World News

Average age of U.S. vehicles hit record 12.1 years in 2020-IHS Markit

The average age of U.S. cars and light trucks rose to a record 12.1 years in 2020, as Americans drove fewer miles and scrapped more vehicles during the COVID-19 pandemic,…

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G7 source praises Biden after ‘complete chaos’ of Trump

U.S. President Joe Biden brought a sharply different tone to the Group of Seven summit from his predecessor Donald Trump by allowing frank and collaborative discussion of global issues without…

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US death toll nears 600,000

Coronavirus is on the verge of having killed a devastating 600,000 people in the US, with the current case total standing at 599,769, according to the Johns Hopkins University. The…

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UPDATED: China’s CGN says nuclear station meets safety rules amid reports of leak

State-run China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN) said on Sunday that operations at its nuclear power station in south China meet safety rules and the surrounding environment is safe, shortly…

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Spotlight on Xbox Game Pass as Microsoft showcases upcoming games

Microsoft on Sunday showcased 30 upcoming games and said most of those titles will be available on its monthly subscription service, Xbox Game Pass. The company said it would launch…

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UPDATED: Israel’s new government begins, Netanyahu era ends

The first Israeli government in 12 years not led by Benjamin Netanyahu got down to business on Monday, with the former prime minister shying away from a handover ceremony with…

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Biden says: Queen Elizabeth reminded me of my mother

U.S. President Joe Biden said Britain's Queen Elizabeth reminded him of his mother and that she had asked about Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin. After tea…

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Bid of $28 million wins a rocket trip to space with Bezos

A seat on a spaceship ride with billionaire Jeff Bezos went for $28 million during a live auction on Saturday, concluding the month-long bidding process for the sightseeing trip on…

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America is back with Biden, France’s Macron says

The United States is back as a cooperative leader of the free world under President Joe Biden, France's Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday, illustrating the relief felt by many key…

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At least 13 people wounded in Austin, Texas shooting

At least 13 people were wounded in a shooting in downtown Austin, Texas early on Saturday, police said, adding the suspected shooter was still at large. Two of the injured…

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White House says G7 leaders will endorse proposed 15% global minimum corporate tax

G7 leaders meeting in Britain will endorse U.S. President Joe Biden's proposal for global minimum tax of at least 15% on corporations, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said…

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Pulitzers honor Darnella Frazier for cellphone video of George Floyd murder

A teenager who recorded the murder of George Floyd in a clear and unrelenting single shot with her cellphone was recognized on Friday by the arbiters of the highest honors…

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U.S. image among European, Asian partners improves under Biden

The United States' image abroad has improved dramatically since Joe Biden replaced Donald Trump as president, according to a Pew Research Center survey of 12 nations, mainly in Europe and…

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Two guests onboard a Royal Caribbean cruise test COVID-19 positive

Cruise operator Royal Caribbean said on Thursday two guests onboard its Celebrity Millennium ship have tested positive for COVID-19, but are asymptomatic and currently in isolation. The guests, who were…

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CDC says U.S. travelers can avoid wearing masks in outdoor transit hubs, ferries

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it will no longer require travelers to wear masks in outdoor transit hubs and in outdoor spaces on ferries, buses and…

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Hoover Dam reservoir hits record low, in sign of extreme western U.S. drought

The reservoir created by Hoover Dam, an engineering marvel that symbolized the American ascendance of the 20th Century, has sunk to its lowest level ever, underscoring the gravity of the…

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Pfizer to provide U.S. with 500 million COVID-19 vaccines to donate to world

Pfizer and German partner BioNTech said on Thursday they have agreed to supply the U.S. government with 500 million doses of their COVID-19 vaccine to donate to poorer countries over…

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Drugs, weapons, cars and cash: Operation Greenlight/Trojan Shield, the global crime bust in figures

Global law enforcement agencies have busted an international crime network by monitoring encrypted phones used by criminals, leading to hundreds of arrests as well as drug and weapon seizures across…

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U.S. explores wind energy potential in Gulf of Mexico

The Biden administration said it will explore the potential of offshore wind energy development in the Gulf of Mexico, part of its goal to supercharge growth in clean energy over…

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Biden’s to-do list on foreign trip: Rally allies against COVID, Putin

President Joe Biden’s meeting with leaders of the G7 leading industrial economies in an English seaside village this week will usher in a new focus on rallying U.S. allies against…

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U.S. Senate passes sweeping bill to address China tech threat

The U.S. Senate voted 68-32 on Tuesday to approve a sweeping package of legislation intended to boost the country's ability to compete with Chinese technology. The desire for a hard…

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Fastly blames software bug for major global internet outage

Fastly Inc., the company behind a major global internet outage this week, said on Wednesday the incident was caused by a bug in its software that was triggered when one…

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With G7 summit the first stop, Biden embarks on 8-day trip to Europe

U.S. President Joe Biden departs for Britain on Wednesday on his first trip abroad since taking office, an eight-day mission to rebuild trans-Atlantic ties strained during the Trump era and…

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U.S. CDC eases travel recommendations on some 110 countries, territories including Japan

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has eased travel recommendations for more than 110 countries and territories, including Japan just ahead of the Olympics. The CDC's new…

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U.S. report concluded COVID-19 may have leaked from Wuhan lab – WSJ

A report on the origins of COVID-19 by a U.S. government national laboratory concluded that the hypothesis of a virus leak from a Chinese lab in Wuhan is plausible and…

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“America is back”: EU upbeat on eve of Biden’s Europe trip

U.S. President Joe Biden's trip to Europe this week will signal that multilateralism has survived the Trump years, and set the stage for transatlantic cooperation on challenges from China and…

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UPDATE – U.S. seizes $2.3 mln in bitcoin paid to Colonial Pipeline hackers

WASHINGTON, June 7 (Reuters) - The Justice Department on Monday recovered some $2.3 million in cryptocurrency ransom paid by Colonial Pipeline Co, cracking down on hackers who launched the most disruptive U.S.…

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US VP Harris meets Guatemalan leader, steps seen to tackle human smuggling, graft

The Biden administration is expected to announce steps to combat human smuggling and corruption in Guatemala as U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris visited for talks with President Alejandro Giammattei on…

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US energy secretary opposes ransomware payments

U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on Sunday said she opposes companies paying off ransomware criminals and said firms targeted by cyberattacks need to alert the federal government. Adversaries of the…

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Clock is ticking on infrastructure, Biden officials say

The Democrat-led U.S. House of Representatives will start the process of preparing an infrastructure bill for a floor vote on Wednesday, with or without Republican support, U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer…

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Magnitude 5.3 earthquake recorded in southern California -USGS

A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck about seven miles west of Calipatria, near California's Salton Sea, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said on Saturday. The tremor was part of a series…

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U.S. traffic deaths soar to 38,680 in 2020; highest yearly total since 2007

U.S. traffic deaths soared after coronavirus lockdowns ended in 2020, hitting the highest yearly total since 2007 as more Americans engaged in unsafe behavior on U.S. roads, the National Highway…

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Trump may run for House in 2022 to become Speaker

Former President Donald Trump suggested he would consider running for a House seat in 2022 in a bid to become Speaker of the House and launch an impeachment investigation against…

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U.S. to give ransomware hacks similar priority as terrorism

The U.S. Department of Justice is elevating investigations of ransomware attacks to a similar priority as terrorism in the wake of the Colonial Pipeline hack and mounting damage caused by…

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Delta Air Lines flight diverted to New Mexico after passenger tries to breach cockpit

An unruly passenger who tried breaking into the cockpit of a Delta Air Lines flight bound for Tennessee from California was subdued by cabin crew and fellow passengers as the…

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FBI says it is investigating about 100 types of ransomware

FBI Director Christopher Wray told the Wall Street Journal that the agency is investigating about 100 different types of ransomware, many of which trace back to perpetrators Russia. In the…

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Facebook suspends former U.S. President Trump’s account until 2023

Facebook Inc on Friday suspended former U.S. President Donald Trump from its platform until at least January 2023 and announced changes to how it will treat rule-breaking world leaders in…

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Apple working on iPad Pro with wireless charging, new iPad Mini

Apple Inc is working on a new iPad Pro with wireless charging and a redesigned iPad Mini in an attempt to build upon momentum for a category that saw improved…

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Facebook to end special treatment for politicians

Facebook Inc is planning to end its policy that shields politicians from some content moderation rules, The Verge reported, in what would be a major policy reversal for the world's…

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Biden to meet with UK’s Queen, Johnson, Turkey’s Erdogan in overseas trip

U.S. President Joe Biden's first overseas trip will include meetings with the leaders of Turkey, the United Kingdom and Russia, as well as audiences with a queen and a king,…

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UPDATED: Fauci calls on China to release medical records of Wuhan laboratory workers

Top U.S. infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci has called on China to release the medical records of nine people whose ailments might provide vital clues into whether COVID-19 first…

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U.S. government finds no evidence aerial sightings were alien spacecraft

U.S. intelligence officials have found no evidence that a series of unidentified aerial phenomena observed by Navy aviators in recent years were alien spacecraft, but the sightings remain unexplained in…

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U.S. sets and suspends tariffs on six countries over digital taxes

The United States announced 25% tariffs on over $2 billion worth of imports from six countries over their digital services taxes, but immediately suspended the duties to allow time for…

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U.S. blacklists 3 Bulgarians, 64 companies over corruption

The United States imposed sanctions on three Bulgarians and 64 companies linked to them over alleged corruption, including an oligarch accused of planning to create a conduit for Russian political…

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World’s largest meat supplier reopens as White House blames Russia-linked group over hack

JBS SA employees started returning to U.S. meat plants after the company's beef operations stopped following a ransomware attack, disrupting meat production in North America and Australia. A notorious Russia-linked…

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Florida man accused of storming U.S. Capitol pleads guilty

A Florida man on Wednesday became the second person so far to plead guilty for his role in storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, after he entered the Senate chamber clad in a Trump T-shirt and waving a red…

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UPDATE – Germany and France demand explanation after wiretapping allegations

Berlin and Paris on Monday called for an explanation from Copenhagen after a report that Danish authorities helped the US National Security Agency (NSA) wiretap some of their senior politicians.…

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Intel reiterates chip supply shortages could last several years

Intel Corp's CEO said on Monday it could take several years for a global shortage of semiconductors to be resolved, a problem that has shuttered some auto production lines and…

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Fauci says it is too early to declare victory against Covid-19

In a Guardian interview, Dr Anthony Fauci, the top infectious diseases expert in the US, has warned it is too early to declare victory against Covid-19 as cases fall in…

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UPDATED: Earthquake of magnitude 6.1 strikes Alaska – USGS

An earthquake of magnitude 6.1 struck the U.S. state of Alaska, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said on Monday. The quake was at a depth of 58.2 kilometers (36.2…

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UPDATED: Germany seeks clarification on report U.S. spied on Merkel

The German government is following up on a report that the United States used a partnership with Denmark to spy on senior officials of neighbouring countries, including German Chancellor Angela…

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Gunmen kill two, wound more than 20 outside Florida banquet hall

Assailants opened fire on a crowd outside a concert in Florida early on Sunday, killing two people and wounding more than 20, police and media reports said. Three people got…

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American Airlines joins Southwest in suspending alcohol services on flights

American Airlines has joined Southwest Airlines in suspending alcohol services on flights, the airline said. The decision follows a recent assault of a Southwest flight attendant that resulted in a serious injury.…

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Photo Story: Memorial Day weekend celebrations in Florida

A USAF HH60 helicopter (R) and a USAF A-10 Thunderbolt II flights over South Beach during the Memorial Day weekend in Miami Beach, Florida, USA. As part of the Memorial…

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EPA’s Eye in the Sky: Palm Springs, California, USA

An aerial picture of an art installation entitled 'Women's Qualities' by Ghada Amer, and reading 'Loving Nuturing Resilient Strong Caring Determined Beautiful' displayed during the Desert X exhibition near Palm…

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U.S. agency says employers can mandate COVID-19 vaccination

U.S. companies can mandate that employees in a workplace must be vaccinated against COVID-19, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) said on Friday. The EEOC, in a statement posted on…

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Biden’s big budget comes with a modest growth outlook for an ageing country

President Joe Biden's first budget proposal comes with a big price tag - at $6 trillion, roughly 50% higher than pre-COVID-19 federal spending - but, at least for now, projects…

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