Southern states largely go it alone in reopening decisions

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Governors in 17 states have committed to regional coordination to reopen their economies during the coronavirus outbreak — but none are in the South, where leaders are going it alone, just as they did in imposing restrictions.

Many small businesses say loans won't get them to rehire

WASHINGTON (AP) — Some small businesses that obtained a highly-coveted government loan say they won’t be able to use it to bring all their laid-off workers back, even though that is what the program was designed to do.

Iran-US tensions rise on Trump threat, Iran satellite launch

WASHINGTON (AP) — Tensions between Washington and Tehran flared anew Wednesday as Iran's Revolutionary Guard conducted a

Under pressure, Harvard says it will reject US relief aid

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Harvard University announced Wednesday it will turn down $8.7 million in federal coronavirus relief, a day after President Donald Trump excoriated the wealthy Ivy League school over taxpayer money it stood to receive.

Newsom's mask deal shows tendency for big plans, few details

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom's announcement was audacious: On a national news show, he said the state had just inked a deal to buy 200 million masks monthly, a massive haul amid the international scramble for protective gear needed in the fight against the coronavirus.

WHO, allies lament Trump cut to US funding as virus rages

GENEVA (AP) — The head of the World Health Organization on Wednesday lamented the U.S. decision to halt funding for the U.N. agency, promising a review of its decisions while sidestepping President Donald Trump’s complaints about its alleged mismanagement, cover-up and missteps.

EU pressures Iran on atom deal in last-ditch bid to save it

BRUSSELS (AP) — Britain, France and Germany on Tuesday ratcheted up pressure on Iran to stop violating its landmark nuclear deal in a last-ditch effort to resolve their differences through talks while also starting a process that could bring back punishing U.N. sanctions on Tehran.

'Blake fix' flops

Drug decriminalization looms over legislators and law enforcement

OLYMPIA – On Sunday, the final day of Washington’s 2023 legislative session, lawmakers failed to pass Senate Bill 5536. The bill was intended to create a solution to a Washington Supreme Court decision decriminalizing controlled substances in Washington. “The failure of the legislature to vote on a fix to the Blake decision is a huge shock being as it was supposed to be one of the priorities of this legislative session,” said Moses Lake Police Chief Kevin Fuhr...

Honoring service

Art Semro Post Auxilliary and Legionnaires host ceremony honoring local, national heroes

EPHRATA — Dozens of residents, city officials and first responders showed up at the Grant County Courthouse in Ephrata on Monday to join the American Legion Auxiliary, Unit 28, and Legionnaires in remembering those lost on Sept. 11, 2001, and in the various conflicts and emergencies since that day...

World's largest radioactive waste melter starts in Eastern WA

Oct. 9/HANFORD — There's no turning back at the Hanford site's vitrification plant after the heat up of the world's largest melter for radioactive waste started Saturday, 20 years after construction of the plant began. The 300-ton melter now must remain hot continuously around the clock as it initially makes practice glass and eventually starts glassifying radioactive waste for the first time at the nuclear reservation. Glassification prepares the waste for permanent disposal.

Summit catapults world ahead in crucial year to curb warming

WASHINGTON (AP) — The world moved closer to curbing the worst of global warming after this week's climate summit. But there’s still a long way to go, and the road to a safer future gets even rockier from here.

Summit shows Biden's big vision on fighting climate change

WASHINGTON (AP) — What did the world learn at Joe Biden's global summit about his vision of the battle to save the world’s climate?

Summit catapults world ahead in crucial year to curb warming

WASHINGTON (AP) — The world moved closer to curbing the worst of global warming after this week's climate summit. But there’s still a long way to go, and the road to a safer future gets even rockier from here.

Summit shows Biden's big vision on fighting climate change

WASHINGTON (AP) — What did the world learn at Joe Biden's global summit about his vision of the battle to save the world’s climate?

Summit catapults world ahead in crucial year to curb warming

WASHINGTON (AP) — The world moved closer to curbing the worst of global warming after this week's climate summit. But there’s still a long way to go, and the road to a safer future gets even rockier from here.

Israeli police and Palestinians clash at Jerusalem holy site

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli police firing tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets clashed with stone-throwing Palestinians at a flashpoint Jerusalem holy site on Monday, the latest in a series of confrontations that threatened to push the contested city toward wider conflict.

Gaza health officials: 9 killed in blast in northern Gaza

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Gaza health officials say nine people, including three children, have died in a blast in the northern Gaza Strip.

Summit catapults world ahead in crucial year to curb warming

WASHINGTON (AP) — The world moved closer to curbing the worst of global warming after this week's climate summit. But there’s still a long way to go, and the road to a safer future gets even rockier from here.

Black candidate challenges political status quo in Spain

MADRID (AP) — Two young Senegalese men met on a Europe-bound migrant boat in 2006, a year that saw a record influx of Africans to Spain's Canary Islands.

Puerto Rico groans under pandemic as health, economy suffer

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico seemed to be sprinting toward herd immunity this spring before people began letting their guard down against COVID-19 and new variants started spreading across the U.S. territory.