Month: January 2022

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A painting by the American modernist Marsden Hartley that had been missing for 40 years has been found in a bank vault. Historians say it’s a big step toward recovering the works of an increasingly appreciated artist who considered himself “the painter of Maine.” “Friend Against the Wind” was completed in

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Starting next month, workers at Universal Orlando’s theme parks will have to be vaccinated or undergo weekly COVID-19 testing in order to comply with federal guidelines. Company officials said Wednesday that workers at Universal’s theme parks must be fully vaccinated by Feb. 9 or be required to take a test every

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. secretary-general says eight nations are losing their voting rights in the General Assembly because of arrears on paying dues. They include Iran, Venezuela and Sudan, as well as Antigua and Barbuda, Republic of Congo, Guinea, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reported the action in a letter

By MATTHEW PERRONE AP Health Writer It’s not yet clear when people infected with omicron become contagious but early data suggests it might be sooner than with earlier variants. In general, people with the coronavirus are most infectious in the few days before and after symptoms develop. But some researchers say that window might come

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Attorneys for a woman who left her Alabama home to join the Islamic State terror group plan to continue fighting for her and her young son even though the Supreme Court declined to hear her appeal. The family of Hoda Muthana sued seeking her re-entry into the United States. While it’s

By KIMBERLEE KRUESI and JONATHAN MATTISE Associated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A growing group of Tennessee Republican is proposing a statewide ban on residency requirements for all first responders. Yet some see this latest move by Republican lawmakers as another attempt to preempt local decisions, particularly in Democratic-leaning cities like Memphis where white lawmakers

By LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Army, for the first time, is offering a maximum enlistment bonus of $50,000 to highly skilled recruits who sign up for six years. The service is struggling to lure soldiers into certain critical jobs amid the continuing pandemic. Maj. Gen. Kevin Vereen, head of

By ELLEN KNICKMEYER and AAMER MADHANI The Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats are proposing new sanctions against Russia if it invades Ukraine. Wednesday’s legislation is aimed at derailing a Republican proposal that the White House fears could undermine unity with European allies. The bill introduced by Republican Sen. Ted Cruz would impose tough

By RODRIQUE NGOWI Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Workers have started removing the last tents from a homeless encampment at a Boston intersection known as Mass and Cass. Bulldozers loaded tents, tarps, milk crates, wooden pallets, coolers and other items into trash trucks Wednesday to be hauled away. Street sweepers moved in once a section

By BRIAN SLODYSKO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats are trying to force a public showdown over their sweeping elections legislation. They’re aiming to launch debate on a key party priority even though there’s no assurance the bill will come to a vote. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer outlined the plan in a memo obtained

By DAVID A. LIEB Associated Press JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Political divisions about coronavirus policies are evident as state lawmakers across the country are beginning their third year of sessions dealing with another spike in COVID-19 cases. In some Democratic-led states, lawmakers are meeting remotely or requiring proof of vaccination for members to appear

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Cyprus’ health minister says the nation is changing its compulsory quarantine rules for school children in an effort to keep pupils in school amid surging coronavirus infections. Under the new system, schoolkids who were in close contact with classmates who test positive will no longer face compulsory quarantine. Instead, they must

GENEVA (AP) — Switzerland’s government is halving the quarantine and self-isolation times required of people who test positive for the coronavirus to five days. The Federal Council, the seven-member executive branch of Swiss government, made the decision Wednesday. It noted that intensive-care admissions are lower in the pandemic since the emergence of the omicron variant

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minnesota judge has agreed to delay a state court trial for three former Minneapolis police officers charged in George Floyd’s death, though he didn’t immediately set a date. Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill told attorneys to agree on a new date that’s within one year. They must inform the court by

UPPER DARBY, Pa. (AP) — Federal investigators have been poring over the wreckage of a medical helicopter a day after it crash-landed without loss of life next to a church in a residential area of suburban Philadelphia, somehow avoiding a web of power lines and buildings. Brian Rayner, senior safety investigator with the National Transportation

By JIM MUSTIAN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors have charged a Texas man with providing performance-enhancing drugs to athletes competing in the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, including the star Nigerian sprinter Blessing Okagbare. Prosecutors said Wednesday that Eric Lira of El Paso is the first person to be charged under a new

By BASSEM MROUE Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s powerful Hezbollah group has hosted a conference for Saudi opposition figures in its stronghold south of Beirut in a defiant gesture certain to anger the oil-rich kingdom. Wednesday’s gathering came as the Lebanese government is trying to mend relations with Saudi Arabia that hit a new

LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Portugal and Morocco have signed an agreement setting out legal guidelines for Moroccans to live and work in the European Union country. It is part of an effort by the two countries to fight illegal migration and human trafficking. The deal came after fears that undocumented migrants seeking a way into

By JOHN SEEWER Associated Press Authorities who investigated a 2019 mass shooting that left nine dead in Dayton, Ohio, say they found no evidence that the gunman targeted the sister who was among the victims. Newly released Dayton police records say all the people killed outside a strip of nightclubs appear to have been shot

ANTWERP, Belgium (AP) — The Belgian city of Antwerp has put its faith in monkey business to put kids at ease for their first COVID-19 jab. With the expansion of the country’s vaccination campaign to include children as young as 5, Belgian authorities are getting creative as they try to prevent kids getting spooked by

By GLENN GAMBOA AP Business Writer Richard R. Buery, Jr., is starting his first full year as CEO of the Robin Hood Foundation, but he is no stranger to New York City’s largest poverty-fighting organization. He first encountered the nonprofit 20 years ago, when Groundwork Inc., the group providing support to children in public housing

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican authorities say they are going to keep a close eye on Citigroup’s proposed sale of its Mexico subsidary, Citibanamex, noting the transaction poses “delicate” regulatory issues. Citibanamex is Mexico’s third-largest bank and regulators are apparently concerned that whoever acquires it could accumulate too big a share of the banking market.

By JANET McCONNAUGHEY and MATTHEW BROWN Associated Press NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Federal records show a severely corroded pipeline ruptured and spilled more than 300,000 gallons of diesel fuel just outside New Orleans. State and local officials say most of the fuel drained into and was skimmed out of two artificial ponds called “borrow pits.”

By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS Associated Press JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Thousands of people in Mississippi continue to be jailed for long periods while waiting to go on trial because they are too poor to afford bail, judges may deny bail altogether or public defenders might not be available when they’re needed. That’s according to a

By MATTHEW DALY and MIKE CATALINI Associated Press TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — The Biden administration says it will hold its first offshore wind auction next month. It’s offering nearly 500,000 acres off the coast of New York and New Jersey for wind energy projects that could produce enough electricity to power nearly 2 million homes.

LIBERAL, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man has been arrested in the 2019 robbery, kidnapping and shooting deaths of two men whose bodies were found hours apart in an Oklahoma ditch and a Kansas trailer. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation said in a statement that 30-year-old Ralph Thomas Salas Jr., of Liberal, was booked into

By SOPHIA TAREEN and KATHLEEN FOODY Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago Teachers Union has narrowly backed an agreement dictating COVID-19 safety protocols in the nation’s third-largest school district. Wednesday’s vote will keep kids in classrooms after five days of cancelled classes due to a standoff with the city over remote learning and virus