AI-aided virtual conversations with WWII vets are latest feature at New Orleans museumVideo
NEW ORLEANS — Olin Pickens sat in his wheelchair facing a life-sized image of himself on a screen, asking it questions about being taken prisoner by German soldiers during World War II. After a pause, his video-recorded twin recalled being given “sauerkraut soup” by his captors before a grueling march....
Prince Harry’s lawyer implicates Rupert Murdoch in cover-up of unlawful snooping by his tabloids
LONDON — Prince Harry’s lawyer leveled explosive new allegations Wednesday that Rupert Murdoch was aware of cover-ups at his British tabloids that used unlawful techniques to spy on the Duke of Sussex and others. Attorney David Sherborne said Murdoch was among the executives who were aware that public statements made...
Florida homeless to be banned from sleeping in public spaces under DeSantis-backed law
Florida’s homeless will be banned from sleeping on sidewalks and in parks and other public spaces under a law signed Wednesday by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. It also promises the homeless greater access to services for issues such as substance abuse and mental health problems. The state Department of Children...
England is limiting gender transitions for youths. U.S. legislators are watching
Legislators in at least two U.S. states are citing a recent decision in England to restrict gender transitions for young people as support for their own related proposals. They weren’t the first to turn to other countries, notably in Europe, for policy and research ideas. Lawmakers across the U.S., where...
Heavy fighting rages around Gaza’s biggest hospital as Israel raids it for a second day
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Explosions and shootings shook the Gaza Strip’s biggest hospital and surrounding neighborhoods as Israeli forces stormed through the facility for a second day Tuesday. The military said it had killed 50 Hamas militants in the hospital, but it could not be independently confirmed that the dead...
Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong resigns amid anti-corruption campaign
HANOI, Vietnam — Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong resigned after a little over a year on the job, the Communist Party said Wednesday, making him the latest senior official to leave office amid an intense anti-corruption campaign. The party said it had accepted his resignation, writing in a statement that...
Texas’ migrant arrest law is back on hold after briefly taking effect
McALLEN, Texas — Texas’ plans to arrest migrants suspected of entering the U.S. illegally were again on hold Wednesday after setting off uncertainty along the border and anger from Mexico flared during a brief few hours that the law was allowed to take effect. A late-night order Tuesday from a...
Mega Millions jackpot reaches $977 million after no one wins Tuesday’s drawing
The Mega Millions jackpot has reached $977 million for Friday night’s drawing after no tickets matched all six numbers drawn on Tuesday night. The winning numbers drawn on Tuesday were 24, 46, 49, 62, 66 and the gold Mega Ball was 7. The estimated jackpot was $893 million with a...
Hong Kong lawmakers unanimously approve security law giving government more power to curb dissent
HONG KONG — Hong Kong lawmakers unanimously approved a new national security law Tuesday that grants the government more power to quash dissent, widely seen as the latest step in a sweeping political crackdown triggered by pro-democracy protests in 2019. The legislature passed the Safeguarding National Security Bill during a...
A newspaper says video of Prince William and Kate should halt royal rumor mill. That’s a tall order
LONDON — The late Queen Elizabeth II used to say that the royal family has to be seen to be believed. That became glaringly evident as the absence of Kate, the Princess of Wales, from public view unleashed an escalating frenzy of wild speculation, skepticism and flat-out conspiracy theories fueled...
Top former U.S. generals say failures of Biden administration in planning drove chaotic fall of Kabul
WASHINGTON — The top two U.S. generals who oversaw the evacuation of Afghanistan as it fell to the Taliban in August 2021 blamed the Biden administration for the chaotic departure, telling lawmakers Tuesday that it inadequately planned for the evacuation and did not order it in time. The rare testimony...
2 Japanese men die in river near Washington state waterfall made popular on TikTok
INDEX, Wash. — The bodies of two people recovered over the weekend after they fell into the water at a dangerous swimming area in Washington state made popular by TikTok have been identified as men from Japan. The Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the men Tuesday as Hiroya Konosu,...
Biden tells Latino voters: ‘I need you back’
PHOENIX — President Joe Biden on Tuesday personally appealed to Latino voters, saying they’re the reason he defeated Donald Trump in 2020 and urging them to help him do it again in November. “I need you back,” he told several dozen supporters packed into a local Mexican restaurant. Biden said...
Biden and Trump notch more wins in Tuesday’s primaries
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Joe Biden and Donald Trump won their parties’ primaries in Kansas on Tuesday, notching more delegates as they continue their march to a rematch in November’s presidential election. Biden, a Democrat, and Trump, a Republican, also easily won primaries Tuesday in Ohio and Illinois. Trump also won...
Trump-backed Cleveland businessman Bernie Moreno wins Ohio’s GOP Senate primary
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Cleveland businessman Bernie Moreno won Ohio’s Republican Senate primary on Tuesday, just days after former President Donald Trump visited the state to boost his endorsed candidate in a three-way race that remained competitive to the end. Moreno prevailed after a contentious and expensive fight against Ohio Secretary...
Trump sues ABC News and George Stephanopoulos for defamation
Former President Trump is suing TV journalist George Stephanopoulos and ABC News for defamation for saying he raped advice columnist E. Jean Carroll. On a March 10 edition of “This Week with George Stephanopoulos,” the anchor said Trump was “liable for rape” during his interview with Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.)....
Baby giraffe dies of a broken neck at Zoo Miami
MIAMI — A baby giraffe has died of a broken neck at Zoo Miami, zoo officials said. The giraffe, born Dec. 15, was found by the zoo’s staff Saturday morning, spokesperson Ron Magill said. “Because the event that led to this trauma happened overnight and was not personally observed, zoo...
Trump asks Supreme Court to dismiss case charging him with plotting to overturn 2020 election
WASHINGTON — Lawyers for Donald Trump urged the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday to dismiss an indictment charging the former president with conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election, renewing their arguments that he is immune from prosecution for official acts taken in the White House. Lower courts...
PennWest University seeks new president to reverse enrollment plunge, serve needs of different student populations
There aren’t many universities in their infancy that also are comprised of institutions dating to the Civil War era. In its presidential search, Pennsylvania Western University has walked that fine line between future and past. Now, the university with merged campuses in California, Clarion and Edinboro has posted to its...
More than 6 in 10 U.S. abortions in 2023 were done by medication — a significant jump since 2020
More than six in 10 of the abortions in the United States last year were done through medication, up from 53% in 2020, new research shows. The Guttmacher Institute, a research group that supports abortion rights, said about 642,700 medication abortions took place in the first full calendar year after...
Supreme Court lifts stay on Texas law that gives police broad powers to arrest migrants at border
A divided Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed Texas to begin enforcing a law that gives police broad powers to arrest migrants suspected of crossing the border illegally while a legal battle over the measure plays out. The conservative majority’s order rejects an emergency application from the Biden administration, which says...
Some Leechburg Area School District residents complain of unfair tax burden
Property owners in the Westmoreland County portion of Leechburg Area School District are demanding a new tax structure that doesn’t dip as deeply into their pockets as the current one does. “You’re picking the pockets of the 1,300 residents of West Leechburg,” Jake Heasley told Leechburg Area School Board members...
Faculty set to vote on contract with State System of Higher Education
Five thousand state university faculty will vote next month on a tentative four-year labor pact between the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties and the State System of Higher Education. The statewide balloting dates announced Tuesday come three months after union and management announced an agreement in principle...
Ex-Trump White House official Navarro reports to prison to serve contempt of Congress sentenceVideo
MIAMI — Former Trump White House official Peter Navarro reported to prison Tuesday to begin serving his sentence for refusing to cooperate with a congressional investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Navarro was defiant in remarks across the street from the federal prison complex in...
Pedal coast-to-coast without using a road? New program helps connect trails across the U.S.
When Mike O’Neil opened his bicycle repair shop in Muncie, Indiana, the Cardinal Greenway trail just outside its window stretched only 2 miles south of the shop. Today, it extends 33 miles (53 kilometers) beyond that, but the ultimate vision is far grander. O’Neil hopes the trail born from eastern...
