AP-National

By DEREK GATOPOULOS Associated Press ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece’s main left-wing opposition party, Syriza, has suffered a damaging setback as nine lawmakers quit the party in protest against its newly elected leadership. Effie Achtsioglou, a former Syriza labor minister, led Thursday’s walkout as nine lawmakers declared themselves independent. Party critics have described the new

By SARAH TETAUD Associated Press ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar (AP) — Madagascar President Andry Rajoelina is on course for reelection in a vote boycotted by most opposition candidates. With 85% of ballots counted, Rajoelina had received 59.7% of the vote in last week’s election, according to the national electoral commission. Such a margin of victory would eliminate

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s central bank has delivered another huge interest rate hike as it tries to curb double-digit inflation that has left households struggling to afford food and other basic goods. The bank on Thursday increased its policy rate by 5 percentage points to 40% to combat inflation that hit 61.36% last month.

By ILLIA NOVIKOV Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A Russian attack using cluster munitions killed three people Thursday in a suburb of Ukraine’s southern city of Kherson, a Ukrainian official said, bringing the number of civilians to die in a day of war to at least six. Five people were wounded in what Ukrainian

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO AP Retail Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Retailers are kicking off the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season on Friday with a bevy of discounts and other enticements. But executives are growing concerned with a spending slowdown that could temper sales on the day after Thanksgiving as well as throughout the

By BINAJ GURUBACHARYA Associated Press KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Riot police have used batons and tear gas to halt tens of thousands of supporters of Nepal’s former king who attempted to march to the center of the capital to demand the restoration of the monarchy. The protesters, waving the national flag and chanting slogans supporting

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — New laws rushed through Australia’s Parliament last week to mandate curfews and electronic tracking bracelets on some foreigners with criminal records are facing their first High Court challenge. Lawyers for a Chinese refugee claim the tough new measures are unconstitutional. The man was placed in indefinite detention last year after serving

By JAMEY KEATEN and MARIA CHENG Associated Press GENEVA (AP) — The World Health Organization says it has made an official request to China for information about a potentially worrying spike in respiratory illnesses and clusters of pneumonia in children. On Thursday, the U.N. health agency said Chinese officials told them they did not detect

By MIKE CORDER Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — He’s been called the Dutch Donald Trump. He’s been threatened with death countless times by Islamic extremists, convicted of insulting Moroccans and the British government once banned him from entering the country. Now Geert Wilders has won a landslide victory in a Dutch election and

By HYUNG-JIN KIM Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s spy agency has told lawmakers that Russian support likely enabled North Korea to put a spy satellite into orbit for the first time this week. The South’s defense minister says it should be clear by early next week whether the satellite is functioning

By MIKE CORDER and RAF CASERT Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Anti-Islam populist Geert Wilders said Thursday that he is ready to join the next Dutch coalition government after he surged to a huge election victory that marked a stunning lurch to the far right for a nation once famed as a beacon

By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — Hundreds of police officers searched the properties of Hamas members and followers in Germany on Thursday morning following a formal ban on any activity by or in support of the militant group. The German government implemented the ban on Nov. 2 and dissolved Samidoun, a group that

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — World shares were mixed on Thursday after a modest advance on Wall Street that kept the market on track for a fourth straight weekly gain. Markets in Japan and the U.S. are closed for holidays. Oil prices initially fell about $1 a barrel after OPEC postponed

By JUSTIN SPIKE Associated Press BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — A countrywide billboard campaign that flooded the streets of Hungary this week takes aim at the head of the European Union’s executive, Ursula von der Leyen. It’s the start of an election campaign that marks an escalation of tensions between the country’s right-wing government and the

By WAFAA SHURAFA, NAJIB JOBAIN and JACK JEFFERY Associated Press DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — A four-day cease-fire in Gaza between Israel and Hamas was set to begin Friday morning, Qatar said after a daylong delay extended the agony for those hoping for some relief from the deal, which is to bring the release

By AIJAZ HUSSAIN Associated Press SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Indian military officials say five soldiers and two suspected rebels were killed in gunbattles in disputed Kashmir. The fighting started Wednesday after Indian troops started searching for suspected militants in dense forests and intermittent firing continued all day. Troops continued searching on Thursday near the highly

By ALEXA ST. JOHN Associated Press Electric vehicle sales are expected to hit a record 9% of all passenger vehicles in the U.S. this year, according to Atlas Public Policy. That will be up from 7.3% of new car sales in 2022. This will be the first year U.S. EV sales surpass 1 million, and

PERTH, Australia (AP) — Australian authorities say dozens of residents have been evacuated and at least 10 homes have been destroyed by a wildfire that’s burning out of control during heat wave spring conditions on the northern fringe of the west coast city of Perth. Western Australia state Department of Fires and Emergency Services Commissioner

By SIBI ARASU Associated Press The oil and gas sector, one of the major emitters of planet-warming gases, will need a rapid and substantial overhaul for the world to avoid even worse extreme weather events fueled by human-caused climate change, according to a report released Thursday. The current investment of $800 billion a year in

By TSVANGIRAYI MUKWAZHI and FARAI MUTSAKA Associated Press GONAREZHOU NATIONAL PARK, Zimbabwe (AP) — In Zimbabwe, rains are finally bringing relief to its second-largest national park. But elsewhere in the wildlife-rich country, authorities say climate change-induced drought is deadly for animals and plants. Fifteen elephants died in a week in Hwange, Zimbabwe’s largest park. Hungry