The company is already one of the largest in South Korea, along with Samsung Electronics, and is traded publicly on Seoul's Kospi index. Even with a recent pullback, the Kospi is up 77% so far this year and SK Hynix shares have more than tripled.

SK Hynix priced its American depositary receipts, or ADRs, at $149 each Thursday. At that price, the offering of 177.9 million ADRs raised proceeds of $26.5 billion, making it the biggest-ever initial share sale in the U.S. by a foreign company. The shares are expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq later Friday.

The company has a dominant position globally for high bandwidth memory, which is essential for the development of advanced AI technology. SK Hynix recently entered a partnership with Wall Street’s most valuable company, Nvidia, for advanced memory chips as AI infrastructure expands globally.

Increasing demand for AI has been driving a surge in profits for chipmakers. Memory chips have become more expensive as demand outpaces supply along with the advancement of artificial intelligence technology. Technology giant Apple recently announced an increase in prices for Macs and iPads because of the jump in price for memory chips.

The U.S. is the SK Hynix’s largest market, accounting for 68.8% of its revenue last year. It is planning an expansion that includes building its first U.S. production facility, located in Indiana. Overall, the company had revenue of just under $65 billion in 2025. That helped profits double to about $28 billion.

The company recently joined with Samsung and the government in announcing plans to invest a combined 800 trillion won ($518 billion) in building a new computer chipmaking hub in South Korea’s southwest region, part of national efforts to expand investment beyond the greater Seoul metropolitan area, the country’s economic center and heart of its semiconductor sector.

The promise of growing profits has catapulted stock prices within the tech sector, particularly for chipmakers. Micron Technology's stock value more than tripled in 2025 and is on pace to more than triple again in 2026. Nvidia's stock had similar growth several years ago and notched more relatively modest gains in 2025.

Big chipmakers have become the most valuable and influential companies on Wall Street. Their high stock values give them outsized influence over Wall Street and major indexes have been setting records mostly because of the tech sector.

Shares in SK Hynix traded in Seoul slipped 0.3% on Friday.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced on July 9 that the $45 million multi-state settlement resolves allegations that Block, the company behind the popular peer-to-peer payments app, misled consumers about the safety of Cash App and did not protect users from fraud.

“Customer safety should always be a top priority, and when a company misleads and fails to protect its users from fraud, it must be held accountable,” said Nessel. “This settlement requires Cash App to maintain strong safeguards for consumers and commits the company to putting stolen money back into the pockets of Michigan residents. Throughout my time in office, we have worked with multistate coalitions to halt deceptive business practices, and we will continue to pursue corporations that try to put their bottom line over the people of Michigan.”

According to Nessel’s office, Block told Cash App users that their money was safe, implying the app worked like a bank with the same protections -- which Nessel said was not true.

The attorney general’s office said Block promoted direct deposits of paycheck and government benefits into Cash App. Block reportedly grew its user base without ensuring it could support those users when problems arose.

Nessel said Block’s policies made fraud easier, including the following:

• Block’s sign-up process was reportedly designed to be fast and frictionless, with minimal identity verification. That made it easy for fraudsters to create accounts, not just legitimate users.
• For years, Cash App had no phone support. Users who needed help could only message through the app or on social media. People who got locked out – or just wanted to talk to someone – searched online for a phone number and often ended up calling fake 1-800 numbers run by scammers posing as Cash App. Those scammers would then take over accounts or drain users’ other financial accounts. Block knew this was happening and didn’t warn users or set up a real phone line until years later.
• Block ran a social media promotion called Cash App Fridays, encouraging users to publicly post their $cashtag – a unique Cash App identifier – for a chance to win a weekly prize. Fraudsters would then contact those users, tell them they’d won, and trick them into handing over their login information. Block knew about these scams and kept running the promotion anyway, for years.

Michigan will receive $936,540 of the $45 million multi-state settlement.

Block has also agreed to implement and maintain responsible practices to resolve these issues, including:

• Maintain customer support that can resolve fraud complaints, account lockouts, and other problems.
• Offer live support 24 hours a day, with a human available by phone at least 13.5 hours a day and by live chat at least 18 hours a day.
• Stop making false or misleading claims about Cash App’s safety and how it protects users from fraud.
• Discontinue marketing practices known to increase fraud on the platform.
• Directly educate consumers about common types of fraud.
• Fulfill its legal obligations to investigate fraud claims and reimburse users for unauthorized transactions.

Block will also distribute between $75 million and $120 million to compensate consumers nationwide as part of a settlement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Additional information regarding the CFPB’s settlement is available on the CFPB’s website and Cash App settlement website.

“We’ve reached an agreement that resolves a previously disclosed legacy matter that primarily relates to historical aspects of our business. Cash App has made significant investments in consumer protection, customer service, and compliance in order to safeguard and serve the tens of millions of Americans who rely on Cash App to meet their banking and credit needs. We share the commitment of the attorneys general to addressing industry challenges and continue to invest in operations and technology to promote a safe and healthy financial ecosystem.”

Block spokesperson

Several victims of the fire in Almeria, a popular holiday destination, were found inside burnt-out vehicles. Eight others have been injured in the blaze, which 150 firefighters and 220 soldiers from Spain's military emergency unit were battling.

Regional emergency authorities said four British nationals and other unspecified foreign nationals appeared to be among the victims. Andalusia’s regional leader Juan Manuel Moreno told Cadena Ser radio station that 19 people were unaccounted for.

Authorities reported earlier that 12 people had died, but revised the death toll Friday morning.

Victims attempted to flee on foot and by car

The fire broke out in a hamlet in a semi-arid area near the Sierra de Los Filabres mountains. Authorities have not confirmed the cause, but said people who called to report the fire said that a fallen power line had sparked a blaze that spread rapidly into a nearby forest.

Most of the victims died while attempting to flee and ignored shelter-in-place instructions, said Antonio Sanz, president of Andalusia’s emergency services. One group did so via a dry riverbed, which “turned into a death trap,” he said.

Seven people died while on foot after abandoning their cars, Sanz said, likely looking for a way out.

“The consequences have been terrible. Everything seems to indicate that, in the case of the deceased ... we are dealing for the most part, if not entirely, with foreign nationals,” Sanz said.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez expressed his condolences. “Immense sadness and desolation in the face of the terrible consequences of the fire affecting the province of Almeria,” he wrote on X.

Europe battles intense heat again

Spain has battled frequent and severe heat waves in recent years, with temperatures often exceeding 40 C (104 F). Wind, high temperatures and little rainfall help small wildfires grow into unchecked blazes.

In June, Spain experienced several days of record-setting heat, with over 1,000 excess deaths attributed to heat.

Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing twice as fast as the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service. Parts of Western Europe are facing their third heat wave in six weeks. Globally, 2025 was the third-hottest year on record, bringing several intense heat waves across Europe.

France is experiencing the peak of its third heatwave of the summer, with temperatures reaching 40 C (104 F) across western and central areas and around 37 C (98 F) in Paris.

French authorities have also warned of a very high wildfire risk, as large fires in the south have already scorched thousands of hectares this week, disrupted the Tour de France cycling race and stretching firefighting resources.

The largest wildfire, which broke out in the eastern Pyrenees, near the Spanish border, has decreased in intensity, authorities said Friday.

It burned about 5,000 hectares (12,000 acres) and forced the evacuation of more than 10,000 people from nearly villages, who have since been allowed to return home.

Last month was France’s hottest June on record, with deaths surging by nearly a third during the hottest week.

Scientists warn that climate change caused in part by the burning of fuels like gasoline, oil and coal is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness, making certain regions more vulnerable to wildfires.

Spain and Portugal have faced deadly fires before

Spain is no stranger to wildfires, with last year's fire season burning more than 393,000 hectares (almost 1,520 square miles), according to the European Forest Fire Information System, an area twice as large as London. Four people died.

In 2017, a wildfire in neighboring Portugal left 66 people dead in Pedrogao Grande, located 200 kilometers (120 miles) northeast of Lisbon.

In that blaze, 47 people died on one road while similarly attempting to flee in their cars.

———

Associated Press journalist Sylvie Corbet, in Paris, contributed.

The Wolfsburg, Germany-based company said group sales fell 8.6% in the second quarter to just under 2.1 million vehicles, with sales in China alone plummeted by more than one-third.

After a board meeting on Thursday, Volkswagen said its “fundamental realignment” over the last three years had reached its next phase, announcing plans to streamline the model lineup by up to half, without providing specifics.

CEO Oliver Blume laid out plans to make VW faster and more competitive through less complexity, focused technologies, better alignment across regional markets and reduction of overcapacities, among other things, citing an “increasingly demanding environment.”

Among its main brands, the core Volkswagen unit saw deliveries of slightly over 1 million vehicles in the second quarter, a drop of 14% from a year earlier. Deliveries at Audi declined 8% and those at Porsche fell 18%.

Lamborghini, Skoda and the trucks unit reported upticks, and sales grew in the Americas and Europe.

Volkswagen cited dramatic change over the last year, including geopolitical tensions, rising costs mainly through tariffs, and increasing regulatory requirements alongside growing competition.

As recently as December, Volkswagen was betting big on China, where electric cars have been taking a greater market share and competition is stiff.

Research firm BernsteinSG, in a note after Thursday's announcement, expressed skepticism. “VW stated that it is extending its technology leadership, a claim that will likely raise eyebrows given the pace of innovation among its Chinese competitors,” it said.

Also Thursday, hundreds of employees led a protest outside the Volkswagen plant in Zwickau to demand protections for jobs and voice opposition to plans to close the site. The factory has fully switched to making electric cars.

The EU's executive arm issued a fresh set of charges against Meta Platforms as part of its investigation under the 27-nation bloc's strict digital rule book known as the Digital Services Act. The sweeping set of regulations from Brussels requires tech platforms to protect internet users under threat of hefty fines.

The European Commission said Meta failed to properly assess the risks its design features pose to the physical and mental health of users, including minors. And while the company has tools and controls to help manage Facebook and Instagram use, it said they were easily overridden, dismissed, or technically challenging to use.

Meta “needs to implement design changes” to Instagram and Facebook, such as disabling “key addictive features” like autoplay of videos and infinite scroll so they’re not turned on by default, the commission said in its preliminary findings.

Meta now has the chance to respond and defend itself before the commission issues its final decision, which could result in a fine worth up to 6% of the company’s global annual revenue.

Meta said Friday that the preliminary findings do not recognize the steps that the company has already taken to protect teens.

“Since this investigation began, we rolled out Teen Accounts that automatically protect teens and put parents in control - allowing them to block access to Instagram at night and cap daily screen time at just 15 minutes,” Meta said in a prepared statement. "We share the European Commission’s commitment to providing teens with safe, positive online experiences and will continue to engage constructively with them.”

Europe is committed to enforcing its legislation that holds platforms accountable for addictive design features, said Henna Virkkunen, an executive vice-president at the commission overseeing tech.

“Protecting the physical and mental health of Europeans must be a priority for social media platforms,” Virkkunen said in a written statement.

Facebook and Instagram design features, including personalized recommendations and push notifications, serve up an endless stream of content, putting users' brains on “autopilot” and fueling compulsive use, the commission said.

Meanwhile, screen time controls that parents can impose on their teens' devices can be “easily dismissed” and don't result in a meaningful reduction of use, the commission said. And the controls are undermined by the technical expertise, time and effort that parents need to understand and use them, it said.

The commission's proposed design changes also included finding better ways to encourage screen time breaks, and changing the content recommendation system so that it’s less “engagement-oriented.”

The preliminary findings are the latest charges since Brussels opened its investigation in 2024 over concerns that the social media giant wasn't doing enough to protect children online.

The EU said earlier this year that Meta had failed to prevent children under 13, the company's minimum age to use Facebook and Instagram, from signing up. It also said Meta was not doing enough to identify and remove underage users after they had opened accounts.

But eight months after its first mention and after repeated promises it was being drafted, the so-called MAHA agenda is nowhere to be found. When asked for a status update this week, an EPA spokesperson said MAHA is an ongoing effort, not a single report.

The apparent reversal on release of a formal environmental health agenda is the latest in a cascade of disappointments for Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s MAHA movement, who say they've lost faith that the Trump administration will take any significant action on pesticides, chemicals or other issues they view as key to address America's chronic disease epidemic. It also reflects the EPA's relentless rollback of environmental regulations even in the face of pressure from an important voting bloc that has supported President Donald Trump.

“I had really hoped that there would be specific steps that were taken through a MAHA agenda,” said activist Kelly Ryerson, whose social media account “Glyphosate Girl” focuses on nontoxic food systems. “We haven’t had any of the wins that we were requesting.”

Many in the diverse coalition of MAHA activists that Trump credits for helping him win back the White House say they plan to vote on issues over party in November's congressional elections, raising the political stakes of their increasingly public tensions with the Republican administration.

“People are done with the profits of corporations being prioritized over public health,” said Alexandra Muñoz, a molecular toxicologist who collaborates with activists on certain issues. “And I think that will have an important role in the midterms.”

MAHA is frustrated with EPA's actions

“Trump’s EPA,” as Zeldin frequently calls the agency, has vigorously pursued a deregulatory agenda. Earlier this year, Zeldin proposed overturning the landmark finding that climate change is a threat to human health. He moved to roll back dozens of environmental regulations in what he called “the greatest day of deregulation our nation has seen,” froze billions of dollars for clean energy and upended agency research.

Trump’s second-term EPA also has been working to loosen limits on pollution from smokestacks, tailpipes and producers of oil and gas.

At the same time, Zeldin has touted multiple “MAHA wins," some of which activists say are anything but. For example, he said the agency intends to regulate some chemicals called phthalates for environmental and workplace risks, but didn’t address the thousands of consumer products that contain the ingredients.

This week, the EPA diverted from past assurances that the MAHA report was in its “final stages,” telling The Associated Press in an email that the EPA’s actions should speak for themselves.

“The notion that MAHA is a single document waiting to be unveiled fundamentally misrepresents how we operate,” an agency spokesperson said, adding that work on MAHA priorities is “active and expanding every day.”

Ryerson and other MAHA activists said they've engaged with agency officials about changes they'd like to see, and occasionally succeeded. For example, her network of farmers worked with the administration on a recent executive order to advance regenerative agriculture. But she said EPA then used the order to justify new proposed uses for various herbicides, a move she called a “slap in the face.”

The same week, the Supreme Court dealt another blow to the MAHA cause in siding with pesticide maker Bayer in a ruling related to its legal liability for alleged harm caused by its Roundup weedkiller. The Trump administration had backed the company in the case.

Environmental activists say the rise of Kennedy and his MAHA mission has rippled across the administration, raising the public's awareness of pesticides — and expectations that Trump's administration would act.

“If RFK and the MAHA movement hadn’t put that issue in the center of the public spotlight, no one would be scrutinizing this nearly as closely," said Sarah Starman, a senior food and agriculture campaigner at the nonprofit Friends of the Earth.

EPA says getting microplastics out of drinking water is complicated

In a well-publicized gesture aimed in part at the MAHA movement, Zeldin in April included microplastics and pharmaceuticals on a list of contaminants that could be regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act. Activists had pressured Zeldin for months to crack down on microplastics and other environmental contaminants.

But in a reversal in late June, the EPA did not include microplastics or pharmaceuticals on a list of chemicals it plans to test for under a mandatory program used to collect information about concerning chemicals in drinking water that could be harming human health.

The move rendered the EPA's earlier public health promises "functionally toothless,'' said Betsy Southerland, a former senior official in EPA’s water office.

Zeldin said on social media that “the technology to test and treat for microplastics in drinking water is still in development.” The EPA said in a Federal Register notice that it was “not feasible to develop a drinking water analytical method within the statutory timeframe.”

Southerland called the situation a “classic Zeldin bait-and-switch.”

After making “a big splash in the press” on microplastics, "EPA has quietly stalled that momentum," she said.

A White House Make America Healthy Again Report, released a few months into Trump’s second term, identified long-term exposure to environmental chemicals — including those widely found in plastics — as a leading cause of chronic disease in children.

Former industry lobbyists now have leading roles at EPA

Jeremy Symons, a senior adviser at the Environmental Protection Network, a group of former EPA employees and political appointees who are critical of the Trump administration, said Zeldin “pays lip service to MAHA, but sadly he is actually making Americans less safe from toxic chemicals.''

Alongside MAHA's influence on the Trump administration, industry lobbyists have made inroads at the EPA.

Kyle Kunkler, a former lobbyist for the soybean industry, leads pesticide policy at the EPA. The agency recently allowed continued use of dicamba, a weedkiller that has been linked to increased risk for some cancers.

Zen Honeycutt, a MAHA activist and founding executive director of Moms Across America, said the move is “what happens when the EPA allows itself to be pressured by corporations and by business.”

EPA also employs other former industry insiders. Nancy Beck, a former executive at the chemical lobbying group the American Chemistry Council, is a top official in EPA's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. Lynn Dekleva, another former chemistry council executive, serves as a Beck deputy.

The EPA said Kunkler and other political appointees have consulted with agency ethics officials to resolve any potential conflicts of interest. The MAHA movement has “driven this agency's work since President Trump's first day in office," a spokesperson said in an email, citing various initiatives including $945 million in grants to help states and communities cut “forever chemicals” known as PFAS in drinking water and identifying 30 drinking water contaminants proposed for nationwide monitoring.

But for Ryerson and others, the lack of a promised MAHA agenda reads as a tactic to escape accountability.

“It absolves them of any failures, especially when it comes to midterms,” Ryerson said. “They won’t have to point to some list that they haven’t been able to achieve really anything on.”

🍇 Grapevine

🌅 Good morning! On this day in 1962, Swedish engineer Nils Bohlin was issued a U.S. patent for a three-point seatbelt “for use in vehicles” — a major innovation for road and vehicle safety.

Here are a few things to know about for Friday, July 10, 2026:

⛅ 4Warn Weather: Expect partly sunny skies today with afternoon highs in the mid-80s, accompanied by noticeably lower humidity. Check out the 10-day forecast.

🌩️ DTE Braces for Storms: As crews continue making progress restoring power across Metro Detroit, DTE Energy says teams are positioned to respond to any new outages from storms expected tonight. Read more.

👎🏻 Westland Says ‘No’ to Flock: After community feedback, the Flock camera contract for Westland will not move forward, a city councilwoman announced Wednesday. Read more.

💔 Fallen Firefighter Honored: Detroit firefighters lined nine overpasses on I-94 Thursday morning as the remains of a 38-year-old Clinton Township woman killed while battling a wildfire in western Colorado returned home. Watch here.

💵 Cash App Settlement: Michigan will receive nearly $1 million as part of a multi-million-dollar, multi-state settlement over the “deceiving” practices on Cash App, the state’s attorney general announced on Thursday. Read more.

🏊 Morning Dive

Good morning ☀️

With a new billboard now staring back at Vista Maria’s campus and survivors gathering nearby Thursday morning, a long-running fight over accountability at the Dearborn Heights facility moved into an even more public phase, one aimed as much at Lansing as it is at the institution itself.

“It needs to be heard all over the world: trauma doesn’t have an expiration date. Neither should justice,” said Moose Scheib, an attorney involved in the civil case against Vista Maria.

Under current Michigan law, survivors who were assaulted as minors generally have until age 28 to pursue certain criminal charges, while adults have a limited window to report.

“There is no expiration date on healing — there’s no expiration date on fixing things,” said Linda Malone, a survivor of Vista Maria who missed the deadline due to Michigan’s statute of limitations. “There’s no expiration date on getting over it.”

Get the full story here.

🗞️ Other headlines to know today

• Power outage prep: What Michigan families need to know before the next storm
• Deputies search for suspect who fled after police pursuit across Oakland and Livingston counties
• Hamtramck bar warns its future is uncertain after financial struggles
• Michigan Department of Corrections releases autopsy findings in Women’s Huron Valley inmate death
• ‘They’ve almost hit kids’: Novi residents say construction is sending dangerous traffic into neighborhood
• Detroit vertical farm highlights food safety measures as Cyclosporiasis cases near 1,300
• National Archives Tour makes a stop at Henry Ford -- Here’s what to expect
• Michigan State Police helicopter helps arrest suspect after stolen ATV chase
• Mayor, transportation officials, bus drivers celebrate opening of new $160M DDOT Coolidge Terminal 
• 1 pedestrian dead after crash in Farmington Hills
• U-M nurses reach tentative contract agreement with Michigan Medicine, averting possible strike
• World-renowned Polish youth ensemble brings medieval music to Michigan
• Former DPD officer-in-training charged with reckless driving in fatal pedestrian crash
• 37 cats rescued from Redford Township home after hoarding investigation
• What’s Going Around in Metro Detroit: Gastrointestinal illnesses, poison ivy, bug bites, whooping cough
• Woman who police say bit officer after fatal Warren crash found guilty of manslaughter
• Mackinac Bridge clears national safety check prompted by bridge collapse in Baltimore
• Chick-fil-A’s ‘Dress like a cow, enjoy a free entrée’ deal is back -- Here’s how it works
• Woman charged with second-degree murder after fatal stabbing in Taylor
• Detroit man accused of shooting, killing girlfriend with semi-automatic rifle
• You’re probably buying the wrong sunscreen. A skin doctor says look for this
• FEMA is covering 90% of flood help in Dearborn -- Here’s what the $8 million will do
• Detroit’s Motor City Mile has reached over $100k in donations -- Here’s where the money goes
• Find more Local News headlines here
• Find more Entertainment headlines here
• Find more Health headlines here
• Check out the latest ClickOnDeals here
• Introducing the ClickOnDetroit Help Desk: How it works and how to use it

🌎 Meanwhile

News from around the world via the Associated Press:

Democrats in Maine began jockeying Thursday to become the new candidate for a pivotal U.S. Senate seat after progressive nominee Graham Platner announced he will withdraw from the race after a sexual assault allegation.

Democrats need to pick a candidate to replace Platner on the ballot by July 27, according to state law. Whoever is selected will have less than four months before facing longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins in the general election. Potential candidates had already been teasing their interest before Platner, who denies the allegation, announced he intends to drop out. Platner is expected to file paperwork to formally withdraw on Monday, the deadline to do so.

But a growing number began formally launching their campaigns Thursday. (Read more)

----

Mexico will request criminal charges over 17 Mexicans who died in ICE custody or during immigration enforcement operations by the Trump administration, officials said Thursday.

Mexican Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco’s announcement Thursday morning further escalated tensions with the United States, as Mexico’s government has sharply criticized the treatment of its citizens under U.S. President Donald Trump’s push to increase deportations.

The request, which carries no legal weight, will be submitted to state prosecutors’ offices and the U.S. Department of Justice, asking them to consider criminal charges against those responsible for the deaths. (Read more)

----

A South Florida airport officially changed its name on Thursday to the President Donald J. Trump International Airport. Signs for the Palm Beach International Airport have been removed, while new signage goes up.

“Because an entire airport transformation doesn’t happen overnight, you’ll notice a combination of both our classic look and our new brand elements coexisting while traveling through the terminal over the next several weeks,” airport officials said in a Facebook post.

“Trump Force One,” a Boeing 757 owned by The Trump Organization, was the first plane to arrive at the airport under its new name, shortly after 5 a.m. The president’s son, Eric Trump, was one of the passenger (Read more)

---> Find more headlines from around the world right here <---

📝 Word Up

Today’s Word Up is: Inveterate / in-ˈve-t(ə-)rət / (adjective) — defined as “habitual; firmly established by long persistence.”

Example: “My toddler’s inveterate tendency to extend our bedtime routine has

🧹 Housekeeping

Hey, if you like this newsletter, let us know. We’d love your feedback. We also offer several other newsletters, including 4Warn Weather, All 4 Pets and more. Hopefully, we have one that caters to your interests — unless you’re only interested in charcuterie boards. We don’t have one for that, sorry.

✍🏽 Written and curated by: Jenny Sherman (Have something to say? Feel free to send an email here.)

The strikes Thursday, just as Iran prepared to bury the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, hit areas across southern Iran. The country's theocracy hasn't directly blamed anyone for the strikes, though one lawmaker issued a warning to the United Arab Emirates over allegedly providing support to the United States in its campaign against Iran.

Gulf Arab states, which repeatedly have been targeted by Iran since the war began Feb. 28, did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday over the strikes. The attacks come as they and the U.S. insist the Strait of Hormuz must be open and free to ships to transit. Iran insists the strait, through which about a fifth of all oil and natural gas passes, must now be under its sole control and that vessels should begin to pay fees to Tehran — even though the world for decades has considered it an international waterway.

Iran's grip on the strait during the conflict led to an global energy crisis, though oil prices have sharply dropped since wartime highs of $120 a barrel.

Israel, which took part in the Iran war, also has not claimed any recent attacks on Iran.

Unclaimed strikes came after US ended its attacks

The U.S. military's Central Command said Thursday around 6:30 a.m. local Iran time that it had concluded a round of strikes that saw some 90 targets hit. Shortly after that, Iranian news outlets and state media reported a series of airstrikes and explosions targeting the country’s Bushehr and Sistan and Baluchestan provinces, the cities of Ahvaz and Chabahar and other areas.

Central Command did not respond to a request for comment over the additional strikes.

Iran responded to the strikes Thursday by launching a wider volley of attacks across the Mideast, targeting Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and Qatar. Missile alert sirens sounded in the four countries, sending people to seek shelter. One person was reportedly hurt in Kuwait as air defense systems targeted the incoming fire across the region.

The leader of the UAE, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, traveled to Kuwait immediately after the Iranian attack for a meeting with the small, oil-rich nation's ruling emir. Gulf Arab countries also held calls with Qatar's foreign minister, who has been deeply involved along with Pakistan in mediating talks between Iran and the U.S. over the interim deal now in place to halt the return of open warfare.

During the Iran war, officials say both Saudi Arabia and the UAE launched airstrikes targeting Iran, after Tehran struck energy sites in their countries.

Israel, which under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has engaged in an intense campaign against Iran, has not attacked the Islamic Republic since June. Israel also broadly immediately claims its attacks on Iran.

Israel's government said Netanyahu spoke with Trump on Thursday night, with Trump updating Netanyahu “on American moves in the Gulf.”

Israel Katz, Israel's defense minister, also renewed threats that his nation stood ready to confront Iran if needed.

The Israel military “is on alert and ready to renew the campaign, to reestablish aerial superiority, and to carry out a blue-white (Israeli) strike in Iran to remove threats, even for a third time,” Katz told a military ceremony. "If we will have to return, we will return with even greater force.”

Iran keeps up its threats

On Friday, Iranian state media quoted Esmail Kousari, a member of the Iranian parliament's national security committee and a former commander in the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, as warning the UAE would “pay the price for its cooperation with the United States.” He accused the Emirates of having a “behind-the-scenes” role in the recent U.S. attacks.

Iran repeatedly accused Gulf Arab states of actively supporting the U.S. war effort, something they denied during the war. The U.S. since the 1991 Gulf War has maintained a broad footprint of military bases across the Gulf Arab states, including in Bahrain, which is home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet headquarters.

Meanwhile, Iran insists it must be the sole controller of the Strait of Hormuz. But the U.S. is continuing to urge mariners to travel on a southern route through Oman's territorial waters to avoid Iran.

The Joint Maritime Information Center, a multinational body overseen by the U.S. Navy, issued a new advisory Friday urging ships to travel that route. A similar message for ships to use that route sparked an Iranian attack on Tuesday that saw three vessels hit.

“Notwithstanding recent unprovoked attacks on merchant vessels, mariners are reminded that the southern route of the (strait) has been expanded and remains available for all traffic,” the maritime center said.

Beautiful Weekend Ahead

High pressure will remain in control through the weekend, delivering near-normal temperatures, lower humidity and dry weather across Southeast Michigan. Highs will generally remain in the low to mid-80s, making for ideal conditions to enjoy outdoor festivals, sporting events, yard work, or time at the lake.

Heat Builds Back Next Week

The comfortable weather won’t last long. A warming trend begins early next week as temperatures climb back into the 90s. Forecast models continue to indicate the potential for another heat wave, with Southeast Michigan possibly experiencing three or more consecutive days of 90-degree temperatures.

Forecast Highlights

• Today: Partly sunny with highs in the mid-80s. Isolated showers and thunderstorms possible south of I-94, with a few stronger storms capable of gusty winds and small hail.
• This Weekend: Dry, less humid, and seasonable with highs in the 80s.
• Next Week: Hotter weather returns with highs in the 90s and the potential for another heat wave across Southeast Michigan.

It also highlighted the complex engineering behind adaptive reuse projects, which have become increasingly popular as officials try to tackle a nationwide housing shortage by transforming offices that have sat underused since the COVID-19 pandemic.

The plans call for turning two office buildings — one built in 1909, the other in the 1960s — into about 1,600 apartments by adding more than a dozen stories atop the older structure and redesigning and expanding the other. The buckling occurred on the 21st floor of the newer structure, and crews have installed temporary supports as officials investigate.

Engineering experts said the conversion project is complex and poses many challenges, which include making sure older buildings can safely support new loads and carving up office floors to accommodate residential living.

But none said the high-profile setback should make people doubt the ability of engineers to complete such projects.

“I don’t think it really brings into question our understanding of how to do something like this,” said Ben Schafer, a structural engineering professor at Johns Hopkins University.

How do you build a new tower on top of an old one?

On its website highlighting the midtown project, adaptive reuse firm Collaborative Construction Management says the nine-story building from 1909 will be “threaded through” with a new addition of about 30 stories of poured concrete.

Schafer, who is not involved with the undertaking, said the likely approach is to have the century-old building continue to carry its own weight while building a new structural system to support additions.

“My interpretation would be that they’re going to leave that building carrying its own load, and they’re just going to poke holes in it so that they can take the load from the building that they’ve put above it and bring it all the way down to the foundation,” Schafer said.

Schafer said construction on the other tower presents a different challenge: punching holes in the existing floor plate to bring light into apartments, while also ensuring that the steel frame can support the newly added loads.

City officials have not determined what caused the columns to buckle. But both Schafer and Emily Guglielmo, a San Francisco-based structural engineer, believe the failure likely resulted from the added load.

Spokespersons for MetroLoft, the project developer, didn’t respond to requests for comment Thursday. But Nathan Berman, the firm’s founder, acknowledged in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that the added weight from widening the top 15 or so floors of the building likely caused the damage.

Guglielmo thinks that either the original design assumptions were misunderstood, something went wrong during the design or construction process, or construction crews overloaded or weakened the structure.

Adding stories to existing buildings is common in dense urban areas where land is scarce, she said, but it requires reviewing original construction documents and inspecting the building before determining how additional floors will affect the structure.

“In cities and towns that don’t have that available geography, you’re going to see a lot more of this type of a design where there’s an adaptive reuse to an existing building,” Guglielmo said.

Why not just create a new building from scratch?

To many structural engineers, demolition should occur only as a last resort.

“Tearing buildings down is a terrible waste,” Schafer said, pointing out that buildings and the construction sector are responsible for about 40% of the world’s energy-related carbon emissions. “From a sustainability standpoint, that’s a disaster.”

Beyond the environmental costs, demolishing and hauling away the remnants of huge buildings is especially expensive in dense cities such as New York.

If an existing structure can safely be reused, engineers generally prefer that.

James LaFave, a structural engineering professor at the University of Illinois, said a steel-framed building from the 1960s, like the former Pfizer structure, would typically be a “very good” starting point for a conversion.

Does the scare in New York call into question other adaptive reuse projects?

In recent years, officials across the country have embraced office-to-housing conversions as a potential lifeline for downtown business districts that have struggled since the pandemic.

New York, especially, has embraced this push, as officials have made zoning changes and enacted tax incentives to spur housing production. A report from the New York City comptroller's office last year noted there are 44 adaptive reuse projects in the city that, as of early 2025, had either been completed, were underway or could move forward.

Pfizer moved out of the building in 2023 after opening a new office near Penn Station, leaving the property vacant. Construction on the property began in 2024.

Joshua Harris, director of Fordham University’s Real Estate Institute, said office-to-residential conversions are a key part of solving the housing shortages in New York and other cities, even if they come with risk.

“In a certain sense, it’s not terribly surprising that this happened, and we should have a little bit of grace,” he said. “These are very, very complicated surgical procedures being done to very old buildings.”

“This is part of the reality of fixing the housing crisis,” Harris continued. “Things like this can happen. It doesn’t look as complex as putting a rocket into space, but, in a real estate sense, construction in an environment like Manhattan on 42nd Street and Second Avenue is very complex.”

Guglielmo, the California engineer, said a combination of building codes, inspections and experienced construction crews makes failures like this rare.

“We’re very fortunate here in the United States that we are not seeing these types of failures on a day-to-day basis,” she said. “We’re privileged to have really robust building codes that explain to us as engineers how to do our designs in a way that’s safe.”

Still, Harris said it is likely a gut check for the industry, as office conversions transform once sleepy business districts across the city into 24/7 neighborhoods, like parts of Wall Street in recent years.

“If this building has a problem, all the other projects that have been sort of greenlit, they’re going to want to review to make sure that it’s not something similar,” Harris said.

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Rico reported from Atlanta and Hill reported from Las Vegas.

Typhoon Bavi, with maximum sustained winds of 155 kph (96 mph), was first expected to pass north of Taiwan, bringing heavy rains to the island of 23 million people from Friday night into Saturday.

Schools were closed Friday in Taipei, the island's capital, and fishing boats have been tied up close together in ports in northern Taiwan. Many flights to Japan, Hong Kong and other destinations have been canceled through Saturday, though some were still scheduled, Taiwan's Central News Agency said.

The typhoon's current northwest track would take it over some remote Japanese islands before passing north of Taiwan on Saturday. It is forecast to make landfall in China on Saturday night south of Shanghai, near the border between Fujian and Zhejiang provinces.

More than 17,000 people have been evacuated in Zhejiang and 170,000 rescue workers placed on standby, the official Xinhua News Agency said. Fujian has suspended some ferry routes because of strong winds and rough seas and called for fishing boats to return to port.

Bavi has weakened from supertyphoon strength earlier this week, when it brought violent winds to Saipan and other U.S. territories in the Pacific.

In southern China, authorities announced Thursday that 39 people had died in flooding from Tropical Storm Maysak, which drenched parts of the Guangxi region for days with record rainfall.

The rains breached reservoirs, including the dramatic collapse of part of a dam in Hengzhou that inundated a wide area with fast-flowing muddy water. The floods stranded people on the second and higher floors of buildings for days, many without power, until rescuers could reach them.

Another 11 people died in central China when severe thunderstorms and tornadoes wreaked havoc in Hubei province on Monday night.

Separately, a landslide killed 21 forestry workers in western China's Gansu province on Tuesday in a disaster that was not storm-related.

Tensions between Iran and the U.S. have escalated after President Donald Trump said the Iran war ceasefire agreement was “over” and as the United States and Iran exchanged attacks.

In early European trading, Britain's FTSE 100 edged up 0.1% to 10,478.98. France's CAC 40 slipped 0.1% to 8,322.31, while Germany's DAX also gave up 0.1% to 25,082.58.

The future for the S&P 500 edged 0.1% lower while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.1%.

In Asian trading, South Korea’s Kospi gained 2.5% to 7,475.94, recovering some of its losses from earlier in the week. Shares in memory chipmaker SK Hynix, whose debut on the Nasdaq in New York is set for Friday, fell 0.3% in Seoul.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.2% to 68,557.73. SoftBank Group, a key investor in OpenAI, jumped 10.7%, while chip equipment maker Tokyo Electron added 2.7%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.6% to 24,175.12 and the Shanghai Composite index fell 1% to 3,996.16.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.5% to 8,806.00.

India’s Sensex added 1.2%.

Oil prices yo-yoed again on Friday as global oil supplies remained under pressure due to a limited numbers of vessels able to cross the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for energy transport.

Brent crude, the international standard, fell 0.5% to $75.94 per barrel. It was trading near $72 a barrel before the war began in late February.

Benchmark U.S. crude shed 0.5% to $71.71 a barrel.

On Thursday, Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index rose 0.8% and the Dow picked up 0.3%. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite climbed 1.3% to 26,206.89.

Semiconductors stocks led gains. Micron Technology jumped 4.5% after the memory chipmaker said it would increase its U.S. investments, citing “surging demand for memory in the AI era.”

Shares of AMD, or Advanced Micro Devices, surged 5.7%. Marvell Technology rose 5%, while ON Semiconductor added 4.4%.

In other dealings early Friday, the U.S. dollar fell to 161.71 Japanese yen from 162.37 yen. The euro was trading at $1.1432, up from $1.1430.

The yen gained against the dollar after Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama told a parliamentary committee that the government plans to encourage big pension funds to invest more in domestic, yen-denominated assets.

The first stage of a Long March-10B rocket separated from the second stage after liftoff and returned to a platform in the sea, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

It was the first time China recovered the first stage of a rocket. America's SpaceX has been doing so for several years to drive down launch costs by reusing the booster that helps lift the satellites or whatever the rocket is carrying into space.

The Long March rocket was launched from China's Hainan Island, a popular beach destination off the country's southern coast.

The rocket's reusable configuration can launch a payload of up to 16,000 kilograms (35,275 pounds) into what is called low Earth orbit, Xinhua said.

The maximum payload of the SpaceX Falcon 9 is 22,800 kilograms (50,265 pounds), according to the SpaceX website. The Falcon rockets transport astronauts and supplies to the International Space Station.

The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research points to how Jewish adults’ attitudes toward their own personal safety have changed over a relatively short period as more Americans became critical of the United States' close alliance with Israel. The war in Gaza sparked U.S. protests over Israel’s military actions against the Palestinians in Gaza, and coincided with an increase in violent attacks against U.S. Jewish communities.

The findings highlight the vulnerability that many Jewish adults in the U.S. feel as bipartisan support for Israel erodes and significant divides emerge within the Jewish community about what constitutes antisemitism — particularly when it comes to protesting Israel.

A significant share of Jewish adults, about 3 in 10, say they or someone in their household has experienced physical assault, verbal abuse, online harassment or damaged property because of their Jewish background over the last year, according to the survey.

Hal Guberman, a 30-year-old in New Jersey, wears a kippah with some trepidation ever since a stranger in a passing car yelled a slur at him when he was walking down the street last year.

“That person, they don’t know anything about me. They don’t know my politics. They don’t know my beliefs. They don’t know my viewpoints,” Guberman said. “But they saw me being visibly Jewish, and they made an opinion about me.”

Jewish adults see prejudice against Jews as a serious problem, and many feel unsafe

About 6 in 10 Jewish adults say that prejudice against Jewish people is an “extremely” or “very” serious problem in the United States today, a view that is heightened among Jewish adults who say they are “extremely” or “very” emotionally attached to Israel.

About one-third of Jewish adults say they feel “very” or “somewhat” safe as a Jewish person in the U.S. today, while about one-third feel “very” or “somewhat” unsafe. The remaining roughly 3 in 10 say they feel neither safe nor unsafe. Those with a close connection to Israel or who identify as Jewish by religion — instead of saying they are religiously unaffiliated with a cultural, ethnic or family connection to Judaism — are more likely to feel threatened in the current environment.

About 6 in 10 Jewish adults say they feel “less safe” as a Jewish person in the U.S. than they did before Hamas' 2023 attack, including about 7 in 10 of those who are religiously Jewish. About one-third of Jewish adults say they feel “about as safe” and very few feel safer.

Erin Baskin, a 36-year-old in Pennsylvania, said the Oct. 7 attacks didn't change how safe she feels because she had her own experiences with prejudice before then.

“I’ve always grown up with antisemitism,” she said. “Among the rural community I’m in, they conflate Judaism with Zionism all the time. Unfortunately, that’s kind of been my experience. It’s nothing new.”

Some Jewish adults have grown wary of outwardly identifying themselves as Jewish following the Oct. 7 attacks, the survey found.

About 4 in 10 Jewish adults say they are “less likely” to wear, carry or display things that might identify them as a Jewish person than they were before Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack. About half say they are “about as likely” and about 1 in 10 say they are “more likely.”

Caitlin Rosendorn, a 24-year-old in Illinois, said she used to wear a Star of David necklace, but she worries now that wearing it could give people the incorrect impression that she supports Israel's attacks against the Palestinian people.

“I don't want to wear a Star of David to work if that's going to alienate somebody who sees the Star of David as a symbol of Israel as opposed to a symbol of Judaism,” she said. “I don't want people to get the wrong idea about my views.”

Many Jews report physical assault, property damage or harassment

About 1 in 10 Jewish adults say that in the past year, they or someone in their household has been physically assaulted. A similar share had property damaged or destroyed specifically because of their Jewish background.

About 2 in 10 Jewish adults say they or someone in their household has been called a slur, threatened, verbally harassed or verbally abused. Similarly, about 2 in 10 say they experienced online harassment or cyberbullying. Overall, about 3 in 10 of Jewish adults say that they or someone in their household has experienced at least one of these incidents because of their Jewish background.

Jewish adults who attend religious services at least once a month are much likelier than Jewish adults overall to say they or someone in their household has experienced attacks or harassment over their Jewish background — a finding that comes as there have been several targeted attacks on Jewish religious spaces in recent years.

Slightly less than half of Jewish adults who frequently attend religious services say they or someone in their household has faced verbal harassment. A similar share experienced online harassment, and about one-quarter have dealt with physical attacks or property damage.

Jon Kessler, 38, of California, who grew up in the Conservative tradition of Judaism, believes non-Jews might be surprised at the extent to which Jewish adults have to consider security at community events.

“Most people when they go to church don’t have armed security, but every synagogue has an armed security guard," Kessler said. "My son’s Jewish daycare has an armed security guard.”

Jews are divided over whether protesting Israel is a form of antisemitism

Protests surrounding speakers tied to Israel — whether Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanahyu’s address to Congress or college speakers seen as either too supportive or too critical of the country — became more common following the backlash over Israel’s war in Gaza.

Jewish adults, in particular, are divided over whether protesting an event related to Israel is an act of prejudice against Jewish people generally. About half of Jewish adults say anti-Israel protests are not a form of antisemitism, but roughly 4 in 10 say they are.

Many anti-Israel protests have been tied to criticism of Israel’s military action in Gaza. More than 73,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza since Israel retaliated against Hamas’ attack in 2023, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilian and militant deaths.

About two-thirds of Jewish adults say criticizing Israel for its military actions is not a form of antisemitism, but Jewish adults with a close emotional connection to Israel are more likely to say that criticism of Israel’s military actions is antisemitic. That said, relatively few Jewish adults say it’s antisemitic just to criticize Israel for “any reason.”

Americans overall are less likely to say it’s antisemitic to protest an event that is supportive of Israel, or to criticize Israel’s military actions — but they are also much less likely to have an opinion.

Jewish adults are more unified in deeming some actions as definitively antisemitic. The overwhelming majority say vandalizing synagogues or Jewish-owned businesses because of Israel’s actions is antisemitism. The same goes for denying the reality or scope of the Holocaust, putting responsibility for Israel’s actions on Jewish people in the United States, saying Israel shouldn’t exist as a Jewish state or claiming American Jews are more loyal to Israel than to the U.S.

There is less consensus among non-Jewish U.S. adults on whether some of these actions constitute antisemitism, with many saying they’re not sure.

Amanda Goldsmith, 53, who lives in Chicago, believes people have become too comfortable expressing antisemitic views online — something that she previously thought only existed in extremist spaces.

“Now, it seems like there was an undercurrent, and it’s a free-for-all, and everyone is free to say what they want,” she said. “The freedom with which people say horrible things about Jewish people is appalling.”

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Associated Press writer Giovanna Dell’Orto contributed from Minneapolis. Associated Press writer Peter Smith contributed from Pittsburgh.

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

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

The investigation began on the evening of July 5, when St. Clair County Sheriff’s deputies responded to a local fast food restaurant to talk to a woman who had been assaulted. Deputies learned that the assault happened in Wales Township.

According to the sheriff’s office, two men, who were living in the same home as the woman, allegedly assaulted her multiple times over the previous days. She said she was hit, beaten, threatened with a gun on multiple occasions and was held against her will.

Deputies located both men, identified as Tariq and Aimeir White, and arrested them.

Tariq, 30, was charged with domestic violence - second offense. His bond was set at $10,000.

Aimeir, 39, was charged with one count of unlawful imprisonment, five counts of felony firearm, one count of assault to do great bodily harm, one count of discharging a firearm in a building, one count of domestic violence - third offense, one count of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, one count of possession of ammunition by a prohibited person, one count of assault with a dangerous weapon, and one count of possession with intent to deliver cocaine. His bond was set at $250,000.

Prosecutors in the case allege that Diamond Glenn, 27, had been driving recklessly in the area of Mound and Chicago roads on Dec. 21, 2024, resulting in a collision that killed 69-year-old Sterling Heights resident Christopher Andelean.

Glenn was charged in September of last year with second-degree murder, involuntary manslaughter and attempted failure to stop at the scene of an accident causing death. She was also charged with assaulting/resisting a police officer for reportedly attempting to flee the scene and biting an officer multiple times during her arrest.

Following a brief trial in May 2026, Glen was found not guilty of second-degree murder and attempted failure to stop at the scene of an accident causing death, and guilty of involuntary manslaughter. The jury took just over 48 hours to deliberate, and she pleaded no contest to the assault/obstruction charge.

Glenn will receive 565 days credit for time already served.

Michigan Humane is caring for 34 cats removed from the property, along with two kittens that were born after the animals were taken into care.

Animal control officials said another cat was found in a live trap Thursday (July 9) morning, bringing the total number of rescued cats to 37.

The home at the center of the investigation was previously declared an imminent danger to public health.

Authorities have cited the owner, who could face potential animal cruelty charges.

Officials have not released additional details about the condition of the animals or the status of the investigation.

Michigan Humane is providing medical care and shelter for the rescued cats as the case moves forward.

Every performance is open to the public at no cost, and concertgoers are warmly invited to attend any stop on this demanding, music-filled journey.

A world-renowned Polish youth ensemble devoted to early music

Scholares Minores pro Musica Antiqua is a celebrated Polish children’s and youth ensemble specializing in early music, repertoire from the Middle Ages, Renaissance, and Baroque eras.

Founded in 1975 in Poniatowa, Poland, by musicologists Danuta and Witold Danielewicz, the group has earned an international reputation for presenting historical European music with authenticity and artistry far beyond what most audiences expect from a youth ensemble.

What makes Scholares Minores unique

Scholares Minores is known for performances that are both musically compelling and historically immersive. Their concerts often feature:

• Authentic vocal and instrumental works from medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque traditions
• Historical instruments such as viola da gamba, rebec, crumhorn, psaltery, and recorders
• Period costumes and historical dance, helping audiences experience the music as it might have been heard—and seen—centuries ago

In other words, this is not simply a choir appearance. It’s a living, educational performance that blends singing, instruments, movement, and visual storytelling to recreate early European music in a way that feels immediate and unforgettable.

A legacy built over five decades

Over nearly 50 years, the ensemble has achieved an extraordinary record of performance and cultural outreach, including:

• More than 2,500 concerts
• Over 100 international tours, with appearances throughout Europe, North America, and beyond
• Recognition as one of Poland’s premier youth ensembles dedicated to early music

This Michigan tour is part of that long tradition—an ambitious itinerary that pairs cultural exchange with the discipline and joy of performance.

Full Michigan Concert Schedule (All Free)

• July 10, 7 p.m. — Galleria, Orchard Lake
• July 11, 7 p.m. — First United Methodist Church, Dearborn
• July 12, 12 p.m. — St. Albertus Catholic Church, Detroit
• July 13, 6 p.m. — Old St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, Ann Arbor
• July 15, 7 p.m. — Our Lady of Czestochowa Catholic Church, Bay City
• July 16, 7 p.m. — St. Matthew’s Catholic Church, Boyne City
• July 17, 7 p.m. — St. Anne’s Catholic Church, Mackinac Island
• July 19, 3 p.m. — Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church, Elk Rapids
• July 19, 7 p.m. — St. Joseph Catholic Church, Traverse City
• July 21, 2 p.m. — Freedom Village Retirement Home, Holland
• July 21, 7:30 p.m. — First United Methodist Church, Holland
• July 22, 7 p.m. — Fountain Street Church, Grand Rapids

How to support the tour

While every concert is free, supporters who want to help make the journey possible can still contribute through the ensemble’s two ongoing fundraising campaigns. Community support helps sustain travel, logistics, and the many behind-the-scenes needs of a multi-city tour.

Here’s a link to donate in U.S. dollars: Fundraiser by Julia Colingsworth : Support Polish Youth Concert Tour in Michigan

Scholares Minores’ visit is a reminder that music can be both art and a bridge, connecting generations, cultures, and communities. As this ensemble travels across Michigan representing Poland, audiences have a special opportunity to hear early European music performed with authenticity, energy, and youthful excellence.

With 12 free concerts ahead, there are many chances to attend. Wherever you catch them, you’ll be witnessing not only a performance but a living tradition on tour.

The incident occurred on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, when Trooper 2, an MSP helicopter, provided aerial support during the investigation.

Police said the suspect attempted to carjack another vehicle while fleeing from law enforcement.

Officials said the helicopter’s assistance played a key role in tracking the suspect and coordinating the response, ultimately leading to an arrest.

Michigan State Police said that aviation resources provide law enforcement agencies with additional tools to safely locate suspects and support ground operations.

Additional details about the suspect and charges were not immediately released.

The ship, the Mayuree Naree, was hit by a projectile north of Oman on March 11, killing three people. The remaining 20 crew members were rescued and returned to Thailand about a week later.

Former crew members Panithi Tumkaew, Noppadon Wongsuvan and Surades Manpuen filed the lawsuit against Precious Shipping Co. as well as two affiliated companies and the ship’s captain.

The lawsuit alleges that the defendants endangered their lives by sailing through the strait despite the security risks, according to their lawyer Kunpat Singhathong.

Kunpat said the three men were also dismissed before the completion of their nine-month employment contracts after the attack rendered the ship inoperable. He said they received compensation equivalent to two months’ salary.

The compensation was inadequate because they have since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, leaving them unable to continue working as sailors for the foreseeable future, he said.

“We tried to negotiate with the company, but it denied responsibility, so we believe the matter should be brought to the court,” Kunpat said before filing the case with the Central Labor Court in Bangkok.

He declined to identify the amount of compensation they are seeking, only that it would be over a million baht ($30,000) per person.

Panithi, who said he had worked for Precious Shipping for more than a decade, said his wife encouraged him to seek medical treatment after noticing changes in his behavior.

“When there are loud noises, I’ll get startled," he said. “I can’t work now, and I have to take medication.”

Precious Shipping did not respond to requests for comment.

The remains of the three crew members killed in the attack were repatriated to Thailand earlier this month.

In a statement on July 3, Precious Shipping thanked everyone involved in the repatriation process and expressed its condolences to the victims’ families. The company said it “remains committed to providing full assistance, care, and support to bereaved families throughout this difficult time.”

On Thursday, the United States launched new airstrikes against Iran, which responded by targeting American allies in the Middle East. The exchange of fire threatens an interim deal intended to help end the Iran war.

The conflict has choked off the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping lane for about a fifth of global trade in crude oil and liquefied natural gas. Most of this was bound for Asia, which has struggled with a continentwide energy shock since the war began on Feb. 28.

The safety of stranded seafarers in the Persian Gulf has been a source of concern among Asian nations — like India, the Philippines and Thailand — whose citizens make up a significant portion of ship crews.

“This is not simply a matter of shipping statistics,” said Arsenio Dominguez, the secretary-general of the United Nations' International Maritime Organization in a statement Wednesday. “Behind the figures are seafarers, and in some cases their families, who continue to bear the human cost of this conflict.”

In scenes like a heist movie in reverse, the priceless medieval artwork was spirited into the British Museum on Friday in the dead of night, after a high-tech, tight-security operation where any slip-up could have spelled disaster.

On loan from its home in France, the tapestry will go on display at the London museum from Sept. 10 until July 2027. It's a public homecoming for a vivid visual record of the 1066 Norman invasion, the last successful conquest of England.

The tapestry's arrival in London has been widely anticipated, but due to security concerns all details of when and how it would arrive were kept under wraps.

“It feels extraordinary that after so much work and planning and care and thought that it’s actually happening,” British Museum Director Nicholas Cullinan said as he waited outside the museum in the dark.

“It’s the first time in 1,000 years that such an important piece of British — French too — history is going to be on these shores,” he said. “It’s incredibly exciting.”

The 70-meter (230-foot) tapestry was folded accordion-style in a climate-controlled case that was placed inside a shock-absorbing cradle. That went into a truck that crossed from France on a vehicle shuttle train through the Channel Tunnel.

After an 11-hour, 350-mile (560-kilometer) trip, escorted by police, the truck backed slowly into a loading bay at the museum, where workers gingerly eased the container, the size of a small car, to the ground. Museum staff and British and French diplomats who had been watching in hushed silence broke into applause.

The priceless cargo will spend several days acclimatizing before it is carefully unpacked and unfolded for an exhibition that the museum expects to be one of the most popular in its 267-year history. Some 100,000 tickets were sold in their first day on sale this month.

“It was like trying to get tickets to Glastonbury,” Cullinan said. “I don’t take for granted that people care that much about a 1,000-year-old embroidery. I think that’s an amazing thing.”

The tapestry is a symbol of Anglo-French relations

Stitched in wool thread on linen fabric — technically an embroidery, rather than a tapestry — the artwork depicts events leading up to the Battle of Hastings in October 1066, when William, Duke of Normandy defeated King Harold’s Anglo-Saxon army. The invasion ended Saxon rule, made William the Conqueror the first Norman king of England and bound Britain and France more closely together.

Historians believe the tapestry was commissioned by Bishop Odo of Bayeux, William’s half brother, and was probably sewn by women in England — possibly nuns — before being taken across the Channel. It has spent most of the last millennium in the town of Bayeux in northwest France, apart from two short periods at the Louvre in Paris.

The tapestry symbolizes the sometimes fractious, intertwined histories of France and Britain, and securing the loan was a high-stakes diplomatic mission. It was announced during a state visit to the U.K. by French President Emmanuel Macron in July 2025.

The loan coincides with renovations at the museum in Bayeux that houses it.

In return, the British Museum will loan treasures from the Sutton Hoo hoard — artifacts from a 7th-century Anglo Saxon ship burial — and other items to museums in Normandy.

Macron said in an article for Friday's Times of London that “our two countries are not merely lending each other artworks: they are sharing the great narratives of European history’s origins.”

Retired British diplomat Peter Ricketts, who helped cement the deal as the U.K.’s special envoy for the tapestry, said “it’s an extraordinary mark of friendship and confidence in the U.K. to entrust this object to us for a year.”

“Macron, when he offered us the tapestry, I think he understood that it would have far more impact in the U.K. than it does in France, because it’s more fundamental to our national story,” he said. "Everybody (in Britain) knows 1066.”

It's a vivid record of 11th-century life and death

The tapestry features more than 620 people and 737 animals and tells its story in 58 scenes brimming with vivid and sometimes gory detail. There are scenes of hand-to-hand combat, mutilated bodies and the unlucky Harold, felled by an arrow through his eye.

“It has an emotional richness that is really difficult to get from written sources,” said Millie Horton-Insch, project curator for the British Museum exhibition. “It just brings people closer to this history than any other object can. It’s not the same as reading a text. You are looking at something that was handled by the people who lived through it and felt compelled to record these events in this way.”

She said the document’s survival for 10 centuries despite myriad dangers — “moths, mice, mold, damp, fire” — is miraculous, and may be partly due to its humble materials.

“It’s not really made of any blingy fabric,” she said. “It’s not gold, it’s not silver. There wasn’t the same temptation to cut it up and make it into vestments or repurpose it for anything.”

Some French cultural figures opposed the loan, arguing that moving the tapestry was too risky. Cullinan said the expert teams went to great lengths to ensure its safety, including making two trial runs of the journey to show it would not cause the fragile item too much stress.

“Such care has gone into it. I can’t think of a level of care for any other museum loan,” he said.

He said he understands why there are concerns.

“The tapestry arouses great interest and passion,” he said. “Which is a wonderful thing.”

“Satluj” tells the true tale of a human rights activist who investigated thousands of disappearances and extrajudicial killings during a government crackdown on a separatist insurgency in India's Punjab state in the 1980s and early 1990s.

At the screening in Gurdaspur, elderly survivors of the insurgency sat beside teenagers born years after it ended. When the screen flickered to life and “Satluj” movie began, the crowd fell silent.

Originally titled “Punjab 95,” the movie was stalled for three years after India’s censor board demanded more than 120 cuts. After failing to secure a theatrical release, it debuted on the ZEE5 streaming platform last week, but was removed in India two days later.

The takedown had an unintended consequence.

Across villages in Punjab, Sikh organizations, local activists and residents have begun organizing community screenings using copies that have circulated online. The screenings have transformed Sikh temple compounds and village halls into makeshift cinemas where audiences watch not just a film but a retelling of memories of one of India’s bloodiest internal conflicts.

Spotlight on Punjab’s insurgency

“Satluj” draws on the life of rights activist Jaswant Singh Khalra, whose investigation into alleged extrajudicial killings exposed one of the darkest episodes of Punjab’s insurgency. The conflict pitted Sikh militant groups seeking an independent Khalistan against Indian security forces and claimed thousands of civilian, militant and police lives.

During the insurgency, rights groups documented allegations of enforced disappearances, custodial killings and secret cremations. Khalra’s investigation alleged that thousands of people who had disappeared were cremated anonymously by police without informing their families or maintaining official records.

Khalra was abducted in 1995 and later killed. Several police officers were convicted in connection with his murder.

Although the insurgency was crushed and support for Khalistan waned within Punjab, the Indian government continues to view separatist sentiment as a national security concern. It has not publicly explained why the film was removed, but officials told local media they ordered it taken down on security grounds.

Local organized screenings

The public screenings take shape through grassroots cooperation. Residents arrange for projectors, audio speakers and power generators, Sikh temples and village community spaces become open-air theaters for an evening, and volunteers spread the word from one household to the next.

Inderjeet Singh Bains, who helps coordinate screenings in Gurdaspur district, said the initiative aimed to create spaces where people can watch together and reflect on a period of Punjab’s history that continues to resonate across generations.

“When we screen the film, we see our elders and mothers, many of them 60 or 70 years old, crying because they have lost their sons. Our people have endured immense suffering,” Bains said.

Gurmukh Singh, who attended a screening, said the film gave voice to stories the young in Punjab had heard only in fragments. For families in his village, he said, the insurgency was not history but lived experience, with many losing loved ones in the violence.

“After watching the movie, there is a feeling of the grief our earlier generations had to bear,” Singh said.

Movie fuels censorship debate

The takedown of “Satluj” has reopened a debate over artistic freedom in India, where films have increasingly run into censorship battles under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist government. Critics have said such cases have become more frequent and accuse Modi’s government of promoting films that align with its nationalist narrative.

“Everything happened right before our eyes, so what is there to oppose? The truth is coming to light, and people should be allowed to see it,” said Balwinder Singh, a Sikh religious leader.

The government says movie certification decisions are made independently under the law.

In a statement, ZEE5 said the film would no longer be available for viewing in India “in light of current developments.” It added that it would explore “every appropriate avenue through due process” to restore it.

Audiences revisit painful memories

Diljit Dosanjh, the lead actor who plays Khalra, said he was unconcerned about whether the film remained online because once audiences had seen it, “it cannot be erased.”

That sentiment appears to be playing out in Punjab’s villages.

Inside the temple compound in Gurdaspur, the audience watched scenes of police killings, crackdowns and families searching for answers. Afterwards, many lingered in conversation, comparing the film with the real-life memories they had carried for decades.

Pawan Deep Kaur described the film as a heartbreaking portrayal of the suffering endured by the older generation.

“It made us cry endlessly,” she said.

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Saaliq reported from New Delhi.

But after hours of combing the Mediterranean seabed in search of yellow-painted mock mortar shells, the divers surfaced empty-handed.

It was the team's fifth diving trip in the yearslong experiment to help prepare Israel to clear part of the sea from unexploded grenades and other munitions in order to return beach area to residents. But on this day in June, the divers couldn't find the dummy mortar and artillery shells they'd planted months prior, foreshadowing the challenges that lie ahead.

“It’s really hard to find things in the sea,” said Roy Jaijel, a researcher in the marine geology and geophysics department at Israel’s National Institute of Oceanography, as he emerged from a dive.

Jaijel co-leads a project aimed at returning some 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) of shoreline to people living in Israel's central city of Rishon LeZion, an area that's been used as a firing range for decades. The initiative, the first of its kind in Israel, coincides with a global push to better protect the world's waters as demand increases for the use of seas and oceans for shipping, energy and recreation.

Experts say the clearance of underwater munitions has received more attention in recent years in part because of the boom in artificial intelligence, which requires millions of kilometers of underwater fiber-optic cables to allow for global connectivity.

Munitions can end up dumped into waters after wars, fall into seas during conflict or, in the case of Rishon LeZion, accumulate from firing practice. Erosion from seawater can lead toxic and explosive chemicals, along with heavy metals, to seep from the munitions, causing environmental contamination. There's also the risk of objects exploding if people step on them or children play with them, thinking they're toys.

Two years ago, Europe launched a project to better detect and clear non-military unexploded ordnance, such as from industrial or commercial sites. In a separate initiative in 2024, Germany piloted a program to recover and dispose of military waste from the North and Baltic seas, where some 1.6 million tonnes of unexploded munitions from two world wars lie, according to the German government.

Still, there's been less focus on clearing waters in the Middle East, such as the Mediterranean, which historically hasn't been the site of large dumps compared with Europe.

Leaders of the Israeli project say it's one of the first to focus on clearing smaller munitions in complicated underwater terrain, which is why many countries have avoided it.

“It's like looking for a needle in a haystack,” said Israel Faintuch, head of the Maritime Division at Israel's Ministry of Defense National Mine Action Authority as he checked his oxygen tank and suited up to go underwater.

Limited beach space in Israel is the driving force behind the clearing effort

The government says nearly half the country's 194-kilometer (120-mile) coastline is off limits to civilians, used for commercial ports, power plants, desalination facilities, military bases and firing zones.

Since the country's founding nearly 80 years ago, 7 kilometers (4.3 miles), nearly the entire length of Rishon LeZion's shoreline, has been used as a firing range, launching grenades as well as small and large mortars, leaving hundreds of thousands of people crammed into a narrow strip of beach.

Launched last year, the joint research project funded by Rishon LeZion's municipality is being led by Israel’s National Mine Action Authority and researchers from the National Institute of Oceanography. It aims to localize the most impacted areas, mapping the pattern of munitions to determine how far offshore and how deep to go before the clearance team steps in.

In order to gather data, divers place various sizes of fake munitions — some equipped with motion sensors — at depths of 5, 10 and 15 meters (16, 33 and 59 feet) and up to 1.2 kilometers (0.75 miles) offshore. After several months, they retrieve the munitions, analyze the data and plant new ones.

In June, Associated Press journalists accompanied the team underwater as they placed new munitions for the next round of tests and attempted to find ones they'd left in January. Divers descended using a string, or measuring tape, to navigate the seabed. Tapping each other under the water, they'd point in different directions to search, rubbing their hands over the seafloor.

“You have limited air supply when you go with the divers and you have limited time in the water," said Dafna Eliahu, a graduate student at the University of Haifa working on the project. "So with actual live munition I expect it to be very difficult, very hard to locate and to actually be able to find them,” she said.

While the information, including from the sensors, is still being processed, preliminary findings show that the munitions moved less than expected, which means there might be less area that needs clearing, she said.

Israel's Defense Ministry wants to have enough data to start clearing by the end of next year and expand the shoreline by an initial 150 meters (492 feet) within a few months. Completing the project will take years and cost tens of millions of dollars. It's already been delayed due to Israel's multiple wars with Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran as divers can't work when missiles are falling and could land in the sea.

During the current war that the U.S. and Israel launched against Iran as well as the 12-day war last June between Israel and Iran, the army said missiles aimed at larger cities like Rishon LeZion fell into the sea but wouldn’t specify how many.

Israel says no one has been injured or killed by unexploded sea ordnance, but there have been about a dozen sightings of devices in the last 20 years where the police and army were called. Most have been found on or near shore.

What's learned during the project could be useful beyond Israel

While the goal of the project is to expand parts of the shoreline, Israel also hopes its findings will yield new insights on clearing munitions from this part of the world, where there are threats but overall less is known.

According to the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining, more than half of global incidents related to unexploded ordnance, such as sightings or drifting mines, were recorded in the Middle East between 2014 and 2023, with most occurring in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen and the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, largely a result of Yemen's civil war.

Pedro Basto, research and innovation program manager with the group, said it is important to keep interest high in removing underwater explosives given the increasing dependence on the seas.

“Both renewable energies based on the sea (wind turbines and harnessing water currents) and the global connectivity that most of the world relies on every minute of every day, depend massively on underwater cable laying,” he said.

As Israel's project advances, residents in Rishon LeZion say they're looking forward to being able to use more land.

Moria Malka, head spokesperson for the city's municipality, said the clearance will triple the area’s coastline and much of it will become a nature reserve as well as a residential area near the sea. For beachgoers like Mark Kostman, that is great news.

“Holidays and Saturdays, all of this place is completely crowded and too dense to even have fun,” said Kostman as he played volleyball with his children next to the firing zone. “Having it as public space for leisure and sport ... it's wonderful."

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Associated Press reporter Natalie Melzer contributed from Nahariya, Israel.

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Back-and-forth attacks, including a day earlier, have repeatedly threatened the ceasefire. But Thursday’s appeared bigger all around, with sirens sounding at least three times in Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet headquarters, and missiles targeting Kuwait and Qatar.

Sirens sounded Thursday afternoon in Jordan as well, where the U.S. has stationed troops and aircraft.

An Iranian official accused the U.S. of launching an airstrike later Thursday targeting the area around Iran’s sole nuclear power plant, and other explosions were reported elsewhere in the country during the afternoon.

Early Friday, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was laid to rest in his hometown of Mashhad after days of public mourning. Khamenei was killed in the opening salvos of the Iran war.

The strikes came hours after U.S. President Donald Trump said recent Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz signaled the end of a fragile ceasefire and threatened to escalate the conflict if they didn't stop. That raised concerns that the region could tip back into a war that would engulf several countries and could halt energy shipments through the strait that are crucial for the global economy.

In Iran, the two days of American airstrikes have killed at least 14 people and wounded another 78, Iran’s Health Ministry said Thursday. Most were reportedly members of the armed forces.

In Kuwait, the military said falling debris wounded one person as the nation shot down three ballistic missiles, a cruise missile and 10 drones. Bahrain said it shot down incoming fire, without elaborating, and Jordanian government spokesperson Mohammad al-Momani said all incoming fire from Iran had been intercepted. Iranian state TV said the country's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard fired missiles at a U.S. base in Jordan.

There was no immediate word of damage in Qatar.

US strikes hit more targets

The U.S. military’s Central Command said it hit 90 targets across Iran, releasing black-and-white footage of what appeared to be strikes on an airport runway and missile launchers.

The U.S. said the strikes were intended to “further degrade” Iran’s ability “to threaten freedom of navigation” in the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s traded oil and natural gas passed before the war began with U.S. and Israeli attacks on Feb. 28.

Traffic has picked up somewhat since a tentative deal last month included opening the waterway. Maritime data company Lloyd’s List Intelligence said Thursday that preliminary data showed at least 576 ships passed through the strait in June, compared with 233 in May. More than 3,100 transited the strait in June 2025.

Iranian state media reported explosions in several locations, including Bushehr, home to Iran’s nuclear power plant complex, and southern port cities. The state-run IRNA news agency quoted Ehsan Jahanian, a local official in Bushehr, as accusing the U.S. of striking near the plant around noon, hours after Central Command said it had ended its latest round of strikes. Asked for comment on Bushehr, Central Command referred to a press release that detailed targets but made no mention of the nuclear power plant.

Streets are jammed for Khamenei’s final funeral procession

For the first time since April, U.S. strikes also appeared to target Iranian bridges. State media reported a strike on a railway bridge in Iran’s northeastern Golestan province, and the Revolutionary Guard said two bridges were attacked on the route to Mashhad, where tens of thousands of mourners thronged wide boulevards during the final funeral procession for Khamenei on Thursday.

People pressed forward to touch a vehicle carrying Khamenei's body. Many carried Iranian flags and images of the late leader or banners evoking Shiite Islam’s long history of martyrs. Some signs called for the death of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Khamenei ruled Iran for nearly 37 years before being killed in the U.S. and Israeli airstrikes that started the war. The funeral processions began last Saturday, with authorities shutting down streets, airspace and daily life in Tehran and other cities as throngs commemorated the man who led Iran for decades with an iron fist while confronting the West.

Trump issues another warning to Iran if attacks on shipping happen again

After leaving a NATO summit in Turkey, Trump posted several videos on his social media site of what he said were explosions in Iran and issued another warning to the Islamic Republic.

“This is in retribution for yesterday’s bombing of ships by Iran. If it happens again, it will get much worse!” Trump wrote Wednesday, a day after three tankers were attacked in the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump also renewed his past threats to hit Iran’s civilian infrastructure, including electric and desalination plants, and to seize Kharg Island, through which some 90% of Iranian oil exports pass.

Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, a key negotiator in talks seeking a permanent end to the war, was defiant in a post on X on Thursday morning: “America still hasn’t learned that bullying and breaking promises are no longer cost-free. Let me put it plainly: If you strike, you’ll get hit.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on Telegram that he spoke by phone with his Saudi, Turkish and Omani counterparts and with Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, who has been one of the main mediators in the war. The outreach suggested efforts may be underway to reduce tensions.

Talks on reaching a final deal were to begin after Khamenei's funeral

Trump said Wednesday that the interim ceasefire agreement was “over.” He said he would allow negotiations to continue but thought negotiators were “wasting their time.”

Negotiations to reach a final deal were due to start after the funeral for Khamenei.

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

The state-run Xinhua News Agency said Friday that a search had ended while an investigation was underway into the cause of the fire Thursday that gutted the Fujian Huiteng factory in Jinjiang, a manufacturing hub for sports shoes.

According to product listings on online sales and import platforms, Fujian Huiteng makes shoes for both Chinese and foreign brands.

Local media footage showed people trapped on the roof of the five-floor building, enveloped in thick black smoke, while the spray from fire truck hoses fell short of flames showing through windows on its upper floors. Xinhua said the factory’s owner and managers were arrested and the company’s accounts were frozen.

When the fire started, 237 factory workers and two visitors were in the building. Two of the 213 people rescued from the factory were pronounced dead after being taken to hospitals. Another 26 missing people were later confirmed dead, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

Work safety has been a persistent problem in China. In May, an explosion at a fireworks plant in the city of Changsha in the central province of Hunan killed at least 37 people. In 2024, a fire at a refrigeration facility under construction killed 39 people in the city of Xinyu in the southeastern Jiangxi province.

Authorities have repeatedly ordered businesses to screen for workplace hazards. Official data show 18,261 people died in nearly 20,000 workplace accidents across the country in 2025, down from the previous year.

Chinese President Xi Jinping demanded a swift investigation of the disaster and said authorities would “strictly hold those responsible accountable.”

Jinjiang has thousands of shoe factories and is considered the “shoe capital” of China, making about a fifth of all athletic shoes, more than a billion a year, according to state media and industry reports.

The area’s transformation from small workshops and factories into an export industry hub, which Xi has often referred to as the “Jinjiang Experience,” is considered a model for China’s ascent as a world manufacturing power.

CCTV said the fire started on the first level of the concrete-structured building, where a workshop and a warehouse were located.

A local fire department official said in an interview with the state broadcaster that shoe sole material piled up in stairwells hindered firefighters from reaching the flames to extinguish them. The shoe materials were highly flammable, CCTV said.

CCTV also said the fire department sent 183 people and 35 vehicles to the factory and that open flames were extinguished after about four hours. Xinhua later said more than 500 people joined the rescue and search operation.

For her, this World Cup couldn't make more sense.

Hallam is among a sizable number of English-speaking people in the U.S. who are doing something these days that might be considered a bit surprising: They're watching broadcasts of World Cup matches in Spanish on Telemundo, even though they have little idea — or in some cases, no idea — what the announcers are saying.

“I can’t really understand everything they’re saying on Telemundo because they’re speaking in Spanish,” Hallam said. “But you understand what’s going on.”

The math is simple. Census figures show that about 20% of the U.S. is Hispanic, yet Telemundo points to Nielsen ratings to show that roughly half the World Cup viewers in the U.S. have watched at least some portion of some matches in Spanish. Every match of the tournament has been available for U.S. viewers in English on Fox or FS1, on Telemundo or Universo in Spanish, and there are streaming options such as Fox One or Peacock.

Among the reasons commonly cited by viewers who spoke with The Associated Press in recent days: A fascination with famed broadcaster Andrés Cantor's “¡goooooool!” call. Telemundo doesn't cut away for commercials (as Fox does) during the much-maligned hydration breaks. The broadcasts, some simply find, are more entertaining. And in other cases, it's a cost-based decision: Peacock, which includes Telemundo, is lower-priced than Fox One.

Soccer as a global language, transcending a limited vocabulary

Jackson Braunius is a Michigan native who watched a U.S. game last week from a bar seat at a steakhouse in Miami Lakes, Florida. He said he speaks almost no Spanish — “I know ‘cerveza,’” he said, tapping his beer glass — but didn't mind watching on Telemundo whatsoever.

“I figured out the science here,” Braunius said. “When they’re not talking too loud, nothing is happening. When they get loud, there’s a chance. When they get real loud, it’s probably going to be a goal.”

Comedian Trevor Noah has been hosting World Cup watch parties on YouTube. He's made the switch to Spanish-language feeds, and the hydration break issue was a huge part of that decision.

“We’re seeing the players on the pitch discussing what’s happening. You see which coach is more stressed. Some players are tapping each other on the back. This is part of the game,” Noah said on one of his YouTube streams. “I feel like when you cut to ads, you lose this — you lose the stress, you lose the joy, the anticipation. So, shout out again, Telemundo: Really, really amazing coverage.”

Telemundo is hearing the praise, and has thanked English-speakers — as well as Noah directly — for lauding its coverage.

The good news for everyone is this: There seems to be more than enough viewers to go around right now. And the success of this tournament could lead to a bidding war for the 2030 World Cup, with some reporting the rights for English-speaking and Spanish-speaking television will be packaged together in that deal. That wasn't the case for this World Cup.

Fox Sports said that Monday night's Belgium-U.S. match saw a peak viewership total of around 41 million at one point, making it the “most-watched soccer telecast in U.S. history,” the network said. In other words, the final U.S. game in this World Cup had more viewers than anything in this country since the Super Bowl — with at least 45 million viewers, on average, between Fox (33 million) and Telemundo (an estimated 12 million). The most recent Super Bowl drew an average of about 125 million viewers, according to Nielsen data.

Anglophones become hooked on Telemundo

William Kennedy of Miami is married to a Colombian woman, whose native language is Spanish. He says he knows only enough Spanish to be able to order meals in restaurants. And yet, he finds himself often watching World Cup matches on Telemundo.

If Colombia was on, the Kennedy house was watching Telemundo. If Colombia — which was ousted in penalty kicks by Switzerland on Tuesday — isn't on, Kennedy finds himself usually making his way to Telemundo anyway.

“When the American commentators are doing the game, I don’t know what game they’re watching. I just don’t,” Kennedy said. “I’d rather get the excitement in Spanish because essentially what happens is they’re talking, and then they’re talking really, really fast, and then they’re getting loud and your brain is just like, ‘Oh, something’s happening — even if I don’t know what’s happening.’”

Hallam — who finds the World Cup has been a great way to bond further with her Spanish-speaking students — only became a big soccer fan a few years ago, when her daughter decided she wanted to play in a recreational league for elementary kids. The league needed coaches, so Hallam literally checked out a “coaching for dummies” book and began teaching herself the game.

She kept coaching her daughter all the way through high school. Now, she's hooked on soccer and hooked on Spanish-speaking broadcasts — and plans to keep watching, even when the World Cup ends.

“It’s just very comforting,” Hallam said. “We're really enjoyed it and I hope we get to continue. The next World Cup, we’re going to watch it just like this.”

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Lamy reported from Indianapolis.

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Harper and Walker join Boston’s Willson Contreras, Kansas City’s Jac Caglianone, Tampa Bay’s Junior Caminero and the New York Yankees’ Ben Rice in the competition at Citizens Bank Park. The other two participants haven’t been announced.

Harper, hitting .261 with 20 homers and 57 RBIs, was selected for his ninth All-Star Game as a Legend Pick for baseball's midsummer showcase. The 33-year-old slugger will try to become the fifth player to win multiple derby competitions. And Harper will try to do it in front of home fans — again. He last won it in 2018 in Washington while a member of the Nationals.

The 24-year-old Walker is a first-time All-Star who is having a breakout season. He hit his 22nd homer on Thursday night. The 2020 first-round draft pick is batting .294 with an .893 OPS and an MLB-leading 73 RBIs.

He'll be the eighth Cardinals player to compete in the competition, joining Jack Clark (1985), Ray Lankford (1997), Mark McGwire (1998-99), Jim Edmonds (2003), Albert Pujols (2003, 2007, 2009, 2022), Matt Holliday (2010-11) and Carlos Beltran (2012).

A Cardinals player has never won the derby. The Phillies have had two winners: Bobby Abreu in 2005 and Ryan Howard the next year.

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

A Utah judge is deciding whether prosecutors have enough evidence to put Tyler Robinson on trial on a charge of aggravated murder. Kirk, 31, was killed as he spoke to a crowd of thousands at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10.

One of Robinson's attorneys, Michael Burt, tried to inject uncertainty into the case Thursday by challenging the reliability of ballistics tests on a bullet fragment recovered from Kirk’s body. Authorities sought to tie the fragment to the suspected murder weapon, but the results were inconclusive.

“Saying anything but inconclusive was inappropriate,” said Samantha Karner with the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives.

Burt earlier in the week questioned the reliability of DNA evidence that investigators said linked Robinson to the scene. Experts say the science behind DNA testing is sound.

Robinson has not entered a plea. He turned himself in a day after the fatal shooting of Kirk, a close ally of President Donald Trump credited with helping galvanize young voters for the Republican in the 2024 election.

The defense said it would call a final witness to testify Friday, the final day of the weeklong preliminary hearing.

However, a decision from state District Judge Tony Graf won’t come until after Sept. 1, when he scheduled oral arguments in the matter.

Prosecutors on Thursday aired portions of a recorded interview with Robinson's roommate, Lance Twiggs.

The day after Kirk was shot in the neck, Robinson allegedly told Twiggs “he wishes he hadn’t done it,” a recording played in court revealed.

Later that same day — and only about an hour before turning himself in — Robinson posted “it was me at UVU yesterday,” in a chat room on the Discord social media platform, according to investigators and messages shown by prosecutors.

Defense attorneys unsuccessfully fought the public release of the statements from Twiggs and the chat room messages. They argued prosecutors would characterize the material as a confession, undermining Robinson’s right to a fair trial.

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

Twiggs said in the April interview with prosecutors and investigators that Robinson sometimes talked about politics, including Trump. But Twiggs said he never heard Robinson talk about Kirk before the shooting. The defendant also did not talk much about gender issues or LGBTQ rights, Twiggs said.

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Brown reported from Billings, Montana.

In courthouses and public squares, they have marked the nation's 250th anniversary with a dire warning: The rule of law in America is in grave danger. They will deliver a similar message at a library in Grosse Pointe just outside Detroit — the last stop on an extraordinary tour to defend judicial independence and bolster trust in courts.

Americans' confidence in the court system and democracy has dipped in recent years. The country is more polarized, and President Donald Trump has repeatedly cast doubt on the fairness of the judicial system.

Some judges on the tour said in phone interviews this week that the United States was at a precipice.

“Looking back in history, we have teetered," former Ohio Supreme Court Justice Michael Donnelly said. "This is a moment where we can decide to reinstill those beliefs that we are a country of laws and not of men.”

Judges step off the bench

The four-day tour through the Rust Belt is a sharp departure for a typically reserved and insular branch of government. Federal judges in particular largely limit their comments to the courtroom and written decisions, focusing on the facts of individual cases.

But that restraint is loosening amid a barrage of attacks by Trump and other White House officials, the administration's rampant defiance of U.S. district court orders and its expansive view of executive power. Trump has called a district judge who ruled against one of his immigration moves “crooked” and suggested with no evidence that Supreme Court justices who struck down his tariffs were motivated by foreign interests.

More federal judges have recently begun talking about receiving death threats and profane messages, though they have not blamed Trump or any other officials. Some have blasted administration policies in sharply worded opinions that strayed beyond the legal dispute before them. Even U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts has weighed in.

In an appearance in March, Roberts said personal criticism of federal judges was dangerous and had to stop. The rare rebuke from the head of the nation's top court came two days after Trump's remark about a “crooked” judge, though Roberts didn't mention Trump or anyone else by name.

The U.S. Marshals Service reported 564 threats against federal judges in the government fiscal year that ended in September, up from 509 the year before.

“I don’t want to say we have moved into an era of lawlessness, but it sometimes feels that way,” said former U.S. District Court Judge Victoria Roberts, who was set to join the bus tour in Michigan.

Timothy Lewis, another former federal judge on the tour, said his concerns about the politicization of the judicial branch reached a tipping point a decade ago, when Senate Republicans thwarted President Barack Obama’s nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court. Today, the rule of law is facing an "existential threat" from an ongoing breakdown of norms, according to Lewis, who spent seven years on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

“I have fundamental concerns," he said, “about where we are headed as a nation.”

Their route has been varied

The tour started Tuesday in the western Pennsylvania town of Greensburg — once the hub of a thriving coal industry that now lures visitors from nearby Pittsburgh for highland recreation and a historic downtown.

Judges mingled with customers at a coffee shop before speaking at the domed, ornate Westmoreland County Courthouse. Then it was off to Washington, also in western Pennsylvania. The town of 13,000 people, where about 15% of the population is Black, was a key stop on the Underground Railroad and a regional base for the Civil Rights Movement.

From there, the bus headed west for events Wednesday in Columbus, Ohio, and the city of Wooster in Amish country. The judges stopped at a Cracker Barrel restaurant on the way. They spent Thursday in Cleveland before circling Lake Erie north to Michigan.

The two groups that planned the tour — dubbed “Justice in Motion” — say they were inspired by a similar campaign in Poland in 2021 after that country's governing party took control of key judicial institutions.

Independent Polish judges visited scores of towns to promote the rule of law and teach voters about the country's constitution. The U.S. tour also aims to educate people.

An effort to combat misinformation about what they do

Maureen O'Connor, a former chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court, said judges risk ceding the narrative about their roles and motives to “voices of misinformation” if they don't speak up.

A letter she received years ago, and still keeps, reminds her of that danger. The writer accused O'Connor, a Republican, of betraying her party when she repeatedly struck down Republican-drawn legislative maps as illegal gerrymanders. “There was just a basic misunderstanding of what my role was as a judge,” O'Connor said.

O'Connor is among roughly 30 judges, including two former federal judges and a current federal judge, who will participate in the tour. One of the federal judges was nominated by a Democrat, the other two by Republicans. The state judges, some of whom are also still on the bench, represent both parties.

They have been joined by former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett, former Ohio attorneys general and a few lawyers. The event was put together by the Democracy Rising Collaborative and Keep Our Republic, nonpartisan advocacy groups.

Organizers say they chose stops that would get the judges in front of as many people as possible to build connections and trust. The judges have embraced that mission.

“The lifeblood of the judiciary is public confidence,” Donnelly, the former Ohio Supreme Court justice, said. “If you lose that, it’s very difficult to get it back.”

The Democratic congresswoman, whose district includes the Houston neighborhood where the shooting occurred, said acting ICE Director David Venturella told her the agency has confirmed Lorenzo Salgado Araujo “was not a target.”

Salgado Araujo was a homebuilder who had lived in the U.S. for more than 35 years, had no criminal record and was close to finishing the long process of obtaining legal status when he was killed early Tuesday morning, according to his family.

“We’ve got to do something. This is just one more death too many,” Garcia said in an interview with MS Now. “And if we’ve got to bring outside, independent folks to come in and look at it, we should do that."

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately return an email seeking comment late Thursday.

DHS, which oversees ICE, previously said that federal officers were conducting a targeted operation to arrest a person in the country without legal status when they attempted to stop a vehicle driven by Salgado Araujo. The agency has said Salgado Araujo rammed an ICE vehicle and that a federal officer fired a weapon in self-defense.

Asked whether ICE agents had been specifically targeting Salgado Araujo, DHS said earlier Thursday that officers had been surveilling a property where they had previously observed two white vans.

“On July 7, officers were almost at the target’s address when they observed a white van with an individual who resembled the target. Officers then initiated the vehicle stop,” the department said.

The federal agents weren't wearing body-worn cameras, DHS said, and few photos or videos surrounding the shooting have emerged publicly in the days since the encounter, unlike other deaths involving federal immigration officers.

In a statement, DHS said the agents at the scene in Houston had not yet been issued body cameras, which it blamed on Democrats and a record government shutdown that was fueled by President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.

U.S. Rep. Christian Menefee, a Democrat who also represents Houston, said if the agents didn't have the devices, it was because Trump and Republican lawmakers did not want them to be carrying them.

"Houston is done accepting excuses from an agency that has more money than it knows what to do with and still can’t manage basic accountability,” he said in a statement.

The Harris County District Attorney's office said it would conduct an investigation into the shooting. The office is consulting with local prosecutors in Minneapolis, where federal agents fatally shot two U.S. citizens, to learn how they have navigated investigations into federal immigration agents, spokesperson Rafael Lemaitre said.

“Although access to key evidence remains under federal control, we are pursuing investigative avenues available to us and will conduct a review of any information we collect within our reach,” Lemaitre said in an emailed statement.

Three men, including Salgado Araujo’s brother, were detained by ICE during the fatal traffic stop, according to Juan Proaño, CEO of the League of United Latin American Citizens, who has been communicating with their families.

LULAC has yet to obtain video footage that clearly shows what happened during the moments of the shooting and has offered a reward of $5,000 for information from witnesses, Proaño told The Associated Press. The position of Salgado Araujo’s van and ICE vehicles has obstructed security camera footage LULAC has reviewed, he added.

“It’s going to make it even more difficult to find the truth in all this,” he said.

DHS said the ICE agents involved in the incident were expected to receive body-worn cameras in the next 60 days.

In the aftermath of the fatal Minneapolis shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti, Democrats had refused to fund ICE and the Border Patrol without changes to those operations designed to increase accountability and transparency. Republicans in Congress eventually passed legislation funding just ICE and CBP for three years.

The ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit overturns a lower court decision that found the ban unconstitutional. The 2-1 appellate decision found that the Illinois law does not violate the Second Amendment, and its restrictions are “consistent with the principles that underpin our Nation’s tradition of firearm regulation.”

“Whether to adopt them is thus a decision reposed in our elected representatives, and we reverse,” the appeals court said.

The majority opinion also pushes back on claims made by the plaintiffs that semiautomatic weapons are not at fault for mass shootings.

“The undisputed record evidence undercuts that claim, showing that the presence of assault weapons and large-capacity magazines is strongly correlated with the severity of the societal problem,” the opinion states.

Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker said in a post on X that the decision is “a victory in the fight to end gun violence that helps keep our communities safe.”

The National Shooting Sports Foundation, the firearms industry trade association seeking to stop the ban, said that it is disappointed with the decision and plans to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review the case.

The gun trade group said it agrees with Chief Judge Michael Brennan’s dissent in which he wrote that the country prohibits governments from banning “firearms commonly owned for self-defense.”

“Because the people have overwhelmingly chosen the AR-15 rifle and its magazine as their weapon of choice, they are protected by the Second Amendment,” the judge's dissent states.

The Protect Illinois Communities Act was signed into law in 2023 by Pritzker and bans AR-15 rifles and similar guns, large-capacity magazines and an assortment of attachments.

It came six months after a 2022 shooting in which a gunman on a rooftop in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park opened fire on a parade, killing seven people and injuring more than three dozen.

The law prompted immediate pushback from county sheriffs who said they refused to enforce what they considered an unconstitutional law, while gun owners and advocates sued.

In 2024, a federal judge overturned the ban, leaning on recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings that strictly interpret the Second Amendment right to keep and bear firearms.

The injunction was set to take effect 30 days after the judge's decision. But that same day, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul filed a notice of appeal, which ultimately led to a stay in the injunction.

Raoul said Thursday's decision enhances public safety. “We have seen the damage that assault weapons and large-capacity magazines can inflict, and these weapons of war have no place in our communities,” he said in a statement.

Last month, the Supreme Court announced it will consider whether bans on semiautomatic rifles, often called assault weapons, violate the Second Amendment. In the fall, the court, which has expanded gun rights, is expected to hear appeals challenging a ban in the Chicago area, which predates the statewide law.

Scattered to numerous showers and thunderstorms developed ahead of a slow-moving cold front. The storms will continue moving from west to east through the evening.

Some storms could bring heavy downpours, frequent lightning and gusty winds. An isolated strong to severe storm is possible, with wind gusts of 40-60 mph and rainfall rates over an inch per hour in the strongest storms.

This is not expected to be a repeat of last Friday’s severe weather outbreak that brought widespread damaging winds and knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of customers across Southeast Michigan. The damaging wind threat Thursday is isolated.

The timing of the storms could impact evening plans, including the final game of the series between the Detroit Tigers and Athletics at Comerica Park. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m.

Temperatures will be near 80 degrees around the start of the game, but fans should prepare for the possibility of a passing shower or thunderstorm that could cause interruptions.

The storm threat gradually decreases Thursday night as the cold front moves south.

Friday

A few showers and thunderstorms remain possible Friday, especially south of M-59, but the weather pattern improves heading into the weekend. Highs will be near 80 degrees north of I-69 and near the Lake Huron shoreline. Expect highs in the mid-80s near Detroit, Ann Arbor, and Monroe.

Weekend

Canadian high pressure moves in, bringing lower humidity, more sunshine and comfortable July weather. Highs will stay near normal, mainly in the lower to mid-80s Saturday and Sunday.

The break from the heat will not last long.

Workweek

A new heat wave could develop next week as temperatures climb to near 90 degrees Monday and into the lower 90s Tuesday and Wednesday.

A heat wave is defined as three consecutive days with temperatures of 90 degrees or higher.

While the heat and humidity will increase, the setup does not look as extreme as the dangerous heat Southeast Michigan experienced leading up to the Fourth of July weekend, when heat index values topped 105 degrees.

Stay with the 4Warn Weather Team for the latest on storms and the return of summer heat next week.

Share your weather photos with Local 4 at MIPics.

Officials also announced on Thursday (July 9) the temporary transfer of a second inmate following an emergency court motion.

Autopsy results released in Howard death

The department said it received the Washtenaw County Medical Examiner’s report for Khaira Howard, who died May 13 at the Ypsilanti-area prison.

The autopsy determined the cause of death was pulmonary thromboembolism due to lower-extremity deep vein thrombosis, commonly known as a blood clot in the lung.

The department said the autopsy report, along with Michigan State Police’s original and supplemental incident reports related to the case, have been posted to its public transparency website.

An internal MDOC investigation and mortality review remain ongoing.

Officials said investigations into other recent deaths at Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility also continue.

Court motion filed on behalf of inmate Clark

Separately, the department responded to a court motion filed by attorneys for inmate Krystal Clark seeking her removal from the facility, citing alleged health concerns and facility conditions.

According to MDOC, the allegations outlined in the motion are not supported by the department’s medical findings.

Officials said Clark is not experiencing a medical emergency requiring a transfer from the facility.

The department said a court required it to respond to the emergency motion within three days rather than the standard 21-day response period.

MDOC said it agreed to temporarily relocate Clark to the Duane Waters Health Center in Jackson on July 9, allowing additional time for both parties to prepare for a hearing while extending the response timeline.

Corrections officials emphasized that the temporary placement is intended solely to facilitate the legal process and does not represent an acknowledgment that Clark is entitled to emergency relief or that a transfer is medically necessary.

Upon arrival at the Duane Waters Health Center, Clark will undergo a comprehensive medical assessment as part of the facility’s intake process, the department said.

Officials added that she continues to receive ongoing care from qualified health care providers.

Facility conditions, staffing addressed

The department reiterated previous statements regarding environmental conditions at Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility, noting that independent testing conducted in 2022 and again in 2026 found no evidence of dangerous systemic black mold or toxic mold conditions.

MDOC said Director Heidi E. Washington and other department leaders have maintained a regular presence at the facility while additional clinical leadership has been assigned to support operations.

Officials said a revised health care staffing plan is being developed, including enhanced nursing management and expanded clinical coverage.

The department said it maintains established medical protocols for emergencies, provides incarcerated individuals with access to routine and specialized medical care, and refers all unexpected inmate deaths to the medical examiner for review.

More --> Fourth inmate from Huron Valley women’s prison dies within two months

The cameras, located mainly around Ford Road, capture license plates and vehicle information that police can search when investigating crimes.

Westland City Councilwoman Melissa Sampey said recent council meetings drew repeated public comments questioning whether the technology is worth the cost and what it means for privacy.

“It really became apparent that the community was against it,” Sampey said.

Police Chief Kyle Dawley decided not to bring a renewal contract to the Westland City Council for approval. In a statement, the Westland Police Department said discussions with council members about how the cameras are used showed the council is “deeply split on this matter.”

Sampey said the controversy mainly centered around who can access the data.

“The access of the information of your license plate follows you any place that you go that has a Flock camera, and anyone can access it from basically any police station across the country,” Sampey said, adding that she had the chance to view the software herself.

City Council President Mike McDermott said he initially supported a two-year trial but now believes that vote was a mistake.

In a statement, McDermott said he opposes continued use of the cameras, citing privacy and constitutional concerns, including worries about corporate data-sharing practices and access by outside agencies such as Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

McDermott also credited residents and local advocacy groups, including DeFlock Michigan and the Socialists of Western-Wayne, for repeatedly raising concerns at council meetings. While he acknowledged police view the cameras as a useful investigative tool, he said residents shouldn’t “be monitored everywhere we drive” and praised city leaders for working with the community to end the program.

Online reaction to the decision was mixed, with some commenters calling the removal a step backward for crime-fighting and others praising council members for listening to residents.

Flock Safety defended the technology’s value in a statement, arguing that removing systems used to solve violent crimes and find missing people can slow investigations.

The company said that in 2025 its technology supported more than one million criminal investigations and incidents, contributed to an estimated 20% of solved cases in jurisdictions where it is deployed, and helped locate more than 10,000 missing people.

“Cases will take longer to solve, organized retail theft crews will operate with fewer obstacles, an Amber Alert may not be returned home, and victims may wait longer, or indefinitely, for justice,” the company stated.

Sampey said residents shouldn’t expect a change in day-to-day policing.

“What you’re receiving in Westland isn’t going to be changed because they do have technology that’s going to allow them to do their job,” Sampey said. “Our officers are well trained to do what they need to do to keep people in Westland safe.”

The pursuit traveled through Lyon Township, Milford, and Highland Township on Thursday (July 9) before ending near Rose Center Road and Hickory Ridge Drive, where the suspect fled, according to police.

Multiple law enforcement agencies are assisting with the search, including K-9 teams, the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Drone Unit, and the Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team.

Officials said the suspect had not been located as of 10:50 p.m.

Officials added there is no known threat to the public, though residents in the immediate area may notice an increased law enforcement presence while the search continues.

Residents are encouraged to remain vigilant, secure their homes and vehicles, and report any suspicious activity by calling 911.

The investigation remains active.

Update: Deputies search for suspect who fled after police pursuit across Oakland and Livingston counties

North Oakland County Fire Authority Assistant Chief Tim Seal urged residents in Rose Township to stay indoors on Thursday (July 9) and call 911 if they notice anything unusual.

Police have not released details about the nature of the incident or whether anyone is being sought.

This is a breaking news story, and updates will be posted as they become available.

Police said they responded at approximately 4:23 p.m. to a report of a possible domestic dispute at a residence in the 48000 block of Sandifer Court on Thursday (July 9).

Upon arrival, officers said they found an adult man who was later pronounced dead at the scene.

Police are investigating the incident as a homicide.

Officials said the son was taken into custody, and there is no ongoing threat to the public.

The Local 4 source identified the suspect as the victim’s son.

Police have not released the identities of the people involved or additional details about what led up to the shooting.

The case will be submitted to the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office for review.

Police said additional information will be released after formal charges are authorized and the suspect is arraigned.

The investigation remains ongoing.

Valencia entered as a pinch-hitter in the seventh against Hogan Harris and sent a 425-foot shot to center to cap the scoring and help the Tigers seal their third straight series victory. The 26-year-old Venezuelan catcher was called up from Triple-A Toledo on Thursday with fellow catcher Dillon Dingler recovering from a right hand contusion.

Valdez (5-6) had a season-high nine strikeouts, while allowing one run on three hits. Kyle Finnegan worked the eighth, and Kenley Jansen the ninth for his 11th save.

Detroit has won five in a row and is 21-12 since June 1. The Tigers have climbed within 4 1/2 games of first place in the AL Central.

Jake Rogers and Zach McKinstry also homered for Detroit.

Rogers hit his third homer of the year, and second in two games, to left in the third to make it 1-0. McKinstry had a two-run shot to left in the fifth.

Jack Perkins (2-5) allowed three runs on two hits in three inning for the Athletics.

Henry Bolte drove in the Athletics' only run in the fifth on a groundout. The Athletics' Zack Gelof left the game in the third after injuring his knee crashing into the outfield wall.

Up next

Tigers RHP Jack Flaherty (2-8. 4.60 ERA) was set to start Friday night at home against Philadelphia and RHP Aaron Nola (3-6, 5.87). The Athletics had not announced a starter for their game Friday night in Chicago opposite White Sox RHP Sean Burke (5-4, 3.56).

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

A goat named Goldie — short for Golden Oreo — followed firefighters for hours as they actively engaged the Rock Creek Fire in Colorado Springs and cleared brush. She even took care of some of it on her own by chomping on leaves.

The 4-year-old Nigerian dwarf goat with a brown and white coat led firefighters down a hill and followed them to their trucks. She watched as they packed up for the day, then trailed behind one truck as it drove off, said Colorado Springs Fire Department Lt. Trevor Leland.

“I don’t know that she necessarily helped with the firefighting effort, but it’s always cool to see an animal like that who doesn’t mind us being there,” he said.

Earlier Thursday, Goldie spotted a U.S. Forest Service crew member having lunch, and tried to stick her head over his shoulder to get a bite and hang out with him for awhile, Leland said.

Goldie's owner, Lindsey Glader, says she's quite the social butterfly. Or, buttergoat?

Glader said the firefighters did a phenomenal job tackling the fire that was 50% contained late Friday. Crews hope to have it fully contained Friday, said Ashley Franco, a spokesperson for the Colorado Springs Fire Department.

That fire and others across the West have kept crews busy, fueled from a record lack of snow, high temperatures and erratic winds. The crew from Colorado Springs also was called to the Aspen Acres Fire southwest of Denver that forced the evacuations of thousands of residents this month.

Goldie figured they needed an “extra boost of support” and stepped in, Glader said.

“She was able to give some comedic relief and offer some necessary levity for these guys and gals who have worked really, really hard and creating a break for this fire, and keeping a lot of people and a lot of things safe,” she said.

Lance Twiggs, who was also defendant Tyler Robinson’s romantic partner, said in an interview with law enforcement that the teary interaction with Robinson happened in their apartment in southern Utah, more than 200 miles (320 kilometers) from where Kirk was shot.

Later that same day — and only about an hour before turning himself in — Robinson posted "it was me at UVU yesterday,” in a chat room on the Discord instant messaging platform, according to investigators and messages shown by prosecutors.

Robinson is charged with aggravated murder and has not entered a plea. He turned himself in a day after the Sept. 10 shooting of Kirk, a close ally of President Donald Trump credited with helping galvanize young voters for the Republican in the 2024 election.

Ammunition found in the gun used to kill Kirk had engravings that included “Hey Facist! CATCH!” and “If you Read This, You Are GAY,” according to prosecutors, who are seeking the death penalty.

Robinson appeared to furrow his brow and smirk when text messages he sent to Twiggs about the engraved bullets were displayed in the courtroom Thursday.

Robinson's family sat behind him, and his mom cried as the Discord messages were read aloud. She rubbed the shoulder of one of Robinson’s brothers, who listened with his head bowed.

Defense attorneys unsuccessfully fought the public release of the statements from Twiggs and the chat room messages. They argued prosecutors would characterize the material as a confession, undermining Robinson’s right to a fair trial.

After prolonged debate that included an attorney for Kirk’s family arguing for the material to be publicly released, state District Judge Tony Graf allowed a redacted version of Twiggs' video interview to be played. Some parts were blacked out, with only audio.

Graf is weighing whether prosecutors have enough evidence to bring Robinson to trial. He won’t rule until after both sides present arguments on Sept. 1.

Notes and text exchanges were shown in court

Robinson’s attorneys have not commented on his guilt or innocence but have sought to get the death penalty taken off the table, so far unsuccessfully.

Defense attorney Michael Burt tried to inject doubt into the prosecution’s case by challenging the reliability of ballistics tests on a bullet fragment recovered from Kirk’s body. Authorities sought to tie the fragment to the suspected murder weapon, but the results were inconclusive.

“Saying anything but inconclusive was inappropriate,” said Samantha Karner with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, a federal law enforcement agency.

The defense earlier in the week had questioned the reliability of DNA evidence that investigators said linked Robinson to the scene. Experts say the science behind DNA testing is sound.

Prosecutors allege Robinson confessed in a handwritten note to Twiggs that read: “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk, and I took it.” The note, shown in full for the first time Thursday, continued, “I wish we could have lived in a world where this did not feel necessary."

Robinson also allegedly sent a text to Twiggs saying he targeted Kirk because he “had enough of his hatred.”

State Bureau of Investigation Agent Brian Davis recounted the messages exchanged between Twiggs and Robinson under questioning by a prosecutor Thursday. Included were texts from Robinson worrying about leaving fingerprints on a rifle that belonged to his grandfather, which authorities believe he used to shoot Kirk.

Twiggs spoke to authorities on Sept. 12 — two days after Kirk was assassinated while speaking to a crowd of thousands — and again on April 20, Davis said. He was given immunity for the statements, meaning what Twiggs said cannot be used against him in a potential criminal case.

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

Twiggs said in the April interview that Robinson sometimes talked about politics, including Trump. But Twiggs said he never heard Robinson talk about Kirk before the shooting. The defendant also did not talk much about LGBTQ rights, Twiggs testified.

Kirk's friends react to new evidence

Kirk’s parents and widow, Erika, sat a few rows back from Robinson's family on Thursday. U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, also was in attendance.

Brandon Tatum, a conservative media personality and close friend of Kirk, said he was “shocked at how much relevant evidence" Twiggs' shared in his interview. He left court Thursday feeling confident about prosecutors' case but had mixed feelings about the judge's decision to hold off ruling until after a September hearing.

"I think the family's waited long enough, but I'd rather it be done right and done in confidence than for it to be hastily done the next day without being thoroughly, I guess, bulletproof," Tatum said.

Another conservative activist, Jack Posobiec, said he got emotional seeing photos of the bullet fragments that hit his friend. "But you have to push through that pain and push through all of that to be able to get justice,” he said.

Investigators say Robinson went to a rooftop near where Kirk was speaking and shot him once in the neck while the activist was taking questions from a crowd of several thousand people. Kirk, 31, was declared dead after being taken to a hospital.

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Brown reported from Billings, Montana.

Democrats need to pick a candidate to replace Platner on the ballot by July 27, according to state law. Whoever is selected will have less than four months before facing longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins in the general election. Potential candidates had already been teasing their interest before Platner, who denies the allegation, announced he intends to drop out. Platner is expected to file paperwork to formally withdraw on Monday, the deadline to do so.

But a growing number began formally launching their campaigns Thursday.

The Maine Democratic Party has said it will hold a nominating convention to choose the replacement. The party says the convention will involve hundreds of delegates from across the state, but how and when that’ll take place remains unknown.

Maine is considered a key state for control of the narrowly divided Senate, and Democrats are desperate for a candidate capable of defeating Collins while President Donald Trump is broadly unpopular.

Gov. Janet Mills, who sought the nomination during the primary campaign and suspended her campaign in late April, has not indicated if she's interested in running.

These are some of the people who have shown interest in the Maine Senate race:

Troy Jackson

Jackson is Maine’s former state Senate president. He unsuccessfully ran to be the Democratic nominee for governor earlier this year with the backing of Platner and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders. Shortly after Platner said he would quit the Senate race, Jackson launched his campaign, arguing that Mainers want “a progressive fighter." Our Revolution, the organization founded by Sanders, has since said it would back Jackson, 58.

Jackson released a statement with dozens of endorsements, many from current and former state and local officials, on Thursday.

Nirav Shah

Shah, former director of Maine’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention, announced Thursday he was vying to be the next Democratic Senate candidate. He came in second in this year’s Maine Democratic governor's primary and was seen as more of a moderate candidate compared with Jackson while running for governor. Shah held a news conference Thursday in which he encouraged Platner supporters to join him.

“You have an important place in this campaign and we welcome your voices,” Shah said. “This campaign represents the values that we all care about.”

Dan Kleban

The co-founder of Maine Beer Company, Kleban also confirmed his candidacy on Wednesday after Platner's announcement. Kleban briefly entered the Senate race last year before dropping out when Mills announced her candidacy. Kleban, 49, endorsed Mills, who later dropped out of the Democratic primary.

“I'm ready to fight for Mainers and bring a new generation of leadership to Washington,” Kleban said.

Shenna Bellows

Bellows is Maine's secretary of state. She announced Thursday that she's running for the seat, saying she's spent her career “taking on tough fights and doing the right thing," where she's served as a former civil liberties advocate and sparred with President-elect Donald Trump over ballot access.

This wouldn't be her first time running for political office. Bellows, 51, placed fourth in the state’s Democratic governor's primary in June. And in 2014, Bellows ran against Collins as the Senate Democratic nominee and lost in a landslide.

Jordan Wood

Wood, 36, initially attempted to run in the Maine Democratic Senate primary last year but dropped out to run in the state's 2nd District. He lost that race, coming in third to state Auditor Matt Dunlap. He's since said he's interested in running for the Senate again, and announced on Thursday.

“To beat Susan Collins, we need a candidate who can provide a true contrast and run an unapologetically progressive campaign: Passing Medicare for All. Stopping ICE terrorizing our streets,” Wood wrote on social media on Tuesday.

Paige Loud

Loud filed paperwork to run for the Senate seat earlier this week. The 29-year-old social worker also ran in the state's 2nd District Democratic primary, but came in last during the state's first round of ranked choice voting.

Valli Geiger

Geiger, a previous Platner supporter and a state Democratic lawmaker, is another potential candidate. She hasn't announced her candidacy, but in an interview with MS NOW on Wednesday, Geiger, 70, said she would hire Platner's staff, whom she described as “deeply impassioned and confident young people.”

David Costello

Costello ran in the June primary and finished third behind Platner, who won, and Mills, who was still on the ballot despite having suspended her campaign. Costello announced Thursday that he is back in the race. He said in a social media post that he believes he is the right candidate because his “lived experiences are rooted in the same challenges countless Mainers face every day.”

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Kruesi reported from Providence, R.I.

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the 2026 election at https://apnews.com/projects/elections-2026/.

The new pledge builds on the $2.2 billion mobilized at the inaugural Africa Clean Cooking Summit in Paris in 2024, bringing total commitments to more than $3.1 billion, which will be used to expand access to cleaner cooking fuels, stoves and related infrastructure across the continent.

The funding was announced during a virtual meeting on clean cooking in Africa convened by IEA and Kenya, where leaders reviewed progress made since the last summit and outlined priorities ahead of the next gathering later this year.

Nearly 1 billion people across Africa still lack access to clean cooking, relying instead on charcoal, firewood and other polluting fuels that the IEA says contribute to an estimated 850,000 premature deaths each year.

The meeting brought together Kenyan President William Ruto, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, African Union commissioner for Infrastructure and Energy Lerato Mataboge and IEA executive director Fatih Birol, among others.

Clean cooking refers to the use of low-emission fuels and technologies, such as ethanol, biogas and electricity, instead of traditional fuels like charcoal and firewood. The transition reduces harmful household air pollution and improves health outcomes for millions of African households.

“Access to clean cooking is one of the most impactful yet overlooked challenges of our time,” said Wright, adding that it directly affects the lives of billions of people, particularly women and children.

Kenya’s Ruto said financing remained the biggest obstacle to achieving universal access to clean cooking technologies across Africa. “Ambition alone is not enough. It must be backed by investment,” he said.

Birol said the IEA's latest tracking showed that $740 million, or about one-third of the commitments announced in Paris, has already been deployed across 22 African countries.

“The additional $900 million in commitments demonstrates growing momentum, with more expected before the next summit,” Birol said.

The IEA also released a report showing governments have introduced 121 new clean cooking policies across more than 30 African countries since the Paris summit. Those countries account for about 80% of Africans without access to clean cooking.

The agency said it is working with the African Union to help governments strengthen national clean cooking policies under a continentwide strategy and action plan ahead of the next summit.

It also launched a new public-private Clean Cooking Security Programme aimed at strengthening global supply chains for cooking fuels, particularly liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG. The initiative follows shipping disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz earlier this year that affected about 30% of globally traded LPG, the agency said. More than 3.4 billion people worldwide depend on LPG as their primary cooking fuel.

The program will provide technical assistance to countries seeking to improve fuel security while exploring ways to strengthen international cooperation on clean cooking supply chains.

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The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

The conceptual artist, who died at the age of 83, first created the Pindakaasvloer, or peanut butter floor, in 1969. The work was unveiled on Thursday at the Depot offshoot of Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in the Dutch port city of Rotterdam for a two-month show.

Schippers was a beloved non-conformist character in the Netherlands, where he also voiced Ernie and Kermit the Frog in the Dutch version of “Sesame Street,” and created absurdist and silly works that challenged conventional ideas about the meaning of art.

“Isn’t it fantastic that we are all standing here looking at peanut butter?” Schippers told journalists gathered at the Central Museum in Utrecht in 1997 where Pindakaasvloer was on display for the second time.

Schippers created the work as part of a Floor Covering Series, which also included floors covered with glass shards and salt.

The aroma, redolent of breakfasts and lunch boxes, is what lingers with many who experience the work first hand. Museum staff directed visitors for the opening to “follow the smell” which was wafting by the ticket counter, three floors below where the artwork is laid out.

“The thing I remember is the smell,” Mieke Weismann told The Associated Press. The food photographer and writer saw the 1997 exhibition as a teenager.

The art installation may not be for everybody. A sign at the museum's entrance warns visitors with peanut allergies that they might not want to enter the space.

It took two employees of the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen several days to spread 40 buckets of peanut butter across a 25-square-meter (270-square-foot) hexagon last week.

“It was a lot of work,” Leon Duenk, one of the two men who installed the artwork, told AP.

The pair used drywall trowels to smear the peanut butter to a thickness of 2 centimeters (0.8 inch).

Prior to his death the museum and Schippers discussed how to recreate the work in the future, producing a 20-point plan that included the requirement to apply the peanut butter “as smoothly and boringly as possible” and that “no one is supposed to stand in, or lie down on the peanut butter.”

Schippers did not specify the size or shape of the work, but he did say it needed to be smooth peanut butter and that he preferred the Dutch peanut butter brand Calvé. The company donated 40 tubs of peanut butter for the work.

Multiple visitors stepped into the sticky artwork when it was on display in 2011. In 1997, the work was “vandalized” when a group of people placed 12 slices of bread and several bags of hagelslag — chocolate sprinkles commonly eaten on bread at breakfast in the Netherlands — on the floor.

“It doesn’t look bad,” Schippers told Dutch newspaper Volkskrant at the time. “The sprinkles have been applied with a sense of proportion and a skillful hand.”

———

Associated Press writer Mike Corder in The Hague, Netherlands, contributed.

The indictment, returned in Ohio, charges all eight in two separate conspiracies, one to provide material support to terrorists and a second to commit murder on federal government territory and to murder a federal government official.

It remains unclear from the court records how close the would-be attackers could have come to being able to carry out the plan had it not been thwarted.

According to the new indictment, the plot began in May, when the group began amassing money, firearms, ammunition, body armor, explosives, drones, medical equipment, communications equipment and other items.

It was on June 10 that law enforcement officials learned about a possible threat to President Donald Trump’s UFC cage-fighting show, four days before the mixed martial arts extravaganza was scheduled to take place.

The Justice Department last month announced a series of criminal complaints in different districts across the country in connection with the UFC plot, including from Ohio, Missouri, Washington, Nebraska and California.

The indictment announced Thursday represents an effort by the government to streamline the case and knit the defendants together into a single conspiracy prosecution in Ohio. Officials have said the group members harbored fringe conspiracy theories and hoped the attack would destabilize the government.

One of the defendants told investigators that they planned to fly explosive-laden drones into the event and then shoot panicked crowd members as they fled, according to a federal affidavit.

They communicated through online chat groups and forums and classified participants into tiers, with tier 1 participants committing “to put themselves in harm’s way, break the law, and potentially go into hiding," according to the federal indictment. Members of the group also engaged in marksmanship and combat training.

Tycen C. Proper 19, of Danville, Ohio, and four others were arrested and charged in Missouri, Nebraska and California the weekend of the cage-fighting event, called Freedom 250. Two more defendants were charged and arrested by the FBI about a week later in Washington and Missouri.

The Justice Department said an eighth man was charged this week. He is 21-year-old Chandler D. Scaggs, of Chapmanville, West Virginia, who was taken into custody in that state. Scaggs was allegedly assigned to be one of the snipers in the plotted attack, according to an affidavit.

The affidavit said Scaggs was apparently to be picked up by Proper and taken to Washington but lost contact with him after Proper was arrested, the same as the others. Scaggs allegedly signaled to the group that he was still willing to participate in the attack and arranged to travel to the event with another co-conspirator.

Scaggs' attorney, Eric Brehm, said his office was thoroughly reviewing the allegations and declined to comment further.

Conspiring to provide material support to terrorists is punishable by up to 15 years in prison, and conspiring to commit murder carries a penalty of up to life in prison.

Federal prosecutors allege that the group planned to murder Trump, Vice President JD Vance, other federal officials, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, trillionaire businessman Elon Musk and “other high value targets” at the event.

___

Tucker reported from Washington.

But delivering soybean curd in all shapes and textures is only a small slice of her mission.

And it’s just that. A mission.

More than simply a vendor of healthy food, she’s also a social conduit who checks on elderly customers as she guides her pink cart, wearing a straw hat and tooting a small brass bugle to signal her arrival.

She knows the habits of many of her customers like family, and they know hers. She’s lost some elderly customers over the years who’ve died alone, which is becoming more common in Japan, which has one of the world's oldest populations.

“More than once I was the first one to find their bodies,” Sugaya explained, seated in a small store she also runs on a busy shopping street in Tokyo's Ojima neighborhood.

It's a largely residential area of small dwellings, layered with occasional strips of sprawling apartment blocks.

“In an area like this, some people just leave their doors unlocked," Sugaya said. “Or I can get access by asking the landlords.”

Uncollected newspapers and unattended laundry are telltale signs of trouble, easily seen in small houses on the street. But large apartment buildings hide these signs of possible distress.

Sugaya is a savior for many, and the job — she’s been at it for 23 years — has also strengthened her own self-worth. She feels that the job saved her.

She says she was bullied in school and fired from several jobs until she found that delivering high-quality, healthy food also nourished her own mental health and offered value to others.

“Selling tofu on a cart made me think I am OK to be myself," Sugaya explained. “I used to be repeatedly put down, but through cart-selling I built up my self-esteem.”

“I was still nervous with women around my ages,” she added. “But I felt safe when surrounded by the elderly whose smiles are warm and kind.”

Shinji Saito comes by Sugaya's shop daily. Saito, who has epilepsy, calls her accepting personality “magical.”

She’s also a link to a time when vendors walked through neighborhoods selling ramen, sweet potatoes, vegetables and other items.

“Delivery of newspapers or tofu, what used to be part of our daily lives, have been replaced by delivery apps or smart phones,” Sugaya said. “One can easily spend a day without having any verbal conversation with others.”

"When you go to a convenience store, you hit a button on a screen and don’t even say hello to anyone. It leaves you empty.”

Sugaya makes her rounds three days per week, a three-hour walk in the afternoon.

Her route twists through maze-like streets, and there are sporadic sales — and frequent conversations. A woman walks from her house to buy tofu, chats about her unruly cat and shows off a strand of wild vine growing in her garden. Another woman reminds Sugaya that cart-selling is a disappearing craft.

“Even when I'm in need of tofu, I tell myself I'd better wait for Ako-chan,” said customer Toshi Niiyama, using Sugaya's nickname. “We used to have someone coming to sell vegetables, but he stopped coming.”

Sugaya has no such plans to stop.

“I go this way on Mondays, that way on Saturdays and that way on Thursdays,” she explained. “I go even if it's raining because my customers expect to see me — or just because they want to have a talk."

Now Les Bleus have to hope he can overcome an injury that had him summoning for help and leaving the game in the 77th minute. Mbappé said the injury was minor, and he showed no ill effects while celebrating with his team after the whistle.

“I took a knock to the ankle, but I’m fine," said Mbappé, who was replaced by Jean-Philippe Mateta. “At that point, JP was in better shape than I was to play the final minutes.”

The reigning Golden Boot winner and only the second teenager — after Pele — ever to score in a World Cup final, Mbappé made up for his miss on a first-half penalty by scoring in the 60th minute. It was his 20th goal in 20 World Cup games and his eighth in 2026, equaling Argentina captain Lionel Messi for the tournament lead.

Mbappé also assisted on Ousmane Dembélé’s goal six minutes later to help the two-time champions reach the semifinals, where they will play either Spain or Belgium. France has never failed to make a World Cup final in two previous tournaments with Mbappé.

“There’s only one way to relax, and that’s by winning,” Mbappé said. “Until we’ve done that, we don’t let up. We’re in the semifinals and we’re very happy, but there’s still a long way to go. We realize that what lies ahead is even tougher than what we’ve been through, but we’re ready to face anything.”

Asked if this was his strongest France team yet, Mbappé said it has the most potential — “for the time being.”

“But I always say that the strongest teams are the ones that win,” he said. "I don’t see a World Cup next to me, so for now, we’re not the strongest team.”

Mbappé gave France fans a scare when he went to the field in pain after he was stepped on by Morocco defender Issa Diop in the 63rd minute. He remained in the game until the 76th minute, when he dropped to the turf and waved to the sideline.

After the training staff checked on him, Mbappé was subbed off — waving to the Gillette Stadium crowd as he left — and watched the end of the match from the bench with an ice pack on his right ankle.

“It's a slight pain in the ankle,” France coach Didier Deschamps said. “Nothing serious.”

Mbappé had a chance from the penalty spot in the first half after drawing a foul from Morocco defender Noussair Mazraoui in the box in the 28th minute. But goalkeeper Yassine Bounou guessed correctly, diving to his left to stop the attempt.

Mbappé said the long delay while the play was being reviewed left him wondering if he would be attempting the shot at all.

“It’s complicated, because there’s some kind of imbroglio," he said. "I let myself be de-concentrated. That’s a scenario I hadn’t experienced yet.”

But Mbappé delivered in the second half when he dribbled into the area and let loose a rocket that went just inside the post.

Messi also has scored eight goals at the tournament and Norway forward Erling Haaland has seven heading into their quarterfinal matches on Saturday. (Mbappé technically holds the Golden Boot lead because he has more assists, which is the tiebreaker.)

Mbappé's 20th goal put him one behind Messi on the all-time World Cup scoring list. Messi has 21 goals in 31 career World Cup matches over six tournaments, breaking the record of 16 that had been held by Germany striker Miroslav Klose.

___

See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Congress is looking for answers by July 24.

“Millions of casual fans now tune in to watch her play,” 11 members of the House Republican Study Committee wrote in a letter sent to WNBA Commissioner Cathy Englebert. “Unfortunately, what they too often witness is not simply aggressive competition, but repeated acts of physical hostility and violence. Clark has been hip-checked, poked in the eye and struck in the throat during games.

"These incidents go far beyond routine physical play, yet the WNBA and its officiating have too often failed to address these unacceptable incidents and hold players accountable.”

It's the latest chapter in the Clark saga about whether league officials must do more to protect one of the WNBA's top players from unnecessarily aggressive physical contact.

The letter was sent two weeks after Phoenix Mercury forward Alyssa Thomas made contact with her fist to Clark’s throat in a June 24 game. Thomas was not called for a foul on the play during the game, but the league subsequently upgraded the play to a flagrant foul and suspended her one game for “recklessly making contact with her fist.”

League officials have not yet issued a statement in response to the letter.

Thomas has called the play a “complete accident," adding that she has received death threats since the incident. Clark and her coach, Stephanie White, an ardent defender of Clark, have condemned threats levied at Thomas.

Where Clark stands among her WNBA peers

The 24-year-old Iowa alum has helped increase WNBA ticket sales and driven women’s basketball television ratings to unprecedented heights with her play.

However, many conversations around her tap into a variety of combustible hot-button topics, including race, officiating, money and politics. Clark has largely managed to thrive, but can't completely escape the noise.

“I think sometimes people think I’m a robot. I’m not a robot,” she said. “It can be really frustrating to me at times. I’m 24 years old trying to navigate a lot. I’ve been in this world for four years now — and you would never change any of it — but there are times that it is hard. And there are times when it affects me a little bit more than I do put on. I think it’s important that people remember that part of it, too.”

Lawmakers also suggested in their letter that government agencies such as the Department of Justice should investigate if discrimination or retaliation are creating a hostile work environment in the WNBA.

Fever officials said in a statement that neither Clark nor team officials have been in contact with the Congressional group and that they were unaware of the letter before its release.

“We have been clear in our public comments and in our ongoing dialogue with the league about the priority of player safety,” the statement read. “Our players and our fans know where we stand on those issues, and we will continue to stick up for our team and a standard of excellence across the league.”

Clark is one of the league’s most popular players, but she’s also one of the most polarizing — even amongst her peers.

Fans made her the No. 2 vote-getter for next week’s All-Star Game while Clark’s fellow players ranked her 11th among league guards — something three-time WNBA champ and Hall of Famer Candace Parker took exception with.

“If you’re sitting down and putting Caitlin Clark as the 11th best guard ... y’all need to go to a therapist and figure out what childhood issues you have,” Parker wrote on social media.

What makes Clark so polarizing

Clark instantly became the face of the league from the moment she was drafted first overall in 2024, before ever playing a pro game and even though she had not won an NCAA championship.

To accommodate her rampant fan base, opponents moved games from home arenas to larger venues which generated more revenue. And Fever games quickly became a regular feature on national television even after Indiana missed the playoffs from 2016-23.

Clark supporters say her immediate notoriety created resentment among WNBA veterans and has led to the hard fouls that cross the line.

Opponents counter that because of Clark's ability to shoot the ball and beat opponents with her ball-handling, players defending her try to be as physical as a referee will allow to slow her down.

Following the game on June 24, Fever coach Stephanie White angrily expressed players had crossed the line multiple times and highlighted two no-calls. The 6-foot, 157-pound Clark eventually left in the second half with a back injury that kept her out of the next two games.

Clark returned to action Wednesday night but was not expected to play Thursday night at Phoenix as a precaution.

The subject of race also has been injected into the Clark debate. White and Clark are both white; Thomas is Black.

“Because the bandwagon and the fandom became so obsessed with the whole thing, it turned into a cause,” said UConn coach Geno Auriemma, who has won a record 12 NCAA women's basketball championships. Clark, he added, “became the reason why white players get beat up in the WNBA and she became the reason why Black players don’t get the endorsements and don’t get the adulation that white players get.”

The coach noted that, "Not every foul is a good foul. Not every foul’s a bad foul, but there are fouls that are flagrant — but that’s all they are.”

What role Clark plays in debate

Clark has repeatedly attempted to downplay the noise surrounding her.

But she also has played a part in this ongoing storyline, showing her passion by throwing her arms in the air when she's unhappy with calls, exaggerating contact as a tactic to draw fouls and critiquing refs when she doesn't get one.

Clark is also among the leading trash-talkers in the WNBA. When she gets the better of an opponent, she isn’t shy about letting them know about it. Clark is averaging a career-high 20.5 points per game while ranking second in the league in assists with 7.9 — trailing only Thomas (8.3).

Part of Clark’s appeal is her antagonistic style.

However, there can be a price to pay: She has drawn five technical fouls this season, the most recent coming June 22 against Phoenix when she started clapping after a heated exchange with Mercury forward and former Fever teammate DeWanna Bonner, who also is Black. Booner and Thomas are engaged.

Players receive a one-game suspension when they reach eight technicals and Clark told reporters in that postgame news conference someone should pick a date for her suspension if clapping results in a technical foul.

All-Star center Aliyah Boston, who wants to ensure Clark stays on the court, said on her “Post Moves” podcast that she told her teammate: "We’re done. We’re done clapping. There’s no more claps. There’s nothing else to clap about."

It's more likely, though, that Clark and her fans will continue clapping — and her critics will keep clapping back.

___

AP WNBA: https://apnews.com/hub/wnba-basketball

Signs for the Palm Beach International Airport have been removed, while new signage goes up.

“Because an entire airport transformation doesn’t happen overnight, you’ll notice a combination of both our classic look and our new brand elements coexisting while traveling through the terminal over the next several weeks,” airport officials said in a Facebook post.

“Trump Force One," a Boeing 757 owned by The Trump Organization, was the first plane to arrive at the airport under its new name, shortly after 5 a.m. The president's son, Eric Trump, was one of the passengers. The Trump family regularly uses the West Palm Beach airport when they visit President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home in nearby Palm Beach. A stretch of road from the airport to Trump’s estate was renamed Donald J. Trump Boulevard earlier this year.

“There is no person who has done more for Florida and our country, and no one more deserving of this incredible honor,” Eric Trump posted on X. “As a son, and someone who flies out of this airport nearly every day, I will forever be proud to see the initials ‘DJT’ on my boarding pass.”

While the name change took effect Thursday, the three-letter airport code will change from PBI to DJT on Aug. 18.

President Trump later praised the renaming of the airport in a post on his social media platform Truth Social.

“A very big day in Palm Beach, Florida, where it was my Great Honor to have the Palm Beach International Airport be renamed, by a spectacular vote, The President Donald J. Trump International Airport. The Area is HOT, the Location is GREAT, and the Renovation will be SPECTACULAR. Thank you to all in Palm Beach for your Vote and your Confidence,” he wrote in part, calling it “one of the Greatest and Most Spectacular Airports anywhere in the World!”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation earlier this year that made the name change possible. Changing the airport’s name is expected to cost as much as $5.5 million for new signs, branding and other updates.

Keegan Collett, who was departing the airport Thursday morning on his way to Cincinnati, said he was surprised to see the new name. He said he doesn't think Trump deserves to have an airport named after him but isn't necessarily bothered by it.

“At the end of the day, it’s just the name of an airport,” Collett said. "There’s bigger things. I feel like it’s just more of a distraction. Why even worry about it?"

In Dandridge, Tennessee, on Thursday morning, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn and Bill Hagerty and Representative Tim Burchett attended a ceremony to rename the I-40 Bridge in East Tennessee to the Donald J. Trump Bridge.

Bessent said ahead of the ceremony that “no one is more deserving” of the honor of a bridge renaming than Trump.

Trump received 82% of the vote in Jefferson County, where Dandridge is located, in the 2024 general election.

Les Bleus, with a star striker who said he's fine despite a right ankle issue, are headed back to the semifinals for the third straight World Cup tournament.

Mbappé had a goal and an assist after missing a first-half penalty kick, Ousmane Dembélé also scored and two-time champion France beat Morocco 2-0 Thursday in the quarterfinals.

“There’s only one way to relax, and that’s by winning. Until we’ve done that, we don’t let up,” Mbappé said. “We’re in the semifinals and we’re very happy, but there’s still a long way to go.”

Mbappé’s goal in the 60th minute was the 20th of his World Cup career and came in his 20th match at the tournament, moving him one behind Argentina captain Lionel Messi. Dembélé scored his fifth goal of the tournament in the 66th.

Mbappé went down to the ground in the 76th minute, about 13 minutes after being hit hard by a Moroccan defender, and was taken off for a substitute a minute later. He was then shown sitting on the bench with an ice pack on his right ankle.

After the match and with both shoes on, Mbappé ran and jumped in celebration with his teammates.

“I took a knock to the ankle, but I’m fine," Mbappé said. “At that point, JP (Jean-Philippe Mateta) was in better shape than I was to play the final minutes.”

France will face either Spain or Belgium in the semifinals in Dallas on Tuesday.

France beat Morocco by the same score in the semifinals of the 2022 tournament in Qatar when the Atlas Lions became the first African team to make it that far. France now remains on track to become only the third nation to play in the final of three consecutive World Cups.

“It is a confirmation of how we’ve played so far,” said France coach Didier Deschamps, who added there is a reason for his team's success in recent World Cups.

“Having great players. Excellent players. My credit goes to the players. But maybe I do my job well," he said. "The only truth is the one on the pitch.”

Mbappé got his goal with a perfectly placed shot just inside the far post after Morocco failed to clear the ball. He received the ball just outside the area, took a couple steps forward and then sent his shot sailing into the net. He extended both arms and ran to the sideline to celebrate with his teammates.

France's second goal came after Mbappé took a pass and tapped it back for Dembélé. Mbappé kept running forward and took defenders with him, opening space for Dembélé's shot.

Dembélé said he wasn't surprised with how Mbappé stepped up after his penalty miss in the first half.

“He's our captain and he has an incredible mentality,” Dembélé said. “We're expecting even more goals from him.”

France held a 21-4 advantage in shots on goal and 8-1 edge in shots on target for the game.

“We are very disappointed. We wanted to go on,” Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi said. “When we had ball possession, our transitions were not great and we had to run a little more. Their players were in their comfort zone.”

Mbappé also had the first shot on goal of the game, just missing wide right in the fourth minute. Then, in the 25th, he was running up the left side when he was chopped down in the box by Morocco defender Noussair Mazraoui. Referee Facundo Tello quickly pointed to the penalty spot.

Mbappé lined up waiting for his attempt but was held up by a lengthy video review. He was finally cleared to shoot in the 28th minute, but after a hesitation, Mbappé’s shot toward the right corner was corralled by goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, who guessed the direction of the shot correctly.

Deschamps said the long review also included a review for another foul.

Mbappé made his only other penalty attempt at this year's World Cup in France’s 1-0 victory over Paraguay in the round of 16.

Still, France was by far the more active team offensively in the first half, holding a 13-1 advantage in shots on goal.

Morocco’s best opportunity came just before the halftime whistle when Achraf Hakimi sent a free kick from just outside the box past the right post.

France now has a chance to emulate Brazil and West Germany in reaching three straight World Cup finals.

“We realize that what lies ahead is even tougher than what we’ve been through," Mbappé said, "but we’re ready to face anything.”

___

See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Despite overwhelming public opposition, the National Capital Planning Commission voted to approve preliminary site and building plans for the 250-foot (76-meter) arch the Republican president wants to build on a traffic circle at the Virginia end of the Memorial Bridge from Washington.

The project, one of several being pursued by Trump in his quest to reshape parts of the nation’s capital to his liking, moved a step closer to reality with the vote.

Staff had recommended in its report on the project that the commission grant such approval and request a series of changes so the arch would comply with the Height of Buildings Act. The suggested changes included redistributing the heights among the main structure of the arch, the habitable roof, where an observation deck is planned, and the statues that would top it.

But commissioners, led by chairman Will Scharf, voted to continue deliberations on whether the law indeed applies.

The staff report said the commission has long applied the law in its approval process. Scharf said the applicant, which is the Interior Department, had, as requested, provided a legal analysis that he said makes a “compelling argument" that the law "is not binding on the federal government." The Interior Department oversees the federal land where the arch would be built.

“My view is that, today, we are just considering this project for preliminary approval and that, as a result, it’s not necessary for us to take up this broader issue of the applicability of the Height of Buildings Act to federal construction until our next meeting at the earliest,” Scharf said.

Arch is one of Trump's many construction projects

Eight of the 12 commissioners, including Scharf and two others appointed by Trump, voted for preliminary approval. One was against, and the remaining three commissioners voted present.

“This is a complex project,” Scharf said before the vote. He said a vote on final approval could come at the agency's next meeting, in September.

All 12 commissioners listened to a summary of the staff report and its recommendations, and heard from several dozen people who had signed up to testify about the project.

As the commissioners met, construction continued at the White House on a $400 million ballroom Trump is building there and crews draped tarps over the stone columns at the north entrance to the mansion, where work is being done to scrape off layers of paint.

Various reasons cited in opposition

Some of those who testified against Trump's project opposed building a celebratory arch so close to the solemn burial ground of Arlington National Cemetery. Others suggested it would be more appropriate for a neighborhood near the Capitol and sporting venues.

Michael Lemmon, who is among three Vietnam veterans and an architectural historian who have sued in federal court to stop the arch construction at Memorial Circle, said the arch would disrespect the memory of those laid to rest at the revered burial ground. Trump has said the arch will celebrate 250 years of America's independence.

“As a combat veteran, I feel a duty to protect the memory and honor the sacrifice of my comrades and all those buried there,” Lemmon said. "This vainglorious monumental arch does neither.”

Others noted that memorials to Vietnam veterans, those who fought in World War II and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. were built after much debate and years after they were first proposed, and pleaded with the commission for a more deliberative process for the arch.

Opponents say the arch is too big and would disrupt the carefully designed view between the Lincoln Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery that was meant to symbolize the reunification of the North and the South after the Civil War.

The arch would be more than twice as tall as the Lincoln Memorial, which is 99 feet (30 meters) tall, and close to half the height of the Washington Monument, at about 555 feet (169 meters) tall.

Concerns about vehicular traffic and pedestrian safety also were expressed on Thursday. Others insisted that Congress must approve the arch — a position Trump disagrees with.

No cost estimate yet for the arch

The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, a separate federal agency, approved the design for the arch in May. The National Capital Planning Commission oversees construction on federal land in the city and began reviewing the arch plan in June.

Trump had said last year that the arch could be paid for with unused funds from the hundreds of millions of dollars he said he has raised from corporations, donors and other wealthy people to pay to build a new $400 million ballroom at the White House.

But, as it turns out, some public money will be used for the ballroom project, as well as the arch. The White House has not released a cost estimate for the arch.

___

This story has been corrected to show that the arch's height is planned for 250 feet, not 260 feet.

The U.S. launched new airstrikes against Iran hours after Trump said recent Iranian attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz signaled the end of the ceasefire and threatened to escalate the conflict if they didn’t stop. Iran responded by targeting U.S.-allied Kuwait and Qatar and accused the U.S. of striking near its sole nuclear power plant.

Back-and-forth attacks have repeatedly threatened the ceasefire, but Thursday’s appeared bigger all around. And Trump’s mixed messaging — approving back-to-back military strikes while insisting they don’t mean a return to full-scale war — is fueling uncertainty about what comes next.

Whether it’s a negotiation tactic or a signal of further escalation, mediators are scrambling to save the interim deal. The inflamed tensions could also spell trouble for Republicans in November’s midterm elections if gas prices stay high.

Here's the latest:

The final funeral procession for Iran’s late supreme leader

People pressed forward to touch the vehicle carrying Ali Khamenei’s body.

Many carried Iranian flags, images of Khamanei or banners evoking Shiite Islam’s long history of martyrs.

Some signs called for the death of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been laid to rest months after being killed in Iran war

Khamenei ruled Iran for nearly 37 years before dying in U.S. and Israeli airstrikes that started the war Feb. 28. He was laid to rest in his hometown of Mashhad early Friday after days of public mourning.

Khamenei is only the second ruler of the nation to be buried in the city. In 1747, Nader Shah was buried there after he was assassinated following nearly 11 years in power.

The funeral processions began Saturday, with authorities shutting down streets, airspace and daily life in Tehran and other cities, as throngs commemorated the man who led Iran with an iron fist for decades while confronting the West.

A bitterly divided Iran grapples with Khamenei’s legacy as he is laid to rest

The funeral for Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was designed to showcase unity in a country that is bitterly split over his decades-long rule. Supporters thronged the streets for a leader they view as a martyr who defied the West and Israel.

But Khamenei’s long rule left large sectors of Iranian society disillusioned as he oversaw increasingly bloody crackdowns, economic stagnation and the empowerment of the Revolutionary Guard. Anger and despair run deep after a January crackdown killed thousands.

The war launched by the United States and Israel brought more suffering while leaving the government intact, deepening the feeling of hopelessness among its opponents.

▶ Read more

How a push to disarm Hezbollah is deepening divisions in Lebanon and raising fears of civil war

A deal between Lebanon and Israel was billed as paving the way for peace. But in Lebanon, it is deepening longtime divisions and raising fears of political paralysis or even a return to civil war.

The U.S.-brokered deal envisions an Israeli troop withdrawal from Lebanon and an eventual peace agreement between the two countries — which technically remain in a state of war nearly 80 years after Israel’s establishment. But the agreement says a full Israeli withdrawal will happen only after Hezbollah is disarmed, infuriating the Iran-backed militant group.

The tensions have stirred up memories of Lebanon’s devastating 1975-1990 civil war and reminded many of more recent clashes between Hezbollah gunmen and pro-government fighters in 2008. They also have raised deep questions over whether the U.S.-brokered deal will be able to get off the ground.

A resumption of the war between the U.S. and Iran would further complicate the deal’s prospects and raise the risk of renewed conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.

▶ Read more

Stocks recover losses, and oil prices ease as calm returns to financial markets worldwide

Stocks rose, and oil prices eased Thursday as financial markets calmed in the wait to see what will come next after President Donald Trump raised doubts about the temporary truce in the war with Iran.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.8% and more than recovered its loss from the day before, even though the United States launched new airstrikes against Iran, which responded by targeting U.S. allies in the Middle East. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 139 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 1.3%.

In the oil market, prices gave back much of their jumps from the day before. The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, fell 2.2% to $76.30. That’s down from $78.02 the day before though still above its $71.80 price from the end of last week.

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Trump speaks with Netanyahu, and raises ‘security concerns’ about Turkey

The Israeli prime minister’s office posted on the social platform X that the pair spoke on Thursday and that Netanyahu “raised the severity of the statements made by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his people against the existence of the State of Israel.”

After this week’s NATO summit in Turkey, Trump indicated he may be ready to have the U.S. sell F-35 fighter jets to Erdogan’s country -- but he also says he’s not yet fully made up his mind.

Turkey and Israel have acrimonious relations. Netanyahu has urged Trump not to sell the jets to Turkey, saying it would put Israel in danger.

The statement from Netanyahu’s office also said Trump had updated the prime minister on American moves in the Persian Gulf.

South Florida’s Palm Beach airport renamed President Donald J. Trump International

A South Florida airport has officially changed its name to the President Donald J. Trump International Airport.

Signs for the Palm Beach International Airport have been removed, while new signs were unveiled Thursday.

“Trump Force One,” a Boeing 757 owned by The Trump Organization, was the first plane to arrive at the airport under its new name, shortly after 5 a.m. The president’s son, Eric Trump, was one of the passengers.

The Trump family regularly uses the West Palm Beach airport when they visit Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home in nearby Palm Beach. A stretch of road from the airport to Trump’s estate was renamed Donald J. Trump Boulevard earlier this year.

▶ Read more

Deal between Israel and Lebanon is moving forward, US official says

After weeks of stagnation, an American official said Thursday that the U.S.-brokered framework agreement soon will shift to technical discussions in Rome.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic details, said “pilot zones” that both sides had agreed to will launch in the coming days while additional zones are mapped out and planned.

The zones will be where the Israeli military is to turn over control to the Lebanese army after clearing the areas of any Hezbollah presence. U.S. Central Command is coordinating with Israel and Lebanon on the zones, the official said.

The dates of the meetings and the location of the zones were not yet clear. A State Department spokesperson said they were not previewing those details yet.

— Farnoush Amiri

Iran’s foreign minister speaks to regional leaders about the escalating tensions with the US

Abbas Araghchi said on his Telegram channel on Thursday that he spoke with the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Oman. He also spoke with Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, who has been one of the main mediators in the war.

Araghchi repeated Iran’s assertion that the U.S. has violated the interim peace deal reached last month. The U.S. says Iran violated the deal by firing on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

The diplomatic outreach suggested efforts may be underway to reduce tensions.

Tarps go up as part of Trump’s restoration project to the front of the White House

Crews have draped tarps over the towering stone columns on the north side of the White House, where work is underway to scrape away decades of paint.

The new tarps on the building’s façade are partially see-through. They feature images of columns designed to cover the actual ornate stone columns beneath.

Scaffolding went up several days ago for work on the columns. It is the latest in dozens of projects Trump has led to remake the White House to his own tastes – including a massive ballroom and helipad on the South Lawn.

The White House hasn’t provided details on what is being done to the columns or how much it will cost. But Trump said on Monday: “We’ve taken about 150 years of paint off of the columns” and added that, “If you don’t strip the paint off, it gets worse and worse and worse.”

Ships are still going through the Strait of Hormuz but the situation remains volatile

Bridget Diakun, senior risk and compliance analyst for maritime data company Lloyd’s List Intelligence, said in a news briefing that ships were still passing through the strait as of Wednesday, but Lloyd’s is still reviewing the numbers since some passages are “dark,” when ships stop broadcasting signals that show their location.

“The situation does remain really volatile,” she said.

Lloyd’s List Intelligence said preliminary data shows there were at least 576 transits in June, up from 233 in May, but down from 3,131 in June 2025.

Non-Iranian traffic in June included 264 outbound vessels and 137 inbound ships.

Outbound ships included bulkers, crude oil tankers and product tankers. Inbound ships included crude oil tankers, product tankers, bulk carriers and gas carriers.

In June, there was an even split between “dark” transits and online transits that broadcast their locations.

Germany reaches a deal with the US to buy long-range Tomahawk missiles, Merz says

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the agreement on the long-range cruise missiles, which are used to strike targets deep inside enemy territory, was reached this week on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Turkey’s capital, Ankara.

“This will close an important strategic gap in our defense, and at the same time, we will work to develop our own European systems and station them in Europe,” Merz told parliament after returning from the two-day summit.

The deal struck with the Trump administration amounts to broader export of American know-how to some of its major allies in Europe, whose security posture has been upended by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

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Former Olympian pleads not guilty in Reflecting Pool damage case after Trump alleged vandalism

The former Olympic canoe racer pleaded not guilty Thursday to deliberately damaging the recently renovated Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a politically charged case that his defense attorneys and other Trump administration critics have derided as an abuse of prosecutorial power.

David Hearn, who competed in three Summer Olympics, entered the plea during his initial appearance in D.C. Superior Court. Hearn, 67, of Bethesda, Maryland, was indicted last Thursday on a single felony count of property destruction.

Trump ordered a multimillion-dollar renovation of the Reflecting Pool ahead of the nation’s 250th anniversary this month, but the project has been plagued with problems. Workers have used chemicals to curtail an algae bloom. Trump has said the pool likely would need to be drained again for liner repairs after chunks of blue coating were seen floating at the surface.

Trump has claimed without substantiation that vandals dumped fertilizer into the pool and slashed the coating with a box cutter.

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Ukraine says its Patriot production will take months

During Wednesday’s meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Turkey, Trump said the U.S. will meet a longstanding request from Ukraine and give it a license to make the Patriot air defense systems. He also praised Zelenskyy for doing “an amazing job” — a sharp change in tone from past criticisms of the Ukrainian leader.

But setting up domestic production of the mobile, surface-to-air systems will take many months, said Serhii Beskrestnov, an adviser to Ukraine’s defense minister.

A production license would typically come with technical process documentation, training for specialists, supplier contacts and foreign consultants to help launch manufacturing, Beskrestnov wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

The main obstacle would be time, rather than Ukraine’s technical or organizational capacity, he added.

Eswatini receives 11 people deported from the US as part of migration crackdown

The southern African kingdom of Eswatini has accepted a fourth group of people deported from the United States under a bilateral agreement to host third-country nationals, with 11 people arriving this week, the government said Thursday.

Acting government spokesperson Thabile Mdluli said the group, predominantly from African countries, would remain in the kingdom temporarily while their rights were protected.

“The government reaffirms that, during their temporary stay in the Kingdom, the fundamental rights of the third-country nationals will be respected and protected in accordance with the laws of the Kingdom of Eswatini and the Kingdom’s international obligations,” Mdluli said in a statement.

Under a series of often-secret agreements that are part of a broad U.S. crackdown on immigration, the Trump administration has deported thousands of people to nearly two dozen countries that are not their own, advocates say.

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Global markets are mixed and oil prices rise as Iran and US launch new attacks

Futures for the S&P 500 rose 0.1% before the opening bell Thursday, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.1%. Nasdaq futures were up 0.5%.

Oil prices inched up again Thursday, with Brent crude, the international standard, rising 64 cents to to $78.66 per barrel. It briefly topped $80 on Wednesday. Before the Iran war began, Brent oil was trading at around $72 a barrel. Earlier optimism over an interim peace deal recently brought it back to prewar levels.

Benchmark U.S. crude rose 54 cents to $74.06 a barrel.

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New attacks raise questions about what comes next in the Iran war

President Donald Trump says he believes the ceasefire with Iran is over. He says he’s not sure he wants a deal anymore and says the U.S. should “finish the job.” But he also insists continued attacks don’t mean a return to war or long-term action.

The confusion and uncertainty in Trump’s mixed messaging and his approval of back-to-back military strikes leave major questions about what comes next in the conflict, just weeks after difficult diplomacy to reach even an initial deal between the longtime adversaries.

The whipsawing rhetoric could be a strategy to increase the pressure on Tehran to stop attacking ships transporting oil and natural gas in the Strait of Hormuz and bend to U.S. demands on its nuclear program — something Trump has tried before.

Whether it’s a negotiation tactic or a signal of an escalation in fighting, mediators are scrambling to save the interim deal and the actions risk further inflaming tensions.

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No deaths have been reported and the source of the cyclospora infections hasn't been identified. Meanwhile, investigations into similar illnesses have been going on in 28 other states, including in Ohio, where people just across the Michigan border are also becoming sick.

Michigan officials first announced the outbreak last week, when they were aware of more than 170 cases — all in the southeastern corner of the state — since June 22. Michigan usually identifies only about 50 cases each year.

On Wednesday, the state reported the number had grown to 992, including about 40 hospitalizations. Just across the state line, Lucas County, Ohio, reported 306 cases as of Wednesday. Northwest Ohio has seen more than 500 cases.

Cyclospora surges can be tricky to investigate, and food poisoning sources can be hard to establish. But “there is clearly a linked outbreak happening right now,” Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, Michigan’s chief medical executive, told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Here's what to know about the current situation:

What is cyclospora?

Cyclospora is a microscopic, spherical parasite that commonly causes watery diarrhea “with frequent and sometimes explosive bowel movements,” according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The illness, called cyclosporiasis, is not usually life threatening and is typically treated with antibiotics. Outbreaks tend to occur most often in the late spring and summer.

The heat-loving parasite infects the bowels and spreads through feces. In the past, people have been infected by consuming fruits or vegetables that were exposed to feces-contaminated irrigation water.

It’s less common than a number of other kinds of foodborne illnesses, including salmonella and E. coli. For years, few U.S. cyclospora outbreaks were reported each year. But the number started rising about a decade ago, with a particularly notable spike in 2018 and 2019. Experts attribute the increases to climate change and better detection.

How does this outbreak compare to previous ones in the US?

Comprehensive data on cyclospora outbreaks is lacking. But available information shows only a small number of documented outbreaks in the last 20 years have surpassed 1,000 cases. That short list includes a 1997 outbreak tied to Guatemalan raspberries that sickened more than 1,000 in the U.S. and Canada, and a 2019 outbreak linked to Mexican basil that sickened more than 2,400.

There are several reasons it's challenging to know the exact toll, said Melanie Firestone, a University of Minnesota foodborne illness researcher. Some tests used to check for types of food poisoning are not geared to detect cyclospora, “so there is a lot of underreporting when it comes to this,” she said.

Other challenges: Technicians aren't able to grow the parasite in labs, making it hard to draw evidence from contaminated produce. And it can be hard to figure out what food sick people had in common, because sometimes it’s a single ingredient that might be common in multiple recipes — like basil or cilantro.

Also, it's possible that food distributors may channel contaminated foods to both grocery stores and restaurants, making it hard to discern where tainted food came from. Investigations can take months and sometimes never find a clear source.

What's the current situation?

Cases seem to be surging in and around southeastern Michigan. But it's not considered a national health emergency.

There's no evidence that the parasite has evolved to become more infectious, said Dianna Blau, the CDC's acting parasitic diseases branch chief.

Thousands of cyclospora illnesses are reported in the U.S. each year and it's not yet clear how unusual this year will be, she added. That said, the case total so far is four times higher than at the same point last year, according to current CDC national data, which lags dramatically from what's being reported by the states.

Michigan appears to be suffering the worst of it, but the state's aggressiveness in investigating and reporting cases may be “part of the reason why this looks like a Michigan problem,” Bagdasarian said.

How can you protect yourself from cyclospora?

People who have diarrhea that hasn’t gone away on its own within a few days should see a health provider and discuss the possibility of cyclospora, officials say.

The best way to prevent infection with a parasite is to avoid food or water that may have been contaminated.

Fresh produce should be thoroughly washed before being eaten. But be aware that cyclospora can really stick to some foods, so washing may not eliminate the risk of infection.

As Michigan officials investigate the potential source, they recommend consumers purchase whole heads of lettuce rather than prewashed, bagged lettuce or salad mixes, and to remove the outer two to three leaves before washing the remaining leaves under running water.

They also say to cook vegetables when possible.

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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.

As investigators search for the source of the parasite, one Detroit farm says its growing process is designed to keep that kind of contamination out entirely.

Planted Detroit, a vertical farm on Mt. Elliott Street in Detroit, grows its produce entirely indoors in a clean, controlled environment.

The setup limits exposure to outside contaminants, a design that’s drawing attention as cyclosporiasis cases continue to rise.

“We do about 35 different varieties of greens,” said Darian Ahler, chief operating officer of Planted Detroit.

Everything from romaine to arugula is grown inside the facility, where staff follow strict protocols before ever setting foot near the plants.

A clean room approach to food safety

Visitors and workers alike must dress head to toe in personal protective equipment before entering the nursery.

The precautions are similar to what you’d see in a medical setting.

Before a seed ever goes into a tray, it’s tested for bacteria, including E. coli, Listeria, and Salmonella.

The farm also filters its water supply.

“We do get municipal water as our supply, but that goes through a double filtration process,” Ahler said. “There’s a particulate filter as well as a UV filter that would kill anything that might come through.”

The farm’s small staff runs through that process repeatedly, scrubbing in before each session in the nursery, much like surgeons preparing for an operation.

What makes this relevant now

Cyclosporiasis is caused by a parasite that can be transmitted through contaminated food and water.

The source of the current outbreak has not been identified, though past outbreaks have been linked to raspberries, fresh basil, and bagged salad.

Ahler says the farm takes its food safety standards seriously.

“We’re extremely food safe here,” he said. “We have to adhere to high standards to make sure that we can be as safe as we can be, to make sure that nothing is possibly getting in the farm.”

A small operation with a big message

While Planted Detroit ships produce Monday through Friday, the farm acknowledges it can’t supply everyone in the region. Still, Ahler says there are steps every consumer can take.

“Be careful what you’re buying, and make sure you wash everything thoroughly at home,” he said.

Click here for more information.

According to the latest case totals, more than 1,200 illnesses have been reported, including 44 hospitalizations.

The most recent county-by-county data shows Monroe County has recorded the highest number of cases, with 215 confirmed infections.

Emergency physicians continue to see patients seeking treatment for symptoms associated with the parasite, which commonly causes prolonged diarrhea, loss of appetite, stomach cramps, nausea, fatigue, and weight loss.

Symptoms can last for weeks without appropriate treatment.

Dr. Frank McGeorge spoke with emergency physician Dr. Nino Papale of ProMedica Monroe Regional Emergency Medicine, who described treating patients experiencing a range of symptoms, from mild gastrointestinal illness to more severe dehydration requiring medical care.

Health officials have not yet identified the source of the outbreak, though cyclospora infections are commonly linked to contaminated fresh produce.

The investigation remains ongoing as public health agencies work to determine how the parasite spread.

Officials encourage anyone experiencing persistent diarrhea or other symptoms consistent with cyclosporiasis to contact a health care provider.

The illness is treatable with prescription antibiotics once diagnosed.

Watch the full interview below

“It needs to be heard all over the world: trauma doesn’t have an expiration date. Neither should justice,” said Moose Scheib, an attorney involved in the civil case against Vista Maria.

Survivors of abuse at Vista Maria, joined by their attorneys, rallied along West Warren Avenue, pushing for changes to Michigan’s statute of limitations for sexual assault cases. Under current Michigan law, survivors who were assaulted as minors generally have until age 28 to pursue certain criminal charges, while adults have a limited window to report.

“There is no expiration date on healing -- there’s no expiration date on fixing things,” said Linda Malone, a survivor of Vista Maria who missed the deadline due to Michigan’s statute of limitations. “There’s no expiration date on getting over it.”

“It has to happen. It’s necessary. It’s needed. Our children, the most vulnerable, need to be protected,” said Ayanna Neal, an attorney also involved in the effort.

Survivors and their advocates argue that time limits don’t match the reality of trauma -- especially for children in institutional settings. They say the deadlines have kept many former Vista Maria residents from pursuing justice.

“Michigan law tells us that we took too long. I ask you how can a clock run out on a child who was never given a chance to understand what happened to them,” Vista Maria survivor Toni Bare said. “I didn’t have the voice then that I have now.”

Bare, who drove from Illinois to attend the rally, said she was abused at Vista Maria over 30 years ago.

“I don’t want this happening to anyone else, but then I found out that Michigan says, ‘Wait a minute, oh, you’re 46. You were supposed to heal when you were 28 years old or before,’” she said. “Whether you were at Vista Maria or somewhere else, whether you’ve told your story 100 times or never whispered it, I want you to hear me today: you are believed, you are not alone, and what happened to you matters.”

The gathering unveiled a billboard, just steps from the Vista Maria campus, meant to serve as a visible reminder to other survivors.

“When people drive past this billboard, some will see words,” Bare said. “Others will see memories they spent years trying to bury… and somewhere, someone will see it and realize for the first time, ‘I’m not the only one.’”

‘Pure Hell:’ previous allegations into Vista Maria

The Investigators on Local 4 began digging into allegations at the facility in 2025 after a teenager went missing from the campus.

Police records showed hundreds of calls for service in roughly a year, and state documents described a range of violations and complaints, including staffing issues, training concerns, and allegations of physical and sexual assault.

“It took me a lot out of me to come forward today about what happened to me,” said Michelle Rehahn, who said she lived at Vista Maria from 2014 to 2017.

Rehahn said her time at the facility was defined by trauma.

“Being in that place from 14 years old to 18 was pure hell,” she said. “Men would come into my room and molest me… They physically did sh*t to me at age 14 that I shouldn’t have had done -- I was a minor.”

Another survivor, Sarina Jensen, said she was severely beaten during her time at Vista Maria and said she was locked in her room “for days” at a time.

“It would take [staff] at least 45 minutes to days to respond to our room so we would urinate or go to the bathroom on ourselves,” she said.

Vista Maria discontinues residential program

Vista Maria has made major operational changes since Local 4 began investigating.

The organization permanently laid off more than 150 employees and discontinued its residential youth mental health programming in December 2025.

A previous letter from CEO Kathleen Regan said in part, “Vista Maria is committed to supporting each affected team member with compassion, transparency, and available transition assistance during this difficult time.”

Regan also addressed some of the allegations in a previous interview with Local 4.

“Reading those allegations kills us, and that’s why you’ve seen a lot of terminations coming out of Vista Maria, because safety is sacred to us,” Regan said.

Vista Maria has said it is not shutting down entirely and that other services, including foster care and independent living, would continue.

But some survivors still say they would like to see the campus closed entirely.

“It should be demolished wall by wall, brick by brick,” said Christian Edwards, who said she was at Vista Maria beginning in 2010 for about a year and nine months. “I want to be one of the people holding one of the sledgehammers to some of the walls.”

Edwards, who said she endured verbal, physical and sexual abuse at Vista Maria said the process of coming forward has been painful but said “at the end of it, I hope I can see the rainbow.”

New allegation: Vista Maria caused former resident’s death

As the push to lawmakers builds, a new allegation has also surfaced.

“We’re here to speak up for the girls who were victimized at Vista Maria first and foremost,” said Scheib. “Some of the girls didn’t make it out of Vista Maria, including Angelica, whose mother I represent.”

The mother of Angelica Harvey told Local 4 that her daughter died Dec. 24, 2014, while in Vista Maria’s care. She said she has sought information for more than a decade about the circumstances surrounding her daughter’s death.

“She was more than a case file or statistic. She was a daughter, a child with hopes, dreams, and a future that was cut short,” Monique Harvey told Local 4.

In a statement provided to Local 4 regarding the lawsuit and new allegation, Vista Maria told Local 4:

“Vista Maria has been formally notified of the lawsuit and is reviewing the allegations.

We take matters involving the safety and well-being of youth very seriously, and we will address these claims through the legal process.

Because of privacy and confidentiality laws, we cannot comment on specific individuals or circumstances.

We remain fully committed to transparency within the bounds of the law, cooperation with appropriate authorities, and continued support for the youth and families we serve.”

Vista Maria

It was Smith's first time on the LA Metro in a decade, and the experience exceeded his expectations.

“Seems like a very functioning transit system, which is somewhat surprising given its reputation,” he said.

That is the reaction Metro officials were hoping for as they used the 2026 FIFA World Cup's eight LA games to introduce — or reintroduce — people to the region's public transit system, often an afterthought in car-centric Los Angeles. It is an early test run of sorts for the 2028 Olympics, which organizers have billed as a “no car” Games where there will be no parking for attendees at any of the venues. Spectators will have to rely on transit and shuttles to get to events.

Nearly 50,000 rides were taken on rail lines for the July 2 Spain-Austria game that Smith and his son attended. There is no train that runs directly to SoFi Stadium in the LA suburb of Inglewood, but Metro has added 15 shuttle lines to transport people there from major rail stations and transit centers — the farthest route taking one hour and 15 minutes. More than 30,000 rides were taken on those shuttles for that game alone, the agency said.

The Metro will take a similar approach for the Olympics because many venues don't connect directly to the system. For the World Cup, the agency borrowed about 200 buses to meet the increased demand. Officials have said they will need to borrow 3,000 buses for the Olympics.

Officials work to overcome safety fears

For many residents, public transit isn't baked into everyday life in Los Angeles, the nation's second most-populous city, quite the same way it is in other major urban centers like New York and Chicago. LA Metro estimates the system provides about 1 million rides each day — roughly the same as Chicago, a smaller city. In New York, meanwhile, it is well over 3 million on the average weekday.

Many view LA's rail and bus system as unreliable at best and unsafe at worse. Certain high-profile violent incidents, such as a 67-year-old woman who died from being stabbed on a Metro train in 2024, have driven those perceptions. Some riders are also concerned about drug use, cleanliness and the presence of homeless people.

In June, Metro opened applications for its police force, which it hopes to have fully deployed by 2029 to replace the LAPD. The agency hopes having its own sworn officers working along with homeless outreach and crisis response teams will help riders feel safer on its trains and buses.

Metro has also touted data that showed a decline in violent crime over the past two years, with a 13.6% decrease in overall crime in March 2026 compared to a year before.

Martha Banuelos used the transit system sporadically before but generally preferred to “avoid it like the plague.” She started riding the trains again recently to get into the city from North Hollywood for World Cup watch parties.

“It’s a lot cleaner and smells way better,” she said.

Officials see World Cup as an opportunity

Metro has partnered with FIFA to host fan zones and watch parties at key transit hubs — where thousands of fans from around the region gathered to drink, dance to DJ sets, and cheer for their favorite teams. Metro has advertised limited edition tap cards for different countries and leaned into social media to promote public transit during the games.

The system also upgraded its payment options before the World Cup to allow riders to pay directly with a credit card like other cities that have done away with tap cards.

Those efforts worked to draw in new riders like Yasmin Cortez, a 32-year-old who took the train for the first time ever to attend the official FIFA Fan Festival at the LA Memorial Coliseum to watch matches, volunteer for FIFA, and soak in the World Cup spirit. A week later, she took the rail again to root for Uruguay at the Union Station Fan Zone, from Cerritos about 16 miles (26 kilometers) southwest of LA.

“Especially with gas prices now, yeah I should be taking the Metro,” she said. “There’s a lot to explore, and I bought some new walking shoes.”

Looking ahead to 2028 Olympics

During the last Summer Games, Paris was lauded for how accessible the Games were, with nearly every venue reachable by Metro, commuter train, tram or bus.

LA, long known for congested roadways, is hard at work to expand its own transit options as the Games quickly approach.

Transit enthusiasts rejoiced at the long-awaited extension of the D line in May, which runs east-west connecting downtown LA to Koreatown, and now further west, where popular tourist attractions like the Grove shopping mall, Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the La Brea Tar Pits are.

It marked the first opening of a heavy rail expansion project in the U.S. since 2020. Four more stations are under construction to extend the line to the University of California, Los Angeles campus, which will serve as the official Athlete Village for the 2028 games.

“LA is a transit city,” said Jennifer Vides, Metro's chief customer experience officer. “People want to try to say that it’s not. Obviously we have a lot more expansion to do and we’re working on it. But people really want transit.”

David Hearn, who competed in three Summer Olympics, entered the plea through one of his attorneys during his initial appearance in D.C. Superior Court. Hearn, 67, of Bethesda, Maryland, was indicted last Thursday on a single felony count of property destruction.

Before the country's 250th independence celebrations, President Donald Trump launched a multimillion dollar renovation project for the Reflecting Pool, which was plagued by problems, including damage to its new coating. Trump, without providing evidence, has alleged the damage was caused by vandals.

Hearn has said he reached inside the pool to examine the peeled sealant and let go of a chunk when he was told to by a park worker. He is accused of causing more than $1,000 in damage.

“Every American should be alarmed about this prosecution,” defense attorney Norm Eisen said after the hearing. “It is not a crime to touch the Reflecting Pool.”

At least three other people have been charged in the same court with misdemeanors for allegedly removing pieces of paint from the Reflecting Pool, according to online court records. All three pleaded not guilty during their initial court appearances Wednesday, records show.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, the top federal prosecutor for the District of Columbia, said vandalizing the nation's monuments and public spaces is “an affront to our shared history.”

“The law applies equally to everyone, and when it is broken, there are consequences," she said in a statement on Thursday.

Defense says prosecutors' evidence is ‘weak’

In front of a packed courtroom, D.C. Superior Court Judge Carmen McLean did not require Hearn to be supervised by the court while he is free awaiting a trial. A status hearing was scheduled for Aug. 5.

A prosecutor, Kevin Reddington, said the government wasn’t seeking any court supervision for Hearn, but just a “stay-away order” without specifying in court where it wanted to keep Hearn away from.

Mary Dohrmann, one of Hearn’s attorneys, urged the judge not to impose any conditions of court supervision, calling Hearn an “upstanding citizen and member of the community.”

“The government’s evidence is weak,” she added.

Supporters cheered after the hearing

Dozens of supporters, many carrying homemade signs, gathered outside the courthouse and chanted “Davey!” as Hearn left after the hearing. Hearn joined his attorneys in front of a bank of cameras and smiled to supporters but did not speak. He raised his right hand and pumped his fist as he left.

Adam Van Grack, who chaired the U.S. Olympic national governing body for canoe and kayak sports, joined the throng of supporters who cheered for Hearn after the hearing. Van Grack said Hearn has spent decades voluntarily maintaining National Park Service property that the canoeists used as a training course along the Potomac River.

“This is a person who has devoted his life to representing the United States on an international stage, caring for the community and protecting and caring for National Park Service property,” Van Grack said. “So the idea that he is a malicious destroyer of federal property shocks the conscience and makes no sense to anybody who’s ever known Davey Hearn.”

Hearn previously told The Associated Press that he was detained by National Guard troops and U.S. Park Police for five hours after stopping by the pool during a 64-mile (103 kilometer) bike ride on June 19. He said he reached in to examine newly peeled coating and briefly touched a chunk attached to the side of the pool, but obeyed a park worker who told him to let go of it.

Pool project has been plagued by problems

The pool's renovation has been riddled with problems. Workers have used devices called nanobubblers to curtail an algae bloom. The devices infuse ozone into the water to kill algae and bacteria. Officials have said the pool most likely would need to be drained again for liner repairs after chunks of blue coating were seen floating at the surface.

Trump has claimed without substantiation that vandals dumped fertilizer into the pool and slashed the coating with a box cutter. Pirro, a former Fox News host who was appointed by Trump, said last week that six other people were arrested on misdemeanor charges related to the $16 million pool project.

Pirro accused Hearn of causing more than $1,000 in damage by ripping up recently installed sealant from the pool and acting belligerently toward an employee who told him to stop.

Hearn’s attorneys have said the charges against him are based on a “concocted narrative” and “should be alarming to every American.”

“This indictment reflects the administration’s effort to shift blame for their own failures,” the lawyers said in a statement. “The justice system exists to determine facts, not to provide political cover.”

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Associated Press writer Matthew Daly and AP video journalist Nathan Ellgren contributed to this report.

The demand for help comes as the United Nations launched an appeal for roughly $300 million to assist 1.3 million people in urgent need of aid in the South American country where nongovernmental organizations until recently were targets of government repression. Mobile kitchens and clinics as well as field hospitals now dot public spaces in the northern state of La Guaira, where most of the devastation occurred.

“It is clear at displacement sites that, particularly after two weeks, that people are turning up because they haven’t been able to get their other treatments,” U.N. relief chief Tom Fletcher told The Associated Press during his visit to Venezuela. “So, they’re not turning up with just the fractures now, they’re turning up with those longer-term health needs. And it’s vital that we’re there for them.”

Doctors treating people in that state’s Catia La Mar community on Thursday reported an increase in skin conditions and diarrheal diseases, as well as of requests for medications for the treatment of chronic illnesses, including diabetes and high blood pressure. The emerging diseases can be tied to crowded living spaces and poor water and sanitation conditions, which in many communities predate the earthquakes.

Irma Echarri showed up at a mobile unit on a sidewalk across the street from a church with the boxes of the eyedrops and pain reliever she usually takes, hoping that doctors there could give her new ones. She also wanted to be seen for the pain she developed in her nose after the June 24 earthquakes.

“It hurts a lot,” Echarri, 67, said while waiting to be seen. “It hurts because it hurts.”

Echarri’s home was not damaged, but many of her neighbors are living in temporary shelters or outdoors after 190 buildings collapsed and 856 others were damaged, according to Venezuelan officials, in the back-to-back earthquakes that killed 3,889 people.

The government of acting President Delcy Rodríguez has estimated that the earthquakes left about 18,000 people without a home. The displaced are now living in schools, sidewalks, parks, plazas and other public spaces.

Fletcher, the head of the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, told AP the United States has so far provided most of the earthquake-response aid. Much of the assistance on the ground is being delivered by local groups that have partnered with global humanitarian organizations.

Among the displaced is Zulbey Reyes, who went to the clinic ran by the Venezuela-based organization Paluz in partnership with the global relief agency International Rescue Committee. Reyes, who was also robbed by the earthquakes of her job as a nanny, sought treatment for the onset of chest pain.

“I thought it was my heart that was sick,” Reyes, 41, said after being diagnosed and receiving medication. “But it’s a nerve that became inflamed after the screams that day.”

Armando Denegri, representative in Venezuela of the Pan-American Health Organization told reporters Thursday that “50% of the health professionals in La Guaira were directly affected" by the earthquakes.

"Some disappeared, some died, others were severely affected by the crisis, impacting their families,” Denegri said without giving further details.

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction has estimated direct physical damage to housing and infrastructure around $37 billion.

The widespread presence of nongovernmental organizations in the country and the freedom with which the government is allowing them to operate contrasts with the repression and persecution to which they were subjected in recent years. While Rodríguez served as vice president to former President Nicolás Maduro, organizations were repeatedly accused of anti-government activities and the U.N. local human rights office expelled.

“When you have a crisis of this magnitude, people put the politics to one side and are able to focus on saving as many lives as possible, and that’s what I’m seeing so far in this response,” Fletcher said.

Murakami made two rehab appearances with Triple-A Charlotte, going 2 for 7 with a double. Following Chicago's 2-1 loss to Boston on Thursday, White Sox manager Will Venable said Murakami would be in the starting lineup for the opener of the team's weekend series against the Athletics.

“He’s ready to go,” Venable said. “He was challenged running the bases, defensively, had a really long game yesterday. So feel good about the workload, recovered well today so he’s ready to go.”

Murakami got hurt during a 4-3 victory over the Detroit Tigers on May 29, grabbing his right hamstring after beating a throw to first on a fielder’s choice in the third inning. At the time of the injury, the Japanese rookie ranked among the major league leaders with 20 homers, 41 RBIs, 43 runs and a .947 OPS.

Chicago (47-45) is in a virtual tie with Cleveland (48-46) for the lead in the sluggish AL Central. But the White Sox have dropped three in a row and six of eight overall. They managed just two runs and 15 hits in the three-game set against the Red Sox.

White Sox outfielder Andrew Benintendi said getting Murakami back right now is huge.

“Obviously, he’s a presence in the lineup,” he said. "He’ll bring the energy, I think. It seems like the vibe in here is kind of down right now but I’m sure seeing him tomorrow will spark it back up.”

The 26-year-old Murakami signed a $34 million, two-year contract with Chicago in December. The White Sox went 17-18 while he was on the injured list.

“We understand the impact he makes on the field and in the clubhouse so to activate him is going to mean a lot for our group,” Venable said. “Really excited about him.”

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

Funk died Wednesday at her apartment in an assisted living facility in the Dallas and Fort Worth suburb of Grapevine, Texas, Grapevine City Councilwoman Duff O'Dell said Thursday. O'Dell, who described herself as Funk's caregiver, said she was by Funk's side. Funk had fallen a couple of times recently and had an infection in her leg.

“It took its toll,” O'Dell said in a phone interview.

Funk was one of 13 female pilots who went through the same tests as NASA’s all-male astronaut corps in the early 1960s but never made it into space with that agency. In 2021, she got her chance aboard Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket.

At the time, the 82-year-old was the oldest person to go into space, though the record was later broken by “Star Trek” actor William Shatner and Ed Dwight, America’s first Black astronaut candidate. They were both 90.

Bezos chose Funk as an “honored guest” to ride alongside him and two others on an up-and-down hop from West Texas.

In a post on X, Blue Origin said Funk was a “pioneer in every sense of the word.”

“We were humbled to be part of her journey,” the post said.

O’Dell said Funk was the “most eternally optimistic person” she had ever met.

“She was told by many, many, many men, ‘No, you can’t do this. No you can’t do that,’ ” O’Dell said. “And she never got mad about it. She just was more determined.”

Funk was the first female inspector for the Federal Aviation Administration and the first female air safety investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board, according to a brief biography released by the City of Grapevine.

In the 1960s, she and other female pilots went through astronaut training in the Mercury 13 program, but they were not allowed to become astronauts.

“Wally Funk never stopped believing that one day she would reach space. Her passion for flight, perseverance, and love of exploration will continue to inspire generations of Americans. Godspeed, Wally,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman posted Thursday on X.

Justice Department prosecutors said they learned Thursday morning that Rahmanullah Lakanwal was rushed to a hospital overnight “for medical treatment necessary to preserve his life.” The U.S. Marshals Service notified prosecutors last month of concerns that Lakanwal was at risk of long-term health consequences, including death, due to his “refusal to consume adequate nutrition for an extended period,” the filing says.

The filing doesn’t elaborate on the circumstances of Lakanwal’s refusal to eat, but prosecutors noted that courts have held that prison officials can involuntary feed “hunger-striking prisoners” to save their lives.

The judge presiding over Lakanwal's case convened an emergency hearing related to the defendant's medical condition while he remains in federal custody. At the end of the hearing, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta instructed prosecutors to submit a proposed order that would give them access to Lakanwal's recent medical records.

Defense attorney Shelli Peterson and a spokesperson for U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro's office declined to comment after the hearing.

Lakanwal, an Afghan national, has pleaded not guilty to charges including first-degree murder in the November 2025 shooting that killed West Virginia National Guard Spc. Sarah Beckstrom and critically wounded Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe.

Beckstrom, 20, and Wolfe, 24, were deployed from West Virginia to Washington, D.C., for the surge of federal law-enforcement patrols that began last summer in the nation's capital at President Donald Trump’s direction.

Lakanwal is accused of driving to the nation’s capital from Bellingham, Washington, while in possession of a stolen firearm and ambushing the two Guard members outside a subway station three blocks from the White House. Another National Guard member heard gunshots and saw Beckstrom and Wolfe fall to the ground as Lakanwal fired a gun and screamed, “Allahu Akbar!” according to a police report.

Lakanwal was shot during the confrontation and appeared remotely by video from a hospital bed in December for his first hearing before a judge. A trial date for his case hasn’t been scheduled yet.

WAYNE COUNTY – Gastrointestinal illnesses, poison ivy, bug bites, whooping cough, chicken pox

Dr. Ali J. Bazzi -- Pediatrician, Corewell Health Dearborn Hospital

“We have been seeing patients with poison ivy and bug bites now that kids are out and about. We have also seen a few patients with vaccine-preventable illnesses, including chicken pox and whooping cough.”

Dr. Christopher Loewe -- Emergency Department, Henry Ford St. John Hospital

“Seeing patients with G.I. symptoms and diarrhea, lasting for greater than a week.”

OAKLAND COUNTY – E-bike & scooter injuries, heat-related illnesses, dehydration, gastrointestinal illnesses, sunburns, sinus infections, mononucleosis

Dr. Rena Daiza -- Primary Care Physician, Henry Ford Medical Center Bloomfield Twp.

“We’ve continued to see a mix of seasonal concerns, including allergy symptoms, minor outdoor-related injuries, and sun/heat exposure issues. We are also reminding patients to stay vigilant with tick prevention and monitoring for any concerning symptoms after outdoor activities, especially as summer illnesses and exposures increase.”

Dr. David Donaldson -- Emergency Center Chief, Corewell Health Beaumont Troy Hospital

“We’ve had several bad E-bike and E-scooter head injuries all without helmets. We are still seeing heat-related illnesses and dehydration. There have also been a lot of patients with diarrhea worried about cylclospora.”

Dr. Adam Haezebrouck -- Emergency Department, Henry Ford Rochester

“Recently, we have seen a fair amount of people staying out in the heat too long without hydrating. Remember, keep up daily water intake and to get into the shade and cooler environments when you have the chance.”

Dr. Rachel M. Klamo -- Primary Care Physician, Henry Ford Glennan Primary Care

“We have seen some sunburns, back strains from yard work, and an increase in viral sinusitis that turns into bacterial infections.”

Farmington Hills MinuteClinic -- Lindsi Shaw, MinuteClinic Family Nurse Practitioner & Senior Practice Manager

Recent visits include:

•One confirmed case of Influenza A

•Shingles

•Work-related health screenings

Educational Insights:

•Although influenza activity remains low, it’s important to practice good hand hygiene, cover coughs and sneezes, and stay home when feeling ill to help prevent the spread of illness.

•Shingles often begins with pain, burning, or tingling before a rash develops. Adults who are eligible should speak with their healthcare provider about shingles vaccination.

•Work health screenings are a great opportunity to discuss preventive care, wellness goals, and any health concerns with your provider.

Waterford MinuteClinic -- Deborah “Micki” Bailey, MinuteClinic Nurse Practitioner

Recent visit of note:

•Mononucleosis

Educational Insights:

•Mononucleosis (mono) can cause fatigue, sore throat, swollen glands, and fever. Recovery may take several weeks, so getting plenty of rest and staying hydrated is important.

•Because mono spreads through saliva, avoid sharing drinks, utensils, lip products, or toothbrushes while sick.

WASHTENAW COUNTY – Gastrointestinal illnesses, asthma flare-ups, croup, outdoor injuries, seasonal allergies, ear infections, poison ivy

Dr. Brad Uren -- Clinical Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine, Michigan Medicine

“We are seeing a fair amount of GI illness, diarrhea, vomiting and abdominal pain. Currently very little upper respiratory infections on the adult side.”

Dr. Stuart Bradin -- Clinical Professor of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics, Michigan Medicine

“We are seeing asthma, croup, some GI illness and burns. We have seen several orthopedic injuries and e bike/scooter injuries.”

Ann Arbor MinuteClinic -- Sean Sullivan, MinuteClinic Nurse Practitioner

Common visits this week include:

•Seasonal allergies

•Ear infections

•Skin conditions, including eczema and poison ivy

Educational Insights:

•Allergy symptoms can often be managed by checking local pollen counts, keeping windows closed on high-pollen days, and showering after spending time outdoors.

•Ear infections can sometimes follow colds or allergies. If you or your child has ear pain, fever, or difficulty hearing, contact your healthcare provider.

•For eczema, keeping skin moisturized and avoiding known irritants can help reduce flare-ups. If spending time outdoors, learn to identify poison ivy and wash exposed skin promptly after outdoor activities.

MONROE COUNTY – Cyclosporiasis, seasonal allergies, upper respiratory viruses

Dr. Laura Grima

ProMedica Monroe Regional Hospital Family Medicine Residency

“We are continuing to see a higher number of patients with allergic rhinitis symptoms, along with a lower level of viral upper respiratory illnesses. It is important to monitor for fever and continue frequent handwashing. We are also seeing patients with cyclosporiasis, which is trending in surrounding areas. Symptoms can include fatigue, general malaise, nausea and frequent episodes of diarrhea. If you develop persistent or worsening diarrhea, please contact your primary care physician, as treatment may be available for this parasitic infection. We recommend watching for signs of dehydration, such as dry mouth and an increased heart rate. We also support the local health department’s recommendation to thoroughly wash all fruits and vegetables and cook them when possible.”

MACOMB COUNTY – Heat exhaustion, dehydration, asthma flare-ups, outdoor injuries, gastrointestinal illnesses, sunburns, colds, ear infections

Dr. Matthew Steck -- Emergency Physician at McLaren Macomb

“While there were patients seeking care for dehydration and degrees of heat exhaustion during the recent extreme heat, the more serious heat-related conditions were those that exacerbated a chronic conditions, such a cardio or pulmonary conditions. The trend of patients seeking care for injuries remains high, though more injuries are being sustained in and around water and when operating a personal motor vehicle, such as an e-bike. The recent extreme heat also further complicated many patients’ asthma, causing wheezing and, in severe cases, shortness of breath.”

Dr. Maria Samuel -- Primary Care Physician, Henry Ford Medical Center Sterling Heights

“We continue to see sun burns, colds, gastroenteritis, and outdoor injuries recently. “

Macomb MinuteClinic -- Catherine Polito, MinuteClinic Nurse Practitioner

Common visits include:

•Ear infections

•Diabetes-related care

Educational Insights:

•Ear infections are common, especially in children. Early evaluation can help reduce discomfort and prevent complications.

•For those living with diabetes, regular blood sugar monitoring, healthy eating habits, staying active, and attending routine healthcare appointments can help support long-term health and wellness.

LIVINGSTON COUNTY – Did not report this week

It does not necessarily mean that the trade is off. The Raptors said they still want Leonard, and the Clippers, in a statement sent to multiple outlets including The Associated Press, again insisted that they are not guilty of any wrongdoing related to an endorsement contract between Leonard and a now-bankrupt California-based digital bank that touted itself as environmentally friendly.

But the probe, as detailed by the terms of the collective bargaining agreement, could lead to penalties that include a substantial fine, the loss of draft capital — and, potentially, even the voiding of a player contract — if the league finds there was a deliberate circumvention of cap rules.

“The NBA league office informed us that as a result of the ongoing investigation involving the Clippers, we would assume the risk of any potential outcome of the investigation impacting Kawhi,” the Raptors said. “In light of this, we will wait until the league’s investigation is complete.”

There is no timetable for the conclusion of the NBA's probe, which is being performed by outside counsel — Wachtell Lipton, a New York-based firm. Commissioner Adam Silver said in recent weeks that he'd like to see a conclusion.

“My instruction to them is we can’t be investigating forever. At some point you have to wrap it up,” Silver said last month at the NBA Finals. “But at the same time, the most important thing is that we get it right."

Through a spokesman, the NBA said Thursday that it doesn't “have a specific timeline for the conclusion of the investigation but expect the firm to finalize its work in the coming weeks”

The NBA opened an investigation back in September into whether a $28 million endorsement contract between Leonard and Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC — a company that filed for bankruptcy in 2025 — broke league rules, following a report by journalist Pablo Torre. Last month, Aspiration co-founder Joseph Sanberg was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to defrauding investors and lenders of at least $248 million.

“At the heart of this investigation are Joe Sanberg and Aspiration,” the Clippers said Thursday in a statement. "We did not funnel money to Kawhi Leonard through Aspiration. Like many sophisticated investors, financial institutions, and business partners, we were victims of a fraud initiated by Sanberg, who has been convicted and sentenced to 14 years in prison.

“We recognize the uncertainty this has created and the impact it has had on our team, our fans, the Raptors organization, their fans, and the players whose futures remain affected while this process continues. We remain confident that, when the facts are evaluated fairly and thoroughly, the NBA will confirm exactly what we have said from the beginning: We have not done what we are accused of doing.”

For its part, Toronto reaffirmed that it still wants to acquire Leonard.

“The Raptors remain eager to bring Kawhi back to Toronto and look forward to a swift resolution for our players, our organization, and our fans,” the Raptors said.

The Raptors and Clippers struck a deal on June 30 on a trade that would send Leonard back to the city that helped win the 2019 NBA championship.

The Raptors agreed to send Brandon Ingram, Gradey Dick, two first-round draft picks, two second-round picks and pick swaps to the Clippers for Leonard — who spent one season in Toronto, and that was the year the Raptors won their lone title.

He turned 35 earlier this month but is coming off the highest-scoring season of his career, averaging 27.9 points for the Clippers in 65 games.

Leonard is a seven-time All-Star, seven-time All-NBA selection, a two-time NBA champion (also winning in 2014 with San Antonio) and is generally considered one of the game’s top defensive players. He has said there was no wrongdoing.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

There are dozens of brands, hundreds of bottles, and labels that can leave shoppers wondering: Which sunscreen is actually the best?

Metro Detroit dermatologist Dr. Steven Grekin, founder of The Grekin Skin Institute, met us at the Southgate Meijer sunscreen aisle to help cut through the confusion.

Mineral vs. chemical sunscreens

Dr. Grekin said there’s chemical sunscreens and mineral sunscreens, and when presented with a choice, choose a mineral sunscreen.

Mineral sunscreen is better at protecting your skin than chemical sunscreen. Though, if your choice is chemical sunscreen or nothing, then you should use the chemical sunscreen.

“I found like a whole bunch of mineral-based sunscreens and I have to tell you, the part that I found most interesting, look at what it says, it says, ‘mineral face’, ‘mineral baby bump,’ ‘baby protection’, ‘baby mineral’, ‘pure and simple baby,’” Grekin said.

He said if it’s good enough for a baby, then it’s good enough for everyone.

SPF

When it comes to SPF, broad spectrum means the sunscreen protects against both UVA rays, which can age the skin, and UVB rays, which are most likely to cause a sunburn.

You should choose a sunscreen that’s at least SPF 30, it’s the minimum recommendation by most dermatologists. For comparison, SPF 50 provides 98% protection, and SPF 100 provides 99% coverage.

Most importantly, apply enough sunscreen and make sure to reapply it every two hours. Grekin said that lotions are always better than sprays and that you should use a shot glass full.

Remember to get the spots people often miss. Apply sunscreen to your ears, the back of your neck, the tops of your feet, and your scalp.

The best sunscreen isn’t the most expensive one. It’s the one you’ll wear every day.

A power outage doesn’t just kill the lights. It can cut off water, spoil food and put people who rely on medical devices in real danger.

Related: Metro Detroit residents frustrated as DTE power outages continue days after severe storms

Experts say households should be prepared for at least 72 hours without power -- but most aren’t.

Before the storm

Building an emergency kit before severe weather arrives is one of the most important steps a household can take.

That means stocking non-perishable food and water, gathering flashlights and batteries in an easy-to-reach location, and filling your car’s gas tank before a storm moves in.

Families should also make a household plan -- one that includes pets -- and keep a paper contact list on hand in case a phone dies or loses charge.

The Michigan Public Service Commission has a checklist for how to prepare. It can be found here.

Keep the fridge closed

Once the power goes out, one of the easiest ways to protect food is also one of the easiest to forget: keep the refrigerator and freezer closed.

Keeping those doors shut helps maintain a safe internal temperature for several hours longer than if they’re opened repeatedly.

---> Power’s out: What to toss, what to keep, and what was never at risk

Medical devices, medications

For those who rely on medical devices or refrigerated medications, planning ahead is critical. People in this situation should contact their medical provider before an outage occurs to develop a specific plan and ask how long refrigerated medicines can remain safe without power.

Phones can be charged in a running vehicle, but never run a car in an enclosed garage because of the fumes.

A laptop battery or portable power bank can also provide a charge in a pinch.

Don’t wait

The worst time to make a power outage plan is when the power is already out. Assuming an outage could last days, not hours, is the mindset that keeps families from being caught off guard.

More information on how to best handle outage can be found here.

He faces multiple felony charges, including firearm offenses and felonious assault. He’s also linked to two alleged robberies in Ohio.

Cizquindrie Smith, 38, was arraigned in 23rd District Court and received a $75,000 cash/surety bond with GPS tether and house arrest conditions.

Charges against Smith

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy charged Smith with one count of carrying a concealed weapon, one count of felon in possession of a firearm, one count of fleeing and eluding, third degree, one count of felonious assault, one count of resisting and obstructing a police officer, and two counts of felony firearm.

How the incident unfolded

The incident began around 11:32 a.m. Monday, when a license plate reader flagged a stolen U-Haul outside the Sheetz gas station in the 20600 block of Eureka Road in Taylor.

Authorities allege Smith refused to exit the truck and backed into a police cruiser.

Officers then observed him fumbling with an object resembling a handgun and pointing it in their direction, prompting them to open fire.

Smith was struck and transported to a local hospital.

A firearm was later recovered from the driver’s side floorboard of the vehicle.

Police say information from a woman who was in the U-Haul led detectives to a nearby Red Roof Inn, where investigators found two other women and several children, along with evidence believed to be connected to the case.

That woman has since been released from police custody.

Ohio connections

Investigators say the same stolen U-Haul is believed to have been used in at least two robberies in Ohio just days before the Taylor incident, an armed robbery at a Family Dollar in Cleveland and a bank robbery in Toledo.

“We are still investigating, still working with other out-of-state agencies, including the FBI,” said Detective Lt. Joshua Schneider of the Taylor Police Department.

Court records also show Smith was convicted of child endangerment in 2015 in Canton, Ohio.

Concerns over bond

Taylor police expressed disappointment with the bond amount set by the court.

“When you take a weapon and point it in the direction of police officers, and unknown if he fired at this time or not, you’re showing right there that you have no regard for human life. So, we are disappointed in the $75,000 bond given today by the court,” Schneider said.

Under the terms of his bond, Smith is not permitted to leave the state, is prohibited from possessing firearms or other dangerous weapons, and must surrender his driver’s license and passport.

He is due back in court July 20, 2026, for a probable cause conference.

More: New photos show moments before Taylor police shot armed suspect in stolen U-Haul outside Sheetz gas station

The 37-year-old Irishman is also convinced he'll have his way with Max Holloway in the main event of UFC 329 at T-Mobile Arena on Saturday night.

The two will meet in a welterweight bout, as McGregor will compete for the first time in more than five years.

“Hallelujah!” McGregor exclaimed on Wednesday. “The Mac is back.”

McGregor earned a unanimous decision over Holloway in a featherweight clash in 2013, when neither was an MMA megastar.

In the blink of an eye, McGregor’s star rose.

On Wednesday, he admitted he got caught up in his own stardom after winning UFC belts in two weight classes and becoming one of the biggest names in combat sports.

“I launched an Irish whiskey,” McGregor said. “I didn’t drink heavily, if at all, at that time of my life. I was an athlete at the top of my game. Next thing you know, thousands upon thousands of bottles (are) in my garage.

”‘Sell this, Conor.’ OK, I’d leave my property with two bottles under my arm, and that was it. I was caught. And I wasn’t used to it. And that’s it. God gave me these lessons. That’s it. I was trapped and caught, and it is what it is.”

Easier said than done, perhaps, as the controversial former champion has navigated in and out of multiple controversies and legal issues over the past several years, including a rape case in which he was found civilly liable in 2024.

Prosecutors declined to charge him criminally, and McGregor doubled down on Wednesday that he will be vindicated.

“I’m an innocent man, and I’ll stand for my innocence until the day I go out,” he said. “That is still a situation where I fight. There’s a reason it didn’t go where it went and went to a civil trial. It is what it is. It stings deep. I continue to fight.”

Saturday, McGregor (22-6) will face his biggest fight in years against a vengeful Holloway (27-9), whose last fight ended with a unanimous decision loss at the hands of Charles Oliveira on March 7.

McGregor, who last fought on July 10, 2021, spoke confidently about his comeback.

“Weight’s on point, body’s on point, mind’s sharper than ever, plan is laid set, and I’m ready to go to war,” he said. “I plan to contort Max’s body into such uncomfortable positions and have my way with him.”

McGregor suffered a horrific broken leg in his last match, his trilogy fight against Dustin Poirier, and then withdrew from his scheduled fight against Michael Chandler at UFC 303 due to a broken pinky toe.

Meanwhile, Holloway has fought eight times since McGregor’s last fight, is out to avenge his loss to Oliveira, and is still thinking about exacting revenge from 2013.

“I’m going to go in there and put paws on him,” the 34-year-old Holloway said. “I’m going to make him wish that he didn’t come back.

"Actually, no. I’m not going to make him wish that. I’m going to make him think he can do it one more time, so we can rematch at the end of the year.”

Co-headlining the card is Benoit Saint Denis (17-3-0) and Paddy Pimblett (23-4-0) in a battle of top-10 lightweights, both of whom are hoping to position themselves for a title shot.

Saint Denis, 30, has turned in consecutive stoppage wins over Kyle Prepolec, Mauricio Ruffy, Beneil Dariush and Dan Hooker. The Frenchman is 9-2 in the UFC lightweight division. Pimblett, meanwhile, opened 2026 with a loss to new champion Justin Gaethje in their interim title clash that headlined UFC 324 in January. It brought an end to the 31-year-old Liverpool native’s nine-fight winning streak.

The main card will get underway in the lightweight division with King Green (35-17) facing Terrance McKinney (18-8). Former title challenger Brandon Royval (17-9) will meet Lone’er Kavanagh (10-1) in a flyweight match. Cory Sandhagen (18-6) and Mario Bautista (17-3) will be a battle of top-10 bantamweights.

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AP MMA: https://apnews.com/hub/mixed-martial-arts

Neighbors said drivers trying to avoid road closures on Beck Road, near 11 Mile Road, are cutting through their subdivision, sometimes speeding.

They said some commercial vehicles, including 18-wheelers, are entering the neighborhood, getting stuck on the lawn and struggling to turn around.

“We have people that are coming into our neighborhood that think they can get around the construction,” resident Gary Sobotta said.

Sobotta shared photos of large trucks and other big vehicles trying to exit the subdivision.

Neighbors said the confusion and congestion are leading to damage and close calls.

They report vehicles hitting mailboxes and speeding through the area once drivers realize there is no outlet that will help them bypass the road closures.

“School’s out, you have little kids,” resident Ann Miller said. “They’ve almost hit kids. They’ve almost hit my dog and me one day. We’ve had people get stuck in here and start fights with each other.”

Residents have put up yard signs to warn drivers and call attention to the issue.

The city has posted signs indicating Beck Road is closed to through traffic, but people in Pioneer Meadows said the message isn’t getting through.

They want the city to install additional signs at the subdivision entrance to discourage drivers from turning into the neighborhood.

“We would really like it if they had a sign there that said ‘No Outlet,’” resident Trystyn McCarthy said.

McCarthy said that request was raised with the city, and residents believed weeks ago that a sign had been promised.

Local 4 contacted the city of Novi to ask when such a sign would be installed. In a written statement, city officials said in part:

“Our City Engineer spoke directly with the resident who contacted us and explained that we would consider the request for a “No Outlet” sign. He also let her know the request would be reviewed internally, but did not promise that additional signage would be installed.

Since that conversation, our team has confirmed that the upcoming traffic shift will restore northbound access to 11 Mile Road, which is expected to improve traffic circulation in the area. With that change occurring soon, we determined that installing a “No Outlet” sign at this time would likely have limited effectiveness, as drivers who are already bypassing existing traffic control measures are unlikely to be influenced by additional signage.

We will continue to monitor traffic conditions as construction progresses and remain committed to addressing safety concerns as appropriate.”

City of Novi

Judge Christopher Wagner said Thursday the NCAA eligibility rules have been applied to 2022 high school graduates in an arbitrary and capricious manner, adding the plaintiffs would suffer “irreparable injury” without an injunction.

“We hope the NCAA reconsiders its position and allows all other similarly situated athletes from the high school class of 2022 to compete for remaining roster spots in all sports,” attorney Ryan Downton said.

Wagner's ruling allows the athletes in the lawsuit an opportunity to enter the transfer portal. He scheduled a conference for Aug. 4 to prepare for a trial.

“While we will seek to overturn this ruling, it is now apparent that Congress must act swiftly to restore stability, uniformity, and fair competition in college athletics,” the NCAA said in a statement.

The Protect College Sports Act has moved forward with Senate committee approval in June. However, the Big Ten and Southeastern conferences oppose the bill designed to stabilize college sports and are seeking revisions.

Downton has filed similar lawsuits against the NCAA on behalf of nearly 30 men's and women's basketball players.

The lawsuit in Cincinnati was filed shortly after the NCAA Division I Cabinet approved a monumental change in eligibility rules last month.

“When each plaintiff completed their fourth season of competition during the 2025-26 academic year, they had every reason to know it was the end of the line and time to make way for the next generation of college athletes,” the NCAA wrote in a filing.

The plaintiffs are seeking to be eligible to play a fifth year during the upcoming season, representing athletes who graduated from high school in 2022 and began their college sports careers that autumn and never redshirted.

“Each plaintiff was harmed each time he or she competed in a basketball game against a fifth or sixth-year player without being offered the same opportunity to compete in a fifth season themselves,” Downtown wrote in a filing.

The NCAA now allows athletes five seasons of competition over a five-year period that begins with their full-time enrollment or the academic year following their 19th birthday, whichever occurs first.

The move will all but eliminate waivers or redshirt years for extended eligibility except for religious missions, pregnancy or active-duty military service. Extensions will no longer be considered for athletes who are injured.

Athletes whose eligibility expired by spring 2026 under the traditional model — four years of competition over five years — will not be allowed a fifth year of competition under the new rules that go into effect this fall.

The Division I Cabinet has said in a statement posted on X that it was aware of legal action challenging its decision and that “we do not intend to change course.”

Three basketball players, including Xavier forward Filip Borovicanin of Serbia, and three coaches, including Xavier coach Richard Pitino, along with an agent testified at a hearing in Cincinnati earlier this month, while the NCAA did not call any witnesses.

Wagner appeared to be critical of the NCAA in his written ruling, saying the governing body resembles “a highly profitable professional sports league," more than its argument of being a voluntary association.

“The court finds, by clear and convincing evidence, that plaintiffs will suffer irreparable injury if the preliminary injunction is not granted,” Wagner said.

The NCAA said the decision was wrong.

“We will immediately seek all avenues for reversal, including a stay of the court’s order pending appeal,” the NCAA said. “The court disregarded over a century of precedent and substituted its own judgment, on a limited factual record, for the collective expertise of the nation’s leading higher education institutions.”

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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports

The S&P 500 climbed 0.8% and more than recovered its loss from the day before, even though the United States launched new airstrikes against Iran, which responded by targeting U.S. allies in the Middle East. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 139 points, or 0.3%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 1.3%.

In the oil market, prices gave back much of their jumps from the day before. The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, fell 2.2% to $76.30. That’s down from $78.02 the day before though still above its $71.80 price from the end of last week.

The worry is that a return to full-blown war will block oil tankers from the Strait of Hormuz and prevent the delivery of crude from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide. That could worsen inflation, which economists expected would ease with oil prices, and in turn force the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates.

Higher rates can keep a lid on inflation, but they also slow the economy and hurt prices for all kinds of investments.

But Trump also said Wednesday that the latest back-and-forth fighting would not result in “long-term” military action, raising uncertainty about just what will happen.

The swings for oil prices halted what had been a steady decline in gasoline prices, and the cost for a gallon climbed a nickel overnight, according to motor club AAA. The average price for a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.85 Thursday, up 68 cents from a year earlier.

In the meantime, renewed strength for makers of computer chips and other winners of the boom around artificial-intelligence technology helped to support stock markets worldwide.

In South Korea, whose stock market is dominated by two companies that make semiconductors, the Kospi index rose 0.6% after tumbling 5.3% the day before. SK Hynix, which is preparing to sell shares of its stock that will trade in the United States, jumped 5.3% in Seoul.

On Wall Street, Micron Technology’s climb of 4.5% was one of the strongest forces lifting the S&P 500. Micron cited “surging demand for memory in the AI era” as it gave a progress update on construction in central New York of what it says is the largest semiconductor manufacturing site in U.S. history.

Such stocks have become some of Wall Street’s most influential after growing so big in the euphoria around AI. But AI stocks have also come under pressure recently because of worries their prices shot too high and that AI may not create enough productivity and profits to make all the investments in chips and data centers worth it.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 60.93 points to 7,543.64. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 139.02 to 52,487.41, and the Nasdaq composite rose 336.24 to 26,206.89.

Stocks broadly got some help from falling yields in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.54% from 4.56% late Wednesday.

It had been climbing on worries about high oil prices and the potential for higher interest rates, which cranked up the pressure on stocks and prices for other investments.

Besides the war with Iran, another big event for Wall Street is the upcoming start of earnings reporting season for companies. Next week, the biggest banks are set to unveil how much profit they made from April through June. Companies across industries will need to report strong growth to justify the big moves their stock prices have made.

PepsiCo fell 3.3% even though it reported slightly better revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Numbers released by the company behind Gatorade and Doritos showed weakening trends in its North American food and drinks businesses.

In stock markets abroad, indexes rose across much of Europe and Asia.

Besides Seoul’s climb, stock indexes rose 1.7% in Shanghai and 0.9% in Paris.

On the losing end was Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, which slipped 0.7% as shares of Apple supplier Luxshare fell 1.5% in its trading debut.

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AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Matt Ott contributed to this report.

As of the latest update on DTE’s outage map on Thursday afternoon, the utility reports that more than 99% of customers have electricity back, but just under 2,000 customers were still without power.

Even as restoration numbers improve, some customers and businesses say the wait has been frustrating, including workers at Woodward Coin Laundry, a Detroit laundromat across from Palmer Park.

Workers there said power was restored early Thursday morning, after being out since severe storms hit the region last Friday.

“We weather the storm. But, just, been a week,” said Mary Wilson, an attendant at the laundromat.

Wilson said subcontractors came out multiple times but couldn’t complete the work without DTE crews on scene.

“They all said that they couldn’t go up the pole. They had to have DTE with them. Of course, there was no DTE, so they leave. So, they’ve been out three times,” Wilson said.

Employees said the DTE truck that arrived Thursday replaced a dropout fuse cutout on a utility pole, restoring electricity and allowing the laundromat to reopen.

“We want you to know that we are open for business,” said employee Tara Renee Hunter.

With washers and dryers running again, and the air conditioning back on, customers like Sheila Andrews said the laundromat is essential for many in the neighborhood.

“Oh, they depend on it. Like, if they don’t have no laundry stuff at home, they come right here,” Andrews said.

Workers said many customers are seniors and people on fixed incomes, and that turning people away during the outage was difficult, especially in the heat.

“Some people were on the bus. Some people were traveling carrying bags. I had to have them to sit, and then the air was off. So, it was hot in here,” Hunter said.

With service restored, employees say the mood has shifted from stress to relief.

“Oh my gosh, yes, a big relief,” Wilson said. “We’re just really glad right now to have our power on.”

DTE says it has about 4,000 team members ready to respond if tonight’s weather brings additional outages.

There is a “continual battle” against threats online, said Vicki Evans, a senior national coordinator for counterterrorism at the Metropolitan Police, and police need help from technology companies because “it's not something we can do alone.”

Islamic extremism remains the biggest threat but over the past five years, threats from far-right groups and hostile states have significantly grown, said Laurence Taylor, head of counterterrorism police.

According to Evans, the threat from hostile states is the “most rapidly escalating mission” for counterterrorism police.

Threats from hostile countries are increasing

In July, two Romanian men were jailed over the stabbing of a journalist from a Persian-language television station, which the judge said was carried out on behalf of Iran's government.

In June, a Ukrainian man and Romanian man were jailed for their role in setting fire to property linked to U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer — a plot which fits the description of Russian state-backed sabotage. And in May, a U.K. border official and former Hong Kong police officer were convicted of spying for China.

Evans said that in 2025, there were more than 20 Iranian-backed plots, including assassinations, kidnappings and other serious crimes against the U.K. Additionally, police are still investigating whether arson attacks against Jewish sites earlier in the year have a link to Iran.

Russia has been organizing a “constant stream of surveillance plots” against people and institutions in Britain, aiming to target people Russian officials believe are enemies, “infiltrate” ordinary life and identify people who will “peddle” Russian narratives or carry out proxy work on behalf of the Russian state, she added.

Across Europe, Russia has recruited dozens of people on apps like Telegram to carry out vandalism or set fires — including at a warehouse in London that stored communications equipment meant for Ukraine.

Dylan Earl, the ringleader of that plot, was recruited on Telegram by the Wagner Group, a mercenary organization acting on behalf of Moscow that has been designated a terrorist group by the U.K. government.

Evans also said that teenagers as young as 15 have been arrested by police in relation to proxy plots. The challenge for law enforcement, she added, is that “anyone could be targeted,” especially online.

"This isn’t something that’s happening elsewhere,” Evans said, speaking to journalists at New Scotland Yard, the Metropolitan Police headquarters. “It’s happening here. This risk is in our neighborhoods, in our online spaces and in our workplaces.”

The threat of far-right extremism is rising

Taylor said that the threat level in the U.K. was raised in April from “substantial” to “severe,” partly because cases linked to extreme far right ideologies are “growing substantially.”

Police have noted an increase in “vile” content, particularly online, which creates a “cocktail of racism, misogyny and extreme homophobia,” he said.

Extreme views, he said, appear to be being challenged less and less and so conditions have been created where previously unacceptable views are now more prevalent.

As an example, he gave the case of an 18-year-old woman, Alina Burns, who was imprisoned for almost 20 years in May after attacking a stranger with an ax — an attack that Taylor said was motivated by her extreme right-wing mindset.

Children are increasingly radicalized online

Alfie Coleman — a 22-year-old sentenced on Wednesday for 13.5 years for trying to buy a gun from an undercover MI5 officer — was radicalized online from the age of 14, Taylor said.

Evans said that those behind the exploitation are specifically designing online content to attract young people by blending it with propaganda and gaming footage, historical images and music. The young are then prompted to carry out violent acts — such as being asked to “recreate” in real life horrific attacks from video games, she said.

In some cases, Evans said, “sadistic online groups,” ask people to compete against each other to cause harm online and offline — by using cyberattacks, extremism, serious violence or even child sexual abuse or terrorism.

The extent of “lawful but awful” content online, including extreme violence and gore, she said means that some people now have a skewed sense of what is normal or acceptable. Those people are particularly vulnerable to manipulation, including by state actors, she said.

Although the government has said that Britain will ban social media for those under 16, that is not enough, said Evans, adding that pressure needs to be put on technology companies to help curb harmful content online.

Laws and policies regulating harmful content online quickly go out of date while social platforms have powerful mechanisms to push content to young people, she said.

“The tipping point is very swift and steep,” for some people who are drawn into harmful content online, she said.

Location: Remote position based in one of the GMG Markets: Detroit, MI; Jacksonville, FL; Orlando, FL; Roanoke, VA; Houston, TX; San Antonio, TX.

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Seven years after her breakthrough at Wimbledon, the American player was on the verge of reaching her first final at the All England Club.

All she needed to do was execute what appeared to be a manageable put-away on her first match point.

The thing is, it's never that simple in a Grand Slam semifinal, especially toward the end of a decisive super tiebreaker on Centre Court — the sport's most hallowed venue.

Gauff fluffed a forehand drop-shot attempt into the net and her opponent Karolina Muchova went on to see out a drama-filled tiebreaker to win 6-2, 1-6, 7-6 (10) on Thursday.

On the match point, Gauff hit a well-placed serve down the T on the ad court and Muchova’s weak forehand return bounced before the service line — right in Gauff's attack zone. But Muchova’s shot had some topspin on it and kicked up higher than Gauff was anticipating.

“The bounce kind of caught me off guard,” Gauff said. “I just panicked a little bit.”

After the miss, Gauff ran her non-hitting hand over her face and practiced a full-swing forehand that perhaps she would have preferred in hindsight.

“People who don’t watch tennis are going to be like, ’Why did you do that?” Gauff said. “At the end of the day, that’s the choice I made. Was it the right one in that moment? Maybe not. But then also, if I make it, everyone’s going to say how clutch of a shot that was.

“That’s just tennis. You lose some points off margins.”

A ‘roller coaster’ for Muchova

Muchova also lost a match point before she came out on top when Gauff hit a forehand into the net.

“It was such a big fight,” Muchova said. “It was a roller coaster.”

Muchova will meet Linda Noskova in an all-Czech final on Saturday after Noskova beat Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-4, 6-4.

Clearly flustered after her miss, Gauff called for a ball to serve again before she realized it was time to change ends since it was 9-9.

“I’m going to think about it tonight,” Gauff said.

“I look at Roger (Federer, in the 2019 final) lost match points here, Jannik (Sinner) obviously at Roland Garros (in last year’s final). Every great champion has this happen in their career," Gauff added. "Maybe this is something I need to be on their level.”

Tracy Austin suggested on the BBC that Gauff looked like “she changed her mind three times as to where to hit that ball.”

But Gauff said, “Honestly, I didn’t change my mind too much. I feel like if I had to do it over, I probably would have gone for a slice forehand down the line.

“It’s a learning experience,” Gauff added. “I know I can do better and improve on that, and going with a higher-margin shot in a pressure moment, for sure.”

Diving like Boris Becker

On the point after Gauff's miss, Muchova produced a lob winner to set up her first match point, which she lost when she slipped to the grass and a passing shot from Gauff sailed by her.

But Muchova quickly set up another match point and produced a series of shots to the corners. Gauff, on the full run, reached the last ball but her forehand response landed in the net and Muchova covered her hands in disbelief.

“You’re up and down in 10 seconds. You have a match point, then match point down. It’s no time to think, but very nerve-wracking,” Muchova said. “I’m really kind of shaking and trying to sink it in.”

Earlier in the tiebreaker, Muchova produced a diving forehand volley winner at full stretch that brought back memories of the way three-time Wimbledon champion Boris Becker used to play. She ended up face down on the grass, her racket lying next to her, as the crowd roared.

There will be a third Czech champion in four years after Marketa Vondrousova in 2023 and Barbora Krejcikova in 2024.

Gauff's Wimbledon history

For Gauff, it was still her most successful Wimbledon. Previously, the seventh-ranked American had gone only as far as the fourth round three times – including as a 15-year-old in 2019 in her Grand Slam debut.

Gauff had had won six of her seven previous matches against Muchova.

But Muchova has been nearly unbeatable on grass this year and extended her record this season on the surface to 11-1 after a title in Bad Homburg, Germany. Her only loss on grass this year came against Madison Keys in the Berlin Open round of 16.

Muchova beat Gauff for the first time in April on clay in Stuttgart, Germany.

It was another hot day in London with the temperature soaring to 91 degrees Fahreinheit (33 Celsius), prompting spectators to fan themselves in the stands in an attempt to keep cool.

Muchova appeared to be struggling physically as the match wore on, bending over in exhaustion after one long rally and holding her abdomen in apparent pain during the final game.

“I’m OK,” Muchova said. “I just was trying to catch a breath.”

The men’s semifinals on Friday feature top-ranked and defending champion Jannik Sinner against seven-time Wimbledon winner Novak Djokovic and French Open champion Alexander Zverev against British wild card Arthur Fery.

Mixed doubles

In the mixed doubles final, second-seeded Marcelo Arevalo and Jelena Ostapenko beat Marc Polmans and Storm Hunter 4-6, 7-5, 6-2.

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Associated Press writer Mattias Karén contributed to this report.

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

In a social media post, Ghost Light said that rising costs and shifting consumer habits have made it harder to operate as it has in the past.

The venue also pointed to a major expense: a rooftop heating and cooling system failure that required replacement, a hit it described as unavoidable, and one that used nearly all of the cash it had available.

“We’re not announcing that we are permanently closing”

Ghost Light emphasized it is not shutting down for good. But the message was clear: “things have to change.”

For the rest of July, the venue said it plans to move forward with programming already scheduled on its calendar through Aug. 1, and urged supporters to show up, “come to a show,” “sing karaoke,” “buy a drink,” and “bring a friend.”

Going “mostly dark” in August to regroup

The venue said it expects to go “mostly dark” in August while it reassesses operations.

Plans include simplifying the bar, rethinking when and how it opens, and reworking programming to determine what is sustainable.

Ghost Light also noted that artists, producers, promoters, and organizers with upcoming bookings will be contacted directly.

A community hub for a decade

Ghost Light described itself as more than a bar, a place where people gather, perform, take chances, meet each other and build community, and said protecting that role is a key reason it’s trying to find a path forward rather than “turn the lights off” without trying something different first.

As July continues, the venue’s ask is simple: show up now, help it get through the summer, and be part of what comes next.

The Ducks announced their decision Thursday on the 21-year-old Carlsson, who is now the NHL's highest-paid player under the five-year, $90 million deal extended by the Flyers one week ago.

“It’s going to be a special feeling, having this pressure,” said Carlsson, who wasn’t told the Ducks were matching the offer sheet until shortly before the decision was made public. “I always wanted to be a Duck. It’s my home, too. I’m just super excited to be back.”

Carlsson signed the Flyers' offer sheet as a restricted free agent after a year of fruitless negotiations with Anaheim general manager Pat Verbeek, whose hardline approach in contract talks with his restricted free agents backfired tremendously this time.

Carlsson's new contract is worth much more than the league expected the Swedish youngster would get as a restricted free agent, and the $18 million average annual value is significantly more than he had already indicated he would accept. The deal surpasses the salary of Minnesota’s Kirill Kaprizov, who would have been the NHL's highest-paid player at $17 million.

Verbeek acknowledged he was shocked by the Flyers' aggressiveness, and he admitted the entire experience could change the way he conducts business.

“Did we expect the offer sheet to be this high? No. We did not see that one coming,” Verbeek said. “But we’re very confident in the sense that with the cap going up and the ability of Leo to make great strides of improvement and become an elite player, we feel confident that this contract will be a good one in the end.”

Carlsson's first significant contract negotiations landed him a record payday — and he might have affected the NHL's entire salary structure going forward with this new benchmark for young talent amid a rising salary cap. Carlsson emerged from the experience with excitement and no hard feelings toward Anaheim about the way everything went down.

“It’s a lot of business in hockey,” Carlsson said. “I knew it, obviously, but it’s more business than I thought. (The details are) something for my agent to answer more on, but (the offer sheet) was just too good to pass on. I think everybody understands that. I talked to my teammates a lot, and everybody was just happy for me and super-supportive with the decision I made.”

The Flyers failed to land their long-sought No. 1 center by swiping Carlsson, but the attempt showed general manager Danny Briere’s determination to improve his roster at all costs. The Ducks would have received four first-round draft picks from Philadelphia if they hadn’t matched.

Future negotiations will reveal whether Briere forever altered the hockey talent market. The structure of Philadelphia’s offer sheet also front-loaded Carlsson’s contract with enormous signing bonuses in another departure from most NHL contracts.

Fortunately for the Ducks, billionaire owner Henry Samueli eagerly made that hefty financial commitment, calling it “an easy decision” in a statement issued by the team.

Still, that decision wouldn't have been necessary if Verbeek had done a deal at any point in the previous year. The general manager claimed he made “serious and fair” offers last September to young cornerstones Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier and defenseman Jackson LaCombe, who took an eight-year, $72 million deal.

Verbeek continued negotiations with Carlsson's agent this spring, but felt he was “getting slow-walked to July 1," when the offer sheet could be signed.

“It was surprising, to say the least,” Verbeek said. “I actually feel flattered in a sense that Philadelphia wanted such a great player. It means we’re doing a good job on our end. ... Players like Leo don't come along very often.”

Although the Ducks retained their most important young player, Verbeek’s inability to get a deal done before he was forced into it by Philadelphia seems almost certain to compromise Anaheim’s roster-building efforts for years to come. The Ducks are having a rough summer after ending their seven-season playoff drought with a second-round run that stamped them as a future contender.

Along with losing four veteran defensemen and hoping to replace them from within, Verbeek still hasn’t re-signed 41-goal scorer Gauthier, who isn't eligible to receive an offer sheet. Anaheim signed Pavel Mintyukov to a five-year, $36 million deal last week, again going well over the expected market rate for a defenseman who isn’t on Carlsson’s level of talent, but was widely rumored to be on the verge of signing an offer sheet.

This pricey deal for Carlsson is the latest chapter in Verbeek's history of antagonistic negotiations with Anaheim's free agents. Trevor Zegras, Jamie Drysdale and Mason McTavish all held out of training camp in recent years when they couldn’t get a deal done with Verbeek, who eventually traded all three.

Verbeek said he has “2 1/2 months to figure out” how to fit Gauthier under the cap, possibly by dumping a veteran's salary.

“Certainly we are going to have to do business in a different type of manner moving forward, and so we will make the adjustments that we have to make,” Verbeek said.

Carlsson was the No. 2 choice in the 2023 draft behind Connor Bedard, and he has emerged as one of the NHL’s top young playmakers. Although he didn’t produce points at a rate commensurate with his new salary during his first three seasons, almost everyone believes Carlsson can become one of the best centers in hockey, so Verbeek might be correct that this deal will eventually look reasonable on paper.

Carlsson scored 67 points in 70 games last season despite being limited for a lengthy stretch by a leg injury that kept him out of the Olympics. He added 11 points in 12 games during his first postseason experience.

“I’m going to grow as a player, too,” Carlsson said. “I’ve done that every year so far. Trying to get away from these slumps I’ve been having during seasons. Trying to stay at the highest level I can all season long.”

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL

That means Quansah will miss England's quarterfinal match against Norway in Miami Gardens on Saturday and also the semifinals if Thomas Tuchel's team advances.

Quansah was sent off in the second half of England's 3-2 victory against Mexico on Sunday for a dangerous foul on Jesus Gallardo.

FIFA confirmed the two-match suspension for serious foul play.

England forward Bukayo Saka said the decision was “incredibly frustrating.”

FIFA’s handling of red card punishments has come under intense scrutiny after its disciplinary committee suspended the one-game penalty of star United States striker Folarin Balogun after President Donald Trump intervened and contacted FIFA President Gianni Infantino.

Infantino defended the independence of FIFA’s disciplinary committee and insisted the Balogun case was properly handled.

“We’re not here to complain, we just need to adapt and pick a team that’s ready to beat Norway,” Saka said.

Right back saga continues

Quansah’s prolonged extension is the latest issue for Tuchel to contend with at right back.

First choice Reece James has not played since England’s second game of the tournament against Ghana due to a hamstring injury.

His backup Tino Livramento was sent home before England even kicked off its campaign after injuring his calf. Tuchel opted to call up a center back in Trevoh Chalobah as his replacement, rather than going for a specialist right back.

It meant Quansah, who usually plays in central defense, has taken on the role of deputy to James.

Tuchel faced questions before the World Cup for leaving out Real Madrid right back Trent Alexander-Arnold, who is widely regarded as one of the top players in Europe.

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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

They are among the co-leaders of five different task forces announced by Fed Chair Kevin Warsh last month. The other leaders are a mix of public officials and business leaders.

Warsh called for “regime change” at the Fed last year while he was under consideration by the Trump administration to replace former chair Jerome Powell. Warsh has sought to communicate less about the Fed's thinking on interest rates and has said he wants to reduce the central bank's roughly $6.7 trillion in holdings of government bonds.

Yet it's not yet clear how transformative the task forces will be. Most of the directors announced Thursday are leading figures in economics and business, rather than longtime Fed critics. Warsh's use of task forces, Fed-watchers say, suggest he wants to persuade his fellow Fed officials of any changes rather than impose them.

“The U.S. economy has changed significantly over the last generation, and never more so than right now,” Warsh said in a written statement. “Each task force will carefully consider whether policymakers’ means and methods, analytical tools and policy approaches can be improved upon.”

The five task forces will each have three co-leaders and will be supported by Fed staff, the central bank said.

One of the task forces will focus on how artificial intelligence and other new technologies will affect productivity and jobs. Warsh has repeatedly said he expects AI to bring about fundamental changes to the U.S. economy.

To oversee that task force, Warsh has turned to executives from firms developing AI, including Marc Andreessen, a major investor in crypto firms and AI technology. Asha Sharma, an executive vice president at Microsoft and CEO of its Xbox unit will also co-lead that task force. Charles Jones, an economist at Stanford currently on leave with Anthropic, will act as the third co-chair.

Chetty, a Harvard economist, will co-lead a task force on evaluating the data sources used by the Fed. Chetty has broken ground by using huge data sets to track families' economic fortunes over decades and evaluate which areas of the country have seen the most economic mobility.

Doug McMillon, the former president and CEO of Walmart, and Kevin Murphy, an economics professor at the University of Chicago, will co-lead the data task force.

A third task force will examine the Fed's balance sheet, which has ballooned in size since the Great Recession in 2008-2009. Raghuram Rajan, a former leader of the Reserve Bank of India, and Harvard economist and former Treasury official Karen Dynan will co-lead the task force, along with Jeremy Stein, a former Fed governor.

Greg Mankiw, a top economist in the George W. Bush administration and Thomas Sargent, a Nobel laureate at New York University, will co-lead a task force on inflation frameworks. King, the former Bank of England governor, will be one of the leaders of the task force on communications.

Chinese President Xi Jinping demanded “an all-out search and rescue effort," urging a swift investigation of the incident and “strictly hold those responsible accountable.”

The blaze started in a factory at Huiteng shoe company in the city of Jinjiang, the city’s fire department said in a statement. The cause of the fire was not immediately known. Jinjiang is a major manufacturing hub for sports shoes.

There were 237 factory workers and two visitors in the building when the fire broke out. Authorities pulled out 213 people, two of whom were pronounced dead after being taken to hospital. Another 26 missing people were later confirmed dead, according to the state broadcaster CCTV.

Xinhua said the factory’s owner and others in charge have been taken into custody and the company’s accounts have been frozen.

Video by CCTV shows the facade of a building of several floors charred black and covered in white smoke. Earlier footage shows fires were burning on multiple floors and the building shrouded in thick, black smoke.

The fire started on the first level of a five-floor concrete-structured building, where a workshop and a warehouse were located. The burning materials included shoe components, which are highly flammable and helped the fire spread quickly, according to CCTV.

A local fire department official said in an interview with the state broadcaster that sole material piled up in stairwells made it much harder for the firefighters to reach the flames and put them out.

CCTV also said the fire department sent 183 people and 35 vehicles to the factory and that open flames were extinguished after about four hours. Xinhua later said more than 500 people joined the rescue and search operation.

Work safety has been a persistent problem in China. In May, an explosion at a fireworks plant in the city of Changsha in the central province of Hunan killed at least 37 people. In 2024, a fire at a refrigeration facility under construction killed 39 people in the city of Xinyu in the southeastern Jiangxi province.

Authorities have repeatedly ordered businesses to screen for workplace hazards. Official data show that 18,261 people died in nearly 20,000 workplace accidents across the country in 2025, down from the previous year.

The new facility will replace the former Coolidge Terminal, destroyed by a fire in 2011 and demolished in 2023.

The new 200,000-square-foot, three building terminal complex will provide a base for operations, maintenance, and storage for the Department of Transportation.

Gilbert terminal will be demolished to the new Coolidge Terminal.

DDOT’s eastside base will continue to be the Shoemaker Terminal near I-94 and Connor.

“Our DDOT drivers and mechanics are critical to making sure our residents can get to work, to school, their doctor’s appointment or to store, and absolutely essential to our city’s economy,” said Mayor Sheffield. “They deserve to have a first-class facility to support them and now they do.”

Here’s a breakdown of the new facility

The total cost of $160 million comes from three sources: $102.5M - Federal Transit Administration, $31.5M - City funding, $25.6M - Michigan Department of Transportation.

The new terminal will have climate-controlled bus storage, maintenance and operations facilities, and a new administration building with an indoor-outdoor employee lounge, kitchen, workout room, lockers and showers.

The new Coolidge Terminal Complex will have three separate buildings, each with a specific purpose.

A 121,192 square foot climate-controlled storage building, will house up to 120 buses during overnight hours, both while not in service and undergoing maintenance.

A section of the building will include bays for vehicles to be washed regularly, preventing maintenance issues.

A 54,293 square foot maintenance building, will be for buses to undergo routine maintenance and routine repairs conducted.

A 16,922 square foot administration building, will house offices and employee amenities.

The project was designed to include strategically positioned and prepared areas for expansion of all three buildings to accommodate future capacity.

The original Coolidge Terminal, was located at 14044 Schaefer Highway, north of I-96 in Detroit, operated transit service from 1928 until 2011.

Plans to rebuild the facility were put on hold after Detroit’s bankruptcy in 2013.

DDOT began Research for rebuilding the terminal in 2019, a facilities master planning initiative was completed in 2021.

After considering options to continue using the site with no improvements, re-using existing buildings, and a blend of reuse and building new, DDOT determined that the best course of action was to build an entirely new facility.

All Nolan films are epics in their own ways. But for “The Odyssey,” he knew he had to do something fitting of the Homeric poem and its foundational place in Western culture, something worthy of the biggest screens and the resources it would require. The goal was to make something accessible and realistic, which meant going to far flung locations, using real ships on real seas, and taking audiences into the cave with the Cyclops, inside the Trojan Horse and to the bleak expanse of Hades. Opening in theaters worldwide on July 17, it’s also the first feature to be shot entirely on IMAX film.

“We all know the title, we all know what it means, we know what it promises and hopefully for the audience coming to see the film, they’ll feel we made good on that promise because that’s the fun of ‘The Odyssey,’” Nolan said in a recent interview with The Associated Press. “It’s the ultimate adventure story.”

“This is going to be really hard”

The journey would require a deep dive into Greek mythology, Bronze Age scholarship and many translations, a monthslong scouting expedition and a 91-day shoot spanning six months and six countries during which the cast and crew endured all manner of challenging weather, landscapes and the treachery of the open seas.

“The Odyssey” was an epic undertaking — the hardest film anyone involved had ever made. Matt Damon, who stars as Odysseus, said that Nolan warned him as much before they started filming.

“He told me it was going to be hard, which I kind of, I blew off at first. I’m like, ‘Yeah, yeah, it’s going to be hard. And he said ‘no, no, this is going to be really hard,'” Damon said. “He did not disappoint.”

That was by design.

“I mean, it’s ‘The Odyssey,’” Nolan said. “This should be a difficult film to make, and it was.”

Unlike Odysseus’s extended journey home, the production was also efficient: They finished nine days early.

Making ‘The Odyssey’ relatable, and rejecting Hollywood tropes

When Hollywood movies take on the ancient world, they often fall back on familiar tropes — using accents, elevated language, 19th century orchestral scores and neoclassical touchstones to convey antiquity. Nolan wanted to do something different and found inspiration in the text of the poem, in which he observed an earthy sensibility that stood in contrast to the grandeur of the story.

“You want to question people’s assumptions about how things should be portrayed in movies and what those are based on,” Nolan said. “There’s a challenge to that and a risk to that.”

That meant making some bold choices, including colloquial language, American accents, and blending elements from various stories, including “The Iliad,” “The Aeneid” and “Agamemnon,” to give the audience more clarity. His Trojan Horse, which he’s been thinking about since he was briefly attached to direct “Troy” over 20 years ago, does not have wheels.

For the score, he challenged composer Ludwig Göransson to use bronze gongs, aulos and the lyre to create a new kind of soundscape, and to come up with a four-note theme where the last would be the pluck of a bow.

And paramount to this story of homecoming and coming-of-age, his characters needed to be relatable.

“The movie has so much scale,” said Tom Holland, who plays Odysseus’s son Telemachus. “There are times where it feels like you’re on this kind of action-adventure roller coaster, but he doesn’t sacrifice any of the heart and the intimacy between our characters.”

Among the large ensemble cast are many famous names: Anne Hathaway is Odysseus’s wife Penelope, Zendaya is the goddess Athena, Charlize Theron is the nymph Calypso and Lupita Nyong’o is Helen, and her twin sister.

Robert Pattinson, Nolan said, is “unleashing his inner Alan Rickman” as the villainous suitor Antinous.

“He’s continually saying to Telemachus, ‘I’m going to be your stepdad, I’ll be your daddy,’” Nolan said. “It was such a fascinatingly creepy and amusing basis for villainy.”

Leading the charge was Damon, an actor Nolan knew he liked working with after “Interstellar” and “Oppenheimer. ”

“You need somebody who will take the audience on this journey,” Nolan said. “With Matt, he’s able to combine that iconic sort of superhero thing with a very, very emotionally accessible and comprehensible person.”

Finding the real; Grounding the fantastical

The film begins with the words “a time of apparent magic,” a promise of what’s to come in this mythical world of gods, monsters, superstitions and natural phenomena. The pursuit of the real led them all over the world. Troy was constructed in Morocco, the cave of the Cyclops was found in foothills of Greece, Iceland’s black sands, shot in the midnight sun, are used for Hades and the island of Favignana, near Sicily, played Ithaca, where much of the cast and crew hiked 45 minutes every day before work to reach a 15th-century castle, 1,030 feet (313.9 meters) above sea level.

On the seas, they used a real ship, the Draken, a reconstruction of a 1,000-year-old Viking ship that production modified slightly to make it look more of the Mycenaean era. The actors learned to row. The ship’s crew played extras.

But Nolan’s love of in-camera effects doesn’t mean he rejects other kinds. “Tenet,” “Interstellar” and “Inception” all won Oscars for visual effects, after all. And in “The Odyssey” there are things that can’t be found in the natural world, from the six-headed Scylla to the Cyclops, the design of which was inspired by the Francisco Goya painting “Saturn Devouring His Son.” Bill Irwin, who brought the robots to life in “Interstellar,” delivered the performance.

“We knew we were going to need every trick in the book, from animatronics to puppetry to computer graphics,” Nolan said. “But I knew I needed a performer … He doesn’t treat the Cyclops as just a monster.”

What it adds up to is something that, miraculously for a 3,000-year-old tale, feels fresh.

“Chris has created something that’s totally new,” said Hathaway. “That’s a remarkable achievement.”

Odyssey-fever

Nolan productions always inspire a certain amount of hysteria, but excitement for “The Odyssey” reached a fever pitch. Initial screenings for the 70 mm IMAX showings — his favorite format — sold out in under an hour a year in advance. When all showtimes went on sale last month, ticketing sites crashed. High profile locations like the AMC Lincoln Square in New York and AMC CityWalk in Los Angeles are virtually sold out for weeks, and scalpers on eBay are attempting to sell tickets for more than $500. But the 70 mm IMAX screens account for only about 32 theaters out of thousands in North America — there are other ways to see the film, including 70 mm, digital IMAX and other large format presentations.

For Nolan, the audience is the north star; Entertaining is a responsibility he takes seriously. In fact, he said, a film isn’t really done until it reaches the audience: They’re the ones who finish the piece.

“The audience tells you what it is,” Nolan said. “And that means that for us, this is an exciting moment, but a very frightening moment, because it’s real. There’s nothing to hide behind. We made this film for a theatrical audience, and it goes out in the world as that. And we’ll see what the world makes of it.”

In his first Balenciaga couture show — and the fashion house's biggest statement since it revived its haute couture line in 2020 — Piccioli sent out ballooning gowns and hooded feather cocoons on Wednesday, then closed with model Gigi Hadid engulfed in rooster feathers.

For his bow, he walked out flanked by his entire atelier in white coats, to a standing ovation.

The debut capped a four-day season ending Thursday that came down to three things: flesh, fantasy and the machine.

Across 30 houses, five showing for the first time, designers bared the body and made it vanish, fled into make-believe as a heat wave gripped the city, and reached for particle accelerators and lab-grown silk while insisting couture still belongs to the human hand.

Couture — handmade, made-to-measure clothing that can cost as much as a house and reaches only a few hundred clients worldwide — is the industry’s laboratory and its loudest advertisement, a halo for the perfumes, handbags and ready-to-wear that pay the bills.

It matters more than usual this year: Luxury is clawing out of a two-year slump, and major houses are betting on newly installed designers — Piccioli, Jonathan Anderson at Dior, Matthieu Blazy at Chanel and Silvana Armani at Armani Privé — to re-energize it.

Cate Blanchett opened the celebrity run at Armani Privé, while Pedro Pascal and Tilda Swinton sat front row at Chanel.

Bodies are covered, armored or erased

The first question was what couture could do to the figure: expose it, armor it, inflate it or make it disappear.

Silvana Armani, showing her second Armani Privé collection since her uncle Giorgio died last September, titled the show “Boudoir” but sidestepped the obvious.

Rather than join the sheer-everything trend, she played cover against reveal: embroidered teddies under tuxedo jackets, a bomber unzipping from the hem to expose a strip of midriff, animal prints muted until they read as texture.

At 57 looks — about half the founder’s usual count — it was the week’s most restrained take on skin. Blanchett signaled it on arrival, in a plunging velvet suit beside Lou Doillon, Rosamund Pike and Anna Wintour.

Daniel Roseberry pushed further at Schiaparelli at the Petit Palais under the title “The Call of the Void.”

He treated flesh as raw material: corsets molded into lifelike torsos, silicone gills up a bare back, a latex jacket rigged with inflating tentacles.

The techniques came from a workshop that makes lifelike silicone infants for films barred from using real newborns.

Models walked a runway where even the prettiest look, a prom dress beaded in putty-pink pearls, carried an edge of menace.

Piccioli and Iris van Herpen went furthest, erasing the body outright.

At Balenciaga, it meant 3D body scans to build new mannequins, leather and cashmere molded by hand, volume inflated until the wearer became pure outline, from balloon-hemmed gazar to a strapless gown carrying 24,150 shreds of gazar.

Van Herpen dissolved the figure into some 30,000 hand-blown glass beads on sheer tulle.

Fairy tales in a heat wave

The second fixation was make-believe. The shows unfolded against a Middle East conflict, jittery markets and the heat wave outside.

Elie Saab staged a masked ball, drawing on Truman Capote’s 1966 black-and-white bash and the old-Hollywood glamour of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton.

As luxury shoppers drift toward casual clothes, Saab pushed the other way with velvet corseted gowns, New Look waists, and tuxedos and capes cut for women as well as men, part of a menswear line the house is expanding.

Zuhair Murad took fantasy into a darker garden, with velvet roses, night larks, butterflies and feathered capes moving through deep green, burgundy and black.

Stéphane Rolland turned the mood to mourning.

He staged his show at the Olympia, the Paris hall where Dalida performed, and dressed the collection almost entirely in white in tribute to the singer nearly four decades after her death — satin macramé, ostrich feathers, agate and diamonds.

At Chanel, Blazy turned the Grand Palais into a fairy tale: beanstalks rising through the floor, heels shaped like pea pods and golden eggs.

At Dior, Anderson built a sculptural fantasy around American artist Lynda Benglis: crushed pleated hats, sheer tasseled fans and a wedding-gown finale trailing feathery fronds.

Hand versus machine

The third preoccupation was technology — and what survives of the handmade in an era when software can generate any image.

Schiaparelli made the case in the materials themselves: baked fish scales, pools of paint set into sheets and silicone shaped by hand, a collection that read as an argument for the made-by-hand against the machine-made.

Van Herpen went literal. She sent a dress through a particle accelerator, froze it and planned for the model to discharge lightning on the runway.

The charge escaped early, burning branching channels through the fabric before the show.

Balenciaga paired lab-grown Amsilk silk, which the house says is stronger than steel, with its all-human, white-coated bow to end the show.

By Thursday, the pattern was clear: couture in 2026 wanted the impossible — a body without a body, fantasy with commercial purpose, and machines that still bowed to the hand.

Mexican Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco's announcement Thursday morning further escalated tensions with the United States, as Mexico's government has sharply criticized the treatment of its citizens under U.S. President Donald Trump's push to increase deportations.

The request, which carries no legal weight, will be submitted to state prosecutors’ offices and the U.S. Department of Justice, asking them to consider criminal charges against those responsible for the deaths.

It will be accompanied by civil lawsuits against the companies that operate the detention centers in an effort to put an end to human rights violations in those facilities, Velasco said.

President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday that Mexico decided to “move beyond diplomatic channels” and escalate its complaints after an ICE agent killed Mexican citizen Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston this week. Sheinbaum said the killing “is not only sad and regrettable, but also appears to have been targeted.”

“We are going to do everything in our power, because we cannot stand silent” in the face of the deaths of Mexicans “whose only crime is working honestly in the United States,” Sheinbaum said.

Salgado Araujo had been living in the country for decades. He was transporting a work crew to a housing construction site when he was shot. His family demanded a thorough investigation into what happened.

According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, agents were pursuing him because he was living in the country without legal authorization. Salgado Araujo, the department added, was shot after disregarding orders and attempting to ram an agent, who fired his weapon in self-defense.

According to the Mexican government, 14 Mexicans have died while in ICE custody and 3 during ICE operations.

Until now, the Mexican government had supported the victims’ families, sent diplomatic notes to Washington demanding investigations, and raised the issue with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Sheinbaum earlier this year ordered consulates to regularly check in with ICE detainees, and her government even lodged a complaint with the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Mexico's latest request adds to an already strained relationship with the Trump administration. Sheinbaum has cracked down more fiercely than her predecessors on organized crime in the wake of mounting threats by Trump to take military action against cartels. She has also sought to keep an amicable relationship with her U.S. counterpart as the countries renegotiate the decades-old free trade agreement. At the same time, she's taken a strong stance on immigration enforcement and the rights of Mexican citizens in U.S. custody.

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Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Judge has not played since May 31 and went on the injured list June 5 with a stress fracture of his right rib after a CT scan, an MRI and a meeting with a specialist.

“I don’t think we want to put him at risk of coming back while still injured,” Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told reporters on Thursday. “He should be asymptomatic before we turn him loose. If he’s asymptomatic and not feeling anything and (medical images) are showing healing, then it’s probably appropriate to get him going again. But we don’t want to, because the schedule is what it is, put him in a position where we’re putting him in jeopardy where it somehow gets worse.”

The Yankees were 14-19 without Judge entering their series finale against the AL-East leading Tampa Bay Rays.

Cashman said the injury has restricted Judge’s ability to work out his upper body because he can’t put stress on his rib cage. The new images will give a better understanding of where he stands in his rehab process.

Cashman said slugger Giancarlo Stanton, who hasn't played since April 24 because of a right calf injury, injured the calf again, setting back his return. Cashman said the injury was a new strain to the calf. Stanton has resumed running.

Infielder George Lombard Jr., the Yankees' top prospect, is hitting and throwing again after spraining two fingers on his left hand last month. He's expected to resume playing in the minors around the All-Star break.

Right-hander Carlos Lagrange, another top prospect, will not throw for six weeks after suffering a right capsule strain. The team was getting Lagrange ready for a relief role before the injury.

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

The benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate rose to 6.49% from 6.43% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. One year ago, the average rate was 6.72%.

When mortgage rates rise they can add hundreds of dollars a month in costs for borrowers, reducing their purchasing power.

Mortgage rates have remained elevated after the average rate on a 30-year loan briefly dropped below 6% in February for the first time since late 2022. It then climbed in May to its highest level in nine months. The uptick in mortgage rates has weighed on home sales this year.

Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, often sought by borrowers refinancing a home loan, also rose this week. That average rate increased to 5.82% from 5.79% last week. A year ago, it was at 5.86%, Freddie Mac said.

Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, from the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy decisions to bond market investors’ expectations for the economy and inflation. They generally follow the trajectory of the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing home loans.

Expectations of hotter inflation amid higher crude oil prices have pushed up long-term bond yields relative to where they were before the war with Iran began in late February, causing mortgage rates to trend higher.

The 10-year Treasury yield was at 4.55% at midday Thursday on the bond market, up from 4.49% a week ago. It was just 3.97% in late February, before the war broke out.

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage is now back to where it was two weeks ago.

While average long-term mortgage rates remain lower than they were at this time last year, uncertainty about their trajectory amid the war with Iran has kept many would-be homebuyers on the sideline.

Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes declined in the first three months of the year compared to a year earlier, extending a nationwide housing slump that dates back to 2022 when mortgage rates began to climb from pandemic-era lows.

Through the first half of this year, seasonally adjusted sales of existing U.S. homes are up only 0.7% compared to the same period in 2025, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Still, sales of existing U.S. homes continue to hover close to a 4-million annual pace, far short of the historic norm that is closer to 5.2-million.

“I found that in the previous iteration of the shell, I was having to wear protective earplugs quite a lot,” the cellist said. “There was a desire to make the stage clearer and a bit softer for us.”

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra's summer home, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) north of the city, starts its season Saturday night with chief conductor Marin Alsop leading a program with pianist Yunchan Lim and flutist Lizzo. A crowd of up to 12,758 can fill the pavilion and lawn in Highland Park, Illinois.

Venue has hosted music for more than a century

Ravinia opened in 1904 and its first pavilion was built the following year. That one burned down in 1949 and was replaced the following year by a structure used through 2024 with only modest modifications.

A geometric Arts and Crafts style pattern found in the windows of the Martin Theatre, which dates to Ravinia’s opening, inspired the design of the stage ceiling and walls made of rigid foam clad with 3M vinyl. Threshold Acoustics consulted with Taylor and flute and piccolo player Jennifer Gunn.

“The 1950 pavilion is iconic, particularly the roof line,” Ravinia president Jeffrey Haydon said. “And so we want to have audiences return to the renovated pavilion feeling like it’s the new model version of the classic pavilion that they love.”

A total of 335,500 tickets for all events were sold for the 2025 season and 94 programs are scheduled for this summer.

The pavilion's capacity was lowered from 3,350 to 2,840 as wider seats were installed and made compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. LED lights have lowered the stage temperature, and nine ventilation fans were installed to push hot air through the ceiling.

Alsop also hoped for a cooler sound.

“The amplitude — is that the right word? — of sound on stage can get very, very hot. It’s really loud sometimes and it’s especially loud in the area of the brass,” she said. “One of the big acoustical improvements that I hope they’ve addressed is trying to spread out that.”

Alsop first conducted at Ravinia in 2002 and became chief conductor in 2020. At the first rehearsal Wednesday, she led Mahler's Sixth Symphony, a work the CSO will perform on July 23. Acoustical panels over the stage were folded up midway through the practice session, softening the brass. Overall sounds were more diffused than before, when there were hot and cold spots.

“Ravinia Festival offers their patrons many different kinds of performances from classical music to big rock bands, recitals, occasionally movie nights with the orchestra playing along,” said Michael Barnes of Lohan Architecture, the design architect for the pavilion renovation. “The stage has to be very flexible in terms of how it is configured for those different kinds of performances. So the stage walls, some of them move.”

Outdoor venues have a more relaxed atmosphere

Haydon, who became Ravinia's president in 2020, planned the reconstruction with ideas he learned from previous outdoor venues where he worked, including the Aspen Music Festival, the Ojai Music Festival and the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts. A women's locker room was built for the orchestra along with piano storage, practice rooms, offices and a new music library.

“We actually dug underground,” he said. “We expanded underneath the audience area, and we also dug out the crawl space of the adjoining administrative building to grab more space.”

A private concert was scheduled for this Friday for an audience of construction workers, the design team, elected officials, donors and staff of the festival and the CSO.

Ensconced in auditoriums for much of the year, orchestras experience a different vibe when they head outdoors for the summer.

“It’s more family oriented,” Alsop said. “People come with their picnics and a lot of the musicians bring their families with them to picnic. So I think it’s a much more relaxed and receptive attitude.”

On the day nominations opened in the election to replace Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Burnham secured the support of 322 of the 403 Labour members of Parliament, far exceeding the 81 needed to run.

That makes it almost impossible for another legislator to get enough support to challenge him, a prospect that was already unlikely.

Burnham said on social media that he was “deeply grateful” for the support of Labour MPs, which “reflects a shared belief that Britain needs a new approach to politics.”

Throughout the day, lawmakers trudged up a narrow staircase to a Labour office in the Parliament building to sign nomination papers for Burnham, who has gone from being mayor of Greater Manchester to leader-in-waiting in the space of a few weeks.

“It's all starting to feel very real,” Burnham said in a social media video, confirming that he had nominated himself.

Nominations remain open until July 16. Burnham is highly likely to be announced as Labour's new leader the following day, and become prime minister after a meeting with King Charles III on July 20.

Britain's parliamentary democracy allows governing parties to change leaders, and thus prime ministers, without the need for a general election. The next national election does not have to be held until 2029.

Other potential contenders have all ruled themselves out. Former Defense Minister Al Carns, who had been considering a run, confirmed late Wednesday that he will not challenge Burnham.

“I’d hoped a leadership contest would give us the opportunity for a proper debate,” Carns said in a statement. “But months of internal Labour politics isn’t what the country needs right now. We’ve got to get on with the job. Andy Burnham’s earned this and he’s got my full backing.”

Starmer announced last month that he would resign as soon as his center-left party chose a successor. He was elected in a landslide in July 2024, but quit after two years in office marred by missteps and judgment errors that eroded his standing with his party and the public.

Burnham spent almost a decade running Greater Manchester, in northwest England, before returning to Parliament by winning a special election last month.

He’s promising sweeping change, vowing to reverse almost two decades of low growth since the 2008 financial crisis through an approach dubbed “Manchesterism” — harnessing private and public money to invest in areas like transport, housing and infrastructure.

But he will face many of the same political and economic challenges as Starmer, including a sluggish economy, overstretched health care and welfare systems and a cost-of-living squeeze.

He also promised continuity in foreign policy, and that the government’s “commitment to NATO and the U.K.’s nuclear deterrent will remain absolute.” Writing in The Times of London on Thursday, he said Britain will remain a firm ally of the United States and a strong supporter of Ukraine.

But in an implicit criticism of Starmer, Burnham later said Labour “didn’t get it right” at the start of Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza. In a video message, Burnham condemned the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on southern Israel by Hamas militants, who killed around 1,200 people and took 251 others hostage.

Burnham also said the British government had been “too slow to call for a ceasefire” in the conflict that has left 73,110 Palestinians dead, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which is part of the Hamas-led government. The ministry is staffed by medical professionals who maintain detailed records viewed as generally reliable by United Nations agencies and independent experts.

He said the U.K. would consider “further sanctions, both on those involved in the violence in Gaza, but also looking at measures to ban trade in goods with illegal settlements.”

On July 22, from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m., we’ll be at the Southfield Public Library on Evergreen Road, where Henry Ford Health will be doing car seat inspections.

You can sign up ahead of time for a car seat inspection with Henry Ford Health. You can receive a free helmet from Free Bikes 4 Kidz Detroit while supplies last, receive a “safe rider” certificate and have a photo op with the Southfield Fire Department’s truck.

Viewers with an appointment can pull into the big loop in front of the library’s main entrance.

Click here to make an appointment.

• Who: WDIV is partnering with Henry Ford Health, the Southfield Fire Department and Free Bikes 4 Kidz Detroit.
• What: “Ride Safe” safety check event
• When: Wednesday, July 22, from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m.
• Where: Southfield Public Library, 26300 Evergreen Rd, Southfield, MI 48076
• Why: To promote safe riding

Dozens of Santas, Mrs. Clauses and elves from around the world have descended on Denmark's fourth-largest city for the Nordic nation’s annual World Santa Claus Congress, a colorful midsummer tradition for decades.

First staged at an amusement park near Copenhagen in 1957, the congress moved to Aalborg on Denmark’s Jutland peninsula two years ago. This year, the Santa suits looked a little stifling under the Danish summer sun.

The event, which marks its 70th anniversary next year, was created to entertain children, but became a popular gathering for Santas who appear in stores and shopping malls during the Yuletide season.

The gathering offers a chance for professional Santas — not the real one, of course! — to swap stories, compare beards, sharpen their craft and compete in lighthearted contests months before anyone checks naughty-or-nice lists for the Christmas rush.

The packed agenda features events like gingerbread eating, gift wrapping, balloon modeling, and several noisy parades.

“The grandmas say: ‘Oh, it’s too early to come here’," said organizer Peter Gislund, himself a Santa Claus in Aalborg during the Christmas season. “The kids say: 'Hooray! Santa’s here already'.”

Christmas as a state of mind, not just a season

Over the years, the annual four-day gathering has attracted Santas and Mrs. Clauses from as far away as Australia, Hong Kong, Canada and the United States.

Most of the three dozen or so Santas and Mrs. Clauses at the congress this week hail from Scandinavia, but some flew in — like Paradise Yamamoto from Tokyo.

“This is very fun, so many children … Ho, ho, ho!” said Yamamoto with a laugh after parading through Aalborg waving a Japanese flag and dancing to the song "Feliz Navidad” — one of many Christmas classics played during the event.

Robert Hercz, a 64-year-old Norwegian Santa from Oslo, said that despite their different nationalities, all Santas on hand share “a gene” — for generosity and spreading joy.

“You have it or you don’t,” said Hercz, who was attending the congress for the first time. “We have the true Santa spirit. And it’s all about giving, sharing, and putting a little bit of joy in people’s hearts.”

It’s not all ho-ho-ing and belly rubs.

“When Santas are together, they always mingle and talk a little bit,” said Gislund. “Maybe I put a little bit of sparkle in the beard and so on. That’s the good part of meeting some Santas from all over the world.”

For Simon Brøns, a 33-year-old Danish Santa, the event is proof that the festive spirit isn’t just for Christmas.

“Christmas is not a season. It’s a feeling you have in your stomach," he said with a smile. "So if you want, you can have Christmas the whole year.”

The newspapers allege the ChatGPT maker is hiding evidence important to what could be a landmark copyright infringement trial over how OpenAI and its business partner, Microsoft, built their AI technologies using millions of news articles. At issue is whether AI chatbots are unfairly competing as an information source, siphoning off web traffic without doing the journalistic work involved in gathering the news.

A filing Thursday in a Manhattan federal courthouse alleges OpenAI “chose obstruction” over releasing datasets and ChatGPT logs that could show how the AI system used copyrighted news content. The plaintiffs are asking the judge to penalize the company for "discovery misconduct” that could distort evidence, saying the recent deposition of an OpenAI employee contradicts the company's earlier claims.

New York Daily News attorney Steven Lieberman said OpenAI has been "making misrepresentations" for two years about its ability to search for copyrighted content in its AI training datasets and logs.

“This motion asks the court to punish OpenAI for hiding and destroying evidence showing how ChatGPT was trained on stolen journalism,” said Lieberman, who represents the Daily News and seven of its sister papers.

OpenAI has described its limitations in sharing ChatGPT logs as a measure to protect user privacy.

“As the Times’ case weakens and they’ve been forced to drop claims against us, they’re persisting with their efforts to invade the privacy of people who have nothing to do with this case, including by making these blatantly false allegations,” said a statement Thursday from OpenAI spokesperson Drew Pusateri. "We’ll continue defending our users’ privacy and the long-established principles of fair use.”

The New York Times sued OpenAI and Microsoft in late 2023, about a year after ChatGPT's debut sparked a commercial AI boom and began changing the way people search for information online. The threat to news publications became even more apparent when Google in 2024 introduced AI-generated summaries at the top of online search results, cutting off the advertising dollars that come when people click a link to the information's original source.

The Times has since been joined by other news organizations, including MediaNews Group-owned newspapers the Daily News and the Chicago Tribune, digital media publisher Ziff Davis and the nonprofit Center for Investigative Reporting.

OpenAI and other tech companies have argued the process of training their AI systems on digitized books, online articles and other writings found on the internet is protected by the “fair use” doctrine of U.S. copyright law. It's a theory being tested in dozens of lawsuits as visual artists, novelists, music record labels and other creative industries take AI companies to court, with mixed results.

In the case involving the biggest copyright settlement so far, OpenAI rival Anthropic agreed to pay book authors $1.5 billion for training its chatbot Claude on their pirated works — an amount that represents a small fraction of Anthropic's $965 billion market valuation as it prepares to become publicly traded.

The New York Times' arguments are different from those brought by book authors. In its original lawsuit and an amended complaint filed last month, it focused on the unfair competition of companies that “seek to free-ride on The Times’s massive investment in its journalism by using it to build substitutive products without permission or payment.”

The Times has already spent more than $28 million on fighting AI companies in court, according to filings with financial regulators that disclose its litigation costs. The costs include another lawsuit the newspaper filed last year against AI company Perplexity. Among the sanctions sought by the newspapers Thursday are attorney fees that would pay for the efforts to secure “improperly withheld” evidence.

The mounting costs come as a growing number of media organizations have signed licensing deals with OpenAI and other AI companies such as Google and Facebook parent Meta that typically pay the outlet a fee to be able to train AI systems on their news feeds or archives. The Associated Press was the first to announce such a deal with OpenAI in 2023.

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O'Brien reported from Providence, Rhode Island.

United said the new stadium would be situated around 350 meters northwest of its existing Old Trafford stadium.

As part of a wider stadium district, the Premier League club said the entire project would create 48,000 local jobs, 15,000 new homes and potentially generate 7.3 billion pounds ($9.8 billion) a year for the UK economy.

“Together with our partners, we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to deliver a destination that creates lasting benefits for supporters, local communities and the wider region for decades to come,” Collette Roche, CEO of United’s new stadium development, said. “We are committed to building a world-class stadium with our supporters, not simply for them.”

United's part owner Jim Ratcliffe has made it a mission to deliver the “world’s greatest” soccer stadium.

When plans were first unveiled last year it was estimated it would cost around 2 billion pounds ($2.6 billion) to build a stadium to surpass Wembley as the biggest in the United Kingdom, with completion in time for the 2030-31 season.

Initial stadium drawings included a structure with three spires. The final design has not been determined.

Wembley is currently the biggest stadium in the U.K., with a capacity of 90,000, and is home to England’s national soccer teams.

Old Trafford is the country’s biggest dedicated soccer stadium with a capacity of just over 74,000, but is dated in comparison to the likes of the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, which regularly hosts NFL games.

Old Trafford, which was bombed during World War II, has been home to United since 1910.

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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

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

A top Ukrainian official, meanwhile, cautioned that it could take a year or more for the country to produce Patriot interceptor missiles.

The Kremlin said the license deal reflected what it called Washington's “ambivalence” but noted it appreciated Trump’s efforts to help broker a peace deal to end the war, which Russia launched over four years ago.

Ukraine's drone strikes on oil refineries and other infrastructure across Russia have triggered a widespread fuel crisis with gasoline shortages and rationing in multiple regions and motorists waiting for hours to fill their tanks. Moscow has responded by intensifying its bombardment on Kyiv and other cities, exposing Ukraine's vulnerability to ballistic missile strikes.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the latest strikes on Russia's infrastructure as part of Kyiv’s campaign of “long-range sanctions” carried out in response to Moscow's refusal to halt the fighting.

“We have long proposed that Russia end this war, and every day of delay should bring the feeling of war to where it all began — to Russia,” Zelenskyy said.

Ukraine hits oil depots in western Russia and tankers at sea

A Ukrainian drone strike sparked a fire at an oil depot in the western Russian city of Tver, according to acting Gov. Vitaly Korolyov. Oil reservoirs also were set ablaze by drones in Vyazniki, in the southern Stavropol region, said Gov. Vladimir Vladimirov, forcing the evacuation of nearby apartment buildings.

In the Sea of Azov, Ukrainian drones set two oil tankers on fire, according to Rostov Gov. Yuri Slusar, who said one of the ships was still burning and its crew evacuated.

It was the latest in a series of strikes on oil tankers in recent days, part of Ukrainian efforts to cut fuel supplies to the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia illegally annexed in 2014.

In addition to the Stavropol and Tver facilities, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian forces hit fuel infrastructure deep inside Russia, including one in Ufa, as well as an oil-loading terminal in the Rostov region closer to Ukraine.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said its defenses downed 73 Ukrainian drones from late Wednesday into early Thursday.

Ukraine's air force said Russia fired 94 long-range strike drones and two ballistic missiles. While 72 drones were jammed or intercepted, 19 drones and both missiles damaged 13 locations, it said.

Ukraine says its Patriot production will take months

During Wednesday’s meeting with Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Turkey, Trump said the U.S. will meet a longstanding request from Ukraine and give it a license to make the Patriot air defense systems. He also praised Zelenskyy for doing "an amazing job” — a sharp change in tone from past criticisms of the Ukrainian leader.

But setting up domestic production of the mobile, surface-to-air systems will take many months, said Serhii Beskrestnov, an adviser to Ukraine’s defense minister.

A production license would typically come with technical process documentation, training for specialists, supplier contacts and foreign consultants to help launch manufacturing, Beskrestnov wrote on his Telegram channel.

The main obstacle would be time, rather than Ukraine’s technical or organizational capacity, he added.

Recent media reports pointed to two likely bottlenecks: the long production cycle for some subcontracted components, which could take 12 to 24 months, and limited global output of key parts, including components from Boeing and L3Harris, Beskrestnov added.

The Pentagon had signed contracts to expand production capacity, he said, but added that the timeline for those contracts to translate into increased output remained unclear.

“America has recognized Ukraine as a country that is ready to do this,” Zelenskyy said Thursday, answering reporters' questions on WhatsApp. "Now, after our agreement with the president, our teams, our diplomats, the foreign ministries and defense ministries need to agree on all the remaining technical details. The sooner we reach those agreements, the sooner we will be able to produce Patriots.”

Germany also has a license to produce Patriot systems, and in 2022, Raytheon and MBDA Deutschland announced they planned to manufacture Patriot GEM-T missiles in the country, according to a news release at the time. The goal was to produce them in a German facility and ultimately provide them to other European allies.

The facility is expected to open in September with its first missiles scheduled to be delivered next year, with Ukraine as the first recipient, according to Defense Express, an online Ukrainian military-oriented publication.

The Kremlin says Ukrainian strikes won't hasten peace

Commenting on Trump’s statement about the Patriot licenses, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov offered a vague response, saying Moscow is aware of the U.S. military support for Ukraine but appreciates Washington’s declared commitment to help achieve peace.

“The U.S. position is somewhat ambivalent,” Peskov said in a call with reporters. “Still, unlike the Europeans, the United States maintains a desire to facilitate a move toward a peace process. They may be misguided or mistaken at times, but we see that desire as sincere. We welcome it, and we hope that once the Americans manage to resolve the situation regarding Iran despite the significant complications involved their efforts on the Ukrainian track will resume.”

Asked about Trump’s comment that Ukrainian attacks inside Russia could hasten a peace settlement, Peskov reaffirmed that the more strikes Kyiv launches, the broader “security zone” Moscow will seek to carve out in Ukraine via what the Kremlin calls its “special military operation.”

“It’s a mistake to think that escalation and military pressure could pave the way to a peaceful settlement,” he said. “Further escalation may prolong the special military operation, we can’t say precisely to what extent, but it will force us to create a larger security zone, a larger buffer zone.”

Ukraine has urged the U.S. and other allies to provide binding security guarantees as part of any prospective peace deal, including the deployment of NATO forces. Russia has strongly warned against the presence of any NATO troops in Ukraine, saying it would view them as legitimate targets.

Asked Wednesday if he would be ready to enact a no-fly zone over Ukraine as part of security guarantees, Trump responded by saying “if it’s necessary, yeah,” but he argued it might not be needed if a peace deal is reached.

“When we have a deal, we’re going to have a deal, security guarantee or no security guarantee,” Trump said as he sat next to Zelenskyy.

Commenting on the issue, Peskov warned that an attempt to establish a no-fly zone would amount to “NATO military forces being active on the territory of Ukraine -- exactly what the special military operation is being waged against.”

Peskov said President Vladimir Putin is “open to dialogue” and ready for another phone call with Trump.

The crash happened at around 10 p.m. on July 8 on Middlebelt Road north of Northwestern Highway.

Authorities say upon arrival police performed lifesaving measures on the woman until fire department paramedics arrived and took over care.

Police say, the 55-year old woman from Warren was taken to Corewell Health Hospital Farmington Hills, where she died from her injuries.

The driver of the car remained at the scene and has fully cooperated with the investigation.

Investigators say they determined that a car traveling north on Middlebelt Road struck the pedestrian walking in the roadway.

The crash remains under investigation.

Anyone with information is urged to call the Farmington Hills Police Department at 248-871-2610.

Pulisic has a bone bruise and a microfracture of his tibia and fibula, the U.S. Soccer Federation said Thursday. The diagnosis was made after an X-ray and MRI on Tuesday.

He would not have been able to play during the remainder of the tournament had the U.S. advanced.

Pulisic is expected to resume training before AC Milan's Serie A opener at Torino on Aug. 23.

Pulisic hit a leg of Belgium captain Youri Tielemans while attempting a shot in the 52nd minute of Monday's 4-1 round-of-16 loss at Seattle. He remained in the game but was hobbling and Sebastian Berhalter replaced him in the 59th minute.

Pulisic failed to score in the World Cup, missing one of the Americans' five matches because of a calf injury and leaving two other games early. He has 30 goals in 90 international appearances.

Pulisic, who turns 28 in September, is entering his fourth season with Milan.

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

One traveler breezes through a priority security lane and heads straight to an invite-only lounge for craft cocktails and a chef-prepared meal before boarding early. A flight attendant offering a glass of champagne and a warm hand towel welcomes the passenger to a spacious seat at the front of the plane.

The other traveler stands in a line at every step — security screening, a café selling $16 sandwiches, a crowded gate — then boards with one of the final groups, hoping there’s still room for a carry-on in the overhead bin before folding into a cramped middle seat. After the cabin lights dim, sleep comes in fragments, and a travel pillow does little to ease a stiff neck.

The contrasting journeys are no accident. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the largest U.S. airlines have pulled out all the stops to court premium passengers who are willing to pay for comfort, convenience and exclusivity. Budget-conscious travelers may notice a widening gap between the back of the plane and up front as the carriers increasingly build their businesses around selling first-class, business-class and premium-economy seats.

“We can’t win by trying to provide the cheapest. We have to be able to win by providing the best," Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said in a recent Fortune podcast interview.

The strategy embraced by Delta and rivals American Airlines and United Airlines marks a notable evolution for an industry that spent decades making air travel more accessible. Now, the nation's largest carriers are reconfiguring aircraft to expand premium seating, designing new fleets with larger premium cabins and investing billions in amenities that extend the top-tier travel treatment beyond their jetliners.

But United CEO Scott Kirby has pushed back on the idea that the industry has become solely focused on chasing big spenders. He said United’s premium investments are part of a broader strategy to boost the experience of every traveler, pointing to initiatives such as seatback entertainment and improvements to the airline’s mobile app.

“We’re investing nose to tail for all customers,” Kirby said last month on financial firm Morgan Stanley’s Exceptional Leaders podcast.

Premium cabins have become airlines’ most valuable real estate

The premium playbook didn’t emerge overnight.

Airlines used to fill empty first-class seats mainly by giving their most loyal frequent flyers free upgrades. Delta rewrote the rules in the early 2010s by using sophisticated pricing tools to offer more of those seats to coach passengers who were willing to pay a little more, said Henry Harteveldt, president of travel advisory firm Atmosphere Research Group.

The strategy unlocked demand airlines hadn’t fully recognized and encouraged more travelers to trade up, laying the groundwork for today’s broader premium push.

“Travelers could and would pay for noticeably more comfort, noticeably better service, noticeably more amenities — if the price was right,” Harteveldt said.

Then came the pandemic. When business travel collapsed and Zoom replaced many corporate trips, airline analysts wondered whether carriers would once again have to lure travelers with cheap fares. Instead, eager leisure travelers proved willing to splurge on premium seats and perks, convincing airlines that demand extended well beyond the traditional business road warrior, Harteveldt said.

Premium demand is now a fixture of investor calls, with airline executives regularly touting premium revenue as they compete for higher-spending travelers.

“When you think about what’s different and what’s changed over the last 10 or 15 years, the premium products used to be loss leaders, and now they’re the highest-margin products," then-Delta President Glen Hauenstein said last summer. “That’s really the headline.”

Analysts say premium cabins — a category that expanded with the introduction of premium economy seats featuring more legroom and amenities — now generate a disproportionate share of revenue compared with the space they take up on commercial aircraft.

On heavily trafficked transatlantic routes, business-class tickets alone can bring in nearly as much revenue as the much larger economy cabin, according to an analysis by consulting firm McKinsey & Company.

Airlines are competing with chef-designed menus and high-end skin care

The premiumization of air travel has become impossible to miss, even for travelers who only get a glimpse through an airport lounge door or while walking down an airplane aisle.

Delta’s newest lounges resemble upscale restaurants, with open kitchens plating dishes such as hamachi crudo, cocktail bars serving made-to-order drinks, soundproof relaxation pods and outdoor decks overlooking the tarmac.

American has partnered with the James Beard Foundation to refresh its lounge menus. For long-haul international flights, the airline redesigned its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners around business-class compartments featuring sliding privacy doors, lie-flat seats longer than a standard twin mattress and amenity kits that can include a celebrity facialist’s brand of sheet masks and under-eye patches.

United’s newest business-class cubicles add 27-inch entertainment screens, caviar service and multi-course dining on long-haul international services. The airline said its revamped menus “feature flavors and dishes” inspired by cities across its network.

“Marie Antoinette would feel very comfortable on any of the big three airlines these days,” said William J. McGee, senior fellow for aviation at the American Economic Liberties Project. “But instead of saying, ‘Let them eat cake’ in the back of the plane, she would say, ‘Let them eat Biscoffs.’”

Air travel is getting more stratified as fuel costs increase fares

As airlines look for more ways to make money from premium cabins, their push to attract higher-paying passengers shows no loss of momentum. On board Delta’s next-generation Airbus A350-1000 aircraft arriving in 2027, nearly half the cabin will be devoted to premium seating. American has said it plans to expand premium cabins by 50% by the end of the decade.

That push is also changing how airlines sell those seats. Delta announced Wednesday new “basic” fares for its premium cabins that offer a lower-priced way into the front of a plane but require travelers to forgo perks like seat selection and lounge access. United rolled out similar tiered fares in its premium cabins earlier this year.

Yet the new era of luxury in the skies is unfolding alongside a very different reality for other U.S. travelers as broader inflationary pressures have added to the strain on household budgets.

New York-based travel advisor Mary Auteri said more of her clients are “experiencing sticker shock” as fares and add-on fees have gotten more expensive since the Iran war broke out and pushed up the price of jet fuel, one of the largest operating costs for airlines.

A group of friends in their 20s recently asked Auteri to price out flights to the sugar-white sand beaches of Punta Cana, a resort town in the Dominican Republic. After she sent them an itinerary, they said they had found what looked like the same flights on Google Flights for more than $100 less.

But the cheaper fares were basic economy tickets that excluded seat assignments, checked bags and flexibility to change plans. Once those costs were added back in, the trip no longer fit their budget.

Add-on costs fall heaviest on economy travelers, McGee said. For wealthier travelers, those fees may amount to little more than an inconvenience. For others, they can determine whether a trip happens at all.

“The idea that we’re all created equal? Not in the airlines’ eyes," McGee said. “Not by any means.”

The 80-year-old-woman chose to remain anonymous.

“I was bored one night after my husband went to bed, so I logged on to my Lottery account to play some games,” said the woman. “Right off the bat I won around $700, so I used my winnings to play some more.”

The woman says she was about to log off when she won the jackpot.

“I woke my husband up and told him, but he didn’t believe me, so I ended up calling the Lottery to make sure it was real,” said the women.

The women recently visited Lottery headquarters to claim the prize.

With her winnings, she plans to take a trip and then save the remainder.

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

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

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

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

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

A legacy worth celebrating

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

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

Johnson's trajectory started from humble beginnings.

He was born in 1927 in Richton, Mississippi. Johnson’s mother, Priscilla Dean Johnson, was just 18 when she left her husband, took her children to Chicago and found a job at a local hospital, said Hilary Beard, a Philadelphia-based author who worked with Johnson on his memoir.

Their move occurred during what’s known as the First Great Migration, between 1910 and 1940, when tens of thousands of southern Black people moved to northern and Midwestern cities for jobs and to escape racial oppression.

“There was just enough money for food, clothing and shelter, but not for anything extra,” Beard said.

Johnson and his older brother, John, would collect cigarette packages, peel out the aluminum linings, roll them into balls and sell them to people who collected junk for resale, Beard said. Johnson also shined shoes, cleared tables in eateries and set up pins in a bowling alley.

A source of pride and inspiration

As an adult, Johnson worked for the Black-owned Fuller Products Co. in Chicago. Beard said Johnson met a barber who was distraught because he couldn't convince Fuller to back a product he was developing that straightened men's hair. The drawback was the product burned the scalp.

Johnson worked with Fuller's chemist to revamp the barber's formula and started his business after ultimately convincing a bank he needed a $250 loan to take his wife on a vacation, Beard said. That business would become Johnson Products.

Johnson's company offered above-market salaries, profit-sharing for its workers, healthcare and other benefits at a time when many companies didn’t provide such perks, Beard added. Johnson Products was sold in 1993 to a pharmaceutical firm in a deal worth more than $60 million.

Johnson later founded Independence Bank and became the first Black person to serve on the board of directors of the Illinois electric utility Commonwealth Edison. The George E. Johnson Educational Fund awarded more than 1,000 college scholarships.

Rogers remembers his father taking him to Independence Bank to open a checking account and being awed that Johnson owned it.

“That was just so impressive to me that he would start the largest Black bank in the country" which helped Black entrepreneurs, homeowners and anyone who needed assistance as they were building their lives, Rogers said.

The Golden Rule

Though Johnson is gone, the lessons he imparted continue to shape the family’s future.

Eric Johnson, who served as CEO, left Johnson Products Company in 1992. He said he purchased Baldwin Ice Cream in 1997, intending to keep the company in the family for generations to come. Eric Johnson officially retired from Baldwin Richardson Foods on May 9 after successfully transitioning ownership to his daughters, Erin Tolefree and Cara Hughes.

“He saw his children come along and be successful, and now his grandchildren being successful,” Eric Johnson said.

Eric Johnson isn't the only one who sees that legacy continuing. Rogers points to the company’s third generation of leadership as evidence.

“Eric’s positioned his kids who are now running the business day-to-day. So it’s a third generation, which is remarkable. They’re doing so well," Rogers said.

Johnson’s memoir, “Afro Sheen: How I Revolutionized an Industry with the Golden Rule, from Soul Train to Wall Street,” was published in 2024.

Being fair and treating people the way you want to be treated was Johnson's golden rule, according to his son. And it's a cherished piece of advice that Eric Johnson said his father instilled in him.

"And it’s a foundation that was established in him as a child by his mother, that he established in all of us,” he said.

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This story has been updated to restore the first reference to John W. Rogers.

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Williams reported from Detroit.

The new attraction covers 1,100 linear feet of track on the same footprint as its predecessor, but with one notable change: no loop.

“We deleted the loop because we found a lot of people don’t like to go upside down,” said David Dalpizzol, vice president of C.J. Barrymore’s.

Dalpizzol described the new ride as a “classic family coaster,” with a big drop and speed-building sections designed to thrill without overwhelming younger or more cautious riders. “The whole design is family-oriented, so it’s not too scary,” he said.

The coaster was manufactured in Italy and arrived after more than a year in production - and three months behind schedule. Dalpizzol placed a deposit in December 2024, with manufacturing consuming all of 2025. “It came from Italy,” he said, “and there’s a process with the shipping and the manufacturing, so it does take a little time. They’re not just on the shelf that you can pull off and ship there.”

The early response from guests has been strong. “A lot of people that were hesitant to ride the loop coaster came out and tried this one out,” Dalpizzol said, noting riders appreciate “the difference of not going upside down.”

The Coaster is now open at C.J. Barrymore’s in Clinton Township as part of the venue’s summer season lineup.

Live in the D broadcast a full hour from C.J. Barrymore’s to highlight all the new and exciting things happening at the amusement park. Check out the video at the top of this article – and the videos at the end of this article to watch all the segments.

If you’d like more information about hours or tickets, visit cjbarrymores.com.

Keyshawn Elijah James Rucker, 19, was charged with one count of reckless driving causing death — punishable by up to 15 years in prison if convicted — for fatally striking a 33-year-old man with his vehicle.

Police say the accident happened around 5:40 a.m. Feb. 28 on Grand River Avenue near St. Mary’s Street. Rucker waited at the scene and cooperated with law enforcement.

Rucker, who has no prior convictions, was a newly graduated police cadet at the time of the crash. He has since been named a probationary police officer with DPD, but resigned from the department on April 6, court records show.

A $50,000 personal bond was issued for his release, and he will be due back in court for a probable cause conference at 8:30 a.m. July 15.

The 24th-ranked Iwai had eight birdies and no dropped shots in the sun-splashed lakeside town that three weeks ago hosted the G7 summit of world leaders.

Japan's Iwai made birdies at three of the last four holes, including the par-5 18th, and led by two shots from Perrine Delacour, whose 6-under 65 included an eagle at the par-5 15th and a pair of bogeys toward the end of her round.

A group of five players with 5-under 66s included the winner of the Women’s PGA Championship two weeks ago, Haeran Ryu, and world No. 5 Charley Hull, who started the week as a guest in the Royal Box at Wimbledon.

Hull had two early bogeys before making the turn at level par, then came home in just 31 shots capped by an eagle at the par-5 18th. Also on 5 under were Mao Saigo, Maja Stark and Jin Hee Im.

Korda struggles

It was a tough day at Evian Resort Golf Club for Korda, who won the first two majors this season — the Chevron Championship and the U.S. Women’s Open.

Korda was 11 shots back with a 3-over 74, including a doubly bogey six at the first hole, which she played as her 10th.

Celine Boutier, the 2023 champion at Evian, had a bigger problem at No. 1. She started with a triple bogey 7 and later made back-to-back double bogey 6s on Nos. 10 and 11. Boutier birdied the 18th to card a 5-over 76.

The Evian Championship has been the fifth women's major since the 2013 edition and now has a $9.1 million prize money fund.

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