U.S./World category, Page 68
Longtime ‘All Things Considered’ host Ari Shapiro leaving NPR after Trump cuts
Veteran NPR host Ari Shapiro is saying goodbye to the network and All Things Considered, the latest high-profile departure following the move by President Donald Trump administration’s to defund public media. But the move to kill federal funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting isn’t the reason Shapiro said he...
Tulsi Gabbard slashing intelligence office workforce by 40%, cutting budget by more than $700 million
WASHINGTON — The Office of the Director of National Intelligence will dramatically reduce its workforce and cut its budget by more than $700 million annually, the Trump administration announced Wednesday. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said in a statement, “Over the last 20 years, ODNI has become bloated and...
Hurricane Erin picking up steam as it edges along the East Coast
RODANTHE, N.C. — Hurricane Erin began strengthening again Wednesday while creeping toward the mid-Atlantic coast and churning up menacing waves that have closed beaches from the Carolinas to New York City. Forecasters expect the storm to peak going into Thursday and say it could re-intensify into a major hurricane. While...
Judge denies Justice Department request to unseal Epstein grand jury transcripts
NEW YORK — A federal judge on Wednesday rejected the Trump administration’s request to unseal grand jury transcripts from Jeffrey Epstein ’s sex trafficking case, joining two other judges in denying the public release of material from investigations into the late financier’s decades-long sexual abuse of young women and girls....
Mississippi Supreme Court map violates Voting Rights Act, judge rules
JACKSON, Miss. — A federal judge has ordered Mississippi to redraw its Supreme Court electoral map, after finding the map dilutes the power of Black voters. U.S. District Judge Sharion Aycock ruled the map, which was enacted in 1987, violates the Voting Rights Act and cannot be used in future...
Rhode Island prosecutor under review after warning ‘you’re gonna regret this’ during arrestVideo
A Rhode Island prosecutor is under review after police body camera footage recorded her warning officers “you’re gonna regret this” while she was being arrested. Devon Flanagan, a special assistant attorney general, was arrested outside a restaurant by Newport police Aug. 14 for trespassing, according to law enforcement. Body camera...
Target CEO to step down amid company struggles
NEW YORK — Target named an insider as its next chief executive officer Wednesday, a decision that comes as the discount retailer tries to reverse a persistent sales malaise and to revive its reputation as the place to go for affordable but stylish products. Minneapolis-based Target said CEO Brian Cornell,...
Israel approves settlement project that could divide West Bank
TEL AVIV, Israel — Israel gave final approval Wednesday for a controversial settlement project in the occupied West Bank that would effectively cut the territory in two, and that Palestinians and rights groups say could destroy hopes for a future Palestinian state. Settlement development in E1, an open tract of...
Texas can’t put the Ten Commandments in certain school districts’ classrooms, judge says
Texas cannot require public schools in Houston, Austin and other select districts to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom, a judge said Wednesday in a temporary ruling against the state’s new requirement. Texas is the third state where courts have blocked recent laws about putting the Ten Commandments in...
Bus crash in Afghanistan kills more than 70 Afghans returning from IranVideo
A bus crash in northwestern Afghanistan killed at least 79 people returning from Iran, including 19 children, an official said. Two people were also injured in the crash, Ministry of Interior spokesperson Abdul Mateen Qani told The Associated Press. Tolo News, citing the official, said the accident happened Tuesday around...
Rwanda-backed rebels killed over 140 civilians in eastern Congo, rights group says
DAKAR, Senegal — Rwanda-backed rebels killed at least 140 people in farming communities in eastern Congo in July, a human rights group said in a report Wednesday, describing the killings as “summary executions.” Human Rights Watch said 141 people, predominantly Hutus, were feared dead or missing after the attacks near...
A fire is burning one of the world’s tallest trees near the Oregon coast
PORTLAND, Ore. — Authorities in Oregon are trying to extinguish a fire that is burning in one of the world’s tallest trees near the state’s southern coast. The Doerner Fir, a coastal Douglas Fir tree over 325 feet tall and estimated to be over 450 years old, has been burning...
Outbreak of kidney disease is killing sea lions in California. Here’s why humans should be concerned
LOS ANGELES — As summer heats up and tourists flock to the California coast, beachgoers should be on the lookout for sea lions sickened by a recent outbreak of leptospirosis — a kidney disease that can result in severe symptoms in both humans and animals. The Marine Mammal Center in...
Lawyer argues Meta can’t be held liable for gunmaker’s Instagram posts in Uvalde families’ lawsuit
LOS ANGELES — A lawsuit filed by families of the Uvalde school shooting victims alleging Instagram allowed gun manufacturers to promote firearms to minors should be thrown out, lawyers for Meta, Instagram’s parent company, argued Tuesday. Nineteen children and two teachers were killed in the May 2022 shooting at Robb...
Ranger fired for hanging transgender flag in Yosemite and park visitors may face prosecution
A Yosemite National Park ranger was fired after hanging a pride flag from El Capitan while some visitors face potential prosecution for alleged violations of protest restrictions that have been tightened under President Donald Trump. Shannon “SJ” Joslin, a ranger and biologist who studies bats, said they hung a 66-foot...
Fox News host Bret Baier pulled over, ticketed amid Trump’s D.C. crackdown
No one seems to be safe amid President Trump’s crime crackdown in Washington, D.C. — not even Fox News host Bret Baier, who was caught on video being pulled over by police in the nation’s capital. The “Special Report” host was stopped by a D.C. cop for distracted driving while...
US destroyers head toward waters off Venezuela as Trump aims to pressure drug cartels
WASHINGTON — The United States is deploying three Aegis guided-missile destroyers to the waters off Venezuela as part of President Donald Trump’s effort to combat threats from Latin American drug cartels, according to a U.S. official briefed on the planning. The USS Gravely, the USS Jason Dunham and the USS...
Even at the grocery store, Texas troopers don’t let Democrats out of sight after walkoutVideo
AUSTIN, Texas— Democratic state Rep. Nicole Collier refused to come to the Texas state Capitol for two weeks. Now she won’t leave, and fellow Democrats are joining her protest. Collier was among dozens of Democrats who left the state for the Democratic havens of California, Illinois, Massachusetts and New York...
DHS Secretary says entire southern border wall to be painted black to stop people from climbing it
WASHINGTON — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Tuesday the entire border wall along the southern border with Mexico is going to be painted black to make it hotter and deter illegal immigration — and she credited President Trump with the idea. Noem spoke during a visit to a portion...
A Gaza-bound ship that left Cyprus with 1,200 tons of food aid nears Israeli port
LIMASSOL, Cyprus — A ship that set off from Cyprus loaded with 1,200 tons of food supplies for the Gaza Strip approached the Israeli port of Ashdod on Tuesday in a renewed effort to alleviate the worsening crisis in the Palestinian territory, where food security experts say the “worst-case scenario...
Mexico says there’s no agreement with DEA for new border enforcement collaboration
MEXICO CITY — Mexico’s president denied on Tuesday that her administration had an agreement with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, a day after the U.S. agency announced “a major new initiative” to collaborate in the fight against drug cartels. President Claudia Sheinbaum was referring to “Project Portero,” an effort announced...
North Korean leader’s sister says her country will never see the South as a diplomatic partner
SEOUL, South Korea — The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said her country will never see South Korea as a partner for diplomacy, state media reported Wednesday in what was her latest taunt of Seoul’s new efforts to mend ties. Kim Yo Jong, who is one...
5th death linked to Legionnaires’ disease outbreak that has sickened dozens in New York City
NEW YORK — Health officials have uncovered another death in connection with a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak in New York City, health officials said. The outbreak in Central Harlem has sickened dozens since it began in late July and the latest death was announced late Monday night. Officials said they had...
Las Vegas tourism is down. Some blame Trump’s tariffs, immigration crackdownVideo
LAS VEGAS — Tourism in Las Vegas is slumping this summer, with resorts and convention centers reporting fewer visitors compared to last year, especially from abroad, and some officials are blaming the Trump administration’s tariffs and immigration policies for the decline. The city known for lavish shows, endless buffets and...
Covid shots for kids still recommended by U.S. pediatric group in break with CDC
The American Academy of Pediatrics updated its recommendations for immunizations Tuesday, including calling for covid shots for healthy kids, diverging from controversial advice from the federal government. The group said it recommends the covid shot for children ages 6 months to 23 months. Earlier this year, Health and Human Services...
