Tropical Storm Debby strengthens into a Category 1 hurricane as it heads toward Florida
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tropical Storm Debby has strengthened to a Category 1 hurricane as it heads toward Florida. Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center say the storm now has maximum sustained winds of 75 mph. The storm has already brought rain and flooding to much of Florida’s Gulf Coast. Forecasters warn it will likely also thrash the Atlantic coasts of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina with rain. Catastrophic flooding is expected in some areas. Debby is the fourth named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season.
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.”
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index plunges 8% as world markets tremble over risks to the US economy
BANGKOK (AP) — Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 stock index has fallen as much as 8.1%, extending sell-offs that shook markets last week. Most other major markets also fell, though shares rose in mainland China. Stocks tumbled Friday on worries the U.S. economy could be cracking under the weight of high interest rates meant to tame inflation. Early Monday, the futures for the S&P 500 and the Dow industrials were down more than 1%. 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.
Olympic boxer Imane Khelif calls for end to bullying after backlash over gender misconceptions
PARIS (AP) — Olympic boxer Imane Khelif says the wave of hateful scrutiny she has faced over misconceptions about her gender “harms human dignity.” She called for an end to bullying athletes after being greatly affected by the international backlash against her. The Algerian athlete spoke about her tumultuous Olympic experience on Sunday night in an interview with SNTV, a sports video partner of The Associated Press. Khelif also expressed gratitude to the International Olympic Committee and its president, Thomas Bach, for standing resolutely behind her while the banned former governing body of Olympic boxing stoked a furor around her participation in Paris.
Renewed anti-government protests leave nearly 100 dead, hundreds more injured in Bangladesh
DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Nearly 100 people have been killed and hundreds more injured as renewed anti-government protests sweep across Bangladesh. The protesters are calling for the prime minister to resign. The prime minister responded by accusing them of “sabotage” and cutting off mobile internet in a bid to quell the unrest. The country’s leading Bengali-language daily newspaper, Prothom Alo, said at least 95 people were killed Sunday, including at least 14 police officers. The military announced that a new curfew was in effect for an indefinite period. Demonstrators are demanding Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s resignation following deadly protests last month that began with students calling for an end to a quota system for government jobs.
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.
More Olympians are set to compete in the Seine River. Here’s the latest on water quality concerns
PARIS (AP) — At the Paris Olympics, whether the water quality in the Seine River is safe enough to host some swimming events has been a major question. Bacteria levels in the river are constantly in flux. Daily water samples are tested so organizers can assess the risk to athletes and determine whether swims in the long-polluted Paris waterway should go forward. In deciding whether events can be held in the river, World Triathlon’s medical committee said it considers water quality analysis, sanitary inspection, and weather forecast. Triathletes raced in the river Wednesday after a delay. Organizers said Sunday night that the triathlon mixed relay would be held Monday morning, including a swimming portion in the Seine.
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