AP National News

Associated Press DUBLIN (AP) — Vote counting is underway in Ireland’s national election. An exit poll suggests the contest is a close-fought race among the country’s three largest political parties. Ballot boxes were opened at 9 a.m. Saturday at count centers across the country. The exit poll suggested voters’ support is split widely among the three

Associated Press HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam has approved the construction of a high-speed railway connecting the capital Hanoi in the north with the financial capital of Ho Chi Minh in the south. It is expected to cost $67 billion and will stretch 1,541 kilometers (957 miles). The new train is expected to travel at

Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te has arrived in Hawaii for a two-day transit in the U.S. as part of a trip to the South Pacific. The stopover in Hawaii and one planned for the territory of Guam have drawn fierce criticism from China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory. China

Associated Press PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — A powerful explosion has damaged a water canal and temporarily cut water and power supply to Kosovo’s cities. Prime Minister Albin Kurti blamed groups supported by Serbia, a charge denied by Belgrade. Kurti said the explosion on Friday disrupted water supply to some cities and main power plants. It

Associated Press TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Protesters gathered across Georgia on Saturday night in a third straight night of demonstrations against the government’s decision to suspend negotiations to join the European Union. More than 100 demonstrators were arrested as crowds clashed with police Friday night, the country’s Interior Ministry said. The Associated Press saw protesters

Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Thousands of Syrian insurgents took over most of Aleppo on Saturday, establishing positions in the country’s largest city and controlling its airport before expanding their shock offensive to a nearby province. They faced little to no resistance from government troops, according to fighters and activists. A war monitor, the Syrian

Associated Press REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — Icelanders are electing a new parliament after disagreements over immigration, energy policy and the economy forced Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson to pull the plug on his coalition government and call early elections. This will be Iceland’s sixth general election since the 2008 financial crisis devastated the economy of the

Associated Press BUSAN, South Korea (AP) — The world’s nations will wrap up negotiating a treaty this weekend to address the global plastic pollution crisis. Their meeting concludes Sunday or early Monday in Busan, South Korea, where many environmental organizations have also flocked to push for a treaty to address the volume of production and

Associated Press TYRE, Lebanon (AP) — The ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah brought hope for normality back to many in southern Lebanon on Friday, including fishermen who long launched their wooden-hulled single-engine boats into the Mediterranean at dawn. During the last two months of its year fighting Hezbollah, Israel imposed a siege on southern Lebanon

Associated Press BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Hundreds of protesters gathered in Bucharest after a far-right populist unexpectedly won the first round of a presidential race, plunging Romania into turmoil just days before the country holds parliamentary elections. “Better to be dead than a fascist,” one placard reads. Sunday’s ballot will determine a new government and

Associated Press BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — The first big snowfall of the season blanketed towns along Lake Erie on Saturday in the middle of the hectic holiday travel and shopping weekend, and numbing cold and heavy snow were forecast to persist into next week and cause hazards in the Great Lakes, Plains and Midwest regions.

Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — In the days after the presidential election, Sadie Perez began carrying pepper spray with her around campus. Her mom also ordered her and her sister a self-defense kit that included keychain spikes, a hidden knife key and a personal alarm. It’s a response to an emboldened fringe of right-wing “manosphere”

Associated Press SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazil’s Federal Police in late November formally accused far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro and 36 others of planning a coup to keep him in office. The agency described a multi-step scheme, substantiated by evidence and testimony, in an 884-page report. The plan included systematically sowing distrust of the electoral

Associated Press BANGKOK (AP) — A court in Beijing on Friday sentenced a prominent Chinese journalist to seven in years in prison for espionage, his family said. Dong Yuyu, a commentator and editor, was taken away by police while meeting a Japanese diplomat at a restaurant in February 2022. He has been in police custody

Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed his country will “invariably support” Russia’s war in Ukraine as he met Russia’s defense chief, the North’s state media reported Saturday. A Russia military delegation led by Defense Minister Andrei Belousov arrived in North Korea on Friday, amid growing international concern

AP Sports Writer ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen and actor Hailee Steinfeld are engaged. The couple posted a photo to their Instagram followers on Friday of Allen on one knee proposing marriage. Allen and Steinfeld were first linked in the spring of 2023. They kept their romance relatively quiet for

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Authorities say three people have been wounded in a shooting at an Arkansas mall on one of the busiest shopping days of the year. Little Rock police say the Black Friday shooting at Park Plaza in Little Rock was an isolated incident rather than an active shooter situation. Chief Heath