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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. 

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.

BANGKOK (AP) — Shares fell Friday in most Asian markets after China reported a stronger than expected rise in prices that could prompt authorities to act to cool inflation. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index rebounded after falling the day before.…

Complex forces are driving an increase in the number of migrant families and unaccompanied children coming to the U.S. Many say President Joe Biden's positions on immigration, whether real or rumored, have influenced their decisions. About four in 10 border encounters last month were with families and children traveling alone. It comes as policies in the U.S. and Mexico favor them staying in the United States while they seek asylum. The March total includes nearly 19,000 unaccompanied children, the highest monthly number on record. They are exempt from federal pandemic-related powers that quickly expel migrants without a chance for asylum.

APRIL 2 - 8, 2021 This photo gallery highlights some of the most compelling images made or published by Associated Press Photographers in Latin America and the Caribbean. It was curated by AP photo editor Anita Baca Follow AP visual…

Nolan Arenado hit a tiebreaking, two-run homer in the eighth inning of his home debut with the Cardinals, lifting St. Louis over the Milwaukee Brewers 3-1 as fans returned to Busch Stadium for the first time since 2019. Arenado, a five-time All-Star acquired from Colorado on Feb. 1 after eight seasons with the Rockies, followed a walk to Austin Dean with the score 1-1. Arenado turned on a first-pitch 96.6 mph offering from Drew Rasmussen and sent the ball 373 feet to left for his second homer this season.

The Los Angeles Dodgers will raise the World Series flag for the first time since 1988 and will hand out championship rings before Friday’s home opener against Washington, the first time fans are allowed into Dodger Stadium since the Game 5 loss in the 2019 NL Division Series. The Dodgers will special jerseys for the weekend series, with “Dodgers” trimmed in gold, and caps with the interlocking “LA” trimmed in gold.

The NHL is in the most difficult position among the four major North American professional sports leagues on vaccinations because seven of its teams are based in Canada. The U.S. is vaccinating 3 million a day and has widespread availability. The NFL, NBA and Major League Baseball have plans to relax virus protocols when a certain percentage of team personnel are fully protected by vaccines against COVID-19. The world's top hockey league does not have that luxury. The NHL instead is grappling with an outbreak in Vancouver and vaccine inequity on opposite sides of the border.

When Helio Castroneves arrived at for testing Thursday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, he went right to Team Penske garage, said hello and quickly moved along. Eventually, he made it to his new team's headquarters, got dressed in his new pink and black driver's suit and got to work. It's not easy for the three-time Indianapolis 500 winner. After spending 21 years working on Roger Penske's team, the popular Brazilian finds himself starting over at age 45. 

The attorney for the officer on trial in George Floyd’s death has raised the concept of excited delirium as testimony examines whether reasonable force was used on Floyd. Derek Chauvin's attorney explored the condition this week in questioning Nicole Mackenzie, a Minneapolis police officer who trains other officers in medical care. Mackenzie described it as a combination of “agitation, psychosis, hypothermia, a wide variety of other things you might see in a person or rather bizarre behavior.” There's no universally accepted definition. But an expert in forensic medicine who believes excited delirium is real testified Thursday that Floyd met none of the 10 criteria for diagnosis.

A key witness in the trial of an ex-Minneapolis police officer in the death of George Floyd used videos, animations and other imagery to argue that Floyd died of a lack of oxygen that damaged his brain and stopped his heart. He also used them in an effort to debunk some of the key defense arguments. Dr. Martin Tobin, a lung and critical care specialist from Illinois, testified as a prosecution expert in the trial of Derek Chauvin. He said he watched many bystander and police body camera videos — some clips hundreds of times — to help develop the materials he presented to jurors.

Shane Griffith recently captured the 165-pound title at the NCAA wrestling championships wearing a black singlet minus the Stanford logo. This was his way of making a statement after the school announced in July that wrestling and 10 other sports would be dropped to save money. In an open letter sent to the school community, Stanford leaders announced  they face “the reality that significant change is needed to create fiscal stability for Stanford Athletics.” Many in the community questioned the legitimacy of the administration’s arguments. The group “Keep Stanford Wrestling” has organized fundraising efforts to help save the program. It's raised about $12.5 million so far. 

California plans to authorize $536 million toward forest management projects and efforts to reduce wildfires before the worst of fire season strikes later this year. Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders said Thursday that they intend to add the money to this fiscal year’s budget before considering even more in the new spending plan that takes effect July 1. Advocates say the spending will more than double $200 million in recent annual spending. State officials are rushing to thin forests, build fuel breaks around vulnerable communities and allow for planned burns before a dry winter turns into a tinder-dry summer. Last year’s record-setting wildfire season charred more than 4% of the state.