Month: August 2022

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer NEW YORK (AP) — In a highly unusual move that rattled Hollywood, Warner Bros. axed the “Batgirl” film planned for HBO Max, opting to shelve the $90 million film as the reorganized studio revamps its approach to streaming and DC Comics films. The studio ultimately decided the nearly completed

PARIS (AP) — Local officials in southwest France say an explosion at a plant that produces a component of ammunition injured eight people, one of them seriously. The factory in the town of Bergerac specializes in making nitrocellulose, a highly flammable chemical compound. The local deputy prefect said the cause of Wednesday’s was “obviously internal”

By MARK PRATT Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — The Christian flag that became the focus of a free speech legal battle that went all the way to the Supreme Court was raised — briefly — outside Boston City Hall on Wednesday to cheers and songs of praise. The flag-raising took place about three months after

By SAMY MAGDY Associated Press CAIRO (AP) — The United Nations has painted a grim picture for Sudan’s humanitarian situation. It says Wednesday that almost a quarter of the country’s population was inching toward starvation amid a dire shortage of funding. It says 11.7 million people were facing acute hunger between June and September, an

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The husband of U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi pleaded not guilty Wednesday to misdemeanor driving under the influence charges related to a May car crash in Northern California wine country. Paul Pelosi, 82, did not appear in person at Napa County Superior Court Wednesday. His attorney Amanda Bevins entered

By JONATHAN MATTISE Associated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nashville’s metro council has dealt what’s likely final blow to hosting the next Republican National Convention. Their vote leaves Milwaukee as the almost-certain host in 2024. Councilmembers in the reliably Democratic city in a Republican southern state voted 22-10 Tuesday night to spike a draft hosting

By YURAS KARMANAU Associated Press TALINN, Estonia (AP) — A court in Belarus has sentenced yet another independent journalist to a lengthy prison term. The move is part of a continued government crackdown on opposition activists, critical media and independent reporters. Iryna Slaunikava, 52-year-old journalist with the Poland-based TV channel Belsat, was convicted of forming

By MATTHEW DALY Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency is warning residents who live near medical sterilizing plants in 13 states and Puerto Rico about potential health risks from emissions of ethylene oxide, a chemical widely used in their operations. The EPA says 23 communities, including Laredo, Texas; Ardmore, Oklahoma; and Lakewood

By COREY WILLIAMS Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — State Rep. Shri Thanedar has won Michigan’s 13th Congressional Democratic primary, topping a field of nine candidates in a district that covers most of Detroit and a number of surrounding suburbs. Thenader’s victory means Detroit could be without a Black representative in Congress for the first time

RENO, Nev. (AP) — Authorities say bats have infested a Nevada fire station for the second time in seven years, forcing its temporary closure. A spokesperon for the Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District says the bats have been flying around the living quarters of the small fire station between Reno and Carson City. And dead

By RAQUEL REDONDO Associated Press MADRID (AP) — Police in Spain are investigating about 50 reported cases of women getting pricked with medical needles while at nightclubs or parties, a trend that previously came to the attention of authorities in other European countries. So far, Spanish police have not confirmed any cases of sexual assault

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles City Council has voted to ban homeless encampments within 500 feet of schools and daycare centers. The council voted Tuesday to broaden an existing ban on sleeping or camping near the facilities. The meeting was recessed for about an hour after opponents disrupted it and shouted down speakers.

By LINDSEY BAHR AP Film Writer It may be common etiquette to not spoil the end of a film, but Ron Howard learned years ago on “Apollo 13” that knowing the outcome of a story is different from knowing the story itself. And though the 2018 rescue of the Thai boys’ soccer team and their

REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — A volcano in southwest Iceland began erupting Wednesday, the country’s meteorological authorities said — just eight months after its last eruption officially ended. The Icelandic Meteorological Office urged people not to go near the Fagradalsfjall volcano, which is located some 32 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of the capital, Reykjavik. The eruption

By TOM MURPHY AP Health Writer Better-than-expected COVID-19 vaccine sales pushed Moderna past Wall Street’s second-quarter forecasts. The company said Wednesday its Spikevax vaccine brought in $4.53 billion during the quarter. FactSet says analysts were looking for around $3.6 billion. Both numbers represent a drop from the nearly $6 billion in vaccine sales during the

By MICHAEL PHILLIS Associated Press ST. LOUIS (AP) — The deal reached last week by Senate Democrats would provide $20 billion for climate-friendly agricultural practices. Agriculture is a major contributor to climate change and experts say there’s plenty of opportunity to reduce the sector’s emissions. If the measures in the bill are enacted, most of

By NASSER KARIMI Associated Press TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran, the United States and the European Union say they will send representatives to Vienna amid what appears to be a last-ditch effort at reviving talks over Tehran’s tattered 2015 nuclear deal with world powers. It wasn’t immediately clear if other parties to the landmark accord

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greek authorities say five people have been charged with trying to smuggle nearly 100 migrants into Europe on an unsafe vessel last week. They allegedly used what appears to be a new route from crisis-afflicted Lebanon to Italy. It was the second such incident in about a month involving a boat

By FATIMA HUSSEIN and KEN SWEET Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — After 13 years, at least three crashes, dozens of scams and Ponzi schemes and hundreds of billions of dollars made and evaporated, cryptocurrencies finally have the full attention of Congress. Lawmakers and lobbyists have papered Capitol Hill with proposals on how to regulate the

MOSCOW (AP) — A massive fire has engulfed a warehouse outside Moscow, killing at least one person and injuring 13 others. Wednesday’s fire at a warehouse belonging to Russia’s leading online retailer, Ozon, has affected an area of 50,000 square meters. Emergencies officials said that one person died in the fire, and Moscow region Gov.

By KAREEM CHEHAYEB Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Ukraine’s ambassador to Lebanon is insisting that a Syrian ship docked at a Lebanese port is carrying stolen Ukrainian grain and urged Lebanon to block the ship from leaving. The claim Wednesday comes just days before the tiny cash-strapped country receives Ukraine’s first grain shipment since Russia’s

BERLIN (AP) — The German government says basic coronavirus requirements will remain in place during the coming fall and winter, when experts expect COVID-19 cases to rise again as people spend more time indoors. Under rules announced Wednesday, face masks and presenting proof of a negative coronavirus test will be mandatory from October until early

NEW YORK (AP) — Five high school students have received a prize that will enable them to share their passion for poetry in their communities and beyond, while receiving a $5,000 cash award. Students from New York City to Santa Fe, New Mexico, have been named National Student Poets, an honor presented by the National

By JEAN-YVES KAMALE Associated Press KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Congo’s government has requested that the spokesman for the United Nations mission in the country leave. It says Mathias Gillman has made inappropriate statements as the country grapples with demonstrations against the presence of the U.N. peacekeepers.  In correspondence from Congo’s foreign minister, Christophe Lutundula, to

By GIOVANNA DELL’ORTO Associated Press THESSALONIKI, Greece (AP) — Under fluttering strings of Greek and Byzantine flags, three men raised a party tent on the terrace of the 5th century Osios David church one recent Saturday, hoping it would shelter festivalgoers from the heat that already shrouded the view of Mount Olympus across the gulf.

AMSTERDAM (AP) — The Anne Frank House museum is releasing an English-language version of three videos in which an actress playing the young Jewish diarist describes the last six months of her life, from her arrest to her death in a Nazi concentration camp. The English version of “Anne Frank – After the Arrest” is

By BRUCE SCHREINER and BRYNN ANDERSON Associated Press HINDMAN, Ky. (AP) — The long days searching debris-clogged creekbanks are taking a toll on search teams in flood-ravaged eastern Kentucky. Phillip Dix is leading a team from Memphis, Tennessee. He says his crew is used to the stifling heat and humidity. But he says they’re tired

By WAYNE PARRY Associated Press ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) — Joe Lupo, who has helped two of Atlantic City’s most successful casinos thrive through years of market turbulence, will run the Mirage Hotel & Casino once Hard Rock buys the Las Vegas property from MGM Resorts International. Hard Rock says Lupo will become president of

By GLENN GAMBOA AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Country superstar Dolly Parton is among the 2022 Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy recipients. Also being honored are Dallas entrepreneur Lyda Hill, Kenyan industrialist Manu Chandaria, and Lynn and Stacy Schusterman from the Oklahoma investment family. Parton’s $1 million donation to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in