AP National News

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A 21-year-old Kansas lawmaker has been arrested on suspicion of drunken driving — his second arrest in less than a month. The Kansas Highway Patrol says a trooper arrested Aaron Coleman around 1 a.m. Saturday on Interstate 70 near Lawrence and took him to the Douglas County Jail, where he bonded

ISTANBUL (AP) — A powerful storm has pounded Istanbul and other parts of Turkey, killing at least one person and causing havoc in the city of around 15 million people. The state-run Anadolu Agency reported that a woman was killed on Monday in Istanbul’s Esenyurt district where strong gusts tore off part of a roof

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s navy has successfully test-fired a prospective hypersonic missile. The Russian Defense Ministry said Monday that the Admiral Gorshkov frigate in the White Sea launched the Zircon cruise missile. It hit a practice target 400 kilometers (215 nautical miles) away. The navy has conducted a series of test launches of Zircon and

JERUSALEM (AP) — Organizers of next month’s Miss Universe pageant say one of the contestants has tested positive for COVID-19. It was not immediately clear if she had tested positive for the newly detected omicron variant. Israeli authorities have said they will go ahead with holding the pageant in the southern city of Eilat in

TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — The imprisoned former president of ex-Soviet republic Georgia has appeared in court on charges of abuse of office, proceedings that triggered scuffles between his supporters and police. Mikheil Saakashvili was president in 2008-13 and left Georgia after the end of his second term. He was later convicted in absentia of abuse

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Magdalena Andersson, who last week was Sweden’s first female prime minister for a few hours before resigning because a budget defeat made a coalition partner quit, has been elected again. In a 101-173 vote on Monday, with 75 abstentions, the 349-seat Riksdag elected Andersson, leader of the Social Democrats, as prime

By BASSEM MROUE Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s president has discussed his country’s economic meltdown and an unprecedented diplomatic crisis between Beirut and Persian Gulf nations with the Emir of Qatar. The emir promised to help the small country ease its problems. The meeting Monday between President Michel Aoun and Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad

By DON BABWIN Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — Jury selection is underway in the trial of actor Jussie Smollett. The trial will boil down to the question of whether the jury believes the former “Empire” actor’s version of what he says was a racist and homophobic attack or that told by two brothers who say

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Magdalena Andersson, who last week was Sweden’s first woman prime minister for a few hours before resigning because a budget defeat made a coalition partner quit, has been elected again. In a 101-173 vote, with 75 abstentions, the 349-seat Riksdag elected Andersson, leader of the Social Democrats, as prime minister. She

By JAMEY KEATEN and MARIA CHENG Associated Press GENEVA (AP) — The World Health Organization says it could still take some time to get a full picture of the threat posed by omicron, a new variant of the coronavirus as scientists worldwide scramble to assess its multiple mutations. Stock markets swooned, some public gatherings got

By JOE McDONALD AP Business Writer BEIJING (AP) — European stock and oil prices have rebounded and Wall Street was poised to open higher, even as Asian markets fell further. Investors on Monday were weighing the new coronavirus variant, omicron, that’s being found in more countries and prompting some governments to reimpose travel controls. Benchmarks

By ZEKE MILLER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is urging Americans to get vaccinated, including booster shots, as he seeks to quell concerns over the newly identified COVID-19 variant named omicron. But he won’t immediately push for more restrictions to stop the spread of the virus. That’s according to Dr. Anthony Fauci,

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said he plans to pay a return visit to the United Arab Emirates in February. The two countries are trying to put years of tense relations behind them. Erdogan made the comments late Sunday on his return from a trip to Turkmenistan. Abu Dhabi’s powerful

By RAF CASERT and MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — Nations around the world sought to keep the new omicron variant at bay with travel bans and further restrictions, even as it remains unclear what it means for the COVID-19 pandemic. Japan announced Monday it would suspend entry of all foreign visitors. New cases

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australian authorities have announced that they will delay for at least two weeks plans to relax border restrictions as the country reported a fifth case of the omicron COVID-19 variant. New South Wales state authorities reported on Sunday that two travelers from South Africa to Sydney

NEW YORK (AP) — Two years after Jeffrey Epstein’s suicide behind bars, a jury is set to be picked Monday in New York City to determine a central question in the long-running sex trafficking case: Was his longtime companion, Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s puppet or accomplice? Maxwell is accused of acting as Epstein’s chief enabler, recruiting

By STEPHEN WADE and YURI KAGEYAMA Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — The northern Japanese city of Sapporo became a frontrunner to land the 2030 Winter Olympics after the mayor talked up a plan that he says will cut the costs of holding one of sports’ most expensive events. The mayor says he would also conduct

By LIZ WESTON of NerdWallet We’re living longer on average, but the number of years we’re healthy hasn’t kept up. The result is what actuaries call a “health span gap,” or years and sometimes decades spent living with disabilities. If you want to maximize the number of healthy years you have both before and after

BERLIN (AP) — About 3.5 million state-level employees and civil servants in Germany will receive a 2.8% raise and a tax-free COVID-19 bonus of about $1,470 next year. The agreement announced by two unions Monday also will see higher raises and hazard pay for workers in some medical and care professions and a tax-free bonus