Israel expects ‘long’ ground war in Gaza to destroy Hamas and its many tunnels
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israel expects to launch a long and difficult ground offensive into Gaza soon to destroy Hamas, the country’s defense minister said Friday, describing a campaign that will require destroying a vast network of tunnels used by the territory’s militant rulers. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant spoke...
Massive search for mass killing suspect continues as Maine residents remain behind locked doors
LEWISTON, Maine — Shocked and fearful Maine residents kept to their homes Friday as hundreds of heavily armed police and FBI agents searched intensely for Robert Card, an Army reservist authorities say fatally shot 18 people at a bowling alley and a bar in the worst mass killing in state...
U.S. expands its effort to cut off funding for Hamas
LONDON — The U.S. on Friday expanded its effort to cut off funding for Hamas, announcing a second round of sanctions against people and organizations linked to the group since it launched an attack on Israel that killed more than 1,400 people. The new sanctions highlight Iran’s role in providing...
Pope orders Vatican to reopen case of priest ousted from Jesuits after claims of adult abuse
ROME — Pope Francis has ordered the Vatican to reopen the case of a well-known priest-artist accused of sexually, psychologically and spiritually abusing adult women, and removed the statute of limitations on their claims, the Vatican said Friday. The announcement marked a major turnaround for the Holy See and followed...
George Santos pleads not guilty to new fraud charges in New York
CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. — U.S. Rep. George Santos pleaded not guilty Friday to revised charges accusing him of several frauds, including making tens of thousands of dollars in unauthorized charges on credit cards belonging to some of his campaign donors. The New York Republican appeared at a courthouse on Long...
Everything we know about suspected Maine gunman Robert Card
An arrest warrant was issued Thursday for Sgt. 1st Class Robert Card, a military man and firearms instructor accused of gunning down 18 people inside a Maine bowling alley and bar Wednesday night. Card is so far facing eight counts of murder in connection with the violence inside the Just-In-Time...
Radio host Larry Elder ends Republican presidential campaign and endorses Donald Trump
Conservative talk radio host Larry Elder announced Thursday that he was ending his 2024 Republican campaign for president and endorsing former President Donald Trump. Elder, who sought to replace California Gov. Gavin Newsom in a failed 2021 recall effort, said in a statement that he had made the “difficult decision”...
2% of kids and 7% of adults have received the new covid shots, U.S. data show
NEW YORK — A month after federal officials recommended new versions of covid-19 vaccines, 7% of U.S. adults and 2% of children have gotten a shot. One expert called the rates “abysmal.” The numbers, presented Thursday at a meeting held by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, come from...
U.S. strikes Iran-linked sites in Syria in retaliation for attacks on U.S. troopsVideo
WASHINGTON — U.S. fighter jets launched airstrikes early Friday on two locations in eastern Syria linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, the Pentagon said, in retaliation for a slew of drone and missile attacks against U.S. bases and personnel in the region that began early last week. The U.S. strikes...
Hurricane Otis survivors search for friends, necessities in devastated AcapulcoVideo
ACAPULCO, Mexico — Survivors of a Category 5 storm that killed at least 27 people as it devastated Mexico’s resort city of Acapulco spent Thursday searching for acquaintances and necessities and hoping that aid would come quickly in the wake of Hurricane Otis. The Pacific storm had strengthened with shocking...
U.S. Rep. Summer Lee votes against pro-Israel resolution on Hamas attack
U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, voted against a pro-Israel resolution that passed the House on Wednesday in the aftermath of the Hamas attacks on the Middle Eastern country. Lee, who has condemned Hamas’ recent attack on Israel, said she voted against Wednesday’s Meeks-McCaul resolution because it fell short of acknowledging...
Number of freshmen seeking bachelor’s degrees at U.S. colleges drops 6%, report says
The number of college freshmen enrolling in bachelor’s degree programs nationally declined this fall by 6% from last year, but overall enrollment rose 2.1%, according to a report released Thursday. The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center report offered a mixed enrollment picture as higher education emerges from the pandemic. The...
Hempfield unveils decade-long vision for township park
Hempfield Park is set to undergo a series of improvements over the next decade under an updated master plan presented at the township supervisors meeting this week. The plan focuses on enhancing the park environment, expanding recreation opportunities, fine-tuning operations, increasing accessibility, improving facilities and increasing staff, said Chris Sarson,...
Many Israelis are furious at their government’s chaotic recovery efforts after Hamas attack
JERUSALEM — More than two weeks after Hamas militants rampaged through a string of sleepy farming towns, many Israelis are furious at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, not just for failing to prevent the attack, but for failing to come to their aid afterward. While the military is launching unrelenting...
Maine passed a law to try to prevent mass shootings. Some say more is needed after Lewiston killings
PORTLAND, Maine — Barely four years before a gunman’s deadly rampage in Maine, a state that is staunchly protective of gun rights, the governor signed a law aimed at preventing a mass shooting like the one Wednesday night that claimed at least 18 lives. It was called a “yellow flag”...
DeSantis is sending weapons to Israel in move that could bolster him in the GOP primary
MIAMI — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Thursday he’s arranged to send drones, weapons, and ammunition to Israel as it prepares for an incursion of Gaza in response to Hamas’ attack. It’s the latest official response DeSantis has taken to back Israel as he competes in the 2024 Republican primary....
Judge says Georgia’s congressional and legislative districts are discriminatory and must be redrawn
ATLANTA — A federal judge ruled Thursday that some of Georgia’s congressional, state Senate and state House districts were drawn in a racially discriminatory manner, ordering the state to draw an additional Black-majority congressional district. U.S. District Judge Steve Jones, in a 516-page order, also ordered the state to draw...
U.S. government says it plans to go after legal goods tied to illegal fentanyl trade in new strategy
SAN DIEGO — As overdose deaths continue at a record pace, U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced a new government-wide strategy Thursday involving scores of agencies that will target the precursor materials used by traffickers to make fentanyl and other synthetic drugs. Troy Miller, acting commissioner of Customs and Border...
Westmoreland County Community College president will resign in summer 2024
Westmoreland County Community College’s first female president announced her resignation at the college’s board of directors meeting Wednesday. Tuesday Stanley, 55, who joined WCCC in 2014, will remain in her position at the school near Youngwood through June 30. She will have served as president for exactly a decade. Stanley...
Heavily armed police surround home in search for suspect in the fatal shooting of 18 in Maine
LEWISTON, Maine — Heavily armed police surrounded a home Thursday as they searched for a U.S. Army reservist who authorities say killed 18 people and wounded 13 in a mass shooting at a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston, Maine. “You need to come outside now with nothing in...
Ohio woman indicted on murder charges in deaths of at least 4 men, attorney general says
COLUMBUS, Ohio — An Ohio woman has been indicted on murder charges in the deaths of at least four men in the capital city of Columbus, the Ohio Attorney General said Wednesday, though investigators believe there are more victims. Rebecca Auborn, a 33-year-old from Columbus, is accused of meeting men...
Number of military suicides dipped in 2022 as Pentagon works on new prevention programs
WASHINGTON— The number of suicides among U.S. military members and their families dipped slightly in 2022, compared with the previous year, as the Defense Department tries to build prevention and treatment programs to address what has been a steadily growing problem over the past decade, The Associated Press has learned....
A list of mass killings in the United States since January
The latest mass killing in the U.S. happened Wednesday night in Lewiston, Maine, when a man opened fire at a bowling alley and a bar, killing at least 16 people, two law enforcement officials told The Associated Press. Dozens of people were also wounded. The alert for Lewiston was made...
New U.S. House speaker tried to help overturn the 2020 election, raising concerns about the next one
The new leader of one of the chambers of Congress that will certify the winner of next year’s presidential election helped spearhead the attempt to overturn the last one, raising alarms that Republicans could try to subvert the will of the voters if they remain in power despite safeguards enacted...
Trump isn’t accustomed to restrictions — that’s beginning to test the legal system
NEW YORK — Donald Trump isn’t used to constraints. The former president ignores and antagonizes anyone who tells him no. He built a business — and later political — brand as someone who says and does what he wants, largely without consequence. Even after losing the White House, Trump remains...
