Month: June 2023

By KAVISH HARJAI and SEUNG MIN KIM Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden says high-speed internet is no longer a luxury but rather an “absolute necessity.” To that end, he pledged Monday that every household in the U.S. would have access by 2030, using cables made in the country. Biden says more than

By JOVANA GEC Associated Press BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — A court in Serbia has released three police officers from Kosovo who were detained near the disputed border between the former war foes. The officers returned to Kosovo on MOnday after a court in the central Serbian town of Kraljevo said they would be allowed to

By The Associated Press Britain’s defense minister says Ukraine has recaptured about 300 square kilometers, or 115 square miles, of territory during its ongoing counteroffensive. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace told lawmakers in the House of Commons on Monday that Ukraine is making “gradual but steady tactical progress” in the south and east of the country.

By DANICA KIRKA Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Prince William launched a five-year project to end long-term homelessness in the United Kingdom on Monday, saying he wants to make sure that instances of people being left without a roof over their heads are “rare, brief and unrepeated.” The heir to the throne will announce details

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Denmark’s government says that the training of Ukrainian pilots on F-16 jets has started and the retirement of Scandinavian country’s fleet of aging U.S. fighters has been moved up two years. Acting Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said Monday that the F-35 replacement fighters will be operative by 2025 instead of

By TIM REYNOLDS and SAMUEL PETREQUIN AP Sports Writers SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Victor Wembanyama says he won’t play with France’s national basketball team at this year’s World Cup in order to protect his still developing body. The No. 1 draft pick for the San Antonio Spurs told L’Equipe newspaper it was a “difficult” decision

By GRANT PECK Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — Members of resistance groups in Myanmar say units of an ethnic militia in eastern Kayah state that is nominally part of the military have switched sides, allying themselves with the country’s pro-democracy movement, and have carried out attacks in recent weeks on army outposts and a police

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Five people have been killed in a Kenyan border village as concerns grow over increasing attacks in the country. The weekend killings raise the death toll over the last month to more than 30 people — incuding soldiers, police reservists and civilians. Kenya has in the past seen attacks carried out

By NICK PERRY Associated Press WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — The United States has Air Force One, a plane that can refuel in midair and act as a presidential command center. New Zealand has Betty, an aging Boeing 757 that officials on Monday acknowledged was so prone to breakdowns they had sent an empty backup

By RIAZAT BUTT Associated Press MINA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Muslim pilgrims in Mecca circled the Kaaba, Islam’s holiest site, and then converged on a vast tent camp in the nearby desert, officially opening the annual Hajj pilgrimage on Monday, returning to its full capacity for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic. So far,

By NICHOLAS PAPHITIS Associated Press ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece’s center-right leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis has been sworn in as prime minister for a second consecutive term. He trounced the left-wing opposition by a record margin in a Sunday election that also ushered new far-right parties into Parliament. With 99.7% of the vote counted on Monday,

By SONIA PÉREZ D. and CHRISTOPHER SHERMAN Associated Press GUATEMALA CITY (AP) — Guatemalans have sent two presidential candidates from opposite sides of the political spectrum to an Aug. 20 runoff, giving hope to many disenchanted voters that change may be possible. With 98% of the votes counted from Sunday’s election, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal

By COLLEEN SLEVIN and JESSE BEDAYN Associated Press COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — The person who killed five people at a Colorado Springs nightclub in 2022 was sentenced to life in prison on Monday, after victims called the shooter a “monster” and “coward” who hunted down revelers in a calculated attack on a sanctuary for

By The Associated Press Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday blasted organizers of a weekend revolt, the gravest threat yet to his power, as traitors who played into the hands of Ukraine’s government and its allies. Speaking in a stern tone and looking tired in a five-minute TV address near midnight, Putin sought to project

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani officials say at least 10 people have been killed by lightning in eastern Punjab province as pre-monsoon rains lash the region. They say that the lightning strikes took place on Sunday in the districts of Sialkot and Sheikhupura and elsewhere in Punjab. Deaths from lightning are common in Pakistan. The Pakistan

By TERRY SPENCER Associated Press FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A jury will soon decide the fate of a Florida sheriff’s deputy accused of failing to protect students during the 2018 Parkland school massacre. Prosecutors and defense attorneys gave their closing arguments Monday in the trial of former Broward County Deputy Scot Peterson. Prosecutors said

By DAVID RISING Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — A U.S. aircraft carrier and two guided missile cruisers are visiting Vietnam in a rare port call that comes as the United States and China increasingly vie for influence in Southeast Asia. The USS Ronald Reagan, along with the guided missile cruisers USS Antietam and USS Robert

By JENNIFER McDERMOTT, PATRICK WHITTLE and HOLLY RAMER Associated Press As an international group of agencies investigates why the Titan submersible imploded while carrying five people to the Titanic wreckage, U.S. maritime officials say they’ll issue a report aimed at improving the safety of submersibles worldwide. Investigators from the U.S., Canada, France and the United

By RIAZAT BUTT Associated Press MECCA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Straw hats, cross-body bags, and collapsible chairs: These are just some of the essentials Muslims bring to the Hajj pilgrimage. Spiritually, the five-day Hajj is awe-inspiring for the faithful, an experience they say brings them closer to God and to the entire Muslim world. Physically,

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Author Haruki Murakami says he’s strongly opposed to the redevelopment of a Tokyo park district that would remove his favorite jogging path and tear down the baseball stadium where he was inspired to become a novelist. The plan to put skyscrapers and new stadiums in the Jingu

By JULIE CARR SMYTH Associated Press COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A high-stakes August special election with national political implications is upending local election offices across Ohio, as already stressed election workers are suddenly faced with a mountain of logistical challenges after Republican lawmakers backtracked on their own law. Officials have to lure poll workers away

By JESSICA GRESKO and MARK SHERMAN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is expected to announce major decisions Friday on President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness program and a case that impacts gay rights. It’s the court’s final day before the justices go on their summer break. Already this week the justices have

By JOE McDONALD AP Business Writer BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets were mixed Tuesday after Wall Street drifted lower following its latest rally. Shanghai and Hong Kong advanced. Tokyo and Seoul declined. Oil prices rose. Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index lost 0.4% on Monday as tech stocks declined following a rapid run-up while

By JACK DURA, JOHN HANNA and SEAN MURPHY Associated Press BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — When North Dakota restricted what bathrooms transgender students can use in public schools and universities this year, the school district in the state’s largest city promised to ignore the new rules. A Republican legislator then called for confiscating its state funding,

By The Associated Press This week’s new entertainment releases include a new album from Lucinda Williams, the kickoff of the 20th season of the reality dating show “The Bachelorette” starring a 27-year-old therapist from Georgia who was featured on the last season of “The Bachelor,” and Idris Elba is stuck on the worst flight ever

By JONEL ALECCIA AP Health Writer What if treating obesity could be as easy as popping an effective pill? That’s a notion that has long fueled hope for many of the more than 40% of Americans who are considered obese — and fueled criticism by those who advocate for wider weight acceptance. Soon, it may

By DEREK GATOPOULOS Associated Press ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A little-known political party endorsed by a jailed former lawmaker won seats in Greece’s next parliament in an election Sunday, signaling a political comeback for the far right. The Spartans party was backed by Ilias Kasidiaris, who is currently serving 13 years in prison for membership

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham says her administration has set up a new telephone hotline for women seeking access to abortion clinics plus transportation and other assistance. She says the hotline is already live but is still being built out. The number is (833) 767-3776. It will be staffed

LONDON (AP) — Sarah, the Duchess of York, underwent surgery after being diagnosed with breast cancer, according to a spokesperson. The 63-year-old was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer following a routine mammogram. The surgery was a success and Sarah’s prognosis is good, the duchess’s spokesperson said. She was released from King Edward VII’s Hospital in

By JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr. AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” slung its webs back atop the box office ranks while “The Flash” saw a drop faster than the film’s speedy character. The Spidey animated sequel — starring Shameik Moore as the teenage webslinger Miles Morales — reclaimed the No. 1

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) — Gunmen burst into a pool hall in northern Honduras and opened fire, killing 11 people and prompting President Xiomara Castro to announce security measures including curfews in the area amid a wave of drug trafficking-linked violence. The attack occurred in the city of Choloma in Cortes province late Saturday night. It

By The Associated Press For the first time in his more than 20-year rule, President Vladimir Putin’s power appeared to hang in the balance this weekend. And even though the rebellious Russian mercenary forces who descended on Moscow have turned back, Putin will struggle to project the image of a man in total control that

COLUMBUS, Mont. (AP) — Preliminary testing of water and air quality along a stretch of the Yellowstone River where train cars carrying hazardous materials fell into the waterway following a bridge collapse did not indicate any threat to the public, state and federal officials said Sunday. The seven mangled cars that carried hot asphalt and