German lawmakers vote to abolish pandemic restrictions
BERLIN — Lawmakers voted Friday to abolish most of Germany’s coronavirus pandemic restrictions despite a surge in cases with almost 300,000 new daily cases. The Bundestag passed an amendment to the pandemic rules in a 388-277 vote with two abstentions. The upper house of parliament, made up of Germany’s 16...
Putin appears at huge rally as troops press attack in Ukraine
Vladimir Putin appeared at a huge flag-waving rally at a packed Moscow stadium Friday and lavished praise on his troops fighting in Ukraine, three weeks into the invasion that has led to heavier-than-expected Russian losses on the battlefield and increasingly authoritarian rule at home. Meanwhile, the leader of Russia’s delegation...
Moderna seeks FDA authorization for 4th dose of covid shot
WASHINGTON — Drugmaker Moderna asked the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday to authorize a fourth shot of its covid-19 vaccine as a booster dose for all adults. The request is broader than rival pharmaceutical company Pfizer’s request earlier this week for the regulator to approve a booster shot for...
Arnold Schwarzenegger tells Putin in video: Stop this warVideo
Film icon Arnold Schwarzenegger told Russians in a video posted on social media Thursday they’re being lied to about the war in Ukraine and accused President Vladimir Putin of sacrificing Russian soldiers’ lives for his own ambitions. Schwarzenegger is hugely popular in Russia, and apparently also with Putin. The President...
Hot spring forecast: Drought deepens in West, flooding ebbs
There’s no relief in sight for the West’s record-shattering megadrought, which will likely only deepen this spring, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in its seasonal outlook Thursday. But central and eastern states should be mostly spared from significant flooding. Spring is likely to be hotter than normal in...
NTSB: 13-year-old was driving pickup that struck van killing 9
HOBBS, N.M. — A 13-year-old was driving the pickup truck that struck a van in West Texas in a fiery collision that killed nine people, National Transportation Safety Board Vice Chairman Bruce Landsberg said Thursday. The truck’s left front tire, which was a spare tire, also blew out before impact,...
U.S. adult smoking rate fell during first year of pandemic
NEW YORK — The first year of the covid-19 pandemic saw more Americans drinking heavily or using illicit drugs — but apparently not smoking. U.S. cigarette smoking dropped to a new all-time low in 2020, with 1 in 8 adults saying they were current smokers, according to survey data released...
Washington state prohibits Texas-style abortion lawsuits
OLYMPIA, Wash. — A Washington state measure that prohibits legal action against people seeking an abortion and those who aid them was signed into law Thursday by the governor, in a move designed to rebut recent actions by conservative states. “We know this bill is necessary because this is a...
St. Patrick’s Day parades turn pandemic blues Irish green
NEW YORK — St. Patrick’s Day celebrations across the country are back after a two-year hiatus, including the nation’s largest in New York City, in a sign of growing hope that the worst of the coronavirus pandemic may be over. The holiday served as a key marker in the outbreak’s...
U.S. stocks extend rally even as oil climbs back above $100
NEW YORK — Wall Street is extending a rally into a third day Thursday even as oil prices jump back above $100, upping the pressure on inflation. The S&P 500 was 0.8% higher, with 75% of the stocks in the benchmark index rising. That follows gains of more than 2%...
Explainer: Ex-Honduras president step closer to extradition
MEXICO CITY — A judge in Honduras has ruled that former President Juan Orlando Hernández should be extradited to the United States to face drug trafficking and weapons charges. Wednesday’s decision came one month after police arrested Hernández at his home at the request of the U.S. government. While Hernández...
Study: SUVs, pickups hit pedestrians more often than cars do
DETROIT — Drivers of bigger vehicles such as pickup trucks and SUVs are more likely to hit pedestrians while making turns than drivers of cars, according to a new study. The research released Thursday by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety points to the increasing popularity of larger vehicles as...
Debate continues about teaching ‘Persepolis’ at Franklin Regional schools
Franklin Regional School Board members, administrators and parents on Wednesday continued their discussion about the district’s decision to pause the teaching of “Persepolis,” Marjane Satrapi’s award-winning graphic novel, in the ninth grade honors English class. District officials said earlier this month that the school board’s curriculum committee wanted to make...
Biden to call China’s Xi to discuss Russia, economic issues
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden will speak Friday with Chinese President Xi Jinping to discuss ongoing economic competition between the two countries and Russia’s war against Ukraine. White House press secretary Jen Psaki announced the upcoming phone call in a Thursday statement that said it’s “part of our ongoing efforts...
Rescuers search theater rubble as Russian attacks continue
KYIV, Ukraine — Rescue workers searched for survivors Thursday in the ruins of a theater blown apart by a Russian airstrike in the besieged city of Mariupol, while scores of Ukrainians across the country were killed in ferocious urban attacks on a school, a hostel and other sites. Hundreds of...
Who is a war criminal, and who gets to decide?
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden flatly called Russia’s Vladimir Putin a “war criminal” for the unfolding onslaught in Ukraine, where hospitals and maternity wards have been bombed. But declaring someone a war criminal is not as simple as just saying the words. There are set definitions and processes for determining...
Italy seeks to study, sample Europe’s southern-most glacier
ON THE CALDERONE GLACIER, Italy — Italian scientists are racing against time to study, scan and sample Europe’s southernmost glacier before it melts and disappears as a result of rising global temperatures. Researchers conducted a preliminary radar survey of the Calderone glacier in Italy’s central Apennine Mountains on March 13...
Florida massacre families to get millions for FBI’s inaction
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Federal officials confirmed Wednesday that the U.S. Department of Justice has reached a multimillion-dollar settlement with the families of most of those killed or wounded in a 2018 Florida high school massacre over the FBI’s failure to stop the gunman even though it had received information...
Pa. Supreme Court rejects legal challenges to state’s new legislative maps
This article is part of a yearlong reporting project focused on redistricting and gerrymandering in Pennsylvania. It is made possible by the support of Spotlight PA members and Votebeat, a project focused on election integrity and voting access. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s highest court has affirmed the state’s new legislative district...
Court upholds new maps for Pennsylvania General Assembly
HARRISBURG — New maps of General Assembly districts that reflect the past decade’s population changes in Pennsylvania survived legal challenges on Wednesday, as the state Supreme Court cleared the way for candidates to begin circulating petitions to get on the spring primary ballot. The justices rejected various arguments against the...
9 dead in Texas crash involving U. of Southwest golf teams
HOBBS, N.M. — Nine people have died in a fiery, head-on collision in West Texas, including six New Mexico university students and a coach returning from a golf tournament, as well as a 13-year-old boy, authorities said. Those killed in the Tuesday evening crash included University of the Southwest students...
Diabetes & covid-19: Scientists explore potential connection
When their 11-year-old son started losing weight and drinking lots of water, Tabitha and Bryan Balcitis chalked it up to a growth spurt and advice from his health class. But unusual crankiness and lethargy raised their concern, and tests showed his blood sugar levels were off the charts. Just six...
7.3 magnitude quake hits north Japan, tsunami alert issued
A powerful 7.3 magnitude earthquake shook off the coast of Fukushima in northern Japan on Wednesday evening, triggering a tsunami advisory. The Japan Meteorological Agency said the quake struck 36 miles below the sea. The region is part of northern Japan that was devastated by a deadly 9.0 quake and...
Russia’s onslaught continues amid optimism over talks
KYIV, Ukraine — Russian forces destroyed a theater in Mariupol where hundreds of people were sheltering Wednesday and rained fire on other cities, Ukrainian authorities said, even as the two sides projected optimism over efforts to negotiate an end to the fighting. The airstrike ripped apart the center of the...
Ex-hedge fund CEO aims to be hometown boy in Senate race in Pennsylvania
LEBANON — As CEO of the world’s largest hedge fund, David McCormick wore suits, lived on Connecticut’s ritzy Gold Coast, talked up bipartisanship and described China as America’s most important “bilateral relationship.” Now, as a Republican running for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, McCormick wears jeans and casual dress shirts. He...
