By NINIEK KARMINI Associated Press JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian authorities have arrested six suspects in an international poaching ring targeting the Javan rhinoceros, a critically endangered species. Police say the suspects are part of a network that used homemade firearms to kill at least 26 Javan rhinos since 2018 to get their horns, which
Continue ReadingBy CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve officials on Wednesday will likely make official what’s been clear for many weeks: With inflation sticking at a level above their 2% target, they’re downgrading their outlook for interest rate cuts. In a set of quarterly economic forecasts they will issue after their latest
Continue ReadingBy THOMAS ADAMSON Associated Press PARIS (AP) — Françoise Hardy, a French singing legend and pop icon since the 1960s, has died. She was 80. Her son, musician Thomas Dutronc, announced the death on social media, sharing a poignant photo of himself as a child with her. Hardy, who had been battling lymphatic cancer since
Continue ReadingBy JAMES BROOKS Associated Press BASEL, Switzerland (AP) — Multimillion-dollar works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Yayoi Kusama and Alberto Giacometti went on the market as the Art Basel fair opened in Switzerland. Thousands have flooded the exhibition center for VIP previews before doors open to public Thursday. More than 280 galleries exhibited everything from paintings and
Continue ReadingBy JONATHAN J. COOPER Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — Republicans responded to Hunter Biden’s conviction on federal gun charges Tuesday with some version of, “That’s it?” Republicans loyal to Donald Trump largely echoed the former president’s claim that the Justice Department has treated President Joe Biden’s son with kid gloves while zealously prosecuting Trump. Using
Continue ReadingBy STEVE WARTENBERG Associated Press CASTLETON, England (AP) — Vistas, history and a slice of rural England await hikers to the Peak District’s Mam Tor. The district is a national park known for picturesque landscapes, limestone ridges and mineral waters, It’s popular as a hiking and camping destination for U.K. residents. But outside of England
Continue ReadingBy ELAINE KURTENBACH and MATT OTT AP Business Writers Stocks on Wall Street turned sharply higher early Wednesday after the government reported that inflation pressures eased in May, data that investors hope could move the Federal Reserve closer to cutting its benchmark interest rate from a 23-year peak. Futures for major U.S. indexes, which were
Continue ReadingBy FARNOUSH AMIRI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The House is expected Wednesday to vote on a resolution holding Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over audio of President Joe Biden’s interview in his classified documents case, a move that comes just weeks after the White House blocked release
Continue ReadingCNN By Joan Biskupic, CNN Senior Supreme Court Analyst (CNN) — Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito really wasn’t caught. The religious zeal reflected in the surreptitious recordings made public this week has long been evident in Alito’s statements and written opinions. But his remarks, captured secretly by a liberal activist presenting herself as a conservative Catholic,
Continue ReadingBy Radina Gigova, Olga Voitovych and Rashard Rose, CNN (CNN) — The United States has lifted a ban on sending weapons and training to the Ukrainian Azov brigade, which played a vital role in the defense of the port city of Mariupol, but had a controversial past. The ban, called the “Leahy Law,” prohibits any military
Continue ReadingBy REGINA GARCIA CANO and GISELA SALOMON Associated Press CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — A fleet of Russian warships on Wednesday began entering the Caribbean in what some see as a projection of strength as tensions grow over Western support for Ukraine. The first two ships slowly crossed the mouth of the Havana Bay under a
Continue ReadingBy BASSEM MROUE and JACK JEFFERY Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that mediators would keep trying to close an elusive cease-fire deal for Gaza after Hamas proposed changes to a U.S.-backed plan, some of which he said were “workable” and some not. The back-and-forth laid bare frustration
Continue ReadingBy CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation in the United States eased last month in a hopeful sign that a pickup in prices that occurred early this year may have passed. The trend, if it holds, could move the Federal Reserve closer to cutting its benchmark interest rate from its 23-year peak.
Continue ReadingBy MARK SHERMAN and LINDSAY WHITEHURST Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has a lot of work left to do and little time to do it. The court is headed into its final few weeks with about a third of the cases heard this year undecided, including ones that could reshape the law
Continue ReadingBy FARNOUSH AMIRI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Merrick Garland is at risk of becoming the third attorney general in U.S. history to be held in contempt of Congress. Republicans are moving to punish the Justice Department for refusing to turn over audio related to President Joe Biden’s handling of classified documents. Contempt is among
Continue ReadingBy SAMY MAGDY Associated Press MECCA, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Muslim pilgrims have been streaming into Saudi Arabia’s holy city of Mecca for the Hajj, as the annual pilgrimage returns to its monumental scale. Saudi officials say more than 1.5 million foreign pilgrims have arrived in Mecca so far. More are expected, and hundreds of
Continue ReadingHAVANA (AP) — A fleet of Russian warships and aircraft have entered the Caribbean in what some see as a projection of strength as tensions grow over Western support for Ukraine. The U.S. military expects the exercises will involve a handful of Russian ships and support vessels, which may also stop in Venezuela. Russia is
Continue ReadingNEW YORK (AP) — Bestselling author V.E. Schwab has a 7-figure book deal. Tor Books announced Wednesday that it has agreed to terms on a two-book, $2 million contract with the science fiction/fantasy novelist. The first book, “Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil,” is scheduled for June 2025. Schwab’s novel will span from 16th
Continue ReadingBy FLORENT BAJRAMI and LLAZAR SEMINI Associated Press PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Kosovo is celebrating what it considers a liberation day, marking the 25th anniversary of the withdrawal of Serb forces after a NATO bombing campaign. Thousands of ethnic Albanians had died under Serbian repression. Neighboring Serbia refuses to officially accept the independence of its
Continue ReadingBy Patrick Oppmann, AnneClaire Stapleton, Natasha Bertrand, Haley Britzky, Sergey Gudkov and Sophie Tanno, CNN (CNN) — A group of Russian Navy ships, including a nuclear-powered submarine, arrived in Cuba on Wednesday morning in a sign of strengthening ties between the two Cold War allies. Russian frigate Admiral Gorshkov – the first of a four-ship
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