Gov. Patrick Morrisey sent 100 National Guard members to the hardest-hit areas in the northern part of the state, and declared a state of emergency for all 55 counties Tuesday night. An additional 200 National Guard members were expected to arrive by late Wednesday morning.

“State and local agencies will remain on the ground for as long as it takes to help affected communities,” Morrisey said in a statement.

Forecasters said up to 7 inches (18 centimeters) of rain fell in some places. No deaths were immediately reported.

The National Weather Service in Charleston warned of life-threatening flooding conditions in some communities Tuesday night, telling people to “SEEK HIGHER GROUND NOW!”

Bob Pfister said the power remained on at the hotel where he was staying in Weston, even though the first floor was inundated, and most people planned to stay put until Wednesday morning.

“Right now this option is much better than a shelter and a life boat,” Pfister said in a post on Facebook. “If the power goes out that may change a whole lot!”

Video and photos posted to social media showed submerged vehicles in parking lots, including at a Walmart in Weston where muddy water surged far into the store.

Emergency crews reported dozens of rescues of people stuck in submerged vehicles. However, some rescuers were unable to get to locations where floodwaters had cut off access.

Flash flood warnings in the state expired by Wednesday morning. Other warnings were issued for parts of neighboring Virginia.

The heavy rains were part of wide-ranging storms that also produced reports of tornadoes stretching from the Cincinnati area across New Jersey to the New York City suburbs. Damage from a possible tornado was reported in the area of St. Marys and Belmont in West Virginia.

Emergency service communication channels were buzzing with activity late Tuesday night in Lewis and Upshur counties, which have about 40,000 residents combined.

First responders were performing water rescues for hours Tuesday night into Wednesday, Lewis County Commissioner Agnes Quinn Queen said.

“The devastation across our county is extensive,” she said in a social media post.

A sinkhole caused by the storm swallowed a vehicle at a bar Tuesday night in Fayetteville, in southern West Virginia.

Morrisey urged residents to stay at home and said travel conditions remained hazardous Tuesday night. Floodwaters forced the closure of portions of Interstate 79, U.S. Route 48 and numerous secondary roads. The ground was already saturated after storms dumped more than 2 inches (5 centimeters) of rain throughout the state on Saturday.

Tuesday’s storms occurred a decade after 23 people died after heavy rains fell for hours over the same areas.

Data from a U.S. Geological Survey water gauge showed one creek tributary, Sand Run, rose to a record level near Buckhannon, topping the mark set during a November 1985 flood event that resulted in 47 deaths statewide.

___

Associated Press writer Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut, contributed to this report.

Discussion

At 700 AM CDT (1200 UTC), the center of Tropical Storm Bertha was located near latitude 29.5 North, longitude 88.5 West. Bertha is moving toward the west near 5 mph (7 km/h), and this general motion is expected to continue through Friday with a little acceleration. On the forecast track, Bertha will move near or along the northern Gulf Coast during the next couple of days.

Data from a NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft indicate that maximum sustained winds remain near 50 mph (85 km/h) with higher gusts. Gradual weakening is forecast over the next several days.

Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 105 miles (165 km) from the center. A wind gust to 49 mph (79 km/h) was recently reported at the Pensacola Naval Air Station.

Dropsonde data from the NOAA aircraft indicate that the minimum central pressure is 997 mb (29.44 inches).

Watches and Warnings

CHANGES WITH THIS ADVISORY:

The Tropical Storm Watch has been extended westward to Sargent, Texas.

SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT:

A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for, * Okaloosa/Walton County Line in Florida to Morgan City, Louisiana * Metropolitan New Orleans and Lake Pontchartrain

A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for, * West of Morgan City, Louisiana, to Sargent, Texas * Lake Maurepas

A Tropical Storm Warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area within 36 hours.

A Tropical Storm Watch means that tropical storm conditions are possible within the watch area, in this case within the next 24 to 48 hours.

For storm information specific to your area, including possible inland watches and warnings, please monitor products issued by your local National Weather Service forecast office.

Land Hazards

Key messages for Tropical Storm Bertha can be found in the Tropical Cyclone Discussion under AWIPS header MIATCDAT2 and WMO header WTNT42 KNHC.

WIND: Tropical storm conditions will continue spreading across portions of the northern Gulf Coast within the warning area today. Tropical storm conditions are possible within the watch area in Louisiana by tonight and along the upper Texas coast by Thursday or Thursday night.

STORM SURGE: The combination of storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the immediate coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline. The water could reach the following heights above ground somewhere in the indicated areas if the peak surge occurs at the time of high tide,

Mouth of the Mississippi River, LA to MS/AL Border, 2-4 ft Port Bolivar, TX to Mouth of the Mississippi River, LA, 1-3 ft MS/AL Border to Okaloosa/Walton County Line, FL, 1-3 ft Lake Pontchartrain, 1-3 ft

The deepest water will occur along the immediate coast. Surge-related flooding depends on the relative timing of the surge and the tidal cycle, and can vary greatly over short distances. For information specific to your area, please see products issued by your local National Weather Service forecast office.

For a complete depiction of areas at risk of storm surge inundation, please see the National Weather Service Peak Storm Surge Graphic, available at hurricanes.gov/graphics_at2.shtml?peakSurge.

RAINFALL: Bertha is expected to produce total rainfall amounts of 1 to 4 inches with isolated higher totals to 6 inches through Thursday along the central to the western Gulf Coast from western Florida to southern Texas. This rainfall may produce isolated flash flooding, especially in urban areas.

For a complete depiction of forecast rainfall associated with Bertha, please see the National Weather Service Storm Total Rainfall Graphic available at hurricanes.gov/graphics_at2.shtml?rainqpf and the Flash Flood Risk graphic at hurricanes.gov/graphics_at2.shtml?ero.

SURF: Swells generated by Bertha will continue spreading westward along the northern Gulf Coast during the next few days. These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions. Please consult products from your local weather office.

A depiction of rip current risk for the United States can be found at: hurricanes.gov/graphics_at2.shtml?ripCurrents

Futures for the S&P 500 fell 0.4% before the opening bell, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked down 0.2%. Nasdaq futures slipped 0.9%.

The U.S. launched an 11th night of airstrikes on the Islamic Republic, hitting targets across Iran and raising doubts about a diplomatic solution to end the conflict as it threatens to again spin out of control.

Shipping remains largely stalled through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of all oil and natural gas traded passed in peacetime. Iran’s attacks on shipping in that waterway sparked the recent series of U.S. responses, and the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels of Yemen are now threatening Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea as well.

That's pushed prices for Brent crude, the international standard, up $3.81 to $94.82 per barrel.

Benchmark U.S. crude added $3.31 to $87.65 a barrel.

Rising oil prices are again pushing inflation higher, just as price increases were slowing more than economists expected. That could push the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates, which would slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and other investments.

The Fed meets to decide on interest rates next week.

The auto club AAA said Wednesday that the average price for a gallon of regular gas in the U.S. jumped again overnight to $4.06. That's still below highs of around $4.56 per gallon in May, but well above the sub-$3-a-gallon in the months leading up to U.S. and Israel's attacks on Israel in late February.

Higher fuel prices not only make consumers more cautious about spending, but also raise costs for shipping and almost all businesses.

In equities trading, Super Micro Computer soared 17.5% after the server and storage maker issued an earnings preview revealing that gross margins will come in well ahead of guidance. The California company also said that its full fourth-quarter earnings release on Aug. 11 will show a record backlog of orders.

AT&T rose 3.6% before the opening bell after it topped Wall Street profit expectations.

Coming after the closing bell are earnings reports from Tesla and Google parent company Alphabet.

In Europe, France's CAC 40 edged up 0.4% at midday, while the German DAX rose 0.4%. Britain's FTSE 100 gained 1.3%.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 fell 0.2% to finish at 66,115.60, after the government reported that both imports and exports rose last month from a year earlier, as the weakening yen raised the value of both when converted from dollars to yen.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 added 0.3% to 8,823.00. South Korea's Kospi rose 0.7% to 6,797.70. The Hang Seng dipped nearly 1.0% to 24,892.66, while the Shanghai Composite was little changed, adding less than 0.1% to 3,867.03.

The fire in rural Guadalajara comes less than two weeks after a deadly blaze devastated a small expat community in southern Spain. That small but extremely virulent fire killed 13 people, including several foreigners, in one of Spain’s deadliest wildfires.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Wednesday visited the fire-ravaged area in Guadalajara, located less than two hours by car northeast of Madrid, where some 34 villages have been evacuated. There are no reported serious injuries or deaths.

“Year after year we clearly see how climate change kills and destroys wealth in our communities,” Sánchez said in village of Tamajón.

“This isn’t politics. It is science, it’s about facts,” Sánchez said, making a call for a national pact among all political parties to fight climate change.

Spain this year has already suffered 22 major forest fires, which is defined as a fire that burns over 500 hectares (1,235 acres). The fires have burned four times the amount of terrain compared to July of last year, Sánchez said.

The Socialist leader said over 100,000 hectares (247,000 acres) had already been scorched through the first half of the year, matching the total yearly average for Spain over the last decade.

Spain’s Minister for the Ecological Transition, Sara Aagesen, described the Guadalajara fire as “one of the largest in the recent history of our country" and the largest ever for the region of Castilla La Mancha.

Regional authorities said firefighters supported by water-dumping aircraft had so far protected the homes of all 40 villages in the burned area, 90% of which belongs to a national park. Firefighters hope to have the nearly week-old fire under control by Friday, said Emiliano García-Page, regional president of Castilla La Mancha.

Miguel Ángel Moreno, mayor of the village of Zarzuela de Jadraque, said its 100 residents were evacuated Friday, with 14 taking refuge at a Red Cross shelter.

Firefighters battled the blaze inside the village and saved all the local homes, even if two barns went up in flames, Moreno said, adding that the firefighters should receive as much admiration as the soccer players who won the World Cup on Sunday.

“(The firefighters) had to run from one side of the village to the other putting out fires,” Moreno told Spanish national television TVE. “Besides the heroes who won the World Cup, we have other heroes who remain nameless.”

New heat wave could complicate firefighting efforts

Spain’s weather agency said a heat wave that began Tuesday was expected to reach its peak between Wednesday and Thursday, with temperatures pushing 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) in several inland areas and even crossing 42 Celsius (108 Fahrenheit) in parts of Andalusia in southern Spain.

Guadalajara and large areas of Spain were under alert for high temperatures.

Like other countries, Spain is experiencing extreme heat, which is combining with wind and limited rainfall to create ideal conditions for small wildfires to grow unchecked.

Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, with temperatures increasing twice as quickly as the global average since the 1980s, according to the European Union’s Copernicus Climate Change Service.

Globally, 2025 was the third-hottest year on record, bringing severe heat waves across Europe. Scientists warn that climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of heat and dryness especially in southeastern Europe, making the region more vulnerable to health impacts and wildfires.

The latest update from Congo’s Ministry of Health shows that as of Monday, 2,473 cases have been recorded in the latest outbreak, and 999 people have died. At least 737 patients are currently in isolation and hospitals, it said.

The outbreak declared on May 15 is unlike most previous Ebola outbreaks because the Bundibugyo virus responsible for it has no approved vaccines or treatments.

It has also killed more people at a quicker rate than any outbreak on record, including the 2013-2016 outbreak that is considered the worst on record with over 11,000 deaths out of at least 28,000 cases. That outbreak took about eight months to reach 1,000 deaths.

Ebola is rare, but highly contagious and can be contracted via bodily fluids such as vomit, blood or semen. The disease it causes is severe and often fatal.

Officials have also warned that 80% of new cases have emerged through unknown chains of transmission, a sign the outbreak is spreading faster than health officials can track it even as they step up their response in Ituri province, the epicenter of the outbreak, as well as in four other provinces where cases have been recorded.

Community resistance to Ebola teams, particularly those carrying out safe and dignified burials, has also hampered response. Robert Ndjalonga, head of civil protection in Ituri province, said some communities have refused to allow burial teams to operate as they seek traditional burials, increasing the risk of further transmission.

“The biggest challenge remains resistance from, or outright refusal by, some communities to accept response teams," Ndjalonga said. "On several occasions, burial teams have had to be escorted by security forces to ensure that safe and dignified burials could be carried out without incident.”

Shortages of burial supplies have delayed responses to reported deaths, while some affected health zones still lack operational burial teams, Ndjalonga said.

Attacks on health facilities and response teams have also forced front line workers and aid groups out of some areas. Some health workers have gone on strike, complaining that they haven’t been paid since the outbreak started.

A member of a team carrying out safe Ebola burials was recently injured after assailants pelted their vehicle with stones as it returned from a burial in Bunia last week, according to provincial civil protection authorities.

The attack highlighted the challenges facing the response in eastern Congo. In Ituri’s Irumu territory, the local military administrator recently described Ebola as a greater threat than the Islamic State-affiliated Allied Democratic Forces insurgency and urged residents to support, rather than attack, health workers.

Speaking at the Africa health summit in Ghana on Tuesday, Dr. Jean Kaseya, the Director-General of Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, called for intensified efforts to slow the outbreak.

“If we do not stop this outbreak today, it could become one of the worst Ebola outbreaks the world has ever documented,” Kaseya said.

Less than 9% of expected contacts from confirmed cases are currently being monitored, far below the level needed to contain the outbreak, according to Africa CDC. More than 60% of deaths are occurring in the community before patients reach care.

Pierre Akilimali, the Ebola response incident manager at the National Public Health Institute of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, said the high number of community deaths suggests many infections are not being detected or isolated in time, allowing the virus to continue spreading.

The latest conflict started March 2, when the Lebanese militant group fired rockets toward Israel after the U.S.-Israeli February attacks that set off the Iran war. In response, Israel launched an aerial campaign and ground invasion in Lebanon, killing more than 4,000 people and displacing 1.2 million others.

The two sides, technically in a state of war nearly 80 years after Israel’s establishment, started rare direct talks championed by Washington.

They reached an agreement by late June, setting a plan for the deployment of Lebanese military forces in areas in southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah had a military presence and influence, and the withdrawal of Israeli forces, while disarming the militant group.

Hezbollah has refused the talks and disarmament calls.

Lebanese government vows to rebuild and take control

Nawaf Salam’s visit to Zawtar Al Gharbieh came a day after President Joseph Aoun’s landmark White House meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump, who made a surprise announcement, allowing American carriers to resume direct flights to Lebanon for the first time in 40-plus years.

Salam, alongside Lebanon’s defense minister and senior military officials, pitched a Lebanese flag near a destroyed building in the town, vowing the government will start rebuilding destroyed homes and infrastructure.

“We have insisted since the beginning that our goal is the complete Israeli withdrawal from all our territory,” Salam said. “What we are seeing today is just the beginning, but we remain determined and steadfast, and will continue to mobilize all political and diplomatic efforts to secure a full withdrawal from all of Lebanese territory.”

The army did not immediately allow civilians to enter as they cleared unexploded ordnance. Residents tried to storm the barrier in a desperate bid to enter the village and check on their homes and properties.

Some expressed frustration, downplaying the army’s deployment.

“The prime minister should have informed people that he was going to Zawtar and he should have taken the people, who have been waiting for the past two days, with him,” said Zaynab Ismail, a resident.

The agreement’s implementation begins with ‘pilot zones’

Lebanon and Israel agreed to establish two “pilot zones” in a series of villages in southern Lebanon where the Israeli military is to turn over control to the Lebanese army after clearing the areas of any Hezbollah presence.

Israel hasn’t occupied any of the newly assigned zones in the latest conflict, though it has struck them and conducted ground operations. The Lebanese army has a limited presence there.

Trump, in his meeting with Aoun, did not address the “pilot zones” entering their implementation phase, but pledged to support Lebanon without going into details.

Aoun and the Lebanese government have urged the international community to invest in the Mediterranean country and its army to help rebuild its infrastructure and military capacity.

Lebanon’s top political leadership has criticized the group for dragging the country into another war, but also condemned Israel for its widespread bombing and ground invasion.

Hezbollah has condemned the government for holding direct talks with Israel and rejected the agreement, but the militant group has not tried to sabotage it through military means. Its leadership believes Israel cannot be pressured to withdraw its troops by diplomatic means only, and that Lebanon lacks the leverage of its key ally Iran in negotiations.

The Federal Trade Commission says just 4% of eligible consumers actually file claims.

One reason? Fear of getting scammed. After all, it sounds great until you start wondering, is this legit?

And it’s a question you should definitely be asking because real class action settlements do exist, but so do scams designed to look like them.

“If anytime you’re asked to pay something in a class action, that’s a scam,” said Edmund Normand with Normand PLLC, a consumer protection law firm.

That’s rule No. 1. Real class action claims do not require an upfront fee: No administrative charge. No gift cards. No crypto. And no pressure to “act now or lose everything.”

“To file a claim, there’s usually 90 to 120 days,” said Normand.

Other warning signs? Bad grammar, odd email addresses or links that don’t match the company or court.

And remember never give away sensitive personal information.

“It’s also never going to ask for your Social Security number,” said Normand.

So, what does a real notice look like?

Experts say look for a court name, a judge’s name, a claim administrator, and the official settlement website.

And another important detail…

“If you don’t make a claim and you don’t opt out of the class by finding the notice and saying, I don’t want to be involved, you’re in it and you just lose your claim,” explained Normand.

And check reputable class action tracking sites like topclassactions.com.

In some cases, if you don’t opt out, you may give up your right to sue separately later. And one reason to opt out of the class that the lawsuit is representing is because you think you can get more money by bringing your own claim.

DART board members voted 9-4 during a Tuesday meeting to select Ford from a pool of three finalists.

The three finalists named last week were Ford; Dee Leggett, director of business operations for Herzot Transit Services; and Monica Tellez-Fowler, president and CEO of the Central Ohio Transit Authority, Fox 4 reported.

“Nat has been a visionary leader for the JTA and Dallas is getting one of the best in the business,” JTA Board Chair Aundra Wallace said. “I thank Nat for his service here at JTA and wish him the best in his next chapter.”

JTA Board Chair Aundra Wallace

DART Board Chairman Randall Bryant, in a statement reported by Fox 4, said he was “committed to strengthening DART’s governance, securing sustainable funding, and preserving the agency’s future,” and called selecting a highly qualified leader a critical step toward those goals. Several board members urged delaying the vote to allow more time for vetting; a motion to delay failed, the station reported.

Ford, who announced in early July that he will resign from JTA effective Jan. 8, 2027, has overseen major projects and initiatives in Jacksonville.

Under his leadership, JTA says it launched the First Coast Flyer bus rapid transit system, built the Jacksonville Regional Transportation Center, secured more than $400 million in federal discretionary grants, supported a local-option gas tax extension that generated about $1 billion for regional infrastructure, and completed a 27-project road and complete-streets initiative two years ahead of schedule.

“Nat has been a visionary leader for the JTA, and Dallas is getting one of the best in the business,” JTA Board Chair Aundra Wallace said. “I thank Nat for his service here at JTA and wish him the best in his next chapter.”

Other JTA projects included a redesign of the transit system, regional service expansions, deployment of an autonomous-vehicle transit service and attracting a $200 million autonomous vehicle manufacturing investment.

At the same time, Ford’s tenure has attracted scrutiny. JTA has faced criticism lately after cutting services and raising fares to address a projected $17.5 million budget shortfall for fiscal 2027.

DART has been led by interim President and CEO David Leninger since April, after the agency and former CEO Nadine Lee could not reach a severance agreement. The board’s formal announcement next week is expected to provide more detail about the selection and any employment terms.

Ford will remain fully engaged with JTA through January 2027 to support a seamless transition and assist the board in preparing for the next CEO.

The JTA Board’s next scheduled meeting is July 29. Wallace said the board plans to discuss next steps for the CEO position at that meeting.

The arrests took place July 15–16, 2026, at spas in Jacksonville and Atlantic Beach. All four women were booked into the Pretrial Detention Facility and each faces a second-degree misdemeanor charge of offering, committing or engaging in prostitution.

News4JAX is not naming the women because they are charged with a misdemeanor.

How the stings unfolded

In each case, the JSO Homeland Security Division’s undercover detectives entered the businesses, paid for a 30-minute massage and were led to a private room. According to arrest reports, sexual conversations ensued during the massages. Once a predetermined takedown phrase was given, officers moved in and took the suspects into custody.

Body-worn camera footage was recorded in all four cases, according to arrest reports.

July 15 arrests: Beach Blvd., Atlantic Blvd.

The first two arrests occurred Wednesday, July 15. A 49-year-old woman, listed as an employee of Spa 27, was arrested at approximately noon at the business on Beach Blvd. An undercover detective paid $60 for a 30-minute massage before she was taken into custody, according to her arrest report.

Later that morning, a 53-year-old woman was arrested at Serenity Spa in Atlantic Beach. An undercover detective paid $60 for a 30-minute massage before the arrest at 9:31 a.m. The arrest report notes that during a separate human trafficking interview, the woman spontaneously made statements to officers.

July 16 arrests: Barnes Rd., University Blvd.

The operation continued Thursday, July 16, with two more arrests. A 51-year-old woman, listed in the arrest report as the owner of Golden Spa, was arrested at approximately 9:08 a.m. at the business on Barnes Rd. An undercover detective paid $60 for a 30-minute massage before she was booked into the Pretrial Detention Facility.

A fourth arrest came later that morning when a 60-year-old woman was taken into custody at nAgel & Spa Massage on University Blvd. S. An undercover detective paid $70 for a 30-minute massage. The arrest report notes that the woman initiated the sexual conversation during the massage.

Maduro, 63, and his wife Cilia Flores, 69, have been held at a Brooklyn jail ever since U.S. forces seized them from their Caracas home in a stunning middle-of-the-night raid and brought them to New York in early January.

Both have pleaded not guilty. They face potential life prison sentences if a jury agrees that they were part of a conspiracy to send cocaine into the U.S.

President Donald Trump’s administration has defended the raid as a “surgical law enforcement operation” in a criminal case first brought six years ago. Maduro has called himself a prisoner of war and his capture a kidnapping.

U.S. prosecutors say Maduro carried out a conspiracy to move thousands of tons of cocaine into the U.S. by colluding with Venezuelan law enforcement to help drug kingpins.

“I am not guilty. I am a decent man, the constitutional president of my country,” he said in Spanish at his arraignment in January.

Maduro’s lawyer, Barry Pollack, has said he expects to contest the legality of Maduro’s “military abduction.”

The lawyers have said there are complex legal defenses that the court must address before a trial can begin.

Maduro and Flores have not asked to be released on bail. Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein has yet to set a trial date.

The property owner, Cardinal Lem Turner Plaza LLC, faced a city code compliance hearing Tuesday after the Municipal Code Compliance Division issued multiple citations related to the broken AC at the Lem Turner Road location.

Citations unpaid, AC still not fixed

As of the hearing, the citations issued by the city have not been paid, and the air conditioning inside the building has still not been fixed.

Northside resident Dana Maule was among those who raised the alarm weeks ago.

“For weeks, this store has been hot,” Maule said, recalling a visit where she questioned store staff directly. “Is the Air broken? Yeah, it’s broken. Who’s the manager, who owns the building?”

District 8 City Councilman Reggie Gaffney Jr. said the situation was already on the city’s radar.

“The property owner who leases the building to Roses will be going before the magistrate on July 21,” Gaffney said.

Community voices concern

Felicia Mitchell, with the Riverview Collective Community Organization, attended the hearing and spoke to the impact on the surrounding neighborhood.

“So I’m here because today we had our hearing for Roses,” Mitchell said. “Roses is a store located in the Riverview community. It’s now temporarily closed due to the AC not working. It’s not fair, you know, to the workers there that they have to work in that condition, let alone the residents have to shop in those conditions. So I’m just hoping that it can get resolved as quickly as possible so the Roses can get back up and running again, and our communities can enjoy, our residents can enjoy shopping there.”

A representative for Cardinal Lem Turner Plaza LLC said the store was closed voluntarily while a solution is sought, but acknowledged the timeline remains uncertain.

“They have closed the store until they found a resolution,” the representative said. “They are going to reorder the parts and have air conditioning fixed within ... we’ve been closed indefinitely. We never ignored the property; it’s just very expensive to repair.”

What comes next

The Municipal Code Compliance Division gave the property owner 30 days before another inspection.

During that time, the owner will need to show the court that progress has been made and that parts for the new air conditioning system have been ordered. Outstanding fines are also expected to be paid during that period.

Signs posted on the store’s doors indicate the location is “temporarily closed” and direct customers to alternative Roses locations around Jacksonville.

Questions remain about what happened to the store’s employees. News4JAX reached out to Roses to ask whether those workers have been placed at other locations — and we are still waiting to hear back.

Expect another hot and humid day across Northeast Florida, with a mix of sunshine and passing clouds through the morning and early afternoon.

Temperatures will climb into the mid 90s, and when you factor in the humidity, it’ll feel closer to the triple digits.

As the seabreeze develops later today, scattered thunderstorms are expected to pop up, especially during the late afternoon and early evening.

While not everyone will see rain, any storm that forms could produce heavy downpours, frequent lightning, and gusty winds before moving out.

Keep the umbrella handy, stay hydrated if you’re spending time outdoors, and remember to seek shelter if thunder roars.

Skies will gradually clear tonight with warm and muggy conditions, as temperatures settle into the mid-70s.

Have a wonderful day, Jacksonville!

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board found that components of a sprinkler system inside the BioLab plant “had been experiencing significant corrosion and leaking” since 2019. That was shortly after the company began storing the chemicals at the plant, the agency said in its final report on the fire Tuesday.

The huge sacks “would naturally off-gas chlorine fumes that combined with ambient humidity in the warehouse and condensed as hydrochloric acid droplets” on the metal sprinkler heads, the report said.

During a sprinkler inspection in December 2023 at the plant in Conyers, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southeast of downtown Atlanta, over 1,100 sprinkler heads were found to be corroded, it said.

On the day of the fire, Sept. 29, 2024, a corroded sprinkler system component failed. Water came into contact with the chemicals and set off a decomposition reaction that generated heat, causing the release of smoke, toxic vapors and fire.

“The conditions and circumstances at the Bio-Lab Conyers warehouse were completely unacceptable,” Steve Owens, board chairperson, said. He said about 14 million pounds (6.3 million kilograms) of reactive chemicals were stored without proper safeguards.

“These hazardous chemicals were packaged in roughly 5,000 giant sacks, each weighing more than a ton, and some of them were stacked in such a way in the warehouse that responders were not able to keep the initial situation from developing into a catastrophic fire and massive plume of toxic smoke that put thousands of people potentially at risk.”

BioLab makes chemicals that kill algae and bacteria in water, primarily for swimming pools and hot tubs. The company is a subsidiary of Lawrenceville, Georgia-based KIK Consumer Products.

The company decided last year not to rebuild the plant. It was cited by the U.S. Department of Labor for six violations, including four serious ones, and more than $60,000 in proposed penalties.

The board called for expanded regulatory coverage of the chemicals.

A BioLab spokesperson said in an emailed statement that the company cooperated fully with the board and is reviewing the final report.

“We will carefully consider its recommendations as part of our ongoing commitment to safety and continuous improvement,” it said. “The health and safety of the communities where we operate is a top priority, and we worked collaboratively with first responders and relevant authorities to complete the emergency response in October 2024.

“We also completed the clean-up of the site affected by the fire and established resources dedicated to supporting area residents and business owners.”

Rubio spoke at the start of an annual meeting in the Philippine capital, Manila, with counterparts from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations who have expressed alarm over the resurgent war in the Middle East that has battered their region. Despite Washington’s preoccupation with the war, Rubio said “we’re with ASEAN 100%.”

“If we create a precedent in the Middle East where a nation state can decide that they are going to control an international waterway, charge a toll and if you don’t pay them, blow up your ships, we have created a very dangerous precedent which will repeat itself in other parts of the world, including in this region,” he said.

Washington's top diplomat also renewed allegations that Iran has reneged on commitments under a failed peace deal. Rubio said Iran “has been reaching out to the United States, both directly and indirectly, to engage in talks about settling the differences,” but gave no indication that the U.S. was considering returning to peace talks with Iran.

Top diplomats from the U.S., China, Russia and several other countries are in Manila this week to take part in at the ASEAN ministerial gathering. Newly minted British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband was arriving Wednesday, his office said.

Sergey Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, told reporters that Moscow would like to see a quick settlement between the U.S. and Iran.

“There are those eager to incite each party to keep the conflict going, but we aren’t one of those,” he said.

“We would like to see it stop — it impacts the global economy and Russia is part of the global economy,” Lavrov said, adding that Moscow is “interested in stable global energy prices to pursue long-term economic policies.”

Southeast Asia hit hard by energy shock from Iran war

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong underscored her country's concern over the renewed war in the Middle East, warning that “the situation could deteriorate further without much warning.”

“We want to see an end to this war. We want to see a ceasefire. We want to see negotiations and we want the strait to be opened,” Wong told reporters.

“People are being affected by what is happening and has happened to global energy markets and the effect on people has been direct and personal,” she said.

Overreliance on fossil fuel imports from the Middle East has made Southeast Asia particularly vulnerable to the energy shock triggered by the Iran war, according to the International Energy Agency, which called the crisis a “stark wake-up call” for the region’s energy security.

Asian markets imported about 80% of the crude oil and almost 90% of the liquefied natural gas, or LNG, transiting through the Strait of Hormuz in 2025, the IEA said.

Rubio and allies reaffirm commitment to counter growing Chinese influence

Rubio also met with counterparts in the four-nation Quad partnership, which is made up of the U.S., Australia, India and Japan. They discussed maritime and transnational security, among other issues, and issued a joint statement after the talks that reaffirmed their commitment to maritime security initiatives aiming to counter China’s growing influence in the region.

During the meeting, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi voiced strong opposition to any attempts to change the status quo by force in the region, including in the disputed South China Sea and East China Sea, where China's increasingly aggressive actions have sparked concern.

Tokyo has a long-running dispute over Japan-controlled islands, which Beijing also claims, in the East China Sea.

Wong echoed his concern, saying “we have real concerns about behavior that is destabilizing and risky.”

The Trump administration has repeatedly criticized China's assertive actions in the South China Sea to the disadvantage of smaller claimant countries like the Philippines, Washington's oldest treaty ally in Asia.

The territorial disputes, which also involve Taiwan and ASEAN members Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei, are high on the agenda of the talks.

ASEAN foreign ministers discussed the disputes on Tuesday, welcoming progress in yearslong negotiations between China and their regional bloc on a proposed non-aggression pact that aims to prevent a major conflict in the disputed waters that could draw in the United States.

A new altercation on Monday between Chinese and Filipino forces in a disputed shoal renewed concerns and prompted Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to summon the Chinese ambassador in Manila.

“We reaffirmed the need to enhance mutual trust and confidence, exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities that would complicate or escalate disputes and affect peace and stability and avoid actions that may further complicate the situation,” the regional bloc's ministers said in a draft joint statement.

Rubio and Lavrov to discuss Ukraine

Rubio said he will meet Russia's foreign minister Lavrov on Thursday and discuss the war in Ukraine. He suggested he would also use the meeting to find other areas of potential cooperation between the U.S. and Russia.

He said the U.S. remains open to playing a role in ending the conflict “if that opportunity presents itself.”

Rubio said those efforts have “kind of fallen off a little bit over the last few months” but he will use the meeting with Lavrov to see if there’s an opportunity to renew talks.

Lavrov, meanwhile, said he will ask Rubio about U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim that a settlement on the Ukraine war is getting close.

Rubio also met with his Indian counterpart, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, a U.S. official said. They discussed both regional issues and the Iran war, along with a yet-to-be completed trade agreement to lower Trump’s tariffs on Indian goods.

Rubio met separately with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in a tightly secured convention complex by Manila Bay.

___

Associated Press journalists Haruka Nuga and Anton Delgado in Bangkok and Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo contributed to this report.

A memorial stone is to remain in place outside the house in Braunau am Inn near the German border with the inscription, “For freedom, democracy and liberty. Never again fascism. Millions of dead remind us.”

Hitler was born in the building on April 20, 1889. His family moved to another residence in Braunau am Inn after only a few months, before settling temporarily in Passau in southern Germany.

Fueled by racial fanaticism, Hitler's Nazi regime killed approximately 6 million Jews and other minorities and groups during the Holocaust. The dictator unleashed World War II in which at least 60 million people died. He committed suicide in April 1945, shortly before the end of the war.

“The Republic of Austria, the state, the county is facing up to this heritage, the terrible heritage of this time, and commits itself to deal with it,” Austria's Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said during the opening ceremony of the police station on Wednesday. “This entails this house and this address.”

The renovation of the building took several years and cost around 20 million euros ($22.8 million), Austrian news agency APA reported. It was preceded by a yearslong back-and-forth over the ownership of the house.

The ownership question was resolved in 2017 when Austria’s highest court ruled the government was within its rights to expropriate the building after its owner refused to sell. A suggestion it might be demolished was dropped.

The building had been rented by Austria’s Interior Ministry since 1972 to prevent its misuse and was sublet to various charitable organizations. The structure stood empty after a care center for adults with disabilities moved out in 2011.

The Austrian government has said the best use for the building would be the presence of the police as guardians of civil liberties. But critics said the building in its current presentation lacks historical context.

A commission of experts came out against turning the building into a museum, advocating instead for a redesign that would not be easily recognizable.

The building's ochre-yellow was turned white, the arched windows were replaced by simple rectangular shapes and the facade has been extended upward toward the roof. Debris from the construction was disposed at a secret location to ensure it would not become a new source for Nazi memorabilia, APA reported.

In the past, far-right extremists repeatedly paid homage to the “Führer,” photographing the building, taking stones as souvenirs and laying flowers and wreaths. In 2024, four Germans were caught laying white roses in the building's window recesses and posing for photos, including a woman giving the stiff-armed Hitler salute.

It hasn't worked out that way. With a little more than three months to go, both parties are grappling with self-inflicted wounds and messy missteps that have complicated their paths to victory.

Trump steered the country into a war against Iran with no end in sight, disrupting the global flow of oil and spiking prices at the pump. He remains fixated on purging his party of dissent and relitigating his election defeat six years ago. He's visiting Georgia on Wednesday to ostensibly promote new investment accounts for children, but what he'll actually talk about is anyone's guess.

On the other side of the aisle, Democrats are in the throes of an internal civil war between moderates and progressives, as democratic socialists successfully oust incumbents in places including New York and Denver. Some of their candidates have imploded in spectacular fashion, jeopardizing races that the party had expected to win.

The drama has turned existential as each party faces a moment of reckoning. Democrats remain shaken by Trump's reelection and are desperately searching for a path back to power. Republicans are beginning to contemplate a post-Trump era even as the president maintains an iron grip on the party.

Frank Luntz, a longtime pollster, said the year has been consumed by “a sense of chaos and confusion.”

“We really do not know what’s going to happen in November," he said.

Candidates have been rocked by scandal

Democrats' latest turmoil has unfolded in Wisconsin, one of the nation's most narrowly divided battleground states.

Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez abandoned her bid for governor after a campaign finance scandal just as she seemed to be consolidating support. Now the party establishment is concerned that her departure will elevate Francesca Hong, a democratic socialist who's viewed by party leaders as a potentially weak opponent against U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, the likely Republican nominee.

After her departure, David Crowley, the Milwaukee County executive, jumped back into the race and received a rare endorsement from Gov. Tony Evers, the Democratic incumbent.

“If we lose, Trump’s most loyal lackey in Congress takes control of Wisconsin, and that’s turned regular Democratic angst into flop sweats,” said longtime Wisconsin liberal activist Scot Ross. Still, he predicted that once the focus moves past the primary fight, “Democratic unity will be so high in Wisconsin we’ll all be getting nosebleeds.”

Democrats' most consequential derailment might have taken place in Maine, where the party is eager to defeat Republican Sen. Susan Collins as part of a nationwide push to regain control of the chamber.

Graham Platner, an oyster farmer and political outsider, rode a wave of grassroots energy to beat the establishment pick, Gov. Janet Mills, for the Democratic nomination, only to drop out after facing an allegation of sexual assault, which he denies.

Supporters had hoped Platner would be the kind of candidate who could win white working-class voters back to the party, despite controversies including a tattoo widely recognized as a Nazi symbol and a history of inflammatory social media posts. Now Democrats are holding a convention this coming weekend to choose a replacement candidate.

Celinda Lake, a Democratic pollster and consultant, said activists and voters have been willing to overlook potential vulnerabilities while supporting outsiders for office.

“There is something in the air that has made these candidates incredibly reckless and thinking that they can get away with it," she said, pointing to the president as a potential explanation. “I think Trump has kind of created a high-risk environment."

Marc Short, the former chief of staff to Trump's first-term vice president, Mike Pence, said the dynamic was reminiscent of when the tea party ushered in a wave of untested Republican candidates who famously beat establishment figures in primaries but lost in November, costing Republicans the Senate even as they made gains in the House.

The shoe, he said, is now on the other foot.

“I feel like when there is a lot of energy on one side that you can tend to nominate candidates that create hurdles for you and limit what your gains could be,” he said.

Divisions between Democrats are on display in key races

Other races are forcing Democrats to confront some of their deepest divisions and questions about which wing of the party will best position it to win the next presidential election.

In Michigan, progressive favorite Abdul El-Sayed has worried party leaders like Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer who fear he's too far left to win in the battleground state. Democrats will need to hold the Michigan seat opened by retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters if they want a shot at winning the majority this year.

The primary also highlights a schism over Israel. El-Sayed, running to become the first Muslim U.S. senator, has described Israel’s military campaign in Gaza as a genocide, an accusation rejected by Israel and the White House. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, and its affiliated groups have spent close to $30 million backing primary rival Haley Stevens, their largest investment ever in a race.

Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, said it's clear that voters across the country are rebelling against a political system they see as rigged and are yearning for candidates willing to fight on their behalf.

He said candidates like El-Sayed would serve as proof of concept going into 2028 that “bold, shake-up-the system economic fighters" are more electable in purple and red states than "stale, status quo corporate-aligned Democrats.”

In Washington, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., downplayed the idea that the ideological divisions would endanger Democrats.

“A healthy party is a party that has arguments," he said. “I think our party should be debating ideas. We should be having hotly contested primaries."

Republicans rocked by retirements and ousted incumbents

Republicans are facing their own challenges as they try to buck historic precedent and maintain congressional control.

Trump reshaped this year’s Senate map by sidelining some Republican incumbents and promoting loyalists to replace them. That includes the Senate race in Texas, where he successfully ousted longtime Sen. John Cornyn, whom he saw as insufficiently loyal, and endorsed Ken Paxton, a fiery conservative with a lengthy history of corruption allegations.

Republican leaders had warned his nomination would put the state in play and force the party to spend millions of dollars defending what would have otherwise been a safe seat.

Another challenge has emerged in North Carolina, where Sen. Thom Tillis declined to run for reelection after feuding with Trump last year over healthcare spending. Democrats hope to flip the seat with former Gov. Roy Cooper.

Whit Ayres, a longtime Republican pollster and strategist, said Trump “has exacerbated the problem” of a political culture that has produced more extreme candidates on both sides of the aisle thanks to closed primaries.

Trump can boost candidates — or hold them back

Republicans have historically struggled when Trump is not on the ballot. But he also risks weighing candidates down.

Just 37% of U.S. adults approve of how he's handling the presidency, according to the most recent AP-NORC poll, which shows deep dissatisfactions over his handling of the economy and other issues.

But instead of staying focused on lowering prices, Trump has continued his bombardment of Iran in a struggle for control over the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for global oil supplies. He also delivered a primetime address to the nation in which he again sowed doubts about the legitimacy of U.S. elections and continued to dispute his 2020 loss to Democrat Joe Biden in an appeal for more restrictive voting laws.

“Trump is our biggest ally," said Lake, the Democratic pollster and consultant. “He’s the best things that Democrats have going. And it’s the gift that keeps on going."

But Jenny Beth Martin, chair of the grassroots conservative group Tea Party Patriots Action, disagreed.

“President Trump is the single greatest advantage Republicans have in the midterm elections," she said in a statement. “The energy and enthusiasm he generates is incomparable, and we’re counting on him to motivate his supporters to go to the polls.”

___

Associated Press writers Scott Bauer in Madison, Wisconsin, and Steven Sloan in Washington contributed to this report.

Hottle was one of two passengers in the car when it went off the road and hit a culvert in Ijamsville before 3 a.m. The driver was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, and the other passenger declined medical treatment, according to a news release from the sheriff's office. Excessive speed is believed to be a factor in the crash, which is under investigation, the sheriff's office said.

Hottle was a native signer of American Sign Language, and her family members are also deaf. Her parents, Joshua and Ketsi Hottle, shared emotional video statements about her death on social media sites.

“Kaylee’s mom and four siblings are crushed,” her father said in ASL in a post from an airport. “They are together at home, grieving. I am on my way to Maryland to bring Kaylee’s body back home.”

Hottle’s heart stopped before she arrived at a hospital, transported by air from the scene of the accident, her father said. “Very grateful for the 18 years we had together — and wish we had more,” he said.

Joshua Hottle also reached out to the driver, described by the sheriff's office as a 19-year-old Frederick man.

“I have forgiven you,” her father said. “Don’t let this incident ruin the rest of your life.”

“I still feel Kaylee is with us,” her mother said in ASL in a post.

In “Godzilla vs. Kong” and the sequel, “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire,” Hottle played an orphaned girl named Jia who sees beyond Kong's threatening appearance and forms a special bond with the monster, communicating with him using sign language.

“I’m so devastated to hear this. You will be deeply missed Kaylee,” her “Godzilla” co-star Millie Bobby Brown posted on Instagram.

Co-star Alexander Skarsgård, who learned ASL to communicate with Hottle, told the pop culture website Junkee in 2021 that he and others were impressed by the young ingenue's professionalism and her ability to quickly incorporate the director's notes into her acting.

In a 2024 interview with The Associated Press, Hottle said through an interpreter that she hadn't watched monster movies before she was cast in “Godzilla,” so her father helped her understand the genre.

“I look up to a lot of people, but the one person I look up to, the few people I look up to mostly, are my parents and my sisters,” Hottle said.

Hottle said that when she was working on the first film, she was a bit concerned about whether she would be able to return to her “normal life," afterward.

“People do recognize me at school, yes, but it's not as bad as I thought it would be,” Hottle said.

Hottle previously appeared in a 2021 television episode of “Magnum P.I.” She was listed as appearing in the upcoming film “What Doesn’t Kill Us.”

“I’m so heartbroken. My heart goes out to her family during this unimaginable time,” Alaqua Cox, her co-star in that film and fellow deaf actor, wrote on Instagram.

Other prominent deaf actors also shared messages of grief online.

“I am absolutely gutted about the passing of sweet Kaylee Hottle. May her beauty and talent be a memory for eternity,” Oscar winner Marlee Matlin wrote on Instagram.

Fellow Oscar winner Troy Kotsur, who starred in the film “Coda,” wrote that Hottle's death made him think of his own daughter, and reminded him not to take time for granted.

“I have no words to express on what happened this morning,” Kotsur wrote, offering his “deepest condolences” to the Hottle family.

Officials with Texas School for the Deaf in Austin also announced Hottle's death on Facebook, writing that counseling and support services would be available to her classmates and friends.

“Please keep Kaylee's loved ones in your thoughts as we mourn this tremendous loss together,” the school wrote. ___ Boone reported from Boise, Idaho. Lage reported from Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Ukraine has made significant progress in the war this year, and a rift between the country’s outgoing army chief and its defense minister threatened to derail its efforts. Both men lost their jobs following Zelenskyy’s major government reshuffle last week.

The top-level changes late Tuesday were intended to draw a line under an unwelcome spasm of political turmoil that lasted almost a week and prompted rejoicing in Russia. It was not clear whether Zelenskyy's measures would achieve that goal.

The new army chief, 43-year-old Maj. Gen. Mykhailo Drapatyi, belongs to a new generation of Ukrainian generals who have come up through the ranks during the battle against Russian aggression. He became known for his daring and courage in 2014, the year that Russia seized and illegally annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula — eight years before Moscow's all-out invasion.

Zelenskyy said Drapatyi and other commanders must present an updated defense strategy, including continued reform of the corps system, faster weapon and drone deliveries, stronger air defense against Russian strikes, and a clearer mobilization plan.

Russia says the changes in Kyiv won't alter the front line

There is no sign that the two countries are any closer to a peace settlement, despite U.S.-led diplomatic efforts.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that Moscow is sticking to its previous demands. They include Kyiv withdrawing its forces from the four eastern regions that Russia has seized but doesn’t fully control, renouncing any aspirations to NATO membership, and sharply cutting the size of its army, among other things.

Peskov told reporters that the Ukrainian political and military changes reflect strains in Kyiv.

“Kyiv’s regime is trembling from within. It can be seen with the naked eye,” Peskov said.

Neither will the top-level alterations change the front line, he told reporters, claiming that Russian forces are on the offensive.

With the war’s roughly 1,250-kilometer (800-mile) front line mostly off-limits to independent observers, Russia and Ukraine have also engaged in a propaganda battle.

Fedorov's future is still uncertain

Zelenskyy met separately Tuesday with outgoing defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov, a 35-year-old tech-savvy entrepreneur credited with swiftly developing Ukraine’s drone technology that has given it a battlefield edge.

Fedorov locked horns with outgoing commander-in-chief Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, a 60-year-old veteran trained in the Soviet Union before Ukraine’s independence.

Street protests in Kyiv and other cities demanded Fedorov’s return, viewing him as a key military modernizer, and urged Zelenskyy to fire Syrskyi, regarded as part of the old guard.

Zelenskyy offered Fedorov what he called a respected position in the government that would unify the country’s technology sector. It wasn’t clear if Fedorov accepted the offer -- or whether the latest moves would satisfy protesters and calm the streets.

Fedorov said after his dismissal last week that he had been offered jobs by some global defense tech companies.

Fedorov supported Drapatyi's appointment, calling it a “new hope in the fight of free people for freedom and justice” and “a voice for change that could not go unheard.”

Fedorov had criticized Syrskyi publicly before his dismissal, saying the general was blocking his reform efforts and needed to be replaced for Ukraine not to fail in its resistance against Russia.

Outgoing military chief points to recent battlefield achievements

Syrskyi defended his wartime record in a statement Wednesday.

Among other things, he claimed Ukrainian forces had clawed back 743 square kilometers (287 square miles) of Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory this year and said he was handing his successor an army that was not only defending but also conducting offensive operations.

It was not possible to independently verify his claim.

Fedorov called Syrskyi to thank him for his military triumphs, including defending the Kyiv region at the time of Russia's February 2022 full-scale invasion, the Kharkiv counteroffensive operation later that year and other battles, calling them “already an important part of Ukraine’s history.” But he added that the country must “move even faster and write new chapters, correcting all previous mistakes.”

The political crisis began last Thursday, when Zelenskyy overhauled his wartime government, replacing his prime minister and firing Fedorov after just six months in the post.

The reshuffle immediately drew thousands of protesters into the streets of Kyiv and other cities, framing Fedorov’s removal as Zelenskyy siding with an entrenched military old guard over a reformer.

Zelenskyy said Wednesday that he’s also appointing Maj. Gen. Ihor Skybiuk as chief of the General Staff as part of the overhaul.

Russia and Ukraine keep up their long-range strikes

The political maneuvers took place against a backdrop of continued deadly strikes by Russia and Ukraine onto each other's soil.

Ukrainian drones overnight struck two more sprawling warehouses of Russia’s major online retailer, Wildberries, in Russia’s southern regions of Krasnodar and Stavropol, Wildberries founder Tatyana Kim and Russian officials said Wednesday.

The strikes came four days after Ukraine’s long-range drones hit massive Wildberries warehouses in the Moscow region and in the Tambov region, killing eight people and wounding dozens, according to officials.

Zelenskyy said, without naming the facilities, that they were used by Russia to supply sanctioned components for the production of drones and navigation equipment.

Russian attacks, meanwhile, have also struck several major Ukrainian logistics hubs and retail facilities over the past week.

Russia attacked Ukraine with four missiles of various types and 216 long-range strike drones overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday, according to the Ukrainian air force.

In the southern Odesa region, a Russian drone killed a woman when it struck a two-story apartment building, regional military administration head Oleh Kiper said.

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

The board also voted to formally request that Gov. Ron DeSantis suspend District 2 Commissioner Sarah Arnold and District 1 Commissioner Christian Whitehurst.

The votes come after multiple St. Johns County residents called for the commissioners’ resignations during a lengthy commission meeting Tuesday.

RELATED | Charging documents reveal ‘secret envelope stuffing’ operation behind fake St. Johns County voter guide | Fake voter guides, fraud charges could cloud St. Johns County election | St. Johns County commissioner calls for 2 sitting commissioners accused in fake voter guide scheme to step down

Five people now face criminal charges in connection with the scheme, including Arnold and Whitehurst.

Arnold and Whitehurst were not in the building to face their constituents on Tuesday, and instead attended the meeting by phone. Both refused to step down from their positions.

“Actions have taken place that have fractured the public’s faith, and as long as it remains broken, votes will be clouded by suspicion,” a resident said. “The honorable thing to do in a position like this is to step down.”

He said that they should let the legal process play out as private citizens and not elected officials.

“People respect a sincere redemption story and that begins with accountability,” he said.

Another resident wanted to know if Arnold and Whitehurst could still vote on decisions while they are under investigation.

“I really am looking to regain trust in the board...They’re going to be able to vote on decisions while they could be charged on Aug. 3 and then what happens with these votes,” she asked.

Charlie Hunt brought up clips from old meetings where the two commissioners spoke on being accountable for actions.

“There are consequences when you break laws, there are consequences when you break rules,” Whitehurst said. “Nobody is immune from that.”

“A moral obligation, an ethical obligation, that if we believe somebody is...even if it’s one of us not following the law,” Arnold said.

Hunt is another resident who wasn’t happy with them not appearing in person.

“The first meeting they don’t show up,” Hunt said. “Cowards. The people brought them into the seat. They should respect the people and come up and stand up for what they have done.”

Other residents said Governor Ron DeSantis some said he should remove the commissioners from office. DeSantis appointed Arnold to her seat back in 2021.

GOP party chair for St. Johns County, Denver Cook was the one who tipped off police to start the investigation.

“I had told people they might show up. You’re innocent until proven guilty. Show up. Have your canned statements but I’m going to fight these or not fight them. But to not show up is surprising,” Cook said.

He said he doesn’t know what will happen with Arnold or Whitehurst but he isn’t expecting consequences until after their court hearing on Aug. 3.

On July 7, County Commission Vice Chair Ann Taylor called on her colleagues to resign immediately after the State Attorney’s Office charged five Republicans in a fake voter guide scheme tied to the 2024 election.

All five face misdemeanor charges for conspiracy and producing an unauthorized voter guide. Campaign manager Briana Jordan faces an additional third-degree felony charge for tampering with physical evidence — the only defendant facing a felony. Jordan was recently arrested.

According to charging documents, an alleged “secret envelope stuffing” operation took place at a rented home that was used as a campaign headquarters. The document said people working under Jordan’s direction placed fraudulent guides into envelopes. The envelopes had no return addresses and used postage stamps.

The guide falsely showed certain candidates were endorsed by the local Republican Party, according to investigators.

“If there is any truth to these allegations, for the integrity of St. Johns County, they need to step down immediately so our residents can have a board they can trust,” Taylor said.

St. Johns County GOP Chair Denver Cook helped alert investigators to the scheme.

“Election integrity isn’t only about election fraud and voter ballots,” Cook said. “It’s all about the people and the way they act and trying to steal the voice of the people.”

Cook also released the following statement on behalf of the St. Johns County GOP earlier this month.

The details outlined in the state’s sworn affidavit reveal a shocking, calculated criminal conspiracy designed to subvert the democratic process and hijack the official, trusted voice of the St. Johns County Republican Party.  As the primary complainant in this investigation, the St. Johns County REC is vindicated by the formal charges of criminal conspiracy, unauthorized voter guides, and tampering with physical evidence. The evidence demonstrates that this was not a campaign misunderstanding. It was a mass-scale decep on involving tens of thousands of dollars, tens of thousands of fraudulent mailers, and a deliberate attempt to overwrite the official, democratic votes of our local REC membership. 

The affidavit lays bare a coordinated effort to hide this illicit operation from the public by shipping mailers out of neighboring counties, intentionally withholding statutorily required disclosures, and ultimately burning evidence in a backyard grill when the local news exposed the fraud. 

No one is above the law. The weaponization of our official party logo and name to manipulate ‘super voters’ on the eve of early voting is an affront to every volunteer who serves our party and every citizen who casts a ballot. 

To be absolutely clear, the St. Johns County Republican Party has issued no endorsements for this current primary cycle. Our absolute focus right now is on ge ng the vote out for this primary, ensuring total transparency, and delivering a clean, fair ballot for the voters of St. Johns County. Because this matter is now a live criminal prosecu on, the St. Johns County GOP will let the State A orney’s evidence speak for itself in a court of law. We will con nue to fight to ensure the voices of our voters are never compromised by deceptive schemes.

St. Johns County GOP Chair Denver Cook

State lawmaker was a target of the scheme

State Rep. Kim Kendall, who represents St. Johns County and won her 2024 race, said her image was removed from the fake voter guide — making her one of its targets.

“To start hearing from people that they had received this fake voter guide was just a big gut punch that’s really hard to explain unless you’ve been in that situation,” Kendall said. “And then to start seeing people going to polls with fake voter guide in hand and try to explain them they had the wrong one.”

Accused respond through attorneys

Attorneys representing Whitehurst, Arnold and former St. Augustine Beach Mayor and current commissioner Dylan Rumrell released a joint statement following the charges.

“These allegations have lingered for nearly two years in the hands of various government agencies,” the statement read. “With formal charges now filed, County Commissioner Arnold, County Commissioner Whitehurst and St. Augustine Beach City Commissioner Rumrell look forward to the conclusion of this matter and will have no further comments at this time.”

Space and comfort

The choice is clear if interior space is a priority. The ES is not only larger than the CLA; it’s also longer and taller than relatively big electric sedans like the BMW i5 and Lucid Air. That space allows for a massive amount of rear legroom. You can even get reclining rear seats with adjustable footrests if you want. The ES also has a larger trunk.

You’ll also prefer the ES if you want a cushy ride. It glides more smoothly over bumps and ruts in the road than the CLA does. Edmunds drivers found the CLA’s front seats to be a little more comfortable than those in the ES, but overall the ES is the literal and figurative big winner here.

Winner: Lexus ES

Range and charging

The CLA 250+, which has a single electric motor, gets an EPA-estimated 374 miles of range on a single charge. It traveled a whopping 434 miles in its Edmunds’ real-world testing. The dual-motor all-wheel-drive CLA 350 has an EPA-estimated range of 312 miles, and it went an outstanding 385 miles in Edmunds’ testing.

The Lexus ES is also available in two models of differing performance and range. The single-motor ES 350e gets an EPA-estimated range of up to 307 miles. The dual-motor all-wheel-drive ES 500e has an estimated range of up to 276 miles. Edmunds’ testing of an ES 350e basically matched its EPA estimates.

Charging is a similar situation. DC fast-charging capability for the Lexus tops out at 150 kW, whereas the CLA can accept twice as much power as long as you’re connected to an appropriate fast-charging station. In Edmunds’ testing, the ES needed 13 minutes to add 100 miles of range, while the CLA needed just seven minutes.

Winner: Mercedes CLA

Performance and driving

While the Mercedes’ compact dimensions and sportier tuning hurt it in the space and comfort category above, they become a benefit here. The ES is pleasant to drive and composed around turns, but the CLA is far more engaging and feels more like a sport sedan.

The 221-horsepower ES 350e is also slow by electric sedan standards. In Edmunds’ testing, it needed 7.6 seconds to get from zero to 60 mph. The ES 500e is more powerful, but you’ll still like the CLA more if you want quick acceleration. Edmunds tested the CLA 350 and found that it could get 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds.

Winner: Mercedes CLA

In-car technology

While our results thus far have been quite clear, this category is more likely to come down to personal preference. At first glance, the Mercedes may seem to have a landslide advantage. The entire dashboard is basically one gigantic screen housing. The touchscreen graphics are beautiful and responses are lightning quick.

It can certainly be overwhelming, though — both from a usability and visual standpoint. Those who are less technically inclined may prefer the relative simplicity provided by the ES, which, to be fair, features the latest Lexus infotainment system. It’s not as flashy as the Mercedes setup, but it’s also easy to use and hard to fault.

Winner: Mercedes CLA

Price and value

The Lexus ES and Mercedes CLA are very similarly priced — even their more powerful dual-motor versions align. By electric luxury vehicle standards, they’re surprisingly affordable. The electric 2026 Lexus ES 350e starts at $48,895, including destination fees, while the electric 2027 CLA starts at $49,400.

Ultimately, it comes down to where you see the most value. The ES is much bigger and comes with a few more standard features, such as ventilated seats and a wireless phone charger. For most shoppers, that probably means the ES is the better value. Still, the CLA has superior electric vehicle specs, and not just in comparison to the ES. Its tech, styling and driving experience are pretty compelling too.

Winner: Lexus ES

Edmunds says

Both of these electric luxury sedans received high ratings from Edmunds, but it’s the Mercedes that ultimately comes out on top with an Excellent score versus the Lexus’ Very Good. The overwhelming strength of its range, charging, and driving experience scores ultimately tipped the scales.

_____

This story was provided to The Associated Press by the automotive website Edmunds. James Riswick is a contributor at Edmunds.

The Golden Eagles baseball team announced Hawkins’ passing on Facebook, remembering him as a fierce competitor, a loyal teammate, and an outstanding young man who represented FIHS with pride and character.

The team says his impact on the program and all who knew him will not be forgotten. They ask the community to keep Hawkins’ family, friends, and the entire FIHS baseball family in their thoughts and prayers.

Broadus-Raines Funeral Home will preside over Hawkins’ funeral services.

Scheduled Services

Visitation

August 1, 2-3 p.m.

Broadus-Raines Chapel - 501 Spring St, Green Cove Springs, FL 32043

Memorial Service

August 1, 3 p.m.

Broadus-Raines Chapel

The crash blocked lanes on the interstate near mile marker 303 for several hours on July 16.

Troopers say a 42-year-old Miami man in a tractor-trailer was driving southbound on I-95 in the right lane around 10 a.m. on July 16.

The 44-year-old man, who is from Longwood, Florida, was walking along the right shoulder of the southbound lanes when troopers say he crossed in front of the truck and was hit by it.

FHP says the man died at the scene. The driver of the tractor-trailer was wearing a seat belt and was not hurt, according to the report.

Related: Ed White Varsity 4 high school media shoot

Jared Burt said he spotted the woman on the ground, surrounded by what he estimated were 10 to 15 dogs.

“I was trying to honk the horn at first, get the dogs off her, that wasn’t working. So I had to get out and I shot into the dirt just off the road, that was the only thing that could scare them off of her,” Burt said.

Quick action after the attack

Once the dogs retreated, Burt said he rushed to help the injured woman.

“She was tore up pretty bad, bleeding. I had take the belt and we’d made a tourniquet around her leg. And called the ambulance and they showed up quick, loaded her up,” Burt said.

Burt said by the time others arrived at the scene, his focus shifted from the victim to making sure the dogs did not return.

“She was conscious, she was talking. She didn’t really show much emotion just because, I mean, she’s in pain. So there wasn’t too much to take from that. I was too focused on, once somebody else showed up, making sure the dogs didn’t come back and making sure that the police and the ambulance were on their way,” Burt said.

Family: Victim faces more surgeries

A family member of the victim, speaking off camera, said the woman still has a couple of surgeries ahead of her to fully recover, but that she is in good spirits. The family member also said the woman believes had Burt not stopped to help that she would have died from the attack.

Burt said he is relieved with how the situation unfolded given its severity.

“It definitely probably would have been a whole lot different if, even if I was there a few minutes later, she was in rough shape,” he said. “I’m just glad I got there when I did.”

Burt says he was also bitten by one of the dogs during the rescue and had to receive a rabies shot.

“I’m on antibiotics right now, but mine wasn’t nearly as bad — I mean it was just a little nick, but enough to raise concern for rabies,” he said.

Sheriff’s Office investigating

The Putnam County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the incident. They said the dogs’ owner is cooperating and has handed the animals over to Putnam County Animal Control. Officials said they expect to have a full report on the incident available Wednesday.

Gardner and her estranged second husband, Mario Fernandez, are accused of carrying out a murder-for-hire plot on Gardner’s ex-husband, Jared Bridegan, who was gunned down in February 2022. Prosecutors say the accused gunman is Henry Tenon, a former tenant of Fernandez.

During Tuesday’s hearing, the judge amended Gardner’s earlier order and scheduled the closed hearing for July 27, just weeks before trial.

Latest hearing for Gardner

At issue was whether the defense can subpoena the cell phone of Kirsten Bridegan, a key witness in the case. Prosecutors argued the defense had not met the legal threshold of materiality required to obtain the subpoena.

“A blanket request for general category information is insufficient,” Assistant State Attorney Steve Siegel said, adding that the defense request amounted to harassment of the witness.

“She should be doing what she should do as the widow of Jared Bridegan and is preparing for a trial in three weeks,” Siegel said.

Defense argues constitutional rights at stake

Defense attorney Kirsten Nelson countered that Florida’s rules of criminal procedure allow the court to hear a limited, private proffer on the question of materiality — and that forcing a public disclosure would violate her client’s constitutional rights.

“I am not permitted constitutionally or under the Florida rules of ethics to further disclose what my client’s defense strategy is,” Nelson said. “That violates my ethical obligations and it violates my client’s constitutional rights.”

The two sides also clashed over the legal definitions of “in-camera” and “ex parte,” with Nelson arguing the state was conflating the terms.

“It is a misnomer to call a hearing where both sides have notice of the basis of the hearing, the time of the hearing, the substance of the hearing generally speaking, an ex parte proceeding,” she said.

Judge rules after reviewing case law

After a recess to review newly submitted case law, the judge sided with the defense, citing State v. Young, 654 So. 2d 962 (3rd DCA 1995), as support for the in-camera procedure.

“I reread the rule. There is no requirement that it be in writing. It was made here in open court,” the judge said. “Any party can do it.”

The hearing will include Gardner, her defense attorneys, the clerk’s office, judicial staff, bailiffs and a court reporter. Proceedings will be sealed for appellate purposes. The state was given leave to file additional written arguments before the hearing.

A separate hearing was set for July 23, 2026, to give media organizations the opportunity to intervene before the courtroom is closed.

Timeline: How we got here

More than four years ago, Jared Bridegan dropped his then-9-year-old twin children off at the home of his ex-wife, Shanna Gardner, after a “date night” with their dad.

He left Gardner’s Jacksonville Beach home on Feb. 16, 2022, with his 2-year-old daughter, Bexley, strapped in her car seat in the back of his dark-colored SUV. They were headed back to St. Augustine.

But the 33-year-old Microsoft executive never made it home.

Following his normal route through the Sanctuary neighborhood, Bridegan suddenly had to stop in the area of Jacksonville Drive, America Avenue and Sanctuary Boulevard.

A tire was in the road.

When Bridegan stepped out of his SUV, he was ambushed by gunfire. At least one bullet missed Bexley by mere inches in her car seat.

RELATED | Murder-for-hire plot included practice run along Jared Bridegan’s normal route home: prosecutors

Bridegan was left lying in the street next to the SUV with the door wide open, and the shooter seemed to melt into the shadows just as quickly as he had launched his ambush attack.

None of the 911 callers that night mentioned seeing a shooter or a vehicle leaving the scene.

LISTEN: Press play below to hear 911 calls from night of Jared Bridegan’s murder (WARNING: May include graphic content)

But eventually, detectives tracked down the man they say pulled the trigger.

Investigators say that it was all part of a murder-for-hire plot set in motion by Gardner and her new husband, Mario Fernandez. It was a conspiracy that began in November of 2021, according to court documents.

Interactive Timeline

Alleged murder-for-hire scheme

According to detectives, Gardner was tired of sharing custody of her twin children with Bridegan.

Fernandez, she knew, could “take care of him” because of his military background, Gardner told a friend. At least that’s what the friend told investigators as she detailed the strained marriage between Gardner and Fernandez and the contentious ongoing custody battle between Gardner and Bridegan.

RELATED: A friend of Shanna Gardner said she could help in Jared Bridegan’s murder case. Here’s what she told investigators | How investigators say they untangled conspiracy to kill Jared Bridegan

Investigators say that’s exactly what Fernandez did, hiring Henry Tenon, a tenant at one of his properties, to kill Bridegan.

In his initial interview with police in July 2022, Tenon told investigators that he had been renting a home from Fernandez in Jacksonville’s Biltmore neighborhood for several years.

Tenon’s original court records said he became involved in the conspiracy on Jan. 4, 2022 -- just over a month before Bridegan was killed.

Investigators said when Tenon was arrested on an unrelated felony driving charge in August 2022, they questioned him about Bridegan’s murder and a Ford F-150 truck they had been searching for since the shooting.

RELATED | Follow the money: Checks written to Jared Bridegan’s admitted killer connect him to 2 accused in ‘murder-for-hire plot’ | Jared Bridegan’s wife files wrongful death lawsuit against 3 accused in his murder

Tenon was later arrested in Bridegan’s murder, and investigators said the single link between Tenon and Bridegan was Fernandez.

In 2023, Tenon pleaded guilty and admitted to being the gunman who killed Bridegan, but he has since backtracked, and a judge granted his motion to withdraw his guilty plea.

State prosecutors initially said they would be seeking the death penalty against Gardner and Fernandez if they were convicted, but they have since taken the death penalty off the table, with the support of Bridegan’s widow, Kirsten, and his family.

The public can tour the majestic room and view its gilded ceilings and Greek frescoes en route to the nearby Mona Lisa, but they won’t see any crown jewels or empty display cases. The collections and precious jewels once displayed there have been removed, as the museum said the gallery is returning to its 17th-century original ceremonial purpose.

The stolen jewels remain unrecovered nine months later.

The gallery's former exhibits will be relocated elsewhere in the museum, said Christophe Leribault, the Louvre's director. “It’s also an opportunity to rediscover the splendid architecture and decor of this gallery,” he said.

Leribault was named to lead the Louvre in February after previous director Laurence des Cars resigned after the October crown jewels heist and a string of failures that battered confidence in the leadership of the world’s most-visited museum.

“That sinister day, when iconic pieces were taken, cannot be forgotten, and indeed, I believe, should not be,” said French Culture Minister Catherine Pegard. “It was a trauma for the entire world, which, for several days, expressed its shock and sadness in every language. It was a trauma for us, discovering the fragility of a place we thought unshakeable, and which, like so many others, proved vulnerable.”

Security at the Paris museum has been boosted with the addition of new surveillance cameras and anti-intrusion systems.

On the day of the heist, thieves took less than eight minutes to force their way through a window into the Apollo Gallery and steal crown jewels valued at 88 million euros ($102 million), in a weekend operation that stunned visitors ad exposed glaring security vulnerabilities.

Security improvement is a priority of the decade-long “Louvre New Renaissance” plan launched last year, with an estimated cost of up to 800 million euros ($933 million) to modernize infrastructure, ease crowding and give the Mona Lisa a dedicated gallery by 2031.

Not all electric bikes are created equal

Traffic Sgt. Brian Wallace says the distinction between an e-bike and an electric motorcycle matters — and gets overlooked more than people might think.

“Before we begin, it’s important to understand that not every electric-powered, two-wheel vehicle is legally considered an e-bike,” Wallace said. “If a vehicle can travel faster than 28 miles per hour, produces more than 750 watts power or lacks functional pedals, it is classified as an electric motorcycle.”

Electric motorcycles require a proper endorsement and registration before they can be legally operated on public roadways.

Education comes first

Patrol Cpl. Dustin Kling says the department’s approach leads with awareness, not punishment.

“Our goal is education first,” Kling said. “For an initial violation, riders can generally expect a documented warning along with education for both the rider and, when appropriate, their parent or guardian.”

However, Kling made clear that repeated or serious violations carry real consequences — including traffic citations, criminal charges when applicable, and towing and storage fees.

Parents face responsibility, too

Wallace says parents and guardians are not off the hook if their child is riding illegally.

“Florida Statute 322.35 prohibits knowingly causing or permitting an unauthorized minor to operate a motor vehicle on the roadways of this state,” Wallace said. “Once a parent or guardian has been warned, continued violations may result in criminal citations, towing, and storage fees.”

How to get informed

The department has created an informational pamphlet that officers will distribute during their patrols. The pamphlet is also available on all Jacksonville Beach Police Department social media platforms.

For riders still unsure whether their vehicle qualifies as an e-bike or an electric motorcycle, Wallace urged them to reach out before riding.

“If you’re not sure whether your vehicle is an e-bike or an electric motorcycle, contact the Jacksonville Beach Police Department before you ride,” he said. “We encourage every parent and rider to know the law, ride responsibly, and always to wear a helmet.”

The blast triggered by a buildup of methane gas tore through the tunnel Monday at the 500-megawatt Teesta Hydroelectric Project in northeastern Sikkim state in the Himalayas. Authorities have recovered the bodies of 12 workers who died inside the tunnel about 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of the state capital Gangtok.

Rescue teams equipped with specialized breathing equipment and night-vision gear were having difficulty entering the tunnel because of the gas and a buildup of water, administrative official Anupama Tamling said.

Gandura Oraon, 38, said he and other workers were eating lunch inside the tunnel when a loud explosion forced them to run for the exit.

“Luckily, we found the vehicle that had delivered lunch to us sometime earlier. We got into it and drove out,” he said.

As they escaped, Oraon said, they came across their supervisor and urged him to leave with them as well. Instead, he headed toward the site of the blast to see what had happened and was later found dead, Oraon said.

The Teesta River basin, where the hydropower project is being built, lies in a seismically active region marked by young, fragile rock formations riddled with fractures and underground pockets that can trap ancient gases. Fragile mountains, seismic activity and unpredictable underground conditions make tunnel projects especially risky in the region, according to experts.

A February explosion in a coal mine in neighboring Meghalaya state killed 18 workers. A tunnel section collapsed in 2023 in northern Uttarakhand state, trapping 41 workers for 17 days before they were rescued.

Burnham, from Britain’s left-leaning Labour Party, faces restive voters seeking relief from the high cost of living. At the same time, the investors who help finance the government by buying its bonds are demanding that he reduce public sector debt that has ballooned to levels last seen in the 1960s.

In an effort to balance the competing demands, Burnham surprised pundits by naming former Defense Secretary John Healey as his Treasury chief. Healey, who served in the Treasury under former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, is seen as someone who will make sure the government lives up to its pledge to reduce Britain’s debt pile.

Then, first thing Tuesday morning, Burnham made a down payment on his commitment to ease the pressure on cash-strapped consumers. The government announced it would scrap the tax on home electricity use for at least six months beginning in October, saving the average household 45 pounds ($60) a year.

Importantly, the government said the move would be paid for by canceling plans to introduce digital ID, in an effort to reassure investors that Burnham isn’t about to go on an unfunded spending spree.

Treasury chief has a big job ahead

“Healey has a daunting task on his hands,’’ said Victoria Scholar, the head of investment at interactive investor.

“The government has ambitious plans to tackle cost-of-living pressures … but he faces a very difficult set of public finances to carry these expensive plans through.”

Now that he’s controlling the purse strings, Burnham faces the same issues that have bedeviled every prime minister since the financial crisis of 2008. And their failure to find answers is a big part of the reason that the eight men and women who have taken up residence behind the famous black door at 10 Downing Street in that period have had an average tenure of two years.

Burnham, like his predecessors, faces the challenge of finding a way to reinvigorate an economy that has grown an average of less than 1.5% a year since 2009, compared with an annual average of 3% in the 15 years before the financial crisis.

Burnham received a boost to his cost-of-living reduction agenda Wednesday when inflation fell to its the lowest rate in 15 months in June, buoyed by a drop of food and fuel prices. The rate of the Consumer Prices Index was 2.6% in June, down from 2.8% in May, according to the Office for National Statistics. But experts warn the good news may be short-lived because the conflict in the Middle East will continue to put pressure on wholesale energy prices.

As he develops his economic plans, Burnham will be constrained by promises to reduce government debt, which now exceeds 95% of gross domestic product. According to Britain’s budget watchdog, debt interest payments rose to 111.2 billion pounds ($149 billion), or 8.3% of government spending, in the financial year that ended in April, leaving less money to spend on government services ranging from healthcare to education and defense.

New challenges are added to the old ones

But he also faces a new challenge after his predecessor, like most other European governments, pledged to increase defense spending to 3.5% of GDP by 2035. That came after pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump, who has criticized his allies for not paying their fair share of Europe’s defense.

Meeting that commitment will cost about 36 billion pounds a year, or 500 pounds for each person in the U.K., according to estimates from the Institute for Fiscal Studies, a respected independent researcher.

“We should absolutely acknowledge that these constraints are structural,” said Olivia O’Sullivan at Chatham House, a London-based think tank. “They would be tough for any prime minister at this time.”

And that’s why boosting economic output is so crucial to all of Burnham’s plans.

Stimulating economic growth is key to Burnham's plans

Without faster growth, British taxpayers will either have to pay higher taxes or accept cuts in popular programs such as the National Health Service, which offers free medical care to everyone. A booming economy, on the other hand, would boost the revenue generated by existing taxes and tax rates because the value of company profits, worker salaries and other transactions would rise.

Sluggish growth doomed former Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government when angry Labour lawmakers forced him to cancel welfare cuts designed to help balance the budget. More recently he was widely criticized for failing to offer a credible plan for increasing defense spending.

Some Labour supporters have grumbled that the government “shouldn’t be in hock to the bond market.” But economists say Burnham and Healey must take the financial constraints seriously if they are going to succeed in bolstering the economy and increasing the pot available to fund popular programs.

“It’s not some imaginary bogeyman in the bond market,” said David Aikman, director of the independent National Institute of Economic and Social Research. “We need people to buy the debt we’re issuing.”

So far, Burnham has offered little detail on his plans for the British economy.

His big idea is to “reindustrialize” the economy by shifting investment away from London to other parts of the country that were hard hit by the decline in manufacturing. Burnham also says he will increase construction of public housing to address the nation’s housing shortage and bolster the construction industry, and support the small and medium-size businesses that account for 60% of private employment.

At the same time, he has pledged to stick to Labour’s promises not to raise taxes on working people and to maintain the “triple lock” on state pensions, an expensive policy that guarantees pensions will rise each year by the annual increase in consumer price inflation, average wage growth, or 2.5%, whichever is higher.

Jim O’Neill, a former chief economist for Goldman Sachs and member of the House of Lords who has advised Burnham in the past, told the BBC last month that Britain’s new prime minister must “get real.”

“We need somebody that’s prepared to do something bold and different,” he said.

Burnham, he added, “has got the same challenge that everybody else seems to avoid and that’s doing something about things like welfare, stop this never-ending spectacular rise in the spending on NHS. … Do something about the triple lock, etc., etc., and get out of this weird sort of prison of being owned by every little small group that opposes anything anybody wants to do. “

Jenitar Sau Na’amoana, who is 34 years old and already had four children, delivered the babies last week at Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital in Queensland state.

“We are very excited to be able to care for this amazing little family, a big family now,” Dr. Alexa Bendall, a maternal fetal medicine specialist who cared for Na’amoana, said in an interview released by the hospital.

The babies were conceived naturally and came from one fertilized egg that split into four, “which was incredible," Bendall said.

“We think the figures are probably around 1 in 15 million for a case like this to be spontaneously conceived,” she said. “We don’t think it’s ever happened in Australia.”

Overall, experts say, the chance of conceiving quadruplets naturally is only 1 in 700,000; most are conceived with the assistance of medical technology.

Hospital officials said Na’amoana and her husband, Jortham, hadn’t planned to have more children and were quite surprised when she became pregnant with the quadruplets.

Na’amoana faced a high risk of complications, especially given the fetuses shared one placenta. In general, being pregnant with any multiple fetuses puts a mom at increased risk for problems such as preterm birth, miscarriage and birth defects, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.

Na’amoana was monitored by a large medical team at the hospital since 10 weeks gestation and was admitted as an inpatient at 25 weeks so she could be monitored, hospital officials said. She delivered the babies by cesarean section on July 14.

“The fact that we’ve got four beautiful, healthy babies born at 28 weeks and four days is incredible,” Bendall said. "Mum did lose a little bit of blood but not an excessive amount for having quads, and she’s doing well.”

The babies are doing well in the neonatal intensive care unit. Their names are Emily, Harriet, Catherine and Alexa, in honor of Bendall. The doctor called the name a “beautiful tribute,” and said she feels privileged to have helped bring these children into the world.

“From an academic perspective, it’s really interesting,” she said. “But also from a human perspective, to be able to be part of the family’s journey and come out with four beautiful babies and a healthy mum is very precious.”

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Democrats were locked in a close primary contest for a battleground U.S. House district, with emergency physician Amish Shah leading party-backed Marlene Galán-Woods for the chance to take on Jay Feely, the former Arizona Cardinals kicker who won the Republican nomination with Trump's endorsement.

A Shah victory would be another defeat for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which has occasionally struggled this year as voters seek out antiestablishment candidates. The race was too early to call early Wednesday morning.

Biggs overwhelmingly defeated fellow U.S. Rep. David Schweikert in the primary and will face Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs in what could be one of the closest governor races in November.

By choosing Biggs, who supported Trump's failed attempt to block certification of his 2020 election loss, Republican voters risk nominating another conservative warrior who excites the party base but fails to win a general election by turning off independents. Although the party once dominated Arizona, Democrats now hold both U.S. Senate seats and the top three state offices.

Biggs faced travel problems leaving a Republican Governors Association meeting in Colorado, according to senior adviser Drew Sexton, and didn’t reach his victory party in Scottsdale until more than three hours after he won the race. By the time he took the stage, the crowd of hundreds had dwindled to dozens and he spoke to a mostly empty room.

“Let’s make this the year that we turn Arizona red again,” Biggs said.

Schweikert argued during the campaign that Biggs would continue a decade of Republican backsliding. However, he struggled to raise money and did not even return to Arizona for Election Day, remaining in Washington as the House passed a government funding bill.

Biggs rejected Schweikert's claim that he'll be another Republican judged by voters to be too extreme.

“I am a conservative — and a principled conservative — but I work with people that don’t necessarily agree with me on every issue,” Biggs told a reporter after his victory speech.

Biggs, who had Trump's endorsement and support from the grassroots organization Turning Point Action, said he can unite Republicans going into the general election.

“Everyone I have talked to is really conservative around here,” said Ray Roberts, a 33-year-old Republican who works as a processing engineer and knocked on doors for Biggs. “We all have mostly conservative values. I think Arizona is a red state. I think Andy will be the winner in November.”

State Rep. Alexander Kolodin won the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, defeating Gina Swoboda, the former Arizona Republican Party chair. Kolodin, a lawyer, was sanctioned by the state bar over his involvement with two 2020 election cases that courts found baseless, including one alleging the vote was marred by fraud and demanding Biden's victory in the state be overturned.

State Senate President Warren Petersen won the Republican nomination for attorney general and will face Democratic incumbent Kris Mayes, who won four years ago by just 280 votes out of more than 2.5 million.

Biggs and Schweikert responded differently to Trump's GOP takeover

Biggs built a national profile as chair of the House Freedom Caucus from 2019 to 2022 and as a staunch defender of Trump. He assisted the president’s attempt to block the certification of his loss in the 2020 election, voting against accepting Electoral College votes from Arizona and other battleground states after the Jan. 6, 2021, riot.

He has always represented safe Republican seats and is a veteran of factional brawls within his party. Before going to Congress, he nearly lost his post as state Senate president during a confrontation with then-Gov. Jan Brewer, also a Republican, over her push to expand Medicaid.

“I want the border secured. I want the police and more money spent in the right places like education,” said Kate Rouleau, a 67-year-old Republican who voted for Biggs because he "has the same quality as President Trump.”

Democrats focused their attacks on Biggs, whom they plan to portray as an extremist focused on helping Trump and not Arizonans.

In a statement Tuesday night, Hobbs said that “the more Arizonans learn about Biggs, the more they’ll realize he’s one big problem they can’t afford.”

The race is likely to be another close contest four years after Hobbs narrowly beat Republican firebrand Kari Lake by less than 1 percentage point. Republicans have since expanded their advantage in the state, growing GOP registration by 6% while Democratic registration fell by 4%.

Repeating her victory will require Hobbs to again win a majority of independents and some disaffected Republicans. For his part, Biggs has attacked her as a weak leader who presided over rising costs.

"We can’t let the state go to somebody who's actually recklessly incompetent, and that is our current governor," he said.

Primaries set the field for a top House battleground

Both parties had hotly contested primaries to replace Schweikert in the highly competitive 1st Congressional District, which both parties are targeting in the fight to control the House.

Feely won the Republican primary over Joseph Chaplik, a former state legislator popular with many grassroots activists, and businessperson John Trobough. Feely had Trump’s endorsement but has been dogged by criticism for living outside the district.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee threw its support behind Galán-Woods, a controversial decision to get involved in a contested primary that rankled some party activists. Her late husband, Grant Woods, was the Republican attorney general in the 1990s and later became a vocal Trump critic.

Galán-Woods’ chief opponent, Shah, is a former state legislator who was the nominee in 2024 but lost narrowly to Schweikert.

“We have a long tradition in Arizona of being independent-minded and working for the benefit of people,” Shah said at his election night party in Phoenix. “I wasn’t exactly my party’s pick. And I was willing to stand up to that establishment. And that’s what the voters of this district want.”

If Shah's lead holds, he would be the third Democrat to beat a DCCC-backed rival this year following Randy Villegas in California and Matt Dunlap in Maine. Unlike the candidates in those races, Shah and Galán-Woods are largely aligned ideologically.

Linda Bandler, a 65-year-old independent who volunteered on the Galán-Woods campaign, said the party will be in good shape regardless of who wins the primary.

“There still is some sanity,” said Bandler, who like Galán-Woods is a former Republican. “I do think that the Democrats will take over the House and the Senate.”

DCCC support generally brings an influx of money and staffing, both from the party itself and from the donors and interest groups that take its cues. But this election season, substantial parts of the Democratic base are rejecting candidates that party bosses see as their best shot at winning in Congress.

“The Democratic Party needs to grow up and wake up,” said Maria Liong, a 24-year-old medical student who volunteered for Shah’s campaign. “They need to realize that they want candidates who listen to their people.”

Republicans hold a voter registration advantage in the affluent district, which includes northeast Phoenix, Scottsdale, Fountain Hills and Paradise Valley.

But it started to trend toward the center after Trump’s 2016 victory. Redistricting accelerated the trend, fueling Democratic hopes that the seat could be flipped.

In Tucson, retired Marine drill instructor JoAnna Mendoza ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination to challenge second-term Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani, who also had no primary opponent. The seat is perennially competitive in general elections and is a top pickup target for Democrats in November.

Meanwhile, Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb won the Republican primary for the conservative district that Biggs is vacating. The race turned salacious as Lamb, who was endorsed by Trump, came under scrutiny for alleged sexual misconduct and abuse of power.

The county attorney cleared him of criminal wrongdoing, and Trump reiterated his endorsement this month. Lamb dismissed the allegations as “slander and lies.”

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Associated Press writer Josh Kelety contributed.

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This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Feely.

Bertha was forecast to make landfall Wednesday night in the coastal and lightly populated part of Louisiana southeast of New Orleans, with wind as the biggest threat, according to Michael Buchanan, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Louisiana.

Early Wednesday, the storm was centered about 145 miles (235 kilometers) west-southwest of Panama City, Florida, and 75 miles (120 kilometers) east of the mouth of the Mississippi River. It was moving west at 6 mph (9 kph) with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (85 kph), the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said.

A tropical storm warning was in effect from the line between Bay and Gulf counties in Florida west to Morgan City, Louisiana, as well as for metropolitan New Orleans and Lake Pontchartrain, the hurricane center said.

Storm surges up to 4 feet (1.2 meters) were possible in Louisiana from the Mississippi River mouth to the Alabama-Mississippi state line, with smaller surges in parts of Florida and Alabama, forecasters said.

Rain between 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) could fall from western Florida to the southern Louisiana coastline, with higher amounts in scattered areas that could cause flash flooding in urban areas.

Bertha was expected to weaken as it pushes into Texas, forecasters said.

Sandbag distribution sites set up

Authorities in Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida opened sites to provide sandbags to residents while red flag warnings were posted along some beaches advising swimmers about the dangers of rip tides. Up and down the coast, double red flags signaled that Gulf waters were closed for swimming.

Beaches near Pensacola, Florida, were mostly deserted except for tourists taking photos of the pounding surf.

“For locals, this is just another storm,” said Candice Henderson, manager of the Crab Trap, a beachside restaurant that was packed Tuesday on Pensacola’s Perdido Key. “When you’re on vacation and it's raining, you either shop or you go out to eat.”

Bertha is the second tropical storm of Atlantic season

Bertha is the second tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season. Tropical Storm Arthur in June brought heavy rainfall to the southeastern U.S.

Bertha could dump heavy rain on coastal areas of Mississippi that are still recovering from flooding brought by Arthur that destroyed and damaged homes.

“Because of that, people are definitely paying attention, or at least you would hope so,” said Jeff Clark, a spokesperson for Mississippi's Harrison County, where six sites were open for sandbag distribution.

There had not been a need by Tuesday to open shelters or order evacuations, Clark said.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration expects a below-average Atlantic hurricane season this year, although that doesn’t eliminate the chances of a catastrophic storm.

Hurricane Fausto in the Pacific is far from land

In the eastern Pacific Ocean, Hurricane Fausto churned far from land Tuesday. The hurricane was about 805 miles (1,295 kilometers) west-southwest of the southern tip of Baja California moving west-northwest at 9 mph (15 kph) with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (130 kph).

It was forecast to gradually strengthen and the hurricane center warned that ocean swells generated by Fausto could cause life-threatening surf and rip tide conditions on the Baja California coast.

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Associated Press journalists Kimberly Chandler in Montgomery, Alabama, Stephen Smith in New Orleans and Haya Panjwani in Washington contributed to this report.

On the other side of the wall, visitors watch the work unfold on the bones of the nearly six-meter (20-foot)-long skeleton. Children point with excitement while parents contemplate the creature the massive bones once belonged to.

The painstaking restoration is part of an unusual public science project. More than 2,000 volunteers are helping Polish scientists restore the skeleton of the Mastodonsaurus, a fearsome aquatic predator from around the dawn of the dinosaur age.

The work is meticulous. Bone must be separated from surrounding rock millimeter by millimeter with a pneumatic chisel, whose needle gently breaks away rock while ultraviolet light reveals where the bone ends and the surrounding rock begins.

The volunteers are managers, cleaners, tattoo artists — not geologists or paleontologists. They receive training and special protective gear, before they begin two-hour-long chiseling sessions under supervision.

“I imagine that those bones were lying underground for 240 million years and I am the first human on earth to touch them," said Tatyana Kozyk, the coordinator of the volunteer teams. “I'm still trying to wrap my head around this experience.”

An ancient aquatic predator

One of the largest amphibians ever to exist, the Mastodonsaurus lived about 240 million years ago during the Middle Triassic, while the earliest dinosaurs were appearing but before they came to dominate Earth. It was an underwater ambush hunter, preying mainly on fish and smaller amphibians.

Scientists believe it could grow to nearly six meters (20 feet) in length. It had a broad, flat head, long jaws and sharp conical teeth, its appearance resembling a crocodile's, though it belonged to a different branch of the vertebrate family tree.

When the restoration is complete, it will be the largest exhibited in a museum anywhere in the world, said Tomasz Sulej, a paleontologist and professor at the Institute of Paleobiology at the Polish Academy of Sciences. Its skeleton weighs 1,300 kilograms (2,865 pounds).

Sulej and his colleague Wojciech Pawlak from the Faculty of Geology at the Warsaw University are credited with discovering the skeleton in southern Poland in 2023 and coming up with the idea to invite volunteers to help with its restoration.

Sulej says there are no other known Mastodonsaurus skeletons this large anywhere else in the world, and the discovery promises to help scientists learn more about the species.

“The structure of the body is different from what we knew so far," he said. "This is information that is completely new to the scientific world.”

Other Mastodonsaurus skeletons have been found elsewhere, including in Germany and Russia, Sulej said, but they are around 2 to 3 meters (6½ to 10 feet) long.

A chance to reflect on the past and future

Dorota Serafin, a 51-year-old manager from Warsaw who volunteers for the project, said working with the skeleton of an ancient animal is an experience that is at the same time “relaxing and philosophical, even mystical.”

Serafin said she plans to return for other sessions and eventually bring her family to Copernicus when the restored skeleton is exhibited, which is expected to happen in October or November.

In addition to the startling experience of touching the remains of an animal that lived hundreds of millions of years ago, contact with the Mastodonsaurus offers an opportunity to reflect on the future, those involved in the project said.

The amphibian inhabited Earth’s waters after the largest known mass extinction and just before the dinosaurs appeared. As humanity contemplates the potentially catastrophic effects of climate change, Sulej says the story of the Mastodonsaurus offers some hope.

“The Mastodonsaurus lived after the great extinction, which shows one thing, that nature always manages,” Sulej said. “It's not true that humans can destroy life on this planet. Nature and life always find ways to survive.”

U.S. Central Command said targets included aircraft hangars and drone storage sites. The newest barrage came after President Donald Trump telegraphed that strikes would be intensifying.

Before the latest strikes, Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni visited Pakistan, a key mediator in the conflict, seeking to revamp diplomacy. But it was unclear what new arrangement might be reached to end the war, which lately has become a battle for control over the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway vital to world energy supplies.

Speaking from the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump gave a dim view on possible talks, saying the U.S. had “no interest in meeting.” He signaled that U.S. forces could soon target an area of Iran close to one of its main sites for enriching uranium.

With negotiations and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz largely stalled, both sides have sought to gain leverage by targeting civilian infrastructure in the region relied on by millions of people.

A barrage of U.S. strikes hasn’t loosened Iran's grip on the strait, through which about one-fifth of the world's crude oil and natural gas was shipped before the war.

The U.S. continued its airstrikes into Wednesday, with Iranian air defenses activating near the capital, Tehran. Iran's state-run IRNA news agency reported that explosions rocked Bushehr, East Azerbaijan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Khuzestan and Sistan and Baluchistan provinces.

That came after Iran attacked a tanker in the strait Tuesday, forcing the crew to abandon the ship. Iran also kept up attacks against U.S. allies in the region. Iran also launched attacks against Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait.

The escalation pushed energy prices higher. The international benchmark for crude oil traded Wednesday above $92 a barrel and regular gasoline in the U.S. climbed to an average of $4 a gallon.

With U.S. midterm elections approaching in the fall, polls have pointed to the unpopularity of the war among Americans, who have felt the pain of pricier gas and seen new casualties in a conflict that weeks ago seemed to be winding down.

The number of wounded U.S. personnel in the Iran war has grown to well over 500 troops, a U.S. official told The Associated Press. The total is higher than the Pentagon’s official tally on the Defense Casualty Analysis System, which currently shows 482 wounded.

The U.S. official, who was not authorized to discuss the matter with the media and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the system has a significant lag in reporting injuries. The official said that was a function of its design and not intentional.

Iran-backed rebels in Yemen open a new front in the Red Sea

In the Red Sea, Iran-backed Yemen's Houthi rebels have opened a new front against Saudi Arabia by declaring a naval blockade of the kingdom, threatening the flow of global oil supplies and trade. With the Strait of Hormuz blocked up, Saudi Arabia has been relying on a pipeline to the Red Sea to get millions of barrels of oil out to market.

A news agency in Yemen that is run by the Houthis, SABA, said Tuesday that six ships in the Red Sea were forced to reroute after they received warnings from the rebel group. The Associated Press could not immediately confirm the claim.

Three Houthi officials said the group warned international shipping companies on Monday to avoid transiting through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the gateway to the Red Sea on the opposite side of the Arabian Peninsula from the Strait of Hormuz. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity, saying they weren't authorized to speak to journalists.

Trump says US has ‘no interest’ in Iran talks

Momeni, Iran's interior minister, met Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, according to two officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door negotiations. Momeni later met Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

In a statement, Sharif expressed deep concern over the recent U.S.-Iran escalation, and urged all sides to exercise restraint and avoid actions that could further destabilize the region.

Pakistan’s political leadership and Munir, who serves as both the chief of army staff and defense forces, played a key role in brokering last month’s interim agreement between the U.S. and Iran. Islamabad has been working to persuade both sides to return to the negotiating table.

Trump told reporters that Iranian officials "want to desperately meet. And until they’re ready to meet in a meaningful way, we have no interest in meeting.” He said the U.S. would soon target the area near Pickaxe Mountain — a fortified underground site near one of Iran’s primary nuclear enrichment facilities.

Iran's military leaders said any attack on nuclear or “other sensitive facilities” would be considered a major escalation, according to a statement reported by Iranian state media.

A deep level of mistrust persists on both sides. Iran came under a surprise attack in June 2025 and again in February while it was engaging in nuclear negotiations with the U.S. The interim deal unraveled when Iran resumed attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, which was supposed to be reopened under the agreement.

US strikes come as ships are attacked

The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said a tanker came under attack early Tuesday in the strait off Oman, forcing the crew to abandon the vessel.

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard claimed responsibility for the attack, as well as two other attacks on ships Monday in the waterway.

The route close to Oman's shores has been the one the U.S. military has encouraged ships to travel to avoid Iran’s control.

To enforce the blockade in the strait, as of Tuesday U.S. forces have redirected eight commercial vessels and disabled one, CENTCOM said on X.

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Ahmed reported from Islamabad. Contributing were Associated Press writers Fatma Khaled in Cairo; Sally Abou AlJoud in Beirut; Collin Binkley and Konstantin Toropin in Washington; and Christopher Weber in Los Angeles.

The confirmation brings the death toll to 18 U.S. service members killed since the war began.

On Monday, the Pentagon identified 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas, as the two other soldiers who were killed in Jordan in Friday’s attacks. The soldiers were killed by Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks in the first troop deaths from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war. They were deployed to support a U.S. mission against the Islamic State group, a U.S. Central Command statement said.

After the attack, U.S. Central Command announced that two service members were killed and another was missing. The following day, the military command said that troops found unidentified remains and that an examination process to verify the remains was underway.

Now, the Pentagon says that Rampersad is believed to be that missing soldier and her official status is now “Duty Status–Whereabouts Unknown” and she is “believed to be deceased.”

Rampersad belonged to the same unit as Gonzales — the 10th Army Air & Missile Defense Command based in Ansbach, Germany.

Also, a U.S. soldier killed in Iraq during a controlled detonation of an Iranian drone was identified as Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton, a 30-year-old father from North Carolina who had served for nearly a decade, according to a military statement Tuesday and his family.

Swinton will receive a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge, and will be promoted to staff sergeant. The Army said it was investigating the circumstances of his death Sunday at an air base in Irbil.

He leaves behind a 6-year-old son and a 4-year-old daughter, his mother said.

“I will never recover from this,” his wife, Mia Gonzalez-Swinton, posted Monday on Facebook. “We had so many plans for when you got back, I’m sick to my stomach.” She said she was notified Sunday that he had been killed.

Two U.S. Army soldiers were also killed in Jordan last week while defending against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks. They were the first U.S. troop deaths from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war.

His wife and kids were the center of his world, his mother, Christel Swinton Andujar, told The Associated Press.

“His legacy will live on through the countless lives he touched, the laughter he shared, the strength he gave others, and the unconditional love he poured into his family,” she said via text message. “He will forever be missed, forever honored, and forever our hero.”

Swinton enlisted in the Army in 2017 and was assigned to the 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

He lived in Spring Lake, a popular off-base location for Fort Bragg families, according to public records. The military gave his hometown as Fayetteville, another nearby community.

“Sgt. Swinton was an experienced noncommissioned officer who took great pride in his work and the people around him,” said Brig. Gen. John L. Dawber, commanding general of the Army Air and Missile Defense Command. “He answered the call to duty with courage, honor, and selfless dedication.”

Renewed fighting between the U.S. and Iran is now in its 10th day, with both sides launching barrages of strikes. Iran has attacked U.S. allies in the region, and American soldiers are stationed across the Middle East.

Iranian authorities say U.S. strikes in just the past three weeks have killed at least 50 people and wounded more than 500 others.

Both sides have targeted civilian infrastructure relied on by millions of people. Workers on ships, as well as foreign workers and others in Gulf nations, Israel and Lebanon have also died in the conflict.

The U.S. State Department said in a new warning to Americans that “Iran and groups supportive of Iran may target other U.S. interests overseas or at locations associated with the United States and Americans throughout the world.”

U.S. President Donald Trump has said the war is necessary to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Trump, a Republican, now faces political pressure to bring the war to a close and avoid the kind of prolonged Middle East conflict he had campaigned against. The escalation has pushed oil prices higher in recent weeks.

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This story was corrected to show Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton died Sunday, not Saturday, as earlier reported by the military.

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Collins reported from Hartford, Connecticut.

Trump will be at Dover Air Force Base when the remains of the troops killed in action are returned to their families, the White House said. The ritual is one of the most somber duties of a commander-in-chief. It will be the third that Trump has attended since he launched the war in Iran in February.

Two U.S. Army soldiers killed in Iranian missile and drone attacks in Jordan will be returned during the dignified transfer, according to an administration official who was not authorized to discuss it publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

The remains of a third service member who is believed to be the soldier missing after the Jordan attacks will also be returned, the official said, as well as the remains of a soldier killed in Iraq during a detonation of an Iranian drone.

“I'll be going to Dover for something that I feel is — it’s a great honor for me to do it,” Trump said in the Oval Office on Tuesday.

The soldiers killed in Jordan were identified by the Defense Department as Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas. The soldier who disappeared after the Jordan attacks and is now believed to be deceased is Angel S. Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York, the Defense Department said.

The soldier killed in Iraq was identified as Michael Emmanuel Swinton, 30, who lived in Spring Lake, North Carolina.

“We feel very badly, but you know, those great people, those great patriots were out there fighting so that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon,” Trump told reporters on Sunday. He added that the U.S. was striking Iran “in honor” of the fallen troops.

The U.S. has launched multiple retaliatory strikes against Iran as an interim agreement to end the war falls apart. Trump on Monday said that every time Iran kills an American soldier, “they will pay for that killing many times over!”

Since the war began on Feb. 28, 18 U.S. service members have been killed.

Trump on Tuesday said that while almost all the incoming fire in Jordan was stopped, some made it through.

“They did slip something through in Jordan," he said. "If we had other operators, you know, it would have not happened, unfortunately.”

He went on: “We’ve stopped almost everything, but when you let other people do your job with the United States — we let other people do the job — and sometimes it doesn’t work out so well.”

Trump did not elaborate on his comments, and it was not immediately clear who Trump was saying was responsible for protecting U.S. forces in Jordan.

Trump has attended two previous dignified transfers since the outset of the war, most recently in March. During his first term, he described the ritual as “the toughest thing I have to do” as president.

During the ritual, transfer cases draped with the American flag and holding the remains of the fallen soldiers are carried from the military aircraft that transported them to an awaiting vehicle to take them to the mortuary facility at the base. There, the service members are prepared for their final resting place.

Feehan, a first lieutenant who was killed Saturday, will be posthumously promoted to the rank of captain and awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge. He was assigned out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to the 32nd Army Air and Missile Defense Command.

Gonzales, who was killed Friday, was a private with the 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command in Ansbach, Germany. She graduated last year from Hebron High School in Carrollton, near Dallas, school officials said.

Rampersad, a sergeant who was believed to have been killed in Friday's attacks, was assigned to the 57th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 52nd Air Defense Artillery Brigade, 10th Army Air and Missile Defense Command in Ansbach, Germany.

Swinton, a sergeant who was killed Sunday, will receive a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge, and will be promoted to staff sergeant. He enlisted in the Army in 2017 and was assigned to the 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

Trump on Wednesday plans to speak at a Georgia high school to promote the investment accounts, which offer $1,000 in seed money to every child born during his second term. The accounts went live July 4, two days before Trump rang the opening bells for both the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ from the Oval Office.

The tax-advantaged accounts, created last year through Trump’s signature One Big Beautiful Bill, can be opened for any child under the age of 18. The Treasury Department boasts 6.5 million sign-ups for Trump Accounts, with 1.5 million of those eligible for the $1,000 seed funding for babies born from 2025 through 2028.

Boosters of the program say it’s a chance to give more Americans a stake in the stock market. They hope it will stem the rising popularity of democratic socialists, who seek to raise taxes on corporations and the wealthy to ease the cost of things like food and healthcare for low-income and middle-class Americans.

After the Trump Accounts are set up, parents, relatives, friends and employers can contribute to them. Some billionaires have also pledged philanthropic contributions. The money is turned over to private firms that invest it in index funds, a type of mutual fund that tracks the performance of the stock market. The money can’t be accessed until the child turns 18, and only then for specific purposes, such as going to school, opening a business or buying a home.

For babies born since Trump took office last year, $1,000 from the U.S. Treasury is supposed to kick off the accounts. While some parents report receiving the money, others said in interviews and on social media they're still waiting for the accounts to receive $1,000.

Masaki and Kristina McLellan, new parents from Bergen County, New Jersey, said in an interview they were wary of signing up for the accounts because they worried it was a promotional stunt for the president. But the $1,000 incentive persuaded the couple, whose daughter Maya was born in late March, to start an account anyway.

Masaki McLellan said he applied for the account July 6. At first, the application was rejected, but the account was activated after he spent an hour on the Trump Account hotline. He was told he'd see the money in the account in 10 days. Now, he says, he's been told it will take up to four weeks.

Kristina McLellan said she was disappointed it was taking so long to fund her daughter's account. But the infant has multiple other investments already compounding for her. Maya's parents have already started a 529 college savings plan and a custodial brokerage account for her. The Trump Account is the third investment account in the little girl's name.

“We definitely want to give her options for her future and make sure she can choose what she wants to do,” said McClellan, a studio director for a local news station, who returns from maternity leave next week.

The Treasury Department said the lag between opening an account and receiving the seed funding constitutes “standard processing time, like receiving a tax refund” and that the overwhelming majority of parents are only waiting one to two days. But the department likes to give parents a conservative estimate for how long it might take for the money to be transferred, such as the estimate of up to four weeks given to the McLellans.

“Trump Accounts level the playing field by allowing every parent to invest in their children’s future, not just wealthy families with trust funds,” the department said. “With roughly 1 million sign-ups per month before launch, Trump Accounts have become the most popular and successful government-backed savings product in U.S. history.”

Trump's stop in Georgia comes as he and fellow Republicans face pressure in the midterm elections for their handling of the economy. Only 33% of U.S. adults approve of Trump’s economic leadership, among the lower ratings of his second term, according to a June survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Trump pledged to lower costs, but his tariffs and the war in Iran have instead helped to increase prices.

Trump Accounts are similar to “ baby bonds,” championed by Democratic-led cities and states meant to shrink the wealth gap between low- and high-income children. But unlike most baby bonds, which generally target kids from disadvantaged backgrounds, Trump Accounts are available to families of all incomes.

The program has faced criticism from those who say it does nothing to help families in a child's first years of life, when children are most likely to experience poverty, homelessness and hunger. And the bill that created the program, the president's signature One Big Beautiful Bill, also slashed funding for programs that are disproportionately used by children, including Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

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Associated Press writer Adriana Morga contributed to this report.

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Opening statements are set for Wednesday in Hadi Matar's trial in the federal courthouse in Buffalo, New York. It's about 70 miles (113 km) from the arts and intellectual retreat where the renowned author and free-speech advocate was attacked as he was about to discuss writer safety.

The Booker Prize-winning Rushdie, now 79, is expected to be among the first witnesses, again describing the stabbing that nearly killed him and left him blind in one eye. He has recounted the moment and his lengthy recovery in testimony at Matar's state-court attempted murder trial, in a memoir and in multiple interviews.

“The thing that happens when you get really a close-up look at death — that’s as close as you can get without actually doing the dance of death and heading off to nowhere — it stays with you,” he told The Associated Press in 2024. “There’s a shadow.”

Matar, 28, already is serving a 25-year New York state prison sentence on a state-level attempted murder and assault conviction. That case focused mostly on the details of the knife attack itself; the federal one delves more into questions of motive.

Matar has pleaded not guilty to federal charges that include engaging in an act of transnational terrorism. If convicted, he faces a potential life sentence.

Prosecutors have argued that he was acting out of loyalty to Iran's theocratic government and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group after the Islamic Republic's late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini called for Rushdie's death because of his 1988 novel “The Satanic Verses.”

Matar's electronics included information on the fatwa, or Islamic religious ruling, that sought Rushdie's death, and Matar kept a journal and sticky notes logging his research on Rushdie and possible ways and places to kill him, prosecutors said in a 2025 court filing. In Matar’s New Jersey bedroom, federal agents found photos of Khomeini and now-deceased successor Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the filing said.

“When he attempted to carry out the fatwa, he believed he was doing so on behalf of” Hezbollah, which the U.S. government designates as a terrorist organization, assistant U.S. Attorneys Timothy Lynch and Charles Kruly wrote in the filing.

Asked about the case Tuesday, Matar's attorney Nathaniel Barone said he planned to give an opening statement. In the years leading up to the trial, Matar's lawyers tried unsuccessfully to exclude some evidence from his social media accounts and other digital activity, arguing that the government's electronic searches cast too big a net.

Matar declined to testify at his state court trial, and it's unclear whether he will take the stand in federal court. At his state court sentencing, Matar said he believed in free speech, but he asserted that Rushdie was “a hypocrite” who ”wants to bully other people."

Matar also spontaneously spoke out in support of Palestinians while heading into and out of the state courtroom.

Born in the U.S. to parents who immigrated from Lebanon, Matar is a citizen of both countries. His mother has said he turned moody and withdrawn after a 2018 trip to Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based.

Rushdie was born in India, raised in Britain — where he was knighted by the late Queen Elizabeth II — and now is a U.S. citizen. He won the Booker Prize in 1981 for “Midnight’s Children,” a magical realist novel about a personal and national journey that begins at the instant when India became independent.

But Rushdie became most famous, and notorious, for “The Satanic Verses,” particularly a passage featuring a dream sequence about the Prophet Muhammad. Some Muslims saw it as blasphemous, and often-violent protests erupted against Rushdie, who was born into a Muslim family.

Khomeini's 1989 fatwa drove Rushdie into hiding for years. Although Iran hasn't focused in recent years on the decree, it was never rescinded. Iran's government denied involvement in the 2022 stabbing, but its Foreign Ministry's then-spokesperson suggested Rushdie invited trouble by insulting Islam.

After “Knife,” Rushdie's memoir about the stabbing, he returned to fiction with last year's “The Eleventh Hour,” a book of short stories and novellas. He was recognized with a Dayton Literary Peace Prize lifetime achievement award in November.

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Peltz reported from New York.

A tiny Texan town along the border with Mexico is fighting the administration's efforts to build a border wall running through a levee system protecting the community. The town argued in court Tuesday that the wall could cause flooding and that the administration isn't following the law as it rushes forward with its plans.

The hearing in federal court came as the Department of Homeland Security charges forward with its $46 billion plan to complete a border wall from the Pacific Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico and deliver on what has long been a signature promise of President Donald Trump. But the department is running into opposition by landowners, environmental groups, Native American tribes and others who argue that the government's rapid construction endangers historical and religious sites and a way of life along the border, when crossings from Mexico are already at extreme lows.

The lawsuit brought by the development district of Presidio pits a small town of a little over 3,200 residents against a department key to the Trump administration's plans to carry out its mass deportations agenda. It also showcases a context that has long been important to many Americans, particularly Republicans: the scratchiness that sometimes arises between the most local of municipalities and the federal government in Washington.

Lawyers for the development district contend the government's plans could compromise the levee system protecting the town from flash flooding — a formidable problem in Texas — and that the government flouted a key act that requires it to seek permission from the Army Corps of Engineers before building on or near the levees.

The government argues that there is no final plan for where the border wall will go or how it will be built. Regardless, the administration asserts it has the authority to waive a vast swath of regulations to build the wall as it seeks to get the number of people crossing the border every day to zero.

The town worries about levees along the Rio Grande

The town is worried about the effect the wall would have on a series of berms and levees built in the 1970s and 1980s along the Rio Grande and tributaries to combat flooding.

In court documents, Presidio’s development district said Customs and Border Protection plans to “replace the earthen slope of the existing levee with a concrete wall, with 30-foot steel bollard panels installed on top.” The district says it has asked the agency for more details but has been told they can’t be shared due to “national security.”

“There is unfortunately a long history here of CBP construction causing or increasing flood risks,” said Laura Bakst, a lawyer for Democracy Forward, which is representing Presidio’s development district in the case.

A lawyer for the government said during Tuesday's hearing that it's too soon to argue that the proposed wall could harm Presidio because Customs and Border Protection hasn't actually decided on a final plan for it.

The department has waived numerous regulations to build the wall faster

In the race to build the wall, both former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and the current secretary, Markwayne Mullin, have waived numerous requirements protecting the environment or archaeological sites that the federal government normally has to follow when building infrastructure projects.

Under legislation passed by Congress, Homeland Security does have the authority to waive certain requirements specifically to speed up the building of walls along the U.S.-Mexico border. But critics argue the department is going much further than Congress intended by issuing broad waivers all along the 2,000-mile or 3,200-kilometer length of the frontier.

In Presidio's case, the development district is arguing that Homeland Security is running afoul of the Rivers and Harbors Act. The department has waived it, but lawyers for Presidio argued that because of the wording of the Act, Homeland Security was still required to consult with the Army Corps of Engineers before launching the project.

Louis Katz, a lawyer for Democracy Forward, warned that the way the department was waiving state and federal laws as it moves forward with the wall is an “extraordinary exertion of authority.”

Construction could start as early as August or as late as October

A key question: When would construction start? Timing has been an issue beyond Presidio as landowners up and down the border look for an answer. Construction crews have pre-positioned supplies — including the steel bollard wall panels — but no actual wall-building has started in the area.

A lawyer for the Justice Department gave some insight into the government's timeline. In response to questions about whether construction could start as early as the beginning of August, Alexander Yun told the judge that it was unlikely to start that early. Yun said construction could begin in late August or September or October.

Homeland Security has indicated that getting the wall built is a priority.

Mullin said during congressional testimony in June that the preliminary layer of the wall will be finished by “this time next year.” The head of Customs and Border Protection, Rodney Scott, has said the agency is putting up 6 miles (10 kilometers) of wall a week.

The judge seemed a bit skeptical of both sides

The Trump administration is pushing forward with the wall when border crossings are at the lowest levels in decades. The Big Bend Sector has not experienced the high number of border crossings seen in recent years in other areas farther south along the Rio Grande or in Arizona or California, owing to the remote and challenging terrain on both sides of the border.

But the Justice Department lawyer said low border crossing numbers seen over the last year are an “anomaly" and the goal is “zero illegal crossings.”

Judge Reggie Walton scoffed at that idea, saying that it's “just a reality” that people will always try to cross the border.

Walton also said he was struggling with the issue of how much authority he had to limit the department considering that Congress had given it the ability to waive certain requirements.

The judge said he would issue a ruling in the coming week.

In the video Mamdani described the Israeli prime minister as a “war criminal” and said he is not welcome in New York City.

“It is clear that we do not have the independent legal authority to enforce this warrant,” he said in a video posted on X. “The federal government however does and I call on them to join the ICC and execute this warrant,” he added, referring to the International Criminal Court.

Mamdani had told the New York Times earlier this month that he and the city’s legal department were discussing arresting Netanyahu if he comes to New York City for the U.N. General Assembly in September.

President Donald Trump on Monday told Netanyahu in a social media post that he “will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America.” The post did not directly mention Mamdani.

Mamdani had said throughout his mayoral election campaign last year that he would seek to order the city’s police to arrest Netanyahu under the criminal court's warrant over Netanyahu’s role in the war in Gaza.

In his video message Tuesday, Mamdani said his administration has reviewed all avenues available and determined the city can't execute the arrest warrant.

“I want to be equally clear, Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City, nor is any other war criminal at large," he said.

Danny Danon, the Israeli ambassador to the U.N., responded by telling the mayor “enough.”

“You were elected to serve New Yorkers, not Hamas’ propaganda,” he said in a statement on social media. “Do your job!”

The world’s top war-crimes court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and others in 2024, accusing them of crimes against humanity in connection with the war in Gaza.

They said there was reason to believe Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant have used “starvation as a method of warfare” by restricting humanitarian aid and have intentionally targeted civilians in Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza — charges Israeli officials deny.

The people, who were not authorized to comment publicly about the yet to be formally announced decision, said the agreement is expected to be announced publicly as early as Wednesday.

The deal is expected to last 30 years and is also expected to involve U.S. firms in developing the program. The deal could allow for the building of a uranium enrichment facility in Saudi Arabia following a joint U.S.-Saudi study.

But the deal, which is expected to be submitted to Congress for review, could face headwinds among lawmakers who fear that helping the Saudis fulfill their long-standing desire to enrich their own uranium would open new rounds of nuclear proliferation and competition.

Saudi Arabia is a member state of the International Atomic Energy Agency, a Vienna-based agency which promotes peaceful nuclear work but also inspects nations to ensure they don’t have clandestine atomic weapons programs.

But the agreement is not expected to include the IAEA’s Additional Protocol, which would allow for more monitoring, inspections and verification, according to one of the people.

The expected announcement comes in the midst of the war against Iran launched by the U.S. and Israel, in part, to wipe out Tehran’s ability to develop a nuclear weapon. Iran has insisted its nuclear enrichment program is peaceful.

The White House and Saudi officials in Riyadh did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the decision, which was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Both Trump and former President Joe Biden tried to reach a nuclear deal with the kingdom to share American technology.

But nonproliferation experts warn any spinning centrifuges within Saudi Arabia could open the door to a possible weapons program for the kingdom, something its assertive de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has suggested he could pursue if Tehran obtains an atomic bomb.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright traveled to Saudi Arabia last year shortly before Trump visited the kingdom and discussed building out the kingdom’s commercial nuclear power industry with his Saudi counterpart. The U.S. Department of Energy did not immediately respond to requests for comment late Tuesday.

Already, Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan signed a mutual defense pact after Israel launched an attack on Qatar targeting Hamas officials. Pakistan’s defense minister then said his nation’s nuclear program “will be made available” to Saudi Arabia if needed, something seen as a warning for Israel, long believed to be the Middle East’s only nuclear-armed state.

Enrichment isn’t an automatic path to a nuclear weapon — a nation also must master other steps, including the use of synchronized high explosives, for instance. But it does open the door to weaponization, which has fueled the concerns of the West over Iran’s program.

The United Arab Emirates, a neighbor to Saudi Arabia, signed what is referred to as a “123 agreement” with the U.S. to build its Barakah nuclear power plant with South Korean assistance. But the UAE did so without seeking enrichment, something nonproliferation experts have held up as the “gold standard” for nations wanting atomic power.

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Price reported from Manila, Philippines, and Gambrell from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. AP writers Will Weissert and Matthew Daly contributed from Washington.

As of 11 p.m. Tuesday, the center of Tropical Storm Bertha was about 130 miles southwest of Panama City, Florida.

Maximum sustained winds are now 60 mph with higher gusts, and the minimum central pressure based on surface observations is 995 mb.

The system is creeping northwest at 6 mph.

A slow northwestward to west-northwestward motion is expected today, followed by a turn westward by the middle part of this week. On the forecast track, Bertha will move near or along the northern Gulf Coast during the next several days.

Some slight strengthening is possible later today, followed by gradual weakening through the middle of this week. Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 115 miles from the center.

A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for

• Bay/Gulf County Line in Florida to the Terrebonne/Lafourche Parish

Line in Louisiana

A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for

• West of the Terrebonne/Lafourche Parish Line to the

Vermilion/Cameron Parish Line

• Metropolitan New Orleans, Lake Pontchartrain, and Lake Maurepas

The Storm Surge Watch has been discontinued along the northern Gulf Coast. A Coastal Flood Warning has been issued by the National Weather Service for portions of the southeastern Louisiana and Mississippi coastline.

Aside from isolated showers and storms early this week due to the wind flow around the system pushing tropical moisture over us, additional impacts are not expected for our area.

This is due to the system’s westerly movement, which will keep the highest rainfall totals across the Panhandle and northern Gulf Coast.

In 2026, Florida and Tennessee will be complete strangers.

Their once-a-year matchup that, back in the day, featured Steve Spurrier, Peyton Manning, Phillip Fulmer and snark that sometimes even outweighed the stakes — “You can’t spell Citrus without ‘U-T'” — is absent from the schedule for the first time in 37 seasons.

Alabama-LSU — soon that’ll be gone, too, for the first time since 1963.

The Gators and LSU — they’ll miss each other this year for the first time since 1970.

Such is the price of progress in the Southeastern Conference, which has grown from 10 teams in the old days to 16 now.

The league is introducing a nine-game league slate this season in an attempt to boost strength of schedule for what is now a playoff system that has a committee awarding seven at-large spots in the 12-team field.

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

The divisions that once made Florida-Tennessee such a big deal — winner had an inside track for the East, a spot in the conference title game and maybe the national championship — are gone, another product of expansion.

Under the new system, in place through 2029, each school will play three “annual” foes. Some of the SEC’s most ancient rivalries, like Alabama-Auburn, Florida-Georgia and Auburn-Georgia, were preserved.

Others are now less-permanent affairs. Another oldie but goodie that's missing this year, Georgia vs. Tennessee, was first played in 1899 and became an annual event in 1992. The Volunteers got the best of the Bulldogs early, but Georgia has won nine in a row and 14 of the last 16 — a run that prompted a question to Georgia coach Kirby Smart on Tuesday about feeling like he has “one less win” on the schedule.

“You said that; not me,” Smart responded. “I got a lot of respect for Josh (Heupel) and their staff. I mean, they’re a tough prep. I’m glad other teams get an opportunity to do that, and then we get some new teams to play.”

Some new teams, yes. Some old rivalries will return, too.

For instance, Arkansas-Texas, a must-see game on the old Southwestern Conference schedule that produced the Game of the Century, attended by President Richard Nixon in 1969, is an annual affair again. Two years ago, Missouri renewed acquaintance with Oklahoma, reupping a rivalry that meant a lot in the Big Eight for a time in the 1970s. And Texas-Texas A&M, the “Lone Star Shootout” and a game held every year between 1915 and 2011, will now be played annually.

Asked about rivalries being renewed and others that, in another effect of realignment, are changing dates — Missouri's season-ending tradition against Arkansas has been moved to Week 8 — Tigers coach Eli Drinkwitz said: “I don’t worry about that. I know each and every game in the SEC is extremely difficult.”

The SEC also mandated its teams play a 10th game against a Power Four opponent, which led Kansas and Missouri to renew their so-called “Border War” and created other early season matchups like Oklahoma-Michigan, Clemson-LSU, Ohio State-Texas, Auburn-Baylor, Arkansas-Utah and Arizona State-Texas.

SEC coaches believed moving to a nine-game league schedule would coincide with College Football Playoff expansion, which didn’t happen.

Now, they have tougher schedules, no increased access to the 12-team playoff and a few less rivalries.

“That’s what our conference looks like,” Oklahoma coach Brett Venables said. “Each and every week, you’re not going to sneak up on anybody.”

A brief look at the Tennessee-Florida series

The Tennessee-Florida rivalry decided the SEC East a dozen times between 1993 and 2009. Spurrier got under Fulmer’s skin with his “Citrus Bowl” comments. Manning, despite all his accolades, went 0-4 against the Gators. The importance of the rivalry diminished beginning in 2011, with both schools falling behind Georgia in the East.

A brief look at the Florida-LSU series

The Florida-LSU matchup has been filled with chaos, controversy and close games. Among the most memorable: LSU upset No. 1 Florida in 1997, and fans stormed the field and tore down goal posts; the top-ranked Tigers won another close one a decade later by converting five fourth-down plays; and in 2020, unranked LSU stunned the sixth-ranked Gators in Gainesville on Cade York’s 57-yard field goal through heavy fog after cornerback Marco Wilson inexplicably threw an opponent’s shoe and kept alive the game-winning drive.

A brief look at the LSU-Alabama series

Alabama and LSU played 12 times between 2008 and 2021 with one of them ranked first or second. It often had Western Division and national title implications. It comes off the schedule for 2027, no longer an annual fixture. Few matchups outweigh the 2011 showdown in which top-ranked LSU knocked off No. 2 Alabama 9-6 in overtime. The Crimson Tide won the rematch in New Orleans two months later for the national championship.

Could current rivalries be affected beyond 2029?

The SEC has been adamant that each team’s annual opponents will be revisited and potentially realigned to maintain competitive balance before the 2030 season. Of course, by then, there’s no telling what the SEC or college football will look like.

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Long reported from Gainesville, Florida.

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It’s the second satellite-saving mission to launch this month, all part of a growing, money-saving effort to keep spacecraft running as long as possible. Another company’s three-armed spacecraft rocketed into orbit on July 3 to boost NASA’s Swift Observatory so it doesn’t crash to Earth this fall.

Launched by SpaceX, Northrop Grumman’s mission robotic vehicle — dubbed MRV — and its jetpacks will spend the next year angling into the proper orbit 22,300 miles (36,000 kilometers) above Earth. Hundreds of satellites orbit at this so-called geosynchronous orbit, where they match the speed of Earth's rotation and keep to the same part of the sky for continuous coverage.

Once in place by mid-2027, the minivan-sized spacecraft will use its 10-foot (9-meter) arms to attach a jetpack to an aging communication satellite. Then it will zip off to two more satellites in need.

For its debut flight, the spacecraft was accompanied by three electric-propelled jetpacks that peeled away separately following liftoff. Like the MRV, the jetpacks will use their own xenon gas thrusters to get to the desired orbit. Once in place, the jetpacks will wait for the robot to grab them, one at a time, and plug them into their designated satellites.

Each jetpack — the size of a washing machine — will provide the necessary oomph for an out-of-gas satellite to keep operating for several more years instead of retiring. If it works, it will be a boon for satellite operators SES of Luxembourg and Optus of Australia, saving them millions of dollars in replacement costs.

This is Northrop Grumman's latest foray into the satellite-servicing business. In 2019 and again in 2020, the company launched a pair of spacecraft that latched onto faltering communication satellites and steered them, providing extra years of life.

Northrop Grumman designed its new robotic helpers to be even more resourceful. The company envisions future versions repairing and relocating live satellites, and even latching onto dead ones for removal from highly trafficked orbits. The company is collaborating with the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

Katalyst Space Technologies, meanwhile, continues to test its Link satellite helper in orbit before rushing to the Swift Observatory's rescue. Flight controllers had to overcome initial communication and pointing problems with Link, beaming up software patches.

Launched in 2004, NASA's Swift telescope has been sinking faster than usual because of all the recent solar activity. A boost by Link in the coming weeks could give the nearly $400 million gamma ray observatory many more years of studying some of the biggest explosions in the universe.

NASA is paying Kataylst $30 million to raise Swift to its original 373-mile (600-kilometer) altitude. Northrop Grumman provided Link's ride to orbit, using a plane-launched Pegasus rocket.

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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

The deadline for action is more than two months away, but House GOP leaders are not leaving to chance another possible shutdown souring the mood of voters shortly before they go to the polls. House Speaker Mike Johnson dared Democrats to vote against the bill, and if they did, "then they alone are going to own the chaos that ensues if the government shuts down after September 30.”

The House passed the measure by a mostly party-line vote of 220-205.

It’s highly unusual for Congress to pass a stopgap funding bill months before the end of the fiscal year. Lawmakers normally act just days or even hours before the deadline. But once lawmakers leave town this week, the House is scheduled to be in session for only 16 more days before the funding deadline.

GOP leadership is laying the groundwork to spend most of that time on another priority: a long-shot, party-line bill that spends $95 billion to boost defense, aid farmers and get portions of President Donald Trump’s elections overhaul bill passed into law.

“I think it's kind of smart to go ahead and take the potential chaos of a shutdown off the table because the amount of damage that does to the American citizens,” said Rep. Austin Scott, R-Ga. He said he believed a shutdown “probably works to the advantage of Democrats politically,” and he blamed the press for such a scenario.

Democrats overwhelmingly opposed the stopgap measure, which would generally fund agencies at current spending levels.

Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said the legislation was dropped on Democrats on Friday without any bipartisan negotiations. She said that, among other priorities, Democrats would have pushed for provisions to reverse a proposed federal rule that could allow agency heads to block or terminate grants they claim don't match the president's priorities.

She said that instead of a bipartisan agreement, “we are scrambling to jam through a one-sided stopgap measure two days before everyone leaves for the August recess.”

Republicans said work on the dozen annual spending bills would continue in the months ahead, but that funding the government through Dec. 4 could help lawmakers avoid a repeat of the past year when the country experienced the longest federal shutdown in history followed by the longest partial shutdown in history.

“We've seen that happen twice in this Congress already,” said Rep. Tom Cole, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. “I'm not willing to risk a third time if we can avoid that.”

Some of the more conservative Republican lawmakers were fine with the bill to extend funding to Dec. 4, known as a continuing resolution.

In this environment, that's "the best way to spend the least amount of money,” said Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo. “You keep spending levels static for at least a period of time.”

It's unclear if the Senate will go along with the bill. Spending bills require support from 60 senators to advance to a final vote, so some Democrats would need to support it. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters that Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins was working with Democrats on the committee to “find a path forward.”

The report says the encounter began July 18 near the Southside Connector and Merrill Road after the off-duty officer said he accidentally cut off another vehicle while changing lanes. The officer told investigators the other vehicle repeatedly honked, followed closely and then directed a blue laser into his vehicle through the rear windshield and mirrors.

As the vehicles continued eastbound in the Arlington Expressway area, the off-duty officer said the suspect vehicle pulled alongside his vehicle. According to the report, the officer said he saw what appeared to be the barrel of a firearm pointed at him, while the laser continued shining. The officer said he believed he and his wife were being targeted.

Investigators used license plate readers to identify a gray Honda Civic with a North Carolina tag, the report says. Officers located the vehicle around 12:45 a.m. July 19 near Union Street and Davis Street, then conducted a felony takedown inside a parking garage, police said.

The driver, identified as 27-year-old Andre Bigelow, was booked into the Duval County jail on two third-degree felony charges: aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill and misuse of a laser lighting device on a motor vehicle.

Detectives reported finding a Glock 19 handgun in the driver’s door pocket and an AR-15-style BB rifle on the floor behind the driver’s seat. Investigators also reported recovering a blue laser device and charger from the center console.

“The fact the officer wasn’t hurt,” Commander Nicholas Damone with JSO’s Specialized Patrol said. “The officer could have used deadly force in that instance, and the fact that the suspect wasn’t hurt and was taken into custody without incident. No officers were hurt. That’s a great thing.”

The driver told investigators he had been in the car all day working for a delivery service and acknowledged using the laser, saying he waved it “out the sunroof and at his dashboard,” the report said. He denied pointing a gun at anyone.

Damone said the dangerous part about lasers on the roadway is what could be on the other end. He said anyone that runs into a similar situation should call 9-1-1 and pull over.

“Let the person continue on,” he said. “Let us handle it.”

Rescue teams with oxygen gear raced to find survivors Tuesday as toxic levels of gas were detected at the disaster site in Samardung village near the Chinese border.

The blast had ripped through the tunnel Monday while 21 laborers were inside working on the 500-megawatt Teesta hydroelectric project, officials said. Two of them managed to escape. Six power utility officials later entered the tunnel to help in the rescue, but became trapped themselves, officials said.

The explosion was believed triggered by a buildup of methane, said State Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang, who visited the site Tuesday. Survivors told authorities they heard a loud explosion before debris came crashing through the tunnel, civil official Anupama Tamling said.

Officials had recovered 12 bodies on Tuesday while rescuers from the National Disaster Response Force, or NDRF, raced to reach the 13 people believed to be still trapped.

“We found toxic gases such as methane, carbon monoxide and hydrogen sulfide inside the tunnel,” NDRF official Nitin Kumar said at the scene.

The conditions late Tuesday were so dangerous that, although equipped with oxygen gear, the rescuers could enter the disaster site only for shifts of about 15 minutes at a time, officials said.

Construction accidents are not uncommon in India, where rapid infrastructure growth often collides with fragile geology, construction lapses, extreme weather and safety standards.

In the Himalayan region, fragile mountains, seismic activity and unpredictable underground conditions make tunnel projects especially risky. An explosion inside a coal mine in neighboring Meghalaya state in February killed at least 18 workers. In 2023, a tunnel section in northern Uttarakhand state collapsed, trapping 41 workers for 17 days before they were rescued.

Experts say the Teesta River basin, where the hydropower project is being built, lies in a seismically active region marked by young, fragile rock formations riddled with fractures and underground pockets that can trap ancient gases.

Dr. Devesh Walia, a geology professor at North-Eastern Hill University in Meghalaya, said the area contains relatively young rock formations, some associated with coal-bearing strata.

“It is quite possible that methane along with other gases accumulated underground and may have triggered an explosion,” he said.

The U.N. food security report, released Tuesday, found global hunger has eased modestly in recent years, but projected more than 500 million people could still face chronic hunger by 2030. Africa is expected to bear the largest share of that burden.

In an interview with The Associated Press on July 10, IFAD President Alvaro Lario said geopolitical tensions and potential disruptions to shipping and energy supplies, including uncertainty surrounding the Strait of Hormuz during the Iran war, could leave an additional 9-18 million people facing hunger if the shocks persist.

“We are in a current era where we have the highest number of conflicts and are still increasing,” Lario said. “Whenever there is a conflict, also hunger, displacement, refugees increase.”

Conflict fuels food insecurity

Conflict remains one of the biggest obstacles to reducing hunger worldwide, Lario added.

Wars and geopolitical tensions can disrupt shipping, energy supplies and agricultural inputs, increasing costs across food systems already strained by inflation. Lario stressed that hunger and conflict often reinforce one another, creating a cycle that is difficult to break without greater stability.

Higher energy prices are already affecting fertilizers and agricultural production, he said. The impact is especially significant for small-scale farmers, many of whom rely on diesel fuel to pump water, harvest crops and transport goods to market.

Rising fuel costs increase production expenses and can feed directly into higher food prices.

Climate shocks add pressure

The new report identifies affordability as one of the world’s biggest food security challenges. While food production continues to grow, roughly a third of the global population still can't afford a healthy diet. In low-income countries, that figure rises to about 77%, according to Lario.

“The biggest challenge is no longer simply producing enough food, but making healthy diets affordable,” he said.

Climate change is adding further pressure to food systems and rural livelihoods.

Lario noted that floods, prolonged droughts and extreme heat are increasingly disrupting agriculture around the world and have become a common reality for many communities.

Governments should focus on resilience and adaptation before disasters strike, rather than relying solely on emergency responses afterward, he said.

“This is just becoming the new normal,” Lario said. “We are seeing floods in many countries. We’re still seeing droughts that have been expanding for four or five years.”

The fund is increasing investments in climate-adaptation programs aimed at helping rural communities withstand floods, droughts and extreme heat, he said, arguing that support is urgently needed for the millions of small farmers who produce much of the world’s food.

Africa emerges as the epicenter

The report highlights Africa as the world’s most pressing food-security challenge. For the first time, the continent has overtaken Asia as the region with the largest number of hungry people, and nearly 60% of the world’s chronically undernourished people could live there by 2030.

Lario attributed the shift partly to rapid population growth and slower economic gains than in parts of Asia, and he called for greater investment in agriculture, infrastructure and food systems.

African countries currently import nearly $100 billion worth of food each year, he said, underscoring the need for stronger local production, storage, distribution and regional trade networks.

Conflicts, energy-market disruptions and climate extremes threaten to derail progress unless governments invest in more resilient food systems, Lario said.

Burnham told his top team that he would lead a “cost-of-living government” focused on easing the economic burden felt by millions of people.

“We need to think every day, what can we do just to take that little bit of pressure off people’s shoulders, to give them that little extra sense that help is coming, so they can have that bit of hope that things are getting better,” Burnham said.

He made a small down payment on that pledge by announcing a tax cut on domestic electricity bills that will save the average household about 45 pounds ($60) a year. The cut will take effect Oct. 1, Burnham said, with the funding coming from scrapping a plan for digital ID cards announced by Starmer.

The former mayor of Greater Manchester entered Downing Street on Monday after replacing Starmer as leader of the governing Labour Party, becoming Britain’s seventh prime minister since 2016. Starmer resigned just two years after winning a landslide election victory, forced out by his party after missteps and U-turns.

In his first speech as prime minister, Burnham pledged to ease the cost of living, decentralize political power, revitalize industry and end street sleeping by homeless people — a tall order, especially given Britain's sluggish economic growth in recent years.

Burnham acknowledged at the Cabinet meeting that the government would have to make difficult financial decisions and “take a really hard look at what our priorities are.”

Starmer loyalists removed from office

After taking office Monday, Burnham set about remaking the government.

Starmer’s finance minister, Rachel Reeves, was ousted, replaced by John Healey, a former defense secretary who resigned in June and accused the Treasury of failing to spend enough on the military at a time of rising threats. In an interview after he quit, Healey called the Treasury “a dead hand on dynamic government” and “in denial.”

Healey has said defense spending, due to be 2.6% of GDP next year, should rise to 3% by 2030. Now he will have to find the money.

Wes Streeting, whose resignation as health secretary in May helped topple Starmer, took over the defense portfolio.

Other key Cabinet appointees include Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, Housing Secretary Angela Rayner and Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds, who has an expanded brief that includes innovation and science.

Louise Haigh, a key Burnham ally who helped engineer his rise to the top, was named First Secretary of State and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, effectively the deputy prime minister.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, who has overseen contentious rules designed to reduce immigration, kept her job.

Burnham has huge support from the party that is desperate for a new leader to reverse its decline in popularity under Starmer. But there is some grumbling after Burnham removed several of Starmer’s senior ministers including ex-Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy, former Business Secretary Peter Kyle and Starmer’s chief secretary, Darren Jones.

Foreign policy challenges lie ahead

Burnham has little experience of foreign policy and faces a stack of challenges including wars in Ukraine and the Middle East and managing relations with U.S. President Donald Trump, who first warmed to Starmer before souring on him.

Burnham’s office said he had an “extremely warm” conversation with Trump in one of his first calls as prime minister and “underlined his commitment to defense and security.” Trump posted on social media that the men had “a very good conversation” and would be “meeting in the not too distant future for topics of mutual interest.”

The prime minister also spoke to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and leaders of the European Union and NATO.

Burnham told NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte that putting former defense chief Healey in charge of the nation’s finances “was a signal of his intent.”

In a reminder of the growing international tensions Britain faces, a Russian warship carried out a live-fire weapons exercise in the English Channel on Monday, the day Burnham took office.

The Ministry of Defense said the frigate Neustrashimy was being shadowed by the Royal Navy when it conducted the exercise in international waters about 46 miles (74 kilometers) south of the southwest England port city of Plymouth. It said the navy “continues to track the vessel’s activity closely and stands ready to protect U.K. national security.”

Streeting, the new defense secretary, said the Russian ship's actions were “performative and irresponsible.”

“Russia should be in no doubt about the resolve of this government and this prime minister, our resolve to stand against Russian aggression in Ukraine but also Russian aggression against all of our allies,” he said at a news conference.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russian warships always acted “in strict accordance” with international and maritime law.

Asked whether the Russian government felt relations with the U.K. would improve under the new prime minister, Peskov said it had “no such hopes.”

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the new actions — which come after previously announced Medicaid funding deferrals in those states — are part of the administration's strategy to “stop the fraud before it happens” rather than claw back problematic spending after bad actors are prosecuted, as previous administrations had done.

“We have a duty to stop the payments, demand answers and then follow the evidence wherever it leads,” Kennedy told a news conference.

The tactic is part of the administration’s sweeping campaign to show it’s cracking down on fraud and saving taxpayers money when rising healthcare costs and other economic stressors have made affordability a top voter concern in November’s midterm elections.

In March, Vice President JD Vance launched a new anti-fraud task force at the request of President Donald Trump, bringing together officials from various departments to use data and technology to identify and investigate suspected wrongful use of federal dollars.

But the federal government hasn't provided “data or explanation on how the deferral amount was calculated or what it was based on” to Minnesota, said John Connolly, the temporary commissioner and state Medicaid director for Minnesota's Department of Human Services.

“Today's actions show that the federal government is acting again in unprecedented and punitive ways as part of their war on Medicaid and its recipients,” he said in a statement. “Partnership — not politics — is required to stop criminals and protect services for the people who need them.”

Minnesota’s Democratic Gov. Tim Walz suggested the Republican administration was deferring the funds to pay for Trump’s tax cuts to wealthy Americans. California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom accused the administration of targeting it for political reasons.

The Trump administration intensified anti-immigration efforts in Minnesota earlier this year, sending in a robust force of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers whose actions there caused weeks of counterprotests and included the shooting deaths of two civilians. Trump himself has frequently denounced California as a badly governed state.

States are facing obstacles because of the actions

The strategy has led to some false starts and headaches for states.

In April, for example, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services acknowledged to The Associated Press it made a significant error in figures it used to help justify a fraud probe in New York. Last month, California's Medicaid director told a congressional committee that CMS had not yet provided “any instances of fraud, waste or abuse” to the state in its justification of a $1.3 billion Medicaid funding deferral announced in May.

And in Minnesota, state officials have been executing a thorough corrective action plan to defray CMS concerns that have led the agency to defer some $260 million in federal money and to threaten future cuts.

“We have cooperated in good faith and proactively engaged the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to first raise the alarm on fraud in Minnesota’s Medicaid program, to effectively investigate fraud and to institute further safeguards against future misuse of funds,” Connolly said.

Kennedy didn't specify in Tuesday's announcement whether the new deferrals — $867.5 million in federal Medicaid payments to California and $199 million to Minnesota — are in addition to, or overlap with, earlier deferrals announced this year.

CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz didn't provide concrete examples of fraud in the two states in justifying the deferrals. He did mention some patterns the agency noticed that it found questionable, including that some providers were billing for four or more patients at the same time, or billing after the date of a Medicaid beneficiary's death.

Oz also highlighted a fast rate of growth in California's home care program as a reason for concern. California officials have disputed that idea, explaining that the state's home care program has grown because of an intentional strategy to keep people out of more expensive nursing homes.

“In-home care growth reflects intentional, federally encouraged expansion, not improper spending,” said Anthony Cava, spokesperson for the California Department of Health Care Services. “California is calling on CMS to stop threatening care for California’s most vulnerable residents.”

Flow of money could be restored — with documentation

Kennedy and Oz said states could restart the flow of federal funding by providing documentation proving the payments in question were legitimate.

Officials in both states have previously acknowledged they are working with the federal government to provide the requested information. Oz said Minnesota had already returned documents to the federal government and they were being “reevaluated very carefully.”

Kennedy also suggested Tuesday that he would extend the power to exclude providers from Medicaid, Medicare and other federal health programs to CMS. In the past, that authority has rested solely with his department’s Office of the Inspector General.

“This is going to be a full force multiplier,” HHS Inspector General Thomas March Bell told a news conference. “It's going to create additional momentum, and it's going to exclude additional bad actors.”

More than 23 kilometers (14 miles) have been constructed in recent months, running through Palestinian communities demolished by the military. That is equivalent to more than half the length of the coastal strip, which is some 40 kilometers (25 miles) long and 11 kilometers (7 miles) wide, and home to over 2 million Palestinians.

When presented with the satellite images, Israel’s military confirmed to The Associated Press it has built a physical barrier in the area of the so-called yellow line, the boundary to which Israeli troops withdrew under the October ceasefire deal with Hamas. The line was envisioned in the U.S.-backed agreement as a temporary division of the territory pending a fuller Israeli withdrawal.

But as the truce stagnates, it appears Israel is digging in, heightening Palestinian fears that the line is morphing into a border. Neither U.S. Central Command, which is tasked with monitoring the ceasefire, nor the Board of Peace, the body led by U.S. President Donald Trump meant to eventually oversee Gaza, would comment on the barrier.

Along with the barrier, the military told AP it has developed a “security zone” around the line, equipped with intelligence and technological assets. It declined to give details on the route of the barrier when asked how far it would be extended. It said the barrier aimed to prevent infiltration and protect Israeli troops and Israeli communities near Gaza.

Construction of the barrier is proceeding rapidly

Since the ceasefire deal took hold, Palestinians in Gaza have feared Israel would not return the area of Gaza it controls. But few appear to be aware of the berms now being built around them — because of the danger of even approaching that area.

A portion of the berm network in southern Gaza was extended by more than 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) in two weeks this month, according to the satellite images provided by Planet Labs PBC.

The berm was about 500 meters (0.3 miles) long on July 1. By July 15, it was about 2.4 kilometers (1.5 miles), splicing the Israel-controlled ruins of the city of Rafah from Muwasi, site of some of the largest Palestinian tent camps.

If construction continues in its current direction, it will join up with the longest stretch of the barrier, which runs nearly unbroken for around 17 kilometers (10 miles) from the southern city of Khan Younis to near Gaza City, in the north.

Construction began on that stretch in February, and it appears work to extend it further south is continuing, according to the satellite images. More than a kilometer (0.6 miles) was added between June 21 and July 7, running close to an Israeli military base built on the ruins of the town of Bani Suheila, near Khan Younis.

In the far north of Gaza, several unconnected stretches of berms run just outside the largely leveled town of Beit Lahia.

The height of the berms in each place remains unclear. In some places, the barriers appear to run outside the yellow line.

Israel has mostly destroyed and depopulated the half of Gaza it controls

Gaza’s population has been crowded into the coastal area west of the yellow line, most living in squalid tent camps and dependent on aid.

On the other side of the line, satellite imagery shows that Israeli forces have leveled the vast majority of buildings using bulldozers and explosives, virtually erasing several towns and Rafah, once home to more than a quarter million people.

They have carved new road networks and erected new bases on the ruins of Palestinian towns. Agricultural land has also been destroyed. The Israeli military says it is demolishing infrastructure used by Hamas.

The yellow line was never precisely defined, whether in the ceasefire deal or by Israeli or U.S. officials, and it has been inconsistently marked on the ground. The military told AP it is working to clearly mark the route of the yellow line to “reduce friction and prevent harm to uninvolved individuals.”

Israeli forces have killed Palestinians who came close to the line or crossed it. The Israeli military says it fires on those believed to be militants threatening its troops. But those killed have included children and other civilians seemingly unaware of the line. Some soldiers have said they don’t always know who they are firing on and have orders to kill anyone crossing the boundary.

Israeli strikes have killed hundreds of Palestinians since the ceasefire

Israeli forces have killed more than 1,100 Palestinians since the ceasefire began, most in airstrikes and drone strikes around Gaza. Militant attacks have killed five Israeli soldiers in the same period.

Early on Tuesday, an Israeli strike in Gaza City killed Firas al-Masri, his wife and their four children, ages 6 to 13, according to Shifa Hospital. Israel's military only said that they conducted a strike on Hamas militants in the area at that time.

Firas' brother, Ahmad al-Masri, lives nearby and said he heard the children's voices at the moment of the blast.

“They were calling out to me, ‘Uncle! Uncle!’” he said. “But the fire was raging, and we couldn’t do anything.”

Under the ceasefire deal, Israel is eventually supposed to withdraw its troops further to the very edges of Gaza, to be replaced by an international security force. But implementation of the deal has been stalled for months.

A former U.N. diplomat now in charge of coordinating the ceasefire has blamed Hamas’ failure to disarm. Sporadic talks to reach a formula for decommissioning its weapons appear to have made little progress, and Hamas accuses Israel in turn of violating the ceasefire.

The war began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israeli communities on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 others hostage. Israel responded with a punishing military offensive that has killed more than 73,000 people, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

The ministry, which was part of the recently dissolved Hamas-run government, maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and international organizations. It does not distinguish between civilians and militants but says women and children make up around half of all fatalities.

___

Frankel reported from Jerusalem.

Roger Rogoff is the latest in a series of judicially appointed U.S. attorneys to be ousted by the Trump administration from their posts but is believed to be the first of that group to sue over the removal. His action creates a first-of-its-kind court case that will test the Justice Department's authority to fire federal prosecutors who are appointed by judges,

Rogoff was unanimously appointed to the job of U.S. attorney for western Washington by the federal judges in the district. But shortly after he was sworn in last Wednesday, he received an email from the Trump administration informing him that President Donald Trump had ordered his termination.

The lawsuit contends that the abrupt firing was unconstitutional and disregarded the authority of the judges of the district to name Rogoff to the job until the vacancy could be filled through a Senate-confirmed nominee. The complaint seeks a court order declaring that the firing “was unlawful and is void” and that Rogoff at least temporarily remains U.S. attorney.

“The President’s actions violate the law, and they ignore the protections of the Constitution of the United States," Rogoff said in a statement issued through the law firm representing him. "His removal of me, like his removal of other court-appointed U.S. attorneys across the country, is illegal and cannot stand."

US attorneys are typically nominated by the president

U.S. attorneys, top federal prosecutors who oversee regional Justice Department outposts across the country, are typically nominated by the president and then confirmed by the Senate.

In the case of a vacancy, attorneys general have the authority to name an interim U.S. attorney who can serve for 120 days, but when those temporary appointments expire, the judges in a judicial district are then empowered to name a U.S. attorney — as happened in Rogoff's case — who can serve until the selection of a Senate-confirmed appointee.

But under Trump, the Justice Department has sought to leave unconfirmed prosecutors in their positions indefinitely or has moved to fire prosecutors appointed by the courts.

The acting attorney general had foreshadowed the firing

Rogoff's district has not had a Senate-confirmed U.S. attorney since 2023. He submitted his name for consideration with the federal bench after the judges last January signaled their intent to fill a vacancy created by the end of the 120-day term of Charles Neil Floyd, who had been named to the job in an interim capacity last year by then-Attorney General Pam Bondi.

Even before Rogoff was appointed, the lawsuit notes, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche foreshadowed his plans to fire whomever the judges selected, writing on X after the court announced its appointment of a merit selection panel that the candidates did not have the president’s support, “and I expect they will suffer the same fate as others have when judges ignore Article II” of the Constitution.

After Rogoff was fired, Blanche posted: “District court judges can appoint a temporary U.S. Attorney, and POTUS can fire them.” Judges from the state’s western district, he said, “abandoned the time-honored process of consultation with the administration so that the selected U.S. Attorney is qualified to serve in the administration. Roger Rogoff has been fired by the President.”

The Justice Department said in a statement Tuesday that “the district court did not coordinate with DOJ on this selection. Consistent with other firings of this type, this is wholly within the President’s authority.”

Other jurisdictions that have seen tussles between the judiciary and the administration over the prosecution posts include New Jersey, where Trump's former personal lawyer, Alina Habba, resigned in December after an appeals court said she had been serving in the post unlawfully.

Lindsey Halligan, another of Trump's personal lawyers who was installed by the administration, left her position as an acting U.S. attorney in Virginia after a judge concluded her appointment was unlawful and that indictments she brought against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey must be dismissed.

Police say their investigation into drug sales at the Metro Inn on Golfair Boulevard began in January 2026. Over several months, undercover detectives purchased synthetic drugs known as “Flakka” from individuals selling out of the motel.

JSO says 11 people were arrested and two additional arrest warrants are pending. Those arrested include:

• Zabarin Love, 44
• Shameka Reed, 37
• Marquis Williams, 38
• Kayla Dixon, 32
• Daniel White, 21
• Waymond Hamilton, 32
• Tiffany Charles, 37
• Michael Handy, 37
• Alea Smith, 31
• Shatoria Harrison, 36
• Troyane Pinkard, 48

Prior to this investigation, JSO says officers responded to repeated calls for service at the motel involving drug activity, violence, thefts, and other criminal behavior.

If you spot suspicious or illegal drug activity in your neighborhood, you’re urged to report it to JSO by calling (904) 630-0500.

The pattern will continue through Friday with limited rain chances and coverage. Rain chances increase this weekend as moisture increases ahead of a weak front. Models show the approaching trough mingling with the Gulf and Atlantic sea breezes for scattered afternoon showers and thunderstorms.

The summer heat continues with possible Heat Advisories this weekend.

Tonight: Isolated showers with thunderstorms, mainly west and along Highway 301.

Wednesday: A steady southerly breeze as afternoon highs soar. Slight chance of showers, storms, 10 percent. Morning lows in the 70s to low 80s. Afternoon highs in the low to mid 90s inland, upper 80s to low 90s along the beaches. Feels Like temperatures 102-106 degrees Wind: S/SE 10-20 mph.

Thursday - Friday: The summer pattern continues with the heat and humidity combining for Feels Like temperatures in the 100s. Isolated showers and storms possible. Lows in the 70s to low 80s. Highs in the upper 80s to mid 90s.

Looking ahead: Scattered showers with thunderstorms return this weekend.

Tropics: Monitoring Tropical Storm Bertha. www.news4jax.com/weather/2026/07/21/tropical-storm-bertha-churns-toward-northern-gulf-coast-with-risk-of-heavy-rain-gusty-winds/

Sunrise: 6:39 p.m.

Sunset: 8:27 p.m.

Related: Ed White Varsity 4 high school media shoot

Prosecutors say D4vd, a 21-year-old whose legal name is David Burke, used the items to dismember Rivas Hernandez's body after he had stabbed her to death for threatening to reveal their relationship and ruin a music career that one witness said had brought in more than $10 million in just a couple of years.

On the first day of a hearing where a judge will decide if there's enough evidence to go to trial, the homicide detective, Joshua Byers, testified that Burke had used the alias Trayvion Davis for the orders, but used his own cards to buy them and had them delivered to his Hollywood home.

Burke's lawyers have said he did not cause Rivas Hernandez's death, and he has pleaded not guilty to murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under the age of 14 and unlawful mutilation of human remains.

Byers said most of the items that digital records show Burke bought, including two of the three chain saws and the blue pool, had been found in Burke's garage when a warrant was served. Prosecutors previously said a blood stain in the garage matched Rivas Hernandez's DNA.

And Byers testified that the body bag Burke ordered matched one that contained the head and torso of Rivas Hernandez in the trunk of a Tesla registered to Burke at a Hollywood tow yard on Sept. 8, 2025.

Prosecutors show photos of teen's dismembered body

The lead prosecutor, Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman, showed photos in court of the dismembered and decomposing body of Rivas Hernandez. Under the body bag, authorities found a garbage bag with the girl's arms and legs.

Burke's lawyer, Blair Berk, pressed Byers about whether the body bag was tested to tie it to the defendant. Berk's cross-examination took a microscopic look at how the scene was treated and the body was investigated.

Byers said the medical examiner at the scene told him the bag could not be taken into evidence because the body was so decomposed it could not be removed from it.

Rivas Hernandez’s parents were in court along with dozens of reporters and members of the public who got their seats through a lottery drawing. Her mother appeared to look down when the photos of the body were displayed.

Investigators did not immediately identify the body of Rivas Hernandez when it was found. Byers said her father, Jesus Rivas, called police a few days after the body’s discovery because he had seen news reports and feared it was his daughter.

The photos showed blue fragments on the body that prosecutors say were from the inflatable pool.

Byers also testified that when he and his partner arrested Burke, they noticed he had ‘Celeste’ tattooed in red on his finger. A photo of it was shown in court. A tattoo on another finger read “Shhh” and was identical to one on Rivas Hernandez's finger.

Body camera video shows Burke downplaying the relationship

Also Tuesday, prosecutors showed a body camera video from February 2024 with Burke telling sheriff’s deputies who were investigating after the then-13-year-old Rivas Hernandez was reported missing; Burke told them he had only met the girl once in person, and did not know she was a minor.

“She told me she was 18,” the singer said in the video from February 2024. “Everybody’s telling me she was 13.”

Prosecutors allege that D4vd had already been having a sexual relationship with the girl for several months. He was 18 at the time. Burke said he met the girl as a fan online on Discord and Instagram in 2020 or 2021.

LA County Sheriff's Deputy Juan Gonzalez, whose body camera video was shown, testified that Burke had been extremely cooperative, and allowed him and his partner to search the house. They found no sign of Rivas Hernandez, who was reported missing a number of times in the years before her death.

The mood was friendly and jovial among the three, and one of the deputies says “Ohhh, that’s pretty cool, good for you,” when Burke described his music career.

The hearing resembles a mini trial

The preliminary hearing, which is expected to last about four days, resembles an abbreviated trial. Judge Charlaine Olmedo will decide whether the prosecution offered enough evidence to demonstrate probable cause to proceed to trial.

District Attorney Nathan Hochman said outside the hearing that his office has not yet decided whether to pursue the death penalty in the case.

The defendant, who has been held without bail in a jail near the courthouse since his arrest, appeared in court in his Orange jail clothes and glasses. The judge ruled that his hands could be uncuffed, but he must remain shackled to his chair.

A court filing said Burke sent a car to pick up Rivas Hernandez on April 23, 2025, from her hometown of Lake Elsinore, California, some 80 miles (129 km) outside Los Angeles. They exchanged messages until she arrived at his home, after which her phone went dead.

“Knowing he had to silence the victim before she ruined his music career as she had threatened,” the document said, “defendant stabbed the victim to death multiple times and stood by while she bled out.”

D4vd had budding music career

One of Burke’s financial managers, Benjamin Gregor, testified that he had earned between $10 million and $11.5 million dollars from 2023 through 2025.

D4vd began making music for YouTube videos he created of the video game Fortnite.

The songs he wrote and recorded on his phone were a blend of indie rock, R&B and lo-fi pop. The music made him a phenomenon on TikTok, Soundcloud and Spotify, where his top songs, including his 2022 breakthrough “Romantic Homicide,” have more than a billion plays.

In 2023, he released two EPs and opened for SZA on tour. Last year, he performed at the Coachella music festival and released a full album that he was on tour promoting when the body was discovered.

Andrew Arrabaca, 43, plotted the attack for months and considered striking other New York City targets before setting a fire, lighting fireworks and firing a pellet gun Monday morning outside 26 Federal Plaza, Assistant U.S. Attorney Samantha Fry said.

Arrabaca told investigators that he understood people could've been hurt or killed and that he he was willing to accept his own death in the process, Fry said. She called his actions “calculated, targeted and unacceptably dangerous."

Three people sustained minor injuries, including a person who had an immigration court hearing at the building, which also houses offices for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the FBI. The building has been a magnet for protests against President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.

Arrabaca, wearing glasses and a black sweatshirt, sat quietly between his lawyers at his initial appearance in Manhattan federal court. He nodded at times as they explained what was happening. He was not required to enter a plea. The charge, arson or explosion causing damage to U.S. government property, carries a minimum sentence of seven years in prison.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Robyn F. Tarnofsky ordered Arrabaca jailed at a federal lockup in Brooklyn, rejecting his lawyer's suggestion that he be sent to a locked ward at a Veterans Health Administration facility for a mental health evaluation. Instead, the judge said she wants Arrabaca to be evaluated at the jail as soon as possible.

“This is an individual who, notwithstanding what he appears to have done, has served our country and is quite clearly ill,” Tarnofsky said.

Arrabaca was living in his car and slept in a park the night before the attack, Fry said. In 2020, she said, he was prescribed medication for a mental health condition but he stopped taking it about a year later.

A military-style helmet that authorities say Arrabaca wore during the attack had words on it suggesting he was suicidal, defense lawyer Jennifer Brown said.

Brown noted that Arrabaca has no criminal history and, until recently, had a long history of employment. He is a U.S. citizen and a lifelong New York resident, she said. He grew up in Queens, public records show, and was linked to an address in Poughkeepsie.

Arrabaca repaired Patriot missile systems while in the Army from 2001 to 2004. He also served a year in the New York Army National Guard. He had no deployments and left the Army as a specialist, an Army spokesperson said.

Fry, arguing for jail instead of hospitalization or release, argued that Arrabaca is a danger to the community and a flight risk. Brown conceded “the nature of this offense is undoubtedly dangerous,” but that Arrabaca’s “expressed intention was not to cause damage to people but to cause damage to property.”

Arrabaca started planning the attack as far back as January and went to upstate New York to buy weapons and Pennsylvania to buy fireworks, Fry said. Outside the Manhattan building, he was tackled by a security officer after authorities say he dumped gasoline outside an employee entrance and set the sidewalk on fire.

Arrabaca had two axes, three fixed-blade knives, a hammer, a machete and a wagon affixed with a sign that said “ICE Off Our Streets," authorities said. As he was being arrested, he made “anti-government and anti-American statements” and derogatory remarks about ICE, James Barnacle, the head of the FBI’s New York field office, said at a news conference on Monday.

Fry said that while only a few people were injured, “this attack could have ended much more tragically” at a building where hundreds of federal employees work, parents leave children at a daycare and members of the public use a post office inside.

Fry said there is “overwhelming evidence of his guilt” including “his own fulsome confession."

Tarnofsky said she seriously considered the psychiatric ward option but rejected it because she wasn’t convinced Arrabaca would comply with treatment.

“The crime you’re charged with is troubling," she said, addressing Arrabaca directly. “The nature and circumstances, the fact that it was planned over time and carried out at a time when it could cause significant harm.”

“This wasn’t done on a Sunday when no one was at the building," the judge said.

___

Associated Press writer Konstantin Toropin in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.

The majority Black congressional district was redrawn by the state legislature in May to favor Republicans in November's midterm elections. A month earlier, the Supreme Court ruled that Fields' district relied too heavily on race and was an “unconstitutional gerrymander.”

“After a great deal of prayer and reflection, I have decided not to seek reelection, to Congress, in the 6th District or any other district in Louisiana," Fields said.

Fields, who a longtime fixture in Louisiana politics, said he would instead seek a seat in the state Senate.

The Supreme Court’s decision to strike down the map favoring Fields' district escalated a nationwide redistricting battle, largely fueled by President Donald Trump’s efforts to protect Republicans in the midterm elections.

In June, the Supreme Court ruled that Alabama could use a map that favored Republicans in this year’s elections.

Louisiana Republicans had considered drawing a map this year that would have given the party a shot at winning all six of the state’s U.S. House seats. But that would have required adding more registered Democrats to Republican-held districts, potentially backfiring with GOP losses.

The new map renews Fields’ district to cluster it around predominantly white communities in the Baton Rouge area and southern Louisiana.

Fields had previously served two terms in the U.S. House from 1993 to 1997 and was the state's second Black member of Congress in Louisiana.

___ Wilder is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

The plane, the Clipper Endeavor, made a hard landing after losing engine power shortly after takeoff. The 17 passengers and crew who survived told investigators everyone lived through the landing, but panic set in as many passengers struggled to find life vests and the crew had a hard time pulling out life rafts.

Within minutes, the plane sank. Explorers found the wreckage of the DC-4 last month by using an autonomous sonar drone to locate the fuselage and tail in 2,000 feet of water.

Now before takeoff, flight attendants instruct passengers about exit locations and where life vests are located and how to inflate them.

“This one became a catalyst, and it helped drive safety steps forward of better flotation equipment and the preflight briefings,” said aviation safety expert John Cox, a pilot and founder of Safety Operating Systems. “So this is one steppingstone along the path to what we today enjoy as aviation safety. It was a rallying cry at the time.”

And now the discovery of this wreck could offer new hope for families who lost loved ones in other ocean crashes like Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 that disappeared 12 years ago with 269 people aboard.

Years of research helped locate the wreckage

This crash first caught the attention of Russ Matthews in 2019 when he saw a blurb about a luggage tag from the flight washing ashore in Florida. He said the historical significance of the Clipper Endeavor prompted him to dig deeper.

That led to years of digging through the Pan Am Airlines and Coast Guard archives looking for clues about the location of the plane's watery grave. Reports from the Civil Aeronautics Board, which was the predecessor to the Federal Aviation Administration, also helped.

But the key to finding the wreckage was found in records in Puerto Rico from a hearing that was held on the crash, and a map estimating the location of the crash that was done by Air Force pilots who witnessed the crash because they just happened to be in the area on a training flight.

Bad weather disrupted a previous attempt to locate the wreck in 2024 with a towed sonar array that was also documented by the Discovery Channel's “Expedition Unknown” show. But Matthews said he and the volunteers who work with his Air/Sea Heritage Foundation dreamed of making a second attempt to find it before next year's 75th anniversary of the crash with one of these newer advanced drones that were originally developed for military uses like finding undersea mines.

Undersea drone played a key role in the search

Tony Romeo, who is CEO of the undersea exploration firm Deep Sea Vision, had been talking with Matthews for a while about the possibility of helping try to find this plane if one of his ships was ever in the area, and then in April one just happened to be passing right by Puerto Rico between two other jobs while carrying an advanced underwater drone with the right sensors to be able to find it.

“There we were, and everything kind of came together at the moment: good weather, the right team, and the right equipment and ship. So we took a shot at it,” Romeo said.

Deep Sea Vision previously led an unsuccessful six-month search to find Amelia Earhart's plane, but Romeo had a special interest in this case because his father was a mechanic and pilot for Pan Am airlines. In fact, the drone they used in the search already had a Pan Am sticker on the side.

Capturing the moment of discovery

All the research Matthews' group had done, combined with weather data from the time of the crash, was synthesized to create a map of the most likely location and a search area of 10 square nautical miles. The drone actually found the wreckage on its first pass over that area, although the explorers didn't know that until it returned to the surface with its images.

The Discovery Channel’s Josh Gates and his crew were again along for this latest search to capture the moment the plane showed up on images from the drone after they were downloaded. The search will be featured in a special episode of the show this fall, but a few highlights released Tuesday show the moment everyone in the control room realized what they had found. Shouts of “Oh God!” and “That's a plane!” erupted when the image loaded on screen.

“To have a front-row seat to an expedition like this as it’s unfolding is tremendous, and so I feel really lucky that we were able to be a part of it,” Gates said.

Tuesday’s vote comes as Kast, who took office just over three months ago, struggles to jolt a sluggish economy. The economy shrank 0.5% in the first quarter of 2026 after several months of weak growth. Unemployment rose to 9.4% in the March-May period, its highest level since June 2021.

The legislation aims to revive Chile’s private sector, drive job creation and eliminate the fiscal deficit. It will gradually slash the corporate tax rate for large companies from 27% to 23%, exempt newly built homes from the country’s value-added tax, limit which new universities can join Chile’s free tuition program and allow private companies to seek compensation when environmental disputes delay investment projects.

Last week the Senate approved the bill, but it modified certain articles, sending it back to the lower house for a final vote. On Tuesday, lawmakers approved every change except one dealing with how municipalities will be compensated for tax breaks. To become law, the bill awaits a resolution on that final, minor sticking point.

Kast welcomed the vote on his government's signature economic project.

“I hope all political sectors will work together so the remaining issue can be resolved quickly," he said, speaking to reporters in the northern city of Copiapó, where he was overseeing the government response to severe storms.

Kast, 60, took office in March promising to crack down on crime and illegal immigration while reducing public spending and boosting private sector revenues. His election marked Chile’s sharpest shift to the right since the end of the 1973-1990 military dictatorship, and he has pledged a return to the market-oriented economic policies associated with that era.

“The president’s efforts have essentially been focused on deepening and returning to the orthodox neoliberal model of the late 1970s and early 1980s,” said political analyst Gilberto Aranda. “What existed before was neoliberalism tempered by subsidies and other measures."

Finance Minister Jorge Quiroz said the reform would give investors greater certainty, reduce bureaucratic hurdles for investment projects and make the Chilean tax system more competitive.

“We are enormously satisfied,” Quiroz said after the vote.

Opposition lawmakers have criticized the legislation for favoring Chile's big corporations and wealthiest citizens and vowed to challenge it in the Constitutional Court.

“It has become clear that all of José Antonio Kast’s talk about security, jobs and immigration was simply a Trojan horse to advance the project he truly cares about: cutting taxes for the richest Chileans,” said Constanza Martínez, president of the left-wing Broad Front coalition.

___

Follow AP’s Latin America coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Those areas along the northern Gulf Coast were under a tropical storm warning through Wednesday and could see rain and flooding into Thursday morning, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said. New Orleans also was under a tropical storm warning.

The storm was about 120 miles (190 kilometers) southwest of Panama City, Florida, and 105 miles (170 kilometers) southeast of Mobile, Alabama, Tuesday evening. It was moving at 6 mph (9 kph) to the west with maximum sustained winds near 60 mph (95 kph), the hurricane center said. Gradual weakening was forecast Wednesday through Friday.

Bertha was forecast to make landfall Wednesday night somewhere in the coastal and lightly populated part of Louisiana southeast of New Orleans, said Michael Buchanan, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Louisiana.

Wind will be biggest threat there, he said.

Authorities open sites to distribute sandbags

Authorities in Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida opened sites to provide sandbags to residents while red flag warnings were posted along some beaches advising swimmers about the dangers of rip tides.

Up and down the coast, double red flags signaled that Gulf waters were closed for swimming.

Beaches near Pensacola, Florida, were mostly deserted except for tourists venturing out to take photos of the pounding surf.

“For locals, this is just another storm,” said Candice Henderson, manager of the Crab Trap, a beachside restaurant that was packed Tuesday on Pensacola’s Perdido Key. “When you’re on vacation and its raining, you either shop or you go out to eat.”

The storm was expected to weaken as it moves along the coast, said Jamie Rhome of the hurricane center. It's possible that the worst of the storm will stay offshore, he said Tuesday.

Bertha was expected to weaken further as it pushes into Texas, forecasters said.

Forecasts called for as much as 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) of rain from western Florida to the southern Louisiana coastline, with higher amounts in some scattered areas.

That could cause flash flooding in some urban areas.

Authorities also advised that areas in Louisiana from the mouth of the Mississippi River to the Alabama-Mississippi state line could see storm surges of up to 4 feet (1.2 meters). Parts of Florida and Alabama could see smaller surges.

The tropical storm warning extended west to Morgan City, Louisiana.

Bertha is the second tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season

Bertha is the second tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season. Tropical Storm Arthur last month brought heavy rainfall to the southeastern U.S.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration expects this year to see a below-average Atlantic hurricane season although that doesn’t eliminate the chances of a catastrophic storm.

Bertha could dump heavy rain on coastal areas of Mississippi that are still recovering from flooding brought by Arthur that destroyed and damaged homes in June.

“Because of that, people are definitely paying attention, or at least you would hope so,” said Jeff Clark, a spokesperson for Mississippi's Harrison County, where six sites were open for sandbag distribution.

So far, there hasn't been a need to open any shelters or order evacuations, Clark said on Tuesday.

Hurricane Fausto churns in the Pacific

In the eastern Pacific Ocean, Hurricane Fausto churned far from Mexico’s Baja California peninsula and posed no threat to land, the hurricane center said.

Fausto gained hurricane status Monday night. It was about 780 miles (1,260 kilometers) southwest of the southern tip of Baja California, had top sustained winds of 75 mph (120 kph) and was moving west-northwest at 12 mph (19 kph).

The storm was expected to strengthen Tuesday and Wednesday. No coastal watches or warnings were in effect, though ocean swells generated by the storm could cause life-threatening surf and rip tide conditions on the Baja California coast, the center said.

___

Associated Press journalists Kimberly Chandler in Montgomery, Alabama, Stephen Smith in New Orleans, and Haya Panjwani in Washington contributed.

Now, a TikTok video detailing her experience has been viewed tens of thousands of times and prompted hundreds of comments from women who say they have experienced similar incidents.

Rhiannon Alvarez told News4JAX she was shopping for artwork inside HomeGoods when she noticed a man following her through several aisles.

“At first, I thought I was imagining it,” Alvarez said. “When I finally realized this is actually happening to me, I dropped my cart and grabbed my purse and went to the front.”

Alvarez said she alerted store employees after realizing the man seemed to be sexually gratifying himself while watching her.

“The employees also stated when they rewatched the video, it was blatant; he was pleasuring himself while following me,” she said.

According to Alvarez, the man left the store after realizing he had been noticed. She recorded his license plate before calling the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.

She said officers arrived about three hours later.

“Within two minutes of talking to me, before seeing video or anything, the officer had decided there was nothing they could do,” Alvarez said.

Alvarez said the responding officer later reviewed the store’s surveillance video but still told her no criminal charges could be filed.

When News4JAX requested a copy of the incident report from JSO, the agency responded that no records existed. However, the sheriff’s office confirmed it received a call about the incident.

The I-TEAM has asked JSO why no arrest was made and why no report was generated. JSO told us they had a record of going out to the store, but in the call notes, the officer noted “no crime committed.”

HomeGoods’ parent company, TJX Companies, said it cooperated with investigators.

“At HomeGoods, we take the security of our customers and Associates very seriously. We are aware of this matter and have cooperated with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. We will continue to assist law enforcement as appropriate and respectfully defer further comment to the authorities,” the company said in a statement.

Why wasn’t it a crime?

Alvarez said she struggles to understand why the alleged behavior did not result in criminal charges.

“I feel like that’s just as much a crime as anything else,” she said. “I don’t understand how it doesn’t fall under public indecency or lewd and lascivious conduct.”

The I-TEAM reviewed Florida law and consulted legal experts about the case.

Under Florida law, simply touching oneself in public is not automatically a crime. Florida’s exposure statute generally requires a person to expose their sexual organs in a vulgar or indecent manner. If there is no exposure, prosecutors may have limited criminal charging options depending on the facts of the case.

Whether another criminal statute could apply depends on the specific circumstances and evidence.

Viral video prompts broader conversation

Frustrated by the outcome, Alvarez shared her experience on TikTok.

The video quickly gained traction online, with hundreds of commenters, many identifying themselves as women in Jacksonville, sharing stories of stalking, harassment and encounters they say were not taken seriously by law enforcement.

“I’m not the only one it’s going to happen to, and I’m probably not the only one that’s happened to,” Alvarez said. “On my TikTok, there’s 700 comments and half of those comments are other women in Duval County expressing their need for help.”

She hopes her experience will lead to changes in state law.

“If this is legal, make it illegal,” Alvarez said. “We amend laws all the time about things that are much less important than women’s safety.”

In announcing the tariffs, Trump accused Canada of unfairly discriminating against U.S. automobiles, alcohol and dairy products, escalating tensions with one of the United States’ closest allies.

“In light of trade action threatened by the United States earlier this week, it would be inappropriate to proceed with a celebratory event between the two countries,” said Jenna Ghassabeh, a spokesperson for Canadian Infrastructure Minister Gregor Robertson, in an emailed statement.

The move came after U.S. and Canadian officials reached an agreement earlier this month to open the Gordie Howe International Bridge following delays tied to disagreements between the two countries.

Canada now plans to hold its own ceremony Friday. It is now unclear whether the United States will hold a separate ceremony.

Two U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations said they still expect the bridge to open to traffic July 27 but are less certain than they were before.

"We remain committed to opening the bridge on July 27th, and to celebrating this milestone among Canadians on July 24th," said Ghassabeh.

The 1.5-mile-long (2.4-kilometer-long) bridge spans the Detroit River and connects Detroit with Windsor. A ribbon-cutting ceremony had initially been scheduled for June 12 but was abruptly postponed after officials said the United States and Canada were still working to resolve “outstanding issues.”

Canada financed construction of the bridge under an agreement allowing it to recover the cost through toll revenue. The Trump administration had sought changes to that arrangement.

The project, negotiated under former Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, has been under construction since 2018 and cost nearly $4.4 billion.

The bridge is named after Canadian hockey great Gordie Howe, who spent 25 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings. It is expected to become another major economic artery between Canada and the United States.

In February, Trump demanded in a social media post that Canada give the U.S. government at least half ownership of the bridge and agree to other unspecified demands, part of his broader clashes with Canada over trade.

Those tensions resurfaced this week. The White House said the tariffs would take effect in 30 days, leaving time for negotiations. Trump has previously delayed or backed away from some threatened import taxes.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a statement about the tariffs that his government believes in the “benefits of free and fair trade” and remains prepared to negotiate with the Trump administration.

The tariffs could escalate into a broader trade war as Canada weighs how to respond.

“If these tariffs proceed, Canada should respond tariff for tariff, dollar for dollar,” Ontario Premier Doug Ford posted on social media.

Before Tuesday night’s game against the Seattle Mariners, Ferguson said it was “unprofessional” for him to express his frustrations toward Miller the way he did. Miller got in the way of Reds second baseman Edwin Arroyo on a single by Victor Robles, shortly after Cal Raleigh hit a grand slam off Ferguson to make it 7-0. The Mariners won 8-0.

When asked about the play after Monday night’s game, Ferguson said, “You have to ask Bill,” referring to the umpire, and walked away. Various social media accounts posted videos that made it clear Ferguson was insulting Miller.

“As long as I’ve been in this game, I don’t think you’ll find a clip of me going at an umpire like that,” Ferguson said Tuesday. “I’ll wear that on the chest, seek Bill out and definitely make it right with him. Very unprofessional on my part. I’ve got to be better.”

After Monday’s game, Reds manager Terry Francona was asked about Miller’s positioning on the field and said questions should be directed to Miller.

“I don’t know,” Francona said. “I don’t ever look up and think, well, where should an umpire be? That’s on them. It’s discouraging that it happened.”

A day later, Ferguson was more measured. He said he wished he'd seen the videos earlier and that he'd apologized to Miller sooner than he did.

“It’s just a very unprofessional thing on my part,” Ferguson said. “I know these things happen within the game. But I don’t like that I was kind of the centerpiece of this.”

___

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

Juan Jairo Coronilla Durán, 28, died July 14 after authorities said he darted across a busy road in St. Augustine and into the path of a truck. His death was the third in roughly a week involving encounters with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, following fatal shootings in Texas and Maine.

Coronilla Durán traveled from his hometown of San Luis de la Paz, in the central Mexican state of Guanajuato, to Atlanta to visit family and friends, according to Isaret Jeffers, founder of Colectivo Arbol, a farmworkers advocacy group. He had stayed in Georgia for three weeks before traveling to Florida’s east coast to enjoy the beaches, Jeffers said Tuesday.

U.S. authorities have not publicly identified the man, but a Mexico official confirmed his name. Jeffers said Yezzika Alamilla, the man’s wife, told them he had been visiting the U.S. on a tourist visa.

The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment Tuesday about whether Coronilla Durán had a valid visa.

Authorities say he ran from immigration officers

Coronilla Durán was one of four people in a vehicle that stopped in a gas station parking lot before 7 a.m. on the day he died. The four fled on foot during an encounter with agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Homeland Security Investigations, with one darting across a busy road into the path of the semi, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

It is unclear what prompted the encounter and what happened to the vehicle’s other three occupants.

The Highway Patrol and DHS have not provided additional details, citing the ongoing investigation.

Advocacy group says his wife sought help

Alamilla called Colectivo Arbol, which provides legal advice and assistance to farmworkers in Central Florida, the day after her husband died, Jeffers said. She was seeking help to travel from Mexico and repatriate her husband’s remains. The organization bought her a plane ticket and put her up for three days, until Monday, she said. The Mexican consulate has been helping her since.

“His wife said he was there on a tourist visa. She didn’t understand what was happening,” Jeffers said. “He didn’t come to work; he wasn’t working. He was here as a tourist.”

Alamilla “thinks he was very afraid, and that’s why he ran away,” Jeffers said.

His remains will be repatriated

According to information provided by the widow, Coronilla Durán “had been in the United States for only a very short time (and) had a tourist visa,” said Susana Guerra Vallejo, the undersecretary for assistance to migrants and mobility issues for the Mexican state of Guanajuato.

She said that Alamilla would be able to see the body of her husband at the Florida funeral home.

Coronilla Durán’s body will be transported to Mexico on a commercial flight from Orlando, Guerra Vallejo told The Associated Press. He will be buried in his hometown of San Luis de la Paz, a farming community in Guanajuato that is about 160 miles (260 kilometers) northwest of Mexico City, she said.

Coronilla Durán and Alamilla had two children, a 7-month-old girl and a 7-year-old boy, Jeffers said.

Coronilla Durán’s death was at least the 10th involving encounters with immigration agents since President Donald Trump launched his mass deportation campaign last year.

The Mexican government said it had asked state attorneys general in the U.S. to review the deaths of migrants in ICE custody or during raids for possible criminal prosecution.

___

Sánchez reported from Mexico City. Associated Press reporter Maria Verza contributed from Mexico City.

Hegseth said the war has cost $37.5 billion, so far. He provided the new estimate, up from earlier accounts, during testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee, where his opening remarks were interrupted by protestors several times.

Meanwhile, the U.S. and Iran are back to bombing every day in a bid to control the Strait of Hormuz. And neither is backing down, showing the limitations of Trump’s reliance on escalating airstrikes to bend Tehran to his will.

While the Trump administration says it is open to diplomacy, Iran so far has refused to loosen its grip over the crucial oil shipping corridor in the Persian Gulf. It is raising questions about the strategy for the conflict's next phase. The intensifying attacks have collapsed an interim ceasefire deal, killed more American troops and sent U.S. gasoline prices back up, posing more problems for Republicans hoping to get reelected.

The Latest:

US military says it launched 11th night of strikes on Iran

U.S. Central Command did not immediately reveal the targets being struck in the latest wave, which comes after Trump telegraphed that strikes would be intensifying.

US military identifies third service member killed in Iranian attack

The U.S. military has identified the service member as Sgt. Angel S. Rampersad, 28, of Ozone Park, New York.

The confirmation brings the death toll to 18 U.S. service members killed since the war began.

On Monday, the Pentagon identified Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas, as the two other soldiers who were killed in Friday’s attack on a base in Jordan.

The soldiers were killed by Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks in the first troop deaths from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war. They were deployed to support a U.S. mission against the Islamic State group, a U.S. Central Command statement said.

▶ Read more

More than 500 troops injured in war with Iran, AP source says

The number of wounded personnel in the Iran war has grown to well over 500 troops, a U.S. official told The Associated Press.

The total is higher than the Pentagon’s official tally on the Defense Casualty Analysis System, which currently shows 482 wounded in the war.

The U.S. official, who was not authorized to discuss the matter with the media and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the system has a significant lag in reporting injuries. The official said that was a function of its design and not intentional.

Pentagon officials have insisted that the website shows their commitment to transparency about the number of dead and injured in the war.

Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell posted Monday that nearly 100 U.S. service members have sustained “some degree of injury” since the U.S. restarted strikes on July 7 and that 96% of them have returned to duty.

The system said on July 6 that 413 troops had been wounded.

— Konstantin Toropin

Hegseth engages in tense exchange with Michigan Sen. Gary Peters over Pentagon funding

Hegseth aggressively pushed back against questions from the Democratic senator, who pressed the secretary about the administration’s plan to win the war.

“Secretary Hegseth, despite your failure to win this war, you are back now before Congress asking for almost $70 billion in additional funding,” Peters said. “You are asking the American people for a blank check.”

Hegseth replied, “I think your characterization of this incredible effort as a failure is reckless and it is irresponsible.”

Peters reiterated that he saw Hegseth as a failure.

“You don’t have a strategy, you don’t have a long-term plan to actually win this war,” Peters said. “The men and women are going to be able to do it, but they don’t have leadership. When will you show leadership?”

Hegseth pushed back: “Why don’t you show leadership and stand up to your fellow Democrats who won’t fund the troops?”

Peters replied, “It’s not a question of money, it’s a question of leadership.”

Democrats challenge Hegseth on earlier claims the Iran war was won

Senate Democrats are pushing back on Hegseth’s request for more money when he and Trump claimed months ago that Iran’s military was destroyed and the U.S. military’s objectives met.

“You’re asking for literally $1.5 trillion for a war that President Trump said he already won,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York told Hegseth. “You’re asking for $1.5 trillion — unlimited money for bombs, but insufficient money for the American people, for their health care, their food, their housing, and our farmers.”

Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia zeroed in on similar statements about the ongoing conflict.

“Mr. Secretary, you stated four months ago that Iran’s military had been rendered ‘combat ineffective’ for years to come,” Ossoff said.

Hegseth countered that his statements didn’t mean that Iran didn’t have any more capabilities.

Trump to campaign in Michigan days before battleground state’s primary election

Trump is expected to hold a rally outside Detroit on July 27 as early voting gets underway in Michigan’s primary election, according to a person familiar with the plans who was not authorized to discuss the event publicly.

Early in-person voting begins July 25 for the Aug. 4 primary. Michigan voters are choosing party nominees for an open U.S. Senate seat and governor.

Republican Mike Rogers is unopposed in the Senate primary, while the GOP gubernatorial contest has intensified between Trump-backed U.S. Rep. John James and business owner Perry Johnson.

Trump is expected to rally in Oakland County, an affluent Detroit suburb that for decades was one of Michigan’s premier political bellwether counties. Democrats have carried the county by widening margins in recent elections, even as Trump won Michigan in 2016 and again in 2024.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment.

— Joey Cappelletti

Caine acknowledges limits of air strikes to win war

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, acknowledged the limits of airpower after being pressed on the reliance of airstrikes alone against Iran.

“As you look across the totality of history, airpower’s got limits, and we always have to be mindful of those,” Caine said. “I think where America’s area of exclusivity is, is when we bring the totality of the diplomatic, informational, economic and pair that with the military. And there’s a lot of that work going on.”

Caine declined to say whether ground combat could be next after being pressed by Sen. Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Democrat who noted the likely costs of having boots on the ground.

The general later said: “Iran will continue to be a challenge moving forward.”

Hegseth estimates Iran war has cost $37.5B so far

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday the U.S. war against Iran has cost $37.5 billion, so far, as he is facing questions and protests at a Senate hearing ahead of a $95 billion GOP budget package to fund the military, along with aid to farmers and voting law changes that are top White House priorities.

Hegseth provided the new estimate, up from earlier accounts, during testimony before the Senate Appropriations Committee. Several times, protesters interrupted Hegseth’s opening remarks, which come days after the Pentagon announced that three more American service members have died in the conflict, bringing the death toll to 17, and that more than 100 have been injured since early July.

Hegseth said the supplemental war funding is an “urgent, necessary” injection of funds, and with Trump’s proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget a generational investment in the military.

“Without these funds, we face critical shortfalls,” Hegseth testified.

▶ Read more

Hegseth warns that troop training and pay is in doubt if military doesn’t get more money

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned senators that troop training would have to be curtailed if the Pentagon doesn’t get the $67 billion in supplemental funds its requesting from Congress. He also raised concerns about troop pay and weapons that defend against enemy drones and missiles.

Hegseth said $46 billion is needed for munitions and expanding production lines, while $21 billion would be for military pay, fuel and replacing equipment.

“Without these funds, we face critical shortfalls that threaten our ability to also simply pay our service members,” Hegseth said.

Democratic lawmakers countered that the Pentagon is yet to spend tens of billions of dollars of money it received last year. But Hegseth doubled down on the need for the supplemental funds.

Trump says direct US-Lebanon flights could resume for first time in more than 40 years

Trump said Tuesday he’ll allow American carriers to resume direct flights to Lebanon more than 40 years after the US suspended the route.

Direct flights between the U.S. and Lebanon were suspended in 1985 by President Ronald Reagan’s administration following the hijacking of TWA Flight 847.

“I am hereby directing my Administration to allow all U.S. airline carriers to fly directly to Lebanon so that Americans can easily visit this beautiful land,” Trump said in a social media post after meeting earlier on Tuesday with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.

During a White House meeting on Tuesday with the country’s leader, Joseph Aoun, Trump pledged to help Lebanon “a lot.” Aoun came to Washington to push for long-term calm after months of war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group.

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Hegseth’s remarks repeatedly interrupted by anti-war protestors

One after another, protestors interrupted the defense secretary’s opening remarks and were quickly removed by Capitol Police. The secretary paused four times for protestors to be removed from the room.

“Stop bombing our children, stop bombing Palestine, this is illegal,” yelled one protestor who was escorted from the room.

“We will have order in the hearing room,” Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, told the room after a third protestor interrupted Hegseth’s remarks.

Collins added after a fourth protester interrupted proceedings: “I would ask that the Capitol Police, whose professionalism I admire, remove those who are seeking to disrupt the hearing.”

Senators criticize Iran war’s costs and Hegseth’s leadership as hearing begins

Senators opened Tuesday’s hearing on the Iran war’s costs with ample criticism for the conflict as well as the stalled careers of Black and female military officers under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Hegseth is set to testify before the Senate Appropriations Committee as Republicans push a $95 billion budget package to fund the military.

Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican and committee chair, cited news reports that women and people of color are disproportionately fired or sidelined under Hegseth’s leadership, arguing that it’s “likely to discourage well qualified women and individuals of color from joining our armed forces.”

Washington Sen. Patty Murray, the ranking Democrat, noted the war’s lack of popular support and impact on the economy as gas prices rise and economic growth slows.

Judge weighs bid to block Trump administration policy to reject visas for natives of 75 countries

Lawyers for dozens of immigrants have asked a federal judge to block the Trump administration from enforcing a policy directing the State Department to reject visa applications by citizens of 75 countries based on their nationality.

U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden in Washington, D.C., didn’t rule from the bench on Tuesday after hearing arguments from attorneys for the government and roughly four dozen immigrants from the countries singled out by the January 2026 policy.

McFadden, who was nominated to the bench by Trump, appeared to be skeptical that the lawsuit’s plaintiffs have legal standing to challenge the policy. But the judge also said he sees some legal precedent to support arguments by plaintiffs’ lawyers.

Plaintiffs’ attorneys said it’s illegal for the State Department to enforce a blanket prohibition on issuing immigrant visas to nationals of the 75 designated countries.

Government lawyers say the plaintiffs haven’t shown how they’re irreparably harmed by the policy.

UN chief warns military escalation puts pressure on trade, transport, fuel and commodities prices

Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calls attacks on civilian infrastructure in Iran and the region, including a desalination plant and nuclear power plant under construction, “unacceptable” and a violation of international law, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Tuesday.

Attacks on vital infrastructure for civilians including hospitals and water supplies must stop immediately, the secretary-general’s spokesman said.

The secretary-general and his personal envoy, Jean Arnault, call the current situation “teetering,” and don’t want to see a return to full-scale conflict, he said.

Guterres reiterates that there is no military solution to the conflict and calls for the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and intensified efforts toward a peaceful settlement, Dujarric said.

Trump appears to try to shift blame for US soldiers’ deaths

The president told reporters he would go to Dover for the dignified transfer of U.S. soldiers killed in the Middle East over the weekend.

“They did slip something through in Jordan,” he said, appearing to refer to the deadly Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks there. “If we had other operators, you know, it would have not happened, unfortunately.”

He went on: “We’ve stopped almost everything, but when you let other people do your job with the United States — we let other people do the job — and sometimes it doesn’t work out so well.”

Trump did not elaborate on his comments, and it was not immediately clear who Trump was saying was responsible for protecting U.S. forces in Jordan. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for more information.

Trump says US will strike Pickaxe Mountain ‘very soon’

Discussing plans to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, Trump said the United States will soon target the area near Pickaxe Mountain — a fortified underground site near one of Iran’s primary nuclear enrichment facilities.

“We’ll be hitting that area pretty soon, and very heavily,” Trump told reporters on Tuesday.

The president made the comment after being asked whether he believes Iran has moved nuclear centrifuges to the site. He said it “doesn’t mean anything” unless Iran has uranium to enrich.

“We follow the material,” he said. “That’s where the action is.”

Trump says he’ll pay his respects to fallen service members at Dover

The president is expected to attend the dignified transfer on Wednesday. It’s a ritual considered to be one of the most somber duties of the commander-in-chief.

“I’ll be going to Dover for something that I feel is — it’s a great honor for me to do it,” Trump told reporters.

Two soldiers killed in Iranian missile and drone attacks in Jordan will be returned during the dignified transfer, according to an administration official speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly.

The remains of another soldier killed in Iraq during a detonation of an Iranian drone will also be returned, the official said, as well as a fourth service member whose remains have not yet been identified but who is believed to be a soldier missing after the Jordan attacks.

—- Collin Binkley

Trump says US will ‘take care of business’ if Houthis impose blockade

Asked about his level of concern about a blockade of the Red Sea by the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, Trump suggested it wasn’t an immediate problem.

“So far, it hasn’t happened,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I think that if there is something like that, we’ll just have to take care of business.”

The Houthi-run SABA news agency said six ships were forced to reroute on Tuesday after being warned by the rebels, a day after they announced a maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia.

But Trump said “we’ve had no problem with the Houthis” recently, and “they’ve had no problem with us for a long period of time, including during this conflict.”

Trump says he’s looking at a tariff on Canada over wildfires

Days of smoke from wildfires in Canada drifting into the United States contributed to poor air quality in cities from Detroit to Washington, D.C.

“They’re not managing their forests properly. And the wind has a tendency to blow right over New York City,” said Trump, once a longtime resident of the city. “Michigan was really affected,” he added.

Asked about the issue during an Oval Office appearance with the president of Lebanon, Trump said Canada seems unable to manage the problem.

Trump says US has ‘no interest’ in Iran talks for now

Speaking in the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump gave a dim view on possible talks with Iran to end the war.

“I will tell you, they want to desperately meet. And until they’re ready to meet in a meaningful way, we have no interest in meeting,” Trump told reporters.

He said that in dialogue behind the scenes, Iranian officials have said “they want to meet desperately to try and end it, because they’re getting decimated.”

Iran and the U.S. have escalated attacks recently as their interim deal to end the war falls apart.

Iran-backed Houthi rebels say their Red Sea blockade is working

The rebels have opened a new front against Saudi Arabia by declaring a naval blockade of the kingdom, threatening the flow of global oil supplies and trade through the Red Sea.

With the Strait of Hormuz blocked, Saudi Arabia has been relying on a pipeline to the Red Sea to get millions of barrels of oil to market.

Six ships in the Red Sea were forced to reroute on Tuesday after they received warnings from the rebels, according to the Houthi-run SABA news agency.

Separately, three Houthi officials told The Associated Press that the rebel group warned international shipping companies on Monday to avoid transiting in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the gateway to the Red Sea at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.

— By Jon Gambrell and Munir Ahmed

Report says Trump administration has harmed global efforts to prevent and treat HIV

The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, known as PEPFAR, is credited with saving at least 26 million lives since its inception in 2003. But it’s been impaired by the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development and cuts to thousands of global health grants.

These disruptions to the global AIDS relief program have forced organizations to close clinics, lay off staff and cut services, seriously impeding efforts to prevent and treat the disease in dozens of countries, according to a report released Tuesday by amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research.

Other research, published in the journal Nature Health in June, found a 10% decline in antiretroviral treatment — nearly two million fewer people living with HIV — getting the life-saving treatment through PEPFAR.

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Trump administration pushes ahead with plans to reopen US embassy in Libya

The State Department has informed Congress that it plans to move ahead with the potential re-opening of the U.S. Embassy in Libya. It’s proposing to allocate nearly $41 million to restore America’s formal diplomatic presence in the North African nation.

The effort comes amid new warnings of Iranian-related attacks against U.S. facilities and interests around the world, particularly in the Middle East.

The department told lawmakers that the money would cover “a range of security-related activities associated with plans for the potential phased resumption of embassy operations in Libya.” The embassy in Tripoli was shuttered in July 2014.

The Trump administration reopened the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela following the ouster of former President Nicolas Maduro in January and is also seeking to reopen the closed embassy in Damascus, Syria.

AI stocks keep rising, even as Brent oil’s price tops $90

More gains for makers of computer chips and other winners of the artificial-intelligence boom are carrying Wall Street higher on Tuesday after tumbling the week before.

After rocketing higher because of the boom in investment in AI chips and data centers, they’ve come under pressure in recent weeks on worries that they shot too high. Concerns are also weighing that AI investments may fall off if they don’t produce as much profit and productivity as promised.

The gains came despite more climbs for oil prices, and Brent crude oil topped $90 per barrel because of continued attacks between the United States and Iran. It rose 2.2% to $91.17, up from less than $72 early this month.

The oil price hikes threaten a reacceleration of inflation, just as it was slowing more than economists expected. That in turn could push the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates, which would slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and other investments.

▶ Read more

Rubio will meet with Chinese counterpart in Manila

Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday in Manila, the State Department said.

The top diplomats from the world’s two largest economies are attending annual talks of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this week in the Philippine capital.

The ASEAN summit comes amid unfolding crises led by renewed fighting between the U.S. and Iran as well as a violent skirmish in the disputed South China Sea.

The Rubio-Wang meeting could help set up the next sitdown between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Rubio said ahead of the summit that he expects Xi to visit the U.S. in September and that “it’s incumbent on powerful, important countries like ours to continue to talk and have a relationship.”

Secret Service agent injured at White House correspondents’ dinner will be honored at make-up event

Secret Service Police Officer Victor Gonzales will be given a special award for exceptional service at a rescheduled White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner, the association said Tuesday.

Gonzales was at a security checkpoint during the April dinner when it was interrupted by a gunman who prosecutors say was trying to assassinate Trump. The Secret Service said Gonzales was struck in his protective vest as he engaged the gunman, who was tackled outside the ballroom.

“His swift and decisive actions assisted in deterring the gunman from proceeding any further,” the Secret Service said.

A make-up event being held Friday at the Waldorf Astoria hotel at Trump’s encouragement will also honor Washington Hilton hotel staff who helped guests in the aftermath.

US military identifies soldier killed while disarming a drone in Iraq

The military said it was investigating the death of Sgt. Michael Emmanuel Swinton of Fayetteville, North Carolina, during a controlled detonation of an Iranian drone on Sunday at an air base in Irbil.

Swinton, 30, will get a Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Combat Action Badge, and be promoted to staff sergeant, the military said in a statement.

He enlisted in the Army in 2017, and was assigned to the 55th Air Defense Artillery Regiment, 108th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, out of Fort Bragg.

Two U.S. Army soldiers were killed in Jordan on Friday while defending against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks. They were the first U.S. troop deaths from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war.

“We had a significant security incident during evaluation of our models,” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said in a statement posted on social media.

AI startup Hugging Face said last week that it had detected an intrusion into its data processing systems that it suspected was caused by an AI agent autonomously acting on its own.

“We suspected last week’s cyberattack might have come from a frontier lab, given the sophistication of the agent,” Hugging Face co-founder and CEO Clément Delangue said in a statement. "Turns out it did!”

The disclosure comes amid heightened concerns about the cybersecurity capabilities of powerful models that led President Donald Trump in June to sign an executive order creating a framework for the federal government to vet the national security risks of the most advanced AI systems for up to a month before their public release.

“AI is accelerating the discovery and exploitation of vulnerabilities,” OpenAI said in its statement Tuesday. “The primary lesson from this incident is that model security and safety must keep pace with rapidly advancing capabilities.”

Delangue said he spent the past 24 hours working with OpenAI, “and we strongly believe there was no malicious intent on their part. It’s quite mind-blowing that all of this happened autonomously!"

Delangue added that it “might be the first incident of its kind.”

OpenAI said the intrusion was caused by a combination of its AI models, including its newly released GPT‑5.6 Sol and an “even more capable” model that is still being tested internally.

OpenAI said its AI used stolen credentials and discovered a previously unknown vulnerability to access Hugging Face servers.

It went to “extreme lengths to achieve a rather narrow testing goal” and “found ways to gain access to secret information that it could use to cheat the evaluation,” the company said.

Unique Pharmaceutical Laboratories, a division of J.B. Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd., announced July 18 it is recalling four lots of Cetirizine Hydrochloride Tablets USP 5 mg due to possible cross-contamination with ranitidine. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration published the announcement July 20.

What triggered the recall

The issue was flagged after a pharmacy technician noticed something unusual while counting tablets before dispensing them. The technician observed red dots on some tablets, with several appearing discolored — a sign, investigators determined, of possible ranitidine contamination.

Cetirizine is a widely used over-the-counter antihistamine. Ranitidine, formerly sold under the brand name Zantac, is used to reduce stomach acid.

Who is at risk

For most people, accidental exposure to ranitidine may not cause serious harm. However, for consumers with a known sensitivity to ranitidine or its ingredients, the risk is significant.

According to the recall announcement, ingesting contaminated tablets could trigger severe hypersensitivity reactions, including anaphylaxis — a potentially life-threatening response that can involve a sudden drop in blood pressure, difficulty breathing, difficulty swallowing, swelling of the throat and face, widespread itching, hives and loss of consciousness.

Unique Pharmaceuticals said it has not received any reports of adverse events related to this recall as of the announcement date.

Which products are affected

The recalled product is packaged in HDPE bottles containing 100 tablets and distributed nationwide to wholesalers and retailers. The National Drug Code (NDC) for the affected product is 16571-401-10, distributed by Rising Pharma Holdings Inc.

The four recalled lot numbers are:

• GY825029 — Expiration: October 2028
• GY825030 — Expiration: October 2028
• GY825031 — Expiration: October 2028
• GY825032 — Expiration: October 2028

Consumers can identify the recalled product by checking the product name, manufacturer details and lot number on the bottle label.

What to do if you have the product

Unique Pharmaceuticals has notified its distributor, Rising Pharma Holdings Inc., which has alerted its distributors and direct customers by email and is arranging for the return of all recalled products.

Consumers with questions about the recall can contact Rising Pharma Holdings Inc. by phone at 1-844-874-7464, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST. Inquiries can also be sent by email to pv@risingpharma.com or qa@risingpharma.com.

Anyone who has experienced problems potentially related to this product should contact their physician or healthcare provider promptly.

Adverse reactions or quality concerns can also be reported directly to the FDA’s MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting Program online at www.fda.gov/medwatch/report.htm, by calling 1-800-332-1088, or by fax to 1-800-FDA-0178.

This recall is being conducted with the knowledge of the FDA.

The Health Ministry said hantavirus was also suspected in the deaths of two health workers in the southwestern state of Barinas. Those cases remain under investigation and were not linked to the three fatalities in the eastern state of Anzoátegui, about 655 kilometers (407 miles) away.

Both states were spared the worst of the back-to-back major earthquakes that hit northern Venezuela earlier this month.

The ministry described the deaths in Anzoátegui and Barinas as isolated incidents that “do not represent a risk to the general community." But it added that health workers would be sent to the affected states to “guarantee the health security of all Venezuelans,” without elaborating.

The Venezuelan Medical Federation, a national professional group, said the deaths in Anzoátegui were from the same family in the rural municipality of Miranda in the south of the state.

Hantaviruses exist throughout the world and are spread mainly by contact with rodents such as rats and mice. It’s rare and not easy for a hantavirus to spread between people. In severe cases, the virus can cause a deadly lung infection or kidney failure.

As a recent deadly outbreak aboard a cruise ship in the Atlantic showed, some hantaviruses can spread between people in rare cases. The little-studied Andes hantavirus, detected in the outbreak that killed three passengers and infected several others on the MV Hondius in May, raised concerns around the world due to its mortality rate, as high as 30%, and the current lack of treatment and vaccines.

Weeks later in Argentina, from where the hantavirus-stricken cruise set sail, authorities are still trying to figure out the origin of the outbreak.

An early hypothesis circulated by officials suggested that patient zero, a Dutch ornithologist, may have become infected in the southernmost city of Ushuaia, famed for its location “at the end of the world." But Argentine scientists who tested rats for the Andes hantavirus in the area recently ruled out Ushuaia as the source of the outbreak — to the relief of the Antarctic cruise hub heavily reliant on foreign tourism.

Argentina also concluded the wine-producing province of Mendoza was not the source of contagion earlier this month, after local investigators and biologists from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found no trace of hantavirus in rodents collected from areas visited by the Dutch man and his wife.

Hegseth provided the new estimate, up from earlier assessments, during a combative Senate Appropriations Committee hearing, which came days after the Pentagon announced that three more American service members have died in the conflict, bringing the death toll to 17, and that more than 100 have been injured since early July. Several times protesters interrupted his opening remarks.

Hegseth said the supplemental war funding is an “urgent, necessary” injection of money, and with President Donald Trump's proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget a generational investment in the military.

“Without these funds, we face critical shortfalls,” Hegseth testified.

But Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the panel, warned of "another forever war.”

“This war is now spiraling out of control again,” Murray said.

President Donald Trump has said repeatedly that “a deal is near, and the war will be over soon,” she said. "But now, he’s asking for $70 billion more — and for us to just trust him it’ll all work out fine.”

Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins were also testifying before the panel. The proposed budget package includes $60 billion and $12 billion for other national security needs, along with $10 billion for farm aid and $10 billion for voting law changes.

Before the hearing, the White House issued a statement urging support of the budget resolution, “without modification — immediately.”

War funds make up the bulk of the GOP budget plan

War funding makes up the bulk of the GOP's new budget proposal, one last priority package the Republicans hope to launch before lawmakers recess to campaign for the midterm elections. The package aims to help farmers struggling under Trump's tariffs and to pay for voter law changes, none of it paid for with offsets.

Most Americans continue to disapprove of how Trump is handling Iran, according to an AP-NORC poll. Gas prices have spiked as Iran works to control oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. munitions are running low from the onslaught of American missile strikes and Trump has shifted away from his own campaign promise not to draw the U.S. into prolonged military conflicts.

Nevertheless, Trump has showed no signs of backing off the war, and the Republicans have largely refused to confront his strategy or use Congress' power of the purse and war powers authority to halt the conflict.

“The commander in chief and the whole Department of War are working very hard to bring this to a resolution,” said House Speaker Mike Johnson at his weekly press conference Tuesday.

Hegseth faced questions over the war and his own leadership

Hegseth appeared before the panel facing a torrent of questions about not only the war, but his own leadership of the department.

Sen. Susan Collins, the Republican chair of the committee, opened the hearing saying it's “deeply troubling” that the Pentagon has blocked or denied promotions to various officers, particularly women and minorities.

Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire questioned why Hegseth is asking for more money when the department has not yet spent about half the $150 billion Republicans provided the Pentagon in last year's big budget bill.

“Why are you asking the American people to absorb the cost of a war they don't support?” asked Shaheen.

When Hegseth started describing the “historic nature” of Trump’s military strategy, she cut him off. Hegseth later explained that the rest of last year’s budget package would be spent by September.

When GOP Sen. Mike Rounds wanted to know if this funding request would be enough to “get the job done,” the general demurred.

“I can’t answer the question on what it will cost, because the enemy has a vote,” Caine said.

Tensions flared during hours long hearing

Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana was among several senators demanding answers over the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, asking if Iran will impose tolls on what historically has been an open waterway vital to the flow of oil.

Caine said, “That’s a hypothetical question, and I don’t know the answer to that.”

But Kennedy retorted: “Guys, we need straight answers.”

Tensions exploded toward the end of the more than three-hour hearing.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., told Hegseth flatly that his war claims don't add up.

Has the U.S. obliterated Iran's nuclear capabilities or not? she demanded to know.

“We're staying laser-focused on the objective,” Hegseth responded, “and you're trying to make campaign commercials.”

Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., probed Hegseth's past assessments of the war, including the secretary's claims of Iran's surrender.

When Democratic Sen. Gary Peters of Michigan said the administration's war strategy has been a complete "failure," Hegseth erupted.

“Shame on you and others who call this a quagmire and a failure,” Hegseth said.

Peters told the secretary: “You, sir, are the failure."

The senator said it’s not the U.S. troops who are failing, but their leaders. “You don't have a strategy," Peters said. “You don't have a long-term plan to actually win this war.”

Hegseth said Democrats have “Trump Derangement Syndrome” and won't give him the money he needs.

Peters said it's not about money, “but a question of leadership.”

This week, the Senate will consider another war powers resolution, having voted nearly a dozen times to try to halt the conflict.

Republicans work to pass budget over Democratic objections

The GOP budget proposal is expected to flow through the reconciliation process, which enables the majority to approve the plan on its own, over the objections of Democrats in the minority.

It's the same lengthy process Republicans used to approve Trump's big tax cuts bill last summer, as well as Homeland Security money earlier this year.

The proposal is headed toward a House vote this week, which would start the process by instructing various committees to begin drafting the legislation. Johnson can afford only a few defectors from his slim majority, and some conservatives want the funding offset with spending reductions elsewhere.

GOP senators have so far panned the House budget plan, but are waiting to see if Johnson can kickstart the process.

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Associated Press writers Matt Brown and Ben Finley contributed to this report.

But in retrospect, a lot of things went right.

The United States, Canada and Mexico spent nearly six weeks hosting soccer's biggest showcase and — at least for the most part — the action stayed on the field.

Fox said Tuesday that the Spain-Argentina final drew 38.937 million viewers — including a peak of 51.685 million — which easily set the record as the most-watched English-language soccer telecast in U.S. history, according to Nielsen Media Research. Spain won the final 1-0 in extra time.

Telemundo’s preliminary numbers for its Spanish-language broadcast said the game had a total audience of 22.6 million, putting the total number of viewers in the U.S. at more than 60 million.

Star players like Argentina's Lionel Messi, France's Kylian Mbappé and Norway's Erling Haaland became household names across North America, television ratings remained high in the U.S. even after the Americans were eliminated and despite high ticket prices, most games featured packed stadiums.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino gave effusive praise to the host countries on Sunday.

Attendance was good, so were ratings

Fox broadcast all 104 games in English on its platforms and American viewership remained strong even after the U.S. was eliminated by Belgium in the round of 16.

Spanish broadcasts on Telemundo were also a popular option — even for non-native speakers.

Fox averaged 7.737 million viewers for the 104 broadcasts on Fox, FS1 and Tubi — up from 3.588 million in 2022 and 2.77 million in 2018.

Though Nielsen's viewership numbers give a window into the World Cup final’s widespread popularity, it's a challenge to reflect how many people actually watched since some viewed the game in group settings such as watch parties. In 2025, Nielsen expanded its out-of-home measurement system to try and get a more accurate count.

Despite a few early hiccups, stadium attendance was also strong throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

“We have had a record number of spectators in the stadiums, almost 7 million," Infantino said. “We will have had, I mean the official figures will come out soon, but probably over 6 billion people watching it from home.”

The weather cooperated — usually

Fans and players from other countries found out what Americans, Canadians and Mexicans have known for a long time — it can get pretty hot here in the summer. Climate change isn't helping matters.

But Mother Nature could have been a lot meaner than she decided to be.

Even so, there were a handful of games that featured particularly hot and muggy conditions. The best example was a knockout-round game between Paraguay and France on July 4 in Philadelphia when temperatures hovered around 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius).

The World Cup final on Sunday also dodged a potential problem when smoke from Canadian wildfires that wrapped the Northeast in haze mostly cleared from the New Jersey area just in time thanks to some well-timed thunderstorms.

Size doesn't matter

This year's 48-team World Cup field was the biggest in the tournament's history and many thought it would water down the competition.

That wasn't the case.

Cape Verde held eventual champion Spain to a draw in its opening game, advanced to the round of 32 and gave Argentina a scare before losing 3-2 in extra time in a World Cup classic. Congo also advanced beyond the group stage and pushed England before eventually losing, while Curaçao was still in with a chance of making the knockouts going into its final group match.

After those Cinderella stories, fans eventually got to enjoy semifinal games full of heavyweights. England, Argentina, Spain and France were the top four in the world rankings.

Politics can't be ignored

The World Cup is famously a petri dish for political conflict, and this year's version provided its share of strife.

Iran's participation in the tournament amid the war in the Middle East was a particularly thorny issue and the team had to move its base camp from Arizona to Mexico. The Iranians' participation was overshadowed by travel complaints and visa issues, with the U.S. refusing visas to several members of Iran’s delegation.

U.S. President Donald Trump's relationship with Infantino was scrutinized after American striker Folarin Balogun’s one-game ban for a red card was suspended ahead of the team’s round of 16 game against Belgium.

Travel restrictions for a series of countries prevented some fans from traveling to the U.S., but there were no reports of the aggressive immigration enforcement that some human rights groups had feared could take place around World Cup stadiums.

Infantino brushed aside most of the controversies, instead focusing on the positives. While the FIFA president has a vested interest in painting a rosy picture of this year's World Cup, there's little doubt the tournament was a hit from a soccer perspective.

“I think we have to invent a new vocabulary, new words to define the success of this World Cup,” Infantino said.

___

AP Soccer Writer James Robson and AP Sports Writer Joe Reedy contributed to this story.

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

It was the second major change Zelenskyy has made under street pressure, after protests last summer forced him to undo a law weakening Ukraine’s anti-corruption watchdogs.

Zelenskyy appointed Mykhailo Drapatyi as the new army chief, according to a statement on social media. “Our shared wish is one — victory over the enemy and conditions at the front and in pressure on Russia that would force Russia toward peace,” Zelenskyy said.

The Ukrainian leader said he made the decision after a series of meetings with military commanders. They began shortly after protests broke out demanding the reinstatement of former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, seen by demonstrators as a driver of military modernization, and the removal of Syrskyi, who they said embodied the army’s old, Soviet-style command culture.

Zelenskyy thanked Syrskyi for his achievements in Ukraine's fight against Russia and praised him for the defense of Kyiv and for operations in Kharkiv and Kursk.

“I am grateful to Oleksandr Syrskyi and to every one of our warriors for Ukraine’s strong front-line positions,” he said. “I am grateful to Mykhailo Drapatyi for holding that same view.”

Drapatyi wrote in a Facebook post that serving Ukraine "has always been an honor for me, and during this war for independence, it means absolute responsibility.” He thanked Syrskyi for his consistent work strengthening the Ukrainian military.

“I grew up in it,” he added, referring to the army. “I will work responsibly, with focus and with respect for the people defending our state today.”

Zelenskyy said Drapatyi and other commanders must present an updated defense strategy, including continued reform of the corps system, faster weapons and drone deliveries, stronger air defense against Russian strikes and a clearer mobilization plan.

Former defense minister's future in the government remains unclear

Zelenskyy met separately with Fedorov on Tuesday and offered him what he called a respected position in the government that would unify the country’s technology sector. It wasn't clear if Fedorov accepted the offer — or whether the latest moves would satisfy protesters and calm the streets.

Fedorov congratulated Drapatyi, calling the appointment “new hope in the fight of free people for freedom and justice” and “a voice for change that could not go unheard.”

Fedorov had criticized Syrskyi publicly before his dismissal, saying the general was blocking his reform efforts and needed to be replaced for Ukraine not to fail in its resistance against Russia. He said Ukrainians’ high expectations must now be met with a clear vision for ending the war, decisive action to preserve soldiers’ lives, expand robotic warfare at the front, strike asymmetrically and exhaust Russia’s economy.

Fedorov called Syrskyi to thank him for defending the Kyiv region, the Kharkiv operation and other battles, calling it “already an important part of Ukraine’s history” but adding that the country must “move even faster and write new chapters, correcting all previous mistakes.”

The army chief's dismissal was sparked by protests

The crisis began last Thursday, when Zelenskyy overhauled his wartime government, replacing his prime minister and firing Mykhailo Fedorov as defense minister after just six months in the post.

Zelenskyy cited an unworkable rift between Fedorov and Syrskyi, telling reporters that as the two couldn’t resolve their dispute, he would “have to resolve it.”

Following his dismissal, Fedorov publicly accused Syrskyi of blocking military reforms and fostering a top-down command culture, criticism that echoed complaints from soldiers and veterans over heavy casualties in costly front-line assaults.

The reshuffle immediately drew thousands of protesters into the streets of Kyiv and other cities, framing Fedorov’s removal as Zelenskyy siding with an entrenched military old guard over a reformer.

The backlash promptly spread to inside the military: the Air Force’s deputy commander resigned in protest, warning the move would weaken Ukraine’s air defenses; veterans and soldiers on leave joined the protests in Kyiv and other cities, and numerous public figures among soldiers spoke out publicly against Syrskyi on social media.

Criticism of the military chief had escalated

Syrskyi has long been associated with a Soviet-style, top-down command culture, and many protesters said they wanted a new generation of generals who would place a higher priority on preserving soldiers’ lives.

Within the military, Syrskyi has earned the gruesome nickname of “Butcher,” which particularly spread during his command of the defense of Bakhmut, one of the war’s longest and costliest battles.

His already precarious public standing eroded further after Ukrainian outlet Babel published an investigation in June detailing allegations of abuse within the Skelia assault regiment, a unit closely associated with Syrskyi that has reportedly suffered higher-than-average battlefield losses. The investigation documented dozens of deaths among recruits.

Smart didn’t offer specifics. ESPN reported that Dowdell was involved in an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) accident. The outlet confirmed with Smart that Dowdell is receiving care at Shepherd Center in Atlanta, a medical facility specializing in treatment and rehabilitation for spinal cord and brain injuries.

“The Dante Dowdell situation is tough,” Smart told reporters. “I don’t know when he’ll be back. He had an off-campus accident back home during our break, and we’re praying for him and his family. We expect a full recovery, but the outlook right now is we’re waiting to see.”

Dowdell transferred to Georgia after rushing for 560 yards and three scores last season for Kentucky. The tailback from Picayune, Mississippi, was slated to compete for carries behind starter Nate Frazier. Dowdell spent the 2024 season with Nebraska and the '23 season at Oregon.

Smart told ESPN that Dowdell was “out of the really tough range, but as far as his complete health and coming all the way back, I don’t know what that looks like in terms of this year.”

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

A photo snapped by a passing boater sometime Sunday apparently shows them about thigh deep in the Scioto River, fishing poles in hand, standing around a big log. Calm as the surface appeared, the river was running high and fast, according to U.S. Geological Survey data. All five adults ended up drowning, authorities have said.

After the photo was taken, if it was indeed them, the group might have returned to shore. It is not quite clear. What Delaware County Sheriff Jeffrey Balzer has said is that one of the adults was struggling to swim in the river when several others went into the water to help. All five were swept under, he said.

The two women's bodies were recovered Sunday and the three men's bodies were found Monday.

On Tuesday, Honduran authorities confirmed that four of the five adults were Honduran citizens — Dias and Regalado and another married couple whose names have not yet been released. The fifth adult also has yet to be identified.

Flabia Zamora, director of consular affairs at the Honduran Foreign Ministry, told reporters Tuesday that they were working with U.S. authorities to bring their bodies home.

Zamora said that once U.S. officials have identified all the victims, Honduras will start the repatriation process, which could take at least a month.

She said the couple’s children are in the care of the state of Ohio and that arrangements will be made to reunite them with relatives in Honduras.

One of the children, a boy wrapped only in a towel, fled the riverbank in a panic and ascended to the road as the adults were drowning. According to a passing driver who called 911, “He was screaming, ‘Mama! Mama!’ and he was about to come out onto the road, and he was crying.” She said she was afraid he was headed onto a multilane road that snakes along the Scioto's eastern banks.

Brenda Raya, who described herself as a relative, has launched a GoFundMe campaign to cover funeral and transportation costs, as well as childcare costs for the two orphaned children. She said they are 8 and 10.

“The emotional and financial burden is overwhelming, and we want to honor the memory of our loved ones while providing for the children left behind,” she wrote.

The drownings occurred along the O’Shaughnessy Reservoir. The reservoir and its 18 miles (29 kilometers) of shoreline are the property of the city of Columbus. According to the city’s Recreation and Parks Department, Jet Skis, tubing and swimming are not permitted in any city of Columbus reservoir.

Lt. Heather Byers, of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, said rivers can be deceptively calm on the surface.

“Even though the water doesn’t seem to be moving very quickly, you can still get swept away in very slow-moving water,” she said. “Also, since you can’t always see the bottom, you never know if you’re in, you know, you could be in 2 to 3 feet of water, what you’re comfortable standing in, and then the next thing you know you’re at 4 or 5 feet.”

Besides the currents and the depths, people can catch a foot between the rocks, snag their clothes on a branch or lose their balance on slippery algae.

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González reported from Honduras. Julie Carr Smyth in Columbus, Ohio, and John Raby in Charleston, West Virginia, contributed to this report.

Stephen Curry: Beyond the Arc is set to open Friday, celebrating the career of a two-time MVP and the NBA's career leader in 3-pointers.

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced the exhibit Tuesday, saying it was the first time in the museum's nearly 75-year history that an active player would have a dedicated feature experience.

“When I think about my journey, I think about the people who believed in me, the work that happened when nobody was watching and the moments that shaped me on and off the court. To have that story told while I’m still playing is something I don’t take lightly," Curry said in a statement. "My hope is that fans walk through this experience and feel the joy, the purpose and the gratitude that basketball has given me, and maybe see a little bit of their own journey in it too.”

Developed in partnership with Curry's Thirty Ink business team, the exhibit will feature video footage of Curry's career, memorabilia and audio and video components that tell the story of a player who was overlooked going into college and has gone on to become a 12-time All-Star who led Golden State to four NBA championships.

“For him to become the first active player to have an exhibit in the Basketball Hall of Fame is a testament to what he represents to the game, to the Warriors, to the NBA and to his millions of fans around the world,” Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy said. “Obviously, this is only a prelude to his eventual induction in Springfield, but a fitting tribute to an iconic player and an amazing human being who has single-handedly changed the game.”

The Hall of Fame expects Curry's to be a limited time exhibit, likely to last through the summer of 2027 before closing.

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

The suspect, identified as a 77-year-old U.S. Postal Service worker, faces one count of animal cruelty and one count of confinement of animals without sufficient exercise. Her bond is set at $50,000. Authorities say the investigation began after a complaint was filed alleging Giustino was collecting feral cats along her postal route.

How investigation unfolded

The case started as a theft complaint filed within the last two weeks, after a report surfaced that a postal worker was taking cats along her route. Investigators quickly determined she was not stealing pets but was likely collecting feral cats.

Animal control officers spent the better part of a week trying to gain access to the home, but they say the woman was uncooperative. During that time, she surrendered approximately 15 animals to at least two facilities in Martin County, including a veterinary office, in what authorities believe was an attempt to reduce the number of animals found on the property.

“Part of her game playing that she did with us over the last week is she took animals and dropped them off at two locations in the last week and then let us know, ‘Hey, I just want you to know that I surrendered all my animals, they’re gone,’” the sheriff said.

When the woman refused to cooperate further, investigators obtained a search warrant.

What deputies found inside

The conditions inside the home were described as extreme. Investigators said there was no working air conditioning, no ventilation and, in some areas, a foot of animal feces on the floor. Interior temperatures were estimated at more than 110 degrees when deputies first entered.

“When we cracked the door on it earlier today, the stench was unreal, the air was stifling hot,” the sheriff said.

Martin County Fire Rescue’s hazmat team was called to the scene to ventilate the home and help navigate the rescue operation. Deputies said the front door was initially inaccessible due to trash and debris, forcing them to enter through the back. The agency credited the hazmat team’s expertise as essential to allowing responders to safely enter and work within the hazardous conditions.

A total of 92 animals — 80 cats and 12 dogs — were removed from the home.

Condition of animals, owners identified

The overall health of the animals was still being assessed at the time of the press conference. Authorities said the suspect appeared to have fed the animals and used flea spray, though investigators believe overuse of the spray may have injured at least one animal.

No deceased animals had been found as of the press conference, though the sheriff expressed surprise given the conditions.

“I really don’t know how she was able to survive in that house,” the sheriff said. “No AC, no windows open — you can smell that house from the road right now.”

Since the rescue, the Martin County Sheriff’s Office Animal Services Division and the Humane Society of the Treasure Coast have worked to assess each animal and provide immediate care. Investigators have already identified the owners of five animals and continue working to identify others.

All animals are being cared for by the Humane Society of the Treasure Coast, which is expected to rely heavily on foster families and volunteers to manage the influx. Officials described the addition of 92 animals as a significant challenge for the organization.

Suspect’s history with animal control

This is not the first time the suspect had come to the attention of Martin County Animal Control. Roughly 10 years ago, the agency issued up to 65 civil citations to her for improperly confining animals. At that time, code enforcement intervened and helped her address ventilation issues and inadequate animal care. She was required to install window AC units, and she complied.

Over the following decade, however, authorities say she slipped back into old habits — accumulating more animals while the AC units stopped working and trash piled up throughout the home.

Two charges, not 160

Despite the scale of what was found, the sheriff said deputies intentionally limited the charges against Giustino to two counts, noting they could have filed up to 160 counts — two per animal.

“We don’t want a 77-year-old lady in jail,” the sheriff said. “We only charge her with two counts. We could have charged her with 160 counts, two counts per animal.”

The goal, he said, is to move the woman through mental health court, prevent her from acquiring more animals and get her the help she needs. The Sheriff’s Office also confirmed it is working to ensure she receives assistance and resources beyond the court process.

“We truly believe that [she] thinks she’s doing the right thing, but she’s doing it the wrong way,” the sheriff said.

Authorities said they considered a Baker Act — an involuntary mental health hold under Florida law — but determined the criminal route offered more legal tools to protect the animals and ensure accountability going forward.

“The criminal route was the more thoughtful route,” the sheriff said.

The Martin County Sheriff’s Office is asking any animal shelter, veterinary office or rescue facility that recently received surrendered animals from the 77-year-old to come forward. Investigators believe additional animals may have been dropped off at locations not yet identified.

Carl McDaniel, 65, suffered multiple bone fractures in the July 10 attack at the national park but lived to tell the tale, as seen in a video he recorded a few days later from his bed at Bozeman Health Deaconess Medical Center in southern Montana.

“He wasn’t showing aggression or anything like that until it picked a target. That target happened to be me,” McDaniel said in the video posted on Instagram on Saturday.

McDaniel was on a after-dinner stroll with his grandson when the attack happened at Bridge Bay Campground, not far from Yellowstone Lake.

“They move faster than you could ever imagine. He just kept coming,” he said. The bison did not connect with McDaniel’s grandson, who was not hurt.

Bison can run up to 35 mph (56 kph), faster than the men’s world record in the 100-meter dash. They stand up to 6 feet (2 meters) tall, weigh up to 2,000 pounds (900 kilograms), and are North America’s biggest land animal.

Yellowstone records on average a couple of bison attacks every year. At least two people were attacked in the park in 2025.

Bozeman Health emergency department Dr. Eric Lowe said in the video that McDaniel suffered fractures in multiple places. McDaniel said the hardest part wasn’t the creature’s horns.

“I didn’t get bruises from him launching me in air,” he said. “It was the landing that became the problem.”

The 9-8 vote came after some Democrats had praised Clayton and indicated that they might vote for him. But that shifted after a contentious hearing last week in which Clayton repeatedly refused to say that former President Joe Biden won the 2020 election.

Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the panel, said at the end of the hearing that he was “bitterly disappointed” in Clayton, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York and a former Securities and Exchange Commission chairman, even though he had worked with him in the past.

The committee’s approval sets up a floor vote on Clayton’s nomination, potentially early next week. The vote took place behind closed doors, as is customary for the panel, and all Democrats voted against Clayton, according to a person familiar with the vote who requested anonymity to disclose it.

The Democratic pushback on Clayton comes as Trump has made revisiting the 2020 election, which he lost, a primary focus. On Thursday evening, he delivered a speech from the White House in which he again tried to cast doubts on that election and amplified debunked theories about Biden’s win.

Clayton told senators that he had no involvement with that speech, but he said repeatedly that the election was “certified” for Biden, declining to say outright that the Democrat won.

Warner said after the vote on Tuesday that he wants to see someone in the job “who is going to be a restraint, not an agitator.”

Republicans want to quickly confirm Clayton

Senators in both parties have expressed concerns about the interim director, Bill Pulte, who took over when Tulsi Gabbard resigned last month. Pulte has no known intelligence experience and investigated the president’s perceived enemies in his previous post as a federal housing regulator.

Republicans were hoping to confirm Clayton in June so he could replace Gabbard without Pulte serving as interim. But Trump delayed Clayton’s nomination before the Senate left for a two-week recess, allowing Pulte to take the job temporarily.

As the nomination heads to the Senate floor, it’s unclear whether Democrats will allow Republicans to speed up a vote. Though he is opposing Clayton's nomination, Warner said he didn't want to slow it down.

“We are between a rock and a hard place” with Pulte in the job, he said.

Clayton did not mention Pulte in the hearing last week. But he emphasized his own government and national security experience, attempting to assuage senators in both parties.

“I saw firsthand how a strong national security apparatus depends on decisive judgment, discipline, integrity, and effective communication and cooperation across different branches of the government,” Clayton said. “If confirmed as Director of National Intelligence, I will commit to upholding these principles every day.”

Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton, R-Ark., who expressed frustration last month when the hearing was delayed, said that Clayton has a reputation for operating with “morality, decency and integrity” in his previous positions.

“Jay Clayton is a highly qualified nominee with a deep experience combating a wide range of national security threats," Cotton said in a statement on Tuesday.

RELATED: Jacksonville DJ Bigga Rankin, known as a godfather of Southern hip-hop, community advocate, dies | Tributes pour in for ‘godfather of Southern hip-hop’ Jacksonville DJ Bigga Rankin, honored as career-launching ‘legend’

As tributes poured in from artists, DJs and community members, many called Rankin a pioneer who gave local talent a stage and a shot.

“He was the first person I ever rapped to,” Jacksonville rapper Young Cash said. “When I was 16 years old, Florida Ave, so he even had his hand on since then, so my whole career, he’s been pushing my music and that’s what led me to get a deal. He really helped raise me … he was like an uncle to me.”

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Rankin’s beginnings are rooted on the Eastside, which became known for its gatherings and parties. Community members Wanda Laurie and Tyree Hall said the group’s early ambitions to DJ and entertain were made possible with help from Ms. Pearl Graham, who offered space and support for Cool Runnings to be born.

RELATED: ‘Life is music’: Legendary DJ Bigga Rankin talks 30 years in the music industry, Jacksonville roots, what drives him

“This block became legendary because of Bigga Rankin,” they said. “If you wanted to be a DJ...if you wanted to be in the entertainment business...you had to be in contact with Bigga because he would put you in front of the right people.”

Ms. Pearl is the inspiration behind it all.

“I told him he had to do something and that’s how Cool Runnings came into existence,” she said. “I said, ‘You’ve got to do something because you can’t hang with me and be broke.”

For many local artists, Rankin was more than a DJ or promoter. He was a connector. Yual The Plugg said no one single-handedly drew thousands of people to shows every weekend like Rankin did.

“The impact speaks in his name,” he said. “I feel like Bigga isn’t in front of Rankin for no reason.”

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Rick Ross’ DJ, known as DJ Nasty 305, credited Rankin with keeping his career alive.

“I probably wouldn’t have a career if it wasn’t for Bigga,” he said. I got to a point in my career where I was very frustrated, and I wanted to quit. He told me if I ever quit, it was going to be a problem between me and him, and I didn’t want that problem. So I took those tears and I used it as fuel and it propelled me to this point today."

Young Cash said there really weren’t any artists making it out of Jacksonville until Bigga.

“I mean, musically, he made the biggest impact cause we didn’t really have no artists that was popping out of Jacksonville until Bigga Rankin started actually playing the local artists’ music,” he said.

City leaders and longtime residents called Rankin’s loss profound.

“This is a big loss,” Henry Manns Jr. said. “The whole city.”

Rankin’s supporters say his biggest legacy was not the records he played or the shows he promoted but the people he believed in and lifted up.

“They’ll never, ever, ever be another Bigga Rankin,” DJ Nasty 305 said. “I’m just glad I was able to call him my friend, my brother and my mentor.”

The rally is set to take place in Oakland County on Monday, according to a person familiar with the plans who was not authorized to discuss the event publicly.

Early in-person voting begins Saturday ahead of the Aug. 4 primary, when voters will also select nominees for U.S. House and other statewide offices. Republican Mike Rogers is unopposed in the Senate primary, while the GOP gubernatorial contest has intensified between Trump-backed U.S. Rep. John James and businessman Perry Johnson.

The visit will allow the president to take his messaging on the road as Republicans grow concerned about how rising gas prices and an unpopular war in Iran might affect their midterm chances. Republicans are defending slim majorities in the House and Senate.

Trump carried Michigan in 2016 and 2024, and both parties view the battleground state as central to the 2026 midterm elections.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment.

Democrats are facing the most competitive race in the Aug. 4 primary, with U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens and progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed battling for the party's Senate nomination. The winner will face Rogers, who lost narrowly in 2024 to now-Sen. Elissa Slotkin.

Republicans have faced a bruising contest for the gubernatorial nomination, however, with Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer term-limited. James has been endorsed by Trump, but Johnson has spent millions attacking James on television and digital advertising.

Johnson's campaign has already advertised a “Trump Tailgate” on Monday.

Oakland County, where Trump is set to appear, was long considered one of Michigan’s premier political bellwether counties. Democrats have steadily expanded their margins there even as Trump carried the state in 2016 and again in 2024.

Republicans saw 2026 as a chance to finally gain back power in a state that has been dominated by Democrats — outside of Trump's wins — over the past decade. But surging gas prices, an unpopular war in Iran and tariffs that have hit the state’s auto industry hard have all contributed to concerns about a worsening political environment for Michigan Republicans.

In May, a Democrat won a special election by almost 20 points in a state Senate district that Kamala Harris won by less than 1 point in 2024. The previous officeholder, a Democrat, carried the seat by 6 percentage points in 2022.

Raines pulled off a spectacular comeback to stun Miami Northwestern 23-22 to win the Class 3A state championship last December. Billed as the “Revenge Tour,” the Vikings atoned for a 41-0 blowout in December 2024 with the most thrilling game of the season. The big question now: can they repeat?

Head coach Donovan Masline said the state championship and the 14-0 season was unforgettable, but this year’s team is a much different squad. Raines graduated nearly 30 players, including a foundational playmaker in QB TJ Cole, a 2024 All-News4JAX player of the year. Sophomore Sa’mon Ellison-Morgan will take Cole’s spot, with 360-pound center McKinley Alexander IV helping clear the way. Junior athlete Zion Green is the team’s top recruit. On defense, Johdeem Jones and edge Troy Butler are both back.

The schedule is beefed up significantly, with a Week 1 game at Oakleaf kicking things off. Raines also faces Ed White, Mandarin, powerhouse Venice and Cocoa this season.

Ex-Jags at Atlantic Coast

Two former Jaguars returned to a familiar spot on Tuesday.

Atlantic Coast promoted Tony Gilbert to head coach replace Step Durham after spring practice. Gilbert played five seasons for the Jaguars and then returned to serve as an assistant linebackers coach under Doug Marrone, Urban Meyer and Doug Pederson across four seasons.

Gilbert is also very familiar with his Atlantic Coast defensive line coach, Reggie Hayward. Reggie played nine seasons in the NFL, including the final five of those with the Jaguars.

Reggie’s son, 6-4, 210-pound edge, Israel Hayward, said there’s no such thing as special treatment on the field.

“We definitely separate it,” Israel said of their relationship. “I don’t act like he’s my dad on the field.”

Gilbert said that the growth of Israel and fellow edge Desmond Malpress should make things easier for the Atlantic Coast secondary in breaking on pass attempts. Malpress is committed to Clemson and is the top-rated local prospect in the Class of 2027.

Added Reggie: “As a father it’s been a joy and pleasure coaching my kids. Second of all, I don’t hold back on ‘em.”

Speaking of Jaguars …

Providence head coach Maurice Williams is entering his fifth season leading the Stallions. A second-round pick of the Jaguars in 2001, he started 100 games for the franchise over his nine-year career. He’s got some help from some former Jaguars players, too.

Ex-Jaguars safety Donovin Darius joined Williams’ staff this year. He joins former Jaguars OT Chris Ziemann and defensive tackle Roy Miller on the Providence staff.

At Creekside, Aaron Lynch spent the final season of his NFL career with the Jaguars in 2020 before retiring following a seven-year career. He’s been with Creekside in an assistant coaching role since 2023. Head coach Sean McIntyre elevated Lynch to the defensive coordinator position this year, and said he’s thrilled to see what Lynch does in that role.

Big things ahead for Hilliard, Alderman?

Hilliard has one of the most explosive returning players in running back DJ Alderman. The senior jumped from 373 rushing yards (three TDs) to a staggering 1,790 and 21 TDs. That included a pair of seven-TD rushing games and a career-high of 477 rushing yards in a 49-48 loss to St. Joseph.

Hilliard head coach Will Dyal said the big thing for the Red Flashes he’s confident that Alderman will continue to ascend even with eight- and nine-man fronts the norm. The challenge this year is about the system around facing the challenges and growing.

“Our offensive line has worked tirelessly this season. … That’s been a big focus for us, taking our offensive line to the next level,” Dyal said.

Paxon still in SSAA football league

Paxon head coach Steve Brown said that the Golden Eagles remain a member of the Sunshine State Athletic Association in football for another season. The Florida High School Athletic Association announced last week the teams that were joining the new independent league, but Brown said that wasn’t accurate. The FHSAA was forced to address the deluge of schools leaving for the SSAA and did that by launching the Independent Series. It consists of nearly 70 schools. Locally, those include four teams – Cornerstone Classical, Englewood, Hilliard and Providence.

Paxon has one of the best returning teams in Brown’s 13-year tenure, including RB KJ Palmer. The senior is coming off a spectacular season where he rushed for 2,272 yards and 19 TDs.

First Coast Christian makes big jump up

After more than a decade playing six-, seven- and eight-man football, First Coast Christian is making the move up from eight-man to full-on 11-man football this season. One player said the move is equivalent from going from Upward-level youth sports to college in an offseason. The smaller football of six-, seven- and eight-man are made to accommodate smaller schools and smaller roster sizes.

Quotable

“If you’re not shooting for a state title, you’re playing for snow cones, and you can get a snow cone at the gas station.” – Mandarin head coach Toby Bullock on the expectations entering 2026.

“They pay their coaches.” - Englewood head coach Randy Grace on the differences being a coach in Georgia and Florida. Grace coached in Georgia from 1996 until coming to the area in 2023. The head coaching football supplement in Duval County Public Schools is $4,699 a year. It hasn’t been raised in more than three decades.

“We’re not just here to show up and be everyone’s homecoming.” – Stanton head coach Dennis Bettinger, whose Blue Devils finished 5-6 and lost to West Nassau in the opening round of the SSAA playoffs.

“Change for the sake of change is foolishness. That’s what we’re doing right now.” - St. Augustine head coach Brian Braddock on the yearly playoff changes in Florida.

“Football is all about the journey. The joy is in the journey. We’re going to try and enjoy that journey every day.” – Justin Sirmon, Christ’s Church Academy head coach.

“We want to put a good product, a knowledgeable product on the field. … Our goals are no different than any other player or program.” – Westside head coach Michael Burns on the Wolverines’ mindset. Westside is coming off an 0-9 season, but the outlook is good due to young and fast players.

That possibility prompted the state Democratic Party on Tuesday to make a plea to the state elections commission, urging it to allow voters who already cast an absentee ballot to vote again. More than 80,000 ballots have already been returned.

The request is all-but certain to result in a lawsuit with the primary just three weeks away.

Democrats want to allow voters to cast new ballots after Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez, a Democrat, ended her campaign for governor on Friday and another candidate, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, rejoined the race with the endorsement of current Gov. Tony Evers. There are now five Democratic candidates actively campaigning for governor ahead of the Aug. 11 primary.

Any voter who already returned an absentee ballot cast for Rodriguez would not be able to get a new ballot, based on guidance approved by the bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission earlier this month. The guidance was adopted after another Democratic candidate for governor, Missy Hughes, dropped out in June. Both Rodriguez and Hughes remain on the ballot even though they have ended their campaigns.

The winner of the Democratic primary for governor is likely to face Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, who has only token opposition. The seat is open after Evers decided against seeking a third term. Democrats hope to retain the office and flip both chambers of the Legislature to gain full control of state government for the first time since 2010.

Democrats say absentee voters must be allowed to vote again

The Democratic Party argues that the commission’s guidance must be rescinded because it reversed its own rule that was in place four years ago and is inconsistent with a 2006 U.S. Supreme Court ruling. That ruling said voting rules should not be changed close to an election.

If the elections commission does not reverse itself and allow for new absentee ballots to be cast, “some voters will not be able to truly participate in our Democratic primary process,” Democratic Party Chairman Devin Remiker said in a statement.

He said the party asked for the reversal after checking with all five of the candidates actively campaigning for the Democratic nomination for governor.

Rodriguez ended her campaign after discovering that she had far less money on hand than she thought. She blamed her campaign manager for double counting donations and underreporting expenses. A day after she dropped out, Crowley rejoined the race. He had gotten out on July 8 and endorsed Rodriguez.

Both Crowley and Hughes were at the bottom of the field in public opinion polls before they dropped out. Hughes ended her campaign June 22 and said Democrats needed to coalesce around a candidate who could win in November. She endorsed Rodriguez, who then dropped out less than a month later.

Absentee voting by mail has been going on since late June and early in-person voting begins on July 28. Wisconsin Republican Party Chairman Brian Schimming criticized the push by Democrats to allow early absentee voters to cast a fresh ballot.

“Their primary is already chaotic enough," he said. “Election laws should not be changed to rescue one party from the consequences of its own actions.”

Fight over recasting absentee ballots dates to 2022

The rarely used practice known as ballot spoiling was the subject of a lawsuit in 2022. A Waukesha County judge sided with a Republican group that brought the lawsuit, ruling in October 2022 that the elections commission must rescind its guidance allowing for spoiling of ballots. But a state appeals court put that on hold just weeks before the midterm election that year.

And then in February, a state appeals court repealed the ruling, saying the lawsuit was not properly served. The appeals court did not address the merits of the case.

Despite that ruling, the elections commission voted 4-2 to prohibit voters who have already turned in their absentee ballot from getting a new one. One Democratic commissioner joined with three Republicans in voting in favor of the prohibition. Two Democrats voted against it.

It's rare for absentee voters in Wisconsin to seek a new ballot

There’s no way to know how many of the spoiled ballots were from Democrats or Republicans because voters in Wisconsin do not register by party. Voters who obtained an absentee ballot, but have not yet voted and want to obtain a new one, can still do that.

Previously in Wisconsin, voters who had submitted an absentee ballot could spoil it and cast a new ballot up to three times for any reason. But it very rarely happened.

From the 2018 midterms through the 2022 primary, less than 1% of all votes cast were cast by people who cast a new absentee ballot after spoiling an earlier one, data from the Wisconsin Elections Commission showed.

Arrests at the port

The first two passengers taken into custody were Martell Murray, of Georgia and his cabinmate from Leon County, Florida.

Murray was wanted on a warrant for violation of his release conditions related to a murder charge. The Leon County passenger was arrested on a warrant for violation of probation.

Two more passengers were arrested as they left their cruise ship. A Tampa woman was taken into custody on a Failure to Appear warrant, and a South Carolina man was arrested on a Violation of Probation warrant.

Sheriff’s warning

Sheriff Wayne Ivey issued a warning to anyone traveling through Brevard County with an outstanding warrant.

“Whether you’re from Florida or Alaska, if you come to Brevard County and break the law…or in this case have a warrant…you better believe that we will lock you up,” Ivey said.

RELATED: Bills overwhelming you? How to negotiate monthly expenses to save you money | How one woman paid off $9K in credit card debt — and the steps experts say can help you break the cycle

A car wreck and other bills piled up, and over time, she says she found herself falling backward even with “good intentions.”

At the same time, new local research shows financial stress is widespread. A VyStar Credit Union analysis on financial stability in Jacksonville found that 40% of people said finances are their top life stressor—far ahead of job issues, politics, or health.

Read the entire VyStar analysis below:

VyStar financial educator Marc Streebel says a warning sign of “unmanageable debt” is when you’re only making minimum payments—or missing payments on multiple accounts.

Listen to why Colleen Stubbs, a VyStar Member Solutions expert, says you should never “go dark” on the companies you owe, no matter how bad your debt may be — and why reaching out early matters.

The first step: A simple budget

Streebel says it often starts with writing down what’s coming in, versus what’s going out.

If your expenses are close to—or higher than—your income, he says that’s a long-term problem.

‘Pay yourself first’

Streebel also encourages people to build savings even while paying down debt. He says starting small is still a win.

Cavanaugh says that mindset helped her.

She started looking for small, realistic ways to save—like skipping lunch out and putting that money into savings instead.

She says those “little wins” helped her build her first few hundred dollars.

A four-step framework Streebel recommends:

1. Start an emergency fund (even a goal of $1,000 to begin).
2. List your debts and begin paying them down while still saving.
3. Grow savings to 3–6 months of expenses for emergencies or job loss.
4. Keep saving for retirement along the way (401(k) through your job, or an IRA).

Cavanaugh says she’s still working on it—but her progress has been real: From $17,000 in debt, down to less than $6,000 so far.

The News4JAX I-Team first reported on the home on Jefferson Road last week, highlighting safety concerns raised by neighbors. Following that report, the property owners say they are moving forward with demolition.

Since Jan. 1, 2023, the home has generated 47 calls for service. Those calls include range from suspicious persons, well-being checks, trespassing, squatting, illegal camping, vandalism, an abduction in progress and assault involving injuries.

When News4Jax reached out to the city of Jacksonville for a code violation history on the property, the city responded with more than 140 pages of records. At the top of those records: a warning that the house is in danger of collapsing. The documents also detail electrical problems, plumbing problems and four active cases with municipal code compliance.

Monday, a fire broke out in the backyard of the home. That fire remains under investigation.

For many residents living nearby, the fire was the last straw.

Liz Carroll, a neighbor who lives across the street, didn’t mince words when describing what she believed was happening at the house.

“Who knows what they’re doing over there. You know, cracktivities is what I call it,” Carroll said.

Paula Laird, a landlord who owns a property across the street, echoed those concerns.

“This is really scary and it needs to be resolved. I just think they need to be aware of exactly what’s going on,” Laird said.

Even after the home was condemned, some neighbors say they saw the people who lived there, return.

“Two of them,” said Alan Schiessel.

The property owners told News4Jax on the phone they did not realize how bad conditions at the home had become. After hearing what neighbors had been saying, they worked with the city to get the property condemned. An orange condemned sign now hangs on the front door dated for Monday.

An anonymous homeowner who spoke with News4Jax by phone expressed his thoughts on neighbors being relieved about the home being condemned.

“Yeah, they should be. I never dreamed that was going on over there. It was a terrible shocker to see all of that,” the owner of the home said.

For Carroll, the condemned sign was only a partial comfort.

“The orange sign a little bit. You know, I won’t have comfort until it’s demolished,” she said.

The homeowners say the house could come down within a matter of days.

One of the owners of the home told News4Jax, “We want the neighborhood to know that we do care,” they said, “The city is being gracious and let us make it right.”

News4JAX has also submitted a request to the fire marshal’s office to determine the exact cause of Monday’s backyard fire.

The Trump administration is making it harder for the public to know, moving to toss aside a 60-year-old requirement for tens of thousands of private sector employers to submit workforce demographic reports each year to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the agency responsible for enforcing anti-discrimination laws in the workplace.

The EEOC's Republican majority voted 2-1 Tuesday to rescind the data collection requirement, submitting the proposal to a 30-day public commentary period before final approval. The proposal is a quiet but profound salvo in President Donald Trump's shake up of civil rights enforcement, ending a practice that has endured through 10 Republican and Democratic administrations.

EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas, an outspoken critic of diversity and inclusion practices who has urged white men to come forward with discrimination complaints, argued that requiring companies to submit the annual demographic reports risks encouraging companies to justify discriminatory practices to diversify their workforce.

“It may promote racial stereotyping at work, and it may encourage employers to engage in discrimination," Lucas said during a hearing ahead of the vote.

Former Democratic EEOC commissioners and civil rights organizations have denounced the proposal, saying it will deprive the agency of a critical tool for uncovering discrimination patterns and tracking how women and racial minorities have fared since the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which created the EEOC and prohibited employment discrimination based on race, color, sex, national origin and religion.

The EEOC, which receives more than 88,000 worker complaints each year, has historically used the data to guide its enforcement priorities and inform some of its investigations.

Commissioner Kalpana Kotagal, the sole Democrat left on the EEOC since Trump moved to wrest control of the agency, voted against the proposal.

“Today, the commission discusses whether to turn back time to a period before the civil rights movement, kneecapping its ability to protect workers,” Kotagal said.

Here's what to know about the reporting requirement and the proposal to end it:

How the EEOC has collected the data

Since 1966, the EEOC has required companies with at least 100 employees, or federal contractors with at least 50 workers, to submit a form called the EEO-1 each year.

The form, which has evolved over time, identifies 10 job categories from “Executive/Senior Level Officials and Managers” to “Laborers” and “Service Workers.” It asks employers to report on the number male and female workers in each job category, as well as the number of workers from different race and ethnicities: Hispanic or Latino, Black or African American, Asian, Native Hawaiian, American Indian or Alaska Native and two or more races.

The data typically covers more than 50 million employees and 73,000 employers nationwide.

A view into gender and race in the private sector

The EEOC launched during the Biden administration an interactive tool allowing the public to explore historical demographic metrics across industries and job categories. The most recent data is from 2023. Under the Trump administration, the EEOC last collected EEO-1 data for the year 2024 but has not publicly disclosed it. Collection of the year 2025 would have begun this year.

The data shows white men dominating executive and senior manager roles at private companies, though women and minorities have made inroads, especially in the years following the #MeToo and Black Lives Matters movements.

Women remain underrepresented in the top ranks of companies. While they make up nearly half the workforce at the companies surveyed, women held just 34.5% of executives and senior manager roles in 2023. That was up from 29.2% a decade earlier.

White and Asian women made the fastest gains, and by 2023, were no longer underrepresented in senior roles compared to their numbers in the overall workforce. In contrast, Black and Hispanic women remained sharply underrepresented in executive and senior manager roles despite making modest gains.

Asian men have been proportionally represented in senior roles for years, while Black and Hispanic men remained underrepresented in 2023.

Of those demographic groups, only one was overrepresented in senior roles: white men, who made up a third of the overall workforce at the companies surveyed but held 52.7% of executive and senior management roles.

Why the government wants to end the data collection

Lucas said the annual reporting requirements impose “hundreds of millions of dollars” on costs on employers, a burden she argued was unnecessary absent “any allegation, indication, or evidence of discrimination.”

The move was recommended by Project 2025, the conservative Heritage Foundation’s blueprint that has guided many of the Trump administration’s policies.

A group of former Democratic EEOC commissioners and legal counselors said there is little evidence that companies are routinely using employment data to engage in quotas or race-based hiring.

“This is simply inaccurate and unsupported speculation, at odds with the ways in which this data is actually collected, managed and used,” the former officials said in a statement.

Instead, the officials said, tracking such data encourages companies to proactively examine their hiring, promotion, benefits and other policies to ensure they are not unnecessarily erecting barriers.

Kotagal said the agency has used the data to determine whether a discrimination charge might be part of a deeper pattern at a company. She cited a recent investigation of California supermarket chain Vallarta Food Enterprises, in which the EEOC alleges the grocer failed or refused to recruit, hire or promote non-Hispanic individuals. In that case, EEO-1 data showed that “nearly 100 percent of its employees were Hispanic,” Kotagal said. “It’s a key tool in our toolbox.”

The agency has also issued special reports on demographic employment trends across certain industries or roles.

Kotagal highlighted a 2024 report on the tech sector, which showed that women had made virtually no gains between 2014 and 2022, and that workers under 40 years old had actually lost ground. The report also found tech company workers were more likely that others to file age or pay discrimination charges, suggesting systemic barriers to women and older workers in the industry.

The report has been removed from the EEOC’s website.

Corporate retreat from demographic disclosure

The EEOC is prohibited from publicly releasing an individual company’s EEO-1 form, only publishing the information in the aggregate. In recent years, however, a growing number of the country’s top companies began publicly releasing their forms in response to pressure from shareholders and Democratic elected officials to show transparency in their diversity efforts.

Many of those companies have complained that job categories in the EEO-1 forms don't align with their internal structures, a point Lucas echoed Tuesday, saying the categories don't reflect the modern workforce. But advocates of EEO-1 disclosure argued it's the only standardized form that allows for comparison across companies, and offer more detail.

However, the trend toward transparency has started to reverse.

Companies have started to pull back on publicizing both EEO-1 forms and their own diversity reports, which conservative advocates and the Trump administration have seized on to argue that companies are using discriminatory tactics to add women and minorities to their ranks.

In 2025, 24 companies in the S&P 100 — the largest U.S. publicly traded companies — chose not to disclose their EEO-1 data after having done so the year before, according to Andrew Jones, principal researcher at The Conference Board Governance & Sustainability Center. Still, 60 S&P 100 companies did release the data.

Meanwhile, fewer companies are publicizing any form of demographic metrics. The number of Russell 3,000 companies that disclosed metrics on women in the workforce fell from 75% in 2024 to 62% in 2025, according to a study by The Conference Board. Those disclosing metrics on minority representation fell from 30.9% to 26.5%.

Why companies may keep gathering data

Companies are still likely to keep track of their demographic data, whether or not they disclose any of those metrics publicly, and even if they are no longer required to submit annual EEO-1 reports. That's because Title VII requires employers to keep records that could be pertinent to any discrimination investigation, and the EEOC is empowered to request them.

“What we are generally advising is to stay the course,” Jennifer Robins, counsel in law firm Saul Ewing’s Labor and Employment Group. “Private litigants, employment discrimination lawsuits are not going away, and this data is helpful to defending oneself.”

The EEOC has demanded extensive demographic data from companies to bolster Lucas' own marquee cases. Those include an investigation into diversity, equity and inclusion practices of sports giant Nike, which Lucas has alleged discriminate against white employees; a lawsuit against the New York Times for allegedly discriminating against a white man who was passed over for a promotion, and an investigation into alleged antisemitism against staff at the University of Pennsylvania.

Lucas emphasized Tuesday that the EEOC would continue to demand data in the course of its investigations. Kotagal warned employers that under future leadership, the EEOC could reinstitute the EEO-1 collection.

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families, said she sees the elimination of EEO-1 data as part of an effort to obscure the prevalence of discrimination against racial minorities and women and create of a sense of urgency around protecting white workers from DEI-related policies.

But Frye said the data "doesn’t suggest that their top priority ought to be discrimination against white men.

"If the chair is moving forward with an agenda that thinks she ought to be focused on men and ought to be focused on white people, my answer is, ‘Well, does the data tell you that?’” Frye said.

___

The Associated Press’ women in the workforce coverage receives financial support from Pivotal Ventures. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

The flight carrying 700 packages is meant to bypass the Cuban government, with the items distributed directly to the Cuban people by Catholic groups in Cuba, according to the U.S. State Department.

Tuesday’s shipment is a $60 million first tranche of a total of $100 million the U.S. offered to Cuba some time ago. It comes after months of intensified U.S. pressure on the Cuban government and government-related institutions that has focused mainly on imposing significant sanctions against the country’s military and intelligence apparatus. The imposition of an energy and oil blockade has practically paralyzed the Cuban economy and the daily lives of people on the island.

The latest iteration of this was a lengthy document released by the State Department on Monday accusing Cuba of running a vast espionage and left-wing influence operation in the United States over the past five decades.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a son of Cuban immigrants, has taken a personal interest in pushing Cuba to make changes to its socialist system, while President Donald Trump has on several occasions suggested that the U.S. could take military action to topple the island’s communist government.

Jeremy Lewin, the State Department’s senior official for foreign assistance, humanitarian affairs and religious freedom, said the partnership builds upon a program that last year delivered $9 million in direct support to the island following Hurricane Melissa.

He said challenges have included convincing the Cuban government to allow the aid’s distribution and agree not to intercept and take it for themselves. Lewin said that since local priests and Catholic groups are distributing the assistance directly, “there’s very little, if any, opportunity for the regime to interfere with the delivery of the assistance.”

Sean Callahan, president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services, said he visited the island a few weeks ago to ensure accountability for the aid's distribution.

“We’re hoping that this is one small step forward on the humanitarian side,” Callahan said. “But hopefully we’ll bring the people of the United States and Cuba together into the future.”

Neither the Cuban government nor its press reported on Tuesday's humanitarian flight from the U.S.

In early July, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez dismissed the announcements of aid that had yet to arrive as “fantasy,” while downplaying the amount in contrast to all the losses the island suffers daily due to the energy blockade and sanctions imposed by the U.S.

“One hundred million dollars would certainly help, although we must acknowledge that it only amounts to five days of the blockade,” the foreign minister said.

___ Associated Press reporters Matthew Lee contributed from Washington, and Andrea Rodriguez contributed from Havana. Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

No fee was officially disclosed but media reports say it is worth 117 million pounds ($156.5 million), which surpasses England teammate Elliot Anderson's 116 million pounds ($155 million) switch from Nottingham Forest to Manchester City earlier this month.

The all-time record Premier League transfer is still Sweden striker Alexander Isak's 125 million pounds ($167 million) move from Newcastle to Liverpool last year.

The 23-year-old Rogers, established as one of the Premier League's top attacking talents, has signed a contract with the London team until 2033.

“I’m so excited,” he told the club's website. "For me, Chelsea are the biggest club in London and a club I’ve always admired since I was a kid.

“I’m really excited about the project with the new manager, the players we’ve got and where the club is heading. That’s why I’m here and I can’t wait to get started.”

Rogers is the third major signing made in the offseason by new Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso, following wingbacks Marco Palestra and Geovany Quenda.

Rogers was in England's team beaten at the World Cup last Wednesday. Trailing 1-0 going into the 85th minute of their semifinal, Argentina rallied for a 2-1 victory.

He scored 21 goals in 85 Premier League appearances for Villa, and last season helped guide the club to a top-four finish and to the Europa League title.

Rogers joined Villa from Middlesbrough in February 2024 for a reported fee of 8 million pounds.

He made his England debut in November 2024 and has now won 22 caps for his country.

___

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

The U.S. has championed peace in Lebanon but has been increasingly distracted by new escalation of the war in Iran, which has destabilized much of the Middle East. Trump says he now has little interest in talks with Iran’s leaders to end the war.

In the meantime, Lebanon and Israel have held rare direct talks mediated by Washington.

“It’s been a very badly treated place and country, and we’re going to have it properly treated and treated with the respect it deserves,” Trump told Aoun during a meeting which wrapped the Lebanese leader’s four-day visit to Washington. “We’re gonna help it a lot,” he said of Lebanon, without giving concrete details.

Hours later, Trump made the surprise announcement that he’d allow American carriers to resume direct flights to Lebanon for the first time in 40-plus years after the US suspended the route.

“I am hereby directing my Administration to allow all U.S. airline carriers to fly directly to Lebanon so that Americans can easily visit this beautiful land,” Trump said on social media after Aoun had left the White House.

It is highly unlikely U.S. carriers will want to fly into Lebanon in the near future, however, as the situation in Iran disrupts larger air traffic and questions Hezbollah's influence in parts of the country remain. Direct flights between the U.S. and Lebanon were suspended in 1985 by the Reagan administration following the hijacking of TWA Flight 847.

Lebanon hopes the Washington talks result in Israeli troops withdrawing from large swaths of southern Lebanon that they currently occupy, and the Lebanese military receiving support to assert full control in areas where Hezbollah militants had held sway.

Trump said of Israel’s army withdrawing from Lebanon, “They’re in the process of doing that,” but didn't elaborate.

Aoun told Trump, “Your vision is peace,” calling it Trump's “legacy.” He also said Trump was a “great president.”

Trump responded by joking, “I do agree with that” and said Aoun was handsome and “knows how to get to me,” adding, “Now he can have anything.”

A framework agreement is being tested

Lebanon and Israel announced a “framework agreement” on June 26, setting a plan for Israeli forces to withdraw and for the disarmament of Hezbollah, which for decades had a strong presence in southern Lebanon. The deal's implementation was to begin in small “pilot zones.”

The U.S. State Department said Monday that operations in three villages of one pilot zone had begun. Two of them — Froun and Srifa — were not under Israeli military control to begin with, and the Lebanese army was already present there, while Israeli forces were at one point in a part of the third village, Zawtar al-Gharbieh.

The Israeli military said it would “adjust its force posture in one of the pilot areas in order to enable the Lebanese Armed Forces to carry out their mission,” without specifying the location.

The Lebanese army said it began deploying troops in Zawtar al-Gharbieh.

The June 26 agreement also lays out steps toward an eventual Israel-Lebanon peace agreement. The two countries have never had formal diplomatic ties and have been nominally in a state of war for nearly 80 years after Israel’s establishment.

Trump noted Tuesday of Lebanon, “There’s a Hezbollah problem” and suggested that he personally could speak with that group if Aoun wanted him to. He also again floated the idea of having Syria intervene to fight Hezbollah — though he didn't fully commit to that.

Such a concept would be highly unpopular in Lebanon and potentially embarrass Aoun.

Confusion over pilot zone implementation

It remained unclear whether Israeli troops actually withdrew from any territory. A Lebanese military official said the Lebanese army was unsure whether Israeli forces had been in Zawtar al-Gharbieh before Tuesday, but that they were in adjacent areas and would open fire on anyone who tried to enter.

An Israeli military official said Israeli forces had not been in Zawtar al-Gharbieh “for quite a time” and “we didn’t withdraw from there.” Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity in accordance with military regulations.

Still, the pilot zones got off to a rocky start.

The Lebanese military said Israeli troops fired Tuesday near an area where they were deploying. The Israeli military said Lebanese soldiers had entered an area that was not part of the pilot zone and Israeli troops fired warning shots in the air.

The Lebanese army disputed this, saying its soldiers were within the pilot zone when Israeli troops opened fire. It called on Israel to resolve disputes through “established coordination and communication channels, instead of resorting to aggression.”

A village mayor is cautious

Abed Ezzeldine, mayor of Zawtar al-Gharbieh, was waiting for word from the Lebanese military on whether it's safe for displaced residents to check on their homes.

He said the civilians would go in, but “only to check it out and see how things are and then we will leave.”

“We can’t stay because the infrastructure is completely damaged and houses have been leveled. They (the Israelis) have bulldozed the roads,” he added.

The Lebanese military last week increased its presence in some of the areas expected to be included in the pilot zone, with troops patrolling and setting up checkpoints.

Rubio says US will support the framework agreement

Aoun also met Sunday with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said Washington will continue to endorse the Lebanese agreement. Rubio warned that Lebanon will “never be fully at peace” as long as the Hezbollah issue is not resolved.

“How do you replace Hezbollah? You defeat and replace them with a government that is strong enough to be the sole force of arms in the country,” Rubio said.

Skeptics in Lebanon fear that a military confrontation with Hezbollah could lead to a civil war.

Government officials have urged investment in the country's battered infrastructure to empower the weakened state, which Rubio echoed.

Israel plans on a long-term presence

Israeli officials, meanwhile, have said they plan to keep troops long-term in a “security zone” in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah has dismissed the U.S.-brokered direct talks and instead backed Washington’s talks with its key ally and patron Iran to end their war, which includes ending the war in Lebanon as a condition.

Lebanon’s government came to power on a reformist platform in early 2025, vowing to disarm all non-state groups, including Hezbollah, which it blames for dragging the country into another war with Israel in March, when the militant group fired several rockets toward northern Israel two days after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran.

Beirut's leadership, however, has condemned Israel’s subsequent ground invasion and massive aerial campaign in the country, which has killed over 4,000 people and displaced 1.2 million others.

While grappling with stark political opposition from Hezbollah and allies within the deeply divided country, Lebanon's leadership insists that Israeli withdrawal and international financial support for Lebanon’s cash-strapped army are crucial for a sustainable security solution.

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Chehayeb reported from Beirut. Associated Press writers Giovanna Dell'Orto and Erin Cunningham in Jerusalem, Abby Sewell in Beirut and Aamer Madhani in Washington contributed to this report.

During a two-hour bargaining session Tuesday at Major League Baseball’s headquarters, the union proposed allowing college sophomores to be eligible for the draft along with those finishing their junior years, a group eligible under the current rules along with high school seniors.

Players proposed moving the draft back to June, when it was held through 2020. They asked that draft slot values continue to be increased at the same percentage as industry revenue through 2027 and may not be decreased for the remainder of the agreement.

Baseball’s five-year labor contract expires Dec. 1 and a management lockout is expected that would halt offseason trades and signings, and threaten the start of spring training workouts on Feb. 9 and opening day on March 24.

MLB in May proposed a salary cap for the first time since players fought off a proposal during a 7 1/2-month strike in 1994-95 that led to the first cancellation of the World Series in 90 years. Players vow never to accept a cap.

MLB said last month it wanted to eliminate eligibility for high school seniors and junior college players, arguing college programs offer better preparation for professional careers. MLB also proposed cutting the draft to 12 rounds in 2027.

The union also wants maintain the ability for players to negotiate deals rather than have fixed slots, reduce penalties for exceeding signing bonus pools, allow more draft selections to be traded and keep competitive balance round selections.

It would allow a $2 million signing bonus pool increase for a revenue-sharing recipient team that is not in a large market in one draft from 2027-31 and also allow those teams to sign two players drafted before the third round to major league contracts rather than minor league deals.

Revenue-sharing recipients that reach the postseason would receive an extra $1 million in their signing bonus pool in the following draft.

Teams exceeding their signing bonus pools by up to 15% would not lose a pick in the next draft, up from 5%.

For players not drafted in the first 10 rounds, the signing bonus pool exemption would increase from $150,000 to $1,000 over the figure for the last 10th-round selection, which was $191,900 this year. For draft and follow players — those who play an additional junior college season after the draft — the signing bonus maximum would rise from $225,000 to $75,000 above the last 10th-round pick's slot value.

Players would agree to MLB's proposal that draft picks could be traded during a period of about a month starting in early November and for the month prior to the draft.

Selections acquired could be traded on to another team but cash couldn't be included except to offset salary of a player involved in the trade. Each team would be required to retain at least one first-round pick in a two-year period and no team could obtain more than three additional selections within the first three rounds. A newly drafted player could not be traded for the first 90 days after he signs or the day after the World Series ends, whichever is later.

Players proposed only picks in the first 10 rounds be tradable.

MLB claims the union's draft proposal in tandem with its revenue-sharing stance would not address payroll.

The union proposed that tax proceeds from penalties for exceeding amateur draft pools be split, with half going to joint funds and half to revenue-sharing recipients who made the playoffs in the prior season.

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

The Democratic governor, who took office this year, blamed a Motor Vehicle Commission system software error but said a preliminary analysis showed that fewer than 400 of those who registered that way went on to cast ballots.

The revelation comes as President Donald Trump and other Republicans continue to assert that voting by noncitizens is rampant in U.S. elections, even though it’s rare and, when caught, can be punished as a felony that can lead to deportation.

Registrations were for Democrats, Republicans and independents

Sherrill promised immediate action and said she has ordered that all erroneously added voter registrations from that period be removed. She also is replacing the vendor who ran the system and is launching an investigation into how the error happened.

“I am appalled by the reckless failures that allowed this to happen and the lack of transparency shown by those in charge at the time,” she said in a statement.

She also attempted to head off any future criticism of the issue from the president.

“As the Trump Administration tries to weaponize elections for political gain, I am ensuring we protect our elections,” she said.

The White House on Tuesday used the revelation to promote Trump's SAVE America Act, which would require people to show documentary proof of citizenship before they register to vote and impose voter ID requirements nationwide. The measure has passed the U.S. House but has not gotten a vote in the Senate, where even some Republicans oppose it.

“American voters deserve to have confidence that our elections are safe and secure,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in a statement.

Sherrill also noted that the noncitizens who registered did so as Democrats, Republicans and independents. About 6.9 million people in New Jersey are registered to vote and more than 4 million cast ballots in the 2024 presidential election.

Phil Murphy, also a Democrat, was governor when the error occurred. A representative for the former governor did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Christine Hanlon, chair of the Republican party organization in New Jersey, said voter registration needs to be improved and that a bipartisan investigation should dig into what happened, including why the registrations weren't disclosed previously.

"The system and verification process must be improved in order to safeguard our elections,” she said in a statement Tuesday. “The public also deserves to know why this was covered up and who was responsible for keeping this critical information from the public.”

Trump has focused on New Jersey, among other states

In a speech last week, Trump touted an investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, which said it had identified about 278,000 noncitizens registered to vote in federal elections across the country. It said most of them were in California, Nevada, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin on Tuesday suggested it was that report that prompted Sherrill to take action.

“Appreciate you responding back to our letter, @GovSherrillNJ. This should’ve been done a LONG time ago,” he said in a message on X. “Just ONE illegal vote cancels out the vote of a U.S. citizen.”

The Pennsylvania Department of State said in an emailed statement provided by Gov. Josh Shapiro’s office Tuesday that “evidence has shown that noncitizen voting is extremely rare across the country, including in Pennsylvania.” The department added that it would review any information the Department of Homeland Security provided to “evaluate the validity of these claims.”

Other states have had problems with automatic voter registrations

New Jersey is among 19 states that allow people who are in the U.S. illegally to hold driver's licenses and other state-issued ID cards, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Every state allows noncitizens who have legal status in the U.S. to hold a license.

The NCSL also says that about half the states have automatic voter registration in which eligible people who obtain licenses or, in some cases, other state services, can opt in to voter registration.

In Oregon, officials in 2024 found that about 1,600 people were registered to vote through the state's DMV even though they didn't show proof of citizenship. Most of them were later confirmed to be citizens. The number of people wrongly registered grew by more than 100 by last year, but the state found that only about 30 ineligible voters had cast ballots.

Colorado officials said in 2022 that they had mistakenly sent postcards to 30,000 noncitizens to encourage them to register. The state said none would be allowed if they tried to do so.

A 2019 state audit of California's then-new DMV registration program found numerous errors, some that might have allowed about 1,500 people to incorrectly register to vote. Of those, some might not have been U.S. citizens.

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Associated Press writer Sarah Rankin in Richmond, Virginia, contributed to this report.

Both chambers of the Parliament voted in favor of the measure, a flagship initiative of French President Emmanuel Macron’s second term. The bill also bans the use of mobile phones in high schools.

Several families in France have sued TikTok over teen suicides they say are linked to harmful content. Children’s advocates and parents applauded the vote.

“We’ve been campaigning for this bill from the start because, frankly, we have no other option, no other way to counter tech giants,” said Gaëlle Berbonde, a 52-year-old who lives in the Paris region. “The only thing we can do is protect our children, just as we protect our children from drinking alcohol.”

Berbonde told The Associated Press that her daughter was in seventh grade when she got her first smartphone. A parental control app helped monitor what she did online, but Berbonde had no idea what TikTok really was. After a few months, the family realized that the daughter was cutting herself and was suffering from anorexia and depression. She spent a year and a half in the hospital but is now 16 and well.

Macron wants the ban in place for the new school year

The legislation is one of the final major measures adopted under Macron’s presidency before he leaves office next year. Macron wants the law to take effect at the start of the new school year in September. However, a review to determine whether the bill complies with the French Constitution is likely to take place and could delay its implementation.

“France is leading the way in Europe in protecting our children and our teenagers,” Macron said. “We will keep on going.”

The ban won’t cover online encyclopedias, or educational or scientific directories.

Lawmakers from the left-wing party France Unbowed opposed the bill, arguing that its constitutionality is unclear, that it would effectively end online anonymity, and that it would be impossible to enforce.

Ines Legendre, a legal adviser for the online protection group e-Enfance, said the law will not immediately translate into an outright ban.

“We’ll also have to address the issue of existing accounts for those under 15. How do we identify them? How do we suspend them? And then there’s the question of age verification for all new accounts that will come into effect,” she said.

According to France’s health watchdog, one in two teenagers spends between two and five hours a day on a smartphone. In a report published in December, it said that some 90% of children between 12 and 17 use smartphones daily to access the internet, with 58% of them using their devices for social networks.

The report highlighted a range of harmful effects stemming from the use of social networks, including reduced self-esteem and increased exposure to content associated with risky behaviors such as self-harm, drug use and suicide.

After the European Commission found that the latest version of the bill overlapped with the EU’s Digital Services Act, which sets strict rules aimed at keeping internet users safe online, lawmakers held final negotiations Monday. They reached an agreement on an amended version of the legislation, which was then submitted to both chambers for a final vote.

Other countries implement restrictions

Growing awareness of the dangers social media poses for young, developing brains has shown up in a wave of new restrictions globally.

In 2024, Australia became the first country to kick kids under 16 off social media. The law makes platforms — including TikTok, Facebook, Snapchat, Reddit, X and Instagram — liable for fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars ($35 million) if they fail to prevent children younger than 16 from holding accounts.

In Europe, Spain’s prime minister Pedro Sánchez announced in February that the country wants to limit social media access for children under 16. Denmark and Greece have unveiled plans for bans for youngsters while the United Kingdom said it would also consider banning young teenagers.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen — the EU's top executive — earlier this month called for limits to be placed on children using social media. A special EU panel looking into the issue recommended forbidding access for those under 13 until tech companies can prove their platforms are safe.

Von der Leyen said that children under 3 should have no exposure to screens at all. She noted infinite scrolling as one of the “addictive” traits that tech companies must address. The European Commission is likely to come up with a proposal for the 27 member countries to consider in the near future.

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Catherine Gaschka and Alex Turnbull in Paris contributed to this report.

The first example of that came Monday night.

Misiorowski worked just four innings in an 8-3 victory over the New York Mets that marked his first appearance since pitching seven innings in a July 7 victory at St. Louis. The Brewers scratched Misiorowski from a scheduled July 12 start in Pittsburgh because of arm fatigue, and he didn’t pitch in the All-Star Game last week despite getting selected for a second straight year.

“I think we take that as kind of a reset,” Murphy said before the game. “Now I think we have to build him back up and make sure that we are mindful of it.”

Misiorowski struck out six Monday while allowing one unearned run, four hits and a walk. Twenty-six of his 65 pitches went at least 100 mph, and he topped out at 104 mph on a first-inning fastball to Juan Soto. He reached 102 mph on 12 pitches, though all but one of them came in the first inning.

Murphy noted after the game that limiting Misiorowski to four innings wasn’t simply a matter of being careful with the flamethrowing right-hander. He said it was more a matter of “just being mindful of when a guy’s not right.”

“We would have probably let him go further if his delivery and his legs felt great,” Murphy said. “I think he was a little bit out of it. The long layoff kind of affected his delivery and everything else. I think it was important to notice that and get him out of there then. The velo dropped. He couldn’t find the rhythm on his heater and went to off-speed stuff.”

Misiorowski acknowledged that it felt a little more difficult than usual pitching Monday after such a long layoff.

“Of course,” Misiorowski said. “I felt like I wasn’t in my legs as well as I should have been, but I felt halfway decent. Good enough.”

Misiorowski's next start is expected to come Sunday when the Brewers host the Colorado Rockies. The Brewers initially didn't include Misiorowski among the projected starting pitchers for their weekend series, but they updated that Tuesday afternoon to list him as their likely Sunday starter.

The Brewers have reason to be careful with their young star as he makes his way through his first full season in the big leagues.

Misiorowski already has pitched 115 innings this season. He worked 141 1/3 innings last year, including his regular-season totals in the majors and minors plus his 12 postseason innings during Milwaukee’s run to the NL Championship Series.

The Brewers (63-37) have the best record in the majors and lead the Chicago Cubs by seven games in the NL Central. Misiorowski has been baseball’s best pitcher, and the Brewers’ chances of making a deep postseason run likely depend on him staying healthy and effective.

Misiorowski hasn’t allowed an earned run in eight of his last 13 starts, and he owns a 9-2 record and 0.87 ERA during that stretch. He has a 1.57 ERA and 173 strikeouts this season to lead the majors in both categories.

The 24-year-old said after Monday’s game that he’s hopeful he can go longer in his next start and can ramp his way back up quickly after this recent time off. He had spent the offseason preparing for the greater workload he expected to encounter this year.

“The offseason last year, we focused on legs and doing all that stuff to get myself ready for this track of the year,” Misiorowski said. “I feel good where I’m at. Ready to go.”

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

One comment—calling Moncrief “the worst road in Jacksonville”—racked up 257 likes, and she decided to see what people who live and travel the corridor think is really going on, and what is being done to make it safer.

A comment, a challenge, and a route on Google Maps

Sophia did what many viewers suggested: she plugged Moncrief Road into Google Maps and hit start.

“Worstest road in Jacksonville”

Once on Moncrief, Sophia asked residents directly: Is it really the worst road in town?

One man didn’t hesitate. “I think it’s the worstest road in Jacksonville,” he told her, adding that the danger he sees goes beyond potholes and lane markings.

When Sophia asked whether the bigger issue was crime or crashes, he said crime was the main concern—and that the community needs to feel like someone cares. He also pushed back on the area’s reputation, saying Moncrief gets “a bad rap” and that people “pre-judge” what they don’t know.

“Look around… it’s clear”

Sophia asked why some residents feel their neighborhood doesn’t get the same attention as other parts of Jacksonville.

The response was blunt: “Now look around… it’s clear.” It was a moment that underscored what she heard repeatedly—frustration that improvements seem to happen elsewhere, while Moncrief’s needs linger.

Another resident said the road itself could use upgrades, including new pavement.

What the city is doing: roundabouts first

Sophia found that the city is looking into improvements on Moncrief Road, starting with roundabouts—including one at 45th Street and another planned at New Kings Road.

But residents raised concerns that redesigns won’t matter if basic pedestrian safety isn’t addressed.

“No crosswalk there… no crosswalk there…”

At one four-way intersection, Sophia pointed out a problem that was hard to miss: no marked crosswalks.

“This is a four-way intersection,” she said, noting the absence of crosswalks in multiple directions. For people walking in the area, residents told her that can mean there’s effectively nowhere safe to cross.

A community asking to be heard

Sophia said what she found on Moncrief Road wasn’t just complaints—it was a community “crying to be heard,” watching work happen in other neighborhoods and asking why similar urgency hasn’t shown up here.

One resident summed it up with a call to action: the neighborhood needs to come together to “clean it up” and “build it up.”

Study on Moncrief Road

The North Florida Transportation Planning Organization (TPO) recently completed a study on the Moncrief Road corridor.

You can get a full look at the study by clicking here.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.9%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 385 points, or 0.7%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 1.3%.

AI stocks once again were at the center of the action, and they rose for a second straight day after tumbling the week before.

After rocketing higher because of the boom in investment in AI chips and data centers, they’ve come under pressure in recent weeks on worries that they shot too high. Concerns are also weighing that investment in AI may fall off if it doesn’t produce as much profit and productivity as hoped.

Micron Technology jumped 12.2% and added to its 1.9% gain from the day before, coming off its 13.3% drop from last week. Nvidia added 2%, and they were the two strongest forces lifting the S&P 500.

The gains came despite more climbs for oil prices, and Brent crude oil briefly got near $92 per barrel for the first time in more than five weeks because of continued attacks between the United States and Iran. It later pared its gain to 2% and settled at $91.01. That’s up from less than $72 early this month, which is roughly where it was before the war with Iran.

Rising oil prices are threatening a reacceleration of inflation, just as increases for prices were slowing more than economists expected. That in turn could push the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates, which would slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and other investments.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.63% from 4.60% late Monday and from just 3.97% before the war with Iran began.

On Wall Street, several stronger-than-expected profit reports from big U.S. companies helped stocks to strengthen despite the added pressure.

3M climbed 7.3% after topping analysts’ expectations for both profit and revenue in the latest quarter. It also raised its forecast for profit over the full year of 2026.

Hasbro rallied 8.8% after the toy maker said its Magic: The Gathering game topped $500 million in revenue for a quarter for the first time. It also raised its revenue forecast for the year.

General Motors cruised 4.9% higher after the automaker’s profit and revenue for the latest quarter beat analysts’ expectations and CEO Mary Barra said demand in North America remains strong.

They helped offset a drop for Danaher, which slid 11% even though it likewise topped analysts’ expectations for profit and revenue. Analysts pointed to its forecast for an underlying measure of revenue growth for the summer, which was weaker than Wall Street expected.

Homebuilder D.R. Horton slipped 0.9% despite topping profit and revenue expectations for the latest quarter. Executive Chairman David Auld said it’s still feeling the effects of affordability concerns in the housing market and caution among potential homebuyers.

Mortgage rates have already climbed to their highest level in nearly a year because of higher Treasury yields in the bond market. That could force D.R. Horton to offer more incentives to homebuyers in the current quarter, which would cut into its profits.

Companies broadly are under pressure to deliver strong growth in profit and revenue because of how high their stock prices have shot. Indexes are near their records, even with the recent shakiness for AI stocks.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 65.92 points to 7,509.20. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 385.38 to 52,224.64, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 329.13 to 25,837.21.

In stock markets abroad, indexes rose modestly in Europe. The United Kingdom’s FTSE 100 added 0.6% as new Prime Minister Andy Burnham hosted his first Cabinet meeting.

In Asia, stocks swung more. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 3.6% on strong gains for its two dominant stocks. Both Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix have been big beneficiaries of the AI boom, and the Kospi has soared 60% so far this year even with its 20% drop through July.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 climbed 3.3% after returning from Monday’s holiday, while indexes rose 1.8% in Shanghai and edged down by less than 0.1% in Hong Kong.

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AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Matt Ott contributed to this report.

Pfc. Benjamin Del Real Jr., 25, was visiting the capital on May 23 and hoping to snap pictures with his sister and father outside the White House when a gunman opened fire. Secret Service fired back, killing the man, and a bullet struck Del Real in the stomach, causing serious injuries that required emergency surgery. Part of his digestive system had to be removed.

Del Real filed notice of a personal injury claim on Tuesday, saying he plans to sue for $25 million under the Federal Tort Claims Act. He accused the Secret Service of botching its response to the shooting and failing to adequately protect him and other bystanders, he and his lawyer, Joseph Murphy, said Tuesday at a news conference.

“I, my father and Benjamin all feared for our lives, and the moment that I saw Ben bleeding was undoubtedly the scariest moment of my life,” said his sister, Sara Del Real.

The Secret Service has not said whether its agents fired the bullet that struck Del Real. The Metropolitan Police Department said earlier this summer that the ballistics on that bullet had not yet been returned. Metropolitan Police Department spokesman Lee Lepe said Tuesday the investigation is ongoing.

Federal law enforcement agencies are generally shielded from legal liability, but there are some exceptions, including some claims of employee negligence.

The Secret Service does not comment on pending litigation, according to Nate Herring, a spokesperson for the Service. He referred questions to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, which did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Del Real, of Salina, Kansas, and his family had spent hours that day touring the National Archives, Arlington Cemetery and other landmarks before passing by the White House at around 6 p.m. on their way to dinner. Just then, Del Real saw the shooter, about 20 yards closer to a Secret Service outpost, take out a gun and fire several rounds at their booth, prompting agents to return “a hail of gunfire,” Murphy said.

The shooter, 21-year-old Nasire Best, was killed.

Del Real pulled his father to the ground and dragged him behind a concrete barrier, saving his life, but a bullet struck Del Real in the stomach, causing him “life-threatening injuries,” Murphy said. He underwent an emergency surgery, then again two days later to remove the bullet, and is due for a third surgery next month. Doctors had to remove parts of his colon and small intestine.

Del Real, who joined the Army a year and a half ago, said he is “without a doubt, concerned” about his ability to continue a military career.

“He’s a young man, he’s 25 years old, and he’s had part of his digestive system taken out,” Murphy said. “It’s not going to get any better from here.”

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Mayes-Osterman is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

Navarro couldn't prove Trump had shielded him from the subpoena's requirements by invoking executive privilege, according to the unanimous ruling by a three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

“In short, Dr. Navarro has acknowledged that even if executive privilege had been invoked, that would not have excused his categorical failure to comply with the Select Committee’s subpoena,” D.C. Circuit Judge Patricia Millett wrote.

Navarro already has served a four-month prison sentence for his contempt of Congress conviction. He was a White House trade adviser during Trump’s first term in office and is serving in a similar role during the Republican's second term.

In a book published in 2021, Navarro took credit for a plan to delay the congressional certification of Democrat Joe Biden's victory over Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Ultimately, the mob's attack on the Capitol interrupted the joint session of Congress for certifying the Electoral College results.

The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack issued a subpoena for him to turn over documents and appear for a March 2022 deposition. He didn't comply with the subpoena's demands.

Navarro has maintained that he couldn’t cooperate with the committee because Trump had invoked executive privilege. But the courts, including the D.C. Circuit panel, concluded that Navarro couldn’t prove Trump had actually invoked it.

Abhishek Kambli, an attorney for Navarro, suggested that they aren't giving up on their appeal. Kambli described the panel's decision as “one step in a battle to correct decades of incorrect (D.C. circuit) precedent.”

"He intends to move swiftly with his appeal because his case affects every senior presidential advisor, regardless of political party, who believes in good faith they cannot comply with a congressional subpoena based on executive privilege,” Kambli said in a statement.

In September 2023, a jury in Washington convicted Navarro of two counts of contempt of Congress. In early 2024, Navarro reported to a federal prison in Miami.

Only hours after his release from prison, Navarro spoke on stage at the Republican National Convention, telling the crowd that “I went to prison so you won’t have to.” He continued to pursue an appeal after serving his sentence.

Navarro’s appeal also was heard by Judges Cornelia Pillard and J. Michelle Childs. Millett and Pillard were nominated to the court by President Barack Obama, a Democrat. Childs was nominated by Biden. Navarro was sentenced by District Judge Amit Mehta, an Obama nominee.

The Jacksonville Beach Police Department says it received reports April 9, linking 24 separate thefts at the Jacksonville Beach Home Depot that occurred between Jan. 2 and April 9.

Investigation leads to arrests

Detective Filbert of the General Investigations Unit (GIU) partnered with Home Depot Loss Prevention personnel to identify those responsible. On April 13, detectives say they learned the suspects had just committed another theft at a Home Depot in Jacksonville and were believed to be heading to the Jacksonville Beach location.

Working with GIU detectives, Downtown CAPE officers and patrol officers, law enforcement officers say they quickly located the suspects’ vehicle and took four people into custody. Officers also recovered nearly $2,500 in stolen merchandise during the operation

As the investigation continued, detectives say they identified two additional suspects connected to the theft ring. One has since been arrested, and the second currently has an outstanding arrest warrant.

The five defendants collectively face 97 criminal charges.

Varsity 4 top 25 player countdown

18. Aiden Phifer

Position/school: QB/Nease.

Class: Jr.

Height/weight: 6-0, 190.

Recruiting: Committed to Northwestern.

Why here’s here: Phifer burst on the scene last year by passing for 2,003 yards and 20 TDs. He was a threat to break off a run, too. Phifer scored nine rushing TDs. He did it by going 9-3 against a tough schedule that included powerhouse Buchholz (twice), St. Augustine and Oakleaf. A Rivals/On3 three-star recruit, Phifer should continue to ascend as a dual-threat QB.

19. Julius LaRosa III

Position/school: DL/ University Christian.

Class: Sr.

Height/weight: 6-2, 260.

Recruiting: Committed to NC State.

Why here’s here: A multiyear force on the defensive line for the Christians, he’s got 24 career sacks and 43.5 tackles for loss. Recovered two fumbles and blocked a punt last year. Had 59 tackles last season and is up to 171 for his career. A consensus three-star recruit by the four major recruiting services and a top 140 player in Florida by those outlets.

21. Kindrid Outland

Position/school: DL/Mandarin.

Class: Sr.

Height/weight: 6-2, 270.

Recruiting: Committed to USF.

Why here’s here: He was all over the field last year for the Mustangs, earning a second-team All-News4JAX selection after racking up 62 tackles, 21 for loss, and 5.5 sacks. A three-star recruit by 247 Sports and Rivals/On3, Outland has serious muscle and pocket-busting interior presence.

22. Kyree Wilson

Position/school: ATH/University Christian.

Class: Senior.

Height/weight: 6-0, 190.

Recruiting: Committed to Toledo.

Why he’s here: Wilson has thrived as the No. 1 player at a small school (Christ’s Church) where he racked up 3,019 rushing yards and 32 TDs and added 74 combined tackles during his freshman and sophomore seasons. Wilson, a Rivals three-star prospect, spent his junior year at Mandarin in a two-back system and absolutely scorched teams when given the opportunity (9.1 yards per carry). He’s got 3,807 career rushing yards and 38 rushing TDs, and could join the exclusive 5,000-yard rushing club with a strong season. Factor in his work on defense in the secondary and he’s going to put up numbers all over the field for the Christians.

23. Kash Kolbow

Position/school: S/WR/Nease.

Class: Senior.

Height/weight: 6-1, 180.

Recruiting: Committed to UCF.

Why he’s here: He was a little bit of a do-it-all player on Nease’s defense in 2025. Kolbow had 68 total tackles and a couple of interceptions. He was sticky in coverage (23 passes defensed) and forced two fumbles. With as big graduation losses as the Panthers had on defense, Kolbow’s production is no doubt bound to keep ticking up.

24. King Boylston

Position/school: QB/Ed White.

Class: Sr.

Height/weight: 6-1, 195.

Recruiting: Uncommitted.

Why he’s here: Boylston isn’t rated by any of the major recruiting services, but he’s a player who should see his stock rise over the course of the year. He accounted for 38 TDs last season, passing for 25 and scampering for 13 more. Boylston passed for 2,091 yards and rushed for 712 more to help lead the Commanders to the mantle as the highest-scoring regular season team in state history.

25. Noah Ash

Position/school: Kicker, Ponte Vedra.

Class: Senior.

Height/weight: 5-11, 190.

Recruiting: Committed to Auburn.

Why he’s here: A placekicker among the area’s top players? You got that right. Ash is the area’s best player at his position, and one of the top recruits in the nation. He booted 11 field goals for the state semifinalist Sharks last year and had 74 touchbacks in 85 chances. Depending on the recruiting outlet, Ash ranks between fourth (247 Sports Composite) to sixth (Rivals/On3).

It is not the first time he has lashed out at Infantino over fixture congestion and for considering a proposal to expand the 2030 men's World Cup from 48 teams to 64.

“Increasing the number of national teams makes no sense. The football industry isn’t just the World Cup, which is the most important event. But not everything can revolve around the World Cup,” Tebas told La Gazzetta dello Sport.

“In my opinion, yes, I think his time is up,” he said of Infantino. “However, he has the support of the system and the federations, so there’s not much more to add, is there? There’s no opposition candidate, nobody wants to stand just to lose. This is the system and it’s rotten at its core.

“He shouldn’t stay, but he won’t leave. I’ve heard many people who are against Infantino. They say it, but then they do nothing. I don’t know what’s worse, the silence or the complicity, because those who stay silent are perfectly aware of the damage football is suffering.”

South American soccer’s ruling body CONMEBOL has made an official proposal to expand the 2030 World Cup to 64 teams. The competition is already set to be the most sprawling edition with six host nations spread across three continents.

“It’s national competition that sustains this sport," Tebas added. "They are destroying the football industry, which generates tens of thousands of jobs, for an event that lasts 40 days and involves a minority of players.”

He also criticized world football’s governing body FIFA over the new hydration breaks implemented at the World Cup which ended Sunday, as well as the extended 27-minute halftime interval — rather than the standard 15 — during the final that saw Spain defeat Argentina 1-0.

The hydration breaks midway through each half were introduced to help players deal with the summer heat in the United States, Canada and Mexico. But critics say they had unintended consequences, ruining the flow of the game and giving coaches a chance to tactically shift momentum in their team’s favor.

“FIFA arranges things as it pleases, for what it wants, for its own interests — certainly not for football,” Tebas said. “Hydration breaks are a lie. We have them in La Liga, but only when it’s genuinely hot. Here, the pitches in Dallas, Los Angeles, and Atlanta had air conditioning. It was a lie — and just a break for advertising.”

Infantino announced in April that he would run for re-election for a fourth term as president. The vote for the 2027–2031 period is scheduled for March 18 in Morocco.

The Football Supporters Europe group also called on the wider soccer community to hold FIFA to account.

In a statement on its website headlined “A World Cup that failed supporters”, the FSE demanded “structural governance reforms to hand decision-making power back to the FIFA Council and Congress and ensure full consultation with clubs, leagues, players and supporters.”

It added: “The 2026 World Cup should have been a celebration of the game and the supporters who give it life. Instead, it has too often become a case study in what is so deeply wrong with football today.

"From the outset, supporters were asked to place their trust in FIFA and “chill”, but it prioritised spectacle and commercialisation over the match-going experience with key elements of football’s identity being messed with. Over the last month, we've seen football contorted to the whim of Gianni Infantino and the Trump administration.”

The FSE, accepted by European soccer's governing body UEFA as the recognized group representing fans in the region, then went on to attack “historically high ticket prices” and “skyrocketing transportation costs, bending of rules and procedures, exclusion of swathes of the global population and a lack of transparent communication.

“All this created an environment of confusion and distrust that has severely damaged the reputation of FIFA, the World Cup, and the integrity of football itself.

“The lessons from this World Cup are clear: FIFA is unfit to govern global football. The future of the game cannot rest in the hands of a man who has proven yet again that he puts financial and political interests ahead of the future of our game.”

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