Month: June 2024

Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine has spent years trying to build a Western-style democracy, although not without some bumps along the way. Shedding bad habits from the Soviet past are crucial to to Ukraine’s goal of joining the European Union and NATO. Russia’s full-scale invasion two years ago starkly clarified the stakes of

Associated Pres KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s battle to repel Russia is a fight for the country’s survival as a Western-facing democracy. To survive, it has felt compelled to temporarily suspend or restrict some democratic ideals. Elections have been postponed, a once-robust media has been restrained, corruption-fighting has slipped down the agenda, and freedom of

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan has urged its citizens to avoid travel to China and the semi-autonomous Chinese territories of Hong Kong and Macao following threats from Beijing to execute supporters of the self-governing island democracy’s independence. Spokesperson and deputy head of the Mainland Affairs Council Liang Wen-chieh issued the advisory at a news conference

Associated Press LAS VEGAS (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris is acknowledging that President Joe Biden had a “slow start” during his debate against Donald Trump. But she insists that he finished “strong.” Biden’s performance triggered a new round of Democratic concerns about Biden’s fitness to be the party standard-bearer. Harris on Thursday gave interviews

AP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — It almost didn’t seem to matter that CNN’s Dana Bash and Jake Tapper were on stage for the much-awaited presidential debate between  Joe Biden and Donald Trump. They asked pointed questions on the issues, many meticulously prepared, and they were for the most part ignored. The CNN moderators

Associated Press DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The Iowa Supreme Court said Friday the state’s strict abortion law is legal, telling a lower court to dissolve a temporary block on the law and allowing Iowa to ban most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy — before many women know they are pregnant. The 4-3

Associated Press TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — In the months since Hamas’ surprise attack sent them scattering across fields or hiding in desert brush, thousands of survivors of a massacre at a trance festival in Israel have come together as a community to heal. They have found solace in massage therapy, ice baths, yoga or

Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Ahead of New York City’s annual LGBTQ+ Pride march, organizers typically spend weeks mapping out the order of the floats, assigning placements based on factors like seniority and music volume. This year, they’re wrestling with a question more fraught: how to plan a parade whose own participants have accused

Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — Part of a departure terminal canopy at New Delhi’s main airport has collapsed as monsoon rains lashed the Indian capital, killing one person and injuring six others. Flight departures at Terminal 1 were suspended as rescuers cleared the debris to rescue anyone trapped there. Terminal 1 is used for

AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — The site of Tokyo’s famed Tsukiji fish market left empty after it was razed six years ago, will be replaced by a waterfront stadium and glistening skyscrapers according to plans for its redevelopment. A computer graphic video version of the $5.7 billion project made by property developer Mitsui Fudosan

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Thursday’s presidential debate was a re-run that featured two candidates with a combined age of 159, but it went especially poorly for one of them, President Joe Biden. Already fighting voter concerns about his age, Biden, 81, was halting and seemed to lose his train of thought, sparking quick concerns

Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — President Joe Biden and Republican Donald Trump went right to mixing it up on policy — and each other — in their first presidential debate of the 2024 campaign. Personal animosity between the two men was palpable Thursday night in Atlanta as they argued over abortion, the economy, border security

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s incoming President Claudia Sheinbaum has announced five more members of her future cabinet. Luz Elena González, an expert in sustainable development and finance, will be the secretary of energy. Renowned researcher David Kershenobich will be the next secretary of health and Jesús Antonio Esteva Medina will lead communications and transportation.

Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union leaders have agreed on the officials who will lead the European Commission, Council, and foreign policy service after the EU Parliament elections. The three nominees will hold positions at the EU’s powerful executive branch – the European Commission – the forum where the 27 member countries are represented,

IRONDEQUOIT, N.Y. (AP) — Authorities in western New York say a man fatally shot his 80-year-old grandfather and eventually took his own life on a hiking trail in Letchworth State Park. Police evacuated and closed the park for several hours while searching for the 24-year-old suspect. The man was wanted for the killing earlier in

AP Hockey Writer LAS VEGAS (AP) — San Jose Sharks general manager Mike Grier is trying to keep whom he’s selecting with the first pick in the NHL draft on Friday a mystery, even after he more than hinted at his intentions last month. After excitedly noting the big opportunity it was for a rebuilding

Associated Press LA PAZ, Bolivia (AP) — The man behind the attempted coup that has rocked Bolivia remains a mystery to much of the country. Little known before bursting into Bolivia’s presidential palace tailed by tanks and armored vehicles, General Juan Jose Zúñiga served as commander of the country’s armed forces from 2022 until his

Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Drivers for Uber and Lyft will earn a minimum pay standard of $32.50 per hour under a settlement announced Thursday by Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell, in a deal that also includes a suite of benefits and protections. The two companies will also be required to pay a combined $175

Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The former Uvalde schools police chief was indicted over his role in the slow police response to the 2022 massacre at a Texas elementary school that left 19 children and two teachers dead, the local sheriff said Thursday. Pete Arredondo was indicted by a grand jury on 10 counts

Associated Press ULAANBAATAR, Mongolia (AP) — The governing Mongolian People’s Party has won a slim majority in the country’s parliament, with the opposition Democratic Party making major gains in elections. The preliminary results reported early Saturday would be a setback for the governing party. It won 62 of the-then 76 seats in parliament in 2020,

Associated Press Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont has been officially ordered by his local inland wetlands agency to replant the more than 180 trees and thousands of bushes that were chopped down in November on property behind the Democrat’s Greenwich home. The agency voted Thursday in favor of replanting plans for three affected parcels recommended by

Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A California law that bans drilling new oil wells near places like homes and schools will likely take effect in the coming days. California lawmakers passed the law back in 2022. But it never took effect because the California Independent Petroleum Association gathered enough signatures to place a referendum

YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) — Why did the kinkajou cross the road? And what’s a kinkajou, anyway? One of the mammals — which look like a cross between a monkey and a tiny bear — was found far from its normal rainforest habitat this week at a highway rest stop amid the rolling sagebrush plains of

Associated Press HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania’s Senate has advanced legislation that would block state aid to any university that boycotts or divests from Israel. The legislation passed 41-7 on Thursday and also bars the state treasurer and public pension systems from boycotting or divesting. The bill now goes to the state House. Supporters say

AP Basketball Writer It was the dream that LeBron James first floated a few years ago, the notion of playing in the NBA alongside one of his sons. And it’s a step closer to reality now. Bronny James — the oldest son of the NBA’s all-time scoring leader and four-time champion — was drafted Thursday

Associated Press UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. Security Council has demanded that Yemen’s Houthi rebels halt all attacks on ships and urged that disruptions to maritime security be addressed, without mentioning the link between the Iran-backed rebels and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. Thursday’s resolution, which also extended the requirement that U.N. Secretary-General Antonio

MORRIS, Ill. (AP) — DNA experts have identified the remains of a woman found shot to death in an Illinois ditch almost 50 years ago. The DNA Doe Project said in a news release Thursday that their investigators had identified the woman as JoAnn “Vickie” Smith of Ohio. Smith was found in a ditch near

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A man convicted of killing a St. Louis police officer has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. A judge on Thursday ordered Thomas Kinworthy Jr. to serve two consecutive life sentences for first-degree murder and first-degree assault, adding dozens of years for burglary and other charges.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Public officials in New Orleans are praising the memory of Jaquelyn Brechtel “Jackie” Clarkson — a former Louisiana legislator and three-term New Orleans City Council member who died this week at age 88. Mayor LaToya Cantrell and City Council President Helena Moreno and members of the Louisiana congressional delegation are among

Associated Press FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — The most severely wounded survivor of the 2018 massacre at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School now owns shooter Nikolas Cruz’s name, and Cruz cannot give any interviews without his permission, under a settlement reached in a lawsuit. Under his recent settlement with Anthony Borges, Cruz must also

LOS ANGELES (AP) — U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland says federal officials are investigating a weekend demonstration against the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza that spiraled into violence outside a Los Angeles synagogue. Fighting between pro-Palestinian demonstrators and counterprotesters erupted Sunday outside the Adas Torah synagogue in the heavily Jewish Pico-Robertson neighborhood and police were called

AP National Writer The U.S. Center for SafeSport has released its 2023 annual report. The center points to an ever-growing surge in abuse reports and the impact of inflation in claiming it needs a 40% increase in funding. CEO Ju’Riese Colon said the center needed an additional $10 million each year on top of its

AP Sports Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — A jury in U.S. District Court ordered the NFL to pay nearly $4.8 billion in damages Thursday after ruling that the league violated antitrust laws in distributing out-of-market Sunday afternoon games on a premium subscription service. The jury awarded $4.7 billion in damages to the residential class and

Associated Press MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Prosecutors have charged a second inmate in connection with a fight that left a counselor at Wisconsin’s youth prison brain-dead. Seventeen-year-old Rian Nyblom was charged Thursday in Lincoln County Circuit Court with being a party to felony murder-battery and being a party to battery by a prisoner in connection

Associated Press BNEI BRAK, Israel (AP) — Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox  Jewish men have blocked a major highway in central Israel for two hours. They’re protesting a recent decision by the country’s high court ordering young religious men to enlist for military service. Protesters sat on the highway Thursday and lay on the ground as police

Associated Press A jury found a suburban Seattle police officer guilty of murder Thursday in the 2019 shooting death of a homeless man outside a convenience store, marking the first conviction under a Washington state law easing prosecution of law enforcement officers for on-duty killings. After deliberating for three days, the jury found Auburn Police

Associated Press OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma’s top education official ordered public schools Thursday to incorporate the Bible into lessons for grades 5 through 12, the latest effort by conservatives to incorporate religion into classrooms. The directive drew immediate condemnation from civil rights groups and supporters of the separation of church and state, with some

ATLANTA (AP) — The first general election debate of the 2024 season has come to a close, with U.S. President Joe Biden and his Republican rival, Donald Trump, clashing on immigration and climate change and launching deeply personal attacks on each other Thursday evening in Atlanta. The debate, which was expected to be viewed in

AP Basketball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Jaylen Wells sat in the stands at Barclays Center in his snazzy white suit, hoping to hear his name called in the first round of the NBA draft. A day later, at a second site in a second borough, Wells was finally on his way to the NBA

Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s contentious restrictions on public mask-wearing are now law after Senate Republicans voted to override Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto. The Senate gave its final stamp of approval in a 30-14 override vote along party lines Thursday. The bill originally caught flak for removing a health exemption put

Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — As a musician, writer, producer, actor, and activist, Steve Van Zandt has expressed himself artistically in many ways for more than 50 years and now he has his own documentary, “Stevie Van Zandt: Disciple.” Despite his head scarves and psychedelic style, being an E Street Band rock star with