AP-National

By MICKENSON DUVERGÉ and DÁNICA COTO Associated Press PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — An aid organization in Haiti says kidnappers have freed a U.S. nurse and her daughter nearly two weeks after they were kidnapped near the capital of Port-au-Prince. El Roi Haiti, the Christian group founded by Alix Dorsainvil’s husband, announced her release on Wednesday.

By MEG KINNARD Associated Press Former New York Police Commissioner Bernie Kerik has met with investigators from special counsel Jack Smith’s team. Kerik’s meeting is part of the government’s case accusing ex-President Donald Trump of working to overturn his 2020 election loss. Kerik’s attorney says Kerik met with government officials Monday to discuss Trump lawyer

By BASSEM MROUE and KAREEM CHEHAYEB Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Syria’s President Bashar Assad has slammed Turkey, blaming Ankara for the uptick in violence in his war-torn country and insisting on the withdrawal of Turkish forces from Syria. Assad spoke in an  interview on Wednesday with Sky News Arabia, his first to a foreign

BEIRUT (AP) — A roadside bombing in southern Syria has killed a Syrian journalist and three soldiers. The state news agency SANA said the bomb exploded on Wednesday when Firas al-Ahmad, a veteran correspondent for the local Sama TV station, was driving back from an assignment at the border with Jordan where Syrian troops were

By BRENDAN FARRINGTON and FREIDA FRISARO TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday suspended the top prosecutor in Orlando, again wielding his executive power over local government in taking on a contentious issue in the 2024 presidential race. It’s the second time DeSantis, a Republican, has removed a Democratic state attorney and

TOKYO (AP) — Prince Harry has lauded the virtue of sports and its healing powers as he kicked off a promotional tour of Asia in Tokyo. He says that sports not only helps build up physical strength but can also help heal the body and mind. The Duke of Sussex spoke on Wednesday at an

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — A member of an outlaw motorcycle club accused of killing an associate member and leaving his body in a crypt at a Philadelphia cemetery has been convicted of murder and other charges. Michael DiMauro faces a potential term of life without parole when sentenced this month. Prosecutors say DiMauro shot 33-year-old David

By MARK KENEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Add Angelina Jolie to the growing list of celebrities dipping their toes into producing on Broadway. The Oscar-winning “Girl, Interrupted” actor has become a lead producer on the Broadway-bound new musical “The Outsiders,” a show based on S.E. Hinton’s novel and Francis Ford Coppola’s 1983

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Pland’s government will deploy an additional 2,000 troops to its border with Belarus, twice the number the Border Guard agency had requested, as fears of illegal migration rise. A deputy interior minister, Maciej Wasik, announced the decision in an interview Wednesday with PAP, the state news agency and accused the Belarusian

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — The owner of a Greek oil tanker that discharged nearly 10,000 gallons of oily bilge water into the ocean has been ordered by a federal judge to pay $2.25 million in fines and penalties. Prosecutors said that Zeus Lines Management S.A. was formally sentenced Tuesday to pay a large fine plus

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER and MICHAEL KUNZELMAN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump and his legal team face long odds in their bid to move his 2020 election conspiracy trial out of Washington. They argue the Republican former president can’t possibly get a fair trial in the overwhelmingly Democratic nation’s capital. Criminal defendants routinely

By AUDREY MCAVOY, JENNIFER SINCO KELLEHER and CHRISTOPHER WEBER Associated Press KAHULUI, Hawaii (AP) — A wildfire tore through the heart of the Hawaiian island of Maui in darkness Wednesday, reducing much of a historic town to ash and forcing people to jump into the ocean to flee the flames. At least six people died,

By LORNE COOK Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — Senior lawmakers from the United States and Europe are calling for a change in the Western diplomatic approach toward Serbia and Kosovo. They fear that tensions between the two could rapidly spiral out of control. In the letter, signed by Senate Foreign Relations chair Bob Menendez and

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — A Finnish man reportedly stored 12 kilograms (26.5 pounds) of dynamite in two cars belonging to a friend, saying it “was a joke”, Finland broadcaster YLE said Wednesday. The owner of the two cars didn’t see it as funny and informed the police who briefly detained the potential prankster. He was

CEDAR PARK, Texas (AP) — A grass fire near Austin, Texas, spread into trees near an apartment complex and condominiums, destroying one of the buildings and forcing hundreds of residents from their homes. Two people suffered minor injuries in the 50-acre (20-hectare) fire that resulted in the evacuation of about 300 apartments, 95 townhomes and

By MUNIR AHMED Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s president has dissolved the National Assembly, or lower house of parliament, a first step in the countdown to a general election by mid-November. This year there’s a twist, however, in the election timeline. A delay until the spring is possible if Pakistan’s election commission opts for

By AARON MORRISON AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Hip-hop has been an integral part of social and racial justice movements. It’s also been scrutinized by law enforcement and political groups because of their belief that hip-hop and its artists encourage violent criminality. Free speech advocates see the ongoing persecution of rappers as a

By SHAR0N JOHNSON and NARDOS HAILE Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — Female rappers have been a part of hip-hop since its debut. Women have fought to shape their identification in hip-hop and demand recognition.  In the 50 years since DJ Kool Herc extended breaking at a back-to-school party, women have gone from donning a male-imitated