Month: August 2021

By The Associated Press This week’s new entertainment releases include a Sturgill Simpson’s concept album called “The Ballad of Dood & Juanita” and TikTok star Addison Rae making her acting debut in a gender-flipped remake of the 1999 Freddie Prinze Jr and Rachael Leigh Cook teen comedy “She’s All That.” Looking for something to rouse

By The Associated Press As New Englanders scramble to prepare for what could be their first hurricane in three decades, many can’t help but think of the last one: Bob. It made landfall as a devastating Category 2 storm. Thursday marked exactly 30 years since Bob landed, killing at least 17 people and leaving behind

MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian military says Syria’s air defense forces have shot down 22 of 24 missiles launched by Israeli warplanes during an airstrike against targets in Syria. Rear Adm. Vadim Kulit, head of the Russian military’s Reconciliation Center in Syria, said six Israeli fighter jets targeted facilities in the provinces of Damascus and

By MICHAEL BALSAMO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A man who claimed he had a bomb in a pickup truck near the U.S. Capitol has told a federal judge he has not taken his “mind medication” and was ordered to undergo a mental competency hearing. Floyd Ray Roseberry appeared Friday before a judge in Washington

By PAN PYLAS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The Scottish National Party and the Scottish Greens have agreed a power-sharing deal that falls short of an official coalition government but could pave the way to another referendum on Scotland’s independence from the U.K. in the coming couple of years. The two parties, who have been

By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON and TERRY SPENCER Associated Press MIAMI (AP) — Florida officials are threatening to withhold funds equal to the salaries of school board members if school districts in two counties don’t immediately do away with strict mask mandates. The order comes as the state continues to battle through high hospitalization rates. School

By DÉBORA ÁLVARES and DAVID BILLER Associated Press BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — Brazilian government officials have told The Associated Press that President Jair Bolsonaro has begun expressing irritation at the central bank’s newfound autonomy as surging inflation presents a threat to his 2022 reelection prospects. Central bank autonomy is among few significant economic reforms that

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Twitter suspended the account of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ press secretary for violating rules on “abusive behavior” after The Associated Press said her conduct led to a reporter receiving threats and other online abuse. The DeSantis aide, Christina Pushaw, saw her account locked for 12

By DAVID PITT Associated Press DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A prosecutor says an Iowa man seen in a videotaped confrontation with a police officer during the Capitol insurrection should be returned to jail until trial because he violated terms of his release by watching anti-government internet videos about the Jan. 6 attack. Douglas Jensen

By MARTHA MENDOZA and MICHAEL TARM Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — Some Capitol Hill Democrats and civil rights advocates are concerned about how police and prosecutors increasingly use algorithm-powered technologies that may amplify racial bias. In response to an Associated Press investigation into the ShotSpotter gunshot detection system, Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon says

By TOM HAYS Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A former tour manager for R. Kelly has testified that he paid a $500 bribe to get the singer, Aaliyah, a fake ID so Kelly could secretly marry her in 1994 when she was 15 years old. The ID helped clear the way for the R&B

By ABDUL SATTAR Associated Press QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistan’s interior ministry and police say that a suicide bomber detonated his explosives near a vehicle carrying Chinese workers in the restive southwest, killing two Pakistani children playing by the roadside. A Chinese and two other Pakistanis were wounded in the attack in Baluchistan province. A

By ROB HARRIS AP Global Soccer Writer LONDON (AP) — Soccer officials are liaising with governments to try to evacuate players from Afghanistan after the Taliban regained control. The world players’ union FIFPRO says it is trying to establish a plan “to bring as many people to safety as possible.” Concerns have been raised about

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A killer whale has died unexpectedly at SeaWorld San Diego and the reason is not yet known. The aquarium and theme park says in a statement that the 6-year-old female orca named Amaya died Thursday and the cause of death will not be known until results of a post-mortem examination are

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV Associated Press MOSCOW (AP) — Russian authorities have designated a top independent TV channel as a “foreign agent,” intensifying pressure on critical media ahead of next month’s parliamentary election. The Justice Ministry announced Friday that the Dozhd (Rain) TV channel and the Vazhnye Istorii (Importrant Stories) investigative online outlet have been added

By MATTHEW BROWN and JOHN FLESHER Associated Press FARIBAULT, Minn. (AP) — President Joe Biden’s administration is sticking by former President Donald Trump’s decision to lift protections for gray wolves across most of the U.S. But a top federal wildlife official on Friday told The Associated Press there is growing concern over aggressive hunting and

By MATTHEW LEE AP Diplomatic Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has imposed new sanctions on three Russian ships and companies involved in constructing a controversial gas pipeline from Russia to Europe. The move comes as lawmakers from both parties criticize the administration for not doing enough to halt the Nord Stream 2 project.

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and GARY FIELDS Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal appeals court says a pause on evictions designed to curb the spread of the coronavirus can remain in place for now. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia rejected a bid by Alabama and

By GEOFF MULVIHILL Associated Press Some Republican governors are using federal pandemic assistance to promote school choice programs, including charter schools and vouchers for private schools. The money comes with few strings attached, and it lets them sidestep legislative approval. In Tennessee, the governor used some of the money to help launch new charter schools

By JOSHUA GOODMAN Associated Press MIAMI (AP) — Scott Smith, a correspondent for The Associated Press who traveled across Venezuela to document personal stories of desperation and hope in the troubled country, has died. He was 50. Smith was diagnosed in February with brain cancer and was flown by medevac from Venezuela in a rare

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House says President Joe Biden has postponed plans to head to his Delaware home on Friday and instead will spend the night in Washington. The White House announced the schedule change hours before Biden spoke about the chaotic evacuation of American citizens and allies from

FRANKFORT, Ind. (AP) — A man suspected of fatally shooting a woman and her granddaughter outside a central Indiana automotive seating plant where all three worked has been formally charged with murder, and prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty if he’s convicted. Twenty-six-year-old Gary C. Ferrell II of Frankfort was charged Friday with two