Suspect arrested in arson fire that forced Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, family to flee residence
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Police say a man has been arrested after a suspected arson fire at the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion while Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro and his family slept inside. Shapiro, his family and guests were evacuated early Sunday from the Harrisburg residence after being awakened by state troopers. No one was injured and the fire was extinguished. Authorities identified the man in custody as 38-year-old Cody Balmer of Harrisburg. Dauphin County District Attorney Francis Chardo says forthcoming charges will include attempted murder, terrorism, attempted arson and aggravated assault. The attack happened on the Jewish holiday of Passover, which Shapiro had celebrated at the residence.
Trump team tries to project confidence and calm after his tariff moves rattled markets
ATLANTA (AP) — White House advisers and Cabinet members are trying to project confidence and calm as they defend President Donald Trump’s economic policies after another week of reeling markets that saw the Republican administration reverse course on some of its steepest tariffs. For his part, Trump took an aggressive stance on his social media platform Sunday, disputing the idea that he will exempt any products from his sweeping tariff plans. The Trump team pressed its case during appearances on the Sunday news shows. Their explanations and Trump’s comments together reflected shifting narratives from a president who, as a candidate, had promised an immediate economic boost and lower prices but now asks American businesses and consumers for patience.
China’s Xi says there are ‘no winners’ in a tariff war as he visits Southeast Asia
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — China’s leader Xi Jinping started a week of diplomacy in Southeast Asia with a visit to Vietnam on Monday, signaling China’ s commitment to global trade, just after U.S. President Donald Trump upended the global economy with his latest tariffs moves. Although Trump has paused some tariffs, China was the outlier, as he has kept in place 145% tariffs on the world’s second-largest economy. In Vietnam, Xi will meet with Vietnam’s Communist Party General Secretary To Lam, as well as the Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.
FAA says company whose sightseeing chopper crashed, killing 6, is ceasing operations immediately
NEW YORK (AP) — The Federal Aviation Administration says the helicopter tour company whose sightseeing chopper crashed in New York, killing six people, is shutting down operations immediately. The FAA said Sunday that it would launch an immediate review of New York Helicopter Tours’ operating license and safety record. The move came hours after New York Sen. Chuck Schumer called on federal authorities to revoke the company’s operating permits. Its sightseeing helicopter broke apart in midair and plunged into the Hudson River Thursday, killing a family of five visiting from Spain and the pilot, a Navy SEAL veteran. Inquiries to New York Helicopter Tours were not returned.
Russian missiles hit Ukrainian city of Sumy during Palm Sunday celebrations, killing more than 30
SUMY, Ukraine (AP) — Russian missiles struck the heart of the Ukrainian city of Sumy as people gathered to celebrate Palm Sunday. Officials say the strike killed at least 34 people. It was the second large-scale attack to claim civilian lives in just over a week. Images from the scene on official channels showed lines of black body bags lying on the side of the road, while more bodies were seen wrapped in foil blankets among the debris. Video footage also showed fire crews fighting to extinguish the shells of burned-out cars among the rubble from damaged buildings. A further 117 people were wounded.
Israel intensifies strikes across Gaza on Palm Sunday and hits a hospital in the north
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — A new wave of Israeli strikes across Gaza has hit the last major hospital providing critical health care in the territory’s north. At least 21 people were killed Sunday including children. A pregnant woman was among survivors pulled from the rubble. Israel has vowed to expand its security presence in the small coastal strip. The predawn strike on Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City was the latest of several attacks on the facility. The emergency room is badly damaged. Staffers said patients were evacuated after an Israeli warning and slept in the streets. A child patient died during the chaos.
What to know about Ecuador’s reelected President Noboa and his plans to fight crime
QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Daniel Noboa stunned voters in 2023 when he won a snap election for a 16-month presidency after only a brief stint as a lawmaker and with no established political machinery. No longer a political neophyte now, the young conservative millionaire defeated the protegee of Ecuador’s most influential recent president for a second time and earned four years in office. The new term will allow Noboa to continue some of his no-holds-barred crimefighting strategies that part of the electorate finds appealing but which have tested the limits of laws and norms of governing.
US still won’t say whether it will return mistakenly deported man, despite Supreme Court decision
The Trump administration is doubling down on its decision not to tell a federal court whether it has any plans to repatriate a Maryland man who was mistakenly deported last month and remains confined in a notorious prison in El Salvador. This is despite a Supreme Court ruling that the man should be returned to the United States. The U.S. district court judge handling the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia now is weighing whether to grant a request from the man’s legal team to compel the government to explain why it should not be held in contempt. Any move toward a contempt finding would represent an extraordinary turn in the Trump administration’s assertion of presidential authority, both generally and specifically over immigration policy.
Mario Vargas Llosa, Peruvian author and Nobel literature laureate, dies at 89
LIMA, Peru (AP) — Peruvian author Mario Vargas Llosa, Nobel literature laureate and a giant of Latin American letters for many decades, has died, his son said Sunday. He was 89. “It is with deep sorrow that we announce that our father, Mario Vargas Llosa, passed away peacefully in Lima today, surrounded by his family,” read a letter signed by his children Álvaro, Gonzalo and Morgana, and posted by Álvaro on X. He was author of such celebrated novels as “The Time of the Hero” (La Ciudad y los Perros) and “Feast of the Goat.” A prolific novelist and essayist and winner of myriad prizes, Vargas Llosa was awarded the Nobel in 2010.
Rory McIlroy wins Masters playoff to complete the career Grand Slam
AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Rory McIlroy turned another major collapse into his grandest performance of all, hitting a wedge into 3 feet for birdie in a sudden-death playoff Sunday to finally win the Masters and take his place in golf history as the sixth player to claim the career Grand Slam. What should have been a coronation along the back nine at Augusta National turned into a heart-racing, lead-changing jaw-dropping finish at golf’s greatest theater that ended with McIlroy on his knees sobbing with joy and disbelief. Right when it looked as though he would blow another major, he delivered two majestic shots when nothing less would do.