Russia launched a wave of attacks on Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, overnight, with at least seven people killed in strikes that hit city buildings and energy infrastructure. A Ukrainian attack on southern Russia killed three people and damaged homes, authorities said.

The attacks came during a renewed U.S. push to end the war that has raged for nearly four years and talks about a U.S. peace plan. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll met with Russian officials for several hours in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, a U.S. official told The Associated Press.

Driscoll, who became part of the U.S. negotiating team less than two weeks ago, is heading up the latest phase of talks involving the terms of a possible peace settlement with Russia.

The U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive negotiations, declined to give details on how long the negotiations would last or what topics were being discussed, but noted that the Ukrainians were aware of the meeting and all sides have indicated they wanted to reach a deal to halt the fighting as quickly as possible.

Road to peace will be long

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said late Monday that the list of necessary steps to end the war can become workable after progress was made in Sunday's talks between U.S. and Ukrainian delegates in Geneva. He said he planned to discuss sensitive outstanding issues with President Donald Trump.

Rustem Umerov, a senior adviser to Zelenskyy, wrote on social platform X on Tuesday that the Ukrainian leader hoped to finalize a deal with Trump at the earliest suitable date in November.

Russian officials have been reserved in their comments on the peace plan. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Tuesday that Moscow is in touch with American officials about peace efforts.

"We expect them to provide us with a version they consider an interim one in terms of completing the phase of coordinating this text with the Europeans and the Ukrainians, Lavrov said.

European leaders have cautioned that the road to peace will be long.

'Glass rained down'

Russia fired 22 missiles of various types and over 460 drones at Ukraine overnight, Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram. The strikes knocked out water, electricity and heat in parts of Kyiv. Video footage posted to Telegram showed a large fire spreading in a nine-story residential building in Kyivs eastern Dniprovskyi district.

Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said 20 people were injured in Kyiv. The Russian Defense Ministry said it targeted military-industrial facilities and energy assets. The strikes were a response to Ukrainian attacks on civilian objects in Russia, it added.

Liubov Petrivna, a 90-year-old resident of a damaged building in the Dniprovskyi district, told the AP that absolutely everything in her apartment was shattered by the strike and glass rained down on her.

Petrivna said she didn't believe in the peace plan now under discussion: "No one will ever do anything about it. Putin wont stop until he finishes us off.

In a subsequent attack wave, four people were killed and three were injured in a strike on a nonresidential building in Kyivs western Sviatoshynyi district, according to the head of Kyiv city administration, Tymur Tkachenko.

Neighboring Romania and Moldova reported that a handful of drones violated their airspace.

Strikes hit energy infrastructure

Ukraines energy ministry said energy infrastructure had been hit, without giving details. Ukraines emergency services said six people, including two children, were injured in a Russian attack on energy and port infrastructure in the Odesa region.

A Ukrainian drone attack on Russias southern Rostov region overnight killed three people and injured eight others in the city of Taganrog not far from the border in Ukraine, Gov. Yuri Slyusar said in an online statement.

The attack damaged private houses and multistory residential blocks, unspecified social facilities, a warehouse and a paint shop, Slyusar said.

Russian air defenses destroyed 249 Ukrainian drones overnight above various Russian regions and the occupied Crimea, the Russian Defense Ministry said Tuesday, noting that 116 of the drones were shot down over the Black Sea.

It was the fourth-largest Ukrainian drone attack on Russia, according to an AP tally.

'No capitulation'

The latest attacks followed peace-plan talks in Switzerland between U.S. and Ukraine representatives.

Oleksandr Bevz, a delegate from the Ukrainian side, told the AP that the talks had been very constructive and the two sides were able to discuss most points.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday that Moscow has not received the updated U.S. peace plan that emerged from that meeting.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday that the U.S. plan for Ukraine goes in the right direction but also cautioned it must not be a capitulation that enables Russia to later renew hostilities.

Any peace deal must include robust security guarantees for Ukraine and, more widely, for Europe, Macron said in an interview with broadcaster RTL, adding that the size of Ukraines armed forces shouldnt be restricted so it can defend the country in peacetime.

Macron was speaking ahead of a video conference meeting on Tuesday of countries, led by France and the U.K., that could help police any ceasefire with Russia.

We want peace, but we dont want a peace is that is, in fact, a capitulation. That is to say, it puts Ukraine in an impossible position that in the end gives Russia the freedom to keep going, to go further, Macron said.

No one can replace the Ukrainians in saying which territorial concessions they are prepared to make, he added. Theres only one person who doesnt want peace: its Russia.

The White House is circulating a proposal that would extend subsidies to help consumers pay for coverage under the Affordable Care Act for two more years, as millions of Americans face spiking health care costs when the current tax credits are set to expire at the end of the year.

The draft plan suggests that President Donald Trump is open to extending a provision of Obamacare as his administration and congressional Republicans search for a broader policy solution to a fight that has long flummoxed the party. The White House stresses that no plan is final until Trump announces it.

The subsidies were at the heart of the Democrats demands in the government shutdown fight that ended earlier this month. Most Democratic lawmakers had insisted on a straight extension of the tax credits, which expire at the end of the year as a condition of keeping the government open.

Eligibility for the Obamacare subsidies, which were put in place during the COVID-19 pandemic to help people afford health care coverage, would be capped at 700% of the federal poverty level, according to two people with knowledge of the proposal. The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss a White House proposal that is in draft form.

The baseline tax credits that were originally part of the Affordable Care Act were capped at 400% of the federal poverty level, but that cut-off was suspended because of the temporary COVID-era credits that allowed middle- and higher-income people to benefit from subsidies too.

The White House would also require those on Obamacare, regardless of the type of coverage, to pay some sort of premium for their Obamacare plans. That would effectively end zero-premium plans for those with lower incomes, addressing a concern from Republicans that the program has enabled fraud. One option is a requirement that everyone pay 2% of their income, or at least $5 per month, for lower-tier plans.

Even as the White Houses proposal remains in flux, the notion of extending any part of President Barack Obamas signature legislative achievement is likely to rankle conservatives who have sought to repeal and replace the law for well over a decade.

Until President Trump makes an announcement himself, any reporting about the administrations health care positions is mere speculation, White House spokesman Kush Desai said Monday.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters on Monday afternoon that Trump is very much involved in these talks and that he is focused on unveiling a health care proposal that will fix the system and will bring down costs for consumers.

RELATED STORY | Health care affordability fight takes shape on Capitol Hill

But there are signs that parts of the nascent White House plan could get buy-in from Democrats. New Hampshire Sen. Maggie Hassan, one of eight members of the Senate Democratic caucus who voted to reopen the government earlier this month, said it represents a starting point for serious negotiations.

The fact that President Trump is putting forward any offer at all to extend the Affordable Care Acts tax credits shows that there is a broad understanding that inaction in this regard will cause serious harm to the American people, Hassan said.

Fellow New Hampshire Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, who led bipartisan efforts to end the government shutdown, added that I'm glad the president is reportedly considering a serious proposal.

Ive had constructive conversations with many of my Republican colleagues who I believe want to get this done, Shaheen said. They understand that the vast majority of people who benefit from these tax credits live in states the President won, and that the Presidents own pollsters have underscored the enormous political urgency of Republicans acting.

In 2017, Trump fell short in a push to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, an embarrassing defeat for Republicans who had just seized control of all levers of power in Washington. The GOP has failed to coalesce around a unified health care proposal since, and the expiration of the pandemic-era subsidies gives Trump and his party an opportunity to put their own stamp on the issue.

As the White House worked quietly on its plan, led by the Domestic Policy Council, key lawmakers on Capitol Hill have drafted their own proposals. For instance, Florida Sen. Rick Scott, Louisiana Sen. Bill Cassidy and others have proposed various ideas for redirecting the programs spending on federal subsidies into health savings accounts that enrollees could use to shop for plans or defray out-of-pocket costs. Scott's plan has been discussed with the White House multiple times since it was released Thursday, according to a person familiar not authorized to discuss the private conversations.

The draft of the White House plan would allow those in lower-tier plans, such as the bronze-level or catastrophic plans, to put money into health savings accounts.

It would also codify the program integrity rule to further help root out fraud, waste and abuse.

Americans shopping for Obamacare coverage have already faced the sticker shock of price hikes, because the window for selecting next years coverage began Nov. 1. Without congressional action, the average subsidized enrollee will face more than double their current cost in premiums next year, according to an analysis by the health care research nonprofit KFF.

Recent national polls have shown Americans are concerned about health care costs, along with broader affordability issues. Those concerns played out in elections earlier this month, which swept to power Democrats whose political messaging focused on the rising cost of living.

Viola Ford Fletcher, who as one of the last survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre in Oklahoma spent her later years seeking justice for the deadly attack by a white mob on the thriving Black community where she lived as a child, has died. She was 111.

Her grandson Ike Howard said Monday that she died surrounded by family at a Tulsa hospital. Sustained by a strong faith, she raised three children, worked as a welder in a shipyard during World War II and spent decades caring for families as a housekeeper.

Tulsa was mourning her loss, said Mayor Monroe Nichols, the first Black leader of Oklahomas second-largest city. Mother Fletcher endured more than anyone should, yet she spent her life lighting a path forward with purpose.

She was 7 years old when the two-day attack began on Tulsas Greenwood district on May 31, 1921, after a local newspaper published a sensationalized report about a Black man accused of assaulting a white woman. As a white mob grew outside the courthouse, Black Tulsans with guns who hoped to prevent the mans lynching began showing up. White residents responded with overwhelming force. Hundreds of people were killed and homes were burned and looted, leaving over 30 city blocks decimated in the prosperous community known as Black Wall Street.

I could never forget the charred remains of our once-thriving community, the smoke billowing in the air, and the terror-stricken faces of my neighbors, she wrote in her 2023 memoir, Dont Let Them Bury My Story.

As her family left in a horse-drawn buggy, her eyes burned from the smoke and ash, she wrote. She described seeing piles of bodies in the streets and watching as a white man shot a Black man in the head, then fired toward her family.

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She told The Associated Press in an interview the year her memoir was published that fear of reprisals influenced her years of near-silence about the massacre. She wrote the book with Howard, her grandson, who said he had to persuade her to tell her story.

We dont want history to repeat itself so we do need to educate people about what happened and try to get people to understand why you need to be made whole, why you need to be repaired, Howard told the AP in 2024. The generational wealth that was lost, the home, all the belongings, everything was lost in one night.

The attack went largely unremembered for decades. In Oklahoma, wider discussions began when the state formed a commission in 1997 to investigate the violence.

Fletcher, who in 2021 testified before Congress about what she went through, joined her younger brother, Hughes Van Ellis, and another massacre survivor, Lessie Benningfield Randle, in a lawsuit seeking reparations. The Oklahoma Supreme Court dismissed it in June 2024, saying their grievances did not fall within the scope of the states public nuisance statute.

For as long as we remain in this lifetime, we will continue to shine a light on one of the darkest days in American history, Fletcher and Randle said in a statement at the time. Van Ellis had died a year earlier, at the age of 102.

A Justice Department review, launched under the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act and released in January 2024, outlined the massacre's scope and impact. It concluded that federal prosecution may have been possible a century ago, but there was no longer an avenue to bring a criminal case.

The city has been looking for ways to help descendants of the massacre's victims without giving direct cash payments. Some of the last living survivors, including Fletcher, received donations from groups but have not received any payments from the city or state.

Fletcher, born in Oklahoma on May 10, 1914, spent most of her early years in Greenwood. It was an oasis for Black people during segregation, she wrote in her memoir. Her family had a nice home, she said, and the community had everything from doctors to grocery stores to restaurants and banks.

Forced to flee during the massacre, her family became nomadic, living out of a tent as they worked in the fields as sharecroppers. She didn't finish school beyond the fourth grade.

At the age of 16, she returned to Tulsa, where she got a job cleaning and creating window displays in a department store, she wrote in her memoir. She then met Robert Fletcher, and they married and moved to California. During World War II, she worked in a Los Angeles shipyard as a welder, she wrote.

She eventually left her husband, who was physically abusive, and gave birth to their son, Robert Ford Fletcher, she wrote. Longing to be closer to her family, she returned to Oklahoma and settled north of Tulsa in Bartlesville.

Fletcher wrote that her faith and the close-knit Black community gave her the support she needed to raise her children. She had another son, James Edward Ford, and a daughter, Debra Stein Ford, from other relationships.

She worked for decades as a housekeeper, doing everything in those homes from cooking to cleaning to caring for children, Howard said. She worked until she was 85.

She eventually returned to Tulsa to live. Howard said his grandmother hoped the move would help in her fight for justice.

Howard said the reaction his grandmother got when she started speaking out was therapeutic for her.

This whole process has been helpful, Howard said.

President Donald Trump said he has accepted an invitation from Chinese leader Xi Jinping to visit Beijing in April and that he reciprocated by inviting Xi for a state visit to the U.S. later next year.

Trump made the announcement a few hours after he spoke with Xi on the phone on Monday morning, in which he said the two men discussed issues including Ukraine, fentanyl, and soybeans. The phone call came nearly one month after the two men met in person in the South Korean city of Busan.

Our relationship with China is extremely strong! Trump said.

Beijing, which announced the phone call first, said nothing about the state visits but said that the two leaders discussed trade, Taiwan and Ukraine.

Xi told Trump in the phone call Monday that Taiwans return to mainland China is an integral part of the post-war international order, and he expressed hope for a fair, lasting and binding peace agreement over Ukraine, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.

The conversation came after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi recently said Japans military could get involved if China were to take action against Taiwan, the self-governing island that Beijing says must come under its rule. Japan is an important ally of the U.S. in the region. The phone call also coincided with the latest push by the Trump administration to end the war in Ukraine.

The Chinese, who in the past always pointed out that their leader picked up the call upon request, didnt say such for Mondays call. That means China called Trump, said Sun Yun, director of the China program at the Washington-based think tank Stimson Center

My best guest is China is worried about the escalation (in tensions) with Japan. The reference to Taiwan and the post-WWII order directly points to the spat with Japan over Taiwan, said Sun Yun, director of the China program at the Washington-based think tank Stimson Center. They also talked about Ukraine. That is an issue China is interested in due to the new peace negotiation.

China's relations with Japan sour

China-Japan relations have plunged to a new low following Takaichi's remarks, with Beijing denouncing her words. Over the weekend, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Japan crossed a red line that should not have been touched.

Xi in the phone call said China and the U.S., which fought together during the war against fascism and militarism, should jointly safeguard the victory of World War II. The U.S. has taken no side on the sovereignty of the self-governed island but is opposed to the use of force to seize Taiwan. It is obligated by a domestic law to provide sufficient hardware to the island to deter any armed attack.

Trump has maintained strategic ambiguity about whether he would send U.S. troops in case of a war in the Taiwan Strait. His administration has urged Taiwan to increase its defense budget.

Earlier this month, Taiwan's foreign ministry said it received official notification that the Trump administration approved a US$330 million arms sales to Taiwan, including fighter jet parts. Beijing immediately protested the arms sale, saying it grossly violated the one-China principle, by which Beijing considers Taiwan to be part of Chinese territory. China deplores and opposes that, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said then.

The two leaders also discussed the Ukraine crisis, the Chinese side said, with Xi saying the crisis should be resolved at its root. The Chinese leader stressed Beijing's support for all efforts that are conducive to peace, according to the statement. However, western governments have accused Beijing of enabling the war through its industrial support for Moscow.

Trump and Xi discussed trade

Trump said he spoke with Xi about Fentanyl, Soybeans and other Farm Products, etc.

We have done a good, and very important, deal for our Great Farmers and it will only get better, Trump wrote.

Since he met Xi in Busan, there has been significant progress on both sides in keeping our agreements current and accurate, Trump said.

In the call, Xi said the bilateral relationship has generally maintained a steady and positive trajectory following the Busan summit, and he said the two sides should strive to make more positive progress, according to the Chinese foreign ministry. It didn't reveal any concrete agreements on matters such as purchases of American soybeans.

A University of Alabama at Birmingham football player stabbed two teammates Saturday morning hours before the team's game against the University of South Florida, the university said in a statement.

The two wounded players were in stable condition, interim head coach Alex Mortensen said at the postgame news conference. He said the team decided to play to honor graduating seniors in the last home game of the season, though several players opted to sit it out due to the incident.

The teammate suspected in the stabbing was in custody, the university said. The school did not release the names of the players involved.

Daniel Mincey, an offensive lineman who transferred to UAB in May, was arrested and booked on charges of aggravated assault and attempted murder in the afternoon, according to Jefferson County Jail records. He was in custody in Birmingham and appeared to be the only UAB player who was arrested Saturday.

It was not immediately clear if Mincey had legal representation. Attempts to reach family members for comment were not immediately successful.

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UAB officials would not confirm that Mincey was involved in the stabbing.

The team's online roster lists Mincey as a 6-foot-4 redshirt freshman from Pompano Beach, Florida, who was previously at the University of Kentucky.

Mortensen said that once the team decided to play, it focused on its normal game-day routines. He also said counseling was being made available for players who want it.

The coach declined to share further details about the incident, citing the ongoing investigation.

The stabbing occurred on campus at the Football Operations Building.

The Blazers lost 48-18 to South Florida to fall to 3-8 on the season and 1-6 in the American Conference. Their last game is Nov. 29 at Tulsa.

A major highlight of Thanksgiving is the menu, but the big meal can come with a lot of wasted food. Experts say a pinch of extra planning can ensure more gets eaten.

Roughly 320 million pounds (145 million kilograms) of food will be wasted at Thanksgiving this year, according to ReFED, a nonprofit that tracks food waste. ReFED says that's largely because people prepare more food than is needed for the meal and then don't finish the leftovers.

That is essentially like five meals each for all of the food insecure people in the U.S., said Yvette Cabrera, food waste director at Natural Resources Defense Council.

It's also a problem because most of that waste ends up in landfills, where it releases the potent planet-warming gas methane, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. But a lot of those emissions are avoidable.

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Here are some tips for a climate-smarter Thanksgiving meal without ditching tradition.

Curbing waste starts at the store

Chef and cookbook author Joel Gamoran, who focuses on cooking with food scraps, says the key to cutting Thanksgiving waste starts before you even turn on the oven.

He recommends a quarter pound of cooked turkey per person and about a fistful or half a cup of each side dish per person. Cabrera said the most wasted foods are typically turkey and dairy products such as milk or cream bought for recipes.

When you're buying a whole bird, you should factor in the weight of the bones and giblets. The Natural Resources Defense council's food estimation tool recommends 0.75 pounds (0.34 kilograms) per person.

Cabrera also recommends buying food in the grocery store thats close to its expiration date, or produce that's misshapen or unattractive, because those are more likely to go unsold and be discarded.

Cooking with common food scraps

Lots of food gets wasted because home cooks don't think to use it.

Its OK to make the whole bird, Gamoran said. But have a plan for how youre going to take advantage of that later on. What are you going to do with the carcass, all that extra meat?

He likes to make turkey stock with the carcass by covering it in a pot with cold water, bringing it to a boil and then simmering it for two hours. You can fold that stock into mashed potatoes, use it to thicken soup, or freeze it for months.

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Gamorans favorite trick for the rest of the scraps is to use them like ingredients, not trash.

Carrot tops are like an herb, he said. You can treat it like basil or parsley and make a really beautiful pesto out of it, and then put them in ice cube trays to freeze them. Those go really nice in stir fries and salads and soups.

Hell also roast butternut squash shells, cover them with vinegar and strain them out after a day for a rich umami vinegar that can be used in cooking.

Potato skins can be tossed in oil and paprika, air fried and turned into potato chips or croutons.

Onion peels can be dried in the oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit (94 degrees Celsius) for 20 minutes, then ground in the food processor for homemade onion powder. This method also works with garlic skins.

Getting creative with leftovers

For many, leftovers are one of the perks of hosting Thanksgiving. They can also be given a second life.

Gamoran says mashed potatoes can be transformed into breakfast foods like waffles and pancakes, or you can make potato bread by adding flour and yeast.

If you get sick of sliced turkey, Gamoran recommends using the leftover meat for meatballs or patties by chopping it in a food processor, adding an egg and then baking it.

If you want to get really creative, pumpkin pie can be made into a savory curry by adding sauteed onions and spices. And cranberry sauce can be added to smoothies, or even ketchup and mustard for a tangy twist.

If it sounds overwhelming to launch into new recipes just after the holiday, Cabrera recommends freezing leftovers. She said it's important to create space in the freezer before Thanksgiving starts.

Home-cooked food doesn't come with easy expiration dates. Cabrera said that's what your senses are for.

Smell it, look at it, inspect it, maybe taste a little bit to make sure its good to eat, she said.

There are some scraps, such as eggshells, that just don't have much culinary value. And if, despite all your best efforts, the green bean casserole in the back of the fridge goes bad, there's still one final move to keep it out of the landfill: composting.

"Having a plan for what youre going to do with anything thats not able to be eaten is going to be really critical to reducing those kind of end-of-life emissions on food that you couldnt eat," she said.

A gunman who killed a Florida deputy earlier this week died on Saturday from injuries received in the confrontation, authorities say.

Michael Halberstam, 37, shot two Indian River County deputies and a locksmith on Friday when they were serving an eviction notice at a home near Vero Beach where Halberstam's mother was trying to evict him, officials said. Officers returned fire, striking Halberstam multiple times and he succumbed to his injuries Saturday afternoon, the county's sheriff's department said in a post online.

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One of the deputies, Terri Sweeting-Mashkow, was killed and another is recovering from a shoulder injury. The locksmith was in critical condition after the shooting and underwent surgery, Alexander Hagan, a spokesman for HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital, said Friday. The locksmith wasn't identified.

Over the past month, the sheriffs office had received seven calls from the home, almost all of which were from the mother calling about her son, Indian River County Sheriff Eric Flowers said Friday at a news conference. Still, he said, deputies werent expecting any trouble when they arrived to carry out the eviction.

This was a standard call for service, the sheriff said, adding there was nothing in Halberstam's record that would have precluded him from having a weapon.

Sweeting-Mashkow was a 25-year-veteran of the sheriffs office, Flowers said, growing emotional as he praised the deputy and described working alongside him his entire career.

I can tell you that our team will feel this forever, Flowers said.

Sweeting-Mashkow was posthumously promoted to sergeant in the sheriff's office on Saturday.

Universal Pictures two-part Wicked gamble continues to defy gravity at the box office. Just a year after part one brought droves of audiences to movie theaters around the country, even more people bought opening weekend tickets to see the epic conclusion, Wicked: For Good. According to studio estimates on Sunday, Wicked: For Good earned $150 million from North American theaters in its first days in theaters and $226 million globally.

Not only is it the biggest opening ever for a Broadway musical adaptation, unseating the record set by the first films $112 million launch, its also the second biggest debut of the year behind A Minecraft Movies $162 million.

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Universal began rolling out Wicked: For Good in theaters earlier this week, with previews on Monday ($6.1 million from 1,050 theaters) and Wednesday ($6.5 million from 2,300 theaters). By Friday it was playing in 4,115 North American locations and had raked in $68.6 million. IMAX showings accounted for $15.5 million, or 11%, of its domestic haul a November record for the company.

IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond said in a statement that the strong market share shows, our momentum carries into demos and genres beyond our traditional core, including families.

As with the first film, women powered opening weekend, making up around 71% of ticket buyers according to PostTrak exit polls. Critics were somewhat mixed on the final chapter, but audiences werent: An overwhelming 83% of audiences said it was one they would definitely recommend to friends.

Jon M. Chu directed both Wicked films, starring Cynthia Ervio and Ariana Grande. The first film made over $758.7 million worldwide and received 10 Oscar nominations (winning two, for costume and production design. The question is how high Wicked: For Good can soar. Combined, the two films cost around $300 million to produce, not including marketing and promotion costs.

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Two other films also opened in wide release this weekend, but further down on the charts behind a buffet of holdovers. Searchlight Pictures opened its Brendan Fraser film Rental Family in 1,925 theaters. The Finnish action film Sisu: Road to Revenge," a Sony release, also played in 2,222 theaters.

Although this weekend the box office was more of a winner takes all scenario, Wicked: For Goods success is vitally important for the exhibition industry as a whole as it enters the final weeks of the year. After the slow fall season, the Thanksgiving blockbusters could not arrive soon enough. Early next week, Zootopia 2 enters the mix and is also expected to drive big crowds to the cineplex over the holiday break.

Fifty of the 303 schoolchildren abducted from a Catholic school in north-central Nigerias Niger state have escaped captivity and are now with their families, the school authority said Sunday, bringing relief to some distraught families after one of the largest school abductions in Nigeria's history.

The schoolchildren, aged between 10 and 18, escaped individually between Friday and Saturday, according to the Most Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria in Niger state and the proprietor of the school. A total of 253 schoolchildren and 12 teachers are still held by the kidnappers, he said in a statement.

We were able to ascertain this when we decided to contact and visit some parents, Yohanna said.

The pupils and students were seized together with their teachers by gunmen who attacked the St. Marys School, a Catholic institution in Niger states remote Papiri community, on Friday. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the abductions and authorities have said tactical squads have been deployed alongside local hunters to rescue the children.

It was not immediately clear where the Niger state children were being held or how they managed to return home. Nigerias military and police did not immediately respond to an Associated Press inquiry.

As much as we receive the return of these 50 children that escaped with some sigh of relief, I urge you all to continue in your prayers for the rescue and safe return of the remaining victims, the Yohanna said.

The Niger state attack happened four days after 25 schoolchildren were seized in similar circumstances in neighboring Kebbi states Maga town, which is 106 miles away.

Both states are in a northern region of Nigeria where dozens of armed gangs have used kidnapping for ransom as one way of dominating remote communities with little government and security presence.

Satellite image shows that the Niger state school compound is attached to an adjoining primary school, with more than 50 classroom and dormitory buildings. Its located near a major road linking the towns of Yelwa and Mokwa.

School kidnappings have come to define insecurity in Africas most populous nation, and armed gangs often see schools as strategic targets to draw more attention.

Niger state hurriedly closed down all schools after Fridays attack, while some federal colleges in conflict hotspots across the region were also closed by the Nigerian government.

Israel on Sunday struck Lebanons capital for the first time since June, saying it killed Hezbollahs chief of staff Haytham Tabtabai and warning the Iran-backed militant group not to rearm and rebuild a year after their latest war.

The strike in Beiruts southern suburbs killed five people and wounded 25 others, Lebanons Health Ministry said.

Hezbollah did not immediately comment. Earlier, it said the strike, launched almost exactly a year after a ceasefire ended that Israel-Hezbollah war, threatened an escalation of attacks just days before Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to visit Lebanon on his first foreign trip.

We will continue to act forcefully to prevent any threat to the residents of the north and the state of Israel, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement. Government spokesperson Shosh Bedrosian did not say whether Israel informed the U.S. before the strike, saying only that Israel makes decisions independently. Israel did not issue an evacuation warning.

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Tabtabai had led Hezbollahs elite Radwan Unit. Israel's military said he commanded most of Hezbollahs units and worked hard to restore them to readiness for war with Israel."

In 2016, the United States designated Tabtabai as a terrorist, calling him a military leader who led Hezbollahs special forces in Syria and Yemen, and it offered up to $5 million for information about him.

Tabtabai had been the apparent successor of Ibrahim Aqil, who was killed in September 2024 in Israeli attacks that wiped out much of Hezbollahs senior leadership, including longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Escalation of assaults

Earlier, at the scene of Sunday's strike, Mahmoud Qamati, deputy chair of Hezbollahs political council, told journalists that a high-ranking militant may have been killed but did not give details.

Hezbollahs leadership is studying the matter of response and will take the appropriate decision, Qamati said. The strike on the southern suburbs today opens the door to an escalation of assaults all over Lebanon.

Israeli airstrikes over southern Lebanon have intensified in recent weeks while Israel and the United States have pressured Lebanon to disarm the powerful militant group. Israel asserts that Hezbollah is trying to rebuild its military capabilities in southern Lebanon. The Lebanese government, which has approved its militarys plan that would disarm Hezbollah, has denied those claims.

Lebanons President Joseph Aoun in a statement condemned Sunday's strike and accused Israel of refusing to implement its end of the ceasefire agreement. He called on the international community to intervene with strength and seriousness to stop the attacks on Lebanon and its people.

Israel's military statement said Israel remains committed to the understandings agreed upon by Israel and Lebanon.

Smoke could be seen in the busy Haret Hreik neighborhood. A video circulated on social media showed dozens of people crowded around the area of the strike, which appeared to be on the fourth floor of an apartment building. Gunshots could be heard to disperse crowds as emergency workers arrived.

This is definitely a civilian area and void of any military presence, especially the neighborhood where we stand, Hezbollah parliamentarian Ali Ammar told reporters near the site.

RELATED STORY | UN approves US plan authorizing an international stabilization force in Gaza

An Israeli drone was flying near the building targeted. The Lebanese military cordoned off the area, the state-run National News Agency reported.

They want to take our weapons. But our weapons will not be taken, said Maryam Assaf, who lives nearby and heard the strike. She said it "only gives us more determination, strength, and dignity.

Hezbollah severely weakened

Lebanon and United Nations peacekeepers have been critical of ongoing Israel attacks in the country and accuse Israel of violating the ceasefire agreement.

Aoun last week said the country is ready to enter negotiations with Israel to stop its airstrikes and to withdraw from five hilltop points it occupies on Lebanese territory. It was unclear if Israel would agree.

Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam say they are committed to disarming all non-state actors in the country, including Hezbollah.

The latest Israel-Hezbollah war began Oct. 8, 2023, a day after Hamas attacked southern Israel, as Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel in solidarity with Hamas. Israel launched a widespread bombardment of Lebanon last year that severely weakened Hezbollah, followed by a ground invasion.

That war was the most recent of several conflicts involving Hezbollah over the past four decades. It killed more than 4,000 people in Lebanon, including hundreds of civilians, and caused an estimated $11 billion worth of destruction, according to the World Bank. In Israel, 127 people died, including 80 soldiers.

On Tuesday, an Israeli strike killed 13 people in the Palestinian refugee camp of Ein el-Hilweh near the southern city of Sidon in the deadliest attack since the ceasefire went into effect. The military said it targeted a military facility belonging to the Palestinian Hamas militant group. Hamas denied it has any military facilities in the crowded camp.

A Washington state resident is believed to be the first person to die from a rare strain of bird flu, but state health officials said Friday the risk to the public is low.

The person, an older adult with underlying health conditions, was being treated for a bird flu called H5N5 after becoming seemingly the first known human infected by the strain, according to a statement from the Washington State Department of Health.

The person from Grays Harbor County, about 78 miles southwest of Seattle, had a backyard flock of domestic poultry that had been exposed to wild birds, health officials said.

RELATED STORY | CDC ends its emergency response to bird flu as cases decline

The risk to the public remains low," the statement from state health officials said. No other people involved have tested positive for avian influenza.

Health officials said they will monitor anyone who came in close contact with the person, but there is no evidence of transmission of this virus between people."

Earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a statement about the infection that said no information would suggest the risk to public health has increased as a result of this case.

H5N5 is not believed to be a greater threat to human health than the H5N1 virus behind a wave of 70 reported human infections in the U.S. in 2024 and 2025. Most of those have been mild illnesses in workers on dairy and poultry farms.

The distinction between H5N5 and H5N1 lies in a protein involved in releasing the virus from an infected cell and promoting spread to surrounding cells.

Cracker Barrel shareholders voted Thursday to keep company CEO Julie Felss Masino in place despite a debacle over the company's logo that continues to hurt its sales.

But one of the company's directors, Gilbert Davila, resigned from Cracker Barrel's board Thursday after preliminary results indicated that shareholders rejected his reelection.

Davila, who joined Cracker Barrel's board in 2020, is the president and CEO of DMI Consulting, a multicultural marketing firm. He reviewed Cracker Barrel's advertising as part of his role on the board. Two influential shareholder advisory firms, Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis, had recommended against Davila's reelection ahead of the vote.

Sardar Biglari, a longtime Cracker Barrel shareholder and activist investor, was among those pressing for the ouster of Masino and Davila. Biglari is the chairman and CEO of Biglari Holdings Inc., a San Antonio, Texas-based company that owns Steak n Shake. He also owns 3% of Cracker Barrels shares.

Our campaign is about saving Cracker Barrel from a board and management team that are out of touch with Cracker Barrels customer base, Biglari said in a letter sent earlier this month to Cracker Barrel investors.

In its own statement, Cracker Barrel thanked its shareholders and said it was committed to returning the company to sales growth.

We are more focused than ever on delivering high-quality food and experiences to our guests while staying true to the heritage that makes Cracker Barrel so special, ensuring we are here to welcome families around our table for generations to come, the company said.

Cracker Barrel's shares fell nearly 5.5% Thursday to close at $25.97 per share. They are down 52% from the start of this year.

RELATED STORY | Cracker Barrel reverts logo changes and returns to original signage, vows what you love isnt going anywhere

Cracker Barrel hired Masino, a longtime Taco Bell and Starbucks executive, in July 2023. She was chosen for her record as an innovator, with the hope that she would attract new customers to Cracker Barrel, which operates 660 restaurants in 43 states.

Masino introduced updated menu items, like Hashbrown Casserole Shepherds Pie, to increase Cracker Barrels dinnertime traffic. She also started remodeling the companys dark, antique-filled restaurants, lightening the walls and installing more comfortable seating.

But her decision in August to simplify the chains logo had disastrous consequences. Fans didnt like that the new logo didnt include Cracker Barrels longtime mascot, an overall-clad man leaning on a barrel, or the words Old Country Store. They also rebelled against the store redesigns.

Cracker Barrel reversed course a week later, saying it would keep its old logo. In early September, the company also suspended the remodeling of its restaurants.

The moves could hurt Cracker Barrels sales well into next year. Cracker Barrel said in September that store traffic would likely be down between 7% and 8% in its fiscal first quarter and could decline 4% to 7% for the full 2026 fiscal year, which began Aug. 2.

Dr. Smita Das often hears the same myth: You cant get hooked on pot.

And the misconception has become more widespread as a growing number of states legalize marijuana. Around half now allow recreational use for adults and 40 states allow medical use.

But cannabis is definitely something that someone can develop an addiction to, said Das, an addiction psychiatrist at Stanford University.

Its called cannabis use disorder and its on the rise, affecting about 3 in 10 people who use pot, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Here's how to know whether you or a loved one are addicted to marijuana and what kinds of treatment exist.

How to identify signs of cannabis use disorder

If pot interferes with your daily life, health or relationships, those are red flags.

The more that somebody uses and the higher potency that somebody uses, the higher the risk of that, Das said.

It's become more common as cannabis has gotten stronger in recent years. In the 1960s, most pot that people smoked contained less than 5% THC, the ingredient that gets you high. Today, the THC potency in cannabis flower and concentrates in dispensaries can reach 40% or more, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

RELATED STORY | Marijuana users under age 50 are six times more likely to have a heart attack, study finds

Cannabis use disorder is diagnosed the same way as any other substance use disorder by looking at whether someone meets certain criteria laid out in the latest version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the main guide for mental health providers.

These include needing more of the drug to get the same effect, having withdrawal symptoms and spending a lot of time trying to get or use it.

When we break it down into these criteria that have to do with the impacts of their use, its a lot more relatable," Das said.

What the different levels of addiction are

If you've met just two of the criteria for cannabis use disorder in the last year, doctors say you have a mild form of the condition. If you meet six or more, you have a more severe form.

According to the latest version of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 7% of all people 12 or older had cannabis use disorder in 2024 and most had a mild form. About 1 in 5 had a severe form.

People can be dependent on and addicted to substances. Dependence is physical, while addiction involves behavior changes.

Marijuana doesn't affect everyone the same way, though. The same amount can have major impacts on one person's daily life but have no impact on another person's, Das said. It really comes down to: How much is that substance impacting someones functioning and life day-to-day?

Where people can get help for cannabis use disorder

Many marijuana users first come to Das for help coping with something else, like alcohol use disorder. Later, she said, theyll often come back and mention a struggle with cannabis.

She assures them that there are effective treatments for the disorder.

One is called motivational interviewing, a goal-oriented counseling style that helps people find internal motivation to change their behavior. Another is cognitive behavioral therapy or CBT, a form of talk therapy that helps people to challenge negative thought patterns and reduce unhelpful behaviors.

Twelve-step programs like Marijuana Anonymous can also be helpful, Das said. But whether someone chooses to join a group or not, even being able to lean on a community of people who arent using pot is an important part for recovery.

Dave Bushnell, a retired digital executive creative director, started a Reddit group 14 years ago for people who, like him, had developed an addiction or dependency to cannabis and wanted help recovering. Its discussion forum has 350,000 members and continues to grow.

Bushnell, 60, said peer support is essential to recovery and some people feel more comfortable chatting online than in person. This is potheads taking care of potheads, he said.

Doctors urged people who need help to get it, whether it's with a professional or in a peer group.

As with alcohol, just because somethings legal doesnt mean that its safe," Das said.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. personally directed the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to update its website to contradict its longtime guidance that vaccines don't cause autism, he told The New York Times in an interview published Friday.

His comments provide clarity into who directed the CDC's website change, after many current and former staffers at the agency were surprised to see new published guidance on Wednesday that defies scientific consensus. Kennedy, a longtime vaccine critic, has upended the public health agencies he oversees and pushed for and enacted changes that have unsettled much of the medical community, which sees his policies as harmful for Americans.

The whole thing about vaccines have been tested and theres been this determination made, is just a lie, Kennedy said in the interview, which was conducted Thursday.

The CDC's vaccine safety page now claims that the statement vaccines do not cause autism is not based on evidence because it doesn't rule out the possibility that infant vaccines are linked to the disorder. The page also has been updated to suggest that health officials have ignored studies showing a potential link.

Public health researchers and advocates strongly refute the updated website, saying it misleads the public by exploiting the fact that the scientific method can't satisfy a demand to prove a negative. They note that scientists have thoroughly explored potential links between vaccines and autism in rigorous research spanning decades, all pointing to the same conclusion that vaccines dont cause autism.

No environmental factor has been better studied as a potential cause of autism than vaccines, the Autism Science Foundation said in a statement Thursday. This includes vaccine ingredients as well as the bodys response to vaccines. All this research has determined that there is no link between autism and vaccines.

Kennedy, a longtime leader in the anti-vaccine movement, acknowledged to The New York Times the existence of studies showing no link to autism from the mercury-based preservative thimerosal or from the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine. But he told the newspaper there are still gaps in vaccine safety science and a need for more research.

RELATED STORY | CDC revises language on vaccines and autism, prompting backlash

The move creates another disagreement between the health secretary and Sen. Bill Cassidy, a physician and Louisiana Republican who chairs the Senate health committee. During his confirmation process, Kennedy pledged to Cassidy he would leave the statement that vaccines do not cause autism on the CDC website. The statement remains on the website but with a disclaimer that it was left there because of their agreement.

Kennedy told The New York Times he talked to Cassidy about the updated website and that Cassidy disagreed with the decision.

What parents need to hear right now is vaccines for measles, polio, hepatitis B and other childhood diseases are safe and effective and will not cause autism, Cassidy posted on X on Thursday. Any statement to the contrary is wrong, irresponsible, and actively makes Americans sicker.

The updated website comes as Kennedy has taken other steps as health secretary that sow doubt in immunizations. He has pulled $500 million for their development, ousted and replaced every member of a federal vaccine advisory committee and pledged to overhaul a federal program for compensating Americans injured by shots. He also fired former CDC Director Susan Monarez less than a month into her tenure after they clashed over vaccine policy.

Dr. Sean OLeary, head of the infectious diseases committee at the American Academy of Pediatrics, told reporters in a briefing Thursday that the CDC's website update was perpetuating a lie.

This is madness, he said. Vaccines do not cause autism, and unfortunately, we can no longer trust health-related information coming from our government.

The Department of Health and Human Services, which didn't make Kennedy available for an interview with The Associated Press this week, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Ohio police officer who shot and killed Ta'Kiya Young, a pregnant Black mother who had been accused of shoplifting, was acquitted on all counts Friday, including murder.

Blendon Township police officer Connor Grubb had faced up to life in prison if convicted. Youngs grandmother collapsed into sobs at the decision, shouting Its not right! This is not right! The judge then told Grubb he was free to go.

Sean Walton, an attorney for the Young family, called it an American tragedy, the outcome of a dual system of justice in the U.S. Sean Walton, an attorney for the Young family, called it an American tragedy, the outcome of a dual system of justice in the U.S. He vowed to keep pursuing a lawsuit against the township and police chief, while Nadine Young raises her great-grandsons, now 8 and 5.

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It's also heartbreaking because what it does is it normalizes the behavior like that Connor Grubb exhibited that day, and that is not normal, Walton said. If you look at these recent police killings in Columbus, you have officers who have an irrational fear with no weapons involved or folks doing very minimal behavior that they escalate into a murder.

Defense attorney Mark Collins said Grubb and his family are relieved, but that it's wrong to suggest the officer was untouched by the death of Young and her unborn daughter.

For the rest of his life, he has to deal with this, he said. Trust me, you didn't get to hear from him because the government put his statement out, but he took a life on duty and realized another's life after the fact, and to walk around with that is a difficult situation.

At the same time, Collins called it unconscionable that a law enforcement officer would be indicted for felony murder in such a case. He said legislators should fix Ohio's grand jury system.

Grubb had pleaded not guilty to murder, involuntary manslaughter and felonious assault in the death of Young, 21, on Aug. 24, 2023. Bodycam recordings showed Young refusing to exit her parked car outside a Kroger in suburban Columbus, and then turning her steering wheel to the right before the vehicle began slowly rolling forward toward Grubb, who fired one shot into her chest through the windshield.

RELATED STORY | Ohio police release video from fatal shooting of pregnant Black woman

Franklin County Common Pleas Judge David Young, no relation to TaKiya, dropped four of 10 counts relating to the death of Youngs baby, agreeing with defense attorneys that prosecutors failed to present proof that Grubb knew Young was seven months' pregnant when he shot her.

Jurors were shown the bodycam video and heard testimony from a use-of-force expert, an accident reconstructionist, a police policy expert and Sgt. Erick Moynihan, the officer who with Grubb had ordered Young out of her car.

They never heard from Grubb, whose side of the story was contained in a written statement read into the record by a special agent for the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation. He attended the trial, but prosecutors were unable to question him directly.

Grubb and Moynihan had approached Youngs parked car about a report that she was suspected of stealing alcohol from a Kroger store in the Columbus suburb. She partially lowered her window and protested as both officers cursed at her and yelled at her to get out. Bodycam video showed Grubb had his left hand on the car's hood while pointing his gun at her with his right. Young could be heard asking them, Are you going to shoot me?

RELATED STORY | Officer faces murder charge in 2023 shooting of pregnant Black woman who was accused of shoplifting

Then, she put on a turn signal and her car rolled slowly forward toward Grubb, who fired a single bullet into her chest, the recording showed.

In the statement, Grubb said he positioned himself in front of Youngs vehicle to provide backup and to protect other people. He said he drew his gun after he heard Young fail to comply with Moynihans commands. When her car moved toward him, he said, he felt the vehicle hit his legs and shins and begin to lift his body off the ground as he shot.

Moments later, after the car came to a stop against the building, they broke the drivers side window. Police said they tried to save her life, but she was mortally wounded. Young and her unborn daughter were pronounced dead at a hospital.

Walton told the AP shortly after the shooting that Young had not stolen anything. He said his law firm found a witness who saw Young put down bottles of alcohol as she left the grocery store.

Ftima Bosch Fernndez of Mexico was crowned Miss Universe 2025 on Friday, a dramatic victory for a 25-year-old at the center of the turbulent 74th staging of the popular beauty pageant in Bangkok who stood up to public bullying from one of the hosts.

The issues at this year's event sprang from a sharp-tongued scolding of Bosch, which sparked a controversy marked by a walkout, feminist solidarity, and a teary, melodramatic apology from the local organizer who set it all off.

When Bosch was announced as the winner, cheers and screams erupted from the audience, with Mexican flags waved by elated supporters.

Speaking to the media after her victory, Bosch said that she would like to be remembered as "a person that changed a little bit the prototype of what is a Miss Universe and a real person that gives the heart."

She also paid tribute to the pageant, describing it as "a platform that is strong because they have the space that women are searching to have a voice."

The first runner-up was 29-year-old Praveenar Singh of Thailand, and 25-year-old Stephany Adriana Abasali Nasser of Venezuela placed third. Rounding up the finishers were Ahtisa Manalo, 28, of the Philippines, and 27-year-old Olivia Yac of Ivory Coast, who came fifth.

At the livestreamed sashing ceremony for the more than 100 contestants on Nov. 4, Thai national director Nawat Itsaragrisil hectored Bosch for allegedly not following his guidelines for taking part in local promotional activities. He called security when she spoke up to defend herself.

Bosch walked out of the room, joined by several others in a show of solidarity, including Miss Universe 2024, Victoria Kjr Theilvig of Denmark.

"What your director did is not respectful: He called me dumb," an unbowed Bosch told Thai reporters. "If it takes away your dignity, you need to go."

Nawat insisted that he did not call her "dumb."

The Miss Universe Organization president, Mexican businessman Ral Rocha Cant, released a statement condemning Nawat's conduct as "public aggression" and "serious abuse."

Even Mexico's first woman president, Claudia Sheinbaum, piled on, saying at a news conference in her country's capital that she wanted to give "recognition" to Miss Mexico for voicing her disagreement in a "dignified" way.

"It seems to me that it is an example of how women should raise our voices," Sheinbaum said.

Sheinbaum recalled being told in the past that "women look more beautiful when they keep quiet."

"We women look more beautiful when we raise our voice and participate, because that has to do with the recognition of our rights," she said.

Nawat later apologized for his actions, appearing both tearful and defiant at the same time.

"If anyone (was) affected and not comfortable it happened, I am so sorry," he said in front of the contestants. He then turned to them and said, "It's passed. OK? Are you happy?"

Bosch's official Miss Universe biography says she studied fashion in Mexico and Italy and has focused on creating sustainable designs and working with discarded materials. It says she has volunteered with sick children, promoted environmental awareness, and engaged in supported migrants and mental health issues.

This year's competition also saw a report that two judges had quit, with one of them suggesting that there was an element of rigging to the contest. The allegation was denied. Separately, Thai police investigated the alleged illegal promotion of online casinos as part of the event's publicity.

Mishaps and controversies are not rare for the pageant. The 2021 event attracted criticism because it was held in Israel, to the dismay of supporters of the Palestinian cause.

An example of a minor misstep literally occurred Wednesday when Miss Universe Jamaica, Gabrielle Henry, fell off the stage during the evening gown competition. She was not badly hurt.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday that Ukraine has to confront the possibility of losing its dignity or risking the loss of a key partner as it figures out how to respond to a U.S. peace proposal to end Russia's war with his country.

"This is one of the most difficult moments in our history," Zelenskyy said in a video address to the nation. "Currently, the pressure on Ukraine is one of the hardest. Ukraine may now face a very difficult choice, either losing its dignity or the risk of losing a key partner."

He said Ukraine would "work calmly with America and all partners," as he vowed to work constructively.

Zelenskyy spoke earlier by phone with the leaders of Germany, France and the United Kingdom, who assured him of their continued support, as European officials scrambled to respond to U.S. peace proposals that apparently caught them unawares.

RELATED STORY | US and Russia draw up peace plan for Ukraine that includes big concessions from Kyiv

The U.S. plan contains many of Russian President Vladimir Putin's longstanding demands, including Ukrainian territorial concessions, while offering limited security guarantees to Ukraine.

Wary of antagonizing U.S. President Donald Trump, the European and Ukrainian responses were cautiously worded and pointedly commended American peace efforts.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer assured Zelenskyy of "their unchanged and full support on the way to a lasting and just peace" in Ukraine, Merz's office said.

The four leaders welcomed U.S. efforts to end the war. "In particular, they welcomed the commitment to the sovereignty of Ukraine and the readiness to grant Ukraine solid security guarantees," the statement added.

"They agreed to continue pursuing the aim of protecting vital European and Ukrainian interests in the long term," the statement said. "That includes the line of contact being the point of departure for an agreement and that the Ukrainian armed forces must remain in a position to defend the sovereignty of Ukraine effectively."

Starmer said the right of Ukraine to "determine its future under its sovereignty is a fundamental principle."

RELATED STORY | State Department approves potential sale of Patriot missiles to Ukraine

Existential threat to Europe

European countries see their own futures at stake in Ukraine's fight against Russia's full-scale invasion and have insisted on being consulted in peace efforts.

"Russia's war against Ukraine is an existential threat to Europe. We all want this war to end. But how it ends matters," EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said in Brussels. "Russia has no legal right whatsoever to any concessions from the country it invaded. Ultimately, the terms of any agreement are for Ukraine to decide."

The plan foresees Ukraine handing over territory to Russia, something Zelenskyy has repeatedly ruled out, reduces the size of it army and blocks its route to NATO membership.

Zelenskyy said the leaders discussed the plan and appreciated the efforts of Trump and his team, although he added that they are "working on the document."

"We are closely coordinating to ensure that the principled positions are taken into account," Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post.

The proposals come at a difficult time for Zelenskyy, who is grappling with a push on the battlefield by Russia's bigger army and a major domestic corruption scandal.

IN THE SHADOWS | Frontline legend to a war within: A Ukrainian soldiers other battle

Caught off guard

A European government official said that the U.S. plans weren't officially presented to Ukraine's European backers.

Many of the proposals are "quite concerning," the European government official said, adding that a bad deal for Ukraine would also be a threat to broader European security.

The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to discuss the plan publicly.

European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she also would call Zelenskyy to discuss the 28-point plan.

"Important is a key principle we have always upheld, and that is nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine," she said at a G20 summit in Johannesburg, South Africa.

European Council President Antonio Costa in Johannesburg said of the U.S. proposals: "The European Union has not been communicated (about) any plans in (an) official manner."

Ukraine examines the proposals

Ukrainian officials said they were weighing the U.S. proposals, and Zelenskyy said he expected to talk to Trump about it in coming days.

"We are fully aware that America's strength and America's support can truly bring peace closer, and we do not want to lose that," Zelenskyy said on Telegram late Thursday.

The Kremlin offered a reserved reaction, with spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying that Moscow has not officially received the U.S. peace plan.

"No, we haven't received anything officially. We're seeing some innovations. But officially, we haven't received anything. And there hasn't been a substantive discussion of these points," Peskov told reporters without elaborating further.

He claimed U.S.-Russian diplomatic contacts are "ongoing," but "nothing substantive is currently being discussed."

A U.S. team began drawing up the plan soon after U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff held talks with Rustem Umerov, a top adviser to Zelenskyy, according to a senior Trump administration official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The official added that Umerov agreed to most of the plan, after making several modifications, and then presented it to Zelenskyy.

Umerov on Friday denied that version of events. He said he only organized meetings and prepared the talks.

He said technical talks between the U.S. and Ukraine were continuing in Kyiv. Ukrainian officials are "carefully studying all the partners' proposals, expecting the same respectful attitude toward the Ukrainian position."

"We are thoughtfully processing the partners' proposals within the framework of Ukraine's unchanging principles sovereignty, people's security, and a just peace," he said.

Russian glide bomb hits Ukraine homes

Meanwhile, a Russian glide bomb slammed into a residential district in the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, killing five people, officials said Friday, as Moscow's forces continued to hammer civilian areas of Ukraine. The overnight attack also injured 10 people, including a teenage girl.

The powerful glide bomb damaged some high-rise apartment blocks for the third time since the war began and also wrecked a local market, according to the head of the regional military administration, Ivan Fedorov.

A Russian drone assault on the southern city of Odesa also struck a residential area during the night, injuring five people, including a 16-year-old boy.

The attacks came two days after a Russian drone and missile barrage on Ukraine's western city of Ternopil killed 31 people, including six children, and injured 94 others, including 18 children.

Emergency services say 13 people are still unaccounted for after the attack crushed the top floors of apartment blocks and started fires.

President Donald Trump has further loosened tariffs on Brazil as part of his effort to lower consumer costs for Americans. The decision, released Thursday, affects coffee, fruit and beef, among other goods.

The White House said last week that Trump was rolling back some worldwide tariffs that were originally announced in April.

However, Brazil said that didn't affect levies that Trump had enacted in July to punish the country for prosecuting his political ally, former President Jair Bolsonaro.

Thursday's decision harmonizes Trump's plans, ensuring that neither the April nor July tariffs apply to certain products.

Trump and Brazilian President Luiz Incio Lula da Silva have been negotiating over trade, which could further reduce tariffs.

ESPN and Major League Baseball appeared headed for an ugly separation after the network opted out of its rights deal in February.

Nine months later, it appears to be the best thing to happen to both parties.

ESPN has a reworked deal that includes out-of-market streaming rights while NBC and Netflix will air games as part of a new three-year media rights agreement announced by MLB on Wednesday.

I think its really important that we manage to continue a relationship with ESPN. Theyve been kind of the bedrock of our broadcast program for a long time, baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT | ESPN is acquiring NFL Network with rights to distribute popular RedZone program

NBC/Peacock will become the new home of Sunday Night Baseball and the Wild Card Series while Netflix will have the Home Run Derby and two additional games.

The three deals will average nearly $800 million per year. ESPN will still pay $550 million while the NBC deal is worth $200 million and Netflix $50 million.

How ESPN benefits

ESPN, which has carried baseball since 1990, loses postseason games and the Home Run Derby but gains something more valuable for its bottom line by becoming the rights holder for MLB.TV, which will be available on the ESPN app.

ESPN also gets the in-market streaming rights for the six teams whose games are produced by MLB: San Diego, Colorado, Arizona, Cleveland, Minnesota and Seattle.

Even though ESPN no longer has Sunday Night Baseball, it will have 30 exclusive games, primarily on weeknights and in the summer months.

Were excited to have a midweek package back out there, Manfred said. This is an evolution of a relationship. Long relationships go through these things, and its an evolution that I think is significant. I think it is consonant with ESPNs focus on streaming going forward.

Baseball is the second league that has its out-of-market digital package available in the U.S. on ESPNs platform. The NHL moved its package to ESPN in 2021.

Welcome back, NBC

NBC, which celebrates its 100th anniversary next year, has a long history with baseball, albeit not much recently. The network carried games from 1939 through 1989. It was part of the short-lived Baseball Network with ABC in 1994 and 95 and then aired playoff games from 1996 through 2000.

Its first game will be on March 26 when the defending two-time champion Los Angeles Dodgers host the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The 25 Sunday night games will air mostly on NBC with the rest on the new NBC Sports Network. All will stream on Peacock.

The first Sunday Night Baseball game on NBC will be April 12 with the next one in May after the NBA playoffs.

IN RELATED NEWS | MLB will use robot umpires in 2026

The addition of baseball games gives NBC a year-around night of sports on Sunday nights. It has had NFL games on Sunday night since 2006 and will debut an NBA Sunday night slate in February.

NBC will also have a prime-time game on Labor Day night.

The Sunday early-afternoon games also return to Peacock, which had them in 2022 and 23. The early-afternoon games will lead into a studio Whip-Around Show before the Sunday night game.

NBC/Peacock will also do the Major League Futures game on the day before the Home Run Derby and coverage of the first round of the amateur draft on the Saturday heading into the All-Star break.

Netflix and baseball

Netflix's baseball deals are in alignment with its strategy of going for big events in a major sport. The streamer will have an NFL Christmas doubleheader this season for the second straight year.

Besides the Home Run Derby, Netflix will have the first game of the season on March 25 when three-time AL MVP Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees visit the San Francisco Giants. It also has the Home Run Derby and the Field of Dreams game at Dyersville, Iowa, on Aug. 13, when Minnesota faces Philadelphia. Netflix will stream a MLB special event game each year.

Don't forget the others

The negotiations around the other deals were complicated due to the fact that MLB was also trying not to slight two of its other rights holders. MLB receives an average of $729 million from Fox and $470 million from Turner Sports per year under deals which expire after the 2028 season.

Foxs Saturday nights have been mainly sports the past couple years with a mix of baseball, college football, college basketball and motorsports.

Apple TV has had Friday Night Baseball since 2022.

The deals also set up Manfred for future negotiations. He would like to see MLB take a more national approach to its rights instead of a large percentage of its games being on regional sports networks.