Trump creates task force to prepare for 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles
The 2028 Games will be the first Olympics to be hosted by the U.S. since the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, Utah.
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Winnipeg Free Press
7 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
David Bednar goes longer than expected for his 1st Yankees save to end their 5-game skid
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — David Bednar got his first save for the New York Yankees after going a little longer than expected, and ended their five-game losing streak before going home. Bednar got the final five outs, all on strikeouts, in their 3-2 win at Texas on Wednesday. The game-ending one came with two runners on base after manager Aaron Boone had gone to the mound with the intention of pulling the right-hander that New York acquired from Pittsburgh at the trade deadline last Thursday. 'I said, 'I'm going to take you here.' And he gave me a look like, no you're not,' Boone said. 'He absolutely wanted the ball and, you know, felt like his stuff was still there. … What a great, gutsy effort.' Bednar's 18th save overall this season came in his third appearance for the Yankees (61-54), who remained ahead of Texas for the American League's third and final wild-card spot. They have a day off before opening a three-game series against AL West-leading Houston at home on Friday night after Bednar's first two series with New York were on the road. Bednar had two strikeouts to end the eighth and two more to open the ninth before Corey Seager walked on six pitches and Marcus Semien grounded a 3-1 pitch through the right side of the infield for a single. Bednar, already at a season-high 36 pitches and with cleanup hitter Adolis García headed to the plate, initially didn't see his new manager walking toward him. 'I was just kind of getting my mind right to face García,' Bednar said. 'I told (Boone) I wanted him and, you know, he agreed. And I just wanted to bear down and get that last one.' Bednar struck out García, finishing with a season-high 42 pitches for his most since 43 in an eight-out save for the Pirates at St. Louis on June 15, 2022. It was the third time this season Bednar recorded five outs, and the second in his week with the Yankees. 'That was awesome, especially that last one,' said Paul Goldschmidt, whose pinch-hit solo homer in the seventh broke a 2-2 tie. 'To go out out there and make those pitches was huge.' Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. ___ AP MLB:
Winnipeg Free Press
7 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Afghanistan's Taliban have ‘weaponized' the judicial system to oppress women, UN expert says
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have 'weaponized' the legal and judicial system to oppress women and girls in what amounts to 'crimes against humanity,' the independent U.N. investigator on human rights in the country said. Richard Bennett said in a report to the U.N. General Assembly circulated Wednesday that after seizing power in 2021 the Taliban suspended the 2004 constitution and laws protecting the rights of women and girls. These include a landmark law that criminalized 22 forms of violence against women, including rape and child and forced marriage. The Taliban dismissed all judges under the previous U.S.-backed government, including approximately 270 women, replacing them with men who share their extreme Islamic views, lack legal training and hand down decisions based on edicts issued by the Taliban, he said. In addition, he noted that the Taliban have assumed full control over law enforcement and investigative agencies, systematically purging Afghans who worked for the previous government. Bennett, who was appointed by the Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council, focused on access to justice and protection for women and girls in his report. He said he held meetings, focus-group discussions and one-on-one interviews with more that 110 Afghans inside and outside the country. He did so remotely because the Taliban have refused to grant him a visa to travel to Afghanistan. Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, their crackdown on women and girls has been widely reported and globally denounced. Taliban leaders have barred education for women and girls beyond sixth grade, banned most employment, and prohibited women from many public spaces, including parks, gyms and hairdressers. New laws ban women's voices and bare faces outside the home. The Taliban remain isolated from the West because of their restrictions on women and girls and have only been recognized by Russia. Bennett said the Taliban did not respond to an advance copy of the report and a request for information about their efforts to ensure access to justice and protection for women and girls. The Taliban defend their approach to justice by claiming they are implementing Islamic sharia law, but Islamic scholars and others have said their interpretation is unparalleled in other Muslim-majority countries and does not adhere to Islamic teachings. They say protecting the legal rights of women is a priority. Bennett said, however, that women have virtually no rights. 'Today, there are no women judges or prosecutors and no officially registered female lawyers, leaving women and girls with fewer safe channels to report abuse or seek redress,' he wrote. 'Coupled with a lack of female officials in the police and other institutions, the result is widespread underreporting of violence and discrimination against women and girls.' Bennett said access to justice for girls 'is further undermined by the dismantling of key legal safeguards and institutions protecting the rights of children,' including juvenile courts and juvenile rehabilitation centers. The Taliban requirement that a woman must be accompanied by a male relative also creates barriers to filing complaints and attending court proceedings, he said, and disproportionately affects widows, women who are the heads of their households, the displaced and disabled. 'Women who engage with the Taliban court system — whether as victims seeking redress, to resolve family issues, to obtain official documents or as alleged offenders — face a hostile environment,' Bennett said. 'Courts often reject complaints made by women and are especially reluctant to accept cases relating to divorce, child custody and gender-based violence.' Facing these obstacles, Bennett said, women increasingly turn to traditional and informal justice mechanisms, including formal jirgas and shuras — community councils of elders — and informal mediation by religious leaders, community elders or family. But these are all male-dominated and raise 'serious concerns about the rights of women and girls,' he said. He said international forums offer the best hope for justice. He pointed to the International Criminal Court's request on Jan. 23 for arrest warrants for two senior Taliban leaders accused of crimes against humanity for persecution 'on gender grounds.' And he urged all countries to support efforts to bring Afghanistan before the International Court of Justice, the U.N.'s highest tribunal, for violating the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
Toronto Star
22 minutes ago
- Toronto Star
North Carolina Gov. Stein signs stopgap budget bill and vetoes opt-in bill helping school choice
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein signed into law on Wednesday a stopgap spending measure while lawmakers remain in a state budget impasse. But he vetoed legislation that would direct state participation in a yet-implemented federal tax credit program to boost school-choice options, suggesting state Republicans acted hastily. The Democratic governor had already said this week he would sign the 'mini-budget' that the GOP-controlled General Assembly sent him last week. But he called it a poor substitution for a full two-year budget that House and Senate negotiators were unable to finalize before the new fiscal year began July 1.
