Month: September 2021

By GEIR MOULSON Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — Angela Merkel will leave office as one of modern Germany’s longest-serving leaders and as a global diplomatic heavyweight. Her legacy has been defined by her management of a succession of crises that shook a fragile Europe rather than any grand visions for her own country. In 16

By NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press VENICE (AP) — Italian director Paolo Sorrentino is turning the camera on his own personal tragedy. Sorrentino’s autobiographical “The Hand of God” premieres Thursday at the Venice Film Festival. It recounts how his otherwise normal childhood in 1980s Naples was upended by the sudden, accidental death of his parents and

By JOE McDONALD AP Business Writer BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets are mixed as investors await U.S. jobs numbers some appear to hope will be weak enough to persuade the Federal Reserve to postpone winding down economic stimulus. Tokyo advanced after Wall Street hit a record. Shanghai and Hong Kong declined. Mizuho Bank said

By BOBBY CAINA CALVAN, DAVID PORTER and JENNIFER PELTZ Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A stunned U.S. East Coast is facing a sobering death toll, surging rivers, tornado damage and continuing calls for rescue after the remnants of Hurricane Ida walloped the region with record-breaking rain. More than 40 deaths have been linked to

By AIJAZ HUSSAIN Associated Press SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Indian authorities have restricted public movement and cut communications in disputed Kashmir after the death of top separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani. Armed police and soldiers patrolled tense, barricaded streets while most Kashmiris remained locked inside their homes. The crackdown and near-blackout of communications are tactics

By KATHY GANNON Associated Press KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — In the final days of the chaotic American airlift from Afghanistan, Javed Habibi, a green card holder from Richmond, Virginia, said he was getting emails and phone calls from the U.S. government promising that he, his wife and their four daughters would not be left behind.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Former first lady Michelle Obama and The Poor People’s Campaign have been chosen to receive Freedom Awards from the National Civil Rights Museum in Memphis, Tennessee. The museum said Wednesday that Obama and the campaign’s leaders, the Rev. William Barber and the Rev. Liz Theoharis, will be honored at a virtual

By REBECCA SANTANA, MELINDA DESLATTE and JANET McCONNAUGHEY Associated Press NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Commercial flights have resumed in New Orleans and power has returned to parts of the business district in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida. The progress comes four days after the storm slammed into the Gulf Coast. But electricity, drinking water and

By SAM METZ and JANIE HAR Associated Press SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. (AP) — Better weather is helping in the battle against a huge California wildfire threatening communities around Lake Tahoe, a place known the world over that was at risk of burning down. Thousands were forced to flee the largest city, South Lake Tahoe,

By ROBERT BURNS and LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army Gen. Mark Milley, says it’s “possible” the U.S. will coordinate with the Taliban on any future counterterrorism strikes in Afghanistan against Islamic State militants or others. Milley says the Taliban is a “ruthless” group,

By MICHAEL BALSAMO, ERIC TUCKER and LISA MASCARO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Far right extremist groups like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers are planning to attend a rally later this month at the U.S. Capitol that is designed to demand “justice” for the hundreds of people who have been charged in connection with

By LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military pilots and aircrew who made the final flights out of Afghanistan say the sky was lit up with fireworks and sporadic gunfire and the airfield littered with battered shells of airplanes and destroyed equipment. In interviews with The Associated Press, one American said

By ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE and CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY Associated Press Texas has become the latest state where Republicans have rolled back access to voting methods that soared in popularity during last year’s pandemic presidential election. It’s part of a wider GOP effort to tighten voting rules, fueled in part by former President Donald Trump’s falsehoods about

By JESSICA GRESKO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is denouncing the Supreme Court’s decision not to block a new Texas law banning most abortions in the state. He said Thursday he is directing federal agencies to do what they can to “insulate women and providers” from the impact. Hours earlier, in the

By MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A House committee investigating the U.S. Capitol insurrection has requested that telecommunications and social media companies preserve the personal communications of hundreds of people who may have somehow been connected to the attack. It’s a sweeping public demand from Congress that is rare in its breadth

By TOM MURPHY AP Health Writer More companies are requiring COVID-19 vaccines and taking actions to motivate employees into getting their shots. Some may fire workers who don’t comply or charge them more for their health insurance. Employers also might limit business travel or perks like access to the company gym only to the vaccinated.

By FELICIA FONSECA Associated Press FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — After two bone-dry years that sank the U.S. Southwest deeper into drought, this summer’s rainy season has unleashed with fury. Monsoon storms have brought spectacular lightning shows, bounties of wildflowers and widespread rainfall. But destruction also came as streets and homes flooded, leading to some swift

By ALEXANDRA OLSON AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The construction industry is fighting to recruit more women into a sector that faces chronic labor shortages. Women make up only 4% of skilled construction laborers in the U.S. and often face discrimination on jobs sites. The latest initiative to change that culture is Lean

By AMY FORLITI Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Attorneys for three former Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyd’s death asked a judge Thursday to bar their upcoming trial from being livestreamed, saying some witnesses won’t testify if proceedings are broadcast. The request from attorneys for Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao is opposed

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia’s navy has seized a massive tanker believed to be loaded with thousands of tons of wasted black oil and has brought the ship to shore for further investigation. The commander of Indonesia’s western navy fleet says the Panamanian-flagged MT Zodiac Star was located based on a tip about a suspicious

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan has received its first Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines after a prolonged purchasing process that gave rise to a political blame game with China. Taiwan had been unable to buy the vaccine itself directly from BioNTech, the German company that had partnered with U.S.-based Pfizer to develop the

By YURAS KARMANAU Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The authoritarian leader of Belarus says the country will soon receive a large batch of Russian weapons, including dozens of combat jets, helicopters and top-of-the-line air defense missile systems. President Alexander Lukashenko announced the expected acquisition as Russia and Belarus prepare to conduct joint war games

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — Britney Spears will face no charges after an allegation from her housekeeper that Spears slapped a phone out of her hand. Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko said Wednesday that a possible misdemeanor battery charge was declined based on insufficient evidence a crime had occurred and lack of injury to

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Federal officials closed a portion of trails at a national forest in Northern California where a family and their dog mysteriously died last month, citing pending toxicology reports on nearby water and plants. There was no clear cause of death, prompting authorities to treat the area as a hazmat scene. The

SAN DIEGO (AP) — A California woman who allegedly punched a flight attendant in the face and grabbed her hair has been charged with assault in federal court. Vyvianna M. Quinonez was also charged Wednesday with interfering with a flight crew. She is scheduled to appear in court in San Diego on Sept. 17. Prosecutors

By BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Testimony has concluded in the Robert Durst murder case after the New York real estate heir defended himself for weeks on the witness stand. The Los Angeles judge in the case began instructing jurors Wednesday in advance of closing arguments next week. Durst testified he did

By BOB CHRISTIE Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — A slew of communications between Arizona GOP lawmakers and their representatives overseeing a review of the 2020 election and party activists has been released under a court order obtained by a watchdog group that is fighting for transparency in the Senate’s recount of 2020 election results. Lawyers