Latest U.S. Department of State News
State Department removes Cuba from short list of countries deemed uncooperative on counterterrorism
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken removed Cuba Wednesday from the State Department's short list of countries that it deems less than fully cooperative against violent groups. In a statement, the State Department said Blinken had found that Cuban and U.S. law...
Death toll in bombings at displacement camps in eastern Congo rises to at least 35
GOMA, Congo (AP) — The death toll in the bombings of two camps for displaced people in eastern Congo last week rose to at least 35 Friday, with an additional two in very critical condition, a local official told The Associated Press. Éric Bwanapuwa, a lawmaker who represents Goma,...
US repatriates 11 citizens from notorious camp for relatives of Islamic State militants in Syria
BEIRUT (AP) — The United States has repatriated 11 of its citizens from sprawling camps in northeastern Syria that house tens of thousands of family members of suspected Islamic State militants, the U.S. State Department said Tuesday. The repatriation was the largest Washington has...
Top diplomat Blinken will visit the Mideast again this coming week. What can he achieve this time?
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken is returning to the Middle East on his seventh diplomatic mission to the region since the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza began more than six months ago, the State Department said Saturday. Blinken is traveling to Saudi Arabia on Monday,...
Commerce Department announces new restrictions on U.S. firearms exports
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Commerce Department on Friday announced new restrictions on U.S. firearms exports in an effort to prevent the guns from ending up in the hands of drug traffickers and criminals in other nations. Oversight of legal firearms exports has become a political...
Pennsylvania redesigned its mail-in ballot envelopes amid litigation. Some voters still tripped up
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A form Pennsylvania voters must complete on the outside of mail-in ballot return envelopes has been redesigned, but that did not prevent some voters from failing to complete it accurately for this week's primary, and some votes will not count as a result, election officials...
As Blinken heads to China, these are the major divides he will try to bridge
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken is starting three days of talks with senior Chinese officials in Shanghai and Beijing this week with U.S.-China ties at a critical point over numerous global disputes. The mere fact that Blinken is making the trip — shortly...
Haitians emerge from homes during brief respite from gang violence. Hours later, gunfire erupts
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (AP) — Haitians rushed to buy food and other basic supplies Thursday as they emerged from their homes during a rare respite from gang violence, but gunfire erupted in downtown Port-au-Prince hours later. Female street vendors balancing heavy loads on their...
Top former US generals say failures of Biden administration in planning drove chaotic fall of Kabul
WASHINGTON (AP) — The top two U.S. generals who oversaw the evacuation of Afghanistan as it fell to the Taliban in August 2021 blamed the Biden administration for the chaotic departure, telling lawmakers Tuesday that it inadequately planned for the evacuation and did not order it in time. ...
First charter flight with US citizens fleeing Haiti lands in Miami
MIAMI (AP) — A charter flight carrying dozens of U.S. citizens fleeing spiraling gang violence in Haiti landed Sunday in Miami, U.S. State Department officials said. More than 30 U.S. citizens were on the government-chartered flight, officials said in a statement. It arrived in the...
