The spring equinox is almost here. What does that mean?
Spring is almost here — officially, at least. The vernal equinox arrives on Tuesday, marking the start of the spring season for the Northern Hemisphere. But what does that actually mean? Here’s what to know about how we split up the year using the Earth’s orbit. What is the equinox?...
Famine is said to be ‘imminent’ in northern Gaza as Israel raids the main hospital again
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Famine is “imminent” in northern Gaza, where 70% of people are experiencing catastrophic hunger, according to a report Monday that warned escalation of the war could push half of Gaza’s total population to the brink of starvation. The report, by the international community’s authority on determining...
Putin extends rule in preordained Russian election after harshest crackdown since Soviet era
President Vladimir Putin sealed his control over Russia for six more years on Monday with a predetermined landslide in an election that followed the harshest crackdown on the opposition and free speech since Soviet times. While the result was never in doubt, Russians attempted to defy the inevitable outcome, heeding a...
Seton Hill presents lecture by San Diego cardinal during inaugural Founders’ Day
The Seton Hill community will honor its past and look toward its future during its inaugural Founders’ Day celebration Tuesday. Founders’ Day — which will feature a lecture by Cardinal Robert McElroy and a panel discussion about religion and violence — was created by the university’s office of Mission and...
Trump ramps up dark rhetoric in Ohio stump speech for Senate candidate Bernie MorenoVideo
VANDALIA, Ohio — Former President Donald Trump claimed that he — not President Joe Biden — will protect Social Security and warned of a “bloodbath” if he loses in November as he campaigned for Senate candidate Bernie Moreno in Ohio. Trump, speaking Saturday on a wind-whipped airfield outside of Dayton,...
Man accused of killing family members in Pennsylvania facing charges in 2 states
LEVITTOWN — A man faces murder charges in Pennsylvania and carjacking and weapons charges in New Jersey after allegedly killing three family members, carjacking vehicles in both states and evading law enforcement for hours as police mobilized in two states, authorities said Sunday. Andre Gordon Jr., 26, is charged in...
Putin is poised to extend his rule in highly orchestrated vote even as Russians quietly protestVideo
Russians crowded outside polling stations at noon Sunday on the last day of a presidential election, apparently heeding an opposition call to protest against President Vladimir Putin in a vote that offered them no real alternatives after he ruthlessly cracked down on dissent. Shortly after the last polls closed in...
Pennsylvania is flush with surplus cash, but it still faces a looming budget problem
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — Gov. Josh Shapiro wants to spend $3.5 billion of Pennsylvania’s surplus to stabilize transit systems, fund a court-mandated K-12 education overhaul, and expand...
‘There’s no agenda here’: A look at the judge who is overseeing Trump’s hush money trial
NEW YORK — Judge Juan M. Merchan looked across his high-ceilinged courtroom, facing the defendant in a complicated case. Not the one everyone knows about. Yes, Merchan could become the first judge ever to oversee a former U.S. president’s criminal trial: Donald Trump’s hush money case. But on a recent...
Man faces charges in two states after alleged killings of family members in Pennsylvania
LEVITTOWN, Pa. — A man faces murder charges in Pennsylvania and carjacking and weapons charges in New Jersey after allegedly killing three family members, carjacking vehicles in both states and evading law enforcement for hours as police mobilized in two states, authorities said Sunday. Andre Gordon Jr., 26, is charged...
State Medicaid offices target dead people’s homes to recoup their health care costs
WASHINGTON — As Salvatore LoGrande fought cancer and all the pain that came with it, his daughters promised to keep him in the white, pitched roof house he worked so hard to buy all those decades ago. So, Sandy LoGrande thought it was a mistake when, a year after her...
Wales’ first Black leader is a testament to Britain’s political diversity, but racism persists
LONDON — Vaughan Gething’s election as the next leader of Wales marks a milestone: For the first time, none of the U.K.’s four main governments is led by a white man. It’s a striking moment in a country still grappling with racism and the legacy of empire. Prime Minister Rishi...
Netanyahu snaps back against growing US criticism after being accused of losing his way on Gaza
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu railed Sunday against growing criticism from the United States against his leadership amid the devastating war with Hamas, saying the pressure won’t stop Israel from achieving “total victory.” In recent days, top officials from the U.S., Israel’s staunchest ally which has...
European Union announces an $8 billion aid package for Egypt as concerns mount over migration
CAIRO — The European Union on Sunday announced a 7.4 billion-euro ($8 billion) aid package for cash-strapped Egypt as concerns mount that economic pressure and conflicts in neighboring countries could drive more migrants to European shores. The deal, which drew criticism from rights groups over Egypt’s human rights record, is...
Pa. local governments want long-term state money for cybersecurity as federal grant fills the gap
This story was produced by the State College regional bureau of Spotlight PA, an independent, nonpartisan newsroom dedicated to investigative and public-service journalism for Pennsylvania. Sign up for our north-central Pa. newsletter, Talk of the Town, at spotlightpa.org/newsletters/talkofthetown. STATE COLLEGE — Local governments in Pennsylvania could soon have access to...
Mega Millions jackpot soars to $875 million. Powerball reaches $600 million
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — If you’re feeling some St. Patrick’s Day magic, you might want to buy a lottery ticket. Mega Millions and Powerball have racked up some massive jackpots after weeks of rollovers. The Mega Millions jackpot is already estimated at a whopping $875 million for Tuesday night’s drawing...
Police: Suspect is barricaded in New Jersey home after killing 3 people in Philadelphia suburb
LEVITTOWN, Pa. — A suspect has barricaded himself in a home in New Jersey after allegedly killing three people in a shooting in suburban Philadelphia on Saturday, authorities said. The morning shooting in Falls Township in eastern Pennsylvania forced the cancellation of a St. Patrick’s Day parade and shut down...
Bernie Sanders wants the U.S. to adopt a 32-hour workweek. Could workers and companies benefit?
The 40-hour workweek has been standard in the U.S. for more than eight decades. Now some members of Congress want to give hourly workers an extra day off. Sen. Bernie Sanders, the far-left independent from Vermont, this week introduced a bill that would shorten to 32 hours the amount of...
From clovers to some unexpected history, all you need to know about St. Patrick’s Day
NEW YORK (AP) — If it’s March, and it’s green, it must be St. Patrick’s Day. The day honoring the patron saint of Ireland is a global celebration of Irish heritage. And nowhere is that more so than in the United States, where parades take place in cities around the...
Hunger soars and aid dwindles as gangs in Haiti suffocate the country
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — A crowd of about 100 people tried to shove through a metal gate in Haiti’s capital as a guard with a baton pushed them back, threatening to hit them. Undeterred, children and adults alike, some of them carrying babies, kept elbowing each other trying to enter. “Let...
With Navalny dead, his allies keep fighting to undermine Putin’s grip on power
TALLINN, Estonia — Alexei Navalny’s team is used to working independently. The most potent foe of Russian President Vladimir Putin was frequently absent for long stretches after being arrested, assaulted, poisoned, or imprisoned. But when Navalny died suddenly in February at age 47 in a remote Arctic prison, his team...
Cease-fire talks with Israel and Hamas are expected to resume Sunday in Qatar
CAIRO — Stalled talks aimed at securing a cease-fire in the war between Israel and Hamas are expected to resume in earnest in Qatar as soon as Sunday, according to Egyptian officials. The talks would mark the first time both Israeli officials and Hamas leaders join the indirect negotiations since...
Husband of slain pregnant Amish woman: Young children told him of killing
MEADVILLE — The husband of a pregnant Amish woman killed inside her rural Pennsylvania home late last month testified Friday that his two young children told him about the crime when he got back from looking at potential roofing jobs. “I didn’t really believe it,” Andy Byler said at a...
Tornadoes kill 3, leave trails of destruction in the central U.S.
LAKEVIEW, Ohio — Blaine Schmidt sifted through the broken glass and splintered wood throughout his Ohio home Friday, salvaging a guitar and a bundle of diapers. His couch and a crib had been ripped apart by one of many tornadoes that tore through the central U.S., killing three people and...
Home sellers cut list prices as spring buying season starts with higher mortgage rates
LOS ANGELES — More homeowners eager to sell their home are lowering their initial asking price in a bid to entice prospective buyers as the spring homebuying season gets going. Some 14.6% of U.S. homes listed for sale last month had their price lowered, according to Realtor.com. That’s up from...
