AP National News

By MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS Associated Press NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Enjei Grace and fellow Cameroonian Daniel Ejube have been stuck for nearly five months in limbo, in the United Nations-patrolled buffer zone separating Cyprus’ breakaway north from the internationally recognized south. They don’t want to go back to the north, and the south won’t let them

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian emergency officials say that at least seven people have died and a further nine are missing following an explosion and fire at a gunpowder factory. The Emergency Situations Ministry said the explosion hit the factory in the Ryazan region, about 270 kilometers (about 167 miles) southeast of Moscow. Russian news reports

MUMBAI, India (AP) — Movie theaters in India’s entertainment capital Mumbai have reopened after more than 18 months of closure due to the coronavirus pandemic. Theaters opened to half capacity Friday, following the guidelines released last month, but struggled to lure the public back and mostly re-released earlier hits. Mumbai has been one of the

By ADRIENNE SURPRENANT Associated Press MALUALKON, South Sudan (AP) — This is the third straight year of extreme flooding in South Sudan. It further imperils livelihoods in the world’s youngest country. A five-year civil war, hunger and corruption have all challenged the nation. Now climate change, which the United Nations has blamed on the flooding,

By NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press ROME (AP) — Amnesty International is calling for an independent parliamentary inquiry into COVID-19 deaths in Italian nursing homes and reports of retaliation against nursing home staff who spoke out about unsafe conditions there. Amnesty based its findings on interviews with 34 health care workers, as well as union leaders

BEIJING (AP) — China’s capital Beijing has begun offering booster shots against COVID-19, four months before the city and surrounding regions are to host the Winter Olympics. State media reported those older than 18 who have received two-dose Chinese vaccines and belong to at-risk groups, including those organizing or working on games facilities, would be

By JANIE McCAULEY AP Sports Writer OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Longtime U.S. rowing coach Mike Teti, who has been criticized by some of his former athletes as being emotionally abusive and using physical intimidation, has resigned but immediately accepted a position funded by a large donor leading a new high-performance training club that still has

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Japan has adopted a new energy policy that promotes nuclear and renewables as sources of clean energy to achieve the country’s pledge of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050. The new basic energy plan adopted by the Cabinet in time for the climate summit in November calls for

By YAROSLAV GUNIN Associated Press NIZHNY NOVGOROD, Russia (AP) — In Russia’s fifth-largest city, Nizhny Novgorod, seriously ill coronavirus patients at an infectious disease hospital lie in crowded wards with little space between beds. Dr. Natalia Soloshenko, who is battered by the onslaught of infections, says her intensive care unit is full of patients, all

By LAURAN NEERGAARD and MIKE STOBBE AP Medical Writers Millions more Americans are now eligible for COVID-19 boosters, and they can get a different vaccine than their first shots. A number of factors, including the vaccine you started with and when your last dose was, help determine when you qualify, according to recommendations issued Thursday

BEIJING (AP) — China’s capital Beijing has begun offering booster shots against COVID-19, four months before the city and surrounding regions are to host the Winter Olympics. State media reported those older than 18 who have received two-dose Chinese vaccines and belong to at-risk groups, including those organizing or working on games facilities, would be

By THALIA BEATY Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Two months after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan, one of the country’s once-prominent female leaders is visiting the United Nations, not as a representative of her government but as a woman in exile. Fawzia Koofi was a deputy speaker of parliament and previously a nominee

BEIJING (AP) — Police in China’s capital Beijing say famed international pianist Li Yundi is a suspect in a prostitution case. A message on the force’s microblog said a suspect had been placed in administrative detention and an investigation opened on Thursday involving a woman identified by her surname Chen and a man named as

By MICHAEL CASEY Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Efforts to make school buses greener are gaining momentum thanks to billions of dollars in spending in the federal infrastructure plan. A collection of parents, students, environmentalists and lawmakers argues school districts should transform their fleets from diesel to electric vehicles. They say the shift would offer

By THALIA BEATY Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Two months after the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan, one of the country’s once-prominent female leaders is visiting the United Nations, not as a representative of her government but as a woman in exile. Fawzia Koofi was a deputy speaker of parliament and previously a nominee

By KIM CHANDLER Associated Press ATMORE, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama man who avoided execution in February has been put to death for the 1991 killing of a woman abducted during a robbery and then shot in a cemetery. Fifty-two-year-old Willie B. Smith III received a lethal injection Thursday night at an Alabama prison. He

By DENISE LAVOIE Associated Press GLENNS, Va. (AP) — A Black activist and educator is making her presence known as a third-party candidate in Virginia governor’s race. Princess Blanding’s activism came to the forefront in 2018 after her brother was fatally shot by a Richmond police officer during a mental health crisis. She led protest

By SARAH RANKIN Associated Press RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Skeptical Virginia Republicans have come around to Glenn Youngkin, the party’s candidate for governor. They didn’t know much about the rich private equity executive when he threw himself into the race this year, but they’re pleased he came calling. Republicans from all factions of the party

By STEVE PEOPLES AP National Political Writer NEWPORT NEWS, Va. (AP) — Terry McAuliffe won Virginia’s 2013 governor’s race by embracing his own brand of personal politics that rely on decades-old friendships, backslapping charisma and tell-it-like-it-is authenticity. But in the closing days of the 2021 election, it’s unclear whether the tactics that made McAuliffe one

By MARIA CHENG AP Medical Writer British officials have identified a relative of the delta variant. It’s not a variant of interest or concern, and it has not yet been officially named after a letter of the Greek alphabet, like the other worrisome variants. Scientists are monitoring the delta-related variant, informally known as “delta plus,”