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According to Jessica Montes, a spokeswoman for Davie Fire Rescue, firefighters responded to the 3900 block of Southwest 84^th Terrace at about 5:18 a.m. after receiving a report about a water main break.

“Upon arrival, firefighters were advised that an alligator was present in the water,” Montes said in an email to Local 10 News.

According to Montes, the gator tried to flee into a nearby yard, but firefighters and Davie police worked together to capture the gator before it could escape.

“Davie Police utilized a catch pole to secure the alligator, while firefighters assisted by covering its eyes with a towel and helping restrain it until the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission arrived on scene,” Montes said.

Montes confirmed that the gator was turned over to the FWC and no injures were reported to first responders nor the gator.

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Pino, 55, is facing manslaughter and vessel homicide charges in the death of 17-year-old Lucy Fernandez.

Prosecutors accuse Pino, then 52, of being reckless when he lost control of a 29-foot Robalo boat in the early evening hours of Sept. 4, 2022 and slammed it into a channel marker near Boca Chita Key, killing Fernandez. Two other girls were seriously hurt, including 17-year-old Katerina Puig.

His defense team counters that the crash was merely an accident and not the result of negligence.

Local 10 News will be streaming the proceedings above.

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On Thursday, jurors visited a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission facility in North Miami. They were escorted by deputies with the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office and got a detailed look at the boat in question and could even board it to better understand the passenger positions of the girls on the day of the accident and where Pino was standing.

The jury members were able to see the exact location and the extent of the damage, giving them a different perspective from the videos and pictures they had seen in court court.

The field trip took about 40 minutes. They then went back to the courthouse after a lunch break.

There, jurors saw a drone view reenactment video ― produced by FWC and MDSO ― and underwater crash scene footage, among other pieces of evidence.

They also heard testimony from law enforcement officers.

“The vessel was overturned in Cutter Bank,” FWC Lt. Manuel Pomares said. “Cutter Bank is a narrow channel. I describe it best as a funnel.”

He added, “You really have to pay attention when you’re going down or through Cutter Bank.”

Pomares was part of a dive team that documented evidence with a GoPro camera.

“There’s a couple of Yeti type tumbler cups, and a couple of Trulys (hard seltzer) and a Bud Light can,” Pomares testified.

Proceedings wrapped up on Thursday evening and are expected to resume on Friday morning.

Pino, de 55 años, enfrenta cargos de homicidio involuntario y homicidio por embarcación por la muerte de Lucy Fernández, de 17 años.

Los fiscales acusan a Pino, entonces de 52 años, de actuar de manera imprudente cuando perdió el control de una embarcación Robalo de 29 pies durante las primeras horas de la noche del 4 de septiembre de 2022 y se estrelló contra una baliza de canal cerca de Boca Chita Key, causando la muerte de Fernández. Otras dos jóvenes resultaron gravemente heridas, incluida Katerina Puig, de 17 años.

Su equipo de defensa sostiene que el choque fue simplemente un accidente y no el resultado de negligencia.

Local 10 News transmitirá el proceso en vivo arriba.

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El jueves, los miembros del jurado visitaron una instalación de la Comisión de Conservación de Pesca y Vida Silvestre de Florida (FWC) en North Miami. Fueron escoltados por agentes de la Oficina del Sheriff de Miami-Dade y observaron detalladamente la embarcación involucrada, incluso pudieron abordarla para comprender mejor las posiciones de las jóvenes pasajeras el día del accidente y el lugar donde se encontraba Pino.

Los miembros del jurado pudieron ver la ubicación exacta y la magnitud de los daños, lo que les brindó una perspectiva diferente a la de los videos y fotografías que habían visto en el tribunal.

La visita duró aproximadamente 40 minutos. Luego regresaron al tribunal después de una pausa para almorzar.

Allí, los jurados observaron un video de recreación aérea con dron, elaborado por la FWC y la Oficina del Sheriff de Miami-Dade (MDSO), así como imágenes submarinas de la escena del accidente, entre otras evidencias.

También escucharon el testimonio de agentes del orden.

“La embarcación estaba volcada en Cutter Bank”, declaró el teniente de la FWC Manuel Pomares. “Cutter Bank es un canal estrecho. La mejor forma de describirlo es como un embudo”.

Agregó: “Realmente hay que prestar atención cuando se navega hacia o a través de Cutter Bank”.

Pomares formó parte de un equipo de buceo que documentó evidencias con una cámara GoPro.

“Hay un par de vasos térmicos tipo Yeti, y algunas latas de Truly (bebida alcohólica tipo hard seltzer) y una lata de Bud Light”, testificó Pomares.

La audiencia concluyó la noche del jueves y se espera que se reanude la mañana del viernes.

Según Jessica Montes, portavoz de Davie Fire Rescue, los bomberos respondieron a la cuadra 3900 de Southwest 84th Terrace alrededor de las 5:18 a.m. tras recibir un reporte sobre una rotura de una tubería principal de agua.

“Al llegar, se informó a los bomberos que había un caimán en el agua”, dijo Montes en un correo electrónico enviado a Local 10 News.

Según Montes, el caimán intentó huir hacia un patio cercano, pero los bomberos y la policía de Davie trabajaron juntos para capturarlo antes de que pudiera escapar.

“La Policía de Davie utilizó un lazo de captura para asegurar al caimán, mientras que los bomberos ayudaron cubriéndole los ojos con una toalla y colaboraron para sujetarlo hasta que la Comisión de Conservación de Pesca y Vida Silvestre de Florida llegó al lugar”, dijo Montes.

Montes confirmó que el caimán fue entregado a la FWC y que no se reportaron lesiones ni entre los socorristas ni en el caimán.

Hasta el momento, no se han reportado muertes ni lesiones que pusieran en peligro la vida a causa de las tormentas del jueves, aunque varias personas recibieron atención por heridas leves, informaron las autoridades.

Las autoridades de Merrillville, Indiana, a unos 53 kilómetros (33 millas) al sureste de Chicago, reportaron daños generalizados. Varias viviendas y otros edificios quedaron destrozados, árboles y líneas eléctricas caídos bloquearon calles y el viento arrancó parte del techo de una escuela secundaria.

Varias agencias de la región ayudaron a los equipos locales de primera respuesta a realizar búsquedas y a evaluar las zonas dañadas, indicaron autoridades municipales en redes sociales. Las cuadrillas trabajaron hasta entrada la noche para despejar las vías.

Marsha Smith estaba en su edificio de apartamentos en Merrillville cuando el tornado golpeó el complejo, arrancando los techos de tres edificios, derribando árboles y rompiendo parabrisas de autos antes de que la intensa lluvia causara más daños. Ella y algunos vecinos se refugiaron bajo una escalera interior, tomados de la mano y rezando.

“Cuanto más fuerte se ponía el tornado, más fuerte empecé a rezar”, relató Smith, de 54 años e instructora de RCP. “Dije: ‘Oh Dios, ya está aquí’. Dije: ‘Señor Jesús, haz que pase, que pase, que pase por encima’. Dije: ‘Dios, danos la fuerza para salir adelante’. Y simplemente empezó a destrozarlo todo”.

Smith relató que se produjo una tensa calma justo antes de que el tornado impactara. Luego sonó como un tren de carga estrellándose contra su edificio, afirmó. Agradeció a Dios que nadie resultara herido. La mañana del viernes, recorrió su vecindario y lo describió como una catástrofe.

Al menos otros dos tornados azotaron comunidades en Streator, Illinois, y Hebron, Indiana, y sus alrededores, informó el Servicio Meteorológico Nacional. Fotos y videos publicados en redes sociales mostraron daños similares a los de Merrillville. El servicio meteorológico indicó que inspeccionará los daños durante los próximos días para determinar cuántos tornados tocaron tierra en la región.

En Streator, una ciudad manufacturera y agrícola a unos 160 kilómetros (100 millas) al suroeste de Chicago, los equipos de emergencia también inspeccionaban los daños. Se instaló un centro de reunificación para residentes desplazados en el ayuntamiento, y la Cruz Roja abrió un refugio.

La alcaldesa de Streator, Tara Bedei, señaló que no se reportaron muertes. “Estamos increíblemente agradecidos por la seguridad de nuestros residentes y la rápida acción del personal de emergencia”, dijo en un comunicado. Las autoridades informaron que cuatro personas fueron atendidas en un hospital por lesiones leves.

Los equipos de primera respuesta también trabajaron durante la noche en Hebron, un pequeño pueblo a unos 80 kilómetros (50 millas) al sureste de Chicago, indicaron las autoridades en una publicación de Facebook.

Jennifer Hall estaba en su garaje en Elkhart, Indiana, cuando el viento y la lluvia se intensificaron la noche del jueves. De repente, escuchó un fuerte estruendo y descubrió que una rama de árbol había atravesado el techo de la casa que alquila. Usó cubetas para recoger el agua de lluvia que entraba por el agujero.

“Estoy nerviosa porque ha sido una cosa tras otra”, señaló. añadiendo que acababa de someterse a una cirugía y que su esposo está fuera de la ciudad.

El viernes había más de 200.000 cortes de electricidad en Illinois y más de 120.000 en Indiana, según poweroutage.us.

El jueves, las tormentas retrasaron o detuvieron vuelos en aeropuertos de algunas ciudades, entre ellas, Chicago, Filadelfia y Nueva York. Varias partes del noreste y del Atlántico medio también enfrentaron el intenso calor y la humedad. Decenas de vuelos fueron cancelados o retrasados el viernes en los aeropuertos internacionales O’Hare y Midway de Chicago, según FlightAware, un sitio web de seguimiento de vuelos.

Los tornados se produjeron después de que fuertes tormentas barrieran el miércoles la región centro-norte de Estados Unidos, causando cortes de electricidad, dañando edificios y cancelando vuelos.

En Des Moines, Iowa, un hombre de 54 años murió el miércoles en un campamento de personas sin hogar en un parque después de ser golpeado por un árbol que “se partió y cayó durante las fuertes tormentas”, informó la policía en un comunicado. No se reportaron otras muertes o lesiones por esas tormentas.

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Los periodistas de The Associated Press Hannah Fingerhut en Des Moines, Iowa, y Gene Johnson en Seattle contribuyeron a este despacho.

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

In a statement provided to Local 10 News on Friday, the family of Cardal Wyche III said they are seeking answers about the events that led to his death on April 10 at CW Thomas Park, located in the 800 block of Northwest Second Street.

“Cardal was a beloved son, family member, and friend whose loss has deeply impacted everyone who knew him,” the statement said.

The family urged anyone who was at the park that night, witnessed any part of the incident, or has photos, videos or other information to contact law enforcement.

“No piece of information is too small. Even details that may seem insignificant could help investigators establish a complete understanding of what occurred,” the statement continued.

Investigators said the preliminary investigation revealed Wyche was shot following an altercation with several people.

They said deputies with the Broward Sheriff’s Office and Broward Sheriff Fire Rescue crews responded to the scene and found Wyche suffering from an apparent gunshot wound.

Authorities said paramedics transported him to Broward Health Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 9:44 p.m.

Wyche’s family they appreciate the efforts of investigators and remain hopeful that all facts surrounding the shooting will be uncovered. They also requested privacy as they continue to grieve.

Detectives say a reward of up to $5,000 is being offered for information leading to an arrest in the case.

Detectives are asking anyone with information about the shooting or those involved to contact BSO Homicide Detective Kevin White at 954-321-4215 or submit a tip through the SaferWatch app or Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.

That level of wealth, all owned by just one person, was once unfathomable. Before Friday, the trillion dollar mark was reserved for measures like the GDP (or staggering debt ) of a handful of major economies — and, in the last decade alone, the value of some of the biggest companies to ever trade on the stock market.

Musk's new title arrives amid a wider acceleration for the richest of the rich. Year after year, his former (although now very distant) billionaires club has reaped a growing number of members — from tech titans to celebrities. All the while, more and more people worldwide are struggling to pay their everyday bills. Many have decried the arrival of the first trillionaire as the latest and most alarming example of that wealth gap.

The number “one trillion” is hard in itself for the human mind to comprehend. One trillion dollars is a thousand times greater than $1 billion. And a million times more than $1 million.

Still, here are some ways to think about how far that amount of money could go.

To the moon and back, over 200 times

Thinking about what $1 trillion looks like is almost as astronomical as the interplanetary — and at this point, still far from realized — goals SpaceX has laid out for itself.

In terms of physical cash, one trillion U.S. dollar bills laid end to end would stretch nearly 97 million miles (or almost 156 million kilometers). That would account for the distance of more than 200 round trip journeys to the moon — which NASA says sits an average of 238,855 miles (nearly 384,400 kilometers) away from Earth. It would also surpass the roughly 93 million miles (about 150 million kilometers) between Earth and the sun.

$122 for every person on Earth

There are nearly 8.2 billion people living on Earth today, per the latest numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau. If $1 trillion was divided among the entire population, each person would receive almost $122.

Double the GDP of South Africa

One trillion dollars is more than double the annual GDP of South Africa, the country where Musk was born. According 2026 numbers from International Monetary Fund, the nation’s output of goods and services stands at nearly $480 billion.

Only about 21 countries in the world have a GDP over the trillion dollar mark today. The U.S. and China lead the pack at more than $32.38 trillion and $20.85 trillion, respectively, but that's far ahead most other economies.

2.5 million homes in the US

Houses sold in the U.S. have a median sales price of about $403,200, per the latest numbers from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. With $1 trillion, you could buy nearly 2.5 million homes at that cost.

243 billion gallons of gas

At current U.S. gas prices — which averaged at nearly $4.11 a gallon Friday per AAA — $1 trillion could buy more than 243 billion gallons of regular fuel.

To help put that in context, that far surpasses the nearly 137 billion gallons Americans used on finished motor gasoline all last year. And prices at the pump were much less expensive in 2025. Steep oil prices, spanning from the U.S. and Israel's ongoing war against Iran, propelled the national average above $4 a gallon for the first time in four years.

Over $700 billion ahead the world's second richest person

According to Forbes, the second richest person in the world today is Google co-founder Larry Page — who carried a net worth of nearly $293 billion as of Friday morning. That's $707 billion under the trillion dollar mark.

In fact, the combined net worth, as of Friday, of the four men following Musk on Forbes' richest list — which, beyond Page, includes fellow Google co-founder Sergey Brin ($270 billion), Amazon's Jeff Bezos ($251 billion) and Oracle’s Larry Ellison ($230 billion) — amounted to just over $1.04 trillion.

Those fortunes can oscillate by tens of billions of dollars by the day, or sometimes a matter of hours. Musk's own net worth has rapidly ballooned in value. Just last year, his net worth sat at $342 billion per Forbes — up from $195 billion in 2024.

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For the next month, you won’t need a passport to take a trip around the world — just an appetite.

At the Loews Miami Beach Hotel, the FIFA World Cup is showing up on the menu.

“We have some globally inspired food options here at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel, as well as some cocktails that are also globally inspired,” said entertainment expert Paul Zahn.

The hotel’s “Culinary Cup Series” pairs matchups on the field with flavors from around the globe.

From smoky cocktails inspired by Mexico and Germany to dishes celebrating countries like Saudi Arabia, Uruguay and beyond, the idea is simple.

In Coconut Grove, the World Cup is coming with a side of waterfront views.

At Bayshore Club Bar & Grill, fans can watch matches on the big screen while overlooking Biscayne Bay.

Over on South Beach, Queen Miami Beach is leaning into the international spirit of the tournament.

With special watch parties for matchups like Brazil vs. Scotland and Colombia vs. Portugal, along with cocktails designed to celebrate the pursuit of gold, the venue is embracing the excitement of the competition.

And if your ideal match day looks more like a night out, E11EVEN plans to keep the celebration going around the clock, with match viewings, DJs and performances turning every game into an all-day, all-night event.

The World Cup isn’t just taking over hotels and nightlife.

It’s popping up in some pretty unexpected places, too.

On Miami Beach, Reefline’s “Big Goals” installation is using soccer as a way to talk about art, ocean conservation and community engagement.

In Broward County, Amerant Bank Arena is hosting free watch parties throughout the tournament, offering fans a chance to cheer together without heading to Hard Rock Stadium.

Durante el próximo mes, no necesitará un pasaporte para dar una vuelta al mundo, solo apetito.

En el hotel Loews Miami Beach, la Copa Mundial de la FIFA también está presente en el menú.

“Tenemos algunas opciones gastronómicas inspiradas globalmente aquí en el Loews Miami Beach Hotel, así como algunos cócteles que también están inspirados en distintas partes del mundo”, dijo el experto en entretenimiento Paul Zahn.

La “Serie Copa Culinaria” del hotel combina los enfrentamientos en la cancha con sabores de todo el mundo.

Desde cócteles ahumados inspirados en México y Alemania hasta platillos que celebran a países como Arabia Saudita, Uruguay y otros más, la idea es simple.

En Coconut Grove, la Copa del Mundo llega acompañada de vistas frente al mar.

En Bayshore Club Bar & Grill, los aficionados pueden ver los partidos en pantalla gigante mientras disfrutan de la vista de la bahía de Biscayne.

En South Beach, Queen Miami Beach está adoptando el espíritu internacional del torneo.

Con fiestas especiales para ver partidos como Brasil contra Escocia y Colombia contra Portugal, además de cócteles diseñados para celebrar la búsqueda del oro, el lugar está aprovechando al máximo la emoción de la competencia.

Y si para usted el día perfecto de partido se parece más a una noche de fiesta, E11EVEN planea mantener la celebración activa las 24 horas, con transmisiones de partidos, DJ y espectáculos que convierten cada encuentro en un evento de día y de noche.

La Copa del Mundo no solo está tomando protagonismo en hoteles y centros de vida nocturna.

También está apareciendo en algunos lugares bastante inesperados.

En Miami Beach, la instalación “Big Goals” de ReefLine utiliza el fútbol como una forma de hablar sobre arte, conservación oceánica y participación comunitaria.

En el condado Broward, Amerant Bank Arena está organizando fiestas gratuitas para ver los partidos durante todo el torneo, ofreciendo a los aficionados la oportunidad de apoyar juntos a sus equipos sin tener que ir al Hard Rock Stadium.

Starmer has seen the departure of several junior and senior ministers in recent weeks, as Labour Party lawmakers revolt and rivals plot, in despair at the government’s relentless unpopularity.

But the sudden resignation of Defense Secretary John Healey is a heavy blow. Healey quit Thursday, warning that the government is not spending enough on the military to keep Britain safe “at this time of rising threats.”

His departure hits Starmer in the one place the often embattled prime minister has won consistent praise: the world stage.

Since taking office after a landslide election victory in July 2024, Starmer has bolstered support for Ukraine, working with French President Emmanuel Macron on a multinational “coalition of the willing” to help guarantee the country’s security if a ceasefire is reached.

France and the U.K. also have put together a maritime security force that would help keep the Strait of Hormuz open to shipping if the Iran war ends.

Starmer has also argued strongly that European nations must do more to fund their own defense in response to President Donald Trump ’s criticism of the United States’ NATO allies.

“Starmer has been consistently staunch about warning of the security risk from Russia,” said Olivia O’Sullivan, head of the U.K. in the World program at the Chatham House think tank. “He’s been given quite a bit of credit by the public for having to deal with Trump and doing so with a level of steadiness and calm. And he has been, in line with previous U.K. governments, a close and consistent ally of Ukraine.”

At issue is money for defense

At issue is the government’s long-awaited Defense Investment Plan, a road map for how the U.K. will increase military spending to 3.5% of GDP by 2035. The U.K. military is also seeking to reverse years of decline in the face of an increasingly assertive Russia, which invaded its neighbor Ukraine in 2022 and increasingly tests the defenses of European nations with overt and covert activity.

Healey says defense spending must reach 3% of GDP by 2030. He quit in frustration after Treasury chief Rachel Reeves refused to budge on a plan that falls short of that.

He cited a British intelligence assessment that Russia could attack a NATO member country as soon as 2030 and said a lower-than-needed spending plan “could make the country less safe.”

Critics argue that military spending can be a bottomless pit, and point out that procurement projects regularly run over time and over budget.

Former Armed Forces Minister Al Carns, who quit on Thursday a few hours after Healey, said it is not just a question of spending more money, but spending it wisely. He said the investment plan was not “transformative enough.”

“I want to see a higher percentage for uncrewed systems, AI, data — data is the new gunpowder — and we’ve got to move that forward if we are going to win the next war,” he told the BBC.

Resignations could hasten Starmer’s exit from office

Healey is not the first government minister to resign. Last month Starmer lost several junior ministers and then Health Secretary Wes Streeting, who quit so that he can run for party leader if a contest is triggered.

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham is widely expected to challenge Starmer for the leadership if he is elected to Parliament in a special election on Thursday.

But the departure of Healey, long seen as a loyal minister without personal leadership ambitions, “suggests that Starmer’s credibility, even with his inner circle of ministers, is perhaps draining away,” O’Sullivan said.

Starmer insisted Friday he is staying put, saying it’s his job to make “hard-edged decisions.”

He told the BBC that defense is “my number one priority. And I have taken the difficult decisions to make sure that we are safe as a country.”

“I’m not going to go away. I don’t think we should plunge the country into the chaos of a leadership election,” he said. “I don’t think it should happen, but if it does, then I will fight.”

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Associated Press writer Danica Kirka contributed to this story.

Los registros de la cárcel en línea muestran que Ashley Marie Hosendove, de 32 años, enfrenta un cargo de alteración del orden público/quebrantamiento de la paz.

Según documentos judiciales, una orden de arresto judicial fue emitida el 1 de junio contra Hosendove por un incidente ocurrido el 12 de marzo.

Un informe de arresto indica que Hosendove fue víctima de una agresión presuntamente cometida por su novio ese día.

Pero mientras su novio era puesto bajo custodia por la policía, Hosendove comenzó a “gritar y proferir obscenidades” contra los agentes presentes en la escena y se negó a proporcionar una identificación, señala el informe.

La policía dijo que las acciones de Hosendove, que fueron captadas por cámaras corporales, provocaron que vecinos se reunieran afuera.

Según la Oficina del Sheriff de Miami-Dade (MDSO), la balacera fue reportada alrededor de las 2 a.m. del miércoles en una vivienda ubicada en Northwest First Court cerca de la calle 16.

Las autoridades dijeron que la niña, identificada por un familiar como Janova Park, sufrió heridas de bala en el estómago y el torso y fue trasladada de emergencia al HCA Florida Kendall Hospital, donde posteriormente murió.

“Sabemos que al momento de la balacera había tres adultos y dos niños: la víctima, que tenía 5 años, y su hermano de 4 años”, dijo el detective de la MDSO Angel Rodriguez el miércoles.

Los detectives confirmaron que Hosendove estaba entre los adultos que se encontraban dentro de la vivienda al momento de la balacera.

Los detectives dijeron que todavía intentan determinar cómo Janova recibió el disparo, incluyendo si pudo haber tenido acceso al arma por sí misma o si otra persona le disparó.

Hannah Yechivi, de Local 10, habló el miércoles con Laticha Ellison, abuela de Janova, quien dijo que la balacera pudo haberse evitado.

“Mi nietecita tiene 5 años”, dijo Ellison entre lágrimas. “Solo tiene 5 años. Me da rabia porque algo así no debería poder ocurrir, especialmente en tu propia casa, por descuido”.

Ellison describió a su nieta como “inteligente y atrevida”.

Los investigadores dijeron que recuperaron un arma dentro de la vivienda y que “no están buscando a ninguna persona que pueda representar una amenaza para la comunidad”.

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Now, the 21-year-old defender is on the verge of making that dream a reality.

Freeman is expected to make his World Cup debut with the U.S. Men’s National Team, marking a major milestone in a journey that began in South Florida.

Despite his age, Freeman said he’s embracing the pressure that comes with competing at the highest level.

“I think, yeah, for me it’s my first World Cup and I’m the young guy,” Freeman said in an exclusive interview with Local 10 News. “I think as well for me it’s always going to be a lot of pressure, but for me, it’s how can I deal with the pressure and make it into something great when I play.”

For Freeman, the moment is about more than personal achievement. It’s an opportunity to represent the people who helped him reach this point.

“I think for me it’s to realize that I’m not only doing it for the fans and for myself,” Freeman said. “I’m doing it for the people that helped me get to this point. From Fort Lauderdale, from where I’m from, and it just means so much that I’m able to have that kind of support back home.”

Freeman said taking the leap to pursue a professional soccer career came with uncertainty, but the encouragement he received from family, friends and his South Florida community helped fuel his confidence.

“Knowing that I took a risk and I had so many people backing me, encouraging me to do this,” he said.

Representing the United States on the international stage is something Freeman said he does not take lightly.

“For me it’s such an honor,” Freeman said. “But I know honor comes with privilege, knowing that you have the privilege and the confidence and desire to be able to wear the shirt and perform when you’re in it.”

As he prepares to step onto the field, Freeman said he remains focused on carrying that responsibility with gratitude and pride.

“Always having that honor and grateful energy that you don’t get to wear this every day,” he said. “And when you do get to wear it, it’s to wear with pride.”

For the former Broward County standout, the upcoming match represents the latest chapter in a remarkable rise from local soccer fields to the global stage — one that South Florida will be watching closely.

Ahora, el defensor de 21 años está a punto de convertir ese sueño en realidad.

Se espera que Freeman haga su debut en la Copa del Mundo con la Selección Masculina de Estados Unidos, marcando un importante hito en una trayectoria que comenzó en el sur de Florida.

A pesar de su edad, Freeman dijo que está aceptando la presión que conlleva competir al más alto nivel.

“Creo que sí, para mí es mi primera Copa del Mundo y soy el joven del grupo”, dijo Freeman en una entrevista exclusiva con Local 10 News. “También creo que para mí siempre habrá mucha presión, pero la cuestión es cómo puedo manejar esa presión y convertirla en algo grandioso cuando juego”.

Para Freeman, este momento es mucho más que un logro personal. Es una oportunidad para representar a las personas que lo ayudaron a llegar hasta este punto.

“Creo que para mí es darme cuenta de que no solo lo hago por los fanáticos y por mí mismo”, dijo Freeman. “Lo hago por las personas que me ayudaron a llegar hasta aquí. Desde Fort Lauderdale, de donde soy, y significa muchísimo poder contar con ese tipo de apoyo en casa”.

Freeman dijo que dar el salto para perseguir una carrera profesional en el fútbol estuvo acompañado de incertidumbre, pero el respaldo que recibió de su familia, amigos y de su comunidad en el sur de Florida fortaleció su confianza.

“Saber que asumí un riesgo y que tenía a tantas personas apoyándome y alentándome a hacer esto”, dijo.

Representar a Estados Unidos en el escenario internacional es algo que Freeman asegura no toma a la ligera.

“Para mí es un gran honor”, dijo Freeman. “Pero sé que el honor viene con privilegios, saber que tienes el privilegio, la confianza y el deseo de poder vestir esta camiseta y rendir cuando la llevas puesta”.

Mientras se prepara para salir al campo, Freeman dijo que sigue enfocado en asumir esa responsabilidad con gratitud y orgullo.

“Siempre tener ese honor y esa energía de gratitud, porque no puedes vestir esto todos los días”, dijo. “Y cuando tienes la oportunidad de vestirlo, es para hacerlo con orgullo”.

Para el ex destacado jugador del condado Broward, el próximo partido representa el capítulo más reciente de un ascenso extraordinario desde las canchas locales hasta el escenario mundial, uno que el sur de Florida seguirá muy de cerca.

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The low-pressure area is an amalgamation of the remnants of Tropical Storm Cristina that crossed Central America from the eastern Pacific over the past few days and a westward-moving tropical disturbance. As of Friday morning, the low-pressure area remained broad and thunderstorm activity was disorganized.

Because the disturbance is situated so far south in the lower reaches of the Gulf and Bay of Campeche, there’s a small window today and Saturday for it to overperform and become a short-lived tropical depression or storm (Arthur, in the off-chance it’s named), but odds are stacked against it given the presence of dry, continental air to the west and a curtain of wind shear to the north.

Regardless, significant development isn’t expected before the system moves inland over northeastern Mexico late Saturday into early Sunday.

But wait, there’s more…

As we discussed in yesterday’s newsletter, the newcomer AI models suggest residual spin from the disturbance could re-emerge back over the northern Gulf south of Texas come the early to middle part of next week, where a stalled front could help to energize it and deflect the low-pressure area eastward toward the north-central Gulf Coast.

This is reflected in a handful of scenarios in both Google’s DeepMind machine learning-based model and the European Centre’s AI ensemble system.

It’s worth noting that development is only shown in about 10% of the scenarios from both AI modeling camps and for now none of the conventional physics-based models like the European model or American GFS show any development next week. Additionally, the handful of development scenarios shown by the AI models maintain a weak system.

Given the track record (pun intended) of the AI models last season, we’ll keep an eye on the trends as the disturbance loiters near or over Gulf waters.

Tropical air aggravates Deep South rains early next week

The upshot will be an infusion of tropical air into the Deep South and Southern Plains beginning this weekend and into next week, which will enhance the heavy rainfall threat associated with the approaching cold front and along the stalled frontal zone.

The National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center is indicating a slight risk of excessive rainfall for these areas starting on Sunday and bleeding into the northern Gulf Coast for the middle part of next week. This could lead to scattered, localized flash flooding from parts of eastern Texas to Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.

On the eve of Friday's match between Bosnia and Canada, members of the genre-bending rock group met The Associated Press in the Sarajevo neighborhood where they filmed the new music video for the accordion-heavy earworm, now titled “I Am From Bosnia, Take Me to America.” In less than three weeks, the video celebrating soccer's working-class roots has notched nearly 2 million views on YouTube — on top of the 26 million views the original “USA,” released in 2011, has amassed over the years.

“It’s an interesting story how this song got its second and third and fourth incarnation in these 15 years,” muses Vedran Mujagić, bassist for the band that has woven political and social causes into its identity. “It evolved from this satirical take on immigration and (the) American Dream and it was translated into (an) American football dream for the entire nation.”

Bosnia-Herzegovina is making only its second appearance at a World Cup, a goal that once seemed improbable as more traditional soccer powers stood in the way of qualification. At the end of April, though, Bosnia's late goal against Wales propelled the team to a victorious penalty shootout, a feat it would replicate days later against Italy. The band members were surprised when fans unfurled a banner emblazoned with their lyrics, singing them as a rallying cry.

“First, it was working as a joke, but what I like the most is the supporters kind of loaded completely new meaning to the old song, and this is the best thing for the band or for the song: when people take over and load new meaning and then it becomes theirs,” keyboardist Brano Jakubović says. “It’s not ours anymore.”

An own goal lament turns joyous

The original “USA” is as up-tempo and catchy — it's hard not to wander around muttering, “I can no longer wait, take me to United States / Take me to Golden Gate, I will assimilate” — but its protagonist's eagerness to flee slides quickly to disenchantment with life outside the Balkans.

The band decided to deliver an updated version of what Jakubović describes as a “typical immigrant song,” writing new lyrics befitting a soccer anthem. While “USA” is in English, this version is mostly in Bosnian — “so people will understand,” he says — and mostly about the sport. The language switch has done nothing to lessen its global appeal, as a quick perusal of the YouTube comments suggests, though there are some jokes Jakubović acknowledges would be inscrutable outside Bosnia. (See: burek without cheese.)

Jakubović’s favorite new line is a chance to excise something that has haunted the country since the 2014 World Cup: “And that goal against Nigeria, that was never offside.”

“So this is like a big national trauma in Bosnia, so I used the song and lyrics to kind of release this trauma,” he says.

He's being wry there, but trauma has been a mainstay since Bosnia's independence amid the dissolution of Yugoslavia in 1992. Interethnic war almost immediately broke out, leading to genocide. More than 30 years after the Srebrenica massacre, deep division between Bosnian Serbs and Bosniak Muslims persist.

“Football in this moment is much more than just a game, it's a hope and it’s very basically (a) political thing because it brought all the people from Bosnia together, which is usually not the case,” Jakubović says.

I am from Bosnia, take me to ... Canada?

Bosnia's first match is in Canada, but the team will indeed be taken to America. Their base camp is in Sandy, Utah, and the other group stage matches — against Switzerland and Qatar — are in the States. And, as Mujagić points out, many of the players were born in the U.S. or elsewhere in the diaspora.

“They are children of those people who went outside in search of a better life or as refugees or whatever their story was. And they kind of see and hear these lyrics and this song entirely differently from us,” he says.

Mujagić thinks the original message of “USA” endures as Bosnians still emigrate. Once they leave, he finds, “they encounter this hostility of the locals, right-wingers, and they just don’t want them there.”

“So it’s this schizophrenic situation in which you want to go there, but you somehow know that you won’t have it good on the other side as well,” he concludes. “So in that sense, this song still works perfectly well as it worked before.”

In St. Louis, home to a thriving Bosnian community, Admir Hodzic is one of the founders of the supporter group BH Loyals. The 40-year-old business owner was born in Bosnia and has moved back and forth between his homeland and the U.S., not unlike the protagonist of “USA.”

“I think every Bosnian that lives here and understands how the system works and everything else, I think they will find the truth in that song, and that song is honestly nothing but the truth,” he says. There are more opportunities in the U.S. than elsewhere, he says, but “it's a matter of biting your teeth and pulling through the worst times possible.”

He and his fellow supporters are big fans of Dubioza Kolektiv and sing their anthem at matches and watch parties. More often than not, though, it's the original “USA.”

“It’s engraved in their brain and their hearts,” he says, “and no matter what, they just go back to the old lyrics, you know?”

___

Sen reported from New York.

___

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

La zona de baja presión es una fusión de los remanentes de la tormenta tropical Cristina, que cruzó Centroamérica desde el Pacífico oriental en los últimos días, y una perturbación tropical que se desplaza hacia el oeste. Hasta la mañana del viernes, la zona de baja presión seguía siendo extensa y la actividad de tormentas eléctricas estaba desorganizada.

Debido a que la perturbación se sitúa tan al sur, en la parte baja del Golfo y la Bahía de Campeche, existe una pequeña ventana de tiempo hoy y mañana para que se intensifique y se convierta en una depresión o tormenta tropical de corta duración (Arthur, en el improbable caso de que reciba un nombre), pero las probabilidades están en su contra dada la presencia de aire continental seco al oeste y una cortina de cizalladura del viento al norte.

En cualquier caso, no se prevé un desarrollo significativo antes de que el sistema se adentre en el interior del noreste de México entre la noche del sábado y la madrugada del domingo.

Pero espera, aún hay más…

Como comentamos en el boletín de ayer, los nuevos modelos de IA sugieren que el giro residual de la perturbación podría reaparecer sobre el norte del Golfo, al sur de Texas, a principios o mediados de la próxima semana, donde un frente estancado podría ayudar a energizarlo y desviar la zona de baja presión hacia el este, hacia la costa centro-norte del Golfo.

Esto se refleja en un puñado de escenarios tanto en el modelo de aprendizaje automático DeepMind de Google como en el sistema de conjunto de IA del Centro Europeo.

Cabe destacar que el desarrollo solo se observa en aproximadamente el 10 % de los escenarios de ambos grupos de modelos de IA, y por ahora ninguno de los modelos convencionales basados ​​en la física, como el modelo europeo o el GFS estadounidense, muestra desarrollo alguno para la próxima semana. Además, los pocos escenarios de desarrollo mostrados por los modelos de IA mantienen un sistema débil.

Dado el historial (valga la redundancia) de los modelos de IA la temporada pasada, estaremos atentos a las tendencias mientras la perturbación permanezca cerca o sobre las aguas del Golfo.

El aire tropical agravará las lluvias en el sur profundo a principios de la próxima semana.

El resultado será una infusión de aire tropical en el sur profundo y las llanuras del sur a partir de este fin de semana y durante la próxima semana, lo que aumentará la amenaza de fuertes lluvias asociadas con el frente frío que se aproxima y a lo largo de la zona frontal estacionaria.

El Centro de Predicción Meteorológica del Servicio Meteorológico Nacional indica un riesgo leve de lluvias torrenciales en estas zonas a partir del domingo, que se extenderán hacia la costa norte del Golfo de México a mediados de la próxima semana. Esto podría provocar inundaciones repentinas localizadas y dispersas desde partes del este de Texas hasta Luisiana, Misisipi y Alabama.

Según una orden de arresto, un detective de la Oficina del Sheriff de Miami-Dade informó que los videos de vigilancia muestran a Julian Jimenez en la escena del crimen y su automóvil de huida después del tiroteo ocurrido el 27 de agosto de 2019 en Kendale Lakes.

Según la orden judicial, un video de vigilancia muestra a Jiménez con una máscara y guantes, y sosteniendo una pistola calibre .40, después de que Alex Vega llegara en su auto al camino de entrada de su casa en Southwest 118 Avenue, cerca de Killian Parkway.

Jiménez, que entonces tenía 23 años, disparó, y los agentes encontraron a Vega, que entonces tenía 50 años, con heridas en la espalda, según la orden de arresto. Los bomberos trasladaron a Vega al Centro Médico Regional de Kendall, que ahora funciona como Hospital HCA Florida Kendall, según consta en los registros.

Hace más de 15 años, Vega y Rolando Ramírez tuvieron un conflicto por deudas, según fiscales federales que trabajaron en un caso relacionado.

Noticia relacionada : «Se van para siempre»: La víctima de un intento de asesinato por encargo habla tras los veredictos de culpabilidad.

En 2012, según los fiscales, Ramírez, propietario del Doral Collision Center, se hizo cargo de Vega’s Exclusive Motoring Worldwide en Doral como parte de un acuerdo.

Según los fiscales, Rasheed Ali, amigo de Ramírez y exjugador de fútbol americano de la Universidad de Miami, ayudó a organizar el complot para cometer un asesinato por encargo en 2018.

Según los fiscales, Ali, también conocido como “Fresh”, y su amigo Tamrat Mason, más conocido como el artista de reggae “Shifta”, reclutaron a Jaime Serrano, un “distribuidor de marihuana” con una deuda pendiente.

Según los agentes, el 21 de agosto de 2019, Serrano voló con Jiménez de Nueva York a Miami y alquiló un Nissan Rogue de 2018 en Enterprise Rental Car.

Pocos minutos después de que Vega resultara herido el 27 de agosto de 2019, un video de vigilancia muestra a Jiménez caminando hacia el sur por la Avenida 117 Suroeste y “hacia una parada de autobús que contenía un bote de basura donde posteriormente se encontró el arma de fuego”, según la orden judicial.

Otro video de vigilancia muestra el Nissan Rogue, “unos cinco minutos después, en la plaza de peaje de Bird Road en la autopista Florida Turnpike en dirección norte”, según la orden judicial, que no menciona cuánto se le pagó supuestamente a Jiménez.

Noticia relacionada : Agentes del FBI allanan un taller mecánico en Doral en relación con un complot para asesinar a un famoso diseñador de automóviles.

“Las fuerzas del orden encontraron una máscara y un par de guantes”, escribió un agente, según la orden judicial.

Jiménez, originario del Bronx, accedió a una orden judicial para proporcionar su ADN a los detectives el 26 de junio de 2022, y el laboratorio de la Oficina de Servicios Forenses del MDSO lo analizó, según consta en la orden.

Según los registros de reclusos, el departamento penitenciario del condado de Miami-Dade ingresó en el centro penitenciario Turner Guilford Knight poco antes de las 23:40 del miércoles.

Jiménez tenía dos órdenes de arresto pendientes: una por intento de asesinato con arma mortal y conspiración para cometer asesinato con arma mortal, y la otra por una orden de detención emitida por otra agencia, según consta en los registros.

Lea un fragmento de la orden judicial.

La editora de la mesa de asignaciones de Local 10 News, Mercedes Cevallos, contribuyó a este reportaje.

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• FBI accuses 6 of armed Margaritaville kidnapping involving blowtorch torture, extortion
• George Pino trial: Boat crash victim’s father recounts ‘beautiful afternoon’ that turned tragic
• Mother arrested on unrelated charge, released on bond after 5-year-old fatally shot in Florida City home
• Miami Gardens home invasion and homicide leads to record-breaking drug seizure
• After visit to view boat, jurors in George Pino trial see drone re-enactment, dive videos
• Woman accused in armed robbery, kidnapping of man in Miami Beach
• 12 nabbed in child sex trafficking sting ahead of World Cup, police say
• BSO: Miami-Dade couple travels to Broward with daughter to steal SUV
• El Niño Watch: Where hurricanes form and which states are most at risk during El Niño
• 6.1-magnitude earthquake strikes near Cuba; reports of light shaking in South Florida

• El FBI acusa a 6 personas de secuestro a mano armada en Margaritaville, que incluyó tortura con soplete y extorsión.
• Juicio de George Pino: El padre de la víctima del accidente náutico relata la “hermosa tarde” que se tornó trágica.
• Una madre fue arrestada por un cargo no relacionado y puesta en libertad bajo fianza después de que un niño de 5 años muriera a tiros en su casa en Florida City.
• Un allanamiento de morada y un homicidio en Miami Gardens resultan en una incautación de drogas sin precedentes.
• Tras visitar el barco, los miembros del jurado en el juicio de George Pino ven una recreación con drones y vídeos de buceo.
• Mujer acusada de robo a mano armada y secuestro de un hombre en Miami Beach.
• Doce detenidos en una operación contra el tráfico sexual de menores antes del Mundial, según informó la policía.
• BSO: Una pareja de Miami-Dade viaja a Broward con su hija para robar una camioneta SUV.
• Alerta de El Niño: Dónde se forman los huracanes y qué estados corren mayor riesgo durante El Niño.
• Terremoto de magnitud 6.1 sacude las cercanías de Cuba; reportes de temblores leves en el sur de Florida.

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Her actions in the backseat of a deputy’s cruiser after she was taken into custody were captured on multiple body cameras and an in-car camera, authorities confirmed.

According to the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded around 2 p.m. Tuesday to a Texaco gas station after receiving reports about a disorderly person causing a disturbance outside the business.

Employees told deputies that the woman, identified as Iesha Field, 33, of Brooksville, had been yelling at customers, behaving erratically and disrupting business operations. Workers requested that she be trespassed from the property, and deputies issued a trespass warning.

Investigators said Field then left the gas station and walked to a nearby mobile home park, where deputies observed her continuing to behave disruptively.

According to the sheriff’s office, Field removed her clothing and was wearing only underwear while yelling, acting belligerently and disturbing residents. Deputies said her behavior alarmed several residents, including a mother with young children, who requested that Field be trespassed from her property.

Deputies reported that Field appeared to be under the influence of alcohol and/or narcotics and attempted to de-escalate the situation by instructing her to return home. Authorities said Field, who had visible injuries to her right knee and left eye, refused commands and became increasingly combative.

Field was taken into custody, but deputies said she resisted efforts to place her into a patrol vehicle and repeatedly attempted to hit and kick deputies during the arrest.

Once inside the patrol vehicle, Field allegedly continued acting aggressively by repeatedly striking her head and feet against the vehicle’s windows. Deputies said that when they opened the patrol car door to address her behavior, she fell out of the vehicle due to her movements.

The sheriff’s office said Deputy M. LaPalme assisted Field back into the patrol vehicle, at which time she spit on the left side of his face. Authorities said Field spit at the deputy a second time while he was attempting to secure her with a seat belt.

Video shows the deputy slapping Field in the face before closing the vehicle door.

Deputies reported that even after the slap, Field continued resisting and attempting to damage the patrol vehicle as she was transported to the Hernando County Detention Center.

“Due to her continued combative behavior, additional restraints and a spit hood were utilized for the safety of both Field and responding personnel,” a press release from the sheriff’s office stated.

Field was arrested on charges of battery on a law enforcement officer and breach of the peace/disorderly intoxication. She was booked into the Hernando County Detention Center, where she was being held on a $3,000 bond.

HCSO officials confirmed that LaPalme’s actions during the encounter are under administrative review.

Sus acciones en el asiento trasero de una patrulla de un agente después de ser puesta bajo custodia fueron captadas por múltiples cámaras corporales y una cámara instalada en el vehículo, confirmaron las autoridades.

Según la Oficina del Sheriff del Condado Hernando, los agentes respondieron alrededor de las 2 p.m. del martes a una gasolinera Texaco tras recibir reportes sobre una persona alterando el orden y causando disturbios fuera del negocio.

Los empleados dijeron a los agentes que la mujer, identificada como Iesha Field, de 33 años y residente de Brooksville, había estado gritándole a los clientes, comportándose de manera errática e interrumpiendo las operaciones del negocio. Los trabajadores solicitaron que se le prohibiera el acceso a la propiedad, y los agentes emitieron una advertencia de invasión de propiedad privada.

Los investigadores dijeron que Field luego abandonó la gasolinera y caminó hacia un parque de casas móviles cercano, donde los agentes observaron que continuaba comportándose de manera perturbadora.

Según la oficina del sheriff, Field se quitó la ropa y vestía únicamente ropa interior mientras gritaba, actuaba de forma agresiva y alteraba la tranquilidad de los residentes. Los agentes dijeron que su comportamiento alarmó a varios residentes, incluida una madre con niños pequeños, quien solicitó que se le prohibiera el acceso a su propiedad.

Los agentes informaron que Field parecía estar bajo la influencia de alcohol y/o narcóticos e intentaron reducir la tensión de la situación indicándole que regresara a su casa. Las autoridades dijeron que Field, quien tenía lesiones visibles en la rodilla derecha y el ojo izquierdo, se negó a obedecer las órdenes y se volvió cada vez más combativa.

Field fue puesta bajo custodia, pero los agentes dijeron que se resistió a los intentos de introducirla en un vehículo de patrulla y que repetidamente intentó golpear y patear a los agentes durante el arresto.

Una vez dentro del vehículo de patrulla, Field presuntamente continuó actuando de manera agresiva al golpear repetidamente su cabeza y sus pies contra las ventanas del vehículo. Los agentes dijeron que cuando abrieron la puerta de la patrulla para atender su comportamiento, ella cayó fuera del vehículo debido a sus movimientos.

La oficina del sheriff indicó que el agente M. LaPalme ayudó a Field a regresar al vehículo de patrulla, momento en el que ella le escupió el lado izquierdo del rostro. Las autoridades dijeron que Field escupió al agente una segunda vez mientras él intentaba asegurarla con el cinturón de seguridad.

El video muestra al agente dándole una bofetada a Field en el rostro antes de cerrar la puerta del vehículo.

Los agentes informaron que incluso después de la bofetada, Field continuó resistiéndose e intentando dañar el vehículo de patrulla mientras era trasladada al Centro de Detención del Condado Hernando.

“Debido a su continuo comportamiento combativo, se utilizaron restricciones adicionales y una capucha antisaliva para la seguridad tanto de Field como del personal que respondió al incidente”, indicó un comunicado de prensa de la oficina del sheriff.

Field fue arrestada por cargos de agresión contra un agente del orden público y alteración del orden público/intoxicación escandalosa. Fue ingresada en el Centro de Detención del Condado Hernando, donde permanecía detenida con una fianza de $3,000 USD.

Funcionarios de la HCSO confirmaron que las acciones de LaPalme durante el incidente están bajo revisión administrativa.

Pino defeated attorney Tiffany Burress in the northern New Jersey district, where Pou is seeking a second term. The Associated Press called the race for Pino on Friday.

The district is being watched closely in this year's hotly contested midterm elections, with Republicans in particular drawing a target on the longtime Democratic-held seat.

The GOP saw an opportunity there after the 2024 election was closer than expected and Donald Trump won in places where his party hadn’t been victorious for decades.

Pino, a former Democrat, said she left the party for the GOP and criticized Democrats in the campaign for their longtime control in the region.

In a statement, Pino emphasized that she would work for those who disagree with her sometimes.

“I extend a hand to everyone across our district — Republicans, Independents, and Democrats, as well as those who have never voted before,” she said.

Pino had been critical of the slow pace of vote counting in her district, where the election ended June 2, and across the country.

“In Congress, I will help lead the fight to secure our elections,” Pino said in a statement this week. “We need mandatory Voter ID nationwide and strict limits on late mail-in voting."

In a statement Friday, Burress said she was grateful to her supporters but stopped short of backing Pino.

Pou is in her first term in the House, where she was elected after years in the state Legislature, succeeding longtime Democrat Bill Pascrell Jr., who died in 2024.

The West African nation is the latest to criminalize homosexuality, following similar measures earlier this year in Senegal.

The new penal code punishes anyone who “commits or attempts to commit an immodest or unnatural act or practices lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans-gender, Queer, intersex, Asexual (LGBTQIA+) acts” with between five and 10 years in prison and a fine, according to the text of the new penal code.

“This same penalty is applicable to persons who officiated the marriage, to the witnesses of the alleged spouses, as well as to persons who have given their consent for the celebration of the marriage and to the organizers,” the new penal code said.

Hamidou Julien, an adviser to the justice minister, confirmed to The Associated Press on Friday that the law took effect on Thursday.

Previously, homosexuality wasn't illegal in Niger, but has been heavily stigmatized.

Laws prohibiting homosexuality are common across Africa: more than 30 of the 54 countries criminalize same-sex sexual acts. Niger has joined countries like Senegal, Kenya, Sierra Leone and Tanzania, where penalties can include 10 or more years of imprisonment. In Somalia, Uganda and Mauritania, the offense can carry the death penalty.

The World Cup returns to the U.S. on Friday. On Sunday, his 80th birthday, he hosts a UFC fight night at the White House. Hours later, he’s scheduled to jet off to the G7 summit in the French Alps. But Trump set expectations even higher when he announced that the U.S. and Iran could come to terms this weekend on an agreement that would end the war.

Meanwhile, a new AP-NORC polling analysis finds independents have grown increasingly unhappy with Trump during his second term, particularly those without a college degree.

Here's the latest:

US official says Iran deal has five key terms that include destroying and removing nuclear material

A senior U.S. official said there are five key terms in the agreement: Iran’s nuclear material will be destroyed and removed, its nuclear program will be dismantled, none of its frozen money will be released until it meets certain demands, the Strait of Hormuz will be open, and Iran must not fund terrorist groups.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to provide details about the sensitive talks.

Trump on Friday lashed out at Iranian officials on social media and said, “They better get their act together, and FAST!”

NATO weighs options to defend Europe as the US plans for conflict elsewhere

NATO’s top military officer is weighing alternative plans to defend Europe should it come under attack from Russia, after the United States announced it’s cutting the number of aircraft and warships it would provide in a security crisis.

The so-called NATO Force Model is Plan A for making forces from the 32 member nations available in times of peace, crisis or war. It sets out the military assets commanders can call on in phases over the first six months of any conflict.

But last month, the Pentagon warned its NATO allies it would be scaling down its commitment to focus on potential threats elsewhere, notably from China in the Indo-Pacific region.

European countries and Canada had waited impatiently for over a year for the Trump administration to detail its plans after it warned that Europe is no longer a top U.S. security priority. They knew cuts were coming, but not how big, fast or what kind.

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Tensions between Trump and Macron could be on full display at next week’s G7 summit in France

The relationship between Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron started simply enough, with a handshake, nearly a decade ago.

But even then, there were signs of strain in their relationship — tensions that could be on full display during next week’s G7 summit in France.

Back in 2017, Trump was a brash businessman just elected to America’s most powerful office, and Macron was an upstart politician who had won his race in a landslide. At a NATO summit in Brussels, they clinched hands far longer than most people do when they meet for the first time. Neither seemed to want to be the first to break a grip so tight that it exposed white knuckles.

Nevertheless, a friendship was born. And early on, Macron seemed to be the one European leader with a knack for managing his mercurial, three-decades-older counterpart.

But by the end of Trump’s first term, the bromance had faded. And in his second term, the leaders now openly trade barbs, disagreeing over tariffs, Ukraine and the Iran war.

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A key US government surveillance program is set to expire

The surveillance tool seen as vital in preventing terror attacks and catching foreign spies is set to expire Friday after congressional efforts to temporarily extend it failed in bipartisan fashion.

It’s a significant lapse for the program known as Section 702, and even as President Donald Trump nominates a new national intelligence director more palatable to both Republicans and Democrats than his initial pick, it’s unclear how soon lawmakers — set for recess — would be able to revive the spy program.

Still, there may not be an immediate drop-off given that a court order from March authorized these government surveillance powers to remain in effect for another year.

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Ahead of G7, Carney softens tone toward Trump with trade talks at stake

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney became a symbol of middle power resistance after a celebrated speech earlier this year, but he is expected to be more muted in his criticism of Trump at an upcoming summit in Europe.

Carney’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, helped make him an international political star in January, when he declared the global rules-based order over and condemned coercion by great powers on smaller countries. The prime minister received widespread praise and attention for his remarks and upstaged Trump at the gathering.

But the Group of Seven summit of industrialized democracies that begins Monday in France comes ahead of the scheduled July 1 review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, the latest iteration of the North American free-trade pact that has intertwined the economies of the United States, Mexico and Canada since the early 1990s. It is a crucial moment in trade talks, and Trump said this week that he may not renew the deal.

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Kennedy Center board seeks pause of ruling ordering removal of Trump’s name by Friday deadline

Trump’s handpicked board at the Kennedy Center is mounting a last-minute effort to keep his name on the facade of the iconic performing arts facility before a court-ordered deadline to remove it by Friday.

The board voted Thursday to seek a stay of U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper’s May 29 ruling that said Trump’s name was illegally added to the Kennedy Center, according to a person familiar with the move who requested anonymity to discuss a private meeting. The formal request was filed late Thursday.

Cooper ruled that only Congress could institute a change to the Kennedy Center’s name and ordered references to Trump be removed by Friday. He also blocked the administration from closing the cultural and arts venue for major renovations that had been planned to start in July and last for two years.

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Where Trump has lost support with independents, according to AP-NORC polling

Independents have grown increasingly unhappy with Trump during his second term, a new AP-NORC polling analysis finds, particularly those without a college degree.

The analysis from researchers at The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that while about half of independents without a college education had a positive view of Trump around the 2024 election, his approval with that group fell to about one-quarter this spring. That shift has erased the large education gap that existed among independents in the months before Trump took office for his second term, with independents now holding similarly negative views of the president regardless of their level of education.

The analysis was conducted by aggregating nearly two dozen AP-NORC polls conducted between July 2024 and April 2026, allowing for a deeper look at how support for Trump changed during several distinct periods, including the last six months of 2024, the first 100 days of Trump’s presidency, the summer of 2025 when the Big Beautiful Bill passed, last fall’s government shutdown and the beginning of the Iran war.

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Trump is raising expectations that this time he really will close deal with Iran to wind down war

Trump has long been looking for this weekend to be a big one for his presidency.

The World Cup returns to the U.S. on Friday for the first time in 32 years after Trump threw himself into winning the bid to co-host the soccer tourney during his first term. He’ll be feted Sunday, his 80th birthday, during a UFC fight night that’s expected to draw thousands to the White House grounds. Hours after the final bout, he’s scheduled to jet off to the G7 summit in the French Alps for talks with several world leaders he’s been beefing with over war and tariffs.

But Trump set expectations even higher for the coming days when he announced Thursday that the U.S. and Iran could come to terms this weekend on an agreement that would set the pathway to end the three-month-old war that’s been broadly unpopular with Americans and has rattled global oil markets. He said he plans to dispatch Vice President JD Vance to the signing of the agreement.

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Canada’s afternoon opener against Bosnia for Group B is at 3 p.m.

The United States’ night opener against Paraguay for Group D is at 9 p.m.

Group A progress on Thursday: Mexico and South Korea each get 3 points after openers

The rest of the schedule

June 13: There are three matches: The Group B, Qatar vs. Switzerland, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Brazil vs. Morocco, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Haiti vs. Scotland, game is at 9 p.m.

Miami watch party: Fan Festival opens from 2 p.m. to midnight on June 13 at Bayfront Park

June 14: There are five matches: The Group D, Australia vs. Turkey, game is at Midnight. The Group E, Germany vs. Curaçao, game is at 1 p.m. The Group F, The Netherlands vs. Japan, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ivory Coast vs. Ecuador, game is at 7 p.m. The Group F, Sweden vs. Tunisia, game is at 10 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from noon to 10 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 15: There are four matches: The Group H, Spain vs. Cape Verde, game is at Noon. The Group G, Belgium vs. Egypt, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay, game is at 6 p.m. The Group G, Iran vs. New Zealand, game is at 9 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 16: There are three matches: The Group I, France vs. Senegal, game is at 3 p.m. The Group I, Iraq vs. Norway, game is at 6 p.m. The Group J, Argentina vs. Algeria, game is at 9 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to midnight at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 17: There are five matches: The Group J, Austria vs. Jordan, game is at Midnight. The Group K, Portugal vs. Congo, game is at 1 p.m. The Group L, England vs. Croatia, game is at 4 p.m. The Group L, Ghana vs. Panama, game is at 7 p.m. The Group K, Uzbekistan vs. Colombia, game is at 10 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from noon to 10 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 18: There are four matches: The Group A match, The Czech Republic vs. South Africa, is at Noon. The Group B, Switzerland vs. Bosnia, game is at 3 p.m. The Group B, Canada vs. Qatar, game is at 6 p.m. The Group A match, Mexico vs. South Korea, is at 9 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 19: There are four matches: The Group D, U.S. vs. Australia, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Scotland vs. Morocco, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Brazil vs. Haiti, game is at 8:30 p.m. The Group D, Turkey vs. Paraguay, game is at 11 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to midnight at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 20: There are three matches: The Group F, Netherlands vs. Sweden, game is at 1 p.m. The Group E, Germany vs. Ivory Coast, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ecuador vs. Curaçao, game is at 8 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from noon to 11 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

Miami Beach fan party: Doors open at 6 p.m. on June 20 at The Bandshell, at 7275 Collins Ave., for an event for Uruguayan fans co-hosted by the Consulate General of Uruguay.

June 21: There are five matches: The Group F, Tunisia vs. Japan, game is at Midnight. The Group H, Spain vs. Saudi Arabia, game is at Noon. The Group G, Belgium vs. Iran, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Uruguay vs. Cape Verde, game is at 6 p.m. The Group G, New Zealand vs. Egypt, game is at 9 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 22: There are four matches: The Group J, Argentina vs. Austria, game is at 1 p.m. The Group I, France vs. Iraq, game is at 5 p.m. The Group I, Norway vs. Senegal, game is at 8 p.m. The Group J, Jordan vs. Algeria, game is at 11 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from noon to 8 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

Miami Beach watch party: Doors open at 11 a.m. on June 22 at The Bandshell, at 7275 Collins Ave., for the 1 p.m. Argentina vs. Austria match.

June 23: There are four matches: The Group K, Portugal vs. Uzbekistan, game is at 1 p.m. The Group L, England vs. Ghana, game is at 4 p.m. The Group L, Panama vs. Croatia, game is at 7 p.m. The Group K, Colombia vs. Congo, game is at 10 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from noon to 1 a.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 24: There are six matches: The Group B, Switzerland vs. Canada, game is at 3 p.m. The Group B, Bosnia vs. Qatar, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Morocco vs. Haiti, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Scotland vs. Brazil, game is at 6 p.m. The Group A, South Africa vs. South Korea, game is at 9 p.m. The Group A, Czech Republic vs. Mexico, game is at 9 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

Miami Beach watch party: Doors open at 4 p.m. on June 24 at The Bandshell, at 7275 Collins Ave., for the 6 p.m. Scotland vs. Brazil match.

June 25: There are six matches: The Group E, Curaçao vs. Ivory Coast, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ecuador vs. Germany, game is at 4 p.m. The Group F, Tunisia vs. Netherlands, game is at 7 p.m. The Group F, Japan vs. Sweden, game is at 7 p.m. The Group D, Turkey vs. U.S., game is at 10 p.m. The Group D, Paraguay vs. Australia, game is at 10 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 3 p.m. to 1 a.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 26: There are six matches: The Group I, Norway vs. France, game is at 3 p.m. The Group I, Senegal vs. Iraq, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Cape Verde vs. Saudi Arabia, game is at 8 p.m. The Group H, Uruguay vs. Spain, game is at 8 p.m. The Group G, New Zealand vs. Belgium, game is at 11 p.m. The Group G, Egypt vs. Iran, game is at 11 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 27: There are six matches: The Group L, Panama vs. England, game is at 5 p.m. The Group L, Croatia vs. Ghana, game is at 5 p.m. The Group K, Colombia vs. Portugal, game is at 7:30 p.m. The Group K, Congo vs. Uzbekistan, game is at 7:30 p.m. The Group J, Algeria vs. Austria, game is at 10 p.m. The Group J, Jordan vs. Argentina, game is at 10 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 28: There is a match at 3 p.m.

Miami watch party: The fan festival opens from 1 p.m to 10 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 29: There are three matches at 1 p.m., 4:30 p.m., and 9 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from noon to midnight at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

June 30: There are three matches at 1 p.m., 5 p.m., and 9 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from noon to midnight at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

July 1: There are three matches at noon, 4 p.m., and 9 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

July 2: There are three matches at 3 p.m., 7 p.m., and 11 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

July 3: There are three matches at 2 p.m., 6 p.m., and 9:30 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from 1 p.m to 9 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

July 4: There are two matches at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens from noon to midnight at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

July 5: There are two matches at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Miami watch parties: The fan festival opens for the last day from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Bayfront Park, at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

July 6: There are two matches at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

July 7: There are two matches at Noon and 4 p.m.

July 9: There is a quarter-final match at 4 p.m.

July 10: There is a quarter-final match at 3 p.m.

July 11: There are two quarter-final matches at 5 p.m. and 9 p.m.

July 14: The fan festival is closed. There is a semi-final match at 3 p.m.

Miami Beach watch party: Doors open at 3 p.m. on July 14 at The Bandshell, at 7275 Collins Ave., for the semifinal match.

July 15: There is a semi-final match at 3 p.m.

Miami Beach watch party: Doors open at 3 p.m. on July 15 at The Bandshell, at 7275 Collins Ave., for the semifinal match.

July 18: The third-place play-off match is at 5 p.m.

Miami Beach watch party: Doors open at 3 p.m. on July 18 at The Sandbowl, behind The Bandshell, at 7275 Collins Ave., for the 5 p.m. bronze final.

July 19: The final match is at 3 p.m.

Miami Beach watch party: Doors open at 1 p.m. on July 19 at The Sandbowl, behind The Bandshell, at 7275 Collins Ave., for the 3 p.m. final.

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And Ira Parker, showrunner of “A Knight of the Seven Kingdom,” HBO's latest entry to the “Game of Thrones” universe that has charmed and disarmed viewers with its humble story of big, raw, aspiring knight Dunk and his tiny, cue ball-bald squire Egg, says it's going to stay that way.

“If anything, I’d say Season 2 might feel even smaller,” Parker said. “It’s not at all busy and everything. There’s almost some loneliness creeping into this.”

Parker spoke to The Associated Press from the island of Gran Canaria, Spain, where he's making the second season of the show based on George R.R. Martin's series of novellas about the journeys and adventures of Ser Duncan the Tall and his sidekick whose nickname obscures his true identity.

After eight sprawling seasons of “Game of Thrones” and two seasons of the almost-as-epic “House of the Dragon,” some worried about Westeros fatigue when “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” arrived in January. Instead, it was enthusiastically embraced by fans and plenty of newcomers. People seemed to want a world with no dragons or clashing kings, just an overgrown orphan without a last name trying to become somebody.

Everything about the show is scaled down. Season 1 had just six episodes averaging about 35 minutes, all of them centered entirely on Dunk and Egg.

“It is 100% a function of the underlying material,” Parker said. “We don’t want to have to stretch the story. We like building out the world and hanging out with our characters and having some fun in Westeros. But we don’t want to have odd little side quests.”

Smaller stories may be having a moment in elite TV. “The Pitt,” last year’s best-drama Emmy winner and a favorite to repeat the win, is set almost entirely in one part of one hospital. “Pluribus,” the acclaimed Apple TV+ show that will give it Emmy competition this year, has a single main character.

“Game of Thrones” was also the mother of all Emmy contenders, getting more nominations during its full run than any drama ever.

This little brother of a show could get a little Emmy attention too when nominations are announced next month after a voting period that started Thursday. Its two stars, each as unlikely to find themselves in the spotlight as the characters they play, could both get acting nominations.

Peter Claffey, who plays Duncan, is a 6-foot-5, 29-year-old former professional rugby player who has had a steady stream of supporting roles since switching to acting in 2019 but nothing remotely like the title role in a franchise series.

When he got the Egg gig, Dexter Sol Ansell was plenty experienced for a 9-year-old. (He’s 11 now.) But now he’s become a memeable charmer as the little hairless scamp who’s devoted to Dunk but sitting on big secrets.

They were both big, and lucky, finds for Parker and his team. Dexter was the first kid they looked at for Egg. And he and Claffey have established an off-screen rapport that translates to the screen.

“They’ve just been growing up together and they’re coming up together and they really do talk to each other like brothers now,” Parker said. “There’s an aspect of that that you just can’t create.”

Parker himself has a humble background and isn't used to being the center of such attention. He wrote for shows including “The Last Ship,” “Better Things” and, crucially, “House of the Dragon” before having this gig, and a sort of stardom, fall into his lap.

The sophomore year, however, is going a little roughly.

“Worst experience of my life,” Parker said, smiling but not entirely joking.

Season 2, based on Martin's 2003 novella “The Sworn Sword,” is set in a drought that they’re supposed to be recreating in Spain. But Gran Canaria is getting historic downpours.

“The whole story is about the drought,” he said. “The whole story is somebody damming the water to keep it from someone else.”

But he spoke to AP after a day of sun, with hope for more.

“If we can somehow manage to corral this thing back into its box of sunshiny-ness,” he said, “I think we’re going to have something special.”

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The request was the focus of a Broward County budget workshop Thursday.

Sheriff Gregory Tony was absent from the meeting but was watching via livestream.

“I think Sheriff Tony is watching. I think we should pull the plug and drive him crazy,” Broward County Mayor Mark Bogen joked during the workshop.

Undersheriff Steve Robson addressed commissioners about the department’s need for additional funding.

“Of course the elephant is our unresolved issue, money of this current year rolled into next year’s budget,” Robson said.

Robson also highlighted deputy starting salaries, saying they are the lowest among Broward law enforcement agencies and that deputies are leaving in large numbers.

BSO is requesting 50 additional positions, with much of the proposed budget tied to employee costs and staffing.

“Here’s a pie chart showing within the agency the different categories where the funds flow to. Personnel is 80%,” Robson said.

The budget discussion comes amid an ongoing dispute between BSO and Deerfield Beach as the city moves toward operating its own police department.

“October is when October 1 takes over -- they have their own force. What happens to the 150 officers? So we plan to absorb them through our transition plan that we’ve given to the city, and the city has refuted the plan that we put forward, so we’re kind of in that position right now,” Robson said. “Before October 1st of ’27, I plan to absorb all of those officers into the BSO.”

Commissioners raised concerns about the size of the budget request, including Commissioner Steven Geller.

“Tony asks us for more money than is available,” Geller said.

Geller said public safety remains a top priority but noted that other county services also require funding.

“It is a top priority, but it is not our only priority,” Geller said.

“Currently, out of our general revenue budget, we’re spending approximately 54% on public safety. But there’s a lot of other things we have to pay for,” he added.

Bogen agreed that the request may be difficult to accommodate.

“Based on our budget constraints right now, it isn’t realistic,” Bogen said.

The final county budget is scheduled to be approved in September.

BSO declined a request for an interview with the undersheriff and referred questions to remarks made during the meeting.

GROUP STAGE

June 11: Coverage of Day 1 of Group A matches

Mexico’s “El Tri” wins 2-0 against South Africa

• After-game analysis of the opening match
• 3 red cards mar opening World Cup match between Mexico and South Africa
• Get a feel for celebrations in Wynwood and in South Beach
• FIFA game video: Goal by Julián Quiñones
• FIFA game video: Goal by Raúl Jiménez
• FIFA post-match video: Interviews of Mexican players in Spanish and South African players in English
• FIFA post-match video: Interview of Mexico’s Coach Javier Aguirre in Spanish
• Track standings tables on Google
• Track standing tables on FIFA

South Korea wins 2-1 against Czech Republic

• After-game analysis of opening match
• FIFA Video: Goal by Oh Hyeon-gyu
• FIFA Video: Goal by Hwang In-beom
• Track standings tables on Google
• Track standing tables on FIFA

June 18: Day 2 of Group A matches

• The Czech Republic plays South Africa at noon on in Atlanta.
• Mexico plays South Korea at 9 p.m. in Guadalajara.

June 24: Day 3 of Group A matches

The Czech Republic plays against Mexico at 9 p.m. on June 24 in Mexico City.

South Africa plays against South Korea at 9 p.m. on June 24 in Monterrey.

Track the groups

• Group B
• Group C
• Group D
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Seanna Martinez didn’t realize it at the time, but she was being groomed online. By 14, she had connected with a man on a hookup app called HUD, an app she chose specifically because it didn’t have an 18-plus age restriction.

“It’s supposed to be an app where you have FWB, which is friends with benefits,” she said. “I kind of just looked for something that was not necessarily for adults.”

She remembered specifically seeking it out.

“I remember specifically back then I didn’t want to get on an adult dating site because the age restriction was like, ‘Oh, 18 plus,’ she recalled. ”But I remember that that app, HUD, at least back then, I believe it wasn’t 18 plus.”

The man went by the alias “Adam0041.” But detectives said he was actually Osher Mamion, a 30-year-old who allegedly wasted little time. His first message asked her age. When she told him she wasn’t 18, he responded, “Sexy,” she said.

Detectives said within minutes, they moved from HUD to Snapchat, then to Instagram, where they video-chatted between 11 p.m. and midnight. Over two days, according to a court affidavit, Mamion convinced Seanna to send him explicit photos of herself.

Seanna said older men had been pulling her in for years before Mamion:

“At that time, I was honestly speaking to so many guys online who were older than me, who would genuinely just control me,” she said. “We would be on the phone for hours at night, and that was part of the grooming process. I feel like that’s kind of where I got this idea — ‘I’m just into older men’ — but the reality was I was really just into the affection that I was receiving, and I just kind of made that my identity.”

Police said the two eventually agreed to meet in person. Seanna tried to back out, texting that they should meet another day. Mamion pushed back, telling her he had taken off work, authorities said.

“I wanted to back out, and I remember making up a bunch of excuses, just being like, ‘No, I can’t do it,’” she said. “And he was very adamant, saying, ‘Oh, I took off of work — how could you do this to me?’ And so on and so forth. I eventually — I didn’t really know how to say no — just said, ‘OK, we’ll meet up.’”

Police said Mamion picked Seanna up from her middle school in North Miami in a blue SUV and took her back to his apartment.

“I kind of just remember feeling icky, because even though online it was one thing, in person it was just kind of having someone who was ready to take advantage of you. It was very weird,” she said.

Seanna said the relationship ended after she casually mentioned Mamion to her sister, who was a year older. Her older sister took her phone and drove her straight to the police department.

North Miami Beach police contacted the FBI. Authorities said Mamion admitted to investigators that he had exchanged explicit photos with Seanna but claimed he didn’t know she was 14.

Seanna now wants parents to understand what she didn’t have: boundaries around cellphone use.

“Having boundaries with my cellphone, definitely placed by your parents. I would say they unfortunately placed too much trust in me and my cellphone, but my cellphone had predators on it,” she said.

Her message to parents is direct:

“I would say to set clear boundaries with your kids and their cellphone usage — whether that’s literally physically removing it from them at a certain time, checking it frequently, checking who they’re talking to, checking the apps that they have. That’s what’s going to help prevent things like this from happening.”

And even when kids push back, she says parents need to hold firm.

“I believe that it is the parents’ responsibility to do everything in their power to make sure their kid is safe,” she said. “So even if there’s pushback, they need to step up and be a parent and make sure that their child is not in danger, because at the end of the day, if it’s not you, it’s going to be the predator who’s looking after your kids.”

There were no immediate reports of deaths or life-threatening injuries from Thursday's storms, although several people were treated for minor injuries, officials said.

Officials in Merrillville, Indiana, about 33 miles (53 kilometers) southeast of Chicago, reported extensive damage. Homes and other buildings were torn apart, downed trees and power lines blocked streets and part of a high school's roof was ripped off.

Multiple agencies from the region helped local first responders search and assessed damaged areas, town officials said on social media. Crews worked into the night clearing roads.

Marsha Smith was in her Merrillville apartment building when the tornado struck the complex, tearing roofs off three buildings, knocking down trees and breaking car windshields before heavy rain caused more damage. She and some neighbors huddled under an indoor stairwell holding hands and praying.

“The louder the tornado got, the louder I started praying," said Smith, 54, a CPR instructor. "I said, ’Oh God it’s here.' I said, ‘Lord Jesus make it pass, let it pass, let it pass over. I said, ’God give us the strength to make it through this.' And it just started wrecking.”

Smith said there was an eerie calm just before the tornado struck. Then it sounded like a freight train smashing into her building, she said. She thanked God no one was hurt. Friday morning, she surveyed her neighborhood and described it as a catastrophe.

At least two other tornadoes battered communities in and around Streator, Illinois, and Hebron, Indiana, the National Weather Service reported. Photos and video posted on social media showed damage in those areas similar to that in Merrillville. The weather service said it will be surveying the damage over the next several days to determine how many tornadoes touched down in the region.

In Streator, a manufacturing and farm city about 100 miles (160 kilometers) southwest of Chicago, emergency crews were also inspecting the damage. A reunification center for displaced residents was set up in its city hall and the Red Cross opened a shelter.

Streator Mayor Tara Bedei said there were no reported deaths. “We are incredibly grateful for the safety of our residents and the quick action of emergency personnel,” she said in a statement. Officials said four people were treated at a hospital for minor injuries.

First responders also worked through the night in Hebron, a small town about 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of Chicago, officials said in a Facebook post.

Jennifer Hall was in her garage in Elkhart, Indiana, as the winds and rain picked up Thursday evening. Suddenly, she said, she heard a loud crash and discovered a tree limb had gone through the roof of her rental home. She used buckets to catch the rain coming in from the hole.

“I’m just nervous because it’s just been one thing after another,” said Hall, explaining she just had surgery and her husband is out of town.

There were more than 200,000 power outages in Illinois and more than 120,000 in Indiana on Friday, according to poweroutage.us.

The storms delayed or halted flights at airports in some cities, including Chicago, Philadelphia and New York on Thursday. Parts of the Northeast and mid-Atlantic also strained under high heat and humidity. Dozens of flights were canceled or delayed Friday at Chicago’s O’Hare International and Midway International airports, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking website.

The tornadoes came after severe storms swept through the Midwest on Wednesday, knocking out power, damaging buildings and canceling flights.

In Des Moines, Iowa, a 54-year-old man died at a homeless encampment in a park Wednesday after being hit by a tree that “broke apart and fell during strong storms,” police said in a statement. There were no immediate reports of other deaths or injuries from those storms.

___

Associated Press reporters Hannah Fingerhut in Des Moines, Iowa, and Gene Johnson in Seattle contributed.

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Officials say an unknown problem caused a diver to panic.

That woman went underwater, and when she didn’t resurface, she was pulled back onto the boat unconscious and rushed to shore.

The woman was taken to a local hospital, where she later died.

Foul play is not suspected.

Daniel Lomas was out on the water that day and saw the emergency response from a distance.

“Whether you’re free diving or if you’re scuba, they all come with their pros and cons,” he said. “They all come with different levels of risk for different things.”

As an experienced diver and shark safety guide, Lomas said every dive requires careful planning and an honest assessment of a person’s health.

“As you get deeper and deeper, certain things change about the dive, especially gas laws and how your body is dealing with those gases,” he said. “And that’s when you have to really make sure that that person is physically fit to do that dive.”

He added that equipment must be thoroughly checked before entering the water.

“Assembling the equipment, making sure that your regulators work, making sure that there’s no sticking or corrosion or anything that might be affecting those systems,” said Lomas.

He says, like with any sport, diving carries risks, but proper training and safety procedures can reduce them.

“If you do everything by the book, I don’t think there’s anything that can really go wrong, especially when you’re down there with over divers, other educated divers,” said Lomas.

The world's richest man is set to become its first trillionaire.

Musk on Friday marked the opening of trading on Nasdaq, where the company's shares will be listed, by joining a ceremonial bell ringing from Starbase, the South Texas home of SpaceX.

He reiterated his lofty goals “to make life multi-planetary.”

“Not just a few astronauts, I mean literally you,” Musk said. “Whoever you are watching this, SpaceX wants to be able to take you to the moon, take you to Mars and ultimately beyond.”

Known for his brilliant technology breakthroughs, as well as wild claims and missed deadlines, Musk is expected to break that trillion dollar mark in the biggest initial public offering ever as investors place bets on a company with losses as big as its ambitions. Ahead of the first trade in SpaceX, Forbes puts Musk's net worth at $982.6 billion.

In addition to establishing a one-million person Martian colony, the company has promised to save humanity by establishing other outposts in space, launch data centers the size of football fields into orbit and outdo rivals Anthropic and OpenAI in the race to make money from artificial intelligence.

To reach its goals, SpaceX needs billions more than it currently takes in from its rocket and satellite business. Between the start of 2025 and March 31, 2026, the company lost $8.7 billion.

Big institutional buyers and smaller-pocketed investors alike have indicated they are willing to take a chance, paying a high enough price for the 555.6 millions on offer to raise $75 billion. That easily tops the current title holder, Saudi Aramco, the oil giant that raised $26 billion in its 2019 initial offering.

Trading in the stock -- symbol, SPCX -- is expected later Friday.

Wall Street bankers that helped take SpaceX public are enthusiastic about the company — and the big fees they will earn — but not everyone thinks the stock price is justified.

Analysts at research firm Morningstar, which doesn't earn any investment banking fees, wrote that the IPO is “significantly overvalued" because of SpaceX's unproven technology and massive capital needs.

They estimate the company is only worth $780 billion — less than half its IPO value.

Still, Musk has pulled off the seemingly impossible before.

The soon-to-be trillionaire — on paper at least — made his fortune by creating two companies, Zip2 and PayPal, that netted him about $200 million at sale. He used that money to start SpaceX and invest in Tesla, and defied the odds by creating a space company that figured out how to reuse rockets and a car company that made electric vehicles cool.

Musk has realized vast sums of wealth for himself, much of it in stock he has yet to cash in or grants for shares he’ll only receive if Tesla or SpaceX hit ambitious performance targets. His recent pay package from Tesla drew criticism from the Vatican. At Tesla, he’s worried shareholders by fighting with regulators or dividing his attention between multiple companies and last year by taking a role in the Trump administration.

But a rising stock price has cured all ills: Since it went public in 2010, Tesla has returned 20,000% for shareholders, or more than $1.2 trillion in investor wealth. That has helped lift Musk’s pre-SpaceX IPO worth to $795 billion, according to Forbes magazine.

SpaceX is the first of three “megacap” companies expected to go public this year, with Anthropic and OpenAI to follow. Nasdaq even revised its rules to allow SpaceX to gain entry into funds tied to its indexes in 15 days, which means investors will end up buying the rocket maker's shares much earlier.

Not all investors are thrilled about SpaceX potentially showing up in their holdings of index funds. Officials from pension funds for firefighters, teachers and other workers in California and New York sent a letter to SpaceX last month decrying some of the provisions in its IPO, including the “super voting shares,” mandatory arbitration of shareholder claims instead of the possibility of lawsuits and how much power Musk will hold over the company.

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AP reporters Stan Choe and Wyatte Grantham-Philips contributed from New York.

“It was our last dive of the day - it was almost 7 o’clock,” recalled lead diver Blake Baker.

Baker said the captain of the salvage vessel DARE, Drake Nicholas, was the one underwater with a crew. They are part of Mel Fisher’s Shipwreck Expeditions.

“We were in an area with a lot of metal detector hits,” Nicholas said. “This one was deeper.”

After hitting the object with a knife and examining the surface, Nicholas said he saw telltale markings that were consistent with a silver bar.

“I didn’t believe it at the moment,” he said.

The silver bar was covered in more than 400 years of marine encrustations and will be taken to a lab for examination.

Sean Browne, with Mel Fisher’s Shipwreck Expeditions, said the bar is worth an estimated $100,000. It will likely be kept intact as a historical object.

Discovered treasures like the bar are divided among investors and then the Fisher family, Browne said.

The Atocha was a ship packed with treasures and bound for Spain in 1622, but a powerful hurricane sunk it between Key West and the Dry Tortugas.

It was never seen again, until more than 300 years later when explorer Mel Fisher started finding its sunken treasure in the 1970s.

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Attorneys for Corey Hutterli, 37, of Parkland, continued with their argument that the state’s case is purely circumstantial against their client.

Ultimately, a judge granted Hutterli a bond of $150,000.

He is accused of pushing Justin Zelin, 35, off a 25th-floor balcony at the Akoya Condominiums, located at 6365 Collins Ave. on Mid-Beach on Feb. 15.

According to investigators, Zelin was heard on a 911 call telling Hutterli to get out of his apartment, and then a struggle could be heard.

A toxicology report revealed Zelin had fentanyl, cocaine, and ketamine in his system at the time of the incident, something Hutterli’s team pointed to while questioning a detective on the case.

The defense alleged those drugs possibly put Zelin in an altered state.

Last week, Zelin’s father testified about the final time he spoke to his son.

Hutterli is facing charges of second-degree murder, burglary with assault or battery, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

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Online jail records show Ashley Marie Hosendove, 32, faces a charge of disorderly conduct/breach of the peace.

According to court documents, a bench warrant was issued June 1 for Hosendove for an incident that occurred on March 12.

An arrest report states that Hosendove was the victim of a battery allegedly committed by her boyfriend that day.

But as her boyfriend was being taken into custody by police, Hosendove began to “shout and scream profanities” towards officers at the scene and refused to provide them with a form of ID, the report stated.

Police said Hosendove’s actions, which were captured on bodycam video, caused neighbors to gather outside.

In Miami-Dade bond court Thursday, Hosendove appeared before Judge Betty Capote-Erben, a day after her daughter’s death.

“You have an open case of disorderly conduct. You were supposed to appear in court June 2,” Capote-Erben said.

“Yeah, I was late for the Zoom,” Hosendove replied.

In bond court, Capote-Erben noted Hosendove had failed to appear twice.

“Well, you didn’t appear twice. You were supposed to appear April 28th, and that one said you didn’t show and they reset your case last week for June 2nd, so you are telling me last week you logged into Zoom late?” Capote-Erben asked Hosendove.

“I was going to log in,” Hosendove replied.

According to the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, Wednesday’s shooting was reported at about 2 a.m. at a home off Northwest First Court near 16^th Street.

Authorities said the girl, who was identified by a family member as Janova Park, suffered gunshot wounds to her stomach and torso and was rushed to HCA Florida Kendall Hospital, where she later died.

“We know that at the time of the shooting, there were three adults and two children -- the victim who’s 5 years old and her 4-year-old brother,” MDSO Detective Angel Rodriguez said Wednesday.

Detectives confirmed that Hosendove was among the adults inside the home at the time of the shooting.

Detectives said they’re still trying to determine how Janova was shot, including whether she may have accessed the gun herself or whether someone else shot her.

Local 10’s Hannah Yechivi spoke to Laticha Ellison, Janova’s grandmother, on Wednesday, who said the shooting could’ve been prevented.

“My grandbaby is 5 years old,” Ellison said through tears. “She’s only 5. It makes me angry because nothing like this should be able to happen, especially in your home — carelessness.”

Ellison described her granddaughter as “smart and sassy.”

Investigators said a gun was recovered inside the home and that they “are not looking for any individuals that may pose a threat to the community.”

Hosendove’s bond was set at $1,500. She bonded out of jail Thursday night, ignoring questions from reporters.

For the second day in a row in the Canary Islands, the American pope insisted on the inherent dignity and rights of migrants and demanded they be welcomed and integrated into society, in some of his strongest comments on the politically divisive issue.

“Break those chains and free those you hold in bondage,” Leo said in a message to human traffickers that he delivered during a meeting with humanitarian aid organizations that help migrants on the island of Tenerife.

Leo wrapped up his weeklong trip to Spain in the Spanish archipelago, which is closer to Africa than the Iberian Peninsula and is a key point of entry for migrants who make the perilous Atlantic crossing from West Africa.

He is fulfilling a wish of Pope Francis to visit the islands to commemorate the thousands of lives lost at sea. He is also drawing attention to the Catholic Church’s biblically-mandated mantra to “welcome the stranger,” amid anti-migrant sentiment in Europe and the Trump administration's mass deportation program in his native United States.

During the encounter with aid groups in Tenerife, Leo implored receiving communities to integrate people fleeing war, poverty and climate change and spare them from the “silent shipwreck” of abandonment when they are left on the streets with nothing after surviving perilous crossings.

“A human conscience, and even more so a Christian conscience, cannot remain indifferent in the face of these graveyards of the sea, to the victims of shipwrecks and the lack of aid,” Leo said. “Every life lost on these routes is a failure for the human family.”

A deadly passage and a warning to traffickers

The Canary Islands have long been a stepping stone for migrants trying to reach Europe from West Africa and Morocco.

While people smugglers and human traffickers operate the Atlantic route, there are also many self-organized boats of migrants, including many former fishermen from Senegal who were left without income due to overfishing in recent years.

Migrant arrivals in the Canary Islands peaked in 2024 at nearly 47,000. They have fallen dramatically, with over 3,000 people landing there in the first five months of 2026.

Because of the vastness of the ocean and scarcity of rescue ships or monitoring, some experts consider the Atlantic route more deadly than the more well-known central Mediterranean smuggling route from Libya and Tunisia to Italy. Since 2020, several West African boats have been found in the Caribbean and Latin America with only dead bodies on board after drifting across the Atlantic, pushed by trade winds and currents.

Leo directed his remarks Friday to the criminal organizations and individual smugglers who organize these “death routes” to Europe. Such smugglers charge thousands of euros a person and often force their passengers into prostitution or other forms of black market labor by withholding their documents to pay off the debt.

“Stop. Repent,” Leo said in his message to traffickers, emphasizing each word in Spanish and drawing a sustained applause from the crowd. “For every life lost, every family deceived, every body subjugated, every woman threatened, every worker exploited, you will have to appear before divine justice.”

“Repent while there is still time, for God’s mercy can reach even the most hardened sinner, but it enters only through the narrow gate of truth, justice and conversion,” he said.

With his two-day visit to the Canary Islands, Leo has confirmed himself as the heir of Francis’ migration preaching, which was a priority of Francis' 12-year pontificate and often caused friction with U.S. and European powers.

History’s first U.S.-born pope has not only echoed Francis’ message and gestures, he has expanded and amplified them during a deeply symbolic visit. Upon arrival on Thursday, Leo threw a bouquet of flowers into the sea from a port nicknamed the “Dock of Shame” in 2020, when migrants were forced to live in squalor during a spike in their arrivals.

Leo’s gesture mimicked the one Francis made in 2013 when he visited Lampedusa, Sicily, another flashpoint in Europe’s migration drama, and denounced the “globalization of indifference” that the world showed asylum seekers.

But in a sign Leo is making the papacy his own, the 70-year-old pope has added a new gesture to his repertoire: After a onetime migrant offered his testimony during Leo's encounter Friday, the pope did the viral “6-7” hand gesture that's popular with young people as he joked alongside him. That earned the pope cheers and applause from the crowd.

Leo meets with migrants at reception center

In the Canary Islands and in remarks on the Spanish mainland, Leo reaffirmed the right of migrants to flee but also to stay home, demanding their countries of origin provide the necessary economic and security conditions. He shamed European countries that turn their back on migrants' plights, and said Christian cannot remain indifferent.

On Friday, he noted that for the Catholic Church, the process of integrating migrants into a community can become a chance at spreading the faith, “without imposing” it and in respect of the migrants’ own beliefs.

Leo opened the final day of his trip by visiting the Las Raíces migrant camp. Leo drew a round of applause when he went off-script to tell migrants that he would speak in French and English, the language spoken by many of the people living in the camp.

One woman told him of the desperation that drove her to leave her homeland and family, the trauma of the crossings, and her gratitude at finding safety and a new life.

“We aren't asking for privileges. We aren't asking for compassion. We just want respect, humanity and the chance to live with dignity,” said the woman, identified as Bousso Diouf.

Next month, on July 4, the American pope will spend U.S. Independence Day on the island of Lampedusa, where Francis in 2013 first denounced the “globalization of indifference” the world shows migrants.

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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.

But Spielberg is hardly the only one making headlines of late about UFOs and the possibility of life on other planets.

What was once considered fringe or conspiratorial has in recent months popped up everywhere from the White House to the Catholic Church, as public fascination with unidentified anomalous phenomena — or UAPs, as the government calls them — becomes more mainstream.

The Pentagon in May made public large swaths of UFO files with very little context, leaving curious sleuths to piece together their own interpretations. The dump came just weeks after former President Barack Obama set off a media frenzy for stating unambiguously in an interview that aliens are real, though he later tempered that take.

“Statistically, the universe is so vast that the odds are good there’s life out there,” the former president, who made a surprise visit to the “Disclosure Day” set, posted on social media. “I saw no evidence during my presidency that extraterrestrials have made contact with us. Really!”

Some religious adherents, as well as some nonbelievers, maintain that the existence of life on other planets might undermine many faiths because it would complicate assertions that humans are unique. But others argue the opposite.

“Belief in UFOs is really one of the best things that’s happened to religion in a long time,” said Diana Walsh Pasulka, a religion scholar at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. “It’s a blow to the secular, materialist worldview.”

An intersection of aliens, demons and Catholics

Even if broad interest in UAPs bolsters the case for an enchanted universe, some believers in religions such as Christianity think they are something to be wary of.

“I don’t think they’re aliens. I think they’re demons,” Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic convert, said in a recent podcast interview.

That sentiment was echoed by Monsignor Stephen Rossetti, formerly an exorcist with the Archdiocese of Washington. He was removed last week by the archbishop, who said statements by Rossetti “gravely undermine” Catholic teaching on demons and the devil.

“It’s my personal belief that probably many, if not most, of these UFO sightings are in fact demons,” Rossetti said in a May 29 video posted on his Facebook page. “Aliens, if there are aliens, don’t possess people.”

Christopher Baglow, who heads a science and religion initiative at the University of Notre Dame, was surprised by the firing given that Rosetti made clear in the video he was expressing his own opinion. Baglow speculated that there may be other factors behind the decision.

“I ask forgiveness for any ways that I have not been faithful to the teachings of the Church’s Magisterium,” Rosetti said in a statement online.

Despite the assertions by Vance and Rossetti about demons, Baglow maintains the Catholic Church has long been open to the possibility of extraterrestrial life. “Theologians have been speculating about this for centuries and the church has never ever taught one way or the other,” he said.

While meeting with astronomy students last year at the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV spoke about the “ancient light of distant galaxies” and the “mysterious joy” provoked by the study of outer space. Some interpreted these remarks as tacit speculation about the possibility of life on other planets.

Extraterrestrials, old and new

In one sense, the idea of otherworldly beings coming to Earth can be traced back millennia.

“People would call it the plurality of worlds. So even back in the time of Socrates and Aristotle, there were Greek philosophers who talked about beings on other planets and other stars,” Walsh Pasulka said.

But it wasn’t until after 1945 that modern conceptions of UFOs began to develop, according to Jeffrey Kripal, a historian of religions at Rice University. “The flying saucer and the alien and the UFO — it’s definitely a Cold War invasion narrative,” he said.

That narrative explains why UAPs are often perceived as hostile to humans. But it’s also evolved over time and led to the formation of some religions — like Scientology, which counts many a Hollywood celebrity among its adherents — that see extraterrestrials as good or even part of a divine plan. Some adherents to the Nation of Islam, for example, believe that its founder will inaugurate an apocalyptic return to Earth on a spaceship.

The International Raëlian Movement, also know as Raëlism, is a UFO religion that was founded in France in the 1970s. It is still practiced today, with its strongest followings in parts of Asia, Africa and Canada, according to Susan Palmer, a sociologist who studies new religious movements at Concordia University in Montreal.

Its founder, Raël, claims he is a direct descendant of Yahweh, whom Raël visited on the planet of Elohim in 1975. Raëlism claims the Buddha, Jesus and Muhammad are all hybrids of humans and extraterrestrials, as well as Raël’s half brothers.

Of the groups she has studied, Palmer argued Raëlism is the most sympathetic toward UFOs. “They’re not interested in extraterrestrial wars,” she said.

But some think that sentiment might be growing.

Kripal, who heads Rice’s archival collection of reported paranormal experiences called the Center for the Impossible, perceives an increasing openness to these kinds of conversations about the existence of UFOs — and the possibility that they are not hostile.

“People are reporting these experiences or these encounters with entities and they’re religious through and through,” he said. “My colleagues in the academy, they’re really starting to listen in a different way.”

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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.

It's a significant lapse for the program known as Section 702, and even as President Donald Trump nominates a new national intelligence director more palatable to both Republicans and Democrats than his initial pick, it’s unclear how soon lawmakers — set for recess — would be able to revive the spy program.

Still, there may not be an immediate drop-off given that a court order from March authorized these government surveillance powers to remain in effect for another year.

Section 702 allows for sweeping powers to sift through foreign communications

The provision is a part of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, known as FISA, and grants American spy agencies sweeping powers to collect and examine the communications of foreigners located outside the United States without first getting a warrant.

U.S. officials see the law as an invaluable national security tool that has helped disrupt potential acts of terrorism, yielded valuable insight into ransomware attacks on critical infrastructure and contributed to the killing of al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri in a 2022 drone strike.

The law was passed in 2008 as an effort to codify key aspects of a predecessor spy program created by President George W. Bush's Republican administration.

Since then, officials across administrations of both major political parties have warned that without the law the government won't be able to collect crucial intelligence overseas.

The program's renewal historically has been contentious

The periodic need to reauthorize the law has prompted protracted debate in Congress well before this year, including discussion over whether additional guardrails are needed to protect the privacy of Americans and their personal data.

That's because when the government eavesdrops on foreigners abroad, it also sweeps up the communications of American citizens and others in the U.S. who are in contact with those surveillance targets.

Civil liberties advocates have raised concerns over revelations that FBI analysts over the years have improperly queried the vast repository of intelligence collected through the program for information about Americans, including related to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol by a mob of Trump supporters and the racial justice protests of 2020, as well as about state and federal political figures.

Some of those advocates have said the government should be required to have a warrant before examining communications collected from Americans. U.S. officials have said that a warrant would be legally unnecessary and overly cumbersome and that corrective measures have been implemented to reduce the number of improper queries.

Complicating the debate is the unlikely political alliances it has produced, uniting a coalition of lawmakers skeptical of government surveillance that includes both privacy-minded liberal Democrats and Republicans who still regard the intelligence community with suspicion over the investigation of ties between Russia and Trump's 2016 Republican presidential campaign.

The holdup this time is tied to pushback over acting intelligence pick Bill Pulte

Democrats balked when Trump picked Bill Pulte to serve as acting national intelligence director and refused to support a FISA extension until the selection was withdrawn. Pulte, a Trump loyalist with no known national security experience, has set off alarms by using his perch as director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency to facilitate dubious mortgage fraud investigations of perceived Trump adversaries.

A House vote this week that would have temporarily extended the program collapsed, with 19 Republicans and nearly all Democrats rejecting the temporary measure, 198-218. A Senate effort to approve its own versions also failed.

After those votes, Trump announced he was tapping Jay Clayton, the U.S. attorney in Manhattan who previously served as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, as his permanent pick for director of national intelligence, or DNI. The pick was warmly received on Capitol Hill, but it was not enough to break the impasse before Friday's scheduled expiration.

Connecticut Rep. Jim Himes, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said that he has “known and respected” Clayton for decades and that had he been tapped a week ago, “lots of pain might have been avoided.”

“His intelligence, temperament and deep commitment to public service will make him a terrific DNI,” Himes said.

The next steps for the spy powers provision

Republican Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, have warned the Trump administration to prepare “for a potential significant gap in foreign intelligence collection."

The expiration is likely to be the first meaningful lapse of Section 702 since it was created more than 15 years ago. In 2024, the Senate barely missed its midnight deadline before voting to approve a bill that was then signed by President Joe Biden, a Democrat, creating a brief lapse.

Despite this year's lapse, there's no expectation of any immediate drop-off in intelligence collection as the U.S. hosts a series of events this summer with potential national security concerns, including the World Cup and festivities surrounding the 250th birthday of the United States.

A March opinion from the secretive Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court certified the program's renewal for another year, meaning that Section 702's authority is expected to remain intact for months.

Even so, it's conceivable that without congressional reauthorization, communications companies could try to cease cooperating with the government and stop complying with orders that it assist in intelligence collection.

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Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick, Lisa Mascaro and Seung Min Kim contributed to this report.

About 1,500 protesters tried to march to the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle, a key city landmark, after Friday prayers. Authorities stopped many of them and also blocked streets leading to the presidential palace, where many protests often end up. More than 6,000 police and soldiers were deployed there.

Protesters, many wearing yellow university jackets, voiced their frustration over living costs, which have risen as a result of higher fuel costs since the U.S. launched its war against Iran. Indonesia’s rupiah currency has come under pressure, hitting a historic low of 18,000 rupiah to the U.S. dollar earlier this month.

Protesters outlined five key demands, including cuts to what they called wasteful state spending, lower prices for fuel and staple goods, and a halt to major government programs such as a free nutritious meal initiative and a plan to revitalize rural areas.

The free meals program, costing about 268 trillion rupiah ($15 billion) for this year alone, is aimed at alleviating poverty and malnutrition but Prabowo recently fired the head of the program amid a massive graft probe.

They also called for an end to what they described as the increasing role of the military in civilian affairs, something they view as a threat to the young democracy.

“The government is in denial about the current situation," said Yatalathof Ma’shum Imawan, who chairs the student organization that organized the rally. “We urge Prabowo to have the courage to acknowledge his mistake and stop denying it."

Friday’s demonstration marks one of the largest student mobilizations since nationwide protests erupted last August, when thousands took to the streets and clashes with security forces left at least 13 people dead.

Similar protests were also held in West Java's Bandung city and in Pontianak, a city on Borneo island.

The remains of the girls, who were students at Utumishi Girls Academy, were placed in white coffins adorned with flowers and topped with their portraits. The coffins were lined up in front of their families, schoolmates, community members and local leaders, who called for justice.

The nine accused girls, who were students at the school, remain in police custody, with interrogations revealing that the May 28 blaze was started by lighting a mattress at the dormitory’s exit using a matchstick and paraffin. No motive has been revealed so far.

During the memorial service, hundreds of students from Utumishi Girls Academy sang a somber hymn declaring that all shall be well. One of the presiding officials reminisced about being a victim of Kenya’s deadliest school fire in 2001, when 67 boys died in a dormitory blaze in Machakos County in eastern Kenya.

Mourners called for accountability and justice as dozens of schools have closed in recent days because of student unrest. The Kenya Red Cross said that it had responded to 37 school fires since the beginning of the year.

School fires are common in Kenya, with some linked to arson attacks by students protesting disciplinary measures or scheduled examinations, while others are caused by electrical faults.

Congested dormitories, a lack of emergency exits and insufficient firefighting equipment have often contributed to loss of life and extensive damage.

Last month, Kenya's Education Ministry suspended the principal of Utumishi Girls Academy for failing to comply with school fire safety regulations. The ministry also said that it had closed more than 300 schools following a 2024 fire tragedy that killed 21 boys in central Kenya.

During the Friday memorial service attended by Kenyan first lady Rachel Ruto, the presiding bishop questioned how much longer Kenyan children and families would continue to suffer from school fires.

The school captain, Abigael Wanjiku, eulogized the girls as “friends, study partners, teammates and companions.”

“The pain of losing them is one that we will carry for a long time,” she said.

A mother representing the parents broke down in tears during her speech as she called for accountability and justice, while reassuring the surviving students that ensuring their safety remained a priority.

Over a seven-decade career, Hockney explored and reimagined classical portraiture, landscape painting and pop art, working in painting, collage, photography and digital drawing.

Hockney was born in the north of England but lived much of his life in Southern California, making its sun-drenched suburban views a major motif.

Later in life he returned to Europe, finding renewed inspiration in the wooded hills of his native county of Yorkshire and the fields and trees of France’s Normandy region. One of the most popular and critically lauded British artists of his generation, his works sold for record prices at auction.

Historian Simon Schama said it's no mystery why his work is so enduringly appealing.

“His work is admired — loved is not too strong a word — by the millions who, worldwide, flock to see it because it presupposes an expectation of pleasure,” Schama wrote in an essay accompanying a 2025 Hockney exhibition in Paris.

Hockney’s publicist, Erica Bolton, said he died at his home in London on Thursday, less than a month short of his 89th birthday. She did not give a cause of death.

He is survived by his longtime partner Jean-Pierre Gonçalves de Lima; his great-nephew and studio assistant, Richard Hockney; his brothers Philip and John; and numerous nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews.

Hockney was an icon of the swinging 60s

With his trademark round glasses and bleached-blond hair, Hockney was a well-known figure in the swinging British and American art scenes of the 1960s, even before he reached the age of 30. His paintings were just as distinctive, many of them creating a dreamlike world of patterned light bouncing off water and windows, and human forms rendered in flattened, simplified shapes in matte acrylic paint.

“I’m excited every day,” he told the Los Angeles Times in 1979. “London has lots of dreary parts but I never find anything dreary in Los Angeles.”

Hockney was born July 9, 1937, in Bradford, a large industrial city whose chief export was woolen textiles. He spent his first two decades there before going to London’s Royal College of Art. He made an impact even before his graduation, and art dealer John Kasmin took him into his stable of artists in 1961.

His artistic influences ranged widely, including Renaissance portraits, 18th-century English artist William Hogarth's satirical drawings, 19th-century English painter J.M.W. Turner’s landscapes, Pablo Picasso’s experiments in Cubism and 20th-century American pop art.

He shared with other pop artists an interest in the polished surface of modern life. And, like Andy Warhol with his Brillo boxes and Campbell’s soup cans, Hockney occasionally incorporated advertising labels, such as a British Typhoo Tea box used in his 1961 “Tea Painting in an Illusionistic Style.”

He saw success early in his career

He told The New York Times in 1964 that he enjoyed the burgeoning pop art scene in New York but wasn’t sure he was part of it.

“I’m just an ordinary artist,” he said. “I do admire American pop — in fact it seems that everything fresh-looking and vital in England these days has been coming from the U.S.”

Nonetheless, he said in 1995 that he still considered himself “very much an artist in the English tradition.”

Hockney, who was out as a gay man long before it was common, explored erotic themes, giving youthful male bodies the same tender scrutiny that artists had been giving the female nude for centuries.

Early works like “We Two Boys Together Clinging” and “Two Men in a Shower” celebrated gay relationships when homosexuality was still illegal in Britain.

Early in his career, two of his drawings were bought for the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

“The moment I first sold pictures to earn a living, I felt rich. I’ve been rich ever since,” he told The Associated Press in 1995. “I didn’t have much money but I did what I wanted. ... You are a rich man if you do the things you want to do.”

In 2018, his 1972 painting “Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)” sold at a Christie’s auction for $90.3 million, at the time a record for a living artist.

While many of his best-known paintings had American scenes, he also tackled British subjects. He immortalized his parents in several portraits and his friends Ossie Clark and Celia Birtwell in “Mr. and Mrs. Clark and Percy,” a 1971 portrait voted one of Britain’s greatest paintings in a 2005 BBC poll.

Hockney's work went beyond drawing and painting

Like many traditional artists, he considering drawing a fundamental skill and lamented that it wasn’t taught as rigorously as it used to be.

“Human beings are the most interesting things we see, so they’re the hardest to draw,” he said in a 1996 AP interview.

Hockney also embraced other media, including printmaking, photo collage and video. He contributed costume and set designs for the theater and opera, including a celebrated production of “Tristan und Isolde” first staged in 1987 at the Los Angeles Opera.

When he took up photography, he fused genres, assembling individual photos into elaborate collages like “Pearblossom Highway, 11-18th April, 1986,” built up of individual views of a desert highway intersection.

“My photographer friends said it was a painting,” Hockney told the AP in 2001. “I said it’s a photograph; I used a camera.”

Later he began to draw on iPads, which became his favorite tool.

In the early 2000s, he looked afresh at the fields and forests of Yorkshire in a series of landscape paintings that combined bold color with minute attention to the texture of snow on a hillside or a blossom on a hawthorn hedge. They featured in a 2017 exhibition at Tate Britain in London that was visited by half a million people and moved to the Pompidou Center in Paris and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Hockney used the English landscape for inspiration in his design for a stained-glass window installed at Westminster Abbey in 2018 to celebrate the long reign of Queen Elizabeth II.

His work changed how we see the world

In 2019, he moved to Normandy, where during the 2020 coronavirus lockdown he produced joyous iPad drawings of springtime for his friends. His message — “Do remember they can’t cancel the spring” — was emblazoned in neon across the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris when it hosted a huge Hockney exhibition that opened in April 2025.

Curator Norman Rosenthal, who helped put together the exhibition, called Hockney “the Picasso of our times.”

“When I say that, people laugh at me, as Picasso was the archetypal artist of the 20th century,” Rosenthal told the Independent newspaper. “But David Hockney is also an incredibly popular artist whose work changes how we see things.”

An unrepentant cigarette smoker who railed against government anti-smoking rules, Hockney complained when a poster for the 2025 exhibition was banned from the Paris Metro because it showed him holding a cigarette.

The announcement of his death from his publicist noted that Hockney was “a committed life-long and defiant smoker, expressing the pleasure in life it brought him. ... He smoked up to the end.”

Hockney had a minor stroke in 2012 and was increasingly deaf in later years — something he said improved his visual perception.

“If you lose one sense, you gain other senses, and I feel I could see space clearer,” he told the AP in 2017.

He never stopped working.

“It’s my work that keeps me young,” Hockney told the Sun newspaper in 2017. “I’ve been a professional painter for 60 years. Sixty years of getting up every day and doing exactly what I want to do.”

The scholar, Min Zin, was suspected of “engaging in espionage activities that endanger China’s national security,” said China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Lin Jian.

It is uncommon for Beijing to arrest a U.S. citizen on national security allegations. The case comes just a month after U.S. President Donald Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing as the two countries aim to reset a tumultuous relationship.

A Burmese activist who knows Min Zin said he disappeared June 3 after going to Kunming, in China’s Yunnan province, for a conference. The activist, who spoke on condition of anonymity out of fear of government retribution and arrest, said Min Zin had visited China multiple times before.

Min Zin was a student activist in Myanmar’s 1988 uprising, a student-led movement that the government at the time reacted to with military force. He eventually sought asylum in the U.S. He was not engaged in any direct activism work currently, said the activist.

Min Zin is the founder of a think tank called ISP Myanmar, which in recent years has written about Chinese foreign policy and trade with Myanmar, located on China's southwest border. The think tank was involved in regular exchanges with Chinese think tanks, and had published on issues such as Myanmar's rare earth exports to China.

Min Zin is also a Ph.D candidate at the University of California, Berkeley.

Amnesty International, the human rights organization, called for Min Zin’s immediate release.

“The circumstances around Min Zin’s mysterious arrest are extremely concerning, as is the apparent charge of espionage,” said Joe Freeman, a Myanmar researcher for the group.

The Central African Republic, a deeply impoverished country plagued by conflict, is one of at least nine other African nations that has agreed to take third-country nationals deported by the U.S.

Under a series of often-secret agreements that are part of a broad U.S. crackdown on immigration, the Trump administration has deported thousands of people to nearly two dozen countries that are not their own, advocates say.

The Trump administration uses deportations to third countries as a legal loophole to indirectly force asylum seekers back to their home countries, immigration lawyers said.

It was unclear exactly how many migrants were on the deportation flight that left Louisiana late Thursday on the way to the Central African Republic's capital Bangui.

Among those set to be deported Thursday were people from Iran, Jordan, Armenia, Turkey, Georgia and Afghanistan, according to Ali Rahnama, the head of the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund, who has been in touch with some of the migrants.

Three Iranian women in the U.S. were originally scheduled to be sent to Central African Republic, according to Sahar Jalili Pawelski, one of their immigration lawyers, who said two of them received emergency court orders temporarily stopping their deportation while judges reviewed whether the government was acting legally.

All three had been granted court protection against deportation to Iran after judges ruled they faced credible fears of persecution on the basis of politics or religion, Jalili Pawelski and Rahnama both said.

An elderly Syrian man also was set to be deported to the Central African Republic but received an emergency temporary order halting his deportation, his lawyer Margaret Stock said.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Thursday would not comment on the case, saying it would not confirm future removal operations for security reasons. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The Central African Republic has been plagued by years of conflict between pro-government forces and armed groups and is one of the poorest countries in the world. Despite vast reserves of gold, one in three people live on less than $2 a day.

It also is one of the countries where Wagner, a Russian mercenary group, was first active in Africa. The group has been responsible for President Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s security and fighting rebel groups.

The country is one Russia's closest allies in Africa despite recent tensions between Touadéra and Russia after Moscow demanded Wagner be replaced with the Africa Corps operated by the Russian government.

Rahnama of the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund expressed concerns about an Iranian asylum seeker being sent to the Central African Republic, noting Russia’s influence in the country and Moscow’s close security ties with Iran.

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Banchereau reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writer Rebecca Santana contributed from Washington.

The analysis from researchers at The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that while about half of independents without a college education had a positive view of Trump around the 2024 election, his approval with that group fell to about one-quarter this spring. That shift has erased the large education gap that existed among independents in the months before Trump took office for his second term, with independents now holding similarly negative views of the president regardless of their level of education.

The analysis was conducted by aggregating nearly two dozen AP-NORC polls conducted between July 2024 and April 2026, allowing for a deeper look at how support for Trump changed during several distinct periods, including the last six months of 2024, the first 100 days of Trump's presidency, the summer of 2025 when the Big Beautiful Bill passed, last fall's government shutdown and the beginning of the Iran war.

The compiled polling shows a steady decline among independents throughout Trump’s second term. His standing has also dropped among several small but important groups that moved toward him in the 2024 presidential election, including Black and Hispanic independents.

More Americans than ever consider themselves independents, and they are among the groups that shifted toward Trump in the 2024 presidential election. Any erosion in that support could signal trouble for Trump and Republicans headed into the midterm elections, which are often seen as reflection of how voters feel about their governing party.

Tafari Torres, a senior research associate at NORC who co-authored the analysis, noted that while Democrats' and Republicans' views of Trump have held largely steady in his second term, independents' opinions are still moving. “Independents are, broadly, the people who are reacting to the events and dropping in their support,” he said.

Dramatic declines during Trump's first 100 days

Trump's return to the White House was fueled, in part, by independent voters who saw him as the stronger candidate on key issues like the economy. The new analysis, which looks at Trump's favorability and presidential approval ratings, shows that once he took the helm, their views soured quickly.

Independents without a college degree had a much more positive view of Trump than college-educated independents did during and just after the 2024 election, but that shifted in the first few months of his term. Positive views of Trump among independents without a college degree fell from 48% in the months before he returned to office to 31% in polling conducted during Trump’s first 100 days back in office. Those warm views declined even further, to about one-quarter, during the government shutdown and the early months of 2026.

Only about 3 in 10 college-educated independents, by contrast, had a positive view of Trump before he returned to office, making their drop to about one-quarter much less dramatic.

“The decline among no-college independents was steeper and it was greater than the slight decline in college independents," said Sean Collins, a research associate at NORC who co-authored the analysis. "That was surprising, especially given, when you think of Trump's coalitions, those without college degrees is usually one of the ones that that stands out.”

Hispanic, younger independents grow disenchanted

Americans without a college degree have long been a key part of Trump's coalition. But Trump also won in 2024 by making gains among groups that tend to support Democrats, including Hispanic adults.

About 4 in 10 independent voters — 42% — voted for Trump in 2024, up from 37% in the 2020 presidential election. Independent voters without a college degree were a little more likely to back Trump over former Vice President Kamala Harris in the last election, according to AP VoteCast, and Hispanic independents were about evenly split between the two.

The picture looks much bleaker for the president now.

Nearly half of Hispanic independents — 46% — saw Trump favorably in the polling conducted around the presidential election. His approval among these adults dropped quickly in his second term, falling as low as 15% during last fall's government shutdown before landing around one-quarter in the spring.

Younger independents also became less supportive of the president, while independents age 60 and older remained mostly stable. Other AP-NORC polling has pointed to Trump losing ground among younger Republicans over inflation concerns and Hispanic Americans growing increasingly discontented.

“The gains Trump appeared to make during the election, I don’t know if they’re sticking around. He’s experienced some significant shifts among those people,” Torres said. “From our research, they don’t appear to be permanent gains.”

The economy is frustrating many independents

Polling suggests that the economy is at the root of many Americans' frustrations with Trump, including independents.

About half of independents who supported Trump in 2024 said inflation was the single most important factor for their vote, AP VoteCast found, and most expressed high levels of concern about the cost of food and gas.

More than a year into Trump's second term, inflation remains high, fueled by gas prices that remain elevated as the Iran war continues. An AP-NORC poll conducted in April found that about 3 in 10 independents were “extremely” or “very” concerned about being able to afford groceries in the last few months, and a similar share were worried about being able to afford gas.

The analysis found that Americans' views of the U.S. economy tend to align with their view of the president. Those with negative views of the country's economy tended to have negative views of Trump, and about 8 in 10 independents described the U.S. economy this spring as poor.

The latest AP-NORC polling from May found that only about 3 in 10 independents approve of how Trump is handling the economy, in line with the roughly 3 in 10 who said that at the beginning of his second term. The April poll found only about 1 in 10 independents — 12% — approved of how Trump was handling the cost of living.

——

This AP-NORC analysis of 4,836 independents was conducted over 21 AP-NORC surveys, blocked into five time periods before and during President Donald Trump's second term. Independents are classified as panelists who do not select that they identify with or lean toward either the Democratic or Republican Party.

Officials have not publicly pinpointed the cause, with shortages largely affecting some areas in the island's most populated cities, including the capital San Juan. The island's utilities company extracts water from rivers, reservoirs and underground aquifers that have in the past provided sufficient supply for the island's 3.2 million people.

Residents are being forced to buy potable water, spend money at laundromats and haul heavy buckets up several flights of stairs to wash dishes, flush toilets and take showers. The elderly and disabled struggle the most, with community leaders noting that some have been hospitalized as water shortages persist.

Jorge Figueroa, a community leader for several impoverished San Juan neighborhoods, stood by his car one recent morning fielding questions from residents wondering when the next water truck would swing by.

“They are playing with people's health and lives,” Figueroa said.

Shortages are widespread

Some customers in San Juan began reporting intermittent service more than a year ago, with the governor acknowledging the infrastructure has lacked investment and maintenance for decades.

The water outages have grown so severe that Mayor Miguel Romero sued Puerto Rico’s Water and Sewer Authority in late May.

People like Jeannette Mercado Rodríguez have spent up to two weeks without water as Puerto Rico's searing summer starts and meteorologists are already issuing heat advisories.

“This is really exhausting; it’s maddening,” she said.

The 52-year-old is among the lucky ones: a water truck is stationed near her public housing complex, Las Margaritas. But she still has to haul five buckets and 10 2-liter (half-gallon) bottles up to her third-floor apartment every day. She recently injured her shoulder doing so.

“We can’t take it sometimes,” Mercado said, confiding that she has broken down and cried. “There are older people here, bedridden people.”

Nearly 40,000 customers were hit with water outages on the first weekend of June. That prompted Gov. Jenniffer González to activate the National Guard, which began distributing water via four trucks with a capacity of 2,000 gallons (7,570 liters) each.

Puerto Rico’s Tourism Company brought in additional water trucks with a capacity of 12,800 gallons (48,453 liters) to help serve hotels and short-term rentals.

The need for water is so great that even Puerto Rico’s Department of Agriculture sanitized two large trucks that transport milk and instead used them to deliver potable water.

Despite those measures, water remains scarce for many in San Juan and beyond. At least one stationary tanker in an impoverished community sat empty for a couple of days, with residents cheering the water truck when it arrived, calling municipal workers “heroes.” Other residents also complain that the government doesn't inform them when a water truck will stop by, with those at work missing out.

“This has been a disaster,” said Luz Laborde, president of a neighborhood association in Santurce, a working-class community in San Juan. “This is inhuman … It’s destroying the emotional state of a people.”

Puerto Ricans demand water

Dozens of Puerto Ricans young and old crowded into a courtroom on a recent morning, eager to hear a ruling on the lawsuit that San Juan's mayor filed against the island's water and sewer company as they questioned when their water would return.

“We are exhausted,” said Marcia Soler París, a 61-year-old community leader. “We shouldn’t be living this way. We don’t deserve this.”

Every day at dawn, phones ping as people in San Juan and elsewhere share whether they have water, just a trickle or nothing at all.

Soler calls the emergency management office every other day to request a water truck for her and her neighbors. She lives with her daughter, who has three boys ages 13, 10 and 4, and they play soccer every day. Like many, they don't have a cistern.

“I don’t know what it is to see a stream of water,” said Soler, who recently spent $40 at a laundromat and was forced to buy plastic cups and plates for her family.

The extra costs are straining the budgets of many on the island of 3.2 million people where more than 40% live below the poverty line.

Soler said some of her neighbors bedridden and caregivers are forced to use towels and wet wipes to clean them. Another neighbor is blind, so people ferry water up to her apartment.

For years, chronic power outages have been a big frustration for many Puerto Ricans. Water woes also are at the top of the list now.

At Villa Kennedy, a nearby public housing complex, Elizabeth Sánchez, 79, explained how she injured her waist carrying buckets of water. Her husband can no longer help because he injured his back for the same reason.

“What we are going through is horrible,” she said as she began to cry.

Judge orders experts to investigate water woes

In February 2025, Puerto Rico's governor appointed Luis González Delgado as executive president of the island's Water and Sewer Authority.

Months later, former regional director Roberto Martínez Toledo was replaced. But Martínez was recently appointed to a new committee ordered by a judge to work with the agency to investigate and solve the chronic water shortages.

The mayor of San Juan, who is a member of the governor's party, said that if Martínez hadn't been removed from his position, “we wouldn't be here talking about this issue.”

The new head of the water and sewer agency blamed Martínez for some of the problems.

“(The crisis) could have been avoided if Roberto Martínez had answered the phone the first day I called him,” González told reporters this week, adding that he is willing to work with him.

Some Puerto Ricans are demanding González resign as they clamor for Martínez to return to his old job, while a growing number are blaming the governor for the situation. On Wednesday night, the governor announced that all projects aimed at fixing water-related infrastructure have started with an investment of $217 million.

Those without water say they are still being billed for it.

“That's another outrage,” said Laborde, the community leader. “You lose no matter what.”

The 7.8 magnitude offshore quake, which struck Monday off Sarangani province, injured at least 688 people and displaced more than 45,000 people, about half them still in emergency shelters, after the quake damaged more than 12,600 houses across farming towns and cities.

The numbers of dead and missing were considerably lowered after multiple verifications, the Office of Civil Defense said in a statement.

Many of the displaced were still too traumatized to return home because of strong aftershocks, officials said.

Days after the earthquake hit, more videos of the chaotic moments have been posted on social media showing horrified crowds witnessing the collapse of small buildings, and flag-raising ceremonies turning chaotic when the ground started to shake on the first day of school after a long summer break.

Students are seen on videos screaming in panic, but staying seated or standing still outside school buildings, with some covering their heads with their hands as teachers admonished them to calm down.

One video, which has gone viral on Facebook with millions of views, showed dozens of grade-schoolers screaming and breaking into tears as they sat on a tree-ringed school ground, which visibly swayed them from side to side. A tin roof shed nearby later collapsed with a loud thud, prompting many to dash away, but were asked by teachers to return and stay seated.

The grade school in the coastal town of Malita in Davao Occidental province reported no injuries from the quake.

“This incident serves as a reminder of the importance of earthquake preparedness and the value of regular disaster response drills,” the Mahayahay elementary school said in a statement.

Teresito Bacolcol, director of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, said years of disaster-preparedness drills helped people anticipate and brace for extreme events like Monday’s quake, one of the strongest to hit the archipelago in a half-century.

He said that it was also fortunate that the quake hit at 7:37 a.m., a few minutes before work and classes were to start indoors.

“It’s good that our efforts to educate people on what to do when earthquakes hit somehow paid off,” Bacolcol told The Associated Press.

He expressed concern, however, over the collapse of some buildings that he said should have withstood the powerful quake, if construction standards based on the country’s building code were followed.

Ednar Dayanghirang, director of the Office of Civil Defense in a quake-hit region of about 5 million people, said that regular disaster-preparedness drills helped reduce casualties in many ways, including by preventing deadly stampedes.

“We required all school principals to take one-day courses on incident management, then they appointed disaster-response teams among teachers to deal with earthquakes, tsunamis,” Dayanghirang said. “They listened and they learned.”

The Philippines, one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries, is often hit by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions because of its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of seismic faults around the ocean.

“We need them to get going,” Brind'Amour said early in the Stanley Cup Final.

Maybe now, with a maximum of two games left to determine who will hoist the Cup, they've found a breakthrough.

Svechnikov scored twice on power plays and Aho had just his second goal since April as the Hurricanes beat the Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 on Thursday night, moving within a victory of hoisting the Stanley Cup.

“It is the biggest game. It was for me,” Svechnikov said. “The mentality was great. I couldn’t sleep for the night (before).”

Game 6 is Sunday night in Las Vegas, with Carolina having a chance to win the Stanley Cup for the first time since Brind'Amour captained the Hurricanes to it the title in 2006. The goal now is for Svechnikov and Aho to carry the momentum forward from Game 5.

Svechnikov had the first two-goal performance of the playoffs and the fifth multi-goal playoff game of his career. He had wanted to be a bigger part of the production this spring, though that hadn't mattered as much with the Logan Stankoven-centered second line featuring Jackson Blake and Taylor Hall cooking throughout the playoffs.

Brind'Amour kept saying the two mainstays of the current eight-year playoff run were doing enough to contribute, it was just a matter of time before they'd score more. But as the Hurricanes pushed to the Stanley Cup Final, time was running out for Aho as the team's highest-paid player ($9.75 million this year) and Svechnikov as the team's third-highest ($7.75 million this year).

“Quite a decent (amount) of pressure, to be honest this playoffs,” Svechnikov said. “It’s just a new day was today.”

Aho and Svechnikov each had four goals through 17 postseason games entering Thursday. Five teammates had more goals. So having them beat Carter Hart three times for goals was like a long-waited bonus.

“That hasn’t really happened, and we’re still here,” Brind’Amour said. “So it doesn’t necessarily have to be that way, but they have to have an impact in the game, whether it’s on the scoresheet or doing other things. It certainly makes it a lot smoother if they’re scoring. It takes a lot of pressure off other guys to do that, and I guess that’s what happened tonight.”

The game was tied 1-1 before second-period goals from Svechnikov and Aho in a six-minute stretch. First there was Svechnikov whippping the puck past Hart on the power play, followed by Aho scoring for the first time in this series and for only the second time in the last 14 games.

“Getting on the score sheet, he knows he needs to do that,” Brind’Amour said of Aho. “He’s playing all the power plays, getting all that time to cash in. It doesn’t mean you’re not playing well. And he was doing, all playoffs, he’s done, I think, really well. But man, if we can get that out of him, that’s just a big bonus for our team.”

Svechnikov followed with a second goal for a 4-1 lead, a putaway at the right post off a sharp feed from Nikolaj Ehlers for one of his three assists.

“We know it’s going to be hard,” Svechnikov said about closing out the series. “That’s the hardest trophy to win, and we just kind of got to play our game and keep the pressure on and hopefully we’re going to keep the momentum.”

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Scottie Scheffler will try to take his place in history when the No. 1 player goes after the final leg of the career Grand Slam. Should he win, he would be the seventh player to win all four majors and join Tiger Woods as the only players since 1960 — the modern era of the slam — to get it done on his first try.

That ordinarily would be the sole focus of the 126th U.S. Open, to be played June 18-21, except for the recent history at Shinnecock Hills.

It has not been smooth sailing off the Great Peconic Bay on Long Island.

“It's hard when you run one tournament a year — and you run it on a different golf course every year — to get it just right,” Scheffler said. “And you're trying to make it hard. I think in the U.S. Open, they push the boundaries. If they're going to continue to push the boundaries, eventually they'll screw up and then they'll dial it back.”

The 2004 U.S. Open already was brutally tough when the USGA failed to account for the strength of the warm wind. The par-3 seventh, with its Redan green, became so impossible to hold that officials had to douse it with water between groups on the final day. No one broke par, and the average score was 78.73.

Among the blistering comments came this from Jerry Kelly: “I think they’re ruining the game. They’re ruining the tournament. This isn’t golf.”

When the U.S. Open returned to this New York gem in 2018, the greens were so glassy from sun and wind the last 45 players on the tee sheet Saturday failed to break par. Phil Mickelson staged a bizarre protest by swatting a moving ball on the 13th green. Brooks Koepka saved the week by becoming the first repeat champion in 29 years.

So a return to the fabled course evokes one thought: What will go wrong this time?

“Hopefully, they get the balance right of all the different challenges, and it’s not contrived,” Adam Scott said. “These great tracks, they’ve gotten into trouble when they’ve been manipulated.”

Wider fairways planned for this year

John Bodenhamer, the USGA's chief competitions officer, was asked to take a hard look after 2018 to see what went wrong and why. The short answer was greens not properly hydrated.

The real answer comes over four days at Shinnecock Hills, the sixth time for it to host the U.S. Open, never under this much scrutiny. The early scouting report from Scheffler and Rory McIlroy was wider fairways than they are used to seeing at a U.S. Open. That wasn't a mirage.

Bodenhamer said the USGA wanted to present a course the way William Flynn designed it in 1931 when he was brought into reshape a course that first opened in 1891, the oldest golf club in America still in the same location.

That means an average fairway width of 48 yards, compared with 42 yards in 2018 and 32 yards wide last year at Oakmont. He anticipates slower green speeds to account for so many putting surfaces perched on a hill and exposed to the wind.

“The way we're thinking about this year is to let Shinnecock be Shinnecock,” Bodenhamer said.

That should be enough. In the five U.S. Opens at Shinnecock Hills, three players have finished the tournament under par — Raymond Floyd in 1986, Retief Goosen and runner-up Mickelson in 2004.

McIlroy said the green speeds were just over 11 on the Stimpmeter — slightly under the target speed the USGA has in mind — and the Masters champion doesn't thing they need to be much fasters.

“If they can keep them at that green speed, they can get them firm, and they can use the hole locations that they want to use without having some of the struggles that they have had the last couple of U.S. Opens,” McIlroy said. “If it's set up the right way, I think it's one of the best championship tests in the country. It's an amazing golf course.”

Scheffler goes for the career Grand Slam

McIlroy became the most recent player with the career Grand Slam by winning the Masters in 2025. At the time, Scheffler had two green jackets but only one leg of the career slam. And then he steamrolled the competition at the PGA Championship and British Open.

“Fixed that,” Scheffler said with a laugh at the start of the year.

Now he's on the cusp of the most elite club in golf. McIlroy had to wait 11 years to get the final leg. Jack Nicklaus (1966 British Open) and Gary Player (1965 U.S. Open) each waited three years for their final pieces. Scheffler is the betting favorite, even though he hasn't won in five months.

He was runner-up in 2022 at The Country Club, his best chance. He was in the mix at Los Angeles in 2023 and on the fringe of contention at Torrey Pines.

“I like the challenge of playing a really hard golf course against a really good field,” he said.

Adam Scott playing his 100th straight major

Scott is among three players — potentially four depending on alternates — who is playing a third time at Shinnecock Hills, though he has yet to make the cut there.

He still has cause of celebration. Scott is playing in his 100th consecutive major, dating to the 2001 British Open, the second-longest streak behind Nicklaus and his incomparable run of 146 in a row.

“It's crazy," said Jordan Spieth, next in line at 52 in a row. “It's not only playing at a high level, it's take care of yourself the right way. Almost every single person you think of that could have reached 100 missed it because of injury.”

The toughest test

Players were due to start arriving around the weekend to prepare a major with a reputation as being the toughest test in golf. For Shinnecock, the test starts with wind on a course that more closely resembles a Scottish links than any other in America.

Flynn created a series of triangles — holes that run in that shape so players are forced to cope with different wind direction no matter which way it's blowing.

And for the players, the test can be what goes on between the ears. Nicklaus once said he could rule out most players having a chance when he hears them complain. And there's been a lot of complaining the last two times at Shinnecock Hills.

“Your acceptance meter, you've got to add some at the top end,” Xander Schauffele said. “If it's 100, you need to make it 150 because 100 is not enough. It might be the second or third hole of the day and you might have already had four bad breaks. It's really penalized. It's the most tired I am of the four majors.”

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

The S&P 500 rose 0.1%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 166 points, or 0.3%, as of 10:05 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.3% lower.

Stocks got a lift from a 0.9% dip for the price of Brent crude oil to $89.53 per barrel, deepening its loss for the week. Oil prices have come down since President Donald Trump on Thursday called off his threat to launch strikes on Iran and said a potential deal with Iran may be imminent.

A deal to end the war could reopen the Strait of Hormuz and allow oil tankers to once again deliver crude from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide. Its near closure since the war began has sent the price of Brent up from roughly $70 per barrel and caused a wave of painful inflation for the world.

Of course, financial markets have rallied in the past on hopes that an end to the war with Iran was near, only to get disappointed each time.

The bigger factor for Wall Street over the last week has actually been AI stocks, and how they have gone from roaring to records to suddenly turning lower. The concern is whether such stocks shot too high, too fast because of AI mania, and their careening moves have sometimes reversed direction by the hour.

Several headed back down the roller coaster Friday following a climb on Thursday. Broadcom's drop of 1% was one of the heavier weights on the S&P 500.

Some of the pressure on AI stocks may be coming from investors pulling their money out in hopes of moving it to SpaceX and other big AI-related initial public offerings.

SpaceX’s stock is set to begin trading on the Nasdaq later in the day for the first time. Elon Musk’s rocket company also has big investments in AI, part of the reason it has built up $29.1 billion in debt, as of the end of March.

If SpaceX shares hold at their offering price, the company’s market value would be $1.77 trillion. That would put it close to Broadcom and Meta Platforms, the sixth and seventh most valuable companies on Wall Street.

Elsewhere on Wall Street, Adobe dropped 7.6% despite reporting stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

Its stock has lost 42% so far this year, and it announced its chief financial officer is leaving the company on Monday. Adobe is already looking for a CEO to replace Shantanu Narayen, who announced in March that he is stepping aside after 18 years as Adobe’s leader.

In the bond market, Treasury yields rose to regain some of their sharp slides the day before, when oil prices dropped following Trump’s announcement. The yield on the 10-year Treasury climbed to 4.49% from 4.45% late Thursday.

High yields can slow entire economies and undercut prices for all kinds of investments, including stocks and cryptocurrencies. They hit investments seen as the most expensive in particular, and some critics are calling the AI industry a bubble where investment inflated too far.

Yields got a boost after a report suggested sentiment among U.S. consumers is not as bad as economists feared. The preliminary survey from the University of Michigan said sentiment improved by more than expected. U.S. consumers said they were feeling some relief after gasoline prices eased a bit early in the month.

In stock markets abroad, indexes rallied as they caught up to Thursday’s big gains on Wall Street.

South Korea’s Kospi jumped 4.6% and trimmed its losses from earlier this month taken because of sell-offs for AI-related stocks. The Kospi has nearly doubled since the start of the year.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose 2.8%, and France’s CAC 40 climbed 1.3% for two of the world’s bigger moves.

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AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Matt Ott contributed to this report.

But even then, there were signs of strain in their relationship — tensions that could be on full display during next week’s G7 summit in France.

Back in 2017, Trump was a brash businessman just elected to America's most powerful office, and Macron was an upstart politician who had won his race in a landslide. At a NATO summit in Brussels, they clinched hands far longer than most people do when they meet for the first time. Neither seemed to want to be the first to break a grip so tight that it exposed white knuckles.

Nevertheless, a friendship was born. And early on, Macron seemed to be the one European leader with a knack for managing his mercurial, three-decades-older counterpart.

Macron invited the Republican president to join him for Bastille Day celebrations in July 2017, including an Eiffel Tower dinner date with their wives. Trump reciprocated by making Macron the guest of honor the following year at his first White House state dinner, the highest diplomatic honor the United States can extend to an ally.

But by the end of Trump's first term, the bromance had faded. And in his second term, the leaders now openly trade barbs, disagreeing over tariffs, Ukraine and the Iran war. That dynamic will be scrutinized next week when Trump and the leaders of Britain, Canada, Germany, Italy and Japan join Macron in the French lakeside resort of Evian-les-Bains for the G7 summit.

Trump's long-simmering frustrations with US allies could be on display

There could be awkward moments between Trump and Macron, as well as among Trump and the other G7 leaders he's criticized for not joining him in Iran.

“But I also think European leaders are quite professionals when it comes to politics, and in some ways diplomacy at this point, and will maybe see it as an opportunity as well,” Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said in an interview.

Kurt Volker, a former U.S. ambassador to NATO, said the Trump-Macron relationship has been further complicated by the Iran war and Trump's complaints “that Europeans weren't helping, when they hadn't been consulted, and their interests are very much affected by this.”

“I think that was a negative for Macron,” Volker said.

Trump joined Israel in a war against Iran over its nuclear program back in February without consulting other U.S. allies. He then complained publicly when European countries spurned his requests for their help.

Waning support for Ukraine in its war against Russia from the Trump administration “has really irritated the French,” Volker said. “They feel this is important and we're not paying attention to it.” Macron invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to join the leaders’ discussions on Tuesday.

Macron is the G7 member who has dealt with Trump the longest

In Trump's first term, Macron appeared confident that he could persuade and influence the U.S. leader, but the relationship increasingly has come to be defined by their disagreements.

Macron now says he is “careful” about Trump's statements, suggesting he no longer takes them at face value. Their relationship remains cordial as each calls the other “my friend.” But the relationship has also experienced some ups and downs.

As president-elect, Trump attended the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in late 2024 at Macron's invitation. After Trump began his second term in 2025, Macron was an early Oval Office visitor. The president wrote on social media that he was “delighted” to welcome Macron back to the White House and said the relationship with France has been “very special.”

But at one point during the meeting, the French president publicly corrected Trump after he wrongly suggested that Europe would recover the money it had provided to support Ukraine. With a smile, Macron touched Trump's forearm and replied, “We provided real money.”

Macron also condemned as “brutal and unfounded” new tariffs that Trump slapped on steel, aluminum and a broader range of European imports in early 2025.

But there have also been some lighter moments mixed with the tensions.

A documentary aired last year on French television showed Macron telling Trump during a phone call that Zelenskyy had agreed to a U.S.-backed ceasefire proposal. Trump replied, “You’re the greatest.”

Macron has often said he can reach Trump directly whenever he needs to — and proved his point during last year’s U.N. General Assembly session in New York. After police officers blocked the French leader from crossing a street because traffic had been halted for Trump’s motorcade, Macron whipped out his cellphone and dialed the U.S. president.

“How are you?” Macron said. “Guess what? I’m waiting in the street because everything is frozen for you!”

‘This is not a show,’ Macron has said about Trump's NATO ambiguity

Macron has argued that Trump’s “America first” policies bolstered his case for a stronger European defense capability that would lessen reliance on the United States.

In April of this year, as Trump sent mixed signals about Washington's commitment to NATO after the start of the war in Iran, Macron delivered some of his sharpest criticism of the U.S. president.

“There is too much talk, and it's going in all directions,” Macron said. “We all need stability, calm and a return to peace. This is not a show.”

“You have to be serious, and when you want to be serious, you don't say the opposite every day of what you said the day before,” he said.

Trump, while mimicking a French accent, recently has taken to reenacting a conversation he says he had with Macron over drug prices and tariffs. Trump also poked Macron by telling a private luncheon in April that his wife, Brigitte Macron, treats her husband badly. The comments were in a video the White House had posted on its YouTube channel before blocking access.

Macron didn't see any humor in Trump's comments. “The remarks I heard were neither elegant nor appropriate,” he said. “They do not deserve a response.”

Still, Macron has tried to accommodate Trump's schedule to ensure his presence at the summit in Evian-les-Bains, knowing that he has a record of leaving such gatherings early.

Macron originally had set Sunday, which is Trump's 80th birthday, as the opening day of the summit, but he pushed the start back a day because Trump is celebrating the occasion with a UFC show staged on the White House grounds.

___

Corbet reported from Paris.

After a lackluster first half in which both teams were jeered as they left the field, the Czech Republic took the lead in the 59th minute on a header by captain Ladislav Krejci after a long throw-in into the penalty area.

South Korea equalized in the 67th, when Hwang scored after faking a shot with a nifty move to clear two Czech players. The midfielder who plays for Dutch club Feyenoord then made the cross from the right flank for Oh Hyeon-gyu's decisive strike in the 80th in a match played in front of hundreds of empty seats at Guadalajara Stadium.

The South Korean squad celebrated with its fans behind one of the goals after the final whistle. Players later posed for a photo with the fans behind them.

“It was our first game and a very difficult one,” South Korea coach Hong Myung-bo said. “The win itself makes me happy, but what’s even more positive is that our boys won by not giving up. I knew that we were more than capable of winning, so at 1-1, I told the boys to keep playing the way we’ve been playing.”

It was South Korea's first opening World Cup win since it beat Greece in 2010 in South Africa. South Korea beat European opponent in the tournament for a third straight time, following wins over Portugal in 2022 and Germany in 2018.

Let by star forward Son Heung-min, South Korea controlled possession and outshot the Czechs, who were making their first World Cup appearance since 2006. The Koreans, ranked 25th by FIFA, had most of the significant scoring chances against the 38th-ranked Czechs but failed to capitalize early.

Son was looking to become South Korea’s top goal scorer at the World Cup and the Asian player with the most goals in the tournament. The 33-year-old former Tottenham star, who now plays for Los Angeles FC of Major League Soccer, entered Thursday having scored three goals over three prior World Cups.

Appearing in his fourth World Cup, Son had a couple of good opportunities to add to his tally but missed wide in the first half and had a close-range shot saved in the second.

The Czechs thought they had retaken the lead with another set piece in the 77th, but Tomas Soucek was ruled offside on his header.

Czech Republic coach Miroslav Koubek said “probably the better team won.” But he said his team could have had a better outcome if it weren’t for “some mistakes.”

“We played very well, it could have been a draw and we could have won as well,” Koubek said.

The announced attendance was 44,985 at the 45,664-capacity Guadalajara Stadium, a crowd that included FIFA President Gianni Infantino. Sections in the middle of the stands had many unoccupied seats and there were other empty seats scattered across the stadium.

South Korea is making its 11th straight World Cup appearance and 12th overall, the most of any Asian country. Its best result was a fourth-place finish at the tournament it co-hosted with Japan in 2002. Since then, the South Koreans have never gone beyond the round of 16.

In the other Group A match on Thursday, co-host Mexico defeated South Africa 2-0 in the tournament opener in Mexico City.

___

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

The World Cup returns to the U.S. on Friday for the first time in 32 years after Trump threw himself into winning the bid to co-host the soccer tourney during his first term. He’ll be feted Sunday, his 80th birthday, during a UFC fight night that’s expected to draw thousands to the White House grounds. Hours after the final bout, he’s scheduled to jet off to the G7 summit in the French Alps for talks with several world leaders he’s been beefing with over war and tariffs.

But Trump set expectations even higher for the coming days when he announced Thursday that the U.S. and Iran could come to terms this weekend on an agreement that would set the pathway to end the three-month-old war that's been broadly unpopular with Americans and has rattled global oil markets. He said he plans to dispatch Vice President JD Vance to the signing of the agreement.

Trump has said on several occasions in recent weeks that he's on the cusp of a deal without anything coming to fruition. A spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry told state television following Trump's comments that mediators were active but nothing had been finalized to end the conflict.

Still, Trump is claiming this time might be different.

The breakthrough comes after he threatened to escalate the conflict with more intense bombardment of Iran and by seizing control of Iran’s oil industry, including capturing Iran's vital Kharg Island oil facility. The president's threats followed back-and-forth strikes this week that had rendered a temporary ceasefire agreed to in early April all but meaningless.

“They’ve taken a pounding like very few people could take," Trump said in an Oval Office exchange with reporters as he explained why he was confident that, this time, a deal would come through. "And they want to make the deal a lot more than I do.”

Trump offered scant details about the settlement he says is taking shape, but told reporters that he believed the Iranian supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, who is believed to have been wounded on the first day of the war and has not been seen in public since, is ready to sign off on the deal.

Trump is billing the deal as “very strong," though he says it remains “a little conceptual," and says it would ensure Iran is blocked from ever developing a nuclear weapon.

Trump's heightened threats are aimed at creating an off-ramp

With the conflict intensifying over the past week, Trump’s threat to escalate U.S. military action seemed in part aimed at demonstrating to the hawkish flank of his political base that he was willing to play “hardball” with the Iranians if they didn't come to a deal soon, said Ali Vaez, Iran director at the International Crisis Group.

Trump in March warned he would target Iran’s infrastructure and put American troops on Kharg Island before he ultimately backed down, and the two countries agreed to the temporary ceasefire.

Almost immediately after raising the idea again on social media Thursday, Trump appeared to back away. He called into a morning show on Fox News Channel and questioned whether Americans had the “stomach" for an option that would require putting U.S. troops in harm's way.

Hours later, Trump announced he had decided to cancel orders for “very hard” strikes on Iran and said a deal was close.

Vaez said even as Trump was posting on social media Thursday about escalating strikes, mediators from Pakistan, Turkey and Qatar had been making progress in their talks with Iran.

At the same time, Iran also may have reset the equation for Trump with its decision last weekend to attack Israel directly for the first time since the ceasefire after Israeli forces carried out military strikes on Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.

With the move, Iran signaled that Israel could no longer bomb Lebanon without facing a meaningful reaction and in the process also raised the cost for the U.S. to follow through on its commitment to help safeguard Israel.

“It really does appear to me that Trump wants to bring this to an end, but his real challenge is that he’s looking for a victory lap and an exit ramp and those two things are not necessarily compatible,” Vaez said.

Trump expresses frustration with war narrative

Trump has been boasting since the early weeks of the conflict that he'd already won the war — much of the Islamic Republic's leadership has been killed in the bombings and the Iranian navy and air force have been severely degraded.

But Iran continues to effectively keep the Strait of Hormuz closed, choking a waterway through which about 20% of the world's oil supply passed before the war, and has yet to agree to restart negotiations with the U.S. over its concerns about Iran's nuclear program, the main reason Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave to justify launching the war.

But the real problem, Trump grumbled Thursday, was largely a public relations issue.

"They could wave the white flag of surrender. They could say: ‘We surrender, we surrender, we’re finished, we’ve had it. The United States is the greatest power, praise be to Allah,’" Trump said on Fox News. “They could say it loud and clear. And the fake news would say it was a great victory for Iran.”

Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, a former chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said Trump has grown impatient with Iran and the renewed strikes and threats on Kharg Island and Iran's energy sector were intended to get the negotiations back to the “right place.”

Polls show that the conflict is largely unpopular with Americans. McCaul said he believes the Iranians want to “try to drag this out as long as they can,” closer to the midterm elections in November, because they see that as being to their benefit.

War will be high on agenda at next week's G7

Deal or no deal, the war will loom large during next week's talks at the Group of Seven summit in bucolic Évian-les-Bains, France.

Trump has frequently criticized some of the group leaders — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz — for resisting his calls to aid the U.S. and Israeli war effort.

The four leaders have also angered Trump by criticizing how he's gone about executing the war and his lack of consultation with allies before jumping into a conflict that's hurt the global economy as oil prices have surged.

But Trump said he is optimistic he could have an agreement before his talks with leaders in France.

“The strait will officially open as soon as we sign, which could be soon, very soon — maybe over the weekend in Europe,” Trump said.

Defense attorneys for Tyler Robinson have accused prosecutors of going on a “media tour” to discuss expert reports about the bullet. The defense claims those statements violated restrictions imposed by Judge Tony Graf against speaking about the case outside of court.

But prosecutors said they had a right to correct misinformation from Robinson's attorneys about an inconclusive, preliminary finding by ballistics experts, who could not immediately match the bullet fragments with a gun allegedly used by Robinson. Details about the preliminary finding spurred stories speculating about Robinson’s possible exoneration.

“The rules expressly allow lawyers to set the record straight,” Deputy Utah County Attorney Christopher Ballard wrote.

Robinson’s lawyers have tried to guard against media coverage that they say sometimes misrepresents their client, as his case has drawn tremendous public attention. The 23-year-old from southwestern Utah is charged with aggravated murder in the Sept. 10 assassination of Kirk, cofounder of the conservative Turning Point USA organization, on the Utah Valley University campus.

Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty if Robinson is convicted. He has not yet entered a plea.

Robinson’s attorneys did not specify what sanctions should be levied against prosecutors if Graf agrees they violated his orders and holds them in contempt. But in court filings, the defense team pointed to another criminal case where prosecutors were accused of contempt and said one potential remedy was to bar the state from seeking the death penalty.

While the judge in that earlier case disagreed that an order barring the death penalty was merited, Robinson’s attorneys noted that, “the court did not conclude that such a remedy was beyond its authority where the facts support it.”

Graf has said he will issue his decision about the contempt allegation at a later date.

A key hearing in the case is scheduled for next month, when prosecutors must show they have enough evidence to warrant a trial. That would mark the most significant presentation of evidence to date in the case that has so far focused on matters of media access.

Robinson’s attorneys have asked Graf to halt the proceedings while they appeal a June 1 order in which the judge declined to bar cameras from the courtroom.

Constantino, a political newcomer and candidate in the June 23 Republican primary to succeed Rep. Elise Stefanik, boasts a giant “Vote for Trump” sign atop his successful sticker business in the city of Amsterdam. He recorded a hip-hop album titled “Thank you President Trump." He even gifted Trump a big bronze statue of Trump himself last year at his West Palm Beach golf course.

Constantino's antics have not earned him fans among local party officials, who overwhelmingly support his opponent, state Assembly Member Robert Smullen, in the 21st Congressional District race. But Constantino has won over one powerful Republican who still has the power to sway primaries: Trump.

“Anthony is strongly supported by many of the most Highly Respected MAGA Warriors in our Movement, including Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Roger Stone!” Trump wrote in an endorsement of Constantino.

The president added: “The sign is still there!”

Constantino's battle against Smullen, a former U.S. Marine Corps colonel, is shaping up to be another test of Trump's pull at the ballot box, pitting the brash MAGA disciple against a more traditional conservative in the solid-red district.

Constantino has relentlessly attacked Smullen, calling him a “Trump hater” and giving him a derisive nickname out of the Trump playbook — “Slimebob.” He also doesn't miss a chance to feud with the state's Republican leadership.

“The New York GOP is a failing establishment, it’s a losing establishment,” Constantino said in an interview. “They reject outsiders. This happened with Donald Trump. The Republican Party tried to keep Donald Trump out, as well, because they knew he was going to reform things.”

Smullen has cast himself as the adult in the room, stressing his experience in the state Legislature, his military service, and his own ties to Trump.

“I think I directly represent the vast majority of the people in this district, their values, what they think about issues,” he said.

The district is 'not your country club Republican party’

The largely rural district sprawls across most of New York’s northern tip and includes the Adirondack Mountains, the U.S. Army's Fort Drum, dairy farms and dozens of small cities, towns and villages.

It's solid GOP territory — Stefanik won her last race by 24 points — with registered Republicans outnumbering Democrats 215,000 to 134,000. Voters there skew older and white, with many prison guards, police officers, farmers and devoutly religious people, according to Jack McGuire, an associate professor of politics at the State University of New York at Potsdam.

“It’s not your country club Republican party,” he said.

Stefanik shocked the New York political world when she announced late last year that she was suspending her campaign for governor and would not seek reelection to the House.

Her decision came after she didn't get full-throated support from Trump in the governor's race, and it followed an episode where Trump withdrew her nomination to be his ambassador to the United Nations over concerns about Republicans' threadbare majority in the House.

Local Republicans first began angling for the seat after she was tapped to head to the United Nations, only to begin circling again when she launched her run for governor.

A clash of candidates and styles

Smullen, who represents parts of the district in the state Assembly, is running a traditional campaign, chatting up voters at volunteer firehouses and community events.

He highlights a 24-year military career that included three tours of Afghanistan and combat experience, along with his more than seven years in the state Legislature. His 2018 appointment by Trump to serve in the White House Fellows program, along with attending both of Trump's inaugurations, was a go-to line when Constantino moved to cast himself as the Trump candidate during a recent debate.

“The idea that I have never been a supporter of President Donald Trump is a lie, it really is,” Smullen said during the debate. “And what's happening here is that if you say it long enough and if you say it hard enough then it's going to be true. But it's not true.”

Local GOP officials and committees are backing Smullen, as is the chair of the state Republicans. He also has the support of the state Conservative Party, which guarantees him a line in the general election even if he loses the GOP primary.

Matt Capano, who owns a hardware store in Gloversville, a small city in the district, said he knew Smullen as his local state lawmaker and had to “give him a lot of credit” because of his experience.

Constantino — who found success with his company Sticker Mule — is more of a showman. His style has forced his buttoned-up opponent to let loose. Smullen's campaign launched an anti-Constantino website that excoriates him for, among many other things, his past registration as a Democrat.

“I am the conservative Republican in this race,” Smullen said at the debate.

Constantino responded that he registered as a Democrat to vote for a childhood friend who was running for political office while calling himself a “lifelong conservative."

It didn't take long for him to steer the conversation back toward the president.

“I've always had his back through the whole thing,” he said of Trump. “In fact, in 2020, when he nicely exited the White House and a terrible person named Joe Biden entered, I went and I supported the president quietly by buying a Mar-a-Lago membership."

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Traffic homicide detectives with the Hialeah Police Department confirmed the arrest of Leonel Alejandro Laferte following an investigation into the crash.

According to police, the collision occurred around 4:11 a.m. near Southeast Fourth Avenue and East Okeechobee Road.

Investigators said Laferte was driving a dark-colored vehicle when he allegedly struck 37-year-old Kenneth Wembley, who was riding a bicycle, and then continued southeast on East Okeechobee Road without stopping.

Wembley died from his injuries, authorities said.

Police previously confirmed that Laferte’s vehicle was believed to have noticeable front-end damage and was missing its passenger-side mirror.

Lt. Eddie Rodriguez, a HPD spokesman, said Laferte is facing one count each of leaving the scene of a crash involving death and driving while his license was suspended.

Police said no additional information was being released as the case moves forward for prosecution.

With Karlsson knocked out of Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final because of injury, the Golden Knights took four penalties that turned into two power-play goals against. Carter Hart allowed four goals for a fifth consecutive game in the series, and now his team is on the brink of elimination after losing 4-2 to Carolina on Thursday night.

“When we lose Bill, it kind of screws things up," coach John Tortorella said. “We lost momentum when we went back to back in penalties. It was about the same time that we lost Bill. We’ve got to find a way.”

Karlsson appeared to injure his left arm or shoulder after getting knocked into the boards by Hurricanes defenseman Sean Walker a little over eight minutes into the second period. He got medical attention on the bench briefly, skated off and never returned and Tortorella foreshadowed that being the end of Karlsson's series.

“He’s not going to be with us, probably,” Tortorella said. "We’ve got to find a way to fill that void, not with just one guy but as a team.”

Karlsson making his playoff debut at the start of the second round changed everything for Vegas, shifting Mitch Marner to the wing and providing the kind of strong, reliable center depth needed to win this time of year. Karlsson had nine points in 14 games after missing the previous six months because of an undisclosed injury.

But the void left by Karlsson’s departure was all too clear, especially on the penalty kill. Carolina’s Andrei Svechnikov scored the first of his two power-play goals less than four minutes after Karlsson left, then added another in the third.

“He’s an important piece to us: up the middle of the ice, a penalty killer, power play guy," Tortorella said. “He’s a winner."

Fourth-liner Nick Dowd called Karlsson one of the team's best players. Defenseman Brayden McNabb, who along with Karlsson and Shea Theodore are the only players who have been around for Vegas’ entire nine-year existence, said Karlsson was a big leader in the locker room.

Karlsson is also nearly impossible to replace.

“He means so much," fellow center Jack Eichel said. "He’s a world class player. He plays in all situations. He’s extremely reliable in our own zone, and he creates a lot of offense. ... It's tough. You lose someone like Karl who’s so valuable to our team and playing so well. But it just means everyone else has to step up.”

Tortorella expects that to happen, promising there will be a Game 7 in Raleigh on Wednesday night.

“We’ll be back here. We’re just going to do it in a different order," Tortorella said. "I’m going to leave my clothes here, that’s for sure. They’ll be in the hotel.”

To do that, they'll have to win Game 6 back home in Las Vegas on Sunday. Hart is expected to be in net again despite a save percentage of .856 in the final.

Asked if he considered going to backup Adin Hill — who backstopped Vegas to the Cup in 2023 — in the third period, Tortorella scoffed and said, "That could be the stupidest question I’ve heard.”

___

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

The Seoul Central District Court found Yoon and his ex-defense minister, Kim Yong Hyun, guilty of aiding an adversary and abusing their power, saying they sought to provoke North Korea into launching armed attacks or other serious retaliation against South Korea to manufacture a national emergency. It said the moves harmed South Korea’s military interests by exposing its capabilities, undermining its ability to conduct future operations and prompting North Korea to strengthen its defense posture. Yoon’s lawyers appealed the ruling.

The same court earlier sentenced Yoon to life in prison for a rebellion conviction over his short-lived imposition of martial law in December 2024.

North Korea accused Seoul of flying drones over Pyongyang to drop propaganda leaflets three times in October 2024. Kim, who was South Korea’s defense minister at the time, issued a vague denial before the Defense Ministry said it could neither confirm nor deny the allegations. Tensions rose sharply but did not lead to any military clashes.

Yoon’s lawyers criticized the latest ruling, saying the drone flights were a response to North Korea flying thousands of trash-carrying balloons into the South earlier in 2024. They argued that a guilty verdict would undermine South Korea’s security interests.

Investigators led by special prosecutor Cho Eun-suk had sought a 30-year prison term for Yoon, accusing him of trying to create a warlike situation between the Koreas while plotting an authoritarian push to remove his political opponents and “monopolize” power. They had sought a 25-year prison term for Kim, a key confidant of Yoon who helped plan and mobilize forces for Yoon’s martial law declaration.

Yoon proceeded with the declaration late in the night of Dec. 3, 2024, delivering a televised address in which he accused liberal lawmakers of being North Korea-sympathizing “anti-state” forces. He cited a range of grievances, but particularly the opposition’s impeachments of senior officials and cuts to his government’s budget bill.

Martial law lasted about six hours until lawmakers broke through a blockade of soldiers and police at the National Assembly and voted to overturn it, forcing Yoon’s Cabinet to lift the measure.

Yoon was quickly impeached, suspended from office, and formally removed by the Constitutional Court. He was arrested in July 2025 and several criminal trials are ongoing.

The verdict in the most serious case, of rebellion, has been appealed both by Yoon and prosecutors, who had sought a death sentence.

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Five of those inspections resulted in follow-up inspections being required.

Elvis Italian Grille is a relatively new restaurant. It’s the old Mineo’s Pizza & Wings location on Griffin Road.

Records show it has been open for less than a year. An inspector visited the restaurant last week in response to a complaint.

Below is a list of the two restaurants that were inspected and some of the violations documented.

No kitchens in the Florida Keys were ordered shut last week.

All of the establishments mentioned were allowed to re-open after completing a required cleanup and passing a follow-up inspection.

**SICHUAN FISH RESTAURANT (SICHUAN CUISINE)

1242 NE 163RD ST.

NORTH MIAMI BEACH

ORDERED SHUT 6/2

23 VIOLATIONS FOUND

“Rodent activity present as evidenced by rodent droppings found. Observed 6 droppings on dry storage floor. Also 4 droppings on kitchen floor in between the triple doors reach in freezer and wall, 1 dropping under dishwasher machine, 1 dropping on top of the clean garbage bags box located on front counter shelves.”

“Food with mold-like growth. See stop sale. Observed 3 cases with Spicy Mala Soup Base with Beef Tallow, with mold like growth in walk in cooler.”

“Accumulation of debris inside ware washing machine.”

“Accumulation of debris on exterior of ware washing machine.”

“Food-contact surface soiled with food debris, mold-like substance or slime.”

“Floor area(s) covered with standing water. Under dishwasher machine. Repeat Violation.”

“Raw animal food stored over/not properly separated from ready-to-eat food. Observed raw beef over cooked noodles in reach in cooler, operator removed it.”

“No soap provided at handwash sink.”

FOLLOW-UP INSPECTION 6/3

“Observed 7 droppings on the dry storage area shelf.”

**ELVIS ITALIAN GRILLE

4261 GRIFFIN ROAD

DANIA BEACH

INSPECTION BASED ON COMPLAINT

ORDERED SHUT 6/5

18 VIOLATIONS FOUND

“Roach activity present as evidenced by live roaches found. 1. Approximately 5 live roaches found in kitchen by cookline ;2 live roaches on floor by stoves, 2 live roaches on floor by reach in coolers, 1 live roach on floor behind ice machine in kitchen.”

“Dead roaches on premises. 1. Approximately 5 dead roaches observed by ware washing station 2 dead roaches on floor under bag in box soda area, 2 dead roaches on floor under triple sink and 1 dead roach on floor by dishwasher in kitchen. 2. Approximately 3 dead roaches observed on floor of bar area.”

“Live, small flying insects found 1. Approximately 10 live small flying insects observed at bar separate from kitchen.”

“Accumulation of black mold-like substance in the interior of the ice bin.”

“Interior of microwave has accumulation of food debris.”

“Food-contact surfaces not sanitized after cleaning, before use. Do not use equipment/utensils not properly sanitized. 1. Observed bar area espresso machine with build up milk residue.”

“Raw animal food stored over/not properly separated from ready-to-eat food. 1. Container of raw chicken stored over container of raw steaks. 2. Container of raw salmon stored over container of cut spinach.”

“No proof of required state approved employee training provided for employee hired more than 60 days ago.”

Newcomer Abelardo de la Espriella, a right-wing supporter of Donald Trump, and Iván Cepeda, a leftist and ally of outgoing President Gustavo Petro, moved forward after a tense election on May 31.

In Coral Gables, early voting will be from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. from June 15-20 at the University of Miami’s Watsco Center, at 1245 Dauer Drive — and not at the consulate at 280 Aragon Ave.

Coral Gables Police Chief Edward James Hudak, Jr., said on Thursday that the decision to avoid the consulate prioritized security, while the city was already dealing with high traffic during the FIFA World Cup.

Election Day is on June 21, and officials expect a high turnout. Voters will have assigned precincts available in a searchable database that requires the number of the Colombian identification, or “cedula.”

In South Florida, there will be six precincts. Three will be in Miami-Dade County and three in Broward and Palm Beach counties.

Aside from the new one in Coral Gables, there will be one at the main gymnasium of the Miami Dade College campus, at 11011 SW 104 St., in Kendall, and one at the Milander Center, at 4800 Palm Ave., in Hialeah.

The voting precincts in Broward will be at Coral Springs High School, 7201 West Sample Road, and in the gymnasium of Cypress Bay High School, at 18600 Vista Park Boulevard, in Weston.

The precinct in Palm Beach will be at the Public Safety Conference Center at the Palm Beach State College at 4200 South Congress Ave.

In Florida, the consulate also reported that there will be a new precinct at the Strobes Event Center, at 3251 17 St., in Sarasota.

For more information from the Colombian consulate of Miami, visit this page. For more information from the Embassy of Colombia in the U.S., visit this page.

The sport is so popular it has surpassed hockey and all other sports in youth participation, according to a recent report by Jumpstart, a Canadian charity that helps low-income youth play organized sports. It said half the nation’s youth participate in organized soccer.

Reece was one of many locals sporting Canada soccer gear on Thursday ahead of their nation’s World Cup opener Friday against Bosnia-Herzegovina.

“Wish I had tickets to the game tomorrow, but I don’t,” Reece said. “I’m going to a game in Vancouver. It was cheaper to get a ticket out there.”

Is Canada about to have a soccer moment?

“It already has a good hold in this country in terms of participation. I think we all expect that to grow. These tournaments inspire so many next-generation people to find their heroes, play the game,” said Christina Linz, president of the women's Northern Super League. “I think (it) will really draw those emotional connections.”

Thursday in Toronto looked a bit like wear-your-favorite-soccer-jersey day as the tournament opened in Mexico. Canada’s red tops, like the one worn by Reece, were among the most popular.

Mexico (No. 13) and the United States (No. 17), the other co-hosts for the World Cup, each sit higher in FIFA’s rankings than Canada, which is 30th, but that means there’s more to gain for the Canadians. Especially when it comes to generating passion for the sport.

Canada coach Jesse Marsch said Thursday he has “felt a real momentum behind this team and behind this moment” as Canada Soccer, the sport’s national governing body, looks to capitalize on hosting the World Cup for the first time.

“Canada has become more and more multicultural, and I think the excitement for so many different nations to be here in North America and in Canada, and to be playing with all of the greatest players in the world and some of the greatest coaches, I think that there’s real excitement behind what this will be,” Marsch said.

Potentially stalling the potential of Marsch’s squad is the absence of star defender Alphonso Davies, who was ruled out for Friday’s match as he continues to nurse a hamstring injury sustained during Bayern Munich's Champions League semifinal against Paris Saint-Germain on May 6.

Marsch is hopeful that Davies will be able to return at some point in the group stage. He said Davies had an MRI on Wednesday.

“We’re getting ready to ramp things up,” Marsch said Thursday.

Davies is one of many Canada players fighting injuries. Defender Moise Bombito is recovering from a broken leg, but Marsch said Bombito is “ready to contribute.”

Regardless of who’s on the pitch for Canada, it’s ready to make a statement, and players are eager to prove their country is a soccer nation.

“Every one of these boys is incredibly Canadian, and the pride they have in putting on the jersey, representing the country, hearing the national anthem,” Marsch said. “These guys sing the national anthem, belt it out to the top of their lungs, because they want to show the country how proud they are to be here, to be Canadians, and to represent what Canada is.”

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Lexie Linderman is a student in the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism at Penn State.

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

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts downplayed the significance of the injury.

Roberts said the move was precautionary because the Dodgers did not want to risk Ohtani being injured further.

Roberts also said he is optimistic that Ohtani will be ready to play Friday night when the Dodgers meet the White Sox in Chicago to open a three-game series between division leaders.

“We tried to be smart about it and get him out of the game,” Roberts said. “He told the trainer that he felt a little something behind his knee and I just didn’t see any sense in risking it.”

The reigning NL MVP hit his 13th homer of the season, a solo shot, in the third inning. He also had a single and walked twice, reaching base in all four of his plate appearances.

Ohtani was not made available to the media following the game. He is hitting .305 with 40 RBIs. As a pitcher, he is 6-2 with a 1.06 ERA and 73 strikeouts in 67 2/3 innings.

Starting pitcher Justin Wrobleski left the game in the fifth inning with a left hamstring contusion. The left-hander was hit by a line drive off the bat of Bryan Reynolds. The ball ricocheted off Wrobleski to first baseman Freddie Freeman. Wrobleski collided with Reynolds while taking Freeman’s toss at first base.

“I’ll get some treatment on it and I’ll be fine,” Wrobleski said. “I don’t think it’s a big deal. Just a little frustrating.” ___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

But on Saturday?

“We got to watch the Knicks,” he said.

In most nations hosting the World Cup, soccer is a fixation. But with the New York Knicks holding a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven NBA Finals against San Antonio and one win from their first title since 1973, attention is surely going to be split this weekend. The Knicks can clinch with a victory in Game 5 on Saturday night. Tipoff will come shortly after Brazil and Morocco wrap a World Cup match in New Jersey, and it will directly overlap with a showdown between Scotland and Haiti.

“I want to watch all the World Cup games, but for us, the Knicks is still a priority,” the 38-year-old Carson said while he and a friend viewed the World Cup opening ceremony at The Football Factory at Legends, a soccer bar near Madison Square Garden. “I’ll probably catch the (soccer) recap after.”

The Knicks have gripped New York, but even some diehard fans already have divided attention. Hours before sitting courtside for the Knicks' historic Game 4 rally at MSG, film director Spike Lee was clad in green and gold for a visit to Brazil's training facility in New Jersey on Wednesday.

Brazil plays Morocco in its opener at East Rutherford, New Jersey, at 6 p.m., a match slated to end about 30 minutes before the NBA game starts in Texas. Scotland-Haiti in Massachusetts starts at 9 p.m.

The Football Factory has 20 screens, enough to satisfy all fandoms.

“I hope they put it to bed Saturday night, so we can just say, well done, Knicks. Have your parade, and that’s it. Now we can concentrate on the soccer," said Jack Keane, the Irishman who owns The Football Factory.

Keane's bar hosts supporters groups from Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea, Aston Villa, Leeds and AC Milan. He estimated more than 2,000 people come through his bar on Wednesday night, when the Knicks won Game 4.

“The Knicks crowd was the same as the Champions League final crowd," he said.

Keane's bar was charging a $20 cover, with one drink included, for the Mexico-South Africa opener.

A 10-minute walk south and east, fans also were lined up to enter Smithfield Hall, which hosts the supporters clubs of Manchester United, West Ham, Nottingham Forest, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, Roma and Marseille.

“Usually for American sports, because they’re longer, people don’t like to stand,” said Kieron Slattery, an Irishman who is Smithfield's co-owner. “For the Knicks right now, they’re standing. It’s like a soccer game atmosphere.”

Most of the fans watching Thursday were New Yorkers, many of them originally from elsewhere.

Ryan Cole, a 44-year-old from Britain's Southampton who has lived in New York for a dozen years, wore an England jersey and hopes to come up with a ticket for The Three Lions' group-stage game against Panama on June 27. His grandfather, William Cole, was an English League linesman — he has a program with the grandpa's name from a Manchester-Chelsea match in 1952.

“You just see a wave of jerseys everywhere, which is amazing,” he said of the soccer kits and Knicks gear. “It’s just amazing to be in New York all the time, but now in particular with the Knicks, with the World Cup, with summer, couldn't be happier.”

One of his friends, 46-year-old Joel Ramirez, is a New York transplant from Dallas with Mexican parents. During the 2022 World Cup, he watched games at different ethnic restaurants that had ties to a team involved in the match, such as Brooklyn's Sunset Park for Mexico. He thinks the soccer supporters will have greater numbers in the bars Saturday than Knicks fans.

“There's going to be pound for pound a lot more football fans in the city,” he said. “I'll be watching both."

New York City soccer bars open early on weekends for fans to watch lunchtime matches in England and Europe. The World Cup is different.

"When you look at the Premier League, it’s a niche market, still. There’s people who watch it, people who don’t,” Keane said. “The World Cup is the big one. It’s the big party. Everyone’s got a shirt in the closet. Everyone’s going to claim either their own identity or a parent or a grandparent, get on the bandwagon.”

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

La ceremonia para la suscripción de los acuerdos fue realizada en el palacio presidencial de Miraflores y estuvo encabezada por la presidenta encargada de Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez. Estuvieron presentes el presidente de Exploración y Producción de Shell, Peter Costello; la ministra de Petróleo venezolana, Paula Henao, y el presidente de PDVSA, Héctor Obregón.

Entre los cinco acuerdos suscritos destaca la licencia para el inicio de la Fase I de desarrollo y explotación del campo Loran, un conjunto de yacimientos de gas no asociado —que contiene principalmente ese hidrocarburo— ubicado en la fachada atlántica de Venezuela, con reservas estimadas en 7,5 billones de pies cúbicos, según cifras de PDVSA.

“La firma de estos acuerdos son un logro maravilloso para Venezuela y Shell; subraya nuestra alianza de mucho tiempo y estoy ansioso de trabajar juntos para ver lo que podemos lograr juntos en beneficio de Venezuela, de Shell”, indicó Costello.

Rodríguez, por su parte, indicó que la licencia del campo Loran “va a permitir que Venezuela dé un paso muy importante en su desarrollo gasífero y también como exportador de gas”.

“Lo dijimos desde que comenzamos las negociaciones con Shell y otras empresas en el área de gas, que queríamos convertir a Venezuela en un exportador de gas y con esta firma estamos reafirmando ese camino”, agregó la mandataria, destacando que el campo Loran estuvo sin desarrollo durante 23 años.

Los yacimientos se ubican mayoritariamente a ambos lados de la línea fronteriza entre Venezuela y Trinidad y Tobago.

Los gobiernos de Caracas y Nueva España —que en la década de 1990 firmaron el Tratado de Delimitación que establece los términos sobre la forma de explotación de cualquier yacimiento de hidrocarburos en ambos lados de la línea fronteriza— firmaron en 2015 un acuerdo para la explotación conjunta de yacimientos comunes, entre otras medidas para impulsar proyectos y beneficios binacionales.

El acuerdo fue suscrito luego de que en enero fue aprobada una nueva Ley de Hidrocarburos que redujo drásticamente el rígido control estatal sobre las operaciones petroleras vigente en las últimas dos décadas y que abrió ampliamente el sector a la inversión extranjera.

En respuesta a esa reforma legal, el Departamento del Tesoro de Estados Unidos comenzó a flexibilizar las sanciones a los hidrocarburos venezolanos y amplió la capacidad de las compañías energéticas estadounidenses y de otros países para operar en Venezuela.

Después que una operación militar de fuerzas estadounidenses depuso y capturó al entonces presidente Nicolás Maduro la madrugada del 3 de enero pasado, Washington se ha propuesto impulsar la capacidad operativa de Venezuela y asumir el control de la producción, refinación y distribución global de los productos petroleros venezolanos.

The 33-year-old Endo posted his decision on his X account in Japanese three days before his team's Group F opener against the Netherlands. The Japan team has been training in Nashville, Tennessee.

“Since getting injured and up till this point, I’ve done everything I could and I have no regret,” said Endo, who underwent surgery on his left foot in February. He came off at halftime on his return in Japan’s 1-0 warmup match victory against Iceland on May 31 in Tokyo.

“With this campaign, I will be retiring from the national team. So from here on, I’ll be cheering for the Japan national team as one of the fans."

National team director Masakuni Yamamoto said Ajax defender Ko Itakura has been named the new captain, while Borussia Monchengladbach forward Shuto Machino has been called up as a replacement for Endo.

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

"It was instinctual. No one taught me how to do it," she said of songwriting through a raspy voice she attributed to screaming along to the night's performances and Wednesday night's historic NBA game between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs.

She told the room about her family uprooting their lives to move her from Pennsylvania to Nashville, Tennessee, as a tween.

“I will never be able to express my gratitude,” the singer-songwriter said while holding back tears — crediting their sacrifice for her career.

She offered young songwriters advice: “You really have to prioritize what you love, down to your very core. Because you'll need that."

Steven Spielberg introduced Swift with a surprise speech about the power of songwriting. “There is something undeniable about how songs imprint on our souls,” he said, before changing his focus to Swift. “Somehow Taylor knows us all too well.”

Swift started her speech by acknowledging Spielberg. “Because of examples like Steven's, I trusted my imagination," she said.

The Gen Z singer Sombr launched Swift's segment by performing “Cardigan” and “Dear John" in front of her.

Swift has brought new eyes to this year’s ceremony and undeniably shaped contemporary pop music trends with her songwriting. Swift is the youngest woman inducted, but Stevie Wonder, who started his recording career at 13, was the youngest ever inducted, it was announced on stage.

It was a notable moment in an evening full of them, where Swift, Kiss’ Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley, Christopher “Tricky” Stewart, Alanis Morissette, Kenny Loggins and more were honored.

A night of celebrating songwriters

Tamar Braxton opened the gala at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City with a spirted tribute to a new inductee — the game-changing R&B songwriter, producer and rapper Christopher “Tricky” Stewart — with one of the biggest songs he's known for: Beyoncé's “Single Ladies.”

He's also responsible for singer-songwriter Rihanna’s “Umbrella,” Mariah Carey's “Touch My Body” and Justin Bieber's “Baby.”

Dallas Austin, a songwriter and producer known for work with Boyz ll Men and Madonna, introduced Stewart. “Think about that catalog,” he said, listing off those zeitgeist-shifting records. “Those are cultural moments."

Stewart thanked God, his family, artists he's worked with and mentors — giving a special shout out to Grammy award-winning music producer Antonio “L.A.” Reid and the iconic singer-songwriter Babyface. “I wanted to be like L.A. and Baby,” he reflected.

Kiss founders Simmons and Stanley — two and a half years after the band’s farewell — were also recognized for their glam rock classics “Rock and Roll All Nite” and “I Love It Loud.” The Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan covered the former, a fittingly fiery introduction for the band. He was joined by Goo Goo Dolls’ frontman John Rzeznik for the latter.

Simmons wasn't present; Stanley said that he had a family emergency.

“Songs are the messenger,” he said — the foundation of “every show.”

Soft rock legend Kenny Loggins (“Footloose,” “Danny’s Song”) and the alt-rock icon Morissette were also inducted.

For the latter, Brandi Carlile performed “Uninvited” alongside SistaStrings, before introducing Morissette.

“Writing to me is not a hobby,” Morissette said, it’s critical. “It’s write or die.” Then she performed “Mary Jane” and "You Oughta Know" from her 1995 album “Jagged Little Pill.”

For Loggins, Gavin DeGraw performed “Danny’s Song,” before Loggins told the story behind the tune in his acceptance speech.

Acknowledging writers and their hits

Taylor Dayne and Madison Cunningham performed Tina Turner classics written by Terry Britten and Graham Lyle in honor of their induction; John Fogerty was honored with the Johnny Mercer Award.

“I got my songs back!” Fogerty said, ending a nearly 30-minute speech, referencing the fact that he won the rights back to his catalog at age 80. Then he ran through a medley of his hits: “Proud Mary,” “Fortunate Son,” and “Have You Ever Seen the Rain” among them.

The songwriter Walter Afanasieff (Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You”) was also recognized, a segment that began with an introduction by actor Jeremy Renner and included a monster medley of his biggest songs by R&B singer Sheléa, kicking off with his Christmas classic six months early.

“I wanted to be The Beatles,” he said of falling in love with songwriting in his speech. “Sixty years later, I got to produce Paul McCartney.”

An established tradition

British singer-songwriter RAYE received the prestigious Hal David Starlight Award. She ended her speech by stating that songwriters deserve a cut of master royalties.

Last year's inductees included George Clinton, The Doobie Brothers, Ashley Gorley, Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins, The Beach Boys’ Mike Love and Tony Macaulay.

The Songwriters Hall of Fame was established in 1969 to honor those creating popular music. A songwriter with a notable catalog of songs qualifies for induction 20 years after the first commercial release of a song.

Some already in the hall include Gloria Estefan, Carole King, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Jon Bon Jovi and Richie Sambora, Elton John and Bernie Taupin, Brian Wilson, James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Lionel Richie, Bill Withers, Neil Diamond and Phil Collins.

In a new blow to the Kremlin's narrative that Moscow is winning the 4-year-old war in Ukraine, Kyiv's forces have targeted supplies to Crimea, triggering the worst fuel crisis on the Black Sea peninsula since it was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014.

The persistent attacks reflect the growing intensity and efficiency of Ukraine’s drone strikes and have caught Russia off guard and struggling for a response.

As the country marks the Russia Day national holiday on Friday, signaling the start of summer vacations, the gas shortages are threatening to cause further disruptions to the tourism-dependent region with its beaches and resorts.

In a rare public acknowledgment, the Kremlin has recognized the scope of the problem and promised to address the issue quickly.

Ukraine's successes have highlighted its ability to inflict painful damage on Russia and change the course of the conflict while Moscow’s advances recently have ground to a near halt. On Thursday, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine reached its 1,569th day, surpassing the duration of World War I.

Crimea has special importance to Russia

Crimea has been a jewel in Russia’s imperial crown since it was seized from Turkic-speaking Tatars in the 18th century after Moscow defeated the Ottoman Empire.

Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev transferred Crimea from Russia to Ukraine in 1954 when both republics were part of the USSR. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the diamond-shaped peninsula became part of newly independent Ukraine.

Russia kept a naval base in Sevastopol, and when a Moscow-friendly Ukrainian president was ousted by a popular uprising in February 2014, Russian President Vladimir Putin sent in troops to overtake Crimea. Weeks later, Moscow annexed the peninsula following a referendum that most of the world refuses to recognize.

Soon afterward, a Moscow-backed separatist insurgency erupted in eastern Ukraine, and fighting there raged with varying intensity until the February 2022 invasion. Russian troops concentrated in Crimea quickly seized large parts of southern Ukraine early in the war and secured the land route to the peninsula.

Since early in the war, Ukraine has fired missiles and drones to try to dislodge Moscow’s hold on the territory. The Ukrainian military sank several Russian warships in the Black Sea and at their Crimean bases, crippling Moscow’s naval capability and forcing it to redeploy its fleet to Novorossiysk.

Ukraine also methodically targeted munitions depots, airfields and Putin’s prized asset, the Kerch Bridge linking Crimea to Russia. The span was struck by a truck bomb in October 2022 that killed five people, blew up two sections of the bridge and required months of repairs. More attacks on the bridge followed in 2023 and 2025.

Ukraine has attacked the land corridor to Crimea

Since the Kerch Bridge attacks, Russia has channeled most fuel and other supplies along the highway and railroad via the occupied territories along the Sea of Azov coast. Those shipments were interrupted last month, when Ukrainian drones hit fuel trucks on the highway that Moscow once deemed safe, leaving behind dozens of burning vehicles.

Other relentless Ukrainian strikes hit refineries, oil depots and pipelines deep inside Russia, hurting its oil exports and causing domestic fuel shortages.

The Washington-based Institute for the Study of War noted the synergy between the longer-range attacks and those disrupting supplies to Crimea and other occupied regions.

“The long-range strike campaign is therefore reducing Russia’s production capacity, while the midrange strike campaign is hurting Russia’s ability to transport the gasoline Russia is still able to produce,” it said in an analysis.

Making matters worse, Ukrainian drones this week repeatedly hit the Chonhar Bridge, which links mainland Ukraine and Crimea over a shallow strait. Authorities deployed pontoon bridges, but they have a limited capacity.

Oleksandr Nastenko, the commander of the Ukrainian military unit that hit the bridge, said the attacks on the crossings will continue to disrupt supplies to Russian forces operating in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region.

Natia Seskuria, of the Royal United Services Institute in London, observed that the latest attacks on Crimea’s supply lines have exposed Russia’s vulnerabilities and inflicted significant damage, allowing Ukraine to reclaim momentum.

Seskuria said Ukraine's attacks have both a political message and a strategic aim. They underscore that it has “the capabilities and intent to contest Russian control in Crimea," while also depriving Russia of an important logistics hub.

Crimea is seeing lines for fuel and gas rationing after Ukrainian strikes

It's not immediately clear how the fuel disruptions will affect Russian military operations, but residents of Crimea and other occupied territories are keenly feeling the blow.

The peninsula has had periodic fuel shortages from Ukrainian strikes before, but this crisis is the worst since its 2014 annexation.

At the end of May, authorities restricted the sale of gasoline to 20 liters (5 1/3 gallons) per vehicle owner per week using prepaid coupons. Those were snapped up immediately following their release on an official messaging app channel, and motorists lined up for hours, waiting to refuel.

Social networks have been abuzz with requests and advice on where to find fuel, and authorities launched a hotline for tourists who have found themselves trapped.

While fuel shipments over the Kerch Bridge long have been suspended for security reasons since the Ukrainian attacks, fuel also has been carried by ferries. Those shipments are expected to increase.

Some motorists bring their own gas over the bridge from the mainland, but they are restricted to carrying 100 liters (about 26 1/2 gallons) per vehicle. Some speculators are selling gas at double the market price.

Crimea attracted nearly 7 million tourists last year, and it had hoped to top that number this year. The business daily Kommersant reported that nearly 80% of hotel bookings were canceled in late May and early June.

Some hotels offered gasoline as a bonus for new bookings, offers that were quickly snapped up.

Some travelers were unsettled by a Ukrainian drone attack earlier this week on a passenger train traveling from Moscow to Crimea, injuring its driver and killing his assistant. That led to a brief suspension of service, with passengers taken by buses. An earlier attack on a commuter train in Crimea killed one person and injured three others.

The Kremlin pledges action

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov acknowledged the Crimean fuel shortages earlier this week and promised that “measures were being taken” to deal with them.

The Russian Defense Ministry has been silent about the Ukrainian attacks on the land corridor, while some war bloggers have harshly criticized the military for failing to anticipate the strikes and its slow response.

Some suggested military escorts for fuel trucks while others urged stepping up strikes on Ukrainian bridges, fuel storage sites and other infrastructure.

Amid the fuel crisis and the finger-pointing, Ukraine dealt another symbolic blow to Russia, striking a historic Sevastopol building that houses a huge panoramic painting that depicts the defense of the city during the 19th century Crimean War. The painting was effectively destroyed by fire during the attack, according to Mikhail Razvozhayev, the Kremlin-appointed head of Crimea's largest city.

Given Putin’s focus on Crimea, military blogger Valery Shiryayev said the attack would certainly anger the Russian leader.

“It’s hard to find another work of art, another part of national heritage, whose destruction would be as painful for Putin,” he said.

She died Thursday evening at a Bangkok hospital where she had been cared for since falling unconscious due to illness three years ago, according to the statement issued Friday.

“This loss is not merely bad news announced to the people, but an immeasurable grief in the hearts of the entire nation,” Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said in a televised speech. He said the princess was “a pride of Thailand,” and that “her commitment to building a society of kindness, justice, and equality, will forever remain as a moral legacy for the nation, a guiding light for generations of Thais.”

A small group of mourners gathered in an atrium at King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, where the princess had been treated. Most held framed or laminated photos of her throughout the years.

Pattamaporn Kaewkityakorn said she had arrived Thursday and spent the night there to show her support for the princess, unaware that the announcement of her passing would come the following morning.

“I know she was sick, but I wished there were a miracle,” she said, her voice trembling. “I was saddened and shocked.”

Bajrakitiyabha was active in justice reform efforts and best known for her Kamlangjai, or “Inspire,” project to help rehabilitate incarcerated Thai women ahead of their release.

Bajrakitiyabha was hospitalized in December 2022 after falling unconscious while training dogs for an army exhibition. The palace said she had a mycoplasma infection, a bacterial infection usually associated with pneumonia.

Her father's New Year’s greeting card for 2023 showed King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida garbed in somber black, which many Thais saw as confirmation of the gravity of her condition.

The princess was born on Dec. 7, 1978, to Vajiralongkorn, who was the crown prince at the time, and his then-wife, Princess Soamsawali. Vajiralongkorn has seven children by three of his four successive wives. Bajrakitiyabha was also known by the royal name Bajrakitiyabha Narendira Debyavati, used in formal state settings.

Prince Dipangkorn Rasmijoti, the youngest of the king’s children, is the presumptive heir because sons take precedence in Thailand's line of succession. But Bajrakitiyabha's experience in public service raised speculation she was set to hold an important role in any future succession, perhaps as regent to a youthful monarch.

Bajrakitiyabha studied law at Thammasat University then went to Cornell University in New York state, where she earned a master’s degree in law in 2002. She earned a doctorate at Cornell in 2005 with a dissertation concerning the protection of the rights of the accused. Scholarships to Cornell Law School and a program for the exchange of legal scholars between Thailand and Cornell were later established in her name.

After working briefly at the Thai Mission to the U.N. in New York City, she returned home and worked as a public prosecutor. She renewed her diplomatic career with an appointment as Thailand’s ambassador to Austria from 2012 to 2014 before returning to her homeland to concentrate on criminal justice issues. In 2017 she was appointed a goodwill ambassador for the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime.

In addition to working for the rehabilitation of female convicts, she was involved in other projects including a campaign to enhance the living conditions of women prisoners and promoting efforts to stem violence against women as an honorary U.N. goodwill ambassador for women. Her efforts led to the U.N. General Assembly adopting the “Bangkok Rules” on care and conditions for female prisoners.

“Society cannot grow if there is instability and injustice,” Bajrakitiyabha said in a 2013 interview with The Associated Press.

“Without the rule of law, without a good justice system, it’s always chaos,” she said. “I think the rule of law is a very important pillar to development, to economic growth, and of course to human rights.”

Bajrakitiyabha is survived by her parents and siblings.

——

Associated Press journalist Anton L. Delgado contributed to this report.

On opening day, all eyes were on Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium, which hosted over 80,820 fans. At bars in Miami’s Wynwood, Mexicans and Mexican Americans celebrated a 2-0 victory over South Africa.

Their chant in Spanish: “¡Que viva México!"

Related story: Mexico gets off to roaring World Cup start with a 2-0 win over South Africa in the opening match

The “Aztec Nation” is proud to be co-hosting the first 48-team World Cup tournament with Canada and the U.S. Julián Quiñones and Raúl Jiménez scored the goals to move ahead with three new points in Group A.

The referee handed defender César Montes one of the game’s three red cards. Javier Aguirre, their coach, played for the national team in 1986 when Mexico hosted the World Cup and reached the quarterfinals, and he felt proud.

“We didn’t play well in the first half, but we could have gone into the break leading 3–0, and no one would have complained. We were far superior,” Aguirre told reporters after the game. “In the second half, it felt like we relaxed a bit, but starting with a win is good.”

Mexican fans ended the night by looking forward to their team’s next challenging match against South Korea at 9 p.m. on June 18. Guadalajara will be the host city.

Related story: Shakira, Andrea Bocelli and Salma Hayek kick-start the World Cup at opening ceremony in Mexico City

DATES AND TIMES

Here is the schedule of World Cup games

June 11: The Group A match, South Korea vs. Czech Republic, is at 11 p.m.

June 12: The Group B match, Canada vs. Bosnia, is at 3 p.m. and the Group D match, U.S. vs. Paraguay, is at 9 p.m.

June 13: There are three matches: The Group B, Qatar vs. Switzerland, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Brazil vs. Morocco, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Haiti vs. Scotland, game is at 9 p.m.

June 14: There are five matches: The Group D, Australia vs. Turkey, game is at Midnight. The Group E, Germany vs. Curaçao, game is at 1 p.m. The Group F, The Netherlands vs. Japan, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ivory Coast vs. Ecuador, game is at 7 p.m. The Group F, Sweden vs. Tunisia, game is at 10 p.m.

June 15: There are four matches: The Group H, Spain vs. Cape Verde, game is at Noon. The Group G, Belgium vs. Egypt, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay, game is at 6 p.m. The Group G, Iran vs. New Zealand, game is at 9 p.m.

June 16: There are three matches: The Group I, France vs. Senegal, game is at 3 p.m. The Group I, Iraq vs. Norway, game is at 6 p.m. The Group J, Argentina vs. Algeria, game is at 9 p.m.

June 17: There are five matches: The Group J, Austria vs. Jordan, game is at Midnight. The Group K, Portugal vs. Congo, game is at 1 p.m. The Group L, England vs. Croatia, game is at 4 p.m. The Group L, Ghana vs. Panama, game is at 7 p.m. The Group K, Uzbekistan vs. Colombia, game is at 10 p.m.

June 18: There are four matches: The Group A match, The Czech Republic vs. South Africa, is at Noon. The Group B, Switzerland vs. Bosnia, game is at 3 p.m. The Group B, Canada vs. Qatar, game is at 6 p.m. The Group A match, Mexico vs. South Korea, is at 9 p.m.

June 19: There are four matches: The Group D, U.S. vs. Australia, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Scotland vs. Morocco, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Brazil vs. Haiti, game is at 8:30 p.m. The Group D, Turkey vs. Paraguay, game is at 11 p.m.

June 20: There are three matches: The Group F, Netherlands vs. Sweden, game is at 1 p.m. The Group E, Germany vs. Ivory Coast, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ecuador vs. Curaçao, game is at 8 p.m.

June 21: There are five matches: The Group F, Tunisia vs. Japan, game is at Midnight. The Group H, Spain vs. Saudi Arabia, game is at Noon. The Group G, Belgium vs. Iran, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Uruguay vs. Cape Verde, game is at 6 p.m. The Group G, New Zealand vs. Egypt, game is at 9 p.m.

June 22: There are four matches: The Group J, Argentina vs. Austria, game is at 1 p.m. The Group I, France vs. Iraq, game is at 5 p.m. The Group I, Norway vs. Senegal, game is at 8 p.m. The Group J, Jordan vs. Algeria, game is at 11 p.m.

June 23: There are four matches: The Group K, Portugal vs. Uzbekistan, game is at 1 p.m. The Group L, England vs. Ghana, game is at 4 p.m. The Group L, Panama vs. Croatia, game is at 7 p.m. The Group K, Colombia vs. Congo, game is at 10 p.m.

June 24: There are six matches: The Group B, Switzerland vs. Canada, game is at 3 p.m. The Group B, Bosnia vs. Qatar, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Morocco vs. Haiti, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Scotland vs. Brazil, game is at 6 p.m. The Group A, South Africa vs. South Korea, game is at 9 p.m. The Group A, Czech Republic vs. Mexico, game is at 9 p.m.

June 25: There are six matches: The Group E, Curaçao vs. Ivory Coast, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ecuador vs. Germany, game is at 4 p.m. The Group F, Tunisia vs. Netherlands, game is at 7 p.m. The Group F, Japan vs. Sweden, game is at 7 p.m. The Group D, Turkey vs. U.S., game is at 10 p.m. The Group D, Paraguay vs. Australia, game is at 10 p.m.

June 26: There are six matches: The Group I, Norway vs. France, game is at 3 p.m. The Group I, Senegal vs. Iraq, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Cape Verde vs. Saudi Arabia, game is at 8 p.m. The Group H, Uruguay vs. Spain, game is at 8 p.m. The Group G, New Zealand vs. Belgium, game is at 11 p.m. The Group G, Egypt vs. Iran, game is at 11 p.m.

June 27: There are six matches: The Group L, Panama vs. England, game is at 5 p.m. The Group L, Croatia vs. Ghana, game is at 5 p.m. The Group K, Colombia vs. Portugal, game is at 7:30 p.m. The Group K, Congo vs. Uzbekistan, game is at 7:30 p.m. The Group J, Algeria vs. Austria, game is at 10 p.m. The Group J, Jordan vs. Argentina, game is at 10 p.m.

June 28: There is a match at 3 p.m.

June 29: There are three matches at 1 p.m., 4:30 p.m., and 9 p.m.

June 30: There are three matches at 1 p.m., 5 p.m., and 9 p.m.

July 1: There are three matches at noon, 4 p.m., and 9 p.m.

July 2: There are three matches at 3 p.m., 7 p.m., and 11 p.m.

July 3: There are three matches at 2 p.m., 6 p.m., and 9:30 p.m.

July 4: There are two matches at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.

July 5: There are two matches at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.

July 6: There are two matches at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

July 7: There are two matches at Noon and 4 p.m.

July 9: There is a quarter-final match at 4 p.m.

July 10: There is a quarter-final match at 3 p.m.

July 11: There are two quarter-final matches at 5 p.m. and 9 p.m.

July 14: The fan festival is closed. There is a semi-final match at 3 p.m.

July 15: There is a semi-final match at 3 p.m.

July 18: The third-place play-off match is at 5 p.m.

July 19: The final match is at 3 p.m.

Related stories

• Key information for fans attending matches at Miami Stadium
• Security guard accused of stealing FIFA referee uniform from Miami Beach hotel
• FIFA World Cup Fan Festival in Miami to open Saturday at Bayfront Park
• FIFA World Cup 2026: Miami Beach kicks off parties with Carlos Vives and DJ Cassidy
• World Cup what to know: Mexico kicks off a supersized, 48-team tournament

Track FIFA World Cup groups

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Division of Elections Director Carol Beecher in a letter to challenger Dan Sullivan said her office had received two complaints regarding his eligibility and determined “that the preponderance of evidence does not support your eligibility for the office of United States Senator.”

She gave him a Thursday deadline to submit “any additional information and evidence" in response.

Sullivan, the challenger, did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment about the letter from Beecher, a registered Republican who in the past has donated to Republican groups and campaigns. Her letter, dated Wednesday and published by the Anchorage Daily News, did not specify the evidence it found to potentially remove him from the primary ballot, and her office did not respond to requests for comment.

Sullivan's candidacy has caused a stir in one of the most prominent U.S. Senate races in the country. It's a seat Democrats have targeted as they try to regain the majority in the chamber in this year's midterm elections.

Sen. Sullivan has accused his namesake challenger of working with Democrats to try to trick voters and boost the chances of his top opponent, former Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola, a claim both deny. The challenger, who lives in the small fishing community of Petersburg south of Juneau, told The Associated Press earlier this week that the decision to run was “my choice." He said he had no contact with the Peltola campaign — “zero, none, zilch.”

This week, the challenger also pushed back in response to Republican Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom's announcement that she was opening an investigation into his candidacy.

“The law forbids your office from denying me access to the ballot just because Senator Sullivan and the NRSC would prefer I not be allowed to run,” he wrote, referring to the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

He called the investigation “an unprecedented affront to my rights as a candidate and the rights of Alaska voters to select their own representation in the U.S. Senate.”

It was not immediately clear whether he had retained an attorney to help him remain on the ballot.

Some attorneys also have raised questions about Dahlstrom's investigation, which among other things demanded that Sullivan explain his party affiliation, how long he had been going by the name Dan Sullivan, his affiliation with a consultant and any interactions he might have had with other candidates in the race or the Democratic Party.

Dahlstrom, who oversees elections, said in her letter to the challenger that the investigation pertained to “credible allegations” that he did not declare his candidacy “with a good faith purpose to seek office but rather with a purpose to confuse voters and have them mistakenly vote for you rather than the incumbent with the same name and same political party affiliation.”

The questions are in line with claims outlined in a letter to her and Beecher earlier this month from an attorney with the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

The ACLU of Alaska, in a statement, said it is “unaware of any other instance where the Lieutenant Governor has investigated a specific candidate for reasons other than determining whether a candidate meets federal, state and local eligibility requirements.” The group said it was monitoring the situation.

Jahna Lindemuth, who was an Alaska attorney general under an independent governor, said investigating why someone would run for office “starts infringing on free speech concerns and other protections under the Constitution.” She said Dahlstrom could label the senator as the incumbent on the ballot if she were concerned about voter confusion.

The Constitution requires senators to be at least 30 years old, a U.S. citizen for at least nine years and live in the state they've chosen to represent at the time of election. Sullivan, who will turn 69 this weekend, told the AP he moved to Alaska in 1980 and worked for the U.S. Forest Service before switching careers and becoming a teacher. He's now retired.

The declaration that the elections division requires candidates to fill out asks for their name, the party affiliation they want on the ballot, their address and how they want their name to appear. In signing the declaration, candidates are asked to affirm they meet citizenship, age and residency requirements.

The division previously certified challenger Sullivan's candidacy, noting him on the candidate list as Dan J. Sullivan. The senator is listed as Dan S. Sullivan and as the incumbent.

At least one group running ads in support of the senator, One Nation, has begun referring to him as Sen. Dan S. Sullivan.

The board voted Thursday to seek a stay of U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper's May 29 ruling that said Trump's name was illegally added to the Kennedy Center, according to a person familiar with the move who requested anonymity to discuss a private meeting. The formal request was filed late Thursday.

Cooper ruled that only Congress could institute a change to the Kennedy Center's name and ordered references to Trump be removed by Friday. He also blocked the administration from closing the cultural and arts venue for major renovations that had been planned to start in July and last for two years.

The board move marks a shift from a June 4 memo to staff from the Kennedy Center’s Office of General Counsel saying email signatures, letterhead and other documents must reflect the name as “The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts” or “Kennedy Center.”

The Kennedy Center's website has dropped the president's name. And an email earlier this week sent to members offering ticket packages for the June 28 Mark Twain Award for American Humor ceremony came from the Kennedy Center without including Trump's name.

“The Trump administration’s 11th hour gambit after waiting nearly two weeks evinces desperation," Norm Eisen, a board member at Democracy Defenders Action, and Nathaniel Zelinsky, senior counsel at the Washington Litigation Group, said in a statement. "That is what they should be feeling because they don’t have a legal leg to stand on. We will be vigorously contesting this latest ploy as we have throughout the case on behalf of Congresswoman Beatty and the American people.”

They represent Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, an ex-officio member of the Kennedy Center's board who filed the lawsuit seeking to remove Trump's name from the institution.

After ignoring the Kennedy Center for much of his first term, Trump has wielded tremendous influence over the venue during his return to office. Just a month into his second term, he ousted the center’s previous leadership and replaced it with a hand-picked board of trustees that named him chairman. He brought in Richard Grenell to serve as president, a position he held until March when Matt Floca assumed the role.

The center’s lineup has included more Trump-friendly programming, serving as the venue for events such as the premiere of first lady Melania Trump’s documentary, “Melania.”

The board also announced it had renamed the facility the Trump Kennedy Center, a change scholars and lawmakers say must be initiated by Congress, and physically added the president’s name to the building’s facade.

The fallout from the arts community was swift and intense. Actor Issa Rae, musician Bela Fleck and author Louise Penny were among the numerous artists who withdrew from appearances, while consultants such as musician Ben Folds and singer Renée Fleming resigned. Earlier this month, the executive director of the National Symphony Orchestra, Jean Davidson, left to head the Los Angeles-based Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts.

In addition to voting on the stay on Thursday, the board backed a resolution recognizing Trump's “commitment to uphold this cherished American institution.”

The 10 Street Beach opened at 2 p.m. to screens near Lummus Park, at 1130 Ocean Drive in South Beach, displaying the FIFA World Cup 2026 opening ceremony at Estadio Azteca, in Mexico City.

Shakira and Afrobeats artist Burna Boy performed “Dai Dai.” The other performers included J Balvin, Maná, and Alejandro Fernández.

Related story: Shakira, Andrea Bocelli and Salma Hayek kick-start the World Cup at opening ceremony in Mexico City

The Bandshell, at 7275 Collins Ave., plans to host four watch parties: Doors open at 11 a.m. on June 22 for the 1 p.m. Argentina vs. Austria match. Doors open at 4 p.m. on June 24 for the 6 p.m. Scotland vs. Brazil match. Doors open at 1 p.m. for the 3 p.m. semi-final matches on July 14-15.

The Bandshell also plans to co-host an event with the Consulate General of Uruguay in Miami at 6 p.m. on June 20.

The Sandbowl, behind the Bandshell, plans to host two watch parties: Doors open at 3 p.m. on July 18 for the 5 p.m. bronze final. Doors open at 1 p.m. on July 19 for the 3 p.m. final.

Related story: FIFA World Cup 2026 fans start passionate celebrations at Miami’s Wynwood

For more information about the city of Miami Beach events and installations, visit this page.

DATES AND TIMES

Here is the schedule of World Cup games

June 11: The Group A match, South Korea vs. Czech Republic, is at 11 p.m.

June 12: The Group B match, Canada vs. Bosnia, is at 3 p.m. and the Group D match, U.S. vs. Paraguay, is at 9 p.m.

June 13: There are three matches: The Group B, Qatar vs. Switzerland, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Brazil vs. Morocco, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Haiti vs. Scotland, game is at 9 p.m.

June 14: There are five matches: The Group D, Australia vs. Turkey, game is at Midnight. The Group E, Germany vs. Curaçao, game is at 1 p.m. The Group F, The Netherlands vs. Japan, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ivory Coast vs. Ecuador, game is at 7 p.m. The Group F, Sweden vs. Tunisia, game is at 10 p.m.

June 15: There are four matches: The Group H, Spain vs. Cape Verde, game is at Noon. The Group G, Belgium vs. Egypt, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay, game is at 6 p.m. The Group G, Iran vs. New Zealand, game is at 9 p.m.

June 16: There are three matches: The Group I, France vs. Senegal, game is at 3 p.m. The Group I, Iraq vs. Norway, game is at 6 p.m. The Group J, Argentina vs. Algeria, game is at 9 p.m.

June 17: There are five matches: The Group J, Austria vs. Jordan, game is at Midnight. The Group K, Portugal vs. Congo, game is at 1 p.m. The Group L, England vs. Croatia, game is at 4 p.m. The Group L, Ghana vs. Panama, game is at 7 p.m. The Group K, Uzbekistan vs. Colombia, game is at 10 p.m.

June 18: There are four matches: The Group A match, The Czech Republic vs. South Africa, is at Noon. The Group B, Switzerland vs. Bosnia, game is at 3 p.m. The Group B, Canada vs. Qatar, game is at 6 p.m. The Group A match, Mexico vs. South Korea, is at 9 p.m.

June 19: There are four matches: The Group D, U.S. vs. Australia, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Scotland vs. Morocco, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Brazil vs. Haiti, game is at 8:30 p.m. The Group D, Turkey vs. Paraguay, game is at 11 p.m.

June 20: There are three matches: The Group F, Netherlands vs. Sweden, game is at 1 p.m. The Group E, Germany vs. Ivory Coast, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ecuador vs. Curaçao, game is at 8 p.m.

June 21: There are five matches: The Group F, Tunisia vs. Japan, game is at Midnight. The Group H, Spain vs. Saudi Arabia, game is at Noon. The Group G, Belgium vs. Iran, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Uruguay vs. Cape Verde, game is at 6 p.m. The Group G, New Zealand vs. Egypt, game is at 9 p.m.

June 22: There are four matches: The Group J, Argentina vs. Austria, game is at 1 p.m. The Group I, France vs. Iraq, game is at 5 p.m. The Group I, Norway vs. Senegal, game is at 8 p.m. The Group J, Jordan vs. Algeria, game is at 11 p.m.

June 23: There are four matches: The Group K, Portugal vs. Uzbekistan, game is at 1 p.m. The Group L, England vs. Ghana, game is at 4 p.m. The Group L, Panama vs. Croatia, game is at 7 p.m. The Group K, Colombia vs. Congo, game is at 10 p.m.

June 24: There are six matches: The Group B, Switzerland vs. Canada, game is at 3 p.m. The Group B, Bosnia vs. Qatar, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Morocco vs. Haiti, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Scotland vs. Brazil, game is at 6 p.m. The Group A, South Africa vs. South Korea, game is at 9 p.m. The Group A, Czech Republic vs. Mexico, game is at 9 p.m.

June 25: There are six matches: The Group E, Curaçao vs. Ivory Coast, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ecuador vs. Germany, game is at 4 p.m. The Group F, Tunisia vs. Netherlands, game is at 7 p.m. The Group F, Japan vs. Sweden, game is at 7 p.m. The Group D, Turkey vs. U.S., game is at 10 p.m. The Group D, Paraguay vs. Australia, game is at 10 p.m.

June 26: There are six matches: The Group I, Norway vs. France, game is at 3 p.m. The Group I, Senegal vs. Iraq, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Cape Verde vs. Saudi Arabia, game is at 8 p.m. The Group H, Uruguay vs. Spain, game is at 8 p.m. The Group G, New Zealand vs. Belgium, game is at 11 p.m. The Group G, Egypt vs. Iran, game is at 11 p.m.

June 27: There are six matches: The Group L, Panama vs. England, game is at 5 p.m. The Group L, Croatia vs. Ghana, game is at 5 p.m. The Group K, Colombia vs. Portugal, game is at 7:30 p.m. The Group K, Congo vs. Uzbekistan, game is at 7:30 p.m. The Group J, Algeria vs. Austria, game is at 10 p.m. The Group J, Jordan vs. Argentina, game is at 10 p.m.

June 28: There is a match at 3 p.m.

June 29: There are three matches at 1 p.m., 4:30 p.m., and 9 p.m.

June 30: There are three matches at 1 p.m., 5 p.m., and 9 p.m.

July 1: There are three matches at noon, 4 p.m., and 9 p.m.

July 2: There are three matches at 3 p.m., 7 p.m., and 11 p.m.

July 3: There are three matches at 2 p.m., 6 p.m., and 9:30 p.m.

July 4: There are two matches at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.

July 5: There are two matches at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.

July 6: There are two matches at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

July 7: There are two matches at Noon and 4 p.m.

July 9: There is a quarter-final match at 4 p.m.

July 10: There is a quarter-final match at 3 p.m.

July 11: There are two quarter-final matches at 5 p.m. and 9 p.m.

July 14: The fan festival is closed. There is a semi-final match at 3 p.m.

July 15: There is a semi-final match at 3 p.m.

July 18: The third-place play-off match is at 5 p.m.

July 19: The final match is at 3 p.m.

Related stories

• Key information for fans attending matches at Miami Stadium
• Security guard accused of stealing FIFA referee uniform from Miami Beach hotel
• FIFA World Cup Fan Festival in Miami to open Saturday at Bayfront Park

Track FIFA World Cup groups

• Group A
• Group B
• Group C
• Group D
• Group E
• Group F
• Group G
• Group H
• Group I
• Group J
• Group K
• Group L

Jurors found Alvin Campbell, 45, guilty of 21 out of 22 counts for sex assaults from 2017 to 2019, the Suffolk County district attorney's office said. He was found guilty of charges including aggravated rape, kidnapping and photographing an unsuspecting nude person.

The jury was deadlocked on one of the rape charges.

“We will determine our action, if any, at a future date on that charge,” the district attorney's office said in a statement.

Campbell faces up to life in prison for aggravated rape when he is sentenced on June 29.

Campbell posed as a rideshare driver to target women outside bars or other locations, prosecutors said.

His younger sister became the first woman of color to win statewide office in Massachusetts when she was sworn in as attorney general in 2023. A spokesperson for the attorney general's office didn't immediately return an email from The Associated Press late Thursday seeking comment on the verdict.

Andrea Campbell has spoken previously about her family's troubled history in the criminal justice system, including her brother's rape charges.

“One thing I do frequently is share my story because I think there are so many who carry their story with a sense of shame and don’t want to talk about it, including the criminal aspects of my family,” she said in a previous interview with the AP. “But there is no shame in one sharing their story. There is power in it.”

The attorney general is the chief lawyer and law enforcement officer in the state.

After the verdict, Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden told reporters he hadn't spoken with the attorney general.

Alvin Campbell “deceivingly and calculatedly” preyed upon women in their most vulnerable moments, Hayden said. “I can't imagine what that horror must have been like for them.”

Campbell's defense attorney didn't immediately respond to a phone message and email from the AP.

Hayden expressed gratitude to the women who testified: “We’re happy that we were able to secure justice and accountability for them and so we thank them.”

The league announced the news Thursday prior to Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final.

Kucherov led all players with 1.71 points a game on 44 goals and 86 assists. With 130 points, he ranked second to only Edmonton’s Connor McDavid, who had 138.

McDavid was a close second by 10 points in voting by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association. Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon was third and San Jose’s Macklin Celebrini fourth.

Kucherov had 42 more points than his next-closest teammate, Jake Guentzel. He was third in Hart Trophy voting a year ago and second in 2023-24.

___

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL

Los expertos dijeron que El Niño, un ciclo de calentamiento natural, incrementará aún más la temperatura de un planeta que ya se calienta a consecuencia de la contaminación generada por el uso de combustibles fósiles, y probablemente intensificará enormemente los fenómenos meteorológicos extremos en todo el orbe. Los meteorólogos pronostican que igualará —o superará— el récord de El Niño que comenzó en 1997, el cual contribuyó a causar miles de millones de dólares en daños por olas de calor, inundaciones, sequías, tornados e incendios forestales.

La Oficina Nacional de Administración Oceánica y Atmosférica (NOAA, por sus siglas en inglés) confirmó oficialmente la existencia de El Niño, un calentamiento de las aguas del Pacífico cerca del ecuador que afecta los patrones climáticos en todo el mundo. En su anuncio, la NOAA indicó que existe un 63% de probabilidad de que El Niño se intensifique tanto al concluir el otoño y empezar el invierno que “se ubicaría entre los eventos de El Niño más grandes en el registro histórico desde 1950”.

Las aguas cálidas y profundas de El Niño afectan los patrones climáticos al traer “mucho calor adicional a la superficie, lo que alimenta muchos eventos extremos en muchos lugares en el mundo”, explicó la climatóloga Abby Frazier, de la Universidad Clark. Especialmente en el Pacífico, “la situación puede volverse crítica muy rápidamente”, agregó.

António Guterres, el secretario general de Naciones Unidas, describió a El Niño como una “alerta climática urgente”.

“Las condiciones de El Niño echarán más leña al fuego de un planeta en calentamiento”, advirtió Guterres en un mensaje de video.

Los impactos de El Niño generan ganadores y perdedores

Los efectos de este patrón climático varían según la región. A menudo El Niño atenúa —pero no elimina— la actividad de la temporada de huracanes del Atlántico, pero la incrementa en el Pacífico. Así que mientras las costas estadounidenses en el este del país y en el golfo de México podrían tener un respiro, Hawai y otras islas corren un peligro mayor, expuso Frazier.

El Oriente Medio, azotado por la sequía, podría beneficiarse, según los científicos climáticos. Pero otras regiones enfrentan mayores riesgos. Partes del oeste de Sudamérica —donde se detectaron los primeros fenómenos de El Niño hace décadas— suelen sufrir fuertes lluvias e inundaciones, además de un verano inusualmente cálido. India enfrentará olas de calor más intensas, mientras que Australia se verá amenazada por sequía, incendios forestales y calor extremo.

Es probable que el noreste de África experimente cambios climáticos drásticos, desde una sequía intensa hasta lluvias torrenciales peligrosas, refirió Muhammad Azhar Ehsan, climatólogo y experto en El Niño de la Universidad de Columbia.

En Estados Unidos, El Niño puede provocar tormentas más intensas con lluvias más abundantes en el sur, pero también suele beneficiar a la agricultura estadounidense, dijo Jon Gottschalck, jefe de la división de operaciones del Centro de Predicción Climatológica de la NOAA.

Michael Ferrari, meteorólogo y jefe de investigación de la firma de investigación de inversiones Moby, expuso que las condiciones para los granos y las semillas, especialmente la soya, son favorables en 18 estados estadounidenses de gran producción, pero son mixtas en lo que respecta a la industria de los productos lácteos y la ganadería.

Las Montañas Rocosas del norte y el suroeste —donde se registra una escasez de nieve “sin precedentes”—, podrían experimentar fuertes lluvias durante el verano, dijo Gottschalck. El mayor impacto en Estados Unidos suele notarse en invierno, cuando el sur del país experimenta mayores precipitaciones y la región noroccidental un clima más cálido y seco.

En general, las temperaturas elevadas por este patrón meteorológico pueden enfriar el crecimiento económico estadounidense, expuso Marshall Burke, economista climático de Stanford. Varios climatólogos pronostican que 2027 será el año más caluroso jamás registrado debido a los efectos retardados de este El Niño, que se prevé alcance su punto máximo en otoño o invierno.

“Tenemos evidencia bastante clara de que la economía estadounidense crece más lentamente cuando las temperaturas están por encima de lo normal”, manifestó Burke.

Fuertes señales tempranas

Los fenómenos climáticos extremos causados por El Niño también dependen del momento en que se desarrolla.

Normalmente, El Niño se forma en el verano, alcanza su punto máximo a finales del otoño o en los primeros días del invierno, y se disipa en la primavera siguiente, explicaron los científicos.

No obstante, el equipo de Ehsan pronostica que este El Niño alcanzará su punto máximo uno o dos meses antes, con base en las claras señales tempranas de las últimas semanas. Gabriel Vecchi, climatólogo de la Universidad de Princeton, dijo que los fenómenos de El Niño de gran magnitud como este también tienden a durar más.

Los indicios tempranos —incluida la presencia de aguas más cálidas que se desplazan hacia la superficie del Pacífico— han sido tan fuertes y evidentes que todos los meteorólogos han pronosticado el mismo El Niño ultrafuerte, agregó Vecchi, quien también mencionó que los pronósticos de El Niño suelen ser muy dispares en esta época del año.

Los científicos también predicen eventos de El Niño más intensos a medida que el mundo se calienta debido a la quema de carbón, petróleo y gas, expusieron Frazier y otros. No obstante, ella hizo notar que es demasiado pronto para determinar si este El Niño forma parte de ese proceso.

Incluso antes de que oficialmente se formara, este El Niño ya había recibido sobrenombres, incluidos “súper” y “Godzilla”.

“En lugar de que tengan miedo, podemos pedirle a la gente que se prepare”, dijo Ehsan, de la Universidad de Columbia.

———

La cobertura climática y ambiental de The Associated Press recibe el apoyo económico de varias fundaciones privadas. La AP es la única responsable de todo el contenido. Encuentre los estándares de la AP para trabajar con organizaciones filantrópicas, una lista de patrocinadores y las áreas de cobertura financiadas en AP.org.

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According to an arrest warrant, a Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office detective reported surveillance videos show Julian Jimenez at the crime scene on Aug. 27, 2019, in Kendale Lakes.

A surveillance video shows Jimenez wearing a mask and gloves and holding a .40 caliber gun, after Alex Vega pulled into his home’s driveway along Southwest 118 Avenue, near Killian Parkway, according to the warrant.

Jimenez, then 23, fired, and deputies found Vega, then 50, suffering from wounds to his back, according to the arrest warrant. Fire rescue personnel took Vega to the Kendall Regional Medical Center, which now operates as HCA Florida Kendall Hospital, records show.

More than 15 years ago, Vega and Rolando Ramirez had a conflict over debt, according to federal prosecutors who worked in a related case.

In 2012, Ramirez, the owner of the Doral Collision Center, took over Vega’s Exclusive Motoring Worldwide in Doral as part of a settlement, according to prosecutors.

Ramirez’s friend Rasheed Ali, a former University of Miami football player, helped to arrange the murder for hire plot in 2018, according to prosecutors.

Ali, also known as “Fresh,” and his friend, Tamrat Mason, better known as reggae artist “Shifta,” recruited Jaime Serrano, a “marijuana distributor” with an outstanding debt, according to prosecutors.

On Aug. 21, 2019, Serrano flew with Jimenez from New York to Miami and rented a 2018 Nissan Rogue from Enterprise Rental Car, according to deputies.

A few minutes after Vega was wounded on Aug. 27, 2019, surveillance video shows Jimenez walking southbound on Southwest 117 Avenue and “towards a bus stop that contained a garbage can where the firearm was later located,” according to the warrant.

Another surveillance video shows the Nissan Rogue, “about five minutes later, at the Bird Road toll plaza on the northbound Florida Turnpike,” according to the warrant, which didn’t mention how much Jimenez was allegedly paid.

Related story: FBI agents raid Doral auto shop in connection with plot to kill celebrity car designer

“Law enforcement located a mask and a pair of gloves,” a deputy wrote, according to the warrant.

The FBI started an investigation in 2021. Jimenez, who is from the Bronx, complied with a warrant to provide his DNA to law enforcement on June 26, 2022, and the MDSO Forensic Services Bureau laboratory analyzed it, according to the warrant.

In 2023, a jury in federal court found Serrano guilty after Jimenez pled guilty to the same three federal charges: Interstate stalking, conspiracy to use a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence, and use of a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence.

U.S. District Judge Roy K. Altman sentenced Jimenez to 35 years in prison and Serrano to 50 years in prison, federal court records show.

Related story: ‘They are going away forever’: Victim of would-be murder-for-hire plot speaks after guilty verdicts

Miami-Dade County corrections booked Jimenez shortly before 11:40 p.m. on Wednesday at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, according to inmate records.

Jimenez had two warrant cases: One was for attempted murder with a deadly weapon and conspiracy to commit murder with a deadly weapon, and the other was a hold for another agency, records show.

Read a segment from the warrant

Local 10 News Assignment Desk Editor Mercedes Cevallos contributed to this report.

He has to take turns.

Committed to staging a legitimate competition for their starting quarterback position, at least during this less-urgent part of the offseason, the Vikings have divided the time in drills with the first team between Murray and incumbent J.J. McCarthy. That's the way they'll start training camp next month, too.

“You’ve got to put it together in a way that challenges those guys and see who responds, see who handles adversity well, and ultimately see who elevates the offense,” coach Kevin O'Connell said after the last practice of minicamp on Thursday. “It’s an open competition, and I want to see these guys in very unique and in many ways difficult circumstances elevate themselves and their games to help the Minnesota Vikings.”

There's no deadline for the decision, O'Connell said, though for the Vikings to be at their best for the Sept. 13 regular-season opener against the Green Bay Packers they'll likely declare their starter at least a couple of weeks in advance of that. The frequency and quality of repetitions during open-to-the-public practices in training camp will undoubtedly stoke the embers of speculation that fuel the popularity of this sport, but the coaching staff has a plan for putting both quarterbacks in as many meaningful situations as they can once the pads come on in camp.

“I wouldn’t read much into who gets what on which days,” O'Connell said, well aware of the intense scrutiny on this team's quarterback depth chart for a third straight year since McCarthy was drafted 10th overall in 2024. “I know me saying that was the waste of the time that it took to say it, but we’re going to put together a way where we can put them in the different aspects of situational football that they need to get.”

Murray, the first overall pick in the 2019 draft who was cut by the Arizona Cardinals and signed with the Vikings for the veteran minimum salary for this year so he can try to cash in as a free agent for 2027, has been the presumptive favorite for the job even if he’s newer to the system.

“Now having to split reps, me already being behind, not getting the amount of reps you would typically want a guy to get learning an offense, that’s probably the toughest part,” Murray said this week.

Offensive coordinator Wes Phillips said McCarthy's offseason has “been a continuous upward arrow or him.” From O'Connell to wide receiver Justin Jefferson, all of the Vikings who've been publicly asked about McCarthy's progress from his mostly rough 2025 debut have remarked about sharpened skills and fundamentals. But at some point if Murray becomes the team's long-term choice, McCarthy might well find himself playing elsewhere.

“I think I’ve made it very clear I wanted to be here, before I got here. I love this organization. I love the coaching staff. I absolutely love these players to death," McCarthy said. "This is where I want to be. I feel like I can thrive in this system.”

The Vikings clearly still believe that to some degree, at least if patience were not part of the equation.

“It’s probably going to end up being a difficult decision,” O'Connell said, “just based on where I know those guys are going to go.”

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Las autoridades informaron que un problema desconocido provocó que una buceadora entrara en pánico.

La mujer se sumergió bajo el agua y, al no volver a la superficie, fue subida de nuevo a la embarcación inconsciente y trasladada rápidamente a la costa.

La mujer fue llevada a un hospital local, donde posteriormente murió.

No se sospecha de un acto criminal.

Daniel Lomas estaba en el agua ese día y observó la respuesta de emergencia a la distancia.

“Ya sea que practiques apnea o buceo con tanque, ambos tienen sus ventajas y desventajas”, dijo. “Todos implican distintos niveles de riesgo para diferentes situaciones”.

Como buceador experimentado y guía de seguridad ante tiburones, Lomas dijo que cada inmersión requiere una planificación cuidadosa y una evaluación honesta de la salud de la persona.

“A medida que desciendes más y más profundo, ciertas cosas cambian en la inmersión, especialmente las leyes de los gases y la manera en que tu cuerpo maneja esos gases”, dijo. “Ahí es cuando realmente debes asegurarte de que esa persona esté físicamente apta para realizar esa inmersión”.

Añadió que el equipo debe ser revisado minuciosamente antes de entrar al agua.

“Armar el equipo, asegurarse de que los reguladores funcionen, verificar que no haya atascos, corrosión o cualquier otra cosa que pueda afectar esos sistemas”, dijo Lomas.

Señaló que, como ocurre con cualquier deporte, el buceo conlleva riesgos, pero una capacitación adecuada y los procedimientos de seguridad pueden reducirlos.

“Si haces todo siguiendo las normas, no creo que haya nada que realmente pueda salir mal, especialmente cuando estás allí abajo con otros buceadores capacitados y con experiencia”, dijo Lomas.

Organ, brass and choral singing thundered inside a modern Orlando shrine during the service, a centerpiece of the spring assembly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Just before the liturgy, bishops and other worshippers knelt before relics of the 17th century St. Mary Margaret Alacoque, a French nun whose reports of visions of Jesus led to the modern devotion of the Sacred Heart as embodying the core of Christ’s suffering love. Since then, the devotion has spread worldwide, with many Catholic schools and churches bearing the Sacred Heart name and many homes and businesses displaying images of it.

The service celebrated the nation’s history, alluding to the Declaration of Independence’s proclamation of rights to "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” It also included prayers acknowledging national failures, including its “original sins of slavery and racism.” It's necessary to acknowledge the good with the bad, said Oklahoma City Archbishop Paul Coakley, president of the bishops conference.

“To consecrate ourselves to the Sacred Heart is ultimately to accept Jesus’ invitation to remain in his love and to allow that love to shape every aspect of our lives, public and private,” he said. “If we are honest, we must acknowledge that neither our nation nor the church has always reflected that love."

A Catholic history of Sacred Heart consecrations

It’s the first time such a service has been held in this country, although similar ones have taken place in several other countries since the 19th century. Such services, occasionally in conjunction with civil leaders, have taken on political and sometimes controversial overtones when it has been used in support of Catholic nationalistic movements.

Pope Leo XIII, the most recent namesake of the current pontiff, consecrated the entire world to the Sacred Heart in 1899.

Before the service, bishops heard devotional talks from some of their members, emphasizing Pope Francis’ final encyclical, or teaching document, in which he highlighted the Sacred Heart as an inspiration for service and justice.

The relics of St. Mary Margaret Alacoque were brought over from their permanent location in France and displayed in front of the church for the occasion. While scholars trace the roots of the Catholic devotion to the Sacred Heart to ancient times, her reports of visions are credited with fostering the modern images, prayers and piety surrounding it.

Thursday's service took place at the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe. The strong afternoon Florida sun shone brightly even through the filters of stained-glass windows beside and above the worshippers.

Rows upon rows of bishops in their purple hats and white robes sat in front of the sanctuary, with other worshippers behind and beside them.

Small revisions made to US Catholic sex abuse policies

Earlier Thursday, in their twice-a-year gathering, the bishops approved minor revisions to their policies on responding to sexual abuse, adding some specifics about due process for accused priests while maintaining the ban on any priests from ministry who had been found to have abused children.

Some bishops called for a delay in adopting the revisions to the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People in order to gain broader feedback on it, but they were outvoted. The final vote for approval was 176-22.

The revisions began five years ago. It was first approved in 2002 at the peak of the Catholic clergy sex abuse crisis, when reports by the Boston Globe about abuse and coverup in the Archdiocese of Boston ignited an explosion of similar revelations nationwide and beyond. The charter has been revised periodically since then.

The centerpieces of that document remain — including the banishing of priests from ministry for any confirmed episode of sexual abuse.

The revisions are “trying to do two things at the same time,” said Bishop Barry Knestout, who chairs the committee that revised it.

“One is to retain and also reemphasize the commitment of bishops to address the issue of potential for abuse, safeguarding of our children and young people in a way that’s both transparent and accountable,” he said. The other is to “recognize due process and presumption of innocence” of the accused while a case is being investigated.

“We’re trying not to lose any of the commitment to victim survivors yet still recognize that there is in fairness a process that should be undertaken,” he said.

The advocacy group BishopAccountability.org issued a statement calling the approval a “missed opportunity,” saying a delay would have allowed wider input into the document and produced a better and more “trauma-informed” charter. It called for close scrutiny of the revisions at the diocese level.

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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.

Shakira performed “Dai Dai,” the tournament's official song, with Burna Boy. The Colombian star had a hit with “Waka Waka (This Time For Africa)” from the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and now seeks to score again.

A good World Cup song, Shakira earlier told The Associated Press, “needs to definitely have rhythm. It has to be rhythmic. It has to make people want to dance. And it has to be an anthem as well. It has to make people want to sing along in unison, sing out loud at the top of their lungs.”

Shakira has performed at previous World Cups, too: 2006 in Germany, 2010 in South Africa, and 2014 in Brazil.

In addition, she will perform at the first halftime show of a World Cup final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey with Madonna and BTS. Mexico, the United States and Canada are co-hosting the 48-team tournament.

A welcome for all

Lila Downs welcomed fans and players in Spanish, English, and the indigenous languages Mixtec and Nahuatl.

“People of the world, welcome to Mexico,” said Downs, who wore a white indigenous huipil with a lilac edge. “Mexico welcomes you with smiles from our heart, we are a nation of diversity, heritage and pride in ancestral lands where movement and ritual spirit endure.”

Downs, who is a singer-songwriter, was born in Tlaxiaco, Oaxaca. Her mother is Mixtec, and her father was American of Scottish descent. But her heart is green, white and red when it comes to the ball.

“It’s a great honor for me to represent my beautiful and diverse country,” Downs said in an interview with The AP. “Of course I’m going to root for Mexico’s team, Viva Mexico!”

Maná thrills fans

Maná electrified the stadium with “Oye Mi Amor” surrounded by pre-Hispanic dancers who moved their head plumes to the rhythm of rock while tens of thousands of fans chanted.

The band, founded in 1986, has sold more than 40 million records.

Shortly before their performance, they announced that they will be touring in Latin America, including stops in Bogotá, Lima, Santiago, Buenos Aires, and Mexico City.

From Iztapalapa to the World Cup

The Mexican cumbia group Los Ángeles Azules performed “Por Ella” with Belinda, one of the most danceable songs of FIFA's official World Cup album.

The band, founded in the mid-70s by the Mejía Avante brothers, is originally from the district of Iztapalapa, a working-class area of Mexico City, so their battle cry is “From Iztapalapa to the world!”

J Balvin had a dynamic performance — he started driving a cardboard car with “Que Calor” and then he was accompanied by Ryan Castro for “Una A La Vez” before ending with “I Like It,” a hit he originally released with Cardi B and Bad Bunny.

The Colombian star has experience on world stages. In 2020, he participated in the Super Bowl halftime as a guest of Shakira and Jennifer Lopez.

Danny Ocean performed “Partidazo” — his collaboration for the FIFA album. Ocean was surrounded by dancers wearing a modern take on the traditional dresses of the Mexican state of Jalisco, modified to have hoodies on top.

Two Labubus could be seen wearing soccer jerseys after the presentation of Los Ángeles Azules and Belinda. One brown Labubu wore a jersey with the number 10 and the legend “The Monsters” and the other wore a shirt with the logo of the 2026 World Cup.

Hollywood power at the ceremony

Actress and producer Salma Hayek, a big soccer fan, gave a brief welcome speech during the first protocol parade of a World Cup in which the 48 flags of the participating countries could be seen.

“Mexicans are very honored that this is where the first match of this wonderful soccer tradition that unites us all begins,” Hayek, who is originally from the Mexican state of Veracruz, said in Spanish. “Long live Mexico and long live soccer!”

Hayek has been appointed an ambassador for the 2026 World Cup.

Opera and K-pop united

Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli and South Korean star EJAE performed “DNA,” the tournament's official anthem, with French DJ and producer David Guetta at the flag parade.

Bocelli has just performed for more than 130,000 fans in April at Mexico City’s Zócalo. EJAE is famous for being the voice of the character Rumi in the film “KPop Demon Hunters” and for being one of the composers of the Oscar-winning song “Golden” from the animated film.

South Africa and Mexico national anthems

Tyla and Alejandro Fernandez were the designated performers for the national anthems of South Africa and Mexico, respectively, before kickoff.

In 2024, Tyla won the first Grammy for best African music performance and, in doing so, became the youngest African artist to win a Grammy.

Fernández’s life has been dedicated to regional Mexican music. The so-called “Potrillo” is the son of the late star Vicente Fernandez. On FIFA's album” Fernández performs “Mi México Lindo."

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Associated Press writers Maria Sherman and Mallika Sen contributed to this report from New York

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

European duo Nicole Broch Estrup of Denmark and Gemma Dryburgh of Scotland were the first team to post a 3-under 67 in the tough foursomes format. They were joined by Camille Boyd and Michelle Zhang, and Hira Naveed and Gurleen Kaur.

Juli Inkster, the 66-year-old Hall of Famer, played for the first time this year and teamed with her prodigy, Angel Yin, with a 69.

The alternate-shot format kept no team from being able to separate at Midland Country Club, and most teams stayed close going into the second round of fourballs.

“Legally Blonde” is the team name Korda and Cowan gave themselves in a week that is more about fun coming off a tough test at the Women's Open that Korda won for her second major of the year.

Boyd and Zhang went with the name “Baddies” and they were up to the task. The LPGA rookies had three birdies in their opening seven holes, survived some rocky moments and joined the top of a very crowded leaderboard.

Nine teams were a shot back at 68.

“Going into the event, we were both super excited,” Boyd said. “It’s a fun thing. The crowds were great, so I think we were just having good vibes out there and feeding off that energy for sure.”

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Friday will feature more of the same: sun/cloud mix and gentle, east-southeast winds. Afternoon showers and storms will favor inland areas of South Florida. Temperatures will make a run for 90°F.

Los abogados de Corey Hutterli, de 37 años y residente de Parkland, continuaron argumentando que el caso del estado contra su cliente es puramente circunstancial.

Finalmente, un juez le otorgó a Hutterli una fianza de $150,000 USD.

Está acusado de empujar a Justin Zelin, de 35 años, desde un balcón del piso 25 del condominio Akoya, ubicado en el 6365 de Collins Ave., en Mid-Beach, el 15 de febrero.

Según los investigadores, en una llamada al 911 se escuchó a Zelin decirle a Hutterli que saliera de su apartamento, y luego se pudo escuchar un forcejeo.

Un informe toxicológico reveló que Zelin tenía fentanilo, cocaína y ketamina en su organismo al momento del incidente, algo que el equipo de Hutterli señaló mientras interrogaba a un detective del caso.

La defensa alegó que esas drogas posiblemente colocaron a Zelin en un estado alterado.

La semana pasada, el padre de Zelin testificó sobre la última vez que habló con su hijo.

Hutterli enfrenta cargos de asesinato en segundo grado, allanamiento con agresión o lesiones, posesión de una sustancia controlada y posesión de parafernalia de drogas.

No World Cup match has had that many players ejected since a 2006 game between Portugal and the Netherlands, when four players received red cards — a World Cup record.

The last World Cup in Qatar in 2022 had only four red cards in the entire tournament.

On Thursday at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, Sphephelo Sithole and Themba Zwane were sent off for South Africa while César Montes was shown a red card for the tournament co-host.

It’s the first time three players have been sent off in the opening match of a World Cup – and all three were straight red cards, meaning none of the ejected players were given two yellows.

Mexico won the match 2-0.

Sithole was red-carded after taking down Mexico’s Brian Gutierrez on the edge of the box at the start of the second half.

Things got worse for South Africa when Zwane was sent off following a video review for striking Roberto Alvarado in the face in the 84th minute. Finally, in stoppage time, Montes saw red for bringing down Khuliso Mudau.

The red cards mean the three players will be suspended for at least one more match. South Africa’s next match is against the Czech Republic and Mexico next faces South Korea in Guadalajara.

The match between Portugal and the Netherlands at the 2006 World Cup in Germany stands out with its four red cards – two for each team. That game in Nuremberg also had 16 yellow cards.

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

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The district covers portions of Miami-Dade and Broward counties.

The mix of Democratic candidates for the deep-blue seat includes veteran, familiar public servants and some political newcomers.

Two prominent, current elected officials, State Sen. Shevrin Jones and Miami-Dade Commissioner Oliver Gilbert recently qualified.

“From my perspective, it’s still the conversation about my record as a mayor (of Miami Gardens), as a county commissioner and my ideas about what we need in this district,” Gilbert told Local 10 News.

Jones said, “I’m the only one in this race that is not afraid and has not been afraid to go toe-to-toe with Ron DeSantis, with Donald Trump.”

Then, on Wednesday, they learned their newest opponent is a 29-year-old who carries the name of a Miami-Dade black political dynasty: Kendrick Meek Jr., a local attorney.

His late grandmother, Carrie Meek, was among the first African-Americans from Florida in Congress and was succeeded there by her son, Kendrick Meek Sr.

Meek Jr. was not available for an interview on Thursday but is set to launch his campaign Friday at the home of his late grandmother.

Other candidates include Rudy Moise, an attorney and doctor; former Miami-Dade Commissioner Jean Monestime; attorney Roderick Vereen and business owner Christine Sanon-Jules.

El distrito cubre partes de los condados Miami-Dade y Broward.

La mezcla de candidatos demócratas para este escaño de tendencia profundamente demócrata incluye servidores públicos veteranos y conocidos, así como algunos recién llegados a la política.

Dos destacados funcionarios electos en ejercicio, el senador estatal Shevrin Jones y el comisionado de Miami-Dade Oliver Gilbert, calificaron recientemente.

“Desde mi perspectiva, la conversación sigue siendo sobre mi historial como alcalde (de Miami Gardens), como comisionado del condado y mis ideas sobre lo que necesitamos en este distrito”, dijo Gilbert a Local 10 News.

Jones dijo: “Soy el único en esta contienda que no tiene miedo y que nunca ha tenido miedo de enfrentarse cara a cara con Ron DeSantis y con el presidente Donald Trump”.

Luego, el miércoles, se enteraron de que su nuevo oponente es un hombre de 29 años que lleva el nombre de una dinastía política afroamericana de Miami-Dade: Kendrick Meek Jr., un abogado local.

Su difunta abuela, Carrie Meek, estuvo entre los primeros afroamericanos de Florida en el Congreso y fue sucedida allí por su hijo, Kendrick Meek Sr.

Meek Jr. no estuvo disponible para una entrevista el jueves, pero tiene previsto lanzar su campaña el viernes en la casa de su difunta abuela.

Otros candidatos incluyen a Rudy Moise, abogado y médico; el ex comisionado de Miami-Dade Jean Monestime; el abogado Roderick Vereen y la propietaria de negocio Christine Sanon-Jules.

Pino, de 55 años, enfrenta cargos de homicidio involuntario y homicidio por embarcación por la muerte de Lucy Fernandez, de 17 años.

Los fiscales acusan a Pino, entonces de 52 años, de actuar de manera imprudente cuando perdió el control de una embarcación Robalo de 29 pies durante las primeras horas de la noche del 4 de septiembre de 2022 y chocó contra una baliza de canal cerca de Boca Chita Key, causando la muerte de Fernandez. Otras dos jóvenes resultaron gravemente heridas, incluida Katerina Puig, de 17 años.

Su equipo de defensa sostiene que el accidente fue simplemente un hecho fortuito.

El jueves, los miembros del jurado que visitaron la instalación de la FWC, escoltados por agentes de la Oficina del Sheriff de Miami-Dade, pudieron observar detalladamente la embarcación en cuestión e incluso abordarla para comprender mejor las posiciones que ocupaban las jóvenes el día del accidente y el lugar donde se encontraba Pino.

Los miembros del jurado pudieron ver la ubicación exacta y la magnitud de los daños, lo que les brindó una perspectiva diferente a la obtenida a través de los videos y fotografías presentados en la corte.

La visita duró aproximadamente 40 minutos. Luego regresaron al tribunal después de una pausa para almorzar, con los procedimientos programados para reanudarse más tarde en la tarde.

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Pino, 55, is facing manslaughter and vessel homicide charges in the death of 17-year-old Lucy Fernandez.

Prosecutors accuse Pino, then 52, of being reckless when he lost control of a 29-foot Robalo boat in the early evening hours of Sept. 4, 2022 and slammed it into a channel marker near Boca Chita Key, killing Fernandez. Two other girls were seriously hurt, including 17-year-old Katerina Puig.

His defense team counters that the crash was merely an accident.

On Thursday, jurors visiting the FWC facility, escorted by deputies with the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office, got a detailed look at the boat in question and could even board it to better understand the passenger positions of the girls on the day of the accident and where Pino was standing.

The jury members were able to see the exact location and the extent of the damage, giving them a different perspective from the videos and pictures they had seen in court court.

The field trip took about 40 minutes. They then went back to the courthouse after a lunch break.

There, jurors saw a drone view reenactment video ― produced by FWC and MDSO ― and underwater crash scene footage, among other pieces of evidence.

They also heard testimony from law enforcement officers.

“The vessel was overturned in Cutter Bank,” FWC Lt. Manuel Pomares said. “Cutter Bank is a narrow channel. I describe it best as a funnel.”

He added, “You really have to pay attention when you’re going down or through Cutter Bank.”

Pomares was part of a dive team that documented evidence with a GoPro camera.

“There’s a couple of Yeti type tumbler cups, and a couple of Trulys (hard seltzer) and a Bud Light can,” Pomares testified.

Proceedings wrapped up on Thursday evening and are expected to resume on Friday morning.

Only a handful of prominent players in the past few decades have faced this confluence of talent and timing. They include a selection of generational greats: Zinedine Zidane for France in 1998, Michael Ballack for Germany in 2006, Neymar for Brazil in 2014.

Pulisic's U.S. teammates recognize the extraordinary burden he is carrying while the Americans prepare for their World Cup opener Friday night against Paraguay. From the field to the back row of the stands, everyone is looking to Pulisic for leadership and goals, hoping his full decade of international success with club and country will propel a middling soccer nation to new heights on home soil.

“I can't even imagine the weight that's on his shoulders,” teammate Tyler Adams said. “From such a young age, he was the hope of American soccer.”

Pulisic does not shy from the spotlight that will glare more brightly than ever in the next few weeks. In fact, he repeated Thursday that this challenge is “what I've always wanted.”

Now 27 years old, Pulisic has enough achievement and enough faith in his teammates to focus on how far the Americans can go, not how far they might fall.

“I don’t feel a difference in weight,” Pulisic said at the U.S. training base in Orange County. “I’m not sure. Maybe less. I just feel like there’s so many good players around me. I genuinely don’t feel like I have to do anything on my own. I’m going to give it the best I can. I want to help the team, and they expect a lot out of me, but with the guys I have around me, it makes it a lot easier for me.”

Pulisic was already the center of the U.S. hopes and aspirations when this World Cup was awarded to North America eight years ago, and his status hasn't changed. A nation that had struggled to produce elite players finally created a star in this slick, creative midfielder from Hershey, Pennsylvania, who has gone on to a decade of European club success.

National team progress has been more difficult to come by during Pulisic's first decade, but he is still considered the most consistently dynamic player in the American program — despite his 18-month goal drought in a U.S. shirt that only ended May 31.

“Of course he needs to be an important player for us in the competition,” said coach Mauricio Pochettino, who took over the U.S. team in late 2024. “(But) I think what we’ve learned after a year and a half is that the badge of the national team and the culture with this country is more important than any name, any player or any coach. That is a principal thing that we (believe), and from there, if you have talent and quality, you can perform on that platform.”

Adams, the 27-year-old Bournemouth midfielder, has been right alongside Pulisic for most of this ride.

He watched in awe as the 17-year-old Pulisic made his senior U.S. debut in late 2016. Those Americans failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, but Pulisic quickly became a vital component of the group.

“(Pulisic was) the best player on the field at 17 years old, and the person that they rely on, (and) it’s been since then that they’ve relied on him,” Adams said. “Now, we have weapons around him to kind of relieve that, but he’s a star. Not just for the U.S. national team, but in world football. He’s that good. We rely on him in big moments, but that being said, I hope he doesn’t feel the pressure to carry it all. Just to be himself and grow into each game.”

Pulisic became known across the world when he moved from Dortmund to Chelsea in 2019. He was part of the Blues’ Champions League winners in 2021, becoming only the second American to claim the ultimate club trophy, before moving in 2023 to AC Milan, where he remains a vital player for another major club.

Pulisic finally made his World Cup debut four years ago in Qatar, contributing a big goal and an assist — but the U.S. scored just three goals in its four games before going home in the knockout round.

“It feels similar, but with a bit of that comfort of being in America,” Pulisic said of his World Cup return. “It feels great having the people you love around you. It makes it that much more special.”

Pochettino has strived to build an aggressive, attacking team around Pulisic’s talents, thereby minimizing its reliance on its best player. Prolific Europe-based strikers Folarin Balogun and Ricardo Pepi will make their World Cup debuts this month for the U.S., hopefully spreading out the scoring responsibility.

But with his past World Cup experience in mind, Pulisic knows the Americans must step up quickly at home — and their opening matchup against a solid Paraguay team will put him right in the spotlight again.

“It has that big-game feel, for sure,” Pulisic said. “But in some ways, I feel a little bit more relaxed because I've been there before. We've played in a match like this. I think the experience has calmed me down a little bit.”

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

Los precios al consumidor subieron un 2,1% el mes pasado en comparación con abril, informó el organismo estatal de estadísticas INDEC, una tasa que el ministro de Economía, Luis Caputo, celebró como el nivel mensual más bajo en ocho meses.

Pero la inflación anual aumentó levemente hasta alcanzar el 33,2% en mayo porque el índice inflacionario mensual del mismo mes de 2025 llegó al 1,5%, un mínimo de siete años. Desde entonces, los precios han subido y se han mantenido altos, presionando a los hogares y alimentando la frustración pública contra el gobierno de Milei mientras lidia con una serie de escándalos de corrupción y le cuesta responder a una caída de la actividad económica en los sectores del comercio minorista y la fabricación, que requieren grandes cantidades de mano de obra.

El mes pasado, las redes de comunicaciones registraron los mayores aumentos de precios, con un 3,4% por el encarecimiento de las facturas de telefonía e internet, seguidas por los costos de educación. Los precios de los alimentos se aceleraron un 2,5%.

Milei elogió al ministro Caputo, apodado Toto, en redes sociales, al publicar el informe del INDEC con el comentario: “VAAAAAAAAMOOOOOO TOTO”.

Milei y Caputo también celebraron la noticia de que S&P Global, una de las principales agencias de calificación crediticia, había mejorado la calificación soberana de Argentina a última hora del miércoles, de la categoría CCC —considerada la de mayor riesgo de incumplimiento— a B- con perspectiva estable, al citar el éxito del gobierno en el cumplimiento de los pagos de deuda.

Aunque la mejora deja a Argentina varios escalones por debajo del grado de inversión, ese voto de confianza impulsa el objetivo de Milei de devolver a la economía, propensa a las crisis, a los mercados globales de capitales, seis años después de que Argentina cayera en el impago de su deuda externa por novena vez.

Milei llegó al poder a fines de 2023 prometiendo eliminar los altísimos aumentos de precios de Argentina y revertir sus crónicos déficits fiscales.

Más de dos años después, sus amplias medidas de desregulación y austeridad han producido un inusual superávit presupuestario, han seducido a los inversores y han desacelerado la inflación: la tasa anual, ahora en 33%, superaba el 200% cuando asumió el cargo.

Pero la inflación, que hace que el costo de vida en Buenos Aires sea comparable al de capitales europeas, supera a los salarios reales. El desempleo ha aumentado ligeramente a medida que miles de trabajadores son despedidos de industrias nacionales que no pueden competir con una avalancha de importaciones baratas.

Escándalos de corrupción del tipo que Milei prometió erradicar cuando tomó posesión han tocado una fibra sensible en el contexto de sus esfuerzos por recortar fondos a la educación, la atención de la salud y la asistencia social.

Más recientemente, Manuel Adorni, colaborador cercano de Milei y jefe de Gabinete, quedó bajo investigación por presunto enriquecimiento ilícito tras realizar viajes lujosos —incluido un viaje a Aruba pagado íntegramente en efectivo— y compras de bienes raíces pese a su exiguo salario público. El miércoles, admitió haber ocultado 500.000 dólares en ahorros no declarados e inversiones en criptomonedas.

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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.

Leer en español

Organizers said there is enough room for about 30,000 fans to enjoy watch parties at four massive screens at the park at 301 Biscayne Boulevard.

“Everyone is welcome, all ages ... they will be able to watch the games for free, while they are enjoying the music, the dancing, the food,” Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said on Wednesday.

For security, there will be metal detectors, and there is an “only clear bags” policy. Bags larger than 12 inches by 6 inches are not allowed.

Vaping and smoking are also banned. Chairs, blankets, tents, scooters, air horns, laser pointers, and inflatables are all included in the list of prohibited items.

Except for baby food, outside food and beverages are not allowed. Organizers included a long line of food and drink vendors. The festival will open every day until July 5.

The matches start on Thursday when the Group A matches are at 3 p.m., Mexico vs. South Africa, and at 11 p.m., South Korea vs. Czech Republic.

On Friday, the Group B, Canada vs. Bosnia, match is at 3 p.m. and the Group D, U.S. vs. Paraguay, match is at 9 p.m.

Festival and games schedule

June 13: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to midnight. There are three matches: The Group B, Qatar vs. Switzerland, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Brazil vs. Morocco, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Haiti vs. Scotland, game is at 9 p.m.

June 14: The fan festival opens from Noon to 10 p.m. There are five matches: The Group D, Australia vs. Turkey, game is at Midnight. The Group E, Germany vs. Curaçao, game is at 1 p.m. The Group F, The Netherlands vs. Japan, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ivory Coast vs. Ecuador, game is at 7 p.m. The Group F, Sweden vs. Tunisia, game is at 10 p.m.

June 15: The fan festival opens from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. There are four matches: The Group H, Spain vs. Cape Verde, game is at Noon. The Group G, Belgium vs. Egypt, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Saudi Arabia vs. Uruguay, game is at 6 p.m. The Group G, Iran vs. New Zealand, game is at 9 p.m.

June 16: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to midnight. There are three matches: The Group I, France vs. Senegal, game is at 3 p.m. The Group I, Iraq vs. Norway, game is at 6 p.m. The Group J, Argentina vs. Algeria, game is at 9 p.m.

June 17: The fan festival opens from Noon to 10 p.m. There are five matches: The Group J, Austria vs. Jordan, game is at Midnight. The Group K, Portugal vs. Congo, game is at 1 p.m. The Group L, England vs. Croatia, game is at 4 p.m. The Group L, Ghana vs. Panama, game is at 7 p.m. The Group K, Uzbekistan vs. Colombia, game is at 10 p.m.

June 18: The fan festival opens from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. There are four matches: The Group A match, The Czech Republic vs. South Africa, is at Noon. The Group B, Switzerland vs. Bosnia, game is at 3 p.m. The Group B, Canada vs. Qatar, game is at 6 p.m. The Group A match, Mexico vs. South Korea, is at 9 p.m.

June 19: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to midnight. There are four matches: The Group D, U.S. vs. Australia, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Scotland vs. Morocco, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Brazil vs. Haiti, game is at 8:30 p.m. The Group D, Turkey vs. Paraguay, game is at 11 p.m.

June 20: The fan festival opens from Noon to 11 p.m. There are three matches: The Group F, Netherlands vs. Sweden, game is at 1 p.m. The Group E, Germany vs. Ivory Coast, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ecuador vs. Curaçao, game is at 8 p.m.

June 21: The fan festival opens from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. There are five matches: The Group F, Tunisia vs. Japan, game is at Midnight. The Group H, Spain vs. Saudi Arabia, game is at Noon. The Group G, Belgium vs. Iran, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Uruguay vs. Cape Verde, game is at 6 p.m. The Group G, New Zealand vs. Egypt, game is at 9 p.m.

June 22: The fan festival opens from Noon to 8 p.m. There are four matches: The Group J, Argentina vs. Austria, game is at 1 p.m. The Group I, France vs. Iraq, game is at 5 p.m. The Group I, Norway vs. Senegal, game is at 8 p.m. The Group J, Jordan vs. Algeria, game is at 11 p.m.

June 23: The fan festival opens from Noon to 1 a.m. There are four matches: The Group K, Portugal vs. Uzbekistan, game is at 1 p.m. The Group L, England vs. Ghana, game is at 4 p.m. The Group L, Panama vs. Croatia, game is at 7 p.m. The Group K, Colombia vs. Congo, game is at 10 p.m.

June 24: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m. There are six matches: The Group B, Switzerland vs. Canada, game is at 3 p.m. The Group B, Bosnia vs. Qatar, game is at 3 p.m. The Group C, Morocco vs. Haiti, game is at 6 p.m. The Group C, Scotland vs. Brazil, game is at 6 p.m. The Group A, South Africa vs. South Korea, game is at 9 p.m. The Group A, Czech Republic vs. Mexico, game is at 9 p.m.

June 25: The fan festival opens from 3 p.m. to 1 a.m. There are six matches: The Group E, Curaçao vs. Ivory Coast, game is at 4 p.m. The Group E, Ecuador vs. Germany, game is at 4 p.m. The Group F, Tunisia vs. Netherlands, game is at 7 p.m. The Group F, Japan vs. Sweden, game is at 7 p.m. The Group D, Turkey vs. U.S., game is at 10 p.m. The Group D, Paraguay vs. Australia, game is at 10 p.m.

June 26: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to 11 p.m. There are six matches: The Group I, Norway vs. France, game is at 3 p.m. The Group I, Senegal vs. Iraq, game is at 3 p.m. The Group H, Cape Verde vs. Saudi Arabia, game is at 8 p.m. The Group H, Uruguay vs. Spain, game is at 8 p.m. The Group G, New Zealand vs. Belgium, game is at 11 p.m. The Group G, Egypt vs. Iran, game is at 11 p.m.

June 27: The fan festival opens from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. There are six matches: The Group L, Panama vs. England, game is at 5 p.m. The Group L, Croatia vs. Ghana, game is at 5 p.m. The Group K, Colombia vs. Portugal, game is at 7:30 p.m. The Group K, Congo vs. Uzbekistan, game is at 7:30 p.m. The Group J, Algeria vs. Austria, game is at 10 p.m. The Group J, Jordan vs. Argentina, game is at 10 p.m.

June 28: The fan festival opens from 1 p.m to 10 p.m. There is a match at 3 p.m.

June 29: The fan festival opens from Noon to midnight. There are three matches at 1 p.m., 4:30 p.m., and 9 p.m.

June 30: The fan festival opens from Noon to midnight. There are three matches at 1 p.m., 5 p.m., and 9 p.m.

July 1: The fan festival opens from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. There are three matches at Noon, 4 p.m., and 9 p.m.

July 2: The fan festival opens from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. There are three matches at 3 p.m., 7 p.m., and 11 p.m.

July 3: The fan festival opens from 1 p.m to 9 p.m. There are three matches at 2 p.m., 6 p.m., and 9:30 p.m.

July 4: The fan festival opens from Noon to midnight. There are two matches at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.

July 5: The fan festival opens for the last day from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. There are two matches at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m.

July 6: The fan festival is closed. There are two matches at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

July 7: The fan festival is closed. There are two matches at Noon and 4 p.m.

July 8: The fan festival is closed, and there aren’t any matches.

July 9: The fan festival is closed. There is a quarter-final match at 4 p.m.

July 10: The fan festival is closed. There is a quarter-final match at 3 p.m.

July 11: The fan festival is closed. There are two quarter-final matches at 5 p.m. and 9 p.m.

July 12-13: The fan festival is closed, and there aren’t any matches.

July 14: The fan festival is closed. There is a semi-final match at 3 p.m.

July 15: The fan festival is closed. There is a semi-final match at 3 p.m.

July 16-17: The fan festival is closed, and there aren’t any matches.

July 18: The fan festival is closed. The third-place play-off match is at 5 p.m.

July 19: The fan festival is closed. The final match is at 3 p.m.

For more information about the festival, visit this page.

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Miami police officers arrested Vasquez, 34, at 10 p.m. along Northwest North River Drive, near Fifth Street, after a National Crime Information Center database “felony vehicle alert,” according to a police report.

Vasquez, also known as Wilmer Vasqueztribuiani, was “sitting inside the vehicle involved” in the fraud that the victim reported on Jan. 29, in Key Biscayne, a police officer wrote, according to an arrest report.

Miami-Dade corrections booked Vasquez shortly before 2 a.m. on Thursday at the Turner Guilford Correctional Center, according to inmate records.

“An unknown subject, by means not yet determined and without authorization, accessed her computer and caused a pop-up message, disguised as an Apple support notification, to appear on the screen,” a police officer wrote, according to the arrest report.

The victim reported that the notification reported “her identity and personal information had been compromised,” according to the police report.

“The victim contacted the telephone number displayed on the pop-up message and was subsequently transferred to an individual claiming to be a bank security agent,” a police officer wrote. “Through a series of false representations, the victim was induced to withdraw $20,000.”

The victim withdrew the cash, placed it in a box, and gave it to an Uber courier to deliver it to the Mobil gas station on Crandon Boulevard, according to police.

“Surveillance video obtained during the investigation captured [Vasquez] receiving the box containing the victim’s $20,000 from the Uber courier and departing the area with the proceeds,” a police officer wrote, according to the arrest report.

Vasquez faced four charges: Organized fraud of $20,000 or more, offenses against users of computers, unlawful use of a communications device, and second-degree grand theft of less than $100,000. His bond was

Vasquez had a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement hold on Thursday afternoon, according to inmate records. He was born in Venezuela and lives in Miami-Dade’s West End area, according to the police officer’s arrest report.

Safety tips

The FBI warns the public to beware of “computer pop-up scams” that start with “a fraudulent alert” that claims your device has a virus and provides a fake support number to call.

• Do not call.
• Do not click on the pop-up.
• Close your browser using Task Manager (Windows: Ctrl + Shift + Esc) or Force Quit (Mac: ⌘ + Option + Esc).
• Never grant remote access
• Fraudsters also tend to demand payments be done via wire transfer, cryptocurrency, and gift cards.

If you have information about a case and want to file a complaint, visit this page and contact the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.

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

Consumer prices rose 2.1% last month compared with April, the government statistics agency INDEC reported — a rate hailed by Economy Minister Luis Caputo as the lowest monthly level in eight months.

But annual inflation rose marginally to 33.2% this May because monthly inflation in May 2025 hit a seven-year low of 1.5%. Since then, prices have climbed and stayed high, squeezing households and fueling public frustration with Milei's government as it grapples with a series of corruption scandals and struggles to respond to a slump in economic activity across the labor-intensive sectors of retail and manufacturing.

Last month, communications networks saw the biggest price increases with 3.4% on higher phone and internet bills, followed by education costs. Food prices accelerated by 2.5%.

Milei praised Minister Caputo, nicknamed Toto, on social media, posting the INDEC report with the comment, "Let’s goooooo Toto!”

Milei and Caputo also celebrated the news that S&P Global, one of the major credit ratings agencies, had upgraded Argentina's sovereign credit rating late Wednesday to a stable B- from the CCC category, which is considered most at risk of defaulting, citing the government’s success in meeting debt repayments.

Although the upgrade leaves Argentina several notches below investment status, the vote of confidence advances Milei's goal of bringing the crisis-prone economy back to global capital markets six years after Argentina defaulted on its foreign debt for the ninth time.

Milei came to office in late 2023 vowing to eliminate Argentina's sky-high price increases and reverse its chronic fiscal deficits.

More than two years later, his sweeping deregulation and austerity measures have produced a rare budget surplus, charmed investors and slowed inflation — the annual rate, now at 33%, topped 200% when he took power.

But the inflation that makes the cost of living here in Buenos Aires comparable to that in European capitals outpaces real wages. Unemployment has ticked up as thousands of workers are laid off from national industries that can't keep up with a flood of cheap imports.

Corruption scandals of the kind Milei vowed to eradicate upon taking office have struck a nerve against the backdrop of his efforts to defund education, health care and social assistance.

Most recently, Milei's close aide and cabinet chief, Manuel Adorni, came under investigation for alleged illicit enrichment over lavish travel — including an all-cash trip to Aruba — and real estate purchases despite his meager public salary. On Wednesday, he admitted to hiding $500,000 in undeclared savings and cryptocurrency investments.

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

Trump had threatened major strikes on Iran and to seize control of its oil and gas industries as escalating attacks between the countries pushed the Middle East closer to full-scale war.

The threats to seize Iran’s Kharg Island oil terminal came after the U.S and Iran traded strikes for a second straight day, pushing the Middle East closer to the resumption of a full-scale war. It was the third time this week that back-and-forth strikes have rattled the Middle East.

Here’s the latest:

Trump again threatens federal takeover of DC

The president’s comments came in response to a question about the possibility of Janeese Lewis George winning the District of Columbia’s mayoral primary next week.

“I wouldn’t like it,” Trump said. “And maybe we’d take back Washington, run it on the federal basis. We won’t put up with it. We’re not going to lose our businesses.”

George is one of the front-runners vying to replace Mayor Muriel Bowser and identifies as a democratic socialist.

Trump has claimed the US has essentially reached a deal with Iran before, so why is this different?

“Because they’ve taken a pounding,” Trump explained Thursday when asked why he was confident.

But his answer was vague as he described it as a “very strong memorandum of understanding,” that he described as “a little conceptual.”

He said of Iran, “They want to make the deal a lot more than I do.”

Trump believes Iran Supreme Leader has signed off on emerging deal

“I understand the answer is yes” Trump said when asked if Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has agreed to the deal.

Khamenei was wounded in the opening salvos of the U.S. and Israeli bombardment of Iran and has been in hiding since.

Iran has not yet confirmed that it’s agreed to terms with the U.S. on a settlement to end the war

Trump says Pulte will continue to be acting director of national intelligence

Trump is insisting that Pulte will stay in the temporary role despite the president’s announcement earlier Thursday that he’s chosen Clayton as the permanent nominee.

“He’s only there for a little while,” Trump said of Pulte. Pressed on Pulte’s lack of national security credentials, the president responded “but he’s intelligent, unlike a lot of other people.”

Trump was also vague on whether he’ll take any executive actions to address the potential lapse in surveillance authorities after midnight Friday.

“Congress wants me to do it, and let’s see what happens,” he said.

Trump opens up more protected ocean areas to fishing

Trump opened three marine protected areas in the Pacific Ocean to commercial fishing with a proclamation Thursday that he said will boost the U.S. seafood industry.

Trump has targeted marine protections created in the era of Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush that he said stifle the country’s ability to compete in the global seafood marketplace. He moved to reestablish fishing in Northeast Canyons and Seamounts Marine National Monument off New England in February.

Thursday’s move focused on portions of Mariana Trench Marine National Monument, Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument and Rose Atoll Marine National Monument. The monuments are protected zones in remote areas of the Pacific.

Environmental groups have criticized Trump’s moves to allow fishing in protected zones, which they said provide vital habitat for rare sea life.

US stocks jump and oil prices ease

U.S. stocks have rallied to their best day in two months and oil prices have fallen after Trump said he had called off new military strikes on Iran.

Trump’s comments raised hopes Thursday for a potential deal to get the global flow of oil going again.

The S&P 500 jumped 1.8%, coming off a back-to-back drop that had yanked it back to where it was in early May.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average leaped 1.9%, and the Nasdaq composite rallied 2.5%. Strong gains for chip stocks helped offset a slide for Oracle. Treasury yields eased sharply in the bond market.

Rubio says UFC fights are a great uniter for a polarized America as White House prepares for cage match

“There are only a handful of things that bring people together in one place at one time, united by their interest in one thing. We need more of those,” Rubio said.

He lauded the popularity of the Ultimate Fighting Championship and the diversity of fight audiences as he signed a sports diplomacy agreement with UFC president Dana White.

He said the White House event on Sunday could have been a concert or a “Shakespeare in the Park” production, “but this one will have people watching probably … a billion people over the world will be watching America celebrate its 250th birthday with the White House in the background.”

National Mall vandalism investigated

The U.S. Park Police is investigating after someone marked the numbers “86 47” on the grass of the lawn west of the Washington Monument.

“The cause of the discoloration has not yet been determined. Grass samples have been collected for testing,” Park Police said in an email.

The same numbers got attention after former FBI Director James Comey was indicted in April over a photograph he posted on social media of seashells arranged to say “86 47.” The Justice Department contends the numbers amounted to a threat against Trump, the 47th president. Comey has said he assumed the numbers reflected a political message, not a call to violence.

According to Merriam-Webster, 86 is slang meaning “to throw out,” “to get rid of” or “to refuse service to.”

“The deranged vandalism on our National Mall will not be tolerated,” the Department of Interior said in an email. “Any threat against the President is taken very seriously by the Department.”

Trump claims he’s close to making a deal with Iran aimed at winding down conflict

“We just made a great settlement of the war with Iran,” Trump said at the start of an Oval Office event. “And we’re going to be, subject to finalization of documents, which should get done over the next few days, probably have a signing, maybe in Europe.”

Trump started the day by again threatening to hit Iran “very hard” with new strikes. Hours later, he returned to social media to say that he decided to cancel plans to escalate the fighting because progress had been made in the talks with Iran and suggested anew that a deal is within view.

But Trump on multiple occasions over the last several weeks has claimed that the warring parties have been on a cusp of a deal without anything coming to fruition.

Taiwan’s opposition leader met US lawmakers

The leader of Taiwan’s opposition party met five U.S. lawmakers at a time when Washington is seeking to stabilize ties with Beijing despite their differences over the self-governed island, including U.S. arms sales to Taiwan.

Cheng Li-wun, chairperson of Taiwan’s Kuomintang Party, is on a two-week trip to the U.S. to promote her party’s approach to peace in the Taiwan Strait through dialogue and to explain its stance on Taiwan’s defense budget and purchase of U.S. weapons. Her party opposes the formal independence of Taiwan.

Taiwan’s media reported that Cheng on Wednesday met with Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., Rep. John Rose, R-Tenn., Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, R-Tenn., Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., and Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla. Mast chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Fleischmann’s office confirmed the meeting.

Thune says Senate could move ‘fairly quickly’ to confirm Clayton

“I don’t know what realistic is, but we’re gonna probe the limits of it,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said after Trump announced on social media that he would nominate Jay Clayton for director of national intelligence.

Democrats are holding up the renewal of a key surveillance law, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, in protest of Trump’s temporary pick for the job, federal housing regulator Bill Pulte. The law expires Friday at midnight.

Trump has previously said that Pulte will take over from the outgoing director, Tulsi Gabbard, on June 19. It is unclear whether the Senate could move quickly enough to confirm Clayton before that date.

Rubio signs sports diplomacy agreement with UFC ahead of cage fight at the White House

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has signed a cooperation agreement with the president of the Ultimate Fight Championship that will pair the two institutions in providing fight training, health and diet regimes and promote teamwork and leadership for youths around the world.

Rubio signed the agreement with UFC chief Dana White at the State Department on Thursday, just three days before the UFC will stage a cage match at the White House. Sunday’s match will be held in conjunction with Trump’s 80th birthday and the celebration of America’s 250th independence anniversary.

The partnership will be part of a broader sports diplomacy initiative that has been operating for decades. It has involved golf, tennis, figure skating, American football, soccer and other athletes. Under the program, program, UFC athletes and coaches will serve as U.S. sports ambassadors, leading training clinics for young international athletes.

Trump picks Jay Clayton, ex-SEC head and current US attorney, as director of national intelligence

Trump says he plans to nominate Jay Clayton, the former head of the Securities and Exchange Commission and current U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, as director of national intelligence.

Trump announced the nomination on social media on Thursday amid pressure from Congress to name Tulsi Gabbard’s permanent replacement. Trump faced intense pushback over his decision to name Bill Pulte, head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, as acting director after Gabbard announced last month that she was stepping down because of her husband’s cancer diagnosis.

The situation led to a standoff in Congress as Democrats said they would refuse to renew a foreign intelligence powers unless Trump pulled Pulte’s nomination and named a permanent nominee.

“Few people anywhere in the Legal Community are respected at the level of Jay,” Trump wrote. “I encourage the United States Senate to confirm Jay as soon as possible.”

Pentagon ends lockdown over ‘air quality’ issue

The Pentagon has stood down from a lockdown over what officials described as an “air quality issue.”

“Subsequent testing confirmed no hazard exists, and normal operations have resumed,” the Pentagon’s top spokesman, Sean Parnell, said in a social media post.

The lockdown lasted for about two hours and prompted a response from hazmat teams of the Pentagon’s internal police force as well as the team from nearby Arlington, Virginia.

Trump calls off threatened strikes against Iran after indicating progress in talks

Trump says he’s called off new military strikes on Iran hours after threatening to escalate the 3-month-old war.

The president said in a social media post Thursday that he made the move “based on the fact that discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran have been brought to the highest level of Iranian leadership and approved.”

Trump also suggested that progress has been made in talks to extend the fragile ceasefire, writing that “discussions and final points have been, in both concept and great detail,” approved by United States, Israel, and other regional allies. He did not offer details.

Trump on multiple occasions over the last several weeks has claimed that the warring parties have been on a cusp of a deal without anything coming to fruition.

Targeting Iran’s Kharg Island carries major risks

Kharg Island has emerged as a focus of the war launched by the United States and Israel. The Persian Gulf island is home to a terminal through which Iran exports most of its oil.

Strikes on oil infrastructure on Kharg — or a ground invasion — would severely curb Iran’s oil exports, a key source of revenue for the Islamic Republic.

An assault would also mark a major escalation that could provoke even heavier retaliatory attacks on Gulf infrastructure. That would further drive up oil prices that already threaten the world economy.

▶ Read more

A look at the scene on the White House South Lawn for Sunday’s UFC event

It looks from afar more UFO than UFC.

Maybe it’s the kind of contraption that has carried space aliens to the White House to force a meeting with America’s leader.

But come closer and you’ll see the contours of the eight-sided cage, 30 feet in diameter and shaped like the MMA league’s signature Octagon.

Overhead looms The Claw, a four-sided mass that arcs more than 90 feet into the air and features lights, speakers, thick snakes of wiring and four large screens so fans not seated right next to the Octagon can follow the fighting in the cage below.

And surrounding all that are risers filled with gray folding chairs forming a temporary arena expected to seat 4,000-plus for the seven UFC fights being staged on Sunday to celebrate the 80th birthday of President Donald Trump and the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence’s signing.

▶ Read more

Iran’s parliamentary speaker responds

Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf warned in a social media post Thursday that “wrong strategies and impulsive decisions” would wreak havoc on energy markets and “create an endless quagmire that you will be stuck in for years.”

Iran’s monthslong stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz has disrupted global energy supplies, driven up fuel prices and made food and other basics more expensive well beyond the region.

Hazardous materials units respond to the Pentagon

The Pentagon Force Protection Agency’s hazardous materials team was responding to an unknown issue and parts of the Pentagon were under a shelter-in-place order while officials investigate.

“The Pentagon has sophisticated systems to ensure the safety of the building and its occupants. Those systems have detected an air quality issue necessitating precautionary measures until we determine its significance,” Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said Thursday. “The Department is executing standard protection protocols, including a shelter-in-place order for the affected area.”

The Arlington County Fire Department also sent units, including its hazardous materials team, according to a posting on its X account. Questions to the media office were referred to the Pentagon.

Iranian student says hope dwindles as attacks escalate

A 25-year-old student in northern Iran says Iranians are fearing “chaos” amid the war with the U.S. and Israel and multiplying crises at home.

The student, who lives in the city of Babol, said many Iranians are struggling to afford groceries in the face of mass job losses and triple-digit food inflation. He spoke on the condition of anonymity out of security fears.

“Everything is going wrong and there is no hope among the people,” the student added.

The student first spoke to The Associated Press before the war when he participated in widespread anti-government protests. He now says his chief concern is that Iran “maintain territorial integrity and deterrence” in the face of attacks by the U.S. and Israel.

— Amir-Hussein Radjy

Tensions persist over Iran’s nuclear program and the Strait of Hormuz

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a social media post that the U.S. would extract funds from frozen Iranian accounts to offset the costs of damage to American allies as well as any tolls Iran imposes on ships seeking passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

Beyond the deadlock over the strait, the two sides also remain at odds over Iran’s nuclear program. Tehran insists its nuclear efforts are peaceful. The U.S. and Israel fear Tehran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium could be used to build an atomic weapon. That was a main reason they cited for going to war Feb. 28.

Trump doesn’t back down on Bill Pulte

After bipartisan pushback to Pulte’s temporary appointment as director of national intelligence, Trump said last week that he would not permanently nominate him to the position. But Democrats, and some Republicans, want his appointment pulled immediately and for Trump to nominate a replacement that can be confirmed by the Senate.

On Tuesday, though, Trump announced that Pulte would not only take over as acting director — he’d also start earlier than expected, on June 19.

One of several possible replacements could be Pete Hoekstra, Trump’s ambassador to Canada and a former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. The White House has reached out to Hoekstra about the job and conversations are ongoing, according to a person familiar with the outreach who requested anonymity to discuss the private conversations.

— Mary Clare Jalonick, Lisa Mascaro and Seung Min Kim

GOP leaders lobbied the White House, to no avail

Congressional Republicans have lobbied Trump all week to quickly nominate a permanent replacement for director of national intelligence. But he said he needs more time to do so.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Republican leaders have “made our views known” to the White House.

Trump has said he’s interviewing five candidates for his pick to lead the agency permanently, after the resignation of Tulsi Gabbard.

House Speaker Mike Johnson said the president has made it very clear that Pulte will serve a “very short term — a sort of renovation role” to help the Office of the Director of National Intelligence be “renovated and downsized.”

But Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee led by Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut said in a letter to the president that Pulte is a “uniquely poor choice” to serve even in the acting capacity.

House vote to extend FISA spy tool fails and it could lapse as Friday deadline looms

A rare lapse in a law that allows the United States to gather intelligence abroad appears likely after the House failed Thursday to temporarily extend the program, in a protest of President Trump ’s refusal to name a permanent head of the nation’s intelligence agencies.

Trump has doubled down on his temporary pick for director of national intelligence, federal housing finance regulator Bill Pulte, even though Pulte has little experience for the job. Democrats say they won’t support the renewal of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, known as FISA, unless the Republican president withdraws Pulte’s appointment and nominates a permanent replacement.

The House vote collapsed in bipartisan fashion, with some Republicans and nearly all Democrats rejecting the temporary measure. The Senate may try its own vote later Thursday, but hopes are dimming to prevent what could be an unprecedented lapse in the surveillance tool. The law expires Friday at midnight.

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Miami police said Victor Rodriguez Polledo was arrested after the incident, which occurred around 5:45 p.m. at a home in the 1900 block of Southwest 17th Street, in the city’s Shenandoah neighborhood.

According to an arrest report, officers responded to a 911 call reporting that a landlord had assaulted a tenant with a machete.

Police said after arriving at the scene, they found the victim bleeding from his right arm and wrist.

The victim told police Rodriguez Polledo had been “arguing with him over some items that needed to be thrown out,” the report states.

During the argument, Rodriguez Polledo told the victim in Spanish, “What the f--- are you looking at? You’ll see what I have for you,” before going back inside his home, returning with a machete, and swinging it at the tenant, according to the report.

Police said the victim reported being struck in the shoulder and arm area with the back of the blade before blocking a second swing with his right hand, suffering a deep laceration to his wrist.

Investigators said the victim then attempted to disarm Rodriguez Polledo, which led to a struggle.

Another person who intervened suffered a minor cut to a hand but declined medical treatment, according to the report.

Authorities said the victim was transported to HCA Florida Mercy Hospital with a deep laceration to his right wrist and other minor injuries.

Police said they recovered a blood-stained machete from the rear of the property and collected it as evidence.

After being advised of his rights in Spanish, Rodriguez Polledo agreed to speak with investigators, however, details of his statement were redacted from the publicly released report.

Jail records show Rodriguez Polledo is facing one count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.

As of Thursday, he was being held without bond at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.

La solicitud fue el tema central de un taller presupuestario del condado Broward realizado el jueves.

El sheriff Gregory Tony estuvo ausente de la reunión, pero la siguió por transmisión en vivo.

“Creo que el sheriff Tony está viendo esto, creo que deberíamos desconectar la transmisión y volverlo loco”, bromeó el alcalde del condado Broward, Mark Bogen, durante el taller.

El subjefe Steve Robson se dirigió a los comisionados para explicar la necesidad de fondos adicionales para el departamento.

“Por supuesto, el gran problema es nuestro asunto no resuelto: el dinero de este año que se trasladará al presupuesto del próximo año”, dijo Robson.

Robson también destacó los salarios iniciales de los agentes, señalando que son los más bajos entre las agencias policiales de Broward y que muchos agentes están abandonando la institución.

La BSO está solicitando 50 puestos adicionales, y gran parte del presupuesto propuesto está relacionado con costos de personal y contratación.

“Aquí hay un gráfico circular que muestra las diferentes categorías dentro de la agencia a las que se destinan los fondos. El personal representa el 80%”, dijo Robson.

La discusión presupuestaria ocurre en medio de una disputa en curso entre la BSO y Deerfield Beach, mientras la ciudad avanza hacia la creación de su propio departamento de policía.

“Octubre es cuando entra en vigor el 1 de octubre, y ellos tendrán su propia fuerza policial. ¿Qué pasará con los 150 agentes? Planeamos absorberlos mediante nuestro plan de transición que presentamos a la ciudad, y la ciudad ha rechazado el plan que propusimos, así que estamos en esa situación en este momento”, dijo Robson. “Antes del 1 de octubre de 2027, planeo incorporar a todos esos agentes a la BSO”.

Los comisionados expresaron preocupación por el tamaño de la solicitud presupuestaria, incluido el comisionado Steven Geller.

“Tony nos está pidiendo más dinero del que está disponible”, dijo Geller.

Geller afirmó que la seguridad pública sigue siendo una prioridad principal, pero señaló que otros servicios del condado también requieren financiamiento.

“Es una prioridad principal, pero no es nuestra única prioridad”, dijo Geller.

“Actualmente, de nuestro presupuesto de ingresos generales, estamos destinando aproximadamente el 54% a la seguridad pública. Pero hay muchas otras cosas que también tenemos que financiar”, agregó.

El alcalde Bogen coincidió en que la solicitud podría ser difícil de atender.

“Con las limitaciones presupuestarias que tenemos en este momento, no es realista”, dijo Bogen.

Está previsto que el presupuesto final del condado sea aprobado en septiembre.

La BSO rechazó una solicitud de entrevista con el subjefe y remitió las preguntas a los comentarios realizados durante la reunión.

Later, she repeated her assertion that former President Joe Biden’s administration is responsible for the parasite’s return to the U.S. six decades after it was eradicated. Democratic leaders say cuts to the nation’s agriculture agency under President Donald Trump are to blame.

Screwworms are on their way to becoming a billion-dollar international problem, but can be contained if ranchers are vigilant, watch their herds and other wildlife, and quickly treat any infestations, Rollins said. She pointed to the calf where screwworms were found six days earlier in a wound where its umbilical cord had been attached.

“He couldn’t be happier. He’s bouncing around the pasture," Rollins said.

Screwworms are flies that lay their eggs in the wounds of warm-blooded animals and feed on living flesh rather than dead tissues. Scientists say releasing sterile flies to mate with females is the most effective way to control the population, a strategy that has worked for decades. A warming planet is complicating efforts by giving screwworms, which thrive in hot, humid weather, more places to spread.

Billion-dollar response planned to fight screwworms

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is preparing an all-out assault on the screwworm, which had been contained in the narrow isthmus of Panama for decades.

No matter the cause, driving screwworms back south and keeping them out of the U.S. will be expensive. The USDA estimated it would spend over $1 billion on efforts to save cattle herds and other livestock.

About $750 million will go toward building and operating a plant capable of producing up to 300 million sterile flies a week. The technique has been used for decades, as female screwworms mate just once, and if they choose a sterile mate, their eggs don’t hatch, and the fly population dwindles.

The goal is to protect the U.S. cattle industry. Experts think the parasite shouldn't cause an immediate increase in near-record-high beef prices as long as it doesn't turn into an outbreak and large groups of cattle die. Screwworms don't affect food safety.

The parasite has already disrupted the Mexican beef industry. The U.S. closed its southern ports to Mexican livestock last summer.

Mexico has had more than 28,000 cases of screwworms since the flies returned two years ago, mostly confined to its southern states. The Mexican government stopped the importation of almost all live animals from the U.S. after screwworms were discovered here.

Scientists aren’t sure how screwworms emerged again

The U.S. had been almost entirely rid of screwworms for 60 years, with scientists in North and Central America eventually driving it down to the containment zone in Panama. But in 2023, the flies emerged and began heading back north.

Experts say screwworms are here to stay at least for this summer. Seven cases have already been detected in Texas and New Mexico. A 12-mile (20-kilometer) quarantine zone goes up around every place a case is found.

As they work toward a solution, scientists say they aren't sure exactly what led to screwworms leaving the area in Panama where they were boxed in.

“I don't have the answer to that one, and I don’t know if anyone does. It doesn’t help us to speculate,” said Jonathan Cammack, a professor of livestock entomology and parasitology at Oklahoma State University.

The key now is to ramp up the sterile fly program and get international cooperation to get the pests back down to Panama, he said.

Climate change is also helping drive the spread of screwworms, said Lee Haines, an associate research professor of biological sciences at the University of Notre Dame.

"The fly is a creature of warmth as its entire life cycle, from egg to adult, can complete in as little as three weeks under tropical conditions," Haines said.

Even Canada has temporarily stopped importing cattle, horses or other livestock from Texas. The parasites prefer humid areas where temperatures are at least 77 F (25 C), and those days are increasing further north.

Democrats question cuts; Republicans blame immigration

As Rollins moves quickly to implement a billion-dollar response to the screwworm outbreak, she has also blamed the Biden administration, noting that it was in office as the parasite began moving north again.

She said without showing any evidence the flies were with animals that followed immigrants north as well as hitching rides with cattle and other animals being sold by Mexican cartels outside of regular markets.

“People moving north to America, bringing their livestock with them, the Mexican cartels with the illicit cattle traffic, we knew it was coming,” Rollins told the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee on Wednesday.

Nearly a dozen Democratic U.S. senators sent a letter to Rollins this week questioning whether job losses at the USDA have hurt food inspections and livestock safety programs.

Nearly 20% of the counties in the U.S. that started 2025 with at least one employee from the federal Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service ended the year with none, the letter said.

Rollins said she has moved over 100 USDA employees into the screwworm response. She said it has been one of her top priorities since Trump picked her to lead the USDA.

But Democratic U.S. Rep. Ted Lieu of California said blaming Biden is shortsighted and again shows the Trump administration creates problems through reckless spending cuts.

“The life cycle of a screwworm is about 14 to 54 days, depending on temperature and humidity. The Trump administration has been in office for over 500 days,” Lieu said earlier this week. “This is on the Trump administration. They need to own up to it, and they need to apologize.”

Debbie Cohran, who lives about 500 feet (152 meters) from the aerospace facility in Garden Grove, wasn’t told to evacuate until several hours after the leak started, according to her complaint. Her suit said she experienced nausea and headaches for several days afterward.

Melanie Rose Burciaga of nearby Westminster had just given birth to her first child and had to leave the hospital when the evacuation orders came in, her lawyer said in a lawsuit.

And Juan Diego Orozco was part of a street repair crew working in Garden Grove on the day the overheating started. He said he suffered a headache and went to the hospital due to difficulty breathing and vomiting, his lawyer said.

More than 100 individuals — including some families with pets — as well as local businesses are suing GKN Aerospace, saying the U.K.-based company was negligent in maintaining a safe facility, especially since it’s located in a large population center.

Ten of the cases were filed as class actions in federal court, while 21 are in state court and cover one to 31 plaintiffs. The suits seek compensatory and punitive damages.

A spokesperson for GKN Aerospace told the AP in an email Thursday: “GKN respects the legal process and will respond to these lawsuits in due course.”

Adam Zimmerman, a professor at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law who is not involved in the litigation, said the federal cases will likely be consolidated and the state cases will likely be moved under one judge, to ensure they are handled efficiently. Some of those state lawsuits may be moved to federal court, he said.

Pressure on the company increased on Wednesday when FBI agents served a search warrant at the facility to collect documents and records related to the “storage, use, or disposal” of methyl methacrylate, the chemical inside the affected tank.

The Environmental Protection Agency said Thursday that it had joined the FBI to “search for and seize evidence of potential federal environmental crimes." The agency declined to provide more information, saying it doesn't comment on criminal investigations.

GKN Aerospace makes cockpit windows, canopies and windshields. The tank that overheated starting on May 21 contained 6,000 to 7,000 gallons (22,700 to 26,500 liters) of methyl methacrylate, which is highly flammable. The liquid is used in the manufacturing of plastics and coatings, such as Plexiglas.

Health officials said no contamination or fumes were released, and they plan to monitor the air for several months. Exposure to the chemical can cause serious respiratory problems, neurological issues and irritation to the skin, eyes and throat, according to the EPA.

Although the tank did not explode, tens of thousands of residents were evacuated from the area for three to five days until crews were able to stabilize the tank.

Blodgett said that the company was cooperating with federal authorities.

GKN Aerospace senior vice president Steve Carlin spoke at a community meeting Tuesday, saying he was sorry that the event occurred, and that it was especially unsettling because the company has a long history with the community.

Many of the lawsuits say the company had a duty to maintain the tank, cooling system, valves and monitoring systems to keep the community safe.

The complaints say the residents were forced to leave their homes and had to pay for hotels, food and other daily needs, which created a financial burden. They also said they experienced anxiety during the evacuation process and continue to be concerned about exposure to chemicals.

Businesses in the area also suffered. The emergency happened over Memorial Day weekend -– a time when many restaurants and food service companies bring in some of their best revenue of the year.

“Our data shows approximately 3,000 businesses were forced to shut down because of the evacuation, and at least another 3,000 businesses right outside the evacuation zone while not forced to close, but had their revenue dropped considerably because of the tank failure and evacuation,” said lawyer Richard McCune, who has filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of Big Rob’s Pizzeria and Fruit Caboose Concessions.

Lawyers say the FBI investigation will help their legal cases.

“We trust that the search will uncover important information and materials related to this crisis,” said lawyer Sean Litteral, who represents Jonathan Sanchez, a father of two children, including an infant born just days before the incident.

And they had spent the first four games of the Stanley Cup Final being outplayed in critical second-period sequences.

On Thursday night, it all came together, aligning to bring the Hurricanes within a victory of winning the Cup.

Svechnikov scored twice and Aho added a second-period goal in a breakout offensive game for both, helping the Hurricanes beat the Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 for a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series.

“I liked our effort for sure, and I hope we're getting better,” coach Rod Brind'Amour said. “I think there's certain areas of our game that are starting to look a lot like we need it to look. But I do think there's still another level that we're going to need to get to find that next one.”

Captain Jordan Staal found the net again for the fifth straight game in this series after Vegas had taken a 1-0 first-period lead, while Brandon Bussi finished with 23 saves in his second career postseason start.

Game 6 is Sunday night in Las Vegas, with the Hurricanes playing for the chance to hoist the Stanley Cup for the first time since Brind’Amour captained them to the title in 2006.

Aho's goal in the second period marked his first of the series, coming when Sean Walker found him cutting to the left side after Jordan Martinook — swapped with Seth Jarvis to work alongside Aho and Svechnikov on the top line — won a puck battle behind the net on the forecheck.

Then there was Svechnikov, who entered Thursday with four postseason goals before striking twice on the power play. On the first, he whipped the puck past Carter Hart on the right side for a 2-1 lead in the second period. On the second, he had a short putaway at the post off a sharp feed from Nikolaj Ehlers for a 4-1 lead, one of three assist for Ehlers on the night that included him having two delay-of-game penalties for putting a puck over the glass.

Before those second-period scores, Vegas had outscored Carolina 9-1 in the second period during the series.

And unlike most multi-goal leads in what has been a wild and thrilling series, this one held up with Bussi doing enough to stave off Vegas' late push to climb back in it.

“It required everything we have,” Staal said on the ESPN broadcast.

Pavel Dorofeyev scored twice for Vegas, finding the net for the first time since Game 1 of the Western Conference Final sweep of Presidents’ Trophy winner Colorado.

“I thought we were still doing some good things,” Vegas’ Jack Eichel said. “We had chances.”

Hart entered this one as the first goaltender in Stanley Cup Final history to give up at least four goals in each of the first four games, then did it again to continue a difficult series while finishing with 20 saves.

Asked if he considered swapping to backup Adin Hill, coach John Tortorella responded: “That could be the stupidest question I've heard.”

Vegas had twice before been in a 2-2 series in these playoffs, in the first round against Utah and the second round against Anaheim. Both times, the Golden Knights won Game 5 and closed out the series in Game 6.

This time, they’ll have to win on home ice to force the series back to Carolina for a Game 7 on Wednesday night. And they'll have to take two in a row against a Hurricanes team that hasn't suffered consecutive losses since mid-January.

Not that Tortorella was fazed.

“We'll be back here,” he said confidently, saying he would leave his clothes behind at the team's hotel in expectation of returning to North Carolina.

Vegas played much of the night without center William Karlsson, who was being checked out on the bench for an apparent upper-body injury. Karlsson skated to the tunnel midway through the second period and didn’t return. Tortorella said the center was “not going to be with us, probably" in the coming games.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl