AP National News

Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Desertion is starving the Ukrainian army of desperately needed manpower and crippling its battle plans at a crucial time in its war with Russia, which could put Kyiv at a clear disadvantage in future ceasefire talks. Facing every imaginable shortage, tens of thousands of Ukrainian troops, tired and bereft,

Associated Press NYANGAMBE, Zimbabwe (AP) — It was an alarming, even sickening, suggestion: Farmers in Zimbabwe hit hard by drought should farm maggots to feed their animals and boost their household incomes. But the smelly solution has been embraced after some convincing in a country where people have traditionally associated flies with diseases such as

Associated Press MARRAKECH, Morocco (AP) — One of the Middle East and North Africa’s largest film festivals is openiong in Morocco, drawing actors and directors from throughout the world to present 70 features from 32 countries. The Marrakech International Film Festival, now in its 21st year, will showcase Oscar contenders and screen films for members

AP Business Writers NEW YORK (AP) — Retailers used giveaways and big discounts to reward U.S. shoppers who ventured out for Black Friday even as earlier offers, the prospect of better bargains in the days ahead and the ease of e-commerce drained much of the excitement from the holiday shopping season’s much-hyped kickoff. Frequent deals

Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — A handful of Massachusetts lawmakers are hoping to persuade their colleagues to support a proposal that would make the state the first to adopt a ban meant to eliminate the use of tobacco products over time. Other locations have weighed similar “generational tobacco bans.” The bans phase out the use

Associated Press ON BOARD THE SANTA TRAIN (AP) — Since 1943, the people of Appalachian Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee have looked forward to Santa’s arrival. Not in a sleigh on their rooftops, but on a train. The Santa Train marks its 82nd running this year, bringing presents and joy to small towns along a 110-mile

AP Sports Writer GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Jordan Love threw two touchdown passes to Jayden Reed and the Green Bay Packers capitalized on a fast start to beat Miami 30-17 and snap the Dolphins’ three-game winning streak. Green Bay has won three straight and seven of its last eight. Miami continued its recent history

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Coffee drinkers can sip their beverages and view a quiet North Korean mountain village from a new Starbucks at a South Korean border observatory. Customers have to pass a military checkpoint before entering the observatory at Aegibong Peace Ecopark, which is less than a mile from North Korean territory and

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks posted solid gains as Wall Street put the finishing touches on one of its best months of the year. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.4%. Both indexes closed out November with their best monthly performances of the year. The Nasdaq added 0.8%. Friday

Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Every Wednesday, retiree Zhang Zhili travels an hour by bus to an education center, drawn by the pulsing rhythms of the African drum she plays there in a classroom filled with fellow retirees whose hands move in unison, every beat lifting her spirits. Zhang, 71, has found joy and

Associated Press JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — A South Korean National Assembly member has called for a moratorium on wood pellet imports from Indonesia and an investigation into South Korea’s biomass use after government data and satellite analysis linked the country’s biomass imports to deforestation in Indonesia. In South Korea, biomass has grown to become the

Associated Press WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Mistakes by members of the crew caused a New Zealand navy ship to plow into a reef off the coast of Samoa, where it caught fire and sank, according to the preliminary findings of a military Court of Inquiry released Friday. The ship’s crew did not realize autopilot

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The owner of an oil field in Los Angeles County is suing the state of California over a law that will require it to stop production and plug its wells or face costly fines. Sentinel Peak is the owner of the Inglewood Oil Field. Los Angeles Times reports that it argues

TORONTO (AP) — Canada’s antitrust watchdog is suing Google over alleged anticompetitive conduct in the tech giant’s online advertising business and wants the company to sell off two of its services and pay a penalty. The Competition Bureau says that such action is necessary because an investigation it conducted into Google found that the company

Associated Press DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — France’s President Emmanuel Macron has for the first time recognized the killing of West African soldiers by the French Army in 1944 as a massacre. The recognition came Thursday in a letter addressed to Senegalese authorities. Between 35 and 400 West African soldiers who fought in the World War

Associated Press The California Department of Fish and Wildlife has released a new plan to protect the state’s iconic Joshua trees, which are imperiled by wildfires, human development and climate change. The 294-page draft plan includes calls for avoiding or minimizing direct and indirect impacts from overgrazing, pesticide use and unauthorized off-roading. It also says

ST. LOUIS (AP) — A 16-year-old has died after being hit by a stray bullet last weekend on a St. Louis highway. Colin Brown was hit Saturday night while being driven home in his father’s car after playing a hockey game, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. The high school junior died Wednesday in a hospital,

AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Super Bowl pregame will have some Louisiana flavor: Multi-talented performer Jon Batiste will hit the stage to sing the national anthem, while Trombone Shorty and Lauren Daigle are slated to perform “America the Beautiful.” The performances will take place Feb. 9 at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans

DEBRECEN, Hungary (AP) — Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv’s game against Besiktas in the Europa League has been played without incident before empty stands in Hungary, with the stadium closed to fans over security concerns following attacks on Israeli supporters in Amsterdam this month. Maccabi won the game 3-1 on a cold and rainy evening

Associated Press WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Six Democratic members of Congress from Connecticut have been targeted by bomb threats on their homes. Sen. Chris Murphy and all five House members — Reps. Jim Himes, Joe Courtney, John Larson, Jahana Hayes and Rosa DeLauro — reported being the subject of such threats Thursday. Police

AP Sports Writer LAS VEGAS (AP) — San Jose State said Thursday it was disappointed Boise State forfeited its semifinal match in the Mountain West women’s volleyball tournament but that the Spartans were focused on the future. Boise State, which twice boycotted regular-season matches with San Jose State, pulled out of the conference tournament Wednesday

Associated Press CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan lawmakers have approved a bill that codifies economic sanctions, like those imposed by the United States, as a crime against humanity and allows the prosecution of anyone who expresses support for the measures. Thursday’s move follows the White House’s decision to impose sanctions on dozens of individuals it

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — The New Mexico Court of Appeals has upheld regulations aimed at cracking down on emissions in one of the nation’s top-producing oil and gas states. The case centered on a rule adopted in 2022 by state regulators that called for curbing the pollutants that chemically react in the presence of

Associated Press MONROVIA, Liberia (AP) — Liberia’s former warlord and senator Prince Johnson, one of the main actors in the country’s horrific civil wars, died at the age of 72. Johnson, who once videotaped himself drinking Budweiser as his men cut off the ears of a former president, was elected senator in 2006 and remained

Associated Press HANOUIYEH, Lebanon (AP) — During their 37 years of marriage, Mariam Kourani and her husband ran a butcher shop in southern Lebanon, started a business selling serving containers and opened a small restaurant. An Israeli airstrike in late September destroyed it all. Walking through the rubble of what used to be her house

Associated Press DENVER (AP) — A dentist accused of killing his wife by poisoning her protein shakes has been charged with trying to get a fellow jail inmate to kill a detective investigating the murder case. Prosecutors filed two new charges against James Craig last week — solicitation to commit murder as well as solicitation

COPENHAGEN (AP) — One of Denmark’s largest cellphone networks has suffered severe outages that prevented people from contacting emergency services and forced at least one hospital to reduce non-critical medical care. The network provider, TDC Net, said the problems were likely due to an update carried out in the past 24 hours and it had