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After long waits at the Social Security Administration, its chief says things are getting better

WASHINGTON | After complaints about staffing cuts and long waits to get help at the Social Security Administration, its commissioner says he’s ready to make the case to Congress this week that things are getting a lot better at the embattled agency. Frank Bisignano is expected to face pointed questions from lawmakers at a hearing […]

7 mins read

Trump says US ‘must’ respond after Iran shot down US Army helicopter near Strait of Hormuz

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates | President Donald Trump blamed Iran on Tuesday for shooting down a U.S. Army helicopter close to the Strait of Hormuz and said the United States must respond. Iran’s top diplomat said foreign military forces near the country’s territory “are at constant risk.” In the first known operation of its kind […]

4 mins read

Congo’s Ebola outbreak rises to 100 deaths out of 550 cases as conflict slows response

BUNIA, Congo | At least 100 people have died from Ebola less than a month after authorities declared an outbreak of the disease in eastern Congo, authorities said, a grim toll as officials intensify efforts to slow the disease discovered weeks late. Attacks on health workers from angry residents, skepticism among some locals and armed […]

4 mins read

32,000 people displaced by the Philippine earthquake that killed at least 37

GENERAL SANTOS, Philippines | Rescuers searched ruined buildings in the southern Philippines on Tuesday to ensure no one was still trapped a day after one of the strongest earthquakes to hit the country in a half-century killed at least 37 people and displaced more than 32,000. Only four people were considered missing on official records […]

4 mins read

Pentagon labels tech giant Alibaba and electric car maker BYD as aiding Chinese military

WASHINGTON | The Pentagon has added several prominent Chinese businesses, including the tech giant Alibaba, electric car maker BYD and search engine Baidu, to its list of Chinese military companies, preventing them from getting U.S. defense contracts. The list, updated and published Monday by the Pentagon, now sanctions well-known, non-state-owned Chinese companies that are not […]

5 mins read

Trump says pilots are fine after US helicopter crashes near Strait of Hormuz

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates | A U.S. Army Apache attack helicopter crashed early Tuesday near the Strait of Hormuz, but President Donald Trump said the two crew members aboard were not injured in the incident near the strategic waterway that Iran has effectively closed during the war. What caused the crash remains unclear in a […]

8 mins read

Fewer Americans say democracy is central to country’s identity, AP-NORC poll finds

WASHINGTON | As the U.S. prepares for an extravagant celebration of its founding principles, fewer Americans see their country as exceptional, a new poll finds. The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research highlights many Americans’ feeling of unease over the future of its representative government — particularly among young people. It […]

1 min read

Tropical Storm Boris forms off Mexico’s southern Pacific coast and brings flooding threat

MIAMI | Tropical Storm Boris formed Monday and was expected to bring heavy rain, flooding and possible mudslides to parts of southern Mexico’s Pacific coast, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. Boris was located about 85 miles (135 kilometers) southeast of Acapulco and 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of Punta Maldonado, according to the Miami-based […]

5 mins read

A 7.8 magnitude quake in the Philippines kills at least 32, collapses buildings and sparks tsunami

DAVAO, Philippines | An offshore magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit the southern Philippines on Monday, killing at least 32 people, injuring more than 200 others mostly in ruined buildings and sending a 1-meter (3-foot) tsunami into nearby coasts. Several mostly low-rise buildings collapsed or sustained heavy damages in the hard-hit city of General Santos. Tsunami damage […]