ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's top prosecutor says the country plans to hold its first war crimes trial of a captured Russian soldier.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — The wives of two Ukrainian soldiers defending the Mariupol steel mill have met with Pope Francis. They are asking him to intervene to arrange for a third-party evacuation of the troops before Russian soldiers capture or kill them.

BEIJING (AP) — China on Wednesday defended sticking to its strict “zero-COVID” approach, calling critical remarks from the World Health Organization “irresponsible.”

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The fast-growing population of Jewish immigrants to the United Arab Emirates may feel freer than ever to express their identity in the autocratic Arab sheikhdom, which has sought to brand itself as an oasis of religious tolerance. But plans to build a permanent Jewish sanctuary for Dubai’s fast-expanding congregation have sputtered to a standstill, religious leaders say.

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lankan authorities have deployed armored vehicles and troops in the streets of the capital two days after pro-government mobs attacked peaceful protesters, triggering a wave of violence across the country.

JERUSALEM (AP) — A veteran journalist for the Al Jazeera network was shot and killed while covering an Israeli raid in the West Bank town of Jenin. Shireen Abu Akleh, a well-known Palestinian reporter for the broadcaster’s Arabic language channel, was shot and died soon afterward early Wednesday.

ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine stopped the flow of Russian natural gas through one hub that feeds European homes and industry. Meanwhile, a pro-Kremlin official in a southern region seized by Russian troops said it would ask Moscow to annex it. The remarks could be another sign of Russia’s broader plan for Ukraine as it tries to salvage an invasion that has so far gone awry.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal prosecutors in the U.S. have charged the leader of a notoriously violent Haitian gang with conspiracy to commit hostage taking for his alleged role in the kidnapping of 16 Americans last year.

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — The Gulf Clan drug cartel in Colombia has shut down dozens of towns for four days in reaction its leader's extradition to the U.S. for trial. Businesses, schools and bus services shut down and a professional soccer match couldn’t be played due to cartel warnings that anyone not at home would be attacked.

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Norwegian health authorities say the country has a surplus of COVID-19 vaccines and has already discarded more than 137,000 doses because there is declining demand in low-income countries. The Norwegian Institute of Public Health said Tuesday that it plans a further disposal of doses if global demand does not change.

UMUIDA, Nigeria (AP) — In many African countries, the pandemic has created larger populations of widows as men are more likely to die of COVID-19. Widowhood has long befallen great numbers of women there. Many widows are young, having married men decades older. In some countries, men frequently have more than one wife, leaving several behind when they die. Now, widows say COVID-19 has cost them their families, homes and futures.

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s Conservative government has made sweeping promises to cut crime, improve health care and revive the pandemic-scarred economy. The government laid out its plans in the next year in a tradition-steeped ceremony -- but without Queen Elizabeth II, who was absent for the first time in six decades.

ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian officials say Russian troops are pounding away at the vital port of Odesa, apparently as part of efforts to disrupt the supply lines and weapons shipments that have been critical to Kyiv’s defense. Ukraine’s ability to stymie a larger, better armed Russian military surprised many observers, who had anticipated a much quicker conflict.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — A top Vatican cardinal says Pope Francis’ willingness to work despite knee pain that has made walking nearly impossible shows other older adults that they have wisdom and experience to offer younger generations. The cardinal made the assessment as he introduced Francis’ message for the World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly. In the message released Tuesday, the 85-year-old pope urged older people to consider advanced age a blessing.

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The namesake son of late dictator Ferdinand Marcos appears to have been elected Philippine president in an astonishing reversal of the 1986 “People Power” revolt that booted his father into infamy. Marcos Jr. had more than 30.5 million votes in the unofficial results. His nearest challenger, Vice President Leni Robredo, had 14.5 million with more than 96% of the votes tabulated from Monday’s election.

BEIJING (AP) — Authorities in Shanghai have again tightened anti-virus restrictions, just as the city was emerging from a month of strict lockdown due to a COVID-19 outbreak. Notices issued in several districts said residents were ordered to stay home and nonessential deliveries suspended as part of a “quiet period" lasting at least until Wednesday.

JERUSALEM (AP) — The government of Israel’s embattled prime minister is limping into the opening of parliament’s summer session on the verge of collapse. Naftali Bennett has lost his parliamentary majority less than a year after taking office, his own party is crumbling and a key governing partner has suspended cooperation with the coalition.

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin has sought to cast Moscow’s military action in Ukraine as a forced response to Western policies and a necessary move to ward off a potential aggression. Speaking at a military parade on Red Square marking the World War II victory over the Nazis, Putin drew parallels between the Red Army’s fighting against the Nazi troops and the Russian forces’ action in Ukraine.

UZHHOROD, Ukraine (AP) — First Lady Jill Biden spent several hours in Ukraine, driving from the border with Slovakia to a town 10 minutes away to see her Ukrainian counterpart Olena Zelenska on Mother's Day. Biden is the latest high-profile American to enter Ukraine during the war, while Zelenska's public appearance was her first since Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24.

ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin used a major patriotic holiday to again justify his war in Ukraine but did not declare even a limited victory or give a signal where the conflict is headed. His forces continued to pummel targets across the country with few signs of significant progress.

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Protesters threw red paint on the Russian ambassador as he arrived at a cemetery in Warsaw to pay respects to Red Army soldiers who died during World War II. Ambassador Sergey Andreev arrived at the Soviet soldiers cemetery on Monday to lay flowers where a group of activists opposed to Russia’s war in Ukraine were waiting for him.

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Filipinos were voting for a new president Monday, with the son of an ousted dictator and a champion of reforms and human rights as top contenders in a tenuous moment in a deeply divided Asian democracy.

OBERAMMERGAU, Germany (AP) — After a two-year delay due to the coronavirus, Germany’s famous Oberammergau Passion Play is opening soon. The play dates back to 1634, when residents of a small Bavarian village vowed to perform a play of the last days of Jesus Christ every 10 years, if only God would spare them of any further Black Death victims.

HAVANA (AP) — The death toll from a powerful explosion at a luxury hotel in Cuba’s capital has increased to 31 as search crews with dogs hunt through the rubble of the iconic, 19th century building looking for people still missing.

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A new Taliban decree that demands women cover up from head to toe in public, showing at most their eyes, has left many Afghans angry or fearful. On Sunday, a day after the edict was issued, many women were seen in the capital of Kabul wearing their customary conservative attire of headscarves and long coats, with their faces showing.