TALLAHASSEE (CBS) Governor DeSantis signs AI and vape bills Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed 28 bills, including a measure requiring disclaimers on certain political ads created using artificial intelligence and a bill about regulation of vape products.
ESTERO Gold Star Golf Tournament honors fallen veteran Behind each putt and swing of a golf club at the Gold Star Golf Tournament is someone who knew John Wirka Junior.
NEW YORK (AP) How TikTok grew from a fun app for teens into a potential national security threat If it feels like TikTok has been around forever, that’s probably because it has, at least if you’re measuring via internet time. What’s now in question is whether it will be around much longer and, if so, in what form?
FORT MYERS Man wanted for armed robbery at Fort Myers convenience store Crime Stoppers is asking the public for help identifying an armed robber who held up a convenience store Saturday morning.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: Rifles, inappropriate texts and Donut shop debacle This week’s segment of WINK Neighborhood Watch features a scary mall trip, an inappropriate coach, and a Dunkin Donuts assault.
The Weather Authority: Sunny Saturday with a nice breeze; fire danger increases Warm temperatures for your Saturday with a nice breeze into the afternoon.
NORTH NAPLES Senior Airman surprises cousin on Aubrey Rogers softball senior night Aubrey Rogers senior pitcher and infielder McKenzie Vargas was surprised by her Air Force cousin for Senior Night.
BONITA SPRINGS Police: 15-year-old injured after accidentally shot in the leg Lee County deputies say the teen was accidentally shot in the leg.
PUNTA GORDA Exclusive: Brother and best friend of accused pedophile priest speak out Riley’s brother reached out to WINK on Friday, saying people aren’t getting the full story.
IMMOKALEE Caught on video: Huge gator crosses Immokalee neighborhood Fridays in Florida are for gators
FORT MYERS FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herself One season in FGCU, freshman pitcher Allison Sparkman is already ruffling feathers in the circle.
Surrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society raises concerns An large amount of pets are being surrendered by their owners. About half of the dogs at the Gulf Coast Humane Society are surrender dogs.
Students benefitting from millions in sales tax dollars So far, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax has brought in $507 million for the Lee County School District.
PORT CHARLOTTE ‘Shady’: One woman feels misled after federal student loan consolidation It takes some people decades to pay off their student loans. One woman’s last payment was in sight until she took a gamble she said she was told to take.
FORT MYERS Homeless encampments inch closer to neighborhoods Law enforcement has swept multiple encampments, cleaning the trails of mess and muck left behind, and some of these encampments are right in our backyards.
TALLAHASSEE (CBS) Governor DeSantis signs AI and vape bills Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday signed 28 bills, including a measure requiring disclaimers on certain political ads created using artificial intelligence and a bill about regulation of vape products.
ESTERO Gold Star Golf Tournament honors fallen veteran Behind each putt and swing of a golf club at the Gold Star Golf Tournament is someone who knew John Wirka Junior.
NEW YORK (AP) How TikTok grew from a fun app for teens into a potential national security threat If it feels like TikTok has been around forever, that’s probably because it has, at least if you’re measuring via internet time. What’s now in question is whether it will be around much longer and, if so, in what form?
FORT MYERS Man wanted for armed robbery at Fort Myers convenience store Crime Stoppers is asking the public for help identifying an armed robber who held up a convenience store Saturday morning.
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WINK Neighborhood Watch: Rifles, inappropriate texts and Donut shop debacle This week’s segment of WINK Neighborhood Watch features a scary mall trip, an inappropriate coach, and a Dunkin Donuts assault.
The Weather Authority: Sunny Saturday with a nice breeze; fire danger increases Warm temperatures for your Saturday with a nice breeze into the afternoon.
NORTH NAPLES Senior Airman surprises cousin on Aubrey Rogers softball senior night Aubrey Rogers senior pitcher and infielder McKenzie Vargas was surprised by her Air Force cousin for Senior Night.
BONITA SPRINGS Police: 15-year-old injured after accidentally shot in the leg Lee County deputies say the teen was accidentally shot in the leg.
PUNTA GORDA Exclusive: Brother and best friend of accused pedophile priest speak out Riley’s brother reached out to WINK on Friday, saying people aren’t getting the full story.
IMMOKALEE Caught on video: Huge gator crosses Immokalee neighborhood Fridays in Florida are for gators
FORT MYERS FGCU softball pitcher making a name for herself One season in FGCU, freshman pitcher Allison Sparkman is already ruffling feathers in the circle.
Surrendering-pets trend at Gulf Coast Humane Society raises concerns An large amount of pets are being surrendered by their owners. About half of the dogs at the Gulf Coast Humane Society are surrender dogs.
Students benefitting from millions in sales tax dollars So far, the voter-approved half-cent sales tax has brought in $507 million for the Lee County School District.
PORT CHARLOTTE ‘Shady’: One woman feels misled after federal student loan consolidation It takes some people decades to pay off their student loans. One woman’s last payment was in sight until she took a gamble she said she was told to take.
FORT MYERS Homeless encampments inch closer to neighborhoods Law enforcement has swept multiple encampments, cleaning the trails of mess and muck left behind, and some of these encampments are right in our backyards.
MGN Online SANAA, Yemen (AP) – Saudi Arabia, Italy and Germany shut down their embassies in Yemen on Friday amid growing political uncertainty as Yemen’s top U.N. envoy warned that the Arab world’s poorest nation is at a crossroads between “civil war and disintegration.” The new embassy closures come days after similar measures by the United States, France and Britain, threatening international isolation for a country that houses the world’s most active al-Qaida branch. Yemen’s elected president resigned last month after a several-month power struggle with Shiite rebels, who have controlled the capital, Sanaa, since September. The rebels, known as Houthis, have since dissolved the parliament, and President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and his Cabinet ministers remain under rebel house arrest. United Nations negotiations, headed by envoy Jamal Benomar, to resolve the deadlock have stalled. “Today Yemen is at a crossroads,” Benomar told a U.N. Security Council briefing Thursday. “Either the country will descend into civil war and disintegration, or the country will find a way to put the transition back on track.” The Italian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Friday that the ambassador and his staff were returning to Italy, and expressed hopes that U.N. mediation would create conditions permitting the embassy to reopen. In Berlin, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Sawsan Chebli said its staff left the country Friday. Saudi embassy joined the rest of the Arab Gulf countries, which evacuated their embassies weeks ago, and a security official said that the Saudi ambassador along with remaining staffers also left the country on Friday. The Houthis, whose stronghold is in northern Yemen, are members of the Shiite Zaydi sect, which composes nearly 30 percent of the Yemeni population. Their takeover has emboldened the militant Sunni Muslims of Yemen’s al-Qaida branch, which has stepped up attacks in southern and central Yemen and garnered support among disgruntled Sunni tribes – raising concerns of a widening sectarian conflict. On Friday, Yemeni security officials said a suicide car bomber struck a police headquarters in the central city of Bayda, which was recently captured by Shiite rebels. There was no immediate word on casualties. No group claimed responsibility for the attack but al-Qaida has carried out dozens of similar attacks in Bayda province; in Radda, one of the largest cities in Bayda, battles have been raging between al-Qaida and allied tribes against the Houthi rebels. In the southern province of Shabwa, an al-Qaida stronghold, security officials said that gunmen suspected to be al-Qaida militants attacked a main prison in Baihan and released five inmates, after clashes with security guards. Al-Qaida militants seized control of an important army base of Yemen’s 19th Infantry Brigade in the same region on Thursday, following clashes with soldiers. According to a police statement released Friday, 12 army personnel and 15 militants were killed and 20 troops injured. Officials said that at least 15 soldiers were taken hostage before being later freed. Militants looted large amounts of weapons and transferred them to Marib, another al-Qaida safe haven, officials said. The officials all spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to speak to reporters. Al-Qaida in Yemen is considered by Washington to be the global terror organization’s most dangerous and active offshoot. Last month, it claimed responsibility for the recent deadly attack on a French weekly satirical magazine in Paris. The international withdrawal from Yemen comes as U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned that the state is “collapsing before our eyes” as talks were underway on a draft Security Council resolution to address the Yemeni crisis. Britain and Jordan were working on a resolution that British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant said would be ready “in the next few days.” A separate draft resolution by the Gulf Coordination Council, obtained by The Associated Press, strongly condemns the Houthis and their seizure of power and demands that they “immediately and unconditionally withdraw their forces from government institutions and from all regions under their control.” Saudi Arabia was a major economic lifeline for Yemen. After the Houthi takeover of the capital in September, the oil-rich kingdom suspended its aid to Yemen, deepening fears of an economic collapse.