Month: October 2021

By SAMYA KULLAB Associated Press BASRA, Iraq (AP) — Candidates in Iraq’s parliamentary election on Sunday are trying to persuade the country’s disillusioned younger voters to trust a balloting process long tainted by tampering and fraud. Public apathy is widespread, and some of the pro-reform activists whose street protests in 2019 led to the vote

By ANDREW SELIGMAN AP Sports Writer CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox have a rare opportunity to capture the spotlight and expand their fan base in a city in which they’re often overshadowed by their neighbors a few miles north. They’re in the playoffs for the second year in a row, a first for

By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — The organization that handles claims on behalf of Jews who suffered under the Nazis says Germany has agreed to extend compensation to Jewish survivors who endured the World War II siege of Leningrad and two other groups who had not received any monthly pensions from Germany. The

By CHRISTOPHER WEBER Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles leaders have voted to enact one of the nation’s strictest vaccine mandates. The sweeping measure requires the shots for everyone entering bars, restaurants, nail salons, gyms and even a Lakers game. The City Council on Wednesday voted 11-2 in favor of the ordinance and

By HAVEN DALEY BENICIA, Calif. (AP) — Some residents in the drought-parched U.S. West are turning to pricey machines that developers say can produce hundreds of gallons of water a day, literally out of thin air. The air-to-water systems work like an air conditioner by using coils to chill air, then collecting drops in a

By MICHAEL BIESECKER, STEFANIE DAZIO and MICHAEL BALSAMO Associated Press HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (AP) — A massive cargo ship made a series of unusual movements while anchored in the closest spot to a Southern California oil pipeline that ruptured and sent crude washing up on beaches. The Coast Guard is investigating whether a ship anchor

By MICHAEL R. BLOOD Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — A probe is continuing into what caused an offshore pipeline break that spilled tens of thousands of gallons of crude oil off Southern California. One possibility is that an anchor on a cargo ship snagged the pipe, dragged it and eventually cracked it open. Federal

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — An Australian government minister says a review of defamation laws will likely examine whether platforms such as Facebook should be liable for users’ defamatory posts. The High Court made a landmark ruling last month that media outlets are “publishers” of allegedly defamatory comments posted by third

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A group of French senators has arrived in Taiwan for a five-day visit following a large Chinese show of force with fighter jets near the self-ruled island, and Beijing warned the trip will hurt its ties with France. The group, led by senator Alain Richard, will

By MATTHEW BROWN Associated Press Amplify Energy’s emergency response plan for a major oil spill like the one unfolding in coastal Southern California depended heavily on a quick shutdown of its pipeline if sensors pick up a sudden loss of pressure. Federal investigators said that’s not what happened. They say the Houston-based company waited more

By WILL WEISSERT and THOMAS BEAUMONT Associated Press LEESBURG, Va. (AP) — When Democrat Terry McAuliffe said during the Virginia governor’s debate last week that he doesn’t believe “parents should be telling schools what they should teach,” his opponent pounced. Republican Glenn Youngkin quickly turned the footage into a digital ad, then announced spending $1

By JESSICA GRESKO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court seems skeptical of requiring the U.S. government to divulge what it says is secret information being sought by a Guantanamo Bay detainee. But in a surprising turn during arguments Wednesday, several justices also raised questions about the rights of the man, who was tortured

By CALVIN WOODWARD Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — It would be the token of all tokens: a $1 trillion coin, minted by the U.S. government, then cashed in to flood the treasury with cash and solve a political impasse over suspending the debt limit. The idea is getting some attention in Washington as an Oct.

By ALAN FRAM Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s and congressional Democrats’ push for a 10-year, $3.5 trillion package of social and environmental initiatives has reached a turning point. Biden has been repeatedly conceding that the measure will be much smaller. Democrats say he’s recently discussed a $1.9 trillion to $2.3 trillion price

By JIMMY GOLEN AP Sports Writer BOSTON (AP) — Xander Bogaerts and Kyle Schwarber homered off Yankees ace Gerrit Cole to help the Boston Red Sox beat New York 6-2 in the AL wild-card game. Nathan Eovaldi took a shutout into the sixth inning for Boston. The Red Sox will play the AL East champion

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — PEN America held one of New York’s first major indoor literary gatherings since the pandemic began last year, as hundreds met Tuesday night for the organization’s annual gala to honor writers, community servants, political dissidents and such prominent public figures as Walt Disney executive chair

SYDNEY (AP) — Soccer authorities in Australia have urged players to make formal complaints in any cases of sexual misconduct after one of the country’s leading international goal scorers alleged she’d been groomed and harassed by senior players early in her career. Lisa De Vanna played 150 games for Australia and was second on the

By ADAM BEAM Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed new laws aimed at tightening security at the state’s unemployment benefits agency. During the pandemic, the Employment Development Department approved billions of dollars in fraudulent payments in the names of prison inmates and others who were not eligible to receive

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s highest court has overturned a ruling of a family court judge who did not declare he had coffee chats with a lawyer involved in the case. Five High Court judges unanimously agreed the ruling should be set aside because of perceived bias. The ruling also

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Elizabeth Eckford, one of the nine Black students who first integrated Little Rock’s Central High School in 1957, celebrated her 80th birthday at the school with the help of about a dozen students. The students, who are members of the Civil Rights Memory Project, lined the sidewalk in front of

By MATTHEW BROWN Associated Press Amplify Energy’s emergency response plan for a major oil spill like the one unfolding in coastal Southern California depended heavily on a quick shutdown of its pipeline if sensors pick up a sudden loss of pressure. Federal investigators said Tuesday that’s not what happened. They say the Houston-based company waited

By JENNIFER PELTZ Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — K-pop superstars BTS have raised $3.6 million and generated millions of tweets during four years of teaming up with the U.N. children’s agency to fight violence, abuse and bullying and promote self-esteem in young people. The agency, called UNICEF, is announcing those numbers Wednesday. The “Love

By LISA MASCARO AP Congressional Correspondent WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden says Democrats are considering a change to the Senate’s filibuster rules in order to quickly approve lifting the nation’s debt limit. Biden told reporters late Tuesday at the White House, “It’s a real possibility.” The president off-the-cuff remarks interject a new urgency to

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Authorities say four companies will pay nearly $78 million to clean up contaminated groundwater at two Los Angeles-area toxic waste sites. The U.S. Department of Justice announced that settlements approved last month will provide money to clean up the Montrose Chemical Corp. and Del Amo Superfund sites south of downtown Los

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — A trial has begun to assess damages that the U.S. Air Force owes to survivors and families of those killed in a 2017 mass shooting at a Texas church. U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez began to hear testimony Monday in the damages phase of the case, which is expected to last

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Robert Altman, a photojournalist who captured San Francisco’s burgeoning counterculture of the 1960s and became chief staff photographer at Rolling Stone magazine, has died. He was 76. Altman estate executor Felicia McRee says Tuesday he was found dead in his San Francisco home on Sept. 24 after a long battle with

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico says it wants to see more U.S. action on extraditions and weapons trafficking at security meetings scheduled for Friday with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Mexico’s top diplomat said Tuesday he wants to see faster extraditions of suspects from the United States and fewer guns coming across the border.