LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peru declared an environmental emergency on Thursday after announcing that 21 beaches on the Pacific coast were contaminated by an oil spill at a refinery run by Spain-based Repsol, following surging waves caused by the eruption of an underwater volcano near Tonga. Read more
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazilian samba singer Elza Soares died in her Rio de Janeiro home on Thursday afternoon, family members said on the artist's official Instagram account. She was 91. Read more
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — An Islamic State-linked extremist group accused of killing hundreds in northeast Nigeria has released a video purporting to show child soldiers executing two men identified as members of the Nigerian military. Read more
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Thursday said he spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin about cooperation between the two countries. Read more
PARIS (AP) — French energy conglomerate TotalEnergies has asked the American and French governments to support targeted sanctions against Myanmar's oil and gas funds, the largest single source of income for the country's military leaders. Read more
BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Trying to defuse large protests by environmentalists, Serbia’s populist government said Thursday that it was canceling all licenses for mining giant Rio Tinto to open a lithium mine in the Balkan country. Read more
HAVANA (AP) — Cuban courts have wrapped up the hearing phase of six mass trials for people accused of involvement in the largest and most unruly protests on the island in decades, leaving more than 100 defendants awaiting potentially heavy sentences. Read more
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Belarus' authoritarian president has called a referendum next month on constitutional amendments, which could allow him to further cement his grip on power after months of mass protests and remain in office until 2035. Read more
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The former producer of Dutch talent show “The Voice of Holland” apologized Thursday after allegations of sexually inappropriate conduct linked to the ratings blockbuster were aired. Police and prosecutors called reports of the alleged abuse “disturbing” and urge… Read more
ACCRA, Ghana (AP) — A vehicle carrying explosives used in mining collided with a motorcycle and blew up in western Ghana on Thursday, causing an unknown number of fatalities and injuring scores of people, police said. Read more
VIENNA (AP) — Austrian parliament approves national COVID-19 vaccine mandate for adults effective Feb. 1. Read more
PODGORICA, Montenegro (AP) — Faced with a no-confidence motion, Montenegro's embattled government on Thursday called for an early election to be held in the Balkan country. Read more
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Treasury Department levied new sanctions Thursday against four Ukrainian officials, including two current members of parliament who administration officials say are part of a Russian influence effort to set the pretext for further invasion of Ukraine. Read more
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. General Assembly approved an Israeli-sponsored resolution Thursday condemning any denial of the Holocaust and urging all nations and social media companies “to take active measures to combat antisemitism and Holocaust denial or distortion.” Read more
TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Tunisia’s moderate Islamist party has blamed the death of one of its party members who was hospitalized following protests last week on the “excessive violence” of the security forces. Read more
BERLIN (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday that talks with Iran over its nuclear program are at a “decisive moment,” but warned that if a deal is not reached in the coming weeks then Washington and its allies may change tactics. Read more
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The United Nations says food distribution in Ethiopia’s blockaded Tigray region has reached its “all-time lowest” while more than 50,000 children are thought to be severely malnourished, the latest sign of growing crisis amid efforts to end the country’s 14-month war. Read more
PARIS (AP) — France's government spokesman said Thursday that more than 1 million adults got their first COVID-19 vaccine shot over the past month, after the government announced a plan to exclude unvaccinated people from all restaurants, sports arenas and other venues. Read more
LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Portugal’s government is under fire over its plans to let people infected with COVID-19 cast their ballots at polling stations in an upcoming election, as officials struggle to square the right to vote with the duty to protect public health. Read more
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — At least 2.8 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines donated to African countries have expired, the Africa Centers for Disease Control said Thursday, citing short shelf lives as the major reason. Read more
LONDON (AP) — Online companies would have to ramp up efforts to keep harmful content off their platforms and take other steps to protect users under rules that European Union lawmakers are set to vote on Thursday. Read more
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia’s leader said Thursday that his country, which holds the presidency of the Group of 20 biggest economies this year, sought to strengthen global partnership and inclusiveness to aid the economic recovery amid a resurging COVID-19 pandemic. Read more
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The European Union is ordering Poland to pay a fine of nearly 70 million euros ($80 million) for its failure to shut down a disciplinary chamber with the power to suspend or otherwise punish judges for their rulings, an official said Thursday. Read more
LJUBLJANA, Slovenia (AP) — Slovenia is set to hold a parliamentary election on April 24, the president said Thursday. Read more
BERLIN (AP) — Germany's foreign minister said Thursday that the country's diplomats during the Nazi era shared blame for the Holocaust and she wants more training for staff to speak up against all forms of discrimination. Read more
LONDON (AP) — A lawmaker from Britain’s governing Conservatives accused the government on Thursday of blackmailing opponents of Prime Minister Boris Johnson, as the party's internal rifts deepened. Read more
BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand will ease entry requirements for vaccinated visitors from all countries next month as concerns about the omicron variant of the coronavirus decline, officials said Thursday. Read more
KORTRIJK, Belgium (AP) — The 19-year-old Belgian-British pilot Zara Rutherford set a world record as the youngest woman to fly solo around the world, touching her small airplane down in western Belgium on Thursday — 155 days after she departed. Read more
KORTRIJK, Belgium (AP) — The 19-year-old pilot Zara Rutherford lands in Belgium, sets world record as youngest woman to fly solo around the world. Read more
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — A dispute over COVID-19 testing fees for truckers has created a fuel crisis in Uganda, highlighting an economic impact of the pandemic in a landlocked country with virtually no fuel reserves of its own. Read more
GENEVA (AP) — A U.N.-backed organization announced Thursday that it has signed agreements with more than two dozen generic drug makers to produce versions of Merck's COVID-19 pill to supply 105 developing countries. Read more
BERLIN (AP) — A long-awaited report on sexual abuse in Germany's Munich diocese on Thursday faulted retired Pope Benedict XVI's handling of four cases when he was archbishop in the 1970s and 1980s. The law firm that drew up the report said that Benedict strongly denies any wrongdoing. Read more
ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s central bank kept a key interest rate unchanged on Thursday, halting a string of rate cuts that triggered a currency crisis and sent consumer prices skyrocketing. Read more
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel's police chief said Thursday that he had ordered an extensive investigation into a newspaper's claims that the force had used controversial Israeli spyware to hack the phones of protesters, mayors and other citizens under investigation without proper authorization. Read more
BERLIN (AP) — Report faults retired Pope Benedict XVI for his handling of sexual abuse cases when he was an archbishop in Germany. Read more
BERLIN (AP) — Top American and European diplomats are meeting in Berlin on Thursday as the allies seek to project a united front to Russia over concerns that it may be planning an invasion of Ukraine. Read more
MONROVIA, Liberia (AP) — At least 29 people in Liberia, including 11 children and a pregnant woman, have died in a stampede of worshippers at a Christian ceremony in a densely populated area of the capital, Monrovia, officials said Thursday. Read more
OSLO, Norway (AP) — A prosecutor in Norway said Thursday that a far-right extremist who killed 77 people in 2011 still is “a very dangerous man” and therefore a poor candidate for release after 10 years in prison, as Norwegian law permits. Read more
BERLIN (AP) — Germany's health minister expects the number of coronavirus infections in the country to keep rising for several weeks before peaking next month. Read more
MOSCOW (AP) — Russia accused the West on Thursday of plotting “provocations” in Ukraine even as it blames Moscow of planning aggressive military action in the neighboring country. Read more
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Long-haul carrier Emirates said Thursday it would resume its Boeing 777 flights to the U.S. after halting its use of the aircraft there over an ongoing dispute over the rollout of new 5G services in America. Read more
BERLIN (AP) — Hardy Kruger, considered one of post-war Germany’s best actors, has died. He was 93. Read more
LONDON (AP) — British police say they have arrested two people in connection with a hostage-taking at a synagogue in Texas. Read more
BANGKOK (AP) — As the massive undersea Hunga Tonga Hunga Ha’apai volcano erupted on Saturday, Tongans from around the world gazed on as their relatives livestreamed images of billowing clouds of ash, gas and steam emerging from beneath the depths. Read more
VIENNA (AP) — Austria's parliament is due to vote Thursday on introducing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for adults, the first of its kind in Europe. Read more
Some European countries such as Spain are making tentative plans for when they might start treating COVID-19 as an “endemic” disease, but the World Health Organization and other officials have warned that the world is nowhere close to declaring the pandemic over. A look at what endemic means… Read more
LONDON (AP) — Some Conservative lawmakers in Britain are talking about ousting their leader, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who has been tarnished by allegations that he and his staff held lockdown-breaching parties during the coronavirus pandemic. Read more
ALBUQUERQUE (AP) — A proposal to overhaul New Mexico’s social studies standards has stirred debate over how race should be taught in schools, with thousands of parents and teachers weighing in on changes that would dramatically increase instruction related to racial and social identity begin… Read more
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand is among the few remaining countries to have avoided any outbreaks of the omicron variant — but Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Thursday an outbreak was inevitable and the nation would tighten restrictions as soon as one was detected. Read more
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is not planning to answer a further Russian invasion of Ukraine by sending combat troops. But he could pursue a range of less dramatic yet still risky military options, including supporting a post-invasion Ukrainian resistance. Read more
