By DAVID KLEPPER and KRUTIKA PATHI (Associated Press) NEW DELHI (AP) — Bollywood stars seldom weigh in on politics, so videos showing two celebrities criticizing Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi — and endorsing his main opposition, the Congress party — were bound to go viral. But the clips of A-list actors Aamir Khan and Ranveer Singh were fake, AI-generated videos that were yet another example of the false or misleading claims swirling online with the goal of influencing India’s election. Both actors filed complaints with police but such actions do little to stanch the flow of such misinfo ..read more

By MARIA CHENG and CHRISTINA MALKIA (Associated Press) KINSHASA, Congo — Congo is struggling to contain its biggest mpox outbreak, and scientists say a new form of the disease detected in a mining town might more easily spread among people. Since January, Congo has reported more than 4,500 suspected mpox cases and nearly 300 deaths, numbers that have roughly tripled from the same period last year, according to the World Health Organization. Congo recently declared the outbreak across the country a health emergency. An analysis of patients hospitalized between October and January in Kamituga, e ..read more

By BASSEM MROUE and LEE KEATH (Associated Press) BEIRUT — Hamas on Thursday was considering the latest proposal for a cease-fire with Israel that the United States and other mediators hope will avert an Israeli attack on the Gaza town of Rafah. But chances for the deal are entangled with the question of whether Israel can accept an end to the war without reaching its stated goal of destroying Hamas. The stakes in the cease-fire negotiations were made clear in a new U.N. report that said if the war in Gaza stops today, it will still take until 2040 to rebuild all the homes that have been destro ..read more

By TIA GOLDENBERG (Associated Press) TEL AVIV, Israel — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged Tuesday to launch an incursion into the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are sheltering from the almost 7-month-long war, just as cease-fire negotiations between Israel and Hamas appear to be gaining steam. Netanyahu’s comments came hours before U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrives in Israel to advance the truce talks — which appear to be one of the most serious rounds of negotiations between Israel and Hamas since the war began. The deal i ..read more

Several hundred protesters gathered on Denver’s Auraria Campus on Thursday, setting up an encampment and demanding the University of Colorado divest from activities and funding related to Israel. Protesters pitched more than a dozen tents and carried in food and water to the Tivoli Quad as organizers led chants, gave legal advice and pledged to stay until CU officials met their demands. The protest mirrored those at universities across the country responding to the war between Israel and Hamas. Members of Students for a Democratic Society’s Denver chapter said campus officials warned them poli ..read more

By JILL LAWLESS (Associated Press) LONDON — It’s springtime in Europe — time for the annual blossoming of spectacle and sound known as the Eurovision Song Contest. Taking place in May in Malmö, Sweden, the 68th annual competition will see acts from 37 countries vie for the continent’s pop crown in a feelgood extravaganza that strives — not always successfully – to banish international strife and division. And you don’t have to be in Europe to watch, or to help pick the winner. Here’s a guide to all things Eurovision. WHAT IS EUROVISION? On one level, it’s simple: Eurovision is an international ..read more

By ISABEL DEBRE and ALMUDENA CALATRAVA (Associated Press) ROSARIO, Argentina (AP) — The order to kill came from inside a federal prison near Argentina’s capital. Unwitting authorities patched a call from drug traffickers tied to one of the country’s most notorious gangs to collaborators on the outside. Hiring a 15-year-old hit man, they sealed the fate of a young father they didn’t even know. At a service station on March 9 in Rosario, the picturesque hometown of soccer star Lionel Messi, 25-year-old employee Bruno Bussanich was whistling to himself and checking the day’s earnings just before ..read more

By SAMYA KULLAB and ELISE MORTON (Associated Press) KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian and Western leaders on Sunday welcomed a desperately needed aid package passed by the U.S. House of Representatives, as the Kremlin warned that passage of the bill would “further ruin” Ukraine and cause more deaths. Ukrainian commanders and analysts say the long-awaited $61 billion military aid package — including $13.8 billion for Ukraine to buy weapons — will help slow Russia’s incremental advances in the war’s third year — but that more will likely be needed for Kyiv to regain the offensive. The House swiftly ..read more

By MOHAMMAD JAHJOUH and SAMY MAGDY (Associated Press) RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes on the southern Gaza city of Rafah overnight killed 22 people, including 18 children, health officials said Sunday, as the United States was on track to approve billions of dollars of additional military aid to Israel, its close ally. Israel has carried out near-daily air raids on Rafah, where more than half of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million has sought refuge from fighting elsewhere. It has also vowed to expand its ground offensive against the Hamas militant group to the city on the border with Egy ..read more

By JON GAMBRELL (Associated Press) DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The United Arab Emirates struggled Thursday to recover from the heaviest recorded rainfall ever to hit the desert nation, as its main airport worked to restore normal operations even as floodwater still covered portions of major highways and roads. Dubai International Airport, the world’s busiest for international travel, allowed global carriers on Thursday morning to again fly into Terminal 1 at the airfield. “Flights continue to be delayed and disrupted, so we urge you to only come to Terminal 1 if you have a confirmed booking ..read more