Month: September 2021

By AYA BATRAWY and ISABEL DEBRE Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Middle East’s first world’s fair has opened in Dubai, after eight years of planning and billions of dollars spent. The emirate hopes the months-long extravaganza that opened to the public on Friday will draw both visitors and global attention, and

TOKYO (AP) — A powerful typhoon is pounding Japan and some of its eastern islands with gusts and downpours of rain, grounding some domestic flights and halting trains. The Tokyo area was getting heavy rain and blowing wind at midday, but no injuries have been reported. Forecasters said Typhoon Mindulle was near one of the

PLAINS, Ga. (AP) — The oldest former U.S. president ever, Jimmy Carter, plans to quietly mark his 97th birthday at home in Georgia on Friday. Carter has been slowed by age in recent years and keeping a low profile during the coronavirus pandemic. An aide says he doesn’t plan to have any public appearances on

By LISA MASCARO and ZEKE MILLER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has pledged on Capitol Hill to “get it done” as Democrats strain to rescue a scaled back version of his $3.5 trillion government overhaul and salvage a related public works bill. But it’s not getting done soon: House Speaker Nancy Pelosi

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Tokyo’s train stations were packed with commuters Friday morning as Japan fully came out of a coronavirus state of emergency for the first time in more than six months. The country has started gradually easing virus measures to help rejuvenate the pandemic-hit economy as infections slowed. Emergency

By ALAN SUDERMAN, FRANK BAJAK and RODNEY MUHUMUZA Associated Press KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Outsiders have long profited from Africa’s riches of gold, diamonds, and even people. Digital resources have proven no different. Millions of internet addresses assigned to Africa have been waylaid, some fraudulently, including through insider machinations linked to a former top employee of

By KEN RITTER Associated Press LAS VEGAS (AP) — People who are healing and some still struggling are gathering to remember those who died and were injured during the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history four years ago on the Las Vegas Strip. At a sunrise ceremony Friday, speaker Dee Ann Hyatt told several

By KEVIN FREKING Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — With only hours to spare, President Joe Biden signed legislation to avoid a partial federal shutdown and keep the government funded through Dec. 3. Congress had passed the bill earlier Thursday. The legislation averts one crisis, but efforts to stave off a second crisis seem likely to

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO AP Retail Writer EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — If you build it during a pandemic, will they still come? American Dream put that to the test when it opened the new luxury shopping wing of its megamall in September featuring Saks Fifth Avenue, Dolce & Gabbana, Hermes and other luxury stores, along

By REGINA GARCIA CANO and JORGE RUEDA Associated Press CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — A new currency with six fewer zeros is debuting in Venezuela, whose currency has been made nearly worthless by years of the world’s worst inflation. But the new bills were difficult to find Friday in Caracas, where consumers’ fears that prices will

.

By PAUL J. WEBER Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The Biden administration urged a federal judge to block the nation’s most restrictive abortion law, which has banned most abortions in Texas since early September. U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman did not say when he would rule following a nearly three-hour hearing Friday in Austin.

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer Shortages of power, computer chips and other parts, soaring shipping costs and shutdowns of factories to battle the pandemic are taking a toll on Asian economies. Data released Thursday showed Japan’s factory output slowed while China’s manufacturing outlook weakened. Japan’s Suzuki Motor Corp. became the latest automaker to idle

BEIJING (AP) — China’s ruling Communist Party has expelled a former vice minister of public security amid a raft of accusations from corruption to abandoning his post amid the COVID-19 outbreak. Sun Lijun was fired after an investigation was opened last year and he will now face prosecution and what is likely to be a

HONG KONG (AP) — Police in Hong Kong halted a four-person pro-democracy protest on China’s National Day amid a expanding crackdown on free speech and opposition politics. Chanting and carrying a banner, the four members of the opposition party League of Social Democrats had attempted to march to the site where the official National Day

MIAMI (AP) — Hurricane Sam is a powerful Category 4 storm again with forecasters predicting a glancing blow to Bermuda as it spins north in the Atlantic Ocean. A tropical storm watch was issued on Thursday for the island. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Sam is centered about 550 miles south-southeast of Bermuda and

A quarterly survey by the Bank of Japan shows sentiment among manufacturers at its highest level in nearly three years. The results of the central bank’s “tankan” survey found sentiment among large manufacturers rose to 18 from 14. The reading for nonmanufacturers edged up only slightly, to 2 from 1. The world’s third-largest economy was

By AARON FAVILA and JOEAL CALUPITAN Associated Press MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Newly retired boxing star Manny Pacquiao has filed his certificate of candidacy for the Philippine presidency at the start of the registration period for the May elections. Restrictions were in place at the registration venues to prevent huge crowds from gathering in a

By JULHAS ALAM Associated Press DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Rights groups, the United Nations and the U.S. government have called for a full investigation into the killing of a Rohingya leader in a refugee camp in southern Bangladesh. Police say Mohibullah was shot by unknown attackers at the Kutupalong refugee camp late Wednesday. A colleague

By ANDREW DALTON AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Scarlett Johansson and the Walt Disney Co. have settled her lawsuit over the streaming release of “Black Widow.” Thursday’s settlement brought a swift end to what began as the first major fight between a studio and star over changing movie rollout plans. Johansson filed the

By DAVID RISING Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — Authorities in Bangkok have sandbagged low-lying areas in the Thai capital and checked pumping stations along the Chao Phraya River in preparation for possible flooding as dams upstream, swollen by heavy rains, were forced to release water as a precaution. Flooding in the northern and central regions

SEATTLE (AP) — A recently demoted Seattle police commander is suing the city of Seattle and interim police Chief Adrian Diaz, alleging discrimination and unfair blame for a flashpoint “pink umbrella incident” during police clashes with racial justice demonstrators. The Seattle Times reports Capt. Steve Hirjak contends that Diaz and punished him unfairly compared to