Associated Press stories, Page 607
Senate passes a reauthorization of key U.S. surveillance program just after a midnight deadline
WASHINGTON — Barely missing its midnight deadline, the Senate voted early Saturday to reauthorize a key U.S. surveillance law after divisions over whether the FBI should be restricted from using the program to search for Americans’ data nearly forced the statute to lapse. The legislation approved 60-34 with bipartisan support...
Donald Trump will use his weekend reprieve from the courtroom to campaign in North Carolina
WILMINGTON, N.C. — On a weekend reprieve from the courtroom, former President Donald Trump will campaign Saturday in North Carolina as he juggles legal troubles and his rematch against President Joe Biden. Trump’s evening stop in the coastal city of Wilmington marks his first rally since his criminal hush money...
U.S. military will begin plans to withdraw troops from Niger
DAKAR, Senegal — The United States will begin plans to withdraw troops from Niger, U.S. officials said Saturday, in what experts say is a blow to Washington and its allies in the region in terms of staging security operations in the Sahel. The planned departure comes as U.S. officials said...
Israeli airstrike in Gaza’s south kills at least 9 Palestinians, including 6 children
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory. Israel’s war against the Islamic militant group Hamas has...
Man who set himself on fire outside the courthouse where Trump is on trial dies of his injuries
NEW YORK — The man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former President Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said. The New York City Police Department told the Associated Press early Saturday that the man was declared dead by...
Record numbers in the U.S. are homeless. Can cities fine them for sleeping in parks and on sidewalks?
WASHINGTON — The most significant case in decades on homelessness has reached the Supreme Court as record numbers of people in America are without a permanent place to live. The justices on Monday will consider a challenge to rulings from a California-based appeals court that found punishing people for sleeping...
Oklahoma City bombing still ‘heavy in our hearts’ on 29th anniversary, federal official says
OKLAHOMA CITY — Federal officials are resolved never to allow a terrorist attack like the Oklahoma City bombing happen again, Deputy Homeland Security Advisor Caitlin Durkovich told survivors and loved ones of the 168 people killed in the April 19, 1995, bombing Friday. “What happened here in Oklahoma still rests...
Big goaltender decisions await several teams in Stanley Cup playoffs
DENVER — Colorado goaltender Alexandar Georgiev went home after a recent shaky outing and immediately watched film — the car-racing thriller “The Fast and the Furious.” Anything to keep his own mind from racing. It’s playoff time, where teams march to the beat of their goaltenders. They want them laser-focused,...
Lakers’ LeBron James on NBA playoffs: ‘It’s a sprint now’
There’s a 64-win team in Boston that ran away with the league’s best record. The defending champions in Denver, a group that won 57 games. A fearless young bunch in Oklahoma City, whose No. 1 seed was no fluke. A trio of Villanova alums in New York, who turned the...
FAA investigating after it says a flight told to cross a runway where another was starting takeoff
ARLINGTON, Va. — The Federal Aviation Administration will investigate after a flight at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport was instructed to cross a runway where another flight was starting its takeoff, the agency said. A JetBlue flight was starting its takeoff roll on runway 4 at the airport in Arlington,...
What we know about the shooting of an Uber driver in Ohio and the scam surrounding it
It was a common scam that ended with an uncommon outcome, tragically in an Ohio driveway. William J. Brock fatally shot an Uber driver because he wrongly assumed she was part of a scheme to extract $12,000 in supposed bond money for a relative, authorities said this week. Lo-Letha Hall...
Collin Morikawa part of 4-way tie for the lead at Hilton Head. Scottie Scheffler lurks 3 shots backVideo
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — Collin Morikawa had another solid round Friday in the RBC Heritage with a 5-under-par 66 and appears to be getting back to the reliable form that made him a two-time major champion. Masters champion Scottie Scheffler’s form never seems to change. Even after an emotionally...
Emergency rooms refused to treat pregnant women, leaving one to miscarry in a lobby restroom
WASHINGTON — One woman miscarried in the lobby restroom of a Texas emergency room as front desk staff refused to admit her. Another woman learned that her fetus had no heartbeat at a Florida hospital, the day after a security guard turned her away from the facility. And in North...
Mandisa, Grammy-winning singer and ‘American Idol’ alum, dies at 47
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Mandisa, a contemporary Christian singer who appeared on “American Idol” and won a Grammy for her 2013 album ‘Overcomer’, has died. She was 47. A representative for the singer told The Associated Press that the singer was found dead in her home in Nashville, Tennessee, on Thursday....
John Tortorella says he failed to get Flyers to ‘close the deal’ in wake of late-season collapseVideo
VOORHEES, N.J. — Put those playoff plans on hold, Flyers fans. And not just this season. Philadelphia is stuck on the outside of the postseason for the fourth straight year after its fate was decided in Game 82. The Flyers’ acceleration from expected painful rebuild to the cusp of the...
U.S. attempts a new military deal with Niger in a last ditch effort to stay
DAKAR, Senegal — The United States is attempting to create a new military agreement with Niger that would allow it to remain in the country, weeks after the junta said its presence was no longer justified, two Western officials told The Associated Press Friday. The officials, who spoke on condition...
5 Japanese workers in Pakistan escape suicide blast targeting their van; Pakistani bystander dies
KARACHI, Pakistan — A suicide bomber targeted a van carrying Japanese nationals in Pakistan’s port city of Karachi on Friday, police said. The Japanese nationals escaped unharmed but officials later said one bystander was killed. Initially, police said the van was heading to an industrial area where the five Japanese...
Ukraine, Israel aid advances in rare House vote as Democrats help Republicans push it forward
WASHINGTON — With rare bipartisan momentum, the House pushed ahead Friday on a foreign aid package of $95 billion for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and humanitarian support as a robust coalition of lawmakers helped it clear a procedural hurdle to reach final votes this weekend. Friday’s vote produced a seldom-seen outcome...
Biden’s new Title IX rules protect LGBTQ+ students, but transgender sports rule still on hold
The rights of LGBTQ+ students will be protected by federal law and victims of campus sexual assault will gain new safeguards under rules finalized Friday by the Biden administration. The new provisions are part of a revised Title IX regulation issued by the Education Department, fulfilling a campaign pledge by...
Final jurors seated for Trump’s hush money case, with opening statements set for Monday
NEW YORK — The final jurors were seated Friday in Donald Trump’s hush money trial, and an appellate judge rejected the former president’s latest bid to halt the case as a hectic day in court set the stage for opening statements to begin Monday. The panel of New Yorkers who...
Biden administration restricts oil and gas leasing in 13 million acres of Alaska’s petroleum reserve
JUNEAU, Alaska — The Biden administration said Friday it will restrict new oil and gas leasing on 13 million acres (5.3 million hectares) of a federal petroleum reserve in Alaska to help protect wildlife such as caribou and polar bears as the Arctic continues to warm. The decision — part...
Apple pulls WhatsApp and Threads from App Store on Beijing’s orders
HONG KONG — Apple said it had removed Meta’s WhatsApp messaging app and its Threads social media app from the App Store in China to comply with orders from Chinese authorities. The apps were removed from the store on Friday after Chinese officials cited unspecified national security concerns. Their removal...
Explainer: 4/20 grew from humble roots to marijuana’s high holiday
SEATTLE — Saturday marks marijuana culture’s high holiday, 4/20, when college students gather — at 4:20 p.m. — in clouds of smoke on campus quads and pot shops in legal-weed states thank their customers with discounts. This year’s edition provides an occasion for activists to reflect on how far their...
Bitcoin’s latest ‘halving’ has arrived. Here’s what you need to know
NEW YORK — The “miners” who chisel bitcoins out of complex mathematics are taking a 50% pay cut — effectively reducing new production of the world’s largest cryptocurrency, again. Bitcoin’s latest “halving” appeared to occur Friday night. Soon after the highly anticipated event, the price of bitcoin held steady at...
Would you like a cicada salad? The monstrous little noisemakers descend on a New Orleans menu
NEW ORLEANS — As the nation prepares for trillions of red-eyed bugs known as periodical cicadas to emerge, it’s worth noting that they’re not just annoying, noisy pests — if prepared properly, they can also be tasty to eat. Blocks away from such French Quarter fine-dining stalwarts as Antoine’s and...
