Month: February 2024

By SYLVIA HUI Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The Body Shop, the British beauty and cosmetics retail chain, says it’s appointed insolvency administrators after years of financial struggles. The retailer grew from a single shop in 1976 to become one of the most recognizable retailers on the British high street with hundreds of stores in

By GERALD IMRAY Associated Press CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — South Africa’s government said Tuesday it had lodged an “urgent request” with the U.N.’s International Court of Justice to consider whether Israel’s military operations targeting the southern Gaza city of Rafah are a breach of provisional orders the court handed down last month in

By ISABELLA O’MALLEY Associated Press PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Lab-created diamonds come with sparkling claims: that they are ethically made by machines running on renewable energy. But many don’t live up to these claims or don’t respond to questions about their electricity sources, and lab diamonds require a lot of electricity. They are chemically the same

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — A panel of safety experts is urging the operator of the tsunami-wrecked Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan to communicate more quickly with the public over incidents such as last week’s leak of contaminated water. Thirteen years have passed since the Fukushima disaster in which the

By LINDSEY BAHR AP Film Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Leaving it on the field seemed to be the M.O. for everyone who got the chance to return to Arrakis for “Dune: Part Two,” which opens March 1. The sequel had not been a given and was dependent on the success of “Part One,” but

By ANDREW WILKS Associated Press ISTANBUL (AP) — Nine workers are believed to be trapped underground after a huge landslide hit a gold mine in eastern Turkey. Turkey’s interior minister said the landslide on Tuesday involved a mound of soil extracted from the mine. he says 400 search and rescue personnel were at the site.

BANGKOK (AP) — Two Thai journalists arrested for reporting on the vandalism of Bangkok temple wall with graffiti criticizing a pro-monarchy law have been released on bail. The arrests, carried out nearly a year after the incident, drew widespread criticism and raised concerns from several right groups over the state of media freedom in Thailand.

By VANESSA GERA Associated Press WARSAW, Poland (AP) — An LGBTQ rights activist in Poland says he believes it’s a “new beginning” in Poland after a host on state television apologized on air for the homophobic propaganda aired by state media for years. Bart Staszewski, a prominent activist, said the apology took him by surprise

By SAM MEDNICK Associated Press DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — Amnesty International says security forces in Senegal have killed at least three people, including a 16-year-old boy, during protests in recent days denouncing the president’s decision to delay elections. Another large protest by civil society, opposition and trade unions was expected Tuesday evening, but organizers said

By FATIMA HUSSEIN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is rolling out new recordkeeping rules for U.S. investment advisers in its continued effort to clamp down on money laundering, illicit finance and fraud in the American financial system. The proposal, if finalized, would require advisers to develop an anti-money laundering program and file

By DAVE COLLINS Associated Press HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A quick-moving winter storm battered cities in the Northeast with snowfall, sending huge waves crashing into the New England coastline and forcing New York City schools into glitch-filled remote learning reminiscent of the early days of the pandemic. Airlines canceled or delayed flights while accidents were

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Missy Mazzoli’s “The Listeners” will be given its delayed U.S. premiere on Sept. 25 to open the season of the Opera Philadelphia, which abandoned the world premiere of Jennifer Higdon’s “Woman with Eyes Closed” because of budget. “The Listeners,” with a libretto by Royce Vavrek and based on Jordan Tannahill’s story, is

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Police say four people were killed and five others are in critical condition after a drive-by shooting at a streetside bar in Puerto Rico. Authorities believe the shooting late Monday is tied to drug trafficking. Puerto Rico has long served as a transit point for multimillion-dollar drug shipments out

MAGNOLIA, W.Va. (AP) — CSX says a cargo train derailed in rural West Virginia, but no injuries were reported and no cars with hazardous materials spilled. CSX and Morgan County officials say the train derailed Monday. Morgan County 911 says no evacuation was needed because of the remote location. CSX says the cars contained dry

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s top security official says she aims to make it easier to trace right-wing extremists’ financing and plans to set up an “early recognition unit” to detect far-right and foreign disinformation campaigns as early as possible. The interior minister’s proposals follow large protests against the far right in Germany in recent weeks.

By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived in the United Arab Emirates on his seventh trip to the nation. He’s preparing to be feted by tens of thousands of his countrymen Tuesday ahead of elections back home in the coming months. Modi was met

By GLENN GAMBOA AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Fidelity Charitable, the nation’s largest grantmaker, distributed a record-setting $11.8 billion to nonprofits in 2023, up more than 5% at a time when donations are generally dropping. The grant total shows how quickly use of the donor-advised fund — an investment account that allows donations

By JANIE HAR Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — San Francisco Mayor London Breed has drawn another challenger in her reelection contest this November. Former San Francisco Supervisor and interim Mayor Mark Farrell announced his candidacy Tuesday. He says the city has crumbled under Breed’s watch. San Francisco’s downtown has struggled to recover from the

By LAUREN SCHWAHN of NerdWallet While credit scores aren’t exactly the most romantic topic of discussion, they can be the keys to unlocking the future that you and your partner envision. Chatting about scores with a significant other is also a good way to learn about their money history and behaviors. Knowing not just your

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish media say counterterrorism police have arrested an Islamic State group suspect who was working at a nuclear power plant being built in the country’s south. They say the Russian national had been working at the Akkuyu nuclear facility under false identity papers. The $20 billion power plant is being built by

By MARY CLARE JALONICK, STEPHEN GROVES and AAMER MADHANI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Tuesday called for House Republicans to urgently bring a $95.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan to a vote, warning that refusal to take up the bill, passed by the Senate in the morning, would

By COLLEEN BARRY Associated Press MILAN (AP) — The violins, violas and cellos played by the Orchestra of the Sea in its debut performance at Milan’s famed Teatro alla Scala carry with them tales of desperation and redemption. The wood that was bent, chiseled and gouged to form the instruments was recovered from dilapidated smugglers’

LONDON (AP) — King Charles III returned to London from his country retreat on Tuesday for what is expected to be further treatment following his cancer diagnosis. Charles, 75, and his wife Queen Camilla flew by helicopter to Buckingham Palace from the royals’ Sandringham estate in Norfolk, eastern England. The monarch was seen waving to

By SAMY MAGDY, NAJIB JOBAIN and TIA GOLDENBERG Associated Press CAIRO (AP) — Israel and Hamas are making progress toward another cease-fire and hostage-release deal, officials said Tuesday, as negotiations went on and Israel threatened to expand its offensive to Gaza’s southern edge, where some 1.4 million Palestinians have sought refuge. The talks continued in