Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh is assassinated in Tehran
BEIRUT (AP) — Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard said Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Tehran. The statement gave no details on how Haniyeh was killed. Suspicion immediately fell on Israel, which has vowed to kill Hamas leaders over the group’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Israel itself did not immediately comment. There was no immediate reaction from the White House. The apparent assassination comes at a precarious time, as the Biden administration has tried to push Hamas and Israel to agree to a temporary cease-fire and hostage-release deal. In Israel’s war against Hamas since the October attack, more than 39,360 Palestinians have been killed.
Rescuers search through mud and debris as deaths rise to 151 in landslides in southern India
NEW DELHI (AP) — Hundreds of rescue workers are searching through the debris from landslides that have killed at least 151 people in southern India. Torrential rains triggered torrents of mud and water that swept through tea estates and villages. Police officer Aijaz, who uses one name, says another 186 people were injured by the landslides that hit hilly areas in Kerala state’s Wayanad district early Tuesday, flattening houses, uprooting trees and destroying bridge. The efforts of over 300 rescuers were hampered by blocked roads and unstable terrain.
Police clash with a violent crowd gathered near the site of UK stabbing attack that killed 3 girls
LONDON (AP) — Far-right protesters fueled by anger and false online rumors hurled bottles and stones at officers and set a police van ablaze outside a northwest England mosque near where three girls were fatally stabbed a day earlier. Police said the violent crowd was believed to be supporters of the English Defence League and the unrest was inspired by rumors about the identity of the teenage suspect arrested on suspicion of murder. Police say 22 officers and three of their dogs were wounded. The prime minister condemned the “thuggery” Tuesday and said the crowd had hijacked what had earlier been a peaceful vigil to mourn the dead and 10 survivors.
Israel carries out rare strike on Beirut that it says killed Hezbollah commander
BEIRUT (AP) — Israel has carried out a rare strike on Beirut, which it said killed a top Hezbollah commander who was allegedly behind a weekend rocket attack that killed 12 young people in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights. The strike in the Lebanese capital killed at least one woman and two children and wounded dozens of people. Hezbollah did not immediately confirm the commander’s death. The strike came amid escalating hostilities with the Lebanese militant group. An Israeli official said the target was Fouad Shukur, a top Hezbollah military commander whom the U.S. blames for planning and launching the deadly 1983 Marine bombing in the Lebanese capital.
Project 2025 shakes up leadership after criticism from Democrats and Trump, but says work goes on
NEW YORK (AP) — The director of the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 vision for a complete overhaul of the federal government has stepped down after blowback from Donald Trump’s campaign, which has tried to disavow the program created by many of the former president’s allies and former aides. Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts said Paul Dans’ exit comes after the project “completed exactly what it set out to do.” Roberts, who has emerged as a chief spokesman for the effort, plans to lead Project 2025 going forward. Democrats have made Project 2025 a key election-year cudgel, pointing to the ultraconservative policy blueprint as a glimpse into how extreme another Trump administration could be.
Carter Center unable to verify Venezuela election results, blasts officials for lack of transparency
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — The Carter Center said it was unable to verify the results of Venezuela’s presidential election and blamed authorities for a “complete lack of transparency” in declaring Nicolas Maduro the winner without providing any individual polling tallies. The statement by the Atlanta-based group comes as Venezuelan government leaders ratchet up attacks on their opponents. They included calls for the arrests of opposition candidate Edmundo González, whose supporters say won by a landslide.
Olympic triathletes will swim in Paris’ Seine River after days of concerns about water quality
PARIS (AP) — The Olympic triathlons will take place Wednesday after days of delays and uncertainty over water quality concerns in the Seine River. Organizers said the latest tests of the famed Paris waterway showed compliance with quality standards. Elevated levels of bacteria delayed the men’s race from Tuesday. The women start their competition at 8 a.m. Wednesday as originally scheduled. The men will begin at 10:45 a.m. The decision to go ahead with the Seine swim for the triathlon competitions is a big win for the city and Olympics organizers. They undertook a more than billion-dollar plan to clean up the long-polluted Seine and have been steadfast in their insistence that swimming events could safely be held in the river.
At boisterous Georgia rally, Harris dares Trump to ‘say it to my face’ and show up for their debate
ATLANTA (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris told a cheering, boisterous, packed Atlanta arena on Tuesday that the next 98 days will be a fight, but they’ll win come November. She she taunted Donald Trump for wavering on whether he’d show up for their upcoming debate. In the state that delivered Biden his narrowest victory margin in 2020, Harris pulled off what has been a signature Trump event: a big, loud rally full of supporters cheering her name. She mocked her rival and his running mate JD Vance as “just plain weird,” and derided their policies as backward, outdated and dangerous.
A speaking invitation to Donald Trump splits the most prominent American group for Black journalists
WASHINGTON (AP) — Donald Trump’s invitation to address the National Association of Black Journalists has sparked an intense debate within the organization and a flurry of arguments online. Journalism organizations for people of color traditionally invite presidential candidates to address their summer gatherings during election years. But Trump’s acceptance of NABJ’s invitation has led at least one high-profile group member to step down as a convention co-chair and others to argue their convention may become a platform for Trump to make false claims or be seen as winning NABJ’s endorsement. The debate over NABJ’s invite reflects how many journalists are still grappling with how to approach Trump nearly a decade after his first presidential run.
Acting Secret Service director says he’s ‘ashamed’ after the Trump assassination attempt
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Secret Service’s acting director has told lawmakers he considered it indefensible that the roof used by the gunman in the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump was unsecured. He also says it’s regrettable that local law enforcement had not advised his agency that a gunman had been spotted on a nearby roof. Acting director Ronald Rowe also testified Tuesday that he recently visited the shooting site and laid down on the roof of the building where shots were fired in order to evaluate the gunman’s line of sight during the July 13 shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania.
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