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By JAY REEVES Associated Press HOUMA, La. (AP) — Main Street in the Louisiana town of Houma resembles a canyon of rubble after Hurricane Ida. Metal roofs peeled off buildings covered the sidewalks Tuesday, and red bricks from a collapsed building mingled with broken glass on a corner. A once shady square a block away

By GEOFF MULVIHILL Associated Press A federal bankruptcy judge has approved with conditions a historic opioid settlement between Purdue Pharma and thousands of local and state governments. The agreement accepted Wednesday caps a long-running legal drama involving a company that had come to symbolize the corporate culpability behind an epidemic that has claimed more than

By REBECCA SANTANA, MELINDA DESLATTE and JANET MCCONAUGHEY Associated Press NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Residents of Louisiana communities hit hard by Hurricane Ida are seeing small signs of progress amid the need for a monumental recovery. About 11,000 people in New Orleans saw their lights come back on early Wednesday. But officials say full restoration

By JESSICA GRESKO, PAUL J. WEBER and MARK SHERMAN Associated Press The nation’s most far-reaching curb on abortions has taken effect in Texas, with the Supreme Court silent so far on an emergency appeal to put the law on hold. If allowed to remain in force, the law would be the most dramatic restriction on

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. (AP) — The wildfire threatening communities around Lake Tahoe has drawn what officials call an aggressive response to try to stop it from reaching areas, including the town of South Lake Tahoe, home to more than 20,000 people. The fire is named the Caldor Fire, after the road where it started

By TERENCE CHEA and MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. (AP) — While more than 20,000 people packed roads leading out of Lake Tahoe on Monday to flee the Caldor Fire closing in on the resort community, a handful of people decided to buck the mandatory evacuation orders and stay behind. In

By ROBERT BURNS and LOLITA C. BALDOR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, say it’s “possible” the U.S. will coordinate with the Taliban on any future counterterrorism strikes in Afghanistan against Islamic State militants or others. Milley says the Taliban is a “ruthless” group, and

By MATTHEW DALY Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Response to disasters such as Hurricane Ida falls primarily to state and local officials, but the federal government is playing an important support role. It is making available millions of dollars in aid and coordinating with local officials and private relief groups for everything from meals to

By AAMER MADHANI, LYNN BERRY and ERIC TUCKER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden used his first meeting with a foreign leader since ending the war in Afghanistan to send the message that the United States — unburdened of its “forever war”— is determined to become a more reliable ally to its friends.

By ROXANA HEGEMAN and ALLEN G. BREED Associated Press BOYDTON, Va. (AP) — U.S. farmers of color are battling in the courts to save a $4 billion debt relief program approved by Congress. Congress approved the debt relief for 16,000 farmers of color in March as part of a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package. The

By ROXANA HEGEMAN and ALLEN G. BREED Associated Press BOYDTON, Va. (AP) — U.S. farmers of color are battling in the courts to save a $4 billion debt relief program approved by Congress. Congress approved the debt relief for 16,000 farmers of color in March as part of a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package. The

By THOMAS BEAUMONT and STEPHEN GROVES Associated Press MEQUON, Wis. (AP) — A loose network of conservative groups with ties to major Republican donors and party-aligned think tanks is quietly lending firepower to local activists engaged in the culture war fights in schools across the country. While they are drawn by the anger of parents

By ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL and RISHABH R. JAIN Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — India has dramatically increased COVID-19 vaccination rates in its vast rural hinterland, where around 65% of its nearly 1.4 billion people live in villages served by fragile health care systems. A blend of innovative strategies tailored for villages, alongside a communication strategy

By COREY WILLIAMS Associated Press TAYLOR, Mich. (AP) — Experts in the firearms industry as well as gun-rights advocates say more and more Black women are considering gun ownership for personal protection. Fear of crime, especially as shootings and murders have risen in cities big and small, is one driver of the trend. But a