Associated Press stories, Page 1425

Five U.S. lawmakers met with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on Friday in a surprise one-day visit intended to reaffirm America’s “rock-solid” support for the self-governing island that is claimed by China. The visit came as tensions between Taiwan and China have risen to their highest level in decades. Taiwan has...

Nearly two years into the covid-19 pandemic, the world raced Friday to contain a new coronavirus variant potentially more dangerous than the one that has fueled relentless waves of infection on nearly every continent. A World Health Organization panel named the variant “omicron” and classified it as a highly transmissible...

Retailers are expected to usher in the unofficial start to the holiday shopping season Friday with bigger crowds than last year in a closer step toward normalcy. But the fallout from the pandemic continues to weigh on businesses and shoppers’ minds. Buoyed by solid hiring, healthy pay gains and substantial...

Egyptian authorities were unveiling Thursday a renovated ancient promenade in the city of Luxor dating back 3,000 years, the latest government project undertaken to highlight the country’s archaeological treasures. Egypt has struggled to revive its tourism industry, battered by years of political turmoil following the 2011 popular uprising that toppled...

Stocks sank Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average briefly falling more than 1,000 points, as a new coronavirus variant first detected in South Africa appeared to be spreading across the globe. Investors were uncertain whether the variant could potentially reverse months of progress at getting the covid-19 pandemic under...

Michigan State quarterback Payton Thorne relived his team’s outing at Ohio State three times on film. The nightmarish performance will be hard to forget. “It was tough to watch and see the things that happened,” he said of the 56-7 road loss to the Buckeyes. “It was really frustrating to...

Federal health regulators say an experimental covid-19 pill from Merck is effective against the virus, but they will seek input from outside experts on risks of birth defects and other potential problems during pregnancy. The Food and Drug Administration posted its analysis of the pill ahead of a public meeting...

LAWRENCE, Kan. — West Virginia has gone through a roller-coaster of a season that includes soaring wins over Virginia Tech and Iowa State and crushing losses to Maryland and Texas Tech, and it all leaves the Mountaineers with everything on the line Saturday. Knock off Kansas, and they go to...

Close games and unpredictable outcomes have been a staple this NFL season. Thanksgiving Day was the latest example. The Bears beat the Lions on a last-second field goal. The Raiders upset the Cowboys on a field goal in overtime. The league and the networks must love it, and fans stay...

KENOSHA, Wis. — When he was acquitted of murder in shootings during unrest in Wisconsin, Kyle Rittenhouse went from staring at possible life behind bars to red-hot star of the right: an exclusive interview with Tucker Carlson and a visit with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago capped by a photo of...

ROME — National Geographic magazine’s famed green-eyed “Afghan Girl” has arrived in Italy as part of the West’s evacuation of Afghans following the Taliban takeover of the country, the Italian government said Thursday. The office of Premier Mario Draghi said Italy organized the evacuation of Sharbat Gulla after she asked...

MOSCOW — Rescuers have found a survivor in a Siberian coal mine where dozens of miners are presumed dead after a devastating methane explosion, a top local official announced Friday. Sergei Tsivilyov, governor of the Kemerovo region where the mine is located, said on the messaging app Telegram that the...

LONDON — South African scientists have identified a new version of the coronavirus this week that they say is behind a recent spike in covid-19 infections in Gauteng, the country’s most populous province. It’s unclear from where the new variant actually arose, but it was first detected by scientists in...

We’ve all learned more than we bargained for about how to celebrate the holidays during uncertain times. Last year, many of us cooked smaller Thanksgiving feasts and celebrated by Zoom. This year, with the proper precautions, we might see more real-life gatherings, and plates full of most — if not...

ST. THOMAS, Virgin Islands — Jordan Nixon and Destiny Pitts scored 12 points, Kayla Wells added 10 points and No. 23 Texas A&M used a late run to pull away for a 57-46 win over the Pitt women’s basketball team Thursday night at the Paradise Jam. Wells and Pitts made...

ARLINGTON, Texas — Daniel Carlson kicked a 29-yard field goal in overtime after Anthony Brown’s fourth pass-interference penalty kept the drive alive, and the Las Vegas Raiders beat the Dallas Cowboys, 36-33, on Thursday. Carlson’s fifth field goal came after Brown was called for interference on Zay Jones on third-and-18....

DETROIT — Matt Nagy still has a job, and perhaps his team has a shot to salvage its season. Cairo Santos made a 28-yard game-ending field goal to give the slumping Chicago Bears a 16-14 victory over the winless Detroit Lions on Thursday. The Bears (4-7) ended a five-game losing...

Back in the spring, Pauline Criel and her cousins talked about reuniting for Thanksgiving at her home near Detroit after many painful months of seclusion because of the covid-19 pandemic. But the virus had a different plan. Michigan is now the nation’s hot spot. Hospitals there are teeming with patients,...

BRUNSWICK, Ga. — Ahmaud Arbery’s mother woke up Thursday with a new, very important blessing on Thanksgiving Day. But there will still be an empty chair at the family’s celebrations. It is a reminder that while she feels justice was served when the three white men who helped shoot her...

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea on Thursday said it will launch a task force to consider outlawing dog meat consumption after the country’s president offered to look into ending the centuries-old practice. Restaurants that serve dog meat are dwindling in South Korea as younger people find dog meat a...

HARTFORD, Conn. — When the U.S. government allowed so-called hero pay for frontline workers as a possible use of pandemic relief money, it suggested occupations that could be eligible from farm workers and childcare staff to janitors and truck drivers. State and local governments have struggled to determine who among...

1925 — Red Grange, playing his first game as a professional with the Chicago Bears, is held to 36 yards in a 0-0 tie with the Chicago Cardinals. 1934 — The Detroit Lions suffer the first defeat in franchise history, 3-0 to the Green Bay Packers. The Lions had won...