding with 32.3 rebounds. Tianna Hawkins leads the Mystics with 5.0 boards.The Lynx are 10-7 on the road. Minnesota ranks sixth in the WNBA scoring 35.5 points per game in the paint led by Napheesa Collier averaging 11.3.The two teams square off for the third time this season. The Lynx defeated the Mystics 97-92 in their last matchup on July 27. Collier led the Lynx with 24 points, and Natasha Cloud led the Mystics with 24 points.TOP PERFORMERS: Brittney Sykes is averaging 15.3 points, 3.9 assists and 2.2 steals for the Mystics. Cloud is averaging 12.6 points over the last 10 games for Washington....

Los Angeles hosts Chicago after Williams’ 23-point showing

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:29 GMT

Chicago Sky (14-21, 3-14 Eastern Conference) at Los Angeles Sparks (15-19, 8-10 Western Conference)Los Angeles; Tuesday, 10:30 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Chicago visits the Los Angeles Sparks after Elizabeth Williams scored 23 points in the Sky’s 90-85 victory over the Seattle Storm.The Sparks are 9-8 in home games. Los Angeles ranks third in the Western Conference with 37.1 points per game in the paint led by Nneka Ogwumike averaging 10.8.The Sky are 8-9 on the road. Chicago has a 1-3 record in games decided by 3 points or fewer.The teams square off for the fourth time this season. The Sky won the last meeting 86-78 on July 1. Alanna Smith scored 18 points to help lead the Sky to the win.TOP PERFORMERS: Ogwumike is averaging 19.3 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.6 steals for the Sparks. Azura Stevens is averaging 14.3 points over the last 10 games for Los Angeles.Courtney Williams is scoring 10.0 points per game and averaging 5.7 rebounds for the Sky. Marina Mabrey is averaging 2.5 made ...

Honeybee swarm delays Orioles’ game vs. Rockies in first inning

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:29 GMT

Talk about the Birds and the bees.The Orioles’ game against the Colorado Rockies on Sunday at Camden Yards was temporarily paused in the bottom of the first inning because of a swarm of honeybees in left field near the bullpens. The five-minute bee delay will not count in the time of game for the series finale.After Orioles designated hitter Adley Rutschman popped out to open the bottom of the first, umpires stopped the game as Rockies left fielder Nolan Jones moved away from the area.“The swarm has been identified as honey bees, and are now calmed down,” the Orioles said in a statement. ()

Fixing Penn Station means curbing Amtrak more than dealing with MSG’s future

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:29 GMT

Three years, four years, five years, 10 years and forever. These time spans aren’t how long New Yorkers will have to wait until the Knicks will win another NBA title after their 50-year drought. What they do represent are varying proposals for how long the Knicks’ home, Madison Square Garden, should be granted a special permit by the City Council to operate a large arena as city zoning rules otherwise only allow a facility of 2,500 seats (MSG can hold close to 20,000 spectators).But however long the sports center stays in place, Penn Station squatting underneath isn’t going to substantially improve until its derelict owner, Amtrak, agrees to optimize its efficiency for all the railroads using it and discard a terrible idea to tear down a huge chunk of Midtown for an unneeded dead-end annex.When the headhouse of the original 1910 Penn Station, the architectural masterpiece by McKim, Mead & White, was demolished starting in 1963 to make way for MSG, the Garden wa...

Chinese Australian writer fears dying in Beijing detention after being diagnosed with a kidney cyst

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:29 GMT

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Chinese Australian writer and democracy blogger Yang Hengjun has told his family he fears he will die in a Beijing detention center after being diagnosed with a kidney cyst, prompting supporters to demand his release for medical treatment.Yang has been detained in China since Jan. 19, 2019, when he arrived in Guangzhou from New York with his wife and teenage stepdaughter.The Associated Press on Monday saw details of a message from Yang that has circulated among his family and friends since last week in which he said a doctor told him recently that the cause of what felt like muscle strain was a 10-centimeter (4-inch) cyst on a kidney.The doctor said no treatment is required unless the cyst becomes too painful, ruptures or bleeds, Yang said.Yang, 58, shared frustration at the prospect of dying in detention without being able to speak his truth to the outside world. He also proposed writing a will.Yang’s friend, University of Technology Sydney academic Feng ...

Jacksonville killings refocus attention on the city’s racist past and the struggle to move on

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:29 GMT

By some measures, the city was making strides to emerge from its racist past. But the killing of three Black people Saturday by a young, white shooter was a painful and startling reminder that the remnants of racism continue to fester in Jacksonville, Florida. What happened in Jacksonville, said longtime resident Rodney Hurst, 79, “could have happened anywhere, except it did happen in Jacksonville.” The shooting occurred as the Jacksonville community prepared for an annual commemoration of what is known as Ax Handle Saturday. In an unforgettable exhibition of brutality 63 years ago, a mob of white people used baseball bats and ax handles to club peaceful Black demonstrators protesting segregation at a downtown lunch counter on Aug. 27, 1960. Police first stood by but joined the white mob when the Black group began fighting back. Instead of collaring any white instigators, police arrested several Black people.Hurst, who was 16 when the historic violence erupted, has been encour...