AP National News

By PHILIP MARCELO and AMY TAXIN Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Federal immigration officials have denied hundreds of Afghans seeking temporary entry into the country for humanitarian reasons. Immigrant advocates say the Biden administration has failed to honor its promise to help Afghans who were left behind after the U.S. military withdrew from the country

By PATRICK WHITTLE Associated Press PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — The news is a mixed bag for people in need of heating assistance who see a cold winter bearing down. The average cost of heating a home this winter is expected to be $972, which is up from $888 last year. The Biden Administration has more

By ZEYNEP BILGINSOY Associated Press ISTANBUL (AP) — A Turkish court has accepted an indictment against suspects from a religious association in a case that could have political and legal repercussions on the opposition-held Istanbul municipality. The trial against 23 people for purported links to outlawed Kurdish militants will begin on Feb. 18. Nine of

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Chinese officials are promising steady deliveries of groceries to residents of Xi’an, an ancient capital with 13 million people that is under the strictest lockdown of a major Chinese city since Wuhan was shut early last year at the start of the pandemic. The Commerce Ministry

BEIRUT (AP) — Satellite images taken this week over the port of Latakia show the smoldering wreckage after an Israeli missile strike, hours after firefighters contained a massive blaze. The raid launched from the Mediterranean Sea on Tuesday was among biggest launched by Israel into Syria, igniting a fire in the container terminal that raged

LONDON (AP) — Members of Ghislaine Maxwell’s family say they still believe she is innocent after a New York jury found her guilty of luring teenage girls to be sexually abused by American millionaire Jeffrey Epstein. The Maxwell family said in a statement that it would support the British socialite’s appeal of her her conviction

By AAMER MADHANI Associated Press WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin are set to discuss the Russian troop buildup at the Ukrainian border. Thursday’s call will be their second in recent weeks amid little progress toward ending the smoldering crisis. The White House indicates Biden will make clear to Putin a

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — Police say six suspected rebels and an Indian soldier were killed in two separate counterinsurgency operations in disputed Kashmir. The killings came during a surge in the government’s offensive against anti-India rebels in Kashmir, which is divided between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan and claimed by both. Police say the fighting erupted

By DANICA KIRKA Associated Press LONDON (AP) — England’s National Health Service is building temporary structures at hospitals around the country to prepare for another possible surge of COVID-19 patients. The U.K. reported a record 183,037 new coronavirus infections on Wednesday, 32% more than the previous day. While early data suggests omicron is less likely

By NASSER KARIMI and ISABEL DEBRE Associated Press TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iranian state television says Tehran has launched a rocket with a satellite carrier bearing three devices into space, though it’s unclear if any object entered orbit around the Earth. The state TV report Thursday did not say when the launch was conducted or

By JOE McDONALD AP Business Writer BEIJING (AP) — Global stock markets are mixed after Wall Street hit a high and new daily U.S. coronavirus cases surged to a record. London and Frankfurt opened lower and Tokyo and Seoul also declined. Shanghai and Hong Kong advanced. On Wednesday, Wall Street gained for its 70th record

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Chinese officials are promising steady deliveries of groceries to residents of Xi’an, an ancient capital with 13 million people that is under the strictest lockdown of a major Chinese city since Wuhan was shut early last year at the start of the pandemic. The Commerce Ministry

By STEPHEN McGRATH Associated Press SIBIU, Romania (AP) — Officials and experts in low-vaccinated Eastern Europe are anticipating a post-holiday explosion of COVID-19 cases in much of the region. Many countries in Eastern Europe only recently emerged from infection waves that put a catastrophic strain on their health care systems. Now, as the fast-spreading coronavirus

By TIA GOLDENBERG Associated Press TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel’s Environment Minister said Thursday a clandestine oil deal between Israel and the United Arab Emirates has effectively been blocked. Tamar Zandberg told Israeli Army Radio Thursday the deal “cannot be realized.” The secret deal would have increased the amount of oil tankers docking and

By NASSER KARIMI Associated Press TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iranian state television says Tehran has conducted a rocket launch that saw a satellite carrier bearing three devices head into space, though it’s unclear if any object entered orbit around the Earth. The state TV report Thursday did not say when the launch was conducted or

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — United States navy vessels have seized 385 kilograms (849 pounds) of heroin in the Arabian Sea worth some $4 million in a major bust by the international maritime operation in the region. The task force said Thursday that the USS Tempest and USS Typhoon seized the drugs hidden aboard

By FARAI MUTSAKA Associated Press MUTARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — African leaders are paying tribute to Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu for his fearless campaign that helped end South Africa’s brutal apartheid regime. But many of the same leaders have remained silent about the late Nobel Peace Prize winner’s support for issues such as LGBTQ rights, democratic

By RAHMAT MIRZA Associated Press LHOKSEUMAWE, Indonesia (AP) — An Indonesian navy ship is towing a boat carrying 120 Rohingya Muslims into port after it had drifted for days off the country’s northernmost province of Aceh. The boat was reportedly leaking and had a damaged engine. Efforts to rescue its passengers, who are overwhelmingly women

By ASHOK SHARMA Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian police have arrested a Hindu religious leader for allegedly making a derogatory speech against India’s independence leader Mohandas Gandhi and praising his assassin. Mahatma Gandhi was shot dead by a Hindu extremist during a prayer meeting in the Indian capital in 1948, because he was

By ZEN SOO Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Two former editors from a Hong Kong online pro-democracy news outlet were charged with sedition and denied bail Thursday, a day after the outlet said it would cease operations following a police raid on its office and seven arrests. National security police say they charged two