Top General News
Strong winds forecast for Los Angeles threaten area's fight against fires
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Additional water tankers and scores of firefighters arrived at the Los Angeles area on Monday ahead of fierce winds that were forecast to return and threaten the progress made so far on two massive infernos that have destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 24 people. ...
'PDS' warnings were made to grab attention in tornadoes, hurricanes, and now wildfires
The National Weather Service's Los Angeles page screams “Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS)” in hot pink letters against a gray background. It's a rare warning aimed at seizing attention ahead of extreme wildfire risk that's predicted to start in Southern California at 4...
Beyoncé donates $2.5 million to fire relief and Meghan delays show launch due to the disaster
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Weaker winds and intense firefighting efforts over the weekend boosted containment of fires burning in and around Los Angeles, but the effects of the blazes on the entertainment world continue. The Oscar nominations have been delayed and the film academy...
Prosecutor who investigated Hunter Biden defends probes, denounces president's remarks in new report
WASHINGTON (AP) — The criminal charges against Hunter Biden “were the culmination of thorough, impartial investigations, not partisan politics,” the prosecutor who led the probes said in a report released Monday that sharply criticized President Joe Biden for having maligned the Justice...
Significant progress made in talks over Israel-Hamas ceasefire and hostage release, officials say
CAIRO (AP) — U.S. and Arab mediators made significant progress overnight toward brokering a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and the release of scores of hostages held in the Gaza Strip, but a deal hasn't been reached yet, officials said Monday. Four officials acknowledged that...
Judge clears the way for release of special counsel Smith's report on Trump's 2020 election case
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department can publicly release special counsel Jack Smith's investigative report on President-elect Donald Trump's 2020 election interference case, a federal judge said Monday in the latest ruling in a court dispute over the highly anticipated document days before...
Hegseth could lead troops who'd face getting fired for actions he's done in the past
WASHINGTON (AP) — If Pete Hegseth were still in uniform, his extramarital affairs and a decision to flatly ignore a combat commander's directive would not just be drawing the attention of senators — they could have run afoul of military law. That is raising questions among...
Seoul's spy agency says North Korean soldiers captured in Ukraine haven't shown desire to defect
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s spy agency told lawmakers on Monday that two North Korean soldiers who were captured by Ukrainian forces while fighting alongside Russian forces in Russia’s Kursk border region haven’t expressed a desire to seek asylum in South Korea. ...
Queen Elizabeth II wasn't told about Soviet spy in her palace, declassified MI5 files show
LONDON (AP) — Queen Elizabeth II wasn’t told details of her long-time art adviser's double life as a Soviet spy because palace officials didn’t want to add to her worries, newly declassified documents reveal. The files about royal art historian Anthony Blunt are among a trove...
Mike McCarthy won't return as the Cowboys' coach. Deion Sanders could be a candidate to replace him
DALLAS (AP) — Mike McCarthy will not return as coach of the Dallas Cowboys, who are going on three decades since their last Super Bowl title, owner Jerry Jones said Monday. Jones said the organization and McCarthy mutually agreed to part ways. A search for the team's next coach...
Latest General News
Dutch delve into family pasts as the names of accused Nazi collaborators released
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — On Dutch Openness Day, this year’s release of secret documents from state archives suddenly left Peter Baas with fundamental questions about his father’s stature as a World War II resistance fighter. While many were cleaning up the mess from New...
Pete Hegseth, Trump's nominee for defense secretary, faces crucial test at confirmation hearing
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, is heading into a potentially explosive confirmation hearing Tuesday as senators question whether the former combat veteran and TV news show host is fit to lead the U.S. military. ...
Strong winds forecast for Los Angeles threaten area's fight against fires
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Additional water tankers and scores of firefighters arrived at the Los Angeles area on Monday ahead of fierce winds that were forecast to return and threaten the progress made so far on two massive infernos that have destroyed thousands of homes and killed at least 24 people. ...
Ukraine holds first soccer tournament for war-wounded amputees — and plans to go international
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The players were chosen from among the thousands of Ukrainians wounded in the war. With limbs lost to Russian attacks, they gathered at a stadium in Kyiv over the weekend, ready to embark on a new contest: a soccer tournament. Organized by Ukraine’s...
Benin's mecca of spirits and gods draws tourists and followers with famed Voodoo festival
OUIDAH, Benin (AP) — As children dance with great speed and energy in colorful robes, guided by the drumbeats and chants from dance troupes, the gods and spirits that are evident all around the arena are beckoned upon by the old and young for peace and prosperity. And on the sidelines, camera...
Pope Francis is introspective and self-critical in his autobiography, at least about his youth
ROME (AP) — An introspective Pope Francis has divulged some of the behind-the-scenes dynamics of the secret 2013 conclave that elected him pope and the resistance he has encountered ever since, in his autobiography being released Tuesday that also doubles down on some of his more controversial...
An American tradition: Defeated candidates attending the president-elect's inauguration
In January 1981, Jimmy Carter nodded politely toward Ronald Reagan as the new Republican president thanked the Democrat for his administration's help after Reagan resoundingly defeated Carter the previous November. Twenty years earlier, after a much closer race, Republican Richard...
Georgia cuts loose more people from probation after a fitful start
ATLANTA (AP) — For three years, Jamariel Hobbs was confined to Georgia, unable to travel freely or move where he wanted to. At the beginning, a probation officer showed up at random times of night to test him for drugs. The soft-spoken Hobbs, now 29, was among almost 176,000...
Multiracial boom in 2020 census was mostly an illusion, researchers say
When the 2020 census results were released, they showed a boom in the number of people classified as multiracial in the United States since 2010. Two Princeton sociologists now say that jump was mostly an illusion. The 276% increase largely happened because of a change in how people...
What to watch as Pete Hegseth faces questions about his experience and personal past
WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth will publicly face senators for the first time Tuesday after weeks of privately pushing back on criticism over his qualifications and personal past. Hegseth, a 44-year-old Army National Guard veteran and former Fox News...
