Americans marched in star-spangled parades, ran relay races, gathered for fireworks shows and crowned a new world hot dog eating champion as they celebrated Independence Day in traditional style on Saturday. Possible security threats, wildfires in the West and rainy weather on the East Coast apparently did little to dampen the spirits of celebrants decked out in red, white and blue from their headbands to their shoelaces. Crowds at Boston’s
Ten people, including three children, were injured when a boat refueling at a Chesapeake Bay marina in Maryland exploded in flames on Saturday night, authorities said on Sunday. The injured were rushed to local hospitals, including five who were taken to MedStar Washington Hospital Center’s burn unit in Washington, D.C. The 38-foot cabin cruiser was refueling around 6:30 p.m. ET at a Solomons Island marina, about 75 miles southeast of
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Dimitris is voting “yes” because he fears Greece would be in danger if it leaves the European Union. His daughter Alexandra is voting “no” because she is tired of richer European nations bossing Greece around.
During a special presentation of the popular live storytelling podcast The Moth at this year’s Aspen Ideas festival, former Obama speechwriter Jon Lovett shared a story about how, years before gay marriage would become legal nationwide, he secretly performed a same-sex marriage at the White House.
President Beji Caid Essebsi on Saturday declared a state of emergency following last week’s beach massacre claimed by jihadists that he said had left Tunisia facing a “special type of war”. In a televised address to the nation, Essebsi said the state of emergency, effective from Saturday for a 30-day period, was decided on after consultations with the parliament speaker and prime minister. A state of emergency, granting special powers
Alongside the patriotic music and waving flags Saturday in parades across Iowa and New Hampshire were clear reminders of a presidential race coming up next year: Red balloons promoting “Jeb! 2016,” a tractor draped in a Rick Perry banner and dutiful volunteers holding signs and chanting for their chosen candidates.
World powers and Iran have reached tentative agreement on sanctions relief for the Islamic Republic, among the most contentious issues in a long-term nuclear agreement that negotiators hope to clinch over the next several days, diplomats told The Associated Press on Saturday.
By Tarek Amara TUNIS (Reuters) – Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi declared a state of emergency on Saturday to give his government more powers following an Islamic militant attack on a beach hotel, where 38 foreign tourists, mostly Britons, were killed. Tunisia’s emergency law temporarily gives the government more executive flexibility, hands the army and police more authority, and restricts certain rights such as the right to public assembly. The
The public is asked to remain vigilant for possible threats following recent calls for violence by Islamic State leaders.
LONDON (AP) — On his 10-year trip home, the Greek hero Odysseus at one point had to steer his ship and crew down a narrow stretch of water menaced on opposite sides by two sea monsters, Scylla and Charybdis.
The Democratic presidential candidate tells voters that Tehran is still “the world’s chief sponsor of terrorism.”
More than a thousand marijuana enthusiasts and entrepreneurs met in Oregon on Friday to swap samples, contacts and business tips in hopes of profiting from the state’s new law allowing the recreational use of pot. Licensed growers handed out free tastes, gardening experts displayed organic plant food and artists sold marijuana pipes to participants at the “Weed the People” event. “Cannabis is a great opportunity for us,” said D.J. King,
“We are keenly aware that New York State remains a top target for terrorists,” Cuomo said in a statement. The Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have issued an alert calling for local authorities and the public to remain vigilant for possible threats following recent calls for violence by Islamic State militants. In New York City, the nation’s largest municipal police force assigned about 7,000 officers
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Campaigns halt in Greece on Saturday on the eve of a closely watched bailout referendum — with voters in a dead heat over whether to defy creditors and push for better repayment terms or essentially seek new political leadership to find a compromise.
The United States marks 239 years as an independent nation on Saturday as it celebrates the Fourth of July with fireworks, food and music. Here are some highlights and lowlights of Independence Day celebrations across the globe:
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — With aid negotiations off and ATMs running out of money, it’s not speculation any more. Greece could leave the euro. And soon.
Fourth of July parades in most towns across the country are celebratory but low-key affairs that attract, at most, a mayor and maybe a few council members.
Convicted murderer Richard Matt reportedly wrote a letter vowing to visit his daughter after escaping from a maximum-security prison in upstate New York.
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The brief but intense campaign in Greece’s critical bailout referendum ends Friday, with simultaneous rallies in Athens supporting “yes” and “no” answers to a murky question in what an opinion poll suggests could be a very close vote.
Aetna will spend about $35 billion to buy rival Humana and become the latest health insurer bulking up on government business as the industry adjusts to the federal health care overhaul.
A Turkish opposition leader sparked fury Wednesday by saying a mistaken attack on Korean tourists by anti-Chinese protesters was understandable, given that both peoples have “slitty eyes”. The comments by Turkey’s Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) chief Devlet Bahceli were particularly sensitive at a time when his party is seen as a possible partner for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in a government coalition after June 7 elections. Over
Lagos (AFP) – The death toll in a twin attack on the central Nigerian city of Jos has risen to 51, the country’s National Emergency Management Agency said on Wednesday.
AMIENS, France (AP) — German Andre Greipel won the rain-drenched fifth stage of the Tour de France in a sprint finish on Wednesday, while countryman rider Tony Martin kept the yellow jersey and the main Tour contenders stayed safe as others tumbled around them in crashes.
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — A government official hopes to help solve a dispute between Venezuelan labor unions and the country’s largest beer distributor before it begins to leave brew-lovers thirsty.
ATHENS/FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Greece’s outspoken finance minister resigned on Monday, removing one major obstacle to any deal to keep Athens in the euro zone after Greeks voted resoundingly to back the government in rejecting the austerity terms of a bailout. Leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras promised German Chancellor Angela Merkel that Greece would bring a proposal for a cash-for-reforms deal to an emergency summit of euro zone leaders on Tuesday,
By Parisa Hafezi and Louis Charbonneau VIENNA (Reuters) – A dispute over U.N. sanctions on Iran’s ballistic missile program and a broader arms embargo were among issues holding up a nuclear deal between Tehran and six world powers on Monday, the day before their latest self-imposed deadline. “The Iranians want the ballistic missile sanctions lifted. The foreign ministers of the six powers – Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the
By Adrian Croft BRUSSELS (Reuters) – NATO is preparing for a long standoff with Russia, reluctantly accepting that the Ukraine conflict has fundamentally transformed Europe’s security landscape and that it may have to abandon hope of a constructive relationship with Moscow. Some NATO allies, anxious to avoid a new Cold War or being dragged into an expensive arms race, had hoped the crisis in relations caused by President Vladimir Putin’s
By Sami Aboudi and Mohammed Mukhashaf DUBAI/ADEN (Reuters) – Yemen’s exiled government said on Monday it expects a deal shortly on a humanitarian ceasefire that would run through the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday later this month, as air strikes by Saudi-led warplanes killed at least 30 people. The United Nations has been pushing for a halt to fighting and air raids that have killed nearly 3,000 people in Yemen since
By Yury Garcia GUAYAQUIL (Reuters) – Camped on streets with sleeping bags and stocked with food supplies, thousands of excited Ecuadoreans congregated in the coastal city of Guayaquil on Monday for Pope Francis’ first mass of his “homecoming” tour of South America. On the first full day of his three-nation trip, the Argentine-born pontiff was heading south from Quito to Ecuador’s second city, a steamy port sometimes referred to as
Islamic State fighters stormed a Syrian town held by Kurdish-led forces near Raqqa city on Monday, part of a wider offensive by the militants two days after their de facto capital was hit by some of the heaviest U.S.-led air strikes in the conflict. The Kurdish YPG militia said it was fighting to expel Islamic State fighters who had attacked the town of Ain Issa, which was only captured from
At least 37 Islamic State fighters were killed and scores injured in air strikes by the U.S.-led coalition and in clashes with Kurdish YPG militia in northeastern Syria near the border with Turkey, a monitor said. The British-based Observatory for Human Rights said sources on the ground confirmed the figures from the bodies of fighters and injured militants arriving since Sunday night at hospitals in the de facto capital of
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — The latest on the fallout from the Greek referendum (all times local):
QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Here are the latest developments from Pope Francis’ trip to South America:
Israeli ministers on Sunday struck down a bill that would have cancelled the monopoly the ultra-Orthodox chief rabbinate holds over conversions in the Jewish state. A proposal approved by the cabinet in November but never passed by parliament stipulated that the chief rabbi of each Israeli city would be able to convene and chair a court on conversions to the Jewish faith, in addition to the four current state-recognised Orthodox
By John Irish and Louis Charbonneau VIENNA (Reuters) – A year and half of nuclear talks between Iran and major powers were creeping towards the finish line on Friday as negotiators wrestled with sticking points including questions about Tehran’s past atomic research. Iran is in talks with the United States and five other powers – Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia – on an agreement to curtail its nuclear program
By Lefteris Karagiannopoulos and Renee Maltezou ATHENS (Reuters) – As Greece heads to a referendum on Sunday that could decide its future in the euro zone, long queues at cash machines have become the most potent symbol of the cost of the deadlock between the left-wing government and its international lenders. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ rejection of what he terms the “blackmail” of EU and IMF creditors demanding spending cuts
By Parisa Hafezi and Arshad Mohammed VIENNA (Reuters) – Nuclear talks between Tehran and world powers had yet to reach a breakthrough as they continued in overtime on Thursday, and Western officials said the latest “red lines” by Iran’s supreme leader had made it hard to settle disputes on key issues. Iran is in talks with the United States and five other big powers – Britain, China, France, Germany and
By Parisa Hafezi and Arshad Mohammed VIENNA (Reuters) – Nuclear talks between Tehran and world powers had yet to reach a breakthrough as they continued in overtime on Thursday, and Western officials said the latest “red lines” by Iran’s supreme leader had made it hard to settle disputes on key issues. Iran is in talks with the United States and five other big powers – Britain, China, France, Germany and
By Parisa Hafezi and Arshad Mohammed VIENNA (Reuters) – Nuclear talks between Tehran and world powers had yet to reach a breakthrough as they continued in overtime on Thursday, and Western officials said the latest “red lines” by Iran’s supreme leader had made it hard to settle disputes on key issues. Iran is in talks with the United States and five other big powers – Britain, China, France, Germany and
German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s chief of staff will meet the U.S. ambassador on Thursday to discuss allegations that U.S. spies bugged senior government ministers, a German government source said. In the latest twist in an ongoing scandal over extensive U.S. spying in Europe which has caused outrage in Germany, media reported that the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) had bugged the economy and finance ministers. “The Chancellor’s Chief of Staff
