A powerful 7.8-magnitude earthquake has rocked large parts of Turkey and neighboring Syria.The earthquake, which hit Turkey and parts of northwestern Syria on Monday, has so far killed more than 2,600 people and left thousands injured or homeless, hampering efforts to find survivors.There are reports of many buildings collapsing and efforts are being made to find residents trapped under the piles of rubble.Rescuers on both sides of the border continued to search on Monday and officials feared the death toll could rise.It was Turkey's worst earthquake this century and came before sunrise in bit

Investigators searching for a motive in the worst mass shooting in Los Angeles County history say a search of the gunman's home discovered a rifle, hundreds of rounds of ammunition and evidence he was manufacturing gun silencers. Los Angeles Sheriff Robert Luna said Monday that investigators have not yet established Huu Can Tran's motive in the massacre, which happened during a celebration of Lunar New Year at a Monterey Park dance hall. The assailant fired 42 rounds at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio, where 11 people were killed and nine wounded. Luna says a hero later disarmed the gunman, wh

U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been fined by police for taking off his seat belt to film a social media video in a moving car. Sunak has apologized for making an ``error of judgment'' while filming a message for Instagram from the back of an official government car during a visit to northwest England on Thursday. Lancashire Police said Friday it has looked into the video and ``issued a 42-year-old man from London with a conditional offer of fixed penalty.'' The conditional offer means that the person fined accepts guilt but doesn't have to go to court. Police didn't say how much Sunak wa

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Thursday she is stepping down as New Zealand's leader and will not contest this year's general elections. Fighting back tears, Ardern told reporters in Napier that Feb. 7 will be her last day in office. ``I am entering now my sixth year in office, and for each of those years, I have given my absolute all,'' she said. Ardern described her job as among the most privileged but challenging jobs and said doing it required having a reserve to face the unexpected. She said she no longer had that reserve to face another term in office.

China's government is not happy that Canada and other countries are creating new COVID-19 restrictions for people flying from China. Beginning Thursday, Canada will require air travellers from China to have a recent negative test, similar to the US and some European countries. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman says those rules are based on politics instead of science, and that some policies are ``disproportionate and simply unacceptable.'' China lifted many of its strict COVID-19 policies last month, sparking a wave of infections.

Pele, Brazil's mighty king of soccer, has died. He was 82. Since 2021, he had been undergoing treatment for colon cancer discovered during a routine medical exam. Pele was one of the most commanding sports figures of the last century. He won a record three World Cups with Brazil and was the standard-bearer of ``the beautiful game'' with the national team and his club Santos. His exuberance and mesmerizing moves transfixed generations of fans around the globe. His flair personified his country's samba-style elegance. Late in his career, he helped popularize soccer in North America by joining t

Authorities say an intruder attacked the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with a hammer in the couple's San Francisco home early Friday, searching for the Democratic leader and shouting, ``Where is Nancy, where is Nancy?'' The assault came 11 days before the heated midterm elections. Police say they were called to the couple's home, where they discovered David DePape and Paul Pelosi struggling over a hammer, and then the intruder beat Pelosi with it before being subdued. Nancy Pelosi was in Washington at the time of the attack and returned late Friday to California. The attacker's shouts

Former Treasury chief Rishi Sunak is set to become Britain's next prime minister after winning the Conservative leadership race. He now faces the huge task of stabilizing the party and country at a time of economic and political turbulence. He will be Britain's first leader of color, and the nation's third leader just this year. Sunak will take over as prime minister from Liz Truss. She quit last week after 45 tumultuous days in office, leaving a staggering economy and a shell-shocked and divided party. His only rival conceded and withdrew after failing to reach the nomination threshold of 10

Police say a 15-year-old boy fatally shot two people in the streets of a neighborhood in North Carolina's capital city, then fled toward a walking trail, where he killed three more people and wounded two others. Raleigh police Chief Estella Patterson said Friday that the teen is hospitalized in critical condition following the shootings late Thursday afternoon. Those killed were of different races and ranged in age from 16 to their late 50s. The dead include off-duty Raleigh police Officer Gabriel Torres, who was on his way to work when the shooting began. The teen eluded officers for hours b