AP National News

By JOE McDONALD and MATT OTT AP Business Writers U.S. markets rose sharply before the opening bell Thursday ahead of U.S. inflation data that could buttress the Federal Reserve’s position on the need for more aggressive interest rate hikes. Futures for the Dow and futures for the S&P 500 each rose more than 1%. U.S.

BRISTOL, Conn. (AP) — Two police officers were fatally shot and a third wounded while responding to a domestic violence call in Connecticut, authorities said Thursday, amid an exceptionally violent week for officers across the country. The officers were shot in Bristol, about 15 miles (24 kilometers) southwest of Hartford, Connecticut state police said, and

MIAMI (AP) — An American Airlines flight from Miami to Barbados returned to the airport after fumes filled the cabin, officials said. Flight 338 departed Miami International Airport at 5:50 p.m. Wednesday, but had to return due to a strong chemical odor coming from a passenger’s carry-on item, spokesman Greg Chin told The Associated Press.

By DITA ALANGKARA Associated Press BANDUNG, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia is preparing to start Southeast Asia’s first high-speed rail service that will cut travel time between two cities from the current three hours to about 40 minutes. The railway line will connect Indonesia’s capital Jakarta and Bandung, the heavily populated capital of West Java province.

MADRID (AP) — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has announced 3 billion euros in subsidies to help people weather high gas and electricity prices exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The measures include set gas price rates for collective residential heating systems and more subsidies for electricity and heating for low income how households. Sánchez

By DAKE KANG Associated Press BEIJING (AP) — China’s internet censors have moved quickly to scrub social media posts after reports that banners criticizing the Communist leadership were hung from a busy intersection in Beijing. Images on Twitter, which is blocked in China, showed smoke spiraling up from a fire on an elevated roadway and

By SARAH EL DEEB, ANASTASIIA SHVETS and ELIZAVETA TILNA Associated Press Olga Lopatkina paced around her basement in circles like a trapped animal. For more than a week, the Ukrainian mother had heard nothing from her six adopted children stranded in Mariupol, and she was going out of her mind with worry. The kids had

By GLENN GAMBOA AP Business Writer Ms. Foundation for Women’s new Birth Justice Initiative, designed to support grassroots organizations led by Black, Indigenous and other women of color as they advance more equitable birth outcomes in the country, is already making a difference for nonprofits serving pregnant women. Sona Smith, Ms. Foundation’s Birth Justice program

By JARI TANNER Associated Press HELSINKI (AP) — Latvia has rejected as “absurd” claims by Amnesty International that it is violently mistreating migrants attempting to enter the European Union member country through Belarus. The human rights watchdog wrote in its report released Thursday that Latvian authorities have violently pushed back refugees and migrants, mostly from

By QASSIM ABDU-ZAHRA Associated Press BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s military says at least nine rockets have targeted Baghdad’s heavily fortified Green Zone, the seat of the country’s government. The rockets Thursday fell near the parliament building ahead of a much-anticipated session. The attack delayed the scheduled session to elect a new president, an important step

BEIRUT (AP) — A bomb has exploded near a Syrian military bus in a suburb of Damascas, killing 18 soldiers. Syrian state media, citing a military source, reported that the blast on Thursday wounded 27 others. Similar attacks in past years have killed and wounded dozens of soldiers in government-held parts of the war-torn country.

By JOSH BOAK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is hosting a summit to help speed up construction projects tied to the roughly $1 trillion infrastructure law. It’s an effort to improve coordination with the mayors and governors who directly account for 90% of the spending. White House infrastructure coordinator Mitch Landrieu says

BEIRUT (AP) — A bomb has exploded near a Syrian military bus in a suburb of Damascas, killing and wounding several soldiers. Syrian state media citing a military source reported that the blast on Thursday killed 18 troops and wounding 27 others. Similar attacks in past years have killed and wounded dozens of soldiers in

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) — Slovakia’s police say they have found the body of a suspect who allegedly fatally shot two people the previous day in the capital in what some officials are suggesting was a hate crime. Police said Thursday they were investigating but haven’t provided details about the motive of the shooting. Two men

By STAN CHOE AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Tens of millions of older Americans are about to get what may be the biggest raise of their lifetimes.  On Thursday, the U.S. government is set to announce what’s virtually certain to be the largest increase in Social Security benefits in 40 years. The boost

By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran’s president has accused the U.S. of conducting a “failed policy of destabilization.” Ebrahim Raisi’s statement Thursday came as Iranians in cities nationwide held protests that have snowballed into calls for the downfall of Iran’s rulers. The unrest was sparked by the death of

By FOSTER KLUG Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — For decades North Korea has threatened to turn enemy cities into a “sea of fire,” even as it doggedly worked on building a nuclear weapons program that could back up its belligerent words. Now, as North Korea conducts another torrid run of powerful weapons tests — and

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the biggest contract manufacturer of processor chips for smartphones and other products, says its quarterly profit rose nearly 80% over a year earlier to $8.8 billion amid surging demand. Sales rose 48% over a year ago to $19.2 billion. TSMC, headquartered in Hsinchu, Taiwan, makes processor chips

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli police have fired live rounds, tear gas and stun grenades in widespread Jerusalem street confrontations with Palestinians who threw stones, firecrackers and firebombs. It was the fiercest unrest in the contested city in months. Tensions in east Jerusalem have been surging for days, as police have conducted searches in one neighborhood