Month: August 2023

By KIM TONG-HYUNG Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea is plowing ahead with the World Scout Jamboree, rejecting a call by the world scouting body to cut the event short as a punishing heat wave caused thousands of British scouts to begin leaving the coastal campsite Saturday. American scouts are expected to

By SAM MEDNICK Associated Press NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — An analyst says Niger’s new military junta has asked for help from the Russian mercenary group Wagner as the deadline nears for it to release the country’s ousted president or face possible military intervention by the West African regional bloc. A journalist and researcher says the

By HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Moscow promised retaliation Saturday after Ukrainian drones hit a Russian tanker in the Black Sea near Crimea late Friday, the second sea attack involving drones in one day. Ukraine struck a major Russian port earlier on Friday. Moscow strongly condemned what it sees as a Ukrainian

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Three Indian soldiers have been killed in a gun battle with rebels fighting against New Delhi’s rule in Kashmir. That’s according to an Indian military handout Saturday, which said the battle on late Friday broke out after soldiers launched an unspecified search operation. It said three soldiers were injured in the

By CHINEDU ASADU Associated Press ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Regional mediation efforts to reverse the coup in Niger collapsed as soon as they started. Tensions are escalating as Sunday’s deadline nears for possible military intervention by other West African countries. This would be the first time in years that the regional bloc known as ECOWAS

BEIRUT (AP) — Syria’s main insurgent al-Qaida-linked group denied it was behind the killing of the Islamic State group’s leader in the country’s northwest saying it would have otherwise claimed responsibility. The security arm of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, made the announcement Friday night, a day after IS blamed the Syrian insurgent group for

By RIAZAT BUTT Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan was arrested Saturday after a court handed him a three-year jail sentence for corruption, a development that could end his future in politics. The court ruled that Khan, who was ousted in a no-confidence vote in April 2022 but remains the

By BINAJ GURUBACHARYA Associated Press KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — A Norwegian who has just become the fastest climber to scale all the world’s 14 highest mountains announced she was retiring from climbing high peaks upon her return to Nepal. Kristin Harila and her Sherpa guide Tenjin were given a hero’s welcome at the Kathmandu airport

By NICOLE WINFIELD, BARRY HATTON and PIETRO DE CRISTOFARO Associated Press LISBON, Portugal (AP) — An estimated 1.5 million young people filled a field in the Portuguese capital Lisbon on Saturday for Pope Francis’ World Youth Day vigil, braving scorching heat to secure a spot for the evening prayer and to camp out overnight for

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Two Florida police officers were shot and critically injured during a traffic stop, and the suspect was fatally shot by SWAT team members several hours later. The suspect was killed early Saturday after he barricaded himself in a hotel in Orlando’s tourist district in the culmination of a manhunt involving dozens

By MICHAEL VARAKLAS and KELVIN CHAN Associated Press RHODES, Greece (AP) — Tourists at a seaside hotel on the Greek island of Rhodes snatched up pails of pool water and damp towels as flames approached, rushing to help staffers and locals extinguish one of the wildfires threatening Mediterranean locales during recent heat waves. The quick

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Cambodia’s electoral body has announced its final result for last month’s election — which has been criticized by the West as neither free nor fair — sealing a landslide victory for the ruling party of long-serving Prime Minister Hun Sen and a mandate for the next five years. In an

By BISWAJEET BANERJEE Associated Press LUCKNOW, India (AP) — Torrential rains have triggered a landslide at a base camp of a revered Hindu temple in the north Indian state of Uttarakhand, killing three people. Officials said Saturday that at least 17 others were reported missing in the village of Gaurikund in Uttarakhand state. The landslides

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — A judge in Colombia has ordered President Gustavo Petro’s son freed from detention while he is investigated on allegations of illicit enrichment and money laundering. The Attorney General’s Office presented evidence that it said shows Nicolás Petro received money illicitly. But the judge said prosecutors did not substantiate the need to

By LISA RATHKE Associated Press MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — A beloved bookstore in Vermont’s small capital city moved across the street to a new spot farther from the Winooski River after an ice jam sent river water into the store in 1992. A nearby office supply and gift store did the same in 2011 because

By SUSAN HAIGH Associated Press HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — As state lawmakers rush to get a handle on fast-evolving artificial intelligence technology, they’re often focusing first on their own state governments before imposing restrictions on the private sector. Legislators are seeking ways to protect constituents from discrimination and other harms while not hindering cutting-edge advancements

By MIKE SCHNEIDER Associated Press Only a single municipality, the Village of Pingree Grove in Illinois, has signed a contract so far with the U.S. Census Bureau to have the agency conduct a repeat head count following the 2020 census. But many more are conducting or exploring do-it-yourself special censuses without the imprimatur of the

By COLLEEN LONG and LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — When the Justice Department was announcing the highest-profile prosecution in its history in Washington, Attorney General Merrick Garland was 100 miles away, meeting with local police in Philadelphia. He stepped outside briefly to speak about how the decision to indict Donald Trump for conspiracy

By NICHOLAS RICCARDI Associated Press In the two-and-a-half years since the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol, Congress passed a bipartisan law closing loopholes in the complex process of choosing a new president that Donald Trump tried to exploit in his push to stay in office after losing the 2020 election. Candidates for crucial

By JIM HEINTZ Associated Press TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — On the battlefields of Ukraine, the fog of war plagues soldiers. And far from the fighting, a related and just as disorienting miasma afflicts those who seek to understand what’s happening in the vast war. Disinformation, misinformation and absent information all cloud civilians’ understanding. Officials from

By SAM METZ Associated Press FARMINGTON, Utah (AP) — Simmering right-wing anger over the U.S. Justice Department’s indictment of former President Donald Trump was on stark display at a Republican primary debate in Utah, where U.S. Rep. Chris Stewart’s plans to resign prompted the governor to call a special election to fill his seat in

By EDITH M. LEDERER Associated Press UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Senior U.N. officials say the conflict in Sudan has left 24 million people — half the country’s population — in need of food and other assistance. But only 2.5 million have received aid because of vicious fighting and a lack of funding. The operations director

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press The Justice Department has asked a federal judge overseeing the criminal case against former President Donald Trump in Washington to step in after he released a post online that appeared to promise revenge on anyone who goes after him. Prosecutors on Friday requested that U.S. District Court Judge Tanya

By AUDREY McAVOY Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — The Federal Aviation Administration says it’s setting up a new process for air tour operators in Hawaii to be approved for flight at lower altitudes after numerous fatal crashes in recent years. Current FAA regulations require operators to fly at 1,500 feet (460 meters) unless they have

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) — A funeral home in El Salvador has taken Barbie mania to an extreme, offering pink coffins with Barbie linings. It’s all designed so you can be a Barbie fan till the day you die — and even after that. The pink metal coffins are on sale at the Alpha

By PAUL J. WEBER Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A Texas judge ruled Friday the state’s abortion ban has proven too restrictive for women with serious pregnancy complications and must allow exceptions without doctors fearing the threat of criminal charges. The ruling was the first to undercut Texas’ law since it took effect in

NEW YORK (AP) — Police have a person in custody in connection with the death of a gay man who was fatally stabbed after a confrontation between a group of friends dancing to a Beyoncé song and several young men who taunted them. New York police declined to immediately identify the person Friday or say

By MICHELLE L. PRICE and KIM CHANDLER Associated Press MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump has delivered a speech full of defiance and bluster just a day after his third appearance in court as a criminal defendant. At an Alabama Republican Party dinner Friday night, he insulted prosecutors and declared that the charges

BUENOS AIRES (AP) — Argentine golfer Ángel Cabrera has been released from jail on parole after he completed two years in custody over gender violence cases against two of his ex-girlfriends. Judge Cristóbal Laje Ros of Cordoba province — 800 kilometers north of Buenos Aires (500 miles) — released him after psychological tests on 53-year-old

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Law professor and civil rights scholar Charles J. Ogletree Jr. has died after a lengthy battle with Alzheimer’s. He was 70. Ogletree had a distinguished career at Harvard Law School. His death Friday was confirmed by the dean of the school in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Ogletree taught Barack and Michelle Obama there.

MUNCIE, Ind. (AP) — A Muncie man has been formally charged with two counts of aggravated battery in connection with a weekend shooting that left one person dead and 17 others wounded in the central Indiana city. Thirty-six-year-old John L. Vance Jr. was also charged Friday in Delaware Circuit Court with criminal recklessness and possession

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A school bus carrying teenage campers rolled over on a winding Idaho highway Friday afternoon, injuring 11 people, the Idaho State Police said. Seven of those hurt had critical injuries and four had non-critical injuries, according to an ISP news release. The Boise County Coroner’s office had not received any reports

By MATTHEW PERRONE AP Health Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health officials have approved the first pill specifically intended to treat severe depression after childbirth, a condition that affects thousands of new mothers in the U.S. each year. The Food and Drug Administration on Friday granted approval of the drug, Zurzuvae, for adults experiencing severe

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Federal emergency managers say they’re making more progress in compensating victims of a devastating wildfire sparked last year by the U.S. Forest Service. Congress set aside nearly $4 billion to pay claims resulting from the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire. The head of the claims office

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A remote volcano in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands that has been active in recent weeks has spewed an ash cloud up to 30,000 feet into the sky. The ash cloud on Friday prompted warnings to pilots, since the abrasive powdered rock can cause a jet engine to shut down. The Alaska Volcano