AP-National

BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand’s government has ordered officials to closely monitor livestock along the border with Laos after more than 50 people were reported to have contracted anthrax in the neighboring country. Thai authorities say they have been working closely with those in Laos after receiving reports of the outbreak and have prepared vaccines in

By ZEN SOO AP Technology Writer HONG KONG (AP) — Chinese telecoms gear company Huawei Technologies has reported its profit more than doubled last year as its cloud and digital businesses thrived in spite of U.S. sanctions. The Shenzhen-based company reported a net profit of $12 billion, helped by strong sales and an improved product

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares ended mostly higher in quiet, Good Friday holiday trading, while European and U.S. markets were closed. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.5% to 40,369.44 and the Kospi in Seoul was little changed, at 2,748.55. The Shanghai Composite index gained 1% to 3,041.17. Taiwan’s Taiex advanced

By LORNE COOK Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union aims to fast-track up to $1.1 billion in financial aid to Egypt, using a funding procedure that bypasses parliamentary oversight and other safeguards. The funds are part of a bigger aid package under an EU-Egypt deal aimed partly at stopping migrants from reaching European

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A magnitude 5.7 earthquake has struck southern Greece off the coast of the western Peloponnese. Minor damage but no injuries were reported from the quake, which was also felt in the Greek capital and as far away as the southern island of Crete. The Athens Geodynamic Institute says the quake struck

By YURI KAGEYAMA Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Five people who took a Japanese health supplement have died and more than 100 have been hospitalized as of Friday, a week after a pharmaceutical company issued a recall of the products, officials said. Osaka-based Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co. came under fire for not going public quickly with

By YURI KAGEYAMA Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — “Oppenheimer” has finally opened in the nation where two cities were obliterated by the nuclear weapons invented by the American scientist at the center of the film. Japanese filmgoers’ reactions understandably were mixed and highly emotional. A Hiroshima survivor said he has been fascinated by the story

By BASSEM MROUE and MARIAM FAM Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — The nun stood in front of a group of young students at a Lebanese Christian school and asked them to pray for the “men of the resistance” in southern Lebanon who she said were defending the country. The men to whom nun Maya Ziadeh

ATLANTA (AP) — A Georgia bill that aims to require local jailers to work with immigration authorities is headed to the governor’s desk for his signature. Georgia’s House of Representatives voted Thursday to accept changes to House Bill 1105 by a vote of 99 to 75. Under the measure, local law enforcement agencies would risk

By GEOFF MULVIHILL Associated Press International Transgender Day of Visibility aims to show “trans joy.” Buildings will be lit pink, white and light blue to mark the event on Sunday, which features rallies and panels. The idea is to bring attention to a population that’s often ignored, disparaged or victimized. The event stands in contrast

By JEFF AMY Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia could join other states in requiring children younger than 16 to have their parents’ explicit permission to create social media accounts. Lawmakers on Friday gave final approval to a bill that would also ban social media use on school devices and internet services. It would require

By KEN MORITSUGU Associated Press BEIJING (AP) — China’s first generation of migrant workers played an integral role in the country’s transformation from an impoverished nation to an economic powerhouse. For decades, they have come from farming villages to find work in the cities, toiling in sweatshops and building apartment complexes they could never afford

By DASHA LITVINOVA and ERIC TUCKER Associated Press TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — A journalist on a reporting trip in a Ural Mountains city. A corporate security executive traveling to Moscow for a wedding. A dual national returning to her hometown in Tatarstan to visit her family. All of them are U.S. citizens, and all are

By CEDAR ATTANASIO Associated Press STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) — The late Joe Lieberman on Friday was remembered by political allies and even a former foe as a “mensch” who both bridged and defied partisan political divides, during a funeral service for the four-term U.S. senator. Former Vice President Al Gore, who ran for president on

By KATHLEEN FOODY and MELISSA PEREZ WINDER Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago plans to close five shelters for migrants in the coming weeks. The city’s first step is moving 800 people into other shelters starting Saturday, clearing the park district fieldhouses to resume normal operations for summer. The shift is part of the city’s

By MIKE CATALINI Associated Press As authorities begin removing twisted wreckage from the the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse, they’re confronting the potential for environmental fallout. They are deploying nearly a mile’s worth of barriers in the water, testing samples for contamination and monitoring the Patapsco River for oil and other hazardous spills. The Unified

By BEN FINLEY and BRIAN WITTE Associated Press ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — Rebuilding Baltimore’s collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge could take anywhere from 18 months to several years, experts say, while the cost could be at least $400 million — or more than twice that. It all depends on factors that are still mostly unknown.

By LEA SKENE and BRIAN WITTE Associated Press BALTIMORE (AP) — A crane that can lift 1,000 tons, described as one of the largest on the Eastern Seaboard, appeared near the site of a collapsed highway bridge in Baltimore as crews prepared Friday to begin clearing wreckage that has stymied the search for four workers

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — One of the nation’s most prominent news outlets has found itself in an embarrassing mess over the hiring — and quick firing — of someone who isn’t even a journalist in the first place. Among other things, NBC News’ brief employment of former Republican National

By The Associated Press Hours before gunmen last week carried out the bloodiest attack in two decades in Russia, authorities made an addition to a government register of extremist and terrorist groups: They included the international LGBTQ+ “movement.” That addition to the register followed a Russian Supreme Court court ruling last year that cracked down