Associated Press stories, Page 282
Ukraine loses ceasefire bargaining chip as its troops cede ground in Russia
As momentum builds for a ceasefire with Russia, Ukraine has all but lost a valuable bargaining chip. The Ukrainian army stunned Russia in August by attacking across the border and taking control of an estimated 500 square miles of land. It was a much-needed morale boost for Ukraine — but...
A volcano near Alaska’s largest city could erupt in the coming weeks or months, scientists say
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A volcano near Alaska’s largest city is showing new signs of unrest, with experts saying the likelihood of an eruption at Mount Spurr in the next few weeks or months has increased. The Alaska Volcano Observatory said Wednesday that it had measured during recent overflights “significantly elevated...
Maintenance hole explosion at Texas Tech University causes fires, outages and cancels classes
LUBBOCK, Texas — An explosion inside a maintenance hole on the Texas Tech University campus in Lubbock set off fires and power outages, leading school officials to issue evacuation orders for several buildings and cancel classes for the rest of the week, university police said. The explosion happened Wednesday evening...
Former Texas megachurch pastor indicted in Oklahoma on child sexual abuse charges
DALLAS — A former pastor of a Texas megachurch who resigned after a woman accused him of sexually abusing her in the 1980s has been indicted in Oklahoma on child sexual abuse charges, that state’s attorney general’s office said Wednesday. Robert Preston Morris, 63, has been charged with five counts...
Amazon Prime to stream Trump’s ‘The Apprentice’ reality show
“The Apprentice,” the long-running reality TV show that boosted Donald Trump’s profile, will begin streaming on Amazon’s Prime Video, the company announced Monday. The show’s first seven seasons will be available on Amazon’s streaming platform, with the first season premiering Monday and subsequent seasons arriving every week until late April....
NFL free agency roundup: Vikings sign DL Javon Hargrave; 49ers add QB Mac JonesVideo
The NFL league year kicked off Wednesday with a flurry of moves as teams continued to fill holes: • The Minnesota Vikings made another major move on interior redesign, agreeing to terms with two-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Javon Hargrave on a two-year, $30 million contract with $19 million guaranteed,...
After latest injury, has golf seen the last of Tiger Woods?
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Golf without Tiger Woods was inevitable simply because of age. He turns 50 at the end of this year and once leaned on the adage that “Father Time remains undefeated.” But for Woods, it has been the mother lode of injuries that is keeping him...
Trump administration resumes detention of immigrant families after Biden-era pause
McALLEN, Texas — The Trump administration resumed family detention of immigrants last week in a South Texas facility after a Biden-era pause, a legal nonprofit group providing services to migrant families said Wednesday. Fourteen immigrant families with children as young as one year old were in the detention facility in...
Copeland leads as McNeese goes back-to-back in Southland
LAKE CHARLES, La. — Quadir Copeland scored 18 points, and McNeese defeated Lamar, 63-54, in a cold-shooting, defensive battle Wednesday, giving the Cowboys back-to-back Southland Tournament championships. The top-seeded Cowboys (27-6) will be making their fourth appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The Cowboys led wire-to-wire. The gap was 31-22 with...
SpaceX delays flight to replace NASA’s stuck astronauts after launch pad problem
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A launch pad problem prompted SpaceX to delay a flight to the International Space Station on Wednesday to replace NASA’s two stuck astronauts. The new crew needs to get to the International Space Station before Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams can head home after nine months...
West Virginia’s NCAA Tournament hopes take hit with Big 12 loss
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Elijah Malone scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half, helping No. 16 seed Colorado deal No. 8 seed West Virginia’s at-large NCAA Tournament hopes a massive blow with a 67-60 victory in the second round of the Big 12 Tournament on Wednesday. RJ...
Republicans in Florida’s Capitol restart push to lower the gun-buying age to 18
TALLAHASSEE — Gun rights advocates have fought to overturn a Florida law banning gun purchases by people under 21 ever since the day the measure was signed in 2018 as a result of the Parkland school shooting, one of the deadliest mass killings in the U.S. With new leadership in...
Rams officially release Super Bowl 56 MVP Cooper KuppVideo
The Los Angles Rams cut Super Bowl 56 MVP Cooper Kupp after being unable to find a trade partner for their former No. 1 wide receiver. The Rams officially moved on from the 2021 AP NFL Offensive Player of the Year at the start of the league year Wednesday. Kupp...
USDA ends program that helped schools serve food from local farmers
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Agriculture Department is ending two pandemic-era programs that provided more than $1 billion for schools and food banks to purchase food from local farmers and producers. About $660 million of that went to schools and childcare centers to buy food for meals through the Local Foods...
Wall Street rises after encouraging inflation data, but the trade war keeps knocking stocks around
NEW YORK — Stock indexes rose Wednesday after Wall Street got some relief from an encouraging inflation update. But even on a rare up day for the market, President Donald Trump’s trade war still knocked stocks around. The S&P 500 gained 0.5% after skidding between an early gain of 1.3%...
Archaeologists uncover the oldest known partial face fossil of a human ancestor in western Europe
WASHINGTON — A fossil of a partial face from a human ancestor is the oldest in western Europe, archaeologists reported Wednesday. The incomplete skull — a section of the left cheek bone and upper jaw — was found in northern Spain in 2022. The fossil is between 1.1 million and...
Explainer: What’s a recession and why is rising anxiety about it roiling markets?
WASHINGTON — Stock markets are plunging, consumers and businesses have started to sour on the economy, and economists are marking down their estimates for growth this year, with some even seeing rising odds of a recession. The tech-heavy Nasdaq stock index slipped into a correction last week, defined as a...
EPA head says he’ll roll back dozens of environmental regulations, including rules on climate change
WASHINGTON — In what he called the “most consequential day of deregulation in American history,” the head of the Environmental Protection Agency announced a series of actions Wednesday to roll back landmark environmental regulations, including rules on pollution from coal-fired power plants, climate change and electric vehicles. “We are driving...
Trump administration drops lawsuit against company over alleged abuse at its child migrant shelters
McALLEN, Texas — The Trump administration is dropping a civil lawsuit against the largest provider of housing for unaccompanied migrant children over allegations of repeated sexual abuse and harassment of minors in its facilities. The dismissal was filed on Wednesday after the federal government announced they would no longer use...
Trump pardons former Tennessee lawmaker convicted in campaign finance scheme
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — President Donald Trump has pardoned a former Republican Tennessee lawmaker who was two weeks into a 21-month prison sentence for an illegal campaign finance scheme that he pleaded guilty to in 2022, before he tried unsuccessfully to take back his plea. Former Sen. Brian Kelsey announced the...
Prosecutors say Kohberger’s defense will argue evidence was planted in Idaho student murders case
BOISE, Idaho — Prosecutors say Bryan Kohberger’s defense team will argue at his murder trial that someone else could have planted a knife sheath with Kohberger’s DNA at the home where four University of Idaho students were killed in 2022. Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson made the claim in a...
What’s behind the surge in attacks and train hijacking in Pakistan’s restive southwest?
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s neglected southwestern province of Balochistan has been the scene of a yearslong insurgency, with a dramatic uptick in attacks in recent years underscoring the struggles the government in Islamabad faces in dealing with myriad security threats. The seizure Tuesday of a passenger train by the outlawed Baluch...
They crossed the world to reach the U.S.. Now deported under Trump, they’re stuck in Panama
PANAMA CITY — They crossed oceans to get to the U.S., fleeing conflict, religious persecution, poverty and government crackdowns in countries such as Afghanistan, Somalia, Cameroon, China, Pakistan and Iran. After flying to Central and South America, they bused through countries where they didn’t speak the language and walked through...
Wisconsin clerk who failed to count almost 200 ballots is suspended
MADISON, Wis. — The mayor of Wisconsin’s capital city said Wednesday she has placed the municipal clerk on leave as investigators work to determine how she failed to count almost 200 absentee ballots in the November election. Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said in a statement that the city has launched...
Trump wants to dismantle U.S. Education Department. Here’s what it does
President Donald Trump has said he wants his education chief, Linda McMahon, to “put herself out of a job” and close the Education Department. McMahon, after being confirmed by the Senate on March 3, told employees it was the department’s “final mission” to eliminate bureaucratic bloat and turn over the...
