News category, Page 561
More hospitals requiring masks as flu and covid-19 cases surge
NEW YORK — More U.S. hospitals are requiring masks and limiting visitors as health officials face an expected but still nasty post-holiday spike in flu, covid-19 and other illnesses. While many experts say this season likely won’t prove to be as deadly as some other recent winters, it still could...
Florida surgeon general has safety concerns with covid vaccines. FDA disagrees
Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo, once again at odds with federal officials, is urging people to stop getting Pfizer’s and Moderna’s mRNA covid vaccines over safety concerns that the shots could possibly deliver DNA contaminants into human cells. Ladapo’s call to halt the use of the mRNA vaccines comes a...
Justice Department sues Texas over law that would let police arrest migrants who enter U.S. illegally
AUSTIN, Texas — The Justice Department on Wednesday sued Texas over a new law that would allow police to arrest migrants who enter the United States illegally, taking Republican Gov. Greg Abbott to court again over his escalating response to border crossers arriving from Mexico. The lawsuit draws Texas into...
Alzheimer’s drugs might get into brain faster with new ultrasound tool
WASHINGTON — Scientists have found a way to help Alzheimer’s drugs seep inside the brain faster by temporarily breaching its protective shield. The novel experiment was a first attempt in just three patients. But in spots in the brain where the new technology took aim, it enhanced removal of Alzheimer’s...
Trump asks Supreme Court to review Colorado ruling barring him from the ballot over Jan. 6 attack
DENVER — Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a ruling barring him from the Colorado ballot, setting up a high-stakes showdown over whether a constitutional provision prohibiting those who “engaged in insurrection” will end his political career. Trump appealed a 4-3 ruling in...
Imam killed in shooting outside Newark mosque, shooter at large, authorities say
NEWARK, N.J. — A New Jersey imam was shot multiple times and killed outside his mosque Wednesday, and authorities continue to search for the shooter, officials said. Imam Hassan Sharif was in his car when he was shot more than once at about 6 a.m. near the Masjid-Muhammad Mosque in...
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. qualifies for presidential ballot in Utah, the 1st state to grant him access
SALT LAKE CITY — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has collected enough signatures to appear on the 2024 presidential ballot in Utah, election officials say, marking the first state where the independent candidate and prominent anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist has qualified. Kennedy has met the 1,000-signature requirement needed to qualify in Utah...
Unsealed court records offer new detail on old sex abuse allegations against Jeffrey Epstein
NEW YORK — Amid great hype, a court began to release a new batch of previously secret court documents late Wednesday related to Jeffrey Epstein, the jet-setting financier who killed himself in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex-trafficking charges. Social media has been rife in recent weeks with posts speculating...
SpaceX back with 1st Space Coast launch of the year
After a record 2023, SpaceX is not slowing down its launch plans for 2024 with the first launch of the year from Florida slated for Wednesday evening. A Falcon 9 rocket carrying a telecom satellite for private Swedish company Ovzon is slated to lift off from Cape Canaveral Space Force...
U.S. asks Supreme Court to step in on Texas border barrier
The Justice Department asked the Supreme Court on Tuesday to intervene in its ongoing fight with Texas over border policy and immigration laws and allow border agents to remove razor wire on the Texas side of the Rio Grande river. The application asked the justices to set aside an order...
Russia and Ukraine exchange hundreds of prisoners of war in biggest release so far
Russia and Ukraine on Wednesday exchanged hundreds of prisoners of war in the biggest single release of captives since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. Ukrainian authorities said that 230 Ukrainian prisoners of war returned home in the first exchange in almost five months. Russia’s Defense Ministry said that 248...
U.S. job openings fell slightly in November but remain high by historical standards
WASHINGTON — America’s employers posted 8.8 million job openings in November, down slightly from October and the fewest since March 2021. But demand for workers remains strong by historical standards despite higher interest rates. Wednesday’s report from the Labor Department showed that the number of job vacancies dipped from 8.9...
Pet pig started fire that destroyed Butler County home, family says
A Butler County family is now homeless because of a fire that they say was caused by their pet pig. Thomas and Margaret Painter in Brady Township told WRAL they believe the fire that happened New Year’s Eve started when their pot-bellied pig Albert moved some fresh hay into his...
U.S. intel confident militant groups used largest Gaza hospital in campaign against Israel: AP source
WASHINGTON — The U.S. is “confident” that Palestinian militant groups used Gaza’s largest hospital to hold “at least a few” hostages seized during their bloody Oct. 7, 2023, attack and to house command infrastructure, an American intelligence assessment declassified Tuesday and shared by a U.S. official found. The assessment offers...
Investigators focus on air traffic communication after a fatal Tokyo runway crash
TOKYO — A transcript of communication between traffic control and two aircraft that collided and burst into flames at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport showed that only the larger Japan Airlines passenger flight was given permission to use the runway where a smaller coast guard plane was preparing for takeoff. An orange...
Meet the newest breed to join the American Kennel Club, a little dog with a big smile
NEW YORK — It’s small in stature, big on activity and known for a “smile,” and it’s ready to compete with 200 other dog breeds. Say hello to the Lancashire heeler, the latest breed recognized by the American Kennel Club. The organization announced Wednesday that the rare herding breed is...
Iran says at least 95 were killed in blasts at a ceremony honoring slain general
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates —Two bombs exploded and killed at least 95 people Wednesday at a commemoration for a prominent Iranian general slain by the U.S. in a 2020 drone strike, Iranian officials said, as the Middle East remains on edge over Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza. No one...
What to know about changes to this year’s FAFSA application for college students
NEW YORK — A new version of the federal student aid application known as the FAFSA is available for the 2024-2025 school year, but only on a limited basis as the U.S. Department of Education works on a redesign meant to make it easier to apply. That means the Free...
In 2024, Shapiro faces calls for billions for schools, a presidential election and wary lawmakers
HARRISBURG — In 2024, Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro could face a more complicated sophomore year in charge of Pennsylvania after his first year brought a highway collapse, a budget stalemate and friction with allies and adversaries as he navigated the battleground state’s political divides. He is under pressure to respond...
Biden will start the year at sites of national trauma to warn about dire stakes of the 2024 election
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden is starting the campaign year by evoking the Revolutionary War to mark the third anniversary of the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and visiting the South Carolina church where a white gunman massacred Black parishioners — seeking to present in the starkest possible terms...
Rescuers race against time in search for survivors in Japan after powerful quakes leave 65 dead
SUZU, Japan — Japanese rescue workers and canine units searched urgently through rubble Wednesday ahead of predicted bitter cold and heavy rain in what the prime minister called a race against time after powerful earthquakes killed at least 65 people in western Japan. Ishikawa prefecture and nearby areas were shaken...
Israel on alert for possible Hezbollah response after senior Hamas leader is killed in Beirut strike
BEIRUT — Israel was on high alert for an escalation with Hezbollah on Wednesday after one of the top leaders of the Palestinian Hamas was killed in a strike in Beirut that was widely blamed on Israel and heightened the risk of a broader Middle East conflict. The killing of...
In Texas case, federal appeals panel says emergency care abortions not required by 1986 law
NEW ORLEANS — The Biden administration cannot use a 1986 emergency care law to require hospitals in Texas hospitals to provide abortions for women whose lives are at risk due to pregnancy, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday. It’s one of numerous cases involving abortion restrictions that have played out...
Souvenir sellers have flooded the Brooklyn Bridge. Now the city is banning them
NEW YORK — Visitors to New York City hoping to take home a souvenir from the Brooklyn Bridge will now have to settle for a photograph, as vendors are about to be banned from the iconic span. The new rule, which goes into effect Wednesday, aims to ease overcrowding on...
Senate leader Kim Ward hopes 2024 brings big change to Pa. education system, minimum wage hike
Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward looks forward to 2024 as a year that will deliver a seismic change to Pennsylvania’s education system, a long-awaited boost in the state’s minimum wage and stronger laws against human trafficking. In remarks made after being re-elected for a second year as the chamber’s...
