AP-National

By BASSEM MROUE, LEE KEATH and SAM MEDNICK Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Hamas said Thursday that it was sending a delegation to Egypt for further cease-fire talks, in a new sign of progress in attempts by international mediators to hammer out an agreement between Israel and the militant group to end the war in

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN AP Business Writer Artists from Universal Music Group, which include Drake, Adele, Bad Bunny and Billie Eilish, will be returning to TikTok as the two parties have struck a new licensing agreement following an approximately three-month long dispute. The two sides said Thursday that they are “now working expeditiously to return music

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — The Norwegian center-left government says it wants to add 7 billion kroner, or $630 million to the Scandinavian country’s armed forces over the next 12 years amid increased tensions in the region. The announcement came on top of plans announced last month of a “historic increase” of $54 billion in the

By EVELYNE MUSAMBI Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Human Rights Watch has accused Kenyan authorities of not responding adequately to ongoing floods that have killed more than 170 people since the start of the rainy season. The rights group on Thursday said the government “has a human rights obligation to prevent foreseeable harm from

By SUSIE BLANN and ILLIA NOVIKOV Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A senior Ukrainian military official says the situation on the front line in eastern Ukraine is worsening but local defenders are so far holding firm against a concerted push by Russia’s bigger and better-equipped forces. A spokesman for Ukrainian strategic command in the

By ABBY SEWELL Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — The European Union has announced an aid package for Lebanon of 1 billion euros — about $1.06 billion — that will mostly go to strengthening border control to halt the flow of asylum seekers and migrants from the small, crisis-wracked country across the Mediterranean Sea to Cyprus

PARIS (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has unveiled an international framework for regulation and use of generative AI. It adds to global efforts on governance for the rapidly advancing technology. Kishida made the announcement in a speech at the Paris-based OECD on Thursday. He said generative AI has the potential to be a

By JAMEY KEATEN and JAN M. OLSEN Associated Press GENEVA (AP) — Organizers of the Eurovision Song Contest say they reserve the right to remove any Palestinian flags and pro-Palestinian symbols at the show next week in Sweden. The announcement came amid heightened tensions surrounding Israel’s participation in the annual music competition over its military

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Polish police have arrested a 16-year-old male on suspicion of attacking a synagogue with Molotov cocktails and say they plan to ask prosecutors to open an investigation. The synagogue was attacked around 1 a.m. on Wednesday, sustaining some damage to its facade. Nobody was in the prayer hall at that time

By STEVE PEOPLES and COLLEEN LONG Associated Press CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — President Joe Biden has met privately with the families of law enforcement officers shot to death on the job in Charlotte, North Carolina. Biden said he was praying for loved ones and others left behind after the shooting. He said the U.S. has

By BEN FINLEY and MAKIYA SEMINERA Associated Press RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Arrest warrants must be served to alleged criminals if society is going to function. But there is no guarantee of safety for police officers knocking on their doors. The grim risks came into stark relief Monday when four law enforcement officers were killed

By The Associated Press Hamas said Thursday that it will send a delegation to Cairo as soon as possible to keep working on cease-fire talks, in response to Egypt’s latest proposal. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has been back in the Mideast this week in a renewed push for a cease-fire deal. New estimates

By NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press ROME (AP) — A European court on Thursday upheld Italy’s right to seize a prized Greek statue from the J. Paul Getty Museum in California, ruling that Italy was justified in trying to reclaim an important part of its cultural heritage and rejecting the museum’s appeal. The European Court of

TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Georgia’s parliament canceled Thursday’s session following massive protests against a proposed law that critics fear will stifle media freedom and endanger the country’s bid for membership in the European Union. The parliament said the cancellation was connected to damage to the building during Wednesday protests in which police used water cannon,

BEIJING (AP) — The death toll from a collapsed highway in southeastern China has climbed to 48 as searchers dug for a second day through a treacherous and mountainous area.. Officials in Meizhou city said Thursday that three other people were unidentified, pending DNA testing. It wasn’t immediately clear if they had died, which would

By KELVIN CHAN AP Business Writer LONDON (AP) — Toothbrushes used to be simple, powered only by your hand so they never broke down. Nowadays, rechargeable electric toothbrushes are increasingly popular because they make brushing easier and more effective, but they are a headache when they stop working properly. Inside an electric toothbrush’s waterproof housing

By MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS Associated Press NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Cyprus has given Chevron another six months to come up with a revised plan to develop a sizeable natural gas deposit off the island nation’s southern coastline after an earlier plan was deemed lacking in a specific timetable. An official with knowledge of the matter says

By HYUNG-JIN KIM Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s parliament has approved special legislation mandating a new, independent investigation into the 2022 Halloween crush in Seoul that killed 159 people. The single-chamber National Assembly passed the bill by a 256-0 vote on Thursday. It will become law after it’s signed by President Yoon

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer Asian shares were mostly higher Friday ahead of a report on the U.S. jobs market, while several major markets including Tokyo and Shanghai were closed for holidays. Oil prices and U.S. futures were higher. The Japanese yen strengthened slightly against the U.S. dollar amid signs of heavy central bank

SYDNEY (AP) — A judge has denied bail to a 15-year-old boy alleged to be in a network planning terrorist acts and who claimed to be a friend of another teen accused of stabbing a Sydney bishop. The attack on the bishop last month triggered an investigation that led to the arrests of six teens