AP National News

Associated Press PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — While retailers hope to go big this holiday season, customers may notice that the catalogs arriving in their mailboxes are smaller. Many of the millions of catalogs getting sent to U.S. homes were scaled down to save on postage and paper. Some gift purveyors are sending out postcards. In

LONDON (AP) — Former “Harry Potter” film actor Rupert Grint faces a 1.8 million-pound ($2.3 million) bill after he lost a legal battle with the tax authorities. Grint was ordered to pay the money in 2019 after the U.K. tax agency said he had wrongly classed 4.5 million pounds in residuals from the movies as

Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says an offer of NATO membership to territory under Kyiv’s control would end “the hot stage of the war” in Ukraine. But Zelenskyy said that any proposal to join the military alliance should be extended to all parts of the country that fall under internationally

Associated Press DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — An Israeli airstrike on a car in the Gaza Strip on Saturday killed five people, including employees of World Central Kitchen. The charity said it was “urgently seeking more details” after Israel’s military said it targeted a WCK worker who was part of the Hamas attack that

Associated Press DABROWKA, Poland (AP) — Poland’s prime minister has traveled to his country’s border with the Russian region of Kaliningrad to inspect progress in the construction of military fortifications. Donald Tusk called the fortifications “an investment in peace” as he briefed reporters standing in front of concrete anti-tank barriers. Tusk’s visit comes a month

Associated Press DUBLIN (AP) — Vote counting is underway in Ireland’s national election. An exit poll suggests the contest is a close-fought race among the country’s three largest political parties. Ballot boxes were opened at 9 a.m. Saturday at count centers across the country. The exit poll suggested voters’ support is split widely among the three

Associated Press HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam has approved the construction of a high-speed railway connecting the capital Hanoi in the north with the financial capital of Ho Chi Minh in the south. It is expected to cost $67 billion and will stretch 1,541 kilometers (957 miles). The new train is expected to travel at

Associated Press HONOLULU (AP) — Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te has arrived in Hawaii for a two-day transit in the U.S. as part of a trip to the South Pacific. The stopover in Hawaii and one planned for the territory of Guam have drawn fierce criticism from China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory. China

Associated Press PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — A powerful explosion has damaged a water canal and temporarily cut water and power supply to Kosovo’s cities. Prime Minister Albin Kurti blamed groups supported by Serbia, a charge denied by Belgrade. Kurti said the explosion on Friday disrupted water supply to some cities and main power plants. It

Associated Press TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — Protesters gathered across Georgia on Saturday night in a third straight night of demonstrations against the government’s decision to suspend negotiations to join the European Union. More than 100 demonstrators were arrested as crowds clashed with police Friday night, the country’s Interior Ministry said. The Associated Press saw protesters

Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Thousands of Syrian insurgents took over most of Aleppo on Saturday, establishing positions in the country’s largest city and controlling its airport before expanding their shock offensive to a nearby province. They faced little to no resistance from government troops, according to fighters and activists. A war monitor, the Syrian

AP Sports Writer LONDON (AP) — One art critic compared the new Harry Kane bronze statue to a bulging-jawed comic strip character. The infamous Cristiano Ronaldo bust in 2017 gave the chiseled soccer star a chubby face and goofy smile. Sculptors are offering tips to avoid pitfalls. London-based Hywel Pratley says sculptors must first get

Associated Press REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — Icelanders are electing a new parliament after disagreements over immigration, energy policy and the economy forced Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson to pull the plug on his coalition government and call early elections. This will be Iceland’s sixth general election since the 2008 financial crisis devastated the economy of the

Associated Press VIACHA, Bolivia (AP) — In the huddled market stalls, sprawling farms and pulsing parties of Viacha, a scrappy town southeast of Bolivia’s capital, it’s typical for women to sport bowler hats, tiered skirts and fringed shawls. What’s less typical is for these outfits — worn by “Cholas,” Andean Indigenous women from the highland

Associated Press BUSAN, South Korea (AP) — The world’s nations will wrap up negotiating a treaty this weekend to address the global plastic pollution crisis. Their meeting concludes Sunday or early Monday in Busan, South Korea, where many environmental organizations have also flocked to push for a treaty to address the volume of production and

Associated Press TYRE, Lebanon (AP) — The ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah brought hope for normality back to many in southern Lebanon on Friday, including fishermen who long launched their wooden-hulled single-engine boats into the Mediterranean at dawn. During the last two months of its year fighting Hezbollah, Israel imposed a siege on southern Lebanon

Associated Press BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Hundreds of protesters gathered in Bucharest after a far-right populist unexpectedly won the first round of a presidential race, plunging Romania into turmoil just days before the country holds parliamentary elections. “Better to be dead than a fascist,” one placard reads. Sunday’s ballot will determine a new government and

Associated Press BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — The first big snowfall of the season blanketed towns along Lake Erie on Saturday in the middle of the hectic holiday travel and shopping weekend, and numbing cold and heavy snow were forecast to persist into next week and cause hazards in the Great Lakes, Plains and Midwest regions.

Associated Press CHICAGO (AP) — In the days after the presidential election, Sadie Perez began carrying pepper spray with her around campus. Her mom also ordered her and her sister a self-defense kit that included keychain spikes, a hidden knife key and a personal alarm. It’s a response to an emboldened fringe of right-wing “manosphere”