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Russia launches the biggest aerial attack since the start of the war, Ukraine says

Russia launched its biggest aerial attack against Ukraine overnight, a Ukrainian official said Sunday, part of an escalating bombing campaign that has further dashed hopes for a breakthrough in efforts to end the 3-year-old war.

Russia fired a total of 537 aerial weapons at Ukraine, including 477 drones and decoys and 60 missiles, Ukraines air force said. Of these, 249 were shot down and 226 were lost, likely having been electronically jammed.

The onslaught was the most massive airstrike on the country since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, taking into account both drones and various types of missiles, Yuriy Ihnat, head of communications for Ukraines air force, told The Associated Press. The attack targeted several regions, including western Ukraine, far from the front line.

Poland and allied countries scrambled aircraft to ensure the safety of Polish airspace, the country's air force said.

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One person died in a drone strike in the Kherson region, Gov. Oleksandr Prokudin said, while another was killed when a drone hit a car in the Kharkiv region, according to its Gov. Oleh Syniehubov. Six people were wounded in Cherkasy, including a child, according to regional Gov. Ihor Taburets.

In the far-western Lviv region, a large fire broke out at an industrial facility in the city of Drohobych following a drone attack that also cut electricity to parts of the city.

Ukraines air force said one of its F-16 warplanes supplied by its Western partners crashed after sustaining damage while shooting down air targets. The pilot died.

Attacks continued during the day. Dnipropetrovsk Gov. Serhii Lysak said a 72-year-old man was killed when a drone hit his car.

Russian troops reportedly advance in Donetsk

Russia's Defense Ministry said it had shot down three Ukrainian drones overnight.

Two people were wounded in another Ukrainian drone attack on the city of Bryansk in western Russia, regional Gov. Alexander Bogomaz said Sunday morning, adding that seven more Ukrainian drones had been shot down over the region.

Meanwhile, Russia claimed Sunday that it had taken control of the village of Novoukrainka in the partially Russian-occupied Donetsk region.

Russian forces have been slowly grinding forward at some points on the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, though their incremental gains have been costly in terms of troop casualties and damaged armor.

In other developments, Russias foreign intelligence chief, Sergei Naryshkin, said he had spoken on the phone with his U.S. counterpart, CIA Director John Ratcliffe.

I had a phone call with my American counterpart and we reserved for each other the possibility to call at any time and discuss issues of interest to us, Naryshkin said in remarks to state TV reporter Pavel Zarubin, who posted them on his Telegram channel on Sunday.

Sunday's attacks follow Russian President Vladimir Putins comments two days ago that Moscow is ready for a fresh round of direct peace talks in Istanbul. Two recent rounds of talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul were brief and yielded no progress on reaching a settlement.

Zelenskyy withdraws Ukraine from an anti-land mine pact

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree to withdraw Ukraine from the Ottawa Convention banning antipersonnel land mines, a Ukrainian lawmaker said Sunday. The move follows similar recent steps by the Baltic states and Poland.

The 1997 treaty prohibits the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of antipersonnel land mines in an effort to protect civilians from explosives that can maim or kill long after fighting ends.

This is a step that the reality of war has long demanded, said Roman Kostenko, secretary of the Ukrainian parliamentary committee on national security, defense and intelligence. He noted that Russia is not a party to the convention "and is massively using mines against our military and civilians.

Biden, Harris and Walz attend funeral for former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman

Democratic former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman was honored for her legislative accomplishments and her humanity during a funeral Saturday, where former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris joined the over 1,000 mourners.

Hortman was shot to death in a pair of attacks two weeks earlier by a man posing as a police officer that Minnesota's chief federal prosecutor has called an assassination. The shootings also left her husband, Mark, dead and a state senator and his wife seriously wounded.

Melissa Hortman will be remembered as the most consequential speaker in Minnesota history. I get to remember her as a close friend, a mentor, and the most talented legislator I have ever known, Gov. Tim Walz said in his eulogy. For seven years, I have had the privilege of signing her agenda into law. I know millions of Minnesotans get to live their lives better because she and Mark chose public service and politics.

The service

Neither Biden nor Harris spoke, but they sat in the front row with the governor, who was Harris' running mate in 2024. Biden was also one of more than 7,500 people who paid their respects Friday as Hortman, her husband, Mark, and their golden retriever, Gilbert, lay in state in the Minnesota Capitol rotunda in St. Paul. Gilbert was seriously wounded in the attack and had to be euthanized. Biden also visited the wounded senator in a hospital.

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Dozens of current and former state legislators from both parties and other elected officials who worked with Hortman also attended.

Hortman, who was first elected in 2004, helped pass an expansive agenda of liberal initiatives like free lunches for public school students during the momentous 2023 session as the chambers speaker, along with expanded protections for abortion and trans rights. With the House split 67-67 between Democrats and Republicans this year, she yielded the gavel to a Republican under a power-sharing deal, took the title speaker emerita, and helped break a budget impasse that threatened to shut down state government.

The governor's eulogy

Walz said Hortman saw her mission as to get as much good done for as many people as possible. And he said her focus on people was what made her so effective.

She certainly knew how to get her way. No doubt about that, Walz said. But she never made anyone feel that theyd gotten rolled at a negotiating table. That wasnt part of it for her, or a part of who she was. She didnt need somebody else to lose to win for her.

The governor said the best way to honor the Hortmans would be by following their example.

Maybe it is this moment where each of us can examine the way we work together, the way we talk about each other, the way we fight for things we care about," Walz said. "A moment when each of us can recommit to engaging in politics and life the way Mark and Melissa did -- fiercely, enthusiastically, heartily, but without ever losing sight of our common humanity.

The homily

The Rev. Daniel Griffith, pastor and rector of the Basilica, who led the service, said the country is in need of deep healing. He said it seems as if the U.S. is living in the dystopian reality described at the beginning of William Butler Yeats' poem, The Second Coming.

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Here in Minnesota, we have been the ground zero place, sadly, for racial injustice," Griffith said. "The killing of George Floyd just miles from our church today. And now we are the ground zero place for political violence and extremism. Both of these must be decried in the strongest possible terms, as they are, respectively, a threat to human dignity and indeed, our democracy.

But the priest also said Minnesota could also be a ground zero place for restoration and justice and healing. He added that the presence of so many people was a sign that the work could succeed.

Archbishop Bernard Hebda of the Saint Paul and Minneapolis Archdiocese offered his condolences to the Hortman family.

A private burial will be held at a later date.

The Hortman family

The Hortmans were proud of their adult children, Sophie and Colin Hortman, and the lawmaker often spoke of them.

In a voice choked with emotion, Colin said his parents embodied the Golden Rule, and he read the Prayer of St. Francis, which his mother always kept in her wallet. He said it captures her essence. It starts, Lord make me an instrument of your peace.

After the service, Walz presented the children with U.S. and Minnesota flags that flew over the Capitol on the day their parents were killed.

The suspect

The man accused of killing the Hortmans at their home in the Minneapolis suburb of Brooklyn Park on June 14, and wounding Democratic state Sen. John Hoffman, and his wife, Yvette, at their home in nearby Champlin, made a brief court appearance Friday. He's due back in court Thursday.

Vance Boelter, 57, of Green Isle, surrendered near his home the night of June 15 after what authorities called the largest search in Minnesota history.

Boelter remains jailed and has not entered a plea. Prosecutors need to secure a grand jury indictment first. His lawyers have declined to comment on the charges, which could carry the federal death penalty.

Friends have described Boelter as an evangelical Christian with politically conservative views. But prosecutors have declined so far to speculate on a motive.

Fans criticize BeyoncΓ© for shirt calling Native Americans 'the enemies of peace'

A T-shirt worn by Beyonc during a Juneteenth performance on her Cowboy Carter tour has sparked a discussion over how Americans frame their history and caused a wave of criticism for the Houston-born superstar.

The T-shirt worn during a concert in Paris featured images of the Buffalo Soldiers, who belonged to Black U.S. Army units active during the late 1800s and early 1900s. On the back was a lengthy description of the soldiers that included their antagonists were the enemies of peace, order and settlement: warring Indians, bandits, cattle thieves, murderous gunmen, bootleggers, trespassers, and Mexican revolutionaries.

Images of the shirt and videos of the performance are also featured on Beyoncs website.

As she prepares to return to the U.S. for performances in her hometown this weekend, fans and Indigenous influencers took to social media to criticize Beyonc for wearing a shirt that frames Native Americans and Mexican revolutionaries as anything but the victims of American imperialism and for promoting anti-Indigenous language.

A spokesperson for Beyonc did not respond to a request for comment.

Who were the Buffalo Soldiers?

The Buffalo Soldiers served in six military units created after the Civil War in 1866. They were comprised of formerly enslaved men, freemen, and Black Civil War soldiers and fought in hundreds of conflicts including in the Spanish-American War, World War I, and World War II until they were disbanded in 1951.

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As the quote on Beyoncs shirt notes, they also fought numerous battles against Indigenous peoples as part of the U.S. Army's campaign of violence and land theft during the country's westward expansion.

Some historians say the moniker Buffalo Soldiers was bestowed by the tribes who admired the bravery and tenacity of the fighters, but that might be more legend than fact. At the end of the day, we really dont have that kind of information, said Cale Carter, director of exhibitions at the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum in Houston.

Carter and other museum staff said that, only in the past few years, the museum made broader efforts to include more of the complexities of the battles the Buffalo Soldiers fought against Native Americans and Mexican revolutionaries and the role they played in the subjugation of Indigenous peoples. They, much like many other museums across the country, are hoping to add more nuance to the framing of American history and be more respectful of the ways they have caused harm to Indigenous communities.

We romanticize the Western frontier, he said. The early stories that talked about the Buffalo Soldiers were impacted by a lot of those factors. So you really didnt see a changing in that narrative until recently.

There has often been a lack of diverse voices discussing how the history of the Buffalo Soldiers is framed, said Michelle Tovar, the museum's director of education. The current political climate has put enormous pressure on schools, including those in Texas, to avoid honest discussions about American history, she said.

Right now, in this area, we are getting pushback from a lot of school districts in which we cant go and teach this history," Tovar said. "We are a museum where we can at least be a hub, where we can invite the community regardless of what districts say, invite them to learn it and do what we can do the outreach to continue to teach honest history.

Historians scrutinize reclamation motive

Beyonc's recent album Act II: Cowboy Carter has played on a kind of American iconography, which many see as her way of subverting the country music genre's adjacency to whiteness and reclaiming the cowboy aesthetic for Black Americans. Last year, she became the first Black woman ever to top Billboard's country music chart, and Cowboy Carter won her the top prize at the 2025 Grammy Awards, album of the year.

The Buffalo Soldiers play this major role in the Black ownership of the American West, said Tad Stoermer, a historian and professor at Johns Hopkins University. In my view, (Beyonc is) well aware of the role that these images play. This is the Cowboy Carter tour for crying out loud. The entire tour, the entire album, the entire piece is situated in this layered narrative.

But Stoermer also points out that the Buffalo Soldiers have been framed in the American story in a way that also plays into the myths of American nationalism.

As Beyoncs use of Buffalo Soldiers imagery implies, Black Americans also use their story to claim agency over their role in the creation of the country, said Alaina E. Roberts, a historian, author and professor at the University of Pittsburgh who studies the intersection of Black and Native American life from the Civil War to present day.

Thats the category in which she thought maybe she was coming into this conversation, but the Buffalo Soldiers are even a step above that because they were literally involved in not just the settlement of the West but of genocide in a sense, she said.

Online backlash builds ahead of Houston shows

Several Native influencers, performers, and academics took to social media this week to criticize Beyonc or decry the shirt's language as anti-Indigenous. Do you think Beyonc will apologize (or acknowledge) the shirt? indigenous.tv, an Indigenous news and culture Instagram account with more than 130,000 followers, asked in a post Thursday.

Many of her critics, as well as fans, agree. A flood of social media posts called out the pop star for the historic framing on the shirt.

The Buffalo Soldiers are an interesting historical moment to look at. But we have to be honest about what they did, especially in their operations against Indigenous Americans and Mexicans, said Chisom Okorafor, who posts on TikTok under the handle @confirmedsomaya.

Okorafor said there is no progressive way to reclaim America's history of empire building in the West, and that Beyoncs use of Western symbolism sends a problematic message: That Black people, too, can engage in American nationalism.

Black people, too, can profit from the atrocities of (the) American empire, she said. "It is a message that tells you to abandon immigrants, Indigenous people, and people who live outside of the United States. It is a message that tells you not only is it a virtue to have been born in this country, but the longer your line extends in this country, the more virtuous you are.

Senators prep for a weekend of work to meet Trump's deadline for passing his tax and spending cuts

The Senate is expected to grind through a rare weekend session as Republicans race to pass President Donald Trump's package of tax breaks and spending cuts by his July Fourth deadline.

Republicans are using their majorities in Congress to push aside Democratic opposition, but they have run into a series of political and policy setbacks. Not all GOP lawmakers are on board with proposals to reduce spending on Medicaid, food stamps and other programs as a way to help cover the cost of extending some $3.8 trillion in Trump tax breaks.

The 940-page bill was released shortly before midnight Friday. Senators were expected to take a procedural vote Saturday to begin debate on the legislation, but the timing was uncertain and there is a long path ahead, with at least 10 hours of debate time and an all-night voting session on countless amendments.

Senate passage could be days away, and the bill would need to return to the House for a final round of votes before it could reach the White House.

It's evolving, said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., as he prepared to close up the chamber late Friday.

The weekend session could be a make-or-break moment for Trump's party, which has invested much of its political capital on his signature domestic policy plan. Trump is pushing Congress to wrap it up, even as he sometimes gives mixed signals, allowing for more time.

At recent events at the White House, including Friday, Trump has admonished the grandstanders among GOP holdouts to fall in line.

We can get it done, Trump said in a social media post. It will be a wonderful Celebration for our Country.

The legislation is an ambitious but complicated series of GOP priorities. At its core, it would make permanent many of the tax breaks from Trump's first term that would otherwise expire by year's end if Congress fails to act, resulting in a potential tax increase on Americans. The bill would add new breaks, including no taxes on tips, and commit $350 billion to national security, including for Trump's mass deportation agenda.

But the spending cuts that Republicans are relying on to offset the lost tax revenues are causing dissent within the GOP ranks. Some lawmakers say the cuts go too far, particularly for people receiving health care through Medicaid. Meanwhile, conservatives, worried about the nation's debt, are pushing for steeper cuts.

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said he is concerned about the fundamentals of the package and will not support the procedural motion to begin debate.

I'm voting no on the motion to proceed, he said.

Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., pushing for deeper cuts, said he needed to see the final legislative text.

The release of that draft had been delayed as the Senate parliamentarian reviewed the bill to ensure it complied with the chambers strict Byrd Rule, named for the late Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va. It largely bars policy matters from inclusion in budget bills unless a provision can get 60 votes to overcome objections. That would be a tall order in a Senate with a 53-47 GOP edge and Democrats unified against Trumps bill.

Republicans suffered a series of setbacks after several proposals were determined to be out of compliance by the chief arbiter of the Senate's rules. One plan would have shifted some food stamp costs from the federal government to the states; a second would have gutted the funding structure of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

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But over the past days, Republicans have quickly revised those proposals and reinstated them.

The final text includes a proposal for cuts to a Medicaid provider tax that had run into parliamentary objections and opposition from several senators worried about the fate of rural hospitals. The new version extends the start date for those cuts and establishes a $25 billion fund to aid rural hospitals and providers.

Most states impose the provider tax as a way to boost federal Medicaid reimbursements. Some Republicans argue that is a scam and should be abolished.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has said that under the House-passed version of the bill, some 10.9 million more people would go without health care and at least 3 million fewer would qualify for food aid. The CBO has not yet publicly assessed the Senate draft, which proposes steeper reductions.

Top income-earners would see about a $12,000 tax cut under the House bill, while the poorest Americans would face a $1,600 tax increase, the CBO said.

One unresolved issue remains the so-called SALT provision, a deduction for state and local taxes that has been a top priority of lawmakers from New York and other high-tax states. The cap is now $10,000.

The White House and House Republicans had narrowed in on a plan for a $40,000 cap, but for five years instead of 10. Republican senators say that's too generous. At least one House GOP holdout, Rep. Nick LaLota of New York, said he cannot support the compromise.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York said Republicans are rushing to finish the bill before the public fully knows whats in it.

Theres no good reason for Republicans to chase a silly deadline, Schumer said.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, who sent his colleagues home for the weekend with plans to be on call to return to Washington, said they are very close to finishing up.

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We would still like to meet that July Fourth, self-imposed deadline, said Johnson, R-La.

With the narrow Republican majorities in the House and Senate, leaders need almost every lawmaker on board to ensure passage. Johnson and Thune have stayed close to the White House, relying on Trump to pressure holdout lawmakers.

What's next for birthright citizenship after the Supreme Court's ruling

The legal battle over President Donald Trump's move to end birthright citizenship is far from over despite the Republican administration's major victory Friday limiting nationwide injunctions.

Immigrant advocates are vowing to fight to ensure birthright citizenship remains the law as the Republican president tries to do away with more than a century of precedent.

The high court's ruling sends cases challenging the president's birthright citizenship executive order back to the lower courts. But the ultimate fate of the president's policy remains uncertain.

Here's what to know about birthright citizenship, the Supreme Court's ruling and what happens next.

What does birthright citizenship mean?

Birthright citizenship makes anyone born in the United States an American citizen, including children born to mothers in the country illegally.

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The practice goes back to soon after the Civil War, when Congress ratified the Constitutions 14th Amendment, in part to ensure that Black people, including former slaves, had citizenship.

All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States, the amendment states.

Thirty years later, Wong Kim Ark, a man born in the U.S. to Chinese parents, was refused re-entry into the U.S. after traveling overseas. His suit led to the Supreme Court explicitly ruling that the amendment gives citizenship to anyone born in the U.S., no matter their parents legal status.

It has been seen since then as an intrinsic part of U.S. law, with only a handful of exceptions, such as for children born in the U.S. to foreign diplomats.

Trump has long said he wants to do away with birthright citizenship

Trump's executive order, signed in January, seeks to deny citizenship to children who are born to people who are living in the U.S. illegally or temporarily. It's part of the hardline immigration agenda of the president, who has called birthright citizenship a magnet for illegal immigration.

Trump and his supporters focus on one phrase in the amendment subject to the jurisdiction thereof saying it means the U.S. can deny citizenship to babies born to women in the country illegally.

A series of federal judges have said thats not true, and issued nationwide injunctions stopping his order from taking effect.

Ive been on the bench for over four decades. I cant remember another case where the question presented was as clear as this one is. This is a blatantly unconstitutional order, U.S. District Judge John Coughenour said at a hearing earlier this year in his Seattle courtroom.

RELATED STORY | Trump emboldened after Supreme Court limits nationwide injunctions

In Greenbelt, Maryland, a Washington suburb, U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman wrote that the Supreme Court has resoundingly rejected and no court in the country has ever endorsed Trumps interpretation of birthright citizenship.

Is Trump's order constitutional? The justices didn't say

The high court's ruling was a major victory for the Trump administration in that it limited an individual judge's authority in granting nationwide injunctions. The administration hailed the ruling as a monumental check on the powers of individual district court judges, whom Trump supporters have argued want to usurp the president's authority with rulings blocking his priorities around immigration and other matters.

But the Supreme Court did not address the merits of Trump's bid to enforce his birthright citizenship executive order.

The Trump administration made a strategic decision, which I think quite clearly paid off, that they were going to challenge not the judges decisions on the merits, but on the scope of relief, said Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor.

Attorney General Pam Bondi told reporters at the White House that the administration is very confident that the high court will ultimately side with the administration on the merits of the case.

Questions and uncertainty swirl around next steps

The justices kicked the cases challenging the birthright citizenship policy back down to the lower courts, where judges will have to decide how to tailor their orders to comply with the new ruling. The executive order remains blocked for at least 30 days, giving lower courts and the parties time to sort out the next steps.

The Supreme Court's ruling leaves open the possibility that groups challenging the policy could still get nationwide relief through class-action lawsuits and seek certification as a nationwide class. Within hours after the ruling, two class-action suits had been filed in Maryland and New Hampshire seeking to block Trumps order.

But obtaining nationwide relief through a class action is difficult as courts have put up hurdles to doing so over the years, said Suzette Malveaux, a Washington and Lee University law school professor.

Its not the case that a class action is a sort of easy, breezy way of getting around this problem of not having nationwide relief, said Malveaux, who had urged the high court not to eliminate the nationwide injunctions.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who penned the court's dissenting opinion, urged the lower courts to act swiftly on such requests for relief and to adjudicate the cases as quickly as they can so as to enable this Courts prompt review" in cases challenging policies as blatantly unlawful and harmful as the Citizenship Order.

Opponents of Trump's order warned there would be a patchwork of polices across the states, leading to chaos and confusion without nationwide relief.

Birthright citizenship has been settled constitutional law for more than a century," said Krish OMara Vignarajah, president and CEO of Global Refuge, a nonprofit that supports refugees and migrants. By denying lower courts the ability to enforce that right uniformly, the Court has invited chaos, inequality, and fear.

Authorities arrest fugitive who police say posted on social media following New Orleans jailbreak

Louisiana authorities captured on Friday one of the 10 men who escaped from a New Orleans jail six weeks ago and who police say released videos on social media while still on the run.

State police said Antoine Massey, 33, was taken into custody at a residence in New Orleans. Authorities had recently investigated social media posts by a man who identified himself as Massey and earlier this month raided a New Orleans home where they believed the videos were produced but did not find him.

Great work by all our law enforcement partners who have been working so hard for this outcome, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said. One more to go!

Authorities are still searching for convicted murderer Derrick Groves. Police previously captured the other eight escapees following the May 16 jailbreak, one of the largest in recent U.S. history. Authorities said the men yanked open a faulty cell door inside the New Orleans jail, squeezed through a hole behind a toilet, scaled a barbed-wire fence and fled into the dark.

The men's absence wasnt discovered until a morning headcount, hours after they bolted for freedom. Authorities found a message drawn around the hole the men used to escape: an arrow pointing at the gap and the words To Easy LoL.

RELATED STORY | New Orleans jail escapee who is still at large posts videos on social media

Officials have pointed to multiple security lapses in the jail, but authorities remain adamant that the men also had likely had help. A maintenance worker at the jail was arrested for allegedly helping the men escape by turning off the water to the toilet where the hole was cut behind. His lawyer says he has denied knowingly aiding them.

Massey, 33, faced charges of rape, kidnapping, domestic violence involving strangulation and violation of a protective order, authorities in nearby St. Tammany Parish said. In Orleans Parish, he faced charges of motor vehicle theft and domestic battery.

Murrill said Massey will face additional charges for his role in the escape.

A woman police identified as being in an on-again, off-again relationship with Massey was arrested and charged with obstruction of justice and as a principal to aggravated escape, court records show. Authorities said the woman knew of Masseys escape plans beforehand, communicated with him afterward and misled authorities.

US stocks close at an all-time high just months after plunging on tariff fears

U.S. stocks closed at an all-time high Friday, another milestone in the market's remarkable recovery from a springtime plunge caused by fears that the Trump administration's trade policies could harm the economy.

The S&P 500 rose 0.5%, finishing above its previous record set in February.

The market's complete turnaround from its deep swoon happened in about half the time that it normally takes, said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA.

Investors will breathe a sigh of relief, he said.

The Nasdaq composite gained 0.5% and set its own all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1%.

President Donald Trumps decision Friday to halt trade talks with Canada threatened to derail Wall Streets run to a record, but the market steadied.

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The gains on Friday were broad, with nearly every sector within the S&P 500 rising. Nike soared 15.2% for the biggest gain on the market, despite warning of a steep hit from tariffs.

The broader market has seemingly shaken off fears about the Israel-Iran war disrupting the global supply of crude oil and sending prices higher. A ceasefire between the two nations is still in place.

The price of crude oil in the U.S. is mostly unchanged on Friday. Prices have fallen back to pre-conflict levels.

Investors are also monitoring potential progress on trade conflicts between the U.S. and the world, specifically with China. The U.S. and China have signed a trade deal that will make it easier for American firms to obtain magnets and rare earth minerals from China that are critical to manufacturing and microchip production, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Friday.

Chinas Commerce Ministry also said that the two sides had further confirmed the details of the framework for their trade talks. But its statement did not explicitly mention an agreement to ensure U.S. access to rare earths, and instead said it will review and approve eligible export applications for controlled items.

An update on inflation Friday showed prices ticked higher in May, though the rate mostly matched economists' projections.

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Inflation remains a big concern for businesses and consumers. Trumps on-again-off-again tariff policy has made it difficult for companies to make forecasts. It has also put more pressure on consumers worried about already stubborn inflation. A long list of businesses from carmakers to retailers have warned that higher import taxes will likely hurt their revenues and profits.

The U.S. has 10% baseline tariffs on all imported goods, along with higher rates for Chinese goods and other import taxes on steel and autos. The economy and consumers have remained somewhat resilient under those tariffs, though analysts and economists expect to see the impact grow as import taxes continue to work their way through businesses to consumers.

While we also would have expected to already to be seeing a bit more pass through into the inflation statistics, we still expect these impacts to show up in a more meaningful way in the next few months, said Greg Wilensky, head of U.S. fixed income and portfolio manager at Janus Henderson.

The threat of more severe tariffs continues to hang over the economy. The current pause on a round of retaliatory tariffs against a long list of nations is set to expire in July. Failure to negotiate deals or further postpone the tariffs could once again rattle investors and consumers.

The Federal Reserve is monitoring the tariff situation with a big focus on inflation. The rate of inflation has been stubbornly sitting just above the central bank's target of 2%. In a report Friday, its preferred gauge, the personal consumption expenditures index, rose to 2.3% in May. That's up from 2.1% the previous month.

The Fed cut interest rates twice in late 2024 following a historic series of rate hikes to cool inflation. The PCE was as high as 7.2% in 2022 while the more commonly used consumer price index hit 9.1%.

The Fed hasn't cut rates so far in 2025 over worries that tariffs could reignite inflation and hamper the economy. Economists still expect at least two rate cuts before the end of the year.

Bond yields held relatively steady. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.27% from 4.24% late Thursday. The two-year Treasury yield, which more closely tracks expectations for what the Federal Reserve will do, edged up to 3.74% from late Thursday.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 32.05 points to 6,173.07. The Dow gained 432.43 points to 43,819.27, and the Nasdaq added 105.55 points to 20,273.46.

Stocks in Europe were mostly higher, while stocks in Asia finished mixed.

University of Virginia president resigns under Trump administration pressure on DEI, AP source says

The president of the University of Virginia is resigning his position under pressure from the Justice Department, which had pushed for his departure amid scrutiny of the schools diversity, equity and inclusion practices, a person familiar with the matter said Friday.

The departure of James Ryan, who had led the school since 2018, represents a dramatic escalation in the Trump administrations effort to reshape higher education. Doing it at a public university marks a new frontier in a campaign that has almost exclusively targeted Ivy League schools. It also widens the rationale behind the governments aggressive tactics, focusing on DEI rather than alleged tolerance of antisemitism.

Ryan had faced conservative criticism that he failed to heed federal orders to eliminate DEI policies, and his removal was pushed by the Justice Department as a way to help resolve a department inquiry targeting the school, according to the person, who was not authorized to discuss the move by name and spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press.

The New York Times first reported on the resignation and the Justice Departments insistence on it. The Justice Department declined to comment Friday.

Ryans removal is another example of the Trump administration using thuggery instead of rational discourse, said Ted Mitchell, president of the American Council on Education, which represents university presidents.

This is a dark day for the University of Virginia, a dark day for higher education, and it promises more of the same, Mitchell said. Its clear the administration is not done and will use every tool that it can make or invent to exert its will over higher education.

RELATED STORY | Judge halts another Trump administration effort to block foreign students from attending Harvard

Virginia's Democratic senators react

In a joint statement, Virginias Democratic senators said it was outrageous that the Trump administration would demand Ryans resignation over culture war traps. This is a mistake that hurts Virginias future, Sens. Mark R. Warner and Tim Kaine said.

After campaigning on a promise to end wokeness in education, Trump signed a January action ordering the elimination of DEI programs and radical indoctrination across the nations schools and universities. The Education Department has opened investigations into dozens of colleges, arguing that diversity initiatives discriminate against white and Asian American students.

The response from schools has been scattered. Some have closed DEI offices, ended diversity scholarships and no longer require diversity statements as part of the hiring process. Some others have rebranded DEI work under other names, while some have held firm on diversity policies.

The University of Virginia became a flashpoint after conservative critics accused it of simply renaming its DEI initiatives. The schools governing body voted to shutter the DEI office in March and end diversity policies in admissions, hiring, financial aid and other areas. Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin celebrated the action, declaring that DEI is done at the University of Virginia.

Among those drawing attention to the Charlottesville campus was America First Legal, a conservative group founded by Trump aide Stephen Miller. In a May letter to the Justice Department, the group said the university failed to dismantle DEI programs and chose to rename, repackage, and redeploy the same unlawful infrastructure under a lexicon of euphemisms.

The group directly took aim at Ryan, noting that he joined hundreds of other college presidents in signing a public statement condemning the overreach and political interference of the Trump administration.

Ryan has been leading the school since 2018

Ryan was hired to lead the University of Virginia in 2018 and previously served as the dean of Harvard Universitys Graduate School of Education. Earlier in his career he spent more than a decade as a law professor at the University of Virginia. A biography on Harvards website credits Ryan with increasing the size, strength and diversity of the faculty, adding that building a diverse community was a priority.

Mitchell, of the presidents' association, described Ryan as a president who leaves education in Virginia better than when he arrived.

These have not been easy times, and he has balanced a lot of different constituent interests with delicacy, Mitchell said.

Until now, the White House had directed most of its attention at Harvard University and other elite institutions that Trump sees as bastions of liberalism. Harvard has lost more than $2.6 billion in federal research grants amid its battle with the government, which has also attempted to block the school from hosting foreign students and threatened to revoke its tax-exempt status.

Harvard and its $53 billion endowment are uniquely positioned to weather the governments financial pressure. Public universities, however, are far more dependent on taxpayer money and could be more vulnerable. The University of Virginias $10 billion endowment is among the largest for public universities, while the vast majority have far less.

Trump says he’s terminating trade talks with Canada over tax on technology firms

President Donald Trump says the United States will suspend trade negotiations with Canada after Canada implemented a digital services tax on U.S. based companies.

Trump wrote on social media that because Canada has chosen to implement a tax on U.S.-based digital services, the U.S. would be ending trade discussion.

"Based on this egregious Tax, we are hereby terminating ALL discussions on Trade with Canada, effective immediately. We will let Canada know the Tariff that the will be paying to do business with the United States of America within the next seven day period."

The 3% tax will apply to revenue that U.S. tech companies generate from Canadian users. It applies retroactively, meaning companies like Apple, Google and Netflix will owe Canada $2 billion for services already rendered through June.

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A White House official told Scripps News the decision aligned with policies set out in a memorandum from President Trump on February 21.

"My Administration will not allow American companies and workers and American economic and national security interests to be compromised by one-sided, anti-competitive policies and practices of foreign governments. American businesses will no longer prop up failed foreign economies through extortive fines and taxes," the memorandum reads.

Scripps News has reached out to the White House for further comment.

"Digital Services Taxes are designed to unfairly target U.S. tech companies punishing American innovation and costing our economy and companies tens of billions," Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick wrote. "Why do countries think they can attack our technology companies and then turn around and try to take advantage of our 30 Trillion dollar economy?"

Justices preserve key part of Obamacare coverage requirements

The Supreme Court preserved a key part of the Affordable Care Acts preventive health care coverage requirements on Friday, rejecting a challenge from Christian employers to the provision that affects some 150 million Americans.

The 6-3 ruling comes in a lawsuit over how the government decides which health care medications and services must be fully covered by private insurance under former President Barack Obamas signature law, often referred to as Obamacare.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for the court's majority. Justice Clarence Thomas dissented, joined by Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch.

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The plaintiffs said the process is unconstitutional because a volunteer board of medical experts tasked with recommending which services are covered is not Senate approved.

President Donald Trump's administration defended the mandate before the court, though the Republican president has been a critic of his Democratic predecessor's law. The Justice Department said board members dont need Senate approval because they can be removed by the health and human services secretary.

Medications and services that could have been affected include statins to lower cholesterol, lung cancer screenings, HIV-prevention drugs and medication to lower the chance of breast cancer for women.

The case came before the Supreme Court after an appeals court struck down some preventive care coverage requirements. The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the Christian employers and Texas residents who argued they cant be forced to provide full insurance coverage for things like medication to prevent HIV and some cancer screenings.

Well-known conservative attorney Jonathan Mitchell, who represented Trump before the high court in a dispute about whether he could appear on the 2024 ballot, argued the case.

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The appeals court found that coverage requirements were unconstitutional because they came from a body the United States Preventive Services Task Force whose members were not nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate.

A 2023 analysis prepared by the nonprofit KFF found that ruling would still allow full-coverage requirements for some services, including mammography and cervical cancer screening.

Family sues over US detention after rare courthouse arrests involving kids

A mother and her two young kids are fighting for their release from a Texas immigration detention center in what is believed to be the first lawsuit involving children challenging the Trump administration's policy on immigrant arrests at courthouses.

The lawsuit filed Tuesday argues that the family's arrests after fleeing Honduras and entering the U.S. legally using a Biden-era appointment app violate their Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizure and their Fifth Amendment right to due process.

The big picture is that the executive branch cannot seize people, arrest people, detain people indefinitely when they are complying with exactly what our government has required of them, said Columbia Law School professor Elora Mukherjee, one of the lawyers representing the family.

The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to an email requesting comment.

Starting in May, the country has seen large-scale arrests in which asylum-seekers appearing at routine court hearings have been arrested outside courtrooms as part of the White Houses mass deportation effort. In many cases, a judge will grant a government lawyers request to dismiss deportation proceedings and then U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers will arrest the person and place them on expedited removal," a fast track to deportation.

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Mukherjee said this is the first lawsuit filed on behalf of children to challenge the ICE courthouse arrest policy. The government has until July 1 to respond.

There have been other similar lawsuits, including in New York, where a federal judge ruled earlier this month that federal immigration authorities cant make civil arrests at the state's courthouses or arrest anyone going there for a proceeding.

The Texas lawsuit was filed using initials for the children and Ms. Z for the mother. Their identities have not been released because of concerns for their safety.

For weeks in the Dilley Immigration Processing Center, the mother has watched her 6-year-old son's health decline, Mukherjee said. He recently underwent chemotherapy treatment for leukemia and because of his arrest, missed his check-in doctors appointment, Mukherjee said.

Hes easily bruising. He has bone pain. He looks pale," Mukherjee said, adding that he has also lost his appetite. "His mom is terrified that these are symptoms that his leukemia situation might be deteriorating.

The mother, son and 9-year-old daughter fled Honduras in October 2024 due to death threats, according to the lawsuit. They entered the U.S. using the CBP One app and were paroled into the country by the Department of Homeland Security, which determined they didnt pose a danger to the community, Mukherjee said. They were told to appear at a Los Angeles immigration court May 29.

President Donald Trump ended CBP One for new entrants on his first day in office after more than 900,000 people had been allowed in the country using the app since it was expanded to include migrants in January 2023.

During the family's hearing, the mother tried to tell the judge that they wished to continue their cases for asylum, Mukherjee said. Homeland Security moved to dismiss their cases, and the judge immediately granted that motion.

When they stepped out of the courtroom, they found men in civilian clothing believed to be ICE agents who arrested the family, Mukherjee said. They spent about 11 hours at an immigrant processing center in Los Angeles and were each only given an apple, a small packet of cookies, a juice box and water.

At one point, an officer near the boy lifted his shirt, revealing his gun. The boy urinated on himself and was left in wet clothing until the next morning, Mukherjee said.

They were later taken to the processing center, where they have been held ever since.

The family is suffering in this immigration detention center, she said. The kids are crying every night. Theyre praying to God for their release from this detention center."

Their lawyers have filed an appeal of the immigration judge's May decision, but they're at risk of being deported within days because the government says they are subjected to expedited removal, Mukherjee said.

The arrests of the family were illegal and unjustified, said Kate Gibson Kumar, an attorney for the Texas Civil Rights project who is also representing the family.

The essential question in our case is, when you have these families who are doing everything right, especially with young children, should there be some protection there?" Gibson Kumar said. "We say yes.'

Canadian man held by ICE dies in South Florida federal facility, officials say

A Canadian man being held by immigration officials in South Florida has died in federal custody, officials said.

Johnny Noviello, 49, died Monday afternoon at the Bureau of Prisons Federal Detention Center in Miami, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement press release said. The cause of death was under investigation.

Noviello was being detained pending removal from the U.S., officials said. He entered the U.S. in 1988 on a legal visa and became a lawful permanent resident in 1991. He was convicted of drug trafficking and other charges in 2023 and sentenced to a year in prison, officials said.

Noviello was picked up by ICE agents at his probation office last month and charged with removability because of his drug conviction, authorities said.

RELATED STORY | Justice Department says it will try Kilmar Abrego Garcia on smuggling charges

Seven other immigration detainees have died in federal custody this year, with 11 deaths reported in 2024.

"ICE remains committed to ensuring that all those in its custody reside in safe, secure, and humane environments. Comprehensive medical care is provided from the moment individuals arrive and throughout the entirety of their stay," ICE said in a statement. "All people in ICE custody receive medical, dental and mental health intake screening within 12 hours of arriving at each detention facility, a full health assessment within 14 days of entering ICE custody or arrival at a facility, access to medical appointments and 24-hour emergency care. At no time during detention is a detained illegal alien denied emergent care."

Justice Department says it intends to try Kilmar Abrego Garcia on smuggling charges

The Justice Department said Thursday that it intends to try Kilmar Abrego Garcia on federal smuggling charges in Tennessee before it moves to deport him to a country that is not his native El Salvador.

This defendant has been charged with horrific crimes, including trafficking children, and will not walk free in our country again, DOJ spokesperson Chad Gilmartin told The Associated Press.

Gilmartin made the statement hours after a federal prosecutor told a federal judge in Maryland that the U.S. government plans to deport Abrego Garcia to a third country that isn't El Salvador. But Justice Department attorney Jonathan Guynn said there was no timeline for the deportation plans.

Guynn acknowledged the governments plans during a hastily planned conference call with Abrego Garcias attorneys and U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Greenbelt, Maryland. Abrego Garcia's lawyers had filed an emergency request for Xinis to order the government to take Abrego Garcia to Maryland when he is released in Tennessee, an arrangement that would prevent his deportation before he stands trial.

We have concerns that the government may try to remove Mr. Abrego Garcia quickly over the weekend, something like that, one of his attorneys, Jonathan Cooper, told Xinis on the call.

Prosecutor says there's no timeline

Xinis, however, said she could not move as quickly as Abrego Garcia's attorneys would like. She said she had to consider the Trump administration's pending motions to dismiss the case before she could rule on the emergency request. The judge scheduled a July 7 court hearing in Maryland to discuss the emergency request and other matters.

It was unclear whether the government would seek to deport Abrego Garcia before he stands trial in the U.S. on criminal charges unsealed earlier this month.

Guynn told the judge during Thursday's call that theres no timeline.

We do plan to comply with the orders weve received from this court and other courts, he said. "But theres no timeline for these specific proceedings.

Deporting Abrego Garcia before his trial would be a reversal for an administration that brought him back from El Salvador just weeks ago to face human smuggling charges, with Attorney General Pam Bondi saying: This is what American justice looks like.

Abrego Garcia, a Maryland construction worker, became a flashpoint over Trump's immigration policies after he was mistakenly deported to El Salvador in March. He's been in jail in Tennessee since he was returned to the U.S. on June 7 to face the human smuggling charges.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Holmes in Nashville, Tennessee, has ruled that Abrego Garcia has a right to be released while awaiting trial. But she decided Wednesday to keep him in custody for at least a few more days over concerns that U.S. immigration officials would swiftly try to deport him again.

Abrego Garcia's attorneys in Maryland, where his wife is suing Trump's Republican administration over his March deportation, offered up a solution when they asked Xinis to direct the government to take him to Maryland while he awaits trial. Xinis has been overseeing the lawsuit in her Greenbelt court.

If this Court does not act swiftly, then the Government is likely to whisk Abrego Garcia away to some place far from Maryland, Abrego Garcia's attorneys wrote in their request to Xinis.

RELATED STORY | Kilmar Abrego Garcia to remain in jail while attorneys spar over whether hell be swiftly deported

Abrego Garcia lived in Maryland, just outside Washington, with his American wife and children for more than a decade. His deportation violated a U.S. immigration judge's order in 2019 that barred his expulsion to his native country. The judge had found that Abrego Garcia faced a credible threat from gangs who had terrorized him and his family.

The Trump administration described its violation of the immigration judges 2019 order as an administrative error. Trump and other officials doubled down on claims Abrego Garcia was in the MS-13 gang, an accusation that Abrego Garcia denies.

Abrego Garcia pleaded not guilty on June 13 to smuggling charges that his attorneys have characterized as an attempt to justify his mistaken expulsion to a notorious prison in El Salvador.

Those charges stem from a 2022 traffic stop for speeding in Tennessee, during which Abrego Garcia was driving a vehicle with nine passengers without luggage.

Holmes, the magistrate judge in Tennessee, wrote in a ruling on Sunday that federal prosecutors failed to show that Abrego Garcia was a flight risk or a danger to the community.

During a court hearing on Wednesday, Holmes set specific conditions for Abrego Garcia's release that included him living with his brother, a U.S. citizen, in Maryland. But she held off on releasing him over concerns that prosecutors can't prevent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from deporting him.

Holmes ordered Abrego Garcias lawyers and prosecutors to file briefs on the matter on Thursday and Friday respectively.

U.S. has to pull diplomatic levers

Csar Cuauhtmoc Garca Hernndez, an Ohio State University law professor, said the Trump administration would be fully within its legal power to attempt to remove him to some other country.

The Trump administration would have to pull its diplomatic levers, the professor added. Its unusual. But its not unheard of.

Abrego Garcia also could contest the criminal allegations and attempts to remove him in immigration court while demonstrating his ties to the U.S., Garca Hernndez said.

Whatever decision an immigration judge would make, it can be appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals, Garca Hernndez said. And the boards ruling can then be contested in a federal appeals court.

Kennedy’s vaccine panel backs flu shots β€” but only thimerosal-free

The Trump administrations new vaccine advisers on Thursday endorsed this falls flu vaccinations for just about every American but threw in a twist: Only use certain shots free of an ingredient antivaccine groups have falsely tied to autism.

What is normally a routine step in preparing for the upcoming flu season drew intense scrutiny after U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. abruptly fired the influential 17-member Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and handpicked replacements that include several vaccine skeptics.

That seven-member panel bucked another norm Thursday: It deliberated the safety of a preservative used in less than 5% of U.S. flu vaccinations based on a presentation from an antivaccine group's former leader without allowing the usual public airing of scientific data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The preservative, thimerosal, has long been used in certain vaccines that come in multi-dose vials, to prevent contamination as each dose is withdrawn. But it has been controversial because it contains a small amount of a particular form of mercury.

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Study after study has found no evidence that it causes autism or other harm. Yet since 2001, all vaccines routinely used for U.S. children age 6 years or younger have come in thimerosal-free formulas including single-dose flu shots that account for the vast majority of influenza vaccinations.

The advisory panel first voted, with one abstention, to back the usual U.S. recommendation that nearly everyone age 6 months and older get an annual flu vaccination. Then the advisers decided people should only be given thimerosal-free single-dose formulations, voting 5-1 with one abstention.

That would include single-dose shots that already are the most common type of flu vaccination as well as the nasal spray FluMist. It would rule out the subset of flu vaccine that is dispensed in multi-dose vials.

There is still no demonstrable evidence of harm, one panelist, Dr. Joseph Hibbeln, a psychiatrist formerly with the National Institutes of Health, said in acknowledging the committee wasnt following its usual practice of acting on evidence.

RELATED STORY | 'More people are going to die': A former CDC official's warning as new vaccine advisory panel meets

But he added that whether the actual molecule is a risk or not, we have to respect the fear of mercury that might dissuade some people from getting vaccinated.

Normally the CDCs director would decide whether to accept ACIPs recommendation, but the Senate has not yet confirmed nominee Susan Monarez. Administration officials said Kennedy would make that decision.

While Thursday's debate involved only a small fraction of flu vaccines, some public health experts contend the discussion unnecessarily raised doubt about vaccine safety. Already, fewer than half of Americans get their yearly flu vaccinations, and mistrust in vaccines overall is growing.

What should have been a rigorous, evidence-based discussion on the national vaccine schedule instead appeared to be a predetermined exercise orchestrated to undermine the well-established safety and efficacy of vaccines and fundamental basics of science, said Dr. Jason Goldman of the American College of Physicians.

Public health experts decried the panel's lack of transparency in blocking the presentation of CDC's analysis of thimerosal that concluded there was no link between the preservative and neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism. The data had been posted on the ACIP's website Tuesday, but was later removed because, according to ACIP member Dr. Robert Malone, the report hadn't been authorized by Kennedy's office. Committee members said they had read it.

The ACIP, created more than 60 years ago, helps the CDC determine who should be vaccinated against a long list of diseases, and when. Those recommendations have a big impact on whether insurance covers vaccinations and where theyre available.

Kennedy has long held there was a tie between thimerosal and autism, and also accused the government of hiding the danger. Thimerosal was placed on the meeting agenda shortly after Kennedys new vaccine advisers were named last week.

Prosecutor: 'Diddy' β€˜thought he was above the law’ as closing arguments begin

Sean Diddy Combs thought his fame, wealth and power put him above the law as he led a criminal enterprise for two decades, using power, violence and fear to carry out brutal crimes, a prosecutor told a jury at the music mogul's sex trafficking trial during closing arguments Thursday.

Over the last several weeks, youve learned a lot about Sean Combs, Assistant U.S. Attorney Christy Slavik began. Hes the leader of a criminal enterprise. He doesnt take no for an answer. And now you know about many crimes he committed with members of his enterprise.

She said charges of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy were supported by proof that over two decades, Combs kidnapped one of his employees, committed arson by trying to blow up a car, engaged in forced labor, bribed a security officer and carried out the brutal crimes at the heart of this case.

Combs again and again forced, threatened and manipulated former girlfriend Casandra Cassie Ventura and an ex-girlfriend who testified under the pseudonym Jane into having sex with escorts for his own entertainment, Slavik said, speaking from a lectern positioned between jurors and the tables where prosecutors and defense lawyers sat.

The defendant used power, violence and fear to get what he wanted, she said. He thought that his fame, wealth and power put him above the law.

Slavik said Combs counted on silence and shame to enable and prolong his abuse. He used a small army of employees an inner circle that included personal assistants and bodyguards to harm women and cover it up, she said.

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The theory of racketeering law is that when someone commits crime as part of a group, theyre more powerful and dangerous, Slavik said. The defendant was a powerful man, but he became more powerful and dangerous because of his inner circle, his businesses the enterprise.

Combs and his inner circle committed hundreds of racketeering acts, she said.

As Slavik spoke, jurors saw photos of key figures in Combs orbit, as well as excerpts from related testimony in the trial transcript and slides to categorize evidence.

One slide listed crimes prosecutors allege as part of the racketeering conspiracy, including drug distribution, kidnapping, arson and witness tampering. Another slide listed drugs such as cocaine, meth, ketamine, Oxycodone and MDMA, that Combs aides said they procured for him, or that federal agents said they found last year in raids of Combs homes.

Combs sat with his head down, his chair pushed back a few feet from the defense table, as Slavik spoke. He was wearing a light-colored sweater over a white button-down shirt and khakis.

Since his arrest at a Manhattan hotel last September, prosecutors have said Combs coerced and abused women for years as he used his power and prestige as a music star to enlist a network of associates and employees to help him while he silenced victims through blackmail and violence.

They've said the Bad Boy Records founder induced female victims into drugged-up, elaborately produced sexual performances with male sex workers in events dubbed Freak-Offs.

Defense lawyers have argued that Combs was involved in domestic violence but committed no federal crimes.

They built their case for acquittal through lengthy cross-examinations of most of the government's 34 witnesses. Some witnesses testified only in response to subpoenas and made it clear to the jury that they didn't want to be there.

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Combs lawyers contend there was no racketeering conspiracy because none of his employees agreed to be part of any conspiracy.

But in her closing, Slavik said employees repeatedly agreed to commit crimes for Combs, such as delivering him drugs; accompanying him to kidnap his personal assistant, Capricorn Clark; and locking his girlfriend in a hotel room after he stomped on her face.

Before Slavik began her closing, Judge Arun Subramanian told the jury they would hear a closing argument from a defense lawyer on Friday and a rebuttal by a prosecutor before he instructs them on the law and allows them to begin deliberating as early as late afternoon.

Protesters greet Bezos and Sanchez in Venice ahead of their extravagant wedding

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez arrived in Venice, Italy, on Wednesday ahead of their star-studded weekend wedding, which has galvanized an assortment of protesters.

Bezos waved from a water taxi as he and Sanchez arrived at the dock of the Aman Hotel on the Grand Canal with two security boats in tow.

Their wedding has drawn protests by groups who view it as a sign of the growing disparity between the haves and have-nots, while residents complain it exemplifies the way their needs are disregarded in the era of mass tourism to the historic lagoon city.

About a dozen Venetian organizations including housing advocates, anti-cruise ship campaigners and university groups have united to protest the multi-day event under the banner No Space for Bezos, a play on words also referring to the brides recent space flight.

They have staged small-scale protests, unfurling anti-Bezos banners on iconic Venetian sites. They were joined Monday by Greenpeace and the British group Everyone Hates Elon, which has smashed Teslas to protest Elon Musk, to unfurl a giant banner in St. Marks Square protesting purported tax breaks for billionaires.

On Wednesday, other activists launched a float down the Grand Canal featuring a mannequin of Bezos clinging onto an Amazon box, his fists full of fake dollars. The British publicity firm that announced the stunt said it wasn't a protest of the wedding but against unchecked wealth, media control, and the growing privatisation of public spaces.

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Bezos representatives have not commented on the protests.

The local activists had planned a more organized protest for Saturday, aiming to obstruct access to canals with boats to prevent guests from reaching a wedding venue. They modified the protest to a march from the train station after claiming a victory, asserting that their pressure forced organizers to change the venue to the Arsenale, a more easily secured site beyond Venice's congested center.

It will be a strong, decisive protest, but peaceful, said Federica Toninello, an activist with the Social Housing Assembly network. We want it to be like a party, with music, to make clear what we want our Venice to look like."

Among the 200 guests confirmed to be attending the wedding are Mick Jagger, Ivanka Trump, Oprah Winfrey, Katy Perry and Leonardo DiCaprio.

Venice, renowned for its romantic canal vistas, hosts hundreds of weddings each year, not infrequently those of the rich and famous. Previous celebrity weddings, like that of George Clooney to human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin in 2014, were embraced by the public. Hundreds turned out to wish the couple well at City Hall.

Bezos has a different political and business profile, said Tommaso Cacciari, a prominent figure in the movement that successfully pushed for a ban on cruise ships over 25,000 tons traveling through the Giudecca Canal in central Venice.

Bezos is not a Hollywood actor, Cacciari said. He is an ultra-billionaire who sat next to Donald Trump during the inauguration, who contributed to his reelection and is contributing in a direct and heavy way to this new global obscurantism.

Critics cite Amazons labor practices, ongoing tax disputes with European governments and Bezos political associations as reasons for concern.

Activists also argue that the Bezos wedding exemplifies broader failures in municipal governance, particularly the prioritization of tourism over residents' needs. They cite measures such as the day-tripper tax which critics argue reinforces Venices image as a theme park as ineffective. Chief among their concerns is the lack of investment in affordable housing and essential services.

City officials have defended the wedding. Mayor Luigi Brugnaro called the event an honor for Venice, and the city denied the wedding would cause disruptions.

"Venice once again reveals itself to be a global stage, Brugnaro told The Associated Press, adding he hoped to meet Bezos while he was in town.

Meanwhile, a Venetian environmental research association, Corila, issued a statement saying Bezos Earth Fund was supporting its work with an important donation.

Corila, which unites university scholars and Italys main national research council in researching Venetian protection strategies, wouldnt say how much Bezos was donating but said contact began in April, well before the protests started.

RFK Jr.'s new vaccine panel alarms pediatricians with inquiries into long-settled questions

U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.s new vaccine advisers alarmed pediatricians Wednesday by announcing inquiries into some long-settled questions about childrens shots.

Opening the first meeting of Kennedys handpicked seven-member panel, committee chairman Martin Kulldorff said he was appointing a work group to evaluate the cumulative effect of the childrens vaccine schedule the list of immunizations given at different times throughout childhood.

Also to be evaluated, he said, is how two other shots are administered one that guards against liver-destroying hepatitis B and another that combines chickenpox protection with MMR, the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.

It was an early sign of how the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices is being reshaped by Kennedy, a leading antivaccine activist before becoming the nation's top health official. He fired the entire 17-member panel this month and replaced it with a group that includes several anti-vaccine voices.

Vaccines are not all good or bad, Kulldorff said. We are learning more about vaccines over time and must keep up to date.

His announcement reflected a common message of vaccine skeptics: that too many shots may overwhelm kids immune systems or that the ingredients may build up to cause harm. Scientists say those claims have been repeatedly investigated with no signs of concern.

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Kids today are exposed to fewer antigens immune-revving components than their grandparents despite getting more doses, because of improved vaccine technology, said Dr. Paul Offit, a vaccine expert at Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia.

The American Academy of Pediatrics announced Wednesday that it would continue publishing its own vaccine schedule for children but now will do so independently of the ACIP, calling it no longer a credible process.

The narrative that current vaccine policies are flawed and need fixing is a distortion," said the AAPs Dr. Sean OLeary. "These policies have saved trillions of dollars and millions of lives."

The ACIP, created more than 60 years ago, helps the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determine who should be vaccinated against a long list of diseases, and when. Those recommendations have a big impact on whether insurance covers vaccinations and where theyre available, such as at pharmacies.

After Kennedys abrupt dismissal of the existing expert panel, a number of the CDCs top vaccine scientists including some who lead the reporting of data and the vetting of presentations at ACIP meetings have resigned or been moved out of previous positions.

And shortly before Wednesdays meeting, a Virginia-based obstetrician and gynecologist appointed to the committee stepped down. According to the Trump administration, he withdrew during a customary review of members financial holdings.

Scientists show data that COVID-19 vaccines protect pregnant women and kids

First on the committees agenda on Wednesday was COVID-19 vaccinations. Kennedy already sidestepped the panel and announced the vaccine will no longer be recommended for healthy children or pregnant women.

Yet CDC scientists told the panel that vaccination is the best protection during pregnancy, and said most children hospitalized for COVID-19 over the past year were unvaccinated.

COVID-19 remains a public health threat, resulting in 32,000 to 51,000 U.S. deaths and more than 250,000 hospitalizations since last fall, according to the CDC. Most at risk for hospitalization are seniors and children under 2 especially infants under 6 months who could have some protection if their mom got vaccinated during pregnancy, according to the CDCs presentation.

The new advisers werent asked to vote on Kennedys recommendations, which raise uncertainty about how easily people will be able to access COVID-19 vaccinations this fall.

After CDC staff outlined multiple overlapping systems that continue to track the vaccines safety, several advisers questioned if the real-world data really is trustworthy.

Vote on RSV protections is postponed

Also Wednesday, the committee took up RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, a common cause of cold-like symptoms that can be dangerous for infants.

In 2023, U.S. health officials began recommending two new measures to protect infants a lab-made antibody for newborns and a vaccine for pregnant women that experts say likely drove an improvement in infant mortality. The antibody proved to be 63% to 76% effective against emergency department visits for infants over the last year.

"People need to understand what a spectacular accomplishment these results are, said ACIP member Dr. Cody Meissner, of Dartmouth.

The committee postponed until Thursday a vote on whether to recommend another company's newly approved antibody shot as well.

Flu shot recommendations to be debated

At its June meetings, the committee usually refreshes guidance for Americans 6 months and older to get a flu shot, and helps green light the annual fall vaccination campaign.

But a vote set for Thursday also promises controversy.

The panel is set to consider a preservative in a subset of flu shots that Kennedy and some antivaccine groups have falsely contended is tied to autism.

In preparation, the CDC posted a new report confirming that research shows no link between the preservative, thimerosal, and autism or any other neurodevelopmental disorders. By Wednesday afternoon, the analysis had been removed from the committee's website.

Russian attacks on Ukraine kill at least 14 people as Zelenskyy travels to UK

Russian drones and missiles killed at least 14 civilians and injured several dozen others in Ukraine in overnight attacks, local officials said Monday, with nine deaths reported in the capital, Kyiv, where an apartment building partially collapsed.

The attacks came as Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy began a visit to the United Kingdom, where he met privately with King Charles III.

Russia fired 352 drones and decoys overnight, as well as 11 ballistic missiles and five cruise missiles, Ukraines air force said. Air defenses intercepted or jammed 339 drones and 15 missiles before they could reach their targets, a statement said.

A Russian ballistic missile strike destroyed a high school later in the day in Ukraine's southern Odesa region, killing two staff, authorities said. No children were on the premises due to the summer vacation, said Zelenskyy, who described the strike as absolutely insane.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT | Ukraine claims latest strike damaged key bridge connecting Russia and Crimea

The strikes came nearly a week after a Russian attack killed 28 people in Kyiv, 23 of them in a residential building that collapsed after a direct missile hit. Russia has also hit civilian areas with long-range strikes in an apparent attempt to weaken Ukrainian morale.

'Coalition of murderers'

Russian forces have been trying to drive deeper into Ukraine as part of a summer push along the roughly 620-mile front line, though the Institute for the Study of War said progress has failed to make significant gains.

Russian forces are largely relying on poorly trained infantry to make gains in the face of Ukraines drone-based defense, the Washington-based think tank said late Sunday.

Zelenskyy said preliminary data indicated that Russian forces used North Korean missiles in the Kyiv strike. He described Russia, North Korea and Iran, which has provided drones to Russia, as a coalition of murderers."

IN THE SHADOWS | Ukraine's classrooms in the crosshairs of war

Zelenskyy said Ukraines defense and new ways to pressure Russia will be the two main topics in his visit to the United Kingdom on Monday. Zelenskyy met privately with King Charles III and stayed for lunch, Buckingham Palace said. He was also expected to meet Prime Minister Keir Starmer ahead of this weeks NATO summit in The Hague, Starmers office said.

Drones hit hospitals and residential areas

Drones and missiles hit residential areas, hospitals and sports infrastructure in numerous districts across Kyiv, emergency services said.

The most severe damage was in Shevchenkivskyi district, where a section of a five-story apartment building collapsed.

Nine people were killed in the district, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said. Ten others, including a pregnant woman, were rescued from a nearby high-rise that also sustained heavy damage. Dozens of vehicles were burned or mangled by flying debris.

Oleksii Pozychaniuk, 29, who lives in the building next to the one struck, said he heard the whistle of the rocket approaching and froze in terror before feeling the impact.

Windows burst out, glass was flying everywhere, he said. We barely made it downstairs with my child. Everything here was on fire.

Klitschko said rescue workers were searching for survivors.

The Russian attack also damaged the entrance to the Sviatoshyn subway station in Kyiv, slightly injuring two people, said Timur Tkachenko, the head of Kyiv's military administration. He said more than 30 people were injured across the city.

Underground subway stations have served as shelters for those seeking protection from aerial attacks. During almost nightly strikes, stations across Kyiv are often filled with people waiting out the danger.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Nol Barrot said the latest strikes demonstrated Russias unlimited cruelty by deliberately aiming at civilian targets, and promised more European sanctions on Moscow.

Long process to identify returned remains

Elsewhere in Ukraine, a drone attack killed two people and wounded 10 more in the Chernihiv region late Sunday, authorities said. Three children were among the wounded, according to the regional administration head, Viacheslav Chaus.

Another person was killed and eight wounded overnight in the city of Bila Tserkva, around 53 miles southwest of the capital.

Meanwhile, Russias Defense Ministry said its air defenses shot down 23 Ukrainian drones overnight into Monday.

Ukraine will take at least a year to identify the thousands of soldiers' bodies repatriated by Russia and establish whether Moscow has mistakenly included more of its servicemen, Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.

Zelenskyy said Friday that Russia had included at least 20 of its own dead soldiers in recent exchanges with Ukraine, describing it as a result of Moscows disorganization in carrying out large swaps of wounded POWs and remains.

At least five of the bodies can be proven to be Russian, Klymenko told a press conference, with tests being conducted on others. Journalists were shown uniforms and items including cigarettes belonging to what Ukraine said were the five Russians.

ICE detains Marine Corps veteran's wife who was still breastfeeding their baby

Marine Corps veteran Adrian Clouatre doesn't know how to tell his children where their mother went after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers detained her last month.

When his nearly 2-year-old son Noah asks for his mother before bed, Clouatre just tells him, Mama will be back soon. When his 3-month-old, breastfeeding daughter Lyn is hungry, he gives her a bottle of baby formula instead. Hes worried how his newborn will bond with her mother absent skin-to-skin contact.

His wife, Paola, is one of tens of thousands of people in custody and facing deportation as the Trump administration pushes for immigration officers to arrest 3,000 people a day.

Even as Marine Corps recruiters promote enlistment as protection for families lacking legal status, directives for strict immigrant enforcement have cast away practices of deference previously afforded to military families, immigration law experts say. The federal agency tasked with helping military family members gain legal status now refers them for deportation, government memos show.

To visit his wife, Adrian Clouatre has to make an eight-hour round trip from their home in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to a rural ICE detention center in Monroe. Clouatre, who qualifies as a service-disabled veteran, goes every chance he can get.

RELATED STORY | Trump directs ICE to expand deportations in Democratic-run cities

Paola Clouatre, a 25-year-old Mexican national whose mother brought her into the country seeking asylum more than a decade ago, met Adrian Clouatre, 26, at a southern California nightclub during the final months of his five years of military service in 2022. Within a year, they had tattooed each other's names on their arms.

After they married in 2024, Paola Clouatre sought a green card to legally live and work in the U.S. Adrian Clouatre said he is not a very political person but believes his wife deserved to live legally in the U.S.

Im all for get the criminals out of the country, right?" he said. "But the people that are here working hard, especially the ones married to Americans I mean, thats always been a way to secure a green card.

Detained at a green card meeting

The process to apply for Paola Clouatre's green card went smoothly at first, but eventually she learned ICE had issued an order for her deportation in 2018 after her mother failed to appear at an immigration hearing.

Clouatre and her mother had been estranged for years Clouatre cycled out of homeless shelters as a teenager and up until a couple of months ago, Clouatre had no idea about her mother's missed hearing or the deportation order, her husband said.

Adrian Clouatre recalled that a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services staffer asked about the deportation order during a May 27 appointment as part of her green card application. After Paola Clouatre explained that she was trying to reopen her case, the staffer asked her and her husband to wait in the lobby for paperwork regarding a follow-up appointment, which her husband said he believed was a ploy.

Soon, officers arrived and handcuffed Paola Clouatre, who handed her wedding ring to her husband for safekeeping.

Adrian Clouatre, eyes welling with tears, said he and his wife had tried to do the right thing and that he felt ICE officers should have more discretion over arrests, though he understood they were trying to do their jobs.

Its just a hell of a way to treat a veteran, said Carey Holliday, a former immigration judge who is now representing the couple. You take their wives and send them back to Mexico?

The Clouatres filed a motion for a California-based immigration judge to reopen the case on Paola's deportation order and are waiting to hear back, Holliday said.

Less discretion for military families

Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in an emailed statement that Paola Clouatre is in the country illegally" and that the administration is not going to ignore the rule of law.

Ignoring an Immigration Judges order to leave the U.S. is a bad idea, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said in a June 9 post on X which appeared to refer to Clouatre's case. The agency added that the government has a long memory and no tolerance for defiance when it comes to making America safe again.

Adrian Clouatre said the agency's X post does not accurately reflect his wife's situation because she entered the country as a minor with her mother, seeking asylum.

She was not aware of the removal order, so she was not knowingly defying it, he said. If she had been arrested, she would have been deported long ago, and we would never have met."

Prior to the Trump administration's push to drive up deportations, USCIS provided much more discretion for veterans seeking legal status for a family member, said Holliday and Margaret Stock, a military immigration law expert.

In a Feb. 28 memo, the agency said it will no longer exempt from deportation people in groups that had received more grace in the past. This includes the families of military personnel or veterans, Stock said. As of June 12, the agency said it has referred upward of 26,000 cases to ICE for deportation.

USCIS still offers a program allowing family members of military personnel who illegally entered the U.S. to remain in the country as they apply for a green card. But there no longer appears to be room for leeway, such as giving a veteran's spouse like Paola Clouatre the opportunity to halt her active deportation order without facing arrest, Stock said.

But numerous Marine Corps recruiters have continued to post ads on social media, geared toward Latinos, promoting enlistment as a way to gain protection from deportation for family members.

I think its bad for them to be advertising that people are going to get immigration benefits when it appears that the administration is no longer offering these immigration benefits, Stock said. It sends the wrong message to the recruits.

Marine Corps spokesperson Master Sgt. Tyler Hlavac told The Associated Press that recruiters have now been informed they are not the proper authority to imply that the Marine Corps can secure immigration relief for applicants or their families.

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