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Washington — The United States will send a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery and troops to Israel, the Pentagon said Sunday, even as Iran warned Washington to keep American military forces out of Israel.  Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin authorized the deployment of the THAAD battery at the direction of President Joe Biden.  Ryder said the system will help bolster Israel's air defenses following Iran's missile attacks on Israel in April and October.  "This action underscores the United States' ironclad commitment to the defense of Israel, and to defend Americans in Israel, from any further ballistic missile attacks by Iran," Ryder said.  The Iranian warning came in a post on the social platform X long associated with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who noted the reports that the U.S. was considering the deployment.  Israel is widely believed to be preparing a military response to Iran's Oct. 1 attack when it fired roughly 180 missiles into Israel.  It was not immediately clear where the THAAD battery was coming from. The U.S. deployed one of the batteries to the Middle East along with additional Patriot battalions to bolster protections for U.S. forces in the region late last year after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas militants. Ryder also said that the U.S. sent a THAAD battery to Israel in 2019 for training.  According to an April report by the Congressional Research Service, the Army has seven THAAD batteries. Generally each consists of six truck-mounted launchers, 48 interceptors, radio and radar equipment and required 95 soldiers to operate.  The THAAD is considered a complementary system to the Patriot, but it can defend a wider area. It can hit targets at ranges of 150 to 200 kilometers. 

Cairo — A locomotive crashed into the tail of the Cairo-bound passenger train Sunday in southern Egypt, killing at least one person and injuring multiple others, authorities said. It is the second train crash in a month in the North African country.  The collision occurred in the province of Minya, 270 kilometers (about 168 miles) south of Cairo, the railway authority said in a statement, and two railway carriages fell into an adjacent watercourse. The cause of the crash was being investigated, the statement added.  Footage aired by local media showed the two carriages partially submerged in the watercourse.  Along with the fatality, the Health Ministry said in a separate statement at least 21 people were taken to hospitals, of which 19 were later discharged after receiving treatment.  Train derailments and crashes are common in Egypt, where an aging railway system has also been plagued by mismanagement. In September, two passenger trains collided in a Nile Delta city, killing at least three people.  In recent years, the government announced initiatives to improve its railways. Egyptian   President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi said in 2018 some 250 billion Egyptian pounds, or $8.13 billion, would be needed to properly overhaul the neglected rail network. 

Kyiv — Ukraine's human rights ombudsman urged international organizations Sunday to respond to a claim that several Ukrainian prisoners of war were executed in Russia's Kursk region, where Kyiv had launched an incursion in August. DeepState, a Ukrainian battlefield analysis site close to Ukraine's Defense Ministry, said Russian troops shot and killed nine Ukrainian "drone operators and contractors" on Oct. 10 after they had surrendered.  Dmytro Lubinets said on Telegram that he sent letters to the United Nations and the International Committee of the Red Cross regarding the claim, calling it "another crime committed by the Russians."  Earlier this month, Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine said Russian troops had killed 16 captured Ukrainian soldiers in the partially occupied Donetsk region.  There was no immediate response from Russian officials.  Meanwhile, the Ukrainian air force said Sunday that its air defenses had shot down 31 of 68 drones launched at Ukraine by Russia overnight into Sunday in the regions of Kyiv, Poltava, Chernihiv, Sumy and Cherkasy. A further 36 drones were "lost" over various areas, it said, likely having been electronically jammed.  The air force added that ballistic missiles struck Odesa and Poltava while Chernihiv and Sumy came under attack by a guided air missile. Local authorities didn't report any casualties or damage.  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that Russia had launched around 900 guided aerial bombs, more than 40 missiles and 400 drones against Ukraine over the past week.  Zelenskyy appealed on social platform X to Ukraine's allies to "provide the necessary quantity and quality of air defense systems" and "make decisions for our sufficient range". Kyiv is still awaiting word from its Western partners on its repeated requests to use the long-range weapons they provide to hit targets on Russian soil.  In Russia, the Defense Ministry said that 13 Ukrainian drones were shot down over three regions of Russia: six each in the Belgorod and Kursk regions, and one in the Bryansk region, all of which border Ukraine.

Washington — President Joe Biden on Sunday is surveying the devastation inflicted on Florida's Gulf Coast by Hurricane Milton as he urges Congress to approve additional emergency disaster funding. Vice President Kamala Harris will spend a second day in North Carolina, hard-hit by Hurricane Helene, to attend a Black church and hold a campaign rally. Biden's visit to the St. Petersburg area offers him another chance to press House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., for congressional approval of more aid money before the Nov. 5 election. Johnson has said the issue will be dealt with after then. "I think Speaker Johnson is going to get the message that he's got to step up, particularly for small businesses," Biden told reporters as he and Harris met with aides on Friday to discuss the federal response to Hurricanes Milton and Helene. Biden and Johnson have yet to discuss the matter directly. In Florida, Biden was set to announce $612 million for six Department of Energy projects in areas affected by the hurricanes to improve the resilience of the region's electric grid, the White House said. The funding includes $94 million for two projects in Florida: $47 million for Gainesville Regional Utilities and $47 million for Switched Source to partner with Florida Power and Light. Harris, the Democratic presidential nominee, visited Raleigh on Saturday to meet with Black elected and religious leaders and help volunteers package personal care items for delivery to victims of Helene in the western part of the state. She was spending Sunday in Greenville, with plans to speak during a church service as part of her campaign's "Souls to the Polls" effort to help turn out Black churchgoers before Election Day. She was also scheduled to hold a rally to talk about her economic plans and highlight Thursday's start of early voting in the state, her campaign said. Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, will spend the coming week campaigning in the competitive states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin and North Carolina, according to a Harris campaign official who was not authorized to publicly discuss details not yet made public and spoke on condition of anonymity. With less than four weeks to go before Election Day, the hurricanes have added another dimension to the closely contested presidential race. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has said the Biden administration's storm response had been lacking, particularly in North Carolina after Hurricane Helene. Biden and Harris have hammered Trump for promoting falsehoods about the federal response. Trump made a series of false claims after Helene struck in late September, including incorrectly saying that the federal government is intentionally withholding aid to Republican disaster victims. He also falsely claimed the Federal Emergency Management Agency had run out of money because all of it had gone to programs for immigrants in the country illegally. Biden said Trump was "not singularly" to blame for the spread of false claims in recent weeks but that he has the "biggest mouth." The president is pressing for swift action by Congress to make sure the Small Business Administration and FEMA have the money they need to get through hurricane season, which ends Nov. 30 in the Atlantic. He said Friday that Milton alone had caused an estimated $50 billion in damages. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said last week that FEMA will be able to meet "immediate needs" caused by the two storms. But he warned in the aftermath of Helene that the agency does not have enough funding to make it through the hurricane season. But Johnson has pushed back, saying the agencies have enough money for the time being and that lawmakers will address the funding issue during the lame-duck session after the election. Also percolating in the background are tensions between Harris and Gov. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla. As Helene barreled toward Florida, the two traded accusations that the other was trying to politicize the federal storm response. Harris' office last week suggested that DeSantis was dodging her phone calls. DeSantis responded that he was unaware she had called and he grumbled that she hadn't been involved in the federal government's response before she became the Democratic nominee. Biden, for his part, said he hoped to see DeSantis on Sunday, if the governor's schedule permitted. "He's been very cooperative," Biden said about DeSantis. He added, "We got on very, very well." DeSantis said Saturday that he had no details about the president's visit. Biden was scheduled to survey damage during an aerial tour between Tampa and St. Pete Beach, where he will be briefed on the storm by federal, state and local officials. He also will residents and first responders. Hurricane Milton made landfall in Florida as a Category 3 storm on Wednesday evening. At least 10 people were killed and hundreds of thousands of residents remain without power. Officials say the toll could have been worse if not for widespread evacuations. The still-fresh devastation wrought by Helene just two weeks earlier probably helped compel many people to flee.

BANGKOK — China agreed Sunday to assist Vietnam on cross-border railway development and take steps to expand agricultural imports from its smaller neighbor, Vietnam's official media said. Premier Li Qiang, on an official visit to Vietnam, pledged that China would further open its market to high-quality fruits, seafood and other Vietnamese products, a state media report said. China is Vietnam's largest trading partner and second-largest export market after the U.S. Trade between the two countries reached $172 billion in 2023. Vietnam's top leader, To Lam, signaled the importance of the relationship when he made China his first overseas visit after assuming his post last year. Li came to Vietnam from neighboring Laos, where he had pushed back against calls at a meeting of Southeast Asian leaders to respect international law in territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh told Li that both sides should respect each other's legitimate rights and interests, resolve disputes through peaceful means and properly address issues related to fishers and their vessels, the state media report said. Vietnam condemned China two weeks ago for what it described as an assault by Chinese law enforcement personnel that injured several Vietnamese fishers near the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea. The islands have been under the de facto control of China since 1974, when Beijing seized them from Vietnam in a brief but violent naval conflict. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the Southeast Asian leaders gathered in Laos last week that the U.S. is concerned about China's "increasingly dangerous and unlawful" activities in the South China Sea, which Beijing claims virtually in its entirety. In their talks on Sunday, Chinh and Li agreed to deepen exchange and cooperation in diplomacy, national defense and public security, the state media report said. They also witnessed the exchange of 10 cooperation agreements, including the establishment of a working group to develop cross-border economic cooperation zones and the implementation of QR-code, cross-border payment services. The railway agreements covered a technical plan and feasibility studies to improve train connectivity between Vietnam and China. On trade, Chinh asked for greater access for a range of products including tropical fruits, meat products, farm-raised spiny lobster and plant-based traditional medicines. Li said that China stands ready to resolve trade issues and work with Vietnam on quarantine and customs procedures, according to the Vietnamese report.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A NASA spacecraft is ready to set sail for Jupiter and its moon Europa, one of the best bets for finding life beyond Earth. Europa Clipper will peer beneath the moon’s icy crust where an ocean is thought to be sloshing fairly close to the surface. It won’t search for life, but rather determine whether conditions there could support it. Another mission would be needed to flush out any microorganisms lurking there. “It’s a chance for us to explore not a world that might have been habitable billions of years ago, but a world that might be habitable today — right now,” said program scientist Curt Niebur. Its massive solar panels make Clipper the biggest craft built by NASA to investigate another planet. It will take 5 1/2 years to reach Jupiter and will sneak within 16 miles (25 kilometers) of Europa's surface — considerably closer than any other spacecraft. Liftoff is targeted for this month aboard SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. Mission cost: $5.2 billion. Europa, the superstar among Jupiter’s many moons One of Jupiter’s 95 known moons, Europa is almost the size of our own moon. It's encased in an ice sheet estimated to be 10 miles to 15 miles or more (15 kilometers to 24 kilometers) thick. Scientists believe this frozen crust hides an ocean that could be 80 miles (120 kilometers) or more deep. The Hubble Space Telescope has spotted what appear to be geysers erupting from the surface. Discovered by Galileo in 1610, Europa is one of the four so-called Galilean moons of Jupiter, along with Ganymede, Io and Callisto. Seeking conditions that support life What type of life might Europa harbor? Besides water, organic compounds are needed for life as we know it, plus an energy source. In Europa’s case that could be thermal vents on the ocean floor. Deputy project scientist Bonnie Buratti imagines any life would be primitive like the bacterial life that originated in Earth’s deep ocean vents. “We will not know from this mission because we can’t see that deep,” she said. Unlike missions to Mars where habitability is one of many questions, Clipper’s sole job is to establish whether the moon could support life in its ocean or possibly in any pockets of water in the ice. Supersized spacecraft When its solar wings and antennas are unfurled, Clipper is about the size of a basketball court — more than 100 feet (30 meters) end to end — and weighs nearly 13,000 pounds (6,000 kilograms). The supersized solar panels are needed because of Jupiter’s distance from the sun. The main body — about the size of a camper — is packed with nine science instruments, including radar that will penetrate the ice, cameras that will map virtually the entire moon and tools to tease out the contents of Europa’s surface and tenuous atmosphere. The name hearkens to the swift sailing ships of centuries past. Circling Jupiter to fly by Europa The roundabout trip to Jupiter will span 1.8 billion miles (3 billion kilometers). For extra oomph, the spacecraft will swing past Mars early next year and then Earth in late 2026. It arrives at Jupiter in 2030 and begins science work the next year. While orbiting Jupiter, it will cross paths with Europa 49 times. The mission ends in 2034 with a planned crash into Ganymede — Jupiter’s biggest moon and the solar system's too. Europa flybys pose huge radiation risk There’s more radiation around Jupiter than anywhere else in our solar system, besides the sun. Europa passes through Jupiter’s bands of radiation as it orbits the gas giant, making it especially menacing for spacecraft. That’s why Clipper’s electronics are inside a vault with dense aluminum and zinc walls. All this radiation would nix any life on Europa’s surface. But it could break down water molecules and, perhaps, release oxygen all the way down into the ocean that could possibly fuel sea life. Earlier this year, NASA was in a panic that the spacecraft's many transistors might not withstand the intense radiation. But after months of analysis, engineers concluded the mission could proceed as planned. Other visitors to Jupiter and Europa NASA’s twin Pioneer spacecraft and then two Voyagers swept past Jupiter in the 1970s. The Voyagers provided the first detailed photos of Europa but from quite a distance. NASA’s Galileo spacecraft had repeated flybys of the moon during the 1990s, passing as close as 124 miles (200 kilometers). Still in action around Jupiter, NASA’s Juno spacecraft has added to Europa’s photo album. Arriving at Jupiter a year after Clipper will be the European Space Agency’s Juice spacecraft, launched last year. Ganymede and other possible ocean worlds Like Europa, Jupiter’s jumbo moon Ganymede is thought to host an underground ocean. But its frozen shell is much thicker — possibly 100 miles (160 kilometers) thick — making it tougher to probe the environment below. Callisto’s ice sheet may be even thicker, possibly hiding an ocean. Saturn’s moon Enceladus has geysers shooting up, but it’s much farther than Jupiter. Ditto for Saturn’s moon Titan, also suspected of having a subterranean sea. While no ocean worlds have been confirmed beyond our solar system, scientists believe they’re out there — and may even be relatively common. Messages in a cosmic bottle Like many robotic explorers before it, Clipper bears messages from Earth. Attached to the electronics vault is a triangular metal plate. On one side is a design labeled “water words” with representations of the word for water in 104 languages. On the opposite side: a poem about the moon by U.S. poet laureate Ada Limon and a silicon chip containing the names of 2.6 million people who signed up to vicariously ride along.

Port Sudan, Sudan — A Sudanese network of volunteer rescuers said on Sunday the military carried out an air strike a day earlier on a marketplace in Khartoum, leaving 23 people dead.   The market is near one of the main camps in the Sudanese capital, where the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been fighting the military as part of a civil war that has killed tens of thousands of people.   "Twenty-three people were confirmed dead and more than 40 others wounded" and taken to hospital after "military air strikes on Saturday afternoon on the main market" in southern Khartoum, the youth-led Emergency Response Rooms said in a post on Facebook.   Fierce fighting has raged since Friday around Khartoum, much of which is controlled by the RSF, with the military pounding the center and south of the city from the air.   The military is advancing towards Khartoum from nearby Omdurman, where clashes erupted on Saturday, eyewitnesses said.   World's largest displacement crisis   Since April 2023, when war broke out between army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and his former deputy, RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, the paramilitaries had largely pushed the army out of Khartoum.   The World Health Organization says at least 20,000 people have been killed in the civil war, but some estimates put the toll much higher at up to 150,000.   The war has also created the world's largest displacement crisis, the U.N. says.   More than 10 million people, around a fifth of Sudan's population, have been forced from their homes, according to U.N. figures.   A U.N.-backed assessment in August declared a famine in the Zamzam refugee camp in Darfur near the city of El-Fasher.   The government loyal to the army is based in Port Sudan on the Red Sea coast, where the army has retained control.    The RSF meanwhile has taken control of nearly all of the vast western region of Darfur, rampaged through the agricultural heartland of central Sudan and pushed into the army-controlled southeast. 

Mount Juliet, United States — Amazon is bolstering its e-commerce empire while continuing a march deeper into people's lives, from robots to healthcare and entertainment.   Innovations unveiled in recent days by the Seattle-based tech titan included a delivery van computer system to shave time off deliveries by its speed-obsessed logistics network.    Amazon Stores boss Doug Herrington said that the technology enables vans to recognize stops and signal which packages to drop off.   "When we speed up deliveries, customers shop more," Herrington said.   "For 2024, we're going to have the fastest Prime delivery speeds around the world," he added, referring to Amazon's subscription service.   On top of that, according to Herrington, Amazon last year managed to cut 45 cents off the cost per unit shipped, a huge savings when considering the massive volume of sales.   Prime is the 'glue'   Amazon last year recorded profit of more than $30 billion on revenue of $575 billion, powered by its online retail operation and its AWS cloud computing division.   "They have this whole flywheel model with Amazon Prime membership in the middle," said eMarketer analyst Suzy Davidkhanian.   "That's the glue that keeps everything together."   Businesses include retail, advertising, cloud computing and streamed movies and music.   But that very model has the 30-year-old company facing a US government lawsuit, accused of expanding an illegal monopoly and otherwise harming competition.    Amazon makes money from data gathered about consumers, either by targeting ads or through insights into what products they might like, Davidkhanian said.   That was why Amazon paid for expensive rights to stream NFL American football games on Prime Video in a move that promises to help it pinpoint fans of the sport.   Amazon's digital assistant Alexa can order items on command and has been even built into appliances such as washing machines to let them automatically buy supplies like laundry soap as needed.   A 'pocket pharmacy'   Amazon showed off enhancements to its virtual health care service called One Medical.   For $9 a month Prime members are promised anytime access to video consultations with health care professionals, along with record keeping and drug prescriptions.   An Amazon Pharmacy takes advantage of the company's delivery network to get prescriptions to patients quickly, striving for speeds of less than 24 hours for 45 percent of customers by the end of next year.   "We're building a pharmacy in your pocket that offers rapid delivery right to your door," Amazon Pharmacy chief Hannah McClellan said, referring to the option of using a smartphone app.   The healthcare market promises to be lucrative for Amazon, which is "trying to be the platform that has everything for everyone," said analyst Davidkhanian.   Real world wrinkles   Amazon has suffered setbacks when it comes to brick-and-mortar stores but it continues to strive for a winning strategy.   The company next year will open its first "automated micro warehouse" in Pennsylvania, next to a Whole Foods Market organic grocery shop, the chain it bought in 2017.   People will be able to pick up certain items selected online, with orders filled by robots, after shopping next door for fresh produce and groceries.   Meanwhile, Amazon is ramping up use of artificial intelligence at its online store with tools helping sellers describe and illustrate products.   Product labels will change according to the user, displaying terms likely to catch their attention such as "strawberry flavor" for some and "gluten-free" for others.    "The things that Amazon is doing with AI are to make sure that you go from researching something to making the purchase as quickly as possible," Davidkhanian said.   At the logistics center near Nashville, robotic arms deftly placed packages in carts that autonomously made their way to trucks.   Logistics center automation improves safety and frees up workers for more interesting tasks, according to Amazon robotics manager Julie Mitchell.   However, critics cite delivery speed pressure and other factors as making Amazon warehouses more dangerous than the industry average. 

Vatican City, Holy See — Pope Francis asked Sunday for "respect" for U.N. peacekeepers in Lebanon who have accused the Israeli military of deliberately firing on their positions.   "I am close to all the people involved, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, where I ask that the U.N. peacekeepers be respected," Francis said at the Vatican.   The peacekeeping mission, UNIFIL, has said that its forces have repeatedly come under fire in the Lebanese town of Naqura where it is headquartered, as well as in other positions.   At least five U.N. peacekeepers have been wounded as Israeli forces battle Hezbollah.   Efforts to negotiate a stop to the fighting in Lebanon and Gaza have so far failed.   "I once again call for an immediate ceasefire on all fronts that the paths of diplomacy and dialogue be pursued to achieve peace," Francis said at the end of the Angelus prayer.   "I pray for all the victims, for the displaced, for the hostages and I hope that this great and unnecessary suffering, generated by hatred and revenge, will end soon," he said.   "Brothers and sisters, war is an illusion. It will never bring peace, it will never bring security, it is a defeat for everyone, especially because you believe you are invincible. Please stop," he added. 

VENICE, Fla — No sooner had residents of the Bahia Vista Gulf condominium complex dug out and from Hurricane Helene than they were faced with the same daunting cleanup from new damage inflicted by Hurricane Milton. The beachfront units had been gutted, treated and dried out after Hurricane Helene and mounds of sand that had blown in from the beach had been removed. Then, less than two weeks later, Hurricane Milton barreled in and undid all the progress. “They’ve got to start the whole process over, cleaning, sanitizing, bringing in drying equipment, getting them all dried and prepped for renovations,” lamented Bill O’Connell, a board member at the complex in Venice, about an hour's drive south of Tampa. The second hurricane “brought all the sand back on our property.” Some longtime Floridians have grown accustomed to the annual cycle of storms that can shatter and upend lives in a state known mostly for its balmy weather, sunshine and beaches. “It’s the price you pay to live in paradise,” O’Connell said. “If you want to live here with this view, beautiful sunsets, be able to go out on your boat, enjoy what Florida has to offer, you have to be willing to accept that these storms are going to come." The devastation of the back-to-back storms is still being tallied as a swath of the state comes to terms with damage from the unusual dual strike of storms in such close proximity. Many residents, some returning home after evacuating, spent much of Saturday searching for gas as a fuel shortage gripped the state. President Joe Biden planned to visit the Gulf Coast on Sunday. Hurricane Milton killed at least 10 people after it made landfall as a Category 3 storm, tearing across central Florida, flooding barrier islands and spawning deadly tornadoes. Officials say the toll could have been worse if not for the widespread evacuations. Overall, more than a thousand people were rescued in the wake of the storm. Disaster hits twice In the fishing village of Cortez, a community of 4,100 southwest of Tampa, Catherine Praught said she and her husband, Mark, felt “pure panic” when Hurricane Milton menaced Cortez so soon after Helene, forcing them to pause their cleanup and evacuate. Fortunately, their home wasn’t damaged by the second storm. “This is where we live,” Catherine Praught said of their low-lying home of 36 years that had to be emptied, gutted and scrubbed after Helene. “We’re just hopeful we get the insurance company to help us.” Residents of the community's modest, single-story wood and stucco-fronted cottages were working Saturday to remove broken furniture and tree limbs, stacking the debris in the street much like they did after Hurricane Helene. A similar scene could be found in Steinhatchee, west of Gainsville, where enormous piles of debris lined the streets. Melissa Harden lives less than a block from a restaurant and neighborhood bar that were reduced to rubble. Her house is on 16-foot (4.9-meter) pilings, but 4 feet (1.2 meters) of water still flooded in. When Milton was forecast, she feared Steinhatachee would be hit by the third hurricane in 14 months. “Personally, I thought, if it comes, we’re already evacuated and our home is pretty messed up,” she said as friends and relatives helped with the cleanup, removing bathroom fixtures and pulling out damaged boards. “Of course we didn’t want it! No more storms!” Moody’s Analytics on Saturday estimated economic costs from the storm will range from $50 billion to $85 billion, including upwards of $70 billion in property damage and an economic output loss of up to $15 billion. Widespread fuel shortage In St. Petersburg, scores of people lined up at a station that had no gas Saturday, hoping it would arrive soon. Among them was Daniel Thornton and his 9-year-old daughter Magnolia, who arrived at 7 a.m. and were still waiting four hours later. “They told me they have gas coming but they don’t know when it’s going to be here,” he said. “I have no choice. I have to sit here all day with her until I get gas.” Gov. Ron DeSantis told reporters Saturday morning that the state opened three fuel distribution sites and planned to open several more. Residents can get 10 gallons (37.8 liters) each, free of charge, he said. “Obviously as power gets restored ... and the Port of Tampa is open, you’re going to see the fuel flowing. But in the meantime, we want to give people another option,” DeSantis said. Officials were replenishing area gas stations with the state’s fuel stockpiles and provided generators to stations that remained without power. Rising rivers among the remaining safety threats As the recovery continues, DeSantis has warned people to be cautious, citing ongoing safety threats including downed power lines and standing water. Some 1.1 million Floridians were still without power Saturday night, according to Poweroutage.us. National Weather Service Meteorologist Paul Close said rivers will “keep rising" for the next several days and result in flooding, mostly around Tampa Bay and northward. Those areas were hit by the most rain, which comes on top of a wet summer that included several earlier hurricanes. “You can't do much but wait,” Close said of the rivers cresting. “At least there is no rain in the forecast, no substantial rain. So we have a break here from all our wet weather.”

NEW DELHI — A senior politician in India's financial capital, Mumbai, who was also known for his close ties with Bollywood has been shot dead weeks before a key state election. Baba Siddique, 66, was shot multiple times outside his son's office in Mumbai on Saturday night, police said in a statement. He later succumbed to his wounds at the city's Lilavati Hospital. Siddique was associated with the Indian National Congress party for decades but had recently joined a regional party that rules Maharashtra state. He was also close to several Bollywood superstars and was known for throwing lavish parties. Maharashtra's deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar, who is from the same political party as Siddique, said he was shocked by the killing. "The incident will be thoroughly investigated, and strict action will be taken against the attackers. The mastermind behind the attack will also be traced," Pawar said in a statement. News agency Press Trust of India reported that two suspected attackers had been arrested, and police were searching for another. Broadcaster NDTV said the two suspects claimed they were part of a crime gang that has carried out multiple killings in the past. Elections in Maharashtra state are expected to be held in November.

KARACHI, Pakistan — The Baloch Liberation Army, a militant separatist group in Pakistan, denied involvement in an attack that killed at least 21 mine workers, condemning the violence. Dozens of attackers stormed a cluster of small private coal mines in Pakistan's restive southwest on Friday with guns, rockets and hand grenades, killing some miners in their sleep and shooting others after lining them up. "Baloch Liberation Army condemns the massacre of 21 Pashtun workers in Dukki, making it clear that our organization has no involvement in this tragic incident," the BLA said in an email late on Saturday. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack on the mines of the Junaid Coal Co. in the mineral-rich province of Balochistan that borders Afghanistan and Iran. It was the worst such attack in weeks and comes days before Pakistan hosts a summit of the Eurasian group Shanghai Cooperation Organization. A decadeslong insurgency in Balochistan by separatist militant groups has led to frequent attacks against the government, army and Chinese interests in the region, pressing demands for a share in mineral-rich resources. Besides the separatists, the region is also home to Islamist militants, who have resurged since 2022 after revoking a cease-fire with the government. The BLA seeks independence for Balochistan. It is the biggest of several ethnic insurgent groups that have battled the South Asian nation's government for decades, saying it unfairly exploits Balochistan's rich gas and mineral resources. The province is home to key mining projects, including Reko Diq, run by giant Barrick Gold ABX.TO and believed to be one of the world's largest gold and copper mines. China also operates a gold and copper mine in the province. At the time of the attack, a delegation from Saudi Arabia, which says it is set to buy a stake in the Reko Diq mine, was in Islamabad exploring deals as Pakistan seeks to recover from an economic crisis.

CAIRO — Israeli forces widened their raid into northern Gaza, and tanks reached the north edge of Gaza City, pounding some districts of the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood and forcing many families to leave their homes, residents said. Residents said Israeli forces had effectively isolated Beit Hanoun, Jabalia, and Beit Lahiya in the far north of the enclave from Gaza City, blocking access between the two areas except upon their permission for families willing to heed evacuation orders and leave the three towns. Nine days into a major Israeli operation in northern Gaza, the Hamas-run Gaza government media office said Israeli strikes had killed around 300 Palestinians there. It said Israel's bombardment of civilian houses and displacement shelters was intended to force residents to leave Gaza once and for all, which Israel denies. Gaza's health ministry says dozens of people have been confirmed killed in the assaults on northern areas, with many dozens of others feared dead on roads and under the rubble of houses beyond the reach of medical teams. Many Jabalia residents posted on social media platforms: "We will not leave, we die, and we don't leave." The northern part of Gaza, home to well over half the territory's 2.3 million people, was bombed to rubble in the first phase of Israel's assault on the territory a year ago, after the October 7 attacks on Israeli towns by militants who killed 1,200 people and captured 250 hostages. After a year of Israeli assaults that killed 42,000 Palestinians, hundreds of thousands of residents have come back to ruined northern areas. Israel sent troops back more than a week ago to root out fighters it said were regrouping for more attacks. Hamas denies fighters operate among civilians.  The escalation in northern Gaza has taken place alongside a huge Israeli air assault and ground campaign on a separate front in southern Lebanon against Hezbollah, which like Hamas is an ally of Iran. "As the world is focused on Lebanon and possible Israeli strike against Iran, Israel is wiping out Jabalia," said Nasser, a resident of Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip. "The occupation is blowing up roads and destroying residential districts. People also don't find anything to eat, they are trapped inside their homes, fearing bombs could fall onto their heads," he told Reuters via a chat app. While the main assault is on the north, Israel is also striking other areas across the Gaza Strip. The health ministry reported at least 11 people killed by late morning on Sunday, including at least six killed in a house in Bureij camp in the central Gaza Strip, south of Gaza City. The Israeli military said in a statement on Sunday that forces operating throughout the Gaza Strip in the past 24 hours had attacked about 40 targets and killed dozens of militants. "The forces of Division 162 continue to operate in the Jabalia region, in the last day the forces killed dozens of terrorists and found explosives, weapons, grenades and other means of warfare in the region," it said. The armed wings of Hamas, the Islamic Jihad, and smaller other factions said their fighters attacked Israeli forces in Jabalia and nearby areas with anti-tank rockets and mortar fire. Palestinian and United Nations officials say there are no safe areas in Gaza. They have also voiced concerns over severe shortages of food, fuel, and medical supplies in northern Gaza, and said there is a risk of famine there. Some tank shells landed in some streets of the Gaza City suburb of Sheikh Radwan, where tanks arrived at the edges of the territory, residents said, spreading panic among the population further south. In the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli authorities released 12 Palestinians detained during the ground offensive, local border officials said. Freed detainees have complained of torture and ill-treatment while in Israeli detention, allegations Israel denies. 

moscow — Speaking behind the thick white walls of Moscow's ancient Danilov Monastery, Archpriest Igor Yakimchuk is adamant: People must not be forbidden to pray in their chosen branch of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. He speaks calmly, but Yakimchuk is one of many Orthodox Christians in Russia who are angry about a law passed by Kyiv in August that targets a Russia-linked Orthodox church that long dominated religious life in Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's administration accuses the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) of spreading pro-Russian propaganda in time of war and of housing spies, charges it denies. Under the law, the Russian Orthodox Church itself was banned on Ukrainian territory and a government commission was tasked with compiling a list of "affiliated" organizations - expected to include the UOC - whose activities will be outlawed, too. "In the 21st century, in the center of Europe, millions of people are being deprived of their basic civil rights," Yakimchuk, wearing a black cassock and a large Orthodox cross around his neck, told Reuters in an interview. "Because what does it mean to ban a church, which is the largest religious denomination in Ukraine, no matter how much the current Ukrainian authorities would like to downplay its scale? Everyone understands perfectly well that it is impossible to forbid people to pray." Whether the UOC retains the following it once did is disputed. An independent Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) that was set up after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 to be fully independent of Moscow has seen its popularity grow rapidly since President Vladimir Putin sent his forces into Ukraine in 2022. Ukrainian authorities say the UOC is fair game. They have launched dozens of criminal proceedings, including treason charges, against dozens of its clergy. At least one has been sent to Russia as part of a prisoner swap.   Church divided However, Yakimchuk's denunciation of what he calls "absolute lawlessness" in Ukraine is a reflection of how the nearly 32-month war - which Moscow calls a "special military operation" - has divided Orthodox hierarchies in the two countries, even though they all adhere to Eastern Orthodox Christianity. The UOC tried to distance itself from Moscow once the war was underway, condemning Russia's actions and removing references to the "Moscow Patriarchate" from its name. But those attempts angered clerics in Moscow, who have thrown their weight behind what they cast as Russia's "holy war" in Ukraine against the expanding influence of what they see as a decadent, godless West. The UOC's efforts also failed to allay Kyiv's concerns about the church's activities and loyalties. The process of shutting down UOC operations in Ukraine - something one Ukrainian lawmaker called "cleansing" - is likely to be lengthy and involve court battles, but the church's days seem numbered. Some opinion polls suggest more than 80% of Ukrainians do not trust the UOC. The Kremlin, which has forged close ties with the Russian Orthodox Church, has described Ukraine's new law as "an open attack on freedom of religion." One Russian Orthodox priest in St. Petersburg, Leonid Trofimuk, branded Ukraine's action as "Satanism" and compared it to Soviet-era state repression of religion. "The 20th century is behind us," he said. "We saw the persecution of the church at that time, but we didn't think that there would be this kind of persecution that is going on now in Ukraine." Ordinary Russian churchgoers interviewed by Reuters also expressed concern. "There is a kind of total politicization of matters of faith going on," said Sergei, a St. Petersburg resident. "I would like common sense to prevail and the international community to finally pay attention." His criticism of Kyiv's moves was echoed by churchgoers leaving a golden onion-domed church more than 900 miles (1,448 km) away to the south, in Mariupol, a Ukrainian port city seized by Russian forces in 2022 after a long siege. "This is wrong - you shouldn't do this kind of thing," said Olga, a Mariupol resident who was wearing a headscarf. "How can he [Zelenskyy] interfere with faith in God? This is not a matter for the state."

WASHINGTON — As if the largest bug to ever live – a monster about 2.7 meters long with several dozen legs – wasn't terrifying enough, scientists could only just imagine what the extinct beast's head looked like. That's because many of the fossils of these creatures are headless shells that were left behind when they molted, squirming out of their exoskeletons through the head opening as they grew ever bigger — 2.4 to 2.7 meters and more than 50 kilograms. Now, scientists have produced a mug shot after studying fossils of juveniles that were complete and very well preserved, if not quite cute. The giant bug's topper was a round bulb with two short bell-shaped antennae, two protruding eyes like a crab, and a rather small mouth adapted for grinding leaves and bark, according to new research published Wednesday in Science Advances. Called Arthropleura, these were arthropods -- the group that includes crabs, spiders and insects – with features of modern-day centipedes and millipedes. But some of them were much, much bigger, and this one was a surprising mix. "We discovered that it had the body of a millipede, but head of a centipede," said study co-author and paleobiologist Mickael Lheritier at the University Claude Bernard Lyon in Villeurbanne, France. The largest Arthropleura may have been the biggest bugs to ever live, although there is still a debate. They may be a close second to an extinct giant sea scorpion. Researchers in Europe and North America have been collecting fragments and footprints of the huge bugs since the late 1800s. "We have been wanting to see what the head of this animal looked like for a really long time," said James Lamsdell, a paleobiologist at West Virginia University, who was not involved in the study. To produce a model of the head, researchers first used CT scans to study fossil specimens of fully intact juveniles embedded in rocks found in a French coal field in the 1980s. This technique allowed the researchers to scrutinize "hidden details like bits of the head that are still embedded in the rock" without marring the fossil, Lamsdell said. "When you chip away at rock, you don't know what part of a delicate fossil may have been lost or damaged," he said. The juvenile fossil specimens only measured about 6 centimeters and it's possible they were a type of Arthropleura that didn't grow to enormous sizes. But even if so, the researchers said they are close enough kin to provide a glimpse of what adults looked like – whether giant or of a less nightmarish size -- when they were alive 300 million years ago.

goma, congo — The overcrowded boat that capsized in eastern Congo last week killed eight members of Serge Nzonga's family along with 70 others. Days later, he was back on the same route that claimed their lives in yet another boat lacking safety measures.  Nzonga and hundreds of other passengers, including Associated Press journalists, lined up at the seaport in Goma, eastern Congo's largest city, getting ready to board a locally made boat bound for Bukavu city on the other side of Lake Kivu, a perilous journey they would rather undertake than travel Congo's treacherous roads.  On Wednesday, as authorities continued to investigate the accident, families of those killed last week protested at the port of Kituku, accusing officials of negligence in failing to address the insecurity in eastern Congo and of delaying rescue operations.  The capsizing of overloaded boats is becoming increasingly frequent in this central African nation as more people are abandoning the few available roads for wooden vessels crumbling under the weight of passengers and their goods.  The roads are often caught up in the deadly clashes between Congolese security forces and rebels that sometimes block major access routes. Hundreds have already been killed or declared missing in such accidents so far this year.  "This is the only way we can reach our brothers and sisters in the other province of South Kivu," said Nzonga as his turn to board a locally made boat drew nearer.  "If we don't take this journey, there is no other route," he said. "The road is blocked because of the war and … the roads are not paved in eastern Congo."  In the absence of good roads in this country of more than 100 million, the rivers in Congo have been the only means of transport many here have known — especially in remote areas where passengers usually come from.  Among the frequent passengers on the boats and ferries are traders unable to transport their goods along the dangerous roads, some of them spending days or weeks along the rivers.  However, several others also board them for various other reasons: It is faster than traveling by road, the roads are in bad shape, and families like Nzonga's can travel at more affordable rates.  That leaves boats and ferries frequently overcrowded, and safety measures are hardly implemented, analysts say.  The boat that capsized on Congo's Lake Kivu last week was trying to dock just meters away from the port of Kituku when it began to sink, witnesses said.  The boat was visibly overcrowded, "full of passengers (as) it started to lose its balance," said Francine Munyi, an eyewitness.  Authorities often threaten harsh punishments to curb overloading, enforce safety measures and punish corrupt officials, but measures promised to stop the accidents are rarely carried out, analysts say.  "The private sector dominates Lake Kivu … but the boats cannot leave the port without the authorization of the lake commissioner," said Emile Murhula, an independent analyst, adding that authorities are also supposed to enforce the use of life jackets and remove boats that do not meet the required standards.  As the Bukavu-bound boat — named Emmanuel 4 — navigated the waters, the passengers cast worried glances at the lake, many of them without life jackets.  Canoes crisscrossed the lake in search of the bodies of victims still missing after the latest accident. At the seaport, dozens of relatives waited patiently for answers.  Nzonga, the passenger who lost eight relatives, admits it is dangerous to travel without a life jacket. But even those jackets are not provided by the government.  "We're scared, but it's the only way we have to get to the other province," he said. "I still have to travel, even though we're used to it (the accidents)."