AP National News

By JINTAMAS SAKSORNCHAI Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — Authorities in Thailand have charged a 16-year-old girl with defaming the monarchy for messages she allegedly posted on Facebook two years ago. Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, a legal advocacy group, says the girl was charged by police on Monday with violating the law that which makes

DETROIT (AP) — Ford is recalling more than 310,000 trucks in the U.S. because the driver’s front air bag may not inflate in a crash. The recall covers certain F-250, F-350, F-450, and F-550 Super Duty trucks from the 2016 model year. The company says dust can accumulate in a cable inside the steering wheel,

By JAMEY KEATEN and COURTNEY BONNELL Associated Press GENEVA (AP) — The United Nations is racing to extend a deal that has allowed shipments of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea to parts of the world struggling with hunger, helping ease a global food crisis exacerbated by the war Russia launched more than a year

BEIJING (AP) — Several ships and aircraft searched Wednesday for 39 people reported missing after a Chinese fishing boat capsized in the middle of the Indian Ocean. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said the accident happened around 3 a.m. Tuesday. The report said the crew includes 17 from China, 17 from Indonesia and five from the

By SETH BORENSTEIN AP Science Writer There’s a two-out-of-three chance within the next five years that the world will temporarily reach the internationally accepted global temperature threshold for limiting the worst effects of climate change, a new World Meteorological Organization report forecasts. It likely would only be a fleeting and less worrisome flirtation with the

ROME (AP) — Officials in northern Italy are warning residents to get to higher ground amid fears that rain-swollen rivers could again burst their banks. Flooding earlier this week killed at least three people and forced the evacuation of thousands. The mayor of Cesena warned residents Wednesday that continued heavy rains in the Emilia-Romagna region

By NINIEK KARMINI Associated Press JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian authorities have arrested the information technology minister as part of an investigation into a million-dollar corruption scandal linked to the construction of mobile phone transmission towers in remote regions. Communication and Information Technology Minister Johnny G. Plate was arrested Wednesday after showing up for questioning

BERLIN (AP) — A top official at the German economy and climate ministry has resigned following accusations that he was involved in choosing his best man to head the federally owned German Energy Agency and signed off on financial support for a project in which his sister was involved. Patrick Graichen was one of Economy

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Norway’s King Harald V, who was released from a hospital earlier this week, has waved from the royal castle’s balcony on a celebration of the country’s Constitution Day. He saluted thousands of cheering and shouting children, waving blue-white-red Norwegian flags. Elsewhere in Oslo, the chairman of the Ukrainian parliament, who was

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Global shares were trading mixed Wednesday as Japan’s benchmark jumped on the news of solid economic growth data, while the rest of Asia was mired in uncertainty. In Europe, France’s CAC 40 declined nearly 0.1% in early trading to 7,399.51, while Germany’s DAX added 0.3% to

By JOVANA GEC Associated Press BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Authorities say dozens of Serbian schools have received bomb threats amid security concerns following two mass shootings early this month, including one in an elementary school. The education ministry said 78 elementary schools and 37 high schools in Belgrade received warnings that explosive devices had allegedly

By NICK PERRY Associated Press WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Papua New Guinea had declared next Monday a public holiday in anticipation of an historic visit by U.S. President Joe Biden and other leaders from the region. Police were tightening security, billboards were going up, and people were getting ready to sing and dance in

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — British lawmakers are warning that the country’s Parliament building is at “real and rising” risk of destruction. The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee said Parliament is “leaking, dropping masonry and at constant risk of fire,” as well as riddled with asbestos. The committee said Wednesday that

By NICK PERRY Associated Press WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand police say they believe a fire that killed at least six people in a Wellington hostel was arson and launched a homicide investigation. Police Inspector Dion Bennett say they have a list of people they want to speak to and hope to quickly

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has ruled out a so-called Quad summit taking place in Sydney without President Joe Biden. Albanese says he understands why Biden pulled out of the summit to focus on debt limit talks in Washington since they are crucial to the economy.

By ADAM SCHRECK Associated Press HIROSHIMA, Japan (AP) — The symbolism will be palpable when leaders of the world’s rich democracies sit down in Hiroshima, a city whose name evokes the tragedy of war, to tackle a host of challenges including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and rising tensions in Asia. The attention on the war

By ILLIA NOVIKOV and VASILISA STEPANENKO Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — As the lead trauma surgeon at a military hospital in Ukraine’s capital, Petro Nikitin has his hands deep in a war churning hundreds of kilometers (miles) away. The 59-year-old doctor’s work to repair the bodies of some of the most badly injured soldiers

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has ruled out a so-called Quad summit taking place in Sydney without President Joe Biden, saying the four leaders will talk at the Group of Seven meeting this weekend in Japan. Albanese said Wednesday he understands why Biden pulled out of