DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – Widening demonstrations sparked by Iran’s ailing economy spread Thursday into the Islamic Republic’s rural provinces, with at least six people being killed in the first fatalities reported among security forces and protesters, authorities said. The deaths may mark the start of a heavier-handed response over the demonstrations.
ROME (AP) – Pope Leo XIV opened 2026 on Thursday with a plea for peace, singling out in particular countries “bloodied by conflict” and families wounded by violence. Leo celebrated a New Year’s Day Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica and then delivered a special noontime prayer from his studio overlooking the piazza, which was full of pilgrims and tourists on the bright, chilly day.
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump signed a New Year’s Eve proclamation delaying increased tariffs on upholstered furniture, kitchen cabinets and vanities for a year, citing ongoing trade talks.
On New Year’s Day, Bulgaria will achieve its decades-old goal of joining the euro currency union and deepening ties with the more prosperous countries of Western Europe. Membership is expected to promote cross-border trade and investment, and the Bulgarian government pressed for years to get in.
NEW YORK (AP) – Zohran Mamdani became mayor of New York City just after midnight Thursday, taking the oath of office at an historic, decommissioned subway station in Manhattan. Mamdani, a Democrat, was sworn in as the first Muslim leader of America’s biggest city, placing his hand on a Quran as he took his oath.
SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) – Bulgarians began withdrawing euros for the first time on Thursday after the former communist nation joined the euro currency union as its 21st member. Cash machines in the capital, Sofia, dispensed brand new euro banknotes, replacing the lev, which will still be in use for cash payments in January. However, people will receive only euros in change.
WASHINGTON (AP) – Chief Justice John Roberts said Wednesday that the Constitution remains a sturdy pillar for the country, a message that comes after a tumultuous year in the nation’s judicial system with pivotal Supreme Court decisions on the horizon.
Veteran Australia batter Usman Khawaja has announced he will retire from international cricket after the fifth Ashes test. He didn’t go quietly. The Pakistan-born Khawaja, who was the first Muslim to play for Australia, used his retirement announcement Friday to criticize the “racial” stereotyping he experienced during his career.
BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) – Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro left a hospital in capital Brasilia on Thursday, a week after he underwent a double hernia surgery. A car took the embattled ex-leader back to the federal police headquarters where he is serving his 27-year prison sentence for leading a coup d’etat aimed at keeping him in office.
°C
