Month: July 2023

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Last month, the Recording Academy announced a series of changes to the Grammy Awards to better reflect an evolving music industry. Of those newly instituted guidelines, protocols involving technological advancements in machine learning sparked headlines: “Only human creators” could win the music industry’s highest honor

MADRID (AP) — The Spanish government has declared an end to the health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and says people no longer have to wear masks in health and care centers as well as pharmacies. Spain has gradually ended the madantory mask wearing, first in public and then on public transport over the

By ASHOK SHARMA and KRUTIKA PATHI Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that the Russian people are “united as never before,” seeking to project confidence in the wake of a short-lived revolt while participating in a meeting of an international organization that offered him a sympathetic audience. The Shanghai Cooperation

By TASSANEE VEJPONGSA Associated Press PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A heavily armed gunman in a bulletproof vest opened fire on the streets of Philadelphia on Monday night, seemingly at a random, killing five people and wounding two boys before surrendering, police said. The shootings took place over several city blocks in the southwestern neighborhood of Kingsessing.

By CIARÁN GILES Associated Press MADRID (AP) — Spanish authorities are seeking 90 million euros ($98 million) in damages from a Swedish mining company for a major toxic spill near the famed Doñana National Park in 1998. The civil trial in the case opened on Tuesday. The Boliden company ran the Aznalcóllar mine, where the

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Officials on the Orkney Islands, a corner of Scotland with Viking roots and an independent spirit, seized a moment in the global spotlight on Tuesday and voted to explore ways of seeking more autonomy — or even independence — from neglectful U.K. governments. Journalists from across Britain

By GERALD IMRAY Associated Press CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — A group of armed plainclothes officers assigned to protect South Africa’s deputy president were caught on video dragging a man out of a car and then stomping on his head until he lies motionless, sparking outrage and drawing more attention to the country’s problems

LONDON (AP) — Meta is poised to unveil a new app that appears to mimic Twitter — a direct challenge to the social media platform owned by Elon Musk. A listing for the app, called Threads, appeared on Apple’s App Store, indicating it would debut as early as Thursday. It is billed as a “text-based

By MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS Associated Press NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Greece’s newly-appointed foreign minister says his country is ready to start talks with Turkey to resolve a long-standing dispute over maritime borders that has repeatedly brought the two neighbors to the brink of armed conflict. Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis said Tuesday that the Greek government wants

MOSCOW (AP) — Masked assailants in the Russian province of Chechnya have attacked and beaten a prominent journalist and a lawyer. The assault on Tuesday underlined human rights abuses in the region. Novaya Gazeta journalist Elena Milashina and lawyer Alexander Nemov had just arrived in Chechnya to attend the trial of Zarema Musayeva. Musayeva is

By LORNE COOK Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO has extended the mandate of Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg for another year. The former Norwegian prime minister has been NATO’s top civilian official since 2014. His term was due to expire last year but was prolonged to keep a steady hand at the helm after Russia’s full-scale

By JOHN LEICESTER Associated Press PARIS (AP) — “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”: The lofty ideals to which France has long aspired are embossed on coins and carved above school doors across the land. Yet they are the polar opposite of what some French people who are Black or brown saw in a shocking video of a

By JUSTIN SPIKE Associated Press BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Lawmakers in Hungary have passed a controversial bill affecting the country’s teachers. The law passed Tuesday cements a new regime in public education that has elicited months of protests and strikes by teachers and their students. The law revokes teachers’ status as public employees, increases allowable

BERLIN (AP) — A helicopter has crashed during landing in the Swiss Alps, but all five people aboard were unharmed. Local media reported that the helicopter belonging to Swiss airline Air Zermatt was caught in turbulence Tuesday during the approach and hit the ground hard. The rotor blades touched the ground and the helicopter tipped