WASHINGTON -- Before departing to France to attend the G-7 summit, U.S. President Donald Trump threatened the host country with a wine tax amid already strained relations with long-standing European allies.

"I don't like what France did, they put a technology tax on our tech companies," Trump said Friday before departing from Washington.

He ...Read more

DILLEY, Texas -- The acting chief of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Friday during a tour of a Texas migrant family detention center that the federal agency was preparing for the average stay for families to increase from 10 days to up to 50 days.

Matthew Albence, who was at a center about 90 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border ...Read more

LONDON -- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson heads into this weekend's Group of 7 summit with a particular distinction: Of all the leaders taking part, none has been the recipient of such lavish praise from President Donald Trump. The U.S. president has called him a "good man," a leader who can get things done, and -- perhaps Trump's highest ...Read more

AMMAN, Jordan -- News that Israel was behind airstrikes in Iraq has reinvigorated calls to oust U.S. forces from the country.

A U.S. official confirmed Friday that Israel had struck a base for the Hashd al Shaabi, an umbrella group of Shiite-dominated militias also known as the Popular Mobilization Forces, many with deep links to Iran. Two ...Read more

EAST ST. LOUIS -- An Illinois State Police trooper was fatally shot while executing a search warrant early Friday in a residential neighborhood here.

Trooper Nick Hopkins, 33, with 10 year's experience on the force, died at St. Louis University Hospital just after 6 p.m., authorities said.

Hopkins, of Waterloo, was married, a father of 4-year-...Read more

Co-worker charged with murder in Cal State Fullerton stabbing

LOS ANGELES -- A man who police say fatally stabbed his co-worker, a retired Cal State Fullerton administrator, in a campus parking lot was charged Friday in the slaying.

Chuyen Van Vo, 51, is facing a murder charge along with two sentencing enhancements based on allegations that he...Read more

BOGOTA, Colombia -- Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on Friday authorized the deployment of troops to help fight wildfires in the country's Amazon region as EU leaders warned the fires posed a danger to the entire planet and should be on the Group of Seven agenda.

The army was also ordered to prevent "environmental crimes," daily O Globo ...Read more

LOS ANGELES -- A man who police say fatally stabbed his co-worker, a retired Cal State Fullerton administrator, in a campus parking lot was charged Friday in the slaying.

Chuyen Van Vo, 51, is facing a murder charge along with two sentencing enhancements based on allegations that he used a deadly weapon in the attack and committed the murder by...Read more

WASHINGTON -- The Trump administration suggested the blistering summer heat in Iraq, not alleged Israeli airstrikes, may have been responsible for at least some of the recent explosions that have destroyed Iraqi weapons depots linked to Iran.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, two administration officials said the U.S. had no corroboration that ...Read more

LOS ANGELES -- Al Franken is ready to make his comeback.

After resigning from the U.S. Senate at the beginning of 2018 due to sexual harassment allegations, the comedian is working with Hollywood firm United Talent Agency to make paid public speeches. The agency sent an email this week pitching Franken to potential bookers and promoters, ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minneapolis City Council on Friday signed off on a $200,000 settlement to the family of Jamar Clark, bringing to an end an emotional chapter in the city's history of police-community relations.

After briefly retreating to a closed session to finalize the deal, Council President Lisa Bender opened the room to reporters and ...Read more

WASHINGTON -- Several large federal agencies continue to be at risk for cyberattacks even as the number of cyber incidents reported during fiscal 2018 fell compared with the previous year, the Office of Management and Budget said in a report sent to Congress on Friday.

The number of cyber incidents reported by federal agencies fell 12% to 31,...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- The state of Kentucky must pay nearly $225,000 in legal fees and court costs incurred by couples who sued then-Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis in 2015 because she refused to issue marriage licenses due to her religious opposition to same-sex marriage, a federal appeals court ruled Friday.

The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in ...Read more

CHICAGO -- One of the Illinois residents hospitalized for an unknown respiratory illness after vaping has died, public health officials said Friday.

The Illinois Department of Public Health would not disclose further details about the individual or circumstances surrounding the death.

In recent weeks, 22 people, ages 17 to 38, have been ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS -- A three-judge federal appeals court ruled Friday to revive the challenge of a St. Cloud couple suing Minnesota over the right to refuse to film same-sex weddings, arguing that the videos are a form of speech subject to First Amendment protections.

Carl and Angel Larsen, who run a Christian videography business called Telescope ...Read more