Según la policía de Miami Springs, la ola delictiva comenzó aproximadamente a la 1 a.m. del miércoles, cuando dos hombres con sudaderas con capucha ingresaron a la ciudad a través de un paso peatonal cerca de North Royal Poinciana Boulevard.

La policía dijo que los sospechosos recorrieron varias áreas, entre ellas Raven, Plover, Quail, Albatross, Swallow, North Royal Poinciana y South Royal Poinciana.

Dijeron que más de 15 vehículos fueron robados durante la ola delictiva, y que también fueron robados dos vehículos y un arma.

Los detectives finalmente localizaron ambos vehículos robados en el oeste de Hialeah, dijo la policía. Aunque inicialmente los vehículos estaban desocupados, los detectives realizaron vigilancia durante más de cuatro horas.

Los investigadores dijeron que finalmente vieron a dos hombres subir a uno de los vehículos robados.

Detectives de Miami Springs siguieron el vehículo y, con la ayuda de la Unidad K-9 del Departamento de Policía de Hialeah y la Unidad de Interdicción Criminal de la Patrulla de Carreteras de Florida, realizaron una parada de tráfico por delito grave.

Ambos sospechosos fueron detenidos alrededor de las 3 p.m., menos de 16 horas después de que comenzaran los robos, según la policía.

Ambos vehículos robados fueron recuperados y devueltos a sus propietarios.

Tras entrevistar a los sospechosos, detectives de Miami Springs acudieron a la vivienda en Hialeah de uno de ellos, según el departamento.

La policía dijo que los investigadores recuperaron seis armas de la vivienda, incluida el arma robada durante la ola delictiva en Miami Springs.

Las otras cinco armas habían sido robadas durante un robo separado en Hialeah, según la policía.

Uno de los sospechosos fue identificado por la policía como Christopher Caceres, de 22 años. El otro sospechoso parece ser menor de edad, ya que la policía difuminó su rostro en un video que divulgó el jueves.

“Un recordatorio para nuestros residentes: Hagan que cerrar con seguro su vehículo sea parte de su rutina nocturna”, publicó el departamento de policía en redes sociales. “Nunca dejen objetos de valor sin supervisión y asegúrense siempre de que las armas de fuego y otros artículos de valor estén debidamente asegurados”.

Hasta la tarde del jueves, Caceres permanecía detenido en el Centro Correccional Turner Guilford Knight. Los registros de la cárcel en línea indicaban que su fianza estaba “por determinar”.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal has not been announced. It includes a player option for the 2028-29 season as well as a trade kicker.

Harden declined his $42.3 million player option for the upcoming season, but he indicated after the Cavaliers were swept in four games by the eventual NBA champion New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference finals that he would like to return. He also wanted to wait until the Cavaliers were done making a couple moves before his new agreement was in place.

The 36-year-old Harden will be going into his 18th NBA season. He averaged 10.7 points and 1.7 turnovers for the Cavaliers in 26 regular-season games after being acquired from the Los Angeles Clippers for Darius Garland on Feb. 4.

Harden averaged 19.7 points in the postseason, but his turnovers also went up to 4.7 per game, including five or more in 10 of Cleveland’s 18 games. He also struggled on defense.

Cleveland's starting lineup is likely to be Harden, All-Star Donovan Mitchell, 2025 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen and Peyton Watson, who was acquired in a four-team trade Wednesday night.

Harden was arrested on June 13 in Houston on a misdemeanor charge of unlawful carrying of a weapon in a motor vehicle. The charge was dismissed earlier this month in Harris County criminal court after he completed an alternative resolution program.

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See AP’s full NBA coverage here

Cohen, who served prison time for his role in what he said was covering up Trump’s “dirty deeds,” confirmed that the Republican president will appear in a taped interview airing on his 77 WABC program Thursday evening and Sunday.

The apparent truce with Cohen makes him the latest in a long line of Trump loyalists who have had public falling-outs with the president but found themselves back in his good graces. Other recent examples include Elon Musk and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.

But the split from Cohen was perhaps the most personal. Cohen once boasted that he would “take a bullet” for Trump and was by Trump's side during his political rise. After their public breakup, Cohen's testimony in Trump's 2024 criminal hush-money trial instead paved the way for Trump's criminal conviction just as he was trying to make his political comeback.

Cohen has since criticized prosecutors in the case and has said he and Trump have started to reconcile.

The White House did not comment on Cohen’s statements or confirm the appearance, but Trump’s official schedule showed him taping a radio interview Thursday morning.

In a long post on his online newsletter Thursday promoting the interview, Cohen said that although his relationship with Trump became “political blood sport,” there were 15 years of close friendship between them.

“The good times don’t cease to have existed because the bad times came afterward,” Cohen wrote.

Simply, he said: “We forgave.”

Trump has made no warm public statements about Cohen but in a series of social media posts this year linked to some of his former lawyer’s comments saying he felt pressured by prosecutors to testify against Trump in the criminal hush money case and a civil fraud case.

Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison in 2018 after pleading guilty to campaign finance charges and lying to Congress, among other crimes.

The campaign finance charges stemmed from his efforts to arrange payouts during the 2016 presidential race to keep the porn actor Stormy Daniels and model Karen McDougal from making public claims of extramarital affairs with Trump.

In 2024, Cohen testified in the criminal case against Trump about the payment to Daniels, which prosecutors said was an illegal effort to influence the 2016 presidential election. Trump was convicted of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.

Cohen testified before Congress in 2019, alleging Trump had a history of misrepresenting the value of assets to gain favorable loan terms and tax benefits.

He gave similar testimony in a 2023 civil fraud trial in New York that found Trump and his companies engaged in fraud by exaggerating his wealth for decades. A New York appeals court later threw out a $550 million judgment against Trump in that case. Trump has asked a court to overturn the remaining parts of the case.

In his tell-all memoir in 2020, “Disloyal: The True Story of the Former Personal Attorney to President Donald J. Trump,” Cohen was unsparing, calling Trump an “organized crime don” and “master manipulator.”

But, foreshadowing their later rapprochement, Cohen also wrote that he still cared for Trump, writing, “I had and still have a lot of affection for him.”

Biya arrived at the international airport in the capital, Yaoundé, aboard a flight from Geneva, Switzerland, after more than 10 weeks away.

The world’s oldest president, who has led Cameroon since 1982, began his eighth term in office in November after winning a widely disputed election in October.

Biya had left the country on June 7 for what his office described as “a brief private stay in Europe,” but it became the longest recorded absence of his presidency.

According to Miami Springs police, the crime spree began at approximately 1 a.m. Wednesday when two males wearing hoodies entered the city through a catwalk near North Royal Poinciana Boulevard.

Police said the suspects traveled through several areas, including Raven, Plover, Quail, Albatross, Swallow, North Royal Poinciana and South Royal Poinciana.

They said more than 15 vehicles were burglarized during the spree, and two vehicles and a gun were also stolen.

Detectives eventually located both stolen vehicles in West Hialeah, police said. Although the vehicles were initially unoccupied, detectives conducted surveillance for more than four hours.

Investigators said two males were eventually seen getting into one of the stolen vehicles.

Miami Springs detectives followed the vehicle and, with assistance from the Hialeah Police Department’s K-9 Unit and the Florida Highway Patrol’s Criminal Interdiction Unit, conducted a felony traffic stop.

Both suspects were taken into custody at about 3 p.m., less than 16 hours after the burglaries began, according to police.

Both stolen vehicles were recovered and returned to their owners.

Following interviews with the suspects, Miami Springs detectives went to the Hialeah home of one of them, according to the department.

Police said investigators recovered six guns from the home, including the gun stolen during the Miami Springs crime spree.

The other five guns had been stolen during a separate burglary in Hialeah, according to police.

One of the suspects was identified by police as 22-year-old Christopher Caceres. The other suspect appears to be a juvenile as police blurred his face in video they released Thursday.

“A reminder to our residents: Make locking your vehicle part of your nightly routine,” the police department posted on social media. “Never leave valuables unattended, and always ensure firearms and other valuable items are properly secured.”

As of Thursday afternoon, Caceres was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. Online jail records listed his bond as “to be set.”

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According to the Broward Sheriff’s Office, the shooting was reported just before 10:15 p.m. Wednesday in the 200 block of Southwest First Terrace.

Deputies said they responded to the scene and discovered that a man, later identified as Maurice Wright Jr., 31, had been shot inside an apartment.

He was pronounced dead at the scene by Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue medics.

According to deputies, the woman who shot Wright was detained for questioning and claimed that she shot him in self-defense while protecting herself from a physical attack.

Detectives said the woman, whose identity has not been released, was released after being questioned.

After detectives complete their investigation, they will present the case to the Broward County State Attorney’s Office for review.

Detectives have not said what led up to the alleged physical attack that preceded the shooting.

“Here we go,” Alcaraz posted on his social media pages Thursday, with one picture showing him in front of the U.S. Open logo.

The seven-time Grand Slam champion has been sidelined since April because of a right wrist injury, forcing him to miss both the French Open and Wimbledon.

Alcaraz won his second U.S. Open title last year, beating Jannik Sinner in the final. He then won the Australian Open to start this season and the Spaniard is still ranked No. 2 despite his absence.

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Miami Beach Police Sgt. Alex Bello was recognized for his heroic actions, saving an elderly man who was choking while having lunch on Saturday in Hialeah.

“I’m usually a very shy person, so all this attention is a little overwhelming, but I’m just glad that I was at the right place at the right time,” said Bello. “And a family is now still able to have their loved one here with them.”

Video footage from the incident shows Bello leap into action as the 29-year MBPD veteran, who was off the clock at the time, performed the Heimlich maneuver on the choking victim.

“Well the restaurant, as soon as everybody could see that he was awake and conscious, started clapping,” said Bello. “The wife obviously was ecstatic and so thankful, restaurant staff were so helpful and thankful too, that we were there to help this gentleman out.”

Bello was in Hialeah to work at MBPD’s evidence warehouse.

Miami Beach Police Chief Wayne Jones presented Bello with the department’s Lifesaving Award during a ceremony on Thursday.

“This is what I signed up for, to help people,” said Bello. “I’m so grateful that I was able to help save this gentleman’s life.”

El sargento de la Policía de Miami Beach Alex Bello fue reconocido por sus acciones heroicas al salvar a un hombre de edad avanzada que se estaba asfixiando mientras almorzaba el sábado en Hialeah.

“Por lo general soy una persona muy tímida, así que toda esta atención es un poco abrumadora, pero simplemente me alegra haber estado en el lugar correcto en el momento indicado”, dijo Bello. “Y que una familia todavía pueda tener a su ser querido aquí con ellos”.

Un video del incidente muestra a Bello entrando en acción mientras el veterano de 29 años de MBPD, quien estaba fuera de servicio en ese momento, realizaba la maniobra de Heimlich a la víctima que se estaba asfixiando.

“Bueno, en el restaurante, tan pronto como todos pudieron ver que estaba despierto y consciente, comenzaron a aplaudir”, dijo Bello. “La esposa obviamente estaba eufórica y muy agradecida, y el personal del restaurante también fue muy servicial y agradecido de que estuviéramos allí para ayudar a este hombre”.

Bello estaba en Hialeah para trabajar en el almacén de evidencias de MBPD.

El jefe de la Policía de Miami Beach, Wayne Jones, entregó a Bello el Premio por Salvar una Vida del departamento durante una ceremonia el jueves.

“Para esto me inscribí, para ayudar a las personas”, dijo Bello. “Estoy muy agradecido de haber podido ayudar a salvar la vida de este hombre”.

“If I were the mayor of a town or the governor of a state, and I had a chance to get a big plant in, an AI plant or a data center,” Trump said, “I would absolutely want it because the jobs are enormous and the money paid, the taxes paid, are just enormous.”

It's not the kind of message anyone is using in competitive midterm races.

The race to build data centers, which power artificial intelligence and cloud computing, has run aground amid frustration from voters who don't want to live near the massive warehouse campuses. Even the Senate Republicans' campaign arm warned that anger over data centers — some of which dwarf football stadiums and use more energy than small cities — could cost them a seat.

Opposition stretches across the political spectrum because of fears that the behemoths will jack up electricity bills, drain people's water wells, create unhealthy amounts of air and noise pollution and forever change a community's character — all while getting lucrative tax breaks from states competing for their business.

Trump has framed data centers as a necessary component of a top national and economic security priority: winning the AI race against China. However, he also has acknowledged concern over rising electricity bills, previously saying “it’s only fair” for the companies to shoulder their costs.

He also suggested this week that data centers need “a little public relations help.” In recent months, he has gotten tech giants to sign a voluntary pledge to shield U.S. consumers from higher utility bills from data centers, even as he pushes to streamline the process for companies and utilities to build their own power plants.

But building power plants doesn't happen overnight, and the immediate political reality for candidates across the country is far different.

“It is yet another dimension in which the White House appears tone deaf — tone deaf at best and indifferent to the interest of other Republican candidates at worst,” said James Henson, the director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas, Austin, a nonpartisan research organization.

Republican committee issues warning over data centers in Ohio

Statewide candidates from Nevada to Pennsylvania, both Republican and Democratic, are weaponizing data centers against their opponents, and candidates who absorb those attacks are subsequently trying to distance themselves from them.

In Ohio, a data center hot spot with closely contested races for governor and U.S. Senate, the National Republican Senatorial Committee warned in a memo Tuesday that Sen. Jon Husted is vulnerable to losing his seat because of the centers.

Democratic nominee Sherrod Brown is airing attack ads against Husted that call him the “face of data centers in Ohio” as people gather signatures for a statewide referendum to ban their construction.

The Republican memo said it's been a “sleeper issue for the entire election cycle.”

“Brown is using it because it works,” the NRSC said. “More than any other thing in this race, data centers are the anchor hanging around Husted’s neck. If he loses and data centers get the blame, politicians across the country will take notice — and they will not go near the next one.”

The memo suggested voters may balk at Democratic candidates who want to stop data center construction altogether in favor of a Republican candidate who only wants data centers built if a community approves it in a local vote and it pays for its own power, water and other utilities.

Most registered voters oppose building a data center in their area, according to a July Fox News poll. Still, the issue falls behind other voter concerns, such as cost of living, as November looms.

A Quinnipiac Poll conducted in June asked voters what issues were important in deciding who to vote for in U.S. House elections, and about 4 in 10 mentioned AI data centers.

Trump’s statement already put to use in Nevada race

In Nevada, Democrat Aaron Ford quickly tied Trump’s statement to Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo, characterizing them as being in “lockstep on data centers.”

In a statement, Ford said Trump and Lombardo are “Nevada data centers’ biggest cheerleaders” who “only care about catering to their ‘billionaire friends’ while Nevadans pay the price.”

Ford this week unveiled a policy platform in which he said he would halt new state tax breaks for data centers — he estimated them at $200 million currently — while auditing existing projects to ensure they are delivering on promises. He also said he would ensure data centers pay for their electricity needs, do not deplete Nevada’s water supply and help local governments negotiate strong benefits agreements with developers.

Texas' governor changed course and got a jab from Trump

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who last November celebrated Google’s announcement of a $40 billion investment there by calling the state “the epicenter of AI development,” is under attack from his Democratic challenger, Gina Hinojosa, over his pursuit of data center development.

Abbott has since changed course by promising tougher action, such as removing the state’s sales tax exemption and holding up projects to review their energy usage.

Trump criticized the shift, saying “I think it's a mistake” in a recent interview with Punchbowl News.

Asked about Trump's support for data centers, Abbott's office said the governor's “top priority is to protect Texans’ safety and quality of life and ensure the integrity of our power grid and water supply.”

“Simply put, Texans must come first,” Abbott's office said.

Data centers complicated Wisconsin governor race

While Trump embraces data centers, even some of his allies are using them for political attacks. U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, running for Wisconsin governor, released a TV ad this week branding his Democratic opponent as “Data Center David Crowley.”

The ad includes a clip of Crowley saying Wisconsin could become the “AI and data hub not only for the entire country, but for the entire globe.”

Crowley has said local communities must have veto authority while also calling data centers a part of the modern economy that could bring significant economic benefits to the state.

Tiffany, who Trump has endorsed, has also said positive things about data centers. In January, Tiffany called data centers “exciting new technology,” in an interview with PBS Wisconsin. And last December, he voted for a bipartisan bill known as the SPEED Act, which is designed to accelerate construction of new AI infrastructure projects like data centers. It hasn't passed the Senate.

Neither Tiffany nor Crowley support a moratorium on new data center construction.

Tiffany has called for repealing the state tax incentive for data centers, while Crowley has not. They both have called for stricter regulation.

Crowley, at an event Wednesday where he received the endorsement of the environmental group Clean Wisconsin, downplayed the attacks Tiffany has made against his data center position.

“He’s getting very good at saying one thing and doing something different,” Crowley said, pointing to Tiffany’s votes in support of the SPEED Act.

“What Congressman Tom Tiffany’s doing is lying because he’s trying to run away from his record in Congress,” Crowley said.

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Bauer reported from Madison, Wisconsin, and Levy from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Linley Sanders contributed from Washington.

A group of 35 adults needed help after 18 apartments suffered damage along West Flagler Street, according to a statement by the American Red Cross on Thursday.

Firefighters responded to the building at about 3:25 p.m. on Wednesday, near Southwest 21st Avenue, according to Miami Fire Rescue Lt. Pete Sanchez.

“Firefighters quickly stretched hose lines and began an aggressive interior fire attack while crews conducted searches of all three floors,” Sanchez wrote in a statement. “All areas were searched and determined to be clear. The fire was rapidly spreading through the crawl spaces, walls, and attic areas of the building.”

Firefighters used thermal imaging cameras and a drone to find hidden hotspots, the department’s Ambu Bus provided temporary shelter, and no one was injured, according to Sanchez.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation.

Local 10 News Assignment Editors Sofia Mendez and Carson Merlo contributed to this report.

Commanders of the 9th Brigade Engineer Battalion based at Fort Stewart, Georgia, believe free time to indulge in the latest entry in the Grand Theft Auto series — in which players commit carjackings, battle police in shootouts and attempt audacious heists — will sway some soldiers to extend their military commitments.

The Nov. 19 release of Grand Theft Auto VI is expected to be one of the year's biggest entertainment events. Game publisher Take-Two Interactive hasn't released sales figures for preorders, but CEO Strauss Zelnick recently called them “unprecedented and astonishing.”

A career counselor with the Army engineer battalion hatched the idea with commanders to tie a retention perk to the game's release, in part to remind soldiers of their approaching reenlistment dates, said Lt. Col. Angel Tomko, a Fort Stewart spokesperson.

“The idea was to have a unique incentives program that connects to what soldiers are interested in,” Tomko said Thursday in a statement to The Associated Press.

Battalion commanders wrote in a memo to soldiers that those who sign reenlistment contracts by Nov. 14 would receive “a special 4 day pass.”

“This special pass is specifically designed to coincide with the highly anticipated release of the video game Grand Theft Auto VI,” battalion commander Lt. Col. Ryan Hodgson wrote.

Tomko confirmed the authenticity of the July 28 memo, which was photographed and posted online.

She said at least 20 of 130 eligible soldiers have signed up for the bonus. To qualify, they must commit to serving at least two more years in uniform.

Buzz for Grand Theft Auto VI has been building since 2023, when its first cinematic trailer showed a return to the series’ fictional Vice City — a satirical analogue of Miami — and an expanded swath of Florida-based locales that include gator-infested swamps.

Underscoring the hype, developer Rockstar Games plans to debut gameplay video next week in an extended trailer on Netflix. The rollout was preempted when hackers leaked apparent footage online this week.

Según la Oficina del Sheriff de Broward (BSO), la balacera fue reportada alrededor de las 10:15 p.m. en la cuadra 200 de Southwest First Terrace.

La reportera de Local 10 News Jolena Esperto estuvo en el lugar la mañana del jueves y dijo que al parecer la balacera ocurrió dentro o fuera de una tienda de vapeo en la plaza comercial.

Las autoridades confirmaron que agentes de BSO y paramédicos de Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue acudieron al área y encontraron a la víctima, quien había recibido disparos.

Los socorristas lo declararon muerto en el lugar.

Los agentes confirmaron que una persona fue detenida y que no había ninguna amenaza para la comunidad, sin embargo, no está claro si esa persona enfrentará cargos por la balacera.

La investigación continúa en curso.

Se pide a cualquier persona que tenga información sobre la balacera que llame a Broward Crime Stoppers al 954-493-8477.

El impacto ocurrió alrededor de las 6 a.m. frente al marcador de milla 81 en Islamorada, cuando el grupo, encabezado por el capitán Richard Stanczyk de Stanz Fishing, se encontró con un aguacero mientras se dirigía a pescar en la bahía con clientes, uno de los cuales pidió ayuda posteriormente.

Las autoridades dijeron que la embarcación quedó inoperable después del impacto y un barco de remolque la llevó a Bud N’ Mary’s Marina, en 79851 Overseas Highway, donde los paramédicos trasladaron en helicóptero a Stanczyk, de 44 años, hacia Miami-Dade.

Su condición no se conocía de inmediato hasta finales de la mañana del jueves.

The man was arrested on a European warrant in the northern Croatian town of Pula on Wednesday. He was questioned on Thursday by prosecutors who requested the detention pending extradition proceedings, the state HRT television reported.

The man's lawyer, Matija Milos, said that they would appeal the detention order, the HINA news agency reported. It wasn't immediately clear how long the extradition proceedings in Croatia could last.

The German prosecutors have said that the suspect was a “trained scuba diver” who belonged to a group of people who “planted explosives” on the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea near the Danish island of Bornholm.

The undersea explosions on Sept. 26, 2022, damaged the pipelines, which had been built to carry Russian natural gas to Germany under the Baltic Sea. The damage added to tensions over the Russia-Ukraine war as European countries moved to wean themselves off Russian energy sources after the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of its neighbor on Feb. 24, 2022.

The German prosecutor’s office identified the suspect only as Vladimir Z. A spokesperson, however, confirmed to The Associated Press that it was the same man who was arrested in Poland last year, but was later released when a Polish court refused to extradite him to Germany. Polish authorities identified him as Volodymyr Zhuravlov.

Poland has long opposed the Nord Stream pipelines, viewing them as an attempt by Russia to use its vast energy resources to gain leverage across Europe.

Last month, German federal prosecutors filed charges against a former Ukrainian army officer in connection with the same explosions.

Serhii K. was detained in August 2025 in an Italian village, where officers raided a bungalow where he was staying with his family. He was extradited to Germany in November.

The suspects allegedly used a yacht that set off from the German port of Rostock. The yacht had been rented from a German company using forged IDs and intermediaries.

The explosions ruptured the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which was Russia’s main natural gas supply route to Germany until Moscow cut off supplies in August 2022. They also damaged Nord Stream 2, which never entered service because Germany suspended its certification process shortly before Russia’s all-out invasion.

Initially, some officials in the West suspected that Russia might have carried out the explosions. But German investigators later pointed to suspected Ukrainian involvement.

Russia has accused the U.S. of staging the explosions, a charge that Washington has denied. The pipelines were long a target of criticism by the U.S. and some of its allies, which warned that they increased dependence on Russian gas.

The Treasury and State departments announced Thursday that they are leveling new penalties against nine state-owned mining, metal and construction companies along with the leadership of the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples, or ICAP. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the institute is responsible for sponsoring “a vast subversive network in the United States aimed at identifying, cultivating, and radicalizing” Americans.

“Just days ago, the regime attempted to use Communist kingpin and despot Fidel Castro’s 100th birthday to reinvigorate this subversive network, ferrying a new brigade of international sympathizers to Havana to network with regime officials,” Rubio said in a statement.

“The Trump Administration will not stand by while a hostile foreign power seeks to exploit our freedoms — none of which are afforded to its people — by misleading and corrupting American citizens with lies, spy tradecraft, and other malfeasance as part of the regime’s raison d’être of exporting Marxism, racial resentment, and Communist violence across the world,” Rubio said.

Trump's Republican administration has steadily ratcheted up pressure on Havana, threatening it with potential military intervention even when mired in a conflict against Iran, while also boosting economic sanctions designed to cut off funding for the Cuban government. An oil blockade that the U.S. imposed on Cuba after the American military raid that ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, whose country provided Cuba with free oil, has plunged the already economically crippled island into full-blown crisis.

The Cuban Embassy did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the new sanctions. Cuba routinely denounces U.S. sanctions and the decadeslong embargo it has imposed on the island, accusing multiple administrations of unfairly targeting a poor nation and its people merely for ideological differences and its proximity to the United States.

The latest sanctions follow an operation at the Miami airport last weekend in which several American citizens returning to the U.S. from Cuba after participating in events marking Castro’s birthday were briefly detained, according to U.S. officials. Some of them had their cellphones and other personal electronic devices seized for inspection, the officials said.

U.S. authorities had been prepared to detain dozens of returning activists for secondary screening, but far fewer were found to meet the criteria for the enhanced questioning by Customs and Border Protection agents, the officials said. The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because details of the operation have not been made public, said those detained were eventually released and allowed to enter the U.S.

The officials said anyone detained and released could still face prosecution if it is found they violated U.S. sanctions, which prohibit all transactions with Cuban government-owned entities, including restaurants, hotels and shops. The status of seized cellphones, laptops and tablets, however, was unclear.

The new sanctions that were imposed on the leadership of ICAP target the group’s president, Fernando González Llort, who had been among five Cuban intelligence officers arrested in the U.S. in 1998 but later released in 2014. They also target its first vice president, Noemí Ramona Rabaza Fernández, and its North America director, Leima Martínez Freire.

The metals, mining and construction sector sanctions target a nickel production company, two firms that specialize in the import of heavy industrial products, a mineral resources company, the Cuban Ministry of Construction, a company that provides Cuban workers to foreign entities on the island and two enterprises that import vehicles, automotive parts and construction materials.

The Trump administration also has stepped up a campaign that portrays Cuba as a grave national security threat to the U.S. In a report released last month, the State Department accused the Cuban government of sponsoring or otherwise supporting left-wing and anti-American activism in the United States for the past six decades.

While Cuba has been falling deeper into crisis for around five years, the oil blockade by the Trump administration has thrown the nation into free fall.

The lack of fuel to provide Cubans with electricity has plunged the island into all-out blackouts. Access to public transport has effectively disappeared, shortages of things like medicine have worsened, work hours have been slashed to adapt to the outages, and tourism, the island’s economic lifeline, has evaporated.

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This story has been corrected to show the sanctions are on nine, not 10, companies.

The pilot of a single-engine helicopter was flying a group of six tourists from the Suyian Conservancy to Mount Ololokwe when they crashed in Samburu County, according to Kenya’s Civil Aviation Authority and Lady Lori, the helicopter operator.

The seven victims were José Suárez, Roger Duarte, Adam Hlavaty, Henry Parra, Michele Sensi-Contugi, Stephany Hollihan, and Josh Outram. There were two married couples: Hlavaty, 42, and Parra, 55, and Sensi-Contugi, 44, and Hollihan, 42.

“There was nothing more important to them than their children,” Noboa wrote in a statement in Spanish about Sensi-Contugi and Hollihan on X. “We know how much they loved them and everything they dreamed for them, and as long as we’re here, they’ll never be alone. We’ll take care of them and stand by them, just as we know they would have done for ours.”

Authorities in Ecuador identified Sensi-Contugi, as the director of CIES, the country’s strategic intelligence center. In a statement, a spokesperson for the Latin American Fashion Summit described Hollihan, a fashion designer, as “a true visionary and an extraordinary force.”

Harpers Bazaar reported Hollihan, the founder of the Sensi Studio, was from Ecuador’s port city of Guayaquil and was passionate about promoting Ecuadorean artisans’ work with “paja toquilla” in the U.S. and Europe.

Suárez, who grew up in Coral Gables, was the president and general manager of the Telemundo-owned stations in Orlando, Tampa, and Fort Myers. He was 55.

Hlavaty was a real estate executive. He was the vice president of development for Benihana and served as a board member of the Coral Gables Art Museum. Parra, a software executive, co-founded Trax USA, a company based in Coral Gables.

Duarte was the Miami-Dade County-based entrepreneur behind Hospitality Capital Partners, the owner of George Stone Crabs, which he had started in Key Biscayne, and the co-founder of My Ceviche, Zuuk Mediterranean Kitchen, and El Tropico Cuban Kitchen. He was 42.

Duarte is survived by his two sons, Roger and George, and his wife, Nicole Valls, whose family founded La Carreta restaurants and Versailles, the iconic Cuban restaurant in Miami’s Little Havana.

The spokesperson for Duarte’s family identified Suárez and the two couples as “dear friends” and Outram as the pilot. The Loisaba Conservancy in Kenya released a statement on Wednesday describing the group as “guests” of &Beyond, a travel agency.

On Thursday, the Loisaba Conservancy released a statement on Instagram, remembering Outram, who had worked for the conservancy from 2020 to 2023, was a resident there, and a part of their community.

“He supported elephant rescues, aerial surveillance for our security teams and responses to incidents on the ground, and helped with the work to establish the Loisaba Rhino Sanctuary, including building of the fence,” a spokesperson wrote. “A fourth-generation Kenyan, Josh had been flying across the country’s conservation and commercial aviation sectors for more than fifteen years. His experience was evident to everyone who flew with him: colleagues and clients alike knew him for his skill, professionalism and calm in some of the most demanding flying conditions.”

Related social media posts on Thursday

El accidente en Kenia me quitó a dos amigos, pero sobre todo nos quitó a dos personas que eran familia para nosotros.

Michele estuvo a mi lado en algunos de los momentos más difíciles de estos años. Leal, valiente y firme, me acompañó sin titubear cuando tocó tomar decisiones… pic.twitter.com/NLJme76bxB

— Daniel Noboa Azin (@DanielNoboaOk) August 20, 2026

View this post on Instagram

Related reports

• South Florida friends’ trip to Kenya ends in tragedy after helicopter crash
• Safari helicopter crashes in northern Kenya, killing 7 people, including 5 Americans

Related social media posts on Wednesday

7 killed in helicopter crash in Kenya; 4 were tourists from the U.S. pic.twitter.com/9RdTRp0LOK

— WPLG Local 10 News (@WPLGLocal10) August 19, 2026

El Servicio Nacional de Aduana del Ecuador expresa sus más sentidas condolencias ante el sensible fallecimiento de Michele Sensi-Contugi y su esposa Stephany Hollihan. Paz en su tumba. pic.twitter.com/E1GWcfbgAY

— Servicio Nacional de Aduana del Ecuador (@SENAE_Aduana) August 19, 2026

View this post on Instagram

An update on the air accident in Samburu of the operator and souls on board.
Read full statement below: pic.twitter.com/WjiggB3vvo

— Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (@CAA_Kenya) August 19, 2026

Search and recovery efforts are ongoing, hampered by difficult terrain access and an active fire at the crash site.

An additional team has been dispatched from Isiolo to reinforce the operation.

More updates to follow. https://t.co/XUjWArYul3 pic.twitter.com/qSApuA1b0y

— Kenya Red Cross (@KenyaRedCross) August 19, 2026

INCIDENT UPDATE
Reference: ASCI-KE-20260819-SAMBURU-HELICOPTER-CRASH
Incident Level: CRITICAL (Level 4) – Fatal helicopter crash; all occupants deceased

UPDATE SUMMARY
The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) has officially confirmed a fatal helicopter accident at Mt.… pic.twitter.com/Q5ChZkMd7A

— Armistice Security Consult International® (@ASCIsecure) August 19, 2026

View this post on Instagram

View this post on Instagram

View this post on Instagram

Our deepest condolences to the loved ones of those who perished in today’s helicopter crash in Samburu County. We are in touch with local authorities and providing consular assistance.

— U.S. Embassy Nairobi, Kenya (@USEmbassyKenya) August 19, 2026

Read the statement

Related reports

Local 10 News Assignment Editor Carson Merlo contributed to this report.

Thousands of employers are keeping tabs on the whereabouts, productivity and communications of workers with technology that was adopted widely during the coronavirus pandemic. A vast array of digital tools still are being used to track locations, collect data on task completion rates, and access work-issued smartphone and laptop cameras, raising concerns about how much privacy employees have relinquished, even in their own homes.

Employers have always monitored workers, but recent advances in artificial intelligence and data science enable them to create extensive data sets or “dossiers” that can be used to punish workers or attempt to predict employee behavior, said Wilneida Negrón, director of research and policy at Coworker, a nonprofit that helps workers organize to improve working conditions.

“Oftentimes, the workers with the least amount of power in the labor markets tend to be testing grounds for some of the more intrusive forms of data collection,” Negrón said.

Some of the most common workplace monitoring programs have shared names, email addresses and other personal worker data with hundreds of outside data brokers and technology companies without clearly disclosing the practice, according to an investigation by Vanderbilt University, Northeastern University and the University of California at Berkeley.

Data privacy experts and workers who say they've been closely monitored spoke with The Associated Press about what they see as the risks of employer surveillance and the steps employees can take to protect their personal information.

Team up with like-minded colleagues to advocate for yourself

Pharmacist Lannie Duong's job at a medical clinic involved meeting with patients who had chronic conditions such as diabetes, hypertension and heart disease. She reviewed their medical histories, blood work and symptoms, and adjusted their medications. She frequently enlisted interpreters to help her communicate with patients who had limited English language skills.

Duong said her employer tracked the length of her phone calls and appointments, and in performance evaluations questioned why she took so long with each patient.

“Everything was counted. How many minutes you’re on the phone. The minutiae of it was ridiculous,” Duong said. “We’re just tasked to do what feels like the impossible.”

Under what she described as unrelenting pressure, Duong felt “not trusted, not appreciated, almost completely hopeless. It was so depressing.” She eventually went on medical leave and began volunteering with other pharmacists to organize a union.

“I spoke up, hoping others would voice their concerns as well, but that didn’t really pan out,” Duong said. She says her employment was terminated after the medical leave.

Many of the employers using surveillance tools do so transparently and engage employee boards in reviewing how the tools are used, Negrón said. But there are also employers tracking, ranking and scoring employees in ways that are not transparent to workers, she said.

“Workers are going to have to come together because the forces of centralizing this kind of tracking and monitoring are moving too fast,” Negrón said.

Find out what kind of data your employer is collecting about you

As awareness about surveillance tools grows, some workers are pushing back on tools that track how long it takes to fulfill tasks, saying such monitoring contributes to injuries, and questioning what personal information is being collected and how it’s being used, said Hayley Tsukayama, director of state affairs at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit that focuses on digital privacy.

“Unfortunately, if you are on a machine that’s been issued by your workplace, you should expect that there’s some type of monitoring,” Tsukayama said.

Researching data collection and surveillance trends in your industry is a good idea, according to Negrón. Without that knowledge, workers may find themselves unprepared when confronted with information unearthed during surveillance.

While teaching a college writing class, Arianna Anaya discovered that an administrator was reading the papers her students uploaded to the school’s learning management software and the comments Anaya made on the work. The students often wrote about intimate topics, including abuse, eating disorders and family trauma.

“The school essentially used the online learning system to allow administrators and staff to read student work that was often immensely private and personal, something we were specifically told students should not know about,” Anaya said.

A colleague who printed out the comments criticized the casual tone Anaya used with students and accused her of not sticking to the course syllabus. A few months later, Anaya's teaching contract wasn't renewed, although she doesn't know the exact reason.

“It made me quite paranoid,” Anaya said. “It made me feel less safe in the world.”

Check state laws to see what's required of employers

Some states, including New York, Connecticut, Delaware and Maine, require employers to notify workers if they're being monitored. Maine's law goes further, prohibiting visual monitoring in employees' homes or personal vehicles unless that kind of observation is required for the duties of the job, said Edward Halle, a privacy and AI compliance manager.

“The question becomes, what does the law mean by ‘the duties of the job'?” Halle said. "A telehealth nurse needs a camera; the camera is the job. A productivity webcam bolted onto ordinary desk work almost certainly isn’t. Where that line falls is the first thing the Department of Labor will be asked to sort out.”

If you work in a state without a notification requirement, it's difficult to find out if an employer is using technology to monitor your performance.

To raise the issue with managers, Tsukayama suggests coordinating with a union. If that’s not an option and you’re asking managers individually, approach the topic cautiously and take a curious tone, she advised. You could say you’ve noticed something on the computer and have questions, such as “How is this information being used within the company? How might it get out of the company?” Tsukayama said.

One place to start is asking what specific employee data your organization collects, said Aiha Nguyen, director of the Labor Futures Initiative at Data & Society, a nonprofit institute studying the impacts of technology. If your manager doesn’t know, the information technology department may have answers, since the people working there often are the ones turning on the features, Nguyen said.

Some common software programs such as Microsoft Office and Zoom have tools that can be used for tracking worker productivity, but the tracking features aren’t always activated. Knowing whether those tracking features are turned on can be difficult, because they’re built into the programs, Nguyen said.

“It’s automatic. It’s considered something that employers have been able to say, ‘This is necessary for work. You have to use these tools,’” she said.

To help safeguard personal information, don't use work devices to handle family matters or sensitive personal information such as medical conditions, experts advise.

“I think most people know that," Nguyen said. "But it can become tedious to switch between phones, or people don’t really think it’s that harmful. ... You don’t want to potentially put yourself at risk.”

___

Share your stories and questions about workplace wellness at cbussewitz@ap.org. Follow AP’s Be Well coverage, focusing on wellness, fitness, diet and mental health at https://apnews.com/hub/be-well

Coral Gables police said Mariah Rose Scuiletti, 27, of Shorecrest, and the driver began arguing during the drive and “simultaneously began striking and grabbing each other in the neck and face area.”

According to police, the victim told police that as they drove in the 1900 block of Segovia Street, Scuiletti “struck her in the neck and began pulling her hair before (she) grabbed and pulled on the steering wheel, which caused the vehicle to swerve off the roadway and into a tree.”

Police said that medics took the victim to Baptist Health Doctors Hospital to be treated for minor injuries.

According to an arrest report, Scuiletti told officers that she “attempted to step over the vehicle’s center console to press the brake” before the wreck.

The report states that officers believed that Scuiletti was under the influence of alcohol at the time.

As of Thursday afternoon, Scuiletti was being held in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center with a bond listed as “to be set” in online jail records.

Lifeguard Marcelo Lorenzo was on vacation on Aug. 11 when he said a speedboat-towed tube crashed into an anchored catamaran, seriously injuring several of his family members.

Two tubes were traveling alongside one another when the boat made a wide turn, sending one tube crashing at high speed into an anchored catamaran, according to officials.

Several of Lorenzo’s family members were thrown into the water and hurt.

With no emergency responders immediately available, Lorenzo said he relied on his training as a professional lifeguard and sprang into action.

According to Lorenzo, he found his father trapped beneath the catamaran and pulled him toward a ladder, helping him to safety, and he also found his cousin unconscious and face-down in the water.

He checked for a pulse and kept her afloat until employees aboard the catamaran could help get her out of the water.

“I remember swimming over there, I was like, ‘This is scary’ and I was thinking the worst,” he said. “I didn’t know if they were dead or possibly really hurt, and I just knew I had to get over there as soon as possible and go help them out.”

Hollywood Fire Rescue says Lorenzo’s quick thinking, courage and training helped save lives during an extraordinary emergency.

Officials say his response demonstrated how professional lifeguard training and preparedness can make a difference when seconds count.

Leer en español

The strike happened at around 6 a.m. off mile marker 81 in Islamorada as the group, headed by Capt. Richard Stanczyk of Stanz Fishing, encountered a rain shower while heading out to fish in the bay with clients, one of whom called for help afterward.

Authorities said the boat became inoperable after the strike and a tow boat brought it to Bud N’ Mary’s Marina, at 79851 Overseas Highway, where medics airlifted Stanczyk, 44, north to HCA Florida Kendall Hospital.

His condition wasn’t immediately known as of late Thursday morning.

The decision to stop using the gloves in middle and high schools came after The Associated Press first revealed Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s plan to give officers the gloves, which are known as G.L.O.V.E. or Generated Low Output Voltage Emitter. The deviceshave also been used in recent years by some jails.

Omaha Public Schools Superintendent Matthew Ray requested Tuesday that city police assigned to the schools, known as school resource officers, no longer use the gloves. Ray said in a school board meeting Monday and a letter to the public schools community that he’d only learned about the gloves the previous week. The first day of school was Wednesday.

The Omaha Police Department held a news conference last week in which it demonstrated the glove, saying it quickly achieved compliance and control with little to no force. The gloves were used twice during the 2025-2026 school year, police said.

It was not immediately known if other school districts have used them.

Residents and school board members speak out against the gloves

At the school board meeting, about 30 people spoke out against police using the gloves. Residents and board members alike said they were appalled at the practice. No one spoke in favor of it.

“I can't even imagine walking down the hallway and seeing a peer of mine being electrocuted in a place that is supposed to be a safe space for students,” said Nora Wessel, a senior at Omaha Central High School. “Yet, this is now a very real possibility. These are adults we are supposed to be able to trust, but these weapons create a barrier for our students to turn to resource officers when needed.”

Ray said the district recognized long-standing relationships with law enforcement partners and the important role school resource officers have in promoting school safety. Continued use of the gloves “would be counterproductive to our work together,” Ray said.

Mayor John Ewing Jr. said police have honored the school district's decision to “opt out.” The Omaha Police Department said officers will continue to carry tasers, batons, OC spray and firearms.

Most school resource officers were trained to use the gloves

Most of the Omaha Police Department's 34 school resource officers had been trained and were allowed to use the gloves, the mayor and Police Chief Todd Schmaderer said in a statement.

“We believe it is the safest use-of-force option in the rare times when it is used,” the statement said.

In 2025, the city's police department agreed to pay Compliant Technologies LLC, which manufactures the gloves, about $66,000 for 40 gloves, according to the contract.

Officers were expected to give warning before using the gloves and then touch the person for up to 15 seconds while the electric shock was delivered, the statement said.

The devices activate when an officer presses a button. The gloves must touch someone’s skin directly to produce voltage that causes pain, which is intended to make people compliant if they are resisting. Unlike Tasers, they do not leave burn or contact marks.

In the 2025-2026 school year, an officer used the glove in one case to stop a high school student from another school from trying to escape after fighting with a security guard, according to the statement. In the second case, the glove was used on a student who made verbal threats and threw a chair at a school security guard, striking the guard in the head, the statement said. The student also punched the guard in the head, it said.

Omaha Public Schools is the largest district in Nebraska and serves more than 50,000 students, according to its website. ___ Hallie Golden contributed to this report from Seattle.

Swalwell’s devices were seized at the San Francisco airport on Saturday and agents executed a search warrant at his home a day later, said the person, who was not authorized to publicly discuss an ongoing investigation and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

A message seeking comment was left Thursday with an attorney for Swalwell, who has denied allegations of sexual assault and misconduct.

Swalwell announced his resignation from Congress in April following allegations that Swalwell had sexually assaulted a woman twice, including when she worked for him. The San Francisco Chronicle, followed by CNN, first reported the allegations. CNN also reported that three other women alleged various kinds of sexual misconduct by Swalwell, including sending them unsolicited explicit messages or nude photos.

The seven-term lawmaker had been seen as one of the leading candidates in California’s gubernatorial race before dropping out after the allegations surfaced.

The office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg confirmed in April that it was investigating Swalwell after a former staffer told CNN and the Chronicle that Swalwell raped her at a hotel while he was in New York City for a charity gala in 2024. In a statement, Bragg’s office encouraged “survivors and anyone with knowledge of these allegations to contact our Special Victims Division.”

A lawyer representing Lonna Drewes, a California woman who in April said she had been raped in 2018 by Swalwell, said his team was cooperating with all law enforcement agencies investigating the former congressman.

“We are encouraged to learn about the escalation of the FBI’s investigation into the allegations against Eric Swalwell,” attorney Arick Fudali said in a statement.

Drewes spoke of the assault at a news conference days after Swalwell dropped out of the California governor’s race. She said it occurred at a hotel in Southern California. Swalwell denied that assault.

Swalwell, an Iowa native, was elected in 2012 and represented a House district east of San Francisco. He launched a presidential run in April 2019 but ended it a few months later after failing to catch on with voters.

He was one of Republican President Donald Trump’s top Democratic antagonists in Congress. He was a prominent member of the House Judiciary and Intelligence committees during Trump's first term and served as one of several Democratic prosecutors for Trump’s second impeachment after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

Swalwell was removed from the Intelligence Committee by then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., in 2023 based on Swalwell's contact with a suspected Chinese spy, Christine Fang.

Fang was reported to have come into contact with Swalwell’s campaign as he was first running for Congress in 2012 and to have participated in fundraising for his 2014 campaign.

Federal investigators alerted Swalwell to their concerns and briefed Congress about Fang in 2015, at which point Swalwell says he cut off contact with her. He was not accused of wrongdoing and a House Ethics Committee investigation that was opened in 2021 closed two years later without any action. ____

Associated Press reporter Michael R. Sisak in New York and Olga Rodriguez in San Francisco contributed to this report.

“This is the concertmaster,” Honeck said, “and also my brother.”

Among nine siblings, Manfred and Rainer are making a rare joint appearance in the Salzburg Festival's new production of Richard Strauss' “Ariadne auf Naxos,” which runs through Aug. 28. Director Ersan Mondtag's unconventional staging shifts the setting from Vienna to Mars and is available to stream on Medici.

Otto, the Honecks' father, was a postman in Nenzing, Austria, who played the flugelhorn and zither in his spare time.

“He wanted us to all play an instrument. I’m not sure whether the Trapp family was somehow in his head," Manfred said, referencing the musical clan in Rodgers and Hammerstein's “The Sound of Music.”

Manfred, who turns 68 next month, became the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra's music director in 2008-09 and in June agreed to a contract extension through 2032-33 that will move him past William Steinberg (1952-76) as the orchestra's longest-serving head.

Rainer, 65, joined the Vienna State Opera Orchestra in 1981 and was admitted to the Vienna Philharmonic three years later. He has been a concertmaster — the lead violin — since 1992.

A sister, Sibylle, plays cello for the Vienna Volksoper and an older brother, Otto, was a pianist and coach for the Frankfurt Opera. Manfred's son Matthias is a principal second violin in the Vienna Symphony Orchestra.

Family didn't have much money

Manfred, the seventh sibling, and Rainer, the eighth, both played violin as kids.

“Our father was very consistent. He wanted us to practice every day, and he practiced with us,” Rainer said. “So he played on the piano and that was very important for us to get this routine, to have every day only one hour, but every day a practice.”

A teacher, Grete Urbanek, gave them fruit yogurt at lessons.

“We could not afford to buy yogurt at home. And we had only meat on Sunday. The other seven days we were eating local food, which is called ribel,” Manfred said of a local cornmeal.

Their mother, Frieda, died in 1965 after giving birth to her ninth child. A few years later, their father moved the family to Vienna so the children could access better music teachers.

“If he would not have done this, I think we would not have this profession,” Manfred said during a joint interview with Rainer. “It always reminds me: One human makes a decision and it changes your whole life."

Seven Honeck siblings lived with their father in a 2 1/2-room apartment, while the two oldest sisters worked to help support the family.

Rainer studied with Alfred Staar, a Vienna Philharmonic violinist, and at age 15 he decided to become a professional musician.

“I was not good in Latin. I was behind and there was the decision: Do I repeat the class one more year or do I want to be a violin player?" he said. “That was a decision which many of my family members didn’t agree with but my father did.”

Rainer plays a Stradivarius from 1725 known as “Chaconne.” He joined Manfred and the Pittsburgh orchestra for concerts at their home hall in 2015 and the Aspen Music Festival the following year, for Beethoven’s “Fidelio” with the Vienna Symphony at the Theater an der Wien in 2020.

“He is great in terms of style, of articulation, phrasing," Vienna Philharmonic General Manager Michael Bladerer said. "When he says something to the section it will sound different after.”

Unplanned instrument shift

Manfred made a sudden switch from violin to viola in December 1982 when he learned the Vienna Philharmonic had an upcoming opening.

“The audition was in April and so I thought, OK, I want to do it,” he said, recalling he practiced every day, from morning to midnight.

Manfred won the audition but shifted his focus to conducting in 1987, becoming an assistant to Claudio Abbado at the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester. He conducted regularly at the Zurich Opera from 1991-96, was part of a trio of principal conductors at the MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1996-99.

He later served as music director of the Norwegian National Opera, the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Staatsoper Stuttgart.

Manfred’s Pittsburgh Symphony is the only American orchestra appearing at this summer’s Salzburg Festival, part of a 13-concert European tour through Sept. 10. He’s become the Pittsburgh orchestra’s face.

“We joke sometimes that he probably spends more weeks in Pittsburgh than he does in Altach, his home,” Pittsburgh Symphony CEO Melia Tourangeau said.

Nilsson, the soprano, had never worked with Manfred before “Ariadne.”

“I have learned from him to really trust the colors and to experiment how far can we go in the pianissimi and the softness,” she said.

Kindness from usher to child

Manfred credits an usher at Vienna's Musikverein for sparking his interest in conducting when he was a child in the late 1960s or early 1970s. Manfred wanted to see Willi Boskovsky lead the famous New Year's Day concert and lined up with his father for standing room tickets.

“We could not afford any seat places,” Manfred recalled. “There were 200 people around me and I had no chance to see. He saw me and he picked me out and put me in front of all the people who were standing in line for a whole day to get the best standing places. Hearing and seeing Willi Boskovsky, it seems to me that this was one of the occasions where I felt I really wanted to do this.”

At some institutions, charities did see some gains. In 2021, University of Maryland student athletes receiving NIL payments started serving yearlong mentorships with high school students through a program run by a local nonprofit, the Youth Leadership Foundation, one of the several charities that had relationships with Maryland athletes. About 250 students from colleges in low-income neighborhoods typically participate each year, according to Janaiha Bennett, the nonprofit’s executive director.

“Being able to expose students to role models that care about character and care about conducting themselves well as athletes, that’s been a huge plus,” Bennett said.

Initially, the visits with student athletes and tours of the university’s athletic facilities were organized by the Blueprint Sports Foundation, a nonprofit that managed payments to NIL collectives nationwide.

But the real financial benefits went to college athletes. Five years after the court gave the green light to pay athletes in NCAA v. Alston, payments to quarterbacks, gymnasts, pitchers, and other coveted athletes have reached nearly $2 billion annually. It is unclear how much nonprofits have gained, but any benefits charities receive are minuscule compared with the large sums of cash colleges raise to attract and retain star athletes, according to experts.

The idea that charities would benefit turned out to be short-lived rather than baked in to the system, said Jason Kohout, a lawyer who has represented several NIL collectives.

“It was kind of a blip,” he said.

The rise and fall of NIL collectives

In the Alston case, the Supreme Court officially turned amateur college sports into a big money game for athletes through these NIL payments. For the first time, companies and nonprofits were allowed to pay athletes to appear at events, wear their apparel, and make social media posts.

Shortly after the decision, alumni boosters and businesses rushed to form NIL collectives and registered them as nonprofits. Doing so allowed donations to be tax deductible. But in 2023, the Internal Revenue Service ruled that those collectives did not qualify for a tax-exemption. Their main purpose — compensating students — does not chiefly serve the public, which is typically required to qualify for nonprofit status, the agency found.

“This private benefit is not a byproduct but is rather a fundamental part of a nonprofit NIL collective’s activities,” the agency wrote.

The collectives received another blow following a 2025 settlement in a massive class action case, House v. NCAA, which pitted former student athletes against the college sports organization. The settlement provided for revenue sharing of television contracts and ticket sales among big conference universities, allowing them to direct $20.5 million per college — indexed for inflation — toward student compensation each year.

With colleges able to make payments to students directly, several NIL collectives have since closed, including Student Athlete NIL, whose colleges included Georgia Tech, the University of Oklahoma, and Wake Forest University; an NIL fund associated with Texas A&M’s 12th Man Foundation; and Notre Dame’s FUND Foundation.

“NIL collectives have basically been in shutdown mode because now you can just give the money to the school,” Kohout said.

An opportunity to educate about giving

When the IRS started taking a dim view of NIL collectives seeking tax exemption, the nonprofit Blueprint Sports Foundation, which paid athletes, including University of Maryland players, disbanded.

The university’s in-house NIL program, One Maryland, still works with Blueprint Sports, a related for-profit organization that processes student payments from non-tax-deductible donations. One Maryland did not return calls from the Chronicle.

In its last tax filing, in 2024, the Blueprint Sports Foundation indicated it devoted a total of $844,078 to 90 athletes for charitable activities in partnership with about a half dozen nonprofits near campus. Today, Maryland Terrapin athletes are no longer paid to visit with students through the Youth Leadership Foundation program. But Youth Leadership’s Bennett said student athlete involvement hasn’t subsided and the program is “still going strong.”

However, the connection between college athletes and nonprofits won’t just run on autopilot, some warn. Roy Kessel, founder of the Sports Philanthropy Network, worries that as universities race to raise funds to pay athletes and remain competitive, charity will become an afterthought. Some athletes did create their own foundations after being introduced to giving through collectives. But if students receiving NIL payments aren’t educated about philanthropy, fewer will give to charity in the future and an opportunity will be lost, he said.

In 2022, Kessel launched NIL4Good, a campaign to encourage student athletes to give some of their NIL payments to charity. But raising money for the campaign has been difficult, he said.

One reason it’s been hard, he said, is that paying college athletes was such an immense cultural change that institutional practices, including educating students about money management, haven’t caught up. So far, universities have not made significant investments to help students identify what kind of donations they’d like to make and how to use their place in the spotlight for good, Kessel said.

What student athletes need, he said, is sound advice on the practice of giving and the freedom to choose how to make an impact that comes from the heart. Many of those students, he said, have not yet developed clear boundaries when friends and acquaintances try to seek a cut.

“What we’ve seen evolve over the last few years is that the individual athletes get pulled in a lot of directions,” he said. “Anytime somebody’s got money, that brings more people in.”

______

Alex Daniels is a senior reporter at the Chronicle of Philanthropy, where you can read the full article. This article was provided to The Associated Press by the Chronicle of Philanthropy as part of a partnership to cover philanthropy and nonprofits supported by the Lilly Endowment. The Chronicle is solely responsible for the content. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.

El huracán Lala arrancó techos de casas, derribó árboles, cubrió carreteras de lodo y rocas y dejó a muchos hogares sin electricidad. Con casi 15.000 viviendas y negocios todavía a oscuras el jueves, los meteorólogos advirtieron sobre la probabilidad de que se forme otro ciclón tropical al sureste de las islas.

Una depresión que se desplaza hacia el oeste y el noroeste podría convertirse en tormenta tropical el jueves y se espera que pase cerca o al sur de la Isla Grande de Hawaii este fin de semana, según el Centro de Huracanes del Pacífico Central del Servicio Meteorológico Nacional de Estados Unidos. Eso podría significar hasta 15 pulgadas de lluvia en toda la Isla Grande y provocar inundaciones potencialmente mortales, deslaves y fuertes corrientes de resaca, indicó el centro de huracanes.

El gobernador de Hawaii, Josh Green, y otros funcionarios estatales tenían previsto ofrecer una conferencia de prensa el jueves por la tarde para hablar del posible ciclón, así como de los esfuerzos de recuperación en curso relacionados con el huracán, al que se atribuyen dos muertes en el estado.

La policía informó que residentes localizaron el cuerpo de un hombre de unos 60 años en un pastizal el martes, un día después de que se solicitó a los agentes realizar una verificación de bienestar. Esto ocurrió después del hallazgo el lunes de May Doi, de 93 años, de quien vecinos dijeron que estaba escapando de las aguas de la inundación en su casa e intentaba llegar a un refugio cercano.

Doi fue una querida maestra de kínder que enseñó a generaciones de residentes en un pequeño pueblo de la Isla Grande.

ʻĀina Akamu, exalumna de Doi y ahora subdirectora en una escuela local, afirmó: “Les enseñó a los nietos de sus alumnos. Era una figura emblemática en esta comunidad”.

Ya muy al oeste de las principales islas de Hawaii, Lala alcanzó la categoría 3, con vientos máximos sostenidos de 185 km/h (115 mph) el miércoles, en lo que el Centro Nacional de Huracanes calificó como el primer huracán importante de 2026 en el océano Pacífico central.

El Servicio Meteorológico Nacional señaló que la mayor precipitación registrada, 43,54 pulgadas (1,1 metros), se produjo en Laupahoehoe, en la costa noreste de la Isla Grande. Decenas de viviendas fueron arrancadas de sus cimientos, se dañaron puentes y el colapso de un tramo de una carretera de dos carriles había cortado el acceso a la comunidad de Pahala.

La empresa Hawaiian Electric indicó que unos 13.200 clientes en la Isla Grande seguían sin electricidad el jueves. La compañía agregó que las reparaciones en las zonas con mayores daños, incluido el extremo sur, podrían tardar al menos dos semanas.

Mientras tanto, Lala avanzaba hacia el noroeste a 15 km/h (9 mph) el jueves y se espera que gire hacia el norte más tarde en el día. Se dirigía hacia una zona remota en el extremo noroeste del archipiélago hawaiano. Se emitieron advertencias de huracán para partes del Monumento Nacional Marino Papahanaumokuakea, desde la isla Lisianski hasta el arrecife Maro.

A pesar de tratarse de un área remota, había personas en peligro. Un barco chárter con una tripulación de 16 personas dedicada a retirar plásticos marinos y redes de pesca abandonadas de las costas de las islas hawaianas del noroeste salió a principios de esta semana de la trayectoria prevista de Lala.

Kevin O’Brien, presidente de la organización sin fines de lucro Papahanaumokuakea Marine Debris Project, partió de la isla Lisianski el lunes y se dirigió 563 kilómetros (350 millas) mar adentro.

“Estábamos listos para esto”, aseguró O’Brien. “Aquí nos mantenemos alerta durante la temporada de huracanes”.

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Ramer informó desde Concord, Nuevo Hampshire, y John Raby, en Charleston, Virginia Occidental.

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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

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In 2021, Brandon Foeman’s father gave him legal authority to act on his behalf before undergoing several surgeries, including an amputation, according to a Broward Sheriff’s Office detective’s probable cause affidavit.

Foeman, of Fort Lauderdale, “abused his power of attorney privileges,” a BSO detective wrote, according to the affidavit signed on Sept. 18, 2024.

While his father was hospitalized, Foeman opened a joint checking and savings account with Citibank that he later used to make transfers from his father’s accounts, according to the affidavit.

“Analysis of the joint checking account revealed thousands of dollars on expenditures ... suspicious transactions,” the detective wrote, according to the affidavit.

There were expenses on pets, which his father doesn’t own; expenses at restaurants while his father was hospitalized; and expenses during trips to Cancun, Mexico, in 2021 and 2022, according to the affidavit.

Foeman transferred over $57,495 in Social Security payments, about $159,000 in Miami Gese pension payments, and about $30,000 in employee pension payments to the joint checking account, according to the affidavit.

Foeman also deposited two checks drawn from a Florida Innovations & Technologies LLC account for about $94,000 into the joint savings account, according to the affidavit.

“Florida Innovations & Technologies LLC was a former company owned by [the victim] and his business partner to conduct international business transactions. [The victim] was hospitalized and did not sign and/or author these checks,” a detective wrote, according to the affidavit.

A Broward County judge issued a warrant with a no-bond hold on Jan. 15, records show. The Randolph County Sheriff’s Office in North Carolina announced the fugitive’s arrest during a traffic stop on July 29, a release on house arrest, and an extradition hearing for July 31.

Records show Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Foeman on Wednesday, and corrections booked him at the Broward County Main Jail in Fort Lauderdale.

Foeman faced two counts of exploitation of an elderly person or disabled adult of $100,000 or more, a first-degree felony, according to court records. Broward County Circuit Judge Michael Lynch was set to preside over the case.

Local 10 News Senior Assignment Editor Frine Gomez contributed to this report.

En 2021, el padre de Brandon Foeman le otorgó autoridad legal para actuar en su nombre antes de someterse a varias cirugías, incluida una amputación, según una declaración jurada de causa probable de un detective de la Oficina del Sheriff de Broward (BSO).

Foeman, de Fort Lauderdale, “abusó de sus privilegios de poder notarial”, escribió un detective de BSO, según la declaración jurada firmada el 18 de septiembre de 2024.

Mientras su padre estaba hospitalizado, Foeman abrió una cuenta conjunta corriente y de ahorros en Citibank que posteriormente utilizó para realizar transferencias desde las cuentas de su padre, según la declaración jurada.

“El análisis de la cuenta corriente conjunta reveló miles de dólares en gastos… transacciones sospechosas”, escribió el detective, según la declaración jurada.

Hubo gastos relacionados con mascotas, que su padre no tiene; gastos en restaurantes mientras su padre estaba hospitalizado; y gastos durante viajes a Cancún, México, en 2021 y 2022, según la declaración jurada.

Foeman transfirió más de $57,495 USD en pagos del Seguro Social, alrededor de $159,000 USD en pagos de pensión de Miami Gese y alrededor de $30,000 USD en pagos de pensión de empleados a la cuenta corriente conjunta, según la declaración jurada.

Foeman también depositó dos cheques emitidos desde una cuenta de Florida Innovations & Technologies LLC por alrededor de $94,000 USD en la cuenta de ahorros conjunta, según la declaración jurada.

“Florida Innovations & Technologies LLC era una antigua empresa propiedad de [la víctima] y su socio comercial para realizar transacciones comerciales internacionales. [La víctima] estaba hospitalizada y no firmó ni autorizó estos cheques”, escribió un detective, según la declaración jurada.

Un juez del condado Broward emitió una orden de arresto sin derecho a fianza el 15 de enero, según muestran los registros. La Oficina del Sheriff del condado Randolph en Carolina del Norte anunció el arresto del fugitivo durante una parada de tráfico el 29 de julio, su liberación bajo arresto domiciliario y una audiencia de extradición para el 31 de julio.

Los registros muestran que agentes de la Oficina del Sheriff de Broward arrestaron a Foeman el miércoles y funcionarios correccionales lo ingresaron en la cárcel principal del condado Broward en Fort Lauderdale.

Foeman enfrentaba dos cargos de explotación de una persona de edad avanzada o adulto discapacitado por $100,000 USD o más, un delito grave de primer grado, según los registros judiciales. El juez de circuito del condado Broward Michael Lynch tenía previsto presidir el caso.

La editora sénior de asignaciones de Local 10 News, Frine Gomez, contribuyó a este reporte.

To compete in the increasingly commercialized world of college sports, programs of its size might spend more than $40 million a year on talent acquisition, revenue sharing and other costs, according to experts. But just five of Louisville's 23 sports generate any revenue, according to the athletic department. Only football and men’s basketball turn profits.

Louisville, like a growing number of major conferences ′ public universities, is trying to narrow that spending gap and its supporters are trying to help by creating a new organization to oversee everything from third-party multimedia deals to hospitality packages.

This spring, Louisville launched Cardinal Ventures, a nonprofit designed to help the athletic department leverage its brand to generate new revenue streams, all to keep pace with the multibillion-dollar market around compensating athletes for the use of their name, image and likeness.

“We live in a highly, highly competitive environment and industry,” Heird said. “And if there’s anything that anybody can do to try to create even the smallest sort of competitive advantage, then they’re gonna look to do that.”

The University of Kentucky also has a revenue-raising nonprofit. The University of North Carolina is actively discussing a limited liability company. So, too, is Louisiana State University.

There’s “feverish” interest from higher education in these offshoots, according to Clay Grayson, whose South Carolina law firm designed Clemson University’s in-house venture. There’s also scrutiny from Congress. Widespread privatization could further transform universities into profit-driven businesses resembling professional sports franchises, weaning them off fatigued donors and opening the door to private capital.

“Governmental universities don’t do commercial very well,” Grayson said. “Those nonprofits are the ones that kind of can get out into that space.”

Record high gifts underscore the spending spree. Virginia Tech touted an “unprecedented” $75 million commitment intended to “ensure a strong start” for its nonprofit Hokie Ventures. Michigan State bolstered its athletic department with a $401 million contribution that included an investment in its own Spartan Ventures.

Louisville’s Heird said he frequently finds himself discussing these new organizations with peers as they all look to boost their bottom lines.

At his school, he has found some “low-hanging fruit” with concerts. Louisville’s 60,000-seat football stadium largely sits dark outside of home games.

Country music star Zach Bryan recently lit up the field. The rapper Ludacris headlines an upcoming hip-hop billing. Planning is already underway for next year’s shows — each of which could bring seven-figure profits for the hosts.

Athletic directors seek flexibility, control and a ‘commercial engine’

These new efforts may not provide a “silver bullet,” but they do offer new revenue and something many athletic directors may value even more — more control.

The nonprofits and LLCs offer greater flexibility to crack the financing puzzle than the previous system. Bureaucracy can drag decision-making out for months. Key components of the fan experience — tickets, parking, merchandise, concessions— are often outsourced to vendors they don’t fully run.

“There is an unstoppable train that is college sports," said Jason Belzer, a Sequence Equity partner who advises schools on NIL deals. "The reality is that you need to create new platforms and paradigms to be able to successfully operate a business that no longer really sits with the original mission of college athletics -- at least at the higher levels.”

Everything is on the table for Syracuse University. Athletic director Bryan Blair sees an opportunity to corner New York's college sports market. It's the state's only Power Four conference school. And all five ticketed sports play under a 50,000-seat dome that brings what he called a “big state school feel."

The question is how to build a “commercial engine,” Blair said, whether it exists within his department or outside it.

“We’re trying to educate young people, give them a great experience. We’re trying win on whatever day of the week it is for whatever competition it is. We’re trying to be great stewards and ambassadors for our university,” Blair said. “But to do a lot of those things requires more revenue than ever before.”

Nonprofits join growing number of affiliates

Commercial affiliates aren't new to higher education. Some universities use them to monetize drug patents or manage copyright.

Take the University of Kentucky, believed to be the first school to convert its athletic department into a limited-liability holding company. Trustees already managed separate health systems through a not-for-profit that was primed to take ownership of its athletics offshoot.

Athletic director J Batt, who recently joined the Wildcats from Michigan State, expects these formations will become the norm rather than an exception. “And everybody will do the one that’s right for your campus,” he added.

Grayson, the legal architect behind many such models, said he mostly hears from members of the Power Four. Those 67 schools tend to be the only ones with large, competitive enough programs to spend beyond the revenue-sharing cap of $21.3 million this year. His firm has helped create affiliated entities at an estimated one in seven schools competing in the Southeastern Conference, the Big Ten, the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Big 12.

His model strays from the traditional nonprofit. He proposes smaller, seven-person boards in order to expedite decision-making. Some of the athletic ancillaries even own for-profits that handle taxable activities such as stadium concerts.

Another big difference: they’re not registered to fundraise because their focus is programmatic revenue. He recommends aligning these new ventures with existing fundraising organizations — like “two pedals of a bicycle.”

“If you get them moving in sync, you’ve got a powerful, powerful motor," he said.

Questions about charitable purpose and donor fatigue

It remains to be seen whether these new entities will alleviate donor pressure to bankroll costly football programs. Moreover, they raise the same question that murky NIL collectives did: what is the charitable purpose of an institution whose main goal is to generate more revenue for athletics?

The Internal Revenue Service decided many nonprofit NIL collectives were erroneously given charitable status. They served players, not the public good, so their activities were likely not exempt from taxes.

These affiliates are similar, in the view of an NIL tax consultant who previously worked at the IRS. Thad Madden, who studied NIL compliance issues for the agency, said he doesn't see any “charitable connotation."

“It's to serve the financial interest of the athletes so that they make the most possible money with the goal of putting the best team on the field,” Madden said.

That financial interest has fatigued donors, according to consultants who advise schools on issues of NIL. They're fielding more athletics solicitations even as universities continue fundraising for student scholarships, research projects and other functions.

It used to be that development officers could leverage donor interest in athletics to direct some funds towards academics. That's not so nowadays, according to University of Pennsylvania professor Karen Weaver, a former athletic administrator who studies the evolving college sports landscape.

“Athletics doesn’t have a revenue problem. It has a spending problem," Weaver said. "So, whatever dollar they bring in is gonna be spent on trying to get an advantage in athletics.”

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Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.

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According to deputies, the shooting was reported at about 1 a.m. in the 2300 block of Southwest 46^th Avenue.

A Local 10 News crew was at the scene as a body was on the ground.

Deputies confirmed that they arrived at the scene and found the victim, Zakari Christian Glass, 24, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.

Despite immediately administering life-saving measures, paramedics with Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue pronounced Glass dead at the scene.

“It’s not too safe around here, you know?” AC Jones, who lives in the area, said.

BSO Homicide Unit detectives are now investigating the circumstances surrounding the shooting.

A motive for the shooting remains unclear.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477. A reward of up to $5,000 is being offered for information that leads to an arrest and conviction.

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According to an arrest report from the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department, an officer was conducting a traffic stop near 17200 Collins Ave. at about 4 p.m. when a driver alerted the officer to a small child walking alone on the sidewalk.

The boy was walking north along the sidewalk parallel to Collins Avenue, police said. The officer reported that the boy had visible redness on his face and was carrying a half-eaten slice of pizza.

Police said the officer placed the child in a patrol vehicle while officers searched the surrounding area for his parents or guardians.

The officer showed the child’s photograph to several people before going to a nearby apartment complex on 174th Street in an attempt to identify him, the report stated.

According to the report, the officer later spotted a woman walking quickly outside the complex with a girl. The woman was identified as the boy’s mother and told police she was searching for her son, the report stated.

Police said she then contacted her husband, Semyon Levin, 63, who responded to the scene and told police the child had been under his supervision when he lost sight of him, the report states.

Investigators said Levin told them he had been eating at a nearby Starbucks at 17100 Collins Ave. with his son at about 3 p.m. when he lost sight of the boy.

Levin was then taken to the Sunny Isles Beach Police Department for further questioning.

According to the report, Levin waived his Miranda rights and told detectives during a recorded interview that he realized his son was missing but did not immediately contact police for help.

Investigators said Levin also told them that his 9-year-old and 7-year-old daughters had left Starbucks and walked home without an adult. Levin said he believed his son may have left with his 9-year-old sister, according to the report.

Police said Levin told detectives he frequently loses sight of the boy because his son has “too much energy,” making him difficult to keep track of.

When detectives asked why he did not call police after realizing the boy was missing, Levin said he did not believe the situation constituted an emergency, according to the report.

Investigators estimated the child was wandering alone for approximately one hour.

Police also alleged that Levin had opportunities to alert law enforcement after leaving Starbucks. According to the report, Levin saw an officer wearing a clearly marked police vest in the lobby of his apartment building, while an unmarked police vehicle with its emergency lights activated was outside. The officer was showing the child’s photograph to a security guard in the lobby at the time, authorities said.

Investigators concluded that Levin failed to provide the supervision and care required for his son and that his actions endangered the child’s safety and health.

Levin was arrested on a child neglect charge and transported to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center for processing.

As of Thursday morning, Levin remained jailed at TGK. Online jail records listed his bond as “to be set.”

Según un informe de arresto del Departamento de Policía de Sunny Isles Beach, un agente realizaba una parada de tráfico cerca de 17200 Collins Ave. alrededor de las 4 p.m. cuando un conductor alertó al agente sobre un niño pequeño que caminaba solo por la acera.

El niño caminaba hacia el norte por la acera paralela a Collins Avenue, dijo la policía. El agente reportó que el niño tenía enrojecimiento visible en el rostro y llevaba una rebanada de pizza a medio comer.

La policía dijo que el agente colocó al niño en un vehículo patrulla mientras los agentes buscaban en los alrededores a sus padres o tutores.

El agente mostró la fotografía del niño a varias personas antes de dirigirse a un complejo de apartamentos cercano en 174th Street en un intento por identificarlo, indicó el informe.

Según el informe, el agente posteriormente vio a una mujer caminando rápidamente afuera del complejo con una niña. La mujer fue identificada como la madre del niño y dijo a la policía que estaba buscando a su hijo, indicó el informe.

La policía dijo que entonces se comunicó con su esposo, Semyon Levin, de 63 años, quien acudió al lugar y dijo a la policía que el niño había estado bajo su supervisión cuando lo perdió de vista, según el informe.

Los investigadores dijeron que Levin les contó que había estado comiendo en un Starbucks cercano, ubicado en 17100 Collins Ave., con su hijo alrededor de las 3 p.m. cuando perdió de vista al niño.

Levin fue llevado posteriormente al Departamento de Policía de Sunny Isles Beach para ser interrogado.

Según el informe, Levin renunció a sus derechos Miranda y dijo a los detectives durante una entrevista grabada que se dio cuenta de que su hijo había desaparecido, pero no se comunicó de inmediato con la policía para pedir ayuda.

Los investigadores dijeron que Levin también les contó que sus hijas de 9 y 7 años habían salido de Starbucks y caminado hasta su casa sin un adulto. Levin dijo que creía que su hijo podría haberse ido con su hermana de 9 años, según el informe.

La policía dijo que Levin contó a los detectives que con frecuencia pierde de vista al niño porque su hijo tiene “demasiada energía”, lo que dificulta vigilarlo.

Cuando los detectives le preguntaron por qué no llamó a la policía después de darse cuenta de que el niño había desaparecido, Levin dijo que no creía que la situación constituyera una emergencia, según el informe.

Los investigadores estimaron que el niño estuvo deambulando solo durante aproximadamente una hora.

La policía también alegó que Levin tuvo oportunidades de alertar a las autoridades después de salir de Starbucks. Según el informe, Levin vio a un agente que llevaba un chaleco policial claramente identificado en el vestíbulo de su edificio de apartamentos, mientras un vehículo policial sin identificación tenía las luces de emergencia activadas afuera. En ese momento, el agente mostraba la fotografía del niño a un guardia de seguridad en el vestíbulo, dijeron las autoridades.

Los investigadores concluyeron que Levin no proporcionó la supervisión y el cuidado requeridos para su hijo y que sus acciones pusieron en peligro la seguridad y la salud del niño.

Levin fue arrestado por un cargo de negligencia infantil y trasladado al Centro Correccional Turner Guilford Knight para ser procesado.

Hasta la mañana del jueves, Levin permanecía detenido en TGK. Los registros de la cárcel en línea indicaban que su fianza estaba “por determinar”.

En 2022, la agencia federal estadounidense había impuesto una prohibición a las importaciones de azúcar y otros productos elaborados por Central Romana Corporation, Ltd., al acusar a la empresa de aislar a los trabajadores, retener salarios y propiciar condiciones abusivas de trabajo y de vida.

Sin embargo, la prohibición fue levantada el año pasado bajo el gobierno del presidente Donald Trump, lo que desató una protesta que se reavivó cuando la organización sin fines de lucro Corporate Accountability Lab publicó un informe el martes en que señaló que el trabajo forzoso persiste. El informe se publicó tras más de tres años de investigaciones.

El senador Ron Wyden, demócrata de Oregon, envió una carta el jueves a la CBP solicitando información sobre los motivos de la revocación de la prohibición. Acusó a la agencia de parecer “haber abandonado abruptamente sus propios procedimientos administrativos establecidos”.

“Eludir los procesos estándares de aplicación de las normas comerciales para corporaciones con conexiones políticas y propiedad de multimillonarios socava la integridad de la política comercial de Estados Unidos”, escribió Wyden.

Solicitó expedientes administrativos, recomendaciones finales y otros documentos relacionados con el caso.

The Associated Press solicitó comentarios a la agencia, que reconoció la solicitud enviada por correo electrónico, pero aún no había hecho declaraciones.

“Garantizar que los mecanismos de aplicación de las normas comerciales de Estados Unidos sean inmunes a la interferencia política y cumplan con los requisitos legales es fundamental para asegurar que el trabajo forzoso no ingrese ilegalmente en la cadena de suministro de bienes comprados inadvertidamente por empresas y consumidores estadounidenses”, sostuvo Wyden.

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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

U.S. Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East, said on social media that the carrier arrived in the region Wednesday. It was not clear when the USS Abraham Lincoln would arrive back in the U.S. or whether it would make a port stop along the way, but the journey takes just over a month.

The Washington arrived as concerns have grown about the Lincoln's lengthy deployment, which has included a record-setting uninterrupted time at sea of more than 250 days, and about reports of crew stress and poor mental health, as well as supply shortages, including food and hygiene products.

Several Democratic lawmakers have pressed the Department of Defense for accountability over conditions aboard the Lincoln, which Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said were “completely misrepresented.”

Hegseth spoke with the Lincoln’s crew last week, and Adm. Brad Cooper, head of U.S. Central Command, visited this past weekend. In an editorial published Sunday by The Wall Street Journal, Cooper said the crew “delivered a performance for the ages, and now you are going home.”

Extended deployments of carriers wear on service members who are away from home for long periods and increase strain on the ship and its equipment. While renewed hostilities between the U.S. and Iran calmed in recent weeks, the Navy is enforcing a reimposed blockade on Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz, and the Trump administration has offered no clarity on how it intends to wind down the war.

Hegseth has said the U.S. can maintain the blockade “indefinitely.”

President Donald Trump this week downplayed reports about conditions on the Lincoln, which left its homeport in San Diego in November and arrived in the Middle East in January. Trump called the nearly nine months at sea that the sailors endured a “good period of time” but added that “over the years, we’ve had them out there much longer.”

Trump told reporters Monday that he spoke with a retired admiral over the weekend who recounted being on ships for “much longer.” Trump said the admiral assured him that the Lincoln is “beautifully maintained and beautifully taken care of.” Trump did not name the admiral.

In a statement Sunday after visiting the Lincoln, Cooper praised the carrier's leaders for prioritizing mental health and resilience.

“History will record this deployment as one of the most operationally intense and consequential of the modern era,” Cooper said.

The Washington joins the USS George H.W. Bush in the Middle East, leaving Asia without an American carrier strike group at a time when China has shown more signs of aggression.

The lack of a U.S. carrier in the Pacific may be short-lived if the Navy deploys another in the next couple of months. But it shows how the open-ended operations with Iran are running some American sailors ragged, analysts say, while the Trump administration further retreats from the Asia-Pacific region and focuses on the Western Hemisphere.

Manuel Ernesto Hernandez-Umana, who has a pending federal criminal case in connection with the Aug. 8 crash, lied to a border officer and falsely claimed he was a U.S. citizen when he entered the country in Texas in 2007, the Department of Homeland Security said Wednesday.

Hernandez-Umana, 46, a citizen of El Salvador, is being held at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Elizabeth, New Jersey, according to online records. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said he will eventually be deported.

Immigration authorities arrested him after he was released on bail in his criminal case, where he is charged with causing the deaths of 5-month old Antonella Garcia and 27-year-old Sara Sanchez through misconduct or neglect.

According to prosecutors, Hernandez-Umana wasn’t licensed by the U.S. Coast Guard, wasn’t aware of basic safety rules and told investigators he’d borrowed his friend’s personal vessel for the New York Harbor excursion. The boat was illegally chartered and overcrowded, prosecutors said.

“Once he faces justice for his crimes, we will make sure that he is swiftly removed from our country,” Mullin said in a statement.

Hernandez-Umana's lawyer, Amy Gallicchio, declined comment.

Hernandez, who had been living in Manville, New Jersey, was not required to enter a plea at his initial court appearance in the criminal case on Aug. 10. He wiped his eyes as he arrived to the courtroom, still wearing the T-shirt, swim trunks and water shoes he’d had on during the voyage. He is due back in court on Sept. 9.

According to Coast Guard investigators, Hernandez was piloting a 21-foot Yamaha AR210 with 14 people aboard — well over its 10 person capacity — when it swamped and sank as it made a U-turn in choppy waters. The tour began around 7 p.m. and the vessel capsized more than three hours into its journey.

The infant wasn’t wearing a life preserver because the boat didn’t have any for small children, prosecutors said. Instead, Hernandez told Sanchez she needed to wear a life vest and hold the infant throughout the hourslong tour, a violation of federal regulations, prosecutors said.

The tour was organized through Zeus Luxury Rental Inc., which advertises its services on social media platforms including Instagram and TikTok. A boat chartered by the company caught fire last year during a birthday cruise on Long Island Sound.

According to his criminal complaint, Hernandez told investigators he had worked for Zeus Luxury on a freelance or contract basis since last year, starting as a limousine driver. He said that twice recently he used his personal boat, a slightly larger Yamaha AR250, but used a friend’s boat on Aug. 8 because his needed repairs, the complaint said.

Messages seeking comment were sent to a phone number and email address listed on Zeus Luxury’s website. The phone number’s voicemail was full, according to an automated recording.

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This story has been updated to correct that Homeland Security announced the arrest Wednesday, not Monday.

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According to the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, a woman was working at the front desk of the Salvation Army located at 1907 NW 38th St. when she received two calls from the same number, saying the man on the phone requested to speak with a specific case worker supervisor.

The woman told deputies the name associated with the phone number was displayed as “Alex Boom.”

On the second call, authorities said the woman put the man on speaker, and that’s when she and a second witness heard him say, “You know who I am, there’s a live bomb in the building.”

The building was subsequently evacuated and searched for explosive devices by MDSO K9 units, deputies said. After several hours, the building was deemed safe and people were allowed back inside.

Investigators determined that the phone number where the calls came from belonged to Juan Carlos Siblia-Lopez, who deputies said lived with his mother in Hialeah.

According to an arrest form, Siblia-Lopez confirmed that his phone was registered under the name “Alex Boom” and later confessed to calling in the bomb threat. He was then charged with falsely reporting a bomb threat.

As of Thursday morning, Siblia-Lopez was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center with bond listed as “to be set.”

Hurricane Lala tore roofs off houses, uprooted trees, covered roads in mud and rock and left many households without electricity. With thousands of homes and businesses still in the dark Thursday, forecasters warned another tropical cyclone is likely to form southeast of the islands soon.

A depression moving west and northwest could become a tropical storm later Thursday and pass near or south of Hawaii's Big Island over the weekend, according to the U.S. Central Pacific Hurricane Center. That system could dump up to 15 inches (38 centimeters) of rain across the Big Island and trigger life-threatening flooding, mudslides and rip currents, the hurricane center added.

Forecasters said the disturbance was located about 960 miles (1,545 kilometers) east-southeast of Hilo, Hawaii. But while it is expected to continue strengthening into the weekend, it was still too soon to forecast its exact path or the magnitude of its impacts.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green and other state officials planned a news conference Thursday afternoon to discuss preparations for the approaching system as well as ongoing recovery efforts from Lala, which has been blamed for two deaths.

Residents found the body of a man in his 60s in a pasture Tuesday, a day after authorities recovered the body of May Doi, 93, whom neighbors said was trying to escape from floodwaters in her home. Doi was a beloved former kindergarten teacher who taught generations of residents in a small town on Hawaii’s Big Island.

“She taught grandkids of her students,” said ʻĀina Akamu, a former student of Doi who is now a vice principal at a local school. “She was a fixture in this community.''

Lala's heaviest recorded rainfall, 43.54 inches (1.1 meters), occurred on the northeast coast of the Big Island, the National Weather Service said. Dozens of homes were washed from foundations, bridges were damaged and about 13,200 customers on the Big Island remained without power Thursday.

Efforts to restore power in the hard-hit areas of the Big Island could take at least two weeks, the Hawaiian Electric utility said.

Lala is the first major hurricane of 2026 in the Central Pacific Ocean. Now well west of Hawaii’s main islands, Lala had top sustained winds of 100 mph (155 kph) on Thursday and was spreading hurricane conditions across parts of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument — a remote area at the northwestern edge of the Hawaiian Archipelago. The first impacts were being felt between Lisianski Island and Maro Reef, authorities said.

Forecasters said Lala would continue to cross waters of the marine national monument for a few days and remain at hurricane strength through the weekend.

Even in that vast and remote area, people were seeking safety. A charter boat carrying a 16-member crew dedicated to removing marine plastics and abandoned fishing nets from the shores of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands got out of Lala’s projected path this week.

Kevin O’Brien, president of the nonprofit Papahanaumokuakea Marine Debris Project, said the vessel left Lisianski Island on Monday and headed hundreds of miles (kilometers) out to sea.

“We were ready for it,” O’Brien said. “We keep on our toes out here during hurricane season.”

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Ramer reported from Concord, New Hampshire. Associated Press writer John Raby in Charleston, West Virginia, contributed to this report.

Según la Oficina del Sheriff de Miami-Dade, una mujer trabajaba en la recepción del Ejército de Salvación, ubicado en 1907 NW 38th St., cuando recibió dos llamadas del mismo número, en las que el hombre al teléfono pidió hablar con un supervisor específico de trabajadores de casos.

La mujer dijo a los agentes que el nombre asociado con el número de teléfono aparecía como “Alex Boom”.

En la segunda llamada, las autoridades dijeron que la mujer puso al hombre en altavoz, y fue entonces cuando ella y un segundo testigo lo escucharon decir: “Ustedes saben quién soy, hay una bomba activa en el edificio”.

Posteriormente, el edificio fue evacuado y unidades K9 de MDSO lo registraron en busca de artefactos explosivos, dijeron los agentes. Después de varias horas, se determinó que el edificio era seguro y se permitió que las personas volvieran a entrar.

Los investigadores determinaron que el número de teléfono desde el que se hicieron las llamadas pertenecía a Juan Carlos Siblia-Lopez, quien, según los agentes, vivía con su madre en Hialeah.

Según un informe de arresto, Siblia-Lopez confirmó que su teléfono estaba registrado bajo el nombre “Alex Boom” y posteriormente confesó haber hecho la amenaza de bomba. Luego fue acusado de reportar falsamente una amenaza de bomba.

Hasta la mañana del jueves, Siblia-Lopez permanecía detenido en el Centro Correccional Turner Guilford Knight con una fianza que figuraba como “por determinar”.

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Opa-locka police said Aviouse Lucas, 41, walked into the Advance Auto Parts at 13400 NW 27th Ave. at around 4:15 p.m., grabbed several items without paying and left the store.

When confronted by a store employee, police said Lucas “placed her hand inside the purse area of her clothing” and said, “I have a gun and will shoot.”

Police said the employee backed off as Lucas got in her BMW with two of her children, aged 4 and 13, inside. Her 13-year-old daughter was the one behind the wheel and drove her off, police said.

Authorities said the employee provided vehicle and license plate information and they they went to Lucas’ home on Northwest 142nd Lane, finding both Lucas and the BMW there.

Police said she admitted to the robbery, having her children inside and having her 13-year-old be her getaway driver.

Officers arrested Lucas on charges of armed robbery, child abuse and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

She was being held in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center with a bond listed as “to be set” as of Thursday morning, records show.

La policía de Opa-locka dijo que Aviouse Lucas, de 41 años, entró al Advance Auto Parts ubicado en 13400 NW 27th Ave. alrededor de las 4:15 p.m., tomó varios artículos sin pagar y salió de la tienda.

Cuando una empleada de la tienda la confrontó, la policía dijo que Lucas “colocó la mano dentro del área del bolso de su ropa” y dijo: “Tengo un arma y dispararé”.

La policía dijo que la empleada retrocedió mientras Lucas subió a su BMW, donde estaban dos de sus hijas, de 4 y 13 años. Su hija de 13 años era quien estaba al volante y se alejó conduciendo, dijo la policía.

Las autoridades dijeron que la empleada proporcionó información sobre el vehículo y la matrícula, y acudieron a la vivienda de Lucas en Northwest 142nd Lane, donde encontraron tanto a Lucas como el BMW.

La policía dijo que ella admitió haber cometido el robo, haber tenido a sus hijas dentro del vehículo y haber hecho que su hija de 13 años fuera su conductora de fuga.

Los agentes arrestaron a Lucas por cargos de robo a mano armada, abuso infantil y contribuir a la delincuencia de una menor.

Lucas permanecía detenida en el Centro Correccional Turner Guilford Knight con una fianza que figuraba como “por determinar” hasta la mañana del jueves, según muestran los registros.

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As we discussed in yesterday’s newsletter, however, longer range forecast models continue to indicate the possibility of development by later next week with a strong tropical wave emerging over the eastern Atlantic around next Tuesday or Wednesday (August 25-26).

The development of this next candidate is by no means a lock, but the signal has been the most pronounced we’ve seen amongst all major models and modeling camps (AI and traditional physics-based models). We saw some models perk up with the last two waves – Invest 92L and Invest 94L – only to fall flat in later cycles as the waves fizzled. And even with this one, we’re seeing some hemming and hawing between model runs, with Google’s DeepMind peeling back its early enthusiasm in overnight runs.

Nevertheless, the difference between mid-August with the last two waves and late August with the one ahead is noteworthy, and the Atlantic is better primed to support development in late August and early September than it is just a few weeks prior, something we know well from climatology.

Systems this season will largely struggle, but late August through mid-October is kind of like July in the South. Even on “cool” days, it can still feel hot. A heatwave in July hits differently than one in March, and that’s why we stay vigilant this time of year. Hurricane season wants to give us storm-equivalent heatwaves by September, even in “cool” years.

The good news in late August and early September is the threats often, though certainly not always, originate over the wide open Atlantic, which gives us plenty of time to watch and prepare. That’s obviously the case here, and regardless, we have plenty of time to follow the trends.

For now, we don’t anticipate any tropical threats on the Atlantic side through at least the end of next week.

Another close call for Hawaii this weekend?

Meanwhile, out in the central Pacific, we can’t give the same reassurances to Hawaii, where officials are still assessing damage and only beginning recovery efforts in the wake of Lala last weekend.

Invest 90E, located about 1,000 miles southeast of Hawaii, is expected to gradually organize into a tropical depression and named storm (Moke pronounced MOH-keh) in the coming days as it moves in the general direction of Hawaii.

It’s too soon to know if future Moke will pose a direct threat to the islands, but models suggest it could be in the vicinity by this upcoming weekend.

Until the system fully forms, models will be jumpy, and for now, this is simply one that interests in the state – and particularly on the Big Island – should monitor. At least for now, conditions don’t seem as conducive to strengthening as they were with Lala, but it doesn’t take a direct hit from a hurricane to cause problems, especially in places with weakened infrastructure and still-swollen rivers from Lala’s historic rain.

Sin embargo, como comentamos en el boletín de ayer, los modelos de pronóstico a más largo plazo continúan indicando la posibilidad de desarrollo hacia finales de la próxima semana, con una fuerte onda tropical emergiendo sobre el Atlántico oriental alrededor del próximo martes o miércoles (25-26 de agosto).

El desarrollo de este próximo candidato no está garantizado de ninguna manera, pero la señal ha sido la más pronunciada que hemos visto entre todos los principales modelos y grupos de modelos (modelos de inteligencia artificial y modelos tradicionales basados en la física). Vimos que algunos modelos mostraron mayor actividad con las dos ondas anteriores, Invest 92L e Invest 94L, solo para perder fuerza en ciclos posteriores a medida que las ondas se disipaban. E incluso con esta, estamos viendo cierta indecisión entre las distintas ejecuciones de los modelos, con DeepMind de Google moderando su entusiasmo inicial en las ejecuciones nocturnas.

Sin embargo, la diferencia entre mediados de agosto, con las dos ondas anteriores, y finales de agosto, con la que se aproxima, es notable, y el Atlántico está mejor preparado para favorecer el desarrollo a finales de agosto y principios de septiembre que apenas unas semanas antes, algo que conocemos bien por la climatología.

Los sistemas de esta temporada tendrán dificultades en gran medida, pero desde finales de agosto hasta mediados de octubre es algo parecido a julio en el sur. Incluso en los días “frescos”, todavía puede sentirse calor. Una ola de calor en julio se siente diferente a una en marzo, y por eso permanecemos atentos en esta época del año. La temporada de huracanes tiende a darnos el equivalente de olas de calor en forma de tormentas para septiembre, incluso en años “frescos”.

La buena noticia a finales de agosto y principios de septiembre es que las amenazas a menudo, aunque ciertamente no siempre, se originan sobre el amplio Atlántico abierto, lo que nos da bastante tiempo para observar y prepararnos. Evidentemente, ese es el caso aquí y, de cualquier manera, tenemos bastante tiempo para seguir las tendencias.

Por ahora, no anticipamos ninguna amenaza tropical en el lado del Atlántico al menos hasta finales de la próxima semana.

¿Otro posible impacto cercano para Hawái este fin de semana?

Mientras tanto, en el Pacífico central, no podemos ofrecer las mismas garantías a Hawái, donde las autoridades todavía están evaluando los daños y apenas comienzan los esfuerzos de recuperación tras el paso de Lala el fin de semana pasado.

Invest 90E, ubicado a unas 1,000 millas al sureste de Hawái, se espera que se organice gradualmente hasta convertirse en una depresión tropical y una tormenta con nombre (Moke, pronunciado MOH-keh) en los próximos días mientras avanza en dirección general hacia Hawái.

Es demasiado pronto para saber si la futura Moke representará una amenaza directa para las islas, pero los modelos sugieren que podría estar en las cercanías para este próximo fin de semana.

Hasta que el sistema se forme por completo, los modelos serán inestables y, por ahora, este es simplemente un sistema que las personas en el estado, y particularmente en la Isla Grande, deben monitorear. Al menos por ahora, las condiciones no parecen tan favorables para el fortalecimiento como lo fueron con Lala, pero no se necesita el impacto directo de un huracán para causar problemas, especialmente en lugares con infraestructura debilitada y ríos que aún permanecen crecidos debido a las lluvias históricas de Lala.

The Hong Kong- and U.S.-listed company, which started out in e-commerce and online retail but is increasingly focused on AI technologies, said that its profit for April-June was at 10.5 billion yuan ($1.6 billion), down from 43.1 billion yuan ($6.4 billion) the same quarter last year.

Quarterly revenue grew 9% to almost 269 billion yuan (nearly $40 billion), with revenue from its AI cloud and compute services up 45% to 48.4 billion yuan ($7.2 billion).

But capital expenditures, including investments in AI infrastructure to meet customer demand, jumped 75% to 67.7 billion yuan (about $10 billion) during the quarter, weighing on profits.

Alibaba attributed the significant increase in spendings to factors including “fluctuations” in procurement cycles, increase in CPU, or central processing unit, compute capacity in anticipation of growing customer adoption of AI “agents” and higher pricing of chip components.

“As we continue to ramp up our supply, our AI and Cloud revenue growth will accelerate further in the coming quarters, alongside continued improvement in profitability,” said Alibaba CEO Eddie Wu in prepared remarks during an earnings conference.

Alibaba’s U.S.-traded shares fell more than 3% Thursday.

Alibaba, one of China’s biggest companies, said last year it planned to invest at least 380 billion yuan (about $56 billion) over three years in cloud computing and AI infrastructure.

It has been making advances with its flagship Qwen AI and has launched “agentic” AI services for commercial customers. In July, it previewed its Qwen3.8-Max AI model which the company said was “second only” to Anthropic’s Claude Fable 5.

It has also pledged an ambitious goal of surpassing $100 billion in terms of annual AI and cloud revenue within the next five years.

At just 1.9 pounds, the playful and curious little girl is already stealing hearts with her sweet personality.

HSBC’s Cherie Wachter said Matilda came to the shelter as a single kitten and is now ready for a loving family.

And if you’re a cat lover, HSBC also has a fun event coming up: Kitty Yoga this weekend at Retro Fitness in Cooper City, with classes at 9 and 10 a.m.

To learn more about Matilda, adoption opportunities and upcoming events, visit HSBC’s website.

Several of the 300 women, and a few men, said Clancy’s story resonated with them and that they wanted to raise awareness about how the mental health system treats women. Clancy's lawyer does not dispute that she killed the children, but says she should not be held criminally responsible because she was mentally ill.

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EDITOR’S NOTE: This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988.

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The livestreamed trial has sparked massive discussions online and has brought attention to postpartum psychosis, a rare mental illness Clancy's attorney Kevin Reddington says she had that is linked to the stress, sleep deprivation and hormonal changes that follow childbirth. Reddington said she also has bipolar disorder. After strangling her children, Clancy jumped from a second-story window and remains paralyzed from the waist down.

Reddington says Clancy repeatedly sought help: She turned to multiple outpatient providers, tried various drugs they prescribed, called a suicide hotline, went to an emergency room, and even checked herself into a psychiatric hospital.

Prosecutors say the former labor and delivery nurse planned the Jan. 24, 2023, killings and contrived to get her husband out of the house by sending him to pick up medicine for one of their children and dinner for the family. They have also questioned the seriousness of her suicide attempt, and witnesses have testified that Clancy wouldn’t always take prescribed medications.

Supporters stood silently for an hour

Thursday's rally was the first time during the nearly monthlong trial that supporters have come out in such large numbers.

“Women are being dismissed, neglected and ignored when we speak up,” said April Vincent, a 52-year-old paralegal from Providence, Rhode Island. “We’re scared because nobody takes us seriously.”

The women stood silently for more than an hour ahead of Thursday's proceedings, where a chaplain called by the defense testified about visiting Clancy in the hospital after the killings.

At the sight of Reddington outside the courthouse, the crowd broke into applause.

Rally organizer Renee Kimball implored the crowd to trust that Reddington “has Lindsay’s fight.”

Toward the end of their rally, supporters formed a circle, said the Lord's Prayer, held up their arms and formed hearts with their hands. Some held flags from different countries to show that the support for Clancy was global.

Clancy, 36, has pleaded not guilty to murder charges in the deaths of Callan, Dawson and Cora Clancy, who ranged from 8 months to 5 years old. Researchers estimate that postpartum psychosis — which is more serious and less common than postpartum depression — afflicts 1 to 2 per 1,000 women after delivery.

Jeanne Zaborski, a 72-year-old retired nurse from Rockland, Massachusetts, said she hopes the case raises awareness about postpartum health. She and many others at the rally said they had been following the trial almost daily.

“It's very sad,” Zaborski said. “I am a mother. I am a grandmother. I have a sister who had problems after birth and it's just very sad. I hope Lindsay gets the care she needs and deserves and other women will come together like we did today.”

Chaplain recalls one of the first things Clancy said to her

In court, Sheila Cavanaugh, a chaplain at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, testified that when she first visited Clancy, she was unconscious. By Jan. 31, 2023, Clancy was conscious and no longer connected to a ventilator, Cavanaugh said, but “her emotional state was very neutral – a flat affect.”

Cavanaugh said she “vividly remembers” one of the first things Clancy said to her.

“She said to me, as I held her hand to comfort her, ‘I’m so glad my children are safe,’” Cavanaugh said. “I replied theologically to Lindsay. I said, ‘Lindsay, your children are safe. They’re safe in heaven with God.’”

“We prayed for them,” said Cavanaugh, who saw Clancy more than 200 times and has visited her at the state mental hospital where she resides.

Cavanaugh said Clancy “alluded to hearing a voice, and the voice, according to Lindsay, told her that if she did not follow the command, neither she nor her children would be safe.”

Prosecutors questioned why Cavanaugh had not documented the disclosure about the voice in notes she made in Clancy’s hospital record.

“I’m not there to evaluate the patient; I’m there to bear witness to their suffering,” Cavanaugh said, noting that she is not medically trained and her notes aren't meant to be verbatim transcripts of conversations.

Their last visit was right before the trial started. She said Clancy “talks frequently about her children.”

“She loves them deeply,” Cavanaugh said. “She carries immense grief.”

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Associated Press journalist Leah Willingham contributed from Boston.

Reporters Without Borders said that filmmakers Gaël Mocaër and Sebastian Perez Pezzani and fixer Fred Vedomey were placed in pretrial detention Monday and charged with making “false declarations” in immigration procedures.

The Paris-based media freedom group, known by its French acronym RSF, called for their immediate release.

Mocaër and Perez Pezzani were filming an episode of a documentary series for a French public television network when police arrested the three on July 27 in Kara, northern Togo, RSF said.

Northern Togo has been plagued in recent years by attacks from armed groups linked to al-Qaida and the Islamic State group.

The detentions come as Togo has moved closer to Russia and to Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, three military-led countries that have expelled or sidelined French forces and strengthened relations with Moscow.

Russia and Togo signed a military cooperation agreement last year providing for joint exercises and military training.

Togo has also restricted French media. In June 2025, authorities suspended broadcasts by French international outlets Radio France Internationale and France 24 for three months, accusing them of inaccurate and biased reporting during their coverage of protests against leader Faure Gnassingbé.

RSF said that the filmmakers charged on Monday had applied for work visas and received authorization from Togo’s Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Arts.

Culture Minister Isaac Tchiakpé rejected RSF’s assertion that the filmmakers had received authorization from his ministry to carry out the documentary shoot.

“They would not have been detained if they had had the proper authorizations and followed the required procedures,” Tchiakpé told The Associated Press.

Togo’s media regulator, the HARC, said it had received no accreditation request from the filmmakers or France Télévisions, and hadn't been informed of their filming in northern Togo.

RSF said that police seized the crew’s equipment and detained the three, briefly releasing them July 30 before rearresting them and transferring them to the capital, Lomé.

RSF called the proceedings “unjustified” and “disproportionate,” and said that Perez Pezzani has serious health problems requiring immediate medical attention.

The Grand Slam Player Advisory Council was announced Thursday by the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. It will begin following the final major of the year, which begins next week in New York.

Players have been seeking a larger share of revenues from the Grand Slams, along with better representation, health options and pensions. Some limited their media appearances at the French Open and Wimbledon as a protest, with top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff among the stars who even threatened a potential boycott of the Slams before play began in Paris if they didn’t start receiving more compensation.

“The Grand Slams are the biggest events of the year and the events that the players prioritize and focus on throughout the season," American Jessica Pegula, the No. 3-ranked woman, said in a statement. "Their impact on a player’s career cannot be overstated, and that is why it is so important that we have a voice in matters at these tournaments."

The Grand Slams said the goal of the council will be to strengthen the partnership between the tournaments and the players, with a focus on player input into sporting matters at the events.

The tournaments and players are currently developing the composition and structure of the council. Interested players will be invited to apply for positions.

Along with matters that affect the Grand Slams collectively, the council will provide a forum for players to discuss things such as prize money and player welfare with each of the tournaments individually.

The Australian Open, French Open and U.S. Open are operated by non-profit governing bodies. Wimbledon is run by the private All England Club.

“We have listened to the players’ desire for a greater voice and this advisory council is an important step toward a stronger relationship between the Grand Slams and the players," said Deborah Jevans, chair of the All England Club. "We look forward to working together to elevate the player experience, further enhance the Grand Slam tournaments and ensure the sport continues to thrive.”

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See AP’s full tennis coverage here

In the latest such instance, the social media giant is fighting allegations in a California federal court that it contributes to the youth mental health crisis by deliberately and stealthily designing features to get children hooked on its platforms Instagram and Facebook. Four states are seeking billions of dollars in damages as well as fundamental changes to how Meta runs those apps.

Children’s mental health, and what they do and see on social media, are all issues “Meta takes seriously and tries to act on,” Paul Schmidt, a lawyer for the tech giant, said in opening statements this week.

Critics say the company's safety record falls short and that many of its protections simply don’t work.

They include Marc Berkman, executive director at the Organization for Social Media Safety, who said Meta introduced safeguards promising to protect children in response to public pressure rather than out of concern.

There’s been a “lack of real institutional willingness to act here,” Berkman said.

Here’s a look at some of the changes Meta has introduced, along with the work advocates say could still be done.

Access to users and content-focused protections

Most of the changes Meta has introduced focus on addressing harassment and offensive content.

Instagram users have always been able to block others — and, along with Meta’s oldest crown jewel, Facebook — the app has gradually added features for reporting problematic accounts and inappropriate content.

In 2016, Instagram users were given the option to delete or filter comments they found offensive, and later added warnings that prompted users to reconsider posting potentially harmful content, as well as options to limit comments and tags on their posts.

Meta also says it prevents adults from starting private chats with teens if they are not already connected, and has increased checks to make sure users under 13 — the minimum age for holding a Facebook or Instagram account — aren't online. Schmidt said in his opening remarks that Meta recognizes some users still sign up using incorrect birthdays but that the company takes enforcement of age limits seriously.

The company says it also posts warnings and resources at the top of Instagram search results related to suicide, self-harm and eating disorders, and touts its “Teen Accounts,” launched in 2024, as a safe space for teenagers online. It aligns photo and video restrictions for teen accounts with those for a PG-13 movie, unless there’s parental permission otherwise.

Critics complain these changes amount to little more than corporate posturing.

A September 2025 report from former employee and whistleblower Arturo Béjar and four online safety advocacy nonprofits accused Meta of not taking “real steps” to address youth safety, instead opting for “splashy headlines about new tools for parents and Instagram Teen Accounts for underage users.”

“We really found that overall what Meta was marketing under Teen Accounts was very lacking in actual protections,” said Haley Hinkle, policy counsel at Fairplay, which co-authored the report. They evaluated 47 of Meta’s 53 safety features for teens on Instagram and found 60% of them were either not available or didn't work as advertised, Hinkle said.

Meta called the report's findings “misleading” and “dangerously speculative.”

Scrolling and core design

Researchers say Meta's efforts to reduce the risk of children becoming addicted to the scrolling features of social media platforms have been largely unsuccessful.

Ashley Shea, a Ph.D. candidate specializing in social media and online spaces at Cornell University, points to what academics call “attention-capture deceptive designs” that are not exclusive to Meta's platforms. They include infinite scrolling, “casino style” pulls to refresh content, push notifications and algorithmic recommendations. Those features “prey on the cognitive vulnerabilities” of young people with developing brains, in particular the need to feel rewarded.

Meta has taken important steps to address problematic content, cyberbullies and sexual predators, Shea said, but she has not seen the same level of effort to offset the addictive impact of attention-capture deceptive designs.

Nudges and time management controls

“There’s no question that some teens struggle to manage their time with social media,” Schmidt said Tuesday, adding that Meta’s time management tools prove its evolution on the issue. Those tools include parental supervision controls and in-app “nudges” for teen users who repeatedly look at the same type of content or spend too long on Instagram or Facebook late at night.

Hinkle notes the “entirely voluntary” time management tools are not easy to set up, and amount to “far too little too late.”

Béjar, the former Meta employee and whistleblower, agrees. In testimony Wednesday, he said a tool called “Take a Break” is “designed to fail.” Users have to turn the feature on themselves and, he said, very few do.

Across the board, tech companies exist to maximize revenue, said Berkman, and for almost every social media platform today, that means “maximizing children using their features for as long as they can.”

Legal challenges focused on “the fact that these are defective products by design because of their features, not the content per se” is something new, Shea added. And beyond the courtroom, mounting pressure on lawmakers could bring more industrywide changes.

“The momentum only continues to grow,” she said. “Ultimately, these are for-profit companies that respond to economic pressures. And so I think that the more economic pressure they’re confronted with through these litigations, the quicker they will have to adapt.”

In 2022, the federal agency had imposed a ban on imports of sugar and other products made by Central Romana Corporation, Ltd., accusing the company of isolating workers, withholding wages and fostering abusive working and living conditions.

The ban, however, was lifted last year under the Trump administration, sparking an outcry that was revived when the nonprofit Corporate Accountability Lab published a report Tuesday noting that forced labor persists. The report was published following more than three years’ worth of investigations.

U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, sent a letter Thursday to Customs and Border Protection requesting information behind the reversal of the ban. He accused the agency of appearing “to have abruptly abandoned its own established administrative procedures.”

“Circumventing standard trade enforcement processes for politically connected, billionaire-owned corporations undermines the integrity of U.S. trade policy,” Wyden wrote.

He requested administrative records, final recommendations and other documents related to the case.

The Associated Press sought comment from the agency, which acknowledged the emailed request but had not yet commented.

“Ensuring that U.S. trade enforcement mechanisms are immune from political interference and adhere to statutory requirements is critical to ensuring that forced labor does not illegally enter the supply chain of goods unwittingly bought by American businesses and consumers,” Wyden wrote.

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Commander Thomas Rigo had finished work July 3 but stayed a little longer while patrolling the Intracoastal.

Then he heard a mother screaming from the shore.

Rigo looked over and saw Noah’s mother jumping into a pool after finding her daughter unresponsive.

“I look to my left. I see her jumping in the pool all dressed up, and she pulls this lifeless baby,” Rigo said.

Noah had nearly drowned in the pool, and her mother desperately needed help.

Rigo ran over and put his CPR training to work. He is certified as a CPR instructor in Bay Harbor Islands.

“I didn’t even realize what was going on in the moment. It just all, like, happened so quickly, but after, you know, he saved her life and we got to know what happened, we were just even more shocked at finding out the details that he happened to be on a boat at the right time,” Noah’s mother, Tiffany, said.

Then came the moment Noah’s family knew she was going to be OK.

“All I heard was her say, ‘Mama,’ and I like, I knew she was going to be OK,” Tiffany said.

Rigo was later honored with a lifesaving award.

“You saved our little girl, and honestly, there’s no other way that we could thank you besides constantly saying ‘thank you,’” Tiffany said.

Noah’s brother also made the moment even more special, hugging his sister and telling her to thank the commander.

“He saved you,” he told her.

The family and Rigo say they will be tied together forever after the lifesaving rescue.

El comandante Thomas Rigo había terminado de trabajar el 3 de julio, pero se quedó un poco más mientras patrullaba el Intracoastal.

Entonces escuchó a una madre gritando desde la orilla.

Rigo miró y vio a la madre de Noah saltar a una piscina después de encontrar a su hija inconsciente.

“Miro a mi izquierda. La veo saltar a la piscina completamente vestida y saca a esta bebé sin signos de vida”, dijo Rigo.

Noah estuvo a punto de ahogarse en la piscina y su madre necesitaba ayuda desesperadamente.

Rigo corrió hasta el lugar y puso en práctica su entrenamiento de RCP. Está certificado como instructor de RCP en Bay Harbor Islands.

“Ni siquiera me di cuenta de lo que estaba pasando en ese momento. Todo sucedió muy rápido, pero después, ya sabes, él le salvó la vida y supimos lo que había ocurrido, quedamos aún más sorprendidos al conocer los detalles de que él estaba en un bote justo en el momento indicado”, dijo Tiffany, la madre de Noah.

Luego llegó el momento en que la familia de Noah supo que ella estaría bien.

“Todo lo que escuché fue que dijo, “Mamá”, y supe que iba a estar bien”, dijo Tiffany.

Rigo fue homenajeado posteriormente con un reconocimiento por salvar una vida.

“Salvaste a nuestra pequeña y, sinceramente, no hay otra manera en que podamos agradecértelo aparte de decirte constantemente “gracias””, dijo Tiffany.

El hermano de Noah también hizo que el momento fuera aún más especial al abrazar a su hermana y decirle que le diera las gracias al comandante.

“Él te salvó”, le dijo.

La familia y Rigo dicen que estarán unidos para siempre después del rescate que le salvó la vida.

The milestone figure was recorded just five months after the U.S. hit a record $39 trillion debt in March. It reached $38 trillion five months before that, in October.

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US ramps up Cuba sanctions and detentions of Americans returning from the island

The Trump administration is imposing new sanctions on Cuba targeting its mining and metals sectors and broadening restrictions on Americans’ transactions with government-owned or affiliated businesses. It also accused Havana of using cultural and educational exchanges to radicalize U.S. citizens.

The Treasury and State departments announced sanctions on Thursday against 10 state-owned mining, metals, and construction companies and the leadership of the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples, or ICAP.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said ICAP is responsible for sponsoring a “subversive network” to “cultivate” Americans, most recently with educational and cultural exchanges around the 100th anniversary of Fidel Castro’s birth earlier this month.

The sanctions follow an operation at the Miami airport last weekend in which several American citizens returning to the U.S. from events marking Castro’s birthday in Cuba were briefly detained, some of whom had their cell phones and other personal electronic devices seized for inspection.

Federal agents seize devices from ex-Rep. Eric Swalwell in sexual misconduct probe, AP source says

Federal agents have seized electronic devices from former Rep. Eric Swalwell and searched his Washington home as part of an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct by the ex-Democratic congressman from California, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Swalwell’s devices were seized at the San Francisco airport on Saturday, and federal agents searched his home a day later.

A message seeking comment was left Thursday with an attorney for Swalwell.

Swalwell announced his resignation from Congress in April following sexual assault and misconduct allegations, which he has denied. The AP source wasn’t authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

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Bessent says bond buyback operation could be more than $4 billion

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said during a CNBC interview on Thursday that an accelerated buyback of government debt “could be more than $4 billion per issue.”

His comments followed the Treasury’s Wednesday announcement that it would dramatically expand the amount of U.S. government bonds it will buy back. When asked about the motivation for the move, Bessent said: “We’re trying to signal that this is a thinly traded area of the market, we’re in August and there’s been a lot of corporate issuances.”

“We’re trying to keep the market in equilibrium.”

Melania Trump is set to announce new scholarships for foster children

The first lady is partnering with IndyCar, the sanctioning body for U.S. auto racing, and Indiana and Purdue universities to fund the scholarships, her office says.

Both Indiana-based schools are joining about two dozen other institutions of higher learning to offer scholarships through Melania Trump’s “Fostering the Future” initiative benefiting young people in foster care.

A formal announcement is set for Thursday afternoon in the White House Rose Garden. The first lady will be joined by her husband and representatives from IndyCar and the universities.

The announcement comes just before Sunday’s Freedom 250 Grand Prix race in downtown Washington, which was organized by the president to help celebrate America’s 250th birthday.

US approves $4.5 billion sale of military aerial refueling planes to Qatar as Iran conflict lingers

The State Department said Thursday that it had given the green light for Qatar, a key U.S. partner in the Gulf, to buy four KC-46A aircraft along with assorted equipment, including turbofan engines, radar warning devices and countermeasure systems. The sale will also include trucks, training and assorted logistics services.

The sale “will increase Qatar’s capability to meet current and future threats by enhancing its defense capabilities and interoperability with U.S. and allied forces and reinforcing Qatar’s strategic role in regional security,” the department said.

Qatar, which hosts a major U.S. military base, has been a critical part of the war with Iran, including by trying to mediate an end to the conflict.

North Korea fires missile barrage toward the sea after dismissing overture from Trump

The launches come a day after North Korea shrugged off a U.S. decision to scale back military drills with South Korea in an apparent bid to resume diplomacy.

South Korea’s military said the launches of about 10 short-range ballistic missiles happened from North Korea’s capital region Thursday evening. The military said the missiles flew about 300 kilometers each toward North Korea’s eastern waters.

Trump ordered the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises just before they began Monday. The president cited what he said was a good relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korea’s refusal to support him over the war in Iran.

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White House legislative affairs director James Braid is leaving his post

Braid was in charge of helping to shepherd Trump’s legislative agenda through a Congress where his Republican Party controlled both chambers.

Vice President JD Vance wrote on X that Braid “played a critical role in all of the administration’s achievements in Congress,” including the sweeping tax and spending legislation approved last summer.

Vance described Braid as “brilliant” and “one of the hardest workers you will ever meet.”

The vice president didn’t provide details of Braid’s next job, saying only that he was “very excited to see what he does next.”

Fresh US aircraft carrier arrives in Middle East

The Asia-based USS George Washington aircraft carrier is now operating in the Middle East, the U.S. military said Thursday.

The Washington is relieving the long-deployed USS Abraham Lincoln after reports that sailors were facing mental health challenges and supply shortages while supporting the Iran war.

The Lincoln’s deployment has included a record-setting uninterrupted time at sea. Democratic lawmakers are pressing for accountability from the Pentagon over conditions aboard the carrier, which Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said were “completely misrepresented.”

The deployment of the Washington to the Middle East has left Asia without an American carrier strike group at a time when China shows more signs of aggression.

Rubio designates US citizen jailed in China as ‘wrongfully detained’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has designated a U.S. citizen scholar jailed in China as “wrongfully detained” as Trump prepares to welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping to the White House next month.

The State Department said Thursday that Rubio had decided that Min Zin, who was arrested by Chinese authorities in June, is being unjustly held.

“We call on Beijing to release all U.S. citizens arbitrarily detained or exit-banned in China,” the department said.

The designation raises the profile of his case within the U.S. government and in the past has led to additional attention and resources being devoted to securing the release of wrongful detainees.

Min Zin, who writes about Myanmar and Chinese foreign policy, was arrested on suspicion of spying. He was a student activist in Myanmar’s 1988 uprising, a student-led movement that the government at the time reacted to with military force. He eventually sought asylum in the U.S.

House Democrats add five new candidates to ‘red to blue’ program

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee said the expansion showcases the depth of its candidate bench as they try to wrest majority control of the House.

Chair Suzan DelBene said the candidates are “proven fighters” at a time when voters are “eager for leaders who will always put the well-being of their communities first, not rubber stamp Trump’s failed agenda.”

The candidates include retired Army Brigadier General Leela Gray in Florida, former federal prosecutor Zach Dembo in Kentucky, Maine state auditor Matt Dunlap, former Navy helicopter pilot Nancy Lacore in South Carolina and former Rep. Tom Perriello in Virginia. The “red to blue” program invests in promising candidates with funding and other support.

Democrats narrow their list of 2028 presidential convention sites

Democrats on Thursday narrowed the list of potential host cities for their 2028 presidential convention to Boston, Denver and Philadelphia as their party looks ahead to a wide-open primary to succeed President Trump.

Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin said in a statement the cities put forward “incredibly strong bids,” and he promised the convention would be an “inspiring celebration of our party’s future nominee.”

A final decision is expected to be made later this year by party leaders. Republicans have already chosen Houston for the site of their 2028 convention.

The Democratic convention, scheduled for Aug. 7-10, 2028, traditionally gives the party a chance to formally introduce its nominee to the country, rally the base and kick-start the most intense period of campaigning ahead of the general election.

The party didn’t specify why Atlanta and Chicago, which was the site of the 2024 convention, were eliminated. Officials visited all five cities in April and May, considering logistical and fundraising capacity among other factors.

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Trump plays White House tour guide to show off work on his helipad and ballroom

Trump played White House tour guide on Wednesday, showing off the helipad he is building on the lawn before leaning over to autograph a piece of it and bragging about the ballroom he’s rushing to complete despite legal challenges.

Trump gushed for several uninterrupted minutes about granite being laid and said the chopper landing area would leave visiting foreign leaders “very impressed” — including Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is coming next month.

At times, he sounded almost like a construction manager, singing the praises of granite over asphalt in painstaking detail and noting for reporters he brought out for the show that the stone could withstand 35,000 pounds per square inch of pressure.

The president also revealed for the first time that he has replaced the walkway from the White House’s diplomatic entrance along with a portion of the asphalt driveway around the South Lawn with white granite.

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The US national debt now stands at $40 trillion

The national debt surpassed a record $40 trillion Wednesday, a staggering milestone as defense costs, social programs like Social Security and Medicare and interest on the burgeoning deficit make up an enormous share of federal spending.

The milestone figure was recorded just five months after the U.S. hit a record $39 trillion debt in March. It reached $38 trillion five months before that, in October.

The unprecedented $40 trillion figure highlights competing administration priorities, from boosting defense spending that the U.S. relies on to carry out President Donald Trump’s almost 6-month-old war in Iran to lowering the cost of gas and groceries.

Kush Desai, a White House spokesman, said the Trump administration “has been focused on slashing waste, fraud, and abuse in federal spending while accelerating economic growth to get America’s debt-to-GDP ratio trending in the right direction.”

However, experts say the exploding debt and the latest record milestone are already affecting Americans’ pocketbooks by raising borrowing costs for things like mortgages and cars, lowering wages from businesses that have less money available to invest, and creating more expensive goods and services.

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El presidente cubano Miguel Díaz-Canel admitió a principios de esta semana que el sistema de salud, uno de los llamados “grandes logros” de la Revolución cubana, está al borde del colapso total. Hay miles de cubanos en la isla esperando cirugías que no pueden realizarse debido a la falta de médicos, medicamentos, equipos y las malas condiciones de los hospitales.

Durante años, Cuba ha estado enviando brigadas médicas alrededor del mundo para ayudar a pagar su deuda y exportar los ideales de su revolución. El gobierno de Estados Unidos ha acusado a Cuba de trata de personas por estas acciones.

18 de agosto: Estrategia de Trump para Cuba: ¿Realmente hay un plan?

¿Realmente tiene la administración del presidente Trump un plan para Cuba?

Después de meses de intercambios retóricos, uno comienza a preguntarse si la administración del presidente Trump realmente sabe qué hacer con Cuba. Seguimos escuchando que al secretario de Estado Marco Rubio se le asignó la responsabilidad de encargarse de Cuba y del resto de América Latina, región que conoce extremadamente bien. Pero, por lo que escucho, altos funcionarios de la Casa Blanca siguen interfiriendo.

Continuar sancionando operaciones e individuos en Cuba no hará caer al gobierno. Ahora escuchamos del secretario Rubio y de miembros de nuestra delegación cubanoamericana en el Congreso que la fecha prevista se ha aplazado, y esperan que para 2029 se hayan producido cambios en Cuba, lo cual es absolutamente ridículo.

14 de agosto: Cuba recurre a inversionistas globales mientras las sanciones de EE. UU. y las reclamaciones de propiedades elevan los riesgos

El gobierno cubano se ha dado cuenta de que los esfuerzos para atraer inversiones de empresas estadounidenses y de cubano-estadounidenses han fracasado en gran medida debido a las numerosas sanciones impuestas por Estados Unidos y al hecho de que los riesgos aún superan las oportunidades.

Sin embargo, el gobierno cubano está tratando con mucho empeño de atraer empresas de todo el mundo para que se hagan cargo de muchas operaciones y negocios en Cuba. Con muchos hoteleros europeos y otras empresas que recientemente han abandonado Cuba, seguirá siendo un desafío atraer nuevos inversionistas.

Una cosa que estas empresas deberían tener en cuenta antes de comenzar operaciones en Cuba es que podrían estar operando en propiedades que fueron confiscadas por el gobierno cubano a principios de la década de 1960. Como resultado, podrían enfrentar posibles desafíos legales en el futuro.

Solo para las empresas estadounidenses, hay 5,913 negocios y propiedades que fueron confiscados y registrados ante el Departamento del Tesoro de Estados Unidos.

13 de agosto: El centenario del nacimiento de Fidel Castro genera reflexión sobre su legado en Cuba

El jueves se cumple el centenario del nacimiento de Fidel Castro, un hombre cuya personalidad narcisista tomó el control de Cuba después de derrocar a Fulgencio Batista el 1 de enero de 1959. Hizo promesas al pueblo cubano que posteriormente traicionó por sus propias ambiciones egoístas y sed de poder.

En su juicio del 16 de octubre de 1953, tras el fallido ataque contra los cuarteles militares de Moncada en Santiago de Cuba, dijo la famosa frase: “La historia me absolverá”.

Al final, la historia lo juzgará como un dictador despiadado que destruyó Cuba, empobreció a su pueblo e infligió un sufrimiento tremendo a toda una nación.

12 de agosto: Cuba representa un difícil desafío de política exterior para Rubio

“Quién va primero, quién va segundo, No Sé va tercero”.

La famosa rutina cómica de Abbott y Costello puede compararse con las estrategias de política exterior de la administración Trump en estos días. Las negociaciones diplomáticas son complejas y complicadas, especialmente cuando se trata de países, gobiernos e individuos con los que Estados Unidos no ha tenido buenas relaciones.

Fuentes confiables me dicen que existen enormes diferencias entre los equipos de la Casa Blanca y el Departamento de Estado sobre cómo manejar las negociaciones relacionadas con Ucrania, Rusia, Israel-Gaza, Irán, Venezuela y Cuba. No ayuda que quienes negocian en nombre de Estados Unidos tengan poca o ninguna experiencia diplomática.

Por ahora, mantengámonos dentro del área de experiencia: Cuba. Mientras el presidente Trump piensa que Cuba puede resolverse en dos meses, el secretario de Estado Marco Rubio sabe muy bien, al igual que su equipo de alto nivel, que negociar con Cuba no es fácil.

El gobierno cubano está dispuesto a continuar introduciendo cambios cosméticos en su moribunda economía sin renunciar al control político. Estados Unidos puede continuar sancionando a todos en la isla, y al gobierno cubano no podría importarle menos. Mientras tanto, el pueblo de Cuba continúa sufriendo enormes dificultades. Sin embargo, es poco probable que el pueblo se vuelva contra el gobierno. La consecuencia de hacerlo puede significar pasar años en prisión.

Mientras tanto, en Miami, continúa el juego de adivinanzas sobre quién reemplazará a Raúl Castro cuando muera, junto con los preparativos para posibles planes de transición para Cuba. Una transición hacia un sistema democrático de gobierno en Cuba tomará tiempo. Una sociedad civil no puede construirse de la noche a la mañana. También es importante recordar que Cuba no tenía un gobierno democrático antes de 1959.

Para Rubio, las expectativas de la comunidad cubanoamericana son altas. Sin embargo, la mayoría de la comunidad entiende que no será fácil lograr que el gobierno cubano realice cambios políticos, salvo mediante una invasión militar estadounidense. Sin embargo, Rubio necesita una victoria, especialmente si está considerando otra candidatura presidencial. Los fracasos de las políticas exteriores de la administración Trump en todo el mundo podrían afectar la futura campaña presidencial de Rubio.

Entonces, ¿cuál será el próximo paso de Rubio sobre Cuba? El reloj está corriendo.

10 de agosto: ¿Atrapará el gato al ratón esta vez?

Mientras el secretario de Estado de Estados Unidos, Marco Rubio, continúa presionando al gobierno cubano para que cambie, el presidente cubano Miguel Díaz-Canel apareció en la televisión cubana este pasado fin de semana y anunció al pueblo cubano que el gobierno estaba realizando importantes “cambios transformadores” en la economía.

Díaz-Canel también dijo al pueblo cubano que se necesitarían tiempo y paciencia, dos cosas que el pueblo cubano ya no tiene. Díaz-Canel continuó diciendo que los beneficios de estos cambios comenzarán a verse para 2029.

Fuentes en Washington, D.C., me han dicho que la administración del presidente Trump está buscando determinar si hay alguien en el gobierno cubano, como Delcy Rodríguez en Venezuela, que entregue a Raúl Castro o incluso asuma el control del actual gobierno y esté dispuesto a negociar con Estados Unidos.

El Miami Herald reportó este fin de semana que el general Lázaro Alberto Álvarez Casas, actual ministro del Interior de Cuba, podría ser aceptable para Estados Unidos. El general Casas es considerado de línea dura y, por lo tanto, es poco probable que rompa con el liderazgo cubano.

Como he dicho antes, el caso de Venezuela es bastante diferente al de Cuba. Mientras Raúl Castro esté vivo, creo que el gobierno cubano continuará en el poder y hará promesas al pueblo cubano que no puede cumplir.

8 de agosto: Líder opositor cubano dice que la transformación de Cuba debe incluir a quienes están en la isla

Según el líder opositor cubano José Daniel Ferrer, cualquier plan para transformar Cuba debe incluir a los cubanos que están en la isla.

Pero, ¿tienen los cubanos en la isla la capacidad y las herramientas para participar en un proceso de este tipo? Después de vivir durante casi 68 años bajo un sistema totalitario que ha moldeado los valores y las actitudes personales de la población, podría tomar tiempo no solo cambiarlo sino, más importante aún, mantener esos cambios.

Las democracias no se construyen en un día. Se necesitará tiempo y paciencia. Recordemos también que antes de la Revolución Cubana, Cuba tuvo una dictadura bajo Batista.

6 de agosto: Estados Unidos anuncia un nuevo paquete de sanciones económicas contra Cuba; también sanciona a dos de los principales generales cubanos

El Departamento de Estado de Estados Unidos anunció el jueves un nuevo paquete de sanciones económicas contra Cuba. Al mismo tiempo, también fueron sancionados dos de los principales generales de Cuba: Álvaro López Miera, ministro de Defensa, y el general Roberto Sotolongo, jefe de las Fuerzas Armadas.

5 de agosto: Según informe, la CIA crea grupo de trabajo sobre Cuba

The New York Times informó sobre la creación de un grupo de trabajo de la CIA sobre Cuba con el propósito de ejercer mayor presión sobre el gobierno cubano para que implemente cambios políticos y económicos en su sistema.

Esta noticia probablemente será recibida por Cuba como una amenaza adicional por parte de Estados Unidos.

5 de agosto: Presidente cubano confirma conversaciones en curso entre La Habana y Estados Unidos

El presidente de Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel, confirmó hoy que existen conversaciones en curso entre La Habana y Washington con el propósito de evitar una confrontación militar y tratar de encontrar soluciones a los problemas entre ambas naciones.

El gobierno cubano entiende que se está quedando sin opciones y que, muy probablemente, necesitará llegar a un acuerdo con Estados Unidos. ¿Incluirá un cambio de régimen?

Actualización del 3 de agosto: Rubio habla sobre las actividades de espionaje de Cuba en Estados Unidos

El pasado fin de semana, en una entrevista con Fox News, el secretario de Estado y asesor de Seguridad Nacional de Estados Unidos, Marco Rubio, habló sobre las actividades de espionaje que Cuba continúa realizando en Estados Unidos.

Rubio afirmó que espías cubanos continúan infiltrándose en el gobierno de Estados Unidos, instituciones financieras, organizaciones e instituciones académicas. También sostuvo que Cuba sigue representando una amenaza para la seguridad nacional de Estados Unidos.

El Dr. Andy S. Gómez es el analista de Cuba de Local 10. Gómez es considerado uno de los principales especialistas sobre Cuba. Trabajó durante 32 años en el ámbito de la educación superior antes de retirarse de la Universidad de Miami en 2012.

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Deputies said Itiaba Ekong, 36, is charged with first-degree felony murder, burglary with an assault and/or battery and grand theft.

According to authorities, MDSO deputies with the Intracoastal District responded to the area of Northeast 199th Street and 10th Avenue at about 10:20 p.m. on Feb. 4, 2021, to conduct a welfare check and found an unresponsive man wrapped in a blanket.

The man, identified as Lenoris Henry Marlowe, 45, had stab wounds on his body and was pronounced dead at the scene by Miami-Dade Fire Rescue medics, authorities said.

“For over five years, detectives worked tirelessly to uncover what happened and bring justice to the victim’s friends and family,” MDSO officials said in a news release. “Through investigative means, detectives identified the subject as Mr. Itiaba Ekong. Mr. Ekong admitted to detectives that he stabbed the victim.”

Court records show Ekong is already serving a life sentence for another case in which he was convicted of armed robbery.

Records show he has a lengthy criminal history involving convictions for crimes such as burglary, grand theft, simple battery, armed robbery and trafficking in stolen property.

A motive for the 2021 stabbing has not been confirmed by detectives.

Los agentes dijeron que Itiaba Ekong, de 36 años, enfrenta cargos de asesinato en primer grado durante la comisión de un delito grave, robo con allanamiento con agresión y/o lesiones y hurto mayor.

Según las autoridades, agentes de MDSO del Distrito Intracoastal respondieron al área de Northeast 199th Street y 10th Avenue alrededor de las 10:20 p.m. del 4 de febrero de 2021 para realizar una verificación de bienestar y encontraron a un hombre inconsciente envuelto en una manta.

El hombre, identificado como Lenoris Henry Marlowe, de 45 años, tenía heridas de arma blanca en el cuerpo y fue declarado muerto en el lugar por paramédicos de Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, dijeron las autoridades.

“Durante más de cinco años, los detectives trabajaron incansablemente para descubrir qué ocurrió y hacer justicia para los amigos y familiares de la víctima”, dijeron funcionarios de MDSO en un comunicado de prensa. “Mediante técnicas de investigación, los detectives identificaron al sospechoso como el Sr. Itiaba Ekong. El Sr. Ekong admitió ante los detectives que apuñaló a la víctima”.

Los registros judiciales muestran que Ekong ya cumple una condena de cadena perpetua por otro caso en el que fue declarado culpable de robo a mano armada.

Los registros muestran que tiene un extenso historial criminal que incluye condenas por delitos como robo con allanamiento, hurto mayor, agresión simple, robo a mano armada y tráfico de propiedad robada.

Los detectives no han confirmado el motivo del apuñalamiento de 2021.

“We can only do the bare minimum,” WFP executive director Carl Skau said Wednesday during a visit to a nutrition center on the outskirts of the capital, Mogadishu. “We’re only providing these nutrition supplies to the children that are really the worst hit.”

The reduced funds, because of cuts in international aid by donors and the redirection of resources to other humanitarian crises, meant that the WFP is unable to expand its assistance in Somalia, Skau said.

Millions of people at risk but far less aid

The WFP projects that 1.9 million children under age 5 in the country will suffer acute malnutrition this year, including nearly 500,000 who will require urgent treatment for severe acute malnutrition. Overall, around 30% of the population faces critical levels of food insecurity, the U.N. has said.

“We had 10 times more resources than now,” Skau said of the 2022 hunger emergency that was caused by a prolonged drought. “We were able to step in, and we prevented a famine here in Somalia."

“We know what’s going on, we have the capacity, we have the experience of dealing with this. We just need the resources now to do it.”

The consequences of the current food shortage, which is also a result of drought, conflict and the displacement of people, are seen at the Feynuus Health Center in Mogadishu’s Kahda district. Dozens of women carrying babies waited beneath a large tree or crowded along the veranda of the corrugated-metal facility seeking help.

Inside, health workers placed children in a blue weighing sling, screened them for malnutrition, and distributed therapeutic food.

One desperate mother tells her story

Halima Mohamed Hassan, a mother of six, had walked nearly 3 kilometers (2 miles) carrying her malnourished 4-year-old child. She is pregnant, but said she hadn't eaten for two days. Her last meal was plain rice.

Health workers treated the child she brought with a special nutrient-dense food, while Hassan said that her other children were also malnourished, but she wasn't able to bring them to the center.

“I could not carry all of them,” she said.

Hassan fled the Lower Shabelle region four months ago after her husband died of malnutrition, she said. Food and water became scarce, and conflict made it increasingly dangerous for the family to stay.

She and her children walked for four nights before reaching a camp for internally displaced people on Mogadishu’s outskirts.

Hassan now shares a makeshift shelter with her widowed mother and her mother's four other children. The two women look for occasional work washing clothes in nearby neighborhoods to feed their household of 12.

A health center tries its best to help

The Feynuus center receives between 250 and 350 patients daily, mainly displaced women and children from regions outside Mogadishu, said Abdirahman Barkhad, program director of Youth Link Somalia, which operates the center.

Barkhad said that about 10 nearby health and nutrition centers had closed because of a reduction in humanitarian funding, increasing pressure on those that remain.

“We have witnessed children collapsing, because their families do not have enough food,” he said.

Mohamud Moallim Abdulle, commissioner of the Somali Disaster Management Agency, described the country’s food situation as “extremely alarming.”

He said that an estimated 1.85 million children are malnourished, while around 6 million people are affected by drought, and 2 million urgently need assistance.

They don’t know where their next meal is

Skau said that mothers he met this week in the town of Burhakaba described drought, insecurity, and also rising food prices as the main drivers of the crisis. Some had lost their crops and fled their homes. Others walked for three or four hours to reach health facilities, because aid workers couldn't reach them.

“I spoke to women with eight to 10 children,” Skau said. “They don’t know where the next meal is going to come from.”

Insecurity, with Somalia battling a 20-year-long insurgency by the al-Shabab militant group, also makes humanitarian operations more expensive. WFP must use aircraft in areas where staff and supplies can't travel safely by road, and some communities are inaccessible, Skau said.

He said that conflict in the Middle East was adding to the pressure by driving up fuel and food prices, limiting agricultural supplies, and drawing funding toward other emergencies.

After her child received some food at the center, Hassan began the walk back to the camp they live in. Her five other children were still waiting and hungry, she said, and she would have to return with them one at a time.

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Bodeen died Monday after a struggle with cancer and complications from a stroke, his daughter, Ingrid, said Thursday by telephone from Taiwan.

Bodeen, who spoke fluent Mandarin with a proud Taiwan accent, spent much of his career detailing China's rise to an economic, political and military superpower — and the accompanying friction from what critics have long called Beijing’s heavy-handed efforts to establish dominance in Asia and beyond.

“Chris was a reporter who would go anywhere and do anything for the story,” said Charles Hutzler, AP's former bureau chief in Beijing. After a huge quake flattened a swath of Sichuan province in 2008, Bodeen composed his account from one devastated town sentence by sentence over text messages because of damaged telecommunications networks. "It was one of the first eyewitness reports the AP and the world received about one of the worst earthquakes in decades,” Hutzler recalled.

He was an expert on politics and Chinese military issues

From AP bureaus in Shanghai, Beijing and Taipei, Bodeen was for years the news agency's go-to person on Chinese politics and military issues, able to quickly determine the newsworthiness of the government's often abstruse statements.

“A chat with Chris would inevitably turn into a remarkable history lesson," said Emily Wang Fujiyama, former Greater China news director. “He had astounding knowledge of the region and would be writing about China’s military presence in the South China Sea, pivot to Taiwan’s intricate politics, and just as deftly write about the political sensitivities of Tibet, Mongolia and China.”

Bodeen was born in Missouri on Sept. 9, 1970, but he spent parts of his childhood in the Middle East, Europe, Africa and Asia. His father was a foreign service officer and his mother a former diplomat, his daughter, Ingrid, said. Friends and colleagues remembered his love of the Boston Red Sox, esoteric punk rock -- and his contagious enthusiasm for the job of journalism.

"He was the blondest, palest person you’ll ever meet” yet also spoke pitch-perfect Chinese, said Ted Anthony, AP’s former China news editor and news director for Asia. “So when the earthquake in Sichuan happened in 2008, he went out there, put on one of his ever-present ballcaps to cover his hair, and slouched down. He passed as Chinese, started interviewing people and sailed under the scrutiny of the authorities.”

He was 'always ready for adventure’

Bodeen joined the AP in 1996, in Taiwan, the self-governing democratic island China claims as its own, before working as an editor on the agency’s international desk in New York and then joining the AP bureau in Beijing as a correspondent, in 2000. He majored in history and Asian studies at Tufts University, graduating in 1993.

“Chris Bodeen was always ready for adventure. Hiding in the hills of Hainan Island, China, to try to report on the return of an American Air Force plane forced down in 2001, he was the best colleague to be with,” said Raf Wober, a video journalist in the AP's Hong Kong bureau.

In a 2017 story on efforts to burnish the image of Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Bodeen described state broadcaster China Central Television leading its evening national news bulletin “with more than four minutes of uninterrupted clapping for Xi as he met with adoring citizens,” and a Russian translator who “was so engrossed with reading a recent speech by Xi, Xinhua (the official news agency) said, that he skipped lunch and dinner just to finish studying it.”

While much of this might have seemed amusing to outsiders, Bodeen was careful to note that “the domination of (Xi’s) image in official propaganda evokes, for some, the painful memories of the upheaval of the 1960s and ’70s, when Mao (Zedong) was accorded the status of a near deity.”

Julie Pace, AP's executive editor, remembered Bodeen as not only an effective China correspondent but as a fellow journalist whose knowledge elevated those around him.

“Chris cared deeply about his work and the value of on-the-ground reporting in such an important region of the world," she said. "His expertise informed AP’s audiences for so many years, but also helped lift up so many colleagues.”

Passion for family and work was his hallmark

Bodeen was deeply proud of his two daughters and loved showing off their artwork and achievements — and creative Halloween costumes — to colleagues. “Every parent thinks their kids are the best, but, hand to God, these girls are both adorable and seriously tough cookies,” he wrote of his children.

“He truly, passionately loved what he did, as much as he loved being a dad," Ingrid Bodeen said. She recalled that when her father spent long stints reporting from Afghanistan during her childhood, “he would always have my mom fax over my spelling lists and homework so we could work on them together. He never missed a spelling test week.”

Bodeen was also beloved by colleagues for his sharp sense of humor, his knowledge of good local food and an encyclopedic knowledge of movie and TV comedies from the ’70s and ’80s.

Kanis Leung, an AP reporter in Hong Kong, said that Bodeen once told her about an old correspondent's description of news reporting as “the art of shoving 50 pounds of oatmeal into a 10-pound sack."

“Except,” Bodeen told Leung, "he didn’t say oatmeal.”

Bodeen is survived by his wife, Yen Ling, daughters Ingrid, 26, and Naomi, 22, his parents and a sister.

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Medley police officers escorted Miguel Antonio Perez, 34, and his mother, Maria Rodriguez, 60, from the police department to jail after the two were arrested Wednesday morning in Miami Beach.

They now face felony charges, including organized scheme to defraud and grand theft.

“The investigation revealed that company president Maria Rodriguez was entrusted with the company’s financial accounts, credit cards and payrolls,” said Andres Oviedo, a Medley police public information officer.

Police launched an undercover investigation, called Operation Iron Illusion, in April 2025 after officers responded to a report of financial fraud at Iron Container Holdings LLC.

Detectives found that Rodriguez allegedly used company funds for private luxury purchases, disguising them as miscellaneous company expenses.

Police also say she hired her son, Perez, as a security guard, initially setting his salary at $42,000 a year.

According to warrants, Rodriguez later made the security guard position remote and increased Perez’s salary to $114,000. Investigators say Perez never actually performed any security duties.

The investigation found that the two allegedly used company credit cards to pay for a Brickell condo, an elite gym membership, designer clothing from Saks Fifth Avenue and car insurance.

The alleged spending also included rentals for a luxury yacht and a Mercedes-Benz S-Class.

“The fraud leaves a trail,” Oviedo said. “And trails can be followed.”

As of Wednesday, Rodriguez and Perez remained at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. Their bonds were each set at $30,000.

Police said they will continue using every available resource to investigate similar crimes.

Agentes de la policía de Medley escoltaron a Miguel Antonio Perez, de 34 años, y a su madre, Maria Rodriguez, de 60, desde el departamento de policía hasta la cárcel después de que ambos fueran arrestados la mañana del miércoles en Miami Beach.

Ahora enfrentan cargos por delitos graves, entre ellos esquema organizado para defraudar y hurto mayor.

“La investigación reveló que a la presidenta de la empresa, Maria Rodriguez, se le habían confiado las cuentas financieras, tarjetas de crédito y nóminas de la compañía”, dijo Andres Oviedo, oficial de información pública de la policía de Medley.

La policía inició una investigación encubierta, denominada Operación Iron Illusion, en abril de 2025 después de que agentes respondieran a un reporte de fraude financiero en Iron Container Holdings LLC.

Los detectives determinaron que Rodriguez presuntamente utilizó fondos de la empresa para compras personales de lujo, ocultándolas como gastos diversos de la compañía.

La policía también dice que contrató a su hijo, Perez, como guardia de seguridad, fijando inicialmente su salario en $42,000 USD al año.

Según las órdenes judiciales, Rodriguez posteriormente convirtió el puesto de guardia de seguridad en remoto y aumentó el salario de Perez a $114,000 USD. Los investigadores dicen que Perez nunca realizó ninguna labor de seguridad.

La investigación determinó que ambos presuntamente utilizaron tarjetas de crédito de la empresa para pagar un condominio en Brickell, una membresía en un gimnasio exclusivo, ropa de diseñador de Saks Fifth Avenue y seguro de automóvil.

Los presuntos gastos también incluyeron el alquiler de un yate de lujo y de un Mercedes-Benz Clase S.

“El fraude deja un rastro”, dijo Oviedo. “Y los rastros pueden seguirse”.

Hasta el miércoles, Rodriguez y Perez permanecían en el Centro Correccional Turner Guilford Knight. Sus fianzas fueron fijadas en $30,000 USD para cada uno.

La policía dijo que continuará utilizando todos los recursos disponibles para investigar delitos similares.

Salazar, de 64 años y actual representante, ganó el martes las primarias republicanas con 81% de los votos. V. Michael Arias, un abogado de Coral Gables y su único oponente, perdió con 19% de los votos.

Según los informes de la Comisión Federal de Elecciones de EE. UU. sobre las contribuciones de campaña, el total de ingresos de Salazar superó los 1,99 millones de dólares, sus desembolsos totales fueron superiores a 1,15 millones de dólares y su efectivo disponible superó los 2,25 millones de dólares.

Rodriguez, de 69 años, ganó las primarias demócratas con 54% de los votos. Robin Peguero, ex fiscal federal y su único oponente, perdió con 46% de los votos.

De acuerdo a informes de la FEC sobre las contribuciones de campaña, el total de ingresos de Rodríguez superó los 661.170 dólares, el total de sus desembolsos fue superior a los 336.000 dólares y su efectivo disponible superó los 325.000 dólares.

La Oficina del Censo de EE. UU. reportó en 2024 que el distrito tiene alrededor de 788,713 habitantes. Abarca aproximadamente 119 millas cuadradas en el condado de Miami-Dade, según Census Reporter.

La fecha límite para registrarse para votar es el 5 de octubre. La fecha límite para solicitar una boleta para votar por correo es el 22 de octubre. La votación anticipada será del 24 al 31 de octubre. Las elecciones de medio término serán el 3 de noviembre.

Ganadora de Primarias Republicanas pronuncia discurso

Ganador de Primarias Demócratas pronuncia discurso

Resultados de elecciones

Las autoridades arrestaron el martes al sospechoso Eddie Zewayne Bussey, de 28 años, de Yonkers, Nueva York, por casi una docena de cargos graves, incluidos secuestro y múltiples cargos de intento de asesinato y agresión sexual.

Un informe de arresto del Departamento de Policía de Miami indica que la mujer, de 40 años, había salido de un club nocturno en el vecindario Wynwood de la ciudad entre las 3:30 y las 4:30 a.m.; su teléfono se había quedado sin batería y caminaba a casa por Biscayne Boulevard, sin poder solicitar un transporte.

Cerca de Northeast 24th Street, la policía dijo que la mujer notó a Bussey, un desconocido, “siguiéndola y gritándole comentarios no solicitados como: ‘Déjame probarte’”.

“La víctima cruzó Biscayne Boulevard tratando de alejarse de (Bussey), pero él continuó siguiéndola e imitando su mismo movimiento al cruzar la calle”, señala el informe del MPD.

La policía dijo que la mujer entró a un edificio de oficinas en 4770 Biscayne Blvd., en el vecindario Bay Point, después de “notar que estaba bien iluminado y temer por su seguridad”.

Las autoridades dijeron que ella entró al vestíbulo y subió al ascensor hasta el piso 12 para intentar encontrar a alguien que pudiera ayudarla. No pudo.

La Policía dijo que, después de regresar al vestíbulo, vio a Bussey entrar. Intentó salir por otra puerta, dijeron, pero resultó estar cerrada.

En un ataque captado por una cámara de vigilancia, Bussey se expuso, golpeó y estranguló a la mujer, luego la arrastró del cabello y la llevó a un cuarto de correo, donde continuó golpeándola, pateándola y estrangulándola mientras ella intentaba defenderse, según el informe. La Policía dijo que se escuchaba a Bussey decirle, “Pruébalo”, “Te voy a violar” y “Te voy a matar” antes de cometer múltiples actos sexuales contra ella.

Las autoridades dijeron que la víctima rompió dos de los collares de Bussey mientras intentaba quitárselo de encima. Dijeron que pudo correr hasta una farmacia CVS cercana, donde pudo llamar a la Policía.

“La víctima sufrió lesiones visibles, incluidos moretones y decoloración en el rostro, los labios, la garganta, la espalda, las costillas, la cadera y el muslo, así como una laceración en la mejilla”, señala el informe.

La Policía dijo que las pruebas de ADN de un kit de violación vincularon el crimen con Bussey y que los agentes lo encontraron el martes cerca de Northwest 36th Street y 13th Avenue, en el vecindario Allapattah de la ciudad.

Según el informe, Bussey dijo a los investigadores que llevaba aproximadamente un mes alojándose en Miami con su hermano en un alquiler de corta duración en Wynwood. El informe señala que inicialmente dijo a los agentes que había “caminado a casa y permaneció allí durante el resto de la noche”, pero luego, después de que le mostraron una imagen fija de las cámaras de vigilancia del edificio de oficinas Bay Point, “se retractó y les dijo a los detectives que estaba en el lugar del incidente para cargar su teléfono”.

La Policía dijo que afirmó que, en el edificio, la víctima hizo “comentarios racistas” y luego “le escupió, lo que provocó que perdiera el conocimiento y comenzara a golpearla”.

Pero dijeron que “negó haberla agredido sexualmente” porque “ella es una mujer y a él solo le gustan los hombres”.

Un informe de arresto separado señala que Bussey se mostró agresivo con los agentes mientras intentaban recolectar una muestra de ADN conforme a una orden judicial, escupiéndoles y forcejeando con ellos. También dijeron que “pateó repetidamente la pared y la puerta dentro del cuarto de interrogatorio”, causando daños.

Hasta la tarde del miércoles, Bussey permanecía detenido en el Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, con una fianza que figuraba en los registros de la cárcel como “por establecerse”.

Caruso, de 67 años y residente de Riviera Beach, compareció ante un juez del condado Palm Beach con ropa de prisión, esposas y grilletes. No habló durante la breve audiencia y permitió que su abogado se dirigiera al tribunal.

El juez ordenó que Caruso permaneciera detenido sin derecho a fianza mientras espera ser trasladado al condado Orange, donde enfrenta cargos que incluyen secuestro, conducta lasciva o indecente, exhibición lasciva o indecente, atraer o persuadir a un menor y abuso infantil con daño psicológico.

El juez también ordenó a Caruso no tener contacto con la presunta víctima ni con la familia de la víctima.

Las autoridades han dicho que la investigación continúa.

Una orden de arresto obtenida por Local 10 News señala que la víctima, menor de 12 años y conocida por Caruso, afirmó que Caruso tuvo actividad sexual con él en dos ocasiones distintas: una alrededor del Día de Acción de Gracias de 2024 y otra durante un crucero familiar en agosto de 2025.

Caruso ha negado las acusaciones, según su declaración jurada de arresto.

Las autoridades dijeron que Caruso fue arrestado el martes y suspendido inmediatamente de su cargo por el gobernador Ron DeSantis. La orden ejecutiva de DeSantis le prohíbe a Caruso desempeñar cualquier función oficial y suspende su salario y beneficios.

Shannon Ramsey-Chessman asumió como secretaria interina tras la suspensión de Caruso.

Caruso fue nombrado secretario de los tribunales de circuito y contralor del condado Palm Beach por DeSantis en 2025, después de haber servido en la Cámara de Representantes de Florida. Se había postulado para la reelección al cargo de secretario.

El arresto ocurre más de tres años después de que Caruso respaldara una legislación que creó en Florida un delito de agresión sexual con pena capital para ciertos delitos sexuales contra menores. La ley permite la pena de muerte en los casos que cumplen con sus requisitos.

“Obviamente, fue una decisión muy fácil para mí destituirlo de ese cargo”, dijo DeSantis el martes. “Me enorgullece que contemos con sanciones muy severas para quienes abusan de niños; si resulta condenado, le esperan consecuencias gravísimas”.

La ley de Florida contempla la pena de muerte para los adultos condenados por agresión sexual grave contra un menor de 12 años. La disposición se aplica a casos de agresión sexual —o intentos de cometerla— que causen lesiones en los órganos sexuales del menor.

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Court records show Marcus Sanchez, of Medley, was convicted of second-degree murder, first-degree arson and tampering with evidence.

According to an arrest report from the Miami Police Department, firefighters responded to a blaze on the morning of Aug. 18, 2024, at a home in the 3000 block of Southwest 13th Street.

Local 10 News learned the home was used as a multi-unit short term rental property, and police confirmed that the fire occurred in the rear unit.

According to the arrest report, while working to extinguish the flames, firefighters discovered a burned body on the floor of the unit.

While securing the scene, a dispatcher advised that a man, later identified as Sanchez, had driven himself to Coral Gables Hospital, seeking medical treatment for severe burns all over his body.

Police said Sanchez was then transferred to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center due to the severity of his injuries.

According to the arrest report, a detective spoke with Sanchez as he was being transferred to the trauma center, but Sanchez’s statement to the detective was redacted from the publicly released report. Investigators said Sanchez killed the victim, a woman he had been in a relationship with for years, and set the home on fire to cover up the crime.

Police said the fire marshal investigating the cause of the blaze deployed an “arson dog” named Rex, which identified accelerant on Sanchez’s shoes.

Surveillance video from a Chevron gas station also showed Sanchez purchasing a red five-gallon fuel can and then filling it up at a pump, authorities said.

Los registros judiciales muestran que Marcus Sanchez, de Medley, fue declarado culpable de asesinato en segundo grado, incendio provocado en primer grado y manipulación de pruebas.

Según un informe de arresto del Departamento de Policía de Miami, los bomberos respondieron a un incendio la mañana del 18 de agosto de 2024 en una vivienda ubicada en la cuadra 3000 de Southwest 13th Street.

Local 10 News supo que la vivienda era utilizada como una propiedad de alquiler a corto plazo con varias unidades, y la policía confirmó que el incendio ocurrió en la unidad trasera.

Según el informe de arresto, mientras trabajaban para extinguir las llamas, los bomberos descubrieron un cuerpo quemado en el piso de la unidad.

Mientras aseguraban la escena, un despachador informó que un hombre, posteriormente identificado como Sanchez, había conducido por su cuenta hasta Coral Gables Hospital para recibir tratamiento médico por quemaduras graves en todo el cuerpo.

La policía dijo que Sanchez fue trasladado posteriormente al Ryder Trauma Center de Jackson Memorial Hospital debido a la gravedad de sus lesiones.

Según el informe de arresto, un detective habló con Sanchez mientras era trasladado al centro de trauma, pero la declaración de Sanchez al detective fue censurada en el informe divulgado públicamente. Los investigadores dijeron que Sanchez mató a la víctima, una mujer con quien había mantenido una relación durante años, e incendió la vivienda para encubrir el crimen.

La policía dijo que el jefe de bomberos que investigaba la causa del incendio utilizó un “perro detector de incendios provocados” llamado Rex, que identificó un acelerante en los zapatos de Sanchez.

Un video de vigilancia de una gasolinera Chevron también mostró a Sanchez comprando un recipiente rojo de cinco galones para combustible y luego llenándolo en una bomba, dijeron las autoridades.

Un piloto de Lady Lori Helicopters transportaba a un grupo de seis turistas desde Suyian Conservancy hasta el monte Ololokwe cuando el helicóptero monomotor se estrelló en el condado de Samburu, según la Autoridad de Aviación Civil de Kenia y el operador del helicóptero.

Las siete víctimas eran José Alberto Suárez, Roger E. Duarte, Adam Hlavaty, Henry Parra, Michele Sensi-Contugi, Stephany Hollihan, y Josh Outram.

Suárez, quien creció en Coral Gables, era presidente y gerente general de las estaciones propiedad de Telemundo en Orlando, Tampa y Fort Myers; tenía 55 años.

Hlavaty era ejecutivo del sector inmobiliario que se desempeñó como vicepresidente de Desarrollo de Benihana y fue miembro de la Junta Directiva del Coral Gables Art Museum; tenía 42 años.

Parra era un ejecutivo, co fundador de Trax USA con base en Coral Gables; tenía 55 años. Parra y Hlavaty estaban casados ​​y vivían en Coral Gables

Duarte fue el empresario detrás de Hospitality Capital Partners, propietario de George Stone Crabs y cofundador de My Ceviche; tenía 42 años.

La familia de Duarte estaba “devastada y desconsolada por el trágico accidente de helicóptero en Kenia... la magnitud de esta tragedia es imposible de comprender y no hay palabras para expresar la profundidad de nuestro dolor”, escribió un portavoz en un comunicado.

Autoridades de Ecuador identificaron a Sensi-Contugi, de 44 años, como Director del CIES —Centro de Inteligencia Estratégica del País— y un estrecho aliado del presidente ecuatoriano Daniel Noboa. Hollihan, de 42 años y diseñadora de moda, casada con Sensi-Contugi.

En un comunicado, un portavoz de la Latin American Fashion Summit describió a Hollihan, fundadora de Sensi Studio, como “una verdadera visionaria y una fuerza extraordinaria” que puso en valor el trabajo de los artesanos con la “paja toquilla

Harper’s Bazaar informó que Hollihan nació en la ciudad portuaria ecuatoriana de Guayaquil y ejerció como orgullosa embajadora de los artesanos de su país en Estados Unidos y Europa.”.

El portavoz de la familia de Duarte identificó a Suárez, Hlavaty, Parra, Sensi-Contugi y Holliham como “amigos entrañables”, y al piloto como Josh Outram.

“Me apasiona enormemente volar; lo que Kenia ofrece —especialmente el norte— son algunos de los paisajes más diversos que existen”, declaró Outram el año pasado a un redactor de Elewana, añadiendo que también prestaba apoyo aéreo para el monitoreo de la fauna silvestre.

La Reserva Loisaba emitió un comunicado describiendo a las víctimas como huéspedes de &Beyond, una agencia de viajes.

En un comunicado de NBCU, los ejecutivos Cesar Conde, Valari Staab y José Cancela describieron a Suárez como “un líder profundamente respetado y un querido amigo y colega” que “aportó energía, humor, calidez y un fuerte sentido de propósito a su trabajo”.

Suárez, exalumno de Coral Gables High School, comenzó su carrera como reportero y presentador. Trabajó con NBCUniversal News Group durante más de dos décadas y también dirigió estaciones en San Antonio, Sacramento, Fresno, Salt Lake City y Las Vegas.

Durante su tiempo en WUPW Fox Toledo, Suárez ganó tres premios Emmy por Mejor Noticiero Diario y varios premios de la Associated Press, según su biografía con NBCU.

La carrera de Suárez también incluyó labores de programación y liderazgo digital y creativo para Telemundo Station Group, NBC6 y Telemundo 51 en Miami.

Lee Schrager, amigo de Duarte y empresario conocido por su labor en el Food Network South Beach, afirmó que no le sorprendió cuando Forbes incluyó a Duarte en su lista “30 under 30″ (30 menores de 30 años).

“Tenía una ética de trabajo increíble”, comentó Schrager.

A Duarte le sobreviven sus dos hijos, Roger y George, y su esposa, Nicole Valls, cuya familia fundó Versailles, el emblemático restaurante cubano del barrio de La Pequeña Habana en Miami.

Publicaciones relacionadas en redes sociales

Siete personas mueren en accidente de helicóptero en Kenia; cuatro eran turistas de Estados Unidos pic.twitter.com/9RdTRp0LOK

— WPLG Local 10 News (@WPLGLocal10), 19 de agosto de 2026

El Servicio Nacional de Aduana del Ecuador expresa sus más sentidas condolencias ante el sensible fallecimiento de Michele Sensi-Contugi y su esposa Stephany Hollihan. Paz en su tumba. pic.twitter.com/E1GWcfbgAY

— Servicio Nacional de Aduana del Ecuador (@SENAE_Aduana)August 19, 2026

View this post on Instagram

Una actualización sobre el accidente aéreo en Samburu, del operador y las personas a bordo.Lea el comunicado completo a continuación: pic.twitter.com/WjiggB3vvo

— Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (@CAA_Kenya), 19 de agosto de 2026

Las labores de búsqueda y recuperación continúan, obstaculizadas por el difícil acceso al terreno y un incendio activo en el lugar del accidente.

Un equipo adicional fue enviado desde Isiolo para reforzar la operación.

Se darán a conocer más actualizaciones. https://t.co/XUjWArYul3pic.twitter.com/qSApuA1b0y

— Kenya Red Cross (@KenyaRedCross), 19 de agosto de 2026

ACTUALIZACIÓN DEL INCIDENTE

Referencia: ASCI-KE-20260819-SAMBURU-HELICOPTER-CRASHNivel del incidente: CRÍTICO (Nivel 4) – Accidente fatal de helicóptero; todos los ocupantes fallecieron

RESUMEN DE LA ACTUALIZACIÓN

La Autoridad de Aviación Civil de Kenia (KCAA) confirmó oficialmente un accidente fatal de helicóptero en el monte… pic.twitter.com/Q5ChZkMd7A

Lea el comunicado

He co-founded The San Isidro Movement in Havana, and he helped lead the courageous group of artists, writers, and academics to protest Decree 349, a law that required state approval for all artistic expression.

The performance artist used the Cuban flag and was arrested on July 11, 2021. Cuban prosecutors filed charges of public disorder, contempt, and insulting national symbols. In 2022, he was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison.

“I went on more than five hunger strikes ... I am not going to offer a justification because I have nothing to justify,” the 38-year-old exiled dissident said on Friday in downtown Miami.

The Cuban government freed him from the maximum-security Guanajay prison on July 7. He was ordered to leave the island and arrived at Miami International Airport on July 18 on a humanitarian parole.

He was forced to leave his son behind on the island.

“It’s literally like being in a coma and then waking up,” he said.

Some of the art that he created while in prison in Cuba was framed and on display on Friday at the Freedom Tower. His installation was at the Freedom Hall. The exhibit, he said, was the reward.

“They are the impression of a suffering, of a state of mind,” he said about his artwork.

He said he hopes the communist regime will fall and Cubans will learn what it’s like to be free.

The Museum of Art and Design, or MOAD, at Miami Dade College presented “Luis Manuel Otero Alcántra: nos encontramos,” the exhibit.

“His journey of resilience and determination echoes in the halls of the Freedom Tower’s history,” Amy Galpin, MOAD’s executive director and chief curator, said in a statement.

Ernesto Fundora, the director of the “Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara: Estamos conectados,” a documentary, was at the opening from 6 to 10 p.m. on Friday at 600 Biscayne Boulevard.

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Witnesses and police said a suspect stabbed the teenager near the North Miami Library, located at 835 NE 132nd St. It’s located across the street from North Miami Senior High School.

Those witnesses said the two teenagers were fighting in the parking lot when one teen pulled out a knife and stabbed the other in the arm.

Witnesses said the two teenagers knew each other.

Authorities said the boy was taken “to a local hospital with a non-life-threatening injury.”

Police taped off the library parking lot as they investigated.

North Miami police said their investigation remained “ongoing” Wednesday evening.

Despite their investigation, the teenager behind the stabbing has yet to be caught.

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Maya Garcia, 19, told Local 10 News in an exclusive interview Wednesday that she had no idea she was stepping away from a potentially deadly fire when she went outside to grab her food last week, on Aug. 12.

“It was terrifying,” Garcia said.

When she went outside to get the food, Garcia left her Samsung Galaxy A15 phone on her bed.

About a minute after the food arrived, Garcia and her dad said they heard an explosion.

“I’m sitting there and I hear an explosion behind me,” Garcia said. “Sounded like ‘boom,’ like glass shattering, ‘swoosh.’”

Her room was quickly engulfed in flames.

“You couldn’t see inside the house — flames, smoke,” Garcia said. “I’m panicking, but I’m trying to stay calm.”

The room was left in ruins, with the phone still visible among the ash. Childhood memories were destroyed.

The outlet in the room showed no visible signs of an electrical issue.

Local 10 News reached out to arson investigators, who said their report is not finished yet.

Garcia and her father said they were told by the arson investigation team that the phone was responsible for the fire.

Garcia said if the DoorDash delivery had been late, the story might have had a different ending.

For Garcia, there is one word for how she feels.

“Grateful,” she said. “I am extremely grateful. What matters is I’m alive here today.”

Local 10 News reached out to Samsung. The company responded and said they reached out to the family for information.

Testigos y la policía dijeron que un sospechoso apuñaló al adolescente cerca de la Biblioteca de North Miami, ubicada en 835 NE 132nd St. Está situada frente a North Miami Senior High School.

Esos testigos dijeron que los dos adolescentes estaban peleando en el estacionamiento cuando uno de ellos sacó un cuchillo y apuñaló al otro en el brazo.

Testigos dijeron que los dos adolescentes se conocían.

Las autoridades dijeron que el joven fue trasladado “a un hospital local con una lesión que no ponía en peligro su vida”.

La policía acordonó el estacionamiento de la biblioteca mientras investigaba.

La policía de North Miami dijo que su investigación continuaba “en curso” la noche del miércoles.

A pesar de la investigación, el adolescente responsable del apuñalamiento aún no ha sido capturado.

The 20 deportees arrived at Roberts International Airport outside Monrovia.

Deportees will include African nationals as well as nationals from North America, South America and the Caribbean, according to Liberian Information Minister Jerolinmek Piah. Liberian Justice Minister Natu Oswald Tweh has said they could seek asylum in the West African country if they wished.

The U.S. State Department declined to answer questions about the Liberia agreement, but said that implementing the Trump administration’s immigration policies was a “top priority.” It said it was “unwavering in our commitment to end illegal and mass immigration and bolster America’s border security.”

The U.S. Homeland Security Department declined to confirm Thursday's deportations “for operational security reasons” and referred additional questions to the State Department.

Third-country agreements are often shrouded in secrecy. Migrants have been deported to countries they have never been to or where they face safety risks and are left with little choice other than to return to the home countries they were fleeing from.

The Trump administration struck agreements with at least 35 countries to deport people who are from other countries, including Liberia and 13 others in Africa, according to Third Country Deportation Watch, a partnership of Refugees International and Human Rights First that relies on public records requests, news reports and other sources. More than 23,000 people have deported to 26 countries under the agreements.

The U.S. State Department previously announced that Liberia agreed to accept deportees who are not from Liberia. But a six-page agreement reached in September 2025 and posted on its website does not say how many or from which countries.

In October 2025, Liberia offered to accept Kilmar Abrego Garcia of El Salvador, who was mistakenly deported to prison in El Salvador. Blocked from sending him to his native country, the Trump administration has vowed to send him to a third county, including Liberia.

Abrego Garcia has said he would agree to be deported to Costa Rica, which has said it will accept him. But the government has so far declined to send him there. Abrego Garcia is fighting deportation to Liberia in a federal lawsuit in Maryland.

An analysis by The Associated Press and Reporter Brasil of all National Mining Agency records through June shows that rare earth exploration applications have surged, with more than 86% filed in the past three years, including 268 in the first half of 2026.

The interest is already raising environmental concerns for the Amazon and other areas.

Here are takeaways from the story:

The US and others are seeking alternatives to China

Rare earth minerals are a group of chemicals essential in digital and defense technologies, used in electronics, magnets and batteries. They are also used in wind turbines and electric vehicle motors, critical to the transition away from fossil fuels like oil, gas and coal that cause global warming. The International Energy Agency estimated in 2022 that demand for rare earths could increase at least threefold by 2040.

China has nearly half of the world’s reserves and dominates global processing. Brazil has the second-largest reserves and is becoming increasingly attractive to investors seeking alternatives to China after Beijing restricted exports last year.

By reviewing all National Mining Agency records in Brazil through June, the AP-Reporter Brasil analysis found that foreign investors are driving the growing interest in rare earth exploration, accounting for more than four in 10 applications.

Australian and U.S. firms dominate the interest. Among recent deals was the acquisition of Serra Verde, Brazil’s only commercial rare earth producer, by a U.S.-backed company.

Chinese firms had not filed any rare earth exploration applications in Brazil as of June, but they are positioning themselves in the sector. Last year, state-owned China Nonferrous Metal Mining Group acquired tin producer Mineracao Taboca and announced plans to assess rare earth potential at its Amazon mine. Separately, Shenghe Resources signed an agreement with Brazilian partners WEG Mineracao and Fenrir do Brasil to pursue rare earth projects, including one in Minas Gerais.

New mining push could impact communities and ecosystems

At least a quarter of the applications overlap with or are within 10 kilometers (6 miles) of protected areas and Indigenous territories, including in the Amazon, according to the Energy Transition Observatory, a collaboration among researchers and Reporter Brasil. Experts say mining projects within this buffer zone can cause environmental damage.

Depending on what is mined, toxic chemicals can be released and radioactive waste generated. Other potential impacts include deforestation and polluted water seeping into rivers and lakes, which can poison fish populations, as well as air pollution and noise.

In Goias state, in central Brazil, a small Afro-Brazilian community overlaps with mining claims by the Canadian firm Aclara Resources, which last year secured $5 million in project development financing from the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation.

Aclara in a statement said its project initially overlapped with the community’s territory, but “no mining activities will take place there.” Still, residents fear operations that could start as early as 2028 could affect local springs and wildlife.

Brazil is considering safeguards around foreign influence

“The challenge today is that China dominates processing and refining,” said Brazilian lawmaker Zé Silva, author of pending legislation that would establish a federal policy on critical minerals and rare earths, set investment priorities and create a national council to monitor significant foreign influence in the sector. “Under our proposal, companies are welcome to invest, but they must transfer technology to Brazil, including processing capacity.”

On Monday, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said the Senate would move forward with the proposed law, to defend national interests.

“We will not allow anyone from outside to come here and exploit our mineral resources, because we want their processing and transformation to happen here,” Lula said.

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

En las laderas de Hautvillers, equipos de vendimiadores empiezan a trabajar a las 6:30 de la mañana entre hileras de viñas que fueron reconocidas como Patrimonio Mundial de la UNESCO en 2015.

Para Alexandre Gobillard, director de producción de la casa de champán Gobillard & Fils, iniciar la vendimia a mediados de agosto antes era casi impensable.

“Esto es histórico en Champaña", declaró Gobillard. "Llevo 30 años trabajando en la finca y cuando empecé mi padre solía decirme: ‘El 15 de agosto, vete de vacaciones’. Hoy es 18 de agosto y estamos en plena vendimia. Nunca habíamos visto algo así”.

A sus 50 años, Gobillard representa a la cuarta generación que trabaja en los viñedos familiares. Gobillard & Fils cultiva 40 hectáreas (unas 100 acres) de viñas y produce alrededor de 1,5 millones de botellas al año.

Un clima cambiante trae una vendimia más temprana

La vendimia oficial de Champaña se abrió este año entre el 12 y el 17 de agosto, según la zona y la variedad de uva, aproximadamente un mes antes de lo que antes era habitual en la región.

Una helada de finales de marzo golpeó las viñas después de que las temperaturas suaves provocaran una brotación temprana, lo que redujo la cosecha potencial. Luego vinieron cuatro olas de calor, algo que nunca había ocurrido antes, señaló Gobillard.

Las uvas quemadas por el sol se volvieron marrones, algo que, según Gobillard, rara vez había visto. Explicó que perder aproximadamente el 10% de las uvas significaría una pérdida de volumen más que afectar la calidad del vino.

Las vendimias más tempranas se han vuelto cada vez más comunes en Champaña y en otras regiones vinícolas francesas a medida que suben las temperaturas. En la vecina Italia, el calor extremo también ha llevado a productores de vino espumoso a cosechar antes y a recoger uvas por la noche.

David Chatillon, presidente de la Unión de Casas de Champán, reconoció que las condiciones meteorológicas de este año conducirán a una clara disminución de los rendimientos.

“Pero no es solo por la sequía", indicó Chatillon. "Perdimos el 43% de la producción potencial por las heladas de primavera, y la sequía claramente ha agravado aún más el problema de los menores rendimientos”.

Chatillon indicó que el cambio climático ha sido un foco de la industria durante los últimos 25 años, lo que ha impulsado inversiones en investigación e innovación para adaptarse a condiciones cambiantes, incluido el desarrollo de variedades de uva más resistentes a las enfermedades y que maduren más tarde.

El calor acelera la maduración de la uva

Gobillard ha visto cómo el cambio se ha desarrollado a lo largo de generaciones de su familia.

“La generación de mi abuelo vendimiaba 100 días después de la floración, mi padre 90 días, y hoy hemos bajado a 80", explicó Gobillard. "Vamos a tener que cambiar nuestros hábitos”.

Las temperaturas récord de este verano comprimieron aún más el periodo de maduración. En junio, las temperaturas alcanzaron los 40 grados Celsius (104 grados Fahrenheit) en partes de Champaña.

“La vid necesita agua para vivir", señaló Gobillard. "El agua se extrajo de las uvas para mantener viva la vid y, como resultado, tuvimos una concentración de azúcar mucho más alta. Por eso ocurrió mucho más rápido”.

Mientras su hija operaba la prensa, Gobillard observó cómo fluía el primer mosto del año con una mezcla de entusiasmo y ansiedad.

Tomó rápidamente una muestra para medir su nivel de azúcar, un indicador clave del contenido potencial de alcohol y de si las uvas se han recogido en el momento adecuado. “El champán no debería ser demasiado alcohólico. ... Buscamos delicadeza”, apuntó Gobillard.

Una vendimia temprana pone a prueba las tradiciones de Champaña

La vendimia temprana también plantea desafíos logísticos en una región donde tradicionalmente las uvas se recogen a mano, con algunos trabajadores aún de vacaciones de verano y otros enfrentando retrasos en el transporte.

Gobillard espera completar la vendimia en la finca en unos nueve días, un trabajo que requiere alrededor de 120 trabajadores reclutados en su mayoría en toda Francia y Polonia.

“Realmente cambia la manera en que vemos los métodos tradicionales de Champaña", sostuvo Geoffrey Bonnet-Gobillard, de 30 años, director comercial de la casa familiar de champán. "La vendimia manual conlleva muchas limitaciones: alojar a la gente, alimentarla, reclutarla. Es muy difícil, especialmente con vendimias tempranas en agosto”.

Esas presiones podrían terminar obligando a los productores a reconsiderar algunas prácticas arraigadas a medida que la maquinaria agrícola se vuelve más sofisticada, añadió.

La casa vende la mayor parte de su champán en mercados europeos, incluidos Gran Bretaña, Bélgica, Italia y España, así como en África Occidental, y destina volúmenes menores a Estados Unidos y Asia, señaló Bonnet-Gobillard.

Mucho en juego para una industria global

Según el informe sectorial de 2026 del Comité Champagne, el año pasado se enviaron 266,1 millones de botellas de champán en Francia y en el extranjero, lo que generó 5.700 millones de euros (6.600 millones de dólares) en ventas. Las exportaciones representaron el 56,5% de los envíos. El champán representó alrededor del 8% del consumo mundial de vino espumoso por volumen, pero el 31% por valor.

El sector sostiene alrededor de 30.000 empleos directos y requiere aproximadamente 100.000 trabajadores temporales para la vendimia, según el Comité Champagne.

A pesar de las difíciles condiciones de este año, Gobillard dijo que las uvas que inspeccionó eran alentadoras.

“Estoy muy contento con lo que estoy viendo", aseguró Gobillard. "Nos preocupaba que la sequía nos dejara racimos muy ligeros, pero en estas parcelas estamos realmente satisfechos. La cantidad debería ser suficiente y la calidad estará ahí”.

Pero hay poco tiempo que perder. “Es hora de cortarlas. Vamos a tener que movernos rápido”, aseveró Gobillard. _________________________________

Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claims dropped to 206,000 last week from a revised 212,000 the week before. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out week-to-week ups and downs, ticked up to 204,000 last week from 199,750.

Claims for jobless benefits are a proxy for layoffs, and economists watch them because they can be a harbinger for where the job market is headed. For the past year, claims have been at a historically low range of around 200,000 to 230,000 a week.

“The labor market has yet to show any sign of wear and tear from the surge in oil prices since the start of the war with Iran and the global energy supply shock,” Carl Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics, wrote in a commentary.

The number of people collecting unemployment benefits the week that ended Aug. 8 rose to 1.8 million from 1.78 million the week before.

The U.S. unemployment rate is low at 4.1%, partly because the economy has proved resilient in the face of higher energy prices. But it’s also because President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown and the ongoing retirement of baby boomers mean that fewer people are competing for jobs: More than 1.3 million people have dropped out of the U.S. labor force over the past year.

The job market is tough for those looking for their first job and for those who lost their jobs and are looking for new work. At the same time, companies, remembering the worker shortages that followed the end of COVID-19 lockups, are still reluctant to let go of staff; but they aren’t eager to take on new workers. Economists regularly refer to a “no hire, no fire″ job market.

In July, companies, government agencies and nonprofits together cut 23,000 jobs. So far this year, employers are adding 61,000 jobs a month. That is an improvement on the 9,700 they averaged last year — the weakest hiring outside a recession since 2002. The lingering effects of high interest rates and Trump’s erratic trade policies discouraged companies from hiring in 2025.

Hiring this year remains well below the 166,00 monthly jobs created, on average, in 2023 and 2024, let alone the 491,000 a month recorded during the 2021-2022 hiring boom that followed pandemic lockdowns.

The Bruins are to play two games in Munich, while the Oilers will play two matches in Leon Draisaitl’s native city of Cologne during the 2027-28 NHL season. The opponents have yet to be determined.

“These events represent an important step in our commitment to grow the game in Germany. By bringing more NHL games to one of Europe’s most dynamic hockey markets, we hope to continue to deepen engagement amongst our fans, partners and local communities, while at the same time creating a significant opportunity to grow the game throughout the country,” NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said.

The Chicago Blackhawks and Ottawa Senators were already slated to play two games in Düsseldorf in December. Those Global Series games are the second and third regular-season games the league has staged in Germany after the Buffalo Sabres and Los Angeles Kings played in Berlin in 2011.

More are to follow with the NHL and NHLPA committed to bringing regular-season games to Germany for at least the next three seasons.

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See AP’s full NHL coverage here

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel admitted earlier this week that the health system, one of the so-called “great accomplishments” of the Cuban revolution, is on the verge of total collapse. There are thousands of Cubans on the island waiting for surgeries that cannot be performed due to the lack of doctors, medicines, equipment and poor hospital conditions.

For years, Cuba has been sending medical brigades around the world to help pay-off their debt and export the ideals of their revolution. The U.S. government has accused Cuba of human trafficking for these actions.

Aug. 18: Trump’s Cuba strategy: Is there really a plan?

Does the Trump administration really have a plan for Cuba?

After months of rhetorical back-and-forth, you begin to wonder whether the Trump administration really knows what to do with Cuba. We keep hearing that Secretary of State Marco Rubio was given the responsibility to deal with Cuba and the rest of Latin America, which he knows extremely well. But from what I hear, White House senior staff keeps getting in the way.

Continuing to sanction operations and individuals in Cuba will not bring down the government. Now we hear from Secretary Rubio and members of our Cuban-American congressional delegation that the target date has been moved back, and they hope that by 2029, changes in Cuba will have taken place, which is absolutely ridiculous.

Aug. 14: Cuba turns to global investors as US sanctions and property claims raise risks

The Cuban government has realized that efforts to attract investment from U.S. and Cuban-American businesses have largely failed because of the many sanctions imposed by the United States and the fact that the risks still outweigh the opportunities.

However, the Cuban government is trying very hard to attract companies from around the world to take over many operations and businesses in Cuba. With many European hoteliers and other companies having recently left Cuba, it will still be a challenge to attract new investors.

One thing these companies should keep in mind before starting operations in Cuba is that they could be operating in properties that were confiscated by the Cuban government in the early 1960s. They could potentially face legal challenges in the future as a result.

For American companies alone, there are 5,913 businesses and properties that were confiscated and registered with the U.S. Department of the Treasury.

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Aug. 13: Fidel Castro’s 100th birthday prompts reflection on his legacy in Cuba

Thursday marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Fidel Castro, a man whose narcissistic personality took control of Cuba after overthrowing Fulgencio Batista on Jan. 1, 1959. He made promises to the Cuban people that he later betrayed for his own selfish ambitions and thirst for power.

At his trial on Oct. 16, 1953, following the failed attack on the Moncada military barracks in Santiago de Cuba, he famously said, “History will absolve me.”

In the end, history will judge him as a ruthless dictator who destroyed Cuba, impoverished its people and inflicted tremendous suffering on an entire nation.

Aug. 12: Cuba poses a tough foreign policy challenge for Rubio

“Who is on first, what is on second, I don’t know is on third.”

The famous comedy routine by Abbott and Costello can be compared to the Trump administration’s foreign policy strategies these days. Diplomatic negotiations are complex and complicated, especially when dealing with countries, governments, and individuals with whom the United States has not had good relationships.

Reliable sources tell me there are tremendous differences between the staffs at the White House and the Department of State over how to handle negotiations involving Ukraine, Russia, Israel-Gaza, Iran, Venezuela, and Cuba. It does not help when those negotiating on behalf of the United States have limited to no diplomatic experience.

For now, let’s stay within the area of expertise: Cuba. While President Trump thinks Cuba can be resolved in two months, Secretary of State Marco Rubio knows very well, as does his senior staff, that negotiating with Cuba is not easy.

The Cuban government is willing to continue introducing cosmetic changes to its moribund economy without relinquishing political control. The United States can continue to sanction everyone on the island, and the Cuban government could not care less. All the while, the people of Cuba continue to suffer tremendous hardships. Yet the people are unlikely to turn against the government. The consequence of doing so can mean spending years in jail.

Meanwhile, in Miami, the guessing game continues over who will replace Raúl Castro when he dies, along with preparations for possible transition plans for Cuba. A transition to a democratic system of government in Cuba will take time. A civil society cannot be built overnight. It is also important to remember that Cuba did not have a democratic government before 1959.

For Rubio, expectations from the Cuban American community are high. Yet most in the community understand that it will not be easy to get the Cuban government to make political changes short of a U.S. military invasion. However, Rubio needs a win, especially if he is considering another presidential run. The failures of the Trump administration’s foreign policies around the world could affect Rubio’s future presidential campaign.

So, what will be Rubio’s next step on Cuba? The clock is ticking.

Aug. 10: Will the cat catch the mouse this time?

While U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio continues to put pressure on the Cuban government to change, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel went on Cuban television this past weekend and announced to the Cuban people that the government was making major “transformational changes” to the economy.

Díaz-Canel also told the Cuban people that it would take time and patience -- two things the Cuban people do not have anymore. Díaz-Canel went on to say that the benefits of these changes will begin to show by 2029.

Sources in Washington, D.C. have told me that the Trump administration is looking to see if there is someone in the Cuban government, like Delcy Rodriguez in Venezuela, to hand over Raul Castro or even take over the current government and be willing to negotiate with the U.S.

The Miami Herald reported this weekend that General Lazaro Alberto Alvarez Casas, currently the Cuban Minister of the Interior, may be acceptable to the U.S. General Casas is considered a hardliner and therefore unlikely to break with the Cuban leadership.

As I have said before, the case of Venezuela is quite different than Cuba. While Raul Castro is alive, I believe the Cuban government will continue in power and make promises to the Cuban people they cannot keep.

Aug. 8: Cuban opposition leader says Cuba’s transformation must include those on the island

According to Cuban opposition leader Jose Daniel Ferrer, any plans to transform Cuba must include Cubans on the island.

But do Cubans on the island have the capacity and capabilities to participate in such a process? After living for almost 68 years under a totalitarian system that has shaped the population’s personal values and attitudes, it could take time not only to change it but, more importantly, to sustain those changes.

Democracies are not built in one day. It will take time and patience. Let’s also remember that before the Cuban Revolution, Cuba had a dictatorship under Batista.

Aug 6: US announces new set of economic sanctions against Cuba; 2 of Cuba’s top generals also sanctioned

The U.S. State Department announced a new set of economic sanctions against Cuba on Thursday. At the same time, two of Cuba’s top generals were also sanctioned, Alvaro Lopez Miera, Minister of Defense; and General Roberto Sotolongo, head of the armed forces.

Aug. 5: CIA Task Force on Cuba created, per report

The New York Times has reported the creation of a CIA Task Force on Cuba with the purpose of putting additional pressure on the Cuban government to make political and economic changes to their system.

This news will probably be received by Cuba as an additional threat by the U.S.

Aug. 5: Cuban president confirms ongoing conservations between Havana, US

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel confirmed today that there are ongoing conversations between Havana and DC for the purpose of avoiding a military confrontation and trying to find solutions to the issues between both nations.

The Cuban government understands that they are running out of options and most likely will need to reach an agreement with the U.S. Will it include regime change?

Aug. 3 update: Rubio speaks about Cuba’s ongoing espionage activities in the US

This past weekend, in an interview with Fox News, U.S. Secretary of State and National Security Advisor Marco Rubio spoke about Cuba’s ongoing espionage activities in the U.S.

Rubio went on to say that Cuban spies continue to infiltrate the U.S. government, financial institutions, organizations, and academic institutions. Rubio claimed that Cuba continues to be a national security threat to the U.S.

Dr. Andy S. Gomez is Local 10’s Cuba Analyst. Gomez is considered one of the leading scholars on Cuba. He worked in higher education for 32 years before retiring from the University of Miami in 2012.

Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin said in a statement the cities put forward “incredibly strong bids,” and he promised the convention would be an “inspiring celebration of our party’s future nominee.”

A final decision is expected to be made later this year by party leaders. Republicans have already chosen Houston for the site of their 2028 convention.

The Democratic convention, scheduled for Aug. 7-10, 2028, traditionally gives the party a chance to formally introduce its nominee to the country, rally the base and kick-start the most intense period of campaigning ahead of the general election.

The party didn’t specify why Atlanta and Chicago, which was the site of the 2024 convention, were eliminated. Officials visited all five cities in April and May, considering logistical and fundraising capacity among other factors.

The three finalists are liberal strongholds surrounded by the type of suburban areas that have become increasingly important to the party in recent elections. They also provide access to fundraising and key demographic and interest groups, like labor unions.

While Colorado and Massachusetts have gone Democratic in recent presidential elections, Pennsylvania has been among the biggest battlegrounds. Trump, a Republican, won Pennsylvania in 2024.

Philadelphia last hosted the convention in 2016, Denver in 2008 and Boston in 2004.

Before the presidential primary gets into gear, Democrats are looking at this year’s midterm elections as an opportunity to flip the narrowly divided Republican-led House and maybe take back control of the Senate.

Democrats face fundraising disadvantages compared with Republicans, along with financial debt, and Martin has confronted criticism over his stewardship of the party.

During a recent DNC meeting in Texas, Martin downplayed the critics and called for the party to unite as it tries to win the midterms and look ahead to 2028 and the end of Trump’s second term.

Syria’s interior ministry launched an investigation earlier this week into the death of Mohammad Ghamira, and on Thursday announced initial results of the inquiry.

Ghamira, a 29-year-old father of two, was a former volunteer with the White Helmets civil defense organization, which operated in opposition-held areas before the ouster of former President Bashar Assad in December 2024.

Ghamira died in a hospital in Latakia on Sunday after being released from jail. He had been detained days earlier following a theft allegation, according to Latakia’s internal security command.

Family members said they had told police that Ghamira had hemophilia, a condition affecting the blood’s ability to clot, and warned against hitting him.

Ghamira's death sparked widespread outrage in Syria, where it stirred up dark memories of torture and other abuse in detention centers under the Assad dynasty’s decadeslong rule.

Maj. Gen. Ahmed Latouf, head of the committee formed to investigate Ghamira's death, said Thursday that medical experts found that he had died of complications from a cerebral hemorrhage.

Investigators found that a police interrogator had slapped Ghamira in the neck during interrogation, despite Ghamira having told police personnel about his medical condition, Latouf said.

The interrogator was referred to the public prosecution division, and disciplinary investigations into other police personnel are ongoing, he said.

Syrian Interior Minister Anas Khattab said in a statement that the investigation results showed the ministry’s “commitment to reaching the truth and holding accountable those proven to have overstepped.”

“We rose up against the former tyrant’s regime in rejection of injustice and impunity, and therefore, building a state of law begins with our ability to hold the wrongdoer accountable, to give restitution to the victim, and not to do injustice to anyone who has not been proven responsible” for wrongdoing, he said.

Rights groups have said that abuses in detention centers have persisted under the country’s new authorities. However, one of the groups, Syrians for Truth and Justice, said that it didn't find evidence of a “single centralized system equivalent in structure and direction to the torture apparatus entrenched by the Assad regime.”

John Barrett, the U.S. representative in Venezuela, called the 20 excavators provided to the country, along with other equipment, highly sophisticated with the ability to be operated remotely.

It’s all part of an effort to clean up the rubble left behind after the earthquakes and to restart the battered economy of the coastal region.

Nearly 30,000 people in the area make their living by working in imports, according to the local customs’ brokers association.

The majority of them had little work up until the recent reopening of the main port.

Venezuela’s main international airport is also located there, and it remains closed.

They are both of vital importance for the economic well-being of the entire region, with the ripple effects being felt throughout the economy.

Fréchette had said a day earlier that negotiations were “far from over" and that Quebec alone would decide whether U.S. alcohol returns to shelves at the SAQ, the Quebec government corporation that controls most wine and spirits sales in the province.

Dominic LeBlanc, the federal minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, returned to Washington on Thursday to meet again with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer as the two sides continued work to finalize an agreement.

Fréchette said Carney provided answers to many of her questions during a lengthy call Thursday, though Quebec was still awaiting some information.

“I got a number of the answers that I was looking for,” Fréchette said in French, adding that the province would analyze the potential economic impact before taking a position.

Fréchette said Quebec could restore U.S. alcohol to SAQ shelves if its analysis finds the overall agreement is positive for the province.

Canada and the United States moved closer to finalizing a trade agreement that would avert threatened 50% U.S. tariffs. U.S. President Donald Trump has called the emerging agreement “very fair” to both sides and predicted U.S. farmers and manufacturers would benefit. Tariffs on about $20 billion worth of Canadian imports have been postponed until 12:01 a.m. Saturday.

Neither Canadian nor U.S. officials have released the full terms of the emerging agreement.

Quebec does not have a veto over a Canada-U.S. trade agreement, but it controls provincial measures such as whether U.S. alcohol is sold through the SAQ.

Carney asked provincial premiers during a briefing Wednesday to return U.S. alcohol to store shelves, Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston said, a step aimed at addressing one of the Trump administration’s key trade complaints.

The White House has said the emerging deal includes a Canadian commitment to address restrictions on U.S. alcohol. But Carney cannot order provinces to restore sales.

Fréchette’s Coalition Avenir Québec faces voters in an October provincial election, adding political pressure as she assesses changes that could affect Quebec's dairy and forestry sectors.

Houston and two other premiers voiced support for the direction of the talks, though Houston said whether Canadians would actually buy U.S. alcohol again “is a whole other discussion.”

Eight of Canada’s 10 provinces restrict or ban U.S. alcohol — measures imposed in retaliation for Trump’s previous tariffs on Canadian goods and amid anger over his repeated talk of making Canada the 51st U.S. state.

Ontario, Canada’s most populous province, is especially important. Its government-run LCBO, one of the world’s largest alcohol purchasers, sold nearly 1 billion Canadian dollars ($723 million) worth of U.S. products annually before pulling them from shelves last year.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who has clashed with Trump before, has not yet commented on the emerging deal.

While details of the emerging agreement remain vague, Trump has claimed Canada agreed to end tariffs on U.S. agricultural products.

Canada currently allows a set amount of dairy imports at low tariffs. Once imports exceed that limit, much higher tariffs apply. The U.S. says Canada’s supply-management system makes it harder for American dairy producers to gain full access to the Canadian market.

LeBlanc has said Canada’s “agriculture sector will be well protected and we have maintained our tough line.”

The Ervebo vaccine is licensed for use against Ebola virus, one of the viruses that cause Ebola disease, but not for Bundibugyo virus, which is responsible for the current outbreak which has so far killed 2,476 people out of the 5,208 confirmed cases

WHO said in a statement that while it’s not known whether Ervebo may protect against the Bundibugyo virus, “early laboratory and animal data suggest it may provide some protection.”

The allocation includes 20,000 doses for a Phase 3 clinical trial to understand the impact of the vaccine on the Bundibugyo virus, the agency said. The remaining 50,000 doses will be used for front-line and health workers as recommended by WHO experts.

The outbreak raging in six provinces in eastern Congo has infected and killed more people at a greater speed than any other Ebola outbreak in history, and is spreading about three times faster compared to the 2014-2016 outbreak across West Africa — the deadliest Ebola outbreak on record with more than 11,000 deaths.

The International Coordinating Group on Vaccine Provision, which includes WHO and other partners, said the doses will be released immediately following a request from Congo’s government.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called the approval “an important example of global solidarity in action.” He said the agency and its partners remain committed to supporting strengthened surveillance, rapid detection, quality care, community engagement and vaccination efforts to bring the outbreak under control.

The lack of approved vaccines or treatments for the rare Bundibugyo virus has been a major issue for responders. Most new cases have been reported outside of the people being monitored, showing the virus continues to spread faster than efforts to track it. That has been a key contributor to the recorded deaths.

The case fatality rate so far is 47.5% although it is far worse in some places where response efforts are more challenging, such as in North Kivu province where the fatality rate is up to 70%.

Experts believe the virus began spreading from the mining town of Mongbwalu as early as February, months before authorities declared the outbreak on May 15.

Walmart’s second quarter fanned anxiety about the financial well-being of low-income shoppers who are spending cautiously as prices rise at the gas pump and everywhere else.

Company shares tumbled more than 8% Thursday and helped drag the U.S. stock market lower as well.

Walmart’s comparable sales in the U.S., which measure sales at stores open at least a year along with online sales tied to those locations, rose 2.6% in the second quarter. That is down from 4.1% in the first quarter.

Excluding the wellness category that includes Walmart’s pharmacies, comparable sales increased 3.4% in the second quarter. Sales were hit by federal legislation that requires pharmacies to dispense some high-cost Medicare drugs at capped prices, the retailer said. That was still below Wall Street projections of a 3.8% increase, according to FactSet.

Still, Walmart’s quarterly profit, boosted by a $2.9 billion tariff refund, topped expectations, and so did revenue. Walmart says it continues to take market share.

Walmart is using the U.S. tariff refunds to temporarily lower prices on 11,000 items, it said Thursday, particularly on groceries and general merchandise.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled this year that President Donald Trump overstepped his authority when he imposed double-digit import taxes, meaning U.S. companies were owed refunds from the government.

Yet Walmart is trying to contain prices as it is squeezed by the same pressures hammering the American consumer, namely rising energy costs due to fighting in Iran. The company expects to book an additional $2 billion in incremental fuel costs this year.

Slowing comparable sales, particularly in Walmart stores, also reflect a strategic shift toward e-commerce, Walmart+ memberships and advertising. Walmart’s domestic e-commerce business, which has become a growth engine for the retailer, rose 24%.

U.S. e-commerce now represents 23% in the overall U.S business., Walmart said, double the share five years ago.

“As these businesses scale, they become a more meaningful part of our mix, and they’re changing the shape of our business,” CEO John Furner said Thursday.

Walmart is considered a barometer of consumer spending given its vast customer base. More than 150 million customers are on its website or in its stores every week, according to Walmart.

Walmart’s trajectory may draw even more attention after U.S. data released Friday showed retail sales were surprisingly weak in July. On the same day, a new read on consumers from the University of Michigan revealed growing pessimism about the economy.

Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said Friday that when gasoline prices rise above $4, the company can feel it.

“There’s a psychological impact to that ... that there are choices that consumers are making,” Rainey said. “June was a little more obvious as we look at the quarter in terms of customers making trade-offs. And it’s why we have leaned so heavily into lower prices.”

The price of a gallon of gasoline ticked higher again overnight, according to AAA, reaching $4.10.

With prices higher, Walmart continues to capture a larger share of wealthier consumers. The biggest gains in market share for Walmart are coming from households with annual incomes over $100,000, the retailer has said.

Walmart’s quarterly net income was $6.37 billion, or 80 cents per share, in the three-month period ended July 31. Adjusted per-share results were 81 cents, easily topping the 74 cents Wall Street had expected, according to FactSet.

Sales rose 5.9% to $187.94 billion. Analysts were predicting $186.62 billion, according to FactSet.

For the third quarter, Walmart expects earnings per share of 62 cents to 64 cents. It projects sales to be up 3% to 3.75%, putting sales in a range of $184.9 billion to $186.23 billion.

For the full year, Walmart now expects earnings per share to be in the range of $2.80 to $2.87, while sales should be up anywhere from 4% to 5%. That would mean a forecast for sales in the range of $741.7 billion to $748.8 billion, according to FactSet.

Analysts expected $2.90 per share and sales of $752.06 billion for the year, according to FactSet.

“Pulitzer on the Road: Prize — Winning Works That Inform, Empower & Inspire” will launch in October at the Chicago Public Library and the Dallas Public Library and continue through May 2028, with stops at public libraries everywhere from Reading, Pennsylvania, to San Jose, California.

The exhibit will highlight more than a century of Pulitzer winners, whether such groundbreaking news reporting as the Pentagon Papers and the Watergate scandal, iconic photographs such as the AP's “Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima,” poems by Sylvia Plath and Robert Frost, plays by Arthur Miller and Lin-Manuel Miranda or fiction by Toni Morrison and John Steinbeck.

Kingsolver, Everett and Kraus, all Pulitzer-winning novelists, will be making appearances, along with composer Gabriela Frank and photojournalist Jon Cherry among others.

“Pulitzer on the Road was created to bring Pulitzer Prize-winning journalism and storytelling to communities across the country, showcasing the exceptional work that has been honored since the prizes were first awarded in 1917,” Marjorie Miller, administrator of the Pulitzers, said in a statement Thursday.

Maria McCauley, president of the American Library Association, said in a statement that the exhibit would create "opportunities for visitors to connect with the excellent prize-winning works that drive curiosity, conversation and civic engagement.”

The petition with the hashtag InfantinOut also calls for FIFA "to be rebuilt so that the current debacle can never happen again.”

“The shameful attempt by one individual — the FIFA President himself — to sell off the World Cup to private investors exposed a betrayal football will never forget,” the petition said about Infantino's plan for a commercial spinoff, which he dropped amid a furious backlash.

The fan groups include Football Supporters Europe, Football Supporters Africa and, in North America, the Independent Supporters Council, plus about 40 national fan groups worldwide.

Infantino has resisted calls to leave office despite European soccer body UEFA saying it has no confidence in him. He has also been criticized by the leadership of North America’s CONCACAF and the Asian Football Confederation.

Some of FIFA's 211 member federations are supporting Infantino, including 2030 World Cup co-host Morocco as well as Qatar, where he lived before the emirate hosted the 2022 World Cup, and Lebanon, which gave him citizenship this year. Saudi Arabia, the 2034 host, has not publicly backed Infantino despite his close political ties to the kingdom.

“Gianni Infantino has demonstrated a profound failure of leadership, incompatible with democratic governance,” the fan petition states. “The concentration of power around the FIFA Presidency, combined with opaque decision-making, personality cult clientelism, and zero accountability has destroyed any remaining trust in the world governing body."

“For the credibility of FIFA — and for the future of the game — he must resign,” the petition adds.

FIFA was approached for comment about the petition.

Fan anger at World Cup ticket prices

The petition also cites Infantino’s past support for projects that outraged fans, including the failed European Super League project, pushing to hold World Cups every two years that was resisted and the “extortionate ticketing policy at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.”

FIFA and Infantino did not consult with fan groups before setting record ticket prices for the 104-game tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico, that provoked anger and led to some tickets being sold for $60 to the most loyal fans of each of the 48 teams.

Football Supporters Europe is the official liaison for fans with UEFA and advises on ticket prices for European Championships and club cup finals like the Champions League.

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See AP’s full soccer coverage here

Doctors Without Borders criticized the decision by Israel's military not to investigate two fatal attacks on the medical humanitarian organization's staff, and in Gaza City, a mass funeral was held for 50 people killed in Israeli airstrikes nearly three years ago but whose remains were just recovered.

Here’s a look at the latest developments in the Iran war and the wider Middle East on Thursday. Full coverage can be found here.

Iran denounces Trump's economic threat

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has rejected the economic threats made against his country, saying that such “failed policies” will stir more hostility among Iranians and “bring more failures.”

Araghchi's comments came a few hours after Trump threatened “crushing economic measures” against Iran. The U.S. president promised “Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale,” but provided few details.

In a social media post, Araghchi maintained that the threats aim to divert the attention of the U.S. public from domestic financial problems, saying that U.S. “economic terrorism threatens the global economy and the national sovereignty of countries around the world.”

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Thursday that Iran will face the “greatest coordinated economic isolation in the history of the world."

In a CNBC interview, Bessent threatened secondary sanctions on nations and companies that conduct business with Iran, saying it's time for U.S. allies to make a decision on where they stand.

China's government and India are major buyers of Iranian oil, though Bessent didn't call them out by name.

Doctors Without Borders condemns Israel's military

Doctors Without Borders said that the decision by Israel's military not to open a criminal investigation into two strikes that killed four people shows the country won't take responsibility for attacking civilians.

The international aid group now wants an impartial investigation into the deaths, but didn't specify who should lead the effort.

Doctors Without Borders asked Israel's military to investigate an attack on a Gaza City convoy in November 2023 and a strike on the organization's shelter in Khan Younis in February 2024. Israel’s announcement on Wednesday said that it wouldn't launch criminal investigations into two cases, in which troops killed the organization's employees.

The decision by Israel's military shows “there is no prospect of accountability within the Israeli legal system for the killing of our staff, just as there has been no accountability for Israel’s ongoing genocide against Palestinians,” Doctors Without Borders said in a statement that cited 15 staff and 1,700 healthcare workers killed in Gaza since October 2023.

Israel denies accusations of genocide and war crimes and says it's targeting Hamas after the militant group's attack on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and took 251 hostage on Oct. 7, 2023. Israel blames civilian deaths on Hamas, because it operates in populated areas in the tiny, overcrowded Gaza Strip.

U.K. and others rebuke planned West Bank settlement project

Several countries condemned the latest development in a contentious Israeli settlement project near Jerusalem that would effectively cut the occupied West Bank in two.

Israel’s Ministry of Construction and Housing issued a tender for constructing several compounds with more than 1,200 homes in total in an open tract of land east of Jerusalem. It’s the latest step in a project under consideration for more than two decades, which critics say would prevent the establishment of a contiguous Palestinian state in the territory.

U.K. Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband called the publication of the tender “an unacceptable and destructive act” and denounced “settler violence and terrorism.” In a statement released on Wednesday, he said that the British government “demanded an immediate reversal” and had summoned the Israeli chargé d’affaires.

Egypt and Jordan also condemned Israel’s move.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar responded on Thursday by defending “the historic right of the Jewish people to reestablish their national home in the Land of Israel — including in the area in question.” Saar criticized the U.K. government for “blaming only Israel while ignoring Palestinian extremism.”

Gaza funeral for 50 killed in opening strikes of war

A mass funeral Thursday in Gaza City remembered 50 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes in the opening months of the Israel-Hamas war, but whose remains were only recently recovered from under rubble.

Dozens of mourners carried the remains, draped in Palestinian flags, through debris-strewn streets before lowering them into graves. Some held portraits and posters with photos of the deceased.

“We were able to recover them after three years of war, after three years of anguish, pain and torture. We were able to recover them, and dignify them in their final resting place. We were able to pray over them and bury them,” said Lina Karam, who lost her father and other members of her family.

The 50 bodies were from three families who were killed in airstrikes in November and December 2023.

The nearly three-year war has killed more than 73,400 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry, which was part of the Hamas-run government, maintains detailed records viewed as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and international organizations. It doesn’t distinguish between civilians and militants, but says women and children make up around half of the toll.

Turkey denies delegation had visited air base in Syria

Turkey has denied that a Turkish military delegation had visited an air base in northern Syria that was hit by Israeli airstrikes, and vowed to continue supporting Syria in its efforts to rebuild its military.

The Israeli strikes targeted the Abu Duhur base early on Tuesday, causing damage but no casualties. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said that Israel had attacked the base because Syria was “on the verge of breaching” an agreed-upon “status quo in security matters” by allowing Turkish troops to deploy there.

Syrian officials have said that a Turkish delegation visited the base before the Israeli strike to review rehabilitation work underway there.

Syria's top diplomat discusses Middle East in Pakistan

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani arrived in Islamabad for talks expected to focus on regional issues, Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

The visit comes days after Israeli airstrikes targeted an air base in northern Syria, causing damage but no casualties.

Pakistan's officials say the country's political and military leadership remains in contact with both Iran and the United States over efforts to de-escalate tensions and push for the resumption of talks, after a 60-day deadline under a June memorandum of understanding expired. The agreement was brokered by Pakistan with help from regional countries.

Bodies of Pakistani sailors returned after Houthi attack

The bodies of two Pakistanis killed in last week’s Houthi attack on a Tanzanian-flagged commercial vessel in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait have been repatriated to Pakistan.

Six Pakistani sailors who were wounded in the attack have also safely returned to the country, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said in a post on X.

Nguyen Thi Quynh Tam, 24, said she was raped on July 5 and pressured by the man’s family to accept money and not go to police. She said the police also initially urged her to settle the matter privately.

The AP does not usually identify people who say they have been sexually assaulted, except if they come forward publicly about the abuse. Tam's candor is unusual for Vietnam, where sexual violence is rarely discussed publicly, but she said she wanted to speak out to help protect other women.

“I’m doing this not just for me. But for everybody else that has been harmed,” said Tam.

Tam’s account was documented in interviews, her police complaint and communications with U.S. and Vietnamese officials. After she sought help from U.S. officials and a U.S. lawmaker, officials confirmed Thursday that they had charged the 23-year-old man.

Vietnam’s foreign ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang said authorities had initiated legal proceedings “in accordance with Vietnamese law.” She did not respond to questions about alleged police pressure to settle the case.

The man charged in the case did not respond to AP queries sent via social media.

Tam, whose family moved to the United States when she was 5 years old, returned to Vietnam in May for a banking internship, hoping to reconnect with her family’s homeland. She joined a group of acquaintances on a July 4 trip to a resort in Phu Tho, near Hanoi.

The group stayed up late and when she went to bed, Tam found herself locked out of the room where she expected to sleep. She found another bedroom and fell asleep with the door unlocked, then awoke to the 23-year-old man kissing her neck.

Her complaint says Tam told him not to touch her, but he persisted and climbed on top of her. She pushed and punched him and shouted, “No!” But he pinned both her arms above her head and raped her.

Later that night, she messaged her boyfriend in the U.S. that she had been raped. The AP has seen the messages.

Afterward, she said she blamed herself and struggled mentally. Others in the group they traveled with told her the man was from a wealthy, politically-connected family and she was unsure what to do.

Tam said the man apologized twice on July 9, in a note and during a phone call. The AP has heard a recording of the call and seen the note.

On July 11, Tam and friends of her family met with the man's father in an encounter suggested by members of the group she traveled with. She said he asked how much money she wanted for not involving the police. He called five days later, again offering compensation, she said.

In an email to the The Associated Press, the father said the two had been “intimate,” but he declined to comment further. He said his family had “no intention” of pressuring Tam to drop the case.

Tam said that after she reported the incident to police on July 21, they took her back to the room where she said she was raped and asked her to reenact the assault, leaving her distraught.

“A part of me is gone. And it’s in that room,” she said.

The next day, she said, police urged her to meet with the 23-year-old and to sign a statement saying she had refused a rape kit and a lawyer. She refused. The police again asked her to settle while she was getting mental health care at a Hanoi hospital, she said.

Tam, who is from Houston, Texas, said she got little help at the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi, where she was told she could report the matter to Vietnamese police, or return home. She said she was discouraged when they cited a previous sexual assault case that dragged on for over a year before being dropped.

After Tam's father contacted their senator, Ted Cruz, the embassy called her to apologize. It told Cruz’s office it had supported Tam and helped her contact authorities. Her father called that “inaccurate,” according to a July 29 email exchange.

The State Department said it was aware of her case, but couldn't comment further because of legal and privacy reasons. It said American “safety and security” was its top priority.

With universities competing to pay athletes millions of dollars, some states now are propping up their strained sports budgets in ways not previously seen. The state dollars aren’t going directly to star athletes. But by funding facilities and administrative costs normally borne by the schools, states are freeing universities to use their own dollars for other purposes.

The athletics program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, for the first time, is receiving $3 million earmarked from state sports betting taxes. Wisconsin lawmakers approved $15 million for athletic costs at the University of Wisconsin. And Connecticut and Louisiana also are using tax dollars to support college athletics. Even more states have considered it.

Sports business analysts see an emerging trend.

“Once one state provides that kind of assistance, schools in competing states can argue that they are being placed at a competitive disadvantage, which could create additional pressure on legislatures to respond,” said Daniel McIntosh, faculty director of the sports business program at Arizona State University.

Legal cases have accelerated spending on college athletes

NCAA rules long barred college athletes from getting paid by schools and boosters. But under pressure from lawsuits and states, the NCAA cleared the way in 2021 for athletes to receive money from private entities for the use of their name, image or likeness (NIL). Then a legal settlement last year allowed higher education institutions to directly pay athletes a total of about $20.5 million annually — on top of any scholarships and other NIL deals they receive.

That cap rose to $21.3 million for this school year, and is set to rise again the following year.

Many mid-level programs cannot afford that much. But almost all NCAA Division I athletic programs are trying to generate more money to pay athletes in a bid to remain competitive with their peers. At the same time, schools have been incurring greater costs for facilities, coaches’ salaries and travel amid conference realignments that discarded old geographic-based rivalries.

Over the past four years, athletic operating expenses at public Division I institutions shot up by nearly a third — notably outpacing revenue and running up deficits, according to an Associated Press analysis using the Knight-Newhouse College Athletics Database.

Federal legislation could drive athletic costs even higher

The Protect College Sports Act, pending in the U.S. Senate, has been promoted as a way to put guardrails on college sports spending. But it could potentially allow even greater spending by schools.

The latest version would allow institutions to pay up to an additional $27.5 million annually to retain players on their rosters, pushing the overall athlete payment cap close to $50 million. The higher ceiling could reduce the demand for third-party NIL deals.

But the legislation contains no provision restraining increases in state and institutional funding for athletics, said Amy Privette Perko, CEO of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics.

“Without some restraint on the underlying spending competition, additional public funding could simply finance the next stage of the arms race,” McIntosh said.

States are routing money to schools in creative ways

When North Carolina launched online sports wagering in 2024, it earmarked part of the tax revenue for athletic departments at 13 public universities. But the two largest institutions — the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University — were excluded.

That changed in July under a new state budget that raises the sports betting tax. Those two schools now are projected to receive $3 million each this year and $5.8 million next year.

In the meantime, Louisiana also hiked its sports wagering tax and earmarked about $2.2 million to each of its 11 public universities in conferences with Division I football programs.

Seeking to drum up athletic revenue, Connecticut lawmakers authorized the University of Connecticut to issue vouchers for state tax credits equal to half the amount of donations, sponsorships and licensing endorsements. The program generated $1.7 million in its first four months, according to a university report.

New Jersey’s new budget allots $5 million for “events attraction and marketing” at Rutgers’ flagship campus. A university spokesperson declined to say if the money would be used for athletic programs.

Though not providing new state money, the governing board for Florida’s universities last year authorized institutions to transfer up to $22.5 million to athletics. Florida State University did so almost immediately, and other schools have since followed.

Lawmaker says a bad football team is bad for the state

The Wisconsin budget provides $14.6 million for athletic facility debt payments at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and $200,000 each for the Milwaukee and Green Bay campuses.

“None of that state funds technically would go toward student athletes,” said Republican state Rep. Alex Dallman, who sponsored the legislation.

But with the state covering facility debt, the university could use its own funds “for other things, such as NIL, or just trying to compete,” said Dallman, who typically attends a couple Wisconsin football games each year.

“Having a bad football team, having uncompetitive college sports in general, would not be beneficial to our state, both culturally or economically,” Dallman said. “So we decided as a state we’d help out.”

En Waldorf, en el estado suroccidental de Renania-Palatinado, una mujer perdió la vida tras ser golpeada por la caída de un árbol, informó el jueves la agencia de noticias alemana dpa. Otra mujer sufrió lesiones graves en el mismo incidente, indicó la policía.

Las mujeres, de 58 y 47 años, caminaban juntas cuando se desató una tormenta y se refugiaron en una zona de asientos cubierta. Ambas fueron alcanzadas cuando un árbol fue arrancado de raíz y cayó sobre los asientos. La mujer de más edad murió en el lugar, señaló un portavoz policial. La otra fue trasladada a un hospital.

Un tornado golpeó la localidad de Fürstenwalde, a 78 kilómetros (49 millas) al sureste de Berlín. Algunos tejados fueron arrancados, varios autos resultaron dañados por la caída de árboles, y una persona sufrió heridas, según dpa.

En Höhr-Grenzhausen, en el distrito de Westerwald, en el oeste del país, una tormenta arrancó paredes de edificios. Al menos dos viviendas se vieron afectadas, de acuerdo con dpa. La caída de trozos de fachadas y los escombros arrastrados por el viento causaron más daños, y varios árboles fueron arrancados de raíz. En la zona se registró también un apagón generalizado mientras que fuertes ráfagas de viento volcaron un camión en la autopista A61.

También se registraron numerosas llamadas de emergencia relacionadas con el mal tiempo durante la noche en Hesse, Turingia y Baviera.

Un festival en la localidad de Kronach, en Baviera, fue evacuado parcialmente debido a las fuertes tormentas. Unos 3.500 asistentes tuvieron que abandonar la zona al aire libre del recinto a última hora de la noche del miércoles, informó la policía local. Los festejos continuaron dentro de las carpas con cervecerías.

En Wetzlar, en Hesse, la tormenta dañó unas 60 casas, según los bomberos. En algunos casos, fragmentos de techos salieron volando hasta 100 metros (110 yardas) de distancia, dijo dpa.

El Servicio Meteorológico alemán advirtió que podrían producirse más tormentas fuertes más tarde en el día, en especial en Baden-Württemberg y Baviera, en el sur del país.

Aunque en Alemania las tormentas estuvieron acompañadas de temperaturas más frescas, en el sureste de Europa seguían siendo altas y se registraron incendios en algunas partes de la región.

Los bomberos luchan contra el fuego en los Balcanes

En Serbia, un avión ruso de extinción de incendios se sumó el jueves a los esfuerzos para combatir incendios forestales que devastaron una reserva natural en el noreste, mientras el país balcánico enfrenta una nueva ola de calor en los próximos días.

El Il-76 aterrizó en Serbia el miércoles por la noche, en un ejemplo de la continuidad de las relaciones entre ambos países pese a la intención declarada de Belgrado de unirse a la Unión Europea.

El incendio en Deliblatska Pescara, o Deliblato Sands, comenzó hace un mes, pero estuvo bajo control hasta principios de agosto, cuando empezó a propagarse rápidamente calcinando miles de hectáreas (acres) de bosques de pinos y matorrales.

Varios fuegos de gran tamaño han arrasado otras partes del país, así como otros puntos en la región en las últimas semanas. Este año, el verano extremadamente caluroso y seco ha alimentado los incendios forestales en toda Europa, desde Bélgica hasta Grecia.

Bomberos croatas de la popular Dubrovnik se sumaron el jueves a la lucha para contener un incendio al otro lado de la frontera en Bosnia para evitar que se propagara hacia la ciudad medieval amurallada, que está protegida por la UNESCO.

“Fue una noche dura”, dijo el comandante de la unidad regional de bomberos, Stjepan Simović, a la agencia noticiosa Hina. “El incendio es enorme y en un terreno inaccesible, así que tenemos que estar atentos”.

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Gec informó desde Belgrado, Serbia.

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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

In Waldorf, in the southwestern state of Rhineland-Palatinate, a woman was struck by a falling tree and fatally injured, the German news agency dpa reported Thursday. Another woman suffered serious injuries in the accident, police said.

The women, 58 and 47, were walking together when a storm rolled in and they sought shelter under a covered seating area. Both women were struck when a tree was uprooted and fell onto the seating area. The 58-year-old died at the scene, a police spokesperson said. The 47-year-old was taken to a hospital.

A tornado struck the town of Fürstenwalde, 78 kilometers (49 miles) southeast of Berlin. Roofs were torn off and several cars were damaged by falling trees, and one person was injured, according to dpa.

In Höhr-Grenzhausen in the Westerwald district in western Germany, a storm tore walls from buildings. At least two homes were affected, according to dpa. Falling pieces of building facades and flying debris caused additional damage, and several trees were uprooted. A widespread power outage also hit the area, while strong gusts of wind overturned a truck on the A61 highway.

There were also numerous weather-related emergency calls overnight in Hesse, Thuringia and Bavaria.

A village festival in Kronach, Bavaria, was partially evacuated due to severe storms. About 3,500 guests had to leave the outdoor area of the festival grounds late Wednesday evening, local police said. They were able to continue celebrating inside the beer halls.

In Wetzlar, in Hesse, the storm damaged about 60 houses, according to the fire department. In some cases, pieces of roofing were blown as far as 100 meters (110 yards) away, dpa reported.

The German Weather Service warned that further severe storms could occur later in the day, particularly in Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria in southern Germany.

While the storms in Germany were accompanied by cooler temperatures, high temperatures continued to be recorded in southeastern Europe, and fires raged in some parts of the region.

Firefighters are battling wildfires in the Balkans

In Serbia, a Russian firefighting plane joined efforts in Serbia on Thursday to fight wildfires that devastated a nature reserve in the northeast as the Balkan country faces a fresh heat wave in the coming days.

The Il-76 plane landed in Serbia on Wednesday evening, also illustrating continued friendly relations between the two countries despite Belgrade’s proclaimed intention to join the European Union.

The fire in Deliblatska Pescara, or Deliblato Sands, first erupted a month ago, but was under control until early August when it started spreading swiftly, engulfing thousands of acres of pine forests and shrubbery.

Several other big fires also have been raging in other parts of the country, as well as throughout the region in the past weeks. An extremely hot and dry summer this year has fueled wildfires throughout Europe, from Belgium to Greece.

Croatian firefighters from the popular tourism hot spot of Dubrovnik on Thursday joined a struggle to contain a fire across the border in Bosnia to prevent it from spreading toward the medieval walled city that is a UNESCO protected heritage site.

“It was a hard night,” regional firefighting unit commander Stjepan Simović told the Hina news agency. "The fire is huge and in an inaccessible terrain, so we have to be vigilant.”

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Gec reported from Belgrade, Serbia.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff said the launches of about 10 short-range ballistic missiles happened from North Korea’s capital region around 5 p.m. (0800 GMT) on Thursday. The military said the missiles flew about 300 kilometers (185 miles) each toward North Korea’s eastern waters.

The military said South Korea has bolstered its surveillance posture and was closely coordinating information on the launches with the U.S. and Japan. South Korea’s presidential national security council issued a statement urging North Korea to halt ballistic missile launches.

The Japanese prime minister's office had earlier said that it detected a suspected missile launch.

U.S. President Donald Trump earlier ordered the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises, just before they began Monday. Trump cited what he said was a good relationship with Kim and South Korea’s refusal to support him over the war in Iran.

On Wednesday, the South Korean and U.S. militaries confirmed they shortened the 11-day drills by shortening their duration by about half and canceling some field training exercises. The reduction of the exercises raised worries about the allies’ joint defense posture.

Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, dismissed Trump’s overture later Wednesday, saying “the provocative, aggressive nature of the drills won’t change even though their duration and size were reduced.”

“If the U.S. calculates that it can propagate its recent measure as the one of so-called good faith, they will not get the desired answer,” she said in a statement.

She denied Trump’s claim that Kim Jong Un had responded to his request for a conversation.

Kim Yo Jong still refrained from the typical North Korean reaction of fiery rhetoric and said personal relations between her brother and Trump are “still excellent.” That signals North Korea would want to wait for Trump to make bigger concessions before returning to talks.

When asked by reporters Wednesday if he would be meeting with Kim Jong Un this year, Trump said that “Yeah, I will be.” He wouldn’t answer a question about whether he is exchanging letters with Kim but said he gets along with him.

The Ulchi Freedom Shield is one of the main military exercises conducted by the U.S. and South Korea annually to enhance their ability to cope with potential North Korean aggression. Washington and Seoul say their drills are defensive in nature, but North Korea calls them an invasion rehearsal and often reacts with weapons tests.

Before this month's drills started, North Korea accused the U.S. and South Korea of plotting more provocative exercises this summer and vowed to respond with "a new level of a deterrent.” Days before the drills' start, North Korea fired two ballistic missiles into the sea in its first such launches since late June.

Trump's earlier diplomacy with Kim Jong Un collapsed in 2019 due to disputes over how much sanctions relief North Korea should be given in return for dismantling its main nuclear complex, a limited denuclearization step. Kim has since shunned any talks with the U.S., pushed to modernize weapons arsenals and expanded cooperation with Russia.

Kim has said he won’t place his nuclear program back on the negotiating table. Experts say Kim has more leverage than when he first held talks with Trump in 2018 and 2019. They say Kim likely hopes to eventually win international recognition as a nuclear state and extensive sanctions relief in exchange for only limited steps toward denuclearization.

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Associated Press writer Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo contributed to this report.

The announcement of his contract extension ahead of Verstappen’s home Dutch Grand Prix this weekend ends speculation that he could seek a blockbuster move to another team or quit the sport.

It comes despite Red Bull struggling to match the pace of leading team Mercedes this season, and Verstappen's own frustration with how much the 2026 cars rely on electrical power.

“After the first few races (this year), I said to Laurent (Mekies, Red Bull team principal): ‘Don’t come to me with any kind of questions about the future because I don’t even know if I want to stay.’ Honestly, we always kept it very open,” Verstappen said.

He added that talks with F1 and governing body the FIA had persuaded him that “we are slowly working towards something that becomes better and better” with the current cars, while the new contract until 2030 could cover a potential — but not confirmed — return to simpler V8 engines.

“Even if I’m not entirely happy with how the package is, I still love racing, this is still the pinnacle of motorsport, so I still want to be here,” he added.

Asked whether he’d spoken with other teams, he said: “I think I was closer to retiring than changing team.”

The Verstappen-Red Bull pairing could set an F1 record

Seeing out the contract in full would take Verstappen to 15 seasons with Red Bull. It would be the longest-running driver-team pairing in F1 history. It comes with strong support for team principal Mekies after he replaced the team's founding boss Christian Horner last year.

In return, Mekies laid out how the team is built around Verstappen.

“He’s a lot more than the fastest driver in the world for us,” Mekies said. “He’s the central point of the team. He’s one we always refer to for all the strategic decisions we are making, and to know that he’s going to be with us in order to build that next winning cycle is phenomenal.”

Verstappen, already considered one of F1’s all-time greats at the age of 28, has yet to win a race this season. The 71-time race winner hasn’t had a winless season since his rookie year in 2015.

Why there was speculation Verstappen might move

Verstappen’s previous contract ran through 2028 but reportedly included performance-related clauses which could have potentially allowed him to leave earlier and which fueled speculation he might seek to move.

Red Bull backed Verstappen’s career from childhood and brought him into F1 at the age of 17 in 2015 at its second team, then called Toro Rosso. That made him the youngest driver in series history, a record he still holds.

Still, there had been signs of tension in recent years amid the departures of a series of key staff including Horner last year and car design great Adrian Newey.

Verstappen also raised safety concerns this season after two separate faults with the Red Bull car’s rear wing hurled him into high-speed crashes.

Verstappen had been linked with a move to McLaren after reports of a meeting in June between his representatives and McLaren management. McLaren chief executive Zak Brown said at the time the team didn't have an opening for him and would stick with defending champion Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, who said Thursday he hadn't been worried for his seat.

Mercedes had also signaled interest in the past.

“Drivers talk with different teams, teams talk with different drivers. Everyone has to just see what their cards are," Mercedes' George Russell said Thursday. "My seat never felt under threat, and I felt 100% security with Toto (Wolff, team principal) and the team. That obviously now continues.”

One driver who had been considered a potential replacement for Verstappen at Red Bull, Carlos Sainz Jr., signed a new contract on Wednesday with Williams.

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See AP’s full auto racing coverage here

El casco oxidado —que en su día fue una embarcación célebre conocida como el Slovenian— afloró a principios de este mes en el río Sava, cerca de la localidad serbia de Sremska Mitrovica, 70 kilómetros (45 millas) al noroeste de la capital, Belgrado.

Aunque algunas partes ya habían asomado antes del agua, los vecinos dicen que nunca se había visto el pecio tan expuesto.

“Han pasado varios años desde la última vez que se vio, así que hay bastante interés”, comentó el historiador Andrija Popovic, director del museo de la ciudad.

“De verdad es algo que no se ve todos los días”, añadió sobre el barco, al que los medios serbios han apodado “el Titanic del Sava”.

Buques de guerra, huesos de mamut y partes de construcciones antiguas han emergido de las aguas en retroceso del Danubio, el Rin y otros ríos durante la abrasadora sequía, que también ha alterado el comercio y el suministro de energía y de agua.

La falta de agua en el Danubio, en un mínimo histórico, ha afectado gravemente a centrales nucleares en Hungría y Rumania y ha detenido el tráfico en la segunda vía fluvial más grande de Europa. Una sequía de varios meses ha devastado cultivos desde Países Bajos hasta Bosnia y ha provocado una escasez de agua que llega hasta los Alpes.

El barco sobrevivió a dos guerras mundiales antes de hundirse

Según Popovic, el Slovenian fue construido en 1913 en un astillero de Budapest, Hungría, entonces parte del Imperio Austrohúngaro.

Medía aproximadamente 54 metros (177 pies) de eslora y al principio se llamaba Vag, que en húngaro alude al río más largo de Eslovaquia, el Vah. Con una máquina de vapor, el barco remolcaba cargas pesadas entre Budapest y otras localidades a lo largo del Danubio.

Durante la Primera Guerra Mundial, el barco en gran medida suspendió sus rutas, agregó Popovic. Al terminar la guerra y desmantelarse el Imperio Austrohúngaro, la propiedad del barco pasó al recién formado Reino de Serbios, Croatas y Eslovenos —que más tarde se convertiría en Yugoslavia— como parte de las reparaciones de guerra, explicó.

“Fue entonces cuando se le cambió el nombre a Slovenian”, explicó Popovic, y añadió que es un misterio “por qué se eligió ese nombre”.

Luego, durante la Segunda Guerra Mundial, el Slovenian —y su nuevo país— quedaron bajo ocupación de la Alemania nazi. Después de que las fuerzas antifascistas yugoslavas liberaran Belgrado en 1944, utilizaron el barco para trasladar heridos y equipo mientras empujaban a las tropas alemanas más hacia el oeste, indicó Popovic.

Popovic relató que el barco transportaba combatientes heridos cuando chocó con una mina alemana a finales de abril de 1945. “Se hundió y se ha quedado en el mismo lugar desde ese día”.

Un Danubio menguante muestra barcos alemanes y huesos de mamut

El Slovenian no es la única reliquia que ha emergido de los ríos europeos que se están secando.

En la frontera oriental de Serbia con Rumania, restos oxidados de barcos alemanes sobresalen de las aguas escasas del Danubio.

Los barcos, algunos aún cargados con armas, pertenecían a la flota del mar Negro de la Alemania nazi, que fue hundida deliberadamente cerca del final de la guerra mientras las tropas alemanas se retiraban de Rumania y las fuerzas soviéticas avanzaban más hacia el interior de Europa.

En Italia, la peor sequía en 70 años ha dejado al descubierto los pilares de un antiguo puente sobre el río Tíber que en su día usaron emperadores romanos, pero que cayó en desuso para el siglo III.

A medida que las aguas del Danubio se reducían en Bulgaria, investigadores se entusiasmaron al encontrar y recuperar una mandíbula, colmillos, un omóplato, costillas y otros fragmentos óseos pertenecientes a un mamut lanudo extinto, enterrado profundamente en la arena.

Expertos buscan formas de prepararse para un clima más extremo

Europa es el continente que se calienta más rápido en el mundo, con temperaturas que aumentan al doble del ritmo del promedio global desde la década de 1980, según el Servicio de Cambio Climático Copernicus de la Unión Europea.

Para finales de julio de 2026, la mitad de la Unión Europea y el Reino Unido estaba experimentando sequía, de acuerdo con el Observatorio Europeo de la Sequía de la Unión Europea, con el 9% del territorio en el nivel más severo de “alerta”.

Los científicos advierten que el cambio climático está agravando la frecuencia y la intensidad del calor y la aridez.

El experto serbio en hidrología Dejan Vladikovic sostuvo que la sequía actual es la combinación de la falta de nieve en invierno y una primavera muy seca.

“Lo que nos espera en el futuro... es que situaciones así serán más frecuentes”, afirmó Vladikovic. “Estamos entrando en periodos en los que esto, por desgracia, se convertirá en una nueva normalidad”.

Incluso las montañas están sufriendo. En los Alpes eslovenos, los refugios que dependen del agua de lluvia han restringido el uso de agua para alpinistas y excursionistas, incluso para duchas y baños.

El refugio Triglav, la cabaña para huéspedes a mayor altitud de Eslovenia, a 2.515 metros (8.251 pies) de elevación, está usando platos de papel este verano para ahorrar agua al lavar los utensilios.

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Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con la ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

Using a pair of hand tools, Shijin carefully inspected the sheet made from the papyrus plant, proceeding with the utmost care. After all, it most likely hadn’t been handled in a century — nor read for thousands of years.

The Papyrus Conservation Summer Seminar at the University of Michigan is the only one of its kind in the Americas, according to the university. And it's one of the few in the world designed to convey the best practices for conserving papyrus manuscripts, ancient texts written on rolls or sheets made from the papyrus plant.

“If you touch this papyrus, you can feel the history,” said Shijin, a native of China who was among nine scholars from across the globe, including Ireland, Italy and the U.S., who took the 10-day course.

Michigan’s Papyrology Collection covers texts and documents from 1000 B.C.E. to 1000 C.E. No institution on this side of the world has more of them, the Ann Arbor school said, giving the researchers access to a vast collection of ancient papyri. There are portions of the Homer epics, “The Odyssey” and “The Iliad,” writings by the philosopher Epicurus and the oldest-known copy of the Epistles of Paul.

“Carrying on this tradition is an incredible responsibility, but it also is incredibly fun and rewarding, because there’s nothing I love more than getting people together from all over the world, sharing ideas, learning from each other,” said Marieka Kaye, who manages library preservation services for physical collections at the University of Michigan Library.

Kaye said she tried to make “things comfortable and not scary, because a lot of people just feel terrified working on these ancient things.”

The seminar introduced the papyrologists and conservators to techniques in the treatment, storage and care of the ancient texts, as well as documentation practices. Papyrus and its ink can crumble, smear or break, so Kaye encouraged the students to carefully remove dirt, sand, salt and debris; use controlled moisture to soften folds and realign fibers; and dry the papyrus slowly under light weight to prevent curling.

The first seminar was held in 2012, and they have been held every two years since, except for the 2020 pandemic year. About 50 students total have taken part.

“If we don’t train the next generations of conservators, this is a craft that is going to be lost,” said Giuliano Sidro, curator of Michigan's Papyrology Collection.

Michigan has so many papyrus manuscripts on hand that its researchers haven’t gone through them all. Some of the items were acquired, while others were excavated, during university expeditions to the ancient site of Karanis, Egypt, from 1924-35. Francis Willey Kelsey, a Latin professor who died in 1927, was the driving force behind the establishment of the Papyrology Collection. He believed Michigan students studying the ancient world needed access not only to books, but to the tangible remains of antiquity. Today, the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology is a fixture on the Michigan campus. Its collection represents one of the finest compilations of daily-life objects from Greco-Roman Egypt located outside of Cairo.

“This is a place where you make discoveries, potentially every day, if you just go into the vault, pick out a box and open something up, and you start reading,” Sidro said.

Of course, to make sense of it, one needs to be able to decipher Arabic, ancient Greek or Latin, and even Egyptian, one of the earliest known written languages that is now extinct. A few of the seminar participants were able to read the papyri, including Arzak Mohamed, who reads Arabic, and Mauro Castiello, a papyrology doctoral student in Milan, who can translate ancient Greek and Latin.

Kaye said she always tries to include a student from Egypt among the seminar participants.

Mohamed, a postdoctoral fellow at Macquarie University in Sydney, had heard about the papyrus seminar for years and always wanted to attend. The 42-year-old mother of three is from Fayoum, Egypt, not far from Karanis.

“Now, I can transfer this information from Michigan to Egypt and even in Australia,” she said. “I will be like the chain, connecting between the three countries.”

“By saving this information, we can transfer the knowledge to the next generation,” she added.

The S&P 500 slipped 0.4% and is on track for a fourth loss in the five days since setting its all-time high last week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 424 points, or 0.8%, as of 1:02 p.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.7% lower.

The bond market remains the center of action after yields charged higher through the summer on worries about high inflation, gargantuan government debts and other factors. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made a move Wednesday that jolted financial markets to at least double the size of his department’s planned purchases of longer-term Treasurys from Sept. 9 through Nov. 4.

That helped push yields down after the 10-year Treasury’s yield had hit its highest level in more than a year and the 30-year yield got back to where it was in 2007, before the Great Recession sent yields toward zero worldwide. It’s a big deal because high yields slow the economy by raising interest payments for people, companies and the government, and they can undercut prices for stocks and other investments.

But analysts had cautioned the effect may be short lived, given how small the purchases are relative to the overall size of the Treasury market and how they don't fix the fundamental concerns of investors that had driven up yields. Plus, more signals arrived quickly to push worries higher.

The U.S. government’s debt topped $40 trillion on Wednesday, a staggering record that arrived just months after the national debt first blew past the $39 trillion mark in April, because Washington continues to spend far more money than it brings in.

And on Thursday, the price for a barrel of Brent crude climbed 1.8% to $93.24 as uncertainty continues about when the war with Iran will allow oil tankers to freely exit the Persian Gulf again. President Donald Trump threatened Iran with “the MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY” late Wednesday but provided few details.

That helped push the 10-year Treasury yield up to 4.70% from 4.65% late Wednesday. It’s almost back to its 4.71% level from late Tuesday, before the Treasury Department made its announcement.

A couple encouraging reports on the U.S. economy also helped push up longer-term Treasury yields, which move with expectations for the economy and inflation in coming years. One said fewer U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week than economists expected, while another said manufacturing in the mid-Atlantic region appears to be much stronger than expected.

On Wall Street, Walmart was one of the heaviest weights on the S&P 500 and fell 8.9% even though it reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Investors focused instead on how an important underlying measure of revenue growth at its stores slowed again. Its forecast for profit in the current quarter also fell short of analysts’ expectations.

Given its massive size, Walmart offers a look at how shoppers are doing across the United States. A surprisingly weak update on sales at U.S. retailers overall last month had raised worries that shoppers may be succumbing to pressure from high inflation and a job market that may be looking less solid.

Advance Auto Parts tumbled 25.7% after the retailer reported weaker revenue for the latest quarter, even though its profit topped expectations. CEO Shane O’Kelly said that “tighter household budgets constrained spending more than we anticipated, especially during the last four weeks of the quarter.”

Spending by U.S. consumers is the main engine of the economy, and a pullback by them could exacerbate what's already a slowdown in growth for the economy.

A pullback could also mean a double-whammy for travel companies, which would see fewer bookings when they have to pay higher prices for fuel. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings fell 4.1%, while United Airlines sank 3.2% and American Airlines lost 2.4%.

Helping to keep Wall Street’s losses in check was Deere, which reported stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It rose 8.8% as the company said order trends indicate the agriculture equipment business looks set to accelerate after this year.

Oil companies also rose with the gains for crude prices. Exxon Mobil added 1.7%, and ConocoPhillips climbed 3.1%.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe following a stronger finish in Asia.

South Korea’s Kospi soared 5.9% for one of the world’s biggest moves after the two tech titans that dominate its market, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, jumped. Such swings have become more common for Seoul's market, which has borne the brunt of rising and falling worries that winning stocks in the artificial-intelligence boom may have shot too high.

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AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Michelle Chapman contributed to this report.

Moscow's forces have in recent months intensified their ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv, exploiting Ukraine's chronic shortage of U.S.-made Patriot air defense interceptors, the sole weapon in its arsenal able to shoot down the missiles.

Large-scale Russian missile strikes have become a regular occurrence this summer. Just over two weeks ago, a Russian attack on Kyiv and its surrounding region killed 17 people, and nine were killed in the city two days before that. The United Nations said last week that Kyiv was one of the hardest hit cities in July, with at least 54 civilians killed and 202 injured.

At the same time, Ukraine has shifted the war onto Russian soil through long-range drone strikes on oil facilities that have caused fuel shortages across the country. It has also unsettled the Russian public by striking warehouses of Wildberries, the country’s biggest online retailer.

Zelenskyy repeats his appeals for more air defense

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pleaded for countries to send more Patriot interceptors for defense, but international stockpiles are low amid the Iran war and Kyiv's more than four-year fight against Russia's all-out invasion.

Russia's overnight barrage also included cruise missiles and jet-powered drones that further strain air defenses, Ukraine's air force said.

Explosions boomed across Kyiv in the dark, but the air force said hits were recorded at 28 locations across the country. Emergency services said 15 people were killed in the capital, with another death in the wider Kyiv region. About 40 people were wounded, Zelenskyy said, as air raid warnings lasted until after dawn.

More than 38,000 people, including over 2,000 children, sheltered in Kyiv’s subway stations overnight, the system's operator said.

“It was a massive attack,” Zelenskyy said on social media, adding that Russia “had been preparing (it) for a long time, combining different types of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones, aiming to cause as much damage as possible to civilian infrastructure."

The Russian Defense Ministry said it struck a Kyiv industrial site manufacturing components for Flamingo cruise missiles. Sites involved in the production and storage of drones, an ammunition depot and a logistics center were also hit, it said.

Russia is able to produce more than 200 cruise and ballistic missiles per month, Ukraine’s intelligence agency told news outlet Ukrainska Pravda in comments published Thursday. It has stockpiled more than 1,100 cruise missiles and about 130 Iskander-M ballistic missiles, as well as hundreds of missiles of other types, the agency was quoted as saying.

It was not possible to independently verify the report, and Russian officials do not routinely answer questions about the country's arsenal.

Ukraine says it struck more Russian oil facilities

Russia and Ukraine have battered each other with drones and missiles as their armies struggle to gain the upper hand on the 1,250-kilometer (780-mile) front line.

Ukraine’s General Staff said its forces struck an oil refinery in Nizhnekamsk, in Russia’s Tatarstan region, starting a fire, and the Tamanneftegaz oil terminal in Volna, in Russia’s Krasnodar region, where there was also a blaze. Ukraine has hit both facilities in recent months as part of its campaign to disrupt Russia’s vital oil industry.

Tatarstan leader Rustam Minnikhanov confirmed there had been a “massive attack” in the region, state news agency Tass reported, citing his press service. Many of the drones targeted Nizhnekamsk’s Zakamsk economic area, disrupting production at industrial sites and damaging residential buildings, Tass quoted him as saying.

The Russian Defense Ministry said air defenses shot down 726 drones overnight over a number of Russian regions, annexed Crimea and the Black and Azov seas, in one of Ukraine's biggest aerial attacks of the war.

Ukraine's neighbors are on alert

Russia’s relentless onslaught has spooked other European countries, especially those bordering Ukraine, which fear spreading attacks from Moscow.

Amid the attack on Kyiv, the Polish Armed Forces Operational Command activated its military aviation operations, ground-based air defense systems and radar reconnaissance. Polish and other NATO military aircraft were deployed to monitor its airspace, Polish news agency PAP reported.

Romania’s Defense Ministry said an unidentified drone crashed and burned in an uninhabited area near the Ukrainian border. Two Spanish F-18 jets, deployed on a policing mission in Romania, were scrambled overnight to monitor a group of “air targets” near the border, the ministry said.

In addition, two Romanian F-16 fighter jets were deployed to destroy a naval drone seen near a major Black Sea gas project, Romania’s acting Defense Minister Radu Miruta said.

Moldova’s Defense Ministry also said its airspace was breached by at least one drone.

Russia “is increasingly testing the resolve of NATO and its partners, violating the sovereignty of neighboring states and deliberately expanding the risks posed by its war far beyond Ukraine," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on social media.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen saw a broad threat to the European Union. “An escalating campaign of threats is underway, unsettling our citizens and seeking to divide our Union,” she said on X.

Explosions shatter windows and screams fill the air

Russia's overnight strikes hit 12 locations across Kyiv’s Darnytskyi, Sviatoshynskyi and Solomianskyi districts, damaging 30 apartment blocks, a school, a children’s hospital and a kindergarten, Zelenskyy said.

Larysa Bondaruk, 60, sat on the ground, holding her cat, Chanel, which had been rescued by firefighters. With tears in her eyes, she said her neighbor’s grandson had been trapped by the rubble and died. Her apartment was badly damaged.

“A rocket hit the roof. It was incredibly loud. Immediately, debris and doors were blown out. There were columns of smoke, columns of fire, screams, crying and despair,” she said. “Two people were killed in our building, but the rescuers responded quickly and professionally. I am grateful to them for that.”

In Solomianskyi district, the top two floors of a nine-story residential building were destroyed and fires broke out on other floors. People were also trapped in two residential buildings and a school shelter.

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AP reporters Vasilisa Stepanenko and Hanna Arhirova in Kyiv, Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin and Stephen McGrath in Leamington Spa, England, contributed.

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

The decision marks a milestone in Evergrande's saga after it defaulted on more than $300 billion in liabilities when Chinese authorities cracked down on excessive borrowing in the real estate industry in 2020. That triggered a crunch among many developers and brought on a downturn in the property market that has weighed on the broader economy ever since.

The Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court said Thursday it convicted 67-year-old Hui, who founded Evergrande, of engaging in large-scale financial fraud in inflating the group’s assets and concealing its liabilities.

In a statement, the court said Hui, also known as Xu Jiayin, abused his position in orchestrating fraud and misappropriating company assets.

Evergrande group was fined 8.82 billion yuan ($1.31 billion) and Evergrande Real Estate Group was fined 7 billion yuan ($1.04 billion), the court said.

“The amount involved is exceptionally large, the circumstances are particularly egregious, and extraordinarily heavy economic losses have been caused,” the statement said. “The harm to society is extremely serious. Therefore, severe punishment should be given in accordance with the law.”

Hui’s sons, Xu Tenghe and Xu Zhijian, were also sentenced alongside senior Evergrande executives and others linked to the group on charges including illegally taking public deposits, fundraising fraud and the illegal use of funds, China's official Xinhua News Agency said. A total of more than 50 individuals got prison terms of between 22 months and 18 years, it said without providing a breakdown of sentencing details.

A photo of Hui's courtroom appearance released by the Shenzhen court on Thursday showed an aged Hui, who used to be a high-profile figure but had long been out of public view, wearing a navy blue shirt standing between two uniformed officers behind a sign that read “defendant” in Chinese.

Hui pleaded guilty in April to various charges including illegal absorption of public deposits, fraud and bribery after he was detained in China.

China Evergrande was founded in 1996 as China's housing boom was taking off. It defaulted on its debts in 2021 and was ordered to liquidate its assets. The broader downturn in China's massive property sector that ensued has pulled home prices down 20% or more since 2021.

Authorities in Hong Kong and mainland China earlier said their investigations found Evergrande had manipulated its financial data using tactics such as prematurely booking revenue from property sales before completion and delivery of the apartments to buyers. Revenues were overstated by roughly $80 billion over 2019 and 2020, they said.

Hui was fined 47 million yuan ($6.5 million) in 2024 and banned from China's securities markets for life by the China Securities Regulatory Commission over inflating company financial results, among other issues.

Once reported to be China’s richest man, Hui used to own the football club Guangzhou Evergrande. At one point, he and his companies were involved in investing in and building theme parks and electric vehicles.

His story was one of rags-to-riches. Born in 1958 into a rural family in central China's Henan province, he worked in the steel industry in the 1980s before establishing Evergrande, which then prospered during China's housing market boom. He was one of many businessmen who have also gained political influence by joining a major advisory organization, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.

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Associated Press writer Huizhong Wu in Bangkok contributed to this report.

On the hillsides of Hautvillers, teams of grape pickers start work at 6:30 a.m. among rows of vines that were recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2015.

For Alexandre Gobillard, production director at the Gobillard & Fils Champagne house, beginning the harvest in mid-August was once almost unthinkable.

“It’s historic in Champagne,” he said. “I’ve been working at the estate for 30 years, and when I started, my father used to tell me: ‘On Aug. 15, go on vacation.’ Today, it’s Aug. 18 and we’re in full harvest. We’ve never seen anything like it.”

At 50, Gobillard represents the fourth generation to work the family vineyards. Gobillard & Fils grows 40 hectares (about 100 acres) of vines and produces about 1.5 million bottles a year.

A changing climate brings an earlier harvest

Champagne’s official harvest opened between Aug. 12 and Aug. 17 this year, depending on the area and grape variety — roughly a month earlier than what was once common in the region.

A late-March frost hit vines after mild temperatures triggered early budburst, reducing the potential crop. It was followed by four heat waves, which never happened before, Gobillard said.

Sun-scorched grapes turned partially brown, something Gobillard said he had rarely seen. He explained that losing roughly 10% of the grapes would mean a loss in volume rather than affect the quality of the wine.

Earlier harvests have become increasingly common in Champagne and other French wine regions as temperatures rise. In neighboring Italy, extreme heat has also prompted sparkling-wine producers to harvest sooner and pick grapes at night.

David Chatillon, president of the Union of Champagne Houses, acknowledged weather conditions this year will lead to a clear decrease in yields.

“But it’s not just because of the drought,” he said. “We lost 43% of the potential production to the spring frosts, and the drought has clearly made the problem of lower yields even worse.”

Chatillon said climate change has been a focus of the industry for the past 25 years, prompting investment in research and innovation to adapt to evolving conditions, including developing grape varieties that are more disease-resistant and ripen later.

Heat speeds grape ripening

Gobillard has seen the shift unfold across generations of his family.

“My grandfather’s generation harvested 100 days after flowering, my father’s 90 days, and today we’re down to 80,” he said. “We’re going to have to change our habits.”

This summer’s record temperatures compressed the ripening period even further. In June, temperatures reached 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in parts of Champagne.

“The vine needs water to live,” Gobillard said. “The water was drawn out of the grapes to keep the vine alive, and as a result we had a much higher concentration of sugar. That’s why it happened so much faster.”

As his daughter operated the wine press, Gobillard watched the year's first juice flow with a mix of excitement and anxiety.

He quickly took a sample to measure its sugar level — a key indicator of potential alcohol content and of whether the grapes have been picked at the right moment. “Champagne shouldn’t be too alcoholic. ... We’re looking for delicacy," he said.

An early harvest tests Champagne’s traditions

The early harvest also poses logistical challenges in a region where grapes are traditionally picked by hand, with some workers still on summer vacation and others facing transportation delays.

Gobillard hopes to complete the harvest at the estate in about nine days, a job requiring around 120 workers recruited mostly from across France and Poland.

“It really changes how we look at Champagne’s traditional methods,” said Geoffrey Bonnet-Gobillard, 30, commercial director of the family Champagne house. “Hand harvesting comes with a lot of constraints — housing people, feeding them, recruiting them. It’s very difficult, especially with early harvests in August.”

Those pressures could eventually force producers to reconsider some long-established practices as agricultural machinery becomes more sophisticated, he said.

The house sells most of its Champagne in European markets, including Britain, Belgium, Italy and Spain, as well as in West Africa, with smaller volumes going to the United States and Asia, Bonnet-Gobillard said.

High stakes for a global industry

According to Comité Champagne’s 2026 industry report, 266.1 million bottles of Champagne were shipped in France and abroad last year, generating 5.7 billion euros ($6.6 billion) in sales. Exports accounted for 56.5% of shipments. Champagne represented about 8% of global sparkling wine consumption by volume but 31% by value.

The sector supports around 30,000 direct jobs and requires roughly 100,000 seasonal workers for the harvest, according to Comité Champagne.

Despite this year’s difficult conditions, Gobillard said the grapes he inspected were encouraging.

“I’m very happy with what I’m seeing,” he said. “We were worried that the drought would leave us with very light bunches, but in these plots we’re really pleased. The quantity should be sufficient and the quality will be there.”

But there is little time to spare. “It’s time to cut them. We’re going to have to move quickly,” he said.

Hundreds of emails exchanged between U.S. immigration officials, which were obtained by the National Iranian American Council and made public Tuesday, offer the most transparent play by play yet of how the two countries worked together to arrange for more than 100 Iranians to be flown back to Iran on three separate immigration flights in September and December 2025 and January 2026.

The emails show that Iranian officials had some influence over which Iranian immigrants in the U.S. were sent back to their home country, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials apparently heeded some last-minute changes to deportation lists at the request of Iran.

“Per request from the Iran Embassy I added a few cases," one unnamed ICE official wrote in late August, a month before the first deportation flight in September. Just over a week later, someone with the same job title moved to make another, unspecified change to the deportation list after they said they met with the “Director at the Iranian Embassy.”

“Iran has requested that I amend the previous manifest and expedite the removal process,” the official wrote.

In a Sept. 26 email, just three days before the deportation flight left U.S. soil, an ICE official said in an email that the Iranian Embassy was still making requests for three additional Iranians on the flight. It's not clear who ended up on the flight, which ended up being much smaller than initially planned. Iranian officials were still making requests the day the flight departed, although one official wrote that those requests were denied.

Coordination of the flights remained a high priority even as ICE officials acknowledged internally that Iranians were fleeing Iran amid the deadly 12-day war with the U.S. and Israel in June 2025, emails show. The flights departed just months after the U.S. and Israel agreed to a ceasefire with Iran.

The new emails highlight a clear departure from a decades-long practice by the U.S. of welcoming Iranian dissidents, exiles and others since the 1979 Islamic Revolution forced a large number of Iranians to flee.

The deportation of Iranians to a country whose government has a pattern of violent persecution against women, religious minorities and political dissidents has drawn significant criticism from human rights activists.

The Department of Homeland Security did not offer comment in response to an emailed request sent Tuesday afternoon.

Some deportees were handpicked by Iranian officials, emails show

Iranian officials acknowledged in September 2025 that as many as 400 Iranians could be returned under an agreement with the Trump administration. They said most of the Iranians had crossed into the U.S. from Mexico illegally, while some faced other immigration issues.

It is not clear from the emails how frequently U.S. immigration officials had direct contact with the Iranian government. Sometimes messages were conveyed through Qatari officials, who helped charter the deportation flights through Doha, but other times officials reference regular meetings with the “Iranian delegation," the “Director at the Iranian Embassy” and other unnamed Iranian officials.

It is not clear whether the people Iran put on the list had volunteered to repatriate or if they were forced. Previous reporting from The New York Times revealed that asylum-seekers were among those deported to Iran, while others said they were deported against their will.

At least one person was deported who wasn't supposed to be, emails showed.

“An Iranian not included on the final manifest we sent to the Qatari MOI was boarded on the flight,” an unnamed U.S. official wrote.

In response, another unnamed U.S. official wrote, “I have no idea how the case/person got through on the plane.”

US prioritized deportation efforts during war

Emails suggest that pressure to carry out the Iranian deportations came from the highest levels of the Trump administration, even when U.S. and Israel were exchanging strikes with Iran in a 12-day conflict between June 13 and June 24, 2025.

Just days after Trump's June 16 warning on social media that “Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!” the former acting director of ICE, Todd Lyons, called the repatriation of Iranian immigrants a “priority" in an email sent to the agency’s head of removal operations Marcos Charles and a number of unnamed staff.

Shortly after Lyon's email, Charles forwarded the message to a group of officials whose names are redacted. An unnamed ICE official responded, warning that “removal will prove difficult” amid the ongoing conflict because Iran wasn't issuing the travel documents for Iranians eligible for deportation. On top of that, the Iranian airspace was closed to all flights during the bombings and Iranians were fleeing the country.

Charles was unfazed, telling staff in a subsequent email to make a plan to deport 58 Iranians with final removal orders in ICE custody at the time.

“We need a plan forward ASAP,” Charles wrote. Another official, who name was redacted, urged colleagues to “identify a solution for this White House priority.”

Jamal Abdi, the president of the National Iranian American Council, said the emails undermine Trump’s assertions that the U.S. is at war with Iran to save ordinary Iranians from a repressive regime.

“It demonstrates that the top priority here was to kick out as many people as possible by whatever means necessary,” Abdi said.

Iranian officials had access to immigration detainees

On several occasions, the emails show ICE officials arranging for Iranian officials to meet for unspecified reasons with people detained in the U.S., echoing testimony from Iranian asylum-seekers in an unrelated lawsuit filed by an unaffiliated Iranian interest group in July.

Eleven Iranians in immigration detention said they were forced to meet with Iranian government officials while in ICE detention. Those Iranian authorities knew intimate details about their asylum claims, according to the sworn declarations filed in a Washington, D.C., court in July.

The lawsuit alleges that U.S. immigration agencies have been illegally sharing confidential information about Iranian asylum-seekers with the Iranian government.

The U.S. government is allowed to work with government officials of foreign countries to coordinate deportation logistics. However, federal regulations passed in the late 1990s prohibit the government from sharing information that could reveal that the person getting deported applied for asylum.

DHS vehemently disputed the lawsuit's allegations.

“These allegations that ICE shared asylum application records with the Iranian government are FALSE,” DHS said in a statement in July.

Anthony’s attorney told a newly appointed judge that prosecutors also did not follow through with an off-the-record agreement. Defense attorney Russell Wilson said the case’s original judge allowed a “shadow docket” that kept information out of the trial.

“Everything was done off the record, at an astonishing clip,” said Wilson, who didn't represent Anthony at the criminal trial.

Anthony already won a legal victory on Wednesday when the judge who presided over his trial was removed from the case. Judge Michael Chitty was then assigned to consider the motion from Anthony's attorneys asking for a retrial in the killing of Austin Metcalf.

Anthony, now 19, was sentenced to 35 years in prison in the case.

Prosecutor Bill Wirskye argued Thursday that Anthony had received a fair trial and said that his attorneys had agreed to everything that was done during the trial.

Anthony's attorneys had asked for state District Judge John Roach to be removed in part because of a TV interview in which Roach said jurors “got it right” when they delivered a guilty verdict.

In seeking a new trial, Anthony’s attorneys have argued that the June proceedings were marred by strict courtroom rules and improper jury instructions. They have also said Anthony’s decision to not testify came after a dispute with prosecutors over an agreement to focus the trial on the events leading up to the stabbing.

Jurors in the trial had rejected Anthony’s claims he acted in self-defense during a confrontation with Metcalf in the stadium bleachers last year. Students who took the stand described a heated exchange over Anthony’s refusal on a rainy spring day to leave a tent that belonged to Metcalf’s team.

The case attracted national attention in part because of a flood of social media posts that amplified the killing in racial terms. Anthony is Black; Metcalf was white. Lawyers on both sides, however, told jurors the tragedy had nothing to do with race.

During the recusal hearing Wednesday, Anthony's legal team focused on comments Roach made to a Dallas TV station after the trial had ended. In the interview, which was played as the hearing began, Roach was asked if the jury got “it right.”

“Yeah, they did,” Roach said, adding: “Whatever they say, they got it right.”

During the interview, Roach also defended his courtroom rules and spoke about the onslaught of online postings about the case.

As national attention on the killing intensified last year, the families of both Metcalf and Anthony said they had been targets of harassment.

Several schools were competing at the track event when Anthony sat under the Memorial High School tent that was perched in the bleachers. Metcalf and others had repeatedly told Anthony to leave, witnesses testified, leading to an escalating confrontation.

Prosecutors said Anthony provoked Metcalf, and witnesses testified that Anthony was the aggressor.

Anthony at one point reached inside a bag and replied: “Touch me and see what happens,” according to a police report.

Metcalf pushed Anthony, according to witnesses, who said Anthony then pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the chest.

CK Hutchison said in the statement that it had begun new arbitration proceedings against Panama and alleged that the Central American country had breached an investment protection treaty through “sovereign acts that targeted a decades-old ports concession” in a “state attack campaign” on the company’s assets in the Central American country.

Panama’s government in February seized the Balboa and Cristobal ports, located on each end of the Panama Canal, after its Supreme Court that a concession held by CK Hutchison’s subsidiary to run the two ports was unconstitutional.

The two ports at each end of the Panama Canal became part of U.S.-China tensions since Donald Trump’s return to the White House last year after he alleged China of “running” the canal.

The Panama Canal is managed and owned by Panama. But CK Hutchison’s subsidiary Panama Ports Company had run the two ports on the canal from 1997 and had renewed its concession for 25 years in 2021.

Beijing and Hong Kong had hit back at Panama over its takeover of the ports.

CK Hutchison, controlled by the family of Hong Kong’s richest man Li Ka-shing, last year announced an initial $23 billion deal to sell its global ports business, including the two Panama ports, to a consortium involving U.S. investment firm BlackRock. But the deal had made little progress under geopolitical tensions and legal challenges among China, the U.S. and Panama.

In March, Panama Ports Company had separately sought at least $2 billion in compensation from Panama over its takeover of the ports which it said was unlawful under international arbitration proceedings. CK Hutchison said the actions were making progress.

CK Hutchison added that Thursday's new proceedings were focused on its treaty rights, which were distinct from Panama Ports Company’s contract rights in the earlier arbitration proceedings.

In April, the subsidiary also launched arbitration proceedings against Danish shipping and logistics group Maersk after it took over some of its port operations in Panama. Maersk said at the time that it did not believe it was liable for the claims.