AP National News

BEIJING (AP) — China is preparing to send three astronauts to live on its space station for six months — a new milestone for a program that has advanced rapidly in recent years. The launch expected early Saturday will start China’s longest crewed space mission and set a record for the most time spent in

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — United Airlines employees who are suing the airline over its vaccine mandate will get more time to make their case. A federal judge in Texas ordered United not to place unvaccinated employees on unpaid leave if they are seeking a medical or religious exemption from mandatory vaccination against COVID-19. The

By JAN M. OLSEN Associated Press COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Police in Norway are holding a 37-year-old man from Denmark suspected in a bow-and-arrow attack in a small town that killed five people and wounded two others. The man, who was not further identified, has confessed he went on a rampage in Kongsberg, southwest of

By FIRDIA LISNAWATI Associated Press DENPASAR, Indonesia (AP) — The Indonesian resort island of Bali has reopened for international travelers to visit its shops and white-sand beaches after more than a year. They must be vaccinated, test negative, hail from certain countries, quarantine for five days and heed restrictions in public. No international flights were

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — International Olympic Committee Vice President John Coates says challenging China on its human rights record as Beijing prepares to host the 2022 Winter Games is “not in our remit.” There has been widespread criticism of China’s treatment of Uyghur Muslims in the northwest region of Xinjiang as well as its crackdown

By MARIA CHENG AP Medical Writer LONDON (AP) — As coronavirus vaccines trickle into some of the poorest countries in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, data suggest some women are consistently missing out, in another illustration of how the doses are being unevenly distributed around the world. Experts fear women in Africa may be

By LEONARDO CORREA and YESICA FISCH By The Associated Press SERREKUNDA, Gambia (AP) — Oyster harvesting in Gambia is considered women’s work. It’s a grueling task. They paddle rickety boats, then get into crocodile-infested water up to their necks to lay nets. Many of the women are the sole family breadwinners, and that burden has

By KRISTA LARSON and MARIA CHENG Associated Press SARE GIBEL, Gambia (AP) — Health officials are confronting vaccine reluctance among African women, especially those of childbearing age. Many worry pregnancies will be threatened, and in Africa, the success of a woman’s marriage often depends on how many children she bears. Other women fear the vaccine

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli police say a Palestinian driver struck and moderately wounded a member of Israel’s paramilitary Border Police at a major checkpoint north of Jerusalem overnight. They said officers fired on the vehicle, causing it to crash into a wall, and arrested the suspect, a 22-year-old from the town of Qalqilya in the

By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Local officials say a fire in southern Taiwan has killed at least 25 people after it engulfed a 13-story building overnight. The blaze also sent dozens to the hospital after it broke out early Thursday. The fire department in the city of Kaohsiung said firefighters were

By SAMUEL PETREQUIN Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — Five biracial women born in Congo when the country was under Belgian rule who were taken away from their Black mothers are suing the Belgian state for crimes against humanity. They hope Belgium will finally recognize its responsibility in the suffering endured by the thousands of mixed-race

By BERNAT ARMANGUE and LEE KEATH Associated Press KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Ask almost anyone in the Afghan capital what they want now that the Taliban are in power, and the answer is the same: They want to leave. The United States and its allies evacuated tens of thousands of Afghans in the weeks after

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Disaster response officials in the Philippines say that a tropical storm has left at least 19 people dead. Authorities say they are still  investigating a further 11 deaths that may have been caused by the tropical storm Kompasu, which triggered landslides and flash floods as it barreled over the northern tip

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — A fire in southern Taiwan has killed at least 14 people after it engulfed a 13-story building overnight. The blaze also sent at least 51 people to the hospital after it broke out early Thursday. The fire department in the city of Kaohsiung said firefighters were conducting search and rescue efforts

MOLINE, Ill. (AP) — More than 10,000 Deere & Co. workers went on strike Thursday after the United Auto Workers union said negotiators couldn’t deliver a new agreement that would meet the “demands and needs” of workers. The vast majority of the union rejected a contract offer earlier this week that would have delivered 5%

By EMMA H. TOBIN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Health experts say it’s important to find a mask that’s comfortable so you’ll actually wear it as the coronavirus continues to circulate. Look for ones that closely fit your face without gaps, have a nose wire, and are able to block out light if you

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has dissolved the lower house of parliament for Japan’s first elections of the pandemic. At stake Oct. 31 will be how Japan faces a potential coronavirus resurgence and revives its battered economy, and whether Kishida’s government can emerge from the shadow of nearly

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares are mostly higher, tracking an overnight rally on Wall Street as investors sought out bargains, including technology stocks. Benchmarks rose in Tokyo, Seoul and Sydney in morning trading. Markets in Hong Kong were closed for a holiday. Shares in Shanghai were little changed after

By BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — The sentencing of New York real estate heir Robert Durst will be comparatively brief compared with his murder trial, which stretched over the better part of two years. The New York real estate heir faces a mandatory term of life in prison without parole Thursday for

By MARK STEVENSON Associated Press MEXICO CITY (AP) — Jacobo grew up in the western Mexico state of Jalisco, home to the Jalisco New Generation drug cartel. He had an abusive childhood: his mother held his hands over an open flame after he allegedly shoved a classmate. Now 17, Jacobo claims he didn’t do it.