Across the 77 insurers in the ACA program that have submitted rate filings that are publicly available, the median proposed premium increase for 2027 is 14%, according to Wednesday’s analysis from the healthcare research nonprofit KFF. The insurers cited mounting healthcare costs, federal regulatory changes and the recent expiration of pandemic-era enhanced subsidies as the biggest factors driving premiums higher.

The rise in premiums adds to what already was a significant jump in 2026, when the median rate increase was 20%, according to KFF. While many Americans in Obamacare still qualify for subsidies that protect them from paying the full premiums, middle-class enrollees making 400% of the poverty level or more will face an especially stark increase in costs.

The rate increases come as federal lawmakers have proposed various policy changes to overhaul the expensive U.S. healthcare system, but no comprehensive legislation has amassed enough support to pass. The higher costs are contributing to Americans’ existing worries about overall affordability, a concern that many voters say is front of mind with November’s midterm elections looming.

Insurers cite rising costs and a smaller, sicker covered population

Health insurers must send filings to regulators every year, explaining what they expect to see in premium rate changes for individual market health plans for the coming year.

Next year’s rates will be finalized later in the summer, but KFF’s analysis looked at those in the ACA marketplace that already are public across 16 states and Washington, D.C., to get an early glimpse at what insurers are saying. The report measured insurers’ premium increases as an average across all types of plans — bronze, silver, gold and platinum.

The analysis found that insurers listed rising costs across the healthcare sector — from hospital visits to prescription drugs, the workforce and sicker patients — as the biggest cause of rising premiums. Overall inflation contributed to that pressure, driving prices higher across the entire economy.

Insurers also blamed the expiration of federal subsidies that had offset costs for many people and caused the Affordable Care Act program to balloon in size in recent years. When those tax credits expired in January, many plan costs skyrocketed. That prompted large swaths of enrollees to depart the marketplace, leaving sicker patients who carry higher risks and costs, and driving premiums higher.

New state-by-state data posted by the Trump administration shows that the overall ACA marketplace shrunk by more than 2.5 million people over the past year, with some states seeing declines amounting to nearly a third of their enrollee population.

Some insurers added that federal regulatory changes contributed to their requests for higher premiums. For example, they said new enrollment and eligibility requirements instituted by the Trump administration could affect the overall population of ACA enrollees.

While Affordable Care Act enrollees make up less than 10% of the population, similar cost drivers are likely to make other private plans, including employer-sponsored plans, pricier too, according to KFF’s analysis.

Findings align with other analyses

Georgetown University’s Center on Health Insurance Reforms also published an analysis of preliminary ACA insurer rate filings last month. Like KFF’s, it projected double-digit premium increases in the marketplace next year.

Stacey Pogue, a senior research fellow at the center who authored the report, said the enrollees most affected by the rising premiums will be those who don’t qualify for financial help. She said those people already saw the most significant increases to their premiums in 2026, with some of their premiums doubling or tripling.

“Those are the folks who kind of got a double whammy” this year, she said.

Pogue said the rate filings are demonstrating what many analysts had expected: that the expiration of enhanced tax credits would cause healthy Americans to flee the marketplace and leave a sicker patient population that relies more heavily on insurance.

“When the healthy people leave, the prices go up,” she said. “The analysts all predicted that, and now that’s what we’re seeing.”

A member of Tyler Robinson's defense team interrogated a DNA analyst from the FBI on Tuesday about the techniques she used to connect Robinson to a rifle found wrapped inside a towel at Utah Valley University, where Kirk was shot in September while speaking to a crowd.

Defense lawyer Michael Burt cast doubt on the analyst's conclusions — a theme that's likely to come up again during the five-day preliminary hearing.

“She can't match Mr. Robinson to the questioned samples,” Burt concluded.

Deputy Utah County Attorney Ryan McBride countered that the reliability of the DNA testing could be examined if the case goes to trial. He suggested the preliminary hearing was not the time to take up the matter.

“The point is there are explanations that are susceptible to different interpretations and arguments,” McBride said. “The court is going to determine if it meets the threshold of reliability at trial.”

Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty in the case. They are trying to convince Judge Tony Graf that they have enough evidence to bring Robinson to trial on an aggravated murder charge.

Robinson has not yet entered a plea and his attorneys have not commented on his guilt or innocence. They have, however, sought to get the death penalty taken off the table, so far unsuccessfully.

Prosecutors must show they have enough evidence for a trial

FBI analyst Amanda Bakker said after Robinson’s roommate provided a DNA sample for comparison, she was able to rerun her tests and attribute all of the DNA to two people.

Investigators found the towel and suspected murder weapon — a bolt-action rifle with one spent round — in a wooded area near where Kirk was shot.

DNA on the towel matched to two people, Jennifer Faumuina with the State Bureau of Investigation testified. One was Robinson’s roommate, Lance Twiggs, and the other was very likely Robinson, she said. Twiggs, a key figure in the prosecution’s case, will not testify in person this week, but prosecutors have said they plan to introduce a recorded statement.

Prosecutors allege Robinson confessed in a note left for Twiggs, who was also his romantic partner, that read: “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it.”

In a surveillance video shown in court from the day Kirk was killed, Robinson could be seen climbing over a railing onto a rooftop, crouching down and running to a site overlooking where the activist was speaking, former State Bureau of Investigation Agent David Hull testified Tuesday.

Hull said that after shooting Kirk, Robinson ran back across the roof, dropped to the ground and fled on foot.

Defense team pushes back

Defense attorney Kathryn Nester questioned Hull’s handling of the crime scene on the day of the shooting. She also asked about a bullet that was found on campus at a different location than the alleged site of the shooting.

Hull said that bullet was traced back to a law enforcement officer who had “cleared” his weapon, ejecting an unused bullet.

Prosecutors contend the shooting endangered others at Kirk’s campus event — an aggravating circumstance that could make the crime punishable by death under Utah law. Robinson also faces possible sentence enhancements based on the prosecution’s claim that he targeted Kirk because of his political views.

During one of several appearances on campus by Robinson on Sept. 10, Hull said the defendant went to the amphitheater where Kirk was later shot and contacted representatives of Turning Point USA, a group co-founded by Kirk that galvanized the conservative youth vote to help Trump win a second term.

The investigator did not detail what occurred during that interaction or if members of Kirk’s security team were present.

Robinson turned himself in after the shooting. Prosecutors allege he sent a text to Twiggs saying he targeted Kirk because he “had enough of his hatred.”

Robinson’s defense team pushed back Tuesday on the idea that he was hostile to Kirk’s politics. Defense attorney Richard Novak sought to block prosecutors from introducing a statement describing the traditional Christian values of Turning Point USA.

“This doesn’t say anything about Mr. Robinson’s state of mind,” Novak said about the statement from Turning Point USA board member David Engelhardt. “I don’t think that this court should be deciding — based on the record before it — where, if at all, politics and religion intersect.”

The judge ruled that the Turning Point statement was relevant and would be “provisionally admitted” with a final decision at a later date.

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Brown reported from Billings, Montana.

Speaking at the summit a day after Trump again expressed a desire for the U.S. to control Greenland, Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said, “Greenland is of course not for sale.”

“We hope that all, including all allies, will respect the Greenland people’s right for self-determination,” she said. “And we are sovereign states and we need everybody to respect our territorial integrity and our sovereignty.”

NATO leaders are trying to show increased military capabilities as the U.S. focus shifts from defending Europe. The alliance is holding a two-day summit in Ankara, Turkey, that will showcase military projects worth billions of dollars aimed at persuading Trump they are making a stronger Europe for a stronger NATO.

Iceland’s Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir said Wednesday that Greenland’s people “do not wish to be a part of the United States” and that NATO allies should focus on the threat from Russia.

Trump, in a major twist Tuesday, launched a series of strikes on Iran and revoked a license that allowed Tehran to sell its oil on the world market. Iran retaliated with strikes targeting Bahrain and Kuwait. Trump said Wednesday that the interim agreement with Iran is “over,” but he will allow talks to continue.

Here is the latest:

In a win for Ukraine, Trump says US will allow Patriot air defense missiles to be made overseas

President Trump said Wednesday that the U.S. will give a license for its Patriot air defense systems to be made overseas for Ukraine to counter Russian missile attacks, a huge coup for Ukraine which has badly needed the technology in the war that’s now in its fifth year.

Trump made the announcement as he met Wednesday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the NATO summit in Turkey, praising him as having “done an amazing job” and “been very effective” in the war.

“We’ll give them the right to make Patriots. We’ll show them how to do it,” Trump said.

Zelenskyy has long sought more of the defense systems, which are expensive, in high demand and take a long time to manufacture. He’s been pressing for Ukraine to be granted a license to manufacture the technology.

Trump says US is preparing for more strikes against Iran

The president said Wednesday that the U.S. is preparing for another night of strikes against Iran, just hours after he said the ceasefire was over.

“We hit them very hard last night,” Trump said when asked about a possible return to hostilities. “We’ll probably hit them hard again tonight.”

Trump made the remark in Ankara on the sidelines of the NATO summit. He said the strikes are continued retaliation for attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.

“They are behaving very badly,” he said of Iran, accusing the country of launching drones and a missile at ships.

Trump has warm remarks in meeting with Zelenskyy

Though the U.S. president and his Ukrainian counterpart had a tense encounter at the White House last year, Trump said Wednesday as he sat with Zelenskyy, “We’ve actually developed a good relationship. It’s hard to believe.”

He said Ukraine has a good future with “such great land, such great assets, such great people” and that they were going to have a good talk together.

He also called Russian President Vladimir Putin a “difficult character” and Zelenskyy “a difficult character.”

Details of the next NATO summit are up in the air

Albania has been left wondering about whether it will host NATO’s next summit and when.

The Balkans country had been due to host one in 2027. But instead of referencing that rendezvous on their end-of-summit declaration as they usually do, the NATO leaders on Wednesday only said “we look forward to our next meeting” without providing details.

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama is generally well liked by his fellow leaders, but some NATO allies have cooled on the idea of holding a summit in Albania given his country’s low rate of defense spending.

Other allies are reluctant to hold another meeting at the mercy of Trump and are considering moving away from annual summits.

NATO leaders also pledged more money for Ukraine’s defense

NATO leaders pledged to provide Ukraine with $80 billion to help meet its defense needs this year and next, noting “the long-term threat Russia poses to Euro-Atlantic security.”

They also underlined that “Iran must never have a nuclear weapon” and called on Tehran “to fully respect freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”

NATO leaders reaffirm commitment to Article 5

NATO leaders reaffirmed their commitment to protect each other should any of them come under attack and said they’re working to make the alliance stronger by giving Europe more responsibility.

In a declaration after their summit in Ankara, the leaders said their resolve to defend each other under Article 5 of NATO’s treaty is “ironclad” and added “an attack on one is an attack on all.”

“We are building the future: A stronger Europe in a stronger NATO,” Trump and his counterparts wrote in the declaration.

The declaration comes after President Trump’s comments about a U.S. takeover of Greenland have rattled the military alliance.

US markets retreat, oil prices jump more than 5% after Trump says ceasefire with Iran is ‘over’

U.S. stock futures slid lower and oil prices surged more than 5% after President Trump said Wednesday that the interim agreement with Iran is over, though he’ll allow talks to continue.

Futures for the S&P 500 were down 0.7% before the opening bell, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 1%. Nasdaq futures were off 1.1%.

Trump made the comments following U.S. strikes on Iran that were a retaliation for attacks on three ships in the Strait of Hormuz. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, jumped $3.94 to $78.10 a barrel. U.S. benchmark crude surged $3.60 to $74.04 a barrel.

“For me, I think it’s over,” Trump responded when asked about the status of the ceasefire. “It’s just a waste of time dealing with them,” he said on the sidelines of the two-day NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey.

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Trump scheduled to host Lebanese president at White House

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun is scheduled to visit Trump on July 21, a White House official said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly announce it.

A statement from the Lebanese embassy in Washington said the leaders will discuss regional security and other topics of mutual interest.

The U.S. helped broker a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel, and the issue has been a continued factor in negotiations toward the end of the war in Iran.

Lebanon likely to loom large in Trump-Sharaa meeting

Damascus and Washington have been tight-lipped about the agenda of Wednesday’s planned meeting between Trump and Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, but it’s likely that they will discuss Syria’s role in neighboring Lebanon.

Despite having once been an al-Qaida fighter, al-Sharaa has won Trump’s good graces, and Syria under him has restored long-shattered ties with the west.

Trump has several times publicly proposed that Syria should supplant Israel in combating the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Al-Sharaa has said that he has no desire to intervene militarily in Lebanon. Syria remained on the sidelines of the regional war that erupted after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran.

Trump and al-Sharaa will also likely discuss Syria’s relations with Israel, which is currently occupying a strip of southern Syria, while negotiations for a security agreement between the two countries have stalled.

Trump’s barbs are helping to draw Europe closer together

Trump’s attacks on Italy’s premier last month had an unintended consequence.

After Trump questioned Italy’s reliability as a wartime ally and claimed Giorgia Meloni had groveled for his attention, European leaders rallied to Meloni’s side, thawing what had been a frosty relationship over her hard-right political roots.

It was the latest example of how the often divisive American president is helping to draw Europe closer together.

This newfound European unity is already being tested in Turkey as Trump renews his attacks against NATO allies and claims that the U.S. should take over Greenland.

Turkey reveals its new military HQ

Turkey unveiled its new “Crescent and Star” military headquarters in Ankara to NATO defence ministers.

“This new headquarters complex will be fully operational soon and it will take its place among the largest military headquarters in the world,” Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler told his counterparts.

The design of the building, which is still under construction, replicates the image on Turkey’s flag when viewed from above.

“Being more than just a modern headquarters facility, it stands as a physical symbol of Turkey’s consolidated, agile and forward-looking defense posture,” Guler added.

Leaders meet behind closed doors for summit’s central discussion

The heads of NATO member countries gathered for a meeting that was originally scheduled to last three hours.

The meeting began with remarks from Erdogan and Rutte, with Trump seated to their right.

After the session, Trump is scheduled to have one-on-one meetings with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and then Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa.

Spain says relationship with US is ‘excellent’

In response to Trump’s comments, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s office said that Spain “maintains an excellent social, cultural, and economic relationship with the US, and we have no intention of seeing that change.”

The spokesperson said the Spanish government regarded such statements “as a matter of routine.”

The spokesperson referenced the U.S.’ trade surplus with Spain, and the fact that the European Union handles trade for the bloc’s 27 member countries.

Erdogan offers to assist Hormuz demining efforts

Erdogan says his country is prepared to contribute to demining efforts in the Strait of Hormuz.

The Turkish president made the remarks in a speech marking the opening of the summit he is hosting.

Earlier, Erdogan was seen in a huddle with Trump, joined by Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Intelligence Chief Ibrahim Kalin.

Syrian president arrives in Ankara

As NATO member countries commenced their meeting in Ankara Wednesday, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa arrived in the Turkish capital, Syrian state television reported.

It said al-Sharaa will “hold numerous meetings with world leaders” in addition to his scheduled bilateral meeting with Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit.

Oil prices surge nearly 6%

The price of Brent crude oil jumped 5.7% to more than $78 a barrel after Trump’s comments on the ceasefire with Iran on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey.

U.S. benchmark crude surged 5.8% to $74.55 a barrel. Crude prices had declined recently from spikes well above $100 a barrel to around the levels they were at before the war with Iran began in late February.

NATO chief looks to defuse Greenland tensions

Speaking alongside Trump on the sidelines of the summit, Rutte reassured Trump that their earlier security framework involving Greenland is still in place.

“You and I made a deal in Davos,” Rutte said. “I will make sure that that deal is step-by-step being implemented.”

Trump earlier this year said he reached a deal with Rutte on Arctic security. It came as Trump was threatening tariffs against European countries in his push for U.S. control of Greenland.

The deal included assurances on the U.S.’s Golden Dome missile defense program, a $175 billion effort to put U.S. weapons in space.

Rutte tells Trump to ‘grab the win’

As Trump ticked off his litany of complaints about NATO - from defense spending to Greenland to Iran - it was again up to the alliance’s secretary general to try and soothe him.

Rutte responded with all the developments in defense spending from NATO allies.

“I would argue that without you in this chair, this would not have happened,” Rutte told Trump as the two met Wednesday morning. “Grab the win. It’s there.”

Rutte also pointed out to Trump, as he as done previously, that the countries that were unhelpful in Trump’s view on Iran were “isolated cases.”

Trump on Iran ceasefire: ‘For me, I think it’s over’

Trump told reporters at NATO that he will allow talks with Iran to continue, though he said, “It’s just a waste of time dealing with them.”

He made the comments hours after launching strikes on Iran to retaliate for strikes on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

“They can talk, but I think they’re wasting their time,” Trump said.

Trump says Greenland ‘is a big problem’

The president continued his demands for Greenland on Wednesday, saying the U.S. needs to gain ownership of it for security reasons.

His renewed insistence on claiming the semiautonomous territory of Denmark has upended the NATO summit in Ankara.

“Greenland is very important to the United States, but it’s not important to Denmark,” Trump argued, as he met with Rutte on the second day of the summit. He continued, “We need it for protection of the world, not just the United States.”

Trump renews threat to cut off trade with Spain

Lashing out at Spain and calling it a “terrible partner,” Trump on Wednesday revived an earlier threat to break off trade.

“Spain is a wasted cause,” Trump said on the sidelines of the NATO summit. “We don’t want to do any trade business with Spain anymore, by the way. I’d like to cut it off.”

He went on: “I don’t want anything to do with Spain. Cut off all trade with Spain, including visits.”

Trump made a similar threat in March, citing Spain’s lack of support for his war in Iran and resistance to increasing NATO spending.

Greece calls for recognition of ‘sensitivities’

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis would not directly comment on the possible sale of F-35 fighter jets to Turkey, but said his country was “still faced with an open threat” from Turkey and that Athens’ sensitivities must be taken into consideration.

He was referring to a long-standing warning by Turkey that Ankara would consider a move by Greece to expand its territorial waters in the Aegean from 6 to 12 miles as a “cause of war.”

NATO allies Turkey and Greece have decades-old disputes over an array of issues, including territorial claims in the Aegean Sea and disputes over the airspace there.

“We need to be cognizant of the fact that the sensitivities of all NATO allies need to be taken into consideration,” Mitsotakis said.

After launching strikes on Iran, Trump says ceasefire is ‘over’ but says negotiations can continue

Trump said Wednesday that the interim agreement with Iran is “over” but he will allow talks to continue.

“For me, I think it’s over,” Trump responded when asked about the status of the ceasefire. “It’s just a waste of time dealing with them.”

He made the comment on the sidelines of the two-day NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, and hours after striking Iran in what the U.S. described as retaliation for strikes on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

Belgian PM puts the boots in at NATO summit

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever was upbeat about NATO’s support to Ukraine and used the organization’s new loan plans for the country to take a sly dig at the United States.

De Wever noted that NATO stands ready to provide 70 billion euros ($80 billion) in military aid to Ukraine this year and in 2027.

“This is also a very strong ‘red card’ to Putin,” he said, adding, “You can’t just take back a red card. You know that.”

Belgium beat the U.S. 4-1 on Monday in a World Cup round of 16 knockout match. FIFA lifted a suspension on a star U.S. striker for the Belgium game after U.S. President Donald Trump intervened.

De Wever and Trump were seated at the same summit table in Ankara on Wednesday.

US Congress members express openness to Turkey rejoining F-35 program

Members of a bipartisan U.S. congressional delegation to the NATO summit in Ankara expressed optimism Wednesday that a solution can be worked out to allow Turkey back into the F-35 fighter jet program.

Turkey was booted out of the program after its purchase in 2019 of Russian-made S-400 missile defense system, which U.S. officials feared could enable Moscow to gather information on the F-35’s capabilities.

Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, who cowrote the legislation that kicked Turkey out of the program, said that if there is “an acceptable way” to deal with that concern, “then I think having Turkiye back in the F35 program would be a positive development.”

Rep. Mike Turner said “the details (of the proposal) that have been shared with us so far do appear to be promising.” He did not give further information.

France’s Macron greets locals on morning run

French President Emmanuel Macron surprised Ankara residents as he shouted a cheery “Bonjour” during his morning jog through the capital’s streets.

He set off from his hotel in the city’s upmarket Cankaya district, heading uphill to a nearby park with a few bodyguards and a translator. Macron wore his now-trademark mirrored sunglasses for the hourlong run.

The closest Ankara locals usually get to their own leaders is while waiting for heavily guarded motorcades to pass.

German leader hopes summit will send ‘clear message to Moscow’

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he expects the summit to produce “a new spirit in NATO that makes NATO stronger, that makes NATO more united.”

He vowed allies will keep helping Ukraine and pointed to a European initiative to provide a further 70 billion euros ($80 billion) this year and again next year.

Merz said “it is now exclusively up to Russia to end this war and we will do everything again today to achieve that; and also send a clear message to Moscow. Russia has no chance of winning this war.”

Finnish president reaffirms support for Denmark

Finnish President Alexander Stubb reaffirmed that matters concerning Greenland are “only in the hands of the Kingdom of Denmark.”

He said it is important that the NATO alliance stays intact.

Stubb is known as a Trump whisperer in Europe.

US senator hopes summit will include recommitment to Ukraine

U.S. Sen Jeanne Shaheen said she is hopeful the summit will include a recommitment to Ukraine.

“The momentum is on the side of Ukraine at this point and we need to do everything possible to ramp up pressure on Russia to come to the table,” the Democrat from New Hampshire said.

Shaheen is co-chair of the Senate NATO Observer Group.

Lithuania president offers demining experts for Strait of Hormuz

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said his country was in solidarity with the United States in order to guarantee the free navigation of the Strait of Hormuz.

Nausėda said the Baltic country was ready to contribute by sending its demining mission if required.

“We have to stay united if we expect a solidarity from the side of the United States,” he said.

Trump made the announcement as he met Wednesday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the NATO summit in Turkey, praising him as having “done an amazing job” and “been very effective” in the war.

“We’ll give them the right to make Patriots. We’ll show them how to do it,” Trump said.

Zelenskyy has long sought more of the defense systems, which are expensive, in high demand and take a long time to manufacture. He has been pressing for Ukraine to be granted a license to manufacture the technology.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump took aim at his NATO partners at a summit in Turkey on Wednesday, saying he was unhappy with the alliance for pushing back against his efforts to take control of Greenland and for not supporting his war in Iran.

NATO's European members plus Canada have scrambled to meet the increased defense spending targets Trump has demanded, as the U.S. draws down the number of troops it has in Europe and insists that the continent take more responsibility for its own security.

But Trump reopened old wounds as he arrived at the meeting of 32 NATO leaders by insisting again that the United States should control Greenland, a semiautonomous Danish territory. He blasted some European countries for refusing to participate in the Iran campaign, singling out Spain as “a terrible partner in NATO” and renewing his threats to cut off trade.

Ahead of the summit, Trump said Greenland “is very important” for the U.S. but not for Denmark, declaring, “We need it for protection of the world, not just the United States.”

But Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said her country is “ready to defend every inch of NATO including our own territory” in the event of an attack, and would rely on NATO allies to honor their commitment to defend each other.

“We hope that all, including all allies, will respect the Greenland people’s right for self-determination,” Frederiksen said ahead of the summit. “Greenland is of course not for sale.”

Trump’s criticisms have in the past drawn European countries closer together as they confront wars in Ukraine and Iran, a ballooning trade deficit with China, and threats from Russia. However, that unity could be tested at the summit.

The president's renewed interest in Greenland could put at risk the entire future of NATO, which was founded in 1949 to counter the threat to European security posed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War.

The organization is normally focused on outside threats, not threats from within.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte sought to tamp down the president's ire by citing recent increases in defense spending from NATO allies.

“I would argue that without you in this chair, this would not have happened,” Rutte told Trump as the two met Wednesday morning. “Grab the win. It’s there.”

NATO chief backs latest US strikes on Iran

Ahead of the summit, Rutte praised Trump for the series of U.S. strikes on Iran overnight, after Tehran struck three merchant ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

“I think what you did last night was absolutely necessary,” Rutte said to Trump. “It was a very strong response, and I’m with you on this.”

The U.S. strikes, as well as the revoking of a license allowing Iran to sell its oil on global markets, underscored the fragility of an interim deal to end months of fighting.

Trump said of the interim agreement with Iran: “For me, I think it’s over” — but added he will allow talks to continue.

“It’s just a waste of time dealing with them,” he said.

NATO leaders sought to show Trump they were boosting defense

Rutte answered Trump's criticisms of NATO members by highlighting numerous countries that are already investing more, including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Denmark and Greece.

“The commitment is there, no doubt,” Rutte said before chairing the summit, but noted the Trump administration expects “the Europeans and Canadians will equalize their spending with the United States.”

In an attempt last month to mollify the U.S. leader, Rutte went to Washington to hail the “Trump Trillion” — the $1.2 trillion that European allies and Canada have added to defense spending since Trump came to power in 2017.

Yet Trump has demanded “loyalty” and branded NATO a “paper tiger” after some allies refused to grant open access to their bases for U.S. forces to attack Iran.

As leaders converged on Ankara, Rutte hosted a “big reveal” event to showcase the many deals planned for the increased spending — much of it to be spent on U.S. companies, creating thousands of jobs for Americans.

Trump has long argued that the U.S. carries more than its fair share of the defense burden for NATO. At last year's summit, the allies agreed to invest 5% of their gross domestic product on defense — 3.5% on their defense budgets and 1.5% on infrastructure so troops and equipment can move faster in times of conflict.

Yet new figures released by NATO on Tuesday showed that Slovenia, Belgium, Spain and the Czech Republic have struggled to meet the alliance’s old spending target of 2% of GDP.

The Trump administration wants to see a more lean and lethal “NATO 3.0,” with Europe taking responsibility for its own security, including Ukraine, with conventional weapons while America would continue to provide its nuclear umbrella.

However, the Pentagon has launched a six-month review of U.S. military presence in Europe, leaving allies to seek clarity on just how deeply Trump intends to cut U.S. force numbers.

Ukraine’s Zelenskyy pushes for NATO entry

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a fresh appeal Tuesday for Ukraine to be allowed to join the alliance, saying Ukrainian armed forces are highly experienced and would only boost NATO’s defense capabilities.

Zelenskyy, who is expected to meet with Trump in Ankara on Wednesday, highlighted Ukraine’s adaptability and its ability to strike deep inside Russia, hitting Moscow’s oil refineries and other energy targets. He said Ukraine’s armed forces are “eliminating” on average 30,000 Russian troops every month.

Concern has been mounting among some northern, central and eastern European countries that Russia might be preparing a hybrid attack — a combination of conventional warfare with tactics like cyberattacks — on the continent as President Vladimir Putin struggles to secure victory in Ukraine.

U.S. Sen Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), one member of a congressional delegation attending the NATO summit, said at a news conference Wednesday that she hoped there would be a “recommitment” to Ukraine, and that the momentum on the battlefield favored Kyiv.

“We need to do everything possible to ramp up pressure on Russia to come to the table,” she said.

Trump will also meet with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, a former insurgent who led the offensive that unseated autocrat Bashar Assad in December 2024. Despite having once been an al-Qaida fighter, al-Sharaa has won Trump’s backing as he seeks to rebuild Syria and restore its long-shattered ties with the West.

Trump has repeatedly suggested that al-Sharaa would do a better job of rooting out Hezbollah in Lebanon than the Israeli army, raising alarms in Lebanon and Israel alike. The Syrian leader has said he has no interest in doing so.

In posts that sometimes included photos and videos of their attacks on unconscious victims, they referred to women as “cars,” sedatives as “fuel” and rape as “driving,” according to court documents. They called their victims “dead pigs.”

Investigators have been poring through several years' worth of posts in roughly two dozen group chats on the popular messaging app that authorities believe served an online predator network of mainly Chinese men targeting mostly Chinese women in Germany. Their investigation has already led to the convictions of three alleged inner circle members on rape and other charges. A fourth was convicted Wednesday in Berlin.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: This story includes discussion of sexual violence. If you or someone you know needs help, please call 1-800-656-4673 in the U.S., 116 016 in Germany or 15117905157 in China.

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“The perpetrators were characterized by a particular ruthlessness, an objectification of the victims, and the perfidious planning of their crimes,” Frankfurt chief prosecutor Dominik Mies told The Associated Press.

Major details of the investigation remain unknown, at least to the public, including how many attacks and perpetrators have been linked to the German Telegram chats and how the chats, some of which reportedly had tens of thousands of members, could have operated for so long. It's also unclear if the chats are linked to a ballooning investigation in Europe and the Americas into drug-facilitated sexual assaults by misogynist online communities.

Chinese community rallies to support the victims

Under German privacy laws, prosecutors are limited in what they can say outside the courtroom, documents are restricted and, in the ongoing case in Berlin, members of the public have been forced to leave the courtroom during parts of the trial.

This may be why the investigation into the Telegram group has garnered less attention in Germany than might be expected. But members of the country's Chinese community, mostly women, have been attending court proceedings to show support for the victims even if they don't know them.

“What makes one really angry is to see that such groups hate women, they have no respect,” said Fu Xiao, who traveled roughly 500 kilometers (310 miles) to Berlin last week to attend the trial. “Women aren’t seen as people.”

In China, state media has covered the cases comprehensively, but wider discussion about the prosecutions on Chinese-language social media like Rednote has been partially censored. Certain tags have been more likely to get a post deleted or banned on Rednote, screenshots and searches show. But posts using less direct language have survived the censors, including ones that refer to “date rape” or the euphemistic “students studying abroad in Germany.”

China’s Ministry of Public Security and Rednote didn't respond to requests for comment.

Cases echo a landmark French trial

The German cases have drawn comparisons to the attacks on Gisèle Pelicot, a French woman who, over the course of nearly a decade, was repeatedly drugged and raped by her then-husband and strangers he invited to their home. The trial — and Pelicot’s decision to waive her anonymity — prompted a reckoning over rape culture in France and beyond.

“Pelicot is not an isolated case,” Judge Markus Koppenleitner said during a hearing in Munich for one of the Chinese men convicted in the German investigation. “This is not a Chinese or French phenomenon, but one that also exists in Germany and, ultimately, worldwide.”

Similar cases to the “German driving school” investigation have been popping up around the globe. Although authorities haven't publicly linked them to the German prosecutions, some investigators have cited tips from German authorities and journalists as crucial to their progress.

In Los Angeles, German investigators last year reached out to police about a potential suspect in drug-facilitated sexual assaults. The defendant, a graduate student from China, is accused of drugging and sexually assaulting three women in LA after he allegedly procured the drugs from a Chinese national in Germany.

In the Netherlands last month, police arrested four men suspected of drugging and sexually abusing women after hearing from authorities in Germany and the U.K. Dutch police said the alleged perpetrators used social media chat groups to disseminate videos showing the abuse and discuss how to drug victims.

And Europol, the European Union’s police agency, last week announced “Project Medusa,” an international operation designed to dismantle online networks that promote drug-facilitated sexual assaults. Law enforcement from Germany and the U.K. are leading the operation, which has already netted 57 arrests.

Cases raise questions about Telegram

The German predator network managed to thrive despite clear violations of Telegram’s terms of service, again raising questions about how the platform has been used for criminal activity.

In 2024, the app’s founder was arrested in Paris over allegations that the platform was being used for illicit activity, including drug trafficking and the distribution of child sexual abuse images. He denied wrongdoing, blaming surging numbers of Telegram users that he said “caused growing pains that made it easier for criminals to abuse our platform.” The investigation is ongoing.

“Sexual violence is explicitly forbidden by Telegram’s terms of service and such content is routinely removed,” the company said in a statement. “Telegram fulfils all of its legal obligations in relation to such harmful content, including everything set out by” the European Union's Digital Services Act.

The company didn't respond to questions about the German cases, including how photos, videos and comments about sexual crimes were posted for years in the app, whether Telegram was aware of the activity and what, if anything, it did to alert the authorities.

Some of the German Telegram chats date back to at least 2020, court documents show. Attorney Magdalena Gebhard, who represented a victim in a previous Berlin trial that led to a conviction, said there was an inner circle of eight perpetrators but that some of the chat groups had up to 50,000 members.

Police only became aware of the network in 2024 after a man in Frankfurt, referred to by German courts as Dapeng Z., changed his tactics from drugging and sexually abusing female acquaintances to targeting strangers he met online, according to prosecutors.

German police arrested Dapeng Z., whom German and Chinese media have reported is the group's ringleader, in 2024 in cooperation with Chinese law enforcement, according to the Chinese consulate in Frankfurt and the Beijing News, a state-run media outlet.

He was sentenced in February to 14 years in prison for aggravated rape, attempted murder and other offenses, though he has appealed. His attorneys didn't respond to a request for comment.

Although authorities haven’t publicly said how many women were victimized by the “driving school” network, they have said their investigation is ongoing, meaning there could be further arrests and additional victims. Gebhard’s client, for example, only learned she had been sexually assaulted after investigators discovered video footage.

Another defendant convicted in Berlin

On Wednesday, Zhiting S., a 32-year-old trained medic, was convicted of being an accessory to rape, among other charges, and sentenced to five years in prison. The defense plans to appeal the verdict.

The Berlin state court found that in the chats, Zhiting S. had pointed to a particular sedative before an assault by the man convicted in Frankfurt, though he wasn't alone in offering such advice.

Zhiting S. also was convicted on three charges of sexual coercion related to alleged assaults on his partner in China. Video recordings led investigators to those crimes.

Defense attorney Ehssan Khazaeli said earlier that his client has admitted being part of a chat group but did not offer any significant advice.

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Wu reported from Bangkok. Associated Press reporters Geir Moulson and Fanny Brodersen in Berlin, Molly Quell and Mike Corder in The Hague, Netherlands, Jaimie Ding in Los Angeles and Jill Lawless in London contributed to this report.

“We hit them very hard last night,” Trump said when asked about a possible return to hostilities. “We’ll probably hit them hard again tonight.”

Trump made the remark in Ankara, Turkey, on the sidelines of a NATO summit. He said the strikes are continued retaliation for Iranian attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

“They are behaving very badly,” he said of Iran, accusing the country of launching drones and a missile at ships.

The latest exchange of fire raised fears that the war in Iran could reignite, and Trump fueled those concerns by saying the interim agreement to pause fighting was “over,” although he added that he would allow negotiations to continue.

Attacks have repeatedly threatened the shaky ceasefire, but Trump's comments added new uncertainty, and oil prices shot up after he spoke. A renewed conflict could engulf the wider Middle East and would likely again halt energy shipments through the strait that are crucial to the global economy.

“For me, I think it’s over,” Trump said when asked about the status of the ceasefire. He added that U.S. representatives can continue negotiations, but he cast doubt on the outcome. “They can talk, but I think they’re wasting their time,” he said.

Negotiations to reach a final deal had been due to start after the dayslong funeral for Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed Feb. 28 in the war’s first moments. The funeral, which ends Thursday, was supposed to be a period of lower tensions.

The talks are meant to focus on the toughest matters, including fully reopening the strait and rolling back Tehran’s disputed nuclear program.

“The era of bullying and extortion is over,” Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf wrote on X. “It leads nowhere. We don’t fold.”

US strikes target Iran

The U.S. military’s Central Command said American forces launched strikes “to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway.”

It said it hit Iranian targets including air-defense systems, radars and over 60 small boats used by Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.

Those boats have been key to threatening ships in the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s traded oil and natural gas passed before the war. Iran’s ability to bring shipping in the waterway to a near halt during the war proved its greatest strategic advantage. Rising prices for energy supplies, fertilizer and food put pressure on the U.S. to make a deal. On Wednesday, the price of Brent crude, the international standard, spiked over 5% after Trump’s comments.

The U.S. military remains “prepared to hold Iran accountable when the agreement is not adhered to or obeyed,” it added, saying this round of attacks had ended.

Iranian state media reported explosions in several locations, including in Bandar Mahshahr, where a Revolutionary Guard member was killed. It also reported attacks on Bushehr, home to Iran’s nuclear power plant complex.

On Wednesday morning, both Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, and Kuwait, home to U.S. Army forces, sounded missile alerts. The Revolutionary Guard issued a statement acknowledging targeting U.S. military installations in both countries.

Kuwait said it intercepted two ballistic missiles and 13 drones launched by Iran. The Kuwaiti Electricity Ministry said a number of lines were out of service after shrapnel fell on them.

A similar spate of Iranian attacks on shipping and U.S. retaliatory strikes occurred late last month, which similarly drew Iranian attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait. Wednesday’s strikes came as Trump was in Turkey for a summit of the NATO military alliance.

Anwar Gargash, a senior diplomat in the United Arab Emirates, called Iran’s attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait “a clear indicator that Tehran remains incapable of committing to the requirements of de-escalation and turning the page on war.”

US revokes the license for the sale of Iranian oil

Before the strikes, the U.S. had revoked a license that — for the first time in years — had allowed Iran to conduct oil sales openly in U.S. dollars, as part of the interim deal. Iran long had been suspected of selling sanctioned crude at below-market prices to China.

The revocation came after the strikes on shipping. One tanker was off the coast of Oman when it was hit and caught fire, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said. Iranian state television said the tanker came under attack after ignoring warnings but did not directly claim the assault.

Majed al-Ansari, a spokesperson for the Qatari Foreign Ministry, said the tanker was carrying Qatari natural gas and called the strike an “unacceptable attack” on international navigation and global energy security. He said Qatar, which has been a key mediator alongside Pakistan in the talks, holds Iran “fully legally responsible.”

Two other ships sustained some damage, but no one was injured, and both continued on their way, the U.K. agency said.

Iran and the United States agreed as part of the interim deal to allow ships to pass through the strait without paying charges for 60 days. But Tehran has insisted it must control the vessels’ routes and vowed to later charge fees for passage. That would upend decades of practice in the waterway. The ships attacked Tuesday all appeared to be using a route close to Oman’s shore, rather than one ordered by Tehran.

The U.S. and many Gulf Arab states say they will not agree to Iran charging for passage through the strait.

Mourners attend Khamenei's funeral services in Iraq

Funeral ceremonies for Khamenei were held Wednesday in the Iraqi city of Najaf. Attending the services were Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and other Iranian as well as Iraqi officials, including Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Falah al-Zaidi. Funeral prayers were planned later at the Imam Hussein shrine in Karbala.

Khamenei’s body will then be returned to Iran to be buried Thursday at the Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, his birthplace.

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Kim reported from Ankara, Turkey. Associated Press writers Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran; Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Najaf, Iraq; and Collin Binkley in Washington contributed.

The IMF now expects the global economy to expand by a sluggish 3% in 2026, down from 3.5% last year and from the 3.1% it had forecast for this year back in April.

Iran responded to U.S. and Israeli attacks Feb. 28 by shutting down the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's crude oil and natural gas passes. Energy prices soared, squeezing businesses and consumers. The IMF now expects oil prices to be up nearly 32% this year and for global consumer prices overall to increase 4.7% in 2026. That would be up from 4.1% in 2025 and would mean that two years of progress against inflation has stalled.

Countries that produce and export their own energy and that benefit from AI investment are insulated from the war's economic damage. Among them is the United States. The IMF expects the U.S. economy — the world's largest — to grow a solid 2.3% this year, up from 2.1% in 2025 and unchanged from the April forecast. President Donald Trump's 2025 tax cuts, big gains in productivity and a strong stock market are also giving the American economy a lift.

The 21 European countries that share the euro currency, hit hard by higher energy prices, are collectively forecast to grow just 0.9% this year, down from 1.4% in 2025.

China, the world's No. 2 economy, is expected to expand 4.6% this year, down from 5% in 2026 but a bit faster than the IMF had expected in April. Weighed down by higher energy prices and a property market collapse, the Chinese economy is getting offsetting help from public works spending, a surge in high-tech manufacturing and booming exports.

India is once again forecast to be the world's fastest-growing major economy, advancing at a 6.4% clip (down from a sizzling 7.7% last year) on strong consumer spending.

The IMF is a 191-nation lending organization that works to promote economic growth and financial stability and to reduce global poverty.

Prolonged and intense heat is part of a climate change-driven pattern of weather extremes that has also led to intense flooding and prolonged drought. For farmers, this means shorter planting windows and potential loss of crops because of periods of early-season heat followed by a freeze.

“I think it’s pretty safe to assume these kind of heat waves aren’t going away or they’re not freak occurrences,” Woods said.

The recent heat dome, a high-pressure weather system that traps heat and humidity over a region, affected some specialty farmers who produce crops of fruits and vegetables. Human-driven climate change also has brought more intense heat waves and other extreme weather.

These specialty farmers have found ways to adapt, in part by adjusting their harvest schedules to avoid the hottest parts of the day. But they don’t always have access to the same safety net as farmers of traditional commodity crops such as corn and soybeans when extreme weather hits, experts say.

The heat and humidity that comes with a heat dome can be dangerous for farmworkers and is a “serious threat to human health,” said Melissa Widhalm, the associate director at the Midwest Regional Climate Center in West Lafayette, Indiana.

Woods works in the coolest parts of the day in the morning and evening, taking frequent water breaks. She plants and harvests by hand, unlike larger farms that often rely on machinery. If it gets too hot and she has to harvest, she pitches a tent she uses for farmer's markets in the fields to create some shade.

Heat can affect crop quality, harvest time

Extreme heat coupled with periods of rain and high humidity, can also bring diseases and other pests that can destroy crops. Right now the priority is harvesting those most-vulnerable crops, such as tender salad greens. Woods grows vegetables and culinary herbs for restaurants in the region and for a community supported agriculture program. Harvesting crops when it's too hot outside can affect their quality, she said.

She's also concerned that for the health of her the seedlings that will grow into fall crops. Right now, Woods keeps her seedlings in an enclosed cabinet inside a barn where it's cooler. Once they've germinated, she moves them into a greenhouse with fans running to keep temperatures manageable.

“We have to do a lot checking on the greenhouse and watering frequently to keep those teeny tiny plants alive,” Woods said.

For some growers, the recent heat also has shortened the harvest window for certain specialty crops.

For Paul Rasch, who owns and operates multiple fruit orchards in central Iowa, the heat has forced his crew of eight workers to step up harvesting of raspberries. Normally, they'd have about three weeks to harvest this perishable fruit, but “we’re scrambling to pick as many as we can,” he said.

They've started harvesting as early as 6 a.m. some mornings to finish before noon when it gets too hot and unsafe to work. He's also installed air conditioning inside buildings and is adding shade outdoors with trees and covered pavilions so customers coming to pick their own fruit can stay cool. And he's testing a few high tunnels so he can keep conditions more consistent for certain crops.

Rasch said that it seems like these heat events are becoming more common, more intense and lasting longer. These events, along with floods, drought and late-spring frosts are all worrisome and can adversely affect crops throughout the year.

“We don’t ever seem to have a typical year anymore,” he said.

Crop diversity protects against losses, insurance can be hard to access

Smaller farms like Woods' and Rasch's often plant and harvest a wide variety of crops throughout the year. Part of that is a business decision, but it's also to protect against losses that might impact one crop, but not others.

“You’re always gonna have something that will thrive while other things might be more challenged,” Woods said.

Rasch also said that crop insurance for specialty crop farmers is different than for commodity farmers. They're more vulnerable to extreme weather, but they aren't as protected, he said. Woods, who also works with the Organic Association of Kentucky, agrees and said she knows farmers like her who have a difficult time accessing insurance because they farm such a wide range of crops on small acreage.

And that's because federal crop insurance programs are designed to insure single crops with one growing season, like corn, soybean and wheat, said Duncan Orlander, a policy specialist with the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition.

For smaller specialty crop farmers, the paperwork required to cover a larger range of crops on small acreage can be too burdensome and coverage for certain specialty crops may not even be available in certain places. Crop insurers are also disincentivized to sell policies with small premiums and potential payouts, he added.

And although there are federal programs that cover a farm's revenue rather than their specific crops, Orlander said these policies are complicated and widely underutilized.

“We’re not keeping up with the losses and the extreme weather that we’re seeing,” he said. “And we have to think a little bit differently about how we are going to mitigate risk and cover losses into the future when these things occur.”

For Woods, the community supported agriculture program she runs gives her flexibility in case one crop fails. Her customers are supporting the farm for the season regardless of what vegetables end up in their boxes. That program and her crop diversity is one way she “hedges our bets” against heat, floods and drought.

“It’s something you have to be aware of and plan for and have a plan to be resilient in the face of these kind of events,” Woods said.

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Follow Joshua A. Bickel on Instagram, Bluesky and X @joshuabickel.

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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 Seminole County Sheriff’s Office is now explaining what led to the crash.

Footage from the scene on U.S. 17-92 near Sunnytown Road, just north of State Road 436, showed a car that has run into a pole and looks to be completely destroyed.

A second car can also be seen, flipped over on its roof. Multiple fire engines and an ambulance are at the scene.

All lanes on U.S. 17-92 south were blocked at Triplet Lake Drive.

The Seminole County Sheriff’s Office says this all began in Sanford when deputies attempted to stop a vehicle on 25th Street near State Road 417 whose driver was suspected of trafficking fentanyl. The suspect fled the area.

“Sheriff’s deputies did not pursue the vehicle out of concern for public safety and to reduce the risk of harm to innocent motorists and other potential victims. Instead, they allowed the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office Aviation Unit to maintain continuous aerial surveillance from a safe distance,” according to a news release from the sheriff’s office.

The suspect was seen speeding down U.S. 17-92, at times going at least 100 mph, before entering Casselberry.

Deputies say the suspect vehicle crashed into another vehicle near Sunnytown Lane just after noon.

The two people in the other vehicle died from the crash, and the suspect was taken into custody.

The sheriff’s office will handle criminal charges against the suspect.

Recent winners Liza Colón-Zayas and Jeff Hiller are set to name the nominees at the Television Academy in Los Angeles. The 78th Primetime Emmy Awards, airing on NBC, will be held Sept. 14 at the Peacock Theater, the longtime Emmys home that will soon also be home to the Oscars. Mariska Hargitay, who for decades has been one of NBC's standard bearers as the star of “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” will host.

HBO Max's beloved emergency room series “The Pitt” was a rookie upstart last year with big wins including best drama series, best actor for Noah Wyle and best supporting actress for Katherine LaNasa.

And in an era when major Emmy contenders — like 2025's top drama nominee “Severance” — tend to take years off between seasons, “The Pitt” is coming right back for another round, part of its game-changing model of marrying classic network tendencies with modern streaming prestige.

Wyle and LaNasa are virtual shoo-ins for new nominations. And several residents, interns and attending physicians from their big ensemble cast will almost certainly join them. It could dominate the supporting acting categories the way that “The White Lotus” — another major Emmy contender sitting this one out — has in recent years.

But “The Pitt” could easily be surpassed in the nomination count by “Pluribus,” the one-woman-against-the-world Apple TV+ series from “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul” creator Vince Gilligan. It has a chance of breaking a 32-year-old record for most Emmy nominations for a debut season, set by “NYPD Blue” with 26 in 1994.

“Pluribus” is the sort of clever, consummately crafted series Emmy voters love. It should run up the score in the technical categories. The only thing holding back its total may be its premise. Rhea Seehorn is the lone lead actor. She should be the favorite to win best actress once her inevitable nomination arrives on the heels of her Golden Globes win. Karolina Wydra, who plays the show's spokeswoman for the rest of humanity, has a strong chance at a supporting nomination.

This year's batch of comedies benefits from the absence of last year's rookie juggernaut “The Studio.” Emmy voters love a departing show, and have loved “Hacks” since its first season. Those two colliding phenomena should bring a healthy nomination total for its fifth and final season.

Star Jean Smart has won best actress in a comedy for all four previous seasons. It would be stunning if she didn't claim a fifth. Her sidekick throughout the series Hannah Einbinder, who last year broke through and won supporting actress in a comedy in her fourth nomination, is sure to get another nod, as is their castmate, the show's co-creator Paul W. Downs.

Downs' competition will likely include Harrison Ford. The buzz says this could be the year the Hollywood legend finally wins one of the EGOT-level awards if he gets a nomination for best supporting actor in a comedy for “Shrinking.” His castmate Jason Segel is also a likely nominee.

Despite the absence of “The Studio,” AppleTV+, which established a major Emmy comedy presence with “Ted Lasso,” could have three best comedy series nominees. “Shrinking” could be joined by newcomers “Margo's Got Money Troubles,” whose stars Elle Fanning and Michelle Pfeiffer are likely acting nominees, and the acclaimed horror comedy “Widow's Bay.”

Netflix's “Beef” should throw its weight around in the limited or anthology series categories, especially after one of its big competitors, the cops-and-crooks drama “Task,” switched to the drama category when it announced a second season. "Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette" from FX could be its main competition.

And big names always emerge in the Emmys' guest acting categories. This year's potential candidates include the late Rob Reiner for his recurring part on “The Bear” and Michael J. Fox for his three-episode arc as a patient with Parkinson's disease on “Shrinking.”

The Smart Growth America report shows the Orlando area fell from No. 1 to No. 25 nationally.

News 6 Traffic Safety Expert Trooper Steve says the change is significant — but not a signal to ease up.

“We didn’t just jump from first place to second place. We went from first to 25th… that’s a big jump.”

The report found 433 pedestrian deaths from 2015 to 2019 in the Orlando-area region studied. From 2020 to 2024, that number fell to 419.

Trooper Steve says improvements that make streets safer for walkers often help everyone — including drivers.

“Any type of city that takes any effort to enhance its pedestrian safety… that’s a move in the right direction.”

The report points to funding and updated safety practices — including changes to intersections and pedestrian crossings.

At one crosswalk, people News 6 spoke with said the updates feel long overdue. News 6 asked a pedestrian what they thought when they saw the crosswalk: “Oh. About time.”

Even with the improved ranking, safety gaps remain. On Mercy Drive, for example, a sidewalk ends abruptly — forcing people to step into areas meant for cars.

Other areas in Florida ranked higher (worse) on the list:

• Tampa area: No. 8
• Brevard County area: No. 11
• Volusia County (including Daytona Beach): No. 14

Smart Growth America Dangerous by Design 2026 by Christie Zizo

Dugan, 67, faces up to five years in prison after a jury convicted her on Dec. 19. She resigned from her position as a Milwaukee County circuit judge two weeks later amid threats of impeachment from Republican state lawmakers. She had been a judge for nine years.

Trump administration tried to make an example out of Milwaukee judge

The Trump administration brought the case against Dugan as Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents made a strategy of detaining immigrants as they showed up for court hearings across the country. Republicans branded Dugan as an activist judge, while her attorneys said during the trial that the Trump administration was trying to “crush her” in an effort to ensure judicial compliance with its sweeping immigration crackdown.

Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, a fierce Trump loyalist running for Wisconsin governor, urged authorities to “lock her up” in a social media post following her conviction.

Dugan's attorneys declined to comment ahead of the sentencing. Dugan did not testify during her trial, but her attorneys said she would be making comments to the court on Wednesday. That would be her first public comments on the case in more than a year.

Prosecutors push for ‘serious sentence’

Dugan's attorneys argued that as a judge she was immune from prosecution. U.S. District Judge Lynn Adelman, who will hand down the sentence, has rejected attempts by Dugan to vacate her obstruction conviction.

Prosecutors argued in a sentencing memo filed last week that Dugan violated her oath as a judge and put both law enforcement and the public at risk.

“Judges are entrusted with tremendous discretion, but there is a line they cannot cross,” Executive Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Frohling wrote. “The defendant crossed that line.”

Dugan’s attorneys argued she has been “punished enough,” including resigning as a judge and facing threats of violence. They argued in her sentencing memo that she should not be sentenced to any jail time besides the part of one day she already spent in federal custody.

Under federal sentencing guidelines, the presentence report calls for 15 to 21 months behind bars. The judge is not bound by those guidelines.

Prosecutors said the average sentence for obstruction cases is 16 months, but they did not recommend a sentence.

“This was a serious offense, and it warrants a correspondingly serious sentence,” Frohling wrote.

No matter what she is sentenced to, Dugan's attorneys said they plan to file an appeal.

Dugan's case was a first for Wisconsin

Dugan's case marked the first time that a state judge in Wisconsin went to trial on charges of obstructing immigration agents. While convicting her of the felony obstruction charge, jurors found her not guilty of concealing an individual to prevent arrest, a misdemeanor.

On April 18, 2025, immigration officers went to the Milwaukee County courthouse after learning 31-year-old Eduardo Flores-Ruiz had reentered the country illegally and was scheduled to appear before Dugan for a hearing in a state battery case.

Dugan confronted agents outside her courtroom and directed them to the chief judge's office because she told them their administrative warrant wasn’t sufficient grounds to arrest Flores-Ruiz.

After the agents left, she led Flores-Ruiz and his attorney out a private jury door. Agents spotted Flores-Ruiz in the corridor, followed him outside and arrested him after a foot chase. A week later, FBI agents arrested Dugan in the courthouse, leading her outside in handcuffs.

Flores-Ruiz was deported in November.

Ukraine struck oil refineries in Russia's Saratov and Tatarstan regions, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who was in Turkey to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit.

Several explosions were heard shortly after midnight in Kyiv, even before authorities could issue an air raid alert to give civilians time to find shelter.

The early morning Russian attacks killed one woman and injured two others in Kyiv, according to city administration head Tymur Tkachenko. The State Emergency Service said the attack damaged several administrative buildings and warehouses, as well as a garage complex and several trams.

Hours later, another Russian drone struck Kyiv’s Desnianskyi district, killing a second person and injuring six others, Tkachenko said. A total of eight people were injured in the Russian attacks on the capital.

In Kharkiv, two people were killed and 20 others were injured in a series of overnight strikes, according to Mayor Ihor Terekhov.

In Zaporizhzhia, Russian guided bomb injured a man and a woman Tuesday night, regional head Ivan Fedorov said.

Ukraine’s air force says Russia fired 169 long-range strike drones and seven missiles, including five ballistic missiles. Air defenses shot down or jammed 139 drones, and two anti-radar missiles didn’t reach their targets, it said.

All five ballistic missiles and 20 drones struck targets at 15 locations, the air force said, underscoring the continued strain on Ukraine’s air defenses.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said it struck an arms industry facilities in Kyiv, hitting a plant that manufactured components for Flamingo cruise missiles and a facility assembling mid- and long-range drones.

Ukraine strikes Russian oil and gas facilities

The ministry also said air defenses downed 415 Ukrainian drones from late Tuesday to early Wednesday. Gov. Roman Busargin of Russia's Saratov region said a Ukrainian drone attack killed one person, injured several others and damaged unspecified industrial facilities.

Zelenskyy said Ukrainian long-range attacks reached the Saratov, Tatarstan and Bashkortostan regions deep inside Russia, as well as the Voronezh region, closer to the Ukrainian border. The strikes hit refineries in Saratov and Tatarstan, the latest energy facilities struck by Ukraine that have worsened fuel shortages across Russia.

In the Tatarstan region, Nizhhnekamsk Mayor Radmir Belyayev said Ukrainian drones damaged industrial facilities in the city and injured several people. Belyayev didn’t identify the damaged facilities.

Sergei Aksyonov, the Moscow-installed head of the Crimean Peninsula that was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014, said restrictions on civilian fuel sales would continue and that gasoline would not be available “on certain days.”

Aksyonov said many of the decisions being made to resolve the crisis could not be disclosed publicly, adding that he was giving regular updates to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“The fuel supply situation remains strained and will continue to be so for some time,” he said. “We are monitoring this issue closely in coordination with the federal government and are working on a solution.”

Russia’s Gazprom state-controlled gas company said Ukrainian drones attacked the Krasnodarskaya compressor station serving the Blue Stream natural gas pipeline to Turkey late Tuesday. It said the attack was intended to derail Russian gas shipments to Turkey, but there was no disruption of supplies.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called it another “dangerous” attack against “the critical international energy system” and voiced hope that Turkey and other nations would warn Kyiv against such action.

Rostov regional Gov. Yuri Slyusar said Ukrainian drones damaged two oil tankers in Taganrog Bay, injuring two crew members. The crew of one of the ships had to be evacuated.

He said there was no oil spill because the tankers heading to the port of Rostov-on-Don were empty.

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

“I leave with a fulfilled heart, proud of my contribution to the greatest successes of Croatian soccer in history, and I wish my successor, the national team and Croatian soccer many new successes,” Dalić said in a statement posted by the national soccer federation on Instagram on Wednesday.

The announcement came less than a week after Croatia lost 2-1 to Portugal in the round of 32 at the World Cup.

“I have always said that there is no greater honor than leading my national team, and that I cannot have a more important, more responsible, and more beautiful job than this," Dalić said.

“The support in recent days has prompted me to reconsider my decision to leave, but... it’s about time. As much as I still feel the ambition and desire to write new successes with Croatia, I feel that this is the right moment to conclude this incredible era.”

The federation called Dalić's time at the helm an “unforgettable journey” and said his departure was a “proud farewell.”

“Following nearly nine years, head coach Zlatko Dalić has decided to close his incredibly successful chapter with Croatia,” the federation said on X. "Head coach, thank you for everything — the victories, the achievements, the qualifying berths, the medals, the unity, the respect, and your unwavering commitment to fight for Croatia, both on and off the pitch.

“The results speak of your coaching virtues. The respect you’ve earned from your players, staff, and opponents speaks volumes about the person you are."

Under Dalić, Croatia's so-called golden generation, which included star player Luka Modrić, was runner-up at the 2018 World Cup in Russia and third at the 2022 edition in Qatar. It was also runner-up at the 2023 Nations League.

The federation did not immediately announce a new coach.

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Deputies were called to Marcos Circle just after 2 a.m. after family members called 911 about a 51-year-old man in a mental health crisis.

Deputies received information that the man may have been armed, but have not confirmed if he was armed at the time.

The sheriff’s office says the scene was “rapidly evolving,” and shortly after deputies arrived, an altercation occurred, and shots were fired, injuring the man.

The man was airlifted to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

No one else was hurt, including the deputy involved.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement also responded to the scene to investigate the shooting, as is standard procedure.

The deputy has been placed on paid administrative leave while the FDLE investigation continues.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Mbappé called Celeste Amarilla, a senator from Paraguay’s Liberal Radical Party, a “despicable woman” who was “unworthy” of serving in Paraguay's Congress.

“Through your recklessness and your brazen racism, the entire world has already forgotten the journey and the historic effort that your players accomplished during this World Cup,” Mbappé wrote on X.

Amarilla posted a series of racist comments on X after Mbappé converted the winning penalty in France’s victory over Paraguay on Saturday, mocking the French captain’s origins, upbringing, education and appearance. France advanced to the quarterfinals, where it will face Morocco on Thursday.

Late Monday, Amarilla issued an open letter in French and Spanish to Mbappé on social media, in which she said her problem was with the player, not the country of France. She wrote that she regretted mistreating Mbappé with “the same insults” she’s received as a mixed-race person and that she had deleted her post.

But she also demanded an apology from Mbappé, accusing him of gender-based violence in his comments about her, and threatening legal action if he didn’t retract them.

The Associated Press emailed France’s team media officers for comment on Amarilla’s letter.

The Paraguayan government released a statement Monday afternoon condemning Amarilla’s remarks as “contrary to the values and principles that inspire peaceful coexistence and respect for human dignity that our country promotes.” It added that the senator’s comments do not represent either the Paraguayan government or the Paraguayan people.

The French Football Federation on Monday denounced Amarilla’s comments as “utterly abhorrent” and “unacceptable,” adding that it would refer the matter to prosecutors.

France's president, Emmanuel Macron, and sports minister Marina Ferrari voiced support for the national team’s captain.

“By targeting Kylian Mbappé, the senator is attacking everything our captain embodies and everything our country stands for: liberty, equality and fraternity,” Ferrari wrote on X.

“One more goal for Kylian Mbappé. This time against racism,” Macron wrote on X, adding the captain had his “full support.”

France's assistant coach Guy Stéphan also condemned the remarks on Monday.

“In three words, it’s indignant, abject, scandalous,” he said.

Before Saturday’s match, former Paraguay goalkeeper José Luis Chilavert referred to France as “a squad from Africa.” Philippe Diallo, president of the FFF, said Chilavert “was once a great goalkeeper” who had now “fallen into disgrace.”

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Futures for the S&P 500 were down 0.7% before the opening bell, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 1%. Nasdaq futures were off 1.1%.

Trump made the comments following U.S. strikes on Iran that were a retaliation for attacks on three ships in the Strait of Hormuz. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, jumped $3.94 to $78.10 a barrel. U.S. benchmark crude surged $3.60 to $74.04 a barrel.

“For me, I think it’s over,” Trump responded when asked about the status of the ceasefire. “It’s just a waste of time dealing with them,” he said on the sidelines of the two-day NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey.

Iran and the United States agreed as part of their interim deal on ending the war to allow ships to pass through the strait without paying charges for 60 days. But Tehran has insisted it must control the vessels’ routes and vowed to later charge fees for passage. That would upend decades of practice in the waterway.

Crude prices had declined recently from spikes well above $100 a barrel to around the levels they were at before the war with Iran began in late February. A barrel of crude is now trading at levels last seen on June 22, before the U.S. and Iran established a 60-day negotiating timeline that was intended to suspend hostilities.

For months the Iran conflict had pushed oil prices higher and stoked uncertainty for consumers and businesses alike, with most of the concern centered around how much it would affect broader inflation.

That's coincided with worries that the craze for artificial intelligence-related shares has pushed prices past the amount of gains in productivity and profits businesses are hoping to get from their massive investments in computer chips and data centers.

“As such, geopolitical headlines will likely determine market sentiment over the coming hours. A further deterioration in the situation could weigh further on equity valuations along with rising stress in technology,” Ipek Ozkardeskaya of Swissquote said in a commentary.

As usual, the spike in oil prices lifted the stocks of major energy producers while dragging down companies whose main business relies on oil and gas.

Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips and Chevron all rose close to 2% in premarket, while Delta, United and American and other airline shares fell between 2% and 4%.

Big Tech lost some ground early Wednesday after Apple lost its attempt to overturn a European Union ruling that designated it as an online “gatekeeper” subject to the strictest requirements of the 27-nation EU’s Digital Markets Act.

The European Commission defines gatekeepers as conduits between businesses and consumers that provide “core platform services.” Those services include Google’s Chrome browser, Microsoft’s Windows operating systems, Apple's App Store and texting apps like Meta’s WhatsApp.

Apple shares were stable, but shares of most other tech companies — including Google parent Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft and Amazon — all fell more than 1%.

Elsewhere, in Europe at midday, Germany's DAX shed 1.9% and the CAC 40 in Paris gave up 1.8%. Britain's FTSE 100 slid 1.1%.

In Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 lost 2.1% to 66,819.05, while the Kospi in South Korea shed 5.4%, to 7,246.79.

The South Korean index has soared and then fallen back, briefly surpassing the 9,000 level last month and then succumbing to bouts of heavy selling of big AI-related tech shares like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix. Samsung fell 6.3% early Wednesday after dropping about 7% the day before. SK Hynix shed early gains to drop 5.7%.

Taiwan's Taiex rose 0.6%.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng rose 3% to 24,199.46.

Hong Kong traded shares of Chinese AI model startup Zhipu, known also as Z.ai and traded as Knowledge Atlas Technology, rose 13.4% on Wednesday.

A six-month lock-up period for “cornerstone” investors after its $558 million trading debut in Hong Kong in early January expires this week. State-owned China National Radio reported late Tuesday that nearly 70% of Zhipu’s cornerstone investors are committed to stay on, despite previous worries that the lock up period expiration could trigger a sell-off of shares. Zhipu’s share price has risen more than 1,300% since its January trading debut in Hong Kong.

The Shanghai Composite index declined 0.5% to 3,970.88.

Elsewhere in Asia, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.2% to 8,785.10, while India's Sensex lost 0.7%.

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AP Business Writer Chan Ho-him in Hong Kong contributed to this report.

That's because Platner's starburst candidacy followed an increasingly familiar arc that's shown no signs of abating in American politics — the outsider who defies the warnings of party veterans and captures the hearts of primary voters, even as liabilities pile up and complicate the odds of winning the general election.

With candidates having so many ways to raise money and draw attention — and the public having so little faith in longstanding institutions — the country remains primed for new waves of anti-establishment campaigns, no matter how erratic.

“I think there’s going to be a lot more of this," said Seth Masket, a political scientist at the University of Denver.

Platner initially surged on the scene with a grassroots campaign in defiance of Democratic leaders, who had rallied around 78-year-old Maine Gov. Janet Mills as their best hope of unseating Republican Sen. Susan Collins. But Mills dropped out as Platner consolidated support, weathering a steady drumbeat of revelations over a tattoo recognized as a Nazi symbol, extramarital sexting and controversial social media posts that would have wrecked a typical campaign.

But that changed this week when a former girlfriend told reporters that Platner drunkenly entered her house and sexually assaulted her in 2021, an allegation the candidate denied. Even Platner's most ardent supporters have urged him to drop out by July 13, which would allow the state party to replace him with a new candidate in a must-win race for Democrats who already faced a narrow path to wrest back control of the Senate in November.

Traditionally, political parties avoid this sort of last-minute surprise with an internal system to vet candidates. In addition, people running for national office have often previously served in local or state positions and have gone through scrutiny at that level.

That doesn't happen as much for populists who can bypass party gatekeepers and even base their entire campaigns on not being beholden to political professionals.

“I understand that people are tired of politics as usual, it’s just that part of the normal political process does vet candidates, and I think people should be worried about unvetted candidates facing Republicans who will have hundreds of millions of dollars to spend to exploit weaknesses,” said Neera Tanden, a veteran Democrat who has sparred with progressives over the years and currently leads the Center for American Progress, a party-aligned think tank.

A familiar story for Republicans

Of course, establishment-backed candidates can flame out, too. The last Democrat to lose a Senate race in a sex scandal was North Carolina's Cal Cunningham, a lawyer and former state senator who fell narrowly short of Republican Sen. Thom Tillis in 2020 after the disclosure of explicit text messages with a woman who wasn't his wife.

Plenty of incumbents of all ideological stripes have been brought down by scandals. The biggest recent win by a Democratic outsider came when Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, won the New York mayor's primary last year against Andrew Cuomo, a former governor who was hobbled by a sex scandal.

Still, there's a longstanding pattern of insurgent candidates getting into trouble of all kinds.

Just ask Republicans. After the rise of the Tea Party in 2010, they lost multiple winnable races because outsiders defied their own party establishment to win primaries, only to lose in the general election. Republicans ended up missing a chance to gain control of the Senate despite outrage over President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act.

The party lost more Senate races in 2012 only to launch an internal war against outsider candidates and capture the chamber with more traditional nominees in 2014.

Liberal activists have openly hungered for a Democratic variant of the Tea Party, which emerged from disgust at Republican losses during Obama's presidency. Democratic voters stood by their party establishment during Trump's first term, but after President Joe Biden's collapse and Trump's return last year they have become enraged at their own party leaders.

In primary after primary, Democratic voters have favored younger, outsider candidates this year.

“The Democrats are going through what we went through 15 or 20 years ago,” said Matt Gorman, a veteran Republican strategist. “They're just in their second inning of this. The rubber's going to hit the road when they start losing winnable Senate seats.”

Of course, Trump is the ultimate example of the outsider, populist candidate, one who ran openly disparaging his party's leadership and now controls it with an iron fist. He has, however, an advantage that Platner and many other anti-establishment candidates lack — a decades-long, carefully cultivated image that dominated popular culture long before he ran for office.

“If you don't have a 25-year hard name ID before jumping into politics, this matters,” Gorman said of scandals like Platner's.

Liberals still want party to keep its distance

Even Platner backers like liberal podcaster Tommy Vietor were having second thoughts about the process this week.

“Obviously, a big lesson here is that vetting is really important, and some of the vetting gets done by campaigns themselves, and then ultimately it will be done by the media if the campaigns don’t figure that part out,” said Vietor on the Pod Save America podcast.

Vietor, who boosted Platner but has now called for him to drop out, noted that traditional vetting often doesn't pick up allegations of assault like the one threatening to sink Platner's campaign, but it can highlight red flags.

Even though Platner has not formally decided to withdraw, Maine's Democratic politicians are acting as if he has. State Sen. Troy Jackson, another progressive who opted to run unsuccessfully in the party's primary for governor, filed papers for his Senate candidacy on Tuesday, even with Platner still the nominee. Other Maine aspirants began jockeying for position before the July 27 deadline the state party would have to choose a replacement.

Platner's liberal backers have demanded he be replaced by a similarly anti-establishment candidate, saying that would best reflect the will of the state's Democratic voters who overwhelmingly backed Platner in the primary just a month ago. Whatever happens, it seems likely to leave more scar tissue along the fault lines that have split the party already this year.

Adam Green of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, which backed Platner but now has called for him to leave the race, said he hopes Platner’s replacement will have a similar agenda and will not let the Senate Democrats’ campaign arm “just run their campaign.”

“People clearly wanted a voice for systemic change,” Green said. “But it’s a little unclear exactly what’s happening behind the scenes.”

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Associated Press writers Matt Brown in Minneapolis and Meg Kinnard in Columbia, S.C., contributed to this report.

The blast turned what was supposed to be a moment of celebration — the live screening of a potential Argentina upset by an Arab team — into a reminder of how the near-daily Israeli strikes across Gaza are continuing to kill civilians despite a truce reached in October.

The bomb hit a car in the Sabra neighborhood of Gaza City at dusk Tuesday, killing passersby Mohamed al-Wahidi, an official at the Egyptian Committee in Gaza, 10-year-old boy Hamza al-Deri and his 8-year-old brother, Fari. Ahmed Daghmush, 33, the driver of the car, was also killed. That’s according to Dr. Mohamed Abu Selmiya, the director of Shifa Hospital, which received the four bodies.

The Israeli military said al-Wahidi, who helped organize the soccer screenings, was not a target of the strike. It said the strike was aiming for a Hamas militant, and it was checking if Daghmush was the target.

Daghmush is a taxi driver not known to be affiliated with any militant group, Abu Selmiya said.

An Israeli strike hit the same street half an hour earlier, causing no casualties.

The committee for which al-Wahidi worked is the relief arm of the Egyptian government, which provides food, shelters and other assistance to Palestinians in Gaza. The committee organized the initiative to put up screens across Gaza to watch soccer matches, it said.

Many in the Palestinian diaspora live across the border in Egypt, which was a key mediator of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire.

Team Egypt's Gaza fanbase has only grown since the start of the tournament, as coach Hossam Hassan has spotlighted the plight of the Palestinian people in press briefings and on the pitch. He dedicated his team’s victory over Australia on Friday to both Egyptians and Palestinians and waved a Palestinian flag on the pitch.

In a Monday briefing before the match against Argentina, Hassan urged the world to do more for the Palestinian people.

“I urge you, I urge all media officers, all athletes worldwide, regardless of their identities, maybe we can convey a collective message that is as follows, let the Palestinian people be, let them exist, let them live a life of their own," he said.

Israel’s military says its strikes target militants and it regrets harm to civilians. At least 1,084 people, including 258 children, have been killed since the truce took effect in October. Five Israeli soldiers have been killed in that time.

The Palestinian death toll from the Israel-Hamas war stands at 73,110, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which is part of the Hamas-led government and is staffed by medical professionals who maintain detailed records viewed as generally reliable by United Nations agencies and independent experts. It does not distinguish between civilians and militants but says women and children make up around half of all fatalities.

The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage.

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Magdy reported from Cairo and Frankel from Jerusalem.

To do so, the company is trying to convince policymakers, regulators, the public and prospective customers that the business it is building onshore is a more disciplined operation than the freewheeling offshore exchange that has at times been the subject of unfavorable headlines.

Polymarket has hired social media influencers to produce viral marketing on TikTok and other platforms. Its account on X, formerly known as Twitter, is now followed by millions and posts about current events throughout the day. It has signed partnership deals with major sports teams and Major League Baseball, as well as news organizations ranging from CNBC to CNN. It's all part of a pitch that its real-time markets are a more accurate read on the future than traditional polling or punditry.

The campaign is, effectively, an effort to sell Polymarket as something different from the Polymarket people know today.

What the American public knows as Polymarket has, at least by the letter of the law, been unavailable to Americans. In 2022, it was pushed offshore after settling federal charges that it operated an unregistered derivatives market. But Americans have regularly found ways around the prohibition, and the offshore business faced criticism over allegations of insider trading and allowing wagers tied to war and other violence.

Polymarket began operating again in the U.S. at the end of 2025 after buying the derivatives exchange QCEX to get the regulatory license to operate in the country. Executives say the U.S. exchange is walled off from the international platform, and they have hired a slate of compliance, surveillance and regulatory specialists in recent weeks to keep it that way.

“Trust is the product we are building here,” said Dan Lee, head of U.S. operations at Polymarket, in an interview. Lee started with Polymarket in February from Coinbase.

Among the hires, the company added Megan McGrath from Robinhood as its new chief compliance officer. Lee and another executive, Natalie Oblazny, were hired from Coinbase. It’s also hired former Department of Justice and FBI officials as the platform’s head of enforcement and new surveillance head. Lee said Polymarket’s successful reentry into the U.S. depends almost entirely on whether it can convince people that Polymarket U.S. can be a trusted prediction market platform, and the new hires are key to that effort.

Both Polymarket International and Polymarket U.S. provide the same service: trading on the likelihood of events, such as weather, sports, politics or news. But the underlying structures differ. Polymarket’s international platform is built on blockchain technology and requires users to trade with cryptocurrency, while Polymarket U.S. operates through a more centralized structure regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and funded with traditional U.S. dollars.

Customers using Polymarket U.S. versus Polymarket International won't notice the difference, with the exception of how they fund their accounts. Also Polymarket U.S. is going to have a much narrower number of contracts, and more regulations, than its international counterpart.

“Polymarket U.S. is supposed to comply with U.S. law and regulations. Polymarket International is where anything goes,” said Todd Phillips, who has written extensively on prediction markets at the Roosevelt Institute.

The stakes are high for Polymarket. Between its departure in 2022 and return six months ago, the prediction market industry has changed and grown in popularity. The trading volume across the platforms for Polymarket and rival Kalshi is now $26.6 billion, according to blockchain analytics firm Dune. That’s up from $9.75 billion in volume across the platforms in October last year. About two-thirds of that activity is on Kalshi, which dominates the U.S. market on the strength of sports wagering. Kalshi was valued at $22 billion in its most recent funding round.

Both platforms are also benefiting from a more favorable treatment of the industry in Washington. The Trump Administration has been generally supportive of prediction markets. The CFTC has sued states to argue that federal law should preempt any regulations that state politicians have wanted to place on the prediction market industry. The president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., is also an investor in Polymarket through his venture capital firm 1789 Capital.

Even so, it’s been a rough start for Polymarket’s reintroduction to American audiences. The Wall Street Journal found evidence that Polymarket’s advertising and marketing campaigns used allegedly deceptive strategies that showed hired influencers making money trading on Polymarket when the trades were fake.

Politico reported in June that a Polymarket executive paid at least 20 political content creators, many of which did not disclose those partnerships to the public. Both projects have been part of the campaign Polymarket was using to reintroduce to American audiences.

In response to the WSJ and Politico reports, the company says it is investigating its marketing and promotional campaigns.

It's too soon to tell whether Polymarket U.S. will be able to differentiate itself from its international counterpart. Polymarket’s international platform has made headlines, often to public and political outrage.

When a U.S. Army sergeant was indicted earlier this year over bets on the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, he was trading on Polymarket’s international platform. The Associated Press reported in April that 50 brand new accounts on Polymarket’s international platform placed substantial bets on a U.S.-Iran ceasefire in the hours, even minutes, before President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire on social media, raising concerns of insider trading.

Lee said he believes the steps the U.S. business is taking will help further legitimize it, despite the issues the international platform has faced.

“I think having the international business being the bulk of the volume, it often sort of masks the progress we are making here in the U.S. to broaden Polymarket’s acceptance,” Lee said.

The Islamic Republic's dayslong funeral for Khamenei began Saturday, with authorities shutting down streets, airspace and daily life in Tehran as mourners commemorate the life of the man who led Iran for decades with an iron fist while confronting the West. His body will later be taken from Najaf to the city of Karbala before returning to Iran.

Khamenei was killed in late February in wide-scale U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran. He was among several senior Iranian leaders killed in strikes during the war. He was 86.

Talks between the United States and Iran appear to be on hold until after the burial. However, strikes from both sides in the Persian Gulf Tuesday and into Wednesday raised risks that the interim agreement to end the monthslong war that engulfed the Mideast could break down. The U.S. military attacked Iran early Wednesday after it said Tehran struck three ships in the Strait of Hormuz, before Iran launched retaliatory strikes on Kuwait and Bahrain.

Khamenei's body arrived Tuesday in Najaf, considered one of the holiest of cities for millions of Shiite Muslims worldwide. Mourners holding portraits of the late supreme leader welcomed the body and senior officials escorting it, including Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

The body was placed in a casket draped in the Islamic Republic’s flag and encased in glass.

Some supporters performed self-flagellation on the streets, while others waved Iranian as well as red and black flags symbolizing mourning and revenge.

Muhammad Taqi al-Hakim, a senior scholar at the Najaf seminary, led the funeral prayers at the Shrine of Imam Ali, the Prophet Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law.

As the coffin was carried into the shrine, large crowds of mourners pushed and shoved their way to get close to it. Some threw themselves onto the casket, as the al-Hakim struggled to control the crowd, urging the pallbearers to carry it closer to the ground for fear it might fall.

“We, the people of Iraq, will remain a thorn in the eyes of the enemies,” said Jaafar Jawad, a funeral attendee. “(His body arriving here) is the greatest possible honor, and God willing, we will be loyal and repay a little of his debt in the holy city of Najaf.”

The body is expected to arrive later Wednesday in Karbala, a holy city for Shiite Muslims where the Imam Hussein, the grandson of the prophet, was killed in 680 AD. Abdul Mahdi al-Karbalaei, a representative of Iraq's top Shiite religious authority, will lead the prayers at the Imam Hussein Shrine.

Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, has yet to make an appearance in the funeral ceremonies, which are unfolding over several days. He is believed to be in hiding after reportedly being wounded in the airstrike that killed his father.

The IOC provisionally lifted a suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee and advised Olympic sports bodies they no longer need to be vetting its athletes for permission to compete as neutrals.

“It is an important step toward reinstating our athletes’ legitimate rights to participate in international competitions,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Wednesday. “Work will continue through our sports authorities. They are conducting this work constantly and consistently, this work will continue.”

Peskov added that “now, it’s very important that all our athletes have the opportunity to compete in major international events.”

The IOC’s guidance to reintegrate Russians in international events is not binding for the governing bodies of individual sports.

Track and field has already said it will not follow suit and there is no sign yet of changes which could let Russia return to major soccer events like Euro 2028 or a future World Cup.

“FIFA has been made aware of the decision taken by the IOC to provisionally lift the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee," soccer's governing body said. "FIFA will analyze the decision before deciding on next steps in coordination with the relevant stakeholders.”

FIFA last year invited Russia to send a team to the inaugural boys’ Under-15 Football Festival in Azerbaijan starting Oct. 22. That came soon after the IOC recommended allowing Russian youth teams to compete with the country's flag and anthem.

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

The central government allocated 50 million yuan ($7.4 million) to restore roads, schools and other facilities in central China's Hubei province and another 20 million yuan to help rebuild homes and resettle residents there, state media said. Eleven people died and hundreds were injured Monday night in violent thunderstorms and rare tornadoes.

The government also allocated 30 million yuan ($4.4 million) to Gansu province, where the landslide buried the forestry workers.

The money came on top of 100 million yuan ($14.7 million) allocated earlier for schools, hospitals, transport and other infrastructure in southern China's Guangxi region, where severe flooding inundated cities and stranded residents after heavier-than-expected rainfall from a tropical storm.

Lu Xiaofei, who works in Shenzhen, a tech hub near Hong Kong, said her brother’s family was stuck at his house in Lu village in Qintang district. His brother was with his wife, his 9-month-old baby, their parents and grandfather.

“The water in the house is over one person’s height. They have to all move to the second floor. The power has been out since yesterday morning, and now they don’t have running water, either,” Lu told The Associated Press in a phone interview.

Lu said her brother told her that the water level rose last night and their situation was so dire that drinkable water would be running out soon, and local authorities had not reached out to them. Many villagers nearby were facing the same challenges, she said.

Others called for help on social media, showing videos of their flooded surroundings and highlighting their lack of resources.

Reservoirs were breached or burst after Tropical Storm Maysak hit Guangxi, sending torrents of water into towns and cities. Six people were reported dead and about 130,000 have been evacuated. More than 8,000 people and about 5,700 boats have been deployed in the rescue operation, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

Unconfirmed local media reports said hundreds of snakes had escaped breeding facilities after being washed away. State broadcaster CCTV reported snakes in the water and gave advice on what to do if bitten, but didn't say where the snakes had come from.

Heavy rain has been battering parts of Guangxi since last Saturday, with cumulative rainfall of 10 to 40 centimeters (4 to 16 inches) in some areas and more than 90 centimeters (35 inches) in hard-hit areas, the national meteorological center said.

Another storm, Super Typhoon Bavi, is forecast to hit southeastern China over the weekend. In Taiwan, some farmers rushed to harvest their rice ahead of the storm, which was expected late Friday.

Elsewhere in Asia, severe weather also caused deaths. Landslides triggered by heavy monsoon rains in southeastern Bangladesh killed several Rohingya refugees, including five children. Heavy monsoon rains battered parts of neighboring India, leaving over a dozen of people dead over the past few days.

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AP writer Fu Ting in Washington contributed to this story.

Edmunds experts have identified four small sedans and one midsize sedan that they would recommend you focus on. Each car has competitive Edmunds scoring, widespread availability on the used market, and a reliability score of at least 4 out of 5 from RepairPal, an independent source for data-driven reliability ratings. We’ve also noted the latest model years you can expect to find at nationwide retailers such as Carvana and CarMax that meet our $15,000 price cap.

Honda Civic

The Civic’s status as a perennial favorite among small sedans is well earned. It delivers excellent fuel economy and peppy acceleration, while its suspension tuning strikes a near-perfect balance between ride quality and athleticism. Although the Civic’s center touch screen can be slow and annoying to use at times, the Civic otherwise impresses with its roomy back seat and tight construction.

Look for: Older Civics easily fall within our price cap, but aim to get a 2016 Civic if you can. It received a full redesign this year that features new styling, a roomier interior and a new optional turbocharged engine that provides plenty of power plus high mpg.

Kia Forte

Kia’s Forte is the brand’s small sedan, which was sold until a few years ago, when Kia replaced it with the K4. The Forte’s sharp styling, quiet interior, and an extensive list of available features make it feel like a small sedan that’s more refined than its price would suggest. It also gets good fuel economy and has a large and easy-to-load trunk. The Forte’s ride quality can be a bit too firm and uncomfortable over bumps, but overall it is a smart pick for a used sedan.

Look for: The last generation of the Forte debuted for the 2019 model year. Any Forte from this year up to 2021 or so should be pretty easy to find for under $15,000. Among the Forte’s available trim levels, the EX is worth focusing on because it comes with premium features such as synthetic leather upholstery and heated and ventilated front seats.

Mazda 3

While most of the sedans in this group either aren’t sporty at all or merely dress the part, the Mazda 3 is genuinely fun to drive. Even if performance isn’t a priority for you, this responsiveness can be a valuable asset during emergency maneuvers. The Mazda 3’s sharp exterior design also offers a dose of style while its interior quality exceeds expectations, and its crash test scores put it among the top of its class.

Look for: The third-generation Mazda 3 debuted in 2014 and was produced through 2018. Buyers shouldn’t have any difficulty finding solid choices from the later years of that production run. The 2018 Touring model offers a long list of standard features for the price and is equipped with a more powerful engine than lower trims.

Toyota Corolla

A long-running staple in the compact sedan class, the Toyota Corolla has built its reputation on providing no-nonsense transportation with low running costs. The Corolla gets high marks for its comfort and appealing list of advanced driver assist features. It’s not as spacious as some of its rivals, and pokey acceleration keeps the fun factor relatively low, but otherwise the Corolla is a sensible choice.

Look for: Toyota introduced the 11th-generation Corolla for 2013. You should be able to get a 2015 to 2017 Corolla for under $15,000. Notably, the 2017 Corolla features included revised front-end styling, new LED headlights, and upgraded interior upholstery.

Chevrolet Malibu

Finding a used midsize sedan that’s less than 10 years old and under $15,000 can be difficult if it’s a popular model such as the Honda Accord or Toyota Camry. But this is where the Chevrolet Malibu earns its appeal. As the only midsize in this group, the Malibu offers more space for passengers and their cargo than the other sedans on this list, yet it still delivers proven reliability and strong overall value.

Look for: The current-generation Malibu arrived in 2016. Any Malibu from this year or newer is a good pick. If you can find one, the 2019 Malibu is worth seeking out for its revised styling and updated infotainment tech.

Edmunds says

These models prove you don’t need to spend big to get a reliable and well-equipped sedan. From style and technology to ride quality and efficiency, the real decision comes down to what matters most to you. Each one has certain strengths, but they all deliver solid value for the money.

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This story was provided to The Associated Press by the automotive website Edmunds. Bradley Iger is a contributor at Edmunds.

Supreme Court judges in London will hold a hearing on a landmark human rights case that could decriminalize gay sex in the eastern Caribbean nation, potentially setting a precedent for the largely conservative Caribbean region.

The case was filed in February 2017 by Jason Jones, who argues that so-called “buggery” laws in the twin-island nation that date from the colonial era and prohibit gay sex are unconstitutional. Those found guilty could receive up to five years in prison.

Opposing Jones are Trinidad and Tobago’s government, backed by the country’s Council of Evangelical Churches and its largest Hindu organization, Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha.

The case has wound its way through several courts. In April 2018, Trinidad’s High Court found the laws unconstitutional, but a local appeals court partially reversed that ruling in March 2025. In July of that year, Trinidad's Court of Appeals allowed Jones to seek a ruling from the final court of appeals in England.

Now, the case is before the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, and activists across the Caribbean are closely watching the outcome.

In 1991, the Bahamas decriminalized homosexuality, while the U.K government repealed such laws in 2001 in Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, Montserrat and the Turks and Caicos Islands.

Recently, judges have struck down similar laws in Barbados, Dominica, St. Lucia and Antigua and Barbuda. Gay sex, however, remains a crime in Grenada, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Jones, who is currently 61 and has been openly gay since age 16, left Trinidad and Tobago in 1996 because of what he described as homophobic violence and discrimination.

“His experience is part of a wider picture,” LGBTQ groups supporting Jones said in a recent court filing. “(He) is unable to fully express his sexuality without being branded a criminal.”

Jones argues that criminalizing gay sex is a moral stance, asserting that “Trinidad and Tobago is a secular society and a multi-racial one. Christian morality is neither universal nor superior.”

While the country’s so-called buggery laws have not been enforced in recent history, attorneys and activists say they still send a message.

“A law of this kind operates not only through arrest and conviction, but through the stigma, fear, concealment and exclusion,” according to a recently filed written argument in favor of Jones.

It asserted that criminalizing gay sex “compounds stigma at precisely the stage at which young people may be forming identity, seeking support, accessing education and healthcare, and deciding whether it is safe to disclose abuse, bullying or self-harm risks.”

The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council is composed of five judges. They could issue a ruling as soon as Wednesday's hearing ends, although they don't have a deadline to do so.

WEDNESDAY

After several days of scattered afternoon storms, much drier air is moving into the region, limiting storm development and allowing temperatures to soar. Only isolated showers and thunderstorms are expected this afternoon, with rain chances (30-40%) dropping even further in the next few days.

The bigger weather story is the heat.

High temperatures Wednesday afternoon will climb into the mid to upper 90s across much of the interior, with some of the hottest readings expected near and north of Interstate 4.

Coastal communities will stay slightly cooler in the low to mid 90s, but the humidity will make it feel much hotter.

Peak heat index values are expected to reach between 105 and 109 degrees in some locations. Because of the dangerous combination of heat and humidity, a Heat Advisory is in effect from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. for Marion and Flagler counties.

Additional Heat Advisories could be needed for other parts of Central Florida on Thursday as temperatures continue to rise.

THURSDAY-WEEKEND

The hot pattern is expected to continue through the weekend, with inland areas near and north of Interstate 4 likely reaching the upper 90s each afternoon.

Along with the drier weather, we are expecting a decent plume of Saharan Dust to move into the area. Click here to read more on that.

Rain chances remain limited through Friday before a gradual increase in afternoon storm coverage returns over the weekend and into early next week as the influence of high pressure begins to weaken.

The lawsuit, filed by the Southern Poverty Law center, alleges closed - door meetings led by the former mayor improperly determined the fate of the property.

The vote came as council members received an update on the future of the historic Hungerford Prep site, one of Central Florida’s first black schools.

Dr. Phillip’s Charities detailed plans for what could become a $15 million to $20 million dollar park project. During the discussion, council members raised concerns about where the funding will come from.

“But my question is still where is the money gonna come from?” Councilwoman Wanda Randolph asked.

Dr. Phillips Charities, now responsible for the site, told council the project is expected to move forward even if Tourist Development Tax (TDT) dollars don’t cover part of the cost.

“One of the questions always comes up is what happens if TDT doesn’t fund something? We fully intend to continue on with this process,” a representative says. “We have the capacity and the money to build the park as we’ve agreed to with Orange County Public Schools.”

The Tourist Development Tax — sometimes referred to in meetings as the Tourist Development Task Force — typically does not cover the full cost of a project.

“Whatever the tourism tax funds it won’t be 100 percent — no more than 70% of a cost of a project,” the representative says.

Even so, Dr. Phillips Charities says the town would not be required to pay for the project.The nonprofit says it is scheduled to close on the land on August 27.

Councilwoman Ladwyana Jordan asked whether Dr. Phillips Charities had any thoughts about the pending litigation and concerns about potential Sunshine Law violations.

“Have any thoughts regarding the pending litigation in terms of the violation of Sunshine Law,” Jordan asked.

Dr. Phillips Charities responded, referencing earlier litigation during the former mayor’s term.

“There was original litigation that was brought by Southern Poverty… and that was during Mayor Gardener’s term,” the representative says. “We thought that was a very appropriate litigation— that was a private developer coming in to change the makeup of the town completely.”

Council discussions are expected to continue as the closing date approaches and the legal challenge plays out.

The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research makes clear that for many U.S. Jews, support for Israel remains a bedrock of their religious identity, its existence a guarantee of Jewish self-determination and safety. Yet others — particularly those who identify as Jews through ethnic, cultural or family ties, rather than religion — feel less connected to Israel and judge its actions in the ongoing conflict more harshly.

About 7 in 10 Jewish adults overall identify as Jewish when asked about their religious affiliation, according to the sweeping survey that touched on everything from views on Israel to antisemitism concerns and strains on interpersonal relations. The rest, about 3 in 10 Jewish adults, say they are atheists, agnostics, or have no particular religious affiliation, but still identify as Jewish in other ways.

Israel has been at the center of the turmoil in the Middle East since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack that killed some 1,200 people. More than 73,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza since Israel retaliated, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilian and militant deaths. Israel’s ongoing offensives have become a wedge issue for Jewish and non-Jewish Americans, leading to protests, raising antisemitism fears and questions about America’s close ties to Israel.

Among Jews with a religious affiliation, views on Israel’s recent military actions are far from uniform or uncritical. Only about half say Israel’s ongoing military operations in Gaza are justified. About one-quarter believe Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, an accusation that’s been leveled by some human rights organizations and vehemently denied by Israel and the U.S. government.

But they are more supportive of Israel's actions than secular American Jews. About 4 in 10 religiously unaffiliated Jews say Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians, and only about 2 in 10 see Israel’s current operations in Gaza as justified. The vast majority, 74%, say they are “not too” or “not at all” emotionally attached to Israel, a sharp contrast from other Jewish adults.

Anna Constant, 56, of Seattle identifies as culturally Jewish and says she doesn’t feel closely connected to Israel.

“I kind of think of myself as an American version of a Jew. I do have a homeland," she said, referring to the United States.

At the same time, “my heart is broken for everything everyone is navigating over there. ... We have bad governments happening not just in Israel but in the United States. I’m trying to hold on to the reality that the people are not the governments.”

Conflicting views about Israel’s military actions

Jews who regularly attend religious services are more likely than those who never attend to feel a connection to Israel and see its military actions in Gaza as justified, the survey found.

About 3 in 10 Jewish adults never attend religious services, although that rises to about two-thirds among religiously unaffiliated Jews. About half of Jewish adults attend a few times a year or less often. About 2 in 10 attend at least once a month, including about 1 in 10 who attend weekly.

According to the survey, Jewish adults mostly identify as Democrats; about 3 in 10 identify as Republicans. Religiously unaffiliated Jews are slightly more likely than Jewish adults overall to identify as Democrats, and less likely to call themselves Republicans.

Jacqueline Rothstein, 35, splits time between a New York City suburb on Long Island and the city’s heavily Jewish borough of Brooklyn. She is Modern Orthodox, attending worship services about once a month.

A political independent, she views Republican President Donald Trump favorably and has an unfavorable view of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Muslim Democrat who supports Palestinian rights. Rothstein says her Jewish identity and supporting Israel are “extremely important” to her.

She's keenly aware of divisions within the Jewish community, and cites family history as one key reason for the differing views of Israel. Two of her grandparents were Sephardic Jews expelled from Egypt in the 1960s; the other two were Holocaust survivors, she said.

“There are plenty of American Jews whose grandparents didn’t have that trauma,” Rothstein said. “If you have no connection to Israel, if your grandparents were safe in America, ... then you don’t know the struggle.”

Jewish adults who identify as religiously Jewish are much likelier than nonreligious Jews to identify as Zionists. About 3 in 10 religiously Jewish adults say “Zionist” describes them “extremely” or “very” well, compared to 6% of religiously unaffiliated Jews.

Just under half of secular Jews, 45%, say “Zionist” describes them ”not very well" or “not well at all.”

Many still see Israel as central to their Jewish identity

Supporting Israel is still fundamental to many Jewish adults’ identity, but its importance compared to other aspects of being Jewish varies.

About half of religiously affiliated Jewish adults say supporting Israel is “extremely” or “very” important to their Jewish identity, compared to about 1 in 10 religiously unaffiliated Jewish adults.

Rabbi Seth Adelson noted that Israel was founded primarily by secular Jews, but suggested that today in the U.S., stronger connections to Israel are felt by religiously observant Jews. He is the rabbi of Congregation Beth Shalom in Pittsburgh, a Conservative synagogue with close ties to the three congregations targeted in the 2018 massacre at the nearby Tree of Life synagogue in which 11 worshippers were killed in the nation’s deadliest antisemitic attack.

“In recent years, perhaps due to the complexity of that region, due to the challenges faced by modern states, religious Jews have been more likely to hold on to our ancient stories, and Jews of no religion have been less likely to hold on to those stories,” Adelson said.

Some of the divide is generational. Younger Jews — regardless of their Jewish affiliation — are less likely to see Israel as important to their Jewish identity. But there are commonalities, too. Majorities of younger and older Jewish adults, for instance, say that remembering the Holocaust is important to their Jewish identity.

Bonnie Brody, 78, grew up in a community with several Holocaust survivors in Queens, New York. While she doesn’t always agree with its government’s choices, the Florida resident sees Israel as a vital haven for Jews.

“I heard the stories of the concentration camps and how even (the U.S.) turned back a ship full of Jews,” she said, referring to the ocean liner St. Louis that departed Germany in 1939 with hundreds of Jewish refugees aboard, and was prevented from landing in the U.S. “Many of them had nowhere to go.”

Painful conflicts with family over Israel are common

The survey finds that rifts are springing up within families and communities over Israel, even among religiously unaffiliated Jews.

Most Jewish adults, 55%, say they've felt offended by another person's comments about Israel since the Oct. 7 attack, while about 4 in 10 say they've disagreed with family members about something related to Israel.

About 3 in 10 say they've stopped talking to someone because of something they said about Israel.

Shainah Horowitz, 45, a staunch Democrat from Portland, Oregon, says the Jewish community in that solidly liberal city is riddled with divisions. On one hand, she said, there is friction between politically right-leaning Orthodox Jews and Jews with more left-leaning views, including those in her Conservative synagogue which takes pride in being LGBTQ+-inclusive. Meanwhile, she said, secular anti-Zionist Jews in Portland can be stridently critical of Jews who — like Horowitz herself — identify as Zionists and support the concept of Israel as a Jewish state.

“I cannot have conversations with certain friends — non-Jews and some very secular Jews who buy into the anti-Israel slant,” she said.

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Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

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The AP-NORC poll of 3,040 adults was conducted June 11-17 using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The poll included interviews with 1,022 Jewish adults. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 2.8 percentage points and the margin of sampling error for Jewish adults is plus or minus 5.0 percentage points.

After a scoreless draw, Ruben Vargas converted the decisive penalty and Switzerland advanced to the World Cup quarterfinals, beating Colombia 4-3 in a shootout on Tuesday.

Switzerland will face defending champion Argentina on Saturday at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. Argentina defeated Egypt 3-2 earlier in the day.

Switzerland had not reached the quarterfinals of a World Cup since hosting the tournament in 1954. And the Swiss were short-handed Tuesday without young midfielder Johan Manzambi, who was injured in training on Monday.

Vargas, who has scored two goals in the World Cup, also left Monday’s training early but came on in stoppage time at the end of regulation.

In the shootout, Colombia defender Davinson Sánchez's penalty attempt hit the crossbar and Switzerland goalkeeper Gregor Kobel saved an attempt by Cucho Hernández.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, a Swiss citizen, was among those at BC Place, where the sellout crowd of 52,497 was overwhelmingly clad in yellow in support of Colombia.

“They had the crowd on their side, so it was a tough game for us,” Kobel said. “We know we had some stretches of the game where we had to defend and stay strong mentally. Obviously we had a few players missing so, yeah, it was a big challenge for us.”

Colombia failed to qualify for the last World Cup in 2022. Los Cafeteros made the quarterfinals at the 2014 tournament in Brazil, defeating Uruguay in the round of 16 before losing to the host country 2-1.

“The dream was enormous,” Colombia midfielder Jhon Arias said. “The country showed us that it believed in us, that it lived every moment with us, and I think that only makes the pain even greater.”

The Swiss reached the round of 16 at the past three World Cups but failed to advance with a smaller field of 32 teams.

“We worked very hard, and now we have this opportunity,” Switzerland coach Murat Yakin said. “This is going to be a very interesting matchup from our point of view. We will try to compete against the reigning champions and it’s going to be amazing. Switzerland against Argentina in a quarterfinal. I am so excited. I think that I need maybe a couple of hours more or another day to process what just happened, and then tomorrow we will start focusing on Argentina.”

The match was tightly contested by two teams with contrasting styles, the Swiss with a more organized and methodical approach and Colombia more attack-oriented and physical. Switzerland had a slight edge in possession.

Manzambi, a 20-year-old midfielder who plays for German club Freiburg, has three goals in the World Cup, becoming one of the tournament’s breakout stars. The Swiss were also without Luca Jaquez and midfielder Michel Aebischer.

Gustavo Puerta had the first good chance for Colombia with a shot from distance in the 21st minute that was pushed away by Kobel.

The Swiss got one of their best opportunities in the 30th with Fabian Rieder’s blast at goalkeeper Camilo Vargas, who punched the ball down. Minutes later, Vargas smothered another attempt from Dan Ndoye.

The Swiss had a free kick in the 52nd minute, but Rieder’s attempt curled around the wall and went into the side netting.

In the first extra time period, Jhon Lucumi’s header hit the crossbar and caromed away as Colombia put pressure on Kobel.

“I don’t think you can overstate what a huge success this is — for us, for this team, for Switzerland, for such a small country. To be among the top eight teams in the world is incredible,” Kobel said. “It’s an unbelievable feeling. I’m incredibly proud.”

Colombia and Switzerland also met in the group stage at the 1994 World Cup in the United States, with Los Cafeteros winning 2-0.

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

The Saharan Air Layer, a large mass of dry, dusty air that travels thousands of miles from Africa, is common this time of year. While it can create some beautiful sunrises and sunsets, the dry air associated with the plume can also put a temporary lid on tropical development and daily storm activity.

What Central Florida can expect

The dust plume will begin moving into Florida late Thursday, with the biggest impacts expected Friday through the weekend.

The dust will likely stay suspended high in the atmosphere, so most people will only notice it as a milky haze in the sky. However, if rain falls while the dust is present, those raindrops can carry particles down to the surface, leaving behind spots on cars, windows, and outdoor furniture.

The drier air will also help lower rain chances heading into the weekend. Afternoon storms, which have been common recently, will become more limited with coverage dropping to around 20-30%.

With fewer storms and more sunshine, temperatures will climb with highs pushing into the upper 90s. Heat index values could once again approach dangerous levels during the hottest part of the afternoon, with heat advisories likely.

Will the dust impact air quality?

For most people, the dust will not cause major issues. However, sensitive groups, including those with respiratory conditions or allergies, could notice some irritation, especially if the plume becomes thicker.

Why does Saharan dust matter?

The Saharan Air Layer has both benefits and drawbacks.

It helps limit tropical development:

The dry, stable air can make it harder for tropical systems to organize, especially during the early part of hurricane season when Saharan dust is most common.

It helps fertilize the Amazon rainforest:

The dust contains nutrients like phosphorus that travel thousands of miles across the Atlantic and help replenish soils in the Amazon.

It can create dirty rain:

When thunderstorms or showers pull dust particles down from the atmosphere, the result can be dusty residue left behind on outdoor surfaces.

It can create stunning sunsets:

Those tiny particles in the atmosphere scatter sunlight, especially near sunrise and sunset, helping enhance reds, oranges, and pinks in the sky.

So while you may need to rinse off your car after the weekend, the same dust plume could also deliver some spectacular skies across Central Florida.

That law — SB 4-F — was approved by lawmakers during the recent property tax special session, which also yielded an amendment cutting property taxes statewide.

But unlike that amendment, SB 4-F doesn’t alter the state’s constitution.

Instead, SB 4-F serves as an implementation bill for the amendment, which will be considered by voters when it goes on the ballot in November. The property tax amendment will need 60% approval to pass.

LOCAL PROPERTY TAX CHANGES

Furthermore, SB 4-F revises how local governments calculate the maximum property tax rate that may be adopted with a simple majority vote.

Under current law, local governments may raise the rolled-back rate — the rate necessary to bring in just as much revenue as the prior year — based on growth in Florida’s per-capita income, state officials explain. SB 4-F removes that adjustment.

In short: this means that local governments can’t rely on the automatic “income-growth” add-on; they’ll instead have to provide public notice and budget hearings, per the existing TRIM law.

SB 4-F also establishes higher approval thresholds for local governments who want to raise these rates:

• Millage rates up to 110% of the rolled-back rate require a two-thirds vote.
• Millage rates above 110% of the rolled-back rate require a:
• • Unanimous vote
  • Three-fourths vote for larger governing boards, or
  • Approval by voters via referendum

Per state officials, these changes are expected to bring down the base millage rate for many areas of the state and limit local governments’ ability to raise property tax collections without broad public support.

SB 4-F took effect immediately upon being signed.

BUDGET POSTINGS?

SB 4-F isn’t the only law that DeSantis signed on Wednesday, either. HB 1329 was also passed.

HB 1329 requires tentative or final budgets be posted to the official website of a local government.

The budget information provided must be downloadable and contain the following details for the proposed, current, and previous four fiscal years:

• Budget overview and summary, including a narrative analysis that also utilizes graphical illustrations to highlight major points of emphasis or trends
• An overall summary of revenue and expenditures of the county or municipality
• A summary of revenue and expenditures by fund
• Summaries of expenses by department and division, program or function, and those related to debt obligations and capital projects
• An organizational chart or staffing summary
• A summary and analysis of reserves and fund balances of the local government

Furthermore, the law requires that local budget officers perform a budget-cutting exercise at least 14 days before the final adoption of the local government’s budget.

HB 1329 takes effect on Jan. 1, 2027.

Deputies say the man was shot after he threatened the deputy with a firearm.

Deputies responded to a domestic disturbance call on SW 35th Avenue Road, where they encountered the armed man. A deputy opened fire, striking the man.

Marion County Fire Rescue responded to the scene and transported the man to the hospital in critical condition. His name has not been released.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement has been notified and will investigate the shooting, which is standard protocol in officer-involved shootings.

In Ituri province, the hardest hit among the three provinces in eastern Congo affected by the outbreak, some of the health professionals and other front-line workers told The Associated Press they’ve not been paid their wages and bonuses since the outbreak was declared on May 15. They also alleged they were working with limited gear, and were being treated unfairly by authorities as well as response teams.

“Since the Ebola virus disease outbreak was declared, we've been demanding payment for our work,” Dr. Biensi Kano, a member of the epidemiological surveillance committee in Ituri’s capital, Bunia, told The Associated Press.

The latest government data shows 1,708 recorded cases, including 580 deaths, and that the first month of this Ebola outbreak was already the worst on record, health authorities said. The strike comes at the start of enrollment for clinical trials for the treatment of the Bundibugyo virus that is responsible for this outbreak.

Treatment centers at near-full capacity

The World Health Organization representative in Congo, Dr. Anne Ancia, said Tuesday that the virus continues to spread, fueled by population movements and insecurity, while some treatment centers are at near-full capacity.

The non-payment of benefits “exposes us and our families to significant socio-economic difficulties and seriously undermines our living conditions,” said Kano.

In an official notice to national and provincial authorities over the weekend, front-line workers in Ituri threatened to strike if the wages were not paid in 24 hours. By Tuesday, some had already stopped working although no official strike has been declared.

The aggrieved front-line workers also include safety and security teams, those that often embark on community outreach as well as those burying patients who died from Ebola.

Congo’s government did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the situation. Officials in Ituri, however, said they’ve met with the workers and their concerns are being addressed

“The fact that Bunia airport is closed is hampering the very implementation of the response, particularly certain aspects of the flow of funds. This is one of the reasons that may account for the delay in payment,” Akilimali Pierre, incident manager at Congo’s National Institute of Public Health, told The Associated Press.

Some of the workers organized a protest Monday outside the Rwampara Ebola treatment center. They set tires alight, causing a brief panic in the vicinity before the police intervened to restore order.

Health workers face other challenges as well, including attacks from angry residents and skepticism about the virus.

‘We risk dying for nothing’

Dr. Ben Bakule, a community investigator, said he narrowly escaped death in late May when a group of angry young men attacked him and his colleagues while they were tracing contacts of a confirmed Ebola case in the village of Tutu, in Djugu territory.

“We spend money on transport to get to work. We thought we’d be rewarded. At the moment, nothing is going right because we’re not being paid. We don’t deserve this sort of treatment,” he told The Associated Press.

“We might have to give up our jobs. These are risks we’re taking. We risk dying for nothing. This government wants this epidemic to continue,” Bakule added, his voice tinged with frustration.

When he visited the mining town of Mongbwalu — considered the hot spot for the disease — last month, Congo’s Minister of Health Roger Kamba assured the response teams that the government was prioritizing their working conditions.

"All doctors, all nurses and all staff working on the response will be fully supported. We have the money for that,” Kamba said at the time.

But front-line workers say the reality is different.

“We are doing everything we can to make the public understand how dangerous this disease is. I came here to save people’s lives, but this is how I am being thanked. We are working day and night without being paid,” said Dr. Ghislain Maneba, an epidemiologist and community investigator in the Rwampara health zone.

Meanwhile, the strike by some workers has caused concern among residents in Ituri, where measures to slow the outbreak have resulted in economic hardship.

Bunia resident Anifa Kito said she fears that response efforts may falter, further complicating daily life. “I would ask the authorities to resolve this situation before things get any worse,” she said, standing in front of her tomato stall.

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AP writer Constant Same Bagalwa in Bunia contributed to this report.

——

For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse

The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The 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 missile carried a dummy warhead, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. China last conducted a missile test in the Pacific two years ago, firing an intercontinental ballistic missile with a dummy warhead, the first since 1980.

The 2024 launch mirrored the testing the United States conducts for its own ballistic missile fleet, which experts viewed as an assertion of China’s growing superpower status.

Monday's launch, at 12:01 p.m. local time, was part of routine annual training, complied with international law and practice and was not directed against any country or target, according to a short statement from Xinhua, which was reposted by the Ministry of Defense.

Australia, Japan and New Zealand express criticism

Beijing's militarization has drawn concerns, and Australia, Japan and New Zealand criticized the launch.

The New Zealand government said it was informed hours beforehand and noted that the missile was fired into the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone.

The zone was established by the 1986 Treaty of Rarotonga, which prohibits nuclear weapons throughout the region. China ratified the protocols in 1987, pledging not to test nuclear weapons within the zone or threaten to use them against signatories with territory in the region.

“It appears that despite our long-standing concerns about this type of activity, China carried out the test within hours of informing us,” Foreign Minister Winston Peters told The Associated Press in a statement.

The launch took place the same day Australia and Fiji signed a new mutual defense treaty meant to counter Chinese influence in the Pacific.

“Australia has been clear with China that we regard this as destabilizing to the region,” Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong told reporters in Fiji in response to the test.

Japan's Defense Ministry in a statement expressed concern about China’s increasing military activity and urged Beijing to “rethink” its missile testing so that the projectiles would not fly over Japan or pose other security risks.

“China’s military activities, combined with its lack of transparency, have become a grave concern for Japan and the international society,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said in Japan, citing Beijing's military activities around Japan and its increased military spending.

Beijing brushed off the criticism.

“We hope that the relevant countries will avoid overinterpretation,” a Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said.

U.S. State Department spokesperson Thomas Pigott said while the U.S. was “working harder than ever” to prevent nuclear proliferation, China was doing the opposite.

“Beijing’s rapid and opaque nuclear weapons buildup is of great concern to the region and the world,” he said.

He added the U.S. will continue to urge Beijing to engage in meaningful arms control discussions and commit to a regularized notification arrangement for intercontinental ballistic missile and space launches.

Expert says it's a signal to the United States

The concern is a result of a lack of clear information, said Drew Thompson, senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore: “China’s military modernization and buildup have occurred without concurrent increases in openness and transparency, resulting in uncertainty about China’s intentions."

Lyle Morris, a senior fellow at Asia Society Policy Institute’s Center for China Analysis, said the launch was the first publicly acknowledged test with a dummy warhead from a nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine of the Chinese navy to travel this far into the Pacific.

Morris said it is noteworthy that the information available shows Japan, New Zealand and Australia received notifications in advance, but not the U.S.

The test was a signal to the U.S., he said: “The announcement demonstrates that China’s nuclear deterrent is no longer centered solely on land-based missiles."

China maintains a “no first use” of nuclear weapons policy, but is also actively pursuing nuclear technology and weaponry as part of its long-term strategy to modernize the People’s Liberation Army.

China had a fleet of six ballistic-missile submarines and 59 nuclear-powered attack submarines as of November 2025, according to the Nuclear Threat Initiative, a Washington-based think tank.

In its latest report to Congress on China’s military capabilities, released in late 2025, the Pentagon said China had an estimated stockpile of around 600 nuclear warheads in 2024, adding that the PLA remains on track to field more than 1,000 nuclear warheads by 2030.

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Graham-McLay reported from Wellington, New Zealand. Associated Press writers Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo, Japan, E. Eduardo Castillo in Bangkok and Kanis Leung in Hong Kong contributed to this report.

Twelve others survived, seven with minor injuries, state broadcaster CCTV said. The team was heading out to clear and maintain forest land when the landslide struck shortly before 7 a.m. on Tuesday.

Footage on CCTV showed a swath of denuded mountainside that ended in the valley. The exposed earth contrasted sharply with the green, heavily forested slopes that angled up steeply on both sides under mostly clear skies.

The landslide was about 40 meters (130 feet) wide and covered roughly 5,400 square meters (58,000 square feet), Longnan city natural resources official Yang Yaoxian said at a news conference. Excavators were used to help clear the accumulated debris, which was about 8 to 10 meters (26 to 33 feet) deep.

A preliminary assessment indicated the landslide was caused by a combination of the steep terrain, erosion and the area's geological structure. The material left by the landslide was unstable and there is a risk of a second landslide, Yang said.

The landslide was in an uninhabited area in Gansu province's Tanchang county, about 220 kilometers (140 miles) south of Lanzhou, the provincial capital.

Former State Bureau of Investigation Agent David Hull described Tyler Robinson’s alleged movements before and after Kirk was killed as prosecutors played previously unseen campus surveillance videos in state court. The defendant first arrived on campus about four hours before the shooting and returned several times, including when he allegedly went onto the roof to shoot Kirk and again the night after Kirk was killed, Hull said.

Prosecutors say they intend to seek the death penalty in the case. They are trying to convince Judge Tony Graf that they have enough evidence to bring Robinson to trial on an aggravated murder charge.

Robinson has not yet entered a plea. His attorneys have not commented on his guilt or innocence. They have, however, sought to get the death penalty taken off the table, so far unsuccessfully.

In a video shown Tuesday, Robinson climbs over a railing onto a rooftop, crouches down and runs to a site overlooking where Kirk was speaking, Hull testified. After the shooting, Robinson runs back across the roof, drops to the ground and flees on foot, Hull said.

Investigators found the suspected murder weapon — a bolt-action rifle with one spent round — wrapped in a towel in some nearby woods. DNA on the towel matched to two people. One was Tyler Robinson’s roommate and the other was very likely Robinson, Jennifer Faumuina with the State Bureau of Investigation testified.

This week’s preliminary hearing marks the most significant presentation of evidence to date in the case. Authorities allege Robinson, 23, shot Kirk on Sept. 10 while the 31-year-old activist and ally of President Donald Trump was speaking to a crowd of thousands.

Judge reviews Turning Point USA board member statement

Defense attorney Kathryn Nester questioned Hull’s handling of the crime scene on the day of the shooting. She also asked about a bullet that was found on campus at a different location than the alleged shooting site.

Hull said that bullet was traced back to a law enforcement officer who had “cleared” his weapon, ejecting an unused bullet. He also said a handgun in a backpack was found at the scene.

Robinson’s attorneys also raised questions about the DNA evidence, using testimony from an FBI analyst to demonstrate that finding a person’s DNA on an item doesn’t necessarily mean that person touched the item.

Prosecutors contend the shooting endangered others at Kirk’s campus event — an aggravating circumstance that could make the crime punishable by death under Utah law. Robinson also faces possible sentence enhancements based on the prosecution’s claim that he targeted Kirk because of his political views.

During one of several appearances on campus by Robinson on Sept. 10, Hull said the defendant went to the amphitheater where Kirk was later shot and contacted representatives of Turning Point USA, a group co-founded by Kirk that galvanized the conservative youth vote to help Trump win a second term.

The investigator did not detail what occurred during that interaction or if members of Kirk’s security team were present.

Prosecutors allege Robinson confessed in a note left for his roommate, who was also his romantic partner, that read: “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it.” Robinson also sent a text saying he targeted Kirk because he “had enough of his hatred,” prosecutors have said.

Robinson’s defense team pushed back Tuesday on the idea that he was hostile to Kirk’s politics. Defense attorney Richard Novak sought to block prosecutors from introducing a statement describing the traditional Christian values of Turning Point USA.

“This doesn’t say anything about Mr. Robinson’s state of mind,” Novak said about the statement from Turning Point USA board member David Englehardt. “I don’t think that this court should be deciding — based on the record before it — where, if at all, politics and religion intersect.”

Judge Graf ruled that the statement was relevant and said it would be “provisionally admitted” with a final decision at a later date.

Prosecutors have a low bar

This week marks the first time since the case began that Kirk’s parents, Kathryn and Robert, and widow, Erika, were in the courtroom. Also present were the president’s son, Donald Trump Jr., who said Tuesday that Kirk was one of his closest friends, and Robinson’s parents, Matt and Amber Robinson.

The proceeding resembles a minitrial, but with a lower standard of proof than for a jury trial where prosecutors must prove guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt.” At the preliminary hearing, prosecutors need only demonstrate to the judge that there are reasonable grounds to believe Robinson killed Kirk and should stand trial.

Legal experts say that means prosecutors should have little trouble advancing their case.

Spectators camped out for hearing

Utah County residents Denae Branch and Jean Rivera lined up outside the courthouse around midnight Tuesday and snagged one of the few seats available to the public for this week’s hearing.

The women said they were in the crowd when Kirk was shot and now think about it every day.

“It feels like a lot of the world just kept spinning and we’re still dealing with the trauma of it,” Branch said. “Our hearts and minds are still trying to process it and, yeah, it kind of helps being here.”

Branch said she was overcome with emotion in court when Erika Kirk, who herself was crying, handed her a tissue.

Rivera on Tuesday morning wore a shirt that read “FREEDOM” — just as Kirk did on the day he was shot — but was told she could not wear it inside. She said she hoped to hear testimony about Robinson’s alleged confession note.

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Brown reported from Billings, Montana.

“We’ve been monitoring the building for many hours and have not seen any movement," Ahmed Tigani, commissioner of the New York City Department of Buildings, said during a news conference Tuesday.

By nighttime, residents were allowed back into several of the seven buildings that were evacuated as a precaution.

The scene unfolded after columns were spotted buckling on Tuesday morning at the 1970s-era building, which is being converted into luxury apartments. Construction workers at the site and people in nearby buildings — including a school, diplomatic offices and several hotels — in the busy corridor of midtown were rushed out after firefighters were called there around 8 a.m. Mayor Zohran Mamdani described it as “an extremely serious situation.”

City officials going floor-by-floor later found no additional movement of the damaged columns, giving on-site contractors the greenlight to move forward with emergency repairs, his office said. On Tuesday evening, workers could be seen shoring up the damage inside the gleaming glass-and-steel high rise.

That work is expected to continue, impacting a part of Manhattan near the famed Grand Central train station that is a hub for metro area commuters and residents as well as tourists.

Fears of collapse prompted evacuation orders

The building, which is the former headquarters of pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, is located just down the street from New York City icons like the Chrysler Building and the United Nations headquarters.

Leila Bozorg, one of Mamdani’s deputy mayors, said it was “encouraging” the building did not appear to be shifting as officials went up into and past the damaged floors on their way to the 37th floor — the top floor — of the building.

From the street below, a badly bent structural column could be seen through a large glass window on the 21st floor. The fire department, which also posted images of the column, said they found multiple cracks and sagging floors as well.

Asked earlier in the day if there was concern of a collapse, Fire Chief John Esposito said the way the steel-framed building is constructed, “it would not be a total collapse, it would be more of a localized collapse.”

Nearby buildings and streets remained evacuated for much of the day, including a school and the Israeli consulate just across the street. The former Pfizer building itself was empty at the time, other than for the construction workers.

Ramesh Yallappa, a tourist who was among those evacuated from a nearby hotel, said he initially feared it was a fire in the hotel when an immediate evacuation was ordered Tuesday morning.

“That moment, we were really really scared,” he said.

Developer says new addition led to damage

With more than 1,600 units, the developers say the project is the largest office-to-residential conversion in the city’s history. Gensler, the architectural firm leading the project, says on its website that it is transforming a pair of 1970s-era office buildings by adding more than a dozen stories and redesigning an adjoining tower.

Building department records show the project has been fined by the city for several safety violations, including glass and metal falling off the building, along with an incident where a worker fell off a ladder.

Spokespersons for Gensler and MetroLoft, the project developer, didn’t return messages seeking comment.

But in a statement to The New York Times, MetroLoft stressed that the building itself is not at risk of collapse and that no debris fell from the building.

Nathan Berman, founder of MetroLoft, told The Wall Street Journal that the added weight from widening the top 15 or so floors of the building likely caused the damage. The two columns that buckled may not have been properly reinforced, he told the newspaper.

“Why those particular two columns and nothing else? We don’t know,” Berman told the Journal. “We’re investigating that.”

He maintained the building’s integrity wasn’t compromised.

“Ninety-five percent of the building, the structure is sound and intact,” Berman told the Journal. “There is no way that this corner of a small extension all of a sudden topples this building.”

Experts say more extensive repairs likely needed

Emily Guglielmo, a structural engineer based in California, said the buckled columns are likely not repairable and will need to be removed and replaced.

“A lot of these things — cracking, deflections, sagging — those elements are probably not salvageable,” she said.

Replacing the columns will require rigorous analysis, and the repairs will be expensive, experts said.

The short-term solution is shoring up the structure and the floors, said Abi Aghayere, a professor of structural engineering at Drexel University in Philadelphia.

Shoring involves installing four-legged scaffolding to temporarily carry the load that the structure is supposed to carry until the columns can be replaced, Aghayere said.

Yi Bao, associate professor of civil engineering at the Stevens Institute of Technology in New Jersey, said the building could be damaged beyond the buckled columns, which could have forced the loads to be redistributed to different parts of the building.

Ed Miller, an area resident, said he walks under the building’s scaffolding several times a day, but will find other routes home going forward.

“The building was pretty old,” said Miles Grant, who said he used to work at the building. “It definitely needed a lot of work to become ready for residential.”

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This story has been updated to correct that city officials revised the building’s height to 37 stories, not 38.

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Izaguirre reported from Lindenhurst, New York. Associated Press reporters David R. Martin in New York, Jessica Hill in Las Vegas and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed to this story.

The Los Angeles Dodgers' two-way superstar blasted a 409-foot line drive to center on a 2-0 pitch for his 20th homer of the season. Center fielder Cole Carrigg could only watch it fly out.

“It was quite the homer,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “It was 119 (mph exit velocity) off the bat, low-launching, it was squared up, got out in a hurry. I just marvel at him every day. Three hundred is a big number."

Ohtani is the fifth-fastest in history to reach 300 and the 170th member of the club. It took him 1,102 games between playing for the Los Angeles Angels and Dodgers; New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge was the quickest at 955 games.

It was Ohtani's 31st career leadoff homer and seventh this season. He also homered in the Dodgers' 8-7 victory in 11 innings on Monday night to highlight a 3-for-4 performance.

Roberts believes there's a lot more homers within reach for Ohtani, who turned 32 last Sunday.

“He just had a birthday, still young, still strong, so I definitely think 500 is in his future,” the manager said.

Teammate Freddie Freeman bowed as Ohtani made his way back to the dugout.

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

“The lesson of (the) recent past is that ignoring Afghanistan is not a good thing to do,” the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Barham Salih, told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday alongside the head of the United Nations Development Program, Alexander De Croo, during a joint visit to the country.

Although many challenges and difficulties remain, “it’s wiser to engage, to support and promote the right type of policies to making sure that Afghanistan remains safe and secure,” Salih said, speaking via video link. “Without it, I think we may well risk instability, with all the implications of that instability," whether that is drugs, extremism, criminal activity or the movement of refugees, he said.

Afghanistan hit by multiple crises

After four decades of conflict, the impoverished, aid-dependent country is now buffeted by multiple crises, from natural disasters and climate change to the largest influx of returning refugees the world has seen in decades.

“In Afghanistan, there is never a crisis just on its own. It’s always crisis on top of crisis,” De Croo told the AP. “And that you see here.”

Nearly 6 million people have returned to Afghanistan since 2023, the vast majority from neighboring Pakistan and Iran since those countries began a crackdown on migrants living there. Another roughly 2 million people are expected to return this year, the U.N. officials said.

The returnees have strained local communities, many of which already have scant resources in a country where poverty is rife and malnutrition stalks the most vulnerable.

This has been compounded by massive cuts in international aid and a Taliban government that has sidelined half of Afghanistan’s population, denying women and girls education beyond primary school and banning them from the vast majority of jobs.

The country is also internationally isolated. No Western nation has formally recognized Afghanistan’s government since the Taliban seized power in the wake of a chaotic withdrawal of U.S.-led troops in August 2021. Russia was the first country to officially do so, in 2025.

Last month, a delegation from the Taliban government traveled to Brussels to meet European Union staff for talks on diplomatic services and the return of Afghans from European countries. The meeting symbolized a small crack in Afghanistan's diplomatic isolation.

Progress seen in some areas

Yet despite the significant challenges, Afghanistan has nonetheless shown improvement in some areas, notably in security and combating corruption and drug production, the U.N. officials said.

“I wouldn’t close my eyes to the fact that there is progress, and maybe progress that no one would have expected five years ago,” De Croo told the AP. He said drug production was down by 95% in a country that was one of the world’s major producers of opium and heroin.

“If now the international community turns its back to Afghanistan, the consequences will not only be in Afghanistan. The consequences will be much, much broader,” De Croo said.

“The message to Western countries is: if you want to have a stable and peaceful society, you are not only achieving that with domestic policy. If you want to live in peace and stability, your neighborhood also needs to be at peace and stability,” he added.

Draconian restrictions on women and girls remain

The harsh government-imposed restrictions on women and girls remain one of the greatest points of contention between the Afghan government and the international community. De Croo and Salih said they had discussed the issue in their meetings with Afghan officials during their visit to the country. Both said they believed the key to progress was engagement.

“We hope that constructive engagement will show the way forward in that regard,” Salih said. “It’s important that there is progress, there is tangible reforms that will allow for an inclusive system in this country.”

Aid cuts could have lasting repercussions

The international aid cuts have had “a very tangible impact” on the country, De Croo said, noting that 422 medical centers shut down in Afghanistan due to lack of funding in the space of a year. “Closed because the funding just disappeared. That is more than 3 million people that are impacted, that just lose their access to basic medical services,” he said.

Earlier this year, the World Food Program said funding cuts had forced it to turn away three out of four acutely malnourished children seeking help because it no longer had the funds to feed them.

The Afghan government launched a campaign to eradicate poppy cultivation soon after it seized power. But the dramatic cut in drug production was also due in part to farmers being given alternative crops to the cultivation of opium poppies, De Croo said, noting that funding for such programs had been severely curtailed.

“If we cannot continue working together with farmers in giving them an alternative for producing drugs,” then drug cultivation could return, he said.

Although international attention has shifted away from Afghanistan, Salih said that while challenges remain, there is now an opportunity for the rest of the world to engage with the country.

“It is vital to remind the world that the price of inaction far outweighs action,” Salih said. “You cannot ignore Afghanistan, and what happens in Afghanistan does not necessarily stay in Afghanistan."

His place in the record books will probably last a lot longer.

The Kansas City Royals outfielder, typically a defensive specialist and pinch runner, tied a major league record with hits in 12 consecutive plate appearances, reaching the mark with an infield single against the New York Mets for his fifth hit in Tuesday’s wild 16-12 comeback win.

Batting ninth, the right fielder hit a two-run homer in the second inning and singled in the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh. Tolbert’s last three hits were infield hits.

Tolbert matched the record set by Chicago’s Johnny Kling in 1902 and equaled by Walt Dropo of the Detroit Tigers in 1952. The bat Tolbert used will be sent to the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

“I’m truly lost for words, honestly,” Tolbert said. “I don’t know. It hasn’t really hit me, to be honest.”

With a chance to break the record, Tolbert was finally retired in the ninth on a fly ball to right against A.J. Minter to finish 5 for 6.

“He’s a good pitcher and broke the streak,” Tolbert said. “All I can do is just smile. I’m just grateful for the journey and opportunity.”

The remnants of the announced crowd of 32,734 gave Tolbert an ovation, and his teammates applauded while gathering on the top step of their dugout. Following the game, the Royals celebrated Tolbert with a Champagne toast in the visiting locker room.

“It’s nice — I guess everybody’s kind of in tune, knowing what was happening,” Tolbert said. “I appreciated the fans supporting me and cheering me on, trying to get the next one. When I was on deck, they were like, ‘Go for another one. Go for another one.’

“More importantly, just my teammates man, they were locked in,” Tolbert added. “Just awesome. Look in the dugout and everybody’s smiling. Brings a smile to my face, too.”

Tolbert, listed at 5-foot-10, was selected by the Royals in the 13th round of the 2019 draft and stole at least 48 bases in every minor league season from 2021 through 2025 before debuting in the bigs on March 31, 2025.

“I just couldn’t be more proud of him, the way he competes,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “His effort, energy, attitude — he lifts everybody up everyday. And for him to have those individual accolades are really special. The way the guys celebrated him right there was really cool.”

Tolbert was a career .247 hitter with one homer, seven RBIs and 28 stolen bases in 91 big league games entering Saturday, when he went 2 for 2 against Philadelphia before being lifted for a pinch hitter. He then started at shortstop on Monday and went 5 for 5 with a homer, his first of the season.

“He’s a sparkplug,” teammate Nick Loftin said “I’m happy that he’s able to find some success and consistent (at-bats). Now he’s going to Cooperstown.”

Tolbert is the first player with consecutive five-hit games since Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente, who pulled off the feat Aug, 22-23, 1970.

“It’s always good to see your hard work pay off,” Tolbert said, “But like I said, back to work (Wednesday). That’s just my mindset.”

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

Making its debut Tuesday night, Universal Celestial Goodnight, the newest nighttime spectacular, combines fireworks, dancing fountains and synchronized lighting in a way guests haven’t seen at a Universal Orlando Resort theme park.

The 10-minute show transforms all of Celestial Park into a fully choreographed nighttime experience featuring nearly 600 synchronized light fixtures, more than 350 dancing fountains and 7 million LED lights woven throughout the park, all set to a high-energy musical score pulling from each of Epic Universe’s themed worlds.

The themed world scores go in the following order: Super Nintendo, Donkey Kong Country, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, Dark Universe, How to Train Your Dragon.

It all builds to a glittery finale that closes out the night and a bonus Universal Studios Fanfare score.

Celestial Goodnight replaces the Cosmos Fountain display in Celestial Park. Earlier this year, that fountain was drained amid speculation enhancements were being done to incorporate them into a new nighttime show.

Universal Orlando has historically leaned on lagoon-based projection and laser shows for its nighttime entertainment. Large-scale fireworks have traditionally been a challenge at the resort due to noise restrictions in the area. But with the opening of Epic Universe in unincorporated Orange County last year, many fans and industry watchers wondered just how big the resort’s nighttime spectacle could get.

The resort currently has the seasonal CineSational: A Symphonic Spectacular, a lagoon show at Universal Studios, and Hogwarts Always, the magical lit and music experience set against Hogwarts Castle in Hogsmeade.

Celestial Goodnight runs nightly at park close.

Not in Little League. Not in high school. Not at Sam Houston State. Not in the minors. Not in Baltimore. Not in San Diego. Not ever.

Three home runs. Ten RBIs. One magical night that included a rare curtain call and ended with his batting helmet headed to Cooperstown.

The Pirates have been playing baseball since 1882. No player across 145 seasons had ever driven in 10 runs in a game. A grand slam in the first and a three-run homer in the third off Braves starter Hurston Waldrep, and another three-run shot off Atlanta reliever Connor Thomas in the sixth changed all that, breaking the club single-game record of nine RBIs set by Johnny Rizzo against St. Louis on May 30, 1939 — a scant 54 years before the 32-year-old O'Hearn was born.

The 10 RBIs also marked the most in the majors by a player this season, and he became the 11th big leaguer since RBI became an official statistic in 1920 to have at least three home runs and 10 RBIs in a game and the first since Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani did it against Miami in September 2024.

“Got some good pitches to hit and after the third one I was like, ‘Oh man, no kidding? I guess today's supposed to be my day,'” O'Hearn said.

In more ways than one. When O'Hearn took Thomas deep to push his RBI total to 10, it also marked the 100th home run of his nine-year career. Not bad for a semi-late bloomer who didn't reach the majors until 25 and didn't become an All-Star until last season, just after turning 31.

The Pirates saw enough to sign him to a two-year deal in the offseason, their first multiyear investment in a free agent in nearly a decade. O'Hearn has embraced the role of clubhouse leader on a team trying to reach the postseason after 10-plus years in the wilderness. His 16 homers are one short of his career high of 17 set last season, and his record-setting night came just hours after Pittsburgh lost rookie shortstop Konnor Griffin for two months with a left hand injury.

“We're going to keep rocking,” O'Hearn said. “We have good players.”

O'Hearn is one of them. Pirates manager Don Kelly wanted to give O'Hearn a break late with Pittsburgh comfortably ahead, but didn't want to do it at the cost of robbing O'Hearn of a shot at history.

So O'Hearn headed to the plate in the ninth, looking to become the 22nd player to hit four homers in a game. When he looked at the mound, he couldn't help but smile when he saw Braves infielder Jorge Mateo, whom O'Hearn called a “good buddy.”

Atlanta turned to Mateo to give the bullpen a breather in a blowout, and Mateo did what Waldrep and Harris couldn't by keeping O'Hearn in the yard, though not off the bases. O'Hearn laced a single to right field to complete a four-hit night and give the Pirates their third straight victory as ace Paul Skenes earned his first win in nearly two months.

The reigning NL Cy Young winner gave up two runs on eight hits over six solid innings, walking one and striking out four. Skenes, who opted out of next week's All-Star Game and was replaced by teammate Braxton Ashcraft, also saw his velocity consistently stick in the 97-98 mph range after frequently dipping into the mid-90s during a loss to Philadelphia last week.

Not that Skenes wanted to talk about it much. For once, his performance wasn't the story, even if he couldn't help but have a little fun at his teammate's expense.

“I think it was kind of selfish, to be honest,” Skenes deadpanned. “Everybody else was getting on, and then, home runs are rally killers. You hit a three-run home run or a grand slam, and it’s just like, what now? There’s nobody on. Nobody can drive him in. Good for him, I guess.”

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

Google Australia manager Rachel Lord was testifying at a government inquiry into the spread of antisemitism in Australia including an attack by two gunmen on a Sydney Hanukkah celebration in December that left 15 dead.

Lord was questioned about a complaint made by survivor Arsen Ostrovsky about a video posted on YouTube. Ostrovsky was attacked online after an image showing blood streaming from a wound in his head was posted on X two hours after he was shot.

Lord said the decision to allow the video to remain on YouTube had been reviewed at “quite senior levels.”

“We have spent a lot of time thinking about where we draw the line and we continue to re-evaluate where we are doing that,” Lord said.

Richard Lancaster, the lawyer leading the inquiry’s evidence, referred to a transcript of the video to avoid showing the images in public.

Four men appear on split screen saying Ostrovsky’s bleeding head appeared “very crisis actor-ish” and mentioned “makeup.” They also describe him as an “intelligence asset” who had a “degree in theater.”

The video also describes Ostrovsky as a Zionist and claims the massacre was a “false flag operation.” Police allege father and son shooters Sajid and Naveed Akram were inspired by the Islamic State group.

Lancaster told Lord the video remaining online demonstrated a “really serious deficiency” in YouTube’s hate speech guidelines.

Lord replied that she appreciated Lancaster’s “feedback.”

YouTube told Australia’s online safety regulator three days after the massacre that the platform was “focused on ensuring Australians and all users around the world have access to high quality information about the tragic events,” Lord said.

Ostrovsky told the inquiry last month that he had been targeted by online hate, abuse, vilification and AI manipulation since he suffered the minor head wound on Dec. 14.

The inquiry was then shown an AI-generated image of Ostrovsky apparently laughing as someone applied fake blood to his head.

Johnson died Monday at his home in downtown Chicago. A cause of death was not released.

Johnson and his late wife and high school sweetheart, Joan, started Johnson Products in 1954 on Chicago’s South Side after securing a $250 loan. It grew into a hair care empire catering almost exclusively to Black people, with brands like Afro Sheen and Ultra Sheen.

People who remember Afro Sheen and Ultra Sheen in their heyday also remember the brands’ marketing campaigns and their association with the “Black is Beautiful” movement, which promoted cultural and racial pride among Black people. The iconic 1970s commercials, which featured variations of the “Watu Wazuri” (“Beautiful People”) jingle, have enjoyed a resurgence on social media in recent years.

The commercials aired primarily during the hit music-and-dance television show “Soul Train," which his company was a national sponsor of and once owned.

“It was just a wonderful opportunity for Don Cornelius to be able to go national. He wouldn’t have been able to do that without George Johnson’s partnership,” Rogers said. “And so, to see it work out for everyone and for our community all together was part of his genius.”

A legacy worth celebrating

During its annual gala in November, the Chicago Urban League celebrated Johnson as the Edwin C. “Bill” Berry Civil Rights Award honoree, named for the League’s iconic leader. Berry joined Johnson Products Company when he left the organization, according to Karen Freeman-Wilson, president and CEO of the Chicago Urban League. She said the honor was a full-circle moment for Johnson, who was a longtime board member.

"Just 12 or 14 days ago, he was standing with Barack Obama in the presidential library, dedicating a room for he and my mother," Eric George Johnson, the eldest of Johnson's four children, told The Associated Press. “It's a wonderful life to celebrate.”

Johnson's trajectory started from humble beginnings.

He was born in 1927 in Richton, Mississippi. Johnson’s mother, Priscilla Dean Johnson, was just 18 when she left her husband, took her children to Chicago and found a job at a local hospital, said Hilary Beard, a Philadelphia-based author who worked with Johnson on his memoir.

Their move occurred during what’s known as the First Great Migration, between 1910 and 1940, when tens of thousands of southern Black people moved to northern and Midwestern cities for jobs and to escape racial oppression.

“There was just enough money for food, clothing and shelter, but not for anything extra,” Beard said.

Johnson and his older brother, John, would collect cigarette packages, peel out the aluminum linings, roll them into balls and sell them to people who collected junk for resale, Beard said. Johnson also shined shoes, cleared tables in eateries and set up pins in a bowling alley.

A source of pride and inspiration

As an adult, Johnson worked for the Black-owned Fuller Products Co. in Chicago. Beard said Johnson met a barber who was distraught because he couldn't convince Fuller to back a product he was developing that straightened men's hair. The drawback was the product burned the scalp.

Johnson worked with Fuller's chemist to revamp the barber's formula and started his business after ultimately convincing a bank he needed a $250 loan to take his wife on a vacation, Beard said. That business would become Johnson Products.

Johnson's company offered above-market salaries, profit-sharing for its workers, healthcare and other benefits at a time when many companies didn’t provide such perks, Beard added. Johnson Products was sold in 1993 to a pharmaceutical firm in a deal worth more than $60 million.

Johnson later founded Independence Bank and became the first Black person to serve on the board of directors of the Illinois electric utility Commonwealth Edison. The George E. Johnson Educational Fund awarded more than 1,000 college scholarships.

John W. Rogers, the founder of Chicago-based Ariel Investments, remembers his father taking him to Independence Bank to open a checking account and being awed that Johnson owned it.

“That was just so impressive to me that he would start the largest Black bank in the country" which helped Black entrepreneurs, homeowners and anyone who needed assistance as they were building their lives, said Rogers, a mentee of Johnson.

The Golden Rule

Though Johnson is gone, the lessons he imparted continue to shape the family’s future.

Eric Johnson, who served as CEO, left Johnson Products Company in 1992. He said he purchased Baldwin Ice Cream in 1997, intending to keep the company in the family for generations to come. Eric Johnson officially retired from Baldwin Richardson Foods on May 9 after successfully transitioning ownership to his daughters, Erin Tolefree and Cara Hughes.

“He saw his children come along and be successful, and now his grandchildren being successful,” Eric Johnson said.

Eric Johnson isn't the only one who sees that legacy continuing. Rogers points to the company’s third generation of leadership as evidence.

“Eric’s positioned his kids who are now running the business day-to-day. So it’s a third generation, which is remarkable. They’re doing so well," Rogers said.

Johnson’s memoir, “Afro Sheen: How I Revolutionized an Industry with the Golden Rule, from Soul Train to Wall Street,” was published in 2024.

Being fair and treating people the way you want to be treated was Johnson's golden rule, according to his son. And it's a cherished piece of advice that Eric Johnson said his father instilled in him.

"And it’s a foundation that was established in him as a child by his mother, that he established in all of us,” he said.

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Williams reported from Detroit.

The allegation reported Monday prompted a chorus of calls for Platner to depart the high-stakes race against Republican Sen. Susan Collins, which could decide party control of the Senate. Platner's long-time backer, Sen. Bernie Sanders, “recommended that he step aside.” Then, Tuesday evening, The Washington Post reported that an ex-girlfriend of Platner’s had accused him of removing condoms during sex without her consent.

Platner, who has denied all the allegations, has been mum on whether he'll step aside. And the Maine Democratic Party, charged with creating a process to pick his replacement, hasn't publicly announced their plans.

On Tuesday night, Executive Director Devon Murphy-Anderson released a video saying the party is developing an “open, inclusive, transparent and fair” process but won't disclose details until Platner withdraws. Platner’s team has repeatedly tried to “put their thumb on the scale," she said.

“We have repeatedly reiterated to Graham Platner’s team that they have no role in determining our next Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate, nor in determining what this process looks like,” she said.

An official for the Platner campaign responded that it “has reached out to the party to try and understand what this process would look like” and “at no point has the campaign tried to ‘put its finger on the scale.’” The official added that thousands of Maine residents voted and volunteered for Platner and they should play a role in the decision.

“While Graham wouldn’t want to be a part of the process, he would want to make sure the voters and volunteers make this decision — not the political establishment,” the statement said.

So far, the succession battle has played out in a murky power vacuum. A growing number of candidates are teasing their entry into the race as a fight shapes up between the progressive wing and the establishment camp of the Democratic Party.

Platner became a populist hero among the party’s left flank, pulling far ahead of an establishment-backed candidate, Gov. Janet Mills, in the primary. Now, progressive groups fear that political ground could be lost.

“To the Democratic establishment: This is not your opening,” said Joseph Geevarghese, who leads Our Revolution. The organization founded by Sanders backed and then withdrew its endorsement of Platner after the sexual assault allegation. The group said Tuesday that it was “rallying behind” another progressive contender, Troy Jackson, who announced he's “exploring” a candidacy.

The sexual assault allegation against Platner

In the allegation published Monday by Politico, a woman whom Platner previously dated said he drunkenly forced her to have sex after she told him to stop. It is the latest in a string of controversies the first-time candidate had weathered, but the seriousness of the assault claim was too far for many of his supporters in the Democratic Party.

Jenny Racicot, who lives in Maine, told Politico that Platner entered her home in 2021 while drunk and assaulted her. Racicot said she had been in an on-and-off relationship with Platner, but she cut off contact with him after that night and told him the incident wasn’t consensual. She said in a CNN interview on Monday evening that she opted not to fight back for fear of Platner, a former Marine, becoming more violent.

Replacing Platner may further divide Democrats

The pressure for Platner to withdraw from the Senate race has only increased given the short deadlines Maine law allows for replacing general election candidates. There is no mechanism for Democrats to remove Platner from the ballot, and the deadline to withdraw is 5 p.m. July 13. State law gives the authority to choose a replacement to the state party. Any replacement candidate must be named by July 27.

The lack of communication from Platner and the state's Democratic Party has contributed to some confusion about what comes next as candidates tentatively toss their hats in the ring.

Some are arguing that the next Democrat should echo Platner’s progressive messaging, pointing to his success at rallying voters across the state. Others cautioned that having ties to Platner will only doom an already uphill campaign against Collins. Many are pushing for an open process even with limited time.

“No one’s enjoying this experience, and it seems like the consensus step forward should be having a fair and open process that everybody feels is legitimate,” said Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, a political action committee that backed Platner but now calls for him to suspend his campaign.

One possible contender, Nirav Shah, the former director of Maine’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said Tuesday he was “evaluating” whether to join the race. Shah said he’s been in contact with the Maine Democratic Party about ensuring a possible replacement process is based on “openness, transparency and robustness."

“Every single day that we don’t have a nominee, and a process and a clear pathway for the nominee, is another day that we’re letting Sen. Collins continue to get her message out,” Shah told The Associated Press. "As of right now, it’s not clear what the process will be.”

Shah, who came in second in this year’s Maine Democratic gubernatorial primary, added, “I want to give the party grace, because we’re building this plane as we’re flying it.”

Maine's governor, Mills, who sought the Democratic Senate nomination but dropped out before the June 9 primary, could be considered as another contender. Mills was supported by Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer but abandoned her campaign, saying she couldn't raise the money needed to compete.

Another possible replacement is Jackson, Maine’s former state Senate President, who unsuccessfully ran to be the Democratic gubernatorial nominee earlier this year with the backing of Platner and Sanders. Jackson filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission Tuesday to launch a Senate exploratory committee.

“Remember: Progressives overwhelmingly won the primary. A progressive MUST be on the ballot,” Our Revolution said in a fundraising email, which described Jackson as a logger and union leader who helmed Sanders' past presidential efforts in Maine.

Jordan Wood, a former U.S. Senate candidate who then switched to unsuccessfully run for Maine's 2nd District, posted Tuesday that he was “continuing conversations” with voters about joining the race.

Other names circulating include Shenna Bellows, the current Maine Secretary of State; Dan Kleban, founder of Maine Beer Co.; and Hannah Pingree, currently Maine's Democratic gubernatorial nominee.

Bellows said in a statement she will “seriously consider entering this race.”

A Platner voter is ‘heartbroken’

Joanie Monteith, a passionate supporter from the southern Maine town of York who organized a trivia night about Platner in March, said through tears Tuesday that she was devastated by the news. She was waiting for another public statement from Platner before making a decision about whether she could keep supporting him.

“I’m numb, and I’m waiting for what Graham has to say,” she said. “I’m trying not to be a part of this public trial. And I’m heartbroken. And I’m heartbroken for him and his wife.”

She added that she believes the allegations are serious.

“I’m not going to blame a victim. Because if this is true I feel very bad for the woman,” she said.

Another Maine voter, Lee Holman, said she wants Platner to stay in the race.

“I feel like the people of Maine have spoken,” the Democrat said. “If they wanted Janet Mills, they could have voted for her.”

She said the allegation against Platner may be legitimate, but she questions the timing. Democrats, she added, can be too quick to “throw the baby out with the bathwater” by calling on politicians facing allegations to resign.

“Every time we think we have a chance to snatch our democracy back, something gets in the way,” she said.

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Kruesi reported from Providence, R.I. and Bedayn from Austin, Texas. Matt Brown in Minneapolis and Ali Swenson in New York City contributed.

Iran immediately warned Washington it would “take whatever measures it deems necessary," raising the risks that an interim agreement in the war halting fighting could break down, putting the wider Middle East again at risk of a wider conflict. Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, sounded its missile alert sirens Wednesday morning after the American attack on Iran.

The attacks on shipping and the resulting strikes on Iran came during the dayslong funeral for Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed Feb. 28 in the war's first moments at age 86. The funeral, which ends Thursday, had been thought to be a period of lower tensions — though mourners have repeatedly called for the killings of U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Negotiations to reach a final deal had been due to start after Khamenei's burial and focus on the toughest matters, including fully reopening the strait and rolling back Tehran’s disputed nuclear program. But the new attacks threw that into question.

“The era of bullying and extortion is over,” Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf wrote on X. “It leads nowhere. We don’t fold.”

Overnight US strikes target Iran

The U.S. military's Central Command said American forces launched the strikes “to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway.”

It said it hit Iranian targets including air defense systems, radars and over 60 small boats used by Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard. Those boats have been key in harassing ships in the strait.

The U.S. military remains “postured and prepared to hold Iran accountable when the agreement is not adhered to or obeyed,” it added, saying this round of attacks had ended.

Iran acknowledged the strikes, but offered no word on any losses. Iranian state media reported the sound of explosions in Bandar Abbas, Qeshm and Sirik.

Iran's central military command warned it “will respond decisively to this aggression and terrorist act."

“Under no circumstances will (the Iranian armed forces) allow interference in the affairs of the Strait of Hormuz, nor will they permit others to manage it,” it said.

A similar spate of Iranian attacks on shipping and U.S. retaliatory strikes occurred late last month — which drew Iranian attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait. Wednesday's strikes also came as Trump was in Turkey for a summit of the NATO military alliance.

US revokes license for the sale of Iranian oil

The U.S. also revoked a license that authorized the sale of Iranian oil as part of the interim deal. That had allowed Iran for the first time in years to conduct oil sales openly on the international market for U.S. dollars. Iran long had been suspected of selling sanctioned crude oil at below-market prices to China.

A U.S. official said the license was revoked because Iran’s actions in the strait were unacceptable and needed to be met with consequences. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to share insight into the reasoning behind the move.

The decision came after the strikes on shipping. One tanker was traveling off the coast of Oman when it was hit and caught fire, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said. Iranian state television said the liquefied natural gas tanker came under attack after ignoring warnings but did not directly claim the assault.

The other two ships sustained some damage, but no one was injured, and both continued on their way in the Strait of Hormuz, the U.K. maritime agency said. Iran has maintained a chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz since the war, disrupting global energy markets as a fifth of all traded oil and natural gas passed through the channel in peacetime. The ships attacked Tuesday all appeared to be using a route close to Oman's shore, rather than one ordered by Tehran.

Tehran repeatedly has declared that only its approved route through the strait is safe and is suspected of attacking other ships that have used the Oman route.

Majed al-Ansari, a spokesperson for the Qatari Foreign Ministry, said the Qatari tanker Al Rekayyat was targeted in an “unacceptable attack” on international navigation and global energy security. He said Qatar holds Iran “fully legally responsible.”

Iran and the United States agreed as part of the interim deal to allow ships to pass without paying charges for 60 days. But Tehran insisted it must control the vessels' routes and later charge fees for passage, which would upend decades of practice in the waterway.

The U.S. and many Gulf Arab states say they will not agree to Iran charging for passage through the strait.

Mourners gather in Qom for Khamenei's funeral

Authorities flew Khamenei’s body to the Shiite seminary city of Qom, where mourners honored him Tuesday.

Iranian state television aired live images of hundreds of thousands of people walking toward Jamkaran Mosque, just south of Qom, for the funeral service. Shiites believe the mosque once hosted Muhammad al-Mahdi, the 12th and last Shiite imam, who disappeared in the 9th century and is supposed to one day reappear to bring justice to the world.

Khamenei's son, Iran's new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, has yet to make an appearance at the ceremonies, which began Saturday in Tehran. He is believed to be in hiding after reportedly being wounded in the airstrike that killed his father.

Khamenei’s body arrived late Tuesday in Iraq, where it was received by officials from both countries. Processions are planned for Wednesday in Najaf and Karbala, the two holy Shiite cities.

Khamenei will then be returned to Iran to be buried Thursday at the Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, his birthplace.

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Hussein and Toropin reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Najaf, Iraq, and Christopher Weber in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

The Justice Department served a grand jury subpoena in April seeking the names and personal contact information of county employees and volunteer poll workers. President Donald Trump has long claimed without evidence that widespread voter fraud in Georgia's most populous county, a Democratic stronghold, cost him victory in the state in 2020.

Fulton County asked a judge to quash the subpoena, arguing it was meant to “target, harass and punish the President’s perceived political opponents” and that it was “grossly over broad and untethered to any reasonable need.”

“Given the low need for the subpoenaed information and the highly burdensome nature of the disclosure of the same, the Subpoena is unreasonable and must be quashed,” U.S. District Judge William Ray wrote in his ruling, calling the scope of the request “staggering.”

“We are proud of our efforts to push back against these improper demands that only serve to undermine confidence in our elections,” Fulton County Attorney Soo Jo said in a statement.

An email seeking comment was sent to the Justice Department.

While grand juries often work with federal prosecutors to investigate alleged crimes, “that does not give the DOJ the right to use the Grand Jury to do whatever the DOJ wants,” wrote Ray, who was nominated to the bench by Trump.

Even if the records sought by the Justice Department could help find people who worked for the county during the 2020 election who support the theory that the election was unfair, the information couldn't be used to charge anyone because the statute of limitations has passed, Ray wrote.

The subpoena came after the FBI in January served a search warrant at the Fulton County election hub and seized hundreds of boxes of ballots and other documents from the 2020 election. A federal judge in May denied the county's request to force the federal government to return the ballots.

The Justice Department argued in a court filing that the subpoena was the “next step in the normal investigative process” and that it seeks “records identifying persons with relevant knowledge.”

Kamal Ghali, a lawyer for the county, argued during a hearing in May that the subpoena “will chill participation by election workers” and that the statute of limitations for any of the alleged misconduct had already lapsed.

Justice Department lawyer William McComb argued that the statute of limitations issue is not relevant at the investigative stage.

“My point is, as we sit here now, we are not sure what charges can be brought. That's the whole point of the investigation,” he said.

The FBI is also using some 260 staffers across the country to help examine records in the Fulton County investigation, according to an agency memo.

The judge noted that the Justice Department had expressed concern about possible criminal actions in the years that followed the election. But he noted that the subpoena seeks information related to what happened during the 2020 election and its immediate aftermath.

“In these hyper-political times in which we currently live, there are sure to be some who disagree with this decision because they believe the allegations of fraud in the 2020 Election and believe that ‘light’ should be brought to those claims,” Ray wrote.

He added that nothing prevents continued investigation into those allegations by people who believe those claims — such as Congress or even the Justice Department — but the power of the grand jury, “which exists to investigate potential crimes and to bring viable indictments” cannot be used for that purpose. Otherwise, anyone in power could use the grand jury process to subpoena personal information of citizens “with no legitimate law enforcement purpose,” he wrote.

“Thus, everyone, whether you support the President or you do not, or whether you believe the 2020 Election was fair or believe that it was not, should be concerned about the DOJ’s ability to utilize the power of the Grand Jury to appropriate your private information without a legitimate purpose,” Ray wrote.

The judge also agreed that providing the subpoenaed information could make it harder for Fulton County to recruit election workers. Those who help run elections “should be valued and are necessary for successful elections in Fulton County going forward,” he wrote.

Trailing 2-0 against Egypt with 11 minutes of regulation time to play on Tuesday, the defending champions rallied for an improbable 3-2 victory and a spot in the quarterfinals.

“We have a phenomenal group, a group that never gives up no matter the difficulties and adversity. We’re always together,” said Enzo Fernandez, who scored the winning goal in stoppage time.

Argentina will play Switzerland in the next round on Saturday in Kansas City, Missouri.

For much of Tuesday's game, it looked like it would be a painful exit for the 39-year-old Lionel Messi in what might be the last of his six World Cups.

Egypt led after goals in each half from Yasser Ibrahim and Mostafa Zico and could have been ahead 3-0 if not for a video review that ruled out another score.

Argentina looked down and out, its bid to be the first team to win back-to-back World Cup titles since Brazil in 1958 and 1962 all but dead.

Cue a monumental comeback.

“The heart of Argentinians is always something that pushes, that we keep going no matter what, that we give everything until the end. And honestly, with the score 2-0, we looked a bit beaten,” Argentina striker Julian Alvarez said. “There was little time left, but we always manage to get something more by fighting until the end.”

Cristian Romero started the rally by scoring with a header in the 79th minute. Messi, who was in tears after the final whistle, scored his eighth goal of the tournament and record-extending 21st goal at the World Cup in the 83rd to level the score at 2-2 and Fernandez completed the comeback in injury time.

“Four years have passed since Qatar, and we’ve come to enjoy another World Cup — and we want to win it again. That’s what we’re aiming for,” Fernandez said.

Argentina is no stranger to heroic matches at the World Cup.

There was the 3-2 win over West Germany in the 1986 final. Then the 3-3 draw and eventual shootout victory against France to reclaim the title four years ago.

Cape Verde pushed Argentina to the brink in the last round before the defending champions eventually won 3-2 in extra time.

Tuesday's match was even more dramatic, with Messi having a first-half penalty saved and another effort hit the post.

“I’m so emotional,” Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni said. “What a group of players, brother.”

Egypt took a surprising lead in the 15th minute when Ibrahim got ahead of Lisandro Martinez to meet Marwan Attia’s cross and head the ball into the bottom corner.

Argentina was quickly given the chance to level the match when Haissem Hassan tripped Nicolas Tagliafico in the box moments later. Referee François Letexier pointed to the penalty spot and Messi stepped up with an expectant crowd waiting for him to score.

Egypt goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir had other ideas, diving to his left to block the shot for Messi’s second penalty miss of the tournament after also failing from the spot against Austria in the group stage.

Despite being the all-time leading scorer at World Cups, Messi has now missed four of eight penalty kicks at the tournament.

After Messi hit the post later in the half, Shobeir pulled off another great save to stop Julian Alvarez from close range.

Egypt thought it had doubled its lead in the second half when Mostafa Zico finished off a sweeping attack. But the wild celebrations were cut short when a foul earlier in the move was confirmed on video review and the goal was disallowed.

That second goal for Egypt did come in the 67th from a similar break, and this time Zico’s effort counted. It just wasn't enough.

“We looked better compared to the reigning champions. We were better in everything, but the result,” Egypt coach Hossam Hassan said.

Hassan said he would not watch any further games at this year's World Cup, believing his team should have had a penalty before Argentina broke away for the winning goal.

“I’m not convinced with this outcome. I’m not convinced with the way things unfolded during this match,” he said. “I do not want to try to put it nicely here with beautiful wording, selected wording, and saying hard luck and so on and so forth.

“We have been treated unfairly today,” Hassan said. “We have suffered injustice.”

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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

After the Knicks’ first NBA championship in more than 50 years, Taylor Swift’s wedding at Madison Square Garden and the World Cup final to be played just across the Hudson River, it looks like another circus is coming to town.

To the Flushing Meadows section of Queens, to be precise.

All indications point to the 44-year-old Williams playing the U.S. Open next month for the first time in four years.

“Her intention is to keep playing; the U.S. Open as well,” Rennae Stubbs, one of Williams’ coaches, said at Wimbledon on Tuesday — a week after Williams lost in her first singles match since 2022.

Williams injured her right knee midway through a three-set loss to Maya Joint at the All England Club and withdrew from a doubles match with older sister Venus on Saturday.

Williams shared an Instagram update over the weekend that included images of four syringes filled with fluid drained from her knee.

“As long as physically she can go — and I’m hoping in a few weeks that’s the case — to get her back on the court and hitting balls,” Stubbs said.

Main draw singles play at the U.S. Open starts Aug. 30.

“All I can say,” Serena said after her loss, “is stay tuned to a city near you.”

‘It will be huge’

James Blake, the Yonkers, New York, native who reached the U.S. Open quarterfinals twice, knows just what Williams will bring to the tournament.

“It will be huge and it’s deserved because she’s the greatest of all time on the women’s side — and an American,” Blake said of the 23-time Grand Slam champion. “She’s an idol for so many young girls.”

Blake is now the Miami Open tournament director and a tennis commentator for ESPN.

“She’s been through this for the last 20 years so she knows what a circus it will be and she’s willing to put herself through that,” Blake told The Associated Press. “That shows how much she loves the game and she loves the competition.”

Added doubles great Bob Bryan: “Serena is a legend. Everyone wants to see her on the court again. It’s a great story.”

Williams practiced at Bryan's club in Florida earlier this year.

“She wasn’t giving away too much information but she was getting 12 rackets strung. ... So we knew she was serious,” Bryan said. “Hopefully she gets healthy and can make a run this summer. She’s going to win again for sure. She’s a champion.”

Warmup tournaments

Williams played only two doubles matches — but no singles — before Wimbledon. Expect her to play more singles before the U.S. Open.

If she desires, Williams should have no problem obtaining wild-card invitations from tournament organizers at U.S. Open warmups in Toronto and Cincinnati, Ohio.

“I know that for her, trying to play certainly something before the U.S. Open will be something she would like to do,” Stubbs said. “But at the same time it’s going to depend on how physically she’s doing.”

Knee issue

In Williams’ social media post about her injury, she said “the good news is my knee shouldn’t swell or collect that much fluid again.”

Still, it was more of a factor against Joint than many people thought, according to Stubbs.

“She did whisper to me, ‘I would have won if I had a good knee,’” Stubbs said. “Leading up to the tournament, she was playing practice sets (and) beating players that are still in the tournament. I won’t mention which ones because I don’t want to embarrass them but she was playing well.”

Despite being away for so long, Williams still hit serves beyond 120 mph and showed off her same old heavy groundstrokes, which landed within inches of the baseline.

The only real issue was her movement.

“Considering how bad the knee was it’s pretty miraculous really that she went as long as she did in the match,” Stubbs said. “She was rubbing her legs every change of end. … So I could see that there was something going on that was a little unusual for her.

“But the fact that she got through, walked off the court and nobody even really knew was pretty miraculous. And it also shows how high her pain tolerance is.”

Hard courts

After the grass of Wimbledon, the hard courts of the U.S. Open — which she has won six times in singles — could be more favorable for Williams.

“Everybody saw her standard was still pretty good and so once she gets on the hard courts she’s going to have better stability,” Stubbs said. “We all know how well she plays on hard courts so it’s just a matter of getting her body back in into the shape she wants.”

Added retired player Caroline Wozniacki, one of Williams’ best friends: “I thought she moved well already on the grass. … She didn’t win the more important points in the match, but she did a good job. I would expect her to just keep doing better as this comeback progresses.”

Match toughness

Williams was broken only once as she lost the opening set to Joint. Then she won the second in a tiebreaker and didn’t really fade away until midway through the third.

“I’m sure just playing a few matches will get her more precise,” Blake said. “She missed one easy ball and then things unraveled a little bit. When she’s at her best that turns into one point instead of a game or two games or three games. She’ll get back to being match-tough.

“If she plays three or four matches before the U.S. Open,” Blake added, “it will be — not an entirely different player — but quite an improvement by the U.S. Open.”

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

Calvin “CJ” Dickey Jr. was a freshman in July 2024 when Mark Kulbis told him and other football players to do 100 “up-downs,” also known as “burpees,” along with full-body plank drills, according to the attorney general’s office. Dickey had sickle-cell trait, a medical condition that can increase the risk of serious injury or death following extreme exertion.

“We're at the point where we're just glad that someone is being held responsible for our son's death,” Calvin Dickey Sr., of Land O’ Lakes, Florida, told The Associated Press in a phone interview. “We just want to see the process through, and we're going to leave it to the attorney general to continue following the evidence.”

Prosecutors announced Monday that Kulbis had been charged with felony aggravated hazing and misdemeanor counts of involuntary manslaughter, reckless endangerment and hazing.

“While the death of Calvin Dickey is tragic, Mark Kulbis did not contribute to it and is not responsible for it,” his attorney, Barbara Zemlock, said in a written statement. “The strength and conditioning program that was implemented was appropriate and in accordance with the training that Mr. Kulbis received, and with applicable standards."

Sickle-cell trait, which is diagnosed through a blood test, doesn’t usually affect people’s daily lives. But it can cause decreased blood flow and muscle breakdown after intense exertion, dehydration or high body temperatures. In very rare cases, that can result in collapse and death.

After other deaths involving athletes with sickle-cell trait, the NCAA in 2010 began requiring that new Division I athletes be tested for the condition and alerting coaches that athletes with it should slowly build up their intensity while training and be provided adequate rest and recovery.

Dickey, who was 6-foot-5 (195 cm) and nearly 300 pounds (136 kg), had grown up playing sports and by his junior year of high school decided to focus on football, his parents said. He played both offensive and defensive lineman, meaning he was often in for the vast majority of the game.

According to a federal lawsuit they filed against Bucknell last year, they did not know he had sickle-cell trait until he took the mandatory screening just weeks before training camp. Calvin Dickey Sr. said that the day before camp was to start, he received assurances from the offensive line coach that his son would be protected.

But Dickey Jr. started struggling and passed out while doing exercises that Kulbis had assigned as a punishment for the players not performing drills correctly, the lawsuit said. He was hospitalized and died two days later.

While it is rare for coaches to be charged criminally in cases where athletes collapse and die, some have been.

In Georgia, a girls basketball coach and an assistant coach were charged with murder after 16-year-old Imani Bell suffered heat stroke and died in 2019 during a training session that was held outdoors despite a heat advisory being in effect. That case remains pending. The school district settled the family’s lawsuit for $10 million and agreed to rename the gym in her honor.

In 2009, a former Kentucky high school football coach was acquitted of reckless homicide and endangerment charges in the heatstroke death of 15-year-old Max Gilpin. Defense attorneys argued that the Gilpin’s medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder had caused him to overheat.

Dickey Sr. and his wife, Nicole Dickey, said their son loved playing football, but he planned to use his scholarship to Bucknell to receive an education that would eventually help him work in pharmacy. He became enamored of the field after speaking to a family friend who worked as hospital pharmacist, they said.

Since his death, they have channeled their grief into a foundation that helps raise awareness about sickle cell trait in athletes and promotes the health of student-athletes. It provides scholarships and hosts a program for football linemen called “50 Cal Big Man Camp,” after the number he wore.

“Those are the kind of things right now that bring a smile to my face and touch my heart,” Nicole Dickey said. “We want to protect the next generation and share what we've learned.”

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Johnson reported from Seattle. Associated Press writer Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed.

The ordinance approved Tuesday sets a 10 mph speed limit on sidewalks for the devices.

Other rules include no riding on the grass and no stunt riding. The ordinance also allows the city manager to ban the e-bikes in certain areas when necessary for public safety, like during special events.

The rules follow similar ordinances passed in local governments all over Central Florida, like in Palm Coast, DeLand and Satellite Beach.

Several counties are also talking about similar ordinances, like in Orange County.

The Florida Legislature tried to pass a similar speed limit for e-bikes in the annual session earlier this year. But Gov. DeSantis vetoed that bill, saying it would “likely lead to enhanced surveillance by local governments against citizens.”

The city of Ocoee’s new rules take effect immediately.

The AP celebrated the 50th anniversary of the women's basketball poll last season. As part of it, a 13-member panel voted for the greatest college players of the past five decades. Stewart and Cheryl Miller were selected as the top players over the past 50 years.

The UConn great won four straight national championships and was selected as the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four each time. She was presented with her trophy at center court by AP Global Sports Editor Josh Hoffner a few minutes before tipoff of the Liberty’s game against the Dallas Wings.

Miller accepted her trophy at the Final Four in Phoenix last April at the “The AP Top 25 Fan Poll Experience,” which was held at Arizona State’s First Amendment Forum in the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Stewart couldn't make that ceremony.

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Tilda Swinton, Michelle Yeoh and Catherine Deneuve were among the crowd, the kind the Parisian stalwart summons and few others can. The show looked enchanted and faintly poisoned at the same time, which turned out to be the point.

This was designer Matthieu Blazy reaching for the storybook.

The idea came from a small leather-bound book of fairy tales he found on a shelf in house-founder Gabrielle Chanel’s old apartment.

Blazy arrived from Bottega Veneta and is still early at Chanel, the house Karl Lagerfeld ran for 36 years until his death in 2019, and then his longtime deputy Virginie Viard led until 2024.

This is only his second couture outing, and already the place feels lighter.

“I started to wonder, was Gabrielle Chanel’s life a fairy tale?” Blazy said.

Coco's fairy story

Blazy had decided her rise from a convent orphanage to the top of fashion was its own Jack and the Beanstalk: a nobody who climbs, dares and comes back down with the gold.

So the clothes told tales.

The opening look was a sheer Chanel suit, its grid of embroidery shaped like tiny bean shoots. Vines crept up dresses and curled around the heels of shoes. Butterflies and blossoms turned up where you least expected them.

Little evening bags took the shape of sleeping bears and fat chickens; heels were sculpted into butterflies and golden eggs. There were sly nods to Goldilocks, Puss in Boots and the Ugly Duckling, though Blazy was too clever to spell any of it out.

Most of the magic hid inside. Jackets concealed painted linings and mock to-do lists stitched in sheer silk — couture’s grandest craft spent on a shopping list.

Edges were left deliberately frayed, a nod to Coco Chanel’s habit of attacking her own clothes with pins as she fitted them.

“Haute Couture at Chanel is not just a fairy tale; in essence it is for women, their realities and their adventures of the everyday,” Blazy said.

That was the real point.

For all the whimsy

Blazy kept cutting away anything too grand, and what was left were clothes a woman could actually live in: a sharply cut coat, a red sequined shift, an evening look pared all the way back to a black tunic and trousers.

It is the oldest Chanel trick — walk into a room in something plain and make everyone else look as if they tried too hard — and Blazy has quietly made it feel new.

He cast women of every age, which made the argument without a word.

After the customary wedding gown came the finale: a bare black off-the-shoulder dress, less bride than warning shot.

Chanel, famously, never married.

The front row

It should be said that it had turned out as if summoned by the fairy tale itself.

Swinton and Pedro Pascal, Yeoh and Lupita Nyong’o, Deneuve and Vanessa Paradis, the boxer Imane Khelif and the skater Surya Bonaly were among them.

They came for the spectacle. Blazy sent them home thinking about their to-do lists.

The decision by the 57-year-old veteran of three presidential races sets up a fourth campaign like no other: potentially seeking votes while subject to monitoring and with a judge possibly deciding how, and for how long, the punishment is applied.

Le Pen said she will appeal the ruling to France’s highest court and that the process will suspend the sentence that she be electronically monitored for a year.

“I will therefore campaign without an electronic bracelet,” she said in a television interview Tuesday night. “Tonight, I am a candidate for the presidential election.”

Appeals court clears her pathway for another run

The appeals court ruling earlier Tuesday cleared the way for Le Pen by shortening a ban handed down by a court last year that kept her from seeking public office for five years.

But it also said she must wear an electronic monitor, a constraint Le Pen previously said would make campaigning impossible.

But after huddling for hours with other leading figures of her National Rally party, Le Pen made clear Tuesday night that she believes she won't be subjected to monitoring at all, and that her appeal to the Court of Cassation will vindicate her.

“My hands are clean,” she said.

The highest court previously said it would be able to rule before the presidential election, with the first round in April and a knockout round in May.

“I want to pursue all the legal avenues available to me so that I can defend my innocence,” she said.

A similar situation arose in former President Nicolas Sarkozy’s corruption case. An appeals court sentenced him in 2023 to serve part of his sentence under electronic monitoring. Sarkozy appealed to the Court of Cassation, which suspended Sarkozy's sentence pending its review before ultimately upholding the conviction. He wore an electronic ankle monitor last year.

Appeals court confirms Le Pen's guilt but reduces punishment

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The appeals court ruled that Le Pen oversaw years of misuse by her National Rally party of European Parliament funds by paying staff with money intended for European Union parliamentary assistants. She denied criminal wrongdoing but said during the trial that the party had made a “mistake.”

The ruling upheld guilty verdicts for all 11 accused, including Le Pen and other party members. The party itself also was declared guilty. The court ruled that it embezzled 2.8 million euros ($3.2 million) over more than 11 years.

“The facts are serious,” said the chief judge, Michèle Agi.

But the court scaled back punishments handed down by a lower court last year.

From five years handed down in March 2025, Le Pen's ban on seeking office was cut to 45 months, with two-thirds of it suspended. Le Pen has already served 15 months of the ban, meaning that the potential obstacle is now removed.

The verdict also cut her prison sentence from four years, two of them suspended, to three years with two suspended.

Le Pen previously said that not being able to make a fourth run in 2027 would amount to “political death.”

Le Pen went straight to her party’s office

From the courthouse, Le Pen went to the National Rally's headquarters in Paris, to consult her protégé Jordan Bardella and others. Bardella, a European Parliament lawmaker, would have been Le Pen's replacement as the party's presidential candidate if she had decided that electronic monitoring prevented her from running.

But a Le Pen has been on ballot papers at every presidential election since 1988: four times for her father and three times for her.

Her embezzlement conviction leaves her open to attacks from critics and potential election opponents. But she quickly sought to turn the verdict into a campaign message, making the point that the court ruling restored the option for voters to cast ballots for her next year.

The party was called the National Front when her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, founded it in 1972. It ditched that name in 2018, part of Marine Le Pen’s efforts to broaden her appeal by moving away from her polarizing father’s legacy. His associations with people who collaborated with France’s Nazi occupiers in World II and his multiple hate-speech convictions, including Holocaust denial, made the National Front anathema to many voters.

The court, in written notes detailing the verdict, made clear that it had the 2027 election in mind. It noted “the voter’s freedom of choice” and said the ban from seeking elected office that Le Pen has already served repaired harm done to public integrity by her wrongdoing.

“Disregarding this would undermine the principle of freedom to stand for election, an essential condition for the democratic expression of universal suffrage,” the court said.

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Associated Press journalist Nicolas Vaux-Montagny contributed to this report.

The unexpected resignation is an effort by the anti-immigration politician to preempt a standards investigation that could have seen him ejected as a lawmaker, and to present himself as the victim of a witch hunt by the media and his political foes.

“I have done nothing wrong. I have not broken the law in any way at all. I have not misused public money,” Farage, a prominent ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, said in a statement broadcast by his party. Media outlets were not allowed to attend the broadcast and he did not take questions.

Farage faces a parliamentary standards investigation about undeclared and potentially rule-breaking donations, including a 5 million pound ($6.7 million) gift he received from a Thailand-based cryptocurrency billionaire. A finding of wrongdoing could lead to Farage being suspended or expelled from Parliament. But he has made the first move by triggering an election for his seaside seat of Clacton in eastern England.

“The people of Clacton should be the judges of my actions,” Farage said. “This will be a people versus the establishment by-election.”

And, he said: “I will fight to win.”

Farage won Clacton comfortably in the 2024 election, taking 46.2% of the vote, and stands a strong chance of winning reelection — not least because he may run largely unopposed. The governing Labour Party and opposition Conservatives and Liberal Democrats all said they would not put forward candidates.

Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer called Farage's announcement “a desperate stunt” from a man “up to his neck in sleaze.” Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said her party “will not be standing a candidate in the fake by-election that Farage is causing to distract people from what is happening."

Reform UK said it was willing to pay for the special election, which may deflect claims it is wasting taxpayers’ money.

The gambit may only postpone Farage’s problems. Even if he wins, the standards inquiry is likely to resume. The Guardian reported Tuesday that bankers aware of the transaction had reported the 5 million pound donation to the National Crime Agency as potentially laundered money.

The crime agency said it did not confirm or deny the receipt of financial “suspicious activity reports,” which are confidential.

Farage tipped by some as a future prime minister

Scrutiny of Farage’s finances has spurred speculation about the future of a politician some considered the favorite to be prime minister after the next national election.

One of the most high-profile and controversial figures in British politics, Farage has had an outsized impact as a champion of leaving the European Union and foe of large-scale immigration. He was key in securing victory for the “leave” side in the 2016 EU membership referendum.

His rise has echoes of Trump’s nationalist, anti-immigration playbook. Farage has capitalized on — critics say stoked — concerns about migrants crossing the English Channel in small boats, which he has called an invasion, and alleges that white people face discrimination from police.

He also rails against “the establishment” and the media, which he claimed are using “foul means” to stop him.

A skilled communicator whose supporters see a beer-drinking plain-speaker, and whose critics see a populist rabble-rouser, Farage has had a checkered political career and was only elected to Parliament in 2024 after seven failed attempts. Farage also has a history of walking away from parties he led, stepping down from both the UK Independence Party and its successor, the Brexit Party, in the last decade.

Reform UK has only eight of the 650 seats in the House of Commons but consistently leads opinion polls over the governing Labour Party and the main opposition Conservatives.

Farage’s party was the big winner in local and regional elections in May that led to the ouster of Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the hands of his own Labour Party.

But Reform UK has lost three consecutive special elections that it hoped to win, a possible sign its support may be sagging. The most recent loss was to Labour’s Andy Burnham, who is likely to succeed Starmer as prime minister within weeks.

Donors include a crypto billionaire and a fraudster

Parliamentary standards commissioner Daniel Greenberg is investigating the 5 million pound donation to Farage from Christopher Harborne, a British businessman based in Thailand. Farage says the money was a personal gift that he used to fund security and came before he was elected to the House of Commons.

U.K. rules state that newly elected lawmakers must declare gifts worth more than 300 pounds ($400) they received in the previous 12 months, except where the gift “could not be reasonably thought by others” to relate to their political activities.

Farage is also facing questions about claims, reported by the Sunday Times, over his financial relationship with George Cottrell, an aristocratic crypto-gambling entrepreneur, convicted fraudster and on-off aide to the Reform UK leader.

Cottrell was arrested at Chicago’s O’Hare airport in 2016, while traveling with Farage, over allegations he offered to launder money for undercover agents posing as drug traffickers. Indicted on 21 counts relating to money laundering, fraud, blackmail and extortion, he agreed to plead guilty to a single charge of wire fraud, admitting attempting to defraud criminals on the dark web by masquerading as a money launderer. He served eight months in prison.

Cottrell, 32, remains close to Farage, and The Sunday Times said he gave the politician funding for staffing and security before Britain’s 2024 general election, as well as the use of a London townhouse near Buckingham Palace.

The network, which has accused the Trump administration of trying to chill free speech in the escalating dispute, argued in a new filing to the Federal Communications Commission, made public Tuesday, that the issue had been resolved by the commission itself more than two decades ago.

The latest ABC filing was required as part of the FCC review process. It consisted of “reply comments” to the commission in support of the network's petition for a declaratory ruling that “The View” — the long-running morning show that combines entertainment and political interviews and often features commentary critical of President Donald Trump — is a bona fide news program.

ABC cited a 2002 FCC decision qualifying “The View” as such, which would mean it's exempt from equal time rules. Those rules require granting equal airtime to competing candidates for office.

In a May filing, ABC similarly accused the Trump administration of trying to chill its constitutionally protected free speech and hinder open political discussion by reopening the question about “The View.”

The dispute over ‘The View’ has broader implications

It was the latest volley in a broader dispute inside and outside the legal arena between the U.S. media and the Trump White House over what journalists perceive as the president’s attack on free speech and the media’s ability to do its job. Trump has been critical of media outlets whose journalism runs counter to his agenda.

His FCC chairman, Brendan Carr, has indicated he intends to argue that “The View” is not a so-called bona fide news program. The issue could affect other shows that similarly combine entertainment and politics.

After the May filing, the FCC opened a public comment period on the issue, as part of the review process. ABC pointed out in its filing Tuesday that more than 77,000 comments have been submitted by the public, with “an undeniable majority” of the messages supporting “The View” and free speech.

“The commenters are right to be concerned,” the new filing argued. “The First Amendment does not permit the government to sit in an editor’s chair. Yet that is the seat the Commission now proposes to take ... deciding which broadcast programs qualify as legitimate news and, for those it finds wanting, compelling them to surrender their airtime to guests they never chose to feature.”

It said the dispute over “The View” touches on a march larger principle: “whether a federal regulator may override a broadcaster’s editorial judgment about whom to interview — a judgment the Constitution commits to broadcasters and their audiences, not to the state.”

ABC also argued that “nothing about ‘The View’ that the law cares about has changed since the Commission last answered that question more than two decades ago. ... What has changed is not the program but the political climate around it.”

It contended that Carr's FCC had chosen to focus its attention on daytime and late-night shows “perceived as unfriendly to the current administration — while leaving untouched the vast landscape of talk radio, where candidates routinely appear without their opponents.”

That, it said, “is not evenhanded regulation.”

FCC suggests ABC is misleading its public

An FCC spokesperson responded, in an email to The Associated Press, with a suggestion that ABC was misleading its public.

“While ABC insists that ‘The View’ is a ‘bona fide news program’ under the law,” the spokesperson said, "ABC should focus on complying with its public interest obligations, rather than misleading the public about them.”

The administration’s criticism of “The View” echoes its displeasure with late-night news hosts who criticize Trump — especially ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel. Donald and Melania Trump recently both called for ABC to fire Kimmel for a joke in which the comic described the first lady as having “the glow of an expectant widow.” Kimmel said the joke was a light roast about the couple’s age difference.

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Jocelyn Noveck covers the intersection of media and entertainment for The Associated Press.

Justice Matthew Nicklin rejected the broad inferences the Duke of Sussex relied on to try to show that Associated Newspapers Ltd. engaged in unlawful activities. He said there was a shortage of evidence to support the claims and found a possibility that the reporting came from legitimate sources.

“In substance, the claimants’ case invites the Court to conclude that, because the information was private and because Associated cannot positively explain how it was sourced, the article must have been unlawfully sourced,” Nicklin wrote. “That is not a permissible approach.”

The ruling scuttles a bid by Harry and six others, including singer Elton John and actor-model Elizabeth Hurley, seeking substantial damages but could leave them with massive legal bills. ANL put the legal costs for both sides above 50 million pounds ($67 million) for years of case preparation and an 11-week trial.

The publisher called it an “overwhelming victory” and a “magnificent vindication” of the Mail's journalism.

The newspapers had denied the allegations as “preposterous,” insisting the roughly 50 articles at issue were based on lawful sources including friends, royal aides and publicists who offered information to reporters.

Harry said the court had denied him the justice and accountability he sought.

“It is a complete and obvious whitewash, but sadly not altogether unexpected," Harry said in a joint statement with another claimant, anti‑racism activist Doreen Lawrence. “However, the lengths to which the court has gone to exonerate the Mail is as shocking as it is totally unwarranted.”

Harry's campaign against the press yields mixed results

The 436-page decision leaves a mixed legacy for Harry's trio of lawsuits accusing tabloid publishers of using unlawful tactics, such as phone hacking or hiring private detectives to dig up dirt on his life.

Harry won a judgment in 2023 that condemned the publishers of the Daily Mirror for “widespread and habitual” phone hacking. Last year, Rupert Murdoch’s flagship U.K. tabloid, The Sun, made an unprecedented apology for intruding on his life for years and agreed to pay substantial damages to settle his privacy invasion lawsuit.

Mark Stephens, a media lawyer not involved in the case, said Harry's first significant loss was due to a lack of evidence such as admissions of culpability that he had in previous lawsuits.

“This was always a mosaic case where little inferences from different things were being put together by the lawyers for Prince Harry,” Stephens said. “Associated Newspapers' lawyers cleverly rearranged the tiles to show an innocent picture as opposed to the culpable picture that the claimants' lawyers were trying to demonstrate.”

The verdict, released remotely with no court hearing, coincided with Harry’s visit home to the United Kingdom, which has been dominated by headlines over his latest efforts to repair a rift with his father, King Charles III.

Harry has said his litigation — in which he broke with royal family tradition to seek relief in the courts — was a primary source of his falling out with his father and brother, Prince William.

His grudge with the tabloids runs deep and his legal actions are part of his larger quest to reform the news media that he says damaged his relationships and made him “ paranoid beyond belief.”

He blames the press for the death of his mother, Princess Diana, who was killed in a car crash in 1997 while being pursued by paparazzi in Paris, and for attacks on his wife, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, that led the couple to abandon royal life and move to the United States in 2020.

“They continue to come after me, they have made my wife’s life an absolute misery,” he testified as he choked back tears in the witness box during the trial in January.

Newspaper editor says Harry is a hypocrite

Associated Newspapers' Editor-in-Chief Paul Dacre called Harry “a confused and angry young man” and said he felt sorry he had been drawn into the case. He mocked Harry’s tell-all memoir, “Spare,” which included details of drug use, losing his virginity, and dishing dirt on his kin.

“There isn’t a laundry in the cosmos big enough to wash all the dirty linen he has aired about his own family,” Dacre said. “For him to complain about his privacy being invaded takes not just the biscuit but the whole tin. Poor Harry.”

Attorney David Sherborne said at trial that the Daily Mail and its sister publication, Mail on Sunday, used their journalists, freelance reporters and private eyes for “clear, systematic and sustained use of unlawful information gathering” to snoop on his clients.

Defense lawyer Antony White said Harry was inclined to see unlawful evidence gathering everywhere but the more likely source of stories about him came from “ordinary, legitimate journalism.”

Other claimants in the case were actor Sadie Frost, former politician Simon Hughes and John’s husband, David Furnish.

The Mail trial played out differently from the Mirror case, with journalists parading to court to defend their work. Some Mail reporters pointed to official mouthpieces, such as a palace spokesperson, and others named their sources to dispute Harry’s assertion that his “social circles were not leaky.”

“They were not all tight-lipped,” Katie Nicholl, a former Mail on Sunday editor, said about Harry’s associates. “I had very good sources in the inner circle.” ___

Associated Press writer Jill Lawless contributed to this report.

The International Olympic Committee on Tuesday provisionally lifted a suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee and advised Olympic sports bodies to end a three-year program where Russian athletes had to be vetted for permission to compete as neutrals.

The IOC said the timing was because qualifying events are starting for the L.A. Games, and “the need to offer equal access to these competitions to all athletes.”

The move, which also signals a return for Russia in team sports, had been expected since the IOC advised two months ago that athletes from Belarus, which was Russia’s ally when its military invasion of Ukraine started in 2022, should be allowed again to compete with their full national identity.

“We don’t want to hold athletes accountable for the actions of their governments,” IOC president Kirsty Coventry said at an online news conference after she chaired an executive board meeting.

A two-time Olympic gold medalist swimming for Zimbabwe, Coventry said it was a fair decision and noted: “I wouldn’t be sitting here if I had to pay the price when my country was going through things and being sanctioned.”

Ukraine's sports minister Matvii Bidnyi questioned why the IOC altered its rules when in the war “nothing changed. The situation became even worse.”

Russia unleashed waves of missiles and drones at Ukraine early Monday, killing at least 22 people.

“So we don’t understand it,” Bidnyi told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday. “In this day, when all of Ukraine (is) in a day of mourning, when our flags was a little bit lower because of so many people, our peaceful citizens was killed yesterday at night.”

The IOC also reiterated its “solidarity with the Olympic community of Ukraine” and ongoing financial support.

Barriers remain

The IOC's guidance to reintegrate Russians in international events is not binding for the governing bodies of individual sports.

“Our country’s return to the Olympic family is a green light for international federations to restore the rights of our athletes,” Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyaryov said Tuesday.

Track and field is not following suit.

Asked about the IOC’s decision, World Athletics referred the AP to its decision last week maintaining a ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes in its international events.

In soccer, FIFA and European body UEFA have continued to exclude Russia in competitions such as the World Cup and Champions League, avoiding likely chaos because teams from other countries would refused to play those games.

Russian athletes and teams likely will face issues getting entry visas from some countries hosting sports events.

Russia's return

Among top-tier Olympic sports, swimming's governing body World Aquatics lifted its restrictions on Russian athletes in April.

The ROC was suspended in 2023 when the Russian Olympic body incorporated regional sports councils from occupied regions of eastern Ukraine. But the IOC said “the ROC confirmed that it does not, and will not, conduct any activities in these territories.”

Ukrainian minister Bidnyi described this promise as “just fake and empty words.”

Just 32 athletes from Russia and Belarus competed at the 2024 Paris Olympics as approved neutrals.

The Russian team in Los Angeles could now be closer to the more than 300 athletes sent to the Tokyo Olympics held in 2021. That squad returned with 71 medals including 20 titles.

Athletes still monitored

To be approved for neutral status, Russian athletes had to show no links to state military and security agencies. They also should not have publicly supported the war in Ukraine .

The IOC will continue to monitor social media posts by Russian athletes, Coventry confirmed, citing the “role models” requirement in the Olympic Charter.

“That is strong enough leverage that we would need at any time in order to decide who would be willing and deserving to come to any Olympic Games,” she said.

IOC official James Macleod said the Olympic body gets referrals from Ukraine about problematic social media posts by Russian athletes: “Those are always taken into consideration.”

In a statement Wednesday, the Australian Olympic Committee said it wants the IOC to ensure “a level playing field in competition” given Russia's doping history.

“Russia has had extremely serious anti-doping breaches in the past,” the AOC statement said. “We therefore support the most stringent possible anti-doping controls being in place to ensure all Russian athletes who are returning, some having been out of the system for many years, are fully compliant.”

Flag, anthem to return in October?

The IOC did not yet approve letting Russian athletes and teams compete with their flag and anthem. That decision will come “at an appropriate time,” it said.

The next Olympic competition is the 2026 Youth Summer Games in Dakar, Senegal, opening Oct. 31.

The IOC said to “address the lack of confidence in the global sporting community relating to the return of Russian athletes to international competition,” those athletes must give multiple doping controls and be part of a recognized testing program.

The IOC said it will continue to “not organize IOC events in Russia or invite Russian government or state officials to its events.”

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AP writer Volodymyr Yurchuk in Kyiv and AP Sports Writers James Ellingworth in Düsseldorf, Germany and Dennis Passa in Brisbane, Australia contributed to this report.

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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games

The charges were part of a massive law enforcement operation involving agencies across the United States, Canada and Europe that swept up 37 defendants who are allegedly a part of three Indian international crime syndicates tied to kidnappings, racketeering, extortion, firearms dealing, drug trafficking and murder, U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli announced at a news conference on Tuesday. He spoke alongside officials with the Los Angeles Police Department, the FBI and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Authorities are still searching for seven fugitives in the U.S., two in India and one in Europe.

The groups have “have fueled violence, fear and instability within the East Indian communities throughout California and abroad," said Patrick Grandy, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office.

Lawrence Bishnoi, 33, and his childhood friend Satinderjeet Singh are accused of orchestrating the assassination of a well-known Sikh independence activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was fatally shot outside of a temple where he served as president in 2023. The killing sparked tensions between the Canadian and Indian governments, after then-Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that there were “credible allegations” that the Indian government was involved in Nijar's death. Bishnoi is in custody, but Singh has not been apprehended.

Bishnoi's organization “routinely targeted prominent religious, social and political leaders with violence" in exchange for large amounts of money.

Nijjar, 45 when he died, was a prominent member of a movement to create an independent Sikh homeland known as Khalistan, and he was organizing an unofficial referendum among the Sikh diaspora with the organization Sikhs For Justice. Nijjar, who was born in India and was a Canadian citizen, was wanted by Indian authorities at the time of his death. The authorities had offered a reward for information leading to his arrest.

Sikh diaspora activism has been a source of tension between India and Canada for years. Canada has the largest population of Sikhs outside India, and India has repeatedly accused it of tolerating “terrorists and extremists.” Both India and Canada expelled diplomats from the other country amid the international dispute.

Authorities also named two other criminal organizations that were swept up for similar charges over the course of the two-year investigation. The transnational organizations have members in countries ranging from the United States, New Zealand, Australia, Portugal and the United Kingdom. Members of the group are also accused of stealing large quantities of drugs from other criminal organizations operating in California, and then selling the illicit merchandise across the country and into Canada.

The indictments say that some defendants leveraged relationships with corrupt local authorities in India to persecute rivals or those who were believed to be cooperating with law enforcement. At least one defendant is accused of organizing criminal activities while detained at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility, authorities said Tuesday, though it is not clear how he was able to communicate without being detected.

An attorney for Bishnoi was not listed on Tuesday afternoon.

Authorities on Tuesday touted the operation as an example of international cooperation.

“Working together, law enforcement in the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Asia are determined to target and dismantle these criminal organizations wherever they operate," Essayli said.

Finally, on the 22nd shot of a grueling rally deep in a fifth-set super tiebreaker, Auger-Aliassime had a forehand in the middle of the court. Under normal circumstances it might have been just the shot he was looking for.

Not this time. Not after five hours of battling with the 39-year-old Djokovic.

Auger-Aliassime, a 25-year-old Canadian with one of the top-rated forehands on tour, had nothing left in his tank. He sprayed his forehand wide to give Djokovic a 9-4 lead. Then both players bent over in exhaustion and leaned on their rackets. Djokovic, while he was bent over, still found energy to encourage the crowd to cheer louder, waving his right arm for more noise.

One point later, the longest quarterfinal in Wimbledon history — at 5 hours and 15 minutes — was finished.

“These,” Djokovic said, “are the kind of moments that I still play tennis for.”

Djokovic, the seven-time Wimbledon champion, prevailed 7-6 (10), 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4) on Tuesday to set up a semifinal against defending champion Jannik Sinner.

“I’m still able to battle these young guys that have 15 years less than me,” Djokovic said. “I’m able to beat them at the tightest possible scoreline. ... In a sense, it is really a nice surprise. But at the same time, I always have the highest expectations for myself.”

Djokovic continues to break records as he chases a 25th Grand Slam title. He’s reached a record-setting eighth consecutive Wimbledon final four — moving him one ahead of Roger Federer for most consecutive men’s singles semifinal appearances at the grass-court tournament.

“We know, because we’ve seen him so much, but it’s so impressive that he does it time and time again,” Auger-Aliassime said.

The match ended just before the All England Club's 11 p.m. curfew took effect.

To celebrate, Djokovic raised his arms high and wide and took in the applause as he walked to the net to shake hands with Auger-Aliassime. Then Djokovic performed a little elbows-to-knees dance. He often mentions that his daughter, who was watching in the players' box, tries to teach him moves.

Later, Djokovic was asked to compare himself with another 39-year-old still performing at the highest of levels: Lionel Messi of Argentina.

“It would be nice to play 90 minutes like him,” Djokovic said of the soccer great.

Rematch with Sinner

Sinner spent less than half the amount of time on court as Djokovic did when he beat Jan-Lennard Struff 7-5, 7-6 (4), 6-3 much earlier in the day on No. 1 Court.

Sinner beat Djokovic in straight sets in last year’s Wimbledon semifinals; and Djokovic outlasted the Italian over five sets in the last four of this year’s Australian Open.

“I wish it was finals, so I don’t need to worry about how the body will feel tomorrow,” Djokovic said. “I was telling the kids to go to sleep after the fourth (set) but they didn’t want to listen. I’m glad they stayed because it was honestly one of the best matches I was part of on this court in my career.”

Djokovic does get two days off before Friday's semifinals.

Medical time out

Late in the first set, Djokovic dealt with what appeared to be a lower-leg issue. He took a medical time out and a trainer tested the stability of his left ankle and calf before massaging his calf muscle.

Djokovic had earlier leaned over to stretch his leg by pulling back the tip of his sneaker. He also stretched while standing at the back wall.

There was more stretching the rest of the way, too — especially late in the fifth set.

“It was really anybody’s game in the super tiebreak in the fifth,” Djokovic said.

Djokovic opposes roof closure

Djokovic objected to the decision to close the Centre Court roof at 7:40 p.m. after Auger-Aliassime won the second set to level at a set apiece.

Djokovic told Wimbledon tournament referee Denise Parnell that they could squeeze in another set before the natural light faded.

“We can play a whole another set outdoors. We’re an outdoor tournament,” Djokovic said. “You remember the first round? You didn’t close it until like 8:20, 8:30 and now you want to close it at 7:40. Where’s the consistency?

“You’re so proud of your rules and you’re not sticking to any kind of rules,” Djokovic added.

Gauff rallies

Down a set after untimely double-faults, Coco Gauff rallied past Jessica Pegula 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 to reach the semifinals here for the first time.

The 22-year-old Gauff became the youngest player to reach the semifinals at all four Grand Slams since Maria Sharapova, who completed the feat at the 2007 French Open, the women’s professional tennis tour said.

Gauff will face 10th-seeded Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic for a spot in Saturday’s final. Muchova, the 2023 French Open runner-up, eliminated Naomi Osaka 7-6 (4), 6-4.

In Gauff’s six previous appearances at the All England Club, she had never advanced beyond the fourth round.

“After seven years playing this tournament it’s finally the first time I can walk on Centre Court and I didn’t feel nervous,” Gauff said.

In the completion of a fourth-round match, second-seeded Alexander Zverez beat Jiri Lehecka 6-4, 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (6) to set up a quarterfinal Wednesday against sixth-seeded Taylor Fritz.

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

That participation has sparked anger among some in the nation's capital who argue the troops are not just there to assist in securing the festivities but are being drawn into the Trump administration's ongoing, open-ended Guard deployment to the city.

A contingent from Minnesota sent for the 250th is set to depart early. On Tuesday, a coalition of think tanks and civic, labor and civil rights groups asked Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to withdraw the state's National Guard forces, saying they have been misused.

“Previous presidents have requested assistance from out-of-state Guard forces during major events in D.C., and such requests would normally give little cause for concern," the groups said in a letter. "But there is nothing normal about the way President (Donald) Trump has used National Guard forces in the nation’s capital.”

The National Guard has been deployed since last summer

The presence of National Guard members in Washington, D.C., has been contentious since August 2025, when Trump issued an emergency order because of what he said was out-of-control crime.

The local National Guard was activated and deployed to the streets, along with hundreds of federal law enforcement officers and agents. Trump also took control, briefly, of the local police department. States, all led by Republican governors, sent members of their Guard forces, as well.

Over the months, Guard members have responded to medical emergencies, assisted with arrests, helped local police enforce the city’s juvenile curfew and carried out beautification projects. The D.C. Guard helped with snow removal during a major storm in January.

While the deployment stayed consistently in the 2,300 to 2,600 range, in recent weeks the numbers increased to around 5,000 as part of the security plan for the Great American State Fair, the fireworks display on July 4 and other crowd-intensive events.

Democratic-led states were part of that surge, and their troops were originally expected to remain for weeks. Michigan sent roughly 160 troops. Minnesota sent just over 100. Both of those states have joined other Democratic-led states in supporting a lawsuit challenging the ongoing deployment to the city.

Activists say Guard members seen far from 250th events

Keya Chatterjee, executive director of Free DC, a group dedicated to achieving statehood for the District of Columbia and one of the organizations signing Tuesday's letter, said her organization has seen Michigan Guard members near metro stops and in neighborhoods “far from the Mall" despite a threat from Whitmer to pull them out.

Free DC has organized a network of people to monitor and chronicle overall Guard activities in the city. It protested at an event last week hosted by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth meant to thank the Guard troops for their service in securing the city.

Officials there, including acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and top White House adviser Stephen Miller, spoke to the troops both about the crime in the city as well as security preparations for the 250 celebrations.

“It’s a righteous and beautiful mission,” Hegseth said.

The Pentagon referred questions to the Joint Task Force-District of Columbia. which did not respond to a series of questions on the deployments.

Chatterjee told The Associated Press that the Democratic governors who had sent personnel to the city were “pretending they don’t know" that their Guard members could be used as part of the Safe and Beautiful Task Force, established through a presidential executive order last year and said to be fighting crime in the city.

Minnesota ends deployment early as Michigan weighs next steps

Minnesota is set to withdraw its Guard members Saturday, earlier than the planned July 23 return.

In a statement, Air Force Maj. Nathan Wallin, deputy state public affairs officer for the Minnesota National Guard, attributed that to “the successful conclusion of festivities” and made no mention of activists' concerns.

A lone Kentucky Guard member was brought home before the main events began after being diverted to the task force “without the knowledge or consent” of the state's governor or its Guard command, said Scottie Ellis, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear's communications director.

Michigan's deployment is due to continue through Aug. 31. But Whitmer has threatened to end it if there are more reports of the Michigan Guard being used in the ongoing law enforcement deployment. In a letter last week to the commanding general of the state's National Guard, she asked that the Guard's duties be limited to the 250 celebrations.

“I have not deployed — and will not deploy — the Michigan National Guard to support the D.C. Safe and Beautiful Mission,” she wrote.

Elizabeth Goitein, senior director of Liberty and National Security at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law and a signatory to the letter to Whitmer, said the governors of the Democratic states that sent Guard members were placing their trust in the administration to limit the use of their guard forces.

“They are trying to make a distinction here between what their Guard forces are doing in D.C.,” she said. “The problem is the administration is not making that distinction — and cannot be trusted.”

The May figure was 84% higher than a year earlier. Airlines spent $6.47 billion on fuel in April, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics said.

The higher year-over-year spending has been driven mostly by pricier jet fuel rather than a significant increase in how much of it airlines consumed. U.S. carriers used 1.627 billion gallons in May, down 0.6% from May 2025. Consumption was also slightly lower in April compared with a year earlier.

The average price airlines paid for fuel in May was $4.09 per gallon, down slightly from $4.11 in April but 85% higher than the $2.21 they paid in May 2025, the agency said.

Airlines worldwide have responded to the jump in fuel prices by raising fares and fees and trimming flight schedules. Fuel is typically one of the industry’s largest operating costs, leaving carriers particularly vulnerable to swings in energy prices.

The latest figures show the continued impact of the sharp rise in energy costs after the conflict in the Middle East started this year and disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global crude and fuel supplies.

Fuel prices have eased from their spring highs after the U.S. and Iran reached an interim ceasefire agreement, offering some relief to airlines after a costly spring. But the truce remains fragile.

Three tankers were struck by projectiles Tuesday in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the British military, and the U.S. revoked a license that had allowed Iranian oil sales under the agreement.

Delta Air Lines is set to report its second-quarter financial results on Friday, kicking off a wave of earnings reports from U.S. carriers. Executives are expected to discuss how recent declines in fuel prices could affect the industry’s finances going forward.

The average price for a gallon of jet fuel was $2.88 across the key airline hubs of Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and New York on Tuesday, according to the Argus U.S. Jet Fuel Index. The price fell under $3 a gallon June 15 for the first time since early March and has remained below since.

Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump met with Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdoğan ahead of the NATO summit in Ankara, announcing that the U.S. will lift sanctions, opening the possibility of selling F-35 jets to Turkey over Israel's objections.

Trump also criticized NATO’s abilities to function without American leadership and power, expressing disappointment at the refusal of some NATO allies to join the Iran war he launched alongside Israel without consulting them. And he insisted again that Greenland should be “controlled by the United States, not by Denmark.” Of all of his threats to NATO and its member countries, this has posed the greatest danger to the organization.

Alliance leaders are trying to show increased military capabilities as the American focus shifts from defending Europe. The two-day summit will showcase military projects worth billions of dollars aimed at persuading Trump they’re making a stronger Europe for a stronger NATO.

The Latest:

US strikes expected to hit significantly more targets than prior retaliations, official says

The American military strikes against Iran will hit around eight times more targets than the previous round of retaliatory strikes that were conducted at the end of June, a U.S. official said.

Both the strikes conducted Tuesday and two weeks ago were responding to Iranian attacks on merchant shipping near the coast of Oman in the Strait of Hormuz.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing military operation, said Iran hasn’t been listening so the U.S. is “turning up the volume.”

— Konstantin Toropin

US strikes expected to go on for hours, official says

The American military strikes against Iran are expected to go on for hours and strike a variety of military sites and port facilities, U.S. officials said.

One U.S. official said the military is targeting Iranian air defense systems, coastal surveillance systems, ground-to-air missiles as well as launch sites for anti-ship cruise missiles and drones as part of the strikes. Iranian port facilities are also being targeted, the official added.

The second official said the strikes would likely last for hours.

Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing military operation.

— Konstantin Toropin

Iran condemns US strikes

Iranian state media has reported the sound of explosions in Qeshm in the Strait of Hormuz and Bandar Abbas on the Persian Gulf.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry condemned the earlier U.S. move to revoke a license that had authorized the sale of Iranian oil, saying in a statement that it violates the interim deal and that “the U.S. government bears responsibility for the consequences of this breach of commitment.”

Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, also said in a post on X that the new attacks by the U.S. are a violation of that agreement.

US launches new strikes against Iranian targets

The U.S. military launched a series of strikes against Iranian targets early Wednesday after three merchant ships were struck in the waters off Oman.

In a statement posted to social media, U.S. Central Command said American forces launched the strikes “to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway.”

“Iran’s demonstrated aggression was unwarranted, dangerous, and a clear violation of the ceasefire,” the statement said.

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US Treasury revokes a general license authorizing the sale of Iranian oil

The Treasury did not immediately respond to an Associated Press inquiry on why the license was revoked Tuesday, though notice came after three tankers were hit in the latest attacks in the Strait of Hormuz.

In June, Treasury issued a license that authorized the production, delivery and sale of Iranian oil, that would last through Aug. 21. U.S. Vice President JD Vance at the time said lengthy talks with senior Iranian officials in Switzerland created a “good foundation for a successful final deal” to end the Iran war.

Justice Department alumni urge lawmakers to reject Blanche’s nomination

In a letter to members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, more than 1,200 former Justice Department employees accused acting Attorney General Todd Blanche of instilling a “culture of fear” within the agency’s workforce.

Blanche is expected to appear July 15 before the committee considering his nomination to become attorney general.

Justice Department alumni pointed to the loss of roughly 16,000 employees through firings, resignations and voluntary departures. They wrote that “the consequences of Blanche’s attacks on DOJ’s apolitical workforce radiate beyond the halls of Main Justice, affecting the entire country.”

The letter was signed by lawyers who worked under both Republican and Democratic administrations.

In a statement, the Justice Department said the signers included “partisan activists” and “multiple former disgruntled Biden administration officials,” some of whom were involved in the criminal cases against Trump. The department noted support Blanche has received from law enforcement groups including the Major Cities Chiefs Association.

Protesters march peacefully against NATO in Istanbul

Thousands of protestors from leftist, pro-Palestinian and Kurdish parties in central Istanbul marched against the NATO summit being held in Ankara Tuesday, chanting, “Murderer, USA, get out of our country.”

“We are here to protest the hosting in Ankara — at a cost of millions of dollars — of NATO, an organization we regard as a massacre machine established to preserve global hegemony,” said Ali Gültekin, 21.

Günçağ Aydın, 42, a spokesperson for the leftist Red Party, said that leftist groups faced intense pressure from the government ahead of the summit.

“Hundreds of our friends have been detained, but we continue to speak out, saying that NATO is a coalition of what we regard as killers and imperialist powers,” Aydın insists.

The protest ended peacefully and without arrests. Earlier Tuesday, police broke up a small demonstration in Ankara, where protests were banned during the NATO summit, and arrested about 20 people.

NATO leaders dine on sea bass, beef, dumplings and baklava

The White House shared details of the menu for the dinner, which had a first course of flatbread and a honeycomb. It was followed by vegetables and yogurt, traditional dumplings and a choice of sea bass or beef.

Dessert was Baklava with milk, a pistachio foam and traditional Turkish Maras ice cream.Trump arrives at NATO leaders’ dinner

Trump has returned to the Turkish presidential compound for a dinner for leaders of NATO members.

Trump gave a thumbs-up as he walked the blue carpet past a military honor guard to meet Erdogan and his wife who waited at the top of some stairs for him.

Trump shook their hands and spoke to them for a few minutes before posing for a photograph.

He then continued speaking to Erdogan for a moment more before they went inside together.

US establishes energy framework with Japan and Korea on sidelines of NATO summit

The trilateral cooperation agreement was agreed to by Secretary Marco Rubio and his Korean and Japanese counterparts on the margins of the summit to “advance our mutual security interests and paves the way for partner countries to meet their energy security needs,” the U.S. State Department announced in a press release Tuesday.

The memorandum of understanding between the three countries is aimed at accelerating deployment of advanced nuclear reactors in other countries, initially focusing on the Indo-Pacific region.

The release said the U.S. is also committing more than $10 million in new funding for a State Department program aimed at providing technical support to relevant countries.

NATO leaders arrive for dinner hosted by Erdogan

NATO leaders are arriving at the Turkish presidential compound for a dinner hosted by Erdogan.

The leaders are walking along a turquoise‑colored carpet lined with soldiers dressed in historic military garments, before ascending steps where they are greeted by Erdogan and his wife, Emine.

Four NATO allies could face strife over defense spending

Slovenia, Belgium, Spain and the Czech Republic could be in hot water with the Trump administration after new NATO defense spending figures showed they’re struggling to meet the organization’s old target.

NATO leaders agreed last year to invest 5% of GDP on defense by 2035 — 3.5% on core defense requirements and 1.5% on upgrading security related infrastructure like roads, bridges, ports and airports.

The Trump administration is expecting a “first report card” to be handed in by European allies and Canada to demonstrate progress. It’s threatened to take unspecified action against those lacking a solid plan to make the grade.

Some are still struggling to meet NATO’s old target of 2% of GDP. Slovenia is expected to fall short, with just 1.6%. Belgium, Spain and the Czech Republic are forecast to barely make 2%.

How will Netanyahu react?

Rahm Emanuel’s remarks could prompt a similarly fiery response from Benjamin Netanyahu, who famously once called the Democrat who had ambitions of being the first Jewish speaker of the U.S. House a “self-hating Jew.”

The prime minister faces his own battle for reelection in October, and may try to use a confrontation with Emanuel for political gain by appearing to stand strong in the face of international criticism.

As for Democrats, Emanuel’s speed represents a particularly frontal strategy for possible presidential contenders gauging how to address the fallout from Israel’s war in Gaza and Netanyahu’s perceived tilt toward Trump ’s Republican Party.

Emanuel, a longtime Israel supporter, tells AP he has a blunt message for Netanyahu

Rahm Emanuel told The Associated Press in an interview from Tel Aviv ahead of his speech on Wednesday that he’s avoiding interactions with elected officials so as to not interfere with upcoming elections. Instead he’s visiting a hospital serving Israelis and Palestinians and meeting with the family of an Oct. 7 hostage.

Emanuel said Israel’s continued military response to the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, has been “reckless and careless in the treatment of Palestinian life — not only the military campaign but using food and medicine as an instrument of your military goals.”

Asked whether Israel had committed genocide, the stalwart of Democratic centrists said the question should not be considered in isolation without also examining conflicts in Ukraine and Sudan.

“I’m ready to have that discussion,” he said, “but I don’t think it should be politicized, and then dilute the power of what genocide means.”

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What is NATO’s Article 5?

Article 5 is at the heart of the 32-member North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It states that an armed attack against one or more of the members shall be considered an attack against all members.

That security guarantee is the reason previously neutral Finland and Sweden sought to join NATO and why Ukraine and other countries in Europe also want in. It has only been invoked once, in the wake of the Sept.11, 2001, terror attacks on the United States.

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Turkey’s opposition leader criticizes Trump for not visiting Ataturk tomb

Ozgur Ozel said Trump would be the only visiting U.S. president not to pay his respects at the mausoleum of Turkey’s founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

He said every visiting U.S. president since Eisenhower in 1959 had gone to the monument to honor Ataturk, who remains a revered figure in Turkey.

Talking about Trump’s welcome, Ozel said the president should be greeted by children “holding pictures of the 165 girls killed in Iran” – a reference to an airstrike on a school at the start of the Iran war.

Ozel was removed as head of the Republican People’s Party by court order last May. However, many believe the ruling was politically motivated and still consider him the de facto opposition leader.

Trump’s predecessor Joe Biden did not visit Turkey but he did lay a wreath at Ataturk’s tomb as vice-president in 2011.

Explosions rock Damascus as France’s Macron visits Syria

The explosions in Syria’s capital on Tuesday injured at least 18 people, the interior ministry said, as France’s president met with his counterpart in a landmark visit. Both leaders later announced the reappointment of ambassadors, marking a major restoration of diplomatic ties after years of civil war.

It was the second attack in Damascus in a week and a setback for President Ahmad al-Sharaa as he welcomed the first major Western leader to visit since the ouster of longtime dictator Bashar Assad in late 2024. But French President Emmanuel Macron was safe in the presidential palace when the explosions happened, and voiced support for the country’s new direction.

“Nothing can smother the aspiration of Syrian women and men to live in a fully sovereign, safe, pluralistic, and united Syria,” Macron said on X hours later. Both he and Al-Sharaa will next appear in Ankara, Turkey for the NATO summit.

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Three tankers hit in the Strait of Hormuz, British military says

The British military now says three tankers were struck Tuesday in the Strait of Hormuz. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said a third ship was hit by a drone in the critical oil-shipping waterway, where two other tankers had been attacked earlier in the day.

The third ship sustained minor damage, with no one injured, and continued on its way, the UKMTO said.

Iran and the United States agreed as part of an interim deal to allow ships to pass without paying charges for 60 days. But Tehran insisted it must control the routes and later charge fees, which would upend decades of practice in the waterway.

The U.S. and many Gulf Arab states say they will not agree to Iran charging for passage through the strait. An effort by Oman and a United Nations agency to launch a new route near Oman’s shore earlier sparked attacks across the Mideast.

Security is tight in the Turkish capital

Air defenses are on alert, and tens of thousands of police will be on duty.

Neighborhoods around the summit site are closed to traffic, and some state workers have been given time off to help keep roads unclogged.

Public gatherings are banned; however, Turkish police detained more than 20 protestors at a demonstration in central Ankara against the NATO summit on Tuesday.

Erdogan’s government has prioritized security, and authorities have carried out raids on people allegedly linked to extremist groups ahead of the summit.

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Trump says US will lift sanctions that prevented sales of F-35 jets to Turkey

Trump said on Tuesday that the U.S. will lift sanctions on Turkey that were issued after Ankara purchased a Russian missile defense system that led to the country being kicked out of the F-35 fighter jet program.

There are still a number of legal hurdles before Turkey could be fully admitted back to the U.S. program, but the removal of the sanctions — issued under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act — would help ease the process for Ankara to regain access to the F-35s, a top goal of Erdogan.

“We’re going to be taking the sanctions off, OK?” Trump said in response to a question at the presidential palace in Ankara. He said Cabinet officials were working on the matter.

Earlier, he said that the possibility of selling the F-35s to Turkey is “certainly something we will consider.”

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Erdogan hopeful over US defense sales

Erdogan expressed hope that the U.S. will sell F-35 planes to Turkey, saying the U.S. president always stands by his word.

At a joint news conference with Trump, Erdogan also said the two leaders would take up the issue of the sale of jet engines to power Turkey’s domestically-produced KAAN fighter planes.

He said Turkey expects Trump to “repeat the positive news” he previously gave about supporting Turkey’s defense projects.

Trump repeats his insistence that the US should control Greenland

Trump says the semiautonomous island, which is part of NATO ally Denmark, is “an important part for the United States,” and that he does not intend to let Greenland be threatened by China and Russia. He repeated the false claim that it’s surrounded by Chinese and Russian ships.

“That should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark,” Trump told reporters during a meeting with Erdogan.

Of all Trump’s threats to NATO and its member countries, Trump’s repeated insistence that the U.S. should acquire Greenland has posed the greatest danger to the organization. NATO is founded on the principle that its 32 members will defend each other’s territory and not threaten to seize it.

The British military says a second ship has been hit in the Strait of Hormuz

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center made the announcement Tuesday, hours after it said a tanker traveling off the coast of Oman in the strait was struck by a projectile and caught fire.

Iranian state television reported on the earlier attack, saying the liquefied natural gas tanker came under attack after ignoring warnings, while not directly claiming responsibility. Tehran has repeatedly declared that only its approved route through the strait is safe, and is suspected of attacking other ships that have tried to transit the strait close to the Omani shore.

Talks between Iran and the U.S. appeared to be on hold until after the burial of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed during the initial attacks by the U.S. and Israel that launched the war. Iranian mourners have called for the death of Trump.

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NATO official dismisses fears of a Russian attack on alliance members

A senior NATO official speaking on the sidelines of the summit in Ankara Tuesday said that despite some “reckless” actions by Russia, including airspace violations over Poland, Romania and Estonia, he believes the alliance has been successful in deterring Russia from any potential attack on a member country.

“I see absolutely no indications whatsoever that Russia is interested in any sort of conflict with NATO,” the official said.

He said Moscow is overstretched by its war in Ukraine and knows NATO would respond to any attack on a member.

“I would say now that Russia is deterred, but Russia is deterred because of the actions that we are taking,” he said.

Rahm Emanuel will assail Netanyahu in Tel Aviv speech as American politics shift against Israel

While Trump is in Turkey demanding loyalty from NATO allies, a leading Democrat will be in Tel Aviv, directly accusing the president’s military partner of driving Israel into a “dead end.”

Potential presidential candidate Rahm Emanuel plans to denounce Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and call for an end to U.S. subsidies of Israel’s defense budget in a speech Wednesday at Tel Aviv University.

“You’ve lost Europe,” Emanuel will say, according to remarks obtained by The Associated Press. Castigating Netanyahu for doing little to end the Iran war, he’ll note that “support for Israel is plummeting around the world.”

About 58% of Democrats now say the U.S. is “too supportive” of Israel, according to a new survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, up from 45% in January 2024. Roughly half of Democrats believe Israel’s government has committed genocide against Palestinians during the war in Gaza, an accusation leveled by some human rights organizations and vehemently denied by Israel and the U.S. government.

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Trump says he thinks Russia-Ukraine war will be settled ‘hopefully soon’

The U.S. leader was asked about his meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy scheduled for Wednesday on the sidelines of the NATO summit, and responded by saying he’s had great recent phone conversations with both the Ukrainian president and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“They both want to get it settled now,” he said.

He added later that Erdogan is “helping us get it settled.”

Trump refreshes complaints against European allies

At his bilateral meeting with Erdogan, Trump said he was testing European allies when he asked for their help with the Iran war.

“Italy turned us down and Germany turned us down and France turned us down,” Trump said. “And that’s OK. But, you know, why are we spending hundreds of billions of dollars and they’re not there for us?”

The complaint has been a central point of conflict between Trump and NATO, which he has described as a “paper tiger."

Trump says he has great chemistry with Erdogan

As they sat down for a bilateral meeting, Trump showered praise on Erdogan, saying they have a “very special relationship” that benefits both countries.

Asked about what makes their relationship so strong, Trump said there’s “a chemistry that works between us.”

“Sometimes you get along with the toughest people, like him,” Trump said, gesturing to Erdogan. “Sometimes you don’t get along with the weakest, most pathetic people.”

Trump says he’s going to consider selling F-35 jets to Turkey

The president was asked by a reporter as he met with Erdogan whether he’ll allow the sale of the American fighter jets to Turkey, which had been banned from the program after purchasing Russian missile defense systems.

“It’s certainly something we will consider,” Trump said as he sat with his Turkish counterpart.

He said, “Turkey has been in many ways much more loyal than other countries.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly urged the U.S. not to sell the jets to Turkey, saying it would upset the balance of power in the Middle East.

Journalists and civil liberties groups say the vaguely worded law fails to clearly define what information it prohibits and lacks adequate safeguards for the media, warning it could potentially discourage critical reporting about government officials, politicians and large businesses.

The law allows courts to award damages of up to five times the proven losses against news organizations and large social media channels, including YouTube creators, that circulate illegal, false or manipulated information to cause harm or generate profit.

In addition, those who distribute information more than twice after a court has confirmed it to be false or manipulated could be fined up to 1 billion won ($656,000) by the country’s media regulator. Internet companies operating large social media platforms with more than 1 million daily users are required to take measures such as removing content or suspending user accounts when they receive reports of false or fabricated information.

The law was backed by President Lee Jae Myung’s liberal Democratic Party and passed by the National Assembly in December over a boycott by the conservative opposition. The liberals, who unsuccessfully sought to pass similar legislation under previous governments, say the law is necessary to combat fake news and disinformation, which they argue is posing a growing threat to democracy by fueling division and hate speech.

The Journalists Association of Korea said the mere prospect of news organizations repeatedly facing massive damage claims or legal disputes could have an “unavoidable chilling effect.”

“Even if a law’s objective is legitimate, it could erode the foundations of democracy if it’s enforced in a way that discourages the media and ordinary citizens from freely criticizing and scrutinizing those in power,” the group said in a statement.

The Seoul Foreign Correspondents’ Club also expressed concern about the potential impact on the work of the media and the free flow of information.

Concerns about murky online discourse

The push for the law came as Lee expressed concern about South Korea’s online discourse and information environment after then-President Yoon Suk Yeol briefly imposed martial law in 2024. He was later impeached and removed from office. He was convicted and sentenced to life in prison for rebellion, a ruling that he appealed in February.

Yoon, who faces other criminal cases as well, has promoted unsubstantiated election fraud claims circulated on YouTube to defend his botched power grab and rally conservative supporters against the Democrats. Critics say Yoon’s campaign further polarized the country by injecting falsehoods into already bitter political disputes and making compromise increasingly difficult.

The Korea Media and Communications Commission has downplayed concerns that the law could be used as a tool for state censorship. It would be private operators of online platforms, not the government, deciding whether reported content qualifies as false or manipulated information, and the law exempts reporting conducted in the public interest from damages claims, the commission said last week.

But Kim Hong-yeol, a professor at Seoul’s Duksung Women’s University, said the law could encourage widespread self-censorship and discourage reporting or discussions on sensitive issues. Internet companies could end up acting as online censors, adopting overly aggressive moderation policies to avoid liability and removing legitimate content in the process, Kim wrote in an article for the news website Mediaus.

While major South Korean internet companies like Naver and Kakao have reportedly been updating their systems for reporting and handling false information in line with guidelines from the Korea Internet Self-Governance Organization, it’s unclear how major foreign platforms, like Google’s YouTube, would comply.

In a statement to The Associated Press, YouTube said it strives to balance its commitment to openness with its responsibility to protect users and will “continue to engage with relevant parties and share our longstanding investments we have in this critical work.” The company did not specify how the South Korean law would affect its policies, but encouraged users to report “potentially violative content” directly on YouTube or through its legal web form.

After the law was passed in December, U.S. Under Secretary of State Sarah B. Rogers criticized it in a post on X, writing that the revised law endangers tech cooperation and that “it’s better to give victims civil remedies than give regulators invasive license for viewpoint-based censorship.”

Trump called the semiautonomous island “an important part" for the United States, as he repeated the false claim that it’s surrounded by Chinese and Russian ships and said he won't let Greenland be threatened.

“That should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark,” Trump told reporters during a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara.

The NATO alliance was founded on the principle that its 32 members will defend each others' territory and not threaten to seize it. At the summit, European countries and the alliance's secretary-general, Mark Rutte, were already working overtime to address another longstanding Trump complaint: that European allies do not spend enough on their own defense.

Separately, Trump announced that the U.S. will lift sanctions on Turkey that were issued after Ankara purchased a Russian missile defense system that led to the country being kicked out of the F-35 fighter jet program — in a nod to his warm ties with summit host Erdogan.

Trump cites Erdogan ‘chemistry’ as he lifts an obstacle on F-35s

Turkey's purchase in 2019 of Russian-made S-400 missile defense systems sparked years of tensions, despite the warm personal relationship between Trump and Erdogan dating back to the U.S. president's first term.

Legal hurdles remain before Turkey could be fully admitted back to the U.S. F-35 program, but the removal of sanctions issued under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act would help ease that process. Regaining access to the F-35s is a top goal of Erdogan.

“We’re going to be taking the sanctions off, OK?” Trump said in response to a question, saying Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were working on the issue.

Trump said the possibility of selling F-35s to Turkey is “something certainly we’d consider” given the countries' relationship, and that “Turkey’s been, in many ways, much more loyal than other countries that we think would be loyal.”

Erdogan expressed hope that the U.S. will sell the F-35s, saying the U.S. president always stands by his word.

Trump and Erdogan showed off their fondness for each other. Erdogan greeted Trump with an elaborate ceremony involving military officials on horseback and jets overhead emitting red, white and blue smoke.

Asked what makes their relationship so strong, Trump said there’s “a chemistry that works between us," adding that “Sometimes you get along with the toughest people, like him.”

Turkey's access to U.S. F-35s could complicate relationships elsewhere. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has urged Trump not to sell the fighter jets to Turkey, saying it would put Israel in danger.

“This is not a force for peace and stability,” Netanyahu said on CNN. “When you give them that power, you’re going to see aggression its wake.”

There is also opposition among U.S. lawmakers to Turkey having the F-35s as long as the Russian missile defense system remains in its possession. Even if sanctions are lifted, the Trump administration still faces restrictions under U.S. law that prevents Turkey from being able to purchase the fighter jets if it owns the S-400s.

NATO has ‘moment of great pride’ on defense

Earlier in the day, NATO showcased military projects worth billions of dollars — an investment Rutte called “money well spent" and one clearly meant to try to satisfy Trump.

Rutte was speaking to government ministers and defense industry officials at a forum billed as NATO’s “big reveal,” to the thrum of techno music.

NATO does not own weapons — these are the property of member countries — but it has 14 AWACS early warning radar surveillance planes that are about 50 years old, along with newer surveillance drones.

A deal to replace the aging planes was announced Tuesday. Swedish manufacturer Saab will supply up to 10 new GlobalEye surveillance aircraft for a 10-nation consortium, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson announced.

“It’s a moment of great pride,” he said.

Some projects will be paid for with funds from a system of cheap loans for defense purposes set up by the European Union, comprising up to $170 billion raised on capital markets.

Representatives from 15 nations announced a multinational effort to buy air-to-air refueling and transport planes from Airbus. Then Rutte announced a four-country effort to purchase as many as five new Triton surveillance drones.

Rutte had told reporters on the eve of the two-day summit that “we will announce tens of billions in new contracts.” However, at Tuesday's event, no dollar figures were given and the display included some projects long since agreed.

Ukraine's Zelenskyy pushes for NATO entry

Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a fresh appeal for his country to be allowed to join the alliance, saying his country's armed forces are highly experienced and would boost NATO's defense capabilities.

He highlighted Ukraine’s ability to strike deep inside Russia and hit oil refineries and other energy targets. He said Ukraine’s armed forces are “eliminating” on average 30,000 Russian troops every month. He is set to meet with Trump on Wednesday in Ankara.

“Frankly we take no pride in this,” Zelenskyy said, noting that the war with Russia — now in its fifth year — is one "we did not seek but one we are forced to fight.”

Concern is mounting among some European countries that Russia might be preparing a hybrid attack — a combination of conventional warfare with tactics like cyberattacks — on the continent as Russian President Vladimir Putin struggles to secure victory in Ukraine.

Yet a senior NATO official, speaking on the summit's sidelines, said that despite some “reckless” actions by Russia, including airspace violations over Poland, Romania and Estonia, the alliance has been successful in deterring Moscow from any potential attack on a member country. The official insisted on anonymity to brief reporters.

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Associated Press writers Jill Lawless in London, Andy Wilks in Istanbul and Michelle L. Price and Collin Binkley in Washington contributed to this report.

Now the Dream trio will get to play together in Chicago at the WNBA All-Star Game on July 25 after all three players were selected as reserves by the league's coaches on Tuesday.

Reese had said after the All-Star starters came out that she felt her two Dream teammates should have been starting. It's the fourth time that Atlanta has had three All-Stars.

Joining the Dream players as reserves are Washington teammates Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen. Both made the All-Star Game as rookies last season.

Toronto's Marina Mabrey will be making her first All-Star appearance and gave the expansion franchise a player in the game. She matched the WNBA record with a 53-point game last month.

Other players selected by the coaches were New York's Jonquel Jones, Minnesota’s Courtney Williams, Las Vegas’ Jackie Young and Seattle's Dominique Malonga, who will also be making her All-Star debut.

Los Angeles teammates Nneka Ogwumike and Kelsey Plum also were picked. Ogwumike has been an All-Star 11 times and moved into a second-place tie with Diana Taurasi for most All-Star appearances, only trailing Sue Bird's 13.

Coaches couldn’t vote for their own players.

Plum has been sidelined for the last few weeks with a leg injury and will be evaluated again later this month. If she can't play, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert will choose a replacement.

New this year, WNBA greats Cynthia Cooper and Teresa Weatherspoon will serve as honorary general managers and select the two teams from the pool of All-Stars. The pair will select the teams at some point soon.

Chicago, Portland, Connecticut and Phoenix all don't have All-Stars.

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Prosecutors aim to show that they have enough evidence against Tyler Robinson to proceed to a trial. After the hearing concludes, state District Judge Tony Graf must determine if the case should proceed, which experts say is likely.

Robinson, 23, is charged with aggravated murder in Kirk’s Sept. 10 assassination on the Utah Valley University campus, for which prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Robinson’s attorneys have not commented on his guilt or innocence.

The preliminary hearing is set to resume Wednesday at 1 p.m.

Here's the latest:

People connected to the case are clearing out of the courthouse

Tyler Robinson’s parents have left the courthouse for the day. A security guard briefly stopped traffic to allow them to quickly cross the street.

Many of the private security staffers on site have also left the building.

Court is done for the day

State District Judge Tony Graf says the preliminary hearing will resume Wednesday at 1 p.m.

DNA analyst offers details on testing and training

FBI DNA analyst Amanda Bakker says her lab is accredited, which means it has to follow a strict set of standards including having trained examiners on staff. She had to have the right degree, take a special training program and undergo proficiency testing to show she’s qualified to do the job.

The lab is audited by an outside agency periodically in order to keep its accreditation status, Bakker says. She’s also explaining some of the nuances of DNA testing. All DNA degrades over time, she says, and that’s a normal finding in testing.

The degradation found in DNA samples in this case did not impact her ability to accurately test the samples, she says.

Bakker says she followed lab protocols and her training when testing the evidence.

Cross-examination of DNA analyst begins

Deputy Utah County Attorney Ryan McBride is up now to cross-examine FBI DNA analyst Amanda Bakker.

He’s asking her about her education, training and other professional credentials.

The hearing is drawing Charlie Kirk fans and other would-be spectators

Julie Eastman, from nearby Draper, Utah, lined up at 4 a.m. Tuesday morning to get a seat in the courtroom. She was the sixth person in line.

The early morning was worth it, she said.

“It was intense to see, to have everybody in the room who is a part of this case,” Eastman said.

She has been sitting directly in front of Charlie Kirk’s parents and his widow Erika Kirk, she said, and Erika Kirk became teary at times during the proceedings.

Donald Trump Jr. was also in the courtroom today, and the courthouse has been filled with Secret Service agents and other armed law enforcement officials.

“Everywhere you look there’s someone with security,” Eastman said.

Eastman has followed the case since the Sept. 10 shooting, and has relatives who were at Utah Valley University when it happened.

“I still can’t believe Charlie Kirk’s gone,” she says. “I still love him so much.”

Court is back in session

FBI DNA analyst Amanda Bakker is back on the stand.

Donald Trump Jr. says Charlie Kirk was among his closest friends

The Republican president’s son said on the social media platform X that he chose to attend the hearing because Charlie Kirk was “one of my closest friends for over a decade.”

Trump Jr. has not spoken to media outside the court, but he posted Tuesday about some details that came up during the second day of the hearing.

“I wanted to see actual evidence before I opined on it,” he wrote.

The court is taking a 15-minute afternoon break

After about two hours of DNA-related testimony, State District Judge Tony Graf has paused the proceedings for an afternoon break.

Before the break, FBI DNA analyst Amanda Bakker said her initial testing on evidence indicated that there were at least two contributors to DNA found on evidence, and that there could be DNA from as many as three people.

But after Tyler Robinson’s roommate provided a DNA sample for comparison, she was able to rerun her tests and attribute all of the DNA found on the item to two people.

The items tested included a towel that was wrapped around a rifle, which was found in a wooded area near the Utah Valley University campus shortly after the shooting.

Prosecutor says DNA accuracy questions should be handled later

Defense attorney Michael Burt is asking DNA analyst Amanda Bakker about the software program she used for the DNA samples, and about overall accuracy of the results.

Both samples tested in this case had minor contributors below 20%, Bakker says. Burt asks her about a study that found results can be less accurate when analyzing DNA contributions at that level.

She agrees that can sometimes be the case, but says in the samples she analyzed there were only two contributors total, which makes the process more accurate.

Deputy Utah County Attorney Ryan McBride has objected to this line of questioning. He says it’s irrelevant to the preliminary hearing since at this stage the evidence is supposed to be viewed in a light that is favorable to the state.

But Burt says the judge needs to weigh the accuracy of Bakker’s determination that Tyler Robinson and his roommate both contributed DNA to some of the evidence. Burt notes that Bakker originally believed there were three DNA contributors.

Judge Tony Graf tells Burt to wrap up this line of questioning.

DNA testing has some limitations, FBI analyst says

Defense attorney Michael Burt is questioning FBI DNA analyst Amanda Bakker about the limitations of DNA testing, including situations where DNA might not be found or the results might be somewhat misleading.

Finding DNA on an item doesn’t necessarily mean that the person matched to that DNA actually touched or used an item, FBI DNA analyst Amanda Bakker says.

Sometimes, DNA mixtures from different people might be found on an time, says Bakker.

It’s also not necessarily possible to determine how long DNA has been on an item, she says, though DNA does degrade over time.

There was some degradation to the DNA found on the screwdriver she tested, Bakker says. The screwdriver was found by investigators on the roof of a Utah Valley University building shortly after the shooting — in the same place where prosecutors say the shooter was perched.

She’s giving a technical explanation of the different measurable components of DNA, and some of the testing processes used.

FBI guidelines detail how to describe DNA test results

FBI DNA analyst Amanda Bakker says Tyler Robinson was included as a “possible contributor” of the DNA on the screwdriver and towel.

She let the local investigators know about that result on Sept. 13, she says.

U.S. Department of Justice policy is that examiners don’t use language like “absolute identification” or “reasonable degree of scientific certainty,” she says.

Examiners also can’t imply that forensic autosomal DNA examinations are infallible.

FBI DNA analysis takes the stand

Amanda Bakker is called to the stand by defense attorney Michael Burt.

Jennifer Faumuina will be back to continue testifying later, but attorneys on both sides agreed to have Bakker testify now.

Witness describes collecting a rifle and other evidence

Jennifer Faumuina worked for the State Bureau of Investigation at the time of the shooting.

She says a bolt-action rifle, wrapped in a dark-colored towel, was found in a wooded area near campus.

The gun was documented, and then packaged and taken to the FBI and eventually provided to a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms laboratory, Faumuina said.

A screwdriver found on the rooftop of the Losee building on the Utah Valley University campus was also collected as evidence, she says.

DNA found the towel was matched to two people. One of them was Tyler Robinson’s roommate, she says.

Court is back in session

Court is back from the lunch break and Utah Department of Public Safety Sgt. Jennifer Faumuina is on the stand.

ending the hearing says it has been emotional

Denae Branch, who had lined up with friends at midnight to get some of the few public seats in the courtroom, said she teared up during the hearing, and Erika Kirk reached over to offer her a tissue.

“She doesn’t know if I’m Team Erika or not, yet she handed me a tissue, and I lost it,” Branch said during the lunch recess. “She didn’t know if I was a friend or not, and she showed love.”

Branch said she observed Erika Kirk crying at times during the proceeding and fidgeting with her bracelet. Seeing Kirk’s widow get emotional made Branch emotional, too, she said.

Judge says the statement is relevant for consideration

Before the lunch break, State District Judge Tony Graf said the statement from Turning Point USA board member David Englehardt is relevant as it relates to Charlie Kirk’s political expression.

Graf said prosecutors allege Tyler Robinson targeted Charlie Kirk because of Robinson’s beliefs about Kirk’s political expression.

Determining the difference between religious expression and political expression is a different matter, the judge said, but he also noted the statement contains additional information about the tax status and practices of Turning Point USA.

Graf said the statement is “provisionally admitted,” and he will decide later if it will be fully admitted as evidence.

Defense says the Turning Point USA member’s statement isn’t relevant

Defense attorney Richard Novak says the statement from Turning Point USA board member David Englehardt won’t help the court decide whether the “victim targeting penalty enhancement” is valid.

The state law allows penalty enhancements if a defendant targeted a victim because of the defendant’s perception of the victim’s political expressions, Novak says.

But Englehardt’s statement is all about what is in Englehardt’s head, he says, and that’s not relevant to the case. Englehardt’s mention of Bible passages also isn’t relevant, Novak says, and won’t help the court make any decisions about the case.

Deputy Utah County Attorney Ryan McBride says the statement is relevant, because it clarifies what Charlie Kirk’s business does. It also goes to motive, McBride says.

Kirk engaged people in debate on religious and political issues, McBride says, and encouraged people to follow specific values.

Attorneys debate statement from Turning Point USA board member

Deputy Utah County Attorney Ryan McBride wants a “self-authenticating statement” from Turning Point USA board member David Englehardt to be admitted as evidence. The statement is notarized, McBride says.

But defense attorney Richard Novak says he’s concerned about the authenticity of the statement, and he doesn’t think some of the information contained in the statement is relevant to the case. He doesn’t want it to be admitted as evidence.

Novak says he doesn’t intend to question Englehardt’s beliefs or what Englehardt says were Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk’s religious beliefs. The document contains Englehardt’s opinions, Novak says, and references a Utah law that deals with a “victim targeting penalty enhancement.”

Investigator says weapon was found in area where Robinson had been seen

Under redirected questioning by the prosecution, former State Bureau of Investigation agent David Hull says he saw Tyler Robinson enter a wooded area twice when reviewing surveillance video.

Investigators later recovered a rifle from that same area, Hull says.

Defense attorney asks Hull about gun, autopsy, videos

Under questioning by defense attorney Kathryn Nester, former State Bureau of Investigation agent David Hull acknowledges that he wasn’t present for Charlie Kirk’s autopsy, but interviewed the person who did it.

He also didn’t directly handle the processing and shipping of a gun collected during the investigation, Hull says.

Nester also asks about video from a doorbell camera shown in court on Monday. Hull says the person who had the doorbell camera told investigators that they thought the person captured in the video was bald and that there were three people in the vehicle.

When it was presented in court, the video was described as showing Tyler Robinson’s vehicle, with just one person exiting the vehicle.

Defense attorney asks about witness descriptions of a person on the rooftop

Former State Bureau of Investigation agent David Hull acknowledges that the surveillance video showing a person on the roof of the Losee building doesn’t reveal any distinguishing facial features.

Defense attorney Kathryn Nester asks Hull how some witnesses who took a separate video of the person on the roof described him to authorities. The witnesses thought the person was an officer doing an “overwatch,” or maintaining a security position on a roof, Hull says.

The person on the roof appeared to be in a prone position for 15 to 30 seconds, Hull says.

Spectators camp out overnight to attend the hearing

Denae Branch and Jean Rivera were among the first people lined up outside the courthouse around midnight, trying to snag one of the 14 seats available to the public. The Utah County residents camped out overnight Tuesday, both wearing “FREEDOM” merchandise from Charlie Kirk’s podcast, after they did not get seats inside on Monday.

They were in the crowd at Kirk’s event at Utah Valley University when he was shot, and both said they think about it every day.

“It feels like a lot of the world just kept spinning and we’re still dealing with the trauma of it,” Branch said. “Our hearts and minds are still trying to process it and, yeah, it kind of helps being here.”

Rivera said she hoped to hear testimony about defendant Tyler Robinson’s alleged confession note.

Some courthouse windows are shrouded

The windows on the fourth floor of the courthouse, where the preliminary hearing is taking place, have been covered with black plastic sheeting.

They were not covered yesterday.

Defense questions investigator about the day of the shooting

Defense attorney Kathryn Nester is asking former State Bureau of Investigation agent David Hull about how he handled the crime scene at Utah Valley University on the day of the shooting.

Hull says he arrived on campus about 1:30 p.m., after Charlie Kirk had been rushed to a nearby hospital. He learned around 2:30 p.m. that he was going to be in charge of the investigation, Hull says.

He says he was made aware that the amphitheater area had been cordoned off and preserved as best as possible given the large number of people present when the shooting occurred.

He says a bullet found on scene was attributed to a law enforcement officer who had “cleared” his weapon, ejecting an unused bullet.

Hull says there was another firearm found at the scene: a handgun in a backpack.

Court is back in session

Defense attorney Kathryn Nester is cross-examining former State Bureau of Investigation agent David Hull.

A second video with ‘enhancements’ is introduced as evidence

Deputy Utah County Attorney David Sturgill has introduced a video with circled highlights, zooming and other alterations apparently designed to help viewers understand what they are seeing.

Defense attorney Kathryn Nester objected to the video being introduced as evidence, saying she is concerned about its authenticity and that it will be unduly prejudicial against her client.

State District Judge Tony Graf agrees to admit the video as evidence, but says he’ll view it without showing it to the public or the media since it’s essentially the same footage as the previous video.

Compilation video continues with a vehicle Hull says belongs to Robinson

Hull says a Spanish Fork police officer had an interaction with the vehicle early on Sept. 11. When Hull spoke with that officer later, the officer was able to look up vehicle records via a partial license plate number.

The plates showed Robinson was one of the registered owners of the vehicle, Hull says, and the Spanish Fork police officer said the driver was a male whom he believed to be Robinson.

Hull says video shows Robinson walking with a ‘limp’ and climbing to rooftop

Former State Bureau of Investigation agent David Hull says Robinson is shown in another video returning to campus in different clothing and walking with a limp, with one leg held mostly straight.

Video clips show him walking in front of the Losee building, Hull says, and then to the area where he could access the building’s roof.

Yesterday, former Utah Valley University Officer Chris Bagley testified that he saw a “sniper pad” in the gravel atop the Losee building roof.

Additional clips show an individual climbing onto the roof, running across it and then laying prone in the corner of the building. Hull says he believes the person to be Robinson.

The individual then lowers himself off the roof and leaves the area while carrying something in his hand, Hull says. The time stamp is 12:44 p.m.

Compilation video shows Robinson’s movements on Sept. 10

Former State Bureau of Investigation agent David Hull is narrating the video as it plays in court.

Some clips from various Utah Valley University surveillance cameras show Tyler Robinson driving into a parking garage, walking away, returning and leaving, Hull says.

Other clips show Robinson walking with a backpack. Robinson purchased a meal from Chick-fil-A at one point in the day, Hull says. Later, as Robinson moves across campus, he is no longer carrying a backpack.

He leaves campus for a second time around 11 a.m., Hull says.

Judge says the compilation video can be shown publicly

The defense team wanted the video published only to the court and not to the press videographer in the courtroom. Allowing news coverage of the video would taint the jury pool for any future trial, violating Tyler Robinson’s constitutional rights, defense attorney Michael Burt said.

But David Reymann, an attorney representing news organizations, asked the judge to allow this and other non-graphic videos in evidence to be shown to people in the courtroom and in media coverage of the case.

“The spectators in the courtroom have a right to know what the court is viewing, so they can understand how you’re making your decisions,” Reymann says.

The compilation video is expected to show Tyler Robinson walking around the Utah Valley University campus on the day of the shooting. That’s relevant, Reymann says.

Judge Tony Graf says he recognizes the importance of balancing Robinson’s constitutional rights as well as the importance of transparency. He says this video is different from the three videos of the shooting introduced as evidence yesterday, and so it can be shown publicly.

Former lead investigator David Hull is on the stand

Deputy Utah County Attorney David Sturgill is questioning Hull, the former Utah State Bureau of Investigations agent who testified yesterday about surveillance videos and other footage gathered during the shooting investigation.

Sturgill is asking Hull about a compilation video that includes clips from several different videos. The prosecution team wanted to introduce the compilation as evidence yesterday, but the judge declined after the defense team said the prosecution had not established “foundation.”

The process of establishing “foundation” for evidence generally includes having someone testify about exactly what an item is, including its authenticity and relevance.

Erika Kirk is back in the courtroom today

Tyler Robinson’s parents were also seen entering the courthouse this morning.

State District Judge Tony Graf is giving attendees a reminder of his rules for behavior, including “maintaining a courtroom environment that is safe, respectful, orderly and faithful to the rights and dignity of every person involved.”

It’s warm in the courtroom, so the judge says everyone should feel free to drink from their water bottles.

The defense frequently objected to the introduction of evidence

Defense attorney Kathryn Nester’s attempts were largely overruled by the judge Monday.

When Nester asked Bagley about finding an empty pistol holster on the ground after the crowd fled, he acknowledged he never took custody of the holster and didn’t know whether it had been fingerprinted.

Utah is an open carry state, meaning people can carry guns openly or conceal them without a permit.

Graf sided with the defense to block the introduction of a compilation of surveillance videos from Utah Valley University because some had been altered to zoom in on individuals or had circles drawn around them.

Prosecutors said they would try again Tuesday to introduce that video with the alterations removed.

Prosecutors must pass a low bar to advance Robinson to trial

The proceeding resembles a minitrial, but prosecutors need only demonstrate that there are reasonable grounds to believe Robinson killed Kirk and should stand trial. The standard is lower than for a trial, where prosecutors must prove guilt “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

Prosecutors, as a result, should have little trouble advancing their case, said Mark Kouris, a former prosecutor and state judge in Salt Lake City.

“This standard is extremely low, and the chances of them not getting through it are, quite frankly, almost nothing,” said Kouris, now an adjunct professor at the University of Utah’s S.J. Quinney College of Law.

Robinson’s demeanor in the courtroom

The defendant sat quietly between his attorneys throughout the hearing, looking at the prosecution’s exhibits on a monitor and occasionally taking notes. His wrists were shackled to a chain around his waist.

Kirk and Robinson’s families were in the courtroom Monday

Monday marked the first time Kirk’s parents, Kathryn and Robert, and his widow, Erika, were in the courtroom since the case began. Robinson’s parents also were present, sitting a few rows behind the Kirks.

Prosecutors showed several graphic videos of Kirk’s shooting, including the moment he was shot and security administering first aid, as they made their case.

Kirk’s family briefly walked out of the courtroom twice — when Bagley, the university officer, started testifying about Kirk’s arrival on campus and again when prosecutors introduced the videos. Each time, they returned.

The court will hear a statement from Robinson’s roommate

If prosecutors follow the order of an exhibit list they submitted earlier this year, they will present a video from the Washington County sheriff’s office from Sept. 11 — the day Robinson turned himself in — and recorded testimony from Robinson’s roommate.

Prosecutors allege Robinson confessed in a note left for his roommate, who was also his romantic partner, that read: “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it.”

Robinson also reportedly texted his roommate that he targeted Kirk because he “had enough of his hatred,” prosecutors have said.

Prosecutors have also said they plan to present DNA evidence linking Robinson to the suspected murder weapon, autopsy findings, witness statements and video of Kirk’s killing. In addition, they are expected to argue the shooting endangered others at Kirk’s campus event — an aggravating circumstance that could make the crime punishable by death under Utah law.

What happened during the first day of the hearing?

The court proceedings on Monday produced no major revelations but marked the most significant presentation of evidence to date in the case against Robinson, who is charged with aggravated murder in the assassination of Kirk.

Former Utah Valley University Officer Christopher Bagley testified that he witnessed the shooting while the conservative activist was speaking to a campus crowd of thousands on Sept. 10. Soon after, Bagley went to a nearby gravel rooftop, where it appeared someone had been lying prone with a clear sightline to Kirk’s location, he said.

“It looks like a sniper pad,” Bagley told the court.

More video is expected during the hearing

Prosecutors seeking to convince a Utah judge to put the man accused of killing Charlie Kirk on trial are expected to present more law enforcement video and a recorded statement from the defendant’s roommate as a weeklong preliminary hearing continues Tuesday.

The court proceedings began Monday and so far have produced no major revelations but marked the most significant presentation of evidence to date in the case against defendant Tyler Robinson, 23, who is charged with aggravated murder in the assassination of Kirk, an ally of President Donald Trump.

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Christian Pulisic, Tyler Adams and Weston McKennie fared no better at the World Cup in 2022 and 2026 than Tim Howard, Michael Bradley and Jozy Altidore did in 2010 and 2014.

“We want to be able to go and compete with some of the best in the world and we just still have that next step to come,” Pulisic said after Monday night's error-filled 4-1 loss to Belgium in the round of 16.

For all the billions of dollars invested with the goal of boosting the national team into the world's elite, the Americans remain soccer plebians.

After reaching the semifinals of the first World Cup in 1930, the U.S. didn't even qualify between 1950 and 1990. Since then, the Americans were eliminated in the round of 16 in 1994, 2010, 2014, 2022 and this year, failed to advance past their group in 1990, 1998 and 2006, and flopped in qualifying for 2018.

“It’s not like you are in a rocket and you improve and you grow. ... It’s not linear," U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino said.

The U.S. won three games in a World Cup for the first time, beating Paraguay, Australia and Bosnia-Herzegovina while losing to Turkey and Belgium. The Americans benefited as host, a seeded team that didn't face a top-10 nation before the Red Devils.

By the next World Cup in Spain, Portugal and Morocco (with three games in South America), Pulisic, McKennie and Adams will be 31.

Which players increased value for the US national team?

Folarin Balogun led the U.S. team with three goals, looking like a top striker, and gained worldwide notoriety when his red card suspension for awkwardly landing on an opponent’s ankle was lifted after a phone call from U.S. President Donald Trump. A former Arsenal youth player, the 25-year-old striker is entering the fourth season of a five-year contract with French club Monaco and could be set for a move to a bigger club.

Malik Tillman became the first player since France's Bernard Genghini in 1982 to have two free kick goals in a World Cup. The 24-year-old midfielder is entering the second season of a five-year contract with German club Bayer Leverkusen. He had a difficult 2025-26, getting dropped from the starting lineup between late March and the season’s final match.

Does US coach Mauricio Pochettino stay in the job for another 4 years?

Pochettino said he will speak with the U.S. Soccer Federation after a rest period to discuss whether it wants him to stay beyond the expiration of his contract this summer and whether he wants to commit to a four-year cycle.

“We had positive conversations with Mauricio before the World Cup about the future. We agreed we would continue those conversations following a chance to rest and reflect post World Cup,” the U.S. Soccer Federation said in a statement Tuesday. “We have a great deal of respect and gratitude for Mauricio, his staff and everyone part of the program. We have shared excitement about our potential and also shared clarity about the amount of work at all levels still required to achieve our ambition.”

The Argentine took over from Gregg Berhalter in late 2024 after first-round elimination at the Copa America. His first year included failures to win the CONCACAF Gold Cup and Nations League.

“We were in a mess,” he said. “I’ve seen this team show that we can play football. We can play soccer. We can compete. That we need keep improving — a lot of young players with a lot potential and future.”

Trouble spots on the field need work for the national team

Goalkeeper has gone from the United States' biggest strength from 1990 through 2014 to a huge weakness in the past decade and appears to be at its weakest since the 1980s.

Long gone are the days when Tony Meola, Kasey Keller, Brad Friedel, Tim Howard and Brad Guzan inspired confidence.

Zack Steffen and Matt Turner both failed to establish themselves with big European teams. Matt Freese, who supplanted Turner as the first-choice starter last year, gifted a goal in the loss to Belgium that will be replayed on blooper reels.

Gabriel Slonina, Chris Brady, Patrick Schulte, Diego Kochen and Roman Celentano, who head the next generation, have the next cycle to establish themselves as possible No. 1s.

Central defense also is a concern. Crystal Palace's Chris Richards is the only American playing at a top club and his World Cup partner, Tim Ream, at 38 became the oldest U.S. player at any World Cup.

Qualifying should be easier with 48-team World Cup tournaments

With the expansion of the field to 48 nations, including six from North and Central America and the Caribbean, World Cup qualifying is not likely to be challenging for CONCACAF's powers: Mexico, the U.S. and Canada.

All three were eliminated in the round of 16 after Curaçao, Haiti and Panama were eliminated with last-place finishes in their groups.

Unless the U.S. shows vast improvement, it will not be seeded for the 2030 World Cup and likely will face a world power in the first round.

Next up are fall friendlies, followed in November by the 2027 CONCACAF Nations League matches and next year by a possible Nations League final four and a Gold Cup.

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Clark has spent the last two weeks rehabbing from an injury that forced her out of a June 24 game against the Mercury. Earlier in the game, Clark was seen grimacing after taking a hit to her throat, a play that prompted league officials to suspend Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas for one game for what it described as “recklessly making contact with her fist” and set off a polarizing debate about cleaning up the game.

While an eight-day break heading into Sunday's game at Las Vegas managed to tamp down some of the rhetoric, it wasn't enough to get Clark back in action. Two additional days off may be.

“Very hopeful for tomorrow and, obviously, it'll be difficult for me to play both — this one on Wednesday and then the one on Thursday — but we'll see,” Clark said as Tuesday's practice started. "Obviously, from a health standpoint, just getting back into it, I would assume I'd be on a minutes restriction (Wednesday). Still hopeful of a little bit more than 20 if I'm able to go. Hopefully, I feel good after the game versus Los Angeles and then will be available in (Las) Vegas (on Sunday) .”

Coach Stephanie White was more cautious about Clark's availability, acknowledging she was still waiting for the team's medical experts to clear Clark for game action.

“I do what I'm told, I stay in my lane so whatever medical says we need to do to make sure she's ready and whatever she needs to feel comfortable and confident is what we'll do,” White said. “It's an adjustment based on who's playing and rotations and all of that, and it's an adjustment based on how we play. But certainly we want to make sure the message is the same and it's clear her long-term health and well is the most important thing. So if she's ready, she'll play."

Clark has missed three of Indiana's first 20 games this season after appearing in just 13 of 44 games in 2025. The Fever are 3-0 without her this season and reached the 2025 WNBA semifinals without Clark.

Still, her repeated injuries and the physicality opponents have used against one of the sport's most popular players have led to a debate about what the league should do.

White has spoken out about what Clark has faced, including uncalled fouls such as the one in which Thomas landed on top of Clark with her fist on Clark's throat. Thomas has since said she received death threats, something White and Clark both called unacceptable last week.

But the saga took a new twist Tuesday UConn coach Geno Auriemma appeared on the “Sports Media with Richard Deitsch” podcast. The Hall of Fame coach said he doesn't blame Clark for the attention she receives but believes Clark's supporters have stirred many of the controversies that have surrounded Clark through her first three pro seasons.

“Because the bandwagon and the fandom became so obsessed with the whole thing, it turned into a cause,” Auriemma said. ”(Clark) became the reason why white players get beat up in the WNBA and she became the reason why Black players don’t get the endorsements and don’t get the adulation that white players get. Not every foul is a good foul. Not every foul’s a bad foul, but there are fouls that are flagrant — but that’s all they are."

All Clark wants to do, though, is play, something she hopes resumes Wednesday night.

“I feel good about the stuff we're doing to help with (the back). Obviously, it's not always fun sitting on a plane for four hours and traveling a lot," she said. “It's hard on your body to travel and be on the road for 10 days and sleeping in different hotels and things like that. But I'm doing everything I can to be as healthy as possible. I really trust the people that are helping me and like I said I feel good, especially going into tomorrow.”

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AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

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Even though that was the first thing Yormark was asked about after his opening remarks at Big 12 football media days.

“I appreciate the question. I appreciate other questions that are probably going to come forth today. Today is not the time to address that issue,” Yormark said. "Today is about celebrating the upcoming football season and celebrating our 16 schools.”

Yormark later spoke about the conference “moving ahead as 16 strong.”

That would include Texas Tech, which the league and its other 15 members were discussing potentially punishing if Sorsby had indeed played this fall for the Red Raiders after the quarterback transferred from Cincinnati, another Big 12 school where he played the past two seasons.

Sorsby won't play even after being granted a temporary injunction against the NCAA last month that would have allowed him to remain eligible even after he acknowledged making thousands of impermissible bets worth at least $90,000 on college and pro sports. Those include some bets on his own team when he was a freshman at Indiana in 2022, which in past cases had led to players being banned from playing.

Sorsby later dropped his lawsuit against the NCAA, making him ineligible again, after the NCAA appealed the injunction and the Big 12 filed a still-pending federal complaint in U.S. District Court in Dallas. The conference was trying to preserve its ability to use the league's bylaws for possible sanctions against Texas Tech had Sorsby played this season.

One reporter asked Yormark why Texas Tech fans should believe comments about the league moving ahead as one. The reporter mentioned that the Big 12 last year targeted the school's tortilla-throwing tradition — passing the measure on a 15-1 vote — while Oklahoma State has an artificial noise exemption for students to bang paddles against the stadium pads along the sideline. He also mentioned Cincinnati, Sorsby's former school.

Yormark walked across the stage, then asked the reporter to stand up and repeat his question.

“I said we’re going forward as 16 strong, and that’s my answer to your question,” Yormark then responded.

More playoff talk

Big 12 coaches in May at the league’s spring meetings unanimously agreed on their preference for a 24-team College Football Playoff. Yormark has also expressed his support of that, if the economics make sense in doubling the size of the current playoff field.

The CFP management committee — which includes Yormark, the other FBS conference commissioners and Notre Dame's athletic director — met last month in Denver for more discussions on the merits of expanding to 16 or 24 teams.

“I’ve said it before, more access is needed as too many great teams are still left out,” Yormark said Tuesday. “I’ve also said before we still need to work through the economics and scheduling and address any unintended consequences.”

Monster partner

Yormark announced a multiyear agreement with Monster Energy to be the entitlement partner for conference-controlled Big 12 regular-season football games, as well as men's and women's basketball.

Yormark said the partnership with the international energy drink brand is "built on the right brand and culture alignment. ... (and) will take this conference to places it has not been before.”

It will include a co-branded Monster Energy and Big 12 logo being featured on football and basketball jerseys, fields and courts, with additional integration across conference digital and social media channels. The company's first partnership in college athletics began last fall when the brand became the conference's official energy drink.

International appeal

The Big 12 is going international again this season, with another opener in Ireland and then the first-ever college game at iconic Wembley Stadium in London.

TCU will play North Carolina on Aug. 29 in the Aer Lingus Classic, where Iowa State beat Kansas State 24-21 to open last season. Arizona State and Kansas will then play in the Union Jack Classic on Sept. 19, when Fox is taking its Big Noon Kickoff show to an international game for the first time.

“I want to do the London game because college football is, at the end of the day, still about these players. It’s still about 18- to 22-year-olds and their experience in college and the memories they make, hopefully good memories," Arizona State coach Kenny Dillingham said. “Sending 105 college kids to London to experience something they may never experience again is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

The Sun Devils will go to London after they play at Texas A&M on Sept. 12. Kansas plays at home against Missouri the previous night.

Yormark said six Big 12 schools have campuses outside the United States, including a new Arizona State campus opening in London this fall.

“The Big 12 aims to be the most globally relevant conference in college athletics,” Yormark said. “Our brand of football travels. It’s fast, it’s dynamic, and it’s exciting. It resonates beyond our borders.”

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Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

Jason Revoldt submitted his retirement Tuesday to the city, effective immediately, News 6 confirmed. The city did not release any information as to why Revoldt was retiring, or who will run the agency in the interim.

Revoldt was sworn in as the city’s 22nd fire chief in January. He served the city for more than two decades in various positions, including an arson/bomb commander, fire marshal and interim fire chief.

Revoldt is also a sworn law-enforcement officer.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

City leaders broke ground Tuesday on the first phase of the Church Street Festival Project, an effort to revitalize one of downtown Orlando’s most historic stretches.

“They have to hurry up with their projects in order to make small businesses survive on Church Street,” said Yehya Rizeq, the owner of Crepe Delicious Urban Cafe.

[WATCH: Orlando breaks ground on Church Street Festival project]

Rizeq’s business has been on Church Street for seven years, opening right before the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Before COVID-19, it was really perfect,” Rizeq said. “Since COVID-19, you know, the foot traffic is very, very slow. It’s not recovered yet.”

The economic impact of the pandemic has forced Rizeq to cut labor, putting him in a position where he is often the only person working in his store.

Rizeq has felt the creeping pressure as many of his neighboring businesses have closed in recent years.

“We don’t know how long we can survive,” Rizeq said. “I have been surviving for now seven years. How long am I going to survive? That’s the question.”

Orlando Commissioner Shan Rose, whose district includes Church Street, argued the Festival Street Project is another reason to be optimistic about the area’s future.

“Downtown really thrives to be a place where everyone can live, work, and play,” Rose said.

Long before the pandemic, Church Street had been a street known for its thriving culture.

In the 1980s, Cheyenne Saloon & Opera House was home to a national television show that featured highlights of country music.

Now, the Cheyenne Saloon is one of several buildings that sit empty on Church Street.

“I had some customers and they came here from the UK and they said, ‘What happened to Church Street?’” Rizeq said.

The move is the latest in the national battle over partisan redistricting, which has reshaped the U.S. House map ahead of this year's midterms and in states including Maryland could carry into the 2028 election cycle.

The Democratic-led Maryland General Assembly will meet beginning Aug. 3, legislative leaders said, to consider sending a constitutional amendment to voters this November intended to help clear the way later for a potential 8-0 congressional map. Democrats already hold a 7-1 advantage in the state’s U.S. House delegation; Rep. Andy Harris is the only GOP member.

Legislative leaders didn't include the language of the proposed amendment in their news release. But they said it would “clarify” the state constitution as it relates to a 2022 court ruling that struck down a previous map, which also would have made Harris’s district easier for a Democrat to win.

If approved by a three-fifths vote of both chambers, the amendment would go before voters in the Nov. 3 general election. If approved there, lawmakers could eventually revisit the congressional maps for a future election cycle under the constitution's new parameters.

"Maryland needs a durable, transparent constitutional framework for congressional redistricting that reflects the evolving legal landscape,” said House Speaker Joseline Peña-Melnyk said in a statement. “This special session gives the General Assembly the opportunity to respond thoughtfully to recent court decisions while ensuring that Maryland voters have the final say on any proposed constitutional changes.”

Maryland Republicans blasted the move as a power grab.

“One Republican Congressman represents hundreds of thousands of Marylanders who deserve a voice in Washington. This special session is designed to erase that voice and hand national Democrats another seat in the U.S. House,” Senate Minority Whip Justin Ready said in a statement.

Voting districts are typically redrawn once a decade after a census to account for population changes. But Trump urged Republicans last year to redraw districts mid-decade to try to prevent midterm losses, and Democrats responded by pursuing their own partisan redistricting.

A U.S. Supreme Court decision in late April then weakened the landmark Voting Rights Act, offering new grounds for Republicans to reconfigure districts in Southern states with large minority populations that have elected Democrats.

Republicans think they could net up to 10 additional House seats under the new districts this year.

Maryland initially took up the issue earlier this year. The state House approved a new map that would have made it easier for Democrats to win all eight congressional seats. But that plan was left to die in the state Senate, where Senate President Bill Ferguson argued the move could backfire under judicial review.

Democratic Gov. Wes Moore has been vocal in his support for a renewed redistricting effort and said Tuesday in a statement that he appreciated lawmakers’ “agreement to come back to finish the work.”

Several hundred people, mostly men and boys as young as 7, gathered around wall-mounted screens ahead of the kickoff whistle.

The scene played out across the soccer-mad nation as Egypt faced the defending World Cup champion in the round-of-16 fixture in Atlanta.

It was a historic day for millions of Egyptians even after their national team’s adventure reached its end with Tuesday’s 2-3 loss to Argentina.

“It’s a brutal scenario,” Ahmed Saadany, a teacher, reflected after the game. “The journey shouldn't have ended that way.”

With their own star Mohamed Salah, Egypt reached the round of 16 by beating Australia 4-2 on penalty kicks after a 1-1 draw in the round of 32 on Friday.

The Pharaohs advanced to the knockout stages — their first ever — after securing the second place in the Group G, behind Belgium.

Preparations for the game started well ahead of the kickoff at 7 p.m. local time. Rows of plastic and wooden chairs faced wall-mounted TV screens as fans flocked into hundreds of thousands of coffee houses and fan-zones across Egypt.

In squares and main thoroughfares, vendors were seen selling Egyptian flags, whistles and fan paraphernalia in preparation for the game.

Throughout the day, Egyptian flags were seen fluttering over vehicles and balconies, with debates on television and in public spaces, like coffee houses and markets, centering for days around the national team’s performance and its anticipated game against Argentina.

“Overall, the performance was excellent,” said Hassan Shehata, taking his seat in a packed coffee house in Cairo ahead of Tuesday’s game. “We’re developing. We play and compete.”

It’s Egypt’s fourth World Cup during which the most populous Arab country with seven Africa Cup of Nations trophies proved hard to beat.

The 2026 finals saw Egypt’s best-ever performance. The Pharaohs broke their curse of never having won a World Cup game with their 3-1 victory over New Zealand, advancing to the knockout stage for the first time.

“It was a dream,” said Rami Saeed, a 23-year-old university student. “(Coach) Hossam Hassan and his team have beaten our expectations.”

In a packed coffee house in Giza, many were seen wrapping themselves with or waving the Egyptian flag, chanting “Masr, Masr, Masr!” — the Arabic name for Egypt, while others beat drums.

The coffee house was rocked when Egypt scored and when the Pharaohs’ goalkeeper saved Messi’s penalty kick. A dead silence covered the place when Argentina scored their goals.

The fans were disappointed by Tuesday’s loss but pointed with pride at the team’s historic performance.

“It’s injustice,” Haitham Raafat, a 13-year-old boy, burst into tears after the final whistle. “The referee wasn’t fair.”

President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi lauded the team’s “unprecedented accomplishment in the history of Egyptian football.”

“Thank you to the heroes of the national football team,” he wrote in a social media post. “We are proud of you, and your achievement.”

Shaban Youssef, a 45-year-old mechanical engineer, said he is also proud of the team, saying: “They held our heads high, especially Hossam Hassan’s support of the Palestinian people.”

Hassan, Egypt’s head coach, used the World Cup platform to show support for the Palestinian people in an impassioned monologue at a pregame news conference.

Asked about his emotions when he draped a Palestinian flag around himself after Egypt’s victory over Australia in the last round, Hassan gave a more than four-minute answer amid applause by the assembled media.

“If there is anyone in the world who does not feel for the Palestinian people, then they are not human — whether they are Arab, European, or American,” he said.

Hassan’s comments were lauded by many Egyptians, who took to social media to express their support for both the coach and the Palestinians.

“Whatever the result,” prominent novelist Ezzat el-Kamhawi wrote in a Facebook post ahead of Tuesday's game. “Our team plays tonight, and the championship is already in their pocket, thanks to Hossam Hassan’s goal against Zionism.”

During Egypt’s World Cup games, hundreds of war-weary Palestinians packed around TV screens in makeshift shelters across the war-torn Gaza Strip to cheer on the Pharaohs. They gathered between their shelters, chanting, clapping and waving Egyptian flags, with Egyptian patriotic songs playing in the background.

“It’s a duty to support Egypt,” Soliman Salem, a Palestinian young man, said in a phone interview from his shelter in Gaza after Tuesday’s game. “We’re very sad, but proud of the Egyptians.”

Abdel-Rahman Baroud, another Gaza resident, said they hoped that Egypt would qualify to the next round, but “luck wasn’t on their side in the second half.”

“We all return home, disappointed," he said.

The NBA Finals MVP is expected to resume basketball activities later this summer, the person told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because there was no announcement about Brunson's procedure.

Brunson's surgery was first reported by SNY.

Brunson, who is left-handed, didn't let the wrist injury slow him down on the Knicks' run to their first championship since 1973. He scored 45 points when the Knicks won the title in Game 5 in San Antonio, after finishing with 36 when they made a record-setting comeback from a 29-point deficit in Game 4. The point guard averaged 32.6 points in the finals.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

A 2-1 ruling from the three-judge panel on the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found Florida’s assertion it could control the speech of its employees, including college professors, to be “a breathtaking assertion of power to ban unpopular ideas from public discourse in the very places the state’s own statutes recognize as centers of inquiry.”

Judge Britt Grant, an appointee of President Donald Trump, wrote the opinion and was joined by Judge Charles Wilson, an appointee of President Bill Clinton.

“Florida seeks to strip public university professors—and by extension their students—of the ability to fully engage with ideas that are, for better or for worse, very popular in some academic circles,” Grant wrote. “The State asks us to consider its rules a means of targeting discrimination. But hearing an idea you disagree with is not discrimination; it is an opportunity to come up with a better idea, or maybe even change your mind.”

The case was brought by a set of university professors and backed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida.

“We are thrilled the court has stopped the erasure of topics that have real implications for our students, allowing them to learn, discuss, and develop tools for combatting the complex issue of racism in our country without being gagged by those who would dictate that only state-approved thought may be promoted,” LeRoy Pernell, a Florida A&M University College of Law professor, and one of the instructors who brought the lawsuit, said in a released statement.

The ruling prevents Florida from enforcing part of the “Stop Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees (WOKE) Act” passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2022.

DeSantis pushed for the law as a bulwark against “indoctrination” in university classrooms. It bars professors from endorsing precepts of critical race theory, including eight specific tenets.

For example, the law bans instruction that causes students to “feel guilt, anguish or other forms of psychological distress because of actions, in which the person played no part, committed in the past by other members of the same race, color, national origin or sex.”

Supporters of the law said they sought to halt teachings that supported racial discrimination, while opponents in the Legislature, mostly Democrats contended it was really an attempt to quash candid teaching about historic racial horrors in the U.S., including slavery and the Jim Crow era.

Other parts of the law sought to ban workplace training at companies regarding racial, gender and sexual orientation issues, but those provisions have been struck down by federal courts.

Judge Barbara Lagoa, also a Trump appointee, wrote a dissent arguing the state had the right to restrict the speech of professors in the classroom.

“To be clear, the First Amendment protects all viewpoints in the public square, whether they are conventional or controversial. But it does not compel all viewpoints to be worthy of state-sponsored endorsement,” Lagoa wrote. “We need not agree or disagree with Florida that the viewpoints at issue here constitute racial discrimination; we need only acknowledge that the State is allowed to decide what is endorsed by its professors in its own classrooms.”

Before Lagoa was appointed to the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals she sat on the Florida Supreme Court as an appointee of DeSantis.

In her decision Grant stated she agreed the courts shouldn’t choose the content of university classrooms, but argued they must intervene when the government unduly restricts speech.

“We share the dissent’s view that the federal courts do not police curriculum. But we do police the First Amendment,” Grant wrote. “And if the history of that Amendment tells us anything, it is that the government cannot forbid what it perceives as heresy.

The possibility of a districtwide ban was discussed Tuesday during a school board workshop, where members reviewed recommendations for regulating the devices ahead of the upcoming school year.

Some board members said they would support removing e-bikes and e-scooters from school property entirely.

“I would stand for banning all of them,” Orange County School Board Member Vicki-Elaine Felder said during the discussion.

[WATCH: Orange School Board set to discuss proposed rules on e-bikes, e-scooters]

Board Member Melissa Byrd also said she would support a complete ban.

“I would be totally OK with doing a full ban,” Byrd said.

Superintendent Maria Vazquez said the district has seen serious safety concerns involving these devices, including a fatal incident.

“We had one student that tragically died as a result of an accident involving a scooter and another who was seriously injured,” Vazquez said.

The district is considering several recommendations, including prohibiting modified e-bikes and Class 3 e-bikes, which can reach higher speeds than traditional bicycles.

During the workshop, board members questioned how schools would determine what types of devices students are bringing onto campuses.

“The challenge with all these devices is you can’t see what the watts [are],” one board member said.

Other recommendations include creating designated storage areas, requiring device registration and permits, tracking e-bike and scooter-related incidents, and developing an informational video for students and families.

The district is also considering a policy that would prevent students from charging e-bikes and scooters on school property due to fire safety concerns involving batteries.

District 3 School Board Member Alicia Farrant said the discussion is not about preventing people from using e-bikes and scooters altogether.

“We’re not saying they’re bad or you can’t use them. That’s what you want to do on your own time,” Farrant said. “But as far as coming onto school property, there have been too many injuries for us to just sit back and ignore it.”

Current school expectations already require students using bicycles on campus to follow safety rules, including parking in designated areas and walking bikes once they enter school grounds. Florida law also requires riders under 16 to wear helmets.

District leaders say the goal of the recommendations is to create clearer, districtwide expectations as electric transportation becomes more common among students.

The discussion did not result in a final decision. The board chair is expected to bring the recommendations forward at a future school board meeting, with the goal of putting a plan in place before the new school year begins.

The S&P 500 fell 0.4% even though the majority of stocks within the index rose. The drops for stocks in the artificial-intelligence industry dragged the Nasdaq composite down 1.2%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 130 points, or 0.2%, from its record.

The weakness began in Asia, where Samsung Electronics tumbled 6.9% in Seoul. The tech giant gave a preliminary look at its performance for the second quarter, and the numbers were strong. Samsung Electronics said it expects to report its operating profit surged roughly 1,800% from a year earlier.

Analysts called the numbers surprisingly good, but they still weren’t enough for investors after Samsung Electronics’ stock had come into the day having well more than doubled in the year so far.

On Wall Street, AI stocks have been under similar pressure in recent weeks on worries that their prices shot too high and that AI may not produce enough productivity and profits to make all the investments in chips and data centers worth it.

Drops of 6.5% for Advanced Micro Devices, 9.7% for Intel and 4.7% for Micron Technology were the heaviest weights on the market.

SpaceX, which owns the xAI business, fell 6.8% in its first trading after getting included in the Nasdaq 100 index.

Outside of tech, Vertex Pharmaceuticals slipped 1.4% after saying it agreed to buy Crinetics Pharmaceuticals for $85 per share in cash. Crinetics, which develops therapeutics for endocrine diseases, soared 98.7%.

Rivian Automotive dropped 18.1% after the electric vehicle company said it’s selling 75 million shares of its stock, a move that dilutes the ownership stakes of earlier shareholders.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 33.58 points to 7,503.85. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 130.76 to 52,925.15, and the Nasdaq composite sank 302.47 to 25,818.69.

Stocks also felt pressure from a rise in oil prices after the British military said three tankers were struck by projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz. The United States later revoked a license that had authorized the sale of Iranian oil as part an interim deal to end the fighting between the U.S. and Iran.

That hurt hopes that the Strait of Hormuz may fully reopen to oil tankers carrying crude to customers worldwide from the Persian Gulf.

Brent crude, the international standard, rose 3% to settle at $74.16 per barrel.

Higher oil prices put upward pressure on inflation, and Treasury yields climbed in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.54% from 4.48% late Monday and from just 3.97% before the war with Iran began.

High yields worldwide have been rattling investors since the war sent oil prices bursting above $100 per barrel in March. The worry is that high inflation may force the Federal Reserve and other central banks to hike interest rates. Higher rates can keep a lid on inflation, but they also slow the economy and hurt prices for all kinds of investments.

In stock markets abroad, South Korea’s Kospi tumbled 4.9% because Samsung Electronics by itself makes up more than a quarter of the index.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 2.1%, and Germany’s DAX lost 1.4% for two of the world’s bigger moves.

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AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.

The club placed the 20-year-old rising star on the 10-day injured list on Tuesday due to an issue with the knuckle on the ring finger on his left hand. Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Griffin is expected to miss 8-10 weeks.

Griffin, who made his major league debut in April before signing a lengthy extension, injured the finger in the early portion of a victory over Washington on Sunday. He remained in the lineup and finished with two hits before a postgame exam detailed the extent of the injury.

Tomczyk said the injury was to the sagittal band, which stabilizes the ring finger. Griffin will keep the hand in a splint for about six weeks before resuming baseball activities.

The injury is the second significant setback for Griffin during a promising rookie season. He missed most of June with a strained right forearm.

“He's really been a big part of our success,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. "I think for him to learn through this, too, every single player goes through injuries. He’s just had a couple tough ones at the beginning. I know he’ll be stronger after going through it.”

When healthy, Griffin has been a revelation for the Pirates, looking every bit the franchise cornerstone they hoped he'd be after selecting him in the first round of the 2024 draft. Griffin is hitting .276 with five homers, 25 RBIs and 20 stolen bases in 59 games.

Jared Triolo will primarily fill in at shortstop for Pittsburgh, which entered Tuesday at 46-45 and in the middle of a large swath of National League teams in the postseason mix.

Griffin joins an increasingly crowded injured list that includes center fielder Oneil Cruz and first baseman Spencer Horwitz.

Pittsburgh called up infielder Jack Brannigan from Triple-A Indianapolis to take Griffin's spot on the roster.

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

Argentina's three goals came in the final 11 minutes of regulation and injury time. Messi played a direct hand — or foot — in two of them.

Messi helped get Argentina on the board in the 79th minute, assisting on Cristian Romero's header. Four minutes later, he leveled the match at 2-2, drilling a shot past Egypt goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir.

A sold-out crowd at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, made up of mostly Argentina's signature blue and white, erupted. And no one was surprised it was Messi who paved the way to victory.

“Watching Leo run the way he does, just pushing himself further every day — I just told him that he deserved it. He's our role model, our guide — the one who helps us at all times," Argentina forward Lautaro Martínez said. “This team is incredible. It never gives up. It keeps trying until the very end.”

Messi's goal was his eighth of this year's World Cup and moved him to the top of a tight Golden Boot race. It also extended his scoring streak to a record nine consecutive World Cup matches dating back to Argentina's title run in 2022. Tuesday's goal was his 13th in that nine-game span.

In the race for his first Golden Boot, Messi entered Tuesday's match even with France’s Kylian Mbappé and Norway’s Erling Haaland at seven goals each. Mbappé held the tiebreaker with two assists. England’s Harry Kane is also in the running with six goals.

The score also gave Messi a two-goal lead over Mbappé on the all-time World Cup leaderboard.

Messi finished second in the Golden Boot race behind Mbappé in 2022 with seven goals while leading Argentina to the title in Qatar. He tied for third with four goals in 2014.

Messi's impact on this year's World Cup run, teammate Julián Álvarez said, is hard to put into words.

“Leo, honestly, there aren’t really words to describe this Cup run,” Álvarez said. “What he’s doing is incredible, and we just try to help him, support him, and enjoy every moment alongside him. We’re also grateful for everything he does for us and for the kind of person he is."

Whether or not he wins the Golden Boot, Messi's reputation is unlikely to ever be downplayed.

“He’s a legend," Álvarez said. ”The greatest player in history.”

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Many of the investment firms that underwrote SpaceX's initial public offering issued their first research notes about the company Tuesday, and almost all recommended that investors buy the stock and forecast it to trade above $200 in the next 12 to 18 months.

But after topping $200 in its first week of trading, the stock is trading around $150 per share, where it opened on June 12, its IPO day. Investors may be looking cautiously at the same factors that have Wall Street so enthusiastic about the stock.

Analysts are focused on SpaceX’s potential to lead the market for space transportation and infrastructure. The company's reusable rockets allow it to transport people and cargo into Earth's orbit and it is aiming for deeper exploration of the solar system. Most of the company's revenue currently comes from its Starlink satellites, and AI innovations are expected to advance that technology.

“SpaceX’s ambitions, and potential impact on humanity, are bigger than any company’s we’ve ever seen,” said a analysts from J.P. Morgan, in a research report.

The bank expects the stock price to reach $225 by the end of 2027. It cited the company's competitive advantage in space transportation, with about 670 orbital launches and a nearly 99% success rate with its Falcon rockets. Most payloads launched into orbit since 2023 were through SpaceX.

The company has dominated the reusable space rocket market with its Falcon 9, but its gigantic Starship rocket is the key to launching bigger pieces of cargo, including data centers.

Investment bank Raymond James is by far the most optimistic. Its analysts expect the stock to eventually reach $800 per share and consider SpaceX a key industrial company for the 21st century.

“Just as railroads, electric grids, and the Internet reshaped prior economic eras, we believe SpaceX is building the foundational platform for the next generation of industrial capacity,” the analysts wrote in a research report.

SpaceX founder Elon Musk decided to take the company public because it needs money to fund its ambitions, including putting more satellites and eventually data centers into space. It's more ambitious goals include establishing a colony on Mars.

For now, Starship is still in the test phase and no technology exists to put data centers in space or send people to Mars. Wall Street analysts acknowledge that a delay or failure to establish a steady schedule of launches for Starship is a risk that could torpedo their forecasts.

SpaceX ended its first day on Wall Street in June with a market value of more than $2 trillion and is still sitting around that level. That made Musk the world's first trillionaire, though his net worth has since fallen back below $1 trillion, according to Forbes.

A few banks on Wall Street are more cautious about the company's prospects. Equity research firm MoffettNathanson said it sees the potential, but has given the company a more “neutral” rating and sees the stock eventually sitting at $131 per share. The concerns are over many of the unknowns related to regulatory issues, technology and demand.

“It is, in short, a bet on any and all things made possible by a virtual lock on rocket manufacturing and launch," MoffettNathanson said in a report.

New Smyrna Beach police responded about 4:30 p.m. Monday at Merk’s Bar & Grill.

According to a news release, Jason Stickels,44, instigated the confrontation, making unwanted contact with the couple seated near the bar. According to witnesses and video footage, Stickels first battered a 71-year-old woman at a table, then battered her 77-year-old husband when he stepped in to intervene. A bystander quickly subdued Stickels, taking him to the ground.

No injuries were reported.

Sheriff Mike Chitwood posted on social media calling Stickels’ conduct “idiotic behavior.”

“I have a 77-year-old Vietnam Veteran in a bar with his wife and what you see in that video is thoroughly disgusting; it’s sickening, and doesn’t represent what this organization stands for,” Chitwood told News 6 Tuesday.

Stickels, who has been with the sheriff’s office since 2004, was charged on two counts of felony battery on a person 65 or older, officials said.

He was released after posting bond. Chitwood says Stickles has resigned and admitted himself to a rehabilitation center.

“Everyone wants to see him grounded into dust. You have to take into account that I hire from the human race; we’re all human, he made a horrible mistake, his career is over, and he’s embarrassed publicly,” said Chitwood.

Authorities said anyone with information or additional footage should contact New Smyrna Beach police at the department’s nonemergency line.

Aides to McConnell have declined to release any information about his condition, fueling speculation about his prognosis and whether he will be healthy enough to be at the Capitol when the Senate returns to Washington next week after a two-week recess. McConnell, 84, is retiring at the end of his term in January.

A spokesperson for Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said he had spoken with McConnell by phone on Monday and that the two had a “lengthy and substantive conversation that covered a variety of topics, including national security.” As leader, Thune is generally kept up to date on illnesses and absences in his conference as he has to navigate vote counts and his narrow 53-47 majority.

Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, the No. 2 Senate Republican, had a 20-minute conversation with McConnell on Tuesday, according to a spokeswoman. The two discussed Senate races ahead of the midterm elections, the Supreme Court and other topics, the statement said.

“Senator McConnell was fully engaged and is eager to get back to the Senate,” said Barrasso spokeswoman Kate Noyes.

Another McConnell ally, Republican strategist Scott Jennings, posted on X that he had also talked to McConnell for 20 minutes on Tuesday, and that “he’s still recovering in the hospital.” Jennings said they spoke about politics, foreign policy “and even a little bit of Senate history.”

Few details released as McConnell remains in the hospital

McConnell was admitted to the hospital on June 14, according to a statement from his office that only said he was “receiving excellent care.”

A statement a week later said that he would not be voting that week. And on Thursday, a new statement said that he ”appreciates the outpouring of support he’s receiving while he continues his recovery in the hospital.”

“The Senator continues to improve, and is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate matters while the Senate is out of session,” the statement said.

A spokesman for McConnell released the same statement again on Tuesday, with no new updates.

McConnell has a history of health troubles

The senator’s unspecified health issues come after several hospitalizations in recent years.

While he was still Republican leader, McConnell was hospitalized with a concussion in March 2023 and missed several weeks of work after falling in a Washington hotel. He twice froze up during news conferences after he returned, staring vacantly ahead before colleagues and staff — including Barrasso, who is a doctor — came to his assistance.

A year later, he fell and sprained his wrist while walking out of a GOP luncheon.

McConnell had polio in his early childhood and he has long acknowledged some difficulty as an adult in walking and climbing stairs. He also tripped and fell in 2019 at his home in Kentucky and underwent surgery for a fractured shoulder.

The Kentucky senator was first elected to the Senate in 1984 and was the Republican leader from 2007 until last year, serving as both majority and minority leader during that period. He has remained active as a rank-and-file senator, showing up for work when the chamber is in session, often using a wheelchair to get around.

The city says the storms dropped about six inches of rain, with more than three inches in approximately two and a half hours.

That intense rainfall temporarily exceeded capacity for some street drainage systems.

The city says it received reports of flooding issues on Monday night at:

• Aldema Court
• Bluebird Court
• Gayle Avenue
• Hopkins Avenue
• East Powderhorn Road
• North Singleton Avenue near Pollyanna
• Raney Road
• Wakefield Terrace
• Westwood Drive

Residents who experienced flooding are asked to report it through the city’s Citizen Request Portal on the City of Titusville website, or call the Public Works Department at 321-567-3832.

Meanwhile, the city is looking at updating its Stormwater Master Plan to expand maintenance and improvement projects.

On July 14, the city council will discuss establishing a maximum stormwater assessment rate to fund those projects, with a public hearing expected in August.

The Boston University CTE Center, which investigates the long-term consequences of repetitive brain trauma in athletes and others, analyzed Kneeland's brain tissue after his death. Researchers determined Kneeland, who was 24, was in stage one of four of CTE.

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EDITOR’S NOTE — This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org

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CTE is a degenerative brain disease that has been found in athletes in contact sports, combat veterans and others who experience repetitive blows to the head. It has been known to cause violent mood swings, impulsive behavior and depression. It can be diagnosed only after death.

“While this diagnosis does not change the tragedy of his passing, it provides important context about some of the struggles he may have been facing. We share this information to help people understand what NFL and other high contact sport athletes might be struggling with,” Kneeland’s family, including his girlfriend, Catalina Mancera, said in a statement issued through the Concussion and CTE Foundation.

“Raising awareness is important to us. We continue to remember Marshawn with compassion for the person he was, rather than defining him by the final moments of his life. One Love,” the family said.

The abnormality has also been linked to deaths in the National Football League, as well as in hockey and soccer.

Kneeland shot himself after evading authorities in his vehicle and fleeing a car crash on foot.

The chase happened after police said Kneeland didn’t stop for Texas Department of Public Safety troopers over a traffic violation. Authorities lost sight of the vehicle before locating it crashed minutes later.

As authorities were looking for Kneeland after he fled the crash site on foot, a dispatcher told officers that people who knew him had received a group text from Kneeland “saying goodbye,” indicating he might be suicidal.

Dr. Chris Nowinski, CEO of the Concussion & CTE Foundation, noted Kneeland's diagnosis comes even amid a modern era of concussion protocols in professional and college athletics and better safety equipment.

Kneeland started playing tackle football when he was 7 years old. He played at Western Michigan University before he was selected by the Cowboys in the second round of the 2024 NFL draft.

“We have no reason to believe the current generation is at a lower risk of CTE than previous generations. Concussion protocols do not prevent CTE, because CTE is caused by repeated head impacts, not just concussions,” Nowinski said. “If we want to reduce CTE risk, we must implement CTE prevention protocols and aggressively reduce the number and strength of head impacts at every level of the game.”

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Former Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba and former Jackson City Council President Aaron Banks pleaded guilty Monday to one count of conspiracy. Their pleas came after Hinds County District Attorney Jody Owens pleaded guilty last week and resigned. All three are Democrats.

Two other people — Angelique Lee, the Democratic former vice president of the Jackson City Council, and Sherik Marve Smith, a businessman and relative of Owens — had already pleaded guilty to bribery charges.

A November 2024 indictment accused Owens of taking at least $115,000 from two FBI agents posing as real estate developers and facilitating more than $80,000 in bribe payments to Banks, Lumumba and Lee in exchange for their help greenlighting a development project.

Lumumba, Banks and Owens could be sentenced to up to five years in prison. Their sentencing hearings are set for Oct. 15.

Lumumba, who previously called the charges a political prosecution, lost his reelection bid last year. His lawyers did not immediately respond to The Associated Press' requests for comment.

The National Conference of Black Lawyers, which has supported Lumumbat throughout his prosecution, has raised concerns about whether the FBI and prosecutors unjustly targeted Black elected officials.

“Our history tells us that it is necessary for us to have a very healthy skepticism about who, how and why certain people, certain geographical areas are focused upon,” said Mawuli Davis, an attorney with the NCBL. “We’ve never not been targeted.”

Davis said the NCBL intends to attend Lumumba's sentencing hearing and advocate for the judge to consider Lumumba's contributions to the community.

Banks' lawyer declined to comment.

On Tuesday, she sounded like the rest of us. The plantar fasciitis was acting up. She’s working too much.

“I’m just getting old,” Osaka said.

The 28-year-old Osaka’s Wimbledon run and fashion show ended in a 7-6 (4), 6-4 loss to Karolina Muchova in the quarterfinals of the grass-court Grand Slam.

Osaka, a former No. 1 player, had ousted top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka in the fourth round — with arguably some of her best tennis since returning from maternity leave — but couldn't find her rhythm Tuesday against her Czech opponent.

“It’s hard because I played so well in my last match, then today I just feel like I didn’t play well at all and I didn’t have any energy," said Osaka, who despite the loss still had her best result at the All England Club by reaching the quarterfinals.

“I could feel it coming because I’ve played way more matches than I usually do before a Slam," she added. “I just wanted to try that to see the rhythm, you know? Obviously it worked out well. But I think I probably won’t do that again. But yeah, I would say it was like an accumulation of playing two weeks straight without a day off.”

In a Wimbledon warmup tournament in Bad Homburg, Germany, Osaka had retired from the final — against Muchova — because of a foot injury.

The Japanese player — who took mental-health breaks starting in 2021 and was away from the tour while having a daughter — was asked Tuesday if she has an ankle issue. No, she responded before joking about “getting old.” She did say, however, that she has “plantar fasciitis on my feet. Well, that’s what we assume it is.”

“It kind of started happening off-season last year,” Osaka added. “I feel like maybe it's because I’m a lot more springy on my toes. I think it reactivated on grass court because I’m pushing off a lot more to go forward. I don’t think it will bother me on hard court. I’m thinking it was maybe just the surface change.”

Osaka has won two of her four major titles (2018 and ’20) at the U.S. Open, and she made it back to the semifinals at Flushing Meadows last year, losing to Amanda Anisimova.

“I feel like in my head I think there’s still an opportunity to win a Slam,” she said.

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

A Ukrainian military intelligence officer confessed to killing the bombing suspect, Anastasiia Berezovska, with the help of a former law enforcement officer, said the security service, known as the SBU. The military intelligence officer said he acted on his own and without the knowledge of his superiors, the SBU said.

Both men were detained on suspicion of murdering Berezovska, a Ukrainian national whose last known residence was in Germany, according to authorities. They also “may have been involved in planning” last week's bombing, Monaco prosecutor Stéphane Thibault said late Tuesday.

The bombing attack at an apartment building entrance in Monaco reportedly injured Vadym Yermolaiev, a tycoon with links to Russia. A woman and a child who were with him were also injured, and the Monaco prosecutor said last week that one of the victims was in a life-threatening condition.

The attack shocked Monaco, a coastal playground for the rich and famous known for its tax-friendly incentives, royal family and Formula 1 Grand Prix.

Authorities have not disclosed possible motives for the bombing attack, or the killing of Berezovska. Based on the sophistication of the remote-controlled explosive device that was used, investigators in Monaco said last week that they believed multiple people were involved in the attack.

In Kyiv, the mysterious events have raised concerns among some lawmakers about how Ukraine’s Western allies are reacting to a possible assassination attempt in Monaco that is now linked to at least one member of Ukraine’s military intelligence agency.

“I hope it will not have a serious impact. But our allies deserve an explanation,” said Oleksandr Merezhko, a lawmaker from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s party.

Ukraine is believed to have carried out attacks and targeted killings of Russian figures in the course of the war, although those attacks have largely been confined to Ukrainian or Russian territory.

One possibility is that the bombing in Monaco and Berezovska’s killing are connected to the Yermolaiev family’s business dealings, said political analyst Volodymyr Fesenko, who believes it’s too soon to implicate the Ukrainian state.

Fesenko noted that at the end of April, Yermolaiev’s son, Artur, had settled charges brought against him in Estonia related to an alleged phone scam that took in more than 100 million euros ($114 million) from citizens in multiple European countries between 2019 and 2022, according to local media reports. As part of the deal, the younger Yermolaiev paid an 8.5 million euro fine.

Monaco's head of state, Prince Albert II, described last week's bombing as “an odious act.” The 39-year-old Berezovska was identified as the main suspect by Interpol, which issued a so-called Red Notice seeking her arrest on charges of attempted murder and criminal conspiracy. The notice said Berezovska has a tattoo, possibly of a snake, on her right arm from the shoulder to the elbow.

Yermolaiev built his fortune through the Alef Group, a diversified business that includes commercial real estate, manufacturing and agriculture. Sanctioned by Ukraine in 2023 for his Russia ties, Yermolaiev has said he renounced his Ukrainian citizenship nearly a decade ago.

Interpol on Tuesday said it had no immediate comment on the arrests of the Ukrainian military intelligence officer and former law enforcement officer.

The SBU said investigators had focused on the two men after discovering they had repeatedly transferred cryptocurrency and money through bank accounts to Berezovska.

Investigators said they found Berezovska’s body during a reconstruction of the crime based on one suspect’s testimony. Investigators recovered spent pistol casings at the scene, the SBU said.

Authorities said the basement of the former law enforcement officer’s home appeared to be used as a torture chamber. It was not immediately clear if this is where Berezovska’s body was found.

The SBU said it had shared all available information with authorities in Monaco and was continuing to investigate those who ordered and organized the bombing attack there.

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AP Writer Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed.

Republicans currently have a 53-47 advantage in the Senate, and Maine is viewed as a necessary win for Democrats to gain the minimum of four new Senate seats.

But now there’s a question of whether Platner, who denied the allegation, will remain on the ballot and, if he does, whether he can defeat five-term Republican Sen. Susan Collins.

Here’s a closer look at the top races that Democrats are targeting.

Democrats see some pickup opportunities

ALASKA: Former Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola’s candidacy against incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan has buoyed her party.

Peltola, one of a handful of Democrats who’ve won in Republican dominated states, was the first Alaska Native to serve in Congress, winning special and regular elections in 2022 for the state’s only House seat.

At center stage for the state’s Aug. 18 primary is drama involving a man running with the same name and party affiliation as Sullivan. The state supreme court has said the challenger is qualified to be on the ballot.

Peltola’s campaign and state Democrats have denied Sullivan's allegation that they're working with the challenger to cause confusion..

MAINE: Platner catapulted to the Democratic nomination despite earlier controversies. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer initially backed sitting Gov. Janet Mills but reluctantly aligned behind Platner -- until Monday’s latest bombshell accusation.

Now, Schumer and many Democrats are pushing for Platner to withdraw. If he does that by July 13, Maine Democrats can put a replacement on the ballot. If not, Platner could face Collins with minimal national party support.

If Platner drops out, his replacement could meet a similar challenge to what presidential candidate Kamala Harris faced in 2024, when she had a late start to appeal to a general election audience without having won the nomination in a competitive primary.

Meanwhile, Collins has won elections for 30 years despite no Republican presidential nominee, including President Donald Trump, winning Maine since 1988.

NORTH CAROLINA: Democrats landed one of their prize recruits with former Gov. Roy Cooper, who has never lost a statewide election through four terms as attorney general and two as governor. Republicans answered with Trump’s handpicked candidate, Michael Whatley, who’d previously served as state GOP chairman and as the Republican National Committee chairman.

Whatley was viewed as a prodigious fundraiser and ideal Trump surrogate in a state the president carried three times, and he has history on his side -- Democrats have won just two U.S. Senate races and one presidential contest in North Carolina in the last three decades.

Yet Cooper won governors races in two of Trump’s three presidential cycles and is leveraging his centrist image at a time when independents have soured on Trump. That leaves Whatley with the difficult tasks of satisfying Trump's core supporters without alienating other voters; introducing himself to voters who don’t know him; and convincing enough North Carolina voters that they’ve been wrong about Cooper for decades.

OHIO: Democrats are counting on former Sen. Sherrod Brown to unseat Republican incumbent Jon Husted in what’s shaping up to be another expensive contest in the state — its third in four years.

The Senate Leadership Fund, a GOP super PAC, has pledged $79 million to defend Husted, a former lieutenant governor appointed to fill the seat after JD Vance became vice president.

Brown served three terms in the Senate before losing a tough reelection contest in 2024.

Ohio has steadily trended Republican. But Brown won previously as an advocate of unions and the working class, and Democrats believe he can attract some of the voters who’ve helped Trump win the state three times.

Underdogs could offer surprises

IOWA: The state, which Trump won three times gives Democrats an opportunity to flip a seat with two-term Republican Sen. Joni Ernst's retirement.

Democratic Iowa state Rep. Josh Turek faces Trump-endorsed Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson.

Turek is a relative newcomer to elected office and has pointed to his experience winning in a red state House district as proof he could appeal to independent and moderate Republican voters in November.

Hinson is a three-term House incumbent representing northeastern Iowa, and claims Trump needs a fighter who would “always have his back.”

TEXAS: State Rep. James Talarico, a 37-year-old seminarian, has become a national fundraising phenomenon.

Talarico faces the scandal-ridden Republican nominee Ken Paxton. The Texas attorney general has weathered an impeachment attempt by his own party, a yearslong corruption investigation and public airing of his martial difficulties. Through all that, Paxton has won multiple reelections.

Democrats were buoyed by their primary turnout of about 2.3 million eclipsing Republicans’ 2.2 million, something that hasn’t happened since the state flipped to Republicans in the 1990s. But the challenge for Talarico is turning that momentum into a racially, ethnically and geographically diverse coalition in November.

The seats Democrats have to hold

GEORGIA: Sen. Jon Ossoff is the only Democratic senator running for reelection this year in a state Trump won in 2024.

He had no primary opposition, and he’s been a fundraising force with more than $30 million cash-on-hand as he entered the general election campaign. Ossof has attracted national attention with his unapologetic broadsides against Trump.

Republican Rep. Mike Collins is playing catchup after winning a bruising GOP primary runoff. He must navigate skeptical Republicans who believe he’s too conservative or controversial for this battleground state. Collins repeats Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was rigged, and he’s also facing a House ethics inquiry over allegations that he misused taxpayer money to pay the girlfriend of a former top aide.

Collins’ strongest line of attack against Ossoff comes on immigration. Collins sponsored the Laken Riley Act, named for a Georgia nursing student killed by a Venezuelan man in the U.S. illegally. The 2025 law, among other provisions, requires immigrants accused of certain crimes to be detained by federal law enforcement.

Ossoff voted for that legislation after Trump returned to the White House. The senator had previously voted, along with all Senate Democrats, to block consideration of an earlier Republican version — offered as an amendment to a 2024 spending bill — that would have prohibited undocumented immigrants accused of certain crimes from obtaining legal status. Collins and Republicans frame those votes as Ossoff flip-flopping on immigration enforcement.

MICHIGAN: Democratic Sen. Gary Peters’ retirement opens up a seat the party must hold in a key presidential battleground that Trump won twice and former President Joe Biden carried in 2020.

The Aug. 4 Democratic primary pits moderate Haley Stevens against progressive Abdul El-Sayed. It was a three-way race until Mallory McMorrow, who had backing from some progressive Democratic senators, suspended her campaign.

Stevens and El-Sayed have split support among Democratic senators. Stevens has the support of Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, while El-Sayed has support from Sen. Bernie Sanders and other progressives.

Stevens has also benefited from heavy outside spending, including nearly $8 million from a super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

El-Sayed, a former Wayne County health director, has run on issues like Medicare for All and halting all U.S. weapons transfers to Israel. He has campaigned with popular-yet-controversial streamer Hasan Piker, who has millions of followers online and has said things such as that “America deserved 9/11.”

The winner is expected to face Republican Mike Rogers, who lost to now-Sen. Elissa Slotkin, a Democrat, in 2024.

The deputy and his K-9 partner were both in the vehicle at the time of the crash near where International Speedway Boulevard and Interstate 95 converge. Preliminary investigation shows the deputy was traveling approximately 92 mph when he failed to negotiate an off-ramp, sending the vehicle into the retention pond, Chitwood said.

The deputy and the K9 were not injured, and the patrol car was totaled.

“From what the video looks like, he was driving like an idiot,” Chitwood said.

Chitwood said a traffic crash investigation and an internal investigation are both underway. He noted the outcome of those investigations will determine what disciplinary action, if any, follows.

The sheriff’s office said video of the damaged patrol vehicle would be made available. Dash cam footage of the crash is also expected to be released.

It’s the latest legal trouble for the ex-Tallahassee mayor, who narrowly lost to Republican Ron DeSantis for governor in 2018 and was once considered a rising star of the Democratic Party.

Gillum, 46, was arrested on July 2 in Daphne, about 11 miles (17.7 kilometers) east of Mobile on Alabama’s Gulf Coast. He is charged with marijuana possession and unlawful possession of a controlled substance, the Daphne Police Department said. Jail records show he was released on July 3.

Court records for Gillum’s case were not yet available, the Baldwin County Clerk of Court’s office said. Information on a lawyer who could speak on his behalf wasn’t immediately available.

A message seeking comment was left for the local district attorney’s office.

Gillum is a co-host of the politically themed Native Land Pod, which won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding News and Information Podcast in 2025. A message seeking comment was left for the podcast’s production company.

In a news release, the Daphne Police Department said officers stopped Gillum’s vehicle around 10:45 p.m. and initiated a probable cause search after one of them noticed a glass pipe on the center console.

They found several rolled marijuana cigarettes and three packages of a substance that tested positive for methamphetamine, police said.

Gillum, who served as mayor of Florida’s capital from 2014 to 2018, came within less than a percentage point of being elected the state’s first Black governor, losing to DeSantis by fewer than 34,000 votes.

In 2020, Gillum was found in a Miami Beach hotel room with a man who had apparently overdosed on drugs. Police said Gillum himself was too inebriated to talk about what happened.

The man survived and no one was ever charged with a crime for the overdose, but Gillum withdrew from public life for months afterward while seeking treatment for alcohol abuse and depression. Months later, he told a TV interviewer that he had to come to grips with what he had done.

“So much of my recovery has been about trying to get over shame,” Gillum said on the Tamron Hall talk show in September 2020.

In 2022, Gillum was indicted on federal conspiracy and wire fraud charges for allegedly funneling tens of thousands of dollars in campaign donations through third parties back to himself for personal use.

A 2023 trial ended in a hung jury on those charges and an acquittal on charges that Gillum lied to undercover FBI agents posing as developers who paid for a 2016 trip he took with his brother to New York, including hotel rooms, meals, a boat tour and a ticket to the hit Broadway show “Hamilton.”

The groundbreaking marks the start of construction on the section of Church Street between Garland Avenue and the railroad tracks — the first of three phases planned over the next several years.

The full project will span Church Street from Garland Avenue to Magnolia Avenue, with the goal of creating a festival-style atmosphere that prioritizes pedestrians while maintaining vehicle access.

Phase one includes repaving the road with two 11-foot travel lanes and a curbless roadway connecting to pedestrian spaces — designed to support outdoor dining, events, and local businesses. City leaders say the redesign will also reduce cut-through traffic.

David Barilla described the vision for the street: “Think large sidewalks for sidewalk cafes, think the ability to have different types of activities in the street, but also ensure that there is access to vehicles as well.”

Work on the first phase is expected to wrap up by the end of the year.

The NL Central-leading Brewers announced before their doubleheader Tuesday with the St. Louis Cardinals that they had promoted Lara and optioned outfielder Blake Perkins to Triple-A Nashville.

Milwaukee also placed infielder David Hamilton on the 10-day injured list because of a strained left hamstring, selected utilityman Greg Jones from Nashville and transferred outfielder Brandon Lockridge to the 60-day IL.

Lara, 21, was still playing for Nashville when the Brewers signed him last month to a deal that runs through 2032 and includes club options for 2033, 2034 and 2035.

“I just really was trying to stay prepared, you know, mentally knowing that this moment could come at any given time, and the moment came,” Lara said in Spanish through an interpreter. “So now it's just kind of doing what I was doing in Triple-A and just going out there and enjoying the game and having fun while playing it.”

The 5-foot-7 outfielder from Venezuela has long been regarded as an outstanding fielder, but he’s having a breakthrough season at the plate.

Lara hit .321 with a .432 on-base percentage, .470 slugging percentage, nine homers, 42 RBIs and 24 steals in 78 games with Nashville. He batted .257 with a .369 on-base percentage and .343 slugging percentage in 136 games for Double-A Biloxi last season.

“I think any time you sign a contract at a young age, you think about just wanting to give the maximum potential you have, give everything you have for the team,” Lara said. “Really I just try to tell myself as much as possible to stay calm, to not get lost in my thoughts too much, just do what I always do.”

Brewers manager Pat Murphy said Lara can play all outfield positions.

“I think Luis can help us being a switch-hitter and equally good from both sides,” Murphy said. “Never touched the big leagues, but you know it’s time, and we’ve signed him to a long-term deal, obviously, that predicates that he’s going to be a Brewer, you know, and we’re excited.”

This marks the second time this year that a Brewers prospect has been called up to the majors after signing a long-term deal.

Shortstop Cooper Pratt made his MLB debut on June 16, 2 1/2 months after he signed an eight-year, $50.75 million contract. Pratt, who turns 22 on Aug. 18, entered Tuesday’s doubleheader with a .204 batting average, .313 on-base percentage, no homers, two RBIs and six steals in 18 games with Milwaukee.

Perkins, 29, was hitting .157 with a .250 on-base percentage, one homer, 11 RBIs and three steals in 53 games with the Brewers.

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

The incident happened on June 26 at 1:46 a.m. at Cross Prairie K-8 School on Rankin Street in Kissimmee.

The sheriff’s office says three males, who appeared to be high school-aged, walked onto the campus, entered the school through an unsecured door, stole electronic property, vandalized a conference room, and then left the campus on foot.

If you have any information about these suspects or what happened at the school, call the sheriff’s office’s East Property Crimes Unit at 407-348-2222, or Crimeline at 1-800-423-TIPS (8477).

DeLand police say they were called to AdventHealth Hospital on July 4, where they were told that Stephen Evans was making inappropriate comments towards the nurses while sexually touching himself.

According to the news release, the victims said Evans then began to forcefully grope them inappropriately, and when asked to stop, he started yelling and cursing at the nurses.

Officers say the nurses told security, who restrained Evans until officers arrived.

After being medically cleared, Evans was discharged and arrested.

Evans is charged with two counts of battery on specified personnel.

He’s currently being held on a $20,000 bond.

NBCUniversal announced Hargitay as host on Tuesday, the day before nominations are announced. The show will also stream on Peacock and will be held, fittingly, at the Peacock Theater, the longtime Emmys home that will also soon be home to the Oscars.

Hargitay, 62, has long been one of NBC's signature personalities as the star since 1999 of “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” one of the longest-running dramas in TV history. She's been nominated eight times for her role as detective Olivia Benson, winning for lead actress in a drama series in 2006. “SVU” as it's commonly known, is set to surpass 600 episodes as its 28th season airs this fall. Hargitay has used the platform to become an advocate for sexual assault victims.

She may be a nominee again this year as the director and producer of “My Mom Jayne,” a documentary on her mother, Jayne Mansfield. Hargitay was also a TV constant earlier this year as she sat in the front row for the championship run of her beloved New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

The role of airing the Emmys rotates between the four broadcast networks even as their nominations become more rare in the streaming era. Hargitay is the rare non-comedian to get the hosting job, held last year by Nate Bargatze on CBS.

NBC is unlikely to see too many nominations in key categories on Wednesday, though all-time Emmy leader “Saturday Night Live” always gets its share.

“Pluribus” from Apple TV+ and HBO Max's “The Pitt” starring former longtime NBC star Noah Wyle are expected to be among the leading nominees when they're announced by recent winners Liza Colón-Zayas and Jeff Hiller at the Television Academy in Los Angeles.

The lawsuit depicts a coordinated campaign between the U.S. and Iranian governments to identify Iranians in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody and pressure them to return to Iran — a marked departure from decades of diplomatic hostility between the two governments and an ongoing war. The Department of Homeland Security denied that it is sharing asylum application records with the Iranian government.

Roughly 600 Iranians were put in immigration detention last year, according to public records obtained by the National Iranian American Council. In June, an Iranian woman was among the two dozen migrants the U.S. deported to the Central African Republic — in a marked departure from a decades-long practice by the U.S. of welcoming Iranian dissidents, exiles and others since the 1979 Islamic Revolution forced a large number of Iranians to flee.

The U.S. government is allowed to work with government officials of foreign countries to coordinate deportation logistics. However, federal regulations passed in the late 1990s prohibit the government from sharing information that could reveal that the individual getting deported applied for asylum.

“Congress made these confidentiality protections mandatory precisely because lives depend on them, and no agency and no administration, of either party, may set them aside,” said Ali Rahnama, the interim executive director of Iranian American Legal Defense Fund.

Starting in March 2025, the U.S. State Department arranged monthly meetings with Iranian officials, using the Pakistani embassy as an intermediary, in which U.S. officials shared detailed, sensitive information about detained Iranian immigrants who the U.S. government hoped to deport, lawyers for the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund and the Public Citizen Litigation Group wrote in a complaint.

The information included details about asylum applications filed by people who say they were persecuted for converting to Christianity, for their sexuality or for participating in the Women, Life, Freedom protests against the Iranian government in 2022, according to the lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.

ICE forced Iranian asylum applicants who had been detained in numerous facilities, mostly southern states, to meet with an Iranian government official who had extensive and specific knowledge about their applications, according to the complaint. The information was shared even after the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran started the Iran war in February 2026.

Homeland Security said in a statement Tuesday that ICE works to get travel documents for detainees in their custody and that ICE facilitates “consular access to detained individuals, in accordance with applicable laws, regulations, and agency policy.”

“These allegations that ICE shared asylum application records with the Iranian government are FALSE,” DHS said in a statement.

The lawsuit is seeking to halt sharing information about asylum seekers with the Iranian government and appoint an independent monitor to prevent future disclosures.

“Despite the U.S.’s ongoing war with Iran, the administration seems more committed to mass deportation than protecting human lives,” Michael Kirkpatrick, attorney at Public Citizen Litigation Group said in a statement.

The complaint names the Department of Homeland Security, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin and the Department of State as some of the defendants.

The allegations come amid President Donald Trump’s ambitious and aggressive immigration crackdown that involved over 600,000 deportations and causing roughly 1.9 million immigrants to voluntarily leave in 2025 alone, according to an announcement made by DHS.

Iranian officials acknowledged in September 2025 that as many as 400 Iranians could be returned under an agreement with the Trump's administration. That month, the first of three deportation flights brought dozens of Iranians back to Iran. The second deportation flight was in December 2025, and the final recorded deportation flight departed at the end of January 2026, roughly a month before the war on Iran started, and just weeks after the Iranian government killed thousands of citizens as part of a brutal crackdown on protests. The New York Times reported at the time that some of those deported in the flights in September, December and January were asylum seekers.

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Associated Press reporter Rebecca Santana in Washington contributed to this report.

It was the second attack in Damascus in a week and a setback for President Ahmad al-Sharaa as he welcomed the first major Western leader to visit since the ouster of longtime dictator Bashar Assad by insurgent groups in late 2024. Syria’s new rulers have wrestled with outbreaks of violence as they assert control, but the capital had been largely peaceful.

French President Emmanuel Macron was in the presidential palace when the explosions happened. An official from the Elysee Palace said he was safe and the meeting with al-Sharaa continued, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss Macron’s security.

No group immediately claimed responsibility.

“Nothing can smother the aspiration of Syrian women and men to live in a fully sovereign, safe, pluralistic, and united Syria,” Macron said on X hours later. “This morning I met Syria in all its diversity. I saw dignity, courage and determination.”

Later, al-Sharaa and Macron announced they have agreed to reappoint ambassadors after more than a decade, marking a major restoration of diplomatic ties.

“Our meeting marks a historical milestone,” al-Sharaa said. France had closed its embassy in 2012 but symbolically reopened it in early 2025.

Macron, who played a major role in pushing Europe and the United States to drop most sanctions that were imposed on Syria under Assad, was in Damascus before heading to Ankara, Turkey, later Tuesday for a NATO summit that al-Sharaa also would attend.

A large plume of smoke was seen at the site of the blast near the Four Seasons Hotel, where Syrian media reported Macron was staying. Footage on social media showed a van and a motorcycle on fire and bloodstains on a busy street near the headquarters of the Tourism Ministry and the Damascus National Museum.

The Interior Ministry in a statement reported by Syrian state media said one bomb had been placed in a garbage bin and the other in a parked car. It said four of the wounded were police officers, and no deaths were immediately reported.

On Thursday, an explosive device detonated in a cafe near the Justice Palace, killing at least 10 people and wounding more than 20.

Syria's government sees Macron's visit and the signing of over a dozen agreements with Paris and large French companies as a major boost for the country's new authorities in their bid to rebuild the country battered by a 14-year uprising-turned-civil war under Assad.

One agreement was to kick off the process of returning some 51 million euros ($58.3 million) in illicit assets that belonged to Rifaat Assad, the late uncle of Assad. Other agreements included rebuilding the destroyed water and electricity infrastructure in the city of Homs, providing technical assistance to Syria's Central Bank as it undergoes financial reforms and bolstering cargo infrastructure at the Damascus airport.

“The outcome of this visit confirms that Syria is steadily moving toward a new phase of international partnerships based on shared interests and mutual respect," a Syrian foreign ministry official told The Associated Press, who said the perpetrators of the attack will be brought to justice. "Attempts to destabilize the country will not alter this trajectory.” The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

The explosions represent a challenge for al-Sharaa, who has pushed to assert full control over Syria, appeal to minorities skeptical of his Islamist-led rule and win the support of Western governments who were concerned about his past leadership of the formerly al-Qaida-linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group. His government has promised political and economic reform after decades of autocratic rule.

The conflict in Syria killed nearly half a million people and displaced millions. Infrastructure lies in ruins. While other nations and businesses have made large investment pledges, the country still needs hundreds of billions of dollars to rebuild and lift millions out of poverty.

Before arriving at the presidential palace, Macron met with members of Syrian civil society, though his office did not give details.

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Chehayeb reported from Beirut. Associated Press writers John Leicester and Sylvie Corbet in Paris and Sam McNeil in Brussels contributed.

Can anyone stop Messi? Did Merlin the duck like wearing that jersey? What would have happened if the Congo's statue fan had to sneeze?

That said, if you're a first-time soccer watcher still confused by all this footie, we're here to help! Free kicks, hydration breaks, stoppage time, the situation with Folarin Balogun ... there's a lot to know. We put out a call for your burning World Cup questions — and we'll keep answering them if you have more. We're compiling answers to your FAQs below.

Now to some new questions...

Has what happened with Balogun ever happened before at a World Cup?

Not for 64 years. Back then, in the 1962 World Cup and at a time when there were no physical red cards in soccer, Brazil midfielder Garrincha was sent off the field by the referee in the semifinals for kicking a Chilean opponent away from the ball. However, Garrincha escaped a ban for the final — a scenario Brazil officials feared — as a result of the intervention of host nation Chile's president, who argued that Garrincha should be allowed to play. The Balogun case differs slightly in the sense that his ban for the red card was placed on suspension for one year.

How are World Cup referees chosen and vetted?

Brazilian ref Raphael Claus — the match official President Donald Trump described as “a little bit suspect” in light of the red card for Balogun — was one of 52 referees selected for the tournament based on their “quality and consistency of performances” over the previous three years in international and domestic competitions, FIFA says. They’ve been monitored, attended seminars and even received support from mental specialists. “The very best in the world,” is how FIFA referee chief Pierluigi Collina put it.

Who are the kids accompanying players at the beginning of matches?

Lucky souls, aren’t they? Those children holding hands and sometimes talking with the best soccer players in the world before games are officially called “player escorts” — even though many would describe them as “mascots.” One of FIFA’s sponsors is food company Quaker, who has teamed up with dozens of community organizations to give kids “from underserved communities” the chance to walk players onto the field.

Why do Americans call it ‘soccer’?

First of all, it's not just Americans — looking at you, fallen brethren in Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Canada. While all the teams that call it “soccer” and not “football” may have been knocked out, England — the birthplace of the sport — is hanging in there in the quarterfinals and still flies the “it's called football!” flag. That's despite the word “soccer” actually being coined in Britain, perhaps as far back as the 1880s. The exact date it was first used is not known, but it is widely believed “soccer” was derived from “association football,” which was the first official name of the sport. “Soccer” is not a commonly used term in Britain these days and some Brits often roll their eyes when they hear others use the word instead of “football.” But given the U.S. has its own version of football, surely it's OK to use “soccer” as a differentiator, right?

What does it take to rain out or delay a game?

Soccer isn't like cricket or tennis or baseball — it can be played through heavy rain. If it gets too heavy, though, the referee has the authority to bring a halt to, or abandon, a match owing to poor weather conditions that affect the field or the surrounding areas. Storms have been an issue at this World Cup — one caused a delay of around two hours during the group game between France and Iraq — and a rule used by FIFA pauses games for 30 minutes if lightning is detected within 8 miles (up to 13 kilometers). Each strike resets the clock. World Cup regulations state that if a match was to be abandoned after it had kicked off, it restarts “at the minute at which play was interrupted rather than being replayed in full, and with the same scoreline.”

What happens if teams are still tied after five penalty kicks?

In that case, the shootout then goes to the forebodingly named “sudden death.” That means the teams take extra rounds of penalties — one attempt each — until one scores and one doesn't. On some occasions, even the goalkeepers end up taking a penalty. The shootout can go on for quite some time, like in the Israeli third-tier promotion playoff between F.C. Dimona and Shimshon Tel Aviv in 2024, when 56 shots were needed before Dimona prevailed 23-22.

Can you drink alcohol at the soccer games?

Yes! Unlike at the Paris Olympics venues or the Qatar World Cup stadiums, alcoholic beer is available at World Cup venues. Michelob Ultra and Budweiser are the official sponsors. Stadiums can also offer cocktails and hard seltzers for sale.

How does the size of a soccer pitch compare to an NFL field? And why is it called a pitch, anyway?

Put simply, NFL fields are longer and narrower. According to the NFL rule book, “the game shall be played upon a rectangular field, 360 feet in length and 160 feet in width.” In yards, that's 120 x 53.3, or in meters, 110 x 49. The recommended dimensions of a soccer field in yardage, FIFA says, is 115 x 74 yards (345 x 222 feet, 105 meters x 68 meters), though they can vary slightly. As for the widely used “pitch,” that's just a term the English use for a field. Some say it's because goalposts were pitched into the ground for matches in the 19th century.

Here’s our previous round of No Dumb Questions...

OK, let's start with the real basics: What does ‘offsides’ mean?

Well, first off, it's “offside,” per the AP Stylebook. Secondly, this is a common question — and one that can make you appear a soccer aficionado if you know the answer. Essentially, a player is offside if he or she is closer to the opponent's goal line than the ball and second-to-last opposition player (the goalkeeper is usually the last) the moment the ball is passed by a teammate. There are various caveats — for example, you cannot be offside inside your own half — but that is the gist. It can be confusing and a source of great debate.

When a team loses a player due to a red card, does it play with just 10 men the following match?

No, the team only plays short-handed for the rest of the current match.

A red card, which is handed out by an official when a player does something naughty like intentionally striking another player, means the player has been ejected and must leave the pitch. From that point on, the team would play a “man down,” meaning it can only field 10 players instead of 11. In some cases, teams have had two red cards in a single game and had to play with nine.

The player must serve a one-game suspension for the following match. However, the team itself is not penalized, and can return to its full starting strength of 11 players.

How many players are at this World Cup in total? How many of them are first timers?

Each of the 48 teams were allowed 26 players on their roster, so 1,248 players. Of those, more than half — 891 to be exact — are participating for the first time.

Why are World Cup tickets so expensive?

A lot people would like to know that. FIFA came under scrutiny about a month before the tournament for their high-price tickets and sales tactics, leaving some fans upset. That caused demand for the tickets to drop, while other fans had to make tough financial sacrifices.

Why isn’t it free to watch on TV?

They are free — if you have a subscription to Fox or Telemundo through a cable provider or streamer. Every single game of the World Cup is fully televised on Fox and FS1. Matches can also be streamed live on the FOX One app.

How are the teams selected and groups determined?

The 48 teams in this year's World Cup qualified through regional tournaments. (Host countries — in this case the U.S., Canada and Mexico — receive automatic bids.)

As for how the 12 groups are determined, the 48 teams are divided into four, 12-team “pots” based primarily on the FIFA World Rankings. The first pot includes the host nations and then the top nine highest-ranked teams. The next 36 highest-ranked teams are divided into sequential pots of 12. Teams are then drawn at random, meaning that every group contains exactly one team from each of the four pots.

Can some qualify to play for a country without being a citizen?

A player doesn't necessarily have to be born or raised in the country to play for the team. But there are some restrictions to prevent countries from stacking their rosters. If a player has a biological parent or grandparent who was born in the territory of the country, or if they have established residency in the country for at least five years, they would be allowed to play.

Why is there only one official on the field, given that the pitch is bigger than in American football?

There are actually four officials for every World Cup match, although they may not be as prominent as in an American football game. The head referee controls the match and enforces the rules of the game, while two assistant referees manage offside calls, throw-ins, and goal kicks. A fourth oversees substitutions, team benches, and indicates stoppage time.

How do teams decide which uniform to wear during games?

In World Cup play it's FIFA that determines uniform combinations, not the teams. The governing body's primary objective is to ensure strong visual contrast on the pitch so players, referees and television viewers can easily tell the teams apart. So basically, you will never see teams wearing two shades of blue in the same match.

And if you missed our first round of No Dumb Questions...

Why doesn't the clock stop for penalties and injuries?

Unlike American football, basketball or hockey, the clock never stops in soccer. If there are delays for such things as injuries, blatant time-wasting or the aftermath of goals, those seconds or minutes are added on at the end of each half in a period called “stoppage time.” There's an extra twist in this World Cup: hydration breaks. These three-minute stoppages in the middle of each half have been introduced to help players deal with the summer heat in the United States, Canada and Mexico (they're also a convenient spot for extra TV ads). Those three-minute blocks must also be added to the overall stoppage time, meaning there is typically at least five minutes of extra play in each half of this World Cup.

What's the difference between a free kick and a penalty kick?

Well, both are dead-ball situations and given after fouls. The key difference is that a penalty kick is awarded after a foul inside the penalty area — the big rectangle drawn near the opposing goal — and a free kick is awarded outside the penalty area. A penalty is a free shot at goal — from the designated spot, which is central and 12 yards (11 meters) out — with just the goalkeeper able to stop the shot. A free kick can be defended against by a whole team and is taken from where the offense occurred.

What was the tiebreaker if teams ended up with the same number of points in the group stage?

Starting from this World Cup, head-to-head results between two or more teams tied on points were the first tiebreaker — instead of overall goal difference. The second tiebreaker was goal difference in the games between the teams concerned, followed by the highest number of goals scored in those games. Only then — as a fourth tiebreaker — did overall goal difference come into play.

What's the deal with the 5-second throw-in rule?

It's another new measure being implemented at this World Cup with the intention of speeding up play and stopping time-wasting. If referees deem a player is taking too long on a throw-in, they can start a visual five-second countdown. If it reaches five seconds, the throw-in will be awarded to the opposing team. And it has already happened, with Bosnia-Herzegovina defender Sead Kolašinac giving up a throw-in for taking too long against Canada.

Off the pitch ... are Heinz bottles really taped over at stadiums? Why are logos being covered?

Yes, eagle-eyed reporters and fans have noted that logos on bottles of condiments — such as ketchup from Heinz — have been taped over inside stadiums. This is a directive of FIFA, the soccer governing body always very careful to protect its official partners and sponsors and give them exclusive visibility at stadiums. For the same reason, stadiums named after a sponsor — such as Gillette Stadium near Boston — have been renamed for the tournament by FIFA, which is instead using generic names.

So how much annual PTO do Europeans get anyway?

Wondering how fans of these top European soccer nations can be spending so many weeks in North America, are you? Well, the Europeans do love their soccer and this supersized tournament will have been in the diary for years. The amount of vacation days employees get vary from country to country. In the U.K, for example, most workers receive at least 28 days of paid annual leave per year. In France, they get a minimum of 30 working days. In Spain, it's 22.

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

That may be a TV exaggeration, but tornadoes and other dangerous storms do hit the city regularly. When they do, many people here turn to Nashville Severe Weather.

This group of dedicated volunteers can be found on social media, calmly explaining the storm movement, advising when to take cover and giving the “all clear.” The coverage by Will Minkoff, Andrew Leeper and Tom Johnstone draws tens of thousands of viewers who interact with them in real time. It’s a service that evokes the early promise of the internet, before the rise of the influencer.

This is happening at a time when many people no longer watch local news and weather reports. Yet Kevin Trowbridge, who teaches strategic communication at Belmont University in Nashville, says an informal survey of his students found many are tuning in to Nashville Severe Weather.

“The millennials and Gen Z — and teaching college students, I know this all too well — their source of information is that handheld device,” he says. “It’s not turning on a TV. And it’s not even looking at a traditional media outlet’s online presence. It’s finding sources that provide them quick information when they need it.”

They are ‘prepared, not scared’

The rise of Nashville Severe Weather is a modern case study in multiple areas — a shifting tornado alley, a changing climate, the prevalence of social media and the value of instantaneous, hyperlocal information that can save the day or save lives.

The initiative has evolved over more than a decade from its origins as a Twitter feed and blog. Today, volunteers livestream on their YouTube channel whenever Nashville or surrounding counties face severe weather. Because Leeper, Minkoff and Johnstone all live here, they are facing the same threats as their audience.

“There’s something about Nash Severe Weather that’s different from the hobbyist enthusiast,” Trowbridge says. “I think that’s why people are following them. That’s why they are trusting them. That’s why they’re tuning in and turning to them. ... It is authentic and real.”

Leeper, a church pastor, has a soothing voice and a sign on a shelf behind him that reads “prepared not scared.” He has had to leave the stream to wake up his family and hunker down in their safe space. He did so calmly, modeling the behavior of his motto. After the threat passed, he rejoined the stream.

Katherine Moffat, who works as the executive director of the Tennessee Academy of Physician Assistants, says local TV weather can be “a little over-the-top” when storms are threatening. Nashville Severe Weather, she says, is different.

“They’re a little more calm and telling it to you straight,” she says. “They don’t get people overly excited.”

Tornado Alley has shifted

The need for their service has never been greater. “Tornado Alley” has been shifting from the Midwest plains to states further east, says Johnstone, a meteorologist who joined the group last year after 33 years with the National Weather Service.

“The mid-South, especially down through Alabama, Mississippi, and into Tennessee and western Kentucky, has been where tornadoes have been most frequent ... and people have been dying in the highest numbers,” he says.

Michelle Stewart gets all her weather information via push notifications from Nashville Severe Weather on her phone. It's a service she found invaluable during an ice storm that left much of the city without power or internet service for days.

“They are very informative about, not just what to expect, but how to be prepared, and just giving everybody the lay of the land without it being too science-y. You know, it kind of feels like you’re talking to your neighbor,” says Stewart, a project manager at a healthcare research company. “They are so calming to me during those live events.”

Brett Withers, a former Nashville city councilman who saw two people die in his district during a 2020 tornado that killed 24 people in Tennessee, calls Nashville Severe Weather a “godsend.”

“We have so many people moving to Nashville, and they might move from places where tornadoes are rare, if they ever happen,” he says.

Low production value with a ‘volunteer heart’

The popularity of Nashville Severe Weather defies much of the received logic about how to build an audience on social media. There's nothing fancy or highly produced about their livestreams. They don't try to play up danger or excitement. They certainly don't try to chase down tornadoes or run around outside in hurricane-force winds.

Their streams are visually dominated by weather radar. Minkoff, Leeper and Johnstone, sometimes joined by other volunteers, each stream from their own homes and appear in little boxes at the bottom or side of the screen. Graphics, when they have them at all, look like they could have been drawn by a 5-year-old.

Take the beloved “Dry Air Monster,” a stick figure with an huge head and chomping Godzilla jaws.

Nashville Severe Weather co-founder David Drobny drew this to explain how dry air could “eat” snow that was headed toward Nashville. In a Southern town that usually sees snow on the ground only a few days each year, many people look forward to it as a mini-vacation. The monster's motto is “No Snow for You.”

Its hyperlocal focus stays grounded

Their hyperlocal focus allows Nashville Severe Weather to fill a niche left open by the local TV meteorologists who have to report on dozens of counties.

“One of the things that Nash Severe can do that even the TV stations have trouble doing is really bring it down to intersection level, school level, church level to let people know where the danger and the threat is,” Johnstone says.

Their coverage is a two-way street. Audience members provide photos and video showing on-the-ground conditions and comment in the chat. Nashville Severe Weather shares that information with the National Weather Service and TV meteorologists. They also try to answer people's questions as they stream.

Leeper remembers a day when schoolchildren were sent home because of a tornado threat. When one child commented in the chat about being home alone, his heart sank.

“We just stopped what we were saying on the stream, and I said, ‘Hey. It dawns on me that we’ve got a bunch of kiddos at home that are maybe by themselves. Hey. Here’s what you do’,” Leeper recalls. “I love those moments where we can just sort of put everything else aside to talk to the people who are listening, in whatever situation they’re in.”

It's moments like that that help them stay grounded.

In 2023, a tornado killed a mother and young child here who lived in a trailer. Leeper didn't know them, but he attended the visitation.

“It just creates a whole other emotion when you walk into a funeral visitation for hurting families when it’s a weather event that you covered,” he says. “It’s not all action and adventure. It really affects people’s lives forever.”