WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is commuting the sentences of roughly 1,500 people who were released from prison and placed on home confinement during the coronavirus pandemic and is pardoning 39 Americans convicted of nonviolent crimes. It’s the largest single-day act of clemency in modern history. The commutations announced Thursday are …
Read More »US says it will support new Syrian leaders who protect women and renounce terrorism
Muhamad Yehia WASHINGTON — The Biden administration said Tuesday it will recognize and support a new Syrian government that renounces terrorism, destroys chemical weapons stocks and protects the rights of minorities and women. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that the U.S. would work with groups in …
Read More »Blinken faces GOP critics in Congress who say Afghanistan withdrawal ‘lit the world on fire’
Muhamad Yehia WASHINGTON — Under fire from congressional Republicans about one of the darkest moments of Joe Biden’s presidency, Secretary of State Antony Blinken defended the administration’s handling of the disastrous U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, saying Democrats struggled to make the best of a bad pullout deal struck by Donald …
Read More »FIFA confirms Saudi Arabia as 2034 World Cup host despite human rights concerns
Muhamad Yehia ZURICH (AP) — Saudi Arabia was officially confirmed Wednesday by FIFA as host of the 2034 World Cup in men’s soccer, giving the oil-rich kingdom its biggest prize yet for massive spending on global sports driven by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The Saudi bid was the only candidate and …
Read More »Japanese troops will train with US and Australian forces as concerns over China grow
Muhamad Yehia CANBERRA, Australia — Japan will send troops for joint training with U.S. Marines and Australian forces in northern Australia, the countries’ defense ministers said Sunday, as they expressed concern about a spate of confrontations with China’s increasingly assertive military. Australia’s Defense Minister Richard Marles hosted his U.S. and Japanese …
Read More »US defense chief observes drills with Japan, Australia, says he’s confident about greater capability
Muhamad Yehia CAMP ASAKA, Japan — U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin expressed confidence about enhanced military capabilities among the United States, Australia and Japan as he observed joint exercises Wednesday showcasing their closer cooperation as tensions grow in the region. Austin is in Japan to reaffirm the importance of their …
Read More »US says it will support new Syrian leaders who protect women and renounce terrorism
Muhamad Yehia WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration said Tuesday it will recognize and support a new Syrian government that renounces terrorism, destroys chemical weapons stocks and protects the rights of minorities and women. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that the U.S. would work with groups in …
Read More »Zelenskyy open to Western troops providing security for end to war in Ukraine
Muhamad Yehia KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday that he’s open to the potential deployment of Western troops in Ukraine to guarantee the country’s security as part of a broad effort to end the almost three-year war with Russia. The deployment would be a step toward Ukraine joining …
Read More »McKinsey subsidiary will pay $122M for scheme to bribe South African officials, US says
Muhamad Yehia WASHINGTON (AP) — An African subsidiary of the consulting firm McKinsey & Company Inc. will pay a criminal penalty of more than $122 million to resolve a U.S. Justice Department investigation into a yearslong scheme to bribe South African government officials, U.S. authorities said Thursday. The scheme involved …
Read More »Gaza health officials say latest Israeli airstrikes kill at least 14 including children
Muhamad Yehia DEIR AL BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli airstrikes in central Gaza killed at least 14 people including children Sunday, Palestinian health officials said, while the bombing of a hospital in northern Gaza wounded a half-dozen patients. Israel’s military continues its latest offensive against Hamas militants in northern Gaza, whose …
Read More »