BEIJING (AP) — Chinese state media say 16 people have died and 18 others remain missing after a flash flood in western China. State broadcaster CCTV says a sudden rainstorm triggered a landslide that diverted a river. The flash flood affected an area with more than 6,000 people and over 1,500 houses. Emergency authorities described it as a “mountain torrent” disaster in Datong county.

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A Taliban police spokesman in Afghanistan’s capital says the toll from a mosque bombing has risen to 21 people killed with 33 others wounded in the attack. Khalid Zadran, the spokesman for Kabul’s police chief, gave the figures Thursday to The Associated Press after the bombing at the Sunni mosque.

HUALIEN, Taiwan (AP) — The U.S. government will hold talks with Taiwan on a trade agreement in a sign of support for the self-ruled island democracy China claims as its own territory. The announcement comes after Beijing launched military drills that included firing missiles into the seas around Taiwan in an attempt to intimidate the island after a visit by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

LVIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is due to meet the U.N. chief and Turkey’s leader in Lviv near Ukraine’s border with Poland. Thursday's talks will focus on the recent deal to resume Ukraine’s grain exports, the volatile situation at a Russian-occupied nuclear power plant and efforts to help end the war. Turkey and the United Nations helped broker an agreement last month clearing the way for Ukraine to export 22 million tons of grain stuck in its ports since Moscow invaded on Feb. 24.

MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian military has deployed warplanes armed with state-of-the-art hypersonic missiles to the country’s Kaliningrad region. The move comes amid soaring tensions with the West over Moscow’s action in Ukraine. The Defense Ministry said three MiG-31 fighters with Kinzhal hypersonic missiles arrived Thursday at the Chkalovsk airbase in the Baltic Sea enclave as part of “additional measures of strategic deterrence.”

ATLANTA (AP) — Brett Baty homered his first time up in the big leagues, Starling Marte went deep twice and the New York Mets held off the Braves 9-7 to snap Atlanta’s eight-game winning streak. After being outscored 18-1 in the first two games of the series, the NL East-leading Mets pushed their lead over the Braves to 4 1/2 games.

NEW YORK (AP) — Dollar General faces nearly $1.3 million in penalties after government inspectors visited three of the chain’s stores in Georgia earlier this year and found worker-safety violations. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration says inspectors found obstructed exit routes, boxes of merchandise stacked unsafely and electrical panels that were hard to access.

ATLANTA – A plan to add toll lanes along Georgia 400 in Fulton and Forsyth counties is back on track a year after the State Transportation Board rejected the only qualifying bid on the project.

“Call upon Me in the day of trouble…” Psalm 50:15 I cried at the Mexican restaurant last Saturday.  Normally a place of chips, salsa, and laughter, I was reflecting on the …

ISLAMABAD (AP) — An Afghan resident and police say that a bombing at a mosque in Kabul during evening prayers killed at least 10 people, including a prominent cleric, and wounded at least 27. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Wednesday's attack, the latest to strike the country in the year since the Taliban seized power.

DETROIT (AP) — The trend of rising U.S. traffic deaths that began two years ago is continuing into 2022. Roadway deaths rose 7% during the first three months of the year to an estimated 9,560 people. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that's the highest number for a first quarter in two decades. Traffic deaths have risen ever since pandemic lockdowns eased in 2020 as people returned to work and started taking more road trips.

MIAMI (AP) — Police in South Florida say a 29-year-old officer has died after being shot in the head during a confrontation with a robbery suspect in Miami. Det. Cesar Echaverry was shot Monday night as Miami-Dade police closed in on a robbery suspect. That man was identified as 32-year-old Jeremy Horton of Acworth, Georgia. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

ATLANTA (AP) — When Geoff Collins arrived at Georgia Tech, he confidently pitched the idea of transforming the Yellow Jackets into a powerhouse. Instead, they’ve gone in reverse. Collins may be coaching for his job in 2022 after posting a 9-25 mark over his first three seasons — winning three games each year. Only one coach in the school’s modern era, Bill Curry, had fewer wins at the three-year mark in his tenure.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The major freight railroads signaled they’re ready to negotiate a new deal based on a presidential report that calls for 24% raises, but the 12 unions involved in the stalled talks covering 115,000 workers still haven’t commented on the recommendations. The group that represents BNSF, Union Pacific, Norfolk Southern, CSX and other railroads in the talks said Wednesday said even though the report issued by the Presidential Emergency Board that Joe Biden appointed last month calls for higher raises than the companies had proposed they want to reach an agreement to avoid a strike.

Two former Pennsylvania judges who orchestrated a scheme to send children to for-profit jails in exchange for kickbacks have been ordered to pay more than $200 million to hundreds of people they victimized in one of the worst judicial scandals in U.S. history. A federal judge awarded $106 million in compensatory damages and $100 million in punitive damages to plaintiffs in a long-running civil suit against the judges.

LVIV, Ukraine (BP) – About 400 Ukrainian Baptist congregations have been lost in Russia’s war on Ukraine, said Ukrainian Baptist Theological Seminary President Yaroslav Pyzh, who is …

SHELBY, Mont. (BP) – You wouldn’t think a pastor would have much in common with the bassist for one of rock’s legendary bands, but there’s a connection to be made. Chad …

WASHINGTON (AP) — Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has directed the IRS to develop a plan within six months outlining how the tax agency will modernize its technology, customer service and hiring. With Democrats' big climate, tax and health care bill now law, the tax agency is set to receive nearly $80 billion over 10 years.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The pace of sales at U.S. retailers was unchanged last month as persistently high inflation and rising interest rates forced many households to spend more cautiously. Retail purchases were flat in July after having risen 0.8% in June, the Commerce Department reported.

As conversations about the overturn of Roe vs. Wade have swirled, Christ followers must ask themselves how they can become active not only in word, but deed. Rather than being known for what we speak against, we must seek the Lord and ask what we can do. In my opinion, churches should have an overarching Pro-Life Ministry as a part of their mission’s focus. This Pro-Life Ministry could include foster care and adoption, pre- and post-natal care, caring for vulnerable families, single moms, and many others.

As we prepare for the 2023 Georgia legislative session, issues like sports gambling are being discussed especially since it’s an election year. And, once again, there is not anything truly good about legalizing gambling! Sports gambling, while it is being done illegally in our state now, will be exponentially worse if made legal, especially in terms of addiction.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA's new moon rocket has arrived at the launch pad for its first test flight. The 322-foot rocket emerged Tuesday night from its mammoth hangar at Florida's Kennedy Space Center. It took nearly 10 hours for the rocket to make the four-mile overnight trip to the pad. NASA is aiming for an Aug. 29 liftoff for the unmanned lunar test flight.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Fires are burning and ammunition is still exploding at a depot in Crimea. That comes a day after the latest suspected Ukrainian attack on a military site in the Russia-annexed peninsula. The attacks have highlighted the challenges facing Moscow. Russia seized the peninsula in 2014. It was once a secure base that Moscow’s forces have used to launch attacks — and it was a staging ground for the start of the Feb. 24 invasion.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Residents who have fled the Russian-occupied city of Kherson say conditions in the Black Sea port just north of the Crimean Peninsula have become increasingly grim. The southern city was the first to fall to Russia’s invasion. But Kherson remains at the heart of the conflict and Ukraine’s efforts to save its vital access to the sea.

NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon workers in upstate New York filed a petition for a union election on Tuesday, launching a major labor fight against the company. A spokesperson for the National Labor Relations Board says the petition was filed for a warehouse in the town of Schodack, near Albany. To qualify for a union election, the NLRB requires signatures from 30% of eligible voters. The agency now has to verify if the workers are qualified to seek an election.