What’s next for Hunter Biden after his conviction on federal gun charges
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Hunter Biden’s legal woes are not over after his conviction on three felony firearms charges in a trial that put a spotlight on his drug-fueled past. Now, President Joe Biden’s son faces sentencing, and another trial on tax charges in the middle of his father’s reelection campaign. Jurors found Hunter Biden guilty on Tuesday after three hours of deliberations over two days in Wilmington, Delaware. The case stemmed from a gun Hunter Biden bought in 2018 while, prosecutors say, he was in the throes of a crack cocaine addiction. Defense attorney Abbe Lowell said after the verdict that they will “continue to vigorously pursue all the legal challenges available.”
Hamas responds to Gaza cease-fire plan seeking some changes. US says it’s ‘evaluating’ the reply
BEIRUT (AP) — Hamas says it has given Qatari and Egyptian mediators its reply to the U.S.-backed proposal for a cease-fire in Gaza, seeking some “amendments” on the deal. Hamas and the smaller Islamic Jihad militant group said on Tuesday they were ready to “deal positively to arrive at an agreement” and that their priority is to bring a “complete stop” to the war. A senior Hamas official said they had “submitted some remarks on the proposal to the mediators” but did not elaborate. The foreign ministries of Qatar and Egypt said in joint statement that mediators were examining the response. The White House national security spokesman says Washington also has Hamas’ response and was “evaluating” it now.
UN says Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups may have committed war crimes in a deadly raid
GENEVA (AP) — The U.N. human rights office is citing possible war crimes by Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups in connection with a deadly raid by Israeli forces that freed four hostages over the weekend. Office spokesman Jeremy Laurence expressed concerns about possible violations of rules of proportionality, distinction and precaution by the Israeli forces in Saturday’s raid at the urban Nuseirat refugee camp. Palestinian health officials say at least 274 Palestinians, including dozens of women and children, were killed in the operation. Laurence said Palestinian armed groups who are holding hostages in densely populated areas are putting the lives of nearby civilians and the hostages at “added risks” from the hostilities.
AP sources: 8 people with possible Islamic State ties arrested in US on immigration violations
WASHINGTON (AP) — Eight individuals from Tajikistan with suspected ties to the Islamic State have been arrested in the United States in recent days. That’s according to multiple people familiar with the matter. The people say the arrests took place in New York, Philadelphia and Los Angeles and the individuals, who entered the U.S. through the southern border, are being held on immigration violations. The nature of their suspected connections to the Islamic State was not immediately clear, but the men were tracked by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force. They were in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which made the arrests, pending removal proceedings.
Southern Baptists expel Virginia church for believing women can serve as pastors
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Delegates to the Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting had voted overwhelmingly to boot a Virginia church from its ranks because of its declaration that it believes women can serve in any pastoral ministry. More than 90 percent of them voted to deem First Baptist Church of Alexandria not in “friendly cooperation.” The Southern Baptists’ statement of doctrine says that only men are biblically qualified to be pastors. Some say that only applies to senior pastors, but that interpretation is disputed. The Virginia church has a female pastor to women and children, but it asserts women can serve as a senior pastor, too. The Baptists’ two-day annual meeting in Indianapolis concludes Wednesday.
Mexico’s tactic to cut immigration to the US: wear out migrants
VILLAHERMOSA, Mexico (AP) — Mexican authorities are using a simple but harsh tactic to deal with migrants trying to get to the U.S. They’re wearing them out until they give up. Mexico is driven by mounting pressure from the U.S. to block millions of people headed north. But the country doesn’t have the funds to deport migrants. So instead migrants are churning in limbo in Mexico. Authorities round them up across the country and dump them in southern Mexican cities of Villahermosa and Tapachula. Some migrants have been punted back as many as six times. A psychologist at the only migrant shelter in Villahermosa says, “Mexico is the wall.”
A Florida law blocking treatment for transgender children is thrown out by a federal judge
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — A federal judge has struck down as unconstitutional a 2023 Florida law that blocked gender-affirming care for transgender minors and severely restricted such treatment for adults. Senior Judge Robert Hinkle ruled Tuesday that the state went too far when it barred transgender minors from being prescribed puberty blockers and hormonal treatments with their parents’ permission. He also stopped the state from requiring that transgender adults only receive treatment from a doctor and not from a registered nurse or other qualified medical practitioner. And he barred a ban on online treatment for transgender adults. Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office blasted the decision, calling it erroneous. He vowed to appeal.
Biden and gun control advocates want to flip an issue long dominated by the NRA
ATLANTA (AP) — Gun control advocates and many Democrats see fresh openings created by hard-line positions of the gun lobby. President Joe Biden’s campaign says gun control could be a motivating issue for suburban college-educated women who may be decisive in several key battlegrounds this fall. The Biden campaign and its allies have already circulated clips of Republican former President Donald Trump saying after an Iowa school shooting in January that “we have to get over it.” Trump has also promised he would impose no new restrictions on guns if elected again. Biden himself praised cheering gun-control advocates at a conference on Tuesday.
Malawi’s vice president and 9 others are confirmed dead after their plane’s wreckage is found
BLANTYRE, Malawi (AP) — Malawi’s president says the vice president and nine others have died in a plane crash. The wreckage of the military plane carrying Vice President Saulos Chilima was found in a mountainous area in the country’s north after a search that lasted more than a day. President Lazarus Chakwera says there are no survivors. The plane went missing Monday morning while making a 45-minute flight from the southern African nation’s capital. Air traffic controllers told the plane not to attempt a landing at the Mzuzu airport because of bad weather and poor visibility and asked it to turn back.
For shrinking Mississippi River towns, frequent floods worsen fortunes
WEST ALTON, Mo. (AP) — Flooding has pushed people out of their homes near the Mississippi River at a roughly 30% higher rate than the U.S. as a whole, according to data provided exclusively to The Associated Press by the risk analysis firm First Street. That’s hurting a region that is already growing slower than the rest of the country and in some places is struggling with job loss and fewer resources. The riverside community of West Alton, Missouri, is an example of one that has repeatedly been hit by floods. That’s forced some people to leave and cut into the sense of community. Climate change is making bad floods more frequent by sending more water into the atmosphere and causing more extreme rainfalls.
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