U.S. warns of further retaliation if Iran-backed militias continue their attacks
JERUSALEM — After a weekend of retaliatory strikes, the United States on Sunday warned Iran and the militias it arms and funds that it will conduct more attacks if American forces in the Mideast continue to be targeted, but that it does not want an “open-ended military campaign” across the...
How Donald Trump went from a diminished ex-president to the GOP’s dominant front-runner
NASHUA, N.H. — When he left the White House, Donald Trump was a pariah. After years of bending Washington to his will with a single tweet, Trump was, at least for a moment, diminished. He was a one-term Republican president rejected by voters and then shunned by large swaths of...
Joe Biden sails to victory in South Carolina’s Democratic primary
COLUMBIA, S.C. — President Joe Biden easily won South Carolina’s Democratic primary on Saturday, clinching a state he pushed to lead off his party’s nominating process after it revived his then-struggling White House bid four years ago. Biden defeated the other long-shot Democrats on South Carolina’s ballot, including Minnesota Rep....
Penn Museum buries the bones of 19 Black Philadelphians, causing dispute with community members
For decades, the University of Pennsylvania has held hundreds of skulls that once were used to promote white supremacy through racist scientific research. As part of a growing effort among museums to reevaluate the curation of human remains, the Ivy League school laid some of the remains to rest last...
RNC chairwoman calls for unity as party faces cash crunch, attacks by some Trump allies
LAS VEGAS, Nevada — Facing a cash crunch and harsh criticism from a faction of far-right conservatives, Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel on Friday called for the party to unite behind the goal of defeating President Joe Biden. McDaniel spoke at the RNC’s winter meeting in Las Vegas behind...
Biden looks for big win in South Carolina’s Democratic primary after pushing for state to go first
COLUMBIA, S.C. — President Joe Biden is looking for an easy victory Saturday in South Carolina’s Democratic primary that officially kicks off his party’s nominating process, validating a new lineup he championed to better empower Black voters who helped revive his 2020 campaign. Biden is overwhelmingly favored against Minnesota Rep....
At least 19 dead in Chile as forest fires approach densely populated central areas
VIÑA DEL MAR, Chile — Intense forest fires burning around a densely populated area of central Chile have left at least 19 people dead and destroyed about 1,100 homes, officials said Saturday. Chile’s Interior Minister Carolina Tohá said there were currently 92 forest fires burning in the center and south...
As investors pile into psychedelics, idealism gives way to pharma economics
Money is pouring into the fledgling psychedelic medicine industry, with dozens of startup companies vying to be among the first to sell mind-expanding drugs for depression, addiction and other mental health conditions. While psychedelics are still illegal under federal law, companies are jostling to try and patent key ingredients found...
U.S., Britain begin new strikes on Yemen’s Houthis, retaliating for attacks by Iran-backed militants
WASHINGTON — The United States and Britain struck at least 30 Houthi targets in Yemen on Saturday in a second wave of assaults meant to further disable Iran-backed groups that have relentlessly attacked American and international interests in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war, U.S. officials told The Associated Press....
Hamas deploys police, distributes funds in sign of resurgence in Gaza areas Israeli troops have left
RAFAH, Gaza Strip — Hamas has begun deploying police forces and making partial salary payments to some of its civil servants in Gaza City in recent days, resurfacing in areas from which Israel had withdrawn the bulk of its troops a month ago, four residents and a senior official in...
Eastern Pa. school board president killed in small plane crash
The president of a Pennsylvania school board was killed in a small plane crash Thursday afternoon, the school district said in a release. Sam Ganow, who was president of the Octorara Area School District School Board, was the only person aboard the plane when it took off from the Chester...
Judge dismisses case against Michigan man accused of threatening Biden, Harris
BAY CITY, Mich. — A federal judge on Friday dismissed a criminal case against a northern Michigan man accused of threatening President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. After a preliminary examination in federal court in Bay City, U.S. Magistrate Judge Patricia Morris concluded there was no probable cause...
Prosecutors in classified files case: Trump team’s version of events ‘inaccurate, distorted’
WASHINGTON — Prosecutors in the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump told a judge Friday that defense lawyers had painted an “inaccurate and distorted picture of events” and had unfairly sought to “cast a cloud of suspicion” over government officials who were simply trying to do their jobs....
U.S. hits militias in Iraq and Syria, beginning retaliation for fatal drone attack
WASHINGTON — The U.S. military launched an air assault on dozens of sites in Iraq and Syria used by Iranian-backed militias and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard on Friday in the opening salvo of retaliation for the drone strike that killed three U.S. troops in Jordan last weekend. President Joe Biden...
Biden honors troops killed in Jordan as remains returned to U.S.
President Joe Biden honored three U.S. service members killed in a recent attack in Jordan as their remains were returned at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware on Friday. The president was joined by members of their families for what is known as a dignified transfer — a solemn occasion...
Home test could be ‘game-changer’ in fight against cervical cancer
Cervical cancer is the only cancer that is vaccine-preventable and curable, but the United States is lagging in its efforts to meet the World Health Organization’s 2030 targets to effectively eliminate the disease. A mix of low vaccination uptake — just 61.7% of U.S. teenage girls were up to date...
Federal judge in D.C. postpones Trump’s March trial on charges of plotting to overturn 2020 election
WASHINGTON — A federal judge in Washington formally postponed Donald Trump’s March trial on charges of plotting to overturn the 2020 election as a key legal appeal from the former president continues to work its way through the courts. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan on Friday vacated the March 4...
Judge rules escape charge against convicted murderer Cavalcante can proceed to trial
KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. — A district judge said Friday that Pennsylvania prosecutors have sufficient grounds to continue to press escape and other charges against a convicted murderer captured last year after two weeks on the run. The judge found there is enough evidence to forward to county court for trial...
Great escapes exhibit explores how World War II captives coped with tedium and torment
LONDON — Eighty years ago in one of the most ingenious and audacious acts of defiance of World War II, 76 prisoners of war tunneled out of a German POW camp into a snowy forest. For most of the escapees, it ended tragically. Three made it to safety, but the...
London judge acquits climate activist Greta Thunberg of refusing to leave oil industry conference
LONDON — Climate activist Greta Thunberg was acquitted Friday of a charge of refusing to follow a police order to leave a protest blocking the entrance to a major oil and gas industry conference in London last year. The courtroom gallery erupted with applause as Judge John Law told Thunberg...
2 Democrats raise hundreds of thousands of dollars in bids to unseat Scott Perry, far outpacing rivals
Two candidates for the Democratic nomination in Pennsylvania’s 10th Congressional District jumped out to a big early lead in the so-called money primary, according to a round of campaign finance reports filed this week. Retired U.S. Marines Corp aviator Mike O’Brien and former WGAL news anchor Janelle Stelson both crashed...
Biden left with few choices as immigration takes center stage in American politics
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Almost immediately after he walked into the Oval Office on his first day as president, Joe Biden began rolling back his predecessor’s immigration policies, which he had assailed throughout the 2020 campaign as harsh and inhumane. A lot has changed in three years. Biden, now sounding increasingly...
Tesla recalling nearly 2.2M vehicles for software update to fix warning lights that are too small
DETROIT — Tesla is recalling nearly all of the vehicles it has sold in the U.S. because some warning lights on the instrument panel are too small. The recall of nearly 2.2 million vehicles announced Friday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is a sign of stepped-up scrutiny of...
Ukraine says Russia refuses to turn over the bodies of military plane crash victims
KYIV, Ukraine — Russia has refused Ukrainian requests to hand over the bodies of scores of prisoners of war whom the Kremlin claims were killed in the downing of a Russian military transport plane by Kyiv’s forces, a Ukrainian intelligence official said. Andrii Yusov, the spokesperson for Ukraine’s military intelligence,...
Hamas says it’s studying Gaza cease-fire proposal, but appears to rule out key provisions
BEIRUT — Hamas officials said Friday that the group is studying a proposed cease-fire deal that would include prolonged pauses in fighting in Gaza and swaps of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, but at the same time appeared to rule out some of its key components. Osama Hamdan, a senior...
