Author: Press Room

Canada has slapped new sanctions that target “Iranian propaganda” as protests against the regime near their fourth month. In a news release on Monday, the federal government said two Iranian officials and three entities are “complicit” in the “brutal repression of brave Iranian voices.”  Iran has been rocked by protests following the Sept. 16 death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died while in the custody of Iran’s so-called morality police. She was being held for allegedly violating the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code.“Despite condemnation from the international community regarding the regime’s gross and systematic human rights violations, the…

Two minutes before kickoff of the final day of games in the NFL regular season, Damar Hamlin released a photo from his hospital bed. Less than a week after the Buffalo Bills safety nearly died on the field during “Monday Night Football,” Hamlin and his parents were watching the games in the “Love for Damar” shirts that were omnipresent in locker rooms around the league. That made the return to football seem almost normal, even though Hamlin’s remarkable recovery from a cardiac arrest was never far from the mind. And what a return it was, with the finalized 14-team playoff…

Barcelona’s tourist tax will be increased over the next two years, city authorities have announced.Since 2012, the visitor hotspot has added an extra fee on top of the region-wide tourist tax.The city’s surcharge varies depending on the type of visitor accommodation and is only levied on official tourist lodging.Barcelona is Spain’s most visited city and continues to struggle with overtourism.How much is Barcelona’s tourist tax?Visitors to Barcelona have to pay both the regional tourist tax and the city-wide surcharge.For guests in rental accommodation, the nightly tax costs €4 – with €2.25 going to the region and €1.75 to the city.Those…

Congressman-elect George Santos (R-NY), embroiled in a scandal over his resume and claims made on the campaign trail, sits alone in the House Chamber surrounded only by the children of other representatives, on the first day of the 118th Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2023.Jonathan Ernst | ReutersA member of George Santos’ political team had a plan to raise money for the Republican congressman’s campaign: Impersonate the chief of staff of now House Speaker Kevin McCarthy.Wealthy donors received calls and emails from a man who said he was Dan Meyer, McCarthy’s chief of staff, during…

Supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro who refuse to accept his election defeat have stormed Congress, the Supreme Court and the presidential palace, a week after the inauguration of his left-wing rival, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. On Sunday, thousands of demonstrators bypassed security barricades, climbed on roofs, smashed windows and invaded all three buildings in the capital, Brasilia, which were believed to be largely vacant on the weekend. Some of the demonstrators called for a military intervention to either restore the far-right Bolsonaro to power or remove Lula from the presidency. In a news conference from Sao…

They’re full of surprises! Four years after they secretly tied the knot, Hilary Swank announced that she and husband Philip Schneider are expecting twins. “This is something that I’ve been wanting for a long time, and my next thing is I’m gonna be a mom,” the Oscar winner revealed during an October 2022 appearance on Good Morning America. “And not just of one, but of two. I can’t believe it. It’s so nice to be able to talk about it and share it.” Swank later revealed that she was able to keep the happy news a secret from her Alaska…

Officials are searching for a missing Pennsylvania mother who failed to pick up her son from a bus stop last week. Jennifer Brown, 43, of Limerick Township, about 35 miles northwest of Philadelphia, was last seen at 2 p.m. on Jan. 3 by a “friend and business associate,” the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office said. Jennifer Brown. Montgomery County District Attorney’s OfficeShe was scheduled to pick up her son from the bus stop the following day on Jan. 4, but failed to show up. Her car was found parked outside of her home with her car keys, wallet, purse and work cellphone inside,…

More than 7,000 nurses at two major Big Apple hospitals went on strike early Monday, after negotiations over contracts and staffing broke down overnight. Nurses at Mount Sinai Hospital’s main campus on Madison Avenue and three locations of Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx staged walk-outs starting in the early morning hours, the New York State Nurses Association said. “After bargaining late into the night at Montefiore and Mount Sinai Hospital yesterday, no tentative agreements were reached,” the union said in a statement. “Today, more than 7,000 nurses at two hospitals are on strike for fair contracts that improve patient…

Amid the economic gloom and ongoing conflict in Ukraine, there are signs of a return to normality. The Golden Globes awards ceremony is back this week in its Los Angeles home, after boycotts over a lack of diversity led to the cancellation of the event last year. Looking further ahead, world leaders, business leaders and economic thinkers will begin arriving in the Swiss resort of Davos this Sunday for the World Economic Forum the following week.The next seven days also sees the starting gun shot for the official start of the fourth-quarter earnings season, beginning with Wall Street banks and…

Former McDonald’s CEO Stephen Easterbrook unveiling the company’s new corporate headquarters during a grand opening ceremony on June 4, 2018, in ChicagoScott Olson | Getty ImagesThe Securities and Exchange Commission charged former McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook on Monday with misrepresenting his November 2019 firing.Easterbrook has agreed to a $400,000 fine, without admitting or denying the claims, and will be barred from serving as an officer or director for any SEC-reporting company for five years.McDonald’s board fired Easterbrook in 2019 for a consensual relationship with an employee, which violated the company’s fraternization policy. However, he wasn’t fired for cause, allowing him…