U.S./World category, Page 194
UnitedHealthcare killing suspect Luigi Mangione indicted on death penalty-eligible charges
NEW YORK — Luigi Mangione was indicted Thursday on a federal murder charge in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, a required step as prosecutors work to make good on the Trump administration’s order to seek the death penalty for what it called a “premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked...
Supreme Court keeps hold on Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship but sets May arguments
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday kept on hold President Donald Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship but agreed to hear arguments on the issue in May. Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship for the children of people who are in the U.S. illegally has been halted nationwide by...
Russia’s top court lifts terror group designation on Afghanistan’s Taliban
MOSCOW — Russia’s Supreme Court on Thursday lifted a ban on Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban, a group that was designated as a terrorist organization more than two decades ago. The Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021 as U.S. and NATO troops were in the final weeks of withdrawing from...
Scientists find possible chemical signs of life on a faraway planet
LONDON — Astronomers have found possible chemical signs of life on a distant planet outside our solar system, though they caution more work is needed to confirm their findings. The research, led by scientists at the University of Cambridge, detected evidence of compounds in the exoplanet’s atmosphere that on Earth...
Florida State gunman used deputy mom’s former service weapon to kill 2 and wound 6, authorities sayVideo
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The 20-year-old son of a sheriff’s deputy opened fire Thursday at Florida State University with his mother’s former service weapon, killing two people and wounding at least six others, investigators said. Officers quickly arrived and shot and wounded the shooter after he refused to comply with commands,...
Israeli strike kills family of 10 in Gaza as UN raises alarm over food cutoff
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip overnight into Thursday killed at least 23 people, including a family of 10, local health officials said. The United Nations meanwhile raised alarm over the mounting impact of Israel’s six-week-old blockade preventing all food and other supplies from entering...
Russia strikes Dnipro as Ukrainian officials seek security pledges in Paris
KYIV, Ukraine — Russian forces launched a massive drone attack on the southeastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro, killing three people including a child and wounding dozens, officials said Thursday. The strike was the latest in a string of Russian attacks that have caused civilian casualties and intensified in recent weeks,...
Federal judge will hear arguments as groups try to block Trump’s executive order on elections
NEW YORK — A federal judge on Thursday will hear arguments in three cases from national Democrats and voting rights groups that are challenging President Donald Trump’s recent executive order on elections, which, among other changes, would require proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections. The Democratic...
California judge set to decide whether the Menendez brothers deserve reduced sentences
LOS ANGELES — Erik and Lyle Menendez could learn this week whether they’ll get reduced sentences — and the chance for freedom — nearly 30 years after they were convicted of murdering their parents. A Los Angeles judge will preside over the resentencing hearing expected to last two days starting...
UN nuclear watchdog says U.S.-Iran talks at a ‘very crucial’ stage
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Talks between Iran and the United States over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program are “in a very crucial” stage, the head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog said Thursday while on a visit to the Islamic Republic. The comments by Rafael Mariano Grossi of the...
Officials demand answers as crews work to restore power after another Puerto Rico blackout
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Crews worked early Thursday to restore power to Puerto Rico after a blackout across the entire island that affected the main international airport, several hospitals and hotels filled with Easter vacationers The outage that began past noon Wednesday left 1.4 million customers without electricity and...
Head Start funding lags by nearly $1 billion this year, causing some preschool closures
Head Start centers across the U.S. have received nearly $1 billion less in federal money compared with this time last year — and a lag in funding this week has caused some preschool classrooms for low-income children to close. The federal government has distributed $1.6 billion for Head Start from...
A colossal squid is caught on camera for the first time in the deep sea
A colossal squid has been caught on camera for the first time in the deep sea by an international team of researchers steering a remotely operated submersible. The sighting was announced Tuesday by the Schmidt Ocean Institute. The squid filmed was a juvenile about 1 foot in length at a...
Experts make new recommendations on RSV and meningitis vaccines, but it’s unclear what happens next
ATLANTA — A federal panel of experts on Wednesday recommended an expansion of RSV vaccinations for adults and a new combination shot as another option to protect teens against meningitis. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices also voted to recommend a shot to protect travelers from a mosquito-borne illness called...
Fort Benning takes back its old name, but to honor a different soldier
FORT BENNING — The Army officially restored the name Fort Benning to its storied training post in Georgia, only this time to honor an 18-year-old corporal who fought in World War I rather than a Confederate general. A ceremony to make the name change official was held Wednesday at the...
Powell says Federal Reserve can wait on any interest rate moves
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve can stay patient and wait to see how tariffs and other economic policies of the Trump administration play out before making any changes to interest rates, Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday. “For the time being, we are well positioned to wait for greater clarity” on...
Maryland Sen. Van Hollen meets with El Salvador’s VP in push for Abrego Garcia’s release
SAN SALVADOR — Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen traveled to El Salvador on Wednesday and met with the country’s vice president to push for the release of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a man who was sent there by the Trump administration in March despite an immigration court order preventing his deportation....
Trump administration sues Maine over participation of transgender athletes in girls sports
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration said Wednesday it is suing Maine’s education department for not complying with the government’s push to ban transgender athletes in girls and women’s sports, escalating a dispute over whether the state is abiding by a federal law that bars discrimination in education based on sex....
Biden alleges Trump has ‘taken a hatchet’ to Social Security in 1st post-presidency speech
CHICAGO — Former President Joe Biden warned on Tuesday that President Donald Trump has “taken a hatchet” to Social Security, weighing in on a critical issue for millions of Americans as the 82-year-old Democrat briefly returned to the national stage. Biden, who has largely avoided speaking publicly since leaving the...
Russian glide bombs and artillery strike a Ukrainian city, killing 1
KYIV, Ukraine — Russian glide bombs and artillery struck a city in southern Ukraine on Wednesday, killing one person and wounding five others as Moscow forces continued daily attacks across the country. The city of Kherson was struck with glide bombs on Wednesday morning, and when rescue teams arrived at...
U.K.’s top court says definition of a woman is based on biological sex and excludes transgender people
LONDON — The U.K. Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that a woman is someone born biologically female, excluding transgender people from the legal definition in a long-running dispute between a feminist group and the Scottish government. Several women’s groups that supported the appeal celebrated outside court and hailed it as a...
White House threatens Colombia over regulations affecting U.S. auto exports
BOGOTA, Colombia — The White House is urging Colombia to halt the implementation of new auto safety regulations that could jeopardize American car exports to Colombia, as both nations prepare to discuss tariffs recently imposed on Colombian products including coffee, avocados, flowers and oil. In a letter to Colombia’s Ministry...
Army and Air Force libraries are ordered to review books for DEI material
WASHINGTON — Army and Air Force libraries have been told to go through their stacks to find books related to diversity, equity and inclusion, according to new memos obtained by The Associated Press. The orders from service leaders come about two weeks after the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland,...
Records show Gene Hackman’s wife researched symptoms of illness days before her death
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Authorities on Tuesday released a lengthy investigation report detailing some of the last emails, phone calls and internet searches by Gene Hackman’s wife in the days before her death, indicating that she was scouring for information on flu-like symptoms and breathing techniques. Betsy Arakawa died in February...
NATO chief reaffirms support for Ukraine during visit to port city of Odesa
ODESA, Ukraine — NATO’s support for Ukraine remains “unwavering,” the alliance’s secretary-general said Tuesday, emphasizing that more than $22 billion in security assistance has already been pledged by NATO allies in the first three months of the year. Mark Rutte spoke on Tuesday in Ukraine’s port city of Odesa, where...
