Month: July 2024

AP Sports Writer PARIS (AP) — The Dutch beach volleyball player who served time in prison after he was convicted of raping a 12-year-old girl in England has won his second match at the Paris Olympics. Steven van de Velde received an even harsher reaction from the crowd on Wednesday than for his first match.

Associated Press TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey’s ban on the AR-15 rifle is unconstitutional, but the state’s cap on magazines over 10 rounds passes constitutional muster. That’s what a federal judge concluded in a 69-page opinion Tuesday. U.S. District Judge Peter Sheridan wrote that he was compelled to rule as he did because of

MOSCOW (AP) — A Russian court has ordered a French citizen arrested in Russia to remain in custody ahead of his trial on charges of unlawfully collecting information on military issues. Laurent Vinatier was arrested in the Russian capital in June as tensions flared between Moscow and Paris following French President Emmanuel Macron’s comments about

Associated Press COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The South Carolina Supreme Court has ruled the state’s death penalty is legal. All five justices agreed Wednesday with at least part of the ruling, opening the door to restart executions in a state that hasn’t put an inmate to death since 2011. South Carolina’s death penalty now includes

BERLIN (AP) — The German city of Gelsenkirchen, which temporarily renamed itself “Swiftkirchen” before the American superstar played three concerts there in mid-July, said Wednesday it received about 1,400 bids from Germany and abroad for signs it put up with the name. The new name was one of a flurry of fan attractions around the

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s air force says Ukrainian forces shot down all 89 Shahed drones launched by Russia in a nighttime attack on the country, in what was one of the largest drone barrages this year. No damage or injuries were immediately reported in the bombardment, which mostly targeted the region of Kyiv, the

CHICAGO (AP) — John Mangum has been hired to succeed Anthony Freud as general director of the Lyric Opera of Chicago. The 49-year-old Mangum had been CEO of the Houston Symphony since April 2018. He previously worked at the Los Angeles Philharmonic, The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony and Philharmonic

BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) — A former ballerina has been convicted of manslaughter in the 2020 shooting death of her estranged husband in Florida. A Manatee County jury returned the guilty verdict late Tuesday against Ashley Benefield, court records show. She had been charged with second-degree murder, but the jurors opted for a lesser offense after

Associated Press New federal protections for transgender students at U.S. schools and colleges took effect Thursday with muted impact because judges have temporarily blocked enforcement in 25 states and hundreds of individual colleges and schools across the country. The regulation also adds protections for pregnant students and students who are parents, and details how schools

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is suspending $95 million in U.S. assistance to Georgia after its parliament adopted legislation related to foreign agents that critics say was inspired by a Russian law used to crack down on political dissent. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday he’s decided to pause the aid directly benefiting

Associated Press/Report for America ATLANTA (AP) — During the Civil Rights Movement, young people put their bodies on the line as Freedom Riders, boarding buses to protest segregation. One of those riders spoke to young leaders in Atlanta as Democrats adjust to the entry of Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential race. Her campaign

Associated Press ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. (AP) — A demagogue and religious fanatics impose a theocracy. What sounds like a ripped-from-the-headlines 21st century story portrayed by Giacomo Meyerbeer 175 years ago in “Le Prophète” was brought back in a compelling production by Bard’s SummerScape festival. A success at Paris’ Salle Le Peletier in 1849, “Le Prophète” became

Associated Press CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — President Nicolás Maduro on Wednesday asked Venezuela’s high court to conduct an audit of the presidential election after opposition leaders disputed his claim of victory, drawing criticism from foreign observers who said the court is too close to the government to produce an independent review. Maduro told reporters that

Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Within hours of a stabbing attack in northwest England that killed three young girls and wounded several more children, a false name of a supposed suspect was circulating on social media. Hours after that, violent protesters were clashing with police outside a nearby mosque. Police say the name that was

Associated Press SAN DIEGO (AP) — U.S. arrests for illegally crossing the border from Mexico during July have plummeted to a new low for Joe Biden’s presidency, raising prospects a temporary ban on asylum may be lifted soon. The Border Patrol is expected to arrest migrants 57,000 times during the month, down 30% from June

Associated Press TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — The targeting of two senior militant leaders in two Middle Eastern capitals within hours of each other — with each strike blamed on Israel — risks rocking the region at a critical moment. The strikes come as international mediators are working to bring Israel and Hamas to agree

CAEN, France (AP) — French soccer great Kylian Mbappé took his first step into club ownership when his company completed a takeover of second-division team Caen. The club says Interconnected Ventures, a company founded by the Real Madrid striker, bought a majority stake in the French team based in Normandy through its investment arm, Coalition

Associated Press For many college students, a dorm room is their first home away from home. How do you turn it into a work, sleep and hangout space? Decor pros offer this advice. First, make sure you and your roommate are on the same page. Find out more about the dorm room and building ahead

Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — China has sanctioned another U.S. lawmaker for “frequently interfering” in China’s domestic affairs. The sanctions against Rep. Jim McGovern include freezing any Chinese assets, prohibiting anyone in China from working with him and denying him a visa to enter the country. The move is symbolic, since the Massachusetts Democrat has

AP Media Writer News executives were worried for the first half of the year about consumers expressing relatively little interest in the coming election. That’s changed. There’s evidence that interest has started to perk up following an extraordinary run of news. That includes the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, President Joe Biden’s decision

Associated Press ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Nigerians are planning nationwide protests this week against the country’s worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation. Momentum is soaring on social media for the demonstrations planned for Thursday. However, authorities fear a replay of the deadly 2020 rallies against police brutality in this West African nation — or a

Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — China will ban the export of all unregulated civilian drones that can be used for military purposes or in terrorist activities and restrict certain drone features. The new regulations come as Beijing faces repeated Western criticism for its stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Commerce Ministry said Wednesday

Associated Press ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) — Balkan countries are battling wildfires stoked by high temperatures, winds and a weekslong drought. Firefighters in Croatia say they faced their toughest day so far this season and North Macedonia is suggesting it might need to seek help from NATO. Croatia’s Firefighters’ Association said the demanding 24-hour period included

Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s Defense Ministry says a civilian employee in its military intelligence command has been arrested for allegedly leaking military secrets. Tuesday’s arrest came after local media reports speculate the leaked information was about South Korean spies operating abroad and that it may have been sent to North

Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong fencer Cheung Ka-long’s victory over Italy’s Filippo Macchi at the Paris Olympics has sparked an exchange of insults on social media, with Cheung’s supporters celebrating his win with posts about pineapple pizzas—widely considered a culinary blunder in Italian cooking. Cheung made history on Tuesday by beating Macchi

AP Tennis Writer PARIS (AP) — Tennis players competing on the kind of red clay courts being used at the Paris Olympics this week know that it’s pretty much impossible to keep clothes — especially white socks — and footwear clean while running around on what’s really dust from crushed red bricks. Some will just

Edmunds Decades ago, the standard transmission was a manual, while that newfangled automatic was optional. In today’s vehicles, automatic transmissions help a vehicle get better fuel economy and acceleration than traditional manual transmissions. Many performance cars don’t even come with a manual transmission anymore. But there’s still a level of satisfaction you get when driving

AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Toyota has reported more cases of cheating on certification tests for new models required by the Japanese government, on top of others acknowledged earlier. In Wednesday’s report, Toyota said it failed to carry out proper certification on seven models, including the Camry sedan and RAV 4 sport utility vehicle.

MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian military has begun a third round of drills with tactical nuclear weapons, part of the Kremlin’s messaging intended to force the West to limit its support for Ukraine. The Russian Defense Ministry said the drills that started Wednesday will feature units of the central and southern military districts armed with

JERUSALEM (AP) — A pair of strikes on top militant commanders in Beirut and Tehran has escalated tensions in a region already on edge and adds to a long list of targeted killings attributed to Israel. Hamas said Israel was behind the assassination of its supreme leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran’s capital, although there was