U.S./World category, Page 565
Ukrainian forces pile pressure on Russian-held Kherson
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian forces continued to pile on the pressure on Russian positions in occupied Kherson Friday, targeting resupply routes across the Dnieper river as Kyiv inched closer to a full-scale assault to retake the strategic southern port city. As many as 2,000 Russian draftees have poured into the...
Report: Elon Musk plans to cut 75% of Twitter workforce
SAN FRANCISCO — Elon Musk plans to lay off most of Twitter’s workforce if and when he becomes owner of the social media company, according to a report Thursday by The Washington Post. Musk has told prospective investors in his Twitter purchase that he plans to cut nearly 75% of...
Military suicides drop as leaders push new programs
WASHINGTON — Suicides across the active duty U.S. military decreased over the past 18 months, driven by sharp drops in the Air Force and Marine Corps last year and a similar decline among Army soldiers during the first six months of this year, according to a new Pentagon report and...
Railroads reject sick time demands, raising chance of strike
OMAHA, Neb. — The major freight railroads appear unwilling to give track maintenance workers much more than they received in the initial contract they rejected last week, increasing the chances of a strike. The railroads took the unusual step of issuing a statement late Wednesday rejecting the Brotherhood of Maintenance...
Jury: Kevin Spacey didn’t molest actor Anthony Rapp in 1986
NEW YORK — A jury sided with Kevin Spacey on Thursday in one of the lawsuits that derailed the film star’s career, finding he did not sexually abuse Anthony Rapp, then 14, while both were relatively unknown actors in Broadway plays in 1986. The verdict in the civil trial came...
Pentagon to provide funds, help for troops seeking abortions
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon will provide travel funds and support for troops and their dependents who seek abortions but are based in states where they are now illegal, according to a new department policy released Thursday. The military will also increase privacy protections for those seeking care. The order issued...
Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates rise this week to 6.94%
WASHINGTON — Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates inched up this week ahead of another expected rate increase by the Federal Reserve when it meets early next month. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the average on the key 30-year rate ticked up this week to 6.94% from 6.92% last...
U.S. heating worries mount amid growing costs, uncertainty
JAY, Maine — Across the U.S., families are looking to the winter with dread as energy costs soar and fuel supplies tighten. The Department of Energy is projecting sharp price increases for home heating compared with last winter and some worry whether heating assistance programs will be able to make...
Strong 6.7 magnitude earthquake shakes western Panama
PANAMA CITY — A strong 6.7 magnitude earthquake shook western Panama early Thursday, though there were no initial reports of damage. Panama’s national civil defense agency said via Twitter that the earthquake was felt in Herrera, Bocas del Toro, Veraguas and western Panama. The U.S. Geological Survey said the earthquake...
Russia seeks to regain ground, hits Ukraine’s power plants
KYIV, Ukraine — Russian troops fought Thursday to regain lost ground in areas of Ukraine that President Vladimir Putin has illegally annexed while Moscow tried to pound the invaded country into submission with more missile and drone attacks on the country’s critical infrastructure. Russian forces attacked Ukrainian positions near Bilohorivka,...
Fewer Americans apply for jobless benefits last week
WASHINGTON — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell last week and remains historically low even as the U.S. economy slows in the midst of decades-high inflation. Jobless claims for the week ending Oct. 15 declined by 12,000 to 214,000 from 226,000 last week, the Labor Department reported...
Indonesia says contaminated medicines linked to 99 deaths
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Indonesia has found contaminated medicines that are suspected of being linked to the deaths of 99 children this year due to acute kidney injury, officials said Thursday. Indonesia’s Food and Drug Monitoring Agency said it was tracing 26 medicinal syrups used to treat fevers, coughs and colds,...
Truss quits, but UK’s political and economic turmoil persist
LONDON — British Prime Minister Liz Truss quit Thursday after a tumultuous and historically brief term marred by economic policies that roiled financial markets and a rebellion in her political party that obliterated her authority. After just 45 days in office, Truss became the third Conservative prime minister to be...
Texas schools are giving parents DNA kits to help identify their children in emergencies
DALLAS — Texas public schools are distributing DNA and fingerprint identification kits to parents in case they need to provide their child’s DNA to law enforcement if they go missing — or in case of other emergencies. But as school districts begin distributing the kits this fall, for many it’s...
Judge: Trump knew vote fraud claims in legal docs were falseVideo
WASHINGTON — Former President Donald Trump signed legal documents challenging the results of the 2020 election that included voter fraud claims he knew to be false, a federal judge said in a ruling Wednesday. U.S. District Court Judge David Carter in an 18-page opinion ordered that four emails between Trump...
Officials: Customs and Border Protection agent killed during training in Florida
MIAMI — A U.S. Customs and Border Protection firearms instructor was shot and killed during a training class Wednesday morning at a South Florida gun range, officials said. The shooting occurred just before 11 a.m. at the Trail Glades Range in western Miami-Dade County, Miami-Dade police spokesman Angel Rodriguez said...
Trump deposed in defamation lawsuit filed by E. Jean Carroll
NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump answered questions under oath Wednesday in a lawsuit filed by E. Jean Carroll, a magazine columnist who says the Republican raped her in the mid-1990s in a department store dressing room. The deposition gave Carroll’s lawyers a chance to interrogate Trump about the...
Massachusetts woman charged, accused of freeing swarm of bees on deputies
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — A Massachusetts woman is facing multiple assault and battery charges for allegedly releasing a swarm of bees on a group of sheriff’s deputies, some of them allergic to bee stings, as they tried to serve an eviction notice, authorities said. Rorie S. Woods, 55, pleaded not guilty...
Energy agency: CO2 emissions rise in 2022, but more slowly
BERLIN— The International Energy Agency said Wednesday that it expects carbon emissions from the burning of fossil fuels to rise again this year, but by much less than in 2021 due to the growth in renewable power and electric cars. Last year saw a strong rebound in carbon dioxide emissions...
Genetic twist: Medieval plague may have molded our immunity
Our Medieval ancestors left us with a biological legacy: Genes that may have helped them survive the Black Death make us more susceptible to certain diseases today. It’s a prime example of the way germs shape us over time, scientists say in a new study published Wednesday in the journal...
Marijuana coming to select Circle K gas stations in U.S. next year
Circle K, the global convenience-store chain, signed a deal with Green Thumb Industries Inc., one of the largest U.S. cannabis producers, to sell licensed marijuana at its Florida gasoline retailers. The partnership will begin next year with 10 of the company’s 600 locations in the state, Green Thumb said. The...
IRS ups standard deductions, tax brackets due to inflation
WASHINGTON — Taxpayers will get fatter standard deductions for 2023 and all seven federal income tax bracket levels will be revised upward as the government allows people to shield more of their money from taxation because of persistently high inflation. For couples who file jointly for tax year 2023, the...
Here’s how to apply for student loan forgiveness
NEW YORK — President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness program. announced in August, will cancel up to $20,000 in debt per borrower. The application process is now open, and the administration says the forms should take five minutes to complete. Borrowers who apply before mid-November should see forgiveness before Jan....
Abortion access looms over medical residency applications
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Students in obstetrics-gynecology and family medicine — two of the most popular medical residencies — face tough choices about where to advance their training in a landscape where legal access to abortion varies from state to state. Abortions are typically performed by OB-GYNs or family doctors, and...
Putin declares martial law in annexed regions of Ukraine
MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin declared martial law Wednesday in the four regions of Ukraine that Moscow illegally annexed and given additional emergency powers to the heads of all regions of Russia. Putin didn’t immediately spell out the steps that would be taken under martial law, but said his...
