📚 KNOWLEDGE BASE ENTRY (UPDATED)

By Eric Levenson, CNN

(CNN) — The man accused of killing seven women and discarding their remains on a stretch of Long Island, New York, over three decades is expected to plead guilty in a long-awaited court hearing Wednesday.

Rex Heuermann, a 62-year-old architect based in Massapequa, has been in custody since July 2023 and has pleaded not guilty to the murders of seven women, including four whose bodies were found on Gilgo Beach in 2010.

He is set to appear in Suffolk County Court in Riverhead at 11 a.m., per a court spokesperson.

According to a source familiar with the case, Heuermann is expected to “take responsibility” for all seven murder charges. No deal was struck with the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office in exchange for this plea, according to the source.

The charges carry a sentence of life without the possibility of parole. A trial had been set for September.

Heuermann’s attorney Michael J. Brown did not respond to a CNN request for comment.

A guilty plea would represent the end of a case that dates as far back as 1993 and took decades for investigators to solve – frustrating victims’ families, who felt the investigation was not taken seriously.

The case began in earnest with the 2010 disappearance of 23-year-old Shannan Gilbert. The search for her whereabouts led to the discovery of at least 10 sets of human remains, primarily young female sex workers, along Ocean Parkway and launched the hunt for a suspected serial killer.

But the investigation went cold for over a decade. Meanwhile, the Gilgo Beach killings were featured in an acclaimed non-fiction book, a Netflix movie and true-crime documentaries.

In 2022, Suffolk County launched a multiagency task force to reexamine the killings and soon built a case against Heuermann using DNA, hairs, cell phone records and witness testimony, according to court records.

Heuermann was arrested in July 2023 and charged with the killings of three of the “Gilgo Four” victims, and prosecutors have since charged him with four more murders in incidents dating as far back as 1993.

In all, he is accused of killing seven people: Maureen Brainard-Barnes, Melissa Barthelemy, Megan Waterman, Amber Costello, Jessica Taylor, Valerie Mack and Sandra Costilla.

For the victims’ families, a guilty plea would be a relief after years of waiting for justice, said Robert Kolker, the author of “Lost Girls,” the 2013 non-fiction book about the killings.

“The point of ‘Lost Girls’ was that the killer chose his victims because he thought that they wouldn’t be missed. And the tragedy is that for many years he was right,” Kolker told CNN.

“What this new energy around the case, and the arrest, and what this possible guilty plea show is that perhaps this is changing. We understand the humanity of victims in cases like these in a way that we didn’t years ago.”

The seven victims

Over nearly two decades, a number of women in their 20s who police said worked as escorts or sex workers went missing on Long Island.

The remains of Sandra Costilla were found in North Sea in 1993. Partial remains of Valerie Mack, a 24-year-old Philadelphia mother who worked as an escort, were found in Manorville in November 2000, with further remains discovered in 2011, Read more

UC SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - Nate Vargas and Corey Nunez each slugged solo home runs as UCSB defeated #14 USC 5-1 in front of a sellout crowd.

Vargas was the hitting star as he was a triple shy of the cycle.

"It was awesome," Vargas said. "I'm just happy to be out there and compete with my guys. I'm glad that we were able to get a good win against a ranked team today. During my time off, I just used the time to make sure I'm staying ready so that when I did get an opportunity like today, I made the most of it.

Honestly, I think the oppo off the fence," Vargas said was his favorite at-bat of the night. "For me, that just felt like vintage me. That's what I do, and at the end of the day, I don't want to get too excited because I expect that of myself, but at the same time I want to kind of congratulate myself for putting in the work and seeing it pay off."

Last week UCSB lost at USC 7-6 so the Gauchos were able to split the season series with the home win.

Calvin Proskey pitched a scoreless first inning in his first action of 2026.

Proskey, AJ Krodel, Van Froling, Raymond Olivas and Cole Tryba — combined to allow just one unearned run.

(Proskey threw 16 pitches allowing one hit and striking out one. Entenza Design).

"The real highlight for today is Proskey being back and having an inning," UCSB head coach Andrew Checketts said. "Throwing a clean inning and looking like himself, healthy and stuff looked solid, so hopefully we can continue to extend him an inning each time he goes out or two innings and he can turn into a legitimate extra starter for us, whether that's on Tuesday or end of the weekend if we have to make a change, which I'm not anticipating, but it's a luxury to have that fourth starter.

That's what we talk about with the bullpen, is make sure you pass the baton and hold on to it. All the guys did their job, and I thought guys came in and did their job making clutch pitches with runners in scoring position and didn't allow the guy was out there before, his runs to come in. And then you know, Tryba being Tryba changes the game for us. To be able to give the ball to somebody with a lead at the end of the game and feel pretty comfortable that it's over, his last three outings have been like that. We've gotten him a lead, and it's been over."

GOLETA, Calif. (KEYT) - Seniors Josephine Grossman and Rylie Cook each scored four goals to lead San Marcos past Dos Pueblos 15-7 and into first place in the Channel League.

The Royals are 4-0 in league and DP is 4-1.

The Chargers were led by senior standout Linnea Clapinski who tallied a game-high 5 goals.

San Marcos never trailed as Grossman and Cook scored in the opening minute of the game.

It was 3-0 Royals before Clapinski scored her first goal.

San Marcos led 8-1 at half and 12-3 at halftime.

Royals goalie Carly Grant made 11 saves as they improved to 10-3 overall.

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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) The Santa Barbara City Council wants to go through the process of renaming Calle Cesar Chavez.

It could go back to its prior name Salsipuedes or the community could come up with new name.

But it is not a fast process due the changes that will have to be made at Post Office and on local maps.

The council also directed staff into looking into chancing the holiday name or offering city workers a floating holiday.

Chicano Historian Michael Montenegro spoke about the need to involved the community in the process.

Neighbors along Cesar Chavez and community members will be part of the discussion process.

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By Kara Scannell, CNN

(CNN) — Lawyers for Sean “Diddy” Combs hope to persuade a federal appeals court to release the rapper from prison immediately and overturn his conviction on prostitution-related charges by arguing he was engaged in voyeurism and amateur pornography – conduct they say is protected by the First Amendment.

Combs’ attorneys, who will appear before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday, are also expected to argue US District Judge Arun Subramanian “illegally” considered conduct for which Combs was acquitted when calculating his sentence.

“The district court refused to enforce the jury’s verdict,” Combs’ lawyers wrote in a December court filing.

The founder of Bad Boy Records was convicted last July on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution in violation of the Mann Act for arranging travel for escorts to engage in sex acts with his then-girlfriends, Cassie Ventura and a woman who testified under the pseudonym “Jane.”

Combs was acquitted of more serious charges, including racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking, after an eight-week trial. Prosecutors alleged Combs coerced the two women into having sex with male escorts, often by supplying drugs to sustain them over multiple days. The marathon sex sessions – which were often filmed – were referred to as “Freak Offs” and “hotel nights.”

Combs was sentenced to 50 months in prison in October. He has been held in federal custody since his arrest in September 2024.

His lawyers argued he should be released because defendants convicted of similar prostitution-related offenses typically receive sentences of 15 months. They are also asking the appeals court to acquit Combs of the prostitution-related charges or send the case back to Subramanian for resentencing. Prosecutors are asking the judges to affirm the conviction and sentence.

Combs’ attorneys say prostitution is not defined in the Mann Act and ask the appeals court to reject an “overbroad interpretation of the statute.”

“Freak-offs and hotel nights were highly choreographed sexual performances involving the use of costumes, role play, and staged lighting, which were filmed so Combs and his girlfriends could watch this amateur pornography later. Pornography production and viewing of this sort is protected by the First Amendment and thus cannot constitutionally be prosecuted,” his lawyers wrote in a court filing.

“In other words, the term ‘prostitution’ in the Act should be limited to those situations where a paying customer engages in sex with the person being paid,” his lawyers wrote.

Prosecutors called Combs’ argument “meritless.”

“Combs is entirely differently situated from adult film distributors: He hired and transported commercial sex workers to have sex with his girlfriends for his own sexual gratification, sometimes directly participating in the sex acts,” prosecutors wrote in a response filed in February.

To side with Combs, prosecutors said, would mean “any defendant who transported others to engage in prostitution could escape liability simply by watching or filming the sex.”

Combs’ attorneys also say Subramanian “largely ignored” new guidelines from the US Sentencing Commission prohibiting acquitted conduct from being considered when calculating advisory sentencing guidelines.

Prosecutors said the new guidelines apply when calculating the sentencing range, not determining the sentence. In the latter, judges are allowed to consider other factors, including the character of the defendant.

They argued Subramanian was “surgically focused” on conduct relevant to the Mann Act counts in determining the sentencing range.

“As

Por Christian Edwards, CNN

Cuando el vicepresidente J.D. Vance acercó el teléfono al micrófono, pareció por un instante que su jefe no contestaría. Pero al segundo intento, y tras unos cuantos timbres, logró comunicarse con Donald Trump.

En defensa del presidente, cabe decir que tenía muchas cosas en la cabeza, ya que horas antes había amenazado con destruir “toda una civilización” en Irán.

Esa crisis parecía estar a años luz del MTK Sportpark de Budapest, donde miles de húngaros se habían reunido para celebrar el “Día de la Amistad Húngaro-Estadounidense”.

Presentado como una celebración de la amistad entre las dos naciones, el día en realidad giró en torno a la amistad entre Trump y Victor Orbán, el primer ministro populista de Hungría, un ídolo del movimiento MAGA que va por detrás en las encuestas de cara a las elecciones parlamentarias de este fin de semana.

“Soy un gran admirador de Viktor. Lo apoyo incondicionalmente. Estados Unidos lo apoya incondicionalmente”, declaró Trump a la multitud. Vance afirmó estar en Budapest para ayudar a Orbán “en todo lo que pueda”.

En una visita a Budapest en febrero, el secretario de Estado Marco Rubio recalcó que “el éxito de Hungría es nuestro éxito”.

A primera vista, no queda claro por qué el “éxito” de la Hungría de Orbán —considerada la más corrupta, la menos libre y una de las más pobres de la Unión Europea— debería tener alguna relación con el “éxito” de Estados Unidos.

Pero para Ivan Krastev, politólogo búlgaro que conoce a Orbán desde la década de 1990, la situación no es tan extraña.

Durante sus 16 años en el cargo, Orbán ha convertido a Hungría en el centro intelectual, institucional y financiero de la derecha europea, afirmó Krastev.

La administración Trump considera a Orbán y la infraestructura ideológica que ha construido fundamentales para su estrategia de crear una Europa más afín, es decir, contraria a la ideología woke, a los ecologistas y a la inmigración.

“Esta administración estadounidense cree que hay una revolución trumpiana, que esta revolución trumpiana está llegando a Europa y que Europa está tan solo un ciclo electoral por detrás de Estados Unidos”, declaró a CNN Krastev, presidente del Centro de Estrategias Liberales en Sofía, Bulgaria.

Las elecciones del domingo pondrán a prueba esa creencia.

El partido opositor Tisza, liderado por Péter Magyar, ha mantenido una ventaja de dos dígitos sobre el partido Fidesz de Orbán en la mayoría de las encuestas durante más de un año.

Magyar, un leal a Orbán convertido en su adversario, se ha mantenido al margen del terreno predilecto del primer ministro, la política exterior, y se ha centrado en cambio en cuestiones cotidianas como la corrupción, la sanidad y la economía familiar.

Para los húngaros, las elecciones podrían ofrecer la oportunidad de vislumbrar un futuro sin Orbán.

Pero sus efectos podrían sentirse mucho más lejos. “Si Orbán pierde —el hombre que simboliza la fuerza de la extrema derecha—, esto tendrá un impacto psicológico tremendo”, afirmó Krastev.

Los politólogos han tenido dificultades para definir el “modelo” que ha construido Orbán. Algunos lo denominan un “régimen híbrido”: ni una autocr

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SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - Ten schools and more than 160 swimmers converged on the pool deck at San Marcos High School for the Tri County Invite.

The Royals were the host with the most winning both the overall girls and boys team competition.

San Marcos girls beat second place Dos Pueblos 522-439.50 and San Marcos boys defeated second place Cate 466.50 -333.50.

In combined scores San Marcos beat Dos Pueblos 988.50 -764.50 with Cate third at 646.50.

Race results can be found here: file:///Users/news.user/Downloads/Tri%20County%20Invite%202026%20Results%20(1).pdf

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Por Jackie Wattles, CNN

Los astronautas de Artemis II se han enfrentado a numerosos peligros en su histórica misión lunar, incluyendo la tensión extrema durante el despegue el 1 de abril, cuando su cohete consumió millones de galones de combustible, y el desafío de sortear peligrosos campos de radiación en ruta hacia la Luna.

Pero quizás el hito más imponente esté por venir: el reingreso.

Durante esta fase del vuelo, la nave espacial de los astronautas se acerca a la Tierra a gran velocidad y se adentra en la densa capa interna de la atmósfera terrestre, mientras se desplaza a más de 30 veces la velocidad del sonido.

Este proceso provoca una violenta compresión de las moléculas de aire que puede calentar el exterior de la cápsula a más de 2.760 grados Celsius.

“Para ser sincero, he estado pensando en la reentrada desde el 3 de abril de 2023, cuando nos asignaron a esta misión”, declaró el astronauta de Artemis II, Victor Glover, refiriéndose a esta fase durante un evento con los medios el miércoles.

“En una de las primeras ruedas de prensa, nos preguntaron qué es lo que más esperamos, y yo respondí: el amerizaje. Es un poco gracioso, pero también es literal: tenemos que regresar. Ya han visto muchísimos datos, pero lo mejor viene con nosotros. Hay muchas más fotos, muchas más historias”, comentó.

La reentrada se considera una de las etapas más crítica, si no la más crítica, de cualquier vuelo espacial. Y la misión Artemis II la atravesará con un problema conocido que los controladores de la misión están monitoreando.

El problema salió a la luz tras el vuelo de prueba no tripulado Artemis I alrededor de la Luna en 2022, después del cual los equipos de la misión descubrieron que el escudo térmico de la cápsula había regresado con preocupantes marcas y grietas.

Un escudo térmico es un componente crucial diseñado para proteger a la nave espacial y a sus astronautas de las temperaturas extremas durante el descenso a la Tierra.

La nave espacial Artemis I Orion regresó a casa sana y salva, pero los daños plantearon interrogantes sobre hasta qué punto los ingenieros comprendían el material utilizado para crear este hardware, llamado Avcoat, y cómo se comporta durante la peligrosa y dinámica fase final del vuelo.

Si el escudo térmico se daña o se agrieta de una manera específica, podría provocar una falla catastrófica. Y no existe ningún mecanismo de escape que pueda salvar a los astronautas en ese punto del viaje. Si el escudo térmico falla, la misión y la tripulación se perderían.

La nave espacial Orion de la misión Artemis II cuenta con un escudo térmico casi idéntico al de la misión Artemis I.

Si bien los funcionarios de la NASA han reconocido que no es el ideal, la agencia sostiene que puede traer de regreso a los astronautas —Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover y Christina Koch de la NASA, y Jeremy Hansen de la Agencia Espacial Canadiense— sanos y salvos, gracias a algunos cambios realizados en la estrategia de reentrada de la misión.

Los responsables de la misión afirman estar seguros de haber hecho bien su trabajo y de comprender las limitaciones del escudo térmico, así como la forma de proteger a la tripulación, declaró Amit Kshatriya, administrador adjunto de la NASA, durante una rueda de prensa el jueves. Y añadió: “La tripulación pondrá su vida en juego”.

Pero reconoció que hay mucho en juego.

“La nave espacial Orion entrará en la atmósfera terrestre a aproximadamente 25.000 millas por hora (40.000 km/h). Ese escudo térmico… soportará toda la fuerza de la reentrada”, explicó. “Cada sistema que hemos demostrado durante los últimos nueve días —soporte vital, navegación, propulsión, comunicaciones— depende de los últimos minutos del vuelo”.

Los problem

Por Sylvie Zhuang, CNN

El líder de China, Xi Jinping, aludió a los conflictos mundiales en curso y a la necesidad de paz durante una reunión histórica con la líder de la oposición de Taiwán este viernes, y reiteró la oposición de Beijing a la independencia de la isla autónoma.

La visita a Beijing de Cheng Li-wun, líder del Kuomintang (KMT) de Taiwán, fue la primera reunión de este tipo en una década y se produce semanas antes de que el presidente de EE.UU., Donald Trump, aterrice en China para mantener conversaciones con Xi Jinping, en las que se espera que Taiwán ocupe un lugar destacado en la agenda.

“El mundo actual dista mucho de ser pacífico, y la paz es, por tanto, más valiosa”, manifestó Xi en el Gran Salón del Pueblo en Beijing.

China se niega a dialogar con el Partido Democrático Progresista (PDP), de tendencia independentista, que ha gobernado Taiwán durante la última década.

China reclama la isla como propia y no descarta usar la fuerza para recuperarla algún día.

En los últimos años, Beijing ha intensificado la presión y los ejercicios militares en torno a Taiwán, lo que ha generado preocupación ante la posibilidad de que las tensiones desemboquen en un conflicto geopolítico.

“Los compatriotas a ambos lados del estrecho son chinos y una sola familia”, declaró Xi, y agregó que Beijing estaba dispuesto a trabajar con los partidos políticos de Taiwán “sobre la base política común de… oponerse a la independencia de Taiwán”.

Cheng expresó su esperanza de que, “gracias a los incansables esfuerzos de ambas partes, el estrecho de Taiwán deje de ser un punto central de posible conflicto, ni se convierta en un tablero de ajedrez para la intervención externa”.

Su visita a China se produce en un momento en que el partido gobernante de Taiwán está bajo presión tanto de Beijing, que ha intensificado la presión militar sobre la isla, como de Washington, que lo está presionando para que apruebe un plan de gasto en defensa de US$ 40.000 millones que se encuentra estancado.

El KMT de Cheng aboga por unas relaciones más cordiales con China y ha estado bloqueando el proyecto de ley de gastos de defensa en el parlamento de Taiwán.

Esto se produce también en un momento en que, según los analistas, Beijing está intentando sacar provecho de los temores que existen entre algunos sectores de Taiwán de que Trump vea a la isla como poco más que un peón en la disputa más amplia entre Estados Unidos y China, y que no esté interesado en su futuro a largo plazo.

Además de las tensiones en materia de comercio y tecnología, se prevé que Taiwán sea uno de los principales temas de conversación durante la cumbre que Xi Jinping mantendrá con Trump en mayo.

China siempre ha considerado a Taiwán como el aspecto más delicado de sus relaciones con Estados Unidos y criticó duramente el anuncio en diciembre de un acuerdo de venta de armas por valor de US$ 11.000 millones entre Estados Unidos y Taiwán, uno de los mayores acuerdos de armas de la historia.

Cheng describió su visita a China como un “viaje histórico por la paz”.

Una de las paradas de su itinerario fue Nankín, que en su día fue la capital de la República de China, gobernada por el Kuomintang. En 1949, el Kuomintang fue expulsado de la China continental por las fuerzas comunistas de Mao Zedong y huyó a Taiwán.

Algunos en Taiwán desconfían de lo que un segundo mandato de Trump, centrado en las transacciones y en los intereses estadounidenses, podría significar para su futuro.

Washington mantiene estrechos lazos no oficiales con Taiwán y está obligado por ley a vender armas a la isla para su autodefensa.

Pero durante la campaña para su segundo mandato, Trump señaló que Taiwán debería pagar más a Estados Unidos por “protección” y también afirmó que había

By Stephanie Yang, CNN

(CNN) — The US has negotiated a fragile ceasefire that could reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but Asian allies that depend on the waterway are already being forced to rely on others for energy security– to the benefit of America’s top adversaries.

After the initial airstrikes by the US and Israel in February, Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil flows.

Allies in Europe and Asia were not informed in advance of the war or asked to take part from the outset. Nonetheless as the price of crude oil surged, US President Donald Trump lambasted other nations for not sending military support and said those that need it should “take the lead” and “go get your own oil.”

They now seem to be heeding his words, particularly in the Asia-Pacific, whose economies suddenly lost their biggest source of energy imports and have been hit first by the historic global oil crisis.

US allies Japan, Thailand, South Korea and the Philippines have looked to broker deals with Iran to ensure the safe delivery of oil and natural gas. Asian countries are also buying up more natural resources from US rival Russia, while China has signaled its willingness to help alleviate fuel shortages and deepen energy collaboration with nearby economies such as Australia, the Philippines, and even Taiwan.

On Tuesday, Trump announced a two-week ceasefire under the condition that the Strait of Hormuz be reopened, providing a reprieve from climbing crude prices. However, the material impact of the agreement remained unclear.

While the US touted its success in reopening the strait, Iran said the country’s military would continue to coordinate the passage of vessels during the ceasefire, and warned that the war was not over. Since the ceasefire announcement, only a trickle of tankers have passed through the narrow passage which, before the war began, was a free and open international waterway.

Regardless of the ultimate outcome of peace talks, Trump’s decision to go to war has reshuffled energy trade and partnerships in the region, with long-term implications for the US and the nature of its alliances in Asia.

“The crisis has exposed a hard truth about US power,” said Roc Shi, a professor at the University of Technology Sydney whose research focuses on energy issues in Asia and Australia. “Despite decades of security guarantees, the US was unable to prevent the closure of the world’s most critical energy chokepoint. Asian allies are now quietly asking whether the US security umbrella extends to energy supply routes.”

Shi said governments in Asia will prioritize diversifying their energy sources, which includes purchasing more oil and natural gas from both the US, the world’s largest producer on both counts, as well as its rivals.

“The crisis is simultaneously strengthening and straining the US‑Asia alliance,” said Shi. “Allies will now hedge – buying more from America, but also building their own resilience.”

Challenged allies

The war in Iran has had a particularly pronounced effect in Asia, where countries have been trying to conserve energy while rushing to secure more supplies. But the differing responses highlight a broad range of vulnerability among Asian nations, researchers said, prompting those most exposed to the oil crisis to seek their own solutions, even at the risk of alienating the US.

The Phi

* WHAT…Wet snow expected. Total snow amounts up to 6 inches above
6000 feet. Winds gusting as high as 40 mph.

* WHERE…Northern Ventura County Mountains, Santa Barbara County
Interior Mountains, and Southern Ventura County Mountains.

* WHEN…From 9 PM this evening to 11 AM PDT Monday.

* IMPACTS…The hazardous conditions could impact the Monday morning
commute.

* ADDITIONAL DETAILS…Snow levels will be around 7000 feet through
Sunday morning, then lowering to 6000 feet Sunday afternoon and
4500 to 5000 feet late Sunday night into Monday morning.
Slow down and use caution while traveling. The latest road
conditions for the state you are calling from can be obtained by
calling 5 1 1.

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Por Lauren Kent, CNN

Un grupo clandestino proiraní se ha atribuido la responsabilidad de una serie de ataques recientes contra comunidades judías e intereses estadounidenses en Europa.

Los incidentes, que el grupo difundió a través de cuentas en redes sociales afiliadas a milicias proiraníes, incluyen un ataque incendiario contra ambulancias gestionadas por la comunidad judía en el Reino Unido, la detonación de un artefacto explosivo frente a una sinagoga en Bélgica y un atentado frustrado contra una sucursal del Bank of America en Francia.

El problema es que el grupo podría ser un espejismo.

El grupo, que se autodenomina Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia (HAYI), traducido aproximadamente del árabe como “El Movimiento Islámico de los Compañeros de los Justos”, apareció en línea hace apenas un mes, poco después de que Estados Unidos e Israel lanzaran su guerra contra Irán.

Según un análisis del Centro Internacional para la Lucha contra el Terrorismo (ICCT), un centro de estudios con sede en La Haya, no existen referencias conocidas, ni en línea ni fuera, a HAYI antes del 9 de marzo, fecha en que se difundió una publicación del grupo en un canal de Telegram.

Desde entonces, las afirmaciones y publicaciones del grupo se han difundido en canales de Telegram y X afiliados a milicias y medios de comunicación proiraníes.

“En términos de presencia digital, existe una clara conexión con el ecosistema proiraní en línea” afirmó Thomas Renard, experto en contraterrorismo y director del ICCT. “No se trata solo de que estos canales publicaran o compartieran estos vídeos, sino también de que lo hicieran en una cronología que indica algún tipo de coordinación”.

“Hay muchos indicios de que este grupo no es auténtico”, declaró Renard a CNN. “Por ahora, seguimos en el terreno de la especulación. Pero existen fuertes señales de que podría contar con la ayuda de un país extranjero, e Irán encabezaría la lista de posibles candidatos”.

Los errores ortográficos en árabe que aparecen en el logotipo del grupo y en los videos publicados en su nueva cuenta de Telegram también han llevado a los analistas del ICCT a creer que no se trata de una organización terrorista profesional e independiente, sino potencialmente de una fachada para una operación coordinada por Irán.

Según expertos en contraterrorismo, estos ataques son similares a las denominadas operaciones híbridas rusas en Europa, en las que funcionarios rusos reclutan personas en línea para llevar a cabo actos de sabotaje.

Estos ataques suelen ser perpetrados por personas de nacionalidad extranjera a cambio de pequeñas sumas de dinero y sin tener pleno conocimiento de a quién benefician.

“Ese es precisamente el modelo que Rusia ha perfeccionado en los últimos años. Y, tras confirmarlo, parece que Irán está siguiendo un patrón similar”, opinó Renard, señalando que Teherán lleva mucho tiempo recurriendo a tácticas de guerra híbrida mediante el apoyo a otros grupos militantes.

Esto podría ser otro ejemplo de cómo Irán busca una negación plausible mediante el uso de múltiples intermediarios, afirmó.

Es probable que surja más información a medida que la policía y las autoridades antiterroristas examinen los dispositivos de los sospechosos arrestados.

“En los últimos dos años, la amenaza vinculada a Irán para Europa ha aumentado significativamente”, declaró Martha Turnbull, directora del Centro Europeo de Excelencia para la Lucha contra las Amenazas Híbridas (Hybrid CoE), una organización ded

By Eric Levenson, CNN

(CNN) — Back on July 14, 2023, Rex Heuermann was in tears.

Heuermann, a New York-based architect with no criminal record, had just spent the night in jail following his arrest in the notorious Gilgo Beach serial killings on Long Island. He was being accused of three murders, and prosecutors said he was the “prime suspect” in a fourth killing.

He pleaded not guilty, and his defense attorney Michael J. Brown relayed to the media how his client was doing.

“The only thing I can tell you that he did say, as he was in tears, was ‘I didn’t do this,’” Brown said.

Exactly 1,000 days after his arrest, Heuermann, 62, showed no signs of emotional distress as he addressed a Suffolk County courtroom packed with media, victims’ families and uniformed officials Wednesday.

He calmly and coolly pleaded guilty to seven murder charges and admitted he killed an eighth woman. He said he fatally strangled all eight women and discarded their remains on Long Island from 1993 to 2010. He said “good morning” to the prosecutor and answered with a simple “Yes” or “Yes, your honor” to questions about what he did to the women.

“Are you pleading guilty, voluntarily, of your own free will?” State Supreme Court Justice Timothy Mazzei asked.

“Yes,” Heuermann responded.

The path from that teary denial to Wednesday’s guilty plea was paved by the ongoing investigative efforts of police, four added murder charges from prosecutors, the judge’s “monumental” ruling on DNA evidence and the desires of the victims’ families.

Ultimately, though, it was up to Heuermann himself.

“There came a point in this defense where Rex said, ‘I want to plead guilty,’” Brown said outside court Wednesday.

A cold case to an arrest

The guilty plea effectively ends a case that began back in 2010, when investigators discovered the remains of four women who had been bound by a belt or tape, wrapped in burlap and discarded in a remote area of Gilgo Beach, along Ocean Parkway. The “Gilgo Four,” as they became known, had gone missing between 2007 to 2010 and were all young women who did sex work.

The horrific discovery spurred a wider search on Long Island over the following year – nearly a dozen bodies were found in all – and raised fears of a serial killer on the loose.

But the case went cold for over a decade, frustrating some victims’ families who felt investigators were not taking the case seriously because of the victims’ line of work.

Some officials don’t exactly disagree with that criticism of the early investigation.

“There might have been some things that we could have done better,” then-Suffolk County Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison said in 2023.

Speaking to the media Wednesday, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney derided past officials who he said would “go out to Gilgo Beach, and all you guys follow, and they’re walking along the beach, looking for clues, presumably – I don’t know what the heck they’re doing.”

Harrison and Tierney said they took a different tack. In February 2022, Harrison announced a multiagency task force, including state police and the FBI, to reexamine the killings.

The task force was intentionally quiet and did not do Gilgo Beach media events, Tierney said, because they wanted the suspect to put down their guard.

“We didn’t say, ‘Hey, it’s a slow day, let’s toss Gilgo in the media pool to

NEWS-12-LONG-ISLAND, CNN

By Eric Levenson, CNN

(CNN) — Back on July 14, 2023, Rex Heuermann was in tears.

Heuermann, a New York-based architect with no criminal record, had just spent the night in jail following his arrest in the notorious Gilgo Beach serial killings on Long Island. He was being accused of three murders, and prosecutors said he was the “prime suspect” in a fourth killing.

He pleaded not guilty, and his defense attorney Michael J. Brown relayed to the media how his client was doing.

“The only thing I can tell you that he did say, as he was in tears, was ‘I didn’t do this,’” Brown said.

Exactly 1,000 days after his arrest, Heuermann, 62, showed no signs of emotional distress as he addressed a Suffolk County courtroom packed with media, victims’ families and uniformed officials Wednesday.

He calmly and coolly pleaded guilty to seven murder charges and admitted he killed an eighth woman. He said he fatally strangled all eight women and discarded their remains on Long Island from 1993 to 2010. He said “good morning” to the prosecutor and answered with a simple “Yes” or “Yes, your honor” to questions about what he did to the women.

“Are you pleading guilty, voluntarily, of your own free will?” State Supreme Court Justice Timothy Mazzei asked.

“Yes,” Heuermann responded.

The path from that teary denial to Wednesday’s guilty plea was paved by the ongoing investigative efforts of police, four added murder charges from prosecutors, the judge’s “monumental” ruling on DNA evidence and the desires of the victims’ families.

Ultimately, though, it was up to Heuermann himself.

“There came a point in this defense where Rex said, ‘I want to plead guilty,’” Brown said outside court Wednesday.

A cold case to an arrest

The guilty plea effectively ends a case that began back in 2010, when investigators discovered the remains of four women who had been bound by a belt or tape, wrapped in burlap and discarded in a remote area of Gilgo Beach, along Ocean Parkway. The “Gilgo Four,” as they became known, had gone missing between 2007 to 2010 and were all young women who did sex work.

The horrific discovery spurred a wider search on Long Island over the following year – nearly a dozen bodies were found in all – and raised fears of a serial killer on the loose.

But the case went cold for over a decade, frustrating some victims’ families who felt investigators were not taking the case seriously because of the victims’ line of work.

Some officials don’t exactly disagree with that criticism of the early investigation.

“There might have been some things that we could have done better,” then-Suffolk County Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison said in 2023.

Speaking to the media Wednesday, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney derided past officials who he said would “go out to Gilgo Beach, and all you guys follow, and they’re walking along the beach, looking for clues, presumably – I don’t know what the heck they’re doing.”

Harrison and Tierney said they took a different tack. In February 2022, Harrison announced a mult

At 1212 AM PDT, Doppler radar was tracking gusty showers along a
line extending from 10 miles west of Vandenberg Space Force Base to
14 miles west of Point Conception. Movement was east at 15 mph.

HAZARD…Wind gusts of 50 to 55 mph. While not likely, there is a
remote chance for the development of a brief, weak tornado.

SOURCE…Radar indicated.

IMPACT…Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around
unsecured objects.

Locations impacted include…
Lompoc…
Point Conception…
Vandenberg Space Force Base…
Orcutt…
Vandenberg Village…
and Mission Hills.
If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building.

Torrential rainfall is also occurring with these storms and may lead
to localized flooding. Do not drive your vehicle through flooded
roadways.

These storms may intensify, so be certain to monitor local radio
stations and available television stations for additional information
and possible warnings from the National Weather Service.

The post Special Weather Statement issued April 12 at 12:13AM PDT by NWS Los Angeles/Oxnard CA appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

Por Brad Lendon, CNN

Todo estaba en calma por encima de las nubes sobre el mar Arábigo, y el pequeño avión de hélice de Sam Rutherford volaba en crucero a unos 193 km/h. One Direction sonaba en el altavoz de la cabina.

Hasta que una voz estadounidense se escuchó por la radio.

“Se está aproximando a un buque de guerra de la coalición en aguas internacionales. Le solicitamos que establezca comunicación, se identifique”.

Volando al sur de Irán, Rutherford y la copiloto Shannon Wong habían atraído la atención de las fuerzas armadas de Estados Unidos, que acababa de entrar en guerra en Medio Oriente.

“Así que nos acaba de sobrevolar un F-16”, dice un Rutherford sorprendentemente sereno en un video que captura el momento y que publicó en Instagram. (Como luego aclaró en su publicación, en realidad era un F/A-18 Hornet).

Un día antes, cuando Estados Unidos e Israel lanzaron su guerra con Irán, Rutherford —ex piloto de helicóptero de las fuerzas armadas británicas— había estado en una situación similar, volando sobre los Emiratos Árabes Unidos.

En ese momento, en la radio del Piper PA-28, podía escuchar las llamadas de aviones comerciales cercanos buscando lugares donde aterrizar rápidamente, mientras el golfo Pérsico se convertía en una zona de guerra activa.

Muchos se desviaron hacia su destino, la capital omaní, Mascate, un aeropuerto normalmente tranquilo, le dijo a CNN.

Tras aterrizar, se encontró ante una decisión: esperar en Mascate para ver cómo se desarrollaba la nueva guerra; o continuar el trabajo por el que le estaban pagando, entregando este diminuto avión que recogió en la fábrica de Vero Beach, Florida, a su comprador, una escuela de vuelo en India.

A primera hora de la mañana siguiente, el espacio aéreo de Omán estaba abierto y la ruta a través del océano Índico hacia su destino, Ahmedabad, seguía siendo viable, dijo.

Leyendo los vientos de guerra, decidió “salir pitando de allí” y comenzar su viaje de 1.450 kilómetros hacia India.

Unas tres horas después de que salieran, Irán atacaría Omán, cerrando su espacio aéreo. Pero la decisión de Rutherford de partir fue lo que lo llevó a su encuentro con los cazas estadounidenses, cuyos pilotos aún esperaban su respuesta.

Ahora estaba poniendo en alerta al USS Abraham Lincoln, un portaaviones de la clase Nimitz, de propulsión nuclear. Con una tripulación de 5.000 personas, puede transportar 75 aeronaves, incluida ese F/A-18 que volaba cerca.

Y había un pequeño problema.

“No podían oírnos”, dijo Rutherford. Mientras intentaban establecer comunicaciones por radio con el caza, no llegaba ninguna respuesta.

Eso hizo que fueran unos minutos de nervios. Al fin y al cabo, este Piper no es lo que uno suele ver en esta ruta aérea: lento y volando a 3.000 metros de altura, mientras que los aviones comerciales en la ruta van bastante por encima de los 9.000 metros.

Pero Rutherford dijo que, en cuanto se estableció la comunicación, las cosas se calmaron por un momento.

Porque entonces el piloto estadounidense tuvo otra petición: alterar su rumbo hacia el norte o hacia el sur en 15 grados.

“Era absolutamente evidente que estábamos volando directamente hacia el portaaviones”, dijo Rutherford. “No le importaba si a la izquierda o a la derecha, pero por favor elige una de las dos opciones”.

Ninguna de las dos era ideal. Hacia el sur estaba el océano Índico abierto. Hacia el norte estaba Irán o Pakistán, y no tenía autorización para ninguno de los dos países.

Lo que siguió fue como “regatear por una alfombra en Marrakech”, recordó. El piloto del caza de la Marina cedió un poco. Rutherford explicó con calma sus limitaciones.

Si aceptaba las exigencias del piloto del caza y se dirigía al sur, “entonces me quedaría sin combustible en algún punto sobre el océano Índico con mi pequeño avión monomotor

* WHAT…Wet snow expected. Total snow amounts up to around 6 inches
above 6000 feet. Winds gusting as high as 40 mph.

* WHERE…Northern Ventura County Mountains, Santa Barbara County
Interior Mountains, and Southern Ventura County Mountains.

* WHEN…Until 11 AM PDT Monday.

* IMPACTS…The hazardous conditions could impact the Monday morning
commute.

* ADDITIONAL DETAILS…Snow levels will be around 7000 feet through
Sunday morning, then lowering to 6000 feet Sunday afternoon and
4500 to 5000 feet late Sunday night into Monday morning.
Slow down and use caution while traveling. The latest road
conditions for the state you are calling from can be obtained by
calling 5 1 1.

The post Winter Weather Advisory issued April 12 at 12:40AM PDT until April 13 at 11:00AM PDT by NWS Los Angeles/Oxnard CA appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

By Alaa Elassar, CNN

(CNN) — Lynette Hooker moves through the world like someone who has found her rhythm.

On the water, the 55-year-old mother seems to come alive, her adventurous spirit radiating outward, lighting her from the inside out. She chases horizons by sailboat and slips beneath them with a snorkel, drifting eye-level with manatees and tracing the slow glide of sea turtles. The ocean isn’t just a backdrop.

It is her element, her “happy place,” she called it, before her disappearance.

In video after video, shared on her travel Instagram profile, the light catches her in motion — wind in her hair, sun on her shoulders, laughter carried off before it fully lands. And almost always, just within reach, is her husband of about 25 years, Brian Hooker.

Together, they built a life at sea and documented it in intimate, often joyful posts: sailing in glassy water, cooking meals using a solar oven aboard their boat “Soulmate,” weathering sudden storms with a sense of humor.

He often sits across from her on their yacht, sunburnt and smiling, part of the rhythm she documented cheerfully. Online, their life reads like a love story set adrift: two people choosing each other against an endless horizon.

“Not going anywhere for a while?!” she writes in her most recent post, the caption sitting beneath an image of boats anchored in calm, crystal clear water.

Days after that post, Lynette Hooker would be reported missing in the Bahamas.

Brian Hooker – described affectionately by his wife in her posts as her “hubby” – was taken into custody by the Royal Bahamas Police Force on Wednesday in connection with her disappearance and remains in custody after an extension was granted until Monday evening, his lawyer confirmed to CNN. The US Coast Guard has opened a criminal investigation into Lynette Hooker’s disappearance.

Brian Hooker has not been charged, and his attorney says he “categorically and unequivocally denies any wrongdoing.”

Now a week since she went missing, the life Lynette Hooker so vividly captured, full of motion, light and breath, is left suspended in time, raising a question that lingers on a social media profile gone silent:

How does someone vanish from a life that looked so full — and what happened the night she went missing?

What her husband says happened that night

As Lynette Hooker’s daughter searches for answers, she is also pulling back the curtain on a relationship that, she says, carries shadows the camera never caught — alleging episodes of domestic violence beneath what appeared to be a seamless life at sea.

Brian Hooker was considered a suspect and arrested “for additional questioning based on some probable cause we have,” Royal Bahamas Police Force Assistant Commissioner Advardo Dames told Reuters. Brian Hooker’s attorney, Terrel Butler, said Thursday he had “so far been interviewed as a witness.” She added, “He has been cooperating with the police.”

In a statement Friday, Butler said her client “appears completely heartbroken and deeply distressed,” and the trauma of his wife’s disappearance and his detention as a suspect has left him in an “extremely fragile state.” The attorney als

By Tal Shalev, CNN

(CNN) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saw his closest European ally soundly defeated in the Hungarian elections on Sunday.

The result is a blow to Israel’s longest-serving leader in an election year and has emboldened the country’s opposition, who see the upcoming vote, scheduled for October, as a critical moment for the nation.

Like US President Donald Trump, Netanyahu openly endorsed Orbán, recording a personal video endorsement for him at CPAC. “Viktor Orbán means safety, security, stability,” Netanyahu said in the pre-recorded statement. His son, Yair, who has cultivated his own ties with Orbán’s Fidesz party, attended the event in person, calling Budapest “almost a second home.”

Netanyahu has also praised Orbán’s ostensible steps against antisemitism, even as the Hungarian leader has himself faced accusations of antisemitism for rewriting Hungary’s holocaust history and negative portrayals of left-leaning Jewish philanthropist George Soros and Ukrainian leader Volodomyr Zelensky.

In a statement on social media on Monday, Netanyahu called Orbán a “true friend of Israel, who stood firmly by Israel’s side in the face of unjust international vilification.” He then congratulated Peter Magyar on his election victory.

Israeli media reported that Netanyahu’s American pollster, John McLaughlin, who also works for Trump, advised Orbán’s campaign as well.

The deep relationship between Netanyahu and Orbán, cultivated over the past 15 years, goes far beyond right-wing messaging. Last year, after the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants against Netanyahu over the Gaza war, Budapest announced its withdrawal from the ICC – making Hungary one of the few global destinations Netanyahu can visit without risking arrest.

Orbán has repeatedly blocked the European Union from issuing condemnation of Israel or taking punitive measures. Such measures require unanimity, and Orbán did not shy away from unilaterally blocking the actions.

‘A message of hope’ for Israel’s opposition

For Israel’s opposition, Orbán’s loss is being received as a moment of hope, and as evidence that even the most entrenched illiberal governments can be voted out

Efrat Rayten, a lawmaker from the left‑wing Democrat party, called the outcome “a message of hope.” “The idea that a leader who controls the institutions and the media is immune to defeat has been shattered,” she told CNN. “The lesson for Israel is unity, perseverance, and faith in civil society.”

Since the current Netanyahu government took office in January 2023, Israel’s opposition has repeatedly invoked Orbán’s Hungary as a cautionary model of what they argue Netanyahu is pursuing at home: hollowing out checks and balances and weakening the independence of the judiciary and the media.

“Israel will not become Hungary” was one of the central slogans of the 2023 mass protest movement against Netanyahu’s government sweeping judicial overhaul and legislative blitz. A March 2026 report by the left-leaning Zulat think tank described Israel as moving toward a “partially authoritarian” system. Unlike Orbán, the report noted, Netanyahu never formally declared his country a “non‑liberal democracy”,” but his government actions, it argued, are bringing it close to one.

Orbán’s defeat does not guarantee victory for those trying to oust Netanyahu, though it does offer a lesson for those trying to oust the Israeli premier.

“Change does not happen only in the corridors of Parliament,” Rayten said. “It begins in the streets, with people who refuse to give up.” But Rayten points out it requires something Israel has often lacked: unity between the opposition parties. Netanyahu’s critics are encouraged from the message stemming from Orban’s defeat, but whether that optimism is warranted remains to be seen.

The-CNN

Análisis por Simone McCarthy, CNN

China, el mayor importador de energía del mundo, ha capeado hasta ahora bien la crisis energética mundial provocada por la guerra en el Golfo, en comparación con algunos de sus vecinos asiáticos.

Pero a medida que los mercados mundiales de combustible siguen siendo volátiles en medio de un frágil alto el fuego entre Estados Unidos e Irán y un nuevo bloqueo militar estadounidense que amenaza las exportaciones iraníes, lo que está en juego en este conflicto no hace más que aumentar para Beijing.

¿Una de las razones? Como principal importador de petróleo iraní, China es el país que más se verá afectado por las medidas estadounidenses que impactan su flujo.

Así fue el mes pasado, cuando la Casa Blanca levantó ciertas sanciones estadounidenses sobre los barriles iraníes, como ahora, cuando las fuerzas del Petágono han establecido un bloqueo de los puertos iraníes.

Es posible que estas medidas no provoquen una escasez inmediata en China, que se ha preparado bien para una crisis energética.

Pero esto ejerce aún más presión sobre la segunda economía más grande del mundo, justo cuando las subidas de los precios mundiales del combustible empiezan a tener repercusiones.

También, al mismo tiempo que los diplomáticos se preparan para un viaje crucial, y que ya se ha retrasado una vez, del presidente Donald Trump para reunirse con Xi Jinping en Beijing, previsto para el mes que viene.

Durante semanas, funcionarios chinos han recorrido el circuito diplomático abogando por la paz en la guerra entre Estados Unidos e Israel con Irán, un estrecho socio diplomático del gigante de Asia.

Trump incluso sugirió que China ayudó a que Irán se sentara a la mesa de negociaciones en las últimas semanas.

La forma en que Beijing ajuste ahora su diplomacia en esta fase crítica del alto el fuego estará ligada a la presión a la que esté sometida su economía.

“Con más intereses chinos en juego, Estados Unidos podría lograr que China se involucre más para impulsar a Irán hacia una solución negociada”, afirmó Yun Sun, director del Programa de China del centro de estudios Stimson Center en Washington.

Y agregó: “China recurrirá a la presión diplomática, tanto bilateral como multilateral, para lograr el rápido levantamiento del bloqueo”.

Entonces, ¿qué tan importantes son las implicaciones económicas para Beijing?

La mayor parte de la enorme cantidad de energía necesaria para impulsar la economía china y su sector manufacturero se produce en el país, y sus carreteras albergan una flota de vehículos eléctricos en rápido crecimiento que no dependen del gas.

Si bien China aún depende en gran medida de las importaciones de petróleo, que representan aproximadamente el 18 % de su matriz energética, Beijing lleva tiempo trabajando para diversificar su suministro.

Fundamentalmente, también se anticipó, acumulando suficientes reservas de petróleo para abastecerse durante al menos tres meses, entre las reservas comerciales y las estratégicas nacionales, según estiman los analistas, lo que proporciona a la economía china un margen de maniobra considerable.

El Gobierno chino ha dado luz verde a las refinerías estatales para que exploten las reservas comerciales de petróleo mientras la guerra con Irán se prolonga, informó Bloomberg News el jueves, citando a personas familiarizadas con el asunto.

Aun así, China no es inmune a las fl

SANTA MARIA, Calif. (KEYT) Firefighter crews are on the scene of a crash involving two semi trucks on highway 166 east of Pine Canyon.

Authorities say the collision happened at 9:50 pm Monday night and involved an offset head-on crash between the big rigs.

Two people were evaluated at the scene for minor injuries, but neither was taken to the hospital.

Highway 166 is currently closed in both directions as crews work to clear the trucks and contain a small fuel leak.

The cause of the crash remains under investigation, and no other injuries have been reported

Drivers are urged to avoid the area and use alternate routes.

The post Lanes closed after two semi-trucks collide appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

CNN

By Meteorologists Chris Dolce, Briana Waxman and CNN’s Hanna Park

(CNN) — A week of severe storm threats across the Central US started with a bang Monday, with multiple tornadoes demolishing buildings in Kansas, heavy rain stranding vehicles on flooded streets in Wisconsin and hail up to softball size battering parts of four states. It’s part of a weeklong severe weather threat across the region – and today has the potential to be the most dangerous.

Tornadoes were confirmed Monday in eastern Kansas, northern Iowa, southern Minnesota and northern Wisconsin. Nearly softball-sized hail fell south of Minneapolis and damaging winds toppled power lines and trees in northeast Illinois.

On Tuesday, tens of millions of people from the Texas-Mexico border to the Great Lakes are at risk of seeing a severe storm, including in Chicago, Milwaukee and Des Moines, Iowa, where there’s a Level 3 of 5 threat for large hail, damaging wind gusts and tornadoes.

About a dozen states from Texas to the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes will see a threat of severe storms on one or more days through Friday. The threat zone will shift each day depending on where surges of jet stream energy mix with warm, humid air to trigger intense thunderstorms.

Dangerous flooding is also a concern, especially where rivers are already running high in water-logged northern Michigan and northern Wisconsin.

Tornadoes and giant hail

Monday’s most intense severe storms produced several tornadoes in eastern Kansas and dropped hail ranging in size from golf balls to softballs across southern Minnesota and central Wisconsin. More than 80,000 customers are without power in Wisconsin early Tuesday, according to PowerOutage.us, after rounds of severe thunderstorms blasted through overnight.

Multiple buildings were “demolished” after a tornado touched down in Kansas’ Linn County, Randy Hegwald, the county’s emergency management director, told CNN. A lake community southeast of Mound City “took a direct hit,” but only a few minor injuries have been reported, Hegwald said.

About 45 miles north, a tornado impacted dozens in the city of Hillsdale, Miami County Undersheriff Matthew Kelly told CNN. One minor injury has been reported, and emergency officials are working to arrange shelter for those displaced from their homes.

The storm also caused structural damage in nearby Ottawa, most of which was without power Monday night, according to Franklin County Emergency Management.

Senator Jerry Moran, who represents Kansas, said he was “hearing reports of potential tornado damage” in Ottawa and urged residents to heed warnings from weather officials.

Timing the severe storms

Going forward, the biggest concern continues to be large hail, which could dent cars, shatter windshields and damage roofs. The storms could also produce a few more tornadoes and winds strong enough to down trees and power lines.

Tuesday could have the most widespread number of severe s

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (KEYT) - Dylan Kordic and Ryan Tayman belted multi-RBI home runs and Sean McGrath struck out six over 4 1/3 innings as Cal Poly rallied from an early 3-0 deficit to beat Pepperdine 7-3 in a midweek non-conference baseball game Tuesday afternoon.

Kordic smashed a three-run shot to right field, his third of the year, in the fourth inning to turn a 3-1 deficit into a 4-3 Mustang lead and Tayman added his 11th blast of the season, a two-run effort in the fifth, for Cal Poly, which beat the Waves for the sixth straight time.

In relief of starter Luke Kalfsbeek, McGrath (2-2) scattered five hits, walked one and the lone run he allowed was unearned for the Mustangs, who improved to 19-16 for the year. Pepperdine fell to 11-25.

Josh Morano (two innings) and Troy Cooper (one inning) did not allow any runs over the final three frames of the game as Cal Poly notched its 11th come-from-behind win of the season.

Third baseman Alejandro Garza blooped a single down the right-field line to knock in Cal Poly's first run of the game in the third inning. Tayman accounted for the final Mustang tally in the seventh with an RBI single up the middle.

Garza continued his torrid hitting pace with a three-hit performance, his sixth multiple-hit effort in seven games, 11th in 16, and his team-leading 18th of the season. Garza, who was 8-for-13 in the Oregon State series last weekend, on Tuesday singled twice, doubled once, and over his last 16 games has lifted his average 100 points to .369.

Tayman also had three hits with a single, double and home run, while center fielder Casey Murray Jr. added two singles. Designated hitter Braxton Thomas and left fielder Xander McLaurin each contributed a double.

Cal Poly, which produced 11 hits in each of the last two games at Oregon State, added 13 more to the total Tuesday while holding Pepperdine to eight. Julian Nunez, Kai Laxa and Joe Cardinale each had a pair of hits for the Waves.

Nunez doubled down the left-field line to push across the first Pepperdine run of the game and Laxa followed with an infield RBI single for a 2-0 first-inning Waves lead. It was 3-0 when Nunez blooped a run-scoring single to shallow left-center field in the second frame.

Gabe Maya (0-1), who relieved Pepperdine starter Austin Plisinski and gave up the three-run home run to Kordic, the first batter he faced, suffered the loss.

Cal Poly, which beat Pepperdine 12-2 on March 3, visits Pepperdine in Malibu next Tuesday for the third and final meeting of the season.

Next on the docket for the Mustangs is a three-game Big West Conference series at UC San Diego this weekend. Game times are Friday at 6 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. At 11-4, the Tritons are one game ahead of Cal Poly and UC Santa Barbara, both 10-5.

(Article courtesy of Cal Poly Athletics)

The post Mustangs power past Pepperdine appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

By Meteorologists Briana Waxman, Dakota Smith

(CNN) — Tornadoes and baseball-sized hail tore through parts of Wisconsin and Iowa on Tuesday evening, leaving behind damaged buildings and at least one home destroyed.

The severe weather is part of a multi-day outbreak that began Monday and will continue through the end of the week from the southern Plains to the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes region. Similar areas remain at risk Wednesday, with threats for large hail, damaging winds and additional tornadoes stretching from Dallas to Chicago.

Flooding is also a serious concern in parts of the Great Lakes, where rivers are already running high and some dams in Wisconsin are at risk of failing.

Tornado damage reported

A nasty storm prompted a “particularly dangerous situation” tornado warning Tuesday as a destructive twister struck near Union Center, Wisconsin. Juneau County Emergency Management said multiple structures were damaged and power lines were down, but no injuries or deaths were reported. Damage assessments will continue into the morning, while the Salvation Army and Red Cross assist displaced residents.

Tornado warnings were issued for millions in Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin; Detroit and Ann Arbor, Michigan; and Fayetteville, Arkansas Tuesday night into early Wednesday. Students and staff at the University of Michigan and University of Arkansas were advised to take shelter.

Powerful severe thunderstorms also moved through Chicago and Grand Rapids, Michigan, where an 80 mph wind gust was observed at the airport.

Softball-sized hail fell near Maple Bluff, Wisconsin. Stones this large are capable of seriously injuring people, totaling vehicles and puncturing roofs.

More than a dozen tornadoes were reported Monday across parts of Kansas, Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin, including a damaging EF2 in Miami County, Kansas. The storm damaged about 100 structures — roughly 50 to 60 of them completely — with much of the impact centered around Hillsdale, according to Miami County Undersheriff Matthew Kelly.

Dangerous severe storm threat continues through late week

Wednesday is expected to bring yet another round of strong storms, but wind damage and hail, rather than tornadoes, appear to be the biggest concerns in most areas. Far northern Texas, Oklahoma and southeast Kansas have the highest chance at seeing severe storms that are more impactful, but the risk zone extends as far north as the Upper Mississippi Valley and as far east as Central Pennsylvania.

The storm threat is lower and less widespread on Thursday, contained to a smaller area across the Ohio River Valley.

One more surge of jet stream energy will fire up a final round of potent thunderstorms on Friday, especially from Oklahoma to Iowa. Strong tornadoes and destructive hail and winds are all on the table.

This system could produce one final burst of severe storms on Saturday in the southern Great Lakes and Ohio Valley. The storm-weary central US will then finally get a multi-day breather starting Sunday because a weather pattern change will usher in cooler temperatures.

Flooding worsens across the Great Lakes

Multiple rounds of rain are exacerbating flooding across parts of Michigan and Wisconsin, where rivers are already running high after one of the wettest starts to spring on record and ongoing snowmelt. There is a Level 2 of 4 threat of flash flooding in place for parts of the Upper Midwest Wednesday.

In Milwaukee, rapidly rising water stranded multiple drivers near Timmerman Airport, where at least five vehicles became stuck in floodwaters, according to Read more

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) -

Channel League Baseball:

Dos Pueblos 6, Santa Barbara 2: Chargers used a 5-run sixth inning and a complete game by Liam Shea. DP is 6-3 in league.

(Evan Bean was one of three Chargers to have a multi-hit game. Entenza Design).

San Marcos 3, Oxnard 2: Royals lead league at 7-2

Ventura 4, Pacifica 3

Rio Mesa 4, Buena 2

Channel League Softball:

San Marcos 7, Oxnard 6 (10 innings): Lucy Dessert pitched all 10 innings and Sutera Raring delivered game-winning RBI single in top of tenth.

Ventura 16, Pacifica 2

Channel League Boys Volleyball:

San Marcos 3, Dos Pueblos 0: Royals improve to 23-2 overall and 8-0 in league. Owen Willer had 15 kills and 4 aces.

(Matteo Burdick added 10 kills for Royals. Entenza Design).

(Koji Hefner tallied 8 kills in the Royals sweep. Entenza Design).

Santa Barbara 3, Ventura 2:

Channel League Boys Tennis:

Dos Pueblos 14, San Marcos 4: DP is 9-0 overall and 6-0 in league. DP singles players Ciaran Tober-Bridges, Evan Harwin and Neil Sharangpani swept the singles allowing San Marcos only 11 games in the 9 sets.

(DP hosts Santa Barbara on Thursday. Courtesy Photo).

Channel League Girls Lacrosse:

San Marcos 13, Cate 5: Royals are 13-3 overall and 6-0 in league. Josephine Grossman led San Marcos with 5 goals.

Dos Pueblos 10, Thacher 9: Linnea Clapinski scored 8 goals for DP including the final two in the fourth quarter to erase a 9-8 deficit and give her team the win.

Channel League Boys Golf:

Dos Pueblos 376, Ventura 387

San Marcos 394, Rio Mesa 461

The post High school wrap: DP rallies in baseball, San Marcos stays undefeated in Chann

By John Liu, CNN

(CNN) — Four months ago, a dozen academics and researchers from China’s top oil and gas producers issued a warning buried in an academic journal: the nation’s quest for self-sufficiency had a critical weak spot.

The threat they identified was helium, a colorless, odorless gas with a wide range of uses, from regulating temperatures during semiconductor manufacturing to cooling medical scanning devices, testing for leaks in pipelines, and pressurizing space rocket fuel tanks.

The problem was that over 83 percent of the country’s supply came from outside China.

“Because these supply sources are highly vulnerable to geopolitical shifts, the security of the nation’s supply chain now faces a severe challenge,” they wrote last December.

Fast forward to today and those fears have materialized with dizzying speed as a historic oil and gas crisis sparked by the US and Israel’s war with Iran grips the world.

China is now facing what some analysts have described as the worst helium shock in decades with prices doubling and supplies dwindling.

A prolonged disruption, analysts warned, could lead to chip factory shutdowns and delays for life-saving medical imaging, triggering cascading effects across the broader economy that relies on semiconductors, from electronics to vehicles.

China’s helium supply crunch is a rare vulnerability in what has otherwise been a largely successful push for energy self-sufficiency that has insulated the country from the worst oil crisis in history.

The collapse of peace talks between the US and Iran over the weekend and Trump’s announcement of a US Navy blockade of the vital Strait of Hormuz have further dashed hopes that material shortages could soon be resolved.

And with the halt in helium production in Qatar, which supplies one third of the world’s demand and 54% of China’s, and collateral damage to related energy facilities, the supply chain could still take years to recover. In the meantime, strains on domestic supply are mounting.

“With the Qatari issue, it’s basically taken so much offline globally that there’s no visibility on how we can get a reliable supply moving forward,” said Cameron Johnson, a Shanghai-based senior partner at supply chain consultancy Tidalwave Solutions.

“A lot of suppliers are basically saying, we don’t have any product to sell. It doesn’t matter if you give us a million bucks, we have nothing.”

Skyrocketing prices

Across Asia, economies that require helium are staring down a potential shortage. The Taiwan Semiconductor Industry Association has called on the government to start stockpiling helium, while Japanese media reported that helium firms have begun limiting sales.

The risk of major disruption has prompted governments such as South Korea and Taiwan – home to the world’s leading chipmakers and heavily reliant on the industry – to assess possible fallout. Seoul said that chipmakers have sufficient inventories for about four months, while Taipei said it has coordinated with chipmakers, which maintain diversified supply chains and adequate stockpiles.

Beijing has yet to address the disruption publicly and it does not disclose information on corporate helium inventories, making it hard to gauge the country’s stockpiles.

But prices for high-purity helium used in industrial sectors have doubled in China in the past month, according to Sublime China Information, a Chinese market intelligence firm.

“With Qatari supply unlikely to recover in t

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - Three Santa Barbara High School baseball players and two Dons football players will continue their athletic journey at four-year colleges.

Offensive lineman Malachi Johnston signs with Cal Poly while strong safety Monty Lopez is already enrolled at Cal Lutheran University.

Outfielder Jetner Welch signs with Claremont McKenna College, shortstop Max Weddle is headed to Chaminade University in Hawai'i while catcher Derek Jaye is Whitman College-bound in Washington.

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By Adam Cancryn, CNN

(CNN) — The White House had long circled Tax Day as the unofficial start to a critical midterm campaign meant to highlight how much money the administration was putting back in voters’ pockets.

Then President Donald Trump launched a costly war in Iran, sent gas prices soaring and singlehandedly upended months of careful political planning — raising the odds of an electoral wipeout that could cost Republicans control of Congress.

Now, Trump officials are scrambling to salvage their strategy on the fly, hoping they can still convince skeptical Americans that they’re doing better under Trump than before. The White House has also sought new ideas for taking on rising prices, such as accusing gas station operators of seizing on the war to gouge consumers at the pump.

But seven months out from midterm elections, many Republicans privately concede their standing is deteriorating and chances of holding the House are slipping away. Any possibility of averting sweeping losses in the House — and possibly even the Senate — in November rests first on Trump quickly extracting himself from Iran, a task he’s clearly struggling mightily to accomplish.

“We need to get on offense. We need a message,” said one Trump adviser. “But right now, everything’s on hold until the war’s over.”

The darkening outlook for the Republican Party is far from what Trump and his top advisers envisioned only a few months ago, when they’d coalesced around a plan to pivot sharply toward affordability as the midterms drew closer. And it underscores the significant damage that Trump has done to his party’s chances by abruptly plunging the US into a war with Iran with no clear way out.

The conflict’s ripple effects over the last seven weeks may have negated nearly all the economic progress that the GOP planned to run on, more than a half-dozen Republicans told CNN — including strides made toward lowering gas prices, easing inflation and bolstering Americans’ sense of financial security.

Trump, who senior aides once vowed would hit the road nearly every week to tout accomplishments and boost down-ballot candidates, has instead remained largely tethered to Washington and focused on foreign affairs. When he travels to Nevada on Thursday, it will mark his first swing-state rally in more than a month. (GOP operatives still believe he will significantly ramp up his travel for House and Senate candidates this fall.)

The president will also arrive in Las Vegas at the weakest point in his political career, with recent polls putting his approval rating near historic lows amid voter anger over the economy and the war.

“There’s direct correlation between presidential job approval and the party’s midterm performance. It’s not much more complicated than that,” said GOP pollster Whit Ayres. “They’re frustrated and unhappy, and that’s been the case for some time, but it’s especially the case now.”

In a statement, White House spokesman Kush Desai argued that Trump’s economic policies would benefit Americans over the long term, arguing that his accomplishments “go beyond a one-time tax refund check.”

“Tens of millions of working-class Americans have more money in their pockets thanks to President Trump’s signature provisions,” he said, adding that the agenda is “laying the groundwork for more historic success.”

Congressional GOP leaders insist they’re not panicking either, arguing that doomsday scenarios where they could lose both the House and Senate aren’t yet materializing — and that Republicans still hold a fundraising advantage that could grow even larger if Trump deploys the massive war chest he controls through his MAGA Inc. super PAC.

The situation has nevertheless fanned fears across other parts of the GOP that a wider swath of seats in both the House, and possibly the Senate, could now be in play — al

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - It's three of a kind for San Marcos as they knocked off rival Dos Pueblos 13-5 to claim their third straight Channel League title in girls lacrosse.

Josephine Grossman scored a team-high four goals and Victoria Aldana added 3 goals as the Royals improve to 14-3 on the season and 7-0 in league with one regular season game left.

Carly Grant made five saves for the Royals.

Dos Pueblos senior star Linnea Clapinski scored all five of her team's goals while Stella Lawler saved ten shots. The Chargers are CIF playoff-bound having locked up second place in league.

Boys Lacrosse:

Dos Pueblos 17, San Marcos 1: The Chargers clinch at least a share of the Channel League title with a 7-1 mark. The game saw some unlikely heroes step up, with Senior Everett Kuhm scoring his first 4 career goals, Senior Owen Anton scoring his first career goal, and freshman Lou Wendel scoring his first 2 career goals as well.

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Por Dakota Smith y Briana Waxman, meteorólogas de CNN

Se prevé que un nuevo brote de tormentas severas azote el centro de Estados Unidos este viernes, afectando a regiones ya castigadas por varios días de tornados, granizo masivo e inundaciones históricas.

La amenaza surge tras más de tres docenas de informes de tornados y más de 300 informes de granizo, algunos tan grandes como pelotas de béisbol, desde Texas hasta los Grandes Lagos a principios de esta semana.

Se esperan tormentas con vientos destructivos y granizo de gran tamaño desde Oklahoma City hasta Green Bay el viernes por la tarde y noche. También se prevén más tornados, con la mayor amenaza concentrada en Wisconsin, el sureste de Minnesota, el este de Iowa y el norte de Illinois.

Una nueva oleada de energía de la corriente en chorro que llegará al centro de Estados Unidos el viernes absorberá la humedad del Golfo, lo que probablemente desencadenará un brote de tormentas severas que se extenderá desde el norte de Texas hasta el norte de Wisconsin.

Existe un riesgo de nivel 3 sobre 5 de tormentas eléctricas severas con tornados, granizo grande y vientos dañinos el viernes en lugares como Madison, Wisconsin; Chicago; Kansas City, Missouri; Tulsa, Oklahoma y Wichita, Kansas.

Se ha emitido una alerta de nivel 2 de 5 por riesgo de tormentas severas para Milwaukee; Oklahoma City; St. Louis; Des Moines, Iowa y Springfield, Missouri.

Las tormentas estallarán a primera hora de la tarde en la parte norte de la zona de riesgo y luego se extenderán hacia el sur. Las primeras tormentas podrían generar tornados —posiblemente de categoría EF3 o superior— y granizo más destructivo.

Los fuertes vientos generalizados, capaces de arrancar árboles de raíz y provocar cortes de electricidad, se convertirán en la principal amenaza al anochecer, a medida que las tormentas eléctricas avancen hacia el este, pero aún podrían formarse tornados en el borde delantero de las tormentas.

Este sistema podría generar una última oleada de tormentas severas con riesgo de fuertes vientos el sábado en el valle superior del río Ohio.

El centro de Estados Unidos, castigado por las tormentas, finalmente tendrá un respiro a partir del domingo, ya que un cambio en el patrón climático traerá consigo temperaturas más frescas.

Las tormentas del viernes llegan en un momento en que algunas zonas de los Grandes Lagos ya sufren importantes inundaciones tras las repetidas lluvias de esta semana.

La región viene de uno de los inicios de primavera más lluviosos de los que se tiene registro, sumado al deshielo de un invierno muy activo.

Los ríos de Michigan y Wisconsin ya han alcanzado, o se prevé que alcancen, niveles de inundación importantes o récord en más de 20 lugares.

Las tormentas provocaron inundaciones repentinas en Milwaukee la noche del miércoles, dejando vehículos atrapados en carreteras anegadas.

Algunas autopistas de la ciudad fueron cerradas debido a que los conductores quedaron atrapados por la crecida del agua, según informó la Oficina del Sheriff del Condado de Milwaukee.

El departamento de bomberos de la ciudad indicó que respondió a unas 50 llamadas de auxilio por la rápida crecida del agua la noche del martes.

En Michigan, las autoridades están vigilando de cerca varias represas que se encuentran bajo presión debido a las crecidas.

El río Muskegon superó niveles récord el jueves por la mañana, lo que obligó a evacuar obligatoriamente a “cualquier persona que permaneciera en la llanura aluvial debajo de la presa de Croton” en el condado de Newaygo, según informaron los servicios de emergencia del condado.

También se realizaron rescates acuáticos cerca de Evart, Michigan, cuando el río creció y comenzó a afectar las viviendas, informó Read more

By Clare Duffy, CNN

New York (CNN) — Mainstream artificial intelligence safety groups moved quickly to distance themselves after a 20-year-old allegedly attacked the home of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman last week in what law enforcement officers said appeared to be part of a plot to harm AI executives. But people in some corners of the internet cheered the attack.

One X user compared the attacker to Luigi Mangione, who is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in a politically motivated attack, in a post calling the two men “heroes.”

Multiple users on X called the attack “justified.”

“If this relentless push for AI and the completely (sic) commoditization of what it means to be human is allowed to continue, this sort of episode will be much more common,” one user posted in an anti-AI Reddit group.

Worries that AI could take human jobs, upend the economy, harm the environment and even pose an existential threat to humanity have grown as the technology advances rapidly. Even tech executives have issued stark warnings.

But recent attacks represent a fringe of the AI opposition movement that’s now moved from anonymous online comments to dangerous, in-person action, prompting debate in Silicon Valley about how to respond.

Three days before the attack on Altman’s home, shots were reportedly fired into the home of Indianapolis councilman Ron Gibson in the middle of the night and a “no data centers” note was left at his door, after a data center was approved in his district.

In recent years, there have also been reports of vandalism and attacks on robotaxis and delivery robots, which some see as harbingers of a high-tech future not everyone asked for.

“(AI) is such a massive, looming issue that people, frankly, don’t understand and are just diffusely afraid of,” said Doug McAdam, a sociology professor at Stanford University who studies political and social movements. He added that it’s “not unusual” for such movements to “produce a radical flank.”

“To ensure society gets AI right, we need to work through the democratic process and a robust debating of ideas is an important part of a healthy democracy,” OpenAI said in a statement following the attack. “However, there is no place in our democracy for violence against anyone, regardless of the AI lab they work at or side of the debate they belong to. We are grateful to law enforcement for their quick response and that no one was hurt.”

‘Luigi-ing tech CEOs’

Daniel Moreno-Gama, who is currently being held without bail, spent time prior to the attack in online spaces dedicated to discussing AI risks.

In an online exchange with the hosts of the AI podcast “The Last Invention,” Moreno-Gama discussed “Luigi-ing tech

By Ellis Kim, CNN

(CNN) — The House agreed early Friday morning on a short-term extension of a critical foreign surveillance program after dealing Republican leadership a pair of embarrassing floor defeats on a longer-term reauthorization.

The measure to reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act through April 30 now goes to the Senate for passage. The program is set to expire in three days.

Republican leaders believed Thursday night that they had struck a deal with conservative holdouts who harbor deep and longstanding concerns that Section 702 infringes on Americans’ privacy rights. The deal would have extended the nation’s spy powers for five years but with some changes to the program.

The House rejected the substance of the deal during an early Friday morning vote – then later blocked a procedural vote to advance an 18-month, clean extension of the program.

The Trump administration had all week thrown its support behind a clean extension, with President Donald Trump repeatedly imploring Republicans on social media this week to back an 18-month reauthorization. GOP leaders and the White House were also engaged in lengthy talks with conservative holdouts.

But those negotiations were not enough to win over some of the GOP’s privacy hawks. The deal leadership negotiated with holdouts failed on the floor, and 20 Republicans later helped block the 18-month clean reauthorization from advancing.

While leaving the House chamber on Friday morning, Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters that the 10-day extension gives lawmakers more time to hammer out their differences.

“We were very close tonight,” Johnson said. “There’s some nuances with language and some questions that need to be answered, and we’ll get it done. The extension allows us the time to do that.”

The speaker called FISA a “critical national security tool” and told reporters, “What we’re trying to do is thread the needle of ensuring that we have this essential tool to keep Americans safe, but also safeguard our constitutional rights and making sure that the abuses of FISA in the past are no longer possible.”

“There are many different opinions on how to do it and it’s very difficult to make it perfect, but we’ll get it done,” Johnson said.

CNN previously reported, citing current and former officials, that with just days to go before the lapse, US national security officials have scrambled to prepare for potential blind spots in intelligence collection amid the US’ delicate ceasefire with Iran.

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By Andy Rose, CNN

(CNN) — In a city that has been targeted for aggressive immigration enforcement, it was a compelling story.

A US citizen of Pakistani descent, Sundas Naqvi, said she was returning to the US from an overseas work trip when she and five coworkers were taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement at Chicago O’Hare International Airport. Her story got the attention of a family friend, Cook County commissioner Kevin Morrison.

“It sounds like they are trying to create a cover-up. They are seeking not to have any accountability whatsoever. And I think this is terrifying and concerning to us all,” Morrison said in a news conference on March 8.

Morrison showed what appeared to be screenshots of time-stamped location maps with Naqvi’s phone showing her at Broadview Detention Center in Chicago and later at the Dodge County detention center in Wisconsin, where Naqvi said she was taken before being tossed out on the street without transportation after a 43-hour ordeal.

The story relayed through Naqvi’s friends and family, alleging more than 150 miles of travel in federal custody, effectively incommunicado, was astonishing enough. But there were many more twists to come over the course of a month of new revelations.

The Department of Homeland Security quickly denied Naqvi was taken into custody at the airport. Dodge County Sheriff Dale Schmidt went further, saying not only part of Naqvi’s story is false, but all of it.

“Sundas Naqvi was not detained by ICE at any time. She was not transported to Broadview detention facility. She was not transported across state lines to Dodge County by law enforcement… She was not in the custody of the Dodge County Sheriff’s Office,” Schmidt said in his own news conference on April 10.

The questions about Naqvi’s story started when her then-boyfriend, suspicious after her claims of ICE detention started going viral, called law enforcement, Schmidt said, resulting in a cascade of private text messages and surveillance videos obtained by his office showing a very different timeline.

Naqvi, who is 28 and also goes by Sunny and Summer, according to public records, is not being charged with any crime, but the sheriff says she defamed him by claiming his office kept her behind bars, and now he’s suing her and the politician who illuminated her story in a million-dollar defamation case.

“This is a serious accusation, and when it is not true, it does real damage,” said Schmidt.

DHS says Naqvi was pulled aside at airport, but briefly

The Department of Homeland Security confirms Naqvi was pulled aside for a secondary screening on March 5 after returning from a trip to Turkey “based on law enforcement checks.” But the story diverges dramatically from Naqvi’s account after that.

“Surveillance footage from O’Hare CLEARLY shows her entering secondary inspection at 10:46 a.m., and leaving secondary to the public area at 11:42 a.m.,” DHS wrote in an X post six days later. “Her claims of spending 43 hours in DHS custody are FALSE.”

Morrison initially accused the DHS of falsifying the post.

“Instead of releasing a clearly doctored photo, I call on DHS to release all of the relevant video at O’Hare Airport at the days and times in question,” Morrison said in a statement to the Chicago Sun-Times.

The commissioner – who was also a candidate for Congress at the time – said he considered the cell phone location maps conclusive.

“I spoke with her around 1:30 on Friday (March 6), and then about

Análisis por David Goldman, CNN

En un acontecimiento sumamente prometedor para la guerra en Medio Oriente y la economía mundial, Irán acordó reabrir el estrecho de Ormuz.

Por ahora, al menos.

Si la guerra realmente está terminando, la pregunta lógica para cualquiera que haya llenado el tanque de gasolina en el último mes es: ¿Cuándo volverán los precios a ser los que eran antes de la guerra?

No en un futuro próximo. Casi con toda seguridad no este año. Quizás nunca.

Antes de lograrlo, tendrían que suceder muchas cosas, y alcanzar una paz duradera con un país al que Estados Unidos e Israel bombardearon durante semanas es solo el comienzo.

“No esperen que los precios vuelvan a ser los de antes de la guerra”, declaró Joe Brusuelas, economista jefe de RSM US, a CNN.

Suponiendo que el estrecho se haya reabierto realmente, está a punto de desatarse una pesadilla logística.

Primer paso: Eliminar los cuellos de botella del estrecho. Eso va a llevar mucho tiempo, ya que los buques cisterna se mueven casi tan rápido como se puede ir en bicicleta.

En primer lugar, los aproximadamente 128 buques cisterna atrapados en el estrecho, que transportan alrededor de 160 millones de barriles de petróleo, según Capital Economics, deben zarpar. Esto permitirá que los buques cisterna vacíos entren al estrecho, carguen y regresen.

Según Victoria Grabenwöger, analista sénior de petróleo de Kpler, la recuperación de la plena capacidad de tránsito de los buques cisterna podría tardar hasta tres meses.

Segundo paso: Reducir las reservas. Los barcos vacíos primero extraerán el petróleo de los almacenes que se han llenado, porque los productores no tenían dónde más guardarlo.

La buena noticia es que las refinerías fueron pragmáticas con sus reservas y nunca las llenaron por completo. Esto debería reducir el tiempo que, de otro modo, se necesitaría para reactivar las bombas. Sin embargo, unos inventarios superiores a lo habitual retrasarán la recuperación de la producción de petróleo a su plena capacidad.

Tercer paso: Reiniciar la producción. Los pozos petrolíferos de Medio Oriente estuvieron prácticamente paralizados durante la guerra. Poner en marcha la producción no es tan sencillo como pulsar un interruptor. Se trata de un complejo desafío de ingeniería que implica principios físicos avanzados y un trabajo que puede durar varias semanas.

Será necesario reiniciar la producción, lentamente, para evitar el colapso de los yacimientos de crudo, lo que requeriría perforaciones adicionales y reparaciones importantes. Es preciso reequilibrar el agua y el gas inyectados en los pozos, lo cual es una tarea compleja.

Debido a que los pozos de la región son grandes y están muy cerca unos de otros, reiniciar la producción requerirá una importante coordinación entre empresas y países para garantizar que la presión del agua y del gas inyectados se mantenga constante en todos los pozos.

Cuarto paso: Realizar reparaciones. Varias refinerías, productores de gas natural y algunos productores de petróleo sufrieron daños durante la guerra. Según las compañías, algunas reparaciones de la infraestructura crítica dañada podrían tardar años en completarse.

Hay mucho procesos que hay que volver a poner en marcha: la producción de crudo, que asciende a 12 millones de barriles diarios, y la de productos petrolíferos refinados, que ascienden a 3 millones de barriles, se han suspendido en todo Medio Oriente, principalmente en Arabia Saudita e Irak, según Kpler. No es tarea fácil.

Todo esto presumiendo que la guerra ha terminado y que no habrá más perturbaciones en el estrecho. Y todos sabemos lo que sucede cuando se da algo por sentado…

En las

By Arit John, CNN

(CNN) — In a midterm election that will likely be decided by how voters feel about the economy, Republicans are grappling with how to discuss the war in Iran and its impact on fuel costs.

Republicans had spent the weeks before the war touting lower prices under President Donald Trump. Now, with the national average for gas rising above $4 a gallon for the first time since 2022 and Trump’s economic approval ratings hitting a record low, Democrats are seeking to tie the war to their broader affordability message, arguing that Republicans are more focused on foreign affairs than reducing costs at home.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, House Democrats’ campaign arm, started running digital ads last month in all of their 44 target districts blaming congressional Republicans for higher gas prices.

Some Democratic candidates like Janelle Stelson, who is seeking a rematch against Rep. Scott Perry, a Pennsylvania Republican, have taken their message directly to the voters at gas stations in the districts they seek to represent.

“We should be spending money at home, not $1 billion a day for a war in Iran,” Stelson told CNN in an interview. “Meantime, you have everybody here in central Pennsylvania saying, ‘Look at me. I need help. I could use a little, teeny piece of that money.’”

(The Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington, DC-based think tank, has estimated the war costs more than $890 million a day.)

Perry’s campaign did not respond to requests from CNN. But the congressman told City & State Pennsylvania that he hoped to see gas prices fall soon.

“Like so many citizens across our region and nation, I want gas prices to come down, and I understand firsthand the strain these high prices put on families,” Perry said in a statement to the outlet. “It’s everyone’s goal that resolution will be brought to the War in Iran soon, so we can be rid of the threat of a nuclear Iran and energy prices can return to pre-war levels.”

Oil prices dropped Friday after Trump and Iran announced the Strait of Hormuz is open to commercial vessels for the remainder of the ceasefire between the two nations.

“I think a lot of Republicans are breathing a sigh of relief that this episode is winding down,” said Alex Conant, a Republican strategist. “Trump was elected to tame inflation and create jobs, and if he can show progress on that before the midterms, Republicans will be in much better shape.”

Republicans have argued that higher gas prices are temporary – even though gas prices tend to shoot up quickly when oil becomes more expensive and take longer to fall when oil prices decline. Analysts say that high gas prices will linger even after the military conflict ends.

The House GOP’s campaign arm also points to policies like tax breaks on tips that it says have boosted incomes.

“After years of Democrats’ reckless policies that drove up costs to record levels, voters see the difference and trust Republicans to keep the economy moving in the right direction,” Mike Marinella, a spokesperson for the National Republican Congr

By Elizabeth Wolfe, Thomas Bordeaux, Allison Gordon, Kyung Lah, CNN

(CNN) — Months after a young girl’s body was found in the trunk of his abandoned car, singer d4vd was arrested not far from the Los Angeles tow yard where her remains were discovered.

Prosecutors say they will now weigh whether to bring criminal charges against the 21-year-old alt-pop artist, who was arrested Thursday on suspicion of killing 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez.

Why it has taken so long for investigators to make an arrest in the case is unclear.

Rivas and d4vd had been linked to each other in several ways before the girl’s family reported her missing in 2024. But authorities had not publicly named d4vd as a suspect until after a squad of local and federal officers battered down the door of a Hollywood Hills home Thursday and took him away.

The singer’s attorneys pointed out an indictment or criminal complaint have yet to be filed.

“Let us be clear — the actual evidence in this case will show that David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez and he was not the cause of her death,” defense attorneys Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski and Regina Peter said in a statement.

Here is a timeline of d4vd’s connection to Rivas, the circumstances surrounding her disappearance and death, and what we know about the investigation so far.

Early 2024: Rivas’ links to d4vd

Signs of Rivas’ connection to d4vd began to surface before she was reported missing.

In January 2024, Rivas appears side by side with the singer in a livestream video on the social media platform Twitch. In it, the pair joke and banter until about 3 a.m. before d4vd laughingly proclaims, “Delete everything.”

Sometime between January and March 2024, d4vd is photographed getting out of a black Tesla a few blocks from Rivas’ home. A local teen in Lake Elsinore later posts the photos on TikTok. CNN geolocated and chronolocated the photos to verify when and where they were taken.

Early 2024: Rivas reported missing

Rivas is reported missing three times in early 2024 as loved ones and friends worry over the seventh grader’s well-being and whereabouts.

Rivas is 13 years old when she is first reported missing in mid-February 2024, according to 911 call logs and missing posters. A poster from this time says she was last seen around February 14.

Around this time, a person concerned about her well-being sends an email to an address bearing d4vd’s name on his record company’s domain.

The writer references Rivas’ disappearance and says, “There’s been talk” that d4vd possibly had something to do with it. If there was any truth to that, the person writes, “please do the right thing and take her home. Her parents are very worried.”

CNN confirmed the authenticity of the email with the person who sent it. But that person asked not to be identified due to safety concerns.

Rivas returns home within days of that email being sent, an acquaintance of the family confirmed to CNN.

Rivas is reported missing a second time around March 19, according to 911 logs and missing posters.

For a third and final time, she is reported missing on April 5, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office.

Mid 2024 – early 2025: Photos capture Rivas alive

It is unclear when Rivas is killed, but photos indicate she is still alive almost a year after she was first reported missing. Authorities said in court documents she was 14 when she died, according to The Associated Press.

In June 2024, Rivas is photographed backstage during a sold-out show d4vd performed at The Fonda Theatre in Los Angeles.

Another hint l

By Clare Duffy, CNN

New York (CNN) — FanDuel has built a large and growing business with its sports betting app, becoming the largest online sportsbook in the United States. But online sports gambling remains illegal in many states, which is why it’s getting into the booming — and controversial — prediction market business.

Billions of dollars are exchanged weekly on prediction market platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket. Bets range from which team will win the World Cup and which candidate will be the 2028 Democratic presidential nominee to the temperature in New York tomorrow or how many times Elon Musk will post on X this month. Huge amounts of money being wagered on those sites threatened to take business from online sportsbooks like FanDuel and DraftKings.

Prediction markets are also more widely available than online betting apps, because they’re regulated differently. Prediction markets — where the odds are set not by a company but depend on how many people bet on each outcome — are legally considered trading products, not gambling, and are overseen federally by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Meanwhile, sports betting apps are regulated on the state level.

Last January, Kalshi made a splashy announcement that it would enable trading on sports in all 50 US states — even those that outlaw traditional sportsbooks.

Now, the sports betting companies are jumping into the prediction space, allowing a “reasonable facsimile” of a more conventional sportsbook, FanDuel President Christian Genetski told CNN’s “Terms of Service” podcast.

FanDuel launched its prediction market app, FanDuel Predicts, last year with derivatives marketplace CME Group. It’s now available in 16 states. (FanDuel competitor DraftKings also announced its own prediction market last year.)

“It’s not the full panoply of everything you can do on the FanDuel sportsbook,” Genetski said. “But it provides you a way to experience a FanDuel-type sports experience.”

FanDuel says it won’t allow FanDuel Predicts users to bet on sports in states where its core sportsbook app, which Genetski called the company’s “most important business,” is available.

FanDuel Predicts “enables us to harness a significant and incremental expansion of the US addressable market ahead of further state regulation — a space where our scale and experience give us a natural advantage,” Peter Jackson, CEO of FanDuel parent company Flutter, said in the company’s year-end financial report for 2025. FanDuel’s core sportsbook app averages 4 million monthly users across 25 states where sports betting has been legalized, according to Genetski.

FanDuel is entering the space in a moment when prediction markets face intense scrutiny over the risk of insider trading, along with larger ethical questions about the societal impact of letting people bet on elections or geopolitical conflicts. The White House last week warned staff not to engage in insider trading on prediction markets platforms following controversial trades related to the Iran war.

Por Christian Edwards, CNN

Mientras miles de personas abarrotaban las calles de Budapest el fin de semana pasado para celebrar la derrota de Viktor Orbán, Balasz dijo que no podía evitar pensar en su bisabuela, de 80 años, viviendo en un pueblo rural del empobrecido este de Hungría. Para ella, tras haber consumido poco más que medios estatales durante la última década, la victoria de Péter Magyar no fue motivo de alegría, sino de un miedo paralizante.

Durante la campaña de reelección de Orbán, los medios controlados por su partido gobernante, Fidesz, retrataron a Magyar como un enemigo temerario de la paz, decidido a arrastrar a Hungría a la guerra en la vecina Ucrania. Balasz, un analista financiero de 42 años que solo dio su nombre de pila, dijo que le impactó la extremidad de las “mentiras” que su bisabuela escuchaba cada día: que, si Magyar ganaba, los hombres húngaros serían reclutados, la economía colapsaría y sin duda seguiría una tercera guerra mundial.

“Es como: eres mayor, estás en el campo, eres pobre, tienes, como, dos canales de televisión, escuchas la radio estatal”; y como resultado, vives en una “realidad alternativa”, dijo Balasz a CNN. La propaganda orbanista, añadió, le recordaba a la que difundían las autoridades comunistas durante su juventud en la Unión Soviética.

En sus primeros días como primer ministro electo de Hungría, Magyar ha empezado a desmantelar la “máquina de propaganda” que Orbán construyó durante sus 16 años en el poder, y que le ayudó a aplastar a sus rivales y ganar cuatro elecciones consecutivas. Fue esa máquina la que, en la práctica, impidió que Magyar apareciera en los medios estatales durante los últimos 18 meses, mientras su partido opositor Tisza construía una ventaja contundente sobre Fidesz en las encuestas.

Solo después de la rotunda victoria de Tisza fue invitado a una entrevista. En una aparición combativa en la cadena estatal controlada M1 el miércoles, Magyar reprendió a sus presentadores por difundir “mentiras” sobre su familia y comparó la cobertura del canal con la propaganda de Corea del Norte y de la Alemania de la era nazi.

“No tenemos resentimiento personal, pero uno de los elementos de nuestro programa es que esta fábrica de mentiras llegará a su fin tras la formación del Gobierno de Tisza”, le dijo Magyar a su entrevistador. “Esto no se trata de mí, sino de que todos merecen unos medios públicos que informen con veracidad”.

Antes de las elecciones, Magyar dijo que su victoria se sentiría para muchos húngaros como el final contundente y desorientador de “The Truman Show”, la película de 1998 protagonizada por Jim Carrey sobre un hombre que no sabe que es el personaje principal de un reality show. Dijo que los votantes podrían sentir “disonancia cognitiva” a medida que su visión del mundo se desmorona, y advirtió de que muchos “no cambiarán de opinión de la noche a la mañana”.

Gábor Polyák, profesor de derecho de los medios en la Universidad Eötvös Loránd de Budapest, dijo que muchos en la capital estaban escuchando historias de personas mayores en pequeños pueblos que, desde la victoria de Magyar, vivían con miedo. “He oído historias de personas deprimidas que no pueden salir de debajo de la cama”, dijo Polyák a CNN.

Esa victoria, sin embargo, mostró que la mayoría de los húngaros —hartos de una economía estancada y de una corrupción rampante— ya no creían lo q

By Chris Lau and Beijing Bureau, CNN

Beijing (CNN) — They were trailing behind their human rivals a year ago. But on Sunday, an android outpaced the entire field to run a half-marathon faster than even the quickest human.

Lightning, a running robot developed by Chinese smartphone maker Honor, finished the 21-kilometer run in Beijing in a stunning 50 minutes and 26 seconds, beating the human world record by more than six minutes.

The human record – of 57 minutes and 20 seconds – is held by Ugandan runner Jacob Kiplimo, according to World Athletics.

Swinging its short forearms for balance, the bright-red humanoid, standing 169cm tall, showed no sign of having to slow down as it dashed past the finish line.

The remarkable feat represents a big stride for China in its technological rivalry with the US, which has thus far boasted more sophisticated humanoid models.

China’s robot industry has accelerated since 2015, when the government listed robotics as one of 10 key sectors in a blueprint for upgrading Chinese industries and shedding its reputation as the world’s cheap-labor factory.

In a 2023 policy document, officials identified humanoid robotics as a “new frontier in technological competition,” setting a 2025 target for mass production and secure supply chains for core components. That focus was carried over into China’s economic plan for the next five years.

Such ambitions have led to a boom in robot sporting events across China over the past year.

Last year, Beijing hosted the world’s first Humanoid Robot Games, which put machines through their paces in soccer, boxing, martial arts and other sports.

And at China’s annual televised new-year extravaganza a few months ago, robots donning kung-fu outfits delighted and amazed viewers with their martial arts choreography.

More than 100 teams took part this year’s humanoid half-marathon – nearly five times as many as last year, when the contest debuted, but delivered mainly disappointing performances.

Zhao Haijie and Wang Qiaoxia won the men’s and women’s race in the human category on Sunday, respectively, both requiring more than an hour.

Lightning also outran the previous champion robot, by almost two hours.

Its autonomous navigation and burst power “proved key to winning the race,” the half-marathon organizer wrote on social media.

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By Sunlen Serfaty, CNN

(CNN) — It was envisioned as an expansive sculpture garden to honor America’s 250th birthday, with 250 statues of figures like Kobe Bryant, Elvis Pressley and Rosa Parks.

But with July 4th rapidly approaching, it’s unlikely that even one statue for President Donald Trump’s National Garden of American Heroes will be erected in time, sources familiar with the planning tell CNN.

Foundries and artists from across the country who applied to work on the massive, classical-style, sculptures – which would take months to build – haven’t heard from the Trump administration.

And plans for the garden haven’t been submitted to the Commission of Fine Arts or the National Capital Planning Commission — two government agencies whose approval is needed before it can be built.

“It has not been formally reviewed,” a person familiar with planning efforts said. “Based on my experience in prior approvals in the District, I don’t see how this could be in place in time by July.”

There has been some progress. The White House has zeroed in on West Potomac Park – a picturesque plot of land along the Potomac River popular for viewing Washington’s cherry blossoms – as the site for the garden, people familiar with the plans told CNN. And the administration has hired Michael Franck, a Washington, DC-based architect, to advise the project.

But the White House hasn’t formally announced the location, and sources say even that could change.

The project’s delays and twists are emblematic of Trump’s broader efforts to reshape the architecture and culture of the nation’s capital — including plans for an enormous White House ballroom that would replace the East Wing and a gold-accented triumphal arch near Arlington National Cemetery that some veterans groups oppose.

Some critics worry the sculpture garden will also be given a rubber stamp by the CFA or the NCPC, which have been stacked by Trump appointees.

One source familiar with construction approvals said they feared the sculpture garden “will be rammed through without approval” by Congress or the commissions, “as in the case of the White House ballroom.”

The garden was not discussed at Thursday’s CFA meeting, and sources on the NCPC say they were not aware of any plans on the schedule in upcoming monthly meeting to review the project.

The White House declined to comment.

Missed deadlines, and many fits and starts

The project is a personal endeavor for Trump that’s years in the making. It’s an idea first presented during a political speech the then-45th president made at the base of Mount Rushmore six years ago.

Trump announced that he decided to commission a monument “to the giants of our past” that would be a “vast outdoor park that will feature the statues of the greatest Americans to ever live.”

Shortly after, the White House released an executive order calling for the creation of the National Garden of American Heroes to open before July 4, 2026.

But the project has gone through many fits and starts.

A 2020 executive order was revoked by President Joe Biden in 2021, and then reissued days after Trump retook office.

In his second term, Trump has pulled money from the National Endowment for Humanities (NEH), National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the Institute of Museum and Library Services to fund cultural initiatives he backs, including the National Garden of Heroes.

The NEH and NEA have jointly set aside $34 million for the garden, with the NEA planning to contribute $17 million for the project,

By Alaa Elassar, CNN

(CNN) — The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office is expected to announce Monday whether it will file criminal charges against alt-pop artist d4vd in connection with the killing of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez.

The 21-year-old singer, whose legal name is David Anthony Burke, was arrested Thursday, seven months after the young girl’s decomposed body was discovered in his apparently abandoned Tesla. Her body was found more than a year after she was reported missing in Southern California.

Prosecutors said the case is being reviewed by the office’s Major Crimes Division, which is tasked with determining whether the known facts and available evidence meet the threshold for criminal charges.

“At this time, additional information is not available,” the district attorney’s office told CNN in a statement Friday. “We will share an update on Monday once a filing decision has been made.”

Rivas’ family, who have largely stayed out of public view since her body was discovered, plan to attend Monday’s news conference, according to their attorney.

“The Rivas Hernandez family is committed to ensuring that Celeste’s voice is heard and her memory is honored throughout this process,” Patrick Steinfeld, the attorney for the family, said.

Meanwhile, d4vd’s attorneys said they intend to “vigorously defend David’s innocence,” adding that the singer “has only been detained under suspicion.”

“Let us be clear – the actual evidence in this case will show that David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez and he was not the cause of her death,” attorneys Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski and Regina Peter said in a statement.

“There has been no indictment returned by any grand jury in this case and no criminal complaint filed,” the statement said.

Court documents released in February indicate a grand jury has been investigating the singer in connection with Rivas’ death. The filings do not detail what role authorities suspect he may have played in her death, but identify him as a “target” of the probe who may have been “involved.”

Victim was reported missing three times

Monday comes nearly two years after the third – and final – time Rivas was reported missing by her family, capping a series of urgent pleas in early 2024 as loved ones and friends grew increasingly alarmed about the seventh grader’s safety and whereabouts.

She was only 13 years old at the time – a teenager remembered in photos for her soft smile and thick, curly hair.

In September 2025, a day after what would have been her 15th birthday, her dismembered and decomposed body was discovered in the trunk of a Tesla registered to d4vd while he was in Minneapolis on a world tour promoting his debut album, “Withered.”

Authorities have not established a clear timeline for when Rivas was killed, though court records indicate she was 14 at the time of her death. Photographs obtained by CNN suggest she was alive almost a year after she was first reported missing.

Neighbors say the car appeared abandoned, parked on a street not far from the Hollywood Hills home where d4vd had been living. It was later towed, and an employee at the yard alerted police after noticing a strong, foul odor coming from the vehicle.

Authorities arrested the singer on April 16 on suspicion of killing Rivas, taking him into custody at a residence in the Hollywood Hills just over a mile from the tow yard where the young girl’s body was found inside his car.

He is being held in jail without bail.

Clues point to connection between Rivas and d4vd

Read more

By Zoe Sottile, CNN

(CNN) — Eight children, ranging in age from just 3 to 11 years old, were killed early Sunday morning in Shreveport, Louisiana, in a shocking act of violence that marks the nation’s deadliest mass shooting in more than two years.

A father, identified as 31-year-old Shamar Elkins, fatally shot his seven children and a cousin, and critically wounded two women, including his wife, in a rampage across at least two locations before sunrise.

After the shooting, which authorities described as “domestic in nature,” the gunman fled the area in a carjacked vehicle and was pursued by police, later being shot and killed by officers.

The Caddo Parish Coroner’s office identified the victims as Jayla Elkins, 3; Shayla Elkins, 5; Kayla Pugh, 6; Layla Pugh, 7; Markaydon Pugh, 10; Sariahh Snow, 11; Khedarrion Snow, 6; and Braylon Snow, 5.

As the shooting unfolded, some children tried to escape out the back door, said state Rep. Tammy Phelps during a news conference with other city officials. A 13-year-old boy escaped from the roof and was injured, police said.

Much about the circumstances and the motive of the shooting remains unclear.

“This is a tragic situation, maybe the worst tragic situation we’ve ever had in Shreveport,” Mayor Tom Arceneaux said in a news conference.

As police continue to piece together what led to the massacre, here’s what we know so far.

How the shooting unfolded

Police first responded to reports of shots fired in the Cedar Grove community of Shreveport, a northwestern Louisiana city with about 180,000 residents, just after 6 a.m. local time Sunday morning, according to Shreveport Police Cpl. Chris Bordelon.

Police believe Elkins first shot his wife at a residence on Harrison Street. Then he went to another home on West 79th St., where he shot the eight children and the other woman, the mother of the eighth child killed.

Elkins’ wife sustained “very serious injuries,” Bordelon told CNN affiliate KSLA. The other woman has “life threatening injuries,” he added.

Arceneaux told CNN the gunman is believed to have had a relationship with the two women.

The 13-year-old boy who jumped off the building’s roof and was injured has “some broken bones,” but is expected to recover, according to Bordelon.

“We’re just very thankful he was able to get away,” Bordelon said.

A neighbor, who asked not to be identified, said her security camera captured video of what appears to be the gunman fleeing and running towards a tire shop.

Armed with a rifle, Elkins carjacked a vehicle and led police on a chase into the next parish, Bordelon said. Police shot and killed the gunman in Bossier Parish, the department said on Facebook.

“Officers located the stolen vehicle and initiated a pursuit. The pursuit continued into Bossier Parish, where officers ultimately engaged the suspect. Officers were forced to discharge their department-issued firearms, neutralizing the suspect, who was pronounced deceased at the scene,” Shreveport police said.

The shooting is the deadliest in the US since January 2024, when a 23-year-old man shot eight people, most of them his relatives, in a Chicago suburb.

There have been at least 114 mass shootings in the US so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which like CNN defines a mass shooting as one in which four or more people are shot,

Por Ivana Kottasová, Daria Tarasova-Markina y Victoria Butenko, CNN

La escena es tan antigua como la propia guerra. Dos soldados, con las manos en alto, rindiéndose y siguiendo cuidadosamente las órdenes que les grita la otra parte.

Solo que en este caso no había captores humanos a la vista. En su lugar, los dos rusos se estaban entregando a robots terrestres y drones ucranianos controlados por un operador desde la seguridad de una posición a kilómetros de la línea del frente.

Este es el futuro de la guerra… y está ocurriendo ahora.

“La posición fue tomada sin que se disparara un solo tiro”, dijo a CNN Mykola “Makar” Zinkevych, comandante de la unidad ucraniana que llevó a cabo la misión.

Zinkevych, que sirve en la unidad “NC13” de la Tercera Brigada de Asalto Separada de Ucrania, encargada de sistemas robóticos de ataque basados en tierra, dijo que la operación del verano pasado fue la primera vez en la historia en que una posición enemiga fue asaltada y se tomaron prisioneros mediante robots terrestres y drones sin la participación de infantería. Es una afirmación difícil de corroborar, pero subraya el orgullo de Kyiv por su tecnología.

Desde entonces, las misiones en las que los robots sustituyen a los soldados humanos se han convertido en el pan de cada día de la unidad.

Los cielos sobre las líneas del frente en Ucrania llevan años repletos de drones, lo que supone una grave amenaza para la infantería. Como resultado, los ucranianos comenzaron a experimentar con drones terrestres —vehículos controlados a distancia que se desplazan sobre ruedas o orugas— y con sistemas robóticos de tierra. Al principio se usaban sobre todo para evacuar heridos y reabastecer a las tropas, pero cada vez más también para llevar a cabo misiones de asalto en combate.

Los drones terrestres son mucho más difíciles de detectar e interceptar que los vehículos militares más grandes. En comparación con sus homólogos aéreos, pueden operar en cualquier condición meteorológica y transportar cargas útiles mucho mayores.

También son más resistentes y tienen una vida útil de batería mucho más larga. A finales del año pasado, el Tercer Cuerpo de Ejército —del que forma parte la Tercera Brigada de Asalto Separada— dijo que un solo robot terrestre equipado con una ametralladora había logrado frenar un avance ruso durante 45 días, necesitando solo mantenimiento ligero y una recarga de batería cada dos días.

“Debemos entender que nunca tendremos más personal, y nunca tendremos una ventaja numérica sobre el enemigo”, dijo Zinkevych, subrayando que Rusia cuenta con una fuerza militar mucho mayor. “Así que necesitamos lograr esa ventaja mediante la tecnología”.

El objetivo actual, dijo, era reemplazar este año a un tercio de la infantería con drones y robots.

El presidente de Ucrania, Volodymyr Zelensky, dijo el martes que drones y robots habían realizado más de 22.000 misiones solo en los últimos tres meses. “Se salvaron vidas más de 22.000 veces cuando un robot entró en las zonas más peligrosas en lugar de un guerrero”, dijo Zelensky en un discurso en el que destacó los éxitos de la industria ucraniana de tecnología militar.

Robert Tollast, experto en guerra terrestre del Royal United Services Institute, un centro británico de estudios sobre defensa y seguridad, dijo que los nuevos avances en Ucrania “alimentarán un intenso debate sobre si estos robots son o no el futuro de la guerra”.

Señaló que es probable que los drones terrestres tengan dificultades para mantener territorio, comparándolo con usar tanques sin apoyo de infantería. Pero ahora “están salvando regularmente la vida de soldados en evacuaciones de heridos, misiones peligrosas de reabastecimiento, desminado y, cada vez más, en combate”, dijo.

“Esto es crucial en una guerra e

By Renée Rigdon, Ethan Cohen, CNN

(CNN) — Virginia Democrats hope the new congressional map they’re asking voters to approve Tuesday will flip four Republican House districts, delivering 10 of 11 seats in a state former Vice President Kamala Harris won with just 52% of the vote in 2024.

Here’s how they drew it up.

The plan dramatically reworks entire sections of the state, slicing up deep blue districts in the Washington, DC, suburbs and around Richmond, and creates a new district running along the Blue Ridge Mountains that connects liberal cities.

Virginia’s current map, which was drawn by a pair of court-appointed redistricting experts in 2021, is compact and produced six districts that lean towards Democrats, four that lean towards Republicans, and one which is highly competitive. Opponents of Tuesday’s referendum have run ads noting that Gov. Abigail Spanberger and former President Barack Obama backed nonpartisan redistricting then.

The proposed map is a jagged puzzle specifically drawn to help Democrats win as many seats as possible.

The vote is just the latest volley in a redistricting battle that kicked off last year, when Republicans redrew Texas’ map with the goal of flipping five Democratic seats. Spanberger and Obama now argue the new map is necessary to counter President Donald Trump’s push for new Republican seats.

After some internal disagreement over how aggressively to draw their new map, Democratic leaders in Virginia took a maximalist approach. The resulting map creates several seats that appear more competitive than the new Republican-leaning districts drawn in Texas.

While Texas Republicans drew a map where none of their targeted seats voted for Trump by less than 10 percentage points in 2024, five of the districts on the proposed Virginia map supported Harris by single digits.

Northern Virginia and the ‘lobster’

Heavily Democratic northern Virginia would be carved into five separate districts, with districts that pinwheel from outside Washington to hoover up conservative rural areas of the state. The new 7th starts in northern Virginia and stretches so far that it splits in half to avoid picking up more Democratic turf around Charlottesville that can go into a different district. The result resembles a lobster with a long skinny tail and two wide claws.

College towns

The proposed 6th District runs alongside the Blue Ridge Parkway through central Virginia, connecting Democratic towns from James Madison University in Harrisonburg to Charlottesville, home of the University of Virginia, to Lynchburg (including the very not-Democratic Liberty University) through Roanoke to Blacksburg, home of Virginia Tech.

Harris won this prospective district by just 3 points, a far more competitive district than any of the ones Texas Republicans designed to flip their way.

Richmond area

Under Virginia’s current map, the Richmond area is largely contained in the 4th District, which reaches down from the capital to the North Carolina border and voted for Harris by 32 points.

The proposed map splits part of the Richmond area into the 5th District, resulting in one district that voted for Harris by 16 points and one that supported her by nine.

Norfolk

The subtlest change is in the Norfolk region, around the highly competitive 2nd District. The proposed map shifts the district from one which was a virtual tie at the presidential level in 2024 into a dist

Por Alayna Treene y Kevin Liptak, CNN

A medida que se acercaba el fin de semana, Estados Unidos e Irán parecían estar cerca de alcanzar un acuerdo para poner fin a la guerra de siete semanas.

Entonces, el presidente Donald Trump hizo exactamente lo que sus colaboradores habían dicho repetidamente que no harían: pareció intentar negociar a través de la prensa, publicando información sobre las conversaciones en curso en las redes sociales y hablando con varios periodistas por teléfono el viernes por la mañana, mientras los intermediarios paquistaníes le informaban sobre las conversaciones en curso con funcionarios iraníes en Teherán.

Afirmó que Irán había aceptado una serie de condiciones que, según fuentes cercanas a las negociaciones, aún no se han concretado.

Asimismo, aseguró que Teherán había accedido a muchas de las demandas más polémicas de Estados Unidos —incluida la entrega del uranio enriquecido— y declaró el fin inminente de la guerra.

Los funcionarios iraníes rechazaron públicamente muchas de esas afirmaciones y negaron estar preparándose para otra ronda de conversaciones, lo que frenó rápidamente el creciente optimismo por un acuerdo.

Ahora, no está claro qué rumbo tomarán las conversaciones de paz.

Algunos funcionarios de la administración Trump reconocieron en privado a CNN que los comentarios públicos del presidente han perjudicado las negociaciones, dada la delicadeza del asunto y la profunda desconfianza de los iraníes hacia Estados Unidos.

Para complicar aún más la situación, funcionarios estadounidenses sospechan que existe una división entre el equipo negociador iraní, liderado por el presidente del Parlamento, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, y el ministro de Asuntos Exteriores, Abbas Araghchi, y la Guardia Revolucionaria Islámica de Irán, lo que plantea dudas sobre quién tiene la potestad de aprobar finalmente un acuerdo.

“A los iraníes no les gustó que el presidente de Estados Unidos negociara a través de las redes sociales y diera la impresión de que habían aprobado cuestiones que aún no habían acordado, y que no son populares entre su pueblo”, declaró a CNN una persona familiarizada con las conversaciones, añadiendo que a los iraníes les preocupa especialmente parecer débiles.

Entre las afirmaciones del presidente, Trump declaró a Bloomberg que Irán había accedido a una suspensión “ilimitada” de su programa nuclear.

A CBS News le dijo que Teherán “aceptó todo” y que colaboraría con Estados Unidos para eliminar su uranio enriquecido.

Además, le comentó a Axios que probablemente se celebraría una reunión durante el fin de semana, y añadió: “Creo que llegaremos a un acuerdo en los próximos días”.

El frágil alto el fuego entre Washington y Teherán se puso a prueba una vez más el domingo, cuando un destructor de misiles guiados estadounidense abrió fuego contra un buque de carga iraní y lo capturó después de que intentara sortear el bloqueo naval estadounidense en el golfo de Omán, lo que enfureció aún más a los iraníes.

Ahora, a

By Betsy Klein, CNN

(CNN) — One day after he posted — then deleted — an image comparing himself to Jesus Christ, President Donald Trump sat at his desk in the Oval Office and read from the Bible directly to a camera.

Trump is one of nearly 500 people reading scripture this week as part of “America Reads the Bible,” a weeklong event offering what its organizers describe as a “spiritual celebration” of the country’s 250th anniversary. The effort is led by a Christian nonprofit aimed at engaging the country and its leaders on the need for the Bible’s teachings.

Participants, which include Trump, his chief of staff Susie Wiles, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, among others, are reading from the Book of Genesis through the Book of Revelation. Some are doing so via in-person appearances at the Museum of the Bible and others, like Trump, are doing virtual readings.

The president recorded his two-and-a-half-minute passage, 2 Chronicles 7:11-22, last week, and it will be played at the museum and online via the faith-based Pure Flix streaming service Tuesday evening.

The passage Trump is reading is a significant one — and has marked a rallying cry for the Christian right in the US and across the globe for decades.

It reads in part, “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”

Bunni Pounds, a former political consultant who is now organizing this week’s reading as founder and president of Christians Engaged, and her team had saved this passage for an elected official. She said she prayed that Trump would be willing to read it.

“I’ve just been praying with a small group of people, asking the Lord to move to allow our president to pray this prayer, the words of God that he would hear,” Pounds said in an interview with CNN.

But the reading comes at a complicated moment for the president’s relationship with American Christians. Trump’s recent AI-generated social media post, which depicted him as Jesus healing a sick person, spurred rare pushback from key allies in the Christian right. The president eventually backed down, deleting the post and suggesting he thought “it was me as a doctor and had to do with Red Cross.” At the same time, he’s ratcheted up tensions with Pope Leo XIV, lobbing criticism at the first American pontiff for days on social media and stating emphatically that he has no plans to apologize as the two publicly disagree over the Iran war.

That extraordinary rift has underscored a shift among some American fundamentalists and evangelicals toward embracing a “MAGA Jesus,” a movement invoked by some of his followers in recent years that offers Trump as its “chosen one.”

The president, an irregular church-goer who lashed out at his political enemies during this year’s National Prayer Breakfast and was once criticized for bringing a Bible to a photo-op, has spent much of his second term chipping away at the wall between church and state, championing faith initiatives that have led to a systematic religious revival within the government’s operations, culture and policy.

For Pou

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - It's the 154th year for the Santa Barbara Yacht Club and the season kicked off with a full house of members and guests Saturday morning.

The event started with a flag raising ceremony and a welcoming speeches from Commodore Matt Wilson along with many other ceremonial activities.

There were also canon blasts over the waterfront including after the Pledge of Allegiance and Star Spangled Banner.

The Santa Barbara Youth Sailors Foundation was also featured on stage and had an open house at their site in the harbor.

The names of those members who passed away in the last year were read and a bell rang in their honor.

Santa Barbara Mayor Randy Rowse who is also a member, gave the club a special proclamation.

There was also a blessing of the club and its boats and activities throughout the day at the club and in the water in front of the landmark building.

Special guests included members of the USS Santa Barbara based in San DIego.

Throughout the season there will be events including the weekly wet Wednesday and special regattas including the Santa Barbara to King Harbor-Redondo Beach in July.

The Santa Barbara Yacht Club opened in 1872 and is the second oldest Yacht Club in North America.

The post Yacht Club Opens New Season in Santa Barbara appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

By Jeff Zeleny, CNN

(CNN) — Virginia is the latest front in an unprecedented coast-to-coast redistricting war, with voters on Tuesday set to determine whether to accept or reject a Democratic plan to dramatically redraw the state’s congressional maps and help shape the midterm elections.

Nearly 1.4 million Virginians have already cast early ballots, a sign of remarkable interest for an April special election. The final day of voting is Tuesday, with polls open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET, on a plan that could help Democrats win 10 of the state’s 11 congressional districts – a major shift from the current balance of six seats held by Democrats and five by Republicans.

“We didn’t start this fight, but I’m saying to Virginia, we need to finish it,” Delores McQuinn, a Democratic member of the House of Delegates, told CNN at a rally in the final days of the redistricting campaign. “We can help level the playing field.”

Virginia is one of the final chapters in a redistricting arms race that President Donald Trump started last year in Texas when he said Republicans were “entitled to five more seats.” California Democrats responded, along with a handful of other states, in a tit-for-tat that has ultimately yielded nine more Republican-friendly seats and six that favor Democrats.

“What’s happening now is the most blatant power grab that has ever been demonstrated,” said Glenn Youngkin, a former Virginia governor and a leading Republican voice against the measure, who avoided mention of how Texas kicked off the rare mid-decade redistricting fight.

Democrats have raised more than twice as much money than Republicans in the closely watched contest that could help determine which party controls Congress after the fall elections. On advertising alone, Democrats have spent $55 million, according to AdImpact, compared to $23 million for Republicans.

Despite the wide disparity, Democrats acknowledge that victory is far from certain, saying turnout on Election Day will be critical. Republicans share that sentiment and believe creating a 10-1 advantage for Democrats is at odds with the electorate in a state former Vice President Kamala Harris won with nearly 52% of the vote in 2024.

Here are a few dynamics at play – for Virginia and the nation.

High stakes for Democrats

For Democrats, the stakes in Virginia are remarkably high. So, too, are the rewards.

If the referendum succeeds Tuesday night, the party suddenly has more breathing room in its quest to win control of the US House in the midterm elections. The national political winds already favor Democrats this year, but a Virginia victory would super-charge their prospects.

“They thought that Democrats were going to step back,” House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries told supporters during a rally in the final days of the campaign. “Well, we’re making clear we’re not here to step back. We’re here to fight back.”

On the eve of the election, Jeffries told reporters: “It’s gonna be close because Virginia is a purple state.”

Jeffries has been at the center of the Democratic strategy in Virginia, a plan that has long worried some state party leaders as a potential overreach. His comments Monday underscore how cautiously Democrats are eyeing — and lowering expectations for — the special election, which comes five months after the party swept the Virginia governor’

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) -

CIF-SS High School Girls Beach Volleyball First Round Playoffs:

Division 3: Dos Pueblos 4, Downing 1: Chargers are at Camarillo on Thursday in second round.

Division 4: Bishop Diego 4, Costa Mesa 1: Cardinals play at Pacifica Christian on Thursday in second round

High School Baseball:

Rio Mesa 2, Dos Pueblos 0

Oxnard 5, Ventura 4

High School Softball:

San Marcos 8, Pacifica 1

High School Boys Lacrosse:

Santa Barbara 20, San Marcos 2: Dons share Channel League title with Dos Pueblos

High School Girls Lacrosse:

San Marcos 15, Santa Barbara 2: 30 straight league victories for Royals

High School Boys Golf:

San Marcos 339, Ventura 368

Santa Barbara 403, Pacifica 459

Bishop Diego 205, Grace 218: Cardinals repeat as Tri-Valley League champions

The post Prep scores for beach volleyball, baseball, softball, lacrosse, and golf appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) -

CIF-SS High School Girls Beach Volleyball First Round Playoffs:

Division 3: Dos Pueblos 4, Downing 1: Chargers are at Camarillo on Thursday in second round.

Division 4: Bishop Diego 4, Costa Mesa 1: Cardinals play at Pacifica Christian on Thursday in second round

High School Baseball:

Rio Mesa 2, Dos Pueblos 0

Oxnard 5, Ventura 4

High School Softball:

San Marcos 8, Pacifica 1

High School Boys Lacrosse:

Santa Barbara 20, San Marcos 2: Dons share Channel League title with Dos Pueblos

High School Girls Lacrosse:

San Marcos 15, Santa Barbara 2: 30 straight league victories for Royals

High School Boys Golf:

San Marcos 339, Ventura 368

Santa Barbara 403, Pacifica 459

Bishop Diego 205, Grace 218: Cardinals repeat as Tri-Valley League champions

The post Prep scores for beach volleyball, baseball, softball, lacrosse, and golf appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

By Adam Pourahmadi, CNN

(CNN) — Salimeh stands in her yard, a rug suspended behind her, still heavy from washing. Her clothes, patterned in vivid reds, pinks and oranges, echo the mineral-rich sands of Iran’s Qeshm and Hormuz islands, where the earth itself seems to glow. The wind lifts her veil, just enough to show its gentle presence, and it billows out across her body. She’s caught, mid-motion, in the exact moment of its arrival.

Photographer Hoda Afshar recalls the image as something almost accidental. Working with a medium-format analog camera, she had been adjusting, focusing, waiting. Salimeh stood patiently. Then the wind came and she pressed the shutter.

Afshar has been returning to Iran’s southern islands of Hormuz and Qeshm since 2015, photographing the land, its residents and the invisible, esoteric forces that shape life there — the winds, which locals believe to be powerful entities.

Their belief runs through the islands like an undercurrent. Some winds are considered benign; others harmful. One type of wind known as zār, can, they say, enter the body and cause distress or illness.

In Afshar’s portrait, Salimeh’s mask, painted with thick eyebrows and a mustache, is part of that belief. It is meant to deceive the spirits, to make her appear male. Women, it is believed, are more vulnerable to the zār.

The photo featured in Afshar’s 2021 book, “Speak the Wind” – one of dozens of images shaped by the tension between the visible and the invisible, landscape and memory, and the body and the forces said to move through it.

Some five years later, amid a war between the US, Israel, and Iran, these islands dotted across the Strait of Hormuz are caught in a different kind of bluster. Warships, an ongoing US blockade, and Iranian mines scattered in the sea now threaten the waters around the islands of Hormuz and Qeshm, placing communities long shaped by trade and migration at the center of a global crisis.

In a video call from Berlin, where she is currently on an artist residency, Afshar describes the islanders off the coast of Iran as “some of the most hospitable and cheerful people I know,” so deeply tied to the land that even a day away leaves them “restless and ill.”

Afshar’s family still lives on Qeshm. In the first week of the war, Iran said a US-Israeli strike hit a desalination plant on the island – a vital lifeline in an already water-scarce region. From afar, she hears fragments of what daily life has become: the heavy military presence, the bombings that, as she said one relative put it, “cut through your body like an earthquake.”

Her images feel newly charged in this context, poetic portraits unfolding in a landscape now threatened by war.

The region’s beliefs around the winds have long historical roots, she explained.

For centuries, these islands have been at the crossroads of empires, trade routes and cultures. Iranian, Arab and European powers have all laid claim to them. Their shores have received merchants, soldiers and migrants moving between East Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and the Indian subcontinent.

With them came languages, customs, and beliefs.

That history, passed through oral memory, remains embedded in the cultural fabric of the islands, she said. She explained that many residents are of African descent, though that identity is frequently obscured or denied, shaped by longstanding social hierarchies.

Within the zār belief, those same histories are inverted. The only people believed capable of negotiating with the possessing winds, of restoring balance, are shamans of African descent. In ritual gatherings, music, incense and movement create a space where the unseen becomes, briefly, tangible.

For Afshar, “Speak the Wind” was about tracing how landscape, history and the body shape one another.

“You see how the connection peo

By Zeena Saifi, CNN

(CNN) — Two Palestinians, among them a 14-year-old boy, have been shot and killed at a school in the occupied West Bank amid an attack by Israeli settlers, the Palestinian Health Ministry and multiple eyewitnesses said.

A video from the scene shows a man in military fatigues armed with a rifle advancing slowly on the village of Al-Mughayyir before crouching and firing at least eight rounds toward the school. Activists said the man was a known settler who has attacked the village in the past.

Residents say Al-Mughayyir is targeted by settler attacks on a near-daily basis.

The Health Ministry named the two Palestinians killed as Aws Al-Naasan, 14, and Jihad Abu Naim, 32, a parent at the school.

The killings are among a spate of attacks on Palestinian schools or schoolchildren in the West Bank in recent days, which have seen a school building razed to the ground and, in a separate incident, settlers putting up razor wire to block children as young as five from getting to school.

Students in schoolyard as gunfire starts

Bassam Abu-Assaf, the principal of the all-boys school that came under fire, said at least five armed settlers had approached the village of Al-Mughayyir, northeast of Ramallah, around noon. Some of the students were outside in the schoolyard when the gunfire began, he added.

The Israeli military claimed the incident had started after rocks were thrown at a vehicle carrying several Israeli passengers, including a reserve soldier, whom the military said, “exited the vehicle and opened fire at suspects in the area.”

The military said it had deployed soldiers to the scene and was “aware of the claim” that two Palestinians were killed and others injured, saying “the incident is under review.”

Video obtained by CNN shows the moment 14-year-old Aws, who was in ninth grade, was shot and killed. His friends can be seen rushing to him and carrying his body away.

The second Palestinian killed, Abu Naim, was a parent at the school who lived nearby. He rushed to the school when he heard the gunshots, and was then shot himself, Abu-Assaf, the school principal said.

“It was a disaster. Everybody was screaming. It was unbelievable. I’m still processing it. I don’t know how long it will take for the teachers and students to overcome the shock,” he said, adding that four others were injured, including students and parents.

Videos from in front of the school show the streets splattered with blood, gunshots sounding in the distance, and a flurry of men — young and old — frantically running around and calling for help. Injured boys and men, one with an exposed and bloodied torso, are seen being carried away.

The fatal shooting is the latest in a surge of increasingly brazen and violent attacks against Palestinians, waged by Israeli settlers and, at times, by soldiers as well. While the Israeli military frequently says it is investigating such incidents, it often fails to make any arrests or hold perpetrators accountable.

School bulldozed

In a separate incident, activists say settlers bulldozed a school in Hammamat al-Maleh in the northern Jordan Valley Monday evening, near the village of Tayasir, where a CNN team was detained and assaulted by soldiers last month.

The area has been targeted by settlers in recent months, forcing its Palestinian inhabitants there off the land, local activists told CNN.

Activists say the settlers are from the same group responsible for building an illegal outpost nearby and using it as a base from which to launch attacks on Palestinians.

Even though the school was withi

By Morgan Rimmer, Sarah Ferris, Ted Barrett, CNN

(CNN) — With Congress still at a stalemate over how to end the Department of Homeland Security shutdown, Senate Republicans took a key step to tee up a party-line measure funding the most controversial immigration programs — and eventually reopen the government completely.

The GOP effort to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and border patrol without any Democratic support moved ahead after a marathon overnight session known as a “vote-a-rama” that stretched into the early hours of Thursday morning.

The chamber adopted the Senate GOP budget blueprint by a vote of 50-48 with all Democrats present opposed. Two Republicans, Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Rand Paul of Kentucky, broke ranks, voting against the measure.

Next, the House will have to pass the same measure ​— and then a GOP legislative package funding ICE and Customs and Border Protection will need to survive a parliamentary gauntlet in the Senate before another marathon vote series in the coming weeks.

This complicated process, called budget reconciliation, should allow Republicans in Congress to approve the funds without needing Democratic votes. Democrats have been clear that they won’t support any future funding for immigration enforcement unless there are major changes to ICE tactics and protocols, after two Americans were shot and killed by federal agents in Minnesota earlier this year.

The Senate unanimously approved a package to fund the rest of the Department of Homeland Security weeks ago, but House Republicans rejected the bipartisan deal, prolonging the shutdown because it did not include contentious funding for immigration enforcement.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune has expressed hope that Senate GOP progress toward funding ICE and CBP will ensure the House adopts it as well. However, House GOP leadership has not committed to a timeline for funding the rest of DHS.

Democrats aimed amendments during the “vote-a-rama” at changes to ICE policies and affordability issues they argue Republicans are ignoring ahead of the midterm elections.

“Tonight, Senate Republicans showed the American people where they stand – not for families struggling with the high costs of child care, groceries, gasoline, electricity, but for pumping $140 billion towards rogue agencies,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said from the Senate chamber moments after the measure passed.

“We will continue to force vote after vote on the most pressing issue facing Americans,” Schumer said. “Democrats are going to hold Republicans’ feet to the fire, because the American people demand it.”

Senate GOP leadership managed to keep their party together to vote down a slew of amendment votes that would have jeopardized the final measure. That includes one backed by ultraconservatives that would have included elements of President Donald Trump’s voter ID bill, which failed 48 to 50.

If it had passed, it could have added weeks to the timeline — while potentially ensnarling the bill in the chamber’s arcane budget rules.

Meanwhile, Senate Budget Chairman Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, hailed the passage of the measure, writing on X that “Republicans stuck together to do something Democrats are refusing to do: Fully fund the Border Patrol and ICE for three and a half years.”

Graham said Republicans in Congress are going to work with Trump to fast-track the budget reconciliation by the president’s June 1 self-imposed deadline.

This story has been updated with additional information.

The-CNN-Wire
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CNN’s Logan Schiciano co

The post Condos, Again? Mortgage Details Have Changed Once More appeared first on The Santa Barbara Independent.

By Hannah Rabinowitz, Devan Cole, CNN

(CNN) — The Justice Department announced charges Tuesday against the Southern Poverty Law Center, alleging the storied civil rights organization defrauded its donors by funding the extremism it claimed to be fighting.

The fraudulent scheme played out over nearly 10 years, prosecutors allege, when the Southern Poverty Law Center used more than $3 million in donor funds to secretly pay leaders of violent extremist groups to act as confidential informants without disclosing where that money was going.

The 14-page indictment, however, offered few details of how donor money that paid the informants was used to further the groups’ violent interests, or if donors felt blindsided by what their money was spent on – a glaring omission that legal experts say could spell trouble for prosecutors as they seek to secure a conviction.

The case comes several months after FBI Director Kash Patel severed the bureau’s ties with the SPLC after conservative criticism of the group intensified in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination last year. SPLC had long provided its research on hate crimes and extremism to the government, but Patel labeled it a “partisan smear machine” for the attention it paid to a political group founded by Kirk.

SPLC this week said in a statement that it “will vigorously defend ourselves, our staff, and our work” against the “false allegations,” and said that their informant program saved lives over the years.

Use of informants

The Southern Poverty Law Center began its practice of using paid informants in the 1980s, the indictment says. The center says its program was kept a secret to protect the informants as they infiltrated dangerous organizations like the Ku Klux Klan, the Aryan Nation and other neo-Nazi groups.

“When we began working with informants, we were living in the shadow of the height of the Civil Rights Movement, which had seen bombings at churches, state-sponsored violence against demonstrators, and the murders of activists that went unanswered by the justice system,” SPLC interim President and CEO Bryan Fair said in a statement Wednesday.

“There is no question that what we learned from informants saved lives,” Fair said, while noting the practice has since been discontinued.

Justice Department prosecutors first started probing the center’s use of paid informants under the Biden administration, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a press conference Tuesday, but decided not to bring charges. The investigation was reopened during Trump’s second term, Blanche said, though he declined to share any reasoning as to why.

The allegations

The indictment accuses the center of making false statements to a bank so that it could create accounts through which it secretly sent donated money to informants. The accounts were created under fake business names, such as “Tech Writers Group” and “Rare Books Warehouse.”

Blanche said Tuesday that the center is “required to – under the laws associated with a nonprofit – to have certain transparency and honesty in what they’re telling donors they’re going to spend money on and what their mission statement is and what they’re raising money doing.”

Prosecutors further allege that some of the money was used by extremists to commit other crimes, but the indictment does not include any specific instances of that occurring.

It does, however, give details about eight unnamed informants whom the center paid through the shell bank accounts. One informant, a member of a neo-Nazi group called the National Alliance, was allegedly paid more than $1 million over 10 years.<

Por Eric Bradner y Patrick Svitek, CNN

Cuatro demócratas y dos republicanos que aspiran a convertirse en el próximo gobernador de California intercambiaron dardos ocasionales durante un debate el miércoles por la noche.

Pero, sobre todo, los demócratas arremetieron contra el presidente Donald Trump, y los republicanos criticaron al liderazgo demócrata del estado.

El debate, organizado por Nexstar, tuvo lugar dos semanas después de que la contienda electoral diera un vuelco cuando uno de los principales aspirantes demócratas, el exrepresentante Eric Swalwell, se retiró tras ser acusado de conducta sexual inapropiada.

Swalwell ha negado las acusaciones, que ha calificado de “completamente falsas”. Al renunciar a su escaño en la Cámara de Representantes, Swalwell pidió disculpas por “errores de juicio cometidos en el pasado”.

Todos los candidatos aparecerán en la misma papeleta el 2 de junio, y los dos más votados, independientemente de su partido, pasarán a la siguiente ronda este otoño.

El presidente Donald Trump ha respaldado al republicano Steve Hilton, pero otro aspirante republicano con posibilidades, el sheriff del condado de Riverside, Chad Bianco, también participa en la contienda.

Con el apoyo demócrata disperso entre varios candidatos, el partido se enfrenta a un posible escenario catastrófico: quedar excluido de las elecciones generales para reemplazar al gobernador saliente Gavin Newsom, quien no ha dado su apoyo a ningún candidato en la contienda.

Las elecciones en California se realizan mayoritariamente por correo, y los funcionarios electorales de los condados comienzan a enviar las papeletas a los votantes el 4 de mayo. CNN celebrará un debate para la gobernación el 5 de mayo.

Dos de los seis candidatos que subieron al escenario el miércoles buscaban el voto de personas completamente diferentes.

Los republicanos representan una proporción mucho menor del electorado californiano, pero solo Hilton y Bianco compiten por ellos. Ambos criticaron duramente a Newsom, mientras que los candidatos demócratas defendieron, al menos tibiamente, la gestión del gobernador saliente en temas como la falta de vivienda.

Tras escuchar las respuestas, en gran medida evasivas, de los demócratas sobre si apoyarían impuestos adicionales para financiar infraestructuras, Hilton dijo: “No podemos seguir en esta dirección con los demócratas buscando constantemente satisfacer su insaciable apetito por más y más impuestos para su pozo sin fondo de dinero”.

Bianco también arremetió contra los demócratas que controlan todos los poderes del Gobierno estatal de California. “Están subiendo sus impuestos, están gastando cada vez más de su dinero porque se niegan a frenar el gasto”, afirmó.

El debate tuvo lugar unas dos semanas después de que Trump respaldara a Hilton, quien en ese momento dijo sentirse “profundamente honrado” de obtene

By Elizabeth Wolfe, Rebekah Riess, CNN

(CNN) — Law enforcement across three states thwarted the plans of an experienced former cop who they say expressed a desire to harm Black people and threatened to carry out a mass shooting at a New Orleans festival.

North Carolina resident Christopher Gillum, 45, was reported missing on Tuesday by his family, and police quickly learned he was armed and posed a possible risk to himself and others, the Burlington Police Department said.

The next day, Gillum was arrested more than 600 miles away in Florida on a charge from Louisiana police of making terroristic threats.

“Authorities obtained information Gillum planned to travel to a festival in New Orleans to conduct a mass shooting and then commit suicide by cop,” said the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, which arrested Gillum.

It is still unclear how authorities found out about the alleged plot, the details of the threat, and what may have motivated the law enforcement veteran with more than a decade of policing experience.

While authorities have not confirmed which festival Gillum may have been targeting, his arrest came just one day before the city of New Orleans commenced its annual Jazz & Heritage Festival, which attracts about 400,000 attendees each year. Louisiana State Police have said they are not aware of other credible threats, but the city of New Orleans and its residents are distinctly aware of the reality of public attacks. Another planned attack of the city was thwarted in December, almost a year after a deadly attack killed 14 people in the French Quarter.

Gillum now awaits extradition from Florida to Louisiana. Here’s what we know:

Veteran officer reported missing

Gillum’s family had reported him missing Tuesday, Lt. Clint Lyons of the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office in North Carolina told The Associated Press. Lyons noted Gillum has a history of self-harm.

His family indicated he had a Glock handgun and had expressed interest in harming Black people, a law enforcement official told CNN.

Despite his comments about Black people, Lyons told the AP there were no criminal grounds to detain Gillum at the time “because there was no victim.”

Gillum had left the state before police could draft paperwork to involuntarily commit him for psychiatric treatment, Lyons said.

Investigators in Alamance County contacted police in the city of Burlington Tuesday to alert them of the case. As the investigation progressed, authorities “developed reasons to believe Christopher Gillum was a danger to himself and others,” the Burlington Police Department said in a release.

Investigators used license plate readers to determine Gillum was traveling to Florida and began contacting other law enforcement agencies to try to locate him, Burlington Police said. They began disseminating an intelligence bulletin to agencies including Louisiana State Police and New Orleans Police Department.

Hundreds of ammunition rounds found

Investigators used a vast network of FLOCK license plate reader technology to locate Gillum at a hotel in Destin, Florida, where he was arrested Wednesday night, investigators said.

After his arrest, deputies discovered a handgun and about 200 rounds of ammunition in Gillum’s hotel room, according to the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, which oversees Destin.

It is unclear at

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - San Marcos celebrates Senior Day with a sweep over Camarillo.

The Royals girls won 136-40 while the boys defeated the Scorpions 97-79.

There were several swimmers that won multiple events for the Royals including Sophia Hall who won the 50 (24.82) and 100 freestyle (54.46) plus swam on the winning Royals 4x50 and 4x100 relays.

Nya Cable won in the 100 backstroke (1:03.43) and the 200 IM (2:22.56).

Other individual girls winners were Charlotte Raisin (200 freestyle), Lily Bordofsky (100 butterfly), McKenna Stuart (500 freestyle), and Shea Estabrook (100 breaststroke).

The boys multiple winners include Cole Racich who captured both the 100 freestyle (49:30) and the 200 freestyle (1:48.11).

Nolan Clarke won the 100 butterfly (51.41) and the 200 IM (2:03.74).

Other boys individual winners include Will Stuart (100 breaststroke) and Duncan Hunt (100 backstroke).

The post San Marcos Swim completes undefeated dual meet season appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

By Aleks Klosok, Amanda Davies, CNN

Geneva, Switzerland (CNN) — Formula One has, in the year of 2026, perhaps never been as unpredictable and unexpected as demonstrated by the opening scenes of the still nascent season.

Three races in, there’ve been unforeseen winners, unpredicted changes to the schedule and the unanticipated reality of regulation changes dawning.

All of which have thrown the door to this year’s drivers’ championship wide open.

It’s an opportunity not to be sniffed at by Mercedes’ George Russell who’s been strongly tipped to contend this season.

Entering his eighth season in the sport, the Brit admits he’s equipped with the best car this season and hopes he can deliver on the promise that has followed his career.

The 28-year-old just hopes it’s not a fleeting moment.

“I believe these opportunities will come more than once,” says Russell, speaking to CNN Sports as an IWC Schaffhausen ambassador at the watchmaking show, Watches and Wonders, in Geneva, Switzerland.

“It’s very rare for somebody in any industry, if you’re working so hard to achieve a certain goal, that you only ever get one shot.

“You want to take every single moment, not take it for granted and try and seize the day. I’m hoping this isn’t going be the one and only shot. I’m going to go for it this year.”

‘I still love the competition’

To achieve the dream of a maiden world championship, he’ll have to navigate a familiar set of obstacles.

Not only the threat from the traditional powerhouses of McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull but also that posed by a teammate and direct rival – something Russell thrives on.

“I still love the competition so much. I need that in my life just to drive me forward … to keep me going so that’s what I love most about Formula One,” he admits.

Russell has twice finished fourth in the end of season standings since joining Mercedes in the 2022 season.

He’s consistently beaten his teammate in all but one season – 2023, when he finished behind seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton.

2026, though, may be like that apparent one-off.

Following Hamilton’s blockbuster move to Ferrari for the 2025 season, Italian driver Kimi Antonelli was given the daunting task of taking up the mantle, ultimately finishing seventh in what was his rookie campaign.

But so far this season, the 19-year-old has made his competitors, pundits and fans alike sit up and take notice.

Teammate title fight

After Russell claimed victory at the opening race of the season in Melbourne, Antonelli responded in emphatic fashion.

Not only did he become the sport’s youngest-ever polesitter at the Chinese Grand Prix, but victories in Shanghai and then Suzuka saw him climb to the top of the standings ahead of Russell.

In doing so, he became F1’s youngest ever championship leader and holds a nine-point lead over Russell.

“Kimi’s a fantastic driver,” he explains to CNN. “I already got a very good glimpse at how talented and fast he was throughout last year.

“The start of this year for him has been a dream start to the season.

“From my side, I know what I’m capable of, and no championship has ever been won over three races, so for me, it’s just a long way to go.

“We can’t take these three races for granted … It doesn’t change how I go about my business. I’m

By John Liu, CNN

Hong Kong (CNN) — China’s DeepSeek unveiled a preview version of its much-anticipated new model on Friday, promising to rival models from OpenAI, Anthropic and Google a year after the then little-known start up took the global AI industry by storm.

The Hangzhou-based company highlighted major upgrades in the new model V4’s reasoning and agentic abilities that could act autonomously on one’s behalf, like writing code. It also boasted new capabilities that enhance the model’s efficiency in processing larger numbers of tokens, the fundamental units of information which AI models use to comprehend instructions.

DeepSeek became the poster child for China’s AI boom after its groundbreaking 2025 release of the R1 model that delivered near industry-leading performance – for allegedly a fraction of the price.

The breakout success tumbled American AI stocks, raising questions about the ever-larger investments into data center buildouts. At the same time, it bolstered confidence in Chinese technology and heated up the tech race with the US.

But analysts said the new model is unlikely to send markets into the kind of frenzy the previous one did.

“R1 shocked US markets because no one expected a Chinese model to compete at that level. V4 is simply a follow-through on that same trend, and trends don’t make headlines the way shocks do,” said Ivan Su, senior equity analyst at financial services firm MorningStar.

The stock market has already priced in the reality that Chinese AI, like DeepSeek, is competitive and cheaper to use than US alternatives, so market reaction this time will be limited, Su added.

Like DeepSeek’s earlier models, V4 is open source, meaning it is available for anyone to use, unlike most American models. The “open” strategy has been one key channel through which China aims to compete with the US, by rapidly scaling up adoptions and rolling out real-life applications in various sectors from e-commerce to robotics.

That strategy also reflects the relative smaller pockets of Chinese AI firms and constraints in accessing cutting-edge chips under Washington’s export controls.

To overcome those restrictions, Chinese developers have been forced to work with domestic chipmakers as the most advanced AI processors from Nvidia and AMD remain out of reach. To fulfill V4’s computing needs, DeepSeek partnered with Chinese tech giant Huawei, which said in a statement Friday that it supports the AI startup with its “Supernode” technology by combining large clusters of its “Ascend 950” chips to provide more computing power.

Wei Sun, principal analyst at market analysis firm Counterpoint Research, highlighted the fact that V4 is run on domestic chips from Huawei and Cambricon, another Chinese AI chipmaker, in comparison to R1, which was trained on Nvidia hardware.

“It allows AI systems to be built and deployed without relying solely on Nvidia, which is why V4 could ultimately have an even bigger impact than R1 — accelerating adoption domestically and contributing to faster global AI development overall,” he said.

While American proprietary models like Anthropic’s Claude, OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini remain at the top of the industry ladder for now, Chinese firms are undeniably dominating open systems.

DeepSeek, via a statement on Friday, claimed the V4 has the best agentic coding capability among open-source models and achieves “world class” reasoning capabilities.

The company, in a research paper, also said the V4 outperformed other open models when it comes to b

By Jeanne Sahadi, CNN

(CNN) — Just looking at the raw numbers, less than 1% of filers have been audited by the IRS in recent tax years. Based on the latest data available, for example, in tax year 2021 the IRS pursued a mere 0.3% of filers overall.

The audit rate has been higher for select groups of taxpayers based on certain characteristics – like the amount or types of income they report or specific tax breaks they claim. But even there, with very few exceptions, audits typically affect less than 10% of any given group and often a far smaller share – smaller as in, again, less than 1%.

But a lot has changed for the IRS in the past year.

A large percentage of employees were laid off or resigned, including many highly experienced in areas of enforcement and complex audits. Just over a quarter of both tax examiners and revenue agents were among them, according to a July 2025 report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

And a majority of funding for enforcement promised under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act was rescinded and the Trump administration is seeking to cut IRS funding further next year.

At the same time, the agency has been modernizing its antiquated systems and increasing its use of AI in a number of areas, including enforcement. “The IRS is using artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced analytics to identify high-risk areas of non-compliance and fraud with greater accuracy,” IRS CEO Frank Bisignano said in written testimony before the Senate Finance Committee earlier this month. Among his stated goals for the agency: “Advancing a strong compliance agenda while improving collections beyond historical norms.”

How will the combination of these big changes affect any filer’s chance of being audited in the coming years?

It’s not clear, for several reasons, not least of which are a) whether the technology will be used responsibly and strategically, as former IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel put it; and b) whether there will be a sufficient number of experienced IRS employees to successfully select and audit returns that AI identifies as potentially suspect.

AI’s promise of better-targeted audits

Ideally, AI will help keep the IRS off the back of perfectly compliant tax filers – thereby reducing the rate of so-called “no change” audits. Those are audits undertaken by the IRS which result in no revenue raised because, well, it found nothing wrong.

And it can help better identify anyone underreporting their income or otherwise violating tax rules.

“It will make the IRS more efficient in finding noncompliance,” said Barry Johnson, former chief data and analytics officer at the IRS who, among other things, oversaw how the agency used AI.

AI has the capacity to search and identify patterns in tax returns that would take humans and the IRS’ older statistical models a lot longer to unearth, if ever. It can identify returns with anomalies, which might indicate anything from a filer mistakenly underreporting income to committing outright fraud.

“AI gives us a forensic edge to select the right returns for audit,” Werfel said. “It’s almost like purchasing night-vision goggles. They help figure out which returns to select, and where the tax evasion is.”

How AI may raise audit rates

If used responsibly, he added, AI could lead to more taxpayers with unpaid balances being contacted.

By responsibly, he means that the IRS will have to balance “the use of AI with a human review – double checking and

By Zoe Sottile, Sara Smart, Sarah Hutter, CNN

(CNN) — It took just 30 minutes for Brytney Quinn to lose everything.

On Tuesday, the mother was going through the motions of a normal day in southeast Georgia’s Brantley County: getting her children ready for school as her husband prepared for work.

But around noon, multiple firetrucks and police cars swarmed their neighborhood, urging them to evacuate. A massive wildfire – believed to have been sparked by a children’s party balloon landing on a power line – was fast approaching, primed to destroy more homes than any wildfire in the state’s history.

She grabbed her daughter and her pets and left the house around 12:20 p.m.

Around half an hour later, she checked her surveillance cameras and saw her home in flames.

“My house is gone,” Quinn said tearfully in a video she shared with CNN showing the burned remnants of her house.

The Highway 82 Fire that engulfed Quinn’s home has devoured thousands of acres in south Georgia, destroying dozens of buildings and forcing hundreds to evacuate from their homes. It’s just one of several dangerous wildfires burning across Georgia and Florida, fostered by the worst spring drought conditions on record.

And Quinn isn’t the only one facing huge losses from the massive blazes. The Highway 82 Fire and the larger Pineland Road Fire have together destroyed more than 120 homes, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said Friday, when around 4,000 homes were still in the evacuation zone.

“We got the two most dangerous, biggest problematic fires anywhere in the United States within really just a very small area that we’re having to fight,” he said.

Glowing red flames raced through the dry vegetation of southern Georgia, whipping up massive clouds of dark smoke that hung heavily over the region. The fires left behind the desiccated husks of vehicles and homes and blanketed neighborhoods with ash.

Residents found themselves clutching medications and family heirlooms before racing away from their homes, unsure if there’ll be anything left to come back to.

Across the state line, a volunteer firefighter died after a “medical emergency” while fighting the Old Dixie Highway Fire in Hilliard, Florida, according to the sheriff’s office.

For Quinn, the losses are devastating.

“My babies lost their home and the only place they felt safe,” she said. “Now we have nothing to go to but rubbish … how are we going to recover from this?”

‘We’ve just got to start over’

Like Quinn, grandparents Elizabeth and Tony Spear had just minutes to evacuate from their Brantley County home Tuesday.

“Firetrucks came down the road and said we had to leave immediately,” Elizabeth Spear recalled. “I threw a few things in a bag — our medicine, cellphone, charger, just very minimum — and went flying out the door, jumped in our little car and just left.”

Originally thinking they were safe, the Spears didn’t plan to evacuate.

It wasn’t until Thursday that they returned to the site where their house of 17 years once stood. Instead of seeing their family home, they were faced with ashen land, a destroyed shed and two burned-out vehicles.

“All of my grandma’s jewelry was lost and things from her mom who passed,” their granddaughter Ashleigh Anderson said. “All of their possessions were burned. They were only able to bring about two pairs of clothes.”

The couple also lost three pets in the blaze: two chihuahuas and a black lab.

“We lost everything,” Elizabeth Spear said. “It’s just total ashes.”

The Spears are striving to center their faith and love as they look to rebuild what they lost.

“It’s just stuff. You can re

By Ben Church, CNN

(CNN) — Even as one of the best athletes in the world, Hellen Obiri says she’ll still be nervous lining up at the start of this weekend’s London Marathon. It’s incredible, though, that the Kenyan would have any doubts at all.

After all, the 36-year-old is a double world champion in the 5000m, a three-time Olympic medalist and a winner of four major marathons since transitioning to the longer distance.

But the weight of expectation clearly impacts even those who appear superhuman from the outside.

“I do get nervous because sometimes you get to the start and see that this runner is here and that runner is there,” she told CNN Sports.

“Millions of people are also going to watch you and you have all your fans. If you see social media before the race, there’s sometimes a lot of people … saying she’s tired, she needs to retire.

“So things like that get you nervous, like, ‘How am I gonna do?’”

However, after years of experience on the global stage, Obiri has learned how to handle the pressure. The 36-year-old simply waits for that starting gun. Once racing, she’s back in her happy place.

“You have done a lot of work. You already know how your body is and you are prepared,” she said, reflecting on how she stays calm during races.

“I just need to concentrate on what I’m going to do, and I need to focus.”

Humble beginnings

Obiri’s journey to becoming a marathon champion is a compelling one, and one that saw her move from Kenya to the US in 2022 in the pursuit of greatness.

And, since setting her sights on the marathon distance, the Kenyan has won twice in Boston and twice in New York, with another victory in London now firmly on her agenda.

But while her career has taken her to the other side of the world in search of glory, her story has its roots firmly planted in her home nation.

Obiri started running back in elementary school, falling in love with the way it made her feel. At the time, the community she grew up in didn’t really cater to sports, and she initially struggled to find a mentor or a coach who could match her running ambitions.

Those frustrations were eased when she went to high school in the nearby capital city of Nairobi, where a young Obiri began experimenting with track and field.

“It opened the door to know much about sports,” she said.

At first, the youngster ran shorter distances, mainly 200m and 400m, while also dipping her toe into the triple jump (disciplines that now look a million miles away from her current distance).

But while her talent was clear, she laughs when looking back at how her love for running became a bone of contention in her family, with her parents initially split in their support.

At first, her mom didn’t fully understand the doors that track and field could open, so it was Obiri’s father who gave his backing first, urging her to train before doing any of her other household tasks.

It wasn’t until Obiri started winning races and appearing in the local newspaper that both her parents started encouraging her to pursue a running career.

Both her parents watched her win gold at last year’s New York marathon, hugging their daughter as she crossed the finish line.

“My dad used to wake me up at around 5:30 in the morning and tell me to go outside and run,” she said, when asked about how her childhood shaped her career.

Marathon ambitions

Then, in 2011, when she was over 20, Obiri started experimenting wi

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (KEYT) - Freshman Gavin Spiridonoff had three hits and knocked in three runs as Cal Poly defeated Cal State Northridge 8-5. The Mustangs remain tied for first place in the Big West with UCSB and UC San Diego at 13-6.

Tied at 4 with two outs in the sixth inning, Spiridonoff lifted a fly ball to center field that the Matadors lost in the lights and it landed for a gift RBI triple. Nate Castellon followed with an RBI single to put Cal Poly up 6-4.

They added another two runs in the seventh inning with Spiridonoff knocking in a run on an infield single.

Both teams are now 22-18 on the year.

The post Cal Poly keeps a piece of first place in Big West with home win versus CSUN appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

By Chris Isidore, CNN

(CNN) — The soaring cost of jet fuel due to the war in Iran will lead to significantly higher airfares. But don’t expect ticket prices to drop once fuel prices start to decline.

Higher fares are being driven by strong demand for travel as much as the cost of fuel. Despite higher ticket prices, travelers are booking tickets in record numbers at many airlines. So, as long as passengers keep flying, higher fares are likely to stay in place, no matter the cost of fuel.

“The longer consumers pay these prices and airlines get used to this revenue stream, the more likely it is (to hold),” United CEO Scott Kirby said during its earnings call Wednesday. The airline’s passengers are now paying on average 20% more for every mile they fly compared to last year.

When asked about keeping higher fares when fuel prices normalize, American Airlines CEO Robert Isom said customers have already been willing to pay more for things like extra legroom or seats closer to the front.

“I’m bullish on what that means for our business,” Isom told analysts Thursday.

He said that summer bookings have stayed strong even as the airline raised fares.

“I think that what you’re seeing is recognition that travel is still a good deal,” Isom said.

The price of jet fuel, which has roughly doubled since the start of the year, is a major factor behind the widespread fare increases. Fuel is the second largest operating cost for airlines behind only labor.

The nation’s four largest carriers — United, American, Delta and Southwest — spent on average a combined $100 million a day on fuel last year. And that was during a time of relatively cheap oil and fuel costs.

Today, they’re paying billions more. Delta said it faced $2 billion in increased fuel costs in the current quarter alone.

Airlines are passing some of the cost to consumers. Recent results show they’re already charging passengers 20% more for every mile they fly compared to a year ago, and fares are projected to go higher still.

Southwest Airlines Chief Operating Officer Andrew Watterson told investors Thursday there have already been five industrywide fare hikes so far this year, with more on the way. And all the airlines say they’ve only recovered a portion of their increased costs.

Fares about far more than costs

But fares are not based on the cost of operating a flight, said Zach Griff, author of an airline newsletter, From the Tray Table.

Instead, price is primarily determined by demand — for a certain route, time of day or week and the amount of competition.

For example, midweek or overnight redeye flights are typically cheaper than prime travel times on the same route, such as on Friday afternoon. And passengers often pay far less for every mile traveled on popular long-haul flights between major cities, such as New York and Los Angeles, than on shorter routes with less demand.

Airlines are cutting some of these less profitable flights, which have become money losers amid higher fuel prices. United, for example, has cut its previously planned schedule by about 5% through September. Removing these bargain fares is also lifting the average ticket price.

But with travelers still booking tickets, airlines know they can make higher fares stick on their remaining flights.

“The fare environment will ultimately play out based on market conditions,” Southwest’s Watterson said.

There is also the possibility that Spirit Airlines, a trendsetter in ultra-low fares, could fold under the weight of higher fuel costs.

The budget carrier, which has filed for bankruptcy twice in the last two years, warned in March it could go out of business. The Trump administration has said it’s looking at possibly bailing it out or even buyi

Por Jeremy Herb y Kevin Liptak, CNN

El presidente Donald Trump y la primera dama Melania Trump estaban sentados en el escenario del enorme salón de baile del Washington Hilton poco después de las 8:30 p.m. (hora de Miami) del sábado por la noche, interactuando de manera juguetona con el artista de la velada, el mentalista Oz Pearlman.

Justo afuera, un hombre corrió a través de un punto de control de seguridad con una escopeta en la mano, intercambiando disparos con agentes del Servicio Secreto que lo perseguían, según imágenes de seguridad del incidente que fueron difundidas.

En cuestión de segundos, el hombre armado fue reducido por el Servicio Secreto, antes de que pudiera llegar al salón de baile donde el presidente, funcionarios de la administración Trump, miembros del Congreso y algunos de los reporteros y editores más destacados del país asistían a la Cena anual de la Asociación de Corresponsales de la Casa Blanca.

Dentro del abarrotado salón de baile, los invitados ya estaban sentados y picoteaban ensaladas de burrata y pepino cuando quedó claro que la noche había dado un giro aterrador. Sonidos secos, uno tras otro, provenientes del exterior de las puertas del salón hicieron que el fuerte murmullo de conversación se apagara rápidamente.

Para quienes estaban dentro de la sala —ubicada un nivel por debajo de donde ocurrió el incidente— no era evidente qué eran esos sonidos. Incluso el propio presidente no estuvo seguro de inmediato de lo que había pasado. El primer pensamiento de Trump fue que se trataba de una bandeja llena de platos de la cena que se había estrellado contra el suelo: “He escuchado eso muchas veces”, diría más tarde desde la Casa Blanca, aún con el esmoquin del evento.

Pero cuando agentes de las fuerzas del orden, muchos armados, se desplegaron por la sala desde todas las entradas, quedó claro que había ocurrido un incidente grave. Gritos de “al suelo” se extendieron por el salón mientras los invitados y el personal del hotel se lanzaban debajo de sillas y mesas para cubrirse.

La mesa principal se despejó casi de inmediato. El vicepresidente J. D. Vance fue apartado de la mesa y llevado hacia la izquierda del escenario. Mientras agentes con rifles corrían hacia el frente del escenario, el equipo del Servicio Secreto del presidente lo rodeó, según un video grabado desde un costado del escenario. Mientras era evacuado, el presidente pareció caer brevemente al suelo antes de que él y la primera dama fueran llevados rápidamente a una sala segura del hotel. Quienes estaban sentados a su lado fueron trasladados a una sala distinta al final del pasillo.

Los asistentes a la cena que eligieron ese momento para salir del salón de baile antes de que se sirviera el plato principal, incluido Wolf Blitzer de CNN, lamentablemente se pusieron en peligro. Blitzer acababa de salir de un baño fuera del salón cuando vio al hombre armado a solo unos pocos pies de distancia.

“Empecé a escuchar disparos en el pasillo, justo cerca de mí, y lo siguiente que supe fue que un agente de policía me tiró al suelo y se puso encima de mí”, dijo Blitzer. “Los disparos fueron tan fuertes, tan aterradores, que nos asustó a todos. No teníamos idea de qué estaba pasando”.

El presentador de CNN fue llevado de vuelta al baño de hombres, donde él y más de una decena de personas se refugiaron en el lugar, dijo.

Perdió un zapato en medio del alboroto.

Cuando el hombre armado arremetió contra el punto de control, llevaba una escopeta, una pistola y varios cuchillos, según funcionarios de las fuerzas del orden. Un agente del Servicio Secreto recibió un disparo en el pecho durante el intercambio de disparos y estaba bien después de ser trasladado a un hospital gracia

By Ray Sanchez, Isabel Rosales, Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN

(CNN) — Zamil Limon was last seen on the morning of April 16 at his home about three blocks from the University of South Florida campus in Tampa.

Nahida Bristy was last seen later that same morning at the Natural and Environmental Sciences building on campus.

They were both 27 and promising Bangladeshi doctoral students who started out as friends and over time developed feelings for each other — to the point they had thought about marriage, according to Limon’s brother, Zubaer Ahmed.

Limon and Bristy were reported missing by a family friend on April 17, and as days went by, their friends in Florida and relatives abroad became increasingly desperate for answers.

On Friday, Limon was found dead on the Howard Frankland Bridge in Tampa in what Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister called “a deeply disturbing case that has shaken our community.”

His roommate has been charged with killing Limon and Bristy, whose body has not been found, the sheriff’s office said.

Their loss is being felt far from the Tampa Bay area. Both students had planned to travel to Bangladesh over their summer break.

Investigators called Bristy’s family in Bangladesh to say they believed she may be dead, based on the amount of blood found in Limon and the suspect’s shared apartment, Bristy’s brother told CNN affiliate WTSP. CNN has reached out to her brother and the sheriff’s office for details.

Limon’s family told CNN they were anxiously waiting to learn what happened to the joyful, young researcher.

“It’s devastating for us,” Ahmed told CNN before his brother’s body was found Friday. “We are in deep pain.”

Limon and Bristy were among the more than 17,000 Bangladeshi students — an all-time high — enrolled in US institutions, according to the US Embassy in Bangladesh, citing the 2024 Open Doors Report on International Education Exchange.

“Please keep my beloved brother in your prayers,” Ahmed told CNN Saturday via text message.

Limon was dedicated to his environmental studies

Limon had been working on his thesis for the past two years, studying the uses of generative AI to monitor shrinking wetlands in South Florida, his brother said.

“My brother is very decent and a very simple person,” Ahmed said from Bangladesh. “He always put a smile on his face.”

He had been pursuing a degree in geography, environmental science and policy since the fall of 2024.

After completing his PhD, Limon hoped to return to Bangladesh and get a job as a university professor, Ahmed said.

“I study how natural features evolve across landscapes, with a focus on wetlands, water resources, and vegetation in both agricultural and urban environments,” Limon wrote in his student profile. His goal was “to create practical tools that enhance environmental planning, support sustainable land use, and improve long-term ecosystem management.”

His LinkedIn page said he worked as a graduate student assistant since August 2024, and his experience included stints with the Center for Natural Resource Studies, the Center for Environment and Geographic Information Services and as a junior urban planner in Dhaka. He also studied urban and rural planning at Khulna University, a public research institution in Bangladesh.

Omer Hossain, Limon’s friend and fellow student at USF, remembers him as a “chill guy”

By Leigh Waldman, CNN

(CNN) — A decision whether to mandate air conditioning inside Texas prisons is in the hands of a federal judge, as advocacy organizations try to force the state to address what they allege are dangerous, deadly temperatures inmates endure.

For years leading up to the two-week trial in Austin, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice says it has made efforts to mitigate heat inside its prisons during the summer months. However, inmates’ advocates and lawyers say those efforts haven’t gone far enough: Temperatures can reach 149 degrees, they say, and the conditions amount to cruel and unusual punishment – violating inmates’ Eighth Amendment rights.

“There is a dangerous condition that everybody in the leadership knows about: It’s extreme heat inside the prison system,” Jeff Edwards, one of the lawyers for the plaintiffs, told CNN. “What they’re doing is not solving it, it’s not mitigating it. It’s killing people.”

The plaintiffs – a group of advocacy organizations that represent inmates – are requesting air-conditioning be installed in every inmate housing area in every state-run prison. They claim more than 270 people died in Texas prisons between 2001 and 2019 due to heat exposure, citing a 2022 study by researchers at Brown and Harvard University, among other institutions, which found these deaths were “likely attributable to extreme heat.”

The state denied this allegation in pretrial court filings – though it has acknowledged heat-related deaths, albeit much fewer: A TDCJ spokesperson told CNN that between 1998 and 2012 there were 23 heat-related deaths.

“There’s people that have families in here that they’re trying to get back home to,” an inmate inside one partially air-conditioned prison told CNN. “They made simple mistakes; they don’t deserve this.”

TDCJ – which says it has made strides in addressing the problem in recent years – declined to comment on pending litigation. On its website the agency said, “Core to the mission of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice is protecting the public, our employees, and the inmates in our custody.”

Amite Dominick, president of the Texas Prison Community Advocates, has been fighting for the better part of a decade to change what she describes as unsafe conditions inside prisons. She coauthored the 2022 study and another report by Texas A&M University’s Hazard Reduction & Recovery Center that highlighted the issue and concluded the TDCJ’s heat mitigation policies were insufficient.

“I didn’t think I’d be doing this job for 10 years,” said Dominick, who testified for the plaintiffs. “I really thought that by now we would have seen the humanity of it all, and the legislators would have already have funded the money for this.”

“It’s unfortunate that it has to come to a lawsuit where we’re, you know, spending millions of dollars once again, and we could have taken those same monies and just put air conditioning in those units,” she told CNN.

The Texas attorney general’s office, which represents TDCJ in the case, did not respond to multiple requests for comment or questions about the plaintiffs’ allegations.

In a preliminary injunction, Judge Robert Pitman stopped short of ordering a temporary air conditioning remedy. But he did warn TDCJ he “foresees Plaintiffs being entitled to permanent relief in the form of expeditious installation of permanent air conditioning in all TDCJ facilities.”

Pitman is expected to make his final ruling in the coming weeks.

A ‘five-alarm fire’

During the trial, medical experts testified about the impacts of extreme heat on the body. Dea

Por Evan Perez y Kristen Holmes, CNN

El presunto atacante que el sábado se abrió paso más allá de un puesto de control de seguridad en la cena de la Asociación de Corresponsales de la Casa Blanca reavivó las preguntas sobre los protocolos del Servicio Secreto y sobre si deberían hacerse cambios al ya estricto cordón de seguridad en el evento anual repleto de celebridades.

El secretario interino de Justicia Todd Blanche, que apareció el domingo en “State of the Union” de CNN, elogió la respuesta como “una enorme historia de éxito en materia de seguridad”.

Dijo que los investigadores creen que el hombre de California que fue arrestado, Cole Tomas Allen, pretendía atacar a funcionarios de la administración en el evento, basándose en sus escritos que los investigadores están revisando.

Blanche publicó posteriormente en redes sociales una carta que el Departamento de Justicia presentó en una demanda, en la que calificó el incidente del sábado como un “intento de magnicidio contra el presidente Trump”.

Funcionarios de la Casa Blanca dijeron a CNN que familiares de Allen alertaron a las fuerzas del orden sobre sus posibles planes de llevar a cabo un ataque, pero sigue sin estar claro si la notificación ocurrió antes o después del incidente. Sus escritos, obtenidos por CNN, incluían retórica anti-Trump.

Según funcionarios actuales y anteriores de las fuerzas del orden con experiencia en este tipo de eventos, el equipo de seguridad del presidente Donald Trump parece haber respondido conforme al entrenamiento, cubriéndolo de inmediato, mientras agentes armados adicionales tomaban posiciones con vista a la sala para impedir que cualquier amenaza se acercara al presidente.

El incidente del sábado se produce después de dos intentos de magnicidio previos contra Trump: uno en Butler, Pensilvania, en julio de 2024, y otro dos meses después en un campo de golf en West Palm Beach, Florida.

Aunque algunos críticos han planteado preguntas sobre que el vicepresidente J. D. Vance fuera retirado del estrado antes que el presidente, la secuencia parece ajustarse a los procedimientos del Servicio Secreto, que incluyen medidas que pueden no ser visibles.

Un video del hotel Washington Hilton, donde se celebra la cena anual, mostró al presunto atacante pasando a toda prisa junto a un grupo de agentes del Servicio Secreto que parecían estar en una postura relajada mientras el evento ya estaba en marcha un piso más abajo.

Según funcionarios de las fuerzas del orden, llevaba una escopeta, una pistola y cuchillos, y logró desplazarse rápidamente hasta un vestíbulo un piso por encima de donde el presidente se encontraba en el enorme salón de baile, con capacidad para 2.600 personas.

“No creo que haya sido un fallo de seguridad”, dijo Jonathan Wackrow, exagente del Servicio Secreto y analista de CNN que ha colaborado en los preparativos de la cena anual. “Siempre hay cosas que se pueden aprender. No vamos a lograr un entorno de riesgo cero”.

Otro funcionario federal de las fuerzas del orden expresó algunas preocupaciones por imágenes de video de vigilancia que parecen mostrar a los agentes del Servicio Secreto relajados y tomados por sorpresa mientras el hombre corre por un área donde se habían instalado máquinas de magnetómetro para revisar a los invitados antes de que entraran al salón de baile.

“Eso no debería haber ocurrido así; deberían haberlo detenido antes de que llegara al área del vestíbulo”, dijo el funcionario federal de las fuerzas del orden.

El Servicio Secreto realiza de forma rutinaria una revisión después de incidentes como este, dijo Wackrow, y material adicional de vigilancia mostrará un panorama más completo que podría conducir a cambios.

Ya ha habido conversaciones dentro de la administración y del Servicio Secreto sobre cómo manejar la seguridad en estos eventos en el futuro, dijeron a CNN múltiples fu

By Brad Lendon, CNN

(CNN) — Global military spending surged by almost 3% in 2025, fueled largely by ballooning defense expenditures in Europe and Asia, according to a report released Monday by a respected arms watchdog group.

European defense spending jumped 14% from 2024, to $864 billion, and in Asia-Oceania the increase was 8.1%, to $681 billion, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said in its annual “Trends in World Military Expenditure” report.

Overall, almost $2.9 trillion was spent on military programs around the world in 2025, a 2.9% increase from a year earlier. The figure represents 2.5% of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP), the highest percentage since 2009, according to SIPRI.

The US, China, Russia, Germany and India were the biggest spenders, collectively accounting for 58% of the global sum.

While the report notes that the year-on-year increase in total spend is a drop from the 9.7% increase recorded in 2024, it says that was largely due to the United States approving no new spending to help arm Ukraine in 2025. SIPRI counts foreign military assistance on the accounts of the donor country.

When the US is taken out of the statistics, global spending on defense rose 9.2% in 2025, the report says.

Still, the US remains the world’s No. 1 spender on the military – $954 billion in 2025 – followed by China, an estimated $336 billion, and Russia with an estimated $190 billion.

But it was US allies around the world that led the spending increase, revealing some generational changes.

“In 2025 military spending by European NATO members rose faster than at any time since 1953, reflecting the ongoing pursuit of European self-reliance alongside increasing pressure from the United States to strengthen burden sharing within the alliance,” Jade Guiberteau Ricard, a researcher with the SIPRI Military Expenditure and Arms Production Programme, said in a statement.

NATO countries with big increases include Belgium (59%), Spain (50%), Norway (49%), Denmark (46%), Germany (24%), Poland (23%) and Canada (23%).

Germany’s total military spending of $114 billion ranks it No. 4 worldwide.

In Asia, Japan increased military spending by 9.7% to $62.2 billion, the report said. As a portion of Japan’s GDP, the 1.4% spent on defense was the highest for the country since 1958, the report said.

“US allies in Asia and Oceania such as Australia, Japan and the Philippines are spending more on their militaries, not only due to long-standing regional tensions but also due to growing uncertainty over US support,” SIPRI senior researcher Diego Lopes da Silva said.

Meanwhile, Taiwan, the democratic, self-ruled island that the Chinese Communist Party claims as part of its territory despite never having controlled it, increased its military expenditures by 14.2% to $18.2 billion (2.1% of GDP), its biggest jump since at least 1988, according to the SIPRI.

Under the Taiwan Relations Act, Washington is legally required to provide the island with the means to defend itself, and it supplies Taipei with defensive weaponry.

China’s defense spending increased 7.4% – the largest year-on-year jump in the past decade and the 31^st year in a row it has gone up – as Beijing moves to meet a 2035 goal to modernize its forces, the report said.

As a percentage of GDP, Ukraine is the world’s biggest military spender, at an estimated 40%. Kyiv is in its fourth year fighting against a Russian invasion. Ukraine ranks No. 7 globally.

Russia devoted 7.5% of its GDP to the militar

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) The Santa Barbara Fair & Expo wrapped up its first of two long weekends.

Some fairgoers enjoy seeing the rides light up at night.

The Ferris Wheel and the Turbo can be seen from the 101 Freeway.

There are a many rides to choose from that light up the Earl Warren Showgrounds.

There is also an area with rides just for youngsters.

The fair opens again at 4 p.m. Friday, May 1, and runs through Sunday, May 3.

Carnival workers said they get to enjoy Santa Barbara during their midweek break.

For more information visit https://earlwarren.com

The post Santa Barbara Fair & Expo wraps up first weekend appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

Por Briana Waxman, meteoróloga de CNN

Partes del Medio Oeste de Estados Unidos, incluida gran parte de Illinois, podrían enfrentar este lunes la amenaza de tornados violentos, de categoría EF3 o superior, mientras un brote de tiempo severo de varios días entra en lo que podría ser su fase más peligrosa hasta ahora.

Vientos dañinos generalizados, granizo grande y tornados también amenazan a casi 40 millones de personas en una zona más amplia que se extiende desde el valle del Mississippi hasta el valle bajo del río Ohio este lunes.

La amenaza llega después de días de tiempo severo que ya han trazado un camino destructivo por partes de las llanuras y el sur, con más de 50 reportes de tornados desde el jueves. Entre ellos se incluyen un tornado violento, con una calificación preliminar de EF-4, en Enid, Oklahoma; tornados mortales en el norte de Texas; y múltiples advertencias de tornado de “Situación Particularmente Peligrosa” el domingo por la noche.

Este lunes está vigente un riesgo de nivel 3 de 5 por tormentas eléctricas severas desde partes del valle medio del Mississippi hasta el valle bajo del río Ohio, incluyendo casi todo Illinois y zonas de Missouri, el oeste de Indiana, el oeste de Kentucky y el noroeste de Tennessee.

Algunas de estas mismas áreas ya han sido golpeadas por tormentas severas en los últimos días. Elste lunes podría traer una primera ronda de superceldas seguida de una segunda ronda que podría organizarse en una línea de turbonada más tarde en el día.

Las superceldas de este lunes podrían ser capaces de producir algunos tornados potencialmente violentos, de categoría EF-3 o superior, y granizo de hasta el tamaño de una pelota de béisbol o más grande. A medida que las tormentas evolucionen durante la noche, la línea podría generar vientos dañinos generalizados, aunque las circulaciones incrustadas podrían seguir representando un riesgo de tornados.

El corredor desde el centro y sur de Missouri hasta el centro de Illinois podría ofrecer el entorno más favorable para las tormentas más fuertes, aunque la ubicación precisa del mayor potencial de tornados podría depender en parte de cómo las tormentas eléctricas matutinas modifiquen la atmósfera antes de la ronda de la tarde.

El sistema severo se desplaza hacia el este este martes, con un riesgo algo menor, pero aún significativo, de nivel 2 de 5 por tormentas eléctricas severas desde las llanuras del sur, pasando por el Mid-South, hasta el valle bajo del río Ohio.

Un tornado violento arrasó Enid, Oklahoma, la noche del jueves, lo que provocó una rara emergencia por tornado y causó daños de categoría EF-4 en partes de la ciudad, con algunas zonas arrasadas.

El tornado de Enid, con vientos estimados entre 273 km/h y 281 km/h, fue el más fuerte en Estados Unidos desde junio de 2025. Al menos 10 personas resultaron heridas y unas 40 viviendas sufrieron daños, aunque las autoridades dijeron que no se reportaron muertes.

Tornados mortales golpearon el norte de Texas el sábado, incluido un tornado de categoría EF-2 cerca de Runaway Bay, a unos 128 km al noroeste de Dallas. Al menos dos personas murieron y viviendas e infraestructura resultaron dañadas, lo que desplazó a decenas de residentes y aumentó el saldo del brote de tiempo severo de varios días.

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Con información de los meteorólogos Mary Gilb

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By Jessie Yeung and Satish Cheney, CNN

(CNN) — A French teenager is facing up to two years in a Singapore prison after he allegedly licked a straw in an orange juice vending machine – then placed it back in the dispenser.

Singapore, a small, highly-developed and wealthy financial hub in Southeast Asia, is well-known for its strict laws.

The incident took place on March 12 at a shopping center, according to Singapore police. Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, 18, was charged with two offenses for the alleged crime.

The first – a public nuisance offense – is punishable by up to three months’ imprisonment and/or a fine of up to 2,000 Singapore dollars (about $1,570). The second offense of mischief carries a jail term of up to two years, a fine, or both.

The teenager allegedly filmed himself committing the offense and posted it on social media, which quickly went viral and prompted authorities to investigate, according to local media reports.

IJOOZ, the company that operates the vending machines, reportedly had to replace all 500 straws in the machine he used, according to local media.

The teenager is a student at the Singapore branch of the Essec Business School, a French institution with several international campuses. The school confirmed his attendance there, and said it had provided support to the student and are in close contact with his family – but declined to comment further, citing ongoing legal proceedings.

CNN has reached out to IJOOZ, as well his lawyers for comment.

He was offered bail at 5,000 Singapore dollars (about $3,920), according to the Singapore judiciary site. His next court date is on May 22.

It’s not the first time a foreign teenager has fallen afoul of Singapore’s strict laws.

One of the most high-profile cases happened in 1993, when American Michael Fay was arrested for possession of stolen items and vandalizing several cars by spray painting them.

Fay was sentenced to four months’ imprisonment and six strokes of the cane, which was reduced to four strokes after the case caused an international furor and intervention from then-US President Bill Clinton.

Singapore carried out the caning despite strong pressure from Washington, maintaining that it was important to uphold its own laws, even for foreign nationals – briefly straining the US-Singapore relationship.

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By Issy Ronald, Max Foster, Lauren Said-Moorhouse, CNN

Washington, DC (CNN) — Britain’s King Charles III will emphasize the long history and democratic values his country shares with the United States in an address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, delivered while relations between the two nations are at an unusually low ebb.

He will start his speech, which is expected to last around 20 minutes, by expressing solidarity and talk about how the US and United Kingdom stand shoulder-to-shoulder. He will say that he brings “the highest regard and friendship of the British people to the people of the United States” as the nation marks its 250th anniversary of independence, and is expected to reference Saturday’s shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

Charles must strike a delicate balance on this state visit. British monarchs are constitutionally bound to remain above politics, able only to represent the UK rather than speak for its government. At the same time, his presence projects a soft power the British government is attempting to harness – Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper attended Monday’s garden party, where she told CNN the king’s visit was crucial for “people-to-people links” between the two nations.

Trump’s affection for the glitz and glamor of royalty has made the British monarchy a valuable asset for the UK government as it seeks to maintain the nations’ strong bond.

Events like Monday’s garden party, where Charles and Queen Camilla mingled with various guests, and the royals’ private tea with Trump and first lady Melania Trump at the White House provided a classic display of such pageantry. Before addressing Congress, Charles will have a private meeting with the president too.

The address will include remarks that will be viewed as an acknowledgement of the recent tensions between the two countries, following a period during which Trump has repeatedly attacked British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his government for not offering their complete support for the US offensive against Iran.

Despite acknowledging this, Charles will focus on the common ties between the old allies, saying that the foundations of their “democratic, legal and social traditions” – stretching all the way back to Magna Carta – mean that “time and again, our two countries have always found ways to come together.”

He will speak of the military alliance between the two nations, noting that it is “measured not in years but in decades.”

There will be a personal touch in the speech too. Charles will discuss his own faith and his belief that in the hearts of the two nations lies “a generosity of spirit and a duty to foster compassion, to promote peace, to deepen mutual understanding and to value people of all faiths and none.”

And he will conclude by explicitly stating the overarching message of his visit, emphasizing that the two countries’ shared history is one of “reconciliation and renewal,” which has engendered “one of the greatest alliances in human history.”

On Tuesday evening, there will be a State Dinner, featuring toasts from both Charles and Trump.

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CNN, POOL

By Issy Ronald, Max Foster, Lauren Said-Moorhouse, CNN

Washington, DC (CNN) — Britain’s King Charles III will emphasize the long history and democratic values his country shares with the United States in an address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, delivered while relations between the two nations are at an unusually low ebb.

He will start his speech, which is expected to last around 20 minutes, by expressing solidarity and talk about how the US and United Kingdom stand shoulder-to-shoulder. He will say that he brings “the highest regard and friendship of the British people to the people of the United States” as the nation marks its 250th anniversary of independence, and is expected to reference Saturday’s shooting incident at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

Charles must strike a delicate balance on this state visit. British monarchs are constitutionally bound to remain above politics, able only to represent the UK rather than speak for its government. At the same time, his presence projects a soft power the British government is attempting to harness – Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper attended Monday’s garden party, where she told CNN the king’s visit was crucial for “people-to-people links” between the two nations.

Trump’s affection for the glitz and glamor of royalty has made the British monarchy a valuable asset for the UK government as it seeks to maintain the nations’ strong bond.

Events like Monday’s garden party, where Charles and Queen Camilla mingled with various guests, and the royals’ private tea with Trump and first lady Melania Trump at the White House provided a classic display of such pageantry. Before addressing Congress, Charles will have a private meeting with the president too.

The address will include remarks that will be viewed as an acknowledgement of the recent tensions between the two countries, following a period during which Trump has repeatedly attacked British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his government for not offering their complete support for the US offensive against Iran.

Despite acknowledging this, Charles will focus on the common ties between the old allies, saying that the foundations of their “democratic, legal and social traditions” – stretching all the way back to Magna Carta – mean that “time and again, our two countries have always found ways to come together.”

He will speak of the military alliance between the two nations, noting that it is “measured not in years but in decades.”

There will be a personal touch in the speech too. Charles will discuss his own faith and his belief that in the hearts of the two nations lies “a generosity of spirit and a duty to foster compassion, to promote peace, to deepen mutual understanding and to value people of all faiths and none.”

And he will conclude by explicitly stating the overarching message of his visit, emphasizing that the two countries’ shared history is one of “reconciliation and renewal,” which has engendered “one of the greatest alliances in human history.”

On Tuesday evening, there will be a State Dinner, featuring

UC SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) - The Bruins wasted no time in getting their revenge.

Two batters into the game it was 2-0 after UCLA superstar Roch Cholowsky launched a 2-run towering home run to left off of Van Froling who did not survive the first inning.

The top-ranked Bruins sent 10 batters to the plate, scoring 5 first-inning runs as they spanked UCSB 15-3 in a game shortened to seven innings due to the run-rule.

Earlier in the month UCSB went to Los Angeles and stunned the #1 Bruins 4-0 ending their 27-game winning streak.

Phoenix Call finished off the scoring in the first with a 2-run, 2-out bases loaded double that ended Froling's night as well.

San Marcos alum Chase Hoover restored some order by pitching 2.1 innings allowing just one run and the Gauchos trailed 6-0 after four innings.

But the Bruins erupted for 6 more runs in the fifth inning highlighted by a Payton Brennan home run and an RBI single by Cholowsky who drove in 3 runs in the game and scored 3 times as well.

Noah Karliner was the lone bright spot in the Gauchos lineup as he hit two home runs from the #9 spot, a solo home run in the fifth and a 2-run blast in the 7th inning.

(Despite Karliner's 2nd home run of the game, the Gauchos were run-ruled by UCLA. Entenza Design).

UCSB is now 27-15 while UCLA improves to a sensational 40-4 on the season.

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SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (KEYT) - A quartet of pitchers combined on Cal Poly's second shutout of the season and Nate Castellon smashed a solo home run as part of his ninth three-hit game as the Mustangs blanked Santa Clara 7-0 on Tuesday afternoon inside Baggett Stadium.

Sean McGrath pitched five scoreless innings and matched his season high with six strikeouts while Chris Downs, Arlo Pendleton and Luke Kalfsbeek finished the shutout, combining for six more strikeouts, for Cal Poly, which won its fourth straight game and improved its overall mark to 25-18.

Playing its final midweek home game of 2026, Cal Poly amassed 12 hits, reaching double figures for the 10th time in its last 11 contests, and broke open a 1-0 game with five runs on four doubles and a pair of run-scoring singles in the fifth inning.

Held to four singles and striking out a dozen times, Santa Clara fell to 16-27. The Broncos had beaten the Mustangs 10 times in the last 13 meetings between the two teams.

McGrath, who earlier this month earned victories against San Jose State and Pepperdine, both at home, lowered his ERA from 7.11 to 5.93, evened his win-loss record at 3-3 and struck out six for the third time this month. The freshman right-hander is 3-1 with a 1.96 ERA in the month of April.

Downs struck out four Broncos over two innings, Pendleton added a pair of strikeouts in his inning of work on the mound and Kalfsbeek allowed a leadoff walk but nothing else in the ninth inning for Cal Poly, which blanked Washington State 9-0 in its home opener Feb. 20.

Offensively, five Mustangs produced two or more hits, led by Castellon. The sophomore shortstop now has 17 multiple-hit games this season as he added two singles and his fourth home run of the season to his ledger, lifting his average for the year to .351.

Right fielder Dylan Kordic contributed a pair of RBI singles while third baseman Alejandro Garza and catcher Ryan Tayman both had two hits and one RBI. Left fielder Dante Vachini singled and doubled, scoring once.

Garza's single and double for his 21st multiple-hit game of the year raised his career hit total to 234, leaving him 18 shy of the school's career hits record. He has lifted his average 93 points to .360 since mid-March.

Hitting .167 in late March, Kordic has gone 20-for-51 (.392) in his last 17 games with five home runs and 20 RBIs, and currently sports a .290 mark at the plate.

A scoreless tie was broken up in the fourth inning as Tayman doubled and Kordic drove in the run with an RBI single to right-center field.

Cal Poly put up a five-spot on the scoreboard in the fifth. Vachini doubled to start the rally, coming home on Castellon's RBI single. Garza, Jake Downing and Tayman all doubled to drive in runs and Kordic capped the uprising with a run-scoring single to right field.

Final tally of the game was provided by Castellon with his two-out solo home run to left field, his fourth of the year and seventh of his Mustang career.

Santa Clara used five pitchers in the game. Andrew Habermann (0-2), the first reliever out of the bullpen for the Broncos, suffered the loss, allowing five runs and eight hits over 2 1/3 innings.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) -

Santa Barbara 4, San Marcos 3 (8 innings) Jack Paskin delivered a go-ahead RBI single in the 8th inning as the Dons knocked rival San Marcos out of sole possession of first place in the Channel League. Same two teams will play on Friday at 3:30 p.m. at Santa Barbara High School.

Dos Pueblos 2, Oxnard 0: Shea Liam and Nick Salcido combined on the shutout as the Chargers pull into a first place tie with the Royals. Matti DiMaggio scored both runs for DP which ends the league season on Friday at Oxnard.

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By Aleks Klosok, Amanda Davies, CNN

Madrid, Spain (CNN) — 50-50. With just over two years to go, a coinflip is the chance Simone Biles has put on competing at the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

The most decorated gymnast of all-time has previously stated she’ll be at the Games in “some capacity.”

Now in an interview with CNN Sports, Biles has offered a glimmer of hope to millions of fans around the world hoping to see her take to the floor for one last dance.

“I feel like we’re still at a 50-50 and that we’re still on a time crunch here now it’s almost half of 2026,” the 29-year-old says speaking at the recent Laureus World Sports Awards in Madrid.

“We’re going to have to make these decisions pretty quickly.”

The 11-time Olympic medalist is currently taking a break from the sport to, as she puts it, allow her body to recover. She hopes to begin doing some Pilates and yoga soon but stresses “that’s as far as I got right now.”

What then is the key consideration for Biles as she weighs up a potential fourth appearance at the summer Games?

“Mental health plays a big role in it because, physically, my coaches will get me in shape,” she explains.

“I can get myself in shape. We believe in that ability. We’re really thankful that I’m still healthy.

“Mental is a huge thing and it’s a lot of dedication on that because the road’s not easy. It’s long, but it’s still work.”

Realness and rawness

Biles has openly and honestly shared her struggles with mental health since taking time away from gymnastics following the tumult of the Tokyo Olympics.

There, a mental block known as “the twisties” forced her to withdraw from multiple events, including the women’s team final.

It’s a moment she reflects on as being “pivotal” – not only for her, but the wider conversation both within sports and everyday life.

“I feel like it showed the realness to me because everyone thought I was a robot, she’s not real, but it’s like, down to the core, I’m just like you guys. I’m real,” she says candidly.

“It got me the therapy that I deserved, and I’m still currently in therapy.

“I had a lot of help and my core group was really helpful in letting me know that it’s OK people go through this and you’re just human.

“Gymnasts aren’t viewed as people who have weaknesses, and that was the first time that weakness was displayed on a global stage like that.

“Now, I look at it as being courageous and not so much a weakness.”

Supporting Malinin, Vonn

Just as Biles has her support network, she’s been keen to reciprocate that for her fellow US Olympians.

Following the end of the Paris Games and the conclusion of her US tour Gold Over America, she has enjoyed time away from the sport.

Biles, however, was an avid spectator at the recent Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina.

She watched on as figure skater Ilia Malinin experienced his own version of the “twisties.”

The “Quad God” was the clear favorite for the gold medal in the men’s individual competition only to see those dreams dashed, falling twice and failing to perform his trademark quadruple axel durin

By Will Ripley, CNN

(CNN) — At the unveiling of a towering bronze sculpture of North Korean and Russian soldiers in combat, Kim Jong Un praised troops who chose death over capture while fighting in Ukraine. It was a striking and unusually explicit acknowledgment of Pyongyang’s long-suspected battlefield doctrine.

According to a transcript published by North Korean state media KCNA, Kim declared that those who “unhesitatingly opted for self-blasting” and suicide attacks had shown the highest form of loyalty, a reference to soldiers throwing themselves on grenades or detonating explosives rather than risk being taken prisoner.

Kim made the remarks at the opening of a vast new memorial complex on the outskirts of the capital, walking past rows of freshly laid graves before kneeling to place soil into an open burial site. Inside, bronze statuary and black marble walls etched with names surround displays of soldiers’ remains, personal relics and captured military equipment. The site, part cemetery and part museum, is the centerpiece of a broader campaign to frame the deaths of North Korean soldiers in Russia’s war on its neighbor as acts of heroism and patriotic sacrifice.

For months, North Korean state media has offered vivid and often graphic accounts of how those soldiers died. Previous reporting has described troops detonating grenades as they were surrounded, shouting for comrades to stay back before triggering the blast, or killing themselves after being wounded to avoid capture. In one account, soldiers embraced each other before setting off explosives.

For years, intelligence agencies, Ukrainian officials and defectors have reported that North Korean soldiers were expected to take their own lives rather than be captured. Pyongyang never confirmed it. Now the doctrine is being endorsed at the highest level, in public, at a site built to honor the war dead.

The memorial offers one of the clearest indications yet of the scale of North Korea’s involvement in Russia’s war. Analysis by NK News found that two black marble walls inside the complex list 2,288 names of soldiers believed to have died in combat, alongside 271 graves and more than 1,700 columbarium compartments for cremated remains. The complex has expanded walls and empty space for future graves, suggesting this is not a closed chapter.

South Korean and Western officials estimate more than 10,000 North Korean troops have been deployed to Russia’s Kursk region, with thousands killed or wounded, losses North Korea has not admitted shown so openly until now.

Unveiled on the one-year anniversary of Russia’s declaration of victory in Kursk, with senior Moscow officials in attendance and a message from President Vladimir Putin read aloud, the complex also displays captured military equipment, including what appear to be German Leopard tanks, American Abrams tanks and other NATO-origin systems, though analysts question whether North Korean forces obtained them directly.

A small number of North Korean soldiers are known to have been

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Eleven student-athletes were recognized by San Marcos High School in a ceremony at the gym. Each person announced the four-year college in which they will continue their academic and athletic journey.

Brynn Behrens Sailing Tulane
Carly Grant Lacrosse Whitworth University
Charlotte Hastings Volleyball Seattle Pacific University
Koji Hefner Basketball Claremont McKenna
Gianna Hernandez Stunt Cheer Westmont
Sofi Hernandez Track Westmont
Monique Jimenez Stunt Cheer Westmont
Jeannie Johnson Beach Volleyball The Master's
Jack Kramer Water Polo Chapman
Logan Patterson Deakyne Track Cal Poly Humboldt
Samara Shalhoub Track Point Loma

Last fall the Royals had twelve student-athletes sign so San Marcos has a total of 23 commit to four-year colleges during the 2025-'26 school year.

The post San Marcos celebrates 11 more student-athletes going to the next level appeared first on News Channel 3-12.

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KEYT) -

CIF-SS Division 1 First Round: Santa Margarita 3, San Marcos 0: Matteo Burdick led the Royals with 12 kills but the visiting Eagles sweep (25-19, 25-21, 25-20).

(Despite a size difference, Burdick still delivered double-digit kills and 3 aces for the Royals. Entenza Design).

The Royals end their sensational regular season at 24-3. San Marcos loses just one senior Koji Hefner who finished with 5 kills.

CIF-SS Division 2 First Round: Camarillo 3, Canyon/Anaheim 0: Camarillo at Yorba Linda in quarterfinals on May 5.

CIF-SS Division 3 First Round: Santa Barbara 3, Diamond Rancho 1: Jasper Bell and Kristian Dybdahl each had 13 kills to lead the Dons into the second round where they will play at Servite on Friday. Maddox Denver stuffed the stat sheet for Santa Barbara with 31 assists, 8 digs and 6 kills.

CIF-SS Division 5 First Round: Dos Pueblos 3, Aquinas 2: The Chargers will play at Hemet in the second round.

CIF-SS Division 5 First Round: Bishop Diego 3, Rio Hondo Prep 0: John Michael Flint and Damien Krautmann each had 21 kills to lead the Cardinals to their first playoff victory since 2022.

(The visiting Kares were overpowered by Krautmann and company. Entenza Design).

Bishop Diego will remain home in the second round on Friday against La Quinta/Westminster.

CIF-SS Division 5 First Round: Ventura 3, Vista Del Lago: 0: Ventura at Flintridge Prep on Friday.

CIF-SS Division 6 First Round: Capo Valley Christian 3, Carpinteria 1

CIF-SS Division 7 First Round: Foothill Tech 3, Anaheim 0: Foothill Tech hosts Bell Gardens on Friday.

CIF-SS Division 7 First Round: Godinez 3, Providence (SB) 2

CIF-SS Division 8 First Round: Laguna Blanca 3, Lynwood 0: Owls hosts West Valley on Thursda

Por Natasha Bertrand y Zachary Cohen, CNN

La estimación de US$ 25.000 millones que un alto funcionario del Pentágono presentó el miércoles a los legisladores sobre el coste total hasta la fecha de la guerra con Irán es una cifra muy baja que no incluye el coste de reparar los extensos daños sufridos por las bases estadounidenses en la región, informaron a CNN tres personas familiarizadas con el asunto.

Una de las fuentes indicó que el costo real estimado se acerca más a los US$ 40.000 o US$ 50.000 millones si se tienen en cuenta los costos de reconstrucción de las instalaciones militares estadounidenses y la sustitución de los bienes destruidos.

Según ha informado CNN, los ataques iraníes en el golfo Pérsico durante los primeros días de la guerra dañaron significativamente al menos nueve instalaciones militares estadounidenses en tan solo 48 horas, alcanzando emplazamientos en Bahrein, Kuwait, Iraq, los Emiratos Árabes Unidos y Qatar.

Varios sistemas de radar estadounidenses críticos y otros equipos en Medio Oriente también fueron destruidos por ataques iraníes, incluido el sistema de radar de una batería de misiles THAAD estadounidense en Jordania y edificios que albergaban sistemas de radar similares en dos ubicaciones de los Emiratos Árabes Unidos, también divulgó CNN.

Un avión E-3 Sentry de la Fuerza Aérea de EE.UU. también fue destruido en un ataque iraní contra una base aérea en Arabia Saudí.

Jules “Jay” Hurst III, el funcionario del Pentágono que actualmente se desempeña como contralor de la agencia, declaró el miércoles ante la Comisión de Servicios Armados de la Cámara de Representantes que “la mayor parte” de los US$ 25.000 millones que mencionó se han gastado en municiones.

El secretario de Defensa, Pete Hegseth, se negó a decir si esa cifra incluía la reparación de los daños a las bases estadounidenses.

CNN ha solicitado comentarios al Pentágono.

El representante demócrata Ro Khanna se mostró escéptico ante la estimación de US$ 25.000 millones, calificándola de “totalmente errónea” durante la audiencia del miércoles.

Funcionarios del Pentágono habían informado previamente al Congreso que la guerra costó aproximadamente US$ 11.000 millones solo en los primeros seis días, y el departamento solicitó a la Casa Blanca el mes pasado que aprobara una petición al Congreso de más de US$ 200.000 millones en fondos militares adicionales para la guerra en curso, informó CNN.

Trump habla de mantener el bloqueo de los puertos iraníes durante meses.

Durante las reuniones informativas sobre el presupuesto con los periodistas la semana pasada, Hurst declaró que el Pentágono no tiene “una cifra definitiva sobre los daños sufridos por nuestras instalaciones en el extranjero” y que depende “de cómo decidamos reconstruirlas, o si lo hacemos”.

Señaló que el precio de reparar esas instalaciones “no se refleja” en la solicitud presupuestaria del Pentágono de US$ 1,5 billones para el año fiscal 2027, en parte porque el departamento todavía está evaluando “qué queremos construir en el futuro”.

“Nuestros socios también podrían aportar una parte para esa construcción”, indicó Hurst. “Así que no tenemos una estimación precisa de lo que costaría reconstruir esas instalaciones”.

Según informaron funcionarios la semana pasada, el presupuesto solicitado de US$ 1,5 billones para 2027 supondría un aumento del 42 % en la financiación del De