Month: October 2023

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — World shares were mixed Wednesday after China pledged more spending to energize its economy. Benchmarks fell in Paris, Frankfurt, Sydney and Seoul but rose in London, Tokyo and Hong Kong. U.S. futures were mixed and oil prices turned higher. China plans to issue 1 trillion yuan

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is marking a year in office but he has little reason to celebrate. His Conservative Party is trailing between 15 and 20 points behind Labour in opinion polls, and an election must be called by the end of 2024. The war between

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China has announced plans to send a new telescope to probe deep into the universe as it prepared to launch the country’s next three-member crew for its orbiting space station. Lin Xiqiang, spokesperson and deputy director general of the Chinese Manned Space Agency, said on Wednesday that the mission was part

BRUSSELS (AP) — Belgian authorities say they are “actively” searching for an asylum-seeker of Palestinian origin after media reported that he had threatened an unspecified attack. The Brussels prosecutor’s office said Wednesday it is aware of the threat mentioned in the media and added police forces are out looking for him. An Islamic extremist shot

BERLIN (AP) — Prosecutors say a man with a previous conviction for membership in the Islamic State group has been detained in Germany and is being investigated on suspicion of conspiring to commit murder. The 29-year-old was detained at his apartment in the western city of Duisburg on Tuesday. Prosecutors in Duesseldorf said Wednesday there

By JIM GOMEZ Associated Press MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Relatives of victims of alleged war crimes committed by Myanmar’s military have filed a criminal complaint in the Philippines against their nation’s ruling generals. Human rights lawyers representing five Myanmar nationals say that a 2009 Philippine law that promotes human rights obligates the Philippines to prosecute

By NAJIB JOBAIN, SAMY MAGDY and RAVI NESSMAN Associated Press RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees warned Wednesday that without immediate deliveries of fuel it will soon have to sharply cut back relief operations across the Gaza Strip, which has been blockaded and hit by devastating Israeli airstrikes since Hamas

By CHRIS MEGERIAN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is hosting Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for a state visit that’s intended to deepen the partnership between the two allies. The visit will feature a lavish state dinner at the White House. The leaders are working on economic development partnerships that are intended

MOSCOW (AP) — The upper house of the Russian parliament has revoked the country’s ratification of a global nuclear test ban. Moscow has described it as a move to put itself on par with the United States. The Federation Council voted on Wednesday to endorse a bill rescinding the ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test

BRUSSELS (AP) — The leaders of Serbia and Kosovo have been invited to meet with top European Union officials to try to breathe life into talks aimed at normalizing their relations. The meetings would take place on the sidelines of an EU summit starting Thursday in Brussels. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Prime Minister Albin

By KAREEM CHEHAYEB Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — The leader of Lebanon’s Hezbollah group has met with top Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad officials. The meeting Wednesday is the first one reported since the Hamas-Israel war erupted earlier this month and clashes began along the Lebanon-Israel border. Israel declared war after Hamas fighters surged into

By KANIS LEUNG Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s leader has cut taxes for some homebuyers and stock traders to boost markets as the city seeks to maintain its reputation as a global financial hub. Chief Executive John Lee said the extra stamp duties imposed on non-resident buyers and current local homeowners looking

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Environmentalists have slammed Malaysia’s move to let Australian miner Lynas import and process rare earths until March 2026. That decision reversed an earlier order for a halt to such activities by Jan. 1 after Lynas proposed to remove radioactive thorium from raw material and from over a million tons of

By JUSTIN KABUMBA and ZANE IRWIN Associated Press BULENGO, Congo (AP) — Hundreds of thousands of women and girls have been displaced over the past year in eastern Congo amid fighting by more than 130 armed groups. That leaves them vulnerable to sexual assault, which is on the rise. French aid group Doctors Without Borders

BERLIN (AP) — German authorities have broken off their search for four crew members missing since their British-flagged cargo ship sank a day earlier following a collision with a larger vessel in the North Sea. The Verity, which had seven people on board and was en route from Bremen, Germany, to the English port of

By JOSÉ ANTONIO RIVERA and MARÍA VERZA Associated Press ACAPULCO, Mexico (AP) — Hurricane Otis slammed into Mexico’s southern Pacific coast as a catastrophic Category 5 hurricane early Wednesday, bringing 165 mph (170 kmh) winds and heavy rain to Acapulco and surrounding towns, stirring memories of a 1997 storm that killed dozens of people. The

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A cruise operator that failed to cancel a voyage from Sydney that led to a COVID-19 outbreak has been ruled negligent in an Australian class-action case. The Ruby Princess ocean liner left Sydney on March 8, 2020, for a 13-day cruise to New Zealand but returned

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s Supreme Court will rule Wednesday whether a law forcing transgender people to have their reproductive organs removed in order to officially change their gender is constitutional. Currently, transgender people who want to have their biologically assigned gender changed on family registries and other official documents must

By AMY BETH HANSON Associated Press HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Snow has started falling in the northern Cascades and Rockies in the first major snowstorm of the season, prompting people to search out their winter coats, gloves, boots and ice scrapers after a warm fall in many places. The National Weather Service warned of hazardous

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners says two officers involved in a struggle that ended with the death of teacher violated the LAPD’s policy on use of lethal force. Commissioners on Tuesday adopted findings by the police chief that the officers were “out of policy” when they pressed on Keenan

By SOPHIA TAREEN Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — A Palestinian American woman whose 6-year-old son was killed in what police are calling a hate crime in a Chicago suburb has asked the public to “pray for peace” as she recuperates from her injuries. Hanaan Shahin issued a statement Tuesday through the Chicago chapter of the

By JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr. Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Richard Roundtree, the trailblazing actor for Black filmmakers who starred as the ultra-smooth private detective in the 1971 action movie “Shaft” and several sequels, has died. He was 81. Roundtree’s longtime manager, Patrick McMinn, says the actor had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and died

By LISA RATHKE Associated Press LUDLOW, Vt. (AP) — As winter approaches, a Vermont ski town that was hit by severe flooding this summer wants to get the word out that its very much open, with only a handful of businesses still rebuilding. Ludlow, home to the Okemo ski resort, was one of the hardest

By THOMAS BEAUMONT Associated Press NEWTON, Iowa (AP) — Supporting Israel has leapt to a top priority for evangelicals in the leadoff Republican presidential caucuses in Iowa, now less than three months away. That’s according to interviews with more than a dozen Iowa conservative activists. Curbing abortion has for decades energized Christian conservatives like no

By WAYNE PARRY Associated Press HOBOKEN, N.J. (AP) — A decade after they were envisioned in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy’s destruction, two of the largest flood control projects designed to protect densely populated cities in New Jersey just outside New York City are getting underway. A project in Hoboken, which was inundated by flooding

By GEOFF MULVIHILL Associated Press In some states, higher-income families can now use taxpayer money to cover private school tuition — and more people than projected are taking the offer, which might force scrambles to shore up state budgets. It’s especially an issue in states like Arizona and Iowa, where at least some families whose

By LISA MASCARO, STEPHEN GROVES, FARNOUSH AMIRI and KEVIN FREKING Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Republicans chose Rep. Mike Johnson as their latest nominee for House speaker desperate to unite their fractious majority and end the chaos, just hours after an earlier pick abruptly withdrew in the face of opposition from Donald Trump. Johnson of

By The Associated Press Russia has issued carefully calibrated criticism of both sides in the war between Israel and Hamas. But the conflict also is giving Moscow bold new opportunities — to advance its role as a global power broker and challenge Western efforts to isolate it over Ukraine. While Moscow lacks leverage to mediate

By AUDREY McAVOY Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — Honolulu officials have installed a new interpretive plaque for four large boulders in the center of Waikiki that honor Taihitian healers of dual male and female spirit. The healers visited Oahu some 500 years ago. The centuries-old boulders are protected by an iron fence in a beachside

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom met with China’s seniormost diplomat Wang Yi Wednesday and displayed a brief moment of friendliness that stands in sharp contrast to the dialogue between the U.S. and China in recent years. Newsom of spoke of “renewing our friendship and reengaging foundational and fundamental

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Toyota, Honda, Nissan and other Japanese automakers are serious about rolling out battery electric vehicles to catch up with the world’s frontrunners like Tesla and BYD. It’s a message ringing clear at the Tokyo Mobility Show, which runs through Nov. 5 and where an EV is

By ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL Associated Press HAIPHONG, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnamese automaker Vinfast has plunged right into the crowded and hypercompetitive U.S. auto market, gambling that if it can sell its electric vehicles to finicky Americans, it can succeed anywhere. So far, that gamble has yet to pay off. But its CEO told The Associated Press

By DAN GELSTON AP Sports Writer PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Corbin Carroll went 3 for 4 with two RBIs and two runs scored, and the Arizona Diamondbacks advanced to the World Series for the first time in 22 years Tuesday night by stunning the Philadelphia Phillies 4-2 in Game 7 of the NL Championship Series. Arizona

By VIN A. CHERWOO AP Sports Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Mikko Rantanen scored the tiebreaking goal in the third period and had three assists as the Colorado Avalanche beat the New York Islanders 7-4 for their NHL-record 15th straight road win. Ryan Johansen scored twice, Cale Makar had a goal and an assist, and

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — China said the United States is the “biggest disruptor of regional peace and stability” in the world in a scathing response to a Pentagon report on China’s growing military buildup. The annual report that is required by Congress is one way the Pentagon measures the military capabilities

WACO, Texas (AP) — A federal jury has found Baylor University negligent in a Title IX lawsuit and awarded $270,000 to a former student who alleged she was physically abused by a football player in 2014. The verdict Tuesday centered on a period of wide-ranging scandal at the nation’s biggest Baptist school. Jurors in a

BEIRUT (AP) — The head of the U.N. Commission of Inquiry on Syria says that fighting there has reached its worst point in years, with devastating consequences for civilians. “We are witnessing the largest escalation of hostilities in Syria in four years,” Paulo Pinheiro told the U.N. General Assembly. “Yet again there appears to be

By FRANKLIN BRICEÑO Associated Press LIMA, Peru (AP) — A team of scientists has unveiled the possible living face of Peru’s most famous mummy, a teenage Inca girl sacrificed in a ritual more than 500 years ago atop the Andes. The silicone-made bust portrays a young woman with pronounced cheekbones, black eyes and tanned skin.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Aviation Administration finally has a Senate-confirmed leader. The Senate voted 98-0 on Tuesday to approve President Joe Biden’s nominee for FAA administrator, Michael Whitaker. He’s the chief operating officer of a Hyundai affiliate that is developing an air taxi. Before that, he was the deputy FAA administrator. The FAA hasn’t

By BRUCE SCHREINER and DYLAN LOVAN Associated Press Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and Republican Attorney General Daniel Cameron have sparred over tax policies in their final debate. They sharpened their closing pitches in the hourlong debate Tuesday night. Just two weeks are left in their campaign for governor in Kentucky. Beshear called for a cautious

By JARI TANNER Associated Press HELSINKI (AP) — Finnish investigators say they believe an anchor of a Chinese container ship was dislodged and caused the damage to the undersea Balticconnector gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia on the Baltic Sea earlier this month. The Finnish National Bureau of Investigation said Tuesday it has evidence and

By WILL WEISSERT Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden won’t file to have his name appear on the 2024 New Hampshire Democratic primary ballot. He is opting to skip a contest that the state plans to hold in defiance of a revamped primary order that the White House has championed. Julie Chavez Rodriguez,

HOUSTON (AP) — Flights have been delayed and canceled at Houston’s Hobby Airport as crews clean up after two private jets clipped wings when they were moving on the airfield. No injuries were reported and the city fire department said there was no risk of fire after the collision around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday at the

By TRISHA AHMED Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A former medical resident at the Mayo Clinic is charged with fatally poisoning his wife, a 32-year-old pharmacist who died days after she went to a hospital in August with stomach distress. Authorities say Connor Bowman, 30, tried to stop the autopsy on his wife, Betty Bowman.