Associated Press stories, Page 619
Heavy fighting in Gaza’s Rafah keeps aid crossings closed, sends 100,000 civilians fleeing
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Heavy fighting between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants on the outskirts of the southern Gaza city of Rafah has left crucial nearby aid crossings inaccessible and caused over 100,000 people to flee north, a United Nations official said Friday. Israel’s plans for a full-scale invasion of...
Ukraine says Russia trying to break through its defenses in northeastern Kharkiv region
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine rushed reinforcements to its northeastern Kharkiv region to hold off a Russian attempt to breach local defenses, authorities said, a tactical switch in the war by Moscow that Ukrainian officials have been expecting for weeks. Intense nighttime shelling targeted Vovchansk, in the Kharkiv region and less...
Schauffele shoots 67 to take Wells Fargo lead. McIlroy in contention again at Quail HollowVideo
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Rory McIlroy hoped his victory with Shane Lowry two weeks ago in the Zurich Classic team event would serve as a springboard for the remainder of the season. He’s off to a good start. McIlroy positioned himself for a run at a record fourth Wells Fargo Championship...
Barron Trump, 18, to make political debut as Florida delegate to the Republican conventionVideo
MIAMI — Former President Donald Trump’s youngest son, Barron Trump, has been chosen to serve as a Florida delegate to the Republican National Convention, the state party chairman said Wednesday. Republican Party of Florida chairman Evan Power said the 18-year-old high school senior will serve as one of 41 at-large...
Court rejects Hunter Biden’s appeal in gun case, setting stage for trial to begin next month
WASHINGTON — Hunter Biden’s federal gun case should move forward, an appeals court ruled Thursday, setting the stage for the president’s son to stand trial on criminal charges next month in Delaware. Hunter Biden’s lawyers went to the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals after the judge overseeing the case...
From 1 goal to 3, no lead is safe in these NHL playoffs
If you went to sleep midway through either of the Western Conference NHL playoff games the past two nights, there’s a good chance you woke up to a different winner than you thought. On Tuesday night, Dallas led Colorado, 3-0, after the first period and lost 4-3 in overtime. Roughly...
Pennsylvania to ban cellphone use while driving and require police to collect traffic stop data
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania will join the majority of states that ban motorists from handling a cellphone for almost any purpose while driving, as backers of the legislation hope to reduce distracted driving accidents and deaths after nearly two decades of pressing the measure. Gov. Josh Shapiro’s office said Thursday that...
Homeless encampment cleared from drug-plagued Philadelphia neighborhood
PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia police have cleared out a homeless encampment in a city neighborhood where drug use has been pervasive for years, but homeless advocates and others have raised concerns about how it was done. The effort, which the city called an “encampment resolution,” started around 7 a.m. Wednesday in...
Former Steelers WR Allen Robinson signs free-agent contract with Giants
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The New York Giants signed wide receiver Allen Robinson to a free-agent contract with the hope he can help boost the team’s struggling offense. The Giants announced the signing Thursday, two months after Robinson was cut by the Pittsburgh Steelers in a cost-cutting move. The 30-year-old...
TikTok to start labeling AI-generated content as technology becomes more universal
TikTok will begin labeling content created using artificial intelligence when it’s been uploaded from outside its own platform in an attempt to combat misinformation. “AI enables incredible creative opportunities, but can confuse or mislead viewers if they don’t know content was AI-generated,” the company said in a prepared statement Thursday....
Netanyahu on U.S. threat to withhold arms: Israel will fight with its ‘fingernails’ if needed
JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that a U.S. threat to withhold some arms would not prevent Israel from continuing its offensive in Gaza, indicating it might proceed with an invasion of the packed city of Rafah against the wishes of its closest ally. President Joe Biden has...
Homeless woman was living inside Michigan rooftop store sign with computer, coffee maker
Contractors curious about an extension cord on the roof of a Michigan grocery store made a startling discovery: A 34-year-old woman was living inside the business sign, with enough space for a computer, printer and coffee maker, police said. “She was homeless,” Officer Brennon Warren of the Midland Police Department...
Nikki Haley will meet with donors to her shuttered presidential campaign; no Trump endorsement expected
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Nikki Haley is meeting next week with donors who supported her now-abandoned Republican presidential campaign, a reentry into public life that comes as the former South Carolina governor keeps drawing notable support in some state primaries despite Donald Trump’s status as the presumptive nominee. Haley will appear...
10 injured as Boeing 737 catches fire and skids off the runway at a Senegal airport
DAKAR, Senegal — A Boeing 737-300 plane carrying 85 people skidded off a runway at the airport in Dakar, Senegal’s capital, injuring 10 people, according to the transport minister, an airline safety group and footage from a passenger that showed the aircraft on fire. “Our plane just caught fire,” wrote...
Toronto Maple Leafs fire coach Sheldon Keefe after another early playoff exit
TORONTO — Sheldon Keefe is out as coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs, fired Thursday after another early exit from the NHL playoffs. The move had been expected after Toronto lost to rival Boston in Game 7 last weekend, the fourth time in five years under Keefe the team has...
Trump’s hush money trial hinges on business transactions, not on Stormy Daniels’ shocking testimony
NEW YORK — Donald Trump’s defense attorney on Thursday accused Stormy Daniels of slowly altering the details of an alleged 2006 sexual encounter with Trump, trying to persuade jurors that a key prosecution witness in the former president’s hush money trial cannot be believed. “You made all this up, right?”...
What will Utah’s NHL team be called? Here are 20 options
Ownership of the NHL’s team in Utah has given fans 20 choices to vote on for the franchise’s new name, according to a survey sent out Wednesday by Smith Entertainment Group. Owner Ryan Smith has told The Associated Press the team will have a name starting with Utah. The inaugural...
Israel says it reopened a key Gaza crossing after a rocket attack but the UN says no aid has entered
JERUSALEM — The Israeli military said Wednesday that it has reopened its Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza after days of closure, but the U.N. said no humanitarian aid has yet entered and there is no one to receive it on the Palestinian side after workers fled during Israel’s military incursion...
Guns are being stolen from cars at triple the rate they were 10 years ago, a report finds
WASHINGTON — The rate of guns stolen from cars in the U.S. has tripled over the last decade, making them the largest source of stolen guns in the country, an analysis of FBI data by the gun safety group Everytown found. The rate of stolen guns from cars climbed nearly...
Cruise ship sails into New York City port with 44-foot dead whale across its bow
NEW YORK — A cruise ship sailed into a New York City port with a 44-foot dead whale across its bow, marine authorities said. The whale, identified as an endangered sei whale, was caught on the ship’s bow when it arrived at the Port of Brooklyn on Saturday, National Oceanic...
Cowboys cut former Steelers WR Martavis Bryant, ending his latest comeback attempt
FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys released former Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Martavis Bryant on Wednesday, ending his latest attempt to return to the NFL following a long absence. Bryant signed with Dallas’ practice squad last season but didn’t make the active roster. He was retained on a futures contract after...
Former interpreter for Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani will plead guilty in betting case
LOS ANGELES — The former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani has agreed to plead guilty to bank and tax fraud in a sports betting case in which prosecutors allege he stole nearly $17 million from the Japanese baseball player to pay off debts, federal prosecutors said Wednesday....
Powerful storms kill 3 as tornadoes tear through central and southeastern U.S.Video
COLUMBIA, Tenn. — Severe storms tore through the central and southeast U.S. late Tuesday and Wednesday, spawning damaging tornadoes, producing massive hail, and killing two people in Tennessee and one person in North Carolina. A storm that rumbled across northeastern Tennessee brought high winds that knocked down powerlines and trees....
Attorneys: Florida deputies who fatally shot U.S. airman burst into wrong apartment
MIAMI — Deputies responding to a disturbance call at a Florida apartment complex burst into the wrong unit and fatally shot a Black U.S. Air Force airman who was home alone when they saw he was armed with a gun, an attorney for the man’s family said Wednesday. Senior Airman...
Pennsylvania will make animal sedative xylazine a controlled substance
HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro will sign legislation to criminalize the misuse of a powerful animal tranquilizer called xylazine that is showing up in supplies of illicit drugs and contributing to a growing number of human overdose deaths, his office said Wednesday. Xylazine, which is being mixed into fentanyl...
