January 29, 2024 12:52 pm
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania’s state Supreme Court says a lower court must hear a challenge to the constitutionality of a decades-old state law that limits the use of state Medicaid dollars to cover the cost of abortions. Monday’s 3-2 decision overturns the lower court’s ruling and puts aside an earlier state Supreme Court court decision. The high court’s majority said Monday that prior court decisions did not fully consider the breadth of state constitutional protections against discrimination. The lawsuit brought by Planned Parenthood and other operators of abortion clinics says the law unconstitutionally discriminates against poor women. Abortion is legal in Pennsylvania under state law through 23 weeks of pregnancy.
January 29, 2024 6:59 am
The Trinity School District was forced to switch to remote instruction Monday for middle school students because of a power outage. The district sent out text messages and phone calls to district parents just before 6 a.m. Only middle school students were affected. Students at other district schools had regular, in-person instruction. West Penn Power reporting having power restored in the area before 9 a.m. It’s unclear what caused the outage.
January 29, 2024 5:03 am
BEIJING (AP) — As the U.S. presidential campaign moves closer to a Donald Trump-Joe Biden rematch, China is watching uneasily. First, there are concerns about the campaigns themselves, where candidates are likely to talk tough on China. That could threaten the recent but fragile improvements in U.S.-China relations. Then there’s the outcome of the November vote. Neither candidate is particularly appealing to Beijing. While Biden has looked for areas of cooperation, Beijing is concerned about his efforts to unite allies in the Indo-Pacific in a coalition against China and his support for Taiwan. Trump might be more hesitant to defend Taiwan, but nothing can be ruled out given his unpredictability and his tough rhetoric on China.
January 29, 2024 5:02 am
RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel says “significant gaps” remain after cease-fire talks with the United States, Qatar and Egypt, but it calls them constructive and says they will continue in the week ahead. It’s a tentative sign of progress on a potential agreement that could see Israel pause military operations against Hamas in exchange for the release of remaining hostages. Meanwhile, the U.S. announced its first military deaths in the region since the war began and blamed Iran-backed militants amid concerns about a wider conflict. Gaza’s 2.3 million people face a deepening humanitarian crisis as the U.N. urges supporters to resume funding its agency helping Palestinians.
January 29, 2024 5:01 am
CHICAGO (AP) — The Illinois election board is scheduled to consider whether to keep Donald Trump on the state’s primary ballot after a recommendation that he be removed over the Constitution’s insurrection provision. The meeting of the Illinois State Board of Elections comes a little more than a week before the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a similar case from Colorado, where the state’s highest court found the 14th amendment barred Trump from the ballot over his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. The Illinois election board is split evenly between Democrats and Republicans. If the vote is tied, the effort fails and Trump’s name would remain on the ballot.
January 29, 2024 5:01 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea says leader Kim Jong Un has supervised test-firings of cruise missiles designed to be launched from submarines and also reviewed efforts to build a nuclear-powered submarine. The reports say those activities came as Kim reiterated his goal of building a nuclear-armed navy to counter what he portrays as growing external threats. The reports Monday came a day after South Korea’s military said it detected North Korea firing multiple cruise missiles over waters near the eastern port of Sinpo, where the North has a major shipyard developing submarines. It was the latest in a streak of weapons demonstrations by North Korea amid increasing tensions with the United States, South Korea and Japan.
January 29, 2024 4:58 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — An enemy drone that killed three American troops and wounded dozens of others in Jordan may have been confused with an American drone returning to the U.S. installation. That’s according to two U.S. officials who were not authorized to comment and insisted on anonymity Monday. The officials say preliminary information suggests the enemy drone that struck the installation known as Tower 22 may have been mistaken for an American drone that was in the air at the same time. The officials add that as the enemy drone was flying in at a low altitude, a U.S. drone was returning to base. As a result, there was no effort to shoot down the enemy drone.
January 29, 2024 4:57 am
JENIN, West Bank (AP) — Israeli undercover forces dressed as women and medical workers have stormed a hospital in the occupied West Bank, killing three Palestinian militants. The raid underscored the spillover of deadly violence to the territory during the war in Gaza. The Palestinian Health Ministry condemned Tuesday’s incursion on the Ibn Sina hospital in Jenin. The military said the militants were using the hospital as a hideout and that one was planning an attack. Meanwhile, Qatar, Egypt and the United States are working to strike a deal between Israel and Hamas that might lead to a pause in fighting and the release of hostages held in Gaza.
January 29, 2024 4:55 am
A Waynesburg woman was was pronounced dead following a one-vehicle crash early Saturday morning in Jefferson Township. The Greene County Coroner’s office says 44 year old Jennifer Caldwell was pronounced dead in a field just off of State Route 21. She was ejected from the vehicle. There were no other occupants in the vehicle. A cause and manner of death are pending. No other information is being released at this time as the investigation continues.
January 29, 2024 4:51 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI) – One person was rescued from flood waters near the Mon Wharf as the rivers continue to rise and are expected to crest later in the day on Monday. Police, firefighters and medics were called to the wharf just before 9:30 p.m. Sunday. They found several tents from a homeless camp surrounded by water. Crews rescued one man with a ladder. He was not injured. River Rescue divers continued to search the area and waded through the flood waters to check the remaining tents. No other people were found. The Mon Wharf was initially closed on Thursday because of a flood advisory. The River Rescue team also traveled around Point State Park and along the Allegheny River and found two people. They did not need to be rescued. All three people were taken to a shelter until the water levels fall.
