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Fragile but unbroken, Afghan glassblowers refuse to quit
Seated in front of a searing furnace, Ghulam Sakhi Saifi teases forth sinews of molten blue glass -- the guardian of an Afghan glassblowing trade refusing to break with tradition. But when the furnace is lit, Saifi is in his element.
Volcanic eruption grounds flights in New Zealand
A volcanic eruption belched a plume of ash that grounded flights in New Zealand on Thursday, with government scientists warning it could continue venting for "weeks to months" to come. "This activity could continue for some time, weeks to months," they warned.
Australian penguin dies, ending famous 'same-sex power couple'
A celebrated Australian penguin famous for raising chicks as part of an unlikely same-sex couple has died, a Sydney aquarium said on Thursday. Sealife Aquarium said Sphen -- the older partner in the "same-sex" penguin "power couple" -- had died just shy of turning 12, considered a long life in captivity.
Mpox disease presents hard-to-weigh risks
As fears mount globally about mpox, apparently simple questions such as the danger it poses and differences between variants do not have clear and simple answers. But researchers call for caution before drawing conclusions, even with apparently clear-cut figures.
Pole vault king Duplantis continues winning ways post-Olympics
Armand Duplantis picked up from where he left off at his world record-setting, gold medal-winning showing at the Paris Olympics by dominating the men's pole vault at the Lausanne Diamond League meet on Wednesday. Duplantis defended his Olympic gold in the Stade de France in some style, improving his own world record to 6.25 metres.
Strange produce: smugglers disguise meth as melons in US
Smugglers disguised $5 million worth of methamphetamine as watermelons and tried to truck them across the border from Mexico, US border agents said. Border agents pulled over the produce-laden tractor-trailer at Otay Mesa in California on Friday and got in amongst the cargo for a closer look.
Anger, despair as Israelis bury hostages who died in captivity
Tearful crowds gathered on Wednesday for the funerals of hostages whose bodies were recovered this week from war-torn Gaza, with some mourners voicing anger that they were not saved. The crowd quickly dispersed to attend the funeral of Avraham Munder, 79, another hostage whose body was recovered on Tuesday, in the nearby Nir Oz kibbutz.
Prosecutor takes aim at president's immunity in power struggle
Guatemala's US-sanctioned chief prosecutor sought Wednesday to strip President Bernardo Arevalo of immunity, the latest move in a power struggle that began with Arevalo's election on an anti-graft platform last year. On Wednesday, Curruchiche told reporters he had filed a request to the country's Supreme Court to consider stripping Arevalo of his presidential immunity from prosecution.
Keeping the faith -- and getting voters: Democrats get religion in Chicago
Politicians often find themselves praying for victory but at the Democratic National Convention, leaders from the different religious faiths are taking the more earthly route of signing up voters. Most aren't proselytizing -- the goal tends to be getting religious people to vote, rather than getting voters to be religious.
Venezuela at a crossroads: democracy or dictatorship
Venezuela is at a crossroads, with the government of strongman Nicolas Maduro doubling down on his disputed reelection victory and the opposition vowing to resist "to the end." These are the avenues that could yield an outcome, one way or another: - Protest - The opposition has vowed it will "not leave the streets" and to "fight to the end" as one way to maintain pressure, though there have not been sustained demonstrations.
Democrats seek to draw rural voters away from Trump
Democrats, reinvigorated by the presidential candidacy of Kamala Harris, are honing a message to woo rural voters away from Republican Donald Trump. Democrats have struggled to attract rural Americans since the 2016 presidential election, when Trump defeated Hillary Clinton, largely on the strength of rural and working-class voters who had historically voted Democratic but switched sides.
US jobs data point to weaker than expected market
The US jobs market was probably cooler than expected in the year through March, Labor Department data showed Wednesday, signaling weaker but still-positive growth. "The nuance there is very important," he added, telling AFP the data "does not point to a weak labor market."
Five bodies found, one still missing in UK tycoon shipwreck
Divers searching for six people missing after a superyacht sank off Sicily, including UK tech tycoon Mike Lynch, on Wednesday pulled four bodies from the wreck and reportedly found a fifth. He said the survivors rescued had been in shock: "There were truly apocalyptic scenes where everyone was searching and hoping to find the people who at that moment, were not present or just missing."
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