Perfection. Magical. Inspirational. Whatever word you used for Max Verstappen's victory, it was something special.

A view of an ilmenite open pit mine in a canyon in the central region of Kirovohrad, Ukraine, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky, File)2025-04-06T15:06:21Z KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Ukraine will send a team to Washington next week to begin negotiations on a new draft of a deal that would give the U.S. access to Ukraines valuable mineral resources, Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko told The Associated Press.The new draft agreement from the U.S. shows that the intention to create a fund or jointly invest remains, Svyrydenko said Saturday, during a trip to northern Ukraine. The delegation from Kyiv will include representatives from the Ministries of Economy, Foreign Affairs, Justice and Finance. The long-running negotiations over a mineral deal have already strained relations between Kyiv and Washington. The two sides had been preparing in February to sign a framework agreement but the plan was derailed following a contentious meeting in the Oval Office between U.S. President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. After some Ukrainian lawmakers leaked the new draft, critics slammed it as little more than an attempt to strip Kyiv of control over its own natural resources and infrastructure. According to the leaked document, the new draft includes not only rare-earth minerals but gas and oil. Ukraine holds significant deposits of more than 20 minerals deemed strategically critical by the U.S., including titanium, which is used to make aircraft wings, lithium, key to several battery technologies, and uranium, used in nuclear power. New draft only gives the U.S. side of the dealDespite the disruption following the Oval Office meeting, Ukrainian officials showed interest in signing the framework deal at any time, seeing it as an important step to win the favor of President Donald Trump and shore up U.S. backing in the war against Russias full-scale invasion.After weeks of silence on the status of the deal, the U.S. sent a new draft to Kyiv, which goes further than the original framework.Its unclear why the U.S. chose to bypass the signing of the framework deal and instead moved forward with a more comprehensive draft agreement, which would likely require ratification by Ukraines parliament.However, Ukrainian officials have been cautious about commenting on the contents of the draft, stressing that it currently reflects only one sides position.What we have now is a document that reflects the position of the U.S. Treasury legal team, said Svyrydenko. This is not a final version, its not a joint position.She said that Ukraines task now is to assemble a technical team for negotiations, define its red lines and core principles, and send a delegation to Washington for technical talks as early as next week.Its clear that the full parameters of this agreement cant be discussed online, Svyrydenko said. We need to sit down with the teams and continue the conversation in person.Legal, investment, and financial advisers are being selected, she said. This marks a new stage in relations with the United States one that requires expertise across multiple areas, she said. Ultimately, everything will be decided through the course of negotiations. Ukraine seeks terms acceptable to both sidesSvyrydenko declined to elaborate publicly on Ukraines official evaluation of the new draft, but noted that there is now a more detailed document outlining the funds creation. And while the initial draft focused primarily on the intention to establish the fund, Svyrydenko said the latest version lays out how American advisers envision its structure and operation. It remains unclear what role Ukraine would play in managing the fund under the newly proposed U.S. draft. However, analysts who reviewed the leaked document said Kyivs involvement would likely be minimal a point Ukraine hopes to challenge in upcoming negotiations, using the previously agreed framework as its reference.A previous version of the framework agreement, obtained by The Associated Press, outlined plans for a jointly owned and managed investment fund between the United States and Ukraine, intended to support the reconstruction of Ukraines war-torn economy. Under the terms, Ukraine would allocate 50% of future revenues generated from key national assets including minerals, hydrocarbons, oil, natural gas, and other extractable resources to the fund. The framework agreement, which was never signed, stated that revenues from its natural resources would go into the fund and be used for the reconstruction of the country, not that ownership or control of those resources would be transferred to the United States.Were very focused on ensuring that the final draft of the agreement, after negotiations, fully aligns with our strategic interests, Svyrydenko said. I believe the work on the previous memorandum showed that both teams are capable of reaching these goals and agreeing on terms acceptable to both sides. HANNA ARHIROVA Arhirova is an Associated Press reporter covering Ukraine. She is based in Kyiv. twitter instagram mailto RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

A measles sign is seen at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Feb. 25, 2025, in Lubbock, Texas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, file)2025-04-06T15:08:14Z A second school-aged child in West Texas has died from a measles-related illness, a hospital spokesman confirmed Sunday, as the outbreak continues to swell. Aaron Davis, a spokesperson for UMC Health System in Lubbock, Texas, said that the child was receiving treatment for complications of measles while hospitalized and was not vaccinated. The hospital declined to say which day the child died.Neither the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention nor the Texas State Department of State Health Services include the death in their measles reports issued Friday. Spokespeople for the state health department and U.S. Health and Human Services Department didnt immediately respond to requests for comment on Sunday.A unvaccinated school-age child died of measles in February in Lubbock the first measles death in the U.S. in a decade. In early March, an adult in New Mexico who was unvaccinated and did not seek medical care became the second measles-related death. More than two months in, the West Texas outbreak is believed to have spread to New Mexico, Oklahoma and Kansas, sickening nearly 570 people. The World Health Organization also reported cases related to Texas in Mexico. The number of cases in Texas shot up by 81 between March 28 and April 4, and 16 more people were hospitalized. A team from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is on the ground in Texas assisting with outbreak response. And nationwide, the U.S. has more than double the number of measles cases it saw in all of 2024.Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime anti-vaccine activist, has delivered a tepid message on the importance of vaccination against measles, saying it should be encouraged while also sowing doubt in the vaccines safety. The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine has been used safely for more than 60 years and is 97% effective against measles after two doses. Experts and local health officials expect the outbreak to go on for several more months if not a year. In West Texas, the vast majority of cases are in unvaccinated people and children younger than 17.With several states facing outbreaks of the vaccine-preventable disease, some worry that measles may cost the U.S. its status as having eliminated the disease.Measles is a respiratory virus that can survive in the air for up to two hours. Up to 9 out of 10 people who are susceptible will get the virus if exposed, according to the CDC. The first shot is recommended for children ages 12 to 15 months, and the second for ages 4 to 6 years.___The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. DEVI SHASTRI Shastri is a public health reporter for The Associated Press, based in Milwaukee. She covers housing access, the social safety net, medical misinformation and other topics that influence the health of communities broadly. twitter mailto

This image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows, from left, Jack Black, Jason Momoa and Sebastian Hansen in a scene from "A Minecraft Movie." (Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)2025-04-06T16:19:36Z Hollywood needed A Minecraft Movie to be a hit, and it delivered in its opening weekend, significantly narrowing this years box office deficit.No one guessed just how big it would be. In its first few days in theaters, the movie earned a staggering $157 million in ticket sales from theaters in the U.S. and Canada, according to studio estimates Sunday. Internationally, its looking at an additional $144 million for a global debut of $301 million. And with school spring breaks ongoing, A Minecraft Movie is just getting started.Not only is it the biggest opening of 2025, A Minecraft Movie also broke the record for a video game adaptation, a distinction previously held by The Super Mario Bros. Movie ($146 million). Going into the weekend, analysts projected Minecraft might hit $80 million. Instead, it nearly doubled that figure. Nothing is guaranteed in the movie business, but an offering based on the best-selling video game of all time makes for a good start. It hardly mattered that the block-based game doesnt exactly have a narrative. Many of its 200 million active monthly players turned out in droves anyway. The PG-rated movie, directed by Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite), was a co-production of Legendary Entertainment and Warner Bros. It cost a reported $150 million to make, not including marketing and promotion expenses. Jack Black and Jason Momoa lead the ensemble cast (Danielle Brooks, Emma Myers and Sebastian Eugene Hansen). Their characters are transported into an imaginative dimension called the Overworld and need to go on a dangerous, and immensely silly, adventure to get home. Critics were largely mixed on A Minecraft Movie, but audiences gave it a more promising B+ CinemaScore and 4/5 stars in PostTrak exit polls. Men made up around 62% of the audience, and 64% were under the age of 25. Warner Bros. went big on its release, opening the film in 4,263 locations domestically and 36,000 screens internationally. Younger audiences love going to the movie theater, believe it or not, said Paul Dergarabedian, the senior media analyst for Comscore. We thought this was an audience who would migrate to the small screens, but this is the perfect small screen to big screen alliance. It became a must-see theatrical event. Awareness was off the charts.Video game adaptations have had some pivotal successes in recent years, including The Super Mario Bros. Movie, the Sonic series and Five Nights at Freddys.Video games were once a genre that had very mixed results at the box office, but the code has finally been cracked, Dergarabedian said.Second place at this weeks box office went to the Jason Statham action pic A Working Man, which added $7.3 million in its second weekend. Third place was occupied by the second installment in the episodic The Chosen: Last Supper series. Part two (made up of episodes three through five) earned $6.7 million over the weekend. The third and final batch of episodes arrive in theaters on April 11. Snow White slid to fourth place in its third weekend, bringing in $6.1 million. Its now made over $168 million globally. Its been a difficult start to 2025 for Hollywood and movie theaters, with disappointments including Snow White and Mickey 17. But one hit can change the tides significantly, especially with in-theater marketing pushes in full swing for the pivotal summer movie season, which kicks off the first weekend in May. Before this weekend, the box office was running at a 13% deficit compared with last year. Now the gap is down to 5%. LINDSEY BAHR Bahr has been a film writer and critic for The Associated Press since 2014. twitter instagram mailto

South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley reacts during the first half of a national semifinal Final Four game against Texas during the women's NCAA college basketball tournament, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)2025-04-06T15:29:44Z Follow APs full coverage of March Madness. Get the AP Top 25 womens college basketball poll delivered straight to your inbox with AP Top 25 Poll Alerts. Sign up here. TAMPA, Fla. (AP) Dawn Staley and South Carolina hope to finish off a second straight season with an NCAA championship, which would give the Gamecocks a third title in four years.To do so, theyll need to beat Paige Bueckers and UConn on Sunday.A victory by Staleys squad would give her four titles tying her with Kim Mulkey for the third most behind UConns Geno Auriemma (11) and Tennessees Pat Summitt (8). The Gamecocks would join the Huskies and Lady Vols as the only schools to ever win three championships in a four-year span.Meanwhile, its been nine years since Auriemmas team won the championship, which capped off a run of four consecutive titles from 2013-16.UConn has reached the title game only once since 2016, and during that drought it has come up on the short end of heartbreaking last-second losses in the Final Four on buzzer-beaters. The Huskies last title game appearance came in 2022 when Staleys team beat UConn to start the Gamecocks current run of success, a game that ended Auriemmas perfect record in title games.The only UConn player who saw significant time in the title game three years ago against South Carolina was Bueckers. Shell be playing in her final game for UConn hoping to leave the school with a championship, joining many other Huskies greats who have played for Auriemma. ___AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here.

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French far-right leader Marine Le Pen delivers her speech during the French far-right party national rally near the parliament in Paris, Sunday, April 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)2025-04-06T10:43:47Z PARIS (AP) Convicted of embezzling public funds and banned from running for office, far-right politician Marine Le Pen stood unshaken before a sea of French flags in Paris on Sunday. For 30 years I have fought against injustice, she told the crowd. And I will continue to fight.Thousands of supporters gathered at Place Vauban, near the golden dome of Les Invalides and the tomb of Napoleon, for what was billed as a protest but observers said it had all the markings of a campaign rally.The National Rally, Le Pens party, organized the event in response to what it calls a politically motivated verdict. But with chants of Marine Prsidente! and They wont steal 2027 from us, the message was clear: this was more than a protest. It was a show of populist defiance aimed squarely at Frances institutions. Bardella sharpens the attackAt the heart of that charge stood Jordan Bardella, Le Pens 29-year-old protg and president of the National Rally. His speech was fiery, accusing Frances judges of trying to silence the opposition.March 29 was a dark day for France, he said, referencing the date of Le Pens conviction. The people must be free to choose their leaders without interference from political judges.Though he claimed the party would respect democracy, Bardella denounced magistrates unions and warned of a system determined to crush dissent. Supporters carried signs reading Justice taking orders and Stop the judicial dictatorship. Others wore Je suis Marine (I am Marine) shirts or compared Le Pen to U.S. President Donald Trump, who was convicted of civil fraud: Trump can run why not Marine? The systems not broken its rigged, said Alice Triquet, a 26-year-old bartender. If they can do this to her, what stops them from coming after anyone who doesnt think like them?One woman raised a handmade scale of justice, its arms bent and broken a symbol of what Le Pens supporters see as a justice system turned against the people. A nation divided over justice and powerLe Pen was found guilty of using European Parliament funds to pay party staff in France a scheme the court described as a democratic bypass. She was sentenced to four years in prison, including two under house arrest, and banned from public office for five years, effective immediately. Her appeal is scheduled for next year.The reaction has been sharply divided. While National Rally supporters denounce the ruling as politically motivated, many outside the party see it as legitimate accountability. I challenge the notion that there is a tsunami of support for Le Pen on this issue, said John Goodman, Ph.D., director of Syracuse Universitys flagship program in France.He also criticized the unusually rapid pace of Le Pens appeal. Her appeal has been fast-tracked so it can be heard in the summer of 2026, well before the 2027 presidential election, and significantly faster than a typical criminal case, Goodman said. Warnings of a Trumpist turnOn the other side of the Seine, hundreds gathered for a counter-rally led by left-wing parties, warning that Frances far right is embracing U.S.-style authoritarianism.This is bigger than Marine Le Pen, said Green Party leader Marine Tondelier. Its about defending the rule of law from people who think justice is optional.Placards read No Trumpism in France and Anti-fascist response. Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Gabriel Attal addressed supporters at a meeting of the center-right Renaissance party in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis, calling the moment a test of the Republic. Former PM Edouard Philippe stood by his side.Though police were out in force, only minor clashes were reported.The real message: trust the people, not the courtsBeyond the legal battle, Sundays gathering of the National Rally revealed a deeper strategy. Party leaders have spent the week accusing judges of plotting a judicial coup. Theyve called the sentence a political execution. The goal is not just to overturn the ruling its to convince voters the legal system itself cant be trusted.Its a page from the Trump playbook: paint the courts as biased, the system as broken, and frame any legal setback as an attack on democracy. The ballot box becomes the only authority that matters.The judges wear robes, but theyre just politicians in disguise, said Claude Morel, 68, a pensioner from the southern city of Marseille. Let the people decide. What comes nextLe Pen may be barred from running for now but her political machine is far from finished. Bardella, long seen as her polished understudy, is stepping into the spotlight with growing confidence and sharpened rhetoric.We will be here tomorrow, he told the crowd. And we will be stronger.Sundays rally was more than a show of strength. It was a test: can the far right convince enough French voters that justice is no longer neutral, and that only they can return power to the people?How that question is answered may shape not only the 2027 presidential race but the future of French democracy.

South Sudan soldiers patrol the street in Juba, South Sudan on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)2025-04-06T16:35:38Z The United States once cheered the creation of South Sudan as an independent nation. Now the Trump administration has abruptly revoked the visas of all South Sudanese, saying the countrys government has failed to accept the return of its citizens in a timely manner.The decision means South Sudanese could be returned to a nation again on the brink of civil war or unable to seek the U.S. as a haven.There was no immediate response from South Sudans government, which has struggled since independence from Sudan in 2011 to deliver some of the basic services of a state. Years of conflict have left the country of over 11 million people heavily reliant on aid that has been hit hard by another Trump administration decision sweeping cuts in foreign assistance.Heres a look at South Sudan, whose people had been granted temporary protected status by the U.S. because of insecurity at home. That status expires on May 3. A deadly divideThe euphoria of independence turned to civil war two years later, when rival factions backing President Salva Kiir and deputy Riek Machar opened fire on each other in South Sudans capital, Juba, in 2013.The two mens tensions have been so much at the heart of the countrys insecurity that Pope Francis once took the extraordinary step of kneeling to kiss their feet in one of his pleas for lasting peace.Five years of civil war killed hundreds of thousands of people. A peace deal reached in 2018 has been fragile and not fully implemented, to the frustration of the U.S. and other international backers. Notably, South Sudan still hasnt held a long-delayed presidential election, and Kiir remains in power. His rivalry with Machar, compounded by ethnic divisions, has simmered through multiple attempts to return Machar as a vice president. Machar has long regarded himself as destined for the presidency, citing a prophecy years ago by a seer from his ethnic group. Late last month, the threat of war returned. Machar was arrested and his allies in the government and the military were detained following a major escalation: A militia from Machars ethnic group had seized an army garrison upcountry. The government responded with airstrikes. Dozens of people were killed. A United Nations helicopter was attacked.Following the arrest, Machars opposition political party announced South Sudans peace deal is effectively over.Lets not mince words: What we are seeing is darkly reminiscent of the 2013 and 2016 civil wars, which killed 400,000 people, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned days ago.Some Western countries have closed their embassies there while others, including the U.S., have reduced embassy staff. A country in disarraySouth Sudans government has long relied on the countrys oil production. But little of that money has reached the people, in part because of official corruption. Civil servants at times go months without being paid.Conflict in neighboring Sudan has affected landlocked South Sudans exports of oil. Refugees spilling over from Sudan have added to instability at home.Climate shocks including flooding have caused mass displacement and closed schools. South Sudans health and education systems were already among the weakest in the world. Aid organizations have run or supported many. Now that support network has been hit by sweeping cuts in U.S. aid.The Trump administrations announcement Saturday evening revoking visas for all South Sudanese with immediate effect is in sharp contrast to Washingtons past warm embrace as its rebel leaders including Kiir and Machar fought for independence.Educational and other opportunities for South Sudanese have been available in the U.S. for years. On Saturday, hours after the State Department announcement, a freshman from South Sudan was in Dukes starting lineup at the mens NCAA basketball tournament Final Four. Duke spokesman Frank Tramble told The Associated Press the university was aware of the announcement and was working expeditiously to understand any implications for Duke students. It was not immediately clear how many South Sudanese hold U.S. visas or how American authorities will follow up. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said on social media the dispute centers on one person, certified by South Sudans embassy in Washington, that Juba has refused to accept. That person was not named.No new visas will be issued, the U.S. said, and we will be prepared to review these actions when South Sudan is in full cooperation.___Associated Press sports writer Jim Vertuno in San Antonio, Texas, contributed. CARA ANNA Anna is an editor on the APs Global Desk. She has reported from Africa, China, Ukraine, Afghanistan and the United Nations. mailto

Capitals star Alex Ovechkin scored goal No. 895 against the Islanders on Sunday, passing Wayne Gretzky to become the NHL's all-time goal scoring leader.

Liverpool's error-strewn 3-2 defeat at Fulham won't jeopardize their Premier League title bid, but it shows how much needs to change in the summer.

President Donald Trump returns to his Mar-a-Lago club from Trump National Golf Club, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)2025-04-06T18:32:27Z FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) Top administration officials said Sunday that more than 50 countries targeted by President Donald Trumps new tariffs have reached out to begin negotiations over the sweeping import taxes that have sent financial markets reeling, raised fears of a recession and upended the global trading system.The higher rates are set to be collected beginning Wednesday, ushering in a new era of economic uncertainty with no clear end in sight. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said unfair trade practices are not the kind of thing you can negotiate away in days or weeks. The United States, he said, must see what the countries offer and whether its believable.Trump, who spent the weekend in Florida playing golf, posted online that WE WILL WIN. HANG TOUGH, it wont be easy. His Cabinet members and economic advisers were out in force Sunday defending the tariffs and downplaying the consequences for the global economy. There doesnt have to be a recession. Who knows how the market is going to react in a day, in a week? Bessent said. What we are looking at is building the long-term economic fundamentals for prosperity. Trumps tariff blitz, announced April 2, fulfilled a key campaign promise as he acted without Congress to redraw the rules of global trade. It was a move decades in the making for Trump, who has long denounced foreign trade deals as unfair to the U.S. He is gambling that voters will be willing to endure higher prices for everyday items to enact his economic vision. Countries are scrambling to figure out how to respond to the tariffs, with China and others retaliating quickly.Top White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett acknowledged that other countries are angry and retaliating, and, he said, by the way, coming to the table. He cited the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative as reporting that more than 50 nations had reached out to the White House to begin talks. Adding to the turmoil, the new tariffs are hitting American allies and adversaries alike, including Israel, which is facing a 17% tariff. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to visit the White House Monday, with his office saying the tariffs would be a point of discussion with Trump along with the war in Gaza and other issues.Another American ally, Vietnam, a major manufacturing center for clothing, has also been in touch with the administration about the tariffs. Trump said Vietnams leader said in a telephone call that his country wants to cut their Tariffs down to ZERO if they are able to make an agreement with the U.S. And a key European partner, Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni, said she disagreed with Trumps move but was ready to deploy all the tools negotiating and economic necessary to support our businesses and our sectors that may be penalized.Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick made clear there was no postponing tariffs that are days away. The tariffs are coming. Of course they, he said, adding that Trump needed to reset global trade. But he committed only to having them definitely remain for days and weeks. In Congress, where Trumps Republican Party has long championed free trade, the tariff regiment has been met with applause but also significant unease.Several Republican senators have already signed onto a new bipartisan bill that would require presidents to justify new tariffs to Congress. Lawmakers would then have to approve the tariffs within 60 days, or they would expire.Wyomings John Barrasso, the No. 2 member of the Senates GOP leadership, said Trump is doing what he has every right to do. But, he acknowledged, there is concern, and theres concern across the country. People are watching the markets. Therell be a discussion in the Senate, Barrasso said of the tariffs. Well see which way the discussion goes.Trumps government cost-cutting guru, billionaire businessman Elon Musk, had been relatively silent on Trumps tariffs, but said at a weekend event in Italy that he would like to see the U.S. and Europe move to a zero-tariff situation. The comment from the Tesla owner who leads Trumps Department of Government Efficiency drew a rebuke from White House trade adviser Peter Navarro. Elon, when he is on his DOGE lane, is great. But we understand whats going on here. We just have to understand. Elon sells cars, Navarro said. He added: Hes simply protecting his own interest as any business person would do.Lawrence Summers, an economist who was treasury secretary under Democratic President Bill Clinton, said Trump and his economic team are sending contradictory messages if they say they are interested in reviving manufacturing while still being open to negotiating with trade partners. If other countries eliminate their tariffs, and the U.S, does, too, he said, its just making a deal, then we dont raise any revenue nor do we get any businesses to relocate to the United States. If its a permanent revenue source and trying to get businesses to relocate to the United States, then were going to have these tariffs permanently. So the president cant have it both ways.Bessent was on NBCs Meet the Press, Hassett and Summers appeared on ABCs This Week, Lutnick and Barrasso were on CBS Face the Nation and Navarro was interviewed on Fox News Channels Sunday Morning Futures. ______Associated Press writers Giada Zampano in Rome and Fatima Hussein in Jupiter, Florida, contributed to this report. ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON Gomez Licon writes about national politics for The Associated Press. She is based in Florida. twitter mailto

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrates after scoring his 895th career goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against New York Islanders in Elmont, N.Y., Sunday, April 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)2025-04-06T17:52:16Z NEW YORK (AP) Alex Ovechkin has broken Wayne Gretzkys record for the most goals in NHL history by scoring the 895th of his career.The Washington Capitals captain made history Sunday against the New York Islanders by beating fellow Russian Ilya Sorokin on a power play with 12:34 left in the second period. He took a perfect pass from longtime teammate Tom Wilson and fired an absolute laser past Sorokin with defenseman Jakob Chychrun screening.Ovechkin had never scored on Sorokin before, making his countryman the 183rd different goaltender he has beaten. He dived onto the ice to celebrate as so many Capitals fans in attendance chanted Ovi! Ovi! from the stands.Just as they did after he scored No. 894, teammates mobbed the 39-year-old Ovechkin to celebrate the accomplishment, which replaced a record that had stood for 31 years. Ovechkin then hugged team equipment and training staff on the bench and went through a handshake line with the Islanders as crew members set up for the 895 ceremony. Gretzkys total of 894 goals had long seemed unapproachable. Ovechkin passed it even after missing 16 games in November and December because of a broken left leg, a testament to his durability and a knack for putting the puck in the net consistently for two decades. He surpassed 40 goals this season for a 14th time two more than Gretzky and also the most in league history. Even before this, Ovechkin owned the NHL records for power-play goals, shots on goal and the most goalies scored against, now adding Sorokin to that list. Only Gretzky has more multi-goal games, and Ovechkin earlier this season became just the sixth player with 700 goals and 700 assists, joining Gretzky, Gordie Howe, Jaromir Jagr, Marcel Dionne and Phil Esposito. Ovechkin last moved up the all-time goal-scoring list Dec. 23, 2022, when he got Nos. 801 and 802 to tie and pass Howe. The chase by the Great 8, a nickname honoring his jersey number, captured attention from North America to Ovechkins native Russia, where billboards and goal-counters cheered on and tracked his effort. It helped Ovechkin that his team is one of the best in the NHL this season, defying expectations.Gretzky broke Howes record a little over 31 years ago, since he scored 802 on March 23, 1994. He added 92 more before retiring in 1999 after a total of 1,487 games over 20 seasons.Even with this one falling to Ovechkin which he has said he is excited about Gretzky holds 55 NHL records, and two seem truly untouchable: 2,857 total points and 1,963 assists, the latter of which is more than anyone else has in goals and assists combined.For NHL playoff goals, which do not count toward the record, Gretzky has the most (122). Ovechkin has 72. Gretzky also had another 56 in the World Hockey Association regular season and playoffs, while Ovechkin has 57 from his time in the KHL, Russias top league.Returning to Russia to play in front of family and friends is an option at some point for Ovechkin, who has one season left after this one on the five-year, $47.5 million contract he signed in 2021, which took him through age 40 to give him enough time to chase Gretzkys record. Instead, he got it done earlier than just about anyone could have realistically expected.___AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl STEPHEN WHYNO Whyno has covered the NHL, Washington Capitals, the NFLs Washington Commanders and horse racing for The Associated Press since 2016. twitter facebook RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

Which of his 895 make the list? Here's a countdown chronicling the future Hall of Famer's highlights.

The Dodgers placed two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell on the 15-day injured list with left shoulder inflammation.

Jennifer Vasquez Sura, the wife of Kilmar Abrego Garcia of Maryland, who was mistakenly deported to El Salvador, speaks during a news conference at CASA's Multicultural Center in Hyattsville, Md., April 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, file)2025-04-06T18:21:13Z GREENBELT, Md. (AP) A federal judge is for the second time ordering the Trump administration to return a Maryland man who was mistakenly sent to a notorious prison in El Salvador, blasting the U.S. government in a ruling Sunday that noted a now-suspended Justice Department lawyer admitted he didnt know why the man was being held. The order from U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis reaffirms a ruling she gave days earlier, shooting down arguments that the government cant facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia because he is no longer in U.S. custody. As defendants acknowledge, they had no legal authority to arrest him, no justification to detain him, and no grounds to send him to El Salvador let alone deliver him into one of the most dangerous prisons in the Western Hemisphere, Xinis wrote. Having confessed grievous error, the defendants now argue that this Court lacks the power to hear this case, and they lack the power to order Abrego Garcias return. The Justice Department has asked the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to pause Xinis ruling. Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old Salvadoran national, was arrested in Maryland and deported last month despite an immigration judges 2019 ruling that shielded him from deportation to El Salvador, where he faced likely persecution by local gangs. Abrego Garcia had a permit from DHS to legally work in the U.S. and that he was a sheet metal apprentice pursuing a journeyman license, his attorney said. His wife is a U.S. citizen. The White House has described Abrego Garcias deportation as an administrative error but has also cast him an MS-13 gang member. Attorneys for Abrego Garcia said there is no evidence he was in MS-13. In her order Sunday, Xinis referenced earlier comments from now-suspended Justice Department attorney Erez Reuveni in which Reuveni said: We concede he should not have been removed to El Salvador and that he responded I dont know when asked why Abrego Garcia was being held. The Justice Department placed Reuveni on leave after he made the comments. Attorney General Pam Bondi, in an interview on Fox News Sunday, likened Reuvenis comments to a defense attorney walking in, conceding something in a criminal matter.That would never happen in this country, she said. So hes on administrative leave now and well see what happens.Stacey Young, a former Justice Department lawyer and founder of Justice Connection, a network of department alumni that works to support employees, released a statement that defended Reuveni and said he has zealously represented the United States in some of the most high-stakes and controversial immigration cases under the Obama, Trump, and Biden administrations. Justice Department attorneys are being put in an impossible position: Obey the president, or uphold their ethical duty to the court and the Constitution, Young said. We should all be grateful to DOJ lawyers who choose principle over politics and the rule of law over partisan loyalty.

Visitors walk near entrance of Maha Aungmye Bonzan Monastery, commonly known as the Me Nu Brick Monastery, in the aftermath of Friday's earthquake in Innwa, Tada-U township, Mandalay, Myanmar, Friday, April 4, 2025. (AP Photo)2025-04-06T17:44:53Z BANGKOK (AP) People in Myanmars earthquake-stricken areas braced for thunderstorms late Sunday, after heavy rains and winds the previous night disrupted rescue and relief operations and added to the misery of the many who lost their homes in the disaster and were forced to sleep in the open.Myanmars state-run MRTV reported on Sunday evening that scattered showers and thunderstorms possible across the country for the next week.The public is advised to be aware of the possibility of untimely rain accompanied by strong winds, lightning, hail, and landslides, MRTV said. Daytime temperatures are forecast to reach 38 degrees Celsius C (100 degrees Fahrenheit) by mid-week.The epicenter of the 7.7 magnitude quake on March 28 was near Mandalay, Myanmars second-largest city. It hit a wide swath of the country, causing significant damage to six regions and states including the capital Naypyitaw. Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, a spokesperson for the military government, said Sunday in an audio message to journalists that 3,564 people have been confirmed dead so far, with 5,012 others injured and 210 missing. The quake left many areas without power, telephone or cell connections and damaged roads and bridges, hindering damage assessments.An official from Myanmar Rescue Federation (Mandalay) told The Associated Press on Sunday that rescuers had to temporarily shut down electrical equipment and machines used in search operations due to the rain on Saturday and Sunday, making work more difficult but not halting it. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was afraid of being arrested by the military for speaking without authorization, said rescuers will continue search operations despite the possibility of more rain.Another rescuer working in Mandalay, similarly speaking on condition of anonymity, said the rain and strong winds caused some buildings to collapse, causing further hardship for those seeking shelter. The Irrawaddy, an online Myanmar news site operating in exile, reported that at least 80 dead bodies were found in the wreckage of the Great Wall Hotel in Mandalay after the removal of walls and rubble on Sunday afternoon. Its report could not immediately be confirmed.Myanmar Fire Services Department said in a statement on Sunday that rescuers recovered five bodies from collapsed buildings in Mandalay.Myanmar has had a military government since February 2021, when the army ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. It tolerates no criticism, and is engaged in a civil war against pro-democracy resistance forces and ethnic minority guerrilla armies.The earthquake left many areas without power, telephone or cell connections and damaged roads and bridges, making the full extent of the devastation hard to assess.Myanmars military government has said 5,223 buildings, 1,824 schools, 2,752 Buddhist monasterial living quarters, 4,817 pagodas and temples, 167 hospitals and clinics, 169 bridges, 198 dams and 184 sections of the countrys main highway were damaged by the earthquake.

Sports legends took to social media to congratulate Ovi on his historic moment.

Flory Bidunga's return represents a huge victory for coach Bill Self as he rebuilds the Kansas roster after a season that fell below expectations.

Barcelona missed a big chance to pad a lead over Real Madrid in the LaLiga title race. That and more from around Europe in ESPN's Weekend Review.

It could be the worst season for the Manchester teams in 30 years, and this derby showed how bad it is.

As this season's title is won, we take a look at the women's college basketball Way-Too-Early Top 25 for 2025-26.

After four years of disappointment, Paige Bueckers finally lived her -- and UConn's -- dream come true.

Ruben Amorim said that Manchester United and Manchester City aren't good enough to make the derby "a spectacle" after the two teams played out a disappointing 0-0 draw at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Liverpool boss Arne Slot denied his players were complacent, despite the runaway Premier League leaders slumping to a 3-2 defeat at Fulham on Sunday.

Pep Guardiola accused a section of Manchester United supporters of a "lack of class" after targeting Manchester City's Phil Foden with derogatory chants about the player's mother during Sunday's 0-0 draw at Old Trafford.

The Raiders are releasing cornerback Jack Jones after attempting to trade him, sources confirmed to ESPN.

2025-04-07T00:41:54Z BANGKOK (AP) Japans share benchmark nosedived on Monday after the meltdown Friday on Wall Street over U.S. President Donald Trumps tariff hikes. Tokyos Nikkei 225 index lost nearly 8% shortly after the market opened and Australias S&P/ASX 200 tumbled more than 6%. South Koreas Kospi lost 4.4%. U.S. futures also were lower.

Denny Hamlin took the lead before a final overtime finish, and held off William Byron for a victory in the Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway on Sunday, a second straight win for the veteran who has posted five titles overall at the South Carolina track.

Antoine Semenyo and Milos Kerkez are being tracked by Premier League champions-in-waiting Liverpool. Transfer Talk has the latest news, gossip and rumors.

The Pirates announced Sunday that they would be adding the No. 21 logo back to the right field wall to honor Roberto Clemente at PNC Park after the franchise icon's family expressed its unhappiness that the sign was removed for an advertisement.

UConn coach Geno Auriemma reflected on being the oldest coach to win a Division I basketball title, saying victories like this make it worth sticking around.

Actor Jay North, in character as Dennis the Menace, shows his ever-present slingshot to show co-star Gale Gordon, on set in Hollywood, March 29, 1962. (AP Photo/David F. Smith, File)2025-04-07T01:51:07Z LAKE BUTLER, Fla. (AP) Jay North, who starred as the towheaded mischief maker on TVs Dennis the Menace for four seasons starting in 1959, has died. He was 73. North died Sunday at his home in Lake Butler, Florida, after battling colon cancer, said Laurie Jacobson, a longtime friend, and Bonnie Vent, who was his booking agent.He had a heart as big as a mountain, loved his friends deeply. He called us frequently and ended every conversation with I love you with all my heart, Jacobson wrote in a tribute on Facebook. North was 6 when he was cast as the smiling troublemaker in the CBS sitcom adaptation of Hank Ketchams popular comic strip that took place in an idyllic American suburb. Often wearing a striped shirt and overalls, Dennis mischievous antics frequently frustrated his retired next-door neighbor George Wilson, played by Joseph Kearns. Dennis patient parents were played by Herbert Anderson and Gloria Henry. The show ran on Sunday nights until it was canceled in 1963. After that it was a fixture for decades in syndication. Later, North appeared on TV in shows including The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Lucy Show, My Three Sons, Lassie and The Simpsons, and in movies like Maya (1966), The Teacher (1974) and Dickie Robert: Former Child Star (2003).North is survived by his third wife, Cindy, and three stepdaughters. RSShttps://feedx.net https://feedx.site

It had been nine long years since UConn won an NCAA tournament, and the Huskies played like it on Sunday, authoring a dominant 82-59 performance over South Carolina in Tampa and securing the 12th national championship under coach Geno Auriemma.

Former Boston Celtics and current Washington Wizards guard Marcus Smart said a fan "crossed the line" when he was heckling the road team's bench during Sunday's game at TD Garden, leading to a bit of shouting before the fan was ushered out of the arena.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the Blue Jays are in agreement on a 14-year, $500 million contract extension, pending a physical, sources told ESPN's Jeff Passan Sunday night, a no-deferral deal to keep the homegrown star in Toronto for the rest of his career.

Florida coach Todd Golden says his team understands the challenge of facing Houston's top-ranked defense and Hall of Fame coach in the title game.

General view part of Kakuma refugee camp in Turkana county, Kenya, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Jackson Njehia)2025-04-07T05:32:30Z KAKUMA, Kenya (AP) Windswept and remote, set in the cattle-rustling lands of Kenyas northwest, Kakuma was never meant to be permanently settled.It became one of Africas most famous refugee camps by accident as people escaping calamity in countries like South Sudan, Ethiopia and Congo poured in.More than three decades after its first tents appeared in 1992, Kakuma houses 300,000 refugees. Many rely on aid to survive. Some recently clashed with police over shrinking food rations and support.Now the Kenyan government and humanitarian agencies have come up with an ambitious plan for Kakuma to evolve into a city.Although it remains under the United Nations management, Kakuma has been redesignated a municipality, one that local government officials later will run.It is part of broader goal in Kenya and elsewhere of incorporating refugees more closely into local populations and shifting from prolonged reliance on aid. The refugees in Kakuma eventually will have to fend for themselves, living off their incomes rather than aid. The nearest city is eight hours drive away.Such self-reliance is not easy. Few refugees can become Kenyan citizens. A 2021 law recognizes their right to work in formal employment, but only a tiny minority are allowed to do so.Forbidden from keeping livestock because of the arid surroundings and the inability to roam widely, and unable to farm due to the lack of adequate water, many refugees see running a business as their only option. World-class entrepreneursStartup businesses require capital, and interest rates on loans from banks in Kakuma are typically around 20%. Few refugees have the collateral and documentation needed to take out a loan.Denying them access to credit is a tremendous waste of human capital, said Julienne Oyler, who runs Inkomoko, a charity providing financial training and low-cost loans to African businesses, primarily in displacement-affected communities.We find that refugee business owners actually have the characteristics that make world-class entrepreneurs, she said.They are resilient. They are resourceful. They have access to networks. They have adaptability. In some ways, what refugees unfortunately have had to go through actually makes a really good business owner.Other options available include microloans from other aid groups or collective financing by refugee-run groups. However, the sums involved are usually insufficient for all but the smallest startups.One of Inkomokos clients in Kakuma, Adele Mubalama, led seven young children six of her own and an abandoned 12-year-old she found en route on a hazardous journey to the camp through four countries after the family was forced to leave Congo in 2018.At the camp it took six months to find her husband, who had fled two months earlier, and six more to figure out how to make a living.It was difficult to know how to survive, Mubalama said. We didnt know how to get jobs and there were no business opportunities.After signing up for a tailoring course with a Danish charity, she found herself making fabric masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. Able to borrow from Inkomoko at half the rate charged by banks, she expanded, taking on 26 employees and buying new sewing machines. Last year she made a profit of $8,300 a huge amount when many refugees live on allowances or vouchers of about $10 or less a month.Another beneficiary is Mesfin Getahun, a former soldier who fled Ethiopia for Kakuma in 2001 after helping students who had protested against the government. He has grown his Jesus is Lord shops, which sell everything from groceries to motorcycles, into Kakumas biggest retail chain. Thats thanks in part to $115,000 in loans from Inkomoko.Trading with other towns is also essential. Inkomoko has linked refugee businesses with suppliers in Eldoret, a city 300 miles (482 kilometers) to the south, to cut out expensive middlemen and help embed Kakuma into Kenyas economy. Other challengesSome question the vision of Kakuma becoming a thriving, self-reliant city.Rahul Oka, an associate research professor with the University of Notre Dame said it lacks the resources particularly water and infrastructure to sustain a viable economy that can rely on local production.You cannot reconstruct an organic economy by socially engineering one, said Oka, who has studied economic life at Kakuma for many years.Two-way trade remains almost nonexistent. Suppliers send food and secondhand clothes to Kakuma, but trucks on the return journey are usually empty.And the vast majority of refugees lack the freedom to move elsewhere in Kenya, where jobs are easier to find, said Freddie Carver of ODI Global, a London-based think tank.Unless this is addressed, solutions offering greater opportunities to refugees cannot deliver meaningful transformation for most of them, he said. If you go back 20 years, a lot of refugee rights discourse was about legal protections, the right to work, the right to stay in a country permanently, Carver said. Now its all about livelihoods and self-sufficiency. The emphasis is so much on opportunities that it overshadows the question of rights. There needs to be a greater balance.___For more on Africa and development: https://apnews.com/hub/africa-pulseThe Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. 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.

A salt farm owner walks around his salt farm on Sinui Island, South Korea, Feb. 19, 2014. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)2025-04-07T04:14:37Z SEOUL. South Korea (AP) The United States has blocked imports of sea salt products from a major South Korean salt farm accused of using slave labor, becoming the first trade partner to take punitive action against a decadeslong problem on salt farms in remote islands off South Koreas southwest coast.U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued a withhold release order against the Taepyung salt farm, saying information reasonably indicates the use of forced labor at the company in the island county of Sinan, where most of South Koreas sea salt products are made. Under the order issued on April 2, CBP personnel at all U.S. ports of entry are required to detain sea salt products sourced from the farm.South Koreas Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries didnt immediately comment on CBPs move on Monday. Taepyung is the largest salt farm in Sinan, reportedly producing about 16,000 tons of salt annually, which accounts for approximately 6% of the countrys total output, and is a major supplier to South Korean food companies. The farm, located on Jeungdo island in Sinan and leasing most of its salt fields to tenants, has been repeatedly accused of using forced labor, including in 2014 and 2021. The widespread slavery at Sinans salt farms was exposed in 2014, when dozens of slavery victims most of them with disabilities were rescued from the islands following an investigation by mainland police. Some of their stories were documented by The Associated Press, which highlighted how slavery continued to thrive despite the exposure. CBP said it identified several signs of forced labor during its investigation of Taepyung, including abuse of vulnerability, deception, restriction of movement, retention of identity documents, abusive living and working conditions, intimidation and threats, physical violence, debt bondage, withholding of wages, and excessive overtime. Lawyer Choi Jung Kyu, part of a group of attorneys and activists who petitioned CBP to take action against Taepyung and other South Korean salt farms in 2022, expressed hope that the U.S. export ban would increase pressure on South Korea to take more effective steps to eliminate the slavery. Since the exposure of the problem in 2014, the courts have recognized the legal responsibility of the national government and local governments, but forced labor among salt farm workers has not been eradicated, Choi said. Our hope is that the export ban would force companies to strengthen due diligence over supply chains and lead to the elimination of human rights violations. Most of the salt farm slaves rescued in 2014 had been lured to the islands by man hunters and job brokers hired by salt farm owners, who would beat them into long hours of hard labor and confine them at their houses for years while providing little or no pay.The slavery was revealed in early 2014 when two police officers from the capital, Seoul, came to one of the Sinan islands disguised as tourists and pulled off a clandestine operation to rescue a victim who had been reported by his family as missing. One of the Seoul police officers told the AP they went undercover because of concerns about collaborative ties between the islands police and salt farm owners. Dozens of farm owners and job brokers were indicted, but no police or officials were punished despite allegations some knew about the slavery. In 2019, South Koreas Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling that ordered the government to compensate three men who had been enslaved on Sinans salt farms, acknowledging that local officials and police failed to properly monitor their living and working conditions.The salt farm slavery issue resurfaced in 2021 when around a dozen workers at Taepyung were discovered to have endured various labor abuses, including forced labor and delayed payments. KIM TONG-HYUNG Kim has been covering the Koreas for the AP since 2014. He has published widely read stories on North Koreas nuclear ambitions, the dark side of South Koreas economic rise and international adoptions of Korean children. twitter mailto

Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou was left fuming after the VAR took nearly five minutes to chalk off a Spurs goal for offside.

Norwegian club SK Brann claimed victory for free speech on Sunday with the CAS ruling that they did not have to pay a fine imposed by UEFA.

the rising waters of Cedar Creek and the Kentucky River overflow their banks, Sunday, April 6, 2025, in Monterey, Ky. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)2025-04-07T05:40:04Z FRANKFORT, Kentucky (AP) Days of unrelenting heavy rain and storms that killed at least 18 people worsened flooding as some rivers rose to near-record levels and inundated towns across an already saturated U.S. South and parts of the Midwest.Cities ordered evacuations and rescue crews in inflatable boats checked on residents in Kentucky and Tennessee, while utilities shut off power and gas in a region stretching from Texas to Ohio.As long as Ive been alive and Im 52 this is the worst Ive ever seen it, said Wendy Quire, the general manager at the Brown Barrel restaurant in downtown Frankfort, Kentucky, the state capital built around the swollen Kentucky River.The rain just wont stop, Quire said Sunday. Its been nonstop for days and days.Officials diverted traffic and turned off utilities to businesses in the city as the river was expected to crest above 49 feet Monday to a record-setting level, said Frankfort Mayor Layne Wilkerson. The citys flood wall system is designed to withstand 51 feet of water. For many, there was a sense of dread that the worst was still to come.This flooding is an act of God, said Kevin Gordon, a front desk clerk at the Ashbrook Hotel in downtown Frankfort. The hotel was offering discounted stays to affected locals. Storms leaving devastating impact The 18 reported deaths since the storms began on Wednesday included 10 in Tennessee. A 9-year-old boy in Kentucky was caught up in floodwaters while walking to catch his school bus. A 5-year-old boy in Arkansas died after a tree fell on his familys home, police said. A 16-year-old volunteer Missouri firefighter died in a crash while seeking to rescue people caught in the storm.The National Weather Service warned Sunday that dozens of locations in multiple states were expected to reach a major flood stage, with extensive flooding of structures, roads, bridges and other critical infrastructure possible. In north-central Kentucky, emergency officials ordered a mandatory evacuation for Falmouth and Butler, towns near the bend of the rising Licking River. Thirty years ago, the river reached a record 50 feet (15 meters), resulting in five deaths and 1,000 homes destroyed.The storms come after the Trump administration cut jobs at NWS forecast offices, leaving half of them with vacancy rates of about 20%, or double the level of a decade ago.Why so much nasty weather?Forecasters attributed the violent weather to warm temperatures, an unstable atmosphere, strong winds and abundant moisture streaming from the Gulf.The NWS said 5.06 inches (nearly 13 centimeters) of rain fell Saturday in Jonesboro, Arkansas making it the wettest day ever recorded in April in the city. Memphis, Tennessee, received 14 inches (35 centimeters) of rain from Wednesday to Sunday, the NWS said. Rives, a northwestern Tennessee town of about 200 people, was almost entirely underwater after the Obion River overflowed. Domanic Scott went to check on his father in Rives after not hearing from him in a house where water reached the doorstep.Its the first house weve ever paid off. The insurance companies around here wont give flood insurance to anyone who lives in Rives because were too close to the river and the levees. So if we lose it, were kind of screwed without a house, Scott said. In Dyersburg, Tennessee, dozens of people arrived over the weekend at a storm shelter near a public school clutching blankets, pillows and other necessities. Just days earlier the city was hit by a tornado that caused millions of dollars in damage.Among them was George Manns, 77, who said he was in his apartment when he heard a tornado warning and decided to head to the shelter. Just days earlier the city was hit by a tornado that caused millions of dollars in damage.I grabbed all my stuff and came here, said Mann, who brought a folding chair, two bags of toiletries, laptops, iPads and medications: I dont leave them in my apartment in case my apartment is destroyed.For others, grabbing the essentials also meant taking a closer look at the liquor cabinet.In Frankfort, with water rising up to his window sills, resident Bill Jones fled his home in a boat, which he loaded with several boxes of bottles of bourbon. ___Izaguirre reported from New York. Kruesi reported from Nashville. Associated Press writers Bruce Schreiner in Shelbyville, Kentucky; Andrew DeMillo in Little Rock, Arkansas; Adrian Sainz in Memphis; Tennessee; Sarah Raza in Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Obed Lamy in Rives, Tennessee; and Sophia Tareen in Chicago contributed to this report.

U.S. citizens who immigrated from Venezuela between 16 and 30 years ago play dominos outside El Arepazo, a restaurant that is a hub of the largest Venezuelan community in the U.S., in Doral, Fla., Wednesday, April 2, 2025. Many of the friends, including Cesar Mena, at right, voted for President Donald Trump and continue to support him. "I have family and friends on TPS [Temporary Protected Status] and I feel bad for them. But it's a temporary situation, and you need to resolve the problem." (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)2025-04-07T04:50:20Z DORAL, Fla. (AP) Wilmer Escaray left Venezuela in 2007 and enrolled at Miami Dade College, opening his first restaurant six years later.Today he has a dozen businesses that hire Venezuelan migrants like he once was, workers who are now terrified by what could be the end of their legal shield from deportation.Since the start of February the Trump administration has ended two federal programs that together allowed more 700,000 Venezuelans to live and work legally in the U.S. along with hundreds of thousands of Cubans, Haitians and Nicaraguans. In the largest Venezuelan community in the United States, people dread what could face them if lawsuits that aim to stop the government fail. Its all anyone discusses in Little Venezuela or Doralzuela, a city of 80,000 people surrounded by Miami sprawl, freeways and the Florida Everglades. Deportation fears in DoralzuelaPeople who lose their protections would have to remain illegally at the risk of being deported or return home, an unlikely route given the political and economic turmoil in Venezuela.Its really quite unfortunate to lose that human capital because there are people who do work here that other people wont do, Escaray, 37, said at one of his Sabor Venezolano restaurants. Spanish is more common than English in shopping centers along Dorals wide avenues, and Venezuelans feel like theyre back home but with more security and comfort.A sweet scent wafts from round, flat cornmeal arepas sold at many establishments. Stores at gas stations sell flour and white cheese used to make arepas and T-shirts and hats with the yellow, blue and red stripes of the Venezuelan flag. New lives at risk John came from Venezuela nine years ago and bought a growing construction company with a partner. He and his wife are on Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, which Congress created in 1990 for people in the United States whose homelands are considered unsafe to return due to natural disaster or civil strife. Beneficiaries can live and work while it lasts but TPS carries no path to citizenship.Born in the U.S., their 5-year-old daughter is a citizen. John, 37, asked to be identified by first name only for fear of being deported.His wife helps with administration at their construction business while working as a real-estate broker. The couple told their daughter that they may have to leave the United States. Venezuela is not an option.It hurts us that the government is turning its back on us, John said. We arent people who came to commit crimes; we came to work, to build.A federal judge ordered on March 31 that temporary protected statuswould stand until a legal challenges next stage in court and at least 350,000 Venezuelans were temporarily spared becoming illegal. Escaray, the owner of the restaurants, said nearly all of his 150 employees are Venezuelan and more than 100 are on TPS.The federal immigration program that allowed more than 500,000 Cubans, Venezuelans, Haitians and Nicaraguans to work and live legally in the U.S. humanitarian parole expires April 24 absent court intervention. Politics of migrationVenezuelans were one of the main beneficiaries when former President Joe Biden sharply expanded TPS and other temporary protections. Trump tried to end them in his first term and now his second. The end of the temporary protections has generated little political reaction among Republicans except for three Cuban-American representatives from Florida who called for avoiding the deportations of affected Venezuelans. Mario Daz Ballart, Carlos Gimenez and Maria Elvira Salazar have urged the government to spare Venezuelans without criminal records from deportation and review TPS beneficiaries on a case-by-case basis.The mayor of Doral, home to a Trump golf club since 2012, wrote a letter to the president asking him to find a legal pathway for Venezuelans who havent committed crimes.These families do not want handouts, said Christi Fraga, a daughter of Cuban exiles. They want an opportunity to continue working, building, and investing in the United States. A countrys elite, followed by the working class About 8 million people have fled Venezuela since 2014, settling first in neighboring countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. After the COVID-19 pandemic, they increasingly set their sights on the United States, walking through the notorious jungle in Colombia and Panama or flying to the United States on humanitarian parole with a financial sponsor.In Doral, upper-middle-class professionals and entrepreneurs came to invest in property and businesses when socialist Hugo Chvez won the presidency in the late 1990s. They were followed by political opponents and entrepreneurs who set up small businesses. In recent years, more lower-income Venezuelans have come for work in service industries.They are doctors, lawyers, beauticians, construction workers and house cleaners. Some are naturalized U.S. citizens or live in the country illegally with U.S.-born children. Others overstay tourist visas, seek asylum or have some form of temporary status. Thousands went to Doral as Miami International Airport facilitated decades of growth. Frank Carreo, president of the Venezuelan American Chamber of Commerce and a Doral resident for 18 years, said there is an air of uncertainty. What is going to happen? People dont want to return or cant return to Venezuela, he said. GISELA SALOMON Salomon is a Miami-based reporter who covers Latin America and immigration affairs for The Associated Press.Salomon es una periodista que desde Miami cubre asuntos latinoamericanos y de inmigracion. twitter mailto

Southampton's relegation from the Premier League was confirmed on Sunday, as they suffered a 3-1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur.

Sevilla's LaLiga match with Atltico Madrid was briefly suspended on Sunday after fans threw pieces of card onto the pitch.

Israeli tanks maneuver along the border with north of the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, March 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg, File)2025-04-07T06:56:09Z DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) Israel struck tents outside two major hospitals in the Gaza Strip overnight, killing at least two people, including a local reporter, and wounding nine, including six reporters, medics said Monday.Fifteen others were killed in separate strikes across the territory, according to hospitals.A strike on a media tent outside Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis at around 2 a.m. set the tent ablaze, killing Yousef al-Faqawi, a reporter for the Palestine Today TV station, and another man, according to the hospital. The six reporters were wounded in that strike.The Israeli military said it struck a Hamas militant, without providing further information. The military says it tries to avoid harming civilians and blames Hamas for their deaths because it is deeply embedded in residential areas.Israel also struck tents on the edge of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the central city of Deir al-Balah, wounding three people, according to the hospital. Nasser Hospital said it received 13 other bodies, including six women and four children, from separate strikes overnight. Al-Aqsa Hospital said two people were killed and three wounded in a strike on a home in Deir al-Balah. Israel has carried out waves of strikes across Gaza and ground forces have carved out new military zones since it ended its ceasefire with Hamas last month. Israel has barred the import of food, fuel, medicine and humanitarian aid since the beginning of March. Thousands of people have sheltered in tents set up inside hospital compounds throughout the 18-month war, assuming Israel would be less likely to target them.Israel has raided hospitals on several occasions, accusing Hamas of using them for military purposes, allegations denied by hospital staff.The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, rampaging through army bases and farming communities and killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians. They abducted 251 people, and are still holding 59 captives 24 of whom are believed to be alive after most of the rest were released in ceasefires or other deals. Israel has vowed to keep escalating military pressure until Hamas releases the remaining hostages, lays down its arms and leaves the territory. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he will then implement U.S. President Donald Trumps proposal to resettle much of Gazas population to other countries through what the Israeli leader refers to as voluntary emigration.Palestinians say they do not want to leave their homeland, and human rights experts have warned that implementing the Trump proposal would likely amount to mass expulsion in violation of international law.Netanyahu will meet with Trump in Washington on Monday to discuss Gaza and other issues.Israels military offensive has killed over 50,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gazas Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were militants or civilians. Israel says it has killed around 20,000 militants, without providing evidence.The offensive has destroyed vast areas of Gaza and at its height displaced around 90% of its population.___Magdy reported from Cairo.___Follow APs war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war 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

Israeli military vehicles move inside the Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit, File)2025-04-07T06:10:15Z TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) Israel has dramatically expanded its footprint in the Gaza Strip since relaunching its war against Hamas last month. It now controls more than 50% of the territory and is squeezing Palestinians into shrinking wedges of land.The largest contiguous area the army controls is around the Gaza border, where the military has razed Palestinian homes, farmland and infrastructure to the point of uninhabitability, according to Israeli soldiers and rights groups. This military buffer zone has doubled in size in recent weeks.Israel has depicted its tightening grip as a temporary necessity to pressure Hamas into releasing the remaining hostages taken during the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that started the war. But the land Israel holds, which includes a corridor that divides the territorys north from south, could be used for wielding long-term control, human rights groups and Gaza experts say. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last week that even after Hamas is defeated, Israel will keep security control in Gaza and push Palestinians to leave.The demolition close to the Israeli border and the systematic expansion of the buffer zone has been going on since the war began 18 months ago, five Israeli soldiers told The Associated Press. They destroyed everything they could, they shot everything that looks functioning ... (the Palestinians) will have nothing to come back, they will not come back, never, a soldier deployed with a tank squad guarding the demolition teams said. He and four other soldiers spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. A report documenting the accounts of soldiers who were in the buffer zone was released Monday by Breaking The Silence, an anti-occupation veterans group. A handful of soldiers -- including some who also spoke to AP -- described watching the army turn the zone into a vast wasteland. Through widespread, deliberate destruction, the military laid the groundwork for future Israeli control of the area, said the group.Asked about the soldiers accounts, the Israeli army said it is acting to protect its country and especially to improve security in southern communities devastated by the Oct. 7 attack, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage. The army said it does not seek to harm civilians in Gaza, and that it abides by international law. Carving Gaza into sectionsIn the early days of the war, Israeli troops forced Palestinians from communities near the border and destroyed the land to create a buffer zone more than a kilometer (0.62 miles) deep, according to Breaking The Silence.Its troops also seized a swath of land across Gaza known as the Netzarim Corridor that isolated the north, including Gaza City, from the rest of the narrow, coastal strip, home to more than 2 million people.When Israel resumed the war last month, it doubled the size of the buffer zone, pushing it as far as 3 kilometers (1.8 miles) into Gaza in some places, according to a map issued by the military. The buffer zone and the Netzarim Corridor make up at least 50% of the strip, said Yaakov Garb, a professor of environmental studies at Ben Gurion University, who has been examining Israeli-Palestinian land use patterns for decades. Last week, Netanyahu said Israel intends to create another corridor that slices across southern Gaza, cutting off the city of Rafah from the rest of the territory. Israels control of Gaza is even greater taking into account areas where it recently ordered civilians to evacuate ahead of planned attacks.Neighborhoods turned into rubbleHundreds of thousands of Palestinians used to live in the land that now makes up Israels buffer zone, an area that was key to Gazas agricultural output.Satellite images show once dense neighborhoods turned to rubble, as well as nearly a dozen new Israeli army outposts since the ceasefire ended. When the ceasefire was announced in January, Nidal Alzaanin went back to his home in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza. His property stood on the edge of the buffer zone and lay in ruins.All that remains is a photo of him and his wife on their wedding day, a drawing of his sons face on a porcelain plate and the carcass of a 150-year-old sycamore tree planted by his great-grandfather. His greenhouse was reduced to twisted scraps of metal. The 55-year-old farmer pitched a tent in the rubble, hoping to rebuild his life. But when Israel resumed its campaign and seized his land, he was again uprooted.It took 20 years to build a house and within five minutes they destroyed all my dreams and my childrens dreams, he said from Gaza City, where he now shelters.Israels bombardment and ground offensives throughout the war have left vast swaths of Gazas cities and towns destroyed. But the razing of property inside the buffer zone has been more methodical and extensive, soldiers said.The five soldiers who spoke to the AP said Israeli troops were ordered to destroy farmland, irrigation pipes, crops and trees as well as thousands of buildings, including residential and public structures, so that militants had nowhere to hide.Several soldiers said their units demolished more buildings than they could count, including large industrial complexes. A soda factory was leveled, leaving shards of glass and solar panels strewn on the ground. Soldier alleges buffer zone was a kill zoneThe soldiers said the buffer zone had no marked boundaries, but that Palestinians who entered were shot at. The soldier with the tank squad said an armored bulldozer flattened land creating a kill zone and that anyone who came within 500 meters of the tanks would be shot, including women and children.Visibly shaken, he said many of the soldiers acted out of vengeance for the Oct. 7 attack.I came there because they kill us and now were going to kill them. And I found out that were not only killing them. Were killing them, were killing their wives, their children, their cats, their dogs, and we destroyed their houses, he said.The army said its attacks are based on intelligence and that it avoids as much as possible, harm to non-combatants.Long-term hold?It is unclear how long Israel intends to hold the buffer zone and other territory inside Gaza.In announcing the new corridor across southern Gaza, Netanyahu said Israel aims to pressure Hamas to release the remaining 59 hostages, of whom 35 are believed dead. He also said the war can only end when Hamas is destroyed and its leaders leave Gaza, at which point Israel would take control of security in the territory. Then, Netanyahu said, Israel would implement U.S. President Donald Trumps call to move Palestinians from Gaza, what Israel calls voluntary emigration.Some Israel analysts say the purpose of the buffer zone isnt to occupy Gaza, but to secure it until Hamas is dismantled. This is something that any sane country will do with regard to its borders when the state borders a hostile entity, said Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at two Israeli think tanks, the Institute for National Security Studies and the Misgav Institute.But rights group say forcibly displacing people is a potential war crime and crime against humanity. Within Gazas buffer zones, specifically, it amounts to ethnic cleansing, because it was clear people would never be allowed to return, said Nadia Hardman, a researcher at Human Rights Watch.Israel called the accusations baseless and said it evacuates civilians from combat areas to protect them.___Associated Press reporter Michael Biesecker contributed from Washington. SAM MEDNICK Mednick is the AP correspondent for Israel and the Palestinian Territories. She focuses on conflict, humanitarian crises and human rights abuses. Mednick formerly covered West & Central Africa and South Sudan. twitter

Chelsea were held to a 0-0 draw by their west London neighbours Brentford on Sunday denting their hopes of Champions League qualification next season.

Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), top left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won, top center, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the KEB Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)2025-04-07T04:29:37Z Asian markets plunged on Monday following last weeks two-day meltdown on Wall Street, and President Donald Trump said he wont back down on the sweeping new tariffs he announced on April 2 that have roiled global trade.Countries are scrambling to figure out how to respond to the tariffs, with China and others retaliating quickly.Trumps tariff blitz fulfilled a key campaign promise as he acted without Congress to redraw the rules of the international trading system. It was a move decades in the making for Trump, who has long denounced foreign trade deals as unfair to the U.S.The higher rates are set to be collected beginning Wednesday, ushering in a new era of economic uncertainty with no clear end in sight.___Heres the latest: Trump says hes not backing down on tariffs, calls them medicine as markets reelPresident Donald Trump said Sunday that he wont back down on his sweeping tariffs on imports from most of the world unless countries even out their trade with the U.S., digging in on his plans to implement the taxes that have sent financial markets reeling, raised fears of a recession and upended the global trading system.Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said he didnt want global markets to fall, but also that he wasnt concerned about the massive sell-off either, adding, sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something. His comments came as global financial markets appeared on track to continue sharp declines once trading resumes Monday, and after Trumps aides sought to soothe market concerns by saying more than 50 nations had reached out about launching negotiations to lift the tariffs. I spoke to a lot of leaders, European, Asian, from all over the world, Trump said. Theyre dying to make a deal. And I said, were not going to have deficits with your country. Were not going to do that, because to me a deficit is a loss. Were going to have surpluses or at worst, going to be breaking even. Asian markets plunge as tariff fallout intensifiesAsian markets plunged on Monday following last weeks two-day meltdown on Wall Street, and U.S. President Donald Trump said he wont back down on his sweeping tariffs on imports from most of the world unless countries even out their trade with the U.S.Tokyos Nikkei 225 index lost nearly 8% shortly after the market opened on Monday. By midday, it was down 6%. Hong Kongs Hang Seng dropped 9.4%, while the Shanghai Composite index was down 6.2%, and South Koreas Kospi lost 4.1%.U.S. futures also signaled further weakness.Market observers expect investors will face more wild swings in the days and weeks to come, with a short-term resolution to the trade war appearing unlikely.