AP National News

By AMANCAI BIRABEN Associated Press PIERRE, S.D. (AP) — The South Dakota Senate has suspended a Republican state senator in a rare move that stripped the lawmaker of legislative power while keeping the allegations against her a secret. Sen. Julie Frye-Mueller told reporters earlier Thursday that she was being punished following an exchange she had

By WAYNE PARRY Associated Press TOMS RIVER, N.J. (AP) — A proposed settlement between New Jersey and the current owner of a notoriously polluted industrial site is drawing fire from residents of Toms River, where memories of children getting cancer at elevated rates are still a fresh source of pain. The state and Germany-based BASF

By LARRY NEUMEISTER and BOBBY CAINA CALVAN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — An Islamic extremist who killed eight people with a speeding truck in a 2017 rampage on a popular New York City bike path was convicted Thursday of federal crimes and could face the death penalty. Sayfullo Saipov bowed his head as he

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — A lawyer for Eva Green alleged Thursday that producers of a collapsed film tried to damage the French actress’ reputation by depicting her as a “diva.” The performer, who played Vesper Lynd in James Bond thriller “Casino Royale,” is suing producers for a $1 million fee she

By STEVE KARNOWSKI Associated Press ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Biden administration has moved to protect the pristine Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northeastern Minnesota from future mining. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland signed an order Thursday closing over 350 square miles of the Superior National Forest to mineral leasing for 20 years. Haaland

By BASSEM MROUE and KAREEM CHEHAYEB Associated Press BEIRUT (AP) — Scores of protesters have scuffled with riot police in Beirut as they try to break into the chief offices of Lebanon’s judiciary. The demonstrations came after Lebanon’s chief prosecutor moved Wednesday to cripple the probe into a massive port explosion that wreaked havoc on

By ERIC TUCKER and FRANK BAJAK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorney General Merrick Garland and other U.S. officials say the FBI and international partners have at least temporarily dismantled the network of a prolific ransomware gang they infiltrated last year. And as a result they have saved victims, including hospitals and school districts, a

By MICHAEL TARM AP Legal Affairs Writer CHICAGO (AP) — Illinois prosecutors have told a judge they are presenting evidence to a grand jury for a possible indictment against the father of the man charged with fatally shooting seven people at a Fourth of July parade in suburban Chicago. They spoke at a Lake County

By MIKE SCHNEIDER Associated Press A Middle Eastern and North African category would be added to U.S. federal surveys and censuses, and changes would be made to how Hispanics are able to self-identify. That’s according to preliminary recommendations released Thursday by the Biden administration in what would be the first update to race and ethnicity

By EBRAHIM NOROOZI Associated Press KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A spokesman for the World Food Program says malnutrition rates in Afghanistan are at record highs with half the country enduring severe hunger throughout the year. Speaking in Kabul, the WFP spokesman said Thursday that there are seven million children under the age of five and

MIAMI (AP) — Two former South Florida police officers turned themselves in to face felony charges over the beating of a homeless man who had been drinking outside a shopping center last month. Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said Thursday that 27-year-old Lorenzo Orfila and 22-year-old Rafael Otano face kidnapping and battery charges. Orfila

By MICHAEL R. BLOOD Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff, who rose to national prominence as the lead prosecutor in President Donald Trump’s first impeachment trial, said Thursday he is running for the Senate seat held by long-serving Democrat Dianne Feinstein. The 2024 race is quickly emerging as a marquee Senate

By DANIEL POLITI Associated Press LIMA, Peru (AP) — The United States is sanctioning Paraguay’s former President Horacio Cartes Jara and current Vice President Hugo Velázquez Moreno. The U.S. Treasury Department is blocking them from using the U.S. financial system. It accuses them of widespread corruption schemes and ties to members of Hezbollah, which the

By TRAVIS LOLLER Associated Press NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Like a lot of great projects, the idea for Grammy-nominated album “The Urban Hymnal” was first sketched out on a paper restaurant napkin. Gospel songwriter and producer Sir the Baptist had come to Nashville in October 2021 to hear Tennessee State University’s Aristocrat of Bands perform

By MARK ANDERSON AP Sports Writer LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Oakland Athletics have spent years trying to get a new stadium while watching Bay Area neighbors such as the Giants, Warriors, 49ers and Raiders successfully move into state-of-the-art venues, and now time is running short on their efforts. The A’s lease at RingCentral Coliseum

By ADRIAN SAINZ and REBECCA REYNOLDS Associated Press MEMPHIS, Tenn.. (AP) — The Memphis police chief has called the actions of five officers involved in the violent arrest of Tyre Nichols “heinous, reckless and inhumane” and made a plea to residents of the city to protest peacefully when video of the arrest is released. Memphis

By ISABEL DEBRE Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli forces on Thursday killed nine Palestinians — including at least seven militants and a 61-year-old woman — in the deadliest single incident in the occupied West Bank in two decades, Palestinian officials said. Two rockets were fired from Gaza early Friday, further escalating tensions. The Israeli

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Investigators looking into the collapse of a Pittsburgh bridge nearly one year ago are looking closely at damage to the legs of the structure. A report issued Thursday by the National Transportation Safety Board about the failure of the Fern Hollow Bridge says its engineers are examining “multiple fractures” found on the

By GLENN GAMBOA AP Business Writer The need to increase funding for Black feminist organizations is urgent, according to an open letter from some of philanthropy’s most influential organizations – including Melinda Gates’ Pivotal Ventures, Rihanna’s Clara Lionel Foundation, as well as the Ford Foundation and MacArthur Foundation – released Thursday. The Black Feminist Fund

By JESSE BEDAYN Associated Press/Report for America DENVER (AP) — A bill introduced in the Colorado legislature would create a $2 million pilot program to use cameras, likely with artificial intelligence technology, in high-risk locations to help identify fires before they burn out of control. The bill comes a year after the most destructive wildfire