NEW YORK (AP) - U.S. stocks fell from their record heights, while oil prices jumped following escalations in the Middle East that may be undermining the ceasefire in the war with Iran. The S&P 500 fell 0.4% Monday, coming off its latest all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.1%, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.2%.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) – A China policy giving Africa’s biggest economies tariff-free access to its market for the next two years came into effect Friday while its economic rival the United States seeks to impose new import taxes under President Donald Trump’s push for protectionism.

NEW DELHI (AP) – Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Hindu nationalist party on Monday wrested control of the state of West Bengal, an opposition stronghold, in a key election. The Election Commission of India released partial results showing the Bharatiya Janata Party won at least 124 seats in the 294-member West Bengal assembly.

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) – Separatist rebels in Mali said Friday they captured a strategic military camp in the northern town of Tessalit after the withdrawal of the army and their Russian allies, as the militants launch their biggest round of attacks in over a decade.

The ceasefire in the Iran war abruptly faced its most perilous moment Monday after the United States began trying to open the Strait of Hormuz to allow hundreds of stranded commercial ships sail out.

PARIS (AP) – Activists worldwide held May Day rallies and street protests Friday, calling for peace, higher wages and better working conditions as many workers grapple with rising energy costs and shrinking purchasing power tied to the Iran war.

Excerpts from recent editorials in the United States and abroad:

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) – The funeral was held on Thursday of Mali ‘s former defense minister Gen. Sadio Camara, a key architect of the military government’s security partnership with Russia.