Airstrikes

Tensions escalate after Pakistan hits Afghanistan

KARACHI, Pakistan>> Airstrikes by Pakistani warplanes inside Afghanistan have intensified tensions in recent days in the volatile region. Once-close ties between Pakistan’s leaders and the Afghan Taliban have frayed, and violent cross-border exchanges have become alarmingly frequent.

Officially, the Pakistani government has been tight-lipped about the strikes in Afghanistan on Dec. 24.

But security officials privately said that the Pakistani military had targeted hide-outs of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, a militant group also known as the TTP or the Pakistani Taliban that has carried out a series of terrorist attacks inside Pakistan.

The security officials said that several top militants from the Pakistani Taliban had died in the airstrikes, which came days after 16 Pakistani military personnel were ambushed and killed in a border district.

Blake Lively sues director alleging harassment and smear campaign

Actor Blake Lively sued “It Ends With Us” director Justin Baldoni and several others tied to the romantic drama on Tuesday, alleging harassment and a coordinated campaign to attack her reputation for coming forward about her treatment on the set.

The federal lawsuit was filed in New York just hours after Baldoni and many of the other defendants in Lively’s lawsuit sued The New York Times for libel for its story on her allegations, saying the newspaper and the star were the ones conducting a coordinated smear campaign.

The lawsuits are major developments in a story emerging from the surprise hit film that has made major waves in Hollywood and led to discussions of the treatment of female actors on sets and in media.

Lively’s lawsuit said Baldoni, the film’s production company Wayfarer Studios and others engaged in “a carefully crafted, coordinated, and resourced retaliatory scheme to silence her, and others, from speaking out.”

Fireworks explosion kills three people, injures 20

HONOLULU>> A New Year’s Eve fireworks explosion in a Honolulu-area neighborhood killed at least three people and critically injured 20 others, authorities said.

The accident occurred just before midnight outside a home, the Honolulu Fire Department said in a statement. The neighborhood is near Honolulu’s international airport and a joint Air Force and Navy base and a little more than 2 miles east of the USS Arizona Memorial, which honors sailors who died in the attack on Pearl Harbor that drew the U.S. into World War II.

Two people were declared dead at the scene, and the other 20 victims were transported to hospitals, according to Honolulu Emergency Medical Services.

Couple die days apart after separate accidents

ADDISON TOWNSHIP, Mich.>> A suburban Detroit husband and wife have died days apart after separate accidents between Christmas and New Year’s Day.

Scott Levitan, 66, was removed from life-support at a hospital Tuesday afternoon after falling through the ice while fishing on a small lake north of Detroit on Thursday, according to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office.

About 24 hours after that mishap, Mary Lou Levitan, also 66, was killed in a traffic accident.

Investigators believe she was on her way to pick up her husband’s vehicle at the time of the crash.

Scott Levitan and his 15-year-old grandson were drilling a hole when the lake ice gave way Thursday in Addison Township, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

The teen later was treated at a hospital and released.

— Denver Post wire services