AP-National

By CHINEDU ASADU Associated Press ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — West Africa’s regional bloc says the coup-hit nations of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger are in haste to withdraw their membership of the association without following its rules of exit. The regional body said this on Thursday as its ministers met to deliberate on growing division

By JIM MUSTIAN and JOSHUA GOODMAN Associated Press The CIA this week terminated a woman whose whistleblower account of being assaulted in a stairwell at the spy agency’s headquarters prompted a flood of colleagues to come forward with their own complaints of sexual misconduct. The woman’s attorney called the action a brazen retaliation. While the

By R.J. RICO Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — A man believed to be one of the opponents of a planned police and firefighter training facility in Atlanta has been arrested on charges of torching eight police motorcycles last summer. The attack was one of about two dozen acts of arson that officials have linked to

By TODD RICHMOND Associated Press MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Enbridge energy company is trying to persuade a federal appeals court to allow a pipeline to continue operating on a Wisconsin tribal reservation. In June, U.S. District Court Judge William Conley ordered Enbridge to shut down a portion of Line 5 that runs through the Bad

By ABBY SEWELL Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — A U.S. strike in Baghdad that killed a commander with the powerful Kataib Hezbollah paramilitary group this week highlighted the ambiguous status of the country’s Iran-allied armed factions. Some operate simultaneously as a part of the official security forces and outside of state control. That ambiguity has

By MIKE STOBBE AP Medical Writer NEW YORK (AP) — A study finds that a new, higher-dose nasal spray for reversing opioid overdoses didn’t save more lives than the standard dose. However, it was tied to more vomiting and other side effects. The new study is being called the first to provide real-world data on

By MICHAEL CASEY Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — A former Olympian and longtime track coach will spend as many as 11 years in state prison after pleading guilty to charges of sexually molesting young boys at a sports camp in western Massachusetts in the 1970s, abuse that was laid bare by the emotional testimony of

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — From Wall Street traders to car dealers to home buyers, Americans are eager for the Federal Reserve to start cutting interest rates and lightening the heavy burden on borrowers. The Fed is widely expected to do so this year — probably several times. Inflation, as measured

By ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press A federal judge has denied Trump White House official Peter Navarro’s bid to remain out of prison while he appeals his contempt of Congress conviction for refusing to cooperate with a congressional investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Navarro was sentenced last month to

By GLENN GAMBOA AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Silent Donor is flourishing just as the privacy debate for contributors heats up, especially for those using donor-advised funds to anonymously give to their favorite, and sometimes controversial, causes while also getting a tax break. In November, the IRS proposed new regulations to govern donor-advised

By LINDSEY BAHR AP Film Writer Casting directors are some of the most important creatives in Hollywood but have never been celebrated as such on Hollywood’s biggest night. Starting next year, however, that all changes. The Oscars will add a new award to recognize achievement in casting for films released in 2025 and beyond. The

By JOEY CAPPELLETTI and COREY WILLIAMS Associated Press DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) — Biden administration officials are meeting with Arab American and Muslim leaders in Michigan. It’s part of an effort to mend ties with a community that has an important role in deciding whether President Joe Biden can hold on to a crucial swing state

By MEG KINNARD Associated Press COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Will Lester, a longtime reporter and editor for The Associated Press who played a critical role in the wire service’s 2000 election-night decision not to call the presidential race, has died. He was 71. According to his family, Lester died unexpectedly Wednesday at his home in

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Japanese officials say Chinese coast guard vessels have been passing by Japanese-claimed waters for weeks in the East China Sea and China’s warships have been edging near Japan’s southwestern islands in recent days. The Japanese Coast Guard says a fleet of four Chinese coast guard vessels passed

EMPIRE, Mich. (AP) — A man accused of diverting a national park river to ease boat access to Lake Michigan has been convicted of two misdemeanors. Andrew Howard of Frankfort was found guilty of tampering and vandalism Wednesday. In August 2022, a National Park Service ranger witnessed Howard digging with a shovel so the Platte

CHORLEY, England (AP) — Chorley could be the next soccer club from the English non-leagues to be given a sprinkle of celebrity stardust. The sixth-tier team from northwest England says it is in “ongoing discussions” with Boyzone in hopes of the 1990s Irish boy band fronted by Ronan Keating becoming “the face of the football

By STEPHEN GROVES, MARY CLARE JALONICK, and LISA MASCARO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Overcoming a week of setbacks, the Senate on Thursday voted to begin work on a package of wartime funding for Ukraine, Israel and other U.S. allies. But doubts remained about support from Republicans who earlier rejected a carefully negotiated compromise that

HOUSTON (AP) — A Texas man who drugged his wife’s drinks in an attempt to induce an abortion was sentenced to 180 days in jail and 10 years on probation. Mason Herring, a 39-year-old Houston attorney, pleaded guilty Wednesday to injury to a child and assault of a pregnant person. He had initially been charged

Associated Press CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Authorities are collecting reports from Floridians who felt shaking from a 4.0 magnitude earthquake off the coast, the National Weather Service reported. The earthquake happened shortly before 11 p.m. Wednesday about 100 miles (160 kilometers) east of Cape Canaveral, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. More than 80

By ERIC TUCKER, LINDSAY WHITEHURST, ZEKE MILLER and COLLEEN LONG Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A special counsel report released Thursday found evidence that President Joe Biden willfully retained and shared highly classified information when he was a private citizen, including about military and foreign policy in Afghanistan, but concluded that criminal charges were not