Author: Fernando Santos

One of the fault lines dividing Congress is whether to continue aid for Ukraine as it defends itself from Russia. A number of hard-right Republicans say no, and they say they’re willing to shut down the government over it. Alaska’s Republican senators aren’t among them. Sen. Dan Sullivan wants to reframe aid for Ukraine by deemphasizing the Ukraine part. “It’s not Ukraine. What I’ve been trying to do is make the case that it’s defeating authoritarian aggression,” he said Wednesday as he boarded a Senate elevator. “A supplemental [spending bill] has to be about Taiwan and other national security challenges.”…

A law that would have been the first in the United States to ban a controversial practice known as “abortion pill reversal” cannot take effect, a judge ruled late Saturday. US district court judge Daniel D Domenico granted a preliminary injunction in the case, ruling in favor of a Catholic health clinic that had argued the law infringed on its first amendment rights. “The state generally cannot regulate an activity if that regulation burdens religious exercise, provides for individualized exceptions, fails to regulate comparable secular activities that raise similar risks, and otherwise targets religious activity,” Domenico wrote. “The law at…

The Intertribal Agriculture Council (IAC) is providing support for Tribal agricultural producers who have faced discrimination from the USDA-FSA in applying for the USDA Discrimination Financial Assistance Program (DFAP). This program offers one-time financial support to ranchers, farmers, and forest landowners who have experienced discrimination in USDA-FSA loan programs. IAC is encouraging all Native producers to apply before the January 13, 2024 deadline. The Intertribal Agriculture Council (IAC) is providing application assistance to Tribal agricultural producers who have experienced discrimination by the United States Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (USDA-FSA) and who are interested in applying for the USDA…

Alaska State Troopers are requesting public assistance in searching for for 38-year-old Dustin Peters, a suspect in a violent felony crime that took place in Wasilla. Troopers have obtained an active felony warrant for his arrest. Peters was last seen in the Mat-Su Valley on the morning of October 6, 2023. He was driving a 2019 dark red Ford F150 with Alaska plate JRN648. Troopers have not stated what crime Peters is wanted for at this time, but say that he is armed and dangerous. If you spot him or know any information about his whereabouts, call 911 immediately, or…

After a record-breaking wildfire season, 6,517 forest fires have burned 18.5 million hectares (46 million acres) of land in Canada throughout 2023, about five per cent of the entire forest area of Canada, and more than 10 times the amount of last year. According to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre’s final report of the year, 769 active fires were still burning throughout Canada with 345 categorized as “out of control,” 186 as “being held,” and 238 considered to be under control. The land that has burned so far this year is about double the size of Portugal and triple…

At the InCyber Forum North America, held this past week in Montréal, Canada, the importance of maintaining meaningful global partners in cybersecurity was never more evident.As I was about to take the main stage at the InCyber Forum North America held at the Montréal Convention Center to moderate a keynote panel on the topic of protecting critical infrastructure when a powerful feeling came over me regarding the importance of this cybersecurity topic and particularly the challenges we face as a global community at this moment. No, this was not just a nervous feeling of intimidation before public speaking, nor even…

Canada on Saturday urged its citizens in Lebanon to leave while they still can, as neighbouring Israel continues to fight militants in the country and ramps up a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip. “If the armed conflict intensifies, it could impact your ability to depart [Lebanon],” a government statement read. “You should consider leaving by commercial means now, if you can do so safely.” Fighting has broken out along the Israel-Lebanon border since shortly after Oct. 7 when Hamas militants attacked southern Israel. Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Lebanese political party and armed movement that supports Hamas, traded strikes with Israel.…

FBI alleges former sergeant Joseph Daniel Schmidt tried to set up a meeting with Chinese consulate in Turkey. A former US army intelligence officer has been charged with attempting to provide classified defence information to the Chinese security services during the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic – including some listed in a Microsoft Word document titled “Important Information to Share with Chinese Government”. Authorities on Friday arrested former sergeant Joseph Daniel Schmidt, 29, at San Francisco international airport as he arrived from Hong Kong, where he had been living since March 2020, the Justice Department said. A federal grand jury…

An Alaska fisherman is showing off an unusual catch – a rock greenling.  It might not sound that impressive, but the eye-popping rare fish truly looks too out-of-this-world to be real – but it is. Blue meat and all.  Rock greenlings are part of the common species of greenling fish. Rock greenlings in particular are found along the Pacific Coast, from the Bering Sea in Alaska to Point Conception in California, though the species is fairly uncommon further south.  Rock greenlings aren’t an impressive catch size-wise; they only get up to about 24 inches in length and less than 2 lbs. in weight.  But in trying…

When Brandy Barnes got the first notice that she might be dropped from Medicaid, she was worried. One of her teenage sons is autistic and needs significant care to lead a full life. “My main concern is that my son is disabled,” she said. “He has therapies, medications, doctor appointments that cannot be dropped. I started asking around, and apparently this was happening to everyone.” She said everything from his education to his bus pass are dependent on his Medicaid status. Barnes was proactive during the pandemic and updated her paperwork with the state. But this summer she got a…