Browsing: News

WASHINGTON: Newly compiled U.S. State Department data show the country issued about 250,000 fewer immigrant and nonimmigrant visas from January through August 2025 than in the same period a year earlier. That amounted to an 11% decline in permanent and temporary visas excluding tourist visas, which also fell during the period. The lower totals stretched across student, exchange, worker and family-linked categories at U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide, showing a broad slowdown in legal visa issuance during the first eight months of 2025. India and China were among the hardest-hit markets, with their nationals receiving roughly 84,000 fewer visas than in the comparable 2024…

NEW YORK: Encyclopaedia Britannica and Merriam-Webster have sued OpenAI in Manhattan federal court, accusing the artificial intelligence company of using nearly 100,000 online encyclopedia and dictionary entries without permission to train ChatGPT. The complaint, filed on March 13 in the Southern District of New York, says OpenAI copied copyrighted reference material at scale and used it in systems that generate answers for paying and nonpaying users. The plaintiffs are seeking monetary damages, a permanent injunction and a jury trial. The lawsuit names multiple OpenAI entities, including OpenAI Inc., OpenAI LP, OpenAI LLC and OpenAI Group PBC. Britannica and Merriam-Webster allege copyright infringement and…

HAWAII: A powerful burst of lava fountaining from Kilauea forced officials to close Hawaii Volcanoes National Park’s summit area and a stretch of Highway 11 on Hawaii Island after volcanic debris and ash began falling across visitor overlooks, roadways and nearby communities. Park rangers evacuated visitors from summit viewpoints as conditions deteriorated Tuesday, March 10, with tephra covering pavement, obscuring road markings and creating skid hazards for vehicles. The U.S. Geological Survey’s Hawaiian Volcano Observatory said Episode 43 began at 9:17 a.m. HST from vents inside Halemaumau crater, sending twin lava fountains high above the caldera floor and producing a growing plume. The observatory raised…

HONOLULU: Hawaii authorities moved into storm preparations on Monday after Governor Josh Green declared a state of emergency and the National Weather Service issued a flood watch for parts of the island chain ahead of a powerful Kona storm expected to bring heavy rain, flooding, thunderstorms and damaging winds this week. The emergency proclamation covers the entire state and is intended to speed coordination across agencies as conditions begin to deteriorate from west to east. The National Weather Service said the first impacts were expected to reach Niihau and Kauai on Tuesday, then spread to Oahu by Tuesday evening and Maui County on Wednesday.…

NEW YORK: A coalition of 24 U.S. states filed a lawsuit on March 5 seeking to block President Donald Trump’s latest round of global import tariffs, arguing the administration lacks legal authority to impose the duties. The case was filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade, which has nationwide jurisdiction over disputes involving customs and international trade. The states asked the court for a swift order halting collection of the tariffs and for other relief tied to duties already collected. The lawsuit challenges a 10% import surcharge that applies broadly to goods entering the United States under Section 122 of the Trade Act of…

NEW YORK: A powerful winter storm dumped heavy snow and blasted the U.S. Northeast with high winds, closing schools, restricting travel and snarling transportation from major highways to busy airports. Officials in multiple cities and states declared emergencies and urged residents to stay off the roads as crews worked to clear streets and restore service. Meteorologists described the system as the strongest in a decade for parts of the region, with whiteout conditions reported as snowfall intensified Monday and cleanup continued into Tuesday. Air travel was among the hardest hit. Airlines and flight-tracking services reported more than 8,000 U.S. flight cancellations and delays on Monday,…

TRUCKEE: Recovery crews have recovered the bodies of all nine backcountry skiers killed in a powerful avalanche near Castle Peak in the Lake Tahoe region, ending a four-day search complicated by severe winter weather and unstable snow conditions. The Nevada County Sheriff’s Office said the last of the victims was recovered Saturday, Feb. 21, after responders used helicopters and tracked vehicles to reach the slide area. Officials said six other members of the party survived. The group was part of a guided trip operating out of the Frog Lake huts. The sheriff’s office identified the victims as Andrew Alissandratos, 34, of Verdi, Nevada;…

VIRGINIA: Robert Duvall, the Oscar-winning American actor whose performances ranged from the steady consigliere Tom Hagen in The Godfather films to the broken singer at the center of Tender Mercies, has died. He was 95. Duvall died peacefully at his home in Middleburg, Virginia, on Sunday, Feb. 15, according to a statement issued by his wife, Luciana Duvall, and an announcement from his publicist. No cause of death was given. His work in film, television and theater spanned more than six decades. Born Jan. 5, 1931, in San Diego, California, Duvall was raised in a U.S. Navy family and spent part of his childhood on the…

NEW YORK: United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on the international community to overcome divisions and step up support for people in need as Ramadan approaches, urging action to protect human rights and dignity amid conflicts and humanitarian crises. In a message delivered by UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric at UN Headquarters in New York, Guterres described Ramadan as a sacred period of reflection and prayer that embodies a vision of hope and peace. He said that vision remains out of reach for many people, citing continued suffering linked to conflict, hunger, displacement and discrimination in multiple regions. Guterres urged people to “bridge divides” and…

DETROIT: President Donald Trump has threatened to block the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge, a major new U.S.-Canada crossing between Detroit and Windsor, unless Canada agrees to terms he outlined on social media. Trump said the bridge should not open until the United States is “fully compensated” and said the U.S. should own at least part of the project, describing a 50% stake as a possible benchmark. In his post, Trump tied the bridge dispute to broader trade complaints with Canada. He cited tariffs on U.S. dairy products and what he described as limited shelf space for some U.S. alcoholic beverages…