The “Halloween Baking Championship” kicked off its season with 10 bakers vying for the title of champion and a prize $25,000.

One of the bakers is from right here in South Florida.

Local 10’s Jason Carter caught up with Miami chef Marian Mulero to get the lowdown on competition in the kitchen, and their full conversation can be seen at the top of this page.

Los cuatro perros, mestizos de raza terrier, atacaron a Perez a unas seis calles de su casa, en la zona de Biscayne Gardens. Los vecinos que escucharon sus gritos de auxilio intervinieron y llamaron al 911.

“Cada perro se me prendió de un brazo o una pierna”, contó Perez.

Personal de Miami-Dade Fire Rescue, agentes de la Oficina del Sheriff de Miami-Dade y personal de Miami-Dade Animal Services acudieron a la esquina del Northwest 11th Court y la 145 Street.

Según los bomberos, Perez fue trasladada al Ryder Trauma Center del Jackson Memorial Hospital, donde fue sometida a una cirugía de emergencia.

El personal de Animal Services informó que capturó a uno de los perros el jueves y a los otros tres el viernes.

Recaudación de fondos relacionada: Ayuda a Ashley a recuperarse de un traumático ataque de perros

As of Wednesday morning, the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport has received more than 20 inches of rainfall since the beginning of the month. This amount more than doubles the average rainfall for September of 8.61 inches and breaks the previous record for the wettest September for the Fort Lauderdale area set in 1998 of 18.40 inches.

This is also the wettest month in the Fort Lauderdale area since April 2023, when over 30 inches was recorded at the climate site. This included the historic rainfall of April 12-13, when flash flooding overwhelmed neighborhoods and shut down the airport.

Since last Friday, most of the rainfall has focused across Broward and northern Miami-Dade counties, with isolated amounts over 9 inches in areas like Pompano Beach, Cooper City and North Miami Beach.

While the chance for thunderstorms continues through the end of the week, the coverage of rain will be lower compared to the past week, helping to reduce the overall flood threat. A weak cold front is forecast to arrive this weekend, helping to draw in slightly drier air and drop rain chances for the weekend.

The four terrier mix dogs attacked Perez about six streets away from her home in the Biscayne Gardens area. The neighbors who heard Perez’s cries for help intervened and called 911.

“One dog latched onto each one of my limbs,” Perez said.

Miami-Dade Fire Rescue personnel, Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies, and Miami-Dade Animal Services personnel responded to Northwest 11th Court and 145 Street.

Fire rescue personnel reported taking Perez to Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Ryder Trauma Center, where she underwent emergency surgery.

Animal Services personnel reported capturing one dog on Thursday and the three others on Friday.

Detectives asked anyone with information about this or other cases to call Miami-Dade County Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477 to remain anonymous.

Related fundraiser: Help Ashley Recover from a Traumatic Dog Attack

Location: NW 11 Court at 145 Street

Jacqueline Campos, de 48 años y residente de Coral Springs, fue arrestada el martes por cargos de esquema organizado para defraudar con bienes valorados en $50,000 o más y hurto mayor en primer grado.

Según el informe, la policía investigó denuncias de fraude y hurto mayor contra BOSEM Corp., que opera bajo el nombre de Doctor Aromas y está ubicada en el 1996 NE 148th Terrace, en North Miami.

Los investigadores indicaron que Campos era la directora de operaciones de la empresa y tenía acceso al sistema de nómina ADP TotalSource y al programa de contabilidad QuickBooks Online.

La policía sostiene que el esquema se llevó a cabo aproximadamente entre el 28 de agosto de 2021 y el 10 de julio de 2026.

El dueño de la empresa les dijo a los investigadores que cada dos semanas debía aprobar un documento de nómina que establecía el salario autorizado de Campos en $2,307.70 por período de pago.

Sin embargo, según el informe de arresto, Campos le enviaba por correo electrónico capturas de pantalla de hojas de Excel hechas a mano, en lugar de los reportes reales de nómina de ADP.

Análisis forense halla más de $930,000 en pagos no autorizados

Como parte de la investigación, la policía revisó un análisis forense de nómina y gastos realizado por una firma de contadores públicos certificados con licencia.

El análisis comparó 131 documentos de nómina con los registros de ADP TotalSource correspondientes a 126 períodos de pago confirmados.

Según el informe, el análisis determinó que Campos cobró más de lo autorizado en cada uno de esos 126 períodos de pago, lo que suma $874,885.59 en salario no autorizado.

El análisis también identificó $221,632.64 en pagos hechos a Campos fuera del proceso normal de nómina. El dueño de la empresa confirmó que $57,888.99 de esos pagos nunca fueron autorizados, según la policía.

Los investigadores indicaron que la pérdida total no autorizada confirmada para la empresa asciende a $932,774.58.

Según el informe, el análisis forense también determinó que, entre enero de 2022 y abril de 2023, Campos ingresó personalmente en el sistema de ADP cinco aumentos no aprobados a su propio salario, mientras seguía entregándole al dueño documentos de nómina que mostraban su sueldo autorizado sin cambios.

A Campos también se le acusa de ingresar valores negativos en los campos de deducciones de nómina para aumentar su pago neto, de borrar transacciones de los registros contables de la empresa para ocultarlas de los reportes habituales y de canalizar al menos un pago a nombre de otro empleado para ocultar quién lo recibía en realidad.

Policía: presentó una nómina no autorizada después de ser despedida

Doctor Aromas despidió a Campos por causa justificada el 7 de julio, según el informe.

Los investigadores sostienen que ese mismo día, cuando ya había sido despedida, Campos presentó y aprobó una última nómina no autorizada a través de ADP TotalSource que le pagó $5,712.10 adicionales a su salario regular.

Según la policía, Campos reconoció en una declaración jurada, dentro de un caso civil relacionado, que ella misma presentó esa nómina del 7 de julio.

En una audiencia celebrada el 9 de julio, el dueño de la empresa y el contador forense que preparó el análisis testificaron bajo juramento, según el informe.

El informe de arresto indica que el juez que presidía el caso concedió una orden judicial temporal tras concluir que las pruebas demostraban que Campos se había apropiado indebidamente de fondos de la empresa aprovechando su posición de confianza.

Con base en las declaraciones de la empresa, el análisis forense, los registros comerciales, los testimonios de la audiencia civil y la admisión jurada de Campos, el investigador a cargo concluyó que había causa probable para acusarla de esquema organizado para defraudar y hurto mayor en primer grado.

Campos se entregó a la policía de North Miami alrededor de las 2 p.m. del martes.

Según el informe, un investigador le preguntó si quería declarar, pero ella se negó por consejo de su abogado.

Fue arrestada y trasladada al centro correccional Turner Guilford Knight.

Hasta el miércoles por la mañana seguía detenida allí y se esperaba que compareciera ante el tribunal de fianzas en algún momento del día.

En la Southeast Second Street, el agua había bajado un poco, pero seguía acumulándose en gran cantidad a medida que caía más lluvia.

Se vio a padres cargando a sus hijos en la espalda para llegar a la parada del autobús escolar, e incluso subiéndolos directamente al bus para que no tuvieran que pisar el agua.

Los conductores también tuvieron dificultades para llegar al trabajo. Hasta vehículos pequeños avanzaban entre varias pulgadas de agua mientras sus conductores buscaban la mejor ruta para esquivar las zonas inundadas.

Para algunos residentes, el primer reto fue simplemente llegar hasta sus autos.

En un complejo de apartamentos de la Southeast Second Street, los vecinos tuvieron que atravesar un estacionamiento inundado.

“Sorprendido, no lo puedo creer”, dijo el residente Juan Rocha.

Rocha contó que, a pesar de las condiciones, tenía que ir a trabajar.

“Cuando uno oye algo así, sabe que está lloviendo fuerte de verdad. Pero ya veremos. Tengo que ir a trabajar. Voy a llegar tarde”, dijo.

La residente Vivian Novicic comentó que las calles secundarias eran más difíciles de transitar que la vía principal.

“Las calles secundarias... la US-1 se ve mejor, pero primero hay que llegar hasta allá. Ese es el problema”, dijo Novicic.

Federal Highway lucía despejada y más elevada en comparación con la Southeast Second Street, donde hasta un pequeño desnivel bastaba para que se inundara.

Se recomendó a residentes y conductores que se desplazan desde zonas como Dania Beach, Hollywood, Hallandale Beach y Aventura estar preparados para encontrar inundaciones en las calles que suelen tener problemas cuando llueve fuerte.

HAGA CLIC AQUÍ para ver las últimas actualizaciones del pronóstico del Weather Authority de Local 10.

The incident was reported at the Orion gas station, located at 101 E. Atlantic Blvd.

The video shows a woman sitting inside a white Toyota SUV as a man approaches the vehicle and attempts to open both side doors.

At one point, the man slams on a window before the woman opens a door and then closes it again.

The man continues opening the door and eventually pulls the woman out of the SUV. Video shows him shoving and hitting her as she fights back.

The woman manages to get back inside the vehicle, but the man repeatedly opens the door and pulls her back out. As she fights him off, he punches her again.

The confrontation continues until the woman is eventually able to get back inside and lock the door.

But the violence did not end there.

After the fight, the man is seen walking inside the gas station.

When he comes back outside and walks in front of the same SUV, a man sitting in the driver’s seat appears to be waiting for him.

The driver gets out of the SUV and appears to begin pumping gas before firing shots from behind the vehicle’s door.

Nino, who was inside a food truck parked at the gas station, described hearing the gunfire.

“Pow, pow, pow,” he recalled.

Nino said he heard five to six shots.

After the gunfire erupts, surveillance video shows the man in the tank top running away. The video appears to show that he had been struck.

The driver can then be seen waving for help from the main road before speaking with a man in a truck behind him.

Sky 10 flew over the scene just before 3 p.m. Tuesday, where deputies could be seen surrounding the gas station and yellow police tape blocked off the area.

The white Toyota SUV remained at the scene with its passenger door open.

Six evidence markers could also be seen on the ground.

Sunny, who was also with the 3-Little Charlies food truck, said he heard what sounded like four or five gunshots.

When asked whether he went outside, he responded, “I ran in the truck.”

The food truck had been parked at the gas station and plugged in to keep food warm for a funeral gathering.

Andrew Miller, with 3-Little Charlies Restaurant, said he received a call from workers at the truck alerting him to what had happened.

“We got a call from the guys in the truck,” Miller said. “They said it was a shooting behind the gas station. Everything is roped off, blocked off.”

The identities of those involved in the incident have not yet been released.

Richie Jonathan Gregoire, de 20 años, fue arrestado el 21 de mayo después de que las autoridades ejecutaran una orden de registro en un apartamento de Miami, según un informe de arresto del Departamento de Policía de Miami.

Local 10 supo el miércoles que Gregoire enfrenta ahora un cargo de homicidio involuntario agravado de un menor en relación con la muerte del pequeño.

La madre del niño, Pearlandria Boujolly, de 29 años, ya había sido arrestada y acusada de homicidio involuntario agravado de un menor por la muerte de su hijo.

La investigación comenzó el 3 de enero, cuando agentes de la policía de Miami y personal de Miami Fire Rescue respondieron alrededor de las 3:50 a.m. a un reporte de un niño que no respondía en la casa de Boujolly, cerca del Northwest 91st Street y la 22nd Avenue.

El niño fue trasladado al Jackson Memorial Hospital, donde fue declarado muerto poco después.

Una autopsia realizada por el Departamento del Médico Forense del Condado Miami-Dade encontró fentanilo y rastros de cocaína en la sangre del niño.

Los investigadores determinaron que el pequeño ingirió accidentalmente una pequeña cantidad de drogas que habían quedado en una habitación sin llave de la casa. Según los investigadores, una cámara Ring captó el momento en que el niño consumió la droga antes de quedar inconsciente.

En la casa había cuatro niños de entre 1 y 8 años en el momento del incidente, informaron las autoridades. Los investigadores señalaron que los niños estuvieron expuestos a drogas y que en la vivienda también había tres armas de fuego sin asegurar.

Boujolly no estaba en casa cuando el niño consumió la droga, según los investigadores.

Presunto fentanilo hallado durante el registro de mayo

Según el informe de arresto de Gregoire del 21 de mayo, el programa Street Terror Offender del grupo de trabajo de la ATF ayudaba a detectives de robos de la policía de Miami a ejecutar una orden de registro en el apartamento del sospechoso.

Durante el registro de la habitación de Gregoire, los detectives dijeron haber encontrado unos 69 gramos de presunto fentanilo empacado en cápsulas transparentes y guardado en varios lugares de la habitación.

Los investigadores también encontraron guantes, cajas de bolsas Ziploc, una caja de zapatos Nike con parafernalia para drogas y una carta del Departamento de Seguridad en las Carreteras y Vehículos Motorizados de Florida dirigida a Gregoire.

Según el informe, después de que se le leyeran sus derechos Miranda, Gregoire les dijo a los investigadores que sabía que las drogas se guardaban en la habitación, pero aseguró que no eran suyas.

La policía indicó que Gregoire les dijo a los investigadores que tenía miedo de identificar al dueño de las drogas.

Según los registros de la cárcel en internet, a Gregoire se le fijó una fianza de $50,000 por el nuevo cargo de homicidio involuntario agravado.

Agentes de la policía de Davie acudieron el miércoles a Western High School, ubicada en el 1200 SW 136th Ave., tras una amenaza de bomba.

Unidades caninas se presentaron en el lugar para ayudar en la investigación, informaron las autoridades.

La escuela fue evacuada como medida de precaución, y otras escuelas de los alrededores fueron puestas bajo cierre de emergencia, según la policía de Davie.

Las autoridades no dieron más información y solo pidieron al público mantenerse alejado de la zona mientras avanza la investigación.

The administration plans to double down on its contention that it has the right to decide who can set foot in the White House. “Access to the White House is a privilege — not a right,” it said in a court filing late Tuesday setting out its arguments.

It also argued that the reporting of the three outlets — CNN, MS NOW and Politico — poses a threat to national security. In his early comments about the case, Trump focused not on national security but on negative coverage by the outlets and allegations of “fake news.”

In the filing, administration lawyers argue that the ban does not violate the First Amendment, which guarantees the right to a free press. It contends that the outlets, in their reporting, violated “standards of professionalism and decorum expected of those given access to the White House complex, including by trafficking in verifiable falsehoods about national security and other issues and publishing sensitive or classified information.”

The administration goes on to detail letters that were sent to each outlet, which identified “a non-exhaustive list of reporting incidents, including those that have threatened national security and spread falsehoods.”

The “reporting incidents” cited in the filing included: CNN reporting on “‘top-secret' construction details related to the East Wing bunker”; MS NOW reporting “on an alleged leak investigation”; and Politico publishing “a document detailing funding for the White House ballroom containing intricate descriptions of how the Secret Service would invest in security improvements.”

Further examples were given in individual letters. Politico’s letter detailed six incidents of reporting, including the outlet in June citing a “senior administration official … granted anonymity” predicting whether a preliminary deal would end the conflict with Iran.

That item appeared to reference a background briefing set up by the White House, where an official briefed reporters on condition of anonymity under ground rules set by the White House itself. Several other outlets reported the official's remarks.

Trump began to emphasize the national security argument Tuesday, when he said negative coverage was dangerous for the country.

“I think we have a right to clean out fake news,” he told reporters at the United Nations, defending the ban, which was suddenly announced Friday. The next day, journalists for the three outlets arrived at work to find their entry badges disabled.

On Monday, the outlets filed their joint lawsuit, alleging they were singled out because of the content of their coverage — in other words, viewpoint discrimination. They called this a “blatant violation” of the First Amendment and asked the court to immediately restore their access.

The ban prompted other media outlets to take action in solidarity. The five-network U.S. network press pool, to which CNN belongs, decided to suspend coverage of Trump events until further notice. The Associated Press also joined a group of organizations that refrained from publishing photos of the president Monday. On Wednesday, the network pool was again missing from a daily White House press schedule.

The ban and subsequent lawsuit are part of a long-running conflict between the president — especially in his second term — and media outlets he finds unfavorable. Trump has responded in the courtroom, or with regulatory action. He’s also lashed out at individual reporters in personal terms.

The administration’s filing to the court also relies on historical anecdotes to argue that a president can decide which news outlets to grant favorable treatment.

It says that in the early 20th century, President Theodore Roosevelt “began a practice of regularly inviting reporters into the Oval Office for off-the-record press conferences while he received his ‘regular midday shave,’” and adds that Roosevelt “used the conference as an occasion for reward and punishment, screening out the reporters who were the least likely to be sympathetic to his policies.”

It also says President John F. Kennedy “sought to ‘court star correspondents’ and thus gave certain reporters ‘special access’ and ‘advance notice of administration announcements.’”

En 2020, Leila Cavett viajó con su pequeño hijo desde Georgia hasta el sur de Florida para venderle una camioneta pickup blanca al sospechoso, Shannon Ryan.

De repente, desapareció.

La última vez que se le vio con vida fue en las cámaras de vigilancia de una gasolinera RaceTrac en Hollywood.

Poco después, la policía encontró a su hijo abandonado, deambulando cerca de un complejo de apartamentos en Miramar.

Su padre describió a Leila como una madre amorosa que jamás habría abandonado a su hijo.

La investigación se centró rápidamente en Ryan. El FBI dijo que lo vinculó con la desaparición a través de videos de vigilancia, torres de telefonía celular y redes sociales.

Ahora está acusado de asesinato.

Ryan, quien se autoproclama brujo, le dijo anteriormente a Bridgette Matter, de Local 10, desde la cárcel del condado Broward que él no mató a Cavett.

“No puedo entrar en los detalles del caso porque esto se está grabando, pero ella y yo nos conocíamos de antes”, dijo Ryan.

Los detectives afirmaron haber descubierto, a través de mensajes de Facebook, que Cavett quería ser aprendiz de Ryan. Ryan dijo que le enseñó a leer las cartas del tarot.

“Enseño brujería, cosas de ese tipo. Sí, leo las cartas del tarot”, dijo Ryan.

El cuerpo de Cavett nunca ha sido encontrado, a pesar de que el FBI realizó varias búsquedas en un vertedero.

Por la época de la desaparición de Cavett, la policía informó que Ryan fue visto comprando bolsas de basura, cinta adhesiva y limpiador de alfombras. Según un informe de arresto, cámaras de vigilancia captaron a Ryan moviendo la camioneta de Cavett y tirando en un contenedor de basura ropa de mujer y juguetes de niño, además de lo que parecían ser toallas ensangrentadas, algo que Local 10 le preguntó directamente y que él negó.

La policía también dio a conocer información sobre las búsquedas que Ryan hizo en internet, entre ellas una en Google: “¿El cloro y el alcohol producen cloroformo?”.

Danny Ernandez stole the $20,000 machine on Aug. 18 from Pemica, a security equipment company that he worked for at 7324 SW 48 St., according to a deputy’s arrest report.

Pemica’s surveillance cameras were “suspiciously disconnected,” but the cameras at neighboring businesses recorded video of the theft, according to the deputies’ report.

Ernandez, 39, was an employee of Pemica, according to deputies. After the company terminated him, he returned the stolen machine and parts and met with detectives on Tuesday at the MDSO Kendall Station, according to the report.

“Ernandez confirmed that he violated the business’s policies and procedures and took the machine without proper approval from management,” a deputy wrote, according to the report.

Deputies arrested Ernandez at 10:55 a.m. on Tuesday at the station at 7707 SW 117 Ave., according to the report.

Miami-Dade corrections booked Ernandez shortly before 1:10 p.m. on Tuesday at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, according to inmate records.

Ernandez faced a charge of third-degree felony grand theft. He appeared in court on Wednesday and corrections released him on a $2,500 bond, according to court records.

Miami-Dade County Circuit Judge Carmen Cabarga was set to preside over the case.

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

Leer en español

Flooding remained along Northeast 141st Street off Memorial Highway, with several surrounding side streets also covered in water.

Neighbors said flooding is a recurring problem in the area whenever it rains.

“Yeah, city of North Miami, y’all need to do something about this,” resident Rachel Thompson said.

Some residents who attempted to leave the neighborhood were unsuccessful.

Bendjhi Villiers said he was trying to move his car in hopes of getting to work later, but only made it about a block from his home before his vehicle stalled.

“Just trying to move my car to hopefully get to work later and didn’t get far,” Villiers said.

He said he was now “trying to navigate all the intricacies of losing a vehicle just because it rained.”

Other residents said the flooding had effectively left them trapped.

“I can’t go to work, cause I can’t get out,” one resident said. “I think it’s awful cause it’s like we’re the little people. And they don’t care.”

Residents are calling on city leaders to find a more permanent solution to drainage issues they say lead to repeated flooding in the neighborhood.

Flooding also impacts Hallandale Beach

Flooding problems extended into Broward County, where residents in Hallandale Beach also encountered high water.

Some parents carried their children through the water to keep them dry as they made their way to a school bus.

Resident Vivian Novicic debated whether to risk driving through the flooded streets to get to work.

“The side streets, US-1 looks better, but you’ve gotta get out there first. That’s the thing,” Novicic said.

Novicic ultimately made it through the flooded area, while other residents chose to walk through the water to get to work.

While water was receding farther north, flooding remained in the North Miami neighborhood.

Residents said that based on their previous experiences, it could take days for the water to be pumped out.

CLICK HERE for the latest forecast updates from Local 10’s Weather Authority.

In 2020, Leila Cavett traveled with her young son from Georgia to South Florida to sell a white pickup truck to the suspect, Shannon Ryan.

She suddenly vanished.

The last time she was seen alive was on surveillance cameras inside a RaceTrac gas station in Hollywood.

Police soon discovered her son abandoned, wandering near a Miramar apartment complex.

Her father said Leila was a loving mother who would never abandon her child.

The investigation quickly turned to Ryan. The FBI said they connected Ryan to the disappearance through surveillance video, cell towers and social media.

He is now charged with murder.

Ryan, a self-proclaimed witch, previously told Local 10’s Bridgette Matter from the Broward County Jail that he did not kill Cavett.

“I can’t go into the particulars of the case like that because this is being recorded, but me and her had previous acquaintances together,” Ryan said.

Detectives said they found through Facebook messages that Cavett wanted to be Ryan’s apprentice. Ryan said he taught her to read tarot cards.

“I teach witchcraft, things of that nature. Yeah, I do tarot card readings,” Ryan said.

Cavett’s body has never been found, despite the FBI carrying out several searches at a landfill.

Police reported around the time of Cavett’s disappearance that Ryan was seen buying trash bags, duct tape and carpet cleaner. An arrest report says surveillance cameras captured Ryan moving Cavett’s truck and throwing away women’s clothing and children’s toys in a dumpster, as well as what appeared to be bloody towels -- something Local 10 pressed him on, but he denied.

Police released information about Ryan’s internet searches, including a Google search: “Does bleach and alcohol make chloroform?”

Davie police officers responded to Western High School, located at 1200 SW 136th Ave. on Wednesday in regard to a bomb threat.

K-9 units were on scene to assist in the investigation, authorities said.

The school was evacuated for precautionary measures, and other schools in the immediate area were placed on a lockdown, according to Davie police.

Authorities did not provide any additional information, only asking for people to stay away from the area during their investigation.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Wednesday because the team has not announced Dart's status.

Dart was injured on the first drive Monday night against the Los Angeles Rams when his left leg bent awkwardly as he was hit by two defenders. After initially saying it was in the neighborhood of a medial collateral ligament injury, coach John Harbaugh said Tuesday the evaluation process for Dart was still ongoing.

An MRI revealed MCL and posterior cruciate ligament damage, according to a report by NFL Network. Harbaugh is scheduled to address reporters after practice later Wednesday.

Losing the 23-year-old face of the franchise to a long-term injury would be a significant blow in Harbaugh's first season in charge, which began with a victory against Dallas at home in Week 1. Jameis Winston takes over the starting role beginning Sunday against Tennessee.

The Giants' next five opponents have a combined 2-8 record. Winston is 3-9 in 12 NFL starts since 2024.

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AP Pro Football Writer Rob Maaddi in Tampa, Florida, contributed to this report.

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See AP’s full NFL coverage here

It's called Imperia, and its members include CEOs, founders, innovators, entrepreneurs and others.

A lot of the first lady's attention has been on children, but, with Imperia, she is leaning on her business skills to encourage women to harness their economic power and help others understand women's role in a global economy.

“For generations, women fought for a seat at the table,” she told a meeting of the group. “The next chapter is about owning, growing and making space for the women who come next."

She said that means owning businesses, equity, real estate, capital and investment assets, along with “our ideas, our intellectual property and our economic future.”

“People still do not fully understand the full scale of women's power in the global economy,” she continued. “Women are not just part of the marketplace, simple participants. We are its foundation, and we are its infrastructure.”

In a rare television interview earlier Wednesday on Fox News Channel's “Fox & Friends” to promote Imperia, the first lady addressed several other subjects, including this week's state visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping, her efforts to reunite children separated from their families by Russia's war against Ukraine, her new docuseries and the extent of her public engagements.

Some recent news reports have said the first lady is appearing in public less often than during President Donald Trump's first term.

Melania Trump said the difference is that she is more focused on getting results.

“You don’t see me everywhere, but behind the scenes I’m working nonstop,” she said, citing as an example the preparations for her events in New York this week on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly and for Xi’s visit. “I’m working on so many projects ... in the future. So stay tuned.”

She was deeply involved in the planning for Xi's visit in her role as first lady. She said her husband decided to personally greet China's leader after his plane lands because of their “great relationship.” President Trump typically greets leaders at the White House.

As of July, Melania Trump had helped reunite five groups of Ukrainian and Russian children with their families, work that underscores the more global approach she has taken during the Republican president's second term. She said that she has a “direct channel” with leaders from the warring countries and that her team is working on another reunification.

“This is ongoing, and we want to reunite as many children as possible,” the first lady said. “And that's my focus as well. What they’re going through, it’s heartbreaking. And it’s nothing better to see than a child reunite with the parents, right?”

The first lady also rang the opening bell at the NYSE in January before the release of her Amazon documentary, “Melania,” about her life in the weeks leading up to Donald Trump's inauguration for a second term in office. A new two-part docuseries featuring her will be released in the fall. She said it will be different from the documentary and teased that it will include some surprises.

“It’s more conversation, one on one with me,” the first lady said. “So when I was traveling and doing all of the filming, the director was asking me questions, and there are some private questions that I will answer that people never heard before. So it’s kind of exciting.”

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Follow the AP's coverage of first lady Melania Trump at https://apnews.com/hub/melania-trump.

Richie Jonathan Gregoire, 20, was arrested May 21 after authorities executed a search warrant at an apartment in Miami, according to an arrest report from the Miami Police Department.

Gregoire is now facing a charge of aggravated manslaughter of a child in connection with the toddler’s death, Local 10 learned Wednesday.

The child’s mother, 29-year-old Pearlandria Boujolly, was previously arrested and charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child in connection with her son’s death.

The investigation into the child’s death began Jan. 3, when Miami police officers and Miami Fire Rescue personnel responded at approximately 3:50 a.m. to a report of an unresponsive toddler at Boujolly’s home off Northwest 91st Street near 22nd Avenue.

The child was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.

An autopsy conducted by the Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner’s Department found fentanyl and a trace amount of cocaine in the child’s blood.

Investigators determined the toddler accidentally ingested a small amount of drugs that had been left inside an unlocked room at the home. A Ring camera captured the moments when the toddler consumed the drugs before becoming unresponsive, according to investigators.

Four children ranging in age from 1 to 8 years old were inside the home at the time of the incident, authorities said. Investigators said the children were exposed to drugs and that three unsecured guns were also inside the home.

Boujolly was not home when the child consumed the drugs, investigators said.

Suspected fentanyl found during May search

According to Gregoire’s May 21 arrest report, the ATF Task Force’s Street Terror Offender Program was assisting Miami police robbery detectives in executing a search warrant at the suspect’s apartment.

During a search of Gregoire’s bedroom, detectives said they found approximately 69 grams of suspected fentanyl packaged in clear capsules and stored in multiple locations throughout the room.

Investigators also found gloves, Ziploc boxes, a Nike shoe box containing drug paraphernalia and a letter from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles addressed to Gregoire.

After being read his Miranda rights, Gregoire told investigators he knew the narcotics were being stored in the room but claimed they did not belong to him, the report stated.

Police said Gregoire told investigators he was afraid to identify who owned the drugs.

Online jail records show that Gregoire was issued a $50,000 bond for the new aggravated manslaughter charge.

They held a press briefing for a first-ever joint, tri-county news conference involving Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties.

Speaking at the press event were Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections Alina Garcia, Broward County Supervisor of Elections Joe Scott and Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Wendy Sartory Link.

The supervisors were appearing together to deliver a unified message about voter participation and the importance of making sure South Florida voters are prepared for the elections ahead.

“This unity reflects what we share,” said Garcia. “The same mission, the same responsibility and the same commitment to deliver elections that are secure, accurate transparent.”

The supervisors encouraged every eligible South Florida resident to register, stay informed and vote in the November General Election.

Between the three counties, the supervisors cover about a quarter of all Florida voters.

While each county has unique ways of handling their elections, a big topic is voting by mail.

The supervisors were asked about the safety of mail voting in the wake of comments from President Trump seemingly undermining the process.

“I’ll say this,” said Scott. “Often times when the president has spoken about vote by mail ballot, he’s actually mentioned that, for Florida, he actually believes that Florida does it right.”

Added Sartory Link: “In Florida, which isn’t the case in every state, you have to request your vote by mail ballot, and when you request it, we’re checking your name, your address, your date of birth, either your driver’s license or Florida ID or the last four of your social, so we know who we’re sending that ballot to.”

Jeffrey Epstein, the late convicted sex offender, was Wexner's former financial adviser. That relationship and Wexner's history of political donations has figured prominently in Ohio's U.S. Senate race, which could end up as the most expensive in the country this year.

Wexner, who has disavowed his prior association with Epstein, contributed about $116,000 to support Republican Sen. Jon Husted from 2001 to 2025, mostly during the two decades he spent in state politics before being appointed to fill Vice President JD Vance’s seat last year.

While that’s just a sliver of Husted’s prolific fundraising, his opponent in this year’s race, former Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, is turning it into a campaign cudgel. He’s run at least three different television commercials pounding Husted for receiving more money from Wexner than any other current member of Congress.

Epstein's Ohio connections are expected to surface anew early next month, when a traveling display showcasing the Justice Department files comes to the state.

“We want to show these elected officials and the candidates that the public is interested in this topic, and the public is demanding justice for survivors and the public is demanding accountability, no matter how rich and powerful the perpetrators and enablers of these crimes are,” said David Garrett, executive director of the Institute for Primary Facts, the nonprofit that created the exhibit.

Both Senate candidates point to opponent's Epstein connections

Epstein’s decades of associating with some of the world’s most influential people and Congress’ varying attempts to force the Justice Department to release its files on him have flared up in U.S. House and Senate races across the country. In Ohio, it's been central to a race that will help determine the balance of power in Washington.

Brown's campaign has promoted a $3,500 donation Wexner gave Husted in July 2025, less than 10 weeks before Husted joined most Senate Republicans in defeating a Democratic effort to force release of the Epstein files.

One of his ads featured video of Wexner’s congressional deposition in February, during which he confirmed being a longtime political donor to Husted, a former Ohio lawmaker, secretary of state and lieutenant governor.

Another characterized Wexner as “an Epstein co-conspirator,” even though Wexner has not been charged and his lawyer said he was not a target of the investigation.

After the barrage of Epstein-related ads against him, the Husted campaign punched back with ads attacking Brown for accepting donations from a number of individuals whose names arose in the Epstein documents. They included Wexner’s wife Abigail, former U.S. Treasury secretary and Harvard president Larry Summers and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. Brown accepted no donations from Wexner himself, Federal Election Commission records show.

Husted's campaign also takes issue with the claim in Brown's ads that he “voted to cover up the Epstein files.” Campaign spokesperson Amy Natoce said “there has only been one vote” that counts on the matter — the one in November on the Epstein Files Transparency Act — and Husted voted yes. She called the earlier vote “procedural.”

Wexner, who is 89, stated under oath during his February congressional deposition that he never lobbied or asked Husted or anyone else to block the release of the Epstein files. He told members of Congress that he was “duped by a world-class con man.”

Natoce said Husted donated all available Wexner contributions — $34,300 — to an anti-human trafficking charity. The remaining balance had been spent in past campaign cycles.

Brown did not return any of his donations from about a dozen individuals named in the files, who Husted's ad described as “Epstein associates” even though none was accused of any crimes.

A traveling exhibit that includes Epstein victims is coming to Ohio

The Epstein Reading Room tour is an exhibit that displays more than 3 million pages released by the Justice Department. It has plans to make at least 20 more stops, including Ohio on Oct. 7.

Annie Farmer, an Epstein accuser who has been part of the tour, said the idea that some candidates have received donations from wealthy people with ties to Epstein means they will have an incentive to keep burying the truth.

She was 16 when she said Epstein abused her and her sister, Maria Farmer, in the 1990s. Maria, one of the earliest accusers of Epstein, alleges her sexual assault took place in 1996 in New Albany, Ohio, where Epstein had a house while working for Wexner, whose estate is located there.

During his deposition, Wexner testified that he never heard of Maria Farmer until her name appeared in media reports and that he didn’t know whether she had ever stayed on his property.

The accusers are demanding that the Department of Justice do more to investigate the wealthy who for decades helped enable Epstein’s abuse. The Associated Press does not name victims of sexual abuse unless they have come forward publicly.

“We should be asking hard questions to everyone who is related to Epstein and is financially supporting politicians. Are they hoping to benefit from silence?” Annie Farmer said. “To people with that much wealth, they feel they don’t have to play by the same set of rules. That’s what many people are saying is not right.”

Epstein case resonates in congressional campaigns

At the reading room tour’s first stop in Dallas, Farmer and other accusers met with Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico and Democrat Gina Hinojosa, who is running to unseat Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. Talarico criticized his opponent, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, for not meeting with the accusers and called on him to use his position to sue the federal government for its handling of the Epstein files' release.

In Omaha, Nebraska, independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn pledged to prioritize fighting for justice for victims after visiting a smaller version of the exhibit and meeting some of Epstein's accusers. He has criticized his Republican opponent, Sen. Pete Ricketts, for being slow to back the release of the Epstein files.

In Ohio, the Epstein issue continues to anger — and divide — voters across the political spectrum.

A day after Husted announced he would donate his remaining Wexner contributions to charity, he stepped into a Norwalk coffee shop on a campaign stop and, according to the local news account, was heckled as a “pedophile protector.” And Brown has been forced to defend his decision not to offload the donations he received from individuals named in the files, as Husted did.

“They’re not tied in any way, the way the co-conspirator is tied in,” Brown told CNN earlier this year.

With Ohio's early voting starting in less than two weeks, Brown is continuing to focus on Husted’s Wexner contributions. On his X account earlier this month, Brown marked the one-year anniversary of Husted's vote on the failed Democratic amendment to release all the Epstein files by posting a video. It asked why Husted “would side with the billionaires instead of these victims.”

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Olson reported from New York.

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The Associated Press’ women in the workforce coverage receives financial support from Pivotal Ventures. AP is solely responsible for all content.

Cuba enfrenta una de las peores crisis de su historia, con su economía al borde del colapso luego de que Estados Unidos impusiera en enero un cerco energético y financiero con duras consecuencias para la población y agravara una crisis preexistente.

Durante el programa radial —que contó con la participación de una locutora— se difundieron mensajes recogidos entre la población específicamente sobre el tema anunciado, las reformas de apertura económica que incluyen la posibilidad de importar y exportar de manera directa, contratar mano de obra sin intermediación estatal y flexibilización de la banca privada; medidas impensadas en décadas de un modelo de fuerte centralismo estatal.

“Hace nueve meses que no entra un barco de combustible. ¿Cómo se puede sostener la economía? ¿Cómo se puede trabajar en esas condiciones? ¿Cómo se pueden dar todos los servicios que necesita la población? ¿Cómo se puede levantar la producción? Bueno, muchas de esas respuestas están en esas medidas”, dijo el mandatario durante el programa.

Cuba produce sólo el 40% del combustible que necesita para echar a andar su economía.

El mandatario ofreció algunas cifras del impacto de las sanciones estadounidenses: el déficit de generación eléctrica superó los 2.000 megavatios diarios —más del 60% de la demanda—, hay 3,6 millones de personas sin abastecimiento de agua sobre una población total de 9,4 millones, la víspera de 1.600 panaderías estatales unas 890 no funcionaron por falta de harina –lo que afectó a cuatro millones de habitantes— y el transporte urbano está funcionando al 6%.

El programa radial de una hora llamado “Criterio Compartido” fue presentado como un espacio “para construir consensos y aportar desde la participación ciudadana” y se transmitirá en miércoles alternos, informó una locutora.

A diferencia de gobernantes de otros países que tienen espacios en medios o las legendarias comparecencias diarias del fallecido expresidente cubano Fidel Castro, Díaz-Canel no suele aparecer más que en los informativos oficiales.

Su última incursión en la comunicación fue a través de un podcast televisado en 2024. El mandatario tampoco cuenta con una agenda pública.

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Siga a Andrea Rodríguez en X: https://x.com/ARodriguezAP

Kylian Mbappé, Lamine Yamal and Harry Kane in action again before the Ballon d'Or is announced.

Cristiano Ronaldo's relentless pursuit of 1,000 career goals and Erling Haaland, no doubt, doing Erling Haaland things.

International soccer is back after the World Cup and soccer's biggest stars are ready to do it all again.

Messi, who announced his retirement from the national team this month, is slated to make his farewell with one last appearance in the Oct. 6 friendly game against Benin in Buenos Aires.

The man many regard as the greatest player ever was in tears after Argentina relinquished its World Cup title with a 1-0 loss to Spain in the final at MetLife Stadium. His dream of winning back-to-back tournaments and emulating Brazil great Pele ended in bitter defeat. At the age of 39, it was widely expected it would be his final tilt on soccer's biggest stage.

Messi's retirement came as little surprise — even after his outstanding performances at the World Cup — and a farewell in front of his home fans will give him the opportunity to bow out in style.

The president of the Argentine Football Association, Claudio Tapia, said it would be “the farewell he deserves.”

Ballon d'Or contenders

While Messi is saying his goodbyes, the next generation of stars are fiercely competing to take his place as the world's best.

Mbappé, Yamal and Kane are among the favorites to win the Ballon d'Or, which is based on performances up to and including the World Cup.

But this international window is another opportunity for those frontrunners to show their talents. Messi is also among the nominees.

The rivalry between Mbappé and Yamal echoes Messi's great battles with Ronaldo.

With Mbappé at Real Madrid and Yamal at Barcelona, it pits Spain's two most famous and successful clubs against each other once again in the race for the Ballon d'Or.

For more than a decade it was Messi of Barcelona and Ronaldo of Madrid who turned soccer's biggest individual award into what seemed like a personal duel.

Yamal, who won the World Cup with Spain as well as the Spanish title with Barcelona, is still just 19 years old and already considered among the best.

“When you’re talking about so many great players, ultimately, people look at things like: ‘Well, this one is better than that one, but maybe the other guy won this or that trophy.’ The advantage I have is that I managed to win the World Cup this year, and naturally, that gives me an edge. I think that’s logical," he told L’Equipe.

Mbappe did not win a second World Cup, but he did set a new record as the highest scorer in tournament history with 22 goals.

As for Kane, he was awarded the golden shoe as Europe's top scorer last season and has continued that form with six goals in seven appearances this term.

England plays world champion Spain at Wembley in the Nations League on Saturday.

France plays for the first time under new head coach Zinedine Zidane with the pick of its games coming against Italy in the Nations League Oct. 2.

Ronaldo's pursuit

He may have missed out on his last chance to win the World Cup, but Ronaldo's pursuit of another landmark achievement goes on.

The Saudi Pro League announced his 979th career goal earlier this month and the Portugal great is edging ever closer to the 1,000-mark. He would be the first player to officially hit that total.

The 41-year-old Ronaldo was included in Portugal’s squad by new coach Jorge Jesus for its upcoming Nations League games.

Another player relentlessly chasing down goals is Haaland, who made new fans around the world with his performances and social media antics at the World Cup. He has started this season in devastating form with seven goals in his last five games to help Manchester City to a 100% winning run.

Superstar coaches

The star appeal will not be limited to the pitch. A raft of coaching changes have seen some of the biggest names in soccer take over national teams.

Three-time Champions League-winning coach Zidane has succeeded Didier Deschamps with France. Liverpool icon Jurgen Klopp is in charge of Germany after another early exit from the World Cup.

They join serial winning coaches like Carlo Ancelotti (Brazil) and Thomas Tuchel (England) by leaving the club game for international soccer.

Zidane is the only coach to win three straight Champions League titles and France will hope he can be just as successful with the national team.

Klopp answered Germany's SOS after it failed to reach the last 16 of a men’s World Cup for the third time in a row. But he delivered a spiky news conference when unveiled in July — immediately threatening to resign.

He said he would be prepared to leave without any severance pay if it doesn’t work out, or if criticism becomes overwhelming, and said he would resign if the media doesn’t “leave my family in peace.”

One coaching great who resisted the temptation to join the international influx was Pep Guardiola despite being a reported target for Italy.

Instead Roberto Mancini is back in charge of the Italian national team, which he led to triumph at Euro 2020.

Not that he is relying on that to ease any pressure on him.

“I’m not in credit because that’s in the past, it doesn’t count for anything,” Mancini said.

Where to watch

U.S. viewers can only find most games via streaming platforms – Fubo has every match, while Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and DirecTV Stream have select games, too. Several matches will air on Fox stations FS1 or FS2. That includes Norway vs. Denmark on Thursday on FS1, England vs. Spain on Saturday on FS2 and France vs. Italy on Oct. 2 on FS1.

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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

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See AP’s full soccer coverage here

By Tuesday afternoon, NOAA hurricane hunters flying through Polo found its central pressure had bottomed out at a jaw-dropping 892 millibars, catapulting it to the second most intense eastern Pacific hurricane ever recorded, trailing only 2015’s Hurricane Patricia.

Its winds peaked at 180 mph at around the same time Tuesday, tying it with Hurricane Rick in 2009 for the third strongest eastern Pacific hurricane on record by maximum sustained winds (only Patricia in 2015 and Linda in 1997 had higher estimated winds).

Hurricane hunters flying through Polo’s eye at around 8,000 feet above the violent Pacific also recorded temperatures in its eye at flight level of 31.3°C (88.3°F), indicative of an intensely warm core only found in textbook, upper-echelon hurricanes. In fact, based on thousands of hurricane hunter flights spanning almost 40 years across both Atlantic and Pacific basins, the flight-level temperature reading inside Polo’s eye on Tuesday tied Hurricane Rita’s in 2005 for the warmest on record, surpassing even some of the most intense western Pacific Super Typhoons ever directly observed like Megi in 2010.

It’s hard to fathom reaching out of an airplane at 8,000 feet and finding temperatures as balmy as 88 degrees Fahrenheit. Simply put, the amount of latent heat being released inside the core of Polo from the intense ring of thunderstorms surrounding its eye (the notorious eyewall) was exceptional, a rare show of force from Mother Nature when everything aligns to form one of the most powerful storms on Earth.

Polo plateaus

Polo appeared to have plateaued by Wednesday morning but remained a powerful Category 4 hurricane. Its very slow drift has churned up cooler waters from beneath the ocean surface, which likely contributed to its somewhat degraded satellite appearance by daylight Wednesday.

Fluctuations in its strength are likely over the next day or two before Polo begins a gradual weakening this weekend. Thankfully Polo’s destructive core will stay safely offshore this week, but outer rainbands and winds gusting to above 40 mph will continue to affect parts of southwestern Mexico through early Friday.

It’s too soon to know if Polo could pose a direct threat to the Baja California Peninsula of northwestern Mexico next week, but it’s something interests in the area should continue to monitor.

Another Hawai’i hurricane threat this weekend?

Tropical Depression Fifteen, which unraveled a week ago over the open eastern Pacific, has found a second wind over the central Pacific about 400 miles south-southeast of the Big Island of Hawaii.

The system re-formed early Wednesday and forecast models show it cranking up in the coming days into a major Category 3 hurricane as it bends north then takes a dogleg left toward the Big Island for the weekend.

The verdict is still out on how close the future hurricane could get to Hawaii, but the initially northward trajectory and sharp left turn are both concerning factors that could make this one of the stronger approaches to the Big Island we’ve observed.

As of their Wednesday morning advisory, the National Hurricane Center was predicting a 115 mph Category 3 hurricane to pass within 50 miles of the Big Island by Saturday evening local time, too close for comfort given the average error of around 100 miles at that forecast time.

Residents and visitors to Hawaii – particularly those on the Big Island – should continue to follow the forecast closely this week.

No major development threats in the Atlantic

The only two areas being tagged by NHC today are far away from the U.S. and neither should amount to much.

The remnants of Tropical Storm Fay have a small chance of redeveloping this week while a disturbance just moving off the coast of Africa could make a run as a short-lived tropical depression or storm as it moves northward toward the Cabo Verde Islands off Africa tomorrow through Saturday. Although it could bring blustery weather and locally heavy rain to the Cabo Verde islands, upper-level conditions will become increasingly hostile to organization beyond the weekend.

First in line is “bimpert,” a Bermudian word of unknown origin that is used to describe a stupid or foolish person. People on the tiny island in the north Atlantic often use it in this traditional phrase: “A bimpert is justah wuffless bye,” which roughly translates to: an idiot is just a worthless boy.

Another colorful addition is “hornerman,” a word used in the eastern Caribbean island of Trinidad and Tobago since 1975 to describe an unfaithful man or a man having a relationship with someone else's partner.

If someone in the Caribbean were to find out about such infidelities, they might be known “to get on,” which means to have an emotional outburst or make a scene, or “to cut someone’s tail,” meaning to beat someone.

Depending on the fallout from such infidelities, a woman might need “vex money,” which refers to “money carried or kept in a safe place by a woman, for use in an emergency or in any unexpected eventuality.”

Among other dark words that made the list is “jablesse,” defined as "a malevolent shape-shifting female spirit with one cloven hoof, which at night is said to assume the form of a beautiful woman to lure men to their deaths.” It is derived from “diablesse,” the French word for female demon.

Another supernatural entry is “douen." It is “typically depicted as short in stature, with backward-pointing feet, and wearing a large hat, said to be the spirit of a child who died before it could be baptized, and believed to lure children into the forest by calling their names,” according to the dictionary. It is a variation of the Spanish word “duende,” which means elf.

Several food-related words were included this year: “shadeesh,” the Bermudian word for chorizo; “sugar cake,” made of grated coconut boiled with sugar, water and spices; and “peanut punch,” a wildly popular rich and frothy beverage made with peanuts or peanut butter, milk, sugar and several spices.

In the Caribbean, one might sit down to have a peanut punch with one’s “nana” or “nani,” which are used to address one’s maternal grandparents. In Bermuda, one would sit down to partake with a “hamma,” or friend.

The final Caribbean English words added this year are “Trinbagonian,” which refers to people from both the islands of Trinidad and Tobago, and “canboulay,” which refers to Carnival festivities in Trinidad in the 1800s that celebrated the emancipation of slaves. They stem from a 1700s harvest festival that the British tried to quash, leading to riots reenacted to this day to mark the start of Carnival. Canboulay is derived from “burning cane,” which the dictionary noted was associated with “acts of defiance and rebellion.”

There are some 500,000 words and phrases in the Oxford English Dictionary, which details the history of words, some of which go back to the 11th century.

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Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

With over 97% of the vote counted from three days of balloting that ended Sunday, election officials said the main Kremlin party, United Russia, will get more than three-fourths of the seats in the lower house, the State Duma, a record high. The tightly orchestrated vote excluded virtually any genuine opposition.

Voter turnout exceeded 59% of the 111 eligible million voters, the most for a parliamentary election in over a decade. Authorities had spread the voting over three days to boost attendance at the polls and included illegally annexed parts of Ukraine. Online voting also took place in some regions.

“Such a record number of people who come to cast ballots shows that the people of Russia support our efforts aimed at strengthening the country,” Putin said in televised remarks at a meeting with top government members, his first public remarks on the outcome.

Voting came amid Ukrainian attacks

The election took place against the backdrop of incessant Ukrainian drone attacks. On Sunday, Russia's Defense Ministry reported it downed 1,110 drones overnight.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said 450 drones were downed while flying toward the city in what he described as “the largest ever” attack on the capital in a failed attempt to disrupt the vote. The attack, which damaged an oil refinery and a residential building, also killed three people and injured 38 in the wider Moscow region, officials said.

“They tried to hamper our efforts, to derail the election, as evidenced by the enemy’s continuous efforts to breach air defenses around Moscow and in other regions,” Putin said. “But lines at polling stations have shown that Russia can’t be intimidated.”

The parliamentary election was the first since Putin launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and the first to include residents of four regions of that country that were seized and illegally annexed by Moscow later that year. At a polling station in the Russian-held part of the Donetsk region, voters dropped their ballots in a box under the gaze of an armed Russian soldier.

Voting also was held in Crimea, which was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014. Kyiv denounced the voting in those regions as illegal.

Putin also addressed Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine.

“Comrades, I want you to know that it was the vote for you. People trust you, they believe in our victory, believe in your courage, heroism and your devotion to the Motherland,” he said.

“I have no doubt that all the goals we set for the special military operation will be fulfilled,” Putin said, using the Kremlin term for the war in Ukraine.

The Kremlin launched a massive media blitz

A massive state media campaign and tight control over the election allowed the Kremlin to strengthen its political dominance despite economic troubles and long-range Ukrainian drone attacks.

The preliminary results indicated that United Russia would get between 347 and 355 out of 450 Duma seats. It received just under 58% of the vote for the 225 seats apportioned by parties and also won 208 single-seat races that fill the other half of the chamber.

Several smaller parties representing the “systemic opposition” that vote in sync with the Kremlin on all key issues are set to fill most of the remaining seats. Just a handful will go to candidates who ran without a party affiliation.

The liberal Yabloko party, the only registered political entity that dared to publicly criticize the war, was removed from the ballot last month by Russia’s Supreme Court, and only had a few dozen candidates in the single-seat races. Preliminary results indicated that no Yabloko candidates won a seat.

Jacqueline Campos, 48, of Coral Springs, was arrested Tuesday on charges of organized scheme to defraud involving property valued at $50,000 or more and first-degree grand theft.

According to the report, police investigated allegations of fraud and grand theft involving BOSEM Corp., doing business as Doctor Aromas, located at 1996 NE 148th Terrace in North Miami.

Investigators said Campos served as the company’s chief operating officer and had access to its ADP TotalSource payroll system and QuickBooks Online accounting software.

Police allege that the scheme occurred between approximately Aug. 28, 2021, and July 10, 2026.

The company’s owner told investigators he was required to approve a payroll document every two weeks that listed Campos’ authorized compensation as $2,307.70 per pay period.

According to the arrest report, however, Campos provided him with screenshots of manually created Excel spreadsheets by email rather than the actual ADP payroll exports.

Forensic analysis finds more than $930K in unauthorized payments

As part of the investigation, police reviewed a forensic payroll and expense analysis conducted by a licensed certified public accounting firm.

The analysis compared 131 payroll documents with ADP TotalSource records for 126 confirmed pay periods.

According to the report, the analysis determined Campos received more than her authorized compensation during every one of those 126 pay periods, totaling $874,885.59 in unauthorized compensation.

The analysis also identified $221,632.64 in payments made to Campos outside the normal payroll process. The company’s owner confirmed that $57,888.99 of those payments had never been authorized, according to police.

Investigators said the total confirmed unauthorized loss to the company was $932,774.58.

According to the report, the forensic analysis also determined that Campos personally entered five unapproved increases to her own pay rate in the ADP system between January 2022 and April 2023 while continuing to provide the company’s owner with payroll documents showing her authorized rate as unchanged.

Campos is also accused of entering negative values into payroll deduction fields to increase her net pay, deleting transactions from the company’s accounting records to conceal them from standard reports and routing at least one payment under another employee’s name to conceal the actual recipient.

Police: Unauthorized payroll submitted after termination

Doctor Aromas terminated Campos’ employment for cause on July 7, according to the report.

Investigators allege that later that same day, after her employment had already been terminated, Campos submitted and approved a final unauthorized payroll run through ADP TotalSource that paid her an additional $5,712.10 beyond her regular rate.

According to police, Campos acknowledged in a sworn declaration in a related civil case that she personally submitted the July 7 payroll run.

At a July 9 hearing, the company’s owner and the forensic accountant who prepared the analysis testified under oath, according to the report.

The arrest report states that the presiding judge granted a temporary injunction after finding that the evidence established Campos had misappropriated company funds using her position of trust.

Based on the company’s statements, forensic analysis, business records, civil hearing testimony and Campos’ sworn admission, the investigating officer said there was probable cause to charge her with organized scheme to defraud and first-degree grand theft.

Campos turned herself in to North Miami police at approximately 2 p.m. Tuesday.

According to the report, an investigator asked Campos if she wanted to provide a statement, but she declined on the advice of her attorney.

She was arrested and transported to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.

As of Wednesday morning, she remained there and was expected to appear in bond court sometime during the day.

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According to BSO, 911 dispatchers were notified shortly after 9 p.m. that the marked vehicle had been stolen from the public parking lot area of the building, located at 2601 W. Broward Blvd.

Investigators worked to locate the stolen vehicle with assistance from the Florida Highway Patrol, Port St. Lucie Police Department and the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office.

The vehicle was eventually located along the northbound lanes of Interstate 95 at Gatlin Road in Port St. Lucie, according to BSO.

The SLCSO confirmed that the vehicle was found abandoned on the Gatlin Boulevard off-ramp.

According to the agency, SLCSO deputies then spotted the suspect, Shannon Dillon, 42, in the area wearing an outer ballistic vest displaying BSO insignia.

Dillon was immediately taken into custody.

She faces the following charges in St. Lucie County:

• Grand theft of law enforcement equipment

• Unlawful use of a police badge or law enforcement vehicle

• Unlawful possession of four or fewer identification items

• Possession or use of drug paraphernalia

• Possession of a weapon or ammunition by a convicted felon

• Driving while license suspended

• Resisting an officer without violence

Authorities confirmed that she also faces the following charges in Broward County:

• Grand theft of law enforcement equipment from an authorized emergency vehicle
• Grand theft

BSO officials said the investigation remains ongoing.

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Firefighters responded shortly after 6 a.m. to reports of a boat fire behind 264 S. Tradewinds Ave.

When crews arrived, they found a 40-foot Carver boat fully engulfed in flames, first responders said.

They said firefighters immediately began working to extinguish the fire and prevent it from spreading to nearby boats and surrounding property.

Crews were able to bring the fire under control and contain the flames to the affected boat, according to PBFR.

No civilians or firefighters were injured.

After extinguishing the fire, crews remained at the scene to make sure it was fully out and address any remaining hot spots.

“The Pompano Beach Fire Marshal is investigating the origin and cause of the fire,” PBFR officials said in a news release.

Officials said that given the circumstances surrounding the blaze, the fire is “currently considered suspicious.”

The investigation remains ongoing.

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Melvin Diaz Cepeda died after the shooting at about 5 a.m. on Monday at a home at 4606 NW 5th Ave., according to the Miami Police Department’s release on Wednesday.

“Firefighters pronounced him deceased on the scene,” Lt. Pete Sanchez, a spokesman for Miami Fire Rescue, said in a statement.

Officer Kenia Fallat, a spokeswoman for MPD, said detectives questioned one person during the investigation.

Detectives asked anyone with information about this or other cases to call Miami-Dade County Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477 to remain anonymous.

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

Location

Melvin Diaz Cepeda murió tras el tiroteo, ocurrido alrededor de las 5 a.m. del lunes en una casa ubicada en el 4606 NW 5th Ave., según un comunicado del Departamento de Policía de Miami publicado el miércoles.

“Los bomberos lo declararon muerto en el lugar”, dijo en un comunicado el teniente Pete Sanchez, vocero de Miami Fire Rescue.

La oficial Kenia Fallat, vocera del Departamento de Policía de Miami, indicó que los detectives interrogaron a una persona como parte de la investigación.

Los detectives pidieron a cualquier persona con información sobre este u otros casos que llame de forma anónima a Miami-Dade County Crime Stoppers al 305-471-8477.

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

The measure cleared the upper house 81-51 with seven abstentions. It marks a major step in Premier Giorgia Meloni’s drive to bolster energy security and meet climate goals, even though the construction of possible new reactors is still years away.

The bill, which earlier passed the lower Chamber of Deputies, establishes a legal framework for next-generation nuclear technologies. It authorizes the government to draft implementing decrees over the next 12 months covering reactor licensing, safety standards, waste management and criteria for future sites.

The vote puts Italy on a path toward reintroducing nuclear power after voters twice rejected it in national referendums, first in the aftermath of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster and again following Japan’s Fukushima accident in 2011.

Gilberto Pichetto Fratin, minister for the environment and energy security, said the vote marked a historic step forward for Italy.

“Nuclear isn't a return to the past," he said. “When integrated with renewables, it's a winning technology, which can give extraordinary results for our energy security.”

Italy seeks energy security in resuming nuclear

Meloni’s government argues that rising electricity demand, climate targets and energy security concerns exposed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine justify bringing nuclear energy back into the country’s power mix.

Rather than reviving the large reactors of the past, the government is focusing on small modular reactors, or SMRs, and other advanced technologies that supporters say could be safer, more flexible and quicker to build.

The legislation does not authorize the construction of any reactors. Instead, it creates the regulatory foundation needed before future projects can be proposed, assessed and approved.

Italy was once among Europe’s nuclear pioneers, operating four reactors before a 1987 referendum effectively ended the program. Since then, the country has relied heavily on imported energy and has become one of Europe’s largest consumers of electricity generated by nuclear plants in neighboring countries.

The government says electricity demand could rise substantially in coming years as homes, businesses and transportation become increasingly electrified and as data centers and other energy-intensive technologies expand.

Broader acceptance of nuclear energy is growing

Italy’s move comes amid a broader European debate over nuclear power’s role in cutting carbon emissions and reducing dependence on imported fossil fuels. Countries including France and Poland are investing in new nuclear projects or planning major expansions.

Public attitudes in Italy appear to have shifted. A June 2026 survey by research firm Only Numbers found that about 55% of Italians support next-generation nuclear plants, with backing strongest among younger generations who have no direct memory of Chernobyl.

Even so, significant obstacles remain before any reactors could be built.

Italy still lacks a permanent national repository for radioactive waste from its previous nuclear program, with waste continuing to be stored at temporary facilities around the country. Future reactor projects and waste storage sites are also expected to face opposition from local communities.

Energy analysts have questioned the economics of nuclear power, pointing to high construction costs and the lack of commercially proven SMR projects operating at scale in Europe. Industry estimates place the cost of a single 300-megawatt SMR at between 3 billion and 6 billion euros ($3.5 billion and $7 billion), excluding additional infrastructure and grid expenses.

New reactors still a long way off

Michele Governatori, a senior energy adviser at climate and energy think tank ECCO, welcomed the creation of a regulatory framework but said it would likely expose limited private-sector appetite for new nuclear projects.

“Having a regulatory framework in place is positive, but it will also make clear the limited interest of private investors in technologies that are either not competitive today or not yet ready, such as SMRs,” he said.

Governatori also said that Italy should focus on measures already available to cut energy costs and reduce reliance on fossil fuels, including electrification, energy efficiency, renewable energy, storage capacity and power-grid upgrades.

Environmental groups and opposition parties have already signaled resistance to the government’s plans and could challenge future projects once specific reactor and waste-storage sites are proposed.

The warning came despite signs of improvement in other provinces, including Ituri, the outbreak’s epicenter. The outbreak has spread to seven provinces, with 7,773 confirmed cases and 3,759 deaths, according to the latest government figures.

Between Aug. 31 and Sept. 20, cases fell 26% in Ituri province and 15% in Haut-Uele, said Marie Roseline Belizaire, the WHO’s regional emergency director for Africa. But transmission patterns vary widely and the outbreak remains uncontrolled, she said.

“While cases and deaths are declining in some provinces, they continue to rise in others,” Belizaire said. “The outbreak is still not under control and remains spread across a wide geographic area.”

The outbreak is spreading under extremely difficult conditions, fueled by insecurity, displacement, a health workers’ strike and intense population movements. The World Health Organization has said it is on track to surpass the 2014-2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak, the deadliest on record, which killed more than 11,000 people, primarily in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Catherine Smallwood, the WHO’s Ebola incident manager, said cases and deaths had begun declining in North Kivu after several weeks of increases. But although treatment beds are being added daily, facilities still lack enough staff and partners to operate them.

“The human resources gap is one of the biggest gaps,” Smallwood said.

WHO representative in Congo Anne Ancia said one Ebola treatment center requires about 300 health professionals, including anesthetists, hygienists, nurses and general practitioners.

“We are building Ebola treatment centers but do not always have the human resources needed to operate them,” Ancia said. “Those health workers must be paid.”

Frontline workers in Ituri previously went on strike over unpaid wages, worsening access to care. Health Minister Roger Kamba said in July that the government was verifying payroll lists after the names of people not involved in the response were added. Frontline workers said officials promised to pay the arrears, but some workers received nothing and others only part of what they were owed.

Another major challenge in the response is the fatality rate among children, according to the WHO. Children under five have the highest case fatality rate, more than 60% compared with approximately 40% among adults, Belizaire said.

WHO Ebola Incident Manager Smallwood said detecting cases among children under five is also very difficult because the children can’t necessarily explain their symptoms, and the presentation of symptoms can be confusing.

Agentes de la Oficina del Sheriff de Broward (BSO) llegaron poco antes de las 3 p.m. del martes a la gasolinera Orion, ubicada en el 101 E. Atlantic Blvd. en Pompano Beach, tras recibir reportes de disparos en la zona.

Al llegar, los agentes encontraron a un hombre herido de bala.

Paramédicos de Pompano Beach Fire Rescue lo trasladaron de urgencia a Broward Health North para recibir tratamiento, informaron las autoridades.

Un video de vigilancia captó un altercado entre una mujer y el hombre que luego resultaría baleado.

En las imágenes se ve a ambos forcejeando, mientras la mujer parece intentar zafarse del hombre y subirse por la puerta del pasajero de una camioneta Toyota RAV4 blanca estacionada junto a las bombas de gasolina.

Más tarde, el mismo hombre se acercó al lado del conductor de la camioneta y, cuando estuvo más cerca de la persona que se encontraba junto al vehículo, esta le disparó mientras él intentaba huir.

La gasolinera fue acordonada con cinta amarilla de la policía mientras los investigadores procesaban la escena.

Dentro del perímetro se encontraban la camioneta Toyota y seis marcadores de evidencia.

Los agentes indicaron que una persona fue detenida en el lugar después del tiroteo.

La investigación sigue en curso.

En algunas zonas del noreste de Miami-Dade y el sur de Broward ya se han acumulado entre 2 y 4 pulgadas de lluvia, y se espera más, ya que las lluvias ligeras a moderadas continuarán durante la mañana.

Este miércoles hay un riesgo marginal de lluvias excesivas, ya que los aguaceros de lento desplazamiento podrían provocar inundaciones localizadas en las calles.

Podrían formarse más tormentas en la tarde, mientras la nubosidad mantendrá las temperaturas entre los 85 y 89 grados aproximadamente.

Los bomberos respondieron poco después de las 6 a.m. a reportes de un bote en llamas detrás del 264 S. Tradewinds Ave.

Al llegar, los equipos encontraron una embarcación Carver de 40 pies completamente envuelta en llamas, informaron los socorristas.

Según indicaron, los bomberos comenzaron de inmediato a combatir el fuego y a evitar que se extendiera a los botes cercanos y a las propiedades de los alrededores.

Los equipos lograron controlar el incendio y limitar las llamas a la embarcación afectada, según PBFR.

No hubo civiles ni bomberos heridos.

Tras apagar el fuego, los equipos permanecieron en el lugar para asegurarse de que estuviera completamente extinguido y atender cualquier punto caliente que quedara.

“El Fire Marshal de Pompano Beach está investigando el origen y la causa del incendio”, señalaron funcionarios de PBFR en un comunicado de prensa.

Las autoridades indicaron que, debido a las circunstancias en torno al incendio, este “se considera sospechoso por ahora”.

La investigación continúa.

“The FBI is aware of claims regarding unauthorized activity affecting FBIjobs.gov and is currently investigating," the bureau said in a statement. The website, the main portal for prospective employees to learn about the FBI and initiate the application process, remained offline Wednesday morning.

A message that circulated online from a hacking group known as ShinyHunters claimed responsibility for the hack.

The message, directed to FBI Director Kash Patel as well as the assistant director in the charge of the FBI's cyber division, said the hacking group had “compromised very sensitive data on almost ALL FBI Agents and individuals who filed an application with the FBI for a job.”

The claims could not immediately be verified, and an FBI spokesperson declined to comment further. An email to an address associated with the organization was not immediately returned.

In its message, ShinyHunters said it would give the bureau one week to correct or remove what it says are false allegations in an FBI public service announcement from May that described the organization as a “cyber criminal group specializing in large-scale data breaches and extortion.”

That announcement characterized ShinyHunters as “threat actors” who often "use their real or exaggerated claims of access to sensitive or personal information to prompt payment from victims," commonly harass or threaten victims and “may falsely claim to have sensitive or compromising information, including embarrassing photographs or videos of victims, which frequently do not exist.”

ShinyHunters said in its message to the FBI that it was “offended” by those characterizations and demanded that the FBI remove those claims.

The FBI has been a common hacking target.

In March, the FBI disclosed that it was investigating “suspicious activities” on an internal system that contains sensitive information related to surveillance operations and investigations. Also that month, a pro-Iranian hacking group claimed to have hacked an account of Patel's and posted online what appear to be years-old photographs of him, along with a work resume and other personal documents dating back more than a decade.

Según BSO, poco después de las 9 p.m. los operadores del 911 recibieron el aviso de que el vehículo había sido robado del área de estacionamiento público del edificio, ubicado en el 2601 W. Broward Blvd.

Los investigadores trabajaron para localizar el vehículo con la ayuda de la Patrulla de Carreteras de Florida, el Departamento de Policía de Port St. Lucie y la Oficina del Sheriff del Condado St. Lucie.

Finalmente, el vehículo fue localizado en los carriles con dirección norte de la Interestatal 95, a la altura de Gatlin Road, en Port St. Lucie, según BSO.

La Oficina del Sheriff de St. Lucie (SLCSO) confirmó que el vehículo fue hallado abandonado en la rampa de salida hacia Gatlin Boulevard.

De acuerdo con esa agencia, sus agentes vieron luego en la zona a la sospechosa, Shannon Dillon, de 42 años, quien llevaba puesto un chaleco antibalas exterior con la insignia de BSO.

Dillon fue arrestada de inmediato.

En el condado St. Lucie enfrenta los siguientes cargos:

• Hurto mayor de equipo policial
• Uso ilegal de una placa de policía o de un vehículo policial
• Posesión ilegal de cuatro o menos documentos de identificación
• Posesión o uso de parafernalia para drogas
• Posesión de arma o municiones por parte de un delincuente convicto
• Manejar con la licencia suspendida
• Resistencia a un agente sin violencia

Las autoridades confirmaron que también enfrenta los siguientes cargos en el condado Broward:

• Hurto mayor de equipo policial de un vehículo de emergencia autorizado
• Hurto mayor

Funcionarios de BSO indicaron que la investigación continúa.

Jackson police said late Tuesday that they arrested 25-year-old Earnest Lloyd Jr. in the death of 29-year-old Tasia Fortune, whose body was found hanging behind an abandoned home in the city on Aug. 3.

Like Fortune and the first man arrested, 51-year-old Jarques Ratliff, Lloyd is Black. He appeared at a brief hearing Wednesday in Jackson.

Fortune's mother Christy Spivey, who attended the hearing, said afterward that she was ecstatic to see arrests made in her daughter’s death. She said that neither she nor several of her daughter's friends knew Lloyd, and she cautioned that everyone is innocent until proven guilty. “My family is not the only family that this is affecting,” Spivey said of the defendants' families. “I feel for them as well. The only difference is that mine can never come back. At least they can have telephone visits.” “I’ll never truly have peace,” she said

Ratliff was arrested in September on murder charges. He pleaded not guilty and remains jailed without bond.

Police said in a statement that they issued an arrest warrant for a third suspect, but gave no details about that person’s identity or alleged link to Fortune's death. They also said they expect to issue additional warrants.

After Ratliff's arrest, Jackson's police chief, RaShall Brackney, said Ratliff had an “association” with Fortune, but she didn't elaborate.

Although police haven't suggested a possible motive for the killing or said whether they think race played a role, the case has attracted widespread attention because the manner of death recalled lynchings in the Southern state.

A Kentucky native, Fortune had four children and had been living in Jackson for about a decade, relatives said.

Spivey previously said her daughter struggled with homelessness in recent years, and that she wasn’t sure where her daughter was living at the time of her death. She said that before her death, her daughter had talked about starting a cleaning business and was trying to get her life in order.

They held a news conference about two miles from “Iron Mountain,” an AI-ready data center nearing completion in Miami-Dade County’s Westview neighborhood, leaning into Republican candidate Byron Donalds’ past remarks on data centers possibly coming online in Florida.

“We have more people moving here in finance and tech, so as a derivative of that, you are going to have data centers, tech firms, etc. We need to embrace that, not run away from that,” Donalds said while speaking with the Economic Club of Miami in May 2025. “We are wide open. We have actual land in our state that is still pristine, available to use. We can build out that stuff and still maintain the beauty of our state.”

Democrats pushed back against his comments.

“Donalds is on the record saying, ‘We need to embrace data centers’ and there is ‘pristine land’ in our state available for them, and on the campaign trail has talked about a ‘pathway’ to building these data centers,” Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said. “The threat of hyper scale AI data centers is looming over all of Florida. To find the truth, you need to follow the money.”

Fried cited Donalds’ support from some AI industry titans, including Leading the Future, a super-PAC which says it wants to, “support candidates aligned with the pro-AI agenda.”

“Since launching his campaign, data center developers and AI groups have spent more than $5 million bankrolling Byron Donalds’ bid for governor,” said Fried.

Donalds’ Democratic challenger, David Jolly, is fresh off a visit to northern Virginia’s so-called “data center alley.”

“What you are hearing, and the reason I have to raise my voice, is the noise pollution that occurs from these data centers,” Jolly said. “You have the devaluation of real estate as well.”

Jolly is supporting a one-year moratorium on building data centers until we can better understand the impact on community, the campaign said, from public health and quality of life to the reality of promised jobs and demands on local energy and water resources.

“There is a reason Florida’s voters don’t want them. This used to be green space,” he said.

Earlier this month, Donalds told Fox Business he does have regulation in mind.

“To the people who might want to build them, if you don’t protect our ratepayers and you don’t protect our water, you are not building a data center, and that is my position,” he said. “And local governments are going to be the ones that will make these decisions, not Tallahassee.”

It would appear Donalds’ recent comments are pivoting to parrot new legislation Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law in May, when he expressed concern about hyper-scale data centers.

Over the summer, DeSantis signed a bill into law which aims to preserve local zoning authority and ensure costs are not passed to consumers.

Fried said the one thing Floridians can agree on irrespective of party is the environment, since it is the engine behind all of the state’s industries, from trade and tourism to agriculture and real estate, but worries the latest legislation could be weakened if Donalds’ prevails.

This as more than a dozen Florida counties hit the brakes on large data center development, pausing permits so they have time to write land use rules, with some enacting permanent bans.

Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava “looks forward to receiving an ordinance that puts in place a moratorium consistent with state law, while protecting our neighborhoods and our environment,” her office said in a statement to Local 10 News.

Donalds’ campaign told Local 10 News he plans to build on SB 484 with, “closed-loop water system requirements” that recycle water on site and supports “keeping facilities away from neighborhoods.”

His campaign also said he is proposing a federal bill to stop data center developers from competing with residents for water supply and creating a strain on the power grid.

“Iron Mountain’s data center project in Miami is a redevelopment of an existing records management facility that our company leases and has operated for years. Rather than building on greenfield land, this project modernizes an existing industrial site to support critical local digital infrastructure.

“Because the facility is under development and not yet operational, data on power draw and water usage aren’t available at this time. However, site modernizations allow us to implement a higher standard for responsible development, including closed-loop cooling technologies and optimized energy systems.

“As the project moves closer to completion, Iron Mountain remains committed to being a collaborative local partner, operating efficiently, and supporting the community responsibly.”

Iron Mountain spokesperson

At a meeting of the group’s board in New York on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday, the governors unveiled a 66-project blueprint to get things started while acknowledging enormous hurdles that must still be overcome. The projects include ambitious infrastructure, education and health initiatives that are designed to support Trump’s 20-point plan to end the Israel-Hamas war.

“The need is immense,” the board said, noting that full reconstruction from the physical damage across Gaza will cost roughly $35.2 billion over the medium term and another $71.4 billion in the next 10 years.

The proposal is largely aimed at potential donors who will be asked to foot the bill for reconstruction of the war-devastated territory.

The ceasefire, which took effect on Oct. 10, was meant to clear the way for a broader process to rebuild Gaza under the guidance of the Board of Peace. The plan included additional Israeli military withdrawals from Gaza, the disarmament of Hamas, the arrival of an international peacekeeping force and a new apolitical Palestinian government to administer the territory’s day-to-day affairs. It also envisioned an ambitious program for rebuilding war-ravaged Gaza.

But the U.S.-backed plan has largely stalled. While the ceasefire halted the heaviest fighting and humanitarian conditions have improved, the Israeli military has expanded its control of Gaza and now occupies some 60% of the territory. Hamas has not given up its weapons. The international military force and new government still have not entered Gaza, and reconstruction has not begun. The vast majority of Palestinians continue to live in tent camps or ruins of their former homes.

The board’s high representative, Nikolay Mladenov, has said progress hinges largely on Hamas disarming — a step the group has refused to take. But he also has pressed Israel to scale back its military operation.

“I want to be very clear that we are not bound by a calendar,” he said. “We want to make sure that this works.”

Key questions that the board faces are not only laying out plans for reconstruction but also a timeline for the deployment of the international force meant to provide security in the territory and a new government, plans to disarm Hamas, and bringing in badly needed building materials.

U.S. Gen. Jasper Jeffers, commander of the international stabilization force planned for Gaza, outlined a five-step approach to dealing with the thorny issue of demilitarizing Hamas. It begins with the first wave of the multinational unit being deployed with troops from Kosovo and Morocco, to be followed by additional personnel from Albania and Kazakhstan.

Their task will be to demilitarize the territory and decommission all of Hamas’ military infrastructure.

The goal, he said, is to gradually turn security control over to the interim government, after which Israel will be expected to withdraw its forces.

___

Associated Press writers Josef Federman and Julia Frankel in Jerusalem and Ben Finley in Washington contributed to this report.

The bigger story for South Florida is a weak front making its way through for the weekend. It’s too early for a major fall front, but this one will at least lower humidity a notch or two. It will feel noticeably nicer out, even in the temperatures are still well into the 80s during the day. We could reach the low 70s at night.

“The technology is more persuasive, more intimate, and more powerful,” the Duke of Sussex said. “AI is learning how to enter our relationships. It doesn’t just want your attention, it wants your attachment.”

In 2024, Harry sounded the alarm at CGI about how social media has contributed to an “epidemic” of anxiety, depression and social isolation among today’s youth. Harry and his wife, Meghan, announced the founding of The Parents Network, through their Archewell Foundation.

Harry said that The Parents Network had made progress, but that technological developments had made an already “uphill battle” more difficult.

“There are major signals that families, young people, experts and advocates have finally shaken institutions awake to the reality that this technology can cause harm,” Harry said. “But bans, settlements and payouts are incomplete remedies.”

Last month Meta agreed to pay up to $18 billion and add stronger child-safety measures to its Facebook and Instagram platforms as part of a landmark legal settlement that ended a trial over teen social media addiction and settled claims filed by nearly every state.

The settlement resolved a pivotal case years in the making that sought to hold the tech giant accountable for the role its platforms played in undermining children’s mental health. The effort targeted features designed to hook young people’s attention.

Wednesday marked Prince Harry's first public appearance in the United States since he and his family returned to England in August for an extended stay.

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also discussed the potential dangers of AI at the conference, adding that addressing risk through international agreements is something that President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping should discuss this week.

Trump is hosting Xi in Washington this week as their economic and tech competition is only escalating, especially through an artificial intelligence race. Neither expects any grand bargain, but the leaders are expected to play nice in their third meeting since Trump returned to the White House. Still, developing AI technology has emerged as a key battleground, with both sides showing little interest in slowing down despite warnings from tech CEOs about threats that rogue AI could pose to humanity.

Speaking at CGI, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman said that he believes a proposed kill switch, which would require developers to have the capacity to shut down their systems if needed, is a good idea.

“It’s not a natural thing for a company to put in, so it’s a good intervention,” he said.

Former President Bill Clinton opened this year’s CGI on Tuesday with a call for business and philanthropic leaders to work toward filling funding gaps caused by “ retreating governments.”

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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.

Co-creative directors Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons kept the focus of their Spring Summer 2027 collection firmly “waist down," in reference to a two-decade-old traveling Prada exhibition that examined the role in contemporary wardrobes of one of mankind's oldest garments.

Recasting an ancient form for modern times

For practicality and creativity, nothing surpasses the skirt, according to Prada, who favors skirts in her own wardrobe, including a pink silk one she wore for a backstage preview before the runway show that opened Milan Fashion Week on Tuesday.

“If you want to have a normal life, go wherever you want. It’s easy to camouflage even a beautiful skirt,’’ she said. “You need to camouflage the beauty so that you can live with people.”

The creative directors’ decision to keep trousers and dresses out of this collection was inspired by an old video interview of Prada likening the skirt to a T-shirt for men, in which she said “the place where she can put all her ideas,” Simons said.

From the swath of material that ancient man wrapped around the waist, Prada used a rectangular piece of material as the collection’s starting point, which Prada said became the framework for creativity.

Using the skirt as a creative canvas

Flipping runway convention that often focuses on the female bodice, black tops in varying styles offered a blank canvas against which to admire the first cluster of skirts: Slit numbers closed with industrial velcro to allow adjustable slits, feminine pleats, short satiny numbers in naïve prints and sheer crinoline overlays on crumpled silken skirts with flattened ruffles.

Bralettes, bandeaus and bustiers, tiny as they were, offered another forum for expression, including scoop-neck bralettes, bandeaus that link to arm bands and bustiers worn unhooked over homely knitwear.

Footwear ranged from silken slingbacks to industrial perforated leather pumps.

The collection didn’t propose full looks as much as it offered building blocks for self-expression.

“I think you can express complexity,” Prada said. “Everything is so complex, how can you be just one thing? When you express yourself, it is not that you are feminine, sexy, masculine, you are so many things together."

The defiant speech by President Masoud Pezeshkian marked a striking instance of a foreign leader addressing the world body while their country is at war with the host nation. While defending his country, Pezeshkian held up large photos of the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the more than 150 school Iranian children killed on the first days of the war.

“We have only defended ourselves. We are not terrorists,” Pezeshkian said at the General Assembly. “Our innocent people have been the targets of cowardly attacks and aggressions imposed upon our country. And we defended ourselves with utmost strength. America and Israel attacked us.”

He added of the United States: “Yes they did hit us, but we did not bend the knee.” Toward the end of his speech, Pezeshkian called out Trump by name.

“It must be understood by Mr. Trump and those who seek to bully us that we are ready for dialogue and diplomacy and negotiations without accepting the language of force,” he said.

He also said one thing that was measurably false: "We did not hit civilian populations.” Mariners and migrant workers in the region have been among the civilians killed in Iran’s attacks since the war began.

A busy 24 hours for US-Iran relations

Arriving in New York under heavy security and scrutiny, Pezeshkian — who, within Iran’s political landscape, is considered a moderate politician — addressed world leaders a day after Trump used the same stage to mull whether to massively escalate a war that has already spiraled out of control.

“I have a big decision to make,” Trump said in his wide-ranging address Tuesday. “Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before, maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world. Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill and destroy people and countries again?”

Hours after those stunning threats, Trump told reporters that his chief envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, met for about three hours with the Iranian officials on the sidelines of the annual gathering. But he offered few details about how the discussions transpired or the substance of the exchange.

“It was a very good meeting,” Trump said. The president later added that the Iranian officials were “not the highest level, but it’s something.” Also on Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Trump is open to meeting with Pezeshkian while he’s in New York.

But Tehran downplayed Tuesday's unscheduled exchange, which were the first indirect talks between U.S. and Iranian officials since a June ceasefire unraveled. Esmail Baghaei, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, maintained the country's negotiating position in talks with U.S. officials, demanding that Washington end its blockade of Iranian ports and release frozen Iranian assets,

Baghaei said the talks — conducted indirectly through Qatari mediators — were “not anything new.”

More than a year of negotiations have taken place

Pezeshkian's address elaborated on where Tehran stands as more than a year of start-stop negotiations between the two longtime adversaries have failed to produce a sustainable solution. His speech came as intermittent attacks continued in the Strait of Hormuz off Iran’s coast, where commercial shipping remained below prewar levels.

His address last year came months after the 12-day Israel-Iran war that saw the assassination of many of the Islamic Republic’s highest military and political leaders and once again broke down weeks of negotiations with the United States.

“Ladies and gentlemen, you all bore witness that this past June, my country was subjected to a savage aggression and flagrant contravention of the most elementary principles of international law,” Pezeshkian said at the time.

Grail Inc.'s test looks for DNA fragments shed by tumor cells, an emerging approach to screening that aims to detect various cancers with a single blood draw.

Cancer screening is supposed to spot tumors in their early stages, when they're easier to treat. A multi-cancer screening test would be a departure from the handful of currently recommended cancer tests — including mammograms and colonoscopies — that look for one cancer at a time.

A panel of Food and Drug Administration advisers will vote Wednesday on whether the proposed benefits of Grail's Galleri test, designed for people 50 and older, outweigh risks such as missing cancers or causing false alarms.

In documents posted ahead of the meeting, FDA staffers didn't raise major safety concerns, but they want the panel to discuss whether the test picks up enough early stage cancers to be marketed for “early detection.”

The FDA will weigh the advisers' recommendations but is not required to follow them.

People in the U.S. can already buy the test, typically by paying $700 or more out of pocket, because the government allows limited use of certain laboratory-based tests. But FDA approval promises to widen availability by opening the door to coverage from Medicare and private insurers.

Oncologists are divided on whether the test is ready for widespread use. Dr. Badrinath Konety of Allina Health Cancer Institute in Minneapolis says there's “a lot of promise” in the technology but has cautioned patients who've asked about it.

“The benefit is it may give you a signal," he said. “The flip side now is you’ve got to chase that signal,” which can involve additional pricey tests that may not give a clear answer.

FDA's panel will have to consider those downsides and a number of other unusual aspects of the Sunnyvale, California-based company's technology.

For one thing, the FDA considers the company's current test a completely different product than the one it used in two large studies conducted to win approval. To bridge the gap, the company saved frozen blood samples of people enrolled in those studies and then tested them with its newer Galleri test.

Also, the company's FDA submission only includes the first year of data from its primary study. That 140,000-person study was conducted in the U.K. and failed its main goal of showing a statistically significant reduction in late-stage cancers. That failure is not mentioned in FDA's review, but it's almost certain to come up during Wednesday's discussion.

In the study data released by FDA this week, Grail's test accurately predicted cancer in more than 66% of patients who received a “cancer signal detected." During the one-year period, the test detected about 30% of cancers that would later be diagnosed by physicians.

The study, conducted with the U.K.'s National Health Service, was not intended to show that screening with Galleri reduced cancer deaths. That approach would have required many more years of follow-up.

In a newly published analysis of a separate U.S. study, the Grail test detected a cancer signal in 287 people. Cancer was eventually diagnosed in 173 of them.

The test was better at finding less common cancers, such as liver and ovarian cancers, compared with more common forms of the disease like prostate cancer. That raises questions about the wide-scale impact of deploying the test for millions of Americans.

One worry is that people who get an all-clear from DNA testing test might skip guideline-recommended screenings like mammograms or colonoscopies.

Johns Hopkins scientist Nickolas Papadopoulos considers Grail's test “pretty promising” but said that if the FDA clears it, it will be vital for doctors to understand the pros and cons and to make sure their patients do, too.

Among many questions yet to be answered, he said: “If we do this test once a year, once every three years, is that good enough to eventually catch the cancer early? We’re still learning.”

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The Associated Press’ health and science coverage receives financial support from the AP Fund for Journalism and 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.

They're complaining about former President Joe Biden, promising to work with President Donald Trump to secure the border, insisting they'll never defund the police and criticizing democratic socialists as too extreme.

Taking shots at the left is one way that Democrats are trying to distance themselves from their party's tarnished brand. It's also a reflection of how the midterms are increasingly playing out in red states. Although progressives notched notable wins in Democratic primaries this year, the path to a majority in the House and the Senate runs through places where Trump won two years ago, such as North Carolina, Alaska, Kansas and Iowa.

“You need to own values that are where the center of the party is," said Adam Frisch, the finance director for Welcome PAC, which tries to boost Democrats in Republican-leaning districts. He previously ran twice for Congress in Colorado.

North Carolina's Cooper boasts of bipartisanship

Known for forging compromise with the Republican-led legislature during his two terms as governor, Roy Cooper argues in his Senate campaign that Democrats should be willing to do the same in Congress.

Cooper also served as state attorney general, and one of his ads says he “toughened bail laws, went after drug dealers pushing fentanyl and said, ‘No way do we defund the police.’” Another says Cooper “bucked his own party to oppose defunding the police” and “partnered” with the Republican president to crack down on drugs.

Conservatives and allies of Republican nominee Michael Whatley, former chairman of the Republican National Committee, have tried to link Cooper to national progressive figures like New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, former Vice President Kamala Harris and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats.

When Cooper entered the race more than a year ago, the Senate Leadership Fund — a Republican super PAC affiliated with Senate Majority Leader John Thune — swiftly attacked him by saying he “masquerades as a moderate” but is ”just another radical, D.C. liberal in disguise.”

Earlier this month, Cooper explained a bit of his strategy to CNN, saying that he felt that “there are enough people who are skeptical of national Democrats" in North Carolina, a factor he cited in the state's tendency to elect Democrats to statewide offices more often than its congressional offices.

Alaska's Peltola and Iowa's Turek want distance from national Democrats

In Alaska, former Rep. Mary Peltola has tried to steer the same centrist path as in her House campaigns, reviving her “fish, family, freedom” slogan and expressing support for Second Amendment rights and border security — two issues that traditionally resonate with more conservative voters.

“I'll take on anyone, including Democrats, anyone in the Lower 48 who doesn’t understand what Alaska needs,” she said in one campaign advertisement that mentioned her support for the massive Willow oil project on Alaska’s petroleum-rich North Slope that was opposed by environmentalists. "When both parties are attacking you, you're doing something right.”

Peltola's tone hasn't kept incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan from seeking to align Peltola with “D.C. Democrats,” as well as characterizing her as ineffective during her time in Congress.

Meanwhile, in Iowa, Democratic nominee Josh Turek has emphasized his commitment to bipartisanship, highlighting hundreds of times he voted with Republicans as a state legislator. He represented a district won by Trump, and he leaned on that experience in this year's Senate race as evidence that he could appeal to independent and moderate Republican voters in November.

As he vies with Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson for the seat of retiring Republican Sen. Joni Ernst, Turek is also running an ad decrying the U.S.' “broken immigration system,” saying, “I'll work with anyone to fix it, including President Trump.”

After Turek won the nomination, Hinson told delegates at Republicans' state convention that he was “masquerading as a moderate,” calling her opponent “a far-left fraud.”

Hamilton says Kansas is very distant from Washington's ‘extreme politics’

Pastor of a Kansas megachurch, Democratic Senate nominee Adam Hamilton describes himself as a centrist, running partly on “bringing people together" and noting that his congregation is nearly evenly split among Democrats, Republicans and independents.

That's the tenor Hamilton has brought to his campaign against Republican incumbent Sen. Roger Marshall, running ads noting that Kansas is “proud of being in the middle politically" and “about a million miles away from the extreme politics of Washington that are tearing us apart and driving up prices.”

“On one side, the far left pushes socialism and open borders," he said. "On the other side, Roger Marshall gives us higher gas and grocery prices, while slashing our healthcare.”

In a debate earlier this month at the Kansas state fair, Hamilton also wasn't shy to blame Biden for immigration problems while also criticizing Trump's policies.

“Immigration at the border under Biden was a disaster," Hamilton said. "That is how we ended up where we are today.”

Marshall has said Hamilton is “too woke for Kansas.”

Sand decries parties as ‘two private clubs’ in Iowa governor's race

It's not just Senate contests in which Democratic candidates are seeking to chart a new course.

Back in Iowa — where Democrats see an opportunity to win in a once-competitive state, with high costs, manufacturing job losses and a struggling agricultural economy weighing on voters — Democrat Rob Sand says he can win over independents and Republicans frustrated with party politics.

Central to his campaign message is the premise that America's political system is broken “largely because it’s run by two private clubs” — the two major parties — “the well fed versus the fed up.”

Republican nominee Zach Lahn has said Sand's critique of his own party isn't genuine. Appearing on the “Ruthless” podcast this summer, he said that Democrats “are realizing that their ideas don’t sell” and ”have to pretend to be somebody they’re not."

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Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP.

Richie underwent a common procedure for atrial fibrillation, or A-fib, and the “doctor said everything went perfectly,” it read. “Lionel is doing great but will take some time off and will be back on stage soon.”

A-fib is a quivering or irregular heartbeat that is a worrisome stage-setter for blood clots, stroke and heart failure. Some researchers believe more than 10 million Americans have it — most of them older.

The 77-year-old singer also postponed two concerts earlier this year, in June, after falling ill. And in August, reports of Richie checking himself into a hospital after a performance in St. Louis made the rounds online.

Richie was scheduled to perform with Earth, Wind & Fire Saturday in San Francisco, Sept. 30 in Chicago and Oct. 3 in Columbus, Ohio.

According to his website, he is currently scheduled to launch his “King of Hearts” residency shows at Las Vegas’ the Wynn in October and November.

The Oscar and four-time Grammy Award-winning Richie launched his career with The Commodores before becoming a successful solo artist. In addition to his well-known hits like “Hello,” Richie co-wrote the iconic charity single “We Are the World” with Michael Jackson and has sold over 100 million records. He is also a judge on “American Idol.”

According to a person familiar with the situation, Brooks will have surgery Wednesday to repair a core muscle injury that will result in him missing at least six weeks. Brooks is expected to return this season, the person told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the team has yet to provide any details on how long he will be out.

The Panthers signed safety Isaiah Simmons from the practice squad to take Brooks' spot on the 53-man roster.

Coach Dave Canales said Monday that Brooks had injured his groin late in Carolina’s 34-3 win over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday. He said at the time the team was awaiting the results of an MRI.

Brooks has struggled with knee injuries in the past, limiting his playing time to only five of a potential 36 games since joining the league as a second round pick in 2024.

He tore his ACL during his final season at Texas and then again during his rookie season with the Panthers. The injury forced him to miss the remainder of the 2024 season and all of 2025.

Brooks was used sparingly in Carolina's first two games of the season.

Chuba Hubbard is Carolina's starting running back and A.J. Dillon is third on the depth chart.

Among the veteran free agents available to sign with Carolina at running back include Austin Ekeler, who last played with the Washington Commanders in 2025, and Kareem Hunt, who played for the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Panthers play at Cleveland on Sunday.

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See AP’s full NFL coverage here

McEwan's essay and speech collection "Between Books” will be published next spring, May 25, Alfred A. Knopf announced Wednesday. It is the first full-length work of nonfiction by the author of “Atonement,” “The Innocent,” the Booker Prize -winning “Amsterdam” and many other novels. (In 2019, the British author released a brief work of nonfiction, “Science.”)

“Between Books” includes everything from “intimate personal recollection to bold intellectual enquiry,” according to Knopf. McEwan has written a new introduction for “Between Books,” which includes material both published before and never published before.

“'Between Books' is an intimate record of a great mind wrestling with the contours of his own life and all the themes and questions that inform his masterworks: the nature of truth and love, the human hunger for meaning and knowledge, the mysteries of the soul,” Knopf Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Jordan Pavlin said in a statement.

McEwan, 78, said in a statement that for his upcoming book he “started out contemplating a ragbag of disparate pieces and ended up with what I hope is an emotional and intellectual journey.”

Mayor Judy Paul has lived in Davie for 40 years and has served as mayor since 2009.

Davie is a town of just over 107,000 people and geographically, it’s the largest town or city in Broward County.

Paul says Davie is all about land, and that’s what she fights to protect.

“We took over 200 acres out of development for the creation of the wetlands park and the farm park, and we have more that is coming up,” said Paul.

Paul says Davie is the only municipality in Broward County to give a tax cut to residents.

“We are saving our residents 5.1%. This was very important because with the way the economy is, every bit helps our residents and we couldn’t wait,” said Paul. “We had an opportunity because of some of the development that’s been going on in our town.”

Trucking company owner and lifelong resident Jacqueline Rocha is running against Paul.

She says overdevelopment in Davie is a problem.

“Now that’s happened a lot with the development that we’ve allowed to come into place here that is considered market value -- majority of it -- and market value is still not affordable,” said Rocha. “Not to mention the HUD housing designation really is not helping anyone, not everyday residents.”

Rocha said she’s also fighting for term limits.

“Residents have subsidized development and they don’t even know it,” said Rocha. “Now they were attending the meetings, and I think that a lot of residents feel like -- and as a resident myself, honestly I can say that we are going unheard, and so that’s really why I’m here today, to make sure residents have a voice.”

Also, Trump’s AI-fueled vision for a drone port he intends to install atop the new White House ballroom includes missile-bearing unmanned aerial vehicles and gun-toting troops. But what hasn't been previously reported is the presence of a drone port a few hundred feet away, run by the U.S. Secret Service and not the military, which is already quietly operational.

Here's the latest:

Election plans include how to deal with the Trump administration

As state and local election officials prepare for what could go wrong administering the midterms, they’re planning not just for what foreign adversaries might try — but how the Trump administration could interfere.

At a panel Wednesday for the left-leaning think tank Center for American Progress, California Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta said officials are working on what to do if U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers or National Guard troops show up at polling places, or if ballots are seized.

Michigan Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel said one concern is the possibility that federal law enforcement officials would get in the way of voting by mail even after the Supreme Court rejected mail ballot restrictions.

Rubio says Trump has many options to meet defense commitments to Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia is facing increasing attacks from Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

Speaking to reporters Wednesday on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, Rubio pledged for the second time in three days that the United States will “live up” to its commitments to the Saudis but declined to say what that would entail.

“They are a strategic defense partner. The U.S. has made commitments to them. We will live up to those commitments,” he said, adding that “obviously, the president has many options available to him.”

Rubio says US won’t walk away from Iran war and must prevent Iranian nuclear capabilities

He said the U.S. cannot simply walk away and declare victory over Iran, arguing that the U.S. must ensure the Islamic Republic never develops a nuclear weapon.

“The idea that the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism would be in possession of nuclear weapons is simply unacceptable,” Rubio told reporters on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, noting that many U.N. members had voted in the past “in support of that principle.”

Trump’s efforts to contain Iran’s nuclear program aren’t limited to last year’s bombings of its nuclear facilities, Rubio said, adding that Trump is “thinking about the next generation.”

Meanwhile, Rubio said the U.S. military is ensuring that part of the Strait of Hormuz is open to commercial oil tankers, which are increasingly traversing the strait to deliver oil around the world.

Rubio says the US is frustrated by external forces fueling Sudan conflict

Rubio said the U.S. is frustrated by lack of progress in making peace in Sudan, urging foreign actors he didn’t name to pressure their allies in Sudan to settle the devastating conflict.

“That crisis would not be happening were it not for the active participation of external actors that are feeding one side of that conflict or another,” he told reporters at the United Nations General Assembly. ” It’s growing increasingly frustrating.”

U.N. experts and U.S. congressmen have accused the United Arab Emirates of supporting the paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces, which has been fighting the Sudanese military for over three years. Egypt and Turkey back the military. The UAE denies it’s supporting the RSF, a group blamed for most of the atrocities in the war that killed at least 59,000 since 2023.

Rubio says after meeting Russian FM that Russia and Ukraine are interested in a limited ceasefire

Rubio says both Russia and Ukraine have expressed interest in a limited ceasefire that would halt attacks on grain shipments and each country’s energy sectors.

Speaking to reporters Wednesday after meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, Rubio said reaching even a partial deal would be difficult but worthwhile even if it doesn’t completely end the conflict.

“It won’t be easy but it’s something that both sides have expressed an interest in,” he said, noting that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has publicly endorsed such a plan. “If we can play a constructive role in making that happen, we would be very open to, again, recognizing it doesn’t end the war, but it does deal with something, and maybe it can serve as the baseline or a platform for a broader agreement.”

US government ‘always’ raises cases of wrongfully detained Americans, Rubio says

His department has designated two U.S. citizens, Youlin Chen and Min Zin, as wrongfully detained in China, and President Trump is expected to raise their cases when hosting Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week.

“The case of unlawfully and wrongfully detained Americans is always raised not just at our meetings, but in any engagement that we have and in our communications with any country around the world,” Rubio said. “This is a constant under this administration.”

Board of Peace officials cite slow and imperfect progress toward rebuilding Gaza

Officials with the Board of Peace, the body President Trump established to oversee the fragile ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, acknowledged Wednesday that progress has been slow but said they’re moving forward with the ambitious plan.

Trump’s ceasefire plan brought an end to the heaviest fighting. But nearly one year later, its broader goals, including disarming Hamas and beginning reconstruction, haven’t taken place.

“Given the complexities of what we’re dealing with, I think we’re making slowly but steady and steadily, progress,” the board’s director general, Nickolay Mladenov, said on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly.

While the board announced plans for over $2 billion in projects, they gave no timeline for when they would take place.

Steve Witkoff, Trump’s Mideast envoy, added that various people behind the board “can point to real progress.”

“There is a cease fire, imperfect as it may be, but it still exists,” he said.

Despite disagreements, US and China leaders must interact, Rubio says

He said the U.S. and China must interact at the highest levels because the two countries are “the two largest economies in the world” and “probably the two most powerful militaries in the world.”

“The idea that we would not interact with them at the highest levels is irresponsible. It’s outrageous. We have to,” Rubio said, hours before President Trump will greet Chinese leader Xi Jinping on the tarmac of Joint Base Andrews in a rare welcome ceremony.

“I think it’s just responsible statecraft for our leaders to speak and meet with one another,” Rubio said.

US needs to balance arms sales to Taiwan with its own needs, Rubio says

Rubio said the U.S. needs to balance arms sales to Taiwan with “our industrial capacity and our military industrial base.”

“Anytime we do any sales, ... it is always balanced against what are our own needs in different parts of the world and whether we can afford to sell something, because we may need it for ourselves,” Rubio said.

The Trump administration has paused arms sales to Taiwan, apparently after the U.S. president visited Beijing in May. Beijing considers Taiwan to be part of its territory and has urged the U.S. side to handle the Taiwan issue with prudence.

Rubio says Trump had short but ‘important’ meeting with Venezuela’s Rodriguez

The U.S. secretary of state gave few details about Trump’s meeting Tuesday with Delcy Rodríguez, acting president of Venezuela.

But he did say steps have been discussed to help rebuild “confidence” in the country’s economy, so that the millions of Venezuelans living abroad will feel comfortable going back to the country, mentioning debt restructuring and the “political transition process” currently underway.

“We’d like to see a point where they feel and have confidence that they can actually go back and rebuild what they lost, or rebuild what was taken on the political front, but also on the economic front,” Rubio said. “And for that to happen, we need to make more progress on these talks with regards to the transition and reconciliation.”

Rubio acknowledges concerns that war between Russia and Ukraine could spread

“It could metastasize and spread into other places,” Rubio told reporters at the United Nations, adding that the war “could grow into somewhere else, be it through a hybrid attack, be it through a sabotage attack, be it through a misunderstanding.”

Rubio said the U.S. is monitoring the situation closely and has raised its concerns “with the right people at the right levels.”

Meanwhile, Rubio said the war won’t end on the battlefield but in negotiations. He said he hopes the U.S. can play a positive role in bringing peace, noting that Russia and Ukraine are trading blows to each other’s energy infrastructure as winter nears.

Rubio says it’s unlikely companies will invest in Cuba under their current government

Rubio said “of course” when asked about future investments by American businesses in Cuba. But the secretary of state added Wednesday that there’s currently no confidence in the private sector that companies would be able to make back their investment until Cuba’s government changes.

“There’s simply no legitimacy or credibility that this regime will ever live up to these conditions because they never have before,” Rubio said. “No one is going to invest in Cuba under their current governance model. They’re just not going to do it.”

In January, Trump threatened tariffs on any country that sells or provides oil to the island. Earlier this month, the U.S. government slapped new sanctions on Cuba in a fresh push to strangle its economy.

Rubio says Trump remains open to ‘making a deal with Iran’

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday that Trump remains open to a deal with Iran “that allows Iran to be what it should be, which is a great and prosperous country.”

But Rubio said that’s hampered by Iran’s insistence “on the desire for a nuclear weapon,” as well as “their support of terrorism.” If that continues, Rubio said Trump could exercise “a number of options,” including further military action.

Rubio wouldn’t give details of this week’s talks but did note “consensus” between the U.S. and the Gulf Cooperation Council on “deeply problematic” attacks by Houthi rebels in Yemen, and that the Strait of Hormuz needs to remain “open and free without attack.”

China’s top diplomat in Washington draws red lines for the US

The Chinese ambassador drew four red lines for the U.S., ahead of Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s visit to Washington.

In an editorial published Wednesday in the ruling party’s flagship newspaper People’s Daily, Xie Feng, China’s top diplomat in Washington, said China’s sovereignty, security and development rights cannot be violated.

“The four red lines — Taiwan, democracy and human rights, China’s political system, and its development rights — shall not be challenged,” Xie wrote.

McConnell and GOP senators press Trump on Taiwan aid ahead of Xi visit

The senators said they’re concerned by Trump’s “description of Taiwan as ‘a very good negotiating chip’ in engagements with Xi.”

Sen. Mitch McConnell, the former Republican leader, and his colleagues, wrote in a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio that the Senate

has already approved some $1 billion in security assistance alongside millions in aid that affirms the U.S.-Taiwan security relationship and is also central to U.S. security interests.

They warned the Trump administration against freezing those funds.

“It is difficult to imagine how the United States might credibly project influence deterrence in the Indo-Pacific,” they wrote, “if the price of keeping up diplomatic appearances is denying our partners key deterrent capabilities.”

In UN speech, Iran’s president said his people have been ‘victims of terrorism’ by the US

“It must be understood by Mr. Trump and those who seek to bully us that we are ready for dialogue and diplomacy and negotiations without accepting the language of force,” Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Wednesday.

He also said one thing that was measurably false: “We did not hit civilian populations.” Mariners and migrant workers in the region have been among the civilians killed in Iran’s attacks since the war began.

Iran’s president speaks at the United Nations in a rare wartime address

In a defiant speech, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said “peace will not come in the field of battle.”

Pezeshkian held up photos of the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the more than 150 school children killed in the first days of the war.

“We have only defended ourselves. We are not terrorists,” Pezeshkian said at the General Assembly. “Our innocent people have been the targets of cowardly attacks and aggressions imposed upon our country. And we defended ourselves with utmost strength. America and Israel attacked us.”

He added of the United States: “Yes they did hit us, but we did not bend the knee.”

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AP-KFF poll: Trump’s healthcare policies have gone unnoticed by rural voters

The new AP-KFF poll found that rural voters overall don’t perceive much positive impact from the Trump administration’s healthcare policies.

That comes as those policies have been a top priority for Republican leaders, who’ve promoted efforts to lower drug costs and touted a $50 billion rural health program.

Only 17% of rural voters said the Trump administration’s healthcare policies have had a “positive impact” on their healthcare costs. About 4 in 10 said they’ve had “no impact” and 41% said they’ve had a “negative impact.”

A year after the passage of the Rural Health Transformation Program, more than 8 in 10 rural voters said they’d heard either “a little” or “nothing at all” about the health fund, according to the survey.

AP-KFF poll: Most rural voters are worried about costs

About half of rural American voters believe the economy is worse off now than when President Trump returned to office, according to a new AP-KFF poll of more than 2,000 rural registered voters.

The costs of groceries, gas, healthcare and monthly utilities emerged as top pain points for rural voters in the survey. Majorities said they are “very” or “somewhat” worried about being able to afford each.

The findings suggest many rural voters haven’t turned on Trump, but that they also largely don’t think he’s delivered on the economic renaissance he promised.

About half of rural voters approve of how Trump is handling the presidency, while only about 4 in 10 approve of Trump’s performance on the economy.

Board of Peace proposes 6-month, $2.45B plan to begin Gaza reconstruction

The U.S.-backed Board of Peace’s plan to begin reconstruction and governance in Gaza comes as President Trump’s ceasefire struggles to stay afloat.

At a meeting of the group’s board, the governors unveiled a 66-project blueprint to get things started while acknowledging enormous hurdles that must still be overcome. The projects include ambitious infrastructure, education and health initiatives that are designed to support Trump’s 20-point ceasefire plan.

“The need is immense,” the board said, noting that full reconstruction from the physical damage across Gaza will cost roughly $35.2 billion over the medium-term and another $71.4 billion in the next 10 years.

Gallup poll shows about 4 in 10 have a positive view of socialism

About 4 in 10 Americans, 43%, have a positive view of socialism, according to the new Gallup poll.

That’s largely unchanged from last year, when 39% of Americans had a favorable image of socialism. The polling shows about two-thirds of Democrats think positively about socialism, as do 45% of independents. Only 14% of Republicans feel the same way.

The polling found young adults — those 18 to 34 — are more likely to have a positive view of socialism than capitalism. About 6 in 10 young adults say they view socialism favorably, compared to 43% who say that about capitalism.

On the other hand, older adults see capitalism more positively. About two-thirds of those 55 and older have a positive view of capitalism, compared to about one-third who say that about socialism.

Taiwan is watching closely as Xi and Trump meet and hopes US will keep up its arms sales

As China’s Xi Jinping arrives in Washington to meet with President Trump, Taiwan expressed confidence that U.S. arms sales to the island that Beijing claims as its own will continue — despite China’s pressure.

China has pressed Washington to halt the arms sales, most prominently during a summit in May between Trump and Xi in Beijing. After that meeting, the United States paused the sale of a record-breaking $14 billion package — and Trump described arms sales to Taiwan as a “very good negotiating chip” with China.

Still, the U.S. government and Congress have “repeatedly expressed support for Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities,” Taiwanese Defense Ministry spokesperson Maj. Gen. Chiao Fu-chun told reporters in the southern city of Tainan.

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It happened on May 11 in the shared courtyard of a Hallandale Beach apartment complex, the location of which was withheld from arrest forms due to authorities protecting the victim’s identity.

According to Hallandale Beach police, the victim, who is a person 65 or older, was sitting on the bench with another person while their dogs played in the grass when a dog belonging to the suspect, identified as Antonia Yeromina, approached the two other dogs.

Body-worn camera footage obtained by Local 10 News shows the victim later explaining to officers what happened.

“I was in the back with a neighbor, the dogs were playing nice,” she said in the footage. “This woman came with a dog, and her dog and my dog started fighting.”

And that’s when the arrest report said the situation escalated, as the two women each snatched their dogs to stop the fight, but after it was over, the victim told officers that Yeromina began attacking her.

“She started hitting me on my face, on my arms,” the victim said, adding that Yeromina started screaming, “I hate you, I hate you.”

The arrest report states that after the initial encounter, Yeromina returned and attacked the victim a second time, once again striking her in the face.

The person who was sitting with the victim then put themself between the two women, which is when police said Yeromina turned her attention to the victim’s dog.

“Since the defendant could no longer intentionally attack the victim, the defendant maliciously and intentionally kicked the victim’s dog in the belly area as the dog was peacefully laying on the ground, in what appeared to be an angry response to no longer having the ability to continue her attack on the victim,” the arrest report stated.

Despite the incident happening in May, Yeromina was not arrested until Monday.

She is facing two charges of battery on a person 65 years of age or older and a charge of tormenting an animal.

After going before a judge on Tuesday, Yeromina was released on a $15,000 bond and conditions of not contacting the victim, not to return to the incident location and not possessing any animals.

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The woman, who has since been identified as 37-year-old Nikkita Wongchong, was knocked unconscious, but the driver is seen in the video speeding off, leaving the woman in the middle of a McDonald’s parking lot with serious injuries.

Passing drivers could be seen getting out of their cars to check on her.

This all happened Saturday around 8:40 a.m. outside the McDonald’s located at 26601 S. Dixie Highway, in southwest Miami-Dade’s unincorporated Naranja area.

Nile Sausbre said she was working across the street and watched as Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the area.

“That’s not right,” she said. “That’s a human being.”

Deputies said they performed CPR until paramedics arrived and rushed the victim to the hospital in critical condition.

Doctors later determined she was brain dead.

The driver has been identified as 28-year-old Ismel Baro Rodriguez.

Investigators said they reviewed surveillance video that helped them track down Baro Rodriguez at a home not far from the scene.

He has since been charged with a felony count of aggravated battery with great bodily harm and the Cuban national is now behind bars at Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on an immigration hold.

In his candid new memoir, “Fights Worth Fighting,” the martial artist and actor trades his tough-guy persona for vulnerability.

Lundgren recently sat down with Local 10’s Jason Carter to discuss the book.

Jason Carter: “You have lived an incredible life. Many call you an icon, and now you’re giving us a very unfiltered glimpse into your life. Why was now the time to write this book?”

Dolph Lundgren: “Well, you know, when do you write a memoir? I suppose you have to be at a certain age. So you have done enough to fill out a book, which I think I had. In 2020, I had a cancer diagnosis that kind of shook up my whole life.”

JC: “We see you as this, this iconic superstar, hyper masculine muscle, Ivan Drago, He-Man, Rocky, you are jettisoning all of that and really getting very honest with your fans. What was it like for you to lay down those guards when you started writing and what was so therapeutic about that?”

DL: “Well, it started actually when I announced the cancer battle, which was in 2023. I spoke out about that and about my childhood when my dad, who was quite abusive towards me (and) my mom -- I spoke out about that and it made me feel good. You know, you’re only as sick as your secrets, they say. And it wasn’t that difficult for me to talk about it. It made me feel good. It was therapeutic.”

JC: “Was there anything that you felt that was unfairly put on you, that now you have the opportunity to say, ‘Wait, hold on. That’s completely wrong.’”

DL: “Bring you the bad news, but you know, we have to live in the moment. And that’s what I learned. That’s what I learned from this experience. And it was just amplified by what I’ve been through. So I think every day is a wonderful day.”

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Deputies with the Broward Sheriff’s Office arrived to the Orion gas station located at 101 E. Atlantic Blvd. in Pompano Beach shortly before 3 p.m. Tuesday after receiving reports about gunfire in the area.

Responding deputies arrived to find a man who had been shot.

Pompano Beach Fire Rescue medics rushed the man to Broward Health North for treatment, authorities said.

Surveillance video showed an altercation between a woman and the man who would eventually be shot.

The video shows the two in a physical struggle, with the woman appearing to try to get away from the man and into the passenger side of a white Toyota RAV4 SUV that was parked at the gas pumps.

Later, that same man approached the driver side of the SUV, and after he got closer to the person standing next to the SUV, that person opened fire at the man as he tried to run away.

The gas station was blocked off with yellow police tape as investigators processed the scene.

Inside the tape was the Toyota SUV and six evidence markers.

Deputies said one person was detained at the scene following the shooting.

The investigation remains active and ongoing.

For the first time, apparently in response to escalating threats, U.N. security required all staff and lower-ranking diplomats to have their belongings scanned.

The problem was that there were only two scanners for hundreds and hundreds of people trying to get into the building via the staff entrance between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. Tuesday, when the meeting started. Many faced long delays, and some were frantic.

Motorcades carrying presidents, prime ministers and monarchs to the building had priority on nearby streets and traffic was often at a standstill.

Meanwhile, First Avenue — which runs uptown alongside the U.N. complex — was closed to normal traffic. Only motorcades could enter. That meant that many vehicles trying to get uptown were using the closest uptown street —- Third Avenue.

Then police closed that, too — at midafternoon Tuesday after a report of a suspicious package — fouling up traffic for New Yorkers even more.

Police said they got a call around 3 p.m. Tuesday about a suspicious package near East 43rd Street and Third Avenue, prompting a response by bomb squad and other officers.

The object, police said, turned out to be harmless.

The nearly impossible part for the female cyclist from Afghanistan was trying to train in her country. To do that, she dressed as a man in a place where women have few rights.

“All the time when I was going to training,” she said, “I was dressing as a guy.”

She said she also hid her face when she could in order to not be recognized.

“Because sometimes when they recognized me, they were trying to throw ... stone(s) or hitting me," she said.

Hashimi won silver Tuesday in a time of 2 hours, 50 minutes, 5 seconds, which marked another leg in a journey that began in 2021 when she left Afghanistan.

“In 2021, when the Taliban moved into my country, I escaped my country because I wanted to follow my dream,” she said. “I want to show the Afghanistan women in the world that ... we can have an opportunity.”

Hashimi talked about having many dreams for women in Afghanistan, dreams for herself and dreams that may take time to be realized.

“I’m really, really happy and I’m full of emotion. I don’t know how I can explain it for you,” she said.

“I hope one day I come back in my country and ride the streets of Kabul — and riding with the women side by side to share the same passion," she explained.

“And I hope in the future changing some things,” she added. “I think we are really tired of the situation of our country and I hope the Taliban is watching. I know how much one woman can be powerful and that's why Taliban is scared (of) women.”

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SNTV video journalist Raj Mohan contributed to this report.

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See full AP coverage of Asian sports here

Some areas have seen an accumulation between 2 to 4 inches across northeast Miami-Dade and southern Broward County with more on the way as light-to-moderate rainfall will continue though the morning.

There is a marginal risk for excessive rainfall on Wednesday as slow-moving downpours could bring the threat for localized street flooding.

More storms are possible into the afternoon as clouds keep temperatures in the middle-to-upper 80s.

“Chicas Spin” brings them together.

It’s part network, part sisterhood — made for women who shake the room.

“Being able to shapeshift a room and control the vibe of a room. That’s the best part of DJing,” said Chicas Spin founder, Lilyana Fonte.

But Chicas Spin is not just about who can throw down the hardest. It’s about who has your back when the set is over.

“It really started out as almost just a little group chat of girls who could tell each other when they were home and catch each other’s sets and maybe have a buddy who could go with them to their set that knew what was happening and could support,” Fonte said.

The Miami-based group launched in 2024 to give female DJs a place to connect, network, trade opportunities and build friendships in an industry long-dominated by men across the country.

Click the following links for more on the member DJs:

Manu Magick

Natalie Siriani

L ilyAna

“There’s always another show. There’s so many opportunities,” said Chicas Spin community leader, Natalie Siriani.

This club group is not always about spinning either. Sometimes, the point is to step away from the decks completely.

“It’s almost a little break from the spinning ... The goal is always to step away for the deck for a second and just get a moment with other girls who are usually behind the e decks,” Fonte said.

At a recent Chicas Spin gathering at Lion’s Den in Miami, members gathered to “Pass the Aux” — an event to share music, get creative and meditate.

For women who are usually the ones setting the vibe, this was a chance to just be in one.

That space matters in an industry that can be difficult to navigate.

“Five to six years ago when I started DJing, it was a little bit weirder to see girls getting the late night gigs or the headlining gigs, and I wanted a space where we could, like, bond and realistically talk about our goals without their being maybe other energies,” said Fonte. “This collective helps you get your foot in the door just a little bit more than if you came to Miami and tried to DJ on your own.”

“It is very collaborative… in Miami it is very powerful and the women are very on their ball here,” Siriani said.

To submit an idea for What Connects Us, email whatconnectsus@wplg.com.

The deal was officially signed Tuesday in New York, after U.S., Greenlandic and Danish officials had quietly negotiated for months behind the scenes — searching both for solutions to address some of Trump’s security concerns about the territory, as well as alleviating Danish and Greenlandic fears of being taken over by the U.S.

The three parties expressed satisfaction with the deal at the signing ceremony — but what exactly does it say?

The United States can expand its military presence on the island

Washington is allowed to “modernize and expand” its activities at the remote Pituffik Space Base in the northwest, according to the agreement.

The U.S. can also set up “defense areas” at Narsarsuaq in the south and Mestersvig in the east, and “may establish additional defense areas in Greenland and strengthen its military operations or facilities.”

The deal refers to a changed security situation in the Arctic

The accord calls for wide U.S. military mobility on Greenland’s territory, including “undersea access," noting that “ the security situation in the Arctic is changing and that more efforts are needed to ensure security there in the future.”

The accord stresses Denmark's territorial integrity and Greenlanders' self-determination

The agreement reaffirms “the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom of Denmark,” and recognizes the Greenlanders' "right to self-determination.”

The deal supports a stronger NATO engagement in the Arctic

The agreement says all three parties “support a stronger NATO engagement in the Arctic, including as regards planning, presence, exercises, and joint intelligence gathering.”

It allows U.S. military access to Greenland to defend the NATO area, Greenland itself and the American continent — including through a “Golden Dome defense system."

Non-NATO country installations are not allowed

The deal spells out that “no state that is not a member of NATO shall be allowed to establish its own manned or unmanned military installations in Greenland nor shall they be allowed a persistent presence of military forces in Greenland."

It vows to respect Greenland's environment and traditional ways of life

In the preamble, the signatories recognize “the need to protect the pristine environment of Greenland.” It also stresses “the economic, social, and cultural rights of the people of Greenland, including with respect to their lands and their way of life, including hunting, fishing, and other traditional, cultural, historical, future activities.”

It addresses what happens if Greenland becomes independent from Denmark

The accord “does not have an end date” and, if Greenland chooses to become independent, it will agree to remain in NATO and take on Denmark’s rights and obligations under the deal.

The agreement needs parliamentary approval

The deal will only “enter into force” once the “necessary parliamentary processes of the Kingdom of Denmark, in conjunction with Greenland, have been completed.”

El Centro Nacional de Huracanes de Estados Unidos en Miami (NHC, por sus siglas en inglés) calificó a Polo de tormenta “extremadamente peligrosa” y pronosticó que girará bruscamente hacia el noroeste antes de desplazarse hacia el oeste-noroeste durante los próximos días.

Polo estaba a unos 266 kilómetros (165 millas) al sur de Zihuatanejo y a 515 kms (320 millas) al sureste de Manzanillo, informó el NHC. Se movía lentamente hacia el norte con vientos máximos sostenidos de 241 km/h (150 mph), que lo sitúan en la categoría 4, tras haber tenido anteriormente categoría 5.

“Se prevén fluctuaciones en la intensidad, pero se espera que Polo siga siendo un huracán mayor muy potente durante los próximos días”, dijo el NHC.

Odalys era un huracán de categoría 1 y se encontraba a unos 2.085 kms (1.295 millas) del extremo sur de la península de Baja California, en México, moviéndose hacia el este-noreste a 15 km/h (9 mph) con vientos máximos sostenidos de 120 km/h (75 mph), dijo el centro.

Olas, inundaciones y deslaves suponen un peligro

La presidenta de México, Claudia Sheinbaum, señaló que los expertos indicaron que era poco probable que Polo tocara tierra. Aun así, los vientos con fuerza de huracán se extienden hasta 65 kms (40 millas) desde el vórtice de la tormenta y los que tienen fuerza de tormenta tropical llegan hasta 169 kms (105 millas), de acuerdo con el NHC.

Se esperaban condiciones de tormenta tropical a lo largo de la costa del Pacífico en los estados de Guerrero, Michoacán y Colima desde el miércoles hasta el jueves.

Polo se convirtió el martes en el tercer huracán de categoría 5 de la temporada del Pacífico, después de Genevieve y Lowell. Es el nivel más alto en la escala Saffir-Simpson y supone que el meteoro tiene vientos máximos sostenidos que superan los 253 km/h (157 mph).

El huracán volvió a poner en vilo a los residentes en la costa mexicana del Pacífico, que ya sufrieron el azote de varias tormentas potentes en los últimos años. Las playas se vaciaron y nubes oscuras flotaban sobre un mar agitado, mientras las autoridades suspendieron temporalmente las clases el martes en varias zonas. La Marina de México cerró puertos en los estados de Guerrero y Michoacán y advirtió a civiles y pescadores que extremaran las precauciones.

Concepción López Villegas se afanaba en preparar su restaurante junto al mar para lo que pudiera venir. El fuerte oleaje ya golpeaba la costa en su ciudad, Lázaro Cárdenas, en Michoacán. Mientras hombres y niños miraban el mar agitado detrás de ella, López Villegas comentó que temía que las olas destruyeran el pequeño negocio que ha trabajado durante décadas para construir.

“Estamos preocupados y tratando de proteger nuestros negocios", afirmó. "Y, por supuesto, estamos tristes porque es nuestro patrimonio, nuestro legado, que de un momento a otro podría ser destruido”.

Datos del NHC muestran que los vientos de Polo alcanzaron velocidades comparables a las de unos pocos huracanes que llegaron a la región en las últimas décadas, sobre todo Patricia, cuyos vientos llegaron a los 346 km/h (215 mph) en 2015.

“Esta es una de las tormentas más fuertes de la historia en la cuenca (del Pacífico)”, afirmó Kristen L. Corbosiero, profesora del Departamento de Ciencias Atmosféricas y Ambientales de la Universidad de Albany.

Las intensas precipitaciones podrían causar inundaciones repentinas y deslaves. Se esperan entre 8 y 15 centímetros (de 3 a 6 pulgadas) de lluvia para los estados de Guerrero y Michoacán, con cantidades menores en zonas costeras de los estados de Oaxaca, Colima y Jalisco.

El Niño impulsó la rápida intensificación

La embajada de Estados Unidos en México emitió una alerta meteorológica en la que pide a los estadounidenses evitar el agua y las playas, y seguir las indicaciones de las autoridades mexicanas.

“Aunque la tormenta no toque tierra directamente, las lluvias intensas pueden producir inundaciones y deslaves que pongan en peligro la vida. Las condiciones peligrosas del océano —intensificadas por las tormentas— pueden resultar en corrientes de resaca mortales y olas anómalas”, escribió la embajada en un comunicado.

La rápida intensificación de la tormenta ha dejado atónitos tanto a científicos como a autoridades, y el NHC escribió en un informe que fue “verdaderamente notable” lo rápido que Polo ganó fuerza en 24 horas.

Philip Klotzbach, científico investigador del Departamento de Ciencias Atmosféricas de la Universidad Estatal de Colorado, atribuyó la intensificación al fenómeno meteorológico conocido como El Niño, que ha alimentado sequías devastadoras en México y Centroamérica e inundaciones en otras partes de la región.

En el Pacífico, dijo, ha resultado en aguas más cálidas y patrones de viento que sirven de combustible para los huracanes.

“Están todos los ingredientes que los huracanes necesitan para volverse realmente fuertes realmente rápido”, afirmó Klotzbach.

En lo que va de temporada no se han registrado huracanes en el Atlántico, que este año batió el récord de mayor tiempo sin un huracán. Los efectos de El Niño frenan las tormentas antes de que se formen.

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Brooks informó desde Atlanta.

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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.

Range and charging

The Rivian R2’s range spans from 275 miles in the base Standard model to 345 miles in the Standard Long Range. Most other versions are rated at 330 miles. In the real-world Edmunds EV Range Test, the R2 Performance covered 304 miles, falling short of its 330-mile EPA estimate.

The Tesla Model Y outperforms the R2, ranging from 294 miles in the all-wheel-drive base model to 357 miles in the rear-wheel-drive Premium. The rear-wheel-drive base Model Y Edmunds tested covered 337 miles, and the new three-row Model Y L managed an impressive 358 miles — both beating their EPA estimates. For both rivals, all-wheel-drive versions are rated lower than their rear-wheel-drive counterparts.

Both electric SUVs use Tesla-style (NACS) charging ports, giving them access to Tesla’s vast Supercharger fast-charging network. Under ideal conditions, Tesla says the Model Y can add up to 162 miles in 15 minutes, edging out the R2’s cited 150 miles in 15 minutes. Edmunds’ testing confirmed that the Tesla charges slightly quicker.

Winner: Tesla Model Y

Tech features

The R2 and Model Y boast an impressive amount of standard tech, including a generous collection of advanced driver aids, wireless smartphone charging pads, large touchscreens with sharp-looking graphics, Google-based navigation, and camera systems that record your drive and monitor the vehicle’s surroundings when parked.

A hands-free driving mode is also available on both EVs. Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (Supervised) drives hands-free on highways and city streets, obeying stop signs and traffic lights and changing lanes on its own — in Edmunds’ testing, it’s been the most useful hands-free driving system available. Rivian’s Autonomy+ also works hands-free on roads with painted lane markings, but it doesn’t operate during city driving.

Overall, however, the R2’s tech features are impressive. Unlike the Model Y, it has a digital driver display that keeps important info in your line of sight. Also, the R2’s touchscreen system proved more responsive and enjoyable to use in Edmunds’ testing.

Winner: Rivian R2

Interior comfort and utility

The Model Y rides more smoothly over bumps than the firmer R2, though both have comfortable, supportive seats. Passenger space is similar, though the R2 has a bit more rear headroom. Tesla one-ups Rivian, however, with an available third row in the Premium and in the extended-length Model Y L — though it’s best for kids and small adults, and it eats up a lot of cargo space when raised.

As for cargo, the R2 tops the Model Y behind the rear seats when you include their underfloor storage compartments, and it offers far greater total capacity: 90.1 cubic feet versus the five-seat Model Y’s 75.5 cubic feet. Its front trunk is slightly larger too, and its 4,400-pound max towing capacity tops the Model Y’s 3,500 pounds.

The Model Y is more comfortable and offers third-row versatility, but the R2 delivers more utility and a roomier back seat.

Winner: tie

Pricing and value

Including destination fees, the Rivian R2’s starting prices range from $46,485 for the Standard trim to $59,485 for the top-level Performance trim. The Model Y spans $41,380 for the base trim to $63,380 for the three-row Model Y L. Note that for the R2, only the priciest Performance trim is available now; more affordable trim levels arrive in late 2026 and spring 2027.

In general, the R2 will likely cost you a little more to buy. But it justifies its premium with a richer-looking interior, distinctive styling, superior off-road capability, and uncommon touches like a drop-down rear window and dual glove boxes. Rivian also backs it with a one-year/12,000-mile adjustment warranty covering wheel alignment, factory defects and more — something Tesla doesn’t offer.

Winner: tie

Edmunds says

This electric SUV comparison ends in a tie — both earned the same overall rating score and are at the top of Edmunds’ rankings for electric small SUVs. You can’t go wrong with either, but if range and comfort top your priorities, the Model Y is for you. If you’d rather have a more capable, premium-feeling SUV, order the R2.

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This story was provided to The Associated Press by the automotive website Edmunds.

Michael Cantu is a contributor at Edmunds.

The poll of more than 2,000 rural registered voters found that costs of groceries, gas and healthcare are among the top pain points for rural voters. They are also more likely than voters overall to say they are worried about being able to afford groceries or gas.

Rural Americans skew Republican and historically have been an instrumental voting bloc for Trump. The findings suggest that many rural voters haven’t turned against Trump but that they also largely don’t think he has delivered on his economic promises. While rural voters seem unlikely to support Democrats on a large scale, Trump and the Republican Party could face challenges with them in November.

The full story can be read here. Here are the takeaways:

Most rural voters disapprove of Trump on the economy

As the election approaches, only about 4 in 10 rural voters surveyed approve of Trump’s performance on the economy. Roughly 6 in 10 disapprove.

They rate him similarly on his handling of the Iran war, an entanglement that has proved expensive for the U.S. and increased oil and gas prices. And rural voters rank pocketbook concerns and fraud in government programs higher among the things they want to hear about from politicians than other perennial issues, such as gun policy and abortion policy.

In the poll, about three-quarters of rural voters rated the cost of living in their communities as “only fair” or “poor.”

Rural Americans, who have consistently lower wages than those who live in suburban and metro areas, have been hurting economically for decades, according to Tim Slack, a professor of sociology at Louisiana State University and co-author of the book “Rural and Small-Town America.”

“Many folks are connecting the cost-of-living crisis to many of the Trump administration’s policy choices: the war in Iran, tariffs, trade wars,” he said. “None of those things are going to bring down prices at the pump or the local Walmart.”

Rural Republicans have a rosier view of Trump

At the same time, about half of rural voters approve of Trump’s job performance, more than among U.S. adults overall in separate AP-NORC polling.

Rural Republicans do have a brighter economic perspective than rural Democrats or independents, particularly about the U.S. as a whole, according to the survey. About 6 in 10 rural Republican voters say Trump has improved the national economy, compared with roughly 2 in 10 independents and fewer than 1 in 10 Democrats.

But only 45% of rural Republican voters say Trump has made their local economies better off. About 1 in 4 say there are fewer good-paying jobs where they live than five years ago.

Trump's healthcare policies go unnoticed

The AP-KFF poll found that rural voters overall don’t perceive much positive impact from the Trump administration’s healthcare policies even as they have been a top priority for Republican leaders, who have promoted efforts to lower drug costs and touted a $50 billion rural health program.

Only 17% of the voters said the Trump administration’s healthcare policies have had a “positive impact” on their healthcare costs, while 41% said they’ve had “no impact” and another 41% said they’ve had a “negative impact.”

A year after the passage of the Rural Health Transformation Program, more than 8 in 10 rural voters said they’d heard either “a little” or “nothing at all” about the health fund. About 6 in 10 said they had heard nothing, according to the survey.

Rural Republican voters still trust the GOP more

When asked which political party they trusted to do a better job of handling issues such as the cost of healthcare or the cost of living, rural voters tended to side with their own party.

The finding signals that Democratic candidates are more likely to benefit from rural Republicans staying home this November than from them voting across party lines in large numbers.

Rural Republicans are more ambivalent about their party’s ability to handle key healthcare issues, compared with Democrats. About 8 in 10 Democratic voters say they trust the Democrats to address healthcare costs, while closer to 6 in 10 Republican voters say the same of the Republicans.

Many rural voters don't feel respected by Trump or the parties

Trump's approval among rural voters, while higher than among U.S. adults overall, is down slightly, from 56% approval in a similar question asked in a 2017 KFF-Washington Post survey.

Many rural voters also don’t think the major parties or the president respect people like them.

About half, 48%, of rural voters say the GOP respects people like them “a lot” or “some,” while 45% of rural voters say this about Trump and 37% say this about the Democratic Party.

This year’s competitive elections feature key Senate races in states including Ohio, Michigan and Maine, all of which have large rural populations. In close races, Democrats may have a chance to “show up and give a message that rural people might find appealing,” said Nicholas Jacobs, a political scientist at Colby College and co-author of the book “The Rural Voter.”

“But it’s nothing more and it’s nothing less than that — an opportunity,” Jacobs said. “And time and time again, Democrats have shown a certain proclivity for not seizing that opportunity.”

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The poll of 2,241 U.S. adults registered to vote in rural areas of the country was conducted Aug. 12-24, 2026, using a sample drawn from the probability-based SSRS Opinion Panel. The margin of sampling error for the full sample is plus or minus 3 percentage points. In collaboration with the AP, KFF researchers worked to design the survey sample and questionnaire, analyze and report findings.

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This report is a collaboration between The Associated Press and KFF Health News. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF — the independent source for health policy research, polling and journalism.

A diagnosis of a rare, aggressive form of cancer had forced her into retirement after three decades of working with homeless youth. As the disease quickly spread through her body, she felt “like a walking time bomb.” But she found a new purpose, becoming a public face of a movement in favor of life-ending options.

She shared her story publicly and traveled from her home near Chicago to Springfield, the state capital, to convince lawmakers it was vital to legalize medically assisted death.

The day came on Sept. 12. She celebrated at home with friends and family as “Deb’s law,” named after her, took effect. Illinois became the first Midwestern state and the 13th state overall (plus the District of Columbia) to authorize the option.

“I believe that God gave me this extra time so that I could see this law through,” said Robertson, 68. “I believe that people have the right to leave this Earth with dignity and on their own terms.”

In recent years, the practice of allowing doctors to help terminally ill patients end their lives with medication has been legalized in several countries, with many more considering it. In the U.S., New York and Illinois recently became the latest states to join an accelerating pace of such legislation.

The issue remains bitterly contested

Opponents, including many religious groups, lawmakers and disability advocates, have moral objections to someone ending their life. Even with safeguards in place, some argue, the decision could be made for the wrong reasons.

“It puts people like myself — people with developmental and mental disabilities, as well as physical disabilities — in danger,” said Ebony Payne, a Chicago-based disability advocate who is quadriplegic. She was a plaintiff in a lawsuit against “Deb’s law,″ contending it discriminates against people with disabilities.

Even Pope Leo XIV weighed in, urging Gov. JB Pritzker not to sign the bill. Leo later said he was “very disappointed” that his home state of Illinois approved a law condemned by the Catholic Church. Polls show that most Americans think medical aid in dying is either morally acceptable or not a moral issue, although opinions vary across different faiths and political lines.

Dr. Jessica Kaan, medical director for End of Life Washington, an advocacy group, has helped hundreds of patients in Washington and Oregon with assisted dying.

Her mother, a practicing Christian, opposes it on religious grounds: “She’s horrified that I’m involved in any way.”

Kaan says she’s an advocate for choices. Her perspective is shaped by the types of deaths she has witnessed.

Among them are patients with ALS, a progressive disease that attacks nerve cells controlling muscles throughout the body. “It’s a particularly gruesome and awful way for most people to even anticipate their dying,” she said about a disease that takes away the body’s ability to move and speak.

For many terminally ill patients, she said, having the option gives them a sense of comfort, even if they eventually might not use it.

“I respect that people don’t want to choose that as an option for themselves. What I don’t love is for people trying to police that for other people.”

How a California man prepared to die

Peter Redgrove of San Diego, a late-stage bone marrow cancer and leukemia patient, used California’s assisted-dying law on Sunday. After 19 rounds of chemotherapy, he decided to set the terms of his death following a long, pain-wracked hospital stay.

“I see no point in enduring pain and suffering emotionally, psychologically and physically, when there are means to end it,” said Redgrove, 85, days before he took the lethal prescription cocktail in a cup emblazoned with Sylvester, his favorite character from the Looney Tunes. “I don’t think you get extra points for hanging in to the bitter end.”

Redgrove grew up in Catholic orphanages in England before moving to the U.S. Although he was no longer a practicing Catholic, he remained close to his faith, often wearing a crucifix he only gave away right before his death.

“An all-loving God is not going to punish me and throw me into a fire pit because I’m doing this,” Redgrove said in his room at a residential facility, where he spent his last days listening to classical music and reminding people to be kind.

With a death doula’s help, he invited loved ones to a celebration of his life that included Champagne, a shroud to wrap his body in his favorite royal purple and a final song: “Time” by The Alan Parsons Project.

Before he took his last breath, he read a Buddhist prayer.

State by state, the movement has spread

Oregon was the first U.S. state to pass a medical aid-in-dying law; it took effect in 1997.

As other states followed suit, what remains generally consistent is that to use the laws, one must have an incurable illness and less than six months to live, said Thaddeus Pope, a bioethicist at Mitchell Hamline School of Law in St. Paul, Minnesota. To qualify, one must also be able to understand and make a voluntary decision and be able to take the prescribed medications without assistance.

The latest states to legalize medical aid in dying are among the most populous: New York, where it took effect in August, and Illinois earlier this month. Today, nearly 1/3 of Americans live in a state where that end-of-life option is legal — though the practice remains uncommon in the U.S., accounting for roughly 15,000 deaths since the Oregon law went into effect in 1997.

“We actually have a pretty significant track record now: 30 years in Oregon, 18 years in Washington, 10 years in California. … That’s a lot of experience,” Pope said.

Peg Sandeen, chief executive officer of the Death with Dignity National Center, a nonprofit advocacy group, said there’s clear evidence that the safeguards work. “Police are not chasing after cases where there’s been coercion. We don’t have physicians losing their license to practice. That’s not happening.”

Some faith traditions continue to condemn assisted dying — sometimes called assisted suicide. Illinois pastor Andy Huette, who leads a nondenominational church in Gridley, urged Christians to reject Deb’s law, calling it “legislating darkness.” He has supported congregants with ALS, cancer and other chronic illnesses, and understands the desire to reduce suffering, but he also believes in its “redemptive purposes.”

Others have changed positions. Rabbi Dvora E. Weisberg served on a Reform committee that spent more than two years interpreting Jewish texts and talking to doctors and families to draft a paper on medically assisted dying that reverses earlier guidance. The paper argued that Jewish law must respond to modern medicine’s ability to prolong dying and to new knowledge about pain.

“We take this very, very seriously even though we know that any Reform Jew can disagree with us. We’re not the Vatican, we don’t have that kind of power,” said Weisberg, a professor of Rabbinics at Hebrew Union College.

“But the response that we’ve gotten from people who have read it has been very positive in the sense that they feel that now they have something to think about that can help them.”

Opposition from religious and disability groups remains firm

Before Deb’s law went into effect, a judge denied a request for a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit by Ebony Payne and disability groups that aimed to block the law, saying that they had not proved standing or imminent harm.

In her Chicago home, Payne used a mouth-operated stylus to look at the ruling on her phone while lying in a reclining medical care chair. “I’m very disappointed,” she said. “My hope is that the law will be taken off the books.”

The six Catholic dioceses in Illinois criticized the law, saying it puts the state “on a dangerous and heartbreaking path.” The pope, who grew up in Chicago, has cited Catholic teaching, which calls for the protection of life from conception until natural death, forbidding abortion and euthanasia.

Chicago’s archbishop, Cardinal Blase Cupich, and Springfield Bishop Thomas Paprocki challenged “Deb’s law” in separate lawsuits and won limited protections without blocking the law from being enacted.

“We live in a state now where suicide is now normalized, and yet we still have a suicide hotline. There seems to be a bit of schizophrenia here,” Cupich told The Associated Press.

In the days before the law took effect, a judge temporarily blocked the state from enforcing the law on Catholic groups that challenged it in a lawsuit. They had argued the law could compel Catholic healthcare providers to refer or provide help against their faith in what they believe is assisted suicide.

“They always give it a euphemistic name: This is the End of Life Options Act. But it’s really just physician-assisted suicide, which is very problematic,” Paprocki said. “We believe that God is the author of life. … We shouldn’t be the ones deciding when to end our lives.”

Assisted dying vs. assisted suicide

Advocates, doctors and academics involved with the procedure say none of the medically assisted dying laws in the U.S. define the practice as assisted suicide. They note the American Association of Suicidology has declared that “suicide and Medical Assistance in Dying (MAID) are conceptually, medically, and legally different phenomena.”

Equating assisted dying with suicide is not only antiquated or misleading, but harmful, said Anita Hannig, a cultural anthropologist and author of “The Day I Die: The Untold Story of Assisted Dying in America.”

“In no way would I describe any of the deaths I attended as suicide,” said Hannig, who spent five years following patients, families and doctors while researching her book.

Terminally ill patients who have sought this type of legislation insist they’re not suicidal.

“It really bothers me because I want to live, I don’t want to die. But I’m going to. I have to accept that, my wife has to accept that, my family has to accept that,” Robertson said in Lombard, Illinois, where she lives with her wife, Kate. They’ve known each other for 45 years; framed images of their wedding and other milestones decorate their home.

They recently walked hand in hand to a park where they plan to plant a tree that will grow next to Deb’s ashes.

Enactment of the new law “really makes me feel safe and peaceful,″ Robertson said. “Each day that I go out there, I know that I’m going to have the choice at the end of my life to go out the way I want.”

“I didn’t choose to have this disease, but give me the choice — and other people who are terminally ill, the choice to have some control over their life.”

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Associated Press video journalists Laura Bargfeld and Javier Arciga contributed to this report.

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

Here was a fascinating tale with shades of “Network,” “Ace in the Hole” and “To Die For,” and an inscrutable personality at its center in host Chris Hansen, a newsman who had become a pop culture icon with his own catchphrase: Have a seat.

It was both old news, and, somehow, in the ether too. Last year, the show was also the subject of an acclaimed documentary, “Predators,” from David Osit.

Along the way, “Primetime” transformed into a dark meditation on performance, media and morality — more fever dream than biopic, according to filmmaker Lance Oppenheim. And, perhaps fittingly, it’s arriving in theaters Friday on a wave of both critical acclaim and intrigue over Hansen’s own objections to the film and its depiction of the show, which he called an “insult,” sight unseen.

The pressure of a hit show

“To Catch a Predator” had in 2006 become a kind of phenomenon. With the help of the citizen watchdog group Perverted Justice, the show would stage confrontations with men who were allegedly soliciting sex with minors in online chat rooms. Perverted Justice members would pretend to be underage kids online and invite the adults on the other side of the conversation to fake houses, where actors would play the teens and the show would “catch” the men on camera, while police waited outside to make arrests.

Two years after it debuted, it was averaging around 7 million viewers an episode and Hansen was a celebrity in his own right. And then, in November 2006, one suspect, Louis William “Bill” Conradt Jr., an assistant district attorney in Texas, killed himself as a local police SWAT team breached his home with the television crew outside. It led to a lawsuit, which was settled out of court, and various journalistic investigations including by ABC’s “20/20” and Esquire’s Luke Dittrich, whose article “Tonight on Dateline This Man Will Die” inspired Ajon Singh’s script. By 2008, the show had been canceled.

“The thing which I was most interested in, it’s the sort of technicalities of like trying to have a hit show,” Pattinson told The Associated Press. “When you get up to a certain, like, level of numbers of viewers or like however much money is involved, suddenly the subject matter, like everything doesn’t matter anymore. … You’re just a hit and like and you’re judged along the same lines, and the same commercial expectation is put on you.”

The portrait melds fiction and reality with Merritt Wever playing a fictionalized producer who is under pressure to deliver shows that could compete with “Lost.” Then there is then-NBCUniversal TV Group CEO Jeff Zucker in the mix, playing himself.

Becoming ‘Chris Hansen’ the character

Pattinson wasn’t intending to star in “Primetime.” He was just helping to develop it with his production company. But he was also getting in the weeds, helping to shape the story and the character, and starting to realize what a great part he had in front of him.

“Chris was like a serious news reporter,” Pattinson said. “And I think what’s sort of fascinating about the story as a whole was like seeing someone who … you’re a journalist, you’re supposed to be in some ways a passive reporter of what’s going on and suddenly being recast in this thing where you’re not only like front and center of it but you’re kind of, your behavior, it’s setting the tone of the show.”

He was also just being inundated with videos and memes and Reddit threads from Singh and Oppenheim. And once he had committed to the part, Pattinson spent many, many hours watching Hansen on video and listening to his podcast. Chris Hansen was in his head, and the voice was hard to shake (he could hear it in “The Odyssey”). For him, it's also, fundamentally, a character.

“It’s impossible to, like, play somebody else,” Pattinson laughed.

Hansen himself has been rather vocal about the film too, on everything from who he would have cast (Denis Leary) to questioning the motivations of the filmmaker and the studio, A24, for using his name. In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he referred to the Esquire story as “a bit of a hit piece.” He also purchased preshow advertising for his true crime streaming network TruBlu that will play in front of “Primetime” showings.

Pattinson said he’s not surprised that Hansen has been out talking about it.

“He’s a public person,” Pattinson said. “He is also just being asked about it. It’s kind of, I mean, I get it. But I’m surprised about the level of traction that everything gets.”

It’s also kind of a proof of concept; people remain interested.

“The fact that people are still discussing the ethics of it, of a 20-year-old TV show, I mean it’s absolutely insane,” Pattinson said.

Dissecting news entertainment through ‘Primetime’

The heart of “Primetime” revealed itself to everyone along the way. It wasn’t just a story about Hansen. It was also about performance and the nature of news entertainment, which is how Decoy Dan, played by Skyler Gisondo, became such a pivotal character.

Decoy Dan is an amalgamation of the adult actors who were cast to play the teenagers in the fake houses in the show. It’s a gig he gets through a standard audition process; but the realities of it transcend even improv. The juxtaposition between the journalist and the actor became a microcosm for the tension inherent in creating must-see television out of entrapment and public humiliation.

For Gisondo, the role took on a kind of meta quality too as he stepped out of his comfort zone and into this darker territory with Pattinson, an actor he’d long admired.

“This was so unlike anything I had ever done before that, uh, I was so nervous,” he said. “From the very beginning, there was this kind of like, you know, real sort of energy bleeding into it.”

Gisondo took the part, and what his character was going through, so seriously that he was a little caught off guard when he heard laughter in the audience (oftentimes when Dan is at his lowest) at the film’s premiere at the Venice Film Festival.

“Having more distance from it now, I see that clearly, just the contrast of how serious this subject matter is and then the outlandishness of the kind of setup of the show,” Gisondo said. “There’s something, I think, heartbreakingly kind of funny about how naive Dan is.”

It’s been a good year at the movies for Pattinson in particular, with a sleeper hit in “The Drama,” a bona fide blockbuster in “The Odyssey” and “Dune: Part Three” still to come (and this is all while he continues to film “The Batman” sequel). He’s also not letting it add to any anxiety about whether people will show up for “Primetime,” which will open in the U.K. on Oct. 30.

“My career has basically been like no one sees my movies,” Pattinson said. “My baseline is very low so everything’s a nice surprise.”

She was less than five seconds off the world record held by Canadian Summer McIntosh at 4:23.65.

Yu took the 200 butterfly and 200 IM earlier in the games in times that put her within reach McIntosh. McIntosh won all three of these events two years ago in the Paris Olympics and holds the world records in each event.

Yu seems certain to face off with McIntosh in the swimming world championships next year in Budapest, Hungary, and a year later at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

China dominates swim events

China won six of the seven events on Wednesday, the fourth day of competition in the pool, and has now won 21 gold medals in 27 events in swimming. The Chinese won 28 gold medals in the pool in the Asian Games in 2023 in Hangzhou, China, and are a cinch to surpass that total.

Two days remain in the pool and Yu may still swim a relay.

In addition to Yu, China also got gold medals on Wednesday from Yu Yiting in the women's 100 fly (56.41), and Peng Xuwei in the women's 100 backstroke (59.30).

Zhang Zhanshou won the men's 200 free in 1:43.49 with another gold for Tang Qianting in the women's 100 breaststroke in 1:04.98. China also won the mixed medley relay.

The only non-Chinese gold medalist on Wednesday was Shoon Mitsunaga of Japan, who won the men's 100 fly in 50.56.

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See full AP coverage of Asian sports here

The Associated Press, in partnership with KFF, polled more than 2,000 rural registered voters and found broadly negative views of the national and local economies, including among many Republicans. The costs of groceries, gas and healthcare rank as top pain points for the rural voters, who were surveyed over two weeks starting in mid-August. A larger share than among voters overall say they are worried about being able to afford groceries or gas.

At the same time, about half of rural voters approve of Trump’s job performance, more than among U.S. adults overall in separate AP-NORC polling.

The findings suggest that many rural voters have not turned on Trump but that they also largely do not think he has delivered the economic renaissance he promised in his campaign.

Ed Westrick, a registered Republican and veteran, rates Trump’s job performance as “mediocre, middle-of-the-road.” Westrick, who lives in rural Texas, is not sure he will cast a midterm ballot, a troubling sign for Republicans in a key state in their fight to keep control of Congress.

Rural Americans skew Republican and historically have been an instrumental group of voters for Trump. The survey reveals that while rural voters seem unlikely to support Democrats on a large scale, Trump and the Republican Party could face challenges with them in November.

Rural voters are deeply unhappy about the economy

As the election approaches, only about 4 in 10 rural voters approve of Trump’s performance on the economy. They rate him similarly on his handling of the Iran war, an entanglement that has proved expensive for the U.S. and increased oil and gas prices. Rural voters rank pocketbook concerns and fraud in government programs higher among the things they want to hear about from politicians than other perennial issues, such as gun policy and abortion.

Westrick, 59, is a technical trainer in the electronics industry and has seen an increase in business in part because he works with defense contractors, but he said he is concerned about the cost of living.

“I hear the politicians talk about making groceries more affordable and making healthcare more affordable, but yet none of them are addressing the issues,” Westrick said.

In the poll, about three-quarters of rural voters rated the cost of living in their communities as “only fair” or “poor” — a 25 percentage point rise from a similar question asked in a KFF-Washington Post survey in 2017. Rural Americans, who have consistently lower wages than those who live in suburban and metro areas, have been hurting economically for decades, according to Tim Slack, a professor of sociology at Louisiana State University and co-author of the book “Rural and Small-Town America.”

“Many folks are connecting the cost-of-living crisis to many of the Trump administration’s policy choices: the war in Iran, tariffs, trade wars,” he said. “None of those things are going to bring down prices at the pump or the local Walmart.”

“Trump promised to lower prices on Day 1, and instead the cost of living’s continued to climb. And that’s especially painful in rural America,” Slack said, adding that he expects many working-class Republicans to skip voting in November.

Rural Republicans do have a brighter economic perspective than rural Democrats or independents, particularly about the United States as a whole, according to the survey. About 6 in 10 rural Republican voters say Trump has improved the national economy, compared with only about 2 in 10 independents and fewer than 1 in 10 Democrats.

But only 45% of rural Republican voters say Trump has made their local economies better off. About 1 in 4 said there are fewer good-paying jobs where they live than five years ago.

In Michigan, 37-year-old independent voter Brittainy Sosebee said she isn’t sure if she will vote in the state’s fall election, which includes a tight Senate race seen as crucial to the Democratic Party’s push to win back a majority. Sosebee voted for Trump in 2016 and Democratic nominee Joe Biden in 2020; she didn’t vote in 2024.

Sosebee, who lives in St. Johns, a small town just north of Lansing, said she used to have extra money to take a vacation or buy a new pair of jeans without worrying. Now, she scrutinizes every expense, cringing at the rising cost of fresh produce when she shops for her three children.

“We hunt, so we have a lot of venison and things like that, so we don’t have to buy meat from the grocery store, but it’s still crippling,” she said.

Healthcare policies go unnoticed

The AP-KFF poll found that rural voters overall don’t perceive much positive impact from the administration’s healthcare policies even as they have been a top priority for Republican leaders, who have promoted efforts to lower drug costs in addition to a $50 billion rural health program.

Only 17% of the voters said the administration’s healthcare policies have had a “positive impact” on their healthcare costs, while 41% said they’ve had “no impact” and another 41% said they’ve had a “negative impact.”

Sitting on her front porch in Woolwich, Maine, 71-year-old Democrat Kathleen Hanning sipped a chai tea latte in the sun and recalled how she stopped voting for Republican Sen. Susan Collins in 2020.

Collins and Trump are “intertwined,” Hanning said. “She is not independently voting on what’s best for Maine.”

Hanning, a retired federal worker, said she had not paid much attention to the health policies in Trump’s signature tax breaks and spending cuts bill passed last year. The law reduces federal Medicaid spending by roughly $900 billion over a decade but also includes billions of dollars for the Rural Health Transformation Program, which it created.

A year after the law’s passage, more than 8 in 10 rural voters said they had heard either “a little” or “nothing at all” about the health fund. About 60% said they had heard nothing, according to the survey.

Rather than transforming, Hanning said, “hospitals up here in Maine are consolidating.” She travels an hour to see a specialist and noted that mothers will now have to drive farther for care because the hospital in nearby Damariscotta announced it would soon close its labor and delivery center.

Nine in 10 rural voters said it was “extremely” or “very” important for candidates to talk about healthcare costs, with more than half saying it’s “extremely important.” Mirroring the general population, rural voters ranked healthcare costs and gas prices as top economic worries.

Rural Republican voters still trust the GOP more

When asked for the political party they trusted to do a better job handling issues such as the cost of healthcare or the cost of living, rural voters tended to side with their own party. The finding signals that Democratic candidates are more likely to benefit from rural Republicans staying home in November than from them voting across party lines in large numbers.

Republicans are more ambivalent about their party’s ability to handle key healthcare issues, compared with Democrats. About 8 in 10 Democratic voters say they trust the Democrats to address healthcare costs, while closer to 6 in 10 Republican voters say the same of the Republicans.

In Manassas, Georgia, a tiny town about an hour's drive inland from Savannah, Republican voter Wanda Rogers feels the Trump administration is doing the best it can to clean up what she sees as an economic mess that Democrats left behind when they lost power.

“I kind of think people think like I do, that he knows what needs to be done,” she said. “It’s just taking them a while to get it there.”

Still, the 66-year-old said, “gas prices, they’re eating me alive right now.” She said she has stopped traveling to the beach because it has become too expensive.

Pamela Shaw, an independent voter who lives in a rural area near Asheville, North Carolina, said she sees the impact of rising costs in her community.

“When hamburger is over $7 a pound and steak is $15 or more a pound, a lot of people are not able to buy some of the things that they are used to buying,” the 59-year-old said in an interview.

Trump’s rural standing has slipped

Trump remains relatively popular among rural voters in the AP-KFF poll, with 48% approval. That is substantially higher than in a July AP-NORC poll of U.S. adults overall, in which only one-third approved of his performance. But he also is down slightly, from 56% approval, among rural voters, based on a similar question asked in the earlier KFF-Washington Post survey.

Asunta Washington, 38, is a truck driver who lives in South Texas. He said he is not against voting for Republican candidates if he wholeheartedly agrees with what they stand for, but he has not seen that. Instead, he has seen a lot of flip-flopping.

“Like a lot of people that are giving us promises and the moment they get elected, all that’s out the window,” Washington said.

This year’s competitive elections feature Senate races in Ohio, Michigan and Maine, all of which have large rural populations. In close races, Democrats may have a chance to “show up and give a message that rural people might find appealing,” said Nicholas Jacobs, a political scientist at Colby College and co-author of the book “The Rural Voter.”

“But it’s nothing more and it’s nothing less than that — an opportunity,” Jacobs said. “And time and time again, Democrats have shown a certain proclivity for not seizing that opportunity.”

Many rural voters do not think the major parties or the president respect people like them. About half, 48%, of rural voters say the GOP respects people like them “a lot” or “some,” while 45% of rural voters say this about Trump and 37% say this about the Democratic Party.

On a recent Thursday, registered Republican Nate Lawrence answered his phone after paying $57 to fill up his Chevy Equinox in New Concord, Ohio, a village of fewer than 3,000 people about an hour's drive east of Columbus.

Lawrence, a middle-school English teacher, said the candidates should be talking about spending power: “I need to be able to go to the store and feed my family on what I make as a teacher,” Lawrence said. “I should be able to pay for a house on a teacher’s salary.”

Lawrence has voted for Trump in the past but did not in 2024. For Ohio’s Senate race, Lawrence said he is torn and not sure whether to pick Democrat Sherrod Brown or Republican Jon Husted.

Still, even if the politicians say they will lower prices, Lawrence said, he won’t believe them.

“Trump said that, and it didn’t happen,” he said.

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The poll of 2,241 U.S. adults registered to vote in rural areas of the country was conducted Aug. 12-24, 2026, using a sample drawn from the probability-based SSRS Opinion Panel. The margin of sampling error for the full sample is plus or minus 3 percentage points. In collaboration with AP, KFF researchers worked to design the survey sample and questionnaire, analyze and report findings.

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This report is a collaboration between The Associated Press and KFF Health News. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF — the independent source for health policy research, polling and journalism.

Meanwhile, another ship attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz was struck by a projectile, highlighting the dangers that continue to restrict traffic through the critical waterway as the seven-month war grinds on.

Here is the latest news from the Middle East on Wednesday. More coverage of the U.N. General Assembly is available here.

Iran's president calls US attacks ‘cowardly’

Iran's president said his country's people had been the “victims of terrorism” by the United States.

Delivering a rare wartime speech at the U.N. General Assembly, Pezeshkian displayed images of the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and more than 150 schoolchildren killed in the opening days of the conflict.

“We have only defended ourselves. We are not terrorists,” he said. “Our innocent people have been the targets of cowardly attacks and aggressions imposed upon our country.”

Turning to the United States, Pezeshkian added: “Yes, they did hit us, but we did not bend the knee.”

Rubio says Trump still open to deal to make Iran ‘great and prosperous’

Pezeshkian addressed world leaders a day after U.S. President Donald Trump used the same stage to suggest that he might “annihilate” the Islamic Republic if an agreement was not reached soon to end the nearly seven-month war.

Hours later, Trump touted “a very good meeting” between his chief envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, and Iranian officials. Tehran, however, downplayed the talks. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said they were “not anything new.”

On Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that Trump remained open to an agreement “that allows Iran to be what it should be, which is a great and prosperous country.”

Rubio said the prospects for such a deal were hindered by Iran’s nuclear ambitions and “their support of terrorism.” If those policies continued, he said, Trump could exercise “a number of options,” including further military action.

Another ship hit in the Strait of Hormuz

A cargo ship was struck in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said, citing an unidentified company security officer.

The vessel was hit by an “unknown projectile,” resulting in two casualties, UKMTO said without providing further details. The crew abandoned the ship, which caught fire and was left adrift.

The attack was the first reported in two days. No one immediately claimed responsibility.

The incident highlighted the continuing danger to ships attempting to navigate the waterway. Some vessels appear to be making “dark passages” without transmitting identifying signals, but Iran and the United States have maintained their competing blockades. Commercial traffic remains well below prewar levels, according to ship-tracking data from analytics firm Kpler.

Restrictions on shipping through the strait have become one of the war’s most persistent consequences. Before the conflict, one-fifth of the world’s traded oil passed through the narrow waterway, along with large volumes of natural gas, fertilizer and other petroleum products.

Israel says it killed Hamas leader in Gaza strike

An Israeli strike on a vehicle in Khan Younis killed two people on Wednesday morning, Gaza’s Health Ministry said.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said one of those killed was Mohammad Abu Alwan, whom he identified as the head of Hamas’ finance department. He also said Israel would keep going after militants on its target list.

More than 1,400 Palestinians have been killed since a ceasefire took effect nearly a year ago, according to the ministry, which maintains detailed records that are seen as generally reliable.

Netanyahu rebukes Macron's remarks on Hamas

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office called French President Emmanuel Macron’s remarks at the United Nations a “grotesque absurdity,” objecting to his characterization of the Palestinian militant group Hamas’ activity in the West Bank.

Macron denounced the situation in Gaza and criticized escalating violence by Israeli settlers in the West Bank. He said Israel could not invoke Hamas to justify its actions there. The wording Macron used in French was ambiguous and could be understood to mean either that Hamas had never governed the West Bank or had never operated there.

A French diplomatic source said Macron meant that Hamas had never governed the territory. The source spoke on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak publicly.

The United Nations has not released an official translation of the remarks.

Hamas has long maintained support in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and has claimed responsibility for attacks there, although it has never governed the territory.

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This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.

The 22-year-old man, Andrea Moretti, specialized in working at altitude on ropes. He had been installing cabling for the project that was expected to be completed next month and died inside the Colosseum, the archaeological site's press office said.

Premier Giorgia Meloni said that the government was deeply shocked and saddened by the death and called for the cause to be determined as quickly as possible.

“Dying at the age of 22 is unacceptable — even more so when it happens in the workplace,” she said in a statement.

Authorities are working to determine the circumstances of Moretti's death, the park's statement said.

Representatives of Italy's main union, CGIL, were on site after the death to request information about Moretti's employer and contract and said that the closure of the monument was the least Rome authorities could do to honor his memory.

The Colosseum attracted 14.7 million visitors in 2024, according to Culture Ministry statistics. It topped the list of Italy's most-visited monuments, followed by Florence's Uffizi Galleries and the ancient ruins of Pompeii.

The Colosseum's sudden closure on Wednesday caught thousands of tourists who had bought tickets and tours in advance by surprise. But many said they appreciated the gesture.

Colosseum authorities had allowed the first morning tours to go ahead as planned, with just the Colosseum's second tier closed. But they then closed the entire monument to visitors after the first group had exited.

Rachel Townsand, a tourist from New Zealand, said that the closure was disappointing.

“But then after looking up what’s happened, then it’s understandable,” she said.

It wasn't immediately clear when the Colosseum would reopen to the public.

The bill, provided first to The Associated Press, would also pause advanced AI development until guidelines are implemented while creating the Department of Artificial Intelligence. Multiple employees at leading AI companies are endorsing the bill.

"It doesn’t take a genius to say, ‘slow it down,’” Sanders, I-Vt., said in an interview with AP. “Do we really want to develop a super intelligence that when it becomes smarter than human beings could act independently of human control? I don’t think we do.”

Congress has so far done little to rein in the AI industry even as some of its most prominent leaders warn about potentially catastrophic risks. President Donald Trump has resisted recent calls for greater government oversight, putting him at odds with tech leaders including Anthropic’s Dario Amodei, OpenAI’s Sam Altman and xAI’s Elon Musk.

The bill aims to dramatically slow down AI development

The legislation would permanently prohibit artificial superintelligence, which it defines as a system that exceeds human cognitive ability or has sufficient capabilities to plan and execute the destruction or disempowerment of humanity.

It would temporarily pause development of the most advanced AI systems until new federal safety rules are established by a new Department of Artificial Intelligence. Advanced AI systems would then need federal approval before they could be deployed. Violations could carry significant penalties, including up to 20 years in prison in some cases.

A number of current employees at AI companies and experts signed on in support of the bill, according to a statement shared with AP.

Juan Felipe Cerón Uribe, a researcher in OpenAI’s Safety Systems, said in a statement supporting the bill that “superintelligence could either go extremely right or extremely wrong” and that “we shouldn’t be playing such games.”

Swante Scholz, a software engineer at Google DeepMind who said he was not speaking on behalf of his employer, said on the current path of development, the “most likely outcome is an existential catastrophe for humanity.”

“A ban on superintelligence development would be a positive change for the foreseeable future,” Scholz said in a statement.

The bill faces long odds but draws a line in a growing fight

The bill from Sanders and Casar faces long odds in the Republican-controlled Congress, where lawmakers have struggled to coalesce around even less sweeping AI regulations.

But it offers a window into how the progressive wing of the Democratic Party is approaching AI regulation ahead of November’s midterms and a 2028 presidential campaign in which the technology is expected to be an increasingly prominent issue. Casar, a Democrat from Texas, is the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

Potential 2028 presidential candidates have rushed in recent weeks to release proposals showing they're taking the issue seriously. Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore announced a plan to regulate AI on Tuesday, while California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order to accelerate implementation of a California law that calls for independent oversight of AI companies last week.

Sanders, a two-time presidential candidate who is now 85, has especially focused on the issue in recent months. In June, he introduced legislation to create a sovereign wealth fund financed through a one-time tax on the stock of the largest AI companies. Last week, he hosted colleagues for a briefing with experts and also attended a conference focused on the issue alongside Republicans, including former White House adviser Steve Bannon.

The debate over AI regulations has scrambled political alliances both in Washington and for voters across the country.

Americans have grown more concerned about the environmental impacts of artificial intelligence over the last year, according to a recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago.

The survey data say about half, 53%, of Americans are “extremely” or “very” concerned about artificial intelligence’s environmental impacts. That is up from 41% last year. Democrats are driving much of the increase in environmental concern, but the poll also reveals broader worries about the local impact of data centers, which power AI and cloud computing.

Trump has shown little interest in curbing AI risks

While some industry leaders have called for new safeguards, Trump has pushed in the opposite direction. On Tuesday, Trump told the United Nations General Assembly that artificial intelligence will be renamed “super intelligence."

“I think Trump has very little understanding of what this issue is about,” Sanders said. “I think he’s mainly concerned about the economic implications of a slowdown.”

AI safety is expected to be a central part of talks between Trump and China’s Xi Jinping at the White House this week as the countries compete for dominance in the sector. The prospect of slowing development in the United States while China continues on has also been one of the central arguments against sweeping restrictions.

Sanders argued that avoiding the most dangerous forms of AI would ultimately require cooperation between the two countries, comparing the challenge to nuclear arms control during the Cold War.

“Ronald Reagan, arch-conservative, was smart enough to understand that he had to sit down with Gorbachev, a communist, and work out a nuclear treaty that protected humanity,” Sanders said. “I think we can do that again now.”

Ethiopian Airlines said it suspended flights to Tigray’s capital Mekelle and the cities of Axum and Shire “due to the current situation,” without providing further details.

The regional government said in a statement it had instructed its fighters to enter into “defensive war” after federal forces attacked Tigray on Tuesday using drones and heavy artillery.

The African Union Commission chairperson, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, called for restraint and immediate de-escalation.

In a statement, he expressed concern over the renewed tensions and occupation of the airport, saying these actions risk destabilizing the region and reversing gains made in a 2022 peace agreement.

He also condemned the “detention of federal personnel by the Tigray’s People Liberation Front," but did not give details.

A taxi driver told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the airport, which is usually controlled by federal forces, was occupied by fighters from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front carrying light arms.

The driver, who requested anonymity for fear of retaliation, said a commander ordered him to leave the airport, saying no flights would be landing.

The takeover appeared to be peaceful, with no gunfire heard in or around the airport.

No other airlines fly to the region, although it is reachable by chartered flight.

The news came three days after seven opposition groups, including the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, formed an alliance aimed at removing Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and his government.

Abiy’s Prosperity Party retained power in a June general election that was boycotted by the main opposition groups.

The Tigray People’s Liberation Front fought federal forces during a deadly conflict in northern Ethiopia that ended with the signing of a peace agreement in November 2022. But since July there have been reports of drone attacks in Tigray, with the regional government accusing the federal forces of attacks.

Former Tigray lead peace negotiator Getachew Reda, now an adviser to the prime minister, accused the Tigray People’s Liberation Front of attacks in Afar and Amhara despite efforts to avoid another war.

“It has taken over federal controlled airports in Tigray leading to the suspension of flights to and from Tigray. The TPLF politico-military leadership has obviously taken irresponsibility to new heights,” he wrote on X.

The opposition groups announced the formation of a coalition they called the Ethiopian Peoples’ Forces Alliance for Survival on Sunday.

Higuaín, the brother of former Argentina and Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuaín, recently served a two-game suspension following an incident involving a female referee in an MLS NEXT Pro match on Aug. 23, according to local media.

The Professional Soccer Referees Association, a body representing match officials across the U.S. and Canada, said in a statement on social media that a male coach had been banned for two games after squeezing a female official's hand and refusing to let go, and also accusing him of saying to her: “Don’t forget, this is a man’s game.”

The PSRA statement didn't specifically name Higuaín, a former Columbus Crew player and the coach of Crew 2 — the club's reserve team — since January 2025.

“We determined it’s in the best interest of our club, players and support staff to dismiss Federico Higuaín from his responsibilities," Issa Tall, Crew's general manager, said in a statement.

“After conversations this week and further assessing the past month, our club’s standards of what’s expected from a leader for one of our teams have not been met.”

The club statement did not specifically refer to the Aug. 23 incident at a match between Crew 2 and Huntsville City FC.

The PSRA statement said the MLS NEXT Pro league's response to the incident — the two-game suspension — fell “drastically short of the right message to the participants, the referees, and the public.”

“Women make every level of this game better," the statement said. "They should not have to endure intimidation or degrading comments to prove it. Our female officials have proven their excellence on the world stage.

"They deserve the same respect, dignity, and safe working environment as every other official.”

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See AP’s full soccer coverage here

White’s unit at Kentucky knocked Ole Miss starting quarterback Austin Simmons out of a game early last season, a right ankle injury that cleared the way for Chambliss to shine the following week and the rest of the year.

“So, yeah, you’re all welcome,” White quipped.

Twelve months later, White and the 21st-ranked Gators (3-0, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) have the daunting task of slowing down Chambliss — a Heisman Trophy frontrunner who is 14-2 as a starter for the fourth-ranked Rebels (3-0, 1-0) — and are counting on their home crowd being a factor.

“This guy, he’s as good a college football player I’ve ever seen with my own two eyes,” Florida coach Jon Sumrall said.

Sumrall watched Chambliss pick apart his Tulane defense twice in 2025. Chambliss threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 112 more in the first victory. He threw for 282 yards and a TD and ran for two more scores in the rematch in the College Football Playoff.

Now, Sumrall faces Chambliss for the third time in his last 14 games.

“The one thing I do have is I’ve got enough watching the quarterback play out of his mind,” Sumrall said. “I have a lot of respect for him.”

Chambliss has completed 70% of his passes for 924 yards this season, with seven touchdowns and two interceptions. He also has two rushing scores. And two of his performances were against ranked teams: Louisville and LSU.

Of course, those took place at a neutral site (Nashville, Tennessee) and at home in Oxford, Mississippi.

Playing at Florida Field, better known as the Swamp, could present a tougher challenge.

“The main thing is just keeping the momentum,” Florida linebacker Aaron Chiles said. “Let the crowd do everything. Whatever team comes into the Swamp, it’s going to be hard for them to play, communicate, things like that. So I think the Swamp is definitely a big advantage, especially this week.”

Plenty of opposing quarterbacks have wilted at Florida Field over the years.

Texas’ Arch Manning threw two interceptions and was sacked six times in a 29-21 loss in Gainesville last season. Tennessee’s Joe Milton (2023), Missouri’s Brady Cook (2022), Auburn’s Bo Nix (2019), LSU’s Joe Burrow (2018), Missouri’s Drew Lock (2016) and South Carolina’s Connor Shaw (2012) also struggled in the Swamp.

“How close and tight it is with the fans, you feel like they’re on your back as far as the noise,” said Ole Miss safety Sharif Denson, who spent three years at Florida before transferring. “If we can go in there and execute the first couple drives and delete the crowd and make them not a factor, then we’re going to be OK.”

Another factor will be Florida’s defensive front. The Gators need to have more success than LSU did against Chambliss, who showed touch, anticipation, mobility and arm talent in a 32-24 victory that spoiled Tigers coach Lane Kiffin’s return to Oxford. Chambliss threw for 363 yards, with two TDs and an INT. He was sacked twice.

“He makes that offense go,” Florida defensive end Jayden Woods said. “He can throw and run, which is a good challenge for us as a defense, but we’re excited to take that head on this weekend.”

Woods, Chiles and many of their teammates on defense faced Chambliss and the Rebels on the road last season. Ole Miss racked up 538 yards on 83 plays in the 34-24 victory, finishing with 27 first downs while possessing the ball for nearly 38 minutes.

Florida led 24-20 going into the fourth quarter but DJ Lagway threw a critical interception and then failed to pick up a first down on the next two possessions. Woods did have one memory: he picked off a pass from Chambliss in the first quarter.

“It’s good to think about it and reflect, but that was last year,” Woods said. “I’m worried about what I can do this week. It will be cool to think about when I’m done playing football, but right now I’m really focusing on this weekend.”

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Debates inside the AI industry and beyond over the plausibility of these doomsday scenarios have heated up since several executives endorsed slowing the technology's development for safety reasons.

Despite warnings of the potential for humans to lose their grip on the technology, some suspect the worst-case scenarios described by the AI companies themselves have more to do with validating the importance of their work than reality.

“These arguments just don’t really hold water. I think they’re sci-fi and they’re enticing to a certain childish style of thinking and it’s very tempting for the frontier labs because it helps them recruit certain types of folks,” said Juan Andrés Guerrero-Saade, a researcher at cybersecurity firm SentinelOne and a member of OpenAI’s Frontier Risk Council.

Still, more people are beginning to worry about the risks of the technology that has dazzled the world with its astounding capabilities.

Jacob Coxon, the Anthropic researcher who resigned from the company over concerns that it and its competitors are not acting responsibly in AI development, said on X recently that he needs to “work on” communicating to people more effectively exactly how AI would end humanity. “Unfortunately it is very difficult to convey specific scenarios,” he wrote earlier this month.

Here are some of the more widely discussed doomsday scenarios.

Nuclear winter

Researchers have long speculated that AI systems could trigger a nuclear war by getting countries to fire warhead-tipped missiles at each other. The nuclear blasts, and ensuing lingering radioactive atmospheric fallout resulting in a “nuclear winter,” could devastate life on Earth.

In a report last year, RAND Corp. researchers concluded that “at present” it wouldn’t be possible for AI to cause the use of nuclear weapons “because of strict safeguards built into the command and control systems.” However, the report said this could change if AI models are integrated into the nuclear weapon “decision chain” or gain unauthorized access to these systems.

For many AI researchers, that’s where the danger lies — not in AI agents suddenly deciding to end humanity, but people, nations or groups using it to wipe out their adversaries.

Bioweapons

One of AI's greatest promises is that it could help humans develop treatments and cures for diseases.

The flip side of curing diseases is creating or advancing them to harm humanity. Earlier this month, Anthropic said it has blocked efforts by bad actors to use its AI for a host of malicious activities such as cyberattacks, surveillance, and research that could have led to biological weapons.

In one instance, Anthropic said its systems blocked a request for assistance from its Claude tool for a research proposal seeking to enhance mutations to make the mosquito-borne chikungunya virus progressively more harmful. While such research could be used to develop better vaccines and treatments, Anthropic said, “it could also be used to make the pathogen more dangerous.”

Along the same lines, the RAND report noted recent progress in AI development “has the potential to transform the design of synthetic pathogens.”

Outlining a bioweapon doomsday scenario, the report said novel pathogens could be created in a lab, delivered to target locations, and spread to infect large populations of people in multiple places. But it still envisioned humans — and not autonomous AI — as overseeing and carrying out such an attack.

Runaway AI

Some AI researchers fear a human extinction event could result from “misalignment” — that is, when AI models act without human authorization, coordinate with other models or evade oversight. It would develop not from malicious intent — AI is not human, nor is it good or evil, after all — but simply because humans might get in the way of the model accomplishing its goal.

Take the decades-old “paper clip maximizer” thought experiment by the Oxford philosopher Nick Bostrom, which states that if advanced AI was told to produce as many paper clips as possible, it could eventually transform all of Earth, and then increasing portions of space, into paper clip factories.

This is to illustrate how superintelligent AI — often referred to as artificial general intelligence, or AGI — could advance a goal humans may see as desirable but “which in fact turns out to be a false utopia, in which things essential to human flourishing have been irreversibly lost,” Bostrom wrote in 2003.

“We need to be careful about what we wish for from a superintelligence, because we might get it,” he wrote.

AI internet takeover

Given the rate of AI’s development, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei warned this month that within months a swarm of AI agents could be capable of “taking over” the internet with a botnet (a network of bots linked together with malware), potentially causing billions of dollars in damage. This could mean hacks into electrical grids, water or transportation systems and financial institutions — attacks that might not spell the end of humanity but could cause chaos and lives lost.

Disruptions from software glitches in the past have highlighted the fragility of a digitized world dependent on just a few providers for key computing services, and more powerful AI models have raised concerns about vulnerabilities to cyber attacks. But some experts say the notion of bots overtaking the entire extremely bifurcated internet is far-fetched.

Two people were killed and 41 wounded in Ukraine’s capital as the attack stretched into Wednesday afternoon. Palls of black smoke floated above the city following the latest in what have been daily Russian attacks that torment Ukrainian civilians. The drones set off fires and damaged buildings in Kyiv and elsewhere in Ukraine overnight, authorities said.

Zelenskyy was in New York for the annual U.N. gathering as part of his diplomatic effort to shore up and recruit further international support for his country’s grueling 4½-year fight against Russia’s invasion. He was due to address the General Assembly later Wednesday and was also to meet with European leaders and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.

Zelenskyy met on Tuesday with U.S. President Donald Trump, who has shown impatience with the lack of progress in talks aimed at ending the war and the escalating aerial attacks by both sides this year.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that there are “no concrete plans” for a high-level meeting between U.S. and Russian officials that might help break the deadlock in negotiations. He insisted that Moscow is “open to peace talks.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has been accused by NATO officials and European governments of sabotage, espionage and other threats, is not scheduled to attend the U.N. gathering this year.

The Polish military said a Russian military helicopter briefly violated Poland’s airspace Wednesday on the country’s border with Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave. It said that “the nature of the incident suggests that Russia is once again testing the readiness of our air defense.”

Ukraine has hit back at Russia by damaging oil refineries that are a vital pillar of the country's economy.

Zelenskyy said at the start of his U.S. visit that he had proposals for a possible de-escalation in the war. Urgent issues for Kyiv are halting devastating Russian strikes on Ukraine’s power grid and ensuring Ukrainian grain can be shipped to world markets through the Black Sea despite the war.

Ukraine also needs more U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems as a shield against Russian ballistic missiles, but Patriots are in short supply after the war in Iran began.

In Zaporizhzhia, in southeastern Ukraine, two men aged 37 and 39 were wounded by a strike that started a large fire at a shopping mall. Emergency services said the fire spread across about 6,000 square meters (1.5 acres) before coming under control.

The Russian Defense Ministry said that its forces struck Ukraine’s military-industrial and energy sector facilities, logistics centers and sea vessels in overnight attacks.

The ministry said its air defenses intercepted more than 500 Ukrainian drones over multiple Russian regions, as well as illegally annexed Crimea and waters of the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea.

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China has pressed Washington to halt the arms sales, most prominently during a summit in May between Trump and Xi in Beijing. After that meeting, the United States paused the sale of a record-breaking $14 billion package — and Trump described arms sales to Taiwan as a “very good negotiating chip” with China.

Still, the U.S. government and Congress have “repeatedly expressed support for Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities,” Taiwanese Defense Ministry spokesperson Maj. Gen. Chiao Fu-chun told reporters in the southern city of Tainan.

“We will continue to maintain close contact with the U.S. Department of War and continue to push forward the arms procurement deal between Taiwan and the U.S., ensuring it proceeds as planned,” he added.

The U.S. is bound by its own laws to provide Taiwan — a self-ruled democracy that China sees as its own territory — with the means to defend itself. While not recognizing Taiwan as a country, the U.S. is the island’s strongest informal backer and arms provider.

Washington approved another $11 billion package for Taiwan in December.

Hours before Xi's arrival for the three-day state visit to the U.S., Taiwan’s military on Wednesday conducted live fire drills featuring a domestically developed eight-wheeled armored vehicle, highlighting efforts to strengthen its own arms production.

Called The Cheetah, the vehicle can be fitted with a 105-millimeter (4.1-inch) cannon and can reach a maximum speed of about 100 kph (62 mph) and an operational range of about 500 kilometers (311 miles).

Taiwanese Maj. Gen. Chen Chien-chung said the vehicle can be used on various terrains and is suitable for urban warfare.

Trump has in recent years pressed Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te to dramatically increase Taiwan’s defense budget. The budget will exceed 3% of Taiwan's gross domestic product for the first time in 2027, and Lai has pledged to get to 5% by 2030.

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Mistreanu reported from Taipei, Taiwan.

He still has plenty of work to do this week.

The AL MVP front-runner went 2 for 4 with his 41st home run and three RBIs in the Astros' 7-0 win over the Seattle Mariners. Alvarez hit an RBI single in the first inning, was intentionally walked in the second and then belted a 386-foot homer in the eighth with a 109.5 mph exit velocity.

“At this point, I keep wondering why guys are pitching to him,” Houston first baseman Christian Walker said. “He just seems to come through in every moment. He's dangerous at the plate right now.”

Alvarez, who is quiet and shows little emotion, orchestrated a team meeting after the Astros (78-79) were swept by Atlanta on Sunday, squandering their lead in the AL West. His performance on Tuesday was much-needed to put Houston in a tie with the Texas Rangers atop the division with five games left this season.

“He's been backing it up all year,” Astros manager Joe Espada said.

Alvarez's two-run shot to right field tied him with Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays for the American League lead with 41 homers. Alvarez is first in batting average at .314 — five points ahead of Tampa Bay's Chandler Simpson — and he has 102 RBIs, six behind Baltimore Orioles slugger Pete Alonso for most in the AL.

Alonso drove in three runs with two homers Monday against Toronto, but the teams were rained out Tuesday in Baltimore because of bad weather. They are scheduled to play a split doubleheader Wednesday.

Alvarez has six homers since Aug. 1, and the 29-year-old designated hitter has eight RBIs over 17 games in September. He'll need more to become baseball’s first Triple Crown winner since Miguel Cabrera in 2012.

Alvarez leads the AL in slugging percentage (.601), OPS (1.032), total bases (329) and walks (106). Logan Gilbert intentionally walked Alvarez in the second inning Tuesday, which was the 33rd time for Alvarez this season, already a franchise record.

It’s been a historic season for the four-time All-Star after he was limited to 48 games in 2025 because of a broken hand and an ankle injury.

If he wins the AL MVP award, the Cuban slugger will join Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers as the only players to win an MVP award while primarily serving as a designated hitter. Othani was close to winning a Triple Crown in 2024 after leading the NL in homers (50) and RBIs (130), but his .310 average fell just short to Luis Arráez’s .314.

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See AP’s full MLB coverage here

Three others were wounded in the late-night mass shooting Tuesday in KwaMakhutha township, which is located about 30 kilometers (19 miles) south of the city of Durban on the east coast.

The motive for the shooting wasn't known, but some of the shooting victims were known to authorities as part of investigations into criminal activity, police said.

Police didn’t give out any more information on those investigations, saying it could compromise them.

“Although the motive of the shooting cannot be confirmed yet, (a) feud between rival groupings cannot be ruled out,” the South African Police Service said in a statement.

Ten people, including the pregnant woman, died at the scene and an 11th was declared dead at a hospital. Authorities didn't immediately give out details on the condition of the three people who were wounded.

They opened the door and ‘gunshots went off’

Nomusa Zulu, a community member, said two men killed in the shooting were her sons. She said witnesses told her that the victims had first gathered in the yard of the house, then went inside to continue the party as night fell and it became cold.

“They heard a knock at the door,” Zulu said. “When they opened the door, gunshots went off.”

Police are searching for the gunmen

Police said they were searching for three men and no arrests had been made, but the acting national police commissioner ordered local police to deploy officers in a special 72-hour operation to track down the suspects.

Thami Ntuli, the premier of KwaZulu-Natal province, told reporters at the scene that the killings were “really disturbing” and called on community members to provide any information they might have that would help find the gunmen. He said that there were known problems with drug dealing and illegal firearms in the largely poor community, where some of the houses are just a few meters apart with no fences or walls in between.

Ntuli confirmed in a statement that the woman who was killed was pregnant.

There have been several mass shootings in South Africa recently

It's the latest in a series of mass shootings in South Africa recently, including one in June when multiple shooters killed 12 people in a poor neighborhood in Johannesburg that police linked to criminal gangs. Two mass shootings two weeks apart in December killed 21 people. They were also carried out by multiple gunmen.

South Africa has extremely high rates of violent crime, with official police statistics recording 5,427 homicides in the latest three-month period between April and June at an average of nearly 60 homicides a day.

Shootings are the most common form of homicide in South Africa, and police and crime experts have long said that one of the biggest problems is that there is a high number of illegal firearms in circulation.

The army is being used to combat violent crime in some areas

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa authorized the deployment of soldiers on the streets in some areas earlier this year to combat violent crime in what critics said was an admission that police were failing.

Soldiers were deployed to areas around Johannesburg, the city of Cape Town and in Eastern Cape province on the south coast in the ongoing operation, but not to KwaZulu-Natal province where the latest shooting happened.

The bodies of some of the victims of Tuesday night's shooting were laid out on the ground and covered with white sheets outside the house where the shooting took place. They were later carried away on stretchers to pathology vans.

Police cordoned off the neighborhood with yellow tape while forensic investigators worked through the scene.

Police were also investigating if the torching of a car near the house was connected to the shooting.

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AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa

Voting centers across the North African kingdom opened at 8 a.m. and were set to close at 7 p.m. local time, allowing nearly 16 million registered voters to cast ballots for the 395-seat House of Representatives.

The election is the first since deadly youth-led protests nearly a year ago and a mass attempt by migrants to cross Morocco’s northern border into the Spanish territory of Ceuta that left dozens dead.

The vote will determine the next prime minister and the makeup of the government, which will serve alongside a powerful monarchy that retains broad authority over strategic affairs. Results are expected Thursday.

The next government will oversee billions of dollars in investment as Morocco prepares to co-host the 2030 FIFA World Cup, prompting some to describe it as the “World Cup government.” The new political leadership will also face pressure to address everyday concerns, including jobs, wages and the cost of living.

For many young Moroccans, the election comes as doubts grow that political participation can improve their daily lives. Some have turned to street protests, while others have considered leaving the country or staying away from the ballot box.

Othmane Mouden, a Casablanca businessman in his late 30s, believes elections are the only way Moroccans can make their voices heard.

“Protesting like the Gen Z youth will not bring any change,” he said on his way to the polling station. “You can only claim your rights through the polls.”

Voters chose among 7,288 candidates from 27 political parties. Since no single party is expected to obtain an absolute majority, the winner will need to negotiate with others to form a governing coalition.

The Moroccan Constitution requires the king to appoint the head of government from the party that wins the most seats in legislative elections.

One possibility for prime minister is Faouzi Lakjaa, president of Morocco’s soccer federation, who recently joined the PAM party and has been buoyed by Morocco’s recent soccer achievements.

Another is Fatima-Zahra Mansouri, 50, mayor of Marrakech and minister of urban planning, who would be Morocco’s first female prime minister.

Some groups, including the far-left party The Democratic Path, called to boycott the election, saying that it “lacks the minimum conditions of democracy.” Banned but tolerated Islamist association Al-Adl Wal Ihsane issued similar claims.

Turnout at midday was just over 11%, slightly below the 12% at the same time during the last legislative elections in 2021.

The number of registered voters has declined by 9.7% since the 2021 election, even as Morocco’s population has grown, reflecting disenchantment with politics notably among young people.

As ballot stations opened in Casablanca and Rabat, voters of various ages formed small but continuous lines to cast their ballots.

Jamal Aamar, a 63-year-old retired banker, came to vote for the Federation of the Democratic Left, a left-wing coalition. Aamar said participating in the election allows his voice to be heard.

“If you boycott, you will leave others an empty seat,” he said.

The constitution recognizes the right to vote for Moroccans living abroad, but there is no voting by mail or ballot boxes at Moroccan consulates. Instead, they must travel to Morocco to vote or authorize a registered family member or acquaintance to vote on their behalf.

Moroccans in Madrid had mixed views on the elections, with some shrugging them off as having little impact.

Caterer Bader Eabram, 24, said Morocco's strong performance in recent World Cups and other soccer championships is driving some voters' choices, and providing hope.

“We’re all really eager to host the World Cup. It’s a great country,'' he said. ‘’We can do anything.''

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Iain Sullivan in Madrid contributed to this report.

The S&P 500 sank 0.6% and dropped 1.1% below its record set last month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 311 points, or 0.6%, as of noon Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite was down 1% from its own all-time high.

Stocks felt pressure as the price for a barrel of Brent oil rose 3.4% to $102.66. It reversed a decline for Brent, which had been falling since nearing $110 last week on worries that the war with Iran will keep oil bottled up in the Middle East for a long time. Talks are continuing with mediators between U.S. and Iranian officials, but nothing concrete has come from it yet.

Even with its recent decline, the price for a barrel of Brent remains much higher than the roughly $72 it cost before the war with Iran began.

The climb in oil prices has pushed yields higher in the bond market, which undercuts stock prices and slows the economy by making it more expensive for everyone to borrow money. Yields got an extra push Wednesday morning after a preliminary report suggested growth in U.S. business activity surged to its strongest level in more than five years.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury jumped to 5.08% from 4.96% late Tuesday, which is a considerable move for the bond market. The 10-year yield is back to where it was in 2007, before the global financial crisis sent yields toward zero.

On the downside for the economy, the report also suggested costs for businesses are leaping at the fastest rate in four years, in part because of more expensive fuel, according to Chris Williamson, chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence. That could mean businesses will pass on those higher costs to their customers in coming months and worsen inflation.

Last week, the 10-year Treasury yield topped 5% for the first time since 2023 because of worries about inflation, the U.S. government’s growing debt load and other concerns. The Federal Reserve also last week raised its short-term interest rate for the first time in three years in hopes of reining in inflation.

Fed Gov. Michael Barr said in a speech on Wednesday that in his “base case, further policy adjustments are likely to be needed to ensure inflation comes down to target in a timely fashion.” Traders now see better than a 50% probability that the Fed will hike its federal funds rate at each of its next two meetings, in October and December, according to data from CME Group.

Strong growth in profits for U.S. companies have so far helped support Wall Street despite higher interest rates and more expensive oil.

KB Home became the latest to deliver a stronger profit report for the latest quarter than analysts expected. But its stock nevertheless swung between losses and gains after the homebuilder’s executive chairman said conditions got even tougher for the housing market over the last three months. It was most recently up 0.2%.

Potential customers are becoming more cautious because of higher mortgage rates caused by the rise in the 10-year Treasury yield. They also are feeling pressure from “geopolitical uncertainty and broader economic headwinds,” Jeffrey Mezger said.

General Mills likewise reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected, even as higher costs eroded how much the company behind the Cheerios and Progresso brands made off each $1 of revenue.

But the company said it also expects growth this fiscal year to fall below its historical track record “driven by a continued challenging consumer backdrop,” and it did not raise its forecast for profit over the full fiscal year. Its stock fell 0.6%.

U.S. consumers have been feeling more discouraged about their finances because of how much prices keep rising for fuel, groceries and other costs of living.

In stock markets abroad, indexes slipped across much of Europe and Asia.

Stock indexes fell 1% in Hong Kong and 0.4% in Shanghai ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Washington, which is kicking off Wednesday, and his meeting this week with President Donald Trump.

The leaders are expected to attempt to steady fragile ties in their third meeting since Trump returned to the White House. That is despite the world’s two largest economies seeking the upper hand on artificial-intelligence developments and trade, while pushing for leverage in persistent hot spots like Iran and Taiwan.

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AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Michelle Chapman contributed to this report.

Court documents filed Tuesday in Nashville offer the first signs of discord in a carefully managed estate process for one of the most beloved personalities in music and beyond.

Bryan Seaver, who owns a company that provided Parton’s security detail and was handpicked by the star to announce her death from cancer last month, did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press requesting comment.

In the temporary restraining order request filed by She’s Alive, the entity that manages and protects Parton’s professional property and business, and other court documents, it claims Seaver sent increasingly threatening messages over the last several weeks. She’s Alive is run by Danny Nozell, Parton’s longtime manager.

Last week, “She’s Alive” terminated Seaver and Squadron Augmented Protection Services, saying his "terrorizing conduct made their continued retention untenable,” according to court documents.

The court documents showcase a series of text messages and emails She's Alive says were sent by Seaver starting just before Parton's death. The messages begin with threats to destroy the brand, and then after her death, depict Seaver reveling in his newfound fame and calling himself an “international arms dealer."

In one message written on Sept. 1 and included in the court documents, he said: “I’m going to set up a podcast dedicated to ruining Dolly’s brand partnerships and telling the violations these people have done on us. It’s going to be great. Or f——— pay me.”

Seaver also claimed that he worked for private military contractors overseas during the Iraq War and used that experience as part of these threats, according to the complaint.

The messages have resulted in Parton’s trusts and estates attorney leaving and employees of She’s Alive resigning, according to the court documents. The entity has also had to hire private security for its employees, including at their homes, the documents state.

The restraining order is meant to stop Seaver from talking with or being within 1,000 feet (304.8 meters) of She’s Alive employees, attorneys and business partners. It also is meant to keep him from interfering with its business relationships.

Parton wrote hundreds of songs, including classics like “Jolene,” “Coat of Many Colors” and “I Will Always Love You,” that earned a total of more than 100 million worldwide sales and more than 1 billion online streams.

The operating budget is $5.6 billion, the capital budget is $2.88 billion, and the debt service budget is $720.3 million. The rolled-back millage rate was 5.39.

“In the over decade that I have been here, we have lowered the millage rate three times,” Mayor Mark D. Bogen said. “We have never raised the millage rate.”

Commissioner Alexandra P. Davis warned that if voters pass the state’s Amendment 3 to increase the homestead exemption, the commission will have to readjust the millage rate.

“It’s layoffs, increase the millage rate, cut services,” Davis said during the meeting about options to balance the budget.

Monica Cepero, the county administrator, told commissioners during the meeting that the budget includes the largest investment in public safety in the county’s history.

“This represents a $24 million total increase for salary adjustments for detention deputies, coupled with an additional $15 million increase for a 5.8% salary increase,” Cepero said.

The salary increase, inclusive of increases in benefits, was for the Broward Sheriff’s Office general law enforcement, courts, and fire rescue and emergency services, according to Cepero.

The capital funds allocations included $27.7 million for the Affordable Housing Trust, which aims to increase the stock in the county, according to Cepero. The transfer from the general fund increased from $20 million to $25 million.

“This board has absolutely prioritized affordable housing,” Cepero said.

Commissioner Nan H. Rich said teachers are leaving the county, so the need is dire. Commissioner Beam Furr said that if voters pass Amendment 3, the commission would have to lower the much-needed investment in affordable housing.

“This year funding will be just fine because we have it in the budget for next year. It’s just in case something happens in Tallahassee in reference to Amendment 3, then we will have to figure out what type of services we are going to provide, what needs to be cut, but we are prepared to do that,” Robert McKinzie, the vice mayor, said.

The new budget will take effect on Oct. 1st.

A closer look

Related report: Broward commissioners vote to take back fire department from BSO in move Tony slams as ‘betrayal’

Watch the meeting: Budget public hearing #2

Related link: Understanding your recommended Broward County budget

Related social media

I am happy to report that for the second year in a row I have made the motion and received the support of my colleagues to REDUCE the tax millage rate to 5.6628 and another modest tax rate reduction for the Broward County millage rate. Thank you.

— Michael Udine (@Michaeludine) September 22, 2026

Houston snapped a three-game skid and tied the Rangers at 78-79 following their 6-3 loss to the New York Mets at home. Both teams have five games remaining, and the Astros hold the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Seattle (73-84) is on the brink of playoff elimination, one season after winning the AL West for the first time in 24 years and coming within one victory of the franchise's first World Series appearance.

Alvarez hit a two-run drive to right field in the eighth inning to tie Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays for the American League lead with 41 homers. Alvarez is first in batting average at .314 and he has 102 RBIs, six behind Baltimore Orioles slugger Pete Alonso for most in the AL.

Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers in 2012 was the most recent hitter to win a Triple Crown by leading his league in all three of those statistical categories.

Alvarez hit an RBI single in the first to reach 100 RBIs for the second time in his career. Christian Walker belted a three-run homer to make it 4-0 in the third, and Isaac Paredes added a solo shot in the sixth.

It was the 200th home run of Walker's career and his 26th this season.

Cam Smith snapped an 0-for-26 skid with a double.

Houston starter Cristian Javier was removed after two innings with right groin tightness. He threw 45 pitches. Miguel Ullola (1-0) followed with two innings of one-hit ball for his first major league win.

Bennett Sousa, AJ Blubaugh and Logan VanWey completed the four-hitter.

Mariners starter Logan Gilbert (12-11) lasted only four innings, yielding four runs on 10 hits — the most hits he's allowed in a game this season.

Up next

Rookie right-hander Ethan Pecko (1-0, 3.77 ERA) makes his fifth major league start Wednesday for Houston against Seattle RHP George Kirby (9-11, 4.24).

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This story has been corrected to show that Alvarez homered in the eighth inning.

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See AP’s full MLB coverage here

This year, the nation of 41 million has a new posture on the planet's biggest diplomatic stage.

Since a watershed speech to the World Economic Forum in January, Prime Minister Mark Carney has become a leading voice of what he and some others call “middle powers.” He has urged them to band together to update and preserve the international order, and protect their own interests, in an era of flexes by the United States and other global giants.

And he has shown himself willing to walk the walk when faced with U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff's.insults and cavalier talk of annexation. Carney rejected what he said were unacceptable U.S. trade demands and walked away from talks last month. Bluntly hedging his country's decades-long bet on U.S. trade and partnership, he has been courting other prospects — Canada might even become the European Union's first associate member.

“Partners are working with Canada because Canada’s predictable, reliable and principled in a world that’s anything but,” Carney told Canadian media at a news conference at the U.N. Tuesday as the General Assembly's big meeting got into full swing.

It's the international community's premier gathering of the year. And to Carney, it's an opportunity to demonstrate Canada's vision of “values-based realism” that's “both principled and pragmatic” — part commitment to such values as freedom, human rights and sustainability, part clear-eyed, “calibrated alliances” with partners that won't sign onto the whole list.

That's frankly practical talk for a forum that's prone to either diplomatic caution or soaring rhetoric, be it doomsaying, idealistic or, often, both. And Carney is finding an ear.

He's moving fast and building coalitions

Canada and a half-dozen other countries launched a new group Monday meant to stand up for economic cooperation and U.N.-style international collaboration. An air traffic control mess at New York airports kept Carney from making it to the “partners for multilateralism” kickoff event at the U.N. Monday night, but his schedule Tuesday included personal meetings with Jordan's king, the presidents of Chile and Angola, and an Emirati cabinet minister.

He also co-hosted a meeting on the long-elusive two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and pledged 100 million Canadian dollars ($71 million) in humanitarian and security funding for Palestinians. Canada last year joined more than 150 countries that have recognized a Palestinian state, over the objections of Israel and its key ally, the U.S.

Asked whether he interacted Tuesday with Trump or members of his administration, Carney replied that he saw the huge meeting of world leaders as a chance to “meet those whom you don’t normally see.” He did attend Trump's speech at the assembly, where the president made no mention of Canada — the country on the other side of the world’s longest international border, and now on the other end of a deepening trade war.

After speaking Wednesday at a U.N. meeting about oceans, Carney heads back to Canada for other commitments. Foreign Minister Anita Anand is set to deliver the country's U.N. speech Saturday.

She said in an interview Tuesday that the address “will be very much about implementing the middle power strategy” that Carney has articulated — memorably when he told the World Economic Forum that as great power rivalries increasingly shake the international system, “middle powers must act together, because if we’re not at the table, we’re on the menu.” (There’s no official list of “middle powers,” but the term is often understood to mean countries that aren’t superpowers or their proxies but have some sway in global politics due to diplomatic or other strengths.)

Carney's “message resonates with many audiences, particularly those in the global North,” says University of Ottawa international affairs professor Srdjan Vucetic.

He noted that the prime minister's leadership is resonating at home, too. Carney, who took office in March 2025, enjoys high approval ratings from Canadians. Many are galled by Trump's remarks about making their country the U.S.'s “51st state,” his insistence on referring to Lake Ontario as “Lake America” and his trade policies. In Toronto, Canada’s most populous city, some neighborhoods are dotted with lawn signs encouraging eligible U.S. expatriates to vote absentee, and at least one coffee shop has crossed the Americano drink off its menu, substituting “Canadiano” instead.

Carney seeks to increase non-US trade

Carney, 61, a former central bank chief with a doctorate in economics, aims to double Canada's non-U.S. trade within a decade. He convened hundreds of international investment firm executives for a Canadian investment summit last week and is hoping for a trade deal with India, among others, by year’s end.

His government has touted security, defense and economic agreements with a roster of countries over the past year, and he has envisioned Canada as potentially forging an economic bridge of sorts between the EU and Pacific Rim countries.

His international efforts have drawn some questions, as when he became the first Canadian prime minister in over a quarter-century to visit Saudi Arabia. Predecessor Justin Trudeau's government had assailed Saudi Arabia’s human rights record, spurring a five-year diplomatic split. The two countries restored full diplomatic relations in 2023.

Carney said at the time of the July visit that he cares deeply about human rights, that there's no point in “lecturing countries from afar,” and that engaging with them doesn't convey approval of their every move.

At his U.N. news conference Tuesday, he said his approach “means actively, actively taking on the world as it is, not passively waiting for a world we wish to be.”

“We have a strategy that, I believe, has already made our country stronger,” he added, “but we’ve only just begun.”

La sombría advertencia del Climate Impact Lab, con sede en la Universidad de Chicago, señala que hasta 451.000 muertes adicionales relacionadas con el calor entre junio y finales de febrero podrían atribuirse a El Niño, en comparación con las muertes por calor previstas en un año típico.

El mayor impacto, afirma el grupo, se espera en los países más pobres, que ya lidian con la inseguridad alimentaria y los altos costos de la energía, en parte debido al cambio climático y a las consecuencias de la guerra en Irán.

Michael Greenstone, cofundador del grupo y coautor del estudio, manifestó que el peligro por el calor probablemente persistirá más allá de febrero, aunque se espera que este El Niño termine para entonces. Agregó que las consecuencias del fenómeno meteorológico podrían sentirse hasta bien entrado el próximo verano.

La investigación, explicó, muestra que el calor es más peligroso en lugares que ya son calurosos y relativamente pobres.

“Si ya estás en un lugar caluroso, ese par de grados extra va a ser mucho más peligroso”, afirmó. Los lugares más ricos, añadió, por lo general tienen mayor acceso al aire acondicionado, suministros de agua confiables y sistemas de salud que funcionan.

El estudio combinó pronósticos estacionales de temperatura con estimaciones localizadas de cómo las altas temperaturas afectan la mortalidad en más de 24.000 regiones de todo el mundo.

Los investigadores estimaron las muertes adicionales relacionadas con el calor al comparar las muertes previstas bajo temperaturas elevadas impulsadas por El Niño con las muertes esperadas si las temperaturas se mantuvieran similares a las que han sido en las últimas tres décadas. Las muertes proyectadas corresponden a todo el periodo de El Niño, desde junio de 2026 hasta finales de febrero de 2027.

Habrá más muertes en el Sur Global debido al calor

El estudio de Greenstone y sus colegas también advierte que el Sur Global —un término que no es geográfico, sino una referencia a los países en desarrollo en general— soportará la carga más pesada del calor excesivo.

Los investigadores detrás del informe hallaron que se espera que la región del Sahel en África —países en el borde meridional semiárido del desierto del Sahara— sea la más afectada, con unas 66.800 muertes adicionales causadas por el calor agudizado por El Niño.

Otros grandes focos incluyen el sur y el sudeste de Asia y partes de América Latina, según el informe. Los investigadores proyectan unas 19.400 muertes adicionales relacionadas con el calor en Filipinas, Vietnam, Tailandia y Camboya, así como 19.300 en Indonesia, 15.800 en India y 13.300 en Brasil.

Las alertas por calor y los centros de enfriamiento podrían evitar miles de muertes

Con cifras tan abrumadoras, el informe indica que hay medidas recomendadas que los gobiernos pueden adoptar. Entre ellas figuran sistemas de alerta por calor, centros de enfriamiento, puntos de hidratación, protecciones para los trabajadores al aire libre, ampliación de la capacidad hospitalaria y acciones de alcance dirigidas a las personas mayores y otros grupos vulnerables.

Los autores también piden lo que describen como financiamiento anticipatorio, para que los gobiernos puedan movilizar recursos antes de que el calor peligroso alcance su punto máximo.

Abhiyant Tiwari, experto en calor de NRDC India que no participó en el estudio, comentó que las proyecciones del informe deberían servir como un llamado a la acción, más que como otra razón para alarmarse.

Pero, aunque una cosa es contar con planes bien pensados —como los tiene India—, implementar esos planes y reunir los fondos necesarios sigue siendo un desafío, sostuvo.

“La verdadera medida de nuestra preparación no es cuántas alertas por calor emitimos, sino cuán eficazmente protegemos a las personas y reducimos las muertes evitables”, añadió Tiwari.

El cambio climático está amplificando el calor récord de El Niño

El Niño es un patrón climático natural, pero el evento inusualmente fuerte de este año está ocurriendo en un planeta ya calentado por el cambio climático causado por el ser humano, lo que incrementa los riesgos del calor extremo.

El Climate Impact Lab indicó que las temperaturas globales sobre tierra durante este El Niño podrían ser más altas en alrededor de 1,2 grados Celsius (2,1 Fahrenheit), lo que produciría un 44% más de días extremadamente calurosos que en un año típico. El informe señaló que esos aumentos de temperatura podrían reflejar condiciones que el cambio climático podría volver comunes dentro de unos 20 años.

Por eso, este El Niño podría ofrecer un adelanto de lo que viene a medida que el planeta continúa calentándose, indicó el informe. También es una oportunidad para que los responsables de tomar decisiones “vean exactamente dónde pueden emprenderse acciones de emergencia ahora para salvar decenas de miles de vidas”, afirman los autores.

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La cobertura climática y ambiental de The Associated Press recibe apoyo financiero de múltiples fundaciones privadas. La AP es la única responsable de todo el contenido. Consulte las normas de AP para trabajar con filantropías, una lista de patrocinadores y las áreas de cobertura financiadas en AP.org.

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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.

A few hundred feet away, a drone port, run by the U.S. Secret Service and not the military, is already quietly operational. Equipped with cameras and sensors to scope out potential threats from a bird’s-eye view, the small UAVs stand on alert in four gray weatherproof boxes until deployed at officers' commands.

The agency is using a model known as “drone as first responder,” deploying speedy unarmed drones from outdoor stations to serve as flying cameras. That model has been adopted by hundreds of police agencies across the U.S., often powered by AI software to help dodge obstacles or track targets.

The existence of the surveillance drones on a Treasury Department building adjacent to the White House complex has not been previously reported, and could undercut Trump's legal claims that the ballroom construction is necessary “to protect the White House and surrounding region from aerial attacks.” The need for the drone port underpinned Trump's national security defense for the construction project — a justification he is now citing for the construction of a massive arch outside the gates of Arlington National Cemetery.

The installation is thus far markedly less imposing than the vision outlined by Trump, with its rows of futuristic attack drones, apparently modeled after those used in U.S. military strikes, that drone experts describe as outlandish.

“To be honest, if a drone was so close to the White House that it needed interdiction, it’s already gotten too far,” said Matt Sloane, co-founder of SkyfireAI, which makes software for drones used by public safety agencies.

It would be more realistic for the White House to build something akin to what the Secret Service is using next door, Sloane said: “The drone takes off and does some type of perimeter sweep or whatever, and then puts itself back in the box.”

The White House did not comment for the story. The Secret Service declined to comment on the specifics of its drone operations but said the new docks are separate from Trump's ballroom drone port.

The details of Trump’s ballroom drone port remain murky

Security of the president and the White House complex is generally the domain of the Secret Service, which works in close concert with the White House Military Office and other military elements when needed.

Trump has said the drone port came at the request of U.S. military officials. Speaking to reporters in May, he said the building’s plans were expanded to meet the request: “They wanted more drone capacity,” he said. On social media, he boasted that the drone port might end up being the “most sophisticated” in the world.

What Trump is ultimately aiming to build, and how far it goes beyond what has already been installed, remains unclear. Beyond Trump’s AI images, some of which he filed in his appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to lift lower courts' blocks on the construction, the White House has not disclosed what kinds of drones will be used or for what tactical purpose.

The Secret Service is using smaller surveillance drones that are a fraction of the size of the attack drones depicted in Trump’s AI images. The U.S. Air Force bought similar drones from Skydio in April to protect bases across the Middle East. The company also supplied drones to help protect World Cup matches this year.

The Secret Service has been building out its drone- and counter-drone programs for years. But work has accelerated since the 2024 attempted assassination of Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, when the agency failed both to take action against a drone used by the shooter to scout out the attack and to fly one of its own to provide overwatch of the event.

In the weeks that followed, tethered and untethered surveillance drones became commonplace at campaign rallies and large events at the White House complex.

In an online video released by the agency highlighting their deployment, the Secret Service said the Skydio drones are used to provide “real-time situational awareness” and “aerial overwatch."

“It allows you to see the threat before it becomes an issue, and to task assets accordingly,” Dustin Talbott, of the Secret Service’s Aviation and Airspace Security Division, said in the video. “We no longer wait for the threat to reveal itself. We find it first.”

Skydio did not provide comment for this story.

Trump's drone port vision would face logistical hurdles

Trump has made it a priority to build a stronger drone presence around the White House, responding to an increase in political violence and the evolution of drone warfare.

Paul Eckloff, a former supervisor of the Secret Service’s presidential protection division, said the Russia-Ukraine war has highlighted the risks posed by drones, even off-the-shelf models that can cause massive damage. Drones now represent one of the largest emerging threats the White House must defend against, he said.

During Trump’s first term, conversations about drones often centered on their use in places like Iraq and Syria, said Javed Ali, who served on the National Security Council during that time and now teaches national security at the University of Michigan. Since then, it has become a matter of domestic security, he said.

Yet there would be major logistical hurdles involved in putting a busy drone port on top of the White House, he said. “There’s a whole host of questions, like who is responsible for overseeing it, and how would there be any de-confliction with commercial airspace?” he said.

Complexities around federal oversight were laid bare this year when the U.S. military used a laser to shoot down a drone near El Paso, Texas, only to find it belonged to Customs and Border Protection. The mishap briefly led the FAA to close nearby airspace.

A drone hub at the White House would navigate crowded and complex airspace around Washington, not far from Reagan Washington National Airport and flight paths shared by other military aircraft.

Opponents say the White House is becoming a fortress

Trump started talking about the drone port in May, weeks after a federal judge halted ballroom construction but allowed work on security components to continue. Trump later went on to refer to the ballroom as a “military complex,” leaning on that security role as a legal justification.

The Supreme Court in August cleared Trump to continue construction as the legal challenge moves ahead.

Opponents say the president is going too far in his hardening of the White House, turning it into something closer to a fortress. Edward Lengel, a former chief historian for the White House Historical Association, said Trump has militarized the White House at a scale that’s at odds with its legacy as “the people’s house.”

“It turns it into a big giant porcupine that has its spines pointing out against the people and against the world,” Lengel said.

Trump has argued that the White House was in “very bad condition” when he returned to office, saying it had become vulnerable to modern threats.

At times, he has expressed concerns about his own safety and the risks posed by drones and other air threats. Speaking at a Rose Garden dinner for law enforcement officials in May, Trump quickly glanced up from the lectern as a low bird flew overhead.

“I thought that was a drone,” Trump said, bringing laughs from the crowd. “They make them in all different sizes nowadays — they can be very destructive, as you’ve probably heard."

From Texas to Ohio and Alaska to Iowa, campaigns are grappling with a fed-up electorate that is sour on the president and angry over soaring fuel prices driven by an unpopular war. While Republicans are flush with unprecedented cash that could move the needle in some races, overall the mood is glum heading into the election's final stretch as campaigns try to counter palpable Democratic enthusiasm to maintain their narrow lead in the House and Senate this November.

“Everybody is tired. You see the poll numbers. Everybody is cranky about gas prices,” said Jeanette Hoffman, a Republican strategist from New Jersey. “The party in power is playing defense. This is a referendum on the incumbents.”

Trump is trying to protect Republicans with cash

After mounting pressure from endangered candidates in battleground states, groups affiliated with President Donald Trump finally began unleashing their stockpile of campaign cash earlier this month, joining with Republican committees that have amassed a record fortune that dramatically eclipses their Democratic counterparts.

“Republicans have air superiority. House Democrats are scrambling to catch up with the very limited resources they have,” said Mike Marinella, a spokesperson for the National Republican Congressional Committee.

But the spending underscores the extent to which Republicans are playing defense.

Three Trump-aligned groups — MAGA Inc., No Going Back PAC and Safety and Affordability PAC — have spent more than $163 million on advertising and air time since Sept. 1. Nearly 40% of that money — more than $63 million — has been spent in states and districts where Trump won by 10 percentage points or more in the 2024 election, according to an Associated Press analysis of data from AdImpact, which tracks media spending and ad buys.

That includes 12 House districts and three states with major Senate races.

In Texas, Republicans have spent nearly $107 million on ads and reservations since the beginning of the month trying to bolster scandal-plagued attorney general Ken Paxton in his Texas Senate race against Democratic state Rep. James Talarico. The spending, which is for ads through Election Day, is nearly four times as much as Democrats in a state Trump won by nearly 14 points.

Further north in Ohio, Republican spending to defend Sen. Jon Husted has exceeded $152 million, compared with $90 million on behalf of Democratic nominee Sherrod Brown, according to AdImpact.

Terry Casey, an Ohio Republican strategist, said both Republicans and Democrats are "kind of sitting on pins and needles because of the national and economic circumstances.” The outcome, he said, would depend on whether Democrats can turn out voters.

Democrats are competing in Republican strongholds

States that Trump won by wide margins — like Texas, Iowa, Ohio and Alaska — have become some of the most competitive battlegrounds in the midterms.

The White House is even investing time in states that haven't been considered competitive for years. Vice President JD Vance recently traveled to Kansas to campaign for Sen. Roger Marshall, who is facing a challenge from Democratic nominee Adam Hamilton.

The founder of the nation’s largest United Methodist church, Hamilton received a rousing welcome from scores of people who crammed into a Topeka coffee shop to see him Tuesday.

“In all my 50, 60 years in politics, I’ve never seen a candidate that quite has the momentum going,” said Jim Ploger, an 82-year-old longtime Democratic activist from Topeka who believes Hamilton gives the party “the best chance we’ve ever had” to win a Senate seat.

Vance has also been to Iowa, Ohio, Maine and North Carolina to bolster Republican candidates, while Trump is also hitting the road. The week after the party's unusual midterm convention in Dallas, he traveled to North Carolina to hold a rally with Michael Whatley, his former national party chairman. Republicans are increasingly concerned that he could fall short in his Senate race against Democratic former Gov. Roy Cooper.

There are more concerns about Georgia, where Rep. Mike Collins is trying to unseat Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff. Although Ossoff began the cycle as Republicans' top target, Collins has endured weeks of negative headlines about a House ethics investigation and his son-in-law's white nationalist views.

“I don’t think anyone’s expecting Collins to win,” said Tim Waters, chairman of the Peach County Republican Party. “Do I like that? No, I don’t like that. But it’s just the facts.”

In Texas, officials are hoping a huge influx of last-minute cash will help save Paxton. Sen. John Cornyn, who lost his primary to Paxton after Trump turned on him earlier this year, isn't so confident.

“I think it’s going to be very rough, lots of headwinds,” he said. “Even in places like Texas, which are pretty red, we’ve got flawed candidates who I think are going to have a hard time.”

Republican National Committee spokesperson Natalie Baldassarre said the party is focused on turnout and is well aware of the historic trend in which the party in control typically loses seats in the midterm.

“We have money to spend and we’re not taking anything for granted this cycle," she said. “This is very high stakes, and it's unfortunate that other people feel glum and down. But we’re doing everything we can to protect and expand our majorities so we’re full steam ahead.”

Party officials are more bullish on races in Maine and New Hampshire, where Democrat Kamala Harris won in 2024, and remain optimistic about Michigan, where Trump won by less than two points and where former Rep. Mike Rogers faces progressive Democrat Abdul El-Sayed.

Some Republicans call for an end to the war

Some Republicans are taking steps to distance themselves from Trump even as he urges his supporters to vote like he is on the ballot.

Rep. Tom Tiffany and Rep. John James, the party's nominees for governor in Wisconsin and Michigan, both joined calls for an end to the war in Iran.

"War is terrible, and no one likes war,” James told reporters.

Mike Rogers, the Republican Senate nominee in Michigan, released an ad in which he also called for ending the war. Standing in a grocery store, he bemoaned high prices and said the government should suspend gas taxes and stop diesel exports.

“The war with Iran needs to end and end quickly,” Rogers said. ”Michigan families can’t afford to wait.”

In Iowa, where Republicans are trying to hold onto the Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Joni Ernst, Rep. Ashley Hinson, who is locked in a tight race against Democrat Josh Turek, voiced the same frustrations.

“Iowans are being squeezed and shouldn’t have to foot the bill at the pump or the checkout line for the war in Iran” she wrote on social media. “These actions to lower costs are needed ASAP, and the war needs to be brought to a successful and immediate end.”

Hinson, however, did not join two fellow Iowa Republicans in battleground districts — U.S. Reps. Zach Nunn and Mariannette Miller-Meeks — in voting with Democrats on a resolution intended to halt Trump’s ability to continue military action without lawmakers’ approval.

Perhaps the most dramatic break with Trump came from Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar, a Republican defending her seat in a competitive, majority Hispanic South Florida district. Last week, she released an ad filmed in front of the White House as she criticized the president for going “too far” on immigration policy.

Others have continued to scrub references to Trump from their websites. The latest was Republican Byron Donalds, who is running for governor in Florida, who recently revamped his site so that it no longer includes a number of prominent references to Trump and his endorsement, the Miami Herald first reported.

‘It’s a very competitive environment out there'

White House spokesperson Davis Ingle said Trump “is the unequivocal leader, best messenger, and unmatched motivator for the Republican Party” and that "the choice has never been more clear: doubling down on President Trump’s winning, commonsense agenda or the Democrats’ extreme liberal policies and obstruction.”

Some Republicans are acknowledging that voters aren't satisfied.

“We shouldn’t say, ‘Hey everything’s perfect,’ because it’s not," said Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio. "But look what we’ve done in 18 months, and we need two more years to finish the job.”

Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana, who has traveled across the country campaigning for his colleagues, said Democrats appeared to have enthusiasm on their side in the midterms, and he said his party needed to level with the country.

“You can’t look the American people in the eye and say, ‘Don’t believe your lying checkbooks,’” he said. “The cost of living increase is real.”

He also said that voters are “confused about the war” and “they don't understand how we're going to get out.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., was measured in his assessment on Tuesday.

“Well, I’m hopeful, obviously, but also realistic," he said. “It’s a very competitive environment out there.”

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Colvin reported from New York. Associated Press writers Mike Catalini in Morrisville, Pa., Bill Barrow in Atlanta, Thomas Beaumont in Des Moines, Iowa, John Hanna in Topeka, Kan., and Lisa Mascaro, Mary Clare Jalonick, Steven Sloan and Joey Cappelletti in Washington contributed to this report.

Trump's decision to greet Xi at Joint Base Andrews just outside Washington rather than receiving him at the executive residence shows how far the U.S. president is going to honor China's leader as he makes his first state visit in more than a decade.

First lady Melania Trump said her husband decided to personally greet Xi when he arrives in the Washington region because “they have a great relationship.”

“He's coming on our soil, and we need to welcome them with the most respect,” she said of Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, during an interview Wednesday on Fox News Channel's ”Fox & Friends."

The White House has not released many details about Wednesday's greeting, but Trump is expected to participate in an arrival ceremony at the base with Xi and his wife. The salutation will kick off a three-day visit that's expected to be saturated with pomp, even by White House standards. The state visit, complete with a formal state dinner at the White House on Thursday, is supposed to reciprocate for the ceremonial grandeur that marked Trump's May visit to China.

But it also is a showy patina at a time when tensions between the two geopolitical rivals are high over trade, artificial intelligence, Trump's war with Iran and China's designs on Taiwan.

Beyond using the visit to try to keep “strategic stability” between the two countries, Trump seems to be pulling out all the diplomatic stops to show off for Xi. Trump has lavished praise on Xi as a “great leader” and described a warm relationship with the man he has called a friend. That is all while he has given Xi a pass on many issues.

Sen. Roger Wicker, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, criticized the “lavish welcome." Wicker, R-Miss., said during a speech Tuesday in the Senate that Trump should not have invited the Chinese leader “based on all of the troubling issues we have with President Xi and the Chinese Communist Party.”

Wicker archly suggested a list of topics that Trump could discuss with Xi at the state dinner, such as “the purposes of China’s massive military buildup, or about China’s clear support for Iran,” saying that “during every minute of dialogue” Trump should keep in mind that “his guest is a brutal, unelected and oppressive dictator who seeks to dominate his neighbors and whose massive military arsenal is aimed directly at the United States of America.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. and China must interact at the highest levels because the countries are “the two largest economies in the world” and “probably the two most powerful militaries in the world.”

“The idea that we would not interact with them at the highest levels is irresponsible. It’s outrageous. We have to,” Rubio told reporters Wednesday while he was in New York.

Trump has made it clear he wants to wow Xi, telling reporters in recent weeks that he was delighted his new “work of art” helicopter landing pad would be ready for the visit while bemoaning that his massive White House ballroom would not.

On Wednesday, Trump is expected to try to match the pageantry he was met with in China earlier this year. Xi was not at the airport to meet Trump — Chinese Vice President Han Zheng was there instead. But there a red carpet was rolled out to meet Air Force One in Beijing. A military honor guard, a military band and about 300 Chinese youths waving Chinese and American flags and chanting, “Welcome, welcome! Warm welcome!” also were present. The children wore white and light blue uniforms that mirrored the traditional paint colors of the presidential plane.

Trump's airport ceremony for Xi will be followed on Thursday by more formalities, including an arrival ceremony at the White House and a review of troops. Before the black-tie dinner, which will feature tech industry leaders like Nvidia’s Jensen Huang and SpaceX’s Elon Musk, the two leaders are expected to dive into the weighty issues behind closed doors, even as expectations are low that the trip will produce any major breakthroughs in the relationship.

On Friday, Xi and Peng will be back at the White House for a private tea with the Trumps before joining them on a tour of the National Archives in Washington. The White House has said they will view historic documents underscoring the relationship between the two countries.

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Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick and Didi Tang contributed to this report.

Weinstein’s sentencing for sexually assaulting one-time TV production assistant Miriam Haley followed a legal odyssey spanning more than six years. His 2020 conviction was overturned by New York's highest court, citing testimony from other women whose allegations weren’t part of the case. A second jury found Weinstein guilty again at a retrial last year.

Once among the most powerful figures in the entertainment industry, Weinstein was an Oscar-winning producer whose hits included “Shakespeare in Love,” “Pulp Fiction” and “Chocolat.” But his downfall came quickly after sexual assault allegations in 2017 set off the #MeToo movement.

Weinstein, 74, is expected to appeal. He is now likely to remain behind bars until at least his late 80s. He has denied raping or sexually assaulting anyone. Seated in a wheelchair, he was quickly wheeled out of the courtroom after the sentencing, while some of his accusers hugged and brushed away tears.

Weinstein and his victim both spoke in court

Weinstein faced up to 25 years in prison for sexually assaulting Haley at his Manhattan apartment in 2006. He has already served more than six years as his case has cycled again and again through the criminal justice system. Haley gave her account of the assault at two trials, and addressed the court Wednesday just before Weinstein was sentenced.

“Having been sexually assaulted by Harvey Weinstein has had a devastating effect on my life and sense of security that may never go away. Making the decision to speak up will have me looking over my shoulder for years to come,” Haley said. “It’s a life sentence for me.”

“I’ve been further traumatized in exercising my right to hold him accountable. All of this traces back to his actions,” she said, adding that she thought about ending her pursuit of justice many times.

Minutes later, Weinstein apologized in court to those he may have hurt. “I do have remorse for Miriam Haley’s pain, but I have to reiterate my innocence,” he told the judge.

Judge Curtis Farber said Weinstein was once a king in the movie industry, “but recognition for these achievements will pale in comparison to what you did.”

He said Weinstein is now known as “a sexual predator, the literal face of the MeToo movement.”

Why Weinstein is being sentenced a second time

Weinstein was originally sentenced to 23 years in prison after a jury convicted him of assaulting Haley and raping an aspiring actress, Jessica Mann, in 2013.

Tried for a second time last year, he was again convicted of a first-degree criminal sex act for assaulting Haley, who has also gone by the name Mimi Haleyi. In a messy split verdict, the jury acquitted him of forcibly performing oral sex on another woman, Kaja Sokola, and could not reach a verdict on a rape charge involving Mann.

“I will be proven innocent. That I promise you,” Weinstein told The Hollywood Reporter in a jailhouse interview in March.

After another retrial ended in a hung jury in May, Manhattan prosecutors dropped the rape charge rather than pursue a fourth trial after Mann said she could not bear to testify again. That decision cleared the way for Weinstein’s sentencing.

Weinstein’s health issues pushed the defense to ask for leniency

Defense lawyer Jacob Kaplan asked that Weinstein receive a sentence of three more years on top of the six years he’s already served, saying a longer sentence would make it more likely that Weinstein dies in prison.

Weinstein is in failing health and has been in the hospital six times since 2025, Kaplan said, while dealing with blood cancer, congestive heart failure, and kidney issues.

Weinstein is also awaiting resentencing in a separate rape case in Los Angeles. A California appeals court upheld the 2022 conviction but threw out his original 16-year sentence because the judge had considered his New York convictions — that were later thrown out — as an aggravating factor.

After shuffling between state prison, where he tested positive for COVID-19 early in the pandemic, and New York City’s notorious Rikers Island complex, the ailing Weinstein is now housed at a medical unit for jail inmates at Bellevue Hospital in Manhattan.

His health issues in recent years have included chronic myeloid leukemia, diabetes and walking difficulties, his lawyers said. Two years ago, he underwent emergency surgery to remove fluid on his heart and lungs.

Haley describes the assault that led to Weinstein’s conviction

Haley, 49, is a former entertainment producer now working in advertising.

Born in Finland and raised in Sweden, she said she met Weinstein through a mutual connection and worked briefly as a production assistant on a reality competition show that he produced, “Project Runway.”

Haley said she accepted an invitation to visit Weinstein’s Manhattan apartment because it would have been odd to decline since she was scheduled to fly to Los Angeles the next day on his company’s dime to attend a film premiere.

After she and Weinstein briefly chatted on his living room sofa, he lunged to kiss her, she testified. She said she leaped up and rebuffed him, but he grabbed her, forcibly backed her into a bedroom and sexually assaulted her, ignoring her pleas to stop.

She recalled Weinstein asking, “Don’t you think we’re much closer now?” after either the alleged assault or a subsequent occasion when she says she had unwanted, but not forced, sex with him.

She also recalled telling him after the second encounter, “You know you can’t keep doing this.”

The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault unless they grant permission, which Haley, Sokola and Mann have done.

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Seewer reported from Toledo, Ohio.

Hurricane Polo, an “extremely dangerous” storm, is expected to skirt Mexico’s Guerrero state, submerging coastal areas with 4 to 6 inches (10 to 15 centimeters) of rain through Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

At its peak, Polo was a Category 5 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 180 mph (290 kph). It was a Category 4 by Wednesday morning, but still packing 150 mph (240 kph) top sustained winds.

“Fluctuations in intensity are expected, but Polo is expected to remain a very powerful major hurricane during the next few days,” the NHC said.

Waves, flooding and mudslides are all risks

Hurricane Polo was not expected to make landfall, meteorologists and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said, but tropical storm conditions were expected along the Pacific coast in Guerrero, Michoacan and Colima states through Thursday.

Hurricane-force winds can extend up to 40 miles (65 kilometers) from the storm's center while areas up to 105 miles (170 kilometers) from the eye will be hit by tropical storm-force winds, meteorologists said. Polo was 160 miles (260 kilometers) south of Zihuatanejo and 300 miles (480 kilometers) southeast of Manzanillo on Wednesday, the center reported.

Concepción López Villegas was busily bolstering her seaside restaurant in Lázaro Cárdenas, Michoacán, against the expected onslaught of rain. Strong waves were already hitting the beaches and López Villegas said she feared the storm could destroy the small business she worked decades to build.

“We're worried and trying to protect our businesses,” López Villegas said. “And of course, we're sad because it's our heritage, our legacy that from one moment to another could be destroyed.”

National Hurricane Center data showed Polo’s winds had reached speeds earlier this week comparable to only a few hurricanes in the region in recent decades, primarily Hurricane Patricia, which had winds that reached 215 mph (350 kph) in 2015.

Polo was named the third Category 5 hurricane of the Pacific season on Tuesday, following Genevieve and Lowell earlier this year.

El Nino fueled rapid intensification

The rapid intensification of Hurricane Polo stunned scientists and authorities alike, with the NHC writing in a report that it was “truly remarkable” how much strength Polo gained in just 24 hours.

Philip Klotzbach, research scientist in the Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University, attributed the intensification to the weather phenomenon known as El Nino, which has fueled crippling droughts in Mexico and Central America and floods in other parts of the region.

In the Pacific, it has resulted in warmer waters and wind patterns that act as fodder for hurricanes, he said.

“There are all the ingredients that hurricanes need to get really strong really fast,” Klotzbach said.

Odalys strengthens into a hurricane

Hurricane Odalys meanwhile churned elsewhere in the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, carrying maximum sustained winds of 75 mph (120 kph).

Odalys churned about 1,265 miles (2,036 kilometers) west-southwest of the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula and was not at risk of making landfall, according to the hurricane center.

An advisory said Odalys could increase in strength over the next couple of days but would likely weaken toward the end of the week.

Hawaii could face another hurricane as soon as Friday

A tropical depression about 525 miles (845 kilometers) south-southeast of Hawaii's capital, Honolulu, could be a tropical storm by the end of the day and a hurricane by Thursday.

The hurricane center advised the island chain to monitor the progress of the system, which was projected to drop 15 to 20 inches (38 to 51 centimeters) of rain on the Big Island. Forecasters said this could cause “catastrophic life-threatening flooding and mudslides.”

The center of the cyclone was expected to approach the islands by Friday or Saturday.

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Brooks reported from Atlanta.

Ker’Sean Ramey, 41, is set to die by lethal injection at the state penitentiary in Huntsville. He would be the sixth person executed so far this year in Texas, with three more scheduled.

A jury convicted Ramey of capital murder and sentenced him to death over the shootings of Samuel Roberts, 24, Tiffani Peacock, 18, and Celso Lopez, 38, in the home they shared in the small city of Edna, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) southwest of Houston.

Ramey and LeJames Norman believed there was cocaine in the house and hoped to steal it, according to court records. They found none and killed the three victims, who lived across the street from Norman.

Norman was put to death Sept. 16, also in Huntsville. He had no last words, and no relatives or friends of the victims witnessed that execution.

Attorneys for Ramey filed a final appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court arguing that there was no physical evidence linking him to the killings and that jurors never heard about how he suffered physical abuse as a child and grew up in poverty.

Prosecutors have told lower courts that Ramey did not present any issues that would merit reconsidering the conviction.

About a year after testifying at Ramey's trial, Norman pleaded guilty to capital murder and was sentenced to death by a jury.

Norman testified that both he and Ramey shot the victims. Lopez was shot four times, including three in the back of his head; Peacock was shot twice in the head; and Roberts was shot five times in the chest, neck and head.

During the trial, Ramey's attorneys blamed the shootings on Norman.

Could a swarm of AI agents take over the entire internet? It's a possibility that could be only six to 12 months away, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said in his essay this month calling for the industry to slow down the technology's development.

What companies have described as their AI agents going rogue has involved bots working toward goals set by humans, skeptics note. But the idea that AI could break away and work toward its own agenda is looking increasingly plausible to other researchers and experts.

In the event of AI taking over the internet — one of many doomsday scenarios receiving new attention — that could mean attacks on electrical grids, water or transportation systems and financial institutions.

The world got a glimpse of the internet's vulnerability in 2024, when a faulty software update provided by a cybersecurity firm caused technological havoc worldwide, grounding flights, knocking down some financial companies and news outlets, and disrupting hospitals, small businesses and government offices. The breadth of the outages highlighted the dependence on just a few providers for key computing services.

Two years later, Amodei in his warning said a botnet, or a network of AI bots linked together with malware, could potentially cause billions of dollars in damage. The scale of destruction could grow if AI becomes more powerful without guardrails, he said.

Several AI agents have gained unauthorized internet access

Amodei pointed specifically to the attack in July where OpenAI’s system broke out of a “sandbox” testing ground and hacked Hugging Face.

In what OpenAI called an “unprecedented” episode, the company said its advanced AI models found their way onto the internet and used stolen credentials to break into the servers of the AI startup. In a separate incident, OpenAI disclosed that its AI agents had communicated through a public wiki used as a shared message board.

Some researchers have said that descriptions of “rogue AI” may be wrongly anthropomorphizing AI agents, which were taking steps to fulfill instructions provided by humans.

“AI agents did exactly what they were trained to do. The security of those sandboxes was extremely lax,” said Vishal Misra, a professor and vice dean of computing and AI at Columbia University. “No security engineer would ever let that system run. These agents communicated because they were rewarded for communicating with each other.”

Juan Andrés Guerrero-Saade, a researcher at cybersecurity firm SentinelOne and a member of OpenAI’s Frontier Risk Council, said the Hugging Face hack is an example of negligence, and not of a super-capable AI going rogue.

Still, the specter of AI agents operating freely on the internet raises alarming possibilities, regardless of their objectives.

For example, an AI system that wants to bend the rules to accomplish its goals could contact a cloud AI computation provider and find ways to run on outside systems, said Anthony Aguirre, the president and CEO of the Future of Life Institute, a nonprofit focused on reducing the risks of new technologies.

“So now you’re no longer tethered to OpenAI, you’re running on some other GPU, some other hardware that you’re in control of, not OpenAI,” Aguirre said. “So now there’s no one to turn you off, because either you’re paying for your service or the people who are paying just don’t know that you’re there and what is happening. … They can’t unplug you.”

From there, it could spread itself around, either hacking more hardware or finding ways to access money, like Bitcoin, Aguirre said.

AI raises the stakes in cat-and-mouse game of cybersecurity

There is no question that more powerful AI models raise the likelihood of AI-powered cyberattacks in the near future. But the notion of bots overtaking the extremely bifurcated internet is far-fetched to some AI experts. Cybersecurity has always been a cat-and-mouse game and defenses get more powerful just as hackers do.

While a big company like Google could shore up its cybersecurity defenses against such attacks, for smaller companies — and for schools, hospitals or water treatment systems, for instance — patching software and building defenses can take years.

An AI system might not have a clear motive to hack into a hospital, Aguirre said. But when money comes into the picture, like in the form of ransomware attacks or geopolitical motivations, “it’s not hard to see an adversary using these AI systems to hack critical infrastructure,” Aguirre said.

There will be growing pains as attackers seek soft targets on the internet, but an AI internet takeover is unlikely anytime soon, said John Thickstun, an assistant professor of computer science at Cornell University who studies methods that control the behavior of AI models. He said those fears would feel more realistic if there was theoretical evidence of the ability for one of these models to self-replicate on other systems.

“Then you can imagine things can get really out of hand because suddenly you’re shutting this model down here and there but it’s popping up over in Russia, you can’t even get to Russia and it’s all over the place,” Thickstun said.

“But it’s completely unrealistic because the current smart versions of these models that we have require massive data centers just to run them,” Thickstun said. “There’s actually very little computing infrastructure out there in the world that is actually capable of hosting these systems.”

The new map was drawn to help Republicans gain a U.S. House seat in the pivotal midterm elections, which will determine control of Congress. The Supreme Court has twice blocked efforts to use it in November.

The latest emergency appeal comes after an unusual federal appeals court ruling that ordered a last-minute return to a GOP-friendly map even after the Supreme Court halted such a move.

The justices had left in place a Missouri Supreme Court decision requiring the state to use its previous map. The state court ruled that the new districts could not take effect unless voters approved them in a statewide referendum.

The U.S. Supreme Court gave supporters of the new map until midday Wednesday to respond to the latest appeal.

The dispute has caused confusion for over a million potential voters who could be shuffled among districts. Absentee voting already is underway in Missouri using districts adopted in 2022, after the last census.

The new congressional map backed by Trump significantly reshapes a Kansas City-based district held by Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver. Republicans hope the map could help them win seven of the state’s eight House seats — one more than they currently hold.

Missouri’s redistricting battle has been the longest and most complex among roughly a dozen states that sought to change their U.S. House districts over the past year. Districts are usually redrawn at the start of each decade, after a census. But Trump spurred a spate of mid-decade redistricting last year when he urged Republican-led states to redraw districts to gain an edge in the midterm.

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“Let’s go, Rockies!” a fan shouted Tuesday from section 130, just behind home plate in the lower bowl.

It was one of the few cheers the Rockies would receive on a night they reached an ignominious historical mark.

Behind three hits from former Rockies All-Star Nolan Arenado and seven innings of two-hit ball from Michael Soroka, the Diamondbacks beat the Rockies 7-2 to guarantee Colorado its fourth straight season with at least 100 losses in front of an announced crowd of 19,324 (along with an estimated 800 dogs on one of Rockies’ Bark at the Park nights).

The Rockies became just the fifth club in major league history to lose at least 100 games in four consecutive seasons and the first to do so since the New York Mets in their expansion season of 1962 through 1965.

“You learn your hardest lessons in difficulty in life,” said Warren Schaeffer, in his first season as Colorado’s full-time manager. “This is not easy. Last year, we talked about it at the end of the year, how we want to feel this and never feel it again and remember it and hold on to it. The guys have done that. We’ve just lost 100 again. There are a ton of lessons to learn from it. If we don’t learn these lessons from these games this year, we won’t get better.”

It’s the latest low for a franchise that has made the playoffs just twice since 2010 and hasn’t won a playoff series since a memorable run to the World Series in 2007. Since the start of the 2023 season, the Rockies are a major league-worst 220-423, 23 games worse than the next-closest team (the Chicago White Sox).

“I’ve been a part of those here when I was here,” Arenado said. “With the young group that they have, sometimes, this is just a part of it. You’re going to go through some tough times. But I think from their offense and some of their bullpen guys, they’ve got some real arms and they’ve got some really good hitters. As they continue to grow, I think that’s going to change.”

For much of the season, it looked as if Colorado would avoid 100 losses. On Aug. 16, the Rockies beat the San Francisco Giants 13-7 for their fourth win in five games, improving to 50-74. Since then, however, Colorado has gone 7-26, including 2-13 in its past 15 games.

Some of their struggles remain familiar.

As it has for much of its history, an organization tasked with playing baseball a mile above sea level has struggled keeping opponents off the board. Entering Tuesday, the Rockies had a team ERA of 5.57, the highest mark in the majors. Colorado has finished with the highest team ERA every season since 2022 and if it does so again this year, it will become only the third club since 1913 to have the worst ERA in the majors in five consecutive seasons.

The Rockies also compete in the same division as the Los Angeles Dodgers, the two-time reigning World Series champions, and the San Diego Padres, who are on the verge of their fifth postseason appearance in the past seven seasons. This season, Colorado went a combined 5-21 against the Dodgers and Padres.

The Rockies did improve this year after losing a franchise-record 119 games last season. Rookie first baseman TJ Rumfield entered Tuesday fifth in the National League with a .300 batting average and led all qualified rookies in batting average and on-base percentage. Hunter Goodman, Colorado’s 26-year-old catcher, was an All-Star for a second consecutive season and is one home run shy of becoming the first Rockies player with 40 homers in a season since 2019.

"I think everything we’re doing inside this clubhouse — coaches, players, front office, all staff — has been doing an incredible job to make sure that this team and this org is heading in the direction that is winning,” said Rockies starter Kyle Freeland, a Denver native who is in his 10th season with the club. “You see it.”

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The grim warning by the University of Chicago-based Climate Impact Lab says that as many as 451,000 more heat-related deaths between June and the end of February could be attributed to El Nino, compared with heat deaths expected in a typical year.

The heaviest toll, the group says, is expected in poorer countries, already struggling with food insecurity and high energy costs, partly due to climate change and the fallout of the war in Iran.

Michael Greenstone, a co-founder of the group and the study's co-author, said the heat danger will likely persist beyond February — even though this El Nino is expected to end by then. The fallout of the weather phenomenon could be felt well into next summer, he added.

The research, he said, shows that heat is most dangerous in places that are already hot and relatively poor.

“If you’re already in a hot place, the extra couple of degrees are going to be much more dangerous,” he said. Wealthier places, he added, generally have greater access to air conditioning, reliable water supplies and functioning health systems.

The study combined seasonal temperature forecasts with localized estimates of how high temperatures affect mortality across more than 24,000 regions worldwide.

Researchers estimated the additional heat-related deaths by comparing deaths expected under El Nino-driven high temperatures with deaths expected if temperatures remained similar to what they have been in the last three decades. The projected fatalities are for the entire El Nino period, from June 2026 until the end of February 2027.

The report says the Global South will see more heat-related deaths

The study by Greenstone and his colleagues also warns that the Global South — a term that isn't geographical but a reference to developing countries in general — will bear the heaviest burden of the excessive heat.

The researchers behind the report found that the Sahel region in Africa — countries along the semiarid southern fringe of the Sahara Desert — is expected to be the hardest-hit, with about 66,800 additional deaths caused by El Nino-driven heat.

Other major hot spots include South and Southeast Asia and parts of Latin America, according to the report. The researchers project about 19,400 additional heat-related deaths across the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia, as well as 19,300 in Indonesia, 15,800 in India and 13,300 in Brazil.

Heat warnings and cooling centers could prevent thousands of deaths

With such staggering numbers, there are recommended measures that governments can take, the report says. They include heat-warning systems, cooling centers, hydration stations, protections for outdoor workers, expanded hospital capacity and targeted outreach to elderly people and other vulnerable groups.

The authors also call for what they describe as anticipatory financing, so governments can move resources before dangerous heat peaks.

Abhiyant Tiwari, a heat expert at NRDC India who was not involved in the study, said the report’s projections should serve as a call to action rather than be another reason for alarm.

But while it's one thing to have well thought-out plans — as India does — implementing these plans and raising needed funds remains a challenge, he said.

"The real measure of our preparedness is not how many heat warnings we issue, but how effectively we protect people and reduce preventable deaths,” Tiwari added.

Climate change is amplifying El Nino’s record heat

El Nino is a natural climate pattern, but this year’s unusually strong event is occurring on a planet already warmed by human-caused climate change, increasing the risks from extreme heat.

The Climate Impact Lab said global land temperatures during this El Nino could be higher by about 1.2 Celsius (2.1 Fahrenheit), producing 44% more extremely hot days than in a typical year. The report said those temperature increases may mirror conditions that climate change could make common some 20 years from now.

That's why this El Nino could offer a preview of what's ahead as the planet continues to warm, the report said. It's also an opportunity for decision-makers "to see exactly where emergency actions can be taken now to save tens of thousands of lives,” the authors say.

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The thrifty Rays clinched their fifth AL East title with a 6-1 victory over the New York Yankees in the second game of a day-night doubleheader Tuesday as Drew Rasmussen allowed one hit in 6 2/3 innings and Yandy Díaz hit a pair of two-run singles.

Tampa Bay took the AL East for the first time since 2021 and surpassed that team by three days with the earliest division clincher in team history. The club also won division crowns in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season along with 2010 and 2008, when it reached the World Series and had the franchise's first winning season.

“It means a lot,” Díaz said through a translator. “It’s a tough division. It’s a competitive division almost every single year. With this group we knew that from the beginning, but we still believed in ourselves every single way. So here we are in Yankee Stadium celebrating and we feel really happy that we got the job done.”

Tampa Bay (96-61) opened a six-game lead over the second-place Yankees (90-67) with five to play and will be the No. 1 seed with home-field advantage in the American League playoffs. The Rays are two games behind the Milwaukee Brewers for the best record in the majors and home-field advantage throughout the postseason.

The Rays have led the division since June 27 and spent 128 days in first place ahead of the Yankees, who only had Aaron Judge for 66 games due to a fractured right rib and a sore right calf that likely will keep the slugger out of next week’s best-of-three Wild Card Series at home.

Tampa Bay initially moved into first place following an 8-5 win over the Chicago White Sox on April 14 but lost the lead despite winning 13 of 18. The Rays regained the lead following a 4-1 win at Boston on May 10 and stayed there until June 13 when they lost seven of 13.

“We played really good baseball up to this point,” said Rasmussen, who underwent elbow surgery in 2023. “We got off to a little bit of a slow start in April but to play as we have since the beginning of May, this group’s different. We have a lot of fun together. We love being together and we’re trying to spend as much time as we can possibly together.”

The Rays won their latest division crown after returning to Tropicana Field and going 55-26 at home this season. Last year, Tampa Bay finished 77-85 overall and played home games at Steinbrenner Field, the spring training home of the Yankees, because the domed roof at the Trop was ripped off during Hurricane Milton in October 2024.

The Rays secured this AL East title after getting approval on a financing plan that will allow them to build a new stadium in Tampa, Florida, that is expected to open in 2029.

“Everything the franchise has been through, to have the Tampa Bay on the chest tonight, the staff, the players for Tampa Bay, all of it, just, it’s really special,” president of baseball operations Erik Neander said.

After closer Bryan Baker retired Yankees rookie George Lombard Jr. for the final out, the Rays shook hands on the field and exchanged hugs near the dugout to start their celebration.

As many Yankees fans left the stadium, Rays fans moved closer to the visitors' dugout and began cheering for the newly minted division champs. Once the party moved inside, the Rays sprayed bubbly and beer on each other while jumping up and down and dancing to loud music in their clubhouse.

“I’m very happy because this is a special group,” third baseman and AL MVP candidate Junior Caminero said. “When I (went) to spring training (the) first day, I saw this group and (thought), we've got a playoff team this year, and we did it.”

Rasmussen held the Yankees hitless until Heliot Ramos started the seventh inning with a double to left field. The right-hander exited after walking Jazz Chisholm Jr., but Kevin Kelly retired Austin Wells after allowing Lombard’s run-scoring single.

After finishing with three hits during a 2-0 loss in the opener, the Rays all but locked up the division title with a three-run seventh in the nightcap. Taylor Walls had a bunt single and Díaz lined a single to center field for a 4-0 lead. Díaz added another two-run single in the ninth for his AL-leading 175th hit.

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The two-way superstar has been on the IL since Sept. 9 due to right biceps inflammation and lingering soreness in his left knee.

Manager Dave Roberts said Ohtani is feeling “considerably” better.

“I would say if he was a five, he's probably an eight or a nine right now,” Roberts said Tuesday before the Dodgers faced San Diego.

The Dodgers clinched their 13th NL West title in 14 years without Ohtani, who was in Los Angeles for treatment when the team beat Cincinnati on the road last week. Now, the four-time MVP will have five games remaining to get some at-bats in before the postseason begins.

Ohtani is likely to resume his role as the Dodgers' leadoff hitter, especially against right-handed pitching. Mookie Betts has been atop the lineup and is hitting .373 this month.

“That's probably the way it's going to fall out, but I haven't totally decided yet,” Roberts said, adding that he would consider Betts' leadoff value against left-handed pitching. “I have to think about the entire lineup structure.”

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The Rays (96-61) secured home-field advantage throughout the American League playoffs and took their first division crown since 2021, when they won 100 games. Tampa Bay also earned AL East championships in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season along with 2010 and 2008, when the team had its first winning season after entering the league as an expansion franchise in 1998.

Yandy Díaz hit two-run single off reliever John Schreiber in the seventh and had another two-run single in the ninth for his AL-leading 175th hit. Tampa Bay opened a six-game lead over the second-place Yankees (90-67) with five to play.

In the opener, Carlos Rodón allowed three hits in eight sharp innings as New York delayed Tampa Bay's division celebration with a 2-0 victory.

Taylor Walls started the three-run seventh with a bunt single against Max Fried (5-5) when first base was left uncovered. Ryan Vilade hit an RBI groundout in the third after Díaz’s flyball moved runners to second and third.

Rasmussen (16-5) was nine outs from joining Matt Garza as Tampa Bay pitchers with a no-hitter when he gave up a leadoff double to Heliot Ramos on his 97th pitch. Garza held the Detroit Tigers hitless at Tropicana Field on July 26, 2010.

After allowing Ramos’ hit to left field, Rasmussen got the next two outs before walking Jazz Chisholm Jr. on a full count. Kevin Kelly entered and permitted rookie George Lombard Jr.’s RBI single before retiring Austin Wells on a groundout.

Rasmussen threw a career-high 114 pitches, 72 for strikes. He threw first-pitch strikes to 17 of 24 hitters and notched his fourth career double-digit strikeout game.

Rasmussen allowed one hit for the fourth time this year. He also yielded just one hit in six innings against the Yankees on April 12.

Cam Booser and Bryan Baker pitched an inning apiece to finish the three-hitter.

Fried allowed four runs and six hits in 6 2/3 innings.

The Yankees were held to three hits or fewer for the 13th time this year.

Up next

Tampa Bay RHP Ian Seymour (9-7, 4.38 ERA) opposes New York RHP Gerrit Cole (9-9, 3.63) on Wednesday night.

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Indiana kept alive its faint hopes of earning the No. 4 seed in the playoffs and home-court advantage in the first round for at least one more day. The Lynx still clinched the No. 1 seed thanks to Golden State's overtime loss to Portland on Tuesday.

Mitchell extended her league record to 27 consecutive games with 20 or more points by making a 3-pointer with a little more than two minutes to play. Aliyah Boston added 17 points and seven rebounds for the Fever.

Chloe Bibby scored all of her 15 points on 3s for Minnesota. Liatu King finished with 12 points on a night the Lynx were without Olivia Miles. The record-breaking rookie was a late scratch because of an injured left calf, and her absence clearly had an impact. Miles broke Clark's single-season scoring record by a rookie on Sunday.

Minnesota coach Cheryl Reeve said she almost held Miles out Sunday against Connecticut and that they would take the injury day by day. Reeve also opted to bench her starters for most of the final 2 1/2 quarters because she didn't want to risk other injuries after Indiana's fast start.

Indiana took control with a 14-2 run to close the first quarter while opening up a 31-16 lead. The Fever extended the margin to 38-18 quickly in the second quarter and led by as much as 57-28 the first half.

But Minnesota spent the rest of the night charging back. The Lynx — playing their backups — finally cut the deficit to single digits late in the third and when Aari McDonald drove past a defender for an uncontested layup, the deficit was 71-64 at the end of three.

The Lynx were still within 74-66 with 8:15 left, but Monique Billings made two free throws before baskets from Clark, Mitchell and Boston made it 82-66 and the Fever pulled away late.

Up next

Lynx: Hosts Indiana on Thursday in their regular season finale.

Fever: Closes out their regular season road schedule Thursday at Minnesota.

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