By Lilit Marcus, CNN (CNN) — A picturesque Japanese town is putting up a giant mesh barrier to block a popular selfie spot near Mount Fuji. Fujikawaguchiko, at the foot of the Yoshida Trail to Mount Fuji, has become overrun with foreign tourists trying to get the perfect photo of Japan’s most famous mountain. Specifically,
Continue ReadingBy ILLIA NOVIKOV Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A Ukrainian court has ordered the detention of the country’s farm minister in the latest high-profile corruption investigation. The minister, who is suspected of unlawfully obtaining valuable land, was released on bail. Ukraine is trying to root out corruption. Also on Friday, Kyiv security officials were
Continue ReadingLONDON (AP) — A former researcher working in the U.K. Parliament and another man charged with spying for China have been granted bail after a court appearance in London. Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry didn’t enter pleas Friday in Westminster Magistrates’ Court. They are charged with violating the Official Secrets Act by providing information or
Continue ReadingHANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnamese state media outlet VN Express reports that the head of Vietnam’s Parliament, Vuong Dinh Hue, has resigned. He is the latest member of senior government to leave office amid an ongoing anti-corruption campaign. The resignation of National Assembly Chair Vuong Dinh Hue adds to growing instability in the country. President
Continue ReadingBy PAN PYLAS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Scotland’s leader has cancelled a speech as he fights for his political life in the wake of his decision to pull the plug on a three-year power-sharing agreement. First Minister Humza Yousaf of the Scottish National Party cancelled Friday’s speech following his decision to tear up the
Continue ReadingBy LEAH ASKARINAM Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — New York voters are choosing a replacement for Democrat Brian Higgins in a congressional district where Democrats have a long record of success. Higgins cited the “slow and frustrating” pace of Congress before resigning in February. Local party officials handpicked the nominees for Tuesday’s special election. Democrats
Continue ReadingISTANBUL (AP) — Turkey’s state-run news agency has reported that a court sentenced a Syrian woman to life in prison for a deadly explosion on a busy shopping district in Istanbul in 2022. Alham Albashir was given seven consecutive life sentences after being convicted on terrorism charges on Friday. The blast on Nov. 13, 2022
Continue ReadingBy EVELYNE MUSAMBI Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Kenya’s state-owned airline has accused the Republic of Congo’s military of holding two of its staffers since last week over cargo issues. Kenya Airways on Friday said the staffers were arrested in its airport office in the capital, Kinshasa, over missing documentation for cargo that the
Continue ReadingPARIS (AP) — Students at a prestigious university in Paris resumed pro-Palestinian protests on Friday, inspired by Gaza solidarity encampments at campuses around the United States, two days after French police broke up another demonstration. Dozens of students at the Sciences Po blocked an entrance to a campus building in central Paris with trash cans,
Continue ReadingBy Lisa Respers France, CNN (CNN) — Before there was conversation over whether Beyoncé is country enough for country music, there was the Black Opry, holding space for music lovers and artists of color in the genre. The organization billed as the “home for Black artists, fans and industry professionals working in country, Americana, blues,
Continue ReadingReview by Brian Lowry, CNN (CNN) — The “Sonic the Hedgehog” movies weren’t particularly good, but they had Jim Carrey and made a lot of money, so inevitably, there’s more. Lacking Carrey to help carry the load, “Knuckles,” spun out of that game-to-screen universe, isn’t just bad, but a next-level degree of bad, starting with
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By Alexandra Banner, CNN (CNN) — A multi-day storm threat is set to impact millions of people in the central US through the weekend. Forecasts show parts of Texas, Missouri and Iowa are in the direct pathway of multiple rounds of severe thunderstorms. Here’s what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and
Continue Reading CNN Opinion by Julian Zelizer, CNN (CNN) — Democrats are increasingly anxious about their party’s internal divisions over the Israel-Hamas war, which are threatening to hurt their chances in November. The eruption of pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses and the ensuing clashes with police portend bad times ahead. While the demands of student protesters vary somewhat from school to school, they
Continue ReadingBy Ben Church, CNN (CNN) — An unexploded World War II bomb is set to be defused on Friday after it was found near the home of Bundesliga soccer club Mainz 05. A statement from the city of Mainz said the 500-kilogram (1,102-pound) American bomb was found during construction work on Wednesday, before the local
Continue ReadingCOPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — A Swedish parliament committee says Sweden should increase its annual military budget by nearly 54 billion kronor ($5 billion) by 2030 to strengthen its air defenses and increase the number of conscripts, among other measures. Sweden joined NATO in March. The report, which was presented to the government on Friday, said
Continue ReadingNEW YORK (AP) — Defense lawyers in Donald Trump’s hush money trial are poised to dig into an account of the former publisher of the National Enquirer and his efforts to protect Trump from negative stories during the 2016 election. David Pecker returns to the witness stand Friday for the fourth day as defense attorneys
Continue ReadingBy SHAHID MEIGHAN, NATHAN COLLINS and ELENA SANTA CRUZ Howard Center for Investigative Journalism Deputy Steven Mills of the Lee County Sheriff’s Office was on patrol one night in 2013 when he received a call about a naked Black man walking down a rural road in Phenix City, Alabama. Mills said the man ignored his
Continue ReadingBy RYAN J. FOLEY and CARLA K. JOHNSON Associated Press At least 16 people died in California over a decade following a physical encounter with police during which medical personnel also injected them with a powerful sedative, an investigation led by The Associated Press has found. Several of the deaths happened in the San Francisco
Continue ReadingBy RYAN J. FOLEY, CARLA K. JOHNSON and SHELBY LUM Associated Press The practice of giving sedatives to people detained by police spread quietly across the nation over the last 15 years, built on questionable science and backed by police-aligned experts, an investigation led by The Associated Press has found. At least 94 people died
Continue ReadingBy RYAN J. FOLEY, CARLA K. JOHNSON and SHELBY LUM Associated Press The practice of giving sedatives to people detained by police spread quietly across the nation over the last 15 years, built on questionable science and backed by police-aligned experts, an investigation led by The Associated Press has found. At least 94 people died
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