AP News Summary at 11:58 p.m. EST
Gaza has lost telecom contact again, while Israel’s military says it has surrounded Gaza City
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Gaza has lost communications in its third total outage of the Israel-Hamas war, and Israel’s military says it has encircled Gaza City and divided the besieged coastal strip into two. Israeli media say troops are expected to enter Gaza City within 48 hours. The collapse in connectivity in Gaza reported late Sunday makes it even more complicated to convey details of the new stage of the military offensive. Before the outage, Palestinian health officials said Israeli warplanes struck two refugee camps in central Gaza, killing at least 53 people and wounding dozens.
Blinken shuttles from the West Bank to Iraq trying to contain the fallout from the Israel-Hamas war
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken brought his diplomatic push on the Israel-Hamas war to the occupied West Bank and then to Iraq. In Ramallah, he tried to assure Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas that the U.S. was intensifying efforts to ease the plight of Gaza’s civilians. And Blinken made clear that Palestinians must have a main say in whatever comes next for the territory after the conflict. Later Sunday in Baghdad, Blinken held talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. American forces in the region are facing a surge of attacks by Iranian-allied militias in Iraq and elsewhere.
Trump’s decades of testimony provide some clues about how he’ll fight for his real estate empire
NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump has testified in court as a football owner, casino builder and airline buyer. He once bragged in a legal deposition that he saved “millions of lives” by deterring nuclear war as president. Another time, he fretted about the dangers of thrown fruit. Come Monday, he’s poised to reprise his role as a witness, this time as a former Republican president fighting to save the real estate empire that vaulted him to stardom and the White House. He’s set to testify at his New York civil fraud trial, in a case that threatens to cost him control of marquee properties such as Trump Tower. Trump has been conditioned by decades of trials and legal disputes.
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds will endorse Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for president, AP sources say
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds plans to endorse Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for president. The endorsement would give DeSantis’ campaign a boost as he struggles to show progress against Donald Trump in the Republican primary. DeSantis has pinned his chances of emerging as an alternative to Trump alternative squarely on Iowa. Reynolds is breaking with long-standing Iowa tradition to endorse him. The state’s governor typically stays neutral before the caucuses that kick off the GOP nomination calendar. She’s expected to announce the endorsement at a Monday rally in Des Moines. The plans were disclosed by two people familiar with the matter speaking on condition of anonymity before the rally.
Another ex-player is alleging Blackhawks’ former video coach sexually assaulted him in 2009-10
CHICAGO (AP) — A former hockey player in the Chicago Blackhawks organization has alleged in a lawsuit the team’s former video coach Brad Aldrich sexually assaulted him during the 2009-10 season. He says the Blackhawks took no action when he complained because it didn’t want a disruption during its run to the Stanley Cup. The Chicago Tribune reported the plaintiff was a teammate of Kyle Beach, who reached a settlement with the Blackhawks in December 2021 after alleging he was sexually assaulted by Aldrich. The Blackhawks declined to comment on the specifics of the latest lawsuit in a statement to the Tribune.
Australian prime minister calls for cooperation ahead of meeting with China’s Xi
BEIJING (AP) — Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has struck an optimistic tone ahead of his meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, calling for cooperation while emphasizing that the two countries will continue to have differences. It’s the first visit by an Australian prime minister to China in seven years and is symbolic of the mending of the relationship between the two countries. On Monday morning, Albanese said: “What I’ve said is that we need to co-operate with China where we can, disagree where we must and engage in our national interest.”
Mississippi has a history of voter suppression. Many see signs of change as Black voters reengage
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi’s long history of voter suppression has created widespread voter fatigue among Black residents in a state where they account for nearly 40% of the population. But this year’s elections have given reason for renewed optimism. The governor’s race appears competitive and is attracting national attention. Tuesday’s election also happens to be the first one to be held without the burden of an unusual post-Reconstruction constitutional provision that had made it virtually impossible for Black candidates to win on a statewide basis. Five Black candidates are running for statewide office and are hoping to become the first Black Mississippians to win one of those posts.
Some houses are being built to stand up to hurricanes and sharply cut emissions, too
Climate change is increasing billion-dollar disasters, many of them from intensifying hurricanes. Some housing developers are building homes with an eye toward making them more resilient to such extreme weather, and friendlier to the environment at the same time. Buildings are major contributors to greenhouse gas emissions through the construction of the materials that go into them, like cement and steel, but also from the energy they use — especially if they’re not efficient. Some builders say that a resilient home is a sustainable one. Solar panels, battery storage, higher-quality insulation, and even thoughtful landscaping and site management are all ways this new generation of homes is positioned for an increasingly warm and stormy world.
Nepal villagers cremate loved ones who perished in an earthquake that killed 157 people
KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Villagers in the mountains of northwest Nepal have cremated the bodies of some who perished in an earthquake that shook the area Friday night. The strong temblor killed 157 people and left thousands homeless. The 13 bodies were carried on Sunday to the banks of the Bheri River and placed on pyres made of stacked wood before being set on fire in a Hindu cremation ceremony. All 13 were from Chiuri village in Jajarkot district which authorities said was the epicenter of the quake. The government said its main focus is to supply food and set up temporary shelters for the thousands who spent Saturday night in the bitter cold.
Car crashes into pub’s outdoor dining area in Australia, killing 5 and injuring 6
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — A car has crashed into an Australian pub’s outdoor dining area, killing five people and injuring six others including the driver. Police say the 66-year-old driver of the luxury BMW SUV was taken to a hospital after the crash at the crowded Royal Daylesford Hotel beer garden in the rural town of Daylesford, northwest of Melbourne, on Sunday evening. He suffered shock and minor injuries and remains under police guard. Police investigators on Monday were trying to determine how the car came to mount a curb and crash into the roadside dining area. The driver tested negative for alcohol and his blood was being analyzed for other impairing substances. Police have not ruled out speed as a factor.