AP National News

By ED WHITE Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — The state of Michigan says it will pay $300,000 to the only employee who was fired as a result of lead-contaminated water in Flint. Liane Shekter Smith was head of the state’s drinking water division in 2014-15 when Flint switched its water source and didn’t use corrosion

By CURT ANDERSON Associated Press ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — After nearly a century on its lofty perch, the northern mockingbird may be singing its last melodies as the state bird of Florida. An effort is taking flight to replace the far-ranging musical mockingbird with a bird that is more identifiable as distinctly from Florida.

By GERALD IMRAY Associated Press CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — South Africa’s ruling African National Congress party has received less than 50% of votes in nationwide elections for the first time. The final results of Monday’s local government elections were announced Thursday night and saw the ANC win 46% of votes. The elections decided

BERLIN (AP) — A Russian diplomat has died in Berlin in what the Russian Embassy has called a “tragic accident.” It said the incident involving the embassy employee happened on Oct. 19 but gave no details of what happened. The Russian Embassy issued its statement Friday after German news magazine Der Spiegel, which didn’t name

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A Pakistani lawyer says his client, a Czech model sentenced in 2019 to eight years in prison on charges of attempting to smuggle heroin from Pakistan to the United Arab Emirates will be freed next week. He says Tereza Hluskova has been acquitted by an appeals court earlier this week in

By LISA MASCARO and ALAN FRAM Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic leaders are trying to resolve lingering concerns by moderates in hopes of finally pushing President Joe Biden’s multitrillion-dollar domestic agenda through the House. Leaders have met privately with centrists who want an official cost estimate from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office before voting

By SCOTT BAUER, MICHAEL TARM and AMY FORLITI Associated Press KENOSHA, Wis. (AP) — A witness at Kyle Rittenhouse’s murder trial says the first man shot on the streets of Kenosha was acting “belligerently” but did not appear to pose a serious threat to anyone. Jason Lackowski is a former Marine who said he was

By The Associated Press This week’s new entertainment releases include an album from the superstar duo of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak, the film “Clifford the Big Red Dog” and the comedy-action film ”Red Notice” which unites Dwayne Johnson, Gal Gadot and Ryan Reynolds. On the small screen, Jeremy Renner, Dianne Wiest and Kyle Chandler

LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Portugal’s parliament has approved new labor laws on working from home. The regulations introduce additional protection for employees who do their job away from company premises. The new rules are a response to the trend of more staff working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Socialist government says it sees

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine has filed charges of espionage and attempted state overthrow against five people who were allegedly part of a hackers group controlled by Russia. The Security Service of Ukraine said Friday that the hackers group known as “Armagedon” was responsible for some 5,000 cyberattacks on Ukrainian state agencies since 2014. The

By SETH BORENSTEIN and FRANK JORDANS Associated Press GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — The generation of young people who will inherit a warmer future is telling the generation that caused carbon pollution to clean up its mess. But they fear that message isn’t getting through. There are more young people than ever roaming the halls at

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles officials say a city utility worker was electrocuted while working in an underground electrical vault. The electrocution happened Thursday morning on Terminal Island in Los Angeles harbor. The Department of Water and Power says the worker was with a cable splicing crew and came in contact with an energized

By DAMIAN J. TROISE AP Business Writer Stocks rose broadly in afternoon trading on Wall Street Friday as traders welcomed news of a rebound in hiring by U.S. employers last month. The S&P 500 rose 0.3% and is on track for its best week since July. The Dow Jones Industrials rose 0.5% and the Nasdaq

By RAF CASERT Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — The United Kingdom has rejected European Union proposals to streamline the trade of goods in Northern Ireland as insufficient. The situation further aggravates a standoff between both sides and brings the prospect of a post-Brexit trade war closer. The U.K. government said after unsuccessful talks between its

By FARAI MUTSAKA Associated Press HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — A trendy Zimbabwean restaurant has reopened but without an appearance by a South African gay celebrity following complaints to the govenment by some churches and ruling party members. A rights group said Friday that the cancellation of a visit by TV celebrity Somizi Mhlongo highlights the

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — America’s employers boosted their hiring in October, adding a solid 531,000 jobs, the most since July and a sign that the recovery from the pandemic recession is overcoming a virus-induced slowdown. The unemployment rate fell to 4.6% last month from 4.8% in September. The jobs report

By RUSS BYNUM Associated Press BRUNSWICK, Ga. (AP) — Opening statements have begun in Brunswick, Georgia, in the murder trial of three white men, charged in the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. A disproportionately white jury is hearing the case. Prosecutor Linda Dunikoski says the 25-year-old Black man was killed based on the defendants’ assumptions, not

By MATTHEW LEE and NOMAAN MERCHANT Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department has named a new coordinator for its investigation into cases of so-called Havana Syndrome. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday announced Jonathan Moore will oversee the task force investigating brain injuries that have been reported by hundreds of diplomats and

By JAMEY KEATEN Associated Press GENEVA (AP) — The United Nations’ top human rights official has condemned actions by military leaders in Sudan following a coup almost two weeks ago and called on them to let civilian rule return. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet decried excessive use of force by security forces

By FRANKLIN BRICEÑO Associated Press Fears and unfounded rumors about COVID-19 vaccines have spread among Peru’s Indigenous people, who are about a quarter of the country’s 33 million people. That’s complicated vaccination efforts in a country hit harder than nearly any other by the pandemic. Only about 25% of people in Indigenous areas have been