March 2, 2025 5:30 am
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel says it’s stopping the entry of all goods and supplies into the Gaza Strip. It warned of “additional consequences” if Hamas doesn’t accept what Israel says is a U.S. proposal for a ceasefire extension. Hamas accused Israel of trying to derail the fragile truce and said its decision to cut off aid was “cheap extortion, a war crime and a blatant attack” on the existing agreement. The first phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, which included a surge in humanitarian assistance, expired on Saturday. The two sides have yet to negotiate the second phase, when Hamas is to release dozens of remaining hostages in return for Israel’s pullout and a lasting ceasefire.
March 2, 2025 5:26 am
LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says Britain, France and Ukraine have agreed to work on a ceasefire plan to present to the United States. Starmer says the plan emerged after talks among the four countries’ leaders following Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Oval Office blowout with U.S. President Donald Trump. The prime minister told the BBC he believes the U.S. president wants a durable peace in Ukraine. He repeated his assertion that American security guarantees will be needed to make it stick. Starmer is hosting a summit of European leaders in London on Sunday to discuss Ukraine.
March 2, 2025 4:02 am
Governor Josh Shapiro released a statement in reaction to the White House meeting between President Donald Trump, Vice President J. D. Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Shapiro’s statement read in part, “The Oval Office should be a place where we advance American values-not where we retreat from them. When the President and Vice President attacked President Zelenskyy today, they served to undermine the safety and security of America and our national security interests. I support a diplomatic end to this war. Achieving this requires an honest reckoning of who started the war and who the aggressor is, and to that question, there is only one answer: Russia.” After the meeting and outburst, Zelenskyy was asked to leave the White House without signing a minerals deal with the United States.
March 2, 2025 3:59 am
Beginning March Monday, March 3, PennDot is announcing a single lane restriction on the Westbound I-376 off ramp to southbound I-79 in Robinson Township. That ramp is Exit 64A toward Washington and it will in effect from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, through Friday, March 14. The work being performed is to conduct debris removal work in the rockfall area. The work is part of a $14.97 million highway restoration project in Robinson and Kennedy Townships. Work on the project is expected to end in late spring of this year.
March 2, 2025 3:55 am
PennDot has extended a single lane restriction on northbound Rt. 28 indefinitely. The restriction on northbound Rt. 28 occurs just south of the I-279 North/East Ohio Street exit. Inspection crews found significant deterioration of a pier that carries the I-579 HOV lane over Rt. 28. Closure of the I-579 HOV lane is also necessary until a permanent repair can be made. Additional lane restrictions on southbound Rt. 28 may also occur.
March 2, 2025 12:27 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Back in November, three Pennsylvania Republicans won seats in Congress by tight margins. Today, the three find themselves navigating the delicate politics of a divided electorate once again as President Donald Trump makes economy-altering decisions early in his second term. That includes imposing tariffs on raw materials such as steel and aluminum, firing federal workers and pushing for votes on budget legislation that could require cuts to Medicaid. Those moves are already having an effect on the 2026 election. First-term Rep. Ryan Mackenzie has drawn a Democratic challenger. And there’s talk about challengers to another first-term GOP congressman in a nearby district, Rob Bresnahan.
March 1, 2025 4:19 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump berated Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for being “disrespectful” in an extraordinary Oval Office meeting, then abruptly called off the signing of a minerals deal that Trump said would have moved that country closer to ending its war with Russia. The astonishing turn of events on Friday has the potential to scramble affairs in Europe and around the globe. During his visit with Trump, Zelenskyy had planned to sign a deal allowing the U.S. greater access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals, then hold a joint news conference. Instead, Ukraine’s leader left the White House shortly after Trump shouted at him, showing open disdain.
March 1, 2025 4:13 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Ongoing tariff threats from Washington and potentially sweeping government job cuts have darkened consumers’ mood and may be weighing on an otherwise mostly healthy economy. Data released Friday showed that consumers slashed their spending by the most since February 2021, even as their incomes rose. On a positive note, inflation cooled, but President Donald Trump’s threats to impose large import taxes on Canada, Mexico, and China — the United States’ top trading partners — will likely push prices higher, economists say. Some companies are already planning to raise prices in response.
March 1, 2025 4:09 am
President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order designating English as the official language of the United States. That’s according to the White House. The order will allow government agencies and organizations that receive federal funding to choose whether to continue to offer documents and services in language other than English, according to a fact sheet about the impending order. The executive will rescind a mandate from former President Bill Clinton that required the government and organizations that received federal funding to provide language assistance to non-English speakers.
March 1, 2025 4:06 am
ROME (AP) — Pope Francis is resting after an alarming setback in his two-week recovery from double pneumonia. The Vatican said doctors had to put him on noninvasive mechanical ventilation following a coughing fit in which he inhaled vomit that needed to then be extracted. Doctors said it would take a day or two to evaluate how and if the episode impacted Francis’ overall clinical condition. His prognosis remains guarded, meaning he isn’t out of danger.
