Remnants of Debby threaten the Northeast with flooding, possible tornadoes
BARRE, Vt. (AP) — The remnants of Debby are racing northward, threatening lashing rain, flash flooding, and tornadoes in the Northeast. Debby is now a post-tropical cyclone expected to bring significant rainfall that could cause dangerous flooding from New York and Pennsylvania through New England into the weekend. The South Carolina town of Moncks Corner was hit early Friday by flash flooding, just days after a tornado struck there earlier this week. From eastern Virginia up to Vermont, an active stretch of tornadoes was also possible. Stormwater swamped parts of Annapolis, Maryland, including at the U.S. Naval Academy campus. At least eight people have died so far from Debby.
The threat Israel didn’t foresee: Hezbollah’s growing drone power
BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s militant Hezbollah group has used dozens of drones to attack Israel in recent months. Such attacks have inflicted casualties and caused damage to vital military posts away from the border. The drones have been effective because while Israel has built air defense systems to guard against Hezbollah’s rocket and missile arsenal, there has been less focus on the drone threat. Now, drones have given the Iranian-backed militant group another deadly option as it seeks to avenge Israel’s airstrike in Beirut last month that killed a top Hezbollah military commander. Analysts say the drones pose a threat that Israel should take seriously.
Iran is accelerating cyber activity that appears meant to influence the US election, Microsoft says
NEW YORK (AP) — A new report from Microsoft finds that Iran is accelerating online activity that appears intended to influence the U.S. election. Friday’s report finds that Iranian actors have recently created fake news sites, impersonated activists, and in one case targeted a U.S. presidential campaign official with an email phishing attack. Microsoft says the activity shows how Iran is laying the groundwork to stoke division and potentially sway American voters this fall. U.S. intelligence officials say Russia continues to pose the greatest threat for election disinformation, while Iran is expanding its efforts and China is proceeding cautiously. Iran’s United Nations mission denied that it plans cyberattacks or other interference in the U.S. election.
The latest battleground stop for Harris and Walz is Arizona, where a VP runner-up could still matter
PHOENIX (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate are campaigning in Arizona as the latest stop on their tour of battleground states. The Arizona swing is especially significant because Harris passed over the state’s junior senator, Mark Kelly, in favor of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to be her running mate. That may cost her a handful of votes in a state that President Joe Biden won by fewer than 11,000 votes in 2020. But the state is also full of Midwesterners who may warm to Walz. And Democrats say the same energy that’s greeted Harris at earlier stops on her battleground tour is present in Arizona. Kelly is expected to attend the Arizona rally.
Breanna Stewart, US women’s basketball team advances to gold medal game at Paris Olympics
PARIS (AP) — Breanna Stewart scored 16 points and the U.S. women advanced to their eighth consecutive Olympic gold medal game with an 85-64 victory over Australia on Friday. The Americans, who extended their Olympic winning streak to 60 consecutive games, will face either France or Belgium on Sunday. The U.S. is trying to become the first team to win eight consecutive gold medals, breaking the tie with the American men’s program that won seven in a row from 1936-68. A win Sunday would give Diana Taurasi a record six gold medals.
Russia declares an emergency in Kursk, under attack by Ukraine. 14 die in a Russian strike on a mall
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia has declared a “federal-level” emergency in the Kursk region following a large-scale incursion from Ukraine and sent reinforcements. The announcement came four days after hundreds of Ukrainian troops poured across the border in what appeared to be Kyiv’s biggest attack on Russian soil since the war began. Authorities in eastern Ukraine meanwhile said a Russian plane-launched missile hit a shopping mall late in the morning on Friday. At least 14 people were killed, and 44 others were wounded. The mall is located in a town’s residential area. Thick black smoke rose above it after the strike. Donetsk regional head Vadym Filashkin said it was “another act of terror by the Russians.”
A win for the Harris-Walz ticket would also mean the country’s first Native American female governor
If Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz officially steps down later this year to accept the position of U.S. vice president, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan would become the first Native woman to govern a state. Flanagan, a member of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe, became the highest ranking Native American statewide official in the country when she was elected to office in 2018, and she has helped shape Walz’s administration as one focused on improving tribal sovereignty and autonomy across Minnesota. She is one of several Indigenous women who have taken seats of power in the U.S. over the last decade, and many in Indian Country see her rise to power as an opportunity for increased Indigenous rights and visibility.
Michael Brown’s death 10 years ago sparked change in Ferguson
FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) — Michael Brown’s death was the catalyst for massive change starting in Ferguson, Missouri. Ten years later, those in the community cite significant progress, but say challenges remain. Every city leader was white in the majority-Black city in 2014. Today, the mayor, police chief, city attorney, and other leaders are Black. The mostly-white police force of 2014 now has more officers that are Black than white. The municipal court system that once brought in millions of dollars in court fines and fees paid mostly by poor residents now collects only a fraction of that. But many acknowledge that race still divides the community of 18,000 residents.
Hearing in Karen Read case expected to focus on jury deliberations
DEDHAM, Mass. (AP) — Prosecutors and defense attorneys in the Karen Read case are set to return to court with the focus expected to be on jury deliberations that led to a mistrial on charges she killed her police officer boyfriend. Read is accused of ramming into John O’Keefe with her SUV and leaving him for dead in a January 2022 snowstorm. The defense contends four jurors have said the jury unanimously reached a not guilty verdict on second-degree murder and leaving the scene of a deadly accident and were deadlocked on the remaining manslaughter charge. The hearing is scheduled for Friday afternoon.
3rd person in custody over foiled plot targeting now-canceled Taylor Swift shows in Vienna
VIENNA (AP) — Austrian authorities have announced a third arrest in connection with the foiled conspiracy to attack three now-canceled Taylor Swift concerts even as disappointed fans charmed Vienna by trading friendship bracelets and singing the pop star’s songs in the streets. The main suspect planned to target onlookers gathered outside Ernst Happel Stadium with knives or homemade explosives during the concert on Thursday or Friday. Authorities say the scheme was inspired by the Islamic State group and al-Qaida. Swift is set to travel to London’s Wembley stadium for five concerts between Aug. 15 and 20 to close the European leg of her record-setting Eras Tour.
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