Month: August 2021

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV Associated Press MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin has urged authorities to strengtnen their efforts to fight wildfires in northeastern Siberia, calling the situation “unprecedented.” Speaking Saturday in a video call with officials, Putin noted that 13 forest fires in the Sakha-Yakutia region are raging within five kilometers (3 miles) from

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Chinese police have detained two men on suspicion of sexual assault in a high-profile case involving Alibaba Group, the world’s biggest e-commerce company. Police said Saturday there was no evidence that the two men had committed rape, a different charge under Chinese criminal law. The allegations

By The Associated Press The Latest developments on Afghanistan, where a weeklong Taliban offensive is now approaching the outskirts of the capital, Kabul, after the insurgents captured most of the north, west and south of the country, just weeks ahead of the final pullout of all U.S. and NATO troops: ___ WASHINGTON — A defense

By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON, KELLI KENNEDY and STEFANIE DAZIO Associated Press MIAMI (AP) — As coronavirus infections rise among young Americans, so too have deaths in a population once thought to be largely shielded from the worst of the pandemic. It marks a sharp contrast to the elderly and frail, many living in nursing homes,

By VANESSA GERA and JOSEF FEDERMAN Associated Press WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Israel is condemning Poland’s approval of a law that restricts the rights of former Polish property owners, including Holocaust survivors and their descendants, to reclaim property seized by the country’s former communist regime. Israel also has recalled its top diplomat in protest. The

By ELLEN KNICKMEYER Associated Press As the United States ends the nearly 20-year war in Afghanistan and as the Taliban recapture much of the country, Americans are asking if the longest war in their history was worth the cost. A U.S. Marine who served four deployments in Afghanistan says he’s convinced that even a handful

By ADRIAN SAINZ Associated Press HENNING, Tenn. (AP) — The life and legacy of late author and former Tennessee resident Alex Haley is being honored 100 years after he was born. A ribbon-cutting at the newly renovated Alex Haley Museum museum took place Friday, and a community celebration featuring music, food and a fashion show

By PAT EATON-ROBB Associated Press NORWALK, Conn. (AP) — Gov. Ned Lamont calls Connecticut’s shoreline the Napa Valley of Oysters. A quarter century after a parasite nearly killed off the state’s oyster industry, it is thriving again. Government and private efforts to clean up Long Island Sound, develop disease resistant shellfish and find new markets,

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — A former accounts manager for a nonprofit affiliated with the University of South Florida’s medical school has pleaded guilty to embezzling almost $13 million. Ralph Puglisi spent most of the stolen funds at an adult website with some of it coming back to him. He is facing up to 20 years

By TAMEEM AKHGAR and JON GAMBRELL Associated Press KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A Taliban offensive is encircling the Afghan capital and there’s increasingly only one way out for those fleeing the war, and only one way in for U.S. troops sent to protect American diplomats still on the ground: Kabul’s international airport. Some of the