Associated Press stories, Page 671
Japan’s flagship H3 rocket reached planned trajectory in key 2nd test
TOKYO — A new Japanese flagship H3 rocket lifted off from a space station in southwestern Japan on Saturday, successfully reaching a planned trajectory and releasing one of the two payloads in a key second test flight a year after its failed debut launch. The H3 rocket blasted off from...
Ukraine withdrawing from Avdiivka, where outnumbered defenders held out for 4 months
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s military chief said early Saturday that he’s withdrawing troops from the city of Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine, where outnumbered defenders battled a Russian assault for four months. The timing is critical as Russia is looking for a morale boost ahead of the second anniversary Feb. 24...
Texas will build camp for National Guard members in border city of Eagle Pass
McALLEN, Texas — Texas will build an operations base for up to 1,800 National Guard members in Eagle Pass, expanding the presence of soldiers in the border city where the state has clashed with the Biden administration over immigration enforcement, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott announced Friday. The 80-acre property along...
A $355 million penalty and business ban: Takeaways from Trump’s New York civil fraud verdict
NEW YORK — Donald Trump suffered a big blow Friday as a New York judge ordered the former president and his companies to pay $355 million in penalties for what the judge described as a scheme to deceive banks and insurers by exaggerating Trump’s wealth on his annual financial statements....
Patrick Cantlay builds a 5-shot lead at Riviera. Tiger Woods makes early exit with flu symptomsVideo
LOS ANGELES — Patrick Cantlay began with an eagle and never let anyone close to him the rest of the round Friday. He shot a 6-under-par 65 to build a five-shot lead at the Genesis Invitational going into a weekend that won’t include Tiger Woods. Woods made another early exit,...
Phillies agree to 1-year deal with Whit Merrifield, sources say
The Philadelphia Phillies have reached a contract agreement with utility infielder Whit Merrifield, a person familiar with the decision told the Associated Press on Friday. The agreement is for an $8 million, one-year deal that includes a $8 million club option for 2025 with a $1 million buyout, a second...
Aaron Nola happy to stay with Philadelphia Phillies
CLEARWATER, Fla. — Aaron Nola never felt pressure to sign a long-term contract during spring training last year, instead becoming a free agent after the season and quickly agreeing to a $172 million, seven-year deal to remain with the Philadelphia Phillies. “It’s definitely off my shoulders,” Nola said Friday. “The...
Tiger Woods withdraws after playing only 6 holes at RivieraVideo
LOS ANGELES — Tiger Woods returned to the PGA Tour and lasted only 24 holes, withdrawing Friday at the Genesis Invitational with an undisclosed illness after hitting his tee shot on the seventh hole. PGA Tour rules official Mark Dusbabek said on the telecast that Woods had an illness, and...
Western Conference wheeling and dealing is well underway long before the NHL trade deadlineVideo
Rick Tocchet and Rick Bowness were together at NHL All-Star Weekend when news broke that the Winnipeg Jets traded for Sean Monahan. Bowness’ team made a big addition less than 48 hours after Tocchet’s Vancouver Canucks acquired Elias Lindholm, considered the top center on the market. “It’s a great trade...
Toyota takes high hopes into Daytona 500 but weather may affect ‘The Great American Race’Video
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Denny Hamlin leaned into the window of Christopher Bell’s winning Toyota to congratulate his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate on beating him in a Daytona 500 qualifying race. Hamlin then gave Bell detailed directions to victory lane. “Been to victory lane at Daytona a time or three,”...
Iowa’s Caitlin Clark wants more focus on team during final stretch now that NCAA record is brokenVideo
IOWA CITY, Iowa — More scoring records are in sight for Caitlin Clark, but right now the Iowa superstar is looking forward to a break from the chase. She passed Kelsey Plum as the NCAA women’s career scoring leader Thursday night, putting up a school-record 49 points in a 106-89...
Pennsylvania high court takes up challenge to the state’s life-without-parole sentences
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania’s high court will consider if some automatic life sentences for those convicted of murder violate constitutional protections for defendants, the justices said Friday. The appeal being pursued by Derek Lee, convicted of a 2014 killing, argues the state’s life-without-parole law violates prohibitions in the Pennsylvania and U.S....
Wife’s decision not to testify ends domestic violence case against Bruins’ Milan Lucic
BOSTON — Prosecutors dropped a domestic violence charge against Boston Bruins forward Milan Lucic on Friday, saying the decision by his wife to invoke marital privilege made it impossible for them to prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt. The Bruins said he will not return from his leave of...
NFL suspends Raiders backup QB Jimmy Garoppolo for violating PEDs policyVideo
HENDERSON, Nev. — Las Vegas Raiders backup quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo was suspended by the NFL on Friday for the first two games of next season for violating the performance-enhancing drugs policy of the league and NFL Players Association. ESPN also reported the Raiders are expected to release Garoppolo next month...
Rangers’ Blake Wheeler is out for the rest of the regular season because of injury, AP source saysVideo
Blake Wheeler’s regular season is over after injuring his right leg falling to the ice, and it might take the New York Rangers going on a lengthy playoff run to open the door for a possible return this spring. Wheeler was placed on injured reserve Friday and is out for...
Donald Trump fraud verdict: $364 million penalty in civil fraud case
NEW YORK — A New York judge ruled Friday against Donald Trump, imposing a $364 million penalty over what the judge ruled was a yearslong scheme to dupe banks and others with financial statements that inflated the former president’s wealth. Trump also was barred from serving as an officer or...
2 juveniles charged in mass shooting at Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Two juveniles have been charged with crimes connected to the shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl rally, authorities said Friday. A news release from the Jackson County Family Court said the juveniles are being detained in the county’s Juvenile Detention Center “on gun-related and...
Tech companies sign accord to combat AI-generated election trickery
Major technology companies signed a pact Friday to voluntarily adopt “reasonable precautions” to prevent artificial intelligence tools from being used to disrupt democratic elections around the world. Tech executives from Adobe, Amazon, Google, IBM, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI and TikTok gathered at the Munich Security Conference to announce a new voluntary...
W.Va. Sen. Joe Manchin announces he won’t run for president in 2024
WASHINGTON — West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin announced on Friday that he is not running for president, saying he didn’t want to be a “spoiler.” “I will not be seeking a third-party run. I will not be involved in a presidential run,” he said in a speech at West Virginia...
Fani Willis won’t return to the witness stand as judge weighs disqualification in Trump case
ATLANTA — The Fulton County district attorney’s office opted not to put Fani Willis back on the witness stand Friday, avoiding the spectacle of more deeply personal testimony from the top prosecutor as she fights an effort to derail Donald Trump’s 2020 Georgia election interference case. While Willis will not...
U.S. wholesale inflation accelerated in January in latest sign that prices picked up
WASHINGTON — Wholesale prices in the United States accelerated in January, the latest sign that some inflation pressures in the economy remain elevated. The Labor Department reported Friday that its producer price index — which tracks inflation before it reaches consumers — rose 0.3% from December to January after having...
Proposed questions on sexual orientation, gender identity for the Census Bureau’s biggest survey
The U.S. Census Bureau this year plans to test questions about sexual orientation and gender identity for its most comprehensive survey of American life. The test questions will be sent to 480,000 households, with the statistical agency expecting just over half to respond. If the questions are approved, it will...
5 patients die as oxygen runs out in Gaza hospital seized by Israeli forces, health officials say
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Five patients in intensive care died after their oxygen cut off in southern Gaza’s main hospital that was stormed by Israeli troops, causing chaos for hundreds of staff and wounded inside, health officials said Friday. Troops were searching the complex where the military said it believes...
Greece just legalized same-sex marriage. Will other Orthodox countries join them any time soon?
Greece has become the first majority-Orthodox Christian nation to legalize same-sex marriage under civil law. At least for the near future, it will almost certainly be the only one. Eastern Orthodox leadership, despite lacking a single doctrinal authority like a pope, has been united in opposing recognition of same-sex relationships...
Ukraine’s Zelenskyy signing security agreements with Germany, France as Kyiv shores up support
BERLIN — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a bilateral security agreement with Germany and planned to sign another with France on Friday, securing a strong signal of long-term backing as Kyiv works to shore up Western support nearly two years after Russia launched its full-scale war. The Ukrainian leader was...
