RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) – President Barack Obama said Thursday that the U.S. and its Gulf partners should wait to see whether Iraq can resolve its political crisis before committing more financial aid, arguing that the paralysis is impeding U.S.-led efforts to defeat the Islamic State group and reconstruct the …

MONTECRISTI, Ecuador (AP) – A fresh tremor rattled Ecuador before dawn Wednesday morning, a 6.1 magnitude jolt that was the strongest aftershock since a lethal earthquake killed hundreds of people. There was no immediate report of further damage. The U.S. Geological Survey said the tremor was centered offshore, 25 kilometers …

CHERNOBYL NUCLEAR POWER STATION, Ukraine (AP) – Thirty years after the world’s worst nuclear accident, the Chernobyl power plant is surrounded by both desolation and clangorous activity, the sense of a ruined past and a difficult future. The plant is derelict. After the No. 4 reactor exploded in the early-morning …