Police departments on alert after NYC cops killed

NEW YORK (AP) – Big-city police departments and union leaders around the country are warning the rank and file to wear bulletproof vests and avoid making inflammatory posts on social media in the days after a man ambushed two officers and shot them to death inside their patrol car. The killings of Officers Rafael Ramos […]

Officials: 22 indicted in multistate dog-fighting ring

BALTIMORE (AP) – Authorities say they’ve broken up a violent, multistate dog-fighting ring involving hundreds of dogs forced into brutal combat. Authorities said Monday that a Baltimore grand jury returned indictments against 22 people involved in the ring, 14 of whom are in custody. They’re all charged with animal cruelty, dog fighting and conspiracy. The […]

Marathon bombing suspect’s lawyers invoke McVeigh

BOSTON (AP) – Lawyers for Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev seeking to have his trial moved out of Massachusetts again drew parallels Monday between the media coverage of their client’s case to the coverage received by Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh. It would be impossible to select impartial jurors, defense attorneys wrote in a […]

Palestinians say Gaza reconstruction pledges unfulfilled

JERUSALEM (AP) – International donors have so far failed to deliver billions of dollars in aid money that was promised to rebuild the war-battered Gaza Strip, a Palestinian official said Monday, saying the rift between rival Palestinian factions is deterring foreign governments from sending aid. In the wake of a 50-day war between Israel and […]

Nigerian police: Car bomb kills 16 at bus station in Gombe

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) – Nigerian police say at least 16 people were killed and 25 wounded by a car bomb at a bus station in the northeastern city of Gombe. Deputy Superintendent Fwaje Atajiri said the explosion happened early Monday. He would not speculate about who was responsible although the attack bears all the hallmarks […]

In IS-held town, Iraqi Kurds face heavy resistance

MOUNT SINJAR, Iraq (AP) – Iraqi Kurdish forces forged ahead with their assault Monday on a militant-held town in northern Iraq, but encountered heavy resistance from Islamic State fighters whose snipers fired at the attackers and who used burning tires to create a smoke screen against coalition airstrikes. The battle for the town of Sinjar […]

El Salvador’s gangs target women and girls

SAN SALVADOR, El Salvador (AP) – In a country terrorized by gangsters, it is left to the dead to break the silence on sexual violence. Rather, to the bodies of dead women and girls pulled from clandestine graves. Raped, battered and sometimes cut to pieces, they attest to the sadistic abuse committed by members of […]

Big changes coming to Cuba tourism with US opening

HAVANA (AP) – U.S. tourists are roaming the streets of Old Havana, listening to lectures on Art Deco architecture and meeting with jazz musicians. What they aren’t doing yet – at least most of the time – is lounging in the sun and sipping mojitos at white-sand-beach resorts. American citizens have been allowed to visit […]

Phil Hughes, Twins agree to $58M, 5-year contract

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – The Minnesota Twins and right-hander Phil Hughes have agreed to a $58 million, five-year contract that adds $42 million in guaranteed money from 2017-19. The Twins announced the deal on Monday. The 28-year-old went 16-10 with a 3.52 ERA in his first season with Minnesota and led the major leagues among qualifying […]