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Macron sees draft law to make abortion rights ‘irreversible’ this week

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:52 GMT

French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday announced that his government plans to submit a draft law in the coming days to enshrine abortion rights in the country’s constitution.“Based on the work of parliamentarians and associations, the draft law will be sent to the State Council this week and presented to the Council of Ministers at the end of the year,” Macron wrote on X. Once enacted, “women’s freedom to resort to abortion will become irreversible,” he said. The push to grant abortion constitutional status follows up on what Macron promised on March 8, on the occasion of International Women’s Day. Macron said France’s initiative should be seen as a “universal message of solidarity toward the women whose abortion rights have been violated” — a direct reference to the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the U.S. Supreme Court last year. A recent opinion poll indicates that the French measure enjoys wide public support, with over 80 percent of the responden...

Children rescued from Framingham apartment complex blaze that injured 5, displaced 40

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:52 GMT

Fire crews battled a three-alarm blaze at an apartment complex in Framingham Saturday night that left five people injured, including four firefighters, and 40 displaced. The fire broke out at 1630 Worcester Road, causing significant damage to a unit on the fourth-floor, according to Fire Chief Michael Dutcher. Management is working with the American Red Cross to find them emergency shelter, the City of Framingham said in a post on Facebook.The four firefighters were taken to the hospital with minor injuries. A pregnant woman was also transported.Video from the scene showed firefighters using a ladder truck to rescue children from the building.No additional information was immediately available.This is a developing news story; stay with 7NEWS on-air and online for the latest details.

12 people die in a plane crash in the Brazilian Amazon

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:52 GMT

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Twelve people aboard a small aircraft died in a crash Sunday morning in Brazil’s Amazon region.The plane went down near the main airport in Rio Branco, the capital of Acre state, according to the press office of Gov. Gladson Cameli.Video supposedly of the crash site on social media showed flaming wreckage in the forest.The Associated Press

Justin Trudeau, friends, actors and fans mourn Matthew Perry

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:52 GMT

Matthew Perry was mourned on social media by friends, co-stars and some very famous fans, including his childhood classmate, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, his “Friends” mom Morgan Fairchild and even Adele. Perry, who played Chandler Bing on NBC’s “Friends” for 10 seasons, was found dead at his Los Angeles home on Saturday. He was 54.Trudeau, who attended elementary school with Perry while their parents worked together, wrote a tribute on X, formerly Twitter.“I’ll never forget the schoolyard games we used to play, and I know people around the world are never going to forget the joy he brought them,” Trudeau wrote. “Thanks for all the laughs, Matthew. You were loved — and you will be missed.”Perry’s mother served as press secretary to Trudeau’s father, Pierre Trudeau, during his time as prime minister.Adele took a moment to talk about him during her show in Las Vegas on Saturday night. She recalled how his work made her laugh and said that even though she’d never met h...

Man charged in killing of Nat King Cole’s great-nephew

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:52 GMT

ATLANTA (AP) — A Georgia man has been arrested in connection with the death of the great-nephew of world-renowned singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole, police said. Tracy Cole was stabbed to death in Atlanta on Sept. 14. The 31-year-old died at the hospital. Investigators have charged Ricardo Gayle, 41, with his killing. He was taken into custody during a traffic stop Saturday.Police said the men knew each other, according to WSB-TV.Gayle was booked into the Fulton County Jail on several charges, including murder, aggravated assault and armed robbery.Tracy Cole was the grandson of Freddy Cole, one of Nat King Cole’s three brothers. The pioneering jazz star died in 1965. Freddy Cole was also a famous jazz singer and pianist who was inducted into the Georgia Hall of Fame. A call to the Office of the Public Defender in Atlanta was not answered Sunday, and it was not immediately clear whether Gayle had retained a private attorney. Jail records did not list an attorney, and an attempt t...

Thousands rally in Pakistan against Israel’s bombing in Gaza, chanting anti-American slogans

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:52 GMT

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Thousands of supporters of Pakistan’s main politico-religious party rallied in the capital, Islamabad, Sunday against Israel’s bombing of Palestinians in Gaza, chanting anti-American slogans and accusing the U.S. of “backing the aggressor.”The extreme right party, Jamaat-e-Islami, had announced a march from Islamabad’s famous Abpara intersection to the US embassy in the high-security diplomatic enclave. However, stern action by the authorities the previous night forced the religious party to modify its program and hold the rally in a major street well away from the protected area. Police pulled down the party’s encampments on Saturday night, detaining the local leadership and dozens of supporters. Because of the plan announced by Jammat-e-Islami and the risk of violence, the US embassy issued an advisory for American citizens living in Islamabad and the surrounding area to “limit unnecessary travel on Sunday.” It advised U.S. citizens to avoi...

CRTC urged to mandate better supports for Deaf Canadians during phone service outages

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:52 GMT

When a major telecommunications outage left more than 12 million users without wireless service in July 2022, the disruption was far more dire for the many Canadians dependent on accessibility apps.That day, Rogers Communications Inc. customers spent hours unable to use their mobile devices for calling, texting or browsing the web unless they were able to find a Wi-Fi connection.But for those like Kimberly Wood, who is Deaf, it meant any form of communication was practically impossible. That included finding out about the outage at all.As Canada’s telecommunications regulator seeks to improve transparency and reporting requirements surrounding major network outages, members of the Deaf, hard of hearing and deaf-blind community are urging the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission to take their needs into account so that situation doesn’t repeat.“There are certain services that if disrupted would affect everyone — both hearing and Deaf. For exam...

Bangladesh police detain a key opposition leader after clashes left 1 dead and scores injured

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:52 GMT

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Authorities in Bangladesh detained a key opposition figure of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, which called for a nationwide strike Sunday following a day of violent clashes with security forces. At least one police officer was killed and scores were injured on Saturday when a massive rally by tens of thousands of opposition activists turned violent. The opposition is demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the transfer of power to a non-partisan caretaker government to oversee general elections next year.Police on Sunday detained Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgi, the secretary general of the Nationalist Party led by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia’s party, Hasina’s main rival, Faruk Hossain, deputy commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police in charge of media, told The Associated Press. The party denounced his detention and announced a three-day blockade of mainly roads and public transport across the country starting on Tuesday. Dhaka Met...

Residents of Maine gather to pray and reflect, days after a mass shooting left 18 people dead

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:52 GMT

LEWISTON, Maine (AP) — Church bells rang Sunday as Maine residents gathered at somber and sometimes joyful services to pray and support one another following a traumatic week in which a fellow Mainer gunned down 18 people in the worst mass killing in state history. The Rev. Daniel Greenleaf began services at the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Lewiston with a moment of silence. Then, he told the congregation that it was good to be able to finally pray together after days of lockdown imposed while police searched for the 40-year-old gunman Robert Card. The body of Card was found Friday in a trailer at a recycling center in Lisbon Falls. Card died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, but it was unclear when, authorities said. Card is suspected of also injuring 13 people during the shooting rampage on Wednesday night in Lewiston. Several women wore black veils in the cavernous sanctuary, where a church official said they are raising funds to help shooting victims and other...

Weekend Break: Color Factory

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 19:00:52 GMT

Join WGN's Shannon Halligan on Weekend Break at the Color Factory in the Willis Tower.Love the WGN Morning News? We love you, too. And you can have all the hijinks delivered to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign up and subscribe to our WGN Morning News newsletter.