Ingested Articles

As India faces a devastating surge of new coronavirus infections overwhelming its health care system, people are turning to desperate measures to try to keep loved ones alive. In some cases they are resorting to unproven medical treatments or to black markets for life-saving medications that are in short supply. Drugs such as hydroxychloroquine, which the World Health Organization says should not be used for the coronavirus, are being taken by desperate patients. The mounting desperation and rampant experimentation with unproven drugs come as India set another global record for new virus cases with more than 379,000 infections on Thursday. That is putting even more pressure on the country’s overwhelmed hospitals.

The husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, Doug Emhoff, is settling in and defining his groundbreaking new role as second gentleman of the United States. It's a sharp pivot from his past work as a California-based entertainment lawyer. Emhoff has been spending a lot of time traveling around the country urging people to help end the coronavirus pandemic by getting vaccinated. Emhoff's role represents a historic shift in politics and for political unions. He's the first man to take on the more traditional role of supporter and confidant of the vice president.

BERLIN (AP) — Germany's top court ruled Thursday that the government has to set clear goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions after 2030, arguing that current legislation doesn't go far enough in ensuring climate change is limited to acceptable levels.…

BEIJING (AP) — China’s population grew last year, the government said Thursday, following a report that a census might have found a surprise decline, possibly adding to downward pressure on economic growth. The National Bureau of Statistics gave no details…

Kabul's young working women say they fear their dreams may be short-lived if the Taliban return to Kabul, even if peacefully as part of a new government. The militants imposed a notoriously harsh brand of rule when they held power from 1996-2001. They banned education for girls and denied women the right to work or even travel outside their home unaccompanied by a man. Rights activists say they want the world to demand guarantees from the Taliban to protect women's rights. Young women who grew up under the incremental but important gains in rights the past 20 years fear no one will defend them if they are reversed.

India has set another global record in new virus cases, as millions of people in one state cast votes despite rising infections. With 379,257 new infections, India now has reported more than 18.3 million cases, second only to the United States. Daily deaths have nearly tripled in the past three weeks, reflecting the intensity of the latest surge. And the country’s already teetering health system is under immense strain, prompting allies to send help. Amid the crisis, voting for the eighth and final phase of the West Bengal state elections began Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has faced criticism over the last few weeks for holding huge rallies in the state, which experts suggest might have driven the surge there too. 

National Women's Hockey League commissioner Tyler Tumminia is holding the door open should members of the Professional Women’s Hockey Players’ Association ever want to reach out. The two sides have been at odds for two years. The PWHPA includes many of the world's top players who want a different league with reliable salaries and benefits. The NWHL is doubling its salary cap to $300,000 for each of its six teams. Tumminia says that suggests stability. PWHPA executive Jayna Hefford calls the increase a positive step. Former Canadian national team goalie Shannon Szabados remains skeptical.

The worlds of two horse racing families will collide in the Kentucky Derby this weekend. Steve Asmussen trains Super Stock, owned by his 79-year-old father. Doug O'Neill trains Hot Rod Charlie, co-owned by his nephew Patrick O'Neill and bought at auction by his brother Dennis. The Asmussens are lifers in  the sport, with Steve's parents running a training center in Laredo, Texas, for decades. His brother, Cash, was a star jockey in Europe. The O'Neills came up the hard way, too, honing a love of the sport through racetrack visits as kids. 

The postgame routine between San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich and Miami’s Erik Spoelstra is almost always the same. A handshake or embrace near midcourt at the final buzzer. They exchange a few words. They laugh. And then the coaches head off in opposite directions. It has been this way for a while now, and was again Wednesday when they met for the 37th time. There is clear mutual admiration between the two coaches who have been in their jobs longer than any other current coaches in the NBA. 

Phillies star Bryce Harper says he’s feeling fine after being hit in the face by a 96.9 mph fastball Wednesday. Harper was drilled in the left cheek by Cardinals left-hander Génesis Cabrera’s first pitch in the sixth inning of a 5-3 victory. The All-Star slugger picked himself up and walked off the field, blood dripping from a cut on the side of his nose. He said in a video on Instagram that “everything feels good.” He appeared to have only minor swelling and bruising. Elsewhere, the Dodgers and Brewers begin a four-game set between NL division leaders in Milwaukee.

Ethiopia has swept up thousands of ethnic Tigrayans into detention centers across the country on accusations that they are traitors, often holding them for months and without charges, The Associated Press has found. The detentions of both military personnel and civilians are an apparent attempt to purge state institutions of the Tigrayans who once dominated them, as the government enters its sixth month of fighting in the Tigray region. The detentions in at least nine locations are far more sweeping in scope and more arbitrary than Ethiopia has acknowledged, sometimes with ethnic profiling as the sole reason.

Chris Paul scored 28 points, Devin Booker added 21 and the Phoenix Suns beat the Los Angeles Clippers 109-101 in a matchup of two of the Western Conference’s top teams. Phoenix clinched a playoff berth for the first time in 11 years and once again looked like a team that might play deep into the summer. The Suns finally figured out a way to beat the Clippers, who won the first two games of the season series. Phoenix didn’t trail the entire game but needed a fourth-quarter push to turn back a Los Angeles rally. Paul George led the Clippers with 25 points.

At the heart of India’s farm protests and decades-old agrarian crisis is a policy conundrum: India has been subsidizing the cultivation of rice in the north, but these are thirsty crops that have dramatically lowered the groundwater table. The protesting farmers are overwhelmingly from the region that has benefitted most from policies for maximizing food production. But the policies aimed at providing a surplus have deepened India's water crisis. The groundwater in Punjab, a state with 27 million people, is projected to dry up entirely by 2039. And climate change has made the monsoon rains -- a lifeline for over half of India’s cultivated area -- unpredictable and made farmers more reliant on groundwater.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The roar of applause that typically greets a new president entering the House chamber softened Wednesday to just a few hundred hands clapping as Joe Biden arrived to deliver his first joint address to Congress under strict…

President Joe Biden used his address to Congress and the nation Wednesday to embrace government as the solution to the nation's myriad crises. He pitched trillions of dollars in new government spending on infrastructure and remaking the nation's social safety net, which buckled for some Americans during the pandemic. Biden's ability to enact his ambitious agenda is uncertain given nearly unanimous Republican opposition and some wariness among more moderate Democrats who worry about the price of the president's proposals. But Biden said, “We have to prove democracy still works, that our government still works and can deliver for our people.” 

Phillies star Bryce Harper says he’s feeling fine after being hit in the face by a 96.9 mph fastball Wednesday. Harper was drilled in the left cheek by Cardinals left-hander Génesis Cabrera’s first pitch in the sixth inning of a 5-3 victory. The All-Star slugger picked himself up and walked off the field, blood dripping from a cut on the side of his nose. He said in a video on Instagram that “everything feels good.” He appeared to have only minor swelling and bruising. Elsewhere, the Dodgers and Brewers begin a four-game set between NL division leaders in Milwaukee.

A North Carolina law that gives local courts authority over the release of body camera video has come under a harsh glare after a judge refused to make public footage of deputies shooting and killing Andrew Brown Jr. The 2016 law says that law enforcement video is not a public record and generally cannot be released without court approval. A judge ruled Wednesday that body camera and dashboard footage in Brown's death must be kept from public view for at least another month to avoid harming a state investigation. The April 21 shooting happened as deputies were serving drug-related warrants at Brown’s home in Elizabeth City.

Asian shares rose Thursday and U.S. futures also were higher after President Joe Biden delivered a speech to Congress that outlined ambitious plans for jobs creating spending on early education, child care and other public services. Shares rose in Hong…

Just a few weeks ago, California was struggling to meet demand for COVID-19 vaccinations. Now the state is swimming in supply but some people, especially the home-bound are struggling to receive the shots. A San Francisco Bay Area doctor says he's pleading for doses to inoculate older patients who can’t make appointments online. Health experts say going forward, it will take more effort to reach the unvaccinated. The group includes people unable to leave their homes or who can’t miss work. Counties, cities and providers nationwide are turning to paramedics to deliver in-home shots or arrange transportation to vaccination sites.

Phillies star Bryce Harper said he feels fine after being hit in the face by a 96.9 mph fastball Wednesday night, forcing him from Philadelphia’s game against St. Louis. Harper was drilled in the left cheek by left-handed reliever Génesis Cabrera’s first pitch in the sixth inning. The All-Star slugger picked himself up and walked off the field, blood dripping from a cut on the side of his nose. Cabrera drilled Didi Gregorius with another fastball on his next pitch. Phillies manager Joe Girardi came out of the dugout to argue with plate umpire Chris Segal and was ejected.