CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The New Hampshire House on Thursday narrowly rejected creating a process by which people could voluntarily prohibit themselves from buying guns. Three other states — Utah, Virginia and Washington — already allow people to voluntarily waive their rights to own firearms and add themselves to the federal database of prohibited purchasers, said Rep. David Meuse, a …

TIRANA, Albania (AP) — Albania’s Parliament voted Thursday to approve a deal for the country to hold thousands of asylum seekers for Italy, despite protests from opposition lawmakers and human rights groups. Under the five-year deal, Albania would shelter up to 3,000 migrants rescued from international waters at any one time. With asylum requests expected to take around a month …

PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Pirates and All-Star pitcher Mitch Keller agreed to a five-year contract worth $77 million, a person with knowledge of the agreement told The Associated Press on Thursday. The deal is pending a physical, the person said on condition of anonymity because the agreement was not yet final. The contract, the largest the Pirates have given …

SAKHIR, Bahrain (AP) — El jefe de Red Bull Christian Horner dijo el jueves que espera que la investigación sobre su supuesta mala conducta laboral se resolverá “lo antes posible” cuando la nueva temporada de la F1 está por comenzar. La empresa matriz de la escudería Red Bull indicó el 5 de febrero que inició una investigación por las acusaciones …

BERLIN (AP) — German lawmakers on Thursday called on the government to deliver further long-range weapons to Ukraine, but voted down an opposition call explicitly urging it to send Taurus long-range cruise missiles. Germany is now the second-biggest supplier of military aid to Ukraine after the United States, and Chancellor Olaf Scholz has called recently for other European countries to …

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s President Vladimir Putin on Thursday took a co-pilot’s seat in a nuclear-capable strategic bomber on a flight that appeared aimed at bolstering his image ahead of next month’s election he’s all but certain to win. Putin’s 30-minute flight in a Tu-160M supersonic strategic bomber also seemed intended to send a reminder of Russia’s nuclear might amid …

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Alabama is replacing longtime football radio announcer Eli Gold. The school announced Wednesday that Chris Stewart will replace Gold, 70, starting with the spring football game. Gold has been the voice of Alabama football for 35 years, calling seven national championship games, 11 Southeastern Conference championships and 35 bowl games. “Eli has been an invaluable member …

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s exports surged a stronger than expected nearly 12% in January, helped by robust demand for vehicles, auto parts and machinery. That helped the nation’s trade deficit shrink to 1.76 trillion yen ($12 billion), or about half of what it was a year earlier. Imports, which have been declining on-month for nearly a year, declined 9.6% from …

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — A China-born Australian democracy blogger will not appeal his suspended death sentence imposed by a Beijing court, with his family saying Wednesday a legal challenge would be detrimental to his welfare. Yang Hengjun was found guilty of espionage following a closed trial and sentenced two weeks ago to death with a two-year reprieve. Such sentences are …

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Adam Pelech found himself in an unusual position: on the ice in overtime, with plenty of room to work. The New York Islanders defenseman didn’t let it go to waste, beating Alex Nedeljkovic with a wrist shot from the slot 57 seconds into the extra period to give New York a 5-4 win over the skidding Pittsburgh …