AP-National

By MONIKA SCISLOWSKA Associated Press WARSAW, Poland (AP) — NATO members Poland and the Baltic states say they will seal off their borders with Russia’s ally Belarus if there are any military incidents or a massive migrant push by Minsk. The countries’ interior ministers said Monday they were seeing growing tensions on NATO’s and the

PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron says France’s ambassador is staying at his post in Niger despite being asked to leave by the ruling junta. Macron spoke out firmly against the coup leaders while insisting Monday that France is not Niger’s enemy. The junta has been exploiting grievances among the population toward former colonial

By MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS Associated Press NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — A senior United Nations official says the U.N. chief is paying very close attention to the situation on war-divided Cyprus and will use all means at his disposal to help reach an agreement to heal the Mediterranean island nation’s ethnic split. U.N. Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jenča

By MICHAEL TARM AP Legal Affairs Writer CHICAGO (AP) — A judge on Monday refused to dismiss the case against a father who helped his son obtain a gun license three years before authorities say the younger man fatally shot seven people at a 2022 Fourth of July parade in suburban Chicago. Illinois prosecutors charged

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis has blasted the “backwardness” of some conservatives in the U.S. Catholic Church, saying they have replaced faith with ideology and that a correct understanding of Catholic doctrine allows for change over time. Francis’ comments were an acknowledgment of the divisions in the U.S. Catholic Church, which has been split between

By ELENA BECATOROS Associated Press ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The nightmare repeats itself every year: A towering wall of flames devours forests, farmland and homes, forcing animals and people to flee for their lives. With their hot, dry summers, Greece and its southern European neighbors experience hundreds of devastating wildfires each year. Last week alone,

By KEN SWEET AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Artificial intelligence has been the buzzword of 2023 ever since ChatGPT made its public debut earlier this year, with businesses, schools, universities and even non-profits looking for ways to integrate AI in their operations. John Kim, chief product officer for PayPal, spoke with The Associated

By AMIR VAHDAT and JON GAMBRELL Associated Press TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran has summoned a Swiss diplomat over the apparent U.S. seizure of Iranian crude oil from a ship that sat for months off Texas. That’s according to remarks Monday from Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman. Meanwhile, ship-tracking data analyzed by The Associated Press showed

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Trans-Siberian Orchestra will return this winter with a holiday tour called “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve.” The hybrid of heavy metal, classical music, theater production, pyrotechnics and laser lightshow will hit 62 cities and deliver 104 performances in both matinee and evening sets. It kicks

By QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA Associated Press BAGHDAD (AP) — Iran and Iraq have reached an agreement to disarm members of Iranian Kurdish dissident groups based in northern Iraq and relocate their members from their current bases. Iran has periodically launched strikes targeting members of the Kurdistan Democratic Party in Iran and other Iranian Kurdish dissident groups

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Thousands of airline passengers faced delays on Monday after Britain’s air traffic control system was hit by a breakdown that slowed takeoffs and landings across the U.K. on one of the busiest travel days of the year. More than three hours after it reported the “technical issue,”

QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — A defense lawyer says a court in southwest Pakistan has quashed a sedition case against imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan. Monday’s ruling by a court in the southwestern city of Quetta was a sign of some relief for the former cricket hero-turned-politician who has been embroiled in over 150 cases

By BASSEM MROUE Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian opposition activists say clashes have broken out between two U.S.-backed groups in eastern Syria, leaving three gunmen dead. Monday’s clashes between the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces and the Deir el-Zour Military Council raise tensions in a region where hundreds of American troops are deployed. The clashes

By KIMBERLY PALMER of NerdWallet Taking on some degree of risk is a healthy part of making financial decisions, but it’s not always comfortable. To embrace smart risks, first ask yourself about the origin of the fear. It can even help to think through a worst-case scenario and how you would respond. Next, consider building

By WILL WEISSERT, EMILY SWANSON and DARLENE SUPERVILLE Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is “old” and “confused,” and former President Donald Trump is “corrupt” and “dishonest.” Those are among the top terms Americans use when they’re asked to describe the Democrat in the White House and the Republican best positioned to face

By KANIS LEUNG Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — A group that promotes the Cantonese language has shut down after Hong Kong authorities said a fictional essay depicting a decline in liberties in the city on the group’s website violated the national security law. It’s the latest example of the city’s erosion of freedom of

STOCKHOLM (AP) — A Russian-born Swedish citizen has been charged with collecting information for Russia’s military intelligence service GRU for almost a decade. Sweden’s Prosecution Authority said Monday that 60-year-old Sergey Skvortsov is accused of “gross illegal intelligence activities against Sweden and against a foreign power.” Prosecutor Henrik Olin later said the other foreign power

By CHRIS MEGERIAN and COLLEEN LONG Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden shook hands with middle schoolers on their way to lunch and dropped by an eighth grade math class Monday to welcome students back for the new school year. The Bidens went to Eliot-Hine Middle School, located

By ELENA BECATOROS Associated Press ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greek authorities have reinforced firefighting forces in the northeastern part of the country where a massive deadly wildfire was burning for a 10th day with no signs of abating. The fire in the Alexandroupolis and Evros areas near the Turkish border has been blamed for 20