AP News Summary at 4:54 a.m. EDT

Aug 08, 2023

Ukrainians make desperate escape from floods after dam collapse as shelling echoes overhead

KHERSON, Ukraine (AP) — As shelling from Russia's war on Ukraine echoed overhead, evacuees scurried atop military trucks or into rafts to flee rising floodwaters caused by a dam breach on the Dnieper River. The unnerving bark of dogs left behind further soured the mood of those ferried to safety. A woman in one raft clutched the head of her despondent daughter. A military truck stuck in swelling waters raised the panic level of those evacuating. Nobody knew just how high the waters would rise, or whether people would escape alive. The scramble to leave one vulnerable neighborhood Tuesday testified to the latest human chaos caused by Russia's war in Ukraine.

Pope Francis to undergo intestinal surgery under general anesthesia

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis is going the hospital for surgery on his intestine, two years after he had 33 centimeters (13 inches) of his colon removed because of an inflammation and narrowing of the large intestine. The Vatican said Francis, 86, would be put under general anesthesia and would be hospitalized for several days. Earlier Wednesday, the pontiff presided over his weekly general audience. The 86-year-old pope spent three days at the hospital in late March. Initially, the Vatican said he had gone in for scheduled tests, but the pontiff later revealed he had felt pain in his chest and was rushed to the hospital, where bronchitis was diagnosed. He was put on intravenous antibiotics and was released April 1, quipping that he was "still alive."

White woman who fatally shot Black neighbor is arrested in Florida

OCALA, Fla. (AP) — The Marion County Sheriff's Office says a Florida woman accused of fatally shooting her neighbor last week in the violent culmination of what the sheriff described as a 2½-year feud was arrested Tuesday. Susan Louise Lorincz, 58, who is white, was arrested on charges of manslaughter with a firearm, culpable negligence, battery and two counts of assault in the death of Ajike Owens, a Black mother of four. Authorities came under pressure Tuesday to arrest and charge the white woman who fired through her front her door and killed a Black neighbor in a case that has put Florida's divisive stand your ground law back into the spotlight.

Florida grand jury involved in Trump documents probe by Justice Dept., AP source says

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal prosecutors are using a grand jury in Florida as part of their investigation into the possible mishandling of classified documents at former President Donald Trump's Palm Beach property. That's according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press. The grand jury is in addition to a separate panel that has been meeting in Washington for months to consider charges against Trump over the retention of hundreds of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago and potential obstruction of government efforts to reclaim the records. A spokesman for special counsel Jack Smith declined to comment.

As conservatives target schools, LGBTQ+ kids and students of color feel less safe

NOLENSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — As politicians and activists push for limits on discussions of race, gender and sexuality, some students say the measures targeting aspects of their identity have made them less welcome in American schools — the one place all kids are supposed to feel safe. For students of color and LGBTQ+ kids, it can feel like their very existence is being rejected. Among them are a transgender student at a Pennsylvania school where teachers are directed to use only students' birth names, a bisexual student in Florida, and a Black student outside Nashville alarmed by efforts to restrict lessons on Black history.

2 dead in shooting after high school graduation ceremony in Virginia capital

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Police say two people have been killed and five more wounded in a shooting after a high school graduation ceremony in Virginia's capital. Police also said Tuesday night that a 19-year-old is in custody and will be charged with two counts of second-degree murder. The city's interim police chief said the two who died were an 18-year-old male student who had just graduated, and a 36-year-old man. The names of the dead and the suspect were not immediately released. But police said they believe the suspect knew at least one of the victims.

Why is it so smoky outside? Canada wildfires lead to air-quality alerts in northeastern US

Canada is dealing with a series of intense wildfires that have spread from the western provinces to Quebec, with hundreds of forest fires burning. Wind has carried smoke from the fires southward, triggering air quality alerts throughout the United States. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Tuesday issued a poor air quality alert for New England, a day after parts of Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota received a similar advisory. Last week, U.S. officials as far south as Maryland, Baltimore, Virginia and Pennsylvania reported being impacted by the wildfires. Fine-particle pollution — known as "PM 2.5" — is what's being measured. The tiny particles are small enough to get past airway defenses and cause breathing problems.

Pence to launch presidential campaign against Trump in Iowa, staking hopes on leadoff voting state

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Former Vice President Mike Pence is staking his presidential hopes on Iowa as he launches his campaign for the 2024 Republican nomination in Des Moines on Wednesday. Pence's candidacy will make him the first vice president in modern history to take on the commander-in-chief with whom he served. It will test the party's appetite for a socially conservative, mild-mannered and deeply religious candidate who has denounced the populist tide that has swept through his party under former President Donald Trump. Pence also has to contend with the lingering fallout from his actions on Jan. 6, 2021.

In Jerusalem's contested Old City, shrinking Armenian community fears displacement after land deal

JERUSALEM (AP) — A real estate deal in Jerusalem's Old City, at the epicenter of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, has sent the historic Armenian community there into a panic. Residents search for answers about the apparent loss of their homes to a mysterious investor. The fallout from the 99-year lease of 25% of Jerusalem's Armenian Quarter has forced the highest authority of the Armenian church to cloister himself in a convent and prompted a disgraced priest to flee to Southern California. In a dramatic move, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority have suspended recognition of the Armenian patriarch. The saga reflects real estate and political struggles that have long been a stand-in for the entire decadeslong Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

‘Home is like a jail’: Afghan soldier weathers injuries, uncertainty in US asylum bid

HOUSTON (AP) — Afghan soldier Abdul Wasi Safi's days since his release from a Texas immigration detention center have been filled with medical appointments while living in Houston with his brother. He's getting treatment for injuries he suffered while journeying to the U.S.-Mexico border last year. He fled Afghanistan, fearing retribution from the Taliban following the U.S. withdrawal in 2021. His days are also full of worry as he applies for asylum but fears deportation since his legal status remains unsettled. It's a situation many Afghans who have come to the U.S. are facing and it has immigration activists and others calling for the U.S. government to not abandon its allies.

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