AP World News

By JULIA FRANKEL and MELANIE LIDMAN Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — The announcement that the remains of the last hostage in Gaza, Ran Gvili, were recovered Monday ended a painful saga that had transfixed Israel for two and a half years and stalled its ceasefire agreement with Hamas. There was an outpouring of emotion in

By KONSTANTIN TOROPIN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and three accompanying warships have arrived in the Middle East, bringing a renewed potential that President Donald Trump could opt to order airstrikes on Iran over its crackdown on protesters. The carrier, along with three destroyers, “is currently deployed to the

BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte insisted on Monday that Europe is incapable of defending itself without U.S. military support and would have to more than double current military spending targets to be able to do so. “If anyone thinks here … that the European Union or Europe as a whole can defend itself

PARIS (AP) — A senior French government official said Monday the memory of the French soldiers who died in Afghanistan should not be tarnished following U.S. President Donald Trump’s false assertion that troops from non-U.S. NATO countries avoided the front line during that war. Alice Rufo, the minister delegate at the Defense Ministry, laid a

By The Associated Press Negotiations aimed at ending Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are yielding apparent signs of progress, but major challenges remain on the path to a final settlement, a senior Kremlin official said Monday. Talks between envoys from Ukraine, Russia and the United States in recent days in Abu Dhabi were constructive and another

By JULIA FRANKEL and SAMY MAGDY Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel said Monday it had recovered the remains of the last hostage in Gaza, closing a painful chapter for the country and clearing the way for the next and more challenging phase of its ceasefire with Hamas. The next step is likely to be

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — A Japanese court on Monday held North Korea responsible for the human rights violations of four plaintiffs lured to the North by Pyongyang’s postwar false promise of living in “paradise on Earth,” ordering its government to pay them 22 million yen ($143,000) each, a decision welcomed by

By MOLLY QUELL Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Judges at the International Criminal Court ruled on Monday that former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is fit to stand trial, after postponing an earlier hearing over concerns about the octogenarian’s health. Duterte is facing charges of crimes against humanity for his alleged involvement in dozens

BY SAMY MAGDY Associated Press CAIRO (AP) — Egypt’s Parliament is looking into ways to regulate children’s use of social media platforms to combat what lawmakers called “digital choas,” following some western countries that are considering banning young teenagers from social media. The House of Representatives said in a statement late Sunday that it will

By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Two Iranian-backed militias in the Mideast are signaling their willingness to launch new attacks, likely trying to back Iran, which is concerned about an approaching U.S. aircraft carrier after President Donald Trump threatened military action over its crackdown on nationwide protests. Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi

NEW DELHI (AP) — Mark Tully, a longtime BBC correspondent who was widely known as the “voice of India” for his reporting on the South Asian nation, has died, the broadcaster said. He was 90. Tully died Sunday at a New Delhi hospital after a brief illness. Born in India’s Kolkata city in 1935, Tully

By JIM GOMEZ Associated Press MANILA, Philippines (AP) — A ferry with more than 350 people on board sank early Monday near an island in the southern Philippines, killing at least 18 people, officials said. Rescuers saved hundreds more, while a fleet of coast guard and naval ships searched for those still missing. Coast guard

By NATALIE MELZER Associated Press NAHARIYA, Israel (AP) — Israel said Sunday its military was conducting a “large-scale operation” to locate the last hostage in Gaza, as Washington and other mediators pressure Israel and Hamas to move into the next phase of their ceasefire. The statement came as Israel’s Cabinet met to discuss the possibility

By ELENA BECATOROS Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian authorities unveiled a new mural on a giant billboard in a central Tehran square on Sunday with a direct warning to the United States to not attempt a military strike on the country, as U.S. warships head to the region. The image shows

By ROB GILLIES Associated Press TORONTO (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Sunday his country has no intention of pursuing a free trade deal with China. He was responding to U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat to impose a 100% tariff on goods imported from Canada if America’s northern neighbor went ahead with a

YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Voting was held Sunday in Myanmar in the final round of a three-stage general election, capping a nearly monthlong process that has already ensured the country’s military rulers and their allies will command a parliamentary majority to form a new government. Critics say the polls were neither free nor fair, and

By GHAITH ALSAYED Associated Press RAQQA, Syria (AP) — Hours after the expiration of a four-day truce between the Syrian government and Kurdish-led fighters Saturday, Syria’s defense ministry announced the ceasefire had been extended by another 15 days. The defense ministry said in a statement that the extension was in support of an operation by

By PAN PYLAS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump heaped praise Saturday on British soldiers who fought in Afghanistan, in a post on social media that represented a partial reversal of comments he made this week that drew a cascade of criticism in the U.K., particularly from families of those killed and

By COLLEEN BARRY Associated Press MILAN (AP) — Inside a cavernous tent near Milan’s San Siro stadium, classically trained dancers from La Scala’s academy mimicked Nordic walkers and figure skaters during a rehearsal Saturday for the opening number of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympicsopening ceremony, which will take place on Feb. 6. The young dancers

By SAMY MAGDY, WAFAA SHURAFA and MELANIE LIDMAN Associated Press CAIRO (AP) — Top U.S. envoys met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday, urging his government to move into the second phase of the ceasefire in Gaza. Netanyahu met with U.S. President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and

By RODNEY MUHUMUZA Associated Press KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — The wife of Ugandan opposition leader Bobi Wine described on Saturday how armed men forced their way into her home and attacked her as they demanded to know where he was. Barbara Kyagulanyi, known affectionately as Barbie, told reporters gathered around her hospital bed that she

By SAMYA KULLAB, ELISE MORTON and MICHELLE L. PRICE Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Two days of talks involving representatives from Ukraine, Russia and the United States wrapped up Saturday with “constructive” discussions on “possible parameters” for ending the war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. Negotiators will return to the United Arab Emirates for

By ELENA BECATOROS Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The commander of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which was key in putting down recent nationwide protests in a crackdown that left thousands dead, warned that his force is “more ready than ever, finger on the trigger,” as U.S. warships headed toward the Middle East.

BEIJING (AP) — The Chinese military’s top general is being investigated for suspected serious violations of discipline and law the Defense Ministry said Saturday, Zhang Youxia, the senior of the two vice chairs of the powerful Central Military Commission, is the latest figure to fall in a long-running purge of military officials. Analysts believe the