May 11, 2022 4:14 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – The House has emphatically approved a fresh $40 billion Ukraine aid package that beefs up President Joe Biden’s initial request. The measure signals a magnified U.S. commitment to thwart Russian President Vladimir Putin’s bloody three-month-old invasion. The bill won wide bipartisan support. It contains $7 billion more than Biden’s plan from last month, evenly divided between defense and humanitarian programs. The bill would give Ukraine military and economic assistance, help regional allies, replenish weapons the Pentagon has shipped overseas and provide $5 billion to address global food shortages caused by the war’s crippling of Ukraine’s normally robust crop production.
May 11, 2022 3:34 am
(WPXI) – Pittsburgh Police Violent Crime Unit detectives asked this week, for the public’s help to identify a man in photos related to the mass shooting on Pittsburgh’s North Side on Easter Sunday. Two 17-year-olds – Jaiden Brown and Mathew Steffy-Ross – were killed in the shooting. Nine other people were shot. In their Wednesday update, police say they have identified the man in the picture, but did not publicly release the his name, nor did they say if he was a suspect or person of interest in the mass shooting. Cara Cruz with the Department of Public Safety said the man “is someone police would like to speak with.”
May 10, 2022 3:48 am
BOSTON (AP) – Celebrity chef Mario Batali has been cleared of sexual misconduct following a criminal trial in Boston. A woman had accused Batali of forcibly kissing and groping her while taking a selfie at a restaurant in 2017. Batali’s lawyer argued that the Boston assault never happened and said the accuser has a financial incentive to lie. The judge found him not guilty on Tuesday. The chef had waived his right to a jury trial. Batali had faced indecent assault and battery charges, which carried up to 2 1/2 years in prison. Batali’s accuser has filed a lawsuit that’s pending. The career of the 61-year-old former Food Network fixture crumbled amid sexual misconduct allegations from four women in 2017. (Photo: Wikipedia)
May 10, 2022 3:47 am
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) – The Gulf Clan drug cartel in Colombia has shut down dozens of towns for four days in reaction to its leader being extradited to the U.S. for trial. Businesses closed, schools stayed shut, bus service was suspended and a professional soccer match couldn’t be played amid warnings by the cartel that anyone not staying at home would be attacked. The action appeared to be winding down Monday, according to reports from human rights groups and the Roman Catholic Church, but it underlined that the cartel is still a major security threat despite the highly publicized arrest last year of its leader, Dairo Antonio Usuga. The cartel decreed the stoppage a day after his extradition Wednesday to face drug trafficking charges in the U.S.
May 10, 2022 3:46 am
WASHINGTON (AP) – Washington is seeking to portray a united front against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. President Joe Biden has signed a bipartisan measure to reboot the World War II-era “lend-lease” program to bolster Kyiv and Eastern European allies. The signing comes as Congress is poised to unleash more resources to fight the war. The House could vote as soon as this week on a $40 billion military and humanitarian aid package for Ukraine. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken are urging Congress to act before May 19, when the existing drawdown funds run out.
May 10, 2022 3:45 am
BEIJING (AP) – Teams in white protective suits are going into the homes of coronavirus-infected people to spray disinfectant as Shanghai tries to root out an omicron outbreak under China’s strict “zero-COVID” strategy. Shanghai also suspended service on the last two subway lines that were still operating Tuesday, marking the first time the city’s entire system has been shut down. The latest measures come as Shanghai has ordered people in some districts to stay in their homes again after letting some out for limited shopping in recent weeks. The latest steps have further frustrated residents, who were hoping a more than month long lockdown was finally easing as the number of new cases in the city falls.
May 10, 2022 3:44 am
ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) – Russian President Vladimir Putin had no major new battlefield successes to tout on his country’s biggest patriotic holiday. Instead, he sought to justify the war again as a necessary response to what he portrayed as a hostile Ukraine. The Victory Day speech gave no sign of where the war is headed or how Russia will marshal more forces for a continuing war. Meanwhile, on the ground, the vital Black Sea port of Odesa came under repeated missile attack, including from hypersonic missiles. Intense fighting is raging in Ukraine’s east, and Russian forces are trying to end the resistance of Ukrainian defenders making their last stand at a steel plant in Mariupol.
May 10, 2022 3:41 am
PITTSBURGH, Pa. — Gas Prices are four cents higher this week in Western Pennsylvania according to AAA’s latest Gas Price Report. The price for a gallon of gas varies across the region, but the average in the area is now at $4.394. In the City of Washington, AAA says gas sits around $4.366. Pittsburgh is currently around 4.390 a gallon. AAA says in the past two weeks, the national average for a gallon of gasoline has risen 20 cents, about $1.36 more expensive than this time last year. The high cost of crude oil, combined with the Russian conflict in Ukraine and COVID lockdowns in China have pushed oil to over $100 a barrel. The “summer blend” of gasoline is another factor in the price per gallon, since it costs producers more to make the type needed this time of year.
May 10, 2022 3:29 am
PITTSBURGH (WPXI) — A 17-year-old male was killed and two others were injured after a shooting in Pittsburgh’s Allentown neighborhood Monday evening. Allegheny County Dispatch confirmed that the incident is in the 700 block of East Warrington Avenue. The call came in at 6:16 p.m. Pittsburgh Public Safety said the teen, later identified by the Medical Examiner’s Office as Isaiah Dennis Anderson, was pronounced dead at the scene. A second man was taken to the hospital in critical but stable condition with gunshot wounds to the upper body and a woman whose leg was grazed by a shot is in stable condition. Detectives from the Violent Crimes Unit are investigating. There are no suspect descriptions to provide at this time.
May 10, 2022 3:25 am
NORTH FRANKLIN Twp. — Pennsylvania State Police continue to investigate a string of car break-ins and thefts in Washington County. According to officials, multiple items were taken from a number of cars over the weekend in North Franklin Township. Police say at least five cars were involved and one of the vehicles was stolen itself, but it was eventually recovered. Items taken in the break-ins include an Apple Watch, three handguns, $80 in cash, a backpack, a purse and a wallet.
