Egypt unveils newly discovered chamber inside Great Pyramid
CAIRO — Egypt’s antiquities authorities on Thursday unveiled a newly discovered, sealed-off chamber inside one of the Great Pyramids at Giza, just outside of Cairo, that dates back some 4,500 years ago. The corridor — on the northern side of the Pyramid of Khufu — was discovered using modern scanning...
Trump set to headline diminished gathering of conservatives
OXON HILL, Md. — The annual Conservative Political Action Conference was once one of the premier gatherings on the GOP campaign calendar — a must-stop for serious contenders testing the waters on presidential runs. No longer. Many of the party’s best-known likely candidates — from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to...
Russia claims Ukraine crossborder sabotage raid; Kyiv denies
KYIV, Ukraine — Russian officials accused Ukrainian saboteurs of crossing into western Russia and attacking local villages Thursday, an accusation that Ukraine denied, warning that Moscow could use the claims to justify stepping up its own assaults in the ongoing war. The exact circumstances of the incident reported in the...
Blinken, Lavrov meet briefly as U.S.-Russia tensions soar
NEW DELHI — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov talked briefly Thursday at a meeting of top diplomats from the Group of 20 nations in the highest-level in-person talks between the two countries since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The short encounter came as relations...
NASA mission with North Allegheny grad launches to space stationVideo
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — SpaceX launched four astronauts, including a North Allegheny graduate, to the International Space Station for NASA early Thursday morning. The mission also includes the first person from the Arab world going up for an extended monthslong stay. The Falcon rocket bolted from Kennedy Space Center shortly...
Connecticut hunter who killed pet dogs says he thought they were coyotes
DANBURY, Conn. — A hunter who told authorities he killed and skinned what he thought were two coyotes, but later discovered they were a Connecticut family’s pet German shepherds, has been criminally charged. During a hearing Wednesday in Danbury Superior Court that drew dozens of people including the dogs’ owners...
Police: Worker shoots, kills manager at Hobby Lobby in Oklahoma City
OKLAHOMA CITY — An employee at a Hobby Lobby distribution center shot and killed a manger at a distribution facility on Wednesday, Oklahoma City police said. The shooting happened about 5 p.m. near the company’s headquarters on the city’s southwest side, said police Sgt. Rob Robertson. “The suspect produced a...
Explosive found in bag at Pennsylvania airport, man arrested
ALLENTOWN — A man was arrested after an explosive was found in a bag checked onto a Florida-bound flight at an eastern Pennsylvania airport, federal authorities said. Marc Muffley, 40, is charged with possessing an explosive in an airport and possessing or attempting to place an explosive or incendiary device...
Harry, Meghan asked to leave Windsor Estate home in further royal rift
LONDON — Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, have been asked to vacate their home in Britain, suggesting a further fraying of ties with the royal family amid preparations for the coronation of his father, King Charles III. Frogmore Cottage, on the grounds of Windsor Castle west of London, had...
Pa. lawmakers introduce rail regulation bills in wake of Ohio train derailment
A group of Pennsylvania lawmakers in the U.S. House and Senate have set their sights on regulating rail companies following last month’s train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. U.S. Sens. Bob Casey, D-Scranton, and John Fetterman, D-Braddock, have introduced the bipartisan Railway Safety Act of 2023, while U.S. Rep. Chris...
FBI reportedly resisted searching Trump’s Mar-a-Lago for classified documents
The FBI pushed back against federal prosecutors’ plans to search former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort for classified documents last year, according to a news report. Despite ample evidence that Trump had defied a subpoena for return of the documents, senior agents suggested the Justice Department should accept false claims...
Twitter’s new ‘violent speech’ policy similar to past rules
SAN FRANCISCO — Twitter on Wednesday unveiled a new policy prohibiting “violent speech” on its platform, though the rules appear very similar to guidelines against violent threats that the company had on its books before Elon Musk took it over. Among the updates, Twitter expanded its policy to include a...
Death toll keeps rising in Greece’s deadliest train crash
TEMPE, Greece — Rescuers searched for survivors Wednesday in the mangled, burned-out wreckage of two trains that slammed into each other in northern Greece, killing at least 43 people and crumpling carriages into twisted steel knots in the country’s deadliest rail crash on record. The impact just before midnight Tuesday...
After shootings, Michigan State to restrict building access
Public access to most buildings at Michigan State University will be restricted at night, the school announced Wednesday, one in a series of security steps in response to the February shootings that killed three students and wounded five more. Students, faculty and staff will need to use their campus ID...
Rick Santorum joins North Carolina House GOP to push convention
RALEIGH, N.C. — Getting North Carolina legislators to formally call for a convention to consider creating amendments to the U.S. Constitution is the way forward to rein in an ever-expanding federal government, former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum said Wednesday. Santorum joined House Speaker Tim Moore and other chamber Republicans at...
D.C.’s cherry blossoms coming early due to confusing weather
WASHINGTON — The cherry trees in the nation’s capital are confused by Earth’s changing climate, with the iconic blossoms appearing earlier than expected because of the unusually warm winter. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser and the National Park Service announced Wednesday that Washington’s 3,700 cherry blossom trees would reach peak bloom...
How officials cracked case of eyedrops that blinded people
NEW YORK — The patients’ eyes were painfully inflamed. They could sense light but could see almost nothing else. A doctor called one case the worst eye infection he’d ever seen. It was the beginning of a national outbreak caused by an extremely worrisome bacteria — one that some say...
Trump planning first Iowa trip since announcing 2024 bid
DES MOINES, Iowa — Donald Trump is planning to visit Iowa in mid-March, a first foray to the leadoff caucus state since announcing his 2024 White House campaign. On Tuesday, the former president hinted at an Iowa trip “very soon” in a radio interview with Des Moines talk show host...
Girl Scouts’ new Raspberry Rally sells out on the first day
I’m a sucker for Girl Scout Cookies. Each year, I try dodging the smiling faces stationed outside of grocery stores peddling their confectionary goodness. I can’t say no even though I usually have several boxes stashed in my freezer. My intervention method has been to order groceries online so I...
Ukraine official: Forces may pull out of key eastern city
KYIV, Ukraine — The Ukrainian military might decide to pull troops back from the key stronghold of Bakhmut, an adviser to Ukraine’s president said Wednesday as Russia pursued a bloody, months-long offensive to capture the city. “Our military is obviously going to weigh all of the options. So far, they’ve...
Birth of Mexican volcano inspires scientists 80 years later
SAN JUAN PARANGARICUTIRO, Mexico — The ground is still hot atop the crater of Paricutin — the first volcano of its kind to have its full life cycle documented by modern science when it erupted 80 years ago. The surrounding vista in western Mexico encompasses pine-clad peaks of older volcanoes,...
UN scrambles to reunite families after Turkey-Syria quake
ALEPPO, Syria — Reuniting children with their missing family has become a top priority in the aftermath of last month’s massive earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria, the head of the U.N. children’s agency said Wednesday. UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said the Feb. 6 quake that rocked southeast Turkey...
Brothers who crashed wedding reception are convicted of beating groom to death
Two brothers who crashed a wedding reception and beat the groom to death in Chino, Calif., in 2019 were convicted in February of second-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon, prosecutors announced Tuesday. San Bernardino County prosecutors said Rony Castaneda, 31, and Josue Castaneda, 22, didn’t know the groom...
West Virginia governor signs campus carry gun bill
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s governor signed a bill Wednesday allowing people with concealed carry permits to take firearms onto public college and university campuses. “Proud day for me,” Republican Gov. Jim Justice said as he signed the bill, surrounded by more than two dozen state lawmakers, members of the...
Biden says Labor nominee Julie Su represents American dream
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden said Wednesday that his labor secretary nominee Julie Su is a “real leader” who has supported unions, enforced worker safety and protected the victims of human trafficking. “Julie is the American dream,” Biden said in remarks at the White House. “She’s committed to making sure...
