January 7, 2024 8:03 am
JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli military says it has dismantled the military infrastructure of Hamas in northern Gaza and is fully shifting its offensive to the enclave’s southern half. The pivot was announced as the Israel-Hamas war entered its fourth month Sunday. The military did not say whether it has pulled all forces out of northern Gaza, but that troops will now “continue to deepen the achievement”and strengthen defenses along the Israel-Gaza border fence. The announcement came ahead of a visit to Israel by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken. U.S. officials, including Blinken, have repeatedly urged Israel to wind down its blistering offensive and shift to more targeted attacks against Hamas leaders. An airstrike near the southern city of Rafah killed two journalists on Sunday.
January 7, 2024 8:01 am
WAJIMA, Japan (AP) — Rescue teams are working through snow to deliver supplies to isolated hamlets six days after a powerful earthquake hit western Japan, killing at least 128 people. Heavy snowfall expected in Ishikawa Prefecture later Sunday and through the night is adding to the urgency. Over 200 people are still unaccounted for after Monday’s 7.6 magnitude temblor, and 560 people were injured. Hundreds of aftershocks have followed, rattling Noto Peninsula. A woman in her 90s was pulled alive from a collapsed house, where she had waited for 124 hours before she was rescued. Ishikawa officials say 1,370 homes were completely or partially destroyed.
January 7, 2024 8:01 am
EAGLE PASS, Texas (AP) — Mexico has increased immigration enforcement in recent weeks. U.S. officials say that has contributed to a sharp drop in illegal border crossings. The actions taken by Mexico include forcing migrants off freight trains, sending deportation flights to Venezuela and flying and busing migrants to the southern part of Mexico. Even if temporary, the decrease in illegal crossings is welcome news for the White House. President Joe Biden’s administration is locked in talks with Senate negotiators over restricting asylum and $110 billion in aid for Ukraine and Israel hangs in the balance.
January 7, 2024 8:00 am
(AP) – Federal officials have ordered the immediate grounding of some Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners until they are inspected after an Alaska Airlines plane suffered a blowout that left a gaping hole in the side of the fuselage. The required inspections will take around four to eight hours per aircraft and will affect about 171 airplanes worldwide. The Alaska Airlines jetliner blew out the portion of its fuselage shortly after takeoff 3 miles above Oregon late Friday, forcing the pilots to make an emergency landing as its 171 passengers and six crew members donned oxygen masks. No one was seriously hurt.
January 6, 2024 5:08 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court will decide whether former President Donald Trump can be kept off the 2024 presidential ballot because of his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss that culminated in the U.S. Capitol attack. The justices Friday agreed to take Trump’s appeal of a Colorado case, with arguments to be held on Feb. 8. Voters will soon begin casting presidential primary ballots across the country. The court will be considering for the first time the meaning and reach of a provision of the post-Civil War 14th Amendment barring some people who “engaged in insurrection” from holding public office. A Colorado court ruled Trump should not be on the Republican primary ballot, and he appealed.
January 6, 2024 5:07 am
SIOUX CENTER, Iowa (AP) — Former President Donald Trump is calling on his supporters not to be complacent in the face of a commanding polling lead as he kicks off the sprint to the Iowa caucuses with his first events of the election year. Trump told supporters Friday evening that, “Ten days from now, the people of this state are going to cast the most important vote of your entire lives.” He implored them to turn out on caucus night, warning that, “Bad things happen when you sit back.” The visit came the day before the third anniversary of Jan. 6, 2021, when a violent mob of Trump’s supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol as part of a desperate bid to keep him in power.
January 6, 2024 5:05 am
BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s Hezbollah militia has fired dozens of rockets at northern Israel. It warned that Saturday’s barrage was its initial response to the targeted killing of a top leader from the allied Hamas group in Lebanon’s capital earlier this week. The killing of Hamas’ deputy political leader Saleh Arouri was widely blamed on Israel and the Hezbollah leader said his group must retaliate. Israel says its military struck the Hezbollah cell that fired the rockets. The cross-border escalation comes as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken starts his fourth Mideast trip in three months in hopes of preventing the Israel-Hamas war from turning into a regional confrontation.
January 6, 2024 5:04 am
BLUE BELL, Pa. (AP) — For his first campaign speech of the year, President Joe Biden has warned that Donald Trump’s efforts to retake the White House in 2024 pose a grave threat to the country. Biden’s speech, near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, came the day before the third anniversary of the violent riot at the U.S. Capitol by then-President Trump’s supporters aiming to keep him in power. Biden called that Jan. 6 day a moment when “we nearly lost America — lost it all.” He said the presidential race — a likely rematch with Trump, who is the far and away GOP frontrunner — is “all about” whether American democracy will survive.
January 6, 2024 5:01 am
More than 6 million people receive benefits through the nation’s food assistance program for women, infants and children, which is known as WIC. But it’s not always easy to get what you might need. Unlike food stamps, the fresh produce, baby formula and other nutritious items that are WIC-approved can’t be bought online just yet. Complex requirements make it tough for smaller stores and sometimes big-name stores to participate. Some states are working to expand access after vendors left due to changes in the WIC program or pandemic-related store closures.
