Artemis II astronauts bound for moon after rocketing away on NASA's first lunar voyage in decades
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Four astronauts have embarked on a high-stakes flight around the moon, humanity’s first lunar voyage in more than half a century. It’s the thrilling leadoff in NASA’s push toward a lunar landing in two years. The 32-story moon rocket blasted off from Florida’s Kennedy Space Center Wednesday evening, carrying three Americans and one Canadian. The Artemis II crew will spend a day in orbit around Earth checking their capsule before firing the main engine that will propel them to the moon. The nearly 10-day mission will see them fly around the moon and set a distance record, before coming straight back home.
UK gathers more than 30 countries to plot ways of reopening the Strait of Hormuz
LONDON (AP) — Thirty-five countries are set to meet Thursday to discuss ways of reopening the Strait of Hormuz. This vital shipping route has been shut to most traffic by the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says the virtual meeting will explore diplomatic and political measures to restore navigation and ensure the safety of ships and seafarers. Iranian attacks have halted traffic, affecting global oil flow and raising prices. While no country plans to forcefully open the strait, military planners are working on security strategies. The meeting aims to form a united front for safe passage through the waterway.
Takeaways from Trump's address: No end date for Iran war and few details on strategy ahead
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump sought to explain his rationale for the war against Iran in a primetime address Wednesday. It was his first address on the war and it came at a pivotal moment at home and abroad as he amasses extraordinary executive authority to prosecute the military operation. Notably missing was his oft-repeated assertion that negotiations with Iran were underway. He softened his insults against NATO allies and did not indicate he was preparing to send in ground troops, particularly to retrieve Iran’s enriched uranium. But he gave no definitive end date for the conflict.
Supreme Court seems poised to reject Trump's birthright citizenship limits as he attends arguments
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court seems poised to reject President Donald Trump’s restrictions on birthright citizenship in a consequential case that was magnified by his unparalleled presence in the courtroom. The justices on Wednesday heard the Republican president’s appeal of a lower-court ruling from New Hampshire that struck down the citizenship restrictions, which have not taken effect anywhere in the country. Trump’s order declares that children born to parents who are in the United States illegally or temporarily are not American citizens. Conservative and liberal justices questioned whether Trump’s order comports with the Constitution or federal law. Trump spent just over an hour inside the courtroom, staying only for arguments by the government’s lawyer.
Republican plan to fund Homeland Security could get first test vote on Thursday
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate is expected to try quickly passing a measure Thursday that would fund most of the Department of Homeland Security, though it’s unclear how swiftly the House will follow to largely end the longest partial government shutdown in history. House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune announced a plan on Wednesday to fully fund the Department of Homeland Security as part of a two-step process. The agreement puts the leaders on the same page for ending the impasse after they pursued separate plans that resulted in Congress leaving Washington last week without a fix.
New DNA testing confirms serial killer Ted Bundy killed a Utah teen in 1974
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah sheriff's office says DNA testing has definitively linked the unsolved death of a Utah teenager in 1974 to the infamous serial killer Ted Bundy. Laura Ann Aime, 17, went missing Halloween night 51 years ago after she left a party alone. About a month later, her body was found on the side of a highway, bound, beaten and a without clothing. Investigators long suspected that Bundy was responsible. He was one of the nation’s most prolific serial killers, with at least 30 women and girls’ deaths linked to him in several states in the 1970s.
DHS boss rescinds restrictive $100,000 approval process, giving hope to FEMA relief efforts
WASHINGTON (AP) — Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin has rescinded a rule that DHS expenditures over $100,000 be personally approved by his office. The decision Wednesday ends a widely criticized policy implemented by his predecessor Kristi Noem that critics said put a particular burden on the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s work aiding disaster response and recovery. It marks the first major action by the new Homeland Security leader, sworn in last week, to change a policy implemented by Noem, whom President Donald Trump fired in March. Mullin’s move is expected to ease a spending bottleneck that lawmakers and states said delayed disaster response and recovery funds.
Stocks rally worldwide as oil prices ease on hopes for a possible end to the Iran war
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rushed higher worldwide, and oil prices eased as hopes built that the war with Iran could end soon. That’s even though some of the signals investors saw as hopeful on Wednesday are already under dispute. The S&P 500 rose 0.7% and added to its leap from the day before, which was its best since last spring. That followed even bigger gains for markets across Europe and Asia, including an 8.4% surge in South Korea, which were catching up to Wall Street’s rally from Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 1.2%.
Earthquake off Indonesia topples buildings, kills 1 person and sets off small tsunami
MANADO, Indonesia (AP) — An undersea magnitude 7.4 earthquake toppled buildings in parts of northern Indonesia, sent people fleeing from their homes, killed at least one person and generated a small tsunami.  Strong shaking was felt in parts of North Sulawesi and North Maluku provinces. A woman died in a building collapse and at least three injured people were hospitalized. Damage was still being assessed in places. Tsunami waves up to 30 inches above normal tides were recorded after the quake Thursday morning in the Molucca Sea. Indonesian authorities lifted the tsunami warning after the threat passed.
FDA grants speedy approval to Eli Lilly's weight-loss pill for obesity
U.S. health officials have approved a new weight-loss pill from Eli Lilly. The Food and Drug Administration's decision Wednesday means patients in the United States will soon have access to a second daily oral medication to treat obesity and weight-related issues. The drug will be sold as Foundayo and it's expected to begin shipping Monday. Lilly says pricing for people with insurance will start as low as $25 per month. The new pill joins Novo Nordisk’s oral Wegovy pill, which has generated more than 600,000 prescriptions in the U.S. since its approval in December.
