The National Weather Service on Wednesday warned gusty winds and low humidity have increased the risk that fires could spread rapidly in the western parts of each Hawaiian island, three weeks after a deadly blaze tore through a coastal Maui town during a similar alert.But the agency said winds would not be as powerful compared to Aug. 8 when flames burned down much of Lahaina, killing at least 115 people and destroying more than 2,000 structures. The fire was the deadliest in the U.S. in more than a century.Lahaina's flames were fanned by wind gusts topping 60 mph (97 kph). This time, winds are forecast to be 15 to 30 mph (24 to 48 kph) with gusts up to 50 mph (80 kph), said Maureen Ballard, meteorologist at the agency’s Honolulu office.- There is a magnitude of difference between the wind speeds in this event versus August 8th - Ballard said.The agency issued a Red Flag Warning for the leeward sides of the Hawaiian Islands through Thursday afternoon. It said gusts, low humidity and dry grasses and trees could contribute to “extreme fire behavior.” It urged people to delay activities that could throw off sparks.<h2>Powerful winds</h2>- It’s definitely still something to be concerned about - Ballard said.The Lahaina fire was fueled by powerful winds whipped up by a combination of Hurricane Dora, which passed some 500 miles (800 kilometers) to the south, and a very strong high pressure system to the north of the islands.The cause of the blaze hasn't been determined, but it's possible it was ignited by bare electrical wire and leaning power poles toppled by the strong winds.Maui's electric utility, Hawaiian Electric, acknowledged its power lines started a wildfire on Maui but faulted county firefighters for declaring the blaze contained and leaving the scene, only to have a second wildfire break out nearby.Maui County has sued the utility.<h2>Ensuring public safety</h2>As high winds re-entered the weather forecast on Tuesday, the county, Hawaiian Electric and Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara, head of the Hawaii National Guard, issued a joint statement saying they were working together to minimize the risk of wildfire and ensure public safety.“In our lifetimes, Hawaii has never been tested like this,” the statement said. “We will do what we have always done when confronted by hardship and heartbreak – we will stand together for our people and communities and work to keep them safe.”The electric utility serving Kauai said it would cut power to a mountainous western part of the island in response to the weather service warning.The Kauai Island Utility Cooperative said in a news release it would de-energize the electrical line serving about 100 members in Kokee and Makaha Ridge.The utility said it expected it wouldn't restore power to this area until the Red Flag Warning is rescinded and utility crews have inspected the lines to make sure they are safe to re-energize.

The agency issued a Red Flag Warning for the leeward sides of the Hawaiian Islands

A man views the aftermath of a wildfire in Lahaina

Forecasters are warning gusty winds and low humidity raise risk of fires spreading rapidly in Hawaii

A nighttime fire ripped through a rundown five-story building in Johannesburg that was occupied by homeless people and squatters, leaving at least 73 people dead early Thursday, emergency services in South Africa's biggest city said.Some of the people living in a maze of shacks and other makeshift structures inside the derelict building threw themselves out of windows to escape the fire and might have died then, a local government official said.A witness said he saw people throwing babies out of the burning building in an attempt to save them and that at least one man died when he jumped from a window on the third floor and hit the concrete sidewalk “head first.”As many as 200 people may have been living in the building, witnesses said, including in the basement, which should have been used as a parking garage. Others estimated an even higher number of occupants.<h2>The youngest a 1-year-old</h2>Seven of the victims were children, the youngest a 1-year-old, according to an emergency services spokesperson.City officials said 141 families were affected by the tragedy but could not say exactly how many people were in the building when the fire started. Many of the people inside were foreign nationals, the officials said.Emergency crews expected to find more victims as they worked their way through the building, a process slowed by the conditions inside. Dozens of bodies were lined up on a nearby side road, some in body bags, and others covered with silver sheets and blankets.Another 55 people were injured in the blaze, which broke out at about 1 a.m. in the heart of Johannesburg's central business district, Johannesburg Emergency Services Management spokesman Robert Mulaudzi said.- This is a tragedy for Johannesburg. Over 20 years in the service, I’ve never come across something like this - Mulaudzi said.<h2>&nbsp;Africa’s richest city</h2>A woman who asked not to be identified said she lived in the building and escaped the flames with her grown son and a 2-year-old child. She stood outside holding the toddler for hours and said she didn’t know what happened to two other children from her family.“I just saw smoke everywhere and I just ran out with this baby only,” the woman said. “I don’t have any home, and I don’t know what to do anymore.”Johannesburg is rated as Africa’s richest city but its center is rundown and often neglected. Abandoned and broken-down buildings are common, and people desperate for some form of accommodation often take them over. City authorities refer to the structures as “hijacked buildings."The building in question was reportedly owned by the city of Johannesburg and is considered a heritage site but not regulated by the local government.It was the site of South Africa’s notorious “pass” office, which controlled the movement of Black people under the racist system of apartheid, according to a blue historical plaque hanging at the entrance.“Denied a place in the city, many were ordered to leave Johannesburg,” the plaque reads.Decades later, the deadly fire made the building an emblem of the exclusion of poor people in Johannesburg,Speaking at the scene, Gauteng province's police commissioner, Lt. Gen. Elias Mawela said police were aware of approximately 700 buildings in central Johannesburg that were derelict and abandoned by their official owners. He urged city authorities to act.<h2>More bodies inside the building</h2>Mulaudzi, the emergency services spokesperson, said the death toll was likely to increase and more bodies were probably trapped inside the building. The fire took three hours to contain, he said, and firefighters needed time to work through all five floors.The building's interior was effectively “an informal settlement” where shacks and other structures had been thrown up and people were crammed into rooms, he said. There were “obstructions” everywhere that would have made it very difficult for residents to escape the deadly blaze and which hindered emergency crews trying to work through the site, according to Mulaudzi.Search teams found 73 bodies. The chance of anyone else being found alive hours after the fire broke out was “very slim,” he said.Another witness who didn't give his name told television news channel eNCA that he lived in a building next door and heard people screaming for help and shouting “We're dying in here” when the fire started.Mgcini Tshwaku, a local government official, said there were indications that people lit candles and fires inside the building for light and to keep warm in the winter cold. Officials were looking into the cause of the blaze but Tshwaku said the initial evidence suggested it started with a candle.As the fire raged, some occupants got trapped behind locked gates at the exits, Tshwaku said, and it was clear there was no proper fire escape routes.“People couldn’t get out,” he said.After the fire was extinguished, smoke still seeped out of windows of the blackened building as daylight broke. Sheets, blankets and other items that had been twisted into makeshift ropes hung out of some of the broken windows.

After the fire was extinguished, smoke still seeped out of windows of the blackened building as daylight broke

A building fire in Johannesburg leaves at least 73 dead, many of them homeless, authorities say

A Tennessee woman was charged with first-degree murder on Wednesday in connection with the killing of a police officer in suburban Kansas City after a car chase ended in a shootout that also killed the fleeing vehicle's driver.Andrea Rene Cothran, 32, Goodlettsville, was already charged with crimes stemming from the Aug. 6 police chase, the Johnson County prosecutor's office said in a statement. Those include aggravated battery, fleeing law enforcement, felony theft and reckless driving.<h2>The police chase</h2>The earlier charges all pertain to the police chase, Johnson County District Attorney Steve Howe told the Kansas City Star earlier this month. He said the battery charge is related to the start of the chase, using the vehicle as a deadly weapon.Her bond was set at $1 million.Fairway police Officer Jonah Oswald, 29, had been on the force for four years. He was hospitalized in critical condition and died a few days later. He leaves behind a wife and two young children.Police in the nearby suburb of Lenexa, Kansas, say the episode began when the suspected driver, Shannon Wayne Marshall of Ashland City, Tennessee, fled from police in what officers believed was a stolen car. When officers initially found the vehicle, police said the driver struck a patrol car.<h2>Investigation</h2>Marshall drove along Interstate 35 to a QuikTrip store in Mission, another suburb, where police from multiple agencies tried to arrest him. Gunfire broke out and Marshall was killed.Cothran's attorney, Joel Rook, did not immediately return a phone message seeking comment Wednesday.A Johnson County law enforcement team that is charged with reviewing officer-involved shootings is investigating.

Andrea Rene Cothran, 32, Goodlettsville, was already charged with crimes stemming from the Aug. 6 police chase

Woman charged with murder in case of Kansas officer

Woman charged with murder in case of Kansas officer killed in shootout with car chase suspect

A dog stolen from its house has been returned after a video of Wednesday's theft was widely publicised.Twiglet, a dachshund, was snatched by a thief who smashed a patio door at a house in Essex.<h2>Footage of the dog</h2>Police released footage of the dog struggling to get away from the thief, who was believed to have sold her on.Owner Jo Vindis said they were "elated" to be reunited with Twiglet on Thursday and "without the video we probably would never have seen her again".- Well, we do love our dogs, don't we? I think it just resonated with everyone with a dog, or even without, just how someone from your family - just snatched out of your home - it's just horrible - she said.<h2>Stolen from the owner's house</h2>The break-in happened at the owner's house in the hamlet of Catmere End near Saffron Walden at about 15:00 BST."Our neighbours were round the house within a few minutes of the alarm going off, but he'd already taken her at that point," said Ms Vindis."It looks as though that's what he was after. Nothing else was taken."Posting on a lost-and-found dogs Facebook group, the owners wrote: "We can't thank everyone enough for all of the posts and reposts and noise that has meant that she most likely did become 'too hot to handle'."We are blown away by how amazing people have been and want to thank you all so, so much."

Police released footage of the dog struggling to get away from the thief, who was believed to have sold her on

Essex dachshund Twiglet returned after video of theft shared

Rising water from the Yamuna river on Wednesday reached the outer boundary walls of the iconic Taj Mahal and submerged one of its adjacent gardens after record monsoon rains swelled rivers across northern India over the last three weeks.The flooding at the 17th-century white marble monument in Agra city came as heavy floods had killed at least 100 people in parts of north India, swept away houses and bridges and resulted in deadly landslides.On Wednesday, the red sandstone boundary walls of the Taj Mahal were surrounded by brown, muddy water, even as a flock of tourists thronged the historical monument left untouched by the river. Water from the overflowing Yamuna, however, flooded some low-lying houses near the monument, prompting officials to move residents to safer places.<h2>Boundary walls</h2>Local residents and officials said the river last touched the boundary walls of the monument in 2010.In 1978 the flood water seeped into the monument’s basement, but a recurrence of that event is unlikely this time, officials said.A spokesperson of the Archaeological Survey of India, which manages the Taj Mahal, said the increased water levels pose no threat to the iconic monument.<h2>There is no threat</h2>Prince Vajpayee, conservation assistant at the Taj Mahal, told the Press Trust of India news agency that the monument is built on a raised structure and the flood water did not pose any threat to it at the moment.The famed Taj Mahal, often called a monument to love, was built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan on the southern banks of the Yamuna river in memory of his favorite wife, Mumtaz. The complex houses both their graves, a mosque, and several graves of other Mughal royalty.The monument, acclaimed for its delicate latticework, is India’s biggest tourist draw, attracting millions of visitors every year.

The flooding at the 17th-century white marble monument in Agra city came as heavy floods had killed at least 100 people in parts of north India

A swollen Yamuna river rises to the periphery of the Taj Mahal monument in Agra, India

Yamuna river reaches the iconic Taj Mahal's outer walls in India after swelling with monsoon rains

Long buried under the woods of west central Louisiana, stone tools, spearpoints and other evidence of people living in the area as long as 12,000 years ago have become more exposed and vulnerable, due to hurricanes, flooding and looters.This summer, archaeologists have been gingerly digging up the ground at the Vernon Parish site in the Kisatchie National Forest. They have been sifting through dirt to unearth and preserve the evidence of prehistoric occupation of the area.- The site appears to have been continuously occupied throughout prehistory, as evidenced by a wide range of stone tools and pottery dating to each Native American cultural era up to European contact - the U.S. Forest Service said in an news release.<h2>Found by surveyors</h2>The site was found by surveyors in 2003, according to the Forest Service. After hurricanes Laura and Delta uprooted trees, disturbing and exposing some of the artifacts, Kisatchie National Forest officials used hurricane relief money to begin salvage excavations to learn more about the site, and to preserve it.- Between the looting and the hurricane damage we were really in danger of losing this site over time - Forest Service archaeologist Matthew Helmer said during a media tour of the site in June.Helmer, walked amid areas already excavated, pointing to changes in soil color and texture that, like the crude artifacts being excavated, can give clues as researchers work to determine facts about the people who occupied the area at different times over the millennia.- We're really writing the history of these peoples that lived prior to 1492, all the way back 10,000-plus years - said Helmer.<h2>Opportunity for Mark Rees</h2>It's a welcome opportunity for Mark Rees, a professor of archaeology at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and director of the Louisiana Public Archaeology Lab.Still, Rees laments that the work is hampered by people who have made unauthorized digs and made off with material from the site.- It's like walking into the archive and finding a book that's so rare it's one of a kind and it predates writing itself, it's like tearing a page out of that book and walking off with it - said Rees.The salvaged artifacts will be sorted, catalogued and examined as researchers at the archaeology lab seek to make determinations about past cultures at the site.

This summer, archaeologists have been gingerly digging up the ground at the Vernon Parish site in the Kisatchie National Forest

A worker digs in an archeological site in Kisatchie National Forest

Archaeologists in Louisiana save artifacts 12,000 years old from natural disasters and looters

The number of people who died in connection with Kenya’s doomsday cult has crossed the 400 mark as detectives exhumed 12 more bodies on Monday believed to be followers of a pastor who ordered them to fast to death in order to meet Jesus.Pastor Paul Mackenzie, who is linked to the cult based in a forested area in Malindi, coastal Kenya, is in police custody, along with 36 other suspects. All have yet to be charged.Coast Regional Commissioner Rhoda Onyancha on Monday said the number of those who died has risen to 403, with 95 people rescued.<h2>Hunger strike in prison</h2>Last month, some suspects and people rescued started a hunger strike in prison and at the rescue center, prompting the prosecutor to take them to court for attempting to kill themselves. Most of them agreed to resume eating, but one suspect died in custody.Some 613 people have so far been reported missing to Kenya Red Cross officers stationed in Malindi town. Detectives are still finding mass graves.Onyancha said 253 of the 403 bodies had undergone DNA matching. Pathologists had earlier said most of the bodies were decomposed.<h2>Asking children not to go to school</h2>Mackenzie moved to the forested area in 2019 after his church was closed over his preaching, which included asking children not to go to school.He was previously arrested and released on bond over the disappearance of children.A judicial commission of inquiry formed by President William Ruto to establish what happened and who was liable was quashed by a court order after opposition leader Raila Odinga filed a petition against it.The president had said what transpired in Malindi was “akin to terrorism” and vowed to crack down on “those using religion to advance their heinous acts”.

Pastor Paul Mackenzie, who is linked to the cult based in a forested area in Kenya, is in police custody, along with 36 other suspects

Body bags are laid out at the scene where dozens of bodies have been found in shallow graves

Kenya doomsday cult deaths top 400 as detectives exhume 12 more bodies, with the pastor in custody

A court in Romania’s capital on Tuesday ruled to extend by another 30 days the house arrest of Andrew Tate, the divisive social media influencer who is charged with rape, human trafficking and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women.The decision at the Bucharest Tribunal comes a month after prosecutors formally indicted the 36-year-old social media star along with his brother Tristan and two Romanian women in the same case. All four defendants — who were arrested in late December near Bucharest and have denied the allegations against them — will remain under house arrest for 30 more days.<h2>Universe bends towards justice</h2>Outside the court on Monday, Tate told journalists that “the moral arc of the universe bends towards justice in the end.”"My brother and I are extremely resilient people. … In the end justice shall be served,” he said. “We’re feeling like things are going to work out perfectly in the end — and until then we’re going to follow the judicial process.”The Tate brothers, who are dual U.K.-U.S. citizens, will likely appeal against Tuesday's ruling. The Tates lost their last appeal on July 6 against a prior house arrest extension.<h2>Won an appeal on March 31</h2>After spending three months in police detention in Bucharest, the Tate brothers won an appeal on March 31 to be moved to house arrest. In June, Romania’s anti-organized crime agency known as DIICOT had requested that judges extend the house arrest measure after the agency filed its investigation.Andrew Tate, who has been accused of peddling conspiracy theories online and has amassed 7.2 million Twitter followers, has repeatedly claimed that prosecutors have no evidence against him and that there is a political conspiracy designed to silence him.Before the court’s decision on Tuesday, a post appeared on his Twitter account that read: “There are Matrix agents on all sides of the political spectrum. War is funded. Trump and I are self funded. Basically everyone else is bought and paid for.”<h2>&nbsp;A criminal group in 2021</h2>DIICOT alleges that the four defendants formed a criminal group in 2021 “in order to commit the crime of human trafficking” in Romania, as well as in the United States and Britain.There are seven female victims in the case, DIICOT said, who were lured with false pretenses of love and transported to Romania, where the gang sexually exploited them and subjected them to physical violence. One defendant is accused of raping a woman twice in March 2022, according to the agency. The women were allegedly controlled by “intimidation, constant surveillance” and claims they were in debt, prosecutors said.Previously banned Andrew Tate was previously banned from various prominent social media platforms for expressing hate speech and misogynistic comments, including that women should bear responsibility for getting sexually assaulted.Several women in Britain also are pursuing civil claims to obtain damages from Tate, alleging they were victims of sexual violence.

Andrew Tate was previously banned from various prominent social media platforms for expressing hate speech and misogynistic comments

Andrew Tate leaves the Bucharest Tribunal

Romanian court rules to keep Andrew Tate under house arrest as human trafficking case continues

The World Health Organization said more than two dozen cats have been infected with bird flu across Poland, but no people appeared to have been sickened.In a statement on Monday, the U.N. health agency said it was the first time so many cats had been reported to have bird flu over such a wide geographical area in a single country, amid an unprecedented global outbreak of the latest version of the H5N1 version of the disease.WHO said that late last month, Polish authorities informed agency officials of the unusual deaths of more than 45 cats in 13 geographical regions of the country. Testing last week found that 29 had H5N1.<h2>Variant of H5N1 has been reported</h2>As of June, the most recent variant of H5N1 has been reported in birds and other animal species in Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas. Since 2020, WHO said a dozen human cases have been reported.Scientists worry that rising cases of H5N1, particularly in animals that have frequent contact with humans, might lead to a mutated version of the disease that could spread easily between people, triggering another pandemic.Before the COVID-19 pandemic, many experts had suspected that the next global outbreak would be sparked by H5N1. But while bird flu has killed hundreds of millions of birds globally, it has sickened fewer than 900 people since 2003 and has not been able to spread easily among humans.<h2>The domestic cats</h2>sWHO said it was unclear how the domestic cats in Poland became infected with bird flu and said officials were still investigating possible sources of exposure, including contact with wild birds that are known to carry H5N1. The agency said the risk of people in Poland being infected with bird flu was “low” and “low to moderate” for people exposed to cats, including cat owners and veterinarians.Last week, WHO and partners warned that the increasing numbers of mammals infected with H5N1 were unusual. Experts have previously cautioned that pigs, which are susceptible to flu viruses from both humans and birds, might act as a “mixing vessel,” leading to the emergence of mutated viruses that could be lethal to people.Since last year, authorities in 10 countries have reported bird flu outbreaks in mammals, including farmed mink in Spain, seals in the U.S., and sea lions in Peru and Chile.

It was the first time so many cats had been reported to have bird flu over such a wide geographical area in a single country

Dozens of cats in Poland had bird flu but the risk to people is low, the UN health agency says

An early morning fire on Thursday killed nearly all the animals at a wildlife center in Florida, officials said.News outlets reported the fire broke out around 3 a.m. Thursday at the Alligator and Wildlife Discovery Center in Madeira Beach, near St. Petersburg on Florida's Gulf Coast.- We suffered from a tragic fire last night. Nearly all of the animals are gone. We are devastated - a post on the wildlife center's Facebook page said.Sonny Flynn, who owns the center, told WTSP that all of the mammals inside the building died and many of the reptiles were injured. Small mammals, lizards, amphibians, turtles and tortoises, fresh and saltwater marine life, and alligators were among the 250 animals at the center.- They didn’t deserve this. This is my whole life - Flynn said. “They all have names, they all have personality, I come in every morning and talk to them like Dr. Dolittle.”Flynn said about 95% of the animals at the center were “pet surrenders because people didn’t know how to take care of them, or they weren’t able to take care of them.”Madeira Beach Fire Department Fire Chief Clint Belk told news outlets that crews were met with heavy fire and smoke at the front of the building.An investigation is underway to determine the cause.

Flynn said about 95% of the animals at the center were pet surrenders because people didn’t know how to take care of them

A fire killed nearly every animal at a Florida wildlife center

President Joe Biden said he and other NATO leaders showed the world that the military alliance remains “more united than ever,” as he on Thursday capped off a trip in Europe meant to demonstrate the force of the international coalition against Russia's invasion of Ukraine.The allies “understand that this fight is not only a fight for the future of Ukraine,” Biden said, noting that it's also about sovereignty and security.- At this critical moment in history, this inflection point, the world watching to see, will we do the hard work that matters to forge a better future? Will we stand together, will we stand with one another? Will we stay committed to our course? - Biden said. He said the answer was a “resounding yes.”<h2>Meeting</h2>Earlier Thursday, Biden met with the leaders of other Nordic nations including Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland. Sweden is poised to be admitted as NATO’s 32nd member country after it pledged more cooperation with Turkey on counterterrorism efforts while backing Ankara’s bid to join the European Union. Finland gained NATO membership earlier this year.Both Finland and Sweden abandoned a history of military nonalignment and sought to join NATO alliance after Russia invaded Ukraine last year.Biden's brief stop in the shoreline Finnish capital is the coda to a tour that was carefully sketched to highlight the growth of a military alliance that the president says has fortified itself since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Finland's admittance to NATO effectively doubled the alliance’s border with Russia.<h2>A significant security victory</h2>Biden arrived in Helsinki after what he deemed a successful NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, where allies agreed to language that would further pave the way for Ukraine to also become a futuremember. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the summit's outcome “a significant security victory" for his country but nonetheless expressed disappointment at not getting an outright invitation to join.Biden and other administration officials also held what aides said were pivotal conversations with Turkey before that country dropped its objections to Sweden joining NATO.Biden said he felt good about the trip. “We accomplished every goal we set out to accomplish,” he told reporters Wednesday before the flight to Finland.And despite Zelenskyy's expressed frustrations, Biden — who met with the Ukrainian leader Wednesday in Vilnius — said Thursday that Zelenskyy “ended up being very happy.”<h2>The tenets of multilateralism</h2>The U.S. president’s trip this week — a meticulously choreographed endeavor meant to showcase international opposition to Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine — played out nearly five years to the day since then-President Donald Trump infamously stood alongside Putin in Helsinki and cast doubt on his own intelligence apparatus. That was just days after Trump tore through a NATO summit where he disparaged the alliance and from which he threatened to withdraw the United States.In contrast, Biden has heartily embraced the tenets of multilateralism that Trump shunned, speaking repeatedly of having to rebuild international coalitions after four tumultuous years led by his predecessor. The garrulous former Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman is in his element at summits abroad, and speaks of how his background in international policy is proof positive that decades of experience on the world stage has mattered for the presidency.Opening the broader meeting, Niinistö said his Nordic counterparts had one overriding objective: “guarantee the future — security-wise, environmental-wise and technology-wise.” Biden added that the “nations around the table not only share common history, but we share common challenges, and I would add presumptuously, common values.”Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, who saw Biden in the Oval Office last week, lightheartedly remarked to Biden that “I have met you more than I’ve met my own family.”The talks at the seaside Presidential Palace in the heart of Helsinki were to focus on closer cooperation between the Nordic countries and the United States on security, environment and technology issues, Niinistö’s office said. Biden also scheduled a news conference with Niinistö before departing for Washington.<h2>U.S. president came to Finland to honor the country itself</h2>Biden is the sixth U.S president to visit Finland, a country of 5.5 million that has hosted several U.S.-Soviet and U.S.-Russia summits. The first involved President Gerald Ford, who would sign the so-called Helsinki Accords with more than 30 other nations in 1975.But Charly Salonius-Pasternak, senior researcher at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, noted that Biden's visit marked the first time a sitting U.S. president came to Finland to honor the country itself, rather than as a neutral location for meeting Russian leaders or other similar reasons.“The fact that Biden has chosen to go specifically to Finland for Finland is symbolic and, in some ways, very concrete,” he said. "It’s a kind of deterrence messaging that only the United States can do.”In the Cold War era, Finland acted as a neutral buffer between Moscow and Washington, and its leaders played a balancing act between the East and West, maintaining good relations with both superpowers.Finland and neighboring Sweden gave up their traditional political neutrality by joining the European Union in 1995 but both remained militarily nonaligned, with opinion polls showing a clear majority of their citizens opposed to joining NATO. That changed quickly after Feb. 24, 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine.

U.S. president came to Finland to honor the country itself

Biden proclaims NATO alliance 'more united than ever' as he celebrates new member Finland

The gunman who killed 11 people at a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018 is eligible for the death penalty, a federal jury announced Thursday, setting the stage for further evidence and testimony on whether he should be sentenced to death or life in prison.The government is seeking capital punishment for Robert Bowers, who raged against Jewish people online before storming the Tree of Life synagogue with an AR-15 rifle and other weapons in the nation’s deadliest antisemitic attack. The jury agreed with prosecutors that Bowers — who spent six months planning the attack and has since expressed regret that he didn’t kill more people — had formed the requisite legal intent to kill.<h2>Mental illness</h2>Bowers’ lawyers argued that his ability to form intent was impaired by mental illness and a delusional belief that he could stop a genocide of white people by killing Jews who help immigrants.Bowers showed little reaction to the verdict, in keeping with his demeanor throughout the trial. In the courtroom gallery, survivors and victims’ relatives heeded the judge’s request to keep their emotions in check.Testimony is now expected to shift to the impact of Bowers’ crimes on survivors and the victims’ loved ones.- It has been nearly five years since 11 people were taken from us. They were beloved and valued family members, friends and neighbors. They cannot speak for themselves, and so their family members will speak for them - Maggie Feinstein, director of 10.27 Healing Partnership, a program helping survivors of the rampage and others who were impacted, said in a statement after the verdict.<h2>Crime scene</h2>Bowers, 50, a truck driver from suburban Baldwin, killed members of three congregations who had gathered at the Tree of Life synagogue on Oct. 27, 2018. He also wounded two worshippers and five police officers.Bowers was convicted last month on 63 criminal counts, including hate crimes resulting in death and obstruction of the free exercise of religion resulting in death. His attorneys offered a guilty plea in return for a life sentence, but prosecutors refused, opting instead to take the case to trial and pursue the death penalty. Most of the victims’ families supported that decision.If jurors decide Bowers deserves to die, it would be the first federal death sentence imposed during Joe Biden’s presidency. Biden campaigned on a pledge to end capital punishment, but federal prosecutors continue to pursue the death penalty in some cases.The penalty phase of Bowers’ trial began June 26. Jurors heard weeks of technical testimony about Bowers’ psychological and neurological states, with mental health experts for both sides disagreeing on whether he has schizophrenia, delusions or brain disorders that played a role in the rampage.Bowers ranted incessantly on social media about his hatred of Jewish people before the 2018 attack and told police at the scene that “all these Jews need to die.” He told psychologists who examined him afterward, including as recently as May, that he was pleased with the attack.<h2>The sentence</h2>The sentencing now shifts to a more emotional stage, with jurors expected to hear about the pain and trauma Bowers inflicted on worshippers in the heart of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community.The prosecution will also present evidence about other aggravating factors — including that Bowers’ rampage was motivated by religious hatred — while the defense will present mitigating factors that might persuade jurors to spare his life. The defense case could include pleas from his relatives.To put him on death row, jurors will have to agree unanimously that the aggravating factors outweigh the mitigating ones.In final arguments Wednesday, prosecution and defense lawyers took turns attacking the findings of the others’ expert witnesses — doctors who testified about Bowers’ mental condition and whether he could form the intent to commit the attack.<h2>Plotted the attack</h2>Prosecutor Soo Song said Bowers meticulously plotted the attack over a period of months..- On Oct. 27, 2018, this defendant violated the safe, holy sanctuary that was the Tree of Life synagogue - she said. “He turned it into a killing ground.”But Bowers’ defense lawyer, Michael Burt, cited expert witnesses to bolster the claim that a “delusional belief system took over his thinking,” which left him unable to do anything but “following the dictates” of those delusional thoughts.Burt argued that Bowers’ ability to form intent was also impaired by schizophrenia and epilepsy.Song denounced the idea that Bowers lacked control of his actions. She noted that Bowers told one of the defense’s own expert medical witnesses that he meticulously planned the attack, considered other potential Jewish targets, and “regrets that he didn’t kill dozens more.” Song said Bowers described himself as calm and focused as he shot to kill.U.S. Attorney Eric Olshan said Bowers wasn’t delusional, but that he “just believes things that are repugnant.”

The government is seeking capital punishment for Robert Bowers, who raged against Jewish people online before storming the Tree of Life synagogue

The gunman who killed 11 people in a Pittsburgh synagogue is found eligible for the death penalty

No fingerprints or DNA turned up on the baggie of cocaine found in a lobby at the White House last week despite a sophisticated FBI crime lab analysis, and surveillance footage of the area didn’t identify a suspect, according to a summary of the Secret Service investigation obtained by The Associated Press. There are no leads on who brought the drugs into the building.U.S. Secret Service agents found the white powder during a routine White House sweep on July 2, in a heavily trafficked West Wing lobby where staff go in and out, and tour groups gather to drop their phones and other belongings.- Without physical evidence, the investigation will not be able to single out a person of interest from the hundreds of individuals who passed through the vestibule where the cocaine was discovered - Secret Service officials said in the summary.It's most likely the bag was left behind by one of the hundreds of visitors who traveled in and out of the building over the weekend, according to a person familiar with the investigation who was not authorized to talk about an ongoing probe and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.<h2>Incredibly important</h2>The presence of cocaine at the White House prompted a flurry of criticism and questions from Republicans, who requested a briefing Thursday on the probe. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said President Joe Biden believed it was “incredibly important” for the Secret Service to get to the bottom of how the drugs ended up in the White House. The Secret Service is responsible for securing the White House and led the investigation.Biden wasn’t there at the time of the discovery. He was at Camp David with members of his family for the holiday weekend.The complex was briefly evacuated as a precaution when the white powder was found. The fire department was called in to test the substance on the spot to determine whether it was hazardous, and the initial test came back negative for a biohazard but positive for cocaine.<h2>Lab analysis</h2>The bag was sent for a secondary, more sensitive lab analysis. Homeland Security’s National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center analyzed the item for any biothreats. Tests conducted at the facility came back negative.The cocaine and packaging underwent further forensics testing, including advanced fingerprint and DNA work at the FBI's crime laboratory, according to the summary. The FBI also did chemical testing.Meanwhile, Secret Service investigators put together a list of several hundred individuals who may have accessed the area where the drugs were found. Anyone who comes through the White House must give identifying information and pass through security before entering.But the lab results didn’t turn up latent fingerprints or DNA, so agents can’t compare anything to the possible suspect pool. White House staff are fingerprinted; participants in tour groups are not.<h2>Investigation</h2>Video of the West Executive street lobby entrance did not identify the person or provide any solid ic, the Secret Service said.The lobby is open to staff-led tours of the West Wing, which are scheduled for nonworking hours on the weekends and evenings. Those tours are invitation-only and led by White House staff for friends, family and other guests. Most staffers who work in the complex can request an evening or weekend tour slot, but there is often a long wait list. There were tours on the day, a Sunday, the drugs were found, as well as on the two preceding days.The Situation Room, where staffers would drop their phones before entering, has been undergoing construction work and was not in use at the time the baggie was found, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said last week.

There are no leads on who brought the drugs into the building

No fingerprints, DNA sample or leads from cocaine found at the White House, the Secret Service says

U.S. officials have approved the first over-the-counter birth control pill, which will let American women and girls buy contraceptive medication from the same aisle as aspirin and eyedrops.The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday it cleared Perrigo’s once-a-day Opill to be sold without a prescription, making it the first such medication to be moved out from behind the pharmacy counter. The company won’t start shipping the pill until early next year, and there will be no age restrictions on sales.Hormone-based pills have long been the most common form of birth control in the U.S., used by tens of millions of women since the 1960s. Until now, all of them required a prescription.Medical societies and women’s health groups have pushed for wider access, noting that an estimated 45% of the 6 million annual pregnancies in the U.S. are unintended. Teens and girls, women of color and those with low incomes report greater hurdles in getting prescriptions and picking them up.<h2>Challenges</h2>Some of the challenges can include paying for a doctor's visit, getting time off from work and finding child care.&nbsp;- This is really a transformation in access to contraceptive care - said Kelly Blanchard, president of Ibis Reproductive Health, a non-profit group that supported the approval. “Hopefully this will help people overcome those barriers that exist now.”Ireland-based Perrigo did not announce a price. Over-the-counter medicines are generally much cheaper than prescriptions, but they typically aren’t covered by insurance.Forcing insurers to cover over-the-counter birth control would require a regulatory change by the federal government, which women's advocates are urging the Biden administration to implement.<h2>Non-prescription</h2>Many common medications have made the switch to non-prescription status in recent decades, including drugs for pain, heartburn and allergies. Birth control pills are available without a prescription across much of South America, Asia and Africa.Perrigo submitted years of research to FDA to show that women could understand and follow instructions for using the pill. Thursday’s approval came despite some concerns by FDA scientists about the company's results, including whether women with certain underlying medical conditions would understand they shouldn't take the drug.FDA’s action only applies to Opill. It’s in an older class of contraceptives, sometimes called minipills, that contain a single synthetic hormone and generally carry fewer side effects than more popular combination hormone pills.But women’s health advocates hope the decision will pave the way for more over-the-counter birth control options and, eventually, for abortion pills to do the same.That said, FDA’s decision has no relation to the ongoing court battles over the abortion pill mifepristone. The studies in Perrigo’s FDA application began years before the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade, which has upended abortion access across the U.S.<h2>Reproductive rights</h2>With some states curtailing women’s reproductive rights, the FDA has faced pressure from Democratic politicians, health advocates and medical professionals to ease access to birth control. The American Medical Association and the leading professional society for obstetricians and gynecologists backed Opill's application for over-the-counter status.An outside panel of FDA advisers unanimously voted in favor of the switch at a hearing in May where dozens of public speakers called for Opill’s approval.Dyvia Huitron was among those who presented, explaining how she has been unable to get prescription birth control more than three years after becoming sexually active. The 19-year-old University of Alabama student said she still isn’t comfortable getting a prescription because the school’s health system reports medical exams and medications to parents.- My parents did not let me go on the pill - Huitron said in a recent interview. “There was just a lot of cultural stigma around being sexually active before you’re married.”While she uses other forms of contraception, “I would have much preferred to have birth control and use these additional methods to ensure that I was being as safe as possible.”Huitron spoke on behalf of Advocates for Youth, one of the dozens of groups that have pushed to make prescription contraceptives more accessible.The groups helped fund some of the studies submitted for Opill and they encouraged HRA Pharma, later acquired by Perrigo, to file its application with the FDA.<h2>Safety concerns</h2>Advocates were particularly interested in Opill because it raised fewer safety concerns. The pill was first approved in the U.S. five decades ago but hasn’t been marketed here since 2005.“It’s been around a long time and we have a large amount of data supporting that this pill is safe and effective for over-the-counter use,” said Blanchard, of Ibsis Reproductive Health.Newer birth control pills typically combine two hormones, estrogen and progestin, which can help make periods lighter and more regular. But their use carries a heightened risk of blood clots and they shouldn't be used by women at risk for heart problems, such as those who smoke and are over 35.Opill has only progestin, which prevents pregnancy by blocking sperm from reaching the cervix. It must be taken around the same time daily to be most effective.<h2>Drug's labeling information</h2>In its internal review published in May, the FDA noted that some women in Perrigo’s study had trouble understanding the drug's labeling information. In particular, the instructions warn that women with a history of breast cancer should not take the pill because it could spur tumor growth. And women who have unusual vaginal bleeding are instructed to talk to a doctor first, because it could indicate a medical problem.Common side effects of the pill include bleeding, headaches, dizziness, nausea and cramps, according to the FDA. The label also cautions that certain drugs can interfere with Opill's effectiveness, including medications for seizures, HIV and hypertension.Perrigo executives said the company will spend the rest of the year manufacturing the pill and its packaging so it can be available in stores early next year.

Hormone-based pills have long been the most common form of birth control in the U.S., used by tens of millions of women since the 1960s

First over-the-counter birth control pill gets FDA approval

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy may have gotten support and vague assurances from NATO leaders in Vilnius this week, but he ultimately returns home without a clear commitment that his country will be joining the club any time soon.Instead, the alliance leaders said they were removing obstacles on Ukraine’s membership path so that it can join more quickly once the war with Russia is over.For many, that argument gives Russia’s president a pretext to prolong the war, which President Vladimir Putin ostensibly launched to keep Ukraine from joining NATO.But if Ukraine joins NATO in the middle of the war, then Russia is at war with the entire NATO alliance.At the core of this conundrum is Article 5 - NATO’s common defense guarantee under which an attack on one member is considered an attack on them all.<h2>Article 5</h2>Article 5 is at the heart of the 31-member North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It states that an armed attack against one or more of the members shall be considered an attack against all members. It also states that if such an armed attack occurs, each of the members would take, individually and in concert with other members, ‘’such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force, to restore and maintain the security of the North Atlantic area.’’That security guarantee is the reason previously neutral Finland and Sweden sought to join NATO and why Ukraine and other countries in Europe also want in.<h2>Defense measures</h2>Only once, in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks on the United States, paving the way for NATO’s biggest ever operation in Afghanistan.But NATO allies have also taken collective defense measures including joining the U.S. to fight the Islamic State group in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan as well as help keep the peace in the Balkans.<h2>Impact on Ukraine</h2>NATO’s credibility hinges on Article 5 and its commitment to offer membership to any European country that can contribute to security in Europe and North America.But Ukraine, currently in the middle of war with Russia, would oblige all 31 member countries to spring to its defense militarily, potentially igniting a wider war with a nuclear-armed country.Article 5 also becomes problematic when the territory of a member is unclear. For instance, Russian forces entered Georgia in August 2008, a few months after NATO leaders first promised the country it would join, along with Ukraine. That country's NATO application is still pending. Russia continues to occupy large swaths of Ukraine in the east and south, further muddying the picture.U.S. President Joe Biden summed up why he didn't think Ukraine is ready for NATO membership. ‘’If the war is going on, then we're all in the war... we're at war with Russia, if that were the case,'' he said in an interview with CNN ahead of the summit.

Instead, the alliance leaders said they were removing obstacles on Ukraine’s membership path so that it can join more quickly once the war is over

Article 5: NATO's common defense pledge that stands in the way of Ukraine's admission while at war

National Weather Service teams were surveying storm damage Thursday in the Chicago area and northeast Illinois, where fierce winds from suspected tornadoes ripped roofs from buildings, downed trees and sent residents scrambling for safety as sirens sounded.The weather service warned Wednesday evening that a confirmed tornado was on the ground near Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport. Passengers took shelter and the storm disrupted hundreds of flights, but there were no reports of injuries. A short time later, the weather service said the Chicago forecast area was “currently tornado warning free.”<h2>Storm is moving</h2>The storm moved into Michigan before passing through the state and into Canada early Thursday. Tornado watches that were in effect for parts of Michigan, Indiana and Ohio all expired.Ty Carr, a resident of the Skyline Motel in McCook, Illinois, said a tornado tore off its roof.“Just chaos,” Carr said, cradling a toddler as he spoke to reporters. “It was really fast, and the noises and the crackling and the wind -- it was just something I’ve never seen or been through, you know?”Rajan Patel, whose family owns the motel, said his family came to the Chicago area in the 1990s with nothing, and now their motel is severely damaged.“The entire place is ruined," Patel said. "I don’t know, man. I don’t know how to recover anything. I don’t know.”<h2>Storm damage</h2>Four teams from the weather service headed out Thursday morning to survey storm damage reported Wednesday across numerous areas of the Chicago metropolitan area and points farther west to determine if tornadoes caused that damage, said Zachary Yack, a meteorologist with the weather service’s Chicago area office.As of Thursday morning, he said the only confirmed tornado was the one that touched down in the Cicero area, near O’Hare International Airport.- We’ve got lots of reports of damage but we don’t know at this time what caused that so we're out surveying those areas today to find out exactly what went on - Yack said.The weather service posted a map on social media highlighting nine yellow-shaded areas, including the Cicero area, where there were either reports of storm damage or indications from radar of possible tornadoes, he said. The teams will determine if tornadoes hit those areas, and if so, will work to pin down their tracks and intensity ratings.The weather service said the suspected tornadoes were spawned by rotating thunderstorms known as supercells.Hillary Timpe in Countryside, Ill., a suburb southwest of Chicago, who was with her husband, Greg Timpe, said a tornado damaged homes in the neighborhood, but luckily no one was hurt. It also ripped their 100-year-old tree out of the ground.“When the winds kicked up really hard, really fast, and I’m like, ‘Basement — now! Grab the dog, let’s go!’ And it wasn’t more than a couple seconds after that, that got really crazy.”The storm moved through quickly, Greg Timpe said.“It really left as quick as it came," he said. "It was maybe 10, 20 seconds, and it was out of here, and all this.”<h2>People in shelters</h2>Video from TV stations showed hundreds of people taking shelter in an O’Hare concourse. Some 173 flights departing the airport were canceled and more than 500 were delayed, according to the flight tracking service FlightAware.Kevin Bargnes, director of communications for O’Hare and Chicago Midway International Airport, told WGN-TV Wednesday night that no damage was reported at either airport.Lynn Becker, a longtime Chicago resident, posted video to Twitter with tornado sirens blaring across the city’s iconic skyline.“I’m in a 60 story apartment building so my options are somewhat limited,” he said. “We have to, I assume, go into the core of the building.”The weather service quoted an unidentified emergency manager as saying a roof was blown off in the community of Huntley in McHenry County northwest of Chicago. Huntley Battalion Chief Mike Pierce told ABC-7-TV that firefighters and other emergency services were responding to downed power lines, trees and tree branches, and that power outages had been reported. Building damage appeared to be concentrated around two apartment buildings, he said.<h2>Power lost</h2>More than 10,000 customers lost power in the region, but power was mostly restored by Thursday morning, according to poweroutage.us.In southern Michigan, a team from the weather service and local emergency management will survey damage Thursday from a possible tornado that was reported Wednesday night near the village of Colon, about 30 miles (48 kilometers) southeast of Kalamazoo. Kyle Brown, a meteorologist with the weather service’s Syracuse, Indiana, office, said he did not have details of that damage reported near Colon, but said the survey results would be available later Thursday.Over the years many tornadoes have struck in the Chicago metropolitan area, and several have hit within the city limits of Chicago, according to the National Weather Service. Between 1855 and 2021, the weather service recorded 97 significant tornadoes in the Chicago metro area.The deadliest formed in Palos Hills in Cook County on April 21, 1967. The twister traveled 16 miles (26 kilometers) through Oak Lawn and the south side of Chicago, killing 33 people, injuring 500 and causing more than $50 million in damage, according to the weather service.

The deadliest formed in Palos Hills in Cook County on April 21, 1967

Illinois storm surveying damage after multiple suspected tornadoes hit Chicago, suburbs