AP National News

By MARTHA MENDOZA Associated Press SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (AP) — A strong late-season Pacific storm that brought damaging winds and more rain and snow to saturated California was blamed for two deaths and forecasters said additional flooding was possible Wednesday in parts of the state. Tuesday’s storm focused most of its energy on central and

By SUZAN FRASER Associated Press ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s pro-Kurdish political party and its allies say they won’t field a candidate to run in the country’s May 14 presidential election. The move could boost an opposition bloc’s chances of unseating President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. An opposition coalition has united behind the candidacy of Kemal

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Chinese leader Xi Jinping just concluded a three-day visit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, a warm affair in which the two men praised each other and spoke of a profound friendship. It’s a high point in a complicated, centuries-long relationship during which the two countries have

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union’s executive arm has proposed rules to protect consumers from businesses selling goods labeled as green which actually aren’t. The European Commission said greenwashing was a notable problem, with 53% of green claims on products or services making “vague, misleading or unfounded information.” With its “green claims” directive unveiled on

By SHEIKH SAALIQ and KRUTIKA PATHI Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian police are searching for a Sikh separatist leader who has revived calls for an independent homeland, stirring fears of violence in northwestern Punjab state. Police accuse Amritpal Singh and his aides of creating discord in the state, which is still haunted by

BANGKOK (AP) — Police in Thailand have cordoned off a neighborhood in a city south of the capital where they have trapped a gunman inside his house after he shot dead at least two people and wounded several others. Police Maj. Punyapon Srimaek, speaking from the scene in Phetchaburi, confirmed that two people were dead,

By HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s president posted a video Wednesday showing what he said was a Russian missile slamming into an apartment building in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia. The video appears to be CCTV footage that captures the moment the missile hits the nine-story residential block by a busy

By BASSEM MROUE Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanese security forces fired tear gas on Wednesday to disperse hundreds of protesters, mainly retired soldiers, who tried to break through the fence leading to the government headquarters in downtown Beirut. The violence came amid widespread anger over the harsh economic conditions in the country, where mismanagement

By KELVIN CHAN Associated Press TikTok’s CEO plans to tell Congress that the video-sharing app is committed to user safety, data protection and security, and keeping the platform free from Chinese government influence. Shou Zi Chew is due to answer questions Thursday from U.S. lawmakers concerned about the social media platform’s effects on its young

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Japan’s prime minister has pledged to provide Poland with development support to help the European country assist neighboring Ukraine as it defends itself from Russia’s invasion. Polish Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki hosted Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Warsaw a day after Kishida made a surprise visit to Kyiv and

By MICHAEL CANTU Edmunds Electric vehicles, or EVs, had their best-selling year in 2022. Their market share surpassed 5% according to Edmunds data, which is nearly double than 2021. In 2023, EV sales should continue to soar. But more importantly for consumers, there will also be a larger selection of models to choose from, including

By HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia launched exploding drones that killed at least four people at a student dormitory near Kyiv before dawn Wednesday, just hours after Japan’s prime minister left the Ukrainian capital following a show of support for the country. The same day, Chinese leader Xi Jinping left Moscow

BERLIN (AP) — A German environmental group says it’s suing Facebook’s parent company Meta over persistent death threats posted on the social network against its staff. Environmental Action Germany known by German acronym DUH says Meta has been unwilling to stop the threats of violence regularly directed at its director Juergen Resch and others in

PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron will explain how he will seek to overcome tensions prompted by his plan to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. Macron will appear on national television on Wednesday for the first time since his government forced through the bill age amid mass protests. Macron is expected

BEIJING (AP) — China says President Xi Jinping’s just-concluded visit to Russia was a “journey of friendship, cooperation and peace.” The trip that ended Wednesday signaled no new progress in ending the bloody conflict in Ukraine while shoring up President Vladimir Putin’s standing amid growing efforts to isolate him and his government internationally. Chinese Foreign

DOHA, Qatar (AP) — A building has collapsed in Qatar’s capital, killing at least one person, and searchers have been looking through the rubble to check for survivors. Qatar’s Interior Ministry described the building as a four-story structure in Doha’s Bin Durham neighborhood. It said rescuers found seven survivors, while the one person killed had

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is facing a high-stakes grilling by a committee of lawmakers. The question is whether he misled Parliament about rule-breaking parties in government buildings during the coronavirus pandemic. Johnson says he never deliberately lied and “the evidence conclusively shows that I did

By HYUNG-JIN KIM and KIM TONG-HYUNG Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea launched multiple cruise missiles toward the sea on Wednesday, South Korea’s military said, three days after the North carried out what it called a simulated nuclear attack on South Korea. The launches are the North’s fourth round of weapons tests

STEPHEN WADE TOKYO (AP) — Japanese television stuck to its live coverage from Miami for almost two hours after Japan beat the United States 3-2 to win the World Baseball Classic. This was must-see viewing. Shohei Ohtani striking out Los Angeles Angels teammate Mike Trout on a pitch away to end the game was replayed

By DAVID McHUGH AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The IMF and Ukraine have agreed on a new loan package to support the government’s financies severely strained by Russia’s invasion. The $15.6 billion deal is expected to leverage even more money by assuring other donors that Ukraine is following strong economic policies. Ukraine’s finance