“I’m doing exactly what I signed up to do,” said Patricia Butenis, Deputy Chief of Mission in Iraq at a press conference at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad this morning. She believes outside fears about the posting stem from misconceptions about what it is like to live and work in a war zone. “People think it’s a constant barrage of attacks,” she says, “but really it’s not that way all the time....
Memorial Day weekend marks the unofficial start to summer for people across the U.S., and weather forecasts are an integral part to the weekend planning. According to AccuWeather forecasters, dry and warm weather is expected across areas in the Northeast as well as parts of the west coast. Earlier this week a severe storm system impacted parts of Michigan, causing flooding rain and dam failures. This same storm system is currently moving over areas in the Northeast but is expected to move past before Memorial Day....
Biden and his wife Jill wore face masks as they laid a wreath of white flowers at the memorial, near Biden’s home in Delaware. According to CNN, Biden told reporters before leaving the memorial: “Never forget the sacrifices that these men and women made. Never, ever, forget.” The former vice president said on Twitter: “To all the members of our military and our military families, especially those who have lost their service member, thank you....
The Memphis freshman made a return to the court in the Tigers’ 64-53 win over Boise State, scoring three points in three minutes. Bates had missed Memphis’ previous 12 games because of a back injury, but he did dress and go through warmups before the NCAA Tournament game, prompting speculation that he could play. TSN’s MARCH MADNESS HQLive NCAA bracket | TV schedule | Predictor tool Bates launched and made his only field goal attempt, a 3-pointer from the right wing, late in the first half....
The New Jersey Democrat in a statement issued Monday criticized the agreement reached by the cartel of major oil producing countries last week to cut production by 2 million barrels a day beginning next month. Oil exports have been a lifeline for energy-rich Russia during its war against Ukraine. Following Russian missile strikes on Ukrainian cities Monday, Menendez has vowed to use his key Senate post to pressure Saudi Arabia, a U....
The two men last came face to face in November when their sides met in Major League Soccer Cup - Conference semifinals. Although Crew emerged victorious on a 4-3 aggregate, on personal level, it was Villa who went home the happier man as he netted in both home and away fixtures. “That guy [Villa] is something else," Mensah told TV3. “He tries to catch me off with his pace and I also try to stop him with my power....
After 20 years of local leaders trying and failing to land a team, Naimoli finally found a way to help lead the growing metropolitan area from merely a spring training hub to the regular-season home to a major-league team when the Tampa Bay Devil Rays franchise was awarded in 1995 and began play in 1998. “Vince was unyielding in his pursuit of a Major League Baseball franchise for Tampa Bay, and his success in landing the then Devil Rays changed the region’s sports landscape forever,” the Rays said in a statement....
“I have to take my hat off to them. It’s not easy to get 12 wins,” he told TMZ Sports. MORE: 5 reasons why Cam is the MVP | STEELE: Mercury Morris can brag all he wants While he’s impressed Carolina has made it this far without a loss, he points out there’s still a long road ahead to the Super Bowl. First, the Panthers must win their next four games to finish the regular season undefeated....
In a letter obtained by Axios, Democratic Representatives Ted Lieu and Eric Swalwell of California asked the Department of Justice to investigate the alleged war crimes in the context of the deaths of two Americans in Ukraine—journalist Brent Renaud and university lecturer James Whitney Hill—who were killed “by Russian forces who apparently were purposefully targeting civilians.” The two representatives are not the first to accuse Russia of war crimes for its actions in Ukraine....
“The River Wild” also demonstrates that the right actors can freshen up the oldest formulas (basically, it’s a floating version of “The Desperate Hours,” with a whiff of “Deliverance”). It takes a while to adjust to seeing Streep in an outdoorsy, can-do role. She invests so much emotion in the simplest expository scenes you think she’s overqualified for the job. But once she hits the water, oars in hand, she takes command of the movie....
Just check out these amazing GIFs, created by SportsBettingExperts.com, that show the facial transformations of NBA stars LeBron James, Stephen Curry, James Harden, Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Chris “Birdman” Andersen. It’s safe to say that Durant has changed the least, while Chris “The Birdman” Andersen has changed the most. LeBron James Stephen Curry Carmelo Anthony James Harden Kevin Durant Russell Westbrook Chris “Birdman” Andersen
The amazing clip showed hundreds of starlings in an aerial performance in Rome, rhythmically moving together. Paired with classical music, the video left millions of viewers mesmerized after being uploaded last week. “I absolutely lost my whole mind tonight,” TikTok user @fuelsfeels captioned the video, which can be viewed here. “There’s no scientific explanation for why they do this.” In a week, the video gained over 7 million views, while a follow-up video of more clips, which can be viewed here, gained another 1....
The football icon has lifted a plethora of global, continental and domestic titles with Barcelona, but his national team career has not consisted of the same glory. Messi and Argentina have suffered heartbreak in three consecutive major international finals: the 2014 World Cup and the 2015 and 2016 editions of the Copa America. “I cried many times because of games like these, for lost finals, for what they mean and for not being able to achieve the dream of a country,” Messi told Argentine television program “La Cornisa....
Alcacer & Vidal step up for rotated Barca Barcelona already led 1-0 against Athletic Bilbao through Paco Alcacer when five-time Ballon d’Or winner Messi stepped up to take a set-piece from close to the byline on the right of the penalty area. The Argentine’s low shot was on target but Gorka Iraizoz should have kept it out after getting a hand to the effort, the Athletic goalkeeper’s failure to do so handing Messi a club record 27th free-kick goal for Barcelona....
Messi scored a brace and set up Ousmane Dembele as the La Liga giants beat Chelsea 3-0 in their last-16 second leg, completing a 4-1 aggregate win. The Argentina star was thrilled to get to the milestone and was pleased his team managed to move into the last eight. “I’m happy to have reached 100 goals in such a beautiful competition, but the important thing was to move forward in a difficult match against a team with lots of really good players,” Messi told UEFA....
Pique is right on Messi ban Argentina are facing a tough battle to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, with their 2-0 defeat to Bolivia in La Paz leaving them in fifth place in the South American qualifying section with four matches left. Messi was banned for their latest loss after he was hit with a punishment by FIFA for swearing towards an official and, unless an appeal against his suspension is successful, the Barcelona star will not return until the final qualifier against Ecuador in October....
Germany’s golden generation of players brutally beat Brazil last Tuesday and were favorites to win this one, but Argentina’s hopes hinged — as so often before — on one man. Messi had stepped up in the group games to drag the Albiceleste through their pool with three wins and nine points. There was a stunning strike in the 2-1 win over Bosnia-Herzegovina, a wonderful winner against Iran and two more great goals in the 3-2 victory versus Nigeria....
The Barcelona pair were the guests of honour at the opening of a new Barcelona shoe shop, a joint venture between Messi’s partner, Antonella Roccuzzo, and Suarez’s wife, Sofia Balbi. Javier Mascherano, Sergio Busquets and a host of other Barca players also traded in their boots for more formal attire as they took in the grand opening on Wednesday.
The Barcelona star netted a right-footed effort at the near post just two minutes and eight seconds into the Champions League last-16 second-leg tie at Camp Nou. That strike was the earliest the 30-year-old Argentine has ever scored in a game either for club or country. Barcelona took a 2-1 lead on aggregate with Messi’s strike. The goal was the 601st of Messi’s illustrious career, after he reached the 600-goal mark against Atletico on March 4....
At one point, Alderson was asked if insurance on injured third baseman David Wright’s contract provides the Mets with any additional flexibility to make acquisitions leading up to next Friday’s trade deadline. MORE: NL’s Fleeting Four: Short-timers who made a big impact | Kazmir trade shows teams can get quality for rentals “That’s a separate consideration,” Alderson said. “I wouldn’t say that gives us any more or less flexibility than we would have....
