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President Donald Trump speaks with reporters before departing on Marine One from the South Lawn of the White House, Friday, March 20, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) 2026-03-21T19:13:52Z WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Saturday he will order federal immigration officers to take a role in airport security starting Monday unless Democrats agree on a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security . In a pair of social media posts, Trump first threatened and then said he had made plans to put officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in airports if the congressional standoff continues. He made the announcement as a partial shutdown contributes to long lines to pass through screening at some of the nation’s largest airports. The Republican president suggested ICE agents would bring the administration’s immigration crackdown into the nation’s airports, promising to arrest “all Illegal Immigrants.” “I look forward to moving ICE in on Monday, and have already told them to, “GET READY.” NO MORE WAITING, NO MORE GAMES!” Trump wrote while spending the weekend in Florida. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The move appears to be a pointed effort to expand the type of immigration enforcement that has become a sticking point in Congress. Democrats pledged to oppose funding for DHS unless changes were made in the wake of a crackdown in Minnesota that led to the fatal shootings of two protesters. Democrats are asking for better identification for federal law enforcement officers, a new code of conduct for those agencies and more use of judicial warrants, among other measures. The Minnesota operation was tied in part to allegations of fraud involving Somali residents . On Saturday, Trump said ICE officers sent to airports would focus on arresting immigrants from Somalia who are in the United States illegally. Repeating his criticism on Somalis, he said they “totally destroyed” Minnesota. “If the Democrats do not allow for Just and Proper Security at our Airports, and elsewhere throughout our Country, ICE will do the job far better than ever done before,” Trump said. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Trump’s posts did not offer additional detail on how ICE would take a role in airport security and what it meant for the Transportation Security Administration, which screens passengers and luggage for hazardous items. The vast majority of TSA employees are considered essential and continue to work during the funding lapse, but they are doing so without pay. Call-out rates have started to increase at some airports, and DHS said at least 376 have quit since the partial shutdown began Feb. 14. On Saturday, in a rare weekend session, the Senate rejected a motion by Democrats to take up legislation to reopen TSA and pay workers who are now going without paychecks. Republicans argue that they need to fund all parts of the DHS, not just certain ones. A bill to fund the Cabinet department failed to advance in the Senate on Friday. There were signs of progress, though, with the restarting in recent days of stalled talks between Democrats and the White House. On Saturday, Republican and Democratic senators were set to meet for a third consecutive day with White House officials behind closed doors as Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York spoke of “productive conversations.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., urged the bipartisan group to act quickly. He has said repeatedly that Democrats and the White House need to find compromise as lines at airports have grown. “If that group that’s meeting can’t come up with a solution really quickly, things are going to get worse and worse,” Thune said Saturday. ___ Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick in Washington contributed to this report. COLLIN BINKLEY Binkley covers the U.S. Education Department and federal education policy for The Associated Press, along with a wide range of issues from K-12 through higher education. twitter mailto

In this photo provided by Norton Healthcare, nurse Robin Waldridge administers a Vitamin K shot to a newborn baby at Norton Women's and Children's Hospital on Friday, March 6, 2026, at the hospital in Louisville, Ky. (Jamie Rhodes/Norton Healthcare via AP) 2026-03-21T11:20:42Z One day at an Idaho hospital, half the newborns Dr. Tom Patterson saw didn’t get the vitamin K shots that have been given to babies for decades to prevent potentially deadly bleeding. On another recent day, more than a quarter didn’t get the shot. Their parents wouldn’t allow it. “When you look at a child who’s innocent and vulnerable — and a simple intervention that’s been done since 1961 is refused — knowing that baby’s going out into the world is super worrisome to me,” said Patterson, who’s been a pediatrician for nearly three decades. Doctors across the nation are alarmed that skepticism fueled by rising anti-science sentiment and medical mistrust is increasingly reaching beyond vaccines to other proven, routine, preventive care for babies. A recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, which analyzed more than 5 million births nationwide, found that refusals of vitamin K shots nearly doubled between 2017 and 2024, from 2.9% to 5.2%. Other research suggests that parents who decline vitamin K shots are much more likely to refuse getting their newborns the hepatitis B vaccine and an eye ointment to prevent potentially blinding infections. Rates for that vaccination at birth dropped in recent years, and doctors confirm that more parents are refusing the eye medication. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “I do think these families care deeply about their infants,” said Dr. Kelly Wade, a Philadelphia neonatologist. “But I hear from families that it’s hard to make decisions right now because they’re hearing conflicting information.” Innumerable social media posts question doctors’ advice on safe and effective measures like vitamin K and eye ointment. And the Trump administration has repeatedly undermined established science . A federal advisory committee whose members were appointed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — a leading anti-vaccine activist before joining the administration — voted to end the longstanding recommendation to immunize all babies against hepatitis B right after birth. On Monday a federal judge temporarily blocked all decisions made by the reconfigured committee. One common thread that ties together anti-vaccine views and growing sentiments against other protective measures for newborns is the fallacy that natural is always better than artificial, said Dr. David Hill, a Seattle pediatrician and researcher. “Nature will allow 1 in 5 human infants to die in the first year of life,” Hill said, “which is why generations of scientists and doctors have worked to bring that number way, way down.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Vitamin K and other measures prevent serious problems Babies are born with low levels of vitamin K, leaving them vulnerable because their intestines can’t produce enough until they start eating solid foods at around 6 months old. “Vitamin K is important for helping the blood clot and preventing dangerous bleeding in babies, like bleeding into the brain,” said Dr. Kristan Scott of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, lead author of the JAMA study. Before injections became routine, up to about 1 in 60 babies suffered vitamin K deficiency bleeding, which can also affect the gastrointestinal tract. Today the condition is rare, but research shows that newborns who don’t get a vitamin K shot are 81 times more likely to develop severe bleeding than those who do. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Hill has seen what can happen. “I cared for a toddler whose parents had chosen that risk,” the Seattle doctor said. The child essentially had a stroke as a newborn and wound up with severe developmental delays and ongoing seizures. At a February meeting of the Idaho chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, doctors said they knew of eight deaths from vitamin K deficiency bleeding in the state over the preceding 13 months, said Patterson, who is president of the chapter. Infections prevented by other newborn measures can also have grave consequences. Erythromycin eye ointment protects against gonorrhea that can be contracted during birth and potentially cause blindness if untreated. The hepatitis B vaccine prevents a disease that can lead to liver failure, liver cancer or cirrhosis. Even if a pregnant woman is tested for gonorrhea and hepatitis B, no test is perfect, and she may get infected after testing, said Dr. Susan Sirota, a pediatrician in Highland Park, Illinois. Either way, she risks passing the infection to her child. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Why are parents refusing routine care? Parents give many reasons for turning down preventive measures, like fearing they might cause problems and not wanting newborns to feel pain. “Some will just say they want more of a natural birth philosophy,” said Dr. Steven Abelowitz , founder of Ocean Pediatrics in Orange County, California. “Then there’s a ton of misinformation. … There are outside influences, friends, celebrities, nonprofessionals and political agendas.” Abelowitz practices in an area with about an equal mix of Republicans and Democrats. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “There’s more mistrust from the conservative side, but there’s plenty on the more liberal side as well,” he said, “It’s across-the-board mistrust.” Social media provides ample fuel, spreading myths and pushing unregulated vitamin K drops that doctors warn babies can’t absorb well. Doctors in numerous states say parents refusing vitamin K shots often also decline other measures. Sirota, in Illinois, encountered a family that refused a heel stick to monitor glucose for a baby at high risk for having potentially life-threatening low blood sugar. Care refusals aren’t a new phenomenon. Wade, in Philadelphia, said she’s seen them for 20 years. But until recently, they were rare. Twelve years ago, Dana Morrison, now a Minnesota doula, declined the vitamin K shot for her newborn son, giving him oral drops instead. “It came from a space of really wanting to protect the bonding time with my baby,” she said. “I was trying to eliminate more pokes.” Her daughter’s birth a couple of years later was less straightforward, leaving the infant with a bruised leg. Morrison got the vitamin K shot for her. Knowing what she does now, she said, she would have gotten it for her son, too. Doctors and parents want ‘the best for their children’ Doctors hope to change minds, one parent at a time. And that begins with respect. “If I walk into the room with judgment, we are going to have a really useless conversation,” Hill said. “Every parent I serve wants the best for their children.” When parents question the need for the vitamin K shot, Dr. Heather Felton tries to address their specific concerns. She explains why it’s given and the risks of not getting it. Most families decide to get it, said Felton, who has seen no uptick in refusals. “It really helps that you can take that time and really listen and be able to provide some education,” said Felton, a pediatrician at Norton Children’s in Louisville, Kentucky. In Idaho, Patterson sometimes finds himself clearing up misconceptions. Some parents will agree to a vitamin K shot when they find out it’s not a vaccine, for example. These conversations can take time, especially since the parents doctors see in hospitals usually aren’t people they know through their practices. But doctors are happy to invest that time if it might save babies. “I end every discussion with parents with this: ‘Please understand at the end of the day, I’m passionate about this because I have the best interest of children in my mind and heart,’” Patterson said. “I understand this is a hot topic, and I don’t want to disrespect anybody. But at the same time, I’m desperately saddened that we’re losing babies for no reason.” ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. LAURA UNGAR Ungar covers medicine and science on the AP’s Global Health and Science team. She has been a health journalist for more than two decades. twitter mailto

This April 4, 2009, file photo, shows a gas production facility at Ras Laffan, Qatar. (AP Photos/Maneesh Bakshi, File) 2026-03-21T05:00:06Z LONDON (AP) — Iran’s attack this week on Qatar’s natural gas export facility threatens to disrupt not just world energy markets but also global technology supply chains because the helium it produces is crucial for a range of advanced industries. Best known as the gas that makes party balloons float, helium is also a key input in chipmaking, space rockets and medical imaging. Qatar supplies a third of the world’s helium, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, but the nation had to halt production shortly after the war erupted three weeks ago. The latest Iranian strikes against the region’s energy producing infrastructure have added to supply worries, with Qatar’s state-owned gas company saying it would crimp helium exports by 14%. Here’s a deeper look at helium’s industrial role: freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Qatar’s role in helium supply Helium is a byproduct of natural gas production, when it’s separated out by cryogenic distillation. Qatar, which sits on the world’s biggest single natural gas field, produces about 30% of global helium supply, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Qatar’s helium is produced at its Ras Laffan facility, the world’s largest liquefied natural gas plant. But state-owned energy company QatarGas halted production of LNG and “associated products” on March 2 because of Iran’s drone attacks and two days later declared force majeure, meaning it’s unable to supply contracted customers due to circumstances beyond its control. After Ras Laffan was hit again by more Iranian strikes on Wednesday and Thursday, QatarGas reported “extensive” damage that will take years to repair and cut annual helium exports by 14%. “It makes the story worse,” said Phil Kornbluth, president of Kornbluth Helium Consulting. “Your best case scenario would be you’re back producing some helium in six weeks or something like that. As it looks right now, that’s highly unlikely.” Helium prices are on the rise Spot prices for helium have doubled since the crisis erupted and will probably rise further, Kornbluth said. But spot trading only accounts for about 2% of the total market in normal times, he said. Helium is a thinly traded commodity and is mostly sold through long-term contracts. Still, contract prices “could go up a lot,” Kornbluth said. “There’s lots of room for price increase if this is an extended outage.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Kornbluth said the shortage hasn’t hit yet, because helium containers that would have been filled when the conflict erupted at the start of March would have still taken several weeks to arrive in Asia. “Nobody’s run out of helium yet. But it’s a few weeks out when the shortage really hits.” It’s not just party balloons Helium is essential for manufacturing semiconductors, including the cutting-edge chips used for artificial intelligence models produced in Asian fabrication plants. It’s great at conducting or transferring heat, making it ideal for rapid cooling. Chipmakers use it to cool wafers — the discs of silicon printed with tiny electronic circuits. Helium is used during the etching process, when material that’s been deposited on a wafer is scraped away to form transistor structures, said Jacob Feldgoise, an analyst at Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); During the etching process, “you really want to maintain a constant temperature over the wafer. And in order to do that, you need to be able to draw heat away from the wafer that’s being processed,” said Feldgoise. “Helium is an excellent thermal conductor. And so chip fabs will blow helium over the back of the wafer in order to speed heat removal and keep heat removal consistent.” Under current semiconductor manufacturing processes, there’s no viable replacement for helium to cool wafers, said Jong-hwan Lee, a professor of semiconductor devices at South Korea’s Sangmyung University. The medical industry uses helium to cool superconducting magnets powering magnetic resonance imaging machines. And the space industry uses helium to purge rocket fuel tanks, a demand that is expected to grow because of more frequent launches by companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); A complicated supply chain situation Helium’s atomic properties make it tricky to store and transport. In gas form, helium’s tiny molecules can easily escape containers by leaking through even the smallest of gaps. Helium is typically chilled by Qatar’s gas company into liquid form and stored in insulated containers for transport through the Strait of Hormuz . The specialized containers can store helium for 35 to 48 days. Any longer and they start warming up, letting the helium transform into gas that escapes through pressure release valves. About 200 of these containers are stuck in the Middle East, Kornbluth said. They cost about $1 million each, so there aren’t a lot of extra ones sitting around elsewhere. “It’s going to take a fair amount of time to get these containers out of Qatar and to get them somewhere else where they might be able to be filled with helium,” he said. “So this initial period when you lose Qatar supply and have to rejig the supply chain and reposition containers, that’s going to be the worst part of the shortage most likely.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Other major suppliers of helium There only are a handful of countries that produce helium. The United States is the biggest producer, accounting for 81 million cubic meters last year. Qatar, Algeria and Russia are the other major producers, but Russian supplies are banned under Under States and European Union sanctions. USGS estimates the United States has 8.5 billion cubic meters of recoverable helium in geologic reservoirs, while the rest of the world has 31.3 billion cubic meters. Asian chipmakers on edge The war highlights the sprawling global supply chains that underpin South Korea’s semiconductor industry , which has seen a surge in global demand for its chips amid the AI boom. Fitch Ratings said in a report this week that the country — home to Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, the world’s largest memory chip makers — is particularly vulnerable to supply shortages because it imports about 65% of its helium from Qatar. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix likely have several months of inventory, but it’s crucial that they accelerate efforts to secure alternative sources, Lee said, as the war could drag on and potentially disrupt supplies of more materials beyond helium. Helium is among 14 semiconductor supply chain materials the Seoul government has flagged for monitoring due to their heavy vulnerability to the war. “Even disruptions affecting just a handful of materials could destabilize the entire semiconductor manufacturing process as each stage of production depends on the previous one,” Lee said. Still, a full-blown helium crisis is unlikely, experts said. In the event of a shortage, Kornbluth said the helium industry allocates supplies based on importance so critical industries such as chipmaking and medical would be at the front of the line. And because helium is a small part of the overall production cost of a semiconductor, it’s likely that chip fabs “would be willing to pay a higher price” to secure supplies, Feldgoise said. Samsung and SK Hynix declined to respond to questions about inventory or plans to diversify supplies. The Korea Semiconductor Industry Association said short-term supplies are sufficient and companies have been diversifying their supply routes. Chipmaking giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company also said it does not “anticipate any significant impact at this time” but will continue monitoring the situation. ___ AP writers Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul, South Korea, Chan Ho-him in Hong Kong and Eileen Ng in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia contributed. KELVIN CHAN Chan covers technology and innovation in Europe and beyond for The Associated Press. twitter mailto

In this image from video circulating on social media, protesters dance and cheer around a bonfire as they take to the streets of Tehran, Iran, on Jan. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP, File) 2026-03-21T05:08:51Z BEIRUT (AP) — A 19-year-old star wrestler and two other young men were hanged in Iran this week, raising alarm among rights groups that a wave of executions may be underway as authorities facing relentless attacks from the U.S. and Israel seek to squelch public dissent. The three men are the first to be executed from among the tens of thousands who were arrested during a January crackdown on nationwide protests. Rights groups say more than 100 others could face death sentences. The wrestler, Saleh Mohammadi, was hanged early Thursday morning — along with Mehdi Qasemi and Saeed Davoudi — in Qom, just south of the capital, Tehran, according to state media. They had been sentenced on charges of “moharabeh,” or “waging war against God,” for allegedly killing two police officers during protests in the city. Amnesty International said the convictions of the three, and of others arrested during the protests, came in “grossly unfair trials” that used confessions extracted by torture. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The executions were “intended to instill fear in society and deter new protests” amid the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, said Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, director of Iran Human Rights, an Oslo-based group that has documented detentions. Amiry-Moghaddam said he worries many more “executions of protesters and political prisoners may be imminent.” At least 27 arrested during protests face death sentences Amiry-Moghaddam said his group has documented at least 27 death sentences that have been issued against people arrested during the protests. Another 100 face charges that carry the death penalty, and Iranian state media have aired hundreds of forced confessions to crimes punishable by death, he said. Nationwide protests that began in late December peaked in the first week of January, prompting the deadliest crackdown by Iranian security forces since the Islamic Republic took power in 1979. A complete death toll has been hard to gauge because of internet restrictions by authorities. The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists New Agency, which relies on a network of contacts inside Iran, said it confirmed that more than 7,000 were killed and that it was investigating thousands more. It said over 50,000 were arrested in just over six weeks. The government acknowledged more than 3,000 were killed. At the height of the protests, Iranian authorities signaled that fast trials and executions lay ahead. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); At the time, U.S. President Donald Trump suggested military action might be an option to stop the deadly crackdown. But he soon announced that he learned that plans for executions were halted, signaling that a military operation was no longer on the table. Just a month later, Israel and the U.S. launched an intense airstrike campaign against Iran, pounding military installations and targeting the top political and security leadership of Iran. The security agencies believed to be responsible for the deadly crackdown on protesters are also being targeted. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); War has not stopped Iran’s crackdown on dissent Despite the war, Iranian authorities have kept up the crackdown on dissent. Authorities say scores have been detained since the war began on Feb. 28, including some who took part in the January protests. Because of Iran’s internet blackout, there have been scant details about the three men executed Thursday. Amiry-Moghaddam said Davoudi was born on March 20, 2004, meaning he was executed a day before his 22nd birthday. Qasemi’s age was not known, he said. Mohammadi appeared to be a standout in wrestling, a sport that is wildly popular in Iran. In 2024, he won a bronze medal at an international youth freestyle wrestling tournament in the Russian city of Krasnoyarsk. On his Instagram account, Mohammadi posted photos and videos of his matches and his workouts, along with inspirational “no-pain-no-gain” messages. In his last post in late December, he posted a video of himself in the gym and wrote: “We endured beyond our imagination. Back again #bodybuilding #training #wrestling.” “He was full of energy,” said Shiva Amelirad, an Iranian teacher living in Toronto who spoke with Mohammadi in 2022 while he was still in high school. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Amelirad said Mohammadi had participated in anti-government protests that erupted earlier that year when Mahsa Amini died in police custody after being detained for not wearing her headscarf properly. Those demonstrations were also met with a heavy crackdown by authorities. She said Mohammadi told her that workouts and eating ice cream were his only ways “to forget all this catastrophe that we are facing.” “He always tried to show that he was happy,” said Amelirad. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Rights groups say theocracy has forced confessions from protesters Mohammadi, Qasemi and Davoudi were arrested in Qom on Jan. 15, according to multiple human rights groups. The circumstances of their arrests are not known, and it is not clear if they knew each other beforehand. They were charged in the killing of a police officer on Jan. 8 and convicted in early February, according to Amnesty and Iran Human Rights. During his detention, Mohammadi was beaten and one of his hands broken, Amnesty said in a Feb. 19 open letter to Iran’s judiciary criticizing the prosecution of dozens of arrested protesters. Amnesty said Mohammadi denied the charges and retracted his confessions in court, saying they were extracted under torture. “Authorities have systematically subjected those arrested in connection to the protests to enforced disappearance, incommunicado detention, torture to extract forced ‘confessions,’” Amnesty said in the letter. Mizan, the Iranian judiciary’s official news agency, announced the execution of the three on Thursday, showing video of them sitting in prison uniforms in court. It said they had confessed to killing two police officers with “knives and swords,” and showed video of them allegedly reenacting the killings for judicial officials. Amiry-Moghaddam, of Iran Human Rights, said the Islamic Republic is struggling for its survival “and is well aware that the main threat to its existence comes not from external actors, but from the Iranian people demanding fundamental change.” ______ Keath reported from Cairo. Frankel from Jerusalem. LEE KEATH Keath is the chief editor for feature stories in the Middle East for The Associated Press. He has reported from Cairo since 2005. twitter mailto JULIA FRANKEL Frankel, based in Jerusalem, has reported from across Israel and the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Her reporting focuses on war, human rights, displacement and criminal justice. twitter mailto SARAH EL DEEB El Deeb is part of the AP’s Global Investigative team. She is based in the Middle East, a region she covered for two decades twitter mailto

FILE This is the Voice of America building in Washington D.C., on May 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File) 2026-03-21T04:01:47Z NEW YORK (AP) — In a strongly worded decision this week , a federal judge ordered that the Voice of America — its mission to provide news for countries around the world largely shut down for the past year by the Trump administration — come roaring back to life. Whether or not that actually happens is anybody’s guess. The government filed notice Thursday to appeal U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth’s order two days earlier to put hundreds of VOA employees who have been on paid leave the past year back to work. Lamberth had ruled on March 7 that Kari Lake, who was President Donald Trump’s choice to oversee the bureaucratic parent U.S. Agency for Global Media, didn’t have the authority to reduce VOA to a skeleton. The Voice of America was established as a news source in World War II, beaming reports to many countries that had no tradition of a free press. Before Trump took office again last year, Voice of America was operating in 49 different languages, heard by an estimated 362 million people. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Trump’s team contended that government-run news sources, which also include Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, were an example of bloated government and that they wanted news reporting more favorable to the current administration. With a greatly reduced staff, it currently operates in Iran, Afghanistan, China, North Korea and in countries with a large population of Kurds. Lamberth, in his decision, said Lake had “repeatedly thumbed her nose” at laws mandating VOA’s operation. Time to turn the page at VOA? VOA director Michael Abramowitz said legislators in both parties understand the need for a strong operation and have set aside enough funding for the job to be done. “It is time for all parties to come together and work to rebuild and strengthen the agency,” he said. Don’t expect that to happen soon. “President Trump was elected to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse across the administration, including the Voice of America — and efforts to improve efficiency at USAGM have been a tremendous success,” said White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly. “This will not be the final say on the matter.” Patsy Widakuswara, VOA’s White House bureau chief and a plaintiff in the lawsuit to bring it back, said that “restoring the physical infrastructure is going to take a lot of money and some time but it can be done. What is more difficult is recovering from the trauma that our newsroom has gone through.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); It’s an open question whether the administration wants a real news organization or a mouthpiece, said David Ensor, a former Voice of America director between 2010 and 2014. “We don’t know — maybe no one does at the moment — what the future holds,” he said. The administration’s efforts over the past year to bolster friendly outlets and fight coverage that displeases them offer a clue, even though Congress has required that Voice of America be an objective and unbiased news source. This week it was announced that Christopher Wallace, an executive at the conservative network Newsmax who had previously spent 15 years at Fox News Channel, will be the new deputy director at VOA. Abramowitz didn’t know he was getting a new deputy until it was announced. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Widakuswara wouldn’t comment on what Wallace’s appointment might mean. “I’m not going to pass judgment before seeing his work,” she said. While Lamberth ordered more than a thousand employees on leave to go back to work, it’s not clear how many of them moved on to other jobs or retired in the past year. The judge also said he did not have the authority to bring back hundreds of independent contractors who were terminated. One employee who left is Steve Herman, a former White House bureau chief and national correspondent at VOA and now executive director of the Jordan Center for Journalism Advocacy and Innovation at the University of Mississippi. Despite the court decisions, he questions whether the Trump administration would oversee a return to what the organization used to be. “I’m a bit of a pessimist,” Herman said. “I think it’s going to be very difficult.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); An administration loath to admit defeat Besides fighting to shut it down, Trump is loath to admit defeat. Last week, the White House nominated Sarah Rogers, the undersecretary of state for public diplomacy, to run the U.S. Agency for Global Media, putting it more firmly within the administration’s control. Her nomination requires Senate approval. “Is Marco Rubio’s State Department going to allow objective journalism in 49 languages?” Herman asked. “I don’t think so. I would want that to happen, but that’s a fairy tale.” In the budget bill passed in February, Congress set aside $200 million for Voice of America’s operation. While that represents about a 25% cut in the agency’s previous appropriation, it sent a bipartisan message of support, said Kate Neeper, VOA’s director of strategy and performance evaluation. Besides being a plaintiff with Widakuswara in the lawsuit to restore the agency, she has helped some of her colleagues deal with some of their own problems over the past year, including immigration issues. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “There is a lot of enthusiasm for going back to work,” she said. “People are eager to show up on Monday.” The hunger for information from Voice of America in Iran when he was director was a clear example of what the organization meant, Ensor said. Surveys showed that between a quarter and a third of Iran’s households tuned in to VOA once a week, primarily on satellite television. Occasionally the government would crack down and confiscate satellite dishes, but Iranians could usually quickly find replacements, he said. “I believe in Voice of America as a news organization and as a voice of America,” Ensor said. “It was important, and it can be again.” ___ David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social . DAVID BAUDER Bauder is the AP’s national media writer, covering the intersection of news, politics and entertainment. He is based in New York. twitter mailto

CODEPINK activists hold signs in front of boxes of aid they brought as part of the "Nuestra America," or Our America Convoy, after landing at the airport in Havana, Cuba, Friday, March 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa) 2026-03-20T23:02:05Z HAVANA (AP) — Some 650 delegates from 33 countries and 120 organizations began arriving in Cuba on Friday as part of a solidarity caravan transporting some 20 tons of humanitarian aid as the island grapples with a severe energy crisis. Members of “Our America Convoy to Cuba” arrived by air from Italy, France, Spain, the United States and several Latin American countries, and more are scheduled to arrive by sea on Saturday in a flotilla of three vessels from Mexico, organizers reported. A group of activists arrived in Havana on Wednesday in advance and delivered donations to hospitals. The visit comes amid heightened tensions between Cuba and the United States, whose governments have acknowledged holding talks after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed an oil embargo. Earlier this week, Trump said he expected to have the “honor” of “taking Cuba in some form,” adding: “I can do anything I want.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Solar panels, food and medicine to treat cancer are among the products donated to the island, which has been brought to a near standstill since Trump imposed an energy embargo in January, exacerbating a five-year economic crisis as his administration pressures for a change in the political system. “In the end, we are dozens and dozens of delegates, and we represent millions of people in this convoy,” said David Adler, a U.S. citizen and coordinator of Progressive International, one of the caravan’s organizers. “We cannot allow this collective punishment. We cannot normalize it.” Meanwhile, Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío on Friday refuted comments about a change in the political system or the potential departure of Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel as part of the ongoing talks between the two sides. “The Cuban political system is not up for negotiation, nor is the president, nor the position of any official in Cuba, subject to negotiation with the United States or with the government of any other country,” said Fernández de Cossío. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); He noted there are many areas of common interest on which dialogue with Washington is possible, as has been done in the past. Manolo de los Santos, of The People’s Forum — another of the caravan’s organizers — said that going to Cuba at this time is not only “defying the U.S. blockade,” but also preventing “another Gaza in the Americas.” Several analysts and regional leaders, including Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, have warned of a possible humanitarian crisis in Cuba. Adler said that both the flotilla that traveled to Gaza and the one heading to Cuba share several supporters. In the case of Cuba, in addition to social activists, unions, prominent figures and political parties are represented, including Morena from Mexico, the Workers’ Party of Brazil and the Broad Front of Uruguay. Some of the figures include British Parliamentarian Jeremy Corbyn; Colombian Senator Clara López; former Spanish politician Pablo Iglesias; U.S. labor leader Chris Smalls; and Brazilian humanitarian activist Thiago Ávila. After several weeks in which the only aid received by Cuba came from Mexico, which sent food and hygiene products on three occasions, activists and leaders in other countries began establishing support groups and collecting donations. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Díaz-Canel expressed his gratitude on social media. “They bring shipments of aid to combat the attempt to suffocate us. Welcome once again to the compassion of the people. Solidarity always returns to those who practice it with no other interest than human well-being,” the president stated. For its part, Brazil announced it would send 20,000 tons of food, primarily rice, beans and powdered milk. A group of Chilean parliamentarians also arrived with aid on Thursday, and China reported through its embassy that a ship carrying 60,000 tons of rice set sail for Cuba. ___ Follow AP’s Latin America coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Air travelers endure long lines and two-hour wait times at the TSA security check point at Terminal E at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport Friday, March 20, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Michael Wyke) 2026-03-20T19:20:30Z Eviction notices. Vehicle repossessions. Empty refrigerators and overdrawn bank accounts. Union leaders and federal officials say these are just some of the financial pressures Transportation Security Administration agents are facing during an ongoing government funding lapse — the third shutdown in less than six months that has forced the officers who screen airport passengers and luggage to keep working without pay. The public is experiencing the consequences in long wait times at some airports as more TSA officers take time off to earn money on the side or cut back on expenses. At least 376 have quit their jobs altogether since the shutdown began on Valentine’s Day, according to the Department of Homeland Security , exacerbating staff turnover at an agency that historically has had some of the U.S. government’s highest attrition and lowest employee morale. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “It’s just exhausting. Every day it just feels like this weight gets heavier and heavier on us,” Cameron Cochems, a local TSA union leader in Boise, Idaho, told The Associated Press. Airport screeners have spent nearly half of the past 170 days with their paychecks held up by politics — 43 days last fall during the longest government shutdown in history, four days earlier this year during a brief funding lapse, and now 35 days and counting during the current shutdown, which affects only the Department of Homeland Security. They are considered essential so have to keep showing up for work whether they get paid or not. Cochems, who has worked as a TSA agent for more than four years and is vice president of his regional American Federation of Government Employees chapter, said the number of resignations likely doesn’t fully capture the extent of the agency’s personnel challenges. He thinks many more officers would already have walked away in a stronger job market. “I think more people are staying with the TSA that don’t want to be here,” Cochems said. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The House Committee on Homeland Security has scheduled a hearing for Wednesday to review the partial shutdown’s impact on the TSA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Coast Guard and other agencies within DHS. A 2024 report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that TSA’s workforce has long struggled with some of the lowest morale in the federal government, driven in part by years of comparatively low pay and persistent workplace frustrations. While recent raises have helped, the report said dissatisfaction remained widespread, with officers citing inconsistent management, limited recognition and poor work-life balance. The starting pay for TSA agents is about $34,500, and the average salary is $46,000 to $55,000, according to the agency’s careers website. The GAO warned that unless those underlying issues were addressed, the risk of officers leaving the workforce was likely to persist. For Cochems, the recent shutdowns have upended the sense of stability that drew him to federal service in the first place. He said he already works a seasonal side job screening college sports teams at airports to supplement his income. Now, with his TSA paychecks halted, even that isn’t enough to keep up with basic expenses. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The financial pressure on his family intensified after his wife was unexpectedly laid off from her job two weeks ago. “Every day I come to the airport and I look at the food drive, see what things I can get for my family,” he said, referring to the donations that his airport, like many others, are soliciting to help TSA workers. It’s unclear how long airport screeners will have to keep working unpaid. Both chambers of Congress are scheduled to be out of Washington the first two weeks of April. And Democrats have said the department won’t get funded until new restrictions are placed on federal immigration operations following the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis earlier this year. For travelers, the strain in TSA staffing has made airport conditions increasingly unpredictable . Wait times have stretched into multiple hours at some airports, with passengers in cities like Houston, Atlanta and New Orleans reporting delays long enough to miss flights. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); TSA officers missed their first full paycheck last weekend, and absences are climbing nationwide, according to Homeland Security. More than half of scheduled staff were absent Sunday at an airport in Houston. At Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, 38% of officers missed work on Wednesday and 32% on Thursday. “I’ve heard from officers who cannot afford copayments for cancer treatments or office visits for their sick children,” Aaron Barker, a local TSA union leader in Atlanta, said at a news conference outside the airport this week. Homeland Security has said roughly 50,000 TSA employees would work during the shutdown. Nationwide on Thursday, about 10% of TSA agents missed work, the department reported. The absentee rate was two or three times higher in some places: 33% at Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport, 29% at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, 27% at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, and 23% at Baltimore-Washington International Airport. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The staffing shortages have also forced some airports to close checkpoints, with wait times swinging dramatically throughout the day in some cases. Early Friday, Hartsfield-Jackson had two-hour waits before easing to less than five minutes by early afternoon, and then jumping back up to 90 minutes. Security line wait times at Houston’s main airport exceeded two hours on Friday afternoon. Videos posted to social media showed lines snaking around the airport and down an escalator, spilling into the baggage claim area. In a Fox News interview this week, Acting Deputy TSA Administrator Adam Stahl warned that the latest shutdown could have lasting consequences for staffing, saying attrition and recruitment would likely suffer. Staff depatures increased after the record one last fall, Stahl said. “We saw an uptick of 25% attrition after the last shutdown, and so this is going to continue and worsen — not get better, get worse — if we don’t get a resumption of normal operations, DHS funded and money back into our TSA officers’ pockets,” he said, adding that the agency has exhausted its options, including deploying emergency manpower, to keep airport security checkpoints adequately staffed. Former TSA Administrator John Pistole has said that about 1,100 officers quit during last year’s shutdown that ended in November. RIO YAMAT Yamat is a national business reporter for The Associated Press. Based in Las Vegas, she covers airlines, travel and tourism. twitter mailto

Women look at their smartphones while riding a bus in Moscow, on March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File) 2026-03-21T05:31:27Z In one Russian city, officials blocked a rally due to a “tree inspection.” Elsewhere, they blamed snow removal problems or still-existing COVID-19 restrictions. And in one location, administrators argued that the reason for the protest didn’t exist. Authorities in nearly a dozen Russian regions in recent weeks cited various excuses to prevent demonstrations against internet censorship and the blocking of the popular messaging app Telegram. In most cases, they succeeded. Mindful of a crackdown on dissent since the 4-year-old invasion of Ukraine, activists decided not to risk holding unauthorized rallies, even if they weren’t about the war. Some went to court to challenge government refusals to authorize pickets, while others scaled them back to smaller indoor gatherings. But the disapproval persists across the political spectrum over moves against Russia’s second-most popular messaging app, adding to frustrations over a growing list of various issues that plague the country. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “Clearly the situation has changed, the laws have become stricter, but the protest hasn’t gone anywhere,” said Alexander Sustov, a legislator in Russia’s far eastern Primorye region where a pro-Telegram rally was blocked last month. “Discontent remains. And any ban only fuels that discontent,” he said. Online control Restricting Telegram is Russia’s latest move to put the internet under government control . Thousands of websites and platforms are blocked, as are multiple virtual private networks that allow users to circumvent censorship. Widespread cellphone internet shutdowns leave only a handful of government-approved websites available. Telegram trails only WhatsApp — also severely restricted — in popularity among Russians, and is widely used by government agencies for their official social media presence, as well as by pro-Kremlin commentators and military bloggers with hundreds of thousands of followers. Authorities encourage users to switch to MAX, a government-backed messaging app that critics say is a state surveillance tool. Military bloggers criticize the moves against Telegram, arguing it is an indispensable communications tool for Russian troops in Ukraine and for activists running crowdfunding campaigns to help Moscow’s forces. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The government initially promised not to restrict Telegram on the battlefield, but a different signal later came from the Kremlin. At a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin for International Women’s Day, a servicewoman called Telegram “an adversarial communications tool” and agreed with him when he said that “the use of communications systems that are not ours, not under our control, poses a danger to personnel” in battle. Unconfirmed media reports predict the coming weeks will see a complete blocking of the app, which in December 2025 had 93.6 million monthly users in Russia, or 76% of the population, according to monitoring group Mediascope. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Protests stifled from Moscow to Siberia Blocking Telegram prompted various political forces — including those who support the war or the Kremlin in general — to act. Widespread dismay and the lack of a black-and-white narrative to justify the restrictions made “people feel like they can afford to protest here,” said political analyst Abbas Gallyamov. Last month, members of Other Russia, an ultranationalist, pro-war group, blocked the entrance to the Moscow office of state media and internet regulator Roskomnadzor with a bicycle cable and displayed a banner saying: “Give us an internet without supervision, (and) Russia without Roskom-disgrace.” In December, the group hung a banner at the agency’s St. Petersburg office, saying, “Roskomnadzor, ban this banner.” All were arrested, with the Moscow activists facing criminal charges. Regional branches of the Communist Party, which generally supports the Kremlin, tried to organize rallies in several places. In Siberia’s Altai region, they were turned down after local officials said claims of an internet clampdown were “at odds with reality.” In southern Krasnodar, a rally for later in March has been authorized on the outskirts of the city. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); In the northern cities of Naryan-Mar and Syktyvkar, Communist Party activists managed to hold pickets, with placards saying, “It is not up to officials to decide what we read,” and “The internet is not a prison.” But those were exceptions, with authorities elsewhere refusing to allow rallies or blocking them at the last minute. Organizers in the Ural Mountains city of Perm secured a permit for a March 15 demonstration, but two hours before its start, activists were told of a “potential emergency situation” at the rally site that made it unsuitable for a gathering. Some still showed up. Viktor Gilin, 80, unfurled a banner that read, “Vladimir Putin! I demand that you bring back freedom of thought and speech — the internet!” He was swiftly detained and fined. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); In the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, 16 people were detained this month at the site of a planned pro-Telegram rally. Although authorization for the protest at that square wasn’t needed, participants arrived to find the site marked off with tape for a purported “tree inspection,” said activist Roman Malozyomov. Malozyomov and other activists, journalists and some passersby were detained but let go after a few hours. He went straight to the Lenin Square for a one-man picket with a sign proclaiming he wanted to “stay connected,” with the Roskomnadzor logo crossed out. This week, activists in several regions filed for authorization of more rallies on March 29. Some were swiftly rejected. Protesting other issues — cautiously Rallies have been rare since anti-war protests were brutally suppressed in 2022, with political prosecutions skyrocketing and laws restricting dissent multiplying. Smaller demonstrations persisted in spots, including unauthorized ones. Wives of soldiers picketed at the Kremlin and the Defense Ministry in 2024 , and over 1,000 people gathered that same year in the Bashkortostan region to protest the jailing of a local activist, resulting in mass arrests. Farmers in Siberia protested this month over cattle culling they deem unwarranted. In northern Komi, workers at a woodworking plant rallied to demand back pay. Hundreds joined an authorized rally in October in Vladivostok to protest increased car registration fees , one of the largest gatherings in the Pacific coast city in years. In Siberia’s Tomsk, activist Anton Isakov recently managed to organize an authorized demonstration against the blocking of popular online game platform Roblox and another against animal cruelty. If authorities allow protests, there are ready participants because of the many issues “that people want to speak out about,” he said. His attempts to get a permit for a pro-Telegram rally have been refused so far. Malozyomov, the Novosibirsk activist, said small, authorized rallies on issues such as high utility costs are often allowed there because “the authorities are trying to give people an opportunity to vent, so that the tension doesn’t build up.” Some are trying measures other than rallies. Konstantin Larionov in Kaluga, southwest of Moscow, and 41 others filed a lawsuit against Roskomnadzor and other government officials last year, arguing that restrictions on Telegram and WhatsApp violate their free speech and privacy rights. Larionov urged others to join by petitioning the court via email, and the number of plaintiffs swelled to 105. He said it was encouraging to see people “from different parts of the country” willing to take part. The court sided with the authorities. Larionov appealed and lost but plans to go all the way up to the Supreme Court. He admits the ability to protest in Russia has shrunk but believes it’s important to keep trying. “We are, maybe, retreating a little bit, but we’re not giving up,” he said. Analyst Gallyamov says the Telegram protests are more about signaling popular discontent than “fighting the regime.” But “it is another crack in the foundation” of Putin’s rule, he said. DASHA LITVINOVA Litvinova is an Associated Press correspondent covering Russia, Belarus, Central Asia and the Caucasus. She is part of the team that covers the Russia-Ukraine war. She has covered Russia and the region for over a decade. twitter mailto 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Smoke rises from Israeli airstrikes that struck a building housing Al-Manar channel studios in Dahiyeh, a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, early on Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein, File) 2026-03-21T04:05:07Z BEIRUT (AP) — An Israeli strike on a health center in southern Lebanon instantly killed 12 medical workers, seriously wounded one and left four missing under the rubble for hours. The March 13 strike in the village of Burj Qalaouiyah, one of the single deadliest strikes in Lebanon since the latest Israel-Hezbollah war began on March 2, targeted a center run by Hezbollah’s health arm, the Islamic Health Society, which has so far lost 24 members over the past two weeks. Since the latest war began, Israel’s military has not only been targeting the group’s military assets but also its civilian institutions in an apparent attempt to weaken the Iran-backed group further and try to push its supporters away from it. Hezbollah is a political party as well as an armed group, and its health and social service institutions have helped strengthen its base of support over the years. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); In addition to health centers, Israel has destroyed more than a dozen branches of Hezbollah’s financial arm, al-Qard al-Hasan . Other strikes heavily damaged Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV headquarters and its Al-Nour radio stations. The strikes also have targeted the group’s Amana gas stations and discount shops known as Sajjad, where low-income people can buy highly subsidized products. On Wednesday, an Israeli airstrike on an apartment in central Beirut killed Mohammed Sherri, the head of political programs at Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV, along with his wife. Israel has accused Hezbollah of using health facilities for military purposes and has said al-Qard al-Hasan — officially a charitable organization that provides interest-free loans — finances the group’s military activities. Lebanon’s Health Ministry denies the Israeli claims about Hezbollah’s health facilities being used for military purposes. “This is a different war that will not end with a ceasefire,” said Hilal Khashan, a political scientist at American University of Beirut. “This war will not end before Israel achieves its full objective - that is, the elimination of Hezbollah not only as a military movement, but also the ultimate objective is to erase Hezbollah from the Lebanese political picture.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Hezbollah is under internal and external pressure to disarm and knows this latest fight is crucial. Intense clashes along Lebanon’s southern border between Hezbollah fighters and advancing Israeli troops have left dozens of Lebanese gunmen dead. During a visit to the northern front Monday, Israel’s army chief Gen. Eyal Zamir said that Hezbollah is now fighting “a war for its very existence and is paying a heavy price for entering this battle.” He added that pressures exerted by Israel’s military will only “increase more and more.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Hezbollah vows to keep fighting “This is an existential battle. It is not a limited or simple battle,” Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem said in a televised speech over the weekend. Kassem vowed that his group would fight to the end and never surrender. Israel says that Lebanon has failed to disarm the group in accordance with the Lebanese government’s own plans, and that therefore Israel will carry out the mission itself. Unlike previous conflicts with Israel, the current one comes as the Lebanese government has called Hezbollah’s military activities illegal and authorities have detained several members of the group for carrying weapons without a license. Like previous wars, Hezbollah is being criticized by its opponents in Lebanon who blame the Iran-backed group for triggering this war by firing rockets into Israel. Hezbollah fired the rockets to avenge the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, less than two days after the U.S. and Israel began their attacks on Iran, triggering a war in the Middle East. Israel retaliated with a campaign of airstrikes on parts of Lebanon that has so far left more than 1,000 people dead and over 1 million displaced from their homes in southern and eastern Lebanon as well as in Beirut’s southern suburbs. “Hezbollah took a suicidal initiative that will not change the equation,” said legislator Samy Gemayel, who heads the nationalist Kataeb Party, adding that Tehran is using Lebanon “as a platform to defend Iran.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); A previous 34-day war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006 ended with a draw. A 14-month conflict that started in October 2023 — when Hezbollah fired rockets in support of Palestinians a day after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on southern Israel — killed much of Hezbollah’s political and military command and left the group severely weakened but not destroyed. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Strikes followed by backlash After airstrikes hit Hezbollah’s institutions even in central Beirut, residents protested and forced the group to close a branch of al-Qard al-Hasan in the heart of the capital. Bowing to the pressure, workers removed the financial institution’s sign and dismantled ATMs, marking the end of its presence in central Beirut. Amnesty International has said that the al-Qard al-Hasan branches are not legitimate military targets under international humanitarian law and that the strikes should be investigated as war crimes. “The Israeli military has appeared to assume that labelling something as Hezbollah-affiliated, be that healthcare workers, homes in border villages, or financial institutions, makes it targetable. That’s wrong,” said Heba Morayef, regional director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International. Mahmoud Karaki of Hezbollah’s Islamic Health Society said that during the last war in 2024, his group lost 153 members in Israeli attacks. But he vowed that the group would continue its work as it has done in previous wars. “By targeting us, they are targeting the safety network for the people and their steadfastness in areas under attack,” Karaki said The Israeli military’s Arabic spokesperson alleged that Hezbollah is using ambulances to transport weapons and fighters, a charge that the paramedic group strongly denies. Hezbollah and Iranian officials have said that any halt in U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran should also include a stop to Israeli attacks in Lebanon. Senior Hezbollah official Mahmoud Qamati told Lebanon’s Al-Jadeed TV on Monday that “Iran will not leave Lebanon nor the resistance, nor will it allow that Lebanon remains vulnerable,” adding that “Lebanon will be part of this victory and will not be left alone.” When Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was asked if Tehran could accept a ceasefire to stop strikes on Iran while they continue in Lebanon, he said: “I don’t think so.” “We do not believe in a ceasefire; we believe in ending the war. And ending the war means exactly that — ending the war on all fronts,” Araghchi told Al Jazeera English, adding that this includes Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq, Iran and “other countries of the region.”

Fooding covers a residential neighborhood in Waialua, Hawaii, Friday, March 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Mengshin Lin) 2026-03-21T06:21:31Z HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii suffered its worst flooding in more than 20 years as heavy rains fell on soil already saturated by downpours from a winter storm a week ago , officials said Friday while warning that still more rain was expected during the weekend. Muddy floodwaters smothered vast stretches of Oahu’s North Shore , a community world-renowned for its big-wave surfing. Raging waters lifted homes and cars and prompted evacuation orders for 5,500 people north of Honolulu. Authorities cautioned that a 120-year-old dam could fail. Gov. Josh Green said the cost of the storm could top $1 billion, including damage to airports, schools, roads, people’s homes and a Maui hospital in Kula. “This is going to have a very serious consequence for us as a state,” Green said at a news conference. Most of the state was under a flood watch, with Haleiwa and Waialua in northern Oahu under a flash flood warning, according to the National Weather Service. Green said his chief of staff spoke to the White House and received assurances the islands would have federal support. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Most serious flooding since 2004 No deaths were reported and no one was unaccounted for. About 10 people were taken to a hospital with hypothermia, he said. Crews searched by air and by water for people who had been stranded — efforts that were hampered by people flying personal drones to get images of the flooding, said Ian Scheuring, a spokesperson for Honolulu. The National Guard and Honolulu Fire Department airlifted 72 children and adults who had been attending a spring break youth camp at a retreat on Oahu’s west coast called Our Lady of Kea’au, according to city and camp officials. The camp is on high ground but authorities didn’t want to leave them there, the mayor said. Green said the flooding was the state’s most serious since 2004 floods in Manoa inundated homes and a University of Hawaii library. Dozens — if not hundreds — of homes were damaged Friday but officials haven’t been able to fully assess the destruction, Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said. Some 5,500 people were under evacuation orders. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “There’s no question that the damage done thus far has been catastrophic,” he said. Officials blamed some of the devastation on the sheer amount of rain that fell in a short amount of time on saturated land. Parts of Oahu received 8 to 12 inches (20 to 30 cm) of rain overnight. Kaala, the island’s highest peak, got nearly 16 inches (40 cm) in the past day, the National Weather Service said. More rain was expected: Blangiardi said 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 cm) of rain was forecast to fall on Oahu in the next two to three days. Winter storm systems known as “Kona lows,” which feature southerly or southwesterly winds that bring in moisture-laden air, were responsible for the deluges in the past two weeks. The intensity and frequency of heavy rains in Hawaii have increased amid human-caused global warming, experts say. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Eyes on an aging dam Officials have been closely watching the Wahiawa dam, which has been vulnerable for decades, saying it was “at risk of imminent failure.” Water levels in the dam receded by late Friday but that could change if more rain falls. Overnight into Friday, the dam went from 79 feet to 84 feet (24 to 25.6 meters) — just 6 feet (1.8 meters) shy of what it can handle, authorities said. As she prepared to evacuate to a friend’s home on higher ground, Waialua resident Kathleen Pahinui told The Associated Press in a phone interview that the aging dam is a concern every time it rains. “Just pray for us,” she said. “We understand there’s more rain coming.” The state has said Wahiawa dam has “high hazard potential,” and that a failure “will result in probable loss of human life.” The earthen dam was built in 1906 to increase sugar production for the Waialua Agricultural Company, which eventually became a subsidiary of Dole Food Company. It was reconstructed following a collapse in 1921. The state has sent Dole four notices of deficiency about the dam since 2009 and five years ago fined the company $20,000 for failing to address safety deficiencies on time, according to records. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Afterward, Dole proposed to donate the dam, reservoir and ditch system to the state in exchange for the state’s agreement to repair the spillway to meet and maintain dam safety standards. The state passed legislation in 2023 authorizing the dam’s acquisition. It also provided $5 million to buy the spillway and $21 million to repair and expand it to comply with dam safety requirements. But the transfer has not been completed. A state board is due to vote on the acquisition next week. “The dam continues to operate as designed with no indications of damage,” Dole said in an emailed statement. The state regulates 132 dams across Hawaii , most of them built as part of irrigation systems for the sugar cane industry, according to a 2019 infrastructure report by the American Society of Civil Engineers. ___ Associated Press writer Hallie Golden contributed to this report from Seattle. AUDREY McAVOY McAvoy is a Honolulu-based reporter who covers news in Hawaii and beyond. twitter mailto 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Iranians follow a truck carrying the coffins of Iran's intelligence minister Esmail Khatib and, according to Iranian officials, his wife and daughter, during a funeral procession in Tehran, Iran, Friday, March 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi) 2026-03-21T05:18:54Z DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said he was considering “winding down” military operations in the Middle East even as the United States is sending three more amphibious assault ships and roughly 2,500 additional Marines to the region. Trump’s post Friday on social media followed an Iranian threat to attack recreational and tourist sites worldwide and another day of the airstrikes and drone and missile attacks that have engulfed the region. The mixed messages from the United States came after another climb in oil prices plunged the U.S. stock market, and was followed by a Trump administration announcement it was lifting sanctions on Iranian oil already loaded on ships, a move aimed at wrangling soaring fuel prices. The 3-week-old war has shown no signs of abating, with Israel saying Iran continued to fire missiles at it early Saturday, while Saudi Arabia said it downed 20 drones in just a couple of hours in the country’s eastern region, which is home to major oil installations. The attacks came a day after Israeli airstrikes hit in Tehran as Iranians celebrated the Persian New Year, known as Nowruz, a normally festive holiday that has been muted by the war. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Trump says US near completion of its goals The U.S. and Israel have offered shifting rationales for the war, from hoping to foment an uprising that topples Iran’s leadership to eliminating its nuclear and missile programs . There have been no public signs of any such uprising and no end to the war in sight. On social media, Trump said, “We are getting very close to meeting our objectives as we consider winding down our great Military efforts in the Middle East.” That seemed at odds with his administration’s move to bolster its firepower in the region and request another $200 billion from Congress to fund the war. The United States is deploying three more amphibious assault ships and roughly 2,500 additional Marines to the Middle East, an official told The Associated Press. Two other U.S. officials confirmed that ships were deploying, without saying where they were headed. All three spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military operations. Days earlier the U.S. redirected another group of amphibious assault ships carrying another 2,500 Marines from the Pacific to the Middle East. The Marines will join more than 50,000 U.S. troops already in the region. Trump has said he has no plans to send ground forces into Iran but also has asserted that he retains all options. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Iran threatens attacks beyond the Middle East Iran’s top military spokesperson, Gen. Abolfazl Shekarchi, warned Friday that “parks, recreational areas and tourist destinations” worldwide will not be safe for the country’s enemies. The threat renewed concerns that Tehran may revert to using militant attacks beyond the Middle East as a pressure tactic. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei praised Iranians’ steadfastness in the face of war in a written statement read on Iranian television to mark Nowruz. Khamenei has not been seen in public since he became supreme leader following Israeli strikes that killed his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei , and reportedly wounded him. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); With little information coming out of Iran, it was not clear how much damage its arms, nuclear or energy facilities have sustained in the punishing U.S. and Israeli strikes, which began Feb. 28 — or even who was truly in charge of the country . But Iran’s attacks are still choking off oil supplies and raising food and fuel prices far beyond the Middle East. Israel continues wave of strikes against Hezbollah militants The Israeli military said early Saturday that it began a wave of strikes targeting Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Beirut’s southern suburbs. Smoke was seen rising, fires broke out and loud explosions were heard across parts of central Beirut, hours after the Israeli army renewed evacuation warnings for seven neighborhoods. Israeli strikes targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon have killed more than 1,000 people and displaced more than 1 million, according to the Lebanese government. More than 1,300 people have been killed in Iran during the war. In Israel, 15 people have been killed by Iranian missiles and four others have died in the occupied West Bank. At least 13 U.S. military members have been killed. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); US pauses sanctions on Iranian oil Brent crude oil , the international standard, has soared during the fighting and was around $106 per barrel, up from roughly $70 before the war. The newly announced U.S. pause in sanctions applies to Iranian oil loaded on ships as of Friday and is set to end April 19. The new move does not increase the flow of production, a central factor in the surging prices . Iran has managed to evade U.S. sanctions for years, suggesting that much of what it exports already reaches buyers. Looking for ways to boost global oil supplies during the Iran war , the Trump administration has previously paused sanctions on certain Russian oil shipments for 30 days, which critics said rewarded Moscow while having only a modest effect on markets. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); ___ Price reported from Washington, and Watson from San Diego. AP journalists Collin Binkley in West Palm Beach, Florida and Konstantin Toropin in Washington contributed. JON GAMBRELL Gambrell is the news director for the Gulf and Iran for The Associated Press. He has reported from each of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Iran and other locations across the world since joining the AP in 2006. twitter instagram mailto MICHELLE L. PRICE Price covers the White House. She previously covered the 2024 presidential campaign and politics, government and other news in New York, Nevada, Utah and Arizona. She is based in Washington. twitter mailto JULIE WATSON Watson covers immigration, US-Mexico border issues and the environment, and helps direct coverage of California and Nevada for The Associated Press. She’s reported from Mexico, Central and South America, and was a 2019 Pulitzer Prize finalist. twitter 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks to members of the media during a press briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) 2026-03-20T21:18:44Z WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge agreed Friday to block the Trump administration from enforcing a policy limiting news reporters’ access to the Pentagon, ruling that key portions of the new rules are unlawful. U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman in Washington, D.C., sided with The New York Times and ruled that the Pentagon policy illegally restricts the press credentials of reporters who walked out of the building rather than agree to the new rules. The New York Times sued the Pentagon and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in December, claiming the credentialing policy violates the journalists’ constitutional rights to free speech and due process. The current Pentagon press corps is comprised mostly of conservative outlets that agreed to the policy. Reporters from outlets that refused to consent to the new rules, including from The Associated Press, have continued reporting on the military.

Protesters participate in the Good Trouble Tuesday march for Breonna Taylor, on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Louisville, Ky. (Amy Harris/Invision/AP, File) 2026-03-20T18:24:16Z LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Federal prosecutors have asked a judge to dismiss the charges against two Louisville officers accused of falsifying the warrant that led police to raid Breonna Taylor’s apartment the night she was killed six years ago. Prosecutors said in a court filing Friday that their review of the case showed the charges against former Detective Joshua Jaynes and former Sgt. Kyle Meany should be “dismissed in the interest of justice.” Lawyers for the two didn’t immediately respond to Friday requests for comment. Judges have twice taken a felony charge against each officer and reduced it to a misdemeanor, saying there wasn’t a direct link between the false information and Taylor’s death. Prosecutors said after the second ruling that they decided to drop the cases. Taylor was shot to death by police when they broke down the door of her apartment while serving a no-knock drug warrant looking for a former boyfriend who no longer lived there. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Taylor’s boyfriend at the time fired at the officers, and Taylor was killed as police fired back. Federal prosecutors under former President Joe Biden sought the charges against the officers, while President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice has asked the only officer serving prison time related to Taylor’s killing to be let out of prison while he appeals his conviction.

2026-03-20T17:59:55Z HONOLULU (AP) — Thousands of residents in towns north of Honolulu were told to evacuate their homes early Friday morning as flooding from heavy rains intensified and water levels rose behind a 120-year-old dam. Emergency sirens blared along Oahu’s famed North Shore, where rising waters damaged some homes and vehicles. Honolulu officials issued a “LEAVE NOW” evacuation order at 5:35 a.m. Friday for Waialua and Haleiwa: “Extremely dangerous flooding and Wahiawa Dam is high.” Officials have been watching dam levels since a storm last week dumped heavy rain across the state, which led to catastrophic flooding that washed away roads and homes . After the worst of it, a similar but weaker storm was forecast to bring more rain through this weekend. Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said in a social media post that the Hawaii National Guard has been activated to respond to the flooding. “The storm of course is very severe right now, particularly on the northern part of Oahu,” he said, describing chest-high flood waters. “It’s going to be a very touch-and-go day.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); As she prepared to evacuate to a friend’s home on higher ground, Waialua resident Kathleen Pahinui told The Associated Press in a phone interview that the aging dam is a concern every time it rains. “Just pray for us,” she said. “We understand there’s more rain coming.” Molly Pierce, spokesperson for the Honolulu Department of Emergency Management, said the evacuation order covers more than 4,000 people, though the number could be higher. Officials issued a warning for the dam during heavy rain last week, but the water level receded as rain subsided. “The water is actively running over the spillway right now,” she said. The state regulates 132 dams across Hawaii , most of them built as part of irrigation systems for the sugar cane industry, according to a 2019 infrastructure report by the American Society of Civil Engineers. In 2006, seven people were killed when the Ka Loko dam on the island of Kauai collapsed and water rushed downhill.

Colombia's President Gustavo Petro speaks after voting during legislative elections in Bogota, Colombia, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) 2026-03-20T16:58:01Z NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors in New York are investigating Colombian President Gustavo Petro for alleged ties to drug traffickers, according to two people familiar with the matter. The people weren’t authorized to discuss the ongoing inquiry and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Prosecutors in Brooklyn and Manhattan in recent months have been questioning narcotraffickers about their ties to Petro and specifically about allegations the Colombian president’s representatives solicited bribes to block their extradition to the United States, said one of the people familiar with the inquiry. The person said it wasn’t clear whether federal prosecutors have implicated Petro in any crime. “The investigation focuses on efforts at Colombian jails to get donations to the Petro campaign — and Petro himself — in exchange for a promise not to extradite,” this person said. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); A spokesperson for the Colombian presidency declined to comment on the ongoing investigations into Petro or the subsequent legal proceedings. The federal inquiry was reported earlier Friday by The New York Times. Petro came under scrutiny through the course of drug trafficking investigations by New York authorities that led them to identify him as a subject, according to another person familiar with the matter. The inquiries into Petro are in the early stages and it is not clear whether they will result in charges, this person said, adding the White House has had no role in the investigations. Petro, a former rebel leader, soared into office promising to reduce the country’s dependence on fossil fuels and reallocate state resources to addressing entrenched poverty. A leftist firebrand known for winding sometimes incoherent speeches, he has regularly criticized the Trump administration over its support for Israel, bombing of drug boats in the Caribbean and likened the White House migration crackdown to “Nazi” tactics. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); After one such outburst, at a pro-Palestinian demonstration outside the United Nations headquarters in New York, Trump retaliated by revoking Petro’s U.S. visa . He also briefly slapped high tariffs on Colombia over Petro’s refusal to accept deportation flights from the United States. But more recently the two have shown signs of getting along. After a meeting at the White House in February, Trump described Petro as “terrific.” __ Durkin Richer reported from Washington. Goodman reported from Miami. Mike Sisak contributed from New York and Astrid Suárez from Bogotá, Colombia, JIM MUSTIAN Mustian is an Associated Press investigative reporter for breaking news. twitter mailto ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Richer covers the Justice Department and federal courts. She joined The AP in 2013 and is based in Washington. twitter JOSHUA GOODMAN Goodman is a Miami-based investigative reporter who writes about the intersection of crime, corruption, drug trafficking and politics in Latin America. He previously spent two decades reporting from South America. twitter mailto

FILE--Edward R. Murrow, a CBS correspondent who made his name from the front lines of World War II and from confronting Sen. Joseph McCarthy during the 1950s Red Scare, during a speaking engagement. (AP Photo/Washington State University/The Columbian via AP) 2026-03-20T15:23:29Z NEW YORK (AP) — CBS News said Friday it is shutting down its storied radio news service after nearly 100 years of operation as part of a round of layoffs, blaming a shift in radio station programming strategies and challenging economic times. When it went on the air in September 1927, CBS News Radio was the precursor to the entire network, giving a youthful William S. Paley a start in the business. Famed broadcaster Edward R. Murrow delivered reports from London during World War II as part of the service. Today CBS News Radio provides material to an estimated 700 stations across the country, and is known best for its top-of-the-hour news roundups. The service will end on May 22, the network said Friday. “While this was a necessary decision, it was not an easy one,” CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss and president Tom Cibrowski said in a memo to staff on Friday. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Along with newspapers, radio was the dominant force in how Americans got their news from the 1920s through the 1940s, with Americans listening to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s “Fireside Chats” during the Depression, before the format was largely supplanted by television in the 1950s. Radio is even less a force in modern society, with the world online and on phones. Those seeking audio often turn to podcasts before radio. The front page of CBS News’ website did not immediately carry news of the demise. Weiss is not a stranger to CBS’ storied history. Addressing her staff in January, three months into her job as CBS News boss, she invoked the network’s legendary newsman Walter Cronkite as a symbol of old thinking and said that if the network continues with its current strategy, “we’re toast.” Weiss announced the hiring of 18 new contributors and said CBS News needs to do stories that will “surprise and provoke — including inside our own newsroom.” Weiss, founder of the Free Press website and without broadcast news experience before being hired by CBS parent Paramount’s new management, has quickly become a headline-maker and polarizing figure in journalism. She held a “60 Minutes” story critical of President Donald Trump’s deportation policy from being broadcast for a month and has critics watching to see if she’s moving the network in a Trump-friendly direction. ___ David Bauder covers the intersection of media and entertainment for The Associated Press. DAVID BAUDER Bauder is the AP’s national media writer, covering the intersection of news, politics and entertainment. He is based in New York. twitter mailto

President Donald Trump listens as Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a dinner in the State Dining Room of the White House, Thursday, March 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) 2026-03-20T14:47:16Z WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department filed a new lawsuit Friday against Harvard University, saying its leadership failed to address antisemitism on campus , creating grounds for the government to freeze existing grants and seek repayment for grants already paid. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Massachusetts, is another missive in a protracted battle between the administration of President Donald Trump and the elite university. “The United States cannot and will not tolerate these failures and brings this action to compel Harvard to comply” with federal civil rights law, the Justice Department wrote in the lawsuit, “and to recover billions of dollars of taxpayer subsidies awarded to a discriminatory institution.” Harvard did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The lawsuit comes after negotiations appear to have bogged down in the months-long battle with the Trump administration that has tested the boundaries of the government’s authority over America’s universities. What began as an investigation into campus antisemitism escalated into an all-out feud as the Trump administration slashed more than $2.6 billion in research funding, ended federal contracts and attempted to block Harvard from hosting international students . freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); In a pair of lawsuits filed by the university, Harvard said it’s being unfairly penalized for refusing to adopt the administration’s views. A federal judge agreed in December, reversing the funding cuts and calling the antisemitism argument a “smokescreen.” There have been repeated reports of the two sides being close to reaching an agreement. Last year, the administration and the university were reportedly approaching a deal that would have required Harvard to pay $500 million to regain access to federal funding and to end the investigations. Almost a year later, Trump upped that figure to $1 billion, saying that Harvard has been “behaving very badly.” Since he took office, Trump has targeted elite universities he believes are overrun by left-wing ideology and antisemitism, freezing billions in research grants. ___ The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org. MORIAH BALINGIT Balingit is an Associated Press national reporter focused on child care, preschool and the early grades. twitter mailto MICHAEL CASEY Casey writes about the environment, housing and inequality for The Associated Press. He lives in Boston. twitter mailto

A woman shares Jehovah's Witnesses' literature with a passerby in downtown Pittsburgh on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Peter Smith, File) 2026-03-20T13:55:39Z Leaders of Jehovah’s Witnesses are modifying their prohibition on receiving blood transfusions on religious grounds, now allowing members to decide whether to allow their own blood to be drawn and stored in advance for such things as a scheduled surgery with a risk of significant blood loss. But the organization is retaining its wider prohibition against receiving transfusions of others’ blood — a procedure routinely used with patients after accidents, violence or other blood loss. This long-held prohibition is one of the most distinctive and controversial teachings of the movement, which is headquartered in New York state and well-known for its assertive public proselytizing . The Governing Body of Jehovah’s Witnesses announced what it called a “clarification” of its teaching on Friday, saying it came after extensive prayer and consideration. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “Each Christian must decide for himself how his own blood will be used in all medical and surgical care,” Governing Body member Gerrit Lösch said in a video statement posted Friday on the denomination’s website. “This includes whether to allow his own blood to be removed, stored, and then given back to him. What does this mean? Some Christians may decide that they would allow their blood to be stored and then be given back to them, others may object.” Jehovah’s Witnesses, who emerged in 19th century America, share many Christian beliefs but diverge from most other churches on key theological issues, such as the nature of Jesus and biblical prophecy. They are almost alone in their beliefs about blood transfusions. Jehovah’s Witnesses reported a U.S. membership of 1.3 million in 2025, with a worldwide membership of 9.2 million in more than 200 countries and territories. Ex-members react to policy shift News of the imminent policy change leaked out in recent days on Reddit and other social media forums for former Jehovah’s Witnesses. Some ex-members — who are critical of the religious organization’s policies and assert it is insular and authoritarian — say the policy shift has some value but is inadequate. Many commenters questioned why the ban on transfusions wasn’t lifted entirely for one of the same reasons cited by Lösch regarding the use of one’s own blood, that the Bible doesn’t comment on it. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “I don’t think it goes far enough, but it’s a significant change,” said Mitch Melin of Washington state, a former member who has worked to bring awareness to what he calls the “darker side” of the organization. The longstanding blood policy has led to “senseless loss of life,” he said. Melin said those who defy such a policy “could be shunned” by the church. “They’re softening this to a conscience matter when it involves your own blood,” he said in an email. “From my perspective, it doesn’t go far enough. If one of Jehovah’s Witnesses faces a medical emergency with significant blood loss, or if a child requires multiple transfusions to treat certain types of cancers, this policy change does not grant them complete freedom of conscience to accept potentially life-saving interventions involving donated blood.” He also noted that in a worldwide church, many members live in countries that lack access to providers who could store their own blood. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Using a patient’s own blood for medical treatment Autologous blood is blood donated by a patient who can receive it back if a transfusion is needed during or after surgery. Medical experts say the blood can be taken from 6 weeks to 5 days before surgery. It’s thrown away if it’s not needed during or after surgery. It can be done at some hospitals or blood banks. Donating one’s own blood can make a person anemic or have a lower blood count, experts warn. But there’s a lower risk of having a reaction because your body recognizes your own blood, and there’s no risk of contracting infectious disease from a different donor. Jehovah’s Witnesses’ historic teachings on blood transfusions stem from biblical passages requiring believers to “abstain ... from blood,” which they interpret as applying not just to food but to transfusions. While they teach that many detailed dietary laws in the Old Testament portion of the Bible no longer apply, they say this prohibition on partaking of blood is upheld as a universal principle for believers in other Bible passages. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The organization has parsed the implications of this teaching in the past. It has previously determined, for example, that medical procedures that temporarily remove blood but quickly return it to the body — such as kidney dialysis, in which blood is filtered of impurities — are acceptable. But they had distinguished that from removing blood and storing it for an extended period before returning it. In 2000, an official publication, The Watchtower, stated: “Hence, we do not donate blood, nor do we store for transfusion our blood. That practice conflicts with God’s law.” Lösch did not detail what prompted the change in the organization’s stance. He did refer to the increasing types of medical interventions available, although blood transfusions have long been used. He said that “the Bible does not comment on the use of a person’s own blood in medical and surgical care.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); In a press statement, the Jehovah’s Witnesses emphasized that their “core belief regarding the sanctity of blood remains unchanged.” They said many medical providers have been respecting members’ health-care directives. ___ AP medicine and science reporter Laura Ungar contributed. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

Election workers Heidi McGettigan, left, Margaret Wohlford, center, and David Jensen, unload a bag of ballots brought in a from a polling precinct to the Sacramento County Registrar of Voters office in Sacramento, Calif., June 5, 2018. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File) 2026-03-20T10:29:33Z There will be just one Election Day for this fall’s midterm elections — Nov. 3. But voters in 14 states who cast their votes by mail will be given a grace period ranging from a day later to several weeks in which their ballots can be received and counted. Whether that extra time should be allowed is at the heart of a case that will be argued Monday before the U.S. Supreme Court. If the court strikes down those grace periods, it will leave those states — and their voters — scrambling to adjust with only a few months before absentee ballots are sent out for this fall’s midterm elections. The implications could extend well beyond the 14 states that give a grace period for regular ballots, depending on how the court ultimately rules. A total of 29 states allow for the late arrival of military and overseas ballots, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures and the Voting Rights Lab. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); In a filing with the court, a group of state and big-city election officials cited “the risks of confusion and disenfranchisement” if mail ballot grace periods were ended suddenly in states where voters have counted on them for years. Stuart Holmes, director of elections for the Washington Secretary of State’s office, said 127,000 ballots were received after Election Day in 2024, so voters should expect about that many ballots to be rejected if Mississippi loses the case. Washington has the longest grace period of any state, 21 days after Election Day. If the ruling is that a ballot is invalid even if it’s postmarked by Election Day, “it might as well have never been received,” he said. “There’s no way to resolve that issue,” Holmes said. “There’s no second chance.” ‘Election Day is E freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); lection Day’ The practice of counting ballots after Election Day has been a target of President Donald Trump since he sought to “STOP THE COUNT” after the 2020 election. He and his allies argue it delays results and leads to suspicions about the vote tallies. It’s part of Trump’s broader attack on most mail balloting , which he has said breeds fraud despite findings to the contrary and years of experience in numerous states. The Republican National Committee and the Libertarian Party of Mississippi brought the lawsuit against Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson, a Republican, arguing that federal Election Day statutes envision a single day for casting ballots. Grace periods for receiving mail ballots — also in place in the District of Columbia and three U.S. territories — violate federal law, they argue. “Election Day is Election Day for a reason,” Ohio state Sen. Theresa Gavarone, a Republican, said during debate over her state’s ban on the practice last year. “Allowing ballots to be delivered days after the election does nothing but hurt the integrity and credibility of our elections.” In briefs supporting Mississippi, voting rights groups, local election officials and organizations representing military and overseas voters defend the right of states to write their own voting rules. The Constitution gives states the authority to set the “times, places and manner” of elections. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Supporters of ballot grace periods told the court that upholding the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision to strike down Mississippi’s law would threaten to create chaos and confusion in this year’s midterm elections. “State legislatures have recognized this issue and set election deadlines that balance the interests of canvassing speed and ballot security depending on the specific needs of each individual state,” a group of local election officials and local governments told the court. !function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(e){if(void 0!==e.data["datawrapper-height"]){var t=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var a in e.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r The groups said eliminating grace periods could affect ballot verification activities, provisional ballot processing, and the processing of military and overseas ballots that often happens after Election Day. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Some states already are modifying their laws All 50 states require ballots to be cast or postmarked on or before Election Day. The 14 states with grace periods for regular ballots accept and count mailed ballots for periods ranging from a single day after the election in Texas to 21 days afterward in Washington state. Mississippi’s disputed grace period is five days. A November 2025 Brookings Institution study found that mail voting was a practical, secure way to expand voter access, with about four cases of fraud out of every 10 million mail ballots. It was an option used by about 30% of voters across the U.S. during the 2024 presidential election. With the Mississippi case looming, some states have begun to act on their own. Four states — Ohio, Kansas, North Dakota and Utah — eliminated grace periods last year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures and Voting Rights Lab. A fifth, Minnesota, shortened its ballot deadline from the close of polls on Election Day to 5 p.m. In signing Ohio’s law, Republican Gov. Mike DeWine — who had vowed he wouldn’t sign any more election restrictions championed by fellow Republicans — said the Mississippi lawsuit forced his hand. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “I believe that this four-day grace period is reasonable, and I think for many reasons it makes a lot of sense,” he said at the time, noting that he would prefer to veto the legislation. But DeWine said a ruling against Mississippi would jeopardize similar laws in other states, including Ohio, and leave inadequate time to adjust. For Adriane Mohlenkamp, Ohio’s previous grace period provided extra comfort over concerns that circumstances outside her control would prevent her ballot from counting. “I live in a rural part of the state and sometimes our mail has to go to a larger city and then come back,” said Mohlenkamp, 48, a stay-at-home mom and volunteer in Athens who is not affiliated with either major party. “It gave me a safe feeling, because, even if I do my due diligence and return it in enough time, I can’t always anticipate what it does when it leaves my hands.” States grapple with postmark uncertainty Katy Owens Hubler, elections program director at the National Conference of State Legislatures, said that in some large states, it can be difficult to distribute all mailed ballots and have them returned within the allotted timeframe. She said the postmark issue has become trickier for states after recent changes to mail processing at the U.S. Postal Service. An updated agency policy, enacted in December, said postmarks might not indicate the first day the Postal Service receives the mail, but rather the day it was handled at one of its processing centers. Those centers can be farther away from some communities because of consolidations, a group of U.S. senators told the postmaster earlier this year. In response to potential Postal Service processing delays, some states have proposed extending their ballot deadlines — California by three days, Virginia by five hours and Kansas by an hour, depending on the county, according to the NCSL. Owens Hubler said informing voters of any changes resulting from the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Mississippi case will need to happen quickly. “It’s not ideal to do it in a big election year like this year,” she said. “Voters do adapt, but if there is a change from a postmarked-by to a received-by date, that needs to be communicated and signaled well in advance.” JULIE CARR SMYTH Smyth covers government and politics from Columbus, Ohio, for The Associated Press. She was part of the AP team honored as a finalist for the 2025 Pulitzer Prize in breaking news. twitter mailto 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Chuck Norris attends the premiere for "The Expendables 2" in Los Angeles on Aug. 15, 2012. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File) 2026-03-20T14:17:01Z Chuck Norris, the martial arts grandmaster and action star whose roles in “Walker, Texas Ranger” and other television shows and movies made him an iconic tough guy — sparking internet parodies and adoration from presidents — has died at 86. Norris died Thursday, in what his family described as a “sudden passing.” “While we would like to keep the circumstances private, please know that he was surrounded by his family and was at peace,” the family said in a statement posted to social media. Before he would become a star in movies and on TV, Norris was wildly successful in competitive martial arts. He became a six-time undefeated World Professional Middleweight Karate champion. He also founded his own Korean-based American hard style of karate known sometimes as Chun Kuk Do and the United Fighting Arts Federation, which has awarded more than 3,300 Chuck Norris System black belts worldwide. Black Belt magazine ultimately credited Norris in its hall of fame with holding a 10th degree black belt, the highest possible honor. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Born Carlos Ray Norris in Ryan, Oklahoma, on March 10, 1940, he grew up poor. At age 12, he moved with his family to Torrance, California, and joined the U.S. Air Force after high school, in 1958. It was during a deployment to Korea that he started training in martial arts, including judo and Tang Soo Do. “I went out for gymnastics and football at North Torrance high,” he told The Associated Press in 1982. “I played some football, but I also spent a lot of time on the bench. I was never really athletic until I was in the service in Korea.” After he was honorably discharged in 1962, he worked as a file clerk for Northrop Aircraft and applied to be a police officer , but was put on a waitlist. Meanwhile, he opened a martial arts studio, which expanded to a chain, with students including such stars as Bob Barker, Priscilla Presley, Donnie and Marie Osmond, and Steve McQueen, whom he later credited with encouraging him to get into acting. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); From one studio to another Norris made his film debut as an uncredited bodyguard in the 1968 movie “The Wrecking Crew,” which included a fight with Dean Martin. He had also crossed paths with Bruce Lee in martial arts circles. Their friendship — sometimes, as sparring partners — led to an iconic faceoff in the 1972 movie “Return of the Dragon,” in which Lee fights and kills Norris’ character in Rome’s Colosseum. He went on to act in more than 20 movies, such as “Missing in Action,” “The Delta Force” and “Sidekicks.” “I wanted to project a certain image on the screen of a hero. I had seen a lot of anti-hero movies in which the lead was neither good nor bad. There was no one to root for,” Norris said in 1982. In 1993, he took on his most famed role, as a crime-fighting lawman in TV’s “Walker, Texas Ranger.” The show ran for nine seasons, and in 2010, then-Gov. Rick Perry awarded him the title of honorary Texas Ranger. The Texas Senate later named him an honorary Texan. “It’s not violence for violence’s sake, with no moral structure,” Norris told the AP in 1996, speaking about the show. “You try to portray the proper meaning of what it’s about — fighting injustice with justice, good vs. bad. … It’s entertaining for the whole family.” Norris also made a surprise comedic appearance as a decisive judge in the final match of the 2004 movie “Dodgeball.” He only on occasion has taken acting roles in recent years, including 2012’s “The Expendables 2” and the 2024 sci-fi action movie “Agent Recon.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Chuck Norris: the man, the meme, the legend It was around the time of “Dodgeball” that his toughman image became the stuff of legend, literally: “Chuck Norris Facts” went viral online with such wildly hyperbolic statements as, “Chuck Norris had a staring contest with the sun -- and won,” and, “They wanted to put Chuck Norris on Mt. Rushmore, but the granite wasn’t tough enough for his beard.” Norris ultimately embraced the absurdity of the meme craze, putting together “The Official Chuck Norris Fact Book,” which combined his favorites with supposedly true stories and the codes he aimed to live by. He would also write books on martial arts instruction, a memoir, political takes, Civil War-era historical fiction and more. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “To some who know little of my martial arts or film careers but perhaps grew up with ‘Walker, Texas Ranger,’ it seems that I have become a somewhat mythical superhero icon,” Norris wrote in the forward to the fact book. “I am flattered and humbled.” That book raised money for a nonprofit he founded with President George H.W. Bush that promoted martial arts instruction for kids. The intentionally outlandish statements featured in the 2008 Republican presidential primary, when Norris endorsed Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and shot an ad playing on the “Chuck Norris facts.” President Donald Trump’s supporters later promoted Trump Facts in the same vein, and political pundits tried it as well, describing the commander-in-chief’s decision to seize Venezuela’s sitting president, Nicolas Maduro, as a “Chuck Norris Moment,” and its initial effect on oil prices a “Chuck Norris Premium.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Norris was outspoken about his Christian beliefs and his support for gun rights, and backed political candidates for years — he even went skydiving with Bush for the former president’s 80th birthday. As for Trump, Norris endorsed him in the 2016 general election and wrote guest columns praising him without explicitly endorsing him the in the days before the 2020 and 2024 elections. Norris has five surviving children: stunt performers Mike and Eric with his late ex-wife Dianne Holechek, twins Dakota and Danilee with his wife Gena Norris, and Dina, the result of an early 1960s “one-night stand” revealed in his autobiography. Norris celebrated his birthday just over a week before his death, posting a sparring video on Instagram. “I don’t age. I level up,” he wrote.

President Donald Trump speaks at a dinner with Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in the State Dining Room of the White House, Thursday, March 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) 2026-03-20T13:04:27Z WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House said on Friday that Congress should “preempt state AI laws” that it views as too burdensome , laying out a broad framework for how it wants Congress to address concerns about artificial intelligence without curbing growth or innovation in the sector. The legislative blueprint outlines a half-dozen guiding principles for lawmakers, focusing on protecting children, preventing electricity costs from surging , respecting intellectual property rights, preventing censorship and educating Americans on using the technology. The announcement comes as state governments have forged ahead on their own regulations for AI while civil liberties and consumer rights groups lobby for more regulations on the powerful technology. But the industry and the White House have pushed back, arguing that a patchwork of rules would hurt growth. Trump signed an executive order in December to block states from crafting their own regulations. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “The Trump Administration is committed to winning the AI race to usher in a new era of human flourishing, economic competitiveness, and national security for the American people,” the White House said Friday in announcing its framework. “Achieving these goals requires a commonsense national policy framework that both enables American industry to innovate and thrive and ensures that all Americans benefit from this technological revolution.” Four states — Colorado, California, Utah and Texas — have already passed laws that set some rules for AI across the private sector, but the White House is calling for “strong federal leadership” to make sure the public can trust how artificial intelligence is being used in their lives. The state-level laws include limiting collection of certain personal information and requiring more transparency from companies. As backlash against data centers has increased along with rising power prices, the White House had previously stepped up pressure on AI companies and the power sector to do more to address the issue -- including having AI companies sign voluntary pledges earlier this month to build their own power generation plants. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The framework recommends against wading into the legal fights between artists and creators and the technology companies that have ingested huge amounts of copyrighted works to build AI systems that can generate new text, images and sound. The Trump administration “believes that training of AI models on copyrighted material does not violate copyright laws,” according to the document, but acknowledges “arguments to the contrary exist and therefore supports allowing the Courts to resolve this issue.” There are dozens of lawsuits pending from writers and publishers, visual artists, music record labels and others. Judges have largely sided with AI developers in allowing for the “fair use” of copyrighted works to create something new, but some have questioned how the materials were obtained. A federal judge in September approved a $1.5 billion settlement between artificial intelligence company Anthropic and authors who allege nearly half a million books had been illegally pirated to train its chatbot. — O’Brien reported from Providence, Rhode Island. SEUNG MIN KIM Kim covers the White House for The Associated Press. She joined the AP in 2022 and is based in Washington. Kim is also a political analyst for CNN. twitter mailto MATT O’BRIEN O’Brien covers the business of technology and artificial intelligence for The Associated Press. mailto

The NASA Artemis II rocket with the Orion spacecraft aboard leaves the Vehicle Assembly Building moving slowly to pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Friday, March 20, 2026. (AP Photo/Terry Renna) 2026-03-20T11:23:43Z CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — For the second time this year, NASA moved its moon rocket from the hangar out toward the pad Friday in hopes of launching four astronauts on a lunar fly-around next month. If the latest repairs work and everything else goes NASA’s way, the Space Launch System could blast off as early as April 1 from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center. The Artemis II crew went into quarantine this week in Houston. The 322-foot (98-meter) rocket began the slow 4-mile (6.4-kilometer) trek in the middle of the night, transported atop a massive crawler used since the 1960s Apollo era. It was expected to take 12 hours. The trip was held up for several hours by high wind. The three Americans and one Canadian will zip around the moon in their capsule and then come straight home without stopping. Their mission should have been completed by now, but hydrogen fuel leaks and clogged helium lines forced two months of delay. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); While technicians plugged the leaks at the pad, the helium issue could only be fixed in the Vehicle Assembly Building, forcing NASA to roll the rocket back at the end of February. The last time NASA sent astronauts to the moon was during Apollo 17 in 1972. The new Artemis program aims for a two-person landing in 2028. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

A student soldier of the Yatagan School for Unmanned Aerial Systems launches a training target drone during drills in the Kyiv region, Ukraine, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky) 2026-03-20T11:41:11Z KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he sent an official delegation to the United States in a bid to move forward suspended negotiations on ending Russia’s invasion of his country, while a senior Kremlin official indicated Friday that a new round of U.S.-brokered talks between Moscow and Kyiv will likely take place soon. The trilateral talks, which have yet to produce any breakthrough on key issues, have been on ice while the Iran war has dominated international attention. Zelenskyy is keen to restore momentum to the negotiations and said late Thursday that he had sent representatives to the U.S. for a meeting expected Saturday. The White House did not confirm any meeting. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia won’t be present at those talks. He said the time and venue for a new trilateral meeting haven’t been agreed yet. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “The pause is temporary, we hope it’s temporary regarding the continuation of the trilateral format,” he said. Western European officials have over the past year repeatedly accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of dragging his feet in negotiations while he tries to press his bigger army’s battlefield initiative and capture more Ukrainian land. Russian forces hold nearly 20% of Ukraine. The latest conflict in the Middle East that began Feb. 28 with Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran has diverted international attention from Ukraine’s plight. At the same time, Russia is getting a financial windfall from a temporary U.S. waiver on oil sanctions while Ukraine is desperately short of cash and still waiting for a 90-billion-euro ($103 billion) loan promised by the European Union. Kyiv could also get fewer of the advanced air defense missiles it needs to fend off Russian aerial attacks as the Iran war burns through stockpiles. Putin is widely expected to launch new offensives as the weather in Ukraine improves, piling further pressure on Kyiv. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Ukraine has become one of the world’s leading producers of battle-tested drone interceptors , and Zelenskyy is hoping to provide expertise to Arab Gulf countries targeted by Iranian Shaheds in exchange for air defense missiles. A team of senior Ukrainian officials has visited the Gulf region in recent days. “There is an understanding of what new security agreements can be reached with countries in the region,” Zelenskyy said in an evening address on Thursday. ___ Associated Press writer Michelle Price in Washington contributed to this report. ___ Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine HANNA ARHIROVA Arhirova is an Associated Press reporter covering Ukraine. She is based in Kyiv. twitter instagram mailto 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks to members of the media during a press briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) 2026-03-20T11:08:21Z WASHINGTON (AP) — Since becoming defense secretary, Pete Hegseth has found no shortage of ways to bring his strand of conservative evangelicalism into the Pentagon. He hosts monthly Christian worship services for employees. His department’s promotional videos have displayed Bible verses alongside military footage. In speeches and interviews, he often argues the U.S. was founded as a Christian nation and troops should embrace God, potentially risking the military’s secular mission and hard-won pluralism . Now the defense secretary’s Christian rhetoric has taken on new meaning after the U.S. and Israel went to war with Iran, an Islamic theocracy. “The mullahs are desperate and scrambling,” he said at a recent Pentagon press briefing, referring to Iran’s Shiite Muslim clerics. He later recited Psalm 144, a passage of Scripture that Jews and Christians share: “Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war and my fingers for battle.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Hegseth has a history of defending the Crusades, the brutal medieval wars that pitted Christians against Muslims. In his 2020 book “American Crusade,” he wrote that those who enjoy Western civilization should “thank a crusader.” Two of his tattoos draw from crusader imagery: the Jerusalem Cross and the phrase “Deus Vult,” or “God wills it,” which Hegseth has called “the rallying cry of Christian knights as they marched to Jerusalem.” Matthew D. Taylor, a visiting scholar at Georgetown who studies religious extremism and has been a frequent Hegseth critic, said, “The U.S. voluntarily going to war against a Muslim country with the military under the leadership of Pete Hegseth is exactly the kind of scenario that people like me were warning about before the election and throughout his appointment process.” Taylor said Hegseth’s rhetoric and leadership “can only inflame and reinforce the fears and deep animosity that the regime in Iran has towards the U.S.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); When asked whether Hegseth views the war in Iran in religious terms, a Defense Department spokesperson pointed to a recent CBS interview in which Hegseth seemed to confirm as much. “We’re fighting religious fanatics who seek a nuclear capability in order for some religious Armageddon,” Hegseth said of Iranian leaders. “But from my perspective, I mean, obviously I’m a man of faith who encourages our troops to lean into their faith, rely on God.” Allegations US military commanders cited biblical prophecies remain unverified Generations of evangelicals have been influenced by their own version of Armageddon and the end of the world, circulated by books like the “Left Behind” series and “The Late Great Planet Earth,” or the horror film “A Thief in the Night.” Some evangelicals espouse prophecies in which warfare involving Israel is key to bringing about the return of Jesus. Christian Zionist pastor John Hagee, head of Christians United for Israel, said of the Iran war, “Prophetically, we’re right on cue.” The co-founder of Hegseth’s denomination, however, does not teach this theology. Pastor Doug Wilson of the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches identifies as a postmillennialist, meaning he believes most of the apocalyptic events of the Bible have already happened, paving the way for the gradual Christianization of the world before Christ’s return. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Hegseth has not said the Iran war is part of Christian prophecy. Yet days after the conflict began, claims went viral that U.S. military commanders were telling troops the war fulfilled biblical prophecies around Armageddon and the return of Christ. The Associated Press has not been able to verify these claims, which stem from one source: Mikey Weinstein, the head of the Military Religious Freedom Foundation, a watchdog group. Based on allegations Weinstein said he received from hundreds of troops, 30 Democratic members of Congress asked the Pentagon inspector general to investigate. In an interview with the AP, Weinstein declined to provide documentation or the original emails he received from service members. He said troops were afraid of retaliation, so they would not speak to the media, even if their identities remained protected. Three major religion watchdog groups — the Freedom From Religion Foundation, the Anti-Defamation League and the Council on American-Islamic Relations — said they have not received similar complaints. The Pentagon declined to comment on the allegations. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Hegseth wants to reform the military chaplain corps Hegseth’s church network, the CREC, preaches a patriarchal form of Christianity, where women cannot serve in leadership, and pastors argue that homosexuality should be criminalized. Hegseth last year reposted a video in which a CREC pastor opposed women’s right to vote. Wilson, its most prominent leader, identifies as a Christian nationalist and preached at the Pentagon in February at Hegseth’s invitation. Both Wilson and Hegseth have questioned Muslim immigration to the United States. Wilson argues the country should restrict Muslim immigration in order to remain predominantly Christian. In “American Crusade,” Hegseth lamented growing Muslim birth rates and that Muhammad was a popular boys’ name in the U.S. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); As head of the armed forces, Hegseth has overseen changes that are in line with his conservative Christian worldview, including banning transgender troops, curtailing diversity initiatives and reviewing women in combat roles. Youssef Chouhoud, a political scientist at Christopher Newport University, said, “The intrusion of Christian nationalist policy, not just Christian nationalist rhetoric … that is what’s troubling.” Hegseth has pledged to reform the military’s chaplain corps, which provides spiritual care to troops of any faith and no faith at all. He scrapped the 2025 U.S. Army Spiritual Fitness Guide and wants to renew chaplains’ religious focus, which he said in a December video message has been minimized “in an atmosphere of political correctness and secular humanism.” Rabbi Laurence Bazer, a retired U.S. Army colonel and chaplain, said it risks making service members feel like outsiders when the language of military leadership draws exclusively from one faith tradition. “The U.S. military reflects the full diversity of this country — people of every faith step forward to serve,” Bazer said in a statement. “That diversity is a strength worth protecting.” ___ AP reporter Konstantin Toropin contributed to this report. AP reporter Peter Smith contributed from Pittsburgh. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. TIFFANY STANLEY Stanley is a reporter and editor on The Associated Press’ Global Religion team. She is based in Washington, D.C. twitter mailto

Kids play on a trampoline at Kawa Camp, which houses Iranian Kurdish refugees who fled Iran following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, in the outskirts of Irbil, Iraq, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Leo Correa) 2026-03-20T10:39:22Z QUSHTAPA, Iraq (AP) — They fled Iran as children and now, living in Iraq as adults, they express guarded hope that the U.S.–Israeli war with Iran will weaken the theocracy that forced them into exile decades ago. Behind that hope is the longing of Iranian Kurds in Iraq that they can someday return to homes they only remember through paintings on their walls and faded photographs. But the thousands of Kurds know their aspirations for political autonomy and their historical opposition to Iran’s clerical rule have made that unlikely. They say they will only go back if a new Iranian government is installed, guarantees their safety and supports their goals. Among them are more than 300 families of Kawa Camp in Irbil’s Qushtapa district in northern Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region. They were displaced after Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, which sparked a decades-long conflict with Kurdish separatists. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Many are descendants of those fighters. They fled as children with their families from the northern Iranian province of Kermanshah. Some joined the resistance in exile, carrying out attacks against security forces inside Iran. Most eke out a living on the margins of the Iraqi Kurdish society, where they lack citizenship and don’t have full civil rights, access to services or the ability to own property. In Kawa Camp, their hope of returning is tempered by deep mistrust of foreign powers that have long exploited their cause for geopolitical ends. Many viewed recent reports that the Trump administration considered calling on them to support ground operations in Iran as the latest example. “From 1979 until now, this has been our only hope — that the regime will fall. I’m watching the clock; if it falls now, I’ll return home the next second,” said a 57-year-old member of the Iranian Kurdish opposition party living in Kawa, who fled Iran at age 11. The person, like most of those interviewed for this article, spoke on condition of anonymity, citing fear of reprisal from Iran-backed Iraqi militias that have stepped up attacks on Iranian Kurdish bases. They also cite surveillance by Iranian intelligence, since many still have relatives in Iran. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); A life of displacement for Iranian Kurds in Iraq Iraqi Kurds govern a semiautonomous area in northern Iraq. Many have waged insurgency campaigns seeking to establish their own state, which they call Kurdistan. Iranian Kurds have a long history of grievances against the Islamic Republic and also the monarchy that preceded it . In the Kawa home of community leader Jehangir Ahmadi hangs a painting of an alley in his native village in Iran’s Kurdish-majority Kermanshah province, which borders Iraq. He hasn’t seen the alley in nearly 50 years, and his childhood reels like an old film: He played among those sandy walls while village elders would chat beneath the poplars. Ahmadi remembers the mad dash to leave home and the days spent waiting to cross the border. The family first lived in a camp close to the border before being moved to another, in the deserts of western Anbar province. Security rapidly deteriorated after the fall of Saddam Hussein following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, prompting the United Nations to rehouse them. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Over the years, tents gave way to permanent homes, markets sprang up, and the Iranian Kurds obtained the right to work, many as merchants, taxi drivers and factory workers. But buying a house or a car requires finding an Iraqi sponsor who must assume legal responsibility for them, effectively tying their fate to that sponsor, Ahmadi said. “For all our lives in Iraq we were paying the price of leaving. Until now people look at us like we are slaves,” Ahmadi said. “Until now we don’t have good work, no good place to live.” In his view, Kurds, and especially Iran’s Kurds, have historically been victims. There was the short-lived self-governing Republic of Mahabad in northwestern Iran, backed briefly by the Soviet Union before its fall in 1976; Iran withdrawing support in 1975 for a failed Kurdish uprising against Iraq; Iraq’s use of chemical weapons against the Kurds in 1988; territorial losses in northeast Syria after the fall of President Bashar Assad in December 2024. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); So Ahmadi says he was skeptical of the reported U.S. request to back an Iranian Kurdish force in the current war. “We didn’t trust that they will support us because we are wounded nation, we have been betrayed many times,” he said. Kurdish groups have come under attack from Iran’s proxies Armed Iranian Kurdish opposition groups based in Iraq have come under attack from Iran’s proxies in Iraq since the Iran war started . Commanders and Iraqi Kurdish political leaders say they lack the capacity to mount a genuine ground offensive without U.S. air cover, and that the idea floated by the United States was never seriously discussed with Washington. A senior Iraqi Kurdish official said that some Iranian Kurdish groups initially hoped for a swift collapse of Iran’s theocracy and envisioned storming into Iranian Kurdish territory to declare victory. Other Iraqi Kurdish leaders, seeing the administration in Tehran as more resilient, warned them bluntly: “You will be massacred,” according to the official. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Unit commander Rebaz Sharifi hid in a mountainside crevice when a drone launched by Iran-backed militias struck a base of the Kurdistan Freedom Party, waiting for further strikes to pass. The party is an Iranian-Kurdish nationalist separatist group known by the local abbreviation PAK. Sharifi said there are roughly 8,000 to 10,000 Iranian Kurdish fighters — a figure corroborated by two other Iraqi Kurdish officials. Beyond basic assault rifles, they lack sophisticated modern weaponry and do not possess drones, a crucial capability in modern warfare. He said Iranian-Kurdish groups are asking for security guarantees, especially air cover, to counter Iranian missiles and drones. “We don’t want to go now because we know we will die because of (Iranian) airstrikes and missiles,” he said. “It’s not the right time for this because Iranian forces still have power to control the skies.” At the mere possibility that the groups might be mobilizing for deployment, Iran-backed groups in Iraq launched a near-daily volley of air attacks. “So, imagine what they will do if we move there now,” Sharifi said. Kawa Camp residents face threats from all sides The threat of continued attacks drove Kurdish fighters to move their families out of military camps and into nearby communities seeking safety. In Kawa, a local resident affiliated with the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan is sheltering the wife and children of a fighter from the party’s armed wing. They moved from the party’s camp in Koya, near the border, because of constant attacks in the first days of the war. The militia drone attacks haven’t targeted civilian communities so far, but the party member fears that might change as the war progresses. “Every day we are afraid of the militias,” he said. “We are nervous at night because we think they might hit here also.” And he fears Iran’s intelligence working in the area. “My relatives in Iran told me that they know where I work, what I do, and where I live,” he said. SAMYA KULLAB Kullab is an Associated Press reporter covering Ukraine since June 2023. Before that, she covered Iraq and the wider Middle East from her base in Baghdad since joining the AP in 2019. twitter instagram mailto

A recording of Meta Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg's deposition is played for the jurors on Wednesday, March 4, 2026, in Santa Fe, N.M. (Jim Weber/Santa Fe New Mexican via AP, Pool) 2026-03-20T04:02:03Z SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A daunting stream of testimony and evidence has been presented in a New Mexico case that explores what social media conglomerate Meta knew about the effects of its platforms on children. State prosecutors allege Meta failed to disclose the risks that its platforms pose for children, including mental health problems and sexual exploitation. Meta’s attorneys have said the company has built-in protections for teenagers and weeds out harmful content but acknowledged some dangerous content gets past its safety nets. The trial is approaching its seventh week. Jurors aren’t deliberating yet. But if they find that Meta — which owns Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp — violated New Mexico’s consumer protection laws, prosecutors say sanctions could add up to billions of dollars. Meta, however, says it would seek a different calculation. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The trial that started Feb. 9. is one of the first in a torrent of lawsuits against Meta and comes as school districts and legislators want more restrictions on the use of smartphones in classrooms. A slated second phase of the trial, possibly in May before a judge with no jury, would determine whether Meta created a public nuisance with its social media platforms and should pay for public programs to fix matters. Here’s what to know about the possible outcomes of the trial: A reckoning in courts for social media platforms Meta is confronting three counts of violating the New Mexico Unfair Trade Practices Act that protects consumers from deceptive or predatory business practices. After closing arguments, jurors will weigh whether Meta knowingly misrepresented the risks on its platforms — by omission or active concealment at the least. The case could sidestep or challenge immunity provisions that protect tech companies from liability for material posted on their social media platforms under Section 230 , a 30-year-old provision of the U.S. Communications Decency Act, as well as a First Amendment shield. In California, a jury already is sequestered in deliberations on whether social media companies should be liable for harms caused to children using their platforms, in one of three bellwether court cases that could set the course for thousands of similar lawsuits. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); New Mexico’s case is built on a different foundation — including a state undercover investigation where agents created social media accounts posing as children to document sexual solicitations and the response from Meta. The lawsuit, filed in 2023 by New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez, also says the dangers of addiction to social media haven’t been fully disclosed or addressed by Meta. Meta hasn’t agreed that social media addiction exists, but executives acknowledge “problematic use” and say they want people to feel good about the time they spend on Meta’s platforms. Among thousands of pages of documents, the New Mexico trial examines a raft of internal Meta documents and communications. Jurors also heard testimony from Meta executives, platform engineers, whistleblowers who left the company, psychiatric experts and tech-safety consultants. The jury also may be influenced by testimony from local public school educators who have struggled with disruptions linked to social media, including the exchange of violent and sexually explicit images, along with sextortion schemes targeting children in New Mexico. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Questions of unconscionable and willful conduct The two additional counts of consumer protection violations allege that Meta engaged in “unconscionable” trade practices that were grossly unfair. In opening statements, prosecution attorney Donald Migliori emphasized accusations that Meta targeted social media engagement with children in an unconscionable way as a source of long-term profit while knowing children were at risk of sexual exploitation on social media. Meta disputes that argument by highlighting platform safety features and content filters for teenagers, who are seen by Meta as trendsetters with limited purchasing power to satisfy advertisers. The jury would decide whether the conduct was “willful” and merits civil penalties of up to $5,000 per violation, and may help calculate the number of violations. Torrez says those penalties could add up, given the number of people in New Mexico using Meta’s platforms. Meta, however, has asked to cap those sanctions at one penalty per misleading statement or fair-trade violation — and not the number of social media views or users. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Nuisance allegations to be decided by judge State District Judge Bryan Biedscheid is overseeing both phases of the trial. He would decide nuisance allegations as the case advances — and whether the company is on the hook financially to repair damage. Prosecutors have accused Meta of carelessly creating a marketplace and “breeding ground” for predators who target children for sexual exploitation. They allege Meta’s platforms also undermine the mental health of teenagers in a variety of ways — from sleep deprivation and depression to self-harm. Attorneys for Meta accuse prosecutors of cherry-picking evidence as well as shoddy investigative work that may have made matters worse. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); At trial, Meta executives described robust systems for detecting child sexual abuse material on its platforms and notifying law enforcement — but said the company also cautions users that its enforcement isn’t flawless. “We believe it’s important to disclose the risks, but to do so in a consistent and rigorous way,” Instagram head Adam Mosseri said, describing a philosophy that extends to blog posts, service agreements and more. In a video deposition played at trial, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that “safety is extremely important for the service and having it be something that people trust and want to use over time.” He said Meta in 2017 stopped linking business performance goals directly to the extended amount of time users spend on its platforms. Torrez says he will request court-ordered relief to make Meta change the way it does business and remedy the harm to children from social media. “We’re going to have meaningful investments in targeted strategic programming around how you use the internet and how you use social media in ways that are responsible and healthy,” he said on the opening day of the trial.

President Donald Trump speaks during an event to announce new tariffs in the Rose Garden at the White House, April 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) 2026-03-20T04:05:02Z WASHINGTON (AP) — Less than a week after the Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump’s global tariffs, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul listened as one of the plaintiffs in the case recounted the financial toll of the levies on his wine importing business. “This is a heavy tax and you have to pay it up front,” Victor Schwartz, the owner of VOS Selections, told Hochul as they walked alongside bottles of wine he imports from 16 countries. As Hochul seeks reelection this year, she says the impact of Trump’s tariffs is a “centerpiece” of her message. She has pressed the administration to issue a $13.5 billion tariff refund to New Yorkers following the Supreme Court decision. And she released an ad this week criticizing her Republican challenger, Bruce Blakeman , for supporting the levies and attending the White House event where Trump unveiled them with a massive board listing the rate for each country. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “This is a lethal issue for Republicans this November,” Hochul said in an interview. “You can be sure we’re going to make sure people know who did this to them.” She’s not alone. Democrats running for governor across the country are making tariffs central to their pitch to voters. They’re betting that in an election year dominated by issues ranging from immigration to the war in Iran , rising costs connected to the tariffs will be a motivating issue for many voters. “That picture of (Trump) with the tariff board is going to be front and center in every single one of our campaigns,” Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky, who is leading the Democratic Governors Association this year, said in an interview. White House spokesman Kush Desai countered that “what Democrats are really running against are President Trump’s Most-Favored-Nations deals to slash prescription drug prices by up to 90 percent, trillions in investments to bring manufacturing back to America, and new trade deals that level the playing field for American workers.” “All of these historic victories were possible because of tariffs.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); This is a challenging election year for the GOP Republicans are entering a challenging election year as they contend with voter anxiety around spiking prices — an issue Trump pledged to fix during his 2024 campaign — and the record of a president’s party losing ground during the midterms. Much of the focus has been on Congress, where Democrats are just a few seats shy of taking the House majority. But the party is also aiming to regain ground outside Washington as they hope to hold onto governorships in Arizona, Michigan and Wisconsin and eye GOP-held seats in Nevada, Georgia and Iowa. In interviews this week, Democrats running in some of those states said tariffs and the broader issue of affordability will be at the forefront of their agenda. In Nevada, state Attorney General Aaron Ford sued the administration over its initial round of tariffs and is suing again as Trump seeks to revive them. As he seeks the Democratic nomination to take on Republican incumbent Gov. Joe Lombardo , Ford called the tariffs “illegal” and blamed them for restaurant closures and fewer visitors to his tourism-dependent state. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “Tariffs are at the very top of the conversation because Nevadans every single day are feeling the impacts,” Ford said. In Arizona , Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs is seeking reelection in a state Trump won by more than 5 percentage points in 2024 with a focus on costs. She criticized GOP Reps. Andy Biggs and David Schweikert, who are vying for the nomination to challenge her, for “cheering on these reckless tariffs.” Both lawmakers voted against a measure last month to end the national emergency Trump declared to impose tariffs on Canada. Hobbs said the cost concern was about more than tariffs, noting Medicaid cuts, rising health costs and a spike in gas prices in the wake of the war in Iran. “They’re being hit everywhere,” she said. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Republicans try to turn affordability concerns back on Democrats Republicans largely reject the tariff criticism and are trying to turn the anxiety about affordability back on Democrats, especially in high-cost states where they already govern. Blakeman, for instance, said in a statement that Hochul is “solely responsible for the affordability crisis in New York, with crushing electric bills, soaring insurance rates and the highest taxes in America.” In an interview, Schweikert argued that “it was only a few years ago in a previous administration that the Democrats actually liked tariffs. So this seems to be if Trump’s for it, they’re against it.” Trump, for his part, hasn’t given up on the tariffs. After calling the Supreme Court’s decision “ unfortunate ,” his administration is scrambling to find ways to revive the levies. The president has already announced a 10% tariff using a different mechanism, a move that’s facing legal challenges, and wants to further raise tariffs to 15%. But Trump’s prediction of a manufacturing renaissance that would result from companies making more products in the U.S. to avoid tariffs has not materialized . During the first year of his second term, 98,000 manufacturing jobs were lost. Revenue from tariffs is doing little to reduce the federal deficit, which is projected to climb over the next decade. Polling suggests unease about the dramatic way Trump has imposed the levies. In January, before the Supreme Court’s ruling, about 6 in 10 U.S. adults said Trump went too far in imposing new tariffs and using presidential power, an AP-NORC poll found. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); A balancing act for the GOP Now Republicans are trying to balance acknowledging the public’s concern without antagonizing Trump, who remains popular among the GOP base. Lombardo’s response to a question about tariffs last year in a local television interview has given Democrats persistent fodder. The governor said, “We need to maybe feel a little pain in the short term and hopefully in the long term it’s a huge benefit for us.” “We’re feeling it,” Ford said of the pain, “and Nevadans are ready for new leadership.” In a statement, Drew Galang, Lombardo’s communications director, said that “while the governor cannot control federal trade policy, he has prioritized policies to drive growth in Nevada — diversifying the state’s economy, cutting red tape, and attracting billions of dollars of business investments.” The competing pressure on Lombardo was on display in a letter he sent to Trump last year, urging the president to lift tariffs on lithium. He argued that since “domestic processing is not yet a viable option, the current environment poses a serious risk to jobs in Nevada and across the country.” But he didn’t reject Trump’s overall tariff push, expressing “sincere appreciation for your efforts to return manufacturing jobs back to United States soil.” __ Associated Press writers Josh Boak and Linley Sanders in Washington contributed to this report. STEVEN SLOAN Sloan is the Washington correspondent at The Associated Press. He managed the AP’s coverage of the 2020 and 2024 presidential campaigns. twitter 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Wind turbines operate along a solar farm near Weifang in eastern China's Shandong province on March 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan, File) 2026-03-20T04:09:42Z HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — The war in Iran is exposing the world’s reliance on fragile fossil fuel routes, lending urgency to calls for hastening the shift to renewable energy. Fighting has all but halted oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz , the narrow waterway that carries about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas, or LNG. The disruption has jolted energy markets, pushing up prices and straining import-dependent economies . Asia, where most of the oil was headed, has been hit hardest , but the disruptions also are a strain for Europe, where policymakers are looking for ways to cut energy demand, and for Africa, which is bracing for rising fuel costs and inflation . Unlike during previous oil shocks, renewable power is now competitive with fossil fuels in many places. More than 90% of new renewable power projects worldwide in 2024 were cheaper than fossil-fuel alternatives, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency . freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Oil is used in many industries beyond generating electricity, such as fertilizer and plastics production. So most countries are feeling the impact , while those with more renewable power are more insulated since renewables rely on domestic resources like sun and wind, not imported fuels. “These crises regularly occur,” said James Bowen of the Australia-based consultancy, ReMap Research. “They are a feature, not a bug, of a fossil fuel-based energy system.” China and India built renewable buffers, but China’s is larger A worker stacks single solar cells at a ReNew manufacturing plant on the outskirts of Jaipur, India, Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) A worker stacks single solar cells at a ReNew manufacturing plant on the outskirts of Jaipur, India, Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More China and India, the world’s two most populous countries , face the same challenge of generating enough electricity to power growth for over a billion people. Both have expanded renewable energy, but China did so on a far larger scale despite its continued reliance on coal-fired power. Today China leads the world in renewables . About one in 10 cars in China are electric, found the International Energy Agency. It’s still the world’s largest importer of crude oil and the biggest buyer of Iranian oil . But electrifying parts of its economy with renewables has reduced its reliance on imports. Attendees look at the electric Han EV sedan from Chinese automaker BYD during the Auto Shanghai 2023 show in Shanghai, Wednesday, April 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) Attendees look at the electric Han EV sedan from Chinese automaker BYD during the Auto Shanghai 2023 show in Shanghai, Wednesday, April 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Without that shift, China would be “far more vulnerable to supply and price shocks,” said Lauri Myllyvirta of the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air. China also can rely on reserves built when prices were low and shift between using coal and oil as fuel in factories, he said. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); India also has expanded its use of clean energy, especially solar power, but more slowly and with less government support for manufacturing renewable energy equipment and connecting solar to its power grid. After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, India prioritized energy security by buying discounted Russian oil and boosting coal production. It also ramped up solar and wind , helping to cushion supply disruptions but not avoid them entirely, said Duttatreya Das of the think tank Ember. “Everyone cannot be China,” Das said. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); India is now facing a shortage of cooking gas. That’s driving a rush to buy induction cooktops and raising fears of restaurant shutdowns . Fertilizers and ceramics industries may also be hit. A cook at a restaurant prepares food over a charcoal stove following a shortage of liquefied petroleum gas in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool) A cook at a restaurant prepares food over a charcoal stove following a shortage of liquefied petroleum gas in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Rich countries fallback on fossil fuels The energy shock is familiar to wealthy countries in Europe and East Asia. In 2022, some European governments tried to cut dependence on fossil fuels. But many soon focused on finding new fossil fuel suppliers instead, said Pauline Heinrichs, who studies climate and energy at King’s College London. Germany rushed to build LNG terminals to replace Russian gas with mostly American fuel while the energy transition, including efforts to cut demand, slowed, she said. Europe’s excess spending on fossil fuels since the Russia-Ukraine War amounted to about 40% of the investment needed to transition its power system to clean energy, according to a 2023 study. “In Europe, we learned the wrong lesson,” Heinrichs said. The coal-fired power plant Uniper Scholven and a nearby BP refinery shine in the evening behind illuminated appartments in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, Monday, Oct. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File) The coal-fired power plant Uniper Scholven and a nearby BP refinery shine in the evening behind illuminated appartments in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, Monday, Oct. 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More In import-dependent Japan, policy responses to past shocks have focused on diversifying fossil fuel imports rather than investing in domestic renewables, said Ayumi Fukakusa of Friends of the Earth Japan. Solar and wind make up just 11% of Japan’s energy production, on a par with India but behind China’s 18%, according to Ember. Japan’s energy use is much lower than both nations. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The Iran war led the agenda during Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi ‘s meeting this week with U.S. President Donald Trump . Trump, who has long urged Japan to buy more American LNG, recently called on allied nations like Japan to “step up” in assisting secure The Strait of Hormuz. South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said the crisis could be “a good opportunity” to shift faster to renewable energy. Poor countries are the most exposed Poorer nations in Asia and Africa are competing with wealthy European and Asian countries and big buyers like India and China for limited gas supplies, pushing up prices. Import-dependent economies — such as Benin and Zambia in Africa and Bangladesh and Thailand in Asia — could face some of the biggest shocks. Costly fuel makes transport and food more expensive, and many countries have limited foreign-exchange reserves, restricting their ability to pay for imports if prices stay high. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Africa may be especially exposed because many countries rely on imported oil to run their transport and supply chains. It makes strategic sense for African countries to build their long-term energy security by investing in cleaner energy, said Kennedy Mbeva, a research associate at the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk at the University of Cambridge. Women push wheelbarrows on a coal mine dump at the coal-powered Duvha power station, near Emalahleni east of Johannesburg, Nov. 17, 2022. (AP Photo/Denis Farrell, File) Women push wheelbarrows on a coal mine dump at the coal-powered Duvha power station, near Emalahleni east of Johannesburg, Nov. 17, 2022. (AP Photo/Denis Farrell, File) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More A shepherd watches livestock near Khi Solar One, a solar thermal plant that converts the sun's light energy into electricity, outside Upington, South Africa, in the Northern Cape province, Friday, Aug. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe) A shepherd watches livestock near Khi Solar One, a solar thermal plant that converts the sun's light energy into electricity, outside Upington, South Africa, in the Northern Cape province, Friday, Aug. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More But not all are opting for renewables: South Africa is considering building an LNG import terminal and new gas-fired power plants. Others, like Ethiopia which banned gasoline and diesel fueled cars in 2024 to promote electric vehicles, are doubling down on renewables. The real challenge is not just to withstand the next shock, but to ensure it doesn’t “derail the country’s development trajectory,” said Hanan Hassen, an analyst at Ethiopia’s government-linked think tank, the Institute of Foreign Affairs. Renewables provide a cushion for some Workers travel in a vehicle toward the construction site of Adani Green Energy Limited’s Renewable Energy Park in the salt desert of Karim Shahi village, near Khavda, Bhuj district near the India-Pakistan border in the western state of Gujarat, India, on Sept. 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool, File) Workers travel in a vehicle toward the construction site of Adani Green Energy Limited’s Renewable Energy Park in the salt desert of Karim Shahi village, near Khavda, Bhuj district near the India-Pakistan border in the western state of Gujarat, India, on Sept. 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool, File) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Increased use of renewable energy has helped shield some Asian countries from the energy shock. Pakistan’s solar boom has preempted more than $12 billion in fossil fuel imports since 2020 and could save another $6.3 billion in 2026 at current prices, according to think tanks Renewables First and the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air. Vietnam’s current solar generation will help the country save hundreds of millions of dollars in potential coal and gas imports in the coming year, based on current high prices, according to the research group, Zero Carbon Analytics. Other countries are stretching tight supplies. Bangladesh has closed universities to save electricity. It has limited storage capacity to absorb supply shocks, so the government started rationing fuel after a flurry of panic buying at filling stations, said Khondaker Golam Moazzem, an economist with the Centre for Policy Dialogue in Dhaka. Students leave Dhaka University after the government ordered all universities to close, moving forward the Eid al-Fitr break as part of emergency measures to conserve electricity, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Monday, March 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) Students leave Dhaka University after the government ordered all universities to close, moving forward the Eid al-Fitr break as part of emergency measures to conserve electricity, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Monday, March 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More For now, governments must just manage shortages and control prices. Thailand has suspended petroleum exports, boosted its gas production and begun drawing on reserves. If the conflict bleeds into April, Thailand’s finite reserves and limited budget for subsidies mean prices will shoot higher, warned Areeporn Asawinpongphan, a research fellow with the Thailand Development Research Institute. “The time for promoting domestic renewables should have happened a long time ago,” Asawinpongphan said. ___ Delgado reported from Bangkok, Thailand, and Olingo reported from Nairobi, Kenya. ___ The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org . ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL Ghosal covers the intersection of business and climate change in southeast Asia for The Associated Press. He is based out of Hanoi in Vietnam. twitter mailto ANTON L. DELGADO Delgado covers climate and energy stories across Southeast Asia for The Associated Press. twitter instagram mailto

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier near the Kremlin Wall during the national celebration of "Defender of the Fatherland Day" in Moscow, Russia, Feb. 23, 2026. (Maxim Shipenkov/Pool Photo via AP, File) 2026-03-20T05:25:43Z With U.S.-brokered Ukraine peace talks on hold due to the war in the Middle Eas t, Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to try to expand his military gains via new offensives against his southern neighbor that could put even more pressure on Kyiv. Windfall revenues from surging global oil prices are filling Moscow’s war coffers and U.S. air defense assets are being drained quickly by Iranian attacks across the Gulf, raising concerns that little will be left available for Ukraine in the fifth year of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Ukraine’s European allies have promised to maintain their steadfast support, but bickering over a major 90 billion euro ($106 billion) European Union loan to cover Kyiv’s military and economic needs for two years has reflected the mounting challenges. The refusal by NATO allies to commit naval assets to help restore tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has drawn an angry rebuke from President Donald Trump, highlighting another emerging fault line that is fraught with potential repercussions for Ukraine. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has sought to hold Washington’s attention by offering its expertise in defending against Iranian Shahed drones, sending over 200 military experts to the Gulf. Trump, however, has shrugged off Zelenskyy’s offer of help, saying the U.S. doesn’t need Kyiv’s assistance. As new signs of a rift emerge in Western alliances, Putin and his generals are pondering plans for the spring and summer campaign across more than the 1,200-kilometer (about 750-mile) front line. A possible new push from Russia The Russian military appears to be readying for a renewed push to claim the part of the eastern Donetsk region that remains under Ukraine’s control, as well as possible offensives in several other sectors. Analysts have observed that Moscow has been building up reserves and its operations are expected to gain tempo as the spring warmth dries the terrain. The Washington-based Institute for the Study of War has noted that Russian troops have stepped up artillery barrage and drone attacks, seeking to weaken Ukrainian defenses before ground attacks. Ukraine has sought to derail the Kremlin’s plans by launching counterattacks in the Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia regions, where Russian forces have sought to carve out bridgeheads with an aim to advance toward the regional capitals, which are key industrial hubs. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The ISW said in a recent battlefield assessment that Ukraine’s successful retaliation in the Dnipropetrovsk region will likely continue to force Russia to “choose between defending against the Ukrainian counterattacks and allocating manpower and materiel for offensive operations elsewhere” on the front, possibly spoiling the anticipated Russian offensive. It also noted that Ukrainian forces have stepped up their midrange strikes against Russian logistics, military equipment and manpower to try to derail the expected offensive Russian war bloggers warn that Moscow would need to bolster its forces drastically to conduct any major offensive, something that raises challenges for the Kremlin. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); After the widely unpopular “partial mobilization” of 300,000 reservists early in the war that prompted hundred of thousands to flee the country to avoid being drafted, the Russian military has changed tactics, relying on volunteers and recruiting foreign fighters attracted by reasonably high wages and other benefits. Putin said Russia has about 700,000 troops fighting in Ukraine, about the same number that Ukraine reportedly has. From heavy armor to drones and missiles After quick maneuvers by large numbers of tanks and mechanized infantry early in Russia’s 2022 invasion, the fighting has morphed into a war of attrition in which small groups of soldiers fight grinding, house-to-house battles in the ruined towns and villages of eastern Ukraine. The ubiquitous drones have restricted the concentration of troops for any big moves. Russia also has relied on long-range missiles and drones to pummel Ukraine’s energy facilities and other vital infrastructure. For the past year, Russia has been able to infiltrate and undermine Ukrainian defensive positions due to the “growing lethality” of Moscow’s attacks and Kyiv’s dwindling troop strength, said analyst Jack Watling of the Royal United Services Institute. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “Russia is likely able to maintain its current rate of recruitment, despite the punishing rate of casualties” inflicted by Ukraine, he added. As part of preparing for new offensives, Russia increasingly has sought to enlist students into its newly formed Drone Forces, offering relatively high pay and deployment at a safe distance from the front. Tulsi Gabbard , the U.S. director of national intelligence, told the Senate Intelligence Committee on Wednesday that “Russia has maintained the upper hand in the war against Ukraine.” She said the U.S.-led talks between Ukraine and Russia “are ongoing. Until such an agreement is met, Moscow is likely to continue fighting a slow war of attrition until they view their objectives have been achieved.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Both sides have entrenched positions Several rounds of negotiations have produced no visible breakthrough as the parties remain sharpy divided on key issues. Putin wants Ukraine to withdraw its forces from the four regions that Russia has illegally annexed but never fully captured, renounce its bid to join NATO, sharply cut its army and drop restrictions against Russian language and the Moscow-affiliated Orthodox Church -– demands Zelenskyy has rejected. Zelenskyy has called for a ceasefire, U.S.-backed security guarantees to prevent Moscow invading again and has rejected claims over Ukrainian territory. Kyiv’s European allies accuse Moscow of dragging out the talks in hopes of making more gains and insisted that Europe must be present at the negotiations. Russia has rejected their participation. Moscow says it won’t allow any European troops to monitor a prospective ceasefire and will view them as legitimate targets. “There have been signals from the Europeans indicating that they would like to take a place at the negotiating table regarding the Ukrainian settlement,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said this week, but added that “we don’t consider it necessary or expedient.” Sam Greene, a professor at King’s College London, said in a commentary that Moscow’s strategy was obvious -– “engaging with Washington just enough to prevent Ukraine from getting what it needed to shift the balance on the ground, and just enough to keep the Europeans at bay, but not enough to make real progress.” Trump takes aim at Zelenskyy The U.S. has granted Moscow a temporary waiver from oil sanctions, allowing sales of Russian crude already at sea — to the dismay of Kyiv and the Europeans. In addition, Trump has cast Zelenskyy as an obstacle to peace. “He has to get on the ball, and he has to get a deal done,” Trump said of the Ukrainian leader earlier this month. He said in an interview with NBC News that while Putin was ready for a deal, “it’s much harder to reach a deal with Zelenskyy.” Trump also rebuffed Zelenskyy’s proposal to help protect the U.S. forces and their allies in the Gulf from Iranian drones. “No, we don’t need their help on drone defense,” Trump told Fox News Radio. Zelenskyy, who has taken a more practical public stance with Trump after their contentious White House meeting in February 2025, has expressed a growing concern that the Iran war could hurt Ukraine. He told the BBC this week that he had a “very bad feeling” about the impact of the Middle East conflict on the war in Ukraine, noting that peace negotiations are being “constantly postponed” while Russia was profiting from high oil prices and Ukraine could face a deficit of U.S.-made Patriot missiles.

Anthony Matesic, left, and James Denaro work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) 2026-03-20T05:06:44Z HONG KONG (AP) — Asian shares were mixed on Friday following Wall Street losses, and oil prices pared earlier gains on the intensifying Iran war , falling back to around $107 a barrel. U.S. futures were higher. Oil prices had a roller-coaster day on Thursday with the Brent crude, the international standard, briefly surging to around $119 per barrel as attacks by Iran on oil and gas facilities around the Gulf escalated after Israel’s attack of Iran’s key natural gas field. In early Friday trading, Brent crude fell 1.6% to $106.90 a barrel, following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s remarks that he would hold off on further attacks on Iran’s gas field at the request of U.S. President Donald Trump. Benchmark U.S. crude was down 2% to $93.63 a barrel. The Iran war , which is in its third week, have sent energy prices soaring and is fueling global inflation worries. Concerns are also growing over the supply of oil and gas with the Strait of Hormuz , a crucial waterway for the energy supply located between Iran and Oman, largely closed. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday floated the possibility of lifting its sanctions on Iranian oil at sea in a potential attempt to ease oil prices. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The retreat of oil prices helped stablize markets. In Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.6% to 5,798.23. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was closed on Friday on a holiday. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.6% to 25,340.43, while the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.2% to 4,013.16. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.5%, while Taiwan’s Taiex was trading 0.2% lower. On Thursday, Wall Street reported modest losses. The S&P 500 was down 0.3% to 6,606.49. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.4% to 46,021.43, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.3% lower at 22,090.69. Shares of U.S. memory chip maker Micron Technology were down 3.8% even though the company reported better-than-expected quarterly results. Its shares were still up roughly 330% over the past year on a worldwide memory shortage. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); In other dealings early Friday, gold and silver prices gained. Gold fell below $4,700 earlier, partly on inflation worries. On Friday, gold prices gained 2.6% to $4,727.20 per ounce. Silver prices rose 4.2% to $74.22 an ounce, also recovering from an earlier dip. The U.S. dollar rose to 158.38 Japanese yen from 157.76 yen. The euro was trading at $1.1558, down from $1.1589. ___ AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed. CHAN HO-HIM Chan writes about business and economy in China for The Associated Press, reporting on key sectors of the world’s second-largest economy from trade and technology to autos. He is based in Hong Kong. mailto

Baseball fans watch the Los Angeles Dodgers play the San Francisco Giants during the fifth inning of a spring training baseball game with the heat forcing the game to end early, Wednesday, March 18, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) 2026-03-20T07:07:44Z WASHINGTON (AP) — The dangerous heat wave shattering March records all over the U.S. Southwest is more than just another extreme weather blip. It’s the latest next-level weather wildness that is occurring ever more frequently as Earth’s warming builds. Experts said unprecedented and deadly weather extremes that sometimes strike at abnormal times and in unusual places are putting more people in danger. For example, the Southwest is used to coping with deadly heat, but not months ahead of schedule, including a 110-degree Fahrenheit (43.3 Celsius) reading in the Arizona desert on Thursday that smashed the highest March temperature recorded in the U.S. On Thursday, sites in Arizona and southern California had preliminary readings of 109 F (about 43 C), which would be the hottest March day on record for the United States. “This is what climate change looks like in real time: extremes pushing beyond the bounds we once thought possible,” said University of Victoria climate scientist Andrew Weaver. “What used to be unprecedented events are now recurring features of a warming world.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); March’s heat would have been virtually impossible without human-caused climate change, according to a report Friday by World Weather Attribution , an international group of scientists who study the causes of extreme weather events. More than a dozen scientists, meteorologists and disaster experts queried by The Associated Press put the March heat wave in a kind of ultra-extreme classification with such events as the 2021 Pacific Northwest heat wave, the 2022 Pakistan floods and killer hurricanes Helene, Harvey and Sandy. The area of the U.S. being hit by extreme weather in the past five years has doubled from 20 years ago, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Climate Extremes Index , which includes various types of wild weather, such as heat and cold waves, downpours and drought. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The United States is breaking 77% more hot weather records now than in the 1970s and 19% more than the 2010s, according to an AP analysis of NOAA records. In the United States, the number and average cost of inflation-adjusted billion-dollar weather disasters in the last couple years is twice as high as just 10 years ago and nearly four times higher than 30 years ago, according to records kept by NOAA and Climate Central, a nonprofit group of scientists and communicators who research and report on climate change. Trying to keep up with extremes and failing “It’s really hard to even keep up with how extreme our extremes are becoming,” said Climate Central Chief Meteorologist Bernadette Woods Placky. “It’s changing our risk, it’s change our relationship with weather, it’s putting more people in risky situations and at times we’re not used to. So yes, we are pushing extremes to new levels across all different types of weather.” For government officials who have to deal with disaster it’s been a huge problem. Craig Fugate, who directed the Federal Emergency Management Agency until 2017, said he saw extremes increasing. “We were operating outside the historical playbook more and more. Flood maps, surge models, heat records — events kept showing up outside the envelope we built systems around. That’s just what we saw,” Fugate said via email. He added: “We built communities on about 100 years of past weather and assumed that was a good guide going forward. That assumption is starting to break. And the clearest signal isn’t the science debate. It’s insurers walking away.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); ‘Virtually impossible’ without climate change Climate scientists at World Weather Attribution did a flash analysis — which is not peer-reviewed yet — of whether climate change was a factor in this Southwest heat wave. They compared this week’s expected temperatures to what’s been observed in the area in March since 1900 and computer models of a world with climate change. They found that “events as warm as in March 2026 would have been virtually impossible without human-induced climate change.” That warming, from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas, added between 4.7 degrees to 7.2 degrees F (2.6 to 4 degrees C) to the temperatures being felt, the report found. “What we can very confidently say is that human-caused warming has increased the temperatures that we’re seeing as a result of this heat dome, and it’s going to be pushing those temperatures from what would have been very uncomfortable into potentially dangerous,” said report co-author Clair Barnes, an Imperial College of London attribution scientist. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Examples abound of high heat and extreme weather The Southwest heat wave is solidly in the category of “giant events,” with temperatures up to 30 degrees Fahrenheit (16.7 degrees Celsius) above normal, said Stanford University climate scientist Chris Field. He listed five others in the last six years: a 2020 Siberia heat wave, the 2021 Pacific Northwest heat wave that had British Columbia warmer than Death Valley, the summer of 2022 in North America, China and Europe, a 2023 western Mediterranean heat wave and a 2023 South Asian heat wave with high humidity. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); And that doesn’t include the East Antarctica heat wave of 2022 when temperatures were 81 degrees (45 degrees Celsius) warmer than normal. That’s the biggest anomaly recorded, said weather historian Chris Burt, author of the book “Extreme Weather.” Worsening wild weather influenced by climate change isn’t just super-hot days, but includes deadly hurricanes, droughts and downpours, scientists told AP. Devastating floods hit West Africa in 2022 and again in 2024 . Iran is in the midst of a six-year drought . And the deadly Typhoon Haiyan hitting the Philippines in 2013 shocked the world. Superstorm Sandy , which in 2012 flooded New York City and neighbors, had tropical storm-force winds that covered an area nearly one-fifth the area of the contiguous United States. It spawned 12-foot seas over 1.4 million square miles, about half the size of the U.S., with energy equivalent to five Hiroshima-sized atomic bombs, said Yale Climate Connections meteorologist Jeff Masters. And don’t forget wildfires that are worsened by heat and drought, so recent extremes should include 2025’s Palisades and Eaton wildfires, which were the costliest weather disaster in the United States last year, said Climate Central meteorologist and economist Adam Smith. “This is due to climate change, that we see more extreme events, and more intense ones and have so many records being broken,” said Friederike Otto, an Imperial College of London climate scientist who coordinates World Weather Attribution ___ The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org . SETH BORENSTEIN Borenstein is an Associated Press science writer, covering climate change, disasters, physics and other science topics. He is based in Washington, D.C. twitter mailto

Initiates return after completing their passage to manhood at a traditional initiation school, in Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana) 2026-03-20T01:28:51Z PHUTHADITJHABA, South Africa (AP) — The 22-year-old Lamkelo Mtyho had no known health issues when he joined his peers, wrapped in blankets and smeared in clay, for the most important ritual of his young life: the highly secretive process of traditional circumcision. His family in South Africa expected him to return triumphant, full of cultural knowledge and officially a man. Three weeks later, they learned that he was dead. He was one of at least 48 boys and young men who died during the latest round of initiation ceremonies in South Africa. It is rare to hear the story of an initiate who died. Because of participants’ silence around the ritual, families and authorities have struggled to understand and police a deeply traditional but often abused practice. At least a half-dozen former initiates would not speak to The Associated Press. Meanwhile, hundreds of illegal initiation schools attract people who can’t afford registered ones. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Police and government officials usually announce deaths only when a significant number occur. There are few court cases or autopsies. Traditional circumcisions can carry fatal risks including poorly trained practitioners and cutting tools that are unsanitary or used more than once. Dehydration and badly managed septic wounds are among the main causes of death, and the remote settings mean help is usually far away. “Imagine this number: 476 young people died in a five-year period and yet they were well before going into initiation. These deaths are unacceptable and should never have happened,” former health minister Zwelini Mkhize told parliament last year. But these are risks that hundreds of thousands of South Africans are ready to take. The next season begins in June. They happen twice a year. Initiates return following a traditional initiation practice, in Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana) Initiates return following a traditional initiation practice, in Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); ‘He started losing strength and collapsed’ Mtyho attended a registered initiation school outside Ngqeleni village in Eastern Cape province, with his parents’ blessing. Most schools take place in mud huts or shacks shared by dozens of young men, away from public glare. His grandmother, Nozinzile, recounted what came next. A relative who worked as a guard at the school arrived with the news. “They were walking to the river to go and bathe, and along the way he started losing strength and collapsed. That is what we were told,” she said. “It is said that it was an emergency situation, that the others ran to get water and tried to resuscitate him. When other people arrived there to help, it was too late.” She spoke between long pauses. She sat outside the hut where Mtyho used to help with chores like carrying wood. She refused to blame anyone, and there was no attempt to verify the cause of death. Initiation is not an easy thing, she said, but the thought of him dying had never crossed her mind. Mtyho was her eldest grandchild. He had planned to find a job in town so he could be “the man of the house.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); While announcing the latest initiation deaths in December, South Africa’s Traditional Affairs Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa said some of the unproven advice often given to participants is to avoid drinking water in order to heal faster. An initiate is wrapped in a cloth after returning from a traditional initiation school in Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana) An initiate is wrapped in a cloth after returning from a traditional initiation school in Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Initiates are a source of community pride For families in South Africa, a successful initiation concludes with the participants’ return. They present themselves to the community with traditional hymns and the recital of their clan names. Villagers join in with songs, chanting and dance. A boy or young man who completes an initiation enjoys the benefits of higher status for marriage and the right to participate in certain cultural activities, important considerations for many of South Africa’s ethnic groups. They could have been medically circumcised at an early age, but cultural pressures mean that many prefer the traditional way. “Initiation is a culture left behind to us by our elders. We grew up practicing it, as it teaches a young man to respect everyone, including those who are not initiates in society,” said traditional leader Morena Mpembe, who oversees a registered school in Phuthaditjhaba in Free State province. An initiate wears traditional garments at a ceremony in Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana) An initiate wears traditional garments at a ceremony in Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The spread of illegal schools High unemployment and economic inequality in South Africa mean that fees for government-regulated initiation schools can be out of reach. That is where illegal schools come in. Some boys slip away to illegal schools long before they are 16, the age that South African law now requires, in their eagerness to “become men.” “It is very difficult for the government to monitor initiation schools which are not registered. They are not known until there is a tragedy of some sort,” said Mluleki Ngomane, an official with the Gauteng provincial body overseeing the schools there. A 2022 visit by lawmakers to the Eastern Cape found more illegal schools than legal ones, 68 to 66, in the OR Tambo municipality alone. Government and independent investigations over the years have found abuse of participants, violence between initiates, drug and alcohol abuse at illegal schools — even the kidnapping of boys for participation. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “We are seeing a rise in gangs because they want to grow their initiation schools, and we see that as a wrong way of practicing initiation,” said Motlalepule Mantsha, a leader at an initiation school in Phuthaditjhaba. “This is damaging the initiation’s image.” Initiates return after taking part in a traditional initiation practice in Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana) Initiates return after taking part in a traditional initiation practice in Phuthaditjhaba, South Africa, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana) --> Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. --> Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Dozens of arrests have occurred South African law since 2021 requires initiation schools to meet strict health and safety standards to be registered, and boys 16 and above are admitted with parental consent. Over 5,000 such schools exist. Requirements for schools include being registered three months before each initiation season starts, having enough surgical tools so they are not used for more than one circumcision and training for traditional “surgeons” and “nurses” in hygiene, infection prevention, wound care and HIV awareness. In January and February, at least 46 people were arrested for links to illegal schools. They included 16 traditional surgeons, 28 traditional nurses and two parents, who were accused of colluding with surgeons and nurses to falsify ages of younger boys. Separately in February, after a rare conviction, a 26-year-old man was sentenced to two years in prison for unlawfully circumcising two boys, aged 17 and 18, last year. An investigation by the Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Rights Commission, a public watchdog that reports to Parliament, said in 2017 that “due to the principles of sacredness and secrecy of this practice, also compounded by the inaccessibility of rural locations,” it is difficult to monitor the schools, and there was “clear confusion” about what role local authorities should have. By the time a circumcision has complications, the report said, it is too late for medical treatment. It said other deaths are due to initiates’ preexisting illnesses, and suggested that boys and young men get medical exams first. A mother of two initiates, Makhanya Vangile, said she regards initiations as an important part of the culture that should be safeguarded, but she is concerned about the reports of what happens at illegal schools. “Here, we have guardsmen from our chief who go and check up on how the boys are being fed, their living conditions and safety,” she said. “They are able to stop things like boys bringing harmful stuff like alcohol, knives and guns instead of traditional sticks.” ___ Magome reported from Johannesburg. ___ For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulse The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org . MOGOMOTSI MAGOME Magome is an Associated Press reporter based in Johannesburg, South Africa. He covers a range of topics including general news, politics, and enterprise stories from across the Southern Africa region. mailto

Black smoke rises from an auto parts plant in Daejeon, South Korea, Friday, March 20, 2026. (Kim So-yeon/Yonhap via AP) 2026-03-20T06:00:54Z SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A fire at an auto parts factory in South Korea’s central city of Daejeon injured at least 53 people on Friday as officials warned the the number of those hurt could rise. Nam Deuk-woo, fire chief of the city’s Daedeok district, said 24 of those people were seriously hurt and authorities were searching for least 14 others believed to have been inside the facility when the fire broke out. Officials could not immediately confirm whether any of the injured were in life-threatening condition. Video from the scene showed thick gray smoke billowing from the complex. The fire was reported at about 1:17 p.m. and Nam said the cause was not immediately known, but the blaze appeared to have spread rapidly, with witnesses reportedly hearing an explosion. He said the fire destroyed a factory building that firefighters were unable to enter because of concerns the structure could collapse. Efforts focused on preventing the blaze from spreading to an adjacent facility and removing chemicals from the site. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Some people were injured while jumping from the building during escape attempts, while others suffered from smoke inhalation, Nam said. Police were tracking mobile phone signals of the 14 people still unaccounted for. More than 250 firefighters, police and other emergency personnel were deployed, along with about 100 vehicles and equipment. President Lee Jae Myung called for the full mobilization of personnel and equipment to contain the fire and support rescue operations. KIM TONG-HYUNG Kim has been covering the Koreas for the AP since 2014. He has published widely read stories on North Korea’s nuclear ambitions, the dark side of South Korea’s economic rise and international adoptions of Korean children. twitter mailto

Federal immigration officers confront protesters outside Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura, File) 2026-03-20T04:06:09Z MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Protestant and Catholic clergy are asking a federal judge to order that they be allowed to minister to immigrants in a holding facility at the headquarters of the Trump administration’s enforcement surge in Minnesota. U.S. District Judge Jerry Blackwell will hear Friday from attorneys for Minnesota branches of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the United Church of Christ, and a Catholic priest. They’re suing for an injunction requiring Department of Homeland Security officials to allow prompt in-person pastoral visits to all detainees at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, the site of frequent protests over roughly the 3,000 federal officers who had surged into the state at the height of the crackdown. The Minnesota lawsuit alleges the Whipple building, named for Minnesota’s first Episcopal bishop, a 19th-century advocate for human rights, “now stands in stark contrast to its namesake’s legacy.” It says the building has “become the epicenter of systematic deprivation of fundamental constitutional and legal rights by the federal government.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Government attorneys plan to argue the request is at least partly moot because Operation Metro Surge officially ended on Feb. 12. They also say the number of new detentions has since subsided, so temporary restrictions on visitors have been eased, and clergy visits have been allowed for over two weeks. In a recent filing, they said staff members weren’t in a good position previously to allow visitation because the Whipple building had been “both a hub of heightened ICE operations and the symbolic center of community unrest.” Catholic and Episcopal bishops in Minnesota, other Christian and Jewish clergy, and the Minnesota Council of Churches are also supporting the request. Clergy across the country have been pushing for more access to immigration detention facilities, especially during the holy seasons of Lent and Ramadan . It’s a longstanding practice for faith leaders to minister to detainees. but it has become far more contentious amid the current immigration crackdown . freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); It took a similar lawsuit for two Catholic priests and a nun to gain entry into an ICE facility in the Chicago suburb of Broadview on Ash Wednesday last month. And Muslim and Christian clergy in Texas have struggled to get into large Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facilities there. The Minnesota lawsuit alleges that ICE unconstitutionally obstructed faith leaders “from offering prayer, pastoral guidance, sacramental ministry, and spiritual comfort to detainees in moments of profound fear, isolation, and despair.” Case filings list several instances in which clergy went to Whipple to minister to detainees but were refused access, including on Ash Wednesday, a solemn day in many Christian traditions in which clergy place ashes on worshippers’ foreheads in the sign of the cross. The lawsuit called the restrictions in place at Whipple a violation of both the constitutional freedom of religion of clergy who feel compelled by their faith to serve detainees and the 1993 Religious Freedom Restoration Act. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); ICE’s stated policy is that facilities that hold detainees for more than 72 hours are required to have a chaplain or “religious services coordinator,” as well as dedicated spaces for services. ICE says its policy also requires advance notice and background checks for clergy and faith volunteers. But government attorneys and ICE officials contend the Whipple building is just a short-term holding facility, and that most held there are moved to other ICE facilities within 24 hours. Tauria Rich, a senior local ICE official who oversees the facility, said in a filing this week that visitors are rare, and that any clergy requests would be back to being handled on a case-by-case basis. She said one clergy member had attempted to visit in early March, but left because no detainees were present. The visit would have been allowed if any detainees had been there, she said. It’s not just clergy who’ve struggled to get in. Three members of Congress from Minnesota were turned away when they tried to inspect the facility. Once they did get in, they reported poor conditions. Access has also been an issue for attorneys. Homeland Security was ordered by a different federal judge last month to give new detainees at Whipple immediate access to counsel before they’re taken elsewhere. STEVE KARNOWSKI Karnowski covers politics and government from Minnesota for The Associated Press. He also covers the ongoing fallout from the murder of George Floyd, courts and the environment, among other topics. twitter mailto 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

This image provided by Tokyo Electric Power Holdings Company shows inside the Unit 3 reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Okuma, northeastern Japan, March 9, 2026. (TEPCO via AP) 2026-03-20T04:49:22Z Kuwait said Friday its Mina Al-Ahmadi oil refinery again came under attack by Iranian drones, which sparked a fire at several of its units. The refinery had been hit Thursday, sparking fires. Kuwait said firefighters on Friday were trying to control the blazes and there were no immediate injuries from the attack. The Iranian attack came as Kuwait marked Eid al-Fitr, the celebration marking the end of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. The attack Friday comes as Iran increasingly targets energy sites in Gulf Arab states after Israel on Wednesday bombed Iran’s massive South Pars offshore natural gas field in the Persian Gulf.

This image provided by Tokyo Electric Power Holdings Company shows inside the Unit 3 reactor at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Okuma, northeastern Japan, March 9, 2026. (TEPCO via AP) 2026-03-20T06:30:12Z TOKYO (AP) — A video taken by tiny drones sent into one of three damaged reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant showed a gaping hole in the thick-walled steel container of the core, with lumps of likely melted fuel debris hanging from it, in a first sighting of a pressure vessel bottom since the meltdown 15 years ago . The rare footage was taken by micro-drones — measuring 12 by 13 centimeters (4.7 by 5.1 inches) and weighing only 95 grams (3.3 ounces) each — deployed for a two-week mission to collect visual, radiation and other data from inside the Unit 3 reactor. It was released late Thursday. The March 11, 2011 massive quake and tsunami destroyed cooling systems at the Fukushima Daiichi plant, causing meltdowns at reactors No. 1, 2 and 3. The three reactors contain at least 880 tons of melted fuel debris with radiation levels still dangerously high. Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, which manages the plant, successfully took tiny melted fuel samples from the Unit 2 reactor last year, but internal details remain little known. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); TEPCO plans more remote-controlled probes and sampling to analyze melted fuel and to develop robots for future fuel debris removal that experts say could take decades more. Sending drones as close as possible to the pressure vessel’s bottom was an important goal of the latest probe, according to the plant operator, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings. During multiple flight missions in the probe that began March 5, remote-controlled micro-drones, one at a time, carefully flew around debris, broken equipment and other obstacles to take footage inside the primary containment chamber, including around the bottom of the pressure vessel. The footage showed tubes with ruptures and other damaged structures that used to be inside the pressure vessel, which originally was enclosed. It also showed brown and gray objects hanging like giant icicles. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); TEPCO spokesperson Masaki Kuwajima said officials confirmed there was a hole at the bottom of the vessel and that those hanging objects, lumps and deposits are believed to be melted fuel debris. The drones also collected radiation measurements and data to produce a detailed three-dimensional map of the inside of the Unit 3 reactor, Kuwajima said. “We have obtained valuable data that can be used for our future internal investigations and to develop melted fuel debris removal strategy.” The latest drone mission came nearly a decade after an earlier underwater robot probe provided a less clear picture of the inside of the Unit 3 reactor. MARI YAMAGUCHI Yamaguchi is based in Tokyo and covers Japanese politics, security, nuclear energy and social issues for The Associated Press. twitter mailto 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

High Point forward Cam'ron Fletcher (11) celebrates with guard Chase Johnston (99) during the second half in the first round of the NCAA college basketball tournament against Wisconsin, Thursday, March 19, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Amanda Loman) 2026-03-19T20:46:31Z Well, the dream was while it lasted .. all two-ish hours of it. The bid for a perfect NCAA men’s tournament bracket disappeared for over 25 million people by mid-afternoon on Thursday, fueled by 12th-seeded High Point’s first-round stunner over fifth-seeded Wisconsin. ESPN reported that just under 900,000 blemish-free brackets remained after the opening wave of games. That’s just over 3% of the total brackets entered. TCU, a ninth-seed, nicked some brackets in the first game of the tournament by edging eighth-seed Ohio State . Nebraska, a fourth-seed, picked up its first-ever NCAA victory by racing past Troy. The upsets also took a toll over at Yahoo , where 83% of the entries included a win by Wisconsin in the first round. The odds of going 67 for 67 (or 63 for 63 if you don’t pick the First Four) in the men’s bracket are longer than one of those 3-pointers hoisted up by High Point’s Chase Johnston. Way longer. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The NCAA estimates the chances of ending the tournament with a zero in the loss column range anywhere from one in 9.2 quintillion (if you flip a coin for every game). The odds drop a little if you make educated guesses ... all the way to one in 120 billion. The NCAA’s own bracket challenge looked a lot like ESPN’s, with about 3.5% of entries still having a shot at perfection. ___ AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

Taylor Frankie Paul appears at the Oscars in Los Angeles on March 15, 2026. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File) 2026-03-19T20:19:09Z LOS ANGELES (AP) — ABC has scrubbed the upcoming season of “The Bachelorette,” starring Taylor Frankie Paul, citing a newly released video from 2023. Thursday’s unprecedented cancellation of the already filmed season of the long-running reality television show comes days before it was to premiere, on Sunday. “In light of the newly released video just surfaced today, we have made the decision to not move forward with the new season of ‘The Bachelorette’ at this time, and our focus is on supporting the family,” a statement from Disney Entertainment Television said. The statement appeared to reference a 2023 video of an altercation between Paul and Dakota Mortensen that was published by TMZ on Thursday. Paul was arrested in 2023 and charged with aggravated assault and other offenses, including domestic violence in the presence of a child. She pleaded guilty that August to a misdemeanor charge of aggravated assault; the other charges were dismissed. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); A police spokesperson in Draper City, Utah, told People magazine that there was an open domestic violence investigation of Paul and her ex-partner Mortensen, and that allegations have been made in both directions. Mortensen is the father of one of Paul’s three children. Representatives for Paul and Mortensen didn’t immediately return requests for comment. ABC’s statement didn’t include details on what the network planned to do with the show’s time slot. Paul, who was promoting Season 22 as recently as Wednesday on ABC’s “Good Morning America” and on the red carpet before Sunday’s Oscars telecast, was an unusual choice to helm “The Bachelorette.” Unlike previous leads, the 31-year-old had not appeared on the “Bachelor” franchise before — a departure from the typical practice of casting runners-up from previous seasons. Her selection did offer synergy, though, as she also stars on “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” a Hulu reality show. Both Hulu and ABC are owned by Disney. In a statement confirming her casting in October, ABC credited Paul with “igniting ‘MomTok’ and going viral for pulling back the curtain on Salt Lake’s soft-swinging scene.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Paul became known as an influencer in the #MomTok community, a group of women from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sharing their lives on TikTok. She made news when she announced, in 2022, that she had “stepped out” of an agreement with her husband in terms of relationships with other couples and they were getting divorced. “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” premiered in 2024. While Season 4 released last week, filming on Season 5 had already paused over the investigation. “It was a decision that all of us girls came up with,” Paul’s co-star Mikayla Matthews said Wednesday on Instagram in response to a fan question about the production freeze. “We didn’t feel comfortable filming with everything that was happening.” Paul posted on Instagram in December that filming had wrapped on “The Bachelorette,” which is hosted by Jesse Palmer. ___ Rancilio reported from Detroit. ANDREW DALTON Dalton covers entertainment for The Associated Press, with an emphasis on crime, courts and obituaries. He has worked for the AP for 20 years and is based in Los Angeles. mailto ALICIA RANCILIO Rancilio covers entertainment for The Associated Press using video and text. She primarily focuses on television. twitter instagram facebook mailto

The U.S. Department of Education building is seen in Washington, Dec. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File) 2026-03-19T20:02:15Z WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Education Department is handing off a portion of its student loan portfolio to the Treasury Department, a first step toward shedding management of all student loans as Trump administration officials dismantle the federal education agency . Under an agreement announced Thursday, the Treasury Department will take over management of student loans whose borrowers are in default, meaning they are months behind on payments. Those loans add up to about $180 billion, or 11% of the government’s $1.7 trillion student loan portfolio. Eventually, the Treasury Department is to take responsibility for all student loans, according to the agreement. A second phase with no timeframe says Treasury will “assume operational responsibility” over non-defaulted loans, “to the extent practicable.” Borrowers do not need to do anything as the change goes through, the administration says. They will continue to work with the same loan servicer and repay their loans the same way. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The 17-page agreement outlines a stunning realignment of the nation’s federal student loan programs, which have been overseen by the Education Department since it was created more than 40 years ago. The agreement “marks an intentional and historic step toward breaking up the Federal education bureaucracy and dramatically improving the administration of Federal student aid programs,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. In justifying the change, Trump officials said the Education Department is “ill-equipped” to handle such a big loan portfolio. They blamed the Biden administration for focusing on efforts to cancel student loans rather then help borrowers get back on track with payments. Officials cited recent data showing that fewer than half of all borrowers are currently making payments on their loans, with almost a quarter in default. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The agreement is likely to invite legal challenges. Some opponents note that federal law requires student loans to be overseen by the Education Department. Trump officials believe they’ve found a workaround by framing it as a partnership, with some components, including the policies underpinning student loans, remaining at the Education Department. The move is part of President Donald Trump’s campaign to shutter the Education Department , an agency he says was overrun by liberal thinking. Only Congress has authority to close the department, but Trump officials are picking it apart through a series of inter-government agreements that relocate the department’s operations to other federal offices. The future of the government’s enormous student loan portfolio has been one of the biggest unanswered questions. At her Senate confirmation hearing, Education Secretary Linda McMahon called Treasury a “natural” place for student loans. Trump later said they would be overseen by the Small Business Administration. Conservatives have tried in the past to move federal student loans. During Trump’s first term, his education chief talked about setting up a semi-private bank to manage student debt. The conservative Heritage Foundation promoted something similar in its Project 2025 plan, calling for a new “government corporation with professional governance and management.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The Treasury Department often has been discussed as an option, yet student loans are seen as a particularly complex form of debt and some question whether the agency has the right technical expertise. In a 2015 pilot, Treasury tried to collect payments from a sample of thousands of borrowers in default. Its success rate was lower than that of the private collection agencies contracted by the Education Department. Federal student loan borrowers are typically considered in default if they haven’t made a payment in more than 270 days. About 9.2 million Americans are in default on student loans, according to Education Department data released this month. Going into default can bring a heavy hit to credit scores, and the government can withhold pay and Social Security benefits. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The latest deal from the administration indicates a willingness to open up the hood of student loan operations at a perilous moment. About 12 million Americans are behind on federal student loan payments in some way, and the industry is bracing for a potentially historic surge in loan defaults as pandemic-era protections come to an end. Earlier this year, Trump officials postponed their plans to restart involuntary collections on defaulted loans, which could have meant withheld earnings for millions of Americans. It’s seen as a politically volatile issue during a tough midterm year where affordability is already on voters’ minds. ___ The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org. COLLIN BINKLEY Binkley covers the U.S. Education Department and federal education policy for The Associated Press, along with a wide range of issues from K-12 through higher education. twitter mailto

ADDS ID: This undated photo shows James "Jimmy" Gracey, left, with his aunt Beth Marren O'Reilly. (Gracey Family via AP) 2026-03-19T17:59:43Z BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — The body of James “Jimmy” Gracey, a 20-year-old college student from Illinois, was found Thursday in the water off a Barcelona beach, police in Spain said. Gracey’s body was found by police divers and positively identified, the press office for Catalonia’s regional police in Barcelona told The Associated Press. The University of Alabama student’s body was found near where he was last seen outside a nightclub with his friends early Tuesday. He was visiting friends in Barcelona for spring break. Catalan police say that their investigation continues into the cause of death. Gracey was last seen outside the Shoko nightclub in Barcelona but separated from friends around 3 a.m. on Tuesday. Gracey never returned to the room he was renting with friends, according to family members who live in the suburb of Elmhurst, about 19 miles (31 kilometers) west of Chicago. They realized something was wrong when police contacted them, saying they had recovered his phone. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The Gracey family asked for prayers and privacy. “We are so grateful for the kindness and concern that has been shown for our family during this incredibly difficult time. We have made the decision to pause media interviews at this time to focus on being together and caring for one another. Thank you for respecting our privacy and holding our family in your thoughts and prayers,” a statement from the family said. In an interview conducted before police confirmation of his death, Gracey’s aunt told The Associated Press that he was “just a great kid, a good Catholic boy from the Midwest.” “Very good student, honors program at University of Alabama, chaplain in his fraternity, you know, just an amazing older brother and role model to his cousins,” Beth Marren O’Reilly said. Barcelona is a popular tourist destination that brings in millions of foreign visitors each year. It is generally safe, especially compared with major U.S. cities, where tourists’ biggest worry are normally pickpockets. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Barcelona’s beaches, located in walking distance of its center, are a main draw especially for young visitors. The area where Gracey went out is a stretch of beach with several restaurants and nightclubs that are frequented by locals and foreigners. “We are keeping Jimmy and his family at the forefront of our thoughts, and our staff are in direct communication with the family to offer every support and assistance possible,” the University of Alabama said in a statement on Thursday. Gracey was a member of the Theta Chi fraternity at the school, and the international organization said he held two positions within the school’s chapter. ___ O’Connor reported from Springfield, Illinois, and Raza reported from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Associated Press writer Suman Naishadham in Madrid contributed. JOSEPH WILSON Wilson covers Spanish news and sports for The Associated Press. He is based in Barcelona. twitter mailto

TCU forward Xavier Edmonds (24) celebrates scoring during the first half in the first round of the NCAA college basketball tournament against Ohio State, Thursday, March 19, 2026, in Greenville, S.C. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson) 2026-03-19T18:48:40Z GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — David Punch provided some bulletin-board material this week when he told the Columbus Dispatch that TCU would beat Ohio State “nine times out of 10” because of its athleticism. On Thursday, Punch and the Horned Frogs backed up his bold talk. Punch delivered a textbook entry pass to Xavier Edmonds, who converted a layup to beat the shot clock with 4.3 seconds left as No. 9 seed TCU held off a furious second-half rally by eighth-seeded Ohio State for a 66-64 victory to open the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Bruce Thornton’s half-court heave at the buzzer hit all backboard, and the Buckeyes’ standout senior leaned forward and put his hands on his knees in dismay near midcourt as TCU began its celebration. Micah Robinson made four 3-pointers and scored 18 points to lead TCU, Edmonds scored 16 and Punch had 16 points and 13 rebounds. The Horned Frogs (23-11) will play Saturday against either No. 16 seed Siena or Duke, the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “I felt like it kind of put a little more pressure on us, but at the same time, I know his words were just a little bit misconstrued and a little twisted,” Edmonds said of Punch’s comments. “That’s not 100 percent how he meant it. Still we seen it, and we felt like we had to stand on it. So we wanted to go out there and make sure we won nine out of 10 times.” The 6-foot-7 Punch hurt the Buckeyes with his physicality in the paint, but no play was bigger than finding Edmonds for the winner. “We got it to Punch, and he created some space,” Edmonds said. “He didn’t have a shot he wanted, so he kicked it out to me, and I had a good seal and I just went up with it. Credit to him for making a better pass.” John Mobley Jr. scored 15 points to lead Ohio State (21-13), which was making its first March Madness appearance since 2022. ▶ View and download the men’s NCAA tournament bracket TCU built a 15-point halftime lead and appeared in control, only to miss 18 of its first 22 shots to start the second half and fall behind 55-50 with seven minutes left. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “I just thought, I’m not going home like that,” Mobley said. “I’m not going home without putting my all to it. I had a talk at halftime, I’ve just got to do better. I was a little sluggish in the first half, can’t do that.” The Horned Frogs rallied for a 64-61 advantage on a 3 by Robinson with 56 seconds left. Thornton hit a tying 3 with 33 seconds remaining, and TCU called timeout to set up a final play in the halfcourt. “What a character check for us down the stretch and just going and executing on every play,” TCU coach Jamie Dixon said. “It was multiple guys in a variety of ways.” Dixon won’t let his players overrule him again Dixon said his players convinced him to change up the defense on Ohio State’s possession, which ended with Thornton’s tying 3. “We guarded it well,” Dixon said. “So I’ll let them get away with that one. It was a tough 3 that they hit.” Teams entered March Madness in fine form Both teams came into the tournament playing well. Ohio State won four straight before falling to Michigan 71-67 in the Big Ten Tournament. TCU had won six in a row before losing to Kansas 79-78 in the Big 12 tourney. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Buckeyes find motivation for next season Mobley said the loss will drive him and his young teammates in the offseason. “There is a motivation now of getting back here,” Mobley said. “Ohio State has a great repertoire to come here. We want to keep building that. ... When the guys come in, we’re going to have that and be ready to go for the summer.” ___ AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness

A student looks toward a plywood box covering a statue of César Chavez at California State University, Fresno in Fresno, Calif., Wednesday, March 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez) 2026-03-19T17:57:33Z Within hours of explosive sexual abuse allegations against the revered labor leader César Chavez, officials at a California university took swift action: First, a black cloth over a campus statue of Chavez, later followed by a plywood box hiding it from public view. Soon, officials said, it will be taken down. The statue at California State University, Fresno, is just one of scores of monuments, city streets and elementary schools that honor Chavez ‘s name and his labor movement legacy across the nation. The Associated Press identified more than 130 locations or objects in at least 19 states named after Chavez, including libraries, streets, community centers and public parks. Suddenly the name has become more of a stain. Some of the institutions and local governments overseeing sites across the country bearing the Chavez name have already started the process of erasing it. Besides buildings and street signs, they also want to take steps to rename César Chavez Day, a federally proclaimed holiday that falls on his March 31 birthday. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); The allegations that Chavez sexually abused girls and women, including fellow movement leader Dolores Huerta, “call for our full attention and moral reckoning by removing his statute from our campus,” said Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval, president of the California State University, Fresno. It’s not clear how long that will take. It’s also not clear what will happen to the César E. Chavez National Monument in Keene, California, which includes the office where some of the reported abuse took place. In Phoenix, city council members said they will meet next week to vote on whether to rename the holiday as well as any buildings and streets that bear Chavez’s name. The New York Times first reported Wednesday that it found credible evidence that Chavez groomed and sexually abused young girls who worked in the movement. One of his victims, in fact, partly felt compelled to come forward after a proposal to name a street near her home after Chavez. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Huerta , who was a labor legend in her own right and co-founded in 1962 with Chavez the National Farm Workers Association — which became the United Farm Workers of America — revealed to the newspaper that she was a victim of abuse by him in her 30s. Some are calling for Chavez’s namesake places to be renamed for Huerta instead. Among the locations and objects bearing his name is a U.S. Navy cargo ship commemorating Chavez’s service during World War II and a national monument established in 2012 by then-President Barack Obama on a 187-acre site where Chavez once lived and worked. Most of the locations are in California but they includes sites in at least 19 states, from New York and Maryland to Oklahoma, the Great Lakes Region and Washington state. More than half are schools with most of them located in California. In Pueblo, Colorado, Chavez shares the name of a school with Huerta. Altering a national monument, such as changing a name, needs an act of Congress or action by the president. MATTHEW BROWN Brown is based in Billings, Montana. He covers breaking news, the environment, politics, energy, crime and more. TERRY TANG Tang reports on race and ethnicity issues, including Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, for The Associated Press. She is based in Phoenix and previously covered breaking news in the Southwest. twitter mailto

In this photo released by Belarusian presidential press service, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, right, and U.S. Presidential envoy John Coale talk during their meeting in Minsk, Belarus, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (Belarusian Presidential Press Service via AP) 2026-03-19T09:39:48Z TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Belarus’ authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday ordered the release of 250 political prisoners as part of a deal with Washington that lifted some U.S. sanctions, the latest step in the isolated leader’s effort to improve ties with the West. Lukashenko pardoned the prisoners after meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump’s special envoy for Belarus, John Coale, in the Belarus capital of Minsk. Coale hailed the release as a “significant humanitarian milestone” and a testament to Trump’s “commitment to direct, hard-nosed diplomacy.” It marked the largest one-time release of political prisoners in the country. Coale told reporters that the U.S. will lift sanctions from two Belarusian state banks and the country’s Finance Ministry, and that the top Belarusian potash producers have been removed from a sanctions list. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Belarus’ opposition leader-in-exile, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, hailed the prisoners’ release as “a moment of great relief and hope.” “After years of isolation, people are now free and can finally embrace their loved ones,” Tsikhanouskaya told The Associated Press. “There is nothing more powerful than seeing someone who endured unjust imprisonment reunited with their family.” She thanked Trump and his officials for their “tireless efforts to secure the release of political prisoners,” adding that “these humanitarian efforts are saving lives.” The last time U.S. officials met with Lukashenko, in December, Washington announced the easing of sanctions on Belarus’ potash sector, and 123 prisoners were released and sent to Ukraine and Lithuania. A close ally of Russia, Minsk has faced isolation for years. Lukashenko has ruled the nation of 9.5 million with an iron fist for more than three decades, and the country has been sanctioned repeatedly by Western countries — both for its crackdown on human rights and for allowing Moscow to use its territory in the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Lukashenko’s rule was challenged after a 2020 presidential election, when tens of thousands poured into the streets to protest a vote they viewed as rigged. They were the largest demonstrations since Belarus became independent following the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. In an ensuing crackdown, tens of thousands were detained, with many beaten by police. Prominent opposition figures either fled the country or were imprisoned. Five years after the mass demonstrations, Lukashenko won a seventh term last year in an election that the opposition called a farce. More recently, Belarus has freed some political prisoners to try to win favor with the West. Since Trump returned to the White House last year, Lukashenko has released dozens of prisoners, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski and key dissident figures Siarhei Tsikhanouski , Viktar Babaryka and Maria Kolesnikova . Trump spoke to Lukashenko by phone in August 2025 after one such release and even suggested a face-to-face meeting in what would be a big victory for the Belarusian leader, who has been dubbed “Europe’s Last Dictator.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Just before the latest announcement of releases, the prominent Belarus human rights group Viasna had estimated that there were more than 1,100 political prisoners in the country. Tsikhanouskaya emphasized that “many people are still behind bars” and “our goal remains unchanged — to free them all and to put a final end to repression, so that every Belarusian can live freely in their own country.” YURAS KARMANAU Karmanau is an Associated Press journalist covering Belarus and the CIS countries. He has worked in Belarus and Ukraine, as well as other countries in the region, for more than 20 years. He is part of the team that covers the Russia-Ukraine war. mailto 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., the White House pick for homeland security secretary, testifies during Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs hearing, Wednesday, March 18, 2026 on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib) 2026-03-19T14:58:39Z WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Markwayne Mullin moved a step closer to becoming President Donald Trump’s next homeland security secretary after a Senate committee Thursday narrowly advanced his nomination. The 8-7 vote came after a contentious hearing Wednesday and sent the Cabinet nomination to the full Senate, which could act to confirm the Oklahoma Republican next week. That vote included a “no” from the Republican chairman, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, and a “yes” from a Democrat, Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania. The approval comes as the parties are fighting bitterly over the policies of the Department of Homeland Security, leading to a funding lapse that is now in its 34th day. During his testimony before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, Mullin tried to make the case that he would be a steady hand after the tumultuous tenure of Kristi Noem, Trump’s first DHS secretary. Mullin also signaled support for Trump’s immigration priorities, which are central to the funding standoff after the death of at least three American citizens at the hands of federal agents. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Mullin’s hearing was unusually combative and came close to going off the rails as he engaged in heated exchanges with some Democrats as well as Paul. In addition to a lengthy exchange over Mullin’s failure to disclose what he characterized as a “classified” congressional trip while a House member, Paul opened the hearing with a fiery statement challenging Mullin’s fitness to lead DHS. Paul pointed to comments Mullin made after a funding fight, when he called Paul a “freaking snake” and said he understood why a neighbor had tackled Paul in a lawn care dispute. That incident happened several years ago, and Paul suffered multiple broken ribs and later had surgeries he linked to the attack. “I just wonder if someone who applauds violence against their political opponents is the right person to lead an agency that has struggled to accept limits to the proper use of force?” Paul said. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Mullin refused to back down. “For you to say I’m a liar, sir, that’s not accurate,” Mullin said. Paul later said he would not vote for Mullin’s confirmation. Fetterman, who has frequently challenged his own party, said his vote was “rooted in a strong committed, constructive working relationship with Senator Mullin for our nation’s security.” ___ Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP MEG KINNARD Kinnard covers national politics for The Associated Press. She lives in South Carolina. twitter instagram mailto

A lectern awaits the arrival of House Democrats to speak on the health care funding fight on the steps of the House at the Capitol in Washington, Nov. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File) 2026-03-19T15:03:47Z NEW YORK (AP) — Lately, Priscilla Brown has had to choose between properly managing her Type 2 diabetes and affording other necessities, like gas in her car. Some days, she takes half or a third of her prescribed insulin dose — just to stretch it out longer. “Sometimes I don’t even take my medicine,” said the 48-year-old truck dispatcher in Orlando, Florida. “It’s so much with insurance, it’s crazy.” About 8 in 10 Americans, like Brown, who re-enrolled in Affordable Care Act marketplace coverage say their health care costs are higher this year, including about half who say their costs are “a lot” higher, according to a new survey from the health care research nonprofit KFF. A main reason for increased costs was the Dec. 31 expiration of enhanced tax credits that had offset premiums for most enrollees. For Brown and others, those spiking costs are having real impacts on daily life . Of the 1,117 Americans surveyed who had ACA marketplace coverage in 2025, including those who dropped coverage or changed plans, about 55% said they’re planning to deal with health care costs by cutting spending on food and other basic household needs. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Democrats in Congress last year had fought to keep the COVID-era subsidies but faced pushback from Republican leadership. In January, momentum toward a bipartisan compromise fell apart — leaving some 23 million ACA enrollees without relief as they faced higher premiums or made tough decisions to disenroll or downgrade plans. The new poll, which was conducted in February and March and followed up with respondents from a survey conducted last year to learn how they’re grappling with health insurance now, offers a glimpse at how Congress’ unresolved fight continues to strain regular Americans — even as many federal lawmakers have, at least for the moment, turned to other priorities. Many ACA enrollees are anxious about medical costs Last year, Brown paid zero dollars toward her health insurance premiums. This year, her new plan costs $17 a month — and has a higher deductible. Brown said she learned this week that her new refill of medicine was going to cost more than $150 and “almost passed out.” She filled her car with only half the gas she needed, knowing she’d need money for the medications. Anxieties about unexpected medical costs are acute, the poll shows. About three-quarters of people who had ACA insurance last year now say they are “very” or “somewhat” worried about paying for emergency care or hospitalization, while about half said the same about routine medical visits or prescription drugs. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Some enrollees switch to lower-tier plans, while others drop coverage entirely Most of last year’s enrollees, about 7 in 10, stayed on ACA health insurance — but that includes about 3 in 10 who changed plans within the marketplace. Meanwhile, about 2 in 10 became eligible for coverage through their employer, Medicare or Medicaid or purchased insurance outside of the ACA marketplace, which tends to be less comprehensive. About 1 in 10 of last year’s enrollees said they dropped coverage altogether and are now uninsured, the poll shows. Eric LeVasseur, a 63-year-old software developer in Seal Beach, California, was part of that group. He said when he saw his mid-tier, silver-level plan was going to nearly triple to $1,200 per month, “it was not something my budget could absorb.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Many enrollees blame health insurance companies and politicians About 7 in 10 returning ACA enrollees facing higher costs say they blame health insurance companies “a lot,” while just over half put “a lot” of blame on Republican lawmakers, President Donald Trump and pharmaceutical companies. About one-third blamed Democrats in Congress or hospitals “a lot,” while about 1 in 10 placed this level of blame on doctors or employers. Respondents who identified with a political party and saw costs rise overwhelmingly blamed the opposing party’s lawmakers “a lot.” James Mako, an engineer in Boca Raton, Florida, and a political independent, said he blames the Republican Party. His $500-per-month premiums were poised to double this year for his silver-level ACA health plan. So, he downgraded to a bronze-level plan with a higher deductible. Mako said he’s not convinced by the ideas Republicans have floated to fix the problem, like funneling money into health savings accounts . freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “I think they’re just sales gimmicks,” he said. “The subsidies should be back.” — The KFF poll was conducted Feb. 12-Mar. 2, 2026, among 1,117 U.S. adults who had Marketplace insurance in 2025, using a sample drawn from two probability-based panels. All of the respondents participated in the 2025 KFF Marketplace Survey and were recontacted for the new survey. The margin of sampling error for the full sample is plus or minus 3.8 percentage points. ALI SWENSON Swenson covers politics and the information landscape for The Associated Press. She is based in New York. twitter

People watch the sunset from the Malecón during a blackout in Havana, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa) 2026-03-19T14:07:50Z MIAMI (AP) — The Cuban Communist Party has shown an astonishing resilience over six decades in power. Whether it’s the United States trade embargo to counter Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution, or the widespread starvation of the “special period” that followed the breakup of its Cold War patron, the Soviet Union, both U.S. hostilities and calamities of its own making have proven no match for the country’s leadership. But perhaps none of those crises pose as grave a threat as the one triggered by an all-but-declared naval siege by the Trump administration as it seeks to force regime change in the wake of its successful ousting of Cuba’s longtime ally Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro . Even as he fights a war with Iran, President Donald Trump this week said he believes he’ll have “the honor of taking Cuba” soon. While it wasn’t clear exactly what he meant, the U.S. is looking for President Miguel Díaz-Canel to leave power as part of ongoing talks with Havana that could avert some kind of U.S. military intervention. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Without declaring a formal blockade, Trump and his administration have already crippled trade with the island. In March, supplies of oil, food and other goods to the island collapsed, with no foreign-originating tankers arriving to Cuba, according to shipping data analyzed by Windward, a maritime intelligence firm. The volume of port calls, which includes tankers moving from one Cuban port to another, averaged around 50 per month in 2025 but fell to just 11 in March - all of them arriving from domestic ports. It was the lowest since 2017. Moreover, little relief is in sight: with no tankers on their way and only three container ships — originating in China, India and the Netherlands — reporting Cuba as their intended harbor though their destinations could change. The stranglehold is disrupting the lives of Cuba’s 11 million residents, who are enduring massive blackouts and a breakdown in medical care due to a lack of fuel to power ambulances and hospital generators. The country, one of the most heavily reliant in the world on oil to generate electricity, produces barely 40% of the oil needed to cover its energy needs. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Ian Ralby, head of I.R. Consilium, a U.S.-based consultancy focused on maritime security, said the United States’ aggressiveness will not endear Trump to Cubans long eager for change. “Every Cuban resident is suffering the acute inaccessibility to fuel and all the knock-on consequences in terms of access to food, hospitals and free movement,” he said. The sudden halt in trade has taken place without the White House reapplying restrictions on exports to Cuba that were last loosened during the Biden administration. Indeed, shipments of U.S.-produced poultry, pork and other foodstuffs to Cuba — which account for the vast majority of U.S. exports to the country — last year soared to $490 million, the most since 2009. Non-agricultural exports and humanitarian donations, much of it to Cuba’s emerging private sector, more than doubled. But emboldened by the U.S. capture of Maduro, Trump has gradually escalated his rhetoric on Cuba, first suggesting he would pursue “a friendly takeover” of the country and more recently telling conservative allies from Latin America that he would “take care” of Cuba once the war with Iran winds down. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); While neither he nor the administration has articulated what exactly the pledge means , the continued presence in the Caribbean of U.S. warships used in the strike against Maduro has led companies and countries that do business with Cuba to self-police. “Nobody wants to be on the radar of Trump’s Truth Social account,” said John Kavulich, president of the New York-based U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council. In the run-up to the U.S. military’s ousting of Maduro during a nighttime raid on Jan. 3, Trump declared that the U.S. would block all Venezuelan oil shipments to Cuba and even seized a few tankers to enforce what it called a “quarantine,” borrowing a term used by President John F. Kennedy during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. Later in the month, Trump signed an executive order threatening tariffs on any country that supplies oil to Cuba. The warning alarmed officials in Mexico, who have long opposed U.S. policy toward Cuba and where state-run oil company Pemex emerged as a valuable lifeline last year as Venezuelan oil exports declined. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Cuba has upped its rhetoric against what it calls a “fuel blockade” by the U.S. But the Trump administration has disputed that characterization, no doubt aware that according to international law any naval operation seen as punishing civilians is considered an illegal act of aggression outside wartime. “Cuba is a free, independent and sovereign state — nobody dictates what we do,” Díaz-Canel said in a social media post in January. “Cuba does not attack; we are the victims of U.S. attacks for 66 years and we will prepare ourselves to defend the homeland with our last drop of blood.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Amid mounting criticism that U.S. actions are starving Cuba, Secretary of State Marco Rubio has started to walk back some of the administration’s threats. In January, the State Department sent $3 million in food kits, water purification tablets and other humanitarian assistance items to the island. Then last month, the White House said it would allow U.S. companies to send fuel — including Venezuelan oil — to private businesses in Cuba. The goal, said Rubio, is to encourage the development of the nation’s small private sector. “The reason why those industries have not flourished in Cuba is because the regime has not allowed them to flourish,” Rubio said when announcing the private sales. But it’s unclear if any companies have started fuel shipments and critics say the strategy is unrealistic as most Cuban companies lack capital and the Cuban government has a monopoly on gasoline distribution. John Felder, owner of Premier Automotive Export, a Maryland-based business that has been selling electric cars and scooters to Cuba since 2012, said most Cubans, even in their current anguish, are fearful of what lies ahead. “U.S. policies have created the most resilient people in the world and yet all they want to do is buy things in Miami like you and me,” said Felder, who just returned from a four-day business trip to Havana and says he’s never seen conditions worse. “They want change but they don’t want to be controlled by the United States.” JOSHUA GOODMAN Goodman is a Miami-based investigative reporter who writes about the intersection of crime, corruption, drug trafficking and politics in Latin America. He previously spent two decades reporting from South America. twitter mailto

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks to members of the media during a press briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, Thursday, March 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) 2026-03-19T13:12:17Z WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon is seeking $200 billion in additional funds for the Iran war, a senior administration official says. The department sent the request to the White House, according to the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private information. It’s an extraordinarily high number and comes on top of extra funding the Defense Department already received last year in President Donald Trump’s big tax cuts bill. Congress is bracing for a new spending request but it is not clear the White House has transmitted the request for consideration. It is unclear the spending request would have support. The new funding request was first reported by The Washington Post. Asked about the figure at a press conference Thursday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not directly confirm the figure, saying it could change. But he said “we’re going back to Congress and our folks there to to ensure that we’re properly funded.” “It takes money to kill bad guys,” Hegseth said. 获取更多RSS： https://feedx.net https://feedx.site

United Farm Workers leader Dolores Huerta, center, leads a rally in San Francisco's Mission District on Nov. 19, 1988, along with Howard Wallace, president of the San Francisco chapter of the UFW, left, and Maria Elena Chavez, 16, the daughter of Cesar Chavez, right, as part of a national boycott of what the UFW claims is the dangerous use of pesticides on table grapes. (AP Photo/Court Mast, File) 2026-03-19T13:02:09Z ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — It was Dolores Huerta who coined the slogan “Si, se puede” in 1972 when bringing together farmworkers in Arizona to fight a law that prohibited boycotts and strikes. Told it would be impossible to organize in the Southwestern state, her three-word Spanish-language response — which translates as “Yes, it can be done” — was simple, defiant and emblematic. Huerta’s resolve cemented her place in history as one of the nation’s most influential labor leaders, civil rights icons and feminist activists. Former President Barack Obama would later credit her for the phrase that was a rallying cry in his 2008 campaign in a slightly modified translation, “Yes, we can.” As co-founder of what eventually became the United Farm Workers union, Huerta has been the face of a movement that for decades aimed to empower the lives of workers through higher wages, health benefits, pensions and improved safety. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); At nearly 96, she still uses her platform to advocate for marginalized groups and fight discrimination. So it shocked the world Wednesday when Huerta revealed that she was sexually abused by the movement’s co-founder, César Chavez , leading to the birth of two children, a secret she kept for 60 years. Now some are calling for Huerta’s name to replace Chavez’s on the plethora of government buildings , schools, monuments and streets that bear his name across the country. Activist roots The details of Huerta’s life and rise to activism have been told again and again over the decades through interviews and documentaries, during award ceremonies and on historic markers in her honor. She was born Dolores Clara Fernandez in 1930 in Dawson, New Mexico. Her father was a miner, union activist and state lawmaker. After her parents divorced, her mother took Huerta and her two brothers to California. The farm-rich San Joaquin Valley where Huerta grew up was a melting pot of Mexican, Filipino, African American, Japanese and Chinese working families. Her mother encouraged the cultural diversity, while her independence, entrepreneurial spirit and activism further helped form Huerta’s own aspirations. Huerta was a young, energetic elementary school teacher when she decided to answer a calling that would set her on an incredible path. Frustrated by her students’ poor living conditions, she thought she could do more by organizing farmworkers than trying to teach their hungry children. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); She met Chavez in the 1950s through her early work with a Latino civil rights group in Stockton, south of Sacramento. Wanting to focus more on the plight of farmworkers, in 1962 they started the National Farm Workers Association, which became United Farm Workers a few years later. She was a key leader and negotiator for the union. Chavez, who died in 1993, once described her as fearless, acknowledging her commitment to the cause and toughness when it came to negotiations. Huerta reaffirmed that commitment in a statement Wednesday, saying she told no one about Chavez’s abuse for decades in order to protect the movement she had dedicated her life to. “I channeled everything I had into advocating on behalf of millions of farm workers and others who were suffering and deserved equal rights,” she said. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); A long legacy Huerta has never been afraid of going toe-to-toe with lobbyists or growers. Nor was she afraid of law enforcement — she was jailed more than 20 times for demonstrating and was even seriously injured while protesting in 1988. After a long recovery, Huerta shifted focus and hit the road to campaign for women’s rights and encourage Latinas to run for office. She continues marching and speaking in cities across the country on race, poverty and women’s issues on behalf of her California-based Dolores Huerta Foundation. She campaigned for Democratic Presidents Bill Clinton, Obama and Joe Biden, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom has said he considers her a close friend. Huerta’s work over the decades earned her a number of accolades including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. When Obama presented the award in 2012, he praised her as a tenacious leader and joked that he had stolen her slogan for his campaign. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Huerta also has a spot in the National Women’s Hall of Fame, having been the first Latina to be inducted, and has received nine honorary doctorates from U.S. universities. Schools are named in her honor in California, Texas and Colorado. Her image graces many murals, and there are also Dolores Huerta streets — including an avenue in Albuquerque where part is named for her and part for Chavez. People on social media already are calling for the entire road to be named for Huerta, as members of Congress and state officials commend her and the other women for coming forward. They say no one should have to suffer in silence to protect a man or a movement. “I cannot imagine the pain and suffering they’ve endured over decades,” said U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, a Democrat from New Mexico. “Thank you for showing us what real strength is.”

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. arrives before President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Feb. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File) 2026-03-19T13:02:46Z In the Trump administration’s campaign to promote healthy eating, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has not stopped at his slogan urging people to “eat real food” to prevent disease. In recent speeches and podcast appearances, the nation’s health secretary also has claimed that diet can “cure” schizophrenia and diabetes and allow people to rid themselves of bipolar disorder diagnoses. Researchers say the comments overstate current evidence about the real and promising role that food can play in managing illness. “Food is medicine, and you can heal yourself with a good diet,” Kennedy said on comedian Theo Von’s “This Past Weekend” podcast in February. The talking point aligns with an idea from Kennedy’s “Make America Healthy Again” allies that has gotten some bipartisan support: The role of food in health deserves more attention. Scientists agree that diet can contribute to some diseases and also can be valuable in treating them. But public health advocates say Kennedy’s exaggerations are part of a pattern in which he cherry-picks and misrepresents scientific research , a tendency that he has regularly applied to vaccine science, enraging doctors. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); It is the latest example of Kennedy being “incredibly careless and irresponsible” in talking about health issues, said Kayla Hancock, director of a public health project at the advocacy group Protect Our Care. Dr. Theresa Miskimen Rivera, president of the American Psychiatric Association, fears the language could drive patients to self-medicate with food alone. “The concern always is that people can have hope and they might interpret that as, ‘Well, I don’t need medication. I do not need treatment. I just need to follow the diet,’” Rivera said. Kennedy oversteps the evidence on diet and psychiatric disorders In an early February speech at the Tennessee Capitol, Kennedy cited the work of Dr. Christopher Palmer, a Harvard Medical School researcher who in 2019 wrote about two patients with schizophrenia who experienced remission of their symptoms following a high-fat, low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet. Kennedy said that Palmer had “cured schizophrenia using keto diets.” Palmer has called that inaccurate. He told The Associated Press that “as much as I wish we had cures for mental illness or other chronic diseases, it is important that we use more precise language.” Palmer prefers the word “remission.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); During the same speech, and later on Joe Rogan’s podcast, Kennedy referred to studies “where people lose their bipolar diagnosis by changing their diet.” He said “there’s a big paper about to come out” showing results. Kennedy spokesman Andrew Nixon said those comments referred to a “growing body of research” on the issue, including a University of California, Los Angeles, study investigating the effect of a keto diet on teenagers with bipolar disorder. That study is still recruiting patients and will not be completed until March 2027, according to a posting on a federal website. Any publication would come months after that. Rivera, of the American Psychiatric Association, said Kennedy’s claims exaggerate the evidence. Studies testing the role of the ketogenic diet on mental health conditions have been small, anecdotal or pilot studies, she said. Many did not include a control group of patients following a regular diet. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “At this point, it’s premature. We cannot draw definitive conclusions,” Rivera said. “There is not enough evidence to recommend a specific diet or as a standalone, without medication such as antipsychotics or mood stabilizers.” It is true that research into the effects of ketogenic and other diets on psychiatric disorders is accelerating, Palmer said. He said 20 controlled clinical trials using the keto diet for severe mental illness are underway, with results of two trials set for publication within the next year. Palmer said he is “very enthusiastic” about diet as a promising therapy for serious psychiatric disorders, but that patients with mental illness should still talk with their doctors. “I want to implore patients: Please do not stop your medications on your own,” he said. “Please do not even try a ketogenic diet on your own as a treatment for schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Diabetes experts are split on the impact of Kennedy’s words Kennedy’s comments on Von’s podcast that “most diabetes can be cured through diet” also have been scrutinized. Some experts say the health secretary overstated the role of diet. Type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disorder, cannot be cured by diet alone, said Dr. Willa Hsueh, an Ohio State University endocrinologist and researcher. A healthy diet and exercise are keys to managing Type 2 diabetes, but it can be difficult to use those tools alone to reverse the disorder, she said. “The secretary is not wrong that it can work,” Hsueh said. “But it’s not common for people to cure themselves ... by diet alone.” Others defended Kennedy’s claims about the disease that affects 40 million people in the United States. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, a cardiologist and director of the Food is Medicine Institute at Tufts University, said a healthy diet could help “most individuals” with Type 2 diabetes lower their blood sugar levels, reverse symptoms and allow them to stop taking medications for the condition. “Whether you consider that a cure or remission, that’s medical speak, right?” Mozaffarian said. He acknowledged that Kennedy is not “always perfectly precise in the terminology and there could be risks to that.” But he welcomed the high-level focus on the role of diet in improving chronic disease. “I’d rather exaggerate and get some attention and action than keep doing what we’re doing, which is have millions of Americans suffering from diet-related diseases,” Mozaffarian said. MAHA supporters want to see more focus on food Mark Gorton, president of the Kennedy-aligned MAHA Institute, said he was not familiar with the studies Kennedy referenced, but that nutrition has been “an incredibly overlooked area in our medical system for decades.” “I think to the extent that it is possible, we should be prioritizing focusing on diet and getting back to living healthy rather than taking sick people and medicating them forever, which is the current way our system works,” Gorton said. Kody Green, a mental health advocate with schizophrenia, said that he supports healthy eating, but that he needed psychiatric medications. He worries that Kennedy’s comments could deter schizophrenia patients from trying drugs that are already stigmatized. “For some people, maybe food can help with the issues they have, but schizophrenia is a very serious mental illness,” Green said. “Until further research is done, making claims like that can be really dangerous to people in my community.” ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. ALI SWENSON Swenson covers politics and the information landscape for The Associated Press. She is based in New York. twitter JONEL ALECCIA Aleccia covers food and nutrition at The Associated Press. She is based in Southern California. twitter mailto

President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One, Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at Dover Air Force Base, Del., to attend the casualty return for the six crew members of an Air Force refueling aircraft who died when their plane crashed in western Iraq while supporting operations against Iran. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) 2026-03-19T10:29:45Z WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is facing perhaps the most daunting question of the war with Iran , one that could define his time in office: Will he put U.S. troops on the ground in Iran to secure some 970 pounds of enriched uranium that Tehran could potentially use to build nuclear weapons? Trump has offered shifting reasons for launching the war, but he has been consistent in articulating that a primary objective in joining Israel in the military action is ensuring that Iran will “never have a nuclear weapon.” The president has been more circumspect about how far he’s willing to go to follow through on his pledge to destroy Iran’s weapons program once and for all, including seizing or destroying the near-bomb-grade nuclear material that Iran possesses. Much of it is believed to be buried under the rubble of a mountain facility pummeled in U.S. bombings Trump ordered last June that he had claimed “obliterated” Tehran’s nuclear program. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); It’s a risky, complicated project that many nuclear experts say cannot be done without a sizable deployment of U.S. troops into Iran, a dangerous and politically fraught operation for the Republican president, who has vowed not to entangle the U.S. in the sort of extended and bloody Middle East conflicts that still loom large on America’s psyche. At the same time, lawmakers and experts remain concerned that if Iran hard-liners emerge from the fighting, they’ll be more motivated than ever to build nuclear weapons as they look to deter the U.S. and Israel from future military action, a dynamic that makes taking control of Iran’s enriched uranium even more critical. That stockpile could allow Iran to build as many as 10 nuclear bombs , should it decide to weaponize its program. Some lawmakers, like Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., say they remain deeply fearful that the president has put the nation on a path that will require putting troops inside Iran for what he called Trump’s confused and chaotic objectives. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “Some of the objectives that he continues to espouse simply cannot be achieved without a physical presence there -- securing the uranium cannot be done without a physical presence,” said Blumenthal, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Meanwhile, Republican allies of Trump stress that there are plans in place to deal with the enriched uranium. Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman James Risch, R-Idaho, on Wednesday cited “a number of plans that have been put on the table.” He declined to elaborate. Others acknowledged the complications of deploying troops into Iran. “No one has given me a briefing on how you would do it without boots on the ground,” said Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. “It doesn’t mean you can’t. But no one’s ever briefed me about it.” Scott added it’s not tenable to allow the stockpile to remain: “I think it would be helpful to get rid of it.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Trump and his advisers are rigidly obtuse Nearly three weeks into a conflict that’s left hundreds of people dead, tested longtime alliances and brought pain to the global economy , Trump and his top advisers have been rigidly obtuse about their deliberations over Iran’s uranium stockpile. “I’m not going to talk about that,” Trump said last week when asked about the enriched uranium. “But we have hit them harder than virtually any country in history has been hit, and we’re not finished yet.” Later that day, during an appearance in Kentucky, Trump appeared to claim the strikes had already neutralized the threat. “They don’t have nuclear potential,” he said. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters earlier this week that the administration sees no point in telegraphing “what we’re willing to do or how far we’re willing to go” while asserting “we have options, for sure.” freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); Experts say it’s doable but won’t be easy Richard Goldberg, who served as director for countering Iranian weapons of mass destruction for the National Security Council during Trump’s first term, said that seizing or destroying the enriched uranium is certainly doable, if the president decides to go that route. The U.S. and Israeli forces have been making strides toward creating the conditions — namely, establishing total air superiority — that would allow for special operations forces operators, who are trained in blowing up centrifuges and dealing with nuclear material, to conduct such an operation if the president decides to go that route. To be certain, a troops-on-the-ground effort is expected to be far more complicated than other recent high-profile, lightning-strike insertion operations, such as the January capture of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro or the May 2011 killing of Osama bin Laden , Goldberg said. And the likely need to remove rubble to get to the canisters of enriched uranium adds another layer of complexity, because it would require heavy construction equipment. freestar.queue.push(function () { window.fsAdCount = window.fsAdCount + 1 || 0; let customChannel = '/dynamic_' + fsAdCount; let adList = document.querySelectorAll(".fs-feed-ad") let thisAd = adList[fsAdCount]; let randId = Math.random().toString(36).slice(2); thisAd.id = randId; let thisPlacement = fsAdCount == 0 ? "apnews_story_feed" : "apnews_story_feed_dynamic"; freestar.newAdSlots({ placementName: thisPlacement, slotId: randId }, customChannel); }); “But if you actually own the airspace and you can have close air support and drones and everything else up in the sky for pretty wide perimeter, presumably you could do a lot,” said Goldberg, who is now a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a hawkish Washington think tank. International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi told reporters in Washington this week that the assumption is much of the enriched uranium remains in the trio of Iranian nuclear sites bombarded last year by the U.S. “The impression we have … is that it hasn’t been moved,” said Grossi, adding that a bulk of the material is beneath the rubble at Iran’s Isfahan facility while lesser amounts are at the Natanz and Fordow facilities that were destroyed in last year’s American strikes. Testifying before a Senate committee on Wednesday, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard in her prepared remarks said that the U.S. attacks on Iran had “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear enrichment program and buried underground facilities. Gabbard said the U.S. has been monitoring whether Iran’s leaders will try to restart its nuclear program but said that they have not tried to rebuild their nuclear enrichment capability. She added that the clerical authority overseeing Iranian government has been degraded in Israel’s strikes on its leadership but remains intact. Brandan Buck, a senior foreign policy fellow at the Cato Institute, said that an effort to extract or dilute the enriched material would likely take more than 1,000 troops at each Iranian site and would take time to complete. On the other hand, not acting to secure the enriched uranium also comes with risk. Should Iran’s hard-liners remain in power, and with enriched material, they will now have greater motivation to build a nuclear weapon. “Trump has put himself between a rock and a hard place,” Buck said. “Throughout this, he has had maximalist aims, but he’s wanted to maintain minimal effort in order to keep the costs low.” ___ Associated Press writers Stephen Groves, Matthew Lee and Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report. AAMER MADHANI Madhani covers the White House for The Associated Press. He is based in Washington. twitter mailto SEUNG MIN KIM Kim covers the White House for The Associated Press. She joined the AP in 2022 and is based in Washington. Kim is also a political analyst for CNN. twitter mailto