Month: May 2023

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — The Japanese and Chinese defense ministers have inaugurated their long-awaited hotline as a step to build trust and improve communication. It comes at a time when Japan and other neighbors are concerned about Beijing’s increasingly assertive military activities. Tokyo and Beijing are embroiled in a dispute over

CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — The union for Canada’s second biggest airline have issued a 72-hour strike notice to WestJet and they warn the airline could be shut down before the weekend. The Air Line Pilots Association said in a statement late Monday that pilots plan to begin lawful job action early Friday. The statement said

The Associated Press Edna Adan Ismail, a nurse-midwife, hospital founder, and health care advocate who for decades has combated female circumcision and strived to improve women’s health care in East Africa, was named Tuesday as winner of the 2023 Templeton Prize, one of the world’s largest annual individual awards. “Rooted in her Muslim faith, she

By OMAR FARUK Associated Press MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The United Nations says floods caused by the annual rains have left “a trail of destruction” across Somalia, citing inundated homes and farmland as well as the shutdown of health facilities. Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that more than 460,000 people have been impacted, including nearly 219,000

By MATT O’BRIEN AP Technology Writer The head of the artificial intelligence company that makes ChatGPT told Congress on Tuesday that government intervention will be critical to mitigating the risks of increasingly powerful AI systems. “As this technology advances, we understand that people are anxious about how it could change the way we live. We

By KATE ASHFORD of NerdWallet Concierge medicine, a business model in which patients pay a membership fee to have a direct relationship with a doctor — used to feel like something just for the well-to-do. But as fees have come down and frustration with traditional primary care has gone up, concierge services are getting more

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — An unexpected visitor spotted sunbathing on a beach in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv is turning heads and causing a media buzz. But it’s not American film director and Tel Aviv mainstay Quentin Tarantino or another celebrity. It’s Yulia, an endangered Mediterranean monk seal. The seal cow first appeared

BRUSSELS (AP) — The 27 European Union countries have formally endorsed a law that should help the bloc reduce its contribution to global deforestation by regulating the trade in a series of harmful goods. Under the new legislation, traders exporting or making available palm oil, cattle, wood, coffee, cocoa, rubber and soy in the region

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer MIAMI (AP) — Miami’s Erik Spoelstra and Denver’s Michael Malone are two of the four NBA coaches to have spent at least eight years with their current team. They know how rare that is. Spoelstra and Malone both spoke out Monday following the recent dismissals of three coaches who

BERLIN (AP) — A German court on Tuesday convicted five men over the theft of 18th-century jewels worth more than 100 million euros from a Dresden museum in 2019. They were sentenced to prison sentences of between four years and four months and six years and three months, German news agency dpa reported. One defendant

By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Syria’s embattled President Bashar Assad has received an invitation to attend the upcoming COP28 climate talks in Dubai later this year, even as the yearslong war in his country over his rule grinds on. Assad’s invite, late Monday, to the climate talks comes as

BY DREW COSTLEY AP Science Writer The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a nearly $11 billion investment on Tuesday to help bring affordable clean energy to rural communities throughout the country. Rural electric cooperatives, renewable energy companies and electric utilities will be able to apply for funding through two programs, U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary

By KANIS LEUNG Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong’s leader says the sentencing on spying charges of a U.S. citizen in China who was also a permanent resident of the semi-autonomous city illustrates that the territory should stay vigilant to hidden national security risks. The government says mainland Chinese authorities had informed Hong

BEIJING (AP) — China’s Foreign Ministry says South Korea midfielder Son Jun-ho has been detained in the northeastern Chinese province of Liaoning on suspicion of accepting a bribe. Spokesperson Wang Wenbin saysa Son was placed in custody “recently” and was under investigation. Wang says the South Korean consulate in the provincial capital of Shenyang has

By SAMYA KULLAB Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian air defenses thwarted an intense Russian air attack on Kyiv early Tuesday, shooting down all 18 missiles aimed at the capital. Loud explosions boomed over Kyiv as the nighttime attack combined Russian missiles launched from the air, sea and land in an apparent attempt to