AP-National

By MARCIA DUNN AP Aerospace Writer CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — A NASA telescope has captured the biggest solar flare in years, which temporarily knocked out radio communication on Earth. The sun spit out the huge flare along with a massive radio burst on Thursday, causing two hours of radio interference in parts of the

By KAREN MATTHEWS Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A small explosion at an electrical facility caused a momentary power outage in New York City. Lights flickered, a subway line was disrupted and scores of people had to be rescued from stuck elevators. The brief outage just before midnight Thursday affected most of the city.

By EMMA BURROWS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Moldova and Georgia celebrated after European Union leaders buoyed their aspirations to join the 27 member nation bloc by removing key hurdles on their long path toward membership. Lawmakers in both the Moldovan and Georgian parliaments waved EU flags and played the bloc’s anthem at the opening

By SAM MEDNICK Associated Press DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A court of the West African regional bloc has ordered the release and reinstatement of Niger’s democratically elected president. The legal team of President Mohamed Bazoum said on Friday that the ECOWAS Court of Justice ruled that Bazoum and his family were arbitrarily detained after mutinous

By DANIEL SHAILER Associated Press MEXICO CITY (AP) — Guatemala violated Indigenous rights by permitting a huge nickel mine on tribal land almost two decades ago, according to a ruling from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Friday’s landmark verdict marks a monumental step in a four-decade struggle for Indigenous land rights and a bitter

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Prince Harry’s victory against Mirror Group Newspapers on Friday over what a British judge called “habitual” illegal activity is a landmark moment in the long and twisting saga of lawbreaking by Britain’s tabloid press. Judge Timothy Fancourt ruled that Mirror newspapers had hired private investigators to snoop

By MIKE CORDER Associated Press BREDA, Netherlands (AP) — A paradox at the heart of the Netherlands’ permissive pot policy has gone up in smoke in two Dutch cities as “coffeeshops” began selling the country’s first legally cultivated cannabis. The move is part of an experiment to regulate the pot trade in the Netherlands. But

By ALICIA RANCILIO Associated Press There’s a common phrase associated with Jack Reacher in Lee’s Child’s books: “Reacher says nothing.” Saying nothing, however, can be terrifying for Alan Ritchson, who plays Reacher on TV. “He’s socially awkward, very stoic, very cerebral and none of those things should make for an interesting character,” Ritchson recently told

MESQUITE, Texas (AP) — Police in Mesquite, Texas, say an officer investigating a stolen vehicle fatally shot a 19-year-old man who was in another vehicle. Police say in a statement that the officer saw the stolen vehicle being followed by a second vehicle and stopping at a convenience store early Thursday. Police say the officer

By JAN M. OLSEN Associated Press COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Dozens of migrants have crossed into Finland hours before the reclosure of two southern crossing points on the border with Russia as the Nordic country experiences an influx of asylum-seekers. The Vaalimaa and Niirala crossings had reopened briefly Thursday after being shut down at the

By BRIAN WITTE Associated Press ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Maryland Gov. Wes Moore says a long-term agreement between the Baltimore Orioles and the Maryland Stadium Authority for a new lease at Camden Yards is moving forward for a vote by state officials next week. The governor announced the agreement is slated to go before the

By LORNE COOK Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — A number of European Union leaders are trying to use mounting concern about civilian deaths in Israel’s military offensive against Hamas to rally their partners around a united call for a ceasefire in Gaza. EU support for the move increased following a U.N. vote this week. But

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — A small plane crashed on a western North Carolina highway and caught fire Thursday night, but the two people on board escaped life-threatening injuries, authorities said. A single-engine Diamond DA-40 crashed on Interstate 26 near Asheville Regional Airport around 8:15 p.m. with two people on board, the Federal Aviation Administration reported.

NEW YORK (AP) — Bill Maher has had a few second thoughts, or at least some variations on the first ones. Next June, Simon & Schuster will publish “What This Comedian Said Will Shock You,” in which the outspoken host of HBO’s “Real Time With Bill Maher” revisits some of his on-air commentary. The publisher

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Two private companies have announced a partnership to release mosquitoes across the Caribbean bred with a bacterium that blocks the dengue virus as the region fights a record number of cases. Friday’s announcement was made by Orbit Services Partners Inc., a company registered in Barbados, and Verily, a San

Associated Press The United Methodist Church has been undergoing a major upheaval as more than 7,000 congregations across the country, one quarter of the total, decided whether to leave the denomination or remain United Methodist. This splintering resulted from a long-simmering debate over theological differences and the role of LGBTQ people in the church. WHY

By BASSEM MROUE Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan says he has discussed with Israeli officials the volatile situation along the Lebanon-Israel border. He added that a “negotiated outcome” is the best way to reassure residents of northern Israel. Sullivan said in Jerusalem on Friday that Washington won’t tolerate threats

By PETER SMITH Associated Press A quarter of U.S. congregations in the United Methodist Church have received permission to leave the denomination during a five-year window, closing this month, that authorized departures for congregations over disputes involving the church’s LGBTQ-related policies. This year alone, 5,641 congregations received permission from their regional conferences to leave the

By GEROLD ROZENBLAD Associated Press PARAMARIBO, Suriname (AP) — Suriname’s former dictator will face a final verdict this month in the years-long judicial process over the 1982 killings of 15 political opponents that deeply scarred the South American country. Desi Bouterse and two dozen others were accused of rounding up well-known people including lawyers, journalists

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s parliament has approved plans to raise the country’s levy on carbon dioxide emissions from fuel by more than previously planned next month. The move is part of a deal to resolve a budget crisis. The CO2 price will rise to 45 euros or about $49 per ton of emissions from the