AP National News

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s military says a Katyusha rocket has struck an Iraqi military base housing U.S. troops at Baghdad’s international airport. No damage or casualties were reported from the attack, which was the third in as many days targeting Iraqi bases housing U.S. troops in Iraq. The attacks began on Monday, the anniversary of

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s health minister is advocating tougher curbs on contact between people as the country prepares for a new rise in coronavirus infections fueled by the omicron variant. Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the country’s 16 state governors are set to confer Friday on charting a way forward. They’re likely to build on restrictions

By LAURIE KELLMAN Associated Press TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel says coronavirus infections in the country have spiked to a new record high since the start of the pandemic. The government reported on Wednesday that 11,978 new infections were diagnosed a day earlier, more than the previous high of 11,345 set Sept. 2. That’s

By LAURIE KELLMAN Associated Press TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel has recorded its highest-ever number of new coronavirus infections — driven by the ultra-contagious omicron variant — despite restrictions on travel and required quarantines. The Health Ministry’s daily statistics reported Wednesday that 11,978 new infections were recorded a day earlier, the most since the

SYDNEY (AP) — Australia is experiencing rising COVID-19 case numbers and hospitalizations and long queues at testing centers as it continues to battle the rapid spread of the virus in most states. The country recorded more than 64,000 cases Wednesday, up from 47,000 a day earlier. Prime Minister Scott Morrison met virtually with the national

By LARRY LAGE AP Sports Writer DETROIT (AP) — More than half of the NFL’s 32 teams have female fan clubs. The Detroit Lions’ Women of the Pride group is one of them. Verdell Blackmon showed up for a recent game and left no doubt who she was cheering for that afternoon. Blackmon’s hair and

By SARAH RANKIN and DENISE LAVOIE Associated Press RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia officials are defending their response to the snowy gridlock that resulted on Interstate 95 after a winter storm dumped nearly 11 inches of snow. Officials noted the storm that started as rain, meaning roads couldn’t be pretreated. It was followed by an

By ARITZ PARRA Associated Press MADRID (AP) — An unprecedented number of coronavirus infections is once again exposing the underfunding and shortcomings of public health care systems, even in developed parts of Europe. Spain is especially feeling the crunch. Only a few weeks ago, officials in Spain thought the country was in relatively good shape

ZANZIBAR, Tanzania (AP) — An official in Tanzania’s semiautonomous region of Zanzibar says 10 people have died when their boat capsized while they were traveling to attend a funeral. The regional commissioner of South Region says nine other boat passengers were rescued and treated after the capsizing Tuesday night near Kisiwapanza, an islet adjacent to

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — China has reported a major drop in COVID-19 infections in the northern city of Xi’an, which has been under a tight lockdown for the past two weeks that has sharply disrupted the lives of its 13 million residents. The National Health Commission announced just 35 new

By NINIEK KARMINI Associated Press JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian prosecutors have demanded a life sentence for a top terror suspect who eluded capture for 18 years and accused him of masterminding a series of deadly attacks in the world’s most populous Muslim nation. Aris Sumarsono, whose real name is Arif Sunarso but is better

By JOHN LEICESTER and SYLVIE CORBET Associated Press PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron has provoked outcries in parliament and shrill protests from election rivals by using a vulgarity to describe his strategy for pressuring vaccine refusers to get coronavirus jabs. Macron used the French word “emmerder,” which is rooted in the French word

By LAURIE KELLMAN Associated Press TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has tried to clarify constantly shifting pandemic policies that have confused many Israelis. Bennett says the changes reflect the speed of the omicron variant’s spread. Policies have changed in recent weeks on everything from travel to testing. New infections in

By MALLIKA SEN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Elizabeth Williams was the eyes of the public throughout Ghislaine Maxwell’s monthlong sex-trafficking trial. With the general prohibition of cameras in federal court, the courtroom artist estimates she drew around 100 sketches for distribution by the wire service. Williams has been rendering courtroom scenes in pen

By NATHAN ELLGREN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Jan. 6 riot was an insurrection with a 360-degree view. The Associated Press compiled a short film of the day’s key moments to capture the historical record and rebut falsehoods that continue to spread about what happened. Ample evidence has emerged over the last year of

By JANET McCONNAUGHEY Associated Press NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Louisiana’s governor is preparing a posthumous pardon for Homer Plessy, who was arrested in 1892 for challenging a ban on Black people sitting in “whites-only” train cars. The Plessy v Ferguson ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court ushered in a half-century of laws calling for “separate

By SOPHIA TAREEN Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — Chicago schools have canceled classes after the teachers union voted to switch to remote learning due to record COVID-19 levels. The move comes amid an escalating battle over safety protocols in schools. Officials in the nation’s third-largest school district say they won’t switch back to online instruction

By MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Around three dozen Democrats were trapped in the House gallery on Jan. 6 after the rest of their colleagues had been evacuated, ducking beneath their seats as supporters of former President Donald Trump laid siege. The insurrection interrupted the certification of President Joe Biden’s victory. The

By MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A year after the Jan. 6 insurrection, some of the lawmakers who were trapped in the upper House balcony that day are still recovering from lingering trauma. Those lawmakers were the last group to be evacuated, after the rest of their colleagues had been ushered out

BEIJING (AP) — China is reporting a major drop in local COVID-19 infections in the northern city of Xi’an, which has been under a tight lockdown for the past two weeks. The National Health Commission announced just 35 new cases on Wednesday, down from 95 the day before. That marks a steady decline since new