News

By STEVE KARNOWSKI Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Seven Minnesotans accused of fraud are set to stand trial in what prosecutors call a massive scheme to exploit lax rules during the COVID-19 pandemic and steal from a program meant to provide meals to low-income children. Opening statements are expected Monday. They are the first of

By JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — A trial for a mass environmental injury case is starting more than two years after a U.S. military fuel tank facility under ground poisoned thousands of people when it leaked jet fuel into Pearl Harbor’s drinking water. The 17 plaintiffs represent more than 7,500 others, including

By MICHAEL CASEY Associated Press DEDHAM, Mass. (AP) — The trial of a woman charged in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend has begun with both sides presenting their opening statements. Karen Read is facing charges including second degree murder in the 2022 death of Officer John O’Keefe. O’Keefe was a 16-year veteran

By ISABELLA VOLMERT Associated Press SHERIDAN, Ind. (AP) — U.S. Rep. Victoria Spartz is the first and only Ukrainian-born member of Congress. In the first days of the war, she emerged as a natural voice for Ukraine. But she recently voted against sending $61 billion of aid to the country. Her reversal aligns with other

By CIARÁN GILES Associated Press MADRID (AP) — Spain is in nail-biting suspense Monday as it waits for Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to announce whether he will continue in office or not. Sánchez shocked the country on Thursday, announcing he was taking five days off to think about his future after a court opened preliminary

By JUAN ZAMORANO Associated Press PANAMA CITY (AP) — The leading candidate to be Panama’s next president is a last-minute stand-in who promises to return the Central American country to a boom time that experts say will be difficult to recapture. José Raúl Mulino, a maritime lawyer and former security minister, was thrust to the

By RIAZAT BUTT and ADIL JAWAD Associated Press KARACHI, Pakistan (AP) — Born and raised in Pakistan to parents who fled neighboring Afghanistan half a century ago, an 18-year-old found himself at the mercy of police in Karachi who took his cash, phone and motorbike, and sent him to a deportation center. Scared and bewildered,

By YURI KAGEYAMA Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Naked and frail, a shaggy-haired man films himself as he endures solitude in a tiny room for months, and months more. “The Contestant,” directed by Clair Titley, explores the story behind the late 1990s hit reality TV show from Japan, “A Life in Prizes,” in which a

By MATTHEW LEE AP Diplomatic Writer RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday begins his seventh diplomatic mission to the Middle East since the Israel-Hamas war began more than six months ago. He has his work cut out for him. The war has ground on since Hamas’ deadly Oct.

BEIJING (AP) — Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk has met with a top government leader in the Chinese capital, just as the nation’s carmakers are showing off their latest electric vehicle models at the Beijing auto show. Chinese Premier Li Qiang told Musk on Sunday that he hopes the U.S. will work more with

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were trading higher Monday amid optimism over the rally that ended the week on Wall Street, although eyes were on the Federal Reserve policy meeting set for later this week. Sydney’s S&P/ASX 200 added 0.8% in afternoon trading to 7,637.40. South Korea’s Kospi surged

By VICTORIA MILKO Associated Press JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — From trees felled in protected national parks to massive swaths of jungle razed for palm oil and paper plantations, Indonesia had a 27% uptick in primary forest loss in 2023 from the previous year, according to a World Resources Institute analysis of deforestation data. But the

BEIJING (AP) — Aerial photos posted by Chinese state media show wide devastation in part of the southern city of Guangzhou after a tornado swept through the day before, killing five people, injuring dozens others and damaging more than 140 buildings. As businesses and residents began cleaning debris Sunday, the images showed block upon block

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Monday described domestic violence as a “national crisis” after thousands rallied around the country against violence toward women. Thousands protested in cities around Australia on Sunday to draw attention to the deaths of 27 women so far this year allegedly caused by acts of gender-based