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EU fines US firm Illumina $475 million for jumping gun on buying cancer-screening company Grail

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:00:45 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union on Wednesday slapped a $475 million fine on U.S. biotech giant Illumina for buying out cancer-screening company Grail without the approval of the 27-nation bloc’s antitrust watchdog, the latest setback for the deal.Illumina announced an $7.1 billion acquisition of Grail in 2020, but the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, said the company broke the bloc’s merger rules by completing the deal without its consent. The EU had announced last year that it was blocking the merger, saying it would hurt competitors.“If companies merge before our clearance, they breach our rules. Illumina and Grail knowingly and deliberately did so by implementing their tie-up as we were still investigating,” said EU antitrust Commissioner Margrethe Vestager. “This is a very serious infringement.”Regulators worldwide have taken aim at the deal. The Federal Trade Commission ordered Illumina to reverse the buyout after finding it would “stifle compet...

Medical and aid groups in northwest Syria fear worse conditions if aid flow from Turkey stops

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:00:45 GMT

IDLIB, Syria (AP) — Youssef al-Ramadan says he always feels guilty for having to put his wife and three children to work in order to survive — and now they might not be able to get by since international aid could stop flowing from Turkey. Standing outside his tent in a displacement camp in northern Idlib, he is worried that their income might not be sufficient to make ends meet if the United Nations Security Council cannot renew a humanitarian border crossing that has been a critical lifeline for him and some 4.1 million people in Syria’s rebel-held northwest. The vast majority live in poverty and rely on aid to survive.On Tuesday, the U.N. Security Council failed to renew the Bab al-Hawa border crossing into opposition-held northwestern Syria from Turkey. Russia, a key political and military ally of President Bashar Assad, vetoed a compromise resolution presented by Brazil and Switzerland that would renew the crossing’s mandate for nine months. With the exception of Ch...

Tom Cruise surprises Toronto audience at screening of new ‘Mission: Impossible’

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:00:45 GMT

Moviegoers at a public advanced screening of the latest summer blockbuster got the cameo of a lifetime on Tuesday afternoon.Days after making local headlines for commenting on how bad the city’s traffic is, Tom Cruise was able to brave the gridlock and navigate his way to Scotiabank Theatre in downtown Toronto to introduce his new film ‘Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One.’Maurie Sherman from KiSS 92.5’s Roz and Mocha Show was in the crowd and captured the moment the actor stunned audience members at the matinee screening with a surprise appearance alongside the film’s director Christopher McQuarrie.The one and only #TomCruise surprised an audience at a Toronto screening of @MissionFilm Dead Reckoning Part 1 today!! @damnitmaurie was there and captured this video! #MissionImpossible #SpecialGuest #Toronto pic.twitter.com/QgXJ6ik3Wm— KiSS 92.5 (@KiSS925) July 11, 2023The full theatre erupted into applause when the star walked across the f...

Edmunds: 5 hidden automotive gems that no one buys

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:00:45 GMT

In the new car market, there exist some hidden gems — excellent vehicles with a lot to offer that are overlooked by many shoppers. These vehicles provide a distinct combination of qualities that make them an attractive choice. They may be underappreciated because of branding misconceptions or vehicle type or overshadowed by popular models, but they can potentially please savvy shoppers who want to stand out from the usual mainstream choices. Edmunds explores five of these hidden gems, shedding light on the X factor that makes them special. We list our choices by price and include destination. MAZDA 3 HATCHBACK Mazda’s compact 3 isn’t a top seller, but it offers a trio of qualities that most small cars don’t: distinctive styling, a refined interior and a pleasing driving experience. Its somewhat high price tag is one reason for its low sales, but we think you’re truly getting your money’s worth here.The Mazda 3’s base engine makes a respectable 191 horsepo...

Palestinian president visits Jenin refugee camp after devastating Israeli military raid

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:00:45 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas visited the occupied West Bank’s Jenin refugee camp Wednesday in the wake of a devastating Israeli offensive last week, marking his first visit to the camp since 2005.The visit came at a time of seething discontentment among Palestinians in the West Bank for Abbas and the Palestinian Authority, the autonomous government which administers parts of the West Bank but whose forces have largely lost control over several militant strongholds in the region — including Jenin.The 87-year-old president is widely seen as out of touch with the public and rarely ventures outside of his Ramallah headquarters, making Wednesday’s visit notable.The Palestinian leader’s visit to the Jenin refugee camp came a week after Israel launched a massive two-day military operation there, the largest in the West Bank in nearly two decades, that killed at least 12 Palestinians, forced thousands to flee their homes and left large swaths of the camp ...

Bulgari apologizes to China for listing Taiwan as a country after online backlash

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:00:45 GMT

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Bulgari has become the latest international brand to apologize to China after listing Taiwan as a country on its website.China claims self-ruled Taiwan as its territory, and both the government and Chinese internet users have a history of scolding or boycotting international brands that have referred to Taiwan as a separate country. Late Tuesday, Bulgari posted an apology on Weibo, China’s version of Twitter, saying it “steadfastly and always” respected China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.“Our brand has immediately corrected the mistakenly marked store addresses and map indications on the overseas official website, which resulted from management negligence,” the Italian luxury brand said in a statement. “We deeply apologize for the mistake.”Brands also have come under fire for offending Beijing’s other geopolitical sensibilities, including its territorial claims in the South China Sea and the status of the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan leader.The Bul...

US inflation is believed to have slowed sharply in June in a further sign of easing price pressures

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:00:45 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. inflation is expected to post its lowest level in more than two years in a highly anticipated report being released Wednesday — a slowdown that, if sustained, could lead the Federal Reserve to halt its interest rate hikes later this year. The monthly report from the government will probably show that consumer prices rose just 3.1% in June from 12 months earlier, according to a survey of economists by the data provider FactSet. A figure that low would mark the mildest year-over-year increase since March 2021, when the current bout of painfully high inflation began as the economy roared out of the pandemic recession. And it would signal a sharp slowdown from the 4% annual rise in May. On a month-to-month basis, though, economists have estimated that prices rose 0.3% from May to June, up from 0.1% the previous month. Gas prices are expected to have risen, with grocery prices unchanged. Economists have predicted that used-car prices fell from May to June after two...

6 people have been killed and 4 wounded in a mass shooting in South Africa. Police search for gunmen

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:00:45 GMT

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — A mass shooting in South Africa left six people dead and four wounded when three men entered the yard of a home and opened fire, police said Wednesday.The shootings happened Tuesday night in the township of Kwanobuhle near the town of Kariega in the Eastern Cape province. The suspects have not been arrested and a search was underway, police said.South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world and at least 2,629 people were killed with a firearm in the first three months of this year, according to official crime statistics. That’s a rate of 30 people a day.Police said five men and a woman were killed in Tuesday’s shooting and a woman was among the wounded.“It is alleged that … three unknown males entered the yard and opened fire at people who were in the property or nearby to the house,” said police spokesperson Col. Priscilla Naidu. “Two females were shot at the gate. One female succumbed to her injuries while the other sustained...

European Union lawmakers back a major bill to protect nature and fight climate change

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:00:45 GMT

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union’s parliament on Wednesday approved in a cliffhanger vote a major bill to protect nature and fight climate change.In a test of the EU’s global climate credentials, the legislature supported the European Commission plan in a razor-thin 324-312 vote with 12 abstentions.The Associated Press

Few US adults support full abortion bans, even in states that have them, an AP-NORC poll finds

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 12:00:45 GMT

The majority of U.S. adults, including those living in states with the deepest limits on abortion, want it to be legal at least through the initial stages of pregnancy, a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds.The poll was conducted in late June, one year after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, undoing a nationwide right to abortion that had been in place for nearly 50 years. While the laws have changed over the past year, the poll found that opinions on abortion remain much as they were a year ago: complex, with most people believing abortion should be allowed in some circumstances and not in others. Overall, about two-thirds of Americans say abortion should generally be legal, but only about a quarter say it should always be legal and only about 1 in 10 say it should always be illegal.By 24 weeks of pregnancy, most Americans think their state should generally not allow abortions.That’s true for 34-year-old Jaleesha Thoma...