AP National News

By CHINEDU ASADU Associated Press ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Nigerian authorities say two people have died and 77 others were injured after a massive blast rocked more than a dozen buildings in one of the country’s largest cities. Oyo state’s governor said Wednesday that preliminary investigations showed the blast Tuesday night in the densely populated

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Top-ranked Iga Swiatek and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz will feature in the day session on Rod Laver Arena on Thursday as the second round comes to a close at the Australian Open. Swiatek faces Danielle Collins, the American who reached the final here in 2022. Having played his opener at night,

By PAN PYLAS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Inflation across the United Kingdom increased unexpectedly last month as a result of a hike in tobacco and alcohol prices. The Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday that inflation, as measured by the consumer prices index, was 4% in the year to December, up from 3.9%

BERLIN (AP) — Heavy snowfalls and freezing rain across Germany have led to the cancellation of hundreds of flights and trains, crashes on icy roads, and school closures. At Frankfurt and Munich airports, hundreds of flights were canceled Wednesday, while Saarbruecken airport in western Germany closed for the day. Duesseldorf and Cologne/Bonn airports were also

By JANIE HAR Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Promoters of a secretive Silicon Valley-backed ballot initiative to build a new city on farmland between Sacramento and San Francisco are releasing more details of their plan as they submit paperwork Wednesday to qualify for the November election. California Forever, the company that stealthily snapped up

WELLINGTON (AP) — New Zealand’s first refugee lawmaker was charged by police a day after resigning amid allegations she had shoplifted several times at local high-end boutiques. New Zealand Police said Golriz Ghahraman, a former member of New Zealand’s Green Party, had been charged on Wednesday with two counts of shoplifting. Ghahraman, who was the party’s

By NAJIB JOBAIN, SAMY MAGDY and MELANIE LIDMAN Associated Press RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — A shipment of medicine for dozens of hostages held by Hamas was en route to Gaza on Wednesday after France and Qatar mediated the first agreement between Israel and the militant group since a weeklong cease-fire in November. The medicines

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — The defense minister of Belarus says the country closely allied with Russia will put forth a new military doctrine that for the first time provides for the use of nuclear weapons. Russia last year sent tactical nuclear weapons to be stationed in Belarus, although there are no details about how many.

By KIM TONG-HYUNG and JIWON SONG Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Even for a nation that has perfected the provocative, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s declaration that he would abandon the existential goal of reconciling with rival South Korea was a shock. But a closer look shows it’s the almost inevitable culmination

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were trading mostly lower on Wednesday after a decline overnight on Wall Street, while Tokyo’s main benchmark momentarily hit another 30-year high. U.S. shares were set to drift lower with Dow futures down 0.3% at 37,429.00. S&P 500 futures fell 0.5% to 4,775.25. Japan’s

By MUNIR AHMED and JON GAMBRELL Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan on Wednesday condemned Iran for launching airstrikes the previous day that Tehran claimed targeted bases for a militant Sunni separatist group. Islamabad angrily denounced the attack as a “blatant violation” of its airspace and said it killed two children. Tuesday’s strike on Pakistan’s

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — China’s ambassador sought to reassure Australia that China’s increased involvement in the Pacific, particularly in policing efforts, should not be a cause of alarm. Xiao Qian, speaking in Canberra on Wednesday, said China and Australia can contribute together rather than asking Pacific nations to chose between them. He also said China’s

By CLAIRE RUSH Associated Press PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Parts of the Pacific Northwest were under an ice storm warning through Wednesday morning, threatening to add to the damage brought by a powerful winter storm that hit the region over the weekend. Area of southwest Washington and western Oregon — including that state’s largest cities

By ZEN SOO AP Business Writer HONG KONG (AP) — China published youth unemployment data Wednesday for the first time since the jobless rate hit a record high in June last year, using a new method that showed an apparent improvement. China announced a 14.9% jobless rate for people between 16 and 24 in December,

By PAOLO SANTALUCIA Associated Press BARI, Italy (AP) — The year has gotten off to a slow start for a rescue ship that typically plies the Mediterranean Sea looking for migrants and refugees in distress. The Ocean Viking has been impounded, its crew accused of having deviated from a designated course, as Italy targets charity

By ANNA FURMAN Associated Press Watermelons have emblazoned banners, T-shirts, balloons and social media over the past three months in global protests against the Israel-Hamas war. The colors of sliced watermelon — with its red pulp, green-white rind and black seeds — are the same as those in the Palestinian flag. So from New York

By DAVID McHUGH and HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s hard-won economic stability is under threat again as the government faces a large budget hole and its two biggest allies and sponsors — the United States and the European Union — have so far failed to decide on extending more aid. Without

By JAMEY KEATEN Associated Press DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) — The top diplomats of Iran and the United States sit down for public — and separate — one-on-one chats while the U.N. chief and leaders of France, Argentina and Spain will deliver speeches as the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting saunters into a busy second day

By SHEIKH SAALIQ and BISWAJEET BANERJEE Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — Frenzied preparations were underway Wednesday in India’s northern holy city of Ayodhya to mark the opening of a grand temple for Lord Ram, Hinduism’s most revered deity. The Ram Mandir’s opening Monday would fulfill a decadeslong Hindu nationalist pledge that is expected to

By MARK SHERMAN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is taking up challenges by commercial fishermen to a fee requirement that could achieve a long-sought goal of business and conservative interests, limiting government regulations. Arguments are Wednesday. Billions of dollars are potentially at stake in front of a court that was remade during