AP National News

By MIKE CORDER Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A critical report into the protection of three murder victims, including a celebrated Dutch journalist shot in downtown Amsterdam, says that security services in a “fragmented” system did not always act on tips about possible threats. The conclusions highlighted flaws in a network involving police

By KELVIN CHAN AP Business Writer BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — The push is still on for the metaverse even as doubts of its viability have been creeping in as the initial hype wears off. Companies allowed people to fly over futuristic cityscape in South Korea, fight a fire or go inside a human blood vessels

ROME (AP) — The coffins of dozens of migrants who died in a shipwreck off Italy’s southern coast have been laid out in rows inside a sports complex for public viewing. The wailing of survivors and other family members filled the stadium. Sea and air searchers kept up operations on Wednesday for the many still

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s foreign and development ministers have presented their government’s new feminist foreign policy guidelines that are supposed to ensure that all people “have the same right to representation and access to resources.” The policy will consider and support especially the needs of women and girls in order to erase discrimination. Among other

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — Officials say Pakistan has launched its first-ever digital population and housing census to gather demographic data ahead of parliamentary elections this year. The national count launched on Wednesday will, for the first time, count transgender people. Results of the broader tally will be released in April and be used to make

By JESSICA GRESKO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is hearing a dispute between New York and New Jersey over New Jersey’s desire to withdraw from a commission the states formed decades ago to combat the mob’s influence at their joint port. The Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor was created in 1953

PARIS (AP) — World Cup record holder Just Fontaine has died. He was 89. The French soccer great scored a record 13 goals at the 1958 World Cup. The former Reims striker took six games to achieve his feat at the World Cup tournament in Sweden after being a last-minute inclusion on the French squad.

BEIJING (AP) — China says a ban on the use of TikTok by official European Union institutions will harm business confidence in Europe. In the latest salvo in the battle over the Chinese-owned video sharing app, the European Parliament, the European Commission and the EU Council have banned installation of TikTok on official devices, following

BEIJING (AP) — For the second day in a row, China on Wednesday dismissed U.S. suggestions that the COVID-19 pandemic may have been triggered by a virus that leaked from a Chinese laboratory. Responding to comments by FBI Director Christopher Wray, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said the involvement of the U.S. intelligence community was

By JULIE CARR SMYTH Associated Press COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Railroads like the one involved in last month’s fiery crash and toxic chemical release in Ohio would be subject to a series of new federal safety regulations and financial consequences under legislation being introduced Wednesday by the state’s two U.S. senators. An early copy of

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran says it has expelled two German diplomats over Berlin’s alleged interference in its internal affairs. The move comes a week after Germany expelled two Iranian diplomats over a death sentence handed down to an Iranian-German opposition figure accused of masterminding deadly attacks. Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that

By KAREL JANICEK Associated Press LEST, Slovakia (AP) — Former Soviet satellite Slovakia has been a NATO member since 2004, but the reality of belonging to the world’s biggest military alliance really kicked in after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a year ago. The small central European country now hosts thousands of NATO troops while allied

By TIA GOLDENBERG Associated Press TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israelis are stepping up their protests against a contentious government plan to overhaul the judicial system. Large demonstrations and road closures took place Wednesday in what protest leaders have dubbed a “national day of disruption.” A central protest was expected later in Jerusalem. The demonstrations

By ABBY SEWELL Associated Press BAGHDAD (AP) — An international archeological mission has uncovered the remnants of what is believed to be a 5,000-year-old restaurant or tavern in the ancient city of Lagash in southern Iraq. The discovery of the ancient dining hall — complete with a rudimentary refrigeration system, hundreds of roughly made clay

By OMAR FARUK and CARA ANNA Associated Press MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — The United States is increasing its military assistance to Somalia as the country sees success in battling what the U.S. calls “the largest and most deadly al-Qaida network in the world.” Sixty-one tons of weapons and ammunition arrived Tuesday in Mogadishu in a

By SAMY MAGDY Associated Press CAIRO (AP) — A group of women stands in front of a vegetable vendor at a street market in one of Cairo’s oldest neighborhoods, yelling in frustration. “Every day there are new prices,” one said. “When will this war end?” another shouted, cradling a baby in her arms. Russia’s invasion

By COSTAS KANTOURIS and DEREK GATOPOULOS Associated Press TEMPE, Greece (AP) — A passenger train carrying hundreds of people, including many university students returning home from holiday, collided at high speed with an oncoming freight train in a fiery wreck in northern Greece, killing at least 36 people and injuring some 85, officials said Wednesday.

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were higher Wednesday after reports on key measures of China manufacturing showed a strong recovery after anti-virus controls were lifted late last year. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index jumped 3.8% and Shanghai gained 1%. Purchasing managers’ indexes issued by a business magazine, Caixin, and