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Sri Lanka will get the second tranche of a much-need bailout package from the IMF

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:36:18 GMT

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — The International Monetary Fund executive board approved the release of the second tranche of a $2.9 billion dollar bailout package to help Sri Lanka recover from the worst economic crisis in its history. In a statement, the fund said the decision Tuesday to release $337 million came after Sri Lanka had made “commendable progress” toward debt sustainability, raising revenue, rebuilding its reserves, reducing inflation and safeguarding financial stability. It said a strong commitment to improving governance and protecting the poor and vulnerable remains critical.In September, the IMF delayed the release of the second tranche of the four-year package, saying Sri Lanka’s economy was recovering but the country needed to improve its tax administration, eliminate exemptions and crack down on tax evasion.Sri Lanka plunged into its worst economic crisis last year, suffering severe shortages and drawing strident protests that led to the ouster of then-President Gota...

Turkish referee leaves hospital after attack by club president that halted all matches

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:36:18 GMT

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — A Turkish referee was discharged Wednesday from a hospital where he was treated for a facial fracture after being punched by the president of a top-flight soccer club.The attack led to the Turkish Football Federation suspending all league games.MKE Ankaragucu president Faruk Koca attacked Halil Umut Meler on the pitch after the final whistle of a 1-1 draw in a Super Lig home game against Caykur Rizespor on Monday. The referee, who fell to the ground, was also kicked in a melee that occurred when fans invaded the pitch after Rizespor scored a last-minute equalizer.Koca and two other people have been placed under pretrial detention, facing charges of causing injury to a public official.The soccer federation was scheduled to hold a meeting later Wednesday to decide on the possible resumption of league games in Turkey, which has been selected to co-host the 2032 European championship with Italy.Meler, who was treated for a fracture near his eye, walked out of Ankar...

Liberal caucus meets after Canada votes for Israel-Hamas ceasefire at United Nations

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:36:18 GMT

OTTAWA — Liberal MPs are set to gather for what is expected to be their final caucus meeting of the year, a day after Canada shifted its stance to join international calls for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Canada’s vote at the United Nations General Assembly was a departure from its long-standing policy of voting alongside Israel at the international body, which on Tuesday overwhelmingly voted to demand a humanitarian ceasefire. The decision came amid conflict within Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal caucus over how to respond to the conflict triggered by an attack by Hamas militants in Israel on Oct. 7. Addressing MPs and staff gathered at a holiday party Tuesday evening, Trudeau acknowledged the war was reverberating across the world and within the Liberal party. He said he knows it has been “extremely difficult” for many and that he has been speaking with those who have been directly affected by the conflict. Trudeau characterized ...

B.C.’s chief coroner exits, frustrated and disappointed with government’s OD response

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:36:18 GMT

VICTORIA — British Columbia’s chief coroner Lisa Lapointe says she’s a hopeful person, but she is leaving her office frustrated and disappointed.Angry, even.Lapointe has been at the forefront of the province’s battle against toxic drug overdoses for years, but she said the public health emergency that was declared in 2016 never received a “a co-ordinated response commensurate with the size of this crisis.”Instead, she lamented a “one-off, beds and projects” response to the emergency that the B.C. Coroners Service says has claimed more than more than 13,000 lives.“We see these ad hoc announcements but sadly what we haven’t seen is a thoughtful, evidence-based, data-driven plan for how we are going to reduce the number of deaths in our province,” said Lapointe in an interview Monday.Lapointe, who retires in February, said she was particularly worried about what she feared was the creep of politics into vital public health dec...

Don’t get lost in the ‘distant sci-fi’: Cohere prefers to focus on AI’s simpler side

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:36:18 GMT

TORONTO — In a world where artificial intelligence has helped professional soccer teams develop game strategies, created a fake viral tune reminiscent of Drake and The Weeknd and played brewmaster, Nick Frosst loves the simpler uses of the technology. The Cohere co-founder’s eyes light up as he sits in his AI company’s Toronto meeting and games room on a dreary day in late November discussing how AI has made it possible to extract information from resumés, cutting out the tedium of filling out job application questionnaires.“The mundane use cases are the ones that I’m like, ‘Hell yeah,'” said Frosst.“That’s real value. We’ve solved the problem for somebody.”Cohere develops AI for enterprise use, meaning it helps businesses build powerful applications by using large language models (LLMs) — algorithms that use massive data sets to recognize, translate, predict or generate text and other content.But these days, the buzz aroun...

Upcoming lunar mission highlights busy stretch for Canadian astronauts, space agency

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:36:18 GMT

MONTREAL — Less than a year away from a historic trip around the moon, Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen says humankind’s upcoming missions to further explore deep space will inspire future generations, just as NASA’s Apollo expeditions sparked his passion.Hansen will be on board Artemis II, slated to launch in November 2024, the first crewed voyage to lunar space since the final Apollo mission more than half a century ago.Although Hansen, 47, was born a few years after NASA’s Apollo program ended, he still recalls the impact of seeing a photograph in an encyclopedia of U.S. astronaut Buzz Aldrin on the moon.“That picture is still burned in my brain. I went back to that page so many times as a kid to look at it, and the realization that humans had left Earth and walked on the moon was a big deal to me. I turned my tree house into a spaceship and started exploring space in my imagination and just never really gave up on that dream of one day flying out there,&#...

AI-generated hoaxes pose a ‘persistent threat’ to public safety: intel analysis

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:36:18 GMT

OTTAWA — Violent extremists who lack the means to carry out an attack in Canada could compensate by perpetrating hoaxes with the help of artificial intelligence, says a newly released analysis.The May report by the federal Integrated Terrorism Assessment Centre, obtained through the Access to Information Act, warns that such visual trickery, known as a deepfake, poses “a persistent threat to public safety.”The assessment centre’s report was prompted by an image of dark smoke rising near the U.S. Pentagon that appeared May 22 on social media, causing stocks to drop temporarily. Officials confirmed there was no emergency.Synthetic images, video and audio are becoming easier to generate through applications driven by artificial intelligence, allowing people to spread false information and sow confusion.The centre, which employs members of the security and intelligence community, predicted threat actors would “almost certainly” create deepfake images depict...

Ethiopia arrests former peace minister over alleged links to an outlawed rebel group

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:36:18 GMT

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Ethiopia’s peace minister has been fired and arrested for having alleged links to an outlawed rebel group after he made a series of social media posts criticizing the government.Federal police released a statement Tuesday accusing Taye Dendea of “collaborating with anti-peace forces that are trying to destroy Ethiopia” and of belonging to the Oromo Liberation Army, which is banned as a terrorist organization.The statement was published alongside several photos showing firearms, identity documents, mobile phones and OLA flags that police said were seized from Taye’s home.The OLA is waging a long-running insurgency against the government. It claims to be fighting for greater representation for the Oromo, Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group, but has been accused of ethnic-based attacks on other groups.Human rights groups, meanwhile, have accused the government of targeting civilians in its military campaign against the OLA.Taye, an ethnic Oromo, is a senior mem...

Daily horoscope for December 13, 2023

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:36:18 GMT

Moon Alert: Avoid shopping or important decisions from 1:30 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. EST (12:01 a.m. to 7:45 a.m. PST). After that, the Moon moves from Sagittarius into Capricorn.Happy Birthday for Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023:You are confident, resourceful and tenacious. You are a perfectionist when it comes to details. This year brought a major change into your life. In 2024, focus on family responsibilities and service to others. To do this, it’s important to take care of yourself. Is it time for a makeover?ARIES(March 21-April 19) ★★★★People notice you today. In particular, they will notice your success in dealing with finances, as well as handling the things that you own. Talk to parents, bosses and VIPs to finish a project that relates to your job or financial matters that might concern you. Tonight: Impress others.TAURUS(April 20-May 20) ★★★★★This is the perfect time to finish papers, manuscripts and important writing projects. It’s also a good time to study the past and wr...

Commission approves €2.6 billion state aid to RWE for early closure of lignite-fired power plants in Germany

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 14:36:18 GMT

The European Commission has found a €2.6 billion German support measure in favour of RWE Power AG (‘RWE') to be in line with EU state aid rules. The aid will compensate RWE for the early phase-out of its lignite-fired power plants in the Rhenish mining area.According to the German coal phase-out law, the use of coal for the production of electricity will have to phase-out by 2038. Germany decided to enter into agreements with the main producers of lignite-fired electricity, RWE and Lausitz Energie Kraftwerke AG (‘LEAG'), to encourage the early closure of lignite-fired power plants. In 2021, it notified the Commission of its plan to compensate these operators with €4.35bn: €2.6bn was earmarked for the RWE lignite installations located in the Rheinland and €1.75bn for the LEAG installations in the Lausitz. In March 2021, the Commission opened an in-depth investigation to assess whether Germany's plans amounted to state aid. In December 2022, Germany notified to the Commission an amend...