Survivors still being found as quake death toll tops 28,000
LATAKIA, Syria — Ibrahim Zakaria lost track of time drifting into and out of consciousness while trapped for nearly five days in the rubble of his home following the massive earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria this week. The 23-year-old cellphone shop worker from the Syrian town of Jableh survived...
Migrants seeking U.S. sponsors find questionable offers online
Pedro Yudel Bruzon was looking for someone in the U.S. to support his effort to seek asylum when he landed on a Facebook page filled with posts demanding up to $10,000 for a financial sponsor. It’s part of an underground market that’s emerged since the Biden administration announced it would...
U.S. blacklists 6 Chinese entities over balloon program
BEIJING — The United States has blacklisted six Chinese entities it said were linked to Beijing’s aerospace programs as part of its retaliation over an alleged Chinese spy balloon that traversed U.S. airspace. The economic restrictions announced Friday followed the Biden administration’s pledge to consider broader efforts to address Chinese...
Toronto mayor steps down after affair with ex-staffer
TORONTO — The mayor of Canada’s largest city has stepped down after acknowledging he had an affair with a former staffer. Toronto Mayor John Tory said at a late Friday night news conference that he developed a relationship with an employee in his office. The 68-year-old was known as a...
AP source: Trump team turns over items marked as classified
WASHINGTON — Lawyers for former President Donald Trump have in recent months voluntarily turned over to federal investigators additional papers marked as classified as well as a laptop belonging to a Trump aide, a person familiar with the situation said Friday night. The legal team also provided an empty folder...
Trump lawyer in Mar-a-Lago search appeared before grand jury
WASHINGTON — Evan Corcoran, one of Donald Trump’s lawyers, appeared before a federal grand jury last month as part of the special counsel investigation into whether classified information and other government records were mishandled at the former president’s Mar-a-Lago estate, according to people familiar with the matter. Corcoran has been...
Ousted election clerk hit with ethics lawsuit in New Mexico
SANTA FE, N.M. — A local elections regulator in rural New Mexico who was recently declared missing from work and replaced is now facing possible sanctions from a commission that oversees ethics and conduct by government officials. The civil lawsuit against Yvonne Otero was filed Tuesday by the State Ethics...
New AI voice-cloning tools ‘add fuel’ to misinformation fire
NEW YORK — In a video from a Jan. 25 news report, President Joe Biden talks about tanks. But a doctored version of the video has amassed hundred of thousands of views this week on social media, making it appear he gave a speech that attacks transgender people. Digital forensics...
Lawyer: Trump conditionally offers DNA to compare against accuser’s dress
NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump is willing to provide a DNA sample to be compared against stains on the dress of a woman who accused him of rape, though only under certain conditions, his lawyer said Friday. Attorney Joseph Tacopina told a Manhattan federal court judge in a...
Sen. John Fetterman discharged from hospital, will return to Senate Monday
PHILADELPHIA — Sen. John Fetterman was released from the hospital late Friday afternoon after checking himself in Wednesday with lightheadedness. Fetterman’s office said doctors ruled out another stroke and he was expected to return to the Senate when the chamber is back in session Monday. “A few minutes ago, Senator...
Pitt withdraws from participating in U.S. News & World Report law school rankings
The University of Pittsburgh said Friday it will withdraw from participating in the U.S. News & World Report law school rankings, joining a revolt now spreading nationally among public and private schools over the rankings’ methodology. The U.S. News Best Law Schools ranking system “is systematically flawed and harmful to...
Florida doctors’ board tightens ban on gender-affirming care
ORLANDO, Fla. — A prohibition against puberty blocking hormones and gender-affirming surgeries for minors in Florida was tightened further after a board overseeing doctors eliminated an exception for research Friday at the request of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration. Some members of the public attending the meeting in Tallahassee shouted...
Lawsuit seeks white woman’s arrest in Emmett Till kidnapping
JACKSON, Miss. — A relative of Emmett Till is suing to try to make a Mississippi sheriff serve a 1955 arrest warrant on a white woman in the kidnapping that led to the Black teenager’s brutal lynching. The torture and killing of Till in the Mississippi Delta became a catalyst...
Biden to visit Poland for anniversary of Ukraine war
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden will travel to Poland this month to rally allies one year after Russia’s assault on Ukraine, the White House announced, as he aims to sustain a coalition that has supported Kyiv’s defenses. The visit, scheduled for Feb. 20-22, comes as signs point to waning support...
U.S. jet shoots down unknown object flying off Alaska coast
WASHINGTON — A U.S. military fighter jet shot down an unknown object flying off the remote northern coast of Alaska on Friday on orders from President Joe Biden, White House officials said. White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the object was downed because it was flying at...
Here’s how to legally bet on the Super Bowl
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Sports betting is now legal in two-thirds of the country, and more Americans than ever before have an opportunity to place a legal bet on Sunday’s Super Bowl. With sports betting ads blitzing the airwaves with come-ons and promotions, things might be a bit confusing, especially...
White House says no Biden interview prior to Super Bowl
NEW YORK — President Joe Biden apparently won’t be giving a pregame interview for the Super Bowl, which is being broadcast by Fox on Sunday. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Friday that Biden had been “looking forward” to an interview with the little-known streaming service Fox Soul, but...
CDC adds covid vaccines to list of routine vaccines for kids and adults
ATLANTA — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has added covid-19 vaccinations to a list of suggested routine immunizations, but they in no way mandate vaccines. The CDC’s vaccine schedule, released Thursday, does not set requirements for vaccines in schools or in the workplace. State and local jurisdictions decide...
FBI searches Pence’s Indiana home in classified docs probe
WASHINGTON — The FBI searched former Vice President Mike Pence ‘s Indiana home on Friday as part of the federal probe into classified records, according to two people familiar with the law enforcement action. The search followed the discovery last month of documents with classified markings by attorneys at the...
Indian government withdraws appeal to hug cows on Valentine’s Day
NEW DELHI — India’s government on Friday withdrew its appeal to citizens to mark Valentine’s Day next week not as a celebration of romance but as “Cow Hug Day” to better promote Hindu values. The appeal had attracted widespread criticism from political rivals and on social media. A terse statement...
Celebs tout ice baths, but science on benefits is lukewarm
The coolest thing on social media these days may be celebrities and regular folks plunging into frigid water or taking ice baths. The touted benefits include improved mood, more energy, weight loss and reduced inflammation, but the science supporting some of those claims is lukewarm. Kim Kardashian posted her foray...
Rescues in Turkey offer moments of relief in aftermath of quake that’s killed 21,000
ISKENDERUN, Turkey — Rescuers pulled several people alive from the shattered remnants of buildings on Friday, some who survived more than 100 hours trapped under crushed concrete in the bitter cold after a catastrophic earthquake slammed Turkey and Syria, killing more than 20,000. The survivors included six relatives who huddled...
Russia hits targets across Ukraine with missiles, drones
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia used strategic bombers, cruise missiles and killer drones in a wave of attacks across Ukraine early Friday, while Moscow’s military push that Kyiv says has been brewing for days appeared to pick up pace in eastern areas ahead of the one-year anniversary of its invasion. Russian...
Unexploded artillery shell from Civil War found in Gettysburg
Gettysburg National Military Park officials discovered an unexploded artillery shell this week at the Central Pennsylvania historic site during a rehabilitation process of the park. The unexploded ordnance shell was found on Feb. 8 within the Little Round Top area of the park, said officials, and it dates back to...
Pitt names interim law school dean
Haider Ala Hamoudi has been named interim dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law following Amy Wildermuth’s resignation on Jan. 23. Employed at the school since 2007, Hamoudi had been overseeing daily operations as acting dean while an interim dean was put in place, Provost Ann Cudd said....
