France inscribed the guaranteed right to abortion in its constitution Friday, a powerful message of support for women’s rights on International Women’s Day. Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti used a 19th-century printing press to seal the amendment in France’s constitution at a special public ceremony. Applause filled the cobblestoned Place Vendome as France became the first country to explicitly guarantee abortion rights in its national charter. The measure was overwhelmingl

US President Joe Biden launched a diatribe against former President Donald Trump over his stance on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, abortion rights, immigrants and other hot-button issues during the State of the Union address Thursday. Referring to Trump as "my predecessor," not by name, Biden used the bully pulpit to criticize Trump and highlight his economic and other achievements, as he is gearing up for an all-but-certain rematch with Trump, now the only key Republican pres

The world’s Muslims observe Ramadan, a month of spiritual discipline, by fasting and prayer during daylight hours. This year, it begins in the evening on March 10 and ends on April 9.

CHARLESTON, South Carolina -- Nikki Haley ended her long-shot challenge to Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump on Wednesday, ensuring the former president will be the party's candidate in a rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden in November's election. Haley, the former South Carolina governor and Trump's ambassador to the United Nations, bowed out a day after Super Tuesday, when Trump beat her in 14 of 15 Republican nominating contests. "The time has now co

WASHINGTON -- President Joe Biden and his predecessor, Donald Trump, were romping to coast-to-coast victories on Super Tuesday, all but cementing a November rematch and increasing pressure on the former president’s last major rival, Nikki Haley, to leave the Republican race. Biden and Trump had each won Texas, Alabama, Colorado, Maine, Oklahoma, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, Minnesota and Massachusetts. Biden also won the Democratic primaries in California, Utah, Vermont a

In a survey of Americans as to how to evaluate the former US presidents’ achievements, Joe Biden placed 14th, and Donald Trump was 45th - rock bottom. The survey “Presidential Greatness Project” was conducted by the University of Houston and Coastal Carolina University, and asked around 200 experts working on presidential politics for their preferences. In a scale of zero to 100, Biden received 62.66 points, while Trump scored 10.92 and placed lowest, below 44th-ranked single

Global defense spending rose 9 percent to reach a record $2.2 trillion amid multiple wars and ensuing uncertainties in 2023, a British military think tank said. The International Institute of Strategic Studies forecast that such budgets would increase further, considering the continued Russia-Ukraine war into a third year and international uncertainties surrounding the Middle East after the Gaza offensives. More than half of defense spending was made by NATO members, with US expenditure at

South Korea held the fourth-largest number of Starbucks stores around the globe as of last year, data showed, driven by solid demand from local consumers. South Korea held 1,893 Starbucks stores as of 2023, up 116 from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the US coffee giant. The figure falls just behind Japan’s count at 1,901, despite the Asian neighbor having a population twice the size of South Korea’s. The Seattle-based coffee giant introduced its first store in Se

Donald Trump on Saturday inched ahead in his quest to become the Republican Party's presidential nominee, winning internal party elections in the states of Missouri, Michigan and Idaho, US media reported. The former president has now won every state nominating contest heading into next week's "Super Tuesday," when voters in 15 US states choose their preferred candidate for each party. Trump has gained huge momentum in the race to capture the Republican nomination at the party

STOCKHOLM - Sweden on Monday cleared its final obstacle to joining NATO after Hungary's parliament ratified the bid in what Sweden's prime minister called a "historic day," while other alliance members expressed relief at the move spurred by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Sweden would make the alliance "stronger and safer" while the United States, the main alliance power, as well as Britain and Germany welcomed Sweden's now

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo reiterated Monday that "tough" talks have been under way with advanced semiconductor companies over grants to be awarded under a program to reinvigorate chip manufacturing in the United States. Speaking at a forum, Raimondo said that the US government has thus far received over 600 statements of interest from relevant companies, and that "leading-edge" companies alone have requested more than $70 billion in grants for their manufacturing pr

The number of new cancer cases will rise to more than 35 million in 2050 - 77 percent higher than the figure in 2022, the World Health Organization’s cancer agency has warned. The WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer cited the rapidly growing global cancer burden reflects both population aging and growth, as well as changes to people’s exposure to risk factors, several of which are associated with socioeconomic development. Tobacco, alcohol and obesity are key fact

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said on Monday he was resigning to allow for the formation of a broad consensus among Palestinians about political arrangements following Israel's war against the Islamist group Hamas in Gaza. The move comes amid growing US pressure on President Mahmoud Abbas to shake up the Palestinian Authority as international efforts have intensified to stop the fighting in Gaza and begin work on a political structure to govern the enclave after the war. His

Ukraine has marked 2 years since Russia’s full-scale invasion as Ukrainian forces run low on ammunition and weaponry and Western aid hangs in the balance. A somber mood hangs over the country as the war against Russia enters its third year, and Kyiv’s troops face mounting challenges on the front line amid dwindling ammunition supplies and personnel challenges, and having withdrawn from a strategic eastern city that handed Moscow one of its biggest victories. Kyiv International Instit

CHARLESTON, South Carolina -- Donald Trump cruised to a lightning victory Saturday in South Carolina's Republican primary, blitzing rival Nikki Haley in her home state and continuing his march to the nomination and a White House rematch with Joe Biden in November. Trump completed a sweep of the first four major nominating contests, converting a year of blockbuster polls into a likely insurmountable lead going into the "Super Tuesday" 15-state voting bonanza in 10 days. Haley had v