BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Friday that the decision not to run for office again in 2021 has allowed her to focus on tackling the coronavirus pandemic and other pressing problems during her final year in office. Merkel has seen her approval ratings rise during the ...

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Flower growers in Ecuador are trimming back their fields, cutting plants at the root and in some cases tossing out piles of colorful blooms entirely as the pandemic delivers a devastating blow to one of the nation's biggest export industries. Demand for the small South ...

HELSINKI (AP) — After being forced to cancel all its spring performances due to the coronavirus pandemic, Finland's National Opera is opening this fall with an opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart featuring a topical twist: a story line that plays off of the Nordic country's outbreak. The ...

PARIS (AP) — He can't vote in the U.S. presidential election, but French President Emmanuel Macron hopes whoever wins the November vote is more of a global player. Following traditional diplomatic protocol, Macron wouldn't say who he favors in the U.S. presidential election on Nov. 3 but ...

PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron says France is not excluding Chinese telecom giant Huawei from its upcoming 5G telecommunication networks but favors European providers for security reasons. The French leader spoke after meeting with visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in ...

PARIS (AP) — With France's national health agency decrying an "exponential" rise in new virus infections, French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday he couldn't rule out a new nationwide lockdown. France registered more than 7,000 new virus infections in a single day Friday, up from ...

CAIRO (AP) — Libya's Tripoli-based government has suspended its interior minister following a shooting at a demonstration in the capital earlier this week, the United Nations-supported government said Friday. Interior Minister Fathi Bashaga will face an investigation over 'violations' ...

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — Unable to protest on the streets, some in Zimbabwe are calling themselves "keyboard warriors" as they take to graffiti and social media to pressure a government that promised reform but is now accused of gross human rights abuses. Activists use the hashtag ...

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The ruler of the United Arab Emirates issued a decree Saturday formally ending the country's boycott of Israel amid a U.S.-brokered deal to normalize relations between the two countries. The announcement now allows trade and commerce between the UAE, home ...

SRINAGAR, India (AP) — For Nasir Hussain, observing the Muslim month of Muharram, which marks the martyrdom of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson in the battle of Karbala, is an article of faith. But as the coronavirus spreads in Indian-controlled Kashmir, he and his extended family prefer to ...

LONDON (AP) — About 300 people in Wales had to be evacuated after a freight train carrying large amounts of diesel caught fire and derailed, British Transport Police said Thursday. Officials said two employees onboard managed to raise the alarm and escaped without injury. The fire near ...

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Thursday faced tough questioning by lawmakers over COVID-19 corruption scandals, days after he asked ruling party members to refrain from stealing money meant for the poor. Many South Africans have been dismayed to see the ...

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Two authoritative religious bodies on Thursday called on Christians to band together to fight "sins" laid bare or aggravated by the pandemic, including racism and economic injustice. The Vatican and the World Council of Churches, which is based in Switzerland, issued a ...

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South African police have clashed with protesters demonstrating against the alleged killing of a 16-year-old boy by local policemen in Eldorado Park, an area of Soweto near Johannesburg. Residents charge that Nathaniel Julius was shot by police and dropped off at the ...

BERLIN (AP) — Most of Germany will impose a minimum fine of 50 euros ($59) for breaching mask-wearing rules as coronavirus infections rise again, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday after a virtual meeting with the country's state governors. Officials also agreed to extend a ban on big ...

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Velacio Vicuña began to cough incessantly and felt feverish. But the tire salesman avoided getting a test for the new coronavirus, fearing that if it was positive, soldiers would take him from his home and force him to stay at one of the mandatory isolation centers ...

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian authorities said Thursday they have found no indication so far that opposition leader Alexei Navalny's coma, which his allies and German doctors treating him believe may have been brought about by poisoning, was caused by a criminal act. A preliminary inquiry launched ...

SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — Tensions are growing in the northwestern Bosnia after local authorities launched a widespread crackdown on thousands of migrants stranded in the area and set up police roadblocks to prevent more Europe-bound newcomers from arriving. Authorities in Bosnia's ...

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Former Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita returned home Thursday after being detained for 10 days by the ruling military junta that staged a coup last week, a family member said. The move came the same day that the junta made public a decree of its National Committee ...

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Germany's foreign minister on Thursday called for an end to military drills in the eastern Mediterranean to defuse tensions and create conditions for NATO allies Greece and Turkey to resolve a dispute over offshore energy exploration rights. Foreign Minister Heiko Maas' ...