North America

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden acknowledged that the pandemic has left Americans exhausted and demoralized but insisted at a news conference marking his first year in office that he has “outperformed” expectations in dealing with it.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Voting legislation that Democrats and civil rights leaders say is vital to protecting democracy collapsed when two senators refused to join their own party in changing Senate rules to overcome a Republican filibuster after a raw, emotional debate.

The outcome Wednesday night was a stinging defeat for President Joe Biden and his party, coming at the tumultuous close to his first year in office.

OTTAWA, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Canada fears armed conflict could break out in Ukraine and is working with allies to make clear to Russia that any more aggression towards Kiev is unacceptable, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said earlier that Russia could launch a new attack on Ukraine at "very short notice". Moscow, which has stationed military equipment and tens of thousands of troops near the border, denies it is planning an invasion and blames the West for rising tensions.

UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on Tuesday called for strategies and investment to ensure women's full and meaningful participation in peace processes.

Between 1992 and 2019, only 13 percent of negotiators, 6 percent of mediators and 6 percent of signatories in major peace processes worldwide were women, she said.

NEW YORK (AP) — The man accused of pushing a woman to her death in a New York City subway station was arraigned on a murder charge Wednesday and ordered held without bail.

Simon Martial, 61, was charged with second-degree murder in the death of Michelle Alyssa Go, who was shoved in front of a subway train in the Times Square station on Saturday.

A mental fitness exam was ordered for Martial, who authorities said was on parole for a prior felony conviction at the time of the attack. His next court date is Feb. 23.

WASHINGTON (AP) — During his first year in office, President Joe Biden took action on a number of his key campaign promises, from rebuilding U.S. alliances globally to distributing vaccines across America and the world.

But others remain works in progress or dependent on Congress to address. That’s particularly true of his promises to reform the nation’s immigration system, where Biden is caught between the demands of his Democratic base and Latino voters and the realities of a steep influx of migrants to the U.S.

(AP) --- Although the FBI initially said the man who held four people hostage at a Texas synagogue was focused on an issue “not specifically related to the Jewish community,” the captor voiced beliefs that Jews controlled the world and had the power to arrange the release of a prisoner, survivors said after their escape.

The gunman’s words were all too familiar to Jewish leaders and terror experts, who saw the attack on Congregation Beth Israel as yet another in the rising number of antisemitic hate crimes, a sign of the continued need of vigilance and interfaith solidarity.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration will begin making 400 million N95 masks available for free to Americans starting next week, now that federal officials are emphasizing their better protection against the omicron variant of COVID-19 over cloth face coverings.

WASHINGTON (AP) — One year into a presidency defined by lofty ambitions and at-times frustrating shortfalls, President Joe Biden will try to talk anxious Americans through the challenges of delivering on his lengthy to-do list as he holds a rare news conference and asks for patience with the pace of progress.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has rallied European allies to pledge as one that they will take tough measures against Russia if it rolls troops into Ukraine. But when it comes to what exactly the United States and Europe are willing to do, the allies don’t look as ringingly united.