Month: November 2021

The Associated Press Thailand’s DTAC and True Corp. plan a merger that they say will create an “equal partnership” for pursuing opportunities in the tech sector. Regulators reportedly asked the companies for clarification about the plan, which was announced Monday by Norway’s Telenor Group, parent company of DTAC, and Charoen Pokphand (CP) Holding, the parent

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — A day after Bulgarian President Rumen Radev secured his second term with a landslide victory in a runoff election, he drew criticism from the country’s main NATO partner on Monday for his remarks about the status of the Crimean Peninsula. In a statement, the U.S. Embassy in Bulgaria voiced “deep concern”

By LISA RATHKE and WILSON RING Associated Press Vermont’s sole congressman, Democratic Rep. Peter Welch, says he’ll run for Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy’s Senate seat next year. Welch made the announcement Monday, a week after the 81-year-old Leahy said he won’t seek reelection. The 74-year-old Welch is one of the most liberal members of Congress.

By FRANK JORDANS Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s health minister says the rapid rise in coronavirus cases means it’s likely everyone in the country who isn’t vaccinated will have caught COVID-19 by the end of the winter, and some of those will die. Official figures showed more than 30,000 newly confirmed cases in Germany

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV Associated Press MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s coronavirus death toll continues to hover near all-time highs, but the number of new infections has continued to decline. The state coronavirus task force on Monday reported 1,241 COVID-19 deaths, down from the pandemic’s record of 1,254 recorded last week. The task force also reported 35,681

By JAN M. OLSEN Associated Press COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Democracy is deteriorating across the world, with countries notably taking undemocratic and unnecessary actions to contain the coronavirus pandemic, an intergovernmental body said in its new report Monday. International IDEA says that as of August 2021, 64% of countries have taken an action to curb

By MUNIR AHMED Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — The International Monetary Fund says it has reached a preliminary agreement with Pakistan, toward reviving a $6 billion bailout for the Islamic nation. In Monday’s statement, the IMF said it reached a staff-level agreement with Pakistani authorities on policies and reforms. Pakistan and IMF signed the accord

By STEPHEN WADE AP Sports Writer A video call between the head of the International Olympic Committee and Chinese tennis player Peng Shuai was meant to reassure the world that she was safe — but instead has raised more questions. Concern grew in the last week for the former No. 1-ranked doubles player who hadn’t

By TRISHA THOMAS Associated Press ROCCELLA JONICA, Italy (AP) — Officials in southern Italy are seeing a sharp increase in the number of migrant crossings using a lesser-known smuggling route from Turkey to the southern region of Calabria, in the “toe” of boot-shaped Italy. Entire families of wealthier Afghans, Iraqis and Iranians are paying upwards

JERUSALEM (AP) — A one-time spokesman for Benjamin Netanyahu has taken the stand against him in a corruption trial in Jerusalem. Nir Hefetz, a former spokesman for Netanyahu and a key prosecution witness, began testifying on Monday. His statement had been delayed because Netanyahu’s defense attorneys requested time to review new evidence alleging that Netanyahu’s

By BARBARA SURK Associated Press PARIS (AP) — The world police agency meets in Istanbul this week to elect new leadership. But human rights groups are warning that Interpol’s powerful network of global cops could end up in the hands of authoritarian governments. Representatives of countries like China and the United Arab Emirates are bidding

By KYLE HIGHTOWER AP Sports Writer BOSTON (AP) — It was the decade Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points, the Celtics-Lakers rivalry took flight and the NBA’s second dynasty reigned on the Boston Garden’s parquet court. It was also a time of ongoing struggle and crisis across America, when the country was forever altered on a

By LEE KEATH Associated Press KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Many Afghan families who once had steady, stable incomes have plummeted into desperation, uncertain of how they will pay for their next meal. The economy was already in trouble under the previous, U.S.-backed government and was worsened by both the coronavirus pandemic and a drought that

By SCOTT BAUER, MICHAEL BALSAMO and MIKE HOUSEHOLDER Associated Press WAUKESHA, Wis. (AP) — A person taken into custody after an SUV plowed into a crowd of holiday parade marchers in Wisconsin, killing at least five people, has been identified as 39-year-old Darrell Brooks. Police haven’t yet identified the “person of interest” they are holding.

By DAVID RISING and SOPHENG CHEANG Associated Press PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — After slow starts, vaccination campaigns in several countries in the Asia-Pacific region now boast inoculation rates that rank among the world’s best. The countries with high rates include both richer and poorer ones, some with larger populations and some with smaller. But

By NICK PERRY Associated Press WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Bars, restaurants and gyms can reopen in Auckland from early December but customers will be required to show proof they’ve been fully vaccinated. The New Zealand government announcement removes the last remnants of a lockdown that began in the nation’s largest city in August. It

By MATTHEW LEE AP Diplomatic Writer DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken saw first-hand the limits of America’s influence abroad as he traveled across Africa. Blinken confronted authoritarianism, growing threats from newly energized extremists and persistent challenges posed by COVID-19 and climate change. And, nowhere on his three-nation tour last week

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese leader Xi Jinping says his country will not seek dominance over Southeast Asia or bully its smaller neighbors, despite a rise in regional frictions. Xi made the remarks Monday during a virtual conference with the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, known as ASEAN, marking the 30th anniversary of

By MATTHEW DALY Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A huge social and environmental policy bill passed by House Democrats includes a plan to impose a fee on emissions of methane. The powerful pollutant leaks from oil and gas wells and contributes to global warming. As the measure moves to the Senate, attention again will focus

By COLLEEN BARRY Associated Press VIENNA (AP) — Austrians have begun a new 10-day national lockdown and many are wondering how they will endure their fourth such ordeal as the nation seeks to reverse skyrocketing new infections. In the capital of Vienna, some people headed to work, brought children to school or exercised outdoors. Police

By EVA VERGARA and JOSHUA GOODMAN Associated Press SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — A conservative lawmaker with a history of defending Chile’s military dictatorship and a former student protest leader are headed to a polarizing presidential runoff after failing to garner enough votes to win the country’s election outright. José Antonio Kast finished Sunday’s presidential election

By RUSS BYNUM Associated Press BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP) — Attorneys made a final push to persuade the jury in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, the 25-year-old Black man who was fatally shot last year while running in Georgia. The prosecution said Monday in closing arguments that three white men chased Arbery solely “because he was

By HAROLD ISAAC Associated Press PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Two of 17 members of a missionary group who were kidnapped more than a month ago are safe and “in good spirits” after being freed in Haiti. Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries issued a statement Sunday saying it could not give the names of those released, why

NEW YORK (AP) — Kyle Rittenhouse says in a new interview that he believes the jury that acquitted him of murder came to the right verdict, and he’s now hoping to lay low for a while. Rittenhouse was acquitted Friday on charges stemming from killing two men and wounding another during the unrest that followed

By JIM GOMEZ Associated Press MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The Philippine military has defiantly redeployed two supply boats to provide food to Filipino marines stationed at a disputed shoal in the South China Sea after China’s coast guard used water cannons to forcibly turn the boats away in an assault last week that drew angry

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer Asian shares are mixed after a late drop left major Wall Street indexes mostly lower. Tokyo was closed Tuesday for a holiday. Hong Kong and Seoul declined while Shanghai advanced. The S&P 500 ended 0.3% lower. The Nasdaq fell 1.3% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average eked out a

BEIJING (AP) — China says five of its citizens have been kidnapped from a mining operation in eastern Congo. The Chinese Embassy in Kinshasa posted on its Chinese social media account that the five were abducted early Sunday from the site in South Kivu province that borders Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. It urged all Chinese

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — The Australian government expects 200,000 vaccinated foreign students and skilled workers will soon return without quarantining when the country further relaxes pandemic restrictions next week. Prime Minister Scott Morrison says that from from Dec. 1, students, skilled workers and travelers on working vacations will be allowed