DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – A ship anchored off the United Arab Emirates was seized and taken toward Iran and another – a cargo ship near Oman – sank after being attacked, authorities said Thursday, as tensions escalated near the Strait of Hormuz.

BENGALURU, India (AP) – Taxi driver Ravi Ranjan, who lives with his wife and child in New Delhi said shipping disruptions caused by the Iran war have forced him to pay higher prices for cooking fuel at a time when India’s prime minister is also urging residents to reduce driving and travel.

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) – U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell is considered such a titan in his home state that Kentucky lawmakers voted to put a statue of him alongside Abraham Lincoln in the Capitol. After overcoming polio as a child, McConnell rose to become the longest-serving Senate leader in history and helped secure a conservative majority on the U.S. Supreme Court.

VIENNA (AP) – At the Eurovision Song Contest, performers get three minutes to make a big impression.

NEW DELHI (AP) – Foreign ministers from the BRICS nations began a two-day meeting in New Delhi on Thursday as the expanding bloc faces divisions over the war in Iran, rising energy prices and growing global economic uncertainty. The meeting brings together diplomats from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa along with newer member countries.

PUNTLAND, Somalia (AP) – Most of Abdi Ahmed Farah’s hundreds of goats have died. It has not rained steadily in this part of Somalia for three years, something the 70-year-old never thought possible.

NEW YORK (AP) – Shoppers tempered their spending in April as higher gas prices fueled by the Iran war meant less money left over for some nonessentials like clothing and furniture. But they’re still buying, thanks to more generous government tax refunds.

WASHINGTON (AP) – Supporters of a bill to aid Ukraine and sanction Russia reached a critical threshold on Wednesday that allows them to bypass Republican leadership and force a vote on the House floor in the coming weeks.