Associated Press SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Actor Jussie Smollett’s conviction on charges that he staged a racist and homophobic attack against himself in downtown Chicago in 2019 and lied to police was overturned Thursday over prosecutorial issues in an Illinois Supreme Court decision that did not address his claim of innocence. The state’s highest court
Continue ReadingNIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Thousands from across the junta-led countries in Africa’s Sahel region were gathering this week in the Nigerien capital of Niamey to condemn what they call the West’s imperialist agenda and to drive support for their military regimes. The three-day anti-imperialism conference featured music and cultural displays. Delegates from Niger, Burkina Faso
Continue ReadingAP Baseball Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Shohei Ohtani keeps setting records, even after the season is over. The Los Angeles Dodgers star added his third Most Valuable Player award to his collection and first in the National League when he was chosen unanimously by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America on Thursday. Aaron Judge
Continue ReadingBy Kathy Rose OBrien, CNN (CNN) — A volcano near Iceland’s capital erupted on Wednesday night, becoming the seventh such event in the area since December. The length of the fissure on the volcano, located in Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula in the southwest of the country, is estimated to be approximately 3 kilometers (1.9 miles), according
Continue ReadingAP Sports Writer MALAGA, Spain (AP) — It was an emotional farewell from tennis for Nadal this week after Spain was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the Davis Cup in Malaga. It was also heart-wrenching for his fans across Spain, as they saw one of the country’s very best finally call it quits. Davis Cup
Continue ReadingAssociated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Russia’s third largest bank, Gazprombank and its six foreign subsidiaries were hit with U.S. sanctions on Thursday. The action is intended to curtail Russia’s ability to evade the thousands of sanctions imposed on the nation since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen
Continue ReadingAssociated Press ROME (AP) — Pope Francis, who has imposed a series of cost-cutting measures across the cash-strapped Vatican, warned Thursday that the city state’s troubled pension fund needs urgent reform to guarantee future obligations. Vatican employees responded by expressing concern that their compensation might be targeted in any further cost-cutting to shore up the
Continue ReadingAP Business Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes rose in October, the first annual gain in more than three years, with home shoppers encouraged by easing rates and a pickup in properties on the market. Existing home sales rose 3.4% last month, from September, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate
Continue ReadingBy Annie Grayer and Haley Talbot, CNN (CNN) — House GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announced that she will chair a new oversight subcommittee in the next Congress that will work with the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. House Oversight Chair James Comer “intends to establish a
Continue ReadingAssociated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The leaders of the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security declined to testify publicly at a scheduled Senate hearing Thursday on global national security threats, a break from precedent following years of open testimony before the panel. “Their choice to not provide public testimony about their departments’ efforts to
Continue ReadingAssociated Press BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Mali’s ruling junta has appointed a new prime minister from the ranks of the military generals, a day after firing his predecessor for criticizing the military regime. The move effectively consolidates all power in the African country in the hands of military generals. Mali has been ruled by military
Continue ReadingAP Medical Writer NEW YORK (AP) — For about 50 years, adding cavity-preventing fluoride to drinking water was a popular public health measure in Yorktown, a leafy town north of New York City. But in September, the town’s supervisor used his emergency powers to stop the practice. The reason? A recent federal judge’s decision that
Continue ReadingAssociated Press SKOPJE, North Macedonia (AP) — Most buses have stopped running in North Macedonia’s capital because of the indebted operator’s problems procuring fuel, leaving thousands of commuters stranded and disrupting services and businesses. Buses began going out of service late Wednesday and only a few routes were operating early Thursday in Skopje, home to
Continue ReadingNo. 23 UNLV (8-2, 4-1 Mountain West, No. 24 CFP) at San Jose State (6-4, 3-3), Friday, 10 p.m. EST (FS1) BetMGM College Football Odds: UNLV by 7 1/2. Series record: San Jose State leads 20-7-1. What’s at stake? UNLV is ranked for the second time ever in the AP poll and is seeking its
Continue ReadingBy Jack Guy, CNN (CNN) — The world’s tallest woman and the world’s shortest woman have met for afternoon tea in London to celebrate Guinness World Records Day. Rumeysa Gelgi, who stands 215.16 centimeters (7 feet 0.7 inches) tall, and Jyoti Amge, who measures just 62.8 centimeters (2 feet 0.7 inches), met at the Savoy
Continue ReadingAssociated Press DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — When Ephrem Yalike-Ngonzo was first approached in 2019 by a Russian who suggested he help promote the activities of the Central African Republic’s army and Russian forces in the country, the journalist believed that he was doing the right thing. But he soon realized that he was recruited by
Continue ReadingBy Abeer Salman, Ibrahim Dahman and Eyad Kourdi, CNN (CNN) — Israeli strikes on northern and central Gaza killed at least 87 Palestinians in 24 hours, local health authorities said, as the death toll in the enclave surpassed 44,000. At least 65 people were killed in Israeli strikes on northern Gaza overnight, a medical official
Continue ReadingBy Catherine Nicholls and Eve Brennan, CNN (CNN) — Russia launched a new non-nuclear ballistic missile with medium range on Ukraine’s Dnipro region on Thursday, Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said in a televised statement, marking another significant escalation in the 1,000-day-old war. According to US and Western officials, the ballistic missile carried multiple warheads, which
Continue ReadingAssociated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Kenya’s president says he has cancelled multimillion-dollar airport expansion and energy deals with Indian tycoon Gautam Adani after U.S. bribery and fraud indictments against one of Asia’s richest men. President William Ruto in a state of the nation address said the decision was made “based on new information provided by
Continue ReadingBy Andy Rose and Devon M. Sayers, CNN Winder, Georgia (CNN) — Colin Gray, the father of alleged Georgia school shooter Colt Gray, entered a not guilty plea Thursday morning to charges – including two counts of second-degree murder – alleging that he shares responsibility for the September shooting. Gray did not appear in court,
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