Unusually high rates of influenza and respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, continue to fill pediatric units in hospitals around Alaska, marking a nasty cold and flu season that still hasn't reached its peak.

"All the hospitals are full of sick, wheezing kids," said Dr. Matt Hirschfeld, a pediatrician at Alaska Native Medical Center who sits in ...Read more

Germany will fail to meet a NATO guideline of spending 2% of gross domestic product on its military next year and again from 2026 onward, according to an analysis quoted in local media on Monday.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz pledged in a speech to parliament shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine at the end of February that Germany would invest “more...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — Widespread power outages caused by vandalism of electrical substations in Moore County continued on Sunday, with electricity shut off to nearly all residences and businesses, and estimates for restoration of power stretching possibly into Thursday, officials say.

The outages are the result of intentional damage by firearms to ...Read more

The surviving roommates in last month’s fatal, unsolved University of Idaho stabbings expressed devastation over the murders as they broke their silence with a pair of letters.

The letters by Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke were read Friday at a memorial service for the four victims that wasn’t open to the media, the Idaho Statesman ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden hosted a reception at the White House on Sunday night for the annual Kennedy Center Honors, celebrating the work of artists including the band U2, actor George Clooney, singers Amy Grant and Gladys Knight, and composer Tania León.

“Thank you for showing us the power of the arts,” Biden said, praising them...Read more

Benjamin Netanyahu, who is set to return as Israel’s prime minister, said Donald Trump “probably understands that it crosses a line” after the former president hosted rapper Ye and white supremacist Nick Fuentes.

“I think it’s not merely unacceptable, I think it’s just wrong, and I hope he sees his way to staying out of it and ...Read more

The European Union should improve its state aid rules and consider more green transition funding to offset possible distortions from the new U.S. climate and tax law, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.

Her remarks came a day before the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council ministerial meeting to be held at the University of...Read more

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s lawyers are preparing a court challenge against an advisory panel report that said there may be grounds for his impeachment, as governing party officials continue talks on how to respond to the damning findings.

Ramaphosa considered quitting after the panel said he may have committed serious ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Newly elected House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries defended past remarks calling Donald Trump’s 2016 election “illegitimate” against Republican criticism, noting that he voted to certify his presidency.

“I will never hesitate in criticizing the former president,” Jeffries, of New York, said on ABC’s “This Week”...Read more

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Last week’s trial of Hillsborough County’s suspended state attorney and his fight to get reinstated provided big moments and revelations.

Over three days in a federal courtroom, questions were raised about what drove Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ decision to oust Hillsborough State Attorney Andrew Warren, a Democrat....Read more

A net designed to prevent suicides from the Golden Gate Bridge could cost nearly $400 million — double what was originally estimated for the project, according to the two construction firms in charge of the project.

Last Monday, both companies filed a motion requesting that they be able to sue the span's managing entity — the Golden Gate ...Read more

The operations of Iran’s “morality police” have effectively been suspended, a top official said, after months of widespread anti-government protests over the death of a young woman in its custody.

Officially called the Guidance Patrol, the police unit has for years stalked major intersections and thoroughfares in Iranian cities, ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Newly elected House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries defended past remarks calling Donald Trump’s 2016 election “illegitimate” against Republican criticism, noting that he voted to certify his presidency.

“I will never hesitate in criticizing the former president,” Jeffries, of New York, said on ABC’s “This Week”...Read more

Shanghai eased some of its COVID-19 restrictions, joining other top-tier Chinese cities as authorities accelerate a shift toward reopening the economy after thousands of demonstrators took to the streets last weekend to voice their anger at the nation’s stringent policies.

The financial hub will scrap PCR testing requirements to enter ...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A new class of California lawmakers will be sworn in Monday and thrust into the middle of Gov. Gavin Newsom's political fight with oil companies, testing the clout of an industry that spends heavily to influence the Legislature and potentially affecting gas prices for Californians.

The Democratic governor has accused the ...Read more

The inmates at IK-2 penal colony rise at 6 a.m. each day for a breakfast of milk porridge, bread and tea. Soon they leave their barracks at this aging facility about 300 miles southeast of Moscow, in the isolated republic of Mordovia.

Long days are spent in forced labor, working at sewing machines, with only a short break for lunch. By ...Read more

In February 1973, Dr. Bernard Beitman found himself hunched over a kitchen sink in an old Victorian house in San Francisco, choking uncontrollably. He wasn't eating or drinking so there was nothing to cough up, and yet for several minutes he couldn't catch his breath or swallow.

The next day his brother called to tell him that 3,000 miles away,...Read more