WASHINGTON, Aug 19 – The United States has crossed a staggering fiscal milestone, with total federal debt rising above $40 trillion for the first time as the government faces mounting costs for retirement programs, health care and interest payments. The Treasury Department said the total public debt outstanding reached about $40.047 trillion on Tuesday. The … Read more
Aug 17 – The 60-day deadline set by U.S. President Donald Trump for reaching a lasting peace agreement with Iran has expired with no comprehensive deal in sight, leaving the two sides facing a difficult diplomatic standoff over the Strait of Hormuz, economic sanctions and Tehran’s nuclear program. The deadline was established under a June … Read more
WASHINGTON, Aug 16 – President Donald Trump has directed the Pentagon to significantly reduce the scale of annual military exercises with South Korea, arguing that the drills are expensive, send an unnecessarily hostile message to North Korea and do not reflect his administration’s current approach toward Pyongyang. Trump announced the decision Sunday as the United … Read more
MOSCOW, Aug 16 – Ukraine carried out one of its largest aerial assaults against Russia since the start of Moscow’s full-scale invasion, sending hundreds of drones toward targets across the country and killing at least six people, Russian officials said Sunday. The attacks reached areas near Moscow as well as the southwestern Rostov region, damaging … Read more
SANTA ANA ZIROSTO, Mexico, Aug 16 – Mexican avocado workers have returned to orchards and packing plants after the United States lifted a security-related suspension that had temporarily halted avocado exports from Michoacán, bringing relief to thousands of workers and producers whose incomes depend heavily on the trade. But while the reopening has restored daily … Read more
MAUMERE, Indonesia: A powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off Indonesia’s eastern coast early Saturday, killing at least 47 people, injuring dozens and leaving a trail of collapsed homes, damaged public buildings and landslides across Flores Island. The shallow earthquake triggered widespread panic as residents rushed from buildings and moved toward higher ground after authorities issued … Read more
WASHINGTON, Aug 14 – President Donald Trump on Friday dismissed concerns about the prolonged deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln, saying the aircraft carrier’s record-setting stretch at sea during U.S. military operations against Iran was “not nearly long enough.” The Lincoln has spent nearly nine months at sea, including more than 240 consecutive days away … Read more
DAMASCUS, Syria, Aug 11 – A Syrian criminal court on Tuesday sentenced former President Bashar Assad and his younger brother, Maher Assad, to death in absentia over crimes against humanity and war crimes committed during Syria’s 14-year conflict, a landmark judgment against the family that ruled the country for decades. The ruling marks the first … Read more
BOGOTA, Aug 11 – Rescue teams across western Colombia worked through a second day on Tuesday, searching collapsed buildings and damaged homes for survivors as authorities warned that the death toll from the country’s strongest earthquake in decades could increase. The 7.4-magnitude quake struck Colombia’s coffee-growing heartland early Monday, leaving at least 164 people dead … Read more
WASHINGTON/CAIRO, Aug 10 – Iran has tied any full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to a series of demands it wants the United States to address, even as Tehran says negotiations with Oman over a framework for restoring commercial shipping through the vital waterway are close to completion. Iranian officials said discussions with Oman … Read more