Top General News
Biden and Trump, trading barbs, agree to 2 presidential debates, in June and September
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump on Wednesday agreed to hold two campaign debates — the first on June 27 hosted by CNN and the second on Sept. 10 hosted by ABC — setting the stage for their first presidential face-off to play out in just over a month. ...
Slovakia's populist prime minister shot in assassination attempt, shocking Europe before elections
BANSKA BYSTRICA, Slovakia (AP) — Slovakia’s populist prime minister, Robert Fico, was shot multiple times and gravely wounded Wednesday while greeting supporters at an event in an attempted assassination that shocked the small country and reverberated across Europe weeks before an election. ...
Russia's Putin arrives in China for state visit in a show of unity between the authoritarian allies
BEIJING (AP) — Russia’s President Vladimir Putin landed Thursday in Beijing for a two-day state visit to China, in a show of unity between the authoritarian allies as Moscow presses forward with a new offensive in Ukraine. Putin’s visit comes as Russia has become more...
Supreme Court orders Louisiana to use congressional map with additional Black district in 2024 vote
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered Louisiana to hold congressional elections in 2024 using a House map with a second mostly Black district, despite a lower-court ruling that called the map an illegal racial gerrymander. The order allows the use of a map that...
The jurors in Trump's hush money trial are getting a front row seat to history -- most of the time
A gag order. The House Speaker turning up outside court. Angry denouncements of the judge overseeing the case. Some of the most explosive moments in Donald Trump's hush money trial have played out for most of the world to see — except for the people who are actually deciding his...
Netanyahu fends off criticism at home and abroad over his lack of a postwar plan for Gaza
JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday fended off criticism that he is not planning for a postwar reality in the Gaza Strip, saying it was impossible to prepare for any scenario in the embattled Palestinian enclave until Hamas is defeated. Netanyahu...
Reported sex assaults in the US military have dropped. That reverses what had been a growing problem
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of reported sexual assaults across the military decreased last year, and a confidential survey found a 19% drop in the number of service members who said they had experienced some type of unwanted sexual contact, according to new figures obtained by The Associated...
Driver said he smoked pot oil, took medication before Florida crash that killed 8 Mexican workers
OCALA, Fla. (AP) — A man with a long record of dangerous driving told investigators he smoked marijuana oil and took prescription drugs hours before he sideswiped a bus, killing eight Mexican farmworkers and injuring dozens more, according to an arrest report unsealed Wednesday. ...
Fewer US overdose deaths were reported last year, but experts are still cautious
NEW YORK (AP) — The number of U.S. fatal overdoses fell last year, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data posted Wednesday. Agency officials noted the data is provisional and could change after more analysis, but that they still expect a drop when the final...
This, too, could pass: Christian group's rule keeping beaches closed on Sunday mornings may end
OCEAN GROVE, N.J. (AP) — In this seaside community that calls itself “God's Square Mile at the Jersey Shore,” all the land is owned by a religious group that has for generations enforced an 11th Commandment: Thou shalt stay off the beach on Sunday morning. But there are signs...
Latest General News
Ship that struck Baltimore bridge had 4 blackouts before disaster. Here's what we know
The Dali container ship experienced a near-perfect storm of calamities before it struck Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in March, killing six people. But Tuesday's preliminary report by federal safety investigators leaves many questions unanswered. For example, the National...
Barge hits bridge connecting Galveston and Pelican Island, causing partial collapse and oil spill
GALVESTON, Texas (AP) — A barge slammed into a bridge pillar in Galveston, Texas, on Wednesday, spilling oil into surrounding waters and closing the only road to a smaller and separate island that is home to a university, officials said. There were no immediate reports of injuries, although...
Investigation continues into 4 electrical blackouts on ship that caused Baltimore bridge collapse
BALTIMORE (AP) — The electrical blackouts experienced by the container ship Dali before it left Baltimore’s port were “mechanically distinct from” those that resulted in the deadly collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge hours later, according to congressional testimony Wednesday. ...
3 dead after small plane crashes in Tennessee
FRANKLIN, Tennessee (AP) — Three people are dead after a small plane crashed on Wednesday in Williamson County, local officials confirmed. Williamson County Chief Deputy Mark Elrod told reporters that the plane had left Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and was headed to Louisville,...
Reported sex assaults in the US military have dropped. That reverses what had been a growing problem
WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of reported sexual assaults across the military decreased last year, and a confidential survey found a 19% drop in the number of service members who said they had experienced some type of unwanted sexual contact, according to new figures obtained by The Associated...
Justice Department to investigate Kentucky's juvenile jails after use of force, isolation complaints
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Federal investigators will examine conditions in Kentucky's youth detention centers and whether the state has done enough to protect juveniles housed there, the U.S. Justice Department said Wednesday. The federal investigation follows a Kentucky auditor's...
Sudan's people are trapped in `inferno of brutal violence' as famine and fighting close in, UN says
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The Sudanese people “are trapped in an inferno of brutal violence” with famine, disease and fighting closing in and no end in sight, the top U.N. humanitarian official in the war-ravaged country said Wednesday. Clementine Nkweta-Salami told a U.N. press...
CANNES DIARY: Behind the scenes of the 2024 film festival
CANNES, France (AP) — Welcome to Cannes. The annual film festival is always a spectacle, but 2024's edition may be the most combustible in years. The 77th Cannes red carpet unfurls against a backdrop of war and protest. The #MeToo movement, so slow to take root in France, is now quickly tearing...
Astros pitcher Ronel Blanco suspended 10 games by MLB for foreign substance found in glove
HOUSTON (AP) — Astros pitcher Ronel Blanco received a 10-game suspension Wednesday for violating Major League Baseball rules prohibiting foreign substances. Blanco was ejected from Tuesday night's start against the Oakland Athletics. His penalty, which also included an undisclosed...
Delaware police exchange gunfire with woman in police chase through 2 states that ends in her death
A police pursuit through two states that involved two separate shootouts with law enforcement officers and several crashes ended with the death of the woman being sought, authorities said. Wilmington police said they began their pursuit of Yazmyn Stewart, 23, shortly before noon...
