AP-National

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union has imposed sanctions on the Russian justice and prison officials responsible for jailing opposition leader Alexei Navalny. A total of 33 officials have been hit by the measures. The bloc has also frozen the assets in Europe of two of the prisons where Navalny was held before his death

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s newly appointed finance minister says the country plans to seek a long-term loan from the International Monetary Fund to help stabilize the country’s ailing economy after the end of the IMF’s current $3 billion bailout package. Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb plans to meet with IMF officials in Washington in April. He

By PAN PYLAS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The decision by Nike to change the color of the St. George’s Cross on the new England men’s soccer shirt from the traditional red and white is causing controversy. The new shirt is being rolled out in the run-up to the European Championship in Germany. The altered

By MICHAEL CASEY Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — The Massachusetts Senate has approved limits on how long homeless families can stay in emergency state shelters as part of an $850 million plan to fund the system that has been at the center of the migrant crisis. The bill approved late Thursday would limit maximum stays

By KRYSTA FAURIA Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — The bones that embody an album can take many shapes. They may tell a story, follow a genre or provide a soundtrack to a film. But thanks to Reverend Kristin Michael Hayter’s interest in religion, her skills as a musician and classically trained vocalist and her

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako have visited towns in the north-central region of Noto to pray for victims of the deadly New Year’s Day earthquake and console thousands of homeless living in evacuation centers. The magnitude 7.6 quake killed 241 people. Four are still missing. More

By MARCIA DUNN AP Aerospace Writer CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — April’s total solar eclipse promises to be a scientific bonanza, thanks to new spacecraft and telescopes — and cosmic chance. The moon will be extra close to Earth, providing a long and intense period of darkness, and the sun should be more active with

MADRID (AP) — Authorities say a boat carrying a group of migrants ran into trouble off the coast of southeastern Spain killing at least three people and several others were believed missing. Spain’s Maritime Rescue Service said in a statement Friday that two survivors and three bodies were found on a partially sunken boat off

By DEEPA BHARATH Associated Press Holi, widely known as the Hindu festival of colors, is a joyful annual celebration at the advent of spring with cultural and religious significance. Typically observed in March in India, Nepal, other South Asian countries and across the diaspora, the festival celebrates love and signifies a time of rebirth and

Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — Stellantis is recalling nearly 318,000 Dodge and Chrysler sedans worldwide because the side air bag inflators can explode with too much force and hurl metal fragments at drivers and passengers. The recall covers air bag inflators on both sides of certain Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300 large cars from the

RABAT, Morocco (AP) — Regional and local leaders in Morocco met this week with residents of an oasis where many have staged protests over a water management plan. Thousands in the eastern Moroccan town of Figuig have demonstrated against their municipal council’s plan to to transition drinking water management to a regional multi-service agency. The

By BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Police say they are investigating whether the largest donor to Britain’s Conservative government committed a crime when he reportedly said a Black member of Parliament made him “want to hate all Black women” and that she “should be shot.” West Yorkshire police said Friday that they are

BERLIN (AP) — The German government’s plan to liberalize rules on cannabis has cleared its final parliamentary hurdle, paving the way for the possession of limited amounts of marijuana to be decriminalized on April 1. In a second step, “cannabis clubs” that will be allowed to grow the substance for members’ personal use will be

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) — Peter Pellegrini, a close ally of populist Prime Minister Robert Fico, is considered a favorite in the race for the largely ceremonial post of Slovakia’s president. A victory for Pellegrini, who currently serves as Parliament speaker, would cement Fico’s power by putting his his allies in control of strategic posts. It would

By SAMYA KULLAB Associated Press KHARKIV, Ukraine (AP) — A dance studio that doubles as a bomb shelter is an escape from the horrors of war for about 20 young girls in Ukraine’s city of Kharkiv. The Princess Ballet Studio is a spartan, windowless room, but practicing underground means they can dance through the almost

By BASSEM MROUE and JAMEY KEATEN Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — A U.N. humanitarian official is appealing for more than $4 billion in life-saving aid for more than 10 million Syrians, saying that the country’s largely forgotten crisis remains “one of the most deadly to civilians in the world.” Adam Abdelmoula, resident coordinator in Syria

MOSCOW (AP) — Rescue workers are laboring for a fifth day to reach 13 people trapped deep underground in a collapsed gold mine in Russia’s far east. News reports say no contact has been made with the miners in the Amur region, about 5,000 kilometers (3,000 miles) east of Moscow. The state news agency RIA-Novosti

By BRIAN INGANGA Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Hundreds of Kenyan doctors have protested in the streets demanding better pay and working conditions in an ongoing nationwide strike that has entered its second week. The doctors carried placards and chanted against the Kenyan government on Friday, saying it had failed to implement a raft

By CORA LEWIS Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — If you’re a freelancer or gig worker who receives payments via apps like Venmo, Zelle, Cash App or PayPal, your tax reporting requirements will change for the 2024 tax year. Right now, for the current 2023 tax year, freelancers and small online sellers need only report

By SAMUEL PETREQUIN Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Commission wants to prevent Russia from using agriculture products as a tool to wreak havoc on the EU market and will impose tariffs on grain imports from Russia and Belarus. Imports of cereals, oilseeds and derived products from Russia and its Belarus ally are just