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The counting of votes will be undertaken at 8 am on Saturday in where the election is witnessing a major battle. The Anushakti Nagar Assembly constituency (number 172), located in Mumbai, is a key electoral seat in Maharashtra, falling under the general category. Known for its competitive political landscape, Anushakti Nagar is crucial in shaping the outcome of the state’s Assembly elections. The constituency has witnessed intense rivalry in recent years, with major parties like BJP, Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party factions, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, and Congress all vying for control. The 2024 election sees a high-profile contest, with several strong contenders from rival factions. Sana Malik, daughter of Nawab Malik, a prominent figure contests from the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP. Fahad Ahmad, husband of actress Swara Bhaskar, represents the Sharad Pawar faction of NCP. A total of nine candidates are contesting from the constituency. In the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly elections, Nawab Malik secured victory with 65,217 votes, which translated to 46.84 percent of the vote share. He defeated Shiv Sena’s Tukaram Ramkrushna Kate, who garnered 52,466 votes (37.68 percent). The margin of victory was 12,751 votes. In 2014, BJP's Tukaram Kate narrowly defeated Malik by just 1,007 votes, securing 39,966 votes (29.54 percent). Key issues for voters in Anushakti Nagar include urban development, infrastructure, and employment. The constituency, home to Mumbai's industrial sector, has seen rapid growth but faces challenges such as overcrowding, water shortages, and pollution. These concerns are expected to dominate the campaign trail as candidates address local grievances in a bid to win voter support. Anushakti Nagar has a total electorate of 1,49,467 voters, including 84,052 male and 65,169 female voters. The constituency has witnessed a steady voter turnout in recent years, reflecting growing political engagement. With 207 postal votes and 60 service voters, the constituency’s diverse electorate will play a crucial role in deciding the outcome of the 2024 election. The Anushakti Nagar constituency went to polls on November 20. Results will be announced on Saturday, concluding the election process across Maharashtra. Anushakti Nagar emerged as a key battleground, recording a voter turnout of 54.04 percent.

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 34 points and the visiting Milwaukee Bucks rallied for an 118-113 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday. The Bucks bounced back from losses to the Atlanta Hawks and Boston Celtics for their eighth win in 10 games and improved to 10-3 since dropping eight of their first 10, including a 13-point loss at Brooklyn on Oct. 27. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Scenes from Georgia's victory over Texas in the SEC Championship Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on December 7, 2024. (Photos: Jim Blackburn) Click for more. PHOTOS: Georgia Defeats Texas for SEC ChampionshipPresident of Ireland leads tributes to former government minister Gemma Hussey

As in his first term, Donald Trump has selected two executives with both deep pockets and deep ties to Wall Street to lead the United States’ most important Cabinet posts for the economy – a top concern for American voters. Markets roared their apparent approval Monday of the Nov. 22 nomination of billionaire hedge fund CEO Scott Bessent for U.S. treasury secretary. Days earlier, the president-elect selected billionaire Howard Lutnick, head of a brokerage and investment bank, as commerce secretary. “These are more consensus-oriented, market-friendly, business-friendly Cabinet appointments,” says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics. That said, the economic team – and it is not filled out yet – is looking at plenty of fiscal and economic challenges. On Monday, after U.S. markets closed, Mr. Trump announced that on the first day of his administration, he will impose a 25% tariff on Canadian and Mexican goods and add a 10% tax to Chinese goods – many of which are already taxed. Economists say China has already accounted for coming tariffs. “At the end of the day, it’s about jobs,” says Mr. Zandi. “That’s going to be how President Trump’s economic policies are ultimately going to be judged.” As in his first term, Donald Trump has selected two executives with both deep pockets and deep ties to Wall Street to lead the United States’ most important Cabinet posts for the economy – a top concern for American voters. U.S. stock markets rose in apparent approval Monday following the Nov. 22 nomination of billionaire hedge fund CEO Scott Bessent for U.S. treasury secretary. Days earlier, the president-elect selected billionaire Howard Lutnick, head of a brokerage and investment bank, as commerce secretary. “These are more consensus-oriented, market-friendly, business-friendly Cabinet appointments,” says Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics. “Investors are OK with these choices, and that’s because they are mainstream.” That said, the economic team – and it is not filled out yet – faces plenty of fiscal and economic challenges, with no clarity as to how American workers will fare. The incoming president promised in a statement Friday that under Mr. Bessent’s leadership, “No Americans will be left behind in the next and Greatest Economic Boom.” But of Mr. Trump’s promised tax cuts, some economists wonder: Will they explode government borrowing – and interest rates? Likewise, of Mr. Trump’s promised tariffs, or taxes on imports: Will they trigger higher prices for imported goods? Will they start a trade war? On Monday, after U.S. markets closed, the incoming president announced that on the first day of his administration, he will impose across-the-board tariffs on America’s biggest trading partners: a 25% tariff on all Canadian and Mexican goods, and a 10% tax on all Chinese goods. Many Chinese goods are already taxed under tariffs imposed in President Trump’s first term and continued in the Biden administration. The new Chinese tariff would be on top of that. It could just be an opening salvo, given that Mr. Trump has talked about a 60% tariff on China. Mr. Trump said in Truth Social posts that the tariffs are meant to force these countries to crack down on border security, including fentanyl exports. The tariff announcement was met with disquiet from abroad. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo warned the incoming president that “Neither threats nor tariffs will solve the issue of migration or drug consumption” and said in a letter that Mexico would retaliate in kind if the U.S. follows through. She pointedly reminded him that 70% of illegal weapons seized from criminals in Mexico are from the U.S. “Tragically, it is in our country that lives are lost to the violence resulting from meeting the drug demand in yours.” In Canada, Ontario Premier Doug Ford called the plan “devastating.” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau phoned Mr. Trump in a brief call focused on border security and trade. His remarks to his Cabinet were measured: “This is a relationship that we know takes a certain amount of working on, and that’s what we’ll do.” Chinese Embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu said that “no one will win a trade war” and flatly denied that China “knowingly” allows fentanyl precursors into the U.S. Mr. Trump’s use of tariffs to get what America wants jives with Mr. Bessent’s comments that they are negotiating tools to achieve America’s economic and foreign policy aims. He rejects the claim that they are inflationary, saying there was “no discernible rise in inflation” after the first round of tariffs in Trump 1.0. “Whether it is getting allies to spend more on their own defense, opening foreign markets to U.S. exports, securing cooperation on ending illegal immigration and interdicting fentanyl trafficking, or deterring military aggression, tariffs can play a central role,” Mr. Bessent wrote in a Nov. 15 opinion piece for Fox News. America is the world’s largest importer, bringing in $3 trillion worth of goods from other countries. It needs to use that leverage to raise revenue, protect strategic industries, and work out deals with America’s trading partners, he wrote. Mr. Lutnik sees things similarly. As he puts it, tariffs are “a bargaining chip” to force other countries to lower their import taxes and create a freer market. Some economists see a solid rationale behind a more assertive U.S. trade policy, given that the current chronic imbalances suggest that “free trade” isn’t the status quo. “Bessent is right. ... The global trading system is badly broken and needs to be fixed,” Michael Pettis, an economist at the Carnegie Endowment, wrote in a series of posts on the social media platform X Monday. But many economists and other observers are skeptical. Jack Zhang, the director of the Trade War Lab at the University of Kansas, says China has already accounted for coming tariffs. During his first trip back to China since the pandemic, he encountered a collective shrug as he traveled through that nation’s rust belt this summer. To be sure, targeted tariffs can be effective, says the political scientist, but global supply chains have grown even more complex since the pandemic, meaning that tariffs have lost political potency while their impacts on consumers and producers remain steady. “Trench economic warfare is where we are with tariffs and have been there for the last eight years, and the costs have mounted on businesses and consumers,” says Dr. Zhang. Indeed, “China is a different animal” compared with Mexico and Canada, says Scott Lincicome, vice president of General Economics and Stiefel Trade Policy Center at the libertarian Cato Institute. “The Canada-Mexico thing is totally different. A 25% tariff on everything from Canada and Mexico would have substantial economic ramifications, including on produce. It defies belief that Trump, on the first day, would impose a guacamole tax right before the Super Bowl.” At the same time, he says, “We should all step away from the ledge on this.” He says the once-and-future president tends to post tariff threats on social media fairly regularly, and then companies and governments “scramble around to find some sort of chit to give him that isn’t substantively important” but allows him to declare victory. Nonetheless, he warns, “This kind of uncertainty is bad for investment, and it’s bad for the economy.” There’s an inherent tension in a tariff strategy, explains Kyle Pomerleau, an economist at the American Enterprise Institute. While Mr. Trump promises to lower consumer costs, he says that tariffs will increase prices. If that fuels inflation and triggers the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates to tamp it down, Americans might find it harder to afford mortgages and car loans. Similarly, he sees problems with the president-elect’s promise to make permanent his first-term tax cuts – which expire at the end of 2025 – and to lower them further by eliminating taxes on tips, overtime pay, and Social Security. This would lead to more government borrowing, putting upward pressure on prices and higher interest rates – at a time when borrowing is more expensive, warns Mr. Pomerleau. Meanwhile, the nation is set to hit its national debt ceiling next year, with a new ceiling needed to be negotiated with Congress. “Trump, his administration, and Congress need to tread lightly here,” says Mr. Pomerleau. Because of the incoming president’s campaign promises, “There’s going to be immense pressure to extend the individual tax cuts. There may be additional pressure to cut taxes even further. ... But the fiscal challenges currently make that quite difficult.” Again, Mr. Bessent sees things differently. In interviews and writings, he argues that cutting taxes and deregulation lead to economic growth, which throws more revenue into government coffers. But he also wants to cut government spending, including subsidies for electric vehicle manufacturers. He touts a “3-3-3” policy – cutting the budget deficit to 3% of gross domestic product, spurring economic growth to 3%, and producing an additional 3 million barrels of oil a day. He has said that boosting energy output would decrease oil prices, which are the lead driver of inflation expectations. The three-pronged plan is based on a similar one by the late Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo. The agency he would lead is the most powerful of the federal government’s economic policymaking agencies. The Department of the Treasury carries out tax policy, handles the national debt, leads financial regulators, and controls sanctions – though not directly tariffs, though it has influence (those are handled by the U.S. trade representative, a position not yet filled). Other members of the president-elect’s named economic team want to drastically reduce the size of the federal government. Russell Vought was nominated to once again lead the Office of Management and Budget. A key figure in The Heritage Foundation’s conservative blueprint, Project 2025, Mr. Vought supports greatly expanded presidential powers, including the ability to withhold monies that Congress has allocated – an idea that Bobby Kogan, of the progressive Center for American Progress, described as “illegal.” When impoundments like that were adjudicated in the 1970s, “Nixon lost every case that was decided on the merits,” he said in a statement. Then there are Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, leaders of the Department of Government Efficiency. The DOGE, as Mr. Musk likes to call it for its allusion to cryptocurrency dogecoin, has no actual authority, though Mr. Musk has big ideas – like cutting about 30% of the federal budget of $6.75 trillion. Medicare and Social Security alone account for about a third of the budget, defense 13%, and 10% on interest for the federal debt. Whatever cuts the administration might propose would need to be worked out with Congress, as they control the nation’s purse strings. Economist Mr. Zandi says it’s too soon to tell whether all of this will add up to better lives for working Americans. Mr. Trump’s nominee for labor secretary, Oregon Republican Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer, is staunchly pro-union. Her father was a Teamster, and Teamster President Sean O’Brien welcomes the nomination – even as he writes that it “remains to be seen what she will be permitted to do.” How tariffs will work out for workers is “way too early” to call, says Mr. Zandi. Equally uncertain is the extent of mass deportations and how deeply they may impact migrant workers in the agriculture sector – and food prices. “At the end of the day, it’s about jobs,” says Mr. Zandi. “That’s going to be how President Trump’s economic policies are ultimately going to be judged – whether he created more jobs, good paying jobs, union jobs.” He’s skeptical that the administration’s policies will add up to that. But America is about to find out.Biden calls for Assad to be 'held accountable'

NEW ORLEANS — Ochai Agbaji and Jamison Battle each scored 24 points, and the Toronto Raptors won on the road for the first time this season, 119-93 over the hapless New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night. Djounte Murray returned from a fractured left hand that sidelined him for 17 games and looked rusty early. He finished with 14 points, but missed all seven of his first-half shots and shot 5 of 17 overall as the Pelicans lost their sixth straight game and 15th out of 17. CJ McCollum scored 19 points in his second game since returning from an adductor strain and missing 13 contests. RJ Barrett had 22 points and 11 assists for Toronto, which came in 0-10 on the road. Scottie Barnes added 17 points for the Raptors, who hit a season-high 21 3s. Agbaji went 6 of 7 from 3-point range and Battle went 6 for 8. Jeremiah Robinson-Earl had 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Pelicans, who played without starters Zion Williamson (left hamstring), Brandon Ingram (right calf) and Herb Jones (right shoulder), as well as prominent reserve Trey Murphy III (left knee bruise). Takeaways Raptors: Toronto's 21 made 3s were their most since January 2021. Toronto Raptors guard RJ Barrett (9) drives down court against New Orleans Pelicans guard Elfrid Payton (22) in the first half of an NBA basketball game in New Orleans, Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024. Credit: AP/Gerald Herbert Pelicans: Coach Willie Green went with a relatively small starting lineup. After 6-foot-11 center Yves Missi, the 6-6 Boston was New Orleans' next-tallest starter, followed by Murray (6-5), Javonte Green (6-4) and McCollum (6-3). The Pelicans went 11 of 35 from deep. Key moment After assisting on Agbaji's alley-oop layup, Barrett scored eight straight points on two free throws and three layups, sparking a 16-2 run that put Toronto up 79-53. Key stat Toronto shot 21 of 52 (40.4%) from 3-point range after coming in last in the NBA in made 3-pointers with 10.4 per game. Up Next The Raptors play at Miami on Friday night, when the Pelicans visit Memphis.

If You Invested $1,000 In Ethereum When CryptoPunks Were Released, Here's How Much You'd Have Now

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani security forces launched an operation Tuesday night to disperse supporters of imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan who had gathered in the capital to demand his release from prison. The latest development came hours after thousands of Khan supporters, defying government warnings, broke through a barrier of shipping containers blocking off Islamabad and entered a high-security zone, where they clashed with security forces, facing tear gas shelling, mass detentions and gunfire. Tension has been high in Islamabad since Sunday when supporters of the former prime minister began a “long march” from the restive northwest to demand his release. Khan has been in a prison for over a year and faces more than 150 criminal cases that his party says are politically motivated. Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, led the protest, but she fled as police pushed back against demonstrators. Hundreds of Khan’s supporters are being arrested in the ongoing nighttime operation, and police are also seeking to arrest Bibi. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told reporters that the Red Zone, which houses government buildings and embassies, and the surrounding areas have been cleared. Leaders from Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI, have also fled the protest site. Earlier Tuesday, Pakistan’s army took control of D-Chowk, a large square in the Red Zone, where visiting Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is staying. Since Monday, Naqvi had threatened that security forces would use live fire if protesters fired weapons at them. “We have now authorized the police to respond as necessary,” Naqvi said Tuesday while visiting the square. Before the operation began, protester Shahzor Ali said people had taken to the streets because Khan had called for them. “We will stay here until Khan joins us. He will decide what to do next,” Ali said. “If they fire bullets again, we will respond with bullets,” he said. Protester Fareeda Bibi, who is not related to Khan’s wife, said people have suffered greatly for the last two years. “We have really suffered for the last two years, whether it is economically, politically or socially. We have been ruined. I have not seen such a Pakistan in my life,” she said. Authorities have struggled to contain the protest-related violence. Six people, including four members of the security services, were killed when a vehicle rammed them on a street overnight into Tuesday. A police officer died in a separate incident. Dozens of Khan supporters beat a videographer covering the protest for The Associated Press and took his camera. He sustained head injuries and was treated in a hospital. By Tuesday afternoon, fresh waves of protesters made their way unopposed to their final destination in the Red Zone. Most demonstrators had the flag of Khan’s party around their shoulders or wore its tricolors on accessories. Naqvi said Khan’s party had rejected a government offer to rally on the outskirts of the city. Information Minister Atta Tarar warned there would be a severe government reaction to the violence. He said the government did not want Bushra Bibi to achieve her goal of freeing Khan. “She wants bodies falling to the ground. She wants bloodshed,” he said. The government says only the courts can order Khan’s release. He was ousted in 2022 through a no-confidence vote in Parliament. In a bid to foil the unrest, police have arrested more than 4,000 Khan supporters since Friday and suspended mobile and internet services in some parts of the country. Messaging platforms were also experiencing severe disruption in the capital. Khan’s party relies heavily on social media and uses messaging platforms such as WhatsApp to share information, including details of events. The X platform, which is banned in Pakistan, is no longer accessible, even with a VPN. Last Thursday, a court prohibited rallies in the capital and Naqvi said anyone violating the ban would be arrested. Travel between Islamabad and other cities has become nearly impossible because of shipping containers blocking the roads. All education institutions remain closed. Pakistan's Stock Exchange lost more than $1.7 billion Tuesday due to rising political tensions, according to economist Mohammed Sohail from Topline Securities. Associated Press writers Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan, contributed to this report.Before being elected as the first transgender woman to the US Congress, 34-year-old Sarah McBride said she expected hostility. A harsh national spotlight has fallen swiftly upon her. "They may try to misgender me, they may try to say the wrong name, they will do what we can predictably assume they might do," she told the TransLash podcast last month ahead of her resounding election victory on November 5. "They are going to do that to get a rise out of me and my job will be to not give them the response they want," the Democrat from Delaware explained. Ahead of her arrival in the House of Representatives on January 3, McBride was targeted by a resolution this week from a right-wing Republican colleague that would ban transgender women from women's toilets in the Capitol. "Just because a Congressman wants to wear a mini skirt doesn’t mean he can come into a women’s bathroom," South Carolina firebrand Nancy Mace wrote on social media as she led a highly personal campaign against McBride. House Speaker Mike Johnson, after initially seeking to buy time to debate the issue, came out in support of a ban, saying that all single-sex facilities would be "reserved for individuals of that biological sex." McBride -- who wears knee-length dresses, not miniskirts -- issued a statement saying that she said would respect the rules "even if I disagree with them." "I'm not here to fight about bathrooms," said the politician and activist, who transitioned as a 21-year-old and told her parents on Christmas Day 2011. Donald Trump repeatedly raised transgender issues in the closing stages of his presidential campaign, with aides noting how questions around trans identity struck a nerve with swing voters. Two of the biggest issues -- at the heart of ongoing "culture wars" between conservatives and progressives -- are whether transgender women should be allowed in women's toilets and be admitted in women's sport. Mocking transgender athletes and "woke ideology," Trump promised to get "transgender insanity the hell out of our schools, and we will keep men out of women’s sports." McBride has long been an advocate for trans rights and she helped campaign for a law banning gender discrimination in her home state of Delaware, during which she was publicly called a "freak" and the "devil incarnate". "Listening to that was demeaning and dehumanizing for my child," her mother Sally told The Washington Post in a 2018 profile. "I still have a hard time coping with that." Undeterred, McBride rode the blows and was elected as the first US transgender state senator in 2020. She has been open about her mental health struggles growing up as a boy named Tim and the personal tragedy that has marked her life since, writing a memoir called "Tomorrow Will Be Different" in 2018. "I remember as a child praying in my bed at night that I would wake up the next day and be a girl," she told a TED talk in 2016. She first gathered major public attention with an open letter while a student leader at American University in Washington that announced her transition. She went on to encounter President Joe Biden and his family, also Delaware natives, when she became active in grassroots politics there. After interning at the White House under President Barack Obama, she secured an invitation to speak at the 2016 Democratic Party convention. The White House was also the scene of her first encounter with her late husband, Andrew Cray, a transgender man and LGTBQ+ activist. They married two years later shortly before Cray died from cancer. Knowing the attention she is destined for in the US Congress, she says her aim is to be an effective congresswoman focused on everyday voter priorities such as housing and inflation. But she knows she will be constantly pushed to be a spokeswoman -- and defender -- of the trans community. "I can't do right by the trans community if I'm not being the best member of Congress that I can be for Delaware," she told TransLash. "It's the only way that people will see that trans people can be good doctors, can be good lawyers, good educators, good members of Congress. I can't be there to put out a press release and tweet every time someone says something." adp/bgsSANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Brock Purdy threw one short pass in the open portion of practice for the San Francisco 49ers as he remains slowed by an injury to his throwing shoulder that has already forced him to miss a game. Purdy spent the bulk of the session of Wednesday's practice open to reporters as either a spectator or executing handoffs outside of one short pass to Jordan Mason. Purdy hurt his shoulder during a loss to Seattle on Nov. 17. He tried to throw at practice last Thursday but had soreness in his right shoulder and shut it down. He missed a loss to Green Bay but was able to do some light throwing on Monday. His status for this week remains in doubt as the Niners (5-6) prepare to visit Buffalo on Sunday night. Purdy isn't the only key player for San Francisco dealing with injuries. Left tackle Trent Williams and defensive end Nick Bosa remain sidelined at practice Wednesday after missing last week's game. Williams was using a scooter to get around the locker room as he deals with a left ankle injury. Bosa has been out with injuries to his left hip and oblique. Bosa said the week off helped him make progress and that he hopes to be able to take part in individual drills later in the week. Bosa wouldn't rule out being able to play on Sunday. "It’s feeling a lot better,” Bosa said. “Still need to get better before I’m ready to go. This week will be big and I’ll know a lot more in the next couple of days.” Running back Christian McCaffrey has been able to play, but isn't back to the form that helped him win AP Offensive Player of the Year in 2023 after missing the first eight games this season with Achilles tendinitis. McCaffrey has 149 yards rushing in three games back with his 3.5 yards per carry down significantly from last season's mark of 5.4. But he is confident he will be able to get back to his usual level of play. “When you lose and maybe you don’t jump out on the stat sheet, your failures are highlighted,” he said. “I’m happy I’m out here playing football and I just know with time it will come.” Coach Kyle Shanahan said he has liked what he has seen from McCaffrey, adding that there hasn't been much room to run in recent weeks. But Shanahan said it takes time to get back to speed after McCaffrey had almost no practice time for nine months. “Guys who miss offseasons and miss training camp, usually it takes them a little bit of time at the beginning of the year to get back into how they were the year before, let alone missing half the season also on top of that,” Shanahan said. “I think Christian’s doing a hell of a job. But to just think him coming back in Week 8 with not being able to do anything for the last nine months or whatever it is, and to think he’s just going to be in MVP form is a very unrealistic expectation.” NOTES: LB Dre Greenlaw took part in his first practice since tearing his Achilles tendon in the Super Bowl. Greenlaw will likely need a couple of weeks of practice before being able to play. ... LB Fred Warner said he has been dealing with a fracture in his ankle since Week 4 and is doing his best to manage the pain as he plays through it. ... CB Deommodore Lenoir didn't practice after banging knees on Sunday. His status for this week remains in question. ... DT Jordan Elliott (concussion), OL Aaron Banks (concussion) and LB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles (knee) also didn't practice. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani security forces launched an operation Tuesday night to disperse supporters of imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan who had gathered in the capital to demand his release from prison. The latest development came hours after thousands of Khan supporters, defying government warnings, broke through a barrier of shipping containers blocking off Islamabad and entered a high-security zone, where they clashed with security forces, facing tear gas shelling, mass detentions and gunfire. Tension has been high in Islamabad since Sunday when supporters of the former prime minister began a “long march” from the restive northwest to demand his release. Khan has been in a prison for over a year and faces more than 150 criminal cases that his party says are politically motivated. Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, led the protest, but she fled as police pushed back against demonstrators. Hundreds of Khan’s supporters are being arrested in the ongoing nighttime operation, and police are also seeking to arrest Bibi. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi told reporters that the Red Zone, which houses government buildings and embassies, and the surrounding areas have been cleared. Leaders from Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI, have also fled the protest site. Earlier Tuesday, Pakistan’s army took control of D-Chowk, a large square in the Red Zone, where visiting Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is staying. Since Monday, Naqvi had threatened that security forces would use live fire if protesters fired weapons at them. “We have now authorized the police to respond as necessary,” Naqvi said Tuesday while visiting the square. Before the operation began, protester Shahzor Ali said people had taken to the streets because Khan had called for them. “We will stay here until Khan joins us. He will decide what to do next,” Ali said. “If they fire bullets again, we will respond with bullets,” he said. Protester Fareeda Bibi, who is not related to Khan’s wife, said people have suffered greatly for the last two years. “We have really suffered for the last two years, whether it is economically, politically or socially. We have been ruined. I have not seen such a Pakistan in my life,” she said. Authorities have struggled to contain the protest-related violence. Six people, including four members of the security services, were killed when a vehicle rammed them on a street overnight into Tuesday. A police officer died in a separate incident. Dozens of Khan supporters beat a videographer covering the protest for The Associated Press and took his camera. He sustained head injuries and was treated in a hospital. By Tuesday afternoon, fresh waves of protesters made their way unopposed to their final destination in the Red Zone. Most demonstrators had the flag of Khan’s party around their shoulders or wore its tricolors on accessories. Naqvi said Khan’s party had rejected a government offer to rally on the outskirts of the city. Information Minister Atta Tarar warned there would be a severe government reaction to the violence. He said the government did not want Bushra Bibi to achieve her goal of freeing Khan. “She wants bodies falling to the ground. She wants bloodshed,” he said. The government says only the courts can order Khan’s release. He was ousted in 2022 through a no-confidence vote in Parliament. In a bid to foil the unrest, police have arrested more than 4,000 Khan supporters since Friday and suspended mobile and internet services in some parts of the country. Messaging platforms were also experiencing severe disruption in the capital. Khan’s party relies heavily on social media and uses messaging platforms such as WhatsApp to share information, including details of events. The X platform, which is banned in Pakistan, is no longer accessible, even with a VPN. Last Thursday, a court prohibited rallies in the capital and Naqvi said anyone violating the ban would be arrested. Travel between Islamabad and other cities has become nearly impossible because of shipping containers blocking the roads. All education institutions remain closed. Pakistan's Stock Exchange lost more than $1.7 billion Tuesday due to rising political tensions, according to economist Mohammed Sohail from Topline Securities. Associated Press writers Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan, contributed to this report.

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Brock Purdy threw one short pass in the open portion of practice for the San Francisco 49ers as he remains slowed by an injury to his throwing shoulder that has already forced him to miss a game. Purdy spent the bulk of the session of Wednesday's practice open to reporters as either a spectator or executing handoffs outside of one short pass to Jordan Mason. Purdy hurt his shoulder during a loss to Seattle on Nov. 17. He tried to throw at practice last Thursday but had soreness in his right shoulder and shut it down. He missed a loss to Green Bay but was able to do some light throwing on Monday. His status for this week remains in doubt as the Niners (5-6) prepare to visit Buffalo on Sunday night. Purdy isn't the only key player for San Francisco dealing with injuries. Left tackle Trent Williams and defensive end Nick Bosa remain sidelined at practice Wednesday after missing last week's game. Williams was using a scooter to get around the locker room as he deals with a left ankle injury. Bosa has been out with injuries to his left hip and oblique. Bosa said the week off helped him make progress and that he hopes to be able to take part in individual drills later in the week. Bosa wouldn't rule out being able to play on Sunday. "It’s feeling a lot better,” Bosa said. “Still need to get better before I’m ready to go. This week will be big and I’ll know a lot more in the next couple of days.” Running back Christian McCaffrey has been able to play, but isn't back to the form that helped him win AP Offensive Player of the Year in 2023 after missing the first eight games this season with Achilles tendinitis. McCaffrey has 149 yards rushing in three games back with his 3.5 yards per carry down significantly from last season's mark of 5.4. But he is confident he will be able to get back to his usual level of play. “When you lose and maybe you don’t jump out on the stat sheet, your failures are highlighted,” he said. “I’m happy I’m out here playing football and I just know with time it will come.” Coach Kyle Shanahan said he has liked what he has seen from McCaffrey, adding that there hasn't been much room to run in recent weeks. But Shanahan said it takes time to get back to speed after McCaffrey had almost no practice time for nine months. “Guys who miss offseasons and miss training camp, usually it takes them a little bit of time at the beginning of the year to get back into how they were the year before, let alone missing half the season also on top of that,” Shanahan said. “I think Christian’s doing a hell of a job. But to just think him coming back in Week 8 with not being able to do anything for the last nine months or whatever it is, and to think he’s just going to be in MVP form is a very unrealistic expectation.” NOTES: LB Dre Greenlaw took part in his first practice since tearing his Achilles tendon in the Super Bowl. Greenlaw will likely need a couple of weeks of practice before being able to play. ... LB Fred Warner said he has been dealing with a fracture in his ankle since Week 4 and is doing his best to manage the pain as he plays through it. ... CB Deommodore Lenoir didn't practice after banging knees on Sunday. His status for this week remains in question. ... DT Jordan Elliott (concussion), OL Aaron Banks (concussion) and LB Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles (knee) also didn't practice. AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFLAfter playoff chances slip away, Miami and Iowa State looking to regroup at Pop-Tarts BowlAfter playoff chances slip away, Miami and Iowa State looking to regroup at Pop-Tarts BowlTrump’s tariffs a hot topic at B.C. energy and resource forum

Aston Villa had a stoppage-time goal disallowed as they drew 0-0 with Juventus in the Champions League. Morgan Rogers looked to have given Unai Emery’s side another famous win when he slammed a loose ball home at the death, but referee Jesus Gil Manzano ruled Diego Carlos to have fouled Juve goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio and the goal was chalked off. It was a disappointment for Villa, who remain unbeaten at home in their debut Champions League campaign and are still in contention to qualify automatically for the last 16. A very controversial finish at Villa Park 😲 Morgan Rogers' late goal is ruled out for a foul on Juventus goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio and the match ends 0-0 ❌ 📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/MyYL5Vdy3r — Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) November 27, 2024 Emiliano Martinez had earlier displayed why he was named the best goalkeeper in the world as his wonder save kept his side level in the second half. The Argentina international paraded his two Yashin Trophies on the pitch before kick-off at Villa Park and then showed why he won back-to-back FIFA awards when he denied Francisco Conceicao. Before Rogers’ moment of drama in the fourth minute of added time, the closest Villa came to scoring was in the first half when Lucas Digne’s free-kick hit the crossbar. But a draw was a fair result which leaves Villa out of the top eight on goal difference and Juventus down in 19th. Before the game Emery called Juventus one of the “best teams in the world, historically and now”, but this was an Italian side down to the bare bones. Only 14 outfield players made the trip from Turin, with striker Dusan Vlahovic among those who stayed behind. The opening 30 minutes were forgettable before the game opened up. Ollie Watkins, still chasing his first Champions League goal, had Villa’s first presentable chance as he lashed an effort straight at Di Gregorio. Matty Cash then had a vicious effort from the resulting corner which was blocked by Federico Gatti and started a counter-attack which ended in Juventus striker Timothy Weah. Villa came closest to breaking the deadlock at the end of the first half when Digne’s 20-yard free-kick clipped the top of the crossbar and went over. Martinez then produced his brilliant save just after the hour. A corner made its way through to the far post where Conceicao was primed to head in at the far post, but Martinez sprawled himself across goal to scoop the ball away. How has he kept that one out?! 🤯 Emi Martinez with an INCREDIBLE save to keep it goalless at Villa Park ⛔️ 📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/OkcWHB7YIk — Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) November 27, 2024 Replays showed most of the ball went over the line, but the Argentinian got there with millimetres to spare. At the other end another fine goal-line block denied John McGinn as Manuel Locatelli got his foot in the way with Di Gregorio beaten. The game looked to be petering out until a last-gasp free-kick saw Rogers slam home, but whistle-happy official Gil Manzano halted the celebrations by ruling the goal out.NoneNASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — Javon Small scored five of his 31 points in overtime and Tucker DeVries added key free throws late in regulation and finished with 16 points as West Virginia beat No. 3 Gonzaga 86-78 in the Battle 4 Atlantis on Wednesday. Small's layup with under 2 minutes left in OT gave West Virginia a 79-75 lead. After a Gonzaga miss, Sencire Harris hit two free throws to make it a six-point lead. With 27.1 seconds left, Harris made a steal and scored on a dunk for an eight-point lead, putting the game out of reach.

US responds to attack on troops with strike in Syria, a coalition of writers and creative workers who “stand united against the deeply unconstitutional movement to limit the freedom to read,” released an open letter yesterday demanding publishers prepare for the incoming Trump administration. The AABB conducted open forums with authors, and compiled their concerns and demands for the coming years. The letter was released on social media, and outlines collective worries about the Trump administration and its threats, and how authors hope the corporations they work with will counter those coming dangers: The letter highlights what authors need from book publishers in the years to come, knowing that Trump will usher in a “pro-censorship, pro-book-banning administration, and the successful implementation of its policies will require willing compliance of America’s institutions, including its corporations.” Among the organization’s demands are that publishers “be unequivocal in your support of LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC authors,” “be more aggressive and more public in fighting book bans and censorship,” and “refuse to provide “ratings” of books that goes beyond the current industry standard categorization of books by age group.” The list of demands is incomplete by admission — AABB acknowledges that we all “have a short time before January to prepare” — but the letter is a great start to an important conversation. And equally as important, I’m heartened by the display of solidarity and collective action. Groups like Authors Against Book Bans that can organize and mobilize are going to be crucial in the fights to come. Here’s the full letter, copied from Instagram: With the election of the Trump administration and its policies as embodied in Project 2025, we authors have deep concerns about how our publishers will be operating and how publishers will advocate for and protect authors. Trump’s agenda explicitly calls for the criminalization of authors, teachers, librarians, and publishing professionals with consequences including, “imprison[ment],” and being “classed as registered sex offenders” (Pg 4, Project 2025). For authors who are not citizens, this could also result in deportation. This promises to be a pro-censorship, pro-book-banning administration, and the successful implementation of its policies will require willing compliance of America’s institutions, including its corporations. The freedom to write is as important as the freedom to read. We have been heartened by many publishers’ willingness to engage in legal and legislative pathways to fight book banning, and want to be sure that you will double-down on your fight during this consequential time. This past week, AABB held open forums with authors from all genres and age levels to better understand author concerns and needs. While this may not be a complete list due to the rapid turnaround, we know we have a short time before January to prepare for what is to come, and we want to start this conversation sooner rather than later. As authors, we need you to: – Continue to acquire and promote books by LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC voices. We are concerned that these voices under particular attack will be silenced or discouraged, directly and/or indirectly. – Be unequivocal in your support of LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC authors. We need to know that no author will be asked to “tone down” or erase elements in their books to please potential censors or to avoid being targeted by unjust laws in certain states. Authors need to know that we can continue to speak our truths in our works and remarks. – Guarantee the safety and confidentiality of all personal information that exists in your portals, or that has been shared for book promotion. We need publishers to refuse to provide lists of: – Authors or staff they know to be immigrants, Muslims, individuals with backgrounds from Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Yemen, Gaza et al (targeted under Trump’s promise to expand the “Muslim ban”) – All books by queer or trans authors, or that include queer or trans characters or content – Authors and their citizenship, birthplace, and/or other personal information – Books that reference diversity, equity, inclusion, sexual orientation, gender identity, racism, privilege, or “critical race theory” etc as defined or listed on page 4 of Project 2025 – Refuse to provide “ratings” of books that goes beyond the current industry standard categorization of books by age group. – Resist requests for authors to sign contractual language for appearances that impinges upon our free speech in ways including but not limited to: written or spoken language, personal expenditures, personal advocacy. – Provide security in states or locations where an author may be under threat or has received threats. If an author is arrested for discussing their book in a public space, we need you to promise to provide legal aid. We need clear industry standards regarding author security and direct contact information for security and legal needs. – Stand against the blanket weaponization of “pornography,” “obscenity,” “triggering,” and “inappropriate” as they have been used in widespread book bans to target anything with queer content, sex, or references to racism, bigotry, misogyny, abortion, etc. Project 2025 states that people who produce or distribute anything deemed “pornographic” should be jailed, though it does not define pornographic, nor does it seem to adhere to the SCOTUS standard of pornography. – Ensure the freedom of every author to use the terms targeted on pages 4-5 of Project 2025 (which include but are not limited to: sexual orientation and gender identity, diversity, equity, and inclusion, gender, gender equality, gender equity, gender awareness, gender-sensitive, abortion, reproductive health, reproductive rights, etc) freely in their works. We need to know you will continue to send LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC authors to schools, libraries, and festivals funded in whole or in part by federal grants. – Provide training on author safety and emergency contacts for situations when an author feels unsafe. – Be more aggressive and more public in fighting book bans and censorship at local, state, and the national level. We approach all these needs with the assumption of your support, and we will be vigilant to make sure that any divergence on these crucial points will be noted and protested. It’s imperative that publishers, like authors, do not obey in advance. We must be aligned against policies that promote censorship, book bans, and the criminalization of storytelling. We look forward to working together with you and with all the other organizations fighting for our fundamental freedoms to read and to write.