Buddhist monks accused of embezzling millions donated to Thailand temple
BANGKOK — Seven Buddhist monks are among nine suspects who are being held in pre-trial detention after being arrested for allegedly embezzling assets worth about $8.9 million from donations received by a temple in Thailand’s northeast, authorities said Thursday. The Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases said the actions...
Ukraine says its counteroffensive now delayed; Britain says it’s sent cruise missiles to Kyiv
KYIV, Ukraine — President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in remarks broadcast Thursday that Kyiv is delaying its long-awaited counteroffensive against Russia’s occupying forces because Ukraine lacks enough Western weapons to succeed without suffering too many casualties. His remarks, in an interview with European broadcasters, were aired shortly before Britain said it...
2023 primary day election guide: Details on races, candidates, issues in Western Pa.
Primary day is today. Here’s a guide to the many local races through Allegheny and Westmoreland counties. Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and anyone in line at 8 p.m. will be allowed to vote. The state has an online tool to let voters find their polling...
New blood donation rules allow more gay men to give in U.S.
WASHINGTON — Gay and bisexual men in monogamous relationships can donate blood in the U.S. without abstaining from sex, under a federal policy finalized Thursday by health regulators. The Food and Drug Administration guidelines ease decades-old restrictions designed to protect the blood supply from HIV. The agency announced plans for...
U.S. jobless claims filings highest since 2021, job market remains healthy
The number of Americans filing for jobless claims last week rose to its highest level in a year-and-a-half, though the labor market remains healthy by historical standards. Applications for unemployment benefits for the week ending May 6 rose by 22,000 to 264,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s up from...
Shooting at Mercedes factory in Germany leaves 2 dead; suspect detained
BERLIN — A man opened fire at a Mercedes-Benz factory in southwestern Germany on Thursday, leaving two people dead, authorities and the company said. The shooting occurred in Sindelfingen, a city near Stuttgart. The suspect, a 53-year-old man, was taken into custody, a spokesman for the Stuttgart prosecutor’s office said....
What to know about Trump’s CNN town hall: Lies about election and abortion, attacks on accuser
NEW YORK — Donald Trump’s primetime return to CNN Wednesday for the first time since 2016 felt like a throwback: Trump with the long, twisting answers; the interviewer at times struggling to fact-check him or return his focus to the question at hand; and then, eventually, both talking over each...
‘Now or never’: Migrants rush to U.S. border ahead of Title 42 expiration
MATAMOROS, Mexico — Migrants rushed across the border hours before pandemic-related asylum restrictions were to expire Thursday, fearing that new policies would make it far more difficult to gain entry into the United States. In a move to clear out overwhelmed holding facilities, Border Patrol agents were told Wednesday to...
As public health emergency ends, pandemic-era support programs have already been fading away
WASHINGTON — The formal end of the national Public Health Emergency on Thursday is largely a symbolic and psychological step, representing the country’s formal emergence from the covid-19 pandemic. But behind the scenes, several core aspects of America’s pandemic-era emergency safety net are also coming to a close, from extra...
Real-life ‘The Queen’s Gambit’: Custodian leads school chess teams in Maine
HAMPDEN, Maine — David Bishop spends the school day as a mild-mannered custodian, but before the final bell rings, he grabs his chess boards and pieces and begins his second role. “The Queen’s Gambit” is playing out in real life in Maine, where this custodian is coaching his schools’ chess...
Figuring out Texas: From guns to immigration, here’s how one state’s challenges echo the country’s
HOUSTON — Thirteen people dead in two mass shootings. Eight immigrants killed when an SUV slams into a crowded bus stop. The likely approval of legislation that would let the Republican governor overturn elections in the most populous county, a Democratic stronghold. All in the past two weeks. These issues...
Rape, incest exceptions to Louisiana abortion ban rejected by GOP lawmakers
BATON ROUGE — Republican lawmakers in Louisiana rejected legislation Wednesday that would add exceptions in cases of rape and incest to one of the strictest abortion bans in the country. This legislative session, there is a package of bills aimed at loosening Louisiana’s near-total abortion ban by adding exceptions, clarifying...
Dutch suspect in Natalee Holloway disappearance will be sent from Peru to U.S. to face fraud charges
MEXICO CITY — Peru’s government issued an executive order Wednesday allowing the extradition to the United States of the prime suspect in the unsolved 2005 disappearance of American student Natalee Holloway on the Dutch Caribbean island of Aruba. The Peruvian Embassy in Washington told The Associated Press the order allows...
Judge who presided over Parkland school shooting trial announces resignation
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The Florida judge who gained a national profile while presiding over the Parkland school shooting trial announced Wednesday that she is resigning June 30 to pursue unspecified career opportunities. Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer rose in prominence when she oversaw the televised penalty trial of Nikolas Cruz....
Duquesne now allowed to recruit students to planned osteopathic medical school
Duquesne University is allowed to begin recruiting students to its planned college of osteopathic medicine, a significant step toward opening in the fall of 2024. The college rising along Forbes Avenue on the Bluff now has pre-accreditation status from the Commission on Osteopathic College Accreditation, campus officials said Wednesday. The...
Army sergeant who fatally shot BLM protester in Texas sentenced to 25 years as governor seeks pardonVideo
AUSTIN, Texas — A U.S. Army sergeant who fatally shot an armed protester at a Black Lives Matter march in Texas was sentenced to 25 years in prison Wednesday, after prosecutors used his social media history and text messages to portray him as a racist who may commit violence again....
Passenger charged with hiding camera in cruise ship restroom
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — A passenger on a Caribbean cruise has been arrested after a hidden camera with video of dozens of people, including children, was discovered in a public restroom, officials said. Jeremy Froias was arrested last Wednesday in Puerto Rico and charged with video voyeurism and attempted...
Google is giving its dominant search engine an artificial-intelligence makeover
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — Google on Wednesday disclosed plans to infuse its dominant search engine with more advanced artificial-intelligence technology, a drive that’s in response to one of the biggest threats to its long-established position as the internet’s main gateway. The gradual shift in how Google’s search engine runs is...
Pennsylvania GOP puts clout back on line in primary after losing ’22 Senate, governor races
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s Republican Party is trying to learn from internal strife over last year’s failure to endorse in premier primary contests and, this year, it is putting its clout on the line by issuing endorsements ahead of Tuesday’s primary election. Republicans are now putting up big bucks to try...
FDA panel backs over-the-counter birth control pill
WASHINGTON — Federal health advisers said Wednesday that a decades-old birth control pill should be sold without a prescription, paving the way for a likely U.S. approval of the first over-the-counter contraceptive medication. The panel of FDA advisers voted unanimously in favor of drugmaker Perrigo’s request to sell its once-a-day...
Federal bank records emerge as focus of GOP’s Biden probes
WASHINGTON — Facing growing pressure to show progress in their investigations, House Republicans on Wednesday detailed what they say are concerning new findings about President Joe Biden’s family and their finances. The smoking gun, according to the GOP, is recently obtained financial records connected to the president’s son Hunter Biden,...
Mom of Virginia boy who shot teacher takes responsibilityVideo
NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Four months after a 6-year-old Virginia boy shot and wounded his teacher as she taught class, an attorney for the boy’s mother said it still is not clear how the boy got the gun. Police have said Deja Taylor legally purchased the gun used in the...
Harris 1st woman to deliver West Point commencement speech
WEST POINT, N.Y. — Vice President Kamala Harris will be the first woman to deliver a commencement speech at a West Point graduation ceremony, White House officials said. Harris will deliver the keynote address on May 27 at the U.S. Military Academy for the Class of 2023. “We are honored...
Blast at Sweden ammunition factory injures at least 1
STOCKHOLM — An explosion at an ammunition factory in southern Sweden seriously injured at least one person Wednesday, police said. Police said they were investigating the blast as an industrial accident. The factory in Karlsborg, about 137 miles southwest of Stockholm, was manufacturing small-caliber ammunition. While there was “uncertainty about...
Spain plans to ban outdoor work in extreme heat
MADRID — Spain says it plans to ban outdoor work during periods of extreme heat. Second Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Díaz told reporters Wednesday that the government will modify legislation covering occupational risks to prohibit outdoor work when the state weather agency, AEMET, issues red or orange alerts. The agency...
