Section: KXAN (USA)
Svetlana Alexievich of Belarus wins Nobel literature prize
STOCKHOLM (AP) — Belarusian writer Svetlana Alexievich won the Nobel Prize in literature on Thursday for works that the prize judges called “a monument to suffering and courage.” Alexievich, 67, used the skills of a journalist to create literature chronicling the great tragedies of the Soviet Union and its 1991 collapse: World War II, the Soviet...
Putin spends his birthday playing hockey with NHL stars
MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin is spending his 63rd birthday on the ice, playing hockey with NHL stars against Russian officials and tycoons. Earlier Wednesday Putin was debriefed by Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu about the Russian air force operation in Syria. Shortly after that, Putin and the team of Soviet-born NHL stars took...
The Latest: Putin: Should Syria, Free Syrian Army be allies?
BEIRUT (AP) — The latest developments after Syrian troops, emboldened by Russian airstrikes, launch a ground offensive against insurgents (all times local). __ 2:55 p.m. Russian President Vladimir Putin says French President Francois Hollande last week suggested that government forces in Syria form an alliance with the opposition’s Free...
Germany and France try to turn tide of European skepticism
STRASBOURG, France (AP) — It’s hard to imagine a tougher year for Europe’s union. Pressure to pull the EU’s 28 countries tighter together instead risks pushing it farther apart. So the most powerful proponents of European unity — the leaders of Germany and France — are trying to come to its rescue. The highly unusual appeal...
Belarus’ president says he doesn’t want Russian air base
MINSK, Belarus (AP) — Belarus doesn’t want to host a Russian military air base, President Alexander Lukashenko said Tuesday, a statement that highlighted a strain between the two neighbors and allies. Lukashenko said that he knows nothing about plans to set up a Russian air base in Belarus and added that his nation doesn’t need it,...
Ukraine rebels to delay local elections
MOSCOW (AP) — Officials of the eastern Ukraine regions under the control of Russia-backed separatists say they will postpone local elections that were to be held in the next several weeks, an issue that had impeded progress toward a firm resolution of the conflict. Ukraine’s president and Russian lawmakers hailed the move as a step toward...
IMF downgrades forecast for world, emerging market economies
LIMA, Peru (AP) — China’s slowdown and tumbling commodity prices will push global economic growth this year to the lowest level since the recession year 2009, the International Monetary Fund predicted Tuesday. In a report Tuesday in advance of the IMF-World Bank annual meetings here this week, the fund says the world economy will grow 3.1...
Ukraine moves toward allowing foreigners in military
MOSCOW (AP) — Ukraine’s parliament has passed a measure that would allow foreigners to serve in its armed forces. The legislation, which cleared a final reading on Tuesday, comes as tensions persist with Russia over the separatist insurgency in eastern Ukraine. Ukraine and Western governments allege Russia is sending troops and equipment to...
UN official: world’s displaced population now 60 million
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — When Antonio Guterres became the U.N. refugee chief almost 10 years ago, the world counted 38 million people displaced by conflict and persecution and the number was declining. Today, it’s more than 60 million and rising. As he prepares to step down at the end of the year, Guterres delivered a wide-ranging speech to...
Jordanian MP says son joined IS, carried out suicide attack
AMMAN, Jordan (AP) — A Jordanian parliament member says his son carried out a suicide bombing in Iraq just three months after the family failed to prevent him from joining the Islamic State extremist group. Jordan is part of an international military coalition against IS, but the group has some grassroots support in the country. Parliamentarian...
