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Flooded with sightseers, Europe’s iconic churches struggle to accommodate both worship and tourism

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:30:23 GMT

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — A recent Saturday evening Mass at Sagrada Familia parish had all the hallmarks of a neighborhood worship service, from prayers for ill and deceased members to name-day wishes for two congregants in the pews.But it also featured security checks to get in and curious tourists peering down to take photos of the worshippers from above. The regular Mass is held in the crypt of modernist architect Antoni Gaudí’s masterpiece church, one of Europe’s most visited monuments.With tourism reaching or surpassing pre-pandemic records in Barcelona and across southern Europe, iconic sacred sites are struggling to accommodate the faithful who come to pray and the millions of visitors who often pay to view the art and architecture.“We’re working to get ahead of this, so that we don’t get to a collapse,” said the Rev. Josep Maria Turull, rector at Sagrada Familia and the Barcelona archdiocese’s director for tourism, pilgrimage and sanctuaries.An increasingly popular strategy is...

Israeli army fire kills Palestinian man during clashes at West Bank shrine

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:30:23 GMT

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli troops shot and killed a Palestinian man near a shrine in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, Palestinian health officials said, in the latest bloodshed in a cycle of violence that has gripped the region.The months of fighting with rising fatalities have shown no signs of abating and has become the worst violence between Israel and the Palestinians in the West Bank in nearly two decades.Thursday’s shooting took place as Israeli forces escorted Israeli worshippers, including the Israeli police chief and the head of the local Jewish settler council, to a site known as the biblical Joseph’s Tomb in the Palestinian city of Nablus. The shrine has long been a flashpoint for clashes between Palestinians and Israeli troops. Nablus has also become a central point of violence in the current escalation.The Israeli military said that during the visit, suspects opened fire and threw explosives, rocks and burning tires at troops, who returned fire. Palestinian news ...

In a refugee camp in Kenya, food shortages left kids hungry even before Russia ended grain deal

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:30:23 GMT

DADAAB, Kenya (AP) — Abdikadir Omar was trapped in an extremist-controlled town in Somalia for years until May, when he slipped out to make a 12-day journey with his wife and seven children to neighboring Kenya in search of food and safety.To his surprise, “I found peace but no food,” the 30-year-old told The Associated Press. He stood near the withered maize he tried to plant around his family’s makeshift shelter of branches and plastic sheeting outside one of the world’s largest refugee camps.As global food insecurity suffers another shock with Russia’s termination of a deal to keep grain flowing from Ukraine, the hundreds of thousands of Somalis who have fled climate change and insecurity offer a stark example of what happens when aid runs low.Omar, a farmer, was forced to give most of his produce as tax to al-Shabab, the al-Qaida-linked extremists who have controlled parts of Somalia for years, and the little that remained wasn’t enough to feed his family during Somalia’s ...

Landslide triggered by heavy rains kills 5 and traps many others in western India

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:30:23 GMT

NEW DELHI (AP) — A landslide triggered by torrential rains in India’s western Maharashtra state killed five people, with many others feared trapped under piles of debris, local media reported Thursday. Rescuers worked through the night to help save people trapped by the landslide, which occurred late Wednesday, and pull out bodies, an official told the Press Trust of India news agency. While 75 people have been rescued, many others are still stuck. The landslide hit a village in Raigad district and buried 17 of the 50 houses there. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde arrived at the site on Thursday and told reporters “the priority now is to rescue those still trapped beneath the rubble.”India’s weather department put Maharashtra on alert as the state has been lashed by incessant rains this week. The downpours have disrupted life for many in the state, including in the capital, Mumbai, where authorities on Thursday shut schools. Local train services have been disrupted wit...

Twins bats, Jhoan Duran remain hot in 6-3 victory over Mariners

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:30:23 GMT

SEATTLE — Luis Castillo came into Wednesday’s game against the Twins with a 6-7 record, but that was deceiving. The right-hander had struck out 122 batters and walked only 28 in 112⅓ innings and could boast of a 2.96 earned-run average.So, after the Twins beat the Mariners, 6-3, to improve to 5-1 on their West Coast road trip, they were particularly proud of how they handled Castillo, even if the veteran did give Seattle a quality start.The Twins touched Castillo for three earned runs on six hits, two of them solo home runs from Edouard Julien and Max Kepler, and had him on the hook for a 3-0 deficit before Seattle tied the game on Eugenio Suarez’s two-run homer in the seventh inning.The Twins scored the go-ahead run when Max Kepler scored on a passed ball by Seattle catcher Tom Murphy, and Alex Kirilloff added a two-run homer in the ninth before Jhoan Duran pitched the ninth for his 16th save, getting out of a jam with the help of some 104 mph fastballs.Yet, getting Castillo out of...

Europe's sweltering summer could send tourists to cooler climes

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:30:23 GMT

Soaring summer temperatures across southern Europe could prompt a lasting shift in tourist habits, with more travellers choosing cooler destinations or taking their holidays in spring or autumn to dodge the extreme heat, tourism bodies and experts predict.European Travel Commission (ETC) data shows the number of people hoping to travel to the Mediterranean region in June to November has already fallen 10% compared to last year, when scorching weather led to droughts and wildfires.Destinations like the Czech Republic, Denmark, Ireland and Bulgaria have meanwhile seen a spike in interest."We anticipate that unpredictable weather conditions in the future will have a greater impact on travellers' choices in Europe," said Miguel Sanz, the head of the ETC.A report by the trade body also shows 7.6% of travellers now see extreme weather events as a major concern for trips between June and November.Among them are Anita Elshoy and her husband, who returned home to Norway from their favourite ...

7-year-old L.A. boy develops massive following as fashion designer 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:30:23 GMT

At just 7-years-old, Max Alexander is already on his way to becoming a popular fashion designer, his creations taking social media by storm and catching the eyes of some celebrities.  The second grader appears to be fixated on women’s fashion, telling his mom at dinner one night, three years ago, that he needed a mannequin because he was a dressmaker.  His mother, Sherri Madison, got young Max a mannequin, sewing lessons and fabric, and said that he then just started to create from there.  “I think of a picture...in my mind. I just kind of put it on the mannequin. That’s called draping...and then I take it off and I pin it and then I sew it,” the 7-year-old explained.  A colorful first dress designed by Max was the genesis of what his agent now calls “Couture to the Max.” The second grader is already very popular on TikTok and his mom says that he has a waiting list on Instagram, people commissioning ladies' apparel at $1,400 a piece.  “Right now, he’s ...

New video ‘justifies’ L.A. deputy slamming woman on ground in Lancaster arrest, attorney says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:30:23 GMT

New video shows the moments leading up to a deputy seen slamming a woman to the ground during an arrest at a Lancaster grocery store.The confrontation happened on June 24 when deputies responded to reports of an in-progress robbery at a WinCo Foods store located at 740 W. Ave. K 4.Body cam footage shows deputies confronting the woman in the grocery store’s parking lot in an incident that some believe was an unjustified use of force.After viewing video of the arrest, L.A. County Sheriff Robert Luna called the incident “disturbing.”An attorney representing the deputy said new security footage of the moments leading up to the incident not only provides more context for the arrest, but justifies the actions taken by the deputy.“Upon arrival, deputies approached a man and a woman matching the description given by store security personnel in calls placed to 911,” said LASD. “As deputies attempted to detain the individuals described by store security personnel, the encounter escalated into...

Spain’s election Sunday pits 2 leftist vs. 2 rightist parties. Here’s a look at the leaders

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:30:23 GMT

MADRID (AP) — Spain’s elections Sunday will be a battle between two leftist and two rightist parties that are teaming up to form potential coalitions. Here is a glance at the four leaders of those parties.___PEDRO SÁNCHEZPedro Sánchez, Spain’s prime minister since 2018, is facing reelection with recent ballots and most of polls against him.The Socialist party leader has steered Spain through the COVID-19 pandemic thanks to a successful vaccination program and dealt with an inflation-driven economic downturn made worse by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.But his dependency on fringe parties, including separatist forces from Catalonia and the Basque Country, to keep his minority coalition going and his passing of a slew of liberal-minded laws, may cost him his job.Sánchez, known for his dashing looks and his progressive credentials that include having more women than men in his Cabinet and a strong environmental policy record, has boosted Spain’s status in Brussels. The 51-year-old ...

Live updates |Matthew Jordan gets 151st Open started at Royal Liverpool

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:30:23 GMT

HOYLAKE, England (AP) — Matthew Jordan has played Royal Liverpool hundreds of times. Thursday morning was unlike any other. He hit the opening tee shot in the 151st edition of the British Open.Jordan received a rousing ovation from the grandstand behind the first tee, and then hit driver just left of the pot bunker into the rough. He put his next shot into a bunker left of the green and holed an 8-foot par putt.It’s not unusual for the R&A to have the first shot struck by a player with local connections. Jordan is different. He is a member at Royal Liverpool and has been since he was a teenager. He made it through qualifying to get into his first British Open.Jordan gave the gallery more reason to cheer with a birdie on the second hole. Russell Henley would love to have his start back. Playing in the second group, he made double bogey.The R&A is expecting 260,000 fans for the week.___AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsSource