With two outs in the third inning, Cincinnati Reds left fielder Tyler Callihan suffer a broken left forearm while attempting a sliding catch against the Atlanta Braves on a play that turned into an inside-the-park home run on Monday night at Truist Park.

The 20-year-old man who fell from the top of a 21-foot-high wall onto the warning track at PNC Park during a Pirates game last week took his first steps Monday, but he still has "a long way to go" in his recovery.

The release of the memo further undercuts the Trump administrations rationale for using the Alien Enemies Act to deport scores of Venezuelans to a prison in El Salvador.

The men were killed in a region that has seen growing conflict over access to ore in recent years. The mine has also been a hotbed of illegal gold mining.

Lewis Hamilton's radio messages weren't Ferrari's biggest problem in Miami, it was the middling performance.

At the beloved attraction in San Francisco Bay, visitors could scarcely believe President Trump had suggested turning Alcatraz back into a penitentiary.

The singer, a vocal critic of Israel, had been scheduled to perform in June as part of Pride festivities. Two weeks ago, Cornell dropped a plan to have her headline a concert.

The fallen banking giant Credit Suisse, now a part of UBS, admitted to hiding billions of dollars from the I.R.S.

Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato arrives at the prime minister's office Monday, Nov. 11, 2024, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama, file)2025-05-06T01:00:55Z WASHINGTON (AP) Just as Japans top trade negotiator traveled to Washington for another round of tariff talks last week, a bipartisan delegation bearing the name of Japan-China Friendship wrapped up a visit to Beijing.A week earlier, the head of the junior party in Japans ruling coalition was in Beijing delivering a letter from Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba addressed to Chinese President Xi Jinping. Details of the letter are unknown, but the two sides discussed U.S. tariffs in addition to bilateral issues.Among all U.S. allies being wooed by Beijing in its tariff stare-down with Washington, Japan stands out. It is a peculiar case not only for its staunch commitment to its alliance with the United States but also for its complicated and uneasy history with the neighboring Asian giant particularly the war history from the 20th century that still casts a shadow over the politics of today. On one hand, they are neighbors and they are important economic partners. Theres a lot that connects Japan and China, said Matthew Goodman, director of the Greenberg Center for Geoeconomics at the Council on Foreign Relations. But on the other hand, I think there are limits to how far theyre going to lean into China. While Japan wont walk away from its alliance with the United States, the linchpin of the Asian countrys diplomacy and security policies, its also true that the tariffs and uncertainty that Trump has created for Japan is really shaking things up in Tokyo, Goodman said. Last month, President Donald Trump announced a 24% tariff on Japanese goods in a sweeping plan to levy duties on about 90 countries. The White House has since paused the tariffs but a 10% baseline duty on all countries except China, allowing time for negotiations. Still, Trumps 25% tax on aluminum, steel and auto exports have gone into effect for Japan.The tariff moves, as well as Trumps America First agenda, have cast doubts among the Japanese if the United States is still a dependable ally, while China is rallying support from tariff-threatened countries including Japan. In Beijing, Japan sees positive signsWhen Tetsuo Saito led Japans Komeito Party delegation to Beijing in late April, China hinted at difficulty in its tariff dispute with the United States, signaling its willingness to improve ties with Tokyo. An unnamed senior Chinese official said his country was in trouble when discussing Trumps 145% tariff on Chinese products, according to Japanese reports.Saitos visit was soon followed by that of the bipartisan delegation of Japan-China Friendship Parliamentarians Union. Zhao Leji, Beijings top legislator, told the delegation that Chinas National Peoples Congress would be willing to carry out various forms of dialogue and exchanges.Beijing did not lift a ban on Japans seafood imports as the Japanese delegates hoped, but it signaled positive signs on its assessment of the safety of the discharges of treated radioactive wastewater from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Beijing banned Japans seafood products in 2023, citing those concerns. Ties between Tokyo and Beijing have long been rocky. In the past several years, they squabbled not only over the seafood ban but also long-standing territorial disputes over the Senkaku, or Diaoyu, islands in the East China Sea, Beijings growing military assertiveness and violence against Japanese nationals in China an issue complicated by the nations uneasy history. Tokyos closer ties with Washington during Joe Bidens presidency also upset Beijing, which saw it as part of the U.S. strategy to contain China and has lectured Tokyo to face squarely and reflect on the history of aggression.An imperial power in Asia for centuries, China fell behind Japan in the 19th century when Japan began to embrace Western industrialization and grew into a formidable economic and military power. It invaded China in the 1930s and controlled the northeastern territory known as Manchuria. War atrocities, including the Nanking Massacre and the use of chemical and biological weapons and human medical experiments in Manchuria, have left deep scars in China. They have yet to be healed, though Japans conservative politicians today still attempt to deny the aggression. Ishiba, elected Japans prime minister in October, has a more neutral view on his countrys wartime history than the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his two successors. Weeks after taking office, Ishiba held talks with Xi on the sidelines of a leaders summit.Chinese scholars, however, see Tokyos recent engagements with Beijing as a pragmatic move to hedge against U.S. protectionism and not a long-term strategy for stability with China.The odds are low for Japan to move into Chinas orbit, Goodman said. They have for a long time had to manage an important but challenging relationship with China, he said. And that is, again, a long-standing problem for Japan, going back centuries or millennia. Seeking tariff deals and stable ties in the USWhile Japan might welcome the friendlier tone from Beijing, it is trying to stabilize Japan-U.S. relations under Trumps America First agenda, and it is hoping to settle the tariff dispute without confronting Washington, with an eye on preventing Beijing from exploiting any fallout in Japan-U.S. relations.Japan was among the first countries to hold tariff talks with Washington. During the first round in mid-April, Trump inserted himself into the discussions, a sign of the high stakes for the United States to reach a deal with Japan. The Trump administration reportedly pushed for Japan to buy more U.S.-made cars and open its market to U.S. beef, rice and potatoes. After the second round of negotiation in Washington last week, Ryosei Akazawa, the countrys chief tariff negotiator, said he pushed Japans request that the U.S. drop tariffs and was continuing efforts toward an agreement acceptable to both sides. He said Japans auto industry was already hurting from the 25% tariff and that he needed to be thorough but fast.Asked about China, Akazawa said only that his country keeps watching the U.S.-China tariff development with great interest. He noted Japans deep trade ties with China.Competing in Southeast AsiaWhile China and Japan are working to mend ties, the two are also competing in the Southeast Asia region, where Trump has threatened high tariffs as well. The region is deeply integrated into Chinas supply chain but under pressure from the West to diversify and reduce its reliance on China. With younger and growing populations as compared to East Asia, the region is considered an important growth center.Japan, as a major postwar development aid contributor, has gradually regained trust in the region, which also was scarred by Japans World War II past.On Wednesday, Ishiba returned from Vietnam and the Philippines after agreeing with their leaders to further strengthen security and economic ties. During the visit, Ishiba stressed Japans commitment to maintaining and strengthening a multilateral free-trade system in each country. Ishiba also had telephone talks with his Malaysian and Singaporean counterparts earlier this month about U.S. tariffs.Just weeks earlier, Xi was in Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia, also stressing free trade and seeking stronger supply chains. At a recent discussion at the Washington-based think tank Hudson Institute, Itsunori Onodera, Japans governing party policy chief, warned of very unstable feelings among many Asian countries faced with high tariffs from the United States. Theres a danger they might become more distant and become closer to China, Onodera said. This is not something that Japan wants, either.___Yamaguchi reported from Tokyo. DIDI TANG Tang joined the AP Washington bureau in 2023 after spending 11 years in Beijing as a China correspondent. She covers anything related to the Indo-Pacific region with a focus on U.S.-China competitions mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

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The Celtics missed a playoff-record 45 3s as the Knicks came back from a 20-point deficit to win Game 1 in overtime.

The president suggested Catholics, who have criticized the apparently A.I.-generated image, were not offended, and said that anyone who was cant take a joke.

The choice of ministers points to a tolerance for political risk, but it also assembles a team of loyalists around the new chancellor and vice chancellor.

Friedrich Merz is becoming chancellor at the most challenging time for Germany since reunification 35 years ago.

In lavish halls, days before a conclave will select a new pope, power brokers came together for a mix of devotion, activism, money and socializing.

In Bangladesh, the factories that make clothing for export had remade themselves and raised national incomes along the way. They never bargained for a trade war.

President Trump has ended a tariff loophole that generated lots of business for delivery companies shipping inexpensive goods from China to the U.S.

Nikola Jokic had 42 points and 22 rebounds, and Aaron Gordon hit a 3-pointer in the closing seconds to give the Nuggets a stunning 121-119 comeback win over the top-seeded Thunder on Monday night in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal series.

An unending purge in Chinas top military ranks raises serious questions over the countrys readiness for offensive war.

Our clinics have found clear evidence of starvation in one-third of the population. And now Israel wants to take over aid.

Sweeping trains, sharp suiting, feathered finery and more.

In a short film and in conversation, the German filmmaker ponders the meaning of freedom, the complacency of peace and the new insecurity from Russias war and Donald Trump.

Cardinals leave at the end of a Mass on the eighth of nine days of mourning for Pope Francis, in St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican, Saturday, May 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, File)2025-05-06T05:00:36Z VATICAN CITY (AP) Cardinals electing a new pope have some fundamental questions to weigh, beyond whether to give the Catholic Church its first Asian or African pontiff, or a conservative or progressive.Although they come from 70 different countries, the 133 cardinals seem fundamentally united in finding a pope who will be able to make the 2,000-year-old church credible and relevant today, especially to young people.Its a tall task, given the sexual abuse and financials scandals that have harmed the churchs reputation and the secularizing trends in many parts of the world that are turning people away from organized religion.Add to that the Holy Sees dire financial state and often dysfunctional bureaucracy, and the job of being pope in the 21st century seems almost impossible.We need a superman! said Cardinal William Seng Chye Goh, the 67-year-old archbishop of Singapore. The cardinals will begin trying to find him Wednesday afternoon, when those princes of the church walk solemnly into the Sistine Chapel to the meditative chant of the Litany of the Saints. Theyll take their oaths of secrecy under the daunting vision of heaven and hell in Michelangelos Last Judgement, hear a meditation from a senior cardinal, and then cast their first ballot. Assuming no candidate secures the necessary two-thirds majority, or 89 votes, the cardinals will retire for the day and return on Thursday. They will have two ballots in the morning and then two in the afternoon, until a winner is found.Asked what the priorities of the cardinal electors were, Goh told reporters this week that the No. 1 issue was that the new pope must be able to spread the Catholic faith and make the church relevant in todays time. How to reach out to young people, how to show a face of love, joy and hope. A pope for the futureBut beyond that, there are some real-world geopolitical concerns to take into consideration. The Catholic Church is g rowing in Africa and Asia, both in numbers of baptized faithful and vocations to the priesthood and womens religious orders. It is shrinking in traditionally Catholic bastions of Europe, with empty churches and the faithful formally leaving the church in places like Germany, many citing the abuse scandals.Asia is ripe for evangelization and the harvest of vocations, said the Rev. Robert Reyes, who studied in the seminary with Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, the Filipino prelate considered a contender to be the first Asian pope.But should the pope necessarily reflect the new face of the Catholic Church, and inspire the faithful especially in the parts of the world where the momentum of growth is already under way? Does it even matter? Pope Francis was the first Latin American pope, and the region still counts the majority of the worlds Catholics.Indian Cardinal Oswald Gracias, the retired archbishop of Mumbai, said the church needs to become more Asian, culturally and spiritually.The center of gravity of the world is shifting toward Asia, he said. The Asian church has much to give to the world. At 80, Gracias wont be participating in the conclave, but India has four cardinal-electors, and overall Asia counts 23, making it the second-biggest voting bloc after Europe, which has 53 (or likely 52, given that one is not expected to participate for health reasons).One of the big geopolitical issues facing the cardinals is China and the plight of the estimated 12 million Chinese Catholics there. Under Francis, the Vatican in 2018 inked a controversial agreement with Beijing governing the appointment of bishops, which many conservatives decried as a sellout of the underground Chinese Catholics who had remained loyal to Rome during decades of communist persecution. The Vatican has defended the accord as the best deal it could get, but it remains to be seen if Francis successor will keep the policy. The church in AfricaAccording to Vatican statistics, Catholics represent 3.3% of the population in Asia, but their numbers are growing, especially in terms of seminarians, as they are in Africa, where Catholics represent about 20% of the population. Catholics are 64% of the population in the Americas, 40% of Europes population and 26% of Oceanias population, according to Vatican statistics from 2023, the last available year. Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo Besungu, the archbishop of Kinshasa, Congo, said he is in Rome to elect a pope for the worlds 1.4 billion Catholics.I am not here for the Congo, I am not here for Africa, I am here for the universal church. That is our concern, the universal church, he told reporters. When we are done, I will return to Kinshasa and I will put back on my archbishop of Kinshasa hat and the struggle continues.Cardinal Jean-Paul Vesco, the chatty French-born archbishop of Algiers, Algeria, lamented last week that there hadnt been enough time for the cardinals to get to know one another, since many of them had never met before and hail from 70 countries in the most geographically diverse conclave in history. By this week, however, he said that any number of candidates were possible. It is what I call an artichoke heart, he said. Every day, I say to myself, Ah! Oh my God! There we have it!The role of the Holy SpiritFor the cardinals, there is also the belief that they are guided by the Holy Spirit.There is a famous quote attributed to then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in 1997, in comments to a Bavarian television station. The future Pope Benedict XVI said the Holy Spirit acted like a good educator in a conclave, allowing cardinals to freely choose a pope without dictating the precise candidate.Probably the only assurance he offers is that the thing cannot be totally ruined, Ratzinger reportedly said. There are too many contrary instances of popes the Holy Spirit would obviously not have picked.___Associated Press correspondent Jim Gomez in Manila, Philippines, and Silvia Stellacci, Trisha Thomas and Giovanna DellOrto in Rome contributed.___Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the APs collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. NICOLE WINFIELD Winfield has been on the Vatican beat since 2001, covering the papacies of St. John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI and the Francis pontificate and traveling the world with them.

with the remains of fallen German soldiers of WWII to the grave during a funeral service at a memorial site for fallen soldiers in Halbe, Germany, Wednesday, April 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)2025-05-06T05:05:22Z HALBE, Germany (AP) In a forest near Berlin, the remains of 107 fallen Wehrmacht soldiers were ceremoniously interred last week. High school students placed white gerbera daisies on small black coffins, and German soldiers lowered them respectfully into a large, freshly dug grave as a military band played a solemn tune.Hundreds of villagers and relatives of the fallen watched silently, some wiping tears off their cheeks, as the soldiers who died in one of the last large World War II battles fighting for Adolf Hitlers army got their final resting place.The gestures of remembrance are part of a long, complicated and sometimes controversial effort to bring the German dead to rest, 80 years after a war that Nazi Germany started.Its still not the end much work remains to identify the dead and notify any surviving family members. Across Europe, in forests, fields and beneath old farmland, the remains of German soldiers are still being found, exhumed and reburied by teams from a nonprofit organization called the Volksbund Deutsche Kriegsgrberfrsorge, or German War Graves Commission, which has been doing this work for decades. A search for the deadAs the world pauses this week to mark the 80th anniversary of the wars end, the continued search is a reminder that the conflicts legacy is not only historical or political, it is also physical and unfinished, still unfolding in the ground beneath Europes surface.Its very, very important that this is still being done, said Martina Seiger, 57, whose grandfathers bones were found and buried a few years ago. Seiger and her family make a point of attending the burials of other soldiers who died in the battle of Halbe in 1945. Its as close as they can get to some kind of funeral for her grandfather, Werner Novak.Novak was 21 when he was killed. He had already been injured and sent back from the front to Berlin. He was planning to marry his pregnant fiance and hoped for a more peaceful future, Seiger said. Instead, as the Soviets Red Army was approaching Berlin in the last weeks of war, he was back into battle. Lost in the chaos of warThe process of finding and identifying the remains is slow many of the missing were buried hastily during retreat or combat, with no markers or records. Some sites are remembered only vaguely, passed down through local knowledge. Others are beyond reach, beneath modern infrastructure or the front line in eastern Ukraine. Still, the Volksbund works on, searching across Europes old battlefields, following tips, checking old military maps and missing soldiers lists. The work continues even in western Ukraine, away from the raging fighting in the countrys east.When possible, the organization brings the remains to cemeteries maintained specifically for German soldiers who died abroad. It says its goal is humanistic: to offer a dignified burial to every person who died in the war, regardless of the role they played. That includes soldiers who served in a military responsible for some of the worst atrocities of the 20th century.The Volksbund does not frame its mission as one of honoring the fallen, but of identifying them and ensuring they are not left to vanish into the earth, without a name. A missing fatherWolfgang Bartsch, 83, stood on a small hill near the open graves as the soldiers bones were laid to rest. Bartsch has never been able to bury his own father, who died in January 1942 fighting on the front in Russia. He was just three weeks old. Days earlier his mother was killed in an Allied bomb raid on Berlin. He was raised by his grandmother but always felt the pain of growing up without parents.My dad is buried somewhere in a nameless grave in Oryol in Russia, he said. The Volksbund will never be able to recover his bones because I know that lots of settlements were built on top of those graves.By the Volksbunds estimate, more than 2 million German soldiers remain unaccounted for. Over the past 30 years, since gaining access to former Eastern Bloc territories, the Volksbund has recovered and reburied the remains of a million people. Work that can be controversial In some parts of Europe, resentment lingers toward anything perceived as rehabilitating the Nazi military past. But many accept that efforts to find the dead could help close this chapter of history. I dont want to rule out the possibility that we have a large number of war criminals in our war graves. We also know that some of them have even been proven to have committed the most serious war crimes, said Dirk Backen, the secretary general of the Volksbund. Behind every dead person is a human destiny and that is our main focus, he said. When you stand in front of the grave of an 18-year-old young Wehrmacht soldier, you naturally ask yourself whether he may have had other plans in life and a different dream than to give his life at the age of 18 for a cause that was also criminal. Weeks before the burial in Halbe, an exhumation took place in the Polish city of Ostroka, where Volksbund employees and local Polish archaeologists dug for the remains of German soldiers in a Polish cemetery wherever it would not involve disturbing a marked grave.The skeletons were documented that day, March 19, and the bones of each person were sealed into a black bag. Dog tags were saved in the hope the remains can one day be identified. The group plans to rebury them later this year at a military ceremony in Poland.They deserve to be buriedukasz Karol, a Polish archaeologist working on the exhumation, acknowledges having had ethical concerns as he considered the job of unearthing soldiers of an army that invaded Poland and killed some 6 million Polish citizens over the course of the war. But he said the work has moral significance and uncovers important scientific information.These are also people and they also deserve a burial, Karol said. Unlike in the immediate postwar years, few families today are actively searching for lost relatives. In many cases, the emotional and generational distance is too great; there is no one left to remember the missing, or the need for closure has faded with time. For Bartsch, the 83-year-old who attended the burial in Halbe, there is no closure.I still cant find peace when I think that so many people are still buried here in the ground without a proper funeral, he said. My heart would rejoice if only I could bury my father too, but that wont happen.___Gera reported from Ostroka, Poland. KIRSTEN GRIESHABER Grieshaber is a Berlin-based reporter covering Germany and Austria for The Associated Press. She covers general news as well as migration, populism and religion. mailto

San Diego manager Mike Shildt was so angry with plate umpire Adrian Johnson that he made a spectacle by tossing his glasses en route to an ejection during the Padres' 4-3 victory over the Yankees on Monday night.

In Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz exited midway through the second period of his team's 5-4 win over the Panthers on Monday, after taking an elbow to the head from Florida forward Sam Bennett.

The Celtics might've finally reached a saturation point as they missed a record 45 3-pointers Monday night as the Knicks took advantage in a 108-105 Game 1 overtime victory.

New York reliever Devin Williams' nightmare season continued on Monday night with another poor outing in the Yankees' 4-3 loss to the San Diego Padres, as the right-hander was charged with three runs, increasing his ERA to 10.03 in 14 games this season.

Mikel Arteta has said Arsenal need to be ready to give their life to reach the Champions League final.

While a starry group of co-chairs greeted guests, Spike Lee, Venus Williams, Zoe Saldaa and Rihanna discussed the significance of dandyism and the importance of the event.

The home ministry ordered officials to test air raid sirens and teach civilians to navigate blackouts and carry out evacuations.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., talks to reporters just after House Republicans narrowly approved their budget framework, at the Capitol in Washington, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)2025-05-06T04:01:18Z WASHINGTON (AP) Congress is deep into drafting President Donald Trumps big bill of tax breaks, spending cuts and beefed-up funding to halt migrants, but its bumpy, one Republican chairman says, with much work ahead to meet House Speaker Mike Johnsons goal of passing the package out of his chamber by Memorial Day.In fact, the tax cuts portion is still a work in progress. As are the reductions in Medicaid, food stamps and other mainstay government programs. Mostly, the Republicans, who have the majority in Congress, have made progress on parts that would increase spending, adding some $350 billion to the Pentagon and Homeland Security, including money for the U.S-Mexico border wall.There are some bumps in the road, Rep. Jason Smith of Missouri, the Republican chairman of the powerful Ways and Means tax-writing committee, acknowledged on Fox News Sunday. All told, some 11 committees in the House are compiling their bills, and about half have finished up. They are being approved at the committee level by Republicans, on party-line votes, with Democrats opposed.But some of the most-watched committees Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce and Agriculture have yet to act. Johnson himself acknowledged on Monday that his Memorial Day deadline may slip, but vowed our timetable is on pace. Once all the committees are done, the different pieces of legislation will be rolled together at the Budget Committee into what Trump calls one big, beautiful bill. If the House can pass the package, it next would go to the Senate, which is drafting its own version, for a final product by July 4. Democrats say they will fight what House party leader Hakeem Jeffries calls the extreme Republican agenda. Heres a look at whats in and out, so far. Funding for 1 million migrant deportations, 20,000 new officers and the border wallTwo of the committees handling immigration- and border security-related matters have wrapped up their legislation.Central to the Homeland Security Committees bill is $46.5 billion to revive construction of Trumps wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, with some 700 miles of primary wall, 900 miles of river barriers and more.It would provide $4 billion to hire an additional 3,000 new Border Patrol agents as well as 5,000 new customs officers, and $2.1 billion for signing and retention bonuses.All told, the Homeland Security Committee approved $69 billion in new spending.At the same time, the Judiciary Committee, which handles interior immigration enforcement and legal proceedings, has also completed its $110 billion bill.It would impose a $1,000 fee on migrants seeking asylum something the nation has never done, putting it on par with few others, including Australia and Iran.And there are more new fees proposed on various other legal paths to entry, including a $3,500 fee for those sponsoring unaccompanied children to enter the U.S., a $2,500 penalty if sponsors of unaccompanied children skip court appearances and a $1,000 fee for individuals paroled into the U.S.Overall, the plan is to remove 1 million immigrants annually and house 100,000 people in detention centers. It calls for 10,000 more Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers and investigators. More money for the Pentagon and Trumps Golden DomeThe House Armed Services Committee was tasked with drafting legislation with $100 billion in new spending. But they did that and more, passing a bill with $150 billion for the Defense Department and national security.Among the highlights, it would provide $25 billion for Trumps Golden Dome for America, a long-envisioned missile defense shield, $21 billion to restock the nations ammunition arsenal, $34 billion to expand the naval fleet with more shipbuilding and some $5 billion for border security.It also includes $9 billion for servicemember quality of life-related issues, including housing, health care and special pay. Overhaul of the student loan repayment plansA wholesale revamping of the student loan program is the key to the Education and Workforce Committees legislation, with $330 billion in budget cuts and savings.The proposal would replace all existing student loan repayment plans with just two: a standard option with monthly payments spread out over 10 to 25 years depending on the amount borrowed, and a repayment assistance plan with monthly payments based on a borrowers income.The new income-based plan is generally less generous than those it would replace. Minimum payments for the lowest-income borrowers would be higher, and forgiveness would be provided after 30 years of payments instead of 20 or 25. The new repayment plans would take hold in July 2026.Among other changes, the bill would repeal Biden-era regulations that made it easier for borrowers to get loans canceled if their colleges defrauded them or closed suddenly. Federal employee pension cutsThe House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform targeted federal workers pensions for a projected $50.9 billion in deficit savings over 10 years.Most of the savings would come from requiring federal workers hired before 2014 to pay more into the retirement system. They would have to match the 4.4% salary rate paid by federal workers hired since 2014.The committee also called for basing a retirees annuity payment on their average top five earning years instead of the top three. And the committees plan would eliminate a temporary, supplemental payment for newly retired federal workers who retire before they are eligible for Social Security.Republicans argued that federal employee retirement benefits outpace those in the private sector. But critics, including Rep. Michael Turner, R-Ohio, who voted against the committees package, said changing a workers pension during the middle of employment is wrong.Democrats said the change would result in less take-home pay for many middle-class Americans in the federal workforce.More drilling, mining on public lands The House Natural Resources Committee is set to meet Tuesday to consider its bill, which largely matches Trumps executive orders to open public lands and waters to more natural resource development.It would allow increased leasing of public lands for drilling, mining and logging while clearing the path for more development by speeding up government approvals. Royalty rates paid by companies to extract oil, gas and coal would be cut, reversing former President Joe Bidens attempts to curb fossil fuels to help address climate change.Oil and gas royalty rates would drop from 16.7% on public lands and 18.75% offshore to a uniform 12.5%. Royalties for coal would drop from 12.5% to 7%.The measure calls for four oil and gas lease sales in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge over the next decade. It also seeks to boost the ailing coal industry with a mandate to make available for leasing 6,250 square miles of public lands an area greater in size than Connecticut. Republican supporters say the lost revenue would be offset by increased development. Its uncertain if companies would have an appetite for leases given the industrys precipitous decline in recent years as utilities switched to cleaner burning fuels and renewable energy.___Associated Press writers Kevin Freking and Collin Binkley in Washington and Matthew Brown in Billings, Montana, contributed to this report.

Indian security officers inspect the site where militants indiscriminately opened fired on tourists on Tuesday, in Pahalgam, Indian controlled Kashmir, Wednesday, April 23, 2025. (AP Photo, File)2025-05-06T03:01:12Z SRINAGAR, India (AP) Hundreds of Indian tourists, families and honeymooners, drawn by the breathtaking Himalayan beauty, were enjoying a picture-perfect meadow in Kashmir. They didnt know gunmen in army fatigues were lurking in the woods.When the attackers got their chance, they shot mostly Indian Hindu men, many of them at close-range, leaving behind bodies strewn across the Baisaran meadow and survivors screaming for help. The gunmen quickly vanished into thick forests. By the time Indian authorities arrived, 26 people were dead and 17 others were wounded.India has described the April 22 massacre as a terror attack and blamed Pakistan for backing it, an accusation denied by Islamabad. India swiftly announced diplomatic actions against its archrival Pakistan, which responded with its own tit-for-tat measures.The assailants are still on the run, as calls in India for military action against Pakistan are growing. World leaders are scrambling to de-escalate the tensions between two nuclear-armed neighbors, which have historically relied on third countries for conflict management.But the massacre has also touched a raw nerve. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis administration has governed Kashmir with an iron fist in recent years, claiming militancy in the region was in check and a tourism influx was a sign of normalcy returning. Those claims now lie shattered. Stay up to date with similar stories by signing up to our WhatsApp channel. India admits security lapse Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, second left, talks to three Indian defense chiefs, Army General Upendra Dwivedi, third right, Naval Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, second right, and Air Force Air Chief Marshal A P Singh, right, as Indian Chief of Defense Staff General Anil Chauhan, left, watches as they wait for the arrival of Japans Defense Minister Gen Nakatani in New Delhi, India, Monday, May 5, 2025.(AP Photo/Manish Swarup) Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, second left, talks to three Indian defense chiefs, Army General Upendra Dwivedi, third right, Naval Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, second right, and Air Force Air Chief Marshal A P Singh, right, as Indian Chief of Defense Staff General Anil Chauhan, left, watches as they wait for the arrival of Japans Defense Minister Gen Nakatani in New Delhi, India, Monday, May 5, 2025.(AP Photo/Manish Swarup) Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Security experts and former intelligence and senior military officers who have served in the region say Modis government riding on a nationalistic fervor over Kashmir to please its supporters missed warning signs. The government acknowledged that in a rare admission.Two days after the attack, Kiren Rijiju, Indias parliamentary affairs minister, said that a crucial all-party meeting discussed where the lapses occurred.We totally missed ... the intentions of our hostile neighbor, said Avinash Mohananey, a former Indian intelligence officer who has operated in Kashmir and Pakistan. The meadow, near the resort town of Pahalgam, can be reached by trekking or pony rides, and visitors cross at least three security camps and a police station to reach there. According to Indian media, there was no security presence for more than 1,000 tourists that day. Pahalgam serves as a base for an annual Hindu pilgrimage that draws hundreds of thousands of people from across India. The area is ringed by thick woods that connect with forest ranges in the Jammu area, where Indian troops have faced attacks by rebels in recent years after fighting ebbed in the Kashmir Valley, the heart of an anti-India rebellion.The massacre brought Modis administration almost back to where it started when a suicide car bombing in the region in 2019 prompted his government to strip Kashmir of its semi-autonomy and bring it under direct federal rule. Tensions have simmered ever since, but the region has also drawn millions of visitors amid a strange calm enforced by an intensified security crackdown. We probably started buying our own narrative that things were normal in Kashmir, Mohananey said. Tourists wait for their turn to use a ski-lift to transport them up a slope in Gulmarg, northwest of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Jan. 10, 2021. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin, File) Tourists wait for their turn to use a ski-lift to transport them up a slope in Gulmarg, northwest of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Jan. 10, 2021. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin, File) Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More In the past, insurgents have carried out brazen attacks and targeted Hindu pilgrims, Indian Hindu as well as Muslim immigrant workers, and local Hindus and Sikhs. However, this time a large number of tourists were attacked, making it one of the worst massacres involving civilians in recent years.The attack outraged people in Kashmir and India, where it led to calls of swift action against Pakistan. Indian television news channels amplified these demands and panelists argued that India should invade Pakistan. Modi and his senior ministers vowed to hunt down the attackers and their backers.Experts say much of the public pressure on the Indian government to act militarily against Pakistan falls within the pattern of long, simmering animosity between both countries.All the talk of military options against Pakistan mainly happens in echo chambers and feeds a nationalist narrative, in India, New Delhi-based counterterrorism expert Ajai Sahni said.It doesnt matter what will be done. We will be told it was done and was a success, he said. And it will be celebrated nonetheless. Modis optimism misplaced, experts say A Kashmiri boatman stands on his illuminated boat during a laser show and and live concert organized to boost winter tourism in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Dec. 7, 2022. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan, File) A Kashmiri boatman stands on his illuminated boat during a laser show and and live concert organized to boost winter tourism in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Dec. 7, 2022. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan, File) Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Experts also say that the Modi governments optimism was also largely misplaced and that its continuous boasting of rising tourism in the region was a fragile barometer of normalcy. Last year, Omar Abdullah, Kashmirs top elected official, cautioned against such optimism. By this attack, Pakistan wants to convey that there is no normalcy in Kashmir and that tourism is no indicator for it. They want to internationalize the issue, said D.S. Hooda, former military commander for northern India between 2014 to 2016.Hooda said the choice of targets and the manner in which the attack was carried out indicates that it was well-planned.If there would have been a good security cover, maybe this incident would not have happened, he said.India sees Pakistan connection to the attackIndian security experts believe the attack could be a retaliation for a passenger train hijacking in Pakistan in March by Baloch insurgents. Islamabad accused New Delhi of orchestrating the attack in which 25 people were killed. India denies it.Mohananey said that Indian authorities should have taken the accusations seriously and beefed-up security in Kashmir, while arguing there was a striking similarity in both attacks since only men were targeted.It was unusual that women and children were spared in both cases, Mohananey said.Two senior police officers, who have years of counterinsurgency experience in Kashmir, said after the train attack in Pakistan that they were anticipating some kind of reaction in the region by militants. An Indian paramilitary soldier walks past graffiti on a wall in Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Aug. 29, 2016. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin, File) An Indian paramilitary soldier walks past graffiti on a wall in Srinagar, Indian-controlled Kashmir, Aug. 29, 2016. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin, File) Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More The officers, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter, said that security officials perceived the threat of an imminent attack, and Modis inauguration of a strategic rail line in the region was canceled. A large-scale attack on tourists, however, wasnt anticipated, because there was no such precedence, the officers said.Hooda, who commanded what New Delhi called surgical strikes against militants in the Pakistan-controlled part of Kashmir in 2016, said that the attack has deepened thinking that it was time to tackle the Pakistani state, not just militants.Such calculus could be a marked shift. In 2016 and 2019, India said that its army struck militant infrastructure inside Pakistan after two major militant attacks against its soldiers.After this attack, Hooda said, India wants to stop Pakistan from using terrorism as an instrument of state policy.We need to tighten our security and plug lapses, but the fountainhead of terrorism needs to be tackled, Hooda said. The fountainhead is Pakistan.___Saaliq and Roy reported from New Delhi. AIJAZ HUSSAIN Hussain is a senior reporter for The Associated Press covering the Kashmir conflict, Indian politics and strategic affairs, and climate. He has worked for the AP for nearly two decades. twitter mailto SHEIKH SAALIQ Saaliq covers news across India and the South Asia region for The Associated Press, often focusing on politics, democracy, conflict and religion. He is based in New Delhi. twitter mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Racing Louisville FC midfielder Ary Borges has been suspended for an additional three matches for pushing the center referee after a recent match.

Initial talks have taken place between Manchester United and the representatives of on-loan Galatasaray striker Victor Osimhen. Transfer Talk has the latest news, gossip and rumors.

Friedrich Merz reacts after he was not elected new Chancellor in the first voting process at the parliament Bundestag in Berlin, Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)2025-05-06T04:01:05Z BERLIN (AP) In a historic first, conservative leader Friedrich Merz s bid to become Germanys 10th chancellor since World War II failed in the first round of voting in parliament on Tuesday by six votes, a stunning defeat as he had been widely expected to win smoothly.A candidate for chancellor has never failed to win on the first ballot since the end of the war. Merz needed a majority of 316 out of 630 votes in a secret ballot. He only received 310 votes well short of the 328 seats held by his coalition.The parties were now to regroup to discuss the next step but it was not immediately clear how long the process could take.The lower house of parliament called the Bundestag has 14 days to elect a candidate with an absolute majority. Merz can run again, but other lawmakers can also throw their hat in the ring. There is no limit to the number of votes that can be held within the two-week period. If Merz or any other candidate fails to get that majority during the period of 14 days, the constitution allows for the president to appoint the candidate who wins the most votes as chancellor, or to dissolve the Bundestag and hold a new national election. Merz is seeking to take the helm of the 27-nation European Union s most populous member after outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholzs government collapsed last year.Germany has the continents biggest economy and serves as a diplomatic heavyweight. Merzs portfolio would include the war in Ukraine and the Trump administrations trade policy on top of domestic issues such as the stagnant economy and the rise of a far-right, anti-immigrant party. 80th anniversary of World War IITuesdays vote was held on the eve of the 80th anniversary of Germanys unconditional surrender in World War II. The ballots are secret and cast in the restored Reichstag, where graffiti left by Soviet troops has been preserved at several locations in the building.Merzs failure in the voting adds to the challenges ahead whoever is elected chancellor will face questions about the future of the far-right, anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany party, also known as AfD. Mainstream German political parties refuse to work with it, citing the so-called firewall theyve upheld against cooperating with far-right parties since the end of the war.AfDs riseLast week, the German domestic intelligence service said it has classified AfD which placed second in national elections in February as a right-wing extremist organization, making it subject to greater and broader surveillance. Germanys Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution described the party as a threat to the countrys democratic order, saying it disregards human dignity in particular by what it called ongoing agitation against refugees and migrants.The federal offices decision prompted blowback from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and U.S. Vice President JD Vance over the weekend. Germanys Foreign Ministry hit back at Rubio after he called on the country to undo the classification. The domestic intelligence services measure does not amount to a ban of the party, which can only take place through a request by either of parliaments two chambers or the federal government through the Federal Constitutional Court. Merz has not commented publicly on the intelligence services decision. The new coalitionGermanys new coalition is led by Merzs center-right Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union, and joined by the center-left Social Democrats, Scholzs party. All three parties previously approved the coalition deal.The coalition aims to spur economic growth, ramp up defense spending, take a tougher approach to migration and catch up on long-neglected modernization.The Union and Social Democrats have governed Germany together before, in the 1960s, and then in three of the four terms of former Chancellor Angela Merkel, who led the country from 2005 to 2021.Merzs party last month announced its proposed government team, including senior lawmaker Johann Wadephul as foreign minister a position the CDU last held in the 1960s. STEFANIE DAZIO Dazio covers Northern Europe from Berlin for The Associated Press. She previously covered crime and criminal justice from Los Angeles. RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

by Eric Umansky, Vernal Coleman and Maryam Jameel As the Trump administration pledges to eliminate 80,000 employees at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, ProPublica reporters are investigating how changes at the VA are affecting veterans themselves. Trump has promised to put veterans first, but our reporting shows veterans care is suffering amid wide-ranging cuts. If youve experienced setbacks in your care, we want to hear from you. We would also appreciate firsthand insights about changes happening within the VA from agency employees. Please do not fill out this form if you work for the VA or another federal agency. Instead, contact our reporters via the encrypted messaging app Signal: Eric Umansky: Ericumansky.04 Vernal Coleman: vcoleman91.99 We appreciate you sharing your story, and we take your privacy seriously. We are gathering these stories for the purposes of our reporting and will contact you if we wish to publish any part of your story. You can also reach our VA reporting team at VA@propublica.org. You can share your experience using our form.

by Eric Umansky and Vernal Coleman ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as theyre published. Earlier this year, doctors at Veterans Affairs hospitals in Pennsylvania sounded an alarm. Sweeping cuts imposed by the Trump administration, they told higher-ups in an email, were causing severe and immediate impacts, including to life-saving cancer trials. The email said more than 1,000 veterans would lose access to treatment for diseases ranging from metastatic head and neck cancers, to kidney disease, to traumatic brain injuries.Enrollment in clinical trials is stopping, the email warned, meaning veterans lose access to therapies.The administration reversed some of its decisions, allowing some trials to continue for now. Still, other research, including the trials for treating head and neck cancer, has been stalled. President Donald Trump has long promised to prioritize veterans.We love our veterans, he said in February. We are going to take good care of them.After the Department of Veterans Affairs began shedding employees and contracts, Trumps pick to run the agency, Secretary Doug Collins, pledged, Veterans are going to notice a change for the better. But dozens of internal emails obtained by ProPublica reveal a far different reality. Doctors and others at VA hospitals and clinics across the country have been sending often desperate messages to headquarters detailing how cuts will harm veterans care. The VA provides health care to roughly 9 million veterans. In March, VA officials across the country warned that a critical resource databases for tracking cancer would no longer be kept up to date. As officials in the Pacific Northwest explained, the Department of Government Efficiency was moving to kill its contract with the outside company that maintained and ran its cancer registry, where information on the treatment of patients is collected and analyzed. DOGE had marked it for immediate termination. Officials at the VA centers in the Pacific Northwest said funding for their cancer research was updated for immediate termination after a review by the Department of Government Efficiency. (Obtained by ProPublica) The VA in Detroit raised a similar alarm in an email, warning of the inability to track oncology treatment and recurrences. The emails obtained by ProPublica detail a wide variety of disruptions. In Colorado, for instance, layoffs to social workers were causing homeless veterans waiting for temporary housing to go without help. The warnings, sent as part of a longstanding system at the VA to alert higher-ups of problems, paint a portrait of chaotic retrenchment at an agency that just three years ago was mandated by Congress through the PACT Act to expand care and benefits for veterans facing cancer and other issues after exposure to Agent Orange, burn pits or other toxins. Doctors and other health care providers across the VA have been left scrambling and short-staffed amid an ever-shifting series of cuts, hiring freezes and other edicts from the White House. VA officials in Pittsburgh sent warnings about studies being impacted by a hiring freeze. These included studies on cancer, suicide prevention and exposure to toxins. (Obtained by ProPublica) The upheaval laid bare in the emails is particularly striking because the cuts so far would be dwarfed by the dramatic downsizing in staff and shift in priorities the administration has said is coming. The VA has cut just a few thousand staffers this year. But the administration has said it plans to eliminate at least 70,000 through layoffs and voluntary buyouts within the coming months. The agency, which is the largest integrated health care system in the U.S., currentlyhas nearly 500,000 employees, most of whom work in one of the VAs 170 hospitals and nearly 1,200 clinics. Despite an expanded role mandated by Congress through the PACT Act, administration officials have said their goal is to trim the agency to the size it was before the legislation passed. The Biden Administration understood what it meant to pay for the cost of war; it seems the Trump Administration does not, said Rep. Mark Takano, a California Democrat and chief author of the PACT Act. Documents obtained by ProPublica show DOGE officials working at the VA in March prepared an outline to transform the agency that focused on ways to consolidate operations and introduce artificial intelligence tools to handle benefits claims. One DOGE document proposed closing 17 hospitals and perhaps a dozen more. VA press secretary Pete Kasperowicz told ProPublica that there would be no hospital closures. Just because a VA employee wrote something down, doesnt make it VA policy, he said in a written statement. But he did say that use of AI will be a big part of what he called VAs reform efforts. Kasperowicz dismissed the idea that the emails obtained by ProPublica show chaos. The only thing these reports show is that VA has a robust and well-functioning system to flag potential issues and quickly fix them so we can provide the best possible care to Veterans, he wrote. DOGE did not respond to requests for comment. The White House released a budget proposal last week that calls for a 4% increase in the VAs budget. That total includes more money for medical care, though a portion of that would be used to pay for veterans to seek care outside the VA medical system. More answers to the VAs larger plans may come today, when Collins is scheduled to testify before the Senate Veterans Committee, his first hearing on Capitol Hill since coming into office. David Shulkin, who headed the VA in Trumps first term, said the administration is too focused on cuts rather than communicating a strategy for improving care for vets.I think its very, very hard to be successful with the approach that theyre taking, Shulkin told ProPublica. One way local VA officials have tried to limit the damage has been by sending warnings formally known as an issue brief to higher-ups. And sometimes it works. After officials in Los Angeles warned that all chemotherapy would stop unless Washington backed off killing a service contract, the VA reversed its decision. And, amid growing scrutiny, the administration also made some researchers in Pennsylvania and elsewhere exempt from cuts. The laid-off social workers who helped homeless vets in Colorado were also brought back after about a month away from their jobs. Kasperowicz said that four social workers were affected but their caseload was temporarily redistributed to other members of the homeless team.The warnings from officials across the country underscore how the comparatively modest cuts so far are already affecting the work of the VAs medical system, with the study and treatment of cancer cited in multiple warnings to agency leadership.We have absolutely felt the impact of the chaos all around us. Were already losing people, said one senior researcher, who spoke to ProPublica anonymously for fear of retaliation.Referring to studies, he added: Were going to be losing things that cant restart.And while Kasperowicz told ProPublica that the issues in Pennsylvania have been resolved, locals there said thats not the case and that the impact is ongoing.In Pittsburgh, two trials to treat veterans with advanced head and neck cancer, which officials in March had warned were at risk because of hiring freezes, have still not started, according to Alanna Caffas, who heads a Pittsburgh nonprofit, the Veterans Health Foundation, that partners with the VA on research.Its insane, Caffas said. These veterans should be able to get access to research treatments, but they cant. VA employees in Pittsburgh sent a warning that they had lost research staff because of the hiring freeze. (Obtained and highlighted by ProPublica) A third trial there, to help veterans with opioid addiction, wasnt halted. Instead, it was hobbled by layoffs of key team members, according to Caffas and another person involved in the research.Regarding the issues with cancer registries, Kasperowicz said there had been no effect on patients. He added that the VA is moving to create a national contract to administer those registries.Rosie Torres, founder of Burn Pits 360, the veterans advocacy group that also pushed hard for the legislation, called the emails showing impeded cancer treatment a crisis in the making and gutwrenching. That the decisions are being made without input from the communities of vets they affect is worse, she added.If they are killing contracts that may affect the delivery of care, then we have a right to know, she said. Last week, as the second Trump administration marked its first 100 days in office, Collins celebrated what he described as its achievements. In a recorded address, he said that under his stewardship the VA processed record numbers of benefit claims, ended divisive spending on diversity initiatives and redirected millions of agency dollars from non-mission-critical programs back toward services to benefit veterans. We will not stop working to put veterans first, he wrote in an accompanying op-ed. Others say Collins has done no such thing. Instead of focusing on veterans, said one VA oncologist, were spending an enormous amount of time preparing for a staffing catastrophe. Veterans lives are on the line, the doctor said. Let us go back to work and take care of them. Alex Mierjeski contributed research, and Joel Jacobs contributed reporting.

The setback was likely temporary, but it was historic. No modern German chancellor has ever failed to secure the job on a first ballot in Parliament.

For the first time since having my kids, I felt like a whole person.

The presidents fantasizing about remaining in office deserves more forceful pushback.

Many in the region are preparing for a possible military confrontation between India and Pakistan because of a terrorist attack two weeks ago.

In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade press service, a Ukrainian soldier passes by an armoured Hummer vehicle equipped with an anti-drone net on the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Monday, May 5, 2025. (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade via AP)2025-05-06T08:52:38Z Russian forces intercepted more than 100 Ukrainian drones fired at almost a dozen regions of Russia, the Defense Ministry in Moscow said Tuesday, in an attack that forced all four airports around Moscow to temporarily suspend flights.Nine other regional Russian airports also temporarily stopped operating as drones struck areas along the border with Ukraine and deeper inside Russia, according to Russias civil aviation agency, Rosaviatsia, and the Defense Ministry. It was the second straight night that the Moscow region reportedly was targeted.Two people were injured in the Kursk region, according to local Gov. Alexander Khinshtein, and some damage was reported in the Voronezh region. The Russian reports couldnt be independently verified.The drone assault comes two days ahead of a unilateral 72-hour ceasefire in the more than three-year war announced by President Vladimir Putin to coincide with celebrations in Moscow marking Victory Day in World War II. The day celebrating Moscows defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945 is Russias biggest secular holiday when foreign dignitaries will gather in the Russian capital. Meanwhile, Russian forces overnight fired at least 20 Shahed drones at Kharkiv, Ukraines second-0largest city near the border with Russia, injuring four people, regional Gov. Oleh Syniehubov wrote on Telegram.The drones started a fire at the biggest market in Kharkiv, Barabashovo, destroying and damaging around 100 market stalls, he said. Seven more civilians were injured elsewhere in the Kharkiv region by Russian glide bombs and drones, Syniehubov said.Putin last week declared a brief unilateral truce on humanitarian grounds from May 8. Ukraine has called for a longer ceasefire.Russia has effectively rejected a U.S. proposal for an immediate and full 30-day halt in the fighting by insisting on far-reaching conditions. Ukraine has accepted it the proposal, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says. U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday at the White House that the brief truce doesnt sound like much, but its a lot if you knew where we started from. Foreign leaders who have confirmed their attendance at the Victory Day festivities in Moscow include Chinas President Xi Jinping, described by Putin as our main guest.Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi, another top ally whom Putin has courted, had been expected in Moscow but he canceled his trip amid tensions with Pakistan.Other guests include Slovakias populist Prime Minister Robert Fico, who has openly challenged the European Unions policies over Ukraine. Serbias President Aleksandar Vucic also has accepted an invitation, his first trip to Russia since the invasion, but his attendance was uncertain after he became ill.___Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

FILE- Bangladesh's former prime minister and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairperson Khaleda Zia, center, leaves after a court appearance in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Dec. 28, 2017. (AP Photo/A.M. Ahad, File)2025-05-06T04:51:25Z DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) Bangladeshs ailing former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia returned to the country from London on Tuesday after four months of medical treatment, adding to pressure for its interim leaders to hold elections.The South Asian country has been under a government led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus since former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was ousted in a students-led mass uprising in August last year. Zia, Hasinas archrival, and her Bangladesh Nationalist Party have been pushing Yunus government to hold a national election in December to return the country to democratic rule.Under Hasina, many opposition political parties including Zias BNP had either boycotted the polls or accused the authorities of rigging them. Many welcomed Hasinas overthrow as a chance to return to democratic elections, but suspicion and uncertainty have surfaced in recent months about the new governments commitment to hold elections soon. It has said the next election will be held in either December or by June next year, depending on the extent of reforms in various sectors. Her elder son, Tarique Rahman, leads the party as acting chief from exile in London. After Zia landed at 10:43 a.m., she was greeted by senior party leaders at Dhakas main airport. Zia, sitting in a wheelchair, smiled as she repeatedly raised her right hand to receive greetings. Crowds gathered outside Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to welcome the returning leader, amid tight security. Thousands of supporters, many carrying Bangladesh and BNP flags, waited along about a 9-kilometer stretch of road leading to her house in Dhakas upscale Gulshan area. Accompanied by her two daughters-in-law, Zia arrived on a special air ambulance arranged by Qatars Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who also arranged her transport to London in January. Zia suffers from various serious health conditions and she has not attended any public gatherings. Zias physical presence in the country has huge symbolic value for her party while Hasina is in exile in India.Ahead of her arrival, BNP secretary-general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said Tuesday her return will help Bangladesh restore the democratic process.This is a joyous moment for us and the nation. At this crucial time for democracy, her presence marks a significant day for the country. We believe that Khaleda Zias return will facilitate the path to democratic transition, Fakhrul told reporters.Zia and Hasina have alternately ruled the country as prime ministers since 1991 when the country returned to a democracy after the ouster of authoritarian President H.M. Ershad.Zia served the country as prime minister three times, twice for full five-year terms and once for just a few months. During Hasinas 15 years in power, Zia was tried and jailed for 17 years in two corruption cases. Her party said the charges against Zia were politically motivated, an allegation Hasinas government denied. Later, Zia was released from jail on condition that she not leave the country. Zia is the widow of former military chief-turned-president Ziaur Rahman, who was assassinated in 1981. Hasina is the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who led Bangladeshs independence struggle against Pakistan in 1971.

For the LGBTQ+ community, stress is escalating.Today, perhaps more than at any time for many living queer Americans, our rights, identities, and very existence are under attack. With the erasure of trans identities from public discourse, life-saving medical care is being increasingly restricted, and even fundamental rights like marriage equality are back on the chopping block. The growing hostility toward queer and trans people, both legislatively and socially, creates a deep and persistent sense of unease.When we feel we must stay hyper-vigilant to exist safely, our nervous systems never get a chance to settle.Anxiety doesn't just live in our minds; it takes root in our bodies. Panic attacks, depression, and a loss of sexual desire can derail our daily lives. At the same time, insomnia, altered breathing, high blood pressure, and headaches create a ripple effect, intensifying our distress. Anxiety is often an invisible force, slowly draining our energy and making it harder to engage fully in our relationships, work, and sense of self.What makes anxiety especially insidious is that it doesn't require real danger to feel like a threat.Our perception plays a critical role here. When we believe something is threatening, our bodies respond as if survival is at stake. The fight, flight, freeze, or fawn response is a natural, even necessary, mechanism in moments of real danger. But in the case of chronic anxiety, our bodies prepare for an escape that never comes, leaving us locked in a cycle of stress.And yet, we're often told to "just relax" or "not let it get to us." But how do we relax when the body perceives a constant threat? How do we release tension when we never feel truly safe? The answer isn't in thinking out of anxiety; it's in reconnecting with our bodies, ultimately returning to love and care for ourselves and those closest to us.Embodiment as a Path to ReliefCommon answers like self-care and reaching out to the community are simple. Still, they can be difficult in daily life, compounded by an endless cycle of stress. When anxiety manifests as fatigue, headaches, or digestive distress, even bare acts of care can feel out of reach. Yet, amid this struggle, I've found something that genuinely helps: embodiment, a conversation with our physical body that allows us to feel our experience and think about it.Embodiment circles for many communities are emerging in person and virtually across the country and worldwide, offering a way to reconnect with our bodies and find relief. Many of these gatherings embody movement, breathwork, sound, visualization, and focused attention to help us access the wisdom of our bodies. Anxiety is a prime example of why this work matters. When we perceive a threat, our bodies react first. Embodiment practices allow us to listen to those signals, release stored tension, and shift from reactive fear to grounded presence.This kind of practice isn't about achieving some perfect state of calm; it's about creating space for awareness and providing tools to address disruption and overwhelm healthily. In The Circle Podcast, I often talk about how embodiment isn't about getting rid of anxiety; it's about relating to it differently. When we develop the capacity to notice what's happening in our bodies without immediately trying to fix or push it away, we can shift our relationship with stress.While yoga is a well-known embodiment practice, many other traditions inform today's embodiment work, making it accessible to many people. Somatic or body and breath-focused practices rooted in Indigenous traditions, martial arts, dance, and even breath-focused meditations all contribute to modern embodiment. At its core, embodiment work invites us to explore how we move, breathe, and inhabit our bodies to cultivate resilience.Why Community MattersEqually important, these spaces foster community. Anxiety thrives in isolation, but when we gather and hear someone say, I feel this too, it becomes easier to step out of the spiral. the validation of shared experience is robust; we find relief and strength within these circles.I often discuss the importance of "co-regulation," the idea that the people around us profoundly influence our nervous systems. When we are anxious, being around someone who is grounded and steady can help regulate our bodies. This is why community is so essential. It's not just about talking things outit's about feeling the support of others and allowing that energy to shift something inside us.Many people who come to embodiment circles express a sense of exhaustion, not just from anxiety itself but from carrying it alone. They find permission to breathe, move, and shake off tension naturally in these spaces. They begin to see that anxiety is not just a personal failing but a collective experience we can navigate together.How to Get Started with Embodiment PracticeIf you're curious about embodiment practices, there are growing resources to explore. Podcasts, often free to listen to and produced by various community members, provide insight into how these practices support personal and communal well-being. In-person and online embodiment groups are also increasingly available, offering spaces to connect, practice, and grow.The good news is that you don't have to wait for a formal class to start. Simply taking a moment to pause, breathe deeply, and notice what's happening in your body is an act of embodiment. Shaking out tension, stretching, and humming are small practices that can help shift your nervous system. The key is consistency.Building Resilience for the Road AheadIn times of uncertainty, we must develop tools that help us meet the moment with strength and steadiness. Embodiment practice is one such tool, offering us the necessary self-love when outside forces make us feel unwelcome or unseen. Just as an Olympian warms up, we must prepare ourselves for these moments to engage in our lives safely, thoroughly, and effectively.The world may not feel safe right now, but we can cultivate safety within ourselves. And when we do that together, we remind each other that we are not alone.Timothy Bish is a men's embodiment coach and facilitator with a deep background in yoga and acupuncture. He's the co-founder of The Circle: A Queer Men's Embodiment Podcast and is passionate about bringing the power of men's work to the queer community. Based in Provincetown, Tim leads the Men's Embodiment Circle, teaches yoga, coaches one-on-one, and runs Helltown Fitnessall with the aim of helping people be their healthiest to live their happiest.Voices is dedicated to featuring a wide range of inspiring personal stories and impactful opinions from the LGBTQ+ and Allied community. Visit pride.com/submit to learn more about submission guidelines. We welcome your thoughts and feedback on any of our stories. Email us at voices@equalpride.com. Views expressed in Voices stories are those of the guest writers, columnists and editors, and do not directly represent the views of PRIDE.com or our parent company, equalpride.

Nature, Published online: 06 May 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-01207-8Researchers and administrators are exploring ways to restructure a rigid hierarchy that can breed power abuses.

Nature, Published online: 06 May 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-01406-3Manage releases of forever chemicals in lab waste

Nature, Published online: 06 May 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-01403-6Next CERN collider has community input

Nature, Published online: 06 May 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-01405-4USAIDs shutdown: a crisis for sub-Saharan Africa

Nature, Published online: 06 May 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-01404-5In science-for-policy design, one size doesnt fit all