NATO’s International Security Assistance Force held a transition ceremony to end its military operations in Afghanistan on December 28. ISAF will move from an active military operation to a new, behind-the-scenes mission called Resolute Support. This NATO video shows a portion of the ceremony in Kabul. Credit: YouTube/NATO
The Federal Trade Commission is sending more than $5.6 million in refunds to consumers as part of a settlement with Amazon-owned Ring, which was charged with failing to protect private video footage from outside access. In a 2023 complaint, the FTC accused the doorbell camera and home security provider of allowing its employees and contractors to access customers' private videos. Ring allegedly used such footage to train algorithms without consent, among other purposes.
French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday warned that Europe faced an existential threat from Russian aggression, calling on the continent to adopt a "credible" defence strategy less dependent on the United States."We need to build this strategic concept of a credible European defence for ourselves," Macron said, adding Europe could not be "a vassal" of the United States.
Homebuyers geared up for the spring despite elevated mortgage rates and prices, with pending transactions rising in March to the strongest pace in a year.
Workers at auto plants in the South should be free to unionize without pressure from employers or anti-union governors, acting U.S. Labor Secretary Julie Su said Thursday, even as some southern states pass laws to inhibit organized labor. “That choice belongs to the worker, free from intervention, either by the employer or by politicians, free from retaliation and threats,” Su told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday in Atlanta. The United Auto Workers union vowed a broad campaign to organize southern auto assembly plants after winning lucrative new contracts in a confrontation with Detroit's automakers.
A gay actor’s speech that was canceled over his “lifestyle” is back on at a Pennsylvania school after residents spoke out. The Cumberland Valley School District’s board voted 5-4 Wednesday night to allow children’s book author Maulik Pancholy, who is gay, to speak against bullying during a May 22 assembly at Mountain View Middle School. The board on April 15 unanimously canceled Pancholy's talk after a board member cited concerns about what he described as the actor’s activism and “lifestyle.”
A U.S. citizen arrested on drug charges in Moscow amid soaring Russia-U.S. tensions appeared in court on Thursday and had his case adjourned until mid-May. Robert Woodland is facing charges of trafficking large amounts of illegal drugs as part of an organized group — a criminal offense punishable by up to 20 years in prison. In January, the U.S. State Department said it was aware of reports of the recent detention of a U.S. citizen and noted that it “has no greater priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens overseas,” but refrained from further comment, citing privacy considerations.
The German government and opposition lawmakers assailed the far-right Alternative for Germany for its alleged closeness to Russia and China Thursday after an assistant to a legislator for the party was arrested on suspicion of spying for Beijing. This week's arrest of an aide to European Parliament lawmaker Maximilian Krah cast an unflattering light on the Alternative for Germany, or AfD, which has long faced criticism for Russia-friendly positions.
The Shenzhou 18 crew will replace three taikonauts aboard the Chinese space station who are wrapping up a six-month stay.
A Chinese container ship remains the prime suspect in causing damage last year to a Baltic Sea gas pipeline between NATO members Finland and Estonia, Finnish investigators said Thursday. It has been over six months since substantial, human-made damage that caused a major drop in pressure was first detected in the Balticconnector pipeline in Finnish economic waters on Oct. 8. Finland and Estonia's gas system operators were forced to shut it down, disconnecting a crucial link between the Nordic and Baltic gas markets for several months.
Robert Irwin, the son of the famed "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin, took to X to unveil a newly-discovered species of snail named in his honor.
Hamas released a video of Israeli-American hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin on Wednesday, the first proof that he survived being badly wounded during his capture on October 7.
The US Supreme Court was hearing arguments on Thursday on whether Donald Trump, as a former president, should be immune from criminal prosecution for acts taken while in office.John Sauer, representing Trump, told the court that "without presidential immunity from criminal prosecution there can be no presidency as we know it.
London's stock market reached a new record high but Wall Street and eurozone equities tumbled Thursday as tech shares sank after Meta signalled an AI spending spree and data showed slower US economic growth.- London record - London's benchmark FTSE 100 index bucked the trend as it struck 8,102.14 points, reaching an all-time high for a third session running.
Students in Paris protested again Thursday after police broke up a pro-Palestinian solidarity demonstration the night before at one of France's most prestigious universities.Students at Sciences Po have accused management of calling in police to break up a pro-Palestinian protest by dozens of students gathered on a central Paris campus on Wednesday night.
Henry's finance minister, Patrick Boisvert, will lead as interim prime minister, according to the nation's official gazette. In a letter dated Wednesday but uploaded to social media on Thursday, Henry said his administration had "served the nation in difficult times." Haiti's outgoing government formalized a transition process two weeks ago, a month after Henry announced his resignation while stranded outside the country as alliances of heavily armed gangs threatened to completely take over the capital.
Alphabet stock has gained about 15% this year — but even tech's winners face high expectations from investors this earnings season.
College campuses across the United States braced for fresh protests by pro-Palestinian students Thursday, extending a week of increasingly confrontational standoffs with police, mass arrests and accusations of anti-Semitism.At Emerson College in Boston, local media reported that classes were cancelled Thursday after police clashed with protesters around 2 am, tearing down a pro-Palestinian encampment and arresting 108 people.
Pro-Palestinian protests and encampments are springing up at numerous colleges, leading to arrests and heightened security concerns. Here’s what's happening.
A crew of three astronauts from China's Shenzhou-18 mission took off on a rocket bound for the Tiangong space station Thursday, the latest mission in Beijing's space programme that aims to send astronauts to the Moon by 2030.Beijing also aims to send a crewed mission to the Moon by 2030, and plans to build a base on the lunar surface.
France and the Philippines will begin talks next month on a defense pact that would allow troops from each country to hold exercises in the other’s territory, the French ambassador said Thursday. French and Philippine officials will meet in Paris next month for talks on a visiting forces agreement, French Ambassador to the Philippines Marie Fontanel said. "We will have an opportunity in May to maybe start officially the negotiations or, at least, discuss the modalities,” Fontanel said at a news conference with French Ambassador to the Indo-Pacific Marc Abensour.
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