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Gunmen kill 6 barbers in a former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban near the Afghan border

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 09:24:53 GMT

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Unidentified gunmen shot and killed six barbers before dawn on Tuesday in a former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban in the country’s northwest near the Afghanistan border, police said.No one immediately claimed responsibility for the killings in Mir Ali, a town in the restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, said Jamal Khan, a local police chief.The incident shocked residents, who said the slain men all worked at various barbershops. Javed Ali, a local resident, said he met one of the slain men last month when he went to a barbershop for a haircut.Mir Ali served as a base for the Pakistani Taliban — who are known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP — for years until the military cleared the area of insurgents. TTP is a separate group but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban, who seized power in neighboring Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO troops were in the final stages of their pullout from the country after 20 years of war.Pakistani milita...

Instant Analysis: A tough end to a remarkable season for the Texas Longhorns

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 09:24:53 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A late rally came up short for Texas in a 37-31 loss to Washington in the Sugar Bowl on Monday, sending the Huskies to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game on Jan. 8 in Houston.The Longhorns couldn't contain Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who showed everybody why he's the nation's best passer. He threw for 430 yards and made big play after big play to keep the Huskies going offensively and the Texas offense on the sideline.Texas ran the ball with efficiency, averaging 6.4 yards per carry, but had to put the ball in the air to keep up with Penix and the Huskies. Noah Gross and Billy Gates discussed the game early Sunday morning in the video above.

Djokovic and his sore right wrist advance Serbia to the United Cup quarterfinals in Perth

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 09:24:53 GMT

PERTH, Australia (AP) — Novak Djokovic overcame a right wrist issue to defeat the Czech Republic’s Jiri Lehecka 6-1, 6-7 (3), 6-1 and send Serbia through to the United Cup mixed team quarterfinals.The No. 1-ranked Djokovic and defending Australian Open champion was troubled by his wrist during practice on Tuesday morning, with the injury requiring intense treatment from his physio.Djokovic was cleared to play his singles match and it was just as well after Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova defeated Olga Danilovic 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 to give the Czechs a 1-0 lead.The 24-time Grand Slam winner was on track for an easy victory against Lehecka after winning the first set and leading 3-1 in the second. But with his wrist troubles growing as the match wore on, Djokovic started making a series of uncharacteristic unforced errors.Djokovic took a medical timeout after losing the second-set tiebreak, but he came out strongly with a double break in the third set to seal victory.“I managed...

‘Very scary. Windows shook.’ — DC, Maryland residents experience reported earthquake

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 09:24:53 GMT

Hundreds in and around the D.C. Metro area have reported feeling the effects of a small earthquake between Gaithersburg and Rockville, Maryland, according to data from the U.S. Geological Survey. Here’s what you need to know.WTOP listeners throughout the region, including those living in Northwest D.C. and Montgomery, Prince George’s and Howard County, Maryland, reported shaking just before 1 a.m.“I’m in Kensington, Maryland, and felt/heard what seemed like an earthquake,” one listener writes to WTOP. “Rumbling and a big boom lasting about maybe 10 seconds about 20 minutes.”Another listener said they felt shaking in Darnestown.“The whole house shook. My wife and I jumped out of bed all confused and scared not knowing what is going on,” they said. “Very scary. Windows shook.”Preliminary information reviewed by the agency puts the earthquake at a magnitude of 2.3. with more than 200 individuals reporting feeling a rumbling or...

CFP championship game matches Penix’s prolific passing against Michigan’s best-in-nation defense

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 09:24:53 GMT

Michael Penix Jr. hasn’t faced a defense like Michigan’s, and the Wolverines certainly haven’t faced a quarterback like the Heisman Trophy runner-up from Washington.The matchup will be the most intriguing in the College Football Playoff championship game at NRG Stadium in Houston on Jan. 8. That much was assured after the performances of Penix and Michigan’s best-in-the-nation defense in the CFP semifinals Monday.Penix threw for 430 yards and two touchdowns in the Huskies’ dramatic 37-31 win over Texas in the Sugar Bowl. Michigan harassed Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe most of the afternoon and stopped him short on fourth-and-goal at the Wolverines 3 to finish a 27-20 overtime win in the Rose Bowl.Michigan-Washington will be the third all-time meeting between 14-0 teams. The Wolverines are listed as a 4 1/2-point favorites, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.Washington will give the disintegrating Pac-12 a chance to go out in a blaze of glory. Ten of the...

Former Australian Open champion Kenin upset by 113th-ranked Rodionova at Brisbane International

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 09:24:53 GMT

BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Former champion Sofia Kenin had a setback to her preparations for the Australian Open with an upset 7-5, 7-6 (7) loss Tuesday to No. 113-ranked Arina Rodionova in the second round of the Brisbane International. The 2020 Australian Open winner was constantly under pressure on her serve despite having chances in both sets against Rodionova, a 34-year-old Australian who has never been ranked in the top 100.Kenin was seeded 14th in Brisbane, a key tune-up tournament for the Australian Open starting Jan. 14 in Melbourne.Rodionova got a crucial break in the 11th game and then held at love, clinching the first set with an ace.Kenin dictated terms at the start of the second and wasted a set point at 5-3, then gave Rodionova a break point with a wide forehand down the the line.Three games later, Kenin had the court wide open but swung a forehand wide and then sent another long as the set went into a tiebreaker.In the opening match of the day on the covered Pat Raft...

Michigan beats Alabama 27-20 in OT at the Rose Bowl, will face Washington in national title game

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 09:24:53 GMT

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Blake Corum rushed for a 17-yard touchdown on the second snap of overtime, and top-seeded Michigan advanced to its first College Football Playoff championship game with a 27-20 victory over fourth-seeded Alabama in the Rose Bowl on Monday.Michigan’s defense ended only the second overtime game in the 110 editions of the Rose Bowl when Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe was emphatically stopped as he attempted to sneak up the middle on fourth down from the Michigan 3.Coach Jim Harbaugh’s Wolverines (14-0) will play for their school’s first national title since 1997 against Washington on Monday night in Houston, but only after a late comeback and a dramatic finish.Roman Wilson made a 4-yard TD catch with 1:34 left in regulation for the Wolverines, who hadn’t scored in the second half until that gritty 75-yard drive led by J.J. McCarthy.Corum needed only two snaps to score in the first overtime period.Milroe found Jermaine Burton at the Michigan 3 on third-and-goal...

ESPN apologizes for showing video of woman flashing breast during Sugar Bowl broadcast

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 09:24:53 GMT

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — ESPN apologized Monday night for a video clip of a woman bearing her breast that was shown during the broadcast of the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.It was aired coming out of a commercial during the second half of Washington’s 37-31 victory over Texas in a semifinal game of the College Football Playoff. A clip of people wandering on Bourbon Street in New Orleans showed a woman pulling down her top to expose her breast.“We regret that this happened and apologize that the video aired in the telecast,” ESPN’s Bill Hofheimer said in a statement to The Associated Press.___AP sports: https://apnews.com/sportsSource

Ewers, Texas, produce high drama, but come up just short in Sugar Bowl CFP semifinal

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 09:24:53 GMT

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Quinn Ewers and the Texas Longhorns were one 13-yard completion away from pulling off a stunning, game-winning drive in their College Football Playoff semifinal against Washington in the Sugar Bowl on Monday night.Taking possession of the ball, down 37-31, with just 45 seconds left, Ewers marched the third-seeded Longhorns from their own 31 to the Washington 12 in 30 seconds, highlighted by 41-yard completion to Jordan Whittington and a 16-yarder to Jaydon Blue.That gave Texas four quick plays to try to get into the end zone against a Washington defense that looked to be reeling with the game on the line.A swing pass to Blue lost a yard before he got out of bounds. Then came three straight attempts to the end zone — two intended for Adonai Mitchell, who was playing in his fifth CFP and had touchdown catches in all five.The second-seeded Huskies completed their narrow escape when the last of those passes sailed too far toward the sideline for Mitchell to come down ...

Powerful earthquakes leave at least 48 dead, destroy buildings along Japan's western coast

Published Fri, 27 Dec 2024 09:24:53 GMT

WAJIMA, Japan (AP) — A series of powerful earthquakes hit western Japan, leaving at least 48 people dead and damaging thousands of buildings, vehicles and boats, with officials warning people in some areas on Tuesday to stay away from their homes because of a risk of more strong quakes.Aftershocks continued to shake Ishikawa prefecture and nearby areas a day after a magnitude 7.6 temblor slammed the area on Monday afternoon. Forty-eight people were confirmed dead in Ishikawa, officials said. Sixteen others were seriously injured, while damage to homes was so great that it could not immediately be assessed, they said. Japanese media reports said tens of thousands of homes were destroyed. Government spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi said 17 people were seriously injured and gave a slightly lower death tally, while saying he was aware of the prefecture's tally. Water, power and cellphone service were still down in some areas, and residents expressed sorrow about their destroyed homes and ...