The deal will give Fox access to the Roku channel, first-party data and more than 100 million global streaming households. Fox oversees a massive media network that includes sports, news and entertainment, as well as Tubi.

The companies said Monday that Roku will continue t be run as an open, partner-friendly platform. Fox and Roku said that the combined company will become the third-largest player in U.S. television by share of viewing.

Fox will pay $96 in cash and 0.9693 shares of its Class A common stock for each Roku Class A and Class B share outstanding. The transaction is valued at $160 per Roku share.

Existing Fox shareholders are expected to own approximately 73% of the combined company and Roku shareholders will own about 27%, once the deal closes.

The deal is expected to close in the first half of next year. It still needs approval from Fox and Roku shareholders and also regulatory approval.

Fox's stock declined before the market open, while shares of Roku rose nearly 3%.

Three babies between 2 and 5 months became ill in April and May in California, Pennsylvania and Washington after consuming Nara Organics Whole Milk Organic Powdered infant formula, which is also sold on Nara.com, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said.

They were hospitalized and treated with the FDA-approved treatment for infant botulism, the agency said.

Infant botulism is a rare but serious illness that occurs in babies under age 1, whose gut microbiomes are immature. It is caused when infants consume bacteria with spores that produce a toxin in the gut.

Symptoms include constipation, poor feeding, drooping eyelids, weak muscle tone, difficulty swallowing and breathing problems, among others.

Babies who develop those symptoms need immediate medical attention. The sole treatment is BabyBIG, an IV medication made from blood plasma of people immunized against botulism.

Nara Organics Whole Milk Organic Infant Formula makes up less than 1% of all infant formula sold in the United States, and the outbreak does not create shortage concerns for parents and caregivers, the FDA said.

People who have the formula are urged to stop using it immediately, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control said in a statement. The formula is manufactured in Europe but sold only in the U.S., it added.

The CDC recommended that anyone with an opened can take a picture, record the lot number and use-by date and watch their infants for symptoms.

“Label it ‘DO NOT USE’ and keep it stored in a safe place away from other items you feed your baby for at least a month,” the CDC said. “If no symptoms appear after a month, throw the leftover formula away.”

For roughly 250,000 filers, they’re still waiting for their refunds.

The Michigan Department of Treasury reports roughly 95 percent of returns filed on time have been processed.

Since the filing season opened January 26, more than 5.12 million individual income tax returns have been processed and more than $3.43 billion in refunds issued with an average refund of $901.

That means about five percent of filers — an estimated 250,000 people — are still waiting for their refunds.

Previous coverage --> Waiting on a Michigan tax refund? Here’s why it may be stuck in ‘pending review’

New system, new headaches

The source of many delays traces back to November, when the Treasury retired its 40-year-old mainframe and switched to GenTax, a tax processing platform made by Fast Enterprises.

Melissa “Missy” Snyder, division administrator in the Individual Income Tax Division, says the overhaul was long overdue, but that doesn’t mean it came without growing pains.

“We came off a mainframe system that was 40 years old,” Snyder said. “When you transition from something that’s four decades old, there’s a lot that comes with it — not just the technology. There’s training, there’s learning curves, there are interfaces with other groups like IRS files that we get.”

Snyder compared the transition to upgrading from an outdated device to the latest smartphone.

“The best analogy I can give is we went from a flip phone to an iPhone 15,” she said.

Why returns are getting flagged

Treasury officials say the new system is significantly more sophisticated than its predecessor and that’s part of why so many returns are being held up.

The upgraded platform performs detailed, line-by-line evaluation of returns, flagging discrepancies the old mainframe may have missed. Missing data fields, mismatched information or math that doesn’t add up can all trigger a manual review.

“So, the delays that people are experiencing are related to either incomplete, incorrect or information that just doesn’t make sense,” Snyder said. “It might be complete on the form, but the math isn’t math-ing as we’re trying to work through the returns.”

The new system also introduced stronger fraud protections, something Snyder says was a driving reason for the upgrade.

“One of the major changes that we made with this technology update is a lot of support to prevent fraud,” she said. “We have to be conscious of people’s identities being stolen, tax preparer credentials being stolen. When the initial return doesn’t pass that eye test, if you will, we will stop and we will ask for more information.”

David Yesh, a retired Navy Reserve officer from the Detroit area, filed his Michigan return electronically on March 18. Weeks passed with no refund and no explanation.

“I filed my return and it was accepted 64 days ago,” Yesh said during a mid-May interview. “I don’t know, 30 or so days ago I called to find out where it was. Couldn’t talk to a live person, but I got a message that my return was still under review — with no explanation about what it was being under review for.”

Yesh said he was told his return would be completed by May 13. When that date came and went, the automated message remained unchanged.

“On May 13, I called, I got the same message,” he said. “May 14, I call, same message saying that my review will be completed by May 13.”

Yesh, who says he’s been filing Michigan taxes for 50 years, including three years while stationed in Japan, called the lack of communication the most frustrating part.

“If the state made an error, they need to own up to it, communicate what the problem is and what’s being done to fix it,” he said. “If it is just a problem with my return, then be able to communicate with me and let me know what error you found or what information you need to resolve that error.”

State lawmakers taking notice

Yesh isn’t alone. State Rep. Erin Byrnes, D-Dearborn, says her office has fielded complaints from roughly 15 constituents in Dearborn and Dearborn Heights who are still waiting on refunds, it’s a number she calls unprecedented.

“By the time we got to about five, the alarm bells started to ring,” Byrnes said. “Then it became 10, and then it got up to 15. We’ve been talking with other offices throughout this time period and we’re far from the only office. A lot of state reps are seeing this issue.”

Byrnes says she understands the real-world financial impact of delayed refunds.

“You’re banking on it — quite literally,” she said. “Months later, you’re still left waiting and you don’t really have any answers, and that’s not acceptable. We know that folks are being squeezed financially right now on a variety of fronts.”

Byrnes says her office has been in contact with Treasury but describes the process as challenging.

“We definitely need more communication from the Treasury Department, and we need to get a handle on this software system,” she said. “We know that other states are using the same software, and we’re trying to figure out why Michigan is struggling so much.”

27,000 erroneous letters sent

Compounding the confusion: Treasury acknowledged sending approximately 27,000 incorrect notices to taxpayers.

Snyder says the letters incorrectly suggested taxes were owed when they weren’t which stemmed from the result of a data-pull error during processing.

“The payments themselves were correct,” Snyder said. “They were accounted for on the financials, but when the letter was generated to the taxpayers, it pulled in the wrong data element. The letters themselves were wrong.”

Bob Doyle, president and CEO of the Michigan Association of CPAs, says the erroneous letters created a ripple effect for tax professionals across the state.

“There was these erroneous notices that were sent out to taxpayers,” Doyle said. “Of course, the first thing they’re going to do is call their CPA. That’s definitely how we’ve gotten involved in ensuring Treasury understands the issues.”

Doyle says the Michigan Association of CPAs has since been working closely with Treasury to address ongoing issues — and is already looking ahead.

“Meeting more regularly is what we’ve started to do,” he said. “We’re working on how we can better use language in letters that explains the situation better. We’ll continue to ensure that the next deadlines coming up are smoother for our members.”

Overloaded phone lines — repeat callers to blame?

For taxpayers trying to get answers by phone, the frustration is real. But Treasury says part of the problem is a small group of repeat callers tying up the lines.

In April, Treasury found that just 65 people accounted for 11,000 calls to its phone line — with some individuals getting through 14 or 15 times.

“When you start breaking that number down, it blocks everybody else,” Snyder said. “They’re constantly eating up a phone line.”

A new phone system is expected to go live in July, Snyder said.

In the meantime, Treasury recommends taxpayers check the status of their return through the e-service portal at michigan.gov, where they can also view any letters sent to them, send a message and request a callback.

To get to the e-service portal, click here.

U.S. Rep. Mike Collins and former University of Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley are the finalists for the Republican nomination to challenge U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff in November. Ousting Ossoff would give Republicans more breathing room as they defend competitive seats in Alaska, Maine, Ohio, North Carolina and elsewhere. Republicans can afford to lose up to three of their current 53 Senate seats and still maintain control of the chamber with Vice President JD Vance casting tiebreaking votes.

Collins was the top vote-getter in the May 19 primary among the field of five. He received about 41% of the vote by amassing sizable wins in smaller, more rural counties across the state, as well as in some larger counties north of the Atlanta area.

Dooley's path to the runoff looked quite different. He carried only 14 of Georgia’s 159 counties, but they included five of the six most populous: Fulton, Gwinnett, Cobb, DeKalb and Clayton. He also carried Clarke County, which includes the University of Georgia in Athens. Overall, he received about 30% of the primary vote.

U.S. Rep. Earl “Buddy” Carter was the close third-place finisher. The 25% of voters who backed Carter in the primary could help either Collins or Dooley clinch the nomination.

Carter had a base of support that much more closely resembled Collins’ rather than Dooley’s. Carter performed best in the small, rural counties clustered in southeastern Georgia, which significantly overlaps with the 1st Congressional District he represents.

Carter and Collins are also more closely identified with President Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” movement, whereas Dooley says he didn’t vote in the 2016 or 2020 presidential elections.

Trump did not endorse a candidate during the primary campaign, but he endorsed Collins on Sunday for the runoff. Outgoing Republican Gov. Brian Kemp endorsed Dooley, which likely helped him edge out Carter.

Trump did endorse in the competitive Republican primary for governor. His pick, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, was the top vote-getter in the primary, with about 38% of the vote, followed by healthcare executive Rick Jackson, with about 33%. Kemp endorsed Jones on Sunday.

Like Collins, Jones collected wins in small rural counties across the state. Jackson remained competitive by notching narrow wins in larger counties like Fulton County and some of the counties in the Atlanta suburbs.

Here are some of the key facts about the election and data points the AP Decision Team will monitor as the votes are tallied:

When do polls close?

Polls close at 7 p.m. ET.

What’s on the ballot?

The Associated Press will provide vote results and declare winners in primary runoffs for U.S. Senate, U.S. House, governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, insurance commissioner, state school superintendent, labor commissioner, public service commissioner, state Senate and state House.

Who gets to vote?

Voters who cast a ballot in a partisan primary on May 19 may only vote in the runoff of the same party as they did in the primary. In other words, Democratic primary voters may not vote in a Republican primary runoff or vice versa. Registered voters who did not participate in a party primary on May 19 may vote in the runoff for either party.

How many voters are there?

As of May 28, there were about 8.1 million registered voters in Georgia.

How many people actually vote?

In the May 19 primaries, about 934,000 votes were cast in the Republican primary for governor and about 913,000 in the Republican U.S. Senate primary.

How much of the vote is cast early or by absentee ballot?

Early in-person and mail ballots made up about 46% of the total vote in the May 19 primary.

As of Friday, about 119,000 Democratic and about 222,000 Republican primary runoff ballots had already been cast in Tuesday’s election.

When are early and absentee votes released?

A sizable amount of results from pre-Election Day voting is released fairly early in the night before most in-person Election Day ballots are tabulated. About four out of every five counties release all or almost of their early in-person results in the first vote update of the night, while about two-thirds of counties release all or almost all of their mail voting results in the first update.

How long does vote-counting usually take?

In the May 19 Republican primary for governor, the AP first reported results at 7:13 p.m. ET, or 13 minutes after polls closed. The last vote update of the night was at 3:13 a.m. ET, with more than 99.9% of total votes counted.

When will the AP declare a winner?

The AP does not make projections and will declare a winner only when it’s determined there is no scenario that would allow a trailing candidate to close the gap. If a race has not been called, the AP will continue to cover any newsworthy developments, such as candidate concessions or declarations of victory. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet declared a winner and explain why.

How do recounts work?

There is no automatic recount provision in Georgia, but a losing candidate may request a recount if the margin is less than or equal to 0.5% of the total vote. The AP may declare a winner in a race that is subject to a recount if it can determine the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

Are we there yet?

As of Tuesday, there will be 140 days until the 2026 midterm elections.

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

The primary takes place against a uniquely complex backdrop. Residents are contending with an unprecedented level of ongoing federal intervention by President Donald Trump in how the district looks and functions. A rare combination of open seats in top offices has caused a ripple effect down the ballot. And local election officials are rolling out a new ranked choice voting system.

The competitive Democratic primary field for mayor includes Ward 4 Councilwoman Janeese Lewis George, former At-Large Councilman Kenyan McDuffie and five others. Their key endorsements suggest the fault lines that have formed between the party’s establishment and its more progressive wing.

Lewis George has endorsements from four of her fellow council members, including at-large member Robert White, who is running for U.S. delegate to Congress. She also has the backing of several progressive organizations including the Working Families Party, the Metro D.C. Democratic Socialists of America and Our Revolution, a political committee affiliated with allies of independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who caucuses with Democrats.

McDuffie’s endorsements include former Mayors Sharon Pratt and Anthony Williams, outgoing At-Large Councilwoman Anita Bonds, former longtime Councilwomen Charlene Drew Jarvis and Linda Cropp, former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and former Democratic National Committee Chairmen Tom Perez and Jaime Harrison.

Although retiring three-term Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser hasn’t made an official endorsement in the race, she has made her preferences clear. In 2025, she said at an Economic Club event that “if you like me, you’re going to love Kenyon, wink, wink,” according to NBC4 Washington. And at a June Axios Live event, she said, “I support Kenyon McDuffie, and I have always supported Kenyon McDuffie,” although she added she was not making an endorsement.

Bowser has walked a political tightrope since Trump’s return to office in 2025, balancing her role as the elected leader of a heavily Democratic city with only limited ability to self-govern. Her measured approach has drawn criticism from progressives who advocate for a more vigorous response to Trump's Republican administration. On the campaign trail, Lewis George has made veiled barbs against unnamed leaders for “complying in advance” and who “shrink in the face of injustice.”

Trump weighed in on the race on Thursday, saying he would consider a federal takeover of the District of Columbia if Lewis George becomes the next mayor, a variation of a threat he has made since the early days of his second term.

In the race for D.C.’s non-voting seat in Congress, White, Ward 2 Councilwoman Brooke Pinto and three others are competing to replace retiring 18-term Democratic U.S. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton.

Norton’s and Bowser's retirements mark the first time since 1990 that both the mayor’s office and the congressional seat are open in the same year. Their decisions triggered a chain reaction of open seats as incumbent district council members and others jockey for higher office.

Washington is overwhelmingly Democratic. The city has almost 15 times more Democrats than Republicans and has never gone for a Republican presidential candidate since it gained the vote in 1964.

But the general election landslides tend to obscure fairly wide socio-economic gulfs within the district’s boundaries. For example, Ward 3 in the affluent upper Northwest has the city’s largest white majority, the highest median income and the lowest poverty rate. Ward 8 in Southeast has the city’s largest Black majority, the lowest median income and the highest poverty rate.

When Bowser first won the Democratic mayoral primary in 2014, she carried the five westernmost wards, while incumbent Mayor Vincent Gray carried Wards 5, 7 and 8 to the east.

White’s only competitive council primary in 2016 also showed an east-west divide. He carried Wards 1, 2, 3 and 6 to the west and ran almost even in Ward 4 to the north. When he challenged Bowser for mayor in 2022, he carried only Ward 1, which is in the center of the district and includes the neighborhoods of Adams Morgan, Columbia Heights and Mount Pleasant and the U Street Corridor.

In McDuffie’s successful 2022 council race, when he won the second of two at-large seats at stake, his strongest performances were in the northwesternmost parts of Wards 3 and 4.

The primary marks the first time the city will use a ranked choice voting system, in which voters rank the candidates in order of preference. If no candidate receives a majority of first-choice votes, the candidate in last place is dropped, and votes cast for that candidate are reallocated among the rest of the field according to the preferences of the dropped candidate’s voters. This process repeats until one candidate emerges with a majority of votes.

Here are some of the key facts about the election and data points the AP Decision Team will monitor as the votes are tallied:

When do polls close?

Polls close at 8 p.m. ET.

What’s on the ballot?

The Associated Press will provide vote results and declare winners in contested primaries for U.S. Delegate to Congress, mayor, attorney general and district council. There is also a special election to fill a vacant at-large council seat.

Who gets to vote?

Voters registered with a political party may participate only in their own party’s primary. Democrats may not vote in the Republican primary or vice versa. Independent or unaffiliated voters may not participate in either primary.

How many voters are there?

As of May 31, there were about 481,000 registered voters in Washington, D.C. More than three-quarters of them, about 363,000, were registered Democrats. Roughly 25,000, or 5%, were registered Republicans, and about 18%, or roughly 86,000, were not affiliated with any party.

How many people actually vote?

About 127,000 Democrats voted in the 2022 mayoral primary, or roughly 26% of registered voters. About 92,000 Democrats voted in the 2024 primary for U.S. delegate.

How much of the vote is cast early or by absentee ballot?

About 78% of all voters in the 2024 primary cast their ballots early in-person or by mail. That was slightly higher than the 76% who used the same methods in the 2022 primary.

As of Wednesday, about 35,000 ballots had already been cast in Tuesday’s election.

When are early and absentee votes released?

Results from early in-person and mail voting are usually released throughout the night along with results from in-person Election Day voting.

Election night results will not include totals from mail ballots received on Election Day by mail or by ballot drop boxes or from mail ballots received after Election Day with the necessary postmark.

How long does vote-counting usually take?

In the 2022 primary election, the AP first reported results at 8:30 p.m. ET, or 30 minutes after polls closed. The last vote update of the night was at 11:59 p.m. ET, with about 69% of total votes counted.

In contests in which the ranked choice voting process is triggered, only the results of voters’ first choices will be reported on election night. Results from subsequent rounds of vote-counting are expected by June 21 and June 24, with final round-by-round results expected on or after June 26. The certification of the election is expected on July 17.

When will the AP declare a winner?

The AP does not make projections and will declare a winner only when it’s determined there is no scenario that would allow a trailing candidate to close the gap. If a race has not been called, the AP will continue to cover any newsworthy developments, such as candidate concessions or declarations of victory. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet declared a winner and explain why.

How do recounts work?

Recounts are automatic in D.C. elections for federal offices, mayor, attorney general and district council, among others, if the margin is less than 1% of the total vote. Candidates may also request and pay for a recount regardless of the vote margin. The AP may declare a winner in a race that is subject to a recount if it can determine the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

Are we there yet?

As of Tuesday, there will be 140 days until the 2026 midterm elections.

___

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

Voters will select nominees to replace departing federal and state officials ranging from U.S. senator and representative to governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and state legislator. They’ll also decide whether to renominate some incumbents for another term and consider a statewide ballot measure on the minimum wage.

Among the most notable open-seat contests are the primaries to replace term-limited Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt.

The crowded nine-person Republican primary ballot includes state Attorney General Gentner Drummond; former state Secretary of Public Safety Chip Keating, who is the son of former Gov. Frank Keating; former state Sen. Mike Mazzei; and former state House Speaker Charles McCall.

The Democratic field includes state House Minority Leader Cyndi Munson and former state Sen. Connie Johnson.

President Donald Trump opened up another high-profile seat in Oklahoma when he named Republican U.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin to replace fellow Republican Kristi Noem as Department of Homeland Security secretary. Mullin's appointed replacement, U.S. Sen. Alan Armstrong, opted not to seek a full term.

The Republican primary to replace Mullin and Armstrong features U.S. Rep. Kevin Hern and four others. Five Democrats seek the nomination, including attorney and minister Jim Priest. Hern and Priest lead their respective fields in campaign fundraising, although the Hern campaign’s $6.8 million in available cash as of May 27 far eclipses the $118,000 the Priest campaign had.

Trump has endorsed Mazzei for governor and Hern for U.S. Senate.

Candidates must receive a majority of votes in the primary to win the nomination. Otherwise, the top two vote-getters in the primary will advance to an Aug. 25 runoff.

Also on the ballot Tuesday is State Question 832, which would raise the state minimum wage from $7.25 to $15 per hour by 2029. Starting in 2030, it would tie future minimum wage increases to cost of living increases.

Oklahoma is solidly Republican in general elections. It had Trump’s fifth highest vote share of any state in the 2024 presidential election. A Democrat hasn’t carried Oklahoma in a presidential race since President Lyndon Johnson in 1964.

The state last elected a Democrat for governor in 2006 and for U.S. Senate in 1990.

Here are some of the key facts about the election and data points the AP Decision Team will monitor as the votes are tallied:

When do polls close?

Polls close at 7 p.m. CT, which is 8 p.m. ET.

What’s on the ballot?

The Associated Press will provide vote results and declare winners in contested primaries for U.S. Senate, U.S. House, governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, treasurer, state school superintendent, labor commissioner, insurance commissioner, corporation commissioner, state Senate and state House, as well as for the statewide ballot measure.

Who gets to vote?

Voters registered with a political party may participate only in their own party’s primary. Democrats may not vote in the Republican primary or vice versa. State parties have the option to allow independent or unaffiliated voters to participate in their primaries, but none has done so for 2026 elections. All registered voters may cast ballots on the statewide ballot measure.

How many voters are there?

As of May 31, there were about 2.4 million registered voters in Oklahoma, including about 1.3 million registered Republicans, 614,000 registered Democrats and 495,000 independent voters not registered with any party.

How many people actually vote?

Roughly 360,000 votes were cast in the Republican primaries in 2022, compared with about 168,000 in the Democratic primaries. This was about 16% and 7% of registered voters at the time, respectively.

How much of the vote is cast early or by absentee ballot?

In the 2022 state primaries, about 10% of the Republican primary vote and about 13% of the Democratic primary vote was cast early in person or by mail.

As of Friday, about 35,000 ballots had already been cast in Tuesday’s election. That includes about 21,000 ballots from Republicans, about 12,000 from Democrats and about 2,000 from voters not affiliated with any party.

When are early and absentee votes released?

Almost every county in Oklahoma releases all or almost all of its results from early in-person and mail voting in the first vote update of the night, usually before any results from in-person Election Day voting are released.

How long does vote-counting usually take?

In the 2022 state primary, the AP first reported results at 8:10 p.m. ET, or 10 minutes after polls closed. By 10:30 p.m. ET, more than 90% of the votes had been counted. The last vote update of the night was at 12:33 a.m. ET, with about 99.9% of total votes counted.

When will the AP declare a winner?

The AP does not make projections and will declare a winner only when it’s determined there is no scenario that would allow a trailing candidate to close the gap. If a race has not been called, the AP will continue to cover any newsworthy developments, such as candidate concessions or declarations of victory. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet declared a winner and explain why.

How do recounts work?

Oklahoma does not have automatic recounts for elections involving candidates, but candidates may request and pay for one regardless of the vote margin. The state does require automatic recounts for statewide ballot questions if the margin is 0.5% or less of the total votes cast. The required margin is larger for state constitutional amendments. The AP may declare a winner in a race that is subject to a recount if it can determine the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

Are we there yet?

As of Tuesday, there will be 70 days until the Aug. 25 runoff and 140 days until the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

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

Details of the agreement were not immediately released, but it appeared that it would not be implemented until it is signed, which mediator Pakistan said would happen Friday in Geneva. Until then, shipping will likely remain restricted in the strait, which is a crucial passage for the world’s oil and gas and the closure of which has sparked a global energy crisis.

Israel’s defense minister said Monday that the country wouldn’t withdraw from land seized in Lebanon, where Israel is fighting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group. Israel joined the U.S. in launching the war on Feb. 28, but it is not party to the deal. A spokesman in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Israel will continue to defend itself against any threat to its security.

That alone could scupper the deal, since Iran has insisted any agreement to end the war include an end to the fighting in Lebanon.

But the agreement also faces other major challenges. It gives just 60 days to decide what to do about Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium and its nuclear program — which the U.S. and Israel worry could be used to build an atomic weapon, despite Tehran’s insistence that it is peaceful. It took years for Iran and world powers to negotiate a 2015 agreement to rein in Tehran’s nuclear program.

President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the U.S. from that accord in his first term, setting the stage for the tensions that culminated in the current war.

Despite the uncertainties, world leaders from Europe to China welcomed the deal to end a conflict that has killed thousands across the Middle East, including the top leaders of Iran’s theocracy, and raised the prices of fuel, food and other basic goods far beyond the region.

Still, some expressed concern that the deal would actually come about: Luxembourg’s foreign minister, Xavier Bettel, noted: “It’s a long time till Friday.”

The Strait of Hormuz won't open until the deal is signed

Trump, who faced pressure to end the war ahead of congressional midterm elections in November, hailed the agreement on social media, saying that he had authorized the Strait of Hormuz to open and the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports to end. He later said the strait wouldn’t open until Friday.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, confirmed the agreement on state television but said Iran would not start implementing it until it was signed.

Early in the war, Iranian attacks on ships brought traffic in the crucial waterway to a near standstill. Trump implemented a blockade in response.

The closure of the strait — through which a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas passed before the war — and the blockade sent fuel prices skyrocketing, and the knock-on effects rippled throughout the world economy. It will likely take months before energy companies can resume operations to the point of meeting the world’s demand, according to energy experts.

Iranian and U.S. officials will hold preparatory meetings in Doha, Qatar, this week before the signing, said a diplomat with direct knowledge of the talks, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door meetings.

Israel says it won't withdraw from Lebanon

The success of the deal rests at least partially on what happens between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Israel’s bombing of Beirut’s southern suburbs on Sunday nearly derailed the negotiations, and a previous attack led Iran to fire on Israel and Israel to fire back.

Defense Minister Israel Katz, meanwhile, said Israel plans to stay “indefinitely” in land it holds in Lebanon, Syria and the Gaza Strip.

Katz also threatened that if Iran attacks Israel over its strikes in Lebanon, Israel will strike Iran with “great force.” Over the past 2 1/2 years, Israel has taken control of areas in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria amounting to 1,000 square kilometers (386 square miles) of territory.

In response to questions about where Israel stands on the deal, David Mencer, a spokesman in Netanyahu’s office, told The Associated Press that Israel and the U.S. remain fully aligned on preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. But he added that Israel will not tolerate attacks from Hezbollah on its territory and will continue to act against those who seek to harm its citizens.

Hezbollah has not yet commented on the deal.

___

Becatoros reported from Athens, Greece. Associated Press writers Munir Ahmed in Islamabad, Will Weissert in Washington, Julia Frankel in Jerusalem, Abby Sewell in Beirut, Najib Jobain in Doha, Qatar, and Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed to this report.

Popular notions of philanthropy as merely a game for the ultrawealthy to fund partisan projects and commit fraud have left the sector vulnerable to political attacks, as the Council on Foundations sees it, influencing policies that hamper essential community services. The advocacy group, which represents about 1,000 nonprofits, hopes to overcome what CEO Kathleen Enright calls the sector’s “perception gap” with its “Generosity Builds” campaign, launched Monday.

Enright believes most Americans don’t recognize their reliance on the charitable sector. Just about 1 in 20 adults said they or anyone in their immediate family received nonprofit services in the past year, according to a 2023 Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy report.

“This week, I got an MRI at Georgetown University Hospital, I participated in my church at St. Columba's, my daughter was inducted into National Junior Honor Society. Four or five nonprofits have been instrumental in my life this week," she said. “Folks just aren’t putting that tag on it.”

And that tag is growing increasingly important, Enright said. Last year, negotiations over President Donald Trump’s tax and spending bill included proposals to levy new taxes on private foundations that Enright said would have taken resources from communities if they made it into the final law.

The battle over defining what nonprofits actually do has recently been amplified from the highest rungs of the Trump administration, which has upended decades of partnerships built with nonprofits. Trump froze, cut or threatened a sweeping range of social service grants characterized by the White House as “government largesse that's often riddled with corruption, waste, fraud, and abuse." More recently, the Department of Justice charged the Southern Poverty Law Center — a civil rights nonprofit accused by Republicans of targeting conservatives in its work tracking extremists — with defrauding donors through payments to informants.

Vice President JD Vance described the Ford Foundation, the Gates Foundation and the Harvard University endowment as “cancers on American society" back as a 2021 U.S. Senate candidate, telling Tucker Carlson that “we are actively subsidizing the people who are destroying this country and they call it a charity.”

“All across our country, we have nonprofits — big foundations — that are effectively social-justice hedge funds," he said in a talk that year on “woke capital.”

Narratives about nonprofits being “overly politicized” or wasteful are “extreme minority stories" that don't reflect how philanthropy operates, according to Enright.

Across many surveys, trust in the nonprofit sector has remained higher than most others. But its impact is sometimes difficult to measure and explain. The sector hasn't faced an environment this challenging in almost six decades, according to Kathryn Thomas, the vice president of communications for the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation in Flint, Michigan.

She cited the congressional effort to increases taxes on foundations' investment incomes and acknowledged the Trump administration's federal funding cuts.

“In an era when everything is under partisan attack and there's so much polarization, we really have to do a better job of emphasizing why we exist,” Thomas said.

Enright said the story of philanthropy is not one where a rich person “saves the day.” She sees growing concerns about billionaires' influence fueling suspicion about philanthropists' motivations. Some argue the charitable sector allows moneyed interests to decide how tax dollars are spent rather than elected officials.

The campaign will emphasize that most donors “have just a little bit more than they need and therefore want to give back,” she said, especially at the local level.

“Money does not solve problems. It’s a tool that creative people and institutions inside communities use to solve problems,” she said. "The real heroes of most of these stories are nonprofit leaders, religious leaders, civic leaders who just roll up their sleeves and get something done — but do it with some financial underpinning by charitable foundations.”

That's the story told by the Gulf Coast Community Foundation in Sarasota, Florida. A 10-apartment affordable housing complex for military veterans opened last year with the foundation's support.

The area has an “embarrassingly high” number of veterans without housing, according to Jon Thaxton, the foundation's director of policy and advocacy. Many are priced out in Sarasota, increasingly a luxury destination with high real estate prices.

Local donors had been trying to build a similar project when they approached the foundation in 2020 for help. Thaxton secured land already vested for affordable housing, corralled $2.2 million in donations, got $800,000 from the city and won the backing of their U.S. representatives.

The foundation's leaders believe their track record made that possible. Phillip Lanham, the president and CEO, noted the project was completed across multiple election cycles and a pandemic, suggesting that community foundations are well situated to “play the long game.”

“Most people think that foundations like us deal with money and donors. We really don't. We deal with relationships and trust,” Thaxton said. “That's our commodity. That's what we earn. That's what we save. And that's what we contribute back to the community.”

The Council on Foundations will also elevate examples of early, ordinary philanthropists as part of its case for philanthropy as an integral “part of the American story.”

It was an 18th century sailor, Enright said, who started the country's first charity hospital when he left his estate to establish a Boston hospital for sick and injured sailors. There's also the formerly enslaved man who Enright credited with donating land in North Carolina that became an African Methodist Episcopal church that endures as a pillar of the local community.

Lillian Kuri, the president and CEO of the Cleveland Foundation, welcomed the focus on everyday philanthropists. The Cleveland Foundation is considered the first community foundation, established in 1914 by lawyer Frederick Harris Goff as a way to fund durable change in the city.

The foundation aims to find new ways to expand today's tent of philanthropists dedicated to improving their surrounding areas. It announced new investments this week in a fund dedicated to turn vacant industrial land into job-ready work sites. They've also launched a fund that allows donors to invest in major Northeast Ohio companies, supporting local business growth while that money increases into a sizable amount that can be donated to nonprofits.

“Generosity cuts across everybody,” she said, adding that community foundations offer “a way for everyday people — not just the largest, wealthiest people — to participate in the change they want to see in their communities."

___

Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits 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. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.

The attacks on the capital, Kyiv, and the second-largest city, Kharkiv, came after Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke separately by phone with U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday. The exchange suggests Washington hasn’t given up on its diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting that followed Moscow’s all-out invasion of its neighbor in February 2022.

The war in Ukraine is also set to feature in talks on Tuesday between G7 leaders at a summit in France. Zelenskyy and Trump are due to attend the gathering, as the Ukrainian leader pushes to keep the war on leaders' minds while the Iran war diverts international attention from Ukraine's plight.

“This is how Russia shows the world its intention to continue the war,” Zelenskyy said in a post on X, referring to the overnight attack.

“It is very important that there be a response from the G7 countries ... and that this response be decisive and substantive; more pressure on the aggressor and more support for Ukraine’s air defense, especially anti-ballistic capabilities,” the Ukrainian leader said.

Children are among the wounded in Kyiv

Zelenskyy said that the Russian strikes killed 11 civilians and emergency workers and wounded 53 across Ukraine.

Five were killed in Kyiv, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said, where at least 30 others were also wounded, including two children aged 5 and 6, according to Tymur Tkachenko, head of the city's Military Administration.

A series of powerful explosions were heard across Kyiv, with a wave of ballistic missiles followed by Shahed drones as many people sought shelter underground. Clouds of black smoke drifted over the city.

Five strikes hit civilian sites in the city’s Shevchenkivskyi district in less than 30 minutes, Tkachenko said, including a 25-story apartment building, while a market and a grocery store caught fire. In the Obolonskyi district, a nine-story residential building took a direct hit.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said the strikes targeted defense and industrial facilities in Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Dnipro, including enterprises and workshops producing components for long-range drones and cruise missiles. It said that a workshop producing medium- and long-range drones located on the premises of the Dovzhenko film studios in Kyiv was among the targets hit.

Russia also claimed to have hit Kyiv’s Radar plant, which it said makes drone components, and the Mayak plant that it said makes Ukraine's Flamingo long-range cruise missiles. Military conscription offices in Kyiv were also struck, it said.

There was no immediate information about the 11th person killed in the attacks.

Religious site damaged in attack

In Kyiv, the bombardment damaged the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, an 11th-century monastic complex and a religious landmark.

The roof of the complex's Dormition Cathedral caught fire during the attack, said Metropolitan Epiphanius, head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. He condemned the strike as another Russian crime “against humanity, against history, against Christianity” and appealed for prayers to save the site.

The Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, also known as the Monastery of the Caves, is a sprawling complex of monasteries and churches, including some underground, built between the 11th and 19th centuries. Some of the churches at the UNESCO-listed World Heritage site are connected by a labyrinthine complex of caves spanning more than 600 meters (2,000 feet).

Zelenskyy said the damage was caused by two Russian drones and called the attack Russia’s “biggest crime yet against Christian culture.” He visited the scene on Monday morning together with Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko and other members of his government.

The cathedral, churches and other buildings overlook the right bank of the Dnieper River and have been a pilgrimage site for centuries.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said the attack was the “equivalent, for us French, of a bombing of Notre Dame,” referring to the Paris cathedral.

French President Emmanuel Macron said the attack only strengthened the determination of Ukraine’s allies to pursue a ceasefire and work toward peace.

“Just as nothing can justify the war of aggression that Russia has been waging against Ukraine for more than four years, nothing can justify this attack on our shared universal heritage,” Macron wrote on social media.

Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed, without offering evidence, that the complex was hit by one of Ukraine’s U.S.-made Patriot air defense missiles, saying that it might have veered off course because its shelf life had expired.

Russia fires more than 600 drones at Ukraine

Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 70 missiles and 611 drones overnight, primarily targeting Kyiv, while also striking the cities of Dnipro and Kharkiv.

The military said air defenses intercepted or electronically suppressed 632 aerial targets, including 50 missiles and 582 drones.

Preliminary data showed 20 ballistic missiles and 27 attack drones hit 42 locations across the country, while debris from intercepted drones fell at 12 sites.

Russia’s Defense Ministry said air defenses downed 123 Ukrainian drones overnight.

___

Associated Press writers Illia Novikov in Kyiv, Ukraine, Samuel Petrequin in London, and Barry Hatton in Lisbon, Portugal contributed to this report.

___

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

🍇 Grapevine

🌅 Good morning! On this day in 1921, American aviator Bessie Coleman made history by becoming the first African American and first Native American woman to earn a pilot’s license. With no flight training opportunities in the U.S. at the time, she traveled to France for flight school.

Here are a few things to know about for Monday, June 15, 2026:

⛅ 4Warn Weather: After a stretch of heat and humidity, Metro Detroit is settling into a more comfortable weather pattern this week. Check out the 10 day forecast.

🛝 Occupy the Summer: City leaders and mentors are officially launching Detroit’s “Occupy the Summer” initiative, aimed at providing children and teens with safe spaces and plenty of programming while school is out. Read more.

🫱🏾‍🫲🏼 Building Bridges: Michigan State Police officers led a community workout in Detroit on Saturday to both build connection among law enforcement and the public and to support the Officer Daniel Kerstetter Foundation. Read more.

💸 Tax Refund Delays: The Michigan Department of Treasury reports roughly 95 percent of returns filed on time have been processed. That means about five percent of filers — an estimated 250,000 people — are still waiting for their refunds. Read more.

🏒 PWHL Signing: Professional Women’s Hockey League Detroit has signed Macomb County native forward Taylor Girard to a two-year standard player agreement ahead of the team’s inaugural 2026-27 season. Read more.

🏊 Morning Dive

Good morning ☀️

Missed trash pickups, delayed collections, and unanswered phone calls have plagued Priority Waste customers in Southeast Michigan for more than a year.

“When you boil it all down, you got to have drivers, you got to have trucks, and customers need a container to put their waste in, too, and when all that breaks down, they got to be able to get ahold of us,” PW CEO Aaron Johnson said.

Johnson did not mince words about the state of the company’s service.

“I know service is not as good as it’s supposed to be.”

The newly appointed CEO says the issues stem from a driver shortage, an aging fleet, and a backlog of residents still waiting for new trash bins.

Get the full story here.

🗞️ Other headlines to know today

• ‘Without medication’: Seniors at Clinton Township complex say broken elevators leave them stranded without meds
• 2 injured after drive-by shooting at a repass in Detroit
• Farmington Hills bar hosts fundraiser for Livonia shooting victims’ families
• ‘I don’t trust them’: Chesterfield man says he’s out over $800 after car damaged on tracks at Jax Kar Wash
• 1 found fatally shot in a Detroit backyard
• Clintondale High School students attend community prom after threat cancels event
• Relatives arrested after an illegal firearms lab is discovered inside home in Warren
• Oakland County man who killed neighbor, attacked his family, pleads no contest to murder
• Teamsters Airgas workers in Ferndale reinstated with back pay after year-long strike
• How wrong food order led to Michigan sisters facing serious criminal charge, prosecutors say
• Man found passed out in car with girlfriend’s body in Roseville convicted of her murder
• 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:

The United States and Iran reached an initial agreement early Monday that would extend their shaky ceasefire and lead to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, but challenges immediately loomed, including Israel insisting it would hold onto land seized in Lebanon as it battles Hezbollah.

Details of the deal, which would potentially allow desperately needed oil and natural gas to reach the global market through the critical waterway, were not immediately released. Iran signaled implementation would not start until the signing, which key mediator Pakistan said would take place Friday in Switzerland.

But the memorandum of understanding over the war already faced hurdles. Israel’s continued hostilities with the Iranian-backed militia Hezbollah in Lebanon, where Israel bombed Beirut’s southern suburbs Sunday, nearly derailed the negotiations. (Read more)

----

President Donald Trump marked his 80th birthday on Sunday by hailing an initial agreement to end the war in Iran and staging a once unfathomable cage-fighting show on the White House’s storied South Lawn.

Trump had been touting the emerging deal for weeks and the continuing conflict threatened to overshadow the UFC mixed martial arts extravaganza, where combatants inside a wire-mesh octagon tried to punch, kick, chop and pummel each other into submission.

Ahead of the fight starting, however, the president said an agreement to end the conflict “is now complete.” He declared that the U.S. will end its blockade of Iran, and that the Strait of Hormuz would reopen. (Read more)

----

Britain will ban children under 16 from using a range of social media apps including Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube to protect young people from harmful content and excessive screen time, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Monday,

Starmer told a news conference that he will fight back if technology companies resist the move, and acknowledged some teens would try to find their way around a ban. But he said he is “not prepared to compromise on the safety and happiness of our children.”

The move, expected to take effect early next year, makes the U.K. part of a growing global movement to tighten online safety for children. (Read more)

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

📝 Word Up

Today’s Word Up is: Bucolic / byo͞oˈkälik / (adjective) -- defined as “Of or relating to the pleasant aspects of the countryside and country life.”

Example: “She traded her fast-paced job in Manhattan for a bucolic life running a small goat farm upstate.”

🧹 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 quantum physics. 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 air conditioning will not have to work quite as hard as it did during the recent hot spell, as temperatures across Southeast Michigan return to levels typical for mid-June. Residents in the Thumb and northern Metro Detroit will notice the coolest temperatures, while communities closer to Detroit and the Ohio border remain several degrees warmer.

Monday brings a mix of sun and clouds. Skies will be sunny in the morning and partly cloudy in the afternoon. After morning temperatures in the upper 40s and lower 50s, highs will range from around 70 degrees in the Thumb and mid 70s across Metro Detroit and Monroe. Overnight lows will fall into the 50s, providing comfortable sleeping weather across the region.

Tuesday

The next opportunity for wet weather arrives Tuesday afternoon and evening as a disturbance moves through the Great Lakes. Showers and thunderstorms are expected to develop after lunchtime before becoming more widespread later in the day.

There will be enough instability for a few stronger storms capable of producing gusty winds, although widespread severe weather is not expected at this time. High temperatures Tuesday will range from the middle 70s in the Thumb to the upper 70s in parts of Metro Detroit.

Additional showers and thunderstorms remain possible Tuesday night before another round of unsettled weather arrives Wednesday and Wednesday night.

Wednesday

Wednesday’s storms may become more widespread, especially during the evening and overnight hours. Abundant moisture moving into Southeast Michigan could support periods of heavy rainfall. Localized flooding may be an issue in urban and poor-drainage areas if heavier storms repeatedly move across the same locations.

Rainfall totals of 1 to 2 inches will be possible in some communities between Wednesday afternoon and early Thursday.

Thursday

Conditions gradually improve Thursday as the system exits the region. A lingering shower remains possible, but sunshine should return during the afternoon. High temperatures will range from the lower 70s north to the upper 70s south.

Juneteenth and Father’s Day

The forecast looks favorable for Juneteenth celebrations Friday. While an isolated shower cannot be completely ruled out, much of the day appears dry with a mix of sunshine and comfortable temperatures. Afternoon highs are expected to range from the lower 70s in the Thumb to the upper 70s across Metro Detroit.

The weather also appears cooperative heading into Father’s Day weekend. Saturday should feature a blend of sun and clouds with highs in the 70s.

Father’s Day on Sunday currently looks seasonably mild with mostly sunny to partly cloudy skies and temperatures generally ranging from the middle 70s north to the upper 70s south. A stray shower cannot be ruled out, but most of the day appears suitable for outdoor celebrations, cookouts, golf outings and family gatherings.

Overall, Southeast Michigan is transitioning from a pattern dominated by heat and humidity to one featuring comfortable temperatures and periodic opportunities for rain. The biggest weather concern this week will be the potential for heavy rainfall and localized flooding, particularly Wednesday night into early Thursday.

Share your weather photos with Local 4 at MIPics.

Starmer told a news conference that he will fight back if technology companies resist the move, and acknowledged some teens would try to find their way around a ban. But he said he is “not prepared to compromise on the safety and happiness of our children.”

“Every parent can see it with their own eyes. Social media is making children unhappy," said Starmer, who has two teenage children. “I’ve heard first hand from families crying out for change and we will do right by them.”

The move, expected to take effect early next year, makes the U.K. part of a growing global movement to tighten online safety for children. Australia, Canada, Brazil and Indonesia have introduced legislation or announced age-based restrictions or requirements for children’s access to social media. France, Spain, Denmark, Thailand and South Korea are among others studying or developing similar approaches.

The U.K. plans to follow the same model for a social media ban as Australia, which last year became the first country to bar under-16s from holding social media accounts. Platforms that fail to take reasonable steps to exclude children younger than 16 could be punished with multimillion-dollar fines.

The U.K. said its ban will apply to platforms including Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X, but not YouTube Kids or messaging services like WhatsApp and Signal. Starmer stressed that enforcement action will target tech companies, not children.

The prime minister also said he will go further than Australia's measures.

He said the government will act to prevent strangers from contacting children on gaming and livestreaming platforms. Authorities are also considering additional measures including overnight curfews and breaks in infinite scrolling for those under 18. More details are expected next month.

Starmer's announcement met with mixed reactions

The decision follows a public comment period in which the government got 116,000 responses from parents, the tech industry and children. The number of responses was second only to one seeking input about same-sex marriage in 2012.

The vast majority of respondents — more than 90% — wanted an under-16 ban, the government said.

Esther Ghey, whose 16-year-old daughter Brianna was killed in 2023 by two teenagers who had accessed harmful content online, said the ban would “potentially save so many children’s lives,” but had to be accompanied by other measures.

NSPCC, a leading children's charity, praised the government's ambition but urged authorities to ensure platforms roll out “robust age checks” and effectively enforce the policy.

Others are more skeptical.

Critics including the Open Rights Group have expressed concerns about age verification companies and how users' private data is protected.

Reacting on Monday, a spokesperson for YouTube warned that a blanket social media restriction could "push kids out of such curated, supervised, beneficial experiences and towards anonymous, less-safe services.”

Starmer acknowledged the challenges, but said success for the ban would mean “a massive drop off of children on social media” and “a cultural change, a sense that actually you can grow up differently.”

Starmer, elected just under two years ago, is under pressure to step down from members of his own party over what they see as poor leadership and could face a leadership challenge in the coming days or weeks. He is seeking to bring in consequential measures that can serve as a legacy.

The U.S. has opposed the move

The ban could further inflame tensions with the U.S., which has warned that regulations should be narrow and not violate free speech protections, according to a statement from the U.S. Embassy in London. It said it was also concerned that regulations would place greater burdens on American technology companies.

Starmer said he expected to discuss the issue with U.S. President Donald Trump and other world leaders at a Group of Seven summit in France that starts Monday.

“I honestly think that across world leaders, there has always been a recognition that leaders have to take steps to protect children," he said. “I don’t think that’s controversial. There will always be arguments as to exactly what the limits of that are and what rules should be in place, but I don’t see that as a problem."

Jon Crowcroft, a communications systems professor at the University of Cambridge, said people supporting social bans are well-meaning but probably misguided, and changes could prevent children from accessing sites they need.

“There is a real risk this will drive some users to worse sites and policing devices is close to impossible technically,” Crowcroft said. “Policing platforms is far easier, if only regulators would bother.”

___

Associated Press writer Jill Lawless contributed to this story.

The Congolese Ministry of Health said Sunday 72 new cases were reported in a 24-hour period, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 782. This includes 181 confirmed deaths, after 32 new deaths were confirmed.

However, the number of cases in Congo is believed to be higher because the outbreak was confirmed on May 15, weeks after it is suspected to have begun, and the contact tracing coverage rate is at 56%, a sharp decrease from last week.

The latest Ebola outbreak is caused by the rare Bundibugyo virus, which has no approved vaccine or treatment, unlike the Zaire virus, which was responsible for most of Congo’s past 16 outbreaks of the disease.

Fifty-six people have recovered, and the current fatality rate of the outbreak is 23%, the ministry said.

The World Health Organization said Sunday it is intensifying testing and contact tracing and treatment.

Africa's top health body said the same day it is deploying technical expertise and supporting laboratory systems, active case finding and community engagement efforts to accelerate the response to the disease outbreak.

“We remain committed to supporting affected countries until transmission is stopped. We call on partners and donors to urgently mobilize resources to strengthen the response and save lives,” said the head of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or Africa CDC, Jean Kaseya.

The outbreak is concentrated in Congo’s eastern province of Ituri, which accounts for more than 90% of the cases. Cases have also been recorded in the North Kivu and South Kivu provinces, and have spread across the border to Uganda.

Nearly a million people have been displaced by conflict in Ituri, according to the U.N. humanitarian office, making contact tracing difficult as people flee attacks or move frequently in the vast province with dense forests, poor roads and remote villages that can take days to reach.

Tracing is also difficult among the thousands of artisanal miners who regularly move between remote sites in the mineral-rich region.

——

Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal.

Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5% stake in Starbucks Korea, said group executives and employees at Starbucks Korea’s headquarters will attend training led by history and sociology professors on Wednesday. All Starbucks stores nationwide will close at 3 p.m. next Monday so employees can watch a recording of the session, Shinsegae said in a statement.

The coffee chain triggered an uproar when it attempted to promote a series of stainless-steel tumblers it called “SS Tank” by declaring May 18 to be “Tank Day.” The date marks the anniversary of the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southern city of Gwangju. It was violently suppressed by Seoul’s military government at the time, which deployed troops, tanks and helicopters, leaving hundreds dead or injured.

The campaign further fueled outrage by using the slogan “Thwack it on the table!” which many read as a reference to a notorious 1987 police statement that attempted to cover up the torture death of student activist Park Jong-chol. Authorities had falsely said Park died after investigators “hit the desk with a thwack.”

With the promotion sparking immediate backlash, Shinsegae canceled it within hours and fired the chief executive of Starbucks Korea. Shinsegae Chairman Chung Yong-jin later issued a nationally televised apology as police opened an investigation following complaints from relatives of the victims of the Gwangju crackdown. Chung will undergo separate training with the chief executives of Shinsegae affiliates on June 24.

Shinsegae said the decision to close all Starbucks stores early for the first time since the chain’s 1999 launch in South Korea and require companywide training shows “how seriously it views the marketing controversy and its determination to prevent a recurrence."

The crackdown in Gwangju came months after General Chun Doo-hwan seized power in a coup in late 1979. Government records show about 200 people died in Gwangju, but activists say the true death toll was much higher. Chun’s government also imprisoned tens of thousands, saying it was rooting out social evils.

Public anger over Chun’s dictatorship led to massive nationwide protests in 1987, forcing him to accept a constitutional revision introducing direct presidential elections, which is widely seen as the start of South Korea’s transition to democracy.

Trump and Iranian officials had been saying for days they were making progress toward reaching a deal, but even on Sunday, things appeared to be on shaky ground after a new round of strikes between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.

With the agreement, Trump is due to arrive in Evian-les-Bains on Monday afternoon with some wind at his back for talks with G7 leaders, including some who have been sharply critical of his managing of the roughly 15-week conflict that has led to a surge in global energy prices.

The conflict, which polls show American voters largely disapproved of, had made some Republicans nervous about the political impacts it could have on the November midterm election.

“Ships of the World, start your engines," Trump said in a social media post celebrating the deal that he said would lead to the U.S. ending its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of the world’s crude had flowed before the conflict. “Let the oil flow!”

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi, however, said the Iranian closure of the strait would continue until the agreement is officially signed.

Neither the White House nor Iran published the final agreement or revealed many details. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose country served as a mediator in the negotiations, said there would be “pre-implementation discussions” this week to lay the ground for 60 days of technical talks on Iran's nuclear program.

The deal could change the G7 dynamic

Sealing an agreement before jetting off to the summit could certainly change the dynamic of the gathering for Trump. He has had friction with French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni over failing to consult them before the decision to go to war.

Meanwhile, Trump has pushed back on the four European leaders — all members of the NATO military alliance — for their lack of support for the U.S. in the conflict.

Trump is expected to discuss with leaders the demining of the Strait of Hormuz, according to the White House. Britain and France have expressed interest in assisting with the demining once the conflict is paused. Fear of potential mines is among the reasons that tanker traffic has come to a halt during the war, and quickly clearing them will be crucial to regaining the confidence of commercial vessels.

Macron, this year’s summit host, invited the leaders of three nations that aren’t part of the G7 — Egypt, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates — to take part in a session on the Middle East on Tuesday where Iran is expected to be a central focus.

"The aim will be to assess the implications of this agreement, support for Lebanon, the long-term reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and, of course, reaching a deal on Iran’s nuclear and ballistic (missile) programs,” Macron said in a video posted on social media on Sunday evening.

The leaders of the U.K., France, Germany and Italy also issued a joint statement welcoming the agreement as a “moment of opportunity to restore regional stability and stabilize the global economy.”

“It is now vital that the detailed negotiations are concluded and this agreement is implemented rapidly and comprehensively," the leaders' statement added.

In a separate development, Trump ahead of departing for the summit said in an interview with the New York Post he has warned Macron the US will “have no choice” but to slap 100% tariffs on French wines unless ​Paris eliminates its digital tax on American tech companies, renewing a long-running threat from the Republican that dates to his first administration.

Wines and ​spirits exported to the U.S. from the European Union currently face ​a 15% ⁠tariff.

Trump faces questions about financial incentives for Tehran

Trump had fiercely criticized former President Barack Obama for the 2015 nuclear agreement that Trump argued failed to stop Tehran from advancing toward a weapon and funneled billions into the Islamic Republic’s coffers.

In 2018, Trump exited the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the European Union were also signatories to the pact.

Trump in an interview on Sunday with The New York Times pushed back on comparisons to the Obama-era nuclear deal. “We negotiated from strength,” Trump said. “He was basically paying them off.”

But Trump hasn't detailed how his agreement will address some key issues about Iran's nuclear program, including who will be in charge of verifying that Iran is complying with the agreement and who will destroy or remove 972 pounds (441 kilograms) of highly enriched uranium believed to be buried under nuclear sites that were badly damaged by U.S. strikes last summer.

The deal is also expected to include some sanctions relief and economic incentives for Tehran as it meets certain benchmarks aimed at assuaging White House concerns, senior administration officials said ahead of the two sides reaching an agreement.

Some Democrats and hawkish critics say Trump has failed to explain how the financial relief in his agreement will differ from what Obama did in the 2015 nuclear deal.

“For all his critique of JCPOA, we had international observers, we actually had an alliance there that included the Europeans, and Russia and China were all signatories,” Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, told CBS' “Face the Nation” on Sunday. “Now it is America going alone or going with Israel only, and that does not make us safer.”

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, a close ally of Trump and an Iran hawk, expressed skepticism, saying that Congress will need to review and vote on any nuclear deal with Iran, and said he expects Vice President JD Vance — “the architect of the deal” — to present it.

“I am somewhat concerned that Iran’s view of the agreement seems different than what the American negotiating team is claiming,” Graham said on social media.

Trump makes calls to Putin, Zelenskyy ahead of G7

Macron also invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for a working session with G7 leaders on Tuesday to discuss the Russia-Ukraine war.

At the moment, Zelenskyy is not scheduled to hold one-on-one talks with Trump while they're both in France, but Trump on Sunday held separate phone calls with Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Putin’s call with Trump lasted just under an hour, according to Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, who briefed reporters afterward.

On Ukraine, Ushakov said Trump emphasized the need to end hostilities and stated his readiness to influence European allies and Kyiv toward that goal, including at the G7.

According to Ushakov, Trump also said that recent strikes on civilian targets in Russia complicate a settlement. The White House did not comment on the call.

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner are expected to travel to Russia soon, Ushakov said.

Zelenskyy said in a statement posted on Telegram that he told Trump about how Ukraine’s position along the eastern front line has improved and strengthened.

“We agreed to discuss more during our meeting at the G7 summit,” he said.

___

Madhani reported from Geneva and Superville from Washington.

The future for the S&P 500 was up 1.2% and that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.9%, auguring likely early gains for Wall Street.

In early European trading, Germany's DAX advanced 1.3% to 24,942.12, while the CAC 40 in Paris added 1.1% to 8,444.00.

Britain's FTSE 100 gained 0.2% to 10,496.56.

After repeated false starts, investors were betting that this time, the war might end. U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed the initial agreement and authorized an end to the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports.

Iran confirmed it but signaled that implementation would not start until a signing that Pakistan said would be held Friday in Switzerland. Broader negotiations on issues like Iran’s nuclear program are expected to continue over the next 60 days.

In early trading Monday, the price of Brent crude oil, the international standard, fell $4.37 to $82.96 per barrel. U.S. benchmark crude lost $4.53 to $80.35 per barrel.

It may take months for oil prices to stabilize after the disruptions from the war caused them to surge, pushing costs up for gasoline and many other products. Energy experts said shipping and insurance companies will want to be confident the pact will hold, ensuring that oil and gas supplies will flow freely enough for the world’s needs to be met.

“The reopening of Hormuz is a relief valve, not a full peace dividend. The market can remove some crude panic, but it still has to price the gap between a headline, a signature, and a regime that actually complies,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a report.

Still, the news was a huge relief for markets that have been roiled since the conflict began in late February.

Stocks rallied in Asia, where Tokyo's Nikkei 225 gained 5% to 69,317.50 as the benchmark logged another record high.

Buying was heaviest for technology shares, especially those related to artificial intelligence. The boom in AI has been driving gains in Japan, where the benchmark has gained more than 80% in the last year.

“This is great news," said Takashi Hiroki, chief strategist at Monex. “Buying by foreign investors is leading the market with expectations of easing tensions around the situation in the Middle East. Then the decline in New York crude oil futures is supporting this positive market.”

The Kospi in Seoul surged 5.2% to 8,545.98.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng gained 0.5% to 24,842.67, while the Shanghai Composite index was up 1.6% to 4,096.47.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 advanced 1.3% to 8,922.90. Taiwan's Taiex was up 2.8%, and the Sensex in India rose 1.2%.

On Friday, U.S. stocks advanced as Musk's SpaceX soared in its highly anticipated debut on Wall Street.

The strong start suggested plenty of demand still exists among investors for AI after SpaceX stock leaped 19.2% in its first day of trading. That gave Elon Musk’s rocket company a total value of $2.1 trillion, making it bigger than Exxon Mobil, Bank of America and Coca-Cola combined. In addition to building rockets, SpaceX also owns the artificial intelligence company xAI.

The S&P 500 added 0.5% to close out its 10th winning week in the last 11. The Dow industrials climbed 353 points, or 0.7%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.3%.

This week will bring interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and Bank of England, on Thursday. On Tuesday, the Bank of Japan is due to announce its monetary policy updates. It is widely expected to raise its benchmark interest rate to 1% from the current 0.75%.

That would be the highest rate in more than 30 years.

In other dealings early Monday, the dollar slipped to 160.10 Japanese yen from 160.12 yen late Friday. The euro climbed to $1.1611 from $1.1578.

___

Senior producer Mayuko Ono in Tokyo contributed to this report.

Rong Chhun, a top adviser to the Nation Power Party, was found guilty last year of inciting social unrest after he met villagers displaced by government construction projects. His conviction was seen as one of many legal moves taken by the government of Prime Minister Hun Manet to stifle criticism.

The 56-year-old was sentenced to four years in prison and barred from running for office and from voting. At his trial he had argued his innocence, saying all he had done was post photos of himself with the villagers and comments on Facebook.

He emerged from the morning hearing to a crowd of some 300 supporters chanting “Drop the charges, release Rong Chhun!" and holding signs with slogans calling for his freedom.

He told them that with tensions between Cambodia and neighboring Thailand, a struggling economy and other issues facing the country, he wants to promote “national reconciliation and national unity” for Cambodia's 17 million people.

"I hope the court will grant me freedom and justice so that I can continue to practice politics in the future,” he said.

Roads leading to the court were blocked by several dozen police officers at barricades, and Rong Chhun walked to the hearing accompanied by his supports, including local and international human rights advocates.

“We are not worried about going to prison,” he said. “We are willing to sacrifice everything and we are determined to use the resources our parents gave us to invest so that Cambodia can achieve true freedom and democracy.”

Incitement allegations are frequently used by authorities in Cambodia against opponents.

Rong Chhun was already sentenced to two years on incitement charges in 2021, based on accusations he spread false information about Cambodia’s border with Vietnam after meeting with farmers in the area. He was released later the same year by an appeals court.

Cambodia’s government insists it promotes the rule of law under an electoral democracy, but political parties seen as mounting strong challenges to the ruling Cambodian People’s Party have been dissolved by the courts or had their leaders jailed or harassed.

Under almost four decades of autocratic former Prime Minister Hun Sen, Cambodia was widely criticized for human rights abuses that included suppression of freedom of speech and association. He was succeeded in August 2023 by his American-educated son, Hun Manet, but there have been few signs of political liberalization.

On Monday, Tim Ratha drove several hours from Siem Reap province in the north to the capital, saying she wanted to show her support for Rong Chhun.

“He has devoted everything to us, he had no wife, no children,” the 55-year-old vegetable vendor told The Associated Press.

The Supreme Court's verdict is due June 19.

_____

Rising reported from Bangkok

Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyökeres each had a goal and an assist, and Mattias Svanberg also scored for Sweden, which entered ranked 39th in the world and missed the 2022 World Cup after reaching the quarterfinals eight years ago in Russia.

Omar Rekik scored for 45th-ranked Tunisia, which is playing in its seventh World Cup but has never advanced beyond the group stage.

The higher-ranked teams in the group, the Netherlands and Japan, played to a 2-2 draw earlier Sunday at Arlington, Texas.

Ayari bookended the scoring for the Swedes at Estadio BBVA with long-range goals in the seventh minute and in second-half stoppage time. He was muted in his celebration of the first goal, raising his hands out of respect for the country where his father was born.

Isak scored his 18th international goal in the 30th minute when Gyökeres found the Liverpool striker — who was sidelined much of last season with a broken leg — on a counterattack. Isak cut inside and fired a low shot past the hands of Tunisian goalkeeper Mouhib Chamakh, who struggled all night.

Isak said he and Gyökeres and “have quite different qualities which is very beneficial for the team,” adding: “We can bring different types of attacks.”

After Rekik stalled Sweden's momentum with his goal in the 43rd minute, Isak and Gyökeres put Sweden back in control. Isak stole the ball and found Gyökeres for a one-on-one against Chamakh that the Arsenal striker won easily for his 16th goal in his last 15 appearances for Sweden and 21st overall.

Sweden coach Graham Potter said Isak and Gyökeres have strong chemistry.

“Behind them, they needed a team that functioned well. I’m pleased for the players tonight that we took a step forward in that,” Potter said.

Svanberg scored in the 84th minute, a goal that was awarded after a lengthy video review.

Sweden will play the Netherlands at Houston on Saturday, while Tunisia will remain in Monterrey and face Japan the same day.

___

Ethan Wilcox is a student in the University of Georgia’s Carmical Sports Media Institute.

___

AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/hub/fifa-world-cup

The announcement on social media came just a couple of hours before the president was slated to celebrate his 80th birthday and the nation’s 250th anniversary with an unusual White House event: a UFC show featuring seven fights within an eight-sided, wire-mesh cage on the White House South Lawn.

UFC Freedom 250 is winding down after the headlining fight saw Justin Gaethje batter Spanish-Georgian lightweight champion Ilia Topuria for the UFC lightweight title. In the night’s other championship fight, Ciryl Gane beat Alex Pereira to take home the interim UFC heavyweight title.

The rest of the event saw knockouts by Diego Lopes against Steve Garcia; Bo Nickal against Kyle Daukaus; Mauricio Ruffy against Michael Chandler; Josh Hokit against Derrick Lewis; and Sean O’Malley against Aiemann Zahabi.

Here's the latest:

Trump congratulates American Justin Gaethje after win

Trump congratulated American Justin Gaethje after his upset win to cap the UFC Freedom 250.

Gaethje stopped Spanish-Georgian lightweight champion Ilia Topuria after the fourth round in the event on the White House South Lawn.

Trump came into the Octagon after the fight to congratulate Gaethje, who had an American flag draped around his neck.

Gaethje provides a big American win to cap UFC Freedom 250

American Justin Gaethje stunned Spanish-Georgian lightweight champion Ilia Topuria to cap off the UFC Freedom 250.

With the fans chanting “USA! USA!” throughout the match on the White House lawn, Gaethje delivered an upset performance to win the title.

He landed a left-right combination that bloodied Topuria in the face in the third round. The doctors came out after Topuria said he couldn’t see. There was an extended break after the round but Topuria said he wanted to keep fighting even though the doctor initially seemed to signal that the fight should end.

Topuria’s corner then called for the fight to be stopped after the fourth round.

Cabinet Room, Roosevelt Room get cameos for the title fight

The broadcast of fight night has taken viewers on a bit of a tour of the White House, with fighters warming up in different storied rooms.

For the final bout, Ilia Topuria prepared in the Roosevelt Room, while Justin Gaethje warmed up in the Cabinet Room.

Each of them passed through the Oval Office before winding their way to the Octagon — with Gaethje appearing to briefly read the copy of the Declaration of Independence that Trump has added.

Gane beats Pereira to win the interim UFC heavyweight title

Ciryl Gane of France finished off Alex Pereira of Brazil in the second round to win the interim UFC heavyweight title.

Gane sent Pereira stumbling with a right jab followed by a hammer fist. The referee then stopped the fight 1:27 into the second round after a left to the chin.

Mixed results for Americans

It’s been a mixed result so far for the American fighters at the UFC Freedom 250.

After the U.S. fighters lost their first two bouts against international opponents at the event at the White House, Sean O’Malley delivered an impressive knockout of Canadian Aiemann Zahabi in their bantamweight fight.

Brazilian fighters went 2-0 against Americans with Diego Lopes knocking out Steve Garcia in a featherweight bout and Mauricio Ruffy knocking out Michael Chandler in a lightweight bout.

Hokit invokes conspiracy theory about Michelle Obama

Josh Hokit, after knocking out Derrick Lewis, thanked Trump, and “my lord and savior Jesus Christ” before veering into an unfounded right-wing conspiracy theory about a former first lady: “Michelle Obama is a man. Am I right, America?”

Hokit also headed over to Trump and placed a chain around the president’s neck.

Sean O’Malley knocks out Aiemann Zahabi before saluting troops

Sean O’Malley knocked out Aiemann Zahabi in the second round of a bantamweight fight

O’Malley stunned Zahabi with a left and finished him off with a right 4:02 into the second round.

O’Malley then went over and shook hands with Trump and saluted the troops in the crowd.

Josh Hokit knocks out Derrick Lewis

Josh Hokit knocked out Derrick Lewis in the second round of a heavyweight fight.

Hokit was in control from the start and finished off Lewis with a combination round that sent him to the mat. The fight was called off by TKO 4:09 into the second round.

Hokit presented Trump with a necklace and shook his hand after the fight.

Hokit spent time on the practice squad of the NFL’s San Francisco 49ers after competing in football and wrestling in college at Fresno State.

Comedian who insulted Puerto Rico during Trump’s campaign is a VIP

Tony Hinchcliffe was one of the VIPs at the event, smiling and waving for the broadcast.

Near the end of Trump’s 2024 run for a second term, Hinchcliffe caused an uproar at a Madison Square Garden rally when he called Puerto Rico “a floating island of garbage.”

Trump’s campaign took the rare step of distancing itself from the comedian at the time, saying the joke didn’t reflect Trump’s views.

Ruffy proposes after beating Chandler

Brazilian Mauricio Ruffy got a knockout and followed it with a wedding proposal.

In the interview after his knockout of Michael Chandler, Ruffy proposed to his girlfriend, Nadine.

She gave a thumbs up.

Ruffy TKOs Chandler in first round

Brazilian Mauricio Ruffy knocked out American Michael Chandler in the first round of a middleweight fight.

Ruffy stunned Chandler with a kick and then finished him off by TKO 4:29 into the fight.

President Donald Trump pumped his first in approval after the knockout from his ringside seat.

Park Police says Strickland wasn’t arrested, advised not to return

U.S. Park Police said in a statement that UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland’s presence at the Ellipse drew enough attention from attendees that it resulted in disorder. He wasn’t cited or arrested, they said. Instead, he was taken to his hotel and told not to come back to the venue.

Earlier in the day, Strickland was escorted barefoot out of the White House Ellipse area, where thousands of ticketed fans congregated to watch the fights.

The law enforcement agency said Strickland’s removal from the site was due to concerns for his safety and the UFC fans. U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Park Police and other agencies were involved in escorting him out.

Sen. Graham, in the crowd at UFC, is skeptical about the Iran agreement

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham is a close ally of Trump and an Iran hawk. He expressed skepticism about the emerging deal, saying that Congress would need to review and vote on it, and said he expects Vice President JD Vance — “the architect of the deal” — to present it.

“I am somewhat concerned that Iran’s view of the agreement seems different than what the American negotiating team is claiming,” Graham said on social media.

Nickal knocks out Daukaus and then chats with Trump

Bo Nickal knocked out Kyle Daukaus in the first round in a middleweight fight.

Nickal knocked Daukaus down with a right hook, and the referee quickly stopped the second fight of the event 4:34 into the opening round.

Nickal went right over to Trump after the win and talked briefly with the president. Nickal, a three-time NCAA Division I wrestling champion at Penn State, has forged a friendly relationship with Trump after they met in 2019 at the White House during a ceremony for collegiate national champions.

UFC fighters walk out of White House with ‘heroes’

The fighters are getting impressive walkouts before each fight.

They leave the White House, one at a time, accompanied by two people described by the broadcast as “heroes.”

Bo Nickal and Kyle Daukaus were each joined by a Las Vegas police officer and a medal of honor recipient before the second fight.

Diego Lopes and Steve Garcia each walked out with two first responders before the first fight.

Lopes knocks out Garcia

Diego Lopes knocked out Steve Garcia in the second round of the first fight of the UFC Freedom 250.

Lopes connected with a left hook that knocked Garcia down and then finished him off before the referee stopped the fight.

UFC Freedom 250 at the White House begins

The UFC Freedom 250 event started with a featherweight fight between Diego Lopes and Steve Garcia.

Garcia walked out of the White House draped in an American flag and accompanied by two police officers. Lopez walked out the Mexican song “La Chona.”

Fans were chanting “USA! USA!” just before the start of the fight.

Trump arrives at the Octagon

The president and UFC chief Dana White walked together from the Oval Office to the Blue Room balcony, then stood for the national anthem as fighter jets streaked overhead.

Before the anthem began, the two men shared a moment on the balcony. Trump smiled as White pointed to the Octagon and “The Claw” on the White House’s South Lawn.

After the anthem, the crowd cheered and chanted “USA! USA!”

Trump and White then put on somber expressions as they walked the rest of the way to the cage where the UFC fights will take place.

Trump has a seat very close to the Octagon.

Weather watch

Clouds are getting darker but there’s still no significant rain at the Ellipse, where a live band was still playing for fans when the broadcast’s 8 p.m. start time arrived.

Earlier, a message appeared on the video screens warning about possible bad weather and telling the crowd to be prepared to leave and take shelter.

Sean Strickland escorted away by police

UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland was escorted out of the Ellipse event by a group of police officers and taken into a Park Police van Sunday.

Once a vocal supporter of Trump, Strickland has recently said on social media that he was not invited to participate in the event at the White House because he is an outspoken critic of Israel.

Strickland was wearing a black anorak jacket and was barefoot. It wasn’t immediately clear why law enforcement led him away.

UFC CEO Dana White has rejected Strickland’s accusation that he was banned from UFC Freedom 250 events.

“Nobody is banned. Nothing is banned,” White told reporters earlier this month.

Not everyone was able to get tickets to the big UFC event

Richard Williams doesn’t have tickets to Sunday’s fights. But he drove with a friend from Pittsburgh to attend Saturday’s Fan Festival in Washington, D.C., because he wanted to see what all the hubbub was about.

He’s never been to an MMA event before but described the show the UFC put on for fans as “pretty awesome.”

For the fights to coincide with Trump’s 80th birthday and America’s 250th year, “all of that coming together at once is really amazing,” Williams said.

It will take months for oil and gas to flow freely

Even with a deal in place, it will take months for oil and gas supplies to be flowing freely enough for the world’s needs to be met, because shipping and insurance companies will want to be confident the agreement will last, energy experts said. And countries in the Middle East who paused production may have a long road ahead to restart those oil fields.

Vance says it’s possible Trump could be at the signing ceremony

Vice President JD Vance in an interview with Fox News said the White House was still figuring out the logistics of who will attend Friday’s signing ceremony in Switzerland.

“I certainly plan to be there, but it’s possible the president himself could be there,” Vance said.

He said the deal could have a transformative impact on the Middle East.

“This region of the world has been a basket case for my entire life, and longer than that,” Vance said, explaining the deal could “eliminate the nuclear threat of Iran” as well as build prosperity.

VIPs begin arriving at the White House ahead of fights

Along with a string of Trump administration officials and lawmakers, including FBI Director Kash Patel, acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, at least one foreign dignitary was seen entering the White House campus on Sunday.

Poland’s President Karol Nawrocki was spotted heading into the White House before the UFC event on the South Lawn.

Tkachuk brothers at the Ellipse

Hockey’s Tkachuk brothers were at the Ellipse as part of pre-fight festivities. They were interviewed on the main stage.

Matthew Tkachuk offered the following hot take: “It’s going to be the under in every single fight,” he said. “I think it’s not going to last like halfway through. They’re all going to be knockouts or finishes early.”

Attendees include eager first-timers

Jake Rowe, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, traveled to Washington, D.C., with his brother for the UFC fights.

“I’ve never been to an MMA match before,” he said. He jumped at the chance when he got tickets to Sunday’s events.

He’s hoping American Justin Gaethje emerges the victor in the lightweight title bout against Spanish-Georgian lightweight champion Ilia Topuria.

The fight card has two championship bouts

In a card that has been panned by fans online as underwhelming, Alex Pereira of Brazil will meet Ciryl Gane of France for the interim UFC heavyweight title. Spanish-Georgian lightweight champion Ilia Topuria then takes on interim champ Justin Gaethje, one of just two Americans who currently hold even a share of the UFC’s 11 championship belts.

There are five other fights on the main card that include former title-fight participants Michael Chandler and Derrick Lewis and former 135-pound champion Sean O’Malley.

UFC CEO Dana White said the show will go on rain or shine. Strong thunderstorms and heavy lightning disrupted Friday’s Lincoln Memorial promotional event, and the forecast for Sunday evening also looks threatening.

Macron says G7 leaders will discuss consequences of US-Iran deal

French President Emmanuel Macron said the deal between the United States and Iran will be discussed at the G7 summit, which begins Monday in the French resort town of Evian-les-Bains and brings together leaders of the world’s major advanced economies, including President Donald Trump.

“The aim will be to assess the implications of this agreement, support for Lebanon, the long-term reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and, of course, reaching a deal on Iran’s nuclear and ballistic (missile) programs,” Macron said in a video posted on X.

Egypt, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates will join discussions in Evian on Tuesday.

The G7 includes the U.S., France, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom.

Polish visitors on hand to witness their president attend the fights

Tomasz Oracz, from south Poland, traveled from his home country to watch the seven Sunday fights.

He was spotted watching one of the many mixed martial arts fighter interviews that were taking place on the mainstage Saturday. Oracz said he was equally excited about each bout on Sunday’s fight card and couldn’t pick a favorite.

“These events are very important,” he said, especially since Poland’s president, Karol Nawrocki, is expected to attend the festivities, according to Polish media. Nawrocki has a background as an amateur boxer.

Weather woes could hit UFC show

UFC posted on social media that severe weather was expected Sunday night and fans should plan accordingly.

“We anticipate inclement weather in the area, so attendees should plan accordingly,” the UFC wrote. “We will share additional information when available.”

UFC CEO Dana White said the show will go on rain or shine. Strong thunderstorms and heavy lightning disrupted Friday’s Lincoln Memorial promotional event, and the forecast for Sunday evening also looks threatening.

Watch party o

n the Ellipse

Sunday’s event includes a watch party on the Ellipse, the expansive lawn area located between the White House and Washington Monument.

In addition to the massive video screens, there are various military-themed vehicles on display, as well as concession stands and free water that fans were lining up for under the afternoon sun.

The area is heavily secured from the outside, and there’s law enforcement presence inside as well, but as of 5 p.m. there was little sign of any unruliness.

Trump confirms US-Iran deal

Trump says “the Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete” and says the Strait of Hormuz will open immediately.

“Congratulations to all!” he wrote Sunday on his social media site. “I hereby fully authorize the toll free opening of the Strait of Hormuz, and, simultaneously herewith, authorize the immediate removal of the United States Naval blockade.”

The president added, “Ships of the World, start your engines. Let the oil flow!”

Trump’s post came hours before a UFC event at the White House marking his 80th birthday.

Pakistan’s prime minister says Iran, U.S. have reached peace deal; accord to cover Lebanon

Pakistan says the United States and Iran have reached an agreement to end the war and open the Strait of Hormuz, offering relief to the global economy more than three months since the war began.

Full details of the deal were not immediately available. The signing will be Friday in Switzerland. It is not clear how quickly the strait might reopen to all traffic. The U.S. previously said it would ease its blockade of Iranian ports as the strait reopens, and would agree to relax sanctions to allow Iran to sell more of its oil and strengthen its battered economy.

The White House lawn is ready for Trump’s UFC birthday bash — but the weather may not cooperate

A muggy and very hot afternoon in Washington was forecast to give way to thunderstorms shortly after the evening fights in honor of Trump’s 80th birthday are set to begin.

UFC chief Dana White has insisted for days that the show will go on rain or shine.

But he’s also conceded, “I’m sick and tired of hearing about the weather” and said his league is sticking to indoor arenas going forward.

The White House is also touchy.

After the Weather Channel warned on X of a “60% chance of thunderstorms, heavy downpours, and wind gusts up to 34 mph,” the Rapid Response 47 account — which posts for the Trump administration — dismissed the post as the work of a “friendless loser” and added an expletive for emphasis.

Trump and White’s relationship spans 25 years

The Freedom 250 card marks the pinnacle of the relationship between UFC CEO Dana White and Trump, which has yielded personal, political and financial dividends for both parties. White’s first card as UFC president took place in 2001 at an event held at the Trump Taj Mahal casino.

Trump has attended four UFC cards as sitting president, walking to the cage amid rock music and patriotic chants from fans, much like the fighters themselves. White introduced Trump at two Republican National Conventions. White also attended the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in April that was cut short by a shooting.

‘Bread and circuses’

The UFC event is an apt metaphor for Trump’s pugilistic political style. He is as big a fan of cage-match-style politics as he is of cage-fighting itself.

But Trump has also long been a master of political misdirection, purposely presenting people with something other than his presidency to focus on when things aren’t going well.

With the war in Iran grinding on despite weeks of assurances from Trump that its end is nigh, gas prices staying high, renewed concerns about inflation and plummeting job approval ratings for Trump — a White House birthday party unlike anything America has ever seen is definitely a diversion.

The apparent breakthrough in negotiations comes after Iran exchanged fire with the U.S. and Israel over three days this week, threatening to push the region into a full-scale war. U.S. Central Command late Friday said in a social media post that it intercepted several Iranian attack drones that were targeting commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. (Produced by Luke Garratt)

“This is all distraction,” said Mike Fontaine, a classics professor at Cornell University, who likened it to the gladiatorial games of Imperial Rome, when combatants brutalized each other for public entertainment meant to bolster rulers’ popularity and quell potential unrest.

“This is a classic strategy,” Fontaine said. “In ancient Rome, the phrase would be, ‘bread and circuses.’”

Who’s paying for all this?

Trump says the UFC is paying for the event, and while its full costs haven’t been divulged, the National Park Service said in a court filing that $60-plus million and tens of thousands of hours of labor have gone into it, while seven government agencies have “allocated significant resources and manpower.”

UFC also announced on Friday that it was adding World Liberty Financial as an official partner for the event to create a special $250,000 athlete bonus pool for Sunday night’s winners. The cryptocurrency company is co-owned by the Trump family, founded with the president’s special diplomatic envoy Steve Witkoff and run by his son, Zach. The arrangement further blurs lines between the Trump family’s financial interests and the events and construction projects the president has prioritized and used government resources to pull off.

Inside the crowd drawn to Trump’s unusual UFC fight night at the White House

One by one, the burly mixed martial arts fighters made their entrance past the solemn, hulking marble statue of America’s 16th president and jogged down the steps of the Lincoln Memorial to roars from thousands of fans drawn to the unusual sporting weekend.

The news conference Friday night featured the fighters who are preparing to face off Sunday in the Octagon built outside the White House. But it was also a chance to see the UFC fans who have thronged to Washington and endured lightning, humidity and bugs for the spectacle.

Tracy Philbeck and his son Levi drove from Charlotte, North Carolina, with a group of friends to support their favorite fighter, American Justin Gaethje, in the upcoming lightweight title bout against Georgian Ilia Topuria.

“You will hear an eagle screaming when Justin Gaethje wins,” the elder Philbeck chuckled.

▶ Read more

Donald Trump turns 80 and celebrates with UFC cage fighting on the White House lawn

President Donald Trump turned 80 on Sunday and is set to celebrate with one of the more surreal spectacles both in sports and even in the nation’s capital: cage fighting on the White House lawn.

Against the backdrop of a 3-month-old war with Iran that’s been broadly unpopular with Americans and has rattled global oil markets and with inflation spiked to the highest level since April 2023, the White House — long known as the people’s house and a symbol of American democracy — opened its backyard Sunday night to stage a bruising UFC card on the South Lawn.

More than $60 million and tens of thousands of hours of labor have been poured into building the arena, according to a court filing from the National Park Service, which oversees the South Lawn.

UFC is staging seven fights with all male fighters under the Freedom 250 banner to celebrate Trump’s 80th birthday and the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence’s signing.

But when it came down to doing what it takes to win the Cup, the Hurricanes' defense put its stamp on this series, shutting down the Vegas Golden Knights and not letting up.

The Hurricanes held Vegas to five total goals in Games 4 and 5 and used a suffocating defense in a 3-0 shutout Sunday night in Game 6 to win their first championship in 20 years.

“That’s a lot of years,” said Carolina center Jordan Staal, who received the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. “It’s amazing. This is something I’ve been going after ever since we got the first one. You want to win it again and again and again. "

Brandon Bussi, whose entrance late in Game 3 helped turn around the series, had his first career playoff shutout in stopping 22 shots. Jackson Blake had a goal and assist, and Taylor Hall scored just 3:47 into the game to set the tone. Nikolaj Ehlers added an empty-netter.

“Your mind wanders the last couple of days and wonder what it may be like out here (on ice after winning) and it’s better than I could have expected," Hall said.

The Golden Knights struggled badly to muster any kind of offense in Game 6 and went 18:37 between shots on goal in the second and third periods. Playing in their third Cup final, this is the first time they have been shut out.

This final game was what many observers expected the series to be like between the defensive-minded teams, but each side watched leads of two-plus goals disappear in the first three games.

Now, the Cup belongs to the Hurricanes, led by coach Rod Brind'Amour, who also captained Carolina to its 2006 title.

“It's just as awesome,” Brind'Amour said. “But as a player, it was a little different. I worked and dreamt of winning the Cup my whole life, so that was like a piano came off my back. This time around, I wanted it for the group."

This was the first game of the series that Vegas goalie Carter Hart didn't allow four goals in a game. He finished with 20 saves.

The Hurricanes began to assume control of the series after falling behind by the score of 4-0 in Game 3. They came back force overtime, and though the Canes lost, they outplayed the Golden Knights from there on out.

Reflecting the do-or-die situation for the Golden Knights, they made several lineup changes, with Brett Howden replacing the injured William Karlsson at second-line center. Mitch Marner could have moved there, but remained at right wing.

Original Golden Knight Reilly Smith made his Cup final debut at third-line right wing, and Braeden Bowman made his playoff debut at fourth-line right wing. Kaedan Korczak replaced Dylan Coghlan on the third defensive pairing.

“This is tough to be on this side of it,” Golden Knights defenseman Brayden McNabb said. “But on the other side, these chances don’t come around very often. So it stings."

This title is a testament to Carolina’s resilience as a franchise that kept coming close to winning the Eastern Conference, but couldn’t quite get through until now.

Brind’Amour made sure the Hurricanes kept getting back up after losing in the conference final twice in the past three years and three times in their current eight-year playoff run. The talent was clearly there, but there was always a stumbling block.

Not anymore.

After dispatching Montreal in five games to make the final, the Hurricanes then faced perennial power Vegas and took care of business there, too. Now, Brind’Amour will get his name on the Cup for the second time.

So will 37-year-old Staal, who also won the title in 2009 with Pittsburgh. He planted himself in front of Hart and dared the Golden Knights to knock him out of the way. Staal scored in each of the first five Cup final games, the first time that has happened.

The Hurricanes got off to a fast start with a goal just 25 seconds into Game 1, only to lose 5-4 on a late goal from Tomas Hertl. And the Golden Knights were on the verge of taking complete control as minutes ticked down in Game 2 while holding a 2-0 lead and appearing as if they would take a two-game advantage back home.

Then, it all changed. Carolina showed a fight that not only brought the Hurricanes back into the series by rallying to win 4-3 in overtime on Seth Jarvis’ one-timer, but would serve as their signature throughout the series.

That was especially true the following game when the Golden Knights took a 4-0 lead into the third period and the Canes seemed to have no answers. Brind’Amour even appeared to wave the white flag by removing goalie Frederik Andersen and replacing him with Bussi.

But the Hurricanes weren’t simply trying to get to Game 4. They sent a message, going on a remarkable rally to force overtime. Though Carolina lost, it was inflection point, with Bussi backstopping a team that was only growing stronger. Carolina then went on to win the next two games and moved within a victory of the championship.

The Hurricanes got it done against the Golden Knights team that was on a heater after John Tortorella replaced Bruce Cassidy with eight games left in the regular season. Vegas then went from third in the Pacific Division to first, knocked off Utah and Anaheim in six games apiece in the playoffs and shockingly swept Presidents’ Trophy-winning Colorado to win the West.

“I am very proud to be a part of this organization, very proud to lead this team, very proud to play with every single guy that steps into our locker room,” Vegas captain Mark Stone said. “This feeling sucks. I never want to have it again."

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl