AP-National

By DANICA KIRKA Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Britain says it will grant hundreds of new oil and gas licenses in the North Sea in a bid for energy independence. The government is ignoring calls from the environmental campaigners and the United Nations to stop the development of new fossil fuel projects. The plans announced

By SAM MEDNICK Associated Press NIAMEY, Niger (AP) — Neighboring nations are levying economic sanctions over a coup last week that toppled one of the West’s last democratic partners against West African extremists, and families in one of the world’s poorest nations could pay the price. In the capital of Niger, many people live in

By DAVID McHUGH AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Europe’s economy is growing again — but not by much. Growth came in at 0.3% in the April-to-June quarter, following zero expansion in the three months immediately before. Stronger performance in Spain and France helped. But Germany, the largest of the 20 economies that use

By FELIPE DANA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian officials say Russian ballistic missiles have slammed into an apartment complex and a university building in President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s hometown. The strike on Monday killed six people and wounded 75 others as the blasts trapped residents beneath rubble. One of the two missiles that hit

By KANIS LEUNG Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Fans of singer and songwriter Coco Lee, who was known for her powerful voice and live performances, gathered with flowers to pay their respects to their idol at her funeral in Hong Kong on Monday. The memorial service was attended by her family and friends, including

BEIJING (AP) — A zoo in eastern China is denying suggestions some of its bears might be people in costumes after photos of the animals standing like humans circulated online. The sun bears from Malaysia are smaller than other bears and look different but are the real thing, the Hangzhou Zoo said Monday on its

By ANWARULLAH KHAN and RIAZ KHAN Associated Press KHAR, Pakistan (AP) — An Afghan branch of the Islamic State group on Monday claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing in Pakistan that killed at least 54 people at a pro-Taliban party’s election rally, in one of the region’s worst attacks in recent years. Islamic State in

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Officials say the Australian army helicopter that crashed during a multinational exercise hit the water with a “catastrophic impact” and there is no chance its four crew members survived. Defense Minister Richard Marles said the search and rescue effort since Friday’s crash changed to a victim

By NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press VATICAN CITY (AP) — When Pope Francis made the first foreign trip of his papacy, to Rio de Janeiro for World Youth Day in 2013, he urged young people to make a “mess” in their local churches, to shake things up even if it ruffled the feathers of their bishops.

By HYUNG-JIN KIM Associated Press PYEONGTAEK, South Korea (AP) — The dogs bark and stare as Kim Jong-kil approaches the rusty cages housing the large, short-haired animals he sells for their meat. Kim opens a door and pets one dog’s neck and chest. Kim says he’s proud of the dog meat farm that has supported

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares mostly rose Tuesday, boosted by market optimism set off by a Wall Street rally despite lingering worries about inflation and regional growth. Investors were also watching for the policy decision by the Reserve Bank of Australia. Some forecasters are expecting a hike, but analysts

By KATE BRUMBACK Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — A Georgia prosecutor is expected to seek a grand jury indictment in the coming weeks in her investigation into efforts by Donald Trump and his Republican allies to overturn the then-president’s 2020 election loss. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis began investigating more than two years ago,

By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press MIAMI (AP) — The property manager of Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate made his first court appearance on Monday on charges in the classified documents case against the former president but did not enter a plea because he has not found a Florida-based attorney to represent

By ADAM BEAM Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Work has begun on the largest dam removal project in U.S. history. Crews have mostly dismantled the first of four dams along the Klamath River near the California-Oregon border. The other three dams are expected to come down by the end of next year. Once the

By REBECCA BOONE Associated Press BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho mother Lori Vallow Daybell has been sentenced to life in prison without parole Monday in the murders of her two youngest children and a woman she saw as a romantic rival in a case that included bizarre claims that her son and daughter were zombies

By JIM GOMEZ Associated Press MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The leader of the European Union’s executive commission has warned against China’s increasingly assertive actions in disputed Indo-Pacific waters and against Taiwan by citing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU wouldn’t tolerate aggression in either region. Von der

By JOE McDONALD AP Business Writer BEIJING (AP) — The Fangbiaogan Real Estate Agency in the southern city of Nanning is still waiting for China’s post-COVID rebound. Home sales are 30-40% below last year’s depressed level after the economy barely grew in the latest quarter, according to the owner, who would give only his surname,