Diplomacy intensifies to halt the Israel-Hamas war and prevent wider regional conflict
JERUSALEM (AP) — International diplomacy to prevent the war in Gaza from spreading into a wider regional conflict intensified Friday, with the British and French foreign ministers making a joint trip to Israel while internationally mediated cease-fire talks in Qatar were expected to enter their second day. The new push for an end to the Israel-Hamas war came as the Palestinian death toll in Gaza climbed past 40,000, according to Gaza health authorities, and fears remained high that Iran and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon would attack Israel in retaliation for the killings of top militant leaders. “This is a dangerous moment for the Middle East,” British Foreign Secretary David Lammy said.
As Gaza death toll passes 40,000, corpses are buried in yards, streets, tiered graves
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Tiers of graves are stacked deep underground in a bloated Gaza cemetery, where Sa’di Baraka spends his days hacking at the earth, making room for more dead. “Sometimes we make graves on top of graves,” he said. Baraka and his solemn corps of volunteer gravediggers in the Deir al-Balah cemetery start at sunrise, digging new trenches or reopening existing ones. The dead can sometimes come from kilometers (miles) away, stretches of Gaza where burial grounds are destroyed or unreachable. The cemetery is 70 years old. A quarter of its graves are new. The death toll in Gaza since the beginning of the 10-month-old Israel-Hamas war has passed 40,000, according to the Health Ministry in the Hamas-run territory.
Families of hostages in Gaza hope cease-fire talks will end their nightmare
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Some families of hostages held in Gaza believe the latest round of cease-fire talks between Israel and Hamas could be the last best chance to set their loved ones free after more than 300 days of captivity. The families have advocated tirelessly to secure the release of their relatives, who were snatched on Oct. 7 during Hamas’ cross-border attack that started the war. Their hope that the latest talks could result in a breakthrough is tinged by 10 months of disappointment — and the growing fear of a wider Mideast war as Israel faces rising tensions with Iran and Hezbollah, the Iran-backed militant group based in Lebanon.
Ukraine’s swift push into the Kursk region shocked Russia and exposed its vulnerabilities
A daring Ukrainian military push into Russia’s Kursk region has seen Kyiv’s forces seize scores of villages, take hundreds of prisoners and force the evacuation of tens of thousands of civilians in what has become the largest attack on the country since World War II. In more than a week of fighting, Russian troops are still struggling to drive out the invaders. Why the Russian military seems to have been caught so unprepared: Russia’s regions of Kursk, Bryansk and Belgorod share a 1,160-kilometer (720-mile) border with Ukraine. That includes a 245-kilometer (152-mile) section in the Kursk region. This frontier had only symbolic protection before Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022.
What do marijuana, the death penalty and fracking have in common? Harris shifted positions on them
WASHINGTON (AP) — As California’s attorney general, Kamala Harris successfully defended the death penalty in court, despite her past crusade against it. As a new senator, she proposed to abolish cash bail — a reversal from when she chided San Francisco judges for making it “cheaper” to commit crimes by setting bail amounts too low. And now, as vice president and the Democratic presidential nominee, Harris’ campaign insists that she does not want to ban fracking, an oil and gas extraction process, even though that was precisely her position just a few years ago when she first pursued the White House.
FACT FOCUS: Trump blends falsehoods and exaggerations at rambling NJ press conference
Former President Donald Trump on Thursday gave his second news conference in as many weeks as he adjusts to a newly energized Democratic ticket ahead of next week’s Democratic National Convention. At his New Jersey golf club, the Republican nominee blended falsehoods about the economy with misleading statements and deeply personal attacks about his Democratic opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris. Here’s a closer look at the facts. TRUMP: “As a result of Kamala’s inflation, price hikes have cost the typical household a total of $28,000. ... When I left office, I left Kamala and crooked Joe Biden a surging economy and no inflation.
Beyond ‘childless cat ladies,’ JD Vance has long been on a quest to encourage more births
MIAMI (AP) — Five summers ago, Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance — then a 34-year-old memoirist and father of a 2-year-old boy — took the stage at a conservative conference and tackled an issue that would become a core part of his political brand: the United States’ declining fertility rate. “Our people aren’t having enough children to replace themselves. That should bother us,” Vance told the gathering in Washington. He outlined the obvious concern that Social Security depends on younger workers’ contributions and then said, “We want babies not just because they are economically useful. We want more babies because children are good.
Thailand’s new prime minister renews the legacy of her divisive father, Thaksin Shinawatra
BANGKOK (AP) — The election of Paetongtarn Shinawatra as Thailand’s prime minister represents a remarkable comeback for the political dynasty founded by her billionaire father, Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted by a military coup in 2006. Paetongtarn, 37, a former executive in a hotel business run by her family, becomes the third close member of the Shinawatra clan to take the prime minister’s job. Thaksin’s sister, Yingluck Shinawatra, was Thailand’s first female prime minister from 2011 to 2014. An in-law, Somchai Wongsawat, also served briefly in 2008. Although Thaksin was a vastly popular politician who handily won three elections, Thailand’s royalist establishment was disturbed that his populist policies appeared to threaten their status and that of the monarchy at the heart of Thai identity.
Ernesto grows into Cat 2 hurricane as it aims for Bermuda, leaving many in Puerto Rico without power
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Hurricane Ernesto strengthened into a Category 2 storm Thursday night as it barreled toward Bermuda after leaving hundreds of thousands of people in Puerto Rico without power or water. Sweltering heat enveloped the U.S. territory, raising concerns about people’s health. A hurricane warning was in effect for Bermuda, with Ernesto expected to pass near or over the island Saturday. The storm was centered about 410 miles (660 kilometers) south-southwest of Bermuda late Thursday. Its maximum sustained winds had risen to 100 mph (155 kph), and the storm was moving north-northeast at 14 mph (22 kph) over open waters.
Matthew Perry’s death leads to sweeping indictment of 5, including doctors and reputed dealers
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Nearly 10 months after the death of Matthew Perry, the long-simmering investigation into the ketamine that killed him came dramatically into public view with the announcement that five people had been charged with having roles in the overdose of the beloved “Friends” star. Here are key things to know about the case, including the two key figures who could be headed for trial and the possibility of the steepest of prison sentences. One or more arrests had been expected since investigators from three different agencies revealed in May they had been conducting a joint probe into how the 54-year-old Perry got such large amounts of ketamine.
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