Amid heightened tensions with the United States, the Cuban government announced Thursday evening it will release more than 2,010 prisoners as a humanitarian gesture amid Holy Week celebrations.

It is unclear if among those pardoned are some of the 1,200 political prisoners human-rights groups estimate are held currently on the island. The Cuban...Read more

CHICAGO — Cook County leaders decried an appearance by federal immigration agents Thursday at a domestic violence-focused courthouse, blasting the effort as a repeat arrest attempt, creating a chilling effect on victims.

Immigration agents have been spotted at county courthouses five times since the end of February, targeting the county’s ...Read more

CHICAGO — A Venezuelan migrant charged in state court with the slaying of Loyola University Chicago student Sheridan Gorman in the Rogers Park neighborhood last month is now facing a federal weapon charge.

José Medina-Medina, 25, was charged in a criminal complaint filed Thursday in U.S District Court with unlawful possession of a weapon by ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota National Guard estimates its activation during Operation Metro Surge cost the state about $5.2 million.

Gov. Tim Walz activated the Guard from Jan. 8 to Feb. 25 “out of an abundance of caution” during the aftermath of the fatal shooting of Renee Good.

National Guard members were asked to serve in a supportive ...Read more

A measles outbreak in Washtenaw County may be spreading due to community transmission, health officials said Thursday, announcing that a case has now confirmed in neighboring Monroe County.

Due to the continued spread, state officials are temporarily recommending that families in southeast Michigan have their infant children vaccinated at an ...Read more

Since Donald Trump took office for the second time and began an aggressive effort to deport immigrants, federal courts in Western Washington have seen a massive surge in the number of people objecting to their detainment, according to a review of filings by The Seattle Times.

In Washington and across the country, the number of detention appeals...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A juvenile has been arrested in the case of a 12-year-old Reseda girl who died after she was hit in the head with a metal water bottle during an alleged bullying incident at Reseda Charter High School, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

The suspect, whose age and gender have not been disclosed, was arrested on ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s decision to remove Pam Bondi as attorney general delivers a new disruption to an already beleaguered U.S. Justice Department as it works to advance the administration’s policy goals and sometimes controversial prosecutions.

Trump announced Thursday that he’d ousted Bondi as the nation’s chief law ...Read more

NEW YORK — The judge presiding over Luigi Mangione’s federal criminal case over the killing of UnitedHealth Group Inc. executive Brian Thompson has pushed back the trial three months to January, the second postponement in two days.

U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett on Thursday revised the start date for the federal stalking case, which ...Read more

Federal regulators on Thursday renewed the license for California’s last nuclear power plant, ensuring Diablo Canyon will remain open until at least 2030 after years of debate over safety, climate goals and the state’s ability to keep the lights on.

The plant on the San Luis Obispo County coast, about 200 miles south of San Jose, provides ...Read more

BOISE, Idaho — Meta is urging Idaho Gov. Brad Little to veto legislation that it says would fail to protect children on the internet.

The parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp said in a letter to Little on Tuesday that House Bill 542, also called the “Stop Harms from Addictive Social Media Act,” would not accomplish the Idaho...Read more

BALTIMORE — With less than two weeks left in the energy-dominated 2026 legislative session, Maryland senators clashed for nearly four hours Thursday over whether to prioritize immediate utility relief or long-term investments to stabilize the power grid.

The partisan divide was on full display during debate over Senate Bill 841, the Senate’...Read more

Four cases of rape in Haiti involving members of the departing Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission, including one involving a 12-year-old girl, have been investigated and corroborated, a United Nations report says.

The U.N. said it received the reports of sexual exploitation and abuse involving personnel from the Kenya-led anti-...Read more

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is closing all four of its Forest Service research and development facilities in Michigan as part of a massive restructuring effort, the federal agency announced this week.

The move could impact the health of Michigan's nearly 3 million acres of national forestland, a Michigan forestry researcher said. State ...Read more

BOISE, Idaho — The Department of Health and Welfare would be required to report the immigration status of people using state HIV prevention services under a proposed public health budget.

The move comes after Idaho lawmakers in 2025 passed a measure to prevent some immigrants from accessing services such as soup kitchens, prenatal care and ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s effort to curtail mail voting through executive order will likely be ruled illegal in at least one of several lawsuits filed this week, experts said, the latest in the president’s long-running effort to assert federal control of elections.

Democratic party groups and civil rights organizations have ...Read more

DENVER — Lawyers for Gov. Jared Polis wrote to a Denver judge last month that the governor shouldn’t face a restrictive ruling that would limit how he could respond to subpoenas from federal immigration authorities.

Polis had attempted to fulfill a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement subpoena last year, only for the judge to tell him ...Read more

As loyal as she was to President Donald Trump, Pam Bondi apparently didn’t cut it as U.S. Attorney General after less than a year and a half on the job.

In a social media post on Thursday, Trump said nothing about why he let Bondi go as the nation’s top law enforcement official, instead praising her as a “Great American Patriot and a ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump ousted Pamela Bondi as attorney general Thursday, closing out a tumultuous tenure punctuated by rolling controversies and attacks against the Justice Department’s traditional independence from the White House.

Trump, who made the announcement in a social media post, said his former personal attorney, ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump issued fresh threats to Iranian infrastructure in an effort to pressure Tehran in negotiations, a day after his pledge to continue the war touched off global market and economic turmoil.

“The biggest bridge in Iran comes tumbling down, never to be used again — Much more to follow!” Trump posted to ...Read more