AP National News

By MATT SEDENSKY AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Japan’s prime minister has announced that his nation’s strict border restrictions will be loosened next month. That will allow tourists to easily enter for the first time since the start of the pandemic. In a news conference at the foot of Central Park in New

By MICHAEL KUNZELMAN Associated Press An Ohio man who testified at a congressional hearing about why he stormed the U.S. Capitol has been sentenced to two years of probation for his role in the mob’s attack. U.S. District Judge John Bates on Thursday also ordered 41-year-old Stephen Ayres to perform 100 hours of community service.

By JENNIFER PELTZ and MATTHEW LEE Associated Press UNITED NATIONS (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on every U.N. Security Council member to “send a clear message” to Russia that it must stop its nuclear threats in the war in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier this week that his nuclear-armed

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer The Boston Celtics are planning to discipline coach Ime Udoka, likely with a suspension, because of an improper relationship with a member of the organization, two people with knowledge of the matter told The Associated Press on Thursday. The people spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because

By EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS Associated Press JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A former director of Mississippi’s welfare agency pleaded guilty Thursday to new federal charges in a conspiracy to misspend tens of millions of dollars that were intended to help needy families in one of the poorest states in the U.S. — part of the largest

MEXICO CITY (AP) — A powerful magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Mexico early Thursday, causing at least two deaths, damaging buildings and setting off landslides. The earthquake struck at 1:19 a.m. near the epicenter of a magnitude 7.6 quake that hit three days earlier in the western state of Michoacan. It was also blamed for two

By MATTHEW LEE and JENNIFER PELTZ Associated Press UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United States and its allies plan to ramp up criticism of Russia for its war in Ukraine and press other countries to join in their forceful condemnations of the conflict. The U.S. will make the case at the U.N. Security Council that

By KELVIN CHAN Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The Bank of England raised its key interest rate Thursday by another half-percentage point to the highest level in 14 years, but despite facing inflation that outpaces other major economies, it avoided more aggressive hikes made by the U.S. Federal Reserve and other central banks. It is

By HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) — Russian and Ukrainian forces exchanged missile and artillery barrages that killed at least seven people Thursday as both sides refused to concede any ground despite recent military setbacks for Moscow and the toll on the invaded country after almost seven months of war. Russian missile strikes

By SAM MCNEIL Associated Press NABLUS, West Bank (AP) — Nablus was a battered city. Shops gaped open to the street, their windows smashed. Street signs were overturned. Ash stained the roads. Armored vehicles roamed the city center, still pockmarked and splattered with paint from a day of protests. The destruction resembled the aftermath of

By KEN SWEET AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The CEOs of the nation’s biggest banks were in for a second day of tough questioning from lawmakers Thursday, as Americans face inflation not seen since the early 1980s and a midterm election is only weeks away. JPMorgan Chase’s Jamie Dimon, Citigroup’s Jane Fraser and

By JIM GOMEZ Associated Press MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A Philippine court has dismissed a government petition to declare the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed guerrilla wing as a terrorist organization. Officials vowed to appeal the decision, which was welcomed by activists who have long rejected government labeling of rebels as terrorists.

By MATT OTT AP Business Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits rose slightly last week despite the Federal Reserve’s year-long battle against inflation that’s intended to cool the economy and the tight labor market. Applications for unemployment benefits for the week ending Sept. 17 rose by 5,000 to 213,000,

By KAREEM CHEHAYEB Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s embattled banks have decided to remain indefinitely closed after rejecting a proposed government security plan. The secretary-general of the Association of Banks in Lebanon told The Associated Press on Thursday that the banks will now have to determine their own security measures following a string of

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Saudi Arabia plans to launch a training program with the goal of sending its own astronauts, including a woman, into space next year. The kingdom is actively promoting science and technology as part of its wide-ranging Vision 2030 plan to overhaul its economy and reduce its dependency on oil.

By ZEYNEP BILGINSOY Associated Press ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkey’s central bank has delivered another massive interest rate cut despite eye-popping inflation above 80%. The action Thursday is the reverse of what other world economies are doing as they combat soaring inflation. The Turkish bank lowered its benchmark rate by 1 percentage point, to 12%. The

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian and Ukrainian forces exchanged missile and artillery barrages that killed at least six people Thursday as both sides refused to concede any ground despite recent military setbacks for Moscow and the toll on the invaded country after almost seven months of war. Russian missile strikes in the southern city of

By MUNIR AHMED Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan has apologized in court over his outburst against a female judge during a rally last month that was seen as a threat to the judiciary and judges in general. Thursday’s apology — an option envisaged under the Pakistani legal system —

HELSINKI (AP) — Finnish and Estonian rescue officials say a crude oil tanker caught fire in the Gulf of Finland, but the crew was able to extinguish the flames. The fire broke out on the 250-meter (820-foot) ship Alexia, 18 kilometers (11 miles) south of the Finnish peninsula of Porkkala, the Helsinki Sea Rescue Command