Top General News

Severe storms kill at least 4 in Houston, knock out power to 850,000 homes and businesses

May. 16, 2024 23:54 PM EDT

HOUSTON (AP) — Fast-moving thunderstorms pummeled southeastern Texas on Thursday for the second time this month, killing at least four people, blowing out windows in high-rise buildings, downing trees and knocking out power to more than 850,000 homes and businesses in the Houston area. ...

Israel will respond to genocide charges at UN court after South Africa urgently requests cease-fire

May. 17, 2024 00:22 AM EDT

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Israel will respond to charges of genocide at the United Nations’ top court on Friday, after South Africa filed an urgent request with the court to order a cease-fire in Gaza. It's the third time that the International Court of Justice, or ICJ, has...

Taiwan is selling more to the US than China in major shift away from Beijing

May. 17, 2024 00:15 AM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Whether it's tapioca balls or computer chips, Taiwan is stretching toward the United States and away from China — the world's No. 2 economy that threatens to take the democratically ruled island by force if necessary. That has translated to the world’s biggest...

Mexico's cartel violence haunts civilians in the lead-up to June elections

May. 17, 2024 00:19 AM EDT

HUITZILAC, Mexico (AP) — Tailed by trucks of heavily armed soldiers, four caskets floated on a sea of hundreds of mourners. Neighbors peered nervously from their homes as the crowd pushed past shuttered businesses, empty streets and political campaign posters plastering the small Mexican town of...

Michael Cohen pressed on his crimes and lies as defense attacks key Trump hush money trial witness

May. 16, 2024 20:09 PM EDT

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump's lawyers accused the star prosecution witness in his hush money trial of lying to jurors, portraying Trump fixer-turned-foe Michael Cohen on Thursday as a serial fabulist who is bent on seeing the presumptive Republican presidential nominee behind bars. ...

What to know about how much the aid from a US pier project will help Gaza

May. 16, 2024 19:40 PM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S.-built pier is in place to bring humanitarian aid to Gaza by sea, but no one will know if the new route will work until a steady stream of deliveries begins reaching starving Palestinians. The trucks that will roll off the pier project installed Thursday...

The latest hot spot for illegal border crossings is San Diego. But routes change quickly

May. 17, 2024 00:20 AM EDT

JACUMBA HOT SPRINGS, Calif. (AP) — On many nights, hundreds of migrants squeeze through poles in a border wall or climb over on metal ladders. They gather in a buffer zone between two walls with views of the night lights of Tijuana, Mexico, waiting hours for Border Patrol agents while volunteers...

Vatican updates norms to authenticate visions of Mary, weeping statues and stigmata

May. 17, 2024 00:19 AM EDT

VATICAN CITY (AP) — The Catholic Church has a long and controversial history of the faithful claiming to have had visions of the Virgin Mary, of statues that purportedly wept blood tears and stigmata that erupted on hands mimicking the wounds of Christ. On Friday, the Vatican will...

Funeral set for Roger Fortson, the Black US Air Force member killed in his home by Florida deputy

May. 17, 2024 00:21 AM EDT

STONECREST, Ga. (AP) — A funeral will be held Friday for a Black U.S. Air Force senior airman who was shot and killed in his Florida home by a sheriff's deputy, a day after the decorated military member's mother vowed during an emotional news conference to get justice for her son. ...

70 years after Brown v. Board, America is both more diverse — and more segregated

May. 17, 2024 00:02 AM EDT

On May 17, 1954, the Supreme Court laid out a new precedent: Separate but equal has no place in American schools. The message of Brown v. Board of Education was clear. But 70 years later, the impact of the decision is still up for debate. Have Americans truly ended segregation in...

Latest General News

Putin focuses on trade and cultural exchanges in Harbin, China, after reaffirming ties with Xi

May. 17, 2024 00:43 AM EDT

BEIJING (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin focused on trade and cultural exchanges Friday on his state visit to China that started with bonhomie in Beijing and a summit with China's leader Xi Jinping that deepened their “no-limits” partnership as both countries face rising tensions with...

PEN America, facing criticism over its response to the Mideast war, gathers for annual gala

May. 17, 2024 00:39 AM EDT

NEW YORK (AP) — Like a political convention held amidst an intra-party rift, Thursday night's PEN America gala was a call for unity, dialogue and a renewed sense of mission at a time when PEN's priorities have been called into question. “Our assembly is disassembling,” PEN...

Lainey Wilson wins big at the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards, including the top honor

May. 17, 2024 00:22 AM EDT

It was Lainey Wilson ’s night, in many ways. She took home female artist of the year and the top prize of entertainer of the year at the 2024 Academy of Country Music Awards. “I’ve been in Nashville for 13 years doing this,” Wilson started her speech. “Everybody in this...

Israel will respond to genocide charges at UN court after South Africa urgently requests cease-fire

May. 17, 2024 00:22 AM EDT

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Israel will respond to charges of genocide at the United Nations’ top court on Friday, after South Africa filed an urgent request with the court to order a cease-fire in Gaza. It's the third time that the International Court of Justice, or ICJ, has...

Trump will campaign in Minnesota after attending his son Barron's graduation

May. 17, 2024 00:22 AM EDT

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Former President Donald Trump will head to Minnesota on a day off from his hush money trial for a Republican fundraiser Friday night in a traditionally Democratic state that he boasts he can carry in November. Trump will headline the state GOP’s annual...

Funeral set for Roger Fortson, the Black US Air Force member killed in his home by Florida deputy

May. 17, 2024 00:21 AM EDT

STONECREST, Ga. (AP) — A funeral will be held Friday for a Black U.S. Air Force senior airman who was shot and killed in his Florida home by a sheriff's deputy, a day after the decorated military member's mother vowed during an emotional news conference to get justice for her son. ...

The latest hot spot for illegal border crossings is San Diego. But routes change quickly

May. 17, 2024 00:20 AM EDT

JACUMBA HOT SPRINGS, Calif. (AP) — On many nights, hundreds of migrants squeeze through poles in a border wall or climb over on metal ladders. They gather in a buffer zone between two walls with views of the night lights of Tijuana, Mexico, waiting hours for Border Patrol agents while volunteers...

AP Week in Pictures: Latin America and Caribbean

May. 17, 2024 00:20 AM EDT

May 10-16, 2024 As young Haitians are increasingly exposed to violence, the country is undergoing a wider push to dispel a long-standing taboo on mental health services teaching parents how to put a smile on their children’s faces. Family and friends hold a vigil in...

Today in History: May 17, Brown v Board of Education ruling strikes down legal segregation

May. 17, 2024 00:19 AM EDT

Today in History Today is Friday, May 17, the 138th day of 2024. There are 228 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On May 17, 1954, a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court handed down its Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka decision which...

Vatican updates norms to authenticate visions of Mary, weeping statues and stigmata

May. 17, 2024 00:19 AM EDT

VATICAN CITY (AP) — The Catholic Church has a long and controversial history of the faithful claiming to have had visions of the Virgin Mary, of statues that purportedly wept blood tears and stigmata that erupted on hands mimicking the wounds of Christ. On Friday, the Vatican will...