Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — A giant Norway spruce that will serve as this year’s Rockefeller Center Christmas tree was en route to New York City on Thursday from its tiny Massachusetts hometown. The 74-foot-high (23-meter-high) conifer, donated by a family that owned it, was cut down Thursday morning in West Stockbridge and hoisted onto
Continue ReadingAssociated Press MEXICO CITY (AP) — For the last six years, Mexico bragged about its oft-questioned policy of “hugs, not bullets,” in which the country’s leaders avoided confrontations with drug cartels that were gradually taking control of large parts of the country. Social programs, not shootouts, they said, would gradually drain the pool of cartel
Continue ReadingPRAGUE (AP) — The Czech central bank has cut its key interest rate for the eighth time in a row as inflation remains low and the economy is making a slow recovery. The quarter of a percentage point cut, which had been predicted by analysts, brings the rate to 4%. The central bank started to
Continue ReadingAssociated Press BIG PINE KEY, Fla. (AP) — The world’s only Key deer, the smallest subspecies of the white-tailed deer, are found in piney and marshy wetlands bordered by the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico on the Florida Keys. For years, their biggest threat was being struck by vehicles speeding along U.S. Highway 1
Continue ReadingAssociated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump won the presidency after holding tight to his core base of voters and slightly expanding his coalition to include several groups that have traditionally been a part of the Democratic base. That finding comes from AP VoteCast, a sweeping survey of more than 120,000 voters nationwide that shows
Continue ReadingATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece’s foreign minister says his country has established a foundation of trust with Turkey ahead of a visit by the Turkish foreign minister to Athens as the two countries try to ease tensions. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will meet Friday with Greek counterpart Giorgos Gerapetritis as part of a renewed
Continue ReadingCHILI, N.Y. (AP) — A bus with more than two dozen passengers aboard rolled over on a highway in upstate New York on Thursday morning, critically injuring one person and sending others to hospitals, police said. All 28 people aboard were sent to hospitals, some with minor injuries, after the bus overturned on Interstate 490
Continue ReadingCOPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Two Swedish teenagers who were arrested in connection with last month’s predawn explosions near the Israeli Embassy in Copenhagen are facing preliminary terror charges. The charges come before formal charges and allow authorities to detain suspects during an investigation. The teens, aged 17 and 19, were arrested in early October after
Continue ReadingAssociated Press PARIS (AP) — Paris’s Notre Dame cathedral, whose historic bells were silenced following 2019’s devastating fire, will soon echo again with fresh chimes. On Thursday, the Gothic landmark took delivery of three new bells, including one that was used in the city’s Stade de France stadium during this year’s Paris Olympic Games. The
Continue ReadingAssociated Press TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iranians, like many around the world, are divided on what Donald Trump’s next presidency will bring: Some foresee an all-out war between Tehran and Washington, particularly as other conflicts rage in the region. Others hold out hope that America’s 47th president might engage in unexpected diplomacy as he did
Continue ReadingAP Business Writer The number of Americans applying for jobless aid ticked up last week but layoffs remain at historically low levels. The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claim applications rose by 3,000 to 221,000 for the week of Nov. 2. That’s fewer than the 227,000 analysts forecast. The four-week average of weekly claims,
Continue ReadingBERLIN (AP) — Germany’s federal prosecutor office said it arrested an American citizen who allegedly spied for China. The office said that the suspect, who was only identified as Martin D., was arrested in Frankfurt on Thursday and that his home was being searched. The accused, who until recently worked for the U.S. Armed Forces
Continue ReadingAssociated Press JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South Africa has closed its border again with Mozambique, where post-election protests have escalated, leading to clashes between protesters and the police. Authorities also warned South Africans to postpone non-essential visits to Mozambique. The border was closed earlier this week and partially opened on Thursday to allow limited movement of
Continue ReadingLONDON (AP) — A British Parliament member has been charged with assault after video showed him beating a man in the street. Prosecutors said Thursday that Mike Amesbury, who has been suspended by the Labour Party, was charged with common assault charge in the Oct. 26 incident involving a 45-year-old man. Surveillance footage appeared to
Continue ReadingAssociated Press SIMON’S TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Prince William rode on a sea rescue boat along part of the South African coast as he wrapped up a four-day visit to Cape Town dedicated to promoting conservation and the battle against climate change. William met with volunteers at the National Sea Rescue Institute station in
Continue ReadingMILAN (AP) — Italy has opened up an administrative procedure against China’s Sinochem, the largest shareholder in Italian tiremaker Pirelli, over possible violations of restrictions placed by Rome to protect strategic assets. Pirelli announced said the procedure was launched under the so-called “golden power” provisions, which include restrictions to the access of some information and
Continue ReadingAssociated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Dozens of Russian drones targeted Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, in an eight-hour nighttime attack, authorities said Thursday as Russia kept up its relentless pounding of Ukraine after almost 1,000 days of war. Lone Russian drones and also swarms of drones entered Ukrainian airspace from various directions and at a
Continue ReadingSTOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden’s central bank has cut its key interest rate by half a percentage point to 2.75% in what was described as the largest reduction in over a decade. It’s the fourth rate cut this year. Riksbanken said Thursday that it would “provide further support to the economy and help inflation stabilize at
Continue ReadingMADRID (AP) — Authorities in Spain seized 13 tonnes, or 13,000 kilograms, of cocaine in a cargo container apparently filled with bananas. They described it as the biggest anti-narcotics operation in the country’s history. Officials found bricks of drugs hidden behind the fruit on a vessel at the southern port of Algeciras in southern Spain,
Continue ReadingAssociated Press BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Around 50 European leaders have reassessed their trans-Atlantic relations at a special summit in Budapest, in the hope that Donald Trump’s second U.S. presidency will avoid the strife and political pitfalls of his first. However, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned against Trump’s assertion that he could end Russia’s war
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