Diplomats walk out of UN meetings in protest of RussiaVideo
GENEVA — Scores of diplomats have walked out of two meetings at the United Nations in Geneva in which Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was beamed in for a video statement, as a protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Lavrov spoke by video to the Conference on Disarmament and the...
Police say Pa. woman attacked pregnant woman for having to wait for a ride home
A Cumberland County resident attacked a pregnant woman and told her “I’ll kill you and I’ll kill your baby” after she was told she’d have to wait 20 minutes to get a ride home, Pennsylvania State Police said. Margarita Maldonado, 30, was staying with the pregnant woman for a couple...
Pope gives fathers working at Vatican 3-day paternity leave
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis has decided to grant a three-day paternity leave to new fathers who work at the Vatican. In a law published Tuesday, Francis amended the Vatican’s family leave policy, which sets out the benefits for Vatican employees who have children or must care for family members....
Texas primary sets up Abbott-O’Rourke race as midterms begin
AUSTIN — Republican Gov. Greg Abbott will face Democrat Beto O’Rourke after voters in Texas opened what could be a lengthy, bruising primary season poised to reshape political power from state capitals to Washington. Both easily won their party’s nomination for governor on Tuesday. Abbott is now in a commanding...
Big tech grapples with Russian state media, propaganda
WASHINGTON — As Russia’s war in Ukraine plays out for the world on social media, big tech platforms are moving to restrict Russian state media from using their platforms to spread propaganda and misinformation. Google announced Tuesday that it’s blocking the YouTube channels of those outlets in Europe “effective immediately”...
‘Undisguised terror’: Russia’s Kharkiv strike chills Ukraine
KHARKIV, Ukraine — In the dust and debris — and the dead — in Kharkiv’s central Freedom Square, Ukrainians on Tuesday saw what might become of other cities if Russia’s invasion isn’t countered in time. Not long after sunrise, a Russian military strike hit the center of Ukraine’s second-largest city,...
Biden steps to State of the Union lectern at fraught moment
WASHINGTON — Facing disquiet at home and danger abroad, President Joe Biden will deliver his first State of the Union address at a precipitous moment for the nation, aiming to navigate the country out of a pandemic, reboot his stalled domestic agenda and confront Russia’s aggression. The speech Tuesday night...
Russia takes aim at urban areas; Biden vows Putin will ‘pay’
KYIV, Ukraine — Russian forces escalated their attacks on crowded urban areas Tuesday in what Ukraine’s leader called a blatant campaign of terror, while U.S. President Joe Biden vowed to make his Russian counterpart “pay a price” for the invasion. “Nobody will forgive. Nobody will forget,” Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy...
Defiant Ukrainian border guards taken hostage are ‘alive and well,’ army says
The viral heroes of the Ukrainian resistance are “alive and well.” Last week, 13 Ukrainian border guards made national headlines in a defiant stand against an incoming Russian warship when they refused to surrender their posts on Snake Island in the Black Sea. “This is a Russian warship,” an unidentified...
Thousands evacuate in worst Australian floods in a decade
Tens of thousands of people were ordered to evacuate their homes by Tuesday and hundreds of thousands more were told to prepare to flee as parts of Australia’s southeast coast were inundated by the worst flooding in more than a decade. At least 10 people have died. New South Wales...
Officials: Pfizer shots protect kids from severe covid even in omicron
Pfizer’s covid-19 vaccine gave children 5 and older strong protection against hospitalization and death even during the omicron surge that hit youngsters especially hard, U.S. health officials reported Tuesday. New data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention come a day after a study of New York children suggested...
Biden denies Peter Navarro, Michael Flynn privilege claims in Jan. 6 probe
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Monday denied executive privilege claims made by former Trump administration officials Peter Navarro and Michael Flynn in connection to the congressional probe into the attack on the U.S. Capitol. In letters penned by White House deputy counsel Jonathan Su, the Biden administration rejected the...
Man kills 3 children, 1 other, himself at California church
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A man shot and killed his three children, one other person and himself Monday at a church in Sacramento, authorities said. Deputies responding to reports of gunfire around 5 p.m. found five people dead, including the shooter, at the church in the Arden-Arcade neighborhood, said Sgt. Rod...
‘Atmospheric river’ fuels rain, snow in Pacific NorthwestVideo
A strong storm fueled by an “atmospheric river” brought rain, snow and threat of flooding and avalanches on Monday to the Pacific Northwest. Forecasters said daily rainfall records in Seattle and elsewhere could be broken and on Monday afternoon a new daily record was set in the city with 2.33...
40-mile Russian convoy threatens Kyiv; shelling intensifiesVideo
KYIV, Ukraine — A 40-mile convoy of Russian tanks and other vehicles threatened Ukraine’s capital Tuesday as an intense shelling attack targeted the country’s second-largest city, and both sides looked to resume talks in the coming days aimed at stopping the fighting. The country’s embattled president said he believed the...
Pennsylvania moves to divest holdings in Russian assets
HARRISBURG — The Russian invasion of Ukraine is spurring Pennsylvania lawmakers to draft legislation to require the state Treasury Department and the state’s three public pension funds to divest holdings connected to Russia, as some selling off was already underway Monday. The state Treasury Department said it began divesting its...
Fred Keller won’t run for reelection as Pennsylvania loses seat
HARRISBURG — U.S. Rep. Fred Keller of Pennsylvania changed his mind Monday and said he will not run for reelection if he must face a primary election against another Republican incumbent. Pennsylvania’s highest court selected new boundaries for congressional districts last week, and Keller and U.S. Rep. Glenn Thompson —...
U.S. says it is expelling 12 Russian diplomats for espionage
UNITED NATIONS — The United States announced Monday it is expelling 12 members of the Russian Mission at the United Nations, accusing them of being “intelligence operatives” engaged in espionage. The Biden administration’s action came on the fifth day of Russia’s invasion of neighboring Ukraine, which has sparked condemnation from...
Supreme Court asked to intervene in congressional maps case
HARRISBURG — A group suing over Pennsylvania’s new map of congressional districts asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday to reconsider whether they are entitled to an emergency order to halt the plan. The petition came three days after U.S. District Judge Jennifer P. Wilson in Harrisburg denied their request...
Eugene DePasquale will not oppose U.S. Rep. Scott Perry in the 10th Congressional District race
U.S. Rep. Scott Perry has just vanquished one major potential foe in his quest for a 6th term in Congress, as former Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale has decided not to seek a rematch of their 2020 race. DePasquale, a Pittsburgh native, was widely considered Perry’s top political threat, with...
Many Capitol riot cases could hinge on 1st trial’s outcomeVideo
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department launched one of the largest and most complex criminal investigations in its history after a mob of Donald Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol over a year ago. Now it’s time for a jury to hear some of the government’s evidence about the unparalleled attack...
Report: Atlantic City casino smoking ban may cost 2,500 jobs
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Amid a renewed push to ban smoking in Atlantic City’s casinos, a new report released Wednesday predicts that doing so could cost up to 2,500 casino jobs and nearly 11% of casinos’ revenue as they struggle to rebound from the coronavirus pandemic. The independent gambling research...
ICC prosecutor to open probe into war crimes in Ukraine
THE HAGUE, Netherlands — The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court said Monday he plans to open an investigation “as rapidly as possible” into possible war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine. Prosecutor Karim Khan said in a statement that the investigation will look at alleged crimes committed...
Europe welcomes Ukrainian refugees — others, less so
BARCELONA, Spain — They file into neighboring countries by the hundreds of thousands — refugees from Ukraine clutching children in one arm, belongings in the other. And they’re being heartily welcomed, by leaders of countries like Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Moldova and Romania. But while the hospitality has been applauded, it...
A look inside a cartel ‘extermination site’ in Mexico, which nears 100K missing
NUEVO LAREDO, Mexico — For the investigators, the human foot — burned, but with some fabric still attached — was the tipoff: Until recently, this squat, ruined house was a place where bodies were ripped apart and incinerated, where the remains of some of Mexico’s missing multitudes were obliterated. How...
