Leaders of France, Germany and Britain call for cease-fire in Gaza
The leaders of France, Germany and Britain have endorsed calls for a cease-fire in Gaza, the return of scores of hostages held by Hamas and the “unfettered” delivery of humanitarian aid. In a joint statement released Monday, they endorsed the latest push by the United States, Qatar and Egypt to broker an agreement to end the 10-month-old Israel-Hamas war. The mediators have spent months trying to get the sides to agree to a three-phase plan in which Hamas would release the remaining hostages captured in its Oct. 7 attack in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel and Israel would withdraw from Gaza.
Harris is pushing joy. Trump paints a darker picture. Will mismatched moods matter?
WASHINGTON (AP) — At the top of his first speech as her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz turned to Vice President Kamala Harris and declared, “Thank you for bringing back the joy.” The next day, Harris took the theme a step further, branding the Democratic ticket “joyful warriors.” Contrast that with former President Donald Trump, who opened a news conference at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida later in the week saying, “We have a lot of bad things coming up.” Democrats are playing up their sunnier outlook. But the Trump campaign argues their candidate is reflecting the country’s more accurate, dour mood.
Paris closes the Olympics, and Los Angeles turns to Tom Cruise for its 2028 mission
SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — Paris has closed out two and a half extraordinary weeks of Olympic sports and emotion with a star-studded show in France’s national stadium. The French capital has handed over hosting duties for the Summer Games to the next city in line: Los Angeles in 2028. Hollywood star Tom Cruise descended from the top of the stadium to the “Mission: Impossible” theme song, before taking the Olympic flag from star gymnast Simone Biles, putting it on the back of motorcycle and roaring out of the stadium. Los Angeles is looking to prove that topping Paris isn’t mission impossible. The French capital made spectacular use of its cityscape, with the Eiffel Tower and other iconic monuments serving as backdrops and venues.
From Paris to Los Angeles: How the city is preparing for the 2028 Olympics
LOS ANGELES (AP) — As the Olympics close in Paris, Los Angeles has now taken the torch. The city will become the third to host the games three times. The last was in 1984, when Los Angeles was as much a star as Olympians Carl Lewis and Mary Lou Retton. Olympic organizers will take advantage of a recent building boom in the city. The nearly new SoFi stadium will host an opening ceremony that will also incorporate the century-old Memorial Coliseum. The region has much more public transportation than it did in ’84, but is looking to build much more by 2028.
How a young generation in Bangladesh forced out the leader who ruled for much of their lives
A generation of young people, many of whom cannot remember a time before Sheikh Hasina was Bangladesh’s prime minister, led protests that resulted in her ouster. The protesters say they were fed up with her increasingly autocratic rule. Students initially poured into streets to demand the end of government job quotas they said benefitted supporters of Hasina’s Awami League. Those jobs are some of the most stable and best paying in a country where the economy has boomed but hasn’t created enough work for its well-educated middle class. Members of Generation Z are among the most frustrated with and affected by the lack of opportunity. And they are not beholden to the old narratives the quota system reflected.
Ukraine’s president acknowledges military incursion onto Russian soil
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has indirectly acknowledged ongoing military actions in Russia’s Kursk border region to “push the war out into the aggressor’s territory.” Zelenskyy made the comment late Saturday in his nightly address. It came days after Ukraine began a surprise military incursion into the Kursk region. Ukraine’s incursion into Russia continued for a sixth day Sunday. The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that Russian forces engaged Ukrainian troops in Tolpino, Zhuravli and Obshchy Kolodez, 25 km from the Ukrainian border.
Their job was saving lives. They lost their own in Brazil’s horrifying plane crash
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Footage of the ATR 72 twin-engine turboprop plunging while in a flat spin sent shockwaves across Brazil. All 62 people aboard died, including eight doctors, at least two of whom were headed for an oncology conference to sharpen their knowledge about a disease that kills tens of thousands of Brazilians every year. The fact they worked every day to help their patients battle cancer made it all the more heart wrenching that their lives ended so abruptly.
Major wildfire rages out of control on fringes of Greek capital; hundreds of firefighters deployed
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Hundreds of firefighters backed by more than two dozen water-dropping planes are battling a major wildfire raging out of control on the northern fringes of the Greek capital. A children’s hospital and a military hospital were being evacuated early Monday. Evacuation orders have been issued for more than a dozen areas, including Marathon and several Athens suburbs. Authorities in nearby suburbs were opening at least one sports hall and providing rooms in hotels for evacuees. A blanket of smoke over the center of the Greek capital darkened the sky. The fire began Sunday and was fanned by strong winds and fueled by tinder-dry conditions after repeated heat waves this summer.
After fire struck Maui’s Upcountry, residents of one town looked to themselves to prep for next one
High up in the mountains of Maui, residents of one small town have taken their future into their own hands after a fire last year that burned 19 homes. The blaze that hit part of Kula in August was far smaller than the fire that devastated the historic city of Lahaina, on Maui’s coast. In Kula, residents and firefighters scrambled to beat back the flames after a power outage caused a loss of water pressure. People in Kula have been organizing ever since around cleanup and fire prevention. They’re clearing invasive species, reforesting the burned area with native plants, stabilizing soil, installing smoke detection cameras and holding their utilities accountable.
How a Mexico City hospital transforms into a coming-of-age celebration for its patients
MEXICO CITY (AP) — At a local children’s hospital in Mexico City, volunteers clad in white and blue nurse uniforms scurry to attend to birthday girls and boys. They curl hair, do makeup, and adjust  bow ties. Young patients prepare to celebrate their 15th birthday at the hospital’s annual “Mis XV” or “My Fifteenth.” Whether they are in treatment for a serious disease or have overcome cancer, the hospital’s event centers around celebrating the coming-of-age of these teenagers. In Mexico, the “quinceñera” or “fifteenth birthday” is a huge rite of passage for adolescents, particularly girls. The occasion marks the transition of the teen into adulthood.
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