Associated Press stories, Page 2296
Couple weds in Northern Ireland’s first same-sex marriage
LONDON — Two women tied the knot Tuesday in Northern Ireland’s first same-sex wedding, after the region became the last part of the United Kingdom to legalize gay marriage. Care worker Robyn Peoples, 26, and waitress Sharni Edwards, 27 married at a ceremony in Carrickfergus, near Belfast. The couple said...
Students in Dubai, UAE no longer have to do homework
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Students at more than 250 government-run schools in the United Arab Emirates are officially done with homework. The local National newspaper reports that, starting next week, the Education Ministry is abolishing homework in public schools in the emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi to help...
Guardian for elderly arrested on abuse, neglect charges
ORLANDO, Fla. — A former guardian for the elderly and incapacitated who was accused of filing “do not resuscitate” orders without her clients’ permission has been arrested in Florida on felony charges. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement said local authorities arrested Rebecca Fierle-Santoian in a county northwest of Orlando...
U.S. open jobs fall sharply for 2nd straight month
WASHINGTON — U.S. businesses sharply cut the number of open jobs in December for the second straight month, an unusual sign of weakness in an otherwise healthy job market. The number of available positions dropped 5.4% to 6.4 million, a historically solid number that exceeds the number of those who...
Nelson Mandela’s release 30 years ago birthed a new South AfricaVideo
CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Thirty years ago, Nelson Mandela was released from 27 years of imprisonment by South Africa’s apartheid regime and instantly galvanized the country, and the world, to dismantle the brutal system of racial oppression. Raising a clenched-fist salute and striding purposefully from the gates of Victor...
Noted jazz keyboardist Lyle Mays dies at age 66
LOS ANGELES — Lyle Mays, a jazz keyboardist whose work, chiefly with the Pat Metheny Group, won nearly a dozen Grammy Awards, died Monday in Los Angeles. He was 66. Mays had a “long battle with a recurring illness,” according to Pat Metheny’s website. “Lyle was one of the greatest...
Oil from federal lands tops 1 billion barrels as Trump eases rules
BILLINGS, Mont. — Oil production from federally-managed lands and waters topped a record 1 billion barrels last year, federal officials said Tuesday, as technological advances helped drive development in new areas and the Trump administration eases rules on the industry. The production figure was up 122 million barrels, or more...
Kyle Busch has done it all in NASCAR, except win the Daytona 500
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Kyle Busch has partied in victory lane at every NASCAR track from Darlington to Dover, from Bristol to the Brickyard. Busch has even celebrated at Daytona, with a 2008 summer Cup Series victory on his resume, and trophies from races in other series or exhibitions in...
Small New Hampshire town votes for Bloomberg in primary
DIXVILLE NOTCH, N.H. — Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who is not even on the ballot, won the votes of a tiny New Hampshire community that barely hung onto its tradition of being among the first to make their picks in the presidential primary. Dixville Notch’s five residents...
Global energy-related carbon emissions flat in 2019
BERLIN — Global energy-related emissions of heat-trapping carbon dioxide remained steady last year, with declines in rich countries balancing out a rise in poor nations, according to data published Tuesday. The International Energy Agency said emissions of the main man-made greenhouse gas stayed at 33 gigatons in 2019, even as...
Federal judge approves T-Mobile’s $26.5B takeover of Sprint
NEW YORK — A federal judge has approved T-Mobile’s $26.5 billion takeover of Sprint, rejecting objections from a group of states and removing a major obstacle to a shakeup in the wireless industry. After the deal closes, the number of major U.S. wireless companies would shrink from four to three....
Rohingya boat capsizes in Bay of Bengal; at least 15 dead
DHAKA, Bangladesh — An overcrowded boat carrying about 138 Rohingya refugees from Bangladeshi camps sank Tuesday in the Bay of Bengal, leaving at least 15 confirmed dead, mostly women, Bangladeshi officials said. The coast guard, navy divers and other rescuers recovered the bodies after the wooden boat capsized off St....
4 lawyers quit case as a result of DOJ decision on Roger Stone prison timeVideo
WASHINGTON — Four lawyers who prosecuted Roger Stone quit the case Tuesday after the Justice Department said it would take the extraordinary step of lowering the amount of prison time it would seek for President Donald Trump’s longtime ally and confidant. The decision by the Justice Department came just hours...
UN meeting ponders fast-track drugs, vaccines for new virusVideo
GENEVA — The World Health Organization convened outside experts Tuesday to fast-track promising tests, drugs and vaccines to help slow the outbreak of a new virus that emerged in China that has killed more than 1,000 people and spread to two dozen other countries. The new coronavirus was only identified...
Queen’s grandson Peter Phillips and wife Autumn to divorceVideo
LONDON — Peter Phillips, the eldest grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, and his wife Autumn are divorcing after 12 years of marriage. The couple said in a statement Tuesday that the separation was sad but amicable. They plan to share custody of daughters Savannah, 9 and Isla, 7. The 42-year-old...
Budgets boost plans to deepen Mississippi River in Louisiana
WASHINGTON — The Army Corps of Engineers plans to spend more than $85 million this year on a project to deepen the main channel of the Mississippi River in Louisiana. U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise of Louisiana announced the funding in a news release Monday. It comes after the Corps endorsed...
EU official rejects Johnson’s idea of loose U.K. trade deal
BRUSSELS — The European Union will only offer Britain unique access to its vast single market if the U.K. agrees to stick to the bloc’s standards, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Tuesday, dismissing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s idea of brokering a loose trade deal with the...
Ladysmith Black Mambazo founder Joseph Shabalala dies at 78Video
JOHANNESBURG — The founder of the South African multi-Grammy-Award-winning music group Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Joseph Shabalala, has died at age 78, the group and the government announced Tuesday. Shabalala died at a hospital in the capital, Pretoria, Tuesday morning, his family told local media. He was globally known for his...
Head of German Catholics says he’ll step down at end of term
BERLIN — The Roman Catholic cardinal who leads the German Bishops’ Conference said Tuesday he plans to step down at the end of his term in March. Cardinal Reinhard Marx, 66, said in a letter to fellow bishops in Germany that he would not seek a second term leading the...
Pentagon: 109 troops suffer brain injuries from Iran strike
WASHINGTON — The number of U.S. service members diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries has shot up to more than 100, the Pentagon said Monday, as more troops suffer the aftereffects of the Iranian ballistic missile attack early last month in Iraq. The department said the latest total is 109 military...
NHL cool to Olympic participation despite assurancesVideo
The NHL remains reluctant to reverse course and compete at the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing despite new assurances from Olympic officials to lift various major stumbling blocks, which also have the backing of the league’s players. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly significantly tamped down hopes of the world’s best...
AP source: MLB considering expanding playoffs to 14 teams
NEW YORK — Major League Baseball is considering expanding the playoffs to nearly half the 30 teams and allowing higher-seeded wild-card teams to choose opponents. The playoffs would grow from 10 clubs to 14 under the plan, first reported Monday by the New York Post. There would be four wild...
Michigan State coaching search continues after Luke Fickell opts to stay at CincinnatiVideo
CINCINNATI — Coach Luke Fickell informed Michigan State on Monday that he’s decided to stay at Cincinnati, leaving the Spartans to resume their search to find Mark Dantonio’s replacement. Fickell has rebuilt Cincinnati into a Top 25 program in his three seasons. Dantonio, who stepped down from the job this...
Feds seek 7 to 9 years in prison for Trump ally Roger Stone
WASHINGTON — Federal prosecutors are asking a judge to sentence President Donald Trump’s Trump confidant Roger Stone to serve between 7 and 9 years in prison after his conviction on witness tampering and obstruction charges. Stone, who is scheduled to be sentenced next week, was convicted in November of a...
‘Smart mound’ can help analyze efficiency of pitchersVideo
FARMINGTON, Conn. — Central Connecticut pitcher Michael Delease was throwing fastballs inside the Center for Motion Analysis and wasn’t getting much movement on his pitches. His problem was quickly diagnosed by coaches and scientists looking at data gathered by the instrumented pitching mound from which he was throwing, the electrodes...
