The Acadiana Advocate 02-06-2025 by The Advocate

THE

ACADIANA

ADVOCATE

T H E A C A D I A N A A D V O C AT E.C O M

T h u r s d ay, F e b r u a ry 6, 2025

FOR THE FANS Super Bowl Experience opens in N.O.

FEB. 9 NEW ORLEANS

$2.00X

Landry’s civil service move halted

State board blocks governor’s effort to remove hundreds from system BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer

Gov. Jeff Landry’s administration is trying to permanently remove civil service employment protections for hundreds of attorneys and engineers in agencies across state government. But that plan ran into opposition from a state commission Wednesday after one member warned the move may not be constitutional. Louisiana’s civil service system gives government employees extra barriers against being fired and is meant to limit patronage and political retaliation. But the system is sometimes criticized as an obstacle to holding employees accountable when they underperform. Landry’s administration said the changes would help hire top professional talent, fill critical vacancies and make government more efficient. “We’ve heard from so many about the difficulty of recruiting,” said Patrick Goldsmith, deputy commissioner of the Division of Administration. The move would help alleviate “the brain drain

ä See HALTED, page 4A STAFF PHOTOS BY CHRIS GRANGER

The Super Bowl Experience opened to fans at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center on Wednesday.

he Super Bowl Experience opened to the public Wednesday in New Orleans. The event transforms 700,000 square feet — an area roughly the size of 12 full NFL football ﬁelds — at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center into an “experiential and exhibitory space,” said Nicki Ewell, senior director of NFL Events. “We know not everybody is lucky enough to get that coveted Super Bowl ticket,” Ewell said, “but we still want those that are local or visiting to know this is for them — for fans of all ages.” MORE SUPER BOWL COVERAGE IN SPORTS, 1C. Carlnetta Rabb, of New Orleans, gets her photo taken by Jamal Brown as she stands behind a New Orleans Saints football player mannequin at the Super Bowl Experience on Wednesday.

Helicopter measures radiation in New Orleans

Flights part of safety measures for the Super Bowl BY DAVID J. MITCHELL Staff writer

A helicopter outfitted with radiological detection equipment has been making low-altitude flights over New Orleans and surrounding areas since Sunday in advance of the Super Bowl. Under the U.S. Department of Energy, the Leonardo AW-139 helicopter is measuring expected background radiation across the region as part of standard preparation to protect public health and safety during the big game on Sunday, federal officials said. Flights will occur only during daylight hours and could be low enough to be noticeable by the public, officials with the Energy Department’s

ä See RADIATION, page 4A

Palestinians reject Trump’s plan to take over Gaza Strip BY WAFAA SHURAFA, SAMY MAGDY and JULIA FRANKEL Associated Press

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Saeed Abu Elaish’s wife, two of his daughters and two dozen others from his extended family were killed by Israeli airstrikes over the past 15 months. His house in northern Gaza was destroyed. He and his surviving family now live in a tent set up in the rubble of his home. But he says he will not be driven out after President Donald Trump called for transferring all Palestinians from Gaza so the United States could take over the devastated territory and rebuild it for

WEATHER HIGH 80 LOW 66 PAGE 6A

others. Rights groups said his comments were tantamount to a call for “ethnic cleansing” and forcible expulsion. “We categorically reject and will resist any plans to deport and transfer us from our land,” he said from the Jabaliya refugee camp. Trump’s call for depopulating Gaza has stunned Palestinians. Hundreds of thousands in the territory rushed to return to their homes — even if destroyed — as soon as they could following the ceaseﬁre reached last month between Israel and Hamas. Though some experts speculated that Trump’s proposal might be a negotiating tactic, Palestinians across the region saw in it an ef-

fort to erase them completely from their homeland, a continuation of the expulsion and displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes in what is now Israel during the 1948 war surrounding its creation. That event is known among Palestinians as the “Nakba,” Arabic for “Catastrophe.” Trump’s statement — a wild swing away from years of U.S. policy — meshed with calls from far-right politicians in Israel to push Palestinians out of Gaza, particularly into Egypt. “We don’t want a repeat of our ancestors’ tragedy,” said Abu Elaish, a health care worker.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO BY EVAN VUCCI

President Donald Trump listens as Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin ä See GAZA, page 4A Netanyahu speaks during a news conference on Tuesday.

Business ...................10C Commentary ................3B Nation-World................2A Classified .....................4B Deaths .........................4B Opinion ........................2B Comics-Puzzles .....7C-9C Living............................5C Sports ..........................1C

100TH YEAR, NO. 221