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US indicts Raúl Castro for Cuba's 1996 shoot-down of two civilian planes from Miami

Current News / News & Features /

MIAMI — In a watershed moment for the Cuban American community, the U.S. Department of Justice has indicted Cuba’s longtime ruler Raúl Castro in Miami on Wednesday with the murder of four people in the 1996 shoot-down of two civilian planes belonging to the Cuban exile organization Brothers to the Rescue.

While the indictment itself was ...Read more

Chris Christo/Boston Herald/TNS

'A giant of public life': Massachusetts leaders honor late Congressman Barney Frank

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BOSTON — Massachusetts leaders spoke out quickly after the death of former Congressman and House Financial Services Committee Chair Barney Frank was announced Wednesday morning, praising his service to the state and the country.

Frank, who served as a U.S. representative for parts of Greater Boston for 32 years and was the first member of ...Read more

ALEX EDELMAN/AFP/TNS

US Capitol officers sue to block $1.8 billion fund that could aid Jan. 6 attackers

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Two police officers who defended the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, sued Wednesday to block President Donald Trump's $1.8 billion self-proclaimed “anti-weaponization” fund that could compensate their attackers.

Former Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn and Metropolitan Police Department officer Daniel Hodges say Trump and acting Attorney ...Read more

Chris Christo/Boston Herald/TNS

Former Rep. Barney Frank dies at 86

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WASHINGTON — Former Rep. Barney Frank, the first member of Congress to voluntarily announce he was gay and who rose to lead the House Financial Services Committee at a seminal moment in American economic history, died Tuesday night. He was 86.

The progressive Frank had among the sharpest wits of members of the House and was known at times for...Read more

Nelvin C. Cepeda/The San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS

San Diego attackers' hate manifesto targeted many groups, sought 'destruction of political system,' sources say

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The gunman who killed three people at the San Diego Islamic Center left behind a 75-page document that preached hate, anti-Islam and antisemitism and promoted violence and chaos, law enforcement sources familiar with the investigation told the Los Angeles Times.

The manifesto was titled “The New Crusade: Sons of Tarrant” and made reference ...Read more

Lucy Valeski/The State/TNS

SC House passes new congressional map despite ongoing election, pending lawsuit

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Despite objections over the expedited process to redraw congressional districts, the South Carolina House passed a new map aimed at electing seven Republicans to the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2026 midterms.

After just three days of floor debate, lawmakers opted against any changes to the proposed map. The proposal heads to the state ...Read more

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Iran threatens to retaliate beyond Middle East if US attacks

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Iran warned it would retaliate beyond the Middle East if the U.S. or Israel attacks it again, following renewed threats from President Donald Trump.

The U.S. and Iran seem deadlocked over how to turn their fragile ceasefire into a more permanent peace, with neither side toning down its belligerent rhetoric in recent days.

Trump said late ...Read more

Hector Amezcua/The Sacramento Bee/TNS

Immigrant rights advocates rally for more state healthcare funding, criticize California Gov. Gavin Newsom

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Human rights advocates on Tuesday rallied outside the state Capitol to push back on Gov. Gavin Newsom's proposed budget plan to reduce state-sponsored healthcare coverage for undocumented immigrants.

"We are here to demand a budget that protects California's values," said Kiran Savage-Sangwan, executive director of ...Read more

Kristina Solovyova/Getty Images North America/TNS

Xi and Putin hail deepening ties at talks amid global unrest

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Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin praised the strength of their relationship during talks in Beijing as both countries seek to reinforce bilateral ties in the shadow of wars in Ukraine and Iran.

The two leaders signed a pact on deepening strategic cooperation on Wednesday before looking on as officials from...Read more

Jonathan Ernst/Pool/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

Rubio to Cubans: US offers path out of crisis, says military firm stands in the way

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Speaking to Cubans directly in a recorded video message in Spanish to mark the anniversary of Cuba’s Independence Day on Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio offered a “new relationship” between the United States and the Cuban people that could open up the way to a future in which Cubans could freely elect their leaders and be ...Read more

Stephen Osman/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Fire tearing through Santa Rosa Island reaches critically endangered trees

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LOS ANGELES — The critically endangered Torrey pine tree only grows naturally two places in the world — a state park near San Diego and on Santa Rosa Island — and one of those places is on fire.

A wildfire sparked by a flare from a shipwrecked sailor has burned through nearly one-third of Santa Rosa Island, including the Torrey pine grove...Read more

Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Screens would be banned until 2nd grade under draft LAUSD plan

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LOS ANGELES — Computers — and all other digital screens — would be banned for Los Angeles public school students until second grade, according to a draft plan to limit screen time.

The ban would start at the beginning of the school year this fall. Older students would see screen-time limitations phased in over the 2026-27 school year.

...Read more

The Election Security Group turns intelligence about foreign election threats into warnings and offensive operations. Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images

For the first time in a decade, the next election could be less secure than the one preceding it

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With the 2026 midterms less than six months away, the Election Security Group would normally be busy helping prepare the nation’s election infrastructure. The federal task force typically briefs Congress on upcoming threats and engages with state and local leaders to game out scenarios ranging from ransomware to critical infrastructure ...Read more

In the face of a confusing and hostile political climate, trans youth and their families are often left to fend for themselves. Chalffy/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Transgender youth and their families struggle to find gender-affirming care – even in states where it’s still legal

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Imagine this scenario: In late 2025, a social worker sits down with a transgender teenager and his parents. The family is trying to decide whether, and when, to begin gender-affirming hormone treatment.

No one in the family was questioning this young person’s gender identity. The teen had been living as a boy for years. By all ...Read more

A scientist prepares samples while doing research on PFAS at a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency lab. Understanding of chemicals’ risks has been built on IRIS assessments.
              AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel

EPA is sidelining its independent chemical referee – and that endangers public health

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For decades, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has relied on an independent scientific program to answer two basic questions when chemicals come up for review: Does the chemical pose a threat to human health? If so, how much exposure is necessary before it becomes a problem?

The scientists involved in that program, known as the...Read more

AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

Iran threatens to retaliate beyond Middle East if US attacks

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Iran warned it would retaliate beyond the Middle East if the U.S. or Israel restart attacks on the Islamic Republic, following renewed threats from President Donald Trump.

The U.S. and Iran seem deadlocked over how to turn their fragile ceasefire into a more permanent peace, with neither side toning down its belligerent rhetoric in recent days....Read more

Kristina Solovyova/Getty Images North America/TNS

Xi and Putin hail partnership while signing pacts to deepen ties

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Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin praised the strength of their relationship during talks in Beijing as both countries seek to reinforce bilateral ties in the shadow of wars in Ukraine and Iran.

The two leaders signed a pact on deepening strategic cooperation on Wednesday before looking on as officials from...Read more

Carmen Mandato/Getty Images North America/TNS

How a SoCal native became one of NASA's most valuable assets

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LOS ANGELES — One of NASA's most valuable assets is a Southern Californian.

Following the space agency's successful Artemis II mission around the moon last month, Victor Glover — who grew up primarily in the Inland Empire and has spent much of his career at Southern California's many military and aerospace hubs — is now the only pilot to ...Read more

Pennsylvania
House of Representatives
General Assembly/TNS

Shifting attitudes on menopause drive lawmakers to push for new protections

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Stigma is fading and new laws are passing that will help increase access to menopause treatment.

When Jacqueline Perez started experiencing symptoms of menopause in her early 50s, the brain fog was so severe, she thought she had early onset dementia.

Perez, who founded a website dedicated to normalizing aging for women, said she gained more ...Read more

'Dun-dun ... dun-dun.' The great white shark surge of 2026 and why it's good for SoCal

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LOS ANGELES — As the early morning breeze tickles the top of the Santa Monica Bay, three scientists pack into a small whaler boat and push out to sea in pursuit of great white sharks.

Armed with a set of drones, a GoPro camera on a stick and a tracking device atop a spear, the team from the Cal State Long Beach Shark Lab has many questions ...Read more