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Two Canadian women and three children on way home from detention camps in Syria

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:48:21 GMT

OTTAWA — Two women and three children who were temporarily missing in Syria after failing to board a repatriation flight to Canada in April are finally on their way home.The women and children were among a group of 19 people Canada agreed to bring home from Kurdish-operated prison camps in northeastern Syria in January.They have been held for years at displaced persons camps in a region now controlled by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.The other 14 people arrived in April but these women and children failed to show up for the flight and neither their lawyers nor the Canadian government knew what happened for several days.One of their lawyers later said the women and children had been detained by Kurdish guards and not allowed to travel to board the plane at that time.Ottawa lawyer Lawrence Greenspon, who reached the agreement earlier this year to bring home the 19 women and children from Syria, said their return now is very good news. “I have spoken to their families ...

Mayor Johnson's transition committee releases 200-plus page report on how to improve Chicago

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:48:21 GMT

CHICAGO — Mayor Brandon Johnson received recommendations from his transition committee Thursday on ways to improve Chicago across several sectors.The transition report is more than 200 pages long, outlining plans to address some of the city’s most pressing issues from education to immigration, to housing and public safety. "This blueprint represents a platform that I ran on. But it's also a representation of how we will govern. It represents democracy, where everyone literally has a seat at the table no matter your community, no matter how rich or how poor you are," Johnson said while addressing his transition team.Johnson spoke in front of hundreds of members of the transition team Thursday morning at a church in Washington Park. They called the report a living document that centers the needs of investing, especially in young people, on public safety. Full transition report below:TransitionReport.07.2023DownloadGoals include improving systems and staffing to reinforce confidence us...

Bond set for Naperville man after fatal hit-and-run in West Chicago

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:48:21 GMT

WEST CHICAGO, Ill. -- A Naperville man has been charged after a fatal hit-and-run crash that left a 40-year-old man dead Tuesday. John Gary, 26, is charged with a felony count of failure to report an accident involving death with a bond set at $500,000. According to court documents, West Chicago police officers responded to a hit and run crash near Joliet Street and Wilson Street around 10:49 p.m. Tuesday. Upon arrival, a 40-year-old victim, Renato Vargas-Guitierrez, was found unconscious and was pronounced dead shortly after. Deadly hit-and-run investigation prompts SWAT response in West Chicago It is alleged that Vargas-Guitierrez was riding his bicycle southbound on Joliet Street when he was struck by Gray's vehicle who was also travelling southbound. Police said Gray fled the scene after the crash.Gray was located near the area of Stevens Court and Continental Drive around four minutes later.His bond is set at $500,000. Gray's next court appearance is scheduled for August 3....

Man who disappeared as teen in 2015 was at home all along, police say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:48:21 GMT

HOUSTON (KIAH) — A man who was reported missing as a teen eight years ago was found alive but injured earlier this week, and police now say he had been at home all along. Rudy Farias IV was 17 years old when he vanished on March 6, 2015, while walking his two dogs near Tidwell Road in north Houston. The dogs were later found, but Rudy was not located.That is until Sunday, when Farias' family and the Texas Center of the Missing said that Rudy, now 25, had been found. He was taken to the hospital for "several injuries," his family said, adding that he was in "bad shape."Authorities previously said Farias had been diagnosed with depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety. According to his family, Farias was found unresponsive outside of a church. But he may not have been missing this entire time. A Texas man who went missing as a teen in 2015 has been found alive, his family and police say During a press conference Thursday, Houston Police said evidence collected this we...

Police issue sketch of man suspected of assaulting child in beach bathroom

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:48:21 GMT

CHICAGO -- Police are searching for a man after a four-year-old child was allegedly assaulted in a restroom at Rainbow Beach in the city's South Shore neighborhood.According to police, on Tuesday in the 3000 block of East 7th Street at around 5:30 p.m., a four-year-old child was using the restroom at a beach when an unidentified man entered and sexually assaulted the child before fleeing. Bond set for Naperville man after fatal hit-and-run in West Chicago The offender is identified as being 5'8 to 5'10 inches tall, 180 to 210 pounds and between the ages of 35 and 40. He was seen having short black hair, unshaved facial hair, wearing a tan t-shirt, green shorts and black sandals. Police is urging community members who were at Rainbow Beach Tuesday between 3 to 6 p.m. to check images for this person if they took photos. If any information is recovered on the individual, contact police at (312)-492-3810.

Ricky Martin and husband, Jwan Yosef, announce divorce after 6 years of marriage

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:48:21 GMT

(WFLA) – "Livin' La Vida Loca" singer Ricky Martin and his husband, Jwan Yosef, announced they are divorcing after six years of marriage. Martin, 51, and Yosef, 38, posted the announcement on their Instagram accounts Thursday. The pair originally connected on Instagram in 2015. "For some time, we have considered transforming our relationship, and it is after careful consideration that we have decided to end our marriage with love, respect, and dignity for our children — preserving and honoring what we have experienced as a couple all of these wonderful years," the Instagram posts stated. "Our greatest desire now is to continue having a healthy family dynamic and a relationship centered on our genuine friendship as we continue the joint upbringing of our children." Must be the money: Nelly selling half of music catalog for a reported $50M Martin and Yosef, who married in 2018, have two children: their daughter, Lucia, born in 2018, and their son, Renn, born in 2019. Martin will ...

Missing 15-year-old girl last seen in Brighton Park, police say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:48:21 GMT

CHICAGO — Chicago police seek the public's help locating a missing 15-year-old girl on the Southwest Side. Police said Danna Mora was last seen Monday, July 3, in the 4100 block of S. Sacramento Ave.SEE ALSO: Missing Portage Park teen considered high-risk, police sayMora stands 5″2′ and weighs 120 pounds. She also has brown eyes and brown hair with a medium skin complexion.Anyone with information is asked to call (312) 747-8380 

Search continues for Kyron Horman, Oregon boy whose 2010 disappearance made global headlines

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:48:21 GMT

(NewsNation) — It's been 13 years since 7-year-old Kyron Horman vanished, shortly after showing off his science project at his school in northwest Portland, Oregon. His case captured the attention of people around the globe, resulting in a documentary and even a book by a New York Times best-selling author. But Kyron remains missing and his mother is still hoping to bring him home.On June 4, 2010, Kyron left for school with his stepmother, Terri Horman, looking forward to showing off his second-grade science project on tree frogs. The pair took Kyron's father, Kaine Horman's, truck to Skyline School that day. Terri didn't normally drive the car but said she'd need it to bring Kyron's science project back home. A mother’s hope that social media can find her son Terri snapped a picture of Kyron with his project, which she posted to Facebook that afternoon. But she said when she went to pick Kyron up from the bus at 2:30 p.m., he wasn't there.The family called the school and the pol...

Texas Democrats file new property tax relief plan with focus on teachers, renters

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:48:21 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) -- As top Texas Republicans show scant signs of progress towards a deal to lower property taxes, some Democrats in the Texas House are taking the impasse as an opportunity to present their own ideas.State. Rep. John Bryant, D-Dallas, led a small coalition of progressives on Thursday in supporting a new package of property tax relief measures that tops out larger than any other proposal yet.His bill proposes $20.9 billion to provide homestead exemptions of up to $200,000, cash rebates to renters, permanent pay raises to teachers, and some cuts to school district tax rates."Texans pay the fifth highest property taxes in the nation, yet our state is 44th in its support for public education. Neither ranking is acceptable," Bryant said. "We believe a property tax relief plan should simultaneously address both."A recap of the 9:30 a.m. news conference is available in the video player below. Permanent public education funding increaseHouse Bi...

Water tasting or smelling funny? Austin Water says it's working to fix the issue after customer complaints

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:48:21 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — On Thursday, Austin Water said it was aware some customers were experiencing taste and odor issues but said people should not worry.“Taste and odor issues do not indicate that treated drinking water is unsafe to drink. Austin Water feeds powder-activated carbon to treated water to resolve taste and odor issues. This is separate from the steps we take to disinfect water and we test our water throughout the distribution system multiple times a day, every day to make sure that it’s safe,” Austin Water said.In order to resolve taste and odor issues, Austin Water said it needs to know about them.“We can adjust the feed of powder-activated carbon in response to customer complaints. People should report any taste and odor issues they are having to our 24-hour Emergency Dispatch line (512) 972-1000, Option 1,” Austin Water said.