AP National News

AL-HADJI KUDRA MALIRO & SAM MEDNICK ASSOCIATED PRESS BENI, Congo (AP) — A new U.N. report says rebels in eastern Congo have killed at least 131 people and inflicted “unspeakable violence” against civilians. The findings published this week in a preliminary investigation by the United Nations, accuses M23 rebels of killing men, women and children

NEW YORK (AP) — A federal appeals court panel says New York can continue enforcing a new state law banning guns from “sensitive” places like parks and theaters while the judges consider a legal challenge. The temporary stay from the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday puts on hold most of a ruling

MOSCOW (AP) — The lower house of the Russian parliament has passed a bill banning foreigners from using Russian surrogate mothers. The bill adopted by the State Duma mandates that only married Russian citizens or single Russian women who cannot give birth to a child for medical reasons will be able to use the services

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — A little-known Greek anarchist group has claimed responsibility for an arson attack on an Italian diplomat’s car in Athens. In a statement posted on a far-left website Thursday, a group calling itself “Revenge Cell Carlo Giuliani” said it carried out last Friday’s attack in a show of solidarity for Alfredo Cospito,

By STEPHEN McGRATH and LORNE COOK Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — Croatia has been given a green light to join the group of nations that make up Europe’s ID-check-free travel area, the European Union’s presidency says. The decision came during a meeting of EU interior ministers in Brussels Thursday. Bulgaria and Romania must wait longer.

By JILL COLVIN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump arrived in Washington with a hodgepodge of ideas developed over decades in business and television that were far outside the Republican mainstream. After a generation of neoconservative nation-building, multilateral trade deals and off-shoring, Trump ran on an isolationist foreign policy platform, with a deep

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are opening modestly higher on Wall Street, but remain lower for the week after five straight losses. The S&P 500 was up 0.2% in the early going Thursday and the tech-heavy Nasdaq was down 0.1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.5%. Energy companies were doing better than the

The Associated Press Celine Dion has put a halt on all performing after being diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder. In an emotional video messages posted in French and English on Thursday on Instagram, Dion said stiff person syndrome was causing spasms that affect her ability to walk and sing. “Unfortunately, the spasms affect every

By ERIC TUCKER, MATTHEW LEE and ZEKE MILLER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Russia freed WNBA star Brittney Griner on Thursday in a dramatic high-level prisoner exchange, with the U.S. releasing notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, American and Russian officials said. The swap, at a time of heightened tensions over Ukraine, achieved a top

By DANICA KIRKA and JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, offered a sweeping indictment of Britain’s media and the racism they believe has fueled coverage of their relationship in a Netflix documentary series that promises to tell the “full story” of the couple’s estrangement from the royal family.

By The Associated Press Brittney Griner has been freed from a Russia prison in a high-level prisoner exchange. Here’s a look at the WNBA All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist’s career on and off the basketball court.

By ELAINE KURTENBACH and MATT OTT AP Business Writers Wall Street pointed higher in premarket trading Thursday ahead of employment and inflation data that may offer hints about how aggressive the Federal Reserve’s next move will be in its battle against inflation. Futures for the Dow inched up 0.2% and the S&P 500 rose 0.3%

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — This was the year war returned to Europe, and few facets of life were left untouched. Russia’s invasion of its neighbor Ukraine unleashed misery on millions of Ukrainians, shattered Europe’s sense of security, ripped up the geopolitical map and rocked the global economy. The shockwaves made life

By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Chinese leader Xi Jinping met on Thursday with Saudi Arabia’s king and crown prince while on a visit to the kingdom, solidifying ties with a region crucial to his country’s energy supplies as sanctions intensify on Russia over its war on Ukraine. Xi arrived

By GILLIAN FLACCUS Associated Press PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon’s tough, voter-approved gun control law remains temporarily blocked. Oregon’s Supreme Court declined to overturn a lower court judge’s decision preventing the measure from taking effect on Thursday. The measure would ban the sale and transfer of high-capacity magazines. The law also requires permits, criminal background

By BARBARA ORTUTAY AP Technology Writer Federal regulators opened their campaign to block Facebook parent Meta’s acquisition of a virtual-reality company in a San Jose, California, courtroom. In a landmark legal challenge Thursday to a Big Tech merger, the Federal Trade Commission has sued to prevent Meta’s acquisition of Within Unlimited and its fitness app

By ZARAR KHAN Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan has slammed the U.S. State Department’s listing last week of the South Asian country as one of “particular concern” regarding religious freedoms. Washington grouped Pakistan along with 11 other countries as being states that have “engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom.” In

LONDON (AP) — Google has to delete search results about people in Europe if they can prove that the information is clearly wrong, the European Union’s top court said Thursday. The European Court of Justice ruled that search engines must “dereference information” if the person making the request can demonstrate that the material is “manifestly

By STEVE DOUGLAS and LUIS ANDRES HENAO Associated Press DOHA, Qatar (AP) — A future for Portugal’s national team without Cristiano Ronaldo could be a daunting prospect to the country’s up-and-coming generation of internationals. They respect and even revere him with Bruno Fernandes calling him the most famous athlete in sports. Yet they are showing

By RAHIM FAIEZ Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — The Supreme Court of Taliban-ruled Afghanistan says that 27 people were lashed in public in a northern province for alleged adultery, theft, drug offenses and other crimes. Thursday’s lashings took place in Parwan province, with 18 men and nine women punished. An official with the court says