A US ship with equipment for building a pier is on its way to Gaza as part of a plan to ramp up aid
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — A U.S. Army vessel carrying equipment for building a temporary pier in Gaza is on its way to the Mediterranean. The voyage began just two days after U.S. President Joe Biden announced plans to ramp up aid deliveries by sea to the besieged enclave where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have been going hungry. Meanwhile, Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza has dragged on, with at least 22 Palestinians reported killed in two Israeli strikes overnight and into Sunday. Among the dead were women and children, including an infant. Biden has sharply criticized Israel for its conduct of the war, saying it must do much more to prevent the killing of civilians.
Biden: Netanyahu ‘hurting Israel’ by not preventing more civilian deaths in Gaza
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — President Joe Biden says he believes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is “hurting Israel more than helping Israel” in how he is approaching its war against Hamas in Gaza. The U.S. leader expressed support for Israel’s right to pursue Hamas after the Oct. 7 attack, but said of Netanyahu that “he must pay more attention to the innocent lives being lost as a consequence of the actions taken.” Biden has for months warned that Israel risks losing international support over mounting civilian casualties in Gaza. The remarks in an MSNBC interview pointed to the strained relationship between the two leaders. Biden said of the Gaza death toll, “it’s contrary to what Israel stands for. And I think it’s a big mistake.”
Trump blasts Biden over Laken Riley’s death after Biden says he regrets using term ‘illegal’
ATLANTA (AP) — President Joe Biden says he regretted using the term “illegal” during his State of the Union address to describe the suspected killer of Laken Riley. In an interview Saturday with MSNBC, Biden said, “I shouldn’t have used illegal, it’s undocumented.” But his all-but certain rival, former President Donald Trump, assailed Biden for the apology and blamed Biden for Riley’s death at a rally attended by the Georgia nursing student’s family. Riley’s death has become a rallying cry for Republicans amid a record surge of migrants entering the country. A man from Venezuela who entered the U.S. illegally has been arrested and charged with her murder.
Why you should stop texting your kids at school
Parents are keenly aware of the distractions and the mental health issues associated with smartphones and social media, but teachers say they might not realize how much those struggles play out at school. Parents themselves can even be part of the problem by texting during school hours with questions about what they want for dinner or how they did on a test. Teachers and experts say it’s generally best to hold off until after school. Teachers say you can still reach your child if you have a change in plans or a family emergency: Just contact the front office.
States have hodgepodge of cumbersome rules for enforcing sunshine laws
PHOENIX (AP) — A nationwide review of procedures by The Associated Press and CNHI News has revealed a patchwork of complicated systems for resolving open government disputes that often put the burden of enforcing transparency laws on private citizens. The review, timed to Sunshine Week, found that fewer than a third of states have offices that can resolve residents’ complaints by forcing agencies to turn over documents or comply with open meetings requirements. In most states, the only meaningful option for residents to resolve complaints about agencies wrongfully withholding public records is to file costly lawsuits. Here is a state-by-state breakdown of the mechanisms for resolving open government disputes across the U.S.
Saudi oil giant Aramco announces $121 billion profit last year, down from 2022 record
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Saudi oil giant Aramco says it made $121 billion profit last year, down from its 2022 record due to lower energy prices. Aramco made the announcement in a filing in Riyadh’s Tadawul stock market. It had reported a $161 billion profit in 2022, likely the largest ever reported by a publicly traded company. It said in the filing Sunday: “The decrease mainly reflects the impact of lower crude oil prices and lower volumes sold, and weakening refining and chemicals margins.”
‘Oppenheimer’ set to overpower at the Oscars Sunday night
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Hi, “Oppenheimer.” When Hollywood gathers for the 96th Academy Awards on Sunday, the blockbuster biopic is widely expected to overpower all competition — including its release-date companion, “Barbie” — at an election-year Oscars that could turn into a coronation for Christopher Nolan. The Oscars, kicking off on ABC at 7 p.m. EDT Sunday, are springing forward an hour earlier than usual due to daylight saving time. But aside from the time shift, this year’s show is going for many tried-and-true Academy Awards traditions. Jimmy Kimmel is back as host. Past winners are flocking back as presenters. And a big studio epic is poised for a major awards haul.
Moldova faces multiple threats from Russia as it turns toward EU membership, foreign minister says
CHISINAU, Moldova (AP) — Moldova’s foreign minister says the past two years for his country have been the hardest and most tumultuous for European Union candidate Moldova in more than three decades as it faces threats from Russia in multiple spheres of public life. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, its neighbor Moldova has faced a litany of crises that have at times raised fears the country is also in Russia’s crosshairs. As Moldova gears up for a referendum on joining the European Union and a presidential election, claims of ongoing Russian interference are cause for concern.
Polls open in Portugal’s general election with mainstream moderates trying to keep populists at bay
LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Polls have officially opened in Portugal’s general election with mainstream moderates trying to keep a populist party at bay. The election Sunday could push a significant number of voters into the arms of a radical right populist party, as has happened elsewhere in Europe. Recent corruption scandals have tarnished the two parties alternating in power for decades — the center-left Socialist Party and the center-right Social Democratic Party. Low wages and a high cost of living as well as a housing crisis and failings in public health care have contributed to the public disgruntlement. Populist party Chega (Enough) could gain the most from the current public mood.
Why is Haiti so chaotic? Leaders used street gangs to gain power. Then the gangs got stronger
It’s easy to blame the latest spasm of violence in Haiti on longstanding poverty, the legacy of colonialism, and European and U.S. interference with the West’s first free Black republic. However, experts say the most important immediate cause is more recent: Haitian rulers’ increasing dependence on street gangs. Haiti hasn’t had a standing army or a well-funded and robust national police force for decades. United Nations and American interventions have come and gone. Haiti has no solid tradition of honest political institutions. Its leaders have been using armed civilians as tools for exercising power. Now, the state has grown fatally weak and gangs are stepping in.