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  • Irish jockey Michael O’Sullivan, 24, dies after falling from horse

    Irish jockey Michael O’Sullivan, 24, dies after falling from horse

    Michael O’Sullivan, a jockey from Ireland who fell from his horse at Thurles Racecourse, has died more than a week after the fall, the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board (IHRB) said in a news release. He was 24.

    He fell from his horse during the Racing Again February 20th Handicap Chase on Feb. 6.

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    Michael O’Sullivan celebrates on Marine Nationale after winning the 13:30 The Sky Bet Supreme Novices. (Reuters/Peter Cziborra)

    “Michael was an exceptionally talented young rider who was always popular in the weighroom,” IHRB CEO Darragh O’Loughlin said in the release. “Michael will be deeply missed by everyone in racing who had the pleasure of knowing him. Our hearts go out to Michael’s family, especially his parents Bernadette and William and his brother Alan, who will feel his loss most keenly.”

    Dr. Jennifer Pugh, the IHRB’s chief medical officer, said O’Sullivan’s family decided to donate his organs.

    “I have had the privilege of knowing Michael through his amateur and professional career and his dedication, modesty and kind nature always made him a pleasure to be around,” Pugh added. “Michael’s success and his humility will have inspired many, and I share the feeling of loss today with all those who knew him.

    CHURCHILL DOWNS RESCINDS BOB BAFFERT’S SUSPENSION AFTER HORSE TRAINER ADMITS FAULT IN SCANDAL

    Michael O'Sullivan races

    Impaire Et Passe, ridden by Paul Townend, and Good Land, ridden by Michael O’Sullivan, in action during the 13:30 Ballymore Novices. (Reuters/Peter Cziborra)

    “Michael’s family would like to reiterate their gratefulness for all the support they have received in the last couple of days and express their appreciation to the local community and racing family. The O’Sullivan family have asked for privacy at this time.”

    O’Sullivan turned pro in 2022 and won the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle the next year at the Cheltenham Festival, according to the BBC. He had 95 wins in Ireland and Britain over the course of his career.

    “It’s dreadful news which puts all our problems into context. He will be much missed here and there is a real sadness here,” trainer Willie Mullins said, via the outlet. “He was here two mornings a week and was very much a part of the team and his part here was only going to get bigger. He was such a natural rider who was very modest, friendly and understated.

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    “He had a great understanding of horses and racing and given the horse, he was the man. I think Closutton will be a much poorer place without him and we, as a family, will miss him. He will be much missed in the yard and we have his family in our thoughts and our prayers are for them now.”

    Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

    Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.

  • National Sweet Potato Month 2025: Yummiest Sweet Potato Recipes To Try During the Month of February!

    National Sweet Potato Month 2025: Yummiest Sweet Potato Recipes To Try During the Month of February!

    National Sweet Potato Month, observed in February, celebrates the versatility, nutritional value, and culinary delights of sweet potatoes. National Cook a Sweet Potato Day 2025 will be celebrated on February 22. Sweet potatoes are a nutritious and delicious root vegetable that comes in various varieties and colours, ranging from orange and purple to white. As you observe National Sweet Potato Month 2025, we at LatestLY have put together recipes for 3 delicious foods that you can make using sweet potatoes. How To Make Stuffed Sweet Potato Recipe at Home? Check Ingredients and Easy Recipe To Make Delicious Stuffed Sweet Potatoes Dish.

    Throughout National Sweet Potato Month, there is a heightened focus on promoting awareness about the nutritional benefits of sweet potatoes and encouraging people to incorporate them into their meals. From sweet potato fries and casseroles to pies and soups, the possibilities for incorporating this nutritious vegetable into a diverse range of recipes are endless. Winter Superfoods: From Kale, Sweet Potatoes To Root Vegetables, List of Superfoods To Incorporate Into Your Diet This Winter.

    Sweet Potato Casserole

    A classic dish often enjoyed during holidays or special occasions, sweet potato casserole combines the natural sweetness of sweet potatoes with a delectable topping. The sweet potatoes are usually mashed and mixed with ingredients like butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and sometimes a hint of vanilla. This mixture is then spread in a baking dish, topped with a crunchy layer of pecans or marshmallows, and baked until golden brown. The result is a comforting and flavourful side dish that perfectly balances the sweetness of the potatoes with a delightful texture.

    Sweet Potato Casserole (Photo Credits: Flickr)

    Sweet Potato and Black Bean Tacos

    For a savoury and wholesome option, sweet potatoes can be incorporated into a delicious taco filling. Cubed sweet potatoes are roasted until tender and tossed with black beans, corn, red onions, and a blend of spices such as cumin, chilli powder, and paprika. This flavourful mixture is then spooned into taco shells or tortillas and garnished with toppings like avocado, cilantro, and a squeeze of lime. The combination of sweet and savoury flavours in these sweet potato and black bean tacos makes for a satisfying and nutritious meal.

    Sweet Potato and Black Bean Tacos (File Image)

    Baked Sweet Potato Fries

    A healthier alternative to traditional French fries, baked sweet potato fries are a popular and easy-to-make snack or side dish. Sweet potatoes are cut into thin strips, tossed with olive oil, and seasoned with spices like paprika, garlic powder, and salt. The fries are then spread in a single layer on a baking sheet and baked until crispy. The natural sweetness of the sweet potatoes pairs well with the savoury seasonings, creating a tasty and guilt-free alternative to regular fries. These baked sweet potato fries are not only delicious but also a good source of vitamins and fibre.

    Baked Sweet Potato Fries (File Image)

    The celebration of National Sweet Potato Month aims to inspire individuals to explore the many culinary possibilities offered by sweet potatoes while promoting a healthy and balanced lifestyle. Whether roasted, mashed, or baked, sweet potatoes bring a unique and sweet flavour to the table, making them a favourite among food enthusiasts during this month-long celebration.

    Wishing everyone a Happy National Sweet Potato Month!

    (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 16, 2025 09:57 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).

  • Austria suffers another IS-motivated attack day after Vance’s Munich speech

    Austria suffers another IS-motivated attack day after Vance’s Munich speech

    Austrian authorities said Sunday that the suspect who they believe fatally stabbed a 14-year-old boy and wounded five others in the village of Villach is a Syrian refugee who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State. 

    At a press conference, Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said the 23-year-old Syrian national was arrested seven minutes after Saturday’s attack unfolded in the village of just about 60,000 people bordering Italy and Slovenia. 

    “This is an Islamist attack with an IS connection by an attacker who radicalized himself within a very short time via the internet online,” Karner told reporters, according to the Associated Press. 

    Regarding mass migration and asylum-seekers, Karner, a conservative, said it will ultimately be necessary to “carry out a mass screening without cause because this assassin was not conspicuous.” 

    CAR DRIVER IN MUNICH PLOWS INTO CROWD 1 DAY BEFORE VANCE AND WORLD LEADERS GATHER FOR SECURITY CONFERENCE

    Carinthia’s police chief, Michaela Kohlweiss, Austria’s Interior Minister Gerhard Karner, Carinthia’s Gov. Peter Kaiser and the mayor of Villach, Guenther Albel, address a press conference on Feb. 16, 2025, at the knife attack site. (Gerd Eggenberger/APA/AFP via Getty Images)

    “There’s compassion, there’s sadness, but in these moments there’s also understandably often anger and rage,” Karner added, according to Reuters. “Anger at an Islamist attacker who randomly stabbed innocent people here in this town.”

    The attack came a day after Vice President JD Vance rebuked European leaders at the Munich Security Conference over mass migration, as well as crackdowns on free speech. 

    As authorities revealed the alleged “Islamic terror motive,” Austria’s far-right leader Herbert Kickl, whose party won a national election four months ago, called for “a rigorous crackdown on asylum” in the wake of the attack.

    Kickl wrote on X Saturday that he is “appalled by the horrific act in Villach.”

    “At the same time, I am angry – angry at those politicians who have allowed stabbings, rapes, gang wars and other capital crimes to become the order of the day in Austria. This is a first-class failure of the system, for which a young man in Villach has now had to pay with his life,” Kickl said.

    “From Austria to the EU – the wrong rules are in force everywhere. Nobody is allowed to challenge them, everything is declared sacrosanct,” he said, adding that his party had outlined what he viewed as necessary changes to immigration laws in its election platform.

    The suspect is charged with murder and attempted murder. Austrian police said the suspect recorded himself pledging allegiance to IS, according to Reuters. 

    State police director Michaela Kohlweiß said authorities searched the suspect’s apartment with sniffer dogs and found IS flags on the walls. 

    No weapons or dangerous objects were found, she added, but police seized mobile telephones. Police were investigating whether the suspect had any accomplices.

    “The current picture is that of a lone perpetrator,” Kohlweiß said, according to the AP. 

    Carinthia State Gov. Peter Kaiser thanked another Syrian national, a 42-year-old man working for a food delivery company, who drove toward the suspect and helped prevent the situation from getting worse. 

    SUSPECT IN MUNICH CAR ATTACK HAD ‘ISLAMIST MOTIVATION,’ PROSECUTOR SAYS

    “This shows how closely terrorist evil but also human good can be united in one and the same nationality,” Kaiser said. 

    The mayor of Villach, Guenther Albel, said the attack was a “stab in the heart of the city.”

    Austrian conservative party leader Christian Stocker said on X that the attacker “must be brought to justice and be punished with the full force of the law.”

    “We all want to live in a safe Austria, adding that this means political measures need to be taken to avoid such acts of horror in the future,” he said.

    The day before Vance visited the Munich Security Conference, an Afghan refugee on Thursday plowed a car into a crowd in the German city, injuring dozens of people, including a mother and her 2-year-old daughter, who later died. 

    Vance at Munich Security Conference

    Vice President JD Vance addresses the Munich Security Conference in Germany, Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

    “The number of immigrants who entered the EU from non-EU countries doubled between 2021 and 2022 alone, and of course, it’s gotten much higher since,” Vance said Friday. “It’s the result of a series of conscious decisions made by politicians all over the continent. Others across the world over the span of a decade. We saw the horrors wrought by these decisions yesterday in this very city. And of course, I can’t bring it up again without thinking about the terrible victims who had a beautiful winter day in Munich ruined. Our thoughts and prayers are with them and will remain with them. But why did this happen in the first place?” 

    “It’s a terrible story, but it’s one we’ve heard way too many times in Europe, and unfortunately too many times in the United States as well,” Vance said. “An asylum seeker, often a young man in his mid-20s, already known to police, rams a car into a crowd and shatters a community. How many times must we suffer these appalling setbacks before we change course and take our shared civilization in a new direction?” 

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    The stabbing in Villach on Saturday marked what is believed to be the second deadly Islamic terror attack in Austria in recent years. In November 2020, a man who had previously attempted to join the Islamic State carried out a rampage in Vienna, armed with an automatic rifle and a fake explosive vest, killing four people before being fatally shot by police. Last August, Austrian authorities said they thwarted a planned attack at a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna by a teenager who had also allegedly pledged allegiance to IS.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

    Danielle Wallace is a breaking news and politics reporter at Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to [email protected] and on X: @danimwallace. 

  • World Series champion Bobby Jenks battling stomach cancer

    World Series champion Bobby Jenks battling stomach cancer

    Bobby Jenks, a World Series champion pitcher who starred for the Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox, revealed Saturday he is being treated for stomach cancer.

    Jenks talked about his illness with MLB.com while at a hospital in Portugal. He expressed optimism he would be able to recover in time to return for a second season as the manager of the Windy City Thunderbolts, who play in the Frontier League.

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    Chicago pitcher Bobby Jenks is congratulated by catcher Toby Hall after the White Sox defeated the Giants 3-1at AT&T Park in San Francisco, May 17, 2008. (Phil Carter-USA Today Sports)

    “Now it’s time to do what I got to do to get myself better and get myself more time, however you want to look at it,” he told the website. “I’ll tell you one thing: I’m not going to die here in Portugal.”

    Jenks, 43, played seven years in the majors and was a two-time All-Star. He made 32 appearances and six saves in his rookie season in 2005. He helped the White Sox to a World Series title then.

    In 2007, he retired 41 consecutive batters, which matched a record for a relief pitcher.

    REDS MANAGER TO ELLY DE LA CRUZ: ‘I WANT YOU TO BE THE BEST PLAYER IN BASEBALL’

    Bobby Jenks pitches

    Chicago White Sox pitcher Bobby Jenks pitches against the Orioles at Camden Yards in Baltimore, July 30, 2006. (James Lang-USA Today Sports)

    He had a 3.40 ERA and 173 saves for Chicago in 329 games over six years. He spent one season with the Red Sox before walking away from the game.

    The White Sox sent their well-wishes to Jenks on social media.

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    Bobby Jenks vs Phillies

    Boston Red Sox pitcher Bobby Jenks throws against the Phillies in Philadelphia, June 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)

    “We stand with you, Bobby Jenks,” the team wrote in an Instagram post.

    Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

    Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.

  • Kyoto Protocol Day in the United States 2025 Date: Know History and Significance of the Day That Highlights the Need To Reduce Carbon Emissions

    Kyoto Protocol Day in the United States 2025 Date: Know History and Significance of the Day That Highlights the Need To Reduce Carbon Emissions

    Kyoto Protocol Day is an annual observance in the United States of America (USA). It is an international treaty adopted on December 11, 1997, in Kyoto, Japan, which was significant in global efforts to combat climate change. The Kyoto Protocol legally bound developed countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The treaty entered into force on February 16, 2005. February 2025 Holidays and Festivals Calendar: Get Full List of Major Events in the Second Month of the Year. 

    The Kyoto Protocol is based on the principles and provisions of the Convention and follows its annex-based structure. It only binds developed countries, and places a burden on them under the principle of common but differentiated responsibility and respective capabilities as it recognises that they are largely responsible for the current high levels of GHG emissions in the atmosphere. Currently, there are 192 Parties (191 States and 1 regional economic integration organisation) to the Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC. Himachal Pradesh Invokes Kyoto Protocol to Demand GST Compensation from Centre.

    Kyoto Protocol Day 2025 Date

    Kyoto Protocol Day falls on Sunday, February 16.

    Kyoto Protocol Day History

    The Kyoto Protocol was adopted on December 11, 1997. Owing to a complex ratification process, it entered into force on February 16, 2005. Currently, there are 192 Parties to the Kyoto Protocol. In short, the Kyoto Protocol operationalizes the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change by committing industrialised countries and economies in transition to limit and reduce greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions in accordance with agreed individual targets. The Convention itself only asks those countries to adopt policies and measures on mitigation and to report periodically.

    The Kyoto Protocol came into force on February 16 in accordance with Article 23, that is on the ninetieth day after the date on which not less than 55 Parties to the Convention, incorporating Parties included in Annex I of the Convention which accounted in total for at least 55 % of the total carbon dioxide emissions for 1990 of the Parties included in Annex I, had deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.

    Kyoto Protocol Day Significance

    Kyoto Protocol Day is an important day as it recognises the first treaty that set binding targets for developed nations to reduce emissions. Kyoto Protocol Day is a reminder of the ongoing fight against climate change and the need for international cooperation in reducing carbon emissions. It is significant because it was the first legally binding international treaty aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions to combat climate change.

    (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 16, 2025 08:42 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).

  • Trump tariffs spark ‘exciting time’ for Ohio steel plant as CEO eyes adding jobs, boosting productivity

    Trump tariffs spark ‘exciting time’ for Ohio steel plant as CEO eyes adding jobs, boosting productivity

    FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump’s tariffs will be a boon for an Ohio-based steel mill and its employees, the CEO of JSW Steel USA, a subsidiary of a massive India-based steel manufacturer, told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview. 

    “It’s a good piece of the formula that results in our company increasing utilization in the next 12 months, from 68% to probably 84%, and beyond that in years to come. So it’s a very exciting time for us,” JSW Steel USA CEO Robert Simon told Fox News Digital of Trump’s tariff plan in a phone interview on Thursday evening. 

    Simon has served as the CEO of JSW Steel USA since March of last year, bringing with him more than 30 years of experience in the steel industry. He spoke to Fox News Digital following Trump announcing his administration’s “fair and reciprocal plan on trade,” which he celebrated during a press conference as a project that will flood the U.S. with jobs as trading partners move their industries to U.S. soil to avoid tariffs. 

    JSW USA is a subsidiary of Mumbai-headquartered JSW Group, which owns India’s second-largest private steel company, JSW Steel. JSW USA has two steel locations in the U.S., one at Mingo Junction, Ohio, and another operation in Baytown, Texas. 

    TRUMP DETAILS HIS RECIPROCAL TARIFF PLANS, ASKS FOREIGN COUNTRIES TO ‘TREAT US FAIRLY’: ‘DELIVER RECIPROCITY’

    JSW Steel USA CEO Robert Simon spoke with Fox Digital in an exclusive interview. (JSW Steel USA )

    Simon told Fox News Digital that across his more than 30 years in the industry, U.S. steel manufacturers have complied with strict environmental and safety practices, and paid their employees fairly, while foreign steel manufacturers could skirt U.S. regulations while exporting their goods to the U.S. 

    “We, as steel producers, we paid our employees fair wages, treated them fairly, met some of the most – if not the most strict – environmental requirements in the world, and those practices in our markets, with the simple supply-demand equation establishes market pricing.”

    Steel facility in Ohio

    The JSW Steel USA facility in Mingo Junction, Ohio. (JSW Steel USA )

    “The frustration is, how is it fair that others that don’t treat their employees the same way, don’t follow the same rules, don’t follow environmental practices… they get government subsidies. How is it fair that they can come into our markets and take market share when it’s not an equal playing field?” he said. 

    Simon said the Ohio plant alone will likely see a minimum increase of 100 jobs in the next year under Trump’s tariff plan. 

    “As you look at that increase in utilization coupled with the overall increase in production that we foresee in the next three to five years, we estimate, at a minimum, a 100 jobs increase in the next 12 plus months associated with that utilization rate increase,” he said. 

    WHO GETS HIT HARDEST BY STEEL AND ALUMINUM TARIFFS?

    Trump’s administration issued a fact sheet last week restoring a 25% tariff on steel, which detailed “domestic steel and aluminum industries and achieving sustainable capacity utilization of at least 80%.” JSW Steel USA told Fox News Digital that they are already on track to increase their utilization rate from 68% to 84% – higher than Trump’s target number of 80%. 

    Under the first Trump administration, JSW Steel USA notably sued the federal government in 2019 over tariffs regarding imported steel-slab materials. The company now makes all domestic steel-slab materials as part of the JSW Group’s belief that its facilities both make products and supply the product in the communities they serve.

    Trump in Vegas

    President Donald Trump speaks at a rally at Circa Resort & Casino on Jan. 25, 2025, in Las Vegas. (Ian Maule/Getty Images)

    Simon celebrated in his comments to Fox Digital that Ohio families that had long worked in the steel industry are making a return to the factory as the industry reinvigorates under the first and second Trump administrations. JSW USA purchased the Ohio factory in 2018, after it had operated as a Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel plant, but sat dormant for years. 

    TRUMP ADVISOR TEASES NEW ‘GOLDEN AGE’ OF U.S. STEEL AND ALUMINUM

    “This is a company that had been shut down for over seven years, when we acquired it. We hired a workforce, trained a workforce, all from the local area. What’s really cool to see is we’ve got employees whose grandparents and great-grandparents worked in this same company, which ended up being shut down, and they’re part now of reviving that company and bringing it to an offering of products that’s extremely competitive and extremely impressive in terms of its value added products,” Simon said. 

    Trump announced a reciprocal tariff plan on Thursday, tapping Howard Lutnick, his nominee for commerce secretary, to produce a report on reciprocal trade relations within 180 days. Lutnik said Thursday that he will have the report ready for Trump by April 1. 

    Howard Lutnick, chief executive officer of Cantor Fitzgerald LP and US commerce secretary nominee for US President Donald Trump, right, and President Donald Trump during an executive order signing in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, Feb. 10, 2025. Trump ordered a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports, escalating his efforts to protect politically important US industries with levies hitting some of the country's closest allies. Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images

    Howard Lutnick, commerce secretary nominee, joins President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on Monday, Feb. 10, 2025. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

    WHAT ARE TARIFFS, HOW DO THEY WORK AND WHO PAYS FOR THEM?

    ​​”On trade, I have decided for purposes of fairness, that I will charge a reciprocal tariff – meaning whatever countries charge the United States of America, we will charge them no more, no less. In other words, they charge us a tax or tariff and we charge them the exact same tax or tariff. Very simple,” he said at the White House on Thursday. 

    Trump touted that the plan will lead to a job boon in the U.S. as foreign trading partners move operations stateside to avoid the reciprocal tariffs. 

    “They can build a factory here, a plant or whatever it may be, here,” Trump said Thursday afternoon from the Oval Office. “And that includes the medical, that includes cars, that includes chips and semiconductors. That includes everything. If you build here, you have no tariffs whatsoever. And I think that’s what’s going to happen. I think our country is going to be flooded with jobs.”

    Simon told Fox News Digital that Trump’s business and deal-making abilities are “obvious to everybody” as he whips through dozens of executive actions and orders in just a few weeks back in the Oval Office, remarking that it’s “pretty amazing.” 

    “It’s become obvious to everybody that Mr. Trump is not a politician, right, but, more of a business person stepping in and leading our country, from much more of a business perspective than as a career politician. Like it or not, for those folks that have different opinions, this results in very quick negotiations. I don’t think I’ve ever in my time here seen so much movement, so much decision-making, so many decisions being made in this shorter period of time since he’s been in office. It’s pretty, pretty amazing,” he said. 

    JSW steel plant

    JSW USA purchased the Ohio factory in 2018, after it had sat dormant for years. (JSW Steel USA )

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    Trump also met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, and the two discussed trade, the economic relationship between India and the United States and military sales. The pair also “committed to drive opportunities for U.S. and Indian companies to make greenfield investments in high-value industries in each other’s countries,” including naming JSW’s operations at Texas and Ohio as a prime ongoing investment in the U.S., according to a joint statement from the two nations. 

    President Donald Trump meets Indian Prime Minister Modi

    President Donald Trump and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi shake hands during a news conference at the White House, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

    “The steel tariffs enacted by President Trump are a necessary step in leveling the playing field for American steelworkers and manufacturers. Foreign competitors fail to protect their workforce at the same safety standards, do not compensate them fairly, and produce steel that contributes to environmental degradation, all the while, seeking to flood the U.S. market, taking advantage of our strong economy, driving a collapse of our markets in the process,” Simon added in comment provided to Fox Digital.

  • Presidents’ Day 2025 Date in the US: Know History and Significance of the Day That Honours and Remembers the Presidents of the United States

    Presidents’ Day 2025 Date in the US: Know History and Significance of the Day That Honours and Remembers the Presidents of the United States

    Presidents’ Day, also popularly known as Washington’s Birthday in the United States is a federal holiday celebrated on the third Monday of February each year. This year, Presidents’ Day 2025 falls on Monday, February 17. Presidents’ Day in the US is celebrated to honour all those who served as Presidents of the United States. Since 1879, Presidents’ Day has been the federal holiday honouring Founding Father George Washington, who led the Continental Army to victory in the American Revolutionary War, presided at the Constitutional Convention of 1787, and served as the first U.S. president from 1789 to 1797. List of US Presidents in Order With Party Names.

    Presidents’ Day is an official state holiday in most states under various names. Depending on the specific law, the state holiday may officially celebrate Washington alone, Washington and Abraham Lincoln, or some other combination of US Presidents like Washington and Thomas Jefferson and so on. In this article, let’s know more about Presidents’ Day 2025 date, history and the significance of the annual event. February 2025 Holidays and Festivals Calendar: Get Full List of Major Events in the Second Month of the Year. 

    Presidents’ Day 2025 Date

    Presidents’ Day 2025 falls on Monday, February 17.

    Presidents’ Day History

    The federal holiday honouring Washington was originally implemented by an Act of Congress in 1879 for government offices in Washington and expanded in 1885 to include all federal offices. George Washington was born on February 22, 1732and hence Washington’s Birthday was celebrated on this date from 1879 until 1970.

    To give federal employees a three-day weekend, on January 1, 1971, the federal holiday was shifted to the third Monday in February by the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which can occur from February 15 to February 21. The day soon became known as President’s Day. This day provides an occasion to remember all the US Presidents, to honour Abraham Lincoln’s and Washington’s birthdays together, or any single president of choice.

    Presidents’ Day Significance

    Presidents’ Day serves as a perfect opportunity to reflect on the contributions of past US Presidents and the history of the US government. Originally established in 1879 to celebrate George Washington’s birthday on February 22, the later evolved to also honour Abraham Lincoln, which is on February 12, and all US presidents. A food traditionally associated with the holiday is cherry pie, based on the legend of Washington in his youth chopping down a cherry tree.

    When is George Washington’s Actual Birthday?

    On this day, community celebrations are held in several states across the US with a display of the lengthy US heritage. Laredo, Texas, hosts a monthlong tribute and so does Washington’s hometown of Alexandria, Virginia, which includes what is claimed to be the nation’s longest-running and largest George Washington Birthday parade.

    (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 16, 2025 08:50 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).

  • President Trump urged to confront Iranian regime over repression of Christians

    President Trump urged to confront Iranian regime over repression of Christians

    Iran is reported to have launched a new crackdown against Iranian Christians this month following the re-arrest of two men.

    According to a Feb. 10 report on the website of the U.K.-based NGO Article18, which seeks to protect religious freedom in Iran, “Two Christians in their 60s who were released after a combined six years in prison on charges related to their leadership of house-churches have been re-arrested.”

    Iranian regime intelligence agents re-arrested the two Christians, Nasser Navard Gol-Tapeh and Joseph Shahbazian, and incarcerated both men in Tehran’s brutal Evin Prison. Gol-Tapeh is reportedly on a hunger strike over “unlawful re-arrest,” noted Article 18, which advocates on behalf of persecuted Iranian Christians.

    IRAN HAS WORLD’S ‘FASTEST-GROWING CHURCH,’ DESPITE NO BUILDINGS – AND IT’S MOSTLY LED BY WOMEN: DOCUMENTARY

    A huge mural of Iran’s supreme leader on Motahari Street on March 8, 2020, in Tehran. (Kaveh Kazemi/Getty Images)

    Article18 said a “number of other Tehran Christians were also arrested at the same time and remain in custody.”

    Iranian-Americans and Iranian dissidents are urging the Trump administration to shine a spotlight on the ubiquitous Iranian regime human rights violations while imposing punitive measures on the clerical state in Tehran.

    Alireza Nader, an Iran expert, told Fox News Digital, “Christians in Iran are relentlessly persecuted by the Islamist regime. The Trump administration should highlight their plight publicly while putting maximum economic and diplomatic pressure on the regime.”

    Wahied Wahdat-Hagh, a German-Iranian political scientist, who is a leading expert on religious minorities in Iran, told Fox News Digital, according to the Christian advocacy organization OpenDoors 2025 annual report, “Christian discrimination in Iran remains extremely severe, scoring 86 out of 100 points and ranking 9th among the worst countries for Christian persecution.”

    He added, “The government views Christian converts as a threat to national security, believing they are influenced by Western nations to undermine Islam and the regime. As a result, Christian converts face severe religious freedom violations, including arrests [and] long prison sentences.”

    STUDENTS IN IRAN CONTINUE PROTESTS OVER 19-YEAR-OLD’S MURDER ON CAMPUS FOR SECOND DAY

    Christianity in Iran

    A girl lights a candle in St. Thaddeus Monastery in Chaldoran, Iran. (Adis Easaghlian/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

    Wahdat-Hagh continued, “Those who leave Islam to follow Christianity are the most vulnerable. They are denied legal recognition and are frequently targeted by security forces.”

    One Iranian Christian who fled Iran to Germany to practice her faith free from persecution is Sheina Vojoudi.

    She told Fox News Digital, “As the belief in Islam keeps going down in Iran, the important growth of Christianity has deeply alarmed the Islamic Republic, a theocratic dictatorship. Iran has seen an outstanding rise in the number of Christian converts, despite the decidedly oppressive environment. International human rights groups often consider Christian converts to be political prisoners of conscience, meaning that even after arrest and release, they remain in constant danger of re-arrest and severe punishment.”

    The dire situation of Iranian Christians prompted the U.N. Special Rapporteur on human rights in Iran, Mai Sato, to sound the alarm bells in a video presentation organized by Article 18. “The situation of Christians in the Islamic Republic of Iran is a matter of serious concern that demands our continued attention,” she said.

    IRAN PROXIES ENGAGED IN ‘INVISIBLE JIHAD’ AGAINST CHRISTIANS IN MIDDLE EAST, REPORT WARNS

    The most recent U.S. State Department report on religious freedom in Iran (2023) states, “The government continued to regulate Christian religious practices. Christian worship in Farsi was forbidden and official reports and state-run media continued to characterize private Christian churches in homes as ‘illegal networks’ and ‘Zionist propaganda institutions.”’

    The number of Christians in Iran is difficult to pinpoint because of the widespread repression of the faith. According to the State Department report, the Iranian regime’s Statistical Center claims there are 117,700 Christians of recognized denominations as of the 2016 census.

    Iranian women prisoners sit inside their cell in Tehran's Evin prison, June 13, 2006.

    Iranian women prisoners sit inside their cell in Tehran’s Evin prison, June 13, 2006. (Reuters/Morteza Nikoubazl )

    Boston University’s 2020 World Religion Database notes there are roughly 579,000 Christians in Iran, while Article 18 estimates there are 500,000 to 800,000. Open Doors reports the number at 1.24 million.

    The Trump administration re-imposed, in early February, its maximum economic pressure campaign on Iran’s regime to reverse Tehran’s drive to build a nuclear weapon and stop its spread of Islamist terrorism.

    Vojoudi, an associate fellow at the U.S.-based Gold Institute for International Strategy, told Fox News Digital, “Now is the time for European nations and the United States to take meaningful action, not only by holding the Islamic Republic accountable for its support of terrorism and extremist groups, but also by prosecuting it on the international stage for violating one of the most fundamental human rights: the freedom of religion.

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    “This is critical not only for the safety of Christian converts but also to reaffirm the values of freedom and human dignity that these nations claim to uphold.” 

    Multiple Fox News Digital press queries to Iran’s foreign ministry and its U.N. mission in New York were not returned. Fox News Digital asked if the government would release Iranians imprisoned for merely practicing their Christian faith.

    Benjamin Weinthal reports on Israel, Iran, Syria, Turkey and Europe. You can follow Benjamin on Twitter @BenWeinthal, and email him at [email protected]

  • Mac McClung, who has played in 1 NBA game this season, wins 3rd straight dunk contest

    Mac McClung, who has played in 1 NBA game this season, wins 3rd straight dunk contest

    Mac McClung forged his own personal dynasty during NBA All-Star Weekend.

    The guard, who has only played in one game for the Orlando Magic during the regular season, took San Francisco by storm on Saturday and won his third consecutive NBA Slam Dunk Contest. It’s the first time any NBA player has won the event three times in a row.

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    Osceola Magic guard Mac McClung celebrates after dunking over a car at the All-Star festivities on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

    The G League star had four perfect dunks, each scoring a 50. McClung dunked over a car and over 6-foot-11 Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star Evan Mobley. He defeated San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle to maintain his championship.

    “It kind of feels like a blur,” he said. “It’s something I love doing. That’s where my creativity comes from. I genuinely love this contest and I love to dunk.”

    McClung, who plays for the Osceola Magic in the G League, is the second dunker to win the contest three times. Nate Robinson won in 2006 and then again in 2009 and 2010.

    NBA ALL-STAR DRAYMOND GREEN SAYS GAMES ARE ‘BORING,’ HAVE ‘NO SUBSTANCE’

    Mac McClung dunks over Evan Mobley

    Osceola Magic guard Mac McClung dunks during All-Star festivities on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

    “I think the contest is a beautiful thing,” McClung said. “I know people probably want bigger stars in it and I would love to see that. I think it’s important for the people in it to want to do it…. This contest is a special thing. We all love it.”

    McClung’s performance sparked reactions from Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant and Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo.

    “mac might make me decide to dunk,” Morant wrote on X.

    “If you do it. I’ll do it with you,” Antetokounmpo added.

    McClung only has five NBA games under his belt. He’s played for the Philadelphia 76ers, Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers in addition to the Magic.

    He said he prepared for the contest for nearly nine months and isn’t sure if he’ll go for a fourth title.

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    Mac McClung celebrates a win

    Osceola Magic guard Mac McClung celebrates with Julius Erving after winning the slam dunk contest on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

    Matas Buzelis, of the Bulls, and Andre Jackson, of the Bucks, were eliminated in the first round.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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    Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.