Iran signals fast trials and executions for protesters as death toll in crackdown goes over 2,500
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The head of Iran’s judiciary signaled Wednesday there would be fast trials and executions ahead for those detained in nationwide protests despite a warning from U.S. President Donald Trump. The comments from Iran’s judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei come as activists had warned hangings of those...
GOP congressman hints Greenland invasion could trigger bipartisan Trump impeachment
Republican Rep. Don Bacon indicated there could be bipartisan support to impeach President Donald Trump for a third time if he invades Greenland. Days after the Trump administration attacked Venezuela and took its leader into custody, the president began expressing renewed interest in acquiring Greenland. Polls overwhelmingly show Greenland doesn’t...
Postal Service unveils new Muhammad Ali stamp in champ’s hometown
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Postal officials unveiled a commemorative stamp of boxing legend Muhammad Ali on Thursday in his hometown of Louisville featuring a photo of the champ in his fighting prime. The Postal Service printed 22 million of the Ali stamps, which feature an Associated Press photo from 1974 showing...
Top ICE official resigns to seek battleground congressional seat in Ohio
COLUMBUS — A top ICE official resigned her job on Thursday in hopes of ousting the longest-serving woman in Congress, Democrat Marcy Kaptur, this fall. In a video launching her campaign for Ohio’s 9th Congressional District, former ICE Deputy Director Madison Sheahan said she had stopped more illegal immigration in...
Ex-Sen. Kyrsten Sinema sued for allegedly breaking up bodyguard’s marriage
PHOENIX — Former U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema had a romantic relationship with a member of her security detail that led to the breakup of the man’s marriage, his ex-wife alleges in a lawsuit seeking at least $75,000 from Sinema. Matthew and Heather Ammel had “a good and loving marriage” with...
Fetterman opposes calls to abolish ICE
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman is rejecting calls from some fellow Democrats to abolish the federal government’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement following last week’s deadly shooting of a woman by an ICE agent and continuing unrest in Minneapolis. “The party must resist the destructive tendencies to push extreme positions,” Fetterman, D-Braddock,...
Ohio authorities say Michael McKee, the ex-husband of Monique Tepe, is responsible for killingsVideo
COLUMBUS — Police in Ohio’s capital city said Wednesday that they have gathered enough evidence to link a man charged in the double homicide of his ex-wife and her husband in their Columbus home last month to the killings. Columbus Police Chief Elaine Bryant said in an Associated Press interview...
Report: White House stashes Venezuela oil cash at banks in Qatar
The White House has reportedly stashed millions of dollars from sales of Venezuelan oil in Qatari banks since the ouster of President Nicolas Maduro, raising huge questions about how the money will be allocated and if Congress and the American public will have a say. An estimated $500 million from...
Judge hands offshore wind industry another victory against Trump in clearing way for New York project
WASHINGTON — A federal judge Thursday cleared the way for a New York offshore wind project to resume construction, a victory for the developer who said a Trump administration order to pause it would likely kill the project in a matter of days. District Judge Carl J. Nichols, an appointee...
Defense Department says military newspaper Stars and Stripes must eliminate ‘woke distractions’
The Pentagon said Thursday that it is changing the independent military newspaper Stars and Stripes so it concentrates on “reporting for our warfighters” and no longer includes “woke distractions.” That message, in a social media post from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s spokesman, is short on specifics and does not mention...
Renaming the Department of Defense the ‘Department of War’ could cost up to $125 million
WASHINGTON — Renaming the Department of Defense the Department of War could cost U.S. taxpayers as much as $125 million depending on how broadly and quickly the change is made, according to an analysis released Wednesday from the Congressional Budget Office. President Donald Trump signed an executive order in September...
Press freedom advocates worry that raid on Washington Post journalist’s home will chill reporting
If the byproduct of a raid on a Washington Post journalist’s home is to deter probing reporting of government action, the Trump administration could hardly have chosen a more compelling target. Hannah Natanson, nicknamed the “federal government whisperer” at the Post for her reporting on President Donald Trump’s changes to...
Trump announces outlines of health care plan he wants Congress to consider
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday announced the outlines of a health care plan he wants Congress to take up as Republicans have faced increasing pressure to address rising health costs and a jump in insurance premiums after lawmakers let subsidies expire. The cornerstone is his proposal to send...
U.S. seizes sixth sanctioned tanker it says has ties to Venezuela in Trump’s effort to control its oil
WASHINGTON — U.S. forces in the Caribbean Sea have seized another sanctioned oil tanker that the Trump administration says has ties to Venezuela, part of a broader U.S. effort to take control of the South American country’s oil. The U.S. Coast Guard boarded the tanker, named Veronica, early Thursday, Homeland...
U.S. sanctions Iranian officials accused of repressing protests against the government
WASHINGTON — The U.S. is imposing a new round of sanctions against Iranian officials accused of repressing nationwide protests that challenge Iran’s theocratic government. Included in Thursday’s sanctions is the secretary of the Supreme Council for National Security, whom the Treasury Department accuses of being one of the first officials...
Trump threatens to use the Insurrection Act to end protests in Minneapolis
MINNEAPOLIS — President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to invoke an 1807 law and deploy troops to quell persistent protests against the federal officers sent to Minneapolis to enforce his administration’s massive immigration crackdown. The threat comes a day after a man was shot and wounded by an immigration officer...
Bodies of 32 Cuban officers killed during U.S. strike on Venezuela repatriated as U.S. threat lingers
HAVANA — Cuban soldiers wearing white gloves marched out of a plane on Thursday carrying boxes with the remains of the 32 Cuban officers killed during a stunning U.S. attack on Venezuela as trumpets and drums played solemnly at Havana’s airport. Nearby, thousands of Cubans lined one of the Havana’s...
Venezuela’s Machado says she presented her Nobel Peace Prize to Trump during their meetingVideo
WASHINGTON — Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said she presented her Nobel Peace Prize medal to President Donald Trump during a meeting with him at the White House on Thursday, “as a recognition for his unique commitment with our freedom.” Machado did not provide further details, however, and the...
European troops arrive in Greenland as talks with U.S. highlight ‘disagreement’ over island’s future
NUUK, Greenland — Troops from several European countries continued to arrive in Greenland on Thursday in a show of support for Denmark as talks between representatives of Denmark, Greenland and the U.S. highlighted “fundamental disagreement” over the future of the Arctic island. Denmark announced it would increase its military presence...
Netanyahu says announced start of Gaza ceasefire’s next phase is a ‘declarative move’
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has cast the U.S. announcement that the fragile ceasefire in Gaza would advance to its second phase as largely symbolic, raising questions about how its more challenging elements will be carried out. Speaking late Wednesday with the parents of the...
The debate that never ends: Washington’s constant health care fight
WASHINGTON — The president was barely a year into his administration when a health care debate began to consume Washington. On Capitol Hill, partisan divides formed as many Democrats pressed for guaranteed insurance coverage for a broader swath of Americans while Republicans, buttressed by medical industry lobbying, warned about cost...
Ailing astronaut returns to Earth early in NASA’s first medical evacuation
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — An ailing astronaut returned to Earth with three others on Thursday, ending their space station mission more than a month early in NASA’s first medical evacuation. SpaceX guided the capsule to a middle-of-the-night splashdown in the Pacific near San Diego, less than 11 hours after the...
Federal officer shoots person in leg after being attacked during Minneapolis arrest
MINNEAPOLIS — A federal officer shot a person in the leg Wednesday in Minneapolis after being attacked with a shovel during an arrest, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. The person cautioned the information was still preliminary, and the investigation was in its early stages. The...
Demonstrator injured after federal agent fired projectile from close range during California protest
SANTA ANA, Calif. — A demonstrator was hit in the face with a projectile fired by a federal officer at close range during a Southern California protest, leaving him bloodied and with serious injuries, according to video and accounts from fellow protesters and family on Tuesday. The gathering on Friday...
War powers resolution fails in Senate as 2 Republicans bow to Trump pressure
WASHINGTON — Senate Republicans voted to dismiss a war powers resolution Wednesday that would have limited President Donald Trump’s ability to conduct further attacks on Venezuela after two GOP senators reversed course on supporting the legislation. Trump put intense pressure on five Republican senators who joined with Democrats to advance...
