Sri Lanka’s new president calls parliamentary elections to consolidate his mandate
Colombo, Sri Lanka — Sri Lanka’s new President Anura Kumara Dissanayake dissolved Parliament late Tuesday and called for parliamentary elections in less than three weeks in an effort to consolidate power after his weekend election victory. A government notification said…
German economy expected to contract again in 2024, say sources
Berlin — Germany’s leading economic institutes have downgraded their forecast for 2024 and now see Europe’s largest economy shrinking by 0.1%, people familiar with the figures from the autumn joint economic forecast told Reuters on Tuesday. Germany’s economy was the…
Ukraine says deadly Russian air attack hits Zaporizhzhia
Ukrainian officials said Tuesday that Russian attacks on the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia killed at least one person and injured six others. Ivan Fedorov, the regional governor of Zaporizhzhia, said the attack destroyed a house and damaged an infrastructure facility….
UN chief to world leaders: ‘We can’t go on like this’
United Nations — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told world leaders Tuesday that the state of the world is unsustainable. “We can’t go on like this,” he said at the start of the U.N. General Assembly annual debate. He said there…
$375 million US military aid package for Ukraine expected as soon as Wednesday
Pentagon — The U.S. military is expected to announce a new military aid package for Ukraine this week valued at up to $375 million, the largest aid sent to Kyiv since May. According to several U.S. officials, who spoke to…
‘Short corn’ could replace the towering cornfields steamrolled by a changing climate
wyoming, iowa — Taking a late-summer country drive in the Midwest means venturing into the corn zone, snaking between 12-foot-tall green, leafy walls that seem to block out nearly everything other than the sun and an occasional water tower. The…
Jill Biden reveals $500 million plan that focuses on women’s health at Clinton Global Initiative
NEW YORK — First lady Jill Biden is unveiling a new set of actions to address health inequities faced by women in the United States, plans that include spending at least $500 million annually on women’s health research. Biden was…
California sues Exxon over global plastic pollution
NEW YORK — California and several environmental groups sued ExxonMobil on Monday and accused the oil giant of engaging in a decades-long campaign that helped fuel global plastic waste pollution. Speaking at an event during Climate Week in New York…
Biden administration seeks to ban Chinese, Russian tech in most US vehicles
New York — The U.S. Commerce Department said Monday it’s seeking a ban on the sale of connected and autonomous vehicles in the U.S. that are equipped with Chinese and Russian software and hardware with the stated goal of protecting…
Soyuz capsule with 2 Russians, 1 American from ISS returns to Earth
Moscow — A Soyuz capsule carrying two Russians and one American from the International Space Station landed Monday in Kazakhstan, ending a record-breaking stay for the Russian pair. The capsule landed on the Kazakh steppe about 3 1/2 hours after…