Politician person

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s president began consultations with members of parliamentary blocs on Thursday to name a new prime minister following last month’s parliamentary elections. Outgoing Prime Minister Najib Mikati is widely expected to get the largest support from legislators to form a new Cabinet that will be in power until the end of October when President Michel Aoun’s six-year term expires. Such a short tenure could make it difficult for the billionaire premier to form a Cabinet since it usually takes months to form a government in Lebanon due to political bickering. Another candidate for the post is Lebanon’s former ambassador to the U.N. Nawaf Salam, who is backed by some independents as well as the nationalist Kataeb Party and the bloc backed by Druze leader Walid Joumblatt. The new government’s main mission will be to continue talks with the International Monetary Fund over an economic recovery plan for Lebanon, which is in the grip of its worst economic and financial … [Read more...] about Lebanon’s president holds consultations to name premier

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 9 DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Water levels were slowly receding Thursday in major rivers in Bangladesh's flood-hit northeast, bringing hopes of relief to millions of Bangladeshis, but woes continued in India’s northeast, where 5.5 million people remained affected, officials said. Up to 78 people have died in floods and 17 others in landslides in India’s Assam state, while at least 42 monsoon-related deaths have been recorded in Bangladesh since last month, when floods began ravaging parts of the two South Asian countries, forcing millions to take shelter away from their homes. Bangladesh's Flood Forecasting and Warning Center said water in all major rivers in the country’s northeast was receding, but downstream water levels in central and eastern parts of the country could rise over the coming day. Aid workers said the pace of decline in water levels … [Read more...] about Water receding slowly in flood-hit northeast Bangladesh

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 20 LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson suffered a double blow as voters rejected his Conservative Party in two special parliamentary elections dominated by questions about his leadership and ethics. He was further wounded when the party's chairman quit after the results came out early Friday, saying Conservatives “cannot carry on with business as usual,” and a former party leader said the country needed "new leadership.” The centrist Liberal Democrats overturned a big Conservative majority to win the rural southwest England seat of Tiverton and Honiton, while the main opposition Labour Party reclaimed Wakefield in northern England from Johnson's Tories. The contests, triggered by the resignations of Conservative lawmakers hit by sex scandals, offered voters the … [Read more...] about UK Conservatives lose 2 elections in blow to Boris Johnson

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 11 TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court's decision allowing states to ban abortion stirred alarm Friday among LGBTQ advocates, who feared that the ruling could someday allow a rollback of legal protections for gay relationships, including the right for same-sex couples to marry. In the court's majority opinion overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, Justice Samuel Alito said the decision applied only to abortion. But critics of the court's conservative majority gave the statement no credence. “I don’t buy that at all,” said Lawrence Gostin, a professor of medicine at Georgetown University and faculty director of its Institute for National and Global Health Law. “It really is much more extreme than the justices are making it out to be.” He added: “It means that you can’t look to the Supreme Court as an impartial arbiter of … [Read more...] about With Roe over, some fear rollback of LGBTQ and other rights

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 11 PHOENIX (AP) — Police fired tear gas to disperse anti-abortion demonstrators from outside the Arizona Capitol Friday night, forcing lawmakers to huddle briefly in a basement inside the building as they rushed to complete their 2022 session. Thousands of protesters had gathered earlier on the Capitol grounds in Phoenix, divided into groups both supporting and condemning the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade. SWAT team members with the Department of Public Safety fired tear gas from second floor of the old Capitol building to disperse protesters in the mall between the current House and Senate buildings. KPHO-TV reported the officers opened fire when several anti-abortion protesters started banging on glass doors of the Senate building. Authorities said there were no injuries or arrests. The incident sent … [Read more...] about Roe protest disrupts last hours of 2022 Arizona Legislature

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 5 OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Just hours after a judge sentences an ex-congressman from Nebraska for lying to federal agents, voters in his district are expected to elect a different conservative Republican to represent the GOP-dominated district. Former U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry will learn Tuesday in a Los Angeles courtroom whether he'll get prison time for misleading the FBI about $30,000 in illegal, foreign contributions to his campaign. Back in Nebraska, voters in the nine-term Republican's district will head to the polls to pick a new representative. Two state lawmakers, Republican Mike Flood and Democrat Patty Pansing Brooks, are running for the seat in the eastern Nebraska district. Flood appears to have a strong edge in the district, which includes Lincoln, parts of suburban Omaha and dozens of smaller, more conservative towns. The district has nearly 68,000 more … [Read more...] about Nebraska to replace GOP ex-congressman on day of sentencing