Israel’s embattled Netanyahu wins landslide in primary
JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has won a landslide victory in a primary election for leadership of the ruling Likud party.
Iraq president offers to quit after rejecting PM nominee
BAGHDAD — Iraq's president refused on Thursday to designate a prime minister candidate nominated by the Iran-backed parliamentary bloc and offered to ...
Police release teen suspect in Barnard student’s killing
NEW YORK — A 14-year-old boy suspected of fatally stabbing a Barnard College freshman was released from police custody on Thursday, mere hours after N...
California jails use kinder approach to solitary confinement
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — An inmate in solitary confinement at a California jail was refusing to leave his cell. The jailers' usual response: Send an “extr...
Sudan’s Christians enjoy holiday amid hope for new freedoms
KHARTOUM, Sudan — The Sudanese Christian marchers weaved through bustling markets and traffic-clogged streets wearing “I Love Jesus” T-shirts or color...
Ari Behn, Spacey accuser and ex of Norwegian princess, dies
Scandinavian writer Ari Behn — the ex-husband of Norwegian Princess Martha Louise and among the people who had accused actor Kevin Spacey of sexual mi...
States are on front lines of 2020 election-security efforts
SPRINGFIELD, Va. — Inside a hotel ballroom near the nation’s capital, a U.S. Army officer with battlefield experience told 120 state and local electio...
West Coast fishery rebounds in rare conservation ‘home run’
WARRENTON, Ore. — A rare environmental success story is unfolding in waters off the U.S. West Coast.
To overcome travel ban, some Americans taking cases to court
NEW YORK — Mohammed Hafar paced around the airport terminal — first to the monitor to check flight arrivals, then to the gift shop and lastly to the d...
Pennsylvania dioceses offer $84M to 564 clergy abuse victims
Pennsylvania’s Roman Catholic dioceses have paid nearly $84 million to 564 victims of sexual abuse, a tally that’s sure to grow substantially in the ...
Slave cemetery poses questions for Florida country club
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The rumors swirled for decades: A dark history long lay buried under the grassy knolls and manicured lawns of a country club in Fl...
Court rules Turkey violated freedoms by banning Wikipedia
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkey’s highest court on Thursday ruled in favor of Wikipedia, saying the Turkish government's two-year ban on the online encycloped...
Student who saved classmates from shooting honored as Jedi
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A North Carolina college student hailed by police as a hero for preventing more injuries and deaths after a gunman opened fire in a ...
Trumps wish Americans ‘Merry Christmas’ as they mark holiday
PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump are wishing Americans a Merry Christmas as they celebrate the holiday with thei...
Gala Christmas Day in country for Queen Elizabeth II, family
SANDRINGHAM, England — Queen Elizabeth II and her close family spent a gala Christmas Day at her palatial countryside retreat, feasting on locally-rea...
GOP senator ‘disturbed’ by McConnell impeachment remark
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican from Alaska, said she was disturbed to hear Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell say ther...
Rust Belt region banks on becoming hub for electric vehicles
The day Youngstown's steel mills began shutting down 40 years ago remains fresh in the minds of those who live in the blue-collar corner of Ohio. Comm...
Miami ballet school a haven for Venezuelan dancing diaspora
MIAMI — Lusian Hernandez’s eyes watered when she recalled receiving a free pair of pointe shoes after arriving in Miami on a dance scholarship as her ...
JFK letter promising Santa safe during Cold War on display
BOSTON — In the throes of the Cold War, the Soviet Union was planning to test a massive nuclear bomb in the Arctic Circle.
Pope offers hope against darkness in Christmas Day message
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis offered a Christmas message of hope Wednesday against darkness that cloaks conflicts and relationships in large parts of t...
‘Colors of the Mountain’ author Da Chen dies at 57
LOS ANGELES — Da Chen, the brilliant storyteller who drew from the hardships he suffered as a persecuted child growing up in the midst of China’s cult...
Trumps attend music-filled church service on Christmas Eve
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump attended a music-filled Christmas Eve service at Family Church in West Pal...
Former Uber CEO Kalanick severs ties with ride-hailing giant
NEW YORK — Travis Kalanick, who built Uber into a ride-hailing giant, only to be ousted as CEO over the company's sexist “bro” culture, is cashing out...
Colombia’s conflict spills over to museum of memory
BOGOTA, Colombia — On a vacant grassy lot squeezed between several smoggy highways lies the property where Colombia’s government hopes to build a larg...
It takes a tech village to track Santa on Christmas Eve
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. — Depending on which country they’re from, the kids may ask about Father Christmas, Papa Noel, Saint Nick or Santa Clau...
Trump lashes out as impeachment trial stuck in limbo
PALM BEACH, Fla. — President Donald Trump lashed out Tuesday as his Senate impeachment trial remains at an impasse, with Republican and Democratic lea...
Thousands mark Christmas in West Bank town of Bethlehem
BETHLEHEM, West Bank — Thousands of Christian pilgrims on Tuesday flocked to the West Bank town of Bethlehem, celebrating Christmas Eve in the traditi...
Bankruptcy judge thrust into spotlight in Purdue Pharma case
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — The judge overseeing the bankruptcy of OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma warns that real-life court cases don't unfold like “Perry Ma...
Home for the holidays: Prince Philip leaves hospital
LONDON — Prince Philip was discharged from a London hospital Tuesday and immediately taken by helicopter to join other senior royals at Queen Elizabet...
Pentagon says New Jersey soldier killed in Afghanistan
KABUL, Afghanistan — A 33-year-old American soldier was killed in combat Monday in Afghanistan, the U.S. military said. The Taliban claimed they were ...