Nation

United Nations conference reaches historic biodiversity agreement

By Michael Casey, Associated Press

Negotiators reached a historic deal at a U.N. biodiversity conference early Monday that would represent the most significant effort to protect the world's lands and oceans and provide critical financing to save biodiversity in the developing world.

FBI finds sharp rise in online extortion of teens tricked into sending sexually explicit photos

By Lindsay Whitehurst, Associated Press

An explosive increase in teenage boys targeted online and extorted for money after being tricked into sending explicit pictures of themselves has the FBI sounding a public-safety alarm.

Influx of migrants causes Texas mayor to declare state of emergency

By Associated Press

The mayor of a Texas border city has declared a state of emergency over concerns about the community's ability to handle an anticipated influx of migrants across the Southern border.

Vatican defrocks anti-abortion priest for ‘blasphemous posts’

By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press

The Vatican has defrocked an anti-abortion U.S. priest, Frank Pavone, for what it says were "blasphemous communications on social media" as well as "persistent disobedience" of his bishop.

Recreational marijuana is legal in Missouri. What’s next?

By Gabrielle Hays

Amendment 3 in Missouri was passed in November, making Missouri the 21st state to legalize recreational marijuana.

Fortnite maker Epic Games to settle FTC case, pay $520 million in penalties and refunds

By Associated Press

Video game company Epic Games is paying a total of $520 million in penalties and refunds to settle complaints involving children's privacy and methods that tricked players into making purchases.

Jury selection to begin in Jan. 6 sedition trial for Proud Boys leader, members

By Michael Kunzelman, Alanna Durkin Richer, Associated Press

Jury selection is expected to get underway Monday in the seditious conspiracy trial of former Proud Boys national chairman Enrique Tarrio and four other members of the extremist group.

EU accuses Facebook parent Meta of breaching antitrust rules

By Kelvin Chan, Associated Press

The European Union has accused Facebook parent Meta of breaching the bloc's antitrust rules by distorting competition in the online classified ads business.

36 injured, some seriously, from heavy turbulence on Hawaiian Airlines flight

By Audrey McAvoy, Associated Press

Eleven people are seriously hurt after a flight from Phoenix to Honolulu encountered severe turbulence shortly before landing.

Twitter poll closes, majority of users vote for Musk to step down as CEO

By Matt O'Brien, Associated Press

More than half of 17.5 million users who responded to a Twitter poll created by billionaire Elon Musk over whether he should step down as head of the company had voted yes by the time the poll closed.