Pentagon sees Taliban deal as allowing fuller focus on China
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration’s peace deal with the Taliban opens the door for an initial American troop withdrawal that Defense Secretary Mark Esper sees as a step toward the broader goal of preparing for potential war with China. Esper has his eye on “great power competition,” which means staying...
Surgeon General asks people to ‘stop buying masks’ amid coronavirus outbreak
The surgeon general made a plea to Americans to stop buying face masks, saying that they are not effective in preventing people from catching the coronavirus. But he implored that healthcare providers do need them. “Seriously people - STOP BUYING MASKS!” U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams complained Saturday on...
Authorities announce 2nd coronavirus death in United StatesVideo
SEATTLE — Health officials in Washington state said Sunday night that a second person had died from the coronavirus. Researchers said the virus may have been circulating for weeks undetected in the greater Seattle area. In a statement, Public Health—Seattle & King County said a man in his 70s died...
Coronavirus outbreak batters economies, raises fear of spread
TOKYO — Amid fears about where the next outbreak of a fast-spreading new virus would appear, infections and deaths continued to rise across the globe Sunday, emptying streets of tourists and workers, shaking economies and rewriting the realities of daily life. Panic-buying of daily necessities emerged in Japan, tourist sites...
Coronavirus fears close down France’s Louvre Museum
PARIS — The spreading coronavirus epidemic shut down France’s Louvre Museum on Sunday, with workers who guard its trove of artworks fearful of being contaminated by the museum’s flow of visitors from around the world. “We are very worried because we have visitors from everywhere,” said Andre Sacristin, a Louvre...
Joe Biden hopes South Carolina win boosts him on Super Tuesday
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Joe Biden said Sunday he can “unite this country, the whole country” after scoring a thundering victory in South Carolina’s Democratic primary that could force moderate rivals out of the race and blunt the rise of progressive leader Bernie Sanders. Biden vowed he would improve his campaign...
Coughing pope cancels participating in Lenten retreat
VATICAN CITY — A coughing Pope Francis told pilgrims gathered for the traditional Sunday blessing that he is canceling his participation at a week-long spiritual retreat in the Roman countryside because of a cold. It is the first time in his seven-year papacy that he has missed the spiritual exercises...
President’s power to fire independent agency heads faces test
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court is about to tell President Donald Trump whether he has more power to use a favorite phrase: “You’re fired.” A case being argued at the high court on Tuesday could threaten the structure of agencies that form an enormous swath of the federal government. It...
Greensburg native had ‘the best’ life
If everything in Bill Heubel’s world was “the best,” as he liked to say, then his life would fit that description too. “He was quite a man,” said his niece, Bernadette Scully. Mr. Heubel was a veteran, a retired lawyer, a world traveler, an avid golfer, a musician, a composer,...
Analysis: Biden buys time with emphatic South Carolina win
Joe Biden bought himself time. It’s unclear how much. Biden’s victory in South Carolina on Saturday was emphatic enough to let him make the claim that it had reordered the race for the Democratic presidential nomination. He can now credibly argue he is the overwhelming favorite of black voters who...
Biden wins South Carolina, hopes for Super Tuesday momentum; Steyer drops out
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Joe Biden scored a thundering victory in South Carolina’s Democratic primary on Saturday, riding a wave of African American support and ending progressive rival Bernie Sanders’ winning streak. Biden’s win came at a do-or-die moment in his 2020 bid as the moderate Democrat bounced back from underwhelming...
Socialist hardliner aims gun on Guaidó march in Venezuela
CARACAS, Venezuela — Socialist hardliners in Venezuela opened fire during a march headed by Juan Guaidó, injuring a 16-year-old demonstrator and adding to tensions in the country as the opposition leader seeks to revive his campaign to oust Nicolás Maduro. A photo of the confrontation provided exclusively to The Associated...
Perspective on coronavirus: How does it stack up with the flu, historic outbreaks?Video
As figures stand now, the new coronavirus disease — Covid-19 — is 20- to 40-times more deadly than the typical flu, depending on where you are in the world. Experts agree that it will eventually spread everywhere. The case-fatality ratio also could drop as more data becomes available. Putting it...
U.S. ups travel restrictions as Trump says more coronavirus cases ‘likely’
WASHINGTON — Seeking to reassure the American public, President Donald Trump said Saturday there was “no reason to panic” as the new coronavirus claimed its first victim inside the U.S. The White House also announced new restrictions on international travel to prevent its spread. Trump, speaking only moments after the...
Students end sit-in outside University of Oklahoma offices
NORMAN, Okla. — Dozens of students at the University of Oklahoma have ended a sit-in outside the university’s administrative offices following two instances in which professors used racial slurs in their classrooms. The three-day sit-in organized by the Black Emergency Response Team, known as BERT, ended Friday with the student...
`Let’s go home’: Afghan war vets torn on US-Taliban deal
SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — Veterans of America’s longest war are finding themselves torn as the U.S. signs a potentially historic peace accord with the Taliban in Afghanistan. For many, the U.S. is long overdue in withdrawing its forces after more than 18 years of fighting. Others question the trustworthiness of...
Serbia passes law in response to missing babies scandal
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbian lawmakers on Saturday approved a long-awaited law that aims to shed light on the fate of hundreds of children whose parents fear might have been stolen from birth clinics throughout the Balkan country. The bill passed on a 136-0 vote in the 250-member assembly. Two...
Florida’s freshwater turtles falling prey to the international black marketVideo
MIAMI — Florida freshwater turtles are being illegally caught and exported live in increasingly large numbers to keep up with demand for their meat, their supposed medicinal purposes and their value as pets, state wildlife officials said this month. The black market trade is putting a strain on the state’s...
Washington governor declares state of emergency over virus after 1st. U.S. death
The governor of Washington state declared a state of emergency Saturday after a man died there of COVID-19, the first such reported death in the United States. More than 50 people in a nursing facility are sick and being tested for the virus. Gov. Jay Inslee directed state agencies to...
University of Pittsburgh tells students in 3 countries to return home, stay away from others
The University of Pittsburgh has notified 41 of its students studying in Italy, South Korea, and Japan that “they should return to their home communities in the United States and practice social distancing for 14 days after they arrive.” Pitt already had canceled or changed the venue for all spring...
1 injured, 2 arrested in shootout near WVU campus
Morgantown police have arrested two men in connection to a shootout stemming from a robbery early Saturday morning near the campus of West Virginia University. Police said the shooting occurred around 1:15 a.m. at an apartment on College Avenue, according to Morgantown’s CBS-affiliate WDTV. Edward Kolleh, 29, and Ethan Horseman,...
Baltimore squeegee kids find work, risks, cash at stoplights
BALTIMORE — A clock starts ticking when the light turns red at Baltimore intersections. Young men huddled on the sidewalk jump into the street, a squeegee in one hand, a bottle of glass cleaner in the other. For these “squeegee kids,” every idling windshield is an opportunity - to make...
Jeff Sessions in fight to win back his old Senate seat
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — To reclaim the Alabama Senate seat he held for 20 years, Jeff Sessions must first get through a competitive GOP primary with challengers eager to capitalize on his very public falling out with President Donald Trump. The former attorney general is banking on his long history in...
Oregon reports 1st coronavirus case: elementary school employee
SALEM, Ore. — Oregon’s first corinavirus case emerged on Friday, and the infected person worked at an elementary school in the Portland area, which will be temporarily closed, authorities said. The Lake Oswego School District sent a robocall to parents saying that Forest Hills Elementary will be closed until Wednesday...
Man gets 99 years in prison for role in Texas girl’s death
DALLAS — A Dallas man was convicted and sentenced to 99 years in prison Friday for his part in the abduction and killing of a 13-year-old suburban Dallas girl. Dallas County jurors deliberated for about an hour before sentencing Desmond Jones for his involvement in the death of Shavon Randle....
