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Solar storm hits Earth, producing colorful light shows across Northern Hemisphere (5/12/24)CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — An unusually strong solar storm hitting Earth produced stunning displays of color in the skies across the Northern Hemisphere, with no immediate reports of disruptions to power and communications. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a rare severe geomagnetic storm warning when a solar outburst reached Earth on Friday afternoon, hours sooner than anticipated. ...
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Russia says it has captured 5 villages in northeast Ukraine as more than 1,700 civilians flee (5/12/24)VOVCHANSK, Ukraine (AP) — The Russian Defense Ministry says Moscow's forces have captured five villages in a renewed ground assault in northeastern Ukraine. Associated Press journalists in the city of Vovchansk described multiple buildings destroyed after Russian airstrikes and barrages of Grad rockets. ...
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Israel moves deeper into Rafah and fights Hamas militants regrouping in northern Gaza (5/12/24)RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli forces are battling Palestinian militants across Gaza, including in parts of the devastated north that the military said it cleared months ago. Neighboring Egypt has issued its strongest objection yet to Israel's growing offensive on the southern city of Rafah, saying it intends to formally join South Africa's case against Israel at the International Court of Justice. ...
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US aims to stay ahead of China in using AI to fly fighter jets, navigate without GPS and more (5/12/24)WASHINGTON (AP) — When two U.S. fighter jets recently faced off in a dogfight in California, only one was piloted by a human. The other was flown by AI, in a display of how far the U.S. military has come in its use of artificial intelligence. But it's only a hint of the technology on the horizon. ...
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America's debt tops $34 trillion, but a commission to address it appears dead in Congress (5/12/24)WASHINGTON (AP) — A promising start has given way to challenging political realities for supporters of a bipartisan commission to tackle the federal government's growing debt challenges. House Speaker Mike Johnson lauded the idea of establishing such a commission on his first day in office. ...
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Trump tells Jersey Shore crowd he's being forced to endure 'Biden show trial' in hush money case (5/12/24)WILDWOOD, N.J. (AP) — Donald Trump is blaming President Joe Biden for the criminal charges he's facing as the presumptive nominees prepare to face off in the November election and called his New York hush money case "a Biden show trial." Blasting the Democratic president as "a total moron" and "a fool," Trump told a crowd of tens of thousands on the Jersey Shore that the cases against him were politically motivated and timed to harm his ability to campaign. ...
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UN assembly approves resolution granting Palestine new rights and reviving its UN membership bid (5/10/24)UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The U.N. General Assembly voted by a wide margin on Friday to grant new “rights and privileges” to Palestine and called on the Security Council to reconsider Palestine's request to become the 194th member of the United Nations...
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Judge directs Michael Cohen to keep quiet about Trump ahead of his hush money trial testimony (5/10/24)NEW YORK (AP) — With Donald Trump’s fixer-turned-foe Michael Cohen expected to take the witness stand Monday, the judge in the former president’s hush money case issued prosecutors a stern warning: Get Cohen to stop his taunting posts and jabs at Trump...
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US says Israel’s use of US arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete (5/10/24)WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes...
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US says Rafah offensive would jeopardize cease-fire talks as Biden threatens to halt more Israel aid (5/10/24)WASHINGTON -- The United States warned on Thursday that Israel will be dealing a strategic victory to Hamas if it carries out plans for an all-out assault on Rafah, the militants' last major stronghold in Gaza. The warning was backed by a new threat from President Joe Biden: He says he will pause more offensive military assistance to Israel if it goes through with the operation in a city where more than 1 million civilians are sheltering...
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Stormy Daniels delivers shocking testimony about Trump, but trial hinges on business records (5/10/24)NEW YORK -- Donald Trump's defense attorney on Thursday accused Stormy Daniels of slowly altering the details of an alleged 2006 sexual encounter with Trump, trying to convince jurors that a key prosecution witness in the former president's hush money criminal trial cannot be believed...
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The Biden-Netanyahu relationship is strained like never before. Can the two leaders move forward? (5/10/24)WASHINGTON -- President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have long managed a complicated relationship, but they're running out of space to maneuver as their views on the Gaza war diverge and their political futures hang in the balance...
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Failure to oust Speaker 'MAGA Mike' Johnson shows strength and weakness of his alliance with Trump (5/10/24)WASHINGTON -- It was Donald Trump who bestowed the "MAGA Mike Johnson" nickname on the House speaker the day he won the gavel. It is the Republican speaker himself who is proving whether it sticks. Johnson survived an ouster vote this week by one of Trump's biggest supporters in Congress, far-right Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, his job secured only after House Democrats turned out in force to put an end to the GOP chaos, for now...
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Biden administration will seek partial end to special court oversight of child migrants (5/10/24)SAN DIEGO -- The Biden administration will seek to partially end the 27-year-old court supervision of how the federal government cares for child migrants traveling alone, shortly after producing its own list of safeguards against mistreatment, an attorney involved in the case says...
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Netanyahu on US threat to withhold arms: Israel will fight with its 'fingernails' if needed (5/10/24)JERUSALEM -- Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that a U.S. threat to withhold some arms would not prevent Israel from continuing its offensive in Gaza, indicating it might proceed with an invasion of the packed city of Rafah against the wishes of its closest ally...
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Senate passes bill improving air safety and service for travelers, a day before FAA law expires (5/10/24)WASHINGTON -- The Senate has passed a $105 billion bill designed to improve safety and customer service for air travelers, a day before the law governing the Federal Aviation Administration expires. The bipartisan bill, which comes after a series of close calls between planes at the nation's airports, aims to boost the number of air traffic controllers amid a shortage, improve safety standards and make it easier for customers to get refunds after flights are delayed or canceled, among other measures.. ...
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Body camera video shows fatal shooting of Black airman by Florida deputy in apartment doorway (5/10/24)FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. -- A Florida sheriff released body camera video Thursday showing a deputy outside an apartment door and firing immediately when it was opened by a Black man carrying a handgun pointed downward, a killing the family denounced as "unjustifiable."...
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Russia celebrates victory in World War II as Putin accuses the West of fueling global conflicts (5/10/24)MOSCOW -- Russia on Thursday wrapped itself in patriotic pageantry for Victory Day, as President Vladimir Putin celebrated the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II by hailing his forces fighting in Ukraine and blasting the West for fueling conflicts around the world...
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TikTok to start labeling AI-generated content as technology becomes more universal (5/10/24)TikTok will begin labeling content created using artificial intelligence when it's been uploaded from outside its own platform in an attempt to combat misinformation. "AI enables incredible creative opportunities, but can confuse or mislead viewers if they don't know content was AI-generated," the company said in a prepared statement Thursday. ...
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Storm-battered South is again under threat. A boy swept into a drain fights for his life (5/10/24)COLUMBIA, Tenn. -- Dangerous storms crashed over parts of the South on Thursday even as the region cleaned up from earlier severe weather that spawned tornadoes, killed at least three people, and gravely injured a boy who was swept into a storm drain as he played in a flooded street...
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2 skiers killed after being caught in Utah avalanche following late spring snowstorms, sheriff says (5/10/24)SANDY, Utah -- Two backcountry skiers were killed and one was rescued after they were swept up and buried in an avalanche Thursday in the mountains outside of Salt Lake City that occurred after several days of spring snowstorms, authorities said. A rescue team went to the area mid-morning after the avalanche was reported near Lone Peak in the Wasatch Range southeast of Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera said. ...
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Airman shot by deputy doted on little sister and aimed to buy mom a house, family says (5/10/24)FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. -- Just two days before a sheriff's deputy in Florida shot him dead, U.S. Air Force airman Roger Fortson called home to find out what his 10-year-old sister wanted for her birthday. It was a typical gesture for the 23-year-old from Atlanta, who doted on the girl and was devoted to helping her, a younger brother and his mom prosper, his family says...
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Powerful storms kill 3 as tornadoes tear through central and southeastern US (5/9/24)COLUMBIA, Tenn. -- Severe storms tore through parts of the U.S. again Wednesday, spawning damaging tornadoes, producing massive hail, and killing two people in Tennessee and one person in North Carolina. A storm that rumbled across northeastern Tennessee brought high winds that knocked down powerlines and trees. Claiborne County Sheriff Bob Brooks said a 22-year-old man was in a car struck by one of the trees...
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Police clear pro-Palestinian protest camp and arrest 33 at DC campus as mayor's hearing is canceled (5/9/24)WASHINGTON -- Police used pepper spray to clear a pro-Palestinian tent encampment at George Washington University and arrested dozens of demonstrators on Wednesday just as city officials were set to appear before hostile lawmakers in Congress to account for their handling of the 2-week-old protest...
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Biden says US won't supply weapons for Israel to attack Rafah, in warning to ally (5/9/24)WASHINGTON -- President Joe Biden said Wednesday that he would not supply offensive weapons that Israel could use to launch an all-out assault on Rafah -- the last major Hamas stronghold in Gaza -- over concern for the well-being of the more than 1 million civilians sheltering there...
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Palestinians flee chaos and panic in Rafah after Israel's seizure of border crossing (5/9/24)RAFAH, Gaza Strip -- Tens of thousands of displaced and exhausted Palestinians have packed up their tents and other belongings from Rafah, dragging families on a new exodus. The main hospital has shut down, leaving little care for people suffering from malnutrition, illnesses and wounds...
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Israel says it reopened a key Gaza crossing after a rocket attack but the UN says no aid has entered (5/9/24)JERUSALEM -- The Israeli military said Wednesday that it has reopened its Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza after days of closure, but the U.N. said no humanitarian aid has yet entered and there is no one to receive it on the Palestinian side after workers fled during Israel's military incursion in the area...
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House rejects Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's effort to oust Speaker Mike Johnson, but chaos lingers (5/9/24)WASHINGTON -- Hardline Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene tried and failed in a brazen push to oust House Speaker Mike Johnson, but the resounding rejection by Democrats and Republicans does not guarantee an end to the political chaos. One of Donald Trump's biggest supporters in Congress, Greene stood on the House floor late Wednesday and read a long list of "transgressions" she said Johnson had committed as speaker, from his passage of a $95 billion national security package with aid for Ukraine to his reliance on Democrats to wield power.. ...
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Southern Brazil is still reeling from massive flooding as it faces risk from new storms (5/9/24)PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil -- As major floods engulfed entire cities in the northern part of the Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state last week, meteorologist Estael Sias knew the water would drain into capital Porto Alegre's metropolitan region and that she would need to find a safe place...
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Florida deputies who fatally shot US airman burst into wrong apartment, attorney says (5/9/24)MIAMI -- Deputies responding to a disturbance call at a Florida apartment complex burst into the wrong unit and fatally shot a Black U.S. Air Force airman who was home alone when they saw he was armed with a gun, an attorney for the man's family said Wednesday...
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Defense attacks Stormy Daniels' credibility as she returns to the stand in Trump's hush money trial (5/9/24)NEW YORK -- Stormy Daniels will return to the witness stand Thursday in Donald Trump's hush money trial as the defense tries to undermine the credibility of the porn actor's salacious testimony about their alleged sexual encounter and the money she was paid to keep quiet...
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Biden administration will propose tougher asylum standards for some migrants at the border (5/9/24)WASHINGTON -- The Biden administration plans to propose a new rule Thursday aimed at speeding up the asylum claims process for some migrants -- a potential prelude to broader actions from President Joe Biden later this year that would impose a bigger crackdown at the border...
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Georgia appeals court agrees to review ruling allowing Fani Willis to stay on Trump election case (5/9/24)ATLANTA -- A Georgia appeals court on Wednesday agreed to review a lower court ruling allowing Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to continue to prosecute the election interference case she brought against former President Donald Trump. The move seems likely to delay the case and is the second time in as many days that the former president has gotten a favorable ruling that could push any future trials beyond the November election, when he is expected to be the Republican nominee for president. ...
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Transitional council in Haiti embraces new changes following turmoil as gang violence grips country (5/9/24)PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti -- A transitional council tasked with choosing new leaders for Haiti is changing the way it operates in a move that surprised many as gang violence consumes the country. Instead of having a single council president, four longtime politicians will take turns leading the council every five months, according to two members who were not authorized to publicly share the changes because they had not yet been announced...
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Biden lauds new Microsoft center on the same site where Trump's Foxconn project failed (5/9/24)STURTEVANT, Wis. -- President Joe Biden on Wednesday laced into Donald Trump over a failed project in the previous administration that was supposed to bring thousands of new jobs into southeastern Wisconsin and trumpeted new economic investments under his watch that are coming to the same spot...
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Former Las Vegas casino executive sentenced to year of probation in bookmaking money laundering case (5/9/24)LOS ANGELES -- A former top executive for major Las Vegas casinos was sentenced to a year of probation Wednesday after admitting he allowed an illegal bookmaker to gamble millions of dollars at the MGM Grand and pay off debts in cash. Scott Sibella pleaded guilty in January to violating federal anti-money laundering rules that required the casino to file reports of suspicious transactions. ...
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Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial (5/8/24)NEW YORK -- With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later...
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Israel seizes Gaza's vital Rafah crossing, but the US says it isn't the full invasion many fear (5/8/24)CAIRO -- Israeli troops seized control of Gaza's vital Rafah border crossing on Tuesday in what the White House described as a limited operation, as fears mount of a full-scale invasion of the southern city and talks with Hamas over a cease-fire and hostage release remain on a knife's edge...
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In Holocaust remembrance, Biden condemns antisemitism sparked by college protests and Gaza war (5/8/24)WASHINGTON -- President Joe Biden on Tuesday decried a "ferocious surge" in antisemitism on college campuses and around the globe in the months since Hamas attacked Israel and triggered a war in Gaza, using a ceremony to remember victims of the Holocaust to also denounce new waves of violence and hateful rhetoric toward Jews...
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US paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says (5/8/24)WASHINGTON -- The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S., a senior administration official said Tuesday...
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Transgender activists flood Utah tip line with hoax reports to block bathroom law enforcement (5/8/24)SALT LAKE CITY -- Transgender activists have flooded a Utah tip line created to alert state officials to possible violations of a new bathroom law with thousands of hoax reports in an effort to shield trans residents and their allies from any legitimate complaints that could lead to an investigation...
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Some colleges that had been permissive of pro-Palestinian protests begin taking a tougher stance (5/8/24)CHICAGO -- Police cleared a pro-Palestinian tent encampment at the University of Chicago on Tuesday after administrators who had initially adopted a permissive approach said the protest had crossed a line and caused growing concerns about safety. University President Paul Alivisatos acknowledged the school's role as a protector of freedom of speech after officers in riot gear blocked access to the school's Quad but also took an enough-is-enough stance...
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Pro-Palestinian student protests spread across Europe. Some are allowed. Some are stopped (5/8/24)AMSTERDAM -- Campus protests by pro-Palestinian activists spread across Europe on Tuesday as some called for a break in academic ties with Israel over the war in Gaza, while schools increasingly faced the question under debate in the U.S.: Allow or intervene?...
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Boy Scouts of America changing name to more inclusive Scouting America after years of woes (5/8/24)IRVING, Texas -- The Boy Scouts of America announced after 114 years that it will change its name and will become Scouting America in an effort to emphasize inclusion as it works to move past the turmoil of bankruptcy and a flood of sexual abuse claims...
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Mother of Australian surfers killed in Mexico gives moving tribute to sons at a beach in San Diego (5/8/24)MEXICO CITY -- The mother of two Australian surfers killed in Mexico delivered a moving tribute to her sons Tuesday at a beach in San Diego. "Our hearts are broken and the world has become a darker place for us," Debra Robinson said, fighting back tears. "They were young men enjoying their passion of surfing together."...
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After deadly Oklahoma tornado, storms bring twisters to the Midwest (5/8/24)DETROIT -- Severe storms battered the Midwest on Tuesday, unleashing a curtain of heavy rain, gusty winds and tornadoes throughout the region a day after a deadly twister ripped through a small Oklahoma town and killed at least one person. Tornadoes were spotted after dark Tuesday in parts of Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, while portions of Illinois, Kentucky and Missouri were also under a tornado watch, according to the National Weather Service...
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Semi-automatic gun ban nixed in Colorado's Democratic-controlled statehouse after historic progress (5/8/24)DENVER -- A bill to ban the sale and transfer of semi-automatic firearms was nixed in Colorado's Democratic-controlled Legislature on Tuesday as lawmakers pressed forward with a slew of other gun control bills on the 25th anniversary year of the Columbine High School massacre...
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US service member shot and killed by Florida police identified by the Air Force (5/8/24)FORT WALTON BEACH, Fla. -- The U.S. Air Force said an airman based at the Special Operations Wing at Hurlburt Field, Florida, was shot and killed Friday during an incident involving a sheriff's deputy. Senior Airman Roger Fortson, 23, died at his off-base residence, the U.S. Air Force said in a statement released Monday...
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TikTok sues US to block law that could ban the social media platform (5/8/24)TikTok and its Chinese parent company filed a lawsuit Tuesday challenging a new American law that would ban the popular video-sharing app in the U.S. unless it's sold to an approved buyer, saying it unfairly singles out the platform and is an unprecedented attack on free speech...
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Xi begins Serbia visit on the 25th anniversary of NATO's bombing of the Chinese Embassy (5/8/24)BELGRADE, Serbia -- Chinese leader Xi Jinping's visit to European ally Serbia on Tuesday falls on a symbolic date: the 25th anniversary of the bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade during NATO's air war over Kosovo. U.S. jets dropped five bombs on the Chinese Embassy compound in the Serbian capital on May 7, 1999, setting it ablaze and killing three Chinese nationals. Twenty other people were injured in the bombing, which has burdened relations between the two powers ever since...