David Brouillette has a history of terrifying and violent behavior, according to those relatives. They accuse him of attacking women in his life over the years, and one shared a voicemail with the AP from last winter in which he told her that he thought someone should slit her throat.

Brouillette’s troubling past further challenges how thoroughly the Department of Homeland Security has vetted recruits as it went on a hiring spree to help carry out President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown.

At least 10 people have died in encounters with immigration agents since Trump launched the crackdown after retaking office, including 25-year-old Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a Colombian national who was shot and killed by Brouillette on Monday while in his car near his home in the coastal Maine city of Biddeford.

DHS, which hasn't released the name of the officer who killed Durán Guerrero, has said the “vehicle attempted to flee the scene and, fearing for public safety, an officer discharged his weapon.”

Brouillette didn’t respond to text messages or an email seeking comment. Three relatives who said they had spoken to him since the shooting, including an ex-wife and daughter, said he told them he acted in self-defense.

When reached for comment about Brouillette's record and his role in Monday's shooting, ICE spokesperson Lauren Bis said in a statement that, “We will never confirm or deny attempts to dox our law enforcement officers," and that “The ICE officer in question has nearly a decade of federal law enforcement experience with required training including use of force training.”

The White House referred all questions about the shooting and Brouillette to ICE.

A new career in ICE

Brouillette, 37, told his ex-wife Ashley Brouillette late last year that he had been hired by ICE. She said that because of his long history of psychiatric issues, she thought he was having a mental health episode and she didn't believe him. She didn’t realize he’d been telling the truth until this week, when videos began circulating online of the moments surrounding the shooting.

Ashley Brouillette told the AP that she spoke to her ex-husband in a Facebook audio call, and he acknowledged that he had killed Durán Guerrero. Their 18-year-old daughter, Madison Brouillette, also told the AP that her father called her Wednesday and said that he shot and killed Durán Guerrero.

David and Ashley Brouillette were high school sweethearts who got married in 2007. She said she divorced him in 2009 because he had become physically violent with her, which began after she got pregnant with their daughter.

According to Ashley Brouillette, he once threw boiling water at her while she was holding their child — an incident her mother Avis Collins also recounted.

The abuse continued after she left him, she said.

David Brouillette doesn't appear to have a criminal record in Maine, as a check with the Maine Department of Public Safety returned no records for him.

But hundreds of family court records obtained from the Augusta District Court clerk’s office detail years of allegations of physical and verbal abuse raised by his second ex-wife on behalf of herself and his daughters.

The ex-wife — whom the AP is not identifying because she fears retaliation — alleged that he had stalked and harassed her and physically and verbally abused his daughter, according to multiple requests for temporary protection orders. Brouillette tackled his teenage daughter and smashed spaghetti in her hair, and during another outburst, he dragged his daughter around the house as she cried, she said.

“Dave needs counseling or something for his PTSD & depression,” she wrote in an application for a temporary protective order on behalf of his teenage daughter which a judge granted in 2021.

In court filings, David Brouillette said that his second ex-wife had slandered him.

His oldest daughter, Madison Brouillette, said she also witnessed her dad’s volatility.

“I watched my dad struggle a lot with a lot of things,” she told the AP. She said she came home from school once and he told her he had been sitting on a tree stump with a gun to his head.

“If you don’t really, truly take care of yourself, there’s no way you can protect other people. And with my dad, he never wanted to get help,” she said.

An immediate relative of David Brouillette who spoke on the condition that their name not be used said he was diagnosed with severe bipolar disorder and attention deficit disorder as a child — a diagnosis that Ashley Brouillette confirmed. The immediate relative described him as “extremely mentally ill" and said he attempted suicide twice at age 12 and was hospitalized multiple times.

The relative said they've been estranged for years, after they broke off contact because they feared he would harm them. He did not respond to their outreach this week, the relative added.

A military deployment and law enforcement aspirations

Growing up in Gardiner, a city of about 6,000 people roughly 60 miles (97 kilometers) northeast of Biddeford, where Monday's shooting occurred, David Brouillette was enchanted by law enforcement and the military, his relatives said.

High school yearbook photos show he was a member of the school’s Naval Junior ROTC, and he wrote that he planned to go to college and become a police officer.

Brouillette was initially rejected by military recruiters because of his mental health diagnoses, but recruiters encouraged him to go off his medications for a year and reapply, which he did, his immediate relative said.

He was eventually able to enlist.

According to U.S. military records, Brouillette enlisted as a chemical equipment repairer in the Maine Army National Guard but then changed jobs to be a medical logistics specialist. He was in the Guard from November 2007 until January 2010, according to records provided by the Pentagon.

A 2009 article in the Kennebec Journal listed Brouillette as a private in the Maine Army National Guard’s 152nd Maintenance Company in Augusta.

In January 2010 he joined the regular Army as a human intelligence collector. Brouillette deployed to Afghanistan from May 2012 to February 2013 and eventually left the Army as a sergeant in December 2015.

His immediate relative believes Brouillette's time abroad worsened his emotional struggles: “Afghanistan destroyed him -- trained him to be a killing monster, a machine. They took someone who was extremely mentally ill and turned him into a killing machine.”

Life after the Army

After his discharge, Brouillette held a hodgepodge of jobs — some in or adjacent to law enforcement — and was injured in an accident while training to become a firefighter, public records and court documents show.

Brouillette worked for the Maine Correctional Center — a medium-security prison — and for the state’s Health and Human Services Department, spending less than a year at each.

In 2019, court documents show, he was a police officer at a Department of Veterans Affairs medical center near the state capital, Augusta. A Veterans Affairs department spokesperson on Thursday referred questions about Brouillette’s employment to DHS.

But by the end of 2021, he wrote in a text message included in court filings, he was broke, going to school full-time and making money delivering food for DoorDash.

Brouillette was enrolled in a firefighting program at Southern Maine Community College and was struck in the head by a steel beam while unloading a trailer at a training facility, according to a lawsuit he filed over his injury.

He sustained a concussion and post-concussive syndrome, with symptoms including impaired memory, cognitive deficits, headaches, vertigo and light sensitivity, and was unable to complete the program, according to the lawsuit, which was settled out of court.

In recent years, court filings show, he was collecting disability pay through the VA. He also drove a truck, but quit in January 2025, citing health issues.

In March 2025, Brouillette passed an exam to become a real estate sales agent. His license was active until December. In a Facebook post, Realty of Maine announced Brouillette would be working in the firm’s Bangor office.

“David lives in Maine after retiring from the United States Army,” said the post, which has since been deleted. Brouillette is no longer listed as an agent on the firm’s website. Messages seeking comment were left for Realty of Maine.

In March, the Maine agency that handles child support matters filed a lien against him, public records show. The filing suggests that Brouillette may have been in line for a permanent impairment or disability settlement.

‘I don’t think he sees himself as a killer’

In late 2025, around the time he joined ICE, his ex-wife Ashley said he left a three-minute voicemail mocking her for taking out a restraining order against him. According to the message she shared with AP, he repeatedly called her “disgusting” and suggested that she and the other women and girls in her “bloodline” should die.

“And all of you should have your f——--g throats cut,” the voicemail said. “Yeah, you should. Am I threatening that I’m gonna do that? Nope. Nope. But do I think that you should have your f——-g throats cuts? Or should have had them cut? Yep.”

She said she cut off contact with him until Wednesday, when his picture began circulating online.

Ashley Brouillette reached out to his current wife on Facebook and they spoke on the phone for several minutes. Her ex-husband spoke with her, according to cellphone screenshots of the phone exchange she shared with the AP. He acknowledged he had fatally shot Durán Guerrero.

“He was asking if I could tell them that he was a good person and not to talk about the abuse and stuff that I had endured while with him and he said that the most important thing is his character right now,” she said.

She said he told her he is now hiding in protective custody.

“I asked him why he did it,” she said. “He said it was a justified shooting. The guy was trying to run him over with a car.”

His daughter also said he told her it was justified.

“I don’t think he sees himself as a killer,” Madison Brouillette said.

“I think he thinks that he genuinely did the right thing,” she added. “All he said was that he did what he had to do. He said that he had to protect himself.”

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This story was updated to correct that that Gardiner is northeast of Biddeford.

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Brook reported from New Orleans, Sisak reported from New York and Galofaro reported from Louisville, Kentucky. Associated Press reporter Will Weissert in Washington contributed to this report.

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Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.

The thick smoke enveloped the nation’s capital in a gloomy, eerie haze and prompted Major League Baseball's Cleveland Guardians to postpone their game against Pittsburgh Pirates in Ohio.

Warnings of dangerous conditions were expected to remain in effect through Saturday across a wide swath of the U.S., though there's potential for temporary improvement with storms forecast in some affected areas during the weekend.

D.C. resident Stewart Verdery awoke Friday to take in his usual sunrise view of the city's famous landmarks from a rooftop, only to be greeted by a darkened horizon and no monuments in sight.

“It’s pretty crazy to wake up at sunrise and not see the sun when it’s not even raining,” he said by phone after posting a video of the surreal scene on X. “And it smells like somebody’s having the world’s largest cookout.”

No end in sight for smoky conditions

There may be pockets of relief at times, such as this weekend, but the smoky conditions won't be gone anytime soon as the fires continue to burn largely unchecked, cautioned Bob Oravec, a lead forecaster at the National Weather Service based in Maryland.

Wildfires are burning in the Ontario area of Canada as well as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota, which U.S. officials have closed as they fight to put out the blazes.

“The source of the smoke is going to continue on for certainly a week, probably,” Oravec said. “It’s just going to depend upon which way the wind’s blowing as to where the smoke is going to affect the most.”

On Friday, communities in Minnesota, Illinois and Michigan, including Detroit, again registered some of the worst air quality in the world, according to IQAir, an air quality monitoring website.

Not far behind Detroit was Washington, D.C., where the smoke created eerie scenes. The Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial and other national landmarks were enveloped in an orange-hued haze throughout much of the day.

People, particularly those with heart or lung disease, older adults and children, were urged to limit or avoid going outside until air quality improved.

Long-term exposure to smoky conditions can complicate existing health problems and lead to chronic and deadly issues, including respiratory illness, cardiovascular and neurological diseases and premature death, officials warned.

For Maria Travela, Friday was her first day outside since after smoke from the wildfires blanketed the Chicago area early Thursday.

“Now it’s better. This morning, it was bad,” said Travela, who has asthma and wore a mask as she crossed a bridge over the Chicago River downtown. “They were saying that, for people like me, with asthma, any kind of issues like that, it would be bad for your lungs.”

Trump criticizes Canada

Hundreds of wildfires are burning in Canada, including about 190 in northern Ontario, Premier Doug Ford said at a news conference. Flames destroyed the Namaygoosisagagun First Nation community, and 10 northern Ontario communities have been evacuated or were being evacuated, with more possible.

The increase of fire in vast Canadian forests has largely been blamed on climate change.

In response to the smoke, U.S. President Donald Trump made a social media post Friday that blamed Canada for its forest management and threatened additional tariffs on Canada.

The Canadian government didn't initially respond to questions about Trump's comments.

Asked about a Michigan lawmaker's criticism about the smoke, Ford noted Canada has helped the U.S. fight fires in the past.

“If there’s some politicians out there chirping away, maybe what you should do rather than complain is send support, send help, because we have done the exact same thing for our American friends and that’s what you’re supposed to do,” Ford said.

Conditions should improve for Sunday's World Cup final

In the New York City area, there was also concern about how the smoky air might impact Sunday's World Cup final between soccer powerhouses Spain and Argentina at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Oravec said winds will continue pushing the wildfire smoke east in the U.S., though conditions should be better on game day than on Saturday.

On Thursday, a thick haze tinged with orange and yellow darkened skies across several states and partly obscured Manhattan’s skyline.

Officials from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and other Northeast states distributed free K95 face masks, canceled outdoor programming and opened libraries and other public buildings as cooling centers where people could get a respite from the sooty air.

As Friday progressed, air quality measures improved from “unhealthy” to “moderate” in some places in and around New York City. A strong sun broke through a thin veil of smoke, and clear blue sky was visible across much of the region by Friday afternoon.

Rainstorms could bring reprieve in some places

Saturday brings a high chance of thunderstorms across much of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, which will help dampen the bad air.

Organizers of the All-American Soap Box Derby in Ohio hope air quality improves enough to allow for Saturday’s championship races. The major annual competition in Akron scrubbed Friday's events over air quality concerns.

“I think they made the right choice,” said Dayna Lincoln, a pediatric nurse practitioner from Hodgdon, Maine, whose family drove 15 hours for their 9-year-old daughter’s race on Saturday.

“I’m glad they’re not forcing the kids out into it,” she said. “There are kids with asthma and adults with respiratory conditions who could really suffer.”

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Associated Press reporters Jim Morris in Vancouver, British Columbia, John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, and Cybele Mayes-Osterman in Chicago contributed to this story.

The U.S. expanded its attacks against Iran by hitting more bridges and energy sites and collapsing a tower at a key Iranian port, following through on President Donald Trump’s threats to pressure Tehran to ease its chokehold on the waterway vital to world energy supplies.

In response, Iran launched missiles into U.S.-allied nations in the Mideast, including Qatar, a mediator in the war, and Kuwait, where one of the desert nation’s water desalination plants was damaged.

The region has endured days of back-and-forth attacks in a conflict increasingly focused on control of the strait, and the collapse of an interim ceasefire leaves no clear end in sight for the war that began more than four months ago. The U.S. Central Command said late Friday it had launched its seventh straight night of attacks aimed at degrading Iran's military.

Iranian officials say recent U.S. strikes have killed dozens of people and wounded hundreds, with new casualties reported Friday, when the U.S. military also acknowledged more injured service members.

Iran effectively closed the strait to shipping traffic after the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28. That sent the price of oil soaring and gave Iran significant leverage in negotiations. The price of oil rose Friday above $86 a barrel, close to its highest level in a month, as crossings through the strait fell to a three-week low, according to an international shipping tracker.

In an address to the American public on Thursday evening, Trump insisted the war was going well. “We are likewise winning big in Iran, and you will see the fruits of that labor very, very shortly,” he said.

Before the war began, the U.S. had been in talks with Iran over its nuclear program. Trump now faces political pressure to bring the war to a close and avoid the kind of prolonged Middle East conflict he had campaigned against.

Bridges and 'electrical infrastructure' hit in Iran

The U.S. airstrikes hit bridges overnight into Friday in Iran’s southern Hormozgan province, Iranian state television reported. The attacks hit Bandar Khamir, a city on Iran’s coast on the Strait of Hormuz.

The highway and railway bridge strikes appeared aimed at cutting off Bandar Abbas, Iran’s main port, from roads leading into the Islamic Republic’s central region onward to Tehran, the capital.

Iran acknowledged “attacks on power infrastructure” during the U.S. airstrike campaign for the first time Friday when its Energy Ministry issued a call for people to use less power in southern provinces "experiencing extreme heat.” The ministry did not specify what was hit.

Iranian authorities said at least 46 people have been killed and more than 400 wounded in recent U.S. strikes, including eight killed in a strike on a bridge Friday.

U.S. officials acknowledged 13 additional U.S. service members — 10 Army soldiers and three Navy sailors — had been injured since Monday, but offered no further details. Since the war began, 14 U.S. service members have been killed and 427 wounded.

Tower at key port collapses in US strike

Central Command said it hit dozens of military and military infrastructure targets in Friday's airstrikes.

The strikes collapsed a tower at Iran’s Chabahar port on the Gulf of Oman, a key trade route for landlocked, neighboring Afghanistan, the state-run IRNA news agency reported and the U.S. military later confirmed.

Chabahar port, which Iran had been running with support from India, has been a repeated target of American airstrikes.

Iran said the tower oversees commercial traffic into the port. But Central Command said it was part of a maritime surveillance network used by Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard to “track and target” commercial vessels in the strait.

On Friday evening IRNA, Iranian state media, reported explosions in different areas across Iran, including in the central and south of the country. Local authorities said there was a U.S attack around Ahvaz City without elaborating. IRNA also reported the sound of an explosion in Lar, Yazd and Sirik.

Iran retaliates by targeting Qatar, a mediator in the war

On Friday, Qatar twice warned the public to take shelter as a barrage of Iranian missiles targeted the nation. People heard explosions overhead as air defenses fired to intercept the missiles. Qatar’s Interior Ministry said falling debris wounded a child.

Iran also targeted Bahrain and Kuwait early Friday.

In Kuwait, authorities said Iran attacked a power and water desalination plant, causing widespread damage to the station. Kuwait said it extinguished the blaze and was working to assess the damage and get the station working again. About 90% of the country's drinking water comes from desalination.

A spokesman for Kuwait’s defense ministry said Iranian drone attacks on its army’s “facilities and camps” injured an unspecified number of personnel.

Jordan's military said it intercepted three incoming missiles Friday morning launched by Iran.

Explosions also could be heard Friday morning in Irbil and Sulaymaniyah in northern Iraq’s semiautonomous Kurdish region as air defenses targeted incoming fire. The attack apparently targeted the Iranian Kurdish dissident group Komala, killing at least nine people and wounding others, said an official who spoke on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

Iran did not immediately claim the attack but has targeted Komala in the past.

Also on Friday, a tanker came under attack traveling through the Strait of Hormuz taking the route closest to Oman, the British military said. The report from the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said the ship sustained minor damage without any of its crew being injured.

Iran did not immediately acknowledge any attack. In recent days, it has openly targeted ships using the route, which is overseen by the U.S. military and intended to be outside of Tehran’s control.

Strikes come as Iran and US vie for Strait of Hormuz

Iran has said the strait must be under its sole control and that vessels should pay fees to Tehran — even though the world for decades has considered it an international waterway.

Trump has returned in recent days to his threats to target Iranian power stations and bridges to try to compel Iran to loosen its hold on the strait, through which about a fifth of all oil and natural gas traded once passed in peacetime. The U.S. also reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports to halt its shipments of crude oil.

Crossings through the strait fell to a three-week low of just eight vessels on Thursday, according to MarineTraffic.com.

A growing amount of the region’s energy is being shipped through pipelines, but not nearly enough to offset the decline in shipping through the strait.

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Associated Press writers Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran, Annika Wolters in Rayong, Thailand, Stella Martany in Irbil, Iraq, and Konstantin Toropin in Washington, contributed to this report.

A three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit threw out Ahmed Abu Khatallah's sentence and transferred the case back to the district court in Washington, D.C., for resentencing.

A district court judge initially sentenced Khatallah to 22-year prison sentence in 2018, but the appeals court rejected it four years ago as a “shockingly” light punishment under the circumstances. The appeals court panel concluded that the 28-year sentence, which U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper handed down in 2024, remains unreasonably lenient.

The D.C. Circuit judges said a 28-year sentence does not reflect the seriousness of Khatallah’s crimes.

“Khatallah helped prepare for and execute a premeditated, armed attack on a U.S. diplomatic outpost. He pressured a Libyan security force not to patrol the Mission during the attack. And his only stated regret was that the terrorists did not kill every American at the Mission,” the appellate ruling says.

The latest appeal was decided by Judges Karen LeCraft Henderson, J. Michelle Childs and Florence Pan.

Khattala was captured in 2014 and convicted of multiple terrorism-related charges after a 2017 trial, but the jury acquitted him of murder.

The Benghazi attack became a political flashpoint in Washington. A Republican-led congressional panel's report blamed Democratic President Barack Obama's administration, including then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, for security failures and a slow response to the compound attacks.

Trump used the primetime address to the nation to elevate his yearslong push to raise doubts about the legitimacy of U.S. elections and dispute his 2020 loss — this time, to justify his push to pass a strict voter ID bill. His allegations of interference and influence didn’t include key context. Nor did he produce evidence that votes had been manipulated or that the election outcome had been altered.

Here's the latest:

‘May the best team win,’ Trump says of World Cup final

Trump is set to attend the World Cup final between Argentina and Spain, but he’s being diplomatic on which team he hopes wins.

At a FIFA reception at Trump Tower on Friday alongside FIFA President Gianni Infantino, Trump noted the final match would be between “two amazing teams.”

He did, however, single out Argentina star Lionel Messi for his play, calling out the pass he made for Argentina’s winning goal against England and a hat trick that Messi pulled off early in the tournament.

Trump called the 2026 World Cup “one of the all time greatest sporting events in history,” adding that the tournament galvanized more than just the sporting world.

“So good luck to Spain and Argentina on Sunday and may the best team win,” Trump said.

US and Iran escalate strikes across Mideast; bridges and a water plant hit

The United States and Iran escalated their attacks across the Middle East on Friday, trading strikes aimed at infrastructure and military targets as their battle over the Strait of Hormuz intensified.

The U.S. expanded its attacks against Iran by hitting more bridges and energy sites and collapsing a tower at a key Iranian port, following through on President Donald Trump’s threats to pressure Tehran to ease its chokehold on the waterway vital to world energy supplies.

In response, Iran launched missiles into U.S.-allied nations in the Mideast, including Qatar, a mediator in the war, and Kuwait, where one of the desert nation’s water desalination plants was damaged.

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Trump threatens Canada with tariffs over wildfire smoke

The president said he was “holding Canada responsible” for the U.S. “being unnecessarily invaded by filthy, polluted, and unhealthy air.”

In a post on his social media site, Trump called the situation “totally unacceptable” and said that summer smoke from fires in Canada is “becoming a yearly occurrence.”

He said he’d call Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Friday, and added that the “cost of this pollution must of necessity be added to the TARIFFS Canada is currently paying.”

The Trump administration has imposed import tariffs on some Canadian products, though the Supreme Court declared many such levies unconstitutional.

Unmentioned was the World Cup final in New Jersey on Sunday, but the White House says administration officials are monitoring the wildfire situation.

Trump urges Darline Graham to run for full Senate term as funeral scheduled for Lindsey Graham

President Donald Trump said Friday that Darline Graham, the sister of the late Lindsey Graham, has his support to run for a full term to replace her brother in the U.S. Senate.

He wrote on social media that she “has been a WINNER all of her life and, should she accept, has my Complete and Total Endorsement.”

“RUN, DARLINE, RUN!” Trump added.

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13 US troops injured in latest Iran fighting

The number of service members injured in the Iran war has gone up by 13 troops since Monday, according to the Pentagon’s official casualty count.

According to data in the Defense Casualty Analysis System, the 13 injured troops include 10 Army soldiers and three Navy sailors. No additional information was available, including the date or location of their injuries.

The new injuries come during a week of renewed and intense fighting between Iran and the U.S., with both sides launching strikes for several consecutive days.

Capt. Tim Hawkins, spokesman for U.S. Central Command, declined to offer any details about the injuries or what U.S. bases and assets have been hit in the renewed wave of fighting.

The total U.S. casualty count for the conflict now stands at 14 dead and 427 wounded. Central Command has previously said the majority of the wounded suffered traumatic brain injuries.

DHS secretary says ICE hitting arrest records ‘every single day’

Mullin said the department is ramping up enforcement and hitting records for the number of arrests.

“Our arrests are up. We’re hitting single day records every single day,” Mullin said.

Mullin also said the agency deported 442,637 people in 2025 and so far this year has deported 403,294.

“We’re trying to perfect our ability to work with local law enforcement, state law enforcement,” he said.

ICE and DHS do not release regular data related to deportations, arrests and detention, leading to criticism that there’s no way to verify their work.

Unlike his predecessor Kristi Noem, Mullin has attempted to keep a lower profile for immigration enforcement operations. But the recent shooting deaths of two people who were killed by ICE officers during operations has brought the department back into the spotlight.

Trump’s envoy greeted by protests in Venice on latest stop of super yacht diplomacy tour

The billionaire U.S. ambassador to Italy was met by protests when he arrived in Venice on Friday aboard his luxury yacht as part of a coastal diplomacy tour marking the 250th anniversary of American independence.

Hospitality mogul Tilman Fertitta’s arrival represents an unwelcome display of American wealth and influence for many Italians at a time when they see the Trump administration as upending the post-World War II international order.

The so-called Coastal Diplomacy 250 tour of 13 Italian coastal regions on a super yacht is intended to celebrate “our shared history, our economic partnership, and the cultural bonds that make the U.S.-Italy relationship so special,” Fertitta said in a social media post.

In Venice, many of the same groups that protested the wedding last year of Jeff Bezos to Lauren Sanchez are mobilizing against Fertitta’s arrival aboard the 117-meter (384-foot) luxury yacht, Boardwalk, which features two helipads, a pair of swimming pools and a fully equipped spa and gym.

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Mullin won’t comment on ICE shootings and says arrests are up

The Homeland Security secretary said during a news conference that he hadn’t heard about allegations of violent behavior against a deportation officer who shot and killed a Colombian man in Maine earlier this week.

Relatives of the officer told The Associated Press he struggled with serious mental health issues, had a history of violent behavior and never should have been given a badge and gun.

Mullin said the shooting was being investigated and he’d allow the investigation to go forward.

“We understand that it’s being investigated, and we’ll allow the investigation to go through. That’s all I’m going to say about that,” said Mullin.

He wouldn’t comment on whether the officer was on leave but said that was standard practice in the aftermath of any shooting.

DHS secretary pledges to aggressively chase voter fraud cases

Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said if anyone votes illegally in the upcoming midterm elections, “we will hunt you down, we will find you and we will prosecute you.”

In a White House briefing doubling down on Trump’s primetime election claims, Mullin also threatened fines, penalties or prison time for state election officials who refuse to hand over sensitive voter data to DHS.

He said states that don’t elect to use DHS’s recently updated tool for identifying noncitizen voters, will become “a priority” for investigations.

The comments come as a federal judge has blocked the use of DHS’s updated system, citing voter privacy and the fact that it can result in the wrongful purging of eligible voters.

Why American elections are so complicated — and secure

In his speech to the nation Thursday evening, President Trump said Americans deserve secure elections, and he claimed to be using federal authority to prevent them from being “stolen.”

In fact, one of the strongest security features of U.S. elections is the fact that they aren’t conducted at the federal level. America votes in more than 10,000 different election jurisdictions, each with different rules set by state and sometimes local governments.

That structure makes the nation’s elections extraordinarily complicated — and also safe from widespread fraud. And when misconduct does happen — rarely — security protocols frequently catch it.

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ICE has seen a surge in new hires

In January, Homeland Security said it had hired 12,000 new officers and agents since the hiring surge began and said thousands of those new officers were already out on the streets assisting with investigations. The number includes both deportation officers and agents for Homeland Security Investigations, a separate agency that falls under ICE.

ICE has said the majority of new hires are police and military veterans. But evidence has been mounting that applicants with questionable histories were either not fully vetted before they were brought on or were hired in spite of their past, an investigation by The Associated Press earlier this year found.

Maine shooting and officer’s background raise new questions about ICE’s rapid hiring

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been rapidly expanding its workforce, hiring thousands of new officers as part of the Trump administration’s attempt to ramp up immigration arrests and deportations.

The supersizing of ICE — fueled by an infusion of billions of dollars granted by Congress — has raised concerns about the agency’s hiring practices and whether officers being brought on are receiving proper vetting. Those concerns have been rejected by the Department of Homeland Security.

Relatives of the ICE officer who shot a Colombian man in Maine this week told The Associated Press he struggled with serious mental health issues since early childhood and never should have been given a badge and gun to patrol American streets.

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Lawmakers demand answers after ‘bombshell’ report of ICE officer shooting in Maine

Democratic members of Congress demanded answers about Homeland Security’s vetting and training of immigration enforcement agents after it was disclosed Thursday that the ICE officer involved in a deadly shooting this week in Maine had a history of mental health issues and violent behavior.

The Associated Press reported that David Brouillette, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who shot a Colombian man in Maine, is an Army veteran who’s struggled with serious mental health issues since early childhood, according to several of his close relatives.

The AP reached out to congressional leaders and several key lawmakers of both parties for response.

The top Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, said Brouillette’s history of violence and mental health issues, as well as the death in Maine, “directly call into question the supposed vetting and training ICE does of its recruits.”

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To air or not to air? Nation’s TV networks struggle to find the right balance for Trump speech

As President Trump threatened sanctions for those who didn’t cover his address live Thursday night, the nation’s broadcast and cable news operations wrestled with the thorniest of questions: To air or not to air?

Networks and their news operations, broadcast and cable alike, spent the hours leading up to Trump’s address debating how to cover it — and struggling to balance delivering the news with handing over their airwaves to potential falsehoods about the 2020 elections.

In the end, a patchwork quilt of coverage was largely united by one common strategy: real-time fact-checking as much as was possible even while the president was still speaking.

The dilemma took place against a backdrop of deep tension between the media and a president working to exert control over it by whatever means he can. Even in his speech itself, Trump excoriated networks that chose not to carry it live.

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Rubio set for Asia trip

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is heading to the Philippines next week to attend meetings with foreign ministers at a gathering of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN.

The State Department says Rubio is going to meet with his counterparts and senior officials from governments in the region as he pushes for a free and open Indo-Pacific.

Rubio is scheduled to leave for Manila on Sunday and head back to the U.S. on Thursday.

China rejects Trump’s election interference claim as ‘groundless accusations’

China on Friday said it has never interfered in U.S. elections and has no interest in doing so, urging Washington to stop making what it described as “groundless accusations” after President Trump accused Beijing of meddling in the 2020 election.

In an address to the nation Thursday, Trump again raised doubts about the U.S. elections results in 2020 and accused China of interfering in them.

“The relevant allegations by the U.S. are entirely fabricated and aimed at vilifying China,” said China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian. “We have no interest in interfering in US elections and have never done so.”

In a daily briefing in Beijing, Lin called on the U.S. to stop making groundless accusations against China.

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Former intelligence official calls Trump’s address ‘dangerous’

Sue Gordon, principal deputy director of national intelligence in Trump’s first term, called the president’s address “a dangerous speech about an incredibly important topic.” She said the intelligence community throughout Trump’s first term was alarmed about foreign interference in elections, but Trump scoffed at them, angered at the investigation of his campaign’s relationship with Russia.

“He had an entire term to deal with it and I don’t know how you can believe how the same community that told him about it, that was excoriated about it” wouldn’t warn him in 2020, Gordon said on CNN.

Conservative commentator John Solomon, who joined the White House staff last month and was seated in the East Room for Trump’s speech, later told MS NOW “the intelligence community has zero evidence that someone has flipped — that a foreign power flipped — a vote in 2020, ’22 or ’24.”

But, he added, “We’re not through all the documents.”

Trump doesn’t raise doubts about his election wins

President Donald Trump began Thursday night with a stark warning about what he described as flaws in the voting system and said he was releasing previously classified documents related to the 2020 and 2018 elections, when he lost the presidential election and when his party suffered losses.

Trump’s speech presented allegations of interference and influence in ways that lacked key context and did not produce evidence that votes had been manipulated or that the election outcome had been altered.

Notably, he focused on China but glossed over Russia, a country intelligence officials have said favored Trump in 2016 and 2020 and engaged in wide-ranging influence campaigns aimed at boosting him over Democrat Joe Biden in the latter campaign.

Trump’s Thursday night address hinged on contradictions

A twice-elected president complained about his one personal defeat, alleged a cover-up by officials in his own first administration and surfaced claims about countries attempting to harm his own prospects while staying silent on steps taken by other nations to boost him.

Trump used the remarks to justify his push to pass a strict voter ID bill in Congress that hasn’t advanced because it lacks enough support from his fellow Republicans.

“America is back and doing really well, but we still have a major challenge that must be urgently addressed, because no country can be great without fair and honest elections,” he said.

Judge hasn't played since May 31 because of the stress fracture in his right ribs. He had a scan during the All-Star break and called the result positive news.

“Part of it's healing. The other part of its still trying to bridge together,” the three-time AL MVP said before the Yankees started the second half Friday night against the two-time World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.

Judge and the Yankees were waiting for an evaluation of the scans from Dr. Gregory J. Pearl, chair of the department of vascular surgery at Baylor Hamilton Heart and Vascular Hospital in Texas. Judge will need another scan before he is cleared for baseball activities and given a time frame for a return.

“I’m going to wait for the doctors to kind of tell us what to do and what they see when they look at it,” Judge said. “We got a big team of guys looking at this just so we get the best answer and have the right plan.”

Judge is hitting .248 with 17 homers and 38 RBIs but had just one homer in his last 18 games. The 34-year-old outfielder has done lower-body work, treadmill and climbing steps but no baseball activities or heavy weightlifting. He's stopped the bicycle work he did earlier in the layoff.

“It’s feeling better. It was a couple weeks that were tough, couldn’t do a lot, but now we’re feeling 10 times better,” he said. “So that was my big complaint, well, if I’m feeling better, how about we start moving? But I think they just don’t want to start adding baseball activities and other stuff and all of a sudden we have a setback and it pushes everything back.”

When he is able to play, Judge doesn't want to go on a minor league injury rehabilitation assignment.

“I hate rehab games, so I got to to talk with them about all that, because why waste at-bats in a rehab game?” Judge said.

New York was 36-23 when he last played but was 18-19 since as the second half began Friday.

“I feel good about the fact that he will be back but it's just a matter of when,” manager Aaron Boone said.

Fried set to rehab in minors and other Yankees injury news

Left-hander Max Fried, out since May 14 because of left elbow bone bruise, was to make his first rehab start on Friday for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre against Worcester and will have at least one more minor league outing.

Left-hander Carlos Rodón, who has not pitched since June 28 because of left elbow inflammation, threw 10 pitches off a mound Friday but has not progressed to a bullpen session.

Designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton, who hasn’t played since April 24 because of a strained right calf, started a running progression outdoors.

Clarke Schmidt, coming back from Tommy John surgery on July 11 last year, was set to throw an inning of batting practice Saturday.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB

In a dramatic late-evening development after a 4-under 66, DeChambeau was taken back out to the fifth hole for a rules review. Footage taken during his round showed him stomping around in high grass to the right of the fairway trying to figure out his shot 72 yards out from the hole.

DeChambeau was seen in a lengthy, heated exchange with rules officials — at one point, he waved his arms and pointed in clear frustration — before being driven back to the scoring tent, where he was followed by officials including R&A chief executive Mark Darbon.

The verdict then came in: DeChambeau was deemed to have inadvertently improved the area of his intended swing by tamping down a section of grass behind the ball that might have affected his backswing on the shot.

His bogey 5 on the No. 5 was turned into a triple-bogey 7 and the two-shot penalty turned his score to a 68, leaving him three shots behind, tied for fifth place.

DeChambeau left for the range, saying only, “Are you guys having a good night?” as he walked past dozens of reporters, and stopped to sign an autograph before hitting balls in twilight.

His agent, Brett Falkoff, was asked if the two-time U.S. Open champion would play Saturday and he replied: “We’ll see.”

It is proving an action-packed trip to Royal Birkdale for DeChambeau, who was accused by Nick Faldo of having “zero clue of strategy” when the three-time Open champion spoke on the Sky Sports Golf podcast ahead of the tournament.

After shooting 67 in the first round, DeChambeau skipped media, though later agreed to take a few questions from the R&A.

His answers were pointed. “I feel like I did a really good job today of being incredibly strategic," he said, before later adding: "I feel like my strategy was nice today.”

DeChambeau — one of the most high-profile players in golf — left the PGA Tour for LIV Golf in 2022 and still plays on the breakaway circuit, while continuing to produce videos on his YouTube channel that has 2.77 million subscribers.

He draws attention more than pretty much any golfer, as Friday proved.

The ruling explained

At issue for DeChambeau was whether he violated Rule 8 that governs the intended swing.

“An improvement means to alter one or more of the conditions affecting the stroke so that the player gains a potential advantage for the stroke," Grant Moir, the R&A's executive director for governance, told reporters.

“The player," Moir continued, “must take the least intrusive course of action to deal with the particular situation and is not entitled to a normal stance or swing.”

Moir said this applied “even when the action is accidental, as it was in Bryson’s case.”

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Ester, who died on July 9 at the age of 78, was among a few remaining witnesses to King’s assassination and its immediate aftermath in Memphis. With the passing of the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. in February and Ester this month, King aide and former U.N. ambassador Andrew Young is believed to be the last surviving eyewitness to the shooting.

Ester Grew up in Memphis attending Centenary United Methodist Church, where her pastor was civil rights leader the Rev. James Lawson.

“We used to joke about colored water being Kool-Aid and the white water just being water, and so that satisfied us as children,” Ester told The Associated Press in 2018, around the 50th anniversary of King’s death. “But until you see the racism, until you see what has been withheld from you because of your color — is what started to really truly anger me. And I knew if there was a movement that could help change any of that, I had to be in it.”

Civil rights issues were often discussed from the pulpit of her church, Ester said. Lawson was very involved in the sanitation workers’ strike, so it was natural for her to become involved too.

“I got to the point that I didn’t miss a mass meeting,” she said. “I picketed every day that the picket lines were up.”

Even 50 years later, she clearly remembered the impact of hearing King's speech at the Mason Temple the night before he was assassinated and how it seemed to foreshadow his death the next day.

“He had seen the mountaintop,” Ester said. “It was evident on the balcony — how calm."

Ester had gone to the Lorraine Motel for dinner on April 4, 1968, when she saw King chatting on the balcony with people below. Then she heard a shot.

“He was speaking calmly and pleasantly to a crowd,” she said. "And so he was happy at that moment. But to lay there with his eyes open, looking toward heaven. He had seen the promised land, and he may not get there with us, but he promised that we as a people will see the promised land.”

Ester said she ran to King and saw he was struggling for air. She tried to loosen his belt and asked someone to bring towels to try to staunch the bleeding. After King was taken away by ambulance, she had to stay at the hotel, where she was questioned by police.

When she was finally allowed to go home, her parents asked if she was OK.

“I said, ‘No, I’m not OK. There’s something wrong with this.’ And it was many months later that I guess at some point, I just broke down," Ester said.

She left Memphis to work elsewhere that summer, and as soon as she finished school, she left for good.

“It’s just too much to ... it hurt me that it happened, but it hurt me that it happened in my hometown, that that’s the legacy for this city,” she said.

Ester moved to Mobile, Alabama, where she found work as a neighborhood organizer at the Dumas Wesley Community Center, a Christian service program supporting children, seniors and people experiencing homelessness, according to her obituary. She later was named the executive director of the center, serving in that role until she retired in 2006.

In 1986, she was commissioned as a deaconess in the United Methodist Church, a type of lay minister . She remained active in the church throughout her life and held leadership roles that included serving as the national vice president of United Methodist Women.

Methodist Bishop David Graves met Ester when he was assigned to the Alabama-West Florida Conference in 2016. He wrote in a remembrance that Ester did not take to him at first, but gradually they came to love each other.

“Thank you, Clara Ester, for a life well lived and for loving me. It changed me,” he wrote. “Clara will be missed immensely, but what a day of rejoicing is going on in heaven. For love will always find a way for those who trust in Jesus and seek to love even in our differences.”

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Former Associated Press reporter Adrian Sainz contributed from Memphis.

Maitlin White, 29, was charged with two counts of online impersonation and court records show she accepted a plea deal Friday morning.

• ‘Despicable’: Florida woman arrested in connection to fake GoFundMe impersonating Hill Country flood victim’s family

“It is inexcusable how she sought to prey on the emotions of our community and abused the family of Chloe Childress who have endured an unimaginable tragedy,” Harris County Constable Precinct One Alan Rosen, said in a statement. “Let this be a warning to anyone else who ever seeks to engage in such schemes in the future.”

According to court records, she told investigators she was a single mother of two children looking to make quick money and used her cell phone to set up a fake GoFundMe impersonating Chloe Childress’ family.

“The last thing they needed to do was have somebody that was profiting off of their daughter,” Rosen said. “To take advantage of a situation where a family is already devastated, to take further advantage of them, it’s sad.”

The plea deal comes as flood waters rise in the same region again, one year later.

“As you want to help and as big as your heart is to want to give to people that are suffering so greatly right now ... just verify, do a little due diligence, do a little homework, vet the sources before you just go and give money really quickly,” Rosen said.

In an alert Friday, the Texas Attorney General’s Office urged Texans to avoid wire transfers or confirming any personal or financial information to avoid scams and ensure any support goes to legit organizations.

GoFundMe told us White’s account has been banned from future fundraising on the platform.

Records show she will earn 111 days credit for time served.

In a Friday press conference in Uvalde, Gov. Greg Abbott said the Nueces River, which runs alongside some of the hardest-hit counties in Central Texas, remains a danger to the region. 

“The worst of the rain is behind us,” Abbott said. “But … very importantly … for a while, as in for days, the rivers are going to continue to rise because of the flow of water downstream. Residents and leaders need to understand the rivers will still rise and still pose life-threatening danger to anybody near those rivers.” 

Forecasters agreed. Over the weekend, the Frio River will likely crest when it reaches Derby, about 59 miles south of Uvalde. The Nueces River could crest for a longer period of time, forecasters said, as it accumulated more water from the heavy rainfall earlier in the week. Forecasters expect both rivers to reach major flood stages, and said counties should remain on high alert as it wouldn’t take significant rainfall for an emergency scenario to occur. 

The rain that battered northern Uvalde, western Kerr and Edward counties has also let up, forecasters said, with less than an inch of rain falling on those areas since early morning Friday. 

“We’ve got a pretty good handle on how those rivers are going to be behaving over the next few days,” said Harrison Tran, a forecaster with the National Weather Service’s San Antonio and Austin office. “Sometimes the rate of rise can be quick, but it’s not a flash flood in the sense that it’s not immediate. The heavy rain falls, and then within a few hours, the rivers and streams respond. This is more of a gradual rise over the course of several hours or days.”

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos

Here’s what you need to know

• State officials warn rivers could still rise
• A look at where rain fell and rivers rose this week
• Crystal City orders evacuations
• Cleanup efforts underway in Uvalde
• Uvalde was among the hardest hit by storms, floods
• Drifting anti-immigrant buoys briefly close 2 Rio Grande bridges
• Laredo told to prepare for moderate flooding
• Flood risk remains for parts of Texas after days of rain
• Hill Country residents face renewed anxiety amid new flooding
• Governor confirms second flood-related death
• Kerr County flood victim identified
• Hill Country preparing for another night of floods, swelling rivers
• Sid Miller declares agricultural emergency amid drowned livestock, flooded crops
• Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country steps in
• Rain to ease in the afternoon but more could be coming
• Camp CAMP says all are safe 
• Kendall County rescues two, shelters nearly 70
• Dam floodgates to open along Highland Lakes system 
• One person has died in the flooding, Gov. Abbott says
• More than 40 rescued as rain pummels Uvalde
• Flash flood emergency declared for Pedernales River
• Life-threatening flooding in 14 counties, weather service says
• Additional rain expected to batter Kerr and Uvalde counties after a long night of showers 
• Life-threatening floodwaters endanger southwest Texas
• Dangerous flood wave moving down Guadalupe River near Center Point

July 17, 2026, 5:00 p.m.

State officials warn rivers could still rise

Even as the rain lets up, officials on Friday said they still expect floodwaters moving downstream to cause rivers to rise and threaten surrounding communities.

“We want everyone just for the next 24 to 48 hours to be fully aware of the danger that water can provide to your life right now,” Gov. Greg Abbott said at a press conference in Uvalde on Friday.

The Nueces River, which snakes around Uvalde, is currently one of the greatest threats, Abbott said. The state has already deployed thousands of first responders and vehicles, as well as boats and aircraft, leading to rescues of about 270 people.  Local officials in the Uvalde and Zavala regions have rescued an additional 300 people in the area.

“It’s still a very dynamic situation where we had days of 10 or 15 inches of rain. Another day of one or two inches of rain could produce equally catastrophic impacts,“ W. Nim Kidd, the chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management, said. “So we are not out of this fight yet.”

Abbott also declared a major disaster declaration on Friday, opening the door to federal aid to help rebuild after the floods. The disaster declaration will include at least 28 counties hit hardest by the floods. 

— Sneha Dey

July 17, 2026, 4:35 p.m.

A look at where rain fell and rivers rose this week

The National Weather Service issued a report listing rainfall observations from the hardest-hit counties as of Friday. Four locations in Uvalde and Kerr counties measured more than 2 feet of rain between Monday and Friday.

That heavy rainfall caused major flooding along multiple rivers Thursday. Those water levels had receded by Friday afternoon, but flood warnings remained in effect as water continued downstream.

— Dan Keemahill

July 17, 2026, 2:24 p.m.

Crystal City orders evacuations

Residents in the Mexico Chico neighborhood of Crystal City, a community to the south of town, have been ordered to evacuate their homes. The neighborhood, which is south of town, sits near the Espantosa River Slough. 

Local officials said in an announcement around noon that U.S. Border Patrol agents, the police, and volunteer fire department personnel would go door-to-door to help residents evacuate. 

Crystal City is 40 miles south of Uvalde.

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos

July 17, 2026, 2:13 p.m.

Cleanup efforts underway in Uvalde

Signs of chaos from flooding could be seen on nearly every street in some form across the city of Uvalde on Friday as cleanup is underway by officials and residents returning home.

Water lines marking the flood’s peak reached 3 feet in some Uvalde homes as potted plants, yard decorations and detritus was flung throughout neighborhoods.

Debris has already been pushed aside on highly traveled roadways, but several roads in residential neighborhoods were still closed in the early afternoon. Alerts went out to residents in the afternoon warning that FM 2369 had been closed due to pavement damage.

Water was still overflowing from the Leona River into Uvalde Memorial Park where workers cleared debris behind Uvalde’s civic center. Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to deliver an update on statewide recovery efforts at the center later this afternoon.

— Ayden Runnels

July 17, 2026, 1:30 p.m.

Uvalde was among the hardest hit by storms, floods

Uvalde, among the hardest hit by the storms and floods that swept the Texas Hill Country, continues to grapple with the aftermath of a dayslong stretch of heavy rainfall, even as rain subsided through the night and early morning Friday. 

Up to 28 inches of rain lashed parts of the county over the last five days, forecasts indicate, and much of it filled rivers and creeks as the soil became oversaturated, worsening road conditions and diminishing prospects of immediate relief. Most of that rain fell in Uvalde County’s northern portion.

On social media, images showed flooded or damaged roads and a collapsed bridge.

Just this morning, the Texas Department of Transportation said the U.S. 90 corridor had reopened after closing earlier this week due to deteriorating weather conditions. 

Texas game wardens had conducted 147 rescues and 83 evacuations across eight counties as of 3 p.m. Thursday, with a video showing the team using a helicopter to rescue a family in Uvalde from a flooded house.

Gov. Greg Abbott is expected to hold a news conference in Uvalde at 3 p.m.

— Katlyn Ma and Carlos Nogueras Ramos 

July 17, 2026, 11:25 a.m.

Drifting anti-immigrant buoys briefly close 2 Rio Grande bridges

About 100 buoys that the federal government planned to install as anti-immigration deterrents near Eagle Pass drifted into the Rio Grande, prompting officials to close two key bridges along the U.S.-Mexico border for about three hours, reopening them just after midnight Friday.

Eagle Pass shut down transit at the bridges while it worked to determine whether the buoys posed a threat, City Manager Homero Balderas said. About 9,000 vehicles cross both bridges daily, transiting between Eagle Pass and Las Piedras.

Read the full story

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos and Katlyn Ma

July 17, 2026, 10:55 a.m.

Laredo told to prepare for moderate flooding

National forecasters warned Laredo residents to expect the Rio Grande river to enter flood stage Saturday night, with highest levels of nearly 21 feet expected by Sunday evening. River levels are typically under 5 feet.

A moderate flood warning has been issued for Webb County, meaning water can be several feet deep in low-lying areas, said Kirsten Snodgrass, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Laredo is “susceptible to flash flooding,” and officials are now meeting with the weather service to assess the current forecast for next steps, she said. 

The Amistad and Falcon reservoirs – upstream and downstream of Laredo on the Rio Grande – are not included in the warning.

— Katlyn Ma

July 16, 2026, 11:35 p.m.

Flood risk remains for parts of Texas after days of rain

Parts of southwest Texas and the Hill Country endured a third night in a row of heavy rain and flash flooding that has left at least two people dead and forced evacuations. 

The Hill Country, the Rio Grande Plains and the southern Edwards Plateau remain among the hardest-hit areas with “life-threatening flooding” and “locally catastrophic flash floodings of creeks, streams, and other low-lying locations”, according to the National Weather Service. 

The agency forecasts rainfall totals of 2 to 4 inches for that region, with isolated areas potentially receiving up to 8 inches overnight and into Friday morning. Experts warn that the additional rainfall could worsen an already critical situation. 

As of Thursday night, seven locations were experiencing major flooding or at significant risk: the Pedernales River at Johnson City; the Guadalupe River near Spring Branch; Cibolo Creek at Sutherland Springs; Cibolo Creek near Falls City; the Frio River below Dry Frio near Uvalde; the Nueces River at Laguna; and the Nueces River below Uvalde. 

Water levels at all of these locations are expected to recede on Friday. 

— Alejandro Santos Cid 

July 16, 2026, 11:35 p.m.

Hill Country residents face renewed anxiety amid new flooding

For many Hill Country residents, Thursday’s flooding brought back the familiar levels of wreckage and trauma that they suffered through during the July 2025 floods that killed 119 people in Kerr County.  

In many parts of the county and elsewhere, scenes were strikingly similar: fences lined with debris and personal effects, cars strewn in all directions and water lines that hugged the bottoms of homes. The response by Hill Country community members echoed last year, too, as neighbors coalesced in one another’s homes to help begin cleanup and shelters welcomed those displaced with hot meals and clean clothes.

Rain in the early morning Thursday pushed the Guadalupe River in Comfort to as much as 37 feet and the Pedernales River to 34 feet in Fredericksburg, according to river gauges.  Near Kerrville last year, the Guadalupe River in Hunt spiked to a record-breaking 37.5 feet on July 4. 

Those who have lived along the rivers have been accustomed to flooding for decades, but the sudden overflow last year caught even longtime residents off-guard. Since then, residents sought solace in the idea that the river’s sudden swelling had been a once-in-a-century event — an apparent illusion shattered in the early hours Thursday.

“When it did it last year, we’re like, ‘Oh my God, it’s never happened before, ever, so maybe it won’t happen again in our lifetime,’” said Sherri Steadham, who lives in Center Point within eyesight of the river. “And here we are, a year and a few days later.” 

Though the rate of flooding and the severity of human casualties have differed — two people have died, as of Thursday evening — watching the waters rise and taking calls from trapped residents reminded many first responders of the fear-stricken residents they saved from  harrowing floodwaters last year.

“When that rain’s hitting really hard, and you hear it pounding, you can see the look on their faces,” said Razor Dobbs, a volunteer firefighter at Center Point Fire Department, who responded to last year’s flood. “You can see the look on their faces, this is it.

Read the full story

— Ayden Runnels and Ellie Ashby

July 16, 2026, 5:48 p.m.

Governor confirms second flood-related death

Gov. Greg Abbott confirmed Thursday at a press conference that two people died in the ongoing flooding across south-central Texas.

The victims are John Mark Steward, 65, of Kerrville, who was swept away in an RV near Comfort along the Guadalupe River, and a 74-year old man in Uvalde County who was swept away while driving across a flooded roadway.

Abbott warned that life-threatening, catastrophic flooding remains the biggest threat through tonight and into early Friday, with additional risks of tornadoes. Flood watches remain in effect for 59 counties.

The state has mobilized about 2,350 emergency responders, more than 1,400 vehicles and specialized equipment, 85 boats and 21 aircraft. Officials have completed over 230 rescues.

“Protecting life remains our top priority,” Abbott told reporters, emphasizing that response efforts — not recovery — are the focus as conditions continue to change rapidly.

Abbott said last year’s deadly flooding served as “a warning” that prompted a more aggressive response this year, including the early evacuation of more than 80 people from campgrounds before rivers began to rise. He said that first responders are applying the lessons learned from last year and being “very aggressive.” 

He added that state leaders will review this flooding event after the emergency ends to determine whether additional emergency management or flood-related legislation is needed.

“We will take experiences gained from this flooding event and evaluate if further laws are needed, or the existing walls need to be recalibrated,” he said. 

– Alejandra Martinez

July 16, 2026, 4:15 p.m.

Kerr County flood victim identified

John Mark Steward, a 65-year-old Kerrville resident, was identified by his wife as the first victim of flash flooding that has swept through southwest Texas and the Hill Country this week. 

“My heart is broken. I am devastated. My husband, Mark, was found and went to be with Jesus,” said his widow, Jennie Steward, in a statement on social media. “Mark, my love, I will forever be grateful for the beautiful years we shared together. You made me a better person. I love you all.” 

The mobile home where Mark and Jennie lived on Junction Highway, Kerr County, which runs  parallel with the Guadalupe River, was swept away and destroyed by the rising water on Thursday morning. Only John Mark Steward was inside the home at the time — his wife had traveled to Dallas.

At 3:06 a.m., Steward called a neighbor to tell him that his home was floating away, according to the Houston Chronicle. He phoned his neighbor a final time to say his home had been destroyed before the line went dead.

Steward was a caretaker at Sage Park Guadalupe, an assisted living facility for seniors, the Chronicle said. Before that, he worked as a pest control technician. Wednesday marked the couple’s third wedding anniversary.

Steward’s cousin, Maranda Freeman, shared her condolences in a Facebook post. “Our family is completely heartbroken by this loss,” Freeman said. “While we had been holding onto hope and praying for a miracle, we now find comfort in knowing that he has been found and is at peace in the arms of our Lord.” 

— Alejandro Santos Cid 

July 16, 2026, 3:44 p.m.

Hill Country preparing for another night of floods, swelling rivers

Parts of the Texas Hill Country are preparing for one more round of heavy rain tonight, National Weather Service forecasters said.  

While showers and storms may briefly decrease early this evening, another round of thunderstorms is expected to redevelop overnight across portions of the Hill Country, southern Edwards Plateau, and the Rio Grande. Although the storms are not expected to be as widespread as in previous nights, the flood threat remains extremely high.

“There’s no more room to take rainfall,” forecaster Jason Runyen said at an afternoon webinar.

After days of relentless rain, saturated ground means any additional rainfall will immediately run off, worsening flash floods. Areas west of Interstate 35 and north of the U.S. 90 corridor are especially vulnerable.

Several rivers remained at dangerous levels as “catastrophic flash floods” continued Thursday afternoon. The Nueces River below Uvalde is expected to crest at a record high above 27 feet tonight into Friday, creating downstream concerns for Crystal City. The Pedernales River, which has already experienced devastating flooding, crested near 34 feet upstream and is now sending a major flood wave toward Johnson City, where rapid rises are expected in the evening before water levels slowly begin to recede.

Forecasters expect rainfall to decrease beginning Friday night and through the weekend. 

— Alejandra Martinez

July 16, 2026, 3:39 p.m.

Sid Miller declares agricultural emergency amid drowned livestock, flooded crops

Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller declared an agricultural emergency in response to the torrential flooding in the state. This comes after reports of drowned livestock and flooded crops in some areas. 

Miller’s declaration allows the Texas Department of Agriculture to use relief resources to help farmers, ranchers and other businesses related to agriculture as they recover from widespread flood damage. 

In a statement, Miller said Texas agriculture is taking another blow. 

“Families who make their living on the land are watching their crops, livestock, and homes threatened by rising floodwaters,” Miller said. 

There are reports of hundreds of livestock trapped and potentially drowned along the Pedernales River and Cibolo Creek near Falls City. Similar reports have come out of the Frio and Nueces Rivers near Uvalde.

Miller also encouraged people to help recovery efforts by donating to the department’s relief fund. 

— Jayme Lozano Carver

July 16, 2026, 3:16 p.m.

“We knew that there would be a role for philanthropy”

A little more than one year after mobilizing to raise and distribute millions of dollars for response and recovery from the devastating July 4 flood in Kerr County, the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country launched a new flood relief fund Thursday.

The fund will support communities in the 10-county region that the foundation supports, which includes hard-hit Uvalde, Gillespie and Kendall Counties in addition to Kerr. 

Some in the area woke to relentless rain Thursday morning, and the foundation leader realized a similar flooding scenario was unfolding, foundation Chief Executive Officer Austin Dickson said. Organization leaders felt prepared to take action to help. 

“There is a significant number of evacuations, water in homes and businesses, roads and bridges washed out, many physically damaged,” Dickson said. “It was at that point that we knew that there would be a role for philanthropy and long-term recovery.”

In San Antonio, San Antonio Animal Care Services put out a call for people to help temporarily foster dogs as a surge of animals arrived because of the weather. Volunteers were directed to 4710 State Highway 151 to meet dogs that needed immediate homes.

— Emily Foxhall

July 16, 2026, 1:32 p.m.

Rain to ease in the afternoon but more could be coming

After hours of incessant rainfall, forecasters at the National Weather Service said hard-hit parts of Texas can expect some relief Thursday afternoon but warned that the storms could return in the evening. 

Forecasters are monitoring northern Uvalde, Del Rio and Bandera counties, where since morning storm systems have formed over already drenched areas. Those storms migrated north to Kerr County, exacerbating flooding and spiking the Guadalupe River to dangerous levels. 

Forecasters estimate it is raining at a rate of two inches an hour. That’s down from earlier reports of six inches of rain in some areas, but the soil is so saturated that the water is running off, resulting in flooding. 

“The rainfall rates have come down, fortunately, from what they were earlier,” forecasters said. 

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos

July 16, 2026, 1:05 p.m.

Camp CAMP says all are safe 

Summer camps near Hunt were not flooded, Gov. Abbott said during a Thursday news conference, adding that his office is still getting updates on others and could not confirm any more details. 

The Kerr County Sheriff’s Office said all camps in the county have been contacted and confirmed that their campers are safe.

The Children’s Association for Maximum Potential, a beloved program for individuals with disabilities known as Camp CAMP near the Guadalupe River, said Thursday that campers and staff would remain in the campgrounds, which stand 80 feet above the riverbank, and continue with programming. In a statement on social media, the camp said it is “fully prepared for changing conditions, with back up generators in place.” 

“At this time, travel to the area is not safe,” the camp said in a statement on social media. “In accordance with our Emergency Action Plan, sheltering in place remains the safest course of action for everyone on site. … We also have ample food and essential supplies on hand to care for everyone at the camp for as long as needed.”

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos and Terri Langford

July 16, 2026, 1:05 p.m.

Kendall County rescues two, shelters nearly 70

Two people were rescued and 68 have sought shelter in Kendall County as the Guadalupe River swelled to life-threatening levels early Thursday morning, prompting multiple flash flood emergency warnings from forecasters, emergency management officials said in a news conference.

County officials said they’d been coordinating to deploy rescue efforts since 2 a.m. in advance of the early wave of rainfall.

“We didn’t know where the water was going to hit, how much, and if it was going to affect us,” county officials said. 

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos

July 16, 2026, 12:25 p.m.

Dam floodgates to open along Highland Lakes system 

Several Central Texas reservoirs have reached capacity, prompting operators to begin releasing water downstream along the Colorado River.

The Lower Colorado River Authority plans to open multiple floodgates at Alvin Wirtz Dam, which forms Lake LBJ west of Marble Falls, and Max Starcke Dam, which forms Lake Marble Falls. Both dams are part of the Highland Lakes system operated by LCRA.

Officials are urging anyone living, working or recreating downstream to take precautions as water levels rise and the river flows much faster than normal. Conditions can also change quickly, especially if additional rain falls.

While reservoir releases are common in Central Texas, they can create hazardous conditions. Reservoir operators control how much water is released to reduce flood risks downstream. 

The LCRA warns that unscheduled water releases may occur at any time due to emergency hydroelectric generation or other operational needs.

— Alejandra Martinez

July 16, 2026, 11:59 a.m.

One person has died in the flooding, Gov. Abbott says

One person has died in the flooding and more than 70 others have been rescued, Gov. Greg Abbott said Thursday. 

The death of the adult occurred between Kerrville and Comfort but Abbott had no other details. 

“I am informed that the loss of life is not a camper,” Abbott said. 

“We have been engaged in making rescues,” Abbott said. “We have rescued well over 70 people already and we will continue making those rescues every step of the way,” Abbott said. 

After last year’s deadly flooding, state legislators required warning sirens to be installed in areas hit by the July 2025 disaster that regulators identified as having a history of severe flooding and other factors such as where people could die or structures could flood. 

The Upper Guadalupe River Authority had so far installed six sirens in Kerr County expected to be paid for with state funding, but all of those sirens were upriver of where the worst river flooding occurred Thursday, according to river gauges. 

Abbott confirmed Thursday that the sirens worked except for one that did not go off as soon as it was triggered.

“All the sirens worked,” he said. “With regard to one of the sirens and sometime before 4 a.m. this morning there was a triggering of the siren that did not go off immediately. But it was triggered again five minutes or two minutes later and it did go off at that time,” he said. “So for all practical purposes, the functionality of the sirens worked just fine and so those alarms went off.”

While a lot of attention is on the Kerrville and Uvalde areas, Abbott said he was concerned about the “massive challenges” in the Rio Grande Valley and other areas hit by heavy rains. 

“People need to understand to expect very meaningful flooding in the Rio Grande,” he said. 

So far, 1,300 personnel have been “actively engaged” in responding to the flooding, Abbott said. 

Unlike the 2025 flooding, which was concentrated upstream from Kerrville near Hunt, this year’s flooding is happening downstream from the Guadalupe River headwaters, he said.

The Guadalupe River at Center Point spiked just below the July 2025 record, according to federal data. In Comfort, it spiked just above last year’s record, hitting 37.08 feet compared to last year’s 35.64 feet, a difference of 1.44 feet, according to the gauge.

More than 90 new River Sentry flood warning sirens that the directors of Camp Mystic raised money for have also been installed in Kerr County, again largely upriver of where the worst river flooding occurred Thursday, according to a company map. Twenty-seven campers and counselors died at Camp Mystic in last year’s floods, along with the camp’s co-owner and executive director. Some of these sirens were stationed in the Kerrville area. 

— Terri Langford and Emily Foxhall

July 16, 2026, 10:58 a.m.

More than 40 rescued as rain pummels Uvalde

Intense overnight rain in Uvalde submerged roads and homes, prompting more than 40 rescues. After receiving 7 inches of rain overnight, Uvalde was placed under a flash flood emergency, with mandatory evacuations underway, as drone footage from the Weather Channel showed the Leona River overflowing near Uvalde. 

The Uvalde County Office of Emergency Management closed all major highways and city streets, issuing a shelter in place order. 

More than 40 people have been rescued, most of them in Uvalde County, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Uvalde officials have deployed boats for rescue operations and plan to fly helicopters.

Roads across Uvalde County are also flooded, including Highway 90, where videos have shown pavement torn up by floodwaters.

— Katlyn Ma and Carlos Nogueras Ramos

July 16, 2026, 9:14 a.m.

Flash flood emergency declared for Pedernales River

Federal forecasters issued a flash flood emergency for the Pedernales River in Gillespie and Blanco Counties, warning of life-threatening flash flooding and catastrophic damage. 

A “large and deadly flood wave” was pushing down the Pedernales River, the forecast alert said. At Fredericksburg, the river had already passed 28 feet at 8 a.m., according to a U.S. Geological Survey gauge. It was forecast to keep rising into a major flood. 

Forecasters urged people to move to higher ground immediately.

July 16, 2026, 7:45 a.m.

Dangerous flood wave moving down Guadalupe River near Center Point

Center Point through Bergheim on the Guadalupe River were under a flash flood emergency early Thursday morning as forecasters warned of a “large and deadly flood wave” pushing down the Guadalupe River and urged people to seek higher ground.

“The river gauge at Center Point has risen 32 feet in 4 hours and is expected to reach a crest similar to July 4, 2025 catastrophic river flood,” the forecast warning said. “Flash flooding is already occurring.”

A flash flood emergency was also extended upstream in Hunt and Kerrville in Kerr County through 3 p.m. Thursday where up to a foot of rain had fallen and more was expected, according to the alert. Kerrville officials asked residents to shelter in place if safe to do so.

Forecasters warned the damage could be catastrophic. The river near Center Point hit nearly 38 feet at 5:20 a.m., according to a U.S. Geological Survey gauge. A steep rise was recorded downriver in Comfort, passing above 33 feet at 6:25 a.m. No rise had been recorded yet at the next gauge near Bergheim as of 6:45 a.m.

In Hunt and Kerrville, forecasters reported between three to six inches of rain had fallen in that area already as of 3 a.m. Thursday with a heavy rainfall rate of two to four inches of rain expected and the Guadalupe rising.

“Flash flooding is already occurring with evacuations, escalating water rescues, and water beginning to enter structures,” the alert said.

The gauge on the Guadalupe River at Hunt had spiked just above 20 feet around 3:35 a.m. Thursday morning, which was below what’s considered a major flood there, according to the USGS gauge. The river later hit nearly 17 feet in Kerrville, also below what’s considered a major flood.

Kerrville officials also asked residents to minimize water use as a preventive measure because of operational issues at its water plant.

More than 100 people died in Kerr County last summer during flash floods early on July 4, when more than 10 inches of rain in places on the river’s South Fork fell largely in the span of several hours, with much of the worst damage in Kerrville and upriver.

— Emily Foxhall

July 16, 2026, 7:36 a.m.

Life-threatening flooding in 14 counties, weather service says

All or portions of 14 counties were under flash flood warnings issued by the National Weather Service as of 7 a.m. Thursday morning as heavy rain had fallen across the area. A flash flood warning means life-threatening flooding is imminent or likely. 

Uvalde and the Knippa area were under flash flood emergencies, meaning “historic and catastrophic” flash flooding was imminent or already happening that could damage entire communities. The area had received up to 8 inches of rain over two hours as of 4 a.m., according to the forecast alert, and had already been drenched with heavy rain over several days.

Structures had flooded and water rescues were occurring, according to the forecast alert.

Areas along the Guadalupe River between Center Point through Bergheim, as well as in Hunt and Kerrville, were also under flash flood emergencies.

Counties under flash flood warnings included:

• Sutton County

• Kendall County

• Kerr County

• Bandera County

• Gillespie County

• Real County

• Kinney County

• Maverick County

• Val Verde County

• Uvalde County

• Edwards County

• Zavala County

• Medina County

• Kimble County

According to the weather service, the following cities and areas will experience flash flooding: Kerrville, Comfort, Waring, Sisterdale, Center Point, Crown, Medina, Fredericksburg, Bandera, Kerrville-Schreiner Park, Tivydale, Camp Verde, Harper, Vanderpool, Hunt, Uvalde, Sabinal, Knippa, Kerr Wildlife Management Area, Lost Maples State Natural Area, Mountain Home, Rio Frio, Del Rio, Brackettville, Lake View, Amanda, Laughlin AFB, Val Verde Park, Standart, Cienegas Terrace, Long Point, Black Brush Point, Diablo East, Amistad Village, Governors Landing, Escondido Estates, 277 South Boat Ramp, 277 North Campground, Lake Ridge Ranch, San Pedro Canyon, Devils Shores, Rough Canyon Recreation Area, Leakey, Camp Wood, Barksdale, Vance, Tuff, Brackettville, Spofford, La Pryor, Dabney, Anacacho, Washer, Darling, Alamo Village, Turkey Mountain, Fort Clark Springs, Waltonia, Ingram, Boerne, Fair Oaks Ranch. Welfare, Walnut Grove, Nelson City, Kreutzberg, Bergheim, Kronkosky State Natural Area, Old Tunnel State Park, Kendalia, Bankersmith, Guadalupe River State Park, Bandera Falls, Spring Branch, Lakehills, Hondo, D`Hanis, Hill Country State Natural Area, Lake Medina Shores, Concan, Reagan Wells, Garner State Park, Laguna, Montell, Utopia, Cline, Blewett, Roosevelt, Telegraph, Cleo, I-10 near the Sutton-Kimble county line.

The warning includes the following streams: Block Creek, Sabinas Creek, Holliday Creek, Jacobs Creek, Verde, Creek, Turtle Creek, Cherry Creek, Guadalupe River, Wasp Creek, Bruins Creek, Joshua Creek, Steel Creek, Elm Creek, Werner Creek, West Sister Creek, Violet Creek, Cypress Creek and East Sister Creek, Pipe Creek.

— Emily Foxhall

July 16, 2026, 7:22 a.m.

Additional rain expected to batter Kerr and Uvalde counties after a long night of showers

Additional rainfall fell across Central Texas overnight, with storms battering several towns particularly vulnerable to the rising Guadalupe River, forecasters at the National Weather Service’s San Antonio office said. 

Forecasters said they expect the heaviest downpours in Kerr and Uvalde counties after a long night of heavy rain. Over the last six hours, towns along central Kerr County, including Kerrville, Hunt and Ingram, saw as much as 8 to 10 and a half inches of rain. The storms also showered towns downstream from the Guadalupe River, in Center Point, Comfort and Bergheim, forecasters said. 

Nearly 20 inches of rain has fallen over the past 48 hours in central and northern Uvalde County, forecasters said.

Storm activity is developing further south in Bandera County and is likely to travel north, bring more rain in the coming hours. 

“Showers and thunderstorms and the rainfall rates are picking up again a little bit acrossKerr County, and even back into those areas that got hit hard across Uvalde and back into the portions of the Hill Country,” said Eric Platt, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “So it’s not over just yet.”

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos

July 15, 2026, 9:45 p.m.

Life-threatening floodwaters endanger southwest Texas

National Weather Service forecasters were expecting stormwater to push rivers and creeks over their banks in southwest Texas — including the Nueces and Frio rivers —  Wednesday afternoon and Wednesday night. 

Homes in D’Hanis and Crystal City are threatened, according to the forecasts, as are livestock and campgrounds.

Federal forecasters also issued a flash flood emergency for Boerne midday Wednesday through Wednesday evening. As much as a foot of rain had fallen in the area, according to the warning, and more was possible.

Forecasters said people were being rescued and were stranded, according to local emergency management. Chris Shadrock, the city’s communications director, said in a video posted online that areas that don’t typically experience high water were likely to see flooding.

“This is a PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION. SEEK HIGHER GROUND NOW!” the warning said. 

The federal forecasters predicted imminent major flooding on Seco Creek near D’Hanis on Wednesday afternoon, when water levels could rise so high that homes could flood with up to 5 feet of water, or 6 feet if Parker Creek also floods. A flash flood emergency was in effect, with similar warnings as in Boerne to seek higher ground immediately to escape danger.

Uvalde police officials were also urging residents on the Leona River to get to higher ground Wednesday afternoon. The river had already risen to nearly 20 feet near Uvalde that morning, according to a river gauge, a record-breaking surge of water that was moving downstream.

Nearby, federal weather officials also expected the Sabinal River at Sabinal to see dangerous flooding, including at “Utopia on the River” and a Girl Scout camp, before water flowed quickly into the Frio River.

The Frio River at Concan looked poised to hit a level Wednesday afternoon where forecasters warned: “Up to near ten feet of turbulent flow smashes through campgrounds” and could easily push RVs, cars and gear downstream and threaten flood-prone homes. 

Downstream, the Frio River near Uvalde was predicted to peak with major flooding Wednesday night, reaching levels that could trap and drown livestock and flood cropland. 

The Nueces River also faced expected challenges: The West Nueces River at Bracketville was already significantly flooded and forecasted to hit a point that could threaten livestock, roads and fencing with flooding “over four hundred yards wide.”

Below Uvalde, “disastrous widespread lowland flooding” on the Nueces River overnight Wednesday looked poised to damage some homes around Crystal City, also potentially threatening livestock, fencing and roads.

“A lot of this rain that’s falling upstream is just kind of flowing downstream and there’s not a whole lot to slow down or stop that rise of water,” said Harrison Tran, a forecaster with the National Weather Service’s Austin and San Antonio office.

River flooding could impact areas downstream of heavy rain, so people needed to stay vigilant, Tran said. 

“Folks along the rivers should prepare to see some pretty steep rises either over the next few hours if they’re closer to the area or in the day or two ahead as well,” Tran said.

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 9:36 p.m.

Cities stay vigilant ahead of an anticipated early morning downpour

Cities across the Hill Country and South Texas already pummeled by a series of rainstorms held their flood precautions steady into Wednesday evening as rainfall was expected to return in the early hours of Thursday morning.

In Uvalde County, where some mandatory evacuation orders were given earlier in the day, City of Uvalde police outlined more neighborhoods that should be prepared to evacuate “at any time” through the night. Most of the county was under a flash flood warning set to expire at 1 a.m.

In La Pryor, the Nueces River had risen significantly, according to a social media post from the Zavala County Sheriff’s Office. According to a river gauge in the Nueces River south of the city of Uvalde, water levels had reached a historic high of 20 feet at 8:30 p.m., but were expected to peak there and lower through the night. 

Flash flood warnings in Kinney and Real counties were extended until 4 a.m. Thursday and in Bandera, Kendall and Medina counties until 2 a.m. as showers ebbed Wednesday evening. In Edwards County, a flash flood warning was issued just after 9:15 p.m. Wednesday until Thursday at 11:15 a.m.

Emergency officials across the region warned residents to stay vigilant, avoid travel unless absolutely necessary and be prepared to leave in areas closer to waterways.

— Ayden Runnels

July 15, 2026, 6:06 p.m.

Abbott: Rainfall could surpass July 4 flooding numbers, but state is prepared

Gov. Greg Abbott said portions of the state could see upward of 30 inches of rain over the course of the storm, surpassing the surge of rainfall that caused the deadly July 4 flooding last year.

At a news conference Wednesday evening with agency officials, Abbott laid out Texas’ response to the larger wave of rainfall expected through the night and drew comparison to the disastrous rainfall in 2025. 

Roughly 20 inches of rainfall last year caused flooding in the Hill Country that killed more than 119 people in Kerr County. While Abbott said storms through the week could well exceed last year’s rainfall, potential ramifications are lessened by both the state’s level of preparedness and the differences in where rain is expected to occur.

“We are better prepared than we have ever been to deal with weather events in general, but rainfall events and flooding events in particular,” Abbott said, mentioning that sirens have been set up alongside the Guadalupe River as well as other river basins across Texas.

As of Wednesday, there have not been any reported fatalities, Abbott said, but he and other officials urged residents to stay alert through the end of the week, even after rainfall subsides as rivers and waterways continue to shift. 

More than 75 people have been rescued, most of whom were taken from stranded vehicles, said Texas Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd. With rainfall in some areas forecasted at 3 inches an hour, Kidd cautioned against residents making unnecessary trips on roadways, which can quickly become flooded under such heavy rates of rainfall.

“It doesn’t matter where you live in Texas; three inches of rain an hour will cause flooding,” Kidd said. 

Kidd cautioned Texas against driving on roads obscured by water and said that shelters were ready to be opened if needed.

The state has deployed more than 800 vehicles and 1,300 state personnel to help assist with preparation, rescue and recovery efforts, and Louisiana and Oklahoma officials have also provided resources, Abbott said.

Abbott said the biggest challenge facing emergency crews was making Texans aware of the inclement weather and flooding. 

“If every Texan is aware of what’s going on and realizes they can protect themselves over the next 24 hours, everything’s going to work out just fine,” he said. 

— Ellie Ashby and Ayden Runnels

July 15, 2026, 4:05 p.m.

More heavy rain expected over hard-hit areas

Another round of heavy rain was expected to fall over the same drenched areas of southwest Texas on Wednesday night and Thursday, said Jason Runyen with the National Weather Service in Austin and San Antonio. 

Forecasters said 2 to 6 inches of rain could fall in the worst-hit regions along U.S. 90 west of San Antonio and the western Hill Country, with up to 10 to 15 inches in some areas that could cause catastrophic flash flooding, Runyen said.

Counties of concern included Uvalde, Medina, Kinney, Edwards, Real and Bandera, plus possibly Kendall and Gillespie. Forecasters were also watching Kerr County, where more than 100 people died in floods last summer, for possible heavy rainfall.

“It’s a pretty big area west of San Antonio that’s been impacted,” Runyen said. “This is many counties we’re dealing with.”

A staggering 12 to 17 inches of rain had already fallen over the past two days over north Uvalde, northeast Kinney and north Medina County, according to the National Weather Service.

Flash flooding had prompted evacuations or calls to seek higher ground in the city of Uvalde, D’Hanis and Boerne. River flooding continued to threaten Crystal City and Carrizo Springs and other areas along the Nueces, Frio and Medina Rivers as water pushed downstream, plus smaller waterways such as Cibolo Creek. 

Emergency officials notified forecasters Wednesday that Cibolo Creek had overflowed, flooding River Road and stranding multiple vehicles. “Numerous water rescues, evacuations and road closures have been reported,” a forecast statement said.

A Cibolo Creek gauge near Boerne showed the water had risen above 22 feet Wednesday afternoon and was pushing downstream toward Selma.

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 2:30 p.m.

Mandatory evacuations ordered in Uvalde

Some residents in Uvalde have been ordered to evacuate and have been notified by first responders, with additional  mandatory evacuations possible, according to a Facebook post from the Uvalde Police Department. 

South of Uvalde in Zavala County, emergency officials in another Facebook post warned residents near the Nueces River to prepare for flooding, with the river expected to crest near historic levels.

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 2:00 p.m.

Reported tornado damages apartments near UTSA, displacing students

A reported tornado touched down near the University of Texas at San Antonio campus Wednesday, causing significant damage to an apartment complex and displacing 10 to 12 students, local officials said. That number could rise as assessments continue. 

The San Antonio Fire Department is on scene at the Oasis San Antonio apartments. No injuries were reported and the apartment has been evacuated.

UTSA is working with the American Red Cross to provide assistance and connect affected students with temporary housing and other resources.

“We’re grateful that no injuries have been reported. University staff are working closely with UT Police, the San Antonio fire and police departments, and the American Red Cross to support affected students and connect them with needed resources,” the university posted on X.

Meanwhile, crews have begun clearing debris, removing downed trees, and responding to storm-related damage across San Antonio as emergency officials continue to monitor weather conditions.

— Emily Foxhall and Katlyn Ma

July 15, 2026, 11:25 a.m.

Heavy rains continue as Texas’ flash flood concerns persist

A heavier band of rainfall continued to drop water on Kinney, Uvalde and Medina counties Wednesday morning, all of which had seen a lot of rain already, said meteorologist Matt Lanza, who helps write the Eyewall. Storms were also expanding toward Kerrville, Fredericksburg and Boerne.

But the rain — while intense — has been somewhat more manageable than the huge amount that dropped all at once in Kerr County last July, causing the Guadalupe River to surge, Lanza said. In this case, Lanza didn’t expect the flash floods to be quite so urgent and “flashy,” he said, giving people a little more time to watch and react. Even so, flooding concerns were still widespread before the rain was expected to slow into the afternoon.

Areas in Bexar, Guadalupe, Bandera, Kerr, Gillespie and Kendall counties had all come under flash flood warnings. Flash flooding was reported on Cibolo Creek at FM 78 with more rain possible, according to federal forecasters.

“Hopefully just another couple of hours of this and then things will start to settle,” Lanza said. “But even in those couple hours you could be talking about easily another 2 to 4 or 5 inches of rainfall, maybe even a little bit more in spots.”

Rain had picked up starting around 6 a.m. in Medina County and water was starting again to cover roadways, said Mark Chadwick, the county’s emergency management coordinator. Responders had rescued four people from vehicles the day prior. 

No water had gotten into structures, but officials were keeping a particular eye on D’Hanis, which has historically flooded, Chadwick said.

“We’re saturated,” Chadwick said. “Right now, any rain, it’s not going to take much for that to rise back up.”

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 10:45 a.m.

Rescues underway in Uvalde County as rain may return with “a vengeance”

At least 25 people were rescued in Uvalde County as of Wednesday morning, while more rescues were ongoing, local officials said during a 10 a.m. news conference.

“As we speak, the river levels are rising due to rains last night, and first responders are actively rescuing in the northern part of Uvalde County,” County Commissioner Roy Kothmann said.

A shelter remained in operation at the Uvalde County Fairplex, Kothmann said. 

The Uvalde Police Department on Wednesday morning asked residents near the Leona River to voluntarily evacuate and warned other residents to prepare for possible evacuation as predicted rainfall is expected to affect rivers and creeks that run through town.

Officials urged residents to avoid low water crossings and call 911 if needed. 

“The rain’s going to come back tonight — it looks like with a vengeance — again, so I would urge caution,” said state Rep. Don McLaughlin, R-Uvalde. 

— Emily Foxhall and Katlyn Ma

July 15, 2026, 8:24 a.m.

Tornado confirmed in northwest Bexar County

Forecasters just before 8 a.m. Wednesday reported a confirmed tornado in northwest Bexar County they said was crossing Interstate 10 near Shavano Park and urged people to take shelter. 

Some waterways in Texas had also risen rapidly Wednesday morning, according to river gages tracking their heights.

Significantly, the West Nueces River at Bracketville had come up 20 feet over four hours, as of 6:30 a.m., according to the U.S. Geological Survey gauge. At that height, it’s considered a major flood by federal forecasters with “extensive inundation of structures and roads.”

Other rivers had spiked into a moderate flood level, including the Sabinal River at Sabinal and the Dry Frio River near Reagan Wells.

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 6:50 a.m.

Multiple counties under flash flood warnings; Uvalde County hit hard

All or portions of multiple counties remained under flash flood warnings early Wednesday morning, while storms continued to dump rain in southwest Texas. 

Federal forecasters estimated between 6 and 16 inches of rain had fallen over 24 hours in Uvalde County, relaying reports that people had been rescued from the water. Northeast Kinney County also received significant amounts of rain and remained under a flash flood warning, meaning life-threatening flooding could be imminent. Rainfall rates of two to four inches an hour were forecast in the area. 

South central Edwards, southern Real, western Gillespie and southeastern Kerr counties were also still under warnings. 

Forecasters were watching for another round of storms to move back in over previously hard-hit northern Uvalde and northwestern Medina counties. They were also keeping an eye on the Frio and Nueces and West Nueces rivers, 

“It’s very rural out there,” said Monte Oaks, a forecaster with the National Weather Service office in Austin and San Antonio, of the hardest-hit spots. “From what we know, they just basically shut down long stretches of road out there.”

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 5:00 a.m.

Wide swath of Texas bracing for 2 to 6 inches of rain

Considerable to catastrophic flooding is likely to occur over the next two days in places along the U.S. 90 corridor west of San Antonio, according to forecasters who elevated the risk for heavy rain causing flash flooding to the highest possible level through Thursday morning.

Some places could see a staggering 10 to 20 inches of rain, raising particular concerns for vacationers who might not be familiar with the flash flood threat. The areas at greatest expected risk included all or parts of Medina, Frio, Uvalde, Kinney, Maverick, Zavala, Val Verde, Edwards, Real and Bandera counties.

The Pecos, Rio Grande, Nueces, Frio, Medina and San Antonio rivers could all flood, National Weather Service forecasters said.

Areas outside of the worst forecast still faced a possible 2 to 6 inches of rain, including Kerr County. The city of Kerrville Police Department on Monday night and Tuesday said it already barricaded some roadways because of high water.

The warnings arrived barely more than one year after flash flooding killed 119 people in Kerr County on the July 4 holiday, when many children were attending summer camp and families packed RV parks and vacation homes. Residents continue to feel intense anxiety when it rains and were watching the forecasts.

Weather experts after last summer’s flood cautioned that it is impossible to predict precisely and with certainty where the heaviest rain might fall. That’s why people need to have a way to receive weather warnings and be aware of how they might need to act.

State legislators have since required certain areas prone to flash-flooding to install warning sirens, a process that is ongoing. The state also mandated new safety standards at youth camps, but it took no action on other recommendations such as standardizing training for local emergency management coordinators.

Gov. Greg Abbott midday Tuesday issued a disaster declaration for 59 counties in recognition of the threat to make resources available.

“Texas is positioned to respond quickly and effectively,” Abbott said in a statement. “I urge all Texans in affected areas to monitor local weather forecasts, avoid driving through flooded roadways, and have emergency supplies ready.”

Storms had already dropped more than 10 inches of rain north of Uvalde as of Tuesday, with more heavy rain also falling in parts of Medina, Bandera and Kerr Counties, according to the National Weather Service Austin and San Antonio Office. The Uvalde County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday was urging people to stay home and reporting on roadways that had flooded. Bandera and Medina County also reported multiple road closures, including on U.S. 90.

Forecasters expected a lull in storm activity before it ramped up again overnight Tuesday into Wednesday morning.

“All areas are kind of saturated now across the Rio Grande, Edwards Plateau and in portions of the western Hill Country and U.S. 90 corridor,” forecaster Jason Runyen said at an afternoon webinar. “Any additional heavy rainfall that occurs is going to run off very, very quickly.”

July 14, 2026, 11:50 p.m.

Counties under flood warning brace for looming overnight deluge

Amid warnings Tuesday night about imminent flooding, South Texas and Hill Country towns braced for river overflows and submerged roadways into Wednesday morning as forecasters estimated rainfall to continue to batter the region.

The National Weather Service late Tuesday noted storms had stalled over Bandera County as well as Uvalde County, where the agency also warned of “swollen” creeks and rivers causing floods. Flash flooding had already been observed in Uvalde and Medina counties, according to their emergency management offices.

Flash flood warnings for Bandera, Medina, Real and Uvalde counties that were scheduled to expire at midnight were extended until 8 a.m. Wednesday. NWS discouraged travel in the affected areas and warned that it expected rainfall at 2 to 4 inches an hour.

Medina County’s Office of Emergency Management warned in a social media post that Seco Creek, which runs through several counties under warnings, was at risk of flooding. The office urged residents to be alert through the night in the event an evacuation was called, and announced five road closures.

The NWS also reduced a warning for Bexar, Comal and Kendall counties to a flood advisory, noting that 2 to 6 inches of rain through the night were still expected.

— Ayden Runnels

July 14, 2026, 7:45 p.m.

New flash flood warnings issued in Hill Country counties

The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for several counties on Tuesday evening as rainfall was expected to worsen through the night.

The warnings issued for parts of Bexar, Comal, Kendall and Real counties include San Antonio International Airport and the Guadalupe River State Park, where NWS warned that “life-threatening” flash flooding was expected or potentially already underway. Warnings for three counties were issued at 6:20 p.m. and are in effect until 11:15 p.m. but may be extended. An additional warning for parts of Bandera and Real counties was issued at 8:15 p.m. with a midnight expiration set.

A portion of Bexar County north of San Antonio was also placed under a brief tornado warning by the NWS that expired at 7:15 p.m.

The new warning adds to two already issued flash flood warnings covering most of Uvalde and Medina counties, scheduled until midnight Wednesday. The City of Uvalde opened a temporary community shelter Tuesday afternoon for those who could potentially be affected by the flooding.

In Edwards County north of Uvalde, the sheriff’s office posted photos of roadways already flooded midday Tuesday, and CNN drone footage of Sabinal showed roads completely covered by the rainfall. Several counties in the affected regions under an NWS flood watch announced road closures in preparation for any flooding occurring through the evening. Texas Game Wardens reported several swiftwater rescues earlier in the day in several South Texas counties including Uvalde.

— Ayden Runnels

Disclosure: Austin Dickson, CNN, Lower Colorado River Authority, Matt Lanza, Terri Langford, Texas Department of Agriculture, Texas Parks And Wildlife Department and The University of Texas at San Antonio have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in The Texas Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

Ellie Ashby, Emily Foxhall, Terri Langford, Katlyn Ma, Alejandra Martinez, Carlos Nogueras Ramos, Ayden Runnels and Alejandro Santos Cid contributed to this story.

In the midst of all the late drama was Jon Rahm getting an official conduct warning for throwing his club after a bad tee shot.

The real emotion came in the twilight hours with no spectators around — DeChambeau standing in high grass on the fifth hole with two rules officials, pleading his case and ultimately losing the argument. His 4-under 66 became a 68, and he went from one shot behind Herbert to three behind. And then he went to the range until the only light came from the video boards.

DeChambeau has turned down media at the majors dating to his missed cut at the Masters in April.

Herbert, who was at 8-under 132, was slightly disappointed with his record-tying round because he missed a 5-foot par putt that would have given him a 61.

“Very, very proud to put my name on that list of guys that have shot 62 in a major championship. So it’s kind of holding two emotions there at the same time,” Herbert said. “It’s a pretty good problem to have, too, to be disappointed you shot 62.”

Burns didn't even know he tied a record when he holed a bunker shot on the 18th for his third straight birdie, just 22 minutes after Herbert shot his 62.

But there was no mistaking the frustration of DeChambeau, who tends to draw attention no matter what he does. He has been more visible on his successful YouTube channel than in the majors, particularly having missed the cut in all three of them until this week.

Six-time major champion Nick Faldo criticized him for having no strategy for links golf, and DeChambeau responded by working his way into contention with plenty of power.

DeChambeau was hand-slapping with the gallery after he made a 12-foot birdie putt on the 18th to get within one shot of Herbert going into the weekend. That changed when officials asked him to review his shot from the fifth hole.

DeChambeau asked to be taken to the scene of the infraction, in thick, high grass to the right of the 321-yard hole, and television cameras picked him up arguing with Grant Moir, the R&A executive director of governance, and Mark Luiten, a chief referee from the European tour.

He drove well to the right and was stomping around as he tried to figure out how to navigate a shot 72 yards from the hole. At issue was whether he violated Rule 8 that governs the intended swing.

Officials eventually deemed a section of grass behind the ball was tamped down by his movement, which might have affected his backswing on the shot.

“A player is allowed to fairly take their stance by taking reasonable actions to get to the ball and take a stance, if in some situations that improves the condition affecting the stroke,” Moir said. “But when doing so, the player must take the least intrusive course of action to deal with the particular situation and is not entitled to a normal stance or swing.”

He said the rule applies even when there is no intention to improve the area.

Even more drama followed when DeChambeau stormed off to the range. His agent, Brett Falkoff, was asked if the two-time U.S. Open champion would play on Saturday and replied, “We'll see.”

“Your guess is as good as mine,” the agent said.

Herbert was long gone when all this was taking place, with mixed emotions about a short miss on the final hole but proud to become the sixth person to shoot 62 in a major. And then Burns made it seven with his astonishing finish — a 40-foot birdie putt from off the green at the 16th, a 20-foot birdie on the 17th and the first birdie of the day on the 18th with his bunker shot.

Burns wasn’t even supposed to be at The Open. His wife was due with their second child this week, but when she had a daughter earlier than expected — July 3 — Burns decided last Friday to cross the Atlantic for another shot at a major. He was runner-up by one shot in the U.S. Open.

When the dust finally settled on the brown-baked links of Royal Birkdale, the only clarity was Herbert having his first 36-hole lead in a major. And golf's oldest championship, which rarely lacks for drama, had almost more than it could handle.

Defending champion Scottie Scheffler couldn't buy a putt until a 12-footer for par on the final hole gave him a 68 and left him only four shots behind.

“All you can do is continue to give myself opportunities,” Scheffler said. “I was hitting some good putts as well, the balls just weren’t dropping. ... If I continue to strike it like I did today and yesterday over the next couple days, I’ll be in a good spot.”

Jackson Suber (69) and Ryan Gerard (67), a pair of newcomers to links golf, were tied for second with Cameron Young, who has powerfully put together a pair of 67s as he looks more like the player who dominated the spring.

Rahm, who missed a 4-foot birdie putt on the final hole and shot 67, was very much in the mix just four shots behind and not about to change his intensity, even though another conduct violation would be a two-shot penalty.

“It’s not like I’m going to ... if I try to alter who I am too much, it might cost me a little bit on the course,” Rahm said. “But certainly shouldn’t have moments like the one on 15. I get it.”

Sixteen players were separated by four shots going into the weekend, which includes hometown star Tommy Fleetwood, who had three birdies over the last five holes for a 67.

The cut was at 1-over 141 and a few of England's best hopes won't be around — Matt Fitzpatrick, the No. 3 player in the world, and Justin Rose at No. 10.

Herbert, who has won on five tours around the world and most recently on LIV Golf, made the cut for only the 10th time in 18 majors. He made it look easy until the final hole, and now his thoughts shift from having his name in the record book to his name on the claret jug.

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Heavy, pungent wildfire smoke darkened skies in the U.S. from the Great Lakes to parts of the East Coast, reducing visibility and prompting warnings that breathing the air outside could be dangerous.

Officials in many cities urged residents to stay inside or wear masks outside as air quality reached unhealthy to hazardous levels, meaning it’s unhealthy for anyone, regardless of health conditions. The National Weather Service said a lingering high pressure system has trapped the smoke close to the ground.

The air quality index was 203 when the game was postponed at 4:45 p.m. EDT, which is deemed to be very unhealthy and hazardous.

Northeast Ohio has been experiencing smoky and hazy skies for the past two days.

“We want to be safe for our players. We want to make sure that it’s not too smoky and obviously for the fans as well. It’s just not safe to be out in that environment if it’s not playable,” Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt said before the postponement was announced. “We can’t control the weather. We can’t control mother nature. So we got to do what’s best and what’s smart for both teams and for the fans.”

A split doubleheader is scheduled for Saturday, with the start times being 1:10 p.m. EDT and 7:10 p.m. EDT.

New York City was also experiencing hazy skies and poor air quality levels. The Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers are scheduled to begin a three-game series Friday night.

“Obviously they’re monitoring it to see if it gets any worse,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “We’ll be communicating with our guys a lot. We’re able to test oxygen levels and things like that if guys are having trouble. So, we’re paying attention to it, and we’ll take the guidance from the league and the weather and the smoke people.”

Thursday night's game in Philadelphia between the Mets and Phillies was moved to 6:10 p.m. EDT from 7:10 p.m. It was the only game on the big league schedule coming out of this week’s All-Star break.

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AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

A week of punishing downpours dumped more than 2 feet (60 centimeters) in some areas. The rain was expected to taper off, but another round of showers worsened already swollen rivers and flooded rural communities near the border with Mexico that had largely been spared major damage.

Near Ozona, a small town about 200 miles (322 kilometers) west of San Antonio, floodwaters spilled over Interstate 10. More than 50 people were rescued by boat from flooded apartments and a water-logged RV park.

A section of a bridge also collapsed over the Nueces River in Uvalde County, where months worth of rain has fallen in a span of days. In Uvalde, about 80 miles (129 kilometers) southwest of San Antonio, floodwaters rushed through Miguel Vasquez’s home twice this week, leaving a layer of mud and knocking over his refrigerator and other items.

Debris was strewn around his neighborhood and a neighbor’s shed teetered over a washed-away section of the property. He said Friday that he'd been caught in the waters' current and nearly been swept away and drowned in trying to get to his house Wednesday.

“I had to grab on with my hands and my feet. You couldn’t swim," he said. "People think that when there’s a flood, you can swim. Swimming’s not going to help you. It’ll take you. The current’s too strong.”

Almost a trillion gallons of water fell in a flood-prone area

Nearly 1 trillion gallons of water fell on the three hardest-hit counties over three days — enough to fill 1.5 million Olympic-sized swimming pools or supply 11 million homes for a year.

Uvalde County alone got more rain in that period than California has seen over the last month, according to Ryan Maue, former chief scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association.

The Hill Country is especially prone to flash floods because the area’s signature limestone is covered by just a thin layer of soil. During heavy rains, water can quickly shoot downhill before filling the narrow river basins.

Emergency personnel across a wide swath of southern and central Texas have rescued more than 570 people, including stranded drivers and people trapped in homes, Gov. Greg Abbott said. Hill Country residents were beginning to clean up after floodwaters again barreled down the Guadalupe River and through communities still reeling from deadly floods a year ago.

Giant border buoys set adrift on the Rio Grande

Floodwaters on the Rio Grande temporarily closed the two international bridges on the border with Mexico at Eagle Pass, stranding a few people on the wrong side. About 600 huge buoys placed on the river to deter migrants from crossing into the U.S. illegally were set adrift by the rising waters, U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar said.

Cuellar said about 480 of them were captured by noon Friday. Critics have worried about the damage the buoys might do if they became untethered and got caught along banks and against bridge piers. Each is about 15 feet (4.6 meters) long and weighs 1,000 pounds (454 kilograms).

In the Hill Country, Serena Reyna woke up Thursday morning to find her Kerrville boutique, Nu Accents, covered in debris after four feet of floodwater rushed into the store. She described the store as “a total loss.”

“The floors, I mean they’re soaked in mud and still you know an inch of water in some spots," she said.

The Texas Department of Transportation said high waters closed a 50-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 57 and that parts of the roadway were not expected to reopen until Monday.

In all, roughly 6 million residents across Texas were under a flood watch at various points this week.

Residents in hard-hit Uvalde return to flooded homes

Floodwaters had overrun Uvalde and cut off most outside routes, making it one of the hardest hit cities. The waters were receding Friday, and officials said a major highway, Route 90, had reopened.

One person died while driving on a flooded road, swept away near Uvalde, authorities said.

Another victim, 65-year-old John Mark Steward of Kerrville, died after his mobile home was swept into Goat Creek on the Guadalupe River, his wife said. The same river was wrecked by flash floods last year when two dozen children and counselors died at Camp Mystic. Authorities on Thursday said summer campers were safe.

In Ozona, the seat of Crockett County, authorities used seven rescue boat teams to get people out of the hardest-hit areas. They were taken to the local civic center for shelter.

Eddie Martin, the county's emergency management director, said the area received 6 inches of rain after midnight, on top of nearly 10 inches of rain before that.

“We have more and more accidents on the interstate,” he said. “We have more and more water pouring into the neighborhoods where we’ve been pulling people out of.”

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Stengle reported from Dallas and Hanna, from Topeka, Kansas. Also contributing reporting were Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut; Valerie Gonzalez in McAllen, Texas; Michael Phillis in Washington, and Anna Wilder in Austin, Texas.

Ohtani was in the starting lineup leading off as the designated hitter in Friday's second-half opener against the New York Yankees. The four-time MVP is not slated to pitch this weekend and likely will make his next start Wednesday at Philadelphia.

Roberts said Ohtani had the procedure after Sunday's game against Arizona. Ohtani last pitched on July 3.

“It gives him some relief in his knee, which we were hoping to get, and then the four days off from activity, which gets it all to kind of settle in,” Roberts said. “I think we are certainly more prepared to back off on the workload if it calls for it, but Shohei wants to be out there as much as he possibly can.”

Ohtani is batting .293 with 22 homers and 58 RBIs while going 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA and 95 strikeouts in 85 2/3 innings over 14 starts. The four-time MVP skipped Tuesday’s All-Star Game.

Roberts will try to give Ohtani days off after his pitching starts if possible.

“Safe to say that even there isn’t an off day behind it, I would like to give him that next day off,” Roberts said. “So ideally, yeah, he would have the scheduled off day behind it but that’s not always possible but that’s not always possible, kind of with the schedule and also where he’s at.”

Roberts said Ohtani probably will throw off a mound in the next few days to test the knee.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

A few isolated storms will remain possible Friday afternoon and early evening, but rain chances will drop sharply this weekend. The drier pattern will allow temperatures to climb, with the hottest weather expected early to middle next week.

Tonight’s Forecast:

An isolated shower or thunderstorm will remain possible through early Friday evening, but most neighborhoods will stay dry.

Skies will remain partly to mostly cloudy overnight, with warm and muggy conditions continuing. Temperatures will fall into the upper 70s, with light southerly winds.

Weekend Forecast:

High pressure will strengthen over Texas this weekend, bringing Houston considerably drier weather.

Saturday will be partly sunny with afternoon temperatures reaching the mid-90s. The heat index could climb to around 105 degrees, so anyone spending extended time outside should take frequent breaks and stay hydrated.

Sunday will be sunnier and slightly hotter, with highs near 96 degrees. Rain chances will be minimal, making this one of the driest weekends Houston has experienced in several weeks.

10 Day Forecast:

The heat will continue building into next week as high pressure settles over the region.

High temperatures are expected to reach the upper 90s Monday through Thursday, with Houston potentially flirting with 100 degrees Tuesday or Wednesday. Recent rainfall and wet soil could keep temperatures just below the century mark, but heat index values will still likely rise well above 100 degrees.

The hot and mainly dry pattern is expected to continue through the end of the workweek, with little meaningful rain currently showing up in the forecast.

It happened in the 10800 block of Sabo Road around noon Friday.

The constable’s office says a deputy in an unmarked unit was flagged down by a witness who said someone at the car wash had been shot. The witness was able to point the deputy in the direction of the fleeing suspect.

• ‘She no longer has a voice’: Baytown police say Kalie Goodwin is believed dead after new indictment

As the deputy was attempted to apprehend the suspect, the constable’s office says the individual fired a shot toward the deputy.

The deputy was not hit, but the suspect got away. Authorities have not provided a description of the suspect at this time.

The victim at the car wash had a gunshot wound to the chest and was transported to a hospital for treatment. The person’s condition is unknown.

The landslide occurred at around 9:08 a.m. in Pengshui County on the outer edge of the Chongqing municipality, when massive amounts of rocks and soil washed downslope, burying more than 10 residential buildings, state broadcaster CCTV said.

Ten people were rescued from the debris, including two who were seriously injured, Pengshui County Mayor Ren Xujiang said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping asked authorities to determine the cause of the disaster, state media said.

The landslide contained about 18,000 cubic meters (636,000 cubic feet) of rocks and debris, and the largest single rock was around 3,000 cubic meters (106,000 cubic feet), said Wang Chuanjun, head of Planning and Natural Resources in Pengshui County, at a news conference.

Wang also warned of persistent risk of further collapse under extreme weather conditions, such as heavy rainfall or prolonged periods of clear and hot weather, based on experts’ field inspections that found scattered unstable rock masses remain at the top and along the sides of the steep cliff.

Water, electricity and gas supplies were cut off within a 1-kilometer (0.6-mile) radius of the landslide to prevent further disruptions. Over 800 rescuers worked on site, a local government statement said.

Xinhua said drones were used to conduct surveys of the landslide sites.

Residents said local officials and communities organized an evacuation after small rocks fell and unusual sounds were heard from the hills. The landslide happened during the evacuation, local newspaper Chongqing Daily reported.

Images by CCTV showed part of a mountainside collapsing onto a residential area. Several buildings were located next to the collapse site, while rescue crews combed through the debris. Rescue efforts were hindered by the unstable terrain and the risk of another landslide, according to the broadcaster.

Images shared on social media showed orange-clad rescuers using excavators to dig through the rubble. At one point, a team of rescuers pulled a survivor out of the debris.

Large slabs of rock had slid beside buildings into a waterway below. Two buildings that looked about five and 15 stories high were damaged but still standing.

The rain-triggered landslide occurred near a section of the Wujiang River, which cuts through karst mountains peppered with small towns and terraces.

Authorities said they sent more than 13,000 disaster relief items to Chongqing, including tents, folding beds and family emergency kits.

Pengshui County is located in the southeast part of Chongqing, bordering the provinces of Hubei and Guizhou.

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AP video producer Wu Jia contributed to this report from Chongqing.

The man was arrested Thursday morning inside 30 Rockefeller Center in Midtown by an officer responding to reports of a disorderly individual inside the building, police said Friday.

NBC News says in a statement that an individual approached Melvin after entering an unauthorized area in a vestibule near Studio 1A. Melvin notified security, who held the man until police arrived, according to NBC.

No altercation occurred and no injuries were reported. NBC did not say how the man gained access to the area.

“We are reviewing the incident and our security protocols and remain committed to providing a safe and secure environment for everyone who works at and visits our studios,” the network said in a statement.

The man has been charged with burglary, menacing and criminal trespass as hate crimes, as well as harassment. It was not clear Friday if has appeared in court or if he has an attorney.

Police did not say what led to the hate crime enhancements on the charges. Police records show a court date has been scheduled for Wednesday.

Melvin, who is Black, discussed the incident on-air Friday morning.

“Unfortunately, an intruder made his way into an unauthorized area here at Studio 1A,” Melvin said. “Thankfully, he was apprehended quickly. He was placed under arrest. We are just very happy that everyone is safe.”

Melvin also posted about the incident on Instagram.

“Hey everyone. I’ve heard from so many of you over the last few hours,” he wrote on Thursday. “I’m doing just fine. Thanks for reaching out."

Longtime “Today" show meteorologist Al Roker also took to social media to thank everyone reaching out to check on Melvin.

“We are both okay,” Roker posted on Instagram. “It’s moments like these that serve to pull us together. You all, like Craig, said ‘You come after one of us, you come after all of us.’”

Melvin and Roker are among a relatively small group of prominent Black journalists and anchors with regular, highly visible roles on national broadcast network news programs.

Melvin joined NBC and MSNBC in 2011, according to the “Today” show’s website. He replaced Hoda Kotb in 2025 as co-host of the 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. hours of “Today.” He had been hosting the show’s third hour while serving as the news anchor during the first two hours.

Roker also is a feature anchor on “Today” and co-host of the show’s third hour. He joined the show in 1996. Roker also co-hosted the “Wake Up with Al” morning show on the Weather Channel from 2009 to 2015.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention late Thursday warned consumers not to eat shredded iceberg lettuce from Taco Bell restaurants in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and West Virginia. A record number of cyclospora cases have been reported in more than 30 states, and experts have said not every recent U.S. illness might be caused by a single source.

A Food and Drug Administration investigation so far has identified a single supplier of the lettuce. The federal warnings to consumers did not identify the company, but Taylor Fresh Foods, of Salinas, California, said FDA testing indicated it was “a specific independent farm” affiliated with the company.

The FDA was working with the supplier “to determine if potentially contaminated shredded iceberg lettuce remains on the market,” including in other states, the CDC said. “Taco Bell has committed to stop using any lettuce from the supplier identified by FDA’s traceback investigation.”

Taylor Farms has been tied to foodborne outbreaks in the past. The company said in a statement Friday afternoon that it was voluntarily removing all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico from the U.S. market.

“As a family owned and operated company, we are deeply concerned for those who became ill, their families, and the many Americans whose trust in the safety of their fresh produce has been shaken,” the statement said.

Taco Bell says it will use a different supplier

CDC, FDA and public health officials in several states have been investigating a multistate outbreak of cyclospora infections.

The illness is not usually life threatening and is typically treated with antibiotics.

On Thursday, ahead of the federal government's confirmation, Taco Bell issued a statement saying that it had taken “immediate action to voluntarily remove potentially impacted lettuce from a supplier in select states. The affected ingredient from our supplier is being indefinitely removed from our supply chain nationwide and will be replaced within 24 hours in select states.”

It's possible other businesses could be linked to the outbreak

In a statement, federal health officials stressed that other “brands, restaurants, retailers, or distribution channels” could be tied to the outbreak as the investigation continues.

Michigan investigators are trying to figure out if the lettuce went to other restaurants or stores because many of the ill people said they didn’t eat at Taco Bell, state health officials said Friday.

There is no evidence the outbreak “is related to poor food handling or preparation at any single restaurant or fast-food chain,” Michigan health officials said in a statement.

For that reason, they continue to recommend that consumers purchase whole heads of lettuce instead of pre-washed, bagged lettuce or pre-mixed salad kits. Taylor Fresh Foods said in its statement that no Taylor Farms-branded salad kits contain iceberg lettuce.

Some past outbreaks linked to the company involved products sold under different brand names.

North Carolina health officials on Friday reported their count has now surpassed 300 cases, but said the recent illnesses there are not considered to be linked to the outbreak in and around Michigan. They said the most commonly reported foods include parsley, cilantro and lettuce, but it’s not clear if those ingredients were the source of the infections, they said.

Cyclospora cases have been rising for years

Cyclospora is a microscopic, spherical parasite that commonly causes watery diarrhea “with frequent and sometimes explosive bowel movements,” according to the CDC. Outbreaks tend to occur most often in the late spring and summer.

The heat-loving parasite infects the bowels and spreads through feces. In the past, people have been infected by consuming fruits or vegetables that were exposed to feces-contaminated irrigation water.

The illness, called cyclosporiasis, is less common than foodborne illnesses caused by other germs, including salmonella and E. coli. Many cases are never linked to a specific food or other source and, for years, few U.S. cyclospora outbreaks were reported. But the number started rising about a decade ago, with a particularly notable spike in 2018 and 2019.

Previously, 2019 saw the most reported U.S. cyclosporiasis cases, with about 4,700. The current surge has far surpassed that. Michigan — the apparent epicenter of the current outbreak — is reporting more than 5,000 cases, and more than 2,000 additional probable and suspected cases have been reported in other states.

No deaths have been reported. But Michigan officials say more than 100 people in that state have been hospitalized, and health officials say dozens more have been hospitalized in other states.

Experts attribute the increasing trend in cases to climate change and better detection. They also say it’s likely that cyclospora cases historically were underreported, for several reasons.

Some common tests used to check for food poisoning have not been geared to detect cyclospora. Technicians aren’t able to grow the parasite in labs, making it hard to draw evidence from contaminated produce. And it can be hard to figure out what food sick people had in common because sometimes it’s a single ingredient that might be common in multiple recipes — like basil or cilantro.

Taco Bell and Taylor Farms have been tied to past outbreaks

The FDA’s traceback investigation identified a single supplier of iceberg lettuce from Mexico used by the Taco Bell locations where people who got sick ate, federal officials said.

The Mexican food chain is among the restaurants linked to foodborne illness outbreaks in the past.

Taylor Farms also was tied to a 2013 cyclosporiasis outbreak linked to salad mix and a 2024 E. coli outbreak tied to onions served at McDonald's.

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Stobbe reported from New York.

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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.

The S&P 500 fell 1% to finish its first losing week in the last three and only its third since the end of March. Just a couple days earlier, it had climbed within 0.5% of its all-time high.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 406 points, or 0.8%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.4%.

Chip stocks and other AI darlings once again were at the center of the shaky trading. They’ve been under pressure for weeks on worries that their prices shot too high and that voracious demand for computer memory and processors may be unsustainable if AI ends up producing less profit and productivity than promised.

Nvidia was the heaviest weight on the S&P 500 after dropping 2.2%. Its recent losses forced it to briefly cede the No. 1 ranking as the most valuable company on Wall Street Friday, but it finished the day back above Apple.

Applied Materials sank 5.6% to trim its surge for the year to 106%. Micron Technology swung between a loss of 5.8% and a gain of 3.2% before slipping 0.5%.

Earlier in the morning, tech sold off worldwide. Indexes tumbled 6.5% in Taipei, 4% in Tokyo and 3% in Shanghai as stocks like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. dropped 7.3%.

South Korea’s stock market was closed for a holiday, offering some respite, if only temporary. It’s been at the center of the AI swings because it’s dominated by two huge tech companies, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix. This past week alone, Seoul’s Kospi stock index had one day where it surged 6.2% and two others where it sank 6.4% and 8.9%.

News of a powerful Chinese AI model by startup Moonshot, Kimi K3, further shook markets. Similar to when China’s DeepSeek announced its AI model in early 2025, another low-cost rival to big Western AI models like ChatGPT and OpenAI could potentially hurt demand for computer chips and other components.

European stock indexes, which have less of an emphasis on AI and tech, had milder moves.

Adding to the pressure on Wall Street were drops for several stocks following their latest earnings reports. Companies are under pressure to deliver big growth for the spring to justify the big moves upward their stock prices have already made.

Netflix sank 7.3% after its revenue for the latest quarter fell just short of analysts’ expectations, even though its profit was bigger than expected. Its forecasts for upcoming revenue and profit in the summer also fell below expectations.

Intuitive Surgical, a maker of robotic surgical systems, dropped 14.1% despite topping expectations for the latest quarter. Analysts pointed to worries about slowing procedure growth because of the expiration of enhanced tax credits that helped lower the cost of health insurance for many Affordable Care Act enrollees.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX fell 5.4% and touched its lowest level since its stock began trading on the Nasdaq just over a month ago. The owner of the xAI business has been swept up in the swings for AI stocks, and it also had to abort a test flight of its mega Starship rocket Thursday within a second or so from blasting off.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 76.08 points to 7,457.69. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 406.55 to 52,146.42, and the Nasdaq composite sank 361.70 to 25,520.24.

More climbs for oil prices also pressured the stock market.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, jumped 4.6% to settle at $88.10, up from roughly $76 a week ago.

The United States expanded its airstrike campaign against Iran early Friday by hitting more bridges and collapsing a tower at a key Iranian port. That raised further worries about whether oil tankers will be able to use the Strait of Hormuz to carry crude from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide.

High oil prices have sent Treasury yields upward in the bond market, which threaten to slow the economy and undercut prices for stocks and all kinds of other investments. Higher yields have already sent the average 30-year mortgage rate to its highest level in nearly a year.

But longer-term Treasury yields eased Friday. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.55% from 4.57% late Thursday.

A report suggested sentiment among U.S. consumers is improving more than economists expected, while expectations for upcoming inflation eased. That’s important for the Federal Reserve, which is considering hikes to interest rates to keep a lid on inflation.

If expectations for inflation remain anchored, it could prevent a vicious cycle where people make moves in anticipation of higher inflation, which only worsen it.

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AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.

The league said Friday that its investigation determined that Gold provided confidential, non-public inside information regarding 2026 draft selections by the Cardinals before the picks were announced, and Gold also participated in parlay bets on NFL and college games. The league didn’t say who Gold had provided with the information.

“The Gambling Policy, which is annually reviewed with all NFL personnel, strictly prohibits anyone in the NFL from participating in or facilitating any form of sports gambling, and from providing third parties non-public information,” the NFL said in a statement. “Although there is no reason to believe the integrity of any NFL game was affected, the League takes any violation of the Gambling Policy with the utmost seriousness.”

The Cardinals also issued a statement, saying: “The NFL’s policies and expectations for all employees are clear, comprehensive, and consistently communicated. We fully support the league’s decision in this matter, which involves a single employee. Our focus remains on preparing for the start of training camp next week and the 2026 season.”

Gold, who is in his 13th season with the Cardinals, was promoted to director of college scouting in June 2025. He spent the previous three years (2022-24) as the assistant director of college scouting after working for four seasons (2018-21) as a college scouting coordinator.

Gold has the right to appeal the suspension. He couldn't immediately be reached for comment Friday.

The NFL has strict gambling policies for players and club and league personnel. The league has also dedicated significant resources to its gambling education program, reaching more than 20,000 people associated with the league.

The policy says players must not:

— place any bet on NFL football;

— throw or fix any NFL game or event, or otherwise manipulate or attempt to manipulate any play or other aspect of an NFL game;

— share confidential, non-public information regarding any NFL game, player or event with any third party.

NFL players — but not league or club staff — are allowed to legally place bets on other sports as long as they are off club property or not traveling with the team. They also are allowed to take part in traditional fantasy football leagues (prize money cannot exceed $250) and legally gamble at casinos on personal time.

The NFL said the Cardinals fully cooperated with the investigation and the league has seen no indication that any other member of the organization, coach or player was aware of or involved in this activity. The league also said there was no indication that any play or game was affected by this activity.

The NFL’s review included interviews with relevant people and an examination of electronic records.

At least 15 players have been suspended by the league for gambling violations since 1963, including several in recent years, but none since Isaiah Rodgers (then with the Indianapolis Colts) was suspended indefinitely in June 2023.

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Fort Bend County District Clerk Beverley McGrew Walker said her office has been flooded with calls from anxious citizens who were told they missed jury duty and must immediately pay a fine to avoid arrest. “Our Fort Bend County citizens are being scammed,” Walker said. “They’re getting phone calls, we are being told by people who call our customer service department. Phone calls from people asking them for money to pay a fine because they have missed jury duty—and that’s not the way it works.”

Bill Bobrick, a supervisor in the District Clerk’s customer service department, raised the alarm after being “in extreme shock” at how many people were calling each day about the same scheme. The increase is especially troubling, Walker said, because the office has been told some residents have already lost money to the scammers.

How the scam typically plays out

According to Walker, the calls often include threats that the sheriff will be sent to arrest the person unless payment is made immediately. The caller may ask for credit card details or instruct the victim to withdraw money and send it using whatever method the scammer demands.

• LISTEN: Houston scammers threatening arrests, jailtime for missing jury duty

“It’s very offensive,” Walker said, adding that scammers often prey on older residents or anyone unfamiliar with how jury service works.

Walker stressed that legitimate consequences for missing jury duty do not start with a threatening phone call demanding payment. “That’s not the way it works, where we would be calling you up asking you for your credit card information,” she said.

What actually happens if you miss jury duty

Walker said the normal process is far more routine—and starts with a letter, not a phone call.

“When you miss jury duty the law requires that we send you what we call a failure to appear notice and that’s a courtesy more so than than anything else. Just reminding you that you were scheduled for a particular date and you didn’t show up and then that letter says we know people are busy we know that they have their own lives can we reschedule for you so in other words we’re reaching out to you first asking for a rescheduling and at that point most people will reschedule,” Walker said.

Sheriff’s office has warned residents repeatedly

The Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office has issued scam alerts multiple times over the years, warning residents about callers impersonating law enforcement and pressuring people to pay “citation fines,” “bench warrants,” or other alleged violations.

The sheriff’s office said scammers may appear convincing—calling from local and non-local numbers, using employee names, and even referencing the Sheriff’s Office address (1840 Richmond Parkway, Richmond, Texas). The agency emphasized it does not call residents to collect payments “for ANY reason,” and urged people not to share personal information such as Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers, or dates of birth.

• Houston woman loses thousands in new jury duty scam using crypto payments

The sheriff’s office also warned the scheme was becoming more aggressive, reminding residents that law enforcement will never demand payment over the phone and that only a judge can assign a fine. Any real legal action, officials said, would be handled through proper in-person procedures—not a high-pressure call demanding immediate money.

Walker said she and Sheriff Eric Fagan have issued joint-messages telling residents that threats of the sheriff “coming to pick you up” for missed jury duty are not legitimate.

What to do if you receive one of these calls

Walker urged anyone who receives a call and feels uncertain to pause and verify before taking any action.

“If you get a call and you feel that it’s urgent… call us first and ask us whether or not we called you before you submit to taking money from your bank to pay these scammers,” she said. “Let us be the first line of defense.”

Walker said residents can contact the Fort Bend County District Clerk’s Office at 281-341-4519 (or 281-341-4514) to ask questions and confirm whether any communication is legitimate.

She added that the scam works precisely because many victims want to do the right thing. When callers create urgency and fear—claiming police action is imminent—“they think that’s the case,” Walker said, and some people comply by withdrawing and sending money.

County officials are urging residents to hang up on suspicious calls, refuse to provide personal or financial information, and independently verify any claims through official phone numbers and channels.

• More dangerous Texas floods expected after at least 2 killed and hundreds of people rescued in high water, governor says

Authorities are urging people to avoid flooded areas, follow all road closures, and never drive around barricades, stressing that fast-moving water can be deceptive and dangerous.

The collapse comes as parts of the Hill Country continue to deal with another round of dangerous flooding—just over a year after the catastrophic July 4, 2025 floods.

Narvaez and Jarren Duran each drove in three runs for Boston, which had entered the All-Star break with nine straight wins, all on the road. With their first 10-game win streak since last July, the Red Sox (47-48) moved within one game of .500 for the first time since their third game of this season.

Boston has allowed 14 runs during the streak, its fewest over a 10-game span during the live ball era (since 1920).

Yoshida, Navarez and Caleb Durbin each had three hits. The Red Sox outhit the AL East-leading Rays 15-3.

Bennett (5-3) struck out three as he won his fourth straight start. After issuing his only walk with one out in the first, the left-hander retired nine straight before Junior Caminero singled in the fourth.

Alex Gamboa worked the final three innings for his first save.

With the Red Sox leading 2-0, Yoshida hit the first pitch of the fourth by Griffin Jax (5-7) to right field, wrapping it around Pesky's Pole for his fourth homer of the season. Navarez cleared the Green Monster in the seventh for his third homer.

Duran chased Jax with a two-run single as part of Boston's six-run sixth inning. Jax allowed seven runs on eight hits in five-plus innings as his ERA jumped from 3.47 to 4.08.

All-Star Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras served the fifth and final game of his suspension for his actions during a benches-clearing incident against Washington last month. The suspension was reduced from seven games on appeal.

Up next

Rays RHP Mason Englert (0-2, 3.82 ERA) and Red Sox LHP Eduardo Rivera (0-0, 0.00) were set to pitch Friday's nightcap.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

The quarterly immigration report, released Friday, shows that most police encounters with people who had immigration warrants or “consultations” from ICE ended with officers releasing them at the scene: 59 people, or 57%, of the encounters ended that way after immigrants were detained for an average of 39 minutes.

Only 19 people, or 18%, were transferred to ICE custody after encounters with Houston police, the report said. Another 14 people faced new charges and two were transported to hospitals from accident scenes.

Nearly all of the people — 91 of 103 — were Hispanic, and six of 10 were men.

Nearly half of the interactions between HPD and ICE began with traffic stops by police, while another 17 were at accident scenes. The rest happened after “calls for service” or during investigations or arrests.

“HPD’s average rate of monthly calls to ICE doubled, with more than 100 calls in three months, some detentions lasting nearly two hours, and 19 Houstonians turned over to ICE custody,” said council member Alejandra Salinas, who helped pass the ordinance and said she compared numbers in the report to a previous Houston Chronicle investigation. “I have since asked HPD Chief Diaz to address Council, explain the increase in calls and detention times, and identify any changes HPD may make in response.

“HPD should be focused on solving crime, not doing the job of ICE,” Salinas added. “Even one Houstonian transferred to ICE custody based on (an immigration) warrant is too many.”

HPD declined to comment on the report.

Local police have been increasingly used as a force multiplier during the Trump administration’s mass deportations push. One of the main ways the federal government has tried to leverage local police is by adding immigration warrants for 700,000 individuals to the National Crime Information Center database, a widely used tool that police use to learn a person’s criminal history, check for arrest warrants and find missing persons among other things.

All of the people included in the HPD report appeared in the NCIC database.

The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, said partnerships with law enforcement “are critical to having the resources we need to arrest criminal illegal aliens across the country. We have had tremendous success when local law enforcement work with us, including 40,000 arrests in Florida and a recent two-week operation in West Virginia that resulted in the arrest of over 650 illegal aliens.”

In March, Houston Police Chief Noe Diaz and Mayor John Whitmire announced a rule ordering local law enforcement to wait 30 minutes for federal agents to arrive at the scene if they encounter people with immigration warrants in the course of their work. A month later, the City Council approved the new ordinance to stop that practice and ordered the quarterly reports on its coordination with ICE.

The city scaled back its ordinance after Gov. Abbott threatened to withdraw $110 million in public safety grants from the city and Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office launched an investigation, alleging the ordinance violated Senate Bill 4, which bans cities from adopting policies that “materially limit” immigration enforcement.

The report comes more than a week after ICE officers shot and killed 52-year-old Houstonian Lorenzo Salgado Araujo during an operation in Magnolia Park, a predominantly Latino working class neighborhood on the city’s east side. HPD wasn’t involved in that operation, city leaders said.

Salgado Araujo was born in Mexico and had started the process to legalize his status, according to his family. He was shot by an ICE officer on July 7 after picking up fellow workers in his van on their way to a construction job.

ICE said an officer fired after Salgado Araujo rammed one of their vehicles and tried to run over the agent. The other three men in the van dispute that account.

• PREVIOUS: Suspect in disappearance of Baytown woman indicted on kidnapping charge in case

Investigators now believe Kalie Goodwin is dead and the man they say is responsible has been indicted for the second time in connection with her disappearance. A Harris County grand jury indicted Quan Flowers on Tuesday on an aggravated kidnapping charge in connection with the 2024 disappearance of Goodwin, a Baytown woman who has never been found. While Goodwin remains officially classified as missing, the Baytown Police Department says investigators believe she is deceased.

The Baytown Police Department says its investigation into Goodwin’s disappearance remains active, and detectives are continuing to gather evidence to support murder charges against Flowers. Baytown Police Chief John Stringer said the indictment marks a significant step forward in a case his department has refused to let go cold.

“This indictment is a significant milestone in our pursuit of justice for Kalie and her family. From the beginning of this investigation, our detectives have remained committed to finding answers and have never stopped pursuing the truth,” Stringer said.

“We have said that anyone who commits violence against our community or our visitors will be brought to justice. While our work is not finished, this indictment represents an important step toward holding the offender accountable,” he added.

How investigators built the case

Goodwin was reported missing on April 22, 2024, after her mother received a call from an unknown male demanding money through a CashApp account. Detectives learned Goodwin was last seen the evening before — April 21, 2024, at approximately 7 p.m. — leaving an apartment complex in the 3100 block of Decker Drive in a vehicle with an unknown man.

Using License Plate Reader technology, detectives located a vehicle near the apartment complex around the time Goodwin was last seen. The vehicle was registered to the owner of the CashApp account used in the ransom demand. Investigators determined that Flowers, then 39, was in possession of that vehicle while it was in the Baytown area.

Flowers was arrested on June 1, 2024, by the Houston Police Department — but on an unrelated charge. He was taken into custody for the May 3, 2024 murder of Megan Rouse in Fort Bend County.

Information obtained during that arrest, combined with cellular data analyzed by the Baytown Police Department’s Digital Forensics Unit, led detectives to an area in Houston where both Goodwin’s phone and the phone used to contact her mother had been tracked.

Detectives canvassed the area and identified a residence connected to the ransom phone. A person associated with that residence — wanted on unrelated felony charges — was arrested with assistance from the Gulf Coast Violent Offenders Task Force. A search warrant executed at that location uncovered evidence linking Goodwin to the residence and revealed she had been assaulted by Flowers and taken from the property.

Baytown Police first filed an aggravated kidnapping charge against Flowers on June 20, 2024. He was previously indicted by a Fort Bend County grand jury on October 28, 2024. The July 14, 2026 Harris County indictment is the result of ongoing collaboration between the Fort Bend County and Harris County District Attorney’s Offices, with the Harris County DA’s Office now assuming prosecution of the case.

‘She no longer has a voice’

Chief Stringer acknowledged the weight of the case and what it means for a family that has spent more than two years without answers.

“Their dedication, persistence, and collaboration with our law enforcement partners demonstrate our commitment to seeking justice for every victim, especially those who no longer have a voice,” he said.

Detectives continue working to locate Goodwin’s remains and to ensure all individuals responsible are held accountable. The investigation indicates she was last in the Houston area.

Anyone with information about Goodwin’s disappearance, the location of her remains or any information related to the investigation is asked to contact the Baytown Police Department at 281-422-8371 or Baytown Crime Stoppers. Tips can be submitted anonymously by calling (281) 427-TIPS (8477), online at p3tips.com or through the P3 Tips app available in the Apple App Store and Google Play.

The newest Kimi K3 model from Beijing-based startup Moonshot, run by a Pink Floyd-loving entrepreneur who earned his doctorate in Pittsburgh, appears to be catching up to the best versions of Anthropic's Claude and OpenAI's ChatGPT.

“This may be the single biggest release of the year,” and marks a moment when open-source Chinese models are surpassing closed U.S. models, said Anastasios Angelopoulos, co-founder and CEO of Arena, a platform for evaluating AI systems.

Kimi K3 topped the charts in Arena's ranking of what it calls “front-end coding capability,” a measure of an AI large language model's performance. “More results are rolling in that are likely to continue to show it is at the top of the pack,” Angelopoulos said on social media.

It was not likely a coincidence that K3's unveiling came shortly before Chinese President Xi Jinping's opening address Friday to the nation's annual World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai.

American-led restrictions have blocked China from accessing some of the world’s most advanced technologies, spurring China’s efforts to build its own know-how and intensifying the rivalry between the world’s two biggest economies.

“The development of artificial intelligence should not be a solo performance by any single country but rather a symphony of global cooperation,” Xi said at the event.

Chinese AI models have shown large strides

K3 follows another major AI model release last month from the Chinese startup Zhipu, or Z.ai. Its new flagship GLM-5.2 model is already widely used by software developers around the world who say it can perform work almost as well as top U.S. models at a lower price.

The hype over the new Chinese model resembles the market-shaking panic that followed Chinese startup DeepSeek 's new model release in early 2025, though not everyone finds it justified. The response to K3 is an “overreaction shockingly similar” to DeepSeek's release last year, said tech analyst Patrick Moorhead on social media. He said it could be good for parts of the broader AI industry but poses a revenue challenge to Anthropic and OpenAI.

During the conference, which runs until Monday, tech giant Huawei has also been showcasing a new AI computing system called the Atlas 950 SuperPoD, a signal that China increasingly is amassing the domestic hardware it needs despite U.S. restrictions on imports from chipmakers like Nvidia.

Moonshot hasn’t said what hardware it used to build K3, but the startup is a partner with Huawei.

The price to use K3 is the highest yet for a Chinese AI model, but is still half as expensive as OpenAI’s high-performing GPT-5.6 Sol model, according to a Friday report by Bank of America research analysts.

U.S. politicians and several major U.S. AI companies including Anthropic and OpenAI have accused Chinese AI models of illicit “distillation” of their models to extract their technologies, a claim that Beijing says is “groundless.”

Anthropic in February accused DeepSeek, Moonshot and a third China-based AI lab, MiniMax, of engaging in campaigns to “illicitly extract Claude’s capabilities to improve their own models” using the distillation technique that “involves training a less capable model on the outputs of a stronger one.”

Anthropic said that distillation can be a legitimate way to train AI systems but it’s a problem when competitors “use it to acquire powerful capabilities from other labs in a fraction of the time, and at a fraction of the cost, that it would take to develop them independently.”

But it can go both ways. San Francisco-based startup Anysphere, maker of the popular coding tool Cursor, has acknowledged that one of its top products was based on Moonshot’s K2.5 model. Elon Musk’s SpaceX is planning to close a deal to buy Cursor for $60 billion later this year.

K3 marks a leap for ‘open-source’ AI models

Moonshot co-founder and CEO Yang Zhilin earned his Ph.D. in 2019 at Carnegie Mellon University, where he is said to have made fundamental contributions to the machine-learning field and was known for a love of rock bands like Pink Floyd.

The pride among his former colleagues at the Pennsylvania school transcends the U.S.-China rivalry.

“What a huge win for the open-source community! It feels like just yesterday Zhilin was graduating from my lab at CMU,” wrote his former adviser Russ Salakhutdinov, who is also a former director of AI research at Apple.

Developers who build “open-source” AI make key components of the technology accessible for anyone to examine, modify and build upon. Proponents say open-source practices promote innovation, while critics warn that making powerful AI models publicly accessible poses safety and security dangers. ___

Associated Press writer Chan Ho-him contributed to this report.

He wrote on social media that she “has been a WINNER all of her life and, should she accept, has my Complete and Total Endorsement.”

“RUN, DARLINE, RUN!” Trump added.

The president said he had discussed a potential campaign with Darline Graham at the White House. Four people familiar with the deliberations, none of whom were authorized to speak publicly, had previously said that she privately expressed interest in running.

Trump's endorsement dramatically reshapes the scramble to fill Lindsey Graham's seat after he died last weekend. The president had previously suggested he could back a potential candidacy from Rep. Russell Fry. Several other noteworthy politicians — including Fry, Rep. Nancy Mace, Rep. Ralph Norman and Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette — have been eyeing a run.

The filing period for a special primary runs from July 21 to July 28, and the primary is scheduled for Aug. 11.

Plans for Lindsey Graham’s funeral were also announced Friday. There will be a service in Washington on July 28 and more in South Carolina on July 29.

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster appointed Darline Graham to serve the remainder of her brother's term, which ends in January.

The first woman to represent the state in the Senate, Darline Graham called it "such an honor,” as dozens of her brother’s staffers and campaign advisers stood behind her, some with eyes glassy from welling tears.

“Lindsey has always been there for me. And now, I will be there for him," she said.

Lindsey Graham died Saturday at age 71. A preliminary report from the medical examiner said he suffered a tear in his aorta.

He never married or had a family of his own, but his sister was often by his side for the political touch points of his career, speaking at events and appearing in some of his campaign ads. After both of their parents died when Darline Graham was only 13, her old brother became her legal guardian and later adopted her, to ensure his military benefits would flow to her.

In forging a relationship with Darline Graham — who is new to politics but was a constant in her brother's political career — Trump could be angling to develop another ally to help steer his agenda through the Senate.

Although they had at times a tumultuous relationship, Lindsey Graham had been one of Trump's top Senate confidants, and the day after his death, the president said he was “like a member of the family.”

In his announcement Monday, McMaster made no reference to Darline Graham as a placeholder or symbolic appointment.

However, a person familiar with McMaster's thinking but unauthorized to speak publicly said the governor, in selecting Darline Graham, had never contemplated that she would run for the seat herself.

Sen. Tim Scott, another South Carolina Republican, said he would not endorse any candidate in the primary because he also serves as chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

But, he said, “as Tim Scott, the voter of South Carolina, I might indeed wade into the water at some point.”

“I think the truth of the matter is that Darline has so far been off to a remarkable start,” Scott told reporters, asking about her as a possible special primary contender. “‘Why not her?’ would be my question.”

When he died, Lindsey Graham had millions in his campaign account and was expected to raise much more heading into the general election. But those aren’t funds that Darline Graham could directly access, if she were to run, according to Bradley A. Smith, a former chairman of the Federal Election Commission.

Under federal rules, Lindsey Graham's campaign would be limited to transferring just $2,000 to a potential Darline Graham candidacy. However, Smith said there is no limit on how much it could transfer to the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which could — thanks to a Supreme Court decision last month — “spend an unlimited amount in coordination with Darline’s campaign.”

“It can’t be earmarked for Darline’s campaign, but in those circumstances I’m sure that the party will make sure she’s not short of cash,” said Smith, now serving as a professor at Capital University Law School in Ohio.

___

Kim reported from Washington. Associated Press reporter Thomas Beaumont contributed from Des Moines, Iowa.

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Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP

The motion for a preliminary injunction argues the restrictions are causing “outright censorship” and will continue harming professors unless the court pauses enforcement while the case proceeds. The groups noted that Texas Tech officials declined to voluntarily suspend the policies during the litigation.

The lawsuit, filed July 8, was brought by the Texas American Association of University Professors-American Federation of Teachers and the national American Association of University Professors. It challenges two memos Creighton issued after becoming chancellor last year.

The groups argue the restrictions outlined in the memos violate the First Amendment by allowing Texas Tech officials to suppress viewpoints they dislike, violate the Fourteenth Amendment by leaving professors unsure what they can teach without being disciplined and discriminate against Black faculty by singling out instruction about Black history, racial inequality and efforts to remedy it.

In Friday’s motion, the groups point to an 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision issued the day before the Texas Tech lawsuit was filed. In that case, involving Florida’s Stop WOKE Act, the appeals court found similar restrictions on public university instruction amounted to unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination.

Creighton’s first memo, issued Dec. 1, told faculty they could face discipline if they did not comply with new limits on course content involving race, sex, gender identity and sexual orientation. It required faculty to submit course material related to those topics for regents to review and approve. 

A second memo, issued April 9, went further, ordering the phase-out of academic programs centered on sexual orientation and gender identity and requiring professors in core and lower-level undergraduate courses to use alternate materials if readings, assignments or lectures included those topics. 

The memo said some material could still be taught if needed for patient care, professional credentials or advanced coursework, but the lawsuit argues those exceptions were applied inconsistently.

The policies apply across the five-institution system, which includes Texas Tech University, two health sciences centers, Angelo State University and Midwestern State University.

The complaint includes new accounts of how the restrictions have been applied. It alleges a Texas Tech Health Sciences Center professor in Lubbock was told medical students could not participate in or observe care for transgender patients, even when those patients sought treatment for unrelated conditions such as hypertension, migraines or cancer. It also says a professor was told a Holocaust course would have to leave the core curriculum if it included instruction on gay and bisexual victims of the Nazis, and that regents barred professors from teaching Plato’s Republic and Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates’ National Book Award-winning book about racism in America.

The complaint also alleges an instructor at Texas Tech Health Sciences Center El Paso was told to not use the word “disparity” in class, affecting their ability to adequately teach students because El Paso County residents have a higher prevalence of diabetes. In addition, women along the Texas-Mexico border have a higher rate of cervical cancer mortality, children are hospitalized more for asthma in border counties, and the pregnancy-related mortality rate among Black women in Texas is 2.5 times higher than that of white women, according to the complaint.

One of the medical-training allegations underscores the lawsuit’s claim that Texas Tech’s stated exceptions were confusing and inconsistently applied. Creighton’s memos said some material could still be taught when needed for patient care or professional credentials. But the complaint says the Lubbock professor was initially required to remove material about transgender and intersex patients from a medical school course, even though the professor considered it vital to the course and necessary for medical certification exams. The professor was later told medical students could treat transgender patients during third- and fourth-year clinical rotations, according to the complaint, but only after some students’ rotations had already passed.

The groups want a judge to declare Creighton’s memos unconstitutional and permanently block the system from enforcing them or any similar policy.

The July 17 motion asks the judge to halt enforcement sooner, before the case is resolved. The groups argue faculty members have already had to certify compliance for summer and fall courses, which they say means the restrictions will continue to harm them as well as deprive students of instruction they would otherwise receive.

The Texas Tribune asked Texas Tech University System officials for comment on Friday’s motion. A system spokeswoman previously rejected the lawsuit’s allegations.

“Our commitment to academic integrity and the First Amendment rights of our students will not be distracted by lawsuits as we continue to deliver rigorous academic programs, relevant coursework and groundbreaking research,” spokeswoman Erin Wilson said in a statement.  

Wilson also pushed back on several allegations in the complaint. Teaching about civil rights and historical events, including Nazi crimes, is permitted and instructors are not required to redact or remove works when sexual orientation or gender identity appears in adopted, industry-standard text or as an incidental reference, she said. 

The board of regents also has not altered or rejected any course at Texas Tech’s health sciences centers, she said.

Creighton has previously defended the restrictions as necessary to comply with state and federal law and ensure students are provided with “degrees of value.” 

In a December interview with The Chronicle of Higher Education cited in the complaint, Creighton said Texas Tech works to send a message that its “door is open to every walk of life” and said the restrictions were meant to foster “diversity of viewpoint.” Asked whether restricting teaching on gender identity, sexuality and race helped achieve that, Creighton said yes and described the guidance as a “continuum of common sense.”

Creighton, a former Republican state senator, became chancellor in November. In the Senate, he chaired the Higher Education Committee and authored Senate Bill 37, a 2025 law that gave governor-appointed regents more authority over curriculum. Creighton’s Dec. 1 memo described Texas Tech’s course review as the “first step” in implementing that law.

The lawsuit argues Creighton’s memos go beyond what lawmakers ultimately passed. An earlier version of SB 37 would have required regents to eliminate curriculum that taught “identity politics” or was based on theories that systemic racism, sexism, oppression or privilege are inherent in the U.S. or Texas institutions. That language did not become part of the law, but the faculty groups argue Creighton later imposed those restrictions after becoming chancellor.

The complaint points to his broader record as a lawmaker to support its claim that the memos were motivated, at least in part, by racial discrimination. It says that after the George Floyd protests, Creighton opposed efforts to remove Confederate monuments and symbols, backed unsuccessful restrictions on teaching called critical race theory at public universities and colleges and authored Senate Bill 17, the state’s ban on diversity, equity and inclusion offices and programs in higher education.

“Chancellor Creighton is trying to do through fiat what he couldn’t accomplish in the Texas legislature: erase the history, identities and lived experiences of LGBTQ people and people of color from the classroom,” said Nicholas Hite, senior attorney at Lambda Legal.

The faculty groups are represented by Lambda Legal, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and Davis Wright Tremaine LLP.

Texas Tech is not the only Texas university system to restrict course content involving race, gender identity or sexual orientation. Texas A&M University System regents approved a similar policy in November, after a viral recording showed a student confronting a Texas A&M professor over gender identity content in a children’s literature class. That controversy led to the professor’s firing, the removal of two college leaders from their administrative roles and the resignation of the university president as well as a systemwide course audit.

The A&M policy, which was approved before Creighton’s memos, says no system academic course may advocate “race or gender ideology, or topics related to sexual orientation or gender identity” unless the course and relevant materials are approved in advance by the university president. It also says faculty may not teach material inconsistent with a course’s approved syllabus.

Asked why the groups sued Texas Tech and not Texas A&M, Texas AAUP-AFT President Teresa Klein said the organizations are focused on Texas Tech for now but “will be exploring everything.” 

Antonio Ingram II, senior counsel at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, said Texas Tech represents “one of the most egregious forms of censorship we’ve seen nationwide,” pointing to restrictions on graduate student research and the closure of entire departments. A favorable ruling could affect other systems, including Texas A&M and the University of Texas System, though additional lawsuits might still be needed, he said.

The Texas Tribune partners with Open Campus on higher education coverage.

Disclosure: Chronicle of Higher Education, Open Campus, Texas Tech University, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center and Texas Tech University System have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in The Texas Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

The update comes after the Kerr County Sheriff’s Office and the Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed Thursday that at least one person died following the flooding. Officials said the man’s body was recovered near Center Point. During a Thursday news conference, Gov. Greg Abbott said the man was swept away while inside an RV. Kerrville Police Chief Jerel Haley said the investigation into the death is being handled by the Kerr County Sheriff’s Office.

At Friday’s briefing, Kerr County Sheriff Larry Leitha identified the man as John Mark Stewart of Kerrville. Leitha said Stewart’s home was washed away in the Goat Creek Road area of western Kerr County and that deputies recovered him near the 300 block of Center Point River Road.

Hundreds of calls, rescues across the county

Leitha said the sheriff’s office worked alongside Texas Parks and Wildlife game wardens, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Texas Department of Emergency Management, Texas Task Force 1 and 2, volunteer fire departments and the City of Kerrville during the response.

On Thursday, Leitha said the sheriff’s office handled 234 calls for service tied to the flooding. He said multiple high-water rescues and evacuations were carried out countywide and emphasized that “no calls went unanswered.”

Leitha also said officials had no reports of anyone missing at the time of the briefing, even as crews continued checking areas as water levels fell. He noted that search efforts had located vehicles and an RV in flood-impacted areas, and that owners had been identified.

How the county activated emergency operations

Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly, the county’s emergency management director, walked reporters through the timeline of the county’s disaster response and the activation of its command structure.

Kelly said the governor issued a declaration earlier in the week, prompting the county to stand up an incident command post Tuesday evening at the sheriff’s office complex. Kelly said he returned to the command post around 3:30 a.m. Wednesday and found it already staffed with weather monitoring screens and personnel ready to operate.

By Wednesday evening, Kelly said rainfall totals were mounting. Citing National Weather Service statistics, he said Kerr County recorded between 20 and 24 inches of rain during the event. Kelly said he was awakened again early Thursday morning with updated rainfall and river conditions and declared a local disaster around 3:30 a.m. Thursday, after consulting with Precinct 1 Commissioner Tom Jones and coordinating with Kerrville City Manager Dalton Rice, who declared a city disaster at about the same time.

Kelly said officials had to relocate the incident command room due to electrical issues and water seepage at the original site and re-established operations at the current facility in less than 30 minutes.

Bridges damaged; assessments still underway

Commissioner Jones said the flooding was widespread and differed from last year’s deadly Hill Country floods, describing faster-moving water and impacts that were concentrated farther downstream in the county.

Jones said Kerr County has 19 bridges, and six have sustained major damage to some degree. Some sites remain difficult to access, he said, and crews are waiting for water to recede before completing a full assessment. Jones said the county’s engineering department and road and bridge teams are working with TDEM to document damage.

Flood alerts and sirens “worked as designed,” officials say

Jones also addressed questions about the county’s flood warning system, saying it “worked, and it worked the way it was designed to work.”

• River Sentry flood detection system, installed on Guadalupe River after July 4 flood, alerted campground to 2026 flood

He said officials began sending alerts at 1:36 a.m., issuing a total of 59 CodeRED notifications during the incident. Jones said cellular monitoring alerts went out before the county activated sirens under its protocols. He said three sirens were triggered — two along the South Fork and one in Hunt — and that water levels did not prompt siren activations along the North Fork.

Officials cite improved preparation compared to last year

State Rep. Wes Virdell and U.S. Rep. Chip Roy both pointed to improved communication and pre-positioned resources as major differences compared to last year’s flooding, which caught some residents off guard.

Virdell said this week’s flooding came after nearby communities had been dealing with flooding for roughly two days, giving officials time to stage resources from agencies including TDEM, TPWD and DPS. He also said camps upstream near Hunt appeared to have limited flooding compared to areas hit harder from Ingram downstream.

Roy said he had been in contact with sheriffs across several counties, as well as federal officials, about potential disaster assistance. He said the extent of damage is still being evaluated and noted the broader regional impacts as flooding continued in other parts of the Hill Country. Roy also referenced how communities raised significant funds to rebuild after last year’s disaster, saying similar efforts may be needed again once the immediate response phase ends.

Shelter status, volunteering and donations

Leitha said one shelter had been open, but officials were considering closing it after he was told it had no occupants at the time of the briefing (down from 17 people earlier that morning).

Kelly urged volunteers to coordinate through Kerr Together at 98 Coronado Drive, which he described as the disaster relief center. For donations, Kelly encouraged the public to give to Global Empowerment Mission, a 501(c)(3) organization.

Why Friday’s briefing happened after Thursday’s death confirmation

When asked why officials did not hold the press conference sooner, Leitha said response teams were still actively working through flooding impacts Thursday and that the sheriff’s office was being cautious about releasing information before it could be verified. He described receiving a report of two bodies that required hours to investigate, ultimately turning up unconfirmed, and said he did not want to release numbers the sheriff’s office could not “put eyes on” and confirm.

The Irish character actor died Thursday night in Dublin after a period of ill health, her agent, Phil Belfield said in a statement.

Fricker won the Academy Award in 1990 for best supporting actress for her portrayal of the determined mother of Christy Brown, a writer and painter who was born with cerebral palsy and could control only his left foot. Daniel Day-Lewis, who played Brown, won the award for best actor.

“She was just an amazing actress, amazing character, forceful personality, great writer,” the movie's director, Jim Sheridan, told Irish national broadcaster RTE. “She could be obsessive — in everything she did — life, work, love. But no real malice or anything, she was just a very strong personality and a good laugh.”

Fricker said she was stunned when she won the Oscar, never thinking it was possible. In her acceptance speech, she thanked Brown “just for being alive” and paid tribute to his mother, saying “anybody who gives birth 22 times deserves one of these."

She later spoke of how the award doomed her to being typecast to forever playing roles as mothers. Later in life, she said she used the weighty statuette to prop open her bathroom door.

Fricker, who appeared in more than 90 films and television shows between 1964 and 2024, was known for her role as the “pigeon lady” in the 1992 film “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York,” where she played a homeless woman who befriended Macaulay Culkin’s character in New York’s Central Park.

She also featured in the original cast of the BBC medical drama “Casualty” and appeared alongside Cate Blanchett in “Veronica Guerin,” the story of an Irish investigative journalist who was murdered in 1996.

“We will never see her like again and the world is lesser for the lack of her,’’ Belfield said. “I was honored to know, love and work with her and she will always have a place in my heart and in the heart of so many film and TV fans the world over.”

Born in Dublin in 1945, Fricker received the city’s highest honor earlier this year when she was awarded the Freedom of the City.

In her autobiography “She Died Young: A Life in Fragments,” Fricker describes both happy childhood escapades with her sister Grania and her struggles to overcome sexual violence and mental health issues, which caused her to be institutionalized several times. Published in September 2025, the book appeared on the Irish Sunday Times bestseller list.

Simon Harris, Ireland’s deputy prime minister, said the country had lost a national treasure.

“She truly was among the greatest exports this country has ever produced and an ambassador for Irish talent on the world stage,'' he said. "Quite simply, we will never see the like of her ever again.

Fricker was married to director Barry Davies from 1979 until they divorced in 1988. She became pregnant several times but suffered miscarriages, which led to severe depression much of her life.

___

Associated Press writer Brian Melley in London contributed to this report.

The FAA said that after months of review the agency decided that Boeing's final safety checks on its planes are good enough to ensure they are airworthy.

Since September, Boeing and the agency had been taking weekly turns performing the safety checks that are required before aircraft are cleared for delivery and declared safe to fly. The FAA said Friday that the plane maker and government inspectors were both issuing similar findings as they issued airworthiness certificates.

Federal regulators took full control over 737 Max approvals in 2019, after the second of two crashes that were later blamed on a new software system Boeing developed for the aircraft. The FAA ended the company’s right to self-certify 787 Dreamliners in 2022, citing ongoing production quality issues.

“Safety drives everything we do, and this step forward is only possible because we are confident it can be done safely,” FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said.

Government inspectors will continue to oversee Boeing’s factories, but Bedford said they will now be able to focus more on finding and addressing potential defects earlier in the manufacturing process. The plane maker said it will continue working to improve safety.

“Boeing will continue to work under the oversight of the FAA in building safe, high-quality commercial airplanes that comply with all airworthiness certification requirements,” Boeing said in a statement.

Over the past year the FAA has also been easing the monthly production limits it imposed on Boeing's 737 Max jets after a panel flew off one of those planes operated by Alaska Airlines midflight in January 2024. That limit has gradually increased from 38 per month to reach 47 per month this summer.

It was a learning experience even for someone with a résumé featuring six Super Bowl titles as a head coach and ranking as one of the NFL's all-time leaders in coaching wins.

“Look, I learn every year, I learn things every day,” Belichick said Friday morning during the Atlantic Coast Conference’s preseason football media days.

“Every week is a learning experience for me. Try to listen to the people that are around me that work for us, that do various things, whether it’s academics, training, nutrition, offense, defense, special teams, so forth. Try to do the best I can to help put it all together.

"Recruiting, fundraising — you name it. There are a lot of different things and I can improve in all of them.”

It was a rough debut for the 74-year-old Belichick, best known for his time hoisting trophies and winning with relentless precision alongside star quarterback Tom Brady with the New England Patriots.

His arrival at the college level was a spectacle, one that put a national spotlight on a school with a football program that had long been an ACC also-ran compared to its tradition-rich men's basketball program being among the nation's blueblood elite.

There's less buzz this time around. There’s no curiosity to imagining what it will look like for Belichick to roam a college sideline sporting his trademark hoodie garb. And the Tar Heels’ poor on-field performance offers little reason to expect a big leap in Year 2.

Yet similar to what he was known for in his Patriots tenure, Belichick is focused on his internal evaluation. And he sees cause for optimism.

“Last year when we started, we were literally starting from scratch," he said. “We're above that now for sure.”

Belichick is hoping there's more continuity from spring drills

Belichick has pointed numerous times to the Tar Heels getting a late run into recruiting after his December hiring, starting with jumping into the transfer portal and then pulling from the high school ranks. That meant pulling together a roster to get started with spring drills, then going through more waves of roster changes leading into preseason camp.

“The biggest thing last year was just how behind we were,” Belichick said of his December 2024 arrival.

By the time the Tar Heels started last season, they had 70 new players.

“This time a year ago, we didn’t have a quarterback who had taken a snap even in spring ball for us,” Belichick said.

“Last year we didn’t have any player-run practices. We couldn't actually line up a team and run against another team without the coaches being out there because we didn't have anybody that knew enough on either side of the ball to do that. Whereas this year these guys have done it all spring and all summer."

To that point, the Tar Heels have plenty of newness on the roster with 60 new players, 40 true freshmen and 17 redshirt freshmen. But UNC also had 35 of the first-year freshmen arrive in time to go through spring practices while there's enough returnees to offer continuity and better stability.

“Culture's a lot different, work ethic's different,” Belichick said. “I'm not taking anything away from the guys that were here. But compared to a year ago, we just know a lot more about what we’re doing and how to do it and our culture’s a lot different.”

UNC knows what to expect for Belichick's second season

Belichick's appearance at this ACC Kickoff event last year was the center of attention. So too was his nationally televised Labor Day debut in front of a sellout home crowd against TCU.

Yet the Tar Heels lost that game in a blowout in what turned out to be a harbinger of frustration to come. And Belichick's mere presence on the sideline only magnified the pressure that arose from on-field troubles and unwanted off-field headlines, from an assistant coach's suspension to tabloid-like interest in Belichick's relationship with 25-year-old girlfriend Jordon Hudson.

“Seeing a guy like Coach Belichick, who’s constantly in the spotlight — I mean, the guy could cure cancer and people would still write negative pieces about him," offensive lineman Christo Kelly said.

“But seeing how he handles himself through everything, seeing how he’s continued to block out the noise, it really sets the standard for what we should be doing.”

By the end of the year, Belichick had fielded a team that had more losses by double-digit margins (five) than total wins, with two home losses ending in an empty stadium with Tar Heels fans having fled early for the exits. UNC's three wins against Bowl Subdivision opponents came against teams with a combined 8-28 record (Charlotte, Syracuse and Stanford), while the Tar Heels failed to make a bowl for the first time since 2018.

“We really felt like it was all Carolina — Carolina for Carolina, nobody else was really rooting for us, everybody wanted to see Coach Belichick fail,” receiver Jordan Shipp said.

“It was just like we knew that we were in this by ourselves. And everybody that was here last year, we know that feeling. So now we know what to expect.”

The same goes for Belichick, who was asked in the afternoon what he had learned about himself at UNC.

“That I like coaching in college,” Belichick said. “I didn’t know whether I would or wouldn’t, but I do.”

___

AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

The deals, signed at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, also involved other industries, including healthcare, communications and infrastructure.

It's not clear when the oil deals will be able to create viable alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of the world's oil flows. Goldman Sachs estimates that pipelines in just one country take at least two and a half years to build, and these pipelines would travel through two or more nations.

Iran has sought to close the Strait repeatedly since the U.S.-Iran war began Feb. 28, causing sharp gyrations in oil and gas prices.

On Friday afternoon, the price of West Texas crude rose nearly 5% to $88 a barrel, up from about $67 before the war began. It had topped $110 in early April before falling back after a truce was reached. It has since risen on renewed conflict between U.S. and Iran.

Thomas Barrack, U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, said the oil pipeline agreements would lead to a program “that will make the Strait of Hormuz an afterthought.”

The signings followed a meeting between Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Falah al-Zaidi Thursday with executives of Chevron in Houston, at which al-Zaidi urged the U.S. energy company to expand and accelerate its investments in Iraq.

In a speech Friday, al-Zaidi said Iraq’s economy is seeking long-term investment and partnerships, not merely contractors to carry out projects.

Al-Zaidi stressed his government’s commitment to communication, dialogue and cooperation with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, describing it as “the place where economic decisions are made."

On Friday, Chevron signed three agreements with the Iraqi government. Jake Spiering, Chevron's president of corporate business development, said two would focus on boosting oil production, while a third would involve “investing in a pipeline that’s going to create another export route out of Iraq to world markets. This is very important for energy security.”

Also Friday, the State Department welcomed an agreement between Iraq and Syria “to advance the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the Iraq-Syria crude oil pipeline as a priority infrastructure project."

“The United States welcomes the engagement of a U.S.-led international consortium to execute the technical and financial aspects of this project,” the department said.

The pipeline will connect southern Iraq’s Basra to western Iraq’s Haditha and go from there to the Ceyhan port in Turkey and the port of Baniyas on Syria’s coast, Iraqi officials have said. The pipeline is projected to carry about 2 million barrels of oil per day.

In a note released earlier this week, analysts at Goldman Sachs estimated that seven different pipelines in the region under development could, by the end of 2028, carry about 60% of the oil currently shipped through the Strait.

The pipelines could carry roughly 14 million barrels per day by then, Goldman estimated. Roughly 23 million barrels per day were shipped through Hormuz before the Iran war.

After the U.S. and Israel launched their war on Iran Feb. 28, oil-rich Iraq — which is home to both Iran-backed militias and U.S. bases — found itself in the crosshairs. Syria, meanwhile, has been one of the few regional countries that has managed to stay on the sidelines of the conflict. Damascus has promoted Syria — still grappling with the aftermath of its own 14-year civil war — as a bastion of stability and has offered it as an alternative transit route for energy shipments.

With the war dramatically reducing oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz, some oil shipments have instead been trucked from Iraq into Syria and shipped to European markets via Syria’s Baniyas port, bypassing the Hormuz route. A key border crossing between northern Iraq and Syria reopened in April after being closed for more than a decade, with officials touting it as an additional route for energy exports.

The overland route is less efficient and more expensive than shipping exports through the strait. The pipeline project envisioned would allow for exporting a larger volume of oil from Iraq to Syria and Turkey.

The U.S. order, which U.S. President Donald Trump signed in July 2020 in his first term in response to Beijing imposing a national security law to limit dissent in Hong Kong, is not being renewed, according to a Treasury Department spokesperson who was not authorized to speak publicly on the issue by name and spoke on condition of anonymity. Trump’s order was last renewed for a year in July 2025.

The spokesperson said sanctions under the Hong Kong Autonomy Act of 2020, which sanctions officials that promote China's policy of limiting Hong Kong's autonomy, will continue, adding that the nonrenewal is consistent with efforts to make sure sanctions are not duplicative.

China considers the national security law for Hong Kong necessary to restore stability in the city after massive anti-government protests in 2019. The pro-democracy movement back then posed one of the biggest challenges to the Communist Party in Beijing and the Hong Kong government since the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997.

Under the order, Trump said Hong Kong was no longer sufficiently autonomous to justify differential treatment in relation to mainland China under certain laws. It eliminated the preferential treatment for Hong Kong to the extent permitted by law and in the national security, foreign policy, and economic interest of the United States.

The implications of the decision not to renew the order were not immediately clear. The White House referred questions about the executive order lapsing to the Treasury Department.

The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control said in a statement Friday that the national emergency declared in the executive order had expired and that it delisted people who were sanctioned under the order. But it said people who remain sanctioned under another act related to Hong Kong have been added to a different sanction list.

The statement showed Hong Kong leader John Lee and his predecessor, Carrie Lam, were removed from the first list but added to the second one.

China-US relations

The U.S. decision came two months after Trump met with his counterpart Xi Jinping in Beijing. It could warm ties between them ahead of Xi’s expected visit to the U.S. later this year. Earlier this month, a pastor of a prominent underground church who was detained in China in October was released after Trump brought up his case with Xi.

China’s Commerce Ministry said that the U.S. made commitments on Hong Kong issues and other matters during the U.S.-China trade talks in Madrid last year. The U.S. recently confirmed to China that the President’s Executive Order on Hong Kong Normalization would end, the ministry said in a statement responding to media questions.

“The U.S. side’s actions represent an important step in fulfilling the consensus reached during the bilateral economic and trade talks. China appreciates it,” it said.

Hong Kong reaction to US policy

Six years after the national security law's introduction, many leading activists, including pro-democracy former media tycoon Jimmy Lai, were imprisoned under it. Critics say the Western-style civil liberties that Beijing promised to maintain for 50 years after the handover have declined.

The Hong Kong government said in a statement that it noted the “positive shift in the U.S. policy” toward the city.

“Safeguarding Hong Kong’s prosperity and stability serves the common interests of China and the U.S. and also aligns with the general expectation of the international community,” it said.

It said it hopes the U.S. will respect China's sovereignty and the rule of law in Hong Kong and resume normal economic and trade exchanges with the city.

___

Associated Press writer Joshua Boak in Washington contributed to this report.

It's the latest attack on essential infrastructure across the Middle East that have exposed extreme vulnerabilities in one of the world’s driest regions, which relies almost exclusively on technology to produce freshwater that sustains cities, hotels, industry and some agriculture.

Kuwaiti authorities said the strikes damaged a large number of power generation units and sparked a fire. They added that a fire has been contained, and that they activated emergency contingency plans.

In Kuwait, about 90% of drinking water comes from desalination, along with roughly 86% in Oman and about 70% in Saudi Arabia. The process removes salt from seawater, most commonly by pushing it through ultrafine membranes in a process known as reverse osmosis.

Hundreds of desalination plants sit along the Persian Gulf coast, putting systems that supply water to millions within range of Iranian missile or drone strikes. Without them, major cities could not sustain their current populations.

For people living outside the Middle East, the main concern of the Iran war has been the impact on energy prices. Fighting and attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz have upended world markets and pushed oil prices to record highs.

But the infrastructure that keeps Gulf cities supplied with drinking water are equally vulnerable.

Throughout the past few months, Iran has struck close to several desalination plants in the Gulf. Kuwait previously reported damage at the Doha West desalination plant early in the war, which resulted from debris from intercepted drones or attacks on the nearby port.

Iran accused the U.S. of striking Iranian desalination plants on Qeshm Island on March 8, cutting off water supplies for 30 villages, though Washington did not acknowledged the strike.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels have also targeted Saudi desalination facilities amid regional tensions in the past.

Many Gulf desalination plants are physically integrated with power stations as co‑generation facilities, meaning attacks on electrical infrastructure could also hinder water production. Desalination plants have multiple stages — intake systems, treatment facilities, energy supplies — and damage to any part of that chain can interrupt production.

Gulf governments and U.S. officials have long recognized the risks these systems pose for regional stability: if major desalination plants were knocked offline, some cities could lose most of their drinking water within days.

A 2010 CIA analysis warned attacks on desalination facilities could trigger national crises in several Gulf states, and prolonged outages could last months if critical equipment were destroyed.

More than 90% of the Gulf’s desalinated water comes from just 56 plants, the report stated, and “each of these critical plants is extremely vulnerable to sabotage or military action.”

The desalination plants are also vulnerable to climate change, including storm surges and extreme rainfall that can overwhelm infrastructure, as warming oceans increase the likelihood and intensity of cyclones in the Arabian Sea. ___

Associated Press writer Melanie Lidman contributed from Tel Aviv, Israel.

___

The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment.

The press conference will be held at 1 p.m. Friday at the Houston Liberation Center.

Local leaders are expected to join the groups in calling on Houston to end its collaboration with ICE and emphasizing the importance of demanding justice for Lorenzo Salgado Araujo.

“We are encouraged by the show of support that the Houston community has shown to the Salgado Araujo family. Our main goal is to keep momentum high so that the death of our father, neighbor and friend does not become another statistic. We stand Houston Strong,” said Cesar Espinosa, co-founder and executive director of FIEL.

What happened on Canal Street

The shooting happened around 6:50 a.m. on July 7 in the 6800 block of Canal Street, according to the Department of Homeland Security, while ICE agents were conducting what the agency described as a targeted enforcement operation. Salgado Araujo, identified by DHS as an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, was not the intended target of that operation, according to the office of U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia.

In a statement, DHS said the encounter began after agents received a tip from law enforcement partners and conducted surveillance at a target address.

“After receiving a credible tip from our law enforcement partners, our officers conducted surveillance on a target’s address. Weeks prior to the incident, they noted two white vans at the property. On July 7, officers were almost at the target’s address when they observed a white van with an individual who resembled the target. Officers then initiated the vehicle stop,” the agency said.

DHS has said the ICE agent acted in self-defense after authorities say Salgado Araujo rammed an ICE vehicle, ignored repeated commands and “weaponized” his work van by trying to run over an agent.

Witnesses dispute federal account

Three other men were inside the van with Salgado Araujo at the time of the shooting. Through their attorney, the men said ICE vehicles struck Salgado Araujo’s work van first and that agents were never in danger of being run over. They alleged an agent approached from the passenger side, yelled, “Stop!” and then opened fire, striking Salgado Araujo in the abdomen.

Garcia said she has spoken with two of the three men and that their accounts contradict the version of events provided by federal authorities.

No body camera footage

Investigators face a significant evidentiary challenge: There is no body camera footage of the shooting. DHS confirmed ICE agents were not equipped with body cameras and attributed the lack of the devices to what it described as “back-to-back Democrat shutdowns,” saying funding delays prevented officers from being equipped with the cameras.

Without that footage, investigators are expected to rely on witness statements, physical evidence and any available surveillance or cellphone video.

Salgado Araujo’s family and civil rights advocates have challenged parts of the federal government’s account and continue to call for an independent and transparent investigation.

Benjamin Carlson bought tickets through the ticket resale platform in December 2025. He is now the fifth StubHub customer to contact Investigator Mario Diaz after tickets purchased well ahead of the World Cup were suddenly canceled days—or even hours—before kickoff.

• StubHub’s Cancel Culture Part I, Toronto Teachers Receives New World Cup Tickets Through 2 Helps You: StubHub canceled her World Cup tickets days before the match, 2 Helps You Mario Diaz: ‘Cancel Culture, Heck No!’

Carlson says he learned his tickets had been canceled as he was walking toward AT&T Stadium in Arlington for the Netherlands-Japan match.

“The way it was handled and given that I was not the only person this happened to, I think StubHub should be held accountable to some capacity,” Carlson said.

Carlson shared an email from StubHub stating, “We’ve got you covered with our FanProtect Guarantee,” and assuring him, “We found you new tickets at no extra cost.”

But Carlson says replacement tickets never materialized. Instead, he returned to his vehicle, drove to a sports bar on the way home, and watched the match there.

“I really wanted to go to the match and see the teams, the stadium and the event,” he said.

His experience mirrors those of four other customers featured in 2 Helps You’s ongoing investigation into what is a documented pattern of StubHub’s cancel culture impacting their customers for this World Cup.

• StubHub’s Cancel Culture Part II, Cypress Mother Receives New World Cup Tickets Through 2 Helps You: CANCEL CULTURE?: Cypress mother files attorney general complaint against StubHub for canceling World Cup tickets

Although Carlson received a refund, he says that was not enough. He has filed a complaint with the Texas Attorney General’s Office.

“This is not the experience I paid for. I expected the tickets and service that were promised, and that didn’t happen,” Carlson told 2 Helps You.

The Texas Attorney General’s Office announced on July 3 that it had opened an investigation into StubHub following widespread reports of World Cup ticket cancellations.

• StubHub’s Cancel Culture Part III, AG tells 2 Helps You it is investigating StubHub: Texas Attorney General investigating StubHub after ‘widespread reports’ of World Cup ticket cancelations

Carlson says the growing number of complaints has raised even more questions.

“I think there is more going on here that we don’t know about and that will come to light in the investigation,” he said.

Like several other customers featured in our reporting, Carlson says he also is exploring legal action against StubHub.

• StubHub’s Cancel Culture Part IV, Katy man files AG complaint against StubHub: 2 Helps You: Another Texan files attorney general complaint against StubHub over its World Cup cancel culture

In our most recent report, published Wednesday, involving Katy resident Dennis Hetu, 2 Helps You contacted StubHub for answers to several questions:

• How many lawsuits have been filed against StubHub during the 2026 World Cup because of tickets purchased by customers on your platform being canceled?
• Approximately how many tickets did StubHub cancel during the 2026 World Cup for its customers? (I’m not looking for an exact number here, simply a percentage — even a ballpark range if your team can provide one.)
• At last count, I have investigations into StubHub by the Attorney General’s Office in British Columbia, Canada, and the Attorney General’s Office in the State of Texas. Are there others?
• While you indicated you will not comment on Mr. Hetu’s case, please tell us what a client like Dennis should do in this situation?

2 Helps You has sent multiple follow-up emails seeking answers to these questions. As of publication, StubHub has not responded.

If you have an issue you haven’t been able to get another party to resolve, here’s where you can submit a request to 2 Helps You.

The Israeli military said it targeted a “terrorist cell” belonging to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group. It said it was aware that civilians may have been harmed in the strike.

The Awda Hospital in the Nuseirat refugee camp in Gaza confirmed the number of casualties in the strike in central Gaza, saying people were struck at the funeral for a Palestinian killed in a strike earlier on Friday. In that attack, which killed two people, the Israeli military said it targeted a Hamas militant, without elaborating.

Israeli fire also killed three more people on Friday, including two women, in northern Gaza, Gaza City and Khan Younis, according to local health officials.

The Palestinian Hamas militant group, which has fought a bruising war with Israel, called the strike on the funeral “a heinous crime."

Israel and the militant group agreed to a ceasefire deal in October aimed at halting a two-year-long war.

The heaviest fighting has subsided but at least 1,123 people have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect, according to the territory’s Health Ministry.

The ministry, which has been part of the Hamas-led government, maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts. It does not give a breakdown of civilians and militants but says women and children make up most of the dead.

Militants have carried out shooting attacks on troops, and Israel says its strikes are in response to that and other violations. Five Israeli soldiers have been killed since the ceasefire.

In recent weeks, Israel has ramped up its strikes in Gaza, targeting people in cars, tents, buildings and on the street. It says it is going after Hamas and other militants but civilians have also been killed.

According to the independent monitoring group, Armed Conflict Location and Event Data, Israel carried out 40 attacks targeting militants in June, the highest monthly total since the start of the ceasefire.

The war began after the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killed around 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage. Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed more than 73,264 Palestinians, including those killed since the ceasefire, Gaza’s Health Ministry said.

Federal health officials identified iceberg lettuce from Mexico served at Taco Bell locations in five states as a source of widespread infections from the diarrhea-causing parasite cyclospora. A U.S. Food and Drug Administration investigation identified a single supplier as the source of the suspect lettuce.

Taco Bell issued a statement on Thursday saying that “the affected ingredient from our supplier is being indefinitely removed from our supply chain nationwide and will be replaced within 24 hours in select states.” The company described the move as precautionary.

A federal official who was briefed on the outbreak investigation and not authorized to discuss it identified the supplier as Taylor Farms, a company based in Salinas, California, that produces fresh vegetables for commercial use and meal kits and bagged lettuce products sold at supermarkets.

Federal health officials stressed that other “brands, restaurants, retailers, or distribution channels” could be identified as the investigation continues.

Here’s a brief history of some other recent outbreaks that roiled restaurant companies and sometimes changed how food safety is regulated in the U.S.

Taylor Farms provided onions implicated in an outbreak linked to McDonald's hamburgers

E. coli bacteria caused a 2024 food poisoning outbreak tied to raw onions on McDonald’s Quarter Pounder hamburgers. The outbreak sickened at least 104 people in 14 states, including 34 who were hospitalized, according to the FDA. One person in Colorado died.

McDonald's said the onions came from Taylor Farms and temporarily pulled the Quarter Pounder off its menu in the affected states. Other national restaurant chains temporarily stopped using fresh onions in some of their locations.

Likely E. coli contamination gets lettuce pulled from Wendy’s sandwiches

Wendy’s pulled lettuce from sandwiches in its restaurants in Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania in August 2022 after some people reported falling ill.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said at the time that it was trying to determine whether romaine lettuce was the source of an E. coli outbreak that sickened at least 37 people and whether romaine used at Wendy’s was also served or sold at other businesses.

One person was also sickened in Indiana, according to the CDC.

Extensive E. coli outbreak at Chipotle leads to criminal charges

In 2015, Chipotle was hit by an E. coli outbreak that sickened more than 50 people and it temporarily shut down dozens of restaurants on the West Coast, but that was just the beginning. A month later, 30 Boston College students, including at least eight members of the men’s basketball team, complained of gastrointestinal symptoms after eating at a Chipotle restaurant.

Federal officials declared the outbreak over by February 2016, but the chain shut down every one of its restaurants to retrain employees and allow them to regroup.

By the end of the year, however, Chipotle Co-CEO Montgomery Moran stepped down as sales plunged.

In 2020 Chipotle Mexican Grille agreed to pay a record $25 million fine to resolve criminal charges that it served tainted food that sickened more than 1,100 people in the U.S. between 2015 and 2018.

The company admitted that poor safety practices, such as not keeping food at proper temperatures to prevent pathogen growth, sickened customers in Los Angeles and nearby Simi Valley, as well as Boston, Sterling, Virginia, and Powell, Ohio.

Taco Bell removes green onions nationwide after an E. coli outbreak sickens dozens

In December 2006, Taco Bell ordered the removal of green onions from its 5,800 restaurants nationwide after samples taken by investigators appeared to contain a harsh strain of E. coli. The outbreak sickened at least 71 people in New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Delaware, with most of them hospitalized, according to the CDC.

Eight people developed a type of kidney failure called hemolytic-uremic syndrome.

Eventually, it was determined that contaminated lettuce was the probable cause, with the vegetable used in numerous dishes on the menu.

Almost immediately, Taco Bell launched a newspaper ad blitz and sent its president on a string of media interviews to assure customers that its food was safe.

Deadly outbreak traced to Jack in the Box hamburgers leads to regulatory changes

Four deaths and more than 700 illnesses in Washington, Idaho, California, and Nevada between 1992 and 1993 eventually were traced to undercooked Jack in the Box restaurant hamburgers contaminated with E. coli.

The ensuing investigation by federal regulators changed regulatory practices in the U.S., experts say.

An investigation by the CDC identified five slaughter plants in the U.S. and one in Canada as the likely sources of animals used in the contaminated lots of meat and identified potential control points for reducing the likelihood of contamination. The animals slaughtered in domestic slaughter plants were traced to farms and auctions in six western states. No one slaughter plant or farm was identified as the source.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture mandated a Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point system, which helps identify and control hazards within the system of food production. The system provided for more monitoring and controls to rapidly limit the spread of outbreaks.

Jack in the Box lost more than $44 million in 1993 and did not post another annual profit for another three years.

The verdict underlined the determination by authorities to stamp out any remaining sign of dissent ahead of September's vote as the fuel crisis caused by Ukrainian strikes on oil facilities across Russia threatened to erode public support for the Kremlin.

The charges against Nadezhdin, 63, were based on a 2023 online video in which he briefly showed a picture of the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who at that time was serving a 19-year prison sentence on charges of extremism that were widely seen as politically motivated. Navalny later died in an Arctic penal colony on Feb. 16, 2024.

Nadezhdin rejected the case against him as absurd and argued authorities were trying to keep him from campaigning in September's parliamentary vote. The court in Dolgoprudny, a town on Moscow’s northern outskirts where he lives, convicted him and ordered him to pay a fine of 1,000 rubles (about $13).

The Kremlin's main United Russia party is seeking to preserve its dominance in the lower house of parliament in a race against so-called “systemic” opposition, including the Communist Party and a couple of other parties that vote in sync with the Kremlin on key issues. The campaign comes amid signs of growing public fatigue as fuel shortages and economic pain from the Ukraine conflict increase, an environment that reduces the tolerance by the authorities for even token opposition.

Nadezhdin's run for parliament triggers a quick response

In January 2024, Nadezhdin collected thousands of signatures in his run for president as he openly called for a halt to the fighting in Ukraine. But he was kept off the March 2024 ballot after Russia’s Supreme Court ruled that more than 9,000 signatures submitted by his campaign were invalid — enough to disqualify him. Putin faced only token opposition in the election and easily won a fifth term.

A veteran politician, Nadezhdin worked in the government in the 1990s when he was an adviser to Sergei Kiriyenko, now a top Putin aide. He also served as a lawmaker and more recently became a member of a municipal council, one of the few remaining liberal voices on Russia's political scene.

Last month, Nadezhdin declared his bid to run for the lower house of parliament, the State Duma, but the Justice Ministry quickly branded him a “foreign agent” — a designation that carries strong pejorative connotations and brings additional government scrutiny. It also bars him from holding public office, but he was still able to wage his symbolic campaign for a parliament seat until Friday’s verdict.

Another blow came Monday, when police detained Nadezhdin for a few hours before making the charges that were punishable by a fine or a 15-day jail term. He said he was considering going abroad but was barred from leaving Russia.

He told the court that he was too sick to serve any prison time, saying he “will just die” behind bars. “The real goal of what's going on here is to shut my mouth and prevent me from running for the State Duma,” he said.

Nadezhdin complained of feeling sick at Friday’s hearing, which was interrupted to let an ambulance team check his condition.

After the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022, authorities ramped up their crackdown on dissent and free speech, relentlessly targeting rights organizations, independent media, members of civil society organizations, LGBTQ+ activists and some religious groups. Hundreds of people have been jailed and thousands of others have fled the country.

Another Putin critic is arrested

Also on Friday, Ilya Remeslo, a pro-Kremlin activist and blogger who has become a Putin critic, was arrested in St. Petersburg on charges of spreading false information about the Russian military — an accusation widely used against those who oppose the government's policies.

Remeslo was escorted to Moscow, where a court ordered him to remain in jail for two months pending an official investigation, according to his lawyer, Sergei Badamshin.

The charges against Remeslo were based on his criticism of the military action in Ukraine and calls for Putin’s resignation that he made in March. Soon after, he was placed in a psychiatric clinic and spent a month there in what he cast as a punishment for his remarks.

The Associated Press reported Thursday that David Brouillette, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who shot a Colombian man in Maine, is an Army veteran who has struggled with serious mental health issues since early childhood, according to several of his close relatives.

The AP reached out to congressional leaders and several key lawmakers of both major political parties for response.

The top Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, said Brouillette’s history of violence and mental health issues and the death in Biddeford, Maine, “directly call into question the supposed vetting and training ICE does of its recruits.”

“This senseless tragedy must be investigated and the officer responsible should be taken off our streets and face justice for his actions,” Thompson said in a statement to the AP.

Brouillette didn’t respond to text messages or an email seeking comment, but three relatives who said they had spoken to him since the shooting, including an ex-wife and a daughter, said he told them he acted in self-defense.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, who led a shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security earlier this year as Democrats tried to impose restraints on immigration enforcement operations, said the consequences of failing to put guardrails on ICE are now being measured in lives.

President Donald Trump's administration "rushed 12,000 agents onto our streets without ensuring they were fit to carry a badge and a gun — and Republicans gave this rogue agency vast power and no accountability,” Schumer said in a statement. “They empowered ICE. Now they must work with us to prevent more killings.”

The report on Brouillette’s troubling past comes as the Department of Homeland Security has been on a hiring spree, fueled by vast sums of money from Republicans in Congress to help carry out Trump’s mass deportation agenda. It raises fresh questions about the department's efforts to quickly hire, vet, train and dispatch recruits who are being sent to patrol communities across America.

Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, the Republican chair of the powerful Appropriations Committee, referred back to her prior statement that “an impartial investigation into the shooting in Biddeford needs to proceed, as the details surrounding this tragedy are important.”

Collins had said earlier that it is “extremely unfortunate” that the agent did not have a body-worn camera.

The senator ensured $20 million for expanded use of body-worn cameras and $2 million for de-escalation training as part of the Homeland Security funding bill that Congress approved to end the department shutdown.

“The Democratic government shutdown delayed enactment and implementation of these important safety measures,” she said.

At least 10 people have died in encounters with immigration agents since Trump launched the crackdown after retaking office, including 25-year-old Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, the Colombian national who was shot and killed by Brouillette on Monday while in his car near his home in the coastal Maine city of Biddeford.

“This bombshell is absolutely appalling — exactly the intolerable danger that we feared as a result of arrest quotas and inadequate training,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., in a statement to the AP.

“This agent clearly should never have had a gun — let alone one provided to him by the United States government. And now a man is dead. I’m going to continue demanding answers and accountability,” he said.

Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., said Trump and his administration have encouraged ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection “to enter and terrorize our communities, even if those agents are untrained, improperly vetted, or lack experience.”

“The killing of Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero was horrifying,” he said in a statement to the AP, “and there must be a credible, independent, and transparent investigation so that those responsible are held accountable.”

The Republican chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Andrew Garbarino of New York, referred to his request earlier in the week that the department brief lawmakers from both parties on ICE’s use of force policies and the status of body camera deployment.

Now & Forever, a Houston-based, family-owned chain of travel centers and convenience stores, is offering regular unleaded for $2.99 per gallon at two locations through noon Saturday, July 18, according to information provided by the company.

The price applies to cash purchases and requires customers to enroll in the company’s free loyalty program onsite before fueling. The offer ends at noon Saturday.

Locations

• 13380 West Bellfort Boulevard, Houston, TX 77099
• 13450 Westheimer Road, Houston, TX 77077

The deal comes as fuel costs trend higher statewide and nationally. AAA Texas’ Weekend Gas Watch reported the Texas average for regular unleaded rose 13 cents in a week to $3.55, while the Houston metro average was about $3.42, tying Houston with several East Texas metros for the lowest average among major metro areas in the state. Nationally, AAA listed the average for regular unleaded at about $3.94.

• Houston drivers feeling the pinch as gas prices rise again; see how much more you’re paying

AAA has linked the upward pressure to volatility in crude oil markets, including uncertainty around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route, as crude prices approach $80 per barrel.

The 18-year-old, who once found classes boring and put in only enough effort to pass, found renewed purpose to come to school everyday.

“It motivates me. I like making connections with the kids, I like helping them,” Dillon said.

It began in his junior year when he enrolled in career training courses. Soon, Dillon said, his grades improved. He graduated in June from Chief Leschi Schools in Washington and is now considering going to college for a teaching degree.

Administrators at the school say a shift in focus to technical training and career readiness is paying off, with more students not only staying in school but graduating on time.

Those gains are emblematic of progress across the U.S. Bureau of Indian Education, which oversees 183 primary and secondary schools serving over 40,000 students. In 2015, just over half of high schoolers at BIE schools graduated within four years. That number soared to a record high of 79% by 2025.

Some BIE educators attribute that surge to local innovations. Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Billy Kirkland says they reflect the Trump administration’s commitment to Native American students, including efforts to strengthen teacher training. In addition, the way graduation rates are reported across BIE schools was changed to address flawed data collection that previously depressed the numbers.

But concerns loom that changes reshaping the BIE under the Trump administration — including the planned dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education and continued fallout from cuts instituted by DOGE — could undermine progress and prevent struggling schools from improving.

Reporting standards net more accurate data

The surge in graduation rates reflects, in part, more accurate reporting rather than a sudden leap in student academic improvement, according to agency officials.

For years, school administrators across the system used flawed methods to track graduation rates, often counting students who had transferred to other schools as dropouts.

“We had to come to a consensus and set an accountability framework for our schools,” said Carmelia Becenti, the agency’s chief academic officer.

Beginning in 2018, BIE began standardizing data collection methods. In the years since, Becenti said, the data has painted a more accurate and encouraging picture.

An AP analysis of BIE data found that graduation rates across the system are up 55% since new reporting standards began rolling out, with 11 of its secondary schools reporting 100% growth or higher.

New approaches help students connect

Less than one-third of BIE schools are operated by the agency itself. The rest are run by tribes and receive federal funding. At some of those, educators say data collection is only part of the story.

Don Brummett, superintendent of Chief Leschi Schools, said his staff has been working to correct a “disconnect” between the high school's previous laser focus on getting students ready for college and many students’ goals of finding a job upon graduation.

“We devalued the trades. That was a mistake,” Brummett said.

The school launched its career and technical curriculum in 2020 with funding from the Puyallup Tribal Council. Since then, Brummett has seen students who might otherwise have dropped out instead enter health sciences, education and fisheries management and find new motivation to stay in school.

Dillon, the recent graduate, said hands-on job training was a better match for his learning style.

“It was kind of the first time I felt excited to go to school,” said Dillon, reflecting on his time helping second graders practice reading skills and learn the life cycle of a frog.

Between 2019 and 2025, Chief Leschi Schools reported four-year graduation rates rose from 53% to 87%.

A focus on trades is just one of the ways tribal-controlled BIE schools have innovated to keep students on track. At Choctaw Central High School, a BIE school operated by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw, administrators said a COVID-era experiment in virtual learning contributed to a surge in graduation rates from roughly 70% to 93%.

“For certain kids that have more responsibilities at home, kids that need to work, we saw that (virtual learning) gave them a flexible schedule and an opportunity to earn their diploma,” said principal Alaric Keams.

When pandemic lockdowns lifted, the district maintained a virtual learning option for all high schoolers.

But not all tribal governments have the resources to pay for these kinds of programs or take over management of BIE schools.

Peter Lengkeek, chairman of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe in South Dakota, says the BIE-operated high school serving his community is chronically understaffed and crumbling under a backlog of deferred maintenance, including a gymnasium with sinking walls and a rodent infestation. It has reported graduating fewer than 60% of students on time in recent years.

“If we were able to, we would step in and try to remedy a lot of these things,” said Lengkeek. “We have to rely on the government to fulfill its treaty promise.”

Tribal leaders push back against education changes

From the dismantling of the federal Department of Education to DOGE reductions that swept out longtime staffers, as well as repeated threats of deep funding cuts, tribal leaders fear the progress that has been made could be undermined.

In November 2025, the Department of Education began handing off oversight of dozens of programs that serve Native students to BIE.

At a tribal consultation session in February in Washington, D.C., dozens of tribal leaders spoke in opposition, saying the transition could overwhelm the already understaffed and stretched BIE with additional responsibilities. Several accused the department of ignoring its legal responsibility to seek their input before moving forward.

“We are here too late,” said Herschel Gorham, lieutenant governor of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes. “The ink was dry on the agreements before the tribes were ever notified. That should never, ever happen.”

Jason Dropik, executive director of the National Indian Education Association, said turmoil at the agency's Washington office trickles down to schools, pointing to a Trump administration executive order that aimed to turn the BIE into a school choice system but was scaled back after an outcry from tribes.

“That caused some delays and disruptions to services,” Dropik said. “When drastic changes go into motion without tribal consultation, there can be unintended consequences for our students.”

Lengkeek worries the BIE could be consumed by political upheaval while schools like the one serving his community continue to underperform.

“This system holds the future of our nations in its hands,” Lengkeek said. “We need stability. We need increased funding. We need infrastructure.”

——

This story is published through the Global Indigenous Reporting Network at The Associated Press.

___

This story has been updated to correct that 11 BIE secondary schools, not nine, reported 100% growth or higher.

The body was identified as Tondra Madruga, 58, also known as Tondra Miller, the San Francisco medical examiner said Friday.

Madruga's body was recovered Thursday by a police marine unit, two days after the Volare, a 49-foot (15-meter) cabin cruiser, sank with 20 people aboard after being hit by a wave and capsizing. The group was on the boat to scatter the ashes of a loved one.

“Our family is heartbroken by the loss of our beloved mother, daughter, sister, and aunt, Tondra Madruga,” family member Quin Madruga said on Facebook. “Our hearts remain with every family impacted, and we sincerely appreciate your kindness and understanding.”

One man, Clifford Boisa, died immediately after being retrieved from the chilly water. The U.S. Coast Guard suspended rescue efforts Wednesday evening but police are still looking for the missing.

Ralph Boisa said his extended family and some close friends were on the boat Tuesday to celebrate the life of his daughter, who died over a decade ago. Madruga was a friend.

The two people who remain missing are Ralph Boisa's sister, Carol, and Clifford Boisa's wife, Jackie, he said.

Madruga's body was discovered in San Francisco Bay near Treasure Island, a former naval station, when a boater first reported it, police said.

The bay is notorious for its strong currents, and within hours of the boat’s sinking, rescuers were also searching the open ocean beyond the Golden Gate Bridge.

Crews searched more than 800 square miles (over 2,000 square kilometers), according to the Coast Guard. That’s an area roughly half the size of Rhode Island.

The boat is believed to be submerged on the rocky seabed in water 120 feet (36 meters) deep. When the wreck is located, authorities will determine whether a safe recovery can be conducted, police said.

Before saying goodbye, the Katy shop is inviting the community to a farewell and fifth anniversary celebration on Wednesday, July 22.

The event will recognize the shop’s impact in the Katy area while celebrating Houston culture and raising awareness about autism, special needs and disabilities.

Howdy Homemade Ice Cream has built its mission around employing people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, providing meaningful job opportunities in an inclusive workplace. The Katy location opened in 2021 with support from Houston rapper Trae Tha Truth and has since become known for its community involvement and its “Howdy Heroes” employees.

As part of the celebration, Houston rapper Quiet Money Dot will debut his signature ice cream flavor, “Million Dollar Swirl,” a chocolate-and-vanilla swirl featuring brownie bites.

Organizers say guests can also enjoy:

• A variety of ice cream flavors
• Custom cars, including Houston-style slabs
• Local vendors
• Music
• Games
• Family-friendly activities

The event is open to all ages.

Event details

• What: Howdy Homemade Ice Cream Katy Farewell & 5-Year Anniversary Celebration
• When: Wednesday, July 22
• Media check-in: 2:30 p.m.
• Where: Howdy Homemade Ice Cream Katy, 20920 Katy Freeway, Suite S, Katy, TX 77449

The business recently announced it will permanently close at the end of July, making the anniversary celebration both a milestone and a farewell to the customers and community members who have supported the shop over the past five years.

Executive Chef Marcos Juarez joins Houston Life today at 1 p.m. to share the story behind the restaurant’s comeback and prepare one of the standout dishes from the current seasonal menu: the Tuna and Squash Tart.

Hidden Omakase’s Tuna and Squash Tart

INGREDIENTS

• Tart shell
• Grilled Zucchini and squash tossed in a Meyer lemon sesame vinaigrette.
• Bluefin tuna
• Thai Basil puree
• Kaluga caviar

DIRECTIONS

1. Toss zucchini and squash with Meyer lemon sesame vinaigrette.
2. Fill the tart
3. Top with basil puree, then put tuna sheet on top, and a dollop of caviar.

Trump's amplification of debunked theories about the election six years ago and his inability to accept his loss led to one of the darker moments in American history when a mob of his supporters led a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in the final days of his first term.

Now back in power, Trump opted to revisit the subject, despite persistent voter concerns about the cost of living, American forces escalating strikes on Iran in a conflict for which there is no end in sight, and an immigration crackdown facing bipartisan scrutiny for its sometimes deadly tactics.

His address Thursday hinged on contradictions.

A twice-elected president complained about his one personal defeat, alleged a cover-up by officials in his own first administration and surfaced claims about countries attempting to harm his own prospects while staying silent on steps taken by other nations to boost him.

Trump used the remarks to justify his push to pass a strict voter ID bill in Congress that has not advanced because it lacks enough support from his fellow Republicans.

“America is back and doing really well, but we still have a major challenge that must be urgently addressed, because no country can be great without fair and honest elections,” he said.

Trump doesn't raise doubts about his election wins

Trump began Thursday night with a stark warning about what he described as flaws in the voting system and said he was releasing previously classified documents related to the 2020 and 2018 elections, when he lost the presidential election and when his party suffered losses.

Trump’s speech presented allegations of interference and influence in ways that lacked key context and did not produce evidence that votes had been manipulated or that the election outcome had been altered.

Notably, Trump focused on China but glossed over Russia, a country that intelligence officials have said favored Trump in 2016 and 2020 and engaged in wide-ranging influence campaigns aimed at boosting him over Democrat Joe Biden in the latter campaign.

Despite focusing on China in his speech, Trump did not criticize or issue a warning to Chinese President Xi Jinping, whom he has long praised.

Election security experts say America’s decentralized voting system, with the power over elections residing with the states instead of the federal government, is a strength. Americans vote in more than 10,000 different jurisdictions with different rules, making the nations’ elections extraordinarily complicated but safe from widespread fraud.

No credible intelligence has emerged showing that the vote count in 2020 was manipulated by foreign actors. Repeated audits and reviews -- manyrun by Republicans, including Trump’s own then-attorney general -- have found no significant fraud occurred in 2020.

Even if substantiated, Trump’s claims did not amount to conduct that would have altered the outcome of any race, let alone the 2020 race for the White House.

He also did not raise doubts about his election wins in 2016 or 2024.

As Trump spoke, the White House unveiled a website containing documents that were presented without context and included selectively released pieces of investigation files, intelligence analysis and correspondence.

Former intelligence official calls address ‘dangerous’

Sue Gordon, principal deputy director of national intelligence in Trump’s first term, called the president’s address “a dangerous speech about an incredibly important topic.” She said the intelligence community throughout Trump’s first term was alarmed about foreign interference in elections, but Trump scoffed at them, angered at the investigation of his campaign’s relationship with Russia.

“He had an entire term to deal with it and I don’t know how you can believe how the same community that told him about it, that was excoriated about it” wouldn’t warn him in 2020, Gordon said on CNN.

Conservative commentator John Solomon, who joined the White House staff last month and was seated in the East Room for Trump’s speech, later told MS NOW that “the intelligence community has zero evidence that someone has flipped – that a foreign power flipped -- a vote in 2020, ‘22 or ’24.”

But, he added, “We’re not through all the documents.”

Trump urged the Justice Department to conduct investigations and prosecutions, though it was unclear from his speech what sort of criminal conduct — if any — could be identified, proven and charged.

In a contrast with his concerns about foreign interference in elections, Trump in his new budget proposes a $707 million cut in the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency, the group charged with protecting American election systems from overseas cyberattacks. Trump and other conservatives have been frustrated that the organization pushed back on election claims in 2020 and beyond.

Some networks did not air it live

In past presidencies, primetime addresses have typically been reserved for major milestones or nationally significant events.

Trump last spoke to the nation in April, giving an address on the Iran war a month after it started. He said then that the U.S. would accomplish its objectives “very shortly” and that “the hard part is done, so it should be easy.” The war, however, has dragged on and strikes between the U.S. and Iran have intensified this week.

Trump also delivered a politically charged primetime speech in December in which he sought to blame the challenging economic climate on Democrats.

ABC, NBC and CNN did not air Thursday's remarks live but carried them in full on their streaming services.

CBS and MS NOW both cut away from Trump’s speech before he finished, while Fox News continued to carry his address.

Trump called out the media outlets for not carrying it live, accused them of being “part of a plot" and suggested their broadcast licenses be revoked.

Networks typically — but not always — carry presidential addresses to the nation live. In 2022, when Biden delivered a primetime address full of warnings about Trump and his adherents’ “extreme ideology,” the networks did not carry it live.

In 2014, the major networks chose to stick with their primetime programming instead of airing an address by President Barack Obama on his plans for immigration reform.

Democrats accuse Trump of seeking to discredit next election

Democrats warned that Trump was trying to revive false claims of past stolen elections in order to delegitimize the 2026 midterm elections, in which Trump’s Republican Party is facing headwinds.

Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia called Trump’s claims “totally bogus.”

“The fact is our intelligence agencies unanimously agreed that China did not even try to change a single vote in the 2020 election,” Warner said in a statement on X. “A single concurring opinion suggested China may have tried to sway voters’ opinions … but that’s been public knowledge since 2021."

Rep. Joseph Morelle of New York, the ranking Democrat on the administration committee that handles federal voting issues and elections, said Trump is trying to sow confusion before the midterm elections.

“This is a pretext for the president, I think, calling into dispute the 2026 elections,” Morelle said on C-SPAN, adding that “we have secure elections.”

“I heard no concrete allegations that foreign actors actually changed the results of an American election,” Democratic Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware said on CNN.

___

Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick, Lisa Mascaro and Will Weissert in Washington, Ali Swenson and Jocelyn Noveck in New York and Nicholas Riccardi in Denver contributed to this report.

It's a delicate balance for the candidates, who are vying to face Collins in a contest that could decide control of the Senate as Platner’s shadow hangs over the race. In their first debate Thursday night, one of the first questions candidates were asked was: What was Graham Platner's best idea?

Moving past Platner is just one of the challenges facing Democrats. The never-before-used process to pick a new nominee means candidates have less than three weeks to pull off what typically takes campaigns months or years, from organizing volunteers to raising money and preparing for debates.

The whiplash many of the candidates are facing was on display Thursday.

Asked by debate moderators about President Donald Trump's decision to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife earlier this year, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows gave inaccurate information about Collins not pushing back against Trump, a Republican. When a moderator called her on it, Bellows said she was on vacation on the Kennebec River last week after previously focusing on her unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign and hadn't expected to be running for the Senate.

“When I need to know the facts, I will. I’ll do my homework," said Bellows, who lost to Collins in 2014.

The field of 12 candidates also includes former public health leader Nirav Shah and union-backed logger Troy Jackson, who campaigned alongside Platner in a failed bid for governor.

Platner's exit means the clock is ticking

Platner quit the Senate race last week after he was accused of rape, which he denies, and his campaign quickly imploded as supporters revoked their endorsements and resources.

Democrats have until July 27 to choose a new nominee, according to state law. The Maine Democratic Party's succession plan calls for a state party convention at which 601 delegates will meet on July 25 and vote for Platner's replacement. The majority of the convention delegates will be selected this weekend from each of the state’s 16 counties.

Candidates hoping to replace Platner have been recruiting delegates who will vote for them at the convention. The candidates also must collect 500 voter signatures needed to qualify for the convention vote.

“I don’t think anyone’s happy that we’re in this situation,” said Dan Jenkins, a Maine Democrat who has applied to be a delegate. “We would have preferred that this had broken many, many months ago and then Graham had exited the race when there was a time for a democratic process. But it's where we are.”

Some candidates might see a boost from prior campaigns

Jackson is among the handful of candidates pivoting to the Senate race after running for other political offices, likely giving them a leg up in not having to launch from scratch.

Our Revolution, a progressive organization founded by Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont that had originally backed Platner, has thrown its support behind Jackson, the former Maine Senate president. Sanders, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, has not endorsed in the race.

Shah, former director of Maine’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention, also unsuccessfully ran in this year’s Maine Democratic governor’s primary. He has been pitching Platner’s supporters that he’s also an outsider who can unify a fractured Democratic Party.

“You have an important place in this campaign, and we welcome your voices,” Shah said earlier this month speaking to Platner’s base.

Bellows also ran for governor. She's hoping that her previous battles with Trump will bolster her argument that she’ll be an advocate for the working class.

Bellows previously tried to unseat Collins in 2014 as the Senate Democratic nominee and lost to her in a landslide. She later went on to win a seat as a state senator before becoming Maine’s secretary of state. She’s since downplayed her prior loss to Collins by pointing to the Democratic establishment’s unwillingness to take on the Republican in 2014.

Another candidate, Jordan Wood, initially announced his intent to run in the Maine Democratic Senate primary. He dropped out last fall to run in the state’s 2nd District but lost that race.

Candidates seize on recent ICE shooting

The fatal shooting by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Maine this week has been top of mind among the potential Senate nominees.

The Embassy of Colombia has identified the man killed Monday in Biddeford, roughly 15 miles (24 kilometers) southwest of Portland, as Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero, a 26-year-old Colombian national. The Department of Homeland Security has since said an ICE officer fired his weapon when the man officers were pursuing attempted to flee the scene, threatening “public safety.”

Many have rushed to connect Collins to the embattled federal agency.

All the candidates who debated Thursday said they agreed with the call to “abolish ICE,” though Wood stopped short of saying the agency should be completely dissolved.

“I believe that when I say we have to abolish it, what I mean is that we need a new law enforcement agency that has the trust of the people,” Wood said.

Jackson disagreed, calling ICE a “rogue agency that goes around doing things that they’re being told to on high.”

Candidates asked about Platner's best ideas

Platner attracted more than 150,000 votes during the June 9 primary, an eye-opening number that signaled a progressive base eager to support a candidate known for his promise to defend the working class and ability to rally large crowds.

With little more than a week until the state convention to find Platner's replacement, it still remains unknown just who will be able to capture that same excitement seen among Platner's base.

When pressed during Thursday's debate about Platner's best idea on the campaign trail, Jackson pointed to his commitment to “Medicare for All.” As a gubernatorial candidate, Jackson also voiced support for replacing job-based and individual private health insurance with a government-run plan that guarantees coverage for all with no premiums, no deductibles and only minimal copays for certain services.

Bellows said that she agreed with Platner’s description that democracy in the U.S. has been corrupted by those in power.

Shah said he would take up Platner's commitment to “abolish ICE,” while Wood said he admired Platner's decision to say that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, something Israel denies.

“Graham got into this race saying, ‘this is genocide.’ And I learned that it is so important in these moments to draw those moral lines,” Wood said.

Eagle Pass shut down transit at the bridges while it worked to determine whether the buoys posed a threat, City Manager Homero Balderas said. About 9,000 vehicles cross both bridges daily, transiting between Eagle Pass and Las Piedras. 

“The bridges are the number one funding source for the city,” Balderas said, adding the wayward buoys didn’t immediately endanger the bridges. “So it is very detrimental. Luckily, we were able to temporarily close, just to make sure that there were no safety concerns with the buoys floating downriver and obviously passing under the bridges.”

River levels at the Rio Grande began rising Thursday and are expected to crest at moderate stage around 7 p.m. Friday after relentless rain pummeled the Hill Country and parts of southeast Texas, according to a National Weather Service forecast. 

A U.S. Customs and Border Patrol spokesperson said a government contractor was responsible for the buoys staged at Shelby Park in Eagle Pass and is working with the agency to retrieve them. The buoys were not ready to be deployed or anchored in the river. 

“Waterborne barriers are intended to create a safer border environment for patrolling agents, as well as deter migrants from attempting to illegally cross the border through dangerous waterways,” the spokesperson said.

State Rep. Eddie Morales Jr., D-Eagle Pass, said on social media that personnel had already begun removing the adrift buoys. Shipping containers and temporary fencing had been removed from Shelby Park, Morales said. 

In a statement, Morales said the buoys created “more unnecessary obstacles for first responders.” 

“I have always been opposed to these buoys because I did not believe they would be effective and now we are seeing even more consequences,” he said. “There is deep concern not just with the buoys, but the hundreds of miles of razor wire that may have been dislodged from the riverbank as well. We should begin to have the necessary conversations about removing these barriers and return to a sense of normalcy to our communities, while ensuring our border is both safe and secure.”

Now those images of the longhaired Messi, his hands covered in soap suds as if anointing Yamal as soccer's Next Big Thing, have become the most talked about — and gawked about — in the runup to Sunday’s World Cup final, when Messi’s Argentina will play Yamal’s Spain for the biggest trophy in the sport.

“I have never been a believer or thought that anything was destined to occur, but I am beginning to have my doubts. This is beyond all reasonable explanations,” Monfort told The Associated Press from his home in Barcelona on Friday.

Monfort, who works as a freelance photojournalist for the AP, took the photos in 2007 as part of a charity calendar produced by local newspaper Sport and UNICEF.

Luck dictated that Yamal’s mother, who appears in the calendar photo, won a raffle of families in the city of Mataró, near Barcelona, who wanted to participate. Soccer destiny then deemed that her baby boy, who would become a star for Barcelona some 15 years later, was paired up with the Argentine who would become one of the greatest of all time.

A tearful Messi left Barcelona in 2021 when the club was in financial trouble. Yamal erupted at the club two years later. The journey is now complete, from bathtub to World Cup final, where the 19-year-old Yamal will face a Messi who is 20 years his senior.

The famous photo was forgotten until ...

Monfort had no recollection of the photos until Yamal’s father posted one on social media during the 2024 European Championship, when a teenage Yamal was enjoying his international breakout and led Spain to the title.

The photo went viral then. But now, with the World Cup final looming, Monfort said, interest in his photos has skyrocketed.

“This has exploded all over the world, and the fact that the final is in the U.S. has given it the extra push,” Monfort said. “And now this has culminated with the final between Messi and Yamal. It is better than any film script.”

Monfort said he has been bombarded by queries for the photos by professional media outlets, while also seeing his images reproduced countless times on social media and the internet without any credit or compensation.

Yamal's Spain teammate Mikel Merino had the same reaction as most people who see the photos.

“The first time I saw it, I thought it was AI and that it wasn’t even real,” Merino said Friday. “It’s unbelievable that two of the best players to have played the game — and hopefully Lamine, in the future, will be one of those — share a picture like that. Hopefully we’re going to see a very bright final with those two protagonists at their best, playing and giving all the fans a great spectacle.”

Barcelona fans are torn by love of both Messi and Yamal

Like many Barcelona fans, Monfort's loyalty is split. It is common to see children wearing both Yamal’s Barcelona and Spain shirts, as well as any Messi shirt, whether from his Barcelona years or Argentina or his current club, Inter Miami, on the city’s streets.

Monfort, 58, is considering traveling to see the final in New Jersey, but whether he watches it in person or at home, he said he will have trouble cheering for one team or the other.

“My heart is split. I don’t know if I want Messi or Yamal to win,” said Monfort, a lifelong Barcelona supporter.

“I have an everlasting love for the best player of all time (Messi),” he said, but “Yamal has broken the mould here” and represents a new, diverse Spain, thanks to his parents from Morocco and Equatorial Guinea. “Maybe they can both win. I wouldn't rule it out after everything we have seen.”

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Herbert bent over with hands on his knees after missing a 5-foot par putt on the 18th hole at Royal Birkdale, knowing the 30-year-old Australian was an inch away from being the first man with a 61. Burns wasn't even aware of the record when he holed a bunker shot to cap a birdie-birdie-birdie finish.

“I'm absolutely disappointed, and at the same time, so proud of today,” Herbert said. "Very, very proud to put my name on that list of guys that have shot 62 in a major championship. So it's kind of holding two emotions there at the same time.

“It's a pretty good problem to have, too, to be disappointed you shot 62.”

Most remarkable about Burns is that the 29-year-old American — the runner-up at the U.S. Open last month — wasn't even planning to play in The Open. His wife was due this week, and when she gave birth to a daughter earlier than expected, Burns decided a week ago Friday to make the trip.

Still steaming from a bogey-bogey-bogey finish on Thursday for a 3-over 73, his goal was to get back under par and keep his hopes alive in the championship.

“The finish there the last three holes was just a bonus,” Burns said.

And what a finish. He holed from 40 feet off the green at the 16th for birdie, made a 20-foot birdie putt on the 17th and then made the first birdie of the day on the tough 18th by splashing out of the pot bunker and calmly raising his right arm when it went in.

“It was a tricky bunker shot because I had to land it in the fringe there and use the slope down to the hole. Definitely very lucky for it to go in,” Burns said.

That two record-tying rounds happened so close together was reminiscent of Rickie Fowler and Xander Schauffele — also two groups apart — each with 62 in the U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club in 2023.

The record was first set by Branden Grace in 2017, also at Royal Birkdale. It had been matched four times since then at two majors — Schauffele and Fowler at the U.S. Open, and Schauffele and Shane Lowry at 9-under 62 in the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla.

The amazing rounds came one week after Haeran Ryu set the women’s major record with a 60 at the Evian Championship in France, where all lowest scores in LPGA majors have been set.

Herbert's round was simply flawless until the final hole. A self-described golf nerd, he allowed himself a thought about a record score on a par-70 links after three straight birdies to start the round. And the birdies kept coming until he was 8 under through 12 holes, with the two reachable par 5s still to play.

“I might not play 12 better holes in my life,” he said.

Herbert was a foot away from a mid-iron into the par-5 14th, but it just caught a pot bunker, and he had to save par from a greenside bunker. But he holed a 7-foot birdie putt on the 16th to reach 9 under, and he missed a 10-foot birdie attempt on the par-5 17th.

He went into the right rough off the 18th tee, came up short of the green and from 50 feet away on the baked fairway, Herbert rolled it some 5 feet short of the hole. The putt looked left of the cup from the moment it left his putter.

“I didn’t hit a bad putt. I can at least sleep easy tonight knowing I didn’t hit a bad putt,” Herbert said. “I just misread it. It’s pretty tough when you’ve got a putt for the major championship record to get everything to work and to get everything to sync perfectly still and straight.”

Three of the seven rounds of 62 have come at Royal Birkdale, and weather played a role. There was a breeze for so much of the morning, and players took aim. Eric Cole was first out with a 64. Patrick Reed (66) reached 6 under through 12 holes before he slowed.

“It’s pretty benign, and if you were ever going to do it, this was the morning for it,” said Herbert, who now plays on LIV Golf and has won on five tours. “These guys are good. I’m probably not as surprised as you think that there’s another 62 out there. I’m probably more surprised at myself shooting 62, to be honest.”

Of the seven rounds of 62 in the majors, Schauffele at the PGA Championship is the only one to leave with the trophy.

___

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

What struck Le then, and amazes him still, is Pannakara’s iron-clad determination.

“When he decides to do something, he goes all the way,” said Le, secretary of the temple — the Huong Dao Vipassana Bhavana Center in Fort Worth. “He’s never been afraid of obstacles. He always finds a way through them.”

That indomitable will was in full display during the meditative Walk for Peace that Pannakara led earlier this year with an international group of monks and his rescue dog, Aloka, who has become a mascot for the movement. The 2,300-mile (3,700-kilometer) journey started in Fort Worth on Oct. 26 and ended in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 14.

An ascetic walks into the spotlight

Pannakara’s discourses on mindfulness and kindness in churchyards, town squares and in front of the Lincoln Memorial drew large, diverse crowds. Millions worldwide followed along online.

Within weeks, the Walk for Peace had propelled this obscure monk into the spotlight as a leading voice for inner peace and unity in an increasingly divided nation. His popularity continues to soar, with some drawing comparisons with the Dalai Lama, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and the late Thich Nhat Hanh, a revered Zen master and peace activist who shared Pannakara’s Vietnamese roots.

Pannakara, who traveled to Southern California last weekend with Aloka for several speaking engagements, said he doesn’t care for all the attention.

“There is no fame for monks,” he said. “I made a vow to walk to raise awareness of peace, loving kindness and compassion. That’s what it’s about.”

As part of his Theravada Buddhist practice, he follows “Vinaya” — a strict code of monastic rules. That means no social media accounts, personal possessions or handling money, and the practice of celibacy and modesty.

He doesn't eat after noon and, according to Le, sleeps sitting up, which is not mandatory for Theravada monks, but adopted by some as an ascetic practice to deepen mindfulness.

The pivot from engineer to monk

Pannakara was born in Dak Lak, Vietnam, in 1981, the youngest of 10 children. He says his family was Buddhist in “name only.” He immigrated to the U.S. in 1997 and graduated with a degree in information technology from the University of Texas at Arlington. He said his first exposure to Buddhism was in the U.S. through temple summer camps and youth leadership.

Pannakara stepped away from his engineering career to become a novice monk and became fully ordained in 2010 by his teacher, the Most Venerable Ratanaguna, who he has often cited as his source of inspiration. There was not one life-changing event that prompted his decision, he said, but the cumulative effect of seeing his loved ones suffer and people trying to step on each other to move up.

“To me everything just seemed fake,” he said.

Le recalls that Pannakara’s parents were inconsolable.

“Even on the day he was ordained, his mother came, and she cried a lot,” he said, adding that they eventually accepted it.

Le said Pannakara was a quick learner, completing several projects on their campus including landscaping, a new kitchen, homes for the monastics and a memorial hall for deceased members.

At his teacher’s direction, Pannakara traveled to Myanmar between 2018 and 2020 to study and practice Vipassana meditation, an ancient technique taught by the Buddha himself as core for attaining enlightenment. When COVID hit, he returned to Fort Worth and organized food drives, said Amanda Phan, a temple member.

“(Pannakara) is a rare human being,” she said. “He is an embodiment of kindness, compassion, wisdom — a bodhisattva — a being whose purpose is to relieve others from their suffering.”

Transformative journey tracing the Buddha's steps

In late 2022, Pannakara joined about 100 monks in a 2,100-mile (3,380-kilometer), 112-day pilgrimage tracing the footsteps of the Buddha — from his birthplace in Lumbini, Nepal, to Bodh Gaya where he attained enlightenment; Sarnath, the site of the first sermon; and Kushinagar, where he died. The monks emulated Buddha's journey — walking barefoot, eating one meal a day, and sleeping under the stars.

“I had learned the Buddha’s teachings from the Tipitaka (Buddhist canon),” Pannakara said. “But with this walk, I experienced it.”

He also learned about himself — about his strength to bear adversity and pain.

“I learned that we can do much more than we think we’re capable of,” he said.

That journey also brought Aloka into his life. Aloka means light in Pali.

“Even when he faced challenges and almost died he walked with us,” Pannakara said of his dog.

It was on a previous trip to Bodh Gaya — under the Bodhi tree where the Buddha attained enlightenment — that Pannakara said he had a vision to build stone stupas to preserve the sacred teachings for generations to come. Seven years later, he told Ratanaguna about his desire. With his teacher’s blessing, the plan for the $200-million Dhammacetiya project was born — 840 stupas bearing Buddha’s teachings in 10 languages, built to last 4,000 years.

Pannakara knelt before an assembly of monastics and visitors during the temple’s 2022 International Vesak Ceremony and vowed that if he is unable to complete the project in this lifetime, he would “be reborn to continue this project until its completion.” This project and the peace walks — which he plans to do more of — together uphold his vow to promote peace and preserve the Buddha’s teachings, he said.

Ajahn Nisabho, a Seattle-based Theravada Buddhist monk, said he was moved by Pannakara's authenticity and commitment.

“The story of his quilted robe that he stitched it together from pieces of cloth he picked up during the walk in India — he was honoring that past and that ethos,” Nisabho said. “As a fellow monk, it was inspiring for me to see floods of people walking behind him during the peace walk.”

A conscious decision to steer clear of politics

The Venerable Bhikkhu Bodhi, a senior Theravada monk who spoke at the conclusion of the Walk for Peace in Washington, said Pannakara was wise to remain silent on politics during his walk. But Bodhi, 81, hopes he does speak up on critical social issues like poverty, hunger, housing and the climate.

“I just hope that as (Pannakara) becomes more established and gets accustomed to publicity, he’ll consider taking a stand on these issues that have deep moral and spiritual significance,” he said.

Nisabho believes Pannakara made the right decision to steer clear of politics and activism. He said there are not many spaces today that are able to welcome the kind of diversity the peace walk attracted — with the exception of Dolly Parton “who brings truckers and drag queens together.”

“The vision of a monastic is the one chance someone has, to be inspired toward awakening and find an escape from suffering,” Nisabho said. “If you bring politics into that, you cause damage by alienating half the country.”

___

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.

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Whether you're hoping Argentina will become the first repeat champion since Brazil in 1958 and 1962, or that young superstar Lamine Yamal will score for Spain, everyone's a winner across these 10 tracks.

Read on below and then stream the full playlist on Spotify, here.

“Dai Dai,” Shakira and Burna Boy (2026)

Kick off your World Cup final listening party with this year's official anthem: “Dai Dai” from Colombian superstar Shakira and Afrobeats icon Burna Boy. The song is the perfect intersection of their musical languages, Afrobeats and Latin rhythms, on an undeniably global, multilingual track. After the first chorus, they take turns tackling verses, singing back and forth, before joining in a duet. It's a message of unity and victory. Take it from Shakira herself: “Fútbol is a thing that unites so many cultures and people of different walks of life,” she told the AP. “The big responsibility of making a World Cup song is that you’ve got to make a song that represents people’s feelings, emotions, and passion.”

“DNA (More Than A Game),” Andrea Bocelli, David Guetta, EJAE and Megan Thee Stallion (2026)

You read that artist list correctly. On this World Cup song, tenor Andrea Bocelli, EDM star David Guetta, singer-songwriter EJAE from “KPop Demon Hunters” and rapper Megan Thee Stallion team up for the genre-agnostic “DNA (More Than A Game).” Performed in English, Italian and Korean, it's surprisingly anthemic and has a strong empowerment message. “’Cause it’s more than just a game / it’s our DNA,” Bocelli and EJAE harmonize on the chorus.

“It's a kind of music very, very far from the scores that I’m used to performing in general, but sometimes it’s very nice to do something different and to discover new atmospheres,” Bocelli told the AP. “It's very happy, the song. I think it gives happiness.” That it does.

“La Copa de la Vida (The Cup of Life),” Ricky Martin (1998)

A Spanglish global smash and one of the most addictive World Cup anthems of all time, Puerto Rican superstar Ricky Martin was really onto something when he released “La Copa de la Vida (The Cup of Life)” for the 1998 tournament held in France. It is the standard to which all World Cup anthems should be held — from its unmistakable soccer themes to its multilingual mambo-pop, unyielding horns section and Eurodance-club intensity. Ale, ale, ale!

“Despechá,” Rosalía (2022)

Supporters of Spain are more than familiar with this up-tempo, merengue-pop tune — it has become a celebratory track for the team upon victory, played after they score and post-match. And now that the 2010 World Cup champions are in the final, it's not unlikely it's played out loud on stadium speakers again. It's a cool pick from a team with swagger — and fitting for this playlist.

“Mi Gran Noche,” Raphael (1967)

The legendary Spanish singer Raphael is central to celebrations in the country this World Cup season. “Mi Gran Noche” is just one gem in his treasure trove of hits — a '60s Latin pop classic with intergenerational appeal, played in clubs, bars, football clubs, on the radio and television specials and beyond. There’s a reason it has stood the test of time, with its big band brass and cheerful chorus.

“La Roja Baila,” Sergio Ramos, Niña Pastori and RedOne (2016)

What do you get when you combine Spanish footballer Sergio Ramos, flamenco-pop singer Niña Pastori and Moroccan record producer RedOne (known for his work with Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez and many more)? “La Roja Baila,” the Spanish team's official anthem for the 2016 European Championship. (It translates to “The Red One Dances,” a reference to the team's nickname, La Roja.) The results that year weren't in Spain's favor, but that's no reason to stop chanting along to the song's cheery post-chorus: “España ey ey! / Cantamos gol, gol / España ey ey! / La Roja baila.” (“Spain, hey hey! / We sing goal, goal! / Spain, hey hey! / La Roja dances!”)

“La Cumbia de los Trapos,” Yerba Brava (2000)

It was Argentina's signature song in 2022, when they won in Qatar, and it has been their statement track this tournament, too. Argentine band Yerba Brava's 2000 hit “La Cumbia de los Trapos” was written as a soccer anthem, and a soccer anthem it has remained. It's a high-energy cumbia with a title that directly references “los trapos,” or “the rags” — the flags flown in Argentine stadiums.

“Matador,” Los Fabulosos Cadillacs (1993, remastered 2008)

Ska-samba-reggae-rock group Los Fabulosos Cadillacs' “Matador” is heard when Argentina scores. The hit — with its Afro-Argentine candombe rhythms, big brass and chant-along chorus — is undeniably spirited. On first listen, it's an upbeat party record. On closer inspection, it's an indictment of the late-'70s and early-'80s period of dictatorship in Argentina.

“Dumbai,” Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso (2024)

The Argentine duo of Ca7riel & Paco Amoroso is making some of the most exciting music in the modern mainstream. Call it genre-averse, hook-heavy Latin pop with trance and trap beats atop tropical rhythms performed through an absurdist, comedic lens — that is, if you have to call it anything. “Dumbai” is arguably one of their more reserved tracks but still a fun romp about a fun night out.

“Waka Waka (This Time for Africa),” Shakira featuring Freshlyground (2010)

No such playlist would be complete without the greatest World Cup anthem committed to record: “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa),” also courtesy Shakira. It was the official anthem of the 2010 World Cup held in South Africa and featured the South African band Freshlyground. The song, with its soca-influenced beat and reference to the 1986 song “Zangaléwa,” recorded by Cameroonian band Golden Sounds, manages to do what all World Cup songs should: Take local sounds and make them global, all without sacrificing hook and rhythm. It's an earworm with a capital “E.”

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Through DNA testing and old-fashioned sleuthing, the Maryland teenager who died in one of the last big battles of the American Revolution can now take his place in history, just in time for the 250th birthday of the nation he fought to create.

“There was a sense of divine timing, I guess,” said Allison Peacock, founder of FHD Forensics, a company that helped with the search. “I don’t know what else you want to call it.”

Pumphrey died Aug. 16, 1780, at the Battle of Camden, South Carolina. It was one of the Continental Army’s most devastating defeats, where British Gen. Charles Lord Cornwallis routed patriot forces under Maj. Gen. Horatio Gates.

Many of the 900 killed were left where they fell, abandoned to the predations of wild animals, South Carolina’s scorching heat and its ruinous humidity.

Bones emerge from a Revolutionary War battlefield

Archaeologists surveying the area in 2020 came across human bones protruding from the ground. Eventually, 14 sets of remains were identified — 12 of them Continental soldiers. The others were determined to be connected to the British side and were reburied at the battlefield.

The Richland County Coroner’s Office had worked with Texas-based FHD Forensics on modern-day cases and asked for their help. Peacock took to calling it the case of “America’s oldest John Doe.”

“What we did is pretty much the same as what we do with any other John Doe case,” she said. “Nobody really knew for sure whether we could get genetic profiles suitable for a genealogy investigation on 240-plus-year-old remains. But we got lucky.”

Unlike most, Pumphrey and four comrades received a cursory burial beneath a thin layer of dirt. He was dubbed “Camden 9B,” because his were the second set of remains retrieved from burial nine. The remains were examined and cataloged.

The 12 Continentals were later reinterred with full military honors. Camden 9B’s headstone read: “UNKNOWN. REV WAR. BATTLE OF CAMDEN. AUG 16 1780.”

DNA unlocks a centuries-old mystery

Meanwhile, samples from two of the soldiers were sent to Astrea Forensics in California for DNA extraction and sequencing.

“Typically, in a case like this, we work with teeth, because teeth are in the jaw and are protected, the roots are protected,” said Peacock. “In this case, they were just coming up with nothing on the teeth.”

With remains this old, it's often difficult to separate the human DNA from all the other genetic material in the grave, said Astrea co-founder and scientific adviser Kelly Harkins Kincaid.

“It gets colonized by the microbial environment in the soil and the water in the environment,” she said.

Although she's worked with DNA samples as old as 10,000 years, this was the oldest sample her company has ever used to try to reconstruct a family tree.

From a petrous portion of the temporal bone, a delicate structure behind the ear at the base of the skull, they successfully extracted DNA that generated Pumphrey's entire genome. Peacock’s team then uploaded the data to FamilyTreeDNA and GEDmatch to trace three types of DNA matches: autosomal, X chromosome and Y chromosome.

“We got 20,000 matches to work with,” she said. “So, it was a lot to kind of comb through.”

An orphan soldier's life comes into focus

One of those matches, from the maternal line, was Russ Hudson.

The retired federal agent in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, offered to help do archival research. A profile began to emerge of a young orphan from Maryland’s Anne Arundel County, dispossessed and looking for his way in life.

“I learned that probably when he was 13, he went to Baltimore and he enlisted in the militia,” Hudson said. “And who knows what his story was? What did he accomplish in order to become a member of the militia at such a young age?”

Because no birth record has been found, it’s unclear how old Pumphrey was when he went to war. He signed his reenlistment papers with an “X.” But he was young enough that, when he died, the growth plates around his knees had not yet fully closed, Peacock said.

A witness to history

Researchers now know Pumphrey and his comrades from the 7th Maryland Regiment were with George Washington in the snows at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Peacock said his unit was involved in some of the major contests in the Northern Theater, including the battles of Brandywine, Germantown and Monmouth.

She figures he had marched 1,000 miles (1,600 kilometers) before he met his end in the pinelands of South Carolina.

“We don’t really know what John Pumphrey’s cause of death was because they did not find a particular injury on his body,” she said. “It’s possible that he had a soft tissue injury, like a bayonet injury, but it’s a little hard to tell after 246 years.”

An unexpected twist and an emotional reunion

Work continues on the other set of remains, Camden 11A. One thing is certain: Peacock is related to him.

“One of the first things I do when I take on a case is I run my DNA against the remains to see if it’s somebody I’m related to, just on the wild chance that it might be,” she said. “It’s never happened before, but I am related to Camden 11A. So, I’m very motivated to get him identified.”

Last month, Peacock was confident enough in the research to put a name to Camden 9B. Relatives wept during an emotional ceremony at the 19th-century Benson-Hammond House in Anne Arundel County.

“The fact that some archaeologists just happened to stumble on bones that were protruding from the earth, and knowing that it would be difficult to identify those people by DNA, I just found it really exciting,” Becky Berman of Daytona Beach, Florida, Pumphrey’s first cousin, several times removed, told The Associated Press.

For Hudson, the retired federal agent, the story won’t be over until the U.S. government confirms the research and replaces his fifth great-uncle’s “UNKNOWN” gravestone. He said America owes it to John Pumphrey.

“He sacrificed himself, along with some others,” Hudson said, his eyes tearing up, “for the sake of this new nation.”

He'll have to do much, much more to lift the claret jug.

The world No. 2 bounced back with a 3-under 67 in the second round at the British Open on Friday, ensuring he'll make the cut with his score of 1-under par overall.

The projected cut is currently at level par.

McIlroy knew he'd left a few shots out there, though, especially when he saw that two other morning starters — Lucas Herbert and Sam Burns — tied the major championship record with rounds of 62 in gorgeous conditions.

“It was a little better today,” McIlroy said, “but still didn’t feel 100% comfortable. Hopefully try to figure that out as the week goes on.”

He might have left it too late.

McIlroy was seven shots off the clubhouse lead held by Herbert, on 8-under par. More relevant might be No. 4-ranked Cameron Young being at 6 under, while players like top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau were just starting out their second rounds and already higher on the leaderboard.

McIlroy, who won the Open just down the road in Hoylake in 2014, struggled on the greens in shooting 72 on Thursday and said he still hasn't figured them out.

“I felt like I hit good putts and they did something completely different to what I saw in the read, and I think that’s a little unnerving,” he said.

McIlroy was, however, very happy with his driving. He drove the green on the par-4 ninth hole — for the second straight day — with a 377-yard tee shot that settled 11 feet from the pin, setting up the third of his four birdies on Friday.

Yet, for all his excellence off the tee, he has only made one birdie on the par 5s this week.

McIlroy hopes the conditions allow him to be aggressive off the tee over the weekend.

It might be his only hope of a victory.

“I think any time I can get a driver in my hand, I’m going to try to,” he said. "I just feel like with how I’m feeling with the driver, I think it’s a big advantage if I can get the ball down there and take out some of these fairway bunkers.

“l continue to do that when I can, and then I’m still trying to figure out these greens a little bit.”

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

The former mayor of Greater Manchester was the only contender in the center-left party's leadership contest to replace departing Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who was forced out by a rebellion within his party. Friday's announcement was a foregone conclusion after Burnham secured nominations from 379 of the 403 Labour lawmakers in the House of Commons.

Burnham pledged to serve “people and places who have been waiting too long for politics to let them hope again.”

“We’re going to give them hope back,” he told an audience of lawmakers, party activists and trade union leaders in his first speech as leader. “I am ready.”

“I have a plan,” he added, in a bid to reassure a party that has seen its popularity nosedive since winning a landslide election victory two years ago. He pledged to end Labour's factional disputes, saying “we won’t beat Britain’s new right if we are consumed by infighting and pulling in different directions.”

The prime minister in waiting is about to take office

Burnham has been prime minister-in-waiting for weeks, since winning a special election for a seat in Parliament a month ago, but he has revealed little detail about his policy priorities. He will arrive in Number 10 Downing Street largely unknown to voters outside Manchester.

He sketched out some priorities in Friday's speech, promising to deliver “hope in every heart” and “good growth in every post code,” in part by transferring power from central government in London to local leaders in cities and regions.

“We will take power back from Westminster and Whitehall and give it to the place you live,” he told the audience. “More power over life’s essentials so you can make them work better.”

Starmer announced last month that he would resign after two years in office marred by missteps and judgment errors that eroded his standing with his party and the public.

Labour regularly trails behind anti-immigration party Reform UK in opinion polls, and the governing party had catastrophic results in local elections in May, triggering pressure on Starmer to step down that he couldn’t resist.

Burnham deemed a better communicator than Starmer

Burnham brings a more relaxed style of leadership than the rather stern Starmer, and is regarded as one of the Labour Party’s best communicators. But he faces many of the same problems as his predecessor, including a sluggish economy, a cost-of-living squeeze fueled by wars in Ukraine and the Middle East and overstretched public services.

And his promises of a new, less divisive politics are not too different to what Starmer pledged when he took office in 2024.

“I will work to build a new politics. The country is crying out for it,” Burnham said. “How can politicians point fingers when living standards are falling and politics as a whole isn’t working for them? It infuriates them and makes them switch off.”

He said he would have the “courage to fix the big things that politics has neglected,” such as tackling the patchy access to social care for those who need it because of age, illness or disability. It’s a pressing issue in a country with an aging population, and one that has foxed previous Labour and Conservative governments.

Burnham says he'll reverse 40 years of bad decisions

He highlighted plans to focus on economic renewal, more public control of key sectors and creating new modern industrial jobs, arguing that Britain took “a series of wrong turns in the 1980s” when “political power was centralized and economic power privatized.”

That’s the decade when Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher oversaw policies of privatization, deindustrialization and political centralization that transformed the U.K. economy.

“Slowly, at times imperceptibly, over four decades, political and economic power drained away out of our communities in every region and nation of the U.K.,” Burnham said, calling Britain's change of prime ministers — for the sixth time in a decade — “the most significant change moment in our politics for 40 years.”

Starmer will remain prime minister until Monday, when he formally tenders his resignation to King Charles III. The king will then ask Burnham to form a government.

Britain’s parliamentary democracy allows governing parties to change leaders, and thus prime ministers, without the need for a general election. The next national election doesn’t have to be held until 2029.

New prime ministers have come with increasing frequency in recent years. Burnham will be the U.K.'s seventh leader since 2016.

He faces strong and sometimes conflicting pressures.

Unions welcomed his focus on living standards but said the test would be whether he can deliver. Business group the Confederation of British Industry praised his emphasis on economic growth, but also aid that “the challenge is execution.”

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Associated Press Writer Brian Melley contributed to this story.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s major shake-up of his government on Thursday, which included the dismissal of Mykhailo Fedorov as defense minister and the appointment of a new prime minister, unsettled the country’s military leadership and triggered a public outcry. It tested Zelenskyy's authority and was an unwelcome difficulty after Ukraine in recent months gained traction in the war.

Zelenskyy said he had asked Maj. Gen. Yevhen Khmara, acting head of the state’s security service and a highly regarded special operations expert, to take over the defense minister’s duties.

Zelenskyy said late Thursday he would ask Parliament to formally approve Khmara’s appointment as defense minister, as required by law.

That step could be delayed by bureaucratic hurdles, however. Ukrainian law requires the defense minister to be a civilian, so a serving soldier or security service officer must leave active duty before being formally appointed. Also, lawmakers will be on summer recess through mid-August.

It was not clear whether Khmara would have enough votes in Parliament to be confirmed in the job.

Relations between 35-year-old Fedorov and Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, the 60-year-old commander of Ukraine’s armed forces who started his military career in the former Soviet Union, had broken down, according to Zelenskyy, and made Fedorov’s position untenable.

Fedorov, who is credited with pushing forward Ukraine's innovative drone technology that has brought advantages on the battlefield and fighting corruption in the military, defended his record after just six months in government.

“We transformed Ukraine into a global tech leader and a defense powerhouse,” he said Friday on social media.

A second day of Kyiv protests demand Fedorov's return

The surprise departure of Fedorov, a youthful, digital-savvy modernizer, drew thousands of people to demonstrate against his dismissal in cities across Ukraine on Thursday.

Further street protests took place in Kyiv on Friday, where one sign read, “Don’t ruin something that works.”

“I don’t think they should replace an effective leader and manager like Fedorov,” Olha Horoshkova, one of the protesters, told The Associated Press.

She said her father has been serving in the armed forces since 2022 and told her he has seen “noticeable changes” under Fedorov.

“There’s a little less bureaucracy now, and things have genuinely become easier,” she reported her father saying.

Another protester, Yehor Pohrebniak, said army chief Syrskyi had had some notable triumphs during the war.

But he added: “Syrskyi’s vision of war is already outdated, because war is changing very rapidly ... We need more technological solutions.”

Ukraine's interim defense minister is a special operations expert

Khmara, tapped by Zelenskyy to replace Fedorov, has been in charge of the SBU security service since January.

He had previously led the SBU’s elite Alpha special forces unit and is known for being an architect of Operation Spiderweb, one of Ukraine’s most spectacular attacks when it struck Russian air bases last year.

He joined the Alpha unit in 2011 and became its commander in 2023 before being promoted to major general the following year.

Russia and Ukraine trade more long-range attacks

Moscow’s response to its recent battlefield difficulties and Ukraine’s targeting of Russian oil facilities, which has caused severe fuel shortages, has focused in part on relentless strategic bombing of civilian areas of Ukraine.

Russian attacks on Ukraine overnight killed at least four civilians and wounded 20 other people, Zelenskyy said.

Two people were killed and 10 others injured, including children, in a Russian missile attack on Ukraine’s southern port city of Odesa, regional military administration head Oleh Kiper said. One of those killed was a woman who had been walking in a park with her children, who survived, he said.

In the Zaporizhzhia region, two people were killed and five were injured in a strike, according to Zelenskyy. He said three people were injured as a result of Russian shelling in the northeastern Kharkiv region.

Officials said more people were injured in Russian strikes on five other regions of Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Defense Ministry said air defenses downed 243 Ukrainian drones overnight into Friday.

Three civilians were killed and seven others injured in Ukrainian drone attacks over the previous 24 hours, according to Vladimir Saldo, the Moscow-appointed head of the Russia-occupied part of Ukraine's Kherson region.

Ukrainian drones struck 12 Russian vessels in the Black Sea overnight, Robert “Madiar” Brovdi, head of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, said Friday. The vessels included nine dry cargo ships, one tanker, one gas carrier and one tugboat, according to Brovdi.

Ukrainian forces struck 159 Russian vessels in the Black and Azov seas over the past 12 days, he said, in its campaign to stop Russian shipping.

Ukrainian forces also destroyed a Russian Tu-95 strategic bomber in Engels, about 800 kilometers (500 miles) from the Ukrainian border, Zelenskyy said.

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Dan Bashakov and Dmytro Zhyhinas in Kyiv, Ukraine, contributed to this report.

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

The bus crashed Thursday night in the Kapchorwa District in eastern Uganda on the way back from the region’s Sipi Falls, the Uganda Police Force said in a statement posted on X.

Survivors, including three adults and several children, were taken to several hospitals, according to police. More than 28 children were being treated in hospitals, nine of them in critical condition, Ugandan Minister of Local Government Balaam Barugahara Ateenyi said on X.

The adult among the 21 people who died appeared to be the founder and head of the school, Barugahara said.

Video from the Uganda Red Cross showed bodies of victims in and around the wreckage as people arrived to help following the nighttime crash. Some of the survivors were transported to a hospital in a pick-up truck, according to the video provided to The Associated Press.

Education Minister John Muyingo said the government had suspended all school trips and tours across the country of around 45 million people in response to the tragedy.

The bus belonged to the King David Junior School, an elementary school in the capital, Kampala, police said. The village where police said the crash occurred is near the Uganda-Kenya border, some 300 kilometers (some 190 miles) from Kampala.

The driver reportedly lost control of the bus, which veered off the road, struck a rock and overturned, according to the police statement, which added that the information was preliminary and the cause of the crash was under investigation.

A police photo showed the bus lying on its side with the entire roof ripped off and the seats exposed, including some that were mangled. Luggage and clothing lay strewn on the road.

Road accidents are common in the East African nation and often are blamed on poorly maintained vehicles, speeding and poor road conditions, which are problems across Africa. At least 14 people died when a bus collided with a truck in a remote area of northern Uganda earlier this month.

Africa has the worst road safety record in the world, with more than 300,000 annual road deaths and around 26 deaths per 100,000 people. In Europe, which has far more road traffic, there are around 20,000 deaths yearly and nine deaths per 100,000 people, according to the World Health Organization and the United Nations.

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AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa

The location, 8503A Gulf Freeway, is CVS’ first pharmacy-focused site in Texas and comes in at about 3,000 square feet, roughly one-third the size of many traditional CVS stores.

CVS says the goal is to make it easier for more than 9,000 nearby residents to get prescriptions filled, stay current on immunizations, and ask questions of a neighborhood pharmacist—services that can feel out of reach when the nearest pharmacy is too far away or hard to get to. That access can matter most for seniors, people managing chronic conditions, and families juggling transportation and work schedules, because missing refills or delaying routine care can quickly turn into more serious health problems.

• Storms disrupt prescriptions? TRICARE members in Greater Houston can refill early through July 25

The company is marking the opening with a ribbon-cutting at 10 a.m. Friday, followed by tours and a community event. CVS says its Project Health mobile unit will also be on-site from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. offering free health screenings with no appointment required, including checks such as blood pressure, glucose and BMI, along with on-site consultations and information on local health resources.

The store is part of a broader CVS push to open nearly 20 pharmacy-focused locations in select U.S. communities in 2026, and the company says at least one more is planned for the Houston area within the next year.

The timing also ties into ongoing cost-of-living pressures: KPRC 2 has reported on low-cost care options for families without insurance and ways to manage everyday health expenses—issues that can be compounded when basic pharmacy access isn’t close to home.

• Affordable healthcare options in Houston – without insurance!

A small fly has the potential to impart a big impact on Texas’ beef and agricultural industry.

On June 3, the New World screwworm was detected in a three-week-old calf in Zavala County by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Since then, the agency reported more screwworm infestations in Texas.

The fly poses a multibillion-dollar crisis for the state’s cattle industry, which generates $41 billion a year. It could also increase already record-high beef prices nationwide.

It’s unclear how many cases could hit Texas. Nearly 28,000 cases have been detected in Mexico since November 2024, according to Mexican officials.

State and federal officials are working together to stop the northern migration, which they have tracked since 2023. In response to the cases, USDA and the Texas Animal Health Commission have ramped up animal surveillance of animals near the confirmed detections by setting up zones around each infestation. Animals are not allowed to leave infested areas without being properly inspected.

Officials are also increasing fly traps, surveillance of wildlife and releasing sterile flies, which are used to break the reproduction cycle of the parasitic screwworm fly.

What is New World Screwworm?

New World Screwworm is a parasitic fly that is attracted to living tissue, burrowing their larvae into open wounds. After they hatch, the maggots then feed off that living flesh, causing damage to the animal. If untreated, the damage can even cause the animal to die.

Screwworm can also burrow through openings in the skin, such as the corner of an eye or through the nose.

From a biological standpoint, all mammals are vulnerable to screwworm, including pets and humans. However, livestock and wildlife tend to be the most susceptible because they spend their entire lives outdoors.

Dogs and cats are vulnerable through small wounds or scratches that break the skin. Health officials recommend pets be medicated for fleas and ticks year-round, said Casey Locklear, veterinarian and parasiticides lead for Elanco Animal Health.

“As a pet owner, if you were to notice that your dog or cat had a wound, especially if it’s foul smelling, it’s enlarging, you may actually see the maggots,” Locklear said. “If you see a wound, get treatment early. Whether that’s for yourself or your pet, early treatment is key.”

Read more about the screwworm here.

It attacks the body immediately, spiking asthma cases with increased ambulance runs within hours, swamps emergency rooms in a day or so with people suffering from heart attacks and other cardiovascular and lung issues, as well as mental health issues, doctors and scientists told The Associated Press.

Smoke also harms pregnant women, increasing the risk of premature births and low-weight babies who could have breathing problems the rest of their lives, doctors and studies say. And then there are long-term risks connecting prolonged smoke and other air pollution exposure to some cancers and dementia.

After huge global fires in 2018 and 2019, the medical and science communities started looking at the health effects from the smoke with “more and more studies coming out finding that there’s all types of impacts that may not have been so obvious before,” said Dr. Mary Johnson, a Harvard School of Public Health environmental health scientist.

Smoke causes inflammation by triggering the body's immune system to go into overtime to fight the irritant. Scientists have found it can harm the brain, the skin and men's sperm, with almost no system of the body spared, Johnson said. People over 60 become more prone to stroke in wildfire smoke, she said.

“Wildfire smoke is the toxic product of combustion of whatever burned,” which could include houses and cars, said Dr. Courtney Howard, an emergency room physician, chair of the Global Climate and Health Alliance and president-elect of the Canadian Medical Association.

“So really it's a big giant toxic soup of particles and gases.”

Scientists have counted at least 1,000 toxins in wildfire smoke, according to Colorado State University environmental toxicologist Luke Montrose.

“If I gave you a list, you would recognize some of these as being very bad, oftentimes associated with the burning of diesel fuel or cigarette smoke, things like formaldehyde or volatile organic compounds,” Montrose said. “So just the smoke itself can be bad.”

Rising global temperatures from climate change means more fires

So far this year, more than 5,740 square miles (more than 14,860 square kilometers) of the United States has burned from wildfires, which is 31% more than the average of the previous 10 years on this date, according to the National Interagency Fire Center. The amount of U.S. land burned each year in the 2020s — averaged out over a decade — is now more than twice what it was 30 years ago.

Europe saw a record high amount of land burned in 2025, Canada has had several record or near-record fire years in the 2020s and the Arctic recently has had unprecedented levels of burning.

“Wildfires are becoming more frequent and intense because of climate change, and when a fire happens, you have smoke,” said Colleen Reid, a University of Colorado geographic health professor.

Most of the biggest particles in wildfire smoke fall close to where a blaze is burning, while the smallest particles — the ones that scientists say do the most damage — travel the farthest. In a typical wildfire, the nasty particles that harm human health are about the size of one micron, Reid said.

Inside the body, particles attack

First those particles have to get by your body's protection, mainly nose hairs and mucus, then they get into your lungs and from there the bloodstream.

Montrose said the particles can be coated in lots of chemicals and have large surface areas. That triggers the body's defense system to “send signals to other cells that say, ‘We have a problem. We need to mount an immune response to this.’ And that’s where you get your acute effect or your effect within minutes, hours or even that day.” It's mostly happening in the hearts and lungs, he said.

And many people die.

On average 24,100 people died each year in the Lower 48 states between 2006 and 2020 due to long-term exposure to tiny particles from wildfire smoke, according to a study this year in the journal Science Advances. A Stanford study projects that U.S. wildfire smoke deaths will increase with climate change and by midcentury hit an annual cost of $244 billion in terms of the economic value the government puts on each life.

On a global scale, wildfire smoke particles cause 677,745 deaths annually, with almost 39% of them children under age 5, according to a 2021 study that combined observations, studies on how the body responds to the particles and computer models to calculate the toll.

The biggest nonlethal effects have to do with the way people breathe, especially those with asthma.

“We did a study here in 2014 after we had about two-and-a-half months of smoke off and on, because we’re in the subarctic so we’re warming at triple the global rate, so in a way we’re kind of canaries in the coal mine of the health impacts of climate change,” Howard said on a clear day from Yellowknife, Canada. “We found a full doubling of emergency department visits for asthma and about 50% increase in pneumonia.”

“Even in individuals that don’t have asthma, the air can be so irritating that you could have difficulty with your respiratory system regardless,” Johnson said, “whether it’s coughing, whether it's chest tightness, whether it’s sore throat, headache.”

There are ways to minimize the risks

Studies have linked smoke to people having more trouble with decision making and other cognitive issues. People come to the emergency room depressed, Howard said. That's why it's important to find a place with clean air — including designated shelters or libraries — to get a break from the smoke and possibly exercise, she said.

Experts suggest people wear high-quality masks when outdoors, even though they don't provide perfect protection. Inside, check windows and doors for seals, invest in a good ventilation system and check air filters, they say.

“Staying away from the smoke is No. 1 if you can,” Johnson said.

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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.

Howden is replacing Jane Nelson, who left her post Friday as Texas’ top election official after three and a half years. Nelson’s resignation, announced in early June, set off a flurry of speculation about why she was leaving and who would replace her ahead of the contentious midterm elections in November.

Howden will need to be confirmed by the Texas Senate when the Legislature returns in January, but can serve until then without legislative approval. Nelson’s three immediate predecessors in the role resigned before the Senate got a chance to approve them.

“Robert Howden has served Texas with distinction in four Republican governors’ administrations,” Abbott said in a statement. “His experience in the legislative process and extensive public service have prepared him to protect the integrity of Texas elections and represent our state with strength on the global stage.”

Nelson has not commented on her departure, other than to say she worked hard “to ensure that voting in Texas is secure, accessible and fair.” Abbott praised her as an “extraordinary” secretary of state.

Nelson was the longest-serving Republican woman in the Texas Senate, and the first woman to lead the Senate Finance Committee. She presided over seven statewide elections and disbursed millions in grants to county election officials, according to a press release from her office.

But she clashed with GOP leadership toward the end of her tenure over closing the primaries, which would require voters to register with a specific party to vote in the primary. Last year, the Texas GOP filed a lawsuit arguing they had the legal right to close their primaries. Attorney General Ken Paxton, rather than defending Texas law, joined the party in its suit, which Nelson called “brazen and misguided.”

Nelson said in a filing that Paxton’s office gave her less than an hour’s notice about their plans, and said it was up to the Legislature, not the courts, to change the law. Abbott, who has joined the call for closing the primaries, has agreed, telling Texas Scorecard that lawmakers “can and should be more responsive to Republicans than a judge may be.”

As chief elections officer for a state whose leaders are heavily focused on election integrity and the threat of voter fraud, Howden will have more to manage than just the November elections. Nelson often found herself facing competing demands from the Trump Justice Department, state leaders, county elections officials and voting rights groups.

During her tenure, Texas was one of just 15 states that gave the U.S. Department of Justice access to the state’s full voter roll, including identifiable information about 18 million registered voters. The state also began using a federal database called Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements, or SAVE, last year, to verify voters’ citizenship, leading to at least two lawsuits by voting rights groups.

Nelson raised concerns about that system in a letter to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in April, Votebeat reported Wednesday.

Kristin Miles, the Bastrop County elections administrator and president of the Texas Association of County Election Officials, said in a statement that Howden was assuming a position “which carries the tremendous responsibility of fostering trust in Texas’ election system.”

“It will be critical for Secretary Howden to help maintain that trust through the upcoming November general election in Texas, and we stand ready to be a resource and a partner to the new secretary from day one,” Miles said.

A decade ago, Burnham abandoned a 20-year climb up the Labour Party ladder in London to head north and run for mayor of Greater Manchester. A month ago, he returned to Parliament by winning a risky special election. On Monday, he will become Britain’s 59th prime minister.

The sudden downfall of Prime Minister Keir Starmer after just two years in office has swept the 56-year-old Burnham into office — unelected and largely untested. He will enter No. 10 Downing St. carrying the heavy weight of expectation, and big questions about how he will shoulder it.

“A whole range of people across the Labour movement and in the country have projected onto Andy Burnham their hopes and their fantasies about how the country should be run and what Labour should stand for and what Andy Burnham stands for,” said Joshi Herrmann, founder of Manchester news site The Mill, who has covered Burnham for years.

“He has got lots of people’s hopes up.”

He was born in Liverpool and attended Cambridge

Burnham has made his name in Manchester, but he was born in Liverpool, and grew up in a commuter village between the rival northwest English cities.

His father worked as a British Telecom engineer and his mother as a receptionist, and he was raised in a close-knit Catholic family. Burnham has said he’s “not particularly religious,” but Catholic teaching, along with the center-left Labour Party, helped forge his values and sense of social justice.

Burnham and his brothers were the first generation of their family to go to university. And not just any university — Burnham attended Cambridge, one of the country’s oldest and most prestigious institutions.

“He needed a lot of persuading to apply because he felt that as a working-class boy, going off to Cambridge wasn’t for him,” Stephen Harrington, Burnham’s former English teacher at St. Aelred’s Catholic High School, told the BBC. “He didn’t believe in himself. But he did it, and the rest is history.”

Burnham has said he felt out of place at Cambridge, where many of his classmates had gone to posh private schools in the more affluent south of England. But he got a degree in English and met his future wife, Dutch fellow student Marie-France Van Heel, now a marketing executive. The couple married in 2000 and have a son and two daughters.

After graduating, Burnham worked as a journalist at trade magazines before becoming a researcher and adviser to Labour politicians.

Elected to Parliament for the Manchester-area district of Leigh in 2001, he rose through the government ranks under Labour Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. He served in Brown’s Cabinet between 2007 and 2010 as chief secretary to the Treasury, culture secretary and health secretary.

A formative experience came in 2009, when he was heckled at a commemoration of the 1989 Hillsborough Stadium disaster, when 97 Liverpool soccer fans were crushed to death. Bereaved families had fought for years to overturn a false narrative offered by police that unruly fans had been to blame.

Burnham became a champion for the families and helped push for a new inquest, an apology and a law that imposes a duty of candor on public officials to tell the truth about tragedies whatever the impact on their reputation.

As mayor, he became known as King of the North

After Labour lost power in 2010, Burnham ran for leadership of the party that year and in 2015, losing both times. He quit Parliament in 2017, a low ebb for Labour nationally, to run for mayor of Greater Manchester.

Being mayor played to his strengths: an ability to bring people together, a sharp eye for opportunities and a wide streak of pragmatism. His approach became known as “Manchesterism,” a brand of business-friendly socialism that aims to harness private and public money to invest in areas like transport, housing and infrastructure.

Manchester was a former manufacturing powerhouse — known as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution — that had been hollowed out as British industry crumbled. During his tenure the city boomed, with skyscrapers blooming on vacant post-industrial sites. Burnham won praise for taking a piecemeal public transport system under public control and improving it.

He shed suit and tie for jeans and dark T-shirts, spoke about his love for Oasis, The Smiths and New Order and spent spare time playing soccer or spinning 1990s tunes during DJ battles.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, he harangued Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson over what he called a “London-centric” approach to the crisis that was punishing northern cities. That’s when he gained the nickname King of the North, a “Game of Thrones”-inspired nod both to his championing of his home region and his political ambition.

He has said he saw his work in central government as “unfinished business,” and got his chance when Starmer was pushed to resign by Labour colleagues alarmed at the party’s unpopularity.

But Burnham still needed a seat in Parliament. A Labour lawmaker agreed to resign, triggering a special election for the Manchester-area district of Makerfield. Burnham trounced the candidate from anti-immigration party Reform UK, cementing his credentials as a winner.

In the subsequent contest to replace Starmer as Labour leader, he was the only candidate.

He’s promising to restore hope

Now he says he will deliver “a new politics based on unity and hope” and “an economy that works for everybody,” no matter where they live. A key plank is giving regional leaders more powers, and he plans to move part of the prime minister’s office to a “No. 10 North” in Manchester.

Herrmann said Burnham has clear strengths, especially an ability to tell a persuasive story and a sense of empathy that many politicians lack.

He added that the incoming prime minister has “a set of principles about trying to make the country fairer, trying to bring people out of poverty, that he really does believe in.”

Critics claim Burnham’s politics are vague on key points, such as where the money will come from to pay for his pledges. He will face many of the same political and economic challenges that stymied Starmer, including a sluggish economy, overstretched public services and a cost-of-living squeeze. He has little experience of foreign policy issues, from the Ukraine war to dealing with U.S. President Donald Trump.

And running a country of 70 million is a lot different from overseeing a region of 3 million.

But Sacha Lord, a Manchester music entrepreneur who served as Burnham’s nighttime economy adviser, said the politician has a steely side that will help him rise to the occasion.

“He’s not scared of locking horns with people,” Lord said. “Everybody thinks Andy’s this nice, cheeky-chappy guy. But trust me, when he wants something ... he tends to get it.”

The preparations come as meteorologists warn that El Nino is already underway and increasingly likely to strengthen through the remainder of the year. Unlike hurricanes or earthquakes, the climate phenomenon develops gradually over months, which gives governments time to prepare before its most severe impacts arrive.

But experts say authorities across the region have often struggled to turn forecasts into action, raising questions about whether countries will be better prepared than during previous El Nino events that caused widespread economic damage and disrupted water, energy and food systems.

“Now is the time for decisions, for effective preparedness and the political consistency to really be proactive this time,” said Rodney Martinez, the World Meteorological Organization’s representative for North America, Central America and the Caribbean.

“El Nino is confirmed. El Nino is ongoing. It’s not simply a possibility,” he said.

Many countries have stepped up preparations

Previous strong El Nino events have caused billions of dollars in damage across Latin America, contributing to severe drought in some regions while triggering floods and landslides in others. The phenomenon has disrupted agriculture, strained drinking water supplies, fueled wildfires and, in some countries, reduced hydroelectric power generation, leading to energy shortages.

Martinez said countries should use the months before impacts intensify to secure alternative energy sources, protect vulnerable communities and prepare for potential strain on public services.

In hydropower-dependent countries such as Ecuador, that could mean bringing thermal power generation online to offset lower reservoir levels during drier conditions and completing maintenance and procurement work well in advance. He pointed to Ecuador’s energy crisis last year, when drought depleted water levels at hydroelectric facilities and contributed to widespread power outages.

Central America, parts of the Caribbean and northern South America are already experiencing drier-than-normal conditions associated with the phenomenon, according to the WMO. Those conditions are expected to expand into parts of the Amazon basin, raising concerns about water availability, agriculture and wildfire risk.

The threats vary considerably across the region.

In Brazil, Colombia and parts of Central America, authorities are focused on drought, water shortages and wildfire risk. Brazil has hired more than 4,600 federal personnel for wildfire prevention and response, expanded firefighting brigades and deployed aircraft ahead of what officials fear could be a difficult fire season. Colombia has activated water-monitoring systems, strengthened wildfire preparedness and urged local authorities to prepare for potential shortages.

Elsewhere, governments are preparing for flooding. Ecuador, where strong El Nino events have historically brought damaging rains to the Pacific coast, has ordered local governments to develop contingency plans and allocated millions of dollars for flood mitigation, emergency response and agricultural recovery. Local authorities have begun clearing drainage channels, stabilizing hillsides and preparing emergency shelters.

Costa Rica says it has launched more than 200 measures under a national contingency plan, including efforts to protect water supplies, expand renewable energy generation and prepare for a potentially severe wildfire season. In Peru, authorities have strengthened monitoring and early-warning systems while expanding meteorological observation networks.

Panamanian authorities have developed plans to address potential impacts on operations at the Panama Canal, where lower rainfall can affect water availability needed to maintain shipping traffic through one of the world’s most important trade routes.

The WMO official warned that drought and heat could threaten food security across parts of Central America’s Dry Corridor while increasing wildfire risks in several countries. In areas expected to receive excessive rainfall, flooding can damage infrastructure, contaminate water supplies and increase the risk of disease outbreaks.

Advance warning does not always translate into action

Colombia's environment minister, Irene Vélez, told The Associated Press that El Nino is not new, but “what is new is its intensity. And because of that intensity, what is also new is how long it could last and the area it could affect.”

Despite the advance warning, Martinez said preparations remain uneven across the region.

“The reality is that this preparation doesn’t happen until they have the emergency,” he said.

Martinez said some authorities continue to delay decisions despite increasingly strong forecasts, either waiting for additional confirmation or assuming their countries will avoid the worst impacts. He warned that postponing decisions despite increasingly strong scientific evidence could leave governments scrambling to respond once droughts, floods and heat waves intensify.

Recent studies examining previous major El Nino events found their economic impacts can linger for years and ultimately cost the global economy trillions of dollars.

His message to governments still waiting to act was simple.

“Be prepared in advance, in a serious way,” Martinez said. "“The information is there. Now is the time for decisions.”

Vélez said the challenge extends beyond responding to a single climate event and requires governments to adapt to increasingly extreme conditions.

“Climate change is here to stay,” she said.

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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.

Today we are following the storms and flooding out of the Texas Hill Country. We have crews in place around Uvalde and Kerr Counties to bring you the latest on the dangerous floods that have already claimed at least two lives and hundreds of rescues.

• Where to find flooding resources and how to help impacted Texans

As always, follow us for the latest on Click2Houston.com and watch us live on KPRC 2+.

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KPRC Meteorologist Daji Aswad says:

“Friday will feature more sunshine and noticeably fewer storms, although a stray shower or thunderstorm could still develop late in the afternoon along the sea or bay breeze. Rain chances remain near 20%, so most of the Houston area should stay dry. Watch for a few showers and thunderstorms north of I-10 from 3 PM to 8 PM.

Afternoon temperatures will climb into the mid-90s, with heat index values potentially reaching around 105 degrees.”

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Houston’s Top Headlines 📰

More dangerous Texas floods expected after at least 2 killed and hundreds of people rescued in high water, governor says

Catastrophic flash flooding hit parts of Texas yesterday, killing two people and triggering hundreds of high-water rescues, Gov. Greg Abbott said. Crews using boats and helicopters saved more than 200 people as the Guadalupe River surged—reviving painful memories of last summer’s deadly Hill Country flooding—with more rain expected into Friday.

River Sentry flood detection system, installed on Guadalupe River after July 4 flood, alerted campground to 2026 flood

A new River Sentry flood warning network—installed after the July 4, 2025 disaster—was tested in real conditions Thursday when rising water triggered six siren towers near Ingram around 3:32 a.m. The automated alarms woke campers and nearby residents and prompted an evacuation; three towers were damaged but later recovered, repaired, and put back in service.

➡️ More from Christian Terry

Man charged after shooting inside Cypress Kroger

Authorities say a shooting inside a Kroger on Cypresswood Drive sent two men to the hospital, with one victim shot multiple times and listed stable but critical. Investigators identified Kaden Ausbrooks as the other injured man and charged him with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon causing serious bodily injury; officials believe the incident stemmed from a domestic dispute and say no customers or employees were hurt.

➡️ More from Ninfa Saavedra

Family says ‘crystal-like substance’ found in Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s work van was homemade electrolyte mix, not drugs

The family of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo says a “white crystal-like substance” referenced in an FBI search-warrant affidavit was a homemade electrolyte mix (salt with lemon/water), not methamphetamine. Harris County DA Sean Teare said his office doesn’t believe the substance is drugs and called it a “red herring” unrelated to whether deadly force was justified in the ICE-involved shooting that killed Salgado Araujo.

➡️ More from Brittany Taylor and Bryce Newberry

You Got a Text! 💌

The villa may be closed, but we’re spilling all the tea! 🌴❤️📱

In this week’s The Villa Verdict, Ninfa Saavedra is joined by pop culture creator Dana Omari, radio personality Young Jas and a surprise special guest to break down the Final Four, the winning couple, and the biggest moments from the Love Island USA finale.

New episodes every week. Check them out here.

Things 2 Know 💡

Houston drivers feeling the pinch as gas prices rise again; see how much more you’re paying

Endangered Houston toad spotted for first time in more than 50 years, signaling recovery milestone

Texas gas prices jump 13 cents in a week as crude oil nears $80 per barrel; Houston among cheapest metro areas

In case you missed it... 👀

• Astros RHP Lance McCullers Jr. to Brewers
• Pepsi National Battle of the Bands ends 11-year Houston run, moving to Arlington for 2027
• Arcola Mayor Fred Burton arrested on multiple felonies in Fort Bend County

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Kimi Antonelli heads into the Belgian Grand Prix with a piece of advice he picked up recently from Roger Federer.

After a run of car problems cut into the Italian's Formula 1 standings lead, Antonelli's chat with the tennis great in the Royal Box at Wimbledon offered a fresh perspective on how to stop these blips turning into a slump.

“About pressure, he just told me to really focus one race at a time, just focus on what you can control, and also to control the emotions, especially the ones that can make you do mistakes,” Antonelli said Thursday.

“Those were the main pieces of advice. Other than that, it was an incredible experience to witness.”

So far, Antonelli seems to be staying focused, even as Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton threaten Mercedes' supremacy. Antonelli doesn't seem to have lost any of his race-winning pace, unlike last year, when his confidence hit rock-bottom after errors on the European tracks he was meant to know best.

“I just need to maximize every opportunity I get, what I have in control, and then we’ll see what the rest will be,” Antonelli said. “It's part of the sport and the team are doing a tremendous job to make sure that all these issues are not happening again.”

Mercedes off the practice pace

Antonelli was only sixth and teammate George Russell eighth in first practice Friday, a rare session this year where Mercedes failed to make much impression.

Instead, it was Belgian-born Max Verstappen who led the way by 0.145 of a second from Hamilton, with Leclerc third, .208 off the pace, as Ferrari showed signs of building on Leclerc's surprise win at the British Grand Prix.

The session ended with McLaren's Oscar Piastri limping back to the pits with a technical problem.

Russell's struggles

While not everything is going Antonelli's way, at least he knows why. His more experienced Mercedes teammate Russell is finding his problems harder to fix.

A second-place finish for Russell at the British Grand Prix was more about luck than speed, as he benefited from Antonelli's car trouble, a crash for Max Verstappen and a strategy blunder for Hamilton.

Russell cut Antonelli's lead to 25 points but said he felt “less satisfied” with that home podium finish than he had breaking down from the lead in Canada.

The fast, sweeping Belgian circuit has key similarities to Silverstone. That could pose a challenge to Russell and offer an opportunity to Ferrari.

Leclerc and Ferrari were surprised he had the pace to win in Britain and they've been working since then to understand what worked so well to deliver that pace this weekend, too.

Mercedes remains the team to beat and “should be a lot further ahead" in the standings by now, Hamilton told Sky Sports.

Norris hits another setback

One driver who almost certainly won't be in contention for the win is Lando Norris. The defending champion comes into this week's race with a 10-place grid penalty after McLaren switched out a troublesome electrical part on his car.

His teammate Piastri spent Thursday stressing he trusts McLaren's assurances he'll stay with the team next year despite reported interest in signing Verstappen.

Four-time champion Verstappen left his future open Thursday but had warm words for Red Bull team boss Laurent Mekies, who started his tenure a year ago with a stunning win for Verstappen in a sprint in Belgium.

After Verstappen fumed at Red Bull's “dangerous” car after back-to-back crashes caused by rear wing failures, the team is going back to an older design this week, potentially affecting Verstappen's pace.

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AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

The revisions include adoption of distant male relatives to father future heirs and allowing princesses to keep their royal status after marrying commoners.

Royal watchers and experts fear the new measures could doom the 1,500-year-old hereditary institution by insisting that only males can be emperor.

Emperor Naruhito ’s 24-year-old daughter is hugely popular, and many Japanese want her to be his successor, but Princess Aiko is ineligible because she is a woman. Japan’s male-only succession rule means the line must move to the emperor's younger brother, then to his 19-year-old nephew Prince Hisahito. Next in line after him is the emperor's 90-year-old uncle.

In an imperial family that places a premium on male royal babies, Hisahito is the first such boy to be born in four decades. Only five of the 16 adults in the imperial family — there are no children — are men.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and other conservatives insist the male bloodline is “the only source of the emperor’s authority and legitimacy,” which is the basis for the upcoming measures.

“I'm deeply moved,” Takaichi told reporters after the enactment.

While an emperor's mother can be a commoner, as is the case with the current one, only boys born to men with royal blood can be heirs to the throne, according to the Imperial House Law.

The revision to the antiquated law is meant to solidify the principle of that crucial bloodline by allowing the adoption of distant royal male relatives to father future heirs, pushing the Emperor's daughter to the side. It will also allow princesses to keep their royal status and serve duties if they marry a commoner.

“It’s a declaration to prevent female monarchs … and to defend the male lineage at all costs,” said Hideya Kawanishi, an expert on monarchy at Nagoya University. “They cannot say it’s male chauvinism, so they call it tradition.”

Imperial Household Agency chief Buichiro Kuroda said in a statement that his agency “will do everything it can appropriately to support smooth activity for the Imperial Family members in line with (the revisions), while fully taking into consideration their feelings.”

Takaichi supports male-only succession

There have been eight female monarchs. The last was Empress Gosakuramachi, who ruled from 1762 to 1770.

The paternal-line male succession was stipulated for the first time in the 1890 Imperial House Law, when Japan promoted patriarchal systems. That law was largely carried over to the current 1947 version.

Friday’s revisions have led to protests from Japanese who see the government efforts as meant to eliminate Princess Aiko from ruling and to justify discrimination against women and a patriarchal system.

“It’s very ironic that the first female prime minister herself is the leading proponent of the obsession with male succession,” Chizuko Ueno, a prominent feminist scholar, wrote recently referring to Takaichi.

Ueno said the new measures “treat male royals as stallions and put female royals under pressure as ‘childbearing machines’ to produce male offspring.”

After Aiko’s birth, her mother Empress Masako, a Harvard-educated former diplomat and a commoner, developed a stress-induced mental condition, apparently over criticism for not producing a male heir.

Imperial family is shrinking

Because of the male-only succession rules and the dismissal of princesses who marry commoners, the monarchy after Hisahito is “extremely unstable,” former Imperial Household Agency chief Shingo Haketa told Kyodo News recently.

Historians say the current system is unworkable, as Japan more broadly faces a fast-aging, dwindling population. It only worked in the past because concubines produced half the emperors until about 100 years ago, when the practice ended under Naruhito’s great-grandfather, Emperor Taisho.

A government proposal in 2005 to allow female monarchs was scrapped following Hisahito’s birth.

Naruhito's two male heirs are his brother, Crown Prince Akishino, 60, who is only six years younger than the emperor and has reportedly said he would be too old to serve, and Hisahito, Akishino’s 19-year-old son. Third in line is Naruhito's uncle, Prince Hitachi, who is 90.

Distant relatives

The more controversial of the two measures allows unmarried male descendants, aged 15 or older, of distant imperial relatives — but only of paternal lineage — to be adopted into the royal family.

Fifty-one members from 11 branch families renounced their royal status in 1947, mainly to ease the postwar financial burden on the monarchy, Imperial Household Agency official Yoshimi Ogata told a recent parliamentary session.

Those people are at least 36 generations removed from Naruhito because they split from a common male-line ancestor 600 years ago, Ogata said.

There is criticism of what some see as the government's extraordinary efforts to make sure that male royals are producing male emperors.

“Who wants the son of an adoptee who nobody knows to be emperor instead of Aiko?” asked Yoshinori Kobayashi, a cartoonist campaigning for Aiko’s succession.

It may also be unrealistic to ask former royals to reenter a very strict family known as “an enclave without human rights.” Royals cannot choose their jobs or homes, and must follow other serious constraints.

“I wonder if anyone would raise a hand,” 81-year-old Asahiro Kuni, whose family renounced its royal status when he was 3, told TBS television. “I imagine many people, by age 15, have some idea about their future. It’s cruel to tell them … to change the course of their life.”

Kuni, who worked as an engineer at a major Japanese company, said he would tell his family to decline if asked by the palace. “You are asked to sacrifice your life for the happiness of the people. I can’t tell my family to choose such a difficult life.”

He expressed support for female monarchs in interviews with other Japanese media.

Princesses who marry commoners can keep royal status

Aiko, known for her engaging smile, enthusiasm and witty conversation, is a public favorite.

Five single princesses, including Aiko and her popular cousin Kako, 31, may be affected by the other main revision to the Imperial House Law, which would allow them to keep their royal status and continue serving official duties if they marry commoners, although their spouse and children wouldn't be accepted as royals.

Aiko’s elder cousin Mako renounced her royal status and moved to New York after marrying her college boyfriend, a commoner who now is a lawyer. The move was largely seen as her attempt to flee from the restrained imperial life.

Ueno calls the system inhumane and urges the princesses to follow Mako's example and leave when they can.

Hisahito, possible adoptees and their future wives will face enormous pressure to produce male offspring, Kawanishi said.

Many Japanese want Aiko to be emperor

“The emperor is a symbolic figure, and I don’t see why women cannot serve in the role,” said 78-year-old Junichiro Tsujimaru, a sushi chain founder.

Yoshio Iwase, 78, said Aiko, as the daughter of the emperor, is the legitimate successor. “I think it’s fine because there used to be female emperors in the past.”

There is worry that the government's push will upset former Emperor Akihito's legacy, which included making amends for the victims of World War II, fought in his father’s name.

Akihito, who abdicated in 2019, also tried to bring what was seen as an aloof monarchy closer to the people, an example followed by his son, Naruhito, and his family.

Akihito reportedly supports Aiko's succession. He avoided directly answering a question about the 2005 government proposal but said female royals served a major role in the monarchy and that its role was to work for the happiness of the people — a remark interpreted as his support for female monarchs.

Naruhito also said in June that he hoped discussions about the measures would reach a conclusion that “will gain understanding of the people,” a comment palace watchers said was his nuanced displeasure.

Japan on Friday also enacted a controversial new law prohibiting desecration of its national flag, a key right-wing agenda pushed by Takaichi. Opponents see it as an attempt to intimidate the public and silence criticism against her government.

But all that frothy foam obscures a cold reality: Beer sales have been struggling globally, and it’s unclear if soccer's world championship tournament can reverse the trend despite having three countries and 16 cities as co-hosts this year.

In the U.S., beer consumption has fallen steadily for a decade, according to the Brewers Association, a trade group for craft brewers. Canada has seen a similar decline, according to the national statistics agency. The Brewers of Europe trade association says the story is the same in the European Union.

Consumers are buying less regular beer and more ‘wellness’ drinks

Many consumers are cutting back on alcohol for health reasons. Last year was the first time in Gallup’s polling that a majority of Americans – 53% -- said drinking “one or two drinks a day” was bad for one’s health.

While sales of non-alcoholic beer have grown, they still make up only around 1% of the U.S. market, according to the Beer Institute, a trade group for brewers.

Economic worries also have taken a toll on sales. U.S. consumption of all types of alcohol – including wine and spirits – fell 5% last year, and affordability concerns were partly to blame, beverage market research company IWSR said.

Craig Purser, the president and CEO of the National Beer Wholesalers Association, said he thinks smartphones and Netflix have taken consumers away from socializing with a cold beer in hand.

“If you have this behavior where we’re cocooning and we’re not spending time with other folks, that’s going to affect beer consumption,” Purser said.

World Cup host cities saw a bump in beer sales at stadiums, bars and restaurants

Enter the World Cup and the soccer fans who traveled from around the world to support their national teams and engage in communal celebration or sorrow.

In the first four weeks of the tournament, beer sales in bars, restaurants, stadiums and other venues rose 14% in U.S. host cities compared to the same period last year, according to the Beer Institute. The bump extended beyond host cities; sales were up 4% nationally, the institute said.

Jim Koch, the brewer, founder and CEO of the Boston Beer Co., which makes Samuel Adams and other brands, said the company had to make two emergency deliveries to its Sam Adams Boston Taproom on the first day that Scotland's fans were in town.

“At one point, we were pouring them a Sam Adams Boston Lager every 12 seconds. What a wonderful group of people,” he said.

But that wasn't all that warmed Koch's heart.

“I didn’t see a single soul on their phone," he said, “They had a beer in their hand and they were talking to each other. They were doing what beer is meant to do, which is helping people enjoy each other’s company.”

The plentiful drinking on display in stadiums stood in stark constrast to the World Cup held four years ago in Qatar, where the government banned the sale of alcoholic beer in match venues.

Brewers leaned heavily into this year's tournament. Budweiser and Michelob Ultra maker AB InBev, the World's Cup's official beer sponsor, doled out marketing support to bars and hosted 200,000 watch parties in 40 countries.

Molson Coors said it would spend 60% more than last year on marketing in June and July; it also debuted a limited edition soccer ball that can hold 12 cans of Miller Lite.

A team's loss can make supporters cry, but not in their beer

Maybell Romero, a law professor at Tulane University School of Law in New Orleans, usually prefers cocktails over beer. But she says she opts for beer during the World Cup since it has lower alcohol content than liquor or wine and watching games can be an all-day affair.

“If I drink cocktail after cocktail, I will not be functional after a few hours,” Romero said.

Romero, who has been watching this year's matches at bars in Mexico City, said she’s enjoyed trying new beers, especially those with novel ingredients like champagne yeast. She might order an occasional beer once the World Cup ends but expects to go back to mostly drinking cocktails.

Beer consumption was expected to fall in some markets even before the World Cup ended. Shares in AB InBev and Constellation Brands — which owns the U.S. rights to Mexican beer brands like Corona and Modelo — tumbled after Mexico and Brazil were eliminated from the tournament.

Romero observed the mood shift in Mexico City after those losses.

“The city is collectively depressed,” she said. "Everything is a lot quieter, and people aren’t going out as much."

Major sporting events on the horizon allow the beer industry to hold out hope

Purser remains hopeful the World Cup will remind people how much they like to gather and cheer on athletes, especially with the Summer Olympics heading to Los Angeles in 2028. Occasions are expanding, he said; college and professional football games are now played on more nights of the week, for example. And beer's consumer base is widening as more brands put out low- and no-alcohol versions, he said.

In May, the NCAA reversed its long-standing ban on alcohol advertising during March Madness, allowing makers of beer, wine, spirits and hard seltzer makers to sponsor the college basketball tournaments for the first time starting next season.

The Boston Beer Co.'s Koch said he's not fretting until then.

“People worry that the beer business has declined for a few years, and I always remind them that beer has been a part of human society, human civilization, for 10,000 years,” he said. “Beer will always be a part enhancing our enjoyment of our lives and the time we spend on this earth.”

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AP Video Journalist Rodrique Ngowi contributed from Boston.

FIFA announced the pick late Thursday. It's the second straight World Cup final where Argentina, now the defending champion, will have a European referee to face a European opponent.

FIFA has faced criticism during the current World Cup for Argentina seeming to get the benefit of some refereeing decisions — including when soccer great Lionel Messi escaped a red card for a rough challenge on an Algeria opponent — with the coaches of Egypt and South Africa claiming inconsistencies.

After Egypt formally alleged bias in decisions during its 3-2 loss to Argentina, FIFA director of referees Pierluigi Collina said: “Nobody can question the integrity of the FIFA World Cup match officials.”

In his three games so far at the 2026 World Cup, Vinčić has shown seven yellow cards and one red card, and awarded no penalty kicks.

In the most recent of his games, in the round of 32 more than two weeks ago, Vinčić sent off Ecuador’s Piero Hincapie after a video review for covering his mouth in a confrontation with a Mexico opponent.

Vinčić also worked two group-stage games, when Brazil and Morocco drew 1-1 and Algeria beat Jordan 2-1.

Bayern-Madrid epic

In the last European club season, Vinčić’s biggest match was Bayern Munich’s 4-3 win over Real Madrid in the quarterfinals of the Champions League.

Vinčić showed yellow cards to five Madrid players, and second yellows to Eduardo Camavinga for timewasting and Arda Guler for dissent to send them off late in the game.

Those were among just three red cards that Vinčić showed in nine Champions League games and he awarded just two penalties.

The 46-year-old Slovenian refereed Madrid’s 2-0 win over Borussia Dortmund in the 2024 Champions League final.

The Slovenia link

FIFA’s pick of Vinčić surprised some observers given ongoing tensions between its president Gianni Infantino and UEFA, led by Slovenian lawyer Aleksander Ceferin, who should attend the final at East Rutherford, New Jersey.

UEFA claimed FIFA “crossed a red line” in suspending a mandatory one-game ban for United States forward Folarin Balogun to let him face Belgium in the round of 16, and called the decision “unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable.”

On day four of the World Cup, some soccer federations published a letter during a FIFA-hosted conference in Miami criticizing Ceferin personally for a reported comment made days before the tournament in Slovenia about the expanded 48-team competition format.

Vinčić follows Szymon Marciniak of Poland in being chosen to officiate the biggest match in world soccer. Marciniak awarded a penalty to each team in the thrilling 3-3 draw in the World Cup final between Argentina and France in Qatar in December 2022. Argentina then won the penalty shootout in which Marciniak showed a yellow card to goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez for unsporting conduct in trying to distract French players.

The pick of Vinčić continues a pattern for 10 straight World Cups since 1990: European referees are chosen for finals played outside Europe, and referees from other continents are picked for finals played in Europe. Those include Italian Collina, the premier referee of his generation, who worked Brazil's 2-0 win over Germany in the 2002 final in Japan.

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

The rule announced by the Department of Homeland Security will do away with the “duration of status” system, which allows foreign journalists to stay and work in the United States as long as they meet eligibility requirements. That will be replaced with a fixed period of time, though the visas may be extended.

The agency says it's necessary to better vet the visa holders. But advocates for foreign journalists oppose the change, saying the drastically shorter stay would severely restrict their ability to live and work in the States.

The even shorter visa rule for Chinese journalists, which does not include those from the “special administrative regions” of Hong Kong or Macao, is particularly harsh and could add tensions to the already fraught relations between Washington and Beijing, despite both leaders stating they intend to stabilize ties.

The decision comes at a time when President Donald Trump is targeting news organizations with multiple threats and legal actions at home and his administration is tightening immigration policies, though foreign journalists are not considered immigrants.

Journalism organizations denounce the decision

The rule will take effect 60 days after it’s published in the Federal Register. Congress can reject a rule, but it's extremely rare.

“We are outraged that the Trump administration has cruelly limited the duration of visas for foreign journalists from a period of up to five years to a fixed eight months,” the advocacy group Reporters with Borders said in a statement. “This change destroys international journalists’ ability to report from the U.S. and makes it extremely difficult for international outlets to operate here at all.”

“The relentless cycle of visa renewals restricts press freedom, as journalists will feel compelled to avoid drawing the administration’s ire, lest their applications be rejected,” it said.

The Committee to Protect Journalists released a statement calling the new visa policy “the behavior of a backsliding democracy, not the international vanguard of free speech.”

In proposing the change in August 2025, the federal agency said the rising number of foreign journalists in the U.S. “poses a challenge” to its ability “to monitor and oversee these nonimmigrants while they are in the United States.”

It added that students and foreign visitors also will see their previous rule of “duration of status” replaced with fixed periods by the same decision.

By admitting them into the country for a fixed period, the Department of Homeland Security said it could better vet the visa holders to ensure their activities are permissible. The visas can be extended.

This isn't the first time shortening visas has been proposed

The first Trump administration sought to change the visa rules in 2020, but the proposal was withdrawn in 2021 when President Joe Biden took office.

But the White House then tightened visas for Chinese journalists to only 90 days, in response to the treatment of U.S. journalists in China, including the expulsion of three Wall Street Journal reporters, as tensions flared up during the COVID-19 pandemic between the two countries. The Biden administration later relaxed the rule, allowing stays to increase to up to a year.

When the Trump administration proposed to revive the 90-day rule last year, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said it opposed “the U.S.’s discriminatory move targeting a specific country.”

China warns of reciprocal measures

China's Foreign Ministry called the decision “discriminatory” and said it would affect the work of Chinese media in the U.S.

“China urges the U.S. to immediately revoke its discriminatory policies targeting Chinese journalists and effectively safeguard their lawful rights and interests in the U.S.,” said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian at a daily briefing in Beijing. He added that “China reserves the right to take reciprocal countermeasures.”

___

AP journalists Fu Ting in Washington and E. Eduardo Castillo in Beijing contributed to the report.

Speaking at a conference in Shanghai, Xi said AI should not be dominated by any single nation. American-led restrictions have blocked China from accessing some of the world's most advanced technologies, spurring China's efforts to build its own know-how and intensifying the rivalry between the world’s two biggest economies.

“The development of artificial intelligence should not be a solo performance by any single country but rather a symphony of global cooperation,” Xi said at the opening of China's annual World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai. Others attending included the leaders of Kazakhstan, Cambodia and Thailand and U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres.

Xi opposes the ‘overstretching’ of national security in AI

“We should together oppose the practice of overstretching the concept of national security in the field of artificial intelligence, and of placing one’s own security above that of other countries,” he said, repeating a longstanding Chinese complaint.

China will expand AI cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the League of Arab States, the African Union, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the BRICS countries, Xi said. He promised to provide access for 30 countries to a Chinese-developed AI meteorological tool that provides early warning systems.

Over the next five years, Xi said China will provide 5,000 AI training opportunities to developing countries.

Closer partnerships can help prevent “historical injustice in AI,” he said.

China’s new AI cooperation body seen as response to the U.S.

Ahead of the conference, 29 countries including Pakistan, Russia and Kazakhstan signed an agreement with China to establish a World Artificial Intelligence Cooperation Organization. State media described it as an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Shanghai promoting global AI governance.

The new AI cooperation organization can be viewed as China’s answer to the U.S.-led Pax Silica initiative, said George Chen, partner and chair of digital practice at Washington-headquartered consultancy The Asia Group.

The Pax Silica framework, launched late last year, focuses on strengthening collaboration with U.S. allies and partners on AI-related supply chains. Signatories include Japan, the U.K., Australia, the Philippines, Israel and India.

Following a visit by U.S. President Donald Trump’s to Beijing to meet with Xi in mid-May, China and the United States also agreed to conduct a dialogue on AI development and governance.

Chen, who was at the conference in Shanghai, also said Xi’s speech can be seen as a signal that China can be a reliable partner to the developing world, or “Global South” countries. “China will not let America be the monopoly of AI technology.”

China's advanced tech showcased as it steps up self-reliance

More than 1,100 companies and 1,400 guests are participating in the annual AI conference this year, Chinese state media said.

During the conference that runs until Monday, tech giant Huawei is showcasing its powerful AI computing system, the Atlas 950 SuperPoD.

Some technology analysts now believe China has become an innovator in AI and is no longer just catching up with the U.S. China’s five-year plan until 2030 has prioritized progress in frontiers of science and technology including AI.

China’s open-source AI models, like DeepSeek, are seen, especially across the developing world, as appealing and often more affordable than U.S. AI models, which are largely closed-source.

Coinciding with the conference, the Chinese AI startup Moonshot released its latest AI model, Kimi K3. It said Kimi K3's 2.8 trillion parameters — one of the measurements of an AI model's capability — will make it the world's largest open-source model. DeepSeek's V4 Pro version has 1.6 trillion parameters.

Last month, another Chinese AI company Zhipu, or Z.ai, rolled out its new flagship GLM-5.2 open-source model in a challenge to U.S. rivals including Anthropic’s models.

But U.S. politicians and several major U.S. AI companies including Anthropic have accused Chinese AI models of illicit “distillation” of their models to extract their technologies, a claim that Beijing says is “groundless.” U.S. policymakers have also raised concerns over Chinese AI posing an economic threat to the United States.

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Chan reported from Hong Kong. Associated Press writer Ken Moritsugu contributed from Beijing.

That was May 24, 2000, the day Israel ended its 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon.

By then, many Israelis had grown to view the invasion — initially aimed at ousting Palestinian militants — as a strategic failure, akin to the U.S. military quagmire in Vietnam.

Now, 26 years later, Israel is again occupying much of southern Lebanon, and while polling shows that a majority of Israelis currently support an extended military presence in Lebanon, some, including Barak, who remember the pitfalls of the last occupation, are afraid that Israel is falling into the same trap.

“Our very presence will become the only goal,” Barak said in a recent interview, recounting what he said he thought of the occupation in 1985, when he was a general in the Israeli military, and Israel was shifting from active fighting to long-term deployment in Lebanon.

“We will protect our fortresses, we will protect our convoys of supply, the logistics, the patrols, everything," he said he warned. “But we were not serving Israeli security, we were not serving the state. There was no logic to this in 1985, and there was no logic in 2000, when we pulled out.”

An open-ended occupation

Israel again invaded Lebanon in March and now controls more than 600 square kilometers (230 square miles) of territory. It began the operation after Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Lebanese militant group, launched a wave of drone and missile attacks in retaliation for the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

Last month, Israel signed a framework agreement with the Lebanese government to use at least two areas in southern Lebanon as “pilot zones” for removing Hezbollah weapons and infrastructure and handing over security to Lebanon’s army. Israel would then redeploy or withdraw its forces from those areas. Hezbollah was not part of the agreement and has vowed to oppose it.

In the meantime, Israeli officials have vowed to keep troops inside a broader “security zone” in Lebanon as long as Hezbollah retains its weapons. After the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas that sparked the war in Gaza, Israel has maintained smaller “security zones” in Gaza and Syria, which it says are needed to prevent future attacks by militants.

“We didn’t ask anyone’s permission to enter Lebanon, and we don’t need anyone’s permission to stay in Lebanon,” Defense Minister Israel Katz said recently, calling it Israel's “right and our duty” to protect residents in northern border towns.

A former prime minister warns of similar pitfalls

Barak, who served as Israel’s military chief before coming prime minister, still considers the pullout one of his proudest achievements.

As a general, he recalls visiting soldiers stationed in Lebanon in the early 1980s. He said they told him, “We are fighting to remove the threat from Hezbollah so that our children will be safe and won’t have to serve here.”

But when Barak ordered the withdrawal nearly two decades later, he said some of the children of those same soldiers were serving in Lebanon.

Israel’s self-declared security zone inside Lebanon did not deliver for Israelis during the previous occupation, and it is unlikely the new zone will either, Barak said. Even in the 1990s, rudimentary Katyusha rockets launched by Hezbollah could easily bypass it and hit northern Israel.

“In order to destroy, totally destroy Hezbollah, you’d have to conquer the whole of Lebanon,” Barak said, something most Israelis consider to be impractical.

But even Israel's presence in the south, and the widespread destruction of villages there, runs the risk of rallying Lebanese support for Hezbollah, he said. Israel says the group embeds fighters and weapons in these border towns, but Israeli operations since March had displaced around 1 million Lebanese.

About 40% of them have since returned home, according to the Lebanese government. More than 4,300 people have been killed since hostilities began on March 2. Nearly 40 Israeli soldiers have also died, as well as a defense contractor and two civilians in northern Israel.

Same place, different war

Hezbollah was founded in 1982, as a response to the Israeli occupation, and fought a deadly guerrilla war that included high-profile suicide bombings and assassinations, roadside bombs and ambushes.

Israel carried out bombing campaigns and airstrikes against the militant groups. It also helped establish a local proxy force, a mostly-Christian militia known as the South Lebanon Army that carried out patrols and provided a buffer between Israeli troops and Hezbollah. Thousands of SLA fighters and their families fled to Israel following the withdrawal.

But the type of warfare between the two sides has also changed.

Israel is now operating without a local proxy, instead relying on monitoring and strikes either by air or from vantage points on ridges and hilltops. And Hezbollah, which once relied on insurgent tactics, now uses high-precision missiles and drones, including fiber-optic drones that are hard to defend against and have caused Israeli casualties.

Unique diplomatic opportunity could shift balance

One key difference from 2000 is the possibility of a diplomatic solution with Lebanon, said Orna Mizrahi, former deputy director of Israel’s National Security Council.

Israel has an opportunity in Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Mizrahi said. Since he was elected last year, he has publicly condemned Hezbollah and expressed readiness to negotiate a permanent ceasefire with Israel.

“The military operation needs to complement a diplomatic process,” said Mizrahi, now a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies, an Israeli think tank.

Although Hezbollah is unlikely to agree to disarm, it has been severely weakened by wars with Israel, she said, adding that its main sponsor, Iran, is also busy weathering U.S. strikes and battling for control of the Strait of Hormuz.

Mizrahi said this has created an opportunity for a new balance of power inside Lebanon, by strengthening the Lebanese government and military. Israel will never destroy Hezbollah completely, she said. But while the group is scrambling to reorganize, Israel can work with international powers to empower Lebanon to confront it, she added.

4 mothers against the war

By the time Israel withdrew from Lebanon in 2000, the occupation had become deeply unpopular, in large part because of the more than 1,200 Israeli soldiers killed in operations.

In 1997, four mothers of soldiers serving in Lebanon founded a grassroots movement advocating for withdrawal.

Brurya Sharon, now 84, one of the founding members, recalls sending both of her sons off to fight in Lebanon. At the time, she said she felt like Israel’s government and military were maintaining the occupation out of inertia, without stopping to consider if it was effective.

The “Four Mothers” movement has been widely cited as a major factor in Israel’s withdrawal in 2000. They tried to steer clear of politics, instead focusing on the soldiers’ lives, a bipartisan issue, Sharon said.

But now, the country is so divided, especially after the Oct. 7 attack, that Sharon says she sees no option for a broad-based public movement to pressure Israel to withdraw.

Israelis, still traumatized from the Hamas attack, are also concerned about leaving the country's borders vulnerable. Currently, more than seven in 10 Israelis support a permanent security presence in southern Lebanon, according to a recent poll by the think tank Israel Democracy Institute.

“I don’t see a sunbeam of hope, I don’t even see a speck of light,” Sharon said.

• Family says ‘crystal-like substance’ found in Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s work van was homemade electrolyte mix, not drugs

Reitz, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Texas, released a video statement outlining what he described as preliminary information gathered by federal investigators. He emphasized that authorities have not reached any final conclusions.

“I want to assure the public that the appropriate law enforcement agencies are looking into this matter,” Reitz said. “That includes my office, the FBI, DHS, and other state and local partners.”

Reitz describes investigators’ preliminary findings

According to Reitz, federal officers were investigating two Guatemalan men believed to be driving a white van on the morning of July 7. He said the men had previously evaded arrest and were potentially subject to deportation.

• RELATED: FBI search warrant says ‘crystal-like substance’ found in Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s work van after fatal ICE shooting

Reitz said agents initially attempted to stop what they believed was the suspects’ van after spotting a similar vehicle in the area.

Statement from @USAttyReitz on the shooting and death of Lorenzo Salgado. Video below. Written statement here:https://t.co/vVvCzMilVF@USAttorneys pic.twitter.com/XwO5PqiV2J

— US Attorney SDTX (@USAO_SDTX) July 16, 2026

“The officers’ two vehicles, each with two officers inside, turned on their police lights and attempted to pull over the van,” Reitz said.

According to his statement, the van made a rapid U-turn, crossed a median and fled. Reitz said agents chose not to pursue the vehicle at that time.

Later that morning, agents encountered the van again and surrounded it, Reitz said.

• ICE orders officers to stop vehicle pursuits nationwide amid Houston and Maine shootings

He said preliminary information indicates officers instructed the men to put the van in park, but the driver instead shifted into reverse and then forward while an officer was either partially inside the van or immediately beside it.

“During this confrontation between federal agents and a group of illegal aliens attempting to flee, one of the officers fired a single shot,” Reitz said. “The round struck Lorenzo Salgado.”

Reitz said the other officers immediately began providing first aid before Salgado was transported to a hospital, where he later died.

DHS later told Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia that Salgado Araujo was not the intended target in the ICE operation.

Search warrant executed on van

Reitz also referenced a development first reported this week involving the vehicle.

• Houston police chief requests Texas Rangers investigate fatal ICE-involved shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo

He said officers observed “several small bags of a white, crystal-like substance” inside the van after the shooting.

“As a result, just yesterday the FBI executed a search warrant on the van in connection with possible narcotics trafficking and drug offenses,” Reitz said.

Court records previously obtained by Click2Houston showed the FBI sought the search warrant after agents reported seeing the suspected substance in plain view inside the work van.

The warrant affidavit stated investigators planned to test the substance and search the vehicle for additional evidence related to possible drug offenses.

Case has drawn widespread attention

The shooting has sparked protests and calls for transparency from community members, elected officials and Salgado’s family.

According to previous statements from the Department of Homeland Security, Salgado was not the original target of the immigration operation. Federal officials have said ICE agents were attempting to locate another person with a final order of removal when they encountered Salgado.

DHS has previously said an ICE agent fired in self-defense after Salgado allegedly used the van in a manner that placed an officer in danger.

• RELATED: Texas Rangers not investigating ICE fatal shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, cite no federal or local request

Salgado’s family and their attorneys have disputed the federal government’s account and have continued calling for the release of additional evidence surrounding the shooting.

Earlier this week, the Harris County District Attorney’s Office said it remains involved in the investigation, while the FBI continues to lead the federal review.

Investigation status

Reitz stressed Thursday that his office is not making any final determinations while the investigation remains active.

“We draw no decisive conclusions and believe federal law enforcement will conduct a thorough investigation,” he said.

• Harris County ME rules Houston ICE shooting death of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo a homicide

“We are doing everything we can to seek the truth and do the right thing. In the meantime, I encourage the public to give the FBI and DHS the opportunity to investigate. Let the justice system work.”

No timeline has been announced for when investigators expect to complete their review.

Salgado Araujo was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent on July 7.

The viewing drew mourners from across the city, many dressed in blue and carrying flowers or rosaries as they waited in line to enter. Some walked out clutching mini soccer balls — a tribute to Salgado Araujo’s love of the game.

Beto Davila, who attended the viewing, described the East End as a place where community bonds run deep.

“This is a great place to live, to raise your family, to raise your kids,” Davila said. “This should never happen in any community, let alone in our community. It is very tight knit.”

Davila added that being together helped ease the weight of grief.

“Just by being with everyone else, we can lift each other up,” he said. “It’s small things like this that help us to start, get over it and remember that we shouldn’t forget.”

Calls for change

Teodoro Aguiluz, with CRECEN, a Central American Resource Center, told KPRC 2 that immigration enforcement tactics under the Trump administration have fueled violence and contributed to deaths in the community — including that of Salgado Araujo.

“Nosotros creemos que la respuesta que esta dando esta administracion se a excedido con la violencia, la muerte que a llevado con nuestros hermanos no solo la de Lorenzo,” Aguiluz said.

(Translation: “We believe that the response this administration is giving has gone too far with the violence, the death it has brought to our brothers, not just Lorenzo’s.”)

Former Houston City Council Member Letitia Plummer also attended the viewing and called on local and county government to take action on how ICE operates within the city.

“The way ICE is moving in our city is unacceptable,” Plummer said. “This is a government decision. This is a situation that local and county government has to figure out in how we want to allow other law enforcement to come to our city and function.”

A community in mourning

Salgado Araujo was shot and killed by an ICE agent in the Magnolia Park area while on his way to work, according to family and community members. He leaves behind a wife and three children.

The Salgado family will hold a private service this weekend.

Networks and their news operations, broadcast and cable alike, spent the hours leading up to Trump’s address debating how to cover it — and struggling to balance delivering the news with handing over their airwaves to potential falsehoods about the 2020 elections.

In the end, a patchwork quilt of coverage was largely united by one common strategy: real-time fact-checking as much as was possible even while the president was still speaking.

The dilemma took place against a backdrop of deep tension between the media and a president working to exert control over it by whatever means he can. Even in his speech itself, Trump excoriated networks that chose not to carry it live, saying that “NBC and ABC fake news” avoided it because they “don't like the topic.” He also threatened them with consequences, using the presidential pulpit to suggest they should be sanctioned for their editorial decisions.

"They and others in the media are part of a plot," Trump said, offering no evidence for his assertion. There is also no evidence of fraud in the 2020 elections.

“They want to continue this fraud for whatever reason. They want to keep it going," he said. "Fraud like this should mean a revocation of their licenses. They use our public multibillion-dollar-in-value airwaves for absolutely no money. They pay nothing. All we want is honesty in our elections and honesty in reporting.”

The tension between Trump and the news media during his second term has taken many forms, from sanctions against members of the White House press corps to regulatory actions through the Federal Communications Commission to outright lawsuits.

There were a variety of approaches to coverage

The media outlets' decision-making — seemingly last-minute, for many, with networks divulging their plans minutes beforehand — produced a variety of coverage scenarios for the 24 minutes of Trump’s address.

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins anchored her nightly program. “We aren’t taking it live,” she said of the speech, given the president’s “well-documented history” of falsehoods. Panelists were on hand for analysis and fact-checking. “Sadly, we have no choice to be skeptical when this president talks elections,” said the network’s veteran correspondent John King.

Fox News and Fox Broadcasting aired the president’s speech live. But ABC and NBC did not, sticking with regular programming — “Press Your Luck,” in ABC's case, and an animal show featuring alligators in NBC's. But they were ready to cut in as they deemed newsworthy, as well as offering special reports afterwards.

Both ABC and NBC, however, provided live coverage on their streaming channels — NBC News NOW and ABC News Live — as well as ABC News Radio. In the still-young era of streaming, that is increasingly a decision that allows network news to play it both ways.

As for CBS, the network did preempt regular programming — a summer rerun of “Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage” — to air a special report anchored by Tony Dokoupil. The report joined the live speech a few minutes in, at 9:06, and left it before the end, at 9:23.

MS NOW started airing the speech, then cut away for analysis and commentary after 17 minutes on host Jen Psaki’s show. Psaki used the split screen for a bit, with her speaking on the right and a muted Trump appearing on the left.

By the end, of the top networks, the speech was continuing live only on Fox News.

Robert Thompson, director of Syracuse University’s Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture, said coverage of the 24- minute address made for “a weird evening, where the reporters quote and describe the speech but show little of what they’re quoting." Thompson said full coverage was the way to go even — and perhaps especially — if the speech was believed to contain falsehoods.

“When the president of the United States makes an announcement that there is going to be a major speech with major information, however cynical we are … I think that is, by definition, important civic news significant to the citizenry,” he said. “It’s the president making the speech, and if the president does what everybody’s worried about him doing, that is a real reason to be covering it, to bear witness on exactly what gets said."

Networks had been urged beforehand to carry it live

Earlier Thursday, at the White House briefing, press secretary Karoline Leavitt had urged TV networks to carry the speech live. And Fox News Channel’s Sean Hannity said on his show that major networks not going live was “pretty unheard of for a primetime address for a president.”

Broadcast networks, though, have previously declined primetime coverage to President Barack Obama for a 2014 speech on immigration, and President Joe Biden for his speech on democracy, “Battle for the Soul of the Nation,” in 2022.

The backdrop of Thursday’s speech was an ever-increasing tension between the media and the administration. Broadcast networks have been under close scrutiny by the Trump-appointed chair of the FCC, Brendan Carr, who has launched early reviews of licenses of some ABC-owned stations and threatened to revoke the long-held exemption from equal time rules for the popular talk show “The View.”

Trump’s animosity toward news outlets whose agenda runs counter to his own isn’t new. But in his second presidential term, he has launched an escalation, often harnessing the levers of the federal government or attempting to do so. The efforts have taken place both in actual courtrooms and in the court of public opinion.

In fact, one of the strongest security features of U.S. elections is the fact that they aren’t conducted at the federal level. America votes in more than 10,000 different election jurisdictions, each with different rules set by state and sometimes local governments.

That structure makes the nation's elections extraordinarily complicated — and also safe from widespread fraud. And when misconduct does happen — rarely — security protocols frequently catch it.

Decentralized elections date back to the nation's founding

America's highly decentralized system of voting exists because the nation’s Founding Fathers gave authority over elections to the states, rather than the federal government. While Congress has the power to regulate elections — and has used that authority to pass such laws as the Voting Rights Act — the Constitution makes clear that states have primary authority to set the “times, places and manner” for elections.

There also is no national election agency that administers the presidential contest, something that's different from many other countries. And when it comes to doing the day-to-day work of running an election, the responsibility falls to officials at the local level — usually a clerk or election supervisor — with help from staff and volunteers.

While differences in election laws can get confusing, election security experts say this structure is a strength. That's because to pull off stealing a presidential election — as Trump falsely claims was done to him in 2020 — it would require large numbers of election workers in the most competitive counties across the country who are willing to risk prosecution, prison time and fines while working with officials from both parties willing to look the other way. And everyone somehow would have to keep quiet — a highly unlikely scenario.

There are also shared practices and security measures in place across the country that together work to ensure that only eligible voters can cast a ballot and only one ballot is counted for each.

Voter fraud can happen, but it's rare and there are safeguards to catch it

Most Americans by now have probably heard stories about someone casting multiple ballots, or voting in the name of dead relatives, or stealing mail ballots from mailboxes.

When these incidents happen, they are often caught and prosecuted.

Voting more than once, tampering with ballots, lying about your residence to vote somewhere else or casting someone else’s ballot are crimes that can be punished with hefty fines and prison time. Non-U.S. citizens who break election laws can be deported.

For anyone still motivated to cheat, election systems in the United States are designed with multiple layers of protection and transparency intended to stand in the way.

For example, for in-person voting, most states either require or request voters provide some sort of identification at the polls. Others require voters to verify who they are in another way, such as stating their name and address, signing a poll book or signing an affidavit.

For absentee voting, all states require a voter's signature, and many states have further precautions, such as having bipartisan teams compare the signature with other signatures on file, requiring the signature to be notarized or requiring a witness to sign.

That means even if a ballot is erroneously sent to someone’s past address and the current resident mails it in, there are checks to alert election workers to the foul play.

AP review found there was too little voter fraud to tip the 2020 election

Trump has spent six years insisting he won the 2020 election, a campaign he lost to former President Joe Biden.

An Associated Press review in 2021 dug into every potential case of voter fraud in the six battleground states that Trump disputed. It found fewer than 475 cases — a number that would have made no difference in that race.

Allegations from Trump of massive voting fraud have been refuted by a variety of judges, state election officials and an arm of his own administration’s Homeland Security Department. In 2020, then-Attorney General William Barr, a Trump appointee, told the AP that no proof of widespread voter fraud had been uncovered. “To date, we have not seen fraud on a scale that could have effected a different outcome in the election,” he said at the time.

At Trump’s last primetime presidential address in April, he said the U.S. would accomplish its Iran war objectives “very shortly.” But days of back-and-forth attacks by the U.S. and Iran across the Middle East and in the Strait of Hormuz have shredded the interim deal to pause the fighting. U.S. strikes intensified early Thursday against a widening set of targets, including a ship it accused of breaking its blockade on Iranian ports. Iran retaliated by firing on U.S. allies in the region.

Here's the latest:

Solomon says he’s seen no intelligence that votes were flipped

Conservative commentator John Solomon, who joined the White House staff last month, was seated in the East Room for Trump’s speech.

He later told MS NOW outside the building that “the intelligence community has zero evidence that someone has flipped — that a foreign power flipped — a vote in 2020, 22 or 24.”

Solomon added, “We’re not through all the documents.”

He also defended Trump’s decision to discuss intelligence that Venezuela interfered with voting results on their own election machines, not ones in the U.S. Solomon argued that Venezuela’s “machine protocols are the same as America.”

Trump uses primetime address to the nation to once again raise doubts about past elections

The president used Thursday’s address revive a subject he’s long used to make unproven claims and deny his loss in the 2020 election.

Trump’s speech presented allegations of interference and influence in ways that lacked key context, and did not produce evidence that votes had been manipulated or that the election outcome had been altered.

Trump began with a stark warning about what he described as flaws in the voting system and said he was releasing previously classified documents related to the 2020 and 2018 elections, when he lost the presidential election and his party suffered losses.

No credible intelligence has emerged showing that the vote count in 2020 was manipulated by foreign actors.

Repeated audits and reviews — manyrun by Republicans, including Trump’s own then-attorney general — have found no significant fraud occurred in 2020.

He did not raise doubts about his election wins in 2016 or 2024.

▶ Read more

Top Trump officials were in the room for the speech

Nearly the entire Cabinet, including Vice President JD Vance, was in attendance for the president’s primetime speech, underscoring the centrality of elections — and continued preoccupation with his 2020 loss — for Trump and his administration.

A photo of the audience shared by Communications Director Steven Cheung showed Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick among those in the first row.

The speech came a day after a contentious confirmation hearing in which Jay Clayton, Trump’s pick to head the nation’s intelligence agencies, clashed repeatedly with Democrats as he refused to acknowledge that former President Joe Biden won the 2020 election.

That stance has become a litmus test of loyalty for the president.

DHS secretary to speak Friday on voting system security

Trump said Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin will hold a briefing to talk about his department’s cybersecurity findings related to electronic voting systems.

The president said the systems are in “bad shape in so many states” and his administration is informing political leaders of potential issues in their states.

Election experts have long acknowledged that the technology used to facilitate elections carries risks that officials work to identify and address. Nationwide, the vast majority of ballots cast included a paper record, helping to prevent cyberattacks or errors from affecting the accuracy of the vote count.

Trump obsesses over election security after cutting election security agency

The president’s concern about foreign interference in the 2020 election is a striking contrast with how his administration has treated the federal agency charged with protecting election infrastructure from overseas tampering.

The Cybersecurity Infrastructure and Security Agency was founded in Trump’s first term in the wake of Russia’s attempt to influence the 2016 presidential vote. When its director, Chris Krebs, said the 2020 vote was secure, Trump fired him.

After returning to office, Trump cut the agency’s staff and programs. His budget this year cuts $707 million from CISA as it says it will restore the agency “to its original mission of securing cyberspace and protecting critical infrastructure.”

CISA’s attempts to combat election misinformation in 2020 and beyond angered Trump and some of his allies.

Trump calls for prosecutions

The president urged Justice Department investigations and prosecutions, though it was unclear from his speech what sort of criminal conduct — if any — could be identified, proved and charged.

At one point he suggested prosecutions for government officials who had left documents he said were related to election investigations in “burn bags” to be incinerated. The FBI under Director Kash Patel investigated that, but no charges have been filed.

Despite the vague claims, Trump’s push could matter because the FBI and the Justice Department in this administration have proved willing to act at his behest.

House Democrat says Trump is trying to weaken democracy

Rep. Joseph Morelle of New York, the ranking Democrat on the House Administration committee, which provides oversight of federal voting issues and elections, said what’s troubling about the president’s address is the way he is trying to sow confusion and spread misinformation ahead of the midterm elections.

“This is a pretext for the president, I think, calling into dispute the 2026 elections,” Morelle said on C-SPAN.

“We have secure elections,” Morelle said, inviting Trump to spend some time understanding the state systems.

“This is a fundamental effort to weaken the foundation of our democracy.”

Former Trump intelligence official pans speech

Sue Gordon, who was principal deputy director of national intelligence for Trump, noted that the intelligence community was alarmed about foreign interference in his first term but the president was dismissive, apparently angered by the probe into his campaign’s possible ties with Russia.

“This was a dangerous speech about an incredibly important topic,” Gordon said on CNN. “He had an entire term to deal with it, and I don’t know how you can believe how the same community that told him about it, that was excoriated about it” would ignore a danger in 2020, she added.

Gordon also said none of the president’s speech surprised her and noted that new intelligence documents may simply recount theories without showing anything actually happened: “Even if there’s new data that’s released, that doesn’t prove anything.”

Voting by noncitizens is uncommon

“According to the DHS review, state voter rolls and public records, they identified approximately 278,000 noncitizens who are registered to vote in federal elections.”

Multiple studies and investigations in individual states have shown that noncitizens casting ballots in federal elections is exceedingly rare.

For example a Georgia audit of its voter rolls conducted in 2022 found fewer than 2,000 instances of noncitizens attempting to register to vote over the last 25 years, none of which succeeded. Millions of new Georgia voters registered during that time period.

A 1996 U.S. law makes it illegal for noncitizens to vote in elections for president or members of Congress. Violators can be fined and imprisoned for up to a year. They can also be deported.

Trump looks toward the midterms

During his speech the president referenced November's midterm elections that will determine control of Congress.

“We have very important elections coming up,” he said. “We want those elections to be honest.”

Trump has been eager to overhaul the country’s voting systems and has said changes are necessary to ensure that Republicans can still be successful.

Election officials and voting system experts maintain that the decentralized nature of U.S. elections and the many safeguards in place to catch meddling ensure that the vote can be trusted.

The SAVE America Act is stalled in the Senate

Trump has made legislation to require proof of citizenship for voters a priority for his presidency.

However, it doesn’t have enough votes to pass.

Trump has unsuccessfully pressured Senate Republicans to scrap the filibuster to eliminate the need for Democratic support, but there aren’t enough votes to do that either.

Trump has concluded his elections address

After 24 minutes, the president closed out his speech by urging the passage of the SAVE Act.

The bill, known as the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, would require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship for anyone registering to vote — something voting rights group have warned could disenfranchise millions of Americans.

Noncitizen voting is illegal under federal law and already rare.

Trump says California vote count 'worse than any Third World country'

Trump zeroed in on California’s routinely prolonged vote count but he vastly misstated the scope of the issue. He complained the state only finished the count for the June 2 primary on July 10. It takes most states a month or more to formally certify the vote, which is what California did on July 10.

The winners of the state’s big races were known sooner — but not exactly soon. It took a week before the Los Angeles mayoral primary was called, for example. That’s partly because California tallies mail-in ballots that arrive up to a week after Election Day as long as they were postmarked by the end of voting.

There are issues with California’s drawn-out vote count, but there’s no indication of any sort of fraud. Indeed, when Republicans have done well in the state’s elections, such as in 2022 congressional races, Trump hasn’t cast aspersions on the results.

Fox goes live, CNN, ABC and NBC do not, CBS airs special report

As Trump arrived at the lectern and began speaking, networks launched into a variety of coverage, after days of intense deliberation.

Fox News and Fox were airing the speech live. ABC and NBC were not, staying with regular programming but ready to cut in as deemed newsworthy.

CBS did preempt regular programming — a summer rerun of “Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage” — and was airing a special report anchored by Tony Dokoupil.

CNN’s Kaitlan Collins was anchoring her nightly program. “We aren’t taking it live,” she said of the speech, given the president’s well-documented history of falsehoods.

MS NOW started airing the speech, but cut it off for analysis after 17 minutes on host Jen Psaki’s show.

By 9:25 p.m. the speech was only continuing live on Fox News.

Trump claims his own appointees were wrong in 2020

Trump’s vague allegations included a rant against one of his favorite targets: “members of the deep state.”

He claimed that intelligence agencies covered up China’s attempt to disrupt U.S. elections. But Trump appointed the very people who led those intelligence agencies in 2020. Indeed, Trump was given the assessment from those agencies on Jan. 7, 2021, that no foreign country tried to change vote totals or fake ballots in the election. There’s no record of him objecting to the findings at the time.

Now, of course, Trump has restocked the leadership of intelligence agencies with people who echo his often-debunked allegations about elections.

Trump says the benefits of his war with Iran will soon be realized

In his speech on election security, the president said the U.S. is “winning big in Iran and you will see the fruits of that labor very, very shortly.”

The comments come as the U.S. expanded its airstrike campaign against Iran early Friday by hitting bridges as part of a broader attack on the nation’s infrastructure to pressure Tehran to ease its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.

The White House has created a new website posting documents that Trump claims reveal major ‘areas of concern’

The White House has created a new website with documents that Trump says reveal major ‘areas of concerns’ in election security.

The site went live Thursday as Trump was delivering a primetime address on foreign interference and foreign influence in U.S. elections.

Trump devotes the opening minutes of his speech to repeating campaign-style boasts

The president ran through a long list of what he said were his administration’s accomplishments – including cutting drug prices.

He avoided speaking about elections or the conflict with Iran, including new strikes.

Trump beings his speech saying America is safer, stronger and wealthier

Trump has started his primetime address saying “We are doing great.”

He’s promised he will focus on elections and may revisit some of the unproven claims he has previously made about Republican losses.

The White House has offered few concrete details on what Trump will say, insisting he could still alter his remarks up until the last minute.

But White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt promised it “will shock you.”

ABC, NBC and CNN decided not to air the remarks live. CBS said it was “airing a special report” during the address.

CBS plans special report while CNN will not air speech live

More networks revealed their plans for coverage of Trump’s speech, with CBS saying it was planning to air “a special report” at 9 p.m., anchored by Tony Dokoupil. A person familiar with the plan, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it included various scenarios, including taking the speech live, or cutting away for analysis. There would be experts on set to provide analysis and fact-checking, the person said. As for CNN, the cable network said it would not air the speech live, but would cover it “as a news event,” monitoring it for developments and providing analysis and commentary from CNN experts on elections, intelligence and the FBI. A live feed of the speech, alongside analysis and expert commentary, was being made available on CNN.com and on CNN’s All Access streaming platform.

— Jocelyn Noveck

Top Democrat on House Homeland Security panel questions vetting, training of ICE officers

The top Democrat on the House Homeland Security Committee, Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, is calling into question the vetting and training of ICE officers after details have emerged about the officer involved in a fatal shooting in Maine this week.

Thompson’s remarks come after The Associated Press reported that the ICE officer who shot a Colombian man in Maine is an Army veteran who has struggled with serious mental health issues since early childhood, according to the officer’s relatives.

David Brouillette has a history of terrifying and violent behavior, according to those relatives. They accuse him of attacking women in his life over the years.

“This senseless tragedy must be investigated and the officer responsible should be taken off our streets and face justice for his actions,” Thompson said in a statement to AP.

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AP Exclusive: ICE officer in Maine shooting has history of violent behavior, family and records say

The ICE officer who shot a Colombian man in Maine this week is an Army veteran who has struggled with serious mental health issues since early childhood and never should have been given a badge and gun to patrol American streets, several of his close relatives told The Associated Press.

David Brouillette has a history of terrifying and violent behavior, according to those relatives. They accuse him of attacking women in his life over the years, and one shared a voicemail with the AP from last winter in which he told her that he thought someone should slit her throat.

Brouillette didn’t respond to text messages or an email seeking comment. Three relatives who said they spoke to him since the shooting, including an ex-wife and daughter, said he told them he acted in self-defense.

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Democrats warn Trump’s intelligence officials against misleading Americans on election security

Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut and Democratic lawmakers on the House Intelligence Committee sent a letter to CIA Director John Ratcliffe, FBI Director Kash Patel and others ahead of the president’s primetime address.

“The President is within his authority to declassify intelligence,” the lawmakers wrote, “but if he does so in a way that is intended to mislead Americans about the most basic foundation of our democracy and that may compromise sources and methods, it is incumbent on you to stand up for the agencies you lead.”

Before any intelligence is publicly disclosed, they said, “it should be coordinated with all relevant Intelligence Community elements.”

The lawmakers said, “We remind you that you are statutorily obligated to keep the Committee fully and currently informed, a requirement that should include notification of new intelligence related to election influence or interference as well as any significant declassification.”

Hegseth backs low-altitude military flyovers as a series of maneuvers draws scrutiny

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is sticking to encouraging low-altitude military flyovers after a fighter jet buzzed a Florida beach during a show this week.

Video spreading widely on social media shows a jet from the Navy’s demonstration squadron, the Blue Angels, flying so low over a crowded beach in Pensacola that chairs and tents went flying, sand kicked up and children held their hands over their ears.

The U.S. Navy said in a statement shortly afterward that it was “conducting a thorough safety review.” Then on Thursday morning, a host of Trump administration officials heaped praise on the maneuver.

“The flyovers will continue until morale improves,” Hegseth wrote on his personal X account, without elaborating.

The Pentagon’s top spokesman, Sean Parnell, wrote “Carry on Patriots” on social media alongside a photo showing a Blue Angels jet with a wingtip just feet above the heads of beachgoers.

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Flyovers might not violate rules but that doesn’t make them safe

Former Transportation Department Inspector General Mary Schiavo said military planes flying low over people probably don’t violate military rules because the Pentagon doesn’t have the same restrictions that the FAA imposes on civilian flights.

“They are air demonstration teams, and what they do is exceedingly dangerous — amazing and wonderful — but dangerous,” said Schiavo, who is also a pilot and used to work in air shows years ago. “And so it is really not something to be performed over people.”

Florida beachgoer Alexandra Belcher, 34, called the Blue Angels flyover this week a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

“I didn’t realize how close it was, until everyone around me was like, ‘That was so cool,’” she said. “It was not normal, but it was such a blessing to be able to witness that with everybody that I was with.”

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Trump administration to drastically shorten visas for foreign journalists in US

The Trump administration will drastically shorten visas for foreign journalists in the U.S. to 240 days, down from years, and cut those for Chinese journalists to only 90 days, raising concerns over press freedom in the United States and retaliation against American journalists overseas.

The final rule announced by the Department of Homeland Security will do away with the “duration of status” system, which allows foreign journalists to stay and work in the United States as long as they meet eligibility requirements. That will be replaced with a fixed period of time, though the visas may be extended.

The agency says it’s necessary to better vet the visa holders. But advocates for foreign journalists oppose the change, saying the drastically shorter stay would severely restrict their ability to live and work in the States.

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Trump media firm plans to sell high speed access to Truth Social posts

Trump’s media company is planning to charge for special high-speed access to Truth Social posts, including possibly his own affecting national security and financial markets.

The move announced Thursday would allow Wall Street trading firms and other institutions to get news from Truth Social contributors in milliseconds so they could profit off subsequent moves in stocks, bonds and interest rates. The most popular Truth Social poster is the president himself and, as the biggest shareholder of the public traded parent company, he would directly benefit.

“He’s selling expedited, privileged access to information about what he is doing as president,” said Kathleen Clark of Washington University School of Law and an expert in government conflicts of interest rules. “It’s yet more brazen corruption, an improper exploitation of government power to enrich himself.”

The Trump family company declined to comment about whether the new feature is profiting off the presidency.

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GOP senator says Blanche must meet Epstein accusers to earn his vote for attorney general

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche was expected to meet Thursday with accusers of Jeffrey Epstein after a key Republican senator said it was necessary to earn his support for Blanche’s nomination to lead the Justice Department.

Sen. Thom Tillis had indicated during Blanche’s confirmation hearing on Wednesday that he was leaning toward backing Blanche, who has been leading the department in an acting capacity since April.

But after an Epstein accuser testified a day later, Tillis said he expects a meeting to occur before he’s “willing to vote out of this committee.”

Without Tillis’ support, Blanche’s nomination won’t make it through the Senate Judiciary Committee.

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Trump stops offshore wind development while citing national security

President Donald Trump’s administration has worked to stop offshore wind development on the grounds it’s a national security risk since late last year, halting work on major projects and buying back leases.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum says a classified report from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth proves offshore wind is a national security threat.

This comes against the backdrop of the Republican president’s hatred of wind turbines and desire to boost fossil fuels for “energy dominance” in the global market. Wind turbines interfere with radar, but that isn’t a new problem.

The Pentagon reviews wind farm construction plans and can deem areas off limits. And there are upgrades to radar to mitigate turbine impacts.

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The supersizing of ICE -- fueled by an infusion of billions of dollars granted by Congress — has raised concerns about the agency's hiring practices and whether officers being brought on are receiving proper vetting. Those concerns have been rejected by the Department of Homeland Security.

Relatives of the ICE officer who shot a Colombian man in Maine this week told The Associated Press he struggled with serious mental health issues since early childhood and never should have been given a badge and gun to patrol American streets.

The precise circumstances surrounding the officer's hiring were not immediately clear. But the revelations about the man, David Brouillette, shine a new spotlight on ICE's hiring spree and the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.

Here is a look at the agency's hiring and training practices:

A surge in new hires at ICE

In January, Homeland Security said it had hired 12,000 new officers and agents since the hiring surge began and said thousands of those new officers were already out on the streets assisting with investigations. The number includes both deportation officers and agents for Homeland Security Investigations, a separate agency that falls under ICE.

ICE has said the majority of new hires are police and military veterans. But evidence has been mounting that applicants with questionable histories were either not fully vetted before they were brought on or were hired in spite of their past, an investigation by The Associated Press earlier this year found.

At the time, Homeland Security, ICE’s parent agency, would not answer questions about specific hiring decisions. It did say some applicants received “tentative selection letters” and offers to begin working on a temporary status before they had been subjected to full background checks.

It defended its hiring practices, saying it does rigorous vetting.

ICE’s former acting director, Todd Lyons, said during a congressional hearing in February that he was proud of the hiring campaign, which drew more than 220,000 applications.

“This expansion of a well-trained and well-vetted workforce will help further ICE’s ability to execute the president’s and secretary’s bold agenda,” he said.

The vetting process includes reviewing applicants' criminal histories and credit scores and conducting background investigations that include interviewing prior employers and other associates, which can take weeks. ICE also promised signing bonuses of up to $50,000, advertised that college degrees were not required and lowered the age of new recruits to 18.

An internal memo, first reported by Reuters in February, told ICE supervisors that if they receive “derogatory information about a newly hired employee’s conduct” they should refer the allegations to an internal affairs unit for investigation. Such information could include the employees’ termination or forced resignations, the memo said.

The DHS inspector general last August announced plans to audit ICE’s hiring and training processes, but no findings have been released.

Applicants have to get a security clearance

Recent job advertisements for deportation officers spell out the current qualifications, including that the person must be a U.S. citizen to apply and will have to pass a background investigation and a drug test.

New deportation officers also have to take a physical fitness test and be able to obtain and maintain a security clearance. Once hired, new deportation officers may have to serve a one-year probationary period.

According to the job advertisement, deportation officers are required to carry a firearm, which means anyone convicted of domestic violence is ruled out.

Applicants undergo a medical exam and should be prepared to possibly be polygraphed. The application cautions that any false statements on the application can translate into the job offer being pulled or, if the person has already started work, they can lose their job or go to prison.

The background investigation can include a credit check, reviews of any financial problems like failure to pay child support or taxes and a look at the person’s criminal and drug history.

Claire Trickler-McNulty, a former ICE official under the Obama, first Trump and Biden administrations, said hiring a new deportation officer is similar to any other federal hiring.

Generally, applications are reviewed by a hiring manager who decides which candidates to advance. Once someone gets a tentative offer, the agency conducts a background check.

When people are applying for jobs that involve getting a security clearance, Trickler-McNulty said, they have to disclose on their application any drug use, interactions with police, groups they’re affiliated with, mental health concerns, prior addresses and job history.

Depending on the clearance level, they’ll also ask for references that a background investigator will contact. If there’s red flag such as a DUI or a history of debt, that can trigger a deeper investigation.

“You want to make sure the person is appropriate for a public trust position,” she said.

Concerns over changes to ICE training schedule

Generally, new candidates for deportation officer positions have to go through a 50-day immigration law enforcement training program, according to the job advertisement.

Ryan Schwank, a former lawyer at ICE who was responsible for training new deportation officers, told The Associated Press that the agency reduced the overall amount of training new recruits received and reduced the testing needed to pass before graduating. Homeland Security has denied that it has removed any training requirements or lessened requirements for officers.

Trickler-McNulty said she has concerns over reports the agency shortened training as it was aiming to hire thousands of new officers. ICE officials revamped the training as part of efforts to swiftly hire and train an additional 10,000 deportation officers with an infusion of billions of dollars last summer from Congress.

At the time, the agency had about 6,500 deportation officers. That led to allegations that the department was cutting corners in an effort to get more officers in the field, which Homeland Security and ICE repeatedly denied.

In June, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said the agency would be increasing the amount of training for new officers starting this month. In a statement Thursday, the Department of Homeland Security said all new academy training classes beginning July 1 will last for 71 days and officers who graduated under the previous curriculum would get more training under a separate field officer program.

The department also said it was adding new training in crowd control measures, high-risk vehicle stops, live-fire exercises and medical training, in response to what they called coordinated attacks against their officers and ICE facilities.

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Associated Press reporter Jonathan J. Cooper contributed to this report from Phoenix.

The interim ceasefire agreed to last month has collapsed, and the region has endured days of back-and-forth attacks by the U.S. and Iran as they battle for control of the strait. Iranian officials say U.S. strikes have killed more than 35 people and wounded over 300 others, with new casualties reported in Friday's strikes.

When the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Iran on Feb. 28, Tehran effectively closed the strait to shipping traffic, a move that sent the price of oil soaring and gave Iran major leverage in negotiations.

Speaking in a primetime address to the American public, Trump insisted the war was going well.

"We are likewise winning big in Iran, and you will see the fruits of that labor very, very shortly," Trump said.

US airstrikes hit bridges in Iran

The U.S. airstrikes hit bridges overnight into Friday in Iran's southern Hormozgan province, killing at least seven people, Iranian state television reported. The attacks hit Bandar Khamir, a city on Iran's coast on the Strait of Hormuz.

The U.S. military's Central Command said it hit dozens of targets in its latest airstrikes, which concluded at dawn Friday, the sixth night in a row of American attacks.

Iranian state media said the U.S. strikes Thursday hit around Tehran and Semnan province, home to Iran’s ballistic missile production and space program.

On Friday, Qatar twice warned the public to take shelter as a barrage of Iranian missiles targeted the nation. People heard explosions overhead as air defenses fired to intercept the missiles. Qatar’s Interior Ministry said falling debris wounded a child.

Qatar is a key mediator with Pakistan in trying to reach an end to the Iran war. But talks have broken down over Iran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran earlier targeted Bahrain and Kuwait over U.S. airstrikes hitting bridges in the Islamic Republic overnight.

Strikes come Iran and US vie for Strait of Hormuz

Trump has returned in recent days to his threats to target Iranian power stations and bridges to try to compel Iran to loosen its hold on the strait, through which about a fifth of all oil and natural gas traded once passed in peacetime. The U.S. also reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports to halt its shipments of crude oil.

Week-to-week cargo shipments through the strait dropped by almost a quarter at the beginning of the month, according to Maritime data firm Lloyd’s List Intelligence. And that was before the recent surge in tit-for-tat attacks.

Given the risks, some oil shippers are transiting the strait with their location devices turned off, but many are just staying put, Lloyd’s said Thursday. A growing amount of the region’s energy is being shipped through pipelines, but not nearly enough to offset the decline in shipping through the strait.

U.S. forces have redirected three commercial vessels trying to run the blockade, disabled one that did not comply and boarded another “to ensure full compliance,” the U.S. military's Central Command said in a post on X.

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Associated Press writers Abby Sewell in Beirut, Mae Anderson in New York and Christopher Weber in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

Heavy, pungent wildfire smoke darkened skies in the U.S. from the Great Lakes to parts of the East Coast, reducing visibility and prompting warnings that breathing the air outside could be dangerous.

Officials in many cities urged residents to stay inside or wear masks outside as air quality reached unhealthy to hazardous levels, meaning it’s unhealthy for anyone, regardless of health conditions. The National Weather Service said a lingering high pressure system has trapped the smoke close to the ground.

The Philadelphia region is experiencing smoky and hazy skies. The game's start was moved to 6:10 p.m. EDT from 7:10 p.m. It is the only game on the big league schedule coming out of this week's All-Star break.

“It’s definitely different,” Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper said on ESPN during the broadcasting of the game. “Not the greatest idea, I guess, to come out here and play in this type of weather, but we’re doing it.”

After his team’s 4-1 victory, Mets interim manager Andy Green was asked how the conditions affected the game.

“I don’t think they really did,” Green said. “I think it felt like they could have at any moment, especially as visibility got tougher. But, guys managed to see baseballs that I couldn’t when they went up in the air as popups. So, good thing we’ve got good athletes on the field that can see things.”

Phillies manager Don Mattingly said tracking fly balls later in the game seemed to become an issue.

“It didn’t seem to be a huge problem,” Mattingly said. "The vision, later on, was a little bit like foggy conditions more than the air quality. As far as the guys were concerned (visibility) seemed to be the problem.”

This is the second time wildfire smoke has affected a game in Philadelphia. In June 2023, a game between Detroit and Philadelphia was postponed due to poor air quality related to smoke from Canadian wildfires.

Poor air quality due to wildfire smoke also forced the Major League Soccer game between the Vancouver Whitecaps and Fire at Chicago's Soldier Field, along with a scheduled postgame concert, to be postponed. The game, which was expected to draw 40,000, will be made up on Oct. 6.

Also, the Canadian Premier League postponed Thursday's scheduled game between Forge FC and Pacific FC that was to be played in Hamilton, Ontario, due to “worsening air quality issues.” The league said on its website that conditions “deteriorated in the final hours leading up to kickoff.”

Trinity Rodman, a member of the U.S. women's national team, said the smokey sky was difficult to deal with during Wednesday night's NWSL game between the Washington Spirit and Gotham FC at New York's Citi Field.

Rodman said she wasn't a fan of the hydration breaks every 15 minutes in the game as the temperature reached into the 90s.

“Air quality was rough,” Rodman was quoted as saying by The Athletic. “Not to make excuses at all, but I think on both sides we were all like, ‘another break, another break, another break.’”

A crowd of more than 42,000 attended the rematch of teams in last season's NWSL title game. The crowd was a record for a women’s sporting event in New York City.

“If we have to have a hydration break every 15 minutes, then we shouldn’t be playing the game, and that’s my opinion,” Rodman said. “But at the end of the day, there’s 40,000 people. It’s a whole event, so it’s really tough. It’s just a really hard situation for everyone to work around.”

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AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

One video posted on social media showed a man yelling and crying on the ground in Terminal 3 at Harry Reid International Airport on Monday when a man and a masked woman, both in plainclothes, tried to control, handcuff and detain him. When the pair realized they were being filmed, they walked away, leaving the man with a handcuff attached to one arm.

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police found no outstanding warrants for the man, removed his handcuffs and notified ICE.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, ICE officers on Monday did not proceed with the arrest at the Las Vegas airport of Phu Nguyen, a 57-year-old citizen of Australia who overstayed his visa. ICE arrested him at his flight departing the Los Angeles International Airport on Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security said.

“ICE is continuing to act with impunity — instilling fear in our communities and scaring tourists, which hurts our tourism economy,” Democratic U.S. Senator for Nevada Jacky Rosen said in a statement. “Enough is enough. ICE must follow the same commonsense guardrails as other law enforcement agencies."

The Nevada Latino Legislative Caucus and the Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Caucus are calling for a full investigation into the aborted arrest by ICE at Harry Reid International Airport, urging Gov. Joe Lombardo to explain the transparency and accountability for federal law enforcement agencies operating in Nevada.

At the public viewing at Forest Park Lawndale Funeral Home, which was followed by a Catholic rosary, visitors said that’s what it means to live in Houston’s east end and to be part of the Latino community: stand up together, and grieve together.

“How could we not show up and be here?” said Luke Orlando, who lives 10 minutes from where Salgado Araujo was shot and killed on July 7 by a federal immigration agent. “It could have been any of us, any of our neighbors.”

The viewing drew hundreds of residents from across the Houston area who paid their respects and offered condolences to his family, including local leaders like Mayor John Whitmire, state Sen. Carol Alvarado, and Houston City Council Member Julian Ramirez.

Salgado Araujo’s two eldest sons, 29-year-old Ronaldo Salgado and 27-year-old Lorenzo Salgado Jr., stood by their father’s casket for hours, greeting everyone who approached.

“I’m here because Lorenzo’s boys need to know that we love them, we are here for them,” said Kathy Danas, who lives in Katy, a suburb on the other side of Houston. “Today, all the tias and tios are getting together, all the primos and primas, getting together to be here for Lorenzo’s family and his boys … If we don’t take care of our gente, no one else will.”

Danas said her father grew up and lived in Houston’s east side and, like Salgado Araujo, was a working man who just wanted to support his family.

“My dad would do anything for anyone, and Lorenzo seemed to be that kind of father, he was like my father,” she said. Her father, who died 12 years ago, would “be so hurt if he saw what was going on, he would not be able to handle the world the way it is now,” she said.

Salgado Araujo’s dedication to his construction job and love for soccer were on full display at the funeral home on Thursday. Two of his white hard hats sat on the greeting table, with markers so people could sign them, surrounded by his work gloves, tape measures, and tool box. Another table was adorned with his soccer memorabilia and two of his Mexican soccer jerseys.

As a mariachi band, dressed head to toe in black, stood in front of the casket and filled the room with music, visitors saw photos and videos of a joyful Salgado Araujo dancing with his wife at a fiesta. A proud Salgado Araujo posing with one of his three sons after a soccer game, holding a tall trophy. A young Salgado Araujo listening to his son playing guitar.

Salgado Araujo lived in this community for more than three decades, built a construction business and put all of his sons through college.

Many parts of the 52-year-old’s life and family resonate deeply with residents in Houston’s Latino community, which since the shooting, has been gripped by fear and grief. Albert Davila said he relates most to Salgado Araujo’s eldest son Ronaldo, since they’re close in age and are both teachers.

Davila said he’s proud of living in Houston’s east side, where “you feel like home anywhere you go … Seeing everyone here today, it felt like I’m going to a family event.”

But he said elected officials have “robbed a lot of the community of their innocence,” and he’s more motivated than before to push his representatives to fight for tougher limitations on immigration enforcement — or lose their seats.

“Our local, state reps, they don’t feel pressure, but they should not feel comfortable right now,” he said.

As Nelly Monrroy walked up to the funeral home, she felt a mix of emotions. Devastation for her community, for sure, but also immense pride for her Latino heritage.

“I am here today in solidarity with my immigrant community,” Monrroy said. “We come here looking for a better life for us and for our family, and that’s what Lorenzo did.”

Monrroy works at Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, a church just down the street from the funeral home.

She didn’t know Salgado Araujo. But that didn’t matter.

“It’s not going to stop here, I’m going to keep speaking up and on behalf of Mr. Salgado,” she said. “The least I can do is come here today to pay my respects.”

Dozens of family members of the victims packed the courtroom as Chief Judge Paolo Lepri read the verdicts against 57 defendants, including former executives and officials. Many relatives broke down in tears as the sentences were read.

A representative for the families of the victims, Egle Possetti, expressed satisfaction with the verdicts, saying they showed “there were serious failures in management, and 43 people paid with their lives.”

The former chief executive of highway operator Autostrade per l'Italia, Giovanni Castellucci, was sentenced to 12 years in prison, the longest sentence handed down after four hours of deliberation in the trial that spanned four years.

Castellucci’s lawyers said they would appeal, noting in a statement that as CEO, their client had relied on Italy’s leading engineers and suggesting that he had been scapegoated.

“The suffering caused by the Genoa tragedy is immense and deserves respect. But the gravity of the event requires justice to remain based on individual responsibility, not the search for a scapegoat,” they said in a statement.

Also convicted were Autostrade’s former head of maintenance, Michele Donferri Mitelli, who was sentenced to 11 years in prison. The former CEO of the SPEA engineering company, Antonino Galatà, received five years and six months.

The court says the bridge collapse was foreseeable

The most serious charges included negligence resulting in the collapse, aggravated manslaughter and vehicular homicide stemming from failures to properly monitor and maintain the bridge, which was part of a main route linking northern Italy with the French Riviera.

The court will issue its full reasoning within six months. But in a summary accompanying the verdict, it said the convictions were based on findings that identified a system of defects affecting one of the bridge’s stay cables and concluded that the collapse was “foreseeable and preventable.”

The court said that some defendants from the highway concession and its engineering subsidiary failed to carry out the requiring monitoring of the bridge, relying in part on a 1967 Ministry of Public Works circular, while some transport ministry had officials had failed to exercise proper oversight of Autostrade's safety monitoring.

In all, 32 people were convicted and handed sentences ranging from 1 year and 11 months to 12 years. The rest were either found not guilty, or lesser charges had expired under the statute of limitations.

Lawyer Raffaele Caruso expressed satisfaction that court had held people resonsible at the three main players: the highway concession, its engineering subsidiary and the transport ministry.

“What emerges is that this bridge did not collapse by chance — this bridge collapsed due to specific, precise, individualized, personalized, and specifically identified responsibilities," Caruso told a press conference. “There has been much talk about the construction defect ... But this does not rule out the existence of liability.”

Warning signs of defect were ignored

Shortly before noon on Aug. 14, 2018, a 200-meter (650-foot) section of Genoa’s Morandi highway bridge gave way during a rainstorm, sending dozens of vehicles plunging to the ground.

Images of the collapsed bridge were seen around the world and shocked Italians on one of Italy’s busiest travel days, as millions headed out for the traditional Aug. 15 Ferragosto holiday that marks the peak summer vacation season.

Prosecutors argued that years of maintenance neglect led to the collapse, and demanded combined sentences totaling nearly 400 years for all of the defendants. The defendants denied wrongdoing and say the fault was caused by a construction defect.

Considered an engineering marvel when it opened in 1967, the Morandi featured three A-shaped concrete pylons and concrete-encased stay cables.

Caruso said that the trial showed that warning signs about defects in the pylon that collapsed had existed for decades. He cited maintenance on the other two starting in 1993 that was never extended to the third.

“From 1993 onward, the problem was known. We had three identical pylons. Two had already shown the same defect, and no one seriously asked whether the third one had it as well,” Caruso said.

Autostrade had reached a deal to avoid trial

The current Autostrade chief executive, Arrigo Giana, issued a public apology Thursday in an open letter published in major Italian dailies.

“The actions and decisions of some people left indelible scars,’’ said Giana, who joined Autostrade as CEO last year. “Offering today the apology that was not made then is, for us, a moral imperative that goes beyond establishing legal responsibility and the course of justice toward the truth.”

Autostrade and its subsidiary reached a deal on corporate liability earlier in the proceedings, paying roughly 30 million euros ($34 million) in financial penalties. The agreement spared the companies from a trial as corporate defendants and potentially much harsher sanctions, including exclusion from public contracts.

The settlements were reached after the companies adopted new compliance procedures aimed at preventing similar accidents, and after victims were compensated.

A new bridge designed by Genoa-born Italian architect Renzo Piano opened in 2020, spanning a memorial to the victims of the Morandi Bridge collapse.

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Barry reported from Milan.

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This story corrects the number of convictions to 32.

Rescuers aboard boats and helicopters have saved more than 200 people, including stranded drivers and people trapped in homes, Abbott said.

The governor said the hardest-hit areas are expecting more rain into Friday and are not out of danger yet, with some rivers expected to reach historic levels.

After days of pounding rain, the National Weather Service said a large wave on Thursday barreled down the same river wrecked by flash floods last summer when two dozen children and counselors died at Camp Mystic.

Much like last year, the floods came in the middle of the night. But this time some residents in the Texas Hill Country said they received more warnings.

Forecasters urgently warned, “Move to higher ground now!” as rivers rose hour by hour. Some spots of the Guadalupe River rose by more than 30 feet (9 meters).

The governor said more than 2,000 first responders had been deployed and some evacuations began before the worst of the flooding.

“What happened last year was a warning to people on or near rivers," Abbott said. “No one can be complacent.”

As much as 28 inches (74 centimeters) of rain fell over the past three days in Uvalde County, which was spared from the worst flooding a year ago, the weather service said Thursday. Other areas saw roughly a foot of rain.

Victims in Texas floods were swept away

The governor said one of the victims was driving on a flooded road and was swept away near Uvalde while the other died in Kerr County.

Jennie Steward said the body of her husband, 65-year-old John Mark Steward, of Kerrville, was found Thursday.

She was visiting her parents when a neighbor called overnight, saying her husband was missing after water had risen to the door of their mobile home, which stood off the ground.

The entire home was swept off the platform and floated down Goat Creek on the Guadalupe, she said.

“It’s really hard that I wasn’t there with him,” she said. The two last spoke by phone Wednesday to celebrate their third anniversary.

Hill Country residents say they were better prepared

The unfolding crisis brought back haunting memories of last summer's unimaginable Hill Country floods that killed more than 100 people over the July Fourth holiday.

“It’s crazy happening two times in one year,” said Josiah Rodriguez, who awoke to the sound of heavy rain around 2 a.m. Thursday in Kerrville. He navigated flooded roads to help evacuate relatives.

“Last year there was no warning of it,” he said. “It just kind of happened overnight and it took everyone by surprise. This year, a lot more alerts have gone into place, a lot more safety measures.”

Residents said they were caught off guard a year ago and didn’t receive any warning when floods overtopped the Guadalupe. Some local leaders were criticized for not acting quickly.

The storms and flooding this time threatened multiple counties close to the Mexico border and in the Hill Country near San Antonio. Roughly 6 million residents across Texas were under a flood watch this week, and many were expected to remain in effect into Friday.

Several agencies sent rescue helicopters to the flood zone, including Travis County in the state capital of Austin.

Residents rush animals and campers to higher ground

At a wild animal rescue, Katie Buck evacuated several dozen animals to higher ground in the dark Thursday as the normally dry Lazy Creek overflowed. She got all of the animals to safety, but flooding destroyed several enclosures at the Buck Wild Animal Rescue and Wildlife Rehab near Ingram in Kerr County.

“We were just starting to get back on our feet again,” Buck said. “To have to go through this again is just devastating.”

Residents at an RV park in Comfort moved their trailers as sirens sounded, manager Duke Earwood said.

Water rose over the hoods of vehicles parked near the river at the Comfort RV Resort. Markers showed the flooding already matched last July's big flood.

“Too familiar for sure, and too soon,” Earwood said.

Uvalde residents isolated by floodwaters

Floodwaters also overran the city of Uvalde overnight, cutting off most outside routes. The Leona River, normally dry most of the year, filled streets with water.

“People really can’t get anywhere,” said Carmen Rodriguez, who nervously watched water engulf her neighborhood as a helicopter roared overhead. “We have a place to go, but all the streets are closed.”

Rodriguez said authorities seemed to be prepared, ordering mandatory evacuations and notifying people directly.

After staying up most of the night, Casy Sanford and her husband felt like things were OK at their home in Uvalde as the downpour and heavy winds let up. Texas Game Wardens were outside their door just a few hours later, evacuating the couple, Sanford’s son and three daughters, her mother-in-law and two dogs by boat Thursday morning.

Sanford said she felt “mere shock” as they left most everything and closed the door behind them, water seeping into the ground floor of the only home her little girls have known.

“My little one was scared. She kept grabbing my hand real tight,” Sanford said of her 8-year-old. “I’m not sure what we’ll see when we get back.”

Sanford later said a neighbor had visited her family’s home and found water had climbed as high as their kitchen counters.

Texas Game Wardens rescued close to 150 people by the afternoon, according to a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department spokesperson. Video released by the agency showed crews hoisting children from a house surrounded with water into a helicopter.

Uvalde resident Jose Maldonado said water reached the first step to the entrance of his RV on Wednesday and rose above the door on Thursday. Floodwaters took down nearby walls, moved cars, flipped a trailer and left behind debris, he said.

He and his wife planned to stay with his parents until they could return to clean up.

Flooding hasn't reached last year's deadly high

So far, the Guadalupe has remained below the record levels reached in 2025. Close to Camp Mystic, which hasn't reopened since last year's tragedy, the Guadalupe near Hunt reached about 20.5 feet (6.3 meters), which is enough to cause flooding, according to U.S. Geological Survey and National Water Prediction Service data.

In Kerr County, where summer camps dot the river's shores, the sheriff’s office said all campers were safe. Several camps said the children were staying inside, with one camp reporting normal flooding.

While the water didn’t rise as high as a year ago in Ingram, Mayor Claud Jordan believes this round of flooding was more widespread in his city.

“There are a bunch of businesses that haven’t reopened from last year,” Jordan said. “This doesn’t help.”

The Hill Country is especially prone to flash floods because the area’s signature limestone is covered by just a thin layer of soil. During heavy rains, water can quickly shoot downhill before filling the narrow river basins.

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Stengle reported from Dallas and Fingerhut reported from Des Moines, Iowa. Associated Press writers Christopher L. Keller in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut; Michael Phillis in Washington; Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Anna Wilder in Austin, Texas; Laura Turbay in Little Rock, Arkansas; and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, contributed.

Rescuers aboard boats and helicopters have saved more than 200 people, including stranded drivers and people trapped in homes, Abbott said.

The governor said the hardest-hit areas are expecting more rain into Friday and are not out of danger yet, with some rivers expected to reach historic levels.

After days of pounding rain, the National Weather Service said a large wave on Thursday barreled down the same river wrecked by flash floods last summer when two dozen children and counselors died at Camp Mystic.

Much like last year, the floods came in the middle of the night. But this time some residents in the Texas Hill Country said they received more warnings.

Forecasters urgently warned, “Move to higher ground now!” as rivers rose hour by hour. Some spots of the Guadalupe River rose by more than 30 feet (9 meters).

The governor said more than 2,000 first responders had been deployed and some evacuations began before the worst of the flooding.

“What happened last year was a warning to people on or near rivers," Abbott said. “No one can be complacent.”

As much as 28 inches (74 centimeters) of rain fell over the past three days in Uvalde County, which was spared from the worst flooding a year ago, the weather service said Thursday. Other areas saw roughly a foot of rain.

Victims in Texas floods were swept away

The governor said one of the victims was driving on a flooded road and was swept away near Uvalde while the other died in Kerr County.

Jennie Steward said the body of her husband, 65-year-old John Mark Steward, of Kerrville, was found Thursday.

She was visiting her parents when a neighbor called overnight, saying her husband was missing after water had risen to the door of their mobile home, which stood off the ground.

The entire home was swept off the platform and floated down Goat Creek on the Guadalupe, she said.

“It’s really hard that I wasn’t there with him,” she said. The two last spoke by phone Wednesday to celebrate their third anniversary.

Hill Country residents say they were better prepared

The unfolding crisis brought back haunting memories of last summer's unimaginable Hill Country floods that killed more than 100 people over the July Fourth holiday.

“It’s crazy happening two times in one year,” said Josiah Rodriguez, who awoke to the sound of heavy rain around 2 a.m. Thursday in Kerrville. He navigated flooded roads to help evacuate relatives.

“Last year there was no warning of it,” he said. “It just kind of happened overnight and it took everyone by surprise. This year, a lot more alerts have gone into place, a lot more safety measures.”

Residents said they were caught off guard a year ago and didn’t receive any warning when floods overtopped the Guadalupe. Some local leaders were criticized for not acting quickly.

The storms and flooding this time threatened multiple counties close to the Mexico border and in the Hill Country near San Antonio. Roughly 6 million residents across Texas were under a flood watch this week, and many were expected to remain in effect into Friday.

Several agencies sent rescue helicopters to the flood zone, including Travis County in the state capital of Austin.

Residents rush animals and campers to higher ground

At a wild animal rescue, Katie Buck evacuated several dozen animals to higher ground in the dark Thursday as the normally dry Lazy Creek overflowed. She got all of the animals to safety, but flooding destroyed several enclosures at the Buck Wild Animal Rescue and Wildlife Rehab near Ingram in Kerr County.

“We were just starting to get back on our feet again,” Buck said. “To have to go through this again is just devastating.”

Residents at an RV park in Comfort moved their trailers as sirens sounded, manager Duke Earwood said.

Water rose over the hoods of vehicles parked near the river at the Comfort RV Resort. Markers showed the flooding already matched last July's big flood.

“Too familiar for sure, and too soon,” Earwood said.

Uvalde residents isolated by floodwaters

Floodwaters also overran the city of Uvalde overnight, cutting off most outside routes. The Leona River, normally dry most of the year, filled streets with water.

“People really can’t get anywhere,” said Carmen Rodriguez, who nervously watched water engulf her neighborhood as a helicopter roared overhead. “We have a place to go, but all the streets are closed.”

Rodriguez said authorities seemed to be prepared, ordering mandatory evacuations and notifying people directly.

After staying up most of the night, Casy Sanford and her husband felt like things were OK at their home in Uvalde as the downpour and heavy winds let up. Texas Game Wardens were outside their door just a few hours later, evacuating the couple, Sanford’s son and three daughters, her mother-in-law and two dogs by boat Thursday morning.

Sanford said she felt “mere shock” as they left most everything and closed the door behind them, water seeping into the ground floor of the only home her little girls have known.

“My little one was scared. She kept grabbing my hand real tight,” Sanford said of her 8-year-old. “I’m not sure what we’ll see when we get back.”

Sanford later said a neighbor had visited her family’s home and found water had climbed as high as their kitchen counters.

Texas Game Wardens rescued close to 150 people by the afternoon, according to a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department spokesperson. Video released by the agency showed crews hoisting children from a house surrounded with water into a helicopter.

Uvalde resident Jose Maldonado said water reached the first step to the entrance of his RV on Wednesday and rose above the door on Thursday. Floodwaters took down nearby walls, moved cars, flipped a trailer and left behind debris, he said.

He and his wife planned to stay with his parents until they could return to clean up.

Flooding hasn't reached last year's deadly high

So far, the Guadalupe has remained below the record levels reached in 2025. Close to Camp Mystic, which hasn't reopened since last year's tragedy, the Guadalupe near Hunt reached about 20.5 feet (6.3 meters), which is enough to cause flooding, according to U.S. Geological Survey and National Water Prediction Service data.

In Kerr County, where summer camps dot the river's shores, the sheriff’s office said all campers were safe. Several camps said the children were staying inside, with one camp reporting normal flooding.

While the water didn’t rise as high as a year ago in Ingram, Mayor Claud Jordan believes this round of flooding was more widespread in his city.

“There are a bunch of businesses that haven’t reopened from last year,” Jordan said. “This doesn’t help.”

The Hill Country is especially prone to flash floods because the area’s signature limestone is covered by just a thin layer of soil. During heavy rains, water can quickly shoot downhill before filling the narrow river basins.

___

Stengle reported from Dallas and Fingerhut reported from Des Moines, Iowa. Associated Press writers Christopher L. Keller in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut; Michael Phillis in Washington; Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Anna Wilder in Austin, Texas; Laura Turbay in Little Rock, Arkansas; and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, contributed.

Elon Musk, the company's founder and CEO, said two engines will be replaced “to be confident of a good flight” before sending Starship from Texas on a space-skimming journey halfway around the world. It will be the 13th flight for Starship, which at 407 feet (124 meters) tall with 33 main engines is the world’s biggest and most powerful rocket.

SpaceX's launch webcast showed the start of engine ignition three seconds before the planned liftoff, viewed from a drone high above the pad. Although the company did not elaborate, onscreen data showed four engines not firing, with the remaining 29 engines immediately shutting down and keeping the rocket anchored to the pad. It was the first time a full-scale Starship experienced a last-second abort like this.

The launch team immediately began draining the fuel from the rocket.

"Most probable launch timing is early next week," Musk said via X.

Everything was going SpaceX's way, even the weather, until the partial engine ignition. In the end, the rocket’s automatic launch system worked as planned by halting everything. Too few operating engines could have doomed the launch. Some earlier Starship flights ended in explosive fireballs.

Elon Musk's company had newest, most advanced Starlinks aboard

Twenty of SpaceX's newest and most advanced Starlinks were on board Starship for release during the planned hourlong flight from Starbase, the company's hub near the Texas-Mexico border. The internet satellites were going to try communicating with Starlinks already in orbit while taking photos of Starship's heat shield.

Neither the first-stage booster nor spacecraft were meant to be recovered, with both ending up in the sea.

The rocket's automatic launch system worked as planned by halting everything. Too few operating engines could have resulted in a failed launch. Some earlier Starship flights, for example, ended in explosive fireballs.

World's biggest rocket is key to putting astronauts back on the moon

NASA is counting on Starship to land its astronauts on the moon in the next few years. The space agency has hired SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin to build and fly the lunar landers that will return humanity to the surface of the moon after an absence of more than half a century.

Both companies need to have their landers — Starship and Blue Moon — ready to fly by next year so that the newly named Artemis III crew can practice docking their capsule with them in orbit around Earth. The mission after that — Artemis IV planned for no earlier than 2028 — would use one of those landers to take two astronauts to the moon's south polar region.

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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.

• RELATED: FBI search warrant says ‘crystal-like substance’ found in Lorenzo Salgado Araujo’s work van after fatal ICE shooting

The response comes one day after an FBI affidavit filed in support of a search warrant stated investigators found several bags containing what appeared to be a “white crystal-like substance” that an agent believed was consistent with methamphetamine. The substance has not been confirmed through laboratory testing.

“Lorenzo and narcotics were never in the same sentence. It never would happen,” immigration attorney Ruby Powers told KPRC 2 News. She represents Lorenzo’s brother, Victor Salgado Araujo.

In a statement she released Thursday, Powers said the family believes the substance was granulated salt mixed with lemon and water as a homemade electrolyte drink commonly used by outdoor workers.

• ICE orders officers to stop vehicle pursuits nationwide amid Houston and Maine shootings

“After consulting with my client and his family, our understanding is that this was granulated salt, which is paired with lemon and water as a homemade electrolyte mix used by outdoor workers in extreme Texas heat, not methamphetamine or any other illicit substance,” Powers said.

Powers emphasized that the FBI affidavit was part of a request for a search warrant and did not establish that a crime had occurred.

“A search warrant does not equate to guilt. An unidentified substance is not a confirmed narcotic,” she said, calling on the FBI to expedite laboratory testing so the family’s names can be cleared.

In an interview with KPRC 2 News, Powers said Victor Salgado Araujo was shocked and angry at the government’s claims.

“He didn’t even know what meth was,” Powers said. “He’s already detained. He already lost his brother. And now you’re trying to insinuate that he’s involved with drugs, trying to discredit who he is.”

Hugo Balderas-Ibarra, the attorney for the other two men in the van who have been detained by ICE, posted on social media that he visited his clients Daniel Tirado Pantoja and José Trinidad Rojas Pliego, who allegedly told him they carried granulated salt to add into their water to help with the heat and to prevent cramping.

• Houston police chief requests Texas Rangers investigate fatal ICE-involved shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo

Powers added that regardless of what testing ultimately shows, it “will not change the fact that deadly force was used against Lorenzo.”

“You cannot shoot first and ask questions later,” Powers said.

If the results are positive, Powers said questions would come up about the chain of custody of any of the items investigators recovered from the vehicle.

Powers also said Victor Salgado Araujo remains in ICE custody while grieving the loss of his brother and continues fighting to remain in the United States.

• Public viewing set for Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, man killed in ICE shooting in Houston

“We continue to call for his release so he can participate fully in the investigations and pursuit of justice for his brother,” she said.

Harris County DA questions affidavit

The family’s statement came hours after Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare publicly questioned the significance of the FBI affidavit during an interview with CNN.

Teare said investigators from his office were present while the FBI executed the search warrant and that, based on what his office has seen, “we don’t believe that they are drugs.” He said the FBI would test the substance and urged the FBI to quickly release laboratory test results once testing is complete.

Teare also said the issue is unrelated to the central question investigators are trying to answer.

• RELATED: Texas Rangers not investigating ICE fatal shooting of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, cite no federal or local request

“It doesn’t matter whether or not there were drugs,” Teare said. “It has no bearing whatsoever on whether or not the use of deadly force against Mr. Salgado was justified. This is a red herring that really has no bearing on a death investigation.”

The district attorney also criticized the federal handling of the investigation, calling the decision to unseal the search warrant before the case is presented to a grand jury unusual and urging federal authorities to explain why it was made public.

• Harris County ME rules Houston ICE shooting death of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo a homicide

“Based on what we’ve learned about the passengers, it’s inconsistent that drugs were in the van,” Teare said in a statement to KPRC 2.

Investigation continues

Salgado Araujo was fatally shot by an ICE agent on July 7 during an attempted stop in Houston’s Magnolia Park neighborhood.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has said the agent acted in self-defense after Salgado Araujo allegedly attempted to run over an officer with his work van.

The three men who were riding with Salgado Araujo have disputed that account through their attorney, saying ICE vehicles struck the van and that no agent was ever in danger of being run over.

The FBI affidavit does not determine whether the substance found in the van was an illegal drug, and publicly available court records do not indicate laboratory testing has been completed.

In a statement released Thursday evening, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, Aaron Reitz, said the FBI executed the search warrant on Wednesday.

“The FBI executed a search warrant on the van in connection with possible narcotics trafficking and drug offenses. I want to reiterate: This assessment is based on preliminary information given to my office. We draw no decisive conclusions and believe federal law enforcement will conduct a thorough investigation,” Reitz said.

It’s unclear if or when any test results could be released.

“I encourage the public to give the FBI and DHS the opportunity to investigate. Let the justice system work,” Reitz said.

The Harris County District Attorney’s Office is conducting its own investigation into the shooting alongside the Texas Rangers, while federal authorities continue their investigation into the incident.

The ceremony for Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a Mexican national who was fatally shot last Tuesday by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer while driving his construction crew to a job site in Houston, comes amid mounting scrutiny of President Donald Trump's aggressive immigration crackdown. Encounters with ICE have resulted in at least 10 deaths since the start of Trump's second term last year — two of which happened in the days after a federal agent killed Salgado Araujo.

“My family would like to express our heartfelt gratitude for the unbelievable and incredible support we have received,” Salgado Araujo's son, Ronaldo Salgado, said in a Facebook post Thursday.

Salgado Araujo, 52, who had no criminal record, had lived in the U.S. for 35 years.

In the fallout of the shooting, three men whom Salgado Araujo was driving when he was killed have adamantly disputed the government's official account.

The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, said Salgado Araujo had rammed an ICE vehicle, and that a federal agent fired a weapon in self-defense. Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a staunch supporter of Trump’s immigration crackdown, said Wednesday that the state’s top law enforcement unit would investigate the fatal shooting.

More than a week after the shooting, new court records show the FBI is investigating whether drugs were found in the van, according to a search warrant application signed by a federal judge on Tuesday.

FBI Special Agent David McNeilly stated in an affidavit that he observed four plastic bags of a white substance appearing to be meth inside the van. DHS has not stated that suspected drugs were the reason why ICE officers engaged in the traffic stop. The FBI referred all questions to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.

U.S. Attorney Aaron Reitz emphasized in a recorded video statement on Thursday that all information was preliminary and not conclusive.

“We are doing everything we can to seek the truth and do the right thing,” Reitz said. “In the meantime, I encourage the public to give the FBI and DHS the opportunity to investigate.”

An attorney for Salgado Araujo's brother, who was in the van when the agent killed Salgado Araujo and who was subsequently detained by ICE, said that the powder is a homemade electrolyte mix that the construction crew used to stay hydrated while working outside in the grueling Texas heat.

Ruby L. Powers, the attorney for Salgado Araujo’s brother, in a statement called for officials to test the substance to establish that it isn't an illicit substance.

“But no test result, whatever it ultimately shows, will change the fact that deadly force was used against Lorenzo,” Powers said. “You cannot shoot first and ask questions later.”

—

Riddle reported from Los Angeles.

Blanche spent about an hour at Justice Department headquarters in Washington with the group of Epstein accusers, who have criticized the Trump administration's handling of the disgraced financier's investigation and a trove of files related to his sex trafficking case.

After the meeting, Blanche told reporters that he encouraged the accusers to come to the FBI with any information that could help investigators build cases against additional figures tied to Epstein.

But Blanche acknowledged he couldn't assure them additional prosecutions could be brought. The Justice Department has repeatedly said it will investigate further if new information surfaces, but the government doesn’t currently have evidence to support prosecutions against others in Epstein's orbit.

“It wasn’t all cordial,” Blanche said of Thursday’s meeting. “Because there’s something that they want that I don’t think I can give them, which is some form of justice. And I want to be able to give justice in the form of prosecutions, and maybe we can do a prosecution at some point,” Blanche said.

But Blanche added, “I don’t know.”

The political firestorm over Epstein has been a persistent headache for the Trump administration, which released millions of investigative documents over the last year in response to right-wing clamoring for answers about the disgraced financier's crimes and connections to high-profile people.

One accuser is disappointed in Blanche meeting

One accuser, Dani Bensky, expressed frustration after the meeting, saying Blanche appeared to treat it as “a mere ‘check-the-box’ exercise intended to secure votes for his confirmation.”

"He danced around his wording, repeatedly interrupted us and could not commit to anything that would demonstrate good faith or begin to restore trust," she said in an emailed statement. She said Blanche offered “no credible plan to investigate and pursue accountability" beyond Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted of luring teenage girls to be sexually abused by Epstein.

Earlier Thursday, Bensky told lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee that women harmed by Epstein repeatedly asked to meet with Blanche “through multiple channels and he never responded.”

“We deserve to be heard directly, not dismissed and ignored,” Bensky said.

Blanche has pushed back on suggestions that the Justice Department has been dismissive of the Epstein's accusers, saying officials have spoken with more than 30 representatives of the women over the course of their sweeping review of the files.

“The Department of Justice will always meet with victims or their representatives, and if those victims or their representatives have evidence that anybody committed a crime — whether it has to do with Jeffrey Epstein or anybody else — we will of course move forward and investigate and prosecute,” Blanche told reporters.

Blanche needs key Republican support to get confirmed

The meeting came hours after Republican Sen. Thom Tillis said it needed to happen before Blanche could earn his vote.

Without Tillis’ support, Blanche’s nomination won’t make it through the Senate Judiciary Committee, which questioned Blanche for hours Wednesday about the Epstein files as well as the creation of a fund to compensate President Donald Trump’s allies, a tax immunity deal for the president and a slew of other issues.

Another Republican, Sen. John Cornyn, has also expressed concern over the fund and has said he remains undecided about his vote.

Tillis indicated during Blanche’s confirmation hearing Wednesday that he was leaning toward backing Blanche, who has been leading the department in an acting capacity since April. But after lawmakers heard Bensky's testimony, Tillis said he expected a meeting between victims and Blanche to occur before he’s “willing to vote out of this committee.”

Tillis later Thursday commended Blanche for holding the meeting, writing in a social media post, “I appreciate his willingness to directly engage and listen to them.”

After missteps by then-Attorney General Pam Bondi that enraged Trump's base, Blanche as deputy attorney general oversaw a massive review and the release of millions of files related to the investigation into Epstein. The case has captivated internet sleuths and conspiracy theorists for years, in part because of Epstein's connections to other powerful individuals.

Blanche has also defended the department's staggered release of the Epstein files, a process beset by problems, including redaction errors that left exposed nude photos showing the faces of potential victims.

Blanche said during his confirmation hearing Wednesday that he takes responsibility for mistakes that were made, but noted that department lawyers were given a "herculean task” to quickly review millions of files for release. Blanche said department lawyers took pains to protect the women involved, and quickly fixed any errors that were found.

“I am sorry that in about 1% of the documents mistakes were made,” Blanche said Wednesday. “But what I will say on top of that is we put tons of resources to rectifying those mistakes immediately, including pulling down documents within minutes of being informed that there were mistakes.”

The dangerous flooding for a second consecutive year set off hundreds of high-water rescues, washed out roads and killed at least two people, authorities said. Relentless downpours served as another frightening reminder of the flood-prone Texas Hill Country, following what experts say was fueled this time by the right mix of air and lots of available moisture.

“Last year, it was one big wave that came through. And it wiped everything out, and then it receded, and then we could deal with the damage. This time, we’re on day three of heavy rain and everything keeps continuing to rise, and it’s expected to rain today and tonight,” said Suzanne Sutphin Gschwind of Kerrville, where some of the worst flooding took place.

Hot weather over the middle of the continental United States ensured storms that formed would move slowly, and rounds of rain over roughly the last three days at times reached several inches an hour. The flooding is “about as bad as it gets” — conditions that are typically rare, said Bob Oravec, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

“Obviously, something like this doesn’t occur every year, but it has occurred over two years in a row and it has occurred over a region that is prone to flash flooding by its topography,” Oravec said.

Nearly 1 trillion gallons of water fell on the three hardest-hit counties in Texas over three days — Uvalde County alone got more rain in that period than California has seen over the last month, according to Ryan Maue, former chief scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association.

Flooding over the Fourth of July weekend last year killed more than 100 people, including roughly two dozen children and camp counselors at Camp Mystic, a now-shuttered Christian camp for girls. These storms dumped rain on a wider area, overlapping with some of the places where floodwaters overturned cars, ripped down trees and sent rescuers hustling to save lives last July.

A local official in Travis County, which includes Austin, said people were trapped on barn roofs and in trees. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said drones and helicopters were airborne for rescues.

"We are looking at every square inch of the entire area for anybody who may be stranded anywhere. And there will be help coming very rapidly to whoever may be displaced, wherever they are,” Abbott said.

The flood in Texas Hill Country

The rain hit Texas Hill Country, a part of central and south Texas with steep terrain. Shallow soil covers limestone hills that have been soaked for days. Instead of the land absorbing the water, it shoots into rivers with steep banks.

That causes water to rise fast, a dangerous scenario that catches people by surprise.

When rivers rise so fast “it’s almost like a river tsunami,” said Tyler Roys, a senior meteorologist with the forecasting company AccuWeather. These conditions are so deadly because water is heavy and moves quickly. Just one cubic foot of water — imagine a box a bit larger than the size of a basketball — weighs about 62 pounds (28 kilograms).

Compared to last year's flood, the rain fell hard, but in some places it wasn't quite as intense and rivers in many places didn't rise quite as quickly, Texas State Climatologist John Nielsen-Gammon said. Plus, the previous days of rain previewed the flood threat.

“This one is producing greater overall precipitation totals, but it is mostly doing it with lower rain rates. They are still fairly high, but they aren't as high as they were last year," he said.

While swollen from rainfall, so far Guadalupe River levels have largely remained below record levels, some of which were reached during last year’s deadly floods. The river did surpass last year's mark at the small community of Comfort, rising to 37 feet (11.3 meters) early Thursday, a mark 1.5 feet (0.5 meters) higher than it reached last year. At its height then, water weighing as much as the Empire State Building flowed downstream roughly every minute.

The river's record at this spot is 42.3 feet (12.9 meters) set in 1869.

Climate change and forecasting

It is difficult, especially as storms are happening, to know whether climate change has made the event more likely or worse.

Oravec said that the conditions that created this storm — hot air that steers and slows storms — have long occurred, but that climate change could make these conditions more common. A warmer atmosphere also has the potential to hold more moisture and heavier rains.

Last year's flooding did raise awareness of the dangers floods create, especially when they occur at night, Oravec said.

“I think overall it has been a good forecast. The effects are catastrophic, but the signal was there for potential heavy rainfall,” he said.

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Associated Press writers Christopher L. Keller in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia and Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire, contributed.

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The Associated Press receives support from the Walton Family Foundation for coverage of water and environmental policy. The AP is solely responsible for all content. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment

According to the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office, Kaden Ausbrooks has been charged with Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon Causing Serious Bodily Injury, a first-degree felony.

Deputies say they were called to the Kroger located in the 20300 block of Cypresswood Drive Wednesday after receiving reports of an active shooter inside the store.

• RELATED: Man charged after shooting inside Cypress Kroger

Authorities say deputies arrived in less than two minutes and took Ausbrooks into custody as he was leaving the store.

Investigators said the suspect is currently receiving medical treatment at a local hospital and will be booked into the Harris County Jail once he is released.

The victim remains hospitalized in stable but critical condition. Investigators said no one else was injured.

The Kroger store has since reopened, and the company is providing counseling services to employees who were working during the shooting.

Expert: Have a plan before an emergency happens

In the wake of the shooting, KPRC 2 spoke with Tim Reboulet, a former U.S. Secret Service agent with M6 Global Defense, about what people can do to better protect themselves if they ever find themselves caught in a violent situation.

Reboulet teaches what he calls the “Four E’s”:

• Educate – Have a plan before an emergency happens. Talk with your family about meeting locations if you’re separated and identify exits whenever you enter a public place.
• Evade – If you cannot immediately escape, move from cover to cover while looking for a safer route away from danger.
• Escape – If there’s a safe opportunity to leave, get out as quickly as possible instead of staying inside the building.
• Engage – Fighting back should only be considered as a last resort when there are no other options and your life or someone else’s life is in immediate danger.

Reboulet also encourages people to stay aware of their surroundings and avoid becoming distracted by their cell phones while out in public. He says paying attention to what’s happening around you could provide valuable seconds to recognize danger and react.

• RELATED: 2 in critical condition after shooting inside Kroger store in Cypress

The investigation into the Kroger shooting remains ongoing.

The shooting happened around 2:50 p.m. Wednesday at the Kroger located at 20355 Cypresswood Drive.

• 2 in critical condition after shooting inside Kroger store in Cypress

According to the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office, deputies responded to reports of an active shooter and arrived in less than two minutes.

When deputies arrived, they found one man, later identified as Kaden Ausbrooks, walking out of the store with a gunshot wound. After clearing the building, deputies located a second man inside who had been shot multiple times.

The victim was flown to a local hospital and is in stable but critical condition, according to investigators.

• NYC helicopter that crashed and killed 6 last year shows signs of bird strike

Ausbrooks, who authorities said suffered a gunshot wound to the neck, was also taken to a nearby hospital. Following an investigation by Precinct 4 detectives, he was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon causing serious bodily injury, a first-degree felony.

Deputies are guarding Ausbrooks while he receives medical treatment. He will be booked into the Harris County Jail upon his release.

Investigators now believe the shooting stemmed from a domestic dispute between the two men. Authorities said no customers or employees were injured.

• 1 injured, 3 detained after reported shooting in northwest Harris County, deputies say

The investigation remains ongoing as detectives continue reviewing surveillance video from inside the store.

In a statement, Kroger said it is providing counseling services for employees who were working when the shooting occurred.

“We are grateful that no additional individuals were injured during this incident,” Constable Mark Herman said. “The rapid response of our deputies, along with the assistance of our partner law enforcement agencies, allowed officers to quickly secure the scene, provide access to emergency medical care for those injured, and conduct the investigation necessary to file charges against the alleged shooter.”

It halted work on major projects, and it's buying back leases, citing national security concerns. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum says a classified report from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth proves offshore wind is a national security threat.

This comes against the backdrop of the Republican president's hatred of wind turbines and desire to boost fossil fuels for “energy dominance” in the global market. National lab estimates show that turbines installed along the U.S. coasts could provide more than enough power to cover the nation's annual electricity consumption.

Wind turbines interfere with radar, but that isn't a new problem. The Pentagon reviews wind farm construction plans and can deem areas off limits. There are upgrades to radar to mitigate turbine impacts.

Here’s what to know about the national security implications of offshore wind development:

Turbines’ spinning blades can create false targets on radar screens

Burgum says he’s worried about autonomous drones going through a wind tower field undetected because of radar interference. And, he said, the vibration of wind towers could affect undersea sonar.

Radar systems can be adjusted to raise the threshold for what's considered a detection but may miss actual targets consequently, according to the Department of Energy.

Kirk Lippold, a national security expert and former commander of the USS Cole, said radar operators are trained to differentiate a live track — anything from a boat or a submarine periscope to an inbound drone or missile — from clutter. If drones aren't detected before they reach a wind farm, “we have bigger national security issues,” he said.

Trump administration says there are new risks

According to the Department of Justice, defense officials gave the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management classified information in November 2025 detailing new national security risks from offshore wind projects.

BOEM halted construction on five big East Coast projects days before Christmas. Burgum said they had to address the rapid evolution of relevant adversary technologies and vulnerabilities created by these projects near East Coast cities. This came after courts blocked Trump's efforts to halt development through executive action.

Like the United States, Sweden is raising security concerns with offshore wind energy. Officials said Thursday they're approving two offshore wind farms while rejecting 11 others.

Green Power Sweden CEO Nils Grunditz said he questions why Sweden is scaling back its offshore wind plans when technological solutions for radar interference are used elsewhere in the region. Denmark has been a pioneer in wind energy since building the first offshore wind farm in 1991.

The UK government said in March it bought new air defense radars to mitigate against anomalies created by offshore wind farms, touting it as new technology that secures coexistence of air defense and offshore wind. The independent climate change think tank E3G said North Sea turbines can be a defense asset, for example by including surveillance and monitoring equipment.

Judges were not convinced by the Trump administration

Developers impacted by the construction freeze and states sued. The DOJ argued national security concerns are paramount and federal courts do not second-guess military officials’ assessment of these risks.

Federal judges reviewed the classified information and allowed all five wind farms to resume construction.

At the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Senior Judge Royce Lamberth expressed concern that the stated national security reasoning may have been “pretextual,” to mask the true motives for stopping offshore wind.

In putting a major wind farm for Rhode Island and Connecticut back on track in January, Lamberth said the government did not apply the newly discovered concerns specifically to that project, Revolution Wind, Burgum publicly criticized offshore wind around the time of the stop work order for reasons unrelated to national security, and BOEM waited to act until December on information it received in November.

The Pentagon is also holding up the development of onshore wind farms, and the administration has used emergency orders to keep fossil fuel plants online. On Thursday, attorneys general from 18 states and Washington moved to intervene in a lawsuit to try to advance the onshore wind farms.

Meghan Greenfield, a partner at Jenner & Block LLP in Washington, said the administration is making a national security argument in so many different contexts, “it has caused increased skepticism by the courts.”

A retired Navy officer is suspicious of the administration's motives

In buying back offshore wind leases, the Interior Department cited national security concerns with the projects, including those off California. The Interior Department said Thursday there were serious national security risks that demanded immediate attention, and it won't let “reckless projects create higher utility costs, a weakened energy system and unnecessary harm to the environment.” Several states are suing.

Retired U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Dennis McGinn knows the waters off California's shore well. He commanded the fleet responsible for naval operations across the eastern and northern Pacific Ocean. He said there's no “showstopping national security issue” that would invalidate years of analysis of the lease areas.

McGinn said he thinks the administration is maximizing the risks and costs of offshore wind while minimizing the benefits to justify pursuing more fossil fuels and “it doesn't pass commonsense tests.” Offshore wind produces electricity cleanly. Oil, coal and natural gas emit carbon pollution when burned.

McGinn, who served as an assistant secretary of the Navy, said that radar interference is a problem recognized early on and adequately addressed and that thousands of turbines are operating across Europe and Asia.

“National security and offshore wind are compatible, if it is done right, in the right locations,” he said.

Economist Diana Furchtgott-Roth disagrees. A distinguished fellow at the Energy Policy Research Foundation, Furchtgott-Roth said the defense issues have been known for decades, the military's views should be taken very seriously, the nation shouldn't be dependent on Chinese-made turbines, and gas, coal and nuclear provide affordable, reliable power. The administration is acting prudently, she said.

Members of Congress were briefed

Democratic U.S. Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island said he participated in a classified briefing months ago and didn't find the reasoning compelling. Reed, the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is trying to include a measure in the defense bill that sets military policy to force a 180-day deadline for a military office known as the siting clearinghouse to evaluate wind projects and explain its conclusion.

“They have to be able to produce a thoughtful and thorough analysis which justifies their decision,” Reed said Wednesday. "That’s the way to go.”

Even with that step, Reed said, this administration finds many ways to stop things it doesn't like and he expects the campaign against wind energy to continue.

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The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find the AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

“After consulting with my client and his family, our understanding is that this was granulated salt, which is paired with lemon and water as a homemade electrolyte mix used by outdoor workers in extreme Texas heat, not methamphetamine or any other illicit substance,” said Ruby Powers, a Houston immigration attorney representing Victor Hugo Salgado Araujo, who was the front passenger inside the van.

Powers said in a statement on Thursday that she is asking the FBI to expedite the testing so “their names can be cleared.

“But no test result, whatever it ultimately shows, will change the fact that deadly force was used against Lorenzo,” Powers said. “You cannot shoot first and ask questions later.”

The other two men in the van have also said there were no illegal drugs in the vehicle and that they would sometimes carry salt to mix with water and help prevent cramps while working in the Texas heat, according to Hugo Balderas-Ibarra, their attorney.

Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, who had lived and worked in Houston for nearly 35 years, had no criminal record, according to officials and available public records. His family said he was in the final stages of obtaining legal status through his children, who are U.S. citizens.

The 52-year-old man was also not the intended target of the ICE operation that led to his fatal shooting on July 7, according to U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston, who said she got that information from acting ICE Director David Venturella.  

A spokesperson for the FBI’s Houston office, which is investigating whether there was an assault on a federal law enforcement officer, referred questions to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas. The Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General is investigating the shooting.

Aaron Reitz, the newly appointed U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas, said in a statement that his office believes federal law enforcement “will conduct a thorough investigation. 

“We are doing everything we can to seek the truth and do the right thing,” he said. “In the meantime, I encourage the public to give the FBI and DHS the opportunity to investigate.”

An application for an FBI search warrant alleged that there were “small clear plastic bags” in Salgado Araujo’s van containing white “crystal-like substances.” FBI Special Agent David McNeilly, who filed the application, then wrote that he believed the substances could be methamphetamine based on the packaging and appearance.

The application was made public a day after it was filed in court on Tuesday, even though federal agents don’t typically publicize such information that quickly. Court records on Thursday didn’t indicate that the FBI had revealed what was collected from the van, or whether testing had been completed.

Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare — whose office is running its own investigation into the shooting — has also expressed doubt about the FBI’s suspicions in an interview with CNN, citing information that he said his team has but is not yet releasing.

“But my understanding is that this substance is being tested by the FBI, either today or in the next few days, and I think it’s so important to the public that those results be shared immediately,” Teare said in the Thursday interview.

Lomi Kriel contributed to this story.

Disclosure: CNN has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in The Texas Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

Another defeat in the semifinals. Another defeat from a winning position.

The English media was predictably critical of coach Thomas Tuchel after Wednesday's 2-1 loss to Argentina.

“Same old story” read one headline. Another declared that “Tuchel just shrank."

Tuchel, a serial trophy-winning coach with Borussia Dortmund, Paris Saint-Germain, Chelsea and Bayern Munich, was hired to put a second star on England's jersey and end the decades-long wait for a first trophy since the World Cup in 1966.

The wait goes on.

Former England captain Gary Lineker raised the question about Tuchel's future, saying he was "brought in specifically to take us over the line.”

“Is he the right man to take us forward?" Lineker said on his Netflix show ‘The Rest is Football.’ "He just got it so wrong in the big moment."

Tuchel's predecessor, Gareth Southgate, was credited with making England fans fall back in love with the men's national team after years of underachievement. He reached back-to-back European Championship finals but ultimately fell short, with his supposed cautious approach said to have cost England in clutch matches.

Southgate's substitutions were criticized as well as his tactics when England relinquished leads against Croatia in the World Cup semifinals in 2018 and Italy in the final of the Euros three years later.

There was criticism of the English soccer federation's decision to turn to a German, but Tuchel, a Champions League winner, was supposed to be difference maker in those key moments.

Leading 1-0 going into the 85th minute and in a defensive shell, England saw its hopes shattered on Argentina goals from Enzo Fernandez and substitute Lautaro Martinez.

“It’s a real panic. You can’t go a goal up and then surrender the ball and surrender any opportunity of trying to get the second goal," former England captain Wayne Rooney told the BBC. ”I just think the decisions Thomas Tuchel made, and I think we have to be honest on this, have cost us tonight."

Lineker said Tuchel's tactics and substitutions after going 1-0 up “made zero sense to me.”

Tuchel, who signed a two-year contract extension ahead of the World Cup, stood by his decisions.

“As soon as you lose, you get criticized. It’s just what it is,” Tuchel said. "No one knows what would have happened if I had made different decisions so it makes no sense to engage in that and lose my head.

“I’m responsible for them. I took them, so I take the criticism. That’s just the way it is.”

FA chief executive Mark Bullingham said shortly after the loss that it is “heartbreaking to be so close.”

“The players and Thomas gave it everything today and the squad, coaches and staff could not have worked harder during the tournament,” he said in a statement. “I would like to thank them all — and also give my heartfelt thanks to our wonderful fans here in the USA and at home. We felt your support every step of the way and we are all so disappointed not to go further.”

England will face France in the third-place game on Saturday in Miami.

Defeat to defending champion Argentina continued a pattern for the England men at the World Cup.

It has not beaten one of the traditional major nations at soccer's biggest tournament since the 1-0 win over Argentina in the group stage in 2002. Before that, England beat France in the group stage in 1982.

Knockout eliminations have come at the hands of Argentina and Germany on three occasions each, Brazil, Portugal and France. There was also the 2018 semifinals defeat to Croatia, a team that has never won a major trophy.

Tuchel, however, does not buy into the narrative that repeated failure is a specifically English problem.

“I love to see these things in a football matter and through football glasses. So first of all I always think it’s solvable on the football field,” he said. “I don’t believe so much in an English thing or in a curse or whatever or history repeating itself.”

Britain and Ireland are co-hosting Euro 2028.

"I have a contract until the home Euros, and I’m looking forward to that, even if right now it is difficult to look that far ahead,” Tuchel said.

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James Robson is at https://x.com/jamesalanrobson

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

The move announced Thursday would allow Wall Street trading firms and other institutions to get news from top Truth Social contributors in milliseconds so they could profit off subsequent moves in stocks, bonds and interest rates.

Called Truth PSI, the new service comes amid a flurry of other deals by Trump and his family company that critics say are exploiting the presidency for profit. It follows similar offers of paid access on rival platforms, though with one key difference: The most popular Truth Social poster is the president himself and, as the biggest shareholder of the public traded parent company, would directly benefit.

“He’s selling expedited, privileged access to information about what he is doing as president,” said Kathleen Clark of Washington University School of Law and an expert in government conflicts of interest rules. “It’s yet more brazen corruption, an improper exploitation of government power to enrich himself.”

The Trump family company declined to comment about whether the new feature is profiting off the presidency. Truth Social's public parent, Trump Media & Technology, did not respond to emailed questions, including whether the president's posts will be excluded from the offering.

A press release states it would allow traders to see “the highest-ranking Truth Social accounts” ahead of others. The president has the most followers — 12.9 million — followed by his oldest son, Don Jr. and, close behind, his son Eric.

The release did not say how much customers would be charged.

In the past few months, Trump has announced major decisions and musings on his platform including posts about the Iran war, tariffs and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement crackdown in U.S. cities. The Iran posts in particular are impactful because investors are worried that higher oil prices will continue to stoke inflation and possibly force the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates.

Stock in Trump Media & Technology has plunged more than 70% since the president took office last year, erasing $6 billion in shareholder wealth. Those losses, along with billions more of investor losses tied to new Trump family crypto businesses, have drawn scrutiny after Trump's annual disclosure of his financial holdings shows he took in more than $1 billion in revenue last year in the same companies and offerings.

Conflict of interest laws would bar U.S. government officials from owning a company that profits off their office by selling access to their decisions through public posts, says Washington University's Clark. But the president and vice-president, she notes, are excluded from the provision.

Despite that, all presidents since the law was passed decades ago have acted as if it applied — selling individual stocks, dumping business holdings or putting their financial assets in a blind trust so they wouldn’t know what was being bought and sold on their behalf while they wielded power — but Trump has refused.

Trump Media has been trying to lift its stock price recently by branching into various businesses, including crypto, financial services and even nuclear fusion. It recently replaced its longtime CEO, former Congressman Devin Nunes, with a seasoned media executive, Kevin McGurn.

In the release, McGurn described the Truth PSI move as part of a “strategy to monetize proprietary assets." He added that he expected it to become a "meaningful, ongoing source of revenue.”

Trump Media said that it plans to start the service next month and that it has already signed up customers.

The stock rose 0.6% to $9.63 on Thursday. Before Trump took office last year, it closed at $40.

But just months into Mullin's time in office, the department is squarely in the center of controversy again after three people were killed in encounters with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in the span of less than a week.

The events are the first major test for Mullin, who promised a steady hand for a department roiled by his predecessor's conduct and the Trump administration's immigration crackdown. New revelations about one of the officers involved could add further scrutiny.

As he navigates the uptick in violence, Mullin is being forced into a balancing act that has him juggling pressures from a White House eager to carry out mass deportations and his former colleagues in Congress seeking answers — all while attempting to ease tensions in American cities over the deaths.

“When he took his position, Secretary Mullin said that his goal was to get the department off the front page of the news,” Democratic Rep. Seth Magaziner said on the House floor Tuesday. Then, waving a newspaper, he said: “Well, you’re back on the goddamn front page now."

Mullin's approach is a marked change from his predecessor, Kristi Noem

Mullin, a former senator from Oklahoma, was a surprise pick to run the sprawling department after Noem was fired in the wake of two deadly shootings of American protesters at the hands of federal immigration officers in Minneapolis earlier this year.

As the secretary in charge of carrying out the administration's mass deportations vision, Noem pushed an aggressive style of immigration enforcement where she was front and center, including most famously, a visit to a Salvadoran detention center. She was quick to speak publicly on controversial events, weighing in on both Minneapolis shootings with statements accusing the killed protesters of being agitators.

President Donald Trump, who made mass deportations a central promise of his second administration, ultimately soured on Noem over a $200 million ad campaign and her handling of the Minneapolis operation.

Mullin promised a different approach, while still pledging to deliver on the president's priorities. His first trip as secretary was not to promote immigration enforcement but to observe hurricane recovery efforts in North Carolina. Noem frequently went out on immigration raids with her officers — Mullin has not.

Since he became secretary and in the aftermath of the Minneapolis violence, the administration has also moved away from high-profile and unpopular immigration operations in American cities to a quieter approach to enforcement that has largely shifted media attention away from the crackdown. Under Mullin, Immigration and Customs Enforcement is also retreating from a plan to use warehouses to detain migrants.

But immigration arrests continue under Mullin and often with little fanfare: ICE arrested 10,000 people over a five-day period in late June, averaging out to about to 2,000 arrests per day. And legal pathways to immigration have also faced new restrictions.

Trump, during Mullin's tenure, has hailed the secretary as “so incredible,” and “amazing,” lauding him for giving up his Senate seat to run DHS.

For months, it appeared as though Mullin's change in approach was taking hold. While advocates and civil rights activists accused the department of mistreating immigrants under his leadership, Mullin's less confrontational approach seemed to keep the department out of the spotlight.

ICE-related deaths bring renewed spotlight to Mullin and DHS

But the events of the past week have posed a new challenge for Mullin as he walks a tightrope between his softer approach and the president's demands.

“Trying to deal with competing policy objectives is a challenge for any Cabinet secretary, but Mullin has this worse than most,” said Tom Warrick, a former counterterrorism official at Homeland Security who’s now at the Atlantic Council.

“In the case of Homeland Security, the White House wants both to meet their immigration quotas at the same time that they keep public trust, and how you do that — even with the funding that Mullin has — is a really difficult challenge."

ICE officers in Houston and Maine shot and killed individuals in their cars during immigration operations. In Florida, a man fleeing ICE officers was killed in a car crash.

Mullin has not spoken publicly about the deaths while the department’s public affairs office has released only brief statements following each.

Behind the scenes, Mullin, who frequently talks about how he shares his cellphone number with members of Congress and encourages them to call him directly, has talked with lawmakers and shared information, including talking with both senators from Maine.

And after the second shooting death in Maine, as criticism surged from both protesters and Mullin's former colleagues in Congress, ICE was ordered to suspend most vehicle stops.

Trump heaps pressure on Mullin over vehicle stop order

That decision infuriated Trump's supporters.

Conservative influencer Nick Sorter called it a “TOTAL CAPITULATION to the left," in a post on X. Conservative activist Mike Davis accused Mullin of heeding the advice of Maine Sen. Susan Collins, who said she'd suggested the vehicle stop pause to the secretary.

A day later, Trump appeared to contradict the guidance to ICE, saying in a social media post “we must be strong, tough and smart and we CANNOT give up one of ICE’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!”

Mullin then reposted Trump's words, adding that people in the country would be “arrested and deported wherever they are." He later said on X that he and the president are “on the same page.”

During a briefing Thursday, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said vehicle stops are continuing after field offices around the country were given “verbal guidance."

"The president and the secretary of Homeland Security are on the same page that vehicle stops are a necessary tool that ICE agents need," she said.

But it showed the friction between Mullin's attempts to maintain calm and the president's demands that illegal immigrants, which the administration has in many instances portrayed as criminals, be arrested in large numbers.

Democrats have slammed the new secretary, saying that they see little change at the department.

“Secretary Mullin, if he wants to, and if he has the backing of the White House, he has the ability to get ICE under control and make them follow the law,” said Rep. Joaquin Castro, a Democrat from Texas. “So either he has no interest in doing that, or the White House is not backing him up, or the agents are simply out of control.”

Republican lawmakers have come to Mullin's defense.

“I think the Secretary has lived up to what he’s wanted to do to try to change the atmosphere over there,” said Rep. Andrew Garbarino of New York, who as chair of the congressional Homeland Security Committee has requested a bipartisan briefing on ICE's use of force policies from DHS.

“I don’t think anybody is celebrating that ICE is back in the headlines," Garbarino said.

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Associated Press writer Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.

The verdict — believed to be the largest ever against a gun dealer — was awarded by a jury Wednesday following a trial focused on whether the vendor, Husky Armory LLC, skirted federal regulations barring the sale of the gun-assembly kits to those under 21.

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EDITOR’S NOTE — This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org. Helplines outside the U.S. can be found at www.iasp.info/suicidalthoughts.

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In a wrongful-death lawsuit, the family of Henry Willis said he was just 18 when he purchased the Glock G19 pistol “build kit” from Husky Armory's website in 2023. He assembled the handgun in his garage — telling his father it was a transistor radio — and used it to end his life six days later.

Everytown Law, which represented the family, said the $104.2 million payout was the largest ever reached against a gun seller, surpassing the $73 million settlement awarded to the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting by the rifle maker Remington.

It comes a little over a year after the Supreme Court upheld regulations enacted by the Biden administration that mandated serial numbers on the homemade weapons and required buyers to complete background checks and age verification.

Attorneys for Willis said Husky Armory had flouted each of those requirements.

Its website advertised the product as having “everything you need to build your own Glock style pistol from the comfort of your home,” noting the weapon could be assembled by “nearly anyone with a brain,” according to the lawsuit.

Inquiries to Husky Armory LLC and its owner, Cody Yurk, were not immediately returned. The company, which is based in Omaha, Nebraska, was not present for the trial, according to the family and their attorneys.

At a news conference Thursday, Willis’ mother, Laura Herp, described her son as a “kind, gentle child” who had struggled with mental health issues in the months leading up to his death.

“A child in crisis should never be able to access a deadly weapon,” Herp said. “Companies like Husky Armory thrive off selling to folks who shouldn’t have access to firearms, and they didn’t care who Henry was. They didn’t even bother showing up to the trial.”

A state court in Louisville had previously issued a default judgment against the vendor for failing to respond to the lawsuit. Following a two-day trial this week, a jury awarded $4.2 million in economic damages and $100 million in punitive damages to the family.

“This historic verdict sends a powerful message to ghost-gun sellers who set up businesses to profit by circumventing critical safeguards like background checks and age verification,” said Dana Mulhauser, an attorney for Everytown Law. “Henry should be home with his family today, and Laura deserved more time and opportunity to help her son heal.”