By LUIS ANDRES HENAO Associated Press HAVANA (AP) — The 1959 Castro-led revolution installed an atheist, Communist government that sought to replace the Catholic Church as the guiding force in the lives of Cubans. But 65 years later, religion seems omnipresent in Cuba, in dazzling diversity. The bells toll on Catholic churches and the call
Continue ReadingCNN By Shania Shelton, CNN Washington (CNN) — The decisions by President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump on Wednesday to agree to two presidential debates will ensure the continuation of a tradition that dates back to 1960. But it might look a little different this year: the candidates will first debate on June
Continue ReadingBy EUGENE HOSHIKO and MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press YOKOSUKA, Japan (AP) — A U.S. Navy strike group’s flagship aircraft carrier has left its Japanese home port, wrapping up nearly nine years of deployment in the Indo-Pacific, where it served a key role in the U.S. effort to bolster defense ties with Japan and other partners
Continue ReadingBy ELAINE KURTENBACH and MATT OTT AP Business Writers Wall Street drifted slightly higher early Thursday a day after markets rallied on hints that inflation is subsiding. Futures for the Dow Jones industrials and the S&P 500 each rose less than 0.1% before the bell. The meme stock rollercoaster stretched into another day with AMC
Continue ReadingBy GLENN GAMBOA AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — White men are most likely to lead the largest, best-funded nonprofits, while women of color tend to lead the organizations with the fewest financial resources, according to a study from the nonprofit data research organization Candid released Thursday. “The State of Diversity in the U.S.
Continue ReadingBy GRANT PECK Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — A leading international human rights organization has urged the Thai government to stop forcing political dissidents who fled to Thailand for safety to return to authoritarian home countries, where they may face torture, persecution or death. In a new report, Human Rights Watch said Thai authorities repeatedly
Continue ReadingBy SOPHIKO MEGRELIDZE Associated Press TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — A controversial media bill passed this week by Georgia’s parliament is “unacceptable” and will be vetoed, President Salome Zourabichvili said Thursday, reaffirming her opposition to a measure that critics describe as a threat to free speech. In an interview with The Associated Press, Zourabichvili harshly criticized
Continue ReadingBy BELA SZANDELSZKY, PETR DAVID JOSEK and PHILIPP JENNE Associated Press BANSKA BYSTRICA, Slovakia (AP) — The Slovak interior minister said Thursday that a “lone wolf” has been charged in the shooting that seriously wounded Prime Minister Robert Fico and prompted soul-searching among leaders in the deeply divided society. Fico was in serious but stable
Continue ReadingBy JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Britain’s still-undeclared election campaign has stepped up a gear. Opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer on Thursday announced the key pledges that he hopes will make him the U.K.’s next prime minister. The center-left party is focusing on economic stability, security, health and education as it tries
Continue ReadingWARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland’s prosecutors say they have put a controversial judge who fled to autocratic Belarus on a wanted list, a step toward entering him on an international arrest warrant on espionege allegations. A spokesperson for the national prosecutor’s office said Thursday the search for judge Tomasz Szmydt had been launched. Even if
Continue ReadingBy KELVIN CHAN AP Business Writer LONDON (AP) — The European Union opened fresh investigations Thursday into Facebook and Instagram over suspicions that they’re failing to protect children online, in violation of the bloc’s strict digital regulations for social media platforms. It’s the latest round of scrutiny for parent company Meta Platforms under the 27-nation
Continue ReadingBy KELVIN CHAN AP Business Writer LONDON (AP) — The European Union opened fresh investigations Thursday into Facebook and Instagram over suspicions that they’re failing to protect children online, in violation of the bloc’s strict digital regulations for social media platforms. It’s the latest round of scrutiny for parent company Meta Platforms under the 27-nation
Continue ReadingNEW YORK (AP) — Prosecutors’ star witness in the hush money case against Donald Trump is returning to the witness stand as defense lawyers try to chip away at Michael Cohen’s crucial testimony implicating the former president. The trial will resume in Manhattan with potentially explosive defense cross-examination of Cohen. He is prosecutors’ final witness
Continue ReadingBy ILLIA NOVIKOV Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Military officials in Ukraine say their units locked in street battles with the Kremlin’s forces in a northeastern Ukrainian town have halted the Russian advance. Even so, a senior Moscow official said Russia’s recent frontline push has enough resources to keep going. Vovchansk, located just 5
Continue ReadingBy BELA SZANDELSZKY, PETR DAVID JOSEK and PHILIPP JENNE Associated Press BANSKA BYSTRICA, Slovakia (AP) — Slovak politicians have called for calm in the Central European country after Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot multiple times by a would-be assassin on Wednesday, a rare instance of political violence that prompted soul-searching among leaders in the
Continue ReadingBy SOPHIKO MEGRELIDZE Associated Press TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili said Thursday a “foreign influence” bill passed by parliament that critics call a threat to free speech is “unacceptable” and can’t be modified. In an interview with The Associated Press, Zourabichvili harshly criticized the ruling Georgian Dream party for pushing the bill
Continue ReadingBy EDNA TARIGAN Associated Press JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian authorities have raised the alert level for Mount Ibu, a volcano in North Maluku province, to the highest level following a series of eruptions since last week. The volcano has been spewing thick grey ash and dark clouds up to 5,000 meters (16,400 feet) into
Continue ReadingBy SOPHIKO MEGRELIDZE Associated Press TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili said Thursday a “foreign influence” bill passed by parliament that critics call a threat to free speech is “unacceptable.” In an interview with The Associated Press, Zourabichvili harshly criticized the ruling Georgian Dream party for pushing the bill that also is widely
Continue ReadingBy ELENA BECATOROS Associated Press ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece’s coast guard says 42 people have been rescued while another three are missing after a boat believed to have been carrying migrants sent out a distress call while sailing in the Mediterranean south of the Greek island of Crete. The Greek coast guard said Thursday
Continue ReadingBERLIN (AP) — German lawmakers have lifted the immunity from prosecution of one of the far-right Alternative for Germany party’s top candidates in the upcoming European Parliament election as he faces an investigation. The German parliament’s lower house, or Bundestag, voted to lift Petr Bystron’s immunity to clear the way for searches in connection with
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