AP National News

The Israeli military on Wednesday ordered Palestinians to evacuate another section of central Gaza ahead of an offensive in the built-up Bureij refugee camp, even as Israel and the Hamas appeared to inch closer to a ceasefire in the 14-month war. Israeli President Isaac Herzog said he will meet Wednesday with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s

Associated Press MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Officials in Fiji say a toxicology report shows seven foreign tourists who were hospitalized after drinking cocktails at a resort bar were not poisoned by alcohol or illicit drugs. Fiji’s Tourism Minister Viliame R. Gavoka said on Wednesday the cause of the tourists’ illness over the weekend remains under

Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — Georgia’s outgoing president wants the European Union to press her country’s pro-Russia government to hold a new election. The call by President Salome Zourabichvili on Wednesday came amid a police crackdown on peaceful opposition protesters. Tens of thousands of people have filled the streets regularly since the governing Georgian Dream

Associated Press TOMS RIVER, N.J. (AP) — A Jersey Shore environmental group says damage from decades of toxic waste dumping at one of America’s most notorious pollution sites caused $1 billion worth of damages. Save Barnegat Bay is trying to overturn a settlement between the state of New Jersey and the corporate successor to the

Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani veterinary surgeons found that a bacterial infection killed an elephant at a safari park in the city of Karachi earlier this month, a veterinarian with a global animal welfare organization said Wednesday. Dr. Amir Khalil with the Vienna-based Four Paws told The Associated Press that the infection spread through

MILAN (AP) — An injured cave explorer in northern Italy has been carried to safety 75 hours after she fell while attempting to map an unexplored branch of the cave complex. The last leg of the rescue operation Wednesday proceeded more smoothly than expected. Workers carrying 32-year-old Ottavia Piana strapped into a stretcher reached the

Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Inflation in the U.K. has risen to its highest level since March. It’s being driven by an increase in fuel prices last month. The Office for National Statistics said Wednesday that the consumer price inflation rose by 2.6% in the year to November. That’s up from 2.3% the previous month.

Russia’s security service said Wednesday it detained a citizen from Uzbekistan in the bombing that killed a senior general as he left his southeastern Moscow apartment — a bold assassination that was claimed by Ukraine’s security service. Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov was killed Tuesday by a bomb hidden on an electric scooter outside his apartment

Associated Press MICHIGAN CITY, Ind. (AP) — An Indiana man convicted of killing four people including his brother and his sister’s fiancé decades ago was put to death early Wednesday, marking the state’s first execution in 15 years. Joseph Corcoran, 49, was pronounced dead at 12:44 a.m. CST at the Indiana State Prison in Michigan

Associated Press MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A Filipino woman who spent years on death row in Indonesia for drug trafficking, and who was nearly executed by firing squad in 2015, said Wednesday she’s happy to be back in the Philippines but still counting on its president to get out of jail. Mary Jane Veloso spent

Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — As the war in Gaza rages, Syria’s government transforms, and the Israeli-occupied West Bank seethes, Armenian residents of the Old City of Jerusalem fight a different battle. It’s a quieter struggle, they say, but no less existential. The Armenians have lived in the Old City for decades without significant friction

Associated Press SAO PAULO (AP) — For decades, they have scrounged for food on streets across the country — undesired, abandoned and overlooked. But today, the caramel-colored mutts of Brazil are having a major moment. The “vira-lata caramelo” (literally: caramel trashcan-tipper) is being exalted in memes, videos, petitions, an upcoming Netflix film, a Carnival parade

Associated Press MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Community members in Wisconsin continued to wrestle with grief and called for change in the aftermath of a school shooting that killed a teacher and a student and wounded six others. Several hundred people gathered outside the Wisconsin State Capitol for a vigil Tuesday night to honor those slain

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Elon Musk’s attachment to President-elect Donald Trump has created an unprecedented alliance between America’s most powerful politician and its richest businessman. Roughly the same percentages of Americans have favorable views of both of them, according to a new poll from the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Experts are split

AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve cut its key interest rate Wednesday by a quarter-point — its third cut this year — but also signaled that it expects to reduce rates more slowly next year than it previously envisioned, mostly because of still-elevated inflation. The Fed’s 19 policymakers projected that they will

Associated Press AVIGNON, France (AP) — French judges plan to deliver hugely anticipated verdicts this week in a historic drugging-and-rape trial that has turned the victim, Gisèle Pelicot, into a feminist hero. Everything about the trial in the southern French city of Avignon has been exceptional, most of all Pelicot herself. She has been the

Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, entered Syrian territory Tuesday and said Israeli troops would remain in the area indefinitely, blurring the border with its northern neighbor. Since its establishment in 1948, Israel has never had fully recognized borders. Throughout its history, the frontiers with its Arab neighbors have shifted as

AP Basketball Writer LAS VEGAS (AP) — Everyone has a lucky number in Las Vegas. For the Milwaukee Bucks, it was 3. And the NBA Cup was their prize. Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 26 points to go along with 19 rebounds and 10 assists, Damian Lillard added 23 points and the Bucks connected on 17 3-pointers

AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — Japanese automakers Nissan Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. confirmed Wednesday that they are discussing closer collaboration but denied reports they have decided on a merger. Nissan’s share price soared nearly 24% in Tokyo after reports citing unnamed sources said it might merge with Honda to form the world’s

Associated Press Police say five family members have been found dead inside a home in Utah, including three children. Another was taken to a hospital with a gunshot wound. That person is 17 years old. A spokesperson for the West Valley City Police Department says the dead were two adults, an 11-year-old boy and two

SYDNEY (AP) — Retired Sydney radio broadcaster and former Australian national rugby coach Alan Jones has denied all allegations after he appeared in a court charged with multiple sex crimes against 10 males over two decades. The 83-year-old made his first court appearance in Sydney’s Downing Center Local Court on Wednesday following his arrest last

Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese space startup says its second attempt to launch a rocket carrying satellites into orbit had been aborted minutes after liftoff. The failed attempt on Wednesday came nine months after the company’s first launch bid ended in an explosion. Space One’s Kairos No. 2 rocket lifted off from a

Associated Press WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Vanuatu’s capital is without water after reservoirs were destroyed by a violent magnitude 7.3 earthquake that wrought havoc on the South Pacific island nation. Rescuers frantically dug through the rubble of collapsed buildings after the quake hit on Tuesday afternoon. The government said Wednesday that there were 14

Associated Press KABAENA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia’s mining industry is rapidly expanding on demand for the minerals needed to help power the global energy transition, like nickel, cobalt and bauxite. But experts say it’s coming at a cost for thousands of communities across the vast archipelago. On the small island of Kabaena, Indigenous villagers are

Associated Press The secretary general of the International Biathlon Union apologized to any athlete who was mistreated during his tenure at U.S. Biathlon while speaking to a 90-minute meeting Tuesday that focused on concerns about athlete safety brought to light by multiple Associated Press reports. “I appreciate anyone who comes forward with issues, especially issues