World News - The Morning Sun

FILE - A U.S. P-8A Poseidon reconaissance plane flies near Chinese structures and buildings on the man-made Fiery Cross Reef at the Spratlys group of islands in the South China Sea are seen on March 20, 2022. The U.S. 7th Fleet says a Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait dividing China from the self-governing island democracy and close U.S. partner on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, a day after the U.S. and Chinese defense chiefs held their first talks since Nov. 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila, File)

US navy flies aircraft through the Taiwan Strait a day after US-China defense chiefs hold rare talks

The U.S. 7th Fleet says a Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after U.S. and Chinese defense chiefs held their first talks since Nov. 2022. The patrol and reconnaissance plane … more

By CHRISTOPHER BODEEN | 4/17/24

Police patrol outside the Christ the Good Shepherd church in suburban Wakely in western Sydney, Australia, Tuesday, April 16, 2024. Australian police say a knife attack in Sydney that wounded a bishop and a priest during a church service as horrified worshippers watched online and in person, and sparked a riot was an act of terrorism.(AP Photo/Mark Baker)

Father of boy accused of stabbing 2 Sydney clerics saw no signs of extremism, Muslim leader says

A Muslim community leader in Australia says the father of a boy accused of stabbing two Christian clerics saw no signs of his son’s extremism. The 16-year-old boy spoke in Arabic about the Prophet … more

By MARK BAKER and ROD McGUIRK | 4/17/24

People wade through a flooded bridge on a stream, which is overflowing following heavy rains, on the outskirts of Peshawar, Pakistan, Monday, April 15, 2024. Lightnings and heavy rains killed dozens of people, mostly farmers, across Pakistan in the past three days, officials said Monday, as authorities declared a state of emergency in the country's southwest following an overnight rainfall to avoid any further casualties and damages. (AP Photo/Muhammad Sajjad)

Death toll from 4 days of rains rises to 63 in Pakistan with more rain on the forecast

Lightning and heavy rains led to 14 deaths in Pakistan, officials said Wednesday, bringing the death toll from four days of extreme weather to at least 63. Most of the deaths were reported in Khyber … more

By RIAZ KHAN | 4/17/24

Large cutout portraits of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Indian National Congress (INC) leaders are erected overseeing political supporters during an election campaign rally ahead of country's general elections, on the outskirts of southern Indian city of Chennai, April 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri)

AP PHOTOS: Colorful roadshows and rallies mark India's election season before voting starts Friday

NEW DELHI (AP) — Every five years, the world’s most populous democracy holds a giant election for millions of Indians to cast their vote on a new parliament. And it does so in its usual … more

4/17/24

Prime Minister incumbent Andrej Plenkovic, centre, attends his party's rally in Zagreb, Croatia, Sunday, April 14, 2024. Croatia this week holds a parliamentary election following a campaign that was marked by heated exchanges between the country's two top officials, creating a political crisis in the Balkan country, a European Union and NATO member state. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Croatia votes in a parliamentary election that's a showdown between its president and prime minister

Croatia is voting in a parliamentary election after a campaign that centered on a bitter rivalry between the president and prime minister of the small European Union and NATO member. The ballot … more

By DUSAN STOJANOVIC | 4/17/24

Sailors prepare a French Rubis-class nuclear powered submarine to participare in NATO's upcoming Neptune Strike training exercise at the Toulon naval base in southern France, Monday, April 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Daniel Cole)

AP PHOTOS: Aboard France's aging nuclear submarines — old boats but new missions

TOULOUSE, France (AP) — Once again, the oceans beckon for France’s veteran nuclear-powered attack submarines. The Associated Press got rare access aboard a French navy Rubis-class submarine … more

4/17/24

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield speaks during a press conference at the American Diplomacy House in Seoul Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (Jung Yeon-je/Pool Photo via AP)

Envoy says US and allies are mulling options 'both inside and outside the UN' to monitor North Korea

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations says America and its allies are discussing options “both inside and outside the U.N system” to create a new mechanism for monitoring North Korea over its … more

By KIM TONG-HYUNG | 4/17/24

FILE - Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani listens to questions during a press conference on G7 at the Foreign Ministry in Rome, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024. Group of Seven foreign ministers are holding a three-day meeting on the Italian resort island of Capri, starting Wednesday, April 17, with soaring tensions in the Mideast and Russia’s continuing war in Ukraine. Tajani said he spoke to Israel's Foreign Minister Israel Katz, on Tuesday, and urged Israel to not only de-escalate any reaction to Iran’s attack but to stave off a planned offensive into the southern Gaza city of Rafah. (AP Photo/Domenico Stinellis, File)

Italy seeks G7 message to de-escalate Mideast tensions as foreign ministers meet in Capri

Group of Seven foreign ministers are meeting on the resort island of Capri. Soaring tensions in the Mideast and Russia’s continuing war in Ukraine are topping the agenda of the three-day meeting … more

By NICOLE WINFIELD | 4/17/24

FILE - Palestinians line up for a meal in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Thursday, Dec. 21, 2023. The United Nations appealed for $2.8 billion on Tuesday, April 17, 2024, to provide desperately needed aid to 3 million Palestinians, stressing that tackling looming famine in war-torn Gaza requires not only food but sanitation, water and health facilities. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair, File)

UN appeals for $2.8 billion to help 3 million Palestinians in desperate need of food and other aid

The United Nations is appealing for $2.8 billion to provide desperately needed aid to 3 million Palestinians, stressing that tackling looming famine in war-torn Gaza requires not only food but … more

By EDITH M. LEDERER | 4/17/24

Voters board the already overcrowded Fair Glory ferry in Honiara, Solomon Islands, Saturday, April 13, 2024, heading to Malaita Island to vote in a national election. The country in which China has gained most influence in the South Pacific, Solomon Islands, goes to the polls on Wednesday in an election that could shape the region's future. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)

Solomon Islanders cast votes in an election that will shape relations with China

Voting has begun across the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific nation’s first general election since the government switched diplomatic allegiances from Taiwan to Beijing and struck a secret … more

4/16/24

A seller waits for customers despite not having electricity due to a programed power cut by the ministry of energy, in Quito, Ecuador, Tuesday, April 16, 2024. Ecuador faces electricity rationing due to a prolonged drought and high temperatures that have reduced flows to the main hydroelectric plants. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)

Ecuador rations electricity as drought persists in the northern Andes

Ecuador has started to ration electricity in its main cities as a drought linked to the El Niño weather pattern depletes reservoirs and limits output at hydroelectric plants. “We urge Ecuadorians … more

By GONZALO SOLANO and MANUEL RUEDA | 4/16/24

FILE - Authorities escort Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman from a plane to a waiting caravan of SUVs at Long Island MacArthur Airport, in Ronkonkoma, N.Y., Jan. 19, 2017. Guzmán wrote a letter to District Court Judge Brian M. Cogan in the Eastern District of New York in late March 2024, claiming he cannot get phone calls or visits in the maximum security U.S. prison where he is serving a life sentence. (U.S. law enforcement via AP, File)

Mexican drug lord Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán claims he can't get calls or visits in a US prison

Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán now claims he can’t get phone calls or visits in the maximum security U.S. prison where the once most powerful Mexican drug lord is serving a life sentence. Guzmán … more

4/16/24

FILE - A battery of Israel's Iron Dome defense missile system, deployed to intercept rockets, sits in Ashkelon, southern Israel, Aug. 7, 2022. Israel is vowing to retaliate against Iran, risking further expanding the shadow war between the two foes into a direct conflict after an Iranian attack over the weekend sent hundreds of drones and missiles toward Israel. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit, File)

Israel says it will retaliate against Iran, despite the risks

Israel is vowing to retaliate against Iran even though such a mission carries many risks. Any direct attack on Iranian soil would risk prompting an all-out war between the two foes at a time when … more

By JULIA FRANKEL and JACK JEFFERY | 4/16/24

Police stand guard outside the front entrance of the event venue as the National Conservatism conference takes place in Brussels, Tuesday, April 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Sylvain Plazy)

Belgian police shut down a far-right conference as it rallies ahead of Europe's June elections

Belgian police have shut down a gathering of far-right politicians and supporters, citing concerns about public order. Attendees protested curbs on free speech and vowed to find another venue for … more

By LORNE COOK | 4/16/24

FILE - Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro attends a meeting at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Feb. 20, 2024. Maduro on April 16, 2024, ordered the closure of his country’s embassy and consulates in Ecuador in solidarity with Mexico in its protest over a raid by Ecuadorian authorities on the Mexican embassy in Quito. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos, File)

Venezuela closes embassy in Ecuador to protest raid on Mexican embassy there

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has ordered the closure of his country’s embassy and consulates in Ecuador in solidarity with Mexico in its protest over a raid by Ecuadorian authorities on the … more

By REGINA GARCIA CANO | 4/16/24

FILE - Bleached coral is visible at the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, off the coast of Galveston, Texas, in the Gulf of Mexico, Sept. 16, 2023. The world is not doing enough to protect coral reefs — vital marine ecosystems that protect biodiversity, produce some of the oxygen we breathe, slow erosion and sustain underwater life — the United Nations’ special envoy for the ocean said Tuesday, April 16, 2024. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)

UN envoy says of the threat to coral reefs: 'Are we faced with a colossal ecosystem tragedy? Yes'

The world is not doing enough to protect coral reefs. That's according to the United Nations’ special envoy for the ocean. In an interview, he defended the marine ecosystems that protect … more

By ELENA BECATOROS | 4/16/24

A Ukrainian serviceman from the Azov brigade known by call sign Chaos, right, carries mortar shell, while he waits for a command to fire, at positions of 122 mm HM 16 mortar around one kilometer away from Russian forces on the frontline in Kreminna direction, Donetsk region, Ukraine, Friday, April 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko)

Ukrainian president signs controversial law to boost conscription to fend off Russia's aggression

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed a controversial law, days after it was passed by parliament, potentially helping Kyiv to boost conscription to replenish depleted forces to fend off … more

By HANNA ARHIROVA | 4/16/24

An SUV splashes through standing water on a road with the Burj Al Arab luxury hotel seen in the background in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Tuesday, April 16, 2024. Heavy rains lashed the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, flooding out portions of major highways and leaving vehicles abandoned on roadways across Dubai. Meanwhile, the death toll in separate heavy flooding in neighboring Oman rose to 18 with others still missing as the sultanate prepared for the storm. (AP Photo/Jon Gambrell)

Heavy rains lash UAE and surrounding nations as the death toll in Oman flooding rises to 18

Heavy rains have lashed the United Arab Emirates, flooding out portions of major highways and leaving vehicles abandoned on roadways across Dubai. Meanwhile, the death toll in separate heavy flooding … more

By JON GAMBRELL | 4/16/24

FILE - Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak meets students taking part in a personal development lesson as he visits Haughton Academy to outline plans for the banning of single use vapes, in Darlington, England, on Jan. 29, 2024. British lawmakers will on Tuesday April 16, 2024 debate and vote on the government's plans to introduce a landmark smoking ban that aims to stop young people from ever smoking. (Ian Forsyth/Pool Photo via AP, File)

UK lawmakers will vote on a landmark bill to gradually phase out smoking

British lawmakers are set to vote on the government’s plans to introduce a landmark smoking ban that aims to stop young people from ever smoking. The bill will make it illegal to sell tobacco … more

By SYLVIA HUI | 4/16/24

FILE - In this Monday, May 25, 2020 photo, medical staff in a dinghy leaves from the Aegean Sea island of Milos to Sikinos island, Greece. Greece aims to create two large marine parks as part of a 780 million euro program to protect biodiversity and marine ecosystems, with the plans to be formally announced at an international oceans conference starting in Athens Tuesday. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis, File)

Greece plans 2 marine protected areas as part of an $830 million environmental protection program

Greece aims to create two large marine parks as part of an $830 million program to protect biodiversity and marine ecosystems, with the plans to be formally announced at an international oceans … more

By ELENA BECATOROS | 4/16/24