By Sharon Bernstein and Julia Harte (Reuters) -Iowa’s Republican-controlled legislature passed a bill in a special session on Tuesday banning abortions as soon as fetal cardiac activity can be detected, after around six weeks of pregnancy and before most women know they are pregnant. The ban is expected to swiftly be signed into law by…
By Lisa Richwine LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -Negotiators for the SAG-AFTRA actors union agreed late Tuesday to call in a federal mediator to try to forge a last-minute agreement with Hollywood studios and avoid a second simultaneous strike in the entertainment business. The 160,000 members of SAG-AFTRA, Hollywood’s largest union, have authorized a strike if a…
HAVANA (Reuters) – Cuba’s National Assembly said on Wednesday it “strongly condemns” a resolution by the European Parliament, which criticized the country’s human rights record and called for EU sanctions against Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and other top officials. “The European Parliament lacks the moral, political and legal authority to judge Cuba,” Cuba’s parliament said…
By Steve Holland VILNIUS (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Wednesday that he looks forward to the day he can welcome Ukraine to NATO, aiming to take the sting out of recent comments that now was not the time for Ukrainian membership in the military alliance. “Your resilience and…
By Abhirup Roy SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Texas again deferred a vote on grants of federal funds to build electric vehicle chargers to Aug. 16 amid pushback from some charging companies over its plan to include Tesla’s technology in charging stations, according to three sources. A spokesperson at Texas’ department of transportation confirmed that the…
By Oliver Griffin BOGOTA (Reuters) – Deforestation in Colombia fell 29.1% in 2022 versus the previous year spurred by sharp decreases in the country’s Amazon region, the government said on Wednesday, marking the lowest level since 2013. The government of leftist President Gustavo Petro says it is prioritizing protecting Colombia’s environment and has called on…
By Mark Trevelyan (Reuters) -The Wagner mercenary group is completing its handover of weapons to Russia’s regular armed forces, the Defence Ministry said on Wednesday, more than two weeks after the group staged a brief armed mutiny. In a statement accompanied by video showing tanks, rockets and other heavy weapons, the ministry said Wagner had…
By Diane Bartz and Frank Pingue WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal tore into a “repressive” Saudi regime on Tuesday and called the PGA Tour’s framework agreement with the country’s Public Investment Fund an attempt by Saudi Arabia’s government to “buy influence” in U.S. sports. Blumenthal delivered his harsh criticism during a three-hour hearing where…
By James Oliphant, Gram Slattery and Alexandra Ulmer WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’ campaign is making a high-risk bet that it can halt Donald Trump’s march to the Republican presidential nomination by winning the key state of Iowa next January, despite the former president’s commanding lead in polls and growing questions about DeSantis’…
By William Schomberg LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s economy is showing some signs of strain from the Bank of England’s 13 back-to-back interest rate increases, but the jobs market is still generating inflationary heat and consumers have not reined in their spending sharply. The BoE is expected to keep on raising borrowing costs as it tries…
