U.S./World category, Page 806
North Korea cuts diplomat ties with Malaysia over U.S. extradition
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea on Friday said it was cutting diplomatic ties with Malaysia to protest a court ruling that allowed a North Korean to be extradited to the United States to face money laundering charges. North Korea’s Foreign Ministry called the charges an “absurd fabrication and sheer...
Newsmax beefs up Trump team, hiring Jason Miller, Andrew Giuliani
NEW YORK — The conservative network Newsmax said Thursday it is hiring Jason Miller, a senior adviser to former President Donald Trump as a contributor who will provide commentary on a variety of issues. Newsmax also says it is also hiring Andrew Giuliani, an ex-Trump aide and son of former...
11th juror picked, lawyers clash over expert in George Floyd trial
MINNEAPOLIS — Attorneys at the trial of a former Minneapolis police officer charged in George Floyd’s death moved closer to seating a jury Thursday, choosing two jurors hours after clashing over how much the panel should hear of Floyd’s own actions. The latest jurors include a white registered nurse in...
Biden, Harris to focus on Atlanta-area shootings during Georgia trip
ATLANTA — President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris plan to meet with Asian American community leaders in Georgia in the wake of the deadly shootings at three Atlanta-area massage parlors, the White House announced Thursday. Meanwhile, authorities said the investigation was wide open and could still result in...
Biden plans to send AstraZeneca covid shots to Mexico, Canada
The U.S. is planning to send a combined 4 million doses of the AstraZeneca covid-19 vaccine to Mexico and Canada in its first export of shots, the White House said Thursday. Press secretary Jen Psaki said the Biden administration is in the process of finalizing efforts to distribute 2.5 million...
No cigar: Interstellar object is cookie-shaped planet shard
Our solar system’s first known interstellar visitor is neither a comet nor asteroid as first suspected and looks nothing like a cigar. A new study says the mystery object is likely a remnant of a Pluto-like world and shaped like a cookie. Arizona State University astronomers reported this week that...
Students who got partial loan relief to see full discharge
Students who were defrauded by their colleges and received only partial relief from their federal loans could now see them fully canceled, the Biden administration announced Thursday, reversing a Trump administration policy. The change could lead to $1 billion in loans being canceled for 72,000 borrowers, all of whom attended...
Manslaughter conviction of ex-Oklahoma officer overturned
The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals on Thursday overturned the manslaughter conviction and 15-year prison sentence of a former Oklahoma police officer based on a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that much of eastern Oklahoma remains an American Indian reservation. Former Tulsa officer Shannon James Kepler, 60, is a member of...
Autopsy: Ohio deputy shot Casey Goodson Jr. 5 times in the back
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Casey Goodson Jr., a Black man, was shot five times in the back by a white Ohio sheriff’s deputy last December, according to a final coroner’s report released Thursday. The final autopsy confirmed statements previously made by Goodson’s family that the 23-year-old died after former Franklin County...
Storms moving eastward, leave trail of damage in Deep South
Storms that left splintered homes and broken trees across Alabama and Mississippi moved into Georgia and Florida on Thursday, rousing residents with early morning warnings as forecasters said the threat of dangerous weather would move up the south Atlantic seaboard. About 20,000 homes and business were without power and the...
EU agency: AstraZeneca vaccine safe, will add clot warning
The European Union’s drug regulatory agency said Thursday that the AstraZeneca vaccine doesn’t increase the overall risk of blood clots and that the benefits of using it outweigh the risks, paving the way for European countries to resume dispensing the shots. Several European nations, including Germany, France, Italy and Spain,...
U.S. schools prepare summer of learning to help kids catch up
After a dreary year spent largely at home in front of the computer, many U.S. children could be looking at summer school — and that’s just what many parents want. Although the last place most kids want to spend summer is in a classroom, experts say that after a year...
White supremacist propaganda surged in 2020, report says
NEW YORK — White supremacist propaganda reached alarming levels across the U.S. in 2020, according to a new report that the Anti-Defamation League provided to The Associated Press. There were 5,125 cases of racist, anti-Semitic, anti-LGBTQ and other hateful messages spread through physical flyers, stickers, banners and posters, according to...
China ‘deeply concerned’ about anti-Asian violence in U.S.
BEIJING — China called on the U.S. to take measures to stem violence against people of Asian heritage after eight people were killed at Atlanta-area massage parlors. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said Thursday that violence against Asians in the U.S. was “outrageous and distressing,” leaving China “deeply concerned.” American...
France set to unveil new restrictions amid covid-19 spike
PARIS — France is set to announce new coronavirus restrictions on Thursday, including a potential lockdown in the Paris region and in the north of the country, as the number of covid-19 patients in intensive care units spikes. “We will make the decisions we need to make,” French President Emmanuel...
Putin cites ills in U.S. society after Biden’s killer remark
President Vladimir Putin responded Thursday to President Joe Biden’s description of him as a killer by citing America’s past and present troubles, from slavery and the slaughter of Native Americans to racial injustice. Biden was asked in an interview this week whether he thought Putin was a killer, and he...
Biden agrees Putin is a killer, says he’ll pay price for meddling
President Joe Biden agreed that Russian President Vladimir Putin is a “killer,” and said in an interview with ABC News on Wednesday that Russia would pay for alleged interference in U.S. elections. His comments, recorded Tuesday, came the same day as a U.S. intelligence community report that said Putin ordered...
Ohio attorney general sues Biden administration over federal pandemic relief law
The Ohio attorney general is taking the Biden administration to court over federal “American Rescue Plan.” A.G. Dave Yost is suing the administration over rules in the stimulus bill that prevent states from using the billions of dollars in funding for tax cuts, Cleveland.com reported Wednesday. Yost told Cleveland.com that...
States sue Biden in bid to revive Keystone XL pipeline
BILLINGS, Mont. — Attorneys general from 21 states on Wednesday sued to to overturn President Joe Biden’s cancellation of the contentious Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada. Led by Ken Paxton of Texas and Austin Knudsen of Montana, the states said Biden had overstepped his authority when he revoked the...
Republicans seize on immigration as border crossings surge
WASHINGTON — Delegation trips to the border. Apocalyptic warnings. A flurry of press conferences. Republicans still divided over former President Donald Trump’s legacy are seizing on his signature campaign issue, turning their focus to immigration as they try to regain the political upper hand. Faced with President Joe Biden’s early...
Trump’s taxes in hand, Manhattan DA’s probe heats up
NEW YORK — With former President Donald Trump’s tax returns finally in hand, a team of New York prosecutors led by a newly hired former mob-buster is sending out fresh subpoenas and meeting face-to-face with key witnesses, scrutinizing Trump’s business practices in granular detail. Amid the swirl of activity, the...
IRS will delay tax filing due date until May
The Internal Revenue Service is delaying the traditional tax filing deadline from April 15 until May 17, according to the House Ways and Means Committee. The IRS and Treasury Department didn’t immediately comment Wednesday or provide further details. But the committee confirmed and applauded the move, which provides added time...
Police investigate suspect’s motive in Atlanta-area killings
ATLANTA — A white gunman accused of killing eight people, most of them women of Asian descent, at three Atlanta-area massage parlors was charged with murder Wednesday in an attack that sent terror through the Asian American community that’s increasingly been targeted during the coronavirus pandemic. Robert Aaron Long, 21,...
Iran’s final report on Ukraine jet crash blames human error
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — After a yearlong investigation, Iran’s civil aviation agency on Wednesday released its final report on the crash of a Ukrainian passenger plane that killed 176 people last year, revealing no new details about the shootdown that has provoked outrage from affected countries and concerns from...
Millions across Southeast bracing for potential tornadoes
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Hundreds of schools, covid-19 vaccination clinics, businesses and more shut down across the Deep South on Wednesday as forecasters warned of waves of severe weather including massive tornadoes, downpours and hail the size of tennis balls. While nearly 16 million people in the Southeast could see powerful...
