Year: 2021

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — Human rights activists are lobbying major jewelers to stop buying gems sourced in Myanmar as a way to put pressure on Myanmar’s military leaders by limiting profits from the country’s lucrative mining industry. A report by the group Global Witness released Wednesday outlines how the army

By FARNOUSH AMIRI and MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The House has voted to hold former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows in contempt of Congress after he ceased to cooperate with the Jan. 6 committee investigating the Capitol insurrection. It is the first time the House has voted to hold

By FRANK BAJAK AP Technology Writer BOSTON (AP) — Security pros say it’s one of the worst computer vulnerabilities they’ve ever seen. They say state-backed Chinese and Iranian hackers and rogue cryptocurrency miners have already seized on it. The Department of Homeland Security is sounding a dire alarm, ordering federal agencies to urgently find and

By LISA MASCARO and ASHRAF KHALIL Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s one of the most far-reaching of all the federal aid programs launched during the COVID-19 pandemic. The expanded child tax credit puts up to $300 per child directly into the bank accounts of families on the 15th of every month. But the last

By BRIAN SLODYSKO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress has approved a $2.5 trillion debt limit hike, sending legislation to avert a catastrophic default to President Joe Biden for his signature. The flurry of action, which stretched into Wednesday’s early morning hours, came just shy of a deadline set by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen for

By MALLIKA SEN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The case for and against Ghislaine Maxwell has been made, and as soon as Monday, her fate will rest squarely in the jury’s hands. Maxwell has denied all charges levied against her. Her defense contends she’s being victimized by a need to make someone pay for

By COLLIN BINKLEY AP Education Writer Colleges across the U.S. are starting to require booster shots, extend mask mandates and in some cases revert to online classes as they brace for the new omicron variant. More than 30colleges have said they will require boosters, including Boston University and Notre Dame. Others are extending mask mandates

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer Stocks have climbed in Asia, tracking Wall Street’s gains, after the Federal Reserve said it would accelerate its pullback of economic stimulus. The Fed said it would likely raise interest rates three times next year to tackle rising inflation and will shrink its monthly bond purchases at twice the

By KRISTEN GELINEAU, VICTORIA MILKO and LORI HINNANT Associated Press JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — In February, Myanmar’s military took over the country’s government and its bank accounts, including those that receive hundreds of millions of dollars each year from a gas field called Yadana. Now there is a groundswell of support in Myanmar for targeted