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WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. (AP) — A man armed with a rifle rammed a vehicle into a major synagogue in a Detroit suburb and was fatally shot by security, The Associated Press has learned.That’s according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke to The Associated Press on Thursday. The vehicle caught on fire after the crash, the person said.Investigators were still working to identify the man and a possible motive for the attack. The person cautioned that the investigation is still in the early stagesThe person could not publicly discuss details of the investigation and spoke to AP on condition of anonymity.THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.The suspect in an attack on a synagogue in Michigan is dead, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press, after a sheriff said security at the largest Reform Synagogue in the U.S. had engaged in gunfire.The person confirmed the death at the Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, but did not provide additional details. The person could not publicly discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.The person said no one else was reported injured.Oakland County Sheriff Sheriff Mike Bouchard confirmed during an earlier news conference that security at the synagogue had engaged in gunfire with at least one person, and that no one was in custody.WDIV-TV reported that a truck had crashed into the synagogue. Smoke could be seen billowing from the synagogue’s roof. Footage from the scene shows dozens of police vehicles surrounding the building.FBI Director Kash Patel said agents were on scene of an “apparent vehicle ramming and active shooter situation” at the synagogue.The Oakland County Sheriff’s office said authorities are clearing the building. About a dozen parents sprinted to get their children from an early childhood learning center inside the building after getting approval from police. West Bloomfield School District went on lockdown.Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer issued a statement saying she was tracking developments.“This is heartbreaking,” the governor said. “Michigan’s Jewish community should be able to live and practice their faith in peace.”Temple Israel calls itself the nation’s largest Reform synagogue, with 12,000 members. according to its website. It has an early childhood education center and offers educational programs for families and adults.The website says the synagogue is “passionate about helping Jewish communities across the globe” and that its mission is to “create a community building through the lens of Reform Judaism.”The Jewish Federation of Detroit advised all Jewish organizations in the area “to go into lockout protocol — nobody in or out of your building.”___Durkin Richer reported from Washington, D.C.

ATLANTA (AP) — Chris Ratledge used to make as much as $9,500 a week working on film sets around Atlanta. Now, he’s on food stamps.The 48-year-old digital imaging technician moved from Indiana to Georgia in 2017 as studios — lured by generous tax credits — turned Atlanta into the “Hollywood of the South,” the backdrop for hundreds of productions like “The Hunger Games,” “Stranger Things” and more than a dozen Marvel blockbusters.Ratledge said the work was grueling — 70-hour weeks were normal — but the $72-an-hour pay was transformative. “I paid off three years of back taxes in one year, just from the money I made,” says Ratledge, who worked on the Netflix movie “Red Notice,” as well as shows like TBS’ “Miracle Workers” and Starz’s “P-Valley.”Those times are long gone: Ratledge has worked just four days on set since May 2024.Instead, he's been working part-time at the front desk of a local tennis center and stringing rackets on the side, trying somehow to support his family of five on $15 an hour without health insurance. His wife, a cancer survivor, has started cleaning houses a few days a week, and they've downsized their rental home. But their $2,000-a-month income hardly even covers their rent, a shortfall that has left Ratledge in debt and deeply depressed.“All I want for Christmas is for my film career back,” Ratledge wrote on Instagram in December.Georgia’s boom goes bustAfter hitting a peak of $4.4 billion in 2022, spending on film and TV production in Georgia has tumbled, reaching just $2.3 billion in the last fiscal year, as total productions dropped from 412 in 2022 to 245 last year. The decline accelerated after the 2023 writers and actors strikes halted productions for months, dealing a blow to an industry still recovering from COVID-19 shutdowns.“We saw a lot of productions start looking overseas, knowing that they wouldn’t have another work stoppage,” said Lee Thomas, the deputy commissioner of the Georgia Film Office. “We knew that it would be like a reset to the industry ... but it certainly was a bigger, harder fall than we anticipated — and longer.”Marvel has left Georgia’s market — its last movie filmed there was 2025's “Thunderbolts” — and shifted its massive productions to the United Kingdom, where labor and production costs are cheaper. Streamers like Netflix are also increasingly filming abroad, while producing fewer shows in general. Other states, including California and Texas, have upped incentives to compete with Georgia’s tax credits, which can cover up to 30% of production costs.Local industry Facebook groups are filled with complaints about a lack of work, with some people griping about well-established veterans taking up the few jobs available, said Monique Younger, an Atlanta costume supervisor. Younger says her work is less than half what it once was, making her “feel a little bit useless.”Jen Farris, an Atlanta native and longtime location scout, said she used to reject offers because she had too much work. Now, she’s navigating two- or three-month gaps in between projects, forcing her to “watch her pennies.”“You just pray that you have nested away enough to float a little bit,” she said.Training crews for an uncertain futureDespite the bleak landscape, Shadowbox Studios, one of metro Atlanta’s largest soundstage operators, is betting on the area's future and has urged local filmmakers and industry leaders to rethink what’s possible.Shadowbox has been pitching its mammoth spaces to everyone from indie filmmakers to content creators and esports organizers. But it also wants to make sure the city's crew base remains robust.Atlanta has for years served as the country’s “antidote” to Hollywood blockbusters moving overseas, said Shadowbox COO Mike Mosallam, pointing to the city’s experienced crews, comparatively lower production costs, extensive soundstage space and diverse landscapes. Keeping that talent pipeline strong is key to keeping more productions from leaving, he said.In November, Shadowbox hosted about 25 Black college students for Backlot Academy, a program launched in 2022 to diversify the ranks of professions where personal connections often determine who gets hired.Veteran crew members taught the participants how to decipher call sheets, use walkie-talkie lingo and survive 12-hour days on their feet. Participants could enroll for free in a multiweek digital course on the ins and outs of production and get mentorship as they try to book their first gig.Trainee Julian Williams grew up in Atlanta and watched his city become a playground for Hollywood. One of the “Alvin and the Chipmunks” movies was even filmed on his street. Now a 24-year-old digital media student at Georgia Piedmont Technical College, Williams is determined to break into the industry as a production assistant, with the hope of one day becoming an assistant director.He's prepared to follow his film dreams wherever they lead, but for now, he’s betting on Atlanta and its collaborative film community.“People are genuinely helpful and willing to share what they know,” Williams said.Among those helping Williams and the other trainees was Joseph Jones, a Backlot alumnus who credits Shadowbox with helping him embark on a rewarding career as a production assistant. “It changed my life,” said Jones, 53, who spent years working in hotels but always knew he wanted to work on films.But Shadowbox officials aren't downplaying reality: The industry is down, especially in Atlanta. On the day of the training, just one of Shadowbox's nine soundstages was booked for a production, said Jeremiah Cullen, director of sales.Cullen said Shadowbox has been forced to adapt, cutting deals to meet filmmakers' budgets while frequently calling former clients to see how they can fit their needs.“Hey, we miss you on the lot,” he tells them. “You got anything cooking?”Searching for a resetRatledge grew up loving movies, too, especially when, as a 9-year-old, he saw his rural Indiana town of Milan immortalized in 1986's “Hoosiers.” He has continued to reach out to his network, but he's ready to move on.Ratledge said he isn’t looking for a miracle — just one steady TV job that would give him breathing room to stabilize his finances and figure out his next move. A five- or six-month series, he said, would allow him to restore his health insurance, file for bankruptcy and “hit the reset button.”“I don’t think I’m any different than the people who worked in Detroit when the auto industry collapsed in the '70s and everything went overseas,” he said.It's a concern even President Donald Trump has weighed in on, calling last year for tariffs aimed at keeping film production in the U.S. — a plan that experts have called vague and impractical.Thomas, of the Georgia Film Office, said that business is up significantly from the last fiscal year. She partially credits the rebound to a new state law that allows Georgia's tax incentives to apply to more types of productions, including short-form vertical videos and free ad-supported streaming channels like Tubi.Some Atlanta veterans still see a path forward, including Farris, the location scout. She said too many talented, creative people are in Atlanta for it all to simply fade away.“People moved their families here. They’re raising children here. This wasn’t just about film,” she said. “It changed our landscape — it brought in brilliant new minds. Artists. Creators. And I really believe Georgia will find a way to foster an entirely new wave of artistic possibility.”___This story has been corrected to show that Ratledge’s family has five members, not four.

WASHINGTON (AP) — House lawmakers were digging into Jeffrey Epstein's sprawling financial portfolio on Wednesday as a committee deposed his former accountant and tried to understand his connections to some of the world's wealthiest men.Richard Kahn, who worked closely with Epstein for years and now serves as an executor of his estate, appeared for the closed-door deposition on Capitol Hill. He told lawmakers that he had not personally seen evidence of Epstein's sexual abuse, but provided a fuller picture of how Epstein acquired his wealth. The wealthy financier made hundreds of millions of dollars over two decades, during which he struck up friendships with some of the world's most powerful men.Kahn “was under the impression that Epstein made his money as a tax advisor and a financial planner,” said Rep. James Comer, the Republican chair of the House Oversight Committee. Lawmakers argued that a fuller picture of Epstein's finances could help the public understand how, for years, he was able to get away with trafficking and sexually abusing underage girls.“Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking ring would not have been possible without Richard Kahn, who managed Epstein's money for years, authorized payments, including payments to victims and survivors,” said Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., who added that Kahn told them he was unable to recall details of some of the transactions and communications that he was asked about.Kahn has said that he was unaware of Epstein's sexual abuse and had not seen any of his victims.Comer, R-Ky., also said that lawmakers confirmed during the deposition that Epstein received significant amounts of money from former retail shopping chain executive Les Wexner, hedge fund manager Glenn Dubin, tech entrepreneur Steven Sinofsky, investor Leon Black and the Rothschilds, a wealthy banking family.None of those people have been accused of wrongdoing in their relationships with Epstein, but Democrats on the committee argued that anyone with ties to the wealthy financier should be scrutinized. Wexner was deposed by the committee last month, and Comer has also called on Black, among several others, to appear for transcribed interviews.Kahn also told lawmakers that Epstein had financial ties to Ehud Barak, who was the prime minister of Israel from 1999 to 2001, according to Democratic Rep. Suhas Subramanyam. Barak has not been accused of wrongdoing and has said he regrets his friendship with Epstein.Comer also said Wednesday that the committee has reviewed over 40,000 documents that it subpoenaed from JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank. Epstein was connected to at least 64 business entities, according to Comer.Republican President Donald Trump has strongly denied any wrongdoing in his own ties to Epstein, and Comer said that Kahn had never seen any financial transactions between Epstein and Trump. Comer said that Kahn is the latest witness to testify that they had never seen Trump doing anything wrong with Epstein.“The investigation's about getting the truth to the American people, trying to figure out how the government failed, answer questions we all have,” Comer said.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran have damaged at least four cultural and historical sites, including palaces and an ancient mosque, raising alarms about the impact of the widening war on protected landmarks that are important to Iranian identity and world history.The speed and extent of the damage have so concerned Iran and Lebanon that they sent a request to the United Nations' cultural agency, UNESCO, this week to add more sites to its enhanced protection list.UNESCO confirmed that it has verified damage to the lavish Qajar-era Golestan Palace in Tehran as well as the 17th century Chehel Sotoun palace and the Masjed-e Jāme, the country's oldest Friday mosque, both in Isfahan. There also was verified damage at buildings close to the Khorramabad Valley, which includes five prehistoric caves and one rock shelter providing evidence of human occupation dating to 63,000 B.C.At Golestan Palace, shattered glass from the mirrored ceilings blanketed the floors alongside broken archways, blown-out windows and damaged molding scattered below its glass-mosaic walls, according to Associated Press video taken March 3.UNESCO said it provided all parties to the conflict with the geographical coordinates of the heritage sites ahead of time, “to take all feasible precautions to avoid damage.”The impact to cultural sites has not been isolated to Iran but has been felt across the Middle East and beyond, with UNESCO tracking damage to the White City in Israel, Tyre in Lebanon and elsewhere.Collateral damage to such places has been part of the fabric of war for decades, including in conflicts between Russia and Ukraine as well as Israel and Hamas, in which dozens of sites have been damaged or destroyed.“What is happening is clear to all: In these increasingly modern conflicts, it’s civilians who pay the price, it’s civilian infrastructure that pays the price, and we’ve all seen the destruction of priceless historical heritage,” U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said this week.Damage to historyHuman rights advocates are echoing that sentiment, warning that the Iran war not only has killed more than 1,000 people but upended the institutions and historical places that communities rely on.“It causes harm to civilians because it damages or destroys a piece of their history that can be significant both to the world and also to a specific region or community," said Bonnie Docherty, senior researcher in the arms division at Human Rights Watch. “It undermines the sort of shared identity of a local community, which can often be important for bringing people together.”Arash Azizi, who grew up in Iran before moving to the U.S. as an adult, said that because his family couldn't afford to travel abroad when he was a child, they visited historical sites across the country. This, he says, is how he learned about his cultural identity and history.“At times where school kids are killed, when human life is at stake, when the stakes are very high, people might think, ‘What are a couple of broken tiles or broken glasses?’” the 38-year-old New York resident said.“I think this is the wrong attitude," he added. "We need a cultural context. We need to know who we are, and where we come from, and what does it all mean?”Iranian American sees one damage site as deeply personalFor Shabnam Emdadi, a 35-year-old Iranian American also in New York, the damage to the Safavid-era Chehel Sotoun Palace in Isfahan is deeply personal. She traveled there with her dad a few years before he died.“Those Iran trips with him were my most fond memories of him at his happiest, where he felt most at home and alive, and I’ll never forget them,” Emdadi said. “Which is why every day when I see the damage of these sites that are the core of my memories, I feel like I am also losing a piece of him.”It was unclear if it was U.S. or Israeli strikes that caused the damage. The Pentagon did not provide comment. The Israeli Defense Forces said it was “unfamiliar” with claims of damage to UNESCO sites.One nonprofit group pointed to U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth saying last week that America’s approach to the war would not include “stupid rules of engagement.”“That’s an extremely important statement because it’s those rules of engagement that embody international humanitarian law, which is not just the protection of cultural heritage, but the protection of all civilian populations and structures, including your hospitals, your schools, etc.,” said Patty Gerstenblith, president of the U.S. Committee of the Blue Shield, an international organization dedicated to protecting heritage in conflict, disaster and crisis.UNESCO's protectionsThe affected sites are among the nearly 30 Iranian sites designated as under special protection as part of UNESCO's World Heritage list.Other notable landmarks on the list include the Great Wall of China, the Egyptian pyramids, the Taj Mahal and the Statue of Liberty.The agency's World Heritage Committee annually designates sites considered “of outstanding value to humanity” and intervenes when sites are in danger of destruction or damage. The program provides countries with technical assistance and professional training to preserve the sites.The Trump administration announced last July that it would once again withdraw from UNESCO as it distances the U.S. from some international organizations.The White House cited similar concerns as it did in 2018, saying it believes U.S. involvement is not in its national interest and accusing the agency of promoting anti-Israel speech. The decision won’t go into effect until December.___Associated Press writer Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis contributed to this report.

The ongoing American-Israeli war with Iran, for all its complexity and global effects, boils down to a single question: Who can take the pain the longest? A surge in oil prices points to what may be Iran’s most effective weapon and the United States’ biggest vulnerability in continuing the campaign: Damaging the world economy.Wednesday’s major developments include Iranian attacks against commercial ships around the Strait of Hormuz and Dubai International Airport, escalating a campaign of squeezing the oil-rich Gulf region as global energy concerns mount.The U.S. campaign of airstrikes in Iran is now in its 12th day with no end in sight. A U.S. commander says artificial intelligence has helped the military hit more than 5,500 targets in the country. An Israeli intelligence assessment also indicates that Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, was wounded at the start of the war.Witnesses in Tehran said they heard loud airstrikes and heavy anti-aircraft fire Wednesday, and columns of smoke made the sky overcast as a layer of gray dust settled over the city. The air is filled with the distinctive smell of burnt powder and gasoline. They spoke on condition of anonymity to avoid reprisal.The Israeli military is also striking Iran and its militant ally Hezbollah in Lebanon, where more than 800,000 people have been displaced by the fighting.Here's the latest:Ship hit in Persian Gulf off UAEA container ship off Dubai in the Persian Gulf came under attack Thursday, sparking a small fire, the British military said.The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said the attack happened just before dawn. It said an “unknown projectile” hit the vessel as it was some 65 kilometers (40 miles) off the coast of Dubai’s Jebel Ali port.It added that the crew of the vessel were safe.Brent crude oil tops $100 a barrel as Iran attacks on shipping worsen supply concernsThe price of a barrel of Brent crude oil, the international standard, topped $100 a barrel early Thursday, just days after it spiked near $120.Oil prices shot more than 9% higher as supply concerns worsened with Iranian attacks on commercial shipping around the Strait of Hormuz.U.S. benchmark crude oil jumped to about $95 a barrel.Read more here.Israeli strikes kill 3 near BeirutLebanon’s Health Ministry said Israeli strikes early Thursday a town in the hills overlooking Beirut killed three people and wounded a child.Aramoun, a town about 10 kilometers (6 miles) south of Beirut where dozens of displaced families have found shelter, has been targeted twice since the conflict between Hezbollah and Israel renewed after Hezbollah fired rockets into northern Israel on March 2.The Health Ministry also said the death toll from an earlier Israeli strike on central Beirut had risen to eight people, with 31 wounded.Iraqi officials shut oil terminals after deadly strike hits Basra portAn attack on Iraq’s Basra port early Thursday killed at least one person and forced authorities to halt operations at all the country’s oil terminals, officials said.Farhan al-Fartousi, the director-general of the General Company for Ports of Iraq, made the announcement in a statement carried by the state-run Iraqi News Agency on Thursday. Al-Fartousi said the attack targeted a ship engaged in a ship-to-ship transfer of oil in the Basra port on the Persian Gulf. He said it remained unclear if the ship was targeted by a flying or seaborne drone or a missile.Rescuers recovered one dead body and helped 38 others after the attack. He said commercial ports in Iraq remained open, though the oil terminals had been shut.Major fire strikes neighborhood home to Bahrain International AirportA major fire struck a neighborhood in Bahrain’s capital home to the island kingdom’s international airport early Thursday after an Iranian attack, with authorities urging people in the surrounding area to close their windows due to the fumes.The fire began in Bahrain’s Muharraq Island, which is home to Bahrain International Airport. Bahrain’s Interior Ministry described it as a blaze affecting oil tanks in the area. The airport has jet fuel tanks, while there’s also other tanks in the area for the kingdom’s oil industry.Bahrain’s Interior Ministry put out an alert for people in surrounding neighborhoods “to remain in their homes, close windows and ventilation openings, as a precautionary measure against possible exposure to smoke from the ongoing fire being combated.”Bahrain moved some aircraft out of the area of the airport early Wednesday.The Iranian strike comes as the U.S. military’s Central Command published video showing its strikes targeting Iranian military aircraft in the ongoing war. Iran also has targeted Dubai International Airport in the United Arab Emirates, the world’s busiest for international travel.Fire put out at Dubai Creek Harbor after drone strikeFirefighters extinguished a blaze at a tower in Dubai Creek Harbor early Thursday morning after an Iranian drone strike.The drone hit the Address Creek Harbour 2 tower in the neighborhood.An image published by authorities appeared to show damage at two units in the building.Saudi Arabia reports downing drones early ThursdayThe country’s defense ministry said it downed drones in the kingdom’s east, including at least one trying to target its Shaybah oil field in the Empty Quarter desert.CitiBank closes branches in UAE after Iran threatCitiBank said it would close all its branches except one Thursday after a threat by Iran to target financial institutions in the region.CitiBank said it made the decision “given the evolving situation within the country,” without elaborating.Other financial institutions reportedly have urged their staff to work from home over the threat.Authorities respond to drone that fell on building in DubaiDubai authorities are responding to a drone that fell on a building near Dubai Creek Harbour, a luxury waterfront development north of the country’s downtown, the Dubai Media Center said, adding that officials are carrying out evacuations.Bahrain officials say Iranian-linked attacks targeted fuel tanksBahrain’s Ministry of Interior said Iranian-linked attacks targeted fuel tanks at a facility in Muharraq Governorate, northeast of the country’s capital, Manama.“Authorities are taking the required procedures,” the ministry said.7 killed, 21 wounded in Israeli strike on central BeirutThe Lebanese Health Ministry reported the casualties in the coastal area of Ramlet al-Bayda. The strike hit a car along the seaside, where dozens of displaced families were sheltering in makeshift tents.Israel's military said it was not aware of a strike at that location.Israeli strike hits a car in central Beirut, local media reportsAn Israeli strike hit a car in the coastal area of Ramlet al-Bayda, according to local media. The seaside area is popular with tourists and is where dozens of displaced people have been sheltering.Israel’s military didn’t immediately respond to a request for information.The strike, which came without warning, occurred in an area with no notable Hezbollah presence that is far from Beirut’s southern suburbs, where the Israeli military has issued evacuation notices and said it is targeting Hezbollah positions overnight.It was not immediately clear who was targeted, and the number of casualties was not known. Videos circulating from the strike site showed smoke rising from the seaside. The strike came near the site of a recent Israeli attack on a tourist hotel, where the Israeli military said it killed four members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.___This entry has been updated to reflect that Ramlet al-Bayda is not on the east side of Beirut.US says it will release 172 million barrels of oil as part of effort to combat pricesU.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright says the U.S. will release 172 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as part of the International Energy Agency’s efforts to combat steep oil prices amid the Iran war.Wright said the release would begin next week and take about 120 days “to deliver based on planned discharge rates.” He also said the U.S. would replace about 200 million barrels within the next year.The U.S. had more than 415 million barrels in the SPR as of the end of last month. President Trump previously downplayed the importance of using reserve oil, but confirmed earlier Wednesday that his administration would “reduce it a little bit” and then fill it back up.First week of war with Iran cost US $11.3 billionThe Pentagon provided the estimate to Congress in a briefing earlier this week, according to a person familiar with the situation who was granted anonymity to discuss the private meeting.That comes after it reported spending $5 billion on munitions alone over the first weekend of the war.The Trump administration had previously indicated it would be sending Congress a request for supplemental funding for the war, but that appears to have cooled, for now.Sen. Roger Wicker, the GOP chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Wednesday that he was not expecting the supplemental request this month.___— By Lisa MascaroUS defense secretary calls for review of military lawyers’ focus to prioritize ‘support to the warfighter’Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth argued that military attorneys need to be focused on advising commanders on operations and in deployed environments where “seconds and minutes count.”Hegseth’s announcement comes as scrutiny over civilian casualties in the Iran war intensifies, including the bombing of a girl’s school that evidence suggests was likely caused by U.S. airstrikes.“Commanders need agile, independent, dead-on legal advice that enables decisive action, not endless process or turf wars,” Hegseth said in a video posted to X.Hegseth said military legal support needs a “hard reset” after becoming “bloated and duplicative.”“Our warriors deserve legal teams as lethal and focused as they are,” Hegseth said.Israel says it has begun ‘wave of strikes’ in Iran’s capitalMinutes after saying Iran had launched missiles into Israel very early on Thursday morning, Israel’s military said it had begun a “wide-scale wave of strikes” in Tehran.The last such announcement was early Wednesday afternoon. Israel’s military also said it was targeting Hezbollah with strikes and raids in various parts of Lebanon. That includes the capital Beirut, where loud booms were heard in the central portion of the city early Thursday morning.Sirens wailed and loud explosions were heard early Thursday in JerusalemAlerts also blared in the north, where Hezbollah has fired drones and rockets into Israel.Israel’s military said shortly after midnight that it was working to intercept missiles launched from Iran.Russia’s UN envoy says there are no negotiations to end the war in IranAmbassador Vassily Nebenzia was responding to a question about the possibility of negotiations following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s talks with U.S. President Donald Trump and Arab leaders.Nebenzia said Iran was ready to continue negotiations when the U.S. and Israel launched “a premeditated, deliberate attack” on Feb. 28.“There are no negotiations, although Iran expressed willingness for negotiations,” he told reporters after the Security Council rejected a Russian-drafted resolution on the war.Nonetheless, Nebenzia said, “We are ready to help to get out of the dire situation the whole region and the United States got itself into.”Police in Bahrain arrest 6 people accused of posting videos at sites of Iranian strikesThey were arrested for “filming and posting videos related to the aftermath of the Iranian aggression, expressing sympathy and glorifying its hostile acts,” the country’s Interior Ministry said.The ministry said Bahrain’s anti-cybercrime directorate arrested the suspects and referred them to prosecutors after their videos circulated on social media, “potentially misleading public opinion, spreading fear among citizens and residents and harming security and public order.”Bahraini authorities have arrested dozens of people accused of documenting Iranian strike sites or participating in pro-Iran demonstrations in the Shiite-majority, Sunni-ruled nation. Iran is majority Shiite.Drone attacks hit Iraq’s Kurdistan region, oil ship targeted near southern portDrone attacks were launched late Wednesday toward the cities of Irbil and Sulaymaniyah. One intercepted drone fell near the Divan Hotel in the Saad Abdullah Conference Hall complex in Irbil, a venue for high-level political meetings.In southern Iraq, an oil vessel flying the Australian flag was struck near Khor Al-Zubair Port, according to two Iraqi navy officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly.The attack occurred in a loading area within Iraqi territorial waters, the officials said, adding that 25 members of the crew were rescued. It was not immediately clear whether any others remained unaccounted for.Videos circulating online showed a large vessel engulfed in flames, with massive plumes of fire and thick black smoke billowing into the sky.No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks.___— By Stella Martany and Qassim Abdul-ZahraTop Senate Democrat says Trump is following his advice to tap Strategic Petroleum Reserve“Trump is doing what I called for three days ago, after needlessly sowing additional chaos and uncertainty,” U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement Wednesday. He added that Trump has “already created a lot more problems than this will solve – from the Strait of Hormuz blockade to his poorly planned and reckless war.″Trump said Wednesday he’ll tap the oil reserve “and then we’ll fill it up.” He didn’t specify how many barrels of oil the U.S. would release.Trump frequently criticized former President Joe Biden for tapping the oil reserve to try to lower gas prices.Fuel tanks on fire at Omani port amid Iran attacksFire crews were working to contain a blaze Wednesday at the fuel storage tanks at Oman’s Port of Salalah, amid days of Iranian attacks, according to the Oman News Agency.Kuwait’s foreign ministry condemned what it said was Iran’s targeting of the port and the fuel tanks, saying hitting such economic facilities was a “dangerous escalation” that threatened global trade. Videos showed thick plumes of black smoke and large flames rising from the fuel tanks.Trump, in continued contradictions, says Iran didn’t have ‘nuclear potential’ after last summer’s strikesThe president said that after the strikes with Israel last summer on Iran’s nuclear program: “We obliterated it. They don’t have nuclear potential.”But, Trump said, without offering specifics, that Iran “started again.”“That’s why we got to finish it, right? We don’t want to go back every two years.”Trump, along with others in his administration, have said as they justified the strikes on Iran that the country was weeks away from a nuclear weapon — despite claiming last summer’s strikes had destroyed the program.Trump says Iran is ‘virtually destroyed,’ promises to ‘finish the job’Speaking at an event in Kentucky, the president said the U.S. has won the war in Iran but isn’t ready to end it.“We don’t want to leave early, do we? We’ve got to finish the job,” the president said.He said the U.S. knocked out 58 naval ships and eliminated Iran’s air force.“You never like to say too early, ‘We won,’” he said. “We won.”Iranian diplomat says Security Council resolution seeks to ‘distort the realities’ of the warIran’s U.N. Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani said the resolution adopted by the Security Council on Wednesday, which does not mention that U.S. and Israeli strikes launched the war, “deliberately ignores the root causes of the current crisis.”“The very purpose of this biased and politically motivated text, which was pushed by Israeli regime and the United States, is clear: to reverse the roles and positions of victim and aggressor,” Iravani told the 15-member council.Trump says he will tap US Strategic Petroleum Reserve to try to ‘bring prices down’During an interview Wednesday with WKRC Local 12 in Cincinnati, Trump was asked about tapping the reserve and said, “Well, we’ll do that and then we’ll fill it up.”He added, “Right now we’ll reduce it a little bit, and that brings the prices down.” He didn’t specify how many barrels of oil the U.S. would release.Trump frequently criticized the administration of former President Joe Biden for tapping the reserve to try and bring down gas prices.Security Council rejects Russian resolution urging a halt to hostilities in the Middle EastThe Russian proposal failed to reach the nine votes needed to pass.The one-page text makes no mention of Iran, Israel, the U.S. or the Gulf states — all countries involved in the conflict — but simply urges military activities to cease. It also condemns attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure.Russia, China, Pakistan and Somalia were the only countries that supported the draft resolution. Other nations called it hypocritical for Russia to call for end of hostilities despite its own war with Ukraine.Vassily Nebenzia, Russia’s U.N. ambassador, had urged its adoption calling it “an impartial document” aimed at “de-escalating the situation.”US ambassador says Iranian attacks brought Gulf countries togetherEven before the Iranian ambassador got to speak, Mike Waltz, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said Tehran’s diplomat would present lies during the Security Council session on its actions in the region.Waltz said Iran’s repeated claims that it is only targets U.S. military bases in the Gulf is a lie.“These attacks were so brutal and so indiscriminate, as Iran shoots in all directions, that nations that previously had serious disagreements have now joined together,” he said. “They’ve now spoken as one voice.”Israeli jets pound Beirut’s southern suburbs after a large-scale Hezbollah rocket attackSimultaneous blasts rocked the Lebanese capital's densely populated southern suburbs — an area known as Dahiyeh — where large fires and plumes of smoke could be seen Wednesday evening.The Israeli military said it would respond aggressively after Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets at the same time into northern Israel, in one of the largest attacks in the current conflict. Israel struck what it said was infrastructure belonging to the militant group.The exchange marks an apparent escalation in the past week of fighting, which has killed more than 600 people in Lebanon and displaced about 800,000 others in the small country.Russia and China blast UN resolution on Iranian attacks for not mentioning Israeli-US strikesAfter abstaining from the U.N. Security Council resolution that demanded a halt to Iran’s attack on Gulf countries, the Chinese and Russian ambassadors defended their position, saying that the Bahrain proposal was “extremely unbalanced” in not mentioning the strikes against Tehran that began this war.“It muddies up the cause and effect. And if someone who is not well-versed in international affairs reads this then this person will be left with the impression that Tehran, on its own volition, and out of malice, conducted an unprovoked attack on Arab states,” Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said during a Security Council session Wednesday.Both Nebenzia and China’s U.N. envoy Fu Cong said they attempted to negotiate with Bahrain and the U.S. to include the initial strikes from Israel and the U.S. on Feb. 28 that launched the war, but the final resolution text ended up “unbalanced.”Oil reserve release makes up for just 3 weeks of lost supply, expert says“We’re basically talking about weeks, and not months, of supply,” said Bruce Bullock, director of the Maguire Energy Institute at Southern Methodist University.Bullock said the 400 million barrels of crude oil are meant as a short-term bridge while markets wait to see how the war unfolds. If the conflict drags on or the Strait of Hormuz stays blocked, reserves may need to be released more slowly, he said.But if the war ends soon, he added, the extra supply could trigger a sharp drop in oil prices.Trump tells FIFA chief that Iran remains welcome for World CupEven as leaders in Iran say it’s “not possible” for the country to participate in this year’s World Cup, the U.S. president is indicating Iran’s team is still welcome in the United States.Trump met privately with soccer chief Gianni Infantino on Tuesday at the White House, according to the FIFA president’s Instagram account.During the meeting, Trump “reiterated that the Iranian team is, of course, welcome to compete in the tournament in the United States,” Infantino wrote in the Instagram post.A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations, confirmed Trump’s message to Infantino about Iran’s participation.Since June, Iran has been subject to a travel ban into the U.S. as part of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. But athletes and coaches from the target nations are exempt, which means the Iranian team would be allowed in.The U.S. is hosting the tournament with Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19.▶ Read moreAP video shows Israeli strikes on a Gaza tent camp after an evacuation orderShortly after ending their daily fast for Ramadan, displaced Palestinians sheltering west of Gaza City said they received phone calls from apparent Israeli military personnel ordering them to get out of the area within five minutes.“They called us and told us to evacuate. We cannot breathe. And now they set our tents on fire. Where can we go?” said Ibtessal al-Shanbary, who escaped with a backpack and whatever small belongings she could hastily grab from her tent.Anssar camp was struck three times Wednesday evening, witnesses said; the first two were warning strikes, and the last one was a major strike that sparked a huge fire and sent plumes of smoke into the sky.The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Baltimore Ravens landed their star pass rusher in Trey Hendrickson, Maxx Crosby is back in Las Vegas for now and Daniel Jones is staying in Indianapolis as part of a busy start to the new league year.The biggest move Wednesday came when the Ravens agreed to a four-year, $112 million contract with four-time Pro Bowl defensive end Trey Hendrickson a day after backing out of a deal with the Raiders for Crosby over a failed physical, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press.Hendrickson was an All-Pro for Cincinnati in 2024 when he led the NFL with 17 1/2 sacks. He played in only seven games because of injuries last season and had four sacks but has reached double digits in sacks four times in the previous five seasons.It was a quick pivot for the Ravens after the surprising development Tuesday night when Baltimore pulled out of the trade that was supposed to send two first-round picks to Las Vegas.A person with knowledge of Baltimore’s decision told the AP that Crosby failed his physical. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because those results are private.Crosby had surgery in January to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee. He missed the final two games of the season because of the injury despite wanting to play through it at the time.The Raiders, who have been among the biggest spenders in the opening days of free agency, now must figure out what to do with Crosby. Las Vegas still has plenty of cap room to keep the five-time Pro Bowler on the roster with his $30 million salary if the team can't find another trade. Crosby was back in the team facility in Nevada on Wednesday, a person with knowledge of his whereabouts said on condition of anonymity.Jones and the Colts agreed on a two-year contract that is worth up to $100 million, a person with knowledge of the contract told the AP. The person requested anonymity because the deal had not yet been announced.Jones will receive $88 million over the next two seasons with $50 million guaranteed instead of playing on the $37.8 million transition tag. He can make an additional $12 million through incentives.Jones led the Colts offense to a productive 10-game start. But following the bye week, Jones played through a hairline fracture in his left leg and then wound up suffering a season-ending torn right Achilles tendon in early December.Jones set career highs in passer rating (100.2) and completion rate (68%) as Indianapolis ranked fifth in the NFL in scoring at 28.9 points per game before he went down for the season.All the people who confirmed new deals with players on Wednesday spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because teams hadn't announced the moves or other developments.Buffalo reached a three-year agreement with pass rusher Bradley Chubb, a person familiar with the deal said. Chubb agreed to terms with the Bills shortly after the Miami Dolphins announced his release.The 29-year-old Chubb has eight seasons of NFL experience. He spent the past three-plus years in Miami, including missing the entire 2024 season because of a torn knee ligament. He had 8 1/2 sacks last season.All-Pro safety Kevin Byard left Chicago to reunite with his former coach Mike Vrabel, agreeing to a one-year, $9 million deal with New England, a person familiar with the contract said. Byard led the NFL with seven interceptions last season. Byard played under Vrabel for five-plus seasons in Tennessee.Washington agreed to terms with edge rusher K’Lavon Chaisson on a one-year contract worth $12 million with $10.3 million guaranteed, according to Athletes First, the agency that represents him. Coming off ranking last in the NFL on defense, the Commanders also reached deals with linebacker Leo Chenal, safety Nick Cross, cornerback Amik Robertson and tight end Chig Okonkwo.The Buccaneers agreed on one-year contracts with defensive lineman A’Shawn Robinson and backup quarterback Jake Browning, two people with knowledge of the deals said. Robinson is getting $10 million guaranteed, one of the people said.The New York Jets agreed to terms with former Las Vegas Raiders left guard Dylan Parham on a two-year, $20 million contract. The signing helps offset the free agency losses of Alijah Vera-Tucker (Patriots) and John Simpson (Ravens) and gives New York a new starter on an offensive line that’ll help protect Geno Smith — Parham’s former teammate for one season in Las Vegas.New Orleans announced a multiyear contract with veteran tight end Noah Fant and a two-year extension for reserve defensive tackle John Ridgeway III. Fant spent last season with Cincinnati, where he caught 34 passes for 288 yards and three TDs. He spent his previous three seasons with Seattle and his first three with Denver, and has 334 career receptions for 3,593 yards and 18 TDs.Jacksonville agreed to a two-year deal with former Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez Jr., giving the Jaguars another option in the backfield after losing Travis Etienne in free agency. Rodriguez rushed for 500 yards and six TDs last season for Washington.Several other players hit the open market after being released by their former teams at the start of the league year, with many of these moves having already been telegraphed.Among those are Arizona quarterback Kyler Murray, Atlanta QB Kirk Cousins, Minnesota defensive tackles Javon Hargrave and Jonathan Allen, and Detroit edge rusher Josh Paschal.Hargrave immediately agreed to a new deal, getting a two-year, $23 million contract with $10.5 million guaranteed from Green Bay, according to his agent, Drew Rosenhaus. The deal will pay Hargrave $13 million in his first year as he joins his fourth team in five seasons. He has 49 sacks in 10 seasons.The Cowboys also made a pair of trades, sending pass-rushing defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa to San Francisco for a third-round pick and defensive lineman Solomon Thomas to Tennessee as part of a seventh-round pick swap.___AP Pro Football Writers Rob Maaddi and Dennis Waszak Jr., and AP Sports Writers Brett Martel, John Wawrow and Stephen Whyno contributed to this report.___AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

WASHINGTON (AP) — A man was taken into custody on Wednesday after driving his van into a security barrier outside the White House, authorities said.The Secret Service said the man crashed into the temporary security barrier just before 6:30 a.m. He was immediately arrested by officers from the Secret Service’s uniformed division, the agency said.The man, whose identity was not immediately released, was being interviewed by investigators. Criminal charges were pending, the Secret Service said.A police bomb squad was called to the scene, checked the vehicle and determined it to be safe.

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday commuted the death sentence of a 75-year-old inmate who was set to be executed this week even though he was not in the building when the victim was killed during a 1991 robbery.Ivey reduced Charles “Sonny” Burton’s sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole, marking just the second time the Republican governor has granted clemency to a death row inmate since taking office in 2017.Burton was sentenced to death for the shooting death of a customer, Doug Battle, during the robbery of an AutoZone auto parts store in Talladega. Though he had left the store before another man, Derrick DeBruce, killed Battle, Burton was convicted as an accomplice, with prosecutors portraying Burton as a leader of the robbery.Both DeBruce and Burton were convicted of capital murder, but DeBruce’s sentence was overturned on appeal. DeBruce was resentenced to life in prison and died in prison.Ivey, who has presided over 25 executions, said she firmly believes in the death penalty as "just punishment for society’s most heinous offenders," but said it also must be administered fairly and proportionately. The Republican governor said she “cannot proceed in good conscience with the execution of Mr. Burton under such disparate circumstances.”“I believe it would be unjust for one participant in this crime to be executed while the participant who pulled the trigger was not,” Ivey said in a statement. “To be clear, Mr. Burton will not be eligible for parole and will rightfully spend the remainder of his life behind bars for his role in the robbery that led to the murder of Doug Battle. He will now receive the same punishment as the triggerman."Burton was scheduled to be executed Thursday night by nitrogen gas, a new execution method the state began using in 2024.Burton’s supporters and family members had urged Ivey to consider clemency for Burton, who uses a wheelchair. Multiple jurors from Burton’s 1992 trial were among those urging his life be spared. Battle’s daughter sent a letter to Ivey urging clemency, asking “how does it legally make sense” to execute Burton.“I’m just so happy, so happy. It’s just tears of joy,” Burton’s daughter, Lois Harris, said through sobs during a telephone interview.Alice Marie Johnson, whom President Donald Trump had tapped last year as his “pardon czar” after commuting her sentence for federal drug and money laundering charges, praised Ivey. She said the governor “showed what courageous and common sense leadership looks like.”“By commuting the death sentence of Charles “Sonny” Burton, she ensured that justice — not technicalities — guides the most serious decision a state can make,” Johnson wrote on social media.But Attorney General Steve Marshall slammed the move, saying, “There has never been any doubt that Sonny Burton has Douglas Battle’s blood on his hands.”Burton organized the armed robbery and “held a gun to the store manager’s head” before dividing up the proceeds, Marshall said in a statement.Burton received the news at Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore as the state was making preparations for his execution on Thursday. Burton had made his request for a final meal and was working on a will to give away his belongings after he was put to death.Matt Schulz, an assistant federal defender who represented Burton, said he was able to deliver the news in person.“This was absolutely the right decision for the governor to make for any number of reasons," Schulz said. "The biggest one is the fact that this dichotomy of executing a non-shooter who did not even see the shooting take place after the state itself had resentenced the shooter to life without parole.”In a statement issued through his attorneys, Burton thanked the governor: “Just saying thank you doesn’t seem like much. But it’s what I can give her."Burton told The Associated Press last month that no one was supposed to be injured in the robbery and that he didn't know until later that DeBruce had shot anyone.“I didn’t know anything about nobody getting hurt until we were on the way back. No, nobody supposed to get hurt,” Burton said in a telephone interview from Alabama’s Holman Correctional FacilityBurton said he wants to apologize to Battle’s family. “I’m so sorry. If I had the power to bring him back, I would," Burton said.