AP National News

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers posted 11 million open jobs in October, nearly matching a record high reached in July and a sign that companies were confident enough in the economy to expand. A government report Wednesday also showed that the number of people quitting their jobs dropped slightly

By JAY REEVES Associated Press BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — The Justice Department has closed its investigation of Emmett Till’s slaying, yet agents are still probing as many as 20 other civil rights cold cases. Records show the review includes the killings of 13 Black men by police in three Southern states decades ago. The department’s

By JERRY SCHWARTZ Associated Press Tom Jory, an editor who played a vital role in one of The Associated Press’ most crucial functions — counting the vote for U.S. elections — has died. He was 77. Samantha Deutsch, Jory’s daughter, said he died Monday at Manhattan’s Lenox Hill Hospital of complications after surgery for a

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — The body of a Sri Lankan factory manager who was tortured and set on fire by a mob in Pakistan for alleged blasphemy has been buried in his native village with state honors. Buddhist clergy performed religious rites at the home of Priyantha Kumara before police led a procession in

By SYLVIA HUI Associated Press LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson says no U.K. government minister will attend the Beijing Winter Olympics, calling it “effectively” a diplomatic boycott. The announcement came after the White House and the Australian government confirmed diplomatic boycotts of the Winter Olympics in February to protest Chinese human rights

By FRANK JORDANS and JOSHUA GOODMAN Associated Press Writers BERLIN (AP) — A recently revealed identification card shows that the German-born father of Chilean presidential candidate José Antonio Kast belonged to  Adolf Hitler’s Nazi party. That’s at odds with the far-right candidate’s statements about his father’s World War II military service. Germany’s Federal Archive couldn’t

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — Bosnia’s security minister has been formally charged with malfeasance and corruption over the irregular sale of weapons and military equipment a decade ago when he held the post of defense minister. The Balkan country’s top court on Wednesday confirmed the indictment against Selmo Cikotic. It is charging him of depriving the

NEW YORK (AP) — Police say a man is facing charges including arson for setting fire to a 50-foot Christmas tree in front of Fox News headquarters in midtown Manhattan. The artificial tree outside of the News Corp. building that houses Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post caught fire shortly

MOSCOW (AP) — A Japanese billionaire and his producer rocketed to space on Wednesday and reached the International Space Station several hours later. Fashion tycoon Yusaku Maezawa and producer Yozo Hirano, who plans to film his mission, blasted off Wednesday for the International Space Station in a Russian Soyuz spacecraft along with Russian cosmonaut Alexander

By SUMAN NAISHADHAM and MICHAEL PHILLIS Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A revamped federal flood insurance program means higher rates for many homeowners — including in areas where coverage isn’t required because the government previously deemed them low or moderate risk. The Federal Emergency Management Agency says that 90% of the 1.7 million single family

By BASSEM MROUE Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — The lawyer of a freelance American journalist who was detained in Beirut last month says she has been released. This came just hours after two international human rights groups called her detention arbitrary and demanded that she be set free. Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International said

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has apologized and ordered an inquiry after a leaked video showed senior members of his staff joking about holding a lockdown-breaching Christmas party. The video has poured fuel on allegations that government officials flouted coronavirus rules they imposed on everyone else. A

NEW YORK (AP) — Police say a man is facing charges including arson for setting fire to a 50-foot Christmas tree in front of Fox News headquarters in midtown Manhattan. The tree outside of the News Corp. building that houses Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post caught fire shortly after

The Associated Press Stocks are wobbling between gains and losses in early trading on Wall Street as gains for energy, health care and other companies are blunted by losses for some of the big technology companies. The S&P 500 was bobbing up and down near the breakeven line in the first few minutes of trading

REFORM, Ala. (AP) — Alabama authorities are investigating after former NFL player Glenn Foster Jr. died in custody following a high-speed chase that resulted in his arrest and then a scuffle involving officers in the jail where he was being held. Authorities say the death of the former New Orleans Saints player was reported Monday

Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri will appear before a Senate panel on Wednesday as the company faces scrutiny over the potential detrimental impact its photo-sharing social media platform has on young people. In September senators fired a barrage of criticism at its parent company’s head of global safety over internal research on how its Instagram photo-sharing

CAIRO (AP) — Egyptian authorities have released a rights activist after he spent nearly two years in jail in a case that has drawn significant international attention. Patrick George Zaki walked free on Wednesday from a police station in the Nile Delta city of Mansoura, a day after a court there ordered his release pending

LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson says no U.K. government minister will attend the Beijing Winter Olympics, calling it “effectively” a diplomatic boycott. Johnson was asked in the House of Commons whether the U.K. will join the United States, Australia and Lithuania in a diplomatic boycott of the Winter Games in February over

By LINDSEY BAHR and JAKE COYLE AP Film Writers Associated Press Film Writers Lindsey Bahr and Jake Coyle have named their picks for the best movies of 2021. Bahr’s No. 1 film is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Elena Ferrante adaptation “The Lost Daughter,” a Netflix release starring Olivia Colman. Coyle’s top choice is Joachim Trier’s Danish 30-something

By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — Austria’s new chancellor says the country’s fourth national lockdown will end on Sunday but that lockdown restrictions will remain in place for the unvaccinated. Chancellor Karl Nehammer said Wednesday the end of the lockdown will be a “opening with a seatbelt,” meaning some measures, such as an