AP National

Associated Press WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand authorities have “grave concerns” for three mountain climbers from the U.S. and Canada who are missing after a planned ascent of the country’s highest peak, Aoraki. The police said Thursday that a search for the men could not resume as planned due to harsh weather conditions

AP Sports Writer ESPN is continuing their transition into more direct-to-consumer offerings and being more accessible with Wednesday’s launch of Disney+. The ESPN expansion with its own section onto Disney+ follows the launch of Hulu on Disney+ earlier this year. Those who subscribe to a bundle package with Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ will be able

Associated Press MIAMI (AP) — One of Colombia’s legendary drug lords and a key operator of the Medellin cocaine cartel has been released from a U.S. prison and is expected to be deported home. Records from the U.S. Bureau of Prisons show that Fabio Ochoa Vásquez was released Tuesday after completing 25 years of a

NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon founder Jeff Bezos says he is “optimistic” about President-elect Donald Trump’s second term and expressed some excitement about potential regulatory cutbacks in the coming years. The comments follow an October decision by Bezos to prohibit The Washington Post, which he owns, from endorsing a presidential candidate. That move led to

Associated Press CAIRO (AP) — Amnesty International accuses Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip during its war with Hamas, saying it has sought to deliberately destroy Palestinians by mounting deadly attacks, demolishing vital infrastructure and preventing the delivery of humanitarian aid. The human rights group said in a report released Thursday in the

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — A jury in Texas has sentenced a man for killing and dismembering three people whose bodies were found in a burning dumpster in Fort Worth in 2021. The Tarrant County jury on Wednesday sentenced 44-year-old Jason Thornburg to death. He’d been found guilty of capital murder last month in the

AP Political Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Democrats and Republicans agreed on at least one thing before November’s election: California would play a central role in determining which party controls the U.S. House. Indeed it did. Democrats in the left-leaning state succeeded in seizing three GOP-held seats, but Republicans held their ground in two other

Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. donors gave $3.6 billion on Tuesday, an increase from the past two years, according to estimates from the nonprofit GivingTuesday. The Tuesday after Thanksgiving, now known as GivingTuesday, has become a major annual day for nonprofits to fundraise and otherwise engage their supporters. In both 2022 and 2023,

AP Media Writer A basic tenet of journalism — calling someone for comment on a story — was seen as a threat by defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth’s mother. Penelope Hegseth appeared on Fox News Channel to talk about her son, whose nomination by President-elect Trump to lead the Pentagon is threatened by a series

ALPINE, Texas (AP) — A U.S. attorney in Texas says three U.S. Army soldiers have been arrested on human smuggling charges. U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas said in a Thursday news release that Fort Cavazos soldiers Emilio Mendoza Lopez, Angel Palma and Enrique Jauregui were arrested after a vehicle carrying

Associated Press LUANDA, Angola (AP) — President Joe Biden’s long-delayed trip to Africa was overshadowed by his controversial pardon of his son Hunter. The visit had many of the hallmarks of a traditional state visit, including a cannon salute, celebratory music and photo opportunities. But outroar over the pardon back in Washington ensured that the

Associated Press Swaths of Pennsylvania and many other states are honeycombed with old, unstable mines that can cause the earth to suddenly give way. The phenomenon is known as “mine subsidence” — and it poses a threat to people and property alike. That’s what officials near Pittsburgh fear happened Monday evening when 64-year-old Elizabeth Pollard

Associated Press Security cameras captured video of a University of Mississippi student leaving his campus apartment twice on the morning he was last seen alive. That’s according to testimony Wednesday from University Police Department Capt. Jan Mahan. Jimmy “Jay” Lee was a 20-year-old gay man well known in the LGBTQ+ community at Ole Miss and

Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — The new Los Angeles police chief says in an interview with The Associated Press that his department is working with consulate offices for Mexico and other Central American countries to draft a plan to protect immigrants ahead of the Trump administration’s plans for mass deportations. Jim McDonnell says his

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court heard the most high-profile case of its term on Wednesday, weighing Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming health care for transgender minors. Similar laws have been passed by other conservative-leaning states. Challengers say they deprive kids of treatment they need, while the states defend them as protecting minors from

Associated Press The FBI is investigating reports about several mysterious nighttime drone flights that have recently occurred across central New Jersey and has asked the public for help. Witnesses have spotted a cluster of what appears to be drones — larger than those typically used by hobbyists — as well as a possible fixed-wing aircraft

Associated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee has repaid about $1,900 for a trip to a conference in Florida after ethics officials found he shouldn’t have relied on an outside group to cover the travel. The Tennessee Ethics Commission released the opinion Tuesday. It ruled the payment violated a state law banning

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) — Police say a stabbing suspect is dead after being shot by police in the Canadian city of Vancouver in a convenience store. Vancouver Police say the suspect has died in hospital. Authorities say two people suffered injuries that are not thought to be life threatening. Vancouver Police Constable Tania Visintin

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A top White House official on Wednesday said at least eight U.S. telecom firms and dozens of nations have been impacted by a Chinese hacking campaign. Deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger offered new details about the breadth of the sprawling Chinese hacking campaign that gave officials in Beijing access

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The family of a Hawaii woman who vanished after landing in Los Angeles three weeks ago have expressed frustration with investigators and say they haven’t seen the surveillance footage that shows her walking across the border into Mexico. LA’s police chief says the video shows Hannah Kobayashi walking alone at the

Associated Press The man accused of killing the head of one of the biggest U.S. health insurance companies has been charged in New York with murder as an act of terrorism. Prosecutors announced the new charge against Luigi Mangione on Tuesday. The 26-year-old suspect is being held without bail in Pennsylvania, where he was arrested

Associated Press MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin’s upcoming Supreme Court election already had high stakes, with majority control on the line. But a judge’s ruling this week restoring collective bargaining rights to roughly 200,000 teachers and other public workers in Wisconsin further intensifies the contest. The liberal-controlled court had already delivered a major win to

Associated Press MIAMI (AP) — One of Venezuela’s most popular bands has canceled its homecoming tour after President Nicolas Maduro criticized the group for what he said were sexist lyrics. Many saw the lashing out as an attack by the leftist leader over the band’s embrace of his political opponents. Rawayana, a 2025 Grammy nominee,

Associated Press A prosecutor in Ohio is seeking to exonerate four men convicted three decades ago in the beating death of a woman. Two of the men have remained in prison since the mid-1990s while the other two spent more than 25 years behind bars before being released on parole. The prosecutor in Lorain County

Associated Press PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Republican Austin Theriault has ended a recount, conceding to Democratic U.S. Rep. Jared Golden in Maine. The announcement Wednesday brings to an end a closely watched congressional race a month after Election Day. Theriault decided to end the recount after early results didn’t show a significant change in the

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s Senate has voted to charge cruise ship passengers $42 per head for port calls, drawing sharp criticism from the tourism industry. Mexican business chambers say the immigration charge — from which cruise passengers used to be exempt — may hurt the country’s half-billion-dollar-per-year cruise industry. The measure will go into

LONDON (AP) — British authorities say they have dismantled two massive money laundering operations linked to Russia that were used by oligarchs, organized crime groups, cybercriminals and drug dealers. The international sting known as Operation Destabilize seized 20 million British pounds in cash and cryptocurrency and arrested 84 suspects. It was revealed on the same

AP Golf Writer The LPGA and the USGA have updated gender policies that will require players to be assigned female at birth or to have transitioned to female before going through male puberty. The policies begin in 2025 and follow more than a year of study. The groups concluded that going through male puberty allows

AP Golf Writer Kevin Kisner is the next lead analyst for NBC Sports. The four-time PGA Tour winner was coming off his worst season in 2023 when he was asked to try out broadcasting at the start of this year. Now he’s the main analyst for NBC’s portfolio of PGA Tour events that include two

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump says he’s selected a former soldier and Iraq War veteran to serve as secretary of the Army. Trump said on Wednesday that Daniel P. Driscoll had completed Army Ranger school and deployed with the 10th Mountain Division to Iraq. Driscoll had been recently serving as a senior adviser

Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — A court in Kenya has found the housemate of an LBGTQ activist guilty of murder in the killing of the activist, whose body was discovered stashed in a metal box two years ago. A High Court judge in the western city of Eldoret said Wednesday that the prosecution had

AP Business Writer WWE will perform on a stage next month that could be vastly larger than its current home on cable television when “Raw,” its weekly live show, makes its debut on Netflix. The sports entertainment company is moving to a platform with about 283 million subscribers worldwide as it departs its current home

Associated Press DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — The wife of an investigative journalist in Guinea says her husband had been abducted in Guinea’s capital, as the military regime continues to tighten its grip on independent media. Habib Marouane Kamara, the editor-in-chief of an online investigative outlet lerevelateur224.com, was headed to meet a businessman and a friend

Associated Press Keira Knightley starred in one of the most popular Christmas films of the 21st century, the 2003 romantic comedy “Love Actually.” Her new Netflix series “Black Doves” is also set during the holidays, but in this, she plays a spy alongside Ben Whishaw’s assassin. Knightley says the show debuting Thursday falls under the

Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Brian Thompson led one of the biggest health insurers in the U.S. but was unknown to millions of people his decisions affected. Then Wednesday’s targeted fatal shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO on a midtown Manhattan sidewalk thrust the executive and his business into the national spotlight. Thompson, who was

Associated Press KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli airstrikes tore through a tent camp for displaced Palestinians in southern Gaza on Wednesday, sparking fires and killing at least 21 people, according to the head of a nearby hospital, in the latest assault on a sprawling tent city that Israel designated a humanitarian safe zone

Associated Press BALTIMORE (AP) — A newly released audit says Maryland has failed to properly manage contracts with private companies that provide medical and mental health care to prisoners in state-run detention facilities. State auditors looking into the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services found hundreds of missed evaluations for suicide risk and mental

AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The birth of Lauren Mayberry as a solo artist should be marked by something like a wolf cry. And that’s exactly what it sounds like. The vocalist and percussionist from the Scottish pop band Chvrches has punctuated her debut album with a playful howl while telling off an

VIENNA (AP) — An Austrian court has ruled that Ukrainian businessman Dymitro Firtash can’t be extradited to the U.S. in a long-running legal saga that centers on a corruption case related to an alleged plan to pay bribes in India. The Vienna State Court said Tuesday evening it decided on Nov. 7 that an extradition

Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump is trying to get the Georgia election interference case against him dismissed. He asserts that the state’s courts will not have jurisdiction over him once he returns to the White House next month. The Georgia case against Trump and others is mostly on hold pending a pretrial

NEW YORK (AP) — OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who is locked in a legal dispute with rival Elon Musk, said said he is “not that worried” about Musk’s influence in the incoming Trump administration. Altman told a New York Times conference Wednesday that he “may turn out to be wrong” but he believes strongly that

AP Film Writer “Anora,” Sean Baker’s odyssey of a New York stripper, and Jane Schoenbrun’s psychological horror “I Saw the TV Glow” dominated nominations for the Film Independent Spirit Awards with six nods each, including best feature and best director. The nonprofit organization announced nominations Wednesday on a YouTube livestream. Sometimes the Spirit Awards overlap

AP Film Writers Break out your “Dune” popcorn bucket: It’s time for the best movies of the year. Associated Press Film Writer Jake Coyle and Lindsey Bahr name their top films of 2024. Their lists are topped by the sublime Indian drama “All We Imagine As Light” and the WWII drama “Blitz.” Other picks include

BANGKOK (AP) — A major ethnic rebel group in Myanmar has announced a unilateral ceasefire in its conflict with the ruling military and called for a dialogue under Chinese auspices to help restore peace in the country’s northeast. China’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday it welcomed the initiative. China is the military government’s most important foreign

AP Airlines Writer Members of a U.S. Senate subcommittee took aim at airline executives Wednesday for using an expanding menu of fees to charge customers for early boarding, better seats and other comforts that used to be part of the ticket price. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said he thinks the federal government should review and

Associated Press MANASSAS, Va. (AP) — A judge ruled that a Virginia man accused of killing his wife, whose body has still not been found, will go trial in September. Thirty-seven-year-old Naresh Bhatt of Manassas Park was indicted earlier this week on charges of murder and defiling the body of his wife, Mamta Kafle Bhatt.

Associated Press IZVORANI, Romania (AP) — The surprise front-runner in Romania’s presidential election insisted to The Associated Press in an interview Wednesday that he is not pro-Russian — hours before Romania declassified intelligence alleging Moscow ran an online campaign to promote him to voters. Far-right populist Calin Georgescu could not immediately be reached about the

Associated Press It was a history-making event: In a chapel at Fort Liberty, North Carolina, 2nd Lt. Khady Ndiaye stood proudly — wearing a hijab – as she became the first Muslim woman commissioned by the U.S. Army as a chaplain candidate. Presiding over the ceremony in June was Maj. Gen. Bill Green, the Army’s

PESHAWAR, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistan’s military says its troops have raided a militant hideout in the restive northwest, resulting in a shootout in which five insurgents were killed and two others were wounded. In a statement, the military said the raid occurred Wednesday in Lakki Marwat, a district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. It gave

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Police in Trinidad and Tobago said they have confiscated more than $6 million worth of drugs, one of the biggest seizures in the history of the twin-island Caribbean nation. The seizure included more than 500 pounds (230 kilograms) of marijuana and more than 28 pounds, or 13 kilograms, of

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico has decided to increase its still strikingly low daily minimum wage by 12% next year. But because the Mexican peso has dropped by 18% in value over the last year, the increase actually marks a slight drop in constant dollar terms. The three-party minimum wage commission, made up of government,

Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A gunman killed UnitedHealthcare’s CEO on Wednesday in a “brazen, targeted attack” outside a Manhattan hotel where the health insurer was holding its investor conference, police said, setting off a massive search for the fleeing assailant hours before the annual Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting nearby. Brian Thompson, 50,

Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte is leading a fresh push for European countries to ramp up defense spending. It’s a shortcoming that President-elect Donald Trump used to berate U.S. allies during his first term in office, severely damaging trust. Since Russia launched its full-fledged invasion almost three years ago, NATO’s 32

Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi has been temporarily released from prison in Iran after undergoing complex surgery that saw part of a bone in her right leg removed over cancer fears. A campaign on Mohammadi’s behalf says she will be free for 21 days but will

LONDON (AP) — Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi will face no formal action from the English Football Association despite defying its rules for a second time by writing a religious message on his uniform during a Premier League campaign celebrating LGBTQ+ inclusion. Guehi and Palace were contacted by the FA and reminded of English soccer’s

AP Auto Racing Writer The Associated Press has learned that two longtime NASCAR executives have been introduced at Andretti Global as part of the restructuring now that Michael Andretti has stepped aside. Doug Duchardt, who has served multiple roles with race teams and with General Motors, was named chief performance officer of motorsports at TWG

AP Business Writer The District of Columbia is alleging in a lawsuit that Amazon secretly stopped providing its fastest delivery service to residents of two predominantly Black neighborhoods in the city. The district says the online retailer still charged residents of two zip codes millions of dollars for a service that provides speedy deliveries. The

Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — An Irish YouTuber hopes to raise millions of dollars for charity this holiday season — and is using a popular gaming technology to rally his fans around the cause. Seán McLoughlin, also known as Jacksepticeye, is popular for his video game playthroughs and candid mental health content. His annual

Associated Press BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary’s foreign minister says a meeting of his counterparts from NATO member countries in Brussels has produced “no consensus” on the prospect of inviting Ukraine to join the transatlantic military alliance. Kyiv sees NATO membership as an essential condition for bringing an end to Russia’s war. But speaking at

PRAGUE (AP) — Officials say oil delivery to the Czech Republic from Russia through the Druhzba pipeline has been interrupted. The state Mero company that operates the pipeline network in the country says it is assessing the situation. It says the state has reserves for 90 days and oil delivery from the West through the

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Louisiana voters will decide the fates of four proposed amendments to the state constitution, in what will be the final statewide election of 2024. The measures on the ballot Saturday would change how state officials conduct oversight of judges, deliberate spending bills in the Legislature and deal with the properties

Edmunds Similar in size and fuel economy, these two hybrid compact sedans differ from there. The 2025 Honda Civic Hybrid boasts much stronger performance and a higher-quality cabin, while the 2025 Hyundai Elantra Hybrid provides more features for the money and better tech. There are advantages for both, but when the Civic is ahead, it’s

DETROIT (AP) — The poor performance of General Motors’ Chinese joint ventures is forcing the company to write down assets and take a restructuring charge totaling more than $5 billion in the fourth quarter of this year. The Detroit automaker said Wednesday in a regulatory filing that it will cut the value of its equity

Unless you happen to be an average-size person with perfectly balanced proportions, the clothing you buy may or may not fit perfectly. A skilled tailor can make a wardrobe seem almost custom-made by taking up a hem, adjusting a cuff, or making a few nips and tucks here and there. The same applies to your

Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — The leader of Syria’s most powerful insurgent group has toured the seized city of Aleppo in a surprise visit, the first since the insurgents captured large parts of the city over the weekend as fierce fighting intensifies in the government-led counter-offensive in northern Hama. Abu Mohammed al-Golani, who heads jihadi

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francishas  met Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Vatican and discussed with him the war in Ukraine, focusing on the humanitarian situation and efforts to promote peace in the region. Francis also discussed other themes with Orban, including the Hungarian presidency of the Council of the European Union as

Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union agreed to delay by a year the introduction of new rules to ban the sale of products that lead to massive deforestation, caving in to demands from several producer nations from across the globe and domestic opposition within the 27-nation bloc. Officials said Wednesday that the EU