Papua New Guinea officials remove last refugees from camp
Australia & the Pacific

Papua New Guinea officials remove last refugees from camp

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Papua New Guinea authorities said Friday they had relocated the last asylum seekers who had refused for three weeks to leave a closed immigration camp for fear they would face violence in the alternative accommodations. Police Chief Superintendent Dominic Kakas said police and immigration officials removed all 378 men from the … Continue reading

US stocks slide further as banks and energy companies sink
Africa / Asia / Australia & the Pacific / Business / Canada & the Atlantic / Europe / International Affairs / Latin America & the Caribbean / Middle East / U.S. News

US stocks slide further as banks and energy companies sink

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes are slipping for the second day in a row Wednesday as banks and small-company stocks continue to take steep losses. Energy companies are falling as the price of oil slides almost 4 percent. That’s canceling out gains for drug companies and household products makers. KEEPING SCORE: The Standard … Continue reading

City clash fuels fear of Islamic State foothold in southern Philippines
Australia & the Pacific / International Affairs / Politics

City clash fuels fear of Islamic State foothold in southern Philippines

MARAWI, Philippines (AP) — Militants who have laid siege to a southern Philippines city had been planning a spate of attacks during the holy month of Ramadan to earn recognition as a regional branch of the Islamic State group, the military said Tuesday. Soldiers have taken control of about 70 percent of Marawi, where the … Continue reading

Car mows down Times Square pedestrians for blocks, killing 1
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Car mows down Times Square pedestrians for blocks, killing 1

NEW YORK (AP) — A man steered his car onto a sidewalk running through the heart of Times Square and mowed down pedestrians for three blocks Thursday, killing a teenager, then emerged from his wrecked vehicle wild-eyed and waving his arms before he was subdued by police and bystanders. The driver, a 26-year-old U.S. Navy … Continue reading

The Latest: Trump denies asking Comey to shelve Flynn probe
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The Latest: Trump denies asking Comey to shelve Flynn probe

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Latest on President Donald Trump (all times local): 4:40 p.m. President Donald Trump has responded with a direct “no, no” to a question about whether he asked former FBI Director James Comey to shelve an investigation into his former national security adviser. Trump also was questioned Thursday over revelations that he … Continue reading

Australian leader says Trump agrees to accept refugees
Australia & the Pacific

Australian leader says Trump agrees to accept refugees

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — President Donald Trump had agreed to keep an Obama administration promise to resettle refugees languishing in Pacific island camps despite the U.S. toughening its stance on Muslim immigration, the Australian prime minister said Monday. Trump had agreed that during a 25-minute telephone conversation on Sunday to accept an unspecified number of … Continue reading

MH370 search crews return to port after fruitless hunt ends
Asia / Australia & the Pacific

MH370 search crews return to port after fruitless hunt ends

SYDNEY (AP) — The ship involved in the recently halted hunt for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 returned to port in western Australia on Monday, where officials from the countries that funded the fruitless search gathered to thank them and to defend their decision to end the hunt despite recommendations from investigators that it continue. Transport … Continue reading

Australia & the Pacific / Education / Featured / Lifestyle / Local / Politics / Virginia

Confederate flag group pulls request for parade on MLK Day

A pro-Confederate flag group has withdrawn its request to hold a parade on Martin Luther King Jr. Day in Lexington. Media outlets report Grayson Jennings of the Virginia Flaggers sent an email to Lexington officials saying his organization requested the permit for a parade on Jan. 16 only in an effort to swap permits with an … Continue reading

Philippine militants say they abducted German, killed woman
Asia / Australia & the Pacific

Philippine militants say they abducted German, killed woman

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A German kidnapped by Somali pirates eight years ago may now be held captive by Islamic militants in the southern Philippines, the country’s military said Monday, Nov.7, after finding the man’s yacht and a woman’s body inside. Regional military spokesman Maj. Filemon Tan said Abu Sayyaf spokesman Muamar Askali claimed the … Continue reading

Gay rights advocates welcome Australia rejecting public vote
Australia & the Pacific

Gay rights advocates welcome Australia rejecting public vote

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Gay rights advocates on Tuesday, Nov. 8, welcomed Australia’s Senate voting down a government plan to hold a nonbinding public vote on recognizing gay marriage and called on Parliament to legislate for marriage equality soon. The Senate voted 33-29 late Monday against holding the plebiscite Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s conservative government … Continue reading