U.S./World category, Page 693
Graduation rates dip across U.S. as pandemic stalls progress
High school graduation rates dipped in at least 20 states after the first full school year disrupted by the pandemic, suggesting the coronavirus may have ended nearly two decades of nationwide progress toward getting more students diplomas, an analysis shows. The drops came despite at least some states and educators...
Assange wins 1st stage in effort to appeal U.S. extradition
LONDON — WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Monday won the first stage of his effort to overturn a U.K. ruling that opened the door for his extradition to U.S. to stand trial on espionage charges. The High Court in London gave Assange permission to appeal the case to the U.K....
UAE says it intercepted 2 ballistic missiles over Abu Dhabi
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The United Arab Emirates intercepted two ballistic missiles fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels over the skies of Abu Dhabi early Monday, authorities said, the second attack in a week that targeted the Emirati capital. The missile fire further escalates tensions across the Persian Gulf, which...
6 dead at Milwaukee home; homicide investigation underway
MILWAUKEE — Six people were found dead in a Milwaukee home in what police are investigating as multiple homicides, authorities said. Milwaukee police responded about 3:45 p.m. Sunday to assist with a welfare check at the residence where four men and one woman were found dead, Milwaukee Assistant Police Chief...
Jan. 6 panel investigates draft plan to seize 2020 ballotsVideo
WASHINGTON — Congressional investigators have spoken with former Attorney General William Barr about a reported draft executive order to use the National Guard to seize ballot boxes after the 2020 election, according to the chairman of a House panel investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. “We’ve had...
U.S. draws down Ukraine embassy presence as war fears mount
WASHINGTON — The State Department on Sunday ordered the families of all American personnel at the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine to leave the country amid heightened fears of a Russian invasion. The department told the dependents of staffers at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv that they must leave the country....
4 killed, 1 hurt in ‘ambush’ shooting at house party near Los AngelesVideo
INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Four people were killed and one was wounded when multiple shooters opened fire at a house party near Los Angeles early Sunday, authorities said. Police responded around 1:30 a.m. to reports of shots fired at a home in the city of Inglewood, Mayor James Butts told reporters....
Deaths of Florida’s starving manatees surge amid winter chill
ORLANDO, Fla. — Chilly temperatures are rekindling a manatee die-off in Central Florida’s Indian River. “Winter is here,” said Martine de Wit, a state veterinarian and scientist. Along a Brevard County piece of the Indian River on Thursday, which turned warmer and sunny, a snapshot of the ominous, protracted plight...
Virginia parent accused of misdemeanor for threats to school boardVideo
LURAY, Va. — A Virginia parent has been charged with a misdemeanor for her comments to a local school board weighing whether to align its mask-wearing policy with an executive order by new Gov. Glenn Youngkin that would make masks optional for students. Amelia Ruffner King, 42, of Luray, was...
Yellowstone visits hit record high in 2021, straining staff
MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, Wyo. — A record number of visitors flocked to Yellowstone National Park last year despite fewer hotel rooms and campsites being available because of the coronavirus pandemic and construction projects. About 4.86 million visits were tallied in 2021, breaking the prior record set in 2016. It’s a...
Cruise ship changes course after U.S. judge orders seizure
MIAMI — A cruise ship that was supposed to dock in Miami sailed to the Bahamas instead after a U.S. judge granted an order to seize the vessel as part of a lawsuit over unpaid fuel. Cruise trackers show Crystal Symphony currently docked in the Bahamian island of Bimini. Passengers...
Once allies, Stormy Daniels and Avenatti face off at trial
NEW YORK — Stormy Daniels, the porn star who catapulted herself and Michael Avenatti to fame with lawsuits against former President Donald Trump, will have a starring role in court beginning Monday when prosecutors try to prove that the California lawyer cheated her of $300,000 in book proceeds. Her testimony...
Pope calls for day of prayer for peace for Ukraine
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis on Sunday expressed his concern over “rising tensions” in Ukraine that threaten peace, and called for political talks that put at the center “human brotherhood instead of partisan interests.” “I am following with concern the rising tensions that threaten to inflict a new blow to...
Taxpayers face overloaded IRS as filing season opens Monday
WASHINGTON — Count 30-year-old Ethan Miller among that subset of Americans who are actually eager to file their taxes once income tax filing season opens on Monday. The financial planner who lives in Silver Spring, Maryland, is looking forward to claiming the new deductions that will come from buying a...
Wildfire along California’s Big Sur forces evacuations
A wind-driven wildfire broke out late Friday in the rugged mountains above Big Sur, forcing residents to evacuate from their homes and authorities to shut down a stretch of Pacific Coast Highway. The fire started in a canyon and was pushed by 35 mph winds to the sea, jumping the...
Coast along Virginia and the Carolinas gets snow, ice
A layer of ice and a blanket of snow covered coastal areas stretching from South Carolina to Virginia Saturday after a winter weather system brought colder temperatures and precipitation not often seen in the region. Authorities urged drivers to stay off the roads and highways, which forecasters said are slick...
Stray bullet kills English astrophysicist visiting Atlanta
BROOKHAVEN, Ga. — A stray bullet struck and killed an English astrophysicist while he was inside an Atlanta-area apartment, authorities say. Matthew Willson, 31, of Chertsey, Surrey, England, was visiting his girlfriend in the United States when he was hit by a bullet that pierced the wall of the apartment....
Weber Grills apologizes for ill-timed meat loaf recipe email
Weber picked the wrong day to suggest grilling meat loaf. The outdoor grill maker apologized on Friday for sending a recipe-of-the-week email earlier that day featuring instructions on how to prepare “BBQ Meat Loaf.” The email coincided with news of the death of Marvin Lee Aday, best known as rock...
FBI: Brian Laundrie admitted killing Gabby Petito in notebook
The boyfriend of slain cross-country traveler Gabby Petito admitted killing her in a notebook discovered near his body in a Florida swamp, the FBI announced Friday. It was the first time authorities squarely pinned the blame for Petito’s death on Brian Laundrie, though he was the prime suspect all along....
Mitch McConnell responds to uproar over comment about Black voters
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell pushed back Friday against the uproar over a comment he made about African American voters, calling the criticism directed his way “outrageous.” McConnell had been accused of racism for saying that “African American” voters cast ballots at similar rates to “Americans.” The comment implied that...
1 NYPD officer killed, 1 severely injured in Harlem shooting
A New York City police officer was killed and another critically wounded Friday night while answering a call about an argument between a woman and her adult son, officials said, making four officers shot in the city in as many days. Just three weeks into their jobs, Mayor Eric Adams...
Florida man charged after 4 found dead at Canada-US border
WINNIPEG, Manitoba — A Florida man has been charged with human smuggling after the bodies of four people, including a baby and a teen, were found in Canada near the U.S. border in what authorities believe was a failed crossing attempt during a freezing blizzard. Steve Shand, 47, was charged...
Has rule-breaker Boris Johnson met his match in ‘partygate’?
LONDON — For Boris Johnson, facts have always been flexible. The British prime minister’s career is littered with doctored quotes, tall tales, exaggerations and mistruths. When called out, he has generally offered an apologetic shrug or a guilty grin, and moved on. Plenty of people were willing to forgive him....
Red Cross: Yemen prison airstrike killed, injured over 100
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A Saudi-led airstrike targeting a prison run by Yemen’s Houthi rebels killed and wounded over 100 detainees on Friday, rescuers said, part of a pounding aerial offensive that hours earlier saw another airstrike take the Arab world’s poorest country off the internet. A strike in...
U.S., Russia try to lower temperature in Ukraine crisis
GENEVA — The United States and Russia sought to lower the temperature Friday in a heated standoff over Ukraine, even as they said no breakthrough was imminent amid fears of a possible Russian invasion. Armed with seemingly intractable and diametrically opposed demands, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian...
