Month: March 2023

By ISABELLA O’MALLEY Associated Press Laundry detergent bottles are looking a little different these days. A growing number of companies are making bulky plastic jugs smaller and the detergent more concentrated. Without all that water, less gasoline or diesel gets burned to deliver it to stores, since the products are lighter and more can be

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) — Authorities say two inmates in a Virginia jail used primitive tools to create a hole in the wall of their cell and escape and were found hours later at an IHOP restaurant nearby. A statement from the Newport News Sheriff’s Office says the inmates exploited a construction design weakness and

By HILAIRE ZON Associated Press ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) — In Nigeria’s teeming city of Lagos, children in the Makoko area swim and play in filthy water surrounded by garbage. In Ivory Coast’s largest city, Abidjan, thousands of families must fetch water from streams for their daily needs. In Mozambique and Malawi the recent destruction

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Chinese leader Xi Jinping just concluded a three-day visit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, a warm affair in which the two men praised each other and spoke of a profound friendship. It’s a high point in a complicated, centuries-long relationship during which the two countries have

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) — The United States has offered Slovakia 12 new military helicopters as compensation for the MiG-29 fighter jets the European country is giving to Ukraine. Slovakia’s defense minister said Wednesday that under the offer, his country would pay $340 million for the Bell AH-1Z attack choppers in a deal worth about $1

By SAM KEMMIS of NerdWallet Travel experts say they aren’t seeing any dip in travel demand for the busy summer season or shoulder seasons, but people will likely spend a lot more money this year to take their vacation. Prices for flights, car rentals and hotels are still 15% higher than before the pandemic, though

By SHEIKH SAALIQ and KRUTIKA PATHI Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian police are searching for a separatist leader who has revived calls for an independent Sikh homeland, stirring fears of violence in northwestern Punjab state where there’s a history of bloody insurgency. Police have accused Amritpal Singh, a 30-year-old preacher, and his aides

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Ethiopian lawmakers have removed the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front from the country’s list of designated terror groups more than four months after a peace agreement ended a conflict that killed hundreds of thousands of people. Wednesday’s decision highlights the improving relations between federal officials and Tigray regional ones. The TPLF dominated

By DAVID McHUGH AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — European Central Bank head Christine Lagarde says future interest rate decisions are open after upheaval in the global banking system has left the economic outlook more uncertain. Speaking at a conference Wednesday at Frankfurt’s Goethe University, Lagarde that decisions would depend on whether the numbers

By MICHAEL CANTU Edmunds Electric vehicles, or EVs, had their best-selling year in 2022. Their market share surpassed 5% according to Edmunds data, which is nearly double than 2021. In 2023, EV sales should continue to soar. But more importantly for consumers, there will also be a larger selection of models to choose from, including

BERLIN (AP) — A prominent German environmental group said Wednesday that it’s suing Facebook’s parent company Meta over persistent death threats posted on the social network against its staff. Environmental Action Germany, known by its German acronym DUH, says Meta has failed to take steps to stop the threats of violence regularly directed at DUH

By SYLVIE CORBET and ELAINE GANLEY Associated Press PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron is stubbornly resisting growing discontent on the streets of France. He said on Wednesday that the pension bill he pushed through without a vote in parliament to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 must be implemented by the

BEIJING (AP) — China says President Xi Jinping’s just-concluded visit to Russia was a “journey of friendship, cooperation and peace.” The trip that ended Wednesday signaled no new progress in ending the bloody conflict in Ukraine while shoring up President Vladimir Putin’s standing amid growing efforts to isolate him and his government internationally. Chinese Foreign

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — A building has collapsed in Qatar’s capital, killing at least one person, and searchers have been looking through the rubble to check for survivors. Qatar’s Interior Ministry described the building as a four-story structure in Doha’s Bin Durham neighborhood. It said rescuers found seven survivors, while the one person killed had

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Former U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has insisted “hand on heart” that he did not lie to lawmakers about government parties during the COVID-19 pandemic. The House of Commons standards committee questioned Johnson on Wednesday over misleading statements he made to Parliament about a slew of parties

STEPHEN WADE TOKYO (AP) — Japanese television stuck to its live coverage from Miami for almost two hours after Japan defeated the United States 3-2 to win the World Baseball Classic. This was must see viewing — over and over and over. Shohei Ohtani striking out Los Angeles Angels teammate Mike Trout on a pitch

By DAVID McHUGH AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The IMF and Ukraine have agreed on a new loan package to support the government’s financies severely strained by Russia’s invasion. The $15.6 billion deal is expected to leverage even more money by assuring other donors that Ukraine is following strong economic policies. Ukraine’s finance

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Japan’s prime minister has pledged to provide Poland with development support to help the European country assist neighboring Ukraine as it defends itself from Russia’s invasion. Polish Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki hosted Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Warsaw a day after Kishida made a surprise visit to Kyiv and

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — An Australian jury has retired to consider their verdicts following the six-week trial of a former principal of a Melbourne ultra-Orthodox Jewish girls school accused of molesting three sisters. Tel Aviv-born Malka Leifer has pleaded not guilty in the Victoria state county court to 27 sexual offenses that were allegedly committed

By DANICA KIRKA Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Britain’s inflation rate has risen for the first time in four months in February. The new figures released Wednesday surprised analysts and increased pressure on the Bank of England to raise interest rates at its meeting on Thursday. The consumer price index jumped to 10.4% in the

ISLAMABAD (AP) — An overnight raid by Taliban forces in Afghanistan’s capital has killed three members of the extremist Islamic State group. A Taliban spokesman said on Wednesday that the raid targeted an IS hideout in Kabul and that the three members of the militant group who were killed had planned attacks during the Islamic

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were mostly lower Thursday after the Federal Reserve raised a key interest rate, while noting the end may be near for its economy-crunching hikes to interest rates. The Fed raised its key overnight rate by a quarter of a percentage point, the same size

By HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia has stepped up its missile and drone attacks against Ukraine, killing students and other civilians, in a violent followup to dueling high-level diplomatic missions aimed at bringing peace after 13 months of war. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shared a video of what he said was a

By JIM GOMEZ Associated Press MANILA, Philippines (AP) — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has defended his decision to allow a larger United States military presence in the country as vital to territorial defense. That’s despite China’s fierce opposition and warning that it would drag the Philippines into geopolitical strife. The Marcos administration announced last month

By DEREK GATOPOULOS and SRDJAN NEDELJKOVIC Associated Press ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Train services in Greece resumed Wednesday for the first time since a deadly rail disaster three weeks ago. The previous evening, the embattled conservative prime minister announced early elections for May. The Feb. 28 head-on collision, the deadliest in the country’s history, killed

By NINIEK KARMINI Associated Press JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Millions of Muslims in Indonesia are gearing up to celebrate the holy month of Ramadan, which is expected to start on Thursday, with traditions and ceremonies across the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country amid soaring food prices. From colorful torchlight street parades to cleaning relatives’ graves

By MUNIR AHMED AND RAHIM FAIEZ Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — A magnitude 6.5 earthquake that struck much of Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan has killed at least 13 people and injured scores in both countries, officials said Wednesday as authorities struggled to collect data on casualties and damages from remote areas. The temblor rattled this

By MEAD GRUVER Associated Press CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Abortion will again be legal in Wyoming — at least for now — after a judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked a ban that took effect a few days earlier. Teton County District Court Judge Melissa Owens’ decision halts the ban amid a challenge in her court

By JOHN HANNA AP Political Writer TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas proposal based on the claim that providers leave infants to die when they’re born during abortions is nearing legislative approval. The push for the legislation comes as Republicans pursue limited anti-abortion measures, following a decisive statewide vote in August protecting abortion rights. The

By SAM METZ Associated Press PARK CITY, Utah (AP) — Two doctors on Wednesday described X-rays, brain scans and neurological tests documenting the medical condition of a man suing Gwyneth Paltrow for a 2016 ski collision at an upscale Utah ski resort. “After his accident, he deteriorated abruptly,” Dr. Wendell Gibby said of 76-year-old Terry

By CLAIRE RUSH Associated Press/Report for America PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon lawmakers passed a sweeping $200 million housing and homelessness package on Tuesday, displaying a bipartisan will to tackle two of the state’s most pressing crises. The vast majority of the funding — about $157 million — is aimed at boosting homelessness and eviction