Month: November 2024

Associated Press MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australian communications minister says the government won’t force social media users to hand over personal information to tech companies, as children younger than 16 are set to be banned from the platforms. Michelle Rowland plans to introduce into Parliament on Thursday world-first legislation that would make X, TikTok, Facebook

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis said he will canonize Carlo Acutis next April, setting the eagerly awaited date for the late teenager to become the Catholic Church’s first millennial and digital-era saint. Francis made the announcement at the end of his weekly general audience on Wednesday, saying he would proclaim the church’s youngest contemporary saint

AP Science Writer BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — Human-caused climate change made Atlantic hurricanes about 18 miles per hour (29 kilometers per hour) stronger in the last six years, a new scientific study found Wednesday. For most of the storms — 40 of them — the extra oomph from warmer oceans made the storms jump an

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — A Spanish court has upheld a ruling that a supermarket worker was unlawfully fired for having eaten a croquette that was going to be thrown away after not having been sold from the store’s deli section. The worker was fired in July 2023 after he had snarfed down the fried snack

Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Japanese officials say they are closely watching to see if China keeps its promise to prevent further violations of Japan’s airspace after explaining that an incursion by a Chinese military aircraft nearly three months ago was unintentional and caused by turbulence. Tokyo protested and sought an explanation from Beijing after

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s upper house of parliament has endorsed a bill banning adoption of Russian children by citizens of countries where gender transitioning is legal. The Federation Council on Wednesday also approved bills that outlaw the spread of material that encourages people not to have children. The bills, which have previously been approved by

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Scuffles have erupted for a second day in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad between police and opposition protesters demanding arrests over a deadly roof collapse at the city’s railway station earlier this month. Anti-government protesters sought on Wednesday to block a courthouse in Novi Sad, where the roof collapse

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s top domestic security agency says it arrested a German national it accused of planning to sabotage energy facilities on orders from a Ukrainian national. The Federal Security Service said in a statement Wednesday that it detained German national Nikolai Gayduk as he entered Russia’s Kaliningrad from Poland and seized half a

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Officials say Pakistan has detected one more polio case in the restive northwest bordering Afghanistan, raising the country’s tally of the infectious disease to 50 cases this year. Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world where the spread of polio has never been stopped. The rise in cases

Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The U.S. defense chief says the Biden administration will give Ukraine antipersonnel land mines to help it slow Russia’s battlefield advances. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s announcement marks Washington’s second major policy shift in a week, after its decision to let Ukraine use longer-range American missiles in attacks into Russia.

Associated Press ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Large protests have been held in Greece as part of a 24-hour nationwide general strike called by labor unions timed to coincide with the government submitting its 2025 budget to Parliament. Public and private sector workers walked off the job to take part in industrial action that disrupted public

Associated Press PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — A suicide bomb attack at a security post in northwestern Pakistan has killed 12 troops, military sources and officials said. Tuesday’s attack happened in Bannu, a district in restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where the Pakistani Taliban and other insurgents have stepped up attacks in recent months. A breakaway faction

Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Inflation in the U.K. has risen sharply to a six-month high in October, cementing market expectations that there will be no further cuts in borrowing rates this year. The Office for National Statistics said Wednesday that higher domestic energy bills pushed consumer price inflation up to 2.3% in the year

Associated Press ISSAQUAH, Wash. (AP) — A major storm battered the U.S. Northwest with strong winds and rain, causing widespread power outages, closing schools and downing trees that killed at least two people. The Weather Prediction Center issued excessive rainfall risks through Friday, and hurricane-force wind warnings were in effect as the strongest atmospheric river

Associated Press BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — This year, Russian missile attacks have knocked out about 50% of Ukraine’s power generation, a major threat as winter looms. Energy companies say they have been able to quickly restore power after many attacks, thanks to the decentralized nature of renewable energy like wind and solar. In centralized systems

Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s spy agency says that North Korea has recently supplied additional artillery systems to Russia to support its war efforts against Ukraine. Lawmakers, who attended Tuesday’s closed-door briefing by the National Intelligence Service, also say the NIS assesses some of the thousands of North Korean troops deployed

Associated Press BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — With time running down, negotiators at the United Nations annual climate talks on Wednesday returned to the puzzle of finding an agreement to bring far more money for vulnerable nations to adapt than wealthier countries have shown they’re willing to pay. Vulnerable nations are seeking $1.3 trillion to deal

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Parts of coastal southern China have suspended ferry services as a major storm passes into the South China Sea, bringing high winds and heavy waves to much of the region. The storm was downgraded Wednesday from Typhoon Man-yi, which left seven dead in the Philippines and worsened the crisis caused by

AP Entertainment Writer Chris Stapleton took home four Country Music Association Awards and hardly left the stage on Wednesday night, while an absent Morgan Wallen was shut out all evening until taking the night’s biggest prize, entertainer of the year. Stapleton’s wins included song of the year and single of the year for “White Horse,”

Associated Press Vigils and other events are being held to draw attention to transgender people who have lost their lives due to violence in the past year. Wednesday marked Transgender Day of Remembrance, which is held every Nov. 20. The Human Rights Campaign says at least 36 transgender people have been killed by violence over

AP Education Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Throughout his campaign, President-elect Donald Trump heaped scorn on the federal Department of Education, describing it as being infiltrated by “ radicals, zealots and Marxists.” He has picked Linda McMahon, a former wrestling executive, to lead the department. But like many conservative politicians before him, Trump has called for

Associated Press BELEM, Brazil (AP) — Belem, a bustling metropolitan area of 2.5 million people near the mouth of the Amazon River, is preparing to host COP30 next year. But when tens of thousands of participants arrive, they won’t find idyllic images of rainforest, like lush vegetation and clean rivers. Impoverished, crime-ridden and filled with

Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — Three generations of TJ Rickard’s family lost their homes in the deadly Maui wildfire more than a year ago, and he and his extended family still have not rebuilt. That leaves Rickard, a high school basketball coach, conflicted about next week’s return of the storied Maui Invitational college tournament. Like

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City police have killed a man in Queens after he shot at officers — hitting one in the leg — who were responding to reports of armed robberies in the area. Officials said the officer who was shot Tuesday is expected to survive. Joseph Kenny, the New York Police

Associated Press/Report for America AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — The Texas State Board of Education has given initial approval to a Bible-infused curriculum that would be optional for public schools to adopt for lessons from kindergarten through fifth grade. The plan advancing Tuesday is the latest Republican-led effort to incorporate more religious teaching into U.S. public

Associated Press MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. says a deal has been reached for Indonesia to send back a Filipino death-row drug convict, who was nearly executed by firing squad but got a reprieve due to years of pleadings from Manila. Marcos thanked Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and his government on

Associated Press LA PAZ, Boliva (AP) — Last year, then-presidential candidate Javier Milei declared Argentina would not “make deals with communists” in China or Brazil, calling their leaders “murderers” and “thieves” in a bid to channel the populist energies of Donald Trump into a winning political message. But Tuesday, President Milei found himself at the

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California voters have rejected a measure on the November ballot that would have raised the minimum wage for most workers to $18 an hour. The rate would have been on par with Hawaii and the highest statewide minimum wage in the country. Proponents of the failed initiative said it would have

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — San Francisco Mayor London Breed has lost her reelection race to Levi Strauss heir Daniel Lurie. The Associated Press called the race Tuesday. Breed already conceded the race to Lurie, and pledged a smooth transition for the incoming mayor. Breed’s victory six years ago as the city’s first Black female mayor