AP-Newswatch

North Korea’s leader is in Russia to meet Putin, with both locked in standoffs with the West

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea’s Kim Jong Un rolled into Russia on an armored train to see President Vladimir Putin. It’s a rare meeting between isolated leaders driven together by their need for support in escalating standoffs with the West. Kim is expected to seek economic aid and military technology for his impoverished country. In an unusual twist, Kim appears to have something Putin desperately needs: munitions for Russia’s grueling war in Ukraine. The meeting is a chance for the North Korean leader to circumvent crippling U.N. sanctions and years of diplomatic isolation. For Putin, it’s an opportunity to refill ammunition stores the war has drained. Any arms deal with North Korea would violate the sanctions, which Russia previously supported.

10,000 people are missing and thousands are feared dead as eastern Libya is devastated by floods

CAIRO (AP) — Libya’s eastern city of Derna has buried 700 people killed in devastating flooding and 10,000 are reported missing. Rescue teams have retrieved hundreds of bodies more and the final death toll is likely to be much higher. Mediterranean storm Daniel caused devastating floods in many towns in eastern Libya but the destruction was worst in Derna, where entire city neighborhoods were washed away. The head of delegation for Libya for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said that 10,000 people are missing after the floods. The country’s Ambulance and Emergency Authority, which coordinates search and rescue efforts, said about 2,300 people had died in Derna but did not clarify what that figure was based on.

What to know about the Morocco earthquake and the efforts to help

An earthquake has sown destruction and devastation in Morocco, where death and injury counts continue to rise as rescue crews dig out people both alive and dead in villages that were reduced to rubble. Law enforcement and aid workers have arrived in the region south of the city of Marrakech that was hardest hit by the first earthquake where residents await assistance. Many communities lack food, water, electricity and shelter. Members of the Moroccan Parliament convened on Monday to create a government fund for earthquake response at the request of King Mohammed VI.

Trump lawyers seek recusal of judge in DC presiding over federal election subversion case

WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawyers for Donald Trump have asked the federal judge presiding over his election subversion case in Washington to recuse herself. They say her past public statements about the former president and his connection to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol call into question whether she can be fair. The recusal motion Monday from Trump’s lawyers takes aim at U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, a former assistant public defender who was nominated to the bench by President Barack Obama. She has stood out as one of the toughest punishers of Jan. 6 defendants.

Google’s search dominance challenged in the biggest antitrust trial in decades

WASHINGTON (AP) — Google will confront a threat to its dominant search engine beginning Tuesday when federal regulators launch an attempt to dismantle its internet empire in the biggest U.S. antitrust trial in a quarter century. Over the next 10 weeks, federal lawyers and state attorneys general will try to prove Google rigged the market in its favor by locking its search engine in as the default choice in a plethora of places and devices.

Residents hole up, schools close as searchers zero in on escaped murderer Danelo Cavalcante

Authorities in Pennsylvania are warning that an escaped murderer who has evaded capture for nearly two weeks is armed. Pennsylvania State Police are urging residents in the area where Danelo Souza Cavalcante is being pursued Tuesday to lock up, secure vehicles and remain indoors. At least one school district says it is closing all schools and offices for the day and another in the area plans to keep students indoors. Cavalcante escaped from the Chester County jail Aug. 31 after being sentenced to life for killing an ex-girlfriend in 2021.

Cash bail disproportionately impacts communities of color. Illinois is the first state to abolish it

CHICAGO (AP) — Critics of cash bail as a condition of pretrial release say it is especially unfair to Black people and other people of color. Some former defendants say their lives were upended when they were arrested and charged with crimes in Illinois but couldn’t make bail. That state is moving away from the policy; A law abolishing cash bail will take effect in Illinois on Sept. 18. The change makes Illinois the first state to eliminate the practice and a nationally watched testing ground for whether such a change can work. Proponents of cash bail systems argue it ensures defendants show up for court proceedings, and that without it, violent criminals who are released pretrial may commit more crimes.

American researcher doing well after rescue from a deep Turkish cave, calling it a ‘crazy adventure’

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish officials say an American researcher who was pulled out of a deep Turkish cave after becoming too sick to climb out on his own was doing well in a Turkish hospital. Rescuers from across Europe helped save Mark Dickey, 40, who suffered internal bleeding 1,000 meters (more than 3,000 feet) below the entrance of Morca Cave in southern Turkey. He emerged from the cave early Tuesday strapped to a stretcher and whisked to a hospital by helicopter. Speaking to reporters after his rescue, Dickey described his nine-day ordeal as a “crazy, crazy adventure.”

Hillary Clinton is stepping over the White House threshold in yet another role

WASHINGTON (AP) — Hillary Clinton is stepping over the White House threshold in yet another role. Over the decades, she’s been there as a gubernatorial spouse, as a first lady, as a senator and as a Cabinet member — but never in the long-sought role of Madam President. After keeping her distance during the Trump years, Clinton will be back at the White House on Tuesday for an event with first lady Jill Biden. The two will announce the recipients of an annual global arts prize for lifetime achievement. Clinton has long been a supporter of the arts. This will be her first public appearance at the White House since the Obama years.