DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Two candidates in Iran's presidential election withdrew from the race as the country prepared Thursday for the upcoming vote, an effort by hard-liners to coalesce around a unity candidate in the polls to replace the late President Ebrahim Raisi. Amirhossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi, 53, dropped his...
Planning on Traveling for the Fourth of July Holiday? Here’s How to Avoid the Rush
NEW YORK — The Fourth of July is right around the corner, and the travel rush is already heating up. Millions of Americans are preparing to get out of town sometime in the coming holiday week. That will likely mean busy roads, as well as packed airports and train stations....
Fresno County Lightning Complex Fires Grow to More Than 9,000 Acres
CalFire continues to battle three fires within the Fresno June Lightning Complex, caused by 1,000 lightning strikes during a storm on Monday. The fires have now consumed 9,224 acres, CalFire reported Thursday. There are 288 personnel on the scene and they are supported by 28 engines, eight dozers, and four...
US Economic Growth for Last Quarter is Revised Up Slightly to a 1.4% Annual Rate
WASHINGTON — The American economy expanded at a 1.4% annual pace from January through March, the slowest quarterly growth since spring 2022, the government said Thursday in a slight upgrade from its previous estimate. Consumer spending grew at just a 1.5% rate, down from an initial estimate of 2%, in...
21 Children Are Set to Exit Gaza in First Medical Evacuation Since Early May
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip — Twenty-one critically ill children were set to exit Gaza on Thursday in the first medical evacuation since the territory's sole travel crossing was shut down in early May, Palestinian officials said. The nearly nine-month Israel-Hamas war has devastated Gaza's health sector and forced most of...
Walgreens to Take a Hard Look at Underperforming Stores, Could Shutter Hundreds More
Walgreens is finalizing a plan to fix its U.S. business that could result in closing hundreds of additional stores over the next three years. CEO Tim Wentworth told analysts Thursday morning that "changes are imminent" for about 25% of the company's stores, which he said were underperforming. The drugstore chain...
Trump Eyes Bigger Trade War in Second Term
WASHINGTON — In March 2018, a day after announcing sweeping tariffs on metals imported from U.S. allies and adversaries alike, President Donald Trump took to social media to share one of his central economic philosophies: “Trade wars are good, and easy to win.” As president, Trump presided over the biggest...
Historic NBA Draft for France, Which Joins US as Only Country With 3 Players Among Top 10 Picks
The NBA may have to rethink the timing of its annual draft. Not the month, but a tweak to the hour the picks start coming off the board. Paris is six hours ahead of New York, so French basketball fans eager to see history had to stay up into the...
Supreme Court Blocks Enforcement of EPA’s ‘Good Neighbor’ Rule on Downwind Pollution
WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency will not be able to enforce a key rule limiting air pollution in nearly a dozen states while separate legal challenges proceed around the country, under a Supreme Court decision Thursday. The EPA's "good neighbor" rule is intended to restrict smokestack emissions from power...
The Supreme Court Rejects a Nationwide Opioid Settlement with OxyContin Maker Purdue Pharma
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a nationwide settlement with OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma that would have shielded members of the Sackler family who own the company from civil lawsuits over the toll of opioids but also would have provided billions of dollars to combat the opioid epidemic....