Month: March 2024

By MUNIR AHMED Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — Officials say the International Monetary Fund will hold a crucial round of talks with Pakistan starting this week. The talks are aimed at determining whether Pakistan has met all the requirements for the cash-strapped Islamic nation to receive the final $1.1 billion tranche of last year’s $3

By MIKE CORDER Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Two days of closed-doors talks between four Dutch political leaders appear to have forced a breakthrough in negotiations to form a new ruling coalition. Talks have been going on for nearly four months, since a general election won by the far right party of anti-Islam

By KATE BRUMBACK Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — The judge overseeing the Georgia election interference case on Wednesday dismissed some of the charges against former President Donald Trump, but many other counts in the indictment remain. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee wrote in an order that six of the counts in the indictment

By GEIR MOULSON Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — Chancellor Olaf Scholz has defended his refusal to send Taurus long-range cruise missiles to Ukraine. He told German lawmakers Wednesday that prudence is not a weakness while insisting that he trusts Kyiv. Germany has become the second-biggest supplier of military aid to Ukraine after the United States,

RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The Palestinian soccer federation says former national team member Mohammed Barakat was killed in an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip. The federation says the 39-year-old Barakat was killed in a strike Monday on a residential building in the southern city of Khan Younis. Affectionately known as “the lion” by

By STEVE LeBLANC Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Those convicted of misdemeanor marijuana possession charges in Massachusetts would see their records forgiven under an executive action announced Wednesday by Gov. Maura Healey. The Democrat and former state attorney general said that potentially hundreds of thousands of people could benefit from the pardons. She described her

By KAREEM CHEHAYEB Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — An Israeli drone strike targeting a car in southern Lebanon near the coastal city of Tyre has killed a member of the Palestinian militant Hamas group and another person. Hamas identified its slain member as Hadi Mustafa and said he was with the group’s military wing, the

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOMIOKA, Japan (AP) — Japanese officials say the U.S. and Japanese militaries will resume flights of Osprey aircraft in Japan after completing necessary maintenance and training following a fatal crash last November. The Osprey aircraft, which can take off like a helicopter and then fly like an airplane, has had

By MEG KINNARD Associated Press COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have officially secured the requisite numbers of delegates to be considered their parties’ presumptive nominees. It was a foreseeable outcome. Biden faced token opposition in the Democratic primary. Several high-profile Republicans ran against Trump but didn’t come close

MEXICO CITY (AP) — A prominent journalist in western Mexico who was abducted by armed men has been found alive and well. The fate of radio and television anchor Jaime Barrera gained national attention in part because his daughter, Itzul Barrera, sits on the leadership council of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s Morena party. Barrera

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Police in Tennessee are searching for a University of Missouri student who was last seen by friends at a Nashville bar Friday night. Metropolitan Nashville Police released video Tuesday that shows 22-year-old Riley Strain crossing a downtown street Friday night. Police have said Strain was last seen after drinking downtown. Police

By HYUNG-JIN KIM Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean Christian aid group says that a South Korean national held in Russia on an espionage allegation is one of its missionaries dispatched there to support the needy and spread the gospel. The Global Love Rice Sharing Foundation on Wednesday called the spying

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Jelly Roll, Kelsea Ballerini, Lainey Wilson, Megan Moroney, and Cody Johnson are the leading nominees for the 2024 CMT Music Awards, celebrating the best in country music videos. On Wednesday, CMT announced the nominees for their fan-voted awards show, where the five artists are tied

By FLORENT BAJRAMI and LLAZAR SEMINI Associated Press PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — A senior U.S. official has reassured top officials in Kosovo that the burdens of normalizing relations with longtime rival Serbia would be borne by both sides. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Gabriel Escobar met with officials in Kosovo on Wednesday in the latest

By ABBY SEWELL Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Three and a half years after hundreds of tons of improperly stored ammonium nitrate ignited at the Beirut port, setting off one of the world’s biggest non-nuclear explosions, Lebanese and French officials have put forward a plan for reconstruction and reorganization of the port. The French government

By LUIS ANDRES HENAO Associated Press EL COBRE, Cuba (AP) — One religious icon unites Cubans: The Virgin of Charity of Cobre. Cuba’s patron saint is venerated by observant Catholics and followers of Afro-Cuban Santeria traditions as well as Cubans in exile and back on the island. The wooden statue of the Virgin Mary is

LONDON (AP) — The British government will introduce legislation to quash the wrongful convictions of hundreds of Post Office branch managers in England and Wales who were caught up in one of the U.K.’s biggest miscarriages of justice. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Wednesday the legislation “marks an important step forward in finally clearing” the

By MEGAN JANETSKY, VICTOR R. CAIVANO & RODRIGO ABD Associated Press TUSAQUILLAS, Argentina (AP) — Irene Leonor Flores de Callata, 68, treks along a bone-dry riverbed, guiding a herd of llamas and sheep through stretching desert. Flores de Callata’s native Kolla people have spent centuries climbing deep into the mountains of northern Argentina in search

By LUIS ANDRES HENAO and GIOVANNA DELL’ORTO Associated Press EL COBRE, Cuba (AP) — Ramon Nieblas fixed his tearful eyes on the small golden statue, a beloved icon of Cuba’s patron saint. Whispering, he asked the Virgin of Charity of Cobre for a miracle: Please save his sick son. “I came to pray for his

NEW YORK (AP) — Longtime newsman Chris Wallace isn’t only thinking about this year’s presidential election. The CNN anchor has written a book on the race between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon. The race was narrowly won by Kennedy and featured the first televised presidential debates. Dutton announced Wednesday that “Countdown 1960: The Behind-the-Scenes

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — A minister in Britain’s Conservative government says the party does not plan to give back 10 million pounds ($12.8 million) it received in the past year from a donor who made comments that have been condemned as racist. The government is under pressure from some of its

By FARAI MUTSAKA Associated Press HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Zimbabwe, Africa’s largest tobacco producer, has begun its annual tobacco-selling season with officials and farmers projecting a sharp decline in harvests and quality because of a drought blamed on climate change and worsened by the El Niño weather phenomenon. Small-scale farmers who lack equipment and rely

By MICHAEL CANTU Edmunds The electric three-row SUV segment is small but quickly growing. The all-new Kia EV9 is one of the latest electric family haulers to hit the market and is one of our top electric performers. It’s more affordable than similarly sized rivals and is one of the few non-luxury three-row electric SUVs

LONDON (AP) — Adidas said Wednesday that it’s donated or is planning to give away more than $150 million to groups fighting antisemitism and other forms of hate from the sales of Yeezy shoes last year after it severed ties with Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West. The German sportswear brand had 1.2

By GERALD IMRAY Associated Press CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — The Coptic Orthodox Church said three monks have been killed in an attack at a monastery in South Africa. The church says they were killed Tuesday at the Saint Mark the Apostle and Saint Samuel the Confessor Monastery. The Coptic Orthodox Church, which is

By BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Karl Wallinger, the multi-instrumentalist and solo force behind the band World Party and former member of The Waterboys, has died at age 66. His publicist says Wallinger passed away Sunday. No cause of death was announced. Wallinger had worked as musical director for a production of “The

By RONITA CHOUDHURI-WADE of NerdWallet Maximalism is a design trend emphasizing more color, texture and one-of-a-kind pieces. However, filling your home with ample layers of eye-catching decor can feel intimidating and seem expensive. To avoid maxing out your budget, shop at vintage stores and estate sales for unique finds. Put your DIY skills to work

GRUENHEIDE, Germany (AP) — Tesla CEO Elon Musk is visiting the electric car maker’s first European plant as production resumes at the factory just outside Berlin about a week after a suspected arson attack cut its power supply. The head of the employee council said Musk was expected at a “team huddle” with employees at

MADRID (AP) — Spanish police say they have arrested six members of gang that specialized in burgling footballers’ home in and around Madrid. A National Police statement Wednesday said the group selected their victims after studying photographs and videos of the houses posted by the players, family and friends on social media. Police said the

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Denmark’s government wants to increase the number of Danes doing military service by making conscription mandatory for women and by increasing the time of service to 11 months for both genders. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said Wednesday that “we do not rearm because we want war. We are rearming because we want

By JANIE McCAULEY AP Baseball Writer OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Daulton Jefferies is trying to come back from a second Tommy John surgery at age 28. A torn ulnar collateral ligament used to be a career-stopper for pitchers. Now, it is seen as more of a speed bump. But as Jefferies can attest, there are

By JAY COHEN AP Baseball Writer GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — There is a bridge that runs from Tommy John and Dr. Frank Jobe in 1974, all the way to Justin Verlander and Bryce Harper. A thread that connects an increasing number of baseball’s biggest stars. Almost 50 years ago, on Sept. 25, 1974, Jobe reconstructed

By MARK SCOLFORO Associated Press GORDONVILLE, Pa. (AP) — Spring in southcentral Pennsylvania brings an annual tradition in Amish communities: mud sales. The country auctions in Lancaster County began in the 1960s. These days some get thousands of bidders and can do more than a million dollars in sales. The auctions benefit local fire departments.

By LIUDAS DAPKUS Associated Press VILNIUS, Lithuania (AP) — Leonid Volkov, the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s close associate and top strategist, has Wednesday Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “henchmen” of being behind a brutal attack that left him hospitalized in Lithuania’s capital and vowed to “not give up. Police said an assailant attacked Volkov

By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A U.S. Congress-mandated group cut short a fact-finding mission to Saudi Arabia after officials in the kingdom ordered a Jewish rabbi to remove his kippah in public, highlighting the religious tensions still present in the wider Middle East. Speaking to The Associated Press, Rabbi

By JAKE COYLE AP Film Writer AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Coming nearly straight from the Oscars with a truck full of Kenergy, Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt rolled into South By Southwest to premiere “The Fall Guy,” an affectionate, action-fueled ode to stunt work and the dedicated professionals that throw their bodies into filmmaking. “The

Associated Press President Vladimir Putin said that Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons if there is a threat to Russian statehood, sovereignty, or independence. Speaking in an interview with Russian state television released early Wednesday, Putin said he hoped that the U.S. would avoid any escalation that could trigger a nuclear war, but emphasized

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares mostly rose Wednesday, encouraged by a record rally on Wall Street that was led by technology companies. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.2% to 7,729.40. South Korea’s Kospi gained nearly 0.5% to 2,694.60. But Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost its morning gains to slip 0.3%

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia authorities say a fishing boat that was carrying 37 people capsized in rough seas off Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, killing at least two people and leaving 24 others missing. The Dewi Jaya 2 was on its way from a port in Jakarta to Lombok Island near Bali carrying tons of fish