Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Kuleba resigns as Russian strikes kill 7 people in Lviv
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, one of Ukraine’s most recognizable faces on the international stage, submitted his resignation Wednesday ahead of an expected major government reshuffle. Russian strikes, meanwhile, killed at least seven people in the Ukrainian city of Lviv near the Polish border, a day after one of the deadliest missile attacks since the war began. Kuleba, 43, didn’t give a reason for stepping down. His resignation will be discussed by lawmakers at their next session, parliamentary Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk said on his Facebook page. Four other Cabinet ministers tendered their resignations late Tuesday, making the Cabinet reshuffle likely the biggest since Russia’s February 2022 invasion.
US charges Hamas leader, other militants in connection with Oct. 7 massacre in Israel
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department announced criminal charges Tuesday against Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and other senior militants in connection with the Oct. 7, 2023, rampage in Israel, marking the first effort by American law enforcement to formally call out the masterminds of the attack. The seven-count criminal complaint filed in federal court in New York City includes charges such as conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization resulting in death, conspiracy to murder U.S. nationals and conspiracy to finance terrorism. It also accuses Iran and Lebanon’s Hezbollah of providing financial support, weapons, including rockets, and military supplies to Hamas for use in attacks.
Federal judge rejects Donald Trump’s request to intervene in wake of hush money conviction
NEW YORK (AP) — A federal judge on Tuesday swiftly rejected Donald Trump’s request to intervene in his New York hush money criminal case, spurning the former president’s attempt at an end-run around the state court where he was convicted and is set to be sentenced in two weeks. U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein’s ruling — just hours after Trump’s lawyers asked him to weigh the move — upends the Republican presidential nominee’s plan to move the case to federal court so that he could seek to have his conviction overturned in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s presidential immunity ruling.
Raise taxes on the rich or cut them? Harris, Trump differ on how to boost the US economy
WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump is betting that Americans crave trillions of dollars in tax cuts — and that growth will be so fantastic that it’s not worth worrying about budget deficits. In short, he’s hoping that most economic analyses of his ideas are dead wrong. Vice President Kamala Harris believes that big corporations and the ultra-wealthy should pay more in taxes — and wants to use those revenues to help spur the construction of 3 million homes and offer tax breaks for parents. She’s hoping to deliver on the types of policies that President Joe Biden has been unable to secure in a lasting way.
Harris is visiting New Hampshire, away from bigger swing states, to tout her small business tax plan
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris is using a New Hampshire campaign stop on Wednesday to propose an expansion of tax incentives for small businesses — presenting a pro-entrepreneur plan that may soften her previous calls for wealthy Americans and large corporations to pay higher taxes. She wants to expand from $5,000 to $50,000 tax incentives for small business startup expenses, with the goal of eventually spurring 25 million new small business applications over four years. Harris is making the announcement while visiting the Portsmouth area, across the Piscataqua River from Maine. New Hampshire has been reliably blue in recent presidential elections, but the trip could also have some benefit across state lines since Maine splits its electoral votes, allowing candidates to win some without carrying the full state.
In Asia, pope urges Indonesia to live up to promise of ‘harmony in diversity,’ fight extremism
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Pope Francis urged Indonesia to live up to its promise of “harmony in diversity” and fight religious intolerance on Wednesday, as he set a rigorous pace for an 11-day, four-nation trip through tropical Southeast Asia and Oceania that will test his stamina and health. Francis had a packed first full day in Indonesia, meeting with outgoing President Joko Widodo and other Indonesian authorities at the presidential palace and then greeting Catholic priests, nuns and seminarians at Jakarta’s main cathedral in the afternoon. Cannons boomed as Francis joined Widodo on the veranda of the palace along with President-elect Prabowo Subianto.
Human rights group implicates Venezuelan security forces in killings during post-election protests
MEXICO CITY (AP) — A global human rights watchdog on Wednesday implicated Venezuelan security forces and pro-government armed groups in killings that occurred during the protests that followed the country’s disputed July presidential election. Human Rights Watch, in a report detailing repressive measures the government unleashed after the vote, asserted that credible evidence gathered and analyzed by researchers, forensic pathologists and arms experts ties Venezuela’s national guard and national police to some of the 24 killings that took place as people protested the outcome of the election. The organization also concluded that violent gangs aligned with the ruling party also “appear to be responsible” in some of the deaths.
Failures by UK government and industry made London high-rise a ‘death trap’ in Grenfell Tower fire
LONDON (AP) — A damning report on a deadly London high-rise fire says decades of failures by government, regulators and industry turned Grenfell Tower into a “death trap” where 72 people lost their lives. The years-long public inquiry into the 2017 blaze, the deadliest fire on British soil since World War II, concluded that there was no “single cause” of the tragedy. It said residents were let down by dishonest companies, weak or incompetent regulators and complacent government. It said “many failings of a wide range of institutions, entities and individuals” led to the fire. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE.
Global stocks tumble after Wall Street drops on worries about the economy
HONG KONG (AP) — World stocks tumbled Wednesday after Wall Street had its worst day since early August, with heavyweight Nvidia falling 9.5%, leading to a global decline in chip-related stocks. France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.8% in early trading to 7,513.31, and Germany’s DAX lost 0.8% to 18,607.62. Britain’s FTSE 100 also dropped 0.8% to 8,230.49. The futures for the S&P 500 were down 0.4% and those for the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 0.2%. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 4.2% and closed at 37,047.61, leading losses in Asia. Electronics and semiconductor company Tokyo Electron slumped 8.6% on Wednesday. South Korea’s Kospi was down 3.2% to 2,580.80, with tech giant Samsung Electronics dropping 3.5%.
Lightning damages Rome’s ancient Constantine Arch during a violent thunderstorm
ROME (AP) — Lightning struck Rome’s Constantine Arch near the Colosseum during a violent thunderstorm, loosening fragments from the ancient structure. The fragments from Tuesday’s lightning strike were immediately gathered and secured by workers at the Colosseum Archeological Park, officials said. The extent of the damage was being evaluated. “The recovery work by technicians was timely. Our workers arrived immediately after the lightning strike. All of the fragments were recovered and secured,’’ the park said in a statement. The lightning occurred during a storm that felled trees and flooded streets in the Italian capital. The honorary arch, more than 20 meters (nearly 70 feet) in height, was erected in 315 A.D.
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