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History, demographics, faith, tribes, health and culture in his native Tanzania were highlights in the program presented by Daniel Makoko at the March 20 meeting of the evening Greenville Rotary Club.

WINTERVILLE — Pitt Community College celebrated Women’s History Month last week and recognized Kimberly Williamson as the recipient of this year’s Woman of Substance Award.

Local Events

East Carolina football coach Mike Houston announced on Thursday that tight end Desirrio Riles signed a national letter of intent with the Pirates, pushing the 2023 signing class to 28 members.

It's been two decades since, on March 19, 2003, United States forces invaded Iraq. President George W. Bush ordered the invasion to neutralize what he said was the threat of weapons of mass destruction posed by Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. Except it turned out Saddam did not have weapons o…

A few weeks ago, three members of the North Carolina Senate — Amy Scott Galey of Alamance County, Lisa Barnes of Nash County, and Michael Lee of New Hanover County — filed a state Parents’ Bill of Rights to ensure that local schools respect parental authority to direct the education, develop…

Elm Street tennis courts are the busiest city tennis courts in Greenville. The courts have been there since the mid-1960s. On any given day you will see more mature folks, young folks, college students, parents and children enjoying the sport of a lifetime. Numerous studies have named tennis…

For more than a decade we’ve studied the problem exhaustively, we’ve talked about it almost incessantly, we’ve engaged the latest curriculum du jour, and have spent more than $50 million, yet we still can’t solve the mystery of our children’s reading proficiency. Our patience is wearing thin…

Q Several years ago, I began sweating on my forehead. It gradually became more profuse, until my entire head was soaking wet. My internist diagnosed hyperhidrosis. An antiperspirant he suggested worked, but only briefly. What is the cause of hyperhidrosis? Is there any treatment?

State AP Stories

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The U.S. Energy Information Administration announced that electricity generated from renewables surpassed coal electricity production in the United States for the first time in 2022. The growth of wind and solar significantly drove the increase in renewable energy and experts say these two resources will be the “backbone” of clean energy growth in the U.S. because of their reliability and affordability. Renewables passed nuclear electricity production for the first time in 2012 and continued to outpace it.

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North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper has signed a Medicaid expansion law that was a decade in the making. Cooper celebrated on Monday the passage of expansion legislation from the Republican-controlled General Assembly with the bill-signing ceremony at the Executive Mansion. Cooper has wanted expansion for years, but Republicans came around to the idea recently. North Carolina has been among 11 states who haven’t accepted expansion. Cooper isn't thrilled with a provision in the bill that requiring the legislature to pass a separate state budget law first for expansion to be implemented. The governor said the law will be the "working families bill of the decade” once implemented.

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First Citizens will acquire much of Silicon Valley Bank, the tech-focused financial institution whose lightning-quick failure this month set off a chain reaction that rattled faith in banks around the world. The sale underscores that Silicon Valley Bank’s assets do have value and helps to rebuild some faith. Stocks of several beaten down banks rose in a show of strength after the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. announced the deal. But investors and experts caution the sale doesn't by itself provide an immediate all-clear for other banks following the second- and third-largest U.S. failures in history. That will likely take more time.

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North Carolina State Treasurer Dale Folwell says he'll run for governor in 2024. He'll likely be required to best Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson to earn the Republican nomination. Folwell announced his decision at Saturday’s Republican Party convention for Forsyth County. He told The Associated Press he would bring competence to operating government and look out for working people if elected. The state constitution prevents Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper from seeking a third consecutive term. Robinson has scheduled a rally next month to reveal his decision for 2024, but he's been leaning into a gubernatorial bid for some time. Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein announced a campaign for governor in January.

North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper has vetoed Republican gun legislation that would no longer require sheriff approval before someone can purchase a handgun. His action Friday initiates his first showdown of the session with a GOP majority that is just one seat shy in the House of veto-proof margins. The bill would repeal the state’s long-standing pistol purchase permit requirement that directs sheriffs to evaluate each gun applicant's character. Cooper successfully blocked a similar proposal in 2021. Bill supporters say substantial updates to the national background check system have rendered the requirement duplicative. But Democrats warn that its repeal would create a dangerous loophole.

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The Republican-controlled North Carolina legislature has given final approval to a Medicaid expansion agreement. Thursday's state House vote reverses longstanding opposition to the measure, which now goes to expansion advocate and Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper for his signature. GOP legislative leaders reached a deal earlier this month, capping years of debate over whether the politically closely divided state should accept the federal government’s coverage for hundreds of thousands of low-income adults. North Carolina was one of 11 states that hadn't yet adopted expansion. The bill contains one caveat: A state budget law must be passed before expansion can be carried out.

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North Carolina’s elected auditor has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for leaving the scene of a December crash in which she drove her state-owned vehicle into a parked car. Four-term Democratic State Auditor Beth Wood told a Wake County judge on Thursday that she made a “grave mistake” and should have remained at the accident. A judge sentenced Wood to about $300 in court costs and fines in the hit-and-run plea. He pointed out that Wood already had personally paid over $11,000 to cover damages to both cars. Wood said in court that she had drunk two glasses of wine at the party but was not impaired.

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Mexico's president says forensic tests have confirmed that a body found in northern Mexico was that of a drug gang leader accused of murdering two Jesuit priests last year. President Andrés Manuel López Obrador did not say Thursday whether the tests involved a DNA match or fingerprints. The sister of accused killer José Noriel Portillo Gil, alias “El Chueco,” or “The Crooked One,” had earlier identified his body by sight.  The murder of the two beloved Jesuit priests in June 2022 had shocked Mexico. The Jesuits said the suspect’s death proves the government can’t catch criminals and has lost control of parts of the country.

National & World AP Stories

Russia's Defense Ministry says Moscow has test-fired anti-ship missiles in the Sea of Japan. The ministry said Tuesday that two boats launched a simulated missile attack on a mock enemy warship about 60 miles away. The ministry said the target was successfully hit by two Moskit cruise missiles. The Moskit, whose NATO reporting name is the SS-N-22 Sunburn, is a supersonic anti-ship cruise missile that has conventional and nuclear warhead capacity. It says the exercise took place in the Peter The Great Gulf in the Sea of Japan but does not give more precise coordinates. Japan’s Defense Ministry had no immediate response.

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Asian shares are mostly higher as investors got some relief from worries over troubled U.S. banks with a planned takeover of failed Silicon Valley Bank. Benchmarks rose in Sydney, Seoul, Shanghai and Hong Kong but fell in Tokyo. Markets have been in turmoil following the second- and third-largest U.S. bank failures in history. Investors have been hunting for signs of weakness in other banks as the financial system creaks under the pressure of higher interest rates. Wall Street shares steadied on Monday, with financial stocks being the biggest gainers. First Citizens Bank's stock soared after it said it would buy most of Silicon Valley Bank.

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JERUSALEM (AP) — Bending to a wave of mass protests, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delayed his contentious judicial overhaul plan Monday and said he wanted "to avoid civil war” by making time to seek a compromise with political opponents.

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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for his nuclear scientists to increase production of weapons-grade material to make bombs to put on his increasing range of weapons. The report in state media Tuesday followed a series of missile launches — seven in this month alone — and rising threats to use the weapons against his enemies. North Korea's weapons tests and U.S.-South Korea military exercises have intensified in a tit-for-tat cycle, underscoring heightened tensions in the region. State media said Kim met with officials and scientists at a nuclear weapons institute and stressed the need to ramp up bomb fuel production to meet his goals to expand his nuclear arsenal.

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Uncertainty over the timing and location of the Under-20 World Cup continues two days after Indonesian authorities postponed the official draw for the May 20-June 11 tournament because of protests over Israel’s qualification. The draw was delayed indefinitely on the weekend by Indonesia’s soccer federation amid backlash from conservative Islamic groups. FIFA, the sport’s world governing body, has not commented on Indonesia’s status as host or a reported offer from Argentina to stage the event. Pressure on Indonesia’s soccer association chairman Erick Thohir is mounting because if the hosting issues can't be resolved, the country risks being suspended by FIFA.

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The U.S. Energy Information Administration announced that electricity generated from renewables surpassed coal electricity production in the United States for the first time in 2022. The growth of wind and solar significantly drove the increase in renewable energy and experts say these two resources will be the “backbone” of clean energy growth in the U.S. because of their reliability and affordability. Renewables passed nuclear electricity production for the first time in 2012 and continued to outpace it.

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Police say a former student shot through the doors of a Christian elementary school and killed three children and three adults after elaborately planning the massacre by drawing out a detailed map and conducting surveillance of the building. Monday's massacre at The Covenant School in Nashville was the latest in a series of mass shootings in a country that has grown increasingly unnerved by bloodshed in schools. The victims include three 9-year-old children, the school’s top administrator, a substitute teacher and a custodian, and a familiar ritual played out in the chaos. Panicked parents rushed to the school to see if their children were safe and tearfully hugged their kids, and a stunned community planned vigils for the victims.