Associated Press stories, Page 2
Lifting of U.S. sanctions on Syria could spur refugee returns, says UN official
BEIRUT — The head of the U.N. refugee agency in Lebanon said Thursday that the move by the United States to lift sweeping sanctions on Syria could encourage more refugees to return to their country. The U.S. Senate voted Wednesday to permanently remove the so-called Caesar Act sanctions after the...
Israel launches intense airstrikes in Lebanon as deadline looms to disarm Hezbollah
BEIRUT — Israel carried out a series of airstrikes on southern and northeastern Lebanon on Thursday as a deadline looms to disarm the militant Hezbollah group along the countries’ tense frontier. The strikes came a day before a meeting of the committee monitoring the enforcement of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire that...
Old Dominion wins Cure Bowl with 24-10 victory over South Florida
ORLANDO, Fla. — Redshirt freshman quarterback Quinn Henicle rushed for 107 yards and two touchdowns to help Old Dominion beat South Florida, 24-10, and win the StaffDNA Cure Bowl on Wednesday at Camping World Stadium. Henicle carried 24 times for Old Dominion (10-3) and clinched the victory with a 51-yard...
Trump demands Venezuela pay for seized U.S. oil assets after calling for ‘blockade’
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump demanded Wednesday that Venezuela return assets that it seized from U.S. oil companies years ago, justifying anew his announcement of a “blockade” against oil tankers traveling to or from the South American country that face American sanctions. Trump cited the lost U.S. investments in Venezuela...
Trump gives a partisan prime-time address insisting the economy is stronger than many voters feelVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump delivered a politically charged speech Wednesday carried live in prime time on network television, seeking to pin the blame for economic challenges on Democrats while announcing he is sending a $1,776 bonus check to U.S. troops for Christmas. The remarks came as the nation is...
Penn State players encouraged by their 1st impressions of new coach Matt CampbellVideo
UNIVERSITY PARK — Trebor Peña has advice for his younger teammates who must decide soon whether to stay at Penn State and play for new coach Matt Campbell or look for opportunities elsewhere. The senior receiver transferred to Penn State in May after experiencing Syracuse’s transition from coach Dino Babers...
Sanders has plenty to focus on as Browns prepare to host Bills on Sunday
BEREA, Ohio — Shedeur Sanders quickly turned the page after he threw three interceptions in the Cleveland Browns’ 31-3 loss to the Chicago Bears last Sunday. The rookie quarterback didn’t have a choice, considering what is up next on the schedule. Sanders was well into preparations on Wednesday for Sunday’s...
U.S. government admits negligence in helicopter-plane collision that killed 67 in Washington
WASHINGTON — The U.S. government admitted Wednesday that the Federal Aviation Administration and the Army played a role in causing the collision last January between an airliner and a Black Hawk helicopter near the nation’s capital, killing 67 people. The official response to the first lawsuit filed by one of...
FCC leader says agency is no longer independent as he’s grilled by Democrats over Kimmel controversyVideo
WASHINGTON — Democratic senators on Wednesday hammered the Federal Communications Commission’s leader for pressuring broadcasters to take ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel off the air, suggesting that Brendan Carr was politicizing an independent agency and trampling the First Amendment. The FCC chairman refused to disown his comments about Kimmel and,...
Imprisoned Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell seeks release, citing ‘new evidence’
NEW YORK — Jeffrey Epstein’s former girlfriend and longtime associate Ghislaine Maxwell asked a federal judge on Wednesday to set aside her sex trafficking conviction and free her from a 20-year prison sentence, saying “substantial new evidence” has emerged proving that constitutional violations spoiled her trial. Maxwell maintained in a...
FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino says he plans to resign next month as bureau’s No. 2 official
WASHINGTON — FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said Wednesday that he will resign from the bureau next month, ending a brief and tumultuous tenure in which he clashed with the Justice Department over the handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files and was forced to reconcile the realities of his law...
Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes begins rehab after knee surgery with eye on Week 1 return in 2026
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has begun rehab following surgery to repair two torn ligaments in his left knee, and the team is optimistic the two-time MVP could be back early next season, perhaps even by the time Kansas City plays Week 1. Rick Burkholder, their vice...
Dolphins benching Tua Tagovailoa for rookie Quinn Ewers against BengalsVideo
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa was unsure what his future with the team will look like following Wednesday’s benching for rookie Quinn Ewers. For now, the former first-round draft pick said he will contribute in whatever way he can despite his disappointment with how this season...
Jack Smith tells lawmakers his team developed ‘proof beyond a reasonable doubt’ against Trump
WASHINGTON — Former Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith told lawmakers in a closed-door interview Wednesday that his team of investigators “developed proof beyond a reasonable doubt” that President Donald Trump had criminally conspired to overturn the results of the 2020 election, according to portions of his opening statement obtained...
Trump writes partisan plaques for predecessors in newly installed Presidential Walk of Fame
WASHINGTON — Months after President Donald Trump refashioned a West Wing walkway into what he calls the Presidential Walk of Fame, he has added partisan and subjective plaques to the display, deepening his fingerprints on the White House’s aesthetic and continuing his effort to bend the telling of history to...
Trump’s National Guard deployment in Washington can continue for now, an appeals court says
WASHINGTON — A federal appeals court on Wednesday ruled that the National Guard deployment in the nation’s capital can continue for now, staying a lower-court ruling that had ordered an end to the troops’ presence. The three-judge panel for U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled...
The Oscars will move to YouTube in 2029, leaving longtime home of ABC
In a seismic shift for one of television’s marquee events, the Academy Awards will depart ABC and begin streaming on YouTube beginning in 2029, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Wednesday. ABC will continue to broadcast the annual ceremony through 2028. That year will mark the 100th...
Rob and Michele Reiner’s son appears in court on murder charges while siblings speak of their loss
LOS ANGELES — Nick Reiner made his first court appearance Wednesday in Los Angeles on two counts of first-degree murder in the killing of his parents, actor-director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner, while the couple’s other two children made their first public statement on their crushing loss....
Senate Democrats grill FCC leader over Jimmy Kimmel controversy
WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats hammered the Federal Communications Commission’s leader Wednesday for pressuring broadcasters to take Jimmy Kimmel off the air, suggesting he was politicizing an independent agency and trampling the First Amendment. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, appearing before the Senate Commerce Committee, was peppered with questions over his criticism...
New York governor says she has reached a deal to legalize medically assisted suicide
ALBANY, N.Y. — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said Wednesday that she has reached a deal with state legislative leaders to approve a bill to give terminally ill people the legal ability to end their own lives with prescribed medication. In an op-ed in the Albany Times Union, Hochul said...
Senate passes $901 billion defense bill that pushes Hegseth for boat strike video
WASHINGTON — The Senate gave final passage to an annual military policy bill Wednesday that will authorize $901 billion in defense programs while pressuring Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to provide lawmakers with video of strikes on alleged drug boats in international water near Venezuela. The annual National Defense Authorization Act,...
3 Pa. Republicans defy Speaker Johnson to force House vote on extending ACA subsidies
WASHINGTON — Four centrists Republicans — three of whom are from Pennsylvania — broke with Speaker Mike Johnson on Wednesday and signed onto a Democratic-led petition that will force a House vole on extending for three years an enhanced pandemic-era subsidy that lowers health insurance costs for millions of Americans....
Jacksonville State holds off Troy to win Salute to Veterans Bowl
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Caden Creel threw a touchdown pass, Deondre Johnson had six receptions for 101 yards, and Jacksonville State beat Troy, 17-13, on Tuesday night to win the Salute to Veterans Bowl. Andrew Paul’s 1-yard run off a direct snap gave the Gamecocks a 17-13 lead with 5:44 remaining....
South African authorities raid a U.S. refugee processing center; Washington protests
JOHANNESBURG — South African immigration authorities raided a United States refugee processing center in Johannesburg and seven Kenyans working there illegally were arrested and given deportation orders, South Africa’s Home Affairs Ministry said Wednesday, as the U.S. called the action “unacceptable.” Tuesday’s raid occurred at a center that processes applications...
Georgia Senate committee is set to question Fani Willis over Trump prosecution
ATLANTA — After more than a year of legal maneuvering, Fani Willis will face questions Wednesday from a Georgia state Senate committee over her prosecution of Donald Trump. The question is whether Fulton County’s Democratic district attorney will answer any of them. The Republican-dominated state Senate in January 2024 created...
