U.S./World category, Page 986

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump says his pick for national intelligence director has decided to withdraw from the running, citing unfair media coverage. In a tweet Friday, Trump said Republican Rep. John Ratcliffe of Texas had decided to stay in Congress. Questions about Ratcliffe’s experience have dogged him since Trump...

MEXICO CITY — A gas leak apparently caused by an illegal pipeline tap led authorities to evacuate about 2,000 people Friday in a rural community just north of Mexico City. The leak sent large plumes of gas billowing into the air and into the surrounding fields. The civil defense office...

LOS ANGELES — Three suspects were arrested Friday in the fatal shooting of an off-duty Los Angeles police officer, officials said. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti described those arrested as the “primary suspects responsible for the murder of Officer Juan Diaz” and said they were taken into custody in the...

LEHIGH ACRES, Fla. — Two female Florida panthers, including one pregnant with two babies, have died after being hit by cars. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says an 11-month-old panther died last week in Lee County and 5-year-old panther died just a few days before that in Collier...

ROME — A lawyer for one of two American teens jailed in the investigation of an Italian police officer’s slaying has petitioned for his client’s release. Francesco Petrelli said Friday he didn’t know when a tribunal would hear the appeal, filed a day earlier, on behalf of Gabriel Christian Natale-Hjorth,...

NEW YORK — R&B singer R. Kelly pleaded not guilty Friday to federal charges he sexually abused women and girls who attended his concerts. The 52-year-old Kelly was denied bail in a New York City courtroom packed with his supporters. He appeared sullen as prosecutors told Magistrate Judge Steven Tiscione...

CHICAGO — An Illinois state senator has been indicted on federal charges that he took more than $250,000 in salary and benefits over a three-year period from the Teamsters while doing little or no work, prosecutors announced Friday. In a news release, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago said Thomas...

EDGEWATER, Colo. — Police in Colorado are investigating a reported burglary of a business owned by “Dog the Bounty Hunter” reality TV star Duane “Dog” Chapman. Police in the Denver suburb of Edgewater say a passer-by early Tuesday discovered a broken glass door of a business that stocks merchandise that’s...

BALTIMORE — U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings provided details Friday of a break-in at his Baltimore home last weekend, saying he scared the intruder away by yelling. President Donald Trump alluded to the incident with a new tweet Friday morning: “Really bad news! The Baltimore house of Elijah Cummings was robbed....

BEIJING — China on Friday threatened retaliation if U.S. President Donald Trump’s planned tariff hikes go ahead, while the renewed acrimony between the two biggest global economies sent stock markets tumbling. China’s government accused Trump of violating his June agreement with President Xi Jinping to revive negotiations aimed at ending...

BETHANY BEACH, Del. — Peering through the darkness under the faint light of a peach-colored moon, wildlife biologist Jason Davis spots a telltale green flash in the bushes. Quick as a flash himself, Davis arcs a long-handled mesh net through the humid coastal air, ensnaring his tiny target. Ignoring the...

A granddaughter of Robert F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1968 while running for president, has died. Saoirse Kennedy Hill was 22. The Kennedy family confirmed the death in a statement Thursday night following reports that a person had been found unresponsive that day at the storied Kennedy compound in...

ATLANTA — Another electric scooter rider has been fatally hit by a vehicle in Atlanta, the third such death since the e-scooters arrived in the city last year. News outlets report Atlanta police say 34-year-old Amber Ford died Thursday after being hit by a car over the weekend. A witness...

WASHINGTON — Al-Qaida and its affiliates remain as much of a threat to the U.S. as “it has ever been” after the terrorist group rebuilt itself while the U.S. and other nations focused on destroying Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, a State Department official said Thursday. “Al-Qaida has been...

NEW YORK — Prosecutors need more time to investigate the heatstroke deaths of twin 1-year-olds left in a parked car before deciding whether to proceed with charges against the children’s father, a New York City judge was told on Thursday. An assistant Bronx district attorney said at a court hearing...

HARTFORD, Conn. — The maker of the rifle used in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear its appeal Thursday of a state ruling against the company. Remington Arms, based in Madison, North Carolina, cited a much-debated 2005 federal law that shields firearms manufacturers...

WASHINGTON — Leaders of House and Senate committees want Capital One and Amazon to explain to Congress how a hacker accessed personal information from more than 100 million Capital One credit applications. The incident was the latest massive data breach at a large company. Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan, the top...

When you’ve got a hot property to unload, why not advertise it? One Florida real estate agent took to Zillow to show off the fixer-upper he’s trying to unload by posting a photo of the home fully engulfed in flames. “Bring your Smores to the Campfire and Build your Dream...

WASHINGTON — A hard-won budget and debt deal easily cleared the Senate on Thursday, powered by President Donald Trump’s endorsement and a bipartisan drive to cement recent spending increases for the Pentagon and domestic agencies. The legislation passed by a 67-28 vote as Trump and his GOP allies relied on...

HONG KONG — The Chinese army has released a promotional video for its Hong Kong-based troops showing them dealing with a mock street demonstration at a time of uncertainty over whether the military will intervene in the city’s summer of protest. On the eve of Thursday’s anniversary of the army’s...

You’d expect huge waves at a “tsunami pool.” But swimmers at a water park in northeast China got a lot more than they bargained for Tuesday when a malfunction produced a massive wave that injured at least 44 of them. The South China Morning Post reports the incident happened at...