AP-National

By MUNIR AHMED Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistani officials say more than 400,000 Afghans returned to their home country following the ongoing crackdown on illegal foreigners in the country. The chief spokesperson of the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan also confirmed the number and told The Associated Press that the majority have been using the

By CHRISTOPHER WEBER and STEFANIE DAZIO Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — An elevated Los Angeles freeway closed by a Nov. 11 arson fire reopened ahead of Monday morning’s commute. That’s at least a day earlier than previously announced and weeks ahead of the original estimate for restoring traffic on the section of Interstate 10

By CARLOS MUREITHI Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Negotiators at United Nations–led talks in Nairobi, Kenya have failed to agree on how to advance toward the development of a global treaty to end plastic pollution. Environmental advocates say some oil-producing governments used stalling tactics designed to ultimately weaken the treaty. Delegates were expected to discuss

By LLAZAR SEMINI Associated Press TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Albanian opposition lawmakers have disrupted the Parliament’s session again to protest what they say is increasingly authoritarian rule by the governing Socialists. Democratic lawmakers on Monday lit flares and piled chairs on top of each other in the middle of the hall the minute Prime Minister

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO AP Retail Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Toymakers are tweaking original classic games or coming out with new ones that embrace an audience that’s been around for a while: people over 65 years old. The products are being marketed as a way for older folks to sharpen their brain skills as well

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer Divine Bourrage is one of the top high school prospects in the country, juggling the stressful challenges of the ever-changing demands of the usually precarious recruiting landscape as she chases her dream of playing women’s college basketball. She is not alone. Not by a longshot. There’s just no skirting

TOKYO (AP) — The Japan Meteorological Agency says a volcano in Papua New Guinea has erupted and it is assessing a possible risk of a tsunami for Japanese coasts. Mount Ulawun on the island of New Britain in Papua New Guinea erupted at around 3:30 p.m. Monday, spewing volcanic smoke as high as 50,000 feet.

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — The NATO chief says the alliance strongly supports Bosnia’s territorial integrity and is condemning what he calls “malign foreign interference,” including by Russia, in the volatile Balkan region. Sarajevo is the first stop on Jens Stoltenberg’s tour of Western Balkan countries that also includes Kosovo, Serbia and North Macedonia. There are

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia’s prime minister has criticized China for what he calls a “dangerous” encounter between Chinese and Australian warships but declined to say whether he raised the issue with President Xi Jinping. He said one diver was injured when a Chinese destroyer used sonar while near an

By COURTNEY BONNELL and MATT O’BRIEN AP Business Writers The company that created ChatGPT was thrown into turmoil Monday after Microsoft hired its ousted CEO and many more employees threatened to follow him in a conflict that centered in part on the safest way to build artificial intelligence. The developments followed a weekend of drama

By KEN MORITSUGU Associated Press BEIJING (AP) — China’s top diplomat welcomed four Arab foreign ministers and the Indonesian one to Beijing on Monday, saying his country would work with “our brothers and sisters” in the Arab and Islamic world to try to end the war in Gaza as soon as possible. The ministers from

By ZEN SOO Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong Disneyland opened its first Frozen-themed attraction on Monday, with thousands of eager visitors turning up to experience the new rides, some lining up for hours to get an early start. Based on Disney’s wildly popular “Frozen” animation film, the new section of the park

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were mostly higher on Tuesday after a rally on Wall Street led by gains in Microsoft following its announcement that it was hiring Sam Altman, former CEO of OpenAI, the ChatGPT maker. U.S. futures were higher while oil prices fell. Chinese markets were lifted

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — The operator of Japan’s damaged Fukushima nuclear plant says the release of a third batch of treated radioactive wastewater into the Pacific Ocean has ended safely as planned. Japan’s seafood producers are continuing to suffer from a Chinese import ban imposed after the discharges began. Large amounts

By TARA COPP and FELIPE DANA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made an unannounced visit to Kyiv on Monday in a high-profile push to keep money and weapons flowing to Ukraine even as U.S. and international resources are stretched by the new global risks raised by the Israel-Hamas conflict.

By WAFAA SHURAFA, SAMY MAGDY and JACK JEFFERY Associated Press DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli forces pressed their offensive against Hamas in northern Gaza on Monday, battling militants around a hospital where thousands of patients and displaced people have been sheltering for weeks, and where despite the fighting health officials managed to evacuate

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s interior minister says severe storms and flooding have left nine people dead across Turkey, including one seaman who died when a cargo ship sank off Turkey’s Black Sea coast. Eleven other crew members are missing. The Turkish-flagged Kafkametler sank on Sunday after hitting a breakwater outside the harbor off the

NEW DELHI (AP) — India and Australia are set to hold talks focused on bolstering their strategic, defense and security ties in New Delhi. Australia’s foreign minister Penny Wong and defence minister Richard Marles arrived to meet Monday with their counterparts for the second India-Australia 2+2 Dialogue, where they’re expected to discuss regional and global

CHRISTOPHER BODEEN Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — The front-runner in Taiwan’s presidential race has picked the long-term de facto ambassador to the United States as his vice presidential candidate. Vice President William Lai announced Monday on his Facebook page the nomination of Hsiao Bi-khim, who was born in Japan to a Taiwanese father and