AP National News

By EDITH M. LEDERER Associated Press UNITED NATIONS (AP) — A U.N. team says evidence it collected in Iraq strengthens preliminary findings that Islamic State extremists committed crimes against humanity and war crimes against the Christian community after it seized about a third of the country in 2014. The investigative team says in a report

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE and FATIMA HUSSEIN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The first White House state dinner of President Joe Biden’s administration drew big names Thursday from fashion, entertainment, politics and business who turned out to help celebrate French President Emmanuel Macron and the return of large social events after the pandemic. There were kisses

By KRUTIKA PATHI and SIBI ARASU Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — Asia’s richest man, coal magnate Gautam Adani, made his vast fortune betting on coal as an energy hungry India grew swiftly after its economy was liberalized in the 1990s. Adani says he wants to be known as the world’s largest renewable energy player

By MUNIR AHMED Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan has demanded neighboring Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers prevent terrorist attacks coming from their soil. The demand came a day after a suicide bombing in Pakistan’s southwest killed four people. It appeared to target police protecting polio workers in the area. Pakistani Taliban fighters who are hiding across

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexico’s economy secretary has proposed yet another round of talks with the United States on a dispute over Mexico’s energy sector.  Mexico hopes to stave off a full-fledged trade complaint under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement. The United States says Mexico is unfairly favoring its state-owned electricity and oil companies over American

By KIM TONG-HYUNG Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea on Friday sanctioned eight people and seven organizations suspected of engaging in illicit activities to finance North Korea’s growing nuclear weapons and missile programs. The move was largely symbolic considering the lack of financial exchanges and business activities between the rival Koreas. But

By ANDREW DALTON AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — An attorney for Harvey Weinstein at his Los Angeles rape and sexual assault trial told jurors Thursday that prosecutors’ case relies entirely on asking them to trust women whose testimony showed they were untrustworthy. “‘Take my word for it’ — five words that sum up

By ZEKE MILLER, MEG KINNARD and WILL WEISSERT Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Thursday that Democrats should give up “restrictive” caucuses and prioritize diversity at the start of their presidential primary calendar — dealing a major blow to Iowa’s decadeslong status as the state that leads off the process. In a

By ANDREW SELSKY, AUDREY McAVOY and HAVEN DALEY Associated Press HILO, Hawaii (AP) — The spectacle of incandescent lava spewing from Hawaii’s Mauna Loa has drawn thousands of visitors and is turning into a tourism boon for a Big Island town near the world’s largest volcano. Some hotels in and around Hilo are becoming fully

By TOM KRISHER AP Auto Writer DETROIT (AP) — Members of the United Auto Workers union appeared on Thursday to favor replacing many of their current leaders in an election that stemmed from a federal bribery and embezzlement scandal involving former union officials. Reform-minded candidates, many part of the UAW Members United slate, are leading

BEIJING (AP) — When it comes to ensuring the security of their regime, China’s Communist Party rulers don’t skimp. The extent of that lavish spending was put on display when the boldest street protests in decades broke out in Beijing and other cities, driven by anger over rigid and seemingly unending restrictions to combat COVID-19.

By MARK PRATT and MICHAEL CASEY Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — The Prince and Princess of Wales on Thursday heard about solar-powered autonomous boats and low-carbon cement at a green technology startup incubator in suburban Boston before learning how a nonprofit gives young people the tools to stay out jail and away from violence. William

By JEFF AMY and BILL BARROW Associated Press ATLANTA (AP) — Barack Obama is urging Georgia Democrats to keep pushing voting turnout for Sen. Raphael Warnock. The former president and the senator rallied Thursday in Atlanta ahead of Warnock’s Tuesday runoff with Republican challenger Herschel Walker. Voters have already cast more than 1.4 million ballots

By KEN RITTER Associated Press LAS VEGAS (AP) — An ex-convict who led police on a chase around Las Vegas before officers found the severed head and dismembered body of his friend in a stolen vehicle he was driving was sentenced Thursday to at least 18 years in prison. Eric John Holland said he was

By JOHN O’CONNOR AP Political Writer SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Democrats who control the Illinois General Assembly have approved followup clarifications to their watershed criminal justice overhaul. The proposal passed Thursday appeases critics by adding numerous offenses to a list of crimes that qualify a defendant to remain jailed while awaiting trial. The House approved

OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — The man charged with first-degree murder in the case of a University of Mississippi student who has been missing since early July was released on a $250,000 bond Thursday. Sheldon Timothy Herrington Jr., 22, faces a murder charge for the suspected killing of 20-year-old Jimmie “Jay” Lee, whose body has yet

By RALPH D. RUSSO AP College Football Writer The College Football Playoff will include 12 teams, starting with the 2024 season. An expansion plan that was crafted for two years and haggled over for another 18 months finally cleared all the obstacles needed to go from idea to reality. The CFP announced Thursday that the

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Bexar County prosecutors say a former San Antonio police officer has been indicted by a grand jury for shooting and wounding a 17-year-old as the teen put his car in reverse while eating a hamburger. The 28-year-old rookie officer, James Brennand, faces two counts of aggravated assault by a public servant

By LAURA UNGAR AP Science Writer Tech billionaire Elon Musk said his Neuralink company is seeking permission to test its brain implant in people soon. During a presentation Wednesday, he said his team is in the process of asking U.S. regulators to allow them to test the device in people. He says he thinks that

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE and FATIMA HUSSEIN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s first White House state dinner is drawing big names from the worlds of entertainment, politics, business and fashion to celebrate French President Emmanuel Macron. The official guest list includes late-night TV talk-show host Stephen Colbert, “Good Morning America” anchor Robin Roberts,