The Albany Gazette - News from Albany, New York and the whole world

King Charles III arrived in Bermuda on Thursday after wrapping up a marathon US state visit aimed at healing ties between Washington and London strained by the war in Iran.

An angry crowd clashed with Australian police outside a hospital treating the suspected killer of a five-year-old Indigenous girl in the outback town of Alice Springs.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz as well as tensions in the Red Sea are reshaping trade routes, with Africa becoming a hub of global container ship traffic, according to logistics and maritime sources.

Across much of India, an energy crunch caused by the Iran war has prompted long queues for cooking gas cyclinders. That's not a problem for Gauri Devi.

In the middle of a field filled with bright red poppies, Afghans frolic among the spring flowers in a tradition deeply rooted in the country's north.

A vibrating violin behind a fiery curtain, a Greek cruise ship singer and a song about star-crossed planets are among the favourites to win this year's Eurovision Song Contest.

Oil prices edged up Friday after the previous day's wild swings, with investors awaiting the next move in the Middle East crisis, while stocks rose in holiday-thinned trade following a tech-led record day on Wall Street.

It's been the crucible of music icons from ABBA to Celine Dion, a flashy symbol of European integration, the charged focal point for geopolitics and a stage for social change.

The New York Knicks put on one of the most dominant displays in NBA playoff history Thursday, destroying Atlanta 140-89 to advance to the second round.

The European Union's mammoth trade deal with South American bloc Mercosur provisionally enters into force Friday, despite a pending court ruling on its legality.

A US Supreme Court ruling curbing protections for minority voters has reignited the political battle over electoral maps, with Republicans and Democrats racing to redraw districts in ways that could shape control of Congress for years to come.

A Florida man who has spent nearly half a century on death row was executed by lethal injection on Thursday for the murder of a 13-year-old girl.

Melanie Green aced the par-three 15th hole on the way to a six-under par 66 and a share of the first-round lead in the LPGA Riviera Maya Open in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, on Thursday.

US President Donald Trump said Thursday he wasn't keen on wearing a bulletproof vest despite multiple alleged assassination attempts -- as he is worried it may make him look fat.

Rise Capital Group's Energy Flex Fund Punches a Well Into the Roleta Formation Surrounded by EOG Offsets - and the Gas Meter Pegs at Over 13,000+ Units of Gas

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / CoTec Holdings Corp. (TSXV:CTH)(OTCQB:CTHCF) ("CoTec" or the "Company") announces the grant of incentive stock options, restricted share units and deferred share units pursuant to the Company's Long Term Incentive Plan ("LTIP"), with an effective grant date of April 30, 2026, based on the closing price of the Company's common shares on the TSX Venture Exchange on that date of $1.34.

MCLEAN, VA / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / Gladstone Alternative Income Fund ("Gladstone Alternative" or the "Fund") announced today that its board of trustees declared monthly cash distributions to shareholders for the month of May. The May distribution amount is $0.001967 per calendar day for each issued and outstanding Class A share, Class C share, and Class I share for the period beginning May 1, 2026 and ending May 31, 2026 (for shareholders who own shares all 31 days in May, the distribution will total approximately $0.061 per share). Based on net asset values per share as of April 30, 2026, the May distribution amount represents an annualized distribution rate of 7.19% for Class A shares, 7.27% for Class C shares, and 7.17% for Class I shares. The distributions will be paid on May 29, 2026 for Dividend Reinvestment Plan ("DRIP") participants and June 1, 2026 for non-DRIP participants.

NEW YORK, NY / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / New to The Street, one of the longest-running business television brands, today announced the nationwide broadcast of Show #748 airing Saturday, May 2 at 6:30 PM EST on Bloomberg Television as sponsored programming, with simultaneous distribution across the United States, MENA, and Latin America.

RICHARDSON, TX / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / Optex Systems Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq:OPXS), a manufacturer of precision optical sighting systems, announced the appointment of Lionel Liebman as Director of Optical Engineering.

American Rebel Light Beer - America's Patriotic Beer to be featured across Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock Motorcycle with Leah Pruett, four-time world champion Matt Hagan and John Hall at the 2026 NHRA Southern Nationals; fans can catch the action nationally on FS1

NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / New to The Street ("NTTS"), one of the fastest-growing financial media platforms globally, today announced a series of milestone achievements, including record-breaking performance across its digital channels, continued client re-signings, and a significant expansion of its iconic billboard footprint in Times Square, New York City.

NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / SMX (NASDAQ:SMX)(NASDAQ:SMXWW) is redefining the role of trust in global commerce-moving it from a matter of belief to something that can be proven at the material level.

NEW YORK, NY / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / SMX (NASDAQ:SMX; SMXWW) is bringing a new level of verification to the global luxury market, where authenticity, provenance, and brand integrity are no longer marketing claims-they are business-critical requirements.

NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / SMX (NASDAQ:SMX)(NASDAQ:SMXWW) is advancing a new affordability model for consumer goods by showing that rising material costs do not have to automatically translate into higher prices at the shelf.

NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / SMX (NASDAQ:SMX, SMXWW) is redefining what "Made in America" can mean in a global economy where origin claims, supply chains, materials, and compliance standards are under more scrutiny than ever.

NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / SMX (NASDAQ:SMX; SMXWW), a leader in material-embedded identity and digital traceability solutions, advances molecular marking technology for silver, creating a new standard for how one of the world's most trusted metals can be authenticated, traced, and protected across increasingly complex global supply chains.

MESA, AZ / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / Medical Care Technologies Inc. (OTCID:MDCE) ("the Company") today announced continued advancement of its subsidiary Real Game Used's ("RGU") patent-pending artificial intelligence authentication platform, which the Company is positioning as a high-value solution for the sports memorabilia industry with a targeted offering of approximately $100,000 per client for enterprise-level access. This disruptive authentication process is anticipated to make a splash in the billion dollar memorabilia authentication industry.

Company Selected as a Top 10 Business in America

ORLANDO, FL / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / RedChip Companies will air interviews with Anixia Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:ANIX) and OwlTing Group (NASDAQ:OWLS), the operating brand of OBOOK Holdings Inc., on the RedChip Small Stocks, Big Money™ show, a sponsored program on Bloomberg TV this Saturday, May 2, at 7 p.m. Eastern Time (ET). Bloomberg TV is available in an estimated 73 million homes across the U.S.

CLEVELAND, OH / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / Formerra, a leading distributor of performance materials, today announced the appointment of Matt Borowiec as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). Borowiec will lead the company's commercial organization to support continued growth and global expansion while strengthening sales execution and customer success.

Honored as one of the industry's most promising rising leaders, Ellen has made her mark on #paid's enterprise creator partnerships and is defining how creator marketing operates at scale.

LINCOLN, NE / ACCESS Newswire / May 1, 2026 / Securitas Healthcare, a leading provider of real‑time visibility and protection solutions for the healthcare industry, is proud to announce the acquisition of ZulaFly, a healthcare‑focused Real‑Time Location System (RTLS) and staff safety technology company known for its modern, cloud‑based platform.