Alamo Drafthouse Cinema will operate the massive 86-foot-wide curved dome theater and an adjacent 14-theater complex. Alamo's owner, Sony Pictures Entertainment, announced the plan to restore the Dome and reopen it in early 2028.

Alamo's plan will preserve the distinctive Cinerama Dome's geodesic exterior and large logo that have been a Hollywood landmark since the theater opened in 1963. The dome will not have in-theater dining, as is common in other Drafthouse theaters.

“There is no moviegoing destination anywhere in the world that commands the affection, history, and cultural significance of the Cinerama Dome. It represents the kind of singular experience we value and champion,” said Ravi Ahuja, Chairman and CEO, Sony Pictures Entertainment. Alamo Drafthouse CEO Michael Kustermann said the dome would be its new West Coast flagship theater.

The dome's massive screen supports 70 mm projection, which is having a moment thanks to Christopher Nolan's “The Odyssey.”

It was commissioned in 1963 by Pacific Theatres founder William R. Forman as a state-of-the-art way to see movies using three projectors for its custom curved screen. When the dome closed in April 2021, it was one of only three theaters in the world with that capability. Its operator, Pacific Theaters, announced the closing was caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Michael O’Leary, the president and CEO of the movie theater trade group Cinema United, applauded the news.

“The Cinerama Dome has been a treasured and important landmark for movie fans and the entire film community for over six decades,” O’Leary said in a statement. “The timing could not be better with moviegoers making clear this year that they love the unique experience of seeing a movie on the big screen.”

Alamo Drafthouse will also reopen a 14-theater complex next to the dome that used to be operated by ArcLight Cinemas, which also shut down in 2021. Those theaters will have in-theater dining, although the chain has faced backlash recently for its pivot to an in-seat ordering operation that requires use of personal phones.

“I just remember being taught that that area was kind of dangerous, in the sense of there being steep slopes” and a quick drop-off into the river, he told The Associated Press. A few years earlier, Martin had warned a pair of young people playing in the water at that same spot to “be very careful.”

He saw five adults in the water and two children playing on the grassy bank nearby, tracking the description of the group provided by Delaware County authorities after the drownings.

Martin and his family floated away to enjoy a beautiful summer evening. But when they returned past the spot about two hours later and saw the group still wading in the river, Martin thought to snap a photo.

“I don't know what it was. I said, I just need to capture this picture,” he said.

Martin said he knows the area well from 10 years of boating there and considered warning the people of the potential danger. But, unlike when he'd warned the two people earlier, there were two or three boats between him and them and he didn't want to cross between them and cause too many waves in the water.

He's been losing sleep over the decision since news broke of five people drowning that afternoon. It feels “surreal,” he said.

“I believe the picture I took may have been the last picture of them being alive,” he said.

Delaware County Sheriff Jeffrey Balzer has said authorities believe one of the adults began struggling to swim and the others successively went to that person's aid. All five were swept under and died. The two women’s bodies were recovered Sunday and the three other bodies a day later.

Neither Balzer's office nor the local EMS agency immediately responded to requests for verification of the photo and those who appear in it.

Martin said he feels certain the group he photographed is of the five people who perished Sunday; it's rare to see people fishing or swimming in that stretch of the river. He said he attempted to share the picture with both law enforcement and a news reporter at the scene the day after the drownings, but no one seemed interested.

Honduran authorities confirmed Tuesday that four of the five adults were Honduran citizens. One was Jose Mario Pineda Dias, 33, another his wife Marina Suyapa Regalado, 28. The other couple and the fifth individual have yet to be identified.

The government of Honduras said it is working with the U.S. to bring their bodies home. The repatriation process could take at least a month.

An 8-year-old and a 10-year-old, children of one of the couples, were orphaned by the tragedy. They were taken into initial custody by the state of Ohio, but arrangements were being made to reunite them with relatives in Honduras.

After an active evening, we start this morning off with more showers throughout the region.

Several tornado warned storms occured last night, including in Nelson, Amherst, Rockbridge, and Greenbrier counties. All of these storms were warned via radar indication, meaning it has yet to be confirmed if there was indeed a touchdown; to confirm, the National Weather Service will have to survey the land which will likely occur this afternoon.

As for today, there is still loads of energy in the atmosphere that is available to form storms. The cold front we dealt with yesterday, is still producing storms. It has since stalled out and is developing showers in a linear formation directly along the front. Over the next couple hours, the front will shift southward, impacting the counties boardering North Carolina.

We are expecting the same impacts as yesterday: strong winds, heavy rain, and a slight chance of some hail (looking less likely than yesterday).

The tornado threat is still there, but is minimal. This time around, the threat is further south encompassing Halifax, Pittsylvania, Charlotte as well as portions of Henry, Appomattox, & Campbell counties.

Timing is looking earlier in the day rather than later. More severe storms are expected to spark in the late morning to early afternoon, eventually easing up during the evening.

That being said, we will still likely see some rain through the night, but the severe threat will be minimized.

Monday Afternoon Update:

The enhanced risk (3/5) has been extended more southeastward, now including Greenbrier, Pocahontas, Highland, and Bath County.

The remainder of our counties remain in a slight risk (2/5) for tomorrow. That being said, it is still possible that the enhanced risk extends even more southward, but only time will tell.

The more north you go, the more likely you are to see impacts from this setup. The main threat is still strong winds, with the biggest impacts once again being in the Highlands.

As for hail, it is probable that those same areas see some. With the nature of this system, it is also a possibility that regions further south see at least pea-size hail in a few of the isolated cells.

Though the threat is small, it is certainly still there. Areas around Route 460 and northward are in a 2% risk of having a tornado form. Even though that may seem small, the risk is definitely there.

Timing is begining to look later in the day, which could mean great things. The later this system starts, the less likely severe impacts will generate.

As we look ahead into Wednesday, portions of Halifax and Pittsylvania counties are now in a slight risk (2/5). Most of the storms that are on the stronger side seem to pop up in the morning hours before retiring in the afternoon and earlty evening.

Sunday Evening:

As a cold front pushes toward the southeast on Tuesday, we are expected to see scattered storms in the early to mid-afternoon.

Some of these cells have the potential for damaging winds, hail, heavy rain, and even a slight potential of a tornado to be produced.

There are many threats that may be associated with this system, with the main threat being the potential for wind damage. Paired with the heavy rain, power outages are likely.

Though the threat for a tornado is not guaranteed, there is a non-zero chance.

The Storm Prediction Center has us under slight or a 2/5 risk for Tuesday due to these storms. With this being a 3-day outlook, this is subject to change, but unfortunately could up-the-odds as we get closer.

Since heavy rain and high rain-rates are expected, the Weather Prediction Center has the northern half of our region in a slight (2/4) risk and the southern half in a marginal (1/4) .

Many low-lying and urban areas are likely to be impacted by this, as well as roadways that reside close to rivers and creeks.

Remember: turn around, don’t drown!

As for timing, storms will start around noon and last off-and-on throughout the day. These storms will be most widespread around 4 pm and are also likely to be at their strongest around this time as well.

Our Severe Risk for Wednesday is still in the marginal and slight categories, but we are still seeing the potential for damaging wind gusts, small hail and heavy rainfall. We will need to stay weather aware both Tuesday and Wednesday.

A photo snapped by a passing boater sometime Sunday apparently shows them about thigh deep in the Scioto River, fishing poles in hand, standing around a big log. Calm as the surface appeared, the river was running high and fast, according to U.S. Geological Survey data. All five adults ended up drowning, authorities have said.

After the photo was taken, if it was indeed them, the group might have returned to shore. It is not quite clear. What Delaware County Sheriff Jeffrey Balzer has said is that one of the adults was struggling to swim in the river when several others went into the water to help. All five were swept under, he said.

The two women's bodies were recovered Sunday and the three men's bodies were found Monday.

On Tuesday, Honduran authorities confirmed that four of the five adults were Honduran citizens — Dias and Regalado and another married couple whose names have not yet been released. The fifth adult also has yet to be identified.

Flabia Zamora, director of consular affairs at the Honduran Foreign Ministry, told reporters Tuesday that they were working with U.S. authorities to bring their bodies home.

Zamora said that once U.S. officials have identified all the victims, Honduras will start the repatriation process, which could take at least a month.

She said the couple’s children are in the care of the state of Ohio and that arrangements will be made to reunite them with relatives in Honduras.

One of the children, a boy wrapped only in a towel, fled the riverbank in a panic and ascended to the road as the adults were drowning. According to a passing driver who called 911, “He was screaming, ‘Mama! Mama!’ and he was about to come out onto the road, and he was crying.” She said she was afraid he was headed onto a multilane road that snakes along the Scioto's eastern banks.

Brenda Raya, who described herself as a relative, has launched a GoFundMe campaign to cover funeral and transportation costs, as well as childcare costs for the two orphaned children. She said they are 8 and 10.

“The emotional and financial burden is overwhelming, and we want to honor the memory of our loved ones while providing for the children left behind,” she wrote.

The drownings occurred along the O’Shaughnessy Reservoir. The reservoir and its 18 miles (29 kilometers) of shoreline are the property of the city of Columbus. According to the city’s Recreation and Parks Department, Jet Skis, tubing and swimming are not permitted in any city of Columbus reservoir.

Lt. Heather Byers, of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, said rivers can be deceptively calm on the surface.

“Even though the water doesn’t seem to be moving very quickly, you can still get swept away in very slow-moving water,” she said. “Also, since you can’t always see the bottom, you never know if you’re in, you know, you could be in 2 to 3 feet of water, what you’re comfortable standing in, and then the next thing you know you’re at 4 or 5 feet.”

Besides the currents and the depths, people can catch a foot between the rocks, snag their clothes on a branch or lose their balance on slippery algae.

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González reported from Honduras. Julie Carr Smyth in Columbus, Ohio, and John Raby in Charleston, West Virginia, contributed to this report.

The president saluted as four transfer cases carrying the service members' remains were escorted off an airplane during the dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base. The ritual is one of the most somber duties of a commander in chief. It was the third Trump has attended since he launched the war in Iran in February.

Trump was scheduled to meet privately with the grieving families. Speaking to reporters on his way to Dover, Trump called the ritual “one of the hardest things to do as a president.” His message to the families, he said, was, “We love you. We love your child.”

“There’s no games, there’s no nothing — that’s their child,” Trump said. “And all you can do is throw out your heart.”

Trump was accompanied by administration officials including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Also present were Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del.

During the ritual, transfer cases draped with the American flag and holding the remains of the fallen soldiers are carried from the military aircraft that transported them to awaiting vehicles to take them to the mortuary facility at the base. There, the service members are prepared for their final resting place.

Fallen troops came from Hawaii, Texas, New York and North Carolina

Two U.S. Army soldiers killed in Iranian missile and drone attacks in Jordan were returned during the dignified transfer. The remains of a third service member who is believed to be the soldier missing after the Jordan attacks were also returned, as well as the remains of a soldier killed in Iraq during a detonation of an Iranian drone.

The soldiers killed in Jordan were identified by the Defense Department as Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii; and Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas. The soldier who disappeared after the Jordan attacks is Angel S. Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York, the Defense Department said.

The soldier killed in Iraq was identified as Michael Emmanuel Swinton, 30, who lived in Spring Lake, North Carolina.

The White House said Feehan's family would be joining on Air Force One later on Wednesday as Trump travels to Georgia for an event promoting his administration's investment accounts for children.

Trump previously said the soldiers died while protecting America and other nations from Iran.

“We feel very badly, but you know, those great people, those great patriots were out there fighting so that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” Trump told reporters on Sunday. He added that the U.S. was striking Iran “in honor” of the fallen troops.

Trump vows to retaliate for each US death

The U.S. has launched multiple retaliatory strikes against Iran as an interim agreement to end the war falls apart. Trump on Monday said that every time Iran kills an American soldier, “they will pay for that killing many times over!”

Since the war began on Feb. 28, 18 U.S. service members have been killed.

Trump on Tuesday said that while almost all the incoming fire in Jordan was stopped, some made it through.

“They did slip something through in Jordan,” he said. “If we had other operators, you know, it would have not happened, unfortunately.”

He went on: “We’ve stopped almost everything, but when you let other people do your job with the United States — we let other people do the job — and sometimes it doesn’t work out so well.”

Trump did not elaborate on his comments, and it was not immediately clear who he was saying was responsible for protecting U.S. forces in Jordan.

Trump attended two previous dignified transfers since the outset of the war, most recently in March.

Soldier had planned to marry fiance and attend law school

Feehan, a first lieutenant who was killed Saturday, will be posthumously promoted to the rank of captain and awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge. He was assigned out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command.

Feehan’s family said in a statement that their hearts were shattered by his loss. They remembered Feehan, who went by “Tivo,” as someone who “packed in more living” in his 25 years than most do in a lifetime.

“He chased adventure relentlessly,” the statement said. “He believed deeply in the power of military service, especially what it builds in a person: discipline, leadership, character.”

He planned to marry his fiance and attend law school after his deployment. The family said they’re starting a scholarship in his name.

Gonzales, who was killed Friday, was a private with the 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command in Ansbach, Germany. She graduated last year from Hebron High School in Carrollton, near Dallas, school officials said.

Rampersad, a sergeant who was believed to have been killed in Friday's attacks, was assigned to the 57th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 52nd Air Defense Artillery Brigade, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command in Ansbach, Germany.

Swinton, a sergeant who was killed Sunday, will receive a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge, and will be promoted to staff sergeant. He enlisted in the Army in 2017 and was assigned to the 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

___

Binkley reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Michael Catalini contributed from Morrisville, Pennsylvania.

The testimony from Benjamin Gregor came on the second day of a preliminary hearing in a Los Angeles court to determine whether there is enough evidence to put D4vd, whose legal name is David Burke, on trial on charges of murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under the age of 14 and mutilation of a body.

“I knew her first name,” Gregor said.

The prosecutor, Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman, later asked Gregor where he had heard the name Celeste. He said from Rob Morgenroth, D4vd's manager.

“Did he tell you she was his girlfriend?” Silverman asked, but objections prevented an answer.

Burke’s lawyers have said he did not cause Rivas Hernandez’s death, and he has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Prosecutors allege Burke fatally stabbed Rivas Hernandez to prevent her from revealing their relationship and ruining his career.

Gregor was one of two witnesses called to discuss Burke’s finances, to indicate how much he had to lose, and whether the killing could have meant financial gain.

But the questioning, which got increasingly heated, swerved into who among the people around Burke knew he was in a sexual relationship with the teen.

Silverman asked Gregor if he knew Burke had taken Rivas Hernandez to London with him, and to Texas to meet his family. He said he had heard about the London trip.

The prosecutor asked if he had heard about Burke taking Rivas Hernandez to nightclubs, with both of them using fake IDs. Burke only recently turned 21.

This drew angry objections from Burke's attorney, Marilyn Bednarski.

“Counsel is testifying!” she said.

Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo, who will decide whether there is probable cause for trial, cut off the line of questioning.

Prosecutors are seeking to prove that Burke, an indie-pop singer whose music and online presence brought him a huge following, met Rivas Hernandez when she was 11 and began a sexual relationship with her when she was 13 and he was 18.

They said in a court filing that she had grown jealous of his relationships with other women and threatened to expose him.

The court filing said Burke sent a car to pick up Rivas Hernandez on April 23, 2025, from her hometown of Lake Elsinore, California, some 80 miles (129 km) outside Los Angeles. They exchanged messages until she arrived at his home, after which her phone went dead. Prosecutors say he stabbed her when she arrived.

Tuesday's first day of the preliminary hearing focused largely on what came after her death.

The lead investigator, Los Angeles police homicide detective Joshua Byers, testified that records showed Burke had ordered a body bag, chain saws, an inflatable pool and a shovel online, and most of the items were found in Burke's garage when a search warrant was served.

Prosecutors say he dismembered her body in the garage, and kept it in the front trunk of his Tesla, where it was found after the car was towed 4 1/2 months later in September.

Byers testified that when he was called to the Hollywood tow yard, a body bag matching the one Burke had ordered contained a head and torso, with arms and legs underneath in garbage bags.

Photos of the body in the open trunk were shown in court as her parents, Jesus Rivas and Mercedes Martinez, sat in the audience. The two were back in the courtroom on Wednesday. They are not expected to testify at the hearing.

The defendant, who has been held without bail since his arrest, appeared in court in his orange jail clothes and glasses.

The financial witnesses testified that Burke's music had earned him at least $10 million between 2023 and 2025.

Under the name D4vd (pronounced “David”), he began writing and recording songs for YouTube videos he created of the video game Fortnite as a teen.

The music was a blend of indie rock, R&B and lo-fi pop. The music made him a phenomenon on TikTok, Soundcloud and Spotify, where his top songs, including his 2022 breakthrough “Romantic Homicide,” have more than a billion plays.

In 2023, he released two EPs and opened for SZA on tour. Last year, he performed at the Coachella music festival and released a full album that he was on tour promoting when the body was discovered.

House Republicans are divided over the plan, with conservatives wary because there are no offsetting budget cuts. But the GOP leadership is pushing ahead, viewing the go-it-alone process as the best chance to usher President Donald Trump's priorities through the split Congress, despite skepticism in the Senate.

“Just bullets and bombs to finish the job,” said Rep. Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, the chairman of the Budget Committee.

Democrats argued the money should be spent at home, particularly on efforts to lower costs for Americans.

“Republicans plan to spend tens of billions of dollars on Trump’s failed war in Iran,” said Rep. Pete Aguilar of California, chairman of the House Democratic caucus, this week. “Think about what we could spend with these resources instead.”

The Congress is at a standstill over the U.S. war against Iran — unable to stop Trump's military strikes, but not having authorized the use of American military force — and politically torn over having to provide billions of taxpayer dollars to pay for it. Most Americans disapprove of Trump's Iran strategy, according to a recent AP-NORC poll.

The budget battle comes as Trump attended the dignified transfer of four service members killed in the Middle East, bringing the military death toll to 18. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told senators at a fiery hearing this week that the Pentagon is running short of cash, despite a massive $150 billion one-time allotment in last year's big budget bill.

Even if the House hauls the budget resolution forward, Johnson’s strategy faces uncertainty in the Senate.

The package has $60 billion for the Pentagon and $13 billion for other national security needs, $12 billion for farmers struggling under Trump’s tariffs and $10 billion for voting law changes aligned with the SAVE America Act and proof of citizenship requirements that are Trump’s top priority.

A once rare budget tool is now the norm in split Congress

Republicans are relying on the budget reconciliation process, which enables approval on a majority vote in Congress, bypassing the Senate's ability to filibuster the measure t o stall or kill it.

Once rare, the reconciliation process is now Johnson's preferred strategy for pushing proposals through Congress. It's the way Republicans approved Trump's big tax breaks and spending cuts bill last summer and funded Homeland Security this year over Democrats' refusal to fund Trump's mass deportation agenda.

“No matter how you feel about current events, these funds are necessary to ensure our fighting forces remain ready, our troops are paid and our nation is safe," said Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama, the Republican chairman of the Armed Services Committee.

But House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said, “Republicans have literally ripped. food from the mouths of hungry children, seniors and veterans to sustain the Trump war machine.”

This is the third time GOP leaders have relied on reconciliation, dubbing this version 3.0, and it's a lengthy process. If the House approves the budget resolution, it next goes to the Senate for a round-the-clock session to consider politically tough amendments — something senators would rather avoid in an election year.

The budget resolution sets out instructions for the various committees to draft legislation, which Johnson hopes could be done this summer, with final voting on the package once lawmakers return after the August recess.

Senators pan House's budget and have their own ideas

Senate Majority Leader John Thune has been noncommittal on the House package that also divides his own GOP majority, with some Republican senators preferring more money for the military and others demanding the costs be offset with cuts elsewhere.

“We’ll see,” Thune said this week.

Thune's focus, at the moment, is avoiding another government shutdown. He wants the Senate to approve a stopgap funding measure, called a continuing resolution, to provide routine government funding before lawmakers leave for the summer break.

If senators are unable to reach agreement on government funding, Thune has said he may hold onto the House's budget resolution and use it later in the fall as a way to push the resolution through the Senate over objections. He wants to prevent a federal shutdown when current funds expire, Sept. 30.

“It’s a possibility that, if necessary, we could pull that budget resolution passed by the House and use it to fund government,” Thune said. “I hope that’s not necessary.”

Thune has also clashed with Trump over the president's push for the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship for voting. The measure, while popular among Trump's most ardent supporters, does not have enough support among Senate Republicans for passage.

It's already against the law for noncitizens to vote in federal elections and experts warn the proposed new rules could make it more difficult for eligible Americans to cast ballots. Estimates are that some 9% of U.S. citizens of voting age, or 21.3 million people, do not have proof of their citizenship readily available. Almost half of Americans do not have a U.S. passport.

The civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who is representing the Wells family, announced the preliminary findings Wednesday in front of a standing-room-only crowd at the annual NAACP National Convention in Chicago.

The autopsy report, he said, showed no evidence of fractures or deep tissue injuries. It described a “red discoloration” in the back of Wells' skull as “inconclusive” and meriting further investigation.

Without further information, the forensic pathologist, Dr. Robert Mitchell, wrote that he could not rule out the possibility that “non-accidental factors contributed to or caused the death."

Wells had traveled to an island off the coast of Mississippi on July 4 with a group of friends, who later returned to the mainland without him. His body was discovered two days later floating off the island's coast.

In his report, the pathologist pointed to several challenges inherent to the independent autopsy, including the decomposition of the body and outstanding questions about whether Wells was conscious when he entered the water.

Because an initial autopsy was performed by the medical examiner in Mississippi, Wells’ body arrived without organs or neck structures — making it impossible to determine if he had suffered a neck injury or whether water had entered his lungs, according to the report, which notes that the practice is not unusual.

Still, the revelation, relayed by Crump, prompted gasps from the crowd of several hundred in Chicago. The attorney called on state officials to provide that evidence for the family to review as part of their own independent investigation.

The Mississippi medical examiner, which has not released the results of the state autopsy, did not return a message seeking comment.

The second autopsy was paid for by former NFL player Colin Kaepernick, whose group Know Your Rights Camp has paid for other independent autopsies.

“This is only another part of the puzzle, and even though it tells us significant information, we still have more questions than we have answers at this time,” Crump said of the results.

The still-unknown circumstances around Wells’ death have touched off rampant online speculation and prompted calls from Black leaders for transparency from local authorities. Wells, who was Black, had traveled to the island with a group of high school friends, all of whom are white.

A reward of $125,000 — jointly funded by the Rev. Al Sharpton, actor and producer Tyler Perry and former NFL player Terrell Owens — is now being offered in exchange for information leading to an arrest and conviction in connection with the death.

The autopsy announcement comes two days after Wells was laid to rest in his hometown of Ocean Springs, Mississippi.

In his eulogy, Sharpton lamented the “inconsistencies and unanswered questions” that had placed a dark cloud over the grieving family.

He questioned why Wells’ friends had left him behind, taken his phone and keys and failed to report him missing. And he suggested local investigators had spoken prematurely in statements to the news media indicating no crime was suspected.

“The reason that a lot of people across the nation are looking at this Nolan situation is because we’re looking at the history in Mississippi,” Sharpton added. “We can’t have someone in law enforcement saying there was no foul play before there was an investigation.”

Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter said initial interviews suggested Wells chose to stay on the island and that his friends believed he would get a ride with someone else. He has said the friends were cooperating with the investigation, which remains ongoing.

“We are trying to be respectful and collaborative as much as we can,” Crump said. “But it’s always troublesome to all of us when these investigations just take forever.”

The S&P 500 slipped less than 0.1%, coming off its best day in three weeks, after swinging between modest losses and gains for much of the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 61 points, or 0.1%, as of 2:10 p.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.3% lower.

The majority of stocks in the S&P 500 rose after more companies reported strong profits for the spring. Expectations are high for the reports, and companies will need to match them after their stock prices already neared records on anticipation for them.

Philip Morris International rose 2.4% after the seller of Marlboro cigarettes reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than expected. Its shipments of smoke-free products rose 7.5%.

AT&T climbed 2.7% after reporting a stronger profit than analysts expected. CEO John Stankey also said the telecom is accelerating plans to send roughly $10 billion to its shareholders this year through the buybacks of its stock.

Super Micro Computer soared 21.1% after the seller of AI servers said it expects to report stronger profit margins for the latest quarter than it had earlier forecast. It, though, also said that revenue will likely come in at the low end of its forecasted range of $11 billion to $12.5 billion.

They helped offset a 7.9% drop for GE Vernova, which reported a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

Alphabet ticked 0.1% higher ahead of its earnings report, which is scheduled to arrive after trading ends for the day. Anticipation is high, and not just because the parent company of Google is one of the largest stocks on Wall Street. It's also one of the biggest spenders on artificial-intelligence technology.

Investors are looking for signs that the deluge of dollars going into processors, computer memory and other building blocks of the AI boom are producing the kinds of productivity and profits that would make the investments worth it. If that isn't the case, stocks of chip companies and other AI winners would look very expensive following their rushes higher.

Such worries have kept AI stocks at the center of Wall Street’s swings for weeks.

Micron Technology swung between a loss of 3.6% and a gain of 0.8% Wednesday. That's after it jumped 14.4% in the first two days of this week to reclaim nearly all its 13.3% plunge from the week before. It's still up roughly 241% for the year so far.

Stocks broadly also felt pressure from continuing climbs for oil prices, which raise costs for most businesses and erode their profits.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude oil, the international standard, rose 3.3% to $94 after briefly topping $95 in the morning to touch its highest price in nearly six weeks. That’s up from less than $72 early this month, which is roughly where it was before the war with Iran.

Rising oil prices are threatening a reacceleration of inflation. That in turn could push the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates, which would slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and other investments.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged up to 4.66% from 4.63% late Tuesday and from just 3.97% before the war with Iran began. It's already helped bring long-term U.S. mortgage rates to their highest levels in nearly a year.

Oil prices have climbed as fighting across the Middle East keeps oil tankers from using the Strait of Hormuz to exit the Persian Gulf. Normally, a fifth of all oil and natural gas traded passes through the narrow strait.

The auto club AAA said Wednesday that the average price for a gallon of regular gas in the U.S. jumped again overnight to $4.06. That’s still below highs of around $4.56 per gallon in May, but it had been below $3 before the United States and Israel attacked Iran in late February.

In stock markets abroad, indexes climbed in Europe following a mixed session in Asia.

London’s FTSE 100 rose 1.2%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1% for two of the world’s bigger moves.

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AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed to this report.

Teams of four can register for $250 per team. Only 10 spots remain, making it a limited opportunity for golfers looking to hit the links while supporting their local emergency medical services.

“Every donation, big or small, helps us continue providing emergency medical services to our community,” said 1st Lt. Rose Cayton Sexton of the Newport Volunteer Rescue Squad. “Your generosity directly supports our squad and helps us maintain the equipment, training, and resources needed to serve Newport and the surrounding area.”

The tournament will feature prizes for first-, second- and third-place finishers. Mulligans and Red T’s will also be available for purchase, adding extra fun — and extra fundraising — to the day on the course.

National Window and Door is among the event’s sponsors, helping make the tournament possible.

Golfers interested in registering can contact Ted at captain@newportrescue.com or by text at (540) 392-6494. More information is also available at newportrescue.com.

Speaking at a health summit in Ghana on Wednesday, Dr. Jean Kaseya, director-general of the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, said 1,031 deaths have been confirmed.

“These are people dying. They are dying because we don’t have vaccines, we don’t have medicine, we don’t have funding,” he added.

The latest update from Congo’s Ministry of Health showed that as of Monday, 2,473 cases had been recorded in the latest outbreak. At least 737 patients were in isolation or hospitalized, it said.

The outbreak, which was declared on May 15, is unlike most previous Ebola outbreaks because the Bundibugyo virus responsible for it has no approved vaccines or treatments. It has also killed more people at a faster rate than any outbreak on record, including the 2013-2016 outbreak that is considered the worst on record with over 11,000 deaths out of at least 28,000 cases. That outbreak took about eight months from the first case to reach 1,000 deaths.

Conflict and community resistance are complicating the response

The World Health Organization has said that the true scale of the outbreak could be ⁠two to four times larger than official figures indicate. Some communities at its epicenter also remain difficult to reach, mainly because of fighting involving rebel groups.

Ebola is rare, but highly contagious and can be contracted through contact with bodily fluids such as vomit, blood or semen. It can cause severe illness and is often fatal.

Officials have warned that 80% of new cases have emerged outside known chains of transmission, a sign the outbreak is spreading faster than health officials can track it even as they step up their response in Ituri province, the epicenter of the outbreak, and four other provinces where cases have been recorded.

Community resistance to Ebola teams, particularly those carrying out safe burials, has also hampered the response. Robert Ndjalonga, head of civil protection in Ituri province, said some communities have refused to allow burial teams to operate because they prefer traditional burials, increasing the risk of further transmission.

“The biggest challenge remains resistance from or outright refusal by some communities to accept response teams," Ndjalonga said. "On several occasions, burial teams have had to be escorted by security forces to ensure that safe and dignified burials could be carried out without incident.”

Shortages of burial supplies have delayed responses to reported deaths, while some affected health zones still lack operational burial teams, Ndjalonga said.

Attacks on health facilities and response teams have also forced front-line workers and aid groups out of some areas. Some health workers have gone on strike, saying they haven’t been paid since the outbreak started.

A member of a team carrying out safe Ebola burials was recently injured when assailants threw stones at the team’s vehicle following a burial in Bunia last week, according to provincial civil protection authorities.

The attack highlighted the challenges facing the response in eastern Congo. In Ituri’s Irumu territory, the local military administrator recently described Ebola as a greater threat than the Islamic State-affiliated Allied Democratic Forces insurgency and urged residents to support, rather than attack, health workers.

Containment efforts are faltering

A humanitarian worker involved in the response, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly, cited poor coordination between response agencies, delays in transferring patients to treatment centers and waits of more than four days for some Ebola test results.

“At times, it’s unclear who is doing what and where,” the worker said.

The delays have led some patients to leave health facilities before they can be diagnosed, increasing the risk of further transmission, the worker said.

Africa CDC head Kaseya called for intensified efforts to slow the outbreak on the first day of the health summit in Ghana on Tuesday.

“If we do not stop this outbreak today, it could become one of the worst Ebola outbreaks the world has ever documented,” Kaseya said.

Less than 9% of the contacts of confirmed patients who are expected to be traced are currently being monitored, far below the level needed to contain the outbreak, according to Africa CDC. More than 60% of deaths are occurring in the community before patients can receive care.

Pierre Akilimali, the Ebola response incident manager at the National Public Health Institute of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, said the high number of community deaths suggests many infections are not being detected or isolated in time, allowing the virus to continue spreading.

Experts warn of a worsening crisis

Last month, researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention used computer modeling to estimate how the outbreak could evolve. In a worst-case scenario, they said it could approach the scale of the 2014-2016 West Africa epidemic.

“There’s never been an Ebola outbreak that started with so many cases because it was so late to be identified,” said Trish Newport, emergency program manager for Doctors Without Borders, who has been working in Congo.

“It’s like the outbreak is outrunning the response,” Newport said.

University of Pittsburgh epidemiologist Dr. Jean Nachega, who is advising African health authorities, said he does not expect the outbreak to reach the CDC’s worst-case scenario but cautioned that the challenges remain “huge.”

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Asadu reported from Abuja, Nigeria. Constant Same Bagalwa in Bunia, Congo, and Mike Stobbe in New York contributed to this report.

Prosecutors said Hadi Matar attacked the renowned author and free-speech advocate in 2022 to try to carry out a decades-old fatwa, or religious ruling, calling for Rushdie's death over what some Muslims saw as blasphemy in his 1988 novel “The Satanic Verses.”

“Fulfill the fatwa — that’s what Hadi Matar intended to do,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Lynch said in an opening statement at a federal courthouse in Buffalo, New York, about 70 miles (110 km) from the arts and intellectual retreat where Rushdie was assaulted. The Booker Prize-winning author is expected to testify later this week about the stabbing that nearly killed him and left him blind in one eye.

Prosecutors said Matar's writings, communications and other materials showed he acted out of loyalty to Iran’s theocratic government and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group; Iran's late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued the fatwa.

Defense attorney Nathaniel Barone urged jurors to keep their minds open.

“You’re going to have to ask yourselves: What was Hadi Matar’s intent?” Barone said in his opening. "The government doesn’t know what Hadi intends or what his state of mind was at any time, quite frankly.”

An audience watched in terror as Rushdie was stabbed

Matar, 28, has pleaded not guilty to federal charges that include engaging in an act of transnational terrorism. Currently serving a 25-year New York State prison sentence on an attempted murder and assault conviction, he was attired for court in dress pants and a shirt that seemed too large.

After the opening statements, jurors saw video of the attack. It unfolded in front of a horrified audience at the Chautauqua Institution, where Rushdie was about to discuss writer safety.

His assailant, wearing a medical mask, strode onstage and stabbed Rushdie repeatedly, continuing even as the writer got up and fell backward. Spectators rushed to pull the attacker off Rushdie and held the assailant face-down until a state trooper arrived.

As one of the videos played, Matar, 28, placed his head down on the defense table several times before looking back up at the screen. Otherwise, he spent much of the time writing notes on a yellow pad and exchanged comments with his lawyers.

Rushdie, now 79, has recounted the assault and his lengthy recovery during Matar's earlier trial, in a memoir and in multiple interviews.

“The thing that happens when you get really a close-up look at death — that’s as close as you can get without actually doing the dance of death and heading off to nowhere — it stays with you,” he told The Associated Press in 2024. “There’s a shadow.”

Federal terrorism trial hinges on Matar's motivation

The attempted murder case against Matar focused on the details of the knife attack while the federal one delves more into questions of motive. If convicted, he faces a potential life sentence.

Matar kept a journal and sticky notes logging his years of research on Rushdie — including the location of his office, the sports teams he followed and establishments where he sometimes watched games, Lynch said in his opening statement.

“We need to kill him ASAP,” Matar wrote, framing the killing as part of what he considered a jihad, or holy war, according to the prosecutor. He said Matar added: “Become a warrior and just get it over with.”

In Matar’s New Jersey bedroom, federal agents found photos of Khomeini, his now-deceased successor Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and a Hezbollah figure, Lynch said. Matar's computer held a photo of him saluting in a Hezbollah-related t-shirt, plus a video about the fatwa that sought Rushdie's death, and Matar asked a contact in 2022 whether the edict was still valid, the prosecutor said.

On the day of the attack, Matar carried a fake driver's license in a Hezbollah figure's name, prosecutors said.

“The defendant wanted everyone to know he was doing this for Hezbollah," Lynch told jurors.

Matar declined to testify at his state court trial, and it's unclear whether he will take the stand in federal court. At his state court sentencing, Matar said he believed in free speech but that Rushdie was “a hypocrite” and a “bully.”

Matar also spoke out in support of Palestinians while heading into and out of the state courtroom.

Born in the U.S. to parents who immigrated from Lebanon, Matar is a citizen of both countries. His mother has said he turned moody and withdrawn after a 2018 trip to Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based.

How Ayatollah's edict affected Rushdie

Rushdie was born in India, raised in Britain — where he was knighted by the late Queen Elizabeth II — and now is a U.S. citizen. He won the Booker Prize in 1981 for “Midnight’s Children,” a magical realist novel about a personal and national journey that begins at the instant when India became independent.

But Rushdie became most famous, and notorious, for “The Satanic Verses,” particularly a passage featuring a dream sequence about the Prophet Muhammad. Often-violent protests erupted against Rushdie, who was born into a Muslim family.

Khomeini's 1989 fatwa drove Rushdie into hiding for years. Although Iran hasn't focused in recent years on the decree, it was never rescinded. Iran's government denied involvement in the 2022 stabbing, but its Foreign Ministry's then-spokesperson suggested Rushdie invited trouble by insulting Islam.

After “Knife,” Rushdie's memoir about the stabbing, he returned to fiction with last year's “The Eleventh Hour,” a book of short stories and novellas. He was recognized with a Dayton Literary Peace Prize lifetime achievement award in November.

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Peltz reported from New York.

Trump on Wednesday plans to speak at a Georgia high school to promote the investment accounts, which offer $1,000 in seed money to every child born during his second term. The accounts went live July 4, two days before Trump rang the opening bells for the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq from the Oval Office.

The tax-advantaged accounts, created last year through Trump’s signature tax and spending cuts bill, can be opened for any child under the age of 18. The Treasury Department boasts 6.5 million sign-ups for Trump Accounts, with 1.5 million of those eligible for the $1,000 seed funding for babies born from 2025 through 2028. Most of those families receive their $1,000 in one or two days, the Treasury Department said.

Boosters of the program say it’s a chance to give more Americans a stake in the stock market. They hope it will stem the rising popularity of democratic socialists, who seek to raise taxes on corporations and wealthy people to ease the cost of things like food and healthcare for low-income and middle-class Americans.

After the Trump Accounts are set up, parents, relatives, friends and employers can contribute to them. Some billionaires have also pledged philanthropic contributions. The money is turned over to private firms that invest it in index funds, a type of mutual fund that tracks the performance of the stock market. The money can’t be accessed until the child turns 18, and only then for specific purposes, such as going to school, opening a business or buying a home.

Some parents were told it could take 4 weeks for the deposit

For babies born since Trump took office last year, $1,000 from the U.S. Treasury is supposed to kick off the accounts. While some parents report receiving the money, others said in interviews and on social media they're still waiting for the accounts to receive $1,000.

Masaki and Kristina McLellan, new parents from Bergen County, New Jersey, said in an interview they were wary of signing up for the accounts because they worried it was a promotional stunt for the president. But the $1,000 incentive persuaded the couple, whose daughter Maya was born in late March, to start an account anyway.

Masaki McLellan said he applied for the account July 6. At first, the application was rejected, but the account was activated after he called the Trump Account hotline. He was told he'd see the money in the account in 10 days. Now, he says, he's been told it will take up to four weeks.

Kristina McLellan said she was disappointed it was taking so long to fund her daughter's account. But the infant has multiple other investments already compounding for her. Maya's parents have already started a 529 college savings plan and a custodial brokerage account for her. The Trump Account is the third investment account in the little girl's name.

“We definitely want to give her options for her future and make sure she can choose what she wants to do,” said McLellan, a studio director for a local news station, who returns from maternity leave next week.

The Treasury Department emphasized the McLellans’ case is unusual and said only a sliver of those who apply need customer support.

Treasury says most parents wait only 1 or 2 days

The Treasury Department said that the lag between opening an account and receiving the seed funding constitutes “standard processing time, like receiving a tax refund,” and that the overwhelming majority of parents are waiting only one to two days. But the department likes to give parents a conservative estimate for how long it might take for the money to be transferred, such as the estimate of up to four weeks given to the McLellans.

“Trump Accounts level the playing field by allowing every parent to invest in their children’s future, not just wealthy families with trust funds,” the department said.

The government also unveiled an initiative last month that permits child welfare agencies to open accounts on behalf of foster youth.

"With roughly 1 million sign-ups per month before launch, Trump Accounts have become the most popular and successful government-backed savings product in U.S. history,” the Treasury Department said.

Trump faces pressure over his handling of the economy

Trump's stop in Georgia comes as he and fellow Republicans face pressure in the midterm elections for their handling of the economy. Only 33% of U.S. adults approve of Trump’s economic leadership, among the lower ratings of his second term, according to a June survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Trump pledged to lower costs, but his tariffs and the war in Iran have instead helped to increase prices.

Trump Accounts are similar to baby bonds, championed by Democratic-led cities and states meant to shrink the wealth gap between low- and high-income children. But unlike most baby bonds, which generally target kids from disadvantaged backgrounds, Trump Accounts are available to families of all incomes.

The program has faced criticism from those who say it does nothing to help families in a child's first years of life, when children are most likely to experience poverty, homelessness and hunger. And the Republican bill that created the program also slashed funding for programs that are disproportionately used by children, including Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

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This story has been corrected to show the mother's surname is McLellan, not McClellan.

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Associated Press writer Adriana Morga contributed to this report.

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The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find the AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Trump’s latest threat to target civilian infrastructure came as the unpopular war spirals with no clear offramp, threatening further worldwide economic disruption and sending fuel prices up ahead of midterm U.S. elections this fall. Both sides have dug in on their dispute over the strait, a crucial waterway for global energy that remains largely closed because of Iranian attacks.

The U.S. carried out another wave of strikes on Iran overnight into Wednesday, and air defenses opened fire over the capital, Tehran. Iran launched a missile attack on a Jordanian city on Israel’s doorstep, and alerts were issued in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

With negotiations largely stalled, both sides have sought leverage by targeting civilian infrastructure. Iran has responded to U.S. attacks by targeting energy infrastructure and desalination plants that provide drinking water in parched neighboring Gulf countries.

International law generally prohibits such attacks unless the infrastructure is being used for military purposes. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres decried such attacks as “unacceptable” on Tuesday.

The costs of war are mounting

The closure of the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s traded oil and gas passed during peacetime, has jolted the world economy with effects far beyond the Middle East. A new threat by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen to target Saudi shipping in the Red Sea puts another trade chokepoint at risk.

“From this point forward, any time the Islamic Republic of Iran shoots at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, whether it be by Missile, Rocket, Drone, or any other device or weapon, the United States will bomb and destroy ONE BRIDGE OR POWER PLANT,” Trump wrote on social media.

Trump traveled to Dover Air Force Base on Wednesday for the arrival of the remains of four U.S. service members. A day earlier, his defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, estimated in a fiery Senate hearing that the U.S. had spent $37.5 billion on the war so far.

Benchmark Brent crude oil rose to more than $93 a barrel in trading. That's up from less than $72 early this month, which is roughly where it was before the war. Gasoline prices are also climbing.

Iran says it has the right to manage traffic and potentially charge fees in the strait, which was open to all and toll-free before the war. It has attacked ships using a route through the strait that is overseen by U.S. forces and intended to be outside Tehran's control.

Iran's parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, who has led negotiations with the U.S., appeared to brush off Trump's threats.

“If our security is not ensured, no infrastructure will be safe, and the security of the strait is in the absence of American forces,” he wrote on social media. “We have repeatedly said that the situation of the strait will not return to prewar conditions.”

Attacks shake Iran and Jordan

Jordan’s military said it intercepted four Iranian missiles over Aqaba, while two others fell in “uninhabited areas.” Plumes of smoke could be seen overhead in videos filmed by people in the nearby Israeli city of Eilat. Jordan said it also intercepted four Iranian drones.

Iran has avoided striking Israel since hostilities resumed last month, apparently hoping to keep it from reentering the war. But the attack on Aqaba, within sight of Israel’s Eilat, raised concerns over a further widening of the conflict after an agreement to halt hostilities collapsed.

Another missile alert sounded in Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia warned residents of the Persian Gulf city of Dammam to seek shelter. Saudi authorities later said the danger had passed, without elaborating.

The U.S. military said earlier Wednesday that it had completed an 11th night of strikes on Iran, with targets including aircraft hangars and drone storage sites.

Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported explosions across several provinces. Iran's Health Ministry says U.S. strikes over the past 11 days have killed 53 people, including six women and three children, and wounded nearly 600 people.

Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard insisted its retaliatory attacks would continue.

Diplomatic efforts show no signs of progress

Before the latest strikes, Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni visited Pakistan, a key mediator in the conflict, seeking to revive diplomacy. But it was unclear what new arrangement might be reached to end the war, which lately has become a battle for control over the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran's Interior Ministry spokesman Ali Zeinivand said “diplomacy isn’t called off” and that messages were still being exchanged, without elaborating, according to IRNA.

At a regional summit in the Philippines, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio denounced Iran’s actions in the strait.

“If we create a precedent in the Middle East where a nation state can decide that they are going to control an international waterway, charge a toll and if you don’t pay them, blow up your ships, we have created a very dangerous precedent which will repeat itself in other parts of the world, including in this region,” he said.

In response to Iran’s attacks, the U.S. re-imposed a blockade on Iranian ports.

Trump signals US may attack underground nuclear site

Speaking from the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump gave a dim view on possible talks, saying the U.S. had “no interest in meeting.”

He signaled that U.S. forces could soon target an under-construction Iranian nuclear site buried deep under a mountain.

The site, known as Pickaxe Mountain, lies on the south side of Iran’s Natanz nuclear enrichment site, which was bombed by the U.S. during the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in 2025. But Pickaxe Mountain has remained untouched as Iran continues to dig at the site.

Iran has always insisted its nuclear program is peaceful, while resuming the enrichment of uranium to near weapons-grade levels since Trump scrapped a 2015 nuclear deal during his first term. The U.S. and others believe Iran had a nuclear weapons program until 2003 and may reconstitute it in the future.

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Binkley reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Bassem Mroue in Beirut, and Michelle L. Price and Jim Gomez in Manila, Philippines, contributed to this report.

Gov. Patrick Morrisey sent 100 National Guard members to the hardest-hit areas in the northern part of the state, and declared a state of emergency for all 55 counties Tuesday night. An additional 200 National Guard members were deployed Wednesday.

“State and local agencies will remain on the ground for as long as it takes to help affected communities,” Morrisey said in a statement.

The state Division of Natural Resources has been involved in 85 rescues, he said, and 19 National Guard and state police helicopters were either out on rescue missions or standing by if needed. Local officials also reported numerous rescues.

Bob Pfister said the power remained on at the hotel where he was staying in Weston, even though the first floor was inundated with coffee-brown water. Most people had planned to stay put until Wednesday morning.

“Right now this option is much better than a shelter and a life boat,” Pfister posted on Facebook. “If the power goes out that may change a whole lot!”

Forecasters said up to 7 inches (18 centimeters) of rain fell in some places.

The National Weather Service in Charleston warned of life-threatening flooding conditions in some communities Tuesday night, telling people to “SEEK HIGHER GROUND NOW!”

Video and photos on social media showed submerged vehicles in parking lots, including at a Walmart in Weston where muddy water surged far into the store.

Emergency crews reported dozens of rescues of people stuck in submerged vehicles. However, some rescuers were unable to get to locations where floodwaters had cut off access.

Officials in some communities were still waiting for floodwaters to recede Wednesday before figuring out where the public can drop off donated supplies.

“Right now, that’s our problem,” Mayor Robbie Skinner of Buckhannon said on social media. “Our city is spliced up in such a way by the flood waters that there’s simply not a centralized place for everyone to access at this time.”

The heavy rains were part of wide-ranging storms — which also produced reports of tornadoes — stretching from the Cincinnati area across New Jersey to the New York City suburbs. Damage from a possible tornado was reported in the area of St. Marys and Belmont in West Virginia.

The ground was already saturated after storms dumped more than 2 inches (5 centimeters) of rain throughout the state on Saturday.

Although the rain had cleared out Wednesday, flood warnings remained posted in several counties for rivers, creeks and low-lying areas. Flood watches were posted for a large swath from eastern Tennessee, Virginia and North Carolina.

Emergency service communication channels were buzzing with activity late Tuesday night in West Virginia's Lewis and Upshur counties, which have about 40,000 residents combined.

First responders were performing water rescues for hours Tuesday night into Wednesday, Lewis County Commissioner Agnes Quinn Queen said.

“The devastation across our county is extensive,” she said in a social media post.

The governor urged residents to stay home Tuesday night. Floodwaters forced the closure of portions of Interstate 79, U.S. Route 48 and numerous secondary roads. A sinkhole caused by the storm swallowed a vehicle at a bar in Fayetteville.

Tuesday’s storms occurred a decade after 23 people died when heavy rains fell for hours over the same areas.

Data from a U.S. Geological Survey water gauge showed one creek tributary, Sand Run, rose to a record level near Buckhannon, topping the mark set during a November 1985 flood event that resulted in 47 deaths statewide.

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Associated Press writer Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut, contributed to this report.

Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein set the June 1 trial date at the request of lawyers on both sides. Under the approved schedule, defense lawyers will begin filing requests in early September to challenge the indictment and the couple will return to the courtroom Nov. 17 for oral arguments on the motions.

Maduro, 63, and his wife, Cilia Flores, 69, have been held at a Brooklyn jail since U.S. forces seized them from their Caracas home in a middle-of-the-night raid and brought them to New York in early January.

Neither spoke during Wednesday’s 15-minute hearing as each sat separately at a defense table, surrounded by their lawyers. Both have pleaded not guilty. They face potential life prison sentences if a jury agrees that they were part of a conspiracy to send cocaine into the U.S.

As he was led into the courtroom, the bespectacled Maduro greeted the judge’s staff and shook hands with lawyers for him and his wife. Noticeably thinner in a tan jail suit and with his thick mustache, he seemed upbeat, smiling and chatting with his lawyer. He listened to a Spanish interpretation of the proceeding through headphones and clasped his hands in front of him in a prayerlike gesture. He had a black pen wedged in his right fingers and sporadically jotted notes on a white pad.

As deputy U.S. marshals led him out, he waved to someone in the gallery.

President Donald Trump’s administration has defended the raid to capture Maduro as a “surgical law enforcement operation” in a criminal case first brought six years ago. Maduro has called himself a prisoner of war and his capture a kidnapping.

U.S. prosecutors say Maduro carried out a conspiracy to move thousands of tons of cocaine into the U.S. by colluding with Venezuelan law enforcement to help drug kingpins.

“I am not guilty. I am a decent man, the constitutional president of my country,” he said in Spanish at his arraignment in January.

Maduro’s lawyer, Barry Pollack, has said he expects to contest the legality of Maduro’s “military abduction.”

During Wednesday's hearing, Pollack said he will first challenge the indictment on sovereign immunity grounds because if that is successful, Maduro won't have to continue litigating the case.

The lawyers have said there are complex legal defenses that the court must address before a trial can begin.

Maduro and Flores have not asked to be released on bail.

Mathieu van der Poel led his Alpecin-Premier Tech teammate Philipsen to his first stage victory of this Tour by controlling the pace and containing counterattacks through the last kilometers.

Philipsen finished just ahead of Mauro Schmid and Olav Kooij.

The Belgian rider described a “a rollercoaster of emotions” after what had been a disappointing Tour for him personally.

“I prepared very, very well. I was in the shape of my life, I think, and the first stages, the first 12 days were just horrible. I couldn’t find myself, couldn’t find the feeling I was hoping for,” said Philipsen, who thanked his team colleagues.

“I was like an angry bird at the table. I was just disappointed in myself, angry that I couldn’t take (a) stage win, that I didn’t find my feeling. And the team, they had to deal with it, not only the riders, the staff. This one is for them to keep on believing,” Philipsen said.

Pogačar plays it safe

Pogačar, who is chasing a third straight Tour title and fifth overall, maintained his lead of just over 4½ minutes over Remco Evenepoel, the winner of the previous two stages.

But it was a bad day for Pogačar’s UAE Emirates XRG teammate Adam Yates, who struggled and only made it back within the time limit. The British rider slumped over his handlebars, clearly exhausted.

The race ends Sunday in Paris.

Sprinters’ last chance

The relatively flat 174.7-kilometer (108.5-mile) route from Chambery to Voiron was the last favorable stage for sprinters before the Tour takes to the Alps, and it led to a day of attempted breakaways with many riders vying to put themselves in contention.

Van der Poel was among the leaders after Côte de Saint-Jean d’Arvey, the last significant climb, and they were joined by others before Yates’ problems began in the peloton.

Mads Pedersen was next to attack the leaders with 65 kilometers remaining, and the green jersey-holder invigorated the group when he joined them.

More sprinters broke away, swelling the group to 30 riders, before Pedersen, Ben Healy, Michal Kwiatkowski, Felix Engelhardt, Ed Planckaert and Jasper Stuyven struck out 57 kilometers from the finish.

Stuyven attacked on his own 26 kilometers from the line, leaving his five former co-leaders to chase or wait for the main bunch. They were caught. The only question was whether the 34-year-old Stuyven had the stamina to claim his first Tour stage win.

The Belgian rider was caught with less than 4 kilometers remaining, and Van der Poel did the rest for Philipsen.

Race for green jersey heats up

Philipsen's stage win moved him just behind Pedersen in the contest for the green jersey awarded to the rider with the most points.

With four stages remaining, Pedersen of Lidl-Trek had 452 points, followed by Philipsen on 445. Biniam Girmay of Eritrea was next with 361 points.

Doping test concerns

Cycling’s governing body, the UCI, responded to criticism of unannounced anti-doping controls after Pogačar and his main rival Jonas Vingegaard were woken in the early hours of Sunday for tests by the Swiss-based International Testing Agency.

Vingegaard subsequently crashed during Sunday’s stage and had to abandon the race.

The UCI said it acknowledged the night-time testing “can disrupt riders’ rest and recovery” and said it remained an exceptional measure.

“While fully aware of how onerous such a measure is for riders, the UCI nevertheless underscores that these controls serve an overriding interest: the fight against doping,” the body said in a statement.

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The fire in rural Guadalajara comes less than two weeks after a deadly blaze devastated a small expat community in southern Spain. That small but extremely virulent fire killed 13 people, including several foreigners, in one of the southern European country's deadliest wildfires.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Wednesday visited the fire-ravaged area in Guadalajara, and called for a pact between political parties to fight climate change.

“Year after year we clearly see how climate change kills and destroys wealth in our communities,” Sánchez said in the village of Tamajón, located less than two hours by car northeast of Madrid. “This isn’t politics. It is science, it’s about facts.”

Some 34 villages have been evacuated in the area but there are no reported serious injuries or deaths. Over 200 firefighters were supported by land vehicles and aircraft on Wednesday.

Spain this year has already suffered 22 major forest fires, defined as a fire that burns over 500 hectares (1,235 acres.)

The Socialist leader said over 100,000 hectares (247,000 acres) had already been scorched through the first half of the year, matching the total yearly average for Spain over the last decade.

Spain’s Minister for Ecological Transition, Sara Aagesen, described the Guadalajara fire as “one of the largest in the recent history of our country” and the largest ever for the region of Castilla La Mancha.

The Guadalajara blaze is the second-largest on record in Spain’s history after some 37,000 hectares (91,000 acres) were burned last year in the northwest of the country, according to data from the ecological transition ministry, as cited by EFE news agency.

Regional authorities said firefighters supported by water-dumping aircraft had so far protected homes in all 40 villages in the burned area, 90% of which belongs to a national park. Firefighters hope to have the nearly week-old fire under control by Friday, said Emiliano García-Page, regional president of Castilla La Mancha.

Miguel Ángel Moreno, mayor of the village of Zarzuela de Jadraque, said its 100 residents were evacuated Friday, with 14 taking refuge at a Red Cross shelter.

Moreno said that the firefighters should receive as much admiration as the soccer players who won the World Cup on Sunday.

The firefighters “had to run from one side of the village to the other putting out fires,” Moreno told Spanish national television TVE. “Besides the heroes who won the World Cup, we have other heroes who remain nameless.”

New heat wave could complicate firefighting efforts

Spain’s weather agency said a heat wave that began Tuesday was expected to reach its peak between Wednesday and Thursday, with temperatures pushing 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in several inland areas and crossing 42 Celsius (108 Fahrenheit) in parts of Andalusia, in southern Spain.

Guadalajara and large areas of Spain were under alert for high temperatures.

Like many other European countries, Spain is experiencing extreme heat, which is combining with wind and limited rainfall to create ideal conditions for small wildfires to grow unchecked.

Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing twice as quickly as the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.

Globally, 2025 was the third-hottest year on record, bringing severe heat waves across Europe. Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness especially in southeastern Europe, making the region more vulnerable to health impacts and wildfires.

Europe facing hot, dry weather

In Sicily, firefighters said they had carried out more than 1,000 operations since Saturday and have put all the Italian island’s fire departments on double shifts to cope with the blazes.

The latest was a wildland-urban blaze in Agrigento, in central western Sicily that required the evacuation of 100 people from homes and a clinic, with 22 patients transferred to other facilities, the national service said. Firefighters were particularly concerned about an oxygen storage plant nearby.

For days, Italy’s Civil Protection agency has declared all of Sicily at the highest risk for wildfires. Winds and temperatures near or above 40C (100F) have fueled blazes from near Palermo on the northern coast to Catania in the east and now Agrigento in the west.

Greece was sweltering under what was forecast to be the last of a four-day heat wave. Temperatures were predicted to top 42 C (107 F), while several regions in southern and central Greece, including the wider Athens area, were on the highest alert level for wildfire danger.

Cyprus, meanwhile, issued a warning for high temperatures expected to reach 43 C (109 F).

In Britain, it hasn’t rained in more than a month in some areas, and much of the southern half of England is in a state of “prolonged dry weather,” one step before a drought. Thames Water, the country’s biggest water company, has banned its 10 million customers from using hoses to water lawns or wash cars starting Thursday.

France's public health agency on Wednesday said the country recorded at least 5,700 more deaths than usual during a historic heatwave last month, sharply increasing its estimates of the feared toll from record-shattering temperatures.

Public Health France said regions hit by the heat between June 17 and July 2 recorded 21,674 deaths from all causes. But without a heatwave, those same regions would have been expected to have seen far fewer deaths, or 15,910, based on statistical modeling using data from previous years, it said.

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Nicole Winfield in Rome, Elena Becatoros in Athens, Menelaos Hadjicostis in Nicosia, Cyprus, Jill Lawless in London and John Leicester in Paris contributed to this report.

Public Health France said regions hit by the heat from June 17 to July 2 recorded 21,674 deaths from all causes. But without a heat wave, those same regions would have been expected to have seen far fewer deaths, or 15,910, based on statistical modeling using data from previous years, it said.

The difference between expected and actual deaths — a total of 5,764 — are therefore considered to be “excess” deaths during the heat wave, the agency said.

It said the excess mortality, with 36% more deaths that would normally have been expected, was the highest from any heat wave since 2003. A historic heat wave that year caused an estimated 15,000 deaths in France.

France registered its hottest-ever days on June 24 and June 25 this year — with a national average of 30 C (86 F) — as well as record heat at night and peak temperatures that soared well above 40 C (104 F) in many places.

Just over half of the unexpected deaths occurred during and in the immediate wake of that hottest period, over three days from June 25 to June 27, the public health agency said.

“This unprecedented episode, characterized by its early onset, intensity, and duration, exposed nearly the entire population to extreme heat during a period when school and work activities were still in full swing,” the agency noted.

All told, across Europe, extreme temperatures that hit exceptionally early and hard this year saw well over 10,000 more deaths at the height of the heat wave than would normally have been expected, according to figures that are still emerging across the continent.

In France, the Paris region appears to have been hardest hit, recording 1,999 unexpected deaths — around 80% more than would otherwise have been anticipated without a heat wave, the French health agency said.

Funeral service directors in Paris said they struggled to find places to store bodies before burial or cremation, with some mortuaries saying they were full and having to turn bodies away.

Nearly half of the more than 21,600 people who died passed away in hospitals, which wrestled with surges of patients suffering from heat-related ailments. About a third died at home and the rest were mostly deaths in care homes for older people, the agency said.

The latest estimated death toll, which the agency said will be updated later in the year with more complete data, was sharply higher than initial figures it had given. It had previously reported around 2,000 additional deaths from all causes for the week of June 22 to June 28, the peak in France of the heat wave that also broke temperature records in many other parts of Europe.

Experts caution that it takes a while for a full picture to emerge, and that many heat-related deaths will never formally be recorded as such. For example, a heart attack, which can be triggered by extreme heat exposure, especially in people who are older or have underlying health issues, may be listed on a death certificate simply as a heart attack.

President Donald Trump is attending the dignified transfer of four more service members who were killed in action. Republicans are pushing a $95 billion package to fund the military, pay farmers and restrict voting after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth faced fiery questions and protests over his management of the U.S. war with Iran, which he estimated which has cost $37.5 billion so far. Democrats and Republicans alike questioned whether Hegseth has an exit strategy.

And Trump has reportedly approved a deal that could potentially provide Saudi Arabia with uranium enrichment capability. The agreement would be reviewed by Congress, where it could face headwinds among lawmakers who fear it would open new rounds of nuclear proliferation and competition.

The Latest:

Trump pays respects to four service members killed in Middle East

The president saluted as four cases draped with American flags were escorted off an airplane during a dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.

He was joined by administration officials including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Trump was scheduled to meet privately with grieving family members.

The White House said one of the families will be joining on Air Force One later on Wednesday when Trump flies to an event in Georgia, where the family lives.

Senate committee moves nomination forward for FEMA administrator

The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs voted 8-4 Wednesday morning to advance Trump’s pick to lead the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Cameron Hamilton.

Hamilton is a former Navy SEAL who briefly led FEMA in a temporary role last year before being fired after defending the agency’s existence. His potential return marks a shift in the Trump administration’s stance toward the disaster agency, after Trump said early in his second term that he was considering eliminating it altogether.

If approved by the Senate, Hamilton would be the first permanent FEMA administrator in Trump’s second term. The agency has seen four temporary leaders and been roiled by upheaval, including the departure of thousands of staff.

Journalists urge correspondents’ association to stand up to Trump at rescheduled press dinner

Hundreds of former or retired journalists and eight press freedom groups are asking the White House Correspondents’ Association to stand up to the Trump administration’s recent attacks on the media at its rescheduled dinner this week — a dinner President Donald Trump says he’ll attend.

The first dinner was cut short in April when a gunman, who prosecutors say was trying to assassinate Trump, opened fire at the Washington Hilton. The much smaller rescheduled dinner will take place Friday, with enhanced security precautions, at the capital’s Waldorf Astoria Hotel, formerly the Trump International Hotel.

The letter expands on a similar one issued in April, before the first dinner. It notes that since then, “the administration’s attacks on journalists and press freedom have become even more egregious.”

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Iran war energy shock hits Southeast Asia hard

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong raised her country’s concern over renewed attacks by the U.S. and Iran in the Middle East, warning that “the situation could deteriorate further without much warning.”

“We want to see an end to this war. We want to see a ceasefire. We want to see negotiations and we want the strait to be opened,” Wong told reporters at the ASEAN summit. The war’s impact on global energy markets has had a direct and personal impact on people, she said.

Southeast Asia’s reliance on fossil fuel imports from the Mideast has made the region particularly vulnerable, according to the International Energy Agency. Asian markets imported about 80% of the crude oil and almost 90% of the liquefied natural gas, or LNG, transiting through the Strait of Hormuz in 2025, the IEA said.

Rubio says US willing to be ‘patient’ with pace of change in Cuba

Asked whether the Trump administration’s goal is regime change in Cuba, Rubio told reporters that the U.S. is prepared to be “very realistic” and “patient” about a process of ensuring that the Cuban people “can experience prosperity, safety, security and a better life moving forward.”

Rubio insisted the country’s socialist economic model doesn’t work and that the Cuban government is most interested in holding on to power, not making reforms.

But he said that “we’ll keep talking to them about the kind of changes they can make” because it affects U.S. national security.

“It’s a failed state. But I’ve never laid out any timeline as to what change would look like or when it would happen,” Rubio said.

A plane was carrying food and hygiene kits to Cuba on Tuesday, part of U.S. efforts to directly aid residents.

Oil prices rise another 3%

A barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, was trading at $93.83 at midday Wednesday after briefly topping $95 to touch its highest price in six weeks as the war with Iran continues.

Rising oil prices threaten to reaccelerate inflation, which could push the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates, which would slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and other investments.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.65%, helping to bring long-term U.S. mortgage rates to their highest levels in nearly a year. The yield was 3.97% before the war.

The auto club AAA said Wednesday that the average price for a gallon of regular gas in the U.S. jumped again overnight to $4.06. It had been below $3 before the United States and Israel attacked Iran.

The soldiers whose remains are being returned to their families

The four U.S. service members were identified by the Defense Department:

1. 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii

2. Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas

3. Sgt. Angel Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York

4. Army Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton, 30, of Spring Lake, North Carolina

Since the war began on Feb. 28, 18 U.S. service members have been killed.

Trump to tell families of service members fallen in the Middle East, ‘we love your child’

Trump is at Dover Air Force Base, participating in the return of the remains of four U.S. service members killed in the Middle East.

Asked for his message to their families before he departed Joint Base Andrews, Trump said, “All I’m going to say is, ‘we love you. We love your child.’”

“All you can do is throw out your heart,” he said.

Canada cancels joint US bridge-opening event after another Trump tariff threat

The Friday ceremony celebrating the opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge connecting Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, is no longer expected to take place after Trump announced a pending 50% tariff on most Canadian goods.

“In light of trade action threatened by the United States earlier this week, it would be inappropriate to proceed,” emailed Jenna Ghassabeh, a spokesperson for Canadian Infrastructure Minister Gregor Robertson.

U.S. and Canadian officials had reached an agreement to open the $4.4 billion bridge, which Canada financed under an agreement allowing it to recover the cost through toll revenue. Canada now plans its own ceremony Friday.

Two U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations said they still expect the bridge to open to traffic July 27 but are less certain than they were before.

— By Joey Capelletti

Rubio says any nuclear agreement the US signs will not lead to nuclear proliferation

Rubio was asked about the risk of the U.S. signing an agreement with a Middle Eastern country that does not include the “gold standard” promise to refrain from enriching or reprocessing uranium.

Rubio said he would not “opine directly on that agreement” with Saudi Arabia, but then said “the U.S. is not going to reach any agreement with any country in the world that leads to the risk of proliferation.”

Rubio is pressed on Trump’s reported nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia

When asked by reporters on Wednesday in the Philippines about the nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia, the secretary of state didn’t deny the approval was coming and instead said, “I’ll let the White House officials sort of put out an official statement about anything in regards to that.”

Stumbling a bit in his response, Rubio also said: “I’d prefer it be, you know, put out when there is something to say that we will say through official channels.”

Rubio points to Iran’s remaining capabilities even though ‘diminished’

Rubio said Iran’s missiles and drones being used in strikes now are “exactly the conventional shield that they were going to hide behind to pursue a nuclear program.”

He said that capacity is “greatly diminished” but that a year from now, Iran would have had so many missiles and drones serving as a shield that it “would have given them immunity to do whatever they wanted.”

He kept some hope alive for renewed talks, saying the U.S. remains open to negotiations, “but right now they don’t seem to be serious about that” so instead the focus is on protecting shipping.

“We think other countries should join us in that endeavor. We don’t need them to, but they should because they’re more impacted by it than we are.”

Rubio is asked whether China and Russia are helping Iran find targets

Rubio, who doubles as Trump’s national security advisor, was asked Wednesday whether China and Russia are giving targeting information to Iran.

“All I would say is that, you know, anytime you’re in a combat zone like that, there’s danger associated with it,” Rubio said. “At the end, this actually proves the point that this is what Iran has been investing its money in.”

When pressed again by a reporter, Rubio said, “I’m not going to discuss that, other than to say that nothing that’s happened, nothing that China has done has in any way changed the trajectory of the outcome, of what you’re seeing in terms of the conflict that we’re having with Iran.”

Rubio said China has been quite cooperative in some ways, such as publicly opposing what Iran is trying to do in the Strait of Hormuz.

Rubio says Iran controlling Strait of Hormuz would set dangerous precedent

Marco Rubio warned Asian leaders Wednesday that Iran’s demand to control and collect tolls in the Strait of Hormuz would threaten the world’s economy.

“If we create a precedent in the Middle East where a nation state can decide that they are going to control an international waterway, charge a toll and if you don’t pay them, blow up your ships, we have created a very dangerous precedent which will repeat itself in other parts of the world, including in this region,” the U.S. Secretary of State said.

Rubio’s counterparts at the annual meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have expressed alarm over the resurgent Iran war that has battered their economies. Despite Washington’s preoccupation with the war, Rubio said “we’re with ASEAN 100%.”

Trump approves nuclear agreement that may allow Saudi Arabia to enrich uranium, two AP sources say

The deal approved by Trump could potentially provide the kingdom with uranium enrichment capability for its civilian nuclear program, according to two people familiar with the matter who were not authorized to comment publicly ahead of a formal announcement expected to be made as early as Wednesday.

The deal, expected to last 30 years and involve U.S. firms, would be reviewed by Congress, where it could face headwinds among lawmakers who fear that helping the Saudis fulfill their long-standing desire to enrich their own uranium would open new rounds of nuclear proliferation and competition.

Saudi Arabia is a member state of the International Atomic Energy Agency, which promotes peaceful nuclear work and inspects nations to ensure they don’t have clandestine atomic weapons programs. But the agreement is not expected to include the IAEA’s Additional Protocol, which would allow for more monitoring, inspections and verification, according to one of the people.

— By Aamer Madhani, Michelle L. Price, Jon Gambrell

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Trump says US will destroy a bridge or power plant for each Iranian attack in the Strait of Hormuz

The president’s warning about targeting civilian infrastructure came after the U.S. carried out another wave of strikes on Iran, including its capital, Tehran. Iran launched a missile attack on a Jordanian city on Israel’s doorstep, and alerts were issued in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

“From this point forward, any time the Islamic Republic of Iran shoots at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, whether it be by Missile, Rocket, Drone, or any other device or weapon, the United States will bomb and destroy ONE BRIDGE OR POWER PLANT,” Trump wrote on social media.

The 11th night of American airstrikes on Iran came as diplomatic efforts have shown little public sign of progress. Officials on both sides have dug in on their dispute over the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for global energy that remains largely closed because of Iranian attacks.

As the president touts Trump Accounts, some families are still waiting for their baby’s $1,000

Trump says Trump Accounts could hoist children out of poverty and give more Americans the chance to benefit from investments in the stock market. But some parents say they’re still waiting for the money to arrive.

Trump on Wednesday plans to speak at a Georgia high school to promote the investment accounts, which offer $1,000 in seed money to every child born during his second term. The accounts went live July 4, two days before Trump rang the opening bells for both the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ from the Oval Office.

The tax-advantaged accounts, created last year through Trump’s signature One Big Beautiful Bill, can be opened for any child under the age of 18. The Treasury Department boasts 6.5 million sign-ups for Trump Accounts, with 1.5 million of those eligible for the $1,000 seed funding for babies born from 2025 through 2028.

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Iran’s demands over the Strait of Hormuz would set a dangerous precedent, Rubio warns Asian leaders

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned Asian leaders Wednesday that Iran’s demand to control and collect tolls in the Strait of Hormuz would threaten the world’s economy and set a precedent that could be repeated elsewhere in the world.

Rubio spoke at the start of an annual meeting in the Philippine capital, Manila, with counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations who have expressed alarm over the resurgent war in the Middle East that has battered their region. Despite Washington’s preoccupation with the war, Rubio said “we’re with ASEAN 100%.”

Washington’s top diplomat also renewed allegations that Iran has reneged on commitments under a failed peace deal. Rubio said Iran “has been reaching out to the United States, both directly and indirectly, to engage in talks about settling the differences,” but gave no indication that the U.S. was considering returning to peace talks with Iran.

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US and Iran attacks rage as officials question whether diplomacy can stop march toward war resuming

The United States and Iran exchanged fire across the Middle East on Wednesday, as officials in both nations called into question diplomatic efforts to stop the war as it threatens to again spin out of control.

The U.S. launched an 11th night of airstrikes on the Islamic Republic, hitting targets across the nation as air defense systems opened fire over the capital, Tehran. It wasn’t immediately clear what specific targets the Americans went after in these nighttime strikes.

Iran retaliated with missile and drone fire targeting Jordan’s port city of Aqaba, once again attacking just on the doorstep of Israel. The U.S. has been using Israel’s main Ben-Gurion International Airport to host its refueler aircraft and has put fighter jets at bases in the country, but Iran has been hesitant to strike for fear of bringing the Israeli military back into the conflict.

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Hegseth estimates Iran war has cost $37.5 billion as he defends funding request at fiery hearing

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth faced fiery questions and protests Tuesday over the U.S. war with Iran, which he estimated has cost $37.5 billion so far, as Republicans prepare a $95 billion package to fund the military, along with other White House priorities.

Hegseth provided the new estimate, up from earlier assessments, during a combative Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, which came days after the Pentagon announced that three more American service members have died in the conflict, bringing the death toll to 17, and that more than 100 have been injured since early July. Several times protesters interrupted his opening remarks.

Hegseth said the supplemental war funding is an “urgent, necessary” injection of money, and called Trump’s proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget a generational investment in the military.

“Without these funds, we face critical shortfalls,” Hegseth testified.

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Trump will attend the dignified transfer of 4 US service members killed in the Middle East

Trump on Wednesday plans to attend the dignified transfer of four U.S. service members killed in the Middle East.

Trump will be at Dover Air Force Base when the remains of the troops killed in action are returned to their families, the White House said. The ritual is one of the most somber duties of a commander-in-chief. It will be the third that Trump has attended since he launched the war in Iran in February.

Two U.S. Army soldiers killed in Iranian missile and drone attacks in Jordan will be returned during the dignified transfer, according to an administration official who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The remains of a third service member who is believed to be the soldier missing after the Jordan attacks will also be returned, the official said, as well as the remains of a soldier killed in Iraq during a detonation of an Iranian drone.

▶ Read more

Ukraine has made significant progress in the war this year, and a rift between the country’s outgoing army chief and its defense minister threatened to derail its efforts. Both men lost their jobs following Zelenskyy’s major government reshuffle last week.

The top-level changes late Tuesday were intended to draw a line under an unwelcome spasm of political turmoil that lasted almost a week and prompted rejoicing in Russia. It was not clear whether Zelenskyy's measures would achieve that goal.

The new army chief, 43-year-old Maj. Gen. Mykhailo Drapatyi, belongs to a new generation of Ukrainian generals who have come up through the ranks during the battle against Russian aggression. He became known for his daring and courage in 2014, the year that Russia seized and illegally annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula — eight years before Moscow's all-out invasion.

Zelenskyy said Drapatyi and other commanders must present an updated defense strategy, including continued reform of the corps system, faster weapon and drone deliveries, stronger air defense against Russian strikes and a clearer mobilization plan.

Russia says the changes in Kyiv won't alter the front line

There is no sign that the two countries are any closer to a peace settlement, despite U.S.-led diplomatic efforts.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that Moscow is sticking to its previous demands. They include Kyiv withdrawing its forces from the four eastern regions that Russia has seized but doesn’t fully control, renouncing any aspirations to NATO membership and sharply cutting the size of its army.

Peskov told reporters that the Ukrainian political and military changes reflect strains in Kyiv.

“Kyiv’s regime is trembling from within. It can be seen with the naked eye,” Peskov said.

Nor will the top-level alterations change the front line, he told reporters, claiming that Russian forces are on the offensive.

With the war’s roughly 1,250-kilometer (800-mile) front line mostly off-limits to independent observers, Russia and Ukraine have also engaged in a propaganda battle.

Fedorov's future is still uncertain

Zelenskyy met separately Tuesday with outgoing defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov, a 35-year-old tech-savvy entrepreneur credited with swiftly developing Ukraine’s drone technology that has given it a battlefield edge.

Fedorov locked horns with outgoing commander-in-chief Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, a 60-year-old veteran trained in the Soviet Union before Ukraine’s independence.

Street protests in Kyiv and other cities demanded Fedorov’s return, viewing him as a key military modernizer, and urged Zelenskyy to fire Syrskyi, regarded as part of the old guard.

The demonstrations looked set to continue on Friday, despite Syrskyi's exit.

“It is good that the dialogue is working. At the same time, we should not forget the protesters’ second demand — to reinstate Mykhailo Fedorov as defense minister,” Dmytro Koziatynskyi, a veteran and former combat medic who has emerged as an informal voice of the protests, wrote on Threads.

Zelenskyy offered Fedorov what he called a respected position in the government that would unify the country’s technology sector. It wasn’t clear if Fedorov accepted the offer -- or whether the latest moves would satisfy protesters and calm the streets.

Fedorov said after his dismissal last week that he had been offered jobs by some global defense tech companies.

Fedorov supported Drapatyi's appointment, calling it a “new hope in the fight of free people for freedom and justice” and “a voice for change that could not go unheard.”

Fedorov had criticized Syrskyi publicly before his dismissal, saying the general was blocking his reform efforts and needed to be replaced for Ukraine not to fail in its resistance against Russia.

Outgoing military chief points to recent battlefield achievements

Syrskyi defended his wartime record in a statement Wednesday.

Among other things, he claimed Ukrainian forces had clawed back 743 square kilometers (287 square miles) of Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory this year and said he was handing his successor an army that was not only defending but also conducting offensive operations.

It was not possible to independently verify his claim.

Fedorov called Syrskyi to thank him for his military triumphs, including defending the Kyiv region at the time of Russia's February 2022 full-scale invasion, the Kharkiv counteroffensive operation later that year and other battles, calling them “already an important part of Ukraine’s history.” But he added that the country must “move even faster and write new chapters, correcting all previous mistakes.”

The political crisis began last Thursday, when Zelenskyy overhauled his wartime government, replacing his prime minister and firing Fedorov after just six months in the post.

The reshuffle immediately drew thousands of protesters into the streets of Kyiv and other cities, framing Fedorov’s removal as Zelenskyy siding with an entrenched military old guard over a reformer.

Zelenskyy said Wednesday that he’s also appointing Maj. Gen. Ihor Skybiuk as chief of the General Staff as part of the overhaul.

Russia and Ukraine keep up their long-range strikes

The political maneuvers took place against a backdrop of continued deadly strikes by Russia and Ukraine on each other's soil.

Ukrainian drones overnight struck two more sprawling warehouses of Russia’s major online retailer, Wildberries, in Russia’s southern regions of Krasnodar and Stavropol, Wildberries founder Tatyana Kim and Russian officials said Wednesday.

The strikes came four days after Ukraine’s long-range drones hit massive Wildberries warehouses in the Moscow region and in the Tambov region, killing eight people and wounding dozens, according to officials.

Zelenskyy said, without naming the facilities, that they were used by Russia to supply sanctioned components for the production of drones and navigation equipment.

Russian attacks, meanwhile, have also struck several major Ukrainian logistics hubs and retail facilities over the past week.

Russia attacked Ukraine with four missiles of various types and 216 long-range strike drones overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday, according to the Ukrainian air force.

In the southern Odesa region, a Russian drone killed a woman when it struck a two-story apartment building, regional military administration head Oleh Kiper said.

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

The deal — confirmed to The Associated Press by two people familiar with the decision who were not authorized to discuss details and spoke on condition of anonymity — could allow for the building of a uranium enrichment facility in Saudi Arabia after a joint U.S.-Saudi study.

Though he wouldn’t confirm the deal, Rubio sought to head off emerging criticism of the decision under questioning by reporters about the risk that helping the Saudis fulfill their long-standing desire to enrich their own uranium could lead to new rounds of nuclear proliferation and competition in a volatile region.

“The U.S. is not going to reach any agreement with any country in the world that leads to the risk of proliferation,” said Rubio, who was traveling in the Philippines on Wednesday.

The agreement is not expected to include the International Atomic Energy Agency 's Additional Protocol, which would allow for more monitoring, inspections and verification, according to one of the people familiar with the decision.

The deal, expected to last 30 years and involve U.S. firms in developing the program, is expected to be submitted for review to Congress, where it could face opposition.

The expected announcement comes during the war against Iran launched by the U.S. and Israel, in part, to wipe out Tehran’s ability to develop a nuclear weapon. Iran has insisted its nuclear enrichment program is peaceful.

The White House and Saudi officials in Riyadh did not immediately respond to multiple requests for comment on the decision, which was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Alexander Bollfrass, a nuclear expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, called the deal “a revolutionary new approach” to nuclear nonproliferation policy.

“The revolutionary aspect of this agreement is that the United States is not asking Saudi Arabia to abide by the highest possible safeguards, internationally monitored safeguards that are standard and are available today, but instead is willing to at least theoretically transfer highly sensitive technology without the same level of oversight that one would expect,” Bollfrass said.

Both President Donald Trump and former President Joe Biden tried to reach a nuclear deal with the kingdom to share American technology.

Enrichment could open the door to weaponization

Nonproliferation experts warn any spinning centrifuges within Saudi Arabia could open the door to a possible weapons program for the kingdom, something its assertive de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has suggested he could pursue if Tehran obtains an atomic bomb.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright traveled to Saudi Arabia last year shortly before Trump visited the kingdom and discussed building out the kingdom’s commercial nuclear power industry with his Saudi counterpart. The U.S. Department of Energy also has not responded to multiple requests for comment.

Already, Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan signed a mutual defense pact after Israel launched an attack on Qatar targeting Hamas officials. Pakistan’s defense minister then said his nation’s nuclear program “will be made available” to Saudi Arabia if needed, something seen as a warning for Israel, long believed to be the Middle East’s only nuclear-armed state.

Some lawmakers are hesitant about giving Saudis enrichment capability

Enrichment isn’t an automatic path to a nuclear weapon — a nation also must master other steps, including the use of synchronized high explosives, for instance. But it does open the door to weaponization, which has fueled the West's concerns over Iran’s program.

The United Arab Emirates, a neighbor to Saudi Arabia, signed what is referred to as a “123 agreement” with the U.S. to build its Barakah nuclear power plant with South Korean assistance. But the UAE did so without seeking enrichment, something nonproliferation experts have held up as the “gold standard” for nations wanting atomic power.

Rubio, as a Republican senator representing Florida, backed a bipartisan proposal in 2018 that called for requiring Congress to approve any 123 agreement with Saudi Arabia. The bill was reintroduced by a group of Democratic lawmakers in March but has not passed into law.

Typically, 123 agreements — which authorize U.S. companies to sell nuclear technology abroad — go into effect unless veto-proof majorities of Congress pass joint resolutions of disapproval.

Rosemary Kelanic, the Middle East director at Defense Priorities, a Washington think tank, said that uranium enrichment capability could potentially give Saudi Arabia “a potent source of leverage to extract future concessions from Washington, including new security guarantees, by threatening to weaponize its program unless the United States promises enhanced military protection.”

“Giving Riyadh uranium enrichment could functionally enmesh the United States with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia forever,” Kelanic added.

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Price reported from Manila, Philippines. Associated Press writers Danica Kirka in London and Will Weissert and Matthew Daly in Washington contributed to this report.

She was scared, sure. But more than that, she was brought to tears.

“I thought I’d be a bit more petrified, but I was enamored. I was in awe. It was witnessing nature,” she says. “You can’t put it into words the emotions and the feelings that you experience.”

Viewers can watch Rei Ami — and hear her sing a new K-pop song inspired by her experience with sharks while off the Korean Peninsula — as Discovery Channel’s “Shark Week” kicks off Sunday.

Twenty new, hourlong shows leap deep into the world of the ancient predators, from a record-setting dive attempt into shark-infested waters to trying to find out what triggers giant bull sharks to confront humans.

“Growing up, I always watched ‘Shark Week,’” says Rei Ami. “You see those epic commercials, with the great white jumping out and eating the chum and the tuna. That’s ingrained in my brain forever.”

Actor-comedian Ken Jeong joins her to start the week off with the show “K-Pop Shark Heroes” on Sunday. But while she went on two cage dives and two free dives with hammerheads and reef sharks and bull sharks, he preferred to stay out of the water.

“I’m more of the Christopher Nolan of the shark ‘Odyssey’ — just overseeing it,” Jeong jokes. “Just overlooking everything. High and dry. That’s when I do my best work.”

It’s a shark-a-thon

The seven nights of new shows ends Aug. 1 with a look at how great whites are moving further up the East Coast and an examination of how thresher sharks use their tails to stun and kill prey.

One highlight is watching high diver Molly Carlson leap 50 feet (15 meters) from a helicopter into a Plexiglas cage in the ocean surrounded by circling reef sharks. She's OK with jumping from enormous heights, but sharks terrify her.

“There was zero chances of me ever swimming with sharks. This was just not on my radar,” she says. “That’s always been my thing, and so for me to be invited to be on ‘Shark Week,’ I was like 'Why me?'”

Viewers will see Carlson, who has been frank about her struggles with anxiety, overcome her lifelong fear of sharks. Carlson hopes she can motivate others.

“If I can inspire that next 16-year-old girl who wants to just hide in her room and never come out because she’s scared of so many things, then I’m absolutely going to find a way to do this,” she says. “You’re allowed to be scared and do it anyways. And so I think that was the big purpose behind this project for me.”

This year’s highlights also include an attempt to locate a rumored 15-foot (4- meter) mako off the coast of Southern California, which would make it the largest ever documented.

Marine biologist Kendyl Berna, a “Shark Week” veteran who co-founded the ecology group Beyond the Reef, says her team of scientists were betting on the fact that a marine heat wave has made mako prey in those waters abundant, allowing the sharks to get bigger.

“Sharks are the cockroaches of the sea because they’ve been around for 450 million years. They’re older than dinosaurs, they’re older than trees. Sharks have just been around, but the form that they’re taking constantly changes,” she says.

‘Shark Week’ is fun but also educational

“Shark Week” has become a key part of the summer holiday TV schedule, a place where humans safe on land can see ancient apex predators unnervingly glide into view and snap open their jaws, fueling nightmares.

As always, there is a deep respect for the creatures and strong science beneath the amusing titles, sharky puns, dramatic music and racy titles like “Chum Island: Catching a Killer” and “Sharkzilla Takes New York.”

“While ‘Shark Week’ is very entertaining and thrilling, it is at the core very educational. And I think there’s still so much misinformation regarding sharks and how they behave,” says Rei Ami.

“Through these episodes, people can understand, there’s really no reason to fear them, you know? And I hope that message gets received.”

Discovery’s “Shark Week” has a rival — National Geographic’s “SharkFest,” which also has hours of sharky content. And there's Amazon Studios’ new movie “The Devil’s Mouth,” which has bull sharks terrorizing college students in a flooded cave system.

“Shark Week” also has practical advice about what to do when you find yourself face-to-snout with a shark, a rising concern from Korea to Brooklyn as interactions increase. The advice is clear: Stop splashing.

“It’s even more imperative that humans know how to act and react in a situation when they are in the waters and they see a shark,” says Rei Ami. “It would really, I think, help the public to understand how these apex predators work and behave.”

The case was put on hold almost immediately after the July 2 indictment, when the Louisiana Supreme Court said the local court and special prosecutor did not follow procedures surrounding the indictment. The dismissal by special prosecutor Laurie White came a day after New Orleans District Attorney Jason Williams, Mayor Helena Moreno and five City Council members sent a letter urging her to drop the case.

“This case should have NEVER been started because there was NO crime,” Murrill, a Republican, said in a statement posted on social media. “This outcome will not deter my efforts to get to the bottom of this. The irresponsible and illegal actions that led to this abuse of the criminal justice system need to never happen again.”

Orleans Parrish online court records showed White submitted the letters from the City Council members and the prosecutor to a judge before dismissing each county. The case against Murrill was then ordered “closed.” White did not immediately response to an emailed request for comment sent to her office.

At the center of the case are deepening rifts between leaders of a state that is heavily Republican and Democrats who control Louisiana's most prominent city.

Republican Gov. Jeff Landry had promised a swift pardon, saying Murrill would not have her reputation tarnished by an “Orleans Kangaroo court.”

Moreno, a Democrat, was among those who had accused the state’s top law enforcement official in May of making threats against public officials.

The initial 16-count indictment handed up by a New Orleans grand jury accused Murrill, the state’s first female attorney general, of intimidation and malfeasance.

For months, political tensions intensified between Louisiana Republicans and New Orleans officials over a new law that abolished a court clerk office won by an exoneree, Calvin Duncan, who spent nearly three decades in prison. The change consolidated that job with another clerk’s office, which Republican supporters said would make the local judicial system more efficient.

New Orleans leaders opposed the change. In May, the City Council set a special election that would have given Duncan a chance to win the newly combined job. Murrill responded by warning local officials in letters that they could lose their offices for violating state “usurper” laws, which forbid support for an unauthorized officeholder.

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Associated Press reporter Jack Brook contributed to this story.

The wind and storm surge were the main threats for the Deep South states. Parks and piers were closed up and down the coast, as were some low-lying roads. A tropical storm warning stretched from parts of the Florida Panhandle over to Louisiana, including metropolitan New Orleans and Lake Pontchartrain, National Hurricane Center said.

Landfall, expected later Wednesday, was a lesser threat.

“Landfall really doesn’t have a whole lot of meaning in this particular case,” said Robbie Berg, a warning coordination meteorologist at the hurricane center.

Tropical storm force winds extended about 100 miles (160 kilometers) from the center of the storm, the hurricane center said. Bertha was centered about 55 miles (90 kilometers) northeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River by mid-morning. It was moving west at 6 mph (9 kph) with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (85 kph).

Storm surges up to 4 feet (1.2 meters) were possible in Louisiana from the Mississippi River mouth to the Alabama-Mississippi state line, forecasters said. Rain totals were forecast between 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters), with higher amounts possible in isolated areas.

Elsewhere in the U.S. this week, a line of storms generated reports of tornadoes stretching from Cincinnati to New Jersey. Torrential rains caused flash floods Tuesday night that swamped homes, washed out bridges and led to water rescues in West Virginia, authorities said.

Sandbag distribution sites are set up

Authorities in Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida opened sites to provide sandbags to residents who may be impacted by Tropical Storm Bertha. Double-red flag warnings were posted along some beaches, closing them to swimmers.

“For locals, this is just another storm,” said Candice Henderson, manager of the Crab Trap, a beachside restaurant that was packed Tuesday on Pensacola, Florida’s Perdido Key. “When you’re on vacation and it's raining, you either shop or you go out to eat.”

Bertha is the second tropical storm of Atlantic season

Bertha is the second tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season. Tropical Storm Arthur in June brought heavy rainfall to the southeastern U.S.

Bertha could dump heavy rain on coastal areas of Mississippi that are still recovering from flooding brought by Arthur that destroyed and damaged homes.

Hurricane Fausto in the Pacific is far from land

In the eastern Pacific Ocean, Hurricane Fausto churned far from land Wednesday. The hurricane was hundreds of miles west-southwest of the southern tip of Baja California with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (130 kph).

It was forecast to gradually strengthen and the hurricane center warned that ocean swells generated by Fausto could cause life-threatening surf and rip tide conditions on the Baja California coast.

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Associated Press journalists Julie Walker in New York and Kim Chandler in Montgomery, Alabama, contributed to this report.

Wembanyama is on the cover of the Standard Edition, Clark is on the Deluxe Edition and Rose will appear on the limited-time Ultra Edition.

The Standard Edition launches widely on Sept. 4. Deluxe and Ultra editions launch with early access on Aug. 28.

Wembanyama said being on the cover was “a dream come true,” and Clark said being on a cover "is special because this game reaches fans all over the world.”

Rose was also on the cover of NBA 2K13.

“This is a chance to inspire young athletes to stay obsessed with the game,” Rose said. “To show them that when you put in the countless hours of hard work, it rewards you.”

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AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports

“The same way that you want to season a steak or a pork chop, you want to add multiple layers. And I think spice does that if you do it the right way," says Turner Greaves, bartender at New York’s Sip and Guzzle.

He makes a tequila highball called Doctor Green which he describes as “super-herbaceous, vegetal, a little bitter. It’s got tomatillo, green apple, shiso, horseradish, and then you can make it spicier with a little serrano pepper on the side.”

Customers get to add more spice with a little spice dropper delivered with their serve.

Cocktail tastes are changing from sweet to savory

James Stevenson, co-founder of Brutes of Mayfair cocktail bar in London, says drinks were very sweet when he started out 20 years ago, and now consumers' tastes have shifted.

“I think there’s a real movement toward savory cocktails," he says. "Every drink we put on the menu that is more savory or has a pickled element or spice element tends to be our bestseller.”

Stevenson makes a mezcal-based Bagheera which he describes as a turbo-spiced margarita.

“We juice (blend) rather than shaking the drink, with fresh chile and coriander," he says. They make a fresh syrup, adding tequila and freshly squeezed lime, and finish off the drink with a house-made tajin salt rim.

Agave spirits are a good match for spicy and savory

It's no coincidence both bartenders picked agave-based spirits — tequila and mezcal — for their spicy offerings.

Stevenson explains that a lot of the flavor profiles you get from agaves are fresher, more vegetal than other spirits. “They’re just very akin to chiles" he says. Noting that tequila pairs well with salt, he adds, "Spice and savory flavors are just a natural kinship.”

Alex Lyoness, bar manager at London’s FlipDog, makes his Late Night cocktail with a hint of an after-hours kebab and pickles. He uses a white tequila and a Raicilla (an agave similar to mezcal). Soy sauce brings a deep flavor, he says, and a homemade chile tincture spices things up.

He then adds an onion and olive brine “like the ultimate dirty martini,” and garnishes with a bright pink pickled turnip.

Looking for a tingly feeling

But chiles aren't the only way to add spice. Lyoness says you're looking to create a “mouthfeel.” He uses Sichuan peppercorns and the Timur berry, which he says has a cool, numbing quality. “What you’re looking for is that tingling across the palate,” he says.

Greaves recommends bringing a little classic cooking into your drinks.

“You can add ginger, you can add garlic cloves, and star anise and fennel into these drinks, and it adds so many different elements of pepper, of spice. Go home and then throw cayenne into a margarita,” he says.

How hot is too hot?

To judge the heat, try to read it on your palate, says Greaves: “If it starts creeping all the way down to your esophagus, I think that’s definitely a spice level that you can loosen up a bit.”

A good spicy drink should “give you the itches on the sides of your mouth” but not overwhelm, he says.

And don’t forget that no two chiles are the same.

“It’s all about tasting, trying and tweaking,” Anderson says.

Adding a spicy rim to your glass is an easy way to get extra kick

For a spicy rim, mix any spices from your cupboard with a good rock salt, says Anderson. (You can freshly grind the spices for a more aromatic and vibrant mix.)

He recommends coriander seed for a more citrusy mix, and black pepper or cardamom powder for a savory feel. You can even try adding fruit powders.

“Something like a freeze-dried strawberry, freeze-dried raspberry, with a little bit of spice. It’s great,” Anderson says.

Then, simply run a lemon or lime wedge along the rim of your glass and gently roll it in a shallow plate of the salt mix.

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Recipes:

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Late Night – from FlipDog London

Ingredients

1 oz. Tapatio blanco (tequila)

34 oz. La Venenosa Costa Raicilla

34 oz. Gonzalez Byass Tio Pepe Fino (dry sherry)

0.66 oz. brine mix (onion, olive, sivri pepper)

2 drops chile tincture(asterisk)

Directions: Stir together all the ingredients with ice. Serve in a chilled martini glass. Add a pickled turnip to garnish

(asterisk)Chile tincture: Submerge chiles in a sealed jar with a high-proof neutral alcohol like vodka (approx. 1-2 small chiles per 3.5 oz. of alcohol) and leave to steep for up to two weeks, shaking the jar occasionally. Then strain and transfer the contents into an eyedropper bottle.

—-

Bagheera - from Brutes of Mayfair, London

Ingredients

1.75 oz. Lost Explorer mezcal

0.75 oz. fresh lime juice

68 oz. Bagheera syrup(asterisk)

Small pinch of salt

Directions: Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake well until chilled. Strain into a rocks glass over cracked ice. Rim the glass with Tajin

(asterisk)Bagheera Syrup:

Ingredients

7.5 oz. simple sugar syrup

½ supermarket bunch of fresh cilantro, including stalks

1 small Thai green chile

3 jalapeño chiles

1/4 teaspoon of ascorbic acid (vitamin C powder), to stop the cilantro from turning brown

1/2 teaspoon green cardamom powder

1 thumb-size piece of peeled fresh ginger

Directions: Combine all ingredients in a large container or blender. Blend until the coriander and chiles have completely broken down and the mixture is well combined. Strain through a fine mesh strainer bag or muslin cloth. Transfer to a clean container and refrigerate.

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Doctor Green - (Sip & Guzzle, New York)

Ingredients

34 oz. green apple juice

34 oz. tomatillo juice

24 oz. green tequila(asterisk)

6 oz. Sauternes

Directions: Juice tomatillo and green apple and whisk in 2 grams ascorbic powder and 4 grams pectinase powder per liter of juice until dissolved.

Rest at room temperature or in the fridge for at least one to two hours until the juice splits into clear liquid and sediment layers. Combine all ingredients and strain through a fine mesh strainer until clear. Carbonate using a specialist drinks carbonator.

(asterisk)To make the green tequila

68 oz. Patron tequila

0.25 oz. shiso

0.25 oz. fennel

0.25 oz. horseradish

2 pcs star anise

Method: Combine the ingredients and allow to infuse at room temperature for 24 hours.

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5 songs to drink spicy cocktails to:

“Hot Stuff” – Donna Summer

“Hot in Herre”– Nelly

“Spice up your Life” – The Spice Girls

“Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot” – The Merrymen

“Drop it like its Hot” - Snoop Dogg feat. Pharrell

The move comes after Pearson was designated for assignment by the Astros on Sunday. He went 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA in 16 games this season.

The veteran is 10-6 with a 4.99 ERA in 139 career games over six MLB seasons that included stops in Toronto and with the Chicago Cubs.

The 22-year-old Martin is 6-2 with a 2.01 ERA in 26 relief appearances across two levels of Class-A ball this season. The right-hander was a 10th-round pick in the 2025 draft.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

The FA said Wednesday that Eckert had been charged for three incidents that came to light during the end of season playoffs.

Southampton was expelled from the Championship playoff final in May after admitting to spying on other teams, including semifinal opponent Middlesbrough.

The FA said it was alleged Eckert acted in an “improper manner and/or brought the game into disrepute” by authorizing the observation of opponents' training sessions.

Southampton was charged by the English Football League with the unauthorized filming of Middlesbrough’s practice sessions ahead of their two-legged semifinal, which it went on to win and go within one game of promotion to the Premier League.

It was expelled from the final after admitting to spying on Oxford United and Ipswich earlier in the season. The EFL also imposed a four-point deduction for next season, while Middlesbrough was reinstated to the final, which it lost 1-0 to Hull City.

An arbitration panel laid bare the influence of Eckert in the scandal, saying it was “a contrived and determined plan from top down to gain a competitive advantage” and analysts who carried out the unauthorized filming “felt pressurised to do the observations that Mr. Eckert and the senior coaches wished them to do.”

Expulsion from the playoffs deprived Southampton of the chance of promotion to the top flight and a guaranteed windfall of at least $270 million in future earnings.

Despite the controversy Southampton said it was sticking by its coach.

“As a board, we are fully behind him,” owner Dragan Šolak said in June, “and together we only have one objective — we want promotion back to (the) Premier League.”

Eckert also said in June that he had “made a mistake” and took “full responsibility.”

Eckert has until July 28 to respond to the FA charges.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Rubio spoke at the start of an annual meeting in the Philippine capital, Manila, with counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations who have expressed alarm over the resurgent fighting in the Middle East that has battered their region. Despite Washington’s preoccupation with Iran, Rubio said, “We’re with ASEAN 100%.”

“If we create a precedent in the Middle East where a nation-state can decide that they are going to control an international waterway, charge a toll and if you don’t pay them, blow up your ships, we have created a very dangerous precedent which will repeat itself in other parts of the world, including in this region,” he said.

Washington's top diplomat also renewed allegations that Iran has reneged on commitments under a collapsed interim ceasefire deal. Rubio said Iran “has been reaching out to the United States, both directly and indirectly, to engage in talks about settling the differences.” He said that while “the U.S. would love to reach a diplomatic settlement," the Trump administration is “not going to sit by and let ships be blown up or Americans be attacked.”

Top diplomats from the U.S., China, Russia and several other countries are in Manila this week to take part in at the ASEAN ministerial gathering. Newly minted British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband was arriving Wednesday, his office said.

Sergey Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, told reporters that Moscow would like to see a quick settlement between the U.S. and Iran.

“There are those eager to incite each party to keep the conflict going, but we aren’t one of those,” he said.

“We would like to see it stop — it impacts the global economy and Russia is part of the global economy,” Lavrov said, adding that Moscow is “interested in stable global energy prices to pursue long-term economic policies.”

Southeast Asia hit hard by energy shock from Iran war

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong underscored her country's concern over the renewed attacks in the Middle East, warning that “the situation could deteriorate further without much warning.”

“We want to see an end to this war. We want to see a ceasefire. We want to see negotiations and we want the strait to be opened,” Wong told reporters.

“People are being affected by what is happening and has happened to global energy markets and the effect on people has been direct and personal,” she said.

Overreliance on fossil fuel imports from the Middle East has made Southeast Asia particularly vulnerable to the energy shock triggered by the Iran war, according to the International Energy Agency, which called the crisis a “stark wake-up call” for the region’s energy security.

Asian markets imported about 80% of the crude oil and almost 90% of the liquefied natural gas, or LNG, transiting through the Strait of Hormuz in 2025, the IEA said.

Rubio and allies reaffirm commitment to counter growing Chinese influence

Rubio also met with counterparts in the four-nation Quad partnership, which is made up of the U.S., Australia, India and Japan. They discussed maritime and transnational security, among other issues, and issued a joint statement that reaffirmed their commitment to maritime security initiatives aiming to counter China’s growing influence in the region.

During the meeting, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi voiced strong opposition to any attempts to change the status quo by force in the region, including in the disputed South China Sea and East China Sea, where China's increasingly aggressive actions have sparked concern.

Tokyo has a long-running dispute over Japan-controlled islands, which Beijing also claims, in the East China Sea.

Wong echoed his concern, saying, “We have real concerns about behavior that is destabilizing and risky.”

The Trump administration has repeatedly criticized China's assertive actions in the South China Sea to the disadvantage of smaller claimant countries like the Philippines, Washington's oldest treaty ally in Asia.

Rubio met separately with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, telling reporters later that they discussed a new altercation this week between Chinese and Filipino forces in a disputed shoal. Rubio called the incident “escalatory."

“It speaks to areas of disagreement when it comes to our policies with China,” Rubio said. “Those need to be managed very carefully, because obviously, a conflict — be it economic or otherwise — between the U.S. and China would have a dramatic global impact.”

He said they also talked about a trade board that is meant to allow the two governments to discuss certain goods, and that he hopes it can be a “deliverable” from a planned meeting in the U.S. in September between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Wang protested to Rubio about “recent negative words and actions by the U.S. side,” according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry. It was not clear what he referred to, but Trump recently accused China of meddling in the 2020 election and the U.S. administration shortened visas for Chinese journalists.

ASEAN foreign ministers discussed the territorial disputes Tuesday, welcoming progress in yearslong negotiations between China and their regional bloc on a proposed non-aggression pact that aims to prevent a major conflict in the disputed waters that could draw in the United States.

Rubio and Lavrov to discuss Ukraine

Rubio said he will meet Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, on Thursday and discuss the war in Ukraine. He suggested he also would use the meeting to find other areas of potential cooperation between the U.S. and Russia.

He said the U.S. remains open to playing a role in ending the conflict “if that opportunity presents itself.”

Rubio said those efforts have “kind of fallen off a little bit over the last few months” but he will use the meeting with Lavrov to see if there’s an opportunity to renew talks.

Lavrov, meanwhile, said he will ask Rubio about Trump’s claim that a settlement on the war in Ukraine is getting close.

Rubio also met with his Indian counterpart, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, a U.S. official said. They discussed both regional issues and the Iran war, along with a yet-to-be completed trade agreement to lower Trump’s tariffs on Indian goods.

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Associated Press journalists Haruka Nuga and Anton Delgado in Bangkok, Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo and Fu Ting in Washington contributed to this report.

The first dinner was cut short in April when a gunman, who prosecutors say was trying to assassinate Trump, opened fire at the Washington Hilton. The much smaller rescheduled dinner will take place Friday, with enhanced security precautions, at the capital's Waldorf Astoria Hotel, formerly the Trump International Hotel.

The letter expands on a similar one issued in April, before the first dinner. It notes that since then, “the administration’s attacks on journalists and press freedom have become even more egregious.”

The letter, organized by former ABC News correspondent Lisa Stark and producer Ian Cameron, cites in particular the recent subpoenas by the Justice Department to New York Times journalists who reported on security concerns over the president's Qatari-gifted Air Force One jet. Additional subpoenas of the journalists' phone records have included even the mother of one reporter, and two spouses.

They want the association to stand up ‘forcefully’

The letter also cites threats by Trump to revoke licenses of broadcasters “who refuse to acquiesce to his demands.”

“Our message to the White House Correspondents’ Association is now more urgent: forcefully stand up for freedom of the press in front of the President, publicly defend the journalists he attacks, and vow to resist his administration’s concerted effort to undermine the First Amendment,” the letter says.

It notes that the association's president, Weijia Jiang, has defined the dinner’s purpose as being “to celebrate the First Amendment and the hard daily work of the journalists who defend it.”

“We believe it is hypocritical to celebrate the First Amendment in front of the man who relentlessly attacks it," the letter says. "We urge the WHCA to condemn the administration’s actions from the podium and pledge to fight all attempts by his administration to undermine this core pillar of a functioning democracy.”

There are multiple signatories

The groups signing on to the letter are the Society of Professional Journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists, the National Association of Black Journalists, the National Press Photographers Association, the Freedom of the Press Foundation, the Coalition for Women in Journalism, the Radio Television Digital News Association and the Media and Democracy Project.

There are also about 520 individual signatories, mainly retired journalists. Almost all of them signed the April letter as well.

Trump has said he would be attending Friday's rescheduled dinner, calling the plan to go ahead with the event “a sign of Strength and Fortitude.”

“This announcement is a very good thing in that we cannot allow Lunatics to change our way of life, or even its scheduling,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

He added that he hadn’t decided whether to give his originally intended speech, in which he was widely expected to attack the press. “I don’t know whether or not I will give the same rather nasty statements, at least as it concerns certain people, but we will soon find out,” he wrote. “In any event, it will be a ‘HOT’ ticket!”

The board initially requested a 4.5% raise before voting to approve the 4% increase. School leaders are expected to present the full scope of the funding shortfall at an upcoming Finance & Facilities Committee meeting.

Three tough choices

To close the gap, district leaders say three options are on the table: draw from reserve funds, reallocate existing operating dollars, or request additional local revenue from the city.

Each option carries consequences. Tapping reserves could cover the short-term cost but leave the district with less cushion for emergencies. Shifting operating funds could result in cuts to programs. Requesting more city revenue could mean higher taxes for residents.

School board member Tiersha Royal said the raise is about more than finances — it’s about the people who show up for students every day.

“Essentially, we’re doing this for our staff and all the people that work for Lynchburg City Schools,” Royal said. “They deserve the increase because they work hard every day to make sure our kids and everyone is well taken care of.”

‘Integral part’ of education

Parents are watching closely. Jibri Poe, a Lynchburg City Schools parent, said investing in teachers is non-negotiable.

“Probably one of the biggest or most costly things that comes with schools are the teachers and the people,” Poe said. “The teachers are very important. They’re an interictal part of educating our next generation of the future.”

The school board has emphasized it remains committed to competitive pay as the district works to retain and attract quality educators across Lynchburg.

Stay with 10 News for updates on the board’s decision, how the raise will be funded, and what it means for classrooms across the city.

The public can tour the majestic room and view its gilded ceilings and Greek frescoes en route to the nearby Mona Lisa, but they won’t see any crown jewels or empty display cases. The collections and precious jewels once displayed there have been removed, as the museum said the gallery is returning to its 17th-century original ceremonial purpose.

The stolen jewels remain unrecovered nine months later.

The gallery's former exhibits will be relocated elsewhere in the museum, said Christophe Leribault, the Louvre's director. “It’s also an opportunity to rediscover the splendid architecture and decor of this gallery,” he said.

Leribault was named to lead the Louvre in February after previous director Laurence des Cars resigned after the October crown jewels heist and a string of failures that battered confidence in the leadership of the world’s most-visited museum.

“That sinister day, when iconic pieces were taken, cannot be forgotten, and indeed, I believe, should not be,” said French Culture Minister Catherine Pegard. “It was a trauma for the entire world, which, for several days, expressed its shock and sadness in every language. It was a trauma for us, discovering the fragility of a place we thought unshakeable, and which, like so many others, proved vulnerable.”

Security at the Paris museum has been boosted with the addition of new surveillance cameras and anti-intrusion systems.

On the day of the heist, thieves took less than eight minutes to force their way through a window into the Apollo Gallery and steal crown jewels valued at 88 million euros ($102 million), in a weekend operation that stunned visitors and exposed glaring security vulnerabilities.

Security improvement is a priority of the decade-long “Louvre New Renaissance” plan launched last year, with an estimated cost of up to 800 million euros ($933 million) to modernize infrastructure, ease crowding and give the Mona Lisa a dedicated gallery by 2031.

Tuesday’s community forum in Roanoke was the last scheduled candidate forum before Election Day.

The field includes:

• 1 Republican: Amanda Marko
• 3 independents: former Mayor David Bowers, former Council member Stephanie Moon Reynolds and Kathy Cohen
• 5 Democrats: Raekwon Moore, Harvey Brookins, Danny Clawson, and incumbents Peter Volosin and Vivian Sanchez-Jones.

You can press the link to each candidate to be taken the candidate’s website and learn more about their campaign. Because the primary only affects Democrats this cycle, the Aug. 4 contest will determine which three Democratic nominees advance to the general election.

Democrats make their pitch

Roanoke native Raekwon Moore centered his campaign on schools and public transit.

“I’m running for City Council because I want to make sure that we are fixing the everyday issues that are present in this city,” Moore said. “I want to focus on public schools because I went to them and I know how important it is that our kids receive quality education.”

Harvey Brookins emphasized public safety and community stability.

“I believe my background in financial management, community leadership and consensus building gives me the experience to help move Roanoke forward while helping our city become physically stronger and focus on delivering results for our citizens,” Brookins said.

Danny Clawson focused on housing, education and government transparency.

“I have a proven track record of putting people in office and supporting people that are bridge builders and are working on doing a good job not on the next political fight,” Clawson said. “I’m really excited to talk about zoning and housing and substance abuse disorder in this city and how we can solve these problems together as a community.”

Incumbents Peter Volosin and Vivian Sanchez-Jones did not attend Tuesday’s forum. Organizers say both were invited but never responded.

What’s next

Early voting is already underway at 317 Kimball Ave. NW. Hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.

Virginia does not have voter registration by political party. Voters may participate in either primary, but not both.

A Democratic debate is scheduled for Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m. at 2015 Grandin Road SW.

Friday, July 25 is the last day to register to vote and the last day to request an absentee ballot. The Democratic primary is Aug. 4, and the top three vote-getters will advance to November’s general election. You can find your polling place for election day here and more information on Roanoke City voting here.

10 News has received several photos from viewers showing multiple large trees down in the town of Bedford, leaving damage to cars, homes, and, in one instance, a cemetery. What are conditions like in your area? If you take any pictures or videos of the weather, be sure to send them our way via Pin It, as long as you can do so safely!

In the meantime, 10 News will be working for you to track ongoing storm conditions and to time out when storms are expected to hit and where will see the largest impacts. Be sure to stay weather aware by downloading our 10 News and weather apps for updates on the forecast, along with radar and alerts.

It hasn't worked out that way. With a little more than three months to go, both parties are grappling with self-inflicted wounds and messy missteps that have complicated their paths to victory in key races.

Trump steered the country into a war against Iran with no end in sight, disrupting the global flow of oil and spiking prices at the pump. He remains fixated on purging his party of dissent and relitigating his election defeat six years ago.

On the other side of the aisle, Democrats are in the throes of an internal civil war between moderates and progressives, as democratic socialists successfully oust incumbents. Some candidates have imploded in spectacular fashion, jeopardizing races the party had expected to win.

The drama has turned existential as each party faces a moment of reckoning. Democrats remain shaken by Trump being elected again and are desperately searching for a path back to power. Republicans are beginning to contemplate a post-Trump era even as the president maintains an iron grip on the party.

Frank Luntz, a longtime pollster, said the year has been consumed by “a sense of chaos and confusion.”

“We really do not know what’s going to happen in November," he said.

Candidates have been rocked by scandal

Democrats' latest turmoil has unfolded in Wisconsin, one of the most narrowly divided battleground states.

Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez abandoned her bid for governor after a campaign finance scandal just as she seemed to be consolidating support. Now the party establishment is concerned her departure will elevate Francesca Hong, a democratic socialist who's viewed by party leaders as a potentially weak opponent against U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, the likely Republican nominee.

“If we lose, Trump’s most loyal lackey in Congress takes control of Wisconsin, and that’s turned regular Democratic angst into flop sweats,” said longtime Wisconsin liberal activist Scot Ross. Still, he predicted that once the focus moves past the primary fight, Democratic voters would unite behind the party's candidate.

Then there's Maine, where the party is eager to defeat Republican Sen. Susan Collins as part of a nationwide push to regain control of the chamber.

Graham Platner, an oyster farmer and political outsider, rode a wave of grassroots energy to the Democratic nomination, only to drop out after an allegation of sexual assault, which he denies.

Supporters had hoped Platner would be the kind of candidate who could win white working-class voters back to the party, despite controversies including a tattoo widely recognized as a Nazi symbol and a history of inflammatory social media posts. Democrats are holding a convention this weekend to choose a replacement candidate.

Celinda Lake, a Democratic pollster and consultant, said activists and voters have been willing to overlook potential vulnerabilities while supporting outsiders for office.

“There is something in the air that has made these candidates incredibly reckless and thinking that they can get away with it," she said, pointing to the president as a potential explanation. “I think Trump has kind of created a high-risk environment."

Marc Short, the former chief of staff to Trump's first-term vice president, Mike Pence, said the dynamic was reminiscent of 2010 when the tea party ushered in a wave of unvetted Republican candidates who famously beat establishment figures in primaries but lost in November, costing Republicans the Senate even as they made gains in the House.

The shoe, he said, is now on the other foot.

“I feel like when there is a lot of energy on one side that you can tend to nominate candidates that create hurdles for you and limit what your gains could be,” he said.

Divisions between Democrats are on display in key races

Other races are forcing Democrats to confront some of their deepest divisions.

In Michigan, Senate candidate and progressive favorite Abdul El-Sayed has worried party leaders like Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer who fear he's too far left to win in the seat, which Democrats will need to hold onto if they want a shot at winning the majority this year. Supporters point to the enthusiasm he's garnered as a way forward for the party.

The primary also highlights a schism over Israel. El-Sayed has described Israel’s military campaign in Gaza as a genocide, an accusation rejected by Israel and the White House. In response, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, and its affiliated groups have spent close to $30 million backing primary rival Haley Stevens.

Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, said it's clear voters across the country are rebelling against a political system they see as rigged and are yearning for candidates willing to fight on their behalf.

He said candidates like El-Sayed would serve as proof of concept going into 2028 that “bold, shake-up-the system economic fighters" are more electable in purple and red states than "stale, status quo corporate-aligned Democrats.”

In Washington, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., downplayed the idea the ideological divisions would endanger Democrats.

“A healthy party is a party that has arguments," he said. “I think our party should be debating ideas. We should be having hotly contested primaries."

Republicans rocked by retirements and ousted incumbents

Republicans are facing their own challenges as they try to buck historical precedent and maintain congressional control.

Trump reshaped this year’s Senate map by sidelining some Republican incumbents and promoting loyalists to replace them. That includes in Texas, where he ousted longtime Sen. John Cornyn and endorsed Ken Paxton, a fiery conservative with a lengthy history of corruption allegations.

Republican leaders had warned his nomination would put the state in play and force the party to spend millions of dollars defending what would have otherwise been a safe seat.

Others chose to leave the party. In North Carolina, Sen. Thom Tillis declined to run for reelection after feuding with Trump. Democrats hope to flip the seat with former Gov. Roy Cooper.

Whit Ayres, a longtime Republican pollster and strategist, said Trump “has exacerbated the problem” of a political culture that has produced more extreme candidates on both sides of the aisle thanks to closed primaries.

Trump can boost candidates — or hold them back

Republicans have historically struggled when Trump isn't on the ballot. But he also risks weighing candidates down.

Just 37% of U.S. adults approve of how he's handling the presidency, according to the most recent AP-NORC poll, which shows deep dissatisfactions over his handling of the economy and other issues.

But instead of staying focused on lowering prices, Trump has continued his bombardment of Iran in a struggle for control over the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for global oil supplies. He also delivered a primetime address in which he continued to dispute his 2020 loss in an appeal for more restrictive voting laws.

“Trump is our biggest ally," said Lake, the Democratic pollster and consultant. “He’s the best things that Democrats have going. And it’s the gift that keeps on going."

But Jenny Beth Martin, chair of the grassroots conservative group Tea Party Patriots Action, disagreed.

“President Trump is the single greatest advantage Republicans have in the midterm elections," she said in a statement. “The energy and enthusiasm he generates is incomparable, and we’re counting on him to motivate his supporters to go to the polls.”

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Associated Press writers Scott Bauer in Madison, Wis., and Steven Sloan in Washington contributed to this report.

The 32-year-old South Korean singer's second full-length album looks back on a decade of change as she moves from the uncertainty of her early 20s.

“It has seven tracks, and they reflect the emotions and feelings I’ve experienced from my early 20s until now — like a chronicle of my life,” Kim told The Associated Press.

The album, released seven years after her last major project, the 2019 EP “GENERASIAN,” marks a return for an artist who has spent her career shifting between genres and exploring questions of identity, belonging and self-discovery. It arrives 13 years after her debut full-length album, “A Voice.”

When Kim released “GENERASIAN,” she said global interest in South Korea and its music, including K-pop, was still developing. She said the album came from a desire to speak about her own identity and perspective as an Asian woman born in South Korea.

“That was a period when no one had really told that story properly,” she said. “I wanted to show that perspective properly — not through the way it’s usually seen from abroad, but from my own point of view.”

Kim said her new album represents a move away from the broader cultural questions of “GENERASIAN” and toward a more personal reflection.

“After I finished ‘GENERASIAN,’ I thought about my next step for a long time,” she said. “Each album feels like a record of what I was feeling at that time, and then I move on. This time, I wanted to focus more on my own individual story.”

Kim broke through in 2011 as part of South Korean folk-pop duo Togeworl before launching her solo career in 2013. She won two Korean Music Awards in 2020.

The singer said the album’s title reflects the uncertainty she felt during the years it covers — a period she described as moving through a “wasteland” while searching for direction.

The album’s title track, “Never Gonna Be Alone,” begins at a wedding and explores the paradox of feeling most alone when surrounded by a bride and her guests. Kim said that feeling became more familiar as she entered her 30s and attended more weddings. The song’s warm, string-laden sound belies its unsettling lyrical undertone.

“INSA” — the Korean word for “greeting” — features rapper Bree Runway and plays on the formality of everyday exchanges Kim encountered when she entered the music industry. She said she often felt a sense of distance from the people and glamour around her.

“It wasn’t that I felt like one of them, but more this strange sense that I was somehow separate,” she recalled.

Kim said she hopes listeners who are also navigating uncertain futures can find something familiar in her journey. The album draws inspiration from South Korean novelist Yang Gui-ja, American writer Joan Didion and Studio Ghibli film “Spirited Away” — works that similarly explore self-identity and transformation.

A report issued Tuesday by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime estimated that scams caused estimated losses in the Asia-Pacific region alone of as much as $114 billion in 2025. It warned that even as authorities conduct raids on industrial-sized scam centers mostly located in border regions of Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia, criminals have responded by shifting to other parts of the world or operating on a smaller scale.

Patel arrived in Cambodia from neighboring Thailand which co-hosted a two-day summit with the U.S. this week on scam centers that was attended by representatives of nearly 20 countries and hundreds of law enforcement officials.

The head of the top U.S. law enforcement agency met with Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul for talks on joint cooperation to tackle scam centers and other transnational crimes, such as human trafficking and drug trafficking, particularly through information sharing and intelligence exchanges.

Cybercrime has flourished in Southeast Asia where law enforcement is weak, particularly in Cambodia and Myanmar. Scam centers are also linked to human trafficking. Thousands of foreign nationals who are employed to run “romance” and cryptocurrency scams to swindle victims are often recruited with false job offers and then forced to work in conditions of near-slavery.

Cambodia this year claims to have accelerated a crackdown on the scam operations, whose proliferation there is “a top priority for the U.S. government,” according a U.S. Embassy statement. Washington appreciates Hun Manet’s pledge to counter this problem and is coordinating closely with the Cambodian government to battle the problem, it said.

The embassy said Patel’s visit “reinforces the need for strong, joint efforts to combat transnational cybercrime, including increased efforts to hold high-level scam bosses accountable and for improved information sharing regarding complicit officials and scam compound owners.”

The U.S. also “fully supports efforts to ensure justice for victims and criminal accountability for online scam operators, those who enable or protect them, and those complicit in related human trafficking crimes,” it added.

Cambodia will host an international conference on combating cyber scams in September, Hun Manet said in a post on his Telegram social media account.

“It was a bit more of a rugged crowd. And they were small crowds,” she says in a recent interview with The Associated Press. “I could only enter after the bar closed. That was after midnight because I was underage. And as long as the bar wasn’t still serving, then I could go in and play while everybody was finishing up their last call.”

It was “character building,” she says, painting an image of a bygone era of her life in Northern Ontario and one dramatically opposed to the glitz and glamour associated with the five-time Grammy Award winning country musician. But those days were instrumental to what became her career. “I spent a lot of years dreaming about things that would eventually come but took a little while,” she says.

As Twain describes it, her latest album, “Little Miss Twain,” out Friday, is the period of her life from her earliest performances at age 8 all the way to her late-20s, when she inked her major label record deal.

“There’s this whole gap of life that I’ve never written,” she says. “I wanted to fill in story wise, personal story wise. … It’s a phase of my life that not a lot of my fans would know about.”

Revisiting the past — in more ways than one

A number of the songs on “Little Miss Twain” have been sitting with the singer for many years. “'Rockstars' I was writing probably 10 years ago now, and ‘Northern Town' is one that’s been around for a long time,” she says.

The title track of the record, “Little Miss Twain,” is its emotive heart — a song for her mother, who died in a car crash in 1987, alongside her stepfather, and never got to experience her success. For Shania, it was an opportunity to reflect on “my mother being my manager and my agent, my driver and my coach, even though she couldn’t sing a note,” she said. “She would drive me around to all these stages, underage in the bars, and that’s where I got my experience.”

The song was one of the last ones to make the collection, she says, but “it was this missing piece that came to me.” That's at least partially due to the inclusion of Tanya Tucker, who duets with Twain on the track.

On the chorus, Twain sings “According to my mother / I'm the next Tanya Tucker.”

Twain says of having Tucker on the record: “I don’t know if I would ever really be able to explain in words what it meant and what it would have meant to my mother.”

The song also features her son Eja D’Angelo Lange on background vocals; he appears on a few of the album's tracks. “I get to fulfill a lot of things that my mother would not have been able to share with me,” she says about working with her son. “It’s really beautiful.”

Genre explorations from a country music giant

Pulling from her early years allowed Twain to focus on some of her musical loves in and outside of country music. Listen closely and you'll hear “Motown, the country and western that my grandparents used to play like Marty Robbins” she says. “There’s a lot of rock edge stuff in there. ‘Faded Blue Jeans’ is very much a bluesy rock song” — it features Queens of the Stone Age's Josh Homme.

The multi-genre moments on the album, with credits that also include Ronnie Wood, work for Twain's current voice, which now features a wizened rasp. “I don’t have the little sweet sound I had years ago, but I have a new sound that I actually like,” she says. “And I think I write songs a bit differently because of it.”

A number of years ago, Twain contracted Lyme disease, which affected her voice. In 2018, she had implants placed in her larynx. “It’s a very unusual procedure to have for a singer,” she says. “I had damaged nerves in my larynx. So the vocal cords were perfectly fine.” The surgery worked, and the continued result is a kind of gravelly tone, a vocal fry, and additional distinction to her already unmistakable voice.

When her audience listens to “Little Miss Twain” for the first time, Twain hopes they will leave the experience with “a sense and a feeling of the atmosphere that I grew up in, the environment that shaped me, the experiences that developed me as a person and as an artist,” she says.

She wants them to get to know the cover singer at the local bar, the woman who didn't have childhood success. “I hope they learn,” she takes a beat, “about the missing chapter of who I am.”

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio blamed Iran for the Houthi rebel group's naval blockade against Saudi Arabia but hoped it could be de-escalated.

The Houthis are armed and significantly influenced by Iran but are independent of Iran’s supreme leader, unlike the Lebanese militant Hezbollah group and several Iran-backed Iraqi militias.

“Anything that restricts shipping through the Red Sea would be problematic for the same reasons that the Strait of Hormuz is problematic,” Rubio said on the sidelines of a regional summit in the Philippines. The U.S. is closely monitoring the situation, he said, and has contacted Saudi Arabia a number of times over the last week about the threats.

The Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil passes in peacetime, has been fully or partially closed since the war in Iran started on Feb. 28 with U.S. and Israeli attacks.

“It’s not a new threat, but it’s one that’s manifested itself in the past, but at the gist of that issue is the fact that, again, Iran is in the middle of it. Talking about the troublemaker in the region, it’s Iran,” he added.

Meanwhile, Pakistan on Wednesday condemned the Houthi threats and said they violate established principles of international law.

The Houthis opened a new front against Saudi Arabia by declaring a naval blockade of the kingdom, threatening the flow of global oil supplies and trade. With the Strait of Hormuz blocked, Saudi Arabia has relied on a pipeline to the Red Sea to get millions of barrels of oil out to market.

Three Houthi officials said the group warned international shipping companies on Monday to avoid transiting through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the gateway to the Red Sea on the opposite side of the Arabian Peninsula from the Strait of Hormuz. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to journalists.

A news agency in Yemen run by the Houthis, SABA, said Tuesday that six ships in the Red Sea were forced to reroute after they received warnings from the rebel group. The Associated Press could not immediately confirm the claim but tracking data from MarineTraffic.com showed at least three tankers appeared to make U-turns on Tuesday.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday warned that the actions “threaten regional security, undermine freedom of navigation, challenge the rules-based maritime order and jeopardize uninterrupted flow of global commerce.”

The Foreign Ministry in Islamabad said Pakistan was “particularly concerned by reports of threats directed against vessels engaged in lawful commercial trade with the Kingdom.”

The ministry warned that “any hostile act against Pakistani-flagged vessels or Pakistani maritime interests will be regarded as a grave threat to Pakistan’s national security and sovereign interests.”

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are longtime allies, and the kingdom is one of Pakistan’s largest oil suppliers.

Last year, the two countries signed a mutual defense pact defining an attack on either nation as an attack on both. The agreement followed Israeli attacks on the neighboring Gulf state of Qatar. Pakistan has also repeatedly condemned Iranian attacks on Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia.

Pakistan brokered an interim peace deal between the U.S. and Iran in June and is currently mediating between the two sides after they resumed attacks on each other earlier this month.

Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have maintained close defense ties for decades, in part because of Islamabad’s longstanding commitment to help defend Islam’s holiest sites, Mecca and Medina, in the kingdom. Pakistani troops were first deployed to Saudi Arabia in the late 1960s amid concerns over the war in Yemen involving Egypt.

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Associated Press writers Fatma Khaled in Cairo and Michelle Price in Manila contributed to this report.

“We need another one of those fast,” he said recently. “A few of those fast.”

The severely depleted lake has made it harder for people like him to access the water because “all the other boat ramps are dried up,” said Barrett, who planned to spend some days with his wife boating and camping around the lake. “So it's kind of a big deal when the water is low, especially for loading and unloading.”

The Colorado River's Lake Powell, the second largest reservoir in the U.S., is shrinking. A record-dry winter and extreme heat — as well as decades of overuse, chronic drought and climate change — are threatening to pummel the lake to near historic lows. Low water levels have forced marinas in this important tourist destination to adapt. Boat ramps have closed or moved, new ones are being added and marinas have been temporarily relocated to deeper waters.

“The Colorado River is in full-blown crisis mode,” said John Berggren, regional policy manager with Western Resource Advocates, an environmental nonprofit.

But there's still enough water on Lake Powell for recreation, marina managers say.

Lake Powell levels approaching historic lows

Lake Powell is currently about 23% full and is about 33 feet (10 meters) from reaching water levels so low that hydropower can't be produced. The reservoir could break its all-time record low in early September.

Together with U.S.'s largest reservoir Lake Mead downstream, the two bodies of water are the lowest they've been in nearly 70 years. The last time their combined storage was this small was in May 1957 when Glen Canyon Dam that holds back Powell was being built, according to a recent paper published by a group of academics and retired water officials. Powell began to fill in 1963.

“There’s less water in the two reservoirs than there has ever been at any time in the history of Lake Powell even existing,” said Jack Schmidt, the paper’s lead author and director for the Center for Colorado River Studies at Utah State University. Combined, Mead and Powell hold slightly less than 60% of all water stashed in the basin. “It is a reminder that we are significantly failing in our ability to control and reduce our basin-wide consumptive use.”

The authors warn the reservoirs will continue to deplete until this winter's snowpack begins melting in the spring. “Every day going forward ... a record low will likely be set,” they wrote. “This is a significant moment in the evolving Colorado River water supply crisis.”

The Colorado River feeding these reservoirs is relied upon by farmers, industries, wildlife, hydropower and more than 40 million people in seven U.S. states, tribal nations and Mexico. Up to 1 million acre-feet (1.23 billion cubic meters) of water is being delivered from Flaming Gorge Reservoir upstream through next April to keep Powell above critical elevations, and the federal government is expected to soon announce its preferred short-term plan for how the states — California, Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming and Utah — should share the river's dwindling resources. Current guidelines expire this year, and states haven't reached a long-term agreement.

At Lake Powell near Page, Arizona, a bathtub ring of light minerals on the canyon wall shows the reservoir's high water mark. People ride a golf cart some 20 feet (about 6 meters) below a dock used during higher water levels.

Other Western reservoirs are also struggling

Lake Powell is among eight western reservoirs the Bureau of Reclamation has flagged for being at or near-record lows.

Elephant Butte State Park in New Mexico — the largest reservoir along the Rio Grande, which is not connected to the Colorado River — is at about 2% capacity. Critically low water levels forced two boat ramps to close in June, and heavy equipment is now needed daily to clear sediment at the main ramp so boats can launch.

Richard Holcomb, mayor of Elephant Butte, said the county is seeing fewer tourists and regular visitors.

“Many of our weekend homeowners have decided to look elsewhere for water opportunities,” he said. “This hits our gross receipts tax, which is a major source of our revenue” that helps pay for infrastructure improvements.

New Mexico water managers will be under pressure for meeting delivery obligations to Texas under a settlement recently approved by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Researchers have warned unsustainable use of the Rio Grande — which originates in Colorado and extends into Mexico — threatens water security for millions of people.

As water dwindles, marinas keep adapting

The National Park Service warns visitors that low water levels have created new navigation hazards, from newly exposed shorelines to submerged obstacles to narrower or shifting channels. Its current elevation is so low that it's not safe for houseboats and small motorized vehicles to launch from most ramps, some of which have had to close. And fewer ramps generally mean longer lines and more congestion.

Various projects are being developed or are underway to enable water access as levels dwindle.

At the Antelope Point Marina, there are plans to spend about $81 million to extend a ramp to allow lake access when water levels are as low as 3,520 feet (1,073 meters). Kenneth Runnels, chief administrator with Antelope Point Holdings, said it'll be built and ready for use next year. “We'll be able to launch no matter what.”

Elsewhere, a marina on the lake at Bullfrog Bay is being moved to deeper waters and a new boat ramp and marina access will be built at an estimated $73.4 million price tag. And the Wahweap Stateline ramp is being continually extended. “As the water goes down, they continue to pour concrete to make it go deeper and deeper,” said Runnels.

The low waters at Lake Powell are having an impact on business, Runnels said. Boat owners and families that visit the reservoir annually are still coming, but new tourists aren't, which “doesn't just affect us. That affects the whole town of Page.”

Water levels are an issue, he admits, but the Antelope Point Marina currently sits at 338 feet (103 meters) of water.

“There’s plenty of water to recreate. The problem isn’t the recreation. The problem is the access, which is going to get fixed by the improvements in the ramp.”

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Pineda reported from Los Angeles. Associated Press reporter Susan Montoya Bryan contributed from Albuquerque, New Mexico.

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So when Kovar, 64, bought a Ford F-150 last fall, his hope was to be better prepared for any new crisis.

“I was interested in trying to find some sort of power backup situation,” he said.

Now, Kovar has a setup from Ford that allows drivers of certain F-150 models to plug their vehicle directly into their electric meter to power parts of their home during an outage.

It is the latest example of automakers broadly adapting their electrification technologies to the home energy business, especially as demand on the grid increases and sales of electric vehicles slow. Car companies are looking to leverage their multibillion dollar EV investments to tap into a promising market in vehicle, home and grid technology, both for backup power and for supporting electrical grid resiliency.

“They’re trying to look for other businesses that they might sell into,” said Parth Vaishnav, assistant professor of sustainable systems at the University of Michigan.

Ford's latest connects F-150 drivers to their meter

Drivers of the F-150 PowerBoost hybrid and F-150 Lightning electric pickup trucks can now plug in a one-foot long adapter to a 240-volt outlet onboard. That adapter — which Ford made with company Global Power Products — makes the vehicle compatible to plug into a longer, separate cable. That cable connects to a transfer switch installed directly on one's electric meter.

Through the adapter and cable series, homeowners can connect their vehicle essentially right to their home’s breaker box. The homeowner simply turns on and off which breaker switches they want for which devices they want powered.

“The way we think about it, especially for customers who already have a compatible vehicle is, you already own the power source, it’s in your driveway,” said Amanda Roraff, Ford's grid and energy services business acceleration lead.

The Lightning might provide power for two to three days, depending on what home devices are being used, and the PowerBoost Hybrid, up to five days on a single tank of gas.

The automaker says its solution is a less expensive way to supply backup power. Conventional, diesel-powered portable generators and full-home standby setups require expensive installation, costing several thousands of dollars. This solution, which also requires professional installation at the meter, starts around $1,100.

The setup only applies to about 200,000 vehicles so far, and it is also exclusively for outages. Ford also offers its Home Integration System for bidirectionality, sending power both from the vehicle to the home and from the home to the vehicle, while also being able to feed the grid.

Other automakers are boosting their energy solutions

Over 630,000 U.S. vehicles already have this functionality, estimates say, and automakers are rapidly expanding their available options with the goal of full vehicle-to-grid support in the long run.

South Korean auto brand Kia and Wallbox, an EV charging company, have teamed up so that drivers of eligible compatible vehicles can have home power backup during outages or during periods of high demand, to cut their utility use. They can send power back to the grid.

Tesla’s technology is similar — allowing drivers of equipped vehicles to connect to their home using additional Tesla hardware. The Cybertruck provides full vehicle-to-home capability, where other Tesla models can only connect to and power specific devices or appliances.

General Motors is also in the energy space.

A recent partnership with WeaveGrid, for instance, allows homeowners who drive certain GM EVs — and have the automaker’s home system and a proper grid interconnection — to enroll in some grid reliability utility programs. Once an outage is detected, GM’s vehicle-to-home tech has the capability to disconnect one's home from the grid and start supplying power from their GM EV.

“If you can imagine the future as we go forward, it's having the ability — now that we have this single platform — that allows our customer to experience our system,” said Wade Sheffer, vice president of GM energy, “but also can have the full control of the energy.”

The capability is an important lifeline amid EV sales slowdown

Not only is this business critical amid growing grid demand and increasing power outages, experts say automakers need to pivot with the EV market less active under current U.S. federal policy. Pure EV sales in the U.S. year-over-year are down 23.8%, according to a July Cox Automotive report on the first half of 2026. This demonstrates what an asset that EV and hybrid ownership can be.

The tech is not without challenges.

On the industry side, these systems have to undergo third-party testing to ensure they meet safety standards, and the vehicle and the charger need to be programmed to communicate. It also requires the approval of the utility where the capability is being used. It could take years to get an interconnect agreement.

On the customer side, homeowners need to understand their vehicles' abilities and how to self-manage their system. It also just brings another generator of power into the home mix.

Still, experts see opportunity, especially with interest in EV sales high outside of the U.S.

“We already know during an outage, its impact, providing electricity to the home,” said Scott Samuelsen, engineering professor emeritus at the University of California, Irvine. “This is going to become very, very popular.”

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Alexa St. John is an Associated Press climate reporter. Follow her on X: @alexa_stjohn. Reach her at ast.john@ap.org.

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Read more of AP’s climate coverage.

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The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

The latest conflict started March 2, when the Lebanese militant group fired rockets toward Israel after the U.S.-Israeli February attacks that set off the Iran war. In response, Israel launched an aerial campaign and ground invasion in Lebanon, killing more than 4,000 people and displacing 1.2 million others.

The two sides, technically in a state of war nearly 80 years after Israel’s establishment, started rare direct talks championed by Washington.

They reached an agreement by late June, setting a plan for the deployment of Lebanese military forces in areas in southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah had a military presence and influence, and the withdrawal of Israeli forces, while disarming the militant group.

Hezbollah has refused the talks and disarmament calls.

Lebanese government vows to rebuild and take control

Nawaf Salam’s visit to Zawtar Al Gharbieh came a day after President Joseph Aoun’s landmark White House meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, who made a surprise announcement, allowing American carriers to resume direct flights to Lebanon for the first time in 40-plus years.

Salam, alongside Lebanon’s defense minister and senior military officials, pitched a Lebanese flag near a destroyed building in the town, vowing the government will start rebuilding destroyed homes and infrastructure.

“We have insisted since the beginning that our goal is the complete Israeli withdrawal from all our territory,” Salam said. “What we are seeing today is just the beginning, but we remain determined and steadfast, and will continue to mobilize all political and diplomatic efforts to secure a full withdrawal from all of Lebanese territory.”

The army did not immediately allow civilians to enter as they cleared unexploded ordnance. Residents tried to storm the barrier in a desperate bid to enter the village and check on their homes and properties.

Some expressed frustration, downplaying the army’s deployment.

“The prime minister should have informed people that he was going to Zawtar and he should have taken the people, who have been waiting for the past two days, with him,” said Zaynab Ismail, a resident.

The agreement’s implementation begins with ‘pilot zones’

Lebanon and Israel agreed to establish two “pilot zones” in a series of villages in southern Lebanon where the Israeli military is to turn over control to the Lebanese army after clearing the areas of any Hezbollah presence.

Israel hasn’t occupied any of the newly assigned zones in the latest conflict, though it has struck them and conducted ground operations. The Lebanese army has a limited presence there.

Trump, in his meeting with Aoun, did not address the “pilot zones” entering their implementation phase, but pledged to support Lebanon without going into details.

Aoun and the Lebanese government have urged the international community to invest in the Mediterranean country and its army to help rebuild its infrastructure and military capacity.

Lebanon’s top political leadership has criticized the group for dragging the country into another war, but also condemned Israel for its widespread bombing and ground invasion.

Hezbollah has condemned the government for holding direct talks with Israel and rejected the agreement, but the militant group has not tried to sabotage it through military means. Its leadership believes Israel cannot be pressured to withdraw its troops by diplomatic means only, and that Lebanon lacks the leverage of its key ally Iran in negotiations.

A memorial stone is to remain in place outside the house in Braunau am Inn near the German border with the inscription, “For freedom, democracy and liberty. Never again fascism. Millions of dead remind us.”

Hitler was born in the building on April 20, 1889. His family moved to another residence in Braunau am Inn after only a few months, before settling temporarily in Passau in southern Germany.

Fueled by racial fanaticism, Hitler's Nazi regime killed approximately 6 million Jews and other minorities and groups during the Holocaust. The dictator unleashed World War II in which at least 60 million people died. He committed suicide in April 1945, shortly before the end of the war.

“The Republic of Austria, the state, the county is facing up to this heritage, the terrible heritage of this time, and commits itself to deal with it,” Austria's Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said during the opening ceremony of the police station on Wednesday. “This entails this house and this address.”

The renovation of the building took several years and cost around 20 million euros ($22.8 million), Austrian news agency APA reported. It was preceded by a yearslong back-and-forth over the ownership of the house.

The ownership question was resolved in 2017 when Austria’s highest court ruled the government was within its rights to expropriate the building after its owner refused to sell. A suggestion it might be demolished was dropped.

The building had been rented by Austria’s Interior Ministry since 1972 to prevent its misuse and was sublet to various charitable organizations. The structure stood empty after a care center for adults with disabilities moved out in 2011.

The Austrian government has said the best use for the building would be the presence of the police as guardians of civil liberties. But critics said the building in its current presentation lacks historical context.

A commission of experts came out against turning the building into a museum, advocating instead for a redesign that would not be easily recognizable.

The building's ochre-yellow was turned white, the arched windows were replaced by simple rectangular shapes and the facade has been extended upward toward the roof. Debris from the construction was disposed at a secret location to ensure it would not become a new source for Nazi memorabilia, APA reported.

In the past, far-right extremists repeatedly paid homage to the “Führer,” photographing the building, taking stones as souvenirs and laying flowers and wreaths. In 2024, four Germans were caught laying white roses in the building's window recesses and posing for photos, including a woman giving the stiff-armed Hitler salute.

It’s a combination of inexperience, immaturity, social pressures, and potential distractions. There are lots of reasons teens are risky drivers. Car crashes are the leading cause of death for ages 15-24. Because young drivers are at such high risk, parents should buy a car with as much safety as the budget allows. Also, a teen driver’s first vehicle should not be too small, not too big, and definitely not too fast.

Consumer Reports and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety analyzed makes and models to find safe and budget-friendly car options. They identified 74 used cars under $20,000 that have performance and features designed to keep young drivers out of a crash, but that also have high levels of crash protection if the worst does occur.

On the list: popular picks like the Honda Civic, Toyota Camry, and Hyundai Tucson. For teen drivers, features like automatic emergency braking, forward collision warning, and blind spot warning can provide an extra layer of protection when experience is still developing. And along with safety features nothing replaces good driving habits.

Finding the right car is only half the battle. Adding a teen driver to your insurance policy will likely raise your insurance bill. But it’s usually cheaper to keep them on your policy than to buy a separate one. Shopping around for family coverage could save you hundreds because the best rates often go to new customers.

Hottle was one of two passengers in the car when it went off the road and hit a culvert in Ijamsville before 3 a.m. The driver was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, and the other passenger declined medical treatment, according to a news release from the sheriff's office. Excessive speed is believed to be a factor in the crash, which is under investigation, the sheriff's office said.

Hottle was a native signer of American Sign Language, and her family members are also deaf. Her parents, Joshua and Ketsi Hottle, shared emotional video statements about her death on social media sites.

“Kaylee’s mom and four siblings are crushed,” her father said in ASL in a post from an airport. “They are together at home, grieving. I am on my way to Maryland to bring Kaylee’s body back home.”

Hottle’s heart stopped before she arrived at a hospital, transported by air from the scene of the accident, her father said. “Very grateful for the 18 years we had together — and wish we had more,” he said.

Joshua Hottle also reached out to the driver, described by the sheriff's office as a 19-year-old Frederick man.

“I have forgiven you,” her father said. “Don’t let this incident ruin the rest of your life.”

“I still feel Kaylee is with us,” her mother said in ASL in a post.

In “Godzilla vs. Kong” and the sequel, “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire,” Hottle played an orphaned girl named Jia who sees beyond Kong's threatening appearance and forms a special bond with the monster, communicating with him using sign language.

“I’m so devastated to hear this. You will be deeply missed Kaylee,” her “Godzilla” co-star Millie Bobby Brown posted on Instagram.

Co-star Alexander Skarsgård, who learned ASL to communicate with Hottle, told the pop culture website Junkee in 2021 that he and others were impressed by the young ingenue's professionalism and her ability to quickly incorporate the director's notes into her acting.

In a 2024 interview with The Associated Press, Hottle said through an interpreter that she hadn't watched monster movies before she was cast in “Godzilla,” so her father helped her understand the genre.

“I look up to a lot of people, but the one person I look up to, the few people I look up to mostly, are my parents and my sisters,” Hottle said.

Hottle said that when she was working on the first film, she was a bit concerned about whether she would be able to return to her “normal life," afterward.

“People do recognize me at school, yes, but it's not as bad as I thought it would be,” Hottle said.

Hottle previously appeared in a 2021 television episode of “Magnum P.I.” She was listed as appearing in the upcoming film “What Doesn’t Kill Us.”

“I’m so heartbroken. My heart goes out to her family during this unimaginable time,” Alaqua Cox, her co-star in that film and fellow deaf actor, wrote on Instagram.

Other prominent deaf actors also shared messages of grief online.

“I am absolutely gutted about the passing of sweet Kaylee Hottle. May her beauty and talent be a memory for eternity,” Oscar winner Marlee Matlin wrote on Instagram.

Fellow Oscar winner Troy Kotsur, who starred in the film “Coda,” wrote that Hottle's death made him think of his own daughter, and reminded him not to take time for granted.

“I have no words to express on what happened this morning,” Kotsur wrote, offering his “deepest condolences” to the Hottle family.

Officials with Texas School for the Deaf in Austin also announced Hottle's death on Facebook, writing that counseling and support services would be available to her classmates and friends.

“Please keep Kaylee's loved ones in your thoughts as we mourn this tremendous loss together,” the school wrote. ___ Boone reported from Boise, Idaho. Lage reported from Ann Arbor, Michigan.

As of Wednesday, July 22, the average price of regular gas per gallon in Virginia is $3.96, according to AAA. Premium averages $4.84 per gallon, while diesel averages $5.21 per gallon.

Taking a closer look at our region, here’s a look at the average price of gas for localities in our area:

• Blacksburg, Christiansburg, and Radford (New River Valley area)
• • Regular: $3.85
  • Mid: $4.29
  • Premium: $4.69
  • Diesel: $5.09
• Roanoke:
• • Regular: $3.85
  • Mid: $4.30
  • Premium: $4.73
  • Diesel: $5.18
• Lynchburg:
• • Regular: $3.85
  • Mid: $4.35
  • Premium: $4.73
  • Diesel: $5.07

Count on 10 News to bring you the latest price at the pump every morning.

To find out where the lowest fuel prices are near you, visit GasBuddy’s website.

Space and comfort

The choice is clear if interior space is a priority. The ES is not only larger than the CLA; it’s also longer and taller than relatively big electric sedans like the BMW i5 and Lucid Air. That space allows for a massive amount of rear legroom. You can even get reclining rear seats with adjustable footrests if you want. The ES also has a larger trunk.

You’ll also prefer the ES if you want a cushy ride. It glides more smoothly over bumps and ruts in the road than the CLA does. Edmunds drivers found the CLA’s front seats to be a little more comfortable than those in the ES, but overall the ES is the literal and figurative big winner here.

Winner: Lexus ES

Range and charging

The CLA 250+, which has a single electric motor, gets an EPA-estimated 374 miles of range on a single charge. It traveled a whopping 434 miles in its Edmunds’ real-world testing. The dual-motor all-wheel-drive CLA 350 has an EPA-estimated range of 312 miles, and it went an outstanding 385 miles in Edmunds’ testing.

The Lexus ES is also available in two models of differing performance and range. The single-motor ES 350e gets an EPA-estimated range of up to 307 miles. The dual-motor all-wheel-drive ES 500e has an estimated range of up to 276 miles. Edmunds’ testing of an ES 350e basically matched its EPA estimates.

Charging is a similar situation. DC fast-charging capability for the Lexus tops out at 150 kW, whereas the CLA can accept twice as much power as long as you’re connected to an appropriate fast-charging station. In Edmunds’ testing, the ES needed 13 minutes to add 100 miles of range, while the CLA needed just seven minutes.

Winner: Mercedes CLA

Performance and driving

While the Mercedes’ compact dimensions and sportier tuning hurt it in the space and comfort category above, they become a benefit here. The ES is pleasant to drive and composed around turns, but the CLA is far more engaging and feels more like a sport sedan.

The 221-horsepower ES 350e is also slow by electric sedan standards. In Edmunds’ testing, it needed 7.6 seconds to get from zero to 60 mph. The ES 500e is more powerful, but you’ll still like the CLA more if you want quick acceleration. Edmunds tested the CLA 350 and found that it could get 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds.

Winner: Mercedes CLA

In-car technology

While our results thus far have been quite clear, this category is more likely to come down to personal preference. At first glance, the Mercedes may seem to have a landslide advantage. The entire dashboard is basically one gigantic screen housing. The touchscreen graphics are beautiful and responses are lightning quick.

It can certainly be overwhelming, though — both from a usability and visual standpoint. Those who are less technically inclined may prefer the relative simplicity provided by the ES, which, to be fair, features the latest Lexus infotainment system. It’s not as flashy as the Mercedes setup, but it’s also easy to use and hard to fault.

Winner: Mercedes CLA

Price and value

The Lexus ES and Mercedes CLA are very similarly priced — even their more powerful dual-motor versions align. By electric luxury vehicle standards, they’re surprisingly affordable. The electric 2026 Lexus ES 350e starts at $48,895, including destination fees, while the electric 2027 CLA starts at $49,400.

Ultimately, it comes down to where you see the most value. The ES is much bigger and comes with a few more standard features, such as ventilated seats and a wireless phone charger. For most shoppers, that probably means the ES is the better value. Still, the CLA has superior electric vehicle specs, and not just in comparison to the ES. Its tech, styling and driving experience are pretty compelling too.

Winner: Lexus ES

Edmunds says

Both of these electric luxury sedans received high ratings from Edmunds, but it’s the Mercedes that ultimately comes out on top with an Excellent score versus the Lexus’ Very Good. The overwhelming strength of its range, charging, and driving experience scores ultimately tipped the scales.

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This story was provided to The Associated Press by the automotive website Edmunds. James Riswick is a contributor at Edmunds.

Aside from competing in a celebrity ball hockey game, Lynch will also host a football clinic at the HDA's fourth festival on Saturday. The former Seattle Seahawks player and 2014 Super Bowl champion is no stranger to the HDA. Lynch took the ice at the alliance’s WinterFest that coincided with Toronto hosting the NHL All-Star Game two years ago.

“I’m really excited about him and the football aspect of it,” HDA chairman Akim Aliu said. “Where we’re able to have success as an organization is tapping into the culture and personality aspects and using people’s audiences from different sports.”

The HDA was launched in 2020 by current and former NHL players of color to speak out against racism and intolerance, and with an objective of opening hockey to minorities and underserved youth by providing free hockey equipment, hosting clinics and renting ice time.

Aliu estimated the HDA has spent about $1.1 million annually in its grassroots mission, and has since expanded beyond the Toronto region. The alliance has launched programs in Los Angeles, New York, Montreal, Nova Scotia, and is preparing to add Calgary, Alberta, to the mix next month, Aliu said.

SummerFest stands as the major event on the HDA calendar, and features performances, carnival attractions and rides, followed by a fundraising gala in the evening.

Among the notable athletes scheduled to attend are Canadian Olympic sprinter Andre De Grasse, tennis player Bianca Andreescu, former Seahawks tight end Luke Wilson and former Toronto Raptors player Serge Ibaka.

Aliu anticipates the daytime event attracting a capacity crowd of more than 4,000 participants.

Aliu is a former pro hockey player who was born in Nigeria, lived in Ukraine and picked up the sport when his family moved to Toronto when he was 7. In 2022, Scholastic and the publishing company of former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick released a graphic novel highlighting Aliu’s life titled: “Akim Aliu Dreamer: Growing Up Black in the World of Hockey.”

“Why I’m so proud of our work is because it’s really for the most vulnerable that would never have access to the sport,” Aliu said. “Over 2,000 lives have been positively impacted by our work, and we’re just getting going.”

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

The 3-day sales tax holiday will kick off on Friday, Aug. 7 at 12:01 a.m. and last through Aug. 9 at 11:59 p.m.

During this period, Virginians will be able to buy select school supplies, clothing, hurricane and emergency preparedness items, and Energy Star and WaterSense products without paying sales tax.

Here’s a look at eligible items:

• School supplies, clothing, and footwear
• • Qualified school supplies - $20 or less per item
  • Qualified clothing and footwear - $100 or less per item
• Hurricane and emergency preparedness products
• • Portable generators - $1,000 or less per item
  • Gas-powered chainsaws - $350 or less per item
  • Chainsaw accessories - $60 or less per item
  • Other specified hurricane preparedness items - $60 or less per item
• Energy Star™ and WaterSense™ products
• • Qualifying Energy Star™ or WaterSense™ products purchased for noncommercial home or personal use - $2,500 or less per item

For more information on Virginia’s 3-Day Sales Tax Holiday, click here.

The Buena Vista Police Department has confirmed that Nichole Lacy Stanley has been found safe.

ORIGINAL STORY

Authorities are currently searching for a missing 17-year-old girl out of Buena Vista.

Buena Vista Police Department said they are searching for 17-year-old Nichole Lacy Stanley. She is described as white, around 5′3″, weighing around 147 lbs with blonde hair and blue eyes. She has a tongue ring and a tattoo on her arm near her wrist.

BVPD said Nichole was last seen around 10 pm. on Saturday. She has numerous medical and mental health conditions, and her welfare is a concern.

If you have seen Nichole, or have any information regarding her whereabouts, please contact the Buena Vista Police Department at (540) 261-6171.

On Aug. 17, Jason Ferguson will assume the role, bringing decades of experience and a passion for serving his community.

Ferguson hails from nearby Botetourt County, where he currently serves as chief of the Department of Fire and EMS. He began his career in 2000 as an emergency department technician-paramedic with Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital before joining the Botetourt County Department of Fire and EMS as a paramedic in 2001.

With a tenacious attitude and willingness to grow, Ferguson advanced through the ranks in Botetourt County. He served as a fire and EMS training coordinator, captain, division chief, battalion chief and deputy chief before being appointed chief in 2018.

Additionally, Ferguson served in a flex-time position as a paramedic transport specialist with Carilion Clinic Patient Transportation’s critical care flight team from 2015 to 2021. He also served as an adjunct instructor for the Virginia Department of Fire Programs from 2011 to 2021.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in emergency services and an associate’s degree in emergency health sciences from Jefferson College of Health Sciences. He is a graduate of the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program and Virginia Tech’s Local Government Management Program as well.

When asked about his new role in Bedford County, Ferguson expressed that he is excited for this new chapter.

“I am extremely excited and humbled to have the opportunity to work alongside the dedicated men and women of Bedford County Department of Fire & Rescue,” Ferguson said. “I look forward to collaborating with community stakeholders for the continued betterment of essential services throughout Bedford County.”

Bedford County Administrator Robert Hiss says he is looking forward to seeing how Ferguson makes a difference in Bedford County.

“Jason has an outstanding reputation as an effective chief with substantial understanding and knowledge of fire and EMS systems. As our public safety system continues to evolve, his leadership in a combination career and volunteer system will prove beneficial for Bedford County. Jason’s experience and skills will be critical in advancing organizational goals, enhancing service delivery, and supporting the department’s long-term vision.”

The blast triggered by a buildup of methane gas tore through the tunnel Monday at the 500-megawatt Teesta Hydroelectric Project in northeastern Sikkim state in the Himalayas. Authorities have recovered the bodies of 12 workers who died inside the tunnel about 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of the state capital Gangtok.

Rescue teams equipped with specialized breathing equipment and night-vision gear were having difficulty entering the tunnel because of the gas and a buildup of water, administrative official Anupama Tamling said.

Gandura Oraon, 38, said he and other workers were eating lunch inside the tunnel when a loud explosion forced them to run for the exit.

“Luckily, we found the vehicle that had delivered lunch to us sometime earlier. We got into it and drove out,” he said.

As they escaped, Oraon said, they came across their supervisor and urged him to leave with them as well. Instead, he headed toward the site of the blast to see what had happened and was later found dead, Oraon said.

The Teesta River basin, where the hydropower project is being built, lies in a seismically active region marked by young, fragile rock formations riddled with fractures and underground pockets that can trap ancient gases. Fragile mountains, seismic activity and unpredictable underground conditions make tunnel projects especially risky in the region, according to experts.

A February explosion in a coal mine in neighboring Meghalaya state killed 18 workers. A tunnel section collapsed in 2023 in northern Uttarakhand state, trapping 41 workers for 17 days before they were rescued.

But the main attraction is located just outside this museum. Photojournalist Greg Moore talked to the local artist who built and designed this one-of-a-kind display.

Power has been restored to most AEP customers throughout our region as severe weather moves through much of Southwest and Central Virginia. However, as of 4:07 a.m. Wednesday, Lynchburg is still seeing roughly 101 outages, and Botetourt is seeing 53.

10 p.m. Update:

As of Tuesday night, there are 791 AEP customers without power in our area. The current areas affected are as follows:

• Bedford:167
• Buchanan: Fewer than 5
• Floyd: 60
• Franklin 5
• Henry: 323
• Lynchburg: 6
• Martinsville: Fewer than 5
• Nelson: 7
• Roanoke: 67
• Roanoke City: Fewer than 5

Original:

Over 4,000 AEP customers are without power due to weather in our area as of 3:20 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, according to AEP’s outage map.

The current areas affected are as follows:

• Amherst: 31
• Bedford: 1,862
• Buchanan: 52
• Campbell: Fewer than 5
• Carroll: 14
• Floyd: 676
• Franklin 23
• Giles: Fewer than 5
• Lynchburg: 406
• Montgomery: Fewer than 5
• Nelson: 103
• Roanoke: 7
• Roanoke City: Fewer than 5

10 News will continue to update this outage story. For more information and to report an outage, click here.

“I love driving now because I am free,” she said.

She wanted not just her freedom back, but the ability to take her kids to school, sports and everything else in between.

“Dominic is my son, he is seven. And then I have Addie, she is nine. I have choir, dance, softball, baseball, all stuff for the kids,” said Amanda.

Unlike new drivers who practice out on the road, she had to go through intensive therapy that required her to first train on a driving simulator.

“We place people on the simulator to simulate the driving in a safe environment until it’s safe for them to get in a car,” explained Christina Duncan, an occupational therapist at Cleveland Clinic.

She said it’s been rewarding to watch Amanda’s progress.

“She continues with occupational therapy as well as speech therapy. But she’s regained a lot of strength since her stroke,” she said.

Amanda said she is grateful for all the help and encourages others who’ve had a stroke to not to give up hope.

“Remember, always fight,” she said while holding back tears.

Burnham, from Britain’s left-leaning Labour Party, faces restive voters seeking relief from the high cost of living. At the same time, the investors who help finance the government by buying its bonds are demanding that he reduce public sector debt that has ballooned to levels last seen in the 1960s.

In an effort to balance the competing demands, Burnham surprised pundits by naming former Defense Secretary John Healey as his Treasury chief. Healey, who served in the Treasury under former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, is seen as someone who will make sure the government lives up to its pledge to reduce Britain’s debt pile.

Then, first thing Tuesday morning, Burnham made a down payment on his commitment to ease the pressure on cash-strapped consumers. The government announced it would scrap the tax on home electricity use for at least six months beginning in October, saving the average household 45 pounds ($60) a year.

Importantly, the government said the move would be paid for by canceling plans to introduce digital ID, in an effort to reassure investors that Burnham isn’t about to go on an unfunded spending spree.

Treasury chief has a big job ahead

“Healey has a daunting task on his hands,’’ said Victoria Scholar, the head of investment at interactive investor.

“The government has ambitious plans to tackle cost-of-living pressures … but he faces a very difficult set of public finances to carry these expensive plans through.”

Now that he’s controlling the purse strings, Burnham faces the same issues that have bedeviled every prime minister since the financial crisis of 2008. And their failure to find answers is a big part of the reason that the eight men and women who have taken up residence behind the famous black door at 10 Downing Street in that period have had an average tenure of two years.

Burnham, like his predecessors, faces the challenge of finding a way to reinvigorate an economy that has grown an average of less than 1.5% a year since 2009, compared with an annual average of 3% in the 15 years before the financial crisis.

Burnham received a boost to his cost-of-living reduction agenda Wednesday when inflation fell to its the lowest rate in 15 months in June, buoyed by a drop of food and fuel prices. The rate of the Consumer Prices Index was 2.6% in June, down from 2.8% in May, according to the Office for National Statistics. But experts warn the good news may be short-lived because the conflict in the Middle East will continue to put pressure on wholesale energy prices.

As he develops his economic plans, Burnham will be constrained by promises to reduce government debt, which now exceeds 95% of gross domestic product. According to Britain’s budget watchdog, debt interest payments rose to 111.2 billion pounds ($149 billion), or 8.3% of government spending, in the financial year that ended in April, leaving less money to spend on government services ranging from healthcare to education and defense.

New challenges are added to the old ones

But he also faces a new challenge after his predecessor, like most other European governments, pledged to increase defense spending to 3.5% of GDP by 2035. That came after pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, who has criticized his allies for not paying their fair share of Europe’s defense.

Meeting that commitment will cost about 36 billion pounds a year, or 500 pounds for each person in the U.K., according to estimates from the Institute for Fiscal Studies, a respected independent researcher.

“We should absolutely acknowledge that these constraints are structural,” said Olivia O’Sullivan at Chatham House, a London-based think tank. “They would be tough for any prime minister at this time.”

And that’s why boosting economic output is so crucial to all of Burnham’s plans.

Stimulating economic growth is key to Burnham's plans

Without faster growth, British taxpayers will either have to pay higher taxes or accept cuts in popular programs such as the National Health Service, which offers free medical care to everyone. A booming economy, on the other hand, would boost the revenue generated by existing taxes and tax rates because the value of company profits, worker salaries and other transactions would rise.

Sluggish growth doomed former Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government when angry Labour lawmakers forced him to cancel welfare cuts designed to help balance the budget. More recently he was widely criticized for failing to offer a credible plan for increasing defense spending.

Some Labour supporters have grumbled that the government “shouldn’t be in hock to the bond market.” But economists say Burnham and Healey must take the financial constraints seriously if they are going to succeed in bolstering the economy and increasing the pot available to fund popular programs.

“It’s not some imaginary bogeyman in the bond market,” said David Aikman, director of the independent National Institute of Economic and Social Research. “We need people to buy the debt we’re issuing.”

So far, Burnham has offered little detail on his plans for the British economy.

His big idea is to “reindustrialize” the economy by shifting investment away from London to other parts of the country that were hard hit by the decline in manufacturing. Burnham also says he will increase construction of public housing to address the nation’s housing shortage and bolster the construction industry, and support the small and medium-size businesses that account for 60% of private employment.

At the same time, he has pledged to stick to Labour’s promises not to raise taxes on working people and to maintain the “triple lock” on state pensions, an expensive policy that guarantees pensions will rise each year by the annual increase in consumer price inflation, average wage growth, or 2.5%, whichever is higher.

Jim O’Neill, a former chief economist for Goldman Sachs and member of the House of Lords who has advised Burnham in the past, told the BBC last month that Britain’s new prime minister must “get real.”

“We need somebody that’s prepared to do something bold and different,” he said.

Burnham, he added, “has got the same challenge that everybody else seems to avoid and that’s doing something about things like welfare, stop this never-ending spectacular rise in the spending on NHS. … Do something about the triple lock, etc., etc., and get out of this weird sort of prison of being owned by every little small group that opposes anything anybody wants to do. “

Gov. Spanberger issued the following statement:

“Lieutenant Key joined Charlie Battery, 5th Battalion, 4th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command, where he served as a platoon leader. He was known for the care he showed his Soldiers and a commitment to others that earned the respect and adoration of everyone who served beside him.

“In May 2026, while deployed to Morocco in support of African Lion, an annual multinational military exercise, Lieutenant Key gave his life attempting to rescue a fellow Soldier who had fallen from the coastal cliffs of the Cap Draa Training Area into the Atlantic. Without regard for his own safety, he directed his platoon in an improvised rescue and moved to secure her himself before both were tragically lost in the ocean.

“For his heroic actions that evening, Lieutenant Key was posthumously awarded the Soldier’s Medal — the United States Army’s highest recognition of heroism apart from combat. His final act, undertaken to protect a fellow Soldier in his care, stands as the fullest measure of a leader, and a true testament to how much he cared about his unit. Lieutenant Key will be remembered as a courageous, natural born leader.

“We honor his devoted and selfless service to his community, the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the United States of America. My heart is with his friends and family, who should know a grateful Commonwealth is indebted to him and thanks him for his service and sacrifice.”

Gov. Spanberger

Flags of the U.S. and the Commonwealth of Virginia will be flown at half-staff and will be lowered at sunrise on Wednesday.

Jenitar Sau Na’amoana, who is 34 years old and already had four children, delivered the babies last week at Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital in Queensland state.

“We are very excited to be able to care for this amazing little family, a big family now,” Dr. Alexa Bendall, a maternal fetal medicine specialist who cared for Na’amoana, said in an interview released by the hospital.

The babies were conceived naturally and came from one fertilized egg that split into four, “which was incredible," Bendall said.

“We think the figures are probably around 1 in 15 million for a case like this to be spontaneously conceived,” she said. “We don’t think it’s ever happened in Australia.”

Overall, experts say, the chance of conceiving quadruplets naturally is only 1 in 700,000; most are conceived with the assistance of medical technology.

Hospital officials said Na’amoana and her husband, Jortham, hadn’t planned to have more children and were quite surprised when she became pregnant with the quadruplets.

Na’amoana faced a high risk of complications, especially given the fetuses shared one placenta. In general, being pregnant with any multiple fetuses puts a mom at increased risk for problems such as preterm birth, miscarriage and birth defects, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.

Na’amoana was monitored by a large medical team at the hospital since 10 weeks gestation and was admitted as an inpatient at 25 weeks so she could be monitored, hospital officials said. She delivered the babies by cesarean section on July 14.

“The fact that we’ve got four beautiful, healthy babies born at 28 weeks and four days is incredible,” Bendall said. "Mum did lose a little bit of blood but not an excessive amount for having quads, and she’s doing well.”

The babies are doing well in the neonatal intensive care unit. Their names are Emily, Harriet, Catherine and Alexa, in honor of Bendall. The doctor called the name a “beautiful tribute,” and said she feels privileged to have helped bring these children into the world.

“From an academic perspective, it’s really interesting,” she said. “But also from a human perspective, to be able to be part of the family’s journey and come out with four beautiful babies and a healthy mum is very precious.”

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Democrats were locked in a close primary contest for a battleground U.S. House district, with emergency physician Amish Shah leading party-backed Marlene Galán-Woods for the chance to take on Jay Feely, the former Arizona Cardinals kicker who won the Republican nomination with Trump's endorsement.

A Shah victory would be another defeat for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which has occasionally struggled this year as voters seek out antiestablishment candidates. The race was too early to call early Wednesday morning.

Biggs overwhelmingly defeated fellow U.S. Rep. David Schweikert in the primary and will face Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs in what could be one of the closest governor races in November.

By choosing Biggs, who supported Trump's failed attempt to block certification of his 2020 election loss, Republican voters risk nominating another conservative warrior who excites the party base but fails to win a general election by turning off independents. Although the party once dominated Arizona, Democrats now hold both U.S. Senate seats and the top three state offices.

Biggs faced travel problems leaving a Republican Governors Association meeting in Colorado, according to senior adviser Drew Sexton, and didn’t reach his victory party in Scottsdale until more than three hours after he won the race. By the time he took the stage, the crowd of hundreds had dwindled to dozens and he spoke to a mostly empty room.

“Let’s make this the year that we turn Arizona red again,” Biggs said.

Schweikert argued during the campaign that Biggs would continue a decade of Republican backsliding. However, he struggled to raise money and did not even return to Arizona for Election Day, remaining in Washington as the House passed a government funding bill.

Biggs rejected Schweikert's claim that he'll be another Republican judged by voters to be too extreme.

“I am a conservative — and a principled conservative — but I work with people that don’t necessarily agree with me on every issue,” Biggs told a reporter after his victory speech.

Biggs, who had Trump's endorsement and support from the grassroots organization Turning Point Action, said he can unite Republicans going into the general election.

“Everyone I have talked to is really conservative around here,” said Ray Roberts, a 33-year-old Republican who works as a processing engineer and knocked on doors for Biggs. “We all have mostly conservative values. I think Arizona is a red state. I think Andy will be the winner in November.”

State Rep. Alexander Kolodin won the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, defeating Gina Swoboda, the former Arizona Republican Party chair. Kolodin, a lawyer, was sanctioned by the state bar over his involvement with two 2020 election cases that courts found baseless, including one alleging the vote was marred by fraud and demanding Biden's victory in the state be overturned.

State Senate President Warren Petersen won the Republican nomination for attorney general and will face Democratic incumbent Kris Mayes, who won four years ago by just 280 votes out of more than 2.5 million.

Biggs and Schweikert responded differently to Trump's GOP takeover

Biggs built a national profile as chair of the House Freedom Caucus from 2019 to 2022 and as a staunch defender of Trump. He assisted the president’s attempt to block the certification of his loss in the 2020 election, voting against accepting Electoral College votes from Arizona and other battleground states after the Jan. 6, 2021, riot.

He has always represented safe Republican seats and is a veteran of factional brawls within his party. Before going to Congress, he nearly lost his post as state Senate president during a confrontation with then-Gov. Jan Brewer, also a Republican, over her push to expand Medicaid.

“I want the border secured. I want the police and more money spent in the right places like education,” said Kate Rouleau, a 67-year-old Republican who voted for Biggs because he "has the same quality as President Trump.”

Democrats focused their attacks on Biggs, whom they plan to portray as an extremist focused on helping Trump and not Arizonans.

In a statement Tuesday night, Hobbs said that “the more Arizonans learn about Biggs, the more they’ll realize he’s one big problem they can’t afford.”

The race is likely to be another close contest four years after Hobbs narrowly beat Republican firebrand Kari Lake by less than 1 percentage point. Republicans have since expanded their advantage in the state, growing GOP registration by 6% while Democratic registration fell by 4%.

Repeating her victory will require Hobbs to again win a majority of independents and some disaffected Republicans. For his part, Biggs has attacked her as a weak leader who presided over rising costs.

"We can’t let the state go to somebody who's actually recklessly incompetent, and that is our current governor," he said.

Primaries set the field for a top House battleground

Both parties had hotly contested primaries to replace Schweikert in the highly competitive 1st Congressional District, which both parties are targeting in the fight to control the House.

Feely won the Republican primary over Joseph Chaplik, a former state legislator popular with many grassroots activists, and businessperson John Trobough. Feely had Trump’s endorsement but has been dogged by criticism for living outside the district.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee threw its support behind Galán-Woods, a controversial decision to get involved in a contested primary that rankled some party activists. Her late husband, Grant Woods, was the Republican attorney general in the 1990s and later became a vocal Trump critic.

Galán-Woods’ chief opponent, Shah, is a former state legislator who was the nominee in 2024 but lost narrowly to Schweikert.

“We have a long tradition in Arizona of being independent-minded and working for the benefit of people,” Shah said at his election night party in Phoenix. “I wasn’t exactly my party’s pick. And I was willing to stand up to that establishment. And that’s what the voters of this district want.”

If Shah's lead holds, he would be the third Democrat to beat a DCCC-backed rival this year following Randy Villegas in California and Matt Dunlap in Maine. Unlike the candidates in those races, Shah and Galán-Woods are largely aligned ideologically.

Linda Bandler, a 65-year-old independent who volunteered on the Galán-Woods campaign, said the party will be in good shape regardless of who wins the primary.

“There still is some sanity,” said Bandler, who like Galán-Woods is a former Republican. “I do think that the Democrats will take over the House and the Senate.”

DCCC support generally brings an influx of money and staffing, both from the party itself and from the donors and interest groups that take its cues. But this election season, substantial parts of the Democratic base are rejecting candidates that party bosses see as their best shot at winning in Congress.

“The Democratic Party needs to grow up and wake up,” said Maria Liong, a 24-year-old medical student who volunteered for Shah’s campaign. “They need to realize that they want candidates who listen to their people.”

Republicans hold a voter registration advantage in the affluent district, which includes northeast Phoenix, Scottsdale, Fountain Hills and Paradise Valley.

But it started to trend toward the center after Trump’s 2016 victory. Redistricting accelerated the trend, fueling Democratic hopes that the seat could be flipped.

In Tucson, retired Marine drill instructor JoAnna Mendoza ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination to challenge second-term Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani, who also had no primary opponent. The seat is perennially competitive in general elections and is a top pickup target for Democrats in November.

Meanwhile, Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb won the Republican primary for the conservative district that Biggs is vacating. The race turned salacious as Lamb, who was endorsed by Trump, came under scrutiny for alleged sexual misconduct and abuse of power.

The county attorney cleared him of criminal wrongdoing, and Trump reiterated his endorsement this month. Lamb dismissed the allegations as “slander and lies.”

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Associated Press writer Josh Kelety contributed.

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This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Feely.

On the other side of the wall, visitors watch the work unfold on the bones of the nearly six-meter (20-foot)-long skeleton. Children point with excitement while parents contemplate the creature the massive bones once belonged to.

The painstaking restoration is part of an unusual public science project. More than 2,000 volunteers are helping Polish scientists restore the skeleton of the Mastodonsaurus, a fearsome aquatic predator from around the dawn of the dinosaur age.

The work is meticulous. Bone must be separated from surrounding rock millimeter by millimeter with a pneumatic chisel, whose needle gently breaks away rock while ultraviolet light reveals where the bone ends and the surrounding rock begins.

The volunteers are managers, cleaners, tattoo artists — not geologists or paleontologists. They receive training and special protective gear, before they begin two-hour-long chiseling sessions under supervision.

“I imagine that those bones were lying underground for 240 million years and I am the first human on earth to touch them," said Tatyana Kozyk, the coordinator of the volunteer teams. “I'm still trying to wrap my head around this experience.”

An ancient aquatic predator

One of the largest amphibians ever to exist, the Mastodonsaurus lived about 240 million years ago during the Middle Triassic, while the earliest dinosaurs were appearing but before they came to dominate Earth. It was an underwater ambush hunter, preying mainly on fish and smaller amphibians.

Scientists believe it could grow to nearly six meters (20 feet) in length. It had a broad, flat head, long jaws and sharp conical teeth, its appearance resembling a crocodile's, though it belonged to a different branch of the vertebrate family tree.

When the restoration is complete, it will be the largest exhibited in a museum anywhere in the world, said Tomasz Sulej, a paleontologist and professor at the Institute of Paleobiology at the Polish Academy of Sciences. Its skeleton weighs 1,300 kilograms (2,865 pounds).

Sulej and his colleague Wojciech Pawlak from the Faculty of Geology at the Warsaw University are credited with discovering the skeleton in southern Poland in 2023 and coming up with the idea to invite volunteers to help with its restoration.

Sulej says there are no other known Mastodonsaurus skeletons this large anywhere else in the world, and the discovery promises to help scientists learn more about the species.

“The structure of the body is different from what we knew so far," he said. "This is information that is completely new to the scientific world.”

Other Mastodonsaurus skeletons have been found elsewhere, including in Germany and Russia, Sulej said, but they are around 2 to 3 meters (6½ to 10 feet) long.

A chance to reflect on the past and future

Dorota Serafin, a 51-year-old manager from Warsaw who volunteers for the project, said working with the skeleton of an ancient animal is an experience that is at the same time “relaxing and philosophical, even mystical.”

Serafin said she plans to return for other sessions and eventually bring her family to Copernicus when the restored skeleton is exhibited, which is expected to happen in October or November.

In addition to the startling experience of touching the remains of an animal that lived hundreds of millions of years ago, contact with the Mastodonsaurus offers an opportunity to reflect on the future, those involved in the project said.

The amphibian inhabited Earth’s waters after the largest known mass extinction and just before the dinosaurs appeared. As humanity contemplates the potentially catastrophic effects of climate change, Sulej says the story of the Mastodonsaurus offers some hope.

“The Mastodonsaurus lived after the great extinction, which shows one thing, that nature always manages,” Sulej said. “It's not true that humans can destroy life on this planet. Nature and life always find ways to survive.”

U.S. Central Command said targets included aircraft hangars and drone storage sites. The newest barrage came after President Donald Trump telegraphed that strikes would be intensifying.

Before the latest strikes, Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni visited Pakistan, a key mediator in the conflict, seeking to revamp diplomacy. But it was unclear what new arrangement might be reached to end the war, which lately has become a battle for control over the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway vital to world energy supplies.

Speaking from the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump gave a dim view on possible talks, saying the U.S. had “no interest in meeting.” He signaled that U.S. forces could soon target an area of Iran close to one of its main sites for enriching uranium.

With negotiations and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz largely stalled, both sides have sought to gain leverage by targeting civilian infrastructure in the region relied on by millions of people.

A barrage of U.S. strikes hasn’t loosened Iran's grip on the strait, through which about one-fifth of the world's crude oil and natural gas was shipped before the war.

The U.S. continued its airstrikes into Wednesday, with Iranian air defenses activating near the capital, Tehran. Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported that explosions rocked Bushehr, East Azerbaijan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Khuzestan and Sistan and Baluchistan provinces.

That came after Iran attacked a tanker in the strait Tuesday, forcing the crew to abandon the ship. Iran also kept up attacks against U.S. allies in the region. Iran also launched attacks against Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait.

The escalation pushed energy prices higher. The international benchmark for crude oil traded Wednesday above $92 a barrel and regular gasoline in the U.S. climbed to an average of $4 a gallon.

With U.S. midterm elections approaching in the fall, polls have pointed to the unpopularity of the war among Americans, who have felt the pain of pricier gas and seen new casualties in a conflict that weeks ago seemed to be winding down.

The number of wounded U.S. personnel in the Iran war has grown to well over 500 troops, a U.S. official told The Associated Press. The total is higher than the Pentagon’s official tally on the Defense Casualty Analysis System, which currently shows 482 wounded.

The U.S. official, who was not authorized to discuss the matter with the media and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the system has a significant lag in reporting injuries. The official said that was a function of its design and not intentional.

Iran-backed rebels in Yemen open a new front in the Red Sea

In the Red Sea, Iran-backed Yemen's Houthi rebels have opened a new front against Saudi Arabia by declaring a naval blockade of the kingdom, threatening the flow of global oil supplies and trade. With the Strait of Hormuz blocked up, Saudi Arabia has been relying on a pipeline to the Red Sea to get millions of barrels of oil out to market.

A news agency in Yemen that is run by the Houthis, SABA, said Tuesday that six ships in the Red Sea were forced to reroute after they received warnings from the rebel group. The Associated Press could not immediately confirm the claim.

Three Houthi officials said the group warned international shipping companies on Monday to avoid transiting through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the gateway to the Red Sea on the opposite side of the Arabian Peninsula from the Strait of Hormuz. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity, saying they weren't authorized to speak to journalists.

Trump says US has ‘no interest’ in Iran talks

Momeni, Iran's interior minister, met Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, according to two officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door negotiations. Momeni later met Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

In a statement, Sharif expressed deep concern over the recent U.S.-Iran escalation, and urged all sides to exercise restraint and avoid actions that could further destabilize the region.

Pakistan’s political leadership and Munir, who serves as both the chief of army staff and defense forces, played a key role in brokering last month’s interim agreement between the U.S. and Iran. Islamabad has been working to persuade both sides to return to the negotiating table.

Trump told reporters that Iranian officials "want to desperately meet. And until they’re ready to meet in a meaningful way, we have no interest in meeting.” He said the U.S. would soon target the area near Pickaxe Mountain — a fortified underground site near one of Iran’s primary nuclear enrichment facilities.

Iran's military leaders said any attack on nuclear or “other sensitive facilities” would be considered a major escalation, according to a statement reported by Iranian state media.

A deep level of mistrust persists on both sides. Iran came under a surprise attack in June 2025 and again in February while it was engaging in nuclear negotiations with the U.S. The interim deal unraveled when Iran resumed attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, which was supposed to be reopened under the agreement.

US strikes come as ships are attacked

The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said a tanker came under attack early Tuesday in the strait off Oman, forcing the crew to abandon the vessel.

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard claimed responsibility for the attack, as well as two other attacks on ships Monday in the waterway.

The route close to Oman's shores has been the one the U.S. military has encouraged ships to travel to avoid Iran’s control.

To enforce the blockade in the strait, as of Tuesday U.S. forces have redirected eight commercial vessels and disabled one, CENTCOM said on X.

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Ahmed reported from Islamabad. Contributing were Associated Press writers Fatma Khaled in Cairo; Sally Abou AlJoud in Beirut; Collin Binkley and Konstantin Toropin in Washington; and Christopher Weber in Los Angeles.

The confirmation brings the death toll to 18 U.S. service members killed since the war began.

On Monday, the Pentagon identified 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas, as the two other soldiers who were killed in Jordan in Friday’s attacks. The soldiers were killed by Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks in the first troop deaths from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war. They were deployed to support a U.S. mission against the Islamic State group, a U.S. Central Command statement said.

After the attack, U.S. Central Command announced that two service members were killed and another was missing. The following day, the military command said that troops found unidentified remains and that an examination process to verify the remains was underway.

Now, the Pentagon says that Rampersad is believed to be that missing soldier and her official status is now “Duty Status–Whereabouts Unknown” and she is “believed to be deceased.”

Rampersad belonged to the same unit as Gonzales — the 10th Army Air & Missile Defense Command based in Ansbach, Germany.

Also, a U.S. soldier killed in Iraq during a controlled detonation of an Iranian drone was identified as Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton, a 30-year-old father from North Carolina who had served for nearly a decade, according to a military statement Tuesday and his family.

Swinton will receive a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge, and will be promoted to staff sergeant. The Army said it was investigating the circumstances of his death Sunday at an air base in Irbil.

He leaves behind a 6-year-old son and a 4-year-old daughter, his mother said.

“I will never recover from this,” his wife, Mia Gonzalez-Swinton, posted Monday on Facebook. “We had so many plans for when you got back, I’m sick to my stomach.” She said she was notified Sunday that he had been killed.

Two U.S. Army soldiers were also killed in Jordan last week while defending against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks. They were the first U.S. troop deaths from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war.

His wife and kids were the center of his world, his mother, Christel Swinton Andujar, told The Associated Press.

“His legacy will live on through the countless lives he touched, the laughter he shared, the strength he gave others, and the unconditional love he poured into his family,” she said via text message. “He will forever be missed, forever honored, and forever our hero.”

Swinton enlisted in the Army in 2017 and was assigned to the 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

He lived in Spring Lake, a popular off-base location for Fort Bragg families, according to public records. The military gave his hometown as Fayetteville, another nearby community.

“Sgt. Swinton was an experienced noncommissioned officer who took great pride in his work and the people around him,” said Brig. Gen. John L. Dawber, commanding general of the Army Air and Missile Defense Command. “He answered the call to duty with courage, honor, and selfless dedication.”

Renewed fighting between the U.S. and Iran is now in its 10th day, with both sides launching barrages of strikes. Iran has attacked U.S. allies in the region, and American soldiers are stationed across the Middle East.

Iranian authorities say U.S. strikes in just the past three weeks have killed at least 50 people and wounded more than 500 others.

Both sides have targeted civilian infrastructure relied on by millions of people. Workers on ships, as well as foreign workers and others in Gulf nations, Israel and Lebanon have also died in the conflict.

The U.S. State Department said in a new warning to Americans that “Iran and groups supportive of Iran may target other U.S. interests overseas or at locations associated with the United States and Americans throughout the world.”

U.S. President Donald Trump has said the war is necessary to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Trump, a Republican, now faces political pressure to bring the war to a close and avoid the kind of prolonged Middle East conflict he had campaigned against. The escalation has pushed oil prices higher in recent weeks.

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This story was corrected to show Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton died Sunday, not Saturday, as earlier reported by the military.

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Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut.

A tiny Texan town along the border with Mexico is fighting the administration's efforts to build a border wall running through a levee system protecting the community. The town argued in court Tuesday that the wall could cause flooding and that the administration isn't following the law as it rushes forward with its plans.

The hearing in federal court came as the Department of Homeland Security charges forward with its $46 billion plan to complete a border wall from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico and deliver on what has long been a signature promise of President Donald Trump. But the department is running into opposition by landowners, environmental groups, Native American tribes and others who argue that the government's rapid construction endangers historical and religious sites and a way of life along the border, when crossings from Mexico are already at extreme lows.

The lawsuit brought by the development district of Presidio pits a small town of a little over 3,200 residents against a department key to the Trump administration's plans to carry out its mass deportations agenda. It also showcases a context that has long been important to many Americans, particularly Republicans: the scratchiness that sometimes arises between the most local of municipalities and the federal government in Washington.

Lawyers for the development district contend the government's plans could compromise the levee system protecting the town from flash flooding — a formidable problem in Texas — and that the government flouted a key act that requires it to seek permission from the Army Corps of Engineers before building on or near the levees.

The government argues that there is no final plan for where the border wall will go or how it will be built. Regardless, the administration asserts it has the authority to waive a vast swath of regulations to build the wall as it seeks to get the number of people crossing the border every day to zero.

The town worries about levees along the Rio Grande

The town is worried about the effect the wall would have on a series of berms and levees built in the 1970s and 1980s along the Rio Grande and tributaries to combat flooding.

In court documents, Presidio’s development district said Customs and Border Protection plans to “replace the earthen slope of the existing levee with a concrete wall, with 30-foot steel bollard panels installed on top.” The district says it has asked the agency for more details but has been told they can’t be shared due to “national security.”

“There is unfortunately a long history here of CBP construction causing or increasing flood risks,” said Laura Bakst, a lawyer for Democracy Forward, which is representing Presidio’s development district in the case.

A lawyer for the government said during Tuesday's hearing that it's too soon to argue that the proposed wall could harm Presidio because Customs and Border Protection hasn't actually decided on a final plan for it.

The department has waived numerous regulations to build the wall faster

In the race to build the wall, both former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and the current secretary, Markwayne Mullin, have waived numerous requirements protecting the environment or archaeological sites that the federal government normally has to follow when building infrastructure projects.

Under legislation passed by Congress, Homeland Security does have the authority to waive certain requirements specifically to speed up the building of walls along the U.S.-Mexico border. But critics argue the department is going much further than Congress intended by issuing broad waivers all along the 2,000-mile or 3,200-kilometer length of the frontier.

In Presidio's case, the development district is arguing that Homeland Security is running afoul of the Rivers and Harbors Act. The department has waived it, but lawyers for Presidio argued that because of the wording of the Act, Homeland Security was still required to consult with the Army Corps of Engineers before launching the project.

Louis Katz, a lawyer for Democracy Forward, warned that the way the department was waiving state and federal laws as it moves forward with the wall is an “extraordinary exertion of authority.”

Construction could start as early as August or as late as October

A key question: When would construction start? Timing has been an issue beyond Presidio as landowners up and down the border look for an answer. Construction crews have pre-positioned supplies — including the steel bollard wall panels — but no actual wall-building has started in the area.

A lawyer for the Justice Department gave some insight into the government's timeline. In response to questions about whether construction could start as early as the beginning of August, Alexander Yun told the judge that it was unlikely to start that early. Yun said construction could begin in late August or September or October.

Homeland Security has indicated that getting the wall built is a priority.

Mullin said during congressional testimony in June that the preliminary layer of the wall will be finished by “this time next year.” The head of Customs and Border Protection, Rodney Scott, has said the agency is putting up 6 miles (10 kilometers) of wall a week.

The judge seemed a bit skeptical of both sides

The Trump administration is pushing forward with the wall when border crossings are at the lowest levels in decades. The Big Bend Sector has not experienced the high number of border crossings seen in recent years in other areas farther south along the Rio Grande or in Arizona or California, owing to the remote and challenging terrain on both sides of the border.

But the Justice Department lawyer said low border crossing numbers seen over the last year are an “anomaly" and the goal is “zero illegal crossings.”

Judge Reggie Walton scoffed at that idea, saying that it's “just a reality” that people will always try to cross the border.

Walton also said he was struggling with the issue of how much authority he had to limit the department considering that Congress had given it the ability to waive certain requirements.

The judge said he would issue a ruling in the coming week.

In the video Mamdani described the Israeli prime minister as a “war criminal” and said he is not welcome in New York City.

“It is clear that we do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant,” he said in a video posted on X. “The federal government however does and I call on them to join the ICC and execute this warrant,” he added, referring to the International Criminal Court.

Mamdani had told the New York Times earlier this month that he and the city’s legal department were discussing arresting Netanyahu if he comes to New York City for the U.N. General Assembly in September.

President Donald Trump on Monday told Netanyahu in a social media post that he “will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America.” The post did not directly mention Mamdani.

Mamdani had said throughout his mayoral election campaign last year that he would seek to order the city’s police to arrest Netanyahu under the criminal court's warrant over Netanyahu’s role in the war in Gaza.

In his video message Tuesday, Mamdani said his administration has reviewed all avenues available and determined the city can't execute the arrest warrant.

“I want to be equally clear, Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City, nor is any other war criminal at large," he said.

Danny Danon, the Israeli ambassador to the U.N., responded by telling the mayor “enough.”

“You were elected to serve New Yorkers, not Hamas’ propaganda,” he said in a statement on social media. “Do your job!”

The world’s top war-crimes court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and others in 2024, accusing them of crimes against humanity in connection with the war in Gaza.

They said there was reason to believe Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant have used “starvation as a method of warfare” by restricting humanitarian aid and have intentionally targeted civilians in Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza — charges Israeli officials deny.

The people, who were not authorized to comment publicly about the yet to be formally announced decision, said the agreement is expected to be announced publicly as early as Wednesday.

The deal is expected to last 30 years and is also expected to involve U.S. firms in developing the program. The deal could allow for the building of a uranium enrichment facility in Saudi Arabia following a joint U.S.-Saudi study.

But the deal, which is expected to be submitted to Congress for review, could face headwinds among lawmakers who fear that helping the Saudis fulfill their long-standing desire to enrich their own uranium would open new rounds of nuclear proliferation and competition.

Saudi Arabia is a member state of the International Atomic Energy Agency, a Vienna-based agency which promotes peaceful nuclear work but also inspects nations to ensure they don’t have clandestine atomic weapons programs.

But the agreement is not expected to include the IAEA’s Additional Protocol, which would allow for more monitoring, inspections and verification, according to one of the people.

The expected announcement comes in the midst of the war against Iran launched by the U.S. and Israel, in part, to wipe out Tehran’s ability to develop a nuclear weapon. Iran has insisted its nuclear enrichment program is peaceful.

The White House and Saudi officials in Riyadh did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the decision, which was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Both Trump and former President Joe Biden tried to reach a nuclear deal with the kingdom to share American technology.

But nonproliferation experts warn any spinning centrifuges within Saudi Arabia could open the door to a possible weapons program for the kingdom, something its assertive de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has suggested he could pursue if Tehran obtains an atomic bomb.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright traveled to Saudi Arabia last year shortly before Trump visited the kingdom and discussed building out the kingdom’s commercial nuclear power industry with his Saudi counterpart. The U.S. Department of Energy did not immediately respond to requests for comment late Tuesday.

Already, Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan signed a mutual defense pact after Israel launched an attack on Qatar targeting Hamas officials. Pakistan’s defense minister then said his nation’s nuclear program “will be made available” to Saudi Arabia if needed, something seen as a warning for Israel, long believed to be the Middle East’s only nuclear-armed state.

Enrichment isn’t an automatic path to a nuclear weapon — a nation also must master other steps, including the use of synchronized high explosives, for instance. But it does open the door to weaponization, which has fueled the concerns of the West over Iran’s program.

The United Arab Emirates, a neighbor to Saudi Arabia, signed what is referred to as a “123 agreement” with the U.S. to build its Barakah nuclear power plant with South Korean assistance. But the UAE did so without seeking enrichment, something nonproliferation experts have held up as the “gold standard” for nations wanting atomic power.

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Price reported from Manila, Philippines, and Gambrell from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. AP writers Will Weissert and Matthew Daly contributed from Washington.

In 2026, Florida and Tennessee will be complete strangers.

Their once-a-year matchup that, back in the day, featured Steve Spurrier, Peyton Manning, Phillip Fulmer and snark that sometimes even outweighed the stakes — “You can’t spell Citrus without ‘U-T'” — is absent from the schedule for the first time in 37 seasons.

Alabama-LSU — soon that’ll be gone, too, for the first time since 1963.

The Gators and LSU — they’ll miss each other this year for the first time since 1970.

Such is the price of progress in the Southeastern Conference, which has grown from 10 teams in the old days to 16 now.

The league is introducing a nine-game league slate this season in an attempt to boost strength of schedule for what is now a playoff system that has a committee awarding seven at-large spots in the 12-team field.

“When you look at our schedule, no one has created the kind of weekly competition that exists in the Southeastern Conference,” commissioner Greg Sankey said.

The divisions that once made Florida-Tennessee such a big deal — winner had an inside track for the East, a spot in the conference title game and maybe the national championship — are gone, another product of expansion.

Under the new system, in place through 2029, each school will play three “annual” foes. Some of the SEC’s most ancient rivalries, like Alabama-Auburn, Florida-Georgia and Auburn-Georgia, were preserved.

Others are now less-permanent affairs. Another oldie but goodie that's missing this year, Georgia vs. Tennessee, was first played in 1899 and became an annual event in 1992. The Volunteers got the best of the Bulldogs early, but Georgia has won nine in a row and 14 of the last 16 — a run that prompted a question to Georgia coach Kirby Smart on Tuesday about feeling like he has “one less win” on the schedule.

“You said that; not me,” Smart responded. “I got a lot of respect for Josh (Heupel) and their staff. I mean, they’re a tough prep. I’m glad other teams get an opportunity to do that, and then we get some new teams to play.”

Some new teams, yes. Some old rivalries will return, too.

For instance, Arkansas-Texas, a must-see game on the old Southwestern Conference schedule that produced the Game of the Century, attended by President Richard Nixon in 1969, is an annual affair again. Two years ago, Missouri renewed acquaintance with Oklahoma, reupping a rivalry that meant a lot in the Big Eight for a time in the 1970s. And Texas-Texas A&M, the “Lone Star Shootout” and a game held every year between 1915 and 2011, will now be played annually.

Asked about rivalries being renewed and others that, in another effect of realignment, are changing dates — Missouri's season-ending tradition against Arkansas has been moved to Week 8 — Tigers coach Eli Drinkwitz said: “I don’t worry about that. I know each and every game in the SEC is extremely difficult.”

The SEC also mandated its teams play a 10th game against a Power Four opponent, which led Kansas and Missouri to renew their so-called “Border War” and created other early season matchups like Oklahoma-Michigan, Clemson-LSU, Ohio State-Texas, Auburn-Baylor, Arkansas-Utah and Arizona State-Texas.

SEC coaches believed moving to a nine-game league schedule would coincide with College Football Playoff expansion, which didn’t happen.

Now, they have tougher schedules, no increased access to the 12-team playoff and a few less rivalries.

“That’s what our conference looks like,” Oklahoma coach Brett Venables said. “Each and every week, you’re not going to sneak up on anybody.”

A brief look at the Tennessee-Florida series

The Tennessee-Florida rivalry decided the SEC East a dozen times between 1993 and 2009. Spurrier got under Fulmer’s skin with his “Citrus Bowl” comments. Manning, despite all his accolades, went 0-4 against the Gators. The importance of the rivalry diminished beginning in 2011, with both schools falling behind Georgia in the East.

A brief look at the Florida-LSU series

The Florida-LSU matchup has been filled with chaos, controversy and close games. Among the most memorable: LSU upset No. 1 Florida in 1997, and fans stormed the field and tore down goal posts; the top-ranked Tigers won another close one a decade later by converting five fourth-down plays; and in 2020, unranked LSU stunned the sixth-ranked Gators in Gainesville on Cade York’s 57-yard field goal through heavy fog after cornerback Marco Wilson inexplicably threw an opponent’s shoe and kept alive the game-winning drive.

A brief look at the LSU-Alabama series

Alabama and LSU played 12 times between 2008 and 2021 with one of them ranked first or second. It often had Western Division and national title implications. It comes off the schedule for 2027, no longer an annual fixture. Few matchups outweigh the 2011 showdown in which top-ranked LSU knocked off No. 2 Alabama 9-6 in overtime. The Crimson Tide won the rematch in New Orleans two months later for the national championship.

Could current rivalries be affected beyond 2029?

The SEC has been adamant that each team’s annual opponents will be revisited and potentially realigned to maintain competitive balance before the 2030 season. Of course, by then, there’s no telling what the SEC or college football will look like.

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Long reported from Gainesville, Florida.

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It’s the second satellite-saving mission to launch this month, all part of a growing, money-saving effort to keep spacecraft running as long as possible. Another company’s three-armed spacecraft rocketed into orbit on July 3 to boost NASA’s Swift Observatory so it doesn’t crash to Earth this fall.

Launched by SpaceX, Northrop Grumman’s mission robotic vehicle — dubbed MRV — and its jetpacks will spend the next year angling into the proper orbit 22,300 miles (36,000 kilometers) above Earth. Hundreds of satellites orbit at this so-called geosynchronous orbit, where they match the speed of Earth's rotation and keep to the same part of the sky for continuous coverage.

Once in place by mid-2027, the minivan-sized spacecraft will use its 10-foot (9-meter) arms to attach a jetpack to an aging communication satellite. Then it will zip off to two more satellites in need.

For its debut flight, the spacecraft was accompanied by three electric-propelled jetpacks that peeled away separately following liftoff. Like the MRV, the jetpacks will use their own xenon gas thrusters to get to the desired orbit. Once in place, the jetpacks will wait for the robot to grab them, one at a time, and plug them into their designated satellites.

Each jetpack — the size of a washing machine — will provide the necessary oomph for an out-of-gas satellite to keep operating for several more years instead of retiring. If it works, it will be a boon for satellite operators SES of Luxembourg and Optus of Australia, saving them millions of dollars in replacement costs.

This is Northrop Grumman's latest foray into the satellite-servicing business. In 2019 and again in 2020, the company launched a pair of spacecraft that latched onto faltering communication satellites and steered them, providing extra years of life.

Northrop Grumman designed its new robotic helpers to be even more resourceful. The company envisions future versions repairing and relocating live satellites, and even latching onto dead ones for removal from highly trafficked orbits. The company is collaborating with the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

Katalyst Space Technologies, meanwhile, continues to test its Link satellite helper in orbit before rushing to the Swift Observatory's rescue. Flight controllers had to overcome initial communication and pointing problems with Link, beaming up software patches.

Launched in 2004, NASA's Swift telescope has been sinking faster than usual because of all the recent solar activity. A boost by Link in the coming weeks could give the nearly $400 million gamma ray observatory many more years of studying some of the biggest explosions in the universe.

NASA is paying Kataylst $30 million to raise Swift to its original 373-mile (600-kilometer) altitude. Northrop Grumman provided Link's ride to orbit, using a plane-launched Pegasus rocket.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

The deadline for action is more than two months away, but House GOP leaders are not leaving to chance another possible shutdown souring the mood of voters shortly before they go to the polls. House Speaker Mike Johnson dared Democrats to vote against the bill, and if they did, "then they alone are going to own the chaos that ensues if the government shuts down after September 30.”

The House passed the measure by a mostly party-line vote of 220-205.

It’s highly unusual for Congress to pass a stopgap funding bill months before the end of the fiscal year. Lawmakers normally act just days or even hours before the deadline. But once lawmakers leave town this week, the House is scheduled to be in session for only 16 more days before the funding deadline.

GOP leadership is laying the groundwork to spend most of that time on another priority: a long-shot, party-line bill that spends $95 billion to boost defense, aid farmers and get portions of President Donald Trump’s elections overhaul bill passed into law.

“I think it's kind of smart to go ahead and take the potential chaos of a shutdown off the table because the amount of damage that does to the American citizens,” said Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga. He said he believed a shutdown “probably works to the advantage of Democrats politically,” and he blamed the press for such a scenario.

Democrats overwhelmingly opposed the stopgap measure, which would generally fund agencies at current spending levels.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said the legislation was dropped on Democrats on Friday without any bipartisan negotiations. She said that, among other priorities, Democrats would have pushed for provisions to reverse a proposed federal rule that could allow agency heads to block or terminate grants they claim don't match the president's priorities.

She said that instead of a bipartisan agreement, “we are scrambling to jam through a one-sided stopgap measure two days before everyone leaves for the August recess.”

Republicans said work on the dozen annual spending bills would continue in the months ahead, but that funding the government through Dec. 4 could help lawmakers avoid a repeat of the past year when the country experienced the longest federal shutdown in history followed by the longest partial shutdown in history.

“We've seen that happen twice in this Congress already,” said Rep. Tom Cole, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. “I'm not willing to risk a third time if we can avoid that.”

Some of the more conservative Republican lawmakers were fine with the bill to extend funding to Dec. 4, known as a continuing resolution.

In this environment, that's "the best way to spend the least amount of money,” said Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo. “You keep spending levels static for at least a period of time.”

It's unclear if the Senate will go along with the bill. Spending bills require support from 60 senators to advance to a final vote, so some Democrats would need to support it. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters that Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins was working with Democrats on the committee to “find a path forward.”

Rescue teams with oxygen gear raced to find survivors Tuesday as toxic levels of gas were detected at the disaster site in Samardung village near the Chinese border.

The blast had ripped through the tunnel Monday while 21 laborers were inside working on the 500-megawatt Teesta hydroelectric project, officials said. Two of them managed to escape. Six power utility officials later entered the tunnel to help in the rescue, but became trapped themselves, officials said.

The explosion was believed triggered by a buildup of methane, said State Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang, who visited the site Tuesday. Survivors told authorities they heard a loud explosion before debris came crashing through the tunnel, civil official Anupama Tamling said.

Officials had recovered 12 bodies on Tuesday while rescuers from the National Disaster Response Force, or NDRF, raced to reach the 13 people believed to be still trapped.

“We found toxic gases such as methane, carbon monoxide and hydrogen sulfide inside the tunnel,” NDRF official Nitin Kumar said at the scene.

The conditions late Tuesday were so dangerous that, although equipped with oxygen gear, the rescuers could enter the disaster site only for shifts of about 15 minutes at a time, officials said.

Construction accidents are not uncommon in India, where rapid infrastructure growth often collides with fragile geology, construction lapses, extreme weather and safety standards.

In the Himalayan region, fragile mountains, seismic activity and unpredictable underground conditions make tunnel projects especially risky. An explosion inside a coal mine in neighboring Meghalaya state in February killed at least 18 workers. In 2023, a tunnel section in northern Uttarakhand state collapsed, trapping 41 workers for 17 days before they were rescued.

Experts say the Teesta River basin, where the hydropower project is being built, lies in a seismically active region marked by young, fragile rock formations riddled with fractures and underground pockets that can trap ancient gases.

Dr. Devesh Walia, a geology professor at North-Eastern Hill University in Meghalaya, said the area contains relatively young rock formations, some associated with coal-bearing strata.

“It is quite possible that methane along with other gases accumulated underground and may have triggered an explosion,” he said.

The U.N. food security report, released Tuesday, found global hunger has eased modestly in recent years, but projected more than 500 million people could still face chronic hunger by 2030. Africa is expected to bear the largest share of that burden.

In an interview with The Associated Press on July 10, IFAD President Alvaro Lario said geopolitical tensions and potential disruptions to shipping and energy supplies, including uncertainty surrounding the Strait of Hormuz during the Iran war, could leave an additional 9-18 million people facing hunger if the shocks persist.

“We are in a current era where we have the highest number of conflicts and are still increasing,” Lario said. “Whenever there is a conflict, also hunger, displacement, refugees increase.”

Conflict fuels food insecurity

Conflict remains one of the biggest obstacles to reducing hunger worldwide, Lario added.

Wars and geopolitical tensions can disrupt shipping, energy supplies and agricultural inputs, increasing costs across food systems already strained by inflation. Lario stressed that hunger and conflict often reinforce one another, creating a cycle that is difficult to break without greater stability.

Higher energy prices are already affecting fertilizers and agricultural production, he said. The impact is especially significant for small-scale farmers, many of whom rely on diesel fuel to pump water, harvest crops and transport goods to market.

Rising fuel costs increase production expenses and can feed directly into higher food prices.

Climate shocks add pressure

The new report identifies affordability as one of the world’s biggest food security challenges. While food production continues to grow, roughly a third of the global population still can't afford a healthy diet. In low-income countries, that figure rises to about 77%, according to Lario.

“The biggest challenge is no longer simply producing enough food, but making healthy diets affordable,” he said.

Climate change is adding further pressure to food systems and rural livelihoods.

Lario noted that floods, prolonged droughts and extreme heat are increasingly disrupting agriculture around the world and have become a common reality for many communities.

Governments should focus on resilience and adaptation before disasters strike, rather than relying solely on emergency responses afterward, he said.

“This is just becoming the new normal,” Lario said. “We are seeing floods in many countries. We’re still seeing droughts that have been expanding for four or five years.”

The fund is increasing investments in climate-adaptation programs aimed at helping rural communities withstand floods, droughts and extreme heat, he said, arguing that support is urgently needed for the millions of small farmers who produce much of the world’s food.

Africa emerges as the epicenter

The report highlights Africa as the world’s most pressing food-security challenge. For the first time, the continent has overtaken Asia as the region with the largest number of hungry people, and nearly 60% of the world’s chronically undernourished people could live there by 2030.

Lario attributed the shift partly to rapid population growth and slower economic gains than in parts of Asia, and he called for greater investment in agriculture, infrastructure and food systems.

African countries currently import nearly $100 billion worth of food each year, he said, underscoring the need for stronger local production, storage, distribution and regional trade networks.

Conflicts, energy-market disruptions and climate extremes threaten to derail progress unless governments invest in more resilient food systems, Lario said.

Burnham told his top team that he would lead a “cost-of-living government” focused on easing the economic burden felt by millions of people.

“We need to think every day, what can we do just to take that little bit of pressure off people’s shoulders, to give them that little extra sense that help is coming, so they can have that bit of hope that things are getting better,” Burnham said.

He made a small down payment on that pledge by announcing a tax cut on domestic electricity bills that will save the average household about 45 pounds ($60) a year. The cut will take effect Oct. 1, Burnham said, with the funding coming from scrapping a plan for digital ID cards announced by Starmer.

The former mayor of Greater Manchester entered Downing Street on Monday after replacing Starmer as leader of the governing Labour Party, becoming Britain’s seventh prime minister since 2016. Starmer resigned just two years after winning a landslide election victory, forced out by his party after missteps and U-turns.

In his first speech as prime minister, Burnham pledged to ease the cost of living, decentralize political power, revitalize industry and end street sleeping by homeless people — a tall order, especially given Britain's sluggish economic growth in recent years.

Burnham acknowledged at the Cabinet meeting that the government would have to make difficult financial decisions and “take a really hard look at what our priorities are.”

Starmer loyalists removed from office

After taking office Monday, Burnham set about remaking the government.

Starmer’s finance minister, Rachel Reeves, was ousted, replaced by John Healey, a former defense secretary who resigned in June and accused the Treasury of failing to spend enough on the military at a time of rising threats. In an interview after he quit, Healey called the Treasury “a dead hand on dynamic government” and “in denial.”

Healey has said defense spending, due to be 2.6% of GDP next year, should rise to 3% by 2030. Now he will have to find the money.

Wes Streeting, whose resignation as health secretary in May helped topple Starmer, took over the defense portfolio.

Other key Cabinet appointees include Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, Housing Secretary Angela Rayner and Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, who has an expanded brief that includes innovation and science.

Louise Haigh, a key Burnham ally who helped engineer his rise to the top, was named First Secretary of State and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, effectively the deputy prime minister.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, who has overseen contentious rules designed to reduce immigration, kept her job.

Burnham has huge support from the party that is desperate for a new leader to reverse its decline in popularity under Starmer. But there is some grumbling after Burnham removed several of Starmer’s senior ministers including ex-Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy, former Business Secretary Peter Kyle and Starmer’s chief secretary, Darren Jones.

Foreign policy challenges lie ahead

Burnham has little experience of foreign policy and faces a stack of challenges including wars in Ukraine and the Middle East and managing relations with U.S. President Donald Trump, who first warmed to Starmer before souring on him.

Burnham’s office said he had an “extremely warm” conversation with Trump in one of his first calls as prime minister and “underlined his commitment to defense and security.” Trump posted on social media that the men had “a very good conversation” and would be “meeting in the not too distant future for topics of mutual interest.”

The prime minister also spoke to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and leaders of the European Union and NATO.

Burnham told NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte that putting former defense chief Healey in charge of the nation’s finances “was a signal of his intent.”

In a reminder of the growing international tensions Britain faces, a Russian warship carried out a live-fire weapons exercise in the English Channel on Monday, the day Burnham took office.

The Ministry of Defense said the frigate Neustrashimy was being shadowed by the Royal Navy when it conducted the exercise in international waters about 46 miles (74 kilometers) south of the southwest England port city of Plymouth. It said the navy “continues to track the vessel’s activity closely and stands ready to protect U.K. national security.”

Streeting, the new defense secretary, said the Russian ship's actions were “performative and irresponsible.”

“Russia should be in no doubt about the resolve of this government and this prime minister, our resolve to stand against Russian aggression in Ukraine but also Russian aggression against all of our allies,” he said at a news conference.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russian warships always acted “in strict accordance” with international and maritime law.

Asked whether the Russian government felt relations with the U.K. would improve under the new prime minister, Peskov said it had “no such hopes.”

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the new actions — which come after previously announced Medicaid funding deferrals in those states — are part of the administration's strategy to “stop the fraud before it happens” rather than claw back problematic spending after bad actors are prosecuted, as previous administrations had done.

“We have a duty to stop the payments, demand answers and then follow the evidence wherever it leads,” Kennedy told a news conference.

The tactic is part of the administration’s sweeping campaign to show it’s cracking down on fraud and saving taxpayers money when rising healthcare costs and other economic stressors have made affordability a top voter concern in November’s midterm elections.

In March, Vice President JD Vance launched a new anti-fraud task force at the request of President Donald Trump, bringing together officials from various departments to use data and technology to identify and investigate suspected wrongful use of federal dollars.

But the federal government hasn't provided “data or explanation on how the deferral amount was calculated or what it was based on” to Minnesota, said John Connolly, the temporary commissioner and state Medicaid director for Minnesota's Department of Human Services.

“Today's actions show that the federal government is acting again in unprecedented and punitive ways as part of their war on Medicaid and its recipients,” he said in a statement. “Partnership — not politics — is required to stop criminals and protect services for the people who need them.”

Minnesota’s Democratic Gov. Tim Walz suggested the Republican administration was deferring the funds to pay for Trump’s tax cuts to wealthy Americans. California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom accused the administration of targeting it for political reasons.

The Trump administration intensified anti-immigration efforts in Minnesota earlier this year, sending in a robust force of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers whose actions there caused weeks of counterprotests and included the shooting deaths of two civilians. Trump himself has frequently denounced California as a badly governed state.

States are facing obstacles because of the actions

The strategy has led to some false starts and headaches for states.

In April, for example, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services acknowledged to The Associated Press it made a significant error in figures it used to help justify a fraud probe in New York. Last month, California's Medicaid director told a congressional committee that CMS had not yet provided “any instances of fraud, waste or abuse” to the state in its justification of a $1.3 billion Medicaid funding deferral announced in May.

And in Minnesota, state officials have been executing a thorough corrective action plan to defray CMS concerns that have led the agency to defer some $260 million in federal money and to threaten future cuts.

“We have cooperated in good faith and proactively engaged the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to first raise the alarm on fraud in Minnesota’s Medicaid program, to effectively investigate fraud and to institute further safeguards against future misuse of funds,” Connolly said.

Kennedy didn't specify in Tuesday's announcement whether the new deferrals — $867.5 million in federal Medicaid payments to California and $199 million to Minnesota — are in addition to, or overlap with, earlier deferrals announced this year.

CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz didn't provide concrete examples of fraud in the two states in justifying the deferrals. He did mention some patterns the agency noticed that it found questionable, including that some providers were billing for four or more patients at the same time, or billing after the date of a Medicaid beneficiary's death.

Oz also highlighted a fast rate of growth in California's home care program as a reason for concern. California officials have disputed that idea, explaining that the state's home care program has grown because of an intentional strategy to keep people out of more expensive nursing homes.

“In-home care growth reflects intentional, federally encouraged expansion, not improper spending,” said Anthony Cava, spokesperson for the California Department of Health Care Services. “California is calling on CMS to stop threatening care for California’s most vulnerable residents.”

Flow of money could be restored — with documentation

Kennedy and Oz said states could restart the flow of federal funding by providing documentation proving the payments in question were legitimate.

Officials in both states have previously acknowledged they are working with the federal government to provide the requested information. Oz said Minnesota had already returned documents to the federal government and they were being “reevaluated very carefully.”

Kennedy also suggested Tuesday that he would extend the power to exclude providers from Medicaid, Medicare and other federal health programs to CMS. In the past, that authority has rested solely with his department’s Office of the Inspector General.

“This is going to be a full force multiplier,” HHS Inspector General Thomas March Bell told a news conference. “It's going to create additional momentum, and it's going to exclude additional bad actors.”

More than 23 kilometers (14 miles) have been constructed in recent months, running through Palestinian communities demolished by the military. That is equivalent to more than half the length of the coastal strip, which is some 40 kilometers (25 miles) long and 11 kilometers (7 miles) wide, and home to over 2 million Palestinians.

When presented with the satellite images, Israel’s military confirmed to The Associated Press it has built a physical barrier in the area of the so-called yellow line, the boundary to which Israeli troops withdrew under the October ceasefire deal with Hamas. The line was envisioned in the U.S.-backed agreement as a temporary division of the territory pending a fuller Israeli withdrawal.

But as the truce stagnates, it appears Israel is digging in, heightening Palestinian fears that the line is morphing into a border. Neither U.S. Central Command, which is tasked with monitoring the ceasefire, nor the Board of Peace, the body led by U.S. President Donald Trump meant to eventually oversee Gaza, would comment on the barrier.

Along with the barrier, the military told AP it has developed a “security zone” around the line, equipped with intelligence and technological assets. It declined to give details on the route of the barrier when asked how far it would be extended. It said the barrier aimed to prevent infiltration and protect Israeli troops and Israeli communities near Gaza.

Construction of the barrier is proceeding rapidly

Since the ceasefire deal took hold, Palestinians in Gaza have feared Israel would not return the area of Gaza it controls. But few appear to be aware of the berms now being built around them — because of the danger of even approaching that area.

A portion of the berm network in southern Gaza was extended by more than 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) in two weeks this month, according to the satellite images provided by Planet Labs PBC.

The berm was about 500 meters (0.3 miles) long on July 1. By July 15, it was about 2.4 kilometers (1.5 miles), splicing the Israel-controlled ruins of the city of Rafah from Muwasi, site of some of the largest Palestinian tent camps.

If construction continues in its current direction, it will join up with the longest stretch of the barrier, which runs nearly unbroken for around 17 kilometers (10 miles) from the southern city of Khan Younis to near Gaza City, in the north.

Construction began on that stretch in February, and it appears work to extend it further south is continuing, according to the satellite images. More than a kilometer (0.6 miles) was added between June 21 and July 7, running close to an Israeli military base built on the ruins of the town of Bani Suheila, near Khan Younis.

In the far north of Gaza, several unconnected stretches of berms run just outside the largely leveled town of Beit Lahia.

The height of the berms in each place remains unclear. In some places, the barriers appear to run outside the yellow line.

Israel has mostly destroyed and depopulated the half of Gaza it controls

Gaza’s population has been crowded into the coastal area west of the yellow line, most living in squalid tent camps and dependent on aid.

On the other side of the line, satellite imagery shows that Israeli forces have leveled the vast majority of buildings using bulldozers and explosives, virtually erasing several towns and Rafah, once home to more than a quarter million people.

They have carved new road networks and erected new bases on the ruins of Palestinian towns. Agricultural land has also been destroyed. The Israeli military says it is demolishing infrastructure used by Hamas.

The yellow line was never precisely defined, whether in the ceasefire deal or by Israeli or U.S. officials, and it has been inconsistently marked on the ground. The military told AP it is working to clearly mark the route of the yellow line to “reduce friction and prevent harm to uninvolved individuals.”

Israeli forces have killed Palestinians who came close to the line or crossed it. The Israeli military says it fires on those believed to be militants threatening its troops. But those killed have included children and other civilians seemingly unaware of the line. Some soldiers have said they don’t always know who they are firing on and have orders to kill anyone crossing the boundary.

Israeli strikes have killed hundreds of Palestinians since the ceasefire

Israeli forces have killed more than 1,100 Palestinians since the ceasefire began, most in airstrikes and drone strikes around Gaza. Militant attacks have killed five Israeli soldiers in the same period.

Early on Tuesday, an Israeli strike in Gaza City killed Firas al-Masri, his wife and their four children, ages 6 to 13, according to Shifa Hospital. Israel's military only said that they conducted a strike on Hamas militants in the area at that time.

Firas' brother, Ahmad al-Masri, lives nearby and said he heard the children's voices at the moment of the blast.

“They were calling out to me, ‘Uncle! Uncle!’” he said. “But the fire was raging, and we couldn’t do anything.”

Under the ceasefire deal, Israel is eventually supposed to withdraw its troops further to the very edges of Gaza, to be replaced by an international security force. But implementation of the deal has been stalled for months.

A former U.N. diplomat now in charge of coordinating the ceasefire has blamed Hamas’ failure to disarm. Sporadic talks to reach a formula for decommissioning its weapons appear to have made little progress, and Hamas accuses Israel in turn of violating the ceasefire.

The war began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israeli communities on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 others hostage. Israel responded with a punishing military offensive that has killed more than 73,000 people, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

The ministry, which was part of the recently dissolved Hamas-run government, maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and international organizations. It does not distinguish between civilians and militants but says women and children make up around half of all fatalities.

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Frankel reported from Jerusalem.

Roger Rogoff is the latest in a series of judicially appointed U.S. attorneys to be ousted by the Trump administration from their posts but is believed to be the first of that group to sue over the removal. His action creates a first-of-its-kind court case that will test the Justice Department's authority to fire federal prosecutors who are appointed by judges,

Rogoff was unanimously appointed to the job of U.S. attorney for western Washington by the federal judges in the district. But shortly after he was sworn in last Wednesday, he received an email from the Trump administration informing him that President Donald Trump had ordered his termination.

The lawsuit contends that the abrupt firing was unconstitutional and disregarded the authority of the judges of the district to name Rogoff to the job until the vacancy could be filled through a Senate-confirmed nominee. The complaint seeks a court order declaring that the firing “was unlawful and is void” and that Rogoff at least temporarily remains U.S. attorney.

“The President’s actions violate the law, and they ignore the protections of the Constitution of the United States," Rogoff said in a statement issued through the law firm representing him. "His removal of me, like his removal of other court-appointed U.S. attorneys across the country, is illegal and cannot stand."

US attorneys are typically nominated by the president

U.S. attorneys, top federal prosecutors who oversee regional Justice Department outposts across the country, are typically nominated by the president and then confirmed by the Senate.

In the case of a vacancy, attorneys general have the authority to name an interim U.S. attorney who can serve for 120 days, but when those temporary appointments expire, the judges in a judicial district are then empowered to name a U.S. attorney — as happened in Rogoff's case — who can serve until the selection of a Senate-confirmed appointee.

But under Trump, the Justice Department has sought to leave unconfirmed prosecutors in their positions indefinitely or has moved to fire prosecutors appointed by the courts.

The acting attorney general had foreshadowed the firing

Rogoff's district has not had a Senate-confirmed U.S. attorney since 2023. He submitted his name for consideration with the federal bench after the judges last January signaled their intent to fill a vacancy created by the end of the 120-day term of Charles Neil Floyd, who had been named to the job in an interim capacity last year by then-Attorney General Pam Bondi.

Even before Rogoff was appointed, the lawsuit notes, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche foreshadowed his plans to fire whomever the judges selected, writing on X after the court announced its appointment of a merit selection panel that the candidates did not have the president’s support, “and I expect they will suffer the same fate as others have when judges ignore Article II” of the Constitution.

After Rogoff was fired, Blanche posted: “District court judges can appoint a temporary U.S. Attorney, and POTUS can fire them.” Judges from the state’s western district, he said, “abandoned the time-honored process of consultation with the administration so that the selected U.S. Attorney is qualified to serve in the administration. Roger Rogoff has been fired by the President.”

The Justice Department said in a statement Tuesday that “the district court did not coordinate with DOJ on this selection. Consistent with other firings of this type, this is wholly within the President’s authority.”

Other jurisdictions that have seen tussles between the judiciary and the administration over the prosecution posts include New Jersey, where Trump's former personal lawyer, Alina Habba, resigned in December after an appeals court said she had been serving in the post unlawfully.

Lindsey Halligan, another of Trump's personal lawyers who was installed by the administration, left her position as an acting U.S. attorney in Virginia after a judge concluded her appointment was unlawful and that indictments she brought against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey must be dismissed.

Prosecutors say D4vd, a 21-year-old whose legal name is David Burke, used the items to dismember Rivas Hernandez's body after he had stabbed her to death for threatening to reveal their relationship and ruin a music career that one witness said had brought in more than $10 million in just a couple of years.

On the first day of a hearing where a judge will decide if there's enough evidence to go to trial, the homicide detective, Joshua Byers, testified that Burke had used the alias Trayvion Davis for the orders, but used his own cards to buy them and had them delivered to his Hollywood home.

Burke's lawyers have said he did not cause Rivas Hernandez's death, and he has pleaded not guilty to murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under the age of 14 and unlawful mutilation of human remains.

Byers said most of the items that digital records show Burke bought, including two of the three chain saws and the blue pool, had been found in Burke's garage when a warrant was served. Prosecutors previously said a blood stain in the garage matched Rivas Hernandez's DNA.

And Byers testified that the body bag Burke ordered matched one that contained the head and torso of Rivas Hernandez in the trunk of a Tesla registered to Burke at a Hollywood tow yard on Sept. 8, 2025.

Prosecutors show photos of teen's dismembered body

The lead prosecutor, Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman, showed photos in court of the dismembered and decomposing body of Rivas Hernandez. Under the body bag, authorities found a garbage bag with the girl's arms and legs.

Burke's lawyer, Blair Berk, pressed Byers about whether the body bag was tested to tie it to the defendant. Berk's cross-examination took a microscopic look at how the scene was treated and the body was investigated.

Byers said the medical examiner at the scene told him the bag could not be taken into evidence because the body was so decomposed it could not be removed from it.

Rivas Hernandez’s parents were in court along with dozens of reporters and members of the public who got their seats through a lottery drawing. Her mother appeared to look down when the photos of the body were displayed.

Investigators did not immediately identify the body of Rivas Hernandez when it was found. Byers said her father, Jesus Rivas, called police a few days after the body’s discovery because he had seen news reports and feared it was his daughter.

The photos showed blue fragments on the body that prosecutors say were from the inflatable pool.

Byers also testified that when he and his partner arrested Burke, they noticed he had ‘Celeste’ tattooed in red on his finger. A photo of it was shown in court. A tattoo on another finger read “Shhh” and was identical to one on Rivas Hernandez's finger.

Body camera video shows Burke downplaying the relationship

Also Tuesday, prosecutors showed a body camera video from February 2024 with Burke telling sheriff’s deputies who were investigating after the then-13-year-old Rivas Hernandez was reported missing; Burke told them he had only met the girl once in person, and did not know she was a minor.

“She told me she was 18,” the singer said in the video from February 2024. “Everybody’s telling me she was 13.”

Prosecutors allege that D4vd had already been having a sexual relationship with the girl for several months. He was 18 at the time. Burke said he met the girl as a fan online on Discord and Instagram in 2020 or 2021.

LA County Sheriff's Deputy Juan Gonzalez, whose body camera video was shown, testified that Burke had been extremely cooperative, and allowed him and his partner to search the house. They found no sign of Rivas Hernandez, who was reported missing a number of times in the years before her death.

The mood was friendly and jovial among the three, and one of the deputies says “Ohhh, that’s pretty cool, good for you,” when Burke described his music career.

The hearing resembles a mini trial

The preliminary hearing, which is expected to last about four days, resembles an abbreviated trial. Judge Charlaine Olmedo will decide whether the prosecution offered enough evidence to demonstrate probable cause to proceed to trial.

District Attorney Nathan Hochman said outside the hearing that his office has not yet decided whether to pursue the death penalty in the case.

The defendant, who has been held without bail in a jail near the courthouse since his arrest, appeared in court in his Orange jail clothes and glasses. The judge ruled that his hands could be uncuffed, but he must remain shackled to his chair.

A court filing said Burke sent a car to pick up Rivas Hernandez on April 23, 2025, from her hometown of Lake Elsinore, California, some 80 miles (129 km) outside Los Angeles. They exchanged messages until she arrived at his home, after which her phone went dead.

“Knowing he had to silence the victim before she ruined his music career as she had threatened,” the document said, “defendant stabbed the victim to death multiple times and stood by while she bled out.”

D4vd had budding music career

One of Burke’s financial managers, Benjamin Gregor, testified that he had earned between $10 million and $11.5 million dollars from 2023 through 2025.

D4vd began making music for YouTube videos he created of the video game Fortnite.

The songs he wrote and recorded on his phone were a blend of indie rock, R&B and lo-fi pop. The music made him a phenomenon on TikTok, Soundcloud and Spotify, where his top songs, including his 2022 breakthrough “Romantic Homicide,” have more than a billion plays.

In 2023, he released two EPs and opened for SZA on tour. Last year, he performed at the Coachella music festival and released a full album that he was on tour promoting when the body was discovered.

Andrew Arrabaca, 43, plotted the attack for months and considered striking other New York City targets before setting a fire, lighting fireworks and firing a pellet gun Monday morning outside 26 Federal Plaza, Assistant U.S. Attorney Samantha Fry said.

Arrabaca told investigators that he understood people could've been hurt or killed and that he he was willing to accept his own death in the process, Fry said. She called his actions “calculated, targeted and unacceptably dangerous."

Three people sustained minor injuries, including a person who had an immigration court hearing at the building, which also houses offices for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the FBI. The building has been a magnet for protests against President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.

Arrabaca, wearing glasses and a black sweatshirt, sat quietly between his lawyers at his initial appearance in Manhattan federal court. He nodded at times as they explained what was happening. He was not required to enter a plea. The charge, arson or explosion causing damage to U.S. government property, carries a minimum sentence of seven years in prison.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Robyn F. Tarnofsky ordered Arrabaca jailed at a federal lockup in Brooklyn, rejecting his lawyer's suggestion that he be sent to a locked ward at a Veterans Health Administration facility for a mental health evaluation. Instead, the judge said she wants Arrabaca to be evaluated at the jail as soon as possible.

“This is an individual who, notwithstanding what he appears to have done, has served our country and is quite clearly ill,” Tarnofsky said.

Arrabaca was living in his car and slept in a park the night before the attack, Fry said. In 2020, she said, he was prescribed medication for a mental health condition but he stopped taking it about a year later.

A military-style helmet that authorities say Arrabaca wore during the attack had words on it suggesting he was suicidal, defense lawyer Jennifer Brown said.

Brown noted that Arrabaca has no criminal history and, until recently, had a long history of employment. He is a U.S. citizen and a lifelong New York resident, she said. He grew up in Queens, public records show, and was linked to an address in Poughkeepsie.

Arrabaca repaired Patriot missile systems while in the Army from 2001 to 2004. He also served a year in the New York Army National Guard. He had no deployments and left the Army as a specialist, an Army spokesperson said.

Fry, arguing for jail instead of hospitalization or release, argued that Arrabaca is a danger to the community and a flight risk. Brown conceded “the nature of this offense is undoubtedly dangerous,” but that Arrabaca’s “expressed intention was not to cause damage to people but to cause damage to property.”

Arrabaca started planning the attack as far back as January and went to upstate New York to buy weapons and Pennsylvania to buy fireworks, Fry said. Outside the Manhattan building, he was tackled by a security officer after authorities say he dumped gasoline outside an employee entrance and set the sidewalk on fire.

Arrabaca had two axes, three fixed-blade knives, a hammer, a machete and a wagon affixed with a sign that said “ICE Off Our Streets," authorities said. As he was being arrested, he made “anti-government and anti-American statements” and derogatory remarks about ICE, James Barnacle, the head of the FBI’s New York field office, said at a news conference on Monday.

Fry said that while only a few people were injured, “this attack could have ended much more tragically” at a building where hundreds of federal employees work, parents leave children at a daycare and members of the public use a post office inside.

Fry said there is “overwhelming evidence of his guilt” including “his own fulsome confession."

Tarnofsky said she seriously considered the psychiatric ward option but rejected it because she wasn’t convinced Arrabaca would comply with treatment.

“The crime you’re charged with is troubling," she said, addressing Arrabaca directly. “The nature and circumstances, the fact that it was planned over time and carried out at a time when it could cause significant harm.”

“This wasn’t done on a Sunday when no one was at the building," the judge said.

___

Associated Press writer Konstantin Toropin in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.

The majority Black congressional district was redrawn by the state legislature in May to favor Republicans in November's midterm elections. A month earlier, the Supreme Court ruled that Fields' district relied too heavily on race and was an “unconstitutional gerrymander.”

“After a great deal of prayer and reflection, I have decided not to seek reelection, to Congress, in the 6th District or any other district in Louisiana," Fields said.

Fields, who a longtime fixture in Louisiana politics, said he would instead seek a seat in the state Senate.

The Supreme Court’s decision to strike down the map favoring Fields' district escalated a nationwide redistricting battle, largely fueled by President Donald Trump’s efforts to protect Republicans in the midterm elections.

In June, the Supreme Court ruled that Alabama could use a map that favored Republicans in this year’s elections.

Louisiana Republicans had considered drawing a map this year that would have given the party a shot at winning all six of the state’s U.S. House seats. But that would have required adding more registered Democrats to Republican-held districts, potentially backfiring with GOP losses.

The new map renews Fields’ district to cluster it around predominantly white communities in the Baton Rouge area and southern Louisiana.

Fields had previously served two terms in the U.S. House from 1993 to 1997 and was the state's second Black member of Congress in Louisiana.

___ Wilder is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

The plane, the Clipper Endeavor, made a hard landing after losing engine power shortly after takeoff. The 17 passengers and crew who survived told investigators everyone lived through the landing, but panic set in as many passengers struggled to find life vests and the crew had a hard time pulling out life rafts.

Within minutes, the plane sank. Explorers found the wreckage of the DC-4 last month by using an autonomous sonar drone to locate the fuselage and tail in 2,000 feet of water.

Now before takeoff, flight attendants instruct passengers about exit locations and where life vests are located and how to inflate them.

“This one became a catalyst, and it helped drive safety steps forward of better flotation equipment and the preflight briefings,” said aviation safety expert John Cox, a pilot and founder of Safety Operating Systems. “So this is one steppingstone along the path to what we today enjoy as aviation safety. It was a rallying cry at the time.”

And now the discovery of this wreck could offer new hope for families who lost loved ones in other ocean crashes like Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 that disappeared 12 years ago with 269 people aboard.

Years of research helped locate the wreckage

This crash first caught the attention of Russ Matthews in 2019 when he saw a blurb about a luggage tag from the flight washing ashore in Florida. He said the historical significance of the Clipper Endeavor prompted him to dig deeper.

That led to years of digging through the Pan Am Airlines and Coast Guard archives looking for clues about the location of the plane's watery grave. Reports from the Civil Aeronautics Board, which was the predecessor to the Federal Aviation Administration, also helped.

But the key to finding the wreckage was found in records in Puerto Rico from a hearing that was held on the crash, and a map estimating the location of the crash that was done by Air Force pilots who witnessed the crash because they just happened to be in the area on a training flight.

Bad weather disrupted a previous attempt to locate the wreck in 2024 with a towed sonar array that was also documented by the Discovery Channel's “Expedition Unknown” show. But Matthews said he and the volunteers who work with his Air/Sea Heritage Foundation dreamed of making a second attempt to find it before next year's 75th anniversary of the crash with one of these newer advanced drones that were originally developed for military uses like finding undersea mines.

Undersea drone played a key role in the search

Tony Romeo, who is CEO of the undersea exploration firm Deep Sea Vision, had been talking with Matthews for a while about the possibility of helping try to find this plane if one of his ships was ever in the area, and then in April one just happened to be passing right by Puerto Rico between two other jobs while carrying an advanced underwater drone with the right sensors to be able to find it.

“There we were, and everything kind of came together at the moment: good weather, the right team, and the right equipment and ship. So we took a shot at it,” Romeo said.

Deep Sea Vision previously led an unsuccessful six-month search to find Amelia Earhart's plane, but Romeo had a special interest in this case because his father was a mechanic and pilot for Pan Am airlines. In fact, the drone they used in the search already had a Pan Am sticker on the side.

Capturing the moment of discovery

All the research Matthews' group had done, combined with weather data from the time of the crash, was synthesized to create a map of the most likely location and a search area of 10 square nautical miles. The drone actually found the wreckage on its first pass over that area, although the explorers didn't know that until it returned to the surface with its images.

The Discovery Channel’s Josh Gates and his crew were again along for this latest search to capture the moment the plane showed up on images from the drone after they were downloaded. The search will be featured in a special episode of the show this fall, but a few highlights released Tuesday show the moment everyone in the control room realized what they had found. Shouts of “Oh God!” and “That's a plane!” erupted when the image loaded on screen.

“To have a front-row seat to an expedition like this as it’s unfolding is tremendous, and so I feel really lucky that we were able to be a part of it,” Gates said.

Tuesday’s vote comes as Kast, who took office just over three months ago, struggles to jolt a sluggish economy. The economy shrank 0.5% in the first quarter of 2026 after several months of weak growth. Unemployment rose to 9.4% in the March-May period, its highest level since June 2021.

The legislation aims to revive Chile’s private sector, drive job creation and eliminate the fiscal deficit. It will gradually slash the corporate tax rate for large companies from 27% to 23%, exempt newly built homes from the country’s value-added tax, limit which new universities can join Chile’s free tuition program and allow private companies to seek compensation when environmental disputes delay investment projects.

Last week the Senate approved the bill, but it modified certain articles, sending it back to the lower house for a final vote. On Tuesday, lawmakers approved every change except one dealing with how municipalities will be compensated for tax breaks. To become law, the bill awaits a resolution on that final, minor sticking point.

Kast welcomed the vote on his government's signature economic project.

“I hope all political sectors will work together so the remaining issue can be resolved quickly," he said, speaking to reporters in the northern city of Copiapó, where he was overseeing the government response to severe storms.

Kast, 60, took office in March promising to crack down on crime and illegal immigration while reducing public spending and boosting private sector revenues. His election marked Chile’s sharpest shift to the right since the end of the 1973-1990 military dictatorship, and he has pledged a return to the market-oriented economic policies associated with that era.

“The president’s efforts have essentially been focused on deepening and returning to the orthodox neoliberal model of the late 1970s and early 1980s,” said political analyst Gilberto Aranda. “What existed before was neoliberalism tempered by subsidies and other measures."

Finance Minister Jorge Quiroz said the reform would give investors greater certainty, reduce bureaucratic hurdles for investment projects and make the Chilean tax system more competitive.

“We are enormously satisfied,” Quiroz said after the vote.

Opposition lawmakers have criticized the legislation for favoring Chile's big corporations and wealthiest citizens and vowed to challenge it in the Constitutional Court.

“It has become clear that all of José Antonio Kast’s talk about security, jobs and immigration was simply a Trojan horse to advance the project he truly cares about: cutting taxes for the richest Chileans,” said Constanza Martínez, president of the left-wing Broad Front coalition.

___

Follow AP’s Latin America coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Those areas along the northern Gulf Coast were under a tropical storm warning through Wednesday and could see rain and flooding into Thursday morning, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said. New Orleans also was under a tropical storm warning.

The storm was about 120 miles (190 kilometers) southwest of Panama City, Florida, and 105 miles (170 kilometers) southeast of Mobile, Alabama, Tuesday evening. It was moving at 6 mph (9 kph) to the west with maximum sustained winds near 60 mph (95 kph), the hurricane center said. Gradual weakening was forecast Wednesday through Friday.

Bertha was forecast to make landfall Wednesday night somewhere in the coastal and lightly populated part of Louisiana southeast of New Orleans, said Michael Buchanan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Louisiana.

Wind will be biggest threat there, he said.

Authorities open sites to distribute sandbags

Authorities in Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida opened sites to provide sandbags to residents while red flag warnings were posted along some beaches advising swimmers about the dangers of rip tides.

Up and down the coast, double red flags signaled that Gulf waters were closed for swimming.

Beaches near Pensacola, Florida, were mostly deserted except for tourists venturing out to take photos of the pounding surf.

“For locals, this is just another storm,” said Candice Henderson, manager of the Crab Trap, a beachside restaurant that was packed Tuesday on Pensacola’s Perdido Key. “When you’re on vacation and its raining, you either shop or you go out to eat.”

The storm was expected to weaken as it moves along the coast, said Jamie Rhome of the hurricane center. It's possible that the worst of the storm will stay offshore, he said Tuesday.

Bertha was expected to weaken further as it pushes into Texas, forecasters said.

Forecasts called for as much as 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) of rain from western Florida to the southern Louisiana coastline, with higher amounts in some scattered areas.

That could cause flash flooding in some urban areas.

Authorities also advised that areas in Louisiana from the mouth of the Mississippi River to the Alabama-Mississippi state line could see storm surges of up to 4 feet (1.2 meters). Parts of Florida and Alabama could see smaller surges.

The tropical storm warning extended west to Morgan City, Louisiana.

Bertha is the second tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season

Bertha is the second tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season. Tropical Storm Arthur last month brought heavy rainfall to the southeastern U.S.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration expects this year to see a below-average Atlantic hurricane season although that doesn’t eliminate the chances of a catastrophic storm.

Bertha could dump heavy rain on coastal areas of Mississippi that are still recovering from flooding brought by Arthur that destroyed and damaged homes in June.

“Because of that, people are definitely paying attention, or at least you would hope so,” said Jeff Clark, a spokesperson for Mississippi's Harrison County, where six sites were open for sandbag distribution.

So far, there hasn't been a need to open any shelters or order evacuations, Clark said on Tuesday.

Hurricane Fausto churns in the Pacific

In the eastern Pacific Ocean, Hurricane Fausto churned far from Mexico’s Baja California peninsula and posed no threat to land, the hurricane center said.

Fausto gained hurricane status Monday night. It was about 780 miles (1,260 kilometers) southwest of the southern tip of Baja California, had top sustained winds of 75 mph (120 kph) and was moving west-northwest at 12 mph (19 kph).

The storm was expected to strengthen Tuesday and Wednesday. No coastal watches or warnings were in effect, though ocean swells generated by the storm could cause life-threatening surf and rip tide conditions on the Baja California coast, the center said.

___

Associated Press journalists Kimberly Chandler in Montgomery, Alabama, Stephen Smith in New Orleans, and Haya Panjwani in Washington contributed.

In announcing the tariffs, Trump accused Canada of unfairly discriminating against U.S. automobiles, alcohol and dairy products, escalating tensions with one of the United States’ closest allies.

“In light of trade action threatened by the United States earlier this week, it would be inappropriate to proceed with a celebratory event between the two countries,” said Jenna Ghassabeh, a spokesperson for Canadian Infrastructure Minister Gregor Robertson, in an emailed statement.

The move came after U.S. and Canadian officials reached an agreement earlier this month to open the Gordie Howe International Bridge following delays tied to disagreements between the two countries.

Canada now plans to hold its own ceremony Friday. It is now unclear whether the United States will hold a separate ceremony.

Two U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations said they still expect the bridge to open to traffic July 27 but are less certain than they were before.

"We remain committed to opening the bridge on July 27th, and to celebrating this milestone among Canadians on July 24th," said Ghassabeh.

The 1.5-mile-long (2.4-kilometer-long) bridge spans the Detroit River and connects Detroit with Windsor. A ribbon-cutting ceremony had initially been scheduled for June 12 but was abruptly postponed after officials said the United States and Canada were still working to resolve “outstanding issues.”

Canada financed construction of the bridge under an agreement allowing it to recover the cost through toll revenue. The Trump administration had sought changes to that arrangement.

The project, negotiated under former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, has been under construction since 2018 and cost nearly $4.4 billion.

The bridge is named after Canadian hockey great Gordie Howe, who spent 25 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings. It is expected to become another major economic artery between Canada and the United States.

In February, Trump demanded in a social media post that Canada give the U.S. government at least half ownership of the bridge and agree to other unspecified demands, part of his broader clashes with Canada over trade.

Those tensions resurfaced this week. The White House said the tariffs would take effect in 30 days, leaving time for negotiations. Trump has previously delayed or backed away from some threatened import taxes.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a statement about the tariffs that his government believes in the “benefits of free and fair trade” and remains prepared to negotiate with the Trump administration.

The tariffs could escalate into a broader trade war as Canada weighs how to respond.

“If these tariffs proceed, Canada should respond tariff for tariff, dollar for dollar,” Ontario Premier Doug Ford posted on social media.

Before Tuesday night’s game against the Seattle Mariners, Ferguson said it was “unprofessional” for him to express his frustrations toward Miller the way he did. Miller got in the way of Reds second baseman Edwin Arroyo on a single by Victor Robles, shortly after Cal Raleigh hit a grand slam off Ferguson to make it 7-0. The Mariners won 8-0.

When asked about the play after Monday night’s game, Ferguson said, “You have to ask Bill,” referring to the umpire, and walked away. Various social media accounts posted videos that made it clear Ferguson was insulting Miller.

“As long as I’ve been in this game, I don’t think you’ll find a clip of me going at an umpire like that,” Ferguson said Tuesday. “I’ll wear that on the chest, seek Bill out and definitely make it right with him. Very unprofessional on my part. I’ve got to be better.”

After Monday’s game, Reds manager Terry Francona was asked about Miller’s positioning on the field and said questions should be directed to Miller.

“I don’t know,” Francona said. “I don’t ever look up and think, well, where should an umpire be? That’s on them. It’s discouraging that it happened.”

A day later, Ferguson was more measured. He said he wished he'd seen the videos earlier and that he'd apologized to Miller sooner than he did.

“It’s just a very unprofessional thing on my part,” Ferguson said. “I know these things happen within the game. But I don’t like that I was kind of the centerpiece of this.”

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Hegseth said the war has cost $37.5 billion, so far. He provided the new estimate, up from earlier accounts, during testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee, where his opening remarks were interrupted by protestors several times.

Meanwhile, the U.S. and Iran are back to bombing every day in a bid to control the Strait of Hormuz. And neither is backing down, showing the limitations of Trump’s reliance on escalating airstrikes to bend Tehran to his will.

While the Trump administration says it is open to diplomacy, Iran so far has refused to loosen its grip over the crucial oil shipping corridor in the Persian Gulf. It is raising questions about the strategy for the conflict's next phase. The intensifying attacks have collapsed an interim ceasefire deal, killed more American troops and sent U.S. gasoline prices back up, posing more problems for Republicans hoping to get reelected.

The Latest:

US military says it launched 11th night of strikes on Iran

U.S. Central Command did not immediately reveal the targets being struck in the latest wave, which comes after Trump telegraphed that strikes would be intensifying.

US military identifies third service member killed in Iranian attack

The U.S. military has identified the service member as Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York.

The confirmation brings the death toll to 18 U.S. service members killed since the war began.

On Monday, the Pentagon identified Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas, as the two other soldiers who were killed in Friday’s attack on a base in Jordan.

The soldiers were killed by Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks in the first troop deaths from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war. They were deployed to support a U.S. mission against the Islamic State group, a U.S. Central Command statement said.

▶ Read more

More than 500 troops injured in war with Iran, AP source says

The number of wounded personnel in the Iran war has grown to well over 500 troops, a U.S. official told The Associated Press.

The total is higher than the Pentagon’s official tally on the Defense Casualty Analysis System, which currently shows 482 wounded in the war.

The U.S. official, who was not authorized to discuss the matter with the media and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the system has a significant lag in reporting injuries. The official said that was a function of its design and not intentional.

Pentagon officials have insisted that the website shows their commitment to transparency about the number of dead and injured in the war.

Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell posted Monday that nearly 100 U.S. service members have sustained “some degree of injury” since the U.S. restarted strikes on July 7 and that 96% of them have returned to duty.

The system said on July 6 that 413 troops had been wounded.

— Konstantin Toropin

Hegseth engages in tense exchange with Michigan Sen. Gary Peters over Pentagon funding

Hegseth aggressively pushed back against questions from the Democratic senator, who pressed the secretary about the administration’s plan to win the war.

“Secretary Hegseth, despite your failure to win this war, you are back now before Congress asking for almost $70 billion in additional funding,” Peters said. “You are asking the American people for a blank check.”

Hegseth replied, “I think your characterization of this incredible effort as a failure is reckless and it is irresponsible.”

Peters reiterated that he saw Hegseth as a failure.

“You don’t have a strategy, you don’t have a long-term plan to actually win this war,” Peters said. “The men and women are going to be able to do it, but they don’t have leadership. When will you show leadership?”

Hegseth pushed back: “Why don’t you show leadership and stand up to your fellow Democrats who won’t fund the troops?”

Peters replied, “It’s not a question of money, it’s a question of leadership.”

Democrats challenge Hegseth on earlier claims the Iran war was won

Senate Democrats are pushing back on Hegseth’s request for more money when he and Trump claimed months ago that Iran’s military was destroyed and the U.S. military’s objectives met.

“You’re asking for literally $1.5 trillion for a war that President Trump said he already won,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York told Hegseth. “You’re asking for $1.5 trillion — unlimited money for bombs, but insufficient money for the American people, for their health care, their food, their housing, and our farmers.”

Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia zeroed in on similar statements about the ongoing conflict.

“Mr. Secretary, you stated four months ago that Iran’s military had been rendered ‘combat ineffective’ for years to come,” Ossoff said.

Hegseth countered that his statements didn’t mean that Iran didn’t have any more capabilities.

Trump to campaign in Michigan days before battleground state’s primary election

Trump is expected to hold a rally outside Detroit on July 27 as early voting gets underway in Michigan’s primary election, according to a person familiar with the plans who was not authorized to discuss the event publicly.

Early in-person voting begins July 25 for the Aug. 4 primary. Michigan voters are choosing party nominees for an open U.S. Senate seat and governor.

Republican Mike Rogers is unopposed in the Senate primary, while the GOP gubernatorial contest has intensified between Trump-backed U.S. Rep. John James and business owner Perry Johnson.

Trump is expected to rally in Oakland County, an affluent Detroit suburb that for decades was one of Michigan’s premier political bellwether counties. Democrats have carried the county by widening margins in recent elections, even as Trump won Michigan in 2016 and again in 2024.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment.

— Joey Cappelletti

Caine acknowledges limits of air strikes to win war

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, acknowledged the limits of airpower after being pressed on the reliance of airstrikes alone against Iran.

“As you look across the totality of history, airpower’s got limits, and we always have to be mindful of those,” Caine said. “I think where America’s area of exclusivity is, is when we bring the totality of the diplomatic, informational, economic and pair that with the military. And there’s a lot of that work going on.”

Caine declined to say whether ground combat could be next after being pressed by Sen. Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat who noted the likely costs of having boots on the ground.

The general later said: “Iran will continue to be a challenge moving forward.”

Hegseth estimates Iran war has cost $37.5B so far

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday the U.S. war against Iran has cost $37.5 billion, so far, as he is facing questions and protests at a Senate hearing ahead of a $95 billion GOP budget package to fund the military, along with aid to farmers and voting law changes that are top White House priorities.

Hegseth provided the new estimate, up from earlier accounts, during testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee. Several times, protesters interrupted Hegseth’s opening remarks, which come days after the Pentagon announced that three more American service members have died in the conflict, bringing the death toll to 17, and that more than 100 have been injured since early July.

Hegseth said the supplemental war funding is an “urgent, necessary” injection of funds, and with Trump’s proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget a generational investment in the military.

“Without these funds, we face critical shortfalls,” Hegseth testified.

▶ Read more

Hegseth warns that troop training and pay is in doubt if military doesn’t get more money

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned senators that troop training would have to be curtailed if the Pentagon doesn’t get the $67 billion in supplemental funds its requesting from Congress. He also raised concerns about troop pay and weapons that defend against enemy drones and missiles.

Hegseth said $46 billion is needed for munitions and expanding production lines, while $21 billion would be for military pay, fuel and replacing equipment.

“Without these funds, we face critical shortfalls that threaten our ability to also simply pay our service members,” Hegseth said.

Democratic lawmakers countered that the Pentagon is yet to spend tens of billions of dollars of money it received last year. But Hegseth doubled down on the need for the supplemental funds.

Trump says direct US-Lebanon flights could resume for first time in more than 40 years

Trump said Tuesday he’ll allow American carriers to resume direct flights to Lebanon more than 40 years after the US suspended the route.

Direct flights between the U.S. and Lebanon were suspended in 1985 by President Ronald Reagan’s administration following the hijacking of TWA Flight 847.

“I am hereby directing my Administration to allow all U.S. airline carriers to fly directly to Lebanon so that Americans can easily visit this beautiful land,” Trump said in a social media post after meeting earlier on Tuesday with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.

During a White House meeting on Tuesday with the country’s leader, Joseph Aoun, Trump pledged to help Lebanon “a lot.” Aoun came to Washington to push for long-term calm after months of war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group.

▶ Read more

Hegseth’s remarks repeatedly interrupted by anti-war protestors

One after another, protestors interrupted the defense secretary’s opening remarks and were quickly removed by Capitol Police. The secretary paused four times for protestors to be removed from the room.

“Stop bombing our children, stop bombing Palestine, this is illegal,” yelled one protestor who was escorted from the room.

“We will have order in the hearing room,” Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, told the room after a third protestor interrupted Hegseth’s remarks.

Collins added after a fourth protester interrupted proceedings: “I would ask that the Capitol Police, whose professionalism I admire, remove those who are seeking to disrupt the hearing.”

Senators criticize Iran war’s costs and Hegseth’s leadership as hearing begins

Senators opened Tuesday’s hearing on the Iran war’s costs with ample criticism for the conflict as well as the stalled careers of Black and female military officers under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Hegseth is set to testify before the Senate Appropriations Committee as Republicans push a $95 billion budget package to fund the military.

Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican and committee chair, cited news reports that women and people of color are disproportionately fired or sidelined under Hegseth’s leadership, arguing that it’s “likely to discourage well qualified women and individuals of color from joining our armed forces.”

Washington Sen. Patty Murray, the ranking Democrat, noted the war’s lack of popular support and impact on the economy as gas prices rise and economic growth slows.

Judge weighs bid to block Trump administration policy to reject visas for natives of 75 countries

Lawyers for dozens of immigrants have asked a federal judge to block the Trump administration from enforcing a policy directing the State Department to reject visa applications by citizens of 75 countries based on their nationality.

U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden in Washington, D.C., didn’t rule from the bench on Tuesday after hearing arguments from attorneys for the government and roughly four dozen immigrants from the countries singled out by the January 2026 policy.

McFadden, who was nominated to the bench by Trump, appeared to be skeptical that the lawsuit’s plaintiffs have legal standing to challenge the policy. But the judge also said he sees some legal precedent to support arguments by plaintiffs’ lawyers.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys said it’s illegal for the State Department to enforce a blanket prohibition on issuing immigrant visas to nationals of the 75 designated countries.

Government lawyers say the plaintiffs haven’t shown how they’re irreparably harmed by the policy.

UN chief warns military escalation puts pressure on trade, transport, fuel and commodities prices

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calls attacks on civilian infrastructure in Iran and the region, including a desalination plant and nuclear power plant under construction, “unacceptable” and a violation of international law, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Tuesday.

Attacks on vital infrastructure for civilians including hospitals and water supplies must stop immediately, the secretary-general’s spokesman said.

The secretary-general and his personal envoy, Jean Arnault, call the current situation “teetering,” and don’t want to see a return to full-scale conflict, he said.

Guterres reiterates that there is no military solution to the conflict and calls for the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and intensified efforts toward a peaceful settlement, Dujarric said.

Trump appears to try to shift blame for US soldiers’ deaths

The president told reporters he would go to Dover for the dignified transfer of U.S. soldiers killed in the Middle East over the weekend.

“They did slip something through in Jordan,” he said, appearing to refer to the deadly Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks there. “If we had other operators, you know, it would have not happened, unfortunately.”

He went on: “We’ve stopped almost everything, but when you let other people do your job with the United States — we let other people do the job — and sometimes it doesn’t work out so well.”

Trump did not elaborate on his comments, and it was not immediately clear who Trump was saying was responsible for protecting U.S. forces in Jordan. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for more information.

Trump says US will strike Pickaxe Mountain ‘very soon’

Discussing plans to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, Trump said the United States will soon target the area near Pickaxe Mountain — a fortified underground site near one of Iran’s primary nuclear enrichment facilities.

“We’ll be hitting that area pretty soon, and very heavily,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday.

The president made the comment after being asked whether he believes Iran has moved nuclear centrifuges to the site. He said it “doesn’t mean anything” unless Iran has uranium to enrich.

“We follow the material,” he said. “That’s where the action is.”

Trump says he’ll pay his respects to fallen service members at Dover

The president is expected to attend the dignified transfer on Wednesday. It’s a ritual considered to be one of the most somber duties of the commander-in-chief.

“I’ll be going to Dover for something that I feel is — it’s a great honor for me to do it,” Trump told reporters.

Two soldiers killed in Iranian missile and drone attacks in Jordan will be returned during the dignified transfer, according to an administration official speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly.

The remains of another soldier killed in Iraq during a detonation of an Iranian drone will also be returned, the official said, as well as a fourth service member whose remains have not yet been identified but who is believed to be a soldier missing after the Jordan attacks.

—- Collin Binkley

Trump says US will ‘take care of business’ if Houthis impose blockade

Asked about his level of concern about a blockade of the Red Sea by the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, Trump suggested it wasn’t an immediate problem.

“So far, it hasn’t happened,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I think that if there is something like that, we’ll just have to take care of business.”

The Houthi-run SABA news agency said six ships were forced to reroute on Tuesday after being warned by the rebels, a day after they announced a maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia.

But Trump said “we’ve had no problem with the Houthis” recently, and “they’ve had no problem with us for a long period of time, including during this conflict.”

Trump says he’s looking at a tariff on Canada over wildfires

Days of smoke from wildfires in Canada drifting into the United States contributed to poor air quality in cities from Detroit to Washington, D.C.

“They’re not managing their forests properly. And the wind has a tendency to blow right over New York City,” said Trump, once a longtime resident of the city. “Michigan was really affected,” he added.

Asked about the issue during an Oval Office appearance with the president of Lebanon, Trump said Canada seems unable to manage the problem.

Trump says US has ‘no interest’ in Iran talks for now

Speaking in the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump gave a dim view on possible talks with Iran to end the war.

“I will tell you, they want to desperately meet. And until they’re ready to meet in a meaningful way, we have no interest in meeting,” Trump told reporters.

He said that in dialogue behind the scenes, Iranian officials have said “they want to meet desperately to try and end it, because they’re getting decimated.”

Iran and the U.S. have escalated attacks recently as their interim deal to end the war falls apart.

Iran-backed Houthi rebels say their Red Sea blockade is working

The rebels have opened a new front against Saudi Arabia by declaring a naval blockade of the kingdom, threatening the flow of global oil supplies and trade through the Red Sea.

With the Strait of Hormuz blocked, Saudi Arabia has been relying on a pipeline to the Red Sea to get millions of barrels of oil to market.

Six ships in the Red Sea were forced to reroute on Tuesday after they received warnings from the rebels, according to the Houthi-run SABA news agency.

Separately, three Houthi officials told The Associated Press that the rebel group warned international shipping companies on Monday to avoid transiting in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the gateway to the Red Sea at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.

— By Jon Gambrell and Munir Ahmed

Report says Trump administration has harmed global efforts to prevent and treat HIV

The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, known as PEPFAR, is credited with saving at least 26 million lives since its inception in 2003. But it’s been impaired by the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development and cuts to thousands of global health grants.

These disruptions to the global AIDS relief program have forced organizations to close clinics, lay off staff and cut services, seriously impeding efforts to prevent and treat the disease in dozens of countries, according to a report released Tuesday by amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research.

Other research, published in the journal Nature Health in June, found a 10% decline in antiretroviral treatment — nearly two million fewer people living with HIV — getting the life-saving treatment through PEPFAR.

▶ Read more

Trump administration pushes ahead with plans to reopen US embassy in Libya

The State Department has informed Congress that it plans to move ahead with the potential re-opening of the U.S. Embassy in Libya. It’s proposing to allocate nearly $41 million to restore America’s formal diplomatic presence in the North African nation.

The effort comes amid new warnings of Iranian-related attacks against U.S. facilities and interests around the world, particularly in the Middle East.

The department told lawmakers that the money would cover “a range of security-related activities associated with plans for the potential phased resumption of embassy operations in Libya.” The embassy in Tripoli was shuttered in July 2014.

The Trump administration reopened the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela following the ouster of former President Nicolas Maduro in January and is also seeking to reopen the closed embassy in Damascus, Syria.

AI stocks keep rising, even as Brent oil’s price tops $90

More gains for makers of computer chips and other winners of the artificial-intelligence boom are carrying Wall Street higher on Tuesday after tumbling the week before.

After rocketing higher because of the boom in investment in AI chips and data centers, they’ve come under pressure in recent weeks on worries that they shot too high. Concerns are also weighing that AI investments may fall off if they don’t produce as much profit and productivity as promised.

The gains came despite more climbs for oil prices, and Brent crude oil topped $90 per barrel because of continued attacks between the United States and Iran. It rose 2.2% to $91.17, up from less than $72 early this month.

The oil price hikes threaten a reacceleration of inflation, just as it was slowing more than economists expected. That in turn could push the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates, which would slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and other investments.

▶ Read more

Rubio will meet with Chinese counterpart in Manila

Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday in Manila, the State Department said.

The top diplomats from the world’s two largest economies are attending annual talks of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this week in the Philippine capital.

The ASEAN summit comes amid unfolding crises led by renewed fighting between the U.S. and Iran as well as a violent skirmish in the disputed South China Sea.

The Rubio-Wang meeting could help set up the next sitdown between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Rubio said ahead of the summit that he expects Xi to visit the U.S. in September and that “it’s incumbent on powerful, important countries like ours to continue to talk and have a relationship.”

Secret Service agent injured at White House correspondents’ dinner will be honored at make-up event

Secret Service Police Officer Victor Gonzales will be given a special award for exceptional service at a rescheduled White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, the association said Tuesday.

Gonzales was at a security checkpoint during the April dinner when it was interrupted by a gunman who prosecutors say was trying to assassinate Trump. The Secret Service said Gonzales was struck in his protective vest as he engaged the gunman, who was tackled outside the ballroom.

“His swift and decisive actions assisted in deterring the gunman from proceeding any further,” the Secret Service said.

A make-up event being held Friday at the Waldorf Astoria hotel at Trump’s encouragement will also honor Washington Hilton hotel staff who helped guests in the aftermath.

US military identifies soldier killed while disarming a drone in Iraq

The military said it was investigating the death of Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton of Fayetteville, North Carolina, during a controlled detonation of an Iranian drone on Sunday at an air base in Irbil.

Swinton, 30, will get a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge, and be promoted to staff sergeant, the military said in a statement.

He enlisted in the Army in 2017, and was assigned to the 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, out of Fort Bragg.

Two U.S. Army soldiers were killed in Jordan on Friday while defending against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks. They were the first U.S. troop deaths from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war.

“We had a significant security incident during evaluation of our models,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in a statement posted on social media.

AI startup Hugging Face said last week that it had detected an intrusion into its data processing systems that it suspected was caused by an AI agent autonomously acting on its own.

“We suspected last week’s cyberattack might have come from a frontier lab, given the sophistication of the agent,” Hugging Face co-founder and CEO Clément Delangue said in a statement. "Turns out it did!”

The disclosure comes amid heightened concerns about the cybersecurity capabilities of powerful models that led President Donald Trump in June to sign an executive order creating a framework for the federal government to vet the national security risks of the most advanced AI systems for up to a month before their public release.

“AI is accelerating the discovery and exploitation of vulnerabilities,” OpenAI said in its statement Tuesday. “The primary lesson from this incident is that model security and safety must keep pace with rapidly advancing capabilities.”

Delangue said he spent the past 24 hours working with OpenAI, “and we strongly believe there was no malicious intent on their part. It’s quite mind-blowing that all of this happened autonomously!"

Delangue added that it “might be the first incident of its kind.”

OpenAI said the intrusion was caused by a combination of its AI models, including its newly released GPT‑5.6 Sol and an “even more capable” model that is still being tested internally.

OpenAI said its AI used stolen credentials and discovered a previously unknown vulnerability to access Hugging Face servers.

It went to “extreme lengths to achieve a rather narrow testing goal” and “found ways to gain access to secret information that it could use to cheat the evaluation,” the company said.

The Health Ministry said hantavirus was also suspected in the deaths of two health workers in the southwestern state of Barinas. Those cases remain under investigation and were not linked to the three fatalities in the eastern state of Anzoátegui, about 655 kilometers (407 miles) away.

Both states were spared the worst of the back-to-back major earthquakes that hit northern Venezuela earlier this month.

The ministry described the deaths in Anzoátegui and Barinas as isolated incidents that “do not represent a risk to the general community." But it added that health workers would be sent to the affected states to “guarantee the health security of all Venezuelans,” without elaborating.

The Venezuelan Medical Federation, a national professional group, said the deaths in Anzoátegui were from the same family in the rural municipality of Miranda in the south of the state.

Hantaviruses exist throughout the world and are spread mainly by contact with rodents such as rats and mice. It’s rare and not easy for a hantavirus to spread between people. In severe cases, the virus can cause a deadly lung infection or kidney failure.

As a recent deadly outbreak aboard a cruise ship in the Atlantic showed, some hantaviruses can spread between people in rare cases. The little-studied Andes hantavirus, detected in the outbreak that killed three passengers and infected several others on the MV Hondius in May, raised concerns around the world due to its mortality rate, as high as 30%, and the current lack of treatment and vaccines.

Weeks later in Argentina, from where the hantavirus-stricken cruise set sail, authorities are still trying to figure out the origin of the outbreak.

An early hypothesis circulated by officials suggested that patient zero, a Dutch ornithologist, may have become infected in the southernmost city of Ushuaia, famed for its location “at the end of the world." But Argentine scientists who tested rats for the Andes hantavirus in the area recently ruled out Ushuaia as the source of the outbreak — to the relief of the Antarctic cruise hub heavily reliant on foreign tourism.

Argentina also concluded the wine-producing province of Mendoza was not the source of contagion earlier this month, after local investigators and biologists from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found no trace of hantavirus in rodents collected from areas visited by the Dutch man and his wife.

Hegseth provided the new estimate, up from earlier assessments, during a combative Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, which came days after the Pentagon announced that three more American service members have died in the conflict, bringing the death toll to 17, and that more than 100 have been injured since early July. Several times protesters interrupted his opening remarks.

Hegseth said the supplemental war funding is an “urgent, necessary” injection of money, and with President Donald Trump's proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget a generational investment in the military.

“Without these funds, we face critical shortfalls,” Hegseth testified.

But Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the panel, warned of "another forever war.”

“This war is now spiraling out of control again,” Murray said.

President Donald Trump has said repeatedly that “a deal is near, and the war will be over soon,” she said. "But now, he’s asking for $70 billion more — and for us to just trust him it’ll all work out fine.”

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins were also testifying before the panel. The proposed budget package includes $60 billion and $12 billion for other national security needs, along with $10 billion for farm aid and $10 billion for voting law changes.

Before the hearing, the White House issued a statement urging support of the budget resolution, “without modification — immediately.”

War funds make up the bulk of the GOP budget plan

War funding makes up the bulk of the GOP's new budget proposal, one last priority package the Republicans hope to launch before lawmakers recess to campaign for the midterm elections. The package aims to help farmers struggling under Trump's tariffs and to pay for voter law changes, none of it paid for with offsets.

Most Americans continue to disapprove of how Trump is handling Iran, according to an AP-NORC poll. Gas prices have spiked as Iran works to control oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. munitions are running low from the onslaught of American missile strikes and Trump has shifted away from his own campaign promise not to draw the U.S. into prolonged military conflicts.

Nevertheless, Trump has showed no signs of backing off the war, and the Republicans have largely refused to confront his strategy or use Congress' power of the purse and war powers authority to halt the conflict.

“The commander in chief and the whole Department of War are working very hard to bring this to a resolution,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson at his weekly press conference Tuesday.

Hegseth faced questions over the war and his own leadership

Hegseth appeared before the panel facing a torrent of questions about not only the war, but his own leadership of the department.

Sen. Susan Collins, the Republican chair of the committee, opened the hearing saying it's “deeply troubling” that the Pentagon has blocked or denied promotions to various officers, particularly women and minorities.

Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire questioned why Hegseth is asking for more money when the department has not yet spent about half the $150 billion Republicans provided the Pentagon in last year's big budget bill.

“Why are you asking the American people to absorb the cost of a war they don't support?” asked Shaheen.

When Hegseth started describing the “historic nature” of Trump’s military strategy, she cut him off. Hegseth later explained that the rest of last year’s budget package would be spent by September.

When GOP Sen. Mike Rounds wanted to know if this funding request would be enough to “get the job done,” the general demurred.

“I can’t answer the question on what it will cost, because the enemy has a vote,” Caine said.

Tensions flared during hours long hearing

Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana was among several senators demanding answers over the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, asking if Iran will impose tolls on what historically has been an open waterway vital to the flow of oil.

Caine said, “That’s a hypothetical question, and I don’t know the answer to that.”

But Kennedy retorted: “Guys, we need straight answers.”

Tensions exploded toward the end of the more than three-hour hearing.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., told Hegseth flatly that his war claims don't add up.

Has the U.S. obliterated Iran's nuclear capabilities or not? she demanded to know.

“We're staying laser-focused on the objective,” Hegseth responded, “and you're trying to make campaign commercials.”

Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., probed Hegseth's past assessments of the war, including the secretary's claims of Iran's surrender.

When Democratic Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan said the administration's war strategy has been a complete "failure," Hegseth erupted.

“Shame on you and others who call this a quagmire and a failure,” Hegseth said.

Peters told the secretary: “You, sir, are the failure."

The senator said it’s not the U.S. troops who are failing, but their leaders. “You don't have a strategy," Peters said. “You don't have a long-term plan to actually win this war.”

Hegseth said Democrats have “Trump Derangement Syndrome” and won't give him the money he needs.

Peters said it's not about money, “but a question of leadership.”

This week, the Senate will consider another war powers resolution, having voted nearly a dozen times to try to halt the conflict.

Republicans work to pass budget over Democratic objections

The GOP budget proposal is expected to flow through the reconciliation process, which enables the majority to approve the plan on its own, over the objections of Democrats in the minority.

It's the same lengthy process Republicans used to approve Trump's big tax cuts bill last summer, as well as Homeland Security money earlier this year.

The proposal is headed toward a House vote this week, which would start the process by instructing various committees to begin drafting the legislation. Johnson can afford only a few defectors from his slim majority, and some conservatives want the funding offset with spending reductions elsewhere.

GOP senators have so far panned the House budget plan, but are waiting to see if Johnson can kickstart the process.

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Associated Press writers Matt Brown and Ben Finley contributed to this report.

But in retrospect, a lot of things went right.

The United States, Canada and Mexico spent nearly six weeks hosting soccer's biggest showcase and — at least for the most part — the action stayed on the field.

Fox said Tuesday that the Spain-Argentina final drew 38.937 million viewers — including a peak of 51.685 million — which easily set the record as the most-watched English-language soccer telecast in U.S. history, according to Nielsen Media Research. Spain won the final 1-0 in extra time.

Telemundo’s preliminary numbers for its Spanish-language broadcast said the game had a total audience of 22.6 million, putting the total number of viewers in the U.S. at more than 60 million.

Star players like Argentina's Lionel Messi, France's Kylian Mbappé and Norway's Erling Haaland became household names across North America, television ratings remained high in the U.S. even after the Americans were eliminated and despite high ticket prices, most games featured packed stadiums.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino gave effusive praise to the host countries on Sunday.

Attendance was good, so were ratings

Fox broadcast all 104 games in English on its platforms and American viewership remained strong even after the U.S. was eliminated by Belgium in the round of 16.

Spanish broadcasts on Telemundo were also a popular option — even for non-native speakers.

Fox averaged 7.737 million viewers for the 104 broadcasts on Fox, FS1 and Tubi — up from 3.588 million in 2022 and 2.77 million in 2018.

Though Nielsen's viewership numbers give a window into the World Cup final’s widespread popularity, it's a challenge to reflect how many people actually watched since some viewed the game in group settings such as watch parties. In 2025, Nielsen expanded its out-of-home measurement system to try and get a more accurate count.

Despite a few early hiccups, stadium attendance was also strong throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

“We have had a record number of spectators in the stadiums, almost 7 million," Infantino said. “We will have had, I mean the official figures will come out soon, but probably over 6 billion people watching it from home.”

The weather cooperated — usually

Fans and players from other countries found out what Americans, Canadians and Mexicans have known for a long time — it can get pretty hot here in the summer. Climate change isn't helping matters.

But Mother Nature could have been a lot meaner than she decided to be.

Even so, there were a handful of games that featured particularly hot and muggy conditions. The best example was a knockout-round game between Paraguay and France on July 4 in Philadelphia when temperatures hovered around 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius).

The World Cup final on Sunday also dodged a potential problem when smoke from Canadian wildfires that wrapped the Northeast in haze mostly cleared from the New Jersey area just in time thanks to some well-timed thunderstorms.

Size doesn't matter

This year's 48-team World Cup field was the biggest in the tournament's history and many thought it would water down the competition.

That wasn't the case.

Cape Verde held eventual champion Spain to a draw in its opening game, advanced to the round of 32 and gave Argentina a scare before losing 3-2 in extra time in a World Cup classic. Congo also advanced beyond the group stage and pushed England before eventually losing, while Curaçao was still in with a chance of making the knockouts going into its final group match.

After those Cinderella stories, fans eventually got to enjoy semifinal games full of heavyweights. England, Argentina, Spain and France were the top four in the world rankings.

Politics can't be ignored

The World Cup is famously a petri dish for political conflict, and this year's version provided its share of strife.

Iran's participation in the tournament amid the war in the Middle East was a particularly thorny issue and the team had to move its base camp from Arizona to Mexico. The Iranians' participation was overshadowed by travel complaints and visa issues, with the U.S. refusing visas to several members of Iran’s delegation.

U.S. President Donald Trump's relationship with Infantino was scrutinized after American striker Folarin Balogun’s one-game ban for a red card was suspended ahead of the team’s round of 16 game against Belgium.

Travel restrictions for a series of countries prevented some fans from traveling to the U.S., but there were no reports of the aggressive immigration enforcement that some human rights groups had feared could take place around World Cup stadiums.

Infantino brushed aside most of the controversies, instead focusing on the positives. While the FIFA president has a vested interest in painting a rosy picture of this year's World Cup, there's little doubt the tournament was a hit from a soccer perspective.

“I think we have to invent a new vocabulary, new words to define the success of this World Cup,” Infantino said.

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AP Soccer Writer James Robson and AP Sports Writer Joe Reedy contributed to this story.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

It was the second major change Zelenskyy has made under street pressure, after protests last summer forced him to undo a law weakening Ukraine’s anti-corruption watchdogs.

Zelenskyy appointed Mykhailo Drapatyi as the new army chief, according to a statement on social media. “Our shared wish is one — victory over the enemy and conditions at the front and in pressure on Russia that would force Russia toward peace,” Zelenskyy said.

The Ukrainian leader said he made the decision after a series of meetings with military commanders. They began shortly after protests broke out demanding the reinstatement of former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, seen by demonstrators as a driver of military modernization, and the removal of Syrskyi, who they said embodied the army’s old, Soviet-style command culture.

Zelenskyy thanked Syrskyi for his achievements in Ukraine's fight against Russia and praised him for the defense of Kyiv and for operations in Kharkiv and Kursk.

“I am grateful to Oleksandr Syrskyi and to every one of our warriors for Ukraine’s strong front-line positions,” he said. “I am grateful to Mykhailo Drapatyi for holding that same view.”

Drapatyi wrote in a Facebook post that serving Ukraine "has always been an honor for me, and during this war for independence, it means absolute responsibility.” He thanked Syrskyi for his consistent work strengthening the Ukrainian military.

“I grew up in it,” he added, referring to the army. “I will work responsibly, with focus and with respect for the people defending our state today.”

Zelenskyy said Drapatyi and other commanders must present an updated defense strategy, including continued reform of the corps system, faster weapons and drone deliveries, stronger air defense against Russian strikes and a clearer mobilization plan.

Former defense minister's future in the government remains unclear

Zelenskyy met separately with Fedorov on Tuesday and offered him what he called a respected position in the government that would unify the country’s technology sector. It wasn't clear if Fedorov accepted the offer — or whether the latest moves would satisfy protesters and calm the streets.

Fedorov congratulated Drapatyi, calling the appointment “new hope in the fight of free people for freedom and justice” and “a voice for change that could not go unheard.”

Fedorov had criticized Syrskyi publicly before his dismissal, saying the general was blocking his reform efforts and needed to be replaced for Ukraine not to fail in its resistance against Russia. He said Ukrainians’ high expectations must now be met with a clear vision for ending the war, decisive action to preserve soldiers’ lives, expand robotic warfare at the front, strike asymmetrically and exhaust Russia’s economy.

Fedorov called Syrskyi to thank him for defending the Kyiv region, the Kharkiv operation and other battles, calling it “already an important part of Ukraine’s history” but adding that the country must “move even faster and write new chapters, correcting all previous mistakes.”

The army chief's dismissal was sparked by protests

The crisis began last Thursday, when Zelenskyy overhauled his wartime government, replacing his prime minister and firing Mykhailo Fedorov as defense minister after just six months in the post.

Zelenskyy cited an unworkable rift between Fedorov and Syrskyi, telling reporters that as the two couldn’t resolve their dispute, he would “have to resolve it.”

Following his dismissal, Fedorov publicly accused Syrskyi of blocking military reforms and fostering a top-down command culture, criticism that echoed complaints from soldiers and veterans over heavy casualties in costly front-line assaults.

The reshuffle immediately drew thousands of protesters into the streets of Kyiv and other cities, framing Fedorov’s removal as Zelenskyy siding with an entrenched military old guard over a reformer.

The backlash promptly spread to inside the military: the Air Force’s deputy commander resigned in protest, warning the move would weaken Ukraine’s air defenses; veterans and soldiers on leave joined the protests in Kyiv and other cities, and numerous public figures among soldiers spoke out publicly against Syrskyi on social media.

Criticism of the military chief had escalated

Syrskyi has long been associated with a Soviet-style, top-down command culture, and many protesters said they wanted a new generation of generals who would place a higher priority on preserving soldiers’ lives.

Within the military, Syrskyi has earned the gruesome nickname of “Butcher,” which particularly spread during his command of the defense of Bakhmut, one of the war’s longest and costliest battles.

His already precarious public standing eroded further after Ukrainian outlet Babel published an investigation in June detailing allegations of abuse within the Skelia assault regiment, a unit closely associated with Syrskyi that has reportedly suffered higher-than-average battlefield losses. The investigation documented dozens of deaths among recruits.

Smart didn’t offer specifics. ESPN reported that Dowdell was involved in an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) accident. The outlet confirmed with Smart that Dowdell is receiving care at Shepherd Center in Atlanta, a medical facility specializing in treatment and rehabilitation for spinal cord and brain injuries.

“The Dante Dowdell situation is tough,” Smart told reporters. “I don’t know when he’ll be back. He had an off-campus accident back home during our break, and we’re praying for him and his family. We expect a full recovery, but the outlook right now is we’re waiting to see.”

Dowdell transferred to Georgia after rushing for 560 yards and three scores last season for Kentucky. The tailback from Picayune, Mississippi, was slated to compete for carries behind starter Nate Frazier. Dowdell spent the 2024 season with Nebraska and the '23 season at Oregon.

Smart told ESPN that Dowdell was “out of the really tough range, but as far as his complete health and coming all the way back, I don’t know what that looks like in terms of this year.”

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

Stephen Curry: Beyond the Arc is set to open Friday, celebrating the career of a two-time MVP and the NBA's career leader in 3-pointers.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced the exhibit Tuesday, saying it was the first time in the museum's nearly 75-year history that an active player would have a dedicated feature experience.

“When I think about my journey, I think about the people who believed in me, the work that happened when nobody was watching and the moments that shaped me on and off the court. To have that story told while I’m still playing is something I don’t take lightly," Curry said in a statement. "My hope is that fans walk through this experience and feel the joy, the purpose and the gratitude that basketball has given me, and maybe see a little bit of their own journey in it too.”

Developed in partnership with Curry's Thirty Ink business team, the exhibit will feature video footage of Curry's career, memorabilia and audio and video components that tell the story of a player who was overlooked going into college and has gone on to become a 12-time All-Star who led Golden State to four NBA championships.

“For him to become the first active player to have an exhibit in the Basketball Hall of Fame is a testament to what he represents to the game, to the Warriors, to the NBA and to his millions of fans around the world,” Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy said. “Obviously, this is only a prelude to his eventual induction in Springfield, but a fitting tribute to an iconic player and an amazing human being who has single-handedly changed the game.”

The Hall of Fame expects Curry's to be a limited time exhibit, likely to last through the summer of 2027 before closing.

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AP sports: https://apnews.com/hub/sports

Running back Leo Boehling and punter Ben Shrewsbury were named to the preseason first team, while offensive lineman Bryce Burnett and linebacker Isaiah Grevious earned second-team recognition.

Boehling is coming off a breakout 2025 season in which he rushed for 537 yards and two touchdowns on 128 carries. The Richmond native posted a career-high 149 rushing yards against The Citadel, highlighted by a 70-yard run. He also caught 14 passes for 88 yards and contributed on special teams with a 21-yard kick return against Mercer.

Shrewsbury earned first-team specialist honors after establishing himself as one of the top punters in the Football Championship Subdivision last season. The Jonesborough, Tennessee, native averaged nearly 48 yards per punt while totaling 4,075 yards on 85 punts, including a career-long 63-yard kick against ETSU. He pinned 22 punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line, converted all 15 extra-point attempts and made four field goals. Shrewsbury was a semifinalist for the Augusta Sports Council FCS Punter of the Year Award, earned first-team All-SoCon honors and was named a Stats Perform FCS All-American in 2025.

Burnett received second-team recognition after starting all 11 games on VMI’s offensive line last season. The Peachtree City, Georgia, native served as a team captain and earned a spot on the Fall All-SoCon Academic Team.

Grevious also landed on the second team after recording 60 tackles in 12 games last season. The Charlottesville native totaled 36 solo tackles, seven tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. He posted a career-high nine tackles against Furman, added eight stops against ETSU and recovered two fumbles during the 2025 campaign.

Carl McDaniel, 65, suffered multiple bone fractures in the July 10 attack at the national park but lived to tell the tale, as seen in a video he recorded a few days later from his bed at Bozeman Health Deaconess Medical Center in southern Montana.

“He wasn’t showing aggression or anything like that until it picked a target. That target happened to be me,” McDaniel said in the video posted on Instagram on Saturday.

McDaniel was on a after-dinner stroll with his grandson when the attack happened at Bridge Bay Campground, not far from Yellowstone Lake.

“They move faster than you could ever imagine. He just kept coming,” he said. The bison did not connect with McDaniel’s grandson, who was not hurt.

Bison can run up to 35 mph (56 kph), faster than the men’s world record in the 100-meter dash. They stand up to 6 feet (2 meters) tall, weigh up to 2,000 pounds (900 kilograms), and are North America’s biggest land animal.

Yellowstone records on average a couple of bison attacks every year. At least two people were attacked in the park in 2025.

Bozeman Health emergency department Dr. Eric Lowe said in the video that McDaniel suffered fractures in multiple places. McDaniel said the hardest part wasn’t the creature’s horns.

“I didn’t get bruises from him launching me in air,” he said. “It was the landing that became the problem.”

The 9-8 vote came after some Democrats had praised Clayton and indicated that they might vote for him. But that shifted after a contentious hearing last week in which Clayton repeatedly refused to say that former President Joe Biden won the 2020 election.

Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the panel, said at the end of the hearing that he was “bitterly disappointed” in Clayton, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York and a former Securities and Exchange Commission chairman, even though he had worked with him in the past.

The committee’s approval sets up a floor vote on Clayton’s nomination, potentially early next week. The vote took place behind closed doors, as is customary for the panel, and all Democrats voted against Clayton, according to a person familiar with the vote who requested anonymity to disclose it.

The Democratic pushback on Clayton comes as Trump has made revisiting the 2020 election, which he lost, a primary focus. On Thursday evening, he delivered a speech from the White House in which he again tried to cast doubts on that election and amplified debunked theories about Biden’s win.

Clayton told senators that he had no involvement with that speech, but he said repeatedly that the election was “certified” for Biden, declining to say outright that the Democrat won.

Warner said after the vote on Tuesday that he wants to see someone in the job “who is going to be a restraint, not an agitator.”

Republicans want to quickly confirm Clayton

Senators in both parties have expressed concerns about the interim director, Bill Pulte, who took over when Tulsi Gabbard resigned last month. Pulte has no known intelligence experience and investigated the president’s perceived enemies in his previous post as a federal housing regulator.

Republicans were hoping to confirm Clayton in June so he could replace Gabbard without Pulte serving as interim. But Trump delayed Clayton’s nomination before the Senate left for a two-week recess, allowing Pulte to take the job temporarily.

As the nomination heads to the Senate floor, it’s unclear whether Democrats will allow Republicans to speed up a vote. Though he is opposing Clayton's nomination, Warner said he didn't want to slow it down.

“We are between a rock and a hard place” with Pulte in the job, he said.

Clayton did not mention Pulte in the hearing last week. But he emphasized his own government and national security experience, attempting to assuage senators in both parties.

“I saw firsthand how a strong national security apparatus depends on decisive judgment, discipline, integrity, and effective communication and cooperation across different branches of the government,” Clayton said. “If confirmed as Director of National Intelligence, I will commit to upholding these principles every day.”

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton, R-Ark., who expressed frustration last month when the hearing was delayed, said that Clayton has a reputation for operating with “morality, decency and integrity” in his previous positions.

“Jay Clayton is a highly qualified nominee with a deep experience combating a wide range of national security threats," Cotton said in a statement on Tuesday.

The rally is set to take place in Oakland County on Monday, according to a person familiar with the plans who was not authorized to discuss the event publicly.

Early in-person voting begins Saturday ahead of the Aug. 4 primary, when voters will also select nominees for U.S. House and other statewide offices. Republican Mike Rogers is unopposed in the Senate primary, while the GOP gubernatorial contest has intensified between Trump-backed U.S. Rep. John James and businessman Perry Johnson.

The visit will allow the president to take his messaging on the road as Republicans grow concerned about how rising gas prices and an unpopular war in Iran might affect their midterm chances. Republicans are defending slim majorities in the House and Senate.

Trump carried Michigan in 2016 and 2024, and both parties view the battleground state as central to the 2026 midterm elections.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment.

Democrats are facing the most competitive race in the Aug. 4 primary, with U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens and progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed battling for the party's Senate nomination. The winner will face Rogers, who lost narrowly in 2024 to now-Sen. Elissa Slotkin.

Republicans have faced a bruising contest for the gubernatorial nomination, however, with Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer term-limited. James has been endorsed by Trump, but Johnson has spent millions attacking James on television and digital advertising.

Johnson's campaign has already advertised a “Trump Tailgate” on Monday.

Oakland County, where Trump is set to appear, was long considered one of Michigan’s premier political bellwether counties. Democrats have steadily expanded their margins there even as Trump carried the state in 2016 and again in 2024.

Republicans saw 2026 as a chance to finally gain back power in a state that has been dominated by Democrats — outside of Trump's wins — over the past decade. But surging gas prices, an unpopular war in Iran and tariffs that have hit the state’s auto industry hard have all contributed to concerns about a worsening political environment for Michigan Republicans.

In May, a Democrat won a special election by almost 20 points in a state Senate district that Kamala Harris won by less than 1 point in 2024. The previous officeholder, a Democrat, carried the seat by 6 percentage points in 2022.

Sands announced in April that he would be stepping down from his role. The Board of Visitors has been searching for his replacement since then.

Board of Visitors Vice Rector and search committee Chair Nancy Dye told the committee the process demands speed and flexibility, noting that competing universities are pursuing some of the same candidates.

“We must be nimble as a committee,” Dye said, addressing the committee. “As candidates we identify may very well be involved in other searches or being pursued by other universities. For example, the Clemson search involved two names on our list, one who took the presidency and another.”

Subcommittee to conduct candidate interviews

As the candidate pool narrows, Dye said the committee plans to form a smaller, representative subcommittee to conduct interviews and report back to the full Board of Visitors.

“We will be appointing a smaller, representative subcommittee who will participate in interviews with the candidates and make recommendations to the board of visitors,” Dye told the committee. “We will solicit inputs on questions and areas of interest from the search committee at large.”

Dye described the effort as a vigorous national and international search conducted in partnership with search firm Isaacson Miller, and pointed to recent high-profile searches at Clemson, Michigan State, the University of Florida, and Northeastern University as examples of how quickly the process can move.

When it comes to evaluating candidates, Dye said the committee is looking for a specific profile — not simply someone successful in their current role.

“We are looking for proven leaders experienced, crisis tested, with understanding of a large, complex land grant university,” she told the committee.

Survey reveals community priorities

Greg Esposito of Isaacson Miller told the search committee a community survey has drawn more than 2,000 responses so far. The results point to broad agreement on what the next president should bring to the job.

“The survey found strong consensus that the next president should demonstrate integrity, sound judgment, transparent leadership and a commitment to student success while prioritizing faculty and staff retention, financial sustainability, affordability, and the land grant mission,” Esposito said, addressing the committee.

Respondents also expressed a desire for visible, accessible leadership and a focus on strengthening Virginia Tech’s academic reputation and research excellence, Esposito said.

The survey respondents were predominantly alumni, making up about 77% of responses, and Blacksburg-centered, at about 92%, according to Esposito.

That possibility prompted the state Democratic Party on Tuesday to make a plea to the state elections commission, urging it to allow voters who already cast an absentee ballot to vote again. More than 80,000 ballots have already been returned.

The request is all-but certain to result in a lawsuit with the primary just three weeks away.

Democrats want to allow voters to cast new ballots after Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, a Democrat, ended her campaign for governor on Friday and another candidate, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, rejoined the race with the endorsement of current Gov. Tony Evers. There are now five Democratic candidates actively campaigning for governor ahead of the Aug. 11 primary.

Any voter who already returned an absentee ballot cast for Rodriguez would not be able to get a new ballot, based on guidance approved by the bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission earlier this month. The guidance was adopted after another Democratic candidate for governor, Missy Hughes, dropped out in June. Both Rodriguez and Hughes remain on the ballot even though they have ended their campaigns.

The winner of the Democratic primary for governor is likely to face Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who has only token opposition. The seat is open after Evers decided against seeking a third term. Democrats hope to retain the office and flip both chambers of the Legislature to gain full control of state government for the first time since 2010.

Democrats say absentee voters must be allowed to vote again

The Democratic Party argues that the commission’s guidance must be rescinded because it reversed its own rule that was in place four years ago and is inconsistent with a 2006 U.S. Supreme Court ruling. That ruling said voting rules should not be changed close to an election.

If the elections commission does not reverse itself and allow for new absentee ballots to be cast, “some voters will not be able to truly participate in our Democratic primary process,” Democratic Party Chairman Devin Remiker said in a statement.

He said the party asked for the reversal after checking with all five of the candidates actively campaigning for the Democratic nomination for governor.

Rodriguez ended her campaign after discovering that she had far less money on hand than she thought. She blamed her campaign manager for double counting donations and underreporting expenses. A day after she dropped out, Crowley rejoined the race. He had gotten out on July 8 and endorsed Rodriguez.

Both Crowley and Hughes were at the bottom of the field in public opinion polls before they dropped out. Hughes ended her campaign June 22 and said Democrats needed to coalesce around a candidate who could win in November. She endorsed Rodriguez, who then dropped out less than a month later.

Absentee voting by mail has been going on since late June and early in-person voting begins on July 28. Wisconsin Republican Party Chairman Brian Schimming criticized the push by Democrats to allow early absentee voters to cast a fresh ballot.

“Their primary is already chaotic enough," he said. “Election laws should not be changed to rescue one party from the consequences of its own actions.”

Fight over recasting absentee ballots dates to 2022

The rarely used practice known as ballot spoiling was the subject of a lawsuit in 2022. A Waukesha County judge sided with a Republican group that brought the lawsuit, ruling in October 2022 that the elections commission must rescind its guidance allowing for spoiling of ballots. But a state appeals court put that on hold just weeks before the midterm election that year.

And then in February, a state appeals court repealed the ruling, saying the lawsuit was not properly served. The appeals court did not address the merits of the case.

Despite that ruling, the elections commission voted 4-2 to prohibit voters who have already turned in their absentee ballot from getting a new one. One Democratic commissioner joined with three Republicans in voting in favor of the prohibition. Two Democrats voted against it.

It's rare for absentee voters in Wisconsin to seek a new ballot

There’s no way to know how many of the spoiled ballots were from Democrats or Republicans because voters in Wisconsin do not register by party. Voters who obtained an absentee ballot, but have not yet voted and want to obtain a new one, can still do that.

Previously in Wisconsin, voters who had submitted an absentee ballot could spoil it and cast a new ballot up to three times for any reason. But it very rarely happened.

From the 2018 midterms through the 2022 primary, less than 1% of all votes cast were cast by people who cast a new absentee ballot after spoiling an earlier one, data from the Wisconsin Elections Commission showed.

The Trump administration is making it harder for the public to know, moving to toss aside a 60-year-old requirement for tens of thousands of private sector employers to submit workforce demographic reports each year to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the agency responsible for enforcing anti-discrimination laws in the workplace.

The EEOC's Republican majority voted 2-1 Tuesday to rescind the data collection requirement, submitting the proposal to a 30-day public commentary period before final approval. The proposal is a quiet but profound salvo in President Donald Trump's shake up of civil rights enforcement, ending a practice that has endured through 10 Republican and Democratic administrations.

EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas, an outspoken critic of diversity and inclusion practices who has urged white men to come forward with discrimination complaints, argued that requiring companies to submit the annual demographic reports risks encouraging companies to justify discriminatory practices to diversify their workforce.

“It may promote racial stereotyping at work, and it may encourage employers to engage in discrimination," Lucas said during a hearing ahead of the vote.

Former Democratic EEOC commissioners and civil rights organizations have denounced the proposal, saying it will deprive the agency of a critical tool for uncovering discrimination patterns and tracking how women and racial minorities have fared since the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which created the EEOC and prohibited employment discrimination based on race, color, sex, national origin and religion.

The EEOC, which receives more than 88,000 worker complaints each year, has historically used the data to guide its enforcement priorities and inform some of its investigations.

Commissioner Kalpana Kotagal, the sole Democrat left on the EEOC since Trump moved to wrest control of the agency, voted against the proposal.

“Today, the commission discusses whether to turn back time to a period before the civil rights movement, kneecapping its ability to protect workers,” Kotagal said.

Here's what to know about the reporting requirement and the proposal to end it:

How the EEOC has collected the data

Since 1966, the EEOC has required companies with at least 100 employees, or federal contractors with at least 50 workers, to submit a form called the EEO-1 each year.

The form, which has evolved over time, identifies 10 job categories from “Executive/Senior Level Officials and Managers” to “Laborers” and “Service Workers.” It asks employers to report on the number male and female workers in each job category, as well as the number of workers from different race and ethnicities: Hispanic or Latino, Black or African American, Asian, Native Hawaiian, American Indian or Alaska Native and two or more races.

The data typically covers more than 50 million employees and 73,000 employers nationwide.

A view into gender and race in the private sector

The EEOC launched during the Biden administration an interactive tool allowing the public to explore historical demographic metrics across industries and job categories. The most recent data is from 2023. Under the Trump administration, the EEOC last collected EEO-1 data for the year 2024 but has not publicly disclosed it. Collection of the year 2025 would have begun this year.

The data shows white men dominating executive and senior manager roles at private companies, though women and minorities have made inroads, especially in the years following the #MeToo and Black Lives Matters movements.

Women remain underrepresented in the top ranks of companies. While they make up nearly half the workforce at the companies surveyed, women held just 34.5% of executives and senior manager roles in 2023. That was up from 29.2% a decade earlier.

White and Asian women made the fastest gains, and by 2023, were no longer underrepresented in senior roles compared to their numbers in the overall workforce. In contrast, Black and Hispanic women remained sharply underrepresented in executive and senior manager roles despite making modest gains.

Asian men have been proportionally represented in senior roles for years, while Black and Hispanic men remained underrepresented in 2023.

Of those demographic groups, only one was overrepresented in senior roles: white men, who made up a third of the overall workforce at the companies surveyed but held 52.7% of executive and senior management roles.

Why the government wants to end the data collection

Lucas said the annual reporting requirements impose “hundreds of millions of dollars” on costs on employers, a burden she argued was unnecessary absent “any allegation, indication, or evidence of discrimination.”

The move was recommended by Project 2025, the conservative Heritage Foundation’s blueprint that has guided many of the Trump administration’s policies.

A group of former Democratic EEOC commissioners and legal counselors said there is little evidence that companies are routinely using employment data to engage in quotas or race-based hiring.

“This is simply inaccurate and unsupported speculation, at odds with the ways in which this data is actually collected, managed and used,” the former officials said in a statement.

Instead, the officials said, tracking such data encourages companies to proactively examine their hiring, promotion, benefits and other policies to ensure they are not unnecessarily erecting barriers.

Kotagal said the agency has used the data to determine whether a discrimination charge might be part of a deeper pattern at a company. She cited a recent investigation of California supermarket chain Vallarta Food Enterprises, in which the EEOC alleges the grocer failed or refused to recruit, hire or promote non-Hispanic individuals. In that case, EEO-1 data showed that “nearly 100 percent of its employees were Hispanic,” Kotagal said. “It’s a key tool in our toolbox.”

The agency has also issued special reports on demographic employment trends across certain industries or roles.

Kotagal highlighted a 2024 report on the tech sector, which showed that women had made virtually no gains between 2014 and 2022, and that workers under 40 years old had actually lost ground. The report also found tech company workers were more likely that others to file age or pay discrimination charges, suggesting systemic barriers to women and older workers in the industry.

The report has been removed from the EEOC’s website.

Corporate retreat from demographic disclosure

The EEOC is prohibited from publicly releasing an individual company’s EEO-1 form, only publishing the information in the aggregate. In recent years, however, a growing number of the country’s top companies began publicly releasing their forms in response to pressure from shareholders and Democratic elected officials to show transparency in their diversity efforts.

Many of those companies have complained that job categories in the EEO-1 forms don't align with their internal structures, a point Lucas echoed Tuesday, saying the categories don't reflect the modern workforce. But advocates of EEO-1 disclosure argued it's the only standardized form that allows for comparison across companies, and offer more detail.

However, the trend toward transparency has started to reverse.

Companies have started to pull back on publicizing both EEO-1 forms and their own diversity reports, which conservative advocates and the Trump administration have seized on to argue that companies are using discriminatory tactics to add women and minorities to their ranks.

In 2025, 24 companies in the S&P 100 — the largest U.S. publicly traded companies — chose not to disclose their EEO-1 data after having done so the year before, according to Andrew Jones, principal researcher at The Conference Board Governance & Sustainability Center. Still, 60 S&P 100 companies did release the data.

Meanwhile, fewer companies are publicizing any form of demographic metrics. The number of Russell 3,000 companies that disclosed metrics on women in the workforce fell from 75% in 2024 to 62% in 2025, according to a study by The Conference Board. Those disclosing metrics on minority representation fell from 30.9% to 26.5%.

Why companies may keep gathering data

Companies are still likely to keep track of their demographic data, whether or not they disclose any of those metrics publicly, and even if they are no longer required to submit annual EEO-1 reports. That's because Title VII requires employers to keep records that could be pertinent to any discrimination investigation, and the EEOC is empowered to request them.

“What we are generally advising is to stay the course,” Jennifer Robins, counsel in law firm Saul Ewing’s Labor and Employment Group. “Private litigants, employment discrimination lawsuits are not going away, and this data is helpful to defending oneself.”

The EEOC has demanded extensive demographic data from companies to bolster Lucas' own marquee cases. Those include an investigation into diversity, equity and inclusion practices of sports giant Nike, which Lucas has alleged discriminate against white employees; a lawsuit against the New York Times for allegedly discriminating against a white man who was passed over for a promotion, and an investigation into alleged antisemitism against staff at the University of Pennsylvania.

Lucas emphasized Tuesday that the EEOC would continue to demand data in the course of its investigations. Kotagal warned employers that under future leadership, the EEOC could reinstitute the EEO-1 collection.

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families, said she sees the elimination of EEO-1 data as part of an effort to obscure the prevalence of discrimination against racial minorities and women and create of a sense of urgency around protecting white workers from DEI-related policies.

But Frye said the data "doesn’t suggest that their top priority ought to be discrimination against white men.

"If the chair is moving forward with an agenda that thinks she ought to be focused on men and ought to be focused on white people, my answer is, ‘Well, does the data tell you that?’” Frye said.

___

The Associated Press’ women in the workforce coverage receives financial support from Pivotal Ventures. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

The ruling clarifies that an earlier injunction blocking the laws applies statewide, meaning neither Virginia State Police nor local law enforcement can enforce restrictions on the sale of certain assault-style firearms or new public carry restrictions while the legal challenge works its way through the courts. The ruling takes effect July 21, giving law enforcement and commonwealth’s attorneys time to review and comply.

Lawful gun owners voice concern

For Bedford County gun owner Freda Easterly, the debate hits close to home.

“Taking guns or restricting gun ownership and purchases from people who legally own them and have gone through all the right steps to obtain them — that isn’t going to change what’s going on on the other end,” Easterly said.

Easterly said her biggest concern centers on what future restrictions could mean for those who follow the law.

“I have no criminal history. I took a gun safety course. I qualified with my weapon. I keep my concealed weapons permit up. All my guns I purchased legally. And I feel like I’m doing everything the right legal way. And I shouldn’t be restricted on that because I’ve done nothing wrong,” she said.

Lawmakers weigh in

State Sen. Bill Stanley said he supports the court’s opinion, arguing that the laws went too far.

“It’s always a laudable goal to create more security in the communities, but in order to create security you can’t then take away the rights of the citizenry to protect themselves,” Stanley said.

Stanley also noted the confusion that surrounded the laws when they first took effect.

“A lot of people out there were confused. They couldn’t understand why something they bought on June 30 was now something they couldn’t buy on July 1,” he said.

Attorney general plans to appeal

Attorney General Jay Jones defended the intent behind the legislation, saying community safety remains the priority.

“We want to keep our communities safe. I’m a parent. I have two young boys. I want to make sure that they grow up in safe communities just like every other citizen here in Virginia,” Jones said.

Jones’ office has said it plans to appeal the injunction as the legal challenge moves forward. The case is expected to reach the Virginia Supreme Court.

Some who challenged the laws had assumed they applied statewide, but the attorney general had only intended the laws to be applied to a few localities and the State Police — a distinction that ultimately fueled further legal questions.

For Easterly, the uncertainty is hard to shake.

“But again, I’m concerned about my rights. Further down the road, could we lose our rights?” she said.

The flight carrying 700 packages is meant to bypass the Cuban government, with the items distributed directly to the Cuban people by Catholic groups in Cuba, according to the U.S. State Department.

Tuesday’s shipment is a $60 million first tranche of a total of $100 million the U.S. offered to Cuba some time ago. It comes after months of intensified U.S. pressure on the Cuban government and government-related institutions that has focused mainly on imposing significant sanctions against the country’s military and intelligence apparatus. The imposition of an energy and oil blockade has practically paralyzed the Cuban economy and the daily lives of people on the island.

The latest iteration of this was a lengthy document released by the State Department on Monday accusing Cuba of running a vast espionage and left-wing influence operation in the United States over the past five decades.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a son of Cuban immigrants, has taken a personal interest in pushing Cuba to make changes to its socialist system, while President Donald Trump has on several occasions suggested that the U.S. could take military action to topple the island’s communist government.

Jeremy Lewin, the State Department’s senior official for foreign assistance, humanitarian affairs and religious freedom, said the partnership builds upon a program that last year delivered $9 million in direct support to the island following Hurricane Melissa.

He said challenges have included convincing the Cuban government to allow the aid’s distribution and agree not to intercept and take it for themselves. Lewin said that since local priests and Catholic groups are distributing the assistance directly, “there’s very little, if any, opportunity for the regime to interfere with the delivery of the assistance.”

Sean Callahan, president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services, said he visited the island a few weeks ago to ensure accountability for the aid's distribution.

“We’re hoping that this is one small step forward on the humanitarian side,” Callahan said. “But hopefully we’ll bring the people of the United States and Cuba together into the future.”

Neither the Cuban government nor its press reported on Tuesday's humanitarian flight from the U.S.

In early July, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez dismissed the announcements of aid that had yet to arrive as “fantasy,” while downplaying the amount in contrast to all the losses the island suffers daily due to the energy blockade and sanctions imposed by the U.S.

“One hundred million dollars would certainly help, although we must acknowledge that it only amounts to five days of the blockade,” the foreign minister said.

___ Associated Press reporters Matthew Lee contributed from Washington, and Andrea Rodriguez contributed from Havana. Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america