Associated Press stories, Page 42
Pentagon blocks photographers from Pete Hegseth’s briefings on the Iran war
NEW YORK — The Pentagon has not permitted photographers to cover Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s last two briefings on the war in Iran, and hasn’t explained the change in longstanding policy. A Pentagon spokesman, Joel Valdez, declined to comment for this story. The Defense Department under Hegseth has had a...
Travis Kelce returns to Chiefs for 14th season with Patrick Mahomes and Co.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Travis Kelce will be back catching passes from Patrick Mahomes for the Kansas City Chiefs one more time. The Chiefs made official their deal to bring the four-time All-Pro tight end back for a 14th season Wednesday, when the new league year made pending contracts official....
Social Security watchdog opens probe into alleged misuse of data by ex-DOGE employee
WASHINGTON — The Social Security Administration’s internal watchdog is investigating a whistleblower complaint into what it describes as a former Department of Government Efficiency worker’s potential misuse of data obtained from the Social Security Administration. According to a document the Associated Press obtained Wednesday, the SSA’s inspector general informed the...
Epstein’s longtime accountant testifies on his client’s wealth, business tiesVideo
WASHINGTON — House lawmakers were digging into Jeffrey Epstein’s sprawling financial portfolio on Wednesday as a committee deposed his former accountant and tried to understand his connections to some of the world’s wealthiest men. Richard Kahn, who worked closely with Epstein for years and now serves as an executor of...
Tracing the U.S. military’s learning curve on fighting Iran’s drones: What to know
WASHINGTON — The Iran war quickly tested America’s ability to combat the swarms of cheap drones that have become a staple of the modern battlefield after Ukraine and Russia demonstrated how effective they could be. The Islamic Republic launched so many drones across the region at once that some slipped...
IEA agrees to record release of emergency oil reserves in an effort to calm surging prices
PARIS — The International Energy Agency agreed Wednesday to release the largest volume of emergency oil reserves in its history, in a bid to counter the effects on energy markets of the war in the Middle East. The Paris-based organization said it will make 400 million barrels of oil available...
Drone strike kills UN aid worker in the eastern Congo city of Goma
GOMA, Congo — A series of explosions attributed to drones killed at least one person, a U.N. aid worker, as the attack on the Wednesday rocked downtown Goma in eastern Congo, according to the M23 rebel group and local residents. The drone strikes hit Lake Kivu and a private residence...
Lords a-leaving: Britain is ejecting hereditary nobles from Parliament after 700 years
LONDON — Centuries of British political tradition will end within weeks after Parliament voted to remove hereditary aristocrats from the unelected House of Lords. On Tuesday night members of the upper chamber dropped objections to legislation passed by the House of Commons ousting dozens of dukes, earls and viscounts who...
Iran war has blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil chokepoint. Reopening it is a big challenge
PARIS — The rising prices causing winces of pain at gasoline pumps are due, in large part, to the impact of the Iran war on the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial passageway for oil and gas from the Persian Gulf. The narrow waterway off Iran’s coast, now effectively closed by...
Trump keeps telling America he’s winning in Iran. He’s less clear in explaining how the war ends
WASHINGTON — Facing jittery global markets and drooping poll numbers since launching a war on Iran, President Donald Trump has cycled from calls for “unconditional surrender” to sounding amenable to an end state in which Iran trades one hard-line ayatollah for another. Shifting comments from the Republican president and his...
Star edge rusher Trey Hendrickson heading to Baltimore on 4-year, $112 million deal, AP source says
Four-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Trey Hendrickson has agreed on a four-year, $112 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press on Wednesday. The person spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because the contract can’t be finalized until the...
South Africa deploys troops in Johannesburg to tackle organized crime
JOHANNESBURG — Soldiers were deployed on the streets of South Africa’s biggest city on Wednesday after the president announced plans to use the army in several provinces in Africa’s leading economy to help police fight gang violence and illegal mining. Soldiers were seen in the Johannesburg suburb of Riverlea in...
Iran targets ships, Dubai airport and oil facilities as economic concerns mount
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran fired on commercial ships Wednesday and targeted Dubai International Airport, escalating a campaign of bottling up the oil-rich Persian Gulf as global energy concerns mounted and American and Israeli airstrikes pounded the Islamic Republic. Iran’s response to the surprise Israeli and U.S. bombardment that...
Tornadoes kill 2 in northwestern Indiana and raze buildings in Kankakee, Illinois
Major storms whipped up tornadoes that killed at least two people in northwest Indiana and leveled buildings in Kankakee, Illinois, authorities said Wednesday, as another round of rain, hail and strong winds made its way through the region. Several intense supercell thunderstorms moved across northern Illinois and northwestern Indiana on...
Cher’s son is expected in court on charges he broke into a New Hampshire home
Cher’s son is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday after being accused of breaking into a New Hampshire home this month. Elijah Allman’s arrest on March 1 was his second in New Hampshire in a matter of days. Allman, the 49-year-old son of the iconic singer and actress, was also...
Inflation was elevated in February even before the Iran war sent energy costs soaring
KANSAS CITY — Inflation stayed stubbornly elevated last month as gas prices rose in a snapshot of what consumer prices looked like before the Iran war sent energy costs soaring. Consumer prices rose 2.4% in February compared with a year earlier, the Labor Department said Wednesday, matching January’s 2.4% increase....
Stunned by Italy, U.S. could be bounced from World Baseball Classic
Kyle Teel, Sam Antonacci and Jac Caglianone homered as Italy built a big lead and held on to stun the United States, 8-6, on Tuesday night in the World Baseball Classic. The U.S. is done with pool play at Houston’s Daikin Park and needs the Italians to beat Mexico on...
Penn State men eliminated by Northwestern in Big Ten Tournament
CHICAGO — Nick Martinelli scored 24 points, Jayden Reid added 14 and Northwestern defeated Penn State, 76-66, in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament on Tuesday. Fifteenth-seeded Northwestern led 34-32 at halftime and the Wildcats’ biggest lead of the second half was seven points before they went on...
Heat’s Adebayo scores 83 points, 2nd only to Wilt Chamberlain in NBA history
MIAMI — It’s Wilt, then Bam. Bam Adebayo had a night for all time Tuesday, with a point total second to only Wilt Chamberlain in the NBA record books. Adebayo scored 83 points, setting league marks for free throws made and attempted in a game for the Miami Heat in...
Utah Valley will play in WAC tournaments after settling $1 million dispute over school’s exit fee
LAS VEGAS — Utah Valley and the Western Athletic Conference have cleared up their $1 million dispute that threatened to leave the Wolverines out of the league’s men’s and women’s basketball tournaments. Utah Valley plans to leave the WAC for the Big West Conference at the end of this school...
Canadian police investigate gunfire at U.S. consulate in Toronto
TORONTO — Canadian police are investigating after the United States consulate in downtown Toronto was hit by gunfire early on Tuesday morning. Nobody was injured. Royal Canadian Mounted Police Chief Superintendent Chris Leather called it a national security incident and said the national police force is working with Toronto police...
Smartmatic says Trump’s ‘campaign of retribution’ is driving criminal prosecution
MIAMI — Voting technology firm Smartmatic is seeking to dismiss a criminal indictment for money laundering, blaming President Donald Trump and his allies for seeking its prosecution as part of a “campaign of retribution” against those they blame for his 2020 election loss. Smartmatic’s parent company, UK-based SGO Corporation, was...
Trump-backed Fuller, Democrat Harris move to Georgia runoff to succeed Marjorie Taylor Greene
ROME, Ga. — Democrat Shawn Harris and Republican Clay Fuller advanced to an April 7 runoff for Marjorie Taylor Greene’s former U.S. House seat in Georgia after no candidate won a majority in a special election on Tuesday. President Donald Trump in February endorsed Fuller, a district attorney who prosecutes...
Ravens nix trade for Raiders’ Maxx Crosby after star pass rusher fails physical
The blockbuster trade sending star pass rusher Maxx Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens is off — and the fallout from that reversal could have a ripple effect throughout the NFL on the eve of the new league year. The Las Vegas Raiders said Tuesday night that Baltimore backed out of...
Cal Raleigh says there’s no beef with Seattle teammate Randy Arozarena after WBC handshake snub
HOUSTON — Cal Raleigh insisted Tuesday he has no beef with Randy Arozarena even though his Seattle teammate lashed out with a vulgar rant after Raleigh left him hanging for a handshake at the World Baseball Classic. The kerfuffle went viral when Arozarena, a two-time All-Star outfielder playing for Mexico,...
