September 26, 2022 4:20 am
MOSCOW (AP) – Russian President Vladimir Putin has granted Russian citizenship to Edward Snowden, a former contractor with the U.S. National Security Agency. He has been living in Russia since 2013 to escape prosecution in the U.S. after leaking classified documents detailing government surveillance programs. He was granted permanent residency in 2020. Snowden has said he made the disclosures because he believed the U.S. intelligence community had gone too far and wrongly infringed on civil liberties. Snowden, 39, is considered by supporters to be a whistle-blower who wanted to protect American civil liberties. He currently faces charges of unauthorized disclosure of U.S. national security and intelligence information that could result in decades in prison.
September 26, 2022 4:18 am
CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. (AP) — Doug Mastriano, the Republican nominee for governor in Pennsylvania, is perhaps best known as an election denier who was at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. John Fetterman, the Democrat hoping to flip the state’s Senate seat, has revolutionized how campaigns use social media. And Dr. Mehmet Oz was a TV celebrity long before he launched a GOP Senate campaign. And then there’s Josh Shapiro. In one of the most politically competitive states in the U.S., the Democratic contender for governor is waging a notably drama-free campaign, betting that a relatively under the radar approach will resonate with voters exhausted by a deeply charged political environment. But Shapiro faces a test of whether his comparatively low-key style will energize Democrats to rally against Mastriano, who many in the party view as an existential threat. The GOP candidate, who worked to keep Donald Trump in power and overturn President Joe Biden’s victory in 2020, supports ending abortion rights and would be in position to appoint the secretary of state, who oversees elections in this state that is often decisive in choosing presidents. The tension of Shapiro’s strategy was on display during a recent swing through this small city, a dot in deeply Republican south central Pennsylvania. He spent 10 minutes ticking through his record as a two-term attorney general and his policy goals if he becomes governor, such as expanding high-speed internet and boosting school funding. But he also acknowledged that he knew what was on the minds of audience members, noting how his wife gives him a simple reminder every morning: “You better win.”
September 26, 2022 4:14 am
NORTH UNION TOWNSHIP, Pa. — (WPXI) – A 30-year-old woman is dead after state police say she crashed her vehicle into a stoplight. 911 dispatchers said police, firefighters and medics were called to Pittsburgh Road and Oliver Blvd. Road in Noth Union Township at around 4:26 p.m. State Police said Britley Brashear died on impact after her vehicle crashed into a stoplight. The stoplight had been knocked over and two tires were observed detached from the car in the nearby area. Authorities say the crash happened as Brashear attempted to make a right-hand turn at a high rate of speed. Police said the car abruptly caught on fire after it crashed. West Leisenring Fire Department extinguished the fire.
September 26, 2022 4:09 am
ROSTRAVER TOWNSHIP, Pa. — (WPXI)- One person was hurt in a multi-vehicle crash in Rostraver Township. According to Rostraver Central Fire Department on Facebook, the crash happened on Route 51 north at Salem Church Road. One person was taken to a hospital from the scene. There’s no word on that person’s condition. Fire crews assisted with traffic control and controlled hazards from the accident, Rostraver Central Fire Department said. (PHOTO; Rostraver Central Fire Department)
September 26, 2022 4:07 am
WEST MIFFLIN, Pa. — (WPXI) – The investigation continues into shots fired at Kennywood Park late Saturday night. According to Allegheny County police, three people were shot inside the park in the “Lost Kennywood” section by the “Musik Express” ride. This happened around 10:49 p.m. One handgun was recovered on Kennywood property, police said. On Monday afternoon, Allegheny County Police said that a trace from that recovered firearm revealed that it had been stolen from a vehicle in Columbus, Ohio in August 2021. As of Monday afternoon, police said no suspects have been identified and they have found nothing to confirm that any of the shooting victims were involved in the altercation that led to the shooting. One 15-year-old boy was shot in the leg and is in stable condition at a hospital. A 39-year-old man was also shot in the leg and was treated and released. A second 15-year-old boy was grazed in his leg by a bullet and was later taken to a hospital by a family member. He was last listed in stable condition. Witnesses told police that two groups of juveniles were involved in an altercation and that was when shots were fired. Allegheny County police said the shooter was described as a Black male wearing a black hoodie and a dark colored COVID face mask. Police said they need help identifying the suspect and need anyone with video or information to call them at 1-833-ALL-TIPS.
September 26, 2022 2:52 am
WEST MIFFLIN, Pa. (AP) – Authorities say a gun found after a weekend shooting at a western Pennsylvania amusement park that wounded three people had been reported stolen in Ohio last year. Allegheny County police said Monday that a trace of the weapon found after Saturday night’s shooting at Kennywood Park indicated that the firearm had been reported stolen from a vehicle in Columbus in August 2021. Witnesses told investigators that two groups of teenagers were involved in an altercation in front of the Musik Express ride and shots were fired shortly before 11 p.m. Saturday. Police said a 39-year-old man and two 15-year-old boys suffered leg wounds. Kennywood was celebrating the first night of its Phantom Fall Fest, scheduled to run through Oct. 16. The park’s website says the attraction will reopen on Friday.
September 25, 2022 8:03 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea has fired a short-range ballistic missile toward its eastern seas, extending a provocative streak in weapons testing as a U.S. aircraft carrier visits South Korea for joint military exercises in response to the North’s growing nuclear threat. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile launched Sunday from the western inland town of Taechon flew 370 miles cross-country on a maximum altitude of 37 miles before landing in waters off North Korea’s eastern coast. It’s possible that Sunday’s test could soon be followed with another ballistic launch as South Korean officials said Saturday that they detected signs that North Korea was preparing to test a missile designed to be fired from submarines.
September 25, 2022 8:02 am
VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. (AP) — A classified satellite for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office has launched into orbit aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta 4 Heavy rocket. The NROL-91 spy satellite lifted off at 3:25 p.m. Saturday from the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California’s Santa Barbara County. It was the last launch of a Delta 4 from the West Coast. Additional launches are planned from Florida before the Deltas are replaced by ULA’s next-generation Vulcan Centaur rockets. The Delta IV Heavy configuration first launched in December 2004. This was the 387th flight of a Delta rocket since 1960 and the 95th and final launch from Vandenberg.
September 25, 2022 8:00 am
TORONTO (AP) — Canadian troops are being sent to assist the recovery from the devastation of storm Fiona, which swept away houses, stripped off roofs and knocked out power across the country’s Atlantic provinces. After surging north from the Caribbean as a hurricane, Fiona came ashore before dawn Saturday as a post-tropical cyclone, battering Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Quebec with hurricane-strength winds, heavy rains and huge waves. Defense Minister Anita Anand says troops will help remove fallen trees and other debris, restore transportation links and do whatever else is required for as long as it takes. She hasn’t specified how many troops will be deployed. No fatalities or serious injuries have been confirmed, though police say a woman is listed as missing.
September 25, 2022 7:59 am
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The onset of autumnal weather in Ukraine is making fields too muddy for tanks and beginning to cloud Ukrainian efforts to take back more Russian-held territory before winter freezes the battlefields. The clock is ticking for both sides. Russia is rushing to call up of hundreds of thousands of men to throw into the seven-month war, seeking to reverse its recent losses. The mobilization is sparking Russian protests, with fresh demonstrations Sunday. It is also opening splits in Europe about whether fighting-age Russian men fleeing in droves should be welcomed or turned away.