World News - The Morning Sun

FILE - Participants march in the 45th Anniversary Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade in Oxford Street, Sydney, Australia, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2023. Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras organizers agreed Wednesday to relax their ban on police marching in their annual parade with a compromise condition that officers do not wear uniforms. (AP Photo/Mark Baker, File)

Police will be allowed to march in Sydney's Gay and Lesbian Mardis Gras, but not in uniform

Organizers of Sydney's Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras have agreed to relax their ban on police marching in their annual parade with a compromise condition that officers do not wear uniforms. The decision … more

By ROD McGUIRK | 2/28/24

FILE - Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto speaks to media during a joint news conference with Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Richard Marles following their meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Feb. 23, 2024. Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Wednesday, Feb. 28, awarded an honorary four-star general rank to Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, a former high-ranking army officer who is linked to human rights abuses and who emerged as the apparent winner of the Feb. 14 presidential election. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim, File)

Indonesia's likely next president made 4-star general despite links to alleged human rights abuses

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has awarded an honorary four-star general rank to Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, a former high-ranking army officer who is linked to human rights abuses and who … more

By EDNA TARIGAN and ACHMAD IBRAHIM | 2/28/24

Iranian women listen to their country's national anthem as one of them waves the national flag during an election campaign rally ahead of the March 1, parliamentary and Assembly of Experts elections, in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024. Iran is holding parliamentary elections this Friday, yet the real question may not be who gets elected but how many people actually turn out to vote. Separately, Iranians will also vote on Friday for members of the country's 88-seat Assembly of Experts, an eight-year term on a panel that will appoint the country's next supreme leader after Khamenei, 84. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Many in Iran are frustrated by unrest and poor economy. Parliament elections could see a low turnout

Iran is holding parliamentary elections this Friday, yet the real question may not be who gets elected but how many people actually turn out to vote. Widespread discontent over the cratering economy, … more

By The Associated Press | 2/28/24

FILE - Albania's Prime Minister Edi Rama, left, and his cabinet listen the speech of Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy via video conference in Tirana on May 3, 2022. Albania hosts on Thursday, Feb. 28, 2024 a summit of Southeastern European countries on peace, security and cooperation, focused on the war in Ukraine and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will visit the country. (AP Photo/Franc Zhurda, File)

Zelenskyy to co-host summit in Albania seeking more war support from southeastern Europe

Ukraine’s president will co-host a summit with Albania’s government on Wednesday that’s meant to encourage further support for Kyiv by southeastern European countries as signs of fatigue grow … more

By LLAZAR SEMINI | 2/28/24

FILE - U.S. soldiers participate in a joint military drill with South Korea in Paju, South Korea, on March 16, 2023. South Korean and U.S. troops will begin their expanded annual military drills next week in response to North Korea’s evolving nuclear threats, the two countries said Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2024, a move that will likely enrage North Korea because it views its rivals’ joint training as an invasion rehearsal. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)

South Korean and US troops will begin major exercises next week in response to North Korean threats

The South Korean and U.S. militaries will begin large-scale annual military drills next week in response to North Korea’s evolving nuclear threats. The Freedom Shield exercise is command post … more

By HYUNG-JIN KIM | 2/27/24

FILE - Palestinians wait for humanitarian aid on a beachfront in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024. Israel and Hamas are inching toward a new deal that would free some of the roughly 130 hostages held in the Gaza Strip in exchange for a weeks-long pause in the war, now in its fifth month. A deal would bring some respite to desperate people in Gaza, who have borne a staggering toll in the war, as well as to the anguished families of hostages taken during Hamas' Oct. 7 attack that sparked the war. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Essa, File)

A quarter of Gaza's population is one step from famine and aid trucks are looted, UN says

At least one quarter of Gaza’s population – 576,000 people – are one step away from famine and virtually the entire population desperately needs food resulting in aid trucks being shot at, … more

By EDITH M. LEDERER | 2/27/24

Rocket fire reported off Yemen in Red Sea in a new suspected attack by Houthi rebels

A rocket has exploded off the side of a ship traveling through the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen. It's the latest suspected attack to be carried out by Yemen’s Houthi rebels. The attack Tuesday … more

By JON GAMBRELL | 2/27/24

A municipal police officer stands guard in Maravatio, Michoacan state, Mexico, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024. Two mayoral hopefuls in this city were gunned down the previous day within hours of each other, ahead of the June 2 national elections. (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Two mayoral hopefuls of a Mexican city are shot dead within hours of each other

Two mayoral hopefuls in the Mexican city of Maravatio have been gunned down within hours of each other, as experts warn the June 2 national elections could be the country’s most violent on record. … more

By MARK STEVENSON | 2/27/24

FILE - Hotel clubs and homes stand on Princess Diana beach in Barbuda, Antigua and Barbuda, Oct. 23, 2023, six years after Hurricane Irma slammed into the tiny Caribbean island as a powerful Category 5 storm. A top court in London ruled on Feb. 27, 2024, that two residents of the tiny Caribbean island have the right to challenge the construction of an airstrip in Antigua and Barbuda. (AP Photo/Mohammid Walbrook, File)

A retired teacher and marine biologist fighting the government win an appeal to protect Barbuda land

A top court has ruled that two residents of the tiny Caribbean island of Barbuda have the right to challenge construction of an airstrip that critics say endangers fragile ecosystems and was begun … more

By DÁNICA COTO | 2/27/24

Former President Jair Bolsonaro addresses supporters during a rally in Sao Paulo., Brazil, Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024. Bolsonaro and some of his former top aides are under investigation into allegations they attempted plotted a coup to remove his successor, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. (AP Photo/Andre Penner)

Jair Bolsonaro is under investigation in Brazil for allegedly harassing a whale off Sao Paulo

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is under investigation for allegedly harassing a humpback whale while riding a personal watercraft off Sao Paulo’s coast last year. Bolsonaro appeared at … more

By DIANE JEANTET | 2/27/24

Rocco Antonio Langone, centre, his wife Maria Donata Caivano and his son Giovanni arrive at Ciampino at military airport, in Rome, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024. The Italian family who was kidnapped by an al Qaida-linked group on May 19, 2022 in their home on the outskirts of the city of Koutiala, south-east of the capital of Mali, Bamako, were freed last night, the Italian Foreign Ministry said.(AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)

An Italian family of three is back in Rome following two years of captivity in Mali

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani was on hand Tuesday for the arrival in Rome of an Italian family of three just hours after their release from two years of captivity in the African nation of … more

2/27/24

Israelis stand on tanks during an event for families of reservists outside a military base in southern Israel, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024. Israel and Hamas are inching toward a new deal that would free some of the roughly 130 hostages held in the Gaza Strip in exchange for a weeks-long pause in the war, now in its fifth month. A deal would bring some respite to desperate people in Gaza, who have borne a staggering toll in the war, as well as to the anguished families of hostages taken during Hamas' Oct. 7 attack that sparked the war. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

A deal between Israel and Hamas appears to be taking shape. What would it look like?

Israel and Hamas are inching toward a new deal that would free some of the roughly 130 hostages held in the Gaza Strip in exchange for a weekslong pause in the war. U.S. President Joe Biden says a … more

By SAMY MAGDY and TIA GOLDENBERG | 2/27/24

A farmer sits atop a tractor during a protest outside the European Parliament offices in Madrid, Spain, Monday, Feb. 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)

EU poised to OK major plan to meet climate goals and better protect nature despite farmer protests

The European Union is on the brink of approving a major plan to fight climate change and better protect nature in the 27-nation bloc after protests from farmers and opposition from the biggest party … more

By RAF CASERT | 2/27/24

FILE - 1988 portrait of RAF (Red Army Faction) member Daniela Klette, handed out by German police in 1993. A former member of the disbanded left-wing militant Red Army Faction group has been arrested after more than 30 years on the run, German authorities said Tuesday, Feb. 27. 2024. (AP Photo, File)

A former member of Germany's Red Army Faction has been arrested after decades in hiding

German authorities say a former member of the disbanded left-wing militant Red Army Faction group who is accused of participating in a string of robberies has been arrested after more than 30 years … more

By GEIR MOULSON | 2/27/24

FILE - Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang speaks during the forum titled Chinese Modernization and the World held at The Grand Halls in Shanghai on April 21, 2023. China’s former foreign minister, Qin Gang, who has been missing from public view since last June, resigned his seat in the national legislature, state media reported Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan, File)

China's embattled former foreign minister steps down as member of the legislature

Chinese state media say former Foreign Minister Qin Gang, who has been missing from public view since last June, has resigned from the national legislature. Qin was dismissed from office in July, in … more

By SIMINA MISTREANU | 2/27/24

French President Emmanuel Macron, center right, delivers a speech at the Elysee Palace in Paris, Monday, Feb. 26, 2024. More than 20 European heads of state and government and other Western officials are gathering in a show of unity for Ukraine, signaling to Russia that their support for Kyiv isn't wavering as the full-scale invasion grinds into a third year. (Gonzalo Fuentes/Pool via AP)

NATO's chief says the alliance has no plans to send troops to Ukraine

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says the military alliance has no plans to send combat troops into Ukraine, as some Western countries are thought to be considering putting boots on the … more

Associated Press | 2/27/24

What's life like for Russia's political prisoners? Isolation, poor food and arbitrary punishment

For political prisoners, life in Russia’s penal colonies and labor camps is a grim reality of physical and psychological pressure, insufficient food, poor health care, sleep deprivation and … more

By DASHA LITVINOVA | 2/27/24

FILE - Afghan women wait to receive food rations distributed by a humanitarian aid group, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on May 23, 2023. Afghan women feel scared or unsafe leaving their home alone because of Taliban decrees and enforcement campaigns on clothing and male guardians, according to a report from the U.N. mission in Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)

Most UN Security Council members demand Taliban rescind decrees seriously oppressing women and girls

More than two-thirds of the U.N. Security Council’s members have demanded that the Taliban rescind all policies and decrees oppressing and discriminating against women and girls, including banning … more

By EDITH M. LEDERER | 2/26/24

FILE - Senegal President Macky Sall poses before an interview with The Associated Press at the presidential palace in Dakar, Senegal, Feb. 9 , 2024. Senegal’s President Macky Sall said Thursday, Feb. 22, 2024, that he will end his term in April as expected, but he didn't give a new date for the presidential election originally scheduled for Sunday. (AP Photo/Sylvain Cherkaoui, File)

Senegal's president says the postponed election will be held before the rainy season begins

Senegal’s President Macky Sall has told a national dialogue that elections will be held before the rainy season begins around July, and reiterated his commitment to leave office before his mandate … more

By BABACAR DIONE | 2/26/24

FILE - New South Wales state police pose with participants in the annual gay and lesbian Mardi Gras parade in Sydney, March 1, 2014. Organizers of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras have asked police not to march at their annual parade at the weekend due to an alleged murder of a couple by a police officer, prompting the police commissioner on Tuesday, Feb, 27, 2024, to urge the ban be reversed. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft, File)

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras organizers ask police not to march at the annual parade

Organizers of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras have asked police not to march at their annual parade this weekend due to the alleged murder of a couple by a police officer. New South Wales … more

By ROD McGUIRK | 2/26/24