SKOPJE, North Macedonia (AP) — Top diplomats from more than 50 countries arrived in North Macedonia on Wednesday for a meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, while others boycotted the event due to the presence of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.The foreign ministers of Ukraine, Estonia,…

Hamas on Wednesday handed over 16 more hostages — including 12 Israelis — on the last day of an extended cease-fire with Israel.The latest round of hostages included a group of 10 Israeli women and children, and four Thai nationals. Hamas handed over the hostages to the Israeli military late…

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Emirati president-designate for the upcoming United Nations COP28 climate talks forcefully denied Wednesday a report alleging his nation planned to use the summit to strike oil and gas deals.Sultan al-Jaber, who also leads the massive state-run Abu Dhabi National Oil Co., called the…

Panama (AP) — In a historic ruling, Panama’s Supreme Court this week declared that legislation granting a Canadian copper mine a 20-year concession was unconstitutional, a decision celebrated by thousands of Panamanians activists who had argued the project would damage a forested coastal area and threaten water supplies.The mine, which…

An expensive private high school in Mexico said Wednesday it has suspended and may expel a student who was caught on video beating a parking lot attendant at his housing complex.It was the latest in a decade-long string of beatings of working-class Mexicans by wealthy people that have caused anger…

PARIS (AP) — Stay, enjoy the once-in-a-lifetime show.That was the message from organizers of the Paris Olympics on Wednesday as they sought to reassure the French capital’s residents that security measures and traffic restrictions won’t make their lives nightmarish during the July 26-Aug. 11 event and the Paralympic Games that…

PARIS (AP) — A special court cleared France’s justice minister of conflict of interest on Wednesday, ruling that he was not guilty of having used his office to settle personal scores, the first such trial of a French government minister while still in office.Eric Dupond-Moretti had denied wrongdoing and refused…

The message “Irish Lives Matter” scrawled in Belfast, Northern Ireland, as well as a sign posted saying one neighborhood would “no longer accept the rehousing of illegal immigrants” are reportedly being investigated by local police as hate-related incidents. The BBC, which also shared photos of the messaging, first reported about…

Mexico’s president said Wednesday that two of four news photographers who were shot Tuesday are in serious condition, as prosecutors confirmed that a fifth journalist was shot and wounded the same day.The four photojournalists were shot near a military barracks in the southern Guerrero state after they returned from a…

A woman swimming in a mermaid costume had a narrow escape from drowning after her tail became stuck at the bottom of a massive aquarium tank in a shopping mall, with the terrifying moment captured on video.The woman, a professional mermaid from South Africa, had seconds to react with her…