Tonga races to clear runway for volcano aid flights

Blinken calls on Putin to choose ‘a peaceful path’

Maltese lawmaker elected EU parliament chief

Russia denies looking for pretext to invade Ukraine

Rescue workers search for survivors after deadly Afghanistan quake

Peru beaches suffer oil spill blamed on waves from Tonga volcanic eruption

Snow, ice blast through south US with powerful winter storm

A dangerous winter storm combining high winds and ice swept through parts of the U.S. Southeast on on Jan. 16, knocking out power, felling trees and fences and coating roads with a treacherous, frigid glaze.

Anxious wait for overseas Tongans after huge eruption

Overseas Tongans waited anxiously for news of loved ones on Jan. 17 after a volcanic eruption and tsunami severed communications with the Pacific kingdom.

Texas hostage-taker named as British citizen as UK police arrest 2

The man who held four people hostage at a Texas synagogue was identified by US authorities as a British citizen on Jan. 16 while UK police later arrested two teens over an attack that President Joe Biden called an "act of terror."

Huge Tonga volcanic eruption caused ‘significant damage’

A massive volcanic eruption in Tonga that triggered tsunami waves around the Pacific caused “significant damage” to the island nation’s capital and smothered it in dust, but the full extent was not apparent with communications still cut off on Jan. 16

Negotiators head home as Iran talks hit critical stage

Chief negotiators from Iran and Europe returned home for consultations as talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal reached a critical stage, state media in the Islamic republic said on Jan. 15

Britain to upgrade communications on Greek Cyprus military base

The U.K. will build a new communications facility on one of two bases it maintains on the Greek Cyprus, a British Defense Ministry spokesman said on Jan. 14

Omicron exposes inflexibility of Europe’s public hospitals

A World Health Organization official warned last week of a “closing window of opportunity” for European countries to prevent their health care systems from being overwhelmed as the omicron variant produces near-vertical growth in coronavirus infections

UK leader’s office apologizes for party before royal funeral

Boris Johnson’s office apologized to the royal family on Jan. 14 for holding staff parties in Downing Street on the eve of Prince Philip’s funeral last year - the latest in a catalogue of allegedly lockdown-breaching gatherings that are threatening to topple the British prime minister.

White House: Russia prepping pretext for Ukraine invasion

U.S. intelligence officials have determined a Russian effort is underway to create a pretext for its troops to further invade Ukraine, and Moscow has already prepositioned operatives to conduct “a false-flag operation” in eastern Ukraine, according to the White House.

Djokovic back in detention, continues to fight deportation

Novak Djokovic was reported to be back in immigration detention on Jan. 15 after his legal challenge to avoid being deported from Australia for being unvaccinated for COVID-19 was moved to a higher court.

UK PM fights for survival after lockdown party hangover

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson was fighting for his political future Friday as outrage mounted after his belated apology for attending a party during lockdown and as a fresh report emerged of other raucous gatherings at his office.

Biden tries to save voting rights bill in evening talks

President Joe Biden negotiated into the evening Thursday with two holdout senators from his own party to try and save his beleaguered voting rights bill on a day that also saw him get a stinging setback on Covid-fighting strategy.