CALIFORNIA
Philanthropists pay bills for ‘Batkid’ fantasy
San Francisco is being rescued from paying the cost of staging the “Batkid” fantasy that captured the nation’s imagination. Philanthropists John and Marcia Goldman are picking up the city’s $105,000 tab for allowing Miles Scott, a 5-year-old Northern California boy with leukemia, to fight villains and rescue a damsel in distress as a caped crusader on Nov. 15. The elaborate fantasy was arranged by the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
LOUISIANA
Audubon, fisheries commission work together
The Audubon Nature Institute, in New Orleans, and the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission are working together to try to ensure that Gulf of Mexico fisheries are managed well so fish and shellfish remain available for catching and eating. Audubon says its program, called Gulf United for Lasting Fisheries or “G.U.L.F” for short, will work with the commission on “advancement plans” to go beyond minimum requirements and ensure long-term sustainability. The commission represents fishery management interests in Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, Alabama and Florida.
NEVADA
Man shoots, wounds woman at hospital
Police say an 88-year-old man shot and wounded a woman at a Carson City hospital. Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong says William Dresser was arrested after firing one shot at the woman with a handgun on the third floor of Carson Tahoe Regional Medical Center on Sunday. No other injuries were reported. He says they were in a domestic relationship but declined to elaborate. Furlong says the woman’s injuries are life-threatening.
CALIFORNIA
Wildfire wanes; dangerous conditions remain
Firefighters said Sunday they continued their steady progress in surrounding a wildfire near Los Angeles that destroyed several homes. The Los Angeles County Fire Department said the fire was 78 percent contained, with full containment expected Wednesday. Meanwhile, hundreds of residents who fled the blaze returned home Saturday evening.
THAILAND
28 hurt in grenade blasts at protest site
Two explosions shook an anti-government demonstration site in Thailand’s capital Sunday, wounding at least 28 people. Police said the blasts near Victory Monument, in the north of the city, were caused by fragmentation grenades — the same kind that killed one man and wounded dozens Friday. The demonstrators, who control several small patches of Bangkok, are vying to overthrow Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s government and derail Feb. 2 elections she called to quell the crisis.
ISRAEL
Two hurt in airstrike in Gaza
The Israeli military said it carried out an airstrike in Gaza on Sunday aimed at eliminating an Islamic Jihad operative responsible for recent rocket fire against southern Israel. A Palestinian man who was riding a motorcycle was seriously wounded in the missile strike, and a bystander — a 12-year-old boy — was also hurt, according to a Health Ministry official in Gaza. There was no immediate confirmation from Gaza that the motorcycle rider was Israel’s intended target, though a website close to Islamic Jihad said the wounded man was a member of the group’s armed wing.
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Mandatory military service proposed
The United Arab Emirates has begun the process of imposing mandatory military service for adult males to add “another layer to the national defense force,” Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the country’s prime minister, said Sunday. Male high school graduates between the ages of 18 to 30 will be required to serve nine months, while those without a high school diploma must serve two years under the draft legislation. Military service for female Emiratis would be voluntary.
UKRAINE
Protests turn into fiery street battles
Anti-government protests in Ukraine’s capital escalated into fiery street battles with police Sunday as thousands of demonstrators hurled rocks and firebombs to set police vehicles ablaze. Dozens of officers and protesters were injured. Police responded with stun grenades, tear gas and water cannons, but were outnumbered by the protesters. The violence was a sharp escalation of Ukraine’s two-month political crisis, which has brought round-the-clock protest gatherings, but had been largely peaceful.
EGYPT
Former official under fire for comments
A former Egyptian lawmaker who threatened on a popular TV show that Americans would be “slaughtered in their homes” if an attempt is made on the life of the country’s military chief recanted on Sunday, saying his comments were misconstrued. The Jan. 13 comments by Mostafa Bakry, a well-known journalist with close ties to the military, created a buzz on social media this past week but drew no comment from the nation’s military-backed government. Bakry based his comments about killing Americans on what he called a conspiracy led by the United States to assassinate military chief Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi.
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