A quick look back at this week’s biggest stories

Here is a quick look back at the top global stories of the week, plus some of our best journalism away from the headlines.

More than 2,200 people died in an earthquake that hit Afghanistan's mountainous east early Monday. The country is already struggling with drought, a weak economy and a displacement crisis.

Take a look at our photos from the earthquake.

China showcased its military might in a parade Wednesday marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II as it seeks to wield greater influence in the world. Flanking Chinese President Xi Jinping at the parade were Russia’s Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, in a show of unity as the three countries are under pressure from the United States.

Read about China's new weapons, see photos of the parade, and read about the geopolitical shift China's rise might lead to. And watch the hot-mic moment when leaders were caught talking about extending the human life span.

In a significant departure from decades of public policy, Florida’s State Surgeon General said Wednesday that the state will do away with vaccine mandates, casting them as “immoral” intrusions into parental rights.

Here is what you need to know about the vaccine mandate removal, and here is what Americans think. And here is what life in America was like before widespread vaccination. Plus some takeaways from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy's contentious congressional hearing Thursday, and fact-checking his false and misleading claims.

Our reporting questions why and how Israel attacked a Gaza hospital, killing several journalists, including AP's Mariam Dagga. Read about Gregory Bovino and how his Los Angeles campaign is racking up immigration arrests. Look at this beautiful digital presentation about the drought affecting Syria. A popular 15-year-old computer whiz is becoming the Catholic Church’s first millennial saint. And tips for finding remote employment.

Here is our top weekly selection. A look at Giorgio Armani's fashion through the years after his death this week, pictures from a Tehran musical that tells a love story, underground schools in war-hit Ukraine, and images of New Delhi residents on the swollen banks of the Yamuna River.

Vaccines are advertised outside a pharmacy in Miami, Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

A sign at a Walgreens pharmacy offering flu shots is seen, Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025, in Miami Shores, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)

FILE - Department of Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary for Health, Admiral Rachel Levine, left, claps after Dr. Nizar Dowla, right, administered a vaccine, to Emiola Adebayo, 3, the daughter of fellow doctor Emy Jean-Marie, center, on June 28, 2022, at the Borinquen Health Care Center in Miami. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee, File)

In this photo provided by the North Korean government, from right, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin attend a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II at Tiananmen Square in Beijing Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)

A village lies in rubble after Sunday night's powerful 6.0-magnitude earthquake that struck several provinces, in a remote valley in Kunar province, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Nava Jamshidi)

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez on Thursday asked lawmakers to approve reforms to the oil industry that would open the doors to greater foreign investment during her first state of the union speech less than two weeks after its longtime leader was toppled by the United States.

Rodríguez, who has been under pressure by the Trump administration to fall in line with its vision for the oil-rich nation, said sales of Venezuelan oil would go to bolster crisis-stricken health services, economic development and other infrastructure projects.

She outlined a distinct vision for the future, straying from her predecessors, who have long railed against American intervention in Venezeula. “Let us not be afraid of diplomacy” with the U.S., said Rodriguez, the former vice president who must now navigate competing pressures from the Trump administration and a government loyal to former President Nicolás Maduro.

The speech, which was broadcast on a delay in Venezuela, came one day after Rodríguez said her government would continue releasing prisoners detained under Maduro in what she described as “a new political moment” since his ouster.

On Thursday, Trump met at the White House with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, whose political party is widely considered to have won 2024 elections rejected by Maduro. But in endorsing Rodríguez, who served as Maduro’s vice president since 2018, Trump has sidelined Machado.

Rodríguez, who had a call with Trump earlier this week, said Wednesday evening on state television that her government would use “every dollar” earned from oil sales to overhaul the nation’s public health care system. Hospitals and other health care facilities across the country have long been crumbling, and patients are asked to provide practically all supplies needed for their care, from syringes to surgical screws.

The acting president must walk a tightrope, balancing pressures from both Washington and top Venezuelan officials who hold sway over Venezuela's security forces and strongly oppose the U.S. Her recent public speeches reflect those tensions — vacillating from conciliatory calls for cooperation with the U.S., to defiant rants echoing the anti-imperialist rhetoric of her toppled predecessor.

American authorities have long railed against a government they describe as a “dictatorship,” while Venezuela’s government has built a powerful populist ethos sharply opposed to U.S. meddling in its affairs.

For the foreseeable future, Rodríguez's government has been effectively relieved of having to hold elections. That's because when Venezuela’s high court granted Rodríguez presidential powers on an acting basis, it cited a provision of the constitution that allows the vice president to take over for a renewable period of 90 days.

Trump enlisted Rodríguez to help secure U.S. control over Venezuela’s oil sales despite sanctioning her for human rights violations during his first term. To ensure she does his bidding, Trump threatened Rodríguez earlier this month with a “situation probably worse than Maduro.”

Maduro, who is being held in a Brooklyn jail, has pleaded not guilty to drug-trafficking charges.

Before Rodríguez’s speech on Thursday, a group of government supporters was allowed into the presidential palace, where they chanted for Maduro, who the government insists remains the country’s president. “Maduro, resist, the people are rising,” they shouted.

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez makes a statement to the press at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez, center, smiles flanked by Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, right, and National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez after making a statement to the press at Miraflores presidential palace in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)