Month: March 2023

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has acknowledged that he misled Parliament about rule-breaking government parties during the COVID-19 pandemic. But he insists that he never intentionally lied. Britain’s boisterous former leader is set to be grilled by lawmakers on Wednesday over whether he lied when he

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Missouri Senate has given initial approval to legislation that would temporarily prohibit gender-affirming treatments for minors and restrict their participation in sports. The Republican-led Senate gave initial approval Tuesday to a pair of bills after an all-night session. The votes came after they included several provisions described as compromises

By DENISE LAVOIE and SARAH RANKIN Associated Press DINWIDDIE, Va. (AP) — Newly obtained surveillance video shows a group of sheriff’s deputies and other employees at a Virginia mental hospital pinning a patient to the floor until he was motionless and limp. The video shows unsuccessful resuscitation efforts then began on Irvo Otieno. Otieno’s death

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The absence of Poland’s top politician, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, from early electoral campaigning has raised questions about the health of the 73-year-old leader of the ruling party. Kaczynski, who was touring Poland last fall and meeting with potential voters, has not returned to campaigning after December knee surgery. He was expected back

By JOE McDONALD Associated Press BEIJING (AP) — President Vladimir Putin gushed about China’s economic success as he welcomed Chinese leader Xi Jinping to the Kremlin this week. China isn’t just Moscow’s diplomatic partner in opposing what they see as U.S. domination of global affairs. Its thriving economy is the biggest buyer of Russian oil

By KANIS LEUNG Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Public screenings of a slasher film that features Winnie the Pooh were scrapped abruptly in Hong Kong on Tuesday, sparking discussions over increasing censorship in the city. Film distributor VII Pillars Entertainment announced on Facebook that the release of “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey” on

By LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon is speeding up its delivery of Abrams tanks to Ukraine, opting to send a refurbished older model that can be ready faster, with the aim of getting the 70-ton battle powerhouses to the war zone by the fall, the Pentagon said Tuesday. The original

BERLIN (AP) — German prosecutors looking into historical cases of sexual abuse by clergy in the Munich archdiocese say that they initially investigated the late Pope Benedict XVI on suspicion of being an accessory to abuse, but later dropped the probe. Munich prosecutors examined 45 cases of possible wrongdoing by church officials that arose from

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) — A Virginia teacher who was shot and wounded by her 6-year-old student said it has changed her life and she has vivid memories and nightmares about that day. “I just will never forget the look on his face that he gave me while he pointed the gun directly at me,”

By LEANNE ITALIE Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Feelings run hot for ambrosia salad, that fluffy treat mostly served at Easter, Thanksgiving or Christmas. Stretching back more than 100 years, ambrosia of yore was a far less busy little side dish or dessert than today’s versions. Recipes from the 1800s include oranges, shredded coconut

By DAVID RISING Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — Asia’s stake in Europe’s war was made crystal clear when the leaders of the region’s two richest countries sat in the capitals of Russia and Ukraine in strong shows of support for the opposing sides. With the world’s eyes were on Chinese President Xi Jinping’s first talks

By DASHA LITVINOVA Associated Press TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — The Russian authorities have raided homes and offices of multiple human rights advocates and historians with the prominent rights group Memorial that won the Nobel Peace Prize last year. The wave of searches is part of a steady and sweeping crackdown that the Kremlin has unleashed

By FRANK JORDANS Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — The Jehovah’s Witnesses say all of the survivors of the shooting at one of its halls in Hamburg this month are out of danger. A 35-year-old German shot dead six people during a service. Nine people were wounded, including a woman who lost her unborn child. He

LONDON (AP) — TikTok on Tuesday rolled out updated rules and standards for content and users as it faces increasing pressure from Western authorities over concerns that material on the popular Chinese-owned video-sharing app could be used to push false information. The company released a reorganized set of community guidelines that include eight principles to

DETROIT (AP) — U.S. auto safety regulators are investigating complaints from Honda Civic drivers that their steering can stick, causing a momentary increase in effort and increasing the risk of a crash. The probe by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration covers an estimated 238,000 Civics from the 2022 and 2023 model years. The agency

By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus has been reimagined and reborn without animals as a high-octane family event with highwire tricks, soaring trapeze artists and bicycles leaping on trampolines. Feld Entertainment, which owns the “Greatest Show on Earth,” revealed to The Associated Press

By ZEN SOO AP Technology Writer HONG KONG (AP) — Google has suspended the Chinese shopping app Pinduoduo on its app store after malware was discovered in versions of the app from other sources. Google said in a statement Tuesday that it suspended the Pinduoduo app on the Google Play app store out of “security

FLORENCE TOWNSHIP, N.J. (AP) — Fire destroyed a large New Jersey church, collapsing its roof as more than 150 firefighters fought to control the blaze. Video showed the Fountain of Life Center in Florence Township engulfed in flames Monday night. No injuries were reported in the fire, which started at about 6 p.m. Monday. The

PARIS (AP) — Paris police say 234 people were arrested overnight in the capital mostly for setting fire to garbage in the streets. It comes after France’s parliament adopted a divisive bill raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 pushed through by President Emmanuel Macron. Mostly small, scattered protests were held in cities around

NEW YORK (AP) — Linda Villarosa’s exploration of racism’s impact on the American healthcare system and Deborah Cohen’s history of a network of journalists who confronted fascism before World War II were among the winners of awards announced Tuesday by the J. Anthony Lukas Prize Project. In addition to “Under the Skin” and “Last Call

SKOPJE, North Macedonia (AP) — North Macedonia’s parliament has adopted a legislative amendment to pardon people facing imprisonment for violating COVID-19 safety rules. Lawmakers voted 76-1 in favor of the amnesty, which will affect more than 200 people currently facing trial as well as more than 90 people reportedly serving prison sentences. North Macedonia had