Month: October 2023

By EVELYNE MUSAMBI and BRIAN INGANGA Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Hundreds of Muslims in Kenya’s capital have rallied outside the Supreme Court to protest its decision last month to reaffirm the LGBTQ community’s right of association. The protesters say the verdict has condoned immorality. They are demanding the resignation of three of the

PARIS (AP) — French investigative judges have filed preliminary charges against former President Nicolas Sarkozy. The preliminary charges were filed on Friday. They concern his alleged involvement in an attempt to mislead magistrates in order to clear him in a case regarding the suspected illegal financing from Libya of his 2007 presidential campaign. Sarkozy has

By KATE BRUMBACK Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — The use of deadly force by Georgia state troopers who shot and killed an activist at the site of a planned police and firefighter training center near Atlanta was “objectively reasonable” and no charges will be sought against them, a prosecutor said Friday. Opponents, who derisively refer

LONDON (AP) — A 36-year-old man has been arrested in connection with an alleged plot to kidnap Holly Willoughby, one of Britain’s most high-profile television personalities. In a statement Friday, Essex Police said the suspect was arrested on Wednesday and is due to appear at in court in Chelmsford, east of London, later Friday. Willoughby,

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A man who bred dogs for fighting for decades, selling them worldwide and exhibiting “extraordinary cruelty,” has been sentenced to seven years in prison. Antonio Casillas Montero owned Stone City Kennels in Puerto Rico and had been accused of conspiring to violate the Animal Welfare Act. He pleaded guilty

DETROIT (AP) — Starting next year, people who want to buy a new or used electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle will be able to get U.S. income tax credits at the time of purchase. The Treasury Department says the near-instant credits of up to $7,500 for an eligible new vehicle and $4,000 for a qualifying

HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong man has been sentenced to four months in prison after he pleaded guilty to importing children’s books deemed to be “seditious publications.” Kurt Leung was sentenced on Friday after he admitted to importing 18 children’s books featuring wolves and sheep. The 38-year-old clerk was arrested in March after

By BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Former Spanish King Juan Carlos I has won his London court battle with an ex-lover who sought $153 million in damages for allegedly being harassed and spied after their breakup. Danish socialite and businessperson Corinna Larsen said the former monarch caused her “great mental pain” by orchestrating

BRISTOL, Conn. (AP) — Authorities say a woman is under arrest after she fired several gunshots inside a Connecticut police station. Police say the shooting happened just after 10:30 p.m. Thursday when a woman entered the lobby of the Bristol Police Department and fired several shots at the front desk window. The front desk was

By FLORENT BAJRAMI and LLAZAR SEMINI Associated Press PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — The NATO-led peacekeeping force has called on both Kosovo and Serbia to return to the negotiating table to resolve their issues to prevent violence like the recent shootout between masked Serb gunmen and Kosovo police that left four people dead and sent tensions soaring in

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — The outer bands of Tropical Storm Philippe are lashing Bermuda as it churns northward on a path toward Atlantic Canada and New England. The storm was located about 165 miles (265 kilometers) south of Bermuda on Friday. It had winds of up to 50 mph (85 kph) and was

LONDON (AP) — Shares in the troubled British lender Metro Bank have bounced back by a third on reports that it has been sounding out bigger rivals to buy a chunk of its assets. Sky News reported Friday that advisers to the bank have contacted Lloyds Banking Group and NatWest Group among others. That helped

By JOSEPH WILSON and RENATA BRITO Associated Press GRANADA, Spain (AP) — The leaders of the European Union are once again taking up the divisive issue of migration when they meet in Granada, Spain. The meeting comes just days after envoys of the 27 members struck a deal that was hailed as a major step

By PAOLO SANTALUCIA Associated Press ABOARD THE GEO BARENTS (AP) — A nonprofit rescue ship operating off the coast of Libya has saved 258 migrants in two separate operations in the early hours of Friday morning. The first of the two rescues involved a a 7-meter wooden boat filled with 162 migrants, including 17 women

By HOWARD FENDRICH AP National Writer Eager as the National Football League has been to cater to the recent public fixation with Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, it’s certainly not taking any credit for creating the outsized storyline that has emerged around the pop superstar and the Kansas City Chiefs tight end. “Not orchestrated by

By JACK JEFFERY Associated Press CAIRO (AP) — An aid group says heavy artillery fire in a conflict-stricken Sudanese city has killed at least 11 people and injured 90 others. Doctors Without Borders said the attack took place in the city of Omdurman on Thursday but did not say which of the country’s warring parties

By EDNA TARIGAN Associated Press JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia has denied that forest and peat fires on Sumatra and Borneo islands are causing the haze in neighboring Malaysia. The Malaysian government sent a letter to Indonesia’s Environment and Forestry minister asking to work together to deal with the fires. Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, and

By JEFF AMY Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia’s state taxes on gasoline and diesel will be suspended for another month. Gov. Brian Kemp extended the tax rollback in a Friday executive order. The suspension will now last at least through Nov. 11. The Republican governor last month revived the fuel tax suspension after he

By ZEN SOO AP Technology Writer HONG KONG (AP) — Taiwan’s economy minister has confirmed that regulators are investigating four Taiwanese companies suspected of helping China’s Huawei Technologies to build semiconductor facilities. The Ministry of Economic Affairs has summoned the semiconductor and factory services suppliers for questioning after a Bloomberg report. The report said the

By ISABEL DEBRE Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli police have arrested an American tourist at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem after he hurled works of art to the floor, damaging two second-century Roman statues. The vandalism late Thursday raised questions about the safety of Israel’s priceless collections, as well as concern about a rise

By STEFANIE DAZIO Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — A massive health care strike over wages and staff shortages is heading into its final day without a deal between industry giant Kaiser Permanente and the unions representing the 75,000 workers who picketed this week. The three-day strike will officially end on Saturday morning. Workers are

By JAY COHEN AP Baseball Writer Adam Wainwright’s playing days are over, but the former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher isn’t exactly taking it easy in retirement. Next up for Wainwright is the FOX Sports booth for the AL Division Series between the Twins and Astros that begins on Saturday in Houston. He will be alongside

By STEPHEN WADE AP Sports Writer HANGZHOU, China (AP) — Breakdancing is part of a minor sports revolution going on in Mongolia. The giant landlocked Asian country is most associated with Genghis Khan and famous for its “three manly sports” of archery, horse racing and wrestling. The two-week Asian Games offer a glimpse at a

By LLAZAR SEMINI Associated Press TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Germany’s foreign minister on Friday expressed the European Union’s deep concerns following the recent shootout between masked Serb gunmen and Kosovo police that left four people dead and sent tensions soaring in the region. Baerbock is in the Albanian capital Tirana, along with other senior EU

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Global shares mostly rose Friday in cautious trading ahead of an update on the U.S. jobs market. Tokyo was the only major market to decline, with other benchmarks moderately higher. U.S. futures and oil prices were little changed. Markets in China were closed for a holiday.

By STEPHANIE LIECHTENSTEIN Associated Press VIENNA (AP) — The German government says developed countries have pledged $9.3 billion to help poor nations tackle climate change. The pledges on Thursday came at a donor conference hosted by the German city of Bonn. The gathering was held to replenish the South Korea-based Green Climate Fund that was

By DENG MACHOL Associated Press JUBA, South Sudan (AP) — The U.N Human Rights Commission on South Sudan has accused the country’s National Security Service (NSS) of threatening media and civil society and undermining prospects for a democratic transition ahead of next year’s elections. A new report based on the Commission’s independent investigations in 2023

By HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press KHARKIV, Ukraine (AP) — A Russian missile strike has killed a 10-year-old boy and injured two dozen other people in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kkarkiv. The attack came a day after a strike in the same region killed at least 51 civilians in one of the deadliest attacks in

MOSCOW (AP) — The speaker of the Russian parliament says lawmakers will consider revoking the ratification of a global nuclear test ban. Friday’s statement follows President Vladimir Putin’s warning a day earlier that Moscow could consider rescinding ratification of the pact since the United States has never ratified it. There are widespread concerns that Russia

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares mostly rose in cautious trading Friday after Wall Street drifted to a quiet close on worries about a too-hot U.S. job market. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 0.3% to finish at 30,994.67. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.4% to 6,954.20. South Korea’s Kospi edged up

By HANNAH FINGERHUT Associated Press DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A dozen state or county agencies have parted ways with tens of thousands of dollars in federal grants meant to help monitor teenagers’ sexual behaviors and try to lower rates of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. The withdrawals reflect a shift in many states

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Assocaited Press TOKYO (AP) — Three bears that snuck into a tatami mat factory and holed up inside for nearly a day have been captured. Misato town in the northern prefecture of Akita said the bears were captured in a cage and killed. The region is dealing with a growing number of

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s main opposition Labour Party has won an emphatic victory in a special election for a Scottish district that was watched as an indicator of the party’s rebounding popularity ahead of a national election next year. Labour took the parliamentary seat near Glasgow from the Scottish National Party. Labour candidate Michael Shanks

OSLO (AP) — The winner of the prestigious Nobel Peace Prize is being announced Friday, chosen by a panel of experts in Norway from a list of just over 350 nominations. Last year’s prize was won by human rights activists from Ukraine, Belarus and Russia, in what was seen as a strong rebuke to Russian

By ALBERT AJI Associated Press HOMS, Syria (AP) — Family members of some of the victims of a deadly drone attack on a crowded military graduation ceremony that killed scores gathered outside a military hospital in the central city of Homs on Friday to collect the bodies of their loved ones, who died in one

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish warplanes have carried out airstrikes on sites believed to be used by U.S.-backed Kurdish militant groups in northern Syria. The strikes late on Thursday came after the U.S. military shot down an armed Turkish drone that came within 500 meters (yards) of American troops. Turkey said its jets targeted some

By SAM METZ Associated Press MARRAKECH, Morocco (AP) — Moroccan authorities will start providing money to families whose homes were destroyed in an earthquake last month that took nearly 3,000 lives. The Sept. 8 earthquake wreaked havoc, particularly in the five rural mountain regions surrounding Marrakech. As nights get cooler, many people displaced by the

By JINTAMAS SAKSORNCHAI Associated Press UTHAI SAWAN, Thailand (AP) — A quiet ceremony has been attended by about 200 people in a small town in northeastern Thailand marking the one-year anniversary of the country’s deadliest mass killing. Attendees at Friday’s remembrance ceremony donned colorful traditional clothes for Buddhist religious rites. On Oct. 6, 2022, a fired

By BHARATHA MALLAWARACHI Associated Press COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Heavy rain has triggered floods and mudslides and downed trees in many parts of Sri Lanka, killing at least six people and forcing authorities to close schools in some areas. Strong monsoon rains have been pounding the Indian Ocean nation for more than a week,

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — A former High Court chief justice and dozens of legal academics are rebutting key arguments used in the public campaign against Australians creating an advocacy body for the Indigenous population. Retired High Court Chief Justice Robert French used a speech to the National Press Club on

By ASHOK SHARMA and SIBI ARASU Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — A flood that burst through a major hydroelectric dam in India’s Himalayan northeast killed at least 31 people, officials said Friday, as ice-cold water swept through mountain towns, washing away houses and bridges and forcing thousands of people to leave their homes. The