Ingested Articles

Police in Northern Ireland deployed water cannons for the first time in six years as they tried to disperse protesters who hurled stones, fireworks and gasoline-filled bottles at officers during another night of violence in Belfast. The violence erupted last week as anger over COVID-19 restrictions and post-Brexit trade rules fueled tensions between the Protestant and Catholic communities in Northern Ireland.  While the crowds appeared somewhat smaller Thursday, police said another 19 officers were injured, bringing the total over the past week to 74.

PARIS (AP) — French health officials said Friday that people under 55 who received a first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine should get other vaccines for their second shot because of an extremely rare risk of a blood clotting disorder.…

After a decade of planning and a head count that took place against the backdrop of an unprecedented pandemic, natural disasters and partisan legal battles, the U.S. Census Bureau is releasing the first numbers from the 2020 census before the…

LIMA, Peru (AP) — A surging coronavirus pandemic that has brought on new lockdown measures and exacerbated fatigue in Ecuador and Peru has left many voters generally indifferent to the names they will see on the ballots Sunday, when the…

PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — A downtown restaurant in Kosovo’s capital filled its tables with mannequins Friday in a symbolic protest of the government’s decision to close eateries for two weeks in response to a surge of COVID-19 cases. Petrit Kllokoqi,…

LONDON (AP) — 1921: Prince Philip is born on the Greek island of Corfu, the only son of Prince Andrew, younger brother of the king of Greece. His mother is Princess Alice of Battenberg. 1922: The family relocates to France…

Britain mourned the death of Prince Philip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, on Friday as the BBC interrupted scheduled programming to broadcast the national anthem, “God Save the Queen.” The flag at Buckingham Palace, the queen’s residence in London, was lowered to half-staff after the announcement of Philip’s death. The Royal Family’s website featured a black-and-white portrait of the prince, also known as the Duke of Edinburgh. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Philip “earned the affection of generations here in Britain, across the Commonwealth and around the world.″

MOSCOW (AP) — A trio of Russian and American space travelers launched successfully and reached the International Space Station on Friday. NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei and Russian cosmonauts Oleg Novitskiy and Pyotr Dubrov blasted off as scheduled at 12:42…

U.S. sanctions on Myanma Gems Enterprise target an army-controlled business rife with corruption and abuses that is one of the junta’s key sources of revenue. The sanctions freeze any assets the firm holds in the U.S. or in U.S. jurisdictions and bar American citizens from doing business with it. The company is a major exporter of gems and semi-precious stones like jade, which bring in significant amounts of revenue to government coffers. The sector is important enough that the coup leader and military commander and Myanmar's central bank governor were among the dignitaries who visited the opening of a gems, pearls and jade emporium earlier this month. 

Melissa McCarthy and her husband, filmmaker Ben Falcone, have managed to put out not one but two movies during this global pandemic. It prompts two questions: What did we do to deserve them? And how do we stop it? McCarthy…

BEIJING (AP) — China's government on Friday criticized the Biden administration's curbs on access to U.S. technology for its supercomputer developers and said sanctions "only strengthen China's determination” to invent its own. The sanctions announced Thursday are the latest sign…

Homebuyers are facing the most competitive U.S. housing market in decades this spring. Surging prices and a record-low number of homes for sale are narrowing the already difficult path to homeownership for many Americans. From Los Angeles to Boston, homes are selling within days of hitting the market. They often fetch multiple offers that are driving prices well above what sellers are asking. A closely watched index that tracks home prices in 20 U.S. cities recorded an annual increase of 11.1% in January. That's the biggest gain in seven years. The competitive frenzy is driving homeownership further out of reach for many Americans. 

Justin Rose shot 65 on a day when only a dozen players managed to break par at the Masters. That left him four shots clear of his closest pursuers — Brian Harman and Hideki Matsuyama – and miles ahead of defending champion Dustin Johnson (74) and a host of big names expected to contend. How much tougher was this opening round than the one played last November? Put it this way: Rory McIlroy hit his father, Gerry, with an approach shot into No. 7 — “I was aiming at him,” McIlory chuckled afterward — and that was Thursday's most light-hearted moment.

Paul George scored 33 points, Kawhi Leonard added 27 and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Phoenix Suns 113-103 on Thursday night in a matchup of two of the top teams in the Western Conference. George was 7 of 9 from 3-point range in 30 minutes in his eighth 30-point game of the season. His season high of 39 points was against Phoenix on Jan. 3. The Clippers made 18 3-pointers, which is the 12th time this season they have made 18 or more in a game. Leonard scored 19 points in the second half to help the Clippers end of the Suns’ winning streak at seven. Devin Booker led the Suns with 24 points, and Mikal Bridges had 20.

Donovan Mitchell scored 37 points to lead the Utah Jazz to their 23rd straight home victory with a 122-103 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers. Rudy Gobert had 18 points and 21 rebounds, Joe Ingles added 13 points and six assists and Utah dominated the glass by outrebounding Portland 58-41 while snapping a two-game skid. Damian Lillard scored 23 points and C.J. McCollum added 19 to lead the Trail Blazers who lost for the third time in four games. Utah surged on offense in the third quarter when it erased a six-point deficit and built a double-digit lead while scoring 40 points.  

TOKYO (AP) — Doctors in Japan announced Thursday they have successfully performed the world’s first transplant of lung tissue from living donors to a patient with severe lung damage from COVID-19. The recipient, identified only as a woman from Japan's…

David Fletcher had a two-run single in the 11th inning and the Los Angeles Angels beat Toronto 7-5 in the first regular-season game played at the Blue Jays’ spring training ballpark. Fletcher's hit to center came on the first pitch from Rafael Dolis, who replaced Ryan Borucki with runners on second and third and two outs. Toronto is the first team in major league history to play home openers in three different cities over three consecutive seasons. The Blue Jays played in Toronto in 2019 and held their home games at their Triple-A site in Buffalo last year after the Canadian government barred them over coronavirus concerns.

Australia says it has finalized a deal to buy an extra 20 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine as it rapidly pivots away from its earlier plan to rely mainly on the AstraZeneca vaccine. Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the deal Friday just hours after saying Australia would stop using the AstraZeneca vaccine on people aged under 50. Australia’s pivot came after the European Medicines Agency said this week it had found a “possible link” between the AstraZeneca vaccine and rare blood clots, though regulators in the United Kingdom and the European Union emphasized that the benefits of receiving the vaccine continue to outweigh the risks for most people.