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ALGIERS, Algeria (AP) — Eleven prominent Algerian opposition figures have written an open letter this week, denouncing “the authoritarian climate” surrounding the country’s upcoming presidential election and calling for a broad democratic transition. Under the rule of military-backed President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, freedom of expression has witnessed a rollback, experts say. In their open letter Sunday,

Asian stocks mostly fell on Wednesday as markets digested Japanese and Australian business data, after U.S. stocks held relatively steady as earnings reporting season ramped up for big companies. U.S. futures fell while oil prices were higher. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 slipped 0.2% in morning trading to 39,508.84, with the Japanese yen trading at its

Associated Press ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — Mudslides triggered by heavy rain in a remote part of Ethiopia have killed at least 229 people. Local authorities say many victims were killed while trying to rescue survivors of an earlier mudslide in southern Ethiopia. The country’s prime minister calls it a “terrible loss.” It is not

Associated Press RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah have agreed to form a government together. The two groups made the announcement Tuesday in Beijing after China-sponsored talks. It was the latest attempt at resolving a longstanding rivalry that looms over any potential vision for the rule of Gaza after the war

AP Science Writer Floyd County keeps flooding and the federal government keeps coming to the rescue. In July 2022, at least 40 people died and 300 homes were damaged in flooding across eastern Kentucky. It was the 13th time in 12 years that Floyd County was declared a federal disaster. These are disasters so costly

Associated Press SILVERDALE, Wash. (AP) — Voters in Washington state will decide this fall whether to keep one of the country’s more aggressive laws aimed at stemming carbon pollution. The repeal vote imperils the most significant climate policy passed during outgoing Gov. Jay Inslee’s three terms, and Inslee — who made climate action a centerpiece

Associated Press SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean prosecutors have arrested the founder of the country’s tech giant Kakao Corp. on suspicion of stock price rigging during his company’s takeover of a major K-pop agency last year. Kim’s arrest came after the Seoul Southern District Court approved an arrest warrant, citing concerns that he

Associated Press ROME (AP) — The daughter of the late Colombian artist Fernando Botero has helped to turn the streets and piazzas of the Italian capital into an open-air museum to display eight of her father’s famously voluminous and whimsical sculptures. The exhibition was organized as a tribute to Botero, who died in September at

Associated Press TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — An approaching typhoon has prompted the cancellation of air force drills off Taiwan’s east coast. But naval and land exercises are set to continue in other parts of the self-governing island democracy, which China threatens to invade. According to the Central Weather Bureau, Typhoon Gaemi is heading toward eastern

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate will consider legislation this week that aims to protect children from dangerous online content, moving forward with what could become the first sweeping new regulation of the tech industry in decades. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is set to announce Tuesday that he will bring the bipartisan bill up

Associated Press Family members of a woman killed in 1998 are pressing Utah officials to proceed with the convicted killer’s scheduled Aug. 8 execution. Relatives of victim Claudia Benn offered emotional testimony about the crime on Tuesday before Utah’s parole board. They said her slashing and stabbing death still traumatizes their close-knit Native American community.

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Comedian Jon Stewart is pressing the Biden administration to fix a loophole in a massive veterans aid bill that left out some of the first U.S. troops who responded after the Sept. 11 attacks and got sick after deploying to a base contaminated with dangerous levels of uranium. Special operations

Associated Press SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — On a recent morning in an Afro-Caribbean community in northeast Puerto Rico, Dr. Pedro Juan Vázquez went door-to-door as part of his medical rounds. He greeted the elderly residents the town with a cheerful “Good afternoon!” and a smile and casually asked if they’d like their vitals

Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington this week is looming as a fraught one between the two allies, coming at a moment of extreme political flux in the United States and wariness among American leaders about Netanyahu’s history of interjecting himself into U.S. domestic politics. The main purpose

Associated Press REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. (AP) — President Joe Biden says he’s “determined to get as much done” as he possibly can in his final six months in the White House as he tries to beat back a defining force that his lame-duck predecessors struggled to vanquish: diminished relevance. Biden hopes to keep the spigot

Associated Press AGUA CALIENTE, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is working hard to shore up the loyalty of the armed forces and keep top commanders in line, days ahead of a hotly disputed election that threatens the self-proclaimed socialist’s hold on power. Since taking power in 2013, Maduro hasn’t hesitated to deploy troops