News

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,”

By KRISTIN M. HALL AP Entertainment Writer NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — DJ supergroup Swedish House Mafia, known for bringing house music to the masses with their arena shows, are ready to turn the crowd up with a new collaboration with The Weeknd and a global tour on the horizon. The trio dropped a new song

By EVENS SANON, MATÍAS DELACROIX and PIERRE-RICHARD LUXAMA Associated Press PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — The boss of a notorious Haitian gang accused of kidnapping 17 members of a U.S.-based missionary group last weekend is warning that the hostages will be killed if his demands aren’t met. Gang leader Wilson Joseph delivers the death threat in

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 ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer Asian shares are mixed after a late-in-the-day wave of buying pushed the S&P 500 to a fresh record high. Benchmarks rose in Hong Kong and Tokyo but fell in Sydney and Shanghai. China Evergrande Group, the troubled property developer whose cash crunch has rattled markets, reportedly made an overdue