What to know about Hurricane Milton as it moves toward Florida’s Gulf Coast
Not even two weeks after Hurricane Helene swamped the Florida coastline, Milton has strengthened rapidly into a major hurricane on a path toward the state. The system is threatening the densely populated Tampa metro area — which has a population of more than 3.3 million people — with a potential...
Russian court sentences 72-year-old American to nearly 7 years in prison for fighting in Ukraine
MOSCOW — A Russian court on Monday sentenced a 72-year-old American in a closed trial to nearly seven years in prison for allegedly fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine. Prosecutors said Stephen Hubbard signed a contract with the Ukrainian military after Russia sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022 and...
Trump says migrants who have committed murder have introduced ‘a lot of bad genes in our country’
NEW YORK — Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on Monday suggested that migrants who are in the U.S. and have committed murder did so because “it’s in their genes.” There are, he added, “a lot of bad genes in our country right now.” It’s the latest example of Trump alleging...
FEMA administrator continues pushback against false claims as Helene death toll hits 230Video
The head of the U.S. disaster response agency continued to forcefully push back Monday against false claims and conspiracy theories about her agency’s response to Hurricane Helene as the death toll from the storm continued to climb. Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator Deanne Criswell pointed to the agency’s massive, collaborative...
Private school vouchers opposed by more than half of Pa. voters, poll shows
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. HARRISBURG — Most Pennsylvania voters don’t support using taxpayer dollars to create a private school voucher program, a new Spotlight PA poll shows, an idea...
Mega Millions tickets will climb to $5, but officials promise bigger prizes and better odds
DES MOINES, Iowa — The cost of buying a Mega Millions jackpot dream will soon more than double, but lottery officials said they’re confident players won’t mind paying more after changes that will lead to larger prizes and more frequent winners. Lottery officials announced Monday that it will cost $5...
Georgia Supreme Court restores near-ban on abortions while state appealsVideo
SAVANNAH, Ga. — The Georgia Supreme Court on Monday halted a ruling striking down the state’s near-ban on abortions while it considers the state’s appeal. The high court’s order came a week after a judge found that Georgia unconstitutionally prohibits abortions beyond about six weeks of pregnancy, often before women...
Financier’s $4M gift helps Duquesne University create new nursing simulation lab
A nearly $4 million gift will enable Duquesne University to open a second nursing simulation lab on its campus, which also enrolled its inaugural class in osteopathic medicine this fall. The Joanne Barkett Conway Simulation Center is scheduled to open in 2026 on the sixth floor of Fisher Hall, university...
Supreme Court takes the bench with ghost guns, a capital case and transgender rights on the docket
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court took the bench again Monday, ready to hear cases on ghost guns, a death sentence and transgender rights. Seated in front of the courtroom’s sweeping marble columns, Chief Justice John Roberts announced the formal end of the court’s previous term, when a series of blockbuster...
Supreme Court rejects appeal from ‘Pharma Bro’ Martin Shkreli
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal from Martin Shkreli, who was once dubbed “Pharma Bro” after jacking up the price of a lifesaving drug. Shkreli appealed an order to return $64.6 million in profits he and his former company reaped after monopolizing the market for the...
Supreme Court won’t hear appeal from Elon Musk’s X platform over warrant in Trump case
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court said Monday it won’t hear an appeal from the social media platform X over a search warrant prosecutors obtained in the election-interference case against former President Donald Trump. The justices did not explain their reasoning, and there were no noted dissents. The company, known as...
Supreme Court declines Biden administration appeal in Texas emergency abortion case
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday let stand a decision barring emergency abortions that violate the law in Texas, which has one of the country’s strictest abortion bans. The justices did not detail their reasoning for keeping in place a lower court order that said hospitals cannot be required...
A spacecraft is on its way to a harmless asteroid slammed by NASA in a previous save-the-Earth test
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A spacecraft blasted off Monday to investigate the scene of a cosmic crash. The European Space Agency’s Hera spacecraft rocketed away on a two-year journey to the small, harmless asteroid rammed by NASA two years ago in a dress rehearsal for the day a killer space...
Gallery: Photos from Oct. 7, 2024
Embark on a visual journey around the Western Pennsylvania region — and the world — with TribLive’s latest collection of captivating images for Monday, Oct. 7, 2024. From the rustic landscapes of Western Pa. to diverse corners of the globe, experience the shared moments of humanity....
‘This isn’t the worst thing’: Western Pa. students, teachers adapt to cellphone restrictions
When Plum Senior High School announced in August it would require students to turn in their cellphones at the start of each class, Dhruv Thakkar could not have been more opposed to the change. “Me and my friends immediately jumped to the fact that our senior year was going to...
Hurricane Milton is a Category 5. Florida orders evacuations and scrambles to clear Helene’s debrisVideo
BELLEAIR BEACH, Fla. — Florida’s storm-battered Gulf Coast raced against a Category 5 hurricane Monday as workers sprinted to pick up heaps of appliances and other street debris left over from Helene two weeks ago and highways were clogged with people fleeing ahead of the storm. The center of Hurricane...
Nobel Prize in medicine honors American duo for their discovery of microRNA
STOCKHOLM — The Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine was awarded Monday to Americans Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun for their discovery of microRNA, tiny pieces of genetic material that alter how genes work at the cellular level and could lead to new ways of treating cancer. The Nobel Assembly...
Tips, overtime, Social Security: A look at Donald Trump’s no-tax pledges and what they might cost
Donald Trump has pledged to end taxes on everything from tips to Social Security and overtime pay if he’s elected to the White House again. But he hasn’t detailed how he would fund those ideas and avoid creating a huge budget shortfall, beyond arguing he will usher in an economic...
New analysis suggests national debt could increase under Harris, but it would surge under Trump
WASHINGTON — No one is likely to be happy with the projected higher deficits laid out in a new analysis of Kamala Harris’ and Donald Trump’s economic plans. The analysis released Monday by the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget suggests a Harris presidency could increase the national debt...
Gaza is in ruins after Israel’s yearlong offensive. Rebuilding may take decadesVideo
The Gaza Strip is in ruins. There are hills of rubble where apartment blocks stood, and pools of sewage-tainted water spreading disease. City streets have been churned into dirt canyons and, in many places, the air is filled with the stench of unrecovered corpses. Israel’s yearlong offensive against Hamas, one...
Mideast violence is spiraling a year since the Gaza war began
JERUSALEM — A year after Hamas’ fateful attack on southern Israel, the Middle East is embroiled in a war that shows no signs of ending and seems to be getting worse. Israel’s retaliatory offensive was initially centered on the Gaza Strip. But the focus has shifted in recent weeks to...
Israelis, scarred and battling on multiple fronts, mark a year since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack
RE’IM, Israel — Israelis held somber ceremonies on Monday to mark a year since the deadliest attack in the country’s history, a Hamas-led raid that shattered its sense of security and ignited wars on two fronts with no end in sight. Hamas marked the anniversary of its Oct. 7, 2023,...
U.S. disaster relief chief blasts false claims about Helene response as a ‘truly dangerous narrative’
WASHINGTON — The U.S. government’s top disaster relief official said Sunday that false claims and conspiracy theories about the federal response to Hurricane Helene — spread most prominently by Donald Trump — are “demoralizing” aid workers and creating fear in people who need recovery assistance. “It’s frankly ridiculous, and just...
Pennsylvania high court declines to decide mail-in ballot issues before election
HARRISBURG — The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has declined to step in and immediately decide issues related to mail-in ballots in the commonwealth with early voting already under way in the few weeks before the Nov. 5 election. The commonwealth’s highest court on Saturday night rejected a request by voting rights...
A massive blast outside Karachi Airport in Pakistan injures at least 8
KARACHI, Pakistan — A massive blast outside Karachi Airport in Pakistan on Sunday injured at least eight people and destroyed several vehicles, officials said. Police and the provincial government said a tanker exploded outside the airport, which is Pakistan’s biggest. But the provincial home minister, Zia Ul Hassan, told local...
