Month: August 2021

By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The head of Iran’s prison system has acknowledged that videos purportedly obtained by a self-described hacker group that show abuses at the Islamic Republic’s notorious Evin prison were real. The official, Mohammad Mehdi Hajmohammadi, wrote on Twitter that he takes responsibility for the “unacceptable

By SAMYA KULLAB and ELAINE GANLEY Associated Press Employees of the collapsed Afghan government, civil society activists and women are among the at-risk Afghans who have gone into hiding or are staying off the streets since the Taliban takeover of the country. They fear a massive rollback of women’s rights and are deeply mistrustful of

By MATTHEW LEE, JILL LAWLESS and AAMER MADHANI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Sharply divided leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized democracies have clashed over U.S. President Joe Biden’s insistence on withdrawing from Afghanistan by August 31 in the face of the Taliban takeover. In a partial show of unity, G-7 leaders agreed on

By DAVID RISING Associated Press Bangkok (AP) — The former longtime military ruler of Myanmar, Than Shwe, and his wife have been released from a capital city hospital after both being successfully treated for COVID-19, a hospital official said. The 88-year-old and his wife were discharged from a military hospital in Naypyitaw on Friday. That’s

By ERIC TUCKER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The speedy Taliban takeover of Afghanistan has revived alarms about a resurgent al-Qaida and new terrorism threats against the U.S.  The group’s danger to the United States had been eclipsed in the past two decades by other threats, but experts are concerned that al-Qaida could again be

By CHRISTINA LARSON AP Science Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Ginkgo trees have survived as a species virtually unchanged for 200 million years, and patterns on their leaves may help scientists decipher ancient climates. Pores essential for photosynthesis multiply based on the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. So Smithsonian scientists are growing ginkgos today

By LISA MASCARO and KEVIN FREKING Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — House Democratic leaders have compromised with moderates and muscled President Joe Biden’s multitrillion-dollar budget blueprint over a key hurdle. Biden praised Tuesday’s 220-to-212 vote as a step toward “truly investing in the American people.” A band of moderate lawmakers had been threatening to withhold

By DAVID A. LIEB Associated Press New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is beginning her term in office with plenty of challenges. But she also is starting with an historic opportunity as the first woman to hold one of the most prominent governorships in the U.S. When Hochul took over Tuesday for resigned Gov. Andrew Cuomo,

By JONATHAN LEMIRE, ROBERT BURNS and ELLEN KNICKMEYER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — An administration official says President Joe Biden has decided to stick with his Aug. 31 deadline for completing a U.S.-led evacuation of Americans and at-risk Afghans from the Kabul airport and for withdrawing the remaining U.S. forces. The decision reflects a growing