US military says it intercepted Iranian attacks on 3 Navy ships in Strait of Hormuz
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The U.S. military says that it intercepted Iranian attacks on three U.S. Navy ships as they transited the Strait of Hormuz and “targeted Iranian military facilities responsible for attacking U.S. forces.” The exchange on Thursday highlights the fragility of the month-old ceasefire between the two countries. U.S. Central Command said in a social media post that U.S. forces intercepted “unprovoked Iranian attacks” and responded with self-defense strikes. The U.S. military says no ships were hit. It says it doesn’t seek escalation but “remains positioned and ready to protect American forces.”
Health officials track dozens who left hantavirus-stricken ship after first fatality
MADRID (AP) — Oceanwide Expeditions has revealed that 30 passengers disembarked from its cruise ship hit by a hantavirus outbreak on April 24. They left the ship on the remote island of St. Helena, nearly two weeks after the first passenger died. The company had previously said that a Dutch man's body was removed there, and that his wife also disembarked. She later died in South Africa. Authorities across four continents are tracing contacts of passengers who left the ship. Three passengers have died in the outbreak, and several others are sick. Argentina's Health Ministry tells The Associated Press that a team of investigators has yet to leave for the southern town they suspect is where a Dutch couple contracted the virus.
How public health officials are tracing people who came in contact with hantavirus victims
NEW YORK (AP) — Health officials in several countries are trying to identify and follow people who may have been exposed to hantavirus on a cruise ship. In addition to contact tracing, they are trying to learn more about the virus as fast as they can. Questions include whether it has mutated and how exactly it spreads. Hantaviruses usually spread when people inhale contaminated residue of rodent droppings. While human cases are rare, small outbreaks have been documented around the world. And the Andes virus implicated in the outbreak unfolding on a cruise ship now in the Atlantic Ocean may be able to spread between people in rare cases.
Tennessee enacts new US House map carving up majority-Black district in Memphis
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee has enacted a new U.S. House map that carves up a majority-Black district in Memphis. The new voting districts signed into law Thursday by Republican Gov. Bill Lee gives the GOP a chance to win all nine of the state’s congressional seats in the November midterm elections. Tennessee is the first state to adopt new districts since a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last week that undermined a key provision of the Voting Rights Act. President Donald Trump has urged more Republican-led states to redraw their districts in light of the court ruling. Louisiana, Alabama and South Carolina also have taken steps toward redistricting.
US isn't looking at imminent military action in Cuba despite Trump threats, AP sources say
WASHINGTON (AP) — Officials say the U.S. isn't looking at imminent military action against Havana despite President Donald Trump’s threats that “Cuba is next.” Trump has suggested that American warships deployed in the Middle East for the Iran conflict could return to the U.S. by way of the island. U.S. officials involved in preliminary discussions with Cuban authorities say they aren't optimistic that the communist government will accept an offer for tens of millions of dollars in humanitarian aid, free internet access for all Cubans, agricultural assistance and infrastructure support. But they say Cuba has not yet outright refused the offer even after the Trump administration imposed new sanctions Thursday. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private talks.
A note a former cellmate says he found after Epstein’s suspected suicide attempt is released
NEW YORK (AP) — A note Jeffrey Epstein’s former cellmate claimed he found after the financier’s first jail suicide attempt has been made public after it had been sealed and locked in a courthouse vault for nearly five years as part of an unrelated legal dispute. A judge released the note Wednesday after The New York Times petitioned last week to unseal it and other documents in a case involving the cellmate, Nicholas Tartaglione. Among other things, the note contains the phrase “time to say goodbye.” Tartaglione is a former police officer who is serving a life sentence for killing four people. It isn't clear who wrote the note Tartaglione claimed he found. It wasn’t mentioned in the lengthy government reports examining the circumstances of Epstein’s death.
Both engines shut off and cockpit struggle came before 2022 China plane crash, NTSB data suggests
Both engines were intentionally shut down and there was a cockpit struggle before a China Eastern Airlines jet slammed into a mountain in 2022. All 132 people on board died. In response to a public records request, the National Transportation Safety Board released a report on what the Boeing 737-800’s flight data recorder revealed. Aviation safety experts agree that the data shows both engines stopped and someone sent the plane into a nosedive and a 360-degree roll. And the back-and-forth movement of the controls suggests a struggle in the cockpit. Chinese authorities have yet to release a final report.
Ex-Ohio State players, including NFL veterans, to join a sexual abuse lawsuit against the school
Thirty former Ohio State football players, including some former NFL players, are agreeing to join a federal lawsuit against the university over the sexual abuse of student-athletes decades ago by a team doctor. A lawyer in the case, Rocky Ratliff, said Thursday that the men have signed letters of agreement to join a lawsuit. Ohio State has fought lawsuits brought by former student-athletes over its failure to stop abuse by Dr. Richard Strauss. Hundreds say they were abused by him. Ratliff says some other former football players have settled with the school in sealed agreements. Ohio State says it has tried to reconcile with survivors through settlements, counseling services and medical treatment.
Ex-deputy found guilty of reckless homicide in shooting of Black man entering grandmother's home
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Jurors in Ohio have convicted a former sheriff’s deputy of reckless homicide in the shooting of a Black man who was carrying sandwiches into his grandmother’s home. But the judge declared a mistrial on the murder charge after they couldn't agree on that count Thursday. Jason Meade shot Casey Goodson Jr. five times in the back and once in the side as the 23-year-old returned home in Columbus in December 2020. Meade is the second white officer in Ohio to be convicted in the killing of a Black man since George Floyd’s death turned national attention on the issue. There was no video of this shooting.
Fueled by beer ads, March Madness tournaments will expand to 76 teams each starting next season
The NCAA will expand its March Madness tournaments by eight teams each next season. It will add more early-round games in the first week without altering the overall format. The new 76-team brackets for men and women will feature 12 games involving 24 teams. The winners will join the main 64-team bracket starting Thursday for men and Friday for women. Most new slots are expected to go to power conference teams.
