AP National News

Associated Press ERWIN, Tenn. (AP) — Jerry and Sibrina Barrett never spent a day apart over 35 years. They worked long hours, never took vacations, and liked to relax with their son at home. They had no idea that a hurricane could reach them in the mountains of East Tennessee. Living in Johnson City, they

Associated Press For Makenzie Gilkison, spelling is such a struggle that a word like rhinoceros might come out as “rineanswsaurs” or sarcastic as “srkastik.” The 14-year-old from suburban Indianapolis can sound out words, but her dyslexia makes the process so draining that she often struggles with comprehension. “I just assumed I was stupid,” she recalled

Associated Press EIN ZIVAN, Golan Heights (AP) — A dry mountain wind whipped through a cluster of Israeli flags at the entrance of a kibbutz in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, where the tranquility belies the tumultuous events unfolding nearby. Earlier this month, Syrian President Bashar Assad was ousted after nearly 25 years in power. Within

Associated Press ZAMALKA, Syria (AP) — A Syrian family that survived a 2013 chemical weapons attack that killed hundreds of people near the country’s capital, Damascus, says the ordeal they experienced haunts them to this day. The family members locked themselves inside a windowless room in their home for hours, escaping the fate of dozens

Associated Press PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — A survivor of the worst gang attack on Haitian journalists in recent memory describes seeing colleagues cut down by bullets and reporters with head and chest wounds going without help. Photographer Jean Fregens Regala said Wednesday there had been no apparent security preparations _ indeed, little preparation of any

AP Business Writer Stock indexes drifted to a mixed finish on Wall Street Thursday, as some heavyweight technology and communications sector stocks offset gains elsewhere in the market. The S&P 500 fell less than 0.1% after spending the day wavering between small gains and losses. The tiny loss ended the benchmark index’s three-day winning streak.

Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Prosecutors in Taiwan indicted former presidential candidate and Taiwan People’s Party founder Ko Wen-je on corruption charges, accusing him of taking bribes during his time as mayor of Taiwan’s capital. Ko, a former mayor of Taipei, is accused of accepting bribes related to a real estate development during his

Associated Press NEWCASTLE, Australia (AP) — Communities and firefighters across Australia’s second-most populous state are bracing for potentially devastating wild fires as a heat wave fanned by erratic winds presented the worst fire conditions in several years. With temperatures in Victoria state reaching 37 degrees Celsius on Thursday and with wind changes expected throughout the

Associated Press MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — Idil Abdullahi Goley’s journey seeking a better life in Europe started in Somalia with a $6,500 payment to smugglers. It ended a month later with fellow migrants around her dying at sea. One of them was screaming and reciting the Muslim profession of faith. The deaths of 25 migrants

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City police say a taxi driver hit six pedestrians in midtown Manhattan. A New York Police Department spokesperson said Wednesday that the taxi driver may have suffered a possible medical episode, but that the investigation had yet to confirm that. The spokesman said three people were transported to hospitals,

Associated Press BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP) — People gathered in prayer and visited mass graves in Indonesia’s Aceh province on Thursday to mark 20 years since the massive Indian Ocean tsunami hit the region in one of modern history’s worst natural disasters. Many wept as they placed flowers at a mass grave in Ulee Lheue

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — An Oregon house cat died after eating pet food that tested positive for bird flu, Oregon authorities said, prompting a recall of raw frozen pet food that was sold nationwide. Northwest Naturals, a pet food company based in Portland, Oregon, said Tuesday it had voluntarily recalled one batch of its two-pound

NEW YORK (AP) — A man accused of using a knife to slash a man and a woman in Manhattan’s Grand Central subway station is facing assault and menacing charges. Police say that the man was arrested on multiple charges after the attack at 10:15 p.m. Tuesday. They say a 42-year-old man was left with

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Finland’s prime minister says authorities are investigating an interruption in a power cable under the Baltic Sea between his country and Estonia. Petteri Orpo said on X that power transmission through the Estlink-2 cable suffered an outage Wednesday. Authorities have been on edge about undersea infrastructure in the Baltic after two

NEW YORK (AP) — Blake Lively’s claims that “It Ends With Us” director and co-star Justin Baldoni unleashed a smear campaign against her have gained support from a new lawsuit that Baldoni’s former publicist filed against him. The lawsuit was lodged Tuesday in New York state court in Manhattan by Stephanie Jones, who began representing

KAHULUI, Hawaii (AP) — United Airlines has confirmed that a body was found in the wheel well of one of its planes after landing in Maui. Maui police say they’re investigating the discovery of the dead body. In an emailed statement, United said the body was found after flight 202 arrived at Kahului Airport from

PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Kosovo’s election appeals authority has cancelled a ban on the main party of the ethnic Serb minority, allowing it to field candidates in the upcoming parliamentary election. The Electoral Panel for Complaints and Appeals decided that the party, Srpska Lista, or Serb List, overturned a decision Monday by the Central Election

AP Pro Football Writer Beyoncé provided more excitement than either game during Netflix’s NFL debut on Christmas Day. Riding into her halftime appearance on a white horse, the 32-time Grammy winner rocked her hometown Houston crowd with a nearly 13-minute performance on Wednesday. She surprised fans by bringing out Shaboozey to perform “Sweet Honey Buckiin”

Associated Press DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — A British-based war monitor said clashes between Islamists who took over Syria and supporters of ousted President Bashar Assad’s government have killed six Islamic fighters and wounded others. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the fighters were killed while trying to arrest a former official in Assad’s government,

Associated Press Annabell Whelan woke up Tuesday and frantically checked on her holiday overnight guest — Nowl the snowy owl, who she rescued from the grille of a car the day before. Whelan was out with her boyfriend’s family Monday in Duluth, Minnesota, when she saw the owl “just hanging out there, literally” after car

Associated Press ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — A man accused of attempting to assassinate President-elect Donald Trump in South Florida won’t be tried until September 2025, a federal judge ruled this week. Ryan Routh’s trial will begin Sept. 8 instead of the previously scheduled Feb. 10, 2025 start date, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon said in

Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese government panel has largely supported a draft energy policy calling for bolstering renewables up to half of Japanese electricity needs by 2040. It also recommends maximizing the use of nuclear power to accommodate the growing demand for power in the era of AI while meeting decarbonization targets. Cabinet

Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — A baby girl froze to death overnight in Gaza, while Israel and Hamas accused each other of complicating ceasefire efforts that could wind down the 14-month war. The 3-week old baby was the third to die from the cold in Gaza’s tent camps in recent days, doctors said, deaths that

A pair of Saturday NFL games drew a larger viewing audience than college football for the rollout of the sport’s 12-team playoff. The playoff game between SMU and Penn State averaged 6.4 million viewers on TNT networks, compared with the Texans-Chiefs game on NBC, which averaged 15.5 million viewers. Later, Clemson-Texas drew 8.6 million viewers

MEXICO CITY (AP) — The organizer of a Christmas fair in southern Mexico has been assassinated at his city’s holiday event. Authorities in the southern state of Guerrero said gunmen killed the organizer of the annual Christmas fair in the state capital of Chilpancingo, as well as another person. Prosecutors said another person in the

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbia’s striking university students on Wednesday rallied outside the chief prosecutor’s office to demand justice over a concrete canopy collapse that killed 15 people last month in the country’s north. Serbia’s universities have been blocked for weeks as part of a wider movement demanding accountability over the Nov. 1 tragedy in

Edmunds Edmunds highlights five dream-worthy vehicles for holiday wish lists, focusing on models that are luxurious yet somewhat attainable. The lineup includes the Ford F-150 Raptor R, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Chevrolet Corvette ZR1, Cadillac Escalade V and Lucid Air Sapphire, with prices ranging from $112,825 to $250,500. Even if you can’t afford any of these vehicles,

Associated Press PARAMARIBO, Suriname (AP) — Desi Bouterse, a military strongman who led a 1980 coup in the former Dutch colony of Suriname then returned to power by election three decades later despite charges of drug smuggling and murder, has died. He was 79. Suriname’s President Chan Santokhi on Wednesday reflected on Bouterse’s outsized legacy

MOSCOW (AP) — A Russian court has sentenced a Dutch citizen to three years in prison after he was found guilty of punching a police officer. Harry Johannes van Wurden was arrested and placed under house arrest following an altercation with a police officer in central Moscow in October. Russia media said that van Wurden