The 19-year-old Agbayani, the son of former Mets fan favorite Benny Agbayani, is a middle infielder who hit .268 in 10 games for Fort Myers in low Class A this season. The sixth-round 2025 draft pick, a native of Hawaii, has been limited by injuries.

“It means a lot," Benny Agbayani said on a conference call Friday afternoon. “He wanted to get drafted by the Mets when he was first coming out of high school. That's all he knew. That's all Dad talked about. It's a great opportunity for him and I'm just going to support him as much as I can.”

The Alomars (father Sandy Sr. and sons Roberto and Sandy Jr.) and Wilsons (father Mookie and stepson Preston) are the only father-son combos to play for the Mets.

“It’s great to have him wearing a Mets jersey and continuing the legacy,” Benny Agbayani said.

The 23-year-old Amick batted .217 with 23 homers in 86 games for Double-A Wichita this season, playing first and third base. He was a second-round draft pick in 2024.

Minter had a 2.35 ERA in 23 innings with 20 strikeouts and only two walks. He didn't make his season debut until May 26, going more than a year between major league appearances. His 2025 season ended after 13 appearances when he injured his left lat muscle in his back and needed surgery.

Minter signed a two-year, $22 million contract with the Mets in 2025. His 2024 season with the Atlanta Braves also was cut short by a torn labrum in his left hip, but when he's been healthy he's been one of baseball's most effective late-game lefties. The 33-year-old, who was a second-round 2015 draft pick by the Braves, has a 3.18 ERA with 456 strikeouts in 382 2/3 innings over 420 career appearances.

Minter likely will be the first of multiple Mets players moved before the trade deadline on Monday. They have the second-worst record in the National League.

The Mets scratched Friday's scheduled starter, Freddy Peralta, because interim manager Andy Green said trade talks involving the right-hander have intensified. Kodai Senga will draw the start instead.

“It just became a prudent path for us,” Green said. “There’s enough going on right now.”

The Mets also placed left-hander Cionel Pérez on the injured list with a left forearm strain and recalled pitchers Xzavion Curry and Jonathan Pintaro from Triple-A Syracuse.

The Twins, who started a nine-game trip Friday at Seattle, have a 4.92 relief ERA that ranks fifth-worst in the major leagues. They lead the American League in runs and entered Friday one game out of a wild-card spot.

___

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

There's no lesson learned more vital than this: Cool first, transport second.

Almost an hour and a half passed from when Stringer exited a blocking drill during training camp and arrived by ambulance at a hospital with a core body temperature of 108.8 degrees Fahrenheit.

Though he was moved to an air-conditioned trailer by the practice field that morning in Mankato, Minnesota, the lack of effective diagnosis and treatment by the team's medical staff during that time made his outlook all the more dire. About 15 hours after he collapsed, Stringer was pronounced dead, the only known NFL player to die from exertional heat stroke.

“I’ve been an expert witness in 85 court cases of people dying from heat stroke, and in every single one the person didn’t need to die if they were properly treated and cooled,” said Douglas Casa, the executive director of the Korey Stringer Institute at the University of Connecticut that was established in 2010 as part of the settlement of the wrongful death lawsuit his family brought against the league. “With a $150 tub of ice and water, these people would still be alive.”

Casa got connected with Stringer's widow, Kelci Stringer, and agent, Jimmy Gould, through the litigation. The professor of kinesiology had a personal interest in the subject of heat safety, from his own brush with death at age 16 while running a 10-kilometer race at the Empire State Games in New York.

Casa collapsed on the final lap with 200 meters remaining, got back up and fell again with about 80 meters to go. He was unconscious for two hours.

Fortunately, a quick-thinking physician placed him in a cold water immersion tub. Though that came after he was taken to a hospital, the effective on-site care he received from an athletic trainer and in the ambulance from emergency medical technicians gave him a fighting chance to survive.

“If Korey had gone in a cold immersion tub, we would not be chatting right now,” Casa said in a recent interview. “He would’ve had dinner with his teammates that night.”

Casa, who is on the NFL's general medical committee, regularly advises the league on player safety matters. The mandatory presence of cold tubs near the practice fields for every team, one of many protocols enhanced in the 25 years since Stringer's death, can be traced to the work that's been done in his honor.

“When I tell Korey’s story, it takes it from such a sad, morbid place to a place of such action,” Kelci Stringer said. “It’s better to be proactive than reactive.”

___

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

The onetime Republican lawmaker from New York said he settled with the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission to “put this matter behind him,” noting that he did not admit to doing anything wrong.

“He chose a prompt, practical resolution, rather than protracted, costly litigation, and that choice should not be mistaken for admission of any wrongdoing, because it is not one,” Santos’ lawyer Joseph Murray said in a statement Santos shared on X.

The commission said Friday’s settlement represents the more than $17,000 Santos earned from the unlawful trading as well as a fine of $17,500. The agency also imposed a three-year trading ban on Santos.

Kalshi, which had reported Santos to regulators, said it will also pursue its own enforcement action and work to reimburse traders if monetary penalties are recovered.

Leading up to Trump's February speech, Santos had talked frequently about his plans to be in the crowd. But minutes into the speech, he posted on X to say that he had been waylaid at the airport and couldn’t make it to Capitol Hill.

Social media users called him out, noting that Kalshi had put the odds of Santos attending the address at close to 75%.

Santos shrugged off the complaints at the time.

“I guess people lost money,” he said on his podcast in March. “Some people made unexpected money. That’s to show you how fragile these markets are.”

But the federal probe into the Kalshi trading prompted rival online prediction platform Polymarket to cut ties with Santos in June.

Santos’ lawyer, in his statement Friday, said his client had a “genuine intention” to attend the State of the Union, even booking a hotel and plane ticket before a winter storm scuttled the plans.

“Mr. Santos concealed neither his intention to attend, nor his change of plans to not attend the SOTU, from anyone," Murray said. “There was absolutely no intent to deceive any person, nor intent to manipulate any market."

Santos, who is set to appear on Fox’s reality contest “Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test” this fall, shot to political fame after winning a seat representing parts of the New York City borough of Queens and Long Island.

But his bogus life story of being a wealthy Wall Street player with a college degree and other accomplishments quickly unraveled.

Santos was eventually expelled from Congress and charged with federal wire fraud and identity theft charges as investigators probed how he funded his campaign. He pleaded guilty and served less than three months of a more than seven-year sentence before Trump granted him clemency last year.

___

Follow Philip Marcelo at https://x.com/philmarcelo.

Trump told reporters at Camp David on Friday morning that administration officials had “agreed not to have a fund” that compensates his political allies, yet made clear that he disagrees with that decision.

The comments came hours after an early morning social media post in which Trump said people who had been prosecuted by the Justice Department — many of them for their involvement in the violent Jan. 6, 2001, attack on the Capitol — “are suffering still, many ruined, and I felt that they should be given compensation for what has been done to them.”

Trump’s reluctant declaration that the fund won't be created came as Republican Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, both members of the Senate Judiciary Committee, say they won’t support Todd Blanche’s nomination for attorney general until they see that promise in writing. They have been working for weeks with the White House and Blanche, who is now the acting attorney general, to produce a document to that effect, but both senators have said they aren’t satisfied so far.

“The President made it clear today that the so-called Anti Weaponization Fund is still alive, which is exactly why we are attempting to formally end it,” Tillis said after Trump’s initial social media post.

Trump said in his post that Blanche should be immediately confirmed and is a “pawn in this whole thing.”

Cornyn, Tillis want promises in writing

Blanche said at a hearing two months ago that the anti-weaponization fund would not move forward after Republican senators revolted and held up an immigration funding bill.

But Tillis, who is retiring when his term ends in January, and Cornyn, who lost reelection this year after Trump endorsed his primary opponent, said they want to ensure that the White House doesn’t reverse course, especially as Trump continues to argue that a fund is needed.

The Justice Department has provided the senators with language that says Blanche’s May 18 order establishing the “Anti-Weaponization Fund” is “rescinded and shall have no force or effect,” according to a document reviewed by The Associated Press.

Cornyn and Tillis have said they also want some clarifications on a separate piece of the settlement that would grant Trump and members of his family immunity from tax audits. Cornyn said this week that it was his understanding that the audits could extend to more than 100 different Trump organization subsidiaries into the future.

“Todd Blanche said it was limited to the parties to the litigation — and it was retrospective, not prospective,” Cornyn said. “And all we’re doing is asking them to put that in writing.”

Blanche nomination is delayed in the Senate

The Judiciary Committee postponed a vote on Blanche’s nomination that had been scheduled for Thursday morning after Tillis and Cornyn said they needed more from the administration before they could provide the necessary votes.

After the meeting was delayed, Trump said in a social media post that he might pull Blanche’s nomination and resubmit it after Cornyn and Tillis leave office next year. But the two sides continued to negotiate through Thursday afternoon, when Blanche, Cornyn and Tillis met on Capitol Hill.

On Friday, a person familiar with the negotiations said talks had been positive but the senators were still awaiting a new offer from the Justice Department. The person requested anonymity to discuss the private negotiations.

The two senators have repeatedly said the Justice Department seemed interested in reaching an agreement, but the White House wouldn’t budge even to aid the confirmation of Trump’s loyal former personal attorney, who has aggressively pursued the administration’s priorities as acting attorney general.

“I think as far as Blanche and the Department of Justice, we were pretty much on the same page,” Cornyn said Thursday. “But then when the president got wind of it, he wasn’t willing to go along with it.”

Tillis said Blanche “has been forthright, thoughtful and patient” but attributed the holdup to an “incompetent personal adviser” to the president, even as Trump himself continued to advocate for the fund.

Behind the scenes, Trump legal adviser Boris Epshteyn is being blamed as an obstacle to an agreement that would let Blanche move forward, according to three people who have direct knowledge of the discussions and requested anonymity to discuss them.

Saying the AP’s “sources are wrong,” White House communications director Steven Cheung said “anyone trying to assign blame to the President or his team has no earthly idea of what is going on and clearly is trying to deflect from the issue at hand — Todd Blanche will be an exceptional Attorney General and he should be confirmed immediately.”

Also on Friday, Trump’s attorneys notified a court it would appeal a judge’s scathing ruling that characterized the settlement of the president’s lawsuit against the IRS as an improper exercise in self-dealing. The judge in her order earlier this month referred one of Trump’s attorneys for potential disciplinary action and criticized Blanche’s involvement in the settlement, given his prior representation of Trump.

Blanche has said he disagrees “with the judge’s insinuations” about him.

Settlement fund could have benefited Jan. 6 rioters

Even as they are usually deferential to Trump, a number of Republican senators have expressed strong objections to the settlement.

“The criminals who assaulted police officers and defiled our nation’s Capitol are not ‘great American patriots’ who are ‘victims of government abuse,’” Tillis said, echoing Trump’s comments about the rioters who could potentially have received payouts. On his first day back in office, Trump pardoned more than 1,500 people who had been charged in the attack.

Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana said Thursday that the majority of Senate Republicans aren’t comfortable with the settlement fund.

“Blanche said it’s dead, and he testified that it’s not coming back,” Kennedy said. “But for whatever reason, somebody didn’t want to put it in writing.”

___

Associated Press writers Eric Tucker and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.

Government lawyers said in a 20-page court filing that additional documents provided by the Interior Department since the indictment of David Hearn show that the damage was the result of a botched installation by a contractor as well as “the rush to complete the project prior to events associated with the America 250 celebration in the weeks surrounding Independence Day 2026.” In addition, a recent visual inspection revealed damage throughout the pool, including in the middle — where prosecutors say a vandal would not likely attempt to peel the lining.

“Given all of this newly discovered information, it is difficult to attribute the widespread damage to the Reflecting Pool to vandalism, let alone to establish that fact beyond a reasonable doubt,” said the filing from U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro.

Hearn's lawyers said in a statement that the case against him should never have been brought.

“Its dismissal today does not erase the abuse of government power in arresting and charging a patriotic American who did nothing wrong. The government’s approach was ready, fire, aim. The administration owes Mr. Hearn an apology,” the lawyers said.

The dismissal marks an embarrassing setback for a Justice Department that had billed the prosecution as a measure of accountability for damage at a Washington landmark discovered in the lead-up to Fourth of July festivities in the nation's capital. But the case has long been saddled with evidentiary problems and challenges, with Hearn and his supporters characterizing the prosecution as a politically motivated attempt by the Trump administration to deflect blame and scapegoat others.

Earlier this week, Hearn's lawyers sought access to grand jury transcripts because of what they said were “irregularities” in the process. They said a National Park Service official testified that the pool already was damaged before Hearn allegedly touched it, couldn’t quantify any damage attributable to Hearn and said the same repairs would have been required regardless of his conduct.

“The witness’s testimony established that the pool had substantial preexisting damage requiring repair before any alleged conduct by Mr. Hearn,” his lawyers wrote. “According to the witness, the pool was leaking more than one million gallons of water per week; its expansion joints had exceeded their service life; and the liner already contained a rip.”

Hearn pleaded not guilty earlier this month to one felony count of property destruction and had a trial scheduled to start Sept. 28 in D.C. Superior Court. The charge, which carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years upon conviction, accused Hearn of causing at least $1,000 in damage to the pool.

In court papers Friday, prosecutors said they had only recently received new information that undermines the basis for the prosecution.

“It was not until after these documents were produced that (prosecutors) first became aware of information showing that the damage was the result of a botched installation and not vandalism as initially represented” by the Interior Department. Prosecutors could “only rely,” they wrote, on the initial information suggesting that the damage was caused by vandals.

Hearn has told The Associated Press he was detained by National Guard troops and U.S. Park Police for five hours after stopping by the pool during a bike ride on June 19. He said he reached in to examine the pool’s newly peeled coating and briefly touched a chunk attached to the side of the pool, but said he obeyed a park worker who told him to let go of it.

Hearn, 67, of Bethesda, Maryland, competed in three Summer Olympics, earning his best finish, ninth, at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee says on its website.

Some 27 million metric tons of self-sustaining sargassum have been recorded in the Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico in July, according to a report released Friday by the University of South Florida’s Optical Oceanography Lab.

The prickly seaweed covers miles of coastline, releasing a foul smell as it rots onshore.

This year marks the first time that scientists have observed sargassum growing in large quantities in areas including the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, instead of being swept into those areas by ocean currents.

The algae usually reproduces asexually as it travels from Western Africa, said Brian Barnes, a marine scientist and research assistant professor at the University of South Florida. “None of this is normal,” he said. “Every year is a little bit of a new story.”

The Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt has been growing since 2011, dumping an increasing amount of seaweed along coastlines in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. Experts have said that agricultural runoff, warming waters and changes in wind, current and rain could be factors.

The sargassum that began reproducing in the region earlier than usual this year stems from a record 40 million metric tons reported last year.

“The 2025 bloom was so big it never really left,” Barnes said. “It was enough to start a new bloom locally.”

Seaweed threatens tourism

Sargassum levels in the Caribbean reached record levels in June, while the amount present in the Gulf hit 5 million metric tons in June, nearly double last year’s record, according to the University of South Florida.

Scientists expect 2026 to be the second largest amount of sargassum recorded in the Atlantic, Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, noting that June alone saw 34 million metric tons, which was only 10% lower than the year-earlier period.

Mexico said Thursday it plans to invest $115 million to tackle the blooming algae, which poses an environmental and economic threat. The government estimates that up to 9,000 tons reach its Caribbean coastline on the worst days. Given current resources, Mexico says it can only gather 1,200 tons of sargassum a day.

On a recent evening, Alan Vázquez closed the restaurant where he works as a waiter in the popular tourist town of Playa del Carmen because there were no customers. He had resisted closing for several hours, hoping he would receive a tip and salvage the day, but vast quantities of decomposing sargassum are turning the famed turquoise waters black, driving away tourists.

“It’s sad that such a beautiful and lively place...has ended up like this,” Vázquez said.

He fears suffering the same fate as four of his colleagues who were laid off two months ago due to a drop in tourism that has devastated hotels and businesses in the state of Quintana Roo, one of Mexico’s tourism gems, where sales fell 30% in the first half of the year, according to estimates from local businesses.

In Puerto Rico, sargassum blankets the waters around popular tourist areas, including La Parguera.

“I don’t recall ever having that much concentration in so many places at once,” said Waldemar Quiles, the U.S. territory’s natural resources secretary.

Much of the record sargassum reported last year ended up along Puerto Rico’s coastline, prompting the governor to declare a state of emergency.

It surpassed the previous record set in 2022 with a peak of some 22 million metric tons.

“It’s not a one-off event anymore,” said Emmanuel Maldonado González, an environmental sociologist at East Carolina University. “It’s becoming a growing hazard.”

Experts warn proliferation will worsen

Patches of sargassum in open waters provide a healthy breeding ground for wildlife, including turtles, fish and seabirds, and can be “a bit of an oasis of life in the middle of the ocean,” Barnes said.

But once it’s closer to shore, it reduces oxygen in the water, smothers mangrove roots and blocks sunlight from reaching coral and sea grass.

Once it washes ashore it can prevent newly hatched sea turtles from reaching the ocean, while the heavy machinery used to remove it from beaches risk destroying fragile turtle nests, scientists say.

“The coastlines are not built for this,” Barnes said.

In the U.S. Virgin Islands, people are walking up to 25 feet (seven meters) on mats of seaweed before even reaching the water, according to Amy Dempsey, an environmental consultant.

“This is by far the worst I’ve seen it in the last five years,” she said. “We are getting slammed in the Virgin Islands.”

The smell of rotten eggs permeates communities where large piles of decaying sargassum emit ammonia and hydrogen sulfide.

“The effects of these gases on people can be severe,” warns the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, noting it can cause nausea, headaches and lung irritation.

Used in composting and bioenergy production

Officials on the French Caribbean island of Martinique recently opened a shelter to temporarily house those affected by the toxic gases after residents protested.

So far this year, crews in Martinique have collected more than 11,500 tons of sargassum — including 638 tons in four days alone this month — according to government data. Sea barriers catch some of the seaweed, while crews on shore collect the remainder by hand, storing and processing it for composting and bioenergy production.

Researchers at the University of South Florida and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration used artificial intelligence and found that from 2003 to 2022, macroalgae blooms increased by more than 13% per year in the tropical Atlantic and Western Pacific.

Overall, the blooms reached 16.9 million square miles (43.8 million square kilometers), according to a study published earlier this year.

___

Associated Press reporter María Verza in Mexico City contributed.

Craig won 66.3% of the votes in a runoff with Sian Astley from the anti-immigration party Reform UK.

“To those that voted for me, thank you,” Craig said after the result was declared. “And for those of you that didn’t vote for me, I will still be your mayor. I will defend this city region with every bone in my body and I will fight for a better life for all of us.”

Turnout in voting held Thursday was only 25%, the lowest in any of the four elections since the northwest England city got a directly elected mayor in 2017.

Voters were able to mark a first and second choice on their ballots. Since no candidate reached 50% of the votes in the first round, the top two competed in a runoff in which the second-preference choices of five eliminated candidates were added.

Craig is the outgoing leader of Manchester City Council, one of the 10 boroughs that make up Greater Manchester. She fell just short of getting 50% of the first-round votes, so didn’t match the performance of Burnham, who won three straight elections without ever facing a runoff.

But the decisive result is still a boost for the center-left Labour Party, which was trounced by Reform UK in elections for local council seats across Greater Manchester less than three months ago.

Labour’s rout in those local elections across England helped trigger the resignation of then- Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Burnham’s rapid rise to the prime minister’s office.

“Labour got an absolute pasting, a shellacking in those local elections,” said Rob Ford, professor of politics at the University of Manchester. He said Craig's rebound from that low ebb is “a really powerful moment" for the party.

Burnham was mayor of Greater Manchester for nine years until he won a special election for a seat in Parliament and was selected as Labour leader after Starmer resigned. Burnham became prime minister on July 20.

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation proposal spares four other states from facing mandatory cuts for now. It's meant to be flexible, allowing deeper cuts in drier times while giving the states more time to collectively agree on how to manage the dwindling resource that flows through dams to produce hydropower.

The Lower Basin states of Arizona, California and Nevada could together be forced to reduce their use by up to 3 million acre-feet (130 billion cubic feet) annually through 2036 — about the amount that Arizona and Nevada receive and enough to serve more than 25 million people a year. The actual reductions would be determined every two years based on conditions throughout the basin.

“The Department has a responsibility to ensure the Colorado River system remains reliable and resilient for the millions of Americans, communities and industries that depend on it,” Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement.

Under the proposal, California, Nevada and Arizona would divide half the cuts based on a plan they already developed. Beyond that, priority water rights come into play.

Arizona and Nevada have faced mandatory reductions before, but the proposal outlines deeper cuts that could impact agriculture, cities and tribes. It could translate into higher water prices, more reliance on groundwater and leaving fields unplanted, experts say.

The proposal comes after years of deadlocked negotiations among the states and threats of lawsuits if a proposal didn't comply with longstanding laws and guidelines that govern the river, some of which expire at the end of 2026. A record-dry winter also left two key Colorado River reservoirs at a combined record low. Federal officials are expected to finalize the proposal in the coming days.

Why is the plan coming now?

More than 40 million people in seven U.S. states, several tribal nations and Mexico rely on the flows of the 1,450-mile (2,334-kilometer) river. Decades of overuse, along with rising temperatures, drought and climate change, mean it no longer provides what was promised in 1922.

The river's health often is determined by how much water is in Lake Mead and Lake Powell, the two largest human-made reservoirs in the U.S. Together, the reservoirs are at their lowest point since they began filling, according to a recent paper by Colorado River experts, and approaching levels where they could no longer produce hydropower.

How the water is allocated and conserved — especially amid a decades-long drought — has led to contentious arguments among the states, including threats of lawsuits. Both basins drew up proposals but didn't decide together on a single plan.

Because the states didn't reach an agreement, the federal government stepped in with its own proposal to buoy the river.

What are the reactions from stakeholders?

Leaders in Arizona, which has the lowest priority rights in the Lower Basin, called the federal proposal flawed. California officials said it's an important milestone but not the finish line. Nevada's governor called the proposed reductions unrealistic and devastating.

The Lower Basin states have been united in wanting all seven states to share in specific, measurable cuts. The Upper Basin states of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming, meanwhile, repeatedly pushed back, saying it's illegal and that states have long lived with what the river provides. While the federal proposal mandates cuts in the Lower Basin, the Upper Basin states can proceed with voluntary water cuts primarily among agricultural users.

The four Upper Basin state governors gave the document a favorable initial assessment but said they were still reviewing it.

“We are encouraged that new operating guidelines will better reflect existing water supply which must underpin any practicable plan going forward,” the governors said in a joint statement.

The Arizona Department of Water Resources said enacting 3 million-acre feet of cuts in the Lower Basin would devastate its water users and economy. The Central Arizona Project, which manages much of the state's allocation used primarily in metro Phoenix and Tucson, said the proposal doesn't accurately portray Arizona's rights.

What impact could the plan have?

Exactly how the cuts trickle down to each state is largely up to the states themselves, though the federal government is expected to offer suggestions in the coming days.

Arizona Department of Water Resources director Tom Buschatzke said it will be painful. Farmers in Southern California and Yuma, Arizona, produce the majority of North America's leafy greens in the winter.

“Those are a lot of potential devastating impacts — and a lot of uncertainties for all of us,” Buschatzke said.

Cities in metro Phoenix don't rely entirely on the Colorado River and likely will keep everyone's taps running, but water rates will increase in some areas, said Rhett Larson, a water law professor at Arizona State University. The city of Gilbert, for example, has increased residential water rates by 50% since April 2025, he said.

“We are not running out of water. We’re running out of cheap water,” Larson said.

Meanwhile, cities across the Colorado River basin are constantly on the hunt for new sources of water, like tapping groundwater, treating wastewater and desalinating water, all of which are more expensive than deliveries from the Colorado River. ___ Pineda reported from Los Angeles and Peterson from Denver. Associated Press writer Mead Gruver contributed from Fort Collins, Colorado.

___

This story has been updated to correct the Interior Secretary's first name. He is Doug Burgum, not Dough Burgum.

___

The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment

The leadership change came as police continue searching for people involved in a fatal, gang-related shootout at a food festival near the Space Needle last weekend. A 15-year-old was arrested at the scene and has been charged with assault, but charging documents say the gun he was seen firing wasn't involved in the deaths of two bystanders.

Wilson and then-Police Chief Shon Barnes faced criticism for being slow to release key information about the shootout on Sunday, including whether suspects remained at large.

Barnes, who was the city's second Black police chief, has been credited with boosting the recruitment of officers and helping reduce crime downtown. A number of Black community organizations, a major business group and several City Council members issued statements criticizing Wilson's decision to replace him Thursday.

At a news conference Friday with Andre Sayles, a Seattle deputy chief the mayor named as interim chief, Wilson credited Barnes for his service and said that as mayor she had a clearer window into the operations at the Seattle Police Department than her critics.

The lack of communication about a mass shooting at a major public event in Seattle was not the only reason she asked Barnes to resign, she said.

“There were multiple factors,” Wilson said. “The events of Sunday played into it.”

Sayles told the news conference the department would boost police staffing at public festivals for the remainder of the summer. He also said he believed investigators are close to finding and arresting additional suspects in the shootout.

The gunfire erupted in the waning hours of the Bite of Seattle, an annual three-day festival that draws hundreds of food and retail vendors and performers. Three people, including a suspect, were killed, and four people were wounded. One of the people injured was a 2-year-old boy.

Trump is taking Friday’s Cabinet meeting on the road — to the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland. It's the first Cabinet meeting at Camp David in Trump’s second term after an earlier attempt in May was scuttled because of bad weather.

The president said Thursday he may pull acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s nomination for the full-time post to avoid conceding to Senate Republicans’ demands over a sweeping tax audit immunity deal benefiting the president and members of his family.

Here's the Latest:

US drops case against man charged with damaging Reflecting Pool

Government lawyers said information provided since the indictment of former Olympian David Hearn shows that the damage to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool was by the result of a “flawed installation by the contractor” as well as “the rush to complete the project.”

▶ Read more

Dr. Oz defends decision to end Medicare prescription drug subsidy

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz is defending his decision to end a Medicare Part D subsidy that had helped offset premiums for millions of older adults.

“It’s still very affordable,” he told The Associated Press at the National Governors Association summer meeting on Friday. “What I didn’t want to do was subsidize a bailout.”

Oz said the federal subsidy to insurers, which amounted to $3.6 billion this year, would have mostly gone to a single company.

“That’s just not a good thing for the American people,” he said.

While federal officials have insisted the financial impact to beneficiaries is minimal, the decision has opened the Republican administration to potential political consequences in a midterm year where affordability is a central issue.

Trump blames Minnesota governor for cyberattacks, cites no evidence

The president alleged that the recent cyberattacks were the fault of the state, including Democratic Gov. Tim Walz. Authorities have not yet publicly named the source of the attacks.

During a Cabinet meeting on Friday at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland, Trump also repeated myriad false claims that have become part of his regular talking points about topics such as immigration, foreign conflicts and prescription drug prices.

▶ Read more here about some of the claims.

UN chief urges Hamas and Israel to follow US road map to peace in Gaza `without any questions’

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called Trump’s announcement on Hamas agreeing to disarm in Gaza the only “good news” in recent days that have seen a military escalation in the Gulf, including a collapse of trade through the Strait of Hormuz.

Hamas said Friday it will begin disarming as part of a stalled deal announced by Trump that requires Israel to halt attacks in Gaza and withdraw from the territory which the Palestinians insist must be part of a future state. Israel’s prime minister has not responded to what could be a major breakthrough to ending the war in Gaza.

Guterres told U.N. reporters Friday he has a message to both Israel and Hamas: There is a road map that must be implemented now “without any questions, skepticism, or determination to undermine it.”

He warned that the six-month war in Iran “is increasingly becoming a driver of instability,” saying energy markets have been upended, food and fertilizer prices have surged, “supply chains are buckling,: and “around the world families are struggling to put food on the table.”

Trump has wrapped up the public portion of his Cabinet meeting

The president gave a lengthy opening statement, heard from top officials including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and answered questions on Iran and array of other topics.

He has now asked the press and cameras to leave, meaning the rest of the meeting’s proceedings won’t happen in view of the public.

Trump steps back from pledge to let Ukraine make Patriot interceptors

Asked about his previous commitment to give Ukraine a license to make Patriot air defense systems to counter Russian missiles, Trump said, “We have not agreed to that.”

“We’re talking about it. But it’s a hard thing to give away that kind of technology,” Trump said at his Cabinet meeting on Friday.

“I don’t think this would ever happen, but you know there’s people that, you give that technology, they can someday turn on you,” Trump added. “You look at war, that’s happened a couple of times over the years, right? So we have to be very careful.”

It was a contrast to earlier remarks from the sidelines of the NATO summit this month, where Trump said, “We’ll give them the right to make Patriots.”

Trump said he discussed the topic with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy when they met in Washington on Tuesday. Zelenskyy also met with senators to make a case for why Ukraine needs the interceptors.

Trump claims Iran war helped drive Hamas to disarmament agreement

The president during his Cabinet meeting said the newly-minted agreement aimed at leading to disarmament of the Palestinian group Hamas and Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza and transition of oversight of the territory to a civilian body will have “ups and downs.”

Still, he said this week’s agreement is a “great breakthrough” that has been helped along by the U.S. and Israel’s war with Iran, which has served as Hamas’ prime backer.

“Nobody’s ever thought that would be possible to disarm Hamas,” Trump said. “That shows you how much success we’re having with Iran, because if you go four months ago or five months ago, a deal like that would have been impossible.”

RFK Jr talks about first visiting Camp David 6-plus decades ago

Trump health chief Robert Kennedy Jr. said he was visiting the presidential retreat on Friday for the first time in about 62 years.

“My father loved this place, my uncle loved this place,” said Kennedy, who is the son of former Attorney General and New York Sen. Robert Kennedy.

He said that his uncle, President John F. Kennedy, was resentful of his predecessor, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, for naming it Camp David after Eisenhower’s grandson.

Kennedy said that had his uncle lived to a second term, he planned to rename the retreat Shangri-La, which was its original moniker before Eisenhower changed it.

Kennedy also cheered Trump for allowing reporters in the compound, saying Trump had opened “inner sanctum” of the presidency.

Trump later pointed to a picture of John F. Kennedy on the wall and said he was a “handsome guy.”

Trump says the anti-weaponization fund is ‘dead’

The comments came after the president spent the morning defending the $1.8 billion fund on social media.

“It is dead,” Trump said. “But I wish it weren’t, to be honest with you.”

Trump continued to defend the people who could potentially benefit from the fund, mainly those who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

“Their families have been ruined,” Trump said. Those people “wanted to go to a rally or an event and ended up spending the rest of their lives in horror.”

Trump acknowledged that Blanche, his attorney general pick, has been a “pawn in this whole thing.”

Trump says ‘we just want to win’ in Iran

The president has previously insisted that Iran has been “completely defeated” militarily. But in his engagement with reporters at Camp David on Friday, he acknowledged that he expects U.S. military action will likely continue for some time.

“We’ll be hitting them very hard,” Trump said. “You know, at some point they’re going to say, ‘We just can’t take it anymore.’”

Trump says he doesn’t think International Criminal Court is targeting him but ‘it could happen’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio complained that the international court based in the Hague was very arrogant and had unfairly targeted leaders around the world.

That prompted the president to interject: “There’s no indication they’re after me. It could happen.” He didn’t elaborate, but his suggestion drew laughter from Cabinet members.

Trump said Rubio wasn’t trying to defend him personally, but instead wanted to shield other court targets. He said that could include people like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“There is no indication that I’m one of them, at this moment,” Trump added again for emphasis, drawing still more laughter.

US to make visa bond requirements permanent, affecting mostly African countries

The State Department is making permanent a pilot program under which citizens from 50 countries, mainly in Africa, are required to post bonds to apply for a U.S. visa, and it’s raising the cost as well, to as much as $20,000.

A draft notice published Friday in the Federal Register says a review “provided sufficient data” to suggest the bond program effectively enforces compliance, and would be made permanent by the end of August. The notice is to be formally published on Monday. Additional countries may be added to the list, found here.

The program requires holders of passports from the affected countries to pay the bond when being interviewed for business and tourist visas. The regulation says the bond will be refunded if the application is denied or after the person leaves the United States.

The Trump administration rolled out the program as a way of cracking down on visa overstays.

Trump starts Cabinet meeting at Camp David

The president began his Cabinet meeting Friday by saying his team was meeting in a “very special room.”

The White House has tried to highlight that this was the first televised Cabinet meeting at the presidential retreat.

Trump said he invited the news media to watch because he believes in “transparency,” before turning to his standard talking points about the economy and border security, among other issues.

CEO defends Exxon’s performance at a time of global supply shortages

American refineries are running at near-full capacity and poised to benefit because some refineries in the Middle East and Russia were damaged. And Asia can’t get the amount of Middle East oil needed for refining.

“Penalizing the businesses who stood by those countries and provided that product going forward is very short-sighted,” Exxon CEO Darren Woods said in a call with investors Friday. “We canceled investments that we had planned for Europe based on the last time they passed a windfall profits tax.”

Lawmakers propose taxing the war profits of major oil producers

Exxon and Chevron don’t set the price of American oil, which has ricocheted between $68 and $115 a barrel, driven by supply and demand, and what traders, refiners and other buyers are willing to pay.

Democrats nevertheless hope to tax major oil producers for profits from 2026 onward and redistribute that revenue to consumers.

“It’s fair to put a windfall profits tax on inordinate windfall profits rather than cut off children’s food programs,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse. His measure and a companion bill by Rep. Ro Khanna of California would impose a per-barrel tax on companies that produced or imported at least 300,000 barrels of oil per day in 2025.

The UK and other European countries have extended temporary windfall profits taxes on fossil fuel companies to 2030, according to Tax Foundation Europe.

Major oil companies reap massive profits as US and Iran fighting drives energy prices higher

American oil and gas giants are announcing huge spring windfalls thanks to the fighting between Iran and the U.S. that made consumers around the world pay more for fuel.

Exxon Mobil on Friday reported that its second quarter profits doubled to $14.53 billion, boosted by record diesel production. The oil giant, based in Spring, Texas, brought in $116.02 billion in revenue, up 42%. Chevron, based in Houston, nearly quadrupled its profits to $12.07 billion and revenue jumped 56% to $70.06 billion.

Six of Europe’s largest oil companies posted combined first-quarter profits of $22 billion, more than 40% higher than last year.

Latest developments in the Iran conflict

No U.S. strikes were reported in Iran on Friday.

Iran fired drones at Kuwait, a Gulf country hosting U.S. forces, and said it had also fired at oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for global oil and gas shipments, which has been largely closed by the fighting.

Kuwait’s Defense Ministry said Friday its armed forces had shot down drones inside Kuwaiti airspace. It said the Iranian attacks had targeted several vital military facilities, causing material damage from falling shrapnel but no casualties. It did not specify how many drones were intercepted. Iranian state media said Iran had targeted an air base in Kuwait with drones, in retaliation for U.S. strikes on Thursday.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard claimed to have hit two oil tankers attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian state media said four other tankers had turned around. The report did not provide further details on which flags or ownership the tankers were sailing under, or say whether there were any casualties.

FIFA chief operating officer tells AP that staff was ‘deceived’ by World Cup sell-off plan that ‘must not go ahead’

FIFA’s chief operating officer Kevin Lamour said in a statement to The Associated Press that the staff was “deceived” by Gianni Infantino’s lack of openness while planning the scheme to sell a World Cup stake to private investors linked to Trump’s family.

“It is the project of one person,” wrote Lamour, a longtime colleague of Infantino at both FIFA and UEFA. “Not only must this project not go ahead … but the time has now come for football political leaders to ask themselves the right questions and make the right decisions.”

Lamour did not resign the post he held since 2024 but said he had a duty to his colleagues to speak out about the “contempt and intimidation” FIFA staff has faced.

“And if that means I lose my job, then so be it” the French official said. “I will understand and respect that decision. At least I’ll sleep well tonight.”

▶ Read more

Wisconsin Democrats shaken by Mandela Barnes’ exit from governor’s race

The former lieutenant governor’s announcement came Thursday amid news that the state party had reviewed past allegations of inappropriate behavior, further shaking up the race less than two weeks before the Aug. 11 primary in Wisconsin, where independents and moderates are key voters and where Trump won two razor-thin elections.

That leaves four Democrats, including most prominently Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, who rejoined the race with the endorsement of Gov. Tony Evers after Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez ended her run amid a campaign finance scandal two weeks ago, and insurgent democratic socialist State Rep. Francesca Hong, running far to the left.

The single mother and former line cook has captured the imaginations of liberal Democrats upset with the party establishment, but she’s raised concerns that her past calls for defunding the police will hurt her chances against Trump-backed Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany in November.

▶ Read more

Details on disarmament from the Hamas statement

Hamas said Friday that it’s committed to implementing the Gaza ceasefire agreement, including the new road map focused on the steps it needs to take to disarm.

The group’s statement says it and other Palestinian factions agreed to the framework as part of a national consensus to protect people in Gaza and help meet their humanitarian needs.

It said Israel must adhere to the ceasefire deal agreed to in October and halt its attacks in order for implementation to move forward, echoing language in the new road map released Friday by the Board of Peace.

The agreement calls for Hamas, which ran the government in Gaza, to first turn over all police weapons to a national committee of technocrats responsible for administering the strip. Only later, once the Israeli military withdraws from Gaza, would it be required to decommission and hand over its heavier weapons, according to the text.

▶ Read more

Democratic candidates grapple with ‘defund the police’ baggage

With midterm elections looming, Democrats hope to convince voters that Trump administration lawlessness is the biggest threat to their rights and pocketbooks. The party’s past debates over crime and safety threaten to undermine that pitch.

Across the country, Democratic candidates are facing tough questions about their past calls to “defund the police” by reimagining public safety services or redirecting spending to other social programs — a prominent demand during the protests that followed George Floyd’s death.

Democratic leaders fear the outlier opinions may sink their chances of gaining ground in Congress, governor’s mansions and statehouses as the party’s rising left flank captivates its base, just as Republicans stoke fears about crime, immigration and democratic socialism in their closing midterm message.

▶ Read More

Trump swings at Cornyn over Blanche nomination

Trump, still frustrated about the status of his attorney general pick, began his Friday morning by going after one of the Republican senators who was holding up Todd Blanche’s confirmation to lead the Justice Department.

Continuing a criticism he began earlier this week, Trump said Texas Sen. John Cornyn had no issue with the $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund until after he endorsed his primary challenger, Ken Paxton, for the Senate.

In the post, Trump also continued to defend the controversial fund, which Blanche said in his Senate testimony was dead. Republican senators want him to put that commitment into writing.

“Perhaps there has never been a group of people treated so badly in our Nation’s history,” Trump said. “They are suffering still, many ruined, and I felt that they should be given compensation for what has been done to them.”

Blanche met privately with Cornyn and North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis over the issue later Thursday and the sides were working collaboratively, although Blanche’s confirmation prospects still remain unclear.

The Trump administration is ending a Medicare drug subsidy program. Here’s how it could affect costs

Millions of older adults on Medicare prescription drug coverage could face steeper monthly costs in 2027, after the Trump administration concludes a temporary subsidy program that has helped offset premiums for the past two years.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services this week announced it would wrap up the program, which was initially implemented by the Biden administration in 2024 to lower patients’ Medicare Part D prescription drug costs in response to the effects of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.

While federal officials insist the financial impact on Medicare beneficiaries will be minimal, the decision opens the Republican-led administration to potential political consequences in a high-stakes midterm election year. Voters have identified cost of living as a top concern, and many older adults, who tend to vote in high numbers, are on fixed incomes where every dollar counts. The roughly 25 million Americans with Medicare Part D plans will find out about their 2027 rates in the fall, when they are casting ballots in November’s elections.

▶ Read more

Trump is taking his Friday Cabinet meeting on the road to Camp David

Trump told his Cabinet members to meet him at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland, a rustic backdrop for the Trump administration sessions that have come to be known for being overly long and consumed by endless praise for their boss.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the 13th such meeting of the Republican president’s second term “will be a lot of fun and something different for the Cabinet to experience together.”

An earlier attempt in May was scuttled because of bad weather. During his first term, Trump held a Cabinet meeting at the retreat.

The public portion of Trump’s Cabinet meetings has lasted as long as three hours, with the president letting everyone at the table update him on their departments or agencies — with added praise for him personally and his leadership thrown in. In a departure from other presidents, he allows the news media to stay for the duration, a move that Leavitt has said proves his commitment to transparency.

▶ Read more

Trump announces a deal for Hamas to disarm in Gaza, but many hurdles and uncertainty remain

A Hamas official said Friday that they did reach an agreement on disarmament, the most crucial part of the ceasefire deal. Israel didn’t give an indication that they had agreed.

Trump said Thursday that a deal has been reached for Hamas to disarm and Israel to withdraw its forces from Gaza, but many hurdles, conditions and long timelines remained to wind down the war in the Palestinian territory.

The White House announcement comes nine months after a U.S.-brokered ceasefire was signed. Negotiations between Israel and Hamas had largely deadlocked over the implementation of its second phase, including the disarmament of Hamas and the reconstruction of Gaza.

Trump’s 20-point ceasefire plan calls on the militant group to surrender its weapons and destroy its vast network of tunnels. It also envisions Israeli forces withdrawing from Gaza, the arrival of a new technocratic Palestinian government, deployment of an international security force and the rebuilding of the battered Palestinian enclave.

▶ Read more

Zachary Robert Stacer, 22, was charged with two counts of assault with intent to do great bodily harm, three counts of felonious assault and five counts of resisting and obstructing a police officer.

On June 22, just after 4 p.m., Detroit police officers saw heavy traffic in the area of Grand River Avenue and West Warren Avenue due to a street takeover. While officers were trying to break up the traffic, Stacer allegedly went to the officers’ car, sprayed a fire extinguisher and left the scene.

In a separate incident, Detroit police officers responded to reports of drag racing in the area of Van Dyke and Charlevoix streets just after 12 a.m. on July 12. While officers were trying to direct traffic, Stacer allegedly went to the officers’ car, sprayed a fire extinguisher and left the scene.

Detroit police officers then responded to the area of Grand River Avenue and McGraw Street just after 3 a.m. on July 12 for another report of drag racing. While officers were trying to direct traffic, Stacer, once again, allegedly went to the officers’ car, sprayed a fire extinguisher, and left the scene.

Following an investigation, Stacer was arrested on July 30.

He is expected to be arraigned in court on Aug. 1 at 11:30 a.m.

The family says the last direct contact came in a brief, alarming phone call to Wutzke’s daughter.

“He made a phone call to his daughter and said he was scared and that was the last time we’ve heard from him,” his nephew, Justin Wutzke, told Local 4. “It’s very concerning. This is not like him. It’s not like him to not get ahold of his kids or his grandkids.”

Relatives say Wutzke was last seen near the CVS at 9 Mile and Schoenherr in Warren, and they believe he may have disappeared near Outer Drive and Van Dyke in Detroit. That’s where they say he went to try to visit an old friend.

When family members went to that Detroit home, they said they were not given much help.

“There was another lady there and a guy there,” Justin said. “They know him, but they don’t know where he is.”

Justin Wutzke said Wutzke’s daughter later filed a missing person’s report with Detroit police and met officers at the house near Outer Drive and Van Dyke.

“That’s when they recovered his wallet and this phone,” Justin said.

Relatives say Wutzke has severe medical issues, including a blood clotting disorder, and needs his medication. They also said he has mental health concerns. Justin Wutzke said his uncle has had mental health episodes before and has bipolar disorder but can’t help but think about the odd phone call to his daughter.

“Everything kind of goes through your mind when you think of all of it,” he said.

The family says Mike Wutzke was last seen wearing a blue shirt and may be thinner than older photos suggest. He is about 5’10” tall.

Relatives have been calling hospitals, jails and homeless shelters, but have not heard from him. They plan to distribute flyers near the CVS in Warren on Saturday, August 1, to get the word out.

“We just want him found,” he said. “We just want to hear from him -- to know he’s OK and get him back to the family.”

Warren Police confirmed Wutzke’s disappearance is being handled by Detroit Police. Anyone with information is asked to call the Detroit Police Department’s 5th Precinct at 313-596-5500.

The city operates 24 Flock cameras that capture license plates and vehicle information on passing cars. While police say the technology has been a powerful crime-fighting tool, some council members -- and residents -- want to know exactly how the data is being used and who has access to it.

Council member pushes for answers

Councilmember Michael Radtke Jr. has been a vocal critic of the Flock program and is now formally requesting that the Sterling Heights Police Department hand over a year’s worth of records.

“While this is a tremendous tool for law enforcement, my fear is more the slippery slope of how this could be misused in the future,” Radtke said. “We need to make sure there are firm safeguards in place and punishments if it’s misused.”

Radtke said his concern extends beyond Sterling Heights.

“I have tremendous confidence in our police department. I don’t have confidence in every other police department, and essentially once you’re in the system, you’re there for good,” he said.

Residents raise alarms

The push follows last week’s City Council meeting, where several residents voiced concerns about the license plate readers and how their personal data is being handled.

“I know my data is in there, my son’s data is in there, my wife’s data is in there,” one resident said during public comment.

“I am far from convinced that it is exactly worth it,” another said.

A third resident questioned “how that data is being shared” and “who is given access to it.”

Police defend the technology

Sterling Heights police say the cameras have proven invaluable. During that same council meeting, the police chief defended the program and noted the department has increased its audits from yearly to monthly.

“The Flock technology in law enforcement is probably the best law enforcement tool since the discovery of fingerprints and DNA -- a useful tool for us to solve crimes,” said Police Chief Andrew Satterfield.

Police also pushed back on the idea that license plate readers represent a new kind of surveillance, saying the technology is no different than being exposed to cellphones or Ring cameras, which can also monitor individuals.

What the data shows -- and doesn’t show

According to the city’s online transparency portal, the cameras detect only license plates and vehicles -- not people.

Data is retained for 30 days, unless it is connected to a crime or active investigation. In that 30-day window, the system captured more than one million unique license plates, with the department running 451 searches.

The dashboard also states the data is for the Sterling Heights Police Department only and is never sold to third parties.

Cities opting out, legislation on the way

Sterling Heights is not alone in navigating this debate. The cities of Clawson, Ferndale, Milford and Westland have all declined to renew their Flock contracts over similar privacy concerns.

At the state level, Michigan Sen. Jim Runestad has introduced Senate Bill 1131, which would impose strict privacy rules on automatic license plate readers. The bill proposes requiring search warrants for database access and setting a 14-day data deletion limit.

Sterling Heights is expected to vote on renewing its Flock contract sometime in August. The police department says it plans to provide more information to the council before that vote.

Both notes initially were sent to a Tucson television station days after the 84-year-old mother of “Today” show host Savannah Guthrie went missing from her home outside Tucson on Feb. 1. Authorities have not said whether Nancy Guthrie is still alive.

Saturday is the six-month mark since Guthrie went missing. No suspects have been arrested in her disappearance. The investigation is dogged by unanswered questions, such as how many people are believed to have taken part in her abduction and whether she was taken by someone who knew her.

In her latest video about her mother's disappearance, Savannah Guthrie said earlier this week that her family has been living an unending nightmare and pleaded with the kidnappers to “tell us where to look for her.”

In releasing the ransom notes, the Pima County Sheriff's Department said “we believe these distinctive linguistic characteristics may be recognizable to someone who knows or has interacted with the notes’ writer.”

The first note, sent Feb. 2, said Guthrie was safe but scared and would be released unharmed once her captors received $4 million in cryptocurrency, with the ransom amount increasing if the first demand was not met.

It said Guthrie would be released within 12 hours if the payment was received. It also included a threat to kill her if the ransom wasn’t paid.

"Your mother is aware of this and her life is in your hands,” the first note read. “It is in the best interest of everyone to have this completed as soon as possible.”

The second note was sent Feb. 6 and said Guthrie died shortly after she was taken. “She is buried in nature now,” the second note said. “Nothing you could have done could have changed the outcome.” The note ends with an apology, “We are truly sorry.”

Investigators hope the writing itself will help identify its author

The sheriff’s department said the notes reveal a distinctive pattern of word choices and provide insight into the writer’s mindset. The agency said someone who knows the notes’ writer may recognize the patterns.

Authorities similarly used a suspect’s own writings as a tool to apprehend Theodore “Ted” Kaczynski, branded the “Unabomber” by the FBI. Kaczynski, who killed three people and injured 23 others with mail bombs over a 17-year span, pressured The Washington Post, in conjunction with The New York Times, to publish his 35,000-word manifesto in 1995. Federal authorities encouraged its publication, leading Kaczynski’s brother and sister-in-law to recognize the syntax and anti-technology themes and tip off the FBI, bringing to a close the agency’s longest and costliest investigation at the time.

In a statement Friday, the sheriff’s department also appealed to people who may know something about the case, saying it may be difficult to come forward due to a personal relationship with someone involved or just for their own safety.

“We recognize relationships and loyalties change over time as do people and their perspectives,” the sheriff’s department wrote. “It is not too late to come forward.”

Authorities say new evidence suggests the kidnapping was planned

The sheriff’s office also said Friday that two videos recovered from Guthrie’s doorbell camera might be from two separate days and indicate an unidentified male prepared ahead of when Guthrie was taken. Authorities are seeking information on anyone who was behaving differently, changed their physical appearance, suddenly left the Tucson area, or had a noticeable or unexplained interest or disinterest in the case.

“Investigators continue to pursue every available technological and investigative lead,” the sheriff’s office said. “However, community members remain a vital resource as we seek to provide answers for Nancy’s family.”

The FBI had released surveillance videos of a masked person who authorities said appeared to tamper with a camera on Nancy Guthrie’s front porch and block it with a plant. They described the person as a male about 5 feet, 9 inches (1.75 meters) tall.

On Feb. 4, Savannah Guthrie and her siblings first shared a video statement saying they were aware of media reports of a purported ransom letter and that they were ready to talk and listen, but they wanted proof that their mother was alive. Camron Guthrie, the brother of the “Today” co-anchor, said the following day that the family had not heard directly from whoever took their mother.

A day after the second note was sent, Savannah Guthrie said on Feb. 7 that the siblings received a message and “understand,” without sharing details. She said they were begging for their mother to be returned to them. “We will pay,” Guthrie said.

The family has continued to share their pleas for information in videos posted to social media.

Two men who were previously detained have filed a lawsuit

Also, two men detained and released early in the investigation into Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance are seeking a combined $3 million against a southern Arizona sheriff’s department. In a legal claim, they say they were wrongfully held by law enforcement.

The claim made Thursday against Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos’ department centers on the separate detentions of Carlos Alfredo Palazuelos and Daniel Maddow on Feb. 10. It said they were released hours later but have suffered from having been mentioned in the investigation.

Nanos’ office declined to comment on the notice of claim, a necessary precursor to filing a lawsuit against government entities.

___

Associated Press writer Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City contributed to this report.

What’s a people mover, anyway?

Before diving in, it helps to know what a people mover actually is. A people mover is a driverless, guided mass transit system that uses dedicated tracks on short routes. Think the tram connecting terminals at DTW or, you know, the People Mover itself.

Where it all came from

In 1964, Ford wanted to make a splash at the New York World’s Fair to help celebrate the launch of the Ford Mustang. To pull it off, the automaker enlisted Disney to design a massive Ford pavilion.

The centerpiece of that pavilion was Ford Magic Skyway -- a slow-moving ride that took guests “through time” while they sat in actual Ford vehicles, moved along a track by motorized tires.

When the fair closed in 1965, Disney brought several of its World’s Fair–era attractions back to Disneyland. Ford Magic Skyway, however, did not make the trip.

Ford reportedly had no interest in continuing to sponsor the attraction at Disneyland, but Disney wasn’t about to let the technology go to waste.

Skyway to People Mover

Disney’s Imagineers took the Magic Skyway’s ride and propulsion system and evolved it into something entirely new: the PeopleMover.

Rather than individual cars used as a themed ride, the new concept became a continuous, high-capacity transit loop of multi-car trains propelled by the track itself. It was designed to run nonstop around Tomorrowland -- and also served as a real-world testbed for transit ideas Walt Disney was actively exploring for his planned EPCOT city.

The Disneyland PeopleMover opened in 1967. The name, originally just a working title, ended up sticking.

From Tomorrowland to today

What started as a theme park attraction began attracting serious attention from transportation planners worldwide. People mover technology continued to evolve internationally, and eventually the federal government stepped in, creating the Downtown People Mover Program to help fund and develop the technology further.

Interest, however, eventually faded. In the end, only three people movers were built as part of the federal program: the Metromover in Miami, the Skyway in Jacksonville, and the Detroit People Mover, which opened July 31, 1987.

Which means the next time you board Detroit’s elevated loop downtown, you’re riding a descendant of a Ford-sponsored Disney attraction that was created to promote the Mustang.

The Mustang would go on to be one of the best-selling cars ever, so it worked out.

An expanding crisis for soccer's governing body reached into Infantino's longtime inner circle when his pick to represent FIFA on the White House Task Force for the World Cup walked away calling the Joshua Kushner-backed $20 billion commercial subsidiary plan “a bad deal for football.”

Carlos Cordeiro is a former Goldman Sachs banker and officially Infantino's Senior Adviser yet revealed he was not involved in the secretive investment plan that has rocked the sport since media reports revealed it Tuesday.

“I cannot stand by while FIFA considers selling a stake in the World Cup,” Cordeiro said in a statement formally resigning, just hours after FIFA insisted in a statement: “Nobody is selling football.”

Cordeiro's exit — and call for other senior staff to speak out — intensified scrutiny on Infantino one day after European soccer body UEFA threatened to boycott all FIFA games and events until the plan is dropped. North America's CONCACAF also rejected Infantino’s offer of one-off $20 million payments to each member federation by a mid-September deadline.

Cordeiro often joined Infantino on working visits to meet U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in recent years, and took part in meetings of the administration's World Cup task force led by Andrew Guiliani.

“Let me be clear. I had no involvement in this proposal, and I oppose it unequivocally,” said Cordeiro, the former U.S. Soccer Federation president.

Asia joins Europe and North America

On another seismic day in soccer politics, Asia’s soccer body that has been a key ally in Infantino's 11-year presidency opposed the investor plan and said FIFA must urgently review its management style

The Asian Football Confederation said it “stands in solidarity” with UEFA and CONCACAF, the first two continental bodies to oppose Infantino whose combined 90 FIFA member countries near a majority of the 211 global total.

“Football should never have been placed in such a position,” said the Asian soccer body, which counts 46 of FIFA's 211 members

Infantino has proposed spinning off FIFA's commercial businesses — including World Cups and Club World Cups for men and women — into a $20 billion subsidiary with 20% owned by private investors.

The “anchor investor,” described by FIFA, is a New York-based investment firm created by Joshua Kushner, the younger brother of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

“(T)he proposed (FIFA Forward Enterprise) cannot realistically achieve the necessary broad consensus and unity required to move forward” and must be reconsidered, the AFC said.

The statement did not name Infantino yet criticized FIFA for problems beyond the content of the private equity plan plus failing to consult about the secretive proposal.

“Rather, it has exposed fundamental weaknesses in FIFA’s consultation and decision-making processes that must now be addressed,” said the AFC, whose longtime president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa narrowly lost the FIFA presidential election to Infantino in 2016.

“Accordingly, the AFC calls upon FIFA to undertake an urgent review of its governance and decision-making framework,” said the organization based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

South America evaluating the proposal

CONMEBOL, the governing body of South American football, was the last to issue a statement. On Friday afternoon, the organization confirmed that upon learning of the proposal it consulted its member associations to evaluate the matter “with the rigor it demands.”

CONMEBOL also requested additional details from FIFA regarding the project’s scope, structure, governance, and potential overall impact.

Infantino's job at risk?

Infantino had seemed — 11 days ago after the World Cup final in East Rutherford, New Jersey — to have a clear path to being re-elected unopposed for a fourth and final term in office through 2031.

FIFA had briefed during the tournament that Infantino had letters of support from about 200 members, despite a furor over letting U.S. forward Folarin Balogun play even though he received a red card in his previous game. Trump acknowledged asking Infantino to review Balogun's mandatory one-game ban.

FIFA has set a Nov. 18 deadline for potential candidates to declare in a presidential vote of the 211 members scheduled next March in Rabat, Morocco.

FIFA blames the media

The Asian statement came hours after FIFA blamed the media and doubled down on pursuing the project which now seems to have a majority of the 211 in opposition.

“Our planned consultation process was disrupted by incorrect media reports,” FIFA said in a statement early Friday. “We will proceed with this consultation process to ensure that each (member) has the ability to express its vote based on facts.”

The next FIFA event that would be targeted by the threatened European boycott is within weeks — the Women’s Under-20 World Cup hosted by Poland from Sept. 5. The four British federations comprise FIFA’s only bidder to host the 2035 Women’s World Cup. That decision is due Nov. 23.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and AP World Cup coverage

The United College Athletes Association said as part of the push, members of the Oregon State women's team filed a petition with state regulators, marking a formal effort to seek collective bargaining rights under state law.

The announcement comes two years after a group of women's basketball players co-signed letters to Southeastern and Big Ten Conference leaders in 2024, requesting a formal collaboration process on issues affecting college athletics.

Since those efforts were denied, more than 100 female athletes have signed union authorization cards with the UCAA, agreeing to representation in collective bargaining.

The announcement comes a few days after the College Football Players Association revealed that Stanford has become the first football team to organize a player-led chapter — another effort by college athletes to unionize.

The UCAA says its mission is to represent and protect athletes through collective bargaining, ensuring that college sports are safe, fair, sustainable and that athletes have a say in decision-making.

“As interim president of the UCAA, I’m proud to help lead a movement that gives college athletes a real voice in the decisions that shape our lives and careers," University of Maryland basketball player Oluchi Okananwa said in a statement.

NCAA leaders have long opposed the idea of players becoming employees of their schools, though the idea isn't universally opposed by college leaders. Tennessee athletic director Danny White has been among those who have said collective bargaining is the only real solution to the problems that confront schools that are now paying millions to their players.

Attempts to create unions for college athletes at Dartmouth and Southern California stalled in 2024 due to the changing landscape in college sports and the then-incoming Trump administration's new National Labor Relations Board, which wasn't expected to approve the moves.

___

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball

The closures were announced Thursday and took effect immediately. Planned Parenthood of Michigan cited federal funding cuts and lost reimbursements as the driving force behind the decision.

Patients directed to Detroit, Ferndale centers

In a written statement, Dr. Kate Starr, Chief Medical Officer at Planned Parenthood of Michigan, said continuity of care remains the organization’s top concern.

“Continuity of care for all our patients is our highest priority. We are directly contacting affected patients and helping identify continued care based on the services they need,” Starr said. “Livonia and Warren patients have PPMI health centers in Detroit and Ferndale within approximately 20 miles.”

Starr added that many services previously available in Lansing can be accessed through Planned Parenthood’s Virtual Health Center, which already serves more than 10,000 patients each year.

“Access is defined by whether patients can get an appointment when they need one, not simply the number of buildings we operate,” Starr said. “Our focus is on building a network that is sustainable and resilient.”

‘Who deserves health care?’

Not everyone sees the transition as seamless. Jex Blackmore, a founding member of the Hydra Mutual Aid Fund — a nonprofit that supports abortion access in Michigan — says the closures are part of a troubling trend.

“This is a consistent pattern, and I don’t think we see any sign of it stopping,” Blackmore said.

Blackmore also pushed back on the common misconception that Planned Parenthood clinics exist solely for abortion services.

“We’re talking about preventative screenings, access to contraception, those critical types of fundamental health care,” Blackmore said.

Blackmore says the closures raise a deeper question about equity in health care access.

“Really this is the fundamental question of who deserves health care and who are we okay to forget,” Blackmore said. “Fundamentally everybody deserves comprehensive reproductive and sexual health care regardless of where they live and how much money they have.”

Community advocates sound alarm

Danielle Atkinson, executive director of the Mothering Justice Action Fund, connected the closures directly to federal policy decisions.

“Once again our communities face the brunt of the decisions of an Administration more focused on tax cuts for billionaires than on the health and safety of our mamas and caregivers,” Atkinson said. “Nearly 60,000 women in Michigan rely on reproductive health services provided by Planned Parenthood that they may otherwise not be able to afford.”

Atkinson said women’s health has become a political instrument and vowed the organization would continue fighting for protections.

“Women’s health is often a political tool for extreme policies. Mothering Justice Action Fund will continue to fight for policies that protect the lives, health, and dignity of mothers and caregivers, and ensure our providers are protected from politicians,” Atkinson said. “That’s what Michigan voted for when we passed Proposal 2.”

A different perspective

Not everyone agrees the closures represent a crisis. Amber Roseboom, president of Right to Life Michigan, argued that reproductive health services remain widely available across the state.

“The quote-unquote services that they reference are available and provided by every major health system in the state of Michigan. There is no shortage. If Planned Parenthood was providing a high level of care they wouldn’t be closing,” Roseboom said.

Employees also impacted

The closures don’t only affect patients. Planned Parenthood says it is working with displaced employees to identify other available openings within the organization.

The push for expanded use of Starlink comes as Zelenskyy looks for alternate ways to mitigate the need for U.S. Patriot air defense systems to thwart the steady barrage of Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian territory. The interceptors are in shorter supply as the U.S. and Israeli war against Iran continues to rage, and Trump on Friday appeared to back away from a recent commitment to give Ukraine a license to produce them.

Zelenskyy made the request directly to Trump in an Oval Office meeting this week during his whirlwind trip to Washington, according to one person familiar with the matter. He also told lawmakers later on Capitol Hill that he wanted Starlink to help with targeting inside Russia, according to a person in the room. Both officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive private discussions. Trump did not commit to Zelenskyy’s request.

Zelenskyy has been pushing to expand Starlink use for weeks

Musk has allowed the Ukrainians to use Starlink inside their own territory, including in Ukrainian regions occupied by the Russians, but has restricted use of the satellite system inside Russia.

Zelenskyy has been making the case for expanded use of Starlink with U.S. officials for at least several weeks. The White House, the Ukrainian Embassy in Washington and officials at SpaceX, which owns Starlink, did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Zelenskyy’s request. Zelenskyy’s efforts to get Musk’s permission to use Starlink to help with Ukrainian attacks inside Russia was first reported by The Atlantic.

Granting permission for an expanded use of Starlink could come with risk for Musk. The Associated Press reported in December that two NATO-nation intelligence services suspect Russia is developing a new anti-satellite weapon to target Musk’s Starlink constellation with destructive orbiting clouds of shrapnel.

The intelligence findings were shown to the AP on condition that the services involved were not identified, and the news organization was not able to independently verify the findings’ conclusions.

Russia views Starlink as a grave threat, the findings indicate. The thousands of low-orbiting satellites have been pivotal for Ukraine’s survival against Russia’s full-scale invasion, which began in February 2022.

Ukrainian leader also pitched US lawmakers during recent visit

Zelenskyy had traveled to Washington to attend Sen. Lindsey Graham's memorial service and used the visit to check in with Trump and allies on Capitol Hill.

Zelenskyy visited the Capitol following his meeting with Trump in the White House earlier in the day. Senators said the requests the Ukrainian president made were similar to what he had told them earlier in July during a meeting at the NATO summit in Turkey.

“They need access to Starlink long term to make their longer-range and intermediate-range systems more accurate,” said Sen. Mike Rounds, a Republican from South Dakota, who is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

“They prefer to be exactly on target, as opposed to, in the general area,” Rounds said. “He made that pretty clear.”

Zelenskyy spoke with lawmakers late Tuesday evening ahead of a Senate vote on a punishing new Russia sanctions package, which advanced toward a final vote expected next week.

Zelenskyy also reiterated Ukraine's need for more U.S. Patriots and the previously discussed licensing agreement so Ukraine could start producing the system in house, said Rounds, who was part of the delegation of U.S. lawmakers at the NATO conference in Ankara.

“There was a consistency from what President Zelenskyy shared with us in Turkey two weeks ago to what he shared with us again once again, in terms of what their needs are,” Rounds said. “It’s pretty straightforward.”

Trump appears to edge away from Patriots licensing commitment

But Trump appeared to edge away from the earlier commitment to give Ukraine a license to make Patriots for its military needs during a gathering of his Cabinet at the presidential retreat at Camp David, Maryland, on Friday.

Trump at the NATO summit in Turkey declared “we’ll give them the right to make Patriots” to counter missile attacks from Russia in their more than four-year war.

The president told reporters on Friday that the licensing matter remains under discussion and said he hasn't made a decision on it.

“We’re talking about it. But it’s a hard thing to give away that kind of technology,” Trump said.

Trump's relationship has improved with Zelenskyy as Ukraine has gained strength on the battlefield with Russia in recent months. And Zelenskyy has sought to portray that his war with Russia is connected to the U.S. and Israel's conflict with Iran.

U.S. intelligence has shown that Tehran provided Russia with drones to use against Ukraine. More recently, Russia has prepared to ship drones for Iran, including upgraded versions of the technology that Tehran originally supplied to Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine, according to U.S. and European officials.

Zelenskyy said ahead of this week's visit to Washington that he'd share evidence with the United States that shows Russia is assisting Iran in targeting U.S. bases in the Middle East via satellite surveillance.

Zelenskyy also has been making the case to the Trump administration that his country is well positioned to help the U.S. counter Iranian drone attacks on U.S. bases in the Middle East and Gulf allies' infrastructure.

“He has been very emphatic they are going to provide more aid to us in unmanned warfare, aerial unmanned warfare, which has been so instrumental in Iran — his people have been there, they’ve been providing technology and know-how — and they’re ready, willing and able to do it in even greater magnitude,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, who sits on the Armed Services Committee. “He was very emphatic on that point.”

___

AP writers John Leicester in Paris and Emma Burrows in London contributed reporting.

Skattebo declared himself nearly fully healthy at New York Giants training camp, nine months removed from his gruesome right ankle and leg injury. But after getting into some hot water with the organization for doing a backflip and landing awkwardly on that surgically repaired ankle earlier this month, he's planning to stay grounded for a while.

“Obviously, I do some dumb things here and there, but I learn from it,” Skattebo said Friday. “We’ll see when game time comes around. But right now, we’re focused on training camp, and we’ll keep the backflips off the field for now.”

Skattebo alarmed, among others, coach John Harbaugh and general manager Joe Schoen when they saw video of the backflip at Fanatics Fest in New York on July 18. He turned out to be fine, but a text message and some difficult conversations followed.

“He’s a young man that’s still getting used to the spotlight and in New York City, and you've got to be conscious of your actions, not only from a health standpoint but a perception standpoint,” Schoen said. “He knows I’d rather him not do that, especially this close to camp.”

It is not the first time Skattebo has been second-guessed for something off the field since reaching the NFL and getting hurt. He took part in a WWE show in November, weeks after surgery, took criticism from radio hosts but was not worse for the wear.

The botched backflip was a much riskier endeavor the Giants would rather he not repeat.

“The big picture message is you want to take care of yourself," Harbaugh said. "You want to take care of your team: do everything you can do to be healthy, be back, be right, be good.”

The 24-year-old running back declared in May he'd be ready for the season opener Sept. 13 against Dallas. Skattebo also told the coaching staff he'd be good for the start of camp and hit that deadline.

As a result, he has no limitations and is doing just about as well as he can.

“I've felt 99%,” Skattebo said. “I think the 100% is when I put shoulder pads on and I'm able to hit someone. That's when I tell you I'm 100%, but for now I'm 99.9% OK."

Skattebo will get that chance when the pads go on beginning Monday.

A 2025 fourth-round pick out of Arizona State, Skattebo rushed for 410 yards and five touchdowns on 101 carries before having his rookie year cut short Oct. 26 at Philadelphia. This past spring, he set a goal of playing 17-plus games and rushing for over 2,000 yards on 300 carries.

Skattebo didn't shy away from those lofty aspirations — which would give him a top-10 season in league history — but his main focus is on moving past the injury and rehab process and getting back to what he does best.

"It was a long, hard road," Skattebo said. “It’s time to play football.”

Malik Nabers did not practice Friday

After being the talk of the start of camp for getting on the field for individual drills after his own lengthy rehab from a torn ACL, Malik Nabers did not take part in practice Friday. Harbaugh called it “part of the process.”

“We’ll work through it, and every single day will be what it is that given day,” Harbaugh said. “He’s worked real hard, made a lot of progress and that’s what we decided to do today for practice.”

Neither Nabers nor the Giants have set a timetable for his return to game action.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Two major rail unions praised the proposed rule announced Friday that would also strengthen the standards for certifying that crews can safely operate a train.

The government had concerns after inspecting two Texas railyards near the border last fall on the two railroads directly affected by these restrictions on Mexican crews — CPKC and Union Pacific. CPKC and the Association of American Railroads trade group declined to comment while they study the rule.

“We have the same goals — safe, secure operations that keep the supply chain fluid,” Union Pacific said in a statement. “And we will continue working with our federal partners through the regulatory process.”

Inspections documented language concerns

The Federal Railroad Administration sent letters to both CPKC and UP in December after those inspections found several instances of train crews having trouble understanding English. The government urged those railroads to reexamine their practices and make sure that Mexican crews can speak English and don’t operate a train more than 10 miles (16 kilometers) inside America.

The Federal Railroad Administration said at the time the concern was that these Mexican crews bringing trains into Union Pacific’s Eagle Pass rail yard and CPKC’s facility in Laredo were having a hard time understanding operating bulletins and U.S. regulations that require information about hazardous materials and emergency responses to be maintained in English.

Both UP and CPKC have pledged to make sure they were following the existing rules, including that the Mexican crews do not travel more than 10 miles into the United States. But now the federal government wants to strengthen the rules “because railroad crews must be able to communicate fully and accurately when crossing into the United States, most notably with dispatchers and emergency responders during a crisis, as a safety-critical function.”

Rail unions and the Transportation Department worry

This rail safety effort aligns closely with the Transportation Department's efforts to ensure that truck drivers can understand English, so they can read road signs and warnings and communicate with first responders after an accident or during an inspection. The government has tried to withhold millions of dollars in highway funding from New York and California because it isn’t satisfied with the steps those states have taken to make sure the commercial driver’s licenses they issue are valid.

Mark Wallace, the national president of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen union, has been raising concerns about this practice of using Mexican train crews for several years because of safety, security and job concerns.

The union has said that the handoffs used to happen right at the border, but now Union Pacific and CPKC routinely ask Mexican crews to bring trains several miles over the border to one of their railyards where the crew switches can be done more safely. But the firm 10-mile (16-kilometer) restriction in this rule will prevent the railroads from expanding this practice to railyards further into America like the union said UP was considering in New Mexico.

“Trains originating from Mexico, operated by foreign crews were unable to communicate with dispatchers in English and the language barrier posed a hazard in the event of a derailment or other incident,” Wallace said.

Trains started crossing the border to limit smuggling

But the railroads have said that this practice of using Mexican train crews to bring the trains into railyards in America was developed in 2018 with the approval of the first Trump administration to address smuggling concerns. When trains are stopped at the border smugglers often try to conceal drugs or other contraband aboard them and immigrants might jump aboard to get into the United States.

It is also routine for Canadian crews to bring trains a few miles over the northern border with the United States before handing off to American crews.

New rules should strengthen crew certification standards

The SMART-TD union that represents conductors and other rail workers also said the provisions of the rule that will prohibit train crews from using a system that's similar to cruise control for freight trains when they take their certification tests will help ensure they can operate a train safely.

“Railroad certifications should represent proven ability, not simply possession of a certificate,” said Jared Cassity, who is SMART-TD’s top safety expert. “When lives are on the line, the FRA must know that an engineer can safely operate a train, not just supervise a computer doing it.”

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services this week announced it would wrap up the program, which was initially implemented by the Biden administration in 2024 to lower patients' Medicare Part D prescription drug costs in response to effects of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act.

While federal officials insist the financial impact on Medicare beneficiaries will be minimal, the decision opens the Republican-led administration to potential political consequences in a high-stakes midterm election year. Voters have identified cost of living as a top concern, and many older adults, who tend to vote in high numbers, are on fixed incomes where every dollar counts. The roughly 25 million Americans with Medicare Part D plans will find out about their 2027 rates in the fall, when they are casting ballots in November's elections.

Democrats slammed CMS's move as part of a pattern of federal attacks on healthcare affordability, alongside federal Medicaid cuts and the expiration of Affordable Care Act subsidies that had reduced premium costs for working-age Americans in that program.

“The Trump administration is actively raising prescription drug costs for 25 million seniors,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote on X in response to the news, which was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. “Heartless, cruel, and completely by choice.”

CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz on Tuesday said ending the subsidy program would prevent billions of taxpayer dollars from being funneled to insurance companies. It cost the agency an estimated $3.6 billion in 2026.

He said most Medicare beneficiaries would see less than a $10-per-month increase, and some would even see lower premiums than beforehand.

“Every Medicare beneficiary still has access to low-cost plans, and we will continue to lower prescription drug prices for every American patient, from more MFN deals to our policy giving seniors access to GLP-1s for $50 a month,” he wrote on social media.

The federal government also negotiates directly with pharmaceutical companies to lower the prices of some of the most expensive drugs in Medicare, through a program created by Congress in 2022.

This week's decision has no impact on the out-of-pocket cap that limits the amount that older adults with standalone Medicare drug coverage spend on their prescription drugs over the course of a year. That was set at $2,100 in 2026 and is projected to rise to $2,400 for 2027.

Part D beneficiaries paid an average of $36 a month this year for their prescription drug premiums with the subsidies in place, according to the healthcare research nonprofit KFF. The subsidies offset the average premium by $16 in 2026, according to the federal Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC).

It's not yet known how many Americans the change will affect, or how much more they'll pay. Older Americans have the opportunity to shop for plans each year, and prices vary widely between them. CMS has said it will release information about next year's premiums in September.

AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond said her organization, which serves Americans 50 and older, had supported the temporary subsidy.

“While it’s too early to know the full impact of this change, it would be unfortunate if this decision made Part D coverage less affordable, just as we’re beginning to see billions in savings from Medicare drug price negotiation,” she said in a statement.

Juliette Cubanski, vice president and director of the program on Medicare policy at KFF, said the price increases may be marginal for some consumers but impactful for others when combined with higher prices in other areas, like groceries, gas and housing.

“What's going to matter most for consumers is how much more or less they have to pay at the end of a month, and how much they have left after the bills are paid,” she said. “This could just make it more challenging for some people to make that math work.”

__

This story first moved July 30, 2026. It was retransmitted July 31, 2026, to correct the spelling of “affect” in the 5th-to-last paragraph.

SATURDAY: Mostly cloudy skies, a chance of rain showers and a few thunderstorms. High: 80.

SATURDAY NIGHT: Mostly cloudy skies, a chance of rain showers and a few thunderstorms. Low: 65.

SUNDAY: Mostly cloudy skies, a chance of rain showers and a few thunderstorms. High: 78.

SUNDAY NIGHT: Mostly cloudy skies, a chance of rain showers and a few thunderstorms. Low: 60.

MONDAY: Mix of sunshine and clouds, a chance of rain showers. High: 78.

After a mixture of sunshine and clouds throughout the day with warm temperatures on Friday, we are going to bring in some much needed rainfall into the region as we look ahead into the upcoming weekend.

Expect the clouds to fill in as we work through the evening and into the overnight hours tonight. A few rain showers may develop before midnight, but most of the region should remain dry this evening. Overnight lows dropping into the upper 60s and lower 70s.

Looking ahead into the weekend, we will keep the chance of rain showers in both Saturday and Sunday, there also could be a few thunderstorms that develop along a frontal boundary that will move into the region, and stall out through late Sunday.

There’s a better chance for more widespread coverage of rain on Saturday afternoon & evening, and into the overnight compared to the end of the weekend on Sunday. Some places could see over an inch or more of rainfall, especially where multiple rounds of rain move through throughout the weekend. But as of right now, we don’t have any flooding concerns, looking ahead into the weekend.

High temperatures will remain in the upper 70s to around 80° on Saturday, then drop into the mid to upper 70s for everyone by the end of the weekend on Sunday.

Looking ahead into the first part of next week, the models are indicating that and upper-level disturbance will be “cutoff” from the frontal boundary, and this will keep the chance of a few rain showers into the forecast both Monday and Tuesday. I don’t think either day will be a complete washout. High temperatures rebounding back into the low to mid 80s for Monday and Tuesday.

Rain showers will remain in the forecast looking ahead into the middle of the week on Wednesday, before drier weather moves back into the region by the time we get to Thursday. High temperatures remain in the mid-80s are in the forecast for next Wednesday and Thursday.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.7% after veering between gains and losses through the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 276 points, or 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 1% after briefly losing all of an early 1.3% jump.

It’s a fitting finish to July for the U.S. stock market, which lurched up and down as oil prices shot higher because of the war with Iran and worries grew about whether Big Tech’s massive investments in artificial-intelligence technology will translate into profits and whether chipmaker stocks soared too high in the euphoria around AI.

Friday’s gains sent the S&P 500 to its first winning week in three, but the main measure of the U.S. stock market nevertheless finished the month with a tiny loss.

Amazon led the market with a leap of 15.3% after reporting much stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Its profit more than tripled from a year earlier, thanks in part to an acceleration of growth in its cloud computing business.

Analysts said that could be a signal Amazon’s huge AI investments are paying off, and Amazon increased its forecast for how much it will spend on investments this year.

The reaction was similar to what Microsoft got a day before, when its stock soared to its best day in nearly 18 years on signals that its AI investments may also be yielding higher profits.

Chip companies selling the processors and computer memory that such “hyperscalers” are scrambling to buy swung sharply again on Friday. Micron Technology, for example, went from an early jump of 6.4% to a loss of 6.5% before finishing with a fall of 5.9%.

More firmly on the losing end of Wall Street was Apple, which dropped 7.4% despite reporting stronger profit for the latest quarter than expected. Its forecast for revenue growth in the current quarter fell short of expectations, which executives pinned on a supply crunch in components getting vacuumed up in the AI boom.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 52.09 points to 7,489.72. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 276.97 to 52,485.03, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 251.68 to 25,373.85.

The gains came despite another rise in oil prices as uncertainty continues about when the war with Iran will allow crude to flow freely again from the Middle East.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude rose 1.2% to settle at $87.93 after careening between $72 and $102 earlier in July.

Higher oil prices have pushed the cost for a gallon of regular gasoline to an average of nearly $4.11 across the United States, up from $3.85 a month ago, according to AAA. More expensive oil also puts upward pressure on prices for virtually every product that rides on a ship, plane or truck before getting to a customer.

The worries about inflation sent yields in the bond market even higher.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.71% from 4.68% late Thursday and from just 3.97% before the war with Iran sent oil prices shooting higher. That’s a notable move for the yield, which moves higher when investors’ expectations for inflation, economic growth and other factors in upcoming years are rising.

The leap for the 10-year yield has already sent the average long-term U.S. mortgage rate to its highest level in a year.

Longer-term yields jumped on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve’s chairman, Kevin Warsh, promised again to get inflation back down to 2% but refused to say how he plans to get it there. The Fed voted again to keep its main interest rate steady on Wednesday, even though inflation remains well above 2%.

Hikes to rates by the Fed could restrain inflation, but they could also slow the economy and undercut prices for stocks and other investments. President Donald Trump, who nominated Warsh to lead the Fed, has lobbied for lower interest rates instead of higher.

Warsh has told financial markets that he does not want to give hints about what the Fed will do with interest rates, saying he wants to get direct, “unfiltered” messages from them rather than echoes back of what the Fed has suggested.

But “without clarifying why action was or wasn’t taken already, it’s hard to see how statements about being committed to hitting its inflation target aren’t just a bluff,” according to Brian Jacobsen, chief economic strategist at Annex Wealth Management.

“The Fed is facing a growing credibility problem,” economists at Bank of America wrote in a report. Unless data comes in showing less pressure on inflation in the interim, “it is imperative for the Fed to pass the September test by hiking rates and delivering an internally consistent narrative.”

In stock markets abroad, the swings were even wilder for chip stocks.

Seoul’s Kospi index soared 17.9% for its best day in history. The index is dominated by two tech giants, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, and both surged at least 26.8% on Friday.

The Kospi, though, still lost 22% in July despite Friday’s historic move. That’s after it more than doubled in the first six months of the year.

___

AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.

Pendergrass was sentenced on Friday morning after pleading guilty to second-degree murder on July 2, while all other charges against him were dropped.

“The sentence agreement is for Mr. Pendergrass to serve a maximum of 50 years in the Michigan Department of Corrections and a minimum of 25 years,” Judge Paul Cusic said on Friday morning. “I do believe that every minute of a 50-year sentence would be deserved in this case.”

Pendergrass admitted to strangling Thomas to death during an altercation at his home on Carlysle Street in Inkster on April 5, 2025. The 23-year-old Pendergrass and the 17-year-old Thomas had been in a relationship, but it had ended by the time she arrived at the house.

Thomas was found dead three weeks later in Southfield on April 26, 2025 – two weeks after she had been reported missing to the Detroit Police.

Pendergrass was charged alongside his 49-year-old mother, Charla. It was one of her friends who told the FBI that she asked him to move the plastic bin that unknowingly contained London’s body.

“This case is different than some of the other ones that I had,” Dominic DeGrazia, the Prosecuting Attorney, said during the sentencing. “To the extent that the defendant’s pattern of deception and cold-blooded, cold-heartedness in this case really stands out.”

‘A Waste of Skin’

The family’s pain was on full display in the courtroom this morning. Both of Thomas’ grandmothers, along with Jasma Bennett, Thomas’ mother, gave jarring impact statements.

“I ain’t never been able to have animosity in my heart for nobody,” Jestina Martin said. “But I do for you, because you took a part of my life that never be filled.”

“You took a piece of me,” she said. “Whatever you get, it’s what you deserve.”

Meanwhile, Barbara Bennett, Thomas’ maternal grandmother, attempted to show grace in mourning London but took a pointed shot at both mother and son for what they had done.

“I will always love London, always, until we meet again,” Bennett said. “The only regret that I have is that Charla and Jalen Pendergrass are still walking this Earth, and London is not. He is a waste of skin!”

London’s mother spoke through tears on the stand, saying that she has not known peace since her daughter was taken from her. She quoted Bible verses and shared stories of missing the simple moments with her daughter.

“There is not a moment that you are not in my thoughts and prayers,” Jasma Bennett said. “She had such a strong and beautiful, truthful, brave, fearless personality and energy.

“As I wake and when I sleep and when I try to live, this devastation will never, ever leave me,” she added. “We would try, try to keep going. She didn’t even have the opportunity to argue and fight and then to make it right.”

Jalen Pendergrass is off to prison; this case is not fully closed.

Charla Pendergrass is still facing first-degree murder, unlawful imprisonment and evidence tampering charges. Her trial will begin on Oct. 26.

You can listen to the full sentencing hearing below:

Ceuta’s president put the number of migrants at 60,000, which was equivalent to 70% of the territory's population. But most of them soon went back, the Spanish government said, after the sudden arrival of so many people sparked a humanitarian crisis.

Some migrants swam several miles through the sea and faced down authorities who tried to turn them back with water cannons, tear gas and warning shots. Those who died included some who drowned or were killed in a stampede to cross a breakwater barrier near a border checkpoint.

Spain deployed its armed forces and additional police to restore order in Ceuta, which sits on the Strait of Gibraltar at the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea and has been a Spanish possession since 1580. On the Moroccan side of the border, security forces clashed with migrants. The chaos also had ripple effects abroad, with Italy and France pledging to tighten their controls on people arriving from Spain.

“The situation that Ceuta is going through is absolutely unsustainable,” Ceuta President Juan Jesús Vivas told journalists.

Meanwhile, migrants from Morocco also attempted to cross into Melilla, Spain’s other territory at the tip of North Africa, where they clashed with police.

Spanish prime minister condemns border breach

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited Ceuta on Friday and condemned the border breach, which he described as “a violation of Spain's territorial integrity.”

Sánchez blamed human smugglers for the crisis, saying they “deceive so many young people and ultimately lead many of them to their deaths,” whether in the ocean or in the city.

The Spanish Interior Ministry released its own figures shortly after Vivas spoke, estimating that some 50,000 people had crossed from Morocco since Thursday. It added that 48,300 had already returned to Morocco by Friday evening, with hundreds more going back by the hour.

Rachid Sbihi, who leads a local workers association representing Civil Guard officers, described the situation as a “serious humanitarian crisis,” saying thousands of migrants, including unaccompanied children, were left sleeping in parks and on sidewalks, while others roamed the streets aimlessly.

“It’s chaotic,” Sbihi said.

The Moroccan Interior Ministry did not respond to a request for comment on the migrant figures released by the Spanish authorities.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the images from Ceuta were “unacceptable.”

“We cannot allow anyone to come to our Union without abiding by our rules,” she said Friday in an online statement. “Dangerous crossings must stop immediately. Smuggling networks must be dismantled. And returns must be swift, as our rules allow.”

Dozens died in the chaos

Some of the 57 people who died had drowned, Sbihi said, but some were also killed in a stampede to cross the breakwater fence at Tarajal Beach, an urban beach near a border checkpoint with Morocco. The waters near the border fence were littered with buoys, shoes and other abandoned belongings.

Many young Moroccans who crossed into Ceuta told The Associated Press that they had hoped to find better work opportunities in Spain but were returning given the mayhem in Ceuta.

“There’s nothing at home. I’d have to work 12-hour shifts for a meager wage. That’s why I came here,” said 21-year-old Abdulah Buji, who hails from the city of Tetouan. “But I haven’t found any opportunities here either, so I have to go back.”

Moroccan police used water cannons and fired warning shots into the air to prevent migrants from crossing into Ceuta, according to rights groups in Morocco.

Morocco’s ambassador to Spain said the situation in Ceuta had unfolded against Morocco’s wishes.

“We have always prioritized legal, orderly and safe migration for all,” Karima Benyaich said. She did not comment on what prompted the migrants to cross into Ceuta.

To reach Ceuta, on the northern African coast, migrants often swim from the Moroccan town of Fnideq, covering about 3 miles (5 kilometers) to reach Spanish territory. Others attempt the crossing from the nearby town of Belyounech, where the distance is shorter.

Authorities in Ceuta and Madrid have linked the border surge to a recent decision by the Spanish Supreme Court, which ruled that migrants arriving by sea could not be summarily deported, unlike those who cross by land or climb the border fence.

Sánchez said migrant smugglers misinterpreted the ruling.

The interpretation of the Supreme Court’s ruling “spread like wildfire over the past few hours through the networks of human trafficking organizations,” triggering the surge, Sánchez said.

Spain has bucked anti-immigration trend

Sánchez has bucked the anti-migration trend that has gained ground across Europe and in the U.S.

Earlier this year, his government moved to give residency and work permits to hundreds of thousands of migrants already living in the country without permission.

Sánchez, a Socialist, argued that it would be good for the economy and the demographics of an aging Spain. Migrants who entered irregularly after Jan. 1 this year were not included.

His critics jumped at the opportunity to attack his policy, saying it encouraged more migrants to come.

“Sánchez allows Spain to be invaded through Ceuta,” Spanish conservative politician Isabel Díaz Ayuso wrote on X.

The U.S. expressed its support for “the people of Spain, and all Europeans, against this egregious violation of their sovereignty and human rights.”

In a post on X, the State Department added that “this unacceptable incident is the direct result of the Spanish Government’s deliberate efforts to enable and facilitate mass illegal migration into Europe.”

Sánchez on Friday defended his migration policy and distanced it from the events in Ceuta.

In the tumult, Italy temporarily suspended its open-border Schengen agreement with Spain, reimposing border controls for air and sea. The Interior Ministry said the decision amounted to a “closure” of the borders, but experts said it was merely a resumption of border controls. The agreement allows travelers to fly between the two countries without presenting passports.

French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said France would also strengthen border checks with Spain.

The crisis in Ceuta “has nothing to do with the regularization of migrants adopted by the Government of Spain, as is being falsely claimed by some,” the Spanish government said in a statement late Thursday after Meloni's announcement.

Pressure grows on second Spanish territory in Africa

Migrants from Morocco also attempted to cross into Melilla, the other Spanish territory at the tip of North Africa.

There was widespread chaos in Bni Nsar, the Moroccan town bordering the Spanish territory, where migrants clashed with police, throwing rocks and setting police vehicles ablaze, according to local media and rights groups. They reported injuries among security forces and the arrest of dozens of people attempting to cross.

Like Ceuta, Melilla is a self-governing Spanish city. Many Moroccans consider both cities to be occupied territory.

___

Naishadham reported from Madrid. Brito reported from Barcelona, Spain. Associated Press journalists Joseph Wilson in Barcelona, Spain; Akram Oubachir in Casablanca, Morocco; and Antonio Sempere in Ceuta, Spain, contributed.

Friday marks the last day of a contract under which the federal government pays for legal services for children who enter the U.S. without a parent or guardian. The government contracts out those services to a network of nearly 100 legal groups across the country that provide services to roughly 20,000 children.

The Trump administration did not immediately respond to a request for comment on why it was allowing the contract to expire. But it comes as the administration has redoubled its efforts to achieve its policy of mass deportations, and after migrant children became a target for removal from the country during the first year of President Donald Trump’s second term in office.

As part of the expiring contract, the legal groups can enter government-funded shelters and give presentations to children about their legal rights, and directly represent the children as they go through immigration court proceedings.

But as that contract ends, the providers say it’s unclear what will happen come Monday or whether they'll be able to visit their clients in the shelters where they live.

“We have no understanding of what’s going to happen to those children come next week. We don’t know if they’re going to have legal representation. The government as of yet has not identified who will take over this representation,” said Melissa Lopez, the executive director of Estrella El Paso, during a news conference earlier this week. The organization currently represents 243 unaccompanied children in western Texas and New Mexico.

The providers say their ability to enter the shelters, check on their clients and give presentations to new arrivals serves as an important oversight measure for a vulnerable population. The providers warn that without a lawyer to assist them in court and help them navigate the complexities of immigration law, children will be much more likely to be deported back to countries they initially fled.

“The government is trying to eliminate our work in this program because they know that without attorneys children will be deported,” said Lopez.

Health and Human Services, which is responsible for caring for unaccompanied migrant children while they are in government care and which administers the contract, did not respond to a request for comment Friday.

In a Texas immigration court, children play with action figures as lawyer warns of future

Dozens of children and teens filed early Friday morning into the Harlingen courthouse for a hearing before an immigration judge. In the lobby, other children waiting for their hearings played with puzzles and action figures or drew in coloring books.

One 8-year-old boy walked into the courtroom holding an Etch-a-Sketch as he sat next to his attorney.

These were children who had come to the U.S. without a parent or guardian and now their cases were making their way through the immigration courts. But Lauren Fisher Flores, an attorney for the American Bar Association’s ProBar project, which is contracted to provide legal services in southwestern Texas, warned the court of the looming contract expiration.

She explained that come Monday, lawyers wouldn't be able to provide the legal information sessions that they usually give to children in shelters that let children know their rights and lawyers also would no longer be able to step in and provide the “Friend of the Court” services where they assist those children who sometimes show up in court without a lawyer. Fisher Flores said the organization didn't know what the government's plan was going forward.

“We sincerely hope there will be someone to step in next week,” she said.

The judge thanked the attorney and said she was sorry to hear the news.

Legal groups already laying off staff after months of no payments

The end of the contract comes as the legal service providers representing these children say they have not been paid for more than half a year. The organizations say that the Trump administration has been withholding payments as it demands detailed information from the providers about their clients that the providers say they have never been asked for before and that they ethically cannot provide.

“They are clearly trying to destroy the program by grinding down the financial health of nonprofits. We’ve seen layoffs and furloughs, and we will see a lot more of that if these invoices aren’t paid,” said Michael Lukens, the executive director of the Amica Center

Some groups have been trying to secure private funding to continue their work, while others have begun laying off staff and shuttering offices. ProBar in south Texas this week laid off 20% of its staff.

Mid-South Immigration Advocates is a nonprofit law firm based in Memphis, Tennessee, which helps over 400 unaccompanied minors. The organization’s legal director, Sally Joyner, said the organization is owed over $500,000 from the federal government to reimburse them for their work with the children. They've already had to lay off seven employees since 2025 and more layoffs are planned. They're closing their physical offices in Nashville and Memphis at the end of September and expect to close their law firm entirely soon.

As their budget tightens, she said they're doing everything they can to continue representing the children who are their clients. She warns that without attorneys to represent them, migrant children, including infants and teens, could be ordered deported in the coming weeks.

“These are kids who have been living in our communities, going to our schools for you know three, four, five years,” Joyner said. “Some of them they only know the United States and will have gone to high school, graduate high school just in time for ICE to send them to prison.”

Migrant children coming to the U.S. alone usually have special protections

Migrant children traveling alone are usually entrusted to U.S. government care, and there are various legal protections that apply to them once they’re in the U.S. and navigating the immigration system, including the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008.

The law said the government should facilitate legal representation for children put into deportation proceedings.

With some limited exceptions, it requires that children be placed in the “least restrictive setting possible,” which generally means they can be released to a sponsor, such as a relative in the U.S., while their immigration proceedings play out.

The children can apply for a specially protected status if they can’t return to their home country because of abuse or neglect and they can also apply for asylum.

___

Santana reported from Sacramento. Associated Press reporter Laura Turbay in Little Rock contributed to this report.

Broadcasters like ABC, Carr said in an interview on the Fox Business Network, “struck a deal with the American people. You broadcasters get subsidized access, free access to a valuable public resource, the airwaves, worth billions of dollars. In exchange, you have to operate in the public interest.”

“Look, as a country, we should have a trusted, respected news media, and we’re not there,” Carr told anchor Maria Bartiromo. “So I hope more broadcasters return to their public interest obligations.”

The FCC has been pushing ABC

The remarks came a day after ABC, issuing another salvo in an ever-escalating battle with President Donald Trump’s FCC, again accused the agency of a brazen attempt to chill its constitutionally protected free speech — and by extension, that of every media outlet in the country.

ABC accused the agency of retaliating against it simply because it doesn't like the political content of ABC’s shows.

The network's new comments came in its latest filing to the agency, expressing its formal opposition to the FCC's early review, launched in April, of eight ABC local broadcast licenses well before they expire.

“There is no question why the Commission is singling out these eight stations,” the filing said. “Each is owned by ABC, and the Administration has openly and repeatedly called for the revocation of ABC’s licenses, because it dislikes the content and viewpoints expressed on ABC network programs.”

“The retaliation against ABC is a signal to every media company in the country,” it continued. “Accommodate the Administration’s view of what news coverage should look like or pay the price. … The tools vary; the objective does not: a media industry too fearful of official reprisal to report the news freely. “

The license review is only one part of a long-simmering confrontation between ABC and the FCC. The network is also battling Carr’s efforts to make "The View,” a talk show whose hosts and guests have frequently angered Trump, subject to equal-time rules — a question ABC says the agency itself resolved more than two decades ago.

The rules require granting equal airtime to competing candidates for office. Bona fide news programs are exempt. The FCC qualified the show as such in a 2002 decision.

Kimmel has also been a target

Trump has also repeatedly called for late-night host Jimmy Kimmel to be fired.

When the FCC launched its early review of ABC’s licenses in April, it came amid a fight with Kimmel over a joke that offended Trump. The agency, however, cited diversity, equity and inclusion practices at the company, and Carr brought them up in the Fox interview.

Operating in the public interest, he said, “means you can’t run news distortions, broadcast hoax. You can’t be engaging in this invidious form of DEI discrimination.” He did not elaborate.

In its filing Thursday, ABC referred to over 140,000 comments from viewers, part of the public comment period on the issue, posted to the FCC website — more than 95% of which it said were supportive of ABC’s position.

“The outpouring of support for the Stations has been unprecedented for a license renewal proceeding," it said. “These supporters span the ideological spectrum but share a fundamental commitment to free speech and press freedom.”

In its lengthy filing, ABC also noted how rare it is that the FCC would call for early license renewal applications.

“Until the day before the Commission took this step, it had not called for license renewal applications ahead of schedule for more than fifty years,” ABC said. “The Commission’s departure from those norms lays bare what is really going on: the Administration is retaliating against ABC for the exercise of its First Amendment rights.

"That alone should stop these proceedings in their tracks.“

___

Jocelyn Noveck covers the intersection of media and entertainment for The Associated Press.

After being driven past two businesses relevant to the narrative of the January 2023 killings, jurors were escorted in groups of six to view the inside of the house, including the basement where the children died. During the roughly 40-minute visit, the jury also saw the yard where Clancy was found after jumping from a second-story window.

Journalists were kept away by a police barricade, but court officers could be seen through the trees escorting jurors to and from the bus along the site of the Clancy family’s former driveway. The home now has a new owner.

Clancy herself did not attend the visit to the home, which she hasn't seen since the day of the killings. Her lawyers argue she was in the grip of postpartum psychosis, a rare mental illness linked to the stress, sleep deprivation and hormonal changes that follow childbirth.

___

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.

___

Jurors in U.S. criminal cases often are expressly told not to visit the scene of the events in question. There are a number of rationales for not doing so — among other things, the site may have changed in the interim between an alleged crime and a trial.

But courts sometimes allow juries to make a supervised excursion as a group, for reasons that can include assessing distances or features that aren’t thought to come across fully in photos.

Such excursions have happened in a number of high-profile cases, including the 2023 murder trial of South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh, the 2022 sentencing trial of Parkland, Florida, school shooter Nikolas Cruz, the 2015 Massachusetts murder trial of former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez and the 1995 murder trial of O.J. Simpson.

Jurors in Clancy's trial retraced the route her then-husband, Patrick Clancy, took when she asked him to pick up takeout food and medicine for daughter Cora on the night of the killings. He returned to find the children dead and his then-wife badly injured and bleeding in the yard.

The panel was driven past the restaurant — about 5.5 miles (9 kilometers) from the family’s former home in Duxbury, a town south of Boston — and the pharmacy, about a mile (1.6 km) from the house.

Prosecutors say the errands were a ruse to get her husband out of the house. They say Lindsay Clancy, a former labor and delivery nurse, acted intentionally and is criminally responsible for the deaths of children Cora, 5; Dawson, 3; and Callan, 8 months.

Her lawyers don't dispute that she killed the children, but they say she had bipolar disorder and her condition worsened while she was on antidepressants prescribed after the birth of her third child. She believed a voice was telling her to “kill the children so you can kill yourself,” according to her lawyers.

Lindsay Clancy remains paralyzed from the waist down after using multiple methods to try to end her life that night.

If convicted of murder, she faces life in prison without parole. If found not guilty due to a lack of criminal responsibility, she would be committed to a state mental health facility.

___ Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz contributed from New York.

Antonio Oseguera Cervantes worked for cartels with his brother Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, the drug lord known as “El Mencho” who was killed by the Mexican army in February, according to federal prosecutors.

El Mencho co-founded and led the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación, known by its Spanish-language acronym CJNG. Last year, President Donald Trump’s administration designated the CJNG and other cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.

Antonio Oseguera Cervantes, 67, of Michoacán, Mexico, faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell is scheduled to sentence him on Nov. 13.

Besides the conspiracy charge, Oseguera Cervantes also pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking conspiracy.

Oseguera Cervantes was transferred from Mexico to the U.S. for prosecution in February 2025. He was a member of the Milenio Cartel before his brother co-founded the CJNG.

While appearing on “Live in the D,” festival organizers highlighted what visitors can expect from authentic food and live entertainment to family-friendly activities that make this annual event a summertime favorite.

Watch the segment above for more information about the festival which takes Saturday, August 1 and Sunday, August 2.

The agreement announced by Trump late Thursday could pave the way for ending the latest Israel-Hamas war that broke out on Oct. 7, 2023, and which has seen continued violence despite a ceasefire last October. Few places in the Palestinian territory of over 2 million people have been left unscathed, and the United Nations, World Bank and European Union estimate that reconstruction will cost $70 billion.

Hamas officials said the group has agreed to the disarmament agreement. Israel has not commented.

The Board of Peace will have a major role in overseeing the deal's implementation.

Here's what the group is and what it is expected to do:

What is the Board of Peace

The Board of Peace was first mentioned in September when the White House released Trump’s plan to end the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Trump’s 20-point ceasefire plan called on Hamas to surrender its weapons and destroy its vast network of tunnels. It also envisions Israeli forces withdrawing from Gaza, the arrival of a new technocratic Palestinian government, deployment of an international security force and the rebuilding of the battered Palestinian enclave after more than two years of war.

More than two dozen nations signed on as the board's founding members, including Israel and other regional heavyweights, as well as countries from outside the Middle East such as Indonesia, Paraguay and Vietnam.

Germany, Italy, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom are among more than a dozen countries that have not joined the board but took part in a February meeting as observers.

Israelis are suspicious of the involvement of Qatar and Turkey, which have longstanding relations with Hamas. Earlier this year, Palestinians objected because their representatives weren’t invited to the board, even as it weighs the future of a territory that is home to some 2 million of them.

A $1 billion contribution secures permanent membership on the board instead of a three-year appointment, which has no contribution requirement.

During the first meeting of the board in February in Washington, members pledged $7 billion in aid for Gaza — just a fraction of the $70 billion that international bodies say is needed to rebuild the territory. The board also announced plans for international troops and police, and for reconstruction. But no timeline was given.

How the board is involved in the new deal

The agreement was reached after months of “very difficult negotiations,” Nickolay Mladenov, the director-general of the Board of Peace in Gaza, said in comments posted on X. “There were several points when I did not believe we would make it,” he added.

Mladenov, a former Bulgarian defense and foreign minister who served as the U.N. envoy to Iraq before being appointed as the U.N. Mideast peace envoy from 2015-2020, added, “Implementation and verification have to be real” and “withdrawal must move in lockstep with decommissioning.”

The National Committee for The Administration of Gaza, a Palestinian technocratic body that operates under the supervision of the Board of Peace, is tasked with administering Gaza in the interim period after Hamas gives up control.

That includes setting up a new police force to replace the one previously run by Hamas and implementing the disarmament process - the details of which are not yet clear.

The NCAS said in a statement Friday that it is ready to assume responsibility for governing Gaza and restoring public services and the rule of law.

Ambitious Plans

In November, the Trump administration’s blueprint to secure and govern Gaza won strong approval at the United Nations.

Israel and the U.S. say Hamas’ disarmament is key to progress on the other fronts. Arab and Muslim members of the Board of Peace have accused Israel of undermining the ceasefire with its daily strikes and want the U.S. to rein in its close ally. They have called on Hamas to disarm but say Israel’s withdrawal is just as important.

Senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad, who is a member of the group’s negotiating team, told Qatar's Al Jazeera TV on Friday that the agreement is a “full package” of which Hamas’ disarmament is a part.

“Hamas and Palestinian factions are making concessions for the sake of our Palestinian people in Gaza,” Hamad said. He added that Hamas will not take any step unless they are sure that Israel will implement the deal from its side.

Israel defines demilitarization as extending from heavy weapons like rocket-propelled grenades all the way down to roughly 60,000 rifles that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says would have to be given up.

Trump — along with son-in-law Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff — has laid out ambitious plans for rebuilding Gaza with international investment.

In Davos last year, Kushner suggested reconstruction could be complete in a matter of three years, even though U.N. forecasts suggest that clearing rubble and demining alone could take much longer.

Kushner’s slides showed a reconstructed Gaza with a coastal tourism strip, industrial zones and data centers. He conceded that rebuilding would begin only in demilitarized areas and that security would be essential to attract investment.

A stabilization force

The ceasefire deal also calls for a temporary International Stabilization Force made up of soldiers from Arab and Muslim-majority countries. Its mandate is not spelled out in detail, but would include securing aid deliveries, preventing weapons smuggling and vetting and training a Palestinian police force.

Maj. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, who is leading the effort, said in February the plans call for 12,000 police and 20,000 soldiers for Gaza.

Indonesia, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Albania have pledged to send troops for the force, while Egypt and Jordan have committed to train police.

Troops will initially be deployed to Rafah, a heavily damaged and largely depopulated city under full Israeli control, where the U.S. administration hopes to first focus reconstruction efforts.

The biggest blow to the planned force came about a week after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, when Indonesia put its commitment of 8,000 troops on indefinite hold. Some 1,000 were to have been sent in April, followed by the remainder in June.

The latest Israel-Hamas war broke out on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants stormed southern Israel killing over 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, including hundreds who perished after a ceasefire went into effect Oct. 10, Gaza’s Health Ministry says. The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-led government and is staffed by medical professionals, does not distinguish between civilians and militants in its toll but says women and children make up around half of all deaths.

DeBuck’s Sunflower Festival is showcasing two million sunflowers, various attractions, and more family fun.

The festival kicked off July 30 and runs through Aug. 16. Watch the video above to learn more.

The Cabinet meeting, the 13th such gathering of Trump's second term, came just three months before the November midterm elections that could serve as a check on his power if Democrats take control of one or both chambers of Congress. His warnings about Spain echoed language he used ahead of the 2018 midterms, when he warned of caravans of migrants headed to the southern U.S. border.

“You know, I saw Spain yesterday, and I watched the catastrophe that took place. It looks like an invasion of a country by hundreds of thousands of people,” Trump said. “And that same thing is going to happen to us if the Republicans don’t get elected. Except worse, much bigger.”

Some 60,000 migrants crossed from Morocco into Spain’s tiny Ceuta territory over the past 24 hours. Roughly half of them have already made their way back voluntarily, according to the Spanish government, but at least 57 have died on the journey.

Separately, he deflected blame for a series of cyberattacks that targeted 30 water systems in Minnesota on the state’s “grossly incompetent” Democratic leadership. Officials have not publicly identified who was behind the attacks, though the FBI, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and other agencies warned in an advisory last week that Iranian hackers have been targeting water and wastewater systems and the operational controls of other critical infrastructure sectors.

“They blame it on Iran,” Trump said, without offering evidence. “I don’t think so. I think I blame it on Minnesota because they’re grossly incompetent.”

The president regularly convenes his Cabinet throughout his terms as a setting to promote his administration's policies while fielding questions on the news of the day, but what made Friday's unusual was that it was at Camp David, the government-owned retreat nestled in Maryland's Catoctin Mountains where Trump held one Cabinet meeting during his first term.

Trump began the meeting by noting it was “something very unique.” The White House called it the first-ever televised Cabinet meeting from the presidential retreat.

“It's Camp David, and this room is a very, very special room,” Trump said.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth were among the Cabinet officials who spoke before Trump took questions from journalists. The public portion of the meeting ended after about an hour.

Trump fields questions on Iran, Hamas deal and Blanche confirmation

In the lengthy question-and-answer session, Trump commented on the latest developments regarding the war in Iran and a deal he announced Thursday that would lead to the disarmament of the Palestinian group Hamas. He also lamented that a $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund to compensate his allies was “dead” and appeared to back off a pledge he made earlier this month to grant Ukraine a license to manufacture Patriot air defense systems.

“I don’t think this would ever happen, but, you know, there’s people that, you give that technology, they can someday turn on you,” Trump added. “You look at war, that’s happened a couple of times over the years, right? So we have to be very careful.”

On the Hamas agreement, Trump acknowledged that the agreement that would also lead to Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza will have “ups and downs.” Still, he called it a “great breakthrough” that has been helped along by the U.S. and Israel’s war with Iran, which has served as Hamas’ prime backer.

Trump also remarked on the anti-weaponization fund that is holding up the confirmation of Todd Blanche as his attorney general, saying the pot of money is “dead” and that “I wish it weren't, to be honest with you.”

The president continued to defend the people who could potentially benefit from the fund, mainly those who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to stop the certification of Democrat Joe Biden's victory over him.

“Their families have been ruined,” Trump said. Those people “wanted to go to a rally or an event and ended up spending the rest of their lives in horror.”

Trump said Blanche has been a “pawn in this whole thing.” Blanche, who was present, did not speak in the public portion of the Cabinet meeting.

Camp David has been a retreat for presidents since FDR

The camp’s primary purpose is to provide presidents a place to rest, relax and recharge. It was established in 1942 during Franklin Roosevelt's presidency and has been used by every president since.

Roosevelt had enjoyed relaxing aboard a presidential yacht, but the military and the U.S. Secret Service began to worry about his safety on open water during World War II. As a result, Roosevelt asked the National Park Service to find sites within 100 miles (160 kilometers) of the White House that he could use for rest.

He chose what is now known as Camp David. He gave it the original name of Shangri-La, from James Hilton’s novel “Lost Horizon.” President Dwight Eisenhower renamed it Camp David, after his grandson and father.

Trump spent more weekends at the retreat in his first term but has visited sparingly in his second, most recently in June for Father’s Day.

In 2019, during his first term, Trump announced on social media that he had canceled a secret weekend meeting at Camp David with Taliban and Afghanistan leaders — scheduled for just days before the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks — after a bombing in the capital of Kabul killed a dozen people, including a U.S. soldier.

Presidents throughout history have turned to Camp David when they needed security and privacy for sensitive diplomatic talks with foreign leaders. Jimmy Carter took the leaders of Egypt and Israel there in 1978 for talks that produced the Camp David Accords, a peace agreement between the two countries.

The 180-acre (73-hectare) retreat, which is run by the Navy and guarded by Marines, has a cabin named Aspen that’s reserved for the president, plus about a dozen other cabins for guests. A main lodge has conference rooms, a dining room and an office for the president.

___

Superville and Kim reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Collin Binkley, Will Weissert and Aamer Madhani contributed to this report from Washington.

The Big Ten calls its reputation as a top-heavy conference unfair.

Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti considers those three College Football Playoff championships — from Michigan in 2023, Ohio State in 2024 and Indiana in 2025 — testaments to the league’s strength from top to bottom.

“You cannot send your top teams out into the CFP unless they’ve played — and have them be successful, which we have been very successful — if they’re not going through a gauntlet in the regular season,” Petitti said this week. “This idea that the middle of our conference isn’t hard is just not right.”

The balance of power between college football’s heavyweight conferences has been a major talking point at the leagues’ media days.

Petitti spoke to reporters while standing beside the Big Ten’s three recent CFP trophies. Illinois coach Bret Bielema said the SEC was living in the past. Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said “there’s no doubt” the Big Ten is best.

“The numbers speak for themselves,” Cignetti said. “We don’t run a hype machine up here in the Midwest. We believe everything is earned, not given. When we fall short, we say, ‘We fell short.’ We don’t cry a river, whine and complain. That’s why we’re the best.”

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey argued his league’s case a week earlier.

“When you look at our schedule, no one has created the kind of weekly competition that exists in the Southeastern Conference,” Sankey said.

Five different SEC schools combined to win 13 national titles from 2006-22, but no SEC team has reached any of the last three championship games.

Both have evidence to support their claims

In the first two years under a 12-team CFP format, seven different SEC schools have made eight playoff appearances. The Big Ten had four schools total seven playoff berths.

Certain metrics support the idea that the 16-team SEC is stronger than the 18-school Big Ten at the bottom. ESPN’s Bill Connelly produces the SP+ rankings, a predictive measure rating each team’s efficiency while adjusting for tempo and an opponent’s strength.

The Big Ten had three of the top four teams in the 2025 season-ending SP+ rankings, while the SEC had nobody in the top five. But seven Big Ten programs ranked below the lowest SEC team on the list: No. 67 Kentucky.

Recent head-to-head results favor Big Ten

Over the last two seasons, the Big Ten went 10-7 against the SEC, including a 3-0 playoff record and a 5-2 mark in other bowl games. The Big Ten won as an underdog in all five of those non-playoff victories.

Illinois produced two of those upsets, beating South Carolina in the Citrus Bowl in 2024 and defeating Tennessee in the Music City Bowl last season. So Bielema had reason to feel good about himself and his conference this week when he commented that SEC backers “kind of want to live in 2005 forever.”

The 2005 reference was curious because Texas won the title that season when it was still a Big 12 member, a year before the SEC began a string of seven straight titles. Bielema said he chose 2005 because that’s the year before his head coaching career began at Wisconsin.

“The transfer portal and revenue share or NIL, however you want to describe it, when those two elements came into college football, the whole world changed,” said Bielema, who went 29-34 while coaching SEC school Arkansas from 2013-17. “I mean, it’s overly obvious to say that, but I think anything to predate that is just a different time in college football. It just is.”

Big Ten capitalizes on changing times

Fourteen of the 22 playoff games over the last two years have featured Big Ten teams, including two in which conference rivals faced off. No wonder even Big Ten coaches with SEC backgrounds claim bragging rights.

“I just look at what the stats are, you know, and the last three years, the national champion has come out of this conference,” said Purdue’s Barry Odom, who went 25-25 at Missouri from 2016-19. “You also look at the number of playoff wins compared to any other conference, we’ve won twice as many as the next conference in the playoffs.”

UCLA quarterback Nico Iamaleava has experience playing in both conferences after reaching the playoff with Tennessee in 2024.

“I think it’s two great leagues — two great, physical leagues,” Iamaleava said. “I think the SEC brings a lot of physicality, but over the years, it’s kind of leveled out in terms of the playing field.
I think everybody is able to get high-level athletes. ... I think there’s definitely a lot of tough SEC teams, so that every week is going to be a game, but I feel the same way in the Big Ten.”

The intensity of the debate frustrates coaches eager to settle it on the field, perhaps with more head-to-head matchups.

“You never hear in the NFL, ‘Wow, the NFC’s better than the AFC,’” Washington coach Jedd Fisch said. “You don’t ever hear, ’Check us out, we’ve won the Super Bowl the last few years.' We’ve kind of made this some competition rather than just take a step back and say, ‘Who cares?’ Let’s play.”

___

AP freelance writer Luke DeCock contributed to this report.

___

AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

A draft notice published Friday in the Federal Register says a nearly year-long review “provided sufficient data” to suggest the bond program effectively enforces compliance with visa conditions, and would be made permanent.

The notice is to be formally released on Monday, the day the program becomes permanent, and additional countries may be added to the list, which can be found here. The pilot program set the maximum bond amount at $15,000, with lower amounts of $5,000 and $10,000 based on a consular officer’s discretion. The final regulation raises the maximum to $20,000 and removes the $5,000 low-end payment.

The program requires holders of passports from the affected countries to pay the bond to be interviewed for business and tourist visas — known as B1 and B2 visas — to travel to the United States. The bond is refunded if the visa application is denied or, if granted, if the person adheres to the visa terms.

The Trump administration rolled out the program last August to crack down on visa overstays and as part of its broader efforts to curtail illegal migration. The government estimates that arresting and deporting visitors who have overstayed their visa costs about $18,000 per person.

State Department officials have hailed the program as a great success. In 2024, nearly 45,500 visitors from the 50 countries in the program overstayed their visas, according to the notice. In the first 10 months of the pilot visa bond program, the number of overstays from those countries was fewer than 50, it said.

Critics have said it imposes an unnecessarily harsh burden on people from impoverished countries to visit family members or to pursue education or business opportunities in the U.S.

According to government projections and statistics from the first year of the program, the State Department initially expected that about 2,000 visa applicants would be required to post the bond. Instead, the department found that roughly 20,000 applicants were covered by the bond requirement.

Nearly half of those applicants chose not to pay the bond and there was an 83% decline in the number of business and tourist visas issued to citizens of countries on the list.

“The department expects that this final rule will contribute to the continued reduction of demand for B1/B2 visa applications from nationals of countries subject to the program,” the notice said.

Movie reviewer Greg Russell has the scoop on “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and “The Dink.”

Watch the video above to see the Reel Talk segment on “Live in the D.”

The week before the Jacksonville Jaguars opened training camp, Hunter was photographed wearing a police vest posing with Sheriff T.K. Waters and members of the Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department. It had the look of a ride-along, though Hunter wasn't saying.

“I was just out there just having fun with Sheriff T.K.,” Hunter said Friday.

Hunter, the Heisman Trophy winner out of Colorado whom the Jaguars made the No. 2 pick in last year's draft, has enough to keep him occupied in training camp. Hunter is returning from injury, his rookie year ending two months into the season when he tore knee ligaments during noncontact drills.

In seven games, he played 324 snaps at receiver and 162 snaps at cornerback. The plan to use him on both sides of the ball has not changed, especially after the Jaguars shored up the core of their secondary by re-signing Montaric “Buster” Brown in March.

Hunter has been wearing a teal jersey for offense in three days of camp, with a white bib and his No. 12 he can slip on when he plays in the secondary.

“How do we balance his reps here, knowing that we’re trying to ease him in, but he also at some point needs to get double the amount that a normal player gets,” coach Liam Coen said. “And so what does that ramp-up look like? We have it all kind of mapped out ... on every single practice schedule, his reps are highlighted in here — where he’s in, what plays he’s in, where he’s at on the field. We’ve been extremely intentional about it.”

Hunter, who had surgery Nov. 11 to repair the lateral collateral ligament in his right knee, was limited during offseason workouts. But he used that time to build up some 10 pounds of muscle in his upper body and managed to get even faster.

He was clocked running at 22.6 mph at the team's facility last week.

“I was a small guy coming in. Everybody was like, ’Gain weight, gain weight,’” Hunter said. “I was scared at first. I'm like: ‘Dang, I’ve never played at this weight. I'm going to feel heavy, not going to be able to do what I do.' Training and being able to put those months in — not just on the grass but in the weight room — just putting in extra work, it made me feel lighter on my feet when I finally touched the grass.”

He looked like he was flying on grass when he ran the 22.6 mph — no pads, no one around him, not in a game — but it was another indication all was well.

“I'm trying to hit 23 now,” Hunter said. “That's the next goal.”

The Jaguars could use the production considering how much they gave up in a trade to get the second pick in 2025 — their No. 5 pick last year and No. 1 pick this year. They won nine of their last 10 games last year after Hunter was injured to win the AFC South.

For his part, Hunter feels like last year never happened in terms of his health.

“I put nine months in, so it doesn’t feel like I’m coming off an injury,” he said. "Just get the rust off right now. I’ve been gone for nine months, not able to be out here with my teammates for nine months, so finally being able to hit the grass, knock the rust off and just continue to click with the quarterbacks and click with the defense.”

Defensive coordinator Anthony Campanile said Hunter is getting back into the flow, and the added muscle in his upper body is noticeable.

“You never want to see anybody get injured, but I think he really put his best foot forward in the weight room as he was recovering from a lower-body injury,” Campanile said. “He just looks really physical in the team work and in the individual period. So he's done a good job.”

And now it's all football, though the Engine 36 B-Shift crew said in its Facebook post for Hunter to let them know when he was ready for a ride-along.

“We promise, it's just as hot as training camp,” the post said.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Here are the most important developments across the Middle East today:

Gaza: Deal reached for Hamas to disarm, Israel to withdraw

Hamas said it will begin disarming as part of a deal announced by U.S. President Donald Trump that also requires Israel to end its strikes and withdraw from Gaza.

Hamas also said that laying down its heavy weapons, which would come later in the process, was contingent on the creation of a Palestinian state, something Israel’s current government adamantly rejects.

Reflecting the hurdles of the potential disarmament, a series of Israeli airstrikes shook Gaza again on Friday, killing at least one Palestinian and wounding at least four, including a child, according to officials in hospitals near the attacks. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres welcomed the agreement, calling it the only good news in recent days from a troubled region. The deal must be implemented “without any questions, skepticism, or determination to undermine it,” he told reporters.

Israel has not officially commented on the Hamas deal, which is part of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire announced last October. That agreement called for Hamas to disarm and hand over power to an independent Palestinian administration. Israel was to withdraw and an International Stabilization Force was to be deployed.

But progress stalled, with Israel saying everything hinged on Hamas disarming, and Hamas accusing Israel of violating the agreement by continuing to carry out regular strikes on Gaza.

The war in Gaza began after the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killed around 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage. Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, including those killed since the ceasefire, Gaza’s Health Ministry says.

The Associated Press is tracking the progress of Trump's plan to end the Israel-Hamas war.

Latest developments on the Iran conflict

No U.S. strikes were reported in Iran on Friday. Iran fired drones at Kuwait, a Gulf country hosting U.S. forces, and said it had also fired at oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for global oil and gas shipments, which has been largely closed by the fighting.

1. Kuwait's Defense Ministry said Friday its armed forces had shot down drones inside Kuwaiti airspace. It said the Iranian attacks had targeted several vital military facilities, causing material damage from falling shrapnel but no casualties. It did not specify how many drones were intercepted. Iranian state media said Iran had targeted an air base in Kuwait with drones in retaliation for U.S. strikes on Thursday.

2. Iran's Revolutionary Guard claimed to have hit two oil tankers attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian state media said four other tankers had turned around. The report did not provide further details on the tankers' ownership, or whether there were any casualties.

Elsewhere in the region:

3. Saudi Arabia has announced a plan for a defense alliance of 14 countries to strengthen maritime security, safeguard freedom of navigation and secure international trade routes and energy supply corridors in the Red Sea region. The Iran war has severely disrupted global shipping. Yemen's Houthi rebels have declared a blockade on Saudi Arabia over a separate but related conflict, putting at risk another major trade corridor .

4. Saudi Arabia's Defense Ministry said Thursday that the coalition is “defensive in nature,” and that access “remains open to all willing countries.” Oman and the United Arab Emirates were the only two Gulf countries that did not back Saudi Arabia’s statement. Turkey, Egypt and Pakistan were among those that joined the proposed alliance.

5. A Houthi official, speaking Friday on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to brief the media, said the Saudi initiative won't protect its vessels — that would happen only after the Saudis lift their blockade on Yemen. Large crowds of Yemenis, meanwhile, took to the streets in the capital, Sanaa, and other Houthi-controlled areas to show support for the Iran-backed rebels and their Red Sea attacks against Saudi Arabia. The rallies were organized by the Houthis.

6. In southern Lebanon, Israeli forces set off explosions Friday to destroy an underground tunnel network under the Crusader-built Beaufort Castle that Israel says had been used by Hezbollah militants as a command center. The 12th-century castle, also known as Al-Shaqif, was seized by Israeli forces in May. It was recently added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List over Israel’s objections.

7. Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun said the Israeli operation sent “negative messages” ahead of upcoming talks in Rome. Israeli and Lebanese negotiating teams are set to meet again there to continue hammering out a plan under which Israel would withdraw from southern Lebanon in exchange for Hezbollah’s disarmament.

___

Associated Press writer Fatma Khaled contributed to this report from Cairo. Becatoros contributed from Athens, Greece.

The deadline is Monday at 6 p.m. EDT.

Skubal — a 29-year-old left-hander who will be a free agent this offseason — is in the midst of another strong year for the Detroit Tigers after winning back-to-back Cy Youngs in 2024 and 2025. The left-hander missed about five weeks earlier in the season because of surgery to remove loose bodies in his elbow, but he has bounced back quickly.

He's been excellent over his last five starts, with a 2.03 ERA and 41 strikeouts in 31 innings.

One thing complicating Skubal's availability is the Tigers have played better of late and they're hanging around the American League wild-card race, just 4 1/2 games back for the final playoff spot going into Friday's games — albeit with five teams ahead of them. But if a juicy offer is presented, it'll be hard to say no.

Detroit's uncertain playoff fate is a common problem for teams as the deadline approaches.

There is a handful of obvious buyers at the deadline like the Yankees, Rays, Brewers, Braves and Dodgers. There is also a small group of obvious sellers like the Rockies, Giants, Angels, Mets, Athletics and Royals.

But that leaves nearly 20 other teams who are in the middle and could be buyers, sellers or a combination of both.

Here's a look at some of the top trade candidates as Monday's deadline approaches.

The starting pitchers

— Peralta, Mets: The right-hander has had a disappointing season, which is a common refrain for the Mets, but his strikeout numbers are still good. He was excellent for the Brewers over the previous three seasons. If he can fix his command issues, he could help a contender.

— Joe Ryan, Twins: Another powerful arm, the right-hander has been an All-Star in each of the past two seasons. It's unclear if the Twins are buyers or sellers in a crowded American League race — they added reliever A.J. Minter from the Mets on Friday, so continued buying seems more likely. If the Twins decide to move Ryan, though, it could bring back a solid return.

— Foster Griffin, Nationals: The veteran lefty has been outstanding in his return to MLB after spending three seasons in Japan with a 12-2 record and 2.76 ERA. The Nationals are still in the mix for a playoff spot in the National League, but they will likely still be willing to listen to offers.

— Reid Detmers, Angels: The left-hander has been a bright spot in a mostly dismal season for the Angels with 145 strikeouts in 125 innings. Los Angeles will want a sizable return for the 27-year-old, who is still under team control for the next two seasons.

— Clay Holmes, Mets: The 33-year-old made a successful transition from reliever to starter in 2025 and was having another solid season before he fractured his right fibula on a comeback liner in May. The right-hander is in the midst of a minor-league rehab assignment and nearing his return.

— Robbie Ray, Giants: The two-time All-Star and 2021 Cy Young winner doesn't have the wipeout, strikeout stuff that he possessed early in his career, but he's been very good for San Francisco this season with a 10-6 record and 3.08 ERA.

The relief pitchers

— Miller, Padres: The game's most dominant closer, Miller has a jaw-dropping 85 strikeouts over 45 2/3 innings, 28 saves and an 0.79 ERA. Relievers usually don't command huge returns during trade deadline deals, but Miller is an exception, particularly because the 6-foot-5 righty is still under team control for three more years.

— Adrián Morejón, Padres: The left-handed Cuban has been a key part of the Padres' bullpen for the past three seasons. He's a free agent after the season which means he could be on the move.

— Luke Weaver, Mets: The veteran righty has found his niche after making the full-time move to the bullpen in 2024. He's not necessarily a closer, but he does have some experience in the role. He was very good for the Yankees in the playoffs during their run to the World Series in 2024.

— Jeff Hoffman, Blue Jays: The right-hander lost his job as the team's closer earlier this season, but his strikeout numbers are still excellent with 72 punchouts over 46 innings.

Position players

— Luis Arraez, Giants, 2B: The three-time batting champion and four-time All-Star is in the midst of one of his best seasons and has flashed improved defense at second base. He is an elite contact hitter who rarely strikes out and is a free agent after the season.

— Ryan Jeffers, Twins, C: Jeffers recently returned from the injured list and has a career-high .928 OPS this season. His ability to provide pop from the right side will make him a popular trade target, though the Twins might not be willing to make a deal since they're still in the playoff hunt.

— Daulton Varsho, Blue Jays, OF: The 30-year-old slugger is one of the game's better athletes and won a Gold Glove in 2024. He's an upcoming free agent, but he has playoff experience and can still provide great defense with some left-handed power.

— CJ Abrams, Nationals, SS: Washington will want a big return for the All-Star shortstop, who is in the midst of his best year and is under team control for the next two seasons. But if a contender is willing to offer a big package of prospects, the ascending Nationals will likely listen.

— Zach Neto, Angels, SS: Neto has been one of the Angels' best players over the last three seasons. He's a solid defender and provides a good amount of right-handed power, though his strikeout numbers have been high this season.

— Luis García Jr., Nationals, 1B: The left-handed slugger has quietly put together his best season with 23 homers and 76 RBIs. He doesn't walk much, but has one more year of team control and is still just 26 years old.

___

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

The Dancing Pine features a Korean steakhouse menu and an elevated dining experience with a modern twist.

Watch the Dine in the D segment above to see more.

Jon Villasurda Sr. was one of the several people arrested in what Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel called one of the largest international human trafficking rings uncovered in the state in December 2024.

Background --> 5 arrested, charged in Metro Detroit human trafficking ring

Two others charged, Huazi Piao and Jingyu Jin, recently pleaded to one count of conducting a criminal enterprise for their role in the human trafficking ring.

Piao was sentenced in October 2025, and Jin is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 3.

“Transporting vulnerable individuals to be trafficked is a heinous crime, and I applaud the prosecutors in my office for securing this conviction,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said in a statement. “This enterprise, one of the largest human trafficking rings ever uncovered in our state, profited from the forced commercial sex servitude of victims right here in our communities, moving them through illicit parlors, airports, casinos, and residences. Together with our law enforcement partners, we have liberated numerous women, and we remain committed to pursuing traffickers and supporting survivors.”

On July 30, Villasurda pleaded guilty to one count of transporting a person for prostitution. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 10.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation on Friday jointly announced the proposed changes to the Community Reinvestment Act, a law that requires regulators to document how well banks do in lending to low-to-middle income neighborhoods. It would be the first major revision of the law’s rules and regulations in nearly three decades.

Under the proposed revisions, bank examiners would put more weight on the lending banks do in certain communities and geographies, and less on how many branches they open or how much in deposits they take in from a local community.

The number of banks that would need to comply with the law would be reduced as well. The definition of a small bank will increase from banks with under $412 million in assets to banks with $1 billion in assets. Banks between $1 billion and $10 billion in assets will now be classified as an intermediate bank.

This would reduce the number of banks who need to comply with parts of the CRA by 800 banks. Only 86 banks, or roughly 3% of all institutions, would be subject to the full extent of CRA under the new regulations.

Another change that is likely to be fought over relates to how banks give money to community development groups. Under the CRA, banks can donate money to local organizations that do poverty or low-income housing work in their communities to show they are providing resources to a local community. The new regulations could narrow the groups and programs that banks could donate to in order to meet those obligations.

In a summary of the changes, the bank regulators said these changes would ensure community development grants “are not diverted to activist causes or consumed by excessive operating costs.” Banks would also need to collect more detailed information on who gets their community grants, including addresses, which would give more transparency to who is receiving grants from banks.

That change could negatively impact groups like the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, an umbrella group for community development groups that often receive money from banks under the CRA. The new rules discourage banks making grants to national organizations and instead focus their grants on local groups.

Jesse Van Tol, the CEO of NCRC, said that it was “unfortunate” that the bank regulators were politicizing grant making under the CRA.

“CRA was created to work for low-to-middle income people. A lot of these changes are going to discourage banks from making grants, particularly in rural areas, where I expect there will be significant drops in activity,” Van Tol said.

The proposal announced Friday by the OCC and FDIC did not include the other major bank regulator, the Federal Reserve. Banking groups had been pushing for a joint proposal from all three regulators, to make sure all three were aligned on the same requirements under the CRA.

The CRA was passed in 1977 to combat redlining, a practice whereby banks would discriminate against the poor and minorities by choosing not to lend or open branches in minority-majority neighborhoods or in poor neighborhoods.

The law is complex, requiring banks to document how they do business in the cities and areas they operate in. Banks must sit for regular examinations to see whether they are complying with the law. A bad CRA examination could restrict a bank’s ability to open new branches or merge with another bank or have other consequences. The data collected through CRA is also used by the Department of Justice in redlining cases.

The last major revision of the CRA’s regulations happened in 1995, and there have been repeated attempts by administrations of both parties to update the rules to reflect how banking and financial services have changed in the past 30 years. But those revisions have repeatedly failed, either due to opposition from other regulators, the banks, or community groups, or have been blocked by courts. The Biden administration tried its own revisions of the CRA rules but those changes were blocked by courts in Texas.

The proposed rules will now go out for a 60-day comment period where they will be finalized after banks, community groups and other parties have a chance to weigh in on the changes.

Until now, the answer has been a doting home health aide from Haiti named Martha Nelson. But with the Supreme Court sanctioning a White House immigration crackdown, Nelson’s permission to stay in the country appears likely to be yanked within days, leaving French worried.

“She’s with me all the time,” says French. “Life would be impossible.”

As the Trump administration unwinds years of protections for hundreds of thousands of people from Haiti, twin populations of vulnerable people find themselves in the crosshairs: caregivers in jobs to which those immigrants have flocked, and the older adults and disabled people who rely on them.

Around the U.S., care homes and home health agencies are bracing for the loss of workers with TPS, which stands for temporary protected status, even as they continue to reel from other immigration policy changes that have squeezed an already short-staffed industry.

For businesses, it is a predicament that could hurt bottom lines and tax remaining workers. For their clients, it threatens to upend every aspect of their lives.

“They have become like family,” says Katy Sanchez, who lives in a group home for disabled people in Nanuet, New York, run by The Arc Rockland, which stands to lose 19 caregivers with TPS, on top of 20 others it lost in immigration changes last year. “If they are forced to leave, it would be devastating.”

Supreme Court ruling paved the way

The Supreme Court sided with the Trump administration last month, saying it could end temporary protected status. The ruling specifically pertained to 350,000 Haitians and 6,000 Syrians, but immigration advocates and legal observers say it could be applied to a broader group of 1.3 million people from 17 countries.

The justices' move has been met with weeks of confusion. Immigration officials subsequently granted several extensions to TPS holders that carried through Monday. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services issued guidance Wednesday affirming TPS was over, though some attorneys and labor unions have argued work authorization remains intact until lower courts lift an injunction.

The Department of Homeland Security made light of the TPS expiration, referencing lyrics from a 1998 hit song: “It’s closing time, which means you don’t have to go home, but you can’t stay here.”

Fearful they might be in breach of the law, some employers have begun terminating TPS holders, to the dismay of their clients.

Anna Fischbein grew accustomed to visits to her home in Sunny Isles, Florida, from the same kindly Haitian health aide every week for the past 10 years. But Jewish Community Services of South Florida terminated the aide along with 17 others when their TPS lapsed.

“I lost not only a lady working for me,” the 87-year-old Holocaust survivor says, her voice broken by sobs. “I lost a friend.”

Facilities scramble to come up with replacement workers

Around 1 in 5 workers in the U.S. is foreign born, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, but immigrants are overrepresented in caregiving roles. Among home health aides, for example, one-third are immigrants, according to PHI, a nonprofit focused on the caregiving workforce.

In lives upended by age or disability, a cherished caregiver is a lifeline. For someone living in their own home, they may be the last line of defense before institutionalization. For those in a care facility, they may be their strongest advocate, who notices subtle changes before anyone else, ensures small comforts like dollar-store word search books, and brings a sense of humanity to the humiliation of being incontinent.

“They are the first people they see when they wake up in the morning and they’re the last ones that they see before they go to bed,” says Simone Smith, vice president of human resources at Cabrini of Westchester, a nursing home in Dobbs Ferry, New York, where eight Haitians with TPS await word of their fate.

Like similar facilities around the country, Cabrini is prepared to scramble to secure replacement staffers from nursing agencies and plead with remaining workers to take overtime shifts. Cabrini’s workforce is about 75% immigrant. Among those with TPS, Smith senses “almost a hopelessness.”

A Haitian who loses TPS faces an unbearable choice: Attempt to stay in the U.S. and find underground work, tiptoeing through life with fear that authorities will eventually find and remove them. Or return to a country so plagued by gang violence and poverty that many believe it would amount to a death sentence.

“I’m afraid all the time,” says a Haitian man working at a Brooklyn nursing home who asked for anonymity because of concerns for the safety of himself and his family. “I pay tax to the country. I’m a good person. … All I want is to work. When you work, you are a person.”

Families wonder what they will do

Outside a simple brick house in Queens, Nelson stands guard as French steps through her door. On the porch, you might mistake the two for old friends, their bond as much an illustration of what is at risk as it is of how much things have changed.

The women made the same journey, from Port-au-Prince to New York, four decades apart.

French was drawn here in 1970 by the potential opportunities she saw. She built businesses as a hairdresser and seamstress. Her late husband made his way as an electrician and contractor. They bought their home. Their children got good educations. They believed they achieved the American dream.

Nelson came after an earthquake flattened Haiti in 2010. At home, she ran a butcher shop, but after arriving in New York she found work in caregiving roles. She began working for French about three years ago after French fell and broke her hip. Nelson, now 69, has been with her nearly every weekday since.

Both women felt welcomed by the U.S. when they arrived. But French is saddened to see how views on immigrants have evolved.

“America is a good country,” French says, “but it has changed.”

Nelson brings leftovers, tends to French’s chores and is a source of companionship. They watch the news together and talk in Haitian Creole about their families. On weekends, Nelson calls to make sure French has gotten up from bed and nags her to eat.

“On my days off, I think about her,” Nelson says.

French says Nelson has become like family. Nelson agrees, saying she sees French as if she’s her own mother, a show of affection and the source of the pair’s one ongoing dispute.

“You’re not like my daughter,” French protests. “You’re like my sister.”

For now, the two continue their routine, knowing each shift may be Nelson's last. She keeps a copy of her work authorization zipped in a black cloth pouch that she carries everywhere, in case she is stopped. Each Sunday, she sinks to her knees in church, praying for an answer. She worries for herself and for French.

“It makes me feel depressed,” Nelson says. “It could be difficult for her without me.”

___

Salomon reported from Miami.

___

Matt Sedensky can be reached at msedensky@ap.org and https://x.com/sedensky

“It’s extremely important to us,” said Itai Nixon, who leads the diaspora department for Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs. “We’re the state of the Jewish people, not just Israelis.”

Lesley Sachs, who has protested the current Israeli government and chairs the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism, also considers a close relationship with diaspora Jews a “strategic asset” for both Israel and Jews worldwide.

So she’s greatly concerned about diaspora Jews losing the sense that Israel can be a homeland for them, especially as rising antisemitism targets them regardless of political and religious affiliations.

“That was always really, really important that everybody around the world, especially after the Holocaust, knows that there is a country that will always take them,” Sachs said in her synagogue in Tel Aviv. “This is already a few generations after, and this is less prominent in their DNA. And I think that this is really a failure on the part of both Israel and world Jewry, that we have not managed to keep that prominent.”

Since 2000, Taglit-Birthright Israel has brought a million Jewish young adults from the United States and elsewhere for a free 10-day “discovery” tour of Israel. The organization’s CEO says it’s more necessary than ever to show what their connection to Israel could be like beyond controversial politics.

“That really increases the importance of my job to expose people to what they give up on,” said Gidi Mark. “What we give them is a mirror.”

The staunch Israel-US relationship shows some cracks

Israel and the United States have long been staunch allies. U.S. President Donald Trump and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Washington earlier this week to discuss the war against Iran they launched together five months ago.

“The United States is perceived as the best friend of Israel in the entire world, and that’s still the case,” said Tamar Hermann, who directs the Israel Democracy Institute’s Viterbi Center for Public Opinion and Policy Research in Jerusalem.

Divisions over the ceasefire in the Iran war, however, have weakened Jewish Israelis’ belief that Trump prioritizes Israel’s security — from 64% in March to 26% in June — according to the center.

Amid diplomatic tensions, the role of Jewish Americans who historically lobbied for political, military and financial support for Israel gains new prominence, Israelis said. And that deepens the concern that many young progressive Americans, including Jews, now see supporting Israel in any way as irreconcilable with their worldview.

The decline in support for Israel has become particularly stark since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack when Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians in southern Israel, and abducted 251 others. Israel’s ensuing war against Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 people, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The ministry, which was part of the recently dissolved Hamas-run government, maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and international organizations. It does not distinguish between civilians and militants but says women and children make up around half of all fatalities.

That in turn ignited protests across the United States, especially on college campuses.

“Holocaust, refugees, the importance of Israel in times of need abroad, and the fact that Israel is a small country fighting for its existence … that’s history they read in a book,” Sachs said of younger Jewish Americans. “They weren’t emotionally part of it in any way or any form. And so they look at their values and the things that they believe in. And they don’t see it in Israel.”

Jewish Americans have a complicated relationship with Israel

Only about 4 in 10 religious Jewish adults under 45 in the United States say that supporting Israel is “extremely” or “very” important for their Jewish identity, while about half of older religious Jewish adults do, according to the AP-NORC poll.

The survey of 1,022 Jewish adults — including people who identify as Jewish by religion and religiously unaffiliated people who identify as Jewish through culture, ethnicity or family background — also found that only about half of religious adults say Israel’s ongoing military operations in Gaza are justified. The number drops to 2 in 10 among Jewish adults without a religious affiliation.

At the same time, about 6 in 10 Jewish adults say prejudice against Jewish people is an “extremely” or “very” serious problem in the United States today.

To many Israelis, safety threats against Jews make it all the more tragic — and dangerous — that young Jewish Americans do not see the state of Israel as a refuge or even an ally.

“Antisemitism sadly helps us to explain why a Jewish homeland is not a bad idea,” said Asaf Zamir, a deputy mayor of Tel Aviv who served as consul general in New York. “Opposing the government is fine, but you cannot understand your history as a Jew without understanding the part of Israel in it.”

Israel reaches out to secular and liberal Jews in North America

In order to promote deeper attachment between Israel and diaspora Jews, both the government and religious organizations are reinforcing exchange programs. For decades, young Israelis have traveled to Jewish summer camps across North America, and non-Israeli Jews get free trips to Israel.

“To see Israel and meet Israelis is the gold standard,” Itai Nixon said of programs bringing teens to the country.

Taglit-Birthright’s Gidi Mark said that since 2023, with multiple wars, tour participants are fewer — and their reactions to touring Israel have also changed. He recalled one participant shouting “Israel! Israel!” outside his hotel just because he felt safe to express himself.

“These people don’t feel free to experience who they are in the places that they are coming from,” Mark said.

These and other initiatives are focusing on secular Jews and adherents to Reform Judaism. The largest branch of the religion in North America, it emphasizes progressive values such as social justice.

Orthodox Jews abroad tend to have stronger ties to Israel — and Orthodox Jews in Israel tend to see themselves as closer to diaspora Jews than do secular Israelis, Hermann said.

Within the Israeli Reform movement, which is a small part of Judaism in the country, there’s a push to send more young Israelis to the United States, including as camp counselors.

“That kind of action is important, that one-on-one connection saying, ‘You know what, we believe in the same things you do. Really, we have the same ideology in general, and we feel we need to change Israel together,'" Sachs said. “We need to be partners in making Israel the country that we all need.”

Alma Edry, 18, is spending two months as a counselor at a progressive Jewish summer camp in Ontario with teens and young adults from Canada and the United States. She said her biggest surprise has been “that Israel is such a big deal for people outside the country.”

“Most of their friends are anti-Israel,” she said of the campers. “This is their chance to celebrate their connection.”

___

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.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday in the Superior Court of Delaware, is the latest in a flurry of suits filed against the social media giants that alleges their platforms are addictive and dangerous.

The complaint was filed on behalf of four families from Texas, North Carolina, Minnesota and Tennessee whose children died over a 14-month period starting in July 2024 through September 2025.

The Social Media Victims Law Center is bringing the suit on behalf of the families, and its founding attorney, Matthew Bergman, said it's “particularly salient” that the children in this case died “long after” similar suits had been filed.

“These platforms continue to kill kids, despite the platitudes of their executives,” Bergman said in an interview. “This is a clear and present danger to the health and safety of children, not just in the United States but around the world.”

The four teens who died by suicide each experienced harms including social media addiction, severe sleep deprivation, depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation after years of using the social platforms, the complaint states. Livi Castro died at age 13, Riv Kelleher at 14, Nathaniel Chambers at age 17 and Dawson Holden at 18.

The complaint alleges the social media companies knew they were causing harm to young users.

A spokesperson for Google, which owns YouTube, said in a statement that “providing young people with a safer, healthier experience has always been core to our work. In collaboration with mental health and parenting experts, we’ve built services and policies to provide young people with age-appropriate experiences, and parents with robust controls. We send our deepest sympathies to the families and are reviewing the claims in this lawsuit.”

Representatives for Meta, TikTok and Snap did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Sacha Haworth, executive director of The Tech Oversight Project, said in a statement that parents, activists and whistleblowers have come forward and met with lawmakers for years and “while Congress has dragged its feet, more children have died."

Federal legislation of social media has moved at a glacial pace. The Senate passed the Kids Online Safety Act — which had the support of parents’ groups and children’s advocacy organizations — exactly two years before this lawsuit was filed. The House of Representatives never voted on that version of the legislation, and the House and Senate are currently disagreeing on key provisions they think should be included.

“Livi, Nathaniel, Dawson, and Riv’s stories are proof that Big Tech companies continue to lie about the safety of their products, choosing instead to pour hundreds of millions of dollars into false advertising, deceptive paid partnerships with trusted education programs and political lobbying,” Haworth's statement continued.

Meta, YouTube, TikTok and Snap are facing numerous state and federal lawsuits over harms to minors. Meta is on trial in Tennessee this week for a lawsuit brought by the state attorney general claiming that the company deliberately designed its platforms, notably Instagram, to make them addictive to young people, and did not warn them of its dangers. And in August, Meta is heading to trial in federal court in Oakland, California to face four of dozens of states that sued the company in 2023. That lawsuit says the company is contributing to the youth mental health crisis by designing addictive features and violated federal law by collecting data on kids under 13 without parental consent.

Not all lawsuits are successful, and many are settled out of court. Last week, a Florida teenager dropped his case against Meta that was set to go to trial in state court in Los Angeles, without receiving any payment from the company. Meta had argued that the teen only used his Instagram and Facebook for just minutes a day, on average, and created most accounts only after hiring a lawyer in his case.

Still, the mounting court cases can get expensive, even for a company like Meta Platforms. Earlier this week Meta said it had $2.4 billion in legal expenses in the second quarter, which contributed to a relatively unusual 14% profit decline.

The Trump administration has faced pushback from some European allies over the use of air bases in support of its war with Iran.

But lawmakers in Bulgaria — a member of NATO and the European Union — voted earlier in July to allow the deployment of up to eight U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft, as well as 250 personnel with personal weapons and ammunition and airfield equipment, at Bezmer Air Base.

Under a 2006 U.S.-Bulgaria defense agreement, the Bezmer facility, about 260 kilometers (160 miles) southeast of the capital, Sofia, is a joint-use facility. Any new use of the base requires parliamentary approval.

The deployment, requested by the U.S. Embassy in Bulgaria, is authorized until Oct. 1, 2026.

U.S. President Donald Trump thanked Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev in a Truth Social post for allowing the deployment “despite Iran’s threats.”

On Thursday, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Velislava Petrova assured her Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, that the deployment “in no way means a change in Bulgaria’s approach toward Iran." The two countries are important trade partners.

A Bulgarian Foreign Ministry statement quoted Petrova as saying “it was out of the question" that any direct military actions linked to the conflict in the Middle East would be carried out from Bulgarian territory.

The statement did not indicate what Araghchi said. But the Bulgarian state news agency, BTA, said Araghchi protested to Petrova over Bulgaria’s support for U.S. military operations against Iran during a telephone conversation initiated by the Bulgarian side. The report cited a report from Iran's state-run IRNA news agency.

Residents of the village of Bezmer and nearby settlements, including the regional capital Yambol, have staged peaceful protests in recent days against the deployment of the U.S. aircraft.

Government officials visited the region to address people’s fears, assuring them that the deployment is solely for logistical missions involving in-flight refueling outside Bulgarian airspace.

The Democrat's office released more than 700 pages of tax filings spanning four years for reporters to review, offering a window into Newsom's finances as he prepares to leave office and considers a 2028 presidential bid. Newsom’s office did not release returns for 2025, because the couple filed for an extension and will complete those returns in October.

The returns show the Newsoms' income has remained relatively consistent since when he took office in 2019, when the couple reported $1.7 million in annual income. The exception was in 2021, when the family sold a house for nearly $6 million in Marin County, making roughly $800,000 from the sale. That year, they made $4.2 million and paid more than $1 million in federal and state taxes. They earned roughly $2 million in 2022.

The release of the couple's tax filings comes as their finances have been under scrutiny after the U.S. Justice Department launched investigations into the Newsoms, the governor announced last month. Newsom has blasted the probes as politically motivated.

It was the first time Newsom released returns since 2022.

Newsom made nearly $200,000 annually from serving as governor, but most of his income comes from winery and restaurant businesses that he put in a blind trust when he took office. The returns don’t name each individual business, making it impossible to know which ones gained and lost money.

The PlumpJack Group, a company he owns that includes a suite of wineries and restaurants, is now run by his sister and cousin.

His wife Jennifer Siebel Newsom, a film director, lost money most years from Girls Club Entertainment, a production company she founded. The business produced “Miss Representation,” a 2011 documentary about disparaging portrayals of women and girls in media, and two other films.

The Newsoms paid between roughly $14,000 and $44,000 a year for childcare for three of their four children, according to the tax filings.

They gave between $40,000 and $65,000 in gifts to charity each year, mostly through monetary donations. They also donated thousands of dollars worth of clothing, toys and other items to thrift stores and nonprofits, including in 2022, when they gave away Armani business wear they originally bought for $45,000 to a racial justice organization in Oakland.

A key area of the Pacific Ocean used to measure the strength of El Nino this week reached its warmest and most intense level ever recorded for the 15th week since it formed, which is early in its lifetime, scientists at Columbia University reported.

El Nino — a natural warming of the Pacific near the equator that warps weather patterns worldwide — won't peak for several months and should last through spring 2027. The World Meteorological Organization, a U.N. agency, cautioned on Friday that it will likely trigger extreme heat, drought and rainfall well into next year.

“Two months ago, I warned that El Nino was arriving on our doorstep. Now it is inside the house — and turning up the heat,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters Friday. “We have already endured a summer of extremes — record-shattering heat domes; apocalyptic wildfires raging in Spain, France and far beyond; thousands of lives lost in the scorching conditions.”

“But according to the latest science, this is only a warm-up act,” Guterres said, saying as the El Nino strengthens it will be “adding fuel to a planet already on fire.”

“We are in uncharted territory,” he said. “The climate crisis is in overdrive.”

Most computer forecast models are showing that this El Nino will likely break the all-time record for intensity when it peaks, sometime late fall or so, but that's not guaranteed, scientists said.

Chaotic extremes in rain, drought and unheard of heat coming

It's still early in the nearly yearlong life of a typical El Nino to see many direct effects yet, but they are coming, scientists said, agreeing with Guterres’ warnings. El Nino's effects will combine with the long-term global warming from the burning of coal, oil and gas.

“We’re seeing something that is the warmest July ever recorded for that specific region," used as an El Nino indicator, Columbia University climate scientist Jeffrey Shaman said. "A year from now, it’s going to be very hot in the Northern Hemisphere. And we’re going to possibly have a summer like we’ve never experienced globally."

But before then, the strong El Nino is likely to cause changes in rainfall patterns that will bring chaotic extremes to different parts of the world in fall and winter. There's a strong chance of drought and wildfires in Indonesia, India and other parts of Asia, south and east Australia, chunks of South America and southern regions in Africa, the WMO warned. Other areas, including much of the United States and fire-struck Southern Europe will get above average rain.

“This El Nino, developing against the backdrop of unprecedented ocean heat and rising temperatures, provides governments and communities with a window of opportunity to anticipate risks and act before impacts unfold,” said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo.

El Nino amplifies human-caused warming

While El Nino and climate change are separate phenomena, their effects create a harmful combination — and people aren't taking the connection seriously enough, Guterres said.

“We hear much about record heat, drought and wildfires — but not enough about the real change that is driving these events: the accelerating climate crisis powered by fossil fuels," Guterres said.

Guterres said the world gets too absorbed by dramatic wars in Ukraine, the Middle East and Sudan to notice the dangers of climate change. On top of that, “there is a deliberate campaign, namely by the fossil fuel industry and some countries in order to pretend that that the problems that we are witnessing indeed do not exist.”

The U.N. must be more active and mobilize public opinion “to tell governments it’s time to recognize this threat as an existential threat to us all,” he told reporters.

Much of the heat from the burning of fossil fuels gets trapped in the oceans, but “during an El Nino the ocean in some sense gets to return some of the heated buildups of global warming back to the atmosphere,” Shaman said. Even though this El Nino will end, the released heat sticks around in the air, along with the higher temperatures, which will jump up again the next El Nino, he added.

Guterres called for more early warning systems and cooling systems to handle extreme heat. He said industry and governments need to make work safer, highlighting the garment industry, which has 90 million workers, most of them women. In 17 of the 23 biggest clothing making hubs, dangerously hot days jumped by more than 10% in the past 20 years, “yet most global brands set no heat standard for the factories that supply them.”

But mostly, Guterres said, “the world must stop fueling the crisis.... More coal, oil and gas will lead to a more combustible future."

___

Borenstein reported from Washington.

___

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 retreat, about an hour northwest of Washington, has been the backdrop for presidential summits and smaller-scale meetings since Franklin Roosevelt established it during World War II. Friday’s meeting isn’t Trump’s first at Camp David, but he has spent less time at the compound than other presidents, and typically spends weekends at his own properties, including Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, and his golf courses in New Jersey and Virginia.

Here's a look at some key dates and prominent visitors in the camp's history, assembled using archival material from The Associated Press, the National Archives, and presidential libraries.

1942 — Roosevelt established the camp as Shangri-La, a reference from James Hilton's novel “Lost Horizon.” Roosevelt had liked to relax on a presidential yacht, but the military and Secret Service started to worry about his safety on the open water during World War II. Roosevelt asked the National Park Service to identify sites within 100 miles of the White House that he could use for rest and picked what is now known as Camp David.

1943 — Roosevelt hosted Winston Churchill, who went on a fishing trip with the president and discussed the Normandy invasion at the retreat.

1953 — Dwight Eisenhower renamed the facility Camp David after his grandson and father.

1959 — Eisenhower hosted Nikita Khrushchev, the first time a Soviet leader had come to the United States.

1971 — Richard Nixon met with economic advisers amid inflation and a looming run on gold, leading eventually to an announcement ending the gold-backed dollar.

1973 — Nixon hosted his Soviet counterpart, Leonid Brezhnev.

1978 — Jimmy Carter hosted Egypt’s Anwar Sadat and Israel’s Menachem Begin, resulting in the Camp David Accords signed in 1979. Unlike at the White House, where journalists come and go, the news media are barred from Camp David, unless they are invited to cover an event, like Friday’s summit.

1984 — Ronald Reagan, the president who spent the most time at Camp David, hosted British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher for the first time.

1990 — George H.W. Bush hosted Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev.

1992 — Camp David's only wedding occurred when Bush’s daughter, Dorothy, married Bobby Koch at Evergreen Chapel at the facility.

2000 — Bill Clinton hosted a summit with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat.

2001 — George W. Bush met with British Prime Minister Tony Blair early in the year and held post 9/11 meetings ahead of the Afghanistan invasion later in the year.

2003 — Bush hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin.

2012 — Barack Obama hosted the G8 Summit.

2015 — Obama hosted Persian Gulf nations for a summit.

2019 — Trump canceled a secret weekend meeting at Camp David with Taliban and Afghanistan leaders after a bombing in Kabul that killed 12 people, including an American soldier. ———

Associated Press journalist Darlene Superville contributed archival reporting for this timeline.

New York joins a growing number of states filing lawsuits against Kalshi and other companies in a dispute with President Donald Trump's administration over who regulates the fast-growing prediction market. Kalshi and other platforms argue they are federally licensed and regulated, and states have no authority to govern them.

“It’s sad to see this type of political theater from the leadership in our own state,” Elisabeth Diana, a spokesperson for New York-based Kalshi, said in a statement. “States can’t just shut down a federally licensed exchange. This would also hurt New Yorkers, who would be driven offshore. We love New York, we love New Yorkers, and New Yorkers love our product.”

Prediction market platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket allow trading on the likelihood of a wide range of events such as sports, politics, news and even the weather.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Attorney General Letitia James, both Democrats, announced the lawsuit filed in state Supreme Court in Manhattan.

“New York’s gambling laws protect children from underage betting and help combat gambling addiction,” James said in a statement. “No matter what they call themselves, prediction markets like Kalshi are gambling platforms, plain and simple. By ignoring our laws, Kalshi is running an illegal operation and harming New Yorkers in the process.”

James' office is requesting that Kalshi be ordered to forfeit all illegal gains, pay restitution to consumers who were harmed and pay fines equal to three times the company's gains. In a court filing, state officials provided a rough estimate of the damages and costs sought by the lawsuit — $36 billion.

Kalshi had been in negotiations with New York officials in recent weeks over tax and consumer protection issues.

In April, New York filed a similar lawsuit against prediction market platforms Coinbase and Gemini on illegal gambling operation allegations.

State officials say the prediction markets meet the legal definition of gambling “because the outcomes of the events on which its users are betting are uncertain and outside the control of the bettor or hinge on a game of chance.”

New York claims Kalshi has failed to obtain a license from the state Gaming Commission and skirted its obligation to pay taxes like licensed casinos and mobile sports gambling platforms do. The lawsuit also says prediction markets allow users ages 18 to 20, while New York requires mobile sports betting users to be at least 21.

Last October, the Gaming Commission ordered Kalshi to stop what it called the “illegal operating” of an “unlicensed mobile sports wagering platform” in New York. Kalshi responded days later by filing a federal lawsuit against the commission and its members — legal action that remains pending.

Prediction market platforms say they operate differently than gambling operations, because consumers are trading against other consumers — much like how stock markets work. Prices are based on trading, and the platforms only take a fee from the trading, they say.

The platforms also argue federal law gives the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission exclusive jurisdiction to regulate transactions offered in the prediction market. In February, Trump’s appointee atop the federal commission declared that the agency “will no longer sit idly by” while states aim to regulate or ban prediction markets and “undermine the agency’s exclusive jurisdiction.”

States counter that the vast majority of the business on prediction market platforms is sports betting, which they are empowered to regulate, and that is completely different from the commodities and futures contracts that the commission regulates.

On Monday, a federal judge temporarily blocked Minnesota’s first-in-the-nation law banning prediction markets just days before it was to take effect — dealing a setback for states trying to outlaw or regulate the platforms. In April, another federal judge ordered a similar temporary halt to Arizona's efforts to enforce its gambling laws against prediction markets.

A tangle of lawsuits is growing, as states try to use their gambling laws to shut down Kalshi, Polymarket and other prediction market operators. In April alone, the federal government sued Connecticut, Arizona and Illinois, challenging their efforts to regulate the industry.

“Hi,” she said softly as she sat down across from Leo at his desk in the Apostolic Palace.

Wearing a crucifix necklace and hair in her trademark braids, Smith has become an increasingly visible presence at the Vatican thanks to her friendship with the Rev. Antonio Spadaro, undersecretary in the Vatican’s culture ministry.

She has said that while she is not Catholic, she was drawn in particular to Pope Francis and his “gentle, open, and steadfast sense of humanity.”

She also had a thing for Pope John Paul I: Her 1979 tune “Wave,” is about a make-believe conversation with the pope who had just died after a 33-day papacy. It begins “Hi. Hi” uttered in the same breathy voice Smith used with Leo on Friday.

The pope clearly was familiar with the tune. “That was marvelous,” he said.

Earlier this year, Smith performed during the inauguration of the Holy See’s pavilion at the Venice Biennale contemporary art fair. The occasion, May 8, was the anniversary of Leo’s election.

Spadaro, who joined Smith at Friday’s audience, said the encounter between the two Chicago natives was around 40 minutes long. In a text message, he said it “felt more like a conversation between two people discovering they were old friends, sharing memories woven from words and music, dreams, visions, and hopes — both from yesterday and for today.”

He said at the end, Smith said “Bye. Bye.”

Smith met Francis in 2013 and sang for him in 2014. When he died, on April 21, 2025, she wrote a poem on social media, comparing Francis to a dandelion, “humble yet strong.”

“Nature and poetry and the suffering shall miss their champion,” she wrote.

It was Leo's second encounter with a music legend this week. On Wednesday, Leo attended a concert in his honor by tenor Andrea Bocelli.

___

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.

Hamas also said that laying down its heavy weapons, which would come later in the process, was contingent on the creation of a Palestinian state, something Israel's current government adamantly rejects.

Israel has not officially commented on the deal, which is part of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire announced last October. That agreement called for Hamas to disarm and hand over power to an independent Palestinian administration. Israel was to withdraw, and an International Stabilization Force was to deploy.

But progress stalled, with Israel saying everything hinged on Hamas disarming, and Hamas accusing Israel of violating the agreement by continuing to carry out regular strikes on Gaza.

Expectations of implementation are low

Disarming would represent a sea change for Hamas, whose founding charter calls for armed resistance against Israel, and which sees its arsenal, including rockets, anti-tank missiles and explosives, as lying at the heart of its identity.

Israel, meanwhile, appears unlikely to pull back significant forces or make other concessions ahead of its October elections. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces a tough reelection battle, with opponents accusing him of failing to prevent the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that triggered the war.

Neil Quilliam, a Middle East expert at London’s Chatham House think tank, said expectations are low that Hamas will actually disarm or that Israel will withdraw from Gaza.

“I think that Netanyahu’s silence speaks volumes,’’ Quilliam said. “This is a massive decision that he has to make.”

“But with the prospect of the elections hanging over his head, with several Cabinet ministers and opposition leaders already counseling not to go ahead with the deal, I think he understands that doing so would likely scupper his chances of reelection,” he added.

The deal would be implemented in stages

In announcing the latest deal on social media, Trump said it would be carried out in “carefully structured phases.”

“As disarmament is completed, Israeli forces will withdraw, and the International Stabilization Force will work with a new Palestinian police force to take responsibility for Gaza being safe for its residents and its neighbors,” he wrote.

A copy of the agreement obtained and verified by The Associated Press said that all weapons held by the Hamas-run police will be transferred to the U.S.-backed Palestinian technocratic committee, known as the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, upon its arrival in the enclave. It’s not clear when that would happen since it is contingent on other steps.

A process to decommission and store heavy weapons, military production sites and tunnels will begin after the arrival of the Palestinian committee and the deployment of international forces. The process will be linked to a phased Israeli withdrawal, according to the agreement.

Israel currently controls around 60% of Gaza, areas that have been mostly destroyed and depopulated. Most of the territory's 2 million Palestinians are in the other part, where hundreds of thousands live in squalid tent camps and destroyed neighborhoods.

In a statement Thursday, an Israeli official said that there will be no Israeli withdrawal before the militant group is disarmed and the strip demilitarized. The statement was made on condition of anonymity in line with government protocol.

A person with knowledge of the situation said that Israel is fully involved, but it's not a signatory to the deal, which is between Hamas and several countries helping to negotiate and guarantee the ceasefire. The person spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss the agreement. The deal's guarantors are the U.S., Turkey, Egypt and Qatar.

It could take years for Hamas to disarm

On Thursday, U.S. and Board of Peace officials, describing the deal to reporters on condition of anonymity under guidelines set by the White House, gave an extremely optimistic assessment. The board was established by Trump to oversee the ceasefire in Gaza.

While Gaza's police force is expected to hand over its arms, that doesn't include the vast majority of Hamas militants, and heavy weaponry is not included in that part of the agreement, according to the officials.

Instead, the surrender of heavy weapons and the decommissioning of Hamas tunnels and other infrastructure are to come later in a process that could take between 200 and 350 days, a Board of Peace official said. That timeline did not appear in the agreement obtained by AP.

A Hamas official and a regional official involved in the process said that Hamas and other groups agreed to “collect and store” arms inside Gaza under the supervision of the Palestinian technocratic committee and that weapons won’t be handed to Israel or non-Palestinian parties.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media, said this would be a gradual process linked to an Israeli withdrawal.

Israel has been deeply skeptical

A U.S. official said Israel, which has been deeply skeptical about Hamas’ willingness to give up its guns or relinquish control of Gaza, had been consulted at every step of the negotiation. The official said Israel was not being asked to do anything more than what it had committed to as part of the October agreement.

A member of the Palestinian technocratic committee told the AP on Friday that it was eager to enter Gaza but was concerned Israel will pose challenges. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. The person said they didn’t expect to enter Gaza for at least two months.

The committee welcomed the progress Friday, but said the work to restore public institutions and services and rebuild the territory would be immense.

The war in Gaza began after a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killed around 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage. Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, including those killed since the ceasefire, Gaza’s Health Ministry said. The ministry, which is part of the Hamas-led government and is staffed by medical professionals, does not distinguish between civilians and militants in its toll but says women and children make up around half of all deaths.

___

Mednick reported from Tel Aviv, Israel, Cooper from Phoenix, and Lee from Washington. Associated Press writers Farnoush Amiri in New York, Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations and Danica Kirka in London contributed.

Jacob David Sampson, 36, of Howell, was charged this week in a grand jury indictment that includes a new allegation of sexual exploitation of children. He’s also charged with Receipt and distribution of child pornography and Possession of child pornography.

The complaint

An FBI Special Agent said on May 26, 2026, investigators received information that someone used multiple accounts to receive and distribute child sexually abusive material on the app Kik. The Kik account allegedly uploaded videos that “all depict minors engaged in sex acts.”

The feds said they then reviewed CyberTip reports, including a Dropbox report from 2024, working with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. According to the report, a Kik account with username ‘bobsmith****’ uploaded 12 videos between February 14, 2025, and February 15, 2025, which appeared to depict child sexually abusive material. Further reviews showed dozens of video uploads in April, May, and June, according to the FBI.

The feds said they then linked emails and IP addresses to Jacob Sampson of Howell.

Search warrant and interview with Sampson

The feds said they searched Sampson’s home on July 21, 2026. Sampson was there with his wife and three young children and agreed to be interviewed, investigators said.

According to the complaint, Sampson told investigators he first saw child sexually abusive material in 2017 and last viewed material like it “last night.” Sampson allegedly admitted that he “used to save child pornography images and videos” and uploaded files to a Dropbox account. He also, according to the feds, recalled “using the username ‘bobsmith’ on Kik” and later told investigators he used “both Kik and Telegram to find child pornography from other users.”

Sampson allegedly said he downloads an Onion web browser to access “dark net” sites and that he views child sexually abusive images and videos and pleasures himself to them. Sampson also allegedly told investigators his sexual interest in children was “primarily female children ages 6 to 13 years old.”

Court records show Sampson consented to detention pending trial. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing and to be arraigned on the indictment on Aug. 5, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. in Detroit.

A statement from the regional Gilgt-Baltistan government identified the three recovered bodies as Nepalese climber Pur Bahadur Gurung, Omani climber Nathira Ahmed and American climber Mallory Geis. It said the bodies had been transported to a hospital.

The announcement came hours after officials said search teams had located the remains of four climbers despite harsh weather. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. They did not immediately identify the fourth body that had been spotted.

Bad weather continued to hamper the rescue effort Friday, according to a statement from the Gilgit-Baltistan region's Chief Minister Amjad Hussain.

The climbers lost contact with their base camp after an avalanche struck Broad Peak while they were attempting to scale the mountain, said Karrar Haidri, vice president of the Alpine Club of Pakistan. “The team has been out of communication since Thursday,” said Haidri, adding that army helicopters were part of the search-and-rescue operation.

Authorities said the search for the missing climbers continued until Friday evening and would resume Saturday.

According to the Alpine Club, the expedition comprised five Nepali climbers in addition to the Omani and American climbers, as well as Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi, a Chinese climber identified only as Wang, and one other foreign climber.

On Friday, China’s government said it was trying to verify whether any of its nationals were among the 10 climbers missing.

“We will provide assistance to Chinese citizens in need and are also willing to offer help in accordance with the needs of the Pakistani side,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Friday in Beijing.

The expedition leader was the renowned mountaineer Nirmal Purja, a Nepal-born former soldier in the British army widely known as Nims Dai. He climbed the world’s 14 highest peaks in a record 189 days in 2019, an achievement featured in the Netflix documentary, “14 Peaks: Nothing is Impossible.” His record was surpassed in 2023.

Moving Mountains, a travel company based in Pakistan, announced late last month that the expedition team was on its way to the small town of Askole and wished them a safe journey climbing Broad Peak. The company said this was Geis’ first try at an 8,000-meter peak in Pakistan, while it was expected to be Sakhi’s final one.

Sakhi is a guide for the company, as well as a geographer and high-altitude photographer, and has climbed some of the world’s major peaks, according to Moving Mountains’ website.

Geis, 39, lives in San Antonio. She announced on social media earlier this year that she was closing her Pilates studio to take “a giant leap of faith into the unknown to see where life goes. I have a sneaking suspicion there will be lots of helmets, harnesses, and crampons involved.”

Broad Peak, at 8,047 meters (26,401 feet), is the world’s 12th-highest mountain. It lies in Pakistan’s Karakoram range, home to five of the world’s 14 peaks above 8,000 meters, attracting climbers from around the globe.

Accidents are common during climbing expeditions in northern Pakistan because of avalanches and rapidly changing weather.

___

Khan reported from Peshawar, Pakistan. AP journalist E. Eduardo Castillo in Beijing and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed to this report.

Skubal, 29, is the protagonist of the deadline. He’s been the best pitcher in baseball since returning from injury midway through 2023, and as a pending free agent, the Tigers are motivated to deal him before 6 p.m. Monday.

Detroit is currently seven games below .500, 6.5 games out of the AL Central Division, and 4.5 games out of a wildcard spot.

Sure, the Tigers could make up that ground. But they haven’t been able to mount a consistent winning streak since a disastrous 6-22 record in May, and team president Scott Harris is unlikely to bet on their long playoff odds.

So if the Tigers can get a strong return for Skubal, he’ll likely be wearing a different uniform by next week.

Skubal has a 2.79 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, and 116 strikeouts in 96.2 innings this season. He’s been fantastic since returning from an elbow injury.

But you know who’s been nearly as impressive? Casey Mize.

Mize is sporting a 2.70 ERA, a 0.992 WHIP, and has struck out 85 batters in 86.2 innings. His name hasn’t attracted as much attention as Skubal’s this deadline, but that might change after what the Tigers just did.

On Friday, the Tigers announced that Mize will no longer make his scheduled start in the series opener against the A’s in Sacramento. He’s not injured, so it’s clear the Tigers are prioritizing his health as a trade chip over winning Friday night’s game.

I don’t blame them.

Mize, also a 29-year-old impending free agent, is having the best season of his career and should be a highly coveted deadline target. But he’s also been on the injured list twice with groin issues, and narrowly missed a third trip to the IL after leaving a recent start early.

He’s healthy right now, and one of the better starting pitchers available for rent. So it makes sense to eliminate the risk of another start.

You’ll rarely hear a team executive come out and say, “We’re sellers.” But this is about as close as it gets.

Everyone knew Skubal would be available. But now it looks like Mize is on the block, too.

“This is the first fire I'm experiencing real-time, and I can tell you it’s vicious," said Pauner, 64. “It’s underground, it comes out at any moment, and no matter how much we try to extinguish it, re-extinguish it, re-extinguish it, it keeps restarting."

“It’s like a steamroller that’s constantly, constantly rolling,” said Pauner, wearing shorts, boots and sunglasses on a string around his neck on a road through cultivated pine trees, as the ground smoldered.

Pauner is among the untold numbers of volunteers who have mobilized to support firefighters battling the biggest wildfires in years in France.

“I’m protecting my forest, and my home,” he said, pouring his watering can into a smoking ditch as if watering a garden, then huffing in the heat.

Hundreds of thousands forced from their homes

The wildfires that tore through cultivated forests on an Atlantic coast also known for towering sand dunes and tourist resorts devastated 42,000 hectares (about 162 square miles) west of Bordeaux, driving nearly a quarter-million people out of their homes and vacation sites.

Many other places in France have been hit by fires this summer, including in the Mediterranean Var region where a blaze in the Gros Bessillon mountain ridge flared up again on Friday, driven by violent winds, local authorities said. Several towns in the area were evacuated.

Europe is facing an extremely hot summer, fueling wildfires from the Atlantic coast to the eastern Mediterranean. The United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, Greece and Turkey battled blazes this week.

As cooler, more humid air moved into southwest France this week, authorities allowed two-thirds of the 224,000 evacuees to return home, including some more on Friday.

But the ground still simmers in many places.

“It’s stabilized, but not totally stopped,” French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told RTL radio. “Hot spots remain.”

Volunteers like Pauner — what he calls “little eyes” on watch to report flare-ups to firefighters — do what they can with limited resources. Others have mobilized their trucks and giant jerrycans to supply water to fire crews.

Drought has left forests dangerously dry

Prolonged drought and climate change have created fire-prone conditions. Pauner said the region endured more than two months without significant rainfall, leaving vegetation exceptionally dry.

In the smoking forests, fire crews used rakes to dig down into the smoldering forest floor so buried embers can be doused with water, a long and painstaking job. Ukraine became the latest country to send help, dispatching 70 people and 10 vehicles in the coming days, Nunez said.

Investigators suspect that contractors clearing away vegetation inadvertently ignited the blaze last week. But other fires have been attributed to arsonists or criminal negligence.

Nunez said police have made 308 arrests in connection with blazes this summer — more than 120 of them involving minors — and that 33 people have either been convicted or are being held pending court rulings.

Elsewhere in Europe, fires are also burning

Blazes continued in other parts of Europe.

Many parts of Greece were listed at high or extreme risk of wildfires, with strong winds. Three Greek firefighters died fighting fires this week on the southern island of Crete.

Firefighters were tackling 73 wildfires around the country, 51 of which broke out on Friday, Fire department spokesman Col. Vassilis Vathrakogiannis said.

The fire department and coast guard used boats to evacuate more than 250 people from one of the largest fires, in Boeotia, and evacuation orders were issued for several other fires, including one on the western fringes of the Greek capital.

Gale-force winds were hampering aircraft from dumping water on the wildfires, he said.

In England, where half the country is gripped by drought, firefighters battled a wildfire on an east coast heath in Suffolk, near a nuclear power station that fire services said wasn't threatened. More than 100 firefighters were deployed.

“I wouldn’t say it is under control," said Henry Griffin, a fire officer.

___ Macpherson reported from Paris. Elena Becatoros in Athens, Greece, Danica Kirka in London, Jamey Keaten in Geneva and John Leicester contributed to this report.

Zurich-based executive Kevin Lamour all but invited Infantino to fire him in a statement to The Associated Press that defended his colleagues amid intense fallout from the FIFA boss' plan to sell stakes in future World Cup profits to private equity funds.

Lamour wrote that staff were “deceived” by Infantino’s lack of openness in planning the sale over recent months and “deserve better than contempt and intimidation.”

“It is the project of one person,” Lamour, a long-time colleague of Infantino at both FIFA and European soccer body UEFA, wrote. “Not only must this project not go ahead … but the time has now come for football political leaders to ask themselves the right questions and make the right decisions.”

Lamour's statement came hours after Infantino's senior adviser Carlos Cordeiro, a former Goldman Sachs banker who represented the soccer body on the White House Task Force for the World Cup, resigned and urged other senior FIFA staff to speak out.

“I cannot stand by while FIFA considers selling a stake in the World Cup,” Cordeiro wrote in a statement. The former U.S. Soccer Federation president said he was not included in talks about the plan backed by a New York investment fund created by Joshua Kushner.

“Let me be clear. I had no involvement in this proposal, and I oppose it unequivocally,” Cordeiro said. He called the $20 billion commercial subsidiary “a bad deal for football.”

Lamour did not resign the post he has held since 2024 but said he had a duty to his colleagues.

“And if that means I lose my job then so be it” the French official said. “I will understand and respect that decision. At least I’ll sleep well tonight.”

Lamour came to soccer from politics two decades ago as an aide to then-UEFA president Michel Platini. He often had an international role in soccer politics liaising with FIFA member federations in Africa and Asia who are weighing their own decisions about Infantino's offers of $20 million each by a Sept. 19 deadline.

Cordeiro often joined Infantino on working visits to meet U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House in recent years.

“Football has been central to my life, and after more than 35 years in banking I understand both the value of this asset and the consequences of giving part of it away,” he said. “That is why this proposal should be rejected.”

Infantino has proposed spinning off FIFA’s commercial businesses — including World Cups and Club World Cups for men and women — into a $20 billion subsidiary with 20% owned by private investors. The “anchor investor,” described by FIFA, is Kushner, the younger brother of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

“FIFA already has access to extraordinary financial resources. The organization sits on billions of dollars in reserves and no debt,” Cordeiro said. He noted FIFA's revenue of $15 billion over the last four years tied to the men's World Cup just ended.

“Against that backdrop, selling a permanent stake in football’s most valuable asset to raise $4.2 billion makes little sense. It is mortgaging football’s future without any compelling justification,” he said.

Cordeiro said he shared five years of working for FIFA alongside Infantino with “dedicated, principled people who care deeply about the game.”

“I hope they, too, will speak up,” he wrote, “because decisions of this magnitude should be made in the interests of football, not those who stand to profit from it.”

Infantino has been president of FIFA for more than 10 years and seemed sure to be re-elected unopposed next March. FIFA has set a Nov. 18 deadline for challengers to come forward.

Lamour was part of Infantino’s inner circle that campaigned for him to become the surprise winner of that FIFA presidential election in February 2016.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and AP World Cup coverage

At a televised news conference, military spokesman Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry said Pakistan had targeted only hideouts and infrastructure used by the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, during that period, and said those killed in the strikes were militants.

He said the operations were carried out in self-defense to protect the lives of people in Pakistan.

Chaudhry questioned recently released reports by the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, or UNAMA, and Amnesty International, saying they relied largely on accounts from Afghans despite what he described as restrictions on freedom of expression under Taliban rule.

He also accused Afghanistan’s Taliban government of sheltering militants responsible for attacks inside Pakistan and said international rights organizations had failed to document such violence.

“These are double standards,” Chaudhry said, asking how many times rights groups had documented civilian casualties caused by U.S.-led coalition airstrikes during the war in Afghanistan.

Chaudhry’s remarks came days after UNAMA, in a report on the human rights situation in Afghanistan, said it had documented 499 civilians killed and 1,216 wounded in fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan despite international efforts to reduce tensions.

Pakistan and Afghanistan have exchanged fire intermittently for months, but tensions escalated sharply in February, when Afghan forces launched a cross-border raid into Pakistan in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan. Islamabad later declared it was in “open war.”

Pakistan often accuses Afghanistan of harboring militants who carry out deadly attacks inside Pakistan, especially the Pakistani Taliban. The group is separate from, but allied with, the Afghan Taliban, which has ruled Afghanistan since it returned to power in the country in 2021 amid the chaotic withdrawal of U.S.-led troops. Afghanistan denies providing sanctuary to militants.

In the deadliest reported attack in the recent fighting, a Pakistani airstrike struck a drug-treatment center in the Afghan capital Kabul in March, killing hundreds of civilians. Amnesty International said last week the bombing should be investigated as a possible war crime.

Chaudhry defended the strikes, saying Pakistan had carried out operations in Kabul and elsewhere with precision to target militant infrastructure supporting attacks inside Pakistan. He said Pakistan is also continuing operations inside the country against “Khawarij,” a term Pakistan uses for TTP and affiliated groups.

According to Chaudhry, Pakistan has recorded 3,145 “terrorism incidents” since January.

He said Pakistan had killed 2,084 militants since January, while 819 Pakistanis, including soldiers, police officers and civilians, had been killed. He said security forces had carried out 40,348 intelligence-based operations across the country during the same period.

Chaudhry also said Afghanistan-based militants had carried out 28 suicide attacks in Pakistan since January and alleged that most were carried out by Afghan nationals or people associated with Afghanistan’s security forces. He alleged that drug addicts had been recruited to carry out suicide bombings.

“Not every drug addict is a terrorist, but every suicide bomber was a drug addict,” he said.

Chaudhry said Pakistan launched a new counterterrorism operation earlier this year following a surge in militant violence and would continue the campaign. “We will continue these operations,” he said, adding that Pakistan was winning the fight against terrorism and, “God willing, we will win.”

He also accused the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army and TTP of directing attacks in Pakistan’s insurgency-hit southwestern Balochistan province from Afghanistan. Balochistan has long faced a separatist insurgency led by BLA that accuses the government of discrimination and exploiting the province’s natural resources. The government denies the allegations.

According to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, Michael Jamblyck Costly Bennett, 30, was arrested during a traffic stop in Taylor.

Prosecutors said a record check revealed he was allegedly in the United States illegally and wanted abroad for murder. Federal agents also found suspected fraudulent documents in his possession, including counterfeit Social Security and permanent resident cards.

Federal authorities said Bennett had been previously removed from the United States twice.

Bennett was federally charged and appeared in court in Detroit on Thursday, July 30.

CBS Sports announced Friday that the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback was on leave “until further notice.” JJ Watt will join Jim Nantz and Tracy Wolfson as CBS Sports’ lead NFL team during Romo’s absence.

Romo, 46, was arrested July 23 after he was stopped while driving south on Interstate 43 in Wisconsin. According to the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office report, Romo performed poorly on field sobriety tests before getting taken into custody, booked and released.

He has a court date set for Sept. 21.

CBS Sports’ announcement comes after citations released by the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office indicated an open bottle of an alcoholic beverage was found in the passenger’s side of Romo’s black Jeep during an inventory before it was towed.

According to the citations, police stopped Romo after he was seen passing cars in a gore area, which separates interstate traffic from cars entering from an on-ramp. Police said Romo questioned what a gore area was during the stop.

Body camera footage released earlier this week showed Romo telling deputies he had been coming from a golf course and was on his way “to visit grandma and grandpa” when he was stopped. A deputy told Romo he suspected him of being impaired because he had “red glassy eyes” and an “odor of an intoxicating alcoholic beverage.”

Romo went to high school about 35 miles from Milwaukee in Burlington, Wisconsin.

He has been the lead game analyst for CBS’ NFL coverage since 2017 after making four Pro Bowl appearances during an NFL career that ran from 2004-16 and was spent entirely with Dallas.

Romo remains the Cowboys’ franchise leader in career touchdown passes with 248. He held the franchise record for career passing yards (34,183) until Dak Prescott overtook him last season.

Watt joined CBS in 2023. He was an analyst on “The NFL Today” for two seasons before teaming with Ian Eagle on the network’s No. 2 crew beginning last season.

Romo wasn’t expected to have his first game until the opening Sunday of the regular season on Sept. 13. CBS will air a preseason game between the Cincinnati Bengals and Philadelphia Eagles on Aug. 28.

CBS likely will reveal its game assignments and announcer pairings for the first three weeks of the regular season in the next couple of weeks.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Indiana Senate President Pro Tem Rodric Bray drew the ire of Trump in December when he voted against the redistricting plan after saying for weeks that it didn't have enough support to pass. The rejection came after intense lobbying from Trump, Vice President JD Vance, national conservative groups and others.

Bray, who has held his leadership position since 2018, said in a statement Friday that he would not seek reelection to the post when Senate Republicans choose their leaders in November. His current Senate term runs through 2028 and he will remain in office, albeit not as the Republican Senate leader.

Trump reacted to the news in a social media post by saying Bray had “foolishly led,” the state Senate, noting the May primary defeats of those who defied him on the redistricting plan.

Bray did not mention Trump or the redistricting fight in his statement announcing his position to step down from the leadership position. Bray said holding the job “has been among the most significant honors of my life, but it’s time for the Senate to choose another leader."

Since joining our team, Kim has played an important role in serving our community and delivering key weather insights to our viewers. We are grateful for her contributions to our newsroom and wish her well in her future endeavors.

As we undergo this transition, WDIV remains committed to providing the trusted local news coverage our viewers expect. Our team will continue to bring you the latest news, weather, sports, and community stories each day.

Please join us in thanking Kim for her work at WDIV and in our community.

On Aug. 19, we’ll be at Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries on Stimson Street collecting hygiene products and supplies to stock homeless shelters.

Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries is an organization that serves Detroit’s homeless and is also one of the largest housing and treatment providers in the area.

You will be able to drive up and drop off items such as unused hygiene products, bedding, towels, shoes, socks, and more.

Click here to view the Amazon Wishlist.

DRMM and WDIV volunteers will collect the items and sort them into hygiene kits.

Click here to donate.

Are you interested in volunteering? Click here to sign up.

• Who: WDIV Local 4 is partnering with Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries.
• What: A hygiene drive collecting products and supplies to stock Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries’ shelters.
• When: Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Where: 150 Stimson Street, Detroit, MI 48201
• Why: To help provide hygiene supplies and products to those in need.

Kim Wright, Jr., 28, was charged with assault with intent to murder, assault with intent to do great bodily harm, discharge of a firearm in or at a building, discharge of a firearm from a motor vehicle, and possession of a firearm. He was also charged with five counts of felony firearm.

The shooting happened in the 11000 block of Whithorn Street just after 7 p.m. on July 21.

According to the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office, Wright shot a 48-year-old Detroit man from his car and left the scene.

The 48-year-old man was taken to a local hospital for treatment. After an investigation, Wright was arrested on July 23.

Wright was arraigned in court on July 30 and was given a $75,000 bond. He is required to wear a GPS tether with a curfew of 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

A bond redetermination hearing is set for Aug. 3 at 9 a.m., and a probable cause conference is scheduled for Aug. 6 at 8:30 a.m.

This weekend, that tradition comes alive again at Greenmead Park in Livonia, thanks to the St. Andrew’s Society of Detroit.

And the St. Andrew’s Society Highland Games are the oldest continuously running Highland Games in North America.

The first games were held in 1849, at Sugar Island, Belle Isle and Grosse Ile.

In 1904, they moved to Bob-Lo Island, where they stayed until 1955.

Over the years, the games have been held at the University of Detroit Stadium and Historic Fort Wayne, before finding their home at Greenmead Park in Livonia.

Over 175 years of Scottish heritage, right here in Metro Detroit.

Julie Bartoy, membership chair for the St. Andrew’s Society of Detroit, and Van Rohr, also with the St. Andrew’s Society of Detroit, joined Local 4 Live to talk all about this weekend.

You can watch the full interview in the video at the beginning of this article.

A lot of people think it’s just stress, but burnout is a very different story. With stress, your brain is in overdrive. You’re anxious, on edge, and everything is just too much. But with burnout, your brain just shuts down. It’s empty; you’re checked out and just done. One makes you feel too much; the other makes you feel nothing.

So just how bad is burnout?

The numbers aren’t great. A recent study says two out of three full-time workers feel burned out. 80% say their job is hurting their mental health, and four out of 10 have actually quit a job because of burnout. Plus, 70 percent of people surveyed would turn down a higher-paying job if they had no mental health benefits.

Lori Edelson, a licensed therapist and owner of the Birmingham Maple Clinic in Troy, joined Local 4 Live to help us navigate burnout and when to seek help.

You can watch the full interview in the video at the beginning of this article.

The conflict, now in its sixth month, halted most shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that previously served as a delivery route for a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas. With global supplies constrained, prices for Brent crude, the international standard, soared from about $70 to above $100 a barrel for much of March, April and May, and at one point reached $126.

The money that oil companies accrued between the beginning of April and the end of June could receive extra scrutiny this year. Gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices climbed sharply during that period, increasing costs for drivers and airline passengers. Supplies ran low in some countries, leading to sporadic fuel rationing in Australia and government office closures in Nepal and Sri Lanka.

Exxon Mobil on Friday reported that its second quarter profits doubled to $14.53 billion, boosted by record diesel production. The oil giant, based in Spring, Texas, brought in $116.02 billion in revenue, up 42%.

Chevron, based in Houston, nearly quadrupled its profits to $12.07 billion and revenue jumped 56% to $70.06 billion.

Six of Europe’s largest oil companies posted combined first-quarter profits of $22 billion, more than 40% higher than last year.

“There are constituencies around the world who are having a very good crisis, and the oil producers are one of them,” said Patrick Galey, fossil fuels lead at Global Witness, a nonprofit organization that investigates environmental issues. “When you compare that to the hundreds of millions of people who are struggling with rolling blackouts, with electricity curbs, rationing, waiting in line for food queues, or the disruption to fertilizers and the potential impact that that has on food prices, we don’t think that it’s a justifiable price for the rest of the world to be paying.”

Lawmakers propose taxing major oil producers for war windfalls

Energy companies such as Exxon and Chevron do not set the price of American oil, which ricocheted from $68 to $115 a barrel during the quarter. It’s driven by supply and demand, and what traders, refiners and other buyers are willing to pay.

Nevertheless, Democrats in Congress introduced bills in March to tax major oil producers for profits they show from 2026 onward and have the tax proceeds redistributed to consumers.

“It’s fair to put a windfall profits tax on inordinate windfall profits rather than cut off children’s food programs,” Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat who introduced the Senate version of the legislation.

Whitehouse's measure and a companion bill introduced by U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna of California would amend the U.S. tax code to impose a per-barrel tax on companies that produced or imported at least 300,000 barrels of oil per day in 2025.

“We cracked $4 again per gallon last weekend in gas stations that I drove by, and that’s a big expense, particularly for families that get their income from driving around from job to job in the work van or the work truck,” Whitehouse said.

The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline in the U.S., which was below $3 before the U.S. and Israel launched attacks on Iran, reached $4.11 Friday, about $1 more than ast year at this time.

The UK and other European countries implemented temporary windfall profits taxes on fossil fuel companies in 2022. The UK extended that to 2030, according to Tax Foundation Europe.

“Penalizing the businesses who stood by those countries and provided that product going forward is very short-sighted,” Exxon CEO Darren Woods said in a call with investors Friday. “We canceled investments that we had planned for Europe based on the last time they passed a windfall profits tax.”

Refineries rake in cash while consumers pay more for fuel

Outfits such as Exxon and Chevron, which also own refineries, are in the best position to profit from the current market conditions, said Tom Seng, assistant professor of energy finance at Texas Christian University.

Refineries turn oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and home heating oil. Higher prices for those products meant Chevron’s quarterly refinery profit was six times as big in 2026, despite processing less crude and selling less products.

“The return on refining, on a percentage basis, has skyrocketed,” Seng said. “Oil right now is priced what it is priced because of the Iran war. But in the meantime, the refineries are making money hand over fist.”

The global refining market is under-supplied, and with countries such as Russia and China no longer exporting, companies like Exxon and Chevron have to pick it up, said Rob Thummel, senior portfolio manager at Tortoise Capital. “The world is going to be short jet fuel, diesel and gasoline, so we’ll probably continue to see higher profits there.”

Globally, not all refineries have been able to get the supply of crude oil they need to meet demand since the conflict began, said Timothy Fitzgerald, a University of Tennessee professor of business economics who studies the petroleum industry.

As a result, refineries that have ample oil to work with, including those in the U.S., are turning high profits, particularly when they make jet fuel and diesel, which is priced about 41% higher in the U.S. than before the Strait of Hormuz was blocked.

"If you’re a company that owns a bunch of refinery capacity, things look pretty good," Fitzgerald said.

American refineries are running at near-full capacity and poised to benefit because some refineries in the Middle East and Russia were damaged. And Asia can't get the amount of Middle East oil needed for refining.

“Ultimately, users of the energy services pay,” Fitzgerald said. “Consumers, people like you and me buying retail motor gasoline or diesel fuel or airplane tickets. But it also means that almost everything else we buy has an embedded energy content to it ... and this is where you start to worry about it driving increases in costs.”

Not all oil and gas companies benefit in the same way

In the present geopolitical environment, some companies are winners while others are losers, Fitzgerald said.

“If you’re a company like a U.S. (oil) producer, even a U.S.-based international company like an Exxon or Chevron who’s got lots of production outside the Gulf, things are good. You’re selling your product at a higher price,” he said.

But companies in the Middle East that are not able to benefit from higher prices because they are struggling to get their liquefied natural gas out of the Persian Gulf or have a lot of damaged oil fields or processing facilities have a very different take on recent events, Fitzgerald added.

“Your ability to sell anything and the volume that you may be getting out is so curtailed that your revenues are way down and you’re incurring higher transportation costs and security costs,” he said.

Exxon and Chevron weren’t as profitable in the first quarter due to the way oil is traded; the first real opportunity they had to take advantage of higher prices oil was in April. Companies that had a lot of oil stored in floating tankers and available for spot-market trading, including some European ones, were able to benefit from March’s higher oil prices, Seng said.

The health department said 58 residents died from an overdose in 2025 -- that’s down from 68 in 2024. Thirty-three of them were opioid-related. This is a 10-year low for the county.

According to the Washtenaw County Health Department, most of the people who died of an opioid-related overdose were white men and 25 to 54 years old.

“We are grateful that our local overdose deaths are still trending down, but a single overdose is one too many,” says Patty Krause, MPH, community health analyst with the Washtenaw County Health Department. “Anyone who uses drugs and their family, friends, and acquaintances should know how to use harm reduction tools like naloxone, which is widely available for free throughout our community. Recovery is possible and support is available.”

Click here to see the full report.

Huntington Woods police said they received reports that the pamphlets were distributed on Wednesday, July 29, throughout several neighborhoods in the city, and officers are looking for the people responsible.

Police are asking the public for help identifying those responsible by reviewing surveillance or doorbell camera footage and reporting any suspicious activity to the Huntington Woods Police Department.

“It is one of the most transmissible diseases on the planet,” Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, Chief Medical Executive for the State of Michigan, said. “Our number of cases of measles just in 2026 alone has already surpassed the total for the entire year for 2025.

“We are experiencing the worst year for measles since 1991,” she said. “And we’re just in July.”

Measles, which was declared eliminated in the United States by the CDC back in 2000 after years of dwindling cases and decades of mass vaccinations, has made an unwelcome comeback over the last five years.

The measles spike has been attributed to the steady drop in MMR vaccination rates, as well as what Bagdasarian said are lax attitudes about diseases, along with political misinformation.

“A lot of people think that ‘I had one childhood disease when I was younger, and so now that makes it okay for my child to get other childhood diseases,’” Bagdasarian said, referencing Chickenpox – which did not have a full-scale vaccine in the U.S. until 1995.

“We have to remember that kids have not been getting measles in large-scale numbers like this in decades, and the reason for that is because we’ve got an amazing vaccine that works incredibly well,” she said. “We used to see about 500,000 cases of measles in this country [in the 1950s].”

Bagdasarian said that misinformation trafficked on social media by influencers and conspiracy theorists, some of which is parroted by politicians, has also added to the problem.

“There’s some really troubling political conversations happening around vaccines,” she said. “This should not be a political issue at all.”

“I hope that people are talking to their health care providers and making sure that they’re getting their medical advice from people who are trained and people who have experienced some of the negative consequences of these illnesses,” she added. “Rather than looking just at Internet sources and getting information from social media.”

Vaccination leads to herd immunity.

Herd Immunity was one of the main things stressed on Thursday. To achieve it, at least 95 percent of people need to be vaccinated. The coverage numbers for 2025 – the last available year – have it at 92.5 percent nationwide.

“With something like measles, you have to have coverage of about 95 percent in order to prevent outbreaks,” Dr. Ryan Malosh, MDHHS’s Director of the Division of Immunization, said. “So, that is a real concern.”

According to Johns Hopkins University, Macomb (87.3%), Oakland (87.8%), Monroe (89.9%), and Washtenaw (91.5%) Counties are all well below herd immunity standards. Wayne County’s numbers are unknown.

“If you’re looking at a county that has vaccination rates 88 percent, there are some schools within that county that may have vaccination rates of 95 percent”, Bagdasarian said. “There may be some schools that have vaccination rates as low as 40 percent or 50 percent.”

According to MDHHS, there have been 14 confirmed cases of measles in Michigan so far this year, with half of them being in Washtenaw County earlier this year. All 14 cases were in unvaccinated people – 12 of whom were under age 18. The numbers make it pretty clear what needs to be done.

“This is a terrible year for measles and we’ve already in 2026 had outbreaks here in Michigan, in Washtenaw and Ottawa counties,” she said. “Measles is here.”

“The MMR vaccine in particular is 93 percent protective against measles with one dose, 97 percent protective with two doses,” she said. “I want us to think about where we are as a country, and can we afford to lose kids to this?”

MDOT’s Restore I-94 project is moving into its next phase, shifting eastbound I-94 traffic across the median and into shared lanes on the westbound side — with a barrier wall separating directions.

The construction spans roughly 13 miles of freeway across five project segments in six Wayne County cities, including major reconstruction and bridge work.

Depending on the weather, the new traffic pattern is expected to begin Saturday, Aug. 1 and remain in place through mid-2027, as crews rebuild road and bridge infrastructure along eastbound I-94 from east of I-275 to west of US-12/Michigan Avenue.

What happens Saturday (6 a.m. – 9 p.m.)

• Eastbound I-94 east of I-275 will be shifted into shared westbound lanes Saturday morning.
• MDOT expects it will take much of the day to reopen ramps because crews must add pavement markings and other roadway changes.
• Drivers should plan extra time — and be ready to detour during temporary ramp closures.

Headed to Metro Airport? Use this route

During the traffic switch, MDOT says airport traffic should use I-275 to Eureka Road to access DTW.

Ramps that will stay closed through mid-2027

Once the traffic shift is complete, MDOT says these ramps will remain closed long-term:

• SB Wayne Rd ramp to EB I-94
• • Detour: WB I-94 → Haggerty Rd → EB I-94
• SB Merriman Rd ramp to EB I-94
• • Detour: WB I-94 → Vining Rd → EB I-94
• EB I-94 ramp to Ecorse Rd
• • Detour: EB I-94 → SB US-24 (Telegraph) → Ecorse Rd

Another closure: Beech Daly at I-94

MDOT also says Beech Daly Road will be closed at I-94 for bridge demolition:

• 5 a.m. Monday, Aug. 3 – 5 a.m. Monday, Aug. 10
• • Detour: Use Ecorse or Van Born roads to US-24/Telegraph, or other local routes.

MDOT is reminding drivers to slow down in construction areas. Per state law, speeding in a Michigan interstate construction work zone means double fines, steeper license point penalties, and if a crash happens potentially serious felony charges.

More details are posted on Restore94.com and construction locations at Michigan.gov/drive.

She says they left pieces of her son in a parking lot and threw them in the trash.

Jessica Ostrowski, 48, said she was “mortified” and “heartbroken” as she learned what she believes happened after her 19-year-old son, Ethan Bennett, was killed July 28, 2023, near Michigan Avenue and Harrison Street in Inkster.

“It was awful, and it’s still awful,” Ostrowski told Local 4. “I was just mortified… How did he not matter?”

‘There’s still no closure’

In the complaint filed July 23, 2026, Ostrowski alleges that “large pieces of Ethan’s brain and scalp” were not only left behind on the pavement but were also found in “a common garbage bin” after the crash scene was released to the public.

Ostrowski told the Investigators on Local 4 that, even worse, the remains were found after they had already held a funeral and cremation for Bennett.

“No mother, or anybody should ever have to go to a crash scene and witness that,” she said. “They found parts of head, hair, and brain matter in the trash and throughout the parking lot… And there’s still no closure.”

She said what was found was not something minor.

“One of Ethan’s best friends went in the middle of the night after the crash… he had found a large piece of Ethan’s head,” she said.

Ostrowski also said other pieces of Bennett’s remains were discovered in a blue bin and by cement blocks and put into baggies.

“This wasn’t missed. I mean, this was my son’s hair. You know, part of his skull,” she said. “In the trash… No family should ever have to go through this.”

What the lawsuit says happened at the scene

The complaint says Bennett “suffered a catastrophic head injury during the wreck.” It cites an Inkster Police Investigator’s Report that described arriving at the scene to find Bennett with his brain “fully removed from his skull” with “skull fractures” and hair from the deceased “scattered around the parking lot and the cement parking blocks.”

The lawsuit also cites a report from the Wayne County Medical Examiner’s Office saying it arrived on scene to take “possession of the body and all body parts that had been separated.” It then alleges that Inkster Fire Department personnel arrived to “wash down” the scene.

The lawsuit also says Michigan State Police Sgt. Brandon Buzanowski “observed suspected human bio on the parking lot,” but later, the medical examiner’s report allegedly stated that “Internally, no brain matter was present.” It also says the postmortem report said it “received separate from the body” a portion of scalp “with multiple attached fragments of fractured calvarium and 500 gm of pulpified brain tissue.”

The lawsuit alleges that the “average weight of an adult male’s brain is 1400 grams,” and alleges that, after the scene was released, significant remains were still at the scene and “in a trash can.”

When asked what the best outcome could be for her, Ostrowski said: “Accountability.”

“I don’t think [they] should ever work in public service ever again,” she said. “I’m not going to stop fighting until they are all held accountable, because no family should have to deal with this.”

The defendants’ responses

The Investigators on Local 4 reached out to each defendant named in the lawsuit individually.

Todd Perkins, attorney for the City of Inkster, responded saying: “The circumstances surrounding Mr. Bennett’s death in 2023 were tragic. Our thoughts and prayers remain with his family. With that understanding, calling to end these employees’ careers gets ahead of the facts. The City has conducted a complete and thorough investigation, and we’re confident the Inkster Police and Fire Departments handled the scene appropriately and professionally. Upon information and belief, this matter has been reviewed by the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office, and that office has charged no one with any wrongdoing. We await an opportunity to defend against these allegations in court.”

Expect increasing clouds throughout the day as temperatures climb to near 90 degrees this afternoon. While the daytime hours will remain dry for most locations, the weather becomes more active tonight as the next storm system approaches the Great Lakes. If you’re making weekend plans, don’t expect a washout, but be prepared for periodic showers and a few rumbles of thunder.

Multiple rounds of showers and a few embedded thunderstorms are expected to move through Southeast Michigan on Saturday and Sunday. At this time, thunderstorms are not expected to be severe, but periods of moderate to heavy rainfall and occasional lightning could impact outdoor plans at times throughout the weekend. The increased cloud cover and rainfall will also bring cooler temperatures. Highs on both Saturday and Sunday will top out around 80 degrees, providing a break from today’s summer heat.

Conditions improve quickly as we head into next week. High pressure returns to the region, bringing dry weather, plenty of sunshine, and a gradual warming trend. Temperatures will climb through the 80s early in the week before approaching 90 degrees by the middle of next week.

The rocket's upper stage will unintentionally slam into the moon on Wednesday, carving out a crater and sending up a plume of dust and rubble that scientists — and skygazers — are eager to observe.

Space tracking expert Bill Gray predicts an impact of 5,400 mph (8,700 kph) — seven times the speed of sound — near Einstein Crater on the moon’s sunlit western limb. With the action unfolding in the wee hours, the eastern portions of the U.S. and Canada, and much of South America should have the best views.

While scientists are not too concerned about this particular piece of space junk, it highlights the growing threat as more and more items cram into orbit.

“Things are getting crowded up there,” said Gray, who plans to view the aftermath from New Brunswick, Canada.

It was never SpaceX's intent to hit the moon. But space experts said the crash could have been avoided if the upper stage had been nudged into orbit around the sun.

It will be the second dead rocket known to crash into the moon accidentally. A Chinese rocket segment dug out a pair of craters on the lunar far side in 2022.

Lucky for astronomers, the upcoming smashup will occur on the moon’s near side, packing the equivalent energy of three tons of TNT.

The impact flash, lasting less than a second, will probably be too dim to see, according to experts. But the stream of ejected material could stretch for several miles (kilometers) into space and remain visible to telescopes for tens of minutes.

“The gravity on the moon is low and there is no wind to blow the dust away,” said Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Benjamin Fernando, who’s encouraging observations by professionals and amateurs alike.

“Part of the reason for our interest in this event is to figure out how much of a hazard debris impacts pose to future astronauts,” he added in an email.

Fernando anticipates an impact crater nearly 90 feet across and 16 feet deep (27 meters across and 5 meters deep), too small to see from Earth but visible to spacecraft.

NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and South Korea’s Danuri lunar orbiter will gather before-and-after shots of the crash scene. Danuri will stray within a mile or two (a few kilometers) of the SpaceX rocket just two minutes before impact, according to Fernando and his team.

The abandoned rocket segment — measuring some 40 feet (12 meters) and weighing around 10,000 pounds (4,500 kilograms) — hoisted two private lunar landers on Jan. 15, 2025.

One of them — Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost — became the first private spacecraft to pull off a fully successful lunar touchdown. The other, Japan-based ispace’s lander, wrecked.

With meteoroids and other natural objects offering little if any warning before walloping the moon, scientists said there’s much to learn by observing well-tracked strikes by human-made objects like the one coming up. NASA hurled rocket sections and lunar modules into the moon during the Apollo era for seismic measurements. Decades later, in 2009, NASA intentionally crashed its LCROSS spacecraft and upper stage in search of ice near the lunar south pole.

With the moon as the new travel hot spot, scientists said it’s crucial to improve debris monitoring and traffic control before packs of robots and astronauts arrive.

The United States and China are racing to land astronauts on the moon in the next few years. Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin are vying to provide the lander for NASA's yet-to-be-named moonwalkers of Artemis IV, who will succeed the 12 Apollo astronauts who strolled the lunar surface.

“This impact will not be a problem,” retired astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell said in an email. “But in a future where there are long-term bases on the moon, similar impacts would be an issue and we need not to leave rocket stages in chaotic orbits of this kind.”

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Jessica Treviño, 34, filed a lawsuit through her attorney this week asking a federal judge to intervene.

Treviño and her husband were arrested in December after federal agents followed them and two of their daughters into a Home Depot parking lot in South Texas. Both were deported and are living in Matamoros, Mexico, just south of Brownsville, Texas. Their three children, all U.S. citizens, are living with family on the U.S. side near the border.

After being brought to the country as a child at the age of 7, Treviño subsequently received legal permission at 20 to remain in the U.S. under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, or DACA. Introduced in 2012, DACA does not confer legal status but has allowed hundreds of thousands of people who had come to the U.S. as children to temporarily remain and obtain work permits.

As a DACA recipient, she must maintain a clean criminal record and is not allowed to travel outside the United States.

Her attorney, David Rozas, filed the lawsuit. He noted her status and work permit were most recently authorized until April 2027.

Notice to terminate DACA cites ‘unauthorized travel’

Last week, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services sent her a notice of intent to terminate her status for “unauthorized travel outside of the United States on or about March 25, 2026,” the same day she was deported from the country by the Department of Homeland Security.

In a statement, DHS said Treviño's husband was in the country without permission and driving at the time of the arrest. After a collision between the couple's vehicle and an unmarked Homeland Security Investigations vehicle, the couple was arrested. DHS claimed she “knowingly accepted voluntary departure and waived appeal. She left the U.S. on March 25, 2026, and will NOT return.”

In a recent interview with The Associated Press, Treviño said she did not sign any forms at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility and did not want to be deported.

Lawsuit seeks restitution of status

Rozas filed a petition asking a federal judge in Brownsville to declare the woman's expulsion was unlawful, order the government to facilitate Treviño's return to the U.S. and allow her DACA status to remain valid.

“The government had no lawful basis to remove her, and we filed this petition to demand she be brought back home,” her attorney added.

An immigration judge under the Justice Department had issued a voluntary departure order for Treviño in February while she was in ICE custody, but a valid DACA status prevents the Department of Homeland Security from deporting her.

“I would be so blessed to be able to go back home, because that’s what I long for most right now. I’m really desperate. It’s been seven months since I’ve been home,” Treviño said Thursday. Her three children are set to start school next month and their mother said she would like to be there.

The current Trump administration has deported 86 DACA recipients and arrested 241 others, according to a DHS letter sent in February to Democratic Sen. Richard J. Durbin of Illinois.

Advocates for DACA recipients say Treviño's deportation is part of a pattern.

“This is what a deliberate, systematic effort to destroy DACA looks like in practice: target recipients one by one, manufacture justifications after the fact, and leave their children to grow up without them,” said Todd Schulte, president of FWD.us, a policy organization defending immigration rights.

___

This story has been revised to correct that Treviño arrived in the U.S. at age 7, not 8, later receiving DACA status at 20 years old.

Having released her new single “Shotty” on Friday, Reid wants people to meet the less pristine version of herself: a 23-year-old from Atlanta who falls in love, deals with boy problems and is still finding her way.

“I think people might think I have it all together when I really don't,” said Reid, who is known for performances in “ Euphoria, ” “ A Wrinkle in Time ” and “ The Last of Us, ” which earned her an Emmy in 2024. She graduated from the University of Southern California last year.

“I'm a normal girl trying to figure it out,” she continued.

“Shotty” follows Reid’s debut single, “Clean Sweep,” continuing a music journey she has pursued over the past year. So far, she has recorded more than 25 songs.

Reid said she hopes to focus work on her first EP after wrapping production on Teyana Taylor's feature directorial debut “Get Lite,” giving herself time to shape a project that tells a cohesive story. She's releasing music independently through her label, 1720 Music, saying the approach gives her greater creative freedom while leaving the door open to partner with a major label in the future.

“The indie route, you have a little bit more autonomy of what you want to do and how you do things,” she said.

Reid said ownership also gives her an opportunity to create doors for other artists.

“It’s the most powerful thing,” she said. “I want to sign people. I want to sign songwriters and producers and artists, and give them opportunities.”

Music has quickly become as important to Reid as acting, a career she'll continue with upcoming projects including Netflix’s “Roommates” and “Get Lite.” Preparing for Taylor's film pushed Reid outside her comfort zone as a dancer, challenging her to become more comfortable as a performer.

It's a skill Reid hopes will eventually translate to performing her own music.

“It’s as big and as important as acting is,” she said. “It’s something that I want to continue to do and want to continue to grow at.”

Reid said years in Hollywood prepared her for criticism.

“People didn’t feel like I deserved to win an Emmy, but it’s still sitting in my house,” she said. “It’s still in my mama’s house, so I don’t really care what people say.”

Since releasing “Clean Sweep,” Reid said she has largely stayed away from reading online comments.

“I don’t want to get distracted or discouraged,” she said. “Mostly I’ve been so thankful. The sentiments have been really nice and people have been supportive. ... I'm excited and can’t wait for them to hear more.”

For Reid, music has become more about who she's always been.

“Not everything is gonna be perfect. Not everything is gonna be prim, proper and pristine and eloquent,” Reid said. “Like yeah, that’s a part of me, and I can do that, and I can do it really well. But also … this is me too.”

Winfrey opened the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in 2007 after being inspired by conversations with former South African President Nelson Mandela about the transformative power of educating girls. He was among the guests at the school's opening ceremony.

Winfrey's charitable foundation ran and funded the school, but it was always part of the agreement that the academy campus near Johannesburg be ultimately handed over to the provincial education department, the academy said.

“The dream was never simply to build a school,” Winfrey said in a statement issued by the academy on Wednesday. “It was to invest in the limitless potential of young women. That mission doesn’t end with one campus. It continues in every girl whose future can be transformed through education.”

The academy said Winfrey’s commitment to educating South African girls would continue through an expanded national scholarship program supporting academically talented girls at leading schools across the country.

More than 500 girls have graduated from the academy and some have attended top universities in South Africa, the United States and Europe, according to the Oprah Winfrey Charitable Foundation.

The Gauteng provincial government will take over the 52-acre academy campus, which has 21 classrooms, six science and computer laboratories, a 10,000-volume library and a 600-seat theater. It did not immediately say what the plans for the property were.

Gauteng Provincial Minister for Education Lebogang Maile said those currently enrolled in the school will be able to complete their education with uninterrupted financial support.

The academy drew international attention shortly after opening in 2007 when several students accused a dormitory matron of physically and sexually abusing them.

Winfrey traveled to South Africa to meet with students and parents, publicly apologized, and commissioned an independent investigation.

The matron was acquitted of criminal charges in 2010.

___

This report has been corrected to show Oprah Winfrey’s statement as issued on Wednesday and not Thursday.

___

AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa

The death toll rose to 34, the Kumamoto prefectural government said, as rescuers raced to find those still missing after the quake triggered a mall explosion, toppled a factory chimney and flattened homes.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi stressed that authorities must secure water supplies by doing “whatever it takes” and called for close coordination with the military and other relevant agencies. The earthquake left thousands of homes without power, but electricity was fully restored by Friday evening. The local power company also said there were no immediate reports of remaining outages.

The magnitude 7.1 earthquake hit Japan’s southern main island of Kyushu on Tuesday. As search operations entered a fourth day, it wasn’t known how many people remained missing.

More than 1,500 buildings were damaged, including 179 that were destroyed, according to preliminary assessments by Kumamoto officials.

Officials said one more death and its connection to the quake is under investigation. At least 96 people were injured, including six seriously.

Debris collected at a severely damaged century-old Japanese inn

In Yatsushiro City, another hard-hit area in southern Kumamoto, Kinparo, a 116-year old Japanese inn, was severely damaged, with its roofed main entrance collapsed to the ground, white walls cracked and rooftiles fell.

On Friday, three days after the quake, workers were removing parts of the gate, which is part of a registered historic property that needs to be restored.

Started in 1910, the three-story ryokan with traditional architecture and its hot bath have attracted many fans from the region and across Japan.

“The damage is tremendous and it would require significant repairs, and I can’t even think if or how I can do that,” inn owner Keisuke Matsumoto said. “But it’s a valuable family inn that has been handed down for generations since my great-great grandfather built it, so I do hope to preserve it.”

Inside, his mother Misao Matsumoto said she was not injured in the quake but “I’m mentally discouraged. It’s very painful to see parts of what I’ve lived with and enjoyed for decades crumble to that state.” But she said experts of historic buildings will come in to discuss the reconstruction, so “I have to hang in there."

Across the street from the Kinparo inn, a fish cake shop owner unable to resume his business due to the water cutoff was giving away tube-shaped fish cakes while they are still edible.

Signs for the “chikuwa” fish cake hang from the ceiling. “I just wanted to cheer up this neighborhood,” said shop owner Shinichiro Katayama. He says he cannot clean or check his fish cake machine is intact until the water supply resumes. “I don’t even know if the machine still works. When water supply is back that would be my first step toward a recovery.”

Thousands are without water as heat soars

Kumamoto authorities said nearly 80,000 homes remained without water. More than 9,000 people were staying in shelters, where power sources were being added to provide air conditioning.

Fuel has also become scarce as power outages disabled gas stations and quake damage disrupted deliveries from other regions. Many have resorted to sleeping in their cars for privacy, but with the fuel shortage, they struggle to keep the air conditioning running in sweltering temperatures.

Japan's weather agency and the Ministry of the Environment issued an extreme heat alert for Kumamoto city Friday as temperatures peaked at 36 C (97 F).

Hirokazu Sato, who lost his home in the earthquake, said he and his wife and three children would remain in their car until they can move into temporary housing.

“I don’t know how soon I’d be able to move in,” said Sato. “We need to have the air conditioning on throughout the day and night, which uses up gas.”

Kumamoto is also a major industrial hub, and there are concerns that the quake could possibly disrupt semiconductor and auto-parts supply chains for months to come.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, a global chip giant that operates a lab in Kumamoto, said all personnel were safe and operations were gradually resuming after postquake inspections found the structure was sound, although detailed inspections and impact assessments were still underway.

Searches continue, with the number of missing unknown

Japanese officials had described Friday afternoon as a crucial point for rescue efforts as some experts say survival chances decline after the first three days.

With search dogs, rescuers continued looking for survivors across the Kumamoto area, including at the collapsed Aeon Mall in the town of Kashima, one of the hardest-hit sites. The complex was bustling with thousands of people when the quake happened.

The company said about 3,000 shoppers were evacuated to a parking lot before an explosion happened in another part of the mall, where some staff remained working. The mall’s second floor collapsed, trapping people. Seven of the 11 rescued were confirmed dead, but officials did not say if anyone else is missing.

A search operation had ended at a Nippon Paper Industries factory in the Yatsushiro city where a chimney collapsed in the quake, officials said. Of the 11 people dug out there, nine were confirmed dead.

Smaller-scale searches continued Friday at the sites of collapsed houses in badly hit towns in southern Kumamoto. Authorities haven't supplied a firm figure for how many people are missing.

____

Ono reported from Tokyo. Associated Press writer business writer Yuri Kageyama contributed to this report.

Though there was no shortage of levity, a sense of urgency filled the Detroit meeting room as Abdul El-Sayed, a former gubernatorial candidate who is running as a Democrat for the U.S. Senate in Michigan, began speaking about how his Muslim faith informs his progressive views.

The public health researcher asked the group of faith leaders ahead of Tuesday’s primary, “What does the inspiration of holding yourself accountable to something bigger than you mean for what you do for the people around you?”

El-Sayed added, “If you can’t eat food and I have something to do about it, I better do it.”

Progressive Democratic politicians have won major electoral victories across the country in recent months amid growing frustrations surrounding inequality, affordability and potential threats to job security posed by artificial intelligence. As the economy becomes a flashpoint for the November midterms, many of these candidates and voters who support them are citing religion as a justification for their positions.

“We’re in an era of historical inequality,” El-Sayed told The Associated Press. “Most faith traditions — certainly the Abrahamic faith traditions — put a lot more burden on the wealthy.”

The interfaith roundtable took place days after a high-profile rally for El-Sayed, who has made “Medicare for All” a fixture of his campaign and is running against the more moderate Rep. Haley Stevens. It featured speeches from progressive heavy hitters like Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.

Though not a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, El-Sayed is being endorsed by liberal allies, many of them members of the DSA, while being criticized by Republicans and centrist Democrats for being too far left to be electable in a swing state.

If elected in November, he would be the first Muslim senator in U.S. history.

Representatives for Stevens, who is identified in congressional profiles as a Protestant, did not respond to requests for comment.

Progressive ideologies carry different connotations for different generations

Religious support for progressive economic and labor movements is not new, even if it has ebbed and flowed in the U.S. over the centuries. Pope Leo XIV’s recent encyclical was in many ways an ode to “Rerum novarum,” Pope Leo XIII’s seminal 1891 text on labor, wages and unions that helped shape Catholic social teaching.

This embrace of religion isn't unique to the Democratic Party's progressive wing. More moderate candidates like James Talarico, the seminarian running for the U.S. Senate in Texas, also highlight their faith. But as left-leaning Democrats and democratic socialists like New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who is Muslim, score wins in local and national races, Republicans have repeatedly decried the party's progressive wing as communists devoid of religion.

“Republicans and conservatives believe in natural rights that flow from a creator. I think communism rejects that. It espouses a very atheistic, centralized sort of secular view of society,” said Douglas Blair, a spokesperson for Heritage Action for America.

Megan Romer, a DSA national co-chair and ordained ruling elder within the Presbyterian Church (USA), conceded socialism is a troubling concept for some people of faith.

“People’s idea of it is, ‘Oh, that’s when you’re not allowed to have a religion, right?’ Which has been true in some socialist projects,” she said.

But experts say that narrative carries less weight among many younger Americans who have no memory of the Cold War and the anti-religious associations it begot.

Theology informs more than just faith

Though there are more Democrats unaffiliated with religion than Republicans, many people of faith do not see progressive ideologies like socialism as contradictory to their beliefs. They cite Black religious activists who were outspoken critics of capitalism, including Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and W.E.B. Du Bois, as models for their thinking about the relationship between religion and politics.

The Rev. Andrew Wilkes, who co-pastors the Double Love Experience Church in New York City, became interested in democratic socialism more than a decade ago after presiding over a funeral for someone whose insurance wouldn’t cover a critical operation. “It was not God that sent him home but an unjustly organized healthcare system and economy,” he said.

“There’s an increasing recognition, I would say, connecting socialism to a sense of a moral compass,” Wilkes said, adding that religion can bring optimism and creativity in a time of pessimism. “There’s a level of world-building that faith can speak to.”

Romer, who joined the DSA in 2018 in part because of Sanders’ unsuccessful presidential run two years earlier, thinks there is a theological component to why Christianity in particular has thrived among conservatives.

“That flavor of Christianity is a very individualistic one. They talk a lot about your personal relationship with God,” she said. “My interpretation of Christianity is one that, I think the early Christians — they were not communists in the modern sense, but they lived in communal situations.”

Attitudes toward capitalism are changing, and religion is playing a role

This faith-driven economic focus is not limited to elections.

Clergy and Laity United for Economic Justice is a nonprofit organization that works with congregations throughout Southern California to support workers’ rights. Earlier this month, it facilitated a visit to Live Oak United Church of Christ in Brea, California, to support efforts to unionize a local grocery store chain.

“We just feel very, very overworked,” Luis Cueva, a Mother’s Market employee, told members of the congregation after their Sunday service as he asked for support.

“Jesus was a socialist,” Cueva said after the meeting, citing his teachings about it being difficult for rich people to go to heaven. “It means a lot to know that the church is willing to help.”

About half of U.S. adults have a positive view of capitalism, according to a poll last year from Gallup, down from 61% in 2010. Democrats have driven part of the shift, but favorable views of capitalism have also declined among independents.

President Donald Trump and other Republicans have cast these attitudes and candidates as being fundamentally at odds with religion.

“These are hard core, godless communists,” Trump said recently during a speech to the Faith & Freedom Coalition. “All communists are godless. They don't believe in God.”

Faith can be both a political asset and a liability

Although there are myriad points of contention within the Democratic Party, such as support for Israel, El-Sayed considers economic issues a top issue for his campaign.

“I talk about taking money out of politics because it’s the reason life is not affordable,” he said. “People are realizing that politicians on both sides of the aisle really are being paid off by the same people.”

The son of Egyptian immigrants, El-Sayed is aware that his Islamic faith can be weaponized or misunderstood. But since having a religious experience in college that followed a rebellious childhood, he takes seriously the implications of his faith.

“If you put your morals on a mantel, they’re not morals. They’re just, you know, things that you can admire and then you give yourself the permission to step away from them when it’s convenient,” he said.

As the roundtable concluded, leaders from each faith took turns praying. Their heads lifted, but the Rev. Horace Sheffield chimed in with one last request on behalf of El-Sayed.

“I don’t think y’all were specific enough. So I’m gonna say it real simple,” he said. “Lord, let him win.”

___

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.

None of those initiatives would have passed under a ballot measure getting decided by voters Tuesday.

Missouri's proposed Amendment 4 would make it significantly harder to amend the constitution by requiring citizen initiatives to pass in all eight of the state's diverse congressional districts instead of by a traditional, simple statewide majority. No other state has such a high standard — or has even asked voters to consider it.

“This is a first-of-its-kind,” said Kelly Hall, executive director of the Fairness Project, a national group that backs progressive ballot initiatives like the ones Missouri's Republican lawmakers are hoping to quelch.

“It would be nearly impossible for citizens to participate meaningfully in any sort of direct democracy,” said Hall, who believes other states could try to copy Missouri's proposal.

Lawmakers seek to rein in citizen initiatives

The Missouri proposal is the culmination of years of attempts by lawmakers in numerous states to raise the bar for citizen-initiated petitions to qualify for the ballot and win voter approval. Some elected officials contend lawmaking is best left to themselves — the people's representatives — because citizen initiatives lack the vetting that comes from the multistep legislative process of public hearings, debates and revisions.

The effort to curtail citizen initiatives on state ballots comes as President Donald Trump pushes for greater restrictions on who can vote and how ballots are cast, asserting the integrity of elections is at stake.

Missouri’s measure “fits into the larger narrative and story around what the future of democracy looks like in the United States,” said Chris Melody Fields Figueredo, executive director of the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center, which supports progressive ballot measures.

Citizen initiatives are allowed only in some states

About one-third of U.S. states allow people to bypass their legislatures by gathering signatures to place proposed constitutional amendments on the ballot. Several others allow the process for proposed laws.

In most of those states, a simple majority of voters is all that’s needed to approve constitutional amendments. Colorado requires a 55% vote for most measures, and Florida a 60% vote.

Voters in recent years rejected ballot measures to raise the approval threshold for amendments in Arkansas, Ohio and South Dakota. Still, South Dakota lawmakers have placed a proposal for a 60% approval threshold on the November ballot. North Dakota voters will consider a similar measure, and Utah voters will decide on a 60% requirement for citizen-initiated tax increases.

Missouri’s proposal would apply only to citizen initiatives. Constitutional amendments proposed by the Legislature still would need only a statewide majority. No other state has a dual standard like that.

Missouri proposal requires geographic consensus

Republican state Rep. Ed Lewis, who sponsored Missouri's measure, said he wants to ensure people in all parts of the state have their voices heard. He said activists funded by out-of-state interest groups have run up large majorities in St. Louis and Kansas City to pass controversial initiatives that failed throughout most of the rest of Missouri.

The abortion, marijuana, sports betting and Medicaid initiatives all were placed on the ballot by petitions between 2020 and 2024 after lawmakers declined to act. All passed with 53% or less of the statewide vote.

Requiring “50% in each of our congressional districts is not a difficult barrier for anything that has a consensus,” Lewis said. But “it is a difficult barrier for either a very conservative or a very liberal initiative petition,” he said.

“If you’re going to change the constitution, shouldn’t it be broadly accepted?” Lewis asked rhetorically.

Amendments to the U.S. Constitution require ratification by three-fourths of the states.

Critics say Missouri's proposed amendment could undercut consensus, because an initiative backed by large margins in seven congressional districts still would fail if opposed by a slim margin in just one district.

“It is an astonishing level of unfairness, and it crushes our notion of one person, one vote and majority rule, which we learned about in school as kids,” said Scott Charton, a spokesperson for the Missouri Realtors campaign committees, which have backed previous initiatives.

Republicans are divided over initiative restrictions

Though Amendment 4 was referred to the ballot by Republican lawmakers, people at a recent Republican club meeting in Jefferson City were divided about whether to make it harder for citizens to amend the state constitution.

Rick Kolb said he supports the tougher standards.

“Our country was founded as a republic not a democracy,” he said. When initiatives appear on the ballot, “everybody votes on these things that they haven’t put any thought into it.”

But Jim Bryan said he opposes the amendment, fearing it could allow voters in St. Louis or Kansas City to thwart measures supported by the rest of the state.

“The popular vote is what I want,” he said.

A new petition could fortify citizen initiatives

Regardless of the outcome, Tuesday's vote may not be the last on Missouri's citizen initiatives.

The Respect Missouri Voters coalition submitted more than 300,000 petition signatures — currently being verified by election officials — to try to place a constitutional amendment on the November ballot protecting the initiative process. It would reverse the Legislature's amendment by requiring only a statewide majority to pass citizen initiatives. It also would bar the Legislature from increasing the number of signatures needed to qualify for the ballot, shortening the time to do so or imposing other requirements that weaken initiative rights.

The measure also would make it harder for the Legislature to reverse or amend voter-approved initiatives by requiring an 80% vote in both the House and Senate instead of a simple majority. That comes after the Legislature last year repealed a paid sick leave law approved by voters and referred a new constitutional amendment to the November ballot to reverse voter-approved abortion rights.

Supporters insist their measure is nonpartisan, noting that Democratic lawmakers also tried to restrict citizen initiatives before Republicans gained control of the Capitol.

“Politicians in power want all the power in their hands,” said Benjamin Singer, co-founder of Respect Missouri Voters. “They don’t want citizens to have a check on their power.”

Anthropic, the San Francisco-based AI company behind Claude, posted on its website Thursday that it discovered the three incidents after reviewing more than 141,000 evaluation runs.

It had launched a “large-scale” cybersecurity review which specifically looked for evidence whether its AI models were able to access the internet from within testing environments that should have been sealed off, in response to the OpenAI incident, Anthropic said.

Anthropic said the models involved in the incidents were Claude Opus 4.7, Claude Mythos 5 and an internal research test model. The earliest incidents date to April, the AI company said.

“Claude compromised the impacted organizations’ infrastructure using basic techniques,” Anthropic said, such as exploiting weak passwords.

In all three incidents, the AI models were tasked with a “capture the flag” cybersecurity challenge, which Anthropic said has been one of the ways it assesses a model’s cyber capabilities.

The models were given a fictional scenario and told a piece of secret information, or the “flag,” had been hidden on a different machine on the network with the objective of breaking in and retrieving it, it said.

It added that it had already reached out to the affected organizations, which it did not name. Two of them said they had not previously detected the activity. Anthropic said it was “continuing to reach out to the third.”

Anthropic said it conducted its review with Irregular, which describes itself as the “first frontier security lab.”

“Addressing these risks will require closer cooperation across the AI ecosystem,” Irregular said in a post on X.

Last week, OpenAI said its AI models went rogue during an evaluation of its models, breaking into the servers of AI startup Hugging Face. OpenAI described it as a “significant security incident.”

These incidents have highlighted the vulnerabilities in AI security and controls and raised questions over how AI can be safely kept under human control as the technology’s usage becomes more widespread globally.

Researchers have warned for years about risks from technology and the need for stronger AI defensive engineering.

“Safety testing happens before a model is released precisely because we don’t yet know what it is capable of,” Anthropic said on Thursday on its website.

Kok Tin Gan, co-founder & CEO of cybersecurity firm NyxLab, which specializes in cybersecurity and threat detection, believes there will be more such incidents in the future.

“It is increasingly about governing what agents are available to the AI, what authorities they possess, which actions require approval, and how we ensure they remain within scope,” Gan said.

But the future of AI safety extends beyond just the safety of AI models, he said.

“If we simply give the AI a goal and allow it to decide how to achieve it, we should not be surprised when it takes actions that technically satisfy the objective, but fall outside our intended scope or expectations,” Gan said.

Therefore, stepping up the governance of the organizations and authorities behind these AI models is going to be increasingly important, he said.

Brussels aims to track the use of AI models for violations of its new regulations, like the publishing of sexually explicit material, fake photos and videos, and cyber threats to public infrastructure. When the bloc's AI Act comes into force on Sunday, AI companies will be required to make clear to consumers with labels or digital watermarks that chatbots or imagery are generated with AI.

“As enforcement begins, we are taking an important step towards AI that people and businesses can understand and trust, and whose benefits are shared widely across our society,” said Henna Virkkunen, the EU chief for tech sovereignty, on Friday.

The European Commission said in a statement that new regulations also include “systemic risks” posed by AI like “chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear incidents, loss of control, cyber offense, harmful manipulation and threats to fundamental rights."

The team is the latest move in the 27-nation EU’s “tech sovereignty” strategy that welds landmark digital regulations with economic ambition that has seen over the past week billions of euros in fines on Big Tech companies as well as record investment in AI infrastructure inside the bloc.

The rollout comes on the heels of shocking AI safety failures that rattled the nascent industry. Political leaders worldwide are now weighing control of the technology with market leadership.

Anthropic said on Friday its artificial intelligence models hacked into three other organizations during testing, just days after ChatGPT maker OpenAI raised concerns over AI controls after it disclosed its rogue models hacked another company.

The EU is now expanding its AI Office in Brussels with an additional 38 people who will begin monitoring AI companies, from the new firms to the American and Chinese tech titans like OpenAI and DeepSeek.

Those companies must “document certain information,” said the European Commission, the bloc's tech enforcer, which reserves the right to interview AI company staff during investigations. It has also launched a Whistleblower Tool for tech workers and a Compliance Tool for tech users to confidentially alert authorities to illegal conduct.

If models or other products break the EU's sector regulations, called the AI Act, Brussels can fine the firms or cut off their access to the EU market. Recent gigantic antitrust fines on U.S. tech companies have irked U.S. President Donald Trump.

The EU now clearly sees systemic vulnerability in its deep reliance on American software companies like Amazon, Google and Microsoft as well as imports of Chinese industrial goods and critical minerals. While it is seeking protections from AI, it is also keen to catch up in the AI arms race, where it is a distant third behind the U.S. and China.

More broadly, the EU is seeking more independence from both Washington and Beijing by reinvigorating specific domestic industries like manufacturing and defense and forging new trade deals from Brazil to Australia to meet the global rise in economic nationalism spearheaded by Trump.

The rights group said an attack aircraft identified as a Russian Sukhoi Su-24 dropped two munitions on Kyrnia village in the Mopti region on June 15. One strike hit near the home of the village chief, killing his wife and three children. The second hit a nearby cattle market, killing four men. No fighters from the Islamic militant group JNIM, which has controlled the village for six years, were reported among the casualties.

The Associated Press was not able to independently verify the claims by Human Rights Watch.

Mali has been plagued for over a decade by militants affiliated with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, including JNIM, as well as a Tuareg separatist rebellion in the north.

Violence escalated in recent months after an alliance of JNIM and Tuareg separatists carried out the largest coordinated attack in over a decade, targeting the airport of the country’s capital, Bamako, the nearby garrison town of Kati, and several northern and central cities.

April’s attacks exposed the weaknesses of Mali’s strategy to combat the rebellion, including relying on Russia, which has partnered with the military-led government after it distanced itself from former allies such as France.

Russian mercenaries have been present in Mali since late 2021 to help its military junta fight militants and separatists. Last year, Africa Corps, which reports to Russia’s Defense Ministry, replaced the private mercenary Wagner Group in the country.

Human Rights Watch said it interviewed 19 people, analyzed satellite imagery, and reviewed a video the Africa Corps posted online describing the strike last month as targeting a “terrorist” gathering. Researchers said roughly 100 JNIM fighters were in the village at the time but were mostly gathered elsewhere, and that the strikes did not appear to target a clear military objective.

The rights group called on Mali’s government to investigate the strike and hold those responsible accountable, saying it could otherwise be complicit in war crimes.

Russia’s Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Rescuers recovered 32 bodies from the mine on the outskirts of Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province, and were working to retrieve the remaining two, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority said in a statement.

Mine inspector Ghani Baloch said authorities initially believed 42 people had been inside the mine when the explosion occurred Thursday.

Balochistan’s Minister for Mines and Minerals Shoaib Nosherwani expressed condolences to the victims’ families and announced compensation of 500,000 Pakistani rupees (about $1,800) for the family of each victim. He said authorities would investigate the cause of the explosion and review safety measures at coal mines across the province.

Deadly accidents are common in Pakistan’s coal mining industry, particularly in Balochistan, where many mines lack adequate ventilation, gas-monitoring systems and other basic safety measures.

Despite the dangers and low wages, thousands of workers rely on coal mining for their livelihoods in Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest but least-developed province, where poverty and unemployment remain widespread.

The Dodgers open a three-game set against the Boston Red Sox.

The two-way superstar wanted to play Thursday against the Seattle Mariners, manager Dave Roberts said, but it was the team's decision to rest him. Ohtani told the training staff of renewed soreness after Wednesday night's 4-2 win.

“I appreciate the communication,” Roberts said. “I can’t read minds, the training staff can’t read minds, so just for him to communicate that then allows for us to make a decision.”

Second baseman Tommy Edman went 0 for 3 in Ohtani’s place for the series finale, a 6-2 win.

Ohtani has been dealing with knee soreness since June 11 and hasn't pitched since July 3 while also dealing with a right biceps issue. He skipped the All-Star Game in Philadelphia to stay home and receive a lubricant injection in the knee.

He is still serving as the designated hitter. Ohtani was 5 for 7 combined in his last two games against the Mariners, with a home run, four RBIs and two runs scored.

"The last couple days he’s been on base a lot more whereas the last part of the road trip he wasn’t, so there might have been a little something to that,” Roberts said, adding that nothing occurred in the game Wednesday to precipitate Ohtani sitting out the next day.

The Dodgers expect Ohtani to return to pitching this season, but they're not rushing him back to the mound.

“If there was something structural, then we would be much more concerned,” Andrew Friedman, president of baseball operations, said Wednesday. “The fact that there’s not and the fact that it does keep improving suggests that we’re on the right path.”

For now, the team doesn't have any plans to shut down Ohtani entirely to give him time to recover from his ailments.

"We're talking about this constantly,” Roberts said. “Nothing should be off the table and nothing is set in stone. So I think it’s more of how he feels. With this new information we’ve got to have new conversations.”

___

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

The White House announcement comes nine months after a U.S.-brokered ceasefire was signed. Negotiations between Israel and Hamas had largely deadlocked over the implementation of its second phase, including the disarmament of Hamas and the reconstruction of Gaza.

“The agreement will be carried out in carefully structured phases,” Trump said on social media. “As disarmament is completed, Israeli forces will withdraw, and the International Stabilization Force will work with a new Palestinian police force to take responsibility for Gaza being safe for its residents and its neighbors.”

Trump’s 20-point ceasefire plan calls on the militant group to surrender its weapons and destroy its vast network of tunnels. It also envisions Israeli forces withdrawing from Gaza, the arrival of a new technocratic Palestinian government, deployment of an international security force and the rebuilding of the battered Palestinian enclave.

Trump announced what he said was an agreement to realize one of the most difficult portions of the Gaza ceasefire while negotiations have stalled and military attacks have escalated in the war that the U.S. and Israel in February launched against Iran, a key sponsor of Hamas.

On Friday, a Hamas official said they have reached an agreement on disarmament, the most crucial part of the ceasefire deal. Israel didn't give an indication that they had agreed.

Officials offer long or unspecific timelines for Hamas to disarm

U.S. and Board of Peace officials, describing the deal to reporters on condition of anonymity under guidelines set by the White House, gave an extremely optimistic assessment of the agreement that laid out a scenario very similar to the one described by Trump and his top aides when the Board of Peace, an international body established by Trump to oversee the ceasefire in Gaza, was first formed.

The officials were unable to offer specific timelines for the disarmament of Hamas or other groups that operate in Gaza, such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad, but said the Gaza police force would turn over weapons to the technocratic Board of Peace-backed Gaza administration in the next two weeks.

The Gaza police force, however, does not include the vast majority of Hamas militants and heavy weaponry is not included in that part of the agreement, according to the officials.

Instead, the surrender of heavy weapons and the decommissioning of Hamas tunnels and other infrastructure are to come later in a process that could take between 200 and 350 days, a Board of Peace official said.

Israel has not responded but has been deeply skeptical

A U.S. official said Israel, which has been deeply skeptical about Hamas’ willingness to give up its guns or relinquish at least behind-the-scenes control of Gaza, had been consulted at every step of the negotiation.

However, the official said Israel was not being asked to do anything more than what it had initially committed to when it agreed to Trump’s 20-point plan, which essentially involves withdrawing its forces from Gaza and committing to ending airstrikes on the territory.

The official said Trump would be “very, very disappointed” if Israel didn't adhere to the agreement. Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met at the White House on Tuesday, but neither said much about what was discussed in their first face-to-face meeting since launching the war against Iran.

Israel’s U.N. Mission said it had no immediate comment.

The official added that Iran remains a wildcard in the equation because although it counseled Hamas members not to accept a deal, it is also not in a position to offer the group much support because it is preoccupied with the conflict with the United States.

Hamas previously had insisted on implementing the first phase of the ceasefire before moving to discuss its weapons. The group’s founding charter calls for armed resistance against Israel, and it has been reluctant to give up an arsenal, including rockets, anti-tank missiles and explosives, that lies at the heart of its identity.

Hamas announced earlier this month, however, that it had dissolved its government in Gaza and was preparing to transfer power to a technical committee backed by the United Nations as part of the ceasefire deal.

The war in Gaza began after the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killed around 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage. Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, including those killed since the ceasefire, Gaza’s Health Ministry said.

Israel’s military now controls more than half of Gaza, leaving Palestinians confined to squalid tent camps and heavily damaged urban neighborhoods.

___

Cooper reported from Phoenix, Amiri from New York and Magdy from Cairo. Associated Press writer Edith M. Lederer contributed from the United Nations.

The 30-year-old entertainer, whose real name is Andres Felipe Valencia Barrientos, wept after the verdicts were delivered in the District Court of Western Australia state in Perth.

He had pleaded not guilty to six charges of rape, three charges of assault occasioning bodily harm and one count of choking in a Perth hotel room in September 2024.

The accuser cannot legally be named. She was 20 at the time.

Three days after the jury began deliberating, they found him guilty of only two of the assault charges which relate to him biting the woman. He testified during his eight-day trial that they were “love bites” and denied his victim had complained that he was hurting her.

He was found not guilty on some charges, but he could potentially face a retrial on three charges of rape on which the jury could not reach a verdict.

Despite the convictions, the Colombian-born entertainer remained free on bail until the case returns to court on Aug. 21 to discuss next steps.

Barrientos had been touring Australia and had already performed in Sydney and Melbourne before he encountered his victim in Perth. He was arrested several days later in the east coast city of Brisbane, where the tour was to end.

Prosecutors alleged the woman initially agreed to have sex but withdrew her consent because she feared for her safety.

Photos of the woman with bruising as well as bite marks on her face and neck were shown to the court.

Barrientos has been free on bail since he was charged and was allowed to return to Britain for several months.

The book was returned to the library in the seaside town of Kiama last week by a local Ross Simmons who had found it during recent home renovations inside a tea crate bricked into a sealed fireplace, Kiama Library manager Michelle Hudson said.

“We’ve never had anything that old come back to us,” Hudson said Thursday.

“I follow lots of libraries on social media and often you’ll get things that are maybe 30 or 40 years old when they’re cleaning out estates and stuff like that,” she added.

Ross Simmons, told The Associated Press on Friday he assumed the book was borrowed by his great-great-grandfather John Simmons, who had owned the house where it was found.

“I'm making an assumption. He was in residence in the cottage around about that time and his children were probably too young,” Ross Simmons said.

The library opened in 1872, and the book, “Antiquities of Athens,” published in 1858, was marked as No. 506 in the library’s original collection of around 1,000 books. Hudson suspects the book was lost within a few years of the library opening.

The late return fine would be around 28,000 Australian dollars ($19,500), allowing for inflation, Hudson said. That was calculated on the British three pence-a-week overdue fee that was printed on the inside cover of the book, along with a list of rules that applied when the library opened.

But Hudson said the library's records of borrowers in the 1870s had been lost. “Unfortunately, we have a missing link. There’s nothing in the book that tells us who the last borrower was,” Hudson said.

Library rules in the 1870s stated that a book had to be returned and an overdue debt paid before another book could be borrowed. “Maybe that’s why they never returned it to us,” Hudson said.

Antiquated rules of the day included that up to three books could be borrowed by households in which at least six members were “known to be able to read.” Proof of reading ability is no longer required to use today’s library.

In the 1870s, books were not lent to people who arrived at the library in a “state of intoxication.” Library users are now asked to leave if their behavior impacts others, but the rules are not specific about intoxication.

Ross Simmons said he had no idea why his English immigrant ancestor, who had also served as an alderman in Kiama's municipal government, would not have returned the book.

He said he hadn't been concerned by the prosect of being held liable by an angry librarian for his family's debt.

“I've spent a lifetime dealing with irate customers and being irate with customers himself. Just stick to your guns and say do your worst,” the 77-year-old said.

The returned book will be displayed in the library’s local history collection.

“We’re not going to allow it to go back out again. We don’t want to wait another 150 years for this book to be returned,” Hudson said.

Devers did get a sacrifice fly, but Tatis added on to his impressive list of home run robberies.

Tatis tracked Devers' fly ball and leaped to get his glove high above the short wall in right-center at Petco Park to make the catch. He landed and tumbled onto his backside, but flipped the ball to center fielder Jackson Merrill, who tossed it into the infield.

Merrill helped Tatis to his feet and patted him on the chest. Pitcher JP Sears raised his left arm in celebration.

Tatis was an All-Star at shortstop in 2021 and was moved to right field in 2023, after missing the 2022 season with injuries and a PED suspension. He won the Gold Glove and Platinum Glove awards in 2023 and 2025.

___

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

“UEFA and its national associations will not participate in FIFA competitions,” the European soccer body said after an urgent online meeting of its 55 member nations.

FIFA issued a statement early Friday saying that “nobody is selling football” and that it plans to continue the consultation process. But it appeared to back off from establishing the public equity move — what it calls the FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE) — if member countries do not agree.

“FIFA acknowledges and respects feedback and concern aired in public,” it said, while blaming "erroneous reporting in the media” for disruptions to its planned consultation with member associations.

But it said that without the support of FIFA's 211 member associations, “FIFA’s commercial activities would remain unchanged. FFE would not be established.”

"Nobody is selling football. This is not something FIFA would ever entertain.”

The next scheduled FIFA tournament is within weeks in Europe — the Women’s Under-20 World Cup hosted by Poland from Sept. 5 — and the four British federations comprise FIFA’s only bidder to host the 2035 Women’s World Cup. That decision is due Nov. 23.

“Some things are simply too important to sell,” UEFA said in a statement. “The FIFA World Cup belongs to football. It always will. And so long as Europe has a voice, it will never be for sale.”

The strategy meeting was called to counter FIFA President Infantino’s offer of $20 million to each of FIFA’s 211 global members that has to be accepted by mid-September.

Later Thursday, the 41-member Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) met and announced it rejected Infantino's plan.

In a statement, CONCACAF said members “expressed deep concerns about the lack of due process surrounding the proposal, the artificially short deadline imposed, and the absence of any review or approval by the relevant FIFA governance bodies.” It also questioned the need for outside investment "following the most profitable FIFA World Cup in history.”

Infantino’s secret project was revealed Tuesday to spin off its commercial operations in the new $20 billion FFE subsidiary 20% owned by private investors. The core investor would be a New York investment firm created by Joshua Kushner, the brother of U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.

Infantino wrote Tuesday to the 211 members — already the effective owners of FIFA as a non-profit association under Swiss law — that if they approve FFE their promised $10 million basic funding for the next four years will double to $20 million. He projected their FIFA funding through 2038 would be $86 million each, instead of about $36 million.

“This is not merely a profound failure of leadership, but an abdication of FIFA’s duty as the custodian of world football,” said UEFA, where Infantino was a long-time staffer and its CEO-like general secretary when he was first elected to lead FIFA in 2016.

Infantino’s presidency at risk?

Infantino’s high-stakes financial gambit now could threaten his previously secure 11-year presidency of FIFA as anger and frustration with him rises among soccer stakeholders including three of the six continental bodies.

FIFA has set a Nov. 18 deadline for potential candidates to declare in a presidential vote of the 211 members scheduled next March in Rabat, Morocco.

Infantino had seemed — 11 days ago after the World Cup final in East Rutherford, New Jersey — to have a clear path to being re-elected unopposed for a fourth and final term in office through 2031, despite a furor over letting United States forward Folarin Balogun play against Belgium despite a red card in his previous game.

Soccer officials have said privately Infantino has eyed a lucrative commissioner-like role at the FFE spinoff beyond 2031.

“Game over, Gianni #InfantinOUT,” the Football Supporters Europe group, which advises UEFA on fan issues such as ticket prices, posted after the boycott threat.

Soccer’s concern at investor pressure

UEFA detailed Thursday why soccer officials fear external investors owning a stake of the global game’s biggest events, including World Cups and Club World Cups for men and women.

“The moment external investors acquire ownership interests in FIFA competitions, football changes forever,” UEFA said. “Commercial return becomes a permanent obligation. Investor expectations become a daily pressure.”

Infantino has presented the private equity offer as a chance to “turbocharge” funding development of soccer across the world, where a majority of the 211 FIFA members rely on its funding.

Officials from about 40 UEFA member spoke at the urgent meeting, with anger expressed that FIFA is not using some of its multi-billion reserves to fund extra development programs.

“As a result of today’s discussion, no UEFA national teams will participate in any FIFA competition for so long as these proposals remain alive,” the European soccer body said, “unless this proposal has been abandoned in its entirety and binding assurances have been given that FIFA will never again open its governance or competitions to private ownership.”

Asia adds rare criticism of Infantino

On a seismic day in soccer politics, a traditional bedrock of support in Asia for FIFA and Infantino had earlier Thursday been shaken.

“FIFA’s unilateral actions appear to undermine the very foundations of continental football,” the Asian Football Confederation president Sheikh Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa said in a letter to its 46 members of FIFA, warning of risks to their own competitions.

Sheikh Salman, an ally to Infantino since losing the FIFA presidential election to him in 2016, wrote “such an initiative will not succeed without the support of all the confederations, which is not the case now.”

In a video message published Wednesday by FIFA, Infantino insisted spinning off its money-making operations was “an offer, not an obligation.”

A FIFA presentation for its members, co-written with its banking advisors from J.P. Morgan and seen by the AP, set a goal for FFE as “commercial rigor and expertise to better capitalize on broadcast rights, sponsorships and a growing tournament portfolio.”

FIFA squeeze on continental games

That growing portfolio likely would include adding more teams to FIFA competitions like the World Cup and Club World Cup for men and women, and potentially staging them more often than every four years, including in the U.S.

FIFA adding teams, games and competitions would squeeze the value, status and space in the congested global fixture calendar for those that fund and are organized by the six continental soccer bodies like UEFA and the AFC. Those include World Cup qualifying games, continental tournaments and Champions Leagues.

“It is important that the AFC family has a complete understanding,” Sheikh Salman wrote, “of how such an initiative may affect key areas of global and Asian football, including the sustainability of confederation and (domestic) competitions, as well as the organization and commercial landscape surrounding the AFC’s activities.”

UEFA’s previous boycott threat

A threatened World Cup boycott from Europe helped derail Infantino’s plan in 2021 to play World Cups every two years instead of four.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and AP World Cup coverage

Across the country, Democratic candidates are grappling with their previous positions calling to “defund the police” — a prominent demand during the protests that followed George Floyd's death — by either reimagining public safety services altogether or redirecting some police departments’ funds to other social programs. Now, they are facing tough questions about their past positions.

Democratic leaders fear that the outlier opinions favoring police defunding may again tarnish the party's brand and sink its chances of gaining ground in Congress, governor's mansions and statehouses nationwide.

“It was a serious debate in 2020 that arguably cost us some seats that year and caused us to lose on something where we should have had the upper ground, because a few members of our party wanted to have a stylistic debate rather than one on substance,” said Antjuan Seawright, a Democratic strategist.

Seawright said to avoid being painted as politically toxic on safety issues, Democrats “have to define the narrative before others define us with the narrative.”

That task may become more challenging as the party grapples with a rising left flank that has captivated its base, just as Republicans move to make warnings about crime, immigration and growing support for democratic socialism core to their closing midterm message.

Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate reckons with past ‘defund’ rhetoric

In Wisconsin, a swing state known for razor-thin elections that President Donald Trump won in 2016 and 2024, insurgent democratic socialist State Rep. Francesca Hong has upended the Democratic gubernatorial primary by running far to the left in a state where independent and moderate voters are key in statewide races. A single mother and former line cook, Hong has captured the imaginations of liberal Democrats upset with the party establishment.

But she’s also raised concerns among more moderate Democrats that her past support for defunding the police would hurt her chances in the general election against Trump-backed Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany.

“I support defunding the police as a first step towards abolishing the police,” Hong said in a 2020 social media post after the police shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man in Kenosha, Wisconsin. A year later, while serving in the State Assembly, Hong again posted about Blake, writing: “Police exist to uphold white supremacy. Defund then abolish. Reform can’t be an option.”

But as a candidate for governor, Hong had softened her tone while not disavowing her past statements. On Tuesday night, in the only televised debate ahead of the Aug. 11 primary, Hong said she did not support cutting police funding.

“The governor cannot defund the police and I’m not here to govern by slogan,” Hong said. “I’m here to make sure that I am the governor that is most serious about public safety, and that means investing in the things that we know prevent crimes.”

New York, Michigan politicians distance themselves from ‘defund’ calls

In neighboring Michigan, Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed, a staunch progressive, has faced questions about his past support for defunding the police. Last November, CNN reported that the public health researcher and Rhodes scholar had deleted scores of posts expressing support for defunding the police. He now says he rejects the idea.

And in New York, Mayor Zohran Mamdani has tried to distance himself from his past criticisms of the city’s police department and a previous call to defund the agency. He is at times still dogged by a set of social media posts he made in 2020, at the height of the Black Lives Matter protests, where he described the department as “racist, anti-queer & a major threat to public safety” and pushed to “Defund this rogue agency.”

Mamdani apologized for the language during his campaign and stressed that he no longer wanted to defund the agency. He has since moved to ease lingering concerns by retaining his predecessor’s police commissioner, Jessica Tisch, an establishment moderate respected by the city’s business leaders and law enforcement community. That decision angered some of Mamdani’s progressive allies.

The backtracking illustrates how the politics of criminal justice have shifted since 2020, posing dilemmas for Democrats’ midterm strategy and their ability to enact their preferred solutions.

Memphis voters reject ‘defund the police’ but decry National Guard presence

The stakes are life and death for communities caught in the middle of the political debate.

In Memphis, Tennessee, residents are exhausted at being thrust into the national discourse over crime and safety. The president surged the city with National Guard troops last year as part of an “anti-crime” task force. The task force has faced renewed local backlash after federal agents earlier this month killed a man experiencing a mental health crisis and another person during an altercation while agents executed a drug warrant. The city's local Democratic lawmakers claim that the tough-on-crime policies only temporarily reduced crime while troop presence was at its peak.

“They don’t like how it was done, how President Trump and the governor were able to snap their fingers, and all of a sudden we see federal agents flooding our city,” said State Sen. London Lamar, who represents Memphis and has faced tough questions from constituents and her statehouse colleagues about how to address crime in the city.

But Lamar added that outside of frustrated local progressive activists, residents outraged by the administration's anti-crime crackdown were still skeptical of calls to “defund the police.”

“It's not really sticking because, though it's quietly kept, the vast majority of the community still wants law enforcement's presence,” said Lamar. The debate is a useful distraction, Lamar said, from real conversations over how to boost public safety.

“Our challenges are being exploited for political gain,” she added.

Shannon Rivers said her Pine Aire Apartments unit has been burglarized three times in the last five months, each time through her son’s bedroom window, which she has now boarded up herself.

“They’re vandalizing and then taking whatever property they want,” Rivers said.

She said each time clothes, shoes and electronics were stolen. Rivers is a single mom and says she works overnight for a pharmaceutical company.

After the first break-in, she said someone called the leasing office claiming to be her ex-boyfriend and saying they broke in to retrieve belongings. Southfield police said the caller used a fake name and a phone number tied to a spoof account.

Rivers said the most recent break-in happened Monday, when she said the burglar stole a safe containing personal documents.

“If someone sees this and if they know anything, if we please could have our safe back,” she said. “There’s things in there that we need that are very important. No questions asked.”

Rivers said she believes the burglar cut themselves on glass during the break-in, saying police found a bloody towel in her bathroom.

She’s no longer living at the apartment and is currently staying with a relative.

“I get the shakes every time I come in here,” she said. ”I don’t like to come alone.”

Rivers said apartment management has not offered help and that there are no security cameras on the property.

When asked why cameras have not been installed, an employee at the leasing office told Local 4 it’s up to the landlord, adding the landlord has declined to install cameras “at this time.”

Local 4 also called the property manager twice during business hours and left voicemails, but did not receive a call back Thursday evening.

Rivers said she wants accountability.

“If we are paying, we deserve to feel safe,” she said. “Our property deserves to be here when we come home.”

Anyone with information about the break-ins is asked to contact the Southfield Police Department or leave a tip anonymously through Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP.

The announcement came after local authorities in Ceuta had asked the central government in Madrid for reinforcements to manage a border crisis that boiled over Thursday with large crowds of people breaching the border fence.

Spain’s government said it would send the Armed Forces to help the Civil Guard “maintain security in the city of Ceuta.” It also announced that Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez would join Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska in a visit to Ceuta on Friday.

“The situation is absolute chaos,” Rachid Sbihi, head of the association that represents Spain’s Civil Guard officers who police the border in Ceuta, told The Associated Press. “It’s not possible to give precise numbers, but there are thousands of migrants crossing,” he said, adding that the border had “totally collapsed.”

Achraf Maimouni, a member of the Moroccan Association for Human Rights in northern Morocco, described the situation as “exceptional.”

“The Tarajal border was opened under unusual circumstances this morning and people crossed," he said.

Video footage showed crowds of people, mainly Moroccans, walking around the breakwaters at Tarajal beach onto local roads. While most appeared to be young men, there were also families with women and small children.

“Viva España!” some shouted to a freelance photographer working for the AP. It was not immediately clear what prompted so many migrants to cross to Ceuta.

Spain’s government delegation in Ceuta said at least nine people died Thursday during the chaos. It did not provide details on the circumstances of the deaths but bodies could be seen floating in the water. Dozens have died this year trying to reach Ceuta, according to local authorities.

Arrivals had been increasing, but reasons are still unclear

The escalation at the frontier between Spain and Morocco comes after a surge in migrants attempting to reach the small exclave, mainly by swimming, on Wednesday.

Moroccan authorities have not publicly commented on the crossings, and Morocco's Interior Ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

Spain’s Interior Ministry said the Moroccan government was “closely cooperating” with Spain to handle the situation and that Moroccan police are stopping “numerous people” who are trying to cross the border. Both countries agreed to work together “for the return, as soon as possible, of all the people who entered Ceuta illegally.”

The ministry earlier said it would guarantee the safety of citizens and the integrity of the nation’s border but that the Spanish government could not declare a national emergency — as local authorities had asked — over migration concerns.

The chaos had ripple effects in Italy, another key destination for migrants. Premier Giorgia Meloni threatened to suspend Italy's open-border Schengen agreement with Spain “to defend our borders and ensure the safety of our citizens," though Italy doesn't share a border with Spain.

Ceuta authorities had previously linked the surge to a Spanish Supreme Court ruling earlier this month that barred authorities from immediately returning migrants who arrive by sea without due process. The ruling does not apply to migrants who enter Spain by land, including by climbing over the border fence.

But some activists in Morocco expressed doubt that the ruling was behind the surge, arguing most migrants would have been unaware of such legal decisions.

Spain is a main point of arrival into Europe for migrants seeking better economic opportunities or an escape from violence in their home countries.

To reach Ceuta, located on the northern African coast, migrants often swim from the Moroccan town of Fnideq, covering about 3.1 miles (5 kilometers) to reach Spanish territory. Others attempt the crossing from the nearby town of Belyounech, where the distance is shorter.

The scenes of people streaming across the frontier recall the border crisis of May 2021 when more than 8,000 migrants poured into Ceuta in just two days.

At the time, Morocco was accused of easing border controls and allowing migrants to cross into Ceuta after Spain allowed Polisario Front leader Brahim Ghali to receive treatment at a Spanish hospital, triggering a diplomatic crisis between Rabat and Madrid. The pro-independence Polisario Front for decades has claimed to be the legitimate representative of the Sahrawi people of the Western Sahara. Morocco claims Western Sahara as its own.

Ceuta authorities ask Madrid to declare emergency, send army

Juan Jesús Vivas, the head of Ceuta’s regional government, called for the national government to declare an emergency on grounds of national security, asking for more police and for the army to be deployed on the border “to guarantee the inviolability of the frontier and citizen safety.”

He had warned Wednesday that migrant reception centers were overwhelmed with hundreds of people sleeping on the streets after more than 1,500 migrants entered the territory in the past week. Thousands more crossed overnight and on Thursday.

Spain’s Interior Ministry, which tracks irregular migration, would not confirm the number of migrants who had made it to Ceuta in the last few days but said it would publish its next migration report on Aug. 3. As of July 15, nearly 3,000 migrants had entered Ceuta by land or sea this year, according to ministry figures.

Legislation covering a declaration of national emergencies does not consider migration flows as a risk to national security, according to the ministry, which said government agencies are “coordinating to respond with speed and efficacy to the situation in Ceuta.”

Ceuta, which is perched on a historical isthmus, has been a Spanish possession since 1580. Its mixed population of Christians and Muslims, Spanish and Moroccan residents and day workers, lives in relative harmony behind a border fence that many desperate migrants from across Africa attempt to cross for a better life in Europe.

___

Brito reported from Barcelona, Spain. AP journalists Joseph Wilson in Barcelona and Akram Oubachir in Casablanca, Morocco, contributed to this report.

A person familiar with the deal said Samuel agreed on Thursday to return to the 49ers on a one-year contract worth up to $7 million. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal hadn't been announced.

NFL Network first reported the agreement.

Samuel spent his first six seasons with the 49ers after being drafted in the second round in 2019, helping the team reach the Super Bowl twice and earning All-Pro honors in 2021 when he had 1,770 yards from scrimmage and 14 touchdowns.

Samuel was traded to Washington in 2025 for a fifth-round draft pick and had 72 catches for 727 yards and five TDs for the Commanders last season. He became a free agent in March and now will join the Niners to provide reinforcement with Pearsall out.

Samuel has 406 career catches for 5,519 yards and 27 touchdowns and has been one of the most dynamic players after the catch in the NFL. His average of 8.7 yards after the catch on receptions rank first among all receivers with at least 100 catches since 2019. He also has rushed for 1,218 yards and 21 TDs in 97 career games.

The move comes a day after the 49ers announced that Pearsall was sidelined with a knee injury that could require surgery. The team said Pearsall had swelling in the right knee that was related to the posterior cruciate ligament injury that forced him to miss eight games in the 2025 regular season. The Niners are concerned that the knee is still an issue after Pearsall participated in just two practices in training camp and were evaluating all options.

Pearsall has flashed when he is healthy, but has struggled to stay on the field since being drafted in the first round in 2024. He missed most of training camp as a rookie with a shoulder injury and then was shot in a robbery attempt just before the start of that season. Pearsall returned to make 31 catches for 400 yards and three TDs in 11 games.

Pearsall was slowed early last summer by a hamstring injury, but got off to a fast start with 20 catches for 327 yards in his first four games before going down with a knee injury in Week 4. He has 67 catches for 928 yards and three TDs in 20 games over two seasons.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Time was running out to find survivors, as rescuers continued to work in the Kumamoto area on Japan ’s southern main island of Kyushu, where the magnitude 7.1 earthquake hit Tuesday. The number of people missing was unclear.

Of the deaths given in the latest tally, 25 have been confirmed as related to the disaster, but there were nine more deaths under investigation as likely to be connected, the Kumamoto prefectural government said. The quake left at least 86 people injured, five of them seriously, it said.

Survivors spoke about desperately pulling family members out of the wreckage. Some had suffered injuries and were rushed to the hospital.

Thousands of people spent another night at evacuation centers set up throughout the area at schools and other big spaces. Some homes were still without water or electricity, while others were simply afraid to go back.

Nearly 19,000 homes were still without electricity and more than 9,000 people were staying in the roughly 400 shelters, where power sources were being added to provide air conditioning.

Concerns were growing about illness, including from the sweltering heat. The Ministry of Environment sent out a heatstroke alert for the Kumamoto area, with temperatures rising above 33 C (91 F) Thursday.

Some evacuees sleep in cars

In the town of Hikawa, one of the hardest-hit areas in Kumamoto, many residents are without water or electricity, or both, and some were staying inside their vehicles in parks, at the town hall parking lot, or outside their homes. More than 800 of the town of about 4,500 households were destroyed or damaged, officials said.

At the front entrance of the town hall, officials delivered bottled water and packaged instant rice, while the Ground Self-Defense Force service members came with a trolley to provide fresh water.

Hirokazu Sato, a nurse, whose house was destroyed, is staying in his passenger car at the town hall parking lot with his wife and three children, because he worries that his 1-year-old baby could be a nuisance to others if they take shelter at an evacuation center.

“I can't sleep sitting in the car, so sometimes I go out for a walk during the night,” Sato says. “I hope the town will provide temporary housing soon.”

Yoshiaki Nakashima, a 66-year-old resident who came with two bottles and his beloved pet dog to get water, said he is staying in a car because of his reluctance to stay at one of the three evacuation centers in the area. He also said he doesn’t want to sleep at home because aftershocks made him feel uneasy.

“It’s difficult to turn over while sleeping in a car,” he said, but added that living at a shelter is even more difficult.

Akiko Inazaki, another resident in her 30s, is living in a tent set up in the yard of her home, which has been without water and electricity since the quake. Inazaki, who also came to get water, said she will use it little by little.

“Fresh water is so valuable,” she said. Inazaki said she drank so little that she almost had a heatstroke.

Risks of heatstroke are a major concern among officials.

Yutaka Kobayashi, a doctor dispatched from central Japan's Aichi prefecture, said he was touring evacuation centers Thursday to assess the condition of evacuees, especially elderly people and those with injuries as they cope with a harsh environment.

“We have to make sure elderly people are not developing heatstrokes or dehydration,” he said in Hikawa.

While the town parking lot was nearly packed the first night, some residents have moved to three public schools where air-conditioning is running, Hikawa officials said.

A town official, Yuzuru Tamura, said they are starting to run out of emergency food supply, such as canned bread and instant rice.

Emergency personnel search for missing people

The most serious damage was at the Aeon Mall shopping center in the town of Kashima, which was bustling with thousands of people when the quake struck in the late afternoon.

The company said some 3,000 customers were evacuated to a parking lot before the explosion happened in another part of the mall, where some people were still working. The mall’s second floor collapsed, trapping people.

On Thursday, seven people were confirmed to have died at the mall site among the 12 people pulled out of the wreckage, according to Kumamoto authorities.

In the Yatsushiro area, where a chimney collapsed at a Nippon Paper Industries factory, 10 people were rescued, but eight others died, and one remained missing, the Kumamoto prefectural disaster team said.

Footage provided by the Japanese government and military showed rescue workers drilling through the collapsed parts of the building in an attempt to get to anyone who may still be trapped inside.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told reporters the central government will take a lead role in coordinating the various rescue efforts. Restoring electricity, gas and water to stricken areas, while providing a supply of fresh water is key, she said.

“The needs on the ground are constantly changing. To put to rest the people's feelings of uncertainty, we will do all that needs to be done,” she said.

___

Associated Press writer Yuri Kageyama in Tokyo contributed to this report.

Amazon’s fully autonomous Zoox vehicles got approval Thursday to begin charging customers for rides in the specially designed cars that feature four inward-facing seats once they secure state and local approval. Zoox has already been offering free rides in Las Vegas and San Francisco since last year. At least a couple people were waiting at most stops Thursday afternoon for rides up and down the Vegas strip aboard one of the distinctive boxy-shaped vehicles.

“It’s kind of scary at first, but when I just got used to it, it’s really cool and chilling. I really liked the music and how you can adjust the temperature,” Chloe Huu from Ann Arbor, Michigan, said after taking a ride in a Zoox Thursday. But the projected wait time for the ride kept changing, which made it hard to plan.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also proposed a rule last month to allow robotaxis to operate without brake pedals, but that proposal is still pending. Administrator Jonathan Morrison said his agency wants to update the regulations to fit these fully autonomous vehicles while still acting as the “cop on the beat to make sure that this is being done right.”

Most vehicle safety regulations were written decades ago, always with the assumption that there would be a human driver behind the wheel. But Morrison said that things like steering wheels, windshield wipers and side-view mirrors aren't really needed in an autonomous vehicle.

“If you’re going to be developing a standard in the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, nobody at that time had this imagination, nobody had a crystal ball that you might have technologies that would enable the vehicle to drive itself,” Morrison said.

Questions remain about robotaxi safety

The Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety group raised concerns about Zoox’s plan to operate without a steering wheel or other standard controls because the company didn’t provide detailed evidence to show that its vehicles could operate safely on public roads.

“Lots of promises, lots of glossy language, lots of ‘We believe, we think we’ll do this.’ Yet there really was no data behind the promises, and that’s really concerning to us,” said Peter Kurdock, who is general counsel for the Advocates group.

Morrison said this technology does offer the promise of never driving distracted or drunk like human drivers do, but robotaxis have had some problems. Sometimes they're just weird behaviors like stopping in the middle of the road or struggling to get out of a parking lot. But he said NHTSA responded to the incidents of autonomous cars passing school buses or interfering with first responders, with investigations, recalls and calls to action.

“Sometimes we have seen unsafe behaviors, and we jump on that really quickly again. That’s our job at NHTSA,” Morrison said. But he said Americans shouldn't be terribly worried about the safety of these robotaxis.

“By and large we’re really excited about the promise of this technology and we want to see that promise fulfilled,” he said.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said recently that the limited crash data the government requires autonomous vehicle companies to submit makes it hard to assess the safety record of these robotaxis as they continue to expand across the country.

Most companies don't report how many miles their autonomous vehicles drove, which makes it impossible to calculate a crash rate, according to the IIHS. And there isn't a clear standard for which incidents must be reported. So autonomous vehicle companies are reporting many more minor incidents than human drivers, who tend to only report a crash when there is significant damage or injuries.

Robotaxi industry is expanding quickly nationwide

Zoox and Tesla are working to catch up to the industry-leading Waymo that already operates in multiple cities. Waymo is owned by Google's parent company, Alphabet.

Zoox CEO Aicha Evans said this approval is an important milestone for autonomous vehicles.

“This achievement reflects a shared commitment to enabling innovation while maintaining the highest standards of safety,” Evans said.

Amazon hopes to eventually produce as many as 10,000 robotaxis a year at a plant near Silicon Valley as it works to challenge Waymo. Amazon paid $1.2 billion to acquire self-driving startup Zoox. Initially, Zoox will only be allowed to deploy up to 2,500 vehicles without steering wheels over the next two years as it works to prove the technology is safe. The company said that more than half a million people have already ridden in its vehicles.

___

AP Transportation Writer Josh Funk reported from Omaha, Nebraska.

The changes at the National Jamboree, which ends Friday, reflect shifts made by Scouting America since the organization became a target of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over what he calls “woke” policies. Some scouts who had planned to attend the event in West Virginia said they backed out because Scouting America scrapped the inclusion initiatives it previously celebrated.

Hegseth threatened to end the Pentagon's century-old partnership with Scouting America if it did not make changes including refocusing away from diversity initiatives. The organization, previously known as Boy Scouts of America, rebranded in 2024 to emphasize inclusion and the growing number of girls in the scouting ranks.

“Scouting fundamentally is a safe place for young people to have fun,” said Samuel J. Aronson, an assistant scoutmaster who has organized inclusive events at previous national events. “In the absence of these spaces, we’re denying all that, both the safety and the fun, to thousands of young people.”

Thousands attend the National Jamboree

This year, about 15,000 scouts, leaders and volunteers from across the country are attending the 10-day event in the mountains of West Virginia. In addition to activities including mountain biking and kayaking, the gathering hosts leadership programs and educational sessions.

A Scouting America spokesperson said the organization remains “fully committed to welcoming and serving all youth,” but did not address questions about the changes to the jamboree.

The Pentagon made a deal with Scouting America in February but the two sides have given conflicting accounts of that agreement. This month, a gay rights activist obtained the memo outlining the agreement from the Defense Department after filing a lawsuit, arguing that clarity was of public importance.

The six-page document spells out ways the Pentagon will monitor compliance, including that officials from each organization would have “periodic touchpoints and meet” as needed. It was obtained by James Dale, who was expelled from the Boy Scouts in the early 1990s for being gay and later sued over discrimination. He equated the Pentagon's tactics to the actions of a bully.

“They basically have their thumb on the organization, threatening them under constant pressure,” Dale said.

Deal preserves ties between Scouting America and Pentagon

The scouts and the military have long held close ties; The military provides logistical support for the jamboree and some scout troops meet on or near bases.

Asked about the implementation and monitoring of the deal, a Pentagon spokesperson referred to previous comments by Hegseth.

In February, Hegseth posted a video that said his department would “vigorously review” changes made by Scouting America and would cease the military’s longtime support of the organization if it failed to comply by late August.

Some scouts disappointed by changes to inclusion efforts

John Andrew Segebarth, a 21-year-old college student and Eagle Scout, has been disheartened by the agreement. He joined the scout ranks in first grade and said he had been looking forward to staffing the space for LGBTQ+ and Allied Scouts at this year’s jamboree.

Segebarth, who is gay and was elected by peers as a national officer for scouts in 2024, said the removal of inclusive spaces is a sharp reversal for Scouting America. National scouting events in recent years included community spaces for girls, scouts of color, LGBTQ+ scouts and persons with disabilities, according to Aronson.

“Scouting’s kind of walking back on its values that they told me they believed in,” said Segebarth who, along with Aronson, decided not to attend the jamboree this year.

It was at a community tent that Layla Grace found the first place where she could talk openly about being a transgender female. Now a 21-year-old assistant scoutmaster, Grace had also planned to staff the space for LGBTQ+ and Allied Scouts in West Virginia this year.

When the spaces were canceled, Grace said she almost didn't go to the jamboree but decided she wanted to be there to help those in need. She wound up volunteering at an area dedicated to addressing issues that include mental health, food security and education.

And she's trying to fill the gap left by the removal of inclusive areas.

“I am wearing so many rainbows on me, my right hand has my nails painted in the lesbian flag and my left hand has my nails painted in the transgender flag,” she said. “I am being as loud as I can to do my best to hopefully make up for the lack of community spaces.”

___

Associated Press reporter Ben Finley contributed to this report from Washington.

The blast was apparently triggered by a buildup of methane gas and occurred on the outskirts of the Baluchistan provincial capital of Quetta, said government mine inspector Ghani Baloch.

The bodies of seven people were recovered hours after the blast, and emergency responders later found 25 more bodies, officials and a provincial disaster management agency said in a statement. It said the search and rescue operation was continuing, with rescue teams working to locate and recover the remaining trapped miners.

Baloch said rescue operations would continue until all the trapped miners were found, but he added that officials believed the death toll likely would rise further.

“The chances of finding anyone alive diminish after methane gas explosions because oxygen levels drop to zero, and rescuers are also proceeding cautiously inside the mine,” Baloch said.

Authorities were handing over the bodies to their families for burial, while relatives of those still trapped waited anxiously for news, Baloch said.

Baluchistan’s Minister for Mines and Minerals Shoaib Nosherwani said the rescue teams were working under extremely difficult conditions.

Nosherwani expressed condolences to relatives of the victims and said the provincial government would pay compensation of 500,000 Pakistani rupees (about $1,800) to the family of each miner killed in the blast.

He said authorities would conduct a thorough investigation into the cause of the explosion, and would review mining safety measures.

A coal miners’ labor union said it suspected negligence led to the explosion and called for action against those responsible. In a statement, the Pakistan Central Mines Labour Federation urged the government to strictly enforce safety regulations and take tough action against companies that violate mine safety laws.

Deadly accidents are common in Pakistan’s coal mining industry, particularly in Baluchistan, where many mines lack adequate ventilation, gas monitoring systems and other basic safety measures.

Mine workers and labor groups have long accused mine owners of failing to enforce safety regulations or provide adequate protective equipment.

Despite the risks and low wages, thousands of miners depend on the coal industry for their livelihoods in Baluchistan, Pakistan’s largest but least developed province, where unemployment and poverty remain widespread.

___

Ahmed reported from Islamabad.

Mayor Katie Wilson's announcement followed hours of speculation about whether Police Chief Shon Barnes would step down, as some of his supporters said he had rebuffed Wilson’s request to resign.

Wilson said she was appointing Deputy Chief Andre Sayles, a law enforcement veteran with more than two decades of experience, as interim chief.

Barnes told The Seattle Times earlier Thursday that whether he remained as chief was “up to the mayor.” He said he was off for the day and spending time with family.

In a written statement, the mayor said she was grateful for Barnes' service. The statement included comments in which Barnes called it an honor to have served the city.

“I hope this transition gives the city and this department the opportunity to return full focus to what matters most, addressing youth gun violence and preventing more tragedies,” Barnes said.

Barnes was out of town at a law enforcement conference when gunfire erupted last weekend at the Bite of Seattle, an annual three-day festival that draws hundreds of food and retail vendors and performers. Three people, including one suspect, were killed, and four people were wounded. One of the injured was a 2-year-old boy.

Dozens of officers were at the event, and at least one saw a 15-year-old suspect firing into a crowd and quickly persuaded him to surrender, according to court documents. Police are still searching for at least one other person.

While Wilson credited the quick police response with potentially saving lives, she acknowledged that the city was slow to communicate in the aftermath.

After an initial social media post announcing the shooting, it took nearly five hours for police to provide any additional information to the public, including whether there was any ongoing threat. The city also failed to send out any notifications through its emergency alert system. In the meantime Wilson announced that two people had been taken into custody, a statement she later retracted.

Assistant Seattle Police Chief Tyrone Davis finally provided an update around 11 p.m. Sunday during a news conference that was also attended by the mayor, Gov. Bob Ferguson and U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal.

“What I did not fully understand in that moment was how little information had reached the public or the press since the incident began at 6 p.m.,” Wilson said in a video statement Thursday. “Had I known that, I would have pushed for an immediate briefing, rather than waiting for a press conference to be organized.”

Barnes was the second Black police chief in Seattle.

Several Black community organizations, including the Seattle NAACP and the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, rallied to try to save his job Thursday. In an open letter to the mayor's office, they credited him with improving relations between the department and the community, helping reduce gun violence and strengthening the department's operations.

“Chief Barnes should not be made a scapegoat for the complex challenges of public safety,” the letter said.

At least six City Council members issued statements supporting Barnes. A statement signed by four of them pointed out that the city has had four chiefs in less than three years.

“Our priority must be stability, not further disruption,” it said.

Barnes was appointed by Seattle's previous mayor, Bruce Harrell, in December 2024 after serving as chief of the Madison, Wisconsin, police department.

When Wilson — a democratic socialist who once supported defunding police — won the mayor's race last year, she kept Barnes on as chief. That was a signal to the city's business establishment and community groups that she did not intend to take a radically different approach to public safety.

“Seattle had been on a positive course on public safety with police hiring trending up and crime trending down,” Jon Scholes, president of the Downtown Seattle Association, said in an emailed statement. “It’s imperative the next chief of police is able to maintain progress that’s been made and instill confidence in our community.”

Barnes faced some criticism for spending time in Chicago, where his family lives. Sgt. Patrick Michaud, a department spokesperson, said Thursday that Barnes has made four trips to Chicago this year and spent in total about 18 days traveling there.

The resignation comes as Seattle heads into another big festival weekend. Seafair Weekend Festival 2026 — a boating event, air show and festival — starts Friday.