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Venezuela oil czar in surprise resignation amid graft probes

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:42 GMT

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The man responsible for running Venezuela’s oil industry — the one that pays for virtually everything in the troubled country, from subsidized food to ridiculously cheap gas — has quit amid investigations into alleged corruption among officials in various parts of the government.Tareck El Aissami’s announcement Monday was shocking on multiple counts. He was seen as a loyal ruling party member and considered a key figure in the government’s efforts to evade punishing international economic sanctions. And he led the state oil company PDVSA in a Venezuelan business sector widely considered to be corrupt — in a country where embezzelment, bribery, money laundering and other wrongdoing are a lifestyle.“Obviously, they are giving it the patina of an anti-corruption probe,” said Ryan Berg, director of the Americas program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank. “Rule of law is not being advanced here,...

Couple ambushed by armed robber in Koreatown: video

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:42 GMT

Surveillance video captured the moments a couple out on a date in Koreatown last week were robbed by a man with a semi-automatic handgun, and police believe the suspect may have committed at least one other armed robbery in the area. The incident happened on Mar. 15, at around 10 p.m. outside Jaragua, a Salvadoran restaurant in the 4400 block of Beverly Boulevard.  Video shows the couple complying and dropping to the ground, while the armed suspect takes their money, debit cards, cellphones and a designer handbag.  “Obviously they were scared, traumatized, can’t walk in the neighborhood,” the owner of Jaragua told KTLA.  The restaurant owner did not want to appear on camera out of concern for his safety.  “My employees this morning, I tried to get the word out to the employees because that's why I'm here. I'm going to walk them out when they get into their car. And this morning, they're kind of scared to walk by themselves, even in the parking lot,” he said.   ...

Reimer finishes with season-high in saves but Sharks lose to Oilers in OT

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:42 GMT

EDMONTON, Alberta — Darnell Nurse scored at 4:45 of overtime to give the Edmonton Oilers a 5-4 win over the struggling San Jose Sharks on Monday night for their fourth straight win.Mattias Ekholm had two goals, Kailer Yamamoto had a goal and an assist, and Nick Bjugstad also scored to help the Oilers win for the sixth time in seven games. Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins each had two assists, and Jack Campbell had 28 saves.Erik Karlsson scored twice, Alexander Barabanov had a goal and an assist, and Steven Lorentz also scored for the Sharks, who lost their seventh straight (0-4-3) and fell to 2-11-4 in their last 17 games. James Reimer had a season-high 46 saves.With the clock winding down in the extra period, Nurse got a long pass from Yamamoto along the right side, skated in on Reimer on a breakaway, and beat him through the five-hole for his eighth of the season.Ekholm tied it 4-4 with 3:47 left in the third with his second of the night and eighth of the se...

UConn beats Baylor 77-58 for 29th straight trip to Sweet 16

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:42 GMT

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — Azzi Fudd is still rounding back into form after missing 22 games with injuries this season. She’s only been back for five games and hadn’t looked like the player that was dominating the game before suffering two knee injuries. But after going 2 of 8 from the floor in the first half Monday night, the sophomore guard scored 16 of her game-high 22 points in a decisive third quarter, leading second-seeded UConn to a 77-58 win over No. 7 seed Baylor on Monday night. That put the Huskies in a 29th straight Sweet 16.Fudd said she just stayed confident and her shots began to fall.“I definitely wouldn’t say (I took) the team on my back, I think everyone played an incredible role tonight,” Fudd said. “But I think (I just kept) that mindset of being aggressive and having my teammates and coaches continue to remind me, ’Don’t stop shooting, keep shooting, keep looking for your shots.”Aaliyah Edwards added 19 points, Aubrey Griffin pulled down 12 rebounds and Ni...

Nurse scores late in OT to give Oilers 5-4 win over Sharks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:42 GMT

EDMONTON, Alberta (AP) — Darnell Nurse scored at 4:45 of overtime to give the Edmonton Oilers a 5-4 win over the struggling San Jose Sharks on Monday night for their fourth straight win.Mattias Ekholm had two goals, Kailer Yamamoto had a goal and an assist, and Nick Bjugstad also scored to help the Oilers win for the sixth time in seven games. Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins each had two assists, and Jack Campbell had 28 saves.Erik Karlsson scored twice, Alexander Barabanov had a goal and an assist, and Steven Lorentz also scored for the Sharks, who lost their seventh straight (0-4-3) and fell to 2-11-4 in their last 17 games. James Reimer had a season-high 46 saves.With the clock winding down in the extra period, Nurse got a long pass from Yamamoto along the right side, skated in on Reimer on a breakaway and beat him through the five-hole for his eighth of the season.Ekholm tied it 4-4 with 3:47 left in the third with his second of the night and eighth of the...

Julius Randle’s historic 57-point performance ends with Knicks losing to T-Wolves at MSG

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:42 GMT

A historic night for Julius Randle ended with him picking up a technical, shooting an airball and yelling at a referee as the buzzer sounded.His 57 points — tied with Richie Guerin for third most in franchise history — was spoiled by an ugly finish to a 140-134 loss Monday night to the Timberwolves, a defeat forged with porous defense and solidified by the Knicks getting outscored 11-3 in the final 2 ½ minutes.The dagger was a layup from Minnesota’s Taurean Prince, the unlikely hero with 35 points, who converted the shot right over Randle with 10 seconds remaining. Randle responded by throwing the ball in frustration — an automatic technical — and throwing up an airball on New York’s final possession.Talk about a buzzkill. Otherwise, Randle was fantastic.His shot that eclipsed 50 points was a fadeaway 3-pointer in the third quarter, the type of conversion that can only seem so easy when a player is scorching.It was momentous for a couple...

Ohtani, Japan rally late, edge Mexico 6-5 to reach WBC final

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:42 GMT

MIAMI — Shohei Ohtani sparked a ninth-inning rally with a leadoff double, and Munetaka Murakami hit a walk-off, two-run double to lift Japan over Mexico 6-5 Monday night and into the World Baseball Classic final.Japan will face the defending champion United States in Tuesday’s championship game.Ohtani went 2 for 4. The Los Angeles Angels star scored in the seventh when Masataka Yoshida hit a tying, three-run homer off reliever JoJo Romero. ()

Mix of heavy rain and gusty winds could bring unplanned power outages, damage along coast

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:42 GMT

SAN DIEGO - Windy conditions will be felt from the coast to the deserts Tuesday. The National Weather Service has issued a high wind warning for most of the day. Now, concerns are that wind gusts could leave damage behind. “This thing comes in waves," shared Skyler McManus who runs Hamel's Surf Shop in Mission Beach. A quite literal statement for the San Diego lifer whose shop was recently slammed by ocean water in recent storms, leaving McManus on guard for what's to come. “Mother nature does unruly things that you can’t predict so you have to act fast and put the sandbags out and get everything set up and protect the store. I've seen it crazy,” McManus said. High wind warnings from the coast to the cactus, is keeping local leaders on standby, as strong southerly winds race ashore Tuesday, with gusts reaching around 55 mph along our local beaches. “That is causing some concern of course after we saw all of those trees that fell in Balboa Park and elsewhere throughout the city,...

Ignoring experts, China’s sudden zero-COVID exit cost lives

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:42 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — When China suddenly scrapped onerous zero-COVID measures in December, the country wasn’t ready for a massive onslaught of cases. Hospitals turned away ambulances, crematoriums burned bodies around the clock, and relatives hauled dead loved ones to warehouses for lack of storage space.Chinese state media claimed the decision to open up was based on “scientific analysis and shrewd calculation,” and “by no means impulsive.” But in reality, China’s ruling Communist Party ignored repeated efforts by top medical experts to kickstart exit plans until it was too late, The Associated Press found.Instead, the reopening came suddenly at the onset of winter, when the virus spreads most easily. Many older people weren’t vaccinated, pharmacies lacked antivirals, and hospitals didn’t have adequate supplies or staff — leading to as many as hundreds of thousands of deaths that could have been avoided, according to academic modeling, more than 20 interviews with current and forme...

IMF to assess Sri Lankan governance as part of $3B bailout

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:42 GMT

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — The International Monetary Fund said Tuesday it is assessing Sri Lanka’s governance in the first case of an Asian country facing scrutiny for corruption as part of a bailout program. The IMF executive board approved a nearly $3 billion bailout plan for the bankrupt nation Monday and about $333 million was to be disbursed immediately to help alleviate the country’s humanitarian crisis. The approval also will open up financial support from other institutions. Sri Lanka suspended repayment of its debt last year as it ran short of foreign currency needed to pay for imports of fuel and other essentials. Shortages led to street protests that forced out Sri Lanka’s president. The economic situation has improved under current President Ranil Wickremesinghe, but his plans to privatize state companies have raised objections. The senior mission chief for the IMF in Sri Lanka said the development lender was “conducting an in-depth governance diagnostic exercise w...