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US strikes another alleged drug-carrying boat in the Pacific and kills all 4 aboard, Hegseth says
WASHINGTON (AP) — US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Wednesday that the US military carried out another strike on a boat he said was carrying drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing all four people aboard, as the Trump administration pursues its divisive campaign against drug cartels in the waters off South America. Hegseth, who's been traveling in Japan and Malaysia, said in a social media post that intelligence determined the craft was “transiting along a known narco-trafficking r
Oct. 30, 2025 -
WHO condemns reported 'horrific' mass killing in Sudan hospital
GENEVA (AFP) -- The World Health Organization said Wednesday it was appalled by reports that more than 460 patients and their companions were shot dead at the last partially-functional hospital in Sudan's El-Fasher. The capture of El-Fasher on Sunday after an 18-month siege has solidified the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces' control over Darfur, sparking fears of ethnically motivated violence reminiscent of the western region's darkest days. "WHO is appalled and deeply shocked by reports of th
Oct. 30, 2025 -
Protests erupt after police raid in Brazil leaves 119 dead and draws accusations of excessive force
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — A massive police raid on a drug gang embedded in low-income neighborhoods of Rio de Janeiro that left at least 119 people dead drew protests for excessive force Wednesday and calls for the Rio’s governor to resign. Dozens of favelas residents gathered in front of the state’s government headquarters shouting “assassins!” and waving Brazilian flags stained with red paint, a day after Rio's deadliest raid and hours after families and residents laid dozens of dead bodies on a s
Oct. 30, 2025 -
Israel's military says ceasefire is back on as death toll from Gaza strikes rises
Israel’s military said Wednesday that the ceasefire was back on in Gaza after it carried out heavy airstrikes overnight across the Palestinian territory that killed 104 people, including 66 women and children, according to local health officials. The strikes, the deadliest since the ceasefire began on Oct. 10, marked the most serious challenge to the tenuous truce to date. The bombardment pointed to Israel’s readiness to strike hard at what it says are Hamas violations of the ceasefire deal. Mea
Oct. 30, 2025 -
Pakistan says peace talks with Afghanistan's Taliban government in Istanbul failed after four days
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Peace talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan have failed in Istanbul after four days of negotiations, Pakistan’s information minister said before dawn Wednesday, accusing the Taliban government in Kabul of refusing to act against militants blamed for deadly cross-border attacks. The talks followed an earlier round in Doha that produced a ceasefire on Oct. 19 after deadly border clashes between the two sides left dozens dead, including soldiers, civilians and militants. Paki
Oct. 29, 2025 -
US strikes $80 billion deal for new nuclear power plants
The US government inked a partnership with the Canadian owners of Westinghouse Electric on Tuesday that aims to build at least $80 billion in nuclear reactors. It is one of the most ambitious plans in US atomic energy in decades, underscoring President Donald Trump's agenda to maximize energy output, focused on oil, gas, coal and nuclear. It also comes as growth in artificial intelligence data centers boosts US power demand for the first time in two decades, straining parts of the grid. Under th
Oct. 29, 2025 -
Trump's popularity dips as Americans sweat cost of living, poll finds
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- US President Donald Trump's presidential approval rating fell in recent days, tying the lowest level of his term, as more Americans frowned on his handling of the cost of living, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos poll. The three-day poll, which concluded on Sunday, showed 40 percent of Americans approve of the Republican leader's job performance, compared to 42 percent in an Oct. 15-20 Reuters/Ipsos poll. Trump's popularity has been within a percentage point or two of its
Oct. 29, 2025 -
Zelenskyy says Kyiv ready for peace talks, but will not cede territory
KYIV, Ukraine (Reuters) -- Ukraine is ready for peace talks but will not withdraw its troops from additional territory first as Moscow has demanded, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. In comments to reporters released on Tuesday, he said he was happy for talks to be held anywhere, except in Russia itself or on the territory of Moscow's close ally Belarus. Plans for a summit in Budapest this month between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin were put on hold after Mosco
Oct. 29, 2025 -
Climate inaction causing 'millions' of avoidable deaths: study
PARIS (AFP) -- Climate change is ravaging the health of people around the world and policy failures are leading to "millions" of avoidable deaths each year, an international team of experts said Wednesday. Opportunities for a "just" climate transition were still on the table but remained "largely untapped," according to the Lancet's Countdown, a major annual study tracking the health impacts of climate change. The report put figures on some of the most deadly consequences: 546,000 people died ea
Oct. 29, 2025 -
Pope reaffirms dialogue with Jews as he marks 60th anniversary of a key document
Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday marked the 60th anniversary of the Vatican document that revolutionized the Catholic Church's relations with Jews, reaffirming the commitment to dialogue at a time of rising antisemitism over Israel's war in Gaza. Leo presided over a two-part interfaith commemoration of the anniversary: He first joined religious leaders from over a dozen faith traditions in an appeal for peace at the Colosseum, then presided over an evening event focused on the landmark document at the Va
Oct. 29, 2025 -
Pressure builds on Prince Andrew to vacate mansion he rents for the nominal sum of a peppercorn
LONDON (AP) -- The latest chapter in the saga haunting the House of Windsor could be called "The Prince and the Peppercorn." Prince Andrew, who recently relinquished his formal titles after new revelations about his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, is under pressure to vacate his royal digs where he lives nearly rent-free near Windsor Castle. The demoted duke occupies Royal Lodge, a sprawling mansion that eclipses its modest name, for the sum of a single peppercorn a yea
Oct. 29, 2025 -
Putin brandishes a new nuclear-powered missile as he digs in over Russia's demands on Ukraine
By holding nuclear drills and boasting about a successful test of a pioneering atomic-powered cruise missile, Russian President Vladimir Putin is sending a message to US President Donald Trump: Moscow won’t be cowed into making concessions on Ukraine. Facing Trump’s call for a quick ceasefire and bruising, new US sanctions on Russia’s oil industry, Putin is again reminding the US and other Western allies of Kyiv about his nuclear arsenal to back his longstanding, maximalist demands. He has said
Oct. 28, 2025 -
Sudan army admits loss of key city as reports of atrocities emerge
PORT SUDAN, Sudan (AFP) -- Sudan's army admitted on Monday it had withdrawn from the strategic hub of El-Fasher, while the UN issued a stark warning over reports of "atrocities" by the paramilitary group now in control of the city. Fears have mounted for the safety of tens of thousands of civilians in the city in western Darfur, trapped in an 18-month siege by the Rapid Support Forces, which has been fighting a brutal war with Sudan's army for more than two years. "We have agreed to withdraw the
Oct. 28, 2025 -
Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara reelected to fourth term, early results show
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast (AP) — Ivory Coast’s President Alassane Ouattara was reelected to a fourth term in an election marked by low turnout and empty streets in the economic capital of Abidjan, provisional results showed Monday. Ouattara, 83, who first came to power in the West African nation in 2011, won 89.7 percent of the vote, Electoral Commission head Ibrahime Kuibiert Coulibaly said Monday. Jean-Louis Billon, a former commerce minister from one of Ivory Coast’s richest families, came in a di
Oct. 28, 2025 -
Brazil ex-leader Bolsonaro appeals 27-year prison sentence
BRASILIA, Brazil (AFP) -- Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro's lawyers on Monday filed an appeal against his 27-year prison sentence for a botched coup bid after his 2022 election loss. The far-right firebrand's lawyers allege "ambiguities, omissions, contradictions and obscurities" in the Supreme Court decision finding him guilty of attempting to oust President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, in a divisive trial that sparked the ire of US President Donald Trump. Supreme Court judges have no d
Oct. 28, 2025