AP National News

By PAN PYLAS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Millions of voters in England and Wales will cast their ballots on Thursday in an array of local elections that will be the last big test before a U.K. general election that all indicators show will see the Conservative Party ousted from power after 14 years. Prime

By MARK LEWIS Associated Press STAVANGER, Norway (AP) — A convicted sex offender is asking the Norwegian Supreme Court to declare social media access is a human right. The case before the court Thursday involves a man who molested a minor and used the Snapchat messaging app to connect with young boys. The unnamed offender

By RYAN KRYSKA AP Sports Writer Gamers’ appetites for immersive sports video games have not changed much since the heyday of EA Sports’ college football. Society, however, has. Video-game developer EA Sports is breaking back into the college football world 11 years after lawsuits over using players’ likeness without compensation froze the franchise. EA Sports

By ZIMO ZHONG Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Asian markets wobbled in early Thursday trading after U.S. stocks swung to a mixed finish with the Federal Reserve delaying cuts to interest rates. U.S. futures surged and oil prices were higher. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index opened with a decline, then climbed 0.1% to 38,299.71. The

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Solomon Islands lawmakers have elected former Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele as prime minister in a development that suggests the South Pacific island nation will maintain close ties with China. Manele used his first speech as leader to promise to govern with integrity and to put his

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says the company will invest $2.2 billion over the next four years in new cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure in Malaysia. It marks Microsoft’s single largest investment in the country, as the tech giant seeks to bolster support for AI development in the region and worldwide.

By DAVID KLEPPER and KRUTIKA PATHI Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — Bollywood stars seldom weigh in on politics, so videos showing two celebrities criticizing Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi — and endorsing his main opposition, the Congress party — were bound to go viral. But the clips of A-list actors Aamir Khan and Ranveer

By JEFF AMY Associated Press CONYERS, Ga. (AP) — U.S. Rep. David Scott faces multiple Democratic primary opponents in his quest for a 12th congressional term. He’s running in a sharply reconfigured suburban Atlanta district. With early voting underway ahead of the May 21 primary elections, the 78-year-old is trying to glide to renomination. Challengers

By MARIA CHENG and CHRISTINA MALKIA Associated Press KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Congo is struggling to contain its biggest mpox outbreak, and scientists say a new form of the disease detected in a mining town might more easily spread among people. Since January, Congo has reported more than 4,500 suspected mpox cases and nearly 300

By DAVID BAUDER and CHRISTINE FERNANDO Associated Press Writers NEW YORK (AP) — Ordered by police to leave the scene of a UCLA campus protest after violence broke out, Catherine Hamilton and three colleagues from the Daily Bruin suddenly found themselves surrounded by demonstrators who beat, kicked and sprayed them with a noxious chemical. On

By ANITA SNOW and MORGAN LEE Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona is waving goodbye to a Civil War-era ban of nearly all abortions as a repeal bill reaches the desk of Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs. Hobbs says the repeal, scheduled for signing on Thursday, is just the beginning of a fight to protect reproductive

By LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press FORT LIBERTY, N.C. (AP) — The video is unsettling, with haunting images of faceless people, fire and soldiers. The voiceover is a cascade of recognizable historical voices as the screen pulses cryptic messages touting the power of words, ideas and “invisible hands.” Hints of its origin are tucked into

BEIJING (AP) — A section of a highway collapsed after heavy rains in a mountainous area in southern China, sending cars tumbling down a slope and leaving at least 36 people dead, authorities said Thursday. The Meizhou city government said that 23 vehicles have been found after a 17.9-meter (58.7-foot) long section of the highway

By CHEVEL JOHNSON RODRIGUE and KEVIN McGILL Associated Press NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival is usually akin to a 14-ring musical circus — a variety of musical acts playing simultaneously on stages spread throughout the sprawling infield of a historic horse racing track. That changes Thursday afternoon, when 13

By CHRIS MEGERIAN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is staying mum about student protests and police crackdowns as Republicans try to turn campus unrest over the war in Gaza into a campaign cudgel against Democrats. Tension at colleges and universities has been building for days as some demonstrators refuse to remove encampments

By BRUCE SCHREINER Associated Press GEORGETOWN, Ky. (AP) — Michael Blowen can step outside his house any day of the week and visit retired racehorses at Old Friends, the thoroughbred retirement farm he founded in Kentucky two decades ago that attentively cares for former winners and losers alike. From his home’s backdoor, Blowen can watch