Newsdesk

AstraZeneca confirms strong vaccine protection after U.S. rift

By Lauran Neergaard, Associated Press

AstraZeneca insists that its COVID-19 vaccine is strongly effective even after counting additional illnesses in its U.S. study, the latest in an extraordinary public dispute with American officials.

Stuck ship in Egypt’s Suez Canal imperils shipping worldwide

By Jon Gambrell, Samy Magdy, Associated Press

A skyscraper-sized cargo ship wedged across Egypt's Suez Canal further imperiled global shipping Thursday as at least 150 other vessels needing to pass through the crucial waterway idled waiting for the obstruction to clear, authorities said.

U.S. jobless claims fall to 684,000, fewest since pandemic

By Christopher Rugaber, Associated Press

The number of people seeking unemployment benefits fell sharply last week to 684,000, the fewest since the pandemic erupted a year ago and a sign that the economy is improving.

George C. Wolfe, Anne Carson win PEN achievement awards

By Associated Press

Tony Award-winner George C. Wolfe and Canadian poet-translator Anne Carson are among this year's winners of PEN America awards for career achievement.

10 killed in Colorado shooting

By Patty Nieberg, Thomas Peipert, Associated Press

A shooting at a crowded Colorado supermarket that killed 10 people, including the first police officer to arrive, sent terrorized shoppers and workers scrambling for safety and stunned a state that has grieved several mass killings.

U.S. jobless claims rise to 770,000 with layoffs still high

By Paul Wiseman, Associated Press

The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits rose last week to 770,000, a sign that layoffs remain high even as much of the U.S. economy is steadily recovering from the coronavirus recession.

2 charged in assault of Capitol officer who died after riot

By Michael Balsamo, Associated Press

U.S. officials have arrested and charged two men with assaulting U.S. Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick with bear spray during the Jan. 6 riot, but they do not know yet whether it caused the officer's death.

Chicago parish fiercely backs priest after sex abuse claims

By Sophia Tareen, Associated Press

Michael Pfleger's initial accusers were two brothers in their 60s who haven't publicly identified themselves. They allege that Pfleger groomed them as children and abused them at Chicago-area rectories.

Flights canceled during China’s worst sandstorm in a decade

By Associated Press

China's capital and a wide swath of the country's north were enveloped Monday in the worst sandstorm in a decade, forcing the cancelation of hundreds of flights.

Vatican bars same-sex union blessing, says God ‘can’t bless sin’

By Nicole Winfield, Associated Press

The Vatican's orthodoxy office, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, issued a formal response Monday to a question about whether Catholic clergy can bless gay unions. Its conclusion was "negative."…