Year: 2024

Associated Press VATICAN CITY (AP) — Fresh off a four-nation tour of Asia, where he saw record-setting crowds and vibrant church communities, Pope Francis travels to Belgium this week as the once-staunchly Catholic country again confronts its appalling legacy of clergy sex abuse and institutional cover-up. He will receive a sobering welcome: Abuse survivors have

The Israeli military is preparing for a possible ground operation in Lebanon, the Israeli army chief said Wednesday as Hezbollah launched dozens of rockets into Israel, including a longer-range projectile that set off air raid sirens in Tel Aviv and across central Israel. It was the group’s farthest strike yet. Israel said it intercepted the

Associated Press COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — The Marxist lawmaker who won Sri Lanka’s presidency faces a key challenge in how to balance ties with his country’s two most crucial partners, India and China, as he seeks to draw foreign investment and pull the economy out of the doldrums. Anura Kumara Dissanayake won the weekend

Associated Press MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Two Philippine officials say that American and Filipino security officials have agreed to keep a U.S. mid-range missile system in the northern Philippines indefinitely to boost deterrance despite China’s expressions of alarm. The U.S. Army transported the Typhon missile system, a land-based weapon that can fire the Standard Missile-6

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United Arab Emirates say four soldiers were killed and nine others injured in an accident. The UAE’s state-run WAM news agency carried a military statement Wednesday that offered no other immediate details. It said that what happened Tuesday night was “an accident … while they were carrying out

Associated Press PREK TAKEO, Cambodia (AP) — Cambodia has broken ground to build a China-funded canal to eventually link its capital Phnom Penh to the Gulf of Thailand. The hope is that the $1.7 billion canal stretching about 110 miles will cut transport costs and reduce dependence on Vietnamese ports. Cambodia’s plans to build the

Associated Press TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — An enormous Hurricane Helene swamped parts of Mexico on Wednesday as it churned on a path forecasters said would take it to Florida as a potentially catastrophic storm with a surge that could swallow entire homes, a chilling warning that sent residents scrambling for higher ground, closed schools, and

Associated Press It has been a devastating week for Hezbollah and the people of Lebanon. Bombs hidden in the group’s pagers and walkie-talkies killed dozens of people and wounded thousands — many of them Hezbollah members. Israeli strikes on Beirut killed two of Hezbollah’s top commanders. And Israel has bombed what it said were 1,600

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress on Wednesday passed a temporary measure that keeps government agencies funded into December, avoiding a shutdown for now while punting final spending decisions until after the Nov. 5 election. The Senate approved the measure by a vote of 78-18 shortly after the House easily approved it. The bill generally

AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks edged back from their records Wednesday as financial markets around the world took a pause following big recent moves. The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% a day after setting an all-time high for the 41st time this year. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 293 points, or

Associated Press An engineer with the National Transportation Safety Board says the carbon fiber hull of the experimental submersible that imploded en route to the wreckage of the Titanic had imperfections dating to the manufacturing process. Don Kramer also testified to the Coast Guard Wednesday that the material behaved differently after a loud bang was

Associated Press MEXICO CITY (AP) — Many in Mexico will feel a deep sense of loss when folksy, charismatic, nationalistic President Andrés Manuel López Obrador leaves office on Sept. 30, and that’s no surprise. López Obrador himself has spent an inordinate amount of time talking about his own legacy and his place in history ever

Associated Press PLAINS, Ga. (AP) — Barack Obama and his advisers had two living former presidents to consider as they planned the 2008 Democratic National Convention. Bill Clinton, eight years removed from the Oval Office, remained an image of centrist success that warranted a primetime speaking slot. But Jimmy Carter ‘s landslide defeat to Ronald

Associated Press INDIANA, Pa. (AP) — From former President Donald Trump to Ohio Senate candidate Bernie Moreno, male Republican candidates are struggling to speak to female voters, using language criticized as tone-deaf and patronizing as they try to win support from women and speak to issues important to them. On Monday night, Trump cast himself

AP Science Writer UNITED NATIONS (AP) — For young people in some small island nations, a big decision always looms in the back of their minds. As climate change eats away at their home nations should they leave for higher ground or should they stay and tough it out, keeping their culture, heritage and home

Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The victory plan that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will present to the White House this week asks the Biden administration to do something it has not achieved in the two and a half years since Russia invaded Ukraine: act quickly to support Kyiv’s campaign. While Western dawdling has amplified Ukraine’s

Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China has test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile into the Pacific Ocean. The Defense Ministry said the ICBM launched Wednesday morning carried a dummy warhead and fell into the targeted area. The ministry statement said the launch was part of annual routine training and was not directed against any country.

Associated Press SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Residents in Indian-controlled Kashmir have voted in the second phase of a staggered election for a local government, which were not boycotted by separatists like last few elections. It’s the first such vote since Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist government scrapped the Muslim-majority region’s semi-autonomy in 2019. The

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Twelve Singaporean military personnel have been injured in a collision between two armored vehicles during training in Australia. The Singapore Defense Ministry says the injuries occurred when one Hunter Armored Fighting Vehicle rear-ended another on Tuesday at Shoalwater Bay Military Training Area in Queensland state. The Singapore Army says all 12