AP-National

By WAFAA SHURAFA, BASSEM MROUE and TIA GOLDENBERG Associated Press DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes in central Gaza killed at least 35 people Sunday, hospital officials said, as fighting raged across the tiny enclave a day after Israel’s prime minister said the war will continue for “many more months,” resisting international calls

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Security forces in Afghanistan killed a number of Tajik and Pakistani nationals and arrested scores others involved in attacks against religious clerics, the public, and mosques, a senior Taliban official said Sunday. Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid, Taliban’s appointed defense minister, during a press conference in the capital, Kabul, said dozens of Tajiks and

By BINSAR BAKKARA Associated Press MEDAN, Indonesia (AP) — Nearly 150 Rohingya refugees, mostly hungry and weak women and children, have reached a beach in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province after weeks at sea, officials said Sunday. The group of 53 men, 39 women and 55 children arrived on Karang Gadih beach in Langkat district late

Istanbul (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has blamed opposition parties for “exploiting” a dispute between two Turkish football clubs and Saudi officials. The Turkish Super Cup final to be played in Saudi Arabia on Friday was postponed indefinitely after Istanbul rivals, Galatasaray and Fenerbahce, refused to take to the pitch and returned home.

BEIRUT (AP) — The U.S. military said Sunday that its forces opened fire on Houthi rebels after they attacked a cargo ship in the Red Sea, killing several of them in an escalation of the maritime conflict linked to the war in Gaza. “We’re going to act in a self-defense going forward,” a White House

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping said China would “surely be reunified” with Taiwan during his televised New Year’s address, renewing Beijing’s threats to take over the self-ruled island, which it considers its own. Taiwan split from China amid civil war in 1949, but Beijing continues to regard the island of 23 million with

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The South Korean capital, Seoul, received the biggest single-day snowfall recorded in December for more than 40 years on Saturday but there have been no reports of any weather-related deaths or injuries. The country’s weather agency said Sunday that 12.2 centimeters (4.8 inches) of snow fell on Seoul the previous

By ILLIA NOVIKOV Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched a fresh drone assault on Ukraine after promising that strikes on the Russian border city of Belgorod that killed 24 people Saturday “would not go unpunished.” The Ukrainian Air Force said Sunday that it had shot down 21 of 49 drones launched by Russian

By BOBBY CAINA CALVAN and DANIEL KOZIN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — It’s an annual end-of-year exercise in futility for many. But a clean slate awaits at the stroke of midnight for the next round of resolutions. From the first spray of fireworks to the closing chorus of “Auld Lang Syne” 366 days into

By The Associated Press New Year’s Day arrived to cheers from thousands in New York’s Times Square where a sparkling crystal ball descended to start 2024 with hope for some, even as the world’s ongoing conflicts subdued celebrations and raised security concerns across the globe. “It’s beautiful,” Corin Christian of Charlotte, North Carolina, said of

By ISABELLA VOLMERT Associated Press INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana’s Republican leaders are calling for a short 2024 session focused on “fine-tuning” policy. But with the approaching 2024 general election and following landmark conservative legislation in recent years that included a near-total ban on abortion and a law that restricts the use of students’ preferred pronouns

By JOHN O’CONNOR AP Political Writer SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Illinois will usher in 320 new laws on New Year’s Day. The production or purchase of a semi-automatic weapon will be prohibited, and employers will be required to allow paid vacation for any reason. Other laws include a prohibition on libraries banning books, bans on

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (AP) — The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has released body camera footage showing a deputy fatally shooting a 27-year-old Black woman in her apartment. The woman called authorities to report a domestic violence incident. Deputies later arrived at her apartment building in Lancaster. Police say that as the woman let deputies

By RICHARD VOGEL and SOPHIE AUSTIN Associated Press/Report for America VENTURA, Calif. (AP) — Southern California’s Ventura County issued a temporary evacuation warning Saturday for some coastal residents due to high surf that pounded the West Coast this week but has begun to calm down. County officials warned that powerful waves, expected to reach up

By DAVE HOGG Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Pistons ended their NBA record-tying losing streak at 28 games with a 129-127 victory over the short-handed Toronto Raptors on Saturday night, as Cade Cunningham had 30 points and 12 assists. The Pistons, who hadn’t won since Oct. 28, matched the Philadelphia 76ers’ record of

By HYUNG-JIN KIM Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to launch three additional military spy satellites, produce more nuclear materials and introduce attack drones in 2024, as he called for “overwhelming” war readiness to cope with U.S.-led confrontational moves, state media reported Sunday. Kim’s comments, made during

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Paula Abdul has accused former “American Idol” producer Nigel Lythgoe of sexually assaulting her in the early 2000s when she was a judge on the reality competition show, according to a new lawsuit. The lawsuit filed Friday in Los Angeles also accuses Lythgoe of sexually assaulting Abdul after she left “American

By MEGAN JANETSKY Associated Press MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico and Venezuela announced Saturday that they have restarted repatriation flights of Venezuelans migrants in Mexico, the latest move by countries in the region to take on a flood of people traveling north to the United States. The move comes as authorities say at least 10,000

By MARK THIESSEN Associated Press A fake emergency call to police resulted in officers responding Friday night to the home of Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows just a day after she removed former President Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the Constitution’s insurrection clause. She becomes the latest elected politician to

By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s chancellor used his New Year’s speech to call on his country’s citizens not to lose confidence in the future as they adapt to a world experiencing multiple crises and changing at an ever-faster pace. “So much suffering; so much bloodshed. Our world has become a more