Associated Press stories, Page 15
U.S. warns shipping firms over paying Iran to transit the Strait of Hormuz
BEIRUT — The United States is warning shipping companies they could face sanctions for making payments to Iran to safely pass through the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control alert posted Friday adds pressure in the standoff between the U.S. and Iran over control of the...
Drone kills 2 in Kherson minibus strike, as Russia claims front-line progress
KYIV, Ukraine — Two people were killed after a Russian drone attacked a minibus in the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, local officials said Saturday, in the latest barrage of civilian areas, a hallmark of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor. Seven people were also wounded in the attack, regional...
Mexican governor and mayor indicted by U.S. for drug trafficking step down
MEXICO CITY — Two members of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s party in northwestern Sinaloa state said they would temporarily step down from their posts after the United States charged them and eight other officials with drug trafficking in bombshell indictment that has shaken the political establishment. In a short video...
Humpback whale ‘Timmy’ released in the North Sea after weeks stranded off Germany
BERLIN — A rescue team on Saturday released from a barge in the North Sea a humpback whale that had been stranded in shallow waters near Germany since March, witnesses said. Nicknamed Timmy by German media, the whale was spotted swimming near Germany’s Baltic Sea coast on March 3, far...
Alex Zanardi, auto racing champ who won Paralympic golds between life-altering accidents, dies at 59
ROME — Alex Zanardi, the Italian auto racing champion-turned-Paralympic gold medalist whose career was marked by two life-altering accidents, has died. He was 59. Zanardi’s family announced his death on Saturday, saying that he passed away on Friday night. “Alex died peacefully, surrounded by the affection of those closest to...
Spirit Airlines goes out of business after 34 years, ending operations immediately
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Spirit Airlines, an impish upstart that shook the industry with its irreverent ads and deep discount fares, announced Saturday that it has gone out of business after 34 years. The ultralow cost airline that once operated hundreds of daily flights on its bright yellow planes...
Pistons rally from 24 down, beat Magic to force Game 7
ORLANDO, Fla. — Cade Cunningham scored 32 points, and the top-seeded Detroit Pistons pulled off an incredible rally Friday night, erasing a 24-point deficit and beating the Orlando Magic, 93-79, to force a Game 7 in their Eastern Conference first-round series. Detroit trailed by 22 at the half, and Orlando’s...
Gerry Conway, comic book writer who co-created Punisher character in Spider-Man, dies at 73
Gerry Conway, a renowned comic book writer who helped create characters and stories for Marvel and DC, including the Punisher character in the Spider-Man comics, has died. He was 73. In a Monday statement announcing his death, Marvel described Conway as a legendary comic book writer with a prolific career....
Court restricts abortion access across the U.S. by blocking the mailing of mifepristone
A federal appeals court has restricted access to one of the most common means of abortion in the U.S. by blocking the mailing of mifepristone prescriptions. Friday’s unanimous ruling from a three-judge panel of the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is requiring that the abortion pill be...
Sabres beat Bruins to reach 2nd round for 1st time since 2007
Alex Tuch and Mattias Samuelsson scored in the first period, Zach Benson added another early in the third and the Buffalo Sabres beat the Boston Bruins, 4-1, on Friday night in Game 6 to advance to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 2007....
Air Force says former Qatari 747 will be ready to fly Trump as Air Force One this summer
The U.S. Air Force has finished modifying and testing a Boeing 747 jet donated by Qatar for temporary use as Air Force One and expects to have it ready for President Donald Trump to use this summer, the service announced late Friday. The jet is currently being painted red, white...
U.S. to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany in next 6-12 months, fulfilling Trump’s threat
WASHINGTON — The United States will withdraw about 5,000 troops from Germany in the next six to 12 months, the Pentagon said Friday, fulfilling President Donald Trump’s threat as he clashes with the German leader over the U.S. war with Iran. Trump had threatened to withdraw some troops from the...
Young takes 5-stroke lead into weekend at Doral
DORAL, Fla. — Cameron Young finally made his first bogey of the week at the Cadillac Championship. It barely put a dent into his lead going into the weekend. Young shot a 5-under-par 67 on Friday to get to 13-under and take a five-shot lead at the midway point of...
Judge protects Yemeni refugees, slams Trump administration’s push to end special status
NEW YORK — A federal judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from forcing about 3,000 Yemeni refugees to leave the U.S., ruling that Temporary Protected Status repeatedly granted to them and due to expire Monday should be extended again. Judge Dale E. Ho in Manhattan extended the status temporarily...
Walks and game time up, pitches in strike zone down through first full month of MLB’s robot umpires
NEW YORK — Walks are up 7.3% as pitches in the strike zone dropped markedly and the average time of games increased by 5 minutes through the first full month of MLB’s initial season with robot umpires. Average attendance increased 2.8%, and the big league batting average went up by...
What to know about May Day demonstrations as workers face rising energy costs due to Iran war
PARIS — Activists worldwide held May Day rallies and street protests Friday, calling for peace, higher wages and better working conditions as many workers grapple with rising energy costs and shrinking purchasing power tied to the Iran war. May 1 is a public holiday in many countries to mark International...
Hurricanes emerge from lengthy between-rounds pause to face Flyers
RALEIGH, N.C. — The Carolina Hurricanes had a long wait for Round 2 of the NHL playoffs, even to find out they would be playing the Philadelphia Flyers. The Eastern Conference’s top seed closed a four-game sweep of Ottawa last Saturday, then spent four days waiting for the Flyers to...
Robusta is in the Kentucky Derby field, giving Cristian Torres the chance to ride
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Cristian Torres waited his whole life to ride in the Kentucky Derby. In line to get his first chance on Saturday, it looked like the rising-star jockey would have to wait at least another year when the horse he was supposed to be on was ruled out....
No clear favorite and plenty of contenders: The 152nd Kentucky Derby is a 20-horse puzzle
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The chaos at the start of the Kentucky Derby sometimes decides the most exciting two minutes in sports in a matter of seconds. Twenty horses bursting out of the starting gate to varying degrees of success makes it a mad dash to the turn. Calling the race...
Women make the Kentucky Derby happen
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Just 17 women have trained a horse that ran in one of the first 151 renditions of the Kentucky Derby. Only six women have ridden in the race. Far more have a hand in making the opening jewel of the Triple Crown happen. As Cherie DeVaux looks...
Flyers’ York gets back stick he threw into stands
VOORHEES, N.J. — Cam York threw his stick into the stands after he scored a playoff winner for the Flyers and, almost like a boomerang, it came back to him at practice. York’s overtime goal beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, 1-0, in Game 6 of their first-round series and helped the...
Trump says a ‘final proposal’ to rescue Spirit Airlines is under consideration
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Friday that his administration was still weighing a taxpayer-funded takeover of Spirit Airlines, with talks ongoing and no final decision yet on whether to move forward with a potential bailout for a carrier mired in bankruptcy proceedings for the second time in less than...
Trump says he’ll place 25% tariff on autos from EU, accusing bloc of not complying with trade deal
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Friday that he will increase the tariffs charged on cars and trucks from the European Union next week to 25%, a move that could jolt the world economy at a fragile moment. Trump said in the post that the EU “is not complying with...
Ukraine says a strike hit Tuapse oil terminal, the 4th attack on the region in 2 weeks
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian forces struck an oil terminal in the Russian Black Sea city of Tuapse, Ukraine’s General Staff said on Friday, marking the fourth attack targeting the region’s oil infrastructure in just over two weeks. Explosions and a fire were recorded on the premises of local oil infrastructure,...
Israeli authorities taking 2 activists from a Gaza-bound flotilla to Israel for questioning
BARCELONA, Spain — Israeli authorities said they were taking two activists who led an aid flotilla bound for Gaza, and who were captured by Israel in international waters of the Mediterranean Sea, to Israel for questioning. The activists, Spanish-Swedish citizen of Palestinian origin Saif Abukeshek and Brazilian citizen Thiago Ávila,...
