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Polish truckers halt blockade at Ukraine border crossing

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:25:23 GMT

Protests blockading a key border crossing between Ukraine and Poland have halted, officials in Kyiv said Sunday, amid a long-running standoff with Polish farmers over imports of cheap grain.In a statement, the Ukrainian authorities said that “truck traffic has been restored” after “Polish farmers finished the blockade of the Medyka-Shehyni border crossing point” along the highway that links the city of Lviv in Western Ukraine to Poland’s Kraków. “Registration and entry of trucks to Ukraine is going ahead normally. Border guards are working together with customs officers to ensure that as many trucks as possible cross the border.”Polish truckers and farmers have been staging protests at four border crossings with the neighboring Eastern European country since November. The Polish protesters want the EU to scrap rules that allow cheap Ukrainian grain to enter the bloc as part of measures designed to support Kyiv’s economy.On Monday, the ...

Large police presence overnight outside Lawrence bar

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:25:23 GMT

A large police presence gathered late Saturday night outside a bar in Lawrence. Police officers and state troopers could be seen gathering in a taped-off section outside Energy Lounge on Broadway before going inside to conduct an investigation.No additional information was immediately available.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

18-year-old arrested in Stoughton shooting

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:25:23 GMT

An 18-year-old Stoughton resident is facing charges in connection with a shooting in the town on Saturday.Officers responding to a report of shots fired in the area of Central Street and Greenwood Avenue arrested Marc Francois near a condominium complex and recovered a firearm, according to Stoughton Police Chief Donna McNamara.Soon after, another man arrived at Sturdy Memorial Hospital in Attleboro with a gunshot wound.“The safety of our community is paramount, and when violence strikes, our residents should expect a rapid response and diligent investigation by our officers, who did exactly that in this incident,” McNamara said in a statement. “This is a great example of professional policing at work during a rapidly unfolding incident.”Francois was ordered held on $500,000 cash bail, and he will be arraigned Tuesday at Stoughton District Court on charges including assault and battery with a firearm, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing seriou...

The NFL’s oldest rivalry continues Sunday at Soldier Field. A look at the rivalry that started in 1920.

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:25:23 GMT

The oldest rivalry in the NFL continues at 3:25 p.m. Sunday at Soldier Field. And no, it doesn’t include a team from Green Bay.This matchup began in 1920 when two professional football teams called Illinois home. That’s when the Chicago Bears, then known as the Decatur Staleys, faced the Racine Cardinals — named after Racine Avenue where their home venue was Normal Park and not for the city in Wisconsin — for the first time.The Cardinals started in 1898 as the Morgan Athletic Club on Chicago’s South Side before becoming the Chicago Cardinals in 1922, then moved to Missouri to become the St. Louis Cardinals in 1960, and then to Arizona in 1988. Two winning seasons were capped by championships for the Cardinals in 1925 (though it is still controversial) and 1947. These remain the franchise’s only titles.The team’s color has a history too. The Cardinals first used borrowed maroon jerseys from the University of Chicago.The Bears hold the overall...

The least-anticipated Patriots game in decades and 3 more NFL thoughts on Christmas Eve

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:25:23 GMT

As someone who makes a living observing, analyzing, reporting on, writing about and enjoying football, rest assured there is no joy in this next question.Is Sunday’s Patriots game the least-anticipated of the Bill Belichick era?Granted, there is no single, reliable tool for capturing fan interest. In the age of streaming, TV and radio ratings become less relevant by the year. Social media engagement is too easily manipulated to offer real insight.It’s a feel thing. How many of your friends are invested in Sunday’s outcome? What is the big draw? What are the storylines?What do you hear about the game in various media spaces? How much do they all care? How much do you care?Because during the week, these topics dominated the conversation around the Patriots instead of the actual football game they’ll play against the Broncos: an NFL Draft four months away, a head-coaching decision three weeks away, the air pressure in footballs (again) and Bill Belichick being i...

Patriots-Broncos preview: How can New England return home with a victory?

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:25:23 GMT

It’s been six years since the Patriots kicked off in Denver.Somehow, it feels even longer.Heading into Sunday’s kickoff, the Pats will have already been eliminated from the playoffs for weeks; a far cry from their prior visits to Mile High as a fellow AFC contender. In Denver, new head Sean Payton has rescued a season that appeared to be on the brink at 1-5 and included a 50-point loss at Miami. While the Broncos’ postseason hopes remain slim at 7-7, expect them to push the Patriots for every inch on every play at home.Here’s what to watch for:When the Patriots runThe Pats’ steady-eddy run game hit the brakes last weekend against the Chiefs, averaging 3.2 yards per carry and racking up 52 yards total.Ezekiel Elliott continues to take the lion’s share of carries and should be expected to do so again in Denver, despite the recent signing of second-year back Kevin Harris off the practice. Lucky for them, the Broncos’ run defense ranks dead last...

Man dead due early morning to fire in The Junction

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:25:23 GMT

A man has died due to a fire in The Junction early Sunday morning.Fire crews were called to McCormack Street, near Weston Road and St. Clair Avenue West, at approximately 4:08 a.m. for reports that several tractor trailers were on fire.“In the course of firefighting and search and rescue operations, one person was located inside a storage trailer adjacent to the fire,” said Toronto Fire Chief Matthew Pegg on X.The victim, a man in his 40’s, was transferred to the care of Toronto medics but succumbed to his injuries at the scene.Police and the Office of the Fire Marshal are investigating the origin, cause and circumstances of the fire.I am on scene with @Toronto_Fire crews on McCormack Street. The investigation into the origin, cause&circumstances of this fire is underway in collaboration with @TorontoPolice and @ONFireMarshal. Sincere condolences to family, friends and all those impacted by this tragic fire.— Matthew Pegg (@ChiefPeggTFS) December 24, 2023

Security is stepped up around Christmas celebrations in Germany and Austria over attack concerns

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:25:23 GMT

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Sightseeing visits were barred at Germany’s landmark Cologne cathedral and Christmas Eve worshippers faced security checks to get into midnight Mass on Sunday as police responded to indications of a potential attack.However, a top security official urged people not to shy away from holiday celebrations out of fear. Churchgoers attended multiple services at the cathedral despite the ban on visits purely for sightseeing, a day after police descended on the cathedral and searched it with sniffer dogs. In Austria, police in Vienna also said they were stepping up security around churches and Christmas markets, apparently responding to the same intelligence about a potential threat. They did not give further information but the dpa news agency reported without citing a source that the threat was from an Islamic extremist group. Police in Cologne said they were taking precautions over Christmas even though the information they had was for an attack on New Ye...

With the Supreme Court on sideline for now, Trump’s lawyers press immunity claims before lower court

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:25:23 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump was acting within his role as president when he pressed claims about “alleged fraud and irregularity” in the 2020 election, his lawyers told a federal appeals court in arguing that he is immune from prosecution.The attorneys also asserted in a filing late Saturday night that the “historical fallout is tremendous” from the four-count indictment charging Trump with plotting to overturn the election he lost to Democrat Joe Biden. No other former president has ever been indicted; Trump has been indicted four times, in both state and federal court, as he campaigns to reclaim the White House.“The indictment of President Trump threatens to launch cycles of recrimination and politically motivated prosecution that will plague our Nation for many decades to come and stands likely to shatter the very bedrock of our Republic — the confidence of American citizens in an independent judicial system,” the attorneys wrote in a brief filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals...

A beautiful racket: In Newfoundland, the ugly stick is an instrument in high demand

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 12:25:23 GMT

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — This year, Dave Rowe, owner of a decades-old music store in St. John’s, N.L., found himself in a peculiar yet pressing situation: he was out of ugly sticks, and the man who made them was retiring.The ugly stick is a Newfoundland percussion instrument, often made of a mop handle stuck in a rubber boot and festooned with rows of bottle caps punctured by protruding nails. They are particularly popular at O’Brien’s Music, which has been selling a variety of Newfoundland instruments since 1939, Rowe said.O’Brien’s takes its reputation and its ugly sticks seriously, and Rowe said he hunted for five months before finding another ugly stick maker whose product could pass muster.“It took some searching, like stopping at craft fairs, stuff like that,” the 42-year-old said in an interview. “When we didn’t have them there for a spell, we were turning down folks, (customers) were calling or emailing almost every day.&...