AP National News

By ASTRID SUAREZ Associated Press BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — For the first time in 25 years, Colombia has opened military service to women. The first cohort of 1,296 female recruits enlisted in February and is now undergoing training. Colombia has long had compulsory military service for men ages 18 to 24. The army relies heavily

By EDITH M. LEDERER Associated Press UNITED NATIONS (AP) — On the eve of International Women’s Day, leading women’s rights campaigners at the United Nations and the African Union and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate criticized male-dominated governments Tuesday for excluding women from peace negotiations. They complained that governments are ignoring a U.N. resolution adopted

By NICHOLAS RICCARDI Associated Press Arizona’s Democratic attorney general is suing a rural, Republican-controlled county to stop it from transferring all election duties from a nonpartisan office to the elected county recorder. The lawsuit is the latest legal dispute between the state and Cochise County over its embrace of election conspiracy theories. Last fall, a

By SEAN MURPHY Associated Press OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma voters on Tuesday rejected the legalization of recreational marijuana, following a late blitz of opposition from faith leaders, law enforcement and prosecutors. Oklahoma would have become the 22nd state to legalize adult use of cannabis and join conservative states like Montana and Missouri that have

By MORGAN LEE Associated Press SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico is considering legal changes to to rein in unauthorized paramilitary patrols that intimidate or pose a danger. The bill emerged Monday from House committee vetting for a possible floor vote amid opposition from Republican legislators. Nevada and Oregon are considering similar initiatives. A

NORWALK, Conn. (AP) — Author and illustrator Ian Woodward Falconer, known for his “Olivia” book series for children, has died. Falconer’s lawyer and agent Conrad M. Rippy said Falconer died Tuesday of natural causes while with family in Norwalk, Connecticut. He was 63. Falconer’s “Olivia” books featured a clever piglet with a great imagination named

By SAMY MAGDY Associated Press CAIRO (AP) — A powerful paramilitary commander has slammed Sudan’s ruling generals, saying they oppose stepping down to allow for a democratic transition under a civilian administration. Gen. Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, head of Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces, said Tuesday his conflict with other military leaders centers on the issue of

CAIRO (AP) — A passenger train derailed Tuesday north of Cairo, killing at least two people and injuring 16 others, Egyptian authorities said. It was the latest in a series of rail accidents in the country in recent years. The train went off its tracks as it traveled through a station in the city of

By BRUCE SCHREINER and DYLAN LOVAN Associated Press LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Four of the candidates running in Kentucky’s Republican gubernatorial primary staked out positions Tuesday night on medical marijuana legalization and whether the state’s anti-abortion laws should be relaxed to allow more exceptions to the near-total ban. They took turns advocating conservative themes in

By SEAN MURPHY Associated Press OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma Republicans have formally censured their nonbinary Democratic colleague after state troopers said the lawmaker blocked them from questioning a transgender rights activist accused of assaulting a police officer during a protest over anti-trans legislation. The House voted along party lines Tuesday to censure Rep. Mauree

By DAVID BAUDER and JENNIFER PELTZ Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Fox Corp. Chairman Rupert Murdoch said under oath that he believes the 2020 presidential election was free, fair and not stolen, according to court filings released Tuesday in a lawsuit over Fox News’ coverage of former President Donald Trump’s unfounded election fraud claims.

SANTA ROSA, Calif. (AP) — A Northern California school district heard community concerns about campus safety in the wake of a fatal stabbing at a high school. The school district held a “listening session” Tuesday.  Students described their fears and called for increased access to counseling. The teenage suspect made his first appearance in court

By SEAN MURPHY Associated Press OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma voters rejected a state question Tuesday to allow for the recreational use of marijuana, following a late blitz of opposition from faith leaders, law enforcement and prosecutors. Oklahoma would have become the 22nd state to legalize adult use of cannabis and join conservative states like

By JUAN A. LOZANO and MICHAEL GRACZYK Associated Press HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) — Texas has executed an inmate for fatally stabbing his estranged wife and drowning her 6-year-old daughter in a bathtub nearly 14 years ago. Gary Green received a lethal injection Tuesday evening at the state penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas. He was condemned for

By MARK PRATT Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — A passenger who helped restrain a threatening man on a weekend flight from Los Angeles to Boston said Tuesday that the entire chaotic episode was over within seconds thanks to teamwork. Simik Ghookasian said in a telephone interview that he was seated several rows behind the man,

By COLLIN BINKLEY AP Education Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — A private bank is trying to force the Biden administration to end its pause on federal student loan payments, arguing the moratorium has no legal basis and has cost the bank, known for its refinancing business, millions of dollars in profits. In a federal lawsuit filed

By BARBARA ORTUTAY AP Technology Writer SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — If you’re not told you are fired, are you really fired? At Twitter, probably. And then, sometimes, you get your job back — if you want it. Haraldur Thorleifsson, who until recently was employed at Twitter, logged in to his computer last Sunday to do

By ALFREDO PEÑA, FABIOLA SÁNCHEZ and TRAVIS LOLLER Associated Press CIUDAD VICTORIA, Mexico (AP) — A road trip to Mexico for cosmetic surgery veered violently off course when four Americans were caught in a drug cartel shootout, leaving two dead and two held captive for days in a remote region of the Gulf coast before

By ANDREW DeMILLO Associated Press LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A massive education bill that includes a new school voucher program for Arkansas is headed to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ desk for her signature. The majority-Republican Senate on Tuesday approved the legislation, which Sanders has called her priority this session. The GOP governor says she