AP-Newswatch

Israel kills a top militant in its deadliest West Bank raids since the Gaza war began

TULKAREM, West Bank (AP) — The Israeli military says it has killed five more militants, including a local commander, in the occupied West Bank. The army has pressed ahead with what appears to be the deadliest military operation in the occupied territory since the start of the war in Gaza. Israel says the raids are aimed at preventing attacks. The raids have killed a total of 16 people, nearly all militants, since late Tuesday. The Palestinians see them as a widening of the war in Gaza aimed at perpetuating Israel’s decades-long military rule. The Islamic Jihad militant group confirmed that Mohammed Jaber, known as Abu Shujaa, was killed early Thursday.

Ukraine says one of its Western-donated F-16 warplanes has crashed

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s military says that one of the handful of F-16 warplanes that Ukraine has received from its Western partners to help fight Russia’s invasion has crashed. The military said in a statement posted on Facebook that the fighter jet went down on Monday, when Russia launched a major missile and drone barrage at Ukraine. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that some of those Russian missiles and drones were shot down by F-16s before they reached their targets. The crash was the first reported loss of an F-16 in Ukraine, where they arrived at the end of last month. At least six of the warplanes are believed to have been delivered.

Iran has further increased its stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels, UN says

VIENNA (AP) — The U.N. nuclear watchdog says that Iran has further increased its stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels in defiance of international demands. That’s according to a confidential report by the International Atomic Energy Agency that was seen by The Associated Press on Thursday. The report says Tehran has also not reconsidered its September 2023 decision to ban the most experienced nuclear inspectors from monitoring its nuclear program and that IAEA surveillance cameras remain disrupted. The report further says that Iran has still not provided answers to the nuclear watchdog’s years-long investigation about the origin and current location of man-made uranium particles found at two locations that Tehran has failed to declare as potential nuclear sites.

Justice Department watchdog finds failures in FBI’s handling of child sex abuse cases

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department watchdog says the FBI has failed to report some child sexual abuse allegations to local law enforcement or social service agencies even after changes prompted by its handling of the case against former USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar. The report released Thursday was a review brought on by the FBI’s failures to promptly investigate Nassar. The inspector general found serious problems persist that run the risk of child sexual abuse allegations falling through the cracks as overworked agents juggle dozens of cases at a time. A senior FBI official acknowledged that the bureau has made mistakes in investigating crimes against children but said the “vast majority of work” has been handled appropriately.

A baby in Gaza has a strain of polio linked to mistakes in eradication campaign, experts say

LONDON (AP) — The baby in Gaza who was recently paralyzed by polio was infected with a mutated strain of the virus that vaccinated people shed in their waste. That’s according to scientists who say the case is the result of “an unqualified failure” of public health policy. The infection marked the first detection of polio in the war-torn Palestinian territory in more than 25 years. The virus paralyzed the lower part of one leg in the unvaccinated 10-month-old child. Scientists who have been reviewing polio outbreaks said it showed the failures of a global effort by the World Health Organization and its partners to fix serious problems in their largely successful campaign to eradicate the highly infectious disease.

Grand Canyon visitors are moving to hotels outside the national park after water pipeline failures

GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK, Ariz. (AP) — Tourists staying at Grand Canyon National Park are moving to accommodations outside the park after water pipeline failures forced the sudden shutdown of overnight hotel stays during one of the busiest times of the year. The restrictions will run throughout the Labor Day holiday, when hotels are near or at capacity. Visitors won’t be able to stay overnight in hotels at Grand Canyon National Park after a series of breaks in the only pipeline that serves the popular tourist destination. They say all park concessions will halt overnight accommodations, including El Tovar, Bright Angel Lodge, Maswik Lodge, and Phantom Ranch. Officials say overnight hotel accommodations located outside the park in the town of Tusayan will not be impacted.

The Chiefs’ pursuit of a 3-peat is the hot topic among many storylines entering 2024 NFL season

Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs chasing history will be the hottest topic throughout the NFL season. Kansas City’s three-peat quest is only one of many interesting storylines. Aaron Rodgers is back in New York after his first season with the Jets lasted only four plays. The 40-year-old four-time NFL MVP is returning from a torn Achilles tendon and aiming to help the Jets end the league’s longest active playoff drought. No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams takes over for the Bears, looking to end Chicago’s lengthy search for a franchise quarterback. Eighteen weeks and 272 games to determine the teams that’ll play in January to figure out which two face off in February for the Vince Lombardi trophy.