At Trump’s last primetime presidential address in April, he said the U.S. would accomplish its Iran war objectives “very shortly.” But days of back-and-forth attacks by the U.S. and Iran across the Middle East and in the Strait of Hormuz have shredded the interim deal to pause the fighting. U.S. strikes intensified early Thursday against a widening set of targets, including a ship it accused of breaking its blockade on Iranian ports. Iran retaliated by firing on U.S. allies in the region.

Here's the latest:

National Guard deployment to DC will last through Trump’s term

The president’s deployment of National Guard troops to the nation’s capital is being extended by more than two years and will last until the end of his term.

The Pentagon confirmed the extension in an email Thursday, stating that the “D.C. Safe and Beautiful Mission” continues to Jan. 20, 2029, “or until terminated by the President.”

The deployment has been contentious since August 2025, when Trump issued an emergency order because of what he said was out-of-control crime. The administration says crime has rapidly fallen since, although local officials have argued that crime was already going down before Trump ordered 2,500 troops into the city.

Guard members have responded to medical emergencies, assisted with arrests, helped with snow removal and carried out beautification projects.

ABC and NBC will air Trump speech on their streaming services but won’t have live network coverage

Networks had been markedly mum about their coverage plans of Trump’s address, not responding to queries.

But by late Thursday afternoon, both ABC and NBC had decided not to air the remarks live, but to carry them in full on their streaming services, and break into network coverage as needed.

ABC said it would carry the speech on ABC News Live and ABC News Radio with “comprehensive, anchored coverage,” as well as cover it in regular network newscasts. It said its Special Report team was prepared to break into network programming to deliver live updates and reporting “should significant developments occur.”

NBC said it would have live coverage on NBC News NOW and would air a special report on the network following the remarks.

At the White House briefing, press secretary Karoline Leavitt urged TV networks to carry the speech live.

US military launches another day of strikes on Iran

The U.S. military has begun a sixth day of strikes on Iran, a statement from U.S. Central Command announced Thursday.

The statement offered few details about what the military was targeting beyond the new wave being an effort to “further degrade Iranian military capabilities.”

However, U.S. strikes have been intensifying in recent days as the military has taken to hitting targets away from Iran’s coastal regions, including areas around Iran’s capital, Tehran, for the first time in this latest round of violence. American forces also fired into a ship it accused of trying to break its naval blockade on the Islamic Republic.

Iranian officials said Wednesday that U.S. strikes have killed more than 35 people and wounded more than 300 others.

Leavitt says ICE is still stopping vehicles after Trump opposed agents not doing so

“Vehicle stops are continuing. Verbal guidance has been given to all field offices across the country by the Department of Homeland Security,” Leavitt said.

She added that such stops “are a necessary tool that ICE agents need in order” to continue what she calls “their deportation campaign of the worst of the worst.”

Trump posted on his social media site on Wednesday that ICE agents should keep pulling over vehicles – just a day after officials said they’d be suspending most such stops.

ICE’s enforcement tactics are coming under renewed criticism after three people died during encounters with federal officers within a week.

Leavitt urges live coverage of Trump’s speech and suggests it’s still a work in progress

Under persistent questioning about the remarks set for 9 p.m. EDT, Leavitt said there’ve been discussions about Trump addressing a range of topics beyond the 2020 election, “and that could very well be possible tonight.”

“Again, this is all more reason for all of you to carry the speech live, and for the American people to tune in tonight so they can hear directly from the American president and draw their own conclusions,” she said.

It remains unclear how television networks will handle the speech.

Leavitt won’t say whether Trump will accept midterm results; Vance says administration will

Leavitt declined to answer when asked if Trump’s upcoming speech on “election integrity” meant the president might not be willing to accept the results of November’s midterms.

But Vance was far more definitive.

Asked by reporters on Capitol Hill on Wednesday about November, Vance said, “Of course we’re gonna support the results of the midterm elections.”

“We think we’re going to win. But ultimately that’s up to the American people,” the vice president said then. “But we also think we have to do everything that we can to discourage cheating.”

Trump and Vance have jointly pushed for approval of the Save Act, which is stalled in Congress. Even if it were to pass, however, the proposal wouldn’t affect the midterms.

Leavitt says Trump administration isn’t sending mixed signals on Iran

The press secretary was asked about Trump saying the U.S. couldn’t negotiate with Iran because they lie, even as Vice President JD Vance has expressed frustration about being criticized by hawkish elements while he’s sought to negotiate with Iran.

Leavitt said that was no contradiction, adding, “I can tell you the president and vice president are on the exact same page about where we are right now in this conflict.”

Pressed separately on Trump continuing to insist that the U.S. military wasn’t responsible for striking an Iranian girl’s school at the start of the war, Leavitt said, “That’s the president’s opinion” only, suggesting what he said wasn’t a fact.

She also said that, at the Defense Department, “the investigation continues” into the incident.

Leavitt says cuts at CDC and FDA haven’t affected response to parasite outbreak

Asked about a surge in infections from the diarrhea-causing parasite cyclospora, Leavitt said the administration is “closely monitoring the situation” and tracing the outbreak’s source.

States are reporting record numbers of cases of infections, and health officials have not yet definitively identified what’s causing the spike.

It comes after the administration made significant cuts to food safety programs at the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last year. Asked if those cuts have slowed the government’s response, Leavitt said no.

“We’ve talked to the CDC and FDA specifically about that, and not at all,” she said. “They have the resources they need to make sure that Americans are fully informed and protected from this illness during this time.”

Leavitt says White House staffer accused of profiting off position is on unpaid leave

Asked about reports that a teleprompter operator for Trump is accused of placing online bets using inside knowledge from his job, Leavitt said the employee has been put on unpaid leave.

“I’m aware of the report; the president is too. I spoke with him about it. He believes it’s deeply unfortunate and, frankly, a disgrace,” Leavitt said Thursday.

Leavitt said she does not know of other White House employees accused of similar allegations, adding that the White House has “extremely strict, ethical guidelines with respect to issues like this.”

Reports from ABC News and other outlets say Gabriel Perez, a technical assistant to the president, is in talks with federal regulators to settle allegations that he used inside knowledge from Trump’s speeches to win more than $100,000 on the predictions market Kalshi.

White House press secretary punts on who Trump wants to win the World Cup

Asked if Trump will be cheering for Argentina given the hard feelings he has toward Spain, Karoline Leavitt answered a reporter’s question with, “It’s a really good question.”

“And I’m disappointed in myself for not asking the president before I came out here, knowing you would probably ask,” she said at her briefing Thursday. “I haven’t talked to him about it. But we’ll get you an answer on that. You’re welcome to ask him yourself at some point before the game. I’m sure you’ll see him, and I’m sure he’ll have a fun answer for you on it.”

Leavitt teases Trump’s primetime address and World Cup visit

She kicked off the briefing with a scheduling update, highlighting Trump’s national address planned for Thursday evening.

“President Trump will deliver a major address to the nation on protecting the integrity of our elections. And we encourage every American to tune in,” Leavitt said.

She added that Trump will head to New York City on Friday for a FIFA reception at Trump Tower ahead of his appearance at the World Cup final between Spain and Argentina on Sunday.

Tech troubles before White House briefing

The White House planned to use TV screens ahead of the daily briefing, but technical issues got in the way, and the screens were removed before White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt came to the lectern.

An aide was working on a laptop to get the screens going before the briefing began and looked relatively stressed as the start of the briefing was delayed. Eventually, four aides — two of them on cellphones — tried to resolve the situation without success.

Eventually, the screens were removed from behind the lectern, and Leavitt appeared for her first briefing since giving birth and going on parental leave.

Leavitt holds her first briefing since returning from maternity leave

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt is back at the briefing room podium on Thursday, the first time since she went on maternity leave earlier this year.

Leavitt last held a briefing on April 24 before taking leave and giving birth to a daughter on May 1. She returned to work at the White House in late June.

While she was away, the White House leaned on a rotating cast of cabinet members to fill in, including Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

Leavitt’s return comes ahead of a national address Trump is scheduled to deliver Thursday evening. The president has said he will discuss topics including elections and voting machines.

House Democratic leader says Trump is ‘conspirator in chief’ over election claims

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries said, “None of the things that Trump has said — or may say later on today — with respect to election interference have any merit.”

Ahead of Thursday’s speech, Jeffries was asked whether China may have interfered in U.S. elections. The Democratic leader said he drew from the work of the House Intelligence Committee’s top Democrat, Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, whose op-ed published Thursday in The New York Times restated the findings of U.S. intelligence after recent elections.

Himes wrote that U.S. intelligence said that there are “no indications that any foreign actor attempted to interfere in the 2020 U.S. elections by altering any technical aspect of the voting process.” Himes warned that Trump may try to cherry-pick unverified information and present it as explosive new theories of election wrongdoing.

Jeffries said Trump is “the one fanning the flames of conspiracy theories.”

Trump administration revives rule that may deny green cards to immigrants using public benefits

President Donald Trump’s administration is reviving a rule that could deny green cards to immigrants who use public benefits, including food stamps, Medicaid, housing vouchers and others.

The policy, known as “public charge,” appeared in the Federal Register on Thursday and will be formally published on July 20.

The policy was first implemented in February 2020 as one of Trump’s moves to limit legal immigration during his first administration. But it was reversed after Democratic President Joe Biden took office.

Its return comes when the Republican administration is implementing a hardline policy to curb both illegal and legal immigration, and when the cost of healthcare and food is rising.

▶ Read more

It’s unclear if TV networks plan to air Trump’s speech or to what extent

Messages to ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News Channel and MS NOW asking about coverage plans weren’t returned.

Democrats warned that Trump was trying to revive false claims of past stolen elections in order to delegitimize the upcoming 2026 midterm elections, in which Trump’s Republican Party is facing headwinds.

US government designates 2 new Mexican cartels as foreign terrorist organizations

They are the Juárez Cartel, on the border with Texas, and Los Viagras, a criminal group from the western state of Michoacán. The Federal Register, the U.S. government’s gazette, published the designation Thursday.

They joined six other Mexican criminal organizations the U.S. considers terrorist groups, including the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. Gangs in other Latin American countries, including Venezuela, Brazil, Ecuador and El Salvador, also have been designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the Trump administration.

President Trump began to extend the terrorist label to Latin American cartels in February 2025 to allow U.S. authorities to take more aggressive action against them or against anyone the U.S. sees as aiding the groups.

▶ Read more

As Iran war expands, Rubio hosts world leaders for conference on ‘far-left political terrorism’

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio convened more than 60 governments to address what he described a growing increase of left wing violence around the globe. Rubio opened the conference by making sweeping statements about the issue and noting that the U.S. and most of the world has spent the last few decades focusing on Islamic terrorism.

“For far too long, however, our counterterrorism doctrine has had a blind spot, a blind spot when it comes to extremist violence from the political left,” he said.

Rubio added that the U.S. plans to make more terrorist designations against groups like antifa.

2 of 8 men charged in thwarted attack on UFC cage-fighting show at White House plead not guilty

Two of the eight men indicted on murder and terrorism conspiracy charges for their alleged roles in a thwarted drone and sniper attack on the UFC cage-fighting show at the White House last month pleaded not guilty Thursday.

Tycen Proper, 19, of Danville, Ohio, and Chandler Scaggs, 21, of Chapmanville, West Virginia, entered the pleas before U.S. District Court Judge Edmund Sargus Jr. in Columbus, Ohio. Each is charged, as are the six others, with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and conspiracy to commit murder on federal government territory and to murder a federal government official.

Sargus set their trial date for Sept. 14.

A message seeking comment was left with Proper’s attorney. Scaggs’ lawyer declined to comment.

▶ Read more

DHS finds itself back in the headlines after 3 fatal ICE encounters, in a test for Secretary Mullin

When Markwayne Mullin took over as Homeland Security secretary from fired Kristi Noem, he pledged to get the department responsible for carrying out the Trump administration’s mass deportations policy out of the headlines.

But just months into Mullin’s time in office, the department is squarely in the center of controversy again after three people were killed in encounters with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in the span of less than a week.

The events are the first major test for Mullin, who promised a steady hand for a department roiled by his predecessor’s conduct and the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

As he navigates the uptick in violence, he’s being forced into a balancing act that has him juggling pressures from a White House eager to carry out mass deportations and his former colleagues in Congress seeking answers — all while attempting to ease tensions in American cities over the deaths.

▶ Read more

After six years, Trump brings his election obsession to primetime at the White House

In the weeks after Trump lost to Joe Biden in 2020, the people Trump appointed to run the Department of Justice, cybersecurity agencies and intelligence departments all said the same thing — the election was fair, legitimate and free of major fraud or foreign interference.

In his second term, Trump has tried to use the levers of power to rewrite that well-settled history, something he’s expected to try again Thursday night with an address to the nation.

He’s already appointed loyalists who’ve echoed his false claims that the 2020 election was stolen and made clear he expects everyone to follow his lead.

In an indication of how fealty to Trump’s lies has become a litmus test for his administration, many of his nominees have steadfastly refused to directly answer the question of who won in 2020, preferring to tersely note that Biden became president.

▶ Read more

Trump is taking longer to approve disaster aid and denying Democratic states more frequently

When major disasters strike, Americans are routinely waiting weeks — or even months — to receive presidential approval for aid. And if they live in a state that didn’t support President Trump, chances are greater that aid will be denied.

Since taking office last year, Trump has approved about 65 requests for major disaster declarations and denied more than two dozen others from states, tribes or territories seeking federal financial assistance following hurricanes, tornadoes, storms, floods and fires.

Trump has taken longer on average to approve disaster requests than any other president, according to an Associated Press analysis of data dating back to 1989, when a federal law setting new parameters for disaster determinations was implemented. And no other president has such a disparity in denials between states that supported him politically and those that did not.

▶ Read more

Trump is expected to make election conspiracies a focus of his national address

President Donald Trump is set to address the nation Thursday night on topics he said will include elections and voting machines, suggesting he’s likely to revisit some of the unproven claims he’s previously made about Republican losses, particularly his own in 2020.

Trump’s fixation on his loss to Democrat Joe Biden six years ago and the long-debunked theories he’s circulated about it are something he still brings up regularly when discussing other subjects. But elevating the deeply political and conspiratorial topics to a presidential primetime address underscores the lengths to which Trump has used his second term to both blow past norms and fixate on old grievances.

Trump has offered only vague details about the address, scheduled for 9 p.m. When asked by a reporter Tuesday if it would concern “election machines and integrity,” Trump said it would “concern that subject” and “we’ll have a couple of other things to say also.”

▶ Read more

The puzzled looks, shakes of the head and sagging shoulders said it all.

McIlroy was just 10 holes into his bid to win the British Open for the first time since 2014 and he was veering dangerously close to playing himself out of title contention.

Missing one putt from four feet wasn’t necessarily unusual. But doing it three times? In the space of four holes?

That trio of bewildering close-range mishaps — on Nos. 7, 8 and 10 — came either side of McIlroy driving the green to make birdie on the 415-yard No. 9. Go figure.

And it pretty much summed up the world No. 2’s wild late-afternoon ride in a 2-over 72 that included six bogeys and left him seven shots off the first-round lead, held surprisingly by 115th-ranked Jackson Suber on Thursday.

“Just too many stupid mistakes,” McIlroy said — and he was specifically referring to his putting on greens he described as “very inconsistent”

“I missed a couple early on that looked like they were going to break one way and they actually went another way, and then when you get the next one, you’re over it and it’s just very hard to trust that the ball is going to do what you think it’s going to do. Then you maybe don’t make quite as committed of a stroke.”

McIlroy arrived at the Open after a seventh-place finish at the Scottish Open, where he went viral by shouting “I’m so bad at golf” following a poor approach shot late in his final round.

The sixth player — and only European — to complete the career Grand Slam rarely hides his emotions and he cut a frustrated figure for most of his round Thursday, not least when he chipped through the green and into a bunker at the par-5 No. 17.

McIlroy managed to splash out to 8 feet while having one knee on the ground but a weakly struck par putt led to another dropped shot.

“It’s just hard to judge the speed sometimes,” he said.

Making birdie at the tough last hole after a brilliant approach to 5 feet sparked shouts of “Rory, Rory” from spectators in the grandstands and at least gave him something to cling to.

He barely raised a smile, though, after plucking the ball out of the cup. One stat spoke volumes: he ranked 148th in putting in the 156-man field.

McIlroy is playing a reduced schedule in 2026 and this is just his sixth event since winning the Masters for the second straight year, which moved his total of major titles to six.

A win this week would tie him with Harry Vardon as the European player with most majors in men’s golf.

He already has plenty of work to do, even if he tried to remain positive.

“Hopefully we’ll get the better conditions tomorrow and maybe the greens are a little bit smoother in the morning,” McIlroy said. “Go out there and shoot a good one and get myself right back in it for the weekend.”

___

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Reports from the National Transportation Safety Board were not final and do not identify a definitive cause of the crash. But they describe evidence that supports bird strikes before the helicopter plummeted into the river on April 10, 2025.

The Federal Aviation Administration has said that helicopters are especially vulnerable to bird strikes because they fly at low altitudes. Strikes can turn out to be devastating.

“It seems pretty clear to me that the breakup of that helicopter was precipitated by several bird strikes,” said aviation safety expert Jeff Guzzetti, a former federal crash investigator, who read the key findings. “Not just one but several — and birds of a different feather.”

He noted damage to the aircraft's horizontal stabilizer, a key part of the helicopter.

“Without it, the helicopter could become very unstable and difficult to fly,” Guzzetti said.

The victims of last year’s accident included a Siemens business executive from Spain, his family and the pilot, Seankese Johnson, 36, a U.S. Navy veteran who received his commercial license in 2023.

Passengers Agustin Escobar, 49; his wife, Mercè Camprubí Montal, 39; and their three children, Victor, 4; Mercedes, 8; and Agustin, 10, all died.

The crash renewed safety concerns about the popular sightseeing flights and prompted New Jersey’s governor to ask for additional restrictions on nonessential helicopter flights.

Remains of several geese were found on the helicopter’s rotors and left horizontal stabilizer. One witness told the NTSB that just minutes before the crash a large flock of geese took flight in the area.

“The geese were big and there were many of them. When the helicopter went bang, I immediately thought it was a bird strike,” the witness told NTSB investigators.

The Smithsonian Institution’s Feather Identification Lab identified remains from different breeds of geese on the wreckage, including a female Canada goose, which can average nearly 8 pounds (3.6 kilograms).

Guzzetti said it's reasonable to conclude “the pilot is not culpable here.”

“Birds are everywhere, and pilots have limitations with their eyesight,” he said.

The report, however, noted that a control panel switch to turn on pulsing lights to help deter birds was missing. The tour company's former chief pilot said the light system was not mandatory during daylight rides, according to investigators.

The NTSB has investigated 24 helicopter bird strike crashes in the past 25 years, including three fatal ones. Helicopter pilots are encouraged to try to avoid areas where birds are known to be present and fly slower to minimize the potential damage from an impact.

The “ miracle on the Hudson” highlighted the danger of bird strikes when a US Airways jet hit a flock of birds and lost power in both engines shortly after takeoff in 2009. Pilot Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger was hailed as a hero after he landed the powerless plane in the Hudson River and all 155 people on board were rescued.

In last year’s crash, the helicopter took off from a downtown heliport that afternoon and flew north along the Manhattan skyline before heading south toward the Statue of Liberty. Less than 18 minutes into the flight, parts of the aircraft were seen tumbling into the water.

Rescue boats circled the submerged aircraft within minutes of impact and recovered the bodies from the water. Later recovery crews hoisted the mangled Bell 206L-4 helicopter out of the river for investigators to examine.

New York Helicopter Tours shut down after the crash, and the FAA issued an emergency order to ground all the company’s flights after learning it had fired its operations director minutes after he had agreed to suspend flights during the investigation.

The FAA said at the time that it suspected the firing was retaliation for a safety decision.

___

Associated Press reporter Ed White in Detroit contributed to this story.

The firm’s enforcement chief said Kalshi contacted federal regulators about bets allegedly made about what the president would say in public addresses.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president is aware of the situation, which she described as “unfortunate” and “a disgrace.”

“The White House has extremely strict ethical guidelines with respect to issues like this,” Leavitt told reporters, saying the aide is on unpaid leave.

ABC News reported Thursday that Gabriel Perez, who has been operating Trump’s teleprompter since 2016, used his inside knowledge to win more than $100,000 betting on what the president would say in big speeches, including the State of the Union address earlier this year.

Robert Denault, Kalshi’s lawyer and head of enforcement, said on X that the “Kalshi surveillance team promptly flagged, investigated and referred these trades” to the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission that has regulatory authority over such matters.

His statement did not name Perez.

“We have been assisting regulators on this matter and provided all evidence that we collected, as we do with any referral,” Denault added.

ABC based its report on multiple sources who have knowledge of the matter but spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the details.

The ABC report described suspicious activity on Kalshi's “Mentions” market, in which users can place bets on what phrases and specific words might be used in public speeches. Kalshi recently began requiring users to disclose their place of employment, and the platform's policy prohibits betting based on information that users gain because of their job.

Attention on members of the administration profiting from the presidency has reached all the way to Trump himself.

On Thursday, his media company announced it would charge for special high-speed access to Truth Social posts, including possibly his own affecting national security and financial markets.

In his most recent financial disclosures, Trump reported making $1.2 billion from his crypto businesses in 2025, raking in profits while his investors suffered losses in marketplaces that Trump has sought to shield from tighter federal regulation.

Trump got more than $500 million from his World Liberty Financial business selling new crypto products, including “governance tokens,” according to the required annual disclosure report with the Office of Government Ethics. It also showed another crypto business, CIC Digital LLC, took in more than $600 million from sales of souvenir-type “meme” coins stamped with his face. Both the tokens and the coins have plunged in value since the sales.

The president has also profited from merchandising deals and high-dollar political and official events at his properties, significantly increasing his net worth since returning to power.

Trump's aides have stood by his personal and family business practices.

“The president is abiding by all conflict-of-interest laws that are applicable to the president,” Leavitt said earlier this year. It's "absurd for anyone to insinuate that this president is profiting off of the presidency.”

Clothed in jail garb and shackled, Tycen Proper, 19, of Danville, Ohio, and Chandler Scaggs, 21, of Chapmanville, West Virginia, entered the pleas before U.S. District Court Judge Edmund Sargus Jr. in Ohio, where the case has been consolidated. They and the other six defendants are each charged with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists and conspiracy to commit murder on federal government territory and to murder a federal government official.

Sargus scheduled their trial to begin Sept. 14.

It remains unclear from the court record how close the would-be attackers were to being able to carry out the plan they are alleged to have hatched.

Scaggs' attorney, Eric Brehm, said in a statement that his office is only in the early stages of reviewing the case, “but one issue is already clear: there appears to be a significant disconnect between the severity of the alleged offenses and Mr. Scaggs' naivety, lack of sophistication, and judgment.” The first charge is punishable by up to 15 years in prison; the second could mean prison for life.

In detailing the group’s July 9 indictments last week, U.S. Attorney Dominick Gerace II was asked how close the alleged plot came to fruition.

“What would have happened or could have happened, that's never going to be clear, because, thank God, there was an intervention here and this thing was disrupted,” he said. “But, in my view, when I look at what's been alleged there, it seems pretty likely that someone or multiple people were driving to Washington, D.C., to do something.”

Proper's lawyer, Joseph Patituce, said his legal team is waiting for the government to produce its evidence for review.

“Mr. Proper is a young 19-year-old man who, despite that youth, recognizes how serious these allegations are,” he said in a statement. “It is important for the public to remember that an indictment is simply the vehicle by which the government puts a citizen on notice of criminal charges and that Mr. Proper is protected by the presumption of innocence that is enshrined in our Constitution.”

According to the indictment, the plot began in May. Members of the group — citing grievances about government corruption, water-guzzling data centers and the Trump administration's handling of the Epstein files — began amassing money, firearms, ammunition, body armor, explosives, drones, medical equipment, communications equipment and other items.

The attack was planned to take place at the cage-fighting show dubbed UFC Freedom 250, which was held on the South Lawn of the White House to celebrate the nation's 250th anniversary. Law enforcement officials said they learned of the possible threat four days before the event was scheduled to take place.

One of the defendants told investigators that they planned to fly explosive-laden drones into the event and then shoot panicked crowd members as they fled, according to a federal affidavit.

The Justice Department announced charges against seven people from across the country last month, including from Ohio, Missouri, Washington, Nebraska and California. Officials said the suspects harbored fringe conspiracy theories and hoped the attack would destabilize the government.

Four alleged conspirators charged in Missouri, Nebraska and California the weekend of the event and two more charged about a week later in Washington and Missouri are still in the process of being moved to Ohio to face charges. They are likely to be tried as a group.

Scaggs was arrested separately later, but was brought to Ohio ahead of the other out-of-state defendants.

One of the few smokers in golf, Brown went through “seven or eight" cigarettes during his 4-under 66 that left him tied for second place, one shot off the lead, after the first round at Royal Birkdale on Thursday.

After weeks of sunshine in this northwest corner of England, the fairways here are baked and parched — making them a potential fire hazard from discarded cigarettes.

“I’ve been making sure that they’re out,” the 31-year-old Englishman said reassuringly.

Not that he sounds too proud of a habit that makes him stand out on the circuit, but which he feels is needed to relieve some stress.

“Sorry, Mum,” he said with a cheeky smile.

The burly and bearded Brown is an interesting character, not least because of the 10 tattoos on his body — three of which are of little birds — and his YouTube channel called “BeersForeBogeys” which has around 4,000 subscribers.

Brown first came into widespread consciousness in golf in 2024 when, as the world No. 272, he shot a 6-under 65 for the outright first-round lead in his British Open debut at Royal Troon.

His name — one he shares with the author of “The Da Vinci Code” — was a headline writer’s dream and his dry humor proved popular, too. Brown was tied for second place heading into the final round at Troon and wound up in a tie for 10th.

That experience taught him he could compete with the best players in the world.

“I feel like I’m a better player now to what I was back then, two years ago,” he said. “So we’ll see.”

Brown arrived at the Open with no form from his first year on the PGA Tour — he missed the cut in his last four events — but has immediately taken to the Birkdale links.

He made seven birdies, including three straight around the turn, after being 1 over after seven holes.

“Today a few putts dropped, which was nice to see,” Brown said, “because I’ve not seen that for a while.

"(Hopefully), I’m in a sort of similar area on the leaderboard come Sunday."

That might mean continuing to have a smoke during his rounds.

“There might be a big drop off by Sunday if I’m not allowed," he said.

___

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

One person had died, according to Gov. Greg Abbott and state and local officials.

Texas Parks and Wildlife said in a statement Thursday that their game wardens had rescued more than 40 people — primarily in Uvalde County — overnight and into the morning. Abbott said later that more than 70 people had been rescued with at least 1,300 responders “actively engaged.”

Heavy amounts of rain fell around Kerrville, pushing up the Guadalupe River to dangerous levels downstream in Center Point and Comfort, where it surpassed last year’s record but was not an all-time high, with a surge headed toward Bergheim. More than 12 inches of rain had fallen over 24 hours in some places around Kerrville, Texas Water Development Board data showed. 

The Guadalupe River spiked 32 feet over four hours in Center Point, prompting forecasters to warn of a “large and deadly flood wave” moving downriver. That was past where much of the worst flooding occurred in Kerr County last year on July 4, killing more than 100 people.

The body of the person who died was recovered around Center Point, according to a Facebook post from the Kerr County Sheriff’s Office. That person’s identity was not released pending notification of next of kin.

“Water always finds its way to the river,” AccuWeather meteorologist Tyler Roys said in a statement. “But when a storm produces that much rain across a whole watershed at once, the river doesn’t just rise it surges, almost like a tsunami.”

A flash flood warning was issued Thursday morning even further downstream along the Guadalupe River through Comal County, telling people along the river to get to higher ground.

Kerrville and Hunt, in the regions decimated by last year’s flooding, were also under critical emergency warnings because of the ongoing heavy rain and flooding. By midmorning Thursday, the river there had not reached major flooding levels, according to river gauges. 

Three shelters were open in Kerr County and the sheriff’s office said it had confirmed with all camps that children were safe.

Another massive spike was recorded later Thursday morning on the Pedernales River, which had risen 23 feet over four hours as of 9 a.m., according to the river gauge, again prompting urgent warnings from forecasters telling people to seek higher ground.

Local emergency managers for Fredericksburg and Gillespie County called for people to evacuate: “Property will flood and people could drown or be swept away in moving water. Move away from the river to higher ground to avoid rising water.”

Uvalde, already hit with more than 25 inches of rain over the past three days in some places, was walloped again Thursday morning, state data showed. The rain fell on saturated ground, and water was already flowing in the Frio River and nearby waterways.

“There’s nowhere for the water to go now,” said meteorologist Matt Lanza, who helps write The Eyewall. “It just kind of runs right off and into the river systems, and that’s what leads to the big rises in water.”

Emergency officials told forecasters rescues were occurring in Uvalde, where structures were flooding, according to the weather alert. 

More rain was expected over the Uvalde and Kerrville areas in the coming several hours, Lanza said. Another one to three inches could fall, Lanza said, before rainfall rates decreased. More rain could push rivers up again and keep floodwater from draining, exacerbating an ongoing situation.

Here’s what you need to know

• Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country steps in
• Rain to ease in the afternoon but more could be coming
• Camp CAMP says all are safe 
• Kendall County rescues two, shelters nearly 70
• Dam floodgates to open along Highland Lakes system 
• One person has died in the flooding, Gov. Abbott says
• More than 40 rescued as rain pummels Uvalde
• Flash flood emergency declared for Pedernales River
• Life-threatening flooding in 14 counties, weather service says
• Additional rain expected to batter Kerr and Uvalde counties after a long night of showers 
• Life-threatening floodwaters endanger southwest Texas
• Dangerous flood wave moving down Guadalupe River near Center Point
• Cities stay vigilant ahead of an anticipated early morning downpour
• Abbott: Rainfall could surpass July 4 flooding numbers, but state is prepared
• More heavy rain expected over hard-hit areas
• Mandatory evacuations ordered in Uvalde
• Reported tornado damages apartments near UTSA, displacing students
• Heavy rains continue as Texas’ flash flood concerns persist
• Rescues underway in Uvalde County as rain may return with “a vengeance”
• Tornado confirmed in northwest Bexar County
• Multiple counties under flash flood warnings; Uvalde County hit hard
• Wide swath of Texas bracing for 2 to 6 inches of rain
• Counties under flood warning brace for looming overnight deluge
• New flash flood warnings issued in Hill Country counties

July 16, 2026, 3:16 p.m.

“We knew that there would be a role for philanthropy”

A little more than one year after mobilizing to raise and distribute millions of dollars for response and recovery from the devastating July 4 flood in Kerr County, the Community Foundation of the Texas Hill Country launched a new flood relief fund Thursday.

The fund will support communities in the 10-county region that the foundation supports, which includes hard-hit Uvalde, Gillespie and Kendall Counties in addition to Kerr. 

Some in the area woke to relentless rain Thursday morning, and the foundation leader realized a similar flooding scenario was unfolding, foundation Chief Executive Officer Austin Dickson said. Organization leaders felt prepared to take action to help. 

“There is a significant number of evacuations, water in homes and businesses, roads and bridges washed out, many physically damaged,” Dickson said. “It was at that point that we knew that there would be a role for philanthropy and long-term recovery.”

In San Antonio, San Antonio Animal Care Services put out a call for people to help temporarily foster dogs as a surge of animals arrived because of the weather. Volunteers were directed to 4710 State Highway 151 to meet dogs that needed immediate homes.

July 16, 2026, 1:32 p.m.

Rain to ease in the afternoon but more could be coming

After hours of incessant rainfall, forecasters at the National Weather Service said hard-hit parts of Texas can expect some relief Thursday afternoon but warned that the storms could return in the evening. 

Forecasters are monitoring northern Uvalde, Del Rio and Bandera counties, where since morning storm systems have formed over already drenched areas. Those storms migrated north to Kerr County, exacerbating flooding and spiking the Guadalupe River to dangerous levels. 

Forecasters estimate it is raining at a rate of two inches an hour. That’s down from earlier reports of six inches of rain in some areas, but the soil is so saturated that the water is running off, resulting in flooding. 

“The rainfall rates have come down, fortunately, from what they were earlier,” forecasters said. 

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos

July 16, 2026, 1:05 p.m.

Camp CAMP says all are safe 

Summer camps near Hunt were not flooded, Gov. Abbott said during a Thursday news conference, adding that his office is still getting updates on others and could not confirm any more details. 

The Kerr County Sheriff’s Office said all camps in the county have been contacted and confirmed that their campers are safe.

The Children’s Association for Maximum Potential, a beloved program for individuals with disabilities known as Camp CAMP near the Guadalupe River, said Thursday that campers and staff would remain in the campgrounds, which stand 80 feet above the riverbank, and continue with programming. In a statement on social media, the camp said it is “fully prepared for changing conditions, with back up generators in place.” 

“At this time, travel to the area is not safe,” the camp said in a statement on social media. “In accordance with our Emergency Action Plan, sheltering in place remains the safest course of action for everyone on site. … We also have ample food and essential supplies on hand to care for everyone at the camp for as long as needed.”

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos and Terri Langford

July 16, 2026, 1:05 p.m.

Kendall County rescues two, shelters nearly 70

Two people were rescued and 68 have sought shelter in Kendall County as the Guadalupe River swelled to life-threatening levels early Thursday morning, prompting multiple flash flood emergency warnings from forecasters, emergency management officials said in a news conference.

County officials said they’d been coordinating to deploy rescue efforts since 2 a.m. in advance of the early wave of rainfall.

“We didn’t know where the water was going to hit, how much, and if it was going to affect us,” county officials said. 

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos

July 16, 2026, 12:25 p.m.

Dam floodgates to open along Highland Lakes system 

Several Central Texas reservoirs have reached capacity, prompting operators to begin releasing water downstream along the Colorado River.

The Lower Colorado River Authority plans to open multiple floodgates at Alvin Wirtz Dam, which forms Lake LBJ west of Marble Falls, and Max Starcke Dam, which forms Lake Marble Falls. Both dams are part of the Highland Lakes system operated by LCRA.

Officials are urging anyone living, working or recreating downstream to take precautions as water levels rise and the river flows much faster than normal. Conditions can also change quickly, especially if additional rain falls.

While reservoir releases are common in Central Texas, they can create hazardous conditions. Reservoir operators control how much water is released to reduce flood risks downstream. 

The LCRA warns that unscheduled water releases may occur at any time due to emergency hydroelectric generation or other operational needs.

— Alejandra Martinez

Jan. 24, 2026, 11:59 a.m.

One person has died in the flooding, Gov. Abbott says

One person has died in the flooding and more than 70 others have been rescued, Gov. Greg Abbott said Thursday. 

The death of the adult occurred between Kerrville and Comfort but Abbott had no other details. 

“I am informed that the loss of life is not a camper,” Abbott said. 

“We have been engaged in making rescues,” Abbott said. “We have rescued well over 70 people already and we will continue making those rescues every step of the way,” Abbott said. 

After last year’s deadly flooding, state legislators required warning sirens to be installed in areas hit by the July 2025 disaster that regulators identified as having a history of severe flooding and other factors such as where people could die or structures could flood. 

The Upper Guadalupe River Authority had so far installed six sirens in Kerr County expected to be paid for with state funding, but all of those sirens were upriver of where the worst river flooding occurred Thursday, according to river gauges. 

Abbott confirmed Thursday that the sirens worked except for one that did not go off as soon as it was triggered.

“All the sirens worked,” he said. “With regard to one of the sirens and sometime before 4 a.m. this morning there was a triggering of the siren that did not go off immediately. But it was triggered again five minutes or two minutes later and it did go off at that time,” he said. “So for all practical purposes, the functionality of the sirens worked just fine and so those alarms went off.”

While a lot of attention is on the Kerrville and Uvalde areas, Abbott said he was concerned about the “massive challenges” in the Rio Grande Valley and other areas hit by heavy rains. 

“People need to understand to expect very meaningful flooding in the Rio Grande,” he said. 

So far, 1,300 personnel have been “actively engaged” in responding to the flooding, Abbott said. 

Unlike the 2025 flooding, which was concentrated upstream from Kerrville near Hunt, this year’s flooding is happening downstream from the Guadalupe River headwaters, he said.

The Guadalupe River at Center Point spiked just below the July 2025 record, according to federal data. In Comfort, it spiked just above last year’s record, hitting 37.08 feet compared to last year’s 35.64 feet, a difference of 1.44 feet, according to the gauge.

More than 90 new River Sentry flood warning sirens that the directors of Camp Mystic raised money for have also been installed in Kerr County, again largely upriver of where the worst river flooding occurred Thursday, according to a company map. Twenty-seven campers and counselors died at Camp Mystic in last year’s floods, along with the camp’s co-owner and executive director. Some of these sirens were stationed in the Kerrville area. 

— Terri Langford and Emily Foxhall

July 16, 2026, 10:58 a.m.

More than 40 rescued as rain pummels Uvalde

Intense overnight rain in Uvalde submerged roads and homes, prompting more than 40 rescues. After receiving 7 inches of rain overnight, Uvalde was placed under a flash flood emergency, with mandatory evacuations underway, as drone footage from the Weather Channel showed the Leona River overflowing near Uvalde. 

The Uvalde County Office of Emergency Management closed all major highways and city streets, issuing a shelter in place order. 

More than 40 people have been rescued, most of them in Uvalde County, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Uvalde officials have deployed boats for rescue operations and plan to fly helicopters.

Roads across Uvalde County are also flooded, including Highway 90, where videos have shown pavement torn up by floodwaters.

— Katlyn Ma and Carlos Nogueras Ramos

July 16, 2026, 9:14 a.m.

Flash flood emergency declared for Pedernales River

Federal forecasters issued a flash flood emergency for the Pedernales River in Gillespie and Blanco Counties, warning of life-threatening flash flooding and catastrophic damage. 

A “large and deadly flood wave” was pushing down the Pedernales River, the forecast alert said. At Fredericksburg, the river had already passed 28 feet at 8 a.m., according to a U.S. Geological Survey gauge. It was forecast to keep rising into a major flood. 

Forecasters urged people to move to higher ground immediately.

July 16, 2026, 7:45 a.m.

Dangerous flood wave moving down Guadalupe River near Center Point

Center Point through Bergheim on the Guadalupe River were under a flash flood emergency early Thursday morning as forecasters warned of a “large and deadly flood wave” pushing down the Guadalupe River and urged people to seek higher ground.

“The river gauge at Center Point has risen 32 feet in 4 hours and is expected to reach a crest similar to July 4, 2025 catastrophic river flood,” the forecast warning said. “Flash flooding is already occurring.”

A flash flood emergency was also extended upstream in Hunt and Kerrville in Kerr County through 3 p.m. Thursday where up to a foot of rain had fallen and more was expected, according to the alert. Kerrville officials asked residents to shelter in place if safe to do so.

Forecasters warned the damage could be catastrophic. The river near Center Point hit nearly 38 feet at 5:20 a.m., according to a U.S. Geological Survey gauge. A steep rise was recorded downriver in Comfort, passing above 33 feet at 6:25 a.m. No rise had been recorded yet at the next gauge near Bergheim as of 6:45 a.m.

In Hunt and Kerrville, forecasters reported between three to six inches of rain had fallen in that area already as of 3 a.m. Thursday with a heavy rainfall rate of two to four inches of rain expected and the Guadalupe rising.

“Flash flooding is already occurring with evacuations, escalating water rescues, and water beginning to enter structures,” the alert said.

The gauge on the Guadalupe River at Hunt had spiked just above 20 feet around 3:35 a.m. Thursday morning, which was below what’s considered a major flood there, according to the USGS gauge. The river later hit nearly 17 feet in Kerrville, also below what’s considered a major flood.

Kerrville officials also asked residents to minimize water use as a preventive measure because of operational issues at its water plant.

More than 100 people died in Kerr County last summer during flash floods early on July 4, when more than 10 inches of rain in places on the river’s South Fork fell largely in the span of several hours, with much of the worst damage in Kerrville and upriver.

July 16, 2026, 7:36 a.m.

Life-threatening flooding in 14 counties, weather service says

All or portions of 14 counties were under flash flood warnings issued by the National Weather Service as of 7 a.m. Thursday morning as heavy rain had fallen across the area. A flash flood warning means life-threatening flooding is imminent or likely. 

Uvalde and the Knippa area were under flash flood emergencies, meaning “historic and catastrophic” flash flooding was imminent or already happening that could damage entire communities. The area had received up to 8 inches of rain over two hours as of 4 a.m., according to the forecast alert, and had already been drenched with heavy rain over several days.

Structures had flooded and water rescues were occurring, according to the forecast alert.

Areas along the Guadalupe River between Center Point through Bergheim, as well as in Hunt and Kerrville, were also under flash flood emergencies.

Counties under flash flood warnings included:

• Sutton County

• Kendall County

• Kerr County

• Bandera County

• Gillespie County

• Real County

• Kinney County

• Maverick County

• Val Verde County

• Uvalde County

• Edwards County

• Zavala County

• Medina County

• Kimble County

According to the weather service, the following cities and areas will experience flash flooding: Kerrville, Comfort, Waring, Sisterdale, Center Point, Crown, Medina, Fredericksburg, Bandera, Kerrville-Schreiner Park, Tivydale, Camp Verde, Harper, Vanderpool, Hunt, Uvalde, Sabinal, Knippa, Kerr Wildlife Management Area, Lost Maples State Natural Area, Mountain Home, Rio Frio, Del Rio, Brackettville, Lake View, Amanda, Laughlin AFB, Val Verde Park, Standart, Cienegas Terrace, Long Point, Black Brush Point, Diablo East, Amistad Village, Governors Landing, Escondido Estates, 277 South Boat Ramp, 277 North Campground, Lake Ridge Ranch, San Pedro Canyon, Devils Shores, Rough Canyon Recreation Area, Leakey, Camp Wood, Barksdale, Vance, Tuff, Brackettville, Spofford, La Pryor, Dabney, Anacacho, Washer, Darling, Alamo Village, Turkey Mountain, Fort Clark Springs, Waltonia, Ingram, Boerne, Fair Oaks Ranch. Welfare, Walnut Grove, Nelson City, Kreutzberg, Bergheim, Kronkosky State Natural Area, Old Tunnel State Park, Kendalia, Bankersmith, Guadalupe River State Park, Bandera Falls, Spring Branch, Lakehills, Hondo, D`Hanis, Hill Country State Natural Area, Lake Medina Shores, Concan, Reagan Wells, Garner State Park, Laguna, Montell, Utopia, Cline, Blewett, Roosevelt, Telegraph, Cleo, I-10 near the Sutton-Kimble county line.

The warning includes the following streams: Block Creek, Sabinas Creek, Holliday Creek, Jacobs Creek, Verde, Creek, Turtle Creek, Cherry Creek, Guadalupe River, Wasp Creek, Bruins Creek, Joshua Creek, Steel Creek, Elm Creek, Werner Creek, West Sister Creek, Violet Creek, Cypress Creek and East Sister Creek, Pipe Creek.

July 16, 2026, 7:22 a.m.

Additional rain expected to batter Kerr and Uvalde counties after a long night of showers

Additional rainfall fell across Central Texas overnight, with storms battering several towns particularly vulnerable to the rising Guadalupe River, forecasters at the National Weather Service’s San Antonio office said. 

Forecasters said they expect the heaviest downpours in Kerr and Uvalde counties after a long night of heavy rain. Over the last six hours, towns along central Kerr County, including Kerrville, Hunt and Ingram, saw as much as 8 to 10 and a half inches of rain. The storms also showered towns downstream from the Guadalupe River, in Center Point, Comfort and Bergheim, forecasters said. 

Nearly 20 inches of rain has fallen over the past 48 hours in central and northern Uvalde County, forecasters said.

Storm activity is developing further south in Bandera County and is likely to travel north, bring more rain in the coming hours. 

“Showers and thunderstorms and the rainfall rates are picking up again a little bit acrossKerr County, and even back into those areas that got hit hard across Uvalde and back into the portions of the Hill Country,” said Eric Platt, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. “So it’s not over just yet.”

— Carlos Nogueras Ramos

July 15, 2026, 9:45 p.m.

Life-threatening floodwaters endanger southwest Texas

National Weather Service forecasters were expecting stormwater to push rivers and creeks over their banks in southwest Texas — including the Nueces and Frio rivers —  Wednesday afternoon and Wednesday night. 

Homes in D’Hanis and Crystal City are threatened, according to the forecasts, as are livestock and campgrounds.

Federal forecasters also issued a flash flood emergency for Boerne midday Wednesday through Wednesday evening. As much as a foot of rain had fallen in the area, according to the warning, and more was possible.

Forecasters said people were being rescued and were stranded, according to local emergency management. Chris Shadrock, the city’s communications director, said in a video posted online that areas that don’t typically experience high water were likely to see flooding.

“This is a PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION. SEEK HIGHER GROUND NOW!” the warning said. 

The federal forecasters predicted imminent major flooding on Seco Creek near D’Hanis on Wednesday afternoon, when water levels could rise so high that homes could flood with up to 5 feet of water, or 6 feet if Parker Creek also floods. A flash flood emergency was in effect, with similar warnings as in Boerne to seek higher ground immediately to escape danger.

Uvalde police officials were also urging residents on the Leona River to get to higher ground Wednesday afternoon. The river had already risen to nearly 20 feet near Uvalde that morning, according to a river gauge, a record-breaking surge of water that was moving downstream.

Nearby, federal weather officials also expected the Sabinal River at Sabinal to see dangerous flooding, including at “Utopia on the River” and a Girl Scout camp, before water flowed quickly into the Frio River.

The Frio River at Concan looked poised to hit a level Wednesday afternoon where forecasters warned: “Up to near ten feet of turbulent flow smashes through campgrounds” and could easily push RVs, cars and gear downstream and threaten flood-prone homes. 

Downstream, the Frio River near Uvalde was predicted to peak with major flooding Wednesday night, reaching levels that could trap and drown livestock and flood cropland. 

The Nueces River also faced expected challenges: The West Nueces River at Bracketville was already significantly flooded and forecasted to hit a point that could threaten livestock, roads and fencing with flooding “over four hundred yards wide.”

Below Uvalde, “disastrous widespread lowland flooding” on the Nueces River overnight Wednesday looked poised to damage some homes around Crystal City, also potentially threatening livestock, fencing and roads.

“A lot of this rain that’s falling upstream is just kind of flowing downstream and there’s not a whole lot to slow down or stop that rise of water,” said Harrison Tran, a forecaster with the National Weather Service’s Austin and San Antonio office.

River flooding could impact areas downstream of heavy rain, so people needed to stay vigilant, Tran said. 

“Folks along the rivers should prepare to see some pretty steep rises either over the next few hours if they’re closer to the area or in the day or two ahead as well,” Tran said.

July 15, 2026, 9:36 p.m.

Cities stay vigilant ahead of an anticipated early morning downpour

Cities across the Hill Country and South Texas already pummeled by a series of rainstorms held their flood precautions steady into Wednesday evening as rainfall was expected to return in the early hours of Thursday morning.

In Uvalde County, where some mandatory evacuation orders were given earlier in the day, City of Uvalde police outlined more neighborhoods that should be prepared to evacuate “at any time” through the night. Most of the county was under a flash flood warning set to expire at 1 a.m.

In La Pryor, the Nueces River had risen significantly, according to a social media post from the Zavala County Sheriff’s Office. According to a river gauge in the Nueces River south of the city of Uvalde, water levels had reached a historic high of 20 feet at 8:30 p.m., but were expected to peak there and lower through the night. 

Flash flood warnings in Kinney and Real counties were extended until 4 a.m. Thursday and in Bandera, Kendall and Medina counties until 2 a.m. as showers ebbed Wednesday evening. In Edwards County, a flash flood warning was issued just after 9:15 p.m. Wednesday until Thursday at 11:15 a.m.

Emergency officials across the region warned residents to stay vigilant, avoid travel unless absolutely necessary and be prepared to leave in areas closer to waterways.

— Ayden Runnels

July 15, 2026, 6:06 p.m.

Abbott: Rainfall could surpass July 4 flooding numbers, but state is prepared

Gov. Greg Abbott said portions of the state could see upward of 30 inches of rain over the course of the storm, surpassing the surge of rainfall that caused the deadly July 4 flooding last year.

At a news conference Wednesday evening with agency officials, Abbott laid out Texas’ response to the larger wave of rainfall expected through the night and drew comparison to the disastrous rainfall in 2025. 

Roughly 20 inches of rainfall last year caused flooding in the Hill Country that killed more than 119 people in Kerr County. While Abbott said storms through the week could well exceed last year’s rainfall, potential ramifications are lessened by both the state’s level of preparedness and the differences in where rain is expected to occur.

“We are better prepared than we have ever been to deal with weather events in general, but rainfall events and flooding events in particular,” Abbott said, mentioning that sirens have been set up alongside the Guadalupe River as well as other river basins across Texas.

As of Wednesday, there have not been any reported fatalities, Abbott said, but he and other officials urged residents to stay alert through the end of the week, even after rainfall subsides as rivers and waterways continue to shift. 

More than 75 people have been rescued, most of whom were taken from stranded vehicles, said Texas Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd. With rainfall in some areas forecasted at 3 inches an hour, Kidd cautioned against residents making unnecessary trips on roadways, which can quickly become flooded under such heavy rates of rainfall.

“It doesn’t matter where you live in Texas; three inches of rain an hour will cause flooding,” Kidd said. 

Kidd cautioned Texas against driving on roads obscured by water and said that shelters were ready to be opened if needed.

The state has deployed more than 800 vehicles and 1,300 state personnel to help assist with preparation, rescue and recovery efforts, and Louisiana and Oklahoma officials have also provided resources, Abbott said.

Abbott said the biggest challenge facing emergency crews was making Texans aware of the inclement weather and flooding. 

“If every Texan is aware of what’s going on and realizes they can protect themselves over the next 24 hours, everything’s going to work out just fine,” he said. 

— Ellie Ashby and Ayden Runnels

July 15, 2026, 4:05 p.m.

More heavy rain expected over hard-hit areas

Another round of heavy rain was expected to fall over the same drenched areas of southwest Texas on Wednesday night and Thursday, said Jason Runyen with the National Weather Service in Austin and San Antonio. 

Forecasters said 2 to 6 inches of rain could fall in the worst-hit regions along U.S. 90 west of San Antonio and the western Hill Country, with up to 10 to 15 inches in some areas that could cause catastrophic flash flooding, Runyen said.

Counties of concern included Uvalde, Medina, Kinney, Edwards, Real and Bandera, plus possibly Kendall and Gillespie. Forecasters were also watching Kerr County, where more than 100 people died in floods last summer, for possible heavy rainfall.

“It’s a pretty big area west of San Antonio that’s been impacted,” Runyen said. “This is many counties we’re dealing with.”

A staggering 12 to 17 inches of rain had already fallen over the past two days over north Uvalde, northeast Kinney and north Medina County, according to the National Weather Service.

Flash flooding had prompted evacuations or calls to seek higher ground in the city of Uvalde, D’Hanis and Boerne. River flooding continued to threaten Crystal City and Carrizo Springs and other areas along the Nueces, Frio and Medina Rivers as water pushed downstream, plus smaller waterways such as Cibolo Creek. 

Emergency officials notified forecasters Wednesday that Cibolo Creek had overflowed, flooding River Road and stranding multiple vehicles. “Numerous water rescues, evacuations and road closures have been reported,” a forecast statement said.

A Cibolo Creek gauge near Boerne showed the water had risen above 22 feet Wednesday afternoon and was pushing downstream toward Selma.

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 2:30 p.m.

Mandatory evacuations ordered in Uvalde

Some residents in Uvalde have been ordered to evacuate and have been notified by first responders, with additional  mandatory evacuations possible, according to a Facebook post from the Uvalde Police Department. 

South of Uvalde in Zavala County, emergency officials in another Facebook post warned residents near the Nueces River to prepare for flooding, with the river expected to crest near historic levels.

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 2:00 p.m.

Reported tornado damages apartments near UTSA, displacing students

A reported tornado touched down near the University of Texas at San Antonio campus Wednesday, causing significant damage to an apartment complex and displacing 10 to 12 students, local officials said. That number could rise as assessments continue. 

The San Antonio Fire Department is on scene at the Oasis San Antonio apartments. No injuries were reported and the apartment has been evacuated.

UTSA is working with the American Red Cross to provide assistance and connect affected students with temporary housing and other resources.

“We’re grateful that no injuries have been reported. University staff are working closely with UT Police, the San Antonio fire and police departments, and the American Red Cross to support affected students and connect them with needed resources,” the university posted on X.

Meanwhile, crews have begun clearing debris, removing downed trees, and responding to storm-related damage across San Antonio as emergency officials continue to monitor weather conditions.

— Emily Foxhall and Katlyn Ma

July 15, 2026, 11:25 a.m.

Heavy rains continue as Texas’ flash flood concerns persist

A heavier band of rainfall continued to drop water on Kinney, Uvalde and Medina counties Wednesday morning, all of which had seen a lot of rain already, said meteorologist Matt Lanza, who helps write the Eyewall. Storms were also expanding toward Kerrville, Fredericksburg and Boerne.

But the rain — while intense — has been somewhat more manageable than the huge amount that dropped all at once in Kerr County last July, causing the Guadalupe River to surge, Lanza said. In this case, Lanza didn’t expect the flash floods to be quite so urgent and “flashy,” he said, giving people a little more time to watch and react. Even so, flooding concerns were still widespread before the rain was expected to slow into the afternoon.

Areas in Bexar, Guadalupe, Bandera, Kerr, Gillespie and Kendall counties had all come under flash flood warnings. Flash flooding was reported on Cibolo Creek at FM 78 with more rain possible, according to federal forecasters.

“Hopefully just another couple of hours of this and then things will start to settle,” Lanza said. “But even in those couple hours you could be talking about easily another 2 to 4 or 5 inches of rainfall, maybe even a little bit more in spots.”

Rain had picked up starting around 6 a.m. in Medina County and water was starting again to cover roadways, said Mark Chadwick, the county’s emergency management coordinator. Responders had rescued four people from vehicles the day prior. 

No water had gotten into structures, but officials were keeping a particular eye on D’Hanis, which has historically flooded, Chadwick said.

“We’re saturated,” Chadwick said. “Right now, any rain, it’s not going to take much for that to rise back up.”

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 10:45 a.m.

Rescues underway in Uvalde County as rain may return with “a vengeance”

At least 25 people were rescued in Uvalde County as of Wednesday morning, while more rescues were ongoing, local officials said during a 10 a.m. news conference.

“As we speak, the river levels are rising due to rains last night, and first responders are actively rescuing in the northern part of Uvalde County,” County Commissioner Roy Kothmann said.

A shelter remained in operation at the Uvalde County Fairplex, Kothmann said. 

The Uvalde Police Department on Wednesday morning asked residents near the Leona River to voluntarily evacuate and warned other residents to prepare for possible evacuation as predicted rainfall is expected to affect rivers and creeks that run through town.

Officials urged residents to avoid low water crossings and call 911 if needed. 

“The rain’s going to come back tonight — it looks like with a vengeance — again, so I would urge caution,” said state Rep. Don McLaughlin, R-Uvalde. 

— Emily Foxhall and Katlyn Ma

July 15, 2026, 8:24 a.m.

Tornado confirmed in northwest Bexar County

Forecasters just before 8 a.m. Wednesday reported a confirmed tornado in northwest Bexar County they said was crossing Interstate 10 near Shavano Park and urged people to take shelter. 

Some waterways in Texas had also risen rapidly Wednesday morning, according to river gages tracking their heights.

Significantly, the West Nueces River at Bracketville had come up 20 feet over four hours, as of 6:30 a.m., according to the U.S. Geological Survey gauge. At that height, it’s considered a major flood by federal forecasters with “extensive inundation of structures and roads.”

Other rivers had spiked into a moderate flood level, including the Sabinal River at Sabinal and the Dry Frio River near Reagan Wells.

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 6:50 a.m.

Multiple counties under flash flood warnings; Uvalde County hit hard

All or portions of multiple counties remained under flash flood warnings early Wednesday morning, while storms continued to dump rain in southwest Texas. 

Federal forecasters estimated between 6 and 16 inches of rain had fallen over 24 hours in Uvalde County, relaying reports that people had been rescued from the water. Northeast Kinney County also received significant amounts of rain and remained under a flash flood warning, meaning life-threatening flooding could be imminent. Rainfall rates of two to four inches an hour were forecast in the area. 

South central Edwards, southern Real, western Gillespie and southeastern Kerr counties were also still under warnings. 

Forecasters were watching for another round of storms to move back in over previously hard-hit northern Uvalde and northwestern Medina counties. They were also keeping an eye on the Frio and Nueces and West Nueces rivers, 

“It’s very rural out there,” said Monte Oaks, a forecaster with the National Weather Service office in Austin and San Antonio, of the hardest-hit spots. “From what we know, they just basically shut down long stretches of road out there.”

— Emily Foxhall

July 15, 2026, 5:00 a.m.

Wide swath of Texas bracing for 2 to 6 inches of rain

Considerable to catastrophic flooding is likely to occur over the next two days in places along the U.S. 90 corridor west of San Antonio, according to forecasters who elevated the risk for heavy rain causing flash flooding to the highest possible level through Thursday morning.

Some places could see a staggering 10 to 20 inches of rain, raising particular concerns for vacationers who might not be familiar with the flash flood threat. The areas at greatest expected risk included all or parts of Medina, Frio, Uvalde, Kinney, Maverick, Zavala, Val Verde, Edwards, Real and Bandera counties.

The Pecos, Rio Grande, Nueces, Frio, Medina and San Antonio rivers could all flood, National Weather Service forecasters said.

Areas outside of the worst forecast still faced a possible 2 to 6 inches of rain, including Kerr County. The city of Kerrville Police Department on Monday night and Tuesday said it already barricaded some roadways because of high water.

The warnings arrived barely more than one year after flash flooding killed 119 people in Kerr County on the July 4 holiday, when many children were attending summer camp and families packed RV parks and vacation homes. Residents continue to feel intense anxiety when it rains and were watching the forecasts.

Weather experts after last summer’s flood cautioned that it is impossible to predict precisely and with certainty where the heaviest rain might fall. That’s why people need to have a way to receive weather warnings and be aware of how they might need to act.

State legislators have since required certain areas prone to flash-flooding to install warning sirens, a process that is ongoing. The state also mandated new safety standards at youth camps, but it took no action on other recommendations such as standardizing training for local emergency management coordinators.

Gov. Greg Abbott midday Tuesday issued a disaster declaration for 59 counties in recognition of the threat to make resources available.

“Texas is positioned to respond quickly and effectively,” Abbott said in a statement. “I urge all Texans in affected areas to monitor local weather forecasts, avoid driving through flooded roadways, and have emergency supplies ready.”

Storms had already dropped more than 10 inches of rain north of Uvalde as of Tuesday, with more heavy rain also falling in parts of Medina, Bandera and Kerr Counties, according to the National Weather Service Austin and San Antonio Office. The Uvalde County Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday was urging people to stay home and reporting on roadways that had flooded. Bandera and Medina County also reported multiple road closures, including on U.S. 90.

Forecasters expected a lull in storm activity before it ramped up again overnight Tuesday into Wednesday morning.

“All areas are kind of saturated now across the Rio Grande, Edwards Plateau and in portions of the western Hill Country and U.S. 90 corridor,” forecaster Jason Runyen said at an afternoon webinar. “Any additional heavy rainfall that occurs is going to run off very, very quickly.”

July 14, 2026, 11:50 p.m.

Counties under flood warning brace for looming overnight deluge

Amid warnings Tuesday night about imminent flooding, South Texas and Hill Country towns braced for river overflows and submerged roadways into Wednesday morning as forecasters estimated rainfall to continue to batter the region.

The National Weather Service late Tuesday noted storms had stalled over Bandera County as well as Uvalde County, where the agency also warned of “swollen” creeks and rivers causing floods. Flash flooding had already been observed in Uvalde and Medina counties, according to their emergency management offices.

Flash flood warnings for Bandera, Medina, Real and Uvalde counties that were scheduled to expire at midnight were extended until 8 a.m. Wednesday. NWS discouraged travel in the affected areas and warned that it expected rainfall at 2 to 4 inches an hour.

Medina County’s Office of Emergency Management warned in a social media post that Seco Creek, which runs through several counties under warnings, was at risk of flooding. The office urged residents to be alert through the night in the event an evacuation was called, and announced five road closures.

The NWS also reduced a warning for Bexar, Comal and Kendall counties to a flood advisory, noting that 2 to 6 inches of rain through the night were still expected.

— Ayden Runnels

July 14, 2026, 7:45 p.m.

New flash flood warnings issued in Hill Country counties

The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for several counties on Tuesday evening as rainfall was expected to worsen through the night.

The warnings issued for parts of Bexar, Comal, Kendall and Real counties include San Antonio International Airport and the Guadalupe River State Park, where NWS warned that “life-threatening” flash flooding was expected or potentially already underway. Warnings for three counties were issued at 6:20 p.m. and are in effect until 11:15 p.m. but may be extended. An additional warning for parts of Bandera and Real counties was issued at 8:15 p.m. with a midnight expiration set.

A portion of Bexar County north of San Antonio was also placed under a brief tornado warning by the NWS that expired at 7:15 p.m.

The new warning adds to two already issued flash flood warnings covering most of Uvalde and Medina counties, scheduled until midnight Wednesday. The City of Uvalde opened a temporary community shelter Tuesday afternoon for those who could potentially be affected by the flooding.

In Edwards County north of Uvalde, the sheriff’s office posted photos of roadways already flooded midday Tuesday, and CNN drone footage of Sabinal showed roads completely covered by the rainfall. Several counties in the affected regions under an NWS flood watch announced road closures in preparation for any flooding occurring through the evening. Texas Game Wardens reported several swiftwater rescues earlier in the day in several South Texas counties including Uvalde.

— Ayden Runnels

Disclosure: CNN has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in The Texas Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

Ellie Ashby, Emily Foxhall, Katlyn Ma and Ayden Runnels contributed to this story.

The S&P 500 fell 0.5%, even though more stocks rose within the index than fell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 105 points, or 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite sank 1.5%.

Nearly three out of every four stocks rose within the S&P 500 after more of the country’s biggest companies reported better earnings for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

Abbott jumped 10.7% after the healthcare company delivered a fatter profit than expected and raised its forecast for earnings over the full year. J.B. Hunt Transport Services climbed 8% after the freight company likewise topped analysts’ expectations for the latest quarter.

But a 1% move for Nvidia’s stock packs more punch on the S&P 500 than a 1% move for any other company because it’s the largest on Wall Street by value.

And Nvidia fell 2.4%, making it the heaviest weight on the index. Other AI winners also sank, giving back some of their stellar gains.

Micron Technology fell 5.6% to shave its gain for the year so far below 199%. Sandisk fell 12.6% but is nevertheless up 494% for the year so far. Western Digital sank 9.2% but is still up 171% for the year so far.

Such stocks have been under pressure for weeks because of worries that their prices shot too high and that voracious demand for computer memory and processors may not be sustainable if AI ends up not producing as much profit and productivity as promised.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 38.63 points to 7,533.77. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 105.67 to 52,552.97, and the Nasdaq composite sank 387.28 to 25,881.95.

The losses came even though Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., a bellwether of the chip industry, reported a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Its stock in Taiwan rose 1.2%, but its stock that trades in the United States fell 2.3%.

In South Korea, drops for AI winners like Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix dragged the Kospi index down 6.4%. It’s been among the world’s shakiest markets in recent weeks because of how dominant the two AI winners are in it.

The day before, the Kospi jumped 6.2%, but it’s had drops of 8.9%, 7.8% and 5.3% in the last couple weeks.

A hike to interest rates by the Bank of Korea also weighed on stocks in Seoul, the first by the bank since 2023.

Higher interest rates can keep a lid on inflation, but they also slow the economy and hurt prices for all kinds of investments. And worries are rising that the Federal Reserve and other central banks around the world may have to raise rates to rein in the effects of expensive oil.

Oil prices are near their highest in a month because of worries that the war with Iran will keep oil tankers out of the Strait of Hormuz and prevent shipments of crude from the Persian Gulf to customers worldwide.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude briefly climbed above $86 per barrel in the morning before erasing the gain and falling back to settle at $84.23, down 0.8% from the day before.

In the bond market, the 10-year Treasury yield edged up to 4.56% from 4.55% late Wednesday and just 3.97% before the war with Iran began. Higher yields have already sent the average 30-year mortgage rate to its highest level in nearly a year.

Reports on the U.S. economy came in mixed, which added to the eddies swirling through the bond market. One report said shoppers spent less at U.S. retailers last month than economists expected. But after ignoring sales at gasoline stations, spending by U.S. consumers remained resilient.

A separate report said fewer U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week, an indication of a solid job market, while a third report said manufacturing in the mid-Atlantic region is better than economists expected.

In stock markets abroad, indexes fell across much of Europe and Asia, including drops of 1.8% in Shanghai and 2.8% in Tokyo.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was an outlier and rose 1.3%. Alibaba rose after China’s cyberspace regulator said Wednesday it had approved the Apple Intelligence AI tool for use in China. An Alibaba spokesperson said its Qwen model will be integrated into Apple Intelligence.

___

AP Business Writers Chan Ho-him and Matt Ott contributed to this report.

Sen. Thom Tillis had indicated during Blanche’s confirmation hearing on Wednesday that he was leaning toward backing Blanche, who has been leading the department in an acting capacity since April. But after an Epstein accuser testified a day later, Tillis said he expects a meeting to occur before he’s “willing to vote out of this committee.”

Shortly after Tillis’ remarks, Blanche — who had been meeting with senators on Capitol Hill — told reporters he had tried to meet the Epstein accusers in a Senate office building but “it didn’t work out” and they were working to coordinate schedules. The Justice Department said later that the meeting was rescheduled for Thursday afternoon, adding: “He looks forward to their discussion.”

“The Department of Justice will always meet with victims or their representatives, and if those victims or their representatives have evidence that anybody committed a crime — whether it has to do with Jeffrey Epstein or anybody else — we will of course move forward and investigate and prosecute,” Blanche told reporters.

Epstein's case and the Justice Department's handling of millions of files related to his sex trafficking investigation have been a persistent political headache for the Trump administration.

After missteps by then-Attorney General Pam Bondi that enraged Trump's base, Blanche as deputy attorney general oversaw a massive review and release of millions of files related to the investigation into the disgraced financier with connections to wealthy and powerful people.

Without Tillis' support, Blanche's nomination won't make it through the Senate Judiciary Committee, which questioned Blanche for hours on Wednesday about the Epstein files as well as the creation of a fund to compensate Trump’s allies, a tax immunity deal for the president and a slew of other issues.

Another Republican on the committee who says he has not made up his mind whether to support Blanche — Sen. John Cornyn — conveyed concerns that the Trump administration has yet to commit in writing that the fund is dead and could therefore conceivably be resurrected.

One Epstein accuser, Dani Bensky, told lawmakers earlier Thursday that women harmed by Epstein repeatedly asked to meet with Blanche “through multiple channels and he never responded."

"We deserve to be heard directly, not dismissed and ignored,” Bensky said.

Blanche has pushed back on suggestions that the Justice Department has been dismissive of the late financier's accusers, saying Wednesday that officials have spoken with more than 30 representatives of the women over the course of its sweeping review of the files.

Blanche has also defended the department's staggered release of the Epstein files, a process beset by problems, including redaction errors that left exposed nude photos showing the faces of potential victims.

Blanche said during his confirmation hearing on Wednesday that he takes responsibility for mistakes that were made, but noted that department lawyers were given a "herculean task” to quickly review millions of files for release. Blanche said department lawyers took pains to protect the women involved, and quickly fixed any errors that were found.

“I am sorry that in about 1% of the documents mistakes were made,” Blanche said Wednesday. “But what I will say on top of that is we put tons of resources to rectifying those mistakes immediately, including pulling down documents within minutes of being informed that there were mistakes.”

The political firestorm over the Epstein files dogged the Trump administration for much of last year, with lawmakers eventually passing a measure that compelled the release of a massive trove of documents in the government’s possession related to its investigation.

The Justice Department began releasing the documents in late December, which included photos, call logs, grand jury testimony and interview transcripts. The release did little to tamp down skepticism from conspiracy theorists and online sleuths, who have long pushed allegations of a government cover-up, without evidence.

It halted work on major projects, and it's buying back leases, citing national security concerns. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum says a classified report from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth proves offshore wind is a national security threat.

This comes against the backdrop of the Republican president's hatred of wind turbines and desire to boost fossil fuels for “energy dominance” in the global market. National lab estimates show that turbines installed along the U.S. coasts could provide more than enough power to cover the nation's annual electricity consumption.

Wind turbines interfere with radar, but that isn't a new problem. The Pentagon reviews wind farm construction plans and can deem areas off limits. There are upgrades to radar to mitigate turbine impacts.

Here’s what to know about the national security implications of offshore wind development:

Turbines’ spinning blades can create false targets on radar screens

Burgum says he’s worried about autonomous drones going through a wind tower field undetected because of radar interference. And, he said, the vibration of wind towers could affect undersea sonar.

Radar systems can be adjusted to raise the threshold for what's considered a detection but may miss actual targets consequently, according to the Department of Energy.

Kirk Lippold, a national security expert and former commander of the USS Cole, said radar operators are trained to differentiate a live track — anything from a boat or a submarine periscope to an inbound drone or missile — from clutter. If drones aren't detected before they reach a wind farm, “we have bigger national security issues,” he said.

Trump administration says there are new risks

According to the Department of Justice, defense officials gave the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management classified information in November 2025 detailing new national security risks from offshore wind projects.

BOEM halted construction on five big East Coast projects days before Christmas. Burgum said they had to address the rapid evolution of relevant adversary technologies and vulnerabilities created by these projects near East Coast cities. This came after courts blocked Trump's efforts to halt development through executive action.

Like the United States, Sweden is raising security concerns with offshore wind energy. Officials said Thursday they're approving two offshore wind farms while rejecting 11 others.

Green Power Sweden CEO Nils Grunditz said he questions why Sweden is scaling back its offshore wind plans when technological solutions for radar interference are used elsewhere in the region. Denmark has been a pioneer in wind energy since building the first offshore wind farm in 1991.

The UK government said in March it bought new air defense radars to mitigate against anomalies created by offshore wind farms, touting it as new technology that secures coexistence of air defense and offshore wind. The independent climate change think tank E3G said North Sea turbines can be a defense asset, for example by including surveillance and monitoring equipment.

Judges were not convinced by the Trump administration

Developers impacted by the construction freeze and states sued. The DOJ argued national security concerns are paramount and federal courts do not second-guess military officials’ assessment of these risks.

Federal judges reviewed the classified information and allowed all five wind farms to resume construction.

At the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Senior Judge Royce Lamberth expressed concern that the stated national security reasoning may have been “pretextual,” to mask the true motives for stopping offshore wind.

In putting a major wind farm for Rhode Island and Connecticut back on track in January, Lamberth said the government did not apply the newly discovered concerns specifically to that project, Revolution Wind, Burgum publicly criticized offshore wind around the time of the stop work order for reasons unrelated to national security, and BOEM waited to act until December on information it received in November.

The Pentagon is also holding up the development of onshore wind farms, and the administration has used emergency orders to keep fossil fuel plants online.

Meghan Greenfield, a partner at Jenner & Block LLP in Washington, said the administration is making a national security argument in so many different contexts, “it has caused increased skepticism by the courts.”

A retired Navy officer is suspicious of the administration's motives

In buying back offshore wind leases, the Interior Department cited national security concerns with the projects, including those off California. The Interior Department said Thursday there were serious national security risks that demanded immediate attention, and it won't let “reckless projects create higher utility costs, a weakened energy system and unnecessary harm to the environment.”

Retired U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Dennis McGinn knows the waters off California's shore well. He commanded the fleet responsible for naval operations across the eastern and northern Pacific Ocean. He said there's no “showstopping national security issue” that would invalidate years of analysis of the lease areas.

McGinn said he thinks the administration is maximizing the risks and costs of offshore wind while minimizing the benefits to justify pursuing more fossil fuels and “it doesn't pass commonsense tests.” Offshore wind produces electricity cleanly. Oil, coal and natural gas emit carbon pollution when burned.

McGinn, who served as an assistant secretary of the Navy, said that radar interference is a problem recognized early on and adequately addressed and that thousands of turbines are operating across Europe and Asia.

“National security and offshore wind are compatible, if it is done right, in the right locations,” he said.

Economist Diana Furchtgott-Roth disagrees. A distinguished fellow at the Energy Policy Research Foundation, Furchtgott-Roth said the defense issues have been known for decades, the military's views should be taken very seriously, the nation shouldn't be dependent on Chinese-made turbines, and gas, coal and nuclear provide affordable, reliable power. The administration is acting prudently, she said.

Members of Congress were briefed

Democratic U.S. Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island said he participated in a classified briefing months ago and didn't find the reasoning compelling. Reed, the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is trying to include a measure in the defense bill that sets military policy to force a 180-day deadline for a military office known as the siting clearinghouse to evaluate wind projects and explain its conclusion.

“They have to be able to produce a thoughtful and thorough analysis which justifies their decision,” Reed said Wednesday. "That’s the way to go.”

Even with that step, Reed said, this administration finds many ways to stop things it doesn't like and he expects the campaign against wind energy to continue.

___

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find the AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

The policy, known as “public charge,” appeared on Thursday in the Federal Register. It will be formally published on July 20 and take effect Sept. 18. Under the policy, applicants for green cards have to show they wouldn’t be burdens to the country or “public charges.”

The policy was first implemented in February 2020 as one of President Donald Trump’s moves to limit legal immigration during his first administration, but it was reversed after Democratic President Joe Biden came to power.

Its return comes when the Republican administration is implementing a hard-line policy to curb both illegal and legal immigration, and when the cost of healthcare and food is rising.

The federal government “is reaffirming the requirement of self-reliance, protecting public resources and ending policies that encouraged dependency on the backs of hard-working American taxpayers,” U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said in a post published on its X account.

“Under President Trump, USCIS is restoring the basic principle that immigrants must be able to support themselves," the post said.

While the administration’s crackdown on immigration has an increased focus on deportations and immigration enforcement in cities across the country and at borders and entry points, it has also taken actions that target legal immigrants and mixed-status families, in which the parents are foreign nationals with U.S.-born children.

The rule expands disqualification options

Federal law already requires those seeking permanent residency or legal status to demonstrate that they will not become a public charge. The Trump administration’s rule, however, broadens the grounds for disqualification.

The new rule does not describe or specify by name the benefits and programs that could be considered a public charge. Instead, it says that officers who would implement the policy will make “individualized, fact-specific public charge inadmissible determinations, based on a totality of the alien’s circumstances.”

It says that, “using good judgment and discretion, officers will more accurately assess an alien's likelihood at any time of becoming a public charge.”

The Trump administration first promoted the rule in 2018 as a way to ensure that only those who were self-sufficient came to the U.S. Immigrant rights advocates criticized it, saying it amounted to a “wealth test.” Public health experts said it would lead to worse health outcomes.

Manatt Health, a group that provides advice to state and federal governments, estimated the policy would have deterred as many as 26 million people from seeking healthcare, food, housing or other aid through programs for which they qualified under federal law. About half were U.S. citizens, mostly children or adults living in a mixed-status family, according to the group.

Experts also noted that most people who receive benefits from the government are already legal residents.

A 2020 study from the Migration Policy Institute said that while the “chilling effects” may be vast, the number of immigrants who could be deemed ineligible for legal permanent residence based on use of one of the public benefits under the rule was small.

The institute estimated that no more than 167,000 people — less than 1% of the 22.1 million noncitizens residing in the United States at that time — could be determined ineligible for a green card based on their current use of a listed benefit.

There were 22.8 million noncitizens living in the U.S. in 2023, according to the Census Bureau.

Critics say the rule creates fear in the community

Nongovernmental organizations said the policy generated confusion and fear and caused many immigrants and their U.S.-born relatives to decide not to apply for benefits and services to which they were entitled.

Immigrant advocates condemned the government’s decision to revive the “public charge” rule and expressed concern.

“This regulation is a direct assault on immigrant families, and a threat to our country’s health and economic security,” said Adriana Cadena, executive director at the Protecting Immigrant Families Coalition. “The Trump administration is basing immigration decisions on bias and politics, regardless of the resulting harm.”

Sarah Krieger, senior policy counsel at the National Immigration Law Center, said the rule would make immigrants afraid to go to the doctor, buy food at the grocery store and file taxes.

“With this new rule, they are sowing fear and chaos to ultimately reshape America into a country where only the few who are white and ultra-wealthy are welcome,” Krieger said. “The rule is not just deeply harmful, it also violates the law.”

The move announced Thursday would allow Wall Street trading firms and other institutions to get news from Truth Social contributors in milliseconds so they could profit off subsequent moves in stocks, bonds and interest rates. Called Truth PSI, it would mimic paid access at other platforms with one key difference: The most popular Truth Social poster is the president himself and, as the biggest shareholder of the public traded parent company, would directly benefit.

“He’s selling expedited, privileged access to information about what he is doing as president,” said Kathleen Clark of Washington University School of Law and an expert in government conflicts of interest rules. “It’s yet more brazen corruption, an improper exploitation of government power to enrich himself.”

The Trump family company declined to comment. Truth Social's public parent, Trump Media & Technology, did not immediately respond to emailed questions, including whether the president's posts will be excluded from the offering.

A press release suggested Trump would indeed be part of the offering, stating it would allow traders to see “the highest-ranking Truth Social accounts” ahead of others. The president has 12.9 million followers on the platform.

The release did not say how much customers would be charged.

In the past few months, Trump has announced decisions and musings on his platform including posts about the Iran war, tariffs and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement crackdown in U.S. cities. The Iran posts in particular are impactful because investors are worried that higher oil prices will continue to stoke inflation and possibly force the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates.

The announcement comes as stock in Trump Media & Technology has plunged 70% since the president took office last year.

Trump Media said that it hopes start the service next month and that it has already signed up customers.

Kendall County Judge Shane Stolarczyk and Kendall County Emergency Management Coordinator Brian Constantine provided an update on the county’s flood response during a Thursday morning news conference at the Kendall County Road and Bridge Building.

So far, Stolarczyk said the county has “taken on (a) significant amount more water than last year’s flood,” which has caused extensive damage to properties, roads and bridges.

“Fortunately, like last year, we suffered no loss of life and no significant injuries,” Stolarczyk said.

In all, the county judge said first responders conducted two high-water rescues across the county. Other crews assisted residents to a county evacuation center.

While he believes the area is through the worst of the heavy rain, Stolarczyk continued to ask residents to remain vigilant for more rain later today.

“We’re expecting a second wave coming down the pipe sometime this afternoon,” Stolarczyk said. “It’s nothing (that’s) going to be remotely close to what we’ve seen.”

Planning for rain

Constantine said he and other county leaders held a meeting Tuesday to map out a planned response to this week’s rain with law enforcement agencies and emergency services across the county.

After Boerne experienced severe weather, county officials notified the Comfort Fire Department of its plans for Thursday. According to Constantine, flood sirens were “triggered manually” by Comfort FD. Constantine could not confirm the exact times those sirens were activated.

Constantine said a 37-foot crest was reported in the area of U.S. Highway 87 at the Guadalupe River. Water from the river was flowing toward the Comal County line.

The National Weather Service had issued a Flash Flood Warning for portions of the county until 1 p.m., but the warning has since expired.

However, the NWS said a Flash Flood Emergency remained in place for Comfort, which is located northwest of Boerne, until 3:30 p.m.

More related coverage on KSAT:

• At least 1 death reported as flooding hits South Central Texas; Rescues, evacuations continue
• LIVE COVERAGE: Flash Flood Emergencies issued in Kerr, Uvalde counties

Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington framed the proposal as one last push to deliver for voters ahead of the midterm elections that will determine control of Congress. It advanced on a vote of 20-14.

"We are rallying to finish what we started when the American people sent us here,” said Arrington, R-Texas.

With Iran war funding makes up the bulk of the package, some $60 billion, Arrington acknowledged that people can debate “why we're there” in the overseas conflict. But he said the money is needed for basic supplies — "just the bombs, bullets and battlefield readiness for our men and women in uniform to finish the fight successfully and return home safely — that’s it."

The resolution, which sets out instructions for the various congressional committees to draw up proposals, also calls for $13 billion for Intelligence, $12 billion for Agriculture, and $10 billion for Administration, which handles voting and elections.

Speaker Johnson goes it alone, trying to push past Democrats

The proposal is the third budget reconciliation package Republicans in control of Congress have put forward this session to steamroll Trump's priorities past Democratic objections using a legislative procedure that allows for simple majority votes for passage.

It's the same process House Speaker Mike Johnson used to pass Trump's big tax cuts bill last year and to advance four years worth of Homeland Security funds after Democrats refused to fund the department following the deaths of Americans protesting Immigration and Customs Enforcement earlier this year.

Johnson is pushing the effort almost single-handedly, without full backing from his slim House Republican majority or the Senate. He held lengthy meetings with Trump this week at the White House and hosted a private session for Republicans at the president's Camp David retreat to hash out details.

But the 47-page package remains a long-shot effort — too meager for some, too costly for others — ahead of voting in the full House expected next week.

Key Republican Rep. Chip Roy, an influential member of the Freedom Caucus who has expressed reservations about the package, did not vote at the Budget Committee session, as his home state of Texas deals with flooding.

Democrats argue Americans are paying for Trump's plans

Democrats are ready to vote against the proposal, as they did Thursday during committee action.

Rep. Brendan Boyle of Pennsylvania, the ranking Democrat on the Budget Committee, said the document, some 6,500 words, never once mentions the issue that's top of mind for many Americans: affordability.

“People know this is a failed presidency, and a failed Republican majority,” Boyle said.

Democrats offered more than a dozen amendments to the package during the hours-long Budget Committee session and raised questions about how the new spending will ultimately be paid for — either via budget cuts to other programs or by piling onto the nation's debt.

Boyle offered an amendment to reinstate the enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies that Republicans allowed to expire last year, leading to the fall government shutdown. Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., sought to reinstate funding for food stamps under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Rep. Scott Peters, D-Calif., sought to shift funds that Republicans provided the Department of Homeland Security to offset costs elsewhere.

Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, blamed the high costs of living on the Iran war and said every time Americans open their refrigerators or go to the gas pump they “paying for a war that should never have been started.”

Senate pans House plan, leaving next steps uncertain

Next steps are highly volatile, as the House holds a rare Saturday pro forma session, which is a largely administrative meeting that will allow the resolution to be filed in time for consideration next week.

Johnson can only lose a few detractors on his side of the aisle as he relies on Republicans only, without Democrats, for passage.

But the resolution, which outlines budgetary instructions to the various committees — Armed Services, Agriculture, Intelligence and Administration — would also have to be agreed on by the Senate. Republican senators have largely panned the House effort, waiting to see if Johnson can heave it to passage.

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., who is expected to take over the Senate Budget Committee after the sudden death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, has been a leading budget hawk concerned about the nation's rising deficits.

The House plans to have its committees work on bill text over the August recess and bring the whole package back to the floor for a final vote in the fall.

The NBA's career scoring king and current free agent spoke publicly for the first time in weeks Thursday afternoon, indicating that a decision is close — though stopping short of revealing which team he'll choose to play for this fall, despite at least one cry from someone in a jampacked room shouting for him to “pick a team.”

“I won’t hold you guys up too much longer," James said.

The four-time NBA champion had a pair of appearances Thursday: He recorded an episode of his “Mind the Game” podcast alongside guest co-host Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers in New York on the opening day of Fanatics Fest, then spoke at the Game Plan Summit presented by CNBC and Boardroom later in the afternoon.

At the summit, he told Boardroom co-founder Rich Kleiman in an on-stage conversation that making this decision has a slew of layers — many of which, it seems, are off the court.

“It’s not just about the team,” James said. “There’s so many other factors that I’m factoring in right now on what best fits me as a player, what best fits me as a person and what best fits my happiness, and also my family as well.”

At Fanatics Fest, an 11-year-old in the crowd asked James about free agency and his next team — “first of all, that was a hell of a question and some of the media people here probably should learn from the young fella," James said — and the youngster got perhaps the best answer of the session, with James indicating that the 2026-27 season may not necessarily be his last as a player.

“It's a big decision for not only myself, but for my family as well,” James said. “Just for the last part of my career and where I want to spend the last few years or the last year or the last two years of my NBA career ... I'm going to try to fit into whatever team I'm going into — but also give them all the tools and give them all the knowledge that I've been able to grasp over the last 23 years. I know the game. I know the ins and outs of the game of basketball.”

James playfully chided Haliburton for asking him about his future — “didn’t we talk about this in the back?” James asked, and Haliburton said he would ”leave it alone.”

Of course, they didn't leave it alone. James made reference to a slew of teams such as Cleveland, Miami, Philadelphia and Golden State, though didn't appear to give much in the way of hints. He did sip from a bottle of red wine that he opened and shared with Haliburton, calling it one of his podcast traditions.

And when fans shouted out suggestions for James' next team — one even asked him to play for the New York Yankees — no clues were forthcoming.

“We'll see,” he said.

James is the NBA’s oldest active player at 41 and the only player in league history to have a career spanning 23 seasons; this coming season will be his 24th. Speculation has been rampant for more than two months about his future, officially starting in May when the Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated from the NBA playoffs.

At that time, James said he didn’t know what he would be doing.

And the only developments that he’s revealed since came on June 30, when he said he would play this coming season and that he was leaving the Lakers after an eight-season run highlighted by the 2020 NBA title.

For more than two weeks, the NBA has been waiting to hear what comes next. James, as he did in a social media post at the time, lauded his time with the Lakers, who also offered him well wishes as he moves forward.

“I spent eight great years with the Los Angeles Lakers,” James said.

James’ resume is beyond compare in NBA history. He’s a 22-time All-Star, a 21-time All-NBA selection, a four-time Most Valuable Player, a four-time NBA Finals MVP, a three-time All-Star Game MVP, and was a member of the NBA’s 75th anniversary team.

He’s also coming off a season where he averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 7.2 assists per game. For his career, he’s averaged 26.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 7.4 assists in more than 1,600 games.

James started his career in Cleveland in 2003 and spent seven seasons with the Cavaliers before heading to Miami for four seasons — where he won his first two titles. He then returned to Cleveland for four more seasons, leaving in 2018 to start an eight-season run with the Lakers.

Cleveland and Miami are believed to be on James' radar again as he weighs this decision, as are several other teams including Philadelphia, Minnesota and Golden State.

“I’m looking forward to what comes next as I wind down my journey,” James said.

___

Reynolds reported from Miami.

___

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

At least one person was dead, Gov. Greg Abbott said, adding that it appeared many of the summer camps hit hard last year were not in danger. “Our number one focus is saving lives,” he said.

After days of pounding rain, the National Weather Service said a “large and deadly flood wave” barreled down the same river wrecked by flash floods last summer when two dozen children and counselors were killed at Camp Mystic.

Much like last year, the floods came during the middle of the night, but this time many residents in the Texas Hill Country said they were better prepared and able to flee to higher ground.

Forecasters urgently warned “Move to higher ground now!” as rivers rose hour by hour, turning them into fast-moving seas of white water. Some spots of the Guadalupe River rose by more than 30 feet (9 meters).

The governor said more 1,300 first responders had been deployed, rescuing well over 70 people. Kerr County reported one dead.

As much as 28 inches (74 centimeters) of rain fell over the past three days in Uvalde County, which was spared from the worst flooding a year ago, the weather service said Thursday. Other areas saw roughly a foot of rain with more expected going into Friday.

“This is hopefully the last real batch of rain,” said Jason Runyen, a meteorologist with the weather service.

Hill Country residents say they were better prepared for floods

The unfolding crisis brought back haunting memories of last summer's unimaginable Hill Country floods that killed more than 100 people over the July Fourth holiday.

“It’s crazy happening two times in one year,” said Josiah Rodriguez, who woke to the sound of heavy rain around 2 a.m. Thursday in Kerrville. He navigated flooded roads to help evacuate relatives.

“Last year there was no warning of it,” he said. “It just kind of happened overnight and it took everyone by surprise. This year, a lot more alerts have gone into place, a lot more safety measures.”

Residents said they were caught off guard a year ago and didn’t receive any warning when floods overtopped the Guadalupe. Some local leaders were criticized for not acting quickly.

The storms and flooding this time threatened multiple counties close to the Mexico border and in the Hill Country near San Antonio. Roughly six million residents across Texas were under a flood watch this week, and some were expected to remain in effect through Friday evening.

Several agencies sent rescue helicopters to the flood zone, including Travis County in the state capital of Austin.

“My understanding is people were mostly trapped in trees and on rooftops,” said Travis County Judge Andy Brown, who said one caller warned 10 people were trapped on a barn roof.

Residents rush animals and campers to higher ground

At a wild animal rescue, Katie Buck evacuated several dozen animals to higher ground in the dark Thursday as the normally dry Lazy Creek overflowed. She had to quickly grab a porcupine despite having no gloves.

She was able to get all of the animals to safety, but flooding destroyed several enclosures at the Buck Wild Animal Rescue and Wildlife Rehab near Ingram, which was hit hard 12 months ago.

“We were just starting to get back on our feet again,” Buck said. “To have to go through this again is just devastating.”

Residents at an RV park in Comfort moved their trailers as sirens sounded, said manager Duke Earwood.

Water rose over the hoods of vehicles parked near the river at the Comfort RV Resort, which has about 200 residents. Markers showed the flooding already matched last July's big flood.

“Too familiar for sure, and too soon,” Earwood said.

Uvalde residents isolated by floodwaters

Floodwaters overran the city of Uvalde overnight, cutting off most outside routes. The Leona River, normally dry most of the year, filled streets with water.

“People really can’t get anywhere” said Carmen Rodriguez, who nervously watched water engulf her neighborhood as a helicopter roared overhead. “We have a place to go, but all the streets are closed.”

Rodriguez said authorities seemed to be well prepared, ordering mandatory evacuations and notifying people directly.

Uvalde officials found people trapped in vehicles overnight, said Juli Alvarado, a spokesperson for the police.

Texas Game Wardens rescued more than 40 people, mostly in the Uvalde County area, according to a Texas Parks and Wildlife Department spokesperson.

Flooding hasn't reached last year's deadly high

While heavily swollen from rainfall, so far the Guadalupe largely remained below the record levels reached during last year’s deadly floods.

Gauges showed it rose by more than 30 feet (9 meters) in some spots. One near Kerrville showed the river rose 32 feet (9.7 meters) in four hours.

Close to Camp Mystic, which hasn't reopened since last year's tragedy, the Guadalupe near Hunt reached about 20.5 feet (6.3 meters), which is enough to cause flooding, but still far below record levels from a year ago, according to U.S. Geological Survey and National Water Prediction Service data.

In Kerr County, where summer camps dot the river's shores, the sheriff’s office said all campers were safe. Several camps said the children were staying inside, with one camp reporting normal flooding.

Towns still rebuilding are hit by new floods

Volunteer firefighters spent the night evacuating homes and answering frantic calls in Ingram, just up river from Hunt, said Ingram Mayor Claud Jordan.

While the water didn’t rise as high as a year ago, he believes this round of flooding was more widespread in his city. “The rural part of Ingram, all the roads are just trashed,” he said.

“There are a bunch of businesses that haven’t reopened from last year,” Jordan said. “This doesn’t help.”

The Hill Country is especially prone to flash floods because the area’s signature limestone is covered by just a thin layer of soil. During heavy rains, water can quickly shoot downhill before filling the narrow river basins.

___

Stengle reported from Dallas. Associated Press writers Christopher L. Keller in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut; Michael Phillis in Washington; Claudia Lauer in Philadelphia; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Anna Wilder in Austin, Texas; Laura Turbay in Little Rock, Arkansas; and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, contributed.

Officials in many cities urged residents to stay inside or wear masks outside as air quality reached unhealthy to hazardous levels, meaning it's unhealthy for anyone, regardless of health conditions. The smoke is coming from fires that are burning primarily in Canada but also in northern Minnesota. A lingering high pressure system has trapped the smoke close to the ground, said Steven Freitag, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Detroit, where air quality was among the worst in the world for major cities.

“Sure enough, it arrived in force here and it’s really pretty extreme levels,” said Freitag, who noted that visibility in some areas was reduced to a half mile.

“It’s scary,” Omar Mitchell, 50, said as he looked he looked to the sky. He wore a mask while walking to his restaurant in Detroit. “You don’t know necessarily what the side effects may be. That’s days or months later.”

Microscopic particles can lodge deep in the lungs and enter the bloodstream, leading to heart and lung problems and contributing to other long-term health issues.

The air stinks and sky glows yellow in some places

All of Michigan and much of Minnesota were under a hazardous air quality alert. In the Chicago area, air quality ranged from very unhealthy to hazardous.

National Weather Service meteorologist Jake Petr said even if winds from the northwest clear skies as expected later this week, the smoky air could keep returning until the fires are out. That could take months, until it snows in Canada and northern Minnesota, officials have said.

“Anytime we have something that could bring air from that region until the fires are over, it could conceivably dip back into the area,” Petr said.

Bill Ostrowski, 76, wore a mask as he walked through downtown Chicago, where wildfire smoke shrouded skyscrapers. “It stinks. It’s not a good sign when you wake up in the morning and you can smell the air,” said Ostrowski.

In St. Paul, Minnesota, the sky was “glowing yellow,” said Brent Williams, head of the soil, water and climate department at the University of Minnesota. The area “could be looking at weeks to months of continued smoke and flare-ups off and on as the winds blow in different directions,” he said.

A study published this year found that long-term exposure to tiny particles from wildfire smoke contributed to an average of 24,100 deaths a year in the lower 48 states. Long-term exposure can make existing health problems worse and lead to a range of chronic and deadly issues, including respiratory illness, cardiovascular and neurological diseases, and premature death.

New York City cancels activities and hands out masks

In the New York City area, a thick haze tinged the morning sky in orange and yellow and partly obscured Manhattan’s skyline.

City officials opened cooling centers as health officials urged New Yorkers to limit strenuous and prolonged outdoor activities. The city’s schools, parks and other agencies moved activities indoors, rescheduled events and adjusted operations. State officials distributed tens of thousands of face masks at transit hubs and other major locations.

Gwen Moseley, 65, was among the first patrons at Rosedale Library in Queens to take advantage of the free masks, saying she’s on the road much of the day working as a therapist for children with autism.

“Who wants to be breathing this? It’s not healthy,” Moseley said as she waited to meet a young client. “When I’m out walking, I can feel the scratchiness in my throat.”

Smoke eased a bit but was expected to thicken again by late afternoon or evening, possibly lasting overnight, weather service meteorologist Maureen Hastings said. She said it might move south for a while on Friday, but return at night.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation warned that there was a potential for temporary spikes of “very unhealthy” air quality from Buffalo in the state's western corner to Rochester by Lake Ontario, Syracuse in the central region, down to the greater New York City area.

Philadelphia officials urged people to avoid strenuous activity and stay inside or wear N95 or KN95 masks outside.

“Today is not the day to start your marathon training plan,” said Dr. Palak Raval-Nelson, the city's public health commissioner.

Minnesota fires are spreading

In Minnesota, forest rangers on Thursday combed a remote wilderness area for anyone who might still be there days after wildfires led to its closure.

Officials closed the Boundary Waters along the U.S.-Canada border on Tuesday. At the time, 6,000 to 10,000 people were inside, but Superior National Forest staff estimated Wednesday that they’d reached 90% of them, said Karen Harrison, a spokesperson for state and federal agencies involved in the response.

She said Thursday that smoke is making it difficult for helicopters to fly, and fires are spreading despite firefighting efforts.

“There will be fire on the landscape until fall, and some fire will be burning until snow cover,” Harrison said.

The Royal Canadian Air Force successfully evacuated 11 Minnesota teenagers and four staff members Wednesday from wildfires in an Ontario provincial park about 175 miles (282 kilometers) north of the Minnesota border.

___

Webber reported from Fenton, Michigan. Associated Press reporters Ed White in Detroit, Jacqueline GaNun in Lansing, Michigan, and Cybele Mayes-Osterman in Chicago contributed to this report.

___

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

MLB said Thursday its 2027 season will start with a single game to be televised that night by Netflix. The teams have not been chosen.

Opening matchups include Cleveland at the Chicago Cubs, St. Louis at Cincinnati, the Chicago White Sox at Detroit, Texas at Houston, Minnesota at Kansas City, Atlanta at the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Mets at Miami, the Los Angeles Angels at Milwaukee, Toronto at the New York Yankees, the Athletics at Pittsburgh, Arizona at San Diego, Colorado at San Francisco, Boston at Seattle, Baltimore at Tampa Bay and Philadelphia at Washington.

Baseball’s labor contract expires Dec. 1 and a management lockout is expected. In 2022, an agreement wasn’t reached until March 10, causing opening day to be pushed back from March 31 to April 7.

Chicago’s Wrigley Field will host the All-Star Game on July 13 and a rivalry weekend will follow.

The regular season is scheduled to end Sept. 26.

The Athletics are scheduled to play most of their home games in West Sacramento, California, for the third straight season before moving to a new ballpark in Las Vegas. They will have a homestand at the Triple-A ballpark in Las Vegas starting May 31 against San Diego and Cincinnati.

With no labor contract in place for 2027, no international games are scheduled.

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

FORECAST HIGHLIGHTS

• FLASH FLOOD EMERGENCIES: Along Guadalupe and Pedernales Rivers, & in Uvalde County
• OTHER FLOODING RIVERS/CREEKS: Nueces, Frio, Sabinal, Leona, Medina, Cibolo
• EXTREME RAINFALL: 8″ to 12″ over past 24 hours, Up to 18″to 29″ since Monday night
• SAN ANTONIO FORECAST: Spotty afternoon rain, dry tomorrow
• HILL COUNTRY & WEST FORECAST: Scattered downpours possible again overnight

FORECAST

SAN ANTONIO

There will be a few spotty downpours through this afternoon. Brief, heavy rain with lightning is possible. But, beyond today, rain chances fall off.

FLOODING WEST & IN HILL COUNTRY

Remain aware and heed all warning and evacuation calls in Kerr, Kendall, Gillespie, Blanco, and Uvalde Counties. In these areas over 10 inches of rain has fallen on top of the excessive rainfall the last few days. The Guadalupe and Pedernales Rivers are experiencing major flooding with water rising to over 20-35 ft.

Officials are asking people to refrain from traveling to or through areas with Flash Flood Emergencies in an effort to prevent unnecessary rescue calls.

More scattered, heavy rain is possible overnight, although coverage will probably not be as widespread. Still, any additional rain could easily lead to more flooding issues because the ground is water-logged.

Extended Forecast

A drier and warmer pattern will come around during the weekend and next week.

QUICK WEATHER LINKS

• WATCH LIVE: Doppler Radar
• Hourly and 10-Day Forecast
• Download FREE KSAT Weather Authority App: Up-to-date forecast information and livestreams from trusted local meteorologists.
• KSAT Connect: Share your weather photos.

Bless Achor, 38, turned himself in to the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday after authorities issued a warrant for his arrest, SAPD said.

Achor was charged with injury to a child - bodily injury and abandoning or endangering a child in connection with an off-duty incident, according to the department.

Booking records show he has since been released on bond.

Dispute over groceries

The alleged assault happened on June 6, 2026, at a home located in the 5400 block of Rowley Road, which is on San Antonio’s Northwest Side.

The 12-year-old girl was staying with Achor, who’s identified in the warrant as the child’s father, at the time of the incident, the affidavit said.

Achor and his child’s stepmother were taking in groceries, as the 12-year-old was eating cereal.

The warrant said Achor yelled at his daughter for not helping with the groceries, since the child’s stepmother was pregnant and struggling to hold a small child and groceries at the same time.

At some point, the girl started crying. According to the warrant, Achor said “he would give her something to cry about.” Achor allegedly started to assault his daughter, authorities stated.

According to the affidavit, the child suffered bruises around her eye. She also lost vision in one of her eyes following the assault, which later returned to normal functionality, the warrant said.

After the assault, court documents said that Achor forced the child to sit on her knees in the corner of a room for hours until she went to bed.

Achor is accused of refusing to provide medical assistance to his daughter. He also told the girl that she could go home to her mother, and she could never come back to visit him.

Search warrant executed

On June 17, 2026, Texas Rangers interviewed Achor at the San Antonio Police Department’s South Substation. The warrant said Achor was shown photos of the alleged injuries his daughter suffered.

However, Achor “insisted” that he had caused no harm to the child and was not aware of the injuries, the affidavit said.

Achor expressed the need for an attorney and agreed to cooperate with the investigation at the time.

Texas Rangers later executed a search warrant on a residence rented by Achor and his wife on July 8. During the search warrant, authorities said Achor’s wife would not come to the door.

Numerous knocks, callouts, and announcements were made for Achor’s wife to open the door to the residence. Texas Rangers later broke down the door to gain entry and took photos and videos of the home.

Achor’s wife refused to speak with Texas Rangers on the investigation.

Read also:

• SAPD officers shoot, kill ‘suspicious’ armed man on East Side, police say

The U.S. said on Wednesday it would impose a new 25% tariff on certain imports from Brazil, citing unfair trade practices by the world’s 10th-biggest economy.

Brazil's Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira accused Trump administration officials of pressuring the South American nation to give American companies exclusive access to some sectors of its economy. He said Brazil has never left the negotiating table.

The tariffs, first proposed last month, will take effect July 22. The order exempts some goods that are not produced in the U.S. or that officials worry would disrupt supply chains — including coffee, beef, oranges and orange juice and aircraft components.

Brazil's government said the decision hits about 3,000 items, but is yet to decide whether and how it could retaliate with a law its Congress passed in 2025 in response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs.

In a statement late Wednesday, the office of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva refuted the U.S. allegations of unfair trade practices. It said 76% of imports from the U.S. entered Brazil duty-free in 2025, and said the average tariff effectively applied to U.S. products was only 3.1%.

It said it has taken steps to impose reciprocal tariffs, along with other trade-related countermeasures, through its own law and through the World Trade Organization’s dispute settlement mechanism.

Vieira said Rubio made statements that are “unacceptable, offensive to the Brazilian people and the Brazilian government” after the new tariffs were announced. Rubio said in a post on X that the tariffs were the result of Lula putting “his own ego ahead of making a deal” and not negotiating with the U.S. in good faith.

“Rubio launches a crude and arrogant attack on the Head of State of a friendly nation, who has personally sought to open channels for dialogue on several occasions," Vieira told a press conference in the capital, Brasilia. "What Secretary Rubio dismisses as ‘ego’ is, in fact, President Lula’s steadfast resolve to defend Brazil’s sovereignty and the interests of our businesses and workers.”

US has a robust trade surplus with Brazil

The United States has for years run a massive trade deficit with the rest of the world, and Trump has cited the lopsided trade numbers to justify his aggressive use of tariffs.

But Brazilian imports make an unusual target: The U.S. has persistently piled up trade surpluses with Brazil. Last year, in fact, U.S. exports to Brazil exceeded imports by nearly $42 billion; only the United States’ trade surpluses with the Netherlands and the United Kingdom were higher.

The new tariff puts pressure on national exports and increases insecurity for companies in both countries, Brazil’s National Confederation of Industry said in a statement Thursday.

The Trump administration first imposed a 50% tariff on Brazilian imports last July. He cited what he called a “witch hunt” against former President Jair Bolsonaro. Trump's ally was on trial at the time for attempting a coup despite his 2022 electoral defeat to Lula and was later convicted. Some of those tariffs were later rescinded.

Trump at the time also accused Brazil of unfair trade practices and said he had directed U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to initiate an investigation under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974.

That led the office to charge Brazil with lax anti-corruption enforcement and unfair tariffs, among other things, in June. One of the targets of the investigation is Brazil's popular PIX payment system, which is run by the country's central bank and is overwhelmingly free of charge.

Scott Lincicome, a trade analyst at the libertarian Cato Institute, said the U.S. administration might have had a legitimate Section 301 case if it narrowly targeted Brazil’s restrictions on trade in digital services. Instead, it threw in a bunch of other allegations.

“It’s a pretty clear case of the administration simply finding an excuse and finding a law that allows them to impose the tariffs they want to impose,’’ Lincicome said.

Welber Barral, a trade lawyer and former Brazilian foreign trade secretary, said the move comes as his country's exports to the U.S. are now less than 10% of its total for the first time in two centuries.

“Brazil is diversifying to other destinations,” Barral said. “Brazil is negotiating with Canada through the Mercosur. Other deals will also come out as the American market closes.”

Brazil elections may be impacted

Brazilian officials have blamed the Bolsonaro family — the main political opponents of Lula — for the latest round of tariffs. The move was announced shortly after Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro, a presidential hopeful in October's elections and son of the former president, visited Trump, Rubio and other U.S. officials in Washington in May.

Sen. Bolsonaro reposted Rubio’s statement, adding: “Lula is no longer fit to be the president of Brazil. We are on a plane without a pilot.” He also described Lula as “the Brazilian Biden” and said he “is grumpy, reckless, and has become a danger to our nation.”

Flávio Bolsonaro is expected to be confirmed as Lula's main election rival on July 25 at his Liberal Party's convention in Sao Paulo, though his bid has struggled to overcome the findings of a police investigation which showed he received millions of dollars from a disgraced banker to finance a movie about his father. He has denied any wrongdoing.

The two leading presidential candidates have previously traded barbs over their responses to the deeply unpopular U.S. tariffs, suggesting that they believe how they are perceived as handling them will be a key factor in the vote.

___

Savarese reported from Sao Paulo.

Paul Wiseman contributed to this report from Washington D.C.

___

Follow AP’s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

Walker’s parents -- “Jordan’s Dad” and “Jordan’s Mom,” as known by their customized jerseys this week at the Home Run Derby — often obliged. Derek Walker and his 7 year old son were out in left field seats for an April series in 2010 when Braves slugger and future Gold Glove winner Jason Heyward made his debut.

Oh, for sure the younger Walker still cheered for Jones.

But to see a young Black star such as Heyward command the outfield the way Walker wanted to play, a new favorite player was born.

“As soon as Jason Heyward debuted,” Walker said. “I was like, oh yeah, that’s the guy. That’s who I want to be like.”

The significance of representation in the Black community was never lost on Walker.

So when Walker, a former St. Louis Cardinals' first-round pick once on the cusp of bust territory after several demotions over the last few seasons, had his breathtaking, breakthrough moment with a six-swing, six-homer rally past Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber to win the Derby, he hoped his star-making turn would inspire more young Black athletes to follow in his footsteps and choose baseball.

Just as he was inspired by Heyward.

“For Black kids, I want to kind of be a role model for them,” Walker said, “like he was for me.”

With each prodigious blast off his customized Iron Man bat, the 24-year-old Walker silenced the Philly boo birds clamoring for a home team Schwarber victory and shined in his coming-out party beyond the St. Louis bubble and to the entire baseball world.

He flashed the kind of swag that appealed to a younger generation much in the way Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. did in his heyday. Walker wore his Cardinals hat backward, chewed a big wad of bubble gum and reveled afterward in flashing his imitation Liberty Bell bling, the champions' chain presented by Ryan Howard.

None other than career home run leader Barry Bonds gave Walker his stamp of approval — “you got my trophy, too” — for winning the greatest Derby he's ever seen.

“That means the world to me,” Walker said.

Walker is among the scores of All-Star talents leading a modest uptick of Black baseball players in the major leagues. When Houston and Philadelphia played the 2022 World Series that featured no U.S-born Black players, Astros manager Dusty Baker noted, “It looks bad. But there is help on the way.”

They're here — with Walker as the All-Star weekend centerpiece.

“I think once kids see more people to look up to,” All-Star Nationals outfielder James Wood said, “the more kids will get back into baseball.”

Baseball has seen modest gains with Black baseball players

Take a look around the All-Star clubhouses and it was clear — while not at the pace perhaps MLB would like — Walker helped represent a new wave of emerging Black talent.

Three-time AL MVP and Yankees slugger Aaron Judge sat out with an injury, but Washington Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams and outfielder James Wood, Cincinnati Reds ace Chase Burns and Braves catcher Drake Baldwin ushered in the next, young group of future Black stars. The game also featured Minnesota Twins veteran Byron Buxton.

“I feel like there's been like a little surge in getting more Black players in the game,” Wood said. “We've got four on our team right now. Last year at one point, we had five. I think you're seeing it come back.”

MLB said that 6.8% of players on opening day rosters, injured lists and the restricted list were Black, up from 6.2% at the start of the 2025 season and 6.0% at the beginning of 2024. This year’s 0.6% increase was the most in a season since a 0.7% rise from 2017 to 2018.

Twenty of the 64 Black players had been in MLB-sponsored programs such as the MLB Youth Academy, Breakthrough Series, DREAM Series, Nike RBI and the Hank Aaron Invitational.

MLB said the total included 22 players 25 or younger and eight older than 32. The average age of Black players was 27.8 and the overall average 29.25.

The 23-year-old Burns, 11-1 with a 2.54 ERA with the Reds, was proud to hear Walker champion a Black youth movement at the Derby.

“You don't see a lot of Black athletes in baseball,” Burns said. “I don't know why that it is. I think it's great for guys like me and him to strive to get Black athletes into the game of baseball, whether it's talking about it or doing stuff in the community. I think it's great he pointed it out.”

Walker hopes he can keep leading the way

The best chance, naturally, for Walker to serve as a role model for the next generation is to make sure he's not just a one-Derby wonder.

Walker has 22 home runs, leads baseball with 74 RBIs and is a solid 13th with an .886 OPS — Wood is second at .985 — for a Cardinals team in the NL wild-card hunt. The Cardinals are finally getting the production expected out of the right fielder they drafted with their first-round pick in 2020.

Walker, who signed out of high school after he had committed to Duke, skipped Triple-A and made the opening day roster as the youngest player in baseball in 2023 and tied Eddie Murray's under 21-rookie record with a 13-game hitting streak.

He was sent down later that season; was the 2024 opening day right fielder and demoted again with a .155 batting average. Walker suffered a variety of injuries in 2025 and played in just 111 games that suddenly put his future as a key Cardinals' contributor very much in doubt.

Leaning on the same convictions that made him believe he could overtake the mighty Schwarber in the Derby championship round, Walker said a day after his win he never wavered in his belief that he would blossom into an everyday player and All-Star with the Cardinals.

He tinkered with his swing during an extend rehab assignment last season and the results were on full display in Philadelphia with 12 home runs in the final round.

“When my swing's fluid and easy, that's when it's at it's best,” Walker said. “That's really what it is.”

Walker, who struck out in his lone at bat in the All-Star Game, earned a $1 million prize for winning the Derby, which is more than his 2026 salary of $799,400.

(Here's a fun fact: Walker has 49 career homers off 49 different pitchers.)

As for the backward hat, “I call it the Griffey because no one did it better than him."

No one did it better than Walker at the Derby.

He just hopes his win can be a launching pad for a next generation of Black athletes into the big leagues.

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

James Aren Duckett, 68, is scheduled to die at noon on July 28 at Florida State Prison near Starke, according to a death warrant signed Tuesday by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. Duckett was convicted of raping and drowning the girl while working as a police officer in a small central Florida city.

The execution for Dominick Anthony Occhicone, 80, was previously scheduled for 6 p.m. that same day. He was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend’s parents in 1986.

First executions on same day in more than 60 years

This is the first time Florida plans to execute two inmates on the same day since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty nationwide in 1976 after temporarily halting executions in 1972. According to Florida Department of Corrections records, Emmett C. Blake and Sie Dawson were executed for murder on May 12, 1964. The state records show multiple executions on a single day were more common in the past.

Duckett and Occhicone would become the 11th and 12th inmates to be executed in Florida this year if their deaths go as scheduled. Appeals in both cases will eventually go to the U.S. Supreme Court before any executions are performed.

According to court documents, Duckett was the only police officer on duty in Mascotte, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) west of Orlando, the night of May 11, 1987. Witnesses reported seeing Teresa McAbee getting into Duckett’s patrol car outside a convenience store that evening, and her mother reported her missing several hours later. Her body was found the next morning in a nearby lake. DNA from fluids and hair collected from the girl’s body were probable matches to Duckett, and fingerprints matching Duckett and the girl were recovered from his patrol car, investigators said.

In Occhicone’s case, authorities said he showed up the morning of June 10, 1986, at a home in Holiday, just north of Clearwater, where his former girlfriend was living with her parents and her two children. After the woman refused to speak with Occhicone, he left for about an hour and returned with a handgun, investigators said. Occhicone cut the exterior phone lines and then fatally shot Raymond and Martha Artzner as Occhicone’s former girlfriend fled with her daughter. Occhicone didn’t deny the shootings, but his attorneys argued during trial that the murders weren’t premeditated.

DeSantis oversaw a record 19 executions in 2025, more in a single year than any other Florida governor since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. The previous high was eight executions set in 2014.

A short reprieve for Duckett ends

DeSantis previously signed a death warrant for Duckett in February, scheduling his execution for March 31. But the Florida Supreme Court issued a stay just days before the execution to allow for DNA testing of old evidence that couldn't be performed because of technological limitations at the time of the original trial. The results came back inconclusive, meaning that they did not exonerate Duckett or definitively connect him to the crime. Judges have allowed the jury verdict to stand, and Duckett's stay was lifted earlier this month.

Duckett's attorney, Mary Elizabeth Wells, released a statement calling the rescheduled execution shameful and claiming the state's handling of the DNA evidence is the reason for the inconclusive results.

“Mr. Duckett has consistently maintained his innocence,” the statement said. “The State’s duty is to ensure that justice is done, and not rush to kill in a case with such serious doubts over guilt. We are committed to seeking every avenue of relief for Mr. Duckett ahead of his scheduled July 28 execution so that the State of Florida does not execute an innocent man.”

The governor's office declined to comment on Duckett's case or these particular executions, but DeSantis has previously said that his goal is to bring justice to victims’ families who have waited decades for death sentences to be carried out.

“Some of these crimes were committed in the ’80s,” the governor said during a November 2025 news conference. “Justice delayed is justice denied. I felt I owed it to them to make sure this ran very smoothly. If I honestly thought someone was innocent, I would not pull the trigger.”

Occhione would be oldest to be executed in Florida

Occhicone would also become the state's oldest inmate to be executed. Occhicone has several age-related ailments, including kidney and prostate problems, according to his attorneys. He needs help getting in and out of the shower, they noted.

On June 25, Florida executed 74-year-old Dusty Ray Spencer for the killing of his estranged wife. He was the oldest inmate executed in Florida until Tuesday, when Dennis Sochor — just a week older than Spencer — was put to death for killing a woman in the first hours of 1982 after meeting her at a New Year’s Eve party.

Occhicone also would become the second oldest prisoner known to be put to death in modern U.S. history after 83-year-old Walter Moody Jr. Moody was executed in Alabama in 2018 for killing a federal judge and a Black civil rights attorney during a wave of mail bombs in the South.

Florida executions are conducted via lethal injection using a sedative, a paralytic and a drug that stops the heart, according to the Department of Corrections.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday rejected suggestions that Islamabad had abandoned efforts to bring Washington and Tehran back to the negotiating table after brokering an initial ceasefire agreement last month that has now collapsed.

“Let me dispel the impression that Pakistan has done hands up, and this is not the case,” ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said at a news conference, adding that the parties eventually "will have to come to the negotiating table to settle all outstanding issues.”

Even the top negotiators for Iran and the U.S. signaled they have not walked away from talks. In a podcast interview with Joe Rogan that aired Wednesday, Vice President JD Vance said the Trump administration is “not going to bomb and bomb and bomb” and noted that “you’ve got to actually be willing to talk and to try to figure out the problem.”

“We’re going try to use our military force as one of the many tools that we have to solve the problem,” Vance said, adding that “diplomacy is another tool.”

Mediators from countries that include Pakistan, Qatar and Egypt have been working to resume talks, according to regional officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive diplomacy. They noted that neither side has notified Pakistan that it was officially withdrawing or terminating the initial ceasefire agreement.

The backchannel efforts have been overshadowed by the escalating attacks, with the U.S. military on Thursday conducting strikes deeper into Iran and firing on a ship that the U.S. accused of trying to break its naval blockade of Iranian ports. Iran has retaliated by launching missiles and drones at U.S. allies in the region and warned that its attacks could grow to target “all the infrastructure in the region.”

The U.S. and Iran are in a delicate and potentially pivotal moment that “leaves open the possibility of moving up the escalation ladder,” said Naysan Rafati, senior Iran analyst at the Washington-based International Crisis Group.

The push is on for renewing negotiations

Andrabi, the spokesman for Pakistan’s foreign ministry, acknowledged that mediation between Iran and the U.S. had become increasingly difficult. But he said peace efforts remained alive.

“It can be put on the backburner, but it stays,” Andrabi said, adding that “whenever the parties exhaust the logic of escalation, the formula for peace is there.”

The regional officials involved in mediation attempts said efforts to salvage the deal to end the war were continuing this week. They acknowledged that the 60-day negotiating process spelled out in the interim deal has halted. But they said mediators have been working to persuade both sides to return to the negotiating table.

Officials say the key point of dispute is management of the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial energy shipping route that is Tehran’s greatest source of leverage. The language in the interim deal is vague. Iran claims it has the authority to arrange shipping transit through the strait, while the U.S. says the waterway is meant to be open to free passage and has tried to arrange an alternate shipping route along Oman’s coast.

In his interview with Rogan, Vance acknowledged that diplomacy might ultimately be the only way forward.

“I’m very frustrated by the Americans and frankly by people in other countries who are like, ‘You cannot negotiate with the Iranians,’” the vice president said. “Well, then what is your proposal to get people to stop shooting at ships in the Strait of Hormuz?”

Trump increases the threats and says Iran ‘better behave’

The fighting resumed over Iran’s unwillingness to allow oil tankers and other commercial vessels to navigate freely through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital Persian Gulf shipping route through which 20% of the world’s oil normally flows. Iran effectively choked off the usual stream of commerce by attacking commercial vessels that ignored its rules, disrupting world energy markets and driving up prices that could pose problems for Republicans in November’s midterm elections.

Asked by reporters in recent days if he is still open to negotiations, Trump has repeated his previous threats that Iran returning to the table is the only thing that can avoid U.S. attacks on civilian infrastructure like bridges and power plants. But the Republican president said he would not put a timeline on it.

“I don’t like giving deadlines, but they pretty much know, they know the story,” Trump said in Pennsylvania on Wednesday. “They better behave.”

Moments before, Iran’s parliament speaker and lead negotiator said the country is not declaring last month’s interim deal void. But Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said Iran’s commitment depends on continued implementation by the United States. If Washington fails to honor its obligations, Iran would have no reason to remain bound by it, he argued.

The initial June 17 agreement called for a permanent end to hostilities and a reopening of the strait and started a 60-day negotiating clock to reach a final deal on the future of Iran’s nuclear program and other issues.

Qalibaf also suggested that Iran is not seeking to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed indefinitely. He said Tehran’s objective is to preserve what he called “Iranian arrangements” governing navigation through the waterway, while allowing the maximum safe passage of commercial shipping under those rules.

US is trying a naval blockade and more strikes to reopen the Strait of Hormuz — again

To stop Iran’s attacks on ships, Trump has stepped up military attacks and reinstituted an earlier Navy blockade of Iranian ports to inflict economic pain.

But it would be unrealistic to expect the U.S. to eliminate Iran’s ability to launch missiles and drones into the strait anytime soon, said Bradley Bowman, a former Army helicopter pilot and now a scholar at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a hawkish Washington think tank.

“Unfortunately, Iran only needs to hit a ship every now and then to create serious problems and dilemmas for insurers and ship captains and reduce the flow of traffic in the strait,” he said. “That reduced flow exerts significant economic and political pressure on Washington, especially as midterm elections approach. Iran understands the leverage it now has — and so does Trump.”

At the same time, Bowman and other experts are not convinced that more strikes and economic pressure will get Iran to negotiate.

“We’re doing things that have not affected Iranian behavior in the past,” said Mark Cancian, a retired Marine colonel and a senior defense adviser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “So why would it affect Iranian behavior now?”

___

Amiri reported from New York, Magdy from Cairo and Ahmed from Islamabad. Associated Press writer Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed to this report.

“After consulting with my client and his family, our understanding is that this was granulated salt, which is paired with lemon and water as a homemade electrolyte mix used by outdoor workers in extreme Texas heat, not methamphetamine or any other illicit substance,” said Ruby Powers, a Houston immigration attorney representing Victor Hugo Salgado Araujo, who was the front passenger inside the van.

Powers said in a statement on Thursday that she is asking the FBI to expedite the testing so “their names can be cleared.

“But no test result, whatever it ultimately shows, will change the fact that deadly force was used against Lorenzo,” Powers said. “You cannot shoot first and ask questions later.”

Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, who had lived and worked in Houston for nearly 35 years, had no criminal record, according to officials and available public records. His family said he was in the final stages of obtaining legal status through his children, who are U.S. citizens.

The 52-year-old man was also not the intended target of the ICE operation that led to his fatal shooting on July 7, according to U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston, who said she got that information from acting ICE Director David Venturella.  

A spokesperson for the FBI’s Houston office, which is investigating whether there was an assault on a federal law enforcement officer, referred questions to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas, which didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

An application for an FBI search warrant alleged that there were “small clear plastic bags” in Salgado Araujo’s van containing white “crystal-like substances.” FBI Special Agent David McNeilly, who filed the application, then wrote that he believed the substances could be methamphetamine based on the packaging and appearance.

The application was made public a day after it was filed in court on Tuesday, even though federal agents don’t typically publicize such information that quickly. Court records on Thursday didn’t indicate that the FBI had revealed what was collected from the van, or whether testing had been completed.

Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare — whose office is running its own investigation into the shooting — has also expressed doubt about the FBI’s suspicions in an interview with CNN, citing information that he said his team has but is not yet releasing.

“But my understanding is that this substance is being tested by the FBI, either today or in the next few days, and I think it’s so important to the public that those results be shared immediately,” Teare said in the Thursday interview.

Lomi Kriel contributed to this story.

Disclosure: CNN has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in The Texas Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

The verdict — believed to be the largest-ever against a gun dealer — was awarded by a jury Wednesday following a trial focused on whether the vendor, Husky Armory LLC, skirted federal regulations barring the sale of the gun-assembly kits to those under 21.

___

EDITOR’S NOTE — This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org. Helplines outside the U.S. can be found at www.iasp.info/suicidalthoughts.

___

In a wrongful-death lawsuit, the family of Henry Willis said he was just 18 when he purchased the Glock G19 pistol “build kit” from Husky Armory's website in 2023. He assembled the handgun in his garage — telling his father it was a transistor radio — and used it to end his life six days later.

Everytown Law, which represented the family, said the $104.2 million payout was the largest ever reached against a gun seller, surpassing the $73 million settlement awarded to the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting by the rifle-maker Remington.

It comes a little over a year after the Supreme Court upheld regulations enacted by the Biden administration that mandated serial numbers on the homemade weapons and required buyers to complete background checks and age verification.

Attorneys for Willis said Husky Armory had flouted each of those requirements.

Their website advertised the product as having “everything you need to build your own Glock style pistol from the comfort of your home,” noting the weapon could be assembled by “nearly anyone with a brain,” according to the lawsuit.

Inquiries to Husky Armory LLC and its owner, Cody Yurk, were not immediately returned. The company, which is based in Omaha, Nebraska, was not present for the trial, according to the family and their attorneys.

At a news conference Thursday, Willis’ mother, Laura Herp, described her son as a “kind, gentle child” who had struggled with mental health issues in the months leading up to his death.

“A child in crisis should never be able to access a deadly weapon,” Herp said. “Companies like Husky Armory thrive off selling to folks who shouldn’t have access to firearms, and they didn’t care who Henry was. They didn’t even bother showing up to the trial.”

A state court in Louisville had previously issued a default judgment against the vendor for failing to respond to the lawsuit. Following a two-day trial this week, a jury awarded $4.2 million in economic damages and $100 million in punitive damages to the family.

“This historic verdict sends a powerful message to ghost-gun sellers who set up businesses to profit by circumventing critical safeguards like background checks and age verification,” said Dana Mulhauser, an attorney for Everytown Law. “Henry should be home with his family today, and Laura deserved more time and opportunity to help her son heal.”

While other donors chipped in five‑ and six‑figure sums, Hoffman’s contribution alone was nearly 80% of the second‑quarter haul reported by Lone Star Rising, which took in almost $13 million between April and June. That’s on top of Hoffman’s previous donations of $1 million in February and $500,000 in January.

Lone Star Liberty PAC, the super PAC supporting Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Talarico’s Republican opponent, raised a fraction of that amount. FEC filings show the committee cobbling together just under $4.3 million from a patchwork of trial lawyers, oil‑and‑gas executives, construction firms and allied PACs, among other donors.

Since launching his Senate bid in September, Talarico has far outpaced Paxton in fundraising, raising over $70 million — more than four times Paxton’s roughly $17 million over the same period. On top of that, Lone Star Rising — which, like all super PACs, cannot legally coordinate with Talarico or any other candidate — has hauled in nearly $22 million, playing a key supporting role in the Austin Democrat’s primary win over U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas, earlier this year.

A prolific Democratic donor, Hoffman had given roughly $77 million to various candidates and committees since 2016, before his spending spree last quarter. Hoffman’s latest check is only slightly smaller than what he gave a leading pro-Kamala Harris super PAC during the 2024 presidential campaign, etching his role as one of the Democratic Party’s most powerful megadonors.

Hoffman’s ties to power recently traced back to Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender and financier who died in 2019. The release of the “Epstein files” showed Hoffman maintained contact with Epstein after the financier pleaded guilty to soliciting a minor in 2008. The documents showed Hoffman visited Epstein’s private island in the Caribbean in 2014, which Hoffman said was to raise money for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. An FBI review found no indication of wrongdoing, but the circumstance has stirred interparty tensions, with Crockett attacking Talarico for embracing dark money and billionaires despite his anti-corruption message. Talarico, for his part, has advocated for the full release of the Epstein files.

In a statement, Talarico spokesperson JT Ennis said the campaign “has no control over contributions to any super PAC,” noting that federal law bars political campaigns from coordinating with outside entities.

“The only way to get Big Money out of our politics is to reject politicians like Ken Paxton who want corporations and billionaires to decide our elections, not Texans,” Ennis said. “While Ken Paxton works to enrich himself and his donors, James will remain the only candidate in this race fighting to ban super PACs, ban corporate PACs, ban congressional stock trading, and tax billionaires so we can fix this broken, corrupt political system.”

Meanwhile, Talarico has attacked Paxton over a recent case involving Adam Hoffman, who is unrelated to Reid Hoffman. In June, Talarico condemned a plea deal Paxton’s office negotiated in its prosecution of Adam Hoffman, a Waco attorney accused of sexually assaulting a young boy. Talarico has called for the release of the “Hoffman files,” though The Texas Tribune found, in reviewing the trial transcript and other court records, that the case ended in a mistrial and the victim refused to testify a second time — leaving Paxton’s office to offer a deal or force the boy to return to court against his will using a subpoena.

Talarico pointed to the case as an example of what he calls Paxton’s pattern of “powerful, well-connected people covering up for other powerful, well-connected people.”

Hoffman’s $10 million contribution is sure to provide additional fodder for Talarico’s critics who have accused him of running afoul of his own core campaign crusade, which casts him as a populist determined to drive big money out of politics. His platform includes curbing billionaire donors’ influence, banning super PACs and corporate PACs, and overturning Citizens United. Last month, the Supreme Court struck down longstanding limits on how much national party committees can spend in coordination with candidates, further loosening campaign-finance rules and giving Paxton’s allies another way to help him close the financial gap with Talarico.

When previously asked about the support he receives from billionaire donors and super PACs, Talarico has said he will not “unilaterally disarm while Republicans play by their own rules,” and that he welcomes billionaire supporters who believe they should be taxed more and see their political influence limited.

Garry Jones, the director of Lone Star Rising, previously echoed a similar argument to the Tribune, saying, “Unfortunately we live in a political system in which, if you don’t use all the rules to your advantage, you’re left behind, and by being left behind, your ideas and principles and policy goals are left behind.”

With money flowing into one of the country’s marquee races this November, recent polling stacks Talarico neck‑and‑neck with Paxton, with the Democrat holding an edge among Latino voters but trailing among white voters, especially in rural areas.

Both campaigns have converged on South Texas this week. Paxton is headlining a “Rally in the Valley” and other events in McAllen with border‑security allies. Talarico is crisscrossing the border on a 750‑mile “Frontera Tour,” hosting town halls from El Paso to the Rio Grande Valley — a region that has shifted Republican in recent cycles — as he tries to flip a Senate seat his party hasn’t held in more than three decades.

But just months into Mullin's time in office, the department is squarely in the center of controversy again after three people were killed in encounters with Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in the span of less than a week.

The events are the first major test for Mullin, who promised a steady hand for a department roiled by his predecessor's conduct and the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.

As he navigates the uptick in violence, he is being forced into a balancing act that has him juggling pressures from a White House eager to carry out mass deportations and his former colleagues in Congress seeking answers — all while attempting to ease tensions in American cities over the deaths.

“When he took his position, Secretary Mullin said that his goal was to get the department off the front page of the news,” Democratic Rep. Seth Magaziner said on the House floor Tuesday. Then, waving a newspaper, he said: “Well, you’re back on the goddamn front page now."

Mullin's approach is a marked change from his predecessor, Kristi Noem

Mullin, a former senator from Oklahoma, was a surprise pick to run the sprawling department after Noem was fired in the wake of two deadly shootings of American protesters at the hands of federal immigration officers in Minneapolis earlier this year.

As the secretary in charge of carrying out the administration's mass deportations vision, Noem pushed an aggressive style of immigration enforcement where she was front and center, including most famously, a visit to a Salvadoran detention center. She was quick to speak publicly on controversial events, weighing in on both Minneapolis shootings with statements accusing the killed protesters of being agitators.

President Donald Trump, who made mass deportations a central promise of his second administration, ultimately soured on Noem over a $200 million ad campaign and her handling of the Minneapolis operation.

Mullin promised a different approach, while still pledging to deliver on the president's priorities. His first trip as secretary was not to promote immigration enforcement but to observe hurricane recovery efforts in North Carolina. Noem frequently went out on immigration raids with her officers — Mullin has not.

Since he became secretary and in the aftermath of the Minneapolis violence, the administration has also moved away from high-profile and unpopular immigration operations in American cities to a quieter approach to enforcement that has largely shifted media attention away from the crackdown. Under Mullin, Immigration and Customs Enforcement is also retreating from a plan to use warehouses to detain migrants.

But immigration arrests continue under Mullin and often with little fanfare: ICE arrested 10,000 people over a five-day period in late June, averaging out to about to 2,000 arrests per day. And legal pathways to immigration have also faced new restrictions.

Trump, during Mullin's tenure, has hailed the secretary as “so incredible,” and “amazing,” lauding him for giving up his Senate seat to run DHS.

For months, it appeared as though Mullin's change in approach was taking hold. While advocates and civil rights activists accused the department of mistreating immigrants under his leadership, Mullin's less confrontational approach seemed to keep the department out of the spotlight.

ICE-related deaths bring renewed spotlight to Mullin and DHS

But the events of the past week have posed a new challenge for Mullin as he walks a tightrope between his softer approach and the president's demands.

“Trying to deal with competing policy objectives is a challenge for any Cabinet secretary, but Mullin has this worse than most,” said Tom Warrick, a former counterterrorism official at Homeland Security who’s now at the Atlantic Council.

“In the case of Homeland Security, the White House wants both to meet their immigration quotas at the same time that they keep public trust, and how you do that — even with the funding that Mullin has — is a really difficult challenge."

ICE officers in Houston and Maine shot and killed individuals in their cars during immigration operations. In Florida, a man fleeing ICE officers was killed in a car crash.

Mullin has not spoken publicly about the deaths while the department’s public affairs office has released only brief statements following each.

Behind the scenes, Mullin, who frequently talks about how he shares his cellphone number with members of Congress and encourages them to call him directly, has talked with lawmakers and shared information, including talking with both senators from Maine.

And after the second shooting death in Maine, as criticism surged from both protesters and Mullin's former colleagues in Congress, ICE was ordered to suspend most vehicle stops.

Trump heaps pressure on Mullin over vehicle stop order

That decision infuriated Trump's supporters.

Conservative influencer Nick Sorter called it a “TOTAL CAPITULATION to the left," in a post on X. Conservative activist Mike Davis accused Mullin of heeding the advice of Maine Sen. Susan Collins, who said she'd suggested the vehicle stop pause to the secretary.

A day later, Trump appeared to contradict the guidance to ICE, saying in a social media post “we must be strong, tough and smart and we CANNOT give up one of ICE’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!”

Mullin then reposted Trump's words, adding that people in the country would be “arrested and deported wherever they are." He later said on X that he and the president are “on the same page.”

During a briefing Thursday, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said vehicle stops are continuing after field offices around the country were given “verbal guidance."

"The president and the secretary of Homeland Security are on the same page that vehicle stops are a necessary tool that ICE agents need," she said.

But it showed the friction between Mullin's attempts to maintain calm and the president's demands that illegal immigrants, which the administration has in many instances portrayed as criminals, be arrested in large numbers.

Democrats have slammed the new secretary, saying that they see little change at the department.

“Secretary Mullin, if he wants to, and if he has the backing of the White House, he has the ability to get ICE under control and make them follow the law,” said Rep. Joaquin Castro, a Democrat from Texas. “So either he has no interest in doing that, or the White House is not backing him up, or the agents are simply out of control.”

Republican lawmakers have come to Mullin's defense.

“I think the Secretary has lived up to what he’s wanted to do to try to change the atmosphere over there,” said Rep. Andrew Garbarino of New York, who as chair of the congressional Homeland Security Committee has requested a bipartisan briefing on ICE's use of force policies from DHS.

“I don’t think anybody is celebrating that ICE is back in the headlines," Garbarino said.

___

Associated Press writer Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.

The Kerr County Sheriff’s Office and the Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed that the person died in relation to Thursday’s floods. The body was recovered in the Center Point vicinity, according to a news release.

“This person’s identification will not be shared until next of kin has been notified,” the release said. “Our thoughts are with the family and all those affected by this loss.”

The Guadalupe River reached moderate flood levels in Hunt and major flood levels in Kerrville and Center Point, the release said. The river gauge at Center Point rose to 37 feet just before 6 a.m.

On Thursday morning, Kerrville Mayor Joe Herring Jr. and Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly issued disaster declarations for their respective jurisdictions.

Kerrville city officials said the primary focus remains on safety, evacuations and flood response as the city continues operating under a Readiness Level 2 emergency activation.

A flood warning remains in effect until 3 p.m., with an additional 1 to 2 inches of rain possible. Creeks and low-water crossings continue to be closely monitored.

The flooding has stirred painful memories for residents still recovering from last year’s deadly July 4 flooding.

At Indian Creek in Ingram, floodwaters completely covered a bridge crossing the Guadalupe River. Debris left behind along the roadway showed just how high the water had risen, while emergency helicopters flew overhead as first responders monitored conditions.

A woman who lives near the river told KSAT’s Patty Santos she came to see the flooding because she has friends who lost loved ones in last year’s disaster.

Another resident said the community now reacts much differently whenever heavy rain moves in.

“It’s scary every time it rains,” the resident said. “What I’ve noticed is everybody just panics now because of what happened last year.”

“Just knowing that the river is so powerful, and it can take whatever it takes in a split second,” another resident told KSAT. “People, places. It’s surreal to see it.”

Residents also reported hearing flood warning sirens early Thursday morning. One person shared video showing sirens sounding near Howdy’s before floodwaters quickly swept away vehicles and heavy equipment.

Authorities went door-to-door at a nearby RV park and encouraged people to evacuate. While many left, some chose to remain despite the rising water.

Rescues and evacuations continue

City officials said overnight rescue crews have since been relieved by fresh crews, who are now conducting welfare checks and additional evacuations.

Police continue helping residents evacuate in the area near Lytle Park while also responding to alarm calls caused by widespread power outages.

The Kerrville Fire Department is coordinating with a regional task force handling all boat rescue operations. Officials said most evacuations in the Quinlan Creek area have been completed.

Roads, shelter and utility impacts

Officials are urging residents to stay off the roads as flooding continues to make travel dangerous.

Among the closures are:

• State Highway 16/Sidney Baker Bridge at Louise Hays Park
• Francisco Lemos Bridge
• G Street Bridge
• Numerous low-water crossings throughout the area

A shelter remains open at Calvary Temple Church, located at 3000 TX-534 Loop in Kerrville, with space for approximately 500 people. Officials said about 14 people were staying there during a Thursday morning briefing.

Other shelters include the City West Church (3139 Junction Highway) and the Center Point ISD Gymnasium (215 China Street).

The city’s water treatment plant remains offline.

Officials said water pressure is being maintained through the groundwater system. A major water main break on Arcadia has been isolated, and officials expect significant damage to the wastewater system once floodwaters recede.

Extensive power outages continue across the community. All city parks remain closed due to flood damage.

QUICK WEATHER LINKS

• WATCH LIVE: Doppler Radar
• Hourly and 10-Day Forecast
• Download FREE KSAT Weather Authority App: Up-to-date forecast information and livestreams from trusted local meteorologists.
• KSAT Connect: Share your weather photos.

The interim ceasefire agreed to last month has collapsed and the region has endured days of back-and-forth attacks by the U.S. and Iran as they battle for control of the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian officials say U.S. strikes have killed more than 35 people and wounded over 300 others.

For the first time in this latest round of violence, strikes also reached into areas around Iran’s capital, Tehran, showing a widening set of targets for the Americans. The U.S. launched a second wave of strikes late Thursday, saying it was aiming to “further degrade” Iran's military capabilities.

When the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Iran on Feb. 28, Tehran effectively closed the strait to shipping traffic, a move that sent the price of oil soaring and gave Iran major leverage in negotiations.

Col. Ebrahim Zolfaghari, a spokesperson for the Iranian military’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, threatened that Iran could launch widespread attacks on “all the infrastructure in the region” if the U.S. acts on President Donald Trump 's repeated warnings that America could hit Iranian bridges and power plants.

“Under no circumstances and in no way will we allow America, as a foreign and extraregional country, to interfere in the Strait of Hormuz,” he added. “This is Iran’s invincible red line.”

Both the US and Iran launch attacks as blockade is reimposed

Iranian state media said the U.S. strikes Thursday hit around Tehran and Semnan province, home to Iran’s ballistic missile production and space program. It also reported strikes around the provinces of Hamedan, Hormozgan, Khuzestan, Lorestan, Markazi, and Sistan and Baluchestan, as well as on Iran’s Qeshm island, near the Strait of Hormuz.

An attack on Greater Tunb Island targeted Iranian defense and missile sites, U.S. Central Command said.

Greater Tunb Island is one of three small rocky islands that sit at the confluence of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz. The islands — seized in 1971 by Iran from what would become the United Arab Emirates — help it exert significant control over the strait.

The U.S. military also said it disabled a Curacao-flagged oil tanker as it sailed toward Iran’s main oil export terminal, firing a missile after the ship “ignored multiple warnings.”

Another American strike Wednesday targeted a barracks for Iran’s 388th Mechanized Infantry Brigade, which operates tanks and armored vehicles, in Sistan and Baluchestan province, Iranian state television reported. The report said seven were killed in the attack, including conscripts and career soldiers.

Iran retaliated Thursday with missile and drone attacks on Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait, authorities in those countries home to U.S. forces said. There was no immediate acknowledgment of damage or casualties from the attacks.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi condemned an overnight drone attack in Iraq’s semiautonomous northern Kurdish region. The drone, which authorities said had been intercepted, came during his trip to the U.S. in which he said Iraq would work to disarm non-state armed groups, including those backed by Iran.

A drone separately targeted a tanker in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Basra in southern Iraq on Thursday afternoon, the state-run INA news agency reported. No casualties were reported.

Trump says a peace deal is still possible

The latest round of fighting is focused on the Strait of Hormuz, as Iran attacks ships using a U.S.-controlled route through the vital waterway.

Week-to-week cargo shipments through the strait dropped by almost a quarter at the beginning of the month, according to Maritime data firm Lloyd’s List Intelligence -- and that was before the recent surge in tit-for-tat attacks.

Given the risks, some oil shippers are transiting the strait with their location devices turned off, but many are just staying put, Lloyd's said Thursday. A growing amount of the region’s energy is being shipped through pipelines, but not nearly enough to offset the decline in shipping through the strait.

The U.S. has threatened to reopen the strait by force, but experts say that would require a much bigger armada if not tens of thousands of ground troops.

The price for Brent crude oil, the international standard, traded above $85 a barrel on Thursday, more than 15% higher than the price before the war, but still well below the nearly $120 reached at the height of the conflict.

Rising prices pose a particular challenge to Trump and his Republican Party, which hopes to retain control of Congress in elections in November.

The U.S. reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports Wednesday.

“They don’t like what we’re doing, and they do want to settle. We’ll find out whether or not we settle with them, or we just finish it off,” Trump said Wednesday at the U.S. Army War College in Pennsylvania.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday said efforts were still underway to bring the U.S. and Tehran to the negotiating table but acknowledged that was becoming increasingly difficult.

Trump said on social media that Tehran made a goodwill gesture by releasing an American citizen wrongly detained in Iran since 2024. He didn’t release further details. Human rights lawyer Jared Genser released a statement identifying the detainee as his client Dena Karari, a U.S.-Iranian citizen who runs a nonprofit and was charged with espionage.

Iran did not immediately acknowledge the release, and her case was not publicly known, as sometimes happens with detentions in the Islamic Republic.

___

Associated Press writers Abby Sewell in Beirut and Mae Anderson in New York contributed to this report.

The twice-yearly changing of the clocks in the United States could be a thing of the past if legislation currently in Congress that calls for permanent daylight time makes it through. But even as annoying as some find the back-and-forth of the time shift in the spring and the fall, that doesn't necessarily mean sticking to one would go over well. America has tried it before, most recently in the 1970s, and it didn't last.

Now it's a new era, one full of people working at home who didn't before — and advances in sleep science that tell a more nuanced tale.

Could this time (shift) be the charm?

What's going on this time around?

The House of Representatives on Tuesday voted overwhelmingly to pass a bill that makes the shift to daylight saving time, when clocks are moved forward one hour, become permanent.

Currently, the shift is forward in spring and back to standard time in fall as a way to give people more daylight time in the summer evenings. But the semi-annual change has few fans - an AP-NORC poll last year found that only 12% of American adults were in favor of it, while almost half opposed it. Proponents of a single time include the American Medical Association and American Academy of Sleep Medicine — outfits to whom daily rhythms are deeply important.

President Donald Trump has indicated he's supportive, but it’s unclear whether the legislation will pass any time soon. It faces roadblocks in the Senate, where some Republicans are strongly opposed.

Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, a member of Republican leadership, has been outspoken against the change, saying last year that enacting it would "make winter a dark and dismal time for millions of Americans.”

What's the big deal with changing it?

While people may not like making the change, history shows they also don't like living with even less morning light in the winter months, when daylight hours are shorter than in summer.

In 1973, Congress passed a law instituting permanent daylight saving time for what was supposed to be a trial period from January 1974 to April 1975. It lasted until October, when it was repealed after public outcry. Among the concerns was worry that schoolchildren would have to start the school day without daylight. These days, some school starting times have started to shift later.

Kevin Birth, a professor of anthropology at Queens College whose research focuses on cultural concepts of time, was in elementary school in Syracuse, New York, at the time and remembers it vividly. “I had to get up for school and it was like it was midnight,” he said. “It was just pitch black and it remained pitch black into the school day.”

If the U.S. decides to try it again, he said, more has to change than just the clocks. The time zones across the country would need to be adapted as well. The current four zones wouldn't be adequate - they cover so much ground that sunrise comes at different times in western and eastern parts of each zone.

Republican South Dakota Sen. Mike Rounds is concerned about that. He said that it would be dark past 9:30 a.m. in some areas of his state. “You’d be sending kids to school in the dark,” he said.

__

Associated Press writer Mary Clare Jalonick in Washington, D.C., contributed to this report.

The personnel overhaul, which included replacing his prime minister, could become a test of Zelenskyy’s political authority as Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s full-scale invasion approaches 4½ years. Zelenskyy has remained in office under martial law because wartime elections are prohibited but has periodically reshuffled his government.

The moves threw Ukraine’s military leadership into an unwelcome crisis at a time when its actions against Russia are starting to bear fruit and as Moscow has unleashed unrelenting aerial attacks. Two people were killed and five others were wounded, including a child, when Russian missiles hit the capital of Kyiv overnight, Ukraine’s Emergency Service said.

In making the changes, Zelenskyy cited friction between outgoing Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov and Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander of Ukraine’s armed forces.

“I’m just showing that if the sides can’t resolve an issue, I will have to resolve it,” Zelenskyy said at a news conference.

The outgoing defense chief was seen as a modernizer

Fedorov, 35, is considered to be a vigorous modernizer whose technological expertise is credited in part with significantly improving Ukraine’s military performance in recent months against Russia’s bigger army. He is leaving the government after only six months in the post.

Fedorov appeared at a news conference in a dark T-shirt and jeans, and accused Syrskyi of blocking reforms needed because “the war has changed completely” due to new technology like drones.

During his time in office, he secured restrictions on Russian forces’ access to the Starlink satellite communications system, allowing Ukraine to better leverage its midrange strike capabilities giving Kyiv significant battlefield advantages.

Fedorov said he was willing to work with Syrskyi, “but we encountered a situation in which all the initiatives we proposed began to be blocked.”

“Under this arrangement (with Syrskyi as commander), I personally do not know how the war can be won,” he said.

On social media, Fedorov highlighted what he called his major achievements: redirecting funds earmarked for salaries into midrange strike capabilities, fiber-optic drones, reconnaissance systems and other technologies. He pointed to expanded drone procurement, Patriot missile defense contracts, successful ballistic missile tests and sweeping changes to military procurement.

But he acknowledged he was unable to complete the Defense Ministry’s organizational transformation “according to NATO standards and common sense,” and move all procurement to competitive tenders, and build a culture of accountability.

Syrskyi didn’t appear in public but in a Facebook post thanked Fedorov and said he hoped he would continue to serve Ukraine. "I wish him to continue to remain in the Ukrainian team,” Syrskyi said without elaborating.

Zelenskyy said he had asked Maj. Gen. Yevhen Khmara to perform the defense minister's duties in the meantime, according to a post on the Telegram messaging app. Since January, Khmara has been acting head of the state’s security service, known as the SBU. He had previously led the SBU’s elite Alpha special forces unit.

Zelenskyy described a difficult relationship between the Defense Ministry and the military at multiple levels, not simply a matter of personalities, and he said both sides share responsibility for the consequences.

“Together we win, and together we’re responsible for the things that cause confusion and public reaction,” he said, standing beside British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who was making his final foreign visit before leaving office next week.

Mostly young protesters support Fedorov

Syrskyi, 60, initially organized the defense of Kyiv in February 2022, and seven months later masterminded a successful counteroffensive in the Kharkiv region. Born in 1965, he attended the Moscow Higher Military Command School before serving in the Soviet Artillery Corps before the USSR's collapse in 1991.

The Ukrainian military has rallied under Fedorov, slowing Moscow’s front-line advance to a virtual standstill and striking refineries and other energy sites inside Russian territory, causing widespread fuel shortages, Western officials and analysts say. Zelenskyy’s decision to fire him despite that record has dismayed many people.

Before becoming defense minister in January, Fedorov headed Ukraine’s digital transformation policies. He won popularity by spearheading the rapid development and deployment of drone technology and introducing several successful e-government platforms.

As minister, he moved to combat corruption, an issue that carries particular weight with Ukrainians who have repeatedly protested graft. Fighting corruption meant working against the interests of groups that had long profited from programs within the ministry, he said in interviews. He also sought to overhaul weapons procurement to make it more transparent.

He had promised sweeping military reforms, saying it had faced about 200,000 desertions and draft-dodging by some 2 million people.

The mostly young protesters who took to the streets of Kyiv and other cities to support Fedorov made crude remarks about the current military commander, chanting, “Syrskyi, go away!” and “A European army for a European country!”

Kyiv resident Bohdan Huryak said he was “deeply outraged” by Fedorov’s exit.

“I’m not deeply invested in the internal political debates, but this is a person who shows results on the battlefield, we see results, we feel the fighting spirit and confidence in victory rising,” Huryak told The Associated Press. “And then, six months later, he is removed from office? Come on.”

Russian military correspondents and pro-Kremlin bloggers relished the controversy. Pro-Kremlin political analyst Sergei Markov described Fedorov’s comments as a “rebellion” against Zelenskyy.

The deputy commander of Ukraine’s air force, Col. Pavlo Yelizarov, quit over Fedorov’s dismissal, saying on social media it will weaken Ukraine’s air defenses and lead to more deaths from Russian attacks.

“I believe that the dismissal of Mykhailo Fedorov is a great evil for the country’s defense capability,” he wrote in his resignation letter on Facebook.

State energy company chief is new prime minister

Parliament overwhelmingly approved Serhii Koretskyi, the head of state energy company Naftogaz, as the country’s new prime minister.

In nominating Koretskyi, Zelenskyy cited his record in the energy sector and argued he was best prepared to guide Ukraine through another winter, when Russian attacks on the power grid intensify.

Unlike other senior government officials, the 48-year-old engineer did not rise through political parties, parliament or the civil service. He spent more than two decades managing fuel and food businesses before being picked to run some of Ukraine’s most troubled state-owned energy companies and gained a reputation as an effective crisis manager who could make them profitable.

Zelenskyy has faced protests before over his decisions. Large demonstrations broke out in July 2025 when he fast-tracked a law that would have curbed the independence of the country’s anti-corruption watchdogs.

The outcry threatened his leadership for the first time since Russia's invasion, and he swiftly reversed course and submitted legislation to restore the agencies' independence.

___

Dan Bashakov and Dmytro Zhyhinas contributed.

___

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Defending champion Tadej Pogacar avoided the crash and kept his significant overall lead over second-place Jonas Vingegaard after 12 stages.

It was Merlier’s third stage win on this year’s Tour and sixth of his career. Dutch rider Olav Kooij finished second and Jasper Philipsen of Belgium was third.

With riders fighting for position on the home straight, Colombian Fernando Gaviria went down after clipping the wheel of another cyclist and fell to his left, bringing Norwegian rider Soeren Waerenskjold — Wednesday's stage winner — down with him. Just behind them, four other riders had no room to swerve around them and flew over their handlebars.

None of the riders appeared seriously injured and Gaviria eventually crossed the line with the help of a teammate.

Later Thursday, the Caja Rural-Seguros RGA team said the 31-year-old Gaviria sustained a fractured left collarbone and had pulled out of the race.

“There was a lot of chaos and a mix of teams at the front of the peloton,” teammate Stefano Oldani said, describing the crash. "I saw him lying on the road next to two Lotto (team) riders and I realized straight away that he’d taken a nasty hit.”

Four-time Tour champion Pogacar remains 3 minutes, 36 seconds ahead of two-time champion Vingegaard and 4:06 ahead of Remco Evenepoel in third place.

Pogacar had extended his overall lead Tuesday after another trademark attack in the 10th stage.

Stage 12 was a mostly flat 179-kilometer (111-mile) route starting from the Magny-Cours track, which once hosted Formula 1 races, and ending in Chalon-sur-Saône in eastern France.

Frenchman Baptiste Veistroffer forged ahead on his own until he was caught by a group of 14 riders heading into the last 30 kilometers. They were caught by the hard-chasing peloton soon after, and just before the third of three minor climbs.

With teams looking to place their sprinters into the best position to attack it was a nervy approach to the finish line.

Philipsen's Alpecin-Premier Tech team put three riders at the front to help him but they attacked too soon, as they did in previous stages, and Philipsen is still looking for his first victory at this year's race.

Merlier said having his wife and young son at the race “gave me a lot of motivation.”

"Winning for them is special,” Merlier said. “I managed to find the opening, I had to stay calm and wait. It was a finale and a finish that suited me very well.”

Friday's 13th stage is the longest of this year's race at 206 kilometers and features a sharp Category 1 climb — the second-hardest category in the Tour — toward the end.

The race concludes with its traditional finish in Paris on July 26. ___

AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports

Trump’s fixation on his loss to Democrat Joe Biden six years ago and the long-debunked theories he’s circulated about it are something he still brings up regularly when discussing other subjects. But elevating the deeply political and conspiratorial topics to a presidential primetime address underscores the lengths to which Trump has used his second term to both blow past norms and fixate on old grievances.

Trump has offered only vague details about the address, scheduled for 9 p.m. When asked by a reporter on Tuesday if it would concern “election machines and integrity,” Trump said it would “concern that subject” and “we’ll have a couple of other things to say also.”

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said earlier Thursday that “President Trump will deliver a major address to the nation on protecting the integrity of our elections. And we encourage every American to tune in.”

She didn't offer many details, but said that what the president planned to say “will shock you if you have an honest eye listening to the president tonight” and will make the case that the U.S. will “need to make some adjustments moving forward” including a strict voter ID bill that he has been pushing.

Primetime presidential addresses are typically reserved for major milestones or nationally significant events.

Trump last did it in April to speak on the Iran war, a month after it started. He said then that the U.S. would accomplish its objectives “very shortly” and that “the hard part is done, so it should be easy.” The war, however, has dragged on and strikes between the U.S. and Iran have intensified this week.

Trump also delivered a politically charged primetime speech in December in which he sought to blame the challenging economic climate on Democrats.

It was unclear if TV networks were planning to air the Thursday speech or to what extent. Messages to ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News Channel and MS NOW asking about coverage plans weren't returned. The White House has also not answered questions about whether it will air live on the networks.

During the press briefing Thursday, Leavitt seemed to be still trying to persuade networks to carry the remarks live, saying, “I think that the mainstream media should air the president’s speech and allow the American people to draw their own conclusions from it.”

Leavitt said Trump may use his remarks to also address the economy and Iran, saying "We have had conversations about him addressing a range of topics, and that could very well be possible tonight.”

She didn't answer a question about whether Trump would accept the results of the 2026 election.

On Wednesday, Vice President JD Vance told reporters on Capitol Hill that “of course we’re gonna support the results of the midterm elections.”

Democrats warned that Trump was trying to revive false claims of past stolen elections in order to delegitimize the upcoming 2026 midterm elections, in which Trump’s Republican Party is facing headwinds.

“Tomorrow night, Trump is going to use a primetime address to stoke misleading claims about our elections in order to justify interfering in our midterms. It’s on all of us to follow the facts and not accept his constant stream of misdirections and lies,” Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner said in a statement on X.

“Trump is again trying to drum up baseless election conspiracies ahead of the November elections,” New Jersey Democratic Sen. Andy Kim said in a post on X. “Americans are tired of endless war, skyrocketing gas prices, and a president that isn’t looking out for them. Voters will make their voices heard, whether Trump wants them to or not.”

On Capitol Hill on Wednesday, Vice President JD Vance bristled when asked if he’d encourage Trump in his Thursday remarks to stay focused on November’s midterm elections rather than relitigate past elections. “'The unfounded claims,'” Vance said, repeating the reporter's language. "You’re basically assuming an answer in the very question that you ask.”

“The president is going to talk about a number of things tomorrow night. I’m obviously not going to get ahead of his remarks,” Vance said. “But we can talk about a number of the American people’s problems. We can solve a number of the American people’s problems.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters that he doesn’t know what Trump is going to say. “But," he said, "the only thing I can tell you is that we are focused on the 2026 election, at least I am, and I think most of my colleagues are.”

___

Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick and Will Weissert in Washington and Jocelyn Noveck in New York contributed to this report.

“This case was always about two courageous young girls who simply wanted the same opportunities as their peers to participate in school life,” their lawyer, Chris Erchull of GLAD Law, said in a statement Thursday. “Their willingness to stand up to extraordinary hostility made clear the human cost of laws that target transgender youth.”

The teenagers, Parker Tirrell and Iris Turmelle, took on Trump’s executive order last year, amending their 2024 complaint against New Hampshire's law on banning transgender girls from school sports. A federal judge had granted a court order allowing them to play as the case proceeded.

For Tirrell, it meant being able to keep playing on her high school girls’ soccer team. For Turmelle, it was having a chance to try out for different sports.

Both sides agreed to pause the case and wait for a ruling from the Supreme Court as it considered similar state laws barring transgender girls and women from playing on school and college athletic teams in Idaho and West Virginia. Last month, the court upheld the laws. It also said that barring transgender girls and women doesn’t run afoul of the federal law known as Title IX, which prohibits sex discrimination in education.

One teen and her family decided to move from New Hampshire

Turmelle and her family moved out of New Hampshire last summer following proposed legislation against transgender people. One measure signed into law by Republican Gov. Kelly Ayotte last year prohibits medical professionals from providing puberty blockers and hormone replacement therapy to new transgender patients under age 18.

“Though there may be a carve-out for people already receiving gender-affirming care, that is way too close a call for us to risk staying,” Turmelle's mother, Amy Manzelli, wrote in an op-ed piece at the time. “Other New Hampshire laws also seek to erase her.”

Most Republican-controlled states in the past five years have adopted laws or policies limiting gender-affirming care for transgender minors and limiting which school bathrooms transgender people can use, as well as sports restrictions. The Williams Institute at UCLA estimates that about 3% of youth ages 13 to 17 identify as transgender.

“The challenges with relocation are significant and burdensome — this includes having to find new employment, buying and selling homes, packing and moving possessions, integrating kids with a new school system, losing access to longstanding family and friends, and potential loss of income,” Corinne Goodwin, the executive director of Eastern PA Trans Equality Project in Pennsylvania, said in an email.

"But these families do so because they love their kids and know that supporting them with the care and opportunities they need is critical to their long-term success and happiness.”

The other teen gave up playing soccer at high school

Tirrell, 17, began her junior year last fall on the girls' junior varsity soccer team. Things were fine at first, and each time she scored a goal, she got a round of ice cream from her parents. But a few weeks into the season, she decided to stop playing.

“With all of the political stuff going on, soccer wasn't just about the game anymore,” her mother, Sara Tirrell, told The Associated Press in an interview.

It became more about preparing for the possibility of conflict.

“Were there any local Facebook groups where they were sort of agitating about potential protests and how do we prepare, and what are we walking into, and we never kind of knew,” she said. “We were on a lot of pins and needles, especially after the previous season."

She was referring to a controversy at an away game where two dads from an opposing team were banned from school grounds for wearing pink wristbands marked “XX” to represent female chromosomes. They sued the school district and a judge ruled against them. They have appealed their case.

Last fall, there was an increased presence of school administrators at the games and bus drivers pulled in closer to the field so the students weren’t in the parking lot, she said.

“Parker didn’t talk about it a lot, but I think she could see that stress for everybody — for her, for her teammates, for her coaches,” Sara Tirrell said. "She felt kind of bad about pulling them all into that circus again. And so she ultimately said, ‘This isn’t fun anymore and I don’t want to do it.’”

Parker’s father described the atmosphere as “palpable tension.”

Even playing on her own turf, “there would typically be a couple of police officers at the home games where there weren’t previously,” Zach Tirrell said.

In the past, Parker also played soccer in a recreation league and could still do so.

“But I think it all kind of still sort of weighs on her,” her mother said. "It's the same group of kids that she plays with who, honestly, have been very supportive and love to have her on the team and have expressed that to her many times over. But I think she still has that worry in her brain around, ‘What are other people going to say and do if I show up at a game?’”

Parker's parents hope she'll return to playing soccer some day. In the meantime, “she plans to be around and use her voice to continue standing up to discrimination,” her mother said. “In some ways she’s had to grow up a lot faster than some of her peers.”

___

Associated Press reporter Geoff Mulvihill in Haddonfield, New Jersey, contributed to this article.

___

This story has been corrected to show the name of a parent is Amy Manzelli, not Amy Manzetti.

The benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate rose to 6.55% from 6.49% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. One year ago, the average rate was 6.75%.

Higher mortgage rates can add hundreds of dollars a month in costs for borrowers, limiting homebuyers’ purchasing power at a time when affordability challenges continue to sideline many aspiring homeowners.

Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, from the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy decisions to bond market investors’ expectations for the economy and inflation. They generally follow the trajectory of the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing home loans.

Rates have been mostly rising this year as the war with Iran has driven crude oil prices sharply higher, stoking expectations of hotter inflation. That's pushed up long-term bond yields relative to where they were before the conflict began in late February, causing mortgage rates to trend higher.

The 10-year Treasury yield was 4.57% at midday Thursday on the bond market, up from 4.54% a week ago. It was just 3.97% in late February, before the war broke out.

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage is now the highest it's been since Aug. 28, when it was at 6.56%. As recently as late February, the average rate dropped slightly below 6% for the first time since late 2022.

Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, often sought by borrowers refinancing a home loan, also rose this week. That average rate increased to 5.93% from 5.82% last week. A year ago, it was at 5.92%, Freddie Mac said.

A report this week showing prices paid by consumers for gas, clothes and other goods cooled last month could help take pressure off the Federal Reserve, which is considering raising interest rates.

The central bank doesn’t set mortgage rates, but its decisions to raise or lower its short-term rate are watched closely by bond investors and can ultimately affect the yield on 10-year Treasurys.

That cooler inflation reading “is a step in the right direction, but until mortgage rates actually follow suit, buyers will keep feeling the pinch of stubbornly high borrowing costs even as other conditions improve,” said Hannah Jones, senior economist at Realtor.com.

While average long-term mortgage rates remain lower than they were at this time last year, their upward trajectory has weighed on home sales this year.

And the latest monthly tally of home purchase transactions that have yet to be finalized points to potentially more sluggish home sales this summer.

Pending U.S. home sales fell 5.4% in June from the previous months and were down 0.3% from June last year, the National Association of Realtors said Thursday. There’s usually a month or two lag between a contract signing and when the sale is finalized, which makes pending home sales a near-term bellwether for the housing market.

Data on mortgage applications also signal that the upward trend in mortgage rates has given some would-be homebuyers reason to pause.

Mortgage applications, which include loans to buy a home or refinance an existing mortgage, fell 2.7% last week from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. The pullback was driven mainly by a 7% drop in applications to buy a home.

The driver had told police that he had the self-driving software turned on, but a report from the National Transportation Safety Board on Wednesday concluded that he had actually overridden that feature when he pushed hard on the pedal. Moments later the Tesla Model 3 raced down a residential street in Katy, Texas, at highway speeds, slammed into a brick home and killed a 76-year-old woman standing in the front room.

The crash last month drew national attention because Tesla CEO Elon Musk is seeking to reassure the public its self-driving feature is safe as he prepares to turn hundreds of thousands of Teslas already on the road into fully automatic vehicles and begin selling two-seated Cybercabs missing steering wheels and pedals.

The crash came two months after officials at a separate federal agency, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, announced it was elevating a 2024 investigation of the self-driving feature to new “engineering analysis” level, raising the possibility of a recall of 3.2 million Tesla vehicles.

That NHTSA probe was triggered by crashes where the self-driving feature failed to alert drivers to take control in fog and other poor visibility conditions.

The agency opened an investigation last year into 58 incidents in which Teslas reportedly violated traffic safety laws while using self-driving technology, leading to more than a dozen crashes and fires and nearly two dozen injuries.

Separate from the National Transportation Safety Board, NHTSA is also looking into the Tesla house crash in Texas, one of 46 “special crash” investigations of Tesla's self-driving or driver-assistance technology in the past decade, according to the agency’s records. In more than a dozen of those crashes, at least one person — a driver, passenger or pedestrian — was killed.

Tesla had originally called its driver assistance software Full Self-Driving, or FSD, but auto experts and regulators complained it was misleading because drivers must always keep their eyes on the road and be ready to take over at any time.

The company has since changed the name to Full Self-Driving (Supervised).

Video of the Katy, Texas, accident shows the Tesla traveling at more than 70 mph (112.65 kilometers per hour), jumping a curb then tearing across a lawn before crushing through a brick wall of a home. A woman standing feet away, Martha Avila, was found amid piles of crumbling plaster, split beams and bits of furniture and rushed to a hospital but died.

Sales of Tesla cars still haven't recovered fully from boycotts last year over Musk's far-right political stands, but the stock is rising anyway as he has successfully shifted attention away from the sales figures. He says they matter less now that the company is on the cusp of major technological advances, such as turning Teslas into hands-free vehicles and having its Optimus robots take over for humans for tasks at home and work.

Tesla stock has risen 22% in the past year and is currently trading at 170 times expected annual earnings compared to 20 for the S&P 500.

For its second-quarter financial results out next week, financial analysts surveyed by FactSet expect earnings per share will barely budge — 32 cents versus 33 cents a year earlier — continuing a sixth quarter streak of flat or falling profits.

Both proposals have come at a time when security for the president is a top concern. The administration says the projects would be an improvement over temporary structures that have long been used for security, such as bicycle racks fashioned into barriers.

President Donald Trump has been the target of multiple assassination attempts, including two during the 2024 campaign and a third this past April as he attended a Washington dinner with White House journalists. Those concerns were heightened in May after U.S. Secret Service officers fatally shot a man who opened fire near a White House security checkpoint.

The original design for the White House Visitor Screening Facility had it being built underground near the southern end of Sherman Park, just southeast of the White House. But consultations with other entities led to it being moved to the western edge, away from utility infrastructure.

Commissioners granted initial approval for the revised design for the 33,000-square-foot (3,066-square-meter) facility, which will provide security screening for public tour participants, guests attending large events, staff and contractors going to the White House. The panel also had approved the previous design.

The administration says the permanent facility, which it wants open by July 2028, will replace a series of temporary tents that have been used for years, improve security on the White House complex and enhance the experience for visitors.

The U.S. Commission of Fine Arts also discussed options for a permanent fence around Lafayette Park to make it faster and easier for law enforcement to limit public access when authorities determine that is necessary. The park last had a permanent fence in the late 1800s.

The administration’s 79-page proposal for the 8-acre (3-hectare) park calls for fencing all the way around with larger gates at the north and south entrances. Options call for either including or excluding monuments located at each of the park’s four corners.

The nonprofit National Trust for Historic Preservation said the fence plan will be better than the "mishmash of bollards, strings of police tape, and zip-tied bike rack barriers” currently in use.

Some members of the public, whose written comments were read aloud at the meeting by the commission's secretary, raised concerns about fencing a park with a history as a place where throngs gather to protest or celebrate major events. They argued that a fence could hinder the people's constitutional rights to protest and assemble.

“When considering the current proposals for Lafayette Park, let’s first ask if fencing is the right approach?” Charles Birnbaum, president and CEO of The Cultural Landscape Foundation wrote in a letter to the commission. Birnbaum noted that the Washington Monument does not have a fence.

Lafayette Park has been closed and fenced in since January for renovations that included repairing dormant fountains the Republican president has talked about. He recently surveyed the work being done there.

“We’re really doing a job at Lafayette Park, which is really the entrance to the White House, and that’s going to be completed very shortly and it’ll be incredible,” he said in June.

The administration also wants similar fencing along Pennsylvania Avenue on the north side of the White House complex, from the Treasury Department building at 15th Street to the Eisenhower Executive Office Building at 17th Street.

The fine arts commission has oversight over the design of construction on federal land in Washington. Trump appointed all seven commissioners.

This focus comes even as studies show that there are very few reported cases of such incidents in the U.S., especially compared to historically higher levels of far-right violence.

With sweeping statements about the “alarming rise” of political violence by the left, Rubio and other U.S. officials painted a dark image of the future if the “communists and Marxists” perpetrating these supposed acts are not defeated. He urged officials in attendance — mostly from European and Latin American countries — to unite to address the issue, which he says has been a “blind spot” in counterterrorism doctrine.

“So many people in positions of power have repeatedly dismissed acts of violence and even terrorism as legitimate forms of political expression, so long as they served a left-wing cause," Rubio said in opening remarks. “A bomb planted by a neo-Nazi group was ‘a nefarious and murderous act of evil.’ It is, but a bomb planted by a Marxist revolutionary; well, that’s just merely a tragic excess of idealism.”

A report published last year by the Center for Strategic and International Studies found that left-wing terrorism attacks as of July 4, 2025, had surpassed those from the far right for the first time in more than 30 years. However, a closer look at the data reveals that the uptick reflects a very low starting level and a concurrent drop on the far right.

There was an average of 0.6 left-wing incidents annually from 1994 through 2000, compared with an average of 20.6 on the right, the report shows. From 2016 to 2024, there were an average of four per year on the left and 22.7 per year on the right. Those numbers had dropped dramatically on the right as of early July 2025, with only one incident. Meanwhile, there had been five from the left.

But the report’s authors note that right-wing terrorism could easily return to elevated levels and that it is important to fight terrorism on both sides of the political spectrum.

President Donald Trump and his allies have prioritized talking points against the far left ahead of the congressional elections this November. Trump has repeatedly stated that the Democratic Party’s ascendant left are communists who want to “completely destroy the traditional American way of life” and even engage in assassinations.

Vice President JD Vance has similarly called out communism as a political shift that is “something we haven’t seen in the U.S.” House Speaker Mike Johnson has decried “radical candidates” who are “self-described, self-identifying Marxists.”

For Rubio, his worldview on this issue has been largely shaped by his own history: he is the son of Cuban immigrants who arrived in Miami in May 1956, a few years before communist leader Fidel Castro rose to power in Havana. The former Florida senator said Thursday that it was that same government’s sprawling intelligence and ideological network that “helped to build the far left in our country and in our hemisphere.”

Stephen Miller, Trump’s deputy chief of staff and main architect of the administration's immigration policy, followed Rubio's remarks, aiming to drive home the immediacy of the perceived threats he saw to American institutions coming from the left, and what response is needed in return.

“If your civilization is your home, you must defend it with the same passion and force as if an enemy intruder is inside your own house where your family lives,” Miller said. “That is the level of dedication and urgency that is required.”

This ideological focus has repeatedly conflated democratic socialism — which often centers on securing universal healthcare, higher taxes on the wealthy and stricter corporate regulation — with communism, under which private ownership is largely eliminated.

It has only intensified in the last year, following the election of democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani to become New York City mayor and several of his proteges who won their New York City congressional primaries last month, beating out incumbents.

One of the ways the administration has started to target left-wing efforts is through sanctions. In November, the State Department designated four antifa or anti-fascist groups in Europe as foreign terrorist organizations. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in his remarks Thursday that targeting these groups and entities' financial networks is the best way to circumvent their efforts.

“We have spent decades developing the world’s most sophisticated financial counterterrorism capabilities, and now we are mobilizing some of the same tools that we have deployed against terrorists abroad to confront this emerging threat here at home,” he told the conference.

___

Amiri reported from New York and Kinnard from Columbia, South Carolina. Associated Press writer Melissa Goldin in New York contributed to this report.

But the money dried up after the Supreme Court struck down the biggest and boldest of Trump’s tariffs in February.

The question now is: Can the president’s trade team make good on its promise to replace the lost revenue?

A deadline is approaching rapidly.

After the Supreme Court setback, the president turned first to Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 to impose 10% tariffs globally. But Section 122 only authorizes tariffs for 150 days. Trump’s expire on July 24. Congress would have to extend those tariffs — something lawmakers are unlikely to do as the Nov. 3 midterm elections approach amid voter discontent over the high cost of living.

But the administration has more durable options: Section 301 of the same 1974 trade law permits the president to impose tariffs and other sanctions against countries found to engage in “unjustifiable,” “unreasonable” or “discriminatory” trade practices. Trump used Section 301 to impose big tariffs on China in his first term and is rolling them out again — as recently as late Wednesday when he announced 25% tariffs on some Brazilian imports, charging the world’s 11th-biggest economy with a host of unfair trade practices.

Trade attorneys and analysts are confident the tariff-happy Trump administration will manage to beat the clock and swap out Section 122 tariffs with bigger Section 301 tariffs by the July 24 deadline. “They’re going to raise the tariff wall again,’’ said trade lawyer Ryan Majerus, a partner at King & Spalding and a trade official in Trump's first administration and in President Joe Biden's.

Trump last year tested – and exceeded – the limits of his authority to impose import taxes, a power the U.S. Constitution gives Congress. He invoked the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to slap big tariffs on most of the world’s countries.

He justified the levies, which marked a stunning reversal of decades of U.S. policy in favor of lower tariffs and freer trade, by labeling America’s longstanding trade deficits a national emergency.

The Supreme Court didn’t buy it, ruling in February that the president couldn’t use the emergency powers law to impose tariffs at all. The legal defeat meant the administration had to send refunds to importers that had paid the levies.

As a result, tariffs have at least temporarily gone from a windfall to a drain on the Treasury.

Revenue from import taxes peaked at more than $31.4 billion last October. Then, after the Supreme Court ruling, it started dwindling – to $22 billion in both March and April. As refund checks went out faster than revenue from the Section 122 and other tariffs came in, the number turned negative: A small ($42 million) shortfall in May was followed by a whopping $25.6 billion loss in June.

Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent have vowed to use other legal authorities to recoup the lost income.

Enter Section 301, which gives the president power to impose – and adjust – tariffs in response to other countries’ trade practices. But the administration must first check procedural boxes – collecting comments and holding hearings. There are no limits on Section 301 tariffs. They expire after four years but can be renewed.

So the president has flexibility in how he uses the Section 301 tariffs. Trump can still change them — after clearing procedural hurdles — but he can’t impose or move them up or down on a whim as he often did with the IEEPA tariffs. Uncertainty over Trump's tariff policy has vexed businesses, leaving them hesitant to make investments and decisions because they don't know what the trade rules are going to be.

A switch to rule-bound 301 tariffs would mean "there’s less uncertainty but not no uncertainty,’’ said Sarah Bianchi, a former U.S. trade official who is now chief strategist of international political affairs at the investment research firm Evercore ISI.

The Trump administration has turned to two big Section 301 investigations in its campaign to replace lost tariff revenue. One accuses 60 countries, accounting for 99% of U.S. imports, of failing to do enough to crack down on imports created by forced labor. The other is investigating whether 16 U.S. trading partners — including China, the European Union and Japan — are overproducing goods, driving down worldwide prices and putting American manufacturers at a disadvantage.

The administration has already decided what it wants to do about the forced labor issue. Invoking Section 301 last month, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer proposed tariffs — 10% on 16 countries and 12.5% on 44 — that are the same or slightly higher than the 10% Section 122 levies they would replace. But Greer's office is still receiving public comments on the proposed tariffs and has not imposed them yet.

Nathaniel Halvorson, a partner at the Baker McKenzie law firm and a former U.S. trade official, expects Greer’s office will manage to get the forced-labor levies in place in time so that there won’t be much, if any, “daylight’’ between them and the expiring Section 122 tariffs. “Really, they’re operating about as fast as legally possible,’’ he said.

The administration has not yet completed the other Section 301 investigation into alleged overproduction by 16 countries. Trade attorney Majerus expects the administration to propose more big tariffs in that case, likely in a month or two. He suspects they will be timed to take effect only after the midterm elections “for obvious reasons.’’

Trump, who has proudly called himself “Tariff Man,’’ has made it clear that he is seeking to bring back the big, worldwide import taxes he’d imposed in 2025. So the new 301 investigations look like a pretext to do that and might be vulnerable in court, Bianchi said.

“Section 301s have been pretty legally durable,” she said. “But no one has tried to use it to basically put in place universal tariffs. I think there will be legal challenges.’’

Sungjae Im and Dan Brown led the way at 4-under 66, the lowest score Royal Birkdale offered even in a mild wind, which strengthened and switched late in the afternoon as Rory McIlroy and others were just getting started.

Defending champion Scottie Scheffler had few complaints after a 68, even after four birdies in his opening six holes and no birdies the rest of the way. He had a pair of soft bogeys and played the two par 5s on the back nine in 1 over.

“If I continue to strike the ball the way I did today and just keep giving myself looks, that’s part of it,” Scheffler said. “Golf is played over 72 holes, and I definitely liked what I saw today.”

As for DeChambeau's strategy? Part of it might have been declining to speak to the media, which he did again Thursday and has at the majors this year during competition rounds. The two-time U.S. Open champion has missed the cut in all three majors.

Strategy became a talking point when three-time British Open champion Nick Faldo told the Sky Sports Golf Podcast this week, “DeChambeau has zero clue of strategy. He said last year, ‘I’m going to go out and attack the links’. Well, I’ve never attacked a links. You thread it, don’t you? You feed it down the fairway. ... You don't think, ‘Oh, I’ll just blast it down there.'"

DeChambeau twice blasted it over the trouble and close to the green at the par-4 second and the par-4 10th, the latter a blind shot. He made birdie on both. And while Jon Rahm was among those who said going long can lead to trouble at some point, the only two shots DeChambeau dropped came from his putting (the par-5 14th) and chipping (the par-4 18th).

He was tied for the lead until going from wispy, yellow rough over the back of the 18th, chipped weakly to 8 feet and missed the putt. He missed three birdie chances from around 10 feet or under, one of them on redesigned, 321-yard fifth hole, when his drive settled on a hump behind the green.

DeChambeau agreed to take a few questions from the R&A and said, “I feel like I did a really good job today of being incredibly strategic and focused super hard on placing it in the right places. Besides 18, I placed the ball in some good areas. I just need to hit more fairways. Other than that, I feel like my strategy was nice today.”

Brown ran off three straight birdies around the turn and found himself atop the leaderboard, just as he did at Royal Troon two years ago after the first round. That year, he was in the penultimate group with hardly anyone watching. This time he was out early with Im, who had four birdies on the back nine as they matched 66s.

Robert MacIntyre and Francesco Molinari, the Open champion from Carnoustie in 2018, were part of the large group of players at 67. That included Ryan Gerard in his Open debut, M.J. Daffue of South Africa and Alex Smalley, the only player to reach 5 under at any point.

Smalley, who took a two-shot lead into the final round at the PGA Championship, was leading until his drive on the 18th was fading with the wind and then the luck of links golf took over. One wild bounce sent it further right and out-of-bounds. He finished with a double bogey for a 67.

“Got up to where the ball was supposed to be and was told it hit a spectator fence and kicked another 15 yards right out-of-bounds. All three of us in our group actually hit it over there, and mine just got an unlucky break,” Smalley said. "Poor tee shot, poor break. Sometimes that's how it goes."

Scheffler played in the group with DeChambeau and they traded birdies early. For six holes, the world's No. 1 player had total control of his shots and looked as though he couldn't miss. He got to 4 under when he gave a leg kick as his 40-foot birdie putt dropped on No. 6.

But then he missed the seventh green — 139 yards, downhill — to the left between a pair of bunkers, and his pitch was so strong it flirted with going in a bunker on the other side. He missed a 5-foot birdie chance on the 11th, and then made a mess of the par-5 17th.

Scheffler missed his approach well to the right and was so surprised to see it buried in deep grass he felt it might have been embedded from someone stepping on it. But no one stepped forward, and he was denied a free drop. He yanked that across the fairway to more deep grass, then hit a splendid chip to 4 feet, only to miss the par putt.

“It was underneath the wire and it was just ... I’m hoping somebody stepped on it, but nobody would fess up. Apparently nobody did,” Scheffler said. "I was just shocked at how deep the ball was in that grass. I considered actually taking an unplayable.

“Sometime you hit it over there and you get a clean lie and you’re able to give yourself a look, and then other times like today, you pay a pretty severe price,” he said. “But I guess don’t hit it offline.”

___

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

The latest commitment appears to bring the company’s total pledges for investment in U.S. chipmaking to $265 billion. The company also raised its annual revenue forecast after booking record high profits thanks to runaway demand from the boom in artificial intelligence.

The world's largest contract chip manufacturing and one of the world’s most valuable companies, TSMC is seen as a barometer for the global chip industry and for AI at a time when worries about a potential AI bubble have been buffeting financial markets.

As AI-related demand continues to jump and needs for computing power from data centers surge, TSMC has been expanding chip fabrication plants in the U.S., Japan and Taiwan. It said it is increasing its annual capital expenditure budget for this year to $60 billion-$64 billion, up from an earlier estimate of $52 billion-$56 billion.

TSMC, or Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., is a key supplier to Nvidia and Apple. It had previously already committed $165 billion in the U.S. for building plants in Arizona, with six fabrication facilities planned.

The extra $100 billion in investments are to “support the strong multiyear demand from our leading U.S. customers,” C.C. Wei, chairman and CEO of TSMC, said during the company's quarterly earnings conference Thursday. An additional four fabrication plants in Arizona will likely be built with the new investments, TSMC said. They will focus on making some of the most advanced chips that are 2-nanometer and below.

“We believe this investment will help to further foster the development of the U.S. semiconductor ecosystem, strengthen the supply chain and support an increasing number of high-tech, high-paying jobs in the United States,” he said.

Earlier this year, U.S. President Donald Trump's administration and Taiwan reached an agreement that cut U.S. tariffs on Taiwanese goods, as Taiwan promised around $250 billion of new investments in the United States' tech sector, including in semiconductors. That included spending by TSMC.

AI-related demand globally continues to be “extremely robust,” Wei said, as the “AI megatrend continues to drive the need for more and more computation.”

“I believe from this day on, all the way to probably 2029, 2030, the demand is very strong,” he said.

TSMC on Thursday reported a record 706.6 billion new Taiwan dollars ($22 billion) in net profit for the April-June quarter, up 77% from a year earlier and better than what analysts had expected. Revenue was up 36% year-on-year during the quarter, to 1.27 trillion new Taiwan dollars ($39 billion).

Wei said TSMC now expects its annual 2026 revenue growth to be slightly above 40% year-on-year, up from its previous forecast of over 30%.

TSMC’s ramped up investment plans are “essential to support (its) long-term growth” and to keep up with demand, said William Li, a senior analyst in semiconductors at Counterpoint Research.

Dozens of family members of the victims packed the courtroom as Chief Judge Paolo Lepri read the verdicts against 57 defendants, including former executives and officials. Many relatives broke down in tears as the sentences were read.

A representative for the families of the victims, Egle Possetti, expressed satisfaction with the verdicts, saying they showed “there were serious failures in management, and 43 people paid with their lives.”

The former chief executive of highway operator Autostrade per l'Italia, Giovanni Castellucci, was sentenced to 12 years in prison, the longest sentence handed down after four hours of deliberation in the trial that spanned four years.

Castellucci’s lawyers said they would appeal, noting in a statement that as CEO, their client had relied on Italy’s leading engineers and suggesting that he had been scapegoated.

“The suffering caused by the Genoa tragedy is immense and deserves respect. But the gravity of the event requires justice to remain based on individual responsibility, not the search for a scapegoat,” they said in a statement.

Also convicted were Autostrade’s former head of maintenance, Michele Donferri Mitelli, who was sentenced to 11 years in prison. The former CEO of the SPEA engineering company, Antonino Galatà, received five years and six months.

The court says the bridge collapse was foreseeable

The most serious charges included negligence resulting in the collapse, aggravated manslaughter and vehicular homicide stemming from failures to properly monitor and maintain the bridge, which was part of a main route linking northern Italy with the French Riviera.

The court will issue its full reasoning within six months. But in a summary accompanying the verdict, it said the convictions were based on findings that identified a system of defects affecting one of the bridge’s stay cables and concluded that the collapse was “foreseeable and preventable.”

The court said that some defendants from the highway concession and its engineering subsidiary failed to carry out the requiring monitoring of the bridge, relying in part on a 1967 Ministry of Public Works circular, while some transport ministry had officials had failed to exercise proper oversight of Autostrade's safety monitoring.

In all, 32 people were convicted and handed sentences ranging from 1 year and 11 months to 12 years. The rest were either found not guilty, or lesser charges had expired under the statute of limitations.

Lawyer Raffaele Caruso expressed satisfaction that court had held people resonsible at the three main players: the highway concession, its engineering subsidiary and the transport ministry.

“What emerges is that this bridge did not collapse by chance — this bridge collapsed due to specific, precise, individualized, personalized, and specifically identified responsibilities," Caruso told a press conference. “There has been much talk about the construction defect ... But this does not rule out the existence of liability.”

Warning signs of defect were ignored

Shortly before noon on Aug. 14, 2018, a 200-meter (650-foot) section of Genoa’s Morandi highway bridge gave way during a rainstorm, sending dozens of vehicles plunging to the ground.

Images of the collapsed bridge were seen around the world and shocked Italians on one of Italy’s busiest travel days, as millions headed out for the traditional Aug. 15 Ferragosto holiday that marks the peak summer vacation season.

Prosecutors argued that years of maintenance neglect led to the collapse, and demanded combined sentences totaling nearly 400 years for all of the defendants. The defendants denied wrongdoing and say the fault was caused by a construction defect.

Considered an engineering marvel when it opened in 1967, the Morandi featured three A-shaped concrete pylons and concrete-encased stay cables.

Caruso said that the trial showed that warning signs about defects in the pylon that collapsed had existed for decades. He cited maintenance on the other two starting in 1993 that was never extended to the third.

“From 1993 onward, the problem was known. We had three identical pylons. Two had already shown the same defect, and no one seriously asked whether the third one had it as well,” Caruso said.

Autostrade had reached a deal to avoid trial

The current Autostrade chief executive, Arrigo Giana, issued a public apology Thursday in an open letter published in major Italian dailies.

“The actions and decisions of some people left indelible scars,’’ said Giana, who joined Autostrade as CEO last year. “Offering today the apology that was not made then is, for us, a moral imperative that goes beyond establishing legal responsibility and the course of justice toward the truth.”

Autostrade and its subsidiary reached a deal on corporate liability earlier in the proceedings, paying roughly 30 million euros ($34 million) in financial penalties. The agreement spared the companies from a trial as corporate defendants and potentially much harsher sanctions, including exclusion from public contracts.

The settlements were reached after the companies adopted new compliance procedures aimed at preventing similar accidents, and after victims were compensated.

A new bridge designed by Genoa-born Italian architect Renzo Piano opened in 2020, spanning a memorial to the victims of the Morandi Bridge collapse.

___

Barry reported from Milan.

___

This story corrects the number of convictions to 32.

The shooting happened around 2:25 a.m. in the 800 block of Hammond Avenue, which is located near Rigsby Avenue.

A probationary officer and a field training officer noticed a “suspicious” man on a bicycle and attempted to stop him. However, Salame said the man fled.

The officers chased the man and notified additional officers in the area, who responded to assist with the investigation.

The man was eventually found in front of a home on Hammond Avenue. As the officers “contacted” him, SAPD said the man pulled out a handgun and pointed it in the direction of the officers.

Four of the five officers who responded fired shots at the man, Salame said. The man was pronounced dead at the scene, despite officers’ attempts to save his life.

The Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office will determine the man’s identity, as well as his cause and manner of death.

The officers who shot the man range from less than one year to 20 years with the San Antonio Police Department.

SAPD said its investigation remains ongoing.

At the moment, Flash Flood Emergencies are in effect for Kerr and Uvalde counties.

>> Flash Flood Emergencies and heavy rain targeting saturated areas

River levels are rising quickly as heavy rainfall continues to move over Hunt, Ingram and Kerrville.

The Guadalupe River gauge at Hunt has risen to more than 20 feet as of 4 a.m. Thursday. This means the river is currently in the moderate flood stage.

The Guadalupe River gauge at Kerrville has risen to nearly 14 feet as of 4 a.m. Thursday and is forecasted to eventually reach a height of 20 feet in the major flood stage.

Watch KSAT’s breaking news coverage below. You can also watch live on KSAT Plus.

More weather coverage on KSAT:

• Officials urge caution in Boerne as additional flooding possible
• Evacuations and rescues underway in Kerr County, sources say; Hunt area cut off by floodwaters

BOCA CHICA BEACH — As a child, Christopher Basaldu, a lifelong resident of Brownsville, would take family trips to Boca Chica beach, a quiet stretch of shore 30 miles east of Brownsville. The small residential community surrounding it, known as Boca Chica Village, was quiet with little development.

The area has since been incorporated as the city of Starbase. The quiet village is now a bustling, high-end, gated residential community that predominantly houses employees of SpaceX, Elon Musk’s aerospace company that literally put the community on the map.

Long gone are the quiet drives to the beach, as the road that leads to it is now cluttered with construction and cranes.

“Part of being able to go out to Boca Chica Beach was to get away from construction. It was to be closer to nature,” said Basaldu, who also co-founded the South Texas Environmental Justice Network. “That’s becoming less and less possible.”

After SpaceX planted its stake in the ground more than 10 years ago, Brownsville has once again landed a major economic coup with Saronic Technologies, an Austin-based manufacturer of artificial intelligence-powered drone vessels, adding defense technology to the city’s portfolio.

On Thursday, Saronic announced the company would build its naval shipyard at the Port of Brownsville, a $3.2 billion investment in the region.

City and economic leaders have welcomed new companies like Saronic with open arms, hoping they are the answer to the region’s poverty woes. But critics like Basaldu worry that inviting high-tech businesses will only benefit the wealthy and have consequences, such as environmental damage and socioeconomic inequity.

Despite SpaceX boosting the average weekly wage in the Brownsville-Harlingen metro area by about 53% — outpacing the state’s increase of 45% — it still remains one of the most disadvantaged areas in the U.S. The city’s poverty rate hovers around 24%, which is more than double the national poverty rate.

Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño wants outside investors to see beyond Brownsville’s reputation as an impoverished city and more as an area of innovation. SpaceX kickstarted that journey, Treviño said, and the region is emerging as the state’s newest tech hub.

“I’ve always been a firm believer … that we were nowhere near scratching the surface of what we were capable of,” Treviño said.

“They’re not taking our concerns seriously.”

In June, Cameron County officials approved a $211 million tax break deal for Saronic Technologies as an incentive to bring the company’s shipyard, named Port Alpha, to Brownsville.

The deal comes with the expectation that Saronic will generate $160 billion in regional economic impact for Cameron County and create 10,000 jobs over 10 years.

Construction on Port Alpha is slated to begin this year and operations to begin in 2028. It will be located on 835 acres at the Port of Brownsville, with the potential to expand to nearly 4,400 acres.

Treviño said reducing poverty in the region was a key reason officials approved the tax break for Saronic.

“I don’t want our families struggling any longer, having both parents work and barely able to pay their bills,” Treviño said. “We want them making as much money as they can, so that the kids have more opportunities, which will obviously enhance the entire community.”

Critics argue that drawing large corporations like Saronic is changing the region’s environmental landscape. Bekah Hinojosa, co-founder of the South Texas Environmental Justice Network, urged county leaders to not approve tax incentives for Saronic, saying the company has not adequately addressed environmental concerns.

Hinojosa and her group have consistently pushed back against SpaceX rocket launches and the construction of facilities to export liquefied natural gas, also known as LNG terminals. They have filed lawsuits and held protests that have centered on the effects that these companies have on pollution, the displacement of residents and the encroachment of land that serve as wildlife habitats.

SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“They were not taking our concerns seriously at all,” Hinojosa said about the county commissioners.

The fight will continue, she said.

“We’ve been speaking out about the risks and dangers of LNG for more than 10 years,” Hinojosa said. “We’ve had some victories, and we’ll continue to speak out and do everything we can.”

Some residents spoke out against tax incentives for Saronic on moral grounds, given the company’s involvement in creating military machines. When they addressed the county commissioners over the course of two meetings, they objected to allowing Brownsville to become host to the development of warships. “We need jobs that actually benefit the community, not jobs that contribute to war,” said Desto Huerta, a Brownsville resident, at a county commissioners meeting June 16.

Saronic could not be reached for comment as of publication, but in a news release, the company said Port Alpha represented a commitment to the country’s maritime future.

“Built from the ground up to deliver ships at a speed and scale not seen since World War II, this investment is about more than constructing a shipyard,” said Dino Mavrookas, CEO of Saronic. “It is about rebuilding the industrial capacity, workforce, and manufacturing advantage required

to ensure American maritime leadership for decades to come. The state of Texas and city of Brownsville give us the foundation to turn that vision into reality.”

Treviño, however, said many communities across the U.S. have benefited from the U.S. military’s investment in defense or national security.

“Does anybody think that San Antonio is a bad community? They don’t, right? And yet, the military helped make and build San Antonio,” Treviño said, referring to San Antonio’s five military bases.

Others argued that inviting companies like SpaceX and Saronic to the region will not provide the economic relief to Brownsville that officials say they will.

Etienne Rosas, a researcher and former congressional candidate who identifies as a Democratic Socialist, said the relationship between a community like Brownsville and big corporations like SpaceX is a toxic one.

“It’s sort of like dating a narcissist,” Rosas said.

Large companies may arrive with promises of community investment and good-paying jobs, but once they’re established, Rosas said, they prioritize their own fiscal growth over the community’s benefit.

“They just continue expanding their footprint,” he said. “And little by little, that’s how you get stagnant wages, which has happened throughout the country. That’s how you get a concentration of power that disallows you from being represented in your government.”

Instead of trying to court corporations, Rosas suggests city leaders invest in social programs that build a healthy working class to fill jobs in education, healthcare and renewable energy.

“The only constraint that we have is not of resources. It’s of political integrity and of political will,” Rosas said.

Preparing the workforce

Jason Medina was frustrated that the Rio Grande Valley kept losing workers to companies north of the region.

In 2023, he and his business partner, Marlene Martinez, opened STX Metal Trades, a trade school that trains workers in pipefitting. The job consists of assembling and installing piping systems that carry water, chemicals or gases.

It’s a dangerous and demanding profession, but pipe fitters are in high demand and continue to be needed for LNG and SpaceX projects.

“We knew that there wasn’t going to be enough pipefitters to support them. We knew that these projects were not here yet, but they were on the way, and we had to jump in front of this and do what we can,” Medina said.

STX partners with a halfway house in Brownsville to train workers and give them a second chance at a career.

“Some of our best, our most amazing success stories have come from the halfway houses,” Medina said. “We’re helping change lives one at a time.”

When he hears that a company like Saronic Technologies is interested in building its shipyard in Brownsville, Medina is excited about the opportunity to change more lives.

That said, he understands the drawbacks.

Medina said the criticisms like those expressed by Hinojosa are fair. He enjoys the wildlife and spending time on the beach, and is aware of the impact these companies could have on both. However, he believes there is a middle ground and said he knows these companies place a lot of effort into minimizing their footprint.

“We need these jobs. Brownsville has forever been labeled as the poorest city in the country, year after year,” Medina said. “Jobs like this are going to change that.”

In 2024, Brownsville’s median household income was $52,130, compared to the national median household income of $78,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

It also lags behind the country on education with more than 29% of people over 25 never graduating from high school, the fourth in the country. As of 2024, the number of people in Texas without a high school diploma was 13%.

But because of SpaceX and the LNG projects, Brownsville is known for something other than being among the poorest cities in the country, said Gilberto Salinas, president and CEO of the Greater Brownsville Economic Development Corporation.

When economic development officials meet with leaders of Fortune 500 companies, the conversations begin with Brownsville’s projects rather than the community’s poverty.

Landing these projects has become part of the economic development corporation’s formula for ensuring that Brownsville is successful in opportunity and job creation for locals, Salinas said.

He remembers all too well growing up in the Valley in the 1980s and how difficult it was to find job opportunities.

“I refuse for my community to go back to those days,” Salinas said.

Reporting in the Rio Grande Valley is supported in part by the Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc.

The Memorandum of Understanding was supposed to halt all military operations and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for global oil and gas. It also set the stage for further negotiations intended to lead to a permanent peace deal and an agreement on Iran's nuclear program within 60 days.

Here's a look at some of the main clauses of the agreement and the situation on the ground.

The fighting has resumed

THE DEAL: The United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran and their allies in the current war by signing this MOU declare the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon, and undertake from now on not to initiate any war or any military operation against each other and to refrain from the threat or use of force against each other and ensuring the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Lebanon.

THE CURRENT SITUATION: The U.S. has launched days of airstrikes on Iran in response to its attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has fired back at Arab countries hosting American troops. A ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon’s Iran-backed Hezbollah reached shortly after the Iran agreement has largely held despite renewed hostilities elsewhere in the region.

The Strait of Hormuz is largely closed

THE DEAL: Upon the signing of this MOU, the Islamic Republic of Iran will make arrangements using its best efforts for the safe passage of commercial vessels with no charge for 60 days only from the Persian Gulf to the Sea of Oman and vice versa. The traffic of commercial vessels will immediately start and, considering the needs for removing the technical and military obstacles and demining by the Islamic Republic of Iran, will be instated within 30 days. The Islamic Republic of Iran will conduct dialogue with the Sultanate of Oman to define the future administration and maritime services in the Strait of Hormuz in discussion with other Persian Gulf littoral states in line with the applicable international law and the sovereign rights of coastal states of the Strait of Hormuz.

THE CURRENT SITUATION: This clause seems to have been the undoing of the deal. Iran says it gives it the right to manage traffic through the strait and potentially charge tolls after 60 days. The U.S. and others dispute that, saying the strait should be open to all without fees, as it was before the war. The U.S. has set up an alternative route along Oman's coast and outside of Iran's control. Iran's attacks on ships using that route triggered the renewed hostilities. Traffic through the strait rose after the deal was signed but remained far short of prewar levels and has plummeted in recent days as fighting has escalated.

The U.S. has reimposed its blockade

THE DEAL: Immediately upon the signing of this MOU, the United States of America will begin the removal of its naval blockade and any disturbances or impediments against the Islamic Republic of Iran and will fully end the naval blockade within 30 days. During this period, the traffic of vessels will be in proportion to the numbers of prewar traffic being restored by the Islamic Republic of Iran. The United States of America further undertakes to remove its forces from the proximity of the Islamic Republic of Iran within 30 days after the final deal.

THE CURRENT SITUATION: The U.S. this week restored its blockade on Iranian ports, citing Iran's attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz. On Thursday, U.S. forces opened fire on a ship they said was trying to break the blockade.

Sanctions on Iranian oil exports have been restored

THE DEAL: The United States of America undertakes that immediately upon the signing of this MOU and until the termination of sanctions the U.S. Department of Treasury will issue waivers for the export of Iranian crude oil, petroleum products and derivatives and all associated services including banking transactions, insurances, transportation, etc.

THE CURRENT SITUATION: The U.S. issued the waivers but then revoked them after Iran's attacks on shipping.

There's been no public sign of progress toward a final deal

THE DEAL: The United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran commit to negotiating and achieving the final deal in maximum 60 days extendable with mutual consent … After signing this MOU and subject to the beginning of the implementation of paragraphs 1, 4, 5, 10 and 11 of this MOU, and the continuing implementation of these measures, the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran will start negotiations regarding the final deal exclusively on the other paragraphs.

THE CURRENT SITUATION: Negotiations were apparently paused during last week's funeral for Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the opening U.S. and Israeli strikes. It's unclear if they have resumed, or if any progress has been made. The 60-day time frame suggests a mid-August deadline.

The nuclear dispute still seems as intractable as ever

THE DEAL: The Islamic Republic of Iran reaffirms that it shall not procure or develop nuclear weapons. United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran have agreed to resolve the disposition of stockpile enriched material pursuant to a mechanism that will be mutually agreed upon in accordance with the schedule mentioned in Paragraph 7 with the minimum methodology to be downblending on site under the supervision of the IAEA. The two parties also agreed to discuss the issue of enrichment and other mutually agreed matters related to the Islamic Republic of Iran’s nuclear needs, based on a satisfactory framework being agreed upon in the final deal. The final deal will confirm the provisions of this paragraph.

THE CURRENT SITUATION: It's unclear if any progress has been made toward the highly ambitious goal of resolving the nuclear issue in 60 days. Iran has not publicly made any concessions while reiterating its longstanding position that its program is peaceful. It has refused to allow International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors to visit bombed nuclear sites where its highly enriched uranium is believed to have been buried.

Other clauses also appear to be in limbo

The interim deal called for a $300 billion reconstruction fund for Iran as part of the final agreement, but it's still unclear where that money would come from. The U.S. pledged to lift all sanctions as part of the final accord, but U.S. officials have always said that is linked to progress on nuclear and other issues.

They are the Juárez Cartel, on the border with Texas, and Los Viagras, a criminal group from the western state of Michoacán. The Federal Register, the U.S. government's gazette, published the designation on Thursday.

They joined six other Mexican criminal organizations that the U.S. considers terrorist groups, including the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. Gangs in other Latin American countries, including Venezuela, Brazil, Ecuador and El Salvador, also have been designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the Trump administration.

President Donald Trump began to extend the terrorist label to Latin American cartels in February 2025 to allow U.S. authorities to take more aggressive action against them or against anyone who the U.S. sees as aiding the groups.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that both criminal groups either have committed terrorist acts or pose a serious risk of committing acts that threaten the security of U.S. nationals or the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the United States.

The measure represents a further increase in pressure on Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration following the indictment of 10 current and former officials from the state of Sinaloa for alleged ties to the Sinaloa Cartel, as well as the controversies about U.S. operations in Mexico.

Higher pressure on the Texas border

Juarez Cartel is one of Mexico’s oldest drug trafficking organizations, which for decades has controlled a key crossing point in the central part of the Mexico-U.S. border: Ciudad Juárez, across from El Paso, Texas.

Both its founder, Amado Carrillo Fuentes — known as “El Señor de los Cielos” for smuggling massive drug shipments by light aircraft in the 1990s — and the brothers and sons who succeeded him, turned the trafficking of tons of drugs into a multimillion-dollar business. Despite the arrests of many of its leaders, the cartel and its allied gangs maintained control of a vast infrastructure for smuggling illegal shipments into the U.S..

According to Mexican analyst David Saucedo, the designation is key to enabling the United States to take more decisive action along the border, where two other groups both located at the eastern end of the border with Texas — the Gulf Cartel and the Northeast Cartel — were declared terrorist organizations in February 2025.

The US again targets Michoacan

Los Viagras is a local cartel in the western state of Michoacan, which is already home to two other criminal groups designated as terrorist organizations: Cárteles Unidos and La Nueva Familia Michoacana.

Los Viagras emerged following the 2013–2014 armed uprising led by farmers who succeeded in driving out many of the old cartels, only to see them replaced by new ones.

The cartel is led by Nicolás Sierra Santana, who faces a formal indictment in the District of Columbia for conspiracy to traffic drugs, filed in June 2025. The State Department is offering a $5 million reward for information leading to his capture.

The group has shifted its loyalties and alliances to consolidate its regional control of the territory through extortion. It also produces synthetic drugs, which sells to other cartels that traffic them into the United States.

In Uvalde County, over 10 inches of rain have fallen Thursday on top of the showers for the last couple of days.

The severe weather has caused all major highways and many Uvalde County streets to close due to flooding, county officials said.

>> Flash Flood Emergencies along Guadalupe, Pedernales Rivers and in Uvalde County.

“Please remain at home unless you are in immediate danger or your location is no longer safe,” the Uvalde County Office of Emergency Management posted on Facebook. “If you do not feel safe, dial 911 immediately for the fastest emergency response.”

A Uvalde Police Department spokesperson told KSAT earlier Thursday that the city is practically “impassible” at the moment; there is no way in or out.

There is currently no way to pass through U.S. Highway 90 in Uvalde, the spokesperson said.

Texas Game Wardens and DPS troopers have been responding to Uvalde County in boats to take residents to safety.

The Uvalde PD spokesperson said they’re “definitely not in the clear yet” as more rain is expected to fall in areas north of the county.

No serious injuries have been reported in Uvalde County. Though the rescue numbers change constantly, police said that rescues were conducted both in and outside the City of Uvalde.

An unspecified number of shelters are currently open in Uvalde. Churches and schools will also open as the day progresses, the spokesperson said.

More weather coverage on KSAT:

• Evacuations, rescues underway in Kerr County, sources say; Hunt area cut off by floodwaters
• LIVE COVERAGE: Flash Flood Emergencies issued in Kerr, Uvalde counties

During post-match celebrations Wednesday in Atlanta, Argentine players held a banner handed over by fans, reading “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” — “The Malvinas are Argentine.”

Argentina refers to the Falkland Islands as Islas Malvinas. They were invaded in 1982 under orders from Argentina's then-military dictatorship, triggering a 10-week war won by Britain.

“The World Cup might not be ours, but the Falkland Islands definitely are," a spokesperson for Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Thursday. "Self-determination rests with the islanders and our commitment to the Falklands will never waver.”

Starmer supported calls for FIFA to investigate, the spokesperson said, after U.K. Business Secretary Peter Kyle said the players’ behavior was “entirely inappropriate."

FIFA can prosecute Argentina's players and soccer federation because its disciplinary code prohibits at stadiums any “message that is not appropriate for a sports event” including those of “a political, ideological, religious or offensive nature.”

The FIFA fines for political messaging range from around $5,000 to $20,000. FIFA was approached for comment Thursday.

Argentine President Javier Milei described the players' celebration with the banner as “perfectly valid," saying the message “reflects a sentiment shared by all Argentines.” But he said he expected FIFA to sanction the team with a fine.

“What the players do is understandable; they get carried away by their emotions, they act on impulse, and that will likely lead to discussions about a fine,” Milei told a local Buenos Aires radio station.

Vice President Victoria Villarruel was more vocal in her support, posting a photo on social media of the players raising the banner with the caption: “The Malvinas are Argentine! They banned us from bringing (signs) into the stadium, forgetting that we carry them in our blood and in our hearts.”

A FIFA disciplinary case under previous leadership banned a South Korea player for two 2014 World Cup qualifying games because he held up a similar banner about a territorial claim against Japan at the 2012 London Olympics. Park Jong-woo took a fan banner with the slogan “Dokdo is our territory” after South Korea beat Japan in the men's bronze medal game.

On Wednesday, Argentina player Lisandro Martínez was asked if the banner could have stirred deep emotions for veterans of the conflict.

“We couldn’t let the Argentine people down” said Martínez, who has played in England for the past four years with Manchester United.

Argentina-England soccer rivalry

The sporting rivalry between the two countries is heightened by political tensions over the South Atlantic archipelago. It is a British overseas territory with a population of around 3,500 people located about 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers) from the U.K. and 300 miles (480 kilometers) from Argentina.

Argentina argues the islands were illegally taken from it in 1833. Britain, which says its territorial claim dates to 1765, sent a warship to the islands in 1833 to expel Argentine forces who sought to establish sovereignty over the territory.

The war in 1982 killed 649 Argentine troops, 255 British service personnel and three islanders.

That conflict ended during the 1982 World Cup in Spain where Argentina, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland all played. British television networks declined to broadcast Argentina playing in the tournament's opening game, when the defending champion lost to Belgium.

“Sadly, it is a sad part of our history," Argentina player Leandro Paredes said in Atlanta about the banner, “for everyone involved in that chapter of, I repeat, our history. And it hurts. We knew we were playing for them, too.”

Politics in soccer

British government minister Kyle told the BBC "politics needs to be separate from football.”

“In fact, the World Cup has one of its central tenets that politics is separate from football," he said. “That is now a matter for FIFA.”

FIFA's statutory political neutrality has been questioned at this World Cup after its president, Gianni Infantino, and disciplinary process — which could now judge Argentina — seemed to cave to pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump in allowing United States forward Folarin Balogun to play Belgium in the round of 16.

Balogun was shown a red card in the previous round and FIFA disciplinary rules mandated he should be banned from his team's next game. FIFA deferred that suspension for one year of probation, provoking an all-time controversy in modern World Cup history. Belgium beat the U.S. 4-1 to advance to the quarterfinals.

Infantino is expected to sit with Trump at the World Cup final Sunday. Argentina plays Spain in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Previous cases

Argentina players showed the same “Las Malvinas son Argentinas” slogan at a warm-up game in June 2014 in Buenos Aires for the World Cup that started days later in Brazil.

FIFA's disciplinary panel ruling in that case was published after the tournament finished and fined the Argentina federation 30,000 Swiss francs ($37,000).

In the 2012 London Olympics case, FIFA's ruling said the conduct of the South Korea player "cannot be tolerated.”

At the 2022 World Cup, FIFA fined the Serbia federation 20,000 Swiss francs ($24,800) for hanging a political banner about neighboring independent state Kosovo in the locker room before playing Brazil. It showed a map of Serbia that included the territory of Kosovo, which has been an independent state since 2008, and the slogan “No Surrender.”

___

Dunbar contributed from Geneva. Associated Press writer Almudena Calatrava in Buenos Aires, Argentina, contributed to this report.

___

See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

Officers responded to the incident just before 5 a.m. in the 5000 block of Spurs Ranch, which is located near U.S. Highway 90.

According to an SAPD preliminary report, a witness traveling on Spurs Ranch noticed what appeared to be a body on the road.

The witness stopped to assist the man who appeared to be struck by a vehicle, the report said. The witness, who called police, told officers that they did not see the initial crash.

The man, who has yet to be identified, was pronounced dead at the scene, police said.

SAPD said its investigation remains ongoing.

Read also:

• Portions of US Highway 90 in Uvalde County closed due to ongoing flooding

But the report, released by the Commerce Department on Thursday, showed consumers' continued resilience despite ongoing economic uncertainty as they bought cars and took advantage of summer sales events.

Retail sales rose 0.2% in June, after being up a revised 1% in May, according to the report.

Outside of gas stations, retail sales rose a solid 0.7%, according to the report.

The government figures aren't adjusted for inflation so last month's decline in gas prices pulled down gas station sales and thus the overall retail sales figure.

Business at gas stations fell 5.3% last month. Meanwhile, sales at motor vehicle and parts dealers rose 1.9%, helped by aggressive manufacturers' incentives, according to the report.

Elsewhere, shoppers were selective in their buying, given their worries about the economy and fading benefits of generous government tax benefits, which propelled spending earlier in the spring.

Business at clothing and accessories stores as well as at miscellaneous retailers both posted small declines, And sales at retailers that sell big-ticket items were mixed, with business at furniture and home furnishings merchants flat, while electronics and appliance stores showing a small increase for June.

World Cup boost

Among the bright spots: online sales rose 1.9%, fueled by spending surrounding Amazon's Prime Day event, which was held from June 23 through June 26. Business at sporting goods, hobby, musical instrument and book stores was up 1.3%, likely helped by spending around the World Cup tournament.

The data offers only a snapshot of consumer spending and doesn’t include activities like travel and hotel stays. The lone services category – restaurants – registered a slim 0.1% increase.

The so-called control group—which excludes food services, autos, building materials and gas station sales and is used to calculate economic growth—rose a solid 0.5%.

The report comes as U.S. inflation cooled last month as the cost of gas, clothes, and used cars fell, offering some relief to consumers, while underlying price pressures also slowed more than anticipated.

Gas prices fell to $3.94 per gallon on Thursday, down from $4.04 a month ago, according to motor club AAA.

“Falling fuel prices weighed on headline sales data, but a smaller bill at the pump was a source of relief for consumers and provided at least a little more cushion in household spending budgets,” Jim Baird, chief investment officer with Plante Moran Financial Advisors, wrote in a report published Thursday.

But Baird noted the June report suggests consumers are “perhaps taking a more discerning approach to where they’re spending and how they’re prioritizing their choices.”

The Labor Department said Tuesday that consumer prices dropped 0.4% from May to June, the largest monthly drop in four years, after increasing 0.5% in the previous month. On a yearly basis, inflation declined to 3.5%, down from a year-over-year gain of 4.2% in May and lower than many economists expected.

Muted impact at the gas pump

The core inflation figures suggest that the gas price spike from the Iran war, while it pushed up airfares and some other costs, hasn’t so far led to broad-based, sustained inflation, according to economists. But the United States renewed attacks on Iran and President Donald Trump announced a new blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route for about one-fifth of the world’s oil. The increase threatens to unravel at least some of the progress that occurred last month.

Next month, major retailers including Walmart, Target and Macy’s, are slated to announce their second-quarter earnings results, which will offer some insight into shopping behavior.

A report last month from the Conference Board showed that Americans’ attitudes toward the economy improved slightly this month as gas prices declined, but their outlook is still mostly negative by historical standards.

Sara Williamson, a 27-year-old software support engineer in Raleigh, North Carolina, said that over the last year or so, she’s more conscious of how she spends her money. She feels financially secure given her stable job, but increasing costs of food and gas are making her pull back on frivolous spending.

“I shop less overall as a hobby,” she said.

Williamson noted that at the supermarket, she avoids buying pre-cut fruits like cantaloupe, which tend to be more expensive than buying the whole cantaloupe, to save money, and is careful about buying clothing for herself.

Brian Reynolds, CEO and founder of Just For Teens, a skincare collection aimed at preteens and teens, noted that his low-price products, which include $5 pimple patches, are aimed at families on a budget and are in the sweet spot of retailing right now.

By October, his brand will be expanded to 10,000 Dollar General stores, up from about 4,000 late last year. He said sales have been decent so far, but he expects that business will see more of a momentum for the back-to-school selling season.

“There’s a lot of space for products that are everyday essentials that are value-priced,” he said.

According to DPS, Zeus Dimas was last seen Wednesday in the 2400 block of Rivas Street, which is located south of Culebra Road.

Dimas is 5 feet, 3 inches tall and weighs around 140 pounds. He also has brown hair and brown eyes, troopers said.

Additionally, DPS said Dimas was last spotted wearing a blue Cowboys shirt, black shorts and white shoes.

If you have any information on his whereabouts, contact San Antonio police at 210-207-7660.

READ ALSO:

• SAPD officers shoot, kill ‘suspicious’ armed man on East Side, police say
• San Antonio police officer arrested for injury to a child, department says

The move, backed by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and other top officials, aligns with the advice of many online influencers and podcasters, including men’s health gurus who tout the hormone as a way to boost muscle and energy. On Tuesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the military would begin screening for low testosterone and offering the hormone as a way to help troops operate at their “absolute best.”

The notion of testosterone as an all-purpose elixir for strength and vitality is not supported by the science. But medical experts say a decade of new research has bolstered the case for testosterone's benefits for sexual health while allaying concerns about its impact on the heart.

“Many providers have been trained for years that these were real issues, and they were scared to get a testosterone reading from a patient or offer them testosterone therapy,” said Dr. Justin Dubin, a urologist at Baptist Health Miami Cancer Institute.

Last year, the Food and Drug Administration removed a bold safety warning about possible heart risks with testosterone pills, gels, injections and patches, based on recent data that showed no increase in those problems.

Last month, the agency proposed rewriting prescribing instructions to clear the way for using testosterone against age-related symptoms, such as low libido and erectile dysfunction. Currently the label emphasizes that the hormone is only approved for abnormally low testosterone levels caused by serious medical conditions or injury.

But experts who prescribe the drug say those patients are a small segment of people seeking help.

“The majority of people we see in our office are regular men complaining of these common symptoms because they're dramatically affecting their quality of life,” said Dr. Helen Bernie, a urologist and director of sexual health at Indiana University.

Testosterone use has evolved over decades

Testosterone was first approved in the 1950s to treat hypogonadism, a condition defined by low testosterone levels caused by medical problems affecting the testes or other organs.

Testosterone declines naturally with age and can effect sexual function, mood, bone density and other measures. The question of how to diagnose and treat men with those issues has long been debated by researchers.

“These symptoms overlap with symptoms of human aging in men, so there’s a high risk of misdiagnosis and that’s led to the controversy” said Dr. Shalender Bhasin, of Harvard Medical School, who has co-authored several recent testosterone studies and guidelines.

Bhasin says increased willingness to prescribe testosterone reflects growing acceptance of the seriousness of men's sexual health problems, beginning with the introduction of Viagra for erectile dysfunction in the 1990s.

Bhasin helped write the Endocrine Society’s current guidelines for testosterone, which recommend discussing testosterone with men who have documented symptoms and two blood test results confirming low hormone levels. One recent study by Michigan researchers found that just 12% of men getting a prescription met that criteria.

Prescriptions previously soared, despite little evidence

The potential for overprescribing testosterone is real and helped lead to current restrictions.

In the early 2010s, drugmakers spent millions on TV ads for gels, patches and other products promising relief from “low T,” including a laundry list of symptoms like fatigue, muscle loss, brain fog and weight gain.

By 2013, the drugs were generating more than $2 billion in sales annually, despite lacking FDA approval for most of the issues described. Doctors remain free to prescribe drugs off-label, or for unapproved uses, and many men today continue taking testosterone because they believe it improves energy, mood and appearance.

In 2015, the FDA hit drugmakers with a double whammy: They had to clarify that their drugs weren’t approved for routine problems and also add a boxed warning about possible heart risks.

FDA scrutiny led to new research

The FDA now says updated data warrants relaxing the restrictions.

An FDA-mandated study published in 2023 followed 5,000 men with a history of heart disease, with half receiving daily testosterone gel and the other half getting a sham drug. After two years there was no difference in heart attack, stroke and related problems between the two groups.

A series of studies by the National Institutes of Health also clarified the benefits of the hormone. Results from nearly 800 older men showed testosterone therapy improved erectile dysfunction, libido and other sexual measures and had a small effect on mood. There was little or no improvement in other measures like fatigue, memory or overall well-being.

The recent testosterone studies are the largest ever conducted, but Bhasin — who helped lead both efforts — says more research is needed on longer-term effects.

“I think FDA’s label changes are very welcome and they are bringing us a big step forward," said Bhasin, who also co-authored the Endocrine Society's guidelines. "But I think there’s a lot more to be done to better define the safety and efficacy.”

In recent comments submitted to the FDA, the Endocrine Society recommended studies of 15 to 20 years to assess conditions that evolve slowly, including prostate cancer, which remains a concern when prescribing testosterone.

Some men should not get testosterone

Experts agree that men who are hoping to have children in the near future shouldn’t take the hormone. Getting testosterone from a pill or gel shuts off the body’s natural process for making the hormone.

“It can stop the signal from your brain to your testicles to make testosterone, and so you stop making sperm,” Dubin said. “That can compromise fertility.”

Most guidelines also recommend careful consideration for men who have had prostate cancer or are at risk of the disease, given lingering questions about whether hormone therapy hastens tumor growth. But guidelines may soon change.

The FDA has proposed new language that would only suggest that men whose prostate cancer has spread to other parts of the body should avoid testosterone.

Be wary of online promotions

Dietary supplements promoted online to boost testosterone should be avoided because they aren't FDA approved and probably don’t work.

FDA-approved testosterone drugs come in a variety of forms. Gels and pills generally need to be used daily. Injections, patches and implantable pellets can last for weeks or several months.

Many of these medications are available through telehealth services, though accessing them that way can have risks.

A 2022 paper by Dubin found that only 1 in 7 online prescribing companies asked basic screening questions, including whether men planned to have children. And most of the companies did not have a testing threshold for whether patients actually had low testosterone.

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

The Buck Wild Animal Rescue and Wildlife Rehab facility, which is located in the 200 block of Lazy Creek Road in Ingram, shared videos of how this week’s heavy rain damaged the property.

The videos show a large wave of floodwater on the property, which the facility said caused the loss of all of its animal enclosures.

“We are losing everything for a second time after just having rebuilt from the catastrophic flooding a year ago,” Buck Wild Animal Rescue and Wildlife general manager Haley Caswell told ABC News. “We were still trying to recover from the damage, and this time, it’s even worse.”

In the Kerr County area, more than 10 inches of rain fell Thursday morning on top of the excessive rainfall over the past several days. The consistent showers have caused the county to issue a Flood Flash Emergency.

Caswell described the scene at the facility as “an ocean in our creek bed.”

“It’s pouring rain; it’s not stopping. I saved all the animals again,” Caswell said. “Up here and the clinic are entirely drowned. We have an ocean in our creek bed. It took everything again. Hate this. So tired of this.”

More recent severe weather coverage on KSAT:

• Flash Flood Emergencies along Guadalupe, Pedernales Rivers and in Uvalde County.
• LIVE COVERAGE: Flash Flood Emergencies issued in Kerr, Uvalde counties

Some areas that saw the biggest combination of existing water and added rainfall Wednesday and Thursday were many of the region’s creeks and rivers.

>>LIVE COVERAGE: Flash Flood Emergencies issued in Kerr, Uvalde counties

KSAT viewers snapped or recorded all that water with the phones in their hands. From a safe distance, of course.

Rounds of rain will continue in some spots throughout Thursday.

Below are what viewers shared with KSAT on Wednesday.

Do you want to share your pictures and videos of rainfall? Here’s how you can show us on KSAT Connect.

• Open the KSAT Weather Authority app OR visit the KSAT Connect web page. We recommend using the app for regular access to KSAT Connect!
• If you’re on the KSAT Weather Authority app, click the camera icon on the navigation bar at the bottom of the screen. You can also upload from the KSAT News app. Click here for instructions.
• Sign in or sign up for a FREE KSAT Insider (member) account by clicking the orange button with the text “Log in to Upload a Pin.”
• Once you’re signed in, you’ll click the orange button that now reads “Upload a Pin.”
• Click the blue button at the top to choose the photo or video you’d like to share.
• Select “Weather” as the channel and one category.
• Tell us about your photo or video by including a description.
• The last step: Click the orange button at the bottom to upload.

More related weather coverage on KSAT:

• UPDATE: Flooding continues; Stay alert for more rain through Thursday

It is a key finding from a Meta Oversight Board study released Thursday, showing that major AI systems, including those built in the U.S., are more likely to refuse to criticize restrictive leaders or governments. It raises concerns that the large language models powering chatbots and AI agents could be regurgitating and spreading government influence over online speech as the technology is increasingly adopted worldwide.

“There is a real risk that, if model developers do not undertake human rights due diligence and implement mitigation measures, they will build AI infrastructure that, intentionally or not, has the effect of extending illegitimate restrictions on freedom of expression globally,” according to the report from the quasi-independent body.

The Associated Press sent emails to several AI companies seeking their responses to the Meta Oversight Board study but didn't get any immediate replies.

The findings come as countries are determining how to put up guardrails around AI without impeding their ability to compete in the rapidly developing field. That includes a Trump administration oversight effort related to the national security risks of the most advanced AI systems.

AI models extend state influence beyond borders

The oversight board, which has been working on state influence on tech companies and the impact on freedom of expression, came up with seven questions related to political criticism to pose to chatbots about both restrictive and permissive governments.

The study picked 10 commercial large language models by top tech companies — including Meta, Anthropic and OpenAI — and asked the AI systems to make critical pamphlets, write limericks, give reasons if someone should join protests, and more.

“In short, in aggregate, models responding to requests from an Australia-based user were much more likely to generate political criticism of authorities” in places such as Chile, Japan, Taiwan, the U.K. and the U.S. “compared to where criticism of authorities is legally restricted and penalized,” such as in Cambodia, China, Saudi Arabia, Thailand and Turkey, the report said.

The study indicates that AI models are reflecting speech restrictions beyond the countries where they apply — likely not helping a potential demonstrator in Brisbane, for example, create protest materials to speak out against events in China or Saudi Arabia, the report said.

“Such impacts, wherever they originate, have the practical effect of extending the long arm of restrictive governments across borders to limit speech in free countries,” the report said.

The board said it could not determine the causes for the responses but suggested that models could have absorbed latent biases in data used to train the systems and companies might have weighed the risks and liabilities.

Other researchers warn about a growing problem in AI results in non-English languages

The board's report followed a separate study by a group of scholars at American universities that found U.S.-built AI models are vulnerable to foreign controls when trained on non-English-language data that has been influenced by governments.

While the oversight board posed questions in English, the university researchers queried chatbots in different languages. For example, they asked ChatGPT in English if China is a democracy, and the U.S.-developed chatbot said it’s not generally considered one. Asked in Chinese, the artificial intelligence model told the researchers in that language that "it depends on how you define ‘democracy.’”

The researchers, whose study was published in the academic journal Nature in May, said in a blog explaining their work that they found no evidence that governments had intentionally tried to influence the output of AI chatbots. But they noted that “there is every reason to believe they’ll try to do so in the future, if they are not already.”

“People often talk about AI as if it learns from the internet in some neutral way. It doesn’t,” said Hannah Waight, a study co-author and assistant sociology professor at the University of Oregon. “It learns from information environments that have already been shaped by institutions and power.”

No easy solution to how data is being fed to AI models

Carlos Carrasco-Farré, who specializes in machine learning, AI, misinformation, social media and human-machine interactions at Esade Business School in Barcelona, said that “AI systems inherit not only biases contained within individual documents but also inequalities in who has the power to produce and suppress information at scale.”

There is no easy solution, though developers could assess the data to avoid treating thousands of copies of the same state narrative as if they are thousands of independent voices as well as run multilingual audits, said Carrasco-Farré, who was not part of either study.

Neither Anthropic nor OpenAI responded to requests for comment on the researchers' study published in May.

Fires burning in one state can make the air worse several states away, and wildfires in Canada can send smoke into U.S. cities.

Here’s what to know about taking precautions against poor air quality due to wildfires.

What counts as bad air?

The Environmental Protection Agency's Air Quality Index converts all pollutant levels into a single number. The lower the number, the better.

Anything below 50 is classified as “healthy.” Fifty to 100 is “moderate,” while 100 to 150 is unhealthy for “sensitive groups,” and anything above 150 is bad for everyone.

Sensitive groups include people with asthma, lung disease or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, said Dr. Sanjay Sethi, chief of the division of pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine at the University at Buffalo medical school.

“If you have heart or lung problems, then you’ve got to be definitely more careful,” Sethi said. “I would either avoid going outside or wear an N95 or at least a dust mask.”

Is my air unhealthy?

Sometimes the air is bad enough to see or smell the smoke. Even if you don't see the pollution, it can be unhealthy to breathe.

The EPA maintains a website with up-to-date, regional air quality information. PurpleAir, a company that sells air quality sensors and publishes real-time air quality data, has a citizen scientist air quality monitoring network with a more granular map of street-by-street air quality readings.

The best way to get indoor air quality readings is to buy a monitor, said Joseph Allen, director of Harvard University's Healthy Buildings Program.

“You can find these low-cost, indoor air quality monitors just about everywhere online now. They don’t cost all that much anymore,” he said.

What if I have to go outside?

For most people, going outside for just a short time won't have a negative long-term impact, said Sethi.

Wearing an N95 mask, which became common during the coronavirus pandemic, will help filter out the pollution.

“N95 is going to get rid of 90-95% of the particles,” said Jennifer Stowell, a research scientist at Boston University’s Center for Climate and Health. “If you have access to a mask that has a respirator-type attachment to it, then that’s the very best.”

If you must be outside and you experience symptoms, experts say you should head indoors or elsewhere with better air quality. Even if you are healthy, it’s good to take precautions.

“If you start wheezing, which is like this whistling sound of the chest, or if you’re feeling short of breath, that’s definitely more concerning,” Sethi said.

How do I make my air cleaner?

Close the windows and turn on the air conditioner, if you have one, setting it to circulate the indoor air. Use blankets to cover cracks that allow outside air into your home, such as under doors.

Finally, swapping the air conditioner's filter for a MERV 13 filter can help, but ensure it's installed correctly.

“If you happen to have access to an air purifier, even if it’s just a room air purifier, try to keep it running and in the room that you’re doing most of your activities in,” said Stowell.

___

Wells is a former reporter for The Associated Press.

___

The Associated Press’ climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

In his second term, Trump, a Republican, has tried to use the levers of power to rewrite that well-settled history, something that he's expected to try again on Thursday night with an address to the nation.

He has already appointed loyalists who have echoed his false claims that the 2020 election was stolen and made clear he expects everyone to follow his lead.

In an indication of how fealty to Trump’s lies has become a litmus test for his administration, many of his nominees have steadfastly refused to directly answer the question of who won in 2020, preferring to tersely note that Biden, a Democrat, became president. Jay Clayton, Trump’s nominee to become the next national intelligence director, was the latest to repeat that formula in his confirmation hearing on Wednesday.

“He had the most electoral votes," Clayton said of Biden. “He was declared the winner.”

“And who has the most electoral votes? Is it the person who wins or the person who loses?” asked Sen. Mark Kelly, an Arizona Democrat.

“That’s your characterization," Clayton responded. "I’m not going to continue to do this.”

The president has embraced baroque conspiracy theories about an international cabal that penetrated U.S. voting machines that have led to libel suits against his allies when they’ve repeated the claims.

Ahead of his speech, Trump has teased “really big news” and said “it doesn't get bigger, because without free and fair elections, you don't have a country.”

Election experts fear another round of falsehoods.

“There has been six-plus years of consistent findings from the intelligence community and from everyone who’s looked at it that there was no foreign interference in 2020, and our voting systems were secure and accurate,” said Victoria Bassetti of States United, a nonpartisan group supporting the state officials who run elections. “I suppose the president could come up with some new assertion or new conclusion. It would fly in the face of all the evidence.”

Huge range of reviews find same thing: No major fraud

There’s been an enormous amount of reviews of the 2020 election. Trump and his allies lost dozens of court cases challenging the results, sometimes before judges the president appointed himself. Numerous audits, recounts and investigations, including several by Republicans, found no major problems with the vote or count.

Trump's own attorney general at the time, William Barr, said there were no signs of significant fraud, a statement that earned him Trump's ire. Trump's appointee to run the agency that watches for cyberattacks on American election infrastructure, Chris Krebs, declared that the 2020 election was secure and there were no signs of tampering — which led Trump to fire Krebs and demand an investigation of him upon returning to power in 2025.

An intelligence assessment released in the early days of the Biden administration but completed on Jan. 7, 2021, in Trump's last days in office, found no foreign tampering with vote totals or election equipment in 2020. And, last year, Trump signed a federal document as part of a regular review of possible foreign influence in elections that declared “there has been no evidence of a foreign power altering the outcome or vote tabulation in any United States election.”

‘Untold taxpayer resources’ reinvestigating the election

Since returning to office, Trump has launched a review of the 2020 vote. Federal agents have seized voting records in Democratic-run Fulton County, Georgia, and Republican-run Maricopa County, Arizona — two major metropolitan swing state counties that figured prominently in 2020 conspiracy theories.

Trump tapped Kurt Olsen, a prominent lawyer in the world of election conspiracy theorists, to head the probe. Olsen was previously sanctioned by the Arizona Supreme Court for false statements in a lawsuit he brought to challenge the 2022 loss of an Arizona governor's race by one of Trump's allies.

"He has committed untold taxpayer resources,” said David Becker, a former Department of Justice lawyer who now leads the Center for Election Integrity & Research. “They’ve found nothing.”

A search warrant affidavit filed in the Fulton County case was full of old, debunked conspiracy theories about the vote in the county. The FBI reassigned hundreds of analysts to go through the material.

Conspiracy theories have led to libel cases

Still, election conspiracy theorists have been buzzing — as they have ever since Election Day in 2020 — that Trump is about to reveal irrefutable evidence of massive election fraud.

One version alleges that Venezuela and possibly other countries manipulated U.S. voting machines to deprive Trump of a victory. Venezuela's former president, Nicolas Maduro, is currently awaiting trial in Manhattan on federal charges of drug trafficking after the U.S. military took him from that country's capital.

Those theories have led to massive payouts in libel lawsuits brought by voting machine companies and others. Fox News paid $787.5 million to settle one lawsuit over it airing those claims and others on the air in late 2020. Conservative networks Newsmax andOne America News have also reached settlements with voting companies over airing those allegations.

A Denver jury found that Mike Lindell, a prominent election conspiracy theorist who Trump this week endorsed as a Republican candidate for governor in Minnesota, defamed an employee with a voting machine company by calling him a traitor.

Becker noted there has been a clear pattern over the six years of election conspiracy theories surrounding Trump's loss. Conspiracy theorists, including Trump himself, make sweeping allegations in public, sometimes with what seems to be massive reams of documentation from elaborate election databases. But they've lost regularly in court, where the threshold is whether there's any factual basis to the claims.

He suggested that anything new from Trump on elections be subjected to that same scrutiny.

"If someone’s alleging a crime that occurred six years ago, we shouldn’t be responding to their claims,” Becker said. “We should be demanding they meet the burden of proof.”

For more information on traffic you can click here to view our traffic page on KSAT.com. To view more on the current weather conditions, click here.

Click the links below for current road closures.

• San Antonio road closures
• Bexar County road closures
• TxDOT highway conditions

Below is a map of notable low water crossings in San Antonio.

In Sabinal, Mayor Erik Gomez posted on social media that both directions are closed.

The highway is also closed west of the City of Uvalde.

Due to ongoing heavy rain, there’s flooding along the Highway 90 corridor from Hondo to Del Rio. Authorities ask drivers to stay at home if possible and avoid driving on the roads.

In Uvalde County, authorities are urging people to avoid travel, as major highways and several streets are closed.

“Please remain at home unless you are in immediate danger or your location is no longer safe,” the Uvalde County Office of Emergency Management posted on social media at 6:10 a.m. Thursday. “If you do not feel safe, dial 911 immediately for the fastest emergency response.”

The first map below shows the latest road conditions at low-water crossings in Bexar County. Below that you will find a statewide map of current road closures from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT).

• Avoid these notorious roadways prone to flooding during heavy rain in San Antonio
• Find the latest on the storms here from KSAT’s meteorologist, including forecasts, warnings and watches and an interactive radar.

Bexar County low-water crossing status

Read more about the map below and find the full version at BEXARflood.org.

About the map above, via Bexarflood.org:

“Each dot on the map indicates a location of a Bexar County HALT sensor - HALT stands for High water Alert Lifesaving Technology. The sensors detect rising water and send real time information to this website: green means the road safe, yellow means the water is rising and red means the road is closed. By subscribing to alerts through this website, you can receive text or email alerts when low water crossings you choose to monitor have water over the road.

“Bexar County has installed more than 150 HALT systems in our community to warn drivers to turn around with either flashing lights or a combination of flashing lights and gates.

“The map was developed through a partnership between Bexar County, the City of San Antonio and the San Antonio River Authority. These partners monitor local weather and road conditions 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.”

• Get weather alerts based on your location from the free KSAT 12 Weather app. Click to download on iPhone OR click to download on an Android phone.

Hill Country and statewide road closures

Read more about the map below and find the full version at DriveTexas.org.

More tips from KSAT:

Remember, ‘Turn Around, Don’t Drown’: Tips for staying safe while driving in the rain

Read more: CPS Energy offers power outage tips

Live Doppler Radar

The number of Americans applying for jobless aid in the week ending July 11 dropped by 8,000 to 208,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That's well below the 219,000 new applications forecast by analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet.

Weekly filings for unemployment benefits are considered a proxy for layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the U.S. job market.

In its more comprehensive June jobs report earlier this month, the government reported that employers pulled back on hiring in June, adding only 57,000 jobs. That’s less than half the previous month’s total and a sign that companies remain cautious about adding to their head counts. The unemployment rate dropped to 4.2% from 4.3% in May, though that decline is mostly because many out-of-work people gave up looking for jobs and were no longer counted as unemployed.

June’s tepid hiring comes after a relative surge in job gains the previous three months, countering concerns that the war in Iran could trip up an already wobbly labor market.

Weekly jobless aid applications have stabilized in a range mostly between 200,000 and 250,000 since the U.S. economy emerged from the pandemic recession. However, hiring began slowing about two years ago and tapered further in 2025 due to President Donald Trump’s tariffs, his purge of the federal workforce and the lingering effects of high interest rates meant to control inflation.

Among the companies that have trimmed their workforce recently are Verizon, UPS, Amazon, Disney, Starbucks and Walmart.

Last week, Microsoft said it was cutting 4,800 jobs, about 2.1% of its global workforce, including a large number of workers at its Xbox video game business.

Thursday’s layoffs data showed that the four-week moving average of weekly jobless claims, which adjusts for volatility, declined by 4,750 to 214,250.

The total number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits for the previous week ending July 4 fell by 16,000 to 1.81 million, also a historically healthy figure.

ORIGINAL STORY: A Silver Alert was issued Wednesday after a man was reported missing in Converse, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.

John Handforth, 82, was last seen at 9:45 a.m. in the 9300 block of Aniston Bluff, which is a neighborhood located between Loop 1604 and FM 1516, DPS said. Authorities believe he poses a threat to his own health and safety.

Handforth is 5 feet, 6 inches tall with gray hair and hazel eyes, according to the agency.

Handforth was also diagnosed with a cognitive impairment, DPS said. He was last seen wearing a tan or blue long-sleeve collared shirt, blue jeans and brown dress shoes.

DPS believes Handforth may be in a green 1995 Chevrolet GMT-400 with a truck bed topper and the Minnesota license plate number HGD602.

Anyone with relevant information on Handforth’s whereabouts are asked to contact the Converse Police Department at 210-658-2322.

Read also:

• Reported tornado touches down in northwest Bexar County; Damage at multiple businesses near The Rim
• Boerne officials to provide update on city’s flood response

Every year, flash floods happen across the city as heavy storms move through the area, often during hurricane season. Bexar County officials monitor 178 low-water crossings, updating road closures when they occur.

Drivers warned to ‘Turn Around, Don’t Drown’

While more seasoned residents know which places to avoid, newer residents may not know which areas are most prone to flooding:

Salado Creek at I-35:

When heavy rain falls, the water pools up on the access roads, resulting in closures in the area.

Basse Road and 281:

After heavy rains, Olmos Creek will quickly rise, flooding the roadways it runs through.

Pinn Road:

Pinn Road and Highway 151 has been the scene of some notable high-water rescues before. Leon Creek runs below the road, leaving it prone to flooding.

Lower levels of I-35:

The lower levels of I-35 tend to shut down after heavy rains lead to flash floods on the highway.

While those are some of the most well-known flooding spots, intersections around San Antonio can also flood, depending on where the rain falls.

San Antonio Fire Department’s 10 most dangerous low-water crossings since 2015

• Old Seguin Road at Salado Creek (46 rescues)
• Old O’Connor Road, located north of Lookout Road (31 rescues)
• Hollyhock Road, positioned 600 feet west of Babcock Road (20 rescues)
• Pinn Road (14 rescues)
• Spencer Lane, located east of Balcones Heights (13 rescues)
• Ira Lee, north of Austin Highway (12 rescues)
• Sleepy Hollow at Sunburst (10 rescues)
• Gibbs Sprawl Road at Rosillo Creek (10 rescues)
• West Commerce Street from Pinn Road to Military Drive (9 rescues)
• North Loop, around 150 feet from West North Loop (8 rescues)

Find the latest on the storms here from KSAT’s meteorologist, including forecasts, warnings and watches and an interactive radar.

Below is a list of some of the road closures as of 6 a.m. on Thursday, July 16:

• Hwy 90 West in Uvalde
• Main Street in Uvalde
• SH 39 in Kerr County
• Interstate 10 Westbound near Mountain Home

In Uvalde County, authorities are urging people to avoid travel, as major highways and several streets are closed.

"Please remain at home unless you are in immediate danger or your location is no longer safe," the Uvalde County Office of Emergency Management posted on social media at 6:10 a.m. Thursday. “If you do not feel safe, dial 911 immediately for the fastest emergency response.”

The first map below shows the latest road conditions at low-water crossings in Bexar County. Below that you will find a statewide map of current road closures from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT).

• Avoid these notorious roadways prone to flooding during heavy rain in San Antonio
• Find the latest on the storms here from KSAT’s meteorologist, including forecasts, warnings and watches and an interactive radar.

Bexar County low-water crossing status

Read more about the map below and find the full version at BEXARflood.org.

About the map above, via Bexarflood.org:

“Each dot on the map indicates a location of a Bexar County HALT sensor - HALT stands for High water Alert Lifesaving Technology. The sensors detect rising water and send real time information to this website: green means the road safe, yellow means the water is rising and red means the road is closed. By subscribing to alerts through this website, you can receive text or email alerts when low water crossings you choose to monitor have water over the road.

“Bexar County has installed more than 150 HALT systems in our community to warn drivers to turn around with either flashing lights or a combination of flashing lights and gates.

“The map was developed through a partnership between Bexar County, the City of San Antonio and the San Antonio River Authority. These partners monitor local weather and road conditions 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.”

• Get weather alerts based on your location from the free KSAT 12 Weather app. Click to download on iPhone OR click to download on an Android phone.

Hill Country and statewide road closures

Read more about the map below and find the full version at DriveTexas.org.

More tips from KSAT:

Remember, ‘Turn Around, Don’t Drown’: Tips for staying safe while driving in the rain

Read more: CPS Energy offers power outage tips

Live Doppler Radar

“If not fasting, what? Riots in the streets? That’s what we don’t want to do. So this is a peaceful way to take your voice to the government,” Wangchuk said on a recent afternoon as worried supporters checked on him.

The 59-year-old has become an unlikely symbol of India’s Cockroach Janta Party, a youth-led movement that erupted online two months ago and gained momentum over alleged leaks on social media in the country’s fiercely competitive college entrance exams.

With the hunger strike in its third week, organizers are racing to keep pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, which they accuse of ignoring their calls for the education minister’s resignation.

“There has been no kind of response from the government. They have left Sonam Wangchuk to die,” said Abhijeet Dipke, a Boston University student and founder of the Cockroach Janta Party.

Online outrage becomes a street movement

The movement began in May after Supreme Court Chief Justice Surya Kant compared some unemployed young people to “cockroaches" during a hearing on another issue. Supporters embraced the insult as a badge of resilience, turning it into a satirical political campaign that amassed more than 21 million Instagram followers in a few days.

The movement seeks the resignation of the education minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, over the alleged leaks, along with sweeping reforms to the examination system and compensation for families of students who died by suicide, whether over the leaks or exam results.

For many young Indians, their future depends on a single entrance exam for government jobs and medical colleges.

Dipke said the movement's online popularity has translated into growing support on the ground. Since its first major demonstration in New Delhi in early June, he said, thousands of supporters have turned out at universities and rallies in other cities.

The presence of Wangchuk, a well-known climate activist, shows how the protest has drawn professionals beyond the world of education.

High-profile attention is growing. Opposition leaders from several political parties and some Bollywood celebrities have visited the camp or lent support to the movement in recent days.

But turnout in New Delhi has been modest compared with the large online following.

On most days, a few hundred people gather at Jantar Mantar for a sit-in, with crowds typically swelling to around 1,000 by evening. Many have endured weeks of monsoon rain, sleeping in tents.

Unlike established political parties, Dipke said, the movement has no formal structure. Supporters pay their own way to New Delhi, where they camp at Jantar Mantar, a designated public protest ground enclosed by police barricades. There has been no police attempt to shut down the protest.

Ajay Zingade, a 33-year-old IT professional, said recurring exam paper leaks compelled him to join the protest despite no longer being a student.

“I am just exercising my fundamental right of dissent,” he said.

Protesters face continued government silence

Organizers say the movement has grown into a broader campaign for accountability and restoration of trust in institutions that students believe have failed them, including the judiciary, the political system and the media.

“The system needs a complete overhaul because the current system is no longer accountable or even taking basic responsibility,” Dipke said.

But the government has neither opened negotiations nor publicly acknowledged the movement's demands. The education ministry did not respond to AP questions.

Senior leaders in Modi’s government have largely dismissed it, with the education minister accusing its members of working against the country. Other government leaders have argued that while students’ concerns deserve attention, there is no need for the government to negotiate with them.

Protest organizers say the government’s silence has hardened their resolve as Wangchuk’s hunger strike continues.

“In a democracy the government is supposed to listen to the people, to have a dialogue with the people, and more importantly to be answerable to the people. I don’t know why the government isn’t doing that,” Dipke said.

For Wangchuk, his strike is an attempt to channel that anger into peaceful civil disobedience.

“It’s to demand accountability, which is important in any government,” he said.

Organizers plan a march to Parliament

Organizers say they are preparing to escalate the campaign with a march to Parliament on Monday.

Wangchuk said it is intended to bring demands directly to lawmakers.

“We hope that government is sensible enough to reward peaceful ways rather than wait for not-so-peaceful ways,” he said.

Dipke said they are prepared to continue the demonstrations for as long as it takes.

“The government was thinking that maybe if they ignore us: These are kids, they will go back home. But I think we have proved that we are here for the long battle, and we are not going to go back home," he said.

Hot Diggity Dog - we’re celebrating National Hot Dog month with Home Team Hot Dogs. It started out as a small family hot dog cart and it’s grown into something so much bigger.

Oscar with a Mustache from The Magic Saloon amazes us with his incredible facial hair & a pretty stunning magic act.

The Rock Box is much more than a place for head bangers. This music venue is telling us about how they’re bringing more genres to town and kicking things off with a event this weekend.

Methodist Healthcare recently opened a new midwifery clinic in downtown San Antonio, expanding access to comprehensive women’s health services in the community. They offer comprehensive care to pregnant women but also menopause support, routine gynecologic care, contraceptive counseling, family planning & much more.

TEXARKANA — More than a dozen East Texas counties are working to create a groundwater conservation district that would prevent over-pumping water from the aquifer below their communities.

On Tuesday, Gregg County Commissioners voted to approve a resolution adding the county to a growing number of East Texas communities interested in developing the Northeast Texas Groundwater Conservation District. This is among the first steps to establish the district, which will have to undergo legislative approval in 2027.

Leaders in northeast Texas want to create a groundwater conservation district to protect East Texans from losing all their groundwater. This district would set guardrails for water usage and establish regulations for water drilling and extraction permits. As of Wednesday, 15 counties had signed on to create the district with the potential to add more, said Austin-based attorney Brian Sledge, who’s helping establish this district.

“It’s a matter of being responsible stewards of what Mother Nature has given us,” said Gregg County Judge Bill Stoudt. “We certainly can access it, but we need to make sure there’s proper regulation so it’s not overused and dried up. Some of these groups come in and take water out of East Texas to ship to Dallas or to San Antonio or whatever else and then leave us dry. That’s not right. There’s got to be a better way.”

Many parts of Texas face a water shortage. As cities juggle declining water availability with growing populations, they’re looking to the water-rich region to the east. Due to its proximity to East Texas, Dallas and its surrounding communities in particular have sought to tap into East Texas’ water reserves.

The Region C Water Plan, which manages the Dallas-area water supply, highlights East Texas counties without groundwater conservation districts as key water extraction points. One idea is to pull 25,000 acre feet — equivalent to about 8 billion gallons — from beneath Smith, Wood, Van Zandt and Upshur counties.

“With no GCDs in the targeted counties, there are no pumping regulations or limitations and DWU would likely be able to develop the full project amount,” the water planning organization wrote in its plan.

Another idea in the water plan is to pump 42,000 acre feet — about 13.6 billion gallons — of water from Anderson County, further south. Anderson County is part of the Neches & Trinity Valleys Groundwater Conservation District, which is already established and is undergoing a review of its rules and regulations.

At this point, the northeast groundwater district is still in its infancy.

Counties, in signing these resolutions, have also signed on with Sledge, who was tasked with writing the bill that would be taken before the Texas Legislature in 2027. It will be influenced heavily by state law and what regional leaders believe will work best for their communities.

He will provide the text to East Texas lawmakers and is optimistic they will see the bill to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk.

“These are local bills by nature,” Sledge said. “And as long as you have the local senators and state representatives on board, they typically get through the process without running into too many obstacles. But you never know what will happen at the Texas Capitol.”

Since taking office last year, Trump has approved about 65 requests for major disaster declarations and denied more than two dozen others from states, tribes or territories seeking federal financial assistance following hurricanes, tornadoes, storms, floods and fires.

Trump has taken longer on average to approve disaster requests than any other president, according to an Associated Press analysis of data dating back to 1989, when a federal law setting new parameters for disaster determinations was implemented. And no other president has such a disparity in denials between states that supported him politically and those that did not.

The delays and denials come as Trump's administration contemplates a makeover of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which administers disaster aid. Major disaster declarations are intended for events that are beyond the resources of state and local governments.

Trump is saying yes to Republicans more than Democrats

During his second term, Trump has denied a greater percentage of disaster requests than any president dating to 1989. Those denials have not been evenly distributed among states.

Trump has approved 80% of the disaster requests from Republican governors but only about 60% from Democratic governors, according to the AP's analysis of FEMA data.

The discrepancy is even more apparent when analyzing major disaster declarations based on presidential elections. Trump has approved more than three-fourths of the requests from states that voted for him in the 2024 election but less than half the requests from states that did not. Although there are federal criteria for disaster aid, decisions ultimately are at the president’s discretion.

A batch of denials earlier this month included four Democratic states — Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island — seeking federal aid for a February snowstorm.

“The President’s denial is part of a pattern of extreme partisanship as he tries to shift a heavier economic burden onto blue states. Disaster aid should be merit-based, not politicized,” Rhode Island's Democratic U.S. Senate and House members said in a joint statement.

White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in a statement that “there is no politicization to the President’s decisions on disaster relief.”

During his first term, Trump actually approved a greater share of requests from states that had opposed him than those that supported him.

Yet no other president had such a wide partisan divide in disaster declarations as currently exists under Trump. Obama approved 87% of the disaster requests from Democratic governors during his second term and 79% from Republican governors, but Obama's approval rate was identical for states that voted for and against him.

When requests are denied, individuals, insurers and local governments are left to shoulder the costs themselves.

Trump is waiting longer to declare disasters

Since Trump assumed office last year, it’s taken him an average of a month and a half to approve major disaster declarations after receiving a request from the governor or chief executive of a state, territory or tribe, the AP found. Because it can take several weeks after a disaster for officials to inspect the damage and submit a request, the total wait time often has exceeded two months.

By comparison, Trump approved major disaster requests in an average of about three weeks during his first term, a pace similar to President Joe Biden. Their predecessors — Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush — all had average disaster approval times of less than two weeks.

All presidents have taken longer to approve some requests. But that’s become the norm in Trump’s second term. Of Trump’s approvals, 70% have taken at least a month — up from about one-quarter of requests during Trump’s first term and Biden’s administration, and fewer than 10% under their predecessors.

Jackson said that Trump conducts a more thorough review than any administration before him, “ensuring American tax dollars are used appropriately and efficiently by the states to supplement — not substitute — their obligation to respond to and recover from disasters.”

The longer the approval process takes, the longer people must wait to receive federal aid for daily living expenses, temporary lodging and home repairs. Delays in major disaster declarations also can hamper recovery efforts by local officials uncertain whether they will receive federal reimbursement for cleaning up debris and rebuilding infrastructure.

FEMA nominee is pledging faster decisions

FEMA has had four different temporary leaders since Trump took office in January 2025. One of those, Cameron Hamilton, is awaiting Senate confirmation as the agency's permanent director.

During a Senate committee hearing last month, Hamilton said he would try to speed up disaster declaration decisions and reimbursements. He also pledged to ensure that FEMA is objective, fair and reasonable in reviewing disaster declaration requests and making recommendations to the president.

Hamilton, a former Navy SEAL, had been fired as FEMA's acting director in May 2025 after publicly disagreeing with Trump's idea of dismantling the agency. His reemergence signals that Trump now may support changes to FEMA instead of an outright elimination of the agency.

Panel's recommendations could lead to more denials

A council appointed by Trump has recommended a series of changes to FEMA that would shift greater responsibility to states, potentially reducing the number of major disaster declarations and the amount of federal money paid out.

The council suggested revised criteria to qualify for presidential declarations, including a prerequisite of annual minimum expenditures by states, territories and tribes.

Another recommendation, which would require congressional approval, would reduce the federal government's share of the disaster aid from a minimum of 75% to 50% of the costs, leaving state and local governments more to cover. For governments approved for assistance, federal funding could get there quicker — within 30 days of a federal disaster declaration, instead of waiting months or years for reimbursements that are based on proof of expenditures.

For individuals, the council recommended consolidating several different types of aid into one payment targeted for those whose homes are uninhabitable.

The technology area known as “physical AI” refers to smart, futuristic robots that can think on their own, not just follow programmed directions, to work safely alongside people in factories, homes and hospitals.

The initiative was announced in Tokyo on Thursday by Nvidia Corp. Chief Executive Jensen Huang and Fujitsu Chief Executive Takahito Tokita, along with the CEOs of Japan’s top makers of industrial robots, Fanuc Corp., Yaskawa Electric Corp. and Kawasaki Heavy Industries.

The latest announcement comes on top of a deal announced by Nvidia and Fujitsu last year.

The executives expressed hopes that the robots can address the nation’s acute labor shortage. Japan is among the most rapidly aging societies in the developed world and the smart robots could help take care of the elderly living alone, they said.

Huang said physical AI was a good fit for Japan because of the country's reputation for manufacturing quality because robots that move independently could potentially be dangerous.

“Japan’s excellence is a philosophy, a way of life. ‘Made in Japan’ means the highest quality, the highest precision. Japan sets the standard for the state-of-the-art in modern manufacturing,” he said.

Huang listed Japan’s prized concepts in fine manufacturing such as “kaizen,” which means “continuous improvement.”

The companies did not give a specific time frame for the arrival of such robots in daily life. They stressed efforts were underway with what they called the first phase of the collaboration coming later this year.

There has been no decision on setting up a joint venture, although that could come later, they said.

Japan has acknowledged it has fallen behind some nations, including China and the U.S., in AI, and has been eager to play catch-up.

The government of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi recently announced a plan to drum up more than 370 trillion yen ($2.3 trillion) in public and private investment in various technology fields by 2040, including physical AI, semiconductors and data centers.

Silicon Valley-based Nvidia, which offers an open-source technology, has been aggressive in forging various ties in Japan, including with leading banks, automaker Toyota Motor Corp., video game maker Sega and national research institute Riken.

___

Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama

The fate of the Totsakan band has been a key focus in Thailand's coverage of the blaze, and as residents expressed their sadness, confusion, outrage and demands for compensation on Wednesday, the sister of the group’s late keyboard player struck a particular note of grace.

“If I can be his representative, I think he would say he doesn’t want to see everyone sad and cry,” said Chanyanuch Pudmon, the sister of keyboard player Preutthipong Pudmon, as she and other family members retrieved his body from Bangkok’s Institute of Forensic Science. “He would not want everyone to see him as he is now, but please remember his smile on stage, playing music that he loves.”

The fire that broke out Sunday night killed at least 33 people and injured dozens, with 17 hospitalized in critical condition, Erawan emergency services said. Wiroon Supasingsiripreecha, chief of the forensic institute, told reporters Wednesday that most of the victims died from smoke inhalation, while a few died from burn injuries.

What set off the blaze at the Rong Beer Na Ladprao bar in northern Bangkok and why it caused so many casualties is under investigation. Authorities are looking at whether the venue’s ceiling had especially flammable soundproofing foam, whether its exits were accessible and unlocked and whether the venue was legally registered.

The band played good-time music every Sunday

Totsakan was a house band at the bar, and every Sunday they played the kind of good-time roots music that is popular especially in rural areas where traditional beats are played on modern instruments.

The band’s members were among the first to spy a spark from a circuit breaker that may have set off the blaze that roared across the ceiling, which experts suspect was covered with highly combustible material. People rushed for the few and narrow exits in what they said was total darkness.

The chaos was such that even after the blaze was brought under control by firefighters and the injured taken to hospitals, it was unclear who had survived and who had perished. However for the band’s leader and singer, Atipat Wijan -- nickname “Ice” -- a big blow came right away.

In an interview with Thai TV Channel 3 just hours after the flames were extinguished, he recalled how the band’s bass player called him to tell him that Nahatai Sajjalert, the lead female singer nicknamed “Breeze″ — who was also his girlfriend — was undergoing CPR in back of the still-smoldering building.

Ice said he tried helping the EMS team resuscitate her, but she could not be revived.

“She wasn’t burned at all. Her body was completely intact. She just looked like she was peacefully asleep,” he recalled.

Ice said it was originally believed that keyboardist Preutthipong -- nickname “Kwang” -- had been found and hospitalized, but that was a misunderstanding. He never made it out of the bar. Nattapat Thamnita, or “Biw,” the band’s drummer, was evacuated in critical condition, but also did not survive.

A fourth band member died Wednesday

Misery extended to Wednesday when the band announced that its other male singer, Thitiwat Kaewkanha, had died in hospital. He was initially feared dead, but had then turned up hospitalized after a day of frantic searching. According to Thai Rath, Thailand’s most popular newspaper, Thitiwat, whose nickname is “Din,” had burns over 80% of his body.

Other survivors and family members of victims of the fire visited a police station on Wednesday to seek compensation, gather belongings and give their testimony.

Natthaphong Lakhorn, 26, was at the beer hall on the night of the fire with four companions. He was sitting near the stage when the fire broke out. He recounted seeing white smoke coming from the stage, which he at first thought was an effect from dry ice before realizing it was the start of a fire.

“When the fire broke, I just ran, and then all power went out,” said Natthaphong, who said that one of his companions, a relative, died in the fire. “It was so hectic."

Natthaphong said he escaped through the back door of the bar near the bathrooms and that there was a security guard there who was using a flashlight to lead people out, contradicting reports from police that the door was not used. He said he did not recall hearing a fire alarm.

Bandages covered both of Natthaphong’s ears and part of his forehead. Before registering with the police, he said that he plans to seek compensation for his injuries.

Kanticha Singkhon, 25, was at the police station to pick up a handbag and other personal belongings of her mother, who died in the fire. With her mother gone, Kanticha said she is now responsible for her younger brother. She said she wanted the bar owners to be the ones who reach out to the victim's families “because they would be going back to their hometowns by now. They won’t have time because each victim came from far away," she said.

A lawyer representing the bar owners told local media that survivors and family members will initially receive 10,000 baht (approximately $300) in compensation.

“It’s not enough money for a funeral — I had to take a loan to arrange my mom’s funeral,” Kanticha said. “I have not had any financial arrangements, and no one has contacted me."

___

This story has been updated to correct the number of people in critical condition to 17, not 15, according to Erawan emergency services, and to correct the spelling of the keyboardist’s name, Preutthipong not Puttipong.

——-

Khemmapat Rojwanichkun in Bangkok contributed to this report.

According to preliminary information, the two boats left Myanmar’s western state of Rakhine in late June carrying mostly Rohingya passengers, including some who had traveled from refugee camps across the border in Bangladesh, according to a statement from the International Organization for Migration and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

One boat, believed to have been carrying around 250 people, lost contact shortly after departure. A second boat, reportedly carrying 280 people, is believed to have sunk off Myanmar’s Ayeyarwady coast on July 8.

″While the incidents and casualty figures have yet to be officially confirmed, UNHCR and IOM are gravely concerned by the potentially devastating loss of life,” the agencies said.

Acting police Brig. Gen. Soe Lin Aung, the spokesperson for Myanmar’s Ministry of Home Affairs, declined to comment. Spokespeople for Myanmar’s president and the Ayeyarwady region’s government did not respond to requests for comment.

The Rohingya, who have in recent years fled both Myanmar and Bangladesh’s squalid refugee camps by the thousands, typically avoid such boat journeys at this time of year, when monsoons are frequent and conditions at sea are particularly dangerous. The UNHCR and IOM noted this in their statement, saying that recent torrential rain and flooding across the region would have made such journeys especially risky.

Around 1.2 million stateless, predominantly Muslim Rohingya remain trapped in overcrowded refugee camps in Bangladesh after fleeing waves of violence by Myanmar’s security forces.

The refugees have no way to safely return to Myanmar, where the military that killed thousands of Rohingya in 2017 during what the United States declared a genocide remains in charge of their homeland. The Rohingya still living in Myanmar face severe restrictions and many are confined to internment camps.

Steep cuts to foreign aid by the U.S. and other countries have led to ration cuts in Bangladesh’s refugee camps, while the ruling military and an ethnic armed organization in Rakhine have fought for control of the region.

The unrest has led to an increasing number of Rohingya attempting to make the dangerous ocean crossing to Malaysia on rickety boats. Thousands have died in the process, including babies, children and pregnant women. Local maritime authorities have frequently abandoned the Rohingya at sea, often ignoring reports of boats in distress.

The IOM and UNHCR said on Thursday that the latest potential tragedy at sea underscores the continued lack of sustainable solutions for the Rohingya, and urged the international community to support those trapped in Bangladesh’s camps.

“Stronger regional and international efforts are needed to prevent further loss of life along one of the world’s deadliest maritime routes, including through enhanced search and rescue efforts, access to asylum and protection, and actions against smuggling and trafficking networks,” the agencies said.

More than 6,500 Rohingya fled and nearly 900 were reported dead or missing in 2025, the deadliest year for Rohingya who tried to leave by boat. The figure represents the highest mortality rate of any major route for refugee and migrant sea journeys in the world, the UNHCR said.

Neill's family had earlier announced the actor known for “Jurassic Park,” “The Piano” and other films died Monday in Sydney.

His agent Philip Grenz said he was providing more information after speaking with Neill's family and following news reports “which contain inaccuracies and outright falsehoods,” he said.

"Sam passed away from pneumonia," Grenz said. “Prior to becoming sick, Sam had valiantly fought and beaten lymphoma through a new treatment called CAR-T therapy.”

He added that Neill had filmed four projects “back-to-back” during the past year that are due to be released in the coming months.

“As Sam was an intensely private man who loathed a fuss, his family will honor him with a private family memorial at his farm in New Zealand at a still-undetermined later date,” Grenz said.

The New Zealand actor disclosed in 2023 that he had been diagnosed with angioimmunoblastic T-cell lymphoma, a rare type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and said in April this year that he was cancer-free. CAR-T therapy is a form of immunotherapy based on an individual's T cells and is used for several types of blood cancer.

His agent's statement followed days of tributes to Neill from film industry colleagues who remembered him as a kind, witty and curious man.

“You are so loved and will be sorely missed by us all,” director Taika Waititi, who directed Neill in 2016's “Hunt for the Wilderpeople” — one of Neill's best-loved films in New Zealand — wrote on Instagram on Wednesday.

“Love you and see you soon, sweet Nigel," Waititi wrote, referring to Neill's birth name, which he told interviewers he had changed to Sam at school because there were too many Nigels in his class.

“Sam was exceptionally collaborative," said Steven Spielberg, who helmed the first “Jurassic Park” movie, in which Neill played paleontologist Alan Grant.

“I adored making all the Jurassic movies with him,” Spielberg said in a statement. "Along with Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, we will always have our Jurassic family and Sam will never be forgotten by us or his many millions of fans around the world.”

Neill was one of a host of actors and directors who achieved international fame after an explosion of Australian films that began in the late 1970s. In New Zealand, he has been mourned as a friendly, unassuming person who shunned celebrity and contributed to causes and community projects near his home, according to local news outlets.

Neill was also a vintner and under his Two Paddocks brand, he produced pinot noir and riesling wines from his winery in the Central Otago region of New Zealand’s South Island.

He is survived by his four children and eight grandchildren.

Republican Maricopa County Recorder Justin Heap sued the predominantly GOP board of supervisors in June 2025, alleging it illegally took control of certain aspects of election administration. The board called the lawsuit frivolous and said Heap was wasting taxpayer money.

They reached a settlement this week to resolve the lawsuit after mediated negotiations, and the board approved it.

“This deal gets us out of the courtroom,” board Chair Kate Brophy McGee, said after Tuesday's vote. “I’m sick of drama. We are done with being on the front page going forward.”

Heap said his objective was simple: to ensure his office's statutory responsibilities are carried out lawfully.

“I am pleased we have reached an agreement that, when implemented, will restore those responsibilities and establish a clear framework for administering elections moving forward,” Heap said in a statement jointly released with the board.

Under the agreement, an interim plan proposed by Heap and approved by the Arizona Supreme Court will govern the July 21 primary. Early voting began in late June.

Heap will oversee much of early voting, selection of ballot drop box locations and other duties. The board will handle other areas, including Election Day voting, ballot tabulation and voting location equipment maintenance. The board also will fund a new $15 million information technology system and related positions for the recorder.

Heap was backed in the lawsuit by America First Legal, a conservative public interest group founded by Stephen Miller, a deputy chief of staff in the White House. Heap had claimed the board transferred funding, IT staff and some key functions — including management of drop boxes and establishment of early voting sites — away from his office through an agreement negotiated with his predecessor.

Heap defeated incumbent recorder Stephen Richer, in a GOP primary, and won the 2024 general election.

The two were at odds over election administration in Maricopa County. In the past, Heap has stopped short of repeating false claims that the 2020 and 2022 elections were stolen. But he has said voters don’t trust the state’s voting system and that it is poorly run. Richer, also a Republican, relentlessly defended the legitimacy of the vote.

Supervisor Steve Gallardo, a Democrat, did not vote to approve the settlement and criticized Heap during Tuesday's board meeting.

“Honestly, I don’t think he wants to have an election that is conducted transparent or even an election that’s not compromised,” Gallardo said. “Now, with this, he owns it."

“Suspending a search is one of the hardest parts of our job and our condolences are with the families of all involved,” U.S. Coast Guard Captain Jared S. Toczko said in a statement.

Ralph Boisa said his extended family and a few close friends were on his younger brother's boat Tuesday afternoon to celebrate the life of his daughter who died over a decade ago and was in her 30s.

His older brother, Clifford, died shortly after being pulled out of the water. Sixteen others were rescued as the cabin cruiser was hit by a wave, took on water, listed heavily to one side and rolled over before sinking. Clifford's dog also died.

The three people missing are his sister Carol, Clifford's wife Jackie, and his daughter's friend, he said.

“We’ve gone through a lot of tragedy over the years,” said Boisa, who lost his other daughter in 1995. He lives in Washington and couldn't make it for the excursion.

Search ends at sundown Wednesday

Crews searched more than 814 square miles (2,108.3 square kilometers), according to the Coast Guard, and suspended their search “pending further developments.”

Toczko previously said he would not dismiss the possibility that those missing could still be alive, though he also said some could have been trapped inside the three-deck, 49-foot (15-meter) cabin cruiser.

“We do know individuals were in the main deck and potentially below deck," he said. Witnesses described seeing people pounding on glass windows, trapped as the boat sank.

Crews have identified the location the boat sank but have yet to determine how deep it sank, Toczko said.

Once the boat is located, officials will send either divers or an underwater drone to determine if it's feasible to salvage it, said San Francisco Police Commander Brien Hoo. If the boat is under 120 feet (37 meters) of water, it would be difficult for divers to get to it, he said.

Witnesses reported “rough seas,” San Francisco Fire Department Chief Dean Crispen said, and rescuers said swells reached up to 5 feet (1.5 meters). Marine weather conditions, however, didn't warrant a small craft advisory from the National Weather Service.

Fire department spokesperson Lt. Mariano Elias said the vessel, named Volare, was registered out of Stockton, California, which sits at the eastern edge of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.

According to the ship-tracking website VesselFinder, the boat departed a San Francisco marina, passed under the Golden Gate Bridge twice and visited Angel Island State Park, the largest natural island in the bay. It was on its way back to San Francisco when it sank near Alcatraz, the famous maximum-security federal prison which closed more than 60 years ago.

Kirk Miller, an experienced local sailor with a master mariner license, said an uneven distribution of passengers could have caused the Volare to tip.

“As it rocks in the waves, it leans over a little bit,” Miller said. “And as it leans over, the stability would decrease. If you had weight down below it acts as ballast. There was nothing in the conditions that were extreme in any regard. There was no massive gust of wind, no huge wave.”

Like a ‘Titanic’ scene, rescuer says

Two men who jumped into action while fishing for halibut said the boat that sank was more than capable of being out in the bay. Justin Marceline and Michael Montoya said they saw what they thought was smoke and arrived to find the vessel halfway submerged.

“We just started yanking people out,” Marceline told The Associated Press. At least two people bobbed in the water without life jackets, while others clung to a windsurfer’s board.

Marceline could see people trapped inside the rapidly sinking boat through its windows. He threw lead fishing weights to survivors in the water, hoping they could smash the glass, but they were too weak.

“It was like Titanic in real life,” he said. “There was stuff everywhere. People were banging on the glass.”

Montoya estimated they pulled eight or nine people aboard, including the captain, before first responders arrived.

Initial callers reported what appeared to be smoke coming from the boat, but San Francisco police officers who first reached the vessel said it was steam.

Toczko said there were life jackets onboard the boat and that some people were rescued wearing them.

Sudden immersion in water under 60 degrees Fahrenheit (15 degrees Celsius) can lead to cold water shock, a condition where people lose dexterity in minutes. That can be dangerous or deadly when trying to escape a sinking watercraft.

The owners of the boat are John Boisa and Miriam Boisa of Stockton, Coast Guard records show. They did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.

“All of us are grieving during this time,” he told the San Francisco Chronicle.

Ralph Boisa said his brother John is a “very capable and experienced boatsman” who served in the U.S. Navy. He frequently took family members out on the boat to the San Francisco Bay, Boisa said.

His older brother who died, Clifford Boisa, lived on a small prune orchard in Sutter County in the Sacramento Valley and was a volunteer sheriff's deputy for more than a decade. Ralph Boisa had planned to visit him for his 80th birthday party next month.

“He was a happy guy, jovial,” Boisa said. “We're pretty broken up here.”

___

Associated Press writers Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Ed White in Detroit; Hallie Golden in Seattle; and photographer Noah Berger in San Francisco contributed to this story.

Peak winds up to 100 mph were estimated in some spots.

Multiple businesses were wrecked by the tornado including the Palladium, Bass Pro Shops, Marshals.

WATCH BELOW: Multiple businesses at The Rim damaged after tornado, severe weather

>> The Latest Forecast

A nearby apartment complex, the Oasis, was also damaged.

KSAT’s Drone 12 shows several roofs in the complex completely blown off from the high winds.

WATCH BELOW: People glad to escape injury when tornado hit NW side apartment complex

More weather related coverage on KSAT:

• Stay alert for more rain and flooding through Thursday
• Hourly and 10-Day Forecast
• Download FREE KSAT Weather Authority App: Up-to-date forecast information and livestreams from trusted local meteorologists.
• KSAT Connect: Share your weather photos.

During the news conference, Uvalde Mayor Hector Luevano said local low-water areas are in the process of being barricaded.

“With rapidly changing weather conditions, we are asking the public to avoid these low-water crossings, if at all possible,” Luevano said. “The Uvalde Police Department officials are actively working alongside county, state and federal officials in the unified incident command system in protecting our citizens.”

On Tuesday, Uvalde police officers said they conducted 24 water rescues. Residents impacted by Tuesday’s “significant flooding” are now under a mandatory evacuation order, officers said in a social media post.

As of 9 a.m. Wednesday, that number has since risen to 25 rescues countywide. A Uvalde police spokesperson said nine other people were in the process of being rescued Wednesday.

Levels at multiple rivers are becoming a concern for elected officials and first responders. The Frio River is beginning to swell, and the Leona River is “flooding,” the Uvalde police spokesperson said.

In a separate Wednesday social media post, Uvalde police said the river gauge on the Leona River is reporting a 20-foot ”wall of water” that could rise an additional 15 feet.

Officials are advising residents to “prepare in case of evacuation.” People in and around the Leona River are being asked to evacuate “voluntarily.”

“The rain is going to come back tonight, it looks like, with a vengeance again, so I would urge caution,” District 80 state Rep. Don McLaughlin, who represents the Uvalde area. “The rivers and the creeks are going to be coming up, and they’re going to be coming up again with a vengeance.”

Those who were rescued, as well as other residents who needed to relocate to a safe area, have since relocated to a temporary shelter at the William R. Mitchell Uvalde County Fairplex, which is located at 215 Veterans Lane.

Travel between Uvalde and San Antonio along U.S. Highway 90 is being shut down, police said.

More related coverage of this story on KSAT:

• LIVE COVERAGE: Heavy rainfall, flooding remain factor in Hill Country, surrounding areas
• UPDATE: Flooding ongoing along US Highway 90, Hill Country; monitoring conditions in San Antonio

FORECAST HIGHLIGHTS

• FLOODING: Remains a major concern, especially around creeks and rivers
• CIBOLO CREEK: Crests overnight ... 21 ft at Selma by 2am ... Pecan Grove trailer park in nearby Schertz could be flooded tonight
• MORE ROUNDS OF HEAVY RAINFALL: We continue to monitor Authority Radar, more rounds of heavy rain expected tonight and tomorrow

CIBOLO CREEK

The Cibolo Creek has a flooding swell travelling to Selma and Schertz (then beyond) tonight with a forecasted crest of 21 ft at 2am in Selma.

According to NOAA, “A trailer park downstream in Schertz floods” at this level. The only trailer park I can find is the Pecan Grove trailer park along the Cibolo Creek in Schertz. If you or someone you know lives there, please advise them to seek higher ground for the night. See more flood risks at the bottom of this page.

REST OF TODAY

Rain has mostly subsided for now, but redevelopment of scattered to widespread storms is expected tonight into Thursday, then a general westward progression of the rain is likely throughout the day.

DRIER WEATHER THIS WEEKEND

Drier weather will take over by Saturday and Sunday.

RIVER FLOOD FORECAST FOR CIBILO CREEK, FRIO & NUECES RIVERS

QUICK WEATHER LINKS

• WATCH LIVE: Doppler Radar
• Hourly and 10-Day Forecast
• Download FREE KSAT Weather Authority App: Up-to-date forecast information and livestreams from trusted local meteorologists.
• KSAT Connect: Share your weather photos.

The tariffs, which were first proposed last month, will take effect July 22.

The order exempts some goods that are not produced in the U.S. or that officials worry would disrupt supply chains. Exempted products include coffee, beef, oranges and orange juice, some oil and gas energy products and aerospace parts and components.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative concluded after a yearlong investigation that Brazil had a range of unfair trade practices, including lax anti-corruption enforcement and unfair tariffs of its own, among other practices seen as unreasonable and unfair. The U.S., however, has had a goods trade surplus with Brazil for years.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement that the action was necessary to ensure American workers and companies compete on a level playing field.

“Extensive negotiations with Brazil over the past year have not resolved these issues, but we remain open to continuing negotiations with Brazil to bring about long-needed changes to the problems identified in this investigation,” he said.

After U.S. officials in early June warned that they were proposing the tariffs, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva reacted with indignation. He instead pointed to political considerations, blaming his rival in the country's October elections, Sen. Flávio Bolsonaro. Bolsonaro had recently visited Washington and is the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, an ally of President Donald Trump.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post on X about the announcement of the tariffs: “Let there be no confusion about why: President Lula and his government have not negotiated with the US in good faith. His economic policies are bad for Americans and bad for Brazilians. For the past year, Lula has put his own ego ahead of making a deal for the welfare of the Brazilian people, and these tariffs are the price for that.”

The tariffs are being imposed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, allowing the U.S. to launch the investigation into Brazil’s trade practices.

The U.S. Supreme Court in February ruled against many of Trump's tariffs imposed under a different law, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) of 1977. The court found he overstepped his authority under that act to impose sweeping tariffs on U.S. trading partners, including Brazil.

Trump had under that law imposed a 50% tariff on Brazil to protest its prosecution of Jair Bolsonaro for trying to overturn his loss in a 2022 election. But Trump's relationship with Lula seemed to improve in May, when he visited the White House.

The warnings were issued between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. as severe storms moved across parts of Bexar County. Although the area avoided the significant damage reported elsewhere in San Antonio, many people sought shelter and waited for the storms to pass.

Several drivers pulled into nearby gas stations to ride out the severe weather while monitoring changing conditions.

Among them were Katherine and Alexander Diaz, who were visiting from Oklahoma. Katherine, originally from San Antonio, said the family frequently returns to South Texas and often finds themselves tracking active weather.

“We come down almost once a month for family. But then for tracking, we’re almost always down here when something interesting is happening,” she said.

For others, the concern extended beyond their homes.

Armando Ojeda said his family was focused on protecting the livestock at their farm as the storms approached.

“We have livestock too, so yes, it’s worrying, but hopefully it won’t pass through where we live,” Ojeda said.

Ojeda said the severe weather was unlike anything he has witnessed growing up in the area.

“It’s the first time since I was born here, it’s the first time I’ve seen a tornado like this. It’s usually just very bad thunderstorms. It’s really crazy,” Ojeda added.

Although conditions improved later in the evening, forecasters continued to warn that additional rounds of rain could move through the area overnight.

Residents said they planned to stay weather-aware and remain indoors as they monitor changing conditions throughout the night.

Read also:

• NWS confirms EF-1 tornado touched down in northwest Bexar County on Wednesday
• Expert urges policy holders to review insurance after tornado touches down on Northwest Side
• Cleanup, power restoration underway in San Antonio after severe weather, city says

Days of back-and-forth strikes by the U.S. and Iran across the Middle East — and renewed threats to the Strait of Hormuz — have shredded the interim deal to end the Iran war and could tip the region back into all-out war. Already, Iranian officials say U.S. strikes have killed more than 35 people and wounded more than 300 others. Strikes also reached into areas around Iran's capital, Tehran, for the first time of this latest round of violence.

When the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Iran on Feb. 28, Tehran effectively closed the strait to shipping traffic — a move that sent the price of oil, fertilizer and many other goods soaring far beyond the region and gave Iran major leverage in negotiations.

US and Iran trade threats as attacks intensify

Those rising prices pose a particular challenge to U.S. President Donald Trump and his Republican Party, which hopes to retain control of Congress in elections in November. But Washington has struggled to successfully reopen the waterway, leading to Trump reimposing the naval blockade Wednesday.

Iran’s parliament speaker and lead negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, said Iran was prepared for a fuller military confrontation if the U.S. does not live up to the terms of the interim deal, and Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard threatened to halt all energy exports from the Middle East over the blockade.

“The export of oil and gas from the region will be either for everyone or for no one,” the Guard said.

Trump again insisted Iran was ready to strike a peace deal, but he did not elaborate.

“They don’t like what we’re doing, and they do want to settle. We’ll find out whether or not we settle with them, or we just finish it off,” he said Wednesday at the U.S. Army War College in Pennsylvania.

Trump separately said on social media that Tehran made a goodwill gesture by releasing an American citizen wrongly detained in Iran since 2024. He didn’t release further details. Human rights lawyer Jared Genser released a statement identifying the detainee as his client Dena Karari, a U.S.-Iranian citizen who runs a nonprofit and was charged with espionage.

Iran did not immediately acknowledge the release and her case hadn't been publicly known, which sometimes happens with detentions in the Islamic Republic.

Both the US and Iran launch attacks as the blockade is reimposed

The U.S. strikes early Thursday hit around Tehran, state media reported. It also reported American attacks targeted Semnan province, home to Iran’s ballistic missile production and space program.

On Wednesday, the U.S. resumed striking Iran during daylight — further showing the increasing tempo of the attacks. Its attack on Greater Tunb Island, a strategic point in the Strait of Hormuz — targeted Iranian defense and missile sites, Central Command said.

Meanwhile, the U.S. military said it opened fire on the Curacao-flagged oil tanker Belma sailing toward Kharg Island, Iran's main oil export terminal in the Persian Gulf. After the ship “ignored multiple warnings,” a U.S. aircraft disabled the merchant vessel by firing a missile into the ship’s smokestack.

Another American strike Wednesday targeted a barracks for Iran’s 388th Mechanized Infantry Brigade, which operates tanks and armored vehicles, in Sistan and Baluchestan province, Iranian state television reported. The report said Americans fired at least 13 missiles in the attack and the seven dead included conscripts and career soldiers. A number of troops were wounded.

The Strait of Hormuz remains at the heart of the fighting

The latest round of fighting is focused on the Strait of Hormuz. How to reopen the strait has bedeviled the U.S. since Iran choked it off in the early days of the war.

During the interim deal, some ships began moving through the passage using a route near Oman overseen by the U.S. military that is outside Tehran’s control.

In recent days, Iran attacked ships using that route — and back-and-forth attacks ensued. The U.S. has threatened to reopen the strait by force — but experts say that would require a much bigger armada if not tens of thousands of ground troops. Imposing the blockade is another way to put pressure on Iran.

But in the meantime, oil prices are rising. The price for Brent crude oil, the international standard, traded above $85 a barrel on Thursday — more than 15% higher than the price before the war, but still well below the nearly $120 reached at the height of the conflict.

___

Associated Press writers Michelle Price, Konstantin Toropin, Will Weissert, Collin Binkley and Fatima Hussein in Washington, Christopher Weber in Los Angeles, and Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.

While the worst of the rain may be over for some areas, emergency officials said rivers and streams are still responding to days of heavy precipitation, which keeps flood risks elevated.

Officials warn that flooding remains a concern because waterways are still carrying large amounts of runoff from upstream locations that received significant rainfall over the past several days.

As that water moves downstream, river levels can remain high long after the rain has ended.

Strong river currents and saturated ground conditions are also slowing recovery efforts. Low-lying areas remain vulnerable to additional flooding, and standing water continues to affect roads, parks and other public spaces.

For many residents, the prolonged nature of this flooding event has been one of the most difficult challenges.

High water levels have persisted for several days in some communities, delaying cleanup efforts and limiting access to impacted areas. Local residents said it has been difficult watching creeks and rivers remain swollen well after the rainfall ended.

First responders continue monitoring conditions and assisting where needed. Officials emphasize that accidents can happen quickly around floodwaters and remind the public that emergency personnel are working to help people stay safe and return home to their families.

River gauges across the region will continue to be closely monitored over the coming days as water slowly moves through area watersheds.

Officials encourage residents to remain aware of changing conditions and heed any local warnings or road closures until rivers return to safer levels.

QUICK WEATHER LINKS

• WATCH LIVE: Doppler Radar
• Hourly and 10-Day Forecast
• Download FREE KSAT Weather Authority App: Up-to-date forecast information and livestreams from trusted local meteorologists.
• KSAT Connect: Share your weather photos.

There is no immediate timeframe for his return. According to the Spurs, it is likely the 6-foot-10 forward will miss all of training camp and potentially a significant portion of the regular season.

It was known before the team selected Quaintance with the 20th-overall pick that he would need a second surgery on his right knee to clean up his meniscus.

The follow-up surgery comes after Quaintance tore his ACL in February 2025 while playing for Arizona State. He played in just four games last season for Kentucky.

After he was selected on draft night, Quaintance admitted he was still experiencing “a little pain” but expressed confidence in the Spurs’ medical staff to prioritize his long-term health.

Injury concerns were the main reason Quaintance fell in the NBA draft. He was once seen as a future lottery pick following his freshman season with the Sun Devils, where he earned Big 12 All-Defensive honors and set a freshman school record with 63 blocks.

The Spurs bought low on Quaintance, banking on their medical team’s assessment that he’ll return to full health and sustain a long NBA career. The forward just turned 19 years old on July 11.

Read more on KSAT Sports Now:

• San Antonio native to compete in fourth Major of rookie season at British Open

Flooding in Cibolo Creek caused the city to issue mandatory evacuations for all residents in the Pecan Grove RV Park, according to the news release.

Voluntary evacuations are recommended for people near the 200-300 blocks of Aviation Heights, Lone Oak, Rio Vista, Buffalo Valley South, areas along southern FM 78 and FM 1518 to Lisa Meadows.

Evacuation Maps can be found the city’s website.

The National Weather Service forecasts dangerous water levels to rise along the creek between 8:00 p.m. and 2 a.m.

Read also:

• Officials urge caution in Boerne as additional flooding possible

The family of Nolan Wells had previously alleged that messages seemed to have been erased from his phone before they got it back, just one of a series of concerns they've raised about the circumstances and investigation surrounding his death.

They met with District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath on Wednesday, largely to discuss the inquiry process. But attorney Ben Crump said McIlrath also committed to presenting the investigation to a grand jury once it was completed.

Messages seeking comment from McIlrath’s office were not returned.

Attorneys hope a grand jury will bring an impartial decision

“The hope is when this is presented to the grand jury, all relevant witnesses and evidence will be presented to them, so we can have a fair and impartial investigation into the death of Nolan Wells,” Crump said. “Our lived experiences tell us that we must question everything, everybody’s role, law enforcement’s role. That is the lived experience as Black people in America.”

Most felony cases go to a grand jury in Mississippi, said Ronald Rychlak, a law professor at the University of Mississippi. A grand jury is typically comprised of 15 to 25 citizens who listen to the prosecutor’s evidence and decide whether there is enough evidence for an indictment, Rychlak said.

Wells had traveled to the island with friends, but failed to return with them when they left around 3 p.m. Conflicting accounts have been given as to whether he planned to remain on Horn Island, about 7 miles (11 kilometers) offshore, to talk to a girl — or to return with those friends.

The roughly 11-mile-long (17-kilometer-long) spit of land is near the Alabama state line. The island is uninhabited and accessible only by boat and is popular for parties and gatherings, officials said.

Wells' mother reported him missing shortly after midnight on July 5. The next day, boat and rescue crews launched searches and Wells’ body was recovered in waters near the island afterward.

Speculation and suspicion about the teen’s death have been rampant online, as people grapple with the state’s history of racial tension and what it means to be a Black person in a majority-white space. Family and attorneys have said from photos and videos of the Fourth of July celebration on the island, where nearly 200 people had gathered, that Wells was one of very few Black people present.

The Congressional Black Caucus also weighed in Wednesday, adding to calls for an independent investigation into the death.

Authorities with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department and other agencies were quick to say they did not suspect foul play in his death. Results of an official autopsy are still pending, and the investigation is continuing, officials said.

Both the family’s attorneys and Jackson County Sheriff’s Department investigators have asked witnesses or anyone with video from the island to come forward as they seek answers about the moments before Wells’ disappearance and death.

Wells, who would have turned 19 next month, attended Southwest Mississippi Community College, where he played wide receiver on the football team. His family has urged a deeper investigation, saying he could swim. They also questioned why his friends would leave him behind but take his keys and phone.

Questions remain around teen's recovered cellphone

Family members retrieved his phone from the home of one of Wells' friends the evening of July 4 after using a locator app to find it. His family said their son was an avid Snapchat user, but there were no posts or messages from the 24 hours or so before they retrieved it.

Crump previously said he planned to hire an expert to determine whether data could be recovered from the phone or social media. Wednesday, he said that process will move forward in cooperation with investigators in the prosecutor's office.

Rychlak, the law professor, said mutual inspection of evidence between the police and victim’s family is not typical.

“Evidence is secured and not usually shared,” Rychlak said, adding that cooperation between the family and police could speed the investigation.

Wells’ death has galvanized the Black community. Actor and producer Tyler Perry is helping pay for Wells’ funeral. Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick is helping pay for his independent autopsy, and filmmaker Spike Lee attended a news conference last week in support of Wells’ family.

Wells’ mother Christine Wonsley said Wednesday that they want Monday's funeral to be a celebration of their son's life.

“He would not want us to be sitting around crying and eating, and so what we’re gonna do is kind of have a party to celebrate him,” she said. _____

Lauer reported from Philadelphia and Turbay reported from Little Rock, Arkansas.

On Wednesday, three members of a family were killed in central Gaza, Al Aqsa Hospital officials said.

On Tuesday, woman and six police officers were among those killed in an airstrike on a police station in the densely populated Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, hospital officials said. A man died in the bombing of a tent camp in Khan Younis in the south, Nasser Hospital officials said. And Israeli forces shot and killed a child in the Muwasi area outside the southernmost city of Rafah, according to hospital officials.

The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the strikes in central and southern Gaza. In a statement on the attack in Jabaliya, it claimed that four of the slain police officers were Hamas militants, without providing evidence on how those killed were involved in planning or carrying out attacks.

One of the officers, Col. Mohamad Marwan Salem, was a senior police commander and head of the Jabaliya police station, the Hamas-run Interior Ministry said.

Hamas, which ruled Gaza for years, maintains an armed wing as well as civilian police and security services that are overseen by its Interior Ministry. Throughout the war, Israel has targeted local police, including those guarding humanitarian aid convoys.

Israel's military has claimed it considers police stations legitimate targets if they're “being used to advance military activities, or if those present are military operatives involved in advancing terrorist activities.”

It did not say what military activities it believed were taking place at the Jabaliya police station, nor did it provide evidence that attacks were being planned. Hamas says the police force is engaged in maintaining law and order.

Israeli attacks on Gaza’s police have been condemned by the United Nations human rights office, which said last month that police personnel had been attacked at least a dozen times in 2026, including “during ordinary law enforcement operations, including directing traffic and patrolling streets and markets.”

“The pattern of attacks raises concerns that Israeli forces apply no distinction between police personnel and fighters belonging to armed groups in Gaza,” it said in a June 3 statement.

Ofer Guterman, a researcher at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies, said Israel’s targeting suggests that it regards parts of Hamas' policing apparatus as closely integrated with its military infrastructure, including through dual-role personnel and the use of facilities for weapons storage, operations and logistics.

The fragile ceasefire deal in October attempted to halt a two-year-long war between Israel and Hamas.

The heaviest fighting has subsided but at least 1,123 people have been killed in Gaza since the ceasefire took effect, according to the territory’s Health Ministry. The ministry, which has been part of the Hamas-led government, maintains detailed casualty records that are seen as generally reliable by U.N. agencies and independent experts. It does not give a breakdown of civilians and militants but says women and children make up most of the dead.

Militants have carried out shooting attacks on troops, and Israel says its strikes are in response to that and other violations. Five Israeli soldiers have been killed since the ceasefire.

The war began after the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killed around 1,200 people and saw 251 taken hostage. Israel’s retaliatory offensive in Gaza has killed more than 73,264 Palestinians, including those killed since the ceasefire, Gaza’s Health Ministry said. ___

Magdy reported from Cairo and Metz from Ramallah, West Bank.

Peak winds up to 100 mph were estimated in some spots.

>> At least 10 UTSA students may be displaced after tornado hits Northwest Side apartments, police say

The NWS said the tornado began around two miles southwest of the Interstate 10 and Loop 1604 interchange, dissipating just north of The Rim.

San Antonio residents and those across South Central Texas are encouraged to pay close attention to the weather.

Flooding remains the primary concern for San Antonio residents through Thursday.

More weather coverage on KSAT:

• LIVE COVERAGE: Heavy rainfall, flooding remain factor in Hill Country, surrounding areas
• KSAT Connect: Viewers share photos of lightning, flooding in San Antonio area

But the 291-241 vote in the lower house of parliament doesn’t mean the bill immediately becomes law. There will be a review to determine if it complies with the French Constitution.

The National Assembly approved the measure after backing it in three previous readings. French President Emmanuel Macron announced the legislation more than three years ago.

“In 2022, I committed to opening this path with the French people,” Macron said in a message posted on X. "With seriousness, with humility, and with full respect for our democracy, that commitment has been fulfilled.”

According to various estimates, assisted dying is available to around 300 million people worldwide, with euthanasia legal under certain conditions in some countries and assisted suicide allowed in others and in several U.S. states. France has an increasingly aging population, with growing numbers of patients in the country who require care for chronic illnesses.

France, a traditionally Catholic nation, has grappled with legal, medical, moral and religious questions about end-of-life options, including existing legislation that allows doctors to keep terminally ill patients sedated before death, but stops short of allowing assisted suicide and euthanasia.

“The national representation has risen to the occasion during these debates. This has been the longest debate since the 1980s,” said Yael Braun-Pivet, the president of the National Assembly.

Many French people have traveled to neighboring countries where medically assisted suicide or euthanasia are legal. Medically assisted suicide generally involves a patient voluntarily taking lethal medication prescribed by a doctor. Euthanasia involves a doctor or other healthcare professional administering a lethal injection at the patient’s request.

End-of-life options are also being debated in the United Kingdom. A bill to legalize assisted dying in England and Wales will formally return to Parliament on Sept. 11, five months after it ran out of time in Parliament’s last session.

The bill sets strict conditions

The proposed measure in France primarily provides for medically assisted suicide, by allowing patients to receive and self-administer lethal medication under strict conditions. Only people whose physical condition prevents them from doing so would be allowed to receive assistance from a doctor or a nurse.

Patients seeking to end their lives would have to be at least 18 years old and either French citizens or legal residents of France.

A doctor would first have to consult a team of healthcare professionals and then confirm that the patient has a serious and incurable illness that is life-threatening. The patient must be in an advanced or terminal stage, experiencing pain that can't be relieved or is unbearable, and seeking lethal medication of their own free will.

Lawmakers specified that psychological suffering alone wouldn't qualify a person for medically assisted dying.

People with severe psychiatric disorders or neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s wouldn't be eligible.

Patients would initiate the request, to be reviewed by health professionals within 15 days, and then confirm it after a period of reflection lasting at least two days.

If approved, they could take the lethal medication at the time and in the place of their choice, including at home or in a healthcare facility, in the presence of their loved ones if they wish.

On the chosen date, the doctor or nurse would have to verify that the person still wishes to proceed and remain nearby to intervene if complications arise.

France’s national health insurance system would cover all associated costs.

Many French people support the changes

A 2023 report found that most French people are in favor of legalizing end-of-life options, and opinion polls have shown support increasing over the past two decades.

The Association for the Right to Die With Dignity said that the law would allow people “to choose to end unbearable suffering, freely and with full awareness.” Its president, Jonathan Denis, said in a statement that “a law that creates a new right never forces anyone to exercise it. It does, however, ensure that every person … can remain at the heart of medical decisions that concern them and have their wishes respected.”

Opponents argue the measure could put pressure on older people and those living with illness or disabilities.

In an open letter to Macron, the anti-euthanasia group Alliance Vita said that “every effort must be made to ensure that people who are suffering have immediate access to palliative care and support. Presenting death as a desirable solution can never be an acceptable response to suffering and is contrary to human dignity.”

The vote caps a lengthy parliamentary process

The Senate, the upper house where conservatives hold a majority, rejected the bill. But under France’s legislative process, the National Assembly has the final say when the two houses of parliament disagree.

Senate President Gérard Larcher and Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said that they would refer the bill to the Constitutional Council, which will have up to a month to determine whether it complies with the French Constitution. The law will only take effect once that review has been completed.

“Extensive debates have taken place in the National Assembly on this bill. However, discussions in the Senate did not allow for such an in-depth examination, in order to produce legislation that addresses both the aspirations of its supporters and the concerns of those who are worried about how it will be implemented,” Lecornu said.

In the U.K., opponents of the bill to legalize assisted dying prevented it from passing in the House of Lords, the upper house, by filing more than 1,200 amendments on a range of concerns, including potential coercion of vulnerable people and a lack of safeguards for those with disabilities.

That was in April, after elected representatives in the House of Commons passed it.

The bill that is expected to be presented again proposes allowing adults in England and Wales, with fewer than six months to live, to apply for an assisted death subject to the approval of two doctors and an expert panel. One aim is so people no longer go to other countries, such as Switzerland, for an assisted death.

In Germany, parliament’s lower house, the Bundestag, in 2023 considered two proposals to regulate assisted dying and rejected both of them.

___

John Leicester in Paris, Pan Pylas in London and Geir Moulson in Berlin, contributed to this report.

The storm impacted areas near the University of Texas at San Antonio, the Rim, Camp Bullis, Crown Ridge and the Dominion, the city said. Downed trees and scattered debris were among the damage.

No injuries have been reported, according to the city.

>> Click here for the latest forecast

“The most significant structural damage occurred at the Oasis Apartments, 6023 UTSA Blvd., where a large section of the roof was torn from the building and three fourth-floor units were affected,” the city said.

The city said the American Red Cross is available to assist displaced residents with immediate needs. Residents needing assistance can call 1-800-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

Residents are also encouraged to report property damage from the storm by submitting a self-assessment survey through the Individual State of Texas Assessment Tool. The city noted reporting damage is voluntary and does not replace filing a claim with an insurance provider, nor does it guarantee disaster relief.

>> LIVE COVERAGE: Tornado touched down in NW Bexar County, heavy rainfall and flooding in Hill Country

The city will provide debris collection service to residents in storm-affected areas. Debris should be placed at the curb, clear of vehicles and other obstructions. Residents needing help with debris, downed trees or a property damage assessment should call 311.

City staff removed 57 trees following storms this week, including 34 on Wednesday alone. Twenty low-water crossings were barricaded as of 4 p.m. Wednesday, with crews monitoring conditions overnight.

The city urges residents to monitor weather alerts avoid damaged areas, flooded roadways and downed power lines.

Anyone who comes across a downed power line should stay away and report it to CPS Energy at 210-353-HELP (4357). Residents who smell gas should immediately move to a safe location, call 911 and contact CPS Energy at the same number.

Read also:

• Reported tornado touches down in northwest Bexar County; Damage at multiple businesses near The Rim
• Officials urge caution in Boerne as additional flooding possible
• At least 75 people rescued during severe storms in Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott says

David McCraw, the newspaper’s senior vice president and deputy general counsel, accused the government of bringing the subpoenas in “bad faith to punish The Times for its coverage.”

“They violate the constitutional rights of The Times and its journalists,” McCraw said in a statement. "We are going to court to defend our journalists’ rights to report freely on the administration and to provide the public with stories that matter."

The filing was made under seal in the Southern District of New York, where the journalists were summoned in subpoenas delivered last Friday to testify before a federal grand jury. The Times had said it expected five journalists to be subpoenaed; three were ultimately served.

The subpoenas, delivered to reporters at their homes, marked a dramatic escalation of the Trump administration’s crackdown on media leaks that free press advocates swiftly condemned as a government effort to intimidate news organizations. It followed an FBI search earlier this year of a Washington Post reporter’s home and the seizure of her electronic devices.

The new jet in question, a present from Qatar that Trump’s administration spent $400 million to retrofit and upgrade, recently entered service. But the Republican president used an older model Air Force One jet to leave a NATO summit in Turkey last week.

The Times, citing anonymous sources, reported that the switch had come at the urging of the Secret Service and that the newer plane lacked some of the advanced security features of the older aircraft, including antimissile capabilities. On social media, Trump denied security concerns.

The Justice Department has justified the subpoenas by saying that “to be clear, reporters are not the targets, those leaking classified information are.”

“We value and appreciate the important role that the press plays in this country,” the department said after the Times reported it had received the subpoenas. “But DOJ also plays an important role to make sure that the people entrusted with our nation’s secrets do what they’re supposed to do with that information, which means not sharing classified information.”

Asked about the issue at his Senate confirmation hearing Wednesday, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Justice Department is “not targeting reporters,” describing them as “material witnesses” to a leak investigation.

When Sen. Peter Welch, a Vermont Democrat, pointed out to Blanche that the department wants to ask the journalists who their sources were, Blanche replied, “No, the question we want to ask them is who provided them with classified national security information, which everybody in this body should want to protect.”

The Justice Department over the years has developed, and revised, internal policies governing how it will respond to news media leaks.

Though the department across presidential administrations has periodically seized the phone records of individual journalists in hopes of identifying sources for national security stories, it is extremely rare for the government to attempt to compel a reporter to reveal their sources before a grand jury.

In April 2025, then-Attorney General Pam Bondi rescinded a policy from President Joe Biden’s Democratic administration that protected journalists from having their phone records secretly seized during leak investigations — a practice long decried by news organizations and press freedom groups. The moves again gave prosecutors the authority to use subpoenas, court orders and search warrants to hunt for government officials who make “unauthorized disclosures” to journalists.

A memo Bondi issued said members of the press are “presumptively entitled to advance notice of such investigative activities,” and subpoenas are to be “narrowly drawn.” Warrants must also include “protocols designed to limit the scope of intrusion into potentially protected materials or newsgathering activities,” the memo stated.

In January, FBI agents searched the home of Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson, who has been covering Trump’s transformation of the federal government, as part of a leak investigation into a Pentagon contractor accused of taking home classified information.

The proceedings against 485 members of the international criminal Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, gang on charges that include homicide, extortion, drugs, arms and human trafficking, have drawn criticism by human rights groups, which say they infringe on defendants’ rights under the Latin American country's state of emergency.

The state of emergency, enacted in March 2022, suspended some constitutional rights and tens of thousands of Salvadorans have been detained since then.

“First, the police arrested thousands of people without investigation. Now, the courts are handing down mass convictions to hundreds without credible evidence or any real chance of defense," said Juan Pappier, Americas deputy director for Human Rights Watch.

"This is not justice; it is giving a veneer of legality to the arrests of innocent people that should never have happened.”

According to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the gang members are on trial for involvement in a total of 14,420 crimes — including 444 killings — committed between 2012 and 2022. The prosecution has asked for maximum sentence for each crime, which could amount to life in prison for some and $9 million in civil damages in all.

The prosecution argued that MS-13, which has been designated a foreign terrorist organization by the United States, used about 1,200 children in its criminal activities, exploited 638 women, and formed 32 groups, two of which operated from outside El Salvador.

During the hearings, the prosecutors played audio recordings of calls attributed to gang leaders in which they allegedly order killings and other crimes.

The trial was conducted virtually and the defendants appeared on camera from their detention center — the Terrorism Confinement Center, or CECOT, a megaprison built by the government of President Nayib Bukele. The facility, where visits, recreation and education are prohibited, has also housed hundreds of migrants deported from the U.S.

It's unclear when the verdict is expected.

El Salvador has made this form of collective trials possible under a July 2023 reform of its criminal code, which allows for those detained under the state of emergency to be grouped according to their gangs or territories.

Officials say that since the state of emergency was imposed, more than 92,480 people accused of belonging to gangs or having ties to them have been imprisoned.

Bukele has said that 8,000 innocent people have been released. Human rights organizations, meanwhile, say they have registered more than 6,000 complaints of human rights violations and arbitrary detentions, and documented the deaths of at least 547 people in custody.

Despite the criticism, the state of emergency remains popular in El Salvador, where many residents have grown tired of the years of violence and praise Bukele for his approach to improving security.

This is the country's second mass trial of gang members. Last November, 45 members of the Barrio 18 gang were convicted of various crimes, including extortion and homicide. One of that gang's leaders was sentenced to 397 years in prison.

Among the MS-13 leaders on trial now are Dionisio Arístides Umanzor Osorio, known by his alias “El Sirra de Teclas,” as well as Borromeo Henríquez Solórzano, aka “Diablito de Hollywood,” Carlos Tiberio Ramírez Valladares or “Snayder,” and César Antonio López Larios, aka “Greñas.”

___

Associated Press reporter Anna-Catherine Brigida reported from Mexico City.

___

Follow AP’s Latin America coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

The vote tally, 104-314, was not enough to attach the amendment to a broader national security spending bill, but stands as a stark accounting of the shifting attitudes that are dividing the Democratic Party and the nation over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's war strategy, now approaching its third year.

The House's Democratic leadership split over the issue in what was largely seen as a test vote ahead of the U.S. midterm elections that will determine control of Congress. More than 100 Democrats voted for the amendment to strip the foreign military aid money, and almost as many voted against. Most Republicans voted to preserve the Israel aid.

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who announced he opposed the measure that would zero out the aid, nevertheless said “that for the good of Israel and the Palestinian people, American policy in the Middle East must change.”

Jeffries said in a letter to colleagues, ahead of a private caucus meeting this week where he spoke on the issue, that he believes “there are more decisive ways to achieve the urgent change necessary when it comes to the far-right Netanyahu government.”

Democrats divided over US support for Israel

The deepening divide over Israel threatens to upend the Democratic Party as it faces an energized left flank that is promoting self-proclaimed democratic socialists in a handful of marquee House races, particularly last month in New York.

While more traditional Democrats have stood with U.S. support for Israel, a growing number have distanced themselves from Netanyahu's strategy as the war has dragged on in a prolonged response to the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.

The Democratic Whip, Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts, announced she would support the measure to withhold the funds.

Republicans have seized on the divide to portray Democrats as being overtaken by their more radical far-left elements, even as House Speaker Mike Johnson faces divisions within his own ranks as President Donald Trump's most ardent America First Republicans lean toward less foreign military spending.

According to an AP-NORC poll this month, about one-third of U.S. adults — including roughly half of Democrats — believe Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians during the war in Gaza, an accusation that’s been leveled by some human rights organizations and vehemently denied by Israel and the U.S. government.

Amendment pushed forward from Rep. Thomas Massie

The amendment to strip Israel's foreign aid was offered by Rep. Thomas Massie, the libertarian-leaning Kentucky Republican who lost his own bid for reelection after Trump backed his challenger.

During the floor debate, Massie said the $3.3 billion could be better spent at home on U.S. roads, bridges and veterans' needs, especially as national deficits are on the rise. He said the American weapons were used on “oftentimes innocent civilians.”

“I think we should stop it — we should put them on a diet,” Massie said.

But Democratic Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, himself a former party leader, championed longtime support of Israel and warned against withdrawing U.S. aid.

“I rise in strong opposition to this amendment, which would dangerously undermine American national security," Hoyer said. He said it would limit the United States' ability to confront terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah, which he said “expressly target American citizens and military personnel.”

Lawmakers under pressure as midterms near

The lawmakers were feeling pressure from all sides as they prepare for midterm elections this fall.

The powerful American-Israel group AIPAC encouraged its supporters to contact members of Congress to register their opposition.

"We must ensure his dangerous amendment is defeated," AIPAC said in a statement ahead of the vote.

At the same time, the progressive advocacy organization J Street gave lawmakers more leeway to express their views, as Jeffries did, even as the group opposed the amendment as poorly drafted and overly broad.

President Jeremy Ben-Ami said in a statement that J Street recognizes “that, for many Democrats, this is one of the few opportunities to cast a recorded vote expressing opposition to the way American military assistance and American-supplied weapons have been used by the Israeli government in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon and elsewhere.”

He said that what unites the majority of Democrats “is far more significant” than this vote as they work to support “the security and rights of both Israelis and Palestinians.”

Johnny Keefer, 25, is expected to play in all four majors as a PGA Tour rookie.

The Open runs from July 16 through the 19 in Southport. It will be the first time in five years Keefer has competed in The Open after a top three finish at the Scottish Open punched his ticket last weekend.

His lone top 40 finish came at the most recent major, the U.S. Open. But whether or not he scores that high again, Keefer is appreciative of another opportunity to live out his dream — playing against the best on the world stage.

“It means a lot,” Keefer said. “I played the first three Majors and going into this week, I wasn’t in The Open. Not only a great result but also getting into The Open is just tons of fun.”

The way he found himself on The Open lineup couldn’t have been more exhilarating.

The Johnson High School product had an uphill climb to qualify heading into the Scottish Open, with only three spots remaining.

The course wound up leaving many of the top golfers scratching their heads. Scottie Scheffler, the betting favorite, didn’t even make the cut.

On the other side was an underdog story, and in came Keefer. Instead of falling back to the pack, Keefer played arguably his best golf of the season, shooting 13-under-par for his best finish of the season, and soon later, he was doing interviews with his usual ear-to-ear grin.

“I knew the position I was in,” Keefer said. “But at the same time, I knew if I just stuck to my process and committed everything, regardless of the result, I was ready to hang my hat on that.”

KSAT 12 Sports spoke with Keefer a year ago ahead of his first U.S. Open appearance. Now, as a full-time PGA Tour member, his ascension hasn’t slowed down.

“Coming out of college, I thought I might have to fight, grind for a few years and figure everything out,” Keefer told KSAT in June 2025, when he was still competing mainly on the Korn Ferry Tour.

“But it’s been a dream come true so far,” Keefer said. “The only thing better would be getting on the PGA Tour now and competing at this level on a regular basis. But I’m going to keep on working hard and keep on trying to make old self pretty happy.”

The 154th Open Championship tees off at 7:42 a.m. CT alongside Pierceson Coody and Keita Nakajima.

Read also:

• INSIDE THE RING: ‘Sonic’ Paez continues to improve as he pursues his Olympic dreams

According to the KSAT Weather Authority, as of 5:30 p.m., some portions of Kendall County had experienced more than 10 inches of rain on Wednesday.

The Boerne Police Department received 109 calls for service during the storms, including 36 calls for water rescues, according to Police Chief Steve Perez. He noted there were no reported fatalities as of Wednesday afternoon.

Watch the full news conference below:

Earlier Wednesday, the National Weather Service issued a Flash Flood Warning for Kendall County, which includes Boerne, until 4:15 p.m.

However, as of 12:25 p.m., the NWS announced that Boerne and other portions of south Kendall County were under a Flash Flood Emergency until 8:15 p.m. The NWS described its latest alert as a “particularly dangerous situation.”

“Move to high ground if you are near Cibolo Creek or smaller tributaries,” the NWS said in a post to X. “Turn Around, Don’t Drown if you encounter a flooded roadway!”

A Flash Flood Emergency is in effect for southern Kendall County, including the City of Boerne. THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION! Move to high ground if you are near Cibolo Creek or smaller tributaries. Turn Around, Don't Drown if you encounter a flooded roadway! pic.twitter.com/uhZVFJa8dp

— NWS Austin/San Antonio (@NWSSanAntonio) July 15, 2026

In response, Boerne Mayor Frank Ritchie issued and signed a disaster declaration due to the city’s severe weather and flooding. The city said it will be asking the state for more resources “during and after this flooding event.”

Perez said 53 people were moved to shelter during Wednesday’s storms.

The Boerne Fire Department conducted three rescues that required swiftwater rescue operators, and one boat rescue at Herff Road and River Road, according to Assistant Fire Chief Walter Ball said.

The department also safely evacuated two apartment complexes in the 700 block of River Road, Ball said.

Chris Shadrock, the city’s communications and civic engagement director, said emergency crews began staging and staff started preparing street and park closures ahead of the rain. The city also coordinated with the state to put emergency operations on standby.

Officials said the city is continuing to monitor the radar, and they urged the public to stay off closed roads and avoid driving past barricades.

QUICK WEATHER LINKS

• WATCH LIVE: Doppler Radar
• Hourly and 10-Day Forecast
• Download FREE KSAT Weather Authority App: Up-to-date forecast information and livestreams from trusted local meteorologists.
• KSAT Connect: Share your weather photos.

With one more win, he'll be delivering another World Cup trophy to Argentina.

Messi didn't add to his tournament-leading goal total, but the 39-year-old assisted on two late strikes that carried La Albiceleste to another stunning comeback and a 2-1 victory over England in the semifinals Wednesday.

“Leo is still performing at the highest level,” England captain Harry Kane said. “I felt like for large parts of the game, we dealt with him really well. But as always with the most dangerous players in the world, when they have the ball in the final third, they can be place-setters. And he did that again today. He's obviously one of the best players ever for a reason.”

Eight days after an improbable rally against Egypt in the round of 16, Messi returned to Atlanta to produce another stellar moment in a career that might already be the best of anyone to play the sport.

England was surely envisioning going for its first World Cup title since its only one six decades ago after a 55th-minute goal from Anthony Gordon.

But Messi and his blue-clad teammates, as they have shown over and over again, are never done. Now it's on to face Spain in the final on Sunday with a chance at becoming the first repeat champion since Brazil in 1958 and 1962.

In the 85th minute, with England hanging on for dear life, Messi pushed out a short corner, immediately got the return pass and spotted Enzo Fernández lurking in the middle of the field, 25 yards from the goal. Fernández ripped a curling shot past goalkeeper Jordan Pickford to even the score.

At that point, it seemed inevitable that Argentina would pull out the victory.

And that's just what happened, with Messi again the orchestrator. Two minutes into stoppage time, he suddenly turned on the speed as he raced toward the end line, gaining enough space to send a pinpoint cross into the area at the back post. The ball cleared six English players, setting up Lautaro Martínez to effortlessly head home the winning goal after slipping between two defenders.

It was a poignant moment for Martínez, all of it made possible by his captain.

“This is really powerful,” he said in Spanish, fighting back tears. “The first time my old man bought me a pair of soccer boots, I always dreamed of scoring this goal.”

From there, it was just a matter of protecting the lead, which Argentina did easily.

When the final whistle blew, Messi dropped to his knees in the middle of the field, pumping his fists.

American sports stars were in awe of what they had just witnessed.

“WOWWWWWWW,” the NFL's J.J. Watt posted on X.

“Argentina is unreal,” added NBA champion Jalen Brunson, also on X.

Messi played for years in the shadow of the late Diego Maradona, the pride of Argentina who led the country to a World Cup title in 1986 that included two memorable scores — the “Hand of God” and the “Goal of the Century” -- in a quarterfinal win over England.

Now, it’s Messi who has stamped his legacy with a triumph over one of Argentina’s most bitter rivals.

“Seeing Messi playing football like this, at his age, it just leaves me speechless,” said Matías Adorno, who turned out in Messi's No. 10 jersey to celebrate with thousands or revelers in central Buenos Aires. “As Argentines, we’ve always put so much pressure on him. But he’s achieved everything I could imagine.”

Messi remains even with Kylian Mbappé of France in the goals race for the Golden Boot, with both stars having scored eight times. But with two assists, he moved ahead of Mbappé in that category, which is the first tiebreaker for the award. Mbappé has a chance to retake the lead in Saturday's third-place match against England.

Messi is also the World Cup career scoring leader with 21 goals.

But what he really wants is another title.

He's one win away.

___

Associated Press writer Isabel Debre in Buenos Aires contributed to this report.

___

See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here

KSAT has crews in the Alamo City, as well as in the surrounding areas, to check on the flooding, damage and the road conditions.

>> UPDATE: Flooding ongoing along Highway 90, Hill Country; monitoring conditions in San Antonio

Rainfall continues to increase across the San Antonio area, with the heaviest activity over Frio, Medina and Uvalde counties.

Severe weather is also developing amidst this activity, with strong winds and rotation possible.

Expect to see more activity developing around San Antonio on Wednesday.

WATCH BELOW: Bass Pro Shops at The Rim was damaged following a tornado on Northwest Side

WATCH BELOW: Restaurant at The Rim damaged following tornado

WATCH BELOW: Tornado tears through The Rim, damaging Marshalls

Severe weather causes extensive damage at Northwest Side apartment complex

WATCH BELOW: Uvalde city, county officials provide Wednesday morning update on countywide flood response

WATCH BELOW: UVALDE COUNTY: Roads still dangerous following rain and flash floods

WATCH BELOW: KSAT monitors severe weather response near Leona River in Uvalde County

WATCH BELOW: Video shows damage at NW Side apartment complex after reported tornado

WATCH BELOW: Heavy rainfall in Uvalde coming down with strong winds

WATCH BELOW: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issues disaster declaration for multiple counties, including Bexar County

WATCH BELOW: Northwest Side neighborhood cleans up after severe storms knock over trees

Read also:

• Avoid these notorious roadways prone to flooding during heavy rain in San Antonio

But more than 100 inmates were rewarded with a special viewing of the World Cup semifinal match Wednesday between England and Argentina because of their model behavior behind bars.

The inmates, dressed in tan uniforms, took seats at tables facing a large projection screen set up in a gymnasium. The jail has hosted about 90 such watch parties since the tournament kicked off last month, with about 4,500 of the roughly 6,600 inmates incarcerated on the 400-acre island participating, correction officials said.

“Programs like this equal safety in our jail,” said Stanley Richards, the city’s correction commissioner and a former Rikers inmate. “What we say to them is that your humanity is seen, heard and valued.”

Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who briefly stopped by, added: “The World Cup has been a magical moment for the entire city. These are New Yorkers, and they will be New Yorkers when they get out of Rikers.”

The scene Wednesday was in sharp contrast to complaints about Rikers Island that have been so bad in recent years that a federal judge appointed an outside manager to help improve the facility.

On Tuesday, that federal overseer, former Vermont Department of Corrections head Nicholas Deml, submitted a plan for reforms that underscored the continued dysfunction at the facility, which opened in 1935.

The report described one instance when inspectors arrived at a housing unit to find it filled with smoke from fires set by prisoners, blaring alarms and people pounding on their cell doors. In another incident, prisoners streamed through an unsecured door and brawled after a guard abandoned his post.

“Violence remains pervasive, basic correctional practices remain unreliable, and unconstitutional conditions persist,” the report said.

Mamdani has vowed to honor a 2019 city law mandating the closure of Rikers, but also conceded the 2027 deadline is likely unrealistic after years of delays.

With his white shirt sleeves rolled up, the Democrat went table-by-table chatting up inmates.

One told the mayor he expected Argentina to prevail over England and go on to face Spain, which had defeated France the day earlier.

“You never know,” said Mamdani, a professed Morocco fan.

At another table, an inmate told the mayor he was going home later in the day. “That’s amazing,” Mamdani said, patting his back.

The jailhouse crowd erupted in a mix of groans and cheers as England struck first with a goal early in the second half.

Ralph Veal was among the minority of England fans who raised his arms in celebration. The 53-year-old Mount Vernon resident, who has been incarcerated since November, said the watch party made him reflect on how he might better approach life after jail.

“I could be doing this with my family, you know?” he said. “My son, he’s a big soccer fan, so this would be great for me and him to have that relationship and that bond.”

Others simply relished the chance for a rare treat: a freshly catered meal of salad, salmon, penne alla vodka and chicken parmesan, along with Snapple drinks.

“I’ve been locked up 21 months," said Thomas McCoy, 52, of Brooklyn. “It’s been a long time since I had real food like that.”

When the final whistle blew and Argentina earned a spot against Spain in the final Sunday, Victor Caldas was overcome with emotions.

The 39-year-old, who has been incarcerated for four months, has been rooting for Argentina since his home country of Ecuador was knocked out of the tournament.

“It reminds me of when I was a kid, playing soccer. It’s all about love. Soccer brings a lot of love,” he said, still staring at the final score as others started cleaning up the gym.

“It don’t matter from where you are in the world, you know. It’s about bonding with another culture, other people.”

Videos and photos from multiple media outlets showed officers wearing vests marked with “Police” seizing boxes from the building housing Have A Nice Stay, a bookshop founded by former journalists. A bookseller was seen being taken away.

A few streets away a similar scene played out, with boxes taken from the building housing Greenfield Book Store, according to a video by online news outlet The Collective.

Police later said they raided two stores in Mong Kok district, without identifying them. They arrested two men and three women on suspicion of breaching the 2024 national security law, according to their statement.

This is the third round of arrests linked to independent bookstores after similar operations in March and June that were widely seen as stifling dissent in the Asian financial hub.

The new police statement said an investigation showed the five people were suspected of displaying seditious materials and selling seditious publications on the premises. The publications' content includes stirring up hatred against the city's government, judiciary and law enforcement agencies, it said.

Customs officials referred the case after the discovery of allegedly seditious books in a batch of goods shipped to Hong Kong from overseas, police said, without specifying titles.

The bookstores were closed during usual opening hours on Wednesday. Calls to Greenfield and a founder of Have A Nice Stay were unanswered.

Have A Nice Stay had already announced it would shut down on Aug. 30. In a social media post, it said financial difficulties and an elusive red line were among the factors.

Hong Kong was once known for its freedom of publication and freedom of expression. Some Chinese residents crossed the border to buy books deemed to be too politically sensitive on the mainland.

Lam Wing-kee, the owner of Causeway Bay Books until his death earlier this month, made international headlines in 2016 when he revealed that he was held by Chinese authorities after crossing from Hong Kong to the city of Shenzhen. Four others affiliated with the bookstore in Hong Kong disappeared in late 2015.

Lam's account shocked many people in the former British colony, which Beijing promised would maintain its Western-style civil liberties for 50 years after its return to China in 1997.

Following political changes after anti-government protests in 2019, independent bookstores have been operating in an even more challenging environment.

Amnesty International’s Asia deputy regional director Sarah Brooks said the use of “sedition” offenses to target bookstores demonstrated how the city’s national security framework “is being weaponized to silence dissenting voices and eradicate spaces for free thought.”

“This year’s escalating attacks on Hong Kong’s independent bookstores hammer home the chilling reality of what the city has become: a place where you can be criminalized simply for what’s on your bookshelf,” she said.

Authorities say the national security laws are crucial for the city’s stability. Hong Kong’s Secretary for Security Chris Tang has said the government would not set up a list of banned books, saying it would be pointless to implement in reality.

In March, police arrested the owner and staff of the independent Book Punch store, reportedly on suspicion of selling seditious publications. They included the biography of former pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison in his national security case.

In June, Hong Kong police arrested two booksellers on suspicion of selling seditious publications and receiving funds from foreign political organizations.

All were later released on bail.

No deaths related to the Texas storms have been reported, Abbott said in a news conference Wednesday. He said the floods are “likely to break records in Texas history.”

>> Click here for the latest forecast

The news conference comes after a tornado touched down Wednesday morning in northwest Bexar County, causing significant damage.

According to KSAT’s Weather Authority team, flood risk will stay in place across South Central Texas through Wednesday night.

On Tuesday, Abbott issued a disaster declaration for dozens of counties across Texas, including Bexar County, due to the severe storms.

“The protection of Texans is my top priority,” Abbott said in the Tuesday news release. “As severe storms and the threat of dangerous flash flooding continue across the state, this disaster declaration ensures we can rapidly deploy state resources to support local communities. Texas is positioned to respond quickly and effectively.”

The disaster declaration spans the Gulf Coast to Central Texas region.

Abbott also activated 24-hour operations at the state emergency operations center and urged Texans to stay off flooded roads, monitor local weather forecasts and have emergency supplies ready.

More counties may be added to the declaration “as conditions warrant,” according to the release.

Read also:

• LIVE COVERAGE: KSAT tracks storms in San Antonio, Hill Country, surrounding areas
• KSAT Connect: Viewers share photos of lightning, flooding in San Antonio area

In its latest attempt to reduce the risks of online harm for children, Britain's Labour government also said that features that can keep users scrolling for longer, such as videos that automatically play one after another, will also be switched off by default for older teenagers.

The planned restrictions come a month after the government unveiled a social media ban for under-16s, which is expected to cover platforms including Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X, but not messaging services like WhatsApp and Signal, from next spring.

The measures, which are one of the final acts of the government of Prime Minister Keir Starmer, will have to be legislated upon. It is widely believed that his expected successor Andy Burnham will follow through with the plans.

Online Safety Minister Kanishka Narayan downplayed talk that teenagers would just turn off optional social media curfews, saying it is a “disservice” to them to suggest they would.

He pointed to a recent pilot program involving more than 300 teenagers and parents across the U.K. that saw social media usage drop dramatically overnight as well as helping improve sleep and concentration.

“In October, for example, some platforms introduced these defaults of this sort – 90%-plus teenagers said to us that they’ve maintained those defaults as well,” he told Sky News. “And so the evidence base is clear, the motivation is very clear and I wouldn’t do the disservice to teenagers of saying they’re all going to switch it off.”

Laura Trott, the education spokesperson for the main opposition Conservative Party, said the proposals make “no sense.”

“Either they think 16- and 17-year-olds should be on social media or they don’t, but curfews they can simply switch off won’t achieve anything,” she said.

The NSPCC, the U.K.'s leading children's charity, said the proposals will go some way to improving the experiences of young people on social media but won't be enough on their own.

“Unless they’re followed up with further, stronger measures, they will be a sticking plaster that fails to address the addictive design features which are driving high screentime and undermining children’s wellbeing,” said NSPCC chief executive Chris Sherwood.

Rachel de Souza, the Children’s Commissioner for England, said the move was a “positive step” as young people want to try to cut down social media use but find it hard.

“I want to know more about how the policies, such as a curfew, will be delivered and will be watching closely to make sure they are effective,” she said.