Russia and North Korea sign partnership deal, vowing closer ties as rivalry deepens with West
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Russian state media say Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have signed a partnership deal during a summit in Pyongyang. Russian state media said Putin and Kim spoke face-to-face for about two hours in a meeting Wednesday that was originally planned for one hour. Putin’s visit comes amid growing concerns over an arms arrangement in which North Korea provides Russia with badly needed munitions for Moscow’s war in Ukraine in exchange for economic assistance and technology transfers that could enhance the threat posed by Kim’s nuclear weapons and missile program.
How did North Korean soldiers wander across the world’s most heavily guarded border?
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The Demilitarized Zone between the two rival Koreas might be the most heavily armed place on earth. So how, on the eve of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s summit Wednesday with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, did as many as 30 North Korean soldiers wander over the line separating North from South, causing South Korea to fire warning shots before the North Koreans withdrew? The short answer appears to be shrubbery: Because of an overgrowth of foliage, the North Koreans may not have seen the signs marking the thin military demarcation line that divides the DMZ into northern and southern sides since the 1950-53 Korean War.
Immigrant families rejoice over Biden’s expansive move toward citizenship, while some are left out
HOUSTON (AP) — Hundreds of thousands of immigrants had reason to rejoice when President Joe Biden unveiled a highly expansive plan to extend legal status to spouses of U.S. citizens but, inevitably, some were left out. Biden says his administration will allow spouses without legal status to apply for permanent residency without having to first depart the country. To qualify, they must have lived in the United States for 10 years and be married to a U.S. citizen, both as of Monday. Every immigration benefit _ even those as sweeping as Biden’s election-year offer _ have cutoff dates and other eligibility requirements.
Strict asylum rules and poor treatment of migrants are pushing people north to the UK
AMBLETEUSE, France (AP) — Strict asylum rules and the hostile treatment of migrants are pushing people from the Middle East, Africa and Asia out of Europe and toward the United Kingdom. The U.K. government has been hostile toward migrants, but many have family or friends there, and a perception they will have more opportunities in Great Britain. One morning last month, the rising tide crept around a group of Kurdish migrants, soaking the babies they hugged tight. Around a dozen people refused to leave the cold waters of the English Channel in a futile attempt to delay the inevitable: French police had just foiled their latest attempt to reach the United Kingdom by boat.
Willie Mays, Giants’ electrifying ‘Say Hey Kid,’ has died at 93
Willie Mays, baseball’s exuberant and electrifying ‘Say Hey Kid,’ has died at 93. The Giants and Mays’ family jointly announced his death. The Giants center fielder, with his signature basket catch, was one of the game’s greatest and most beloved players. He hit more than 600 home runs, totaled more than 3,000 hits and was a joy to behold in the outfield. His over-the shoulder catch of a long drive in the 1954 World Series is baseball’s most celebrated defensive feat. He had been baseball’s oldest living Hall of Famer.
Cooler temps and rain could help corral blazes that forced thousands to flee New Mexico village
ROSWELL, N.M. (AP) — Moist air from the Gulf of Mexico could bring some relief to firefighters battling a pair of wildfires in southern New Mexico. More than 500 structures have been damaged or destroyed in the mountain village of Ruidoso, and at least one person has died as a result of fire. Thousands of people fled with little notice as wind drove flames into the community of about 7,000 that expands with tourists in the warmer months. The National Weather Service says moisture from a tropical wave in the Gulf could bring rain to the area by Wednesday afternoon.
Early blast of heat and humidity leaves millions sweltering across the US
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — A blast of heat and humidity in the Midwest and Northeast days before the official start of summer has put a wet blanket on outdoor activities from festivals to sports camps as officials urge people to take precautions. Cities that opened cooling centers this week advised that Wednesday’s Juneteenth holiday means some public libraries, senior centers and pools where residents could beat the heat will be closed. The dangerous temperatures are expected to peak in the eastern Great Lakes and New England on Wednesday and Thursday, and in the Ohio Valley and Mid-Atlantic on Friday and Saturday.
Ship attacked by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in fatal assault sinks in Red Sea in their second sinking
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A bulk carrier sank in the Red Sea days after an attack by Yemen’s Houthi rebels believed to have killed one mariner on board. The Tutor is the second ship to be sunk in the rebel campaign. The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center issued a warning to sailors in the Red Sea region. It said: “Military authorities report maritime debris and oil sighted in the last reported location. The vessel is believed to have sunk.” The Houthis acknowledged the sinking, but the U.S. military did not.
US soldier convicted of theft in Russia and sentenced to nearly 4 years in prison
MOSCOW (AP) — A court in Russia’s far eastern city of Vladivostok has convicted a visiting American soldier of stealing and making threats of murder, and it sentenced him to three years and nine months in prison. Russian state news agencies Tass and RIA Novosti reported Wednesday that the judge also ordered Staff Sgt. Gordon Black to pay $115 in damages. U.S. and Russian officials say Black had flown to the Pacific port city earlier this year to see his girlfriend and was arrested after she accused him of stealing from her. Black’s sentencing further complicates U.S.-Russia relations, which have grown increasingly tense as the fighting in Ukraine continues.
Caitlin Clark and the WNBA are getting a lot of attention. It’s about far more than basketball
NEW YORK (AP) — Not even a WNBA basketball game is an escape from the arguments and polarization that are so common in American life these days. Some of the atmosphere in the public and media that has swirled around the professional women’s league since the season started last month has been less fun time and more culture war. Rookie Caitlin Clark is the eye of the storm. The white, 22-year-old number one draft pick has become a canvas for all sorts of projections in her debut season with the Indiana Fever. She, and the predominantly Black and brown women in the league, have become proxies for longstanding American issues including race, gender, who’s in the spotlight and who is ignored.
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