Hurricane Debby to bring heavy rains and catastrophic flooding to Florida, Georgia and S. Carolina
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — The center of Hurricane Debby is expected to bring potential record-setting rains, catastrophic flooding and life-threatening storm surge to the Big Bend coast of Florida before it moves slowly across the northern part of the state and stalls over the coastal regions of Georgia and South Carolina. The National Hurricane Center of Miami says Debby is located about 100 miles west of Tampa, Florida, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph. The storm is moving north at 12 mph. The hurricane center says Debby is expected to make landfall around midday Monday. A tornado watch is in effect for parts of Florida and Georgia until 6 a.m. Monday.
US and allies prepare to defend Israel as Netanyahu says it’s already in ‘multi-front war’ with Iran
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel is already in a “multi-front war” with Iran and its proxies, while the United States and allies prepare to defend Israel from an expected counterstrike and prevent an even more destructive regional conflict. Tensions have soared following nearly 10 months of war in Gaza and the killing last week of a senior Hezbollah commander in Lebanon and Hamas’ top political leader in Iran. Iran and its allies have blamed Israel and threatened retaliation. A White House adviser says, “we are doing everything possible to make sure that this situation does not boil over.”
Internet down in Bangladesh as protesters plan to march to capital after a weekend of violence
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Broadband internet and mobile data services were cut off across Bangladesh on Monday as anti-government protesters vowed to march to the capital, Dhaka, after a weekend of violence that left dozens of people dead, as the military imposed a curfew for an indefinite period. At least 95 people, including at least 14 police officers, died in clashes on Sunday, according to the country’s leading Bengali-language daily newspaper. The demonstrations began with students seeking to end a quota system for government jobs, but clashes with police and pro-government activists escalated into violence that left more than 200 dead. That prompted protest and opposition leaders to call for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign in widening protests across the country.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index plunges 12.4% as world markets tremble over risks to the US economy
BANGKOK (AP) — Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 stock index has lost 12.4% in the latest bout of sell-offs that are shaking world markets. European markets opened lower and U.S. futures fell more than 2%. Oil prices also declined. The Nikkei’s decline was the worst since a 14.9% drop in October 1987 that was dubbed “Black Monday.” World stocks tumbled Friday on worries the U.S. economy could be cracking under the weight of high interest rates meant to tame inflation. A report Friday showing hiring by U.S. employers slowed much more than expected in July. That rattled investors, vanquishing the euphoria that had taken the Nikkei to all-times highs earlier this year.
Focus on economy and answer the Harris ‘Freedom’ message: What GOP strategists think Trump should do
Republican strategists who have run campaigns against Donald Trump say they recognize what the former president is doing against Vice President Kamala Harris. Harris’ entry into the race after President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid has changed basic assumptions about the campaign. Trump’s false attacks on Harris’ Black identity have top Republicans worried that Trump may lose a campaign they still see as favorable for him. They say he should focus on the economy and immigration. One former strategist for Florida Sen. Marco Rubio thinks Trump is road-testing messages and will eventually land on an effective attack line against Harris.
Harris once wanted to ban fracking. Trump wants voters in energy-rich Pennsylvania to remember
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Facing the need to win Pennsylvania, Vice President Kamala Harris has sworn off any prior assertion that she opposed fracking. But that hasn’t stopped Republican Donald Trump from wielding her now-abandoned position to win over working-class voters in the key battleground state where the industry means jobs. Last week, in his first appearance in Pennsylvania since Harris became the Democrats’ presumptive nominee, Trump repeatedly warned that Harris would ban fracking and devastate the economy in the nation’s No. 2 natural gas state. Harris called to ban fracking as a presidential primary candidate in 2019.
Voices across the globe express concern over increasing arrests in Venezuela after disputed election
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Voices across the globe are expressing concern over the growing number of arrests in Venezuela following last weekend’s disputed elections. Pope Francis said Venezuela is “living a critical situation” in his traditional homily Sunday at the Vatican. The remarks came hours after Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro announced Saturday that the government has arrested 2,000 opponents. At a rally in the Venezuelan capital Caracas, Maduro pledged to detain more and send them to prison. A U.S. official said Sunday the Biden administration is concerned about the possibility of political instability if the arrests continue. The Pope appealed to all parties “to seek the truth, to avoid all kinds of violence.”
UK leader Starmer condemns attack on asylum-seeker hotel as far-right violence spreads
LONDON (AP) — U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has condemned an attack on a hotel housing asylum seekers in the north of England, describing it as “far-right thuggery.” In a statement Sunday afternoon, the prime minister vowed that “we will do whatever it takes to bring these thugs to justice” as he addressed the nation following ongoing unrest across parts of the country. Police in the north of England town of Rotherham struggled to hold back a mob of far-right rioters who were seeking to break into a hotel housing asylum-seekers. Police faced a barrage of missiles, as they sought to prevent the rioters, many of whom wore masks, from entering the Holiday Inn Express hotel. A small fire in a wheelie bin was also visible.
Olympics security means minorities and others flagged as potential terror threats can’t move freely
PARIS (AP) — French authorities are making broad use of discretionary powers during the 2024 Olympics and their run-up to keep hundreds of people they deem to be potential security threats away from the biggest event modern France has ever organized. Lawyers told The Associated Press that minorities are often among those targeted with orders not to leave their neighborhoods and to report daily to police. Fearing terror attacks, France has massively boosted security. Those now unable to leave the vicinities of their homes include Amine, a bank apprentice and student restricted to his Paris suburb except for daily check-ins at a police station. The France-born 21-year-old has no criminal record and has not been charged with any crime.
Olympic triathlon mixed relay gets underway with swims in the Seine amid water quality concerns
PARIS (AP) — Olympic triathletes plunged into the Seine River as the mixed relay event got underway after organizers said the bacteria levels in the long-polluted Paris waterway were at acceptable levels. Organizers on Sunday night made the decision to hold the event Monday morning with swimming legs in the Seine. The plan to hold the swimming portion of the triathlons and the marathon swimming events in the Seine was an ambitious one. Swimming in the river has, with some exceptions, been off-limits since 1923 because it has been too toxic. Organizers said tests showed water quality at the triathlon site would be within the limits mandated by World Triathlon by Monday morning.
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