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Lanterns and crescents: more retailers court Ramadan buyers

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:30:32 GMT

With her 3-year-old daughter sitting inside a red Target shopping cart, Aya Khalil looked through the aisles with anticipation. The author was on a mission: See for herself that her children’s book about a boy and his grandmother baking for an Islamic feast was actually carried by her local Target store in Toledo.“Oh my God! … It’s right there,” Khalil said on spotting “The Night Before Eid.”“Oh yeaaaaah!” her daughter joyously exclaimed. Khalil giggled.For Khalil, it was a pinch-me moment as an author — and also a big deal as a mother.“This didn’t happen when I was growing up. It was like, ‘Are things really changing now?’” she said. “I’m just really happy that now my own kids will be able to see that and that they’ll know that their stories are valid and … are out there like a totally normal thing.”For this year’s Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which started last week, Target rolled out its first dedicated Ramadan and Eid collection, including decorati...

‘War of the states’: EV, chip makers lavished with subsidies

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:30:32 GMT

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — States are doling out more cash than ever to lure multibillion-dollar microchip, electric vehicle and battery factories, inspiring ever-more competition as they dig deeper into their pockets to attract big employers and capitalize on a wave of huge new projects.Georgia, Kansas, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas have made billion-dollar pledges for a microchip or EV plant, with more state-subsidized plant announcements by profitable automakers and semiconductor giants surely to come. States have long competed for big employers. But now they are floating more billion-dollar offers and offering record-high subsidies, lavishing companies with grants and low-interest loans, municipal road improvements, and breaks on taxes, real estate, power and water.“We’re in the second war of the states,” said John Boyd, a principal at the Florida-based Boyd Company, which advises on site selections. “That’s how competitive economic development is between the st...

Taliban close women-run Afghan station for playing music

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:30:32 GMT

JALALABAD, Afghanistan (AP) — A women-run radio station in Afghanistan’s northeast has been shut down for playing music during the holy month of Ramadan, a Taliban official said Saturday.Sadai Banowan, which means women’s voice in Dari, is Afghanistan’s only women-run station and started 10 years ago. It has eight staff, six of them female.Moezuddin Ahmadi, the director for Information and Culture in Badakhshan province, said the station violated the “laws and regulations of the Islamic Emirate” several times by broadcasting songs and music during Ramadan and was shuttered because of the breach.“If this radio station accepts the policy of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and gives a guarantee that it will not repeat such a thing again, we will allow it to operate again,” said Ahmadi.Station head Najia Sorosh denied there was any violation, saying there was no need for the closure and called it a conspiracy. The Taliban “told us that you have broadcast music. We have not broa...

'Heavy congestion' expected near UT, downtown due to multiple concurrent events

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:30:32 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The City of Austin released a memo Thursday to bring awareness to the many concurrent events scheduled near the University of Texas and the downtown Austin area Saturday.Drivers should be prepared to expect traffic delays due to the multiple events around the area.“Staff anticipates very heavy congestion around the university and in the downtown area during and after these events. Staff have been working with the various events organizers to plan for the ingress and egress of the events to minimize the impact to mobility and ensure safety for all attending,” the city said.The scheduled UT events include:The Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays Track + Field CompetitionLonghorn Run 5k/10KCountry Music Television Awards for RehearsalsBroadway in Austin at Bass Concert Hall“Although UT is responsible for traffic management for events on their campus, staff are coordinating them to help minimize travel impacts in the area,” the city said.The scheduled downtown events include:C...

No fooling: April kicks off with more than 8 inches of snow in the Twin Cities, power outages and car crashes

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:30:32 GMT

A late spring snowstorm Friday night and early Saturday brought blizzard warnings, booming thunder and several inches of snow on the ground also left thousands without power and dozens stranded at the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport.This latest storm makes this year the third snowiest winter on record, with at total so far of 89.7 inches, said Caleb Grunzke, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service Twin Cities.While most areas of the Metro saw between 7 and 9 inches of snow, a foot of snow was reported in some northwest areas, such as Medina and Monticello, he said. Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport clocked 8.5 inches of snow. The NWS Twin Cities was still waiting for snowfall totals from St. Cloud.While road conditions were treacherous overnight with blinding snowfall and slippery roads, the state patrol reported Saturday morning that there were no serious injuries or fatalities among the hundreds of spin outs and dozens of accidents.Driving was difficult in St. Paul...

Newspaper delivery delayed by up to 8 hours today

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:30:32 GMT

Due to Saturday’s weather conditions, delivery of today’s Pioneer Press has been delayed by up to 8 hours.We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.For free access to our online newspaper, click here: epioneerpress.comTo register a complaint, click here: [email protected] use our automated voice response unit please call: 651-717-7377.

Code Blue declared in Albany

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:30:32 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The Homeless and Travelers Aid Society (HATAS) is calling a code blue alert for April 1 through April 2 as temperatures are expected to drop into the 20s. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Homeless residents of Albany County in need of shelter can go to the Capital City Rescue Mission at 259 South Pearl Street, the Emergency Overflow Shelter at 646 State Street 12206 (Lutheran Church), or the IPH Safe Haven at 26 South Swan Street 12210. People in need can also call the HATAS Homeless Hotline at 518 463 2124. 

Hochul meets with state officials after swatting calls

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:30:32 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- In response to the numerous swatting calls around NYS, governor Hochul met with state public safety and education leaders to reinforce plans for student safety. As a result, Hochul announced heightened monitoring to keep students and staff safe. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Governor Hochul comments, "Every child in New York deserves to feel safe at school and every parent should trust that their child will return home at the end of every day," "State and local law enforcement are conducting increased monitoring to make sure that all of our students are safe, and our first responders are always prepared in the event of an emergency. While these false threats of violence occur across the country, New York is taking proactive steps so that they do not become a reality."   Governor Hochul collaborated with the New York State Police and the State Education Department to issue a letter to school leader...

4/1/2023: Warm, then stormy start to April

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:30:32 GMT

The latest Storm Tracker Forecast from meteorologist Matt Mackie: A series of fronts moving through the News10 region today will bring two round of wet weather to kick off the month of April. The first comes this morning, with on and off light rain showers continuing through just before lunchtime.Midday, we'll get some dry time. With some sun and gusty winds of of the southwest, temperatures will be able to surge to around 70 for an afternoon high. But that warmth also means the atmosphere is primed for stronger storms as the cold front moves through between 5-9 pm.This isn't an off the charts severe weather threat - the Storm Prediction Center's outlook has our area in a "slight risk" - a 2 out of 5 on their scale. Still, a couple storms could turn strong to severe with potentially damaging winds and heavy rain downpours being the main threats. Small hail is not out of the question, and is more likely south of Albany.Behind the cold front, temperature...

Patroons use second-half surge to lock down ninth straight win

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 10:30:32 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The Albany Patroons have been on a tear of late, rattling off eight straight victories, and soaring to the top of the northeast standings. Derrick Rowland's squad returned to the Armory Friday night in pursuit of a ninth straight win against the visiting London Lightning. Despite trailing for much of the game, the Patroons used a massive second half to top London 96-91. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! The Lightning were lighting it up from the perimeter in the first half. They knocked down eight three-pointers to take a 46-38 advantage into the locker room at halftime. But Albany turned up its' intensity out of the break. After London's Marcus Ottey connected from deep to put the Lightning up 53-46 at the 7:41 mark of the third quarter, the Patroons countered with a 12-0 run over the next 4:02, capped by an acrobatic, left-handed lay-up from point guard Shadell Millinghaus. The Patroons outscored Lo...