Iranian-linked ships carrying Russian oil were among those that received temporary exemptions from sanctions, a sign of how dire the energy crisis is becoming.

Oil had not flowed through the pipeline since a 2015 rupture caused an environmental disaster on Californias Central Coast. It sets up a new fight between the Trump administration and state officials.

Instead of obsessing over the fictional Cheburashka, Russians should be focused on more important things like the rebirth of a Russian empire, influential conservatives say.

Jamie Sims left, and Carlos Serna, right, try to get some rest as they wait for their cancelled flight to El Paso, texas to be rescheduled at Love Field Airport in Dallas, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)2026-03-17T04:11:26Z ATLANTA (AP) Hundreds of flights were canceled or delayed Tuesday, one day after powerful storms swept across the eastern half of the country and upended air travel in a cross-section of cities. Travelers have been facing additional jams at airport security checkpoints as a partial government shutdown strains screener staffing. The disruptions come at an already challenging time for air travel, in part because the shutdown that began Feb. 14 has pressured staffing at some security checkpoints. At the same time, airports are crowded with spring break travelers and fans heading to March Madness games, the annual NCAA mens and womens college basketball tournaments.More than 550 flights scheduled to fly into, out of or within the U.S. have been called off as of early Tuesday, and over 460 were delayed, according to flight-tracking site FlightAware. Flight delays and cancellations piled up Monday at some of the nations largest airports, including those in New York, Chicago and Atlanta. The storm system that dumped heavy snow across the Midwest raced toward the East Coast with the potential for high winds and tornadoes, the National Weather Service warned Monday. Kelly Price, who was trying to get home to Colorado after a family vacation in Orlando, Florida, said her Sunday night flight wasnt canceled until early Monday.By that time the only place for us to sleep was the airport floor. So were all tired and frustrated, she said, adding that the soonest she and her family could book another flight doesnt leave until Tuesday afternoon. Impact to major airport hubs The nationwide cancellations on Monday included about 600 in and out of Chicago OHare International, more than 470 at Atlantas Hartsfield-Jackson International and over 450 at LaGuardia Airport in New York City, according to FlightAware.Citing severe weather, the Federal Aviation Administration ordered ground stops at Hartsfield-Jackson and Charlotte Douglas International Airport and ground delays at JFK and Newark Liberty International Airport.Danielle Cash found herself stranded in St. Louis on Sunday while trying to get home to Tampa, Florida, after a weekend girls trip to Las Vegas. Now shes spending several hundred dollars more than planned on a hotel room in a snowy city she wasnt dressed for. It was 80 degrees in Tampa when I left and then going to Vegas, she said. And it was 90 degrees in the desert.Cash said shes now booked on a flight that will take her to Tennessee before finally returning to Tampa by Tuesday afternoon.TSA staffing strains some checkpointsThe storms unfolded just as airport security screeners missed their first full paycheck over the weekend. The current partial government shutdown affects only the Department of Homeland Security, which includes the Transportation Security Administration.Democrats in Congress have said Homeland Security wont get funded until new restrictions are placed on federal immigration operations following the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis earlier this year.It is the third shutdown in less than a year to leave TSA workers temporarily without pay. Once the government reopens, employees will have to wait for back pay.Some airports have reported longer security lines because of staffing shortages as more TSA workers take on second jobs, cant afford gas to get to work or leave the profession altogether. Homeland Security has said more than 300 TSA agents have quit since the start of the shutdown. Security wait times could worsenTSA union leaders in Atlanta held a news conference Monday outside Hartsfield-Jackson, warning that air travelers could face increasingly long wait times as the shutdown continues. Even so, union leaders said, many officers are still reporting to work despite mounting financial strain.Many TSA workers are coping with eviction notices, vehicle repossessions, empty refrigerators and overdrawn bank accounts, said Aaron Barker, a local leader with the American Federation of Government Employees. Supporters behind him held signs reading, We want a paycheck, not a rain check.Travelers flying out of New Orleans on Sunday and Monday were advised to arrive at least three hours early due to impacts from the federal governments partial shutdown, Louis Armstrong International Airport said on X. And the airport in Austin, Texas, shared a video on X taken at 5:30 a.m. local time showing the security line spilling out onto the sidewalk outside. Back in Atlanta, Mel Stewart and his wife arrived four hours earlier than usual for their flight out of Hartsfield-Jackson to make up for longer TSA lines.I think its being politicized way too much way too much, Stewart said Monday of the shutdown. And these people are working. They work hard, and for TSA people not to get paid, thats silly.___Yamat reported from Las Vegas. Associated Press reporters Margery A. Beck in Omaha, Nebraska and Audrey McAvoy in Honolulu contributed to this report. RIO YAMAT Yamat is a national business reporter for The Associated Press. Based in Las Vegas, she covers airlines, travel and tourism. twitter mailto

The early reality of the Iran war is not cooperating with President Trumps bluster.

With the Xi-Trump summit now almost certainly delayed, and tensions rising over the war in Iran, vital issues for both the U.S. and China are also being cast into uncertainty.

Volunteers clean debris from a residential building damaged when a nearby police station was hit Friday in a U.S.-Israeli strike in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)2026-03-17T05:40:13Z DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) Residents of Dubai and Doha, Qatar, awoke to the sound of explosions Tuesday as air defenses worked to intercept new waves of incoming Iranian fire, and Israel launched new strikes on Iran and Lebanon, as the war in the Middle East showed no signs of abating. Dubai, a major transit hub for international travel, briefly shut its airspace as the military said it was responding to incoming missile and drone threats around the city. The Israeli military said early Tuesday it had begun a wide-scale wave of strikes across Irans capital and was also stepping up strikes on Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. Israel also reported two incoming salvos before dawn from Iran at Tel Aviv and elsewhere, and said Hezbollah targeted Israels north. Iranian strikes pressure neighbors and oil marketsIran kept up the pressure on the energy infrastructure of its Gulf Arab neighbors, hitting an oil facility in Fujairah, a UAE emirate on the countrys east coast with the Gulf of Oman that has been repeatedly targeted. State-run WAM news reported that no one had been injured in the blast from the drone strike. In Abu Dhabi, a man was killed by falling shrapnel when the capitals defenses shot down a missile, the eighth person to die in the UAE since the start of the war, authorities said. Irans attacks on Gulf nations and its stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the worlds oil is transported, has given rise to increasing concerns of a global energy crisis. Early Tuesday it hit a tanker anchored off the coast of Fujairah, one of about 20 vessels hit since Israel and the United States started the war with an attack on Iran on Feb. 28. With Washington under increasing pressure over rising oil prices, Brent crude, the international standard, remained over $100 a barrel, up more than 40% since the war started. U.S. President Donald Trump said he had demanded that roughly a half-dozen countries send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open. But his appeals brought no immediate commitments, with many saying they are hesitant to get involved in a war with no defined exit plan and skeptical that they could do more than the U.S. Navy. UAE briefly closes airspace as Iran launches new attacks on Gulf neighborsThe UAE shut down its airspace early Tuesday as its military reported it was responding to missile and drone threats from Iran. The closure was soon lifted, and not long after the sounds of explosions could be heard as the military worked to intercept incoming fire.The snap announcement on its airspace showed the balancing act Emirati authorities face in trying to keep their long-haul carriers, Emirates and Etihad, flying as Iranian attacks continue to target the country. Saudi Arabias Defense Ministry reported intercepting a dozen drones Tuesday morning over the countrys vast Eastern Province, home to oil infrastructure.In Qatar, the sounds of explosions boomed over the capital early in the day as defenses worked to intercept incoming fire. Qatars Defense Ministry said later that it had successfully thwarted a missile attack on the city, though a fire broke out in an industrial area from a downed projectile. Attacks from Iran-linked proxy forces continued in Iraq, as the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad was hit with shrapnel from drones that had been intercepted. The embassys air defenses were able to shoot down all four drones targeting the facility, according to two Iraqi security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters.A separate strike targeted a house in the heavily fortified Presidential Compound in Baghdads al-Jadriya area, the officials said. It wasnt clear who carried out either attack but Iran-allied militias have regularly been attacking American targets inside Iraq since the conflict began.Israel launches new attacks on Tehran and steps up strikes on BeirutThe Israeli military early Tuesday said it had launched new attacks across Tehran in addition to the Lebanese capital targeting Hezbollah militants.More than 1,300 people have been killed in Iran since the start of the conflict, according to the Iranian Red Crescent.Israels strikes have also displaced more than 1 million Lebanese or roughly 20% of the population according to the Lebanese government, which says some 850 people have been killed. Some Israeli troops have pushed into southern Lebanon, and there are fears Israel is preparing a large-scale invasion. The militarys chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, said Monday on a visit to the northern border that Israels army is determined to deepen the operation until all of our objectives are achieved and that the militarys Northern Command is being reinforced with additional soldiers. Israel reported two Iranian salvos early Tuesday fired toward Tel Aviv and an area south of the Sea of Galilee. More launches from Lebanon were also reported. In Israel, 12 people have been killed by Iranian missile fire. At least 13 U.S. military members have been killed. Trump seeks allies help to police the Strait of HormuzThe virtual shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz is unnerving the world economy, driving up energy prices, threatening food shortages in poor countries, destabilizing fragile states and complicating efforts by central banks to drive down prices for consumers.There have been a handful of ships getting through, primarily Iranian but also from other countries including India and Turkey, and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said: from our perspective it is open just not for the United States, Israel and its allies.Underscoring the danger of even getting close to the strait, a tanker anchored off the eastern coast of the United Arab Emirates was hit by a projectile early Tuesday morning.The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center, run by the British military, reported the attack, saying the vessel was in the Gulf of Oman off Fujairah. It said the tanker sustained minor structural damage and no one was hurt.On Monday, Trump said numerous countries have told him theyre on the way to help police the Strait of Hormuz but there was no sign of that actually happening. Europeans have been critical of the U.S. and Israel for failing to provide clarity on their objectives in the war and have suggested that they are more interested in a diplomatic solution than getting dragged into the conflict. Japan and Australia said Monday they had not been asked to help protect the strait and had no current plans to do so, and Italys Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said his country favors strengthening anti-piracy and defensive missions in the Red Sea, but not expanding their role in the Strait of Hormuz. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said his country might deploy mine-hunting drones already in the region, but will not be drawn into the wider war.___Rising reported from Bangkok and Magdy from Cairo. Associated Press writers Russ Bynum in Savannah, Georgia; Giovanna DellOrto in Miami, Florida; and Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad contributed to this report. JON GAMBRELL Gambrell is the news director for the Gulf and Iran for The Associated Press. He has reported from each of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Iran and other locations across the world since joining the AP in 2006. twitter instagram mailto DAVID RISING Rising covers regional Asia-Pacific stories for The Associated Press. He has worked around the world, including covering the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Ukraine, and was based for nearly 20 years in Berlin before moving to Bangkok. twitter mailto SAMY MAGDY Magdy is a Middle East reporter for The Associated Press, based in Cairo. He focuses on conflict, migration and human rights abuses. twitter facebook mailto

The Lakers, in the process of carving out a defensive identity, threw a steady diet of double-teams at Kevin Durant in the fourth quarter Monday, leading to disastrous results for Houston. "I just felt like I lost the game for us tonight," said Durant.

The only war Trump had an exit plan for was Vietnam, Kimmel remarked after the president said he would end the war in Iran when he feels it in his bones.

Residents and volunteers inspect the site of a late-Monday airstrike at a drug rehabilitation hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Siddiqullah Alizai)2026-03-17T07:13:06Z KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) Rescue crews were still digging bodies out of the rubble of a drug rehabilitation hospital in the Afghan capital Tuesday morning, after officials there said an overnight Pakistani airstrike killed at least 400 people at the facility.Pakistan has denied Afghanistans accusation that it targeted a hospital, saying its strikes, which were also conducted in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, did not hit any civilian sites.The strikes late Monday night mark a dramatic escalation of a conflict that began between Afghanistan and Pakistan late last month and has seen repeated cross-border clashes as well as airstrikes inside Afghanistan. International calls for a ceasefire have gone unheeded.In a late-night post on X, Afghanistans deputy government spokesperson Hamdullah Fitrat said the airstrike had hit the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital, a 2,000-bed facility in Kabul, at about 9 p.m. local time. He said large sections of the facility had been destroyed, and that the death toll had so far reached 400 people, while about 250 people had been reported injured. There was no updated official death toll early Tuesday morning. Local television stations posted footage on X showing security forces using flashlights as they carried out casualties while firefighters struggled to extinguish flames among the ruins of a building. Cross-border fireThe strike came hours after Afghan officials said the two sides exchanged fire along their common border, killing four people in Afghanistan, as the deadliest fighting between the neighbors in years entered a third week. Afghan government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid condemned the strike on X, accusing Pakistan of targeting hospitals and civilian sites to perpetrate horrors. He said those killed were innocent civilians and addicts.We strongly condemn this crime and consider such an act to be against all accepted principles and a crime against humanity, he said in a separate post on X. Pakistan dismisses the allegationsPakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharifs spokesperson, Mosharraf Zaidi, dismissed the allegations as baseless, saying no hospital was targeted in Kabul. Pakistans Information Minister Attaullah Tarar posted on X in the early hours Tuesday that the Pakistani military had carried out precision airstrikes targeting military installations in Kabul and the eastern province of Nangarhar. He said technical support infrastructure and ammunition storage facilities at two locations in Kabul were destroyed. All targeting has been done with precision only at those infrastructures which are being used by Afghan Taliban regime to support its multiple terror proxies, he wrote. Pakistans Ministry of Information said earlier that Mujahids claim was false and misleading and aimed at stirring sentiment and cover what it described as illegitimate support for cross-border terrorism. It said Pakistans targeting was precise and carefully undertaken to ensure no collateral damage is inflicted. UN calls on Afghanistan to combat militantsThe strike came hours after the U.N. Security Council called on Afghanistans Taliban rulers to immediately step up efforts to combat terrorism. Pakistan accuses Kabul of harboring militant groups, particularly the Pakistani Taliban, which it says carry out attacks inside Pakistan.The Security Council resolution, adopted unanimously, didnt refer specifically to attacks carried out in Pakistan but condemned in the strongest terms all terrorist activity including terrorist attacks. Pakistans government accuses Afghanistan of providing safe haven to the Pakistani Taliban, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, as well as to outlawed Baloch separatist groups and other militants who frequently target Pakistani security forces and civilians across the country. Kabul denies the charge. The latest conflictThe fighting the most severe between the two neighbors began in late February after Afghanistan launched cross-border attacks in response to Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan that Kabul said killed civilians. The clashes disrupted a ceasefire brokered by Qatar in October after earlier fighting killed dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants.Pakistan has declared it is in open war with Afghanistan. The conflict has alarmed the international community, particularly as the area is one where other militant organizations, including al-Qaida and the Islamic State group, still have a presence and have been trying to resurface.On Saturday, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said Afghanistans Taliban administration crossed a red line by deploying drones that injured several civilians in Pakistan last week.___Ahmed reported from Islamabad, and Becatoros from Athens, Greece. Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed. ELENA BECATOROS Becatoros oversees coverage of southeast Europe for The Associated Press, with frequent assignments to the Middle East and Afghanistan. Based in Athens, Greece, she has worked around the world, including covering war in the Balkans, Iraq, Afghanistan and Ukraine. twitter instagram mailto

An ambulance is seen at the hospital following a bomb blast in Maiduguri, Nigeria, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo )2026-03-17T06:48:28Z MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) At least 23 people were killed and more than 100 wounded in suspected suicide bombings Monday night that targeted Maiduguri city in northeastern Nigeria, police said Tuesday. It was one of the deadliest attacks in the conflict-battered city in recent history.Residents and emergency services earlier told The Associated Press that three explosions were reported in crowded places in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, including in a major market and at the entrance of the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital.Regrettably, a total of 23 persons lost their lives, while 108 others sustained varying degrees of injuries, Borno police spokesperson Nahum Kenneth Daso said in a statement that blamed the attacks on suspected suicide bombers.No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, but suspicion quickly fell on the Boko Haram jihadi group, which in 2009 launched an insurgency in northeastern Nigeria to enforce their radical interpretation of Shariah. Boko Haram has since become stronger, with thousands of fighters and different factions, including the Islamic State West Africa Province, which is backed by the Islamic State group. Maiduguri city has been at the heart of the deadly violence but has in recent years experienced relative peace even as the countryside is often battered by extremists.Residents recounted the chaos that followed the explosions. This attacks been one of the deadliest in Maiduguri in years, said Mohammed Hassan, a member of a volunteer group assisting security forces in fighting extremists. Were in dire need of blood, he said of the situation hours after the attack.The extremists have intensified their attacks against Nigerian military bases, killing several senior officers and soldiers, and stripping the bases of stocks of weaponry and ammunition.

A person walks near a stock price monitor showing Nikkei index at a security company Tuesday, March 17, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)2026-03-17T04:49:24Z BANGKOK (AP) Shares wavered in Asia on Tuesday after a drop in oil prices helped send the U.S. stock market to its best day since the war in Iran began.The reprieve in prices for crude was short-lived, with Brent crude climbing nearly 4% early Tuesday to $104.21 a barrel. U.S. benchmark crude also climbed, to $97.61 per barrel after dipping to about $93 on Monday.U.S. futures fell back, with the contracts for the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.5%. In Asian trading, Tokyos Nikkei 225 gave up early gains to slip 0.2% to 53,630.16 and the Kospi in South Korea jumped 1.6% to 5,639.77.Hong Kongs Hang Seng added 0.2% to 25,892.88, while the Shanghai Composite index dropped 0.6% to 4,058.31. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.4% to 8,614.30 after the central bank hiked its benchmark interest rate to 4.1%. Citing higher fuel prices, the Reserve Bank of Australia on Tuesday lifted the cash rate from 3.85% which it set at its Feb. 3 meeting in response to surging inflation. That rise was Australias first since November 2023. Taiwans Taiex rose 1.5% and Indias Sensex shed 0.1%. On Monday, the S&P 500 climbed 1% to 6,698.38 for its biggest gain in five weeks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.8% to 46,946.41. The Nasdaq composite jumped 1.2% to 22,374.18.The driver for markets has been oil prices, which have spiked from roughly $70 before the United States and Israel began their attacks on Iran. In response, Iran has nearly halted traffic through the narrow Strait of Hormuz, where a fifth of the worlds oil typically sails from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide. That has oil producers cutting production because their crude has nowhere to go. The worry in financial markets is that if the strait remains closed for a long time, it could keep enough oil off the market to drive inflation up to a debilitating level for the global economy. The panic is still there, just dialled down a notch as crude slipped off the boil. Brent easing back toward $100 flipped the tape from bunker mentality to opportunistic risk-taking in a heartbeat, Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a commentary.President Donald Trump over the weekend demanded that other countries hurt by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz take care of that passage and said his country will help - A LOT!The U.S. and Israel have kept pummeling what they describe as military targets in Irans capital, and Israel stepped up its campaign against Iran-backed militants in Lebanon. More than 1 million people have been displaced in Lebanon roughly 20% of the nations population as U.N. peacekeepers say Israel is massing ground troops along the border. Uncertainty over the wars scope and duration have roiled financial markets since the war began just over two weeks ago, though markets have a track record of bouncing back relatively quickly from military conflicts. Many professional investors are expecting that to be the case again, if oil prices dont go too high for too long. That has helped keep U.S. stock prices near their record levels. Higher prices are complicating the Federal Reserves mission of balancing growth and inflation as President Donald Trump pushes the central bank to slash interest rates. Traders do not expect the Fed to cut rates at its policy meeting that wraps up on Wednesday. Nvidia, whose chips are powering much of the worlds move into artificial-intelligence technology rose 1.6% on Monday as its CEO, Jensen Huang, talked up AIs possibilities at a conference, saying he foresaw $1 trillion in demand for AI chips through 2027. It was the strongest single force lifting the S&P 500. In other dealings early Tuesday, the U.S. dollar rose to 159.43 Japanese yen from 159.05 yen. The euro slipped to $1.1478 from $1.1507. ___Associated Press writer Rod McGuirk in Melbourne, Australia, and AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Stan Choe contributed. ELAINE KURTENBACH Based in Bangkok, Kurtenbach is the APs business editor for Asia, helping to improve and expand our coverage of regional economies, climate change and the transition toward carbon-free energy. She has been covering economic, social, environmental and political trends in China, Japan and Southeast Asia throughout her career. twitter mailto

Women wait to collect household cylinders of liquefied natural gas from an authorized dealer in Ahmedabad, India, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)2026-03-17T03:58:18Z BANGKOK (AP) The escalating war with Iran is pushing parts of the world into energy triage, forcing governments to choose where to cut demand or absorb costs, while prioritizing dwindling supplies.Asia is the most exposed since it relies heavily on imported fuel, much of it shipped through the now-blockedStrait of Hormuz. The narrow passage offshore from Iran is the main route for shipping a fifth of global trade in crude oil and liquified natural gas.Governments in the region are scrambling to adjust tallying oil reserves, conserving energy, competing for supplies and trying to blunt prices. That brings difficult trade-offs: saving power may slow business activity. Prioritizing cooking gas for households can hurt restaurants and other businesses. Cooks at a restaurant prepare meals over a charcoal stove following a shortage of liquefied petroleum gas in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool) Cooks at a restaurant prepare meals over a charcoal stove following a shortage of liquefied petroleum gas in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Motorists wait behind a rope for their turn to get fuel at a pump, fearing a possible fuel shortage due to the Iran war, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu, File) Motorists wait behind a rope for their turn to get fuel at a pump, fearing a possible fuel shortage due to the Iran war, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Sunday, March 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahmud Hossain Opu, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Tricycle drivers prepare their documents to receive their cash assistance from the government to help in their livelihood as oil prices continue to rise on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, in Manila, Philippines. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila) Tricycle drivers prepare their documents to receive their cash assistance from the government to help in their livelihood as oil prices continue to rise on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, in Manila, Philippines. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Even relatively modest constraints on energy use can create a drag on industrial activity, said Linh Nguyen, with the consultancy Control Risks. She pointed to Vietnams energy-intensive export industries and warned that higher fuel costs or conservation measures could quickly raise production costs or slow factory output. Analysts warn the same hard choices could soon spread beyond Asia to fuel-importing economies in Africa and elsewhere as countries compete for scarce supplies.The situation is common across the board, said Putra Adhiguna of the Jakarta-based Energy Shift Institute. There is no easy decision for the short term. Southeast Asia is rationing scarce energyWith oil prices surging despite releases of some reserves, Southeast Asia is stretching dwindling energy reserves by urging households, businesses and government agencies to slash power use. In the Philippines, officials have switched to a four-day workweek to cut back on fuel consumption and reduce the governments energy use by a fifth. Office have been told to switch off computers during lunch breaks and keep air conditioning no lower than 24C (75F). Vietnam has urged people to work from home. While in Thailand, the prime minister has even asked officials to take the stairs instead of elevators. A security guard walks along offices at the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority closed due to the implementation of four-day work week on March 13, 2026 in Pasig, Philippines. (AP Photo/Aaron Favilal) A security guard walks along offices at the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority closed due to the implementation of four-day work week on March 13, 2026 in Pasig, Philippines. (AP Photo/Aaron Favilal) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Desks remain at an empty office at the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority closed due to the implementation of four-day work week on Friday, March 13, 2026 in Pasig, Philippines. (AP Photo/Aaron Favilal) Desks remain at an empty office at the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority closed due to the implementation of four-day work week on Friday, March 13, 2026 in Pasig, Philippines. (AP Photo/Aaron Favilal) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More But this comes at a cost. Dieu Linh, a vegetable seller in Hanoi, said even a 10% rise in fuel costs will eat into her thin margins. If my costs go up by even a little, the profit is almost gone, she said.At the same time, countries in the region are competing for limited supplies at higher costs. Vietnam has asked refineries and fuel distributors to keep fuel supplies high, while Thailand is stretching its roughly two-month oil reserve and seeking other domestic energy sources. Both are using price supports to shield households from rising costs.Thailand halted exports to protect its limited reserves, contributing to shortages that have closed nearly a third of Cambodias roughly 6,000 gas stations.East Asia searches for new energy suppliers and sourcesMore than 80% of the liquefied natural gas, or LNG, that passed the Strait of Hormuz in 2024 went to Asia, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, and much of it to Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. Japans first line of defense is its vast strategic oil stockpile, amounting to around 254 days worth of supplies. This system was set up after the shocks from the 1970s Arab oil crisis. Part of Eneos groups Kashima oil refinery is seen as local residents try to catch fish at a wharf in Kamisu, east of Tokyo, Sunday, March 15, 2026.(AP Photo/Hiro Komae) Part of Eneos groups Kashima oil refinery is seen as local residents try to catch fish at a wharf in Kamisu, east of Tokyo, Sunday, March 15, 2026.(AP Photo/Hiro Komae) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Japan began releasing about 45 days worth of oil reserves this week to prevent fuel prices from surging as crude oil imports slow. It last released reserves after Russias invasion of Ukraine in 2022.This will help keep Japans energy-intensive industries running, from automobiles to steel manufacturing and heavy machinery. Companies like Toyota, Mitsubishi and Nippon Steel depend on steady fuel supplies.South Korea plans to release 22.46 million barrels from its reserves under the International Energy Agency s largest-ever coordinated stock draw.But analysts said that tapping reserves isnt a longterm solution. A protester holds a sign against Donald Trumps demands to multiple countries to send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, near the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man) A protester holds a sign against Donald Trumps demands to multiple countries to send warships to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, near the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More It will give refineries some buffer against disruptions. But this does not increase a countrys overall supply unless it can buy oil released by other nations, said Muyu Xu of the energy consultancy Kpler. If the crisis drags on, crude oil shortages could return. The releases may keep refineries running for another few weeks, but companies may need to slow production if disruptions continue, she added. The fundamental difficulties will not be solved by this action, said Mika Ohbayashi of the Renewable Energy Institute in Japan, adding that renewable energy was a long-term solution but the Japanese government was uninterested.Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is due to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump later this month and Japans plans to buy more American LNG and restart nuclear power plants are likely to be on the agenda, analysts say.Populous nations prioritize homes, but face price pinchIndia is prioritizing household needs for its limited supply of liquefied petroleum gas or LPG, which is used for cooking and to power cars.It has absorbed more than half of the increase driven by global market disruptions under a federal scheme to keep prices low for poor households, said Indian Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.But shortages are already seeping into restaurants and hotels in the worlds second-largest LPG importer, as eateries shorten hours, close temporarily or trim long-simmered curries and deep-fried snacks from their menus. 1 of 7| An empty liquefied petroleum gas cylinder is seen beside a temple while a customer waits at a depot for the cylinder to be refilled in Hyderabad, India, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.) Read More 2 of 7| A woman talks on mobile as she waits to collect household cylinder of liquefied natural gas from an authorized dealer in Ahmedabad, India, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki) Read More 3 of 7| A worker distributes household liquefied petroleum gas cylinders to customers in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin) Read More 4 of 7| A worker inspects liquefied petroleum gas cylinders, arranged for customer delivery at a distribution centre on the outskirts of Amritsar, India, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Prabhjot Gill) Read More 5 of 7| A staff writes on a ledger as workers unload cylinders of liquified natural gas for households at a distribution point, in Kolkata, India, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Bikas Das) Read More 6 of 7| Women wait to collect household cylinders of liquefied natural gas from an authorized dealer in Ahmedabad, India, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki) Read More 7 of 7| People queue to collect household cylinders of liquefied natural gas from an authorized dealer on a roadside in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin) Read More 1 of 7| An empty liquefied petroleum gas cylinder is seen beside a temple while a customer waits at a depot for the cylinder to be refilled in Hyderabad, India, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.) Read More 1 of 7 An empty liquefied petroleum gas cylinder is seen beside a temple while a customer waits at a depot for the cylinder to be refilled in Hyderabad, India, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 2 of 7| A woman talks on mobile as she waits to collect household cylinder of liquefied natural gas from an authorized dealer in Ahmedabad, India, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki) Read More 2 of 7 A woman talks on mobile as she waits to collect household cylinder of liquefied natural gas from an authorized dealer in Ahmedabad, India, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 3 of 7| A worker distributes household liquefied petroleum gas cylinders to customers in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin) Read More 3 of 7 A worker distributes household liquefied petroleum gas cylinders to customers in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 4 of 7| A worker inspects liquefied petroleum gas cylinders, arranged for customer delivery at a distribution centre on the outskirts of Amritsar, India, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Prabhjot Gill) Read More 4 of 7 A worker inspects liquefied petroleum gas cylinders, arranged for customer delivery at a distribution centre on the outskirts of Amritsar, India, Friday, March 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Prabhjot Gill) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 5 of 7| A staff writes on a ledger as workers unload cylinders of liquified natural gas for households at a distribution point, in Kolkata, India, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Bikas Das) Read More 5 of 7 A staff writes on a ledger as workers unload cylinders of liquified natural gas for households at a distribution point, in Kolkata, India, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Bikas Das) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 6 of 7| Women wait to collect household cylinders of liquefied natural gas from an authorized dealer in Ahmedabad, India, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki) Read More 6 of 7 Women wait to collect household cylinders of liquefied natural gas from an authorized dealer in Ahmedabad, India, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More 7 of 7| People queue to collect household cylinders of liquefied natural gas from an authorized dealer on a roadside in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin) Read More 7 of 7 People queue to collect household cylinders of liquefied natural gas from an authorized dealer on a roadside in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, March 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More The scale of demand in India, the worlds most populous nation, limits how long it can cap prices to shield consumers. The situation could worsen within a week if government subsidies lapse, said Duttatreya Das of the think tank Ember, noting gas supplies were the most immediate concern.You cant store a lot of gas, Das said, adding that fertilizer factories and small industries will feel the pinch first. Liberia-flagged tanker Shenlong Suezmax, carrying crude oil from Saudi Arabia, that arrived clearing the Strait of Hormuz, is seen at the Mumbai Port in Mumbai, India, Thursday, March 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool, File) Liberia-flagged tanker Shenlong Suezmax, carrying crude oil from Saudi Arabia, that arrived clearing the Strait of Hormuz, is seen at the Mumbai Port in Mumbai, India, Thursday, March 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Indonesia, a country of 287 million people and Southeast Asias most populous nation, also faces hard choices. While the government has promised to maintain fuel prices throughout Eid al-Fitr, the Muslim holiday marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan, Adhiguna of the Energy Shift Institute said there is no clarity about what will happen after that, adding that this implies fuel prices could increase. People carry their belongings as they arrive for a free bus trip to their hometowns to celebrate Eid-al Fitr, organized by the Jakarta provincial government in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim) People carry their belongings as they arrive for a free bus trip to their hometowns to celebrate Eid-al Fitr, organized by the Jakarta provincial government in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Bus crew wait for passengers as the mass exodus out of Jakarta and other major cities is underway ahead of Eid al-Fitr in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara) Bus crew wait for passengers as the mass exodus out of Jakarta and other major cities is underway ahead of Eid al-Fitr in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, March 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Thailand is also caught in a dilemma. If it ends subsidies that keep prices low, living costs will jump and that could spark a panic if reserves fall further, said Areeporn Asawinpongphan of the Thailand Development Research Institute.If the conflict continues, Indonesia will have to choose between keeping the subsides that protect customers or cutting funding to keep to budgetary limits. However, this could fuel inflation. Given Indonesias limited 20-day reserve, Adhiguna warned that price fluctuations in Indonesias fuel market will be swift.It will eventually reach a breaking point, Adhiguna said.Europe feels the squeeze, tooThe European Union is doubling down on its long-term clean energy strategy to cut consumption and rein in prices across the 27-nation bloc that have risen sharply since the wars start. Officials met in Brussel this week, where they considered ways to improve the regions energy security.We are looking at how we can reduce peoples energy bills, said European Commissioner for Energy Dan Jrgensen. We are working on immediate measures to help businesses and our most vulnerable citizens.___Ghosal reported from Hanoi, Vietnam. Associated Press writers Elaine Kurtenbach in Bangkok, Thailand, Sam McNeil in Brussels and Piyush Nagpal in New Delhi, India contributed to this report.___The Associated Press climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find APs standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org. ANTON L. DELGADO Delgado covers climate and energy stories across Southeast Asia for The Associated Press. twitter instagram mailto ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL Ghosal covers the intersection of business and climate change in southeast Asia for The Associated Press. He is based out of Hanoi in Vietnam. twitter mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

FILE-- Migrants from Syria and Libya in a wooden boat call for help as they are assisted by Spanish NGO Open Arms during a rescue operation inside Malta's SAR zone south of the Italian island of Lampedusa in the Mediterranean sea, Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)2026-03-17T05:08:44Z ROME (AP) Bodies washing ashore day after day. Phone calls from relatives going unanswered. Migrants tents abandoned overnight.Migrants trying to reach Europe are vanishing in droves in what are known as invisible shipwrecks but governments responsible for search and rescue are withholding information about what they know. The beginning of 2026 ranks as the deadliest start to any year for people trying to cross the Mediterranean an unprecedented 682 confirmed missing as of March 16 according to the United Nations International Organization for Migration. But the real death toll is almost certainly much higher. Human rights groups are increasingly struggling to verify tolls as Italy, Tunisia and Malta have quietly restricted information on migrant rescues and shipwrecks along the deadliest migration route in the world. The news barely makes headlines, in part because the lack of transparency prevents journalists from confirming reports. Its a strategy of silence, said Matteo Villa, a researcher focusing on migration and data at the Italian Institute for International Political Studies think tank. The organization Refugees in Libya and other human rights groups have been sounding the alarm since late January, reporting more than 1,000 people missing after Cyclone Harry hit the region. But authorities have not confirmed, denied or corrected those reports. In the weeks that followed the cyclone, more than 20 decomposing bodies washed ashore in Italy and Libya while other human remains were spotted floating in the middle of the sea.For the families of missing migrants, not knowing their fate is excruciating. Europe should know that these people who got drowned in the sea have family members, have dreams, have passions, Josephus Thomas, a migrant from Sierra Leone and community leader in Tunisias coastal town of El Amra, told AP. FILE-- Migrants from Syria and Libya in a wooden boat call for help as they are assisted by Spanish NGO Open Arms during a rescue operation inside Maltas SAR zone south of the Italian island of Lampedusa in the Mediterranean sea, Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) FILE-- Migrants from Syria and Libya in a wooden boat call for help as they are assisted by Spanish NGO Open Arms during a rescue operation inside Maltas SAR zone south of the Italian island of Lampedusa in the Mediterranean sea, Thursday, Aug. 11, 2022. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Sparse information means fewer deaths recordedEven the U.N.'s migration agency is increasingly unable to verify cases of migrants who die in what is known as invisible shipwrecks because of the growing lack of information.Last year, at least 1,500 people were reported missing whose fates IOM could not confirm, said Julia Black, who leads the organizations Missing Migrants Project. The issue persists in 2026.We started a new secondary data set of what we are calling unverifiable cases because its just become so many, Black said. For this year, they already have more than 400 missing they could not verify.Many humanitarian organizations that previously filled some of the information gaps are no longer able to do so because of the global wave of funding cuts and government-imposed restrictions across the region.Weve seen the restriction of access for humanitarian actors, which is not right. And now were seeing even the restriction of information, Black said.The Associated Press repeatedly asked authorities in Tunisia, Italy and Malta why they arent sharing information related to migrant rescues at sea and what their policies are. Not one responded. In this photo taken on Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019, the sun shines over international waters north of Libya in the Mediterranean Sea. (AP Photo/Renata Brito) In this photo taken on Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019, the sun shines over international waters north of Libya in the Mediterranean Sea. (AP Photo/Renata Brito) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Countries quiet on reports of boats missing after cycloneOver the years, authorities in the Mediterranean have gradually reduced information related to migrants. But their silence was even more pronounced in late January after Cyclone Harry unleashed heavy rainfall, winds of 100 kph (62 mph), and 9-meter-tall (30 feet) waves.Hundreds of people had departed from Tunisias coastal region of Sfax and disappeared, according to information the group Refugees in Libya gathered from migrants in Tunisia and their relatives abroad.The group acknowledged it was difficult to be precise because there is no central system recording departures, losses, or recoveries, but it warned that the death toll was likely even higher.We are looking at boats that never counted how many kids are inside, Refugees in Libya founder David Yambio told AP.The AP sent five email requests to the Italian coast guard seeking information on the boats reported missing and search efforts but received no response. An officer who answered the phone said the coast guard did not have any further verified and confirmed information regarding the circumstances. AP also filed a Freedom of Information request, which is pending. The coast guard also declined to comment on an alert it issued on Jan. 24 asking vessels sailing between the Italian island of Lampedusa and Tunisia to be on the lookout for eight small boats in distress carrying some 380 people. The alert was made public by Italian journalist Sergio Scandura. This picture released by SOS Humanity on Monday, March 16, 2026, shows rescue operations in the Mediterranean Sea one of the deadliest migration route in the world (Barbara Sartore/SOS Humanity via AP) This picture released by SOS Humanity on Monday, March 16, 2026, shows rescue operations in the Mediterranean Sea one of the deadliest migration route in the world (Barbara Sartore/SOS Humanity via AP) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More One survivor rescued from the boatsThere is only one known survivor from the boats reported missing during Cyclone Harry. He was floating in the water when a merchant vessel rescued him on Jan. 22. The man told crew members he had been traveling with another 50 people, some of whose bodies could be seen in the water in video of the rescue. Thanks to his testimony, their deaths were included in IOMs tally. According to the captain, the survivor was evacuated to Malta. The Maltese Armed Forces did not respond to multiple requests about their involvement or reports that they recovered the man and the bodies.The Tunisian Foreign Ministry and the Tunisian National Guard also have not responded to multiple requests for information by email and phone. Frontex, a European Union agency that assists nations with border surveillance, told AP that it spotted eight boats carrying about 160 migrants between Jan. 14 and 24 when the cyclone hit. It said six boats were rescued by Italian authorities, but the fate of the other two remains unknown. On Feb. 8, migrants prayed and cried during a memorial ceremony in the olive groves near Sfax, presuming their loved ones could not be alive after so many days without news.All of us here are in deep trauma, are in deep agony, Dr. Ibrahim Fofana, a migrant in Tunisia whose relatives have been missing since late January, said in a video shared by Refugees in Libya. He pleaded for authorities to identify the bodies that washed ashore in Italy. FILE-- Migrants from Syria and Libya in a wooden boat call for help as they are assisted by Spanish NGO Open Arms during a rescue operation inside Maltas SAR zone south of the Italian island of Lampedusa in the Mediterranean Sea, Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2022. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) FILE-- Migrants from Syria and Libya in a wooden boat call for help as they are assisted by Spanish NGO Open Arms during a rescue operation inside Maltas SAR zone south of the Italian island of Lampedusa in the Mediterranean Sea, Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2022. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Tighter information follows migration crackdownUntil mid-2024, Tunisian authorities regularly shared the number of migrants they were intercepting at sea, eager to show their European partners compliance with a 2023 deal to curb migration in exchange for financial aid. But the deal was also followed by a brutal crackdown against migrants on land that resulted in thousands being detained or dumped in the desert.Nongovernmental organizations such as the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights, known by its French acronym FTDES, which used to compile and share reports on migrant interceptions, were also caught in the crackdown. In June 2024, Tunisias Ministry of Interior stopped releasing any information on migrants, citing security reasons, said Romdhane Ben Amor, FTDES spokesperson. But in his opinion, the motives were political. The numbers were incompatible with the narrative that Tunisia was not Europes border guard, he said.Italys erosion of information on migrant rescues is even older than Tunisias. The Italian coast guard used to provide detailed monthly data on migrants rescued. The monthly reports became quarterly before stopping completely in 2020, Villa said. In 2022, previous reports were also removed from the coast guards website. This year, the Italian coast guard did not share any migration-related press releases despite nearly 5,000 migrants disembarking on Italian shores, according to Italys Interior Ministry statistics. It is very clearly a political strategy to repress as much information as possible from the public, Villa said. ___Brito reported from Barcelona, Spain. Trisha Thomas contributed to this report from Rome. RENATA BRITO Brito leads international migration coverage for The Associated Press. She is based out of Barcelona, Spain. twitter instagram mailto PAOLO SANTALUCIA Santalucia covers events throughout Southern Europe, Italy, the Mediterranean sea and the Vatican for The Associated Press based in Rome. instagram mailto

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth listens as President Donald Trump speaks to reporters while traveling aboard Air Force One en route from Dover Air Force Base, Del., to Miami, Saturday, March 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)2026-03-17T04:03:03Z Through lectures, scoldings and outright threats, President Donald Trump and his aides are ratcheting up the pressure on journalists to cover the war in the Middle East the way the administration wants.The president has fumed on social media about stories he doesnt like and berated a reporter on Air Force One. The governments top media regulator has warned that broadcasters risk losing their licenses if they dont stay away from fake news. Trump and his defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, have both questioned the patriotism of news outlets because of their reporting.Trump has complained about war coverage in both specific and general ways. In a social media post, he said news reports exaggerated the damage to planes that were attacked by Iran at an airport in Saudi Arabia. He attacked Corrupt Media Outlets for falling for AI-generated false reports created by Iran and said the media hates to report how well the U.S. military has performed. All presidential administrations tangle with the press; its the natural byproduct of journalists watchdog roles in a democratic society. But the incidents of the past few days speak to a hostility toward the very idea of being questioned in a way that, some say, scratches up against the First Amendment itself. A contentious gaggle on Air Force OneMeeting with reporters on Air Force One while returning to the White House from Florida late Sunday, the president objected to a question from ABC News Mariam Khan about a fundraising message that used a photo taken at last weeks dignified transfer ceremony of the remains of U.S. service members.Khan was working as the pool reporter on the plane, but when she told Trump she was with ABC, he said: I think its maybe the most corrupt news organization on the planet. I think theyre terrible.Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr cited Trumps Truth Social message about the planes struck in Saudi Arabia in warning news outlets to be careful about what they report. Broadcasters that are running hoaxes and news distortions also known as fake news have a chance now to correct course before their license renewals come up, Carr wrote on X over the weekend. The law is clear. Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will lose their license if they do not. Decades of court decisions have generally sided with the press over government attempts to regulate the content it produces. But Carr said making changes is in the best interest of legacy media outlets because so many people dont trust them. His ability to make changes, however, is limited. The FCC does not regulate networks like CBS, NBC and ABC although it does have the authority to reject the licenses of individual affiliates of those networks when they come up for renewal. Cable news networks CNN, Fox News Channel and MS NOW are not under the FCCs purview. The Trump message that Carr retweeted mentioned only The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal specifically, and the FCC has no authority over newspapers. Punishing a television affiliate for war coverage that Carr objects to is likely to run afoul of the law, noted First Amendment attorney Floyd Abrams in an interview Monday.The broadcast media is always at risk of a sort that newspapers are not. But at its core, they are protected by the First Amendment, Abrams said, and these statements by the chairman seem to me are directly threatening First Amendment interests and First Amendment principles.Abrams said hed argue that robust war reporting is just the sort of public interest work that television stations should be doing to justify their licenses.Intimidation may be Carrs motive. And that doesnt have to mean intimidating a news outlet to pull its punches, said Barbara Starr, a former CNN Pentagon correspondent. The risk is the climate they create, she said. Are people going to be afraid to talk to reporters? Some of them will be, and thats a serious matter. What kind of reporting is expected from patriotic news outlets?Trump said on social media that he was thrilled to see Carr looking at the licenses of the highly corrupt and highly unpatriotic News organizations. Their efforts were endorsed Monday by hosts of the influential Fox & Friends morning show on Fox News Channel.The president has said enough with this coverage, from other networks that are not telling you the truth, that are so negative about what is going on, said Foxs Ainsley Earhardt, without specifying the outlets she was referring to. This is a pro-America fight, and every network needs to get on board with that.Hegseth, in his most recent Pentagon war briefing, specifically attacked CNN. Under his administration, most legacy news outlets have been thrown out of their regular spaces in the Pentagon press room because they would not agree to his new rules that he said restricted their work. Some reporters from exiled outlets are allowed back for briefings, although Hegseth seldom takes their questions. Without an explanation, still photographers have been banned from briefings. Hegseth said a CNN story about the administration being unprepared for Iranian attacks on the worlds oil supply was ridiculous. He offered his own edits of headlines that a patriotic press should use onscreen.The sooner that David Ellison takes over that network, the better, Hegseth said, in reference to the Paramount Global chief, whose company is expected to take over ownership of CNN. The administration is hoping that will result in more Trump-friendly coverage.Mark Thompson, CNNs chief executive, said the network stands behind its work. Politicians have an obvious motive for claiming that journalism which raises questions about their decisions is false, he said. At CNN, our only interest is telling the truth to our audiences in the U.S. and around the world, and no amount of political insults and threats is going to change that.Starr, now retired from Pentagon reporting, said she sees journalists consistently breaking stories despite the limited access and hostility toward their work under the current administration.That has always been the case, she said. The level of intimidation has definitely ramped up and, in response to that, the commitment to the First Amendment and quality journalism has ramped up even further.___David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social. DAVID BAUDER Bauder is the APs national media writer, covering the intersection of news, politics and entertainment. He is based in New York. twitter mailto

Primary voters arrive to cast ballots at an official vote center in Dallas, Tuesday, March 3, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero)2026-03-17T04:05:53Z WASHINGTON (AP) Legislation that would require proof of U.S. citizenship for new voters has become a rallying cry for President Donald Trump, who claims that passage of the bill will guarantee the midterms for his Republican Party in November. The bill, which the Senate will take up as early as Tuesday, would require voters to provide proof of citizenship when they register and to present approved identification when they go to the polls, among other new rules that Trump and his most loyal supporters are pushing as part of an effort to assert more federal control over elections. Federal law already requires that voters in national elections be U.S. citizens. But the legislation would lay out strict new requirements for voters to prove their status. Democrats are uniformly opposed to the legislation and expected to block its passage through the Senate. They say the legislation would disenfranchise millions of American voters who dont have birth certificates or other documents readily available both Republicans and Democrats who would be newly registering to vote. Despite the long odds of success, Trump has been pushing Senate Majority Leader John Thune to move ahead with the bill and suggested Republicans eliminate the filibuster or find another workaround to pass it. Thune has repeatedly said there isnt enough support in the Senate to do that. Instead, Republicans plan to hold an extended debate on the bill for a week or more, an effort to try and appease Trump and make Democrats defend their position. The bill would require Americans to demonstrate that theyre eligible to vote, Thune said last week. And that they are who they say they are. Proof of citizenship would be needed for new votersThe Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, or SAVE America Act, would force Americans to prove they are citizens when they register to vote, mostly through a valid U.S. passport or birth certificate.Drivers licenses in many states would not be enough. The legislation says that the identification must be compliant with new REAL ID rules and also indicate that the applicant is a citizen of the United States which few state licenses do. A person registering to vote could also present a passport or a birth certificate. U.S. military members could present a military ID along with a record of service that shows where they were born. Most people registering to vote would have to present the documents in person at an elections office, including people who vote by mail. Advocacy groups that oppose the legislation say that the bill would crush voter registration efforts ahead of this years elections.The bill would create new penalties for election officials who register applicants who have not presented documentary proof of citizenship. Opponents say that provision could potentially scare workers into turning away valid applicants while also discouraging people from working or volunteering at polling locations. It would also allow private individuals to sue election officials in some circumstances. Voter identification expansion would include mail-in ballots While federal law requires that voters are U.S. citizens, there is not currently a nationwide requirement that voters must show identification when they go to vote. Currently, 36 states have voter identification laws in place, some stricter than others, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The bill would require voters in all states to present valid identification, and those voting by mail would have to send a photocopy. Overseas military and some qualified disabled individuals would be exempt from those rules. Republican supporters most frequently highlight this section of the bill when pushing for its passage. Thune said last week that if you have to show an ID to get a library card, its not too much to ask voters to show ID to vote in federal elections. States would be required to share their voter rollsThe legislation would require states to share voters information with the Department of Homeland Security as a way to verify the citizenship of the names on the voter rolls giving the federal government unprecedented access to state voter data. Many states are already embroiled in legal fights with the Trump administration over demands that they provide voter information. Supporters of the state-federal sharing say that it would enable DHS to compare the state information with their own databases that are used to verify immigration status. But Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer predicted that handing over names to the federal government would allow DHS to purge tens of millions of people from the voter rolls. Trump pushes for Republicans to add his other prioritiesSenate Republicans are expected to offer amendments on the floor as part of their talkathon in support of the bill. Trump has said he wants more provisions added, including a ban on mail-in ballots, which are used by many states. Trump has long criticized mail-in ballots and used it as a central argument in his false claims of fraud in the 2020 election he lost to Democrat Joe Biden. But voting groups and many lawmakers in both parties have long championed the practice as helping to make it easier for Americans to vote.The president also wants to add two unrelated provisions around transgender rights issues one that would ban those born as men from playing in womens sports and another to block sex reassignment surgeries on some minors. Many requirements would begin right awayIf the SAVE America Act were enacted, the new rules for voter registration and voter identification at the polls would take effect immediately. Trump says its necessary for Republicans to win in the midterm elections even though they won both chambers of Congress and the White House without the law in 2024. With primary elections getting underway next month, critics say it would be difficult and costly for state election officials to implement, and could confuse voters.Marc Elias, a Democratic elections attorney, said he isnt aware of any state that currently requires what this would require. If its passed tomorrow, the day after states would need to implement this, Elias said. ___Associated Press writer Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.

Manchester United have outlined their summer transfer targets, while another European giant has entered the race for out-of-contract midfielder Leon Goretzka.

Five years ago, Oklahoma oil regulators took on a project with an impressive name: the Source of Truth. State officials wanted a comprehensive database capturing all vital information about the more than 11,000 wells in Oklahoma that shoot the toxic byproduct of oil production back underground.Id heard about this project from several people during the 18 months I had spent reporting on the growing number of cases where oilfield wastewater blasted out of old wells, known as purges, after being injected underground at high pressures. State employees also referenced the project in internal communications that I received after filing nearly a dozen public records requests to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, which regulates the oil and gas industry.Just before the new year, the Source of Truth itself landed in my inbox in response to an unrelated records request. And it was explosive, revealing a pattern of rule violations by oil and gas companies that state regulators allowed to continue.The project was supposed to clean up or fix state data regarding how much wastewater was being injected and the pressures at which it was being pushed underground. The agencys databases, many of which were based on decades-old paper records, were riddled with contradictory or missing information. In many cases, the agency failed to update its records. More than 1,300 errors were identified.But the Source of Truth found more than just messy data. It also allowed regulators to pinpoint nearly 600 wells that were operating illegally: injecting wastewater above their permitted pressures or volumes.Excessively high injection pressures and volumes can lead to purges and groundwater pollution.That wasnt all. The report also showed that regulators had allowed more than 1,400 other older injection wells to operate for decades without any limits whatsoever on injection pressures or volumes grandfathered in from an earlier era of permissive oversight.In the course of my reporting on oil and gas pollution in Oklahoma, Ive uncovered systemic underregulation by the state as well as a few crucial fork-in-the-road moments, instances when state regulators could have taken action to bring the industry into compliance with their own rules.The completion of the Source of Truth was one of them.With this report, the agency had in hand an extensive list of potentially problematic wells that were either injecting above legal limits or lacked limits entirely. These wells accounted for nearly a fifth of the active injection wells in the state. They warranted scrutiny, my agency sources told me.But after the report was completed, in 2021, regulators did not act on its findings. They did not make oil and gas operators comply with the injection limits on their permits or establish limits on older wells to bring them up to modern standards, agency employees said. They never made the report accessible to the wider agency staff, according to my agency sources and internal documents.In the meantime, the number of oilfield purges grew steadily, from about a dozen in 2020 to more than 150 over the next five years, according to a Frontier and ProPublica analysis of pollution complaints submitted to the agency.As agency employees investigated these pollution events, they identified plenty of problematic wells that, unbeknownst to many of them, had already been flagged in the Source of Truth.The Oklahoma Corporation Commission looked into using the Source of Truth database in the past and elected not to use this form of data collection, said Jack Money, an agency spokesperson, without saying why.Money did not say why regulators did not force oil companies to comply with the limits they had agreed to, why the agency chose not to establish limits on the older wells or why it did not share the Source of Truth widely. He did not respond to follow-up questions.Injecting Without LimitsThe core problem identified by the Source of Truth dates back to 1981, when Oklahoma applied to take over regulation of oil and gas injection operations from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.Purges often occur at abandoned, unplugged oil wells as a result of high-pressure injection. Obtained by ProPublica and The FrontierBefore the feds would agree to hand over control, the state had to prove that its regulations would protect groundwater as required by the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. The 1974 law created basic standards for regulating underground injection.This meant big changes in Oklahoma. For decades, the state had routinely approved parcels of land for drilling, along with groups of injection wells that help produce oil. This type of injection well takes wastewater after it has been separated from oil and shoots it back underground to push more petroleum to the surface a technique known as waterflooding.The state proposed approving every injection well individually, setting a maximum pressure and volume for each one to prevent contamination of freshwater, according to Oklahomas application to the EPA. Setting such limits would help ensure that the injected wastewater would not fracture the rock surrounding the well and pollute groundwater.Oklahoma won the EPAs approval, becoming one of the first states to gain direct control of underground oil and gas injection. Today, more than 30 states have authority over regulation of underground injection for oil and gas.Oklahoma did not retroactively apply its new standards. And the EPA never forced it to. Thousands of existing wells were allowed to continue injecting with no volume or pressure limits.Federal regulators hands appear to be tied by the language of the Safe Drinking Water Act, which allows injection without limits to continue for the life of the well, according to Joseph Robledo, a spokesperson for the EPA regional office that oversees Oklahoma.EPA acknowledges that because oil and gas activity began in Oklahoma long before the establishment of federal [underground injection] regulations, many wells in Oklahoma do not meet modern standards, Robledo wrote in an email.He said Oklahoma has taken steps to modernize its oil and gas inventory and submits regular reports to the EPA.But my reporting shows that state regulators have not directly addressed the issue of wells without injection limits.I consulted more than a half dozen experts in oil and gas injection, including lawyers, about these wells operating under outdated standards. None had any idea that so many of Oklahomas injection wells had been grandfathered in and were not abiding by volume and pressure limits. Several noted, though, that the federal law is unclear on what state regulators were allowed or required to do; the Safe Drinking Water Act prohibited states from interfering with oil and gas operations that existed prior to the laws passage unless the operations endangered drinking water.Because the state never investigated these wells, no one can say for certain whether they do, in fact, threaten drinking water. But my reporting shows that excessively high injection pressures and volumes have caused mass pollution in Oklahoma.The most recent state data indicates that 88% of the 1,400 wells found by the Source of Truth to have no pressure or volume limits are listed as active, injecting over a hundred million gallons of wastewater beneath the ground last year.Establishing pressure and volume limits for each of these wells wouldve been a huge task, requiring regulators to approve new permits for each one.Nevertheless, experts say that responsible regulation of underground injection requires, at a basic level, knowing how much and with how much force water is being pushed underground.Pressure and volume limits are key to ensure that injection wells arent, first and foremost, endangering groundwater, but also to prevent bad outcomes like earthquakes and purges, Adam Peltz, an attorney who directs the energy office for the Environmental Defense Fund, an advocacy nonprofit, told me.Problematic Wells Near PurgesIn the years since the Source of Truth was completed, purges multiplied across the state, with toxic wastewater gushing to the surface, polluting farmland and water sources.One especially bad series of purges occurred in a rural stretch of Carter County in south central Oklahoma. Huge volumes of wastewater poured from the ground for months at a time starting in 2021.In an August 2022 internal email chain discussing the response to the ongoing wastewater eruptions, one environmental supervisor pointed out that the Source of Truth could have been a tremendous help to his team as they evaluated the injection wells near the purges but they did not have access to it.After I got the Source of Truth documents, I checked to see if wells that it flagged as problematic were later identified by the agency to be located near purges in recent years. There were at least 30 matches. If the agency had proactively investigated the problem wells to see if wastewater was spreading widely belowground, it may have been able to identify several oilfields where overpressurized injection would later cause purges.In theory, the EPA could still force Oklahoma to improve its regulation of oil and gas injection, if federal officials found that its wells were systematically threatening groundwater. There is some precedent for this, but its rare.In California, federal officials helped conduct an audit of the states oilfield wastewater injection policies in 2011 and found that it had failed to properly protect aquifers. State and federal officials subsequently created a plan to overhaul Californias underground injection regulations. No state has ever had its oversight of oil and gas injection revoked.Similar scrutiny is unlikely in Oklahoma under President Donald Trump, whose EPA is radically loosening regulations on industry.Robledo, the EPA spokesperson, noted in an email that there are some circumstances that would require Oklahoma to place limits on these old wells, including when they are contaminating drinking water or violating other state rules.But state regulators would not know if these wells are contaminating drinking water if they do not investigate them.I asked state regulators whether they would address the many wells still injecting under outdated regulations, a situation created four decades ago and highlighted by the Source of Truth.They did not answer.Help Us Report on the Impact of Oil Field Waste in OklahomaToxic wastewater from oil fields keeps pouring out of the ground in Oklahoma. For years, residents have filed complaints and struggled to find solutions. We need your help to understand the full scale of the problem.Share Your ExperienceThe post Oil Regulators Found Hundreds of Wells Violating Oklahoma Rules. Then They Ignored Their Findings. appeared first on ProPublica.

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U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), center, speaks as U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly (D-Ill.), left, and Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton (D), listen to him during U.S. senate Democratic Primary Debate in Chicago, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)2026-03-17T04:00:47Z CHICAGO (AP) Illinois voters are deciding primaries Tuesday for six open U.S. House and Senate seats that will spur a new generation of leadership in the states heavily Democratic congressional delegation.The retirement of longtime Sen. Dick Durbin, a Democrat, has triggered a competitive campaign, drawing as candidates two sitting House members and the lieutenant governor, among others. Sharp elbows and furious fundraising have marked the race, which also is a test of the influence of Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker, a billionaire whose name is floated as a 2028 presidential contender.A spate of House retirements has led to open seats with crowded contests across the Chicago area. The stakes are high, with most primary winners in the Democratic stronghold expected to win in November. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee and PACs supporting the cryptocurrency and AI industries also have spent big on several of the contests. Heres a look at the key races: 3 top Democrats running to replace DurbinTen Democrats and six Republicans are running after Durbin, the Senates No. 2 Democrat, announced his retirement after five terms.Three top Democrats have emerged: Chicago-area U.S. Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi and Robin Kelly and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton.Krishnamoorthi has dominated fundraising and the airwaves and was the first on television with ads in July. He started 2026 with over $15 million on hand after spending more than $6 million and raising more than $3.5 million in the final three months of last year, according to campaign finance records. By comparison, Stratton started the year with $1 million after raising about the same amount and spending just under $1 million in the last three months of 2025. But last month Pritzker put $5 million in a super PAC largely aimed at helping get her elected. She campaigned on Pritzkers endorsement and lit into Krishnamoorthi at debates, particularly on the five-term Democrats voting record and donations from a contractor tied to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. That is not the example of somebody whos going to stand up to Donald Trump and fight for all of our communities, Stratton said during a debate in January. I want to abolish ICE.Krishnamoorthi, who has called to dismantle the agency, said he donated the money to immigrant rights groups. He argued that Stratton zeroed in on him because she didnt have any policy ideas. She had to attack.Meanwhile Kelly has taken issue with Pritzkers involvement, arguing that a sitting governor should not interfere.Candidates have touted ties to iconic Chicagoans including President Barack Obama and the late Rev. Jesse Jackson, who died last month. However, an endorsement touted posthumously by Stratton caused a snag as Jacksons family withdrew it Monday, saying the draft wasnt meant for public release. Election officials hope to see busy polls after turnout in the 2024 primary was 19%, the lowest in more than five decades. Roosevelt Jones, 67, said his Social Security and public safety were at the forefront as he cast an early ballot for Stratton in Chicago recently. She seems to be the one to take care of things, he said. In the Republican primary, six candidates are on the ballot including Don Tracy, former Illinois Republican Party chairman, and attorney Jeannie Evans. Illinois last had a Republican in the Senate a decade ago, when Mark Kirk was defeated by current Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth. Crowded US House primariesDozens of candidates are running for five open seats in the Chicago area where funding from groups supporting Israel and the cryptocurrency industry have played an outsized role.Ten Democrats and one Republican are running in Kellys district, the 2nd, which spans parts of the South Side and suburbs and dips into the central Illinois farmlands. Among the Democrats are former U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., son of the late civil rights leader, Cook County Commissioner Donna Miller and state Sen. Robert Peters.The open seat in Krishnamoorthis suburban 8th District has attracted eight Democratic candidates including former U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean and Cook County Commissioner Kevin Morrison. Two other House members are retiring after long careers.The 7th District of Rep. Danny Davis, who was first elected in 1996, covers parts of downtown, the West Side and suburbs. Democratic front-runners to replace him include state Rep. La Shawn Ford, City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin, developer Jason Friedman and Kina Collins, a community organizer. Two Republicans are running.Rep. Jan Schakowsky is also retiring, after 14 terms, and the primary field for her 9th District seat is the most crowded. Among the 15 Democratic candidates are Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, digital creator Kat Abughazaleh and state Sen. Laura Fine. Four Republicans are running.Another open seat is that of Rep. Jesus Chuy Garcia, who announced he would not seek reelection citing health reasons. The primary is uncontested after Garcia quietly schemed to place his chief of staff, Patty Garcia, who is not related to the congressman, on the ballot before a critical deadline. The move assured that no other Democrat would have time to circulate petitions. Then he withdrew. Pritzker seeking a third term as governorPritzker, an heir to the Hyatt Hotel fortune who is unopposed in his primary, is the first governor to seek a third term since the 1980s.One of President Donald Trumps most vocal critics, Pritzker used a campaign ad this month to highlight efforts to oppose the aggressive federal immigration crackdown in Chicago last year.I will always stand up for the law and the constitution, he said. Because thats what we do in the state of Illinois.Pritzker has also made digs at Republican candidate Darren Bailey, a former state senator whom he handily defeated in 2022.Bailey, among four Republicans vying for the nomination, says he is doing things differently. For one, he focused more on Chicago voters by choosing running mate Aaron Del Mar, who leads the Republican Party in Cook County. Bailey has criticized Pritzkers leadership, including blaming him for rising costs. Hes just another billionaire who has never once felt the pain hes inflicted, he said.Also in the Republican primary are Ted Dabrowski, a real estate developer; Rick Heidner, a video gambling magnate; and DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick.

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