Trump to meet Syria's president before heading to Qatar on his Mideast tour
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — President Donald Trump is set to meet with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, in a face-to-face with the onetime insurgent leader who spent years imprisoned by U.S. forces after being captured in Iraq. The White House says Trump has agreed to “say hello” Wednesday to al-Sharaa before the U.S. leader wraps up his visit to Saudi Arabia and moves on to Qatar. Trump is also scheduled to attend a meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council, the grouping of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. He then sets off Wednesday for Qatar, the second stop in his Mideast tour. Trump will be honored with a state dinner in Qatar.
Trump's Middle East visit comes as his family deepens its business, crypto ties in the region
WASHINGTON (AP) — It’s not just the “gesture” of a $400 million luxury plane that President Donald Trump says he’s smart to accept from Qatar. Or that Trump effectively auctioned off the first destination on his first major foreign trip, heading to Saudi Arabia because the kingdom was ready to make big investments in U.S. companies. It’s not even that the Trump family has fast-growing business ties in the Middle East. Instead, it’s the idea that the combination of these things and more could cause the United States to favor Middle Eastern leaders when it comes to American affairs of state. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt says it's “ridiculous” to suggest Trump is doing anything for his own gain.
Trump says he will ease sanctions on Syria and move to restore relations with new leader
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — President Donald Trump says he will ease sanctions on Syria and move to normalize relations with its new government to give the country “a chance at peace.” The development came shortly before Trump was set to meet Wednesday in Saudi Arabia with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa. The onetime insurgent led the overthrow of longtime leader Bashar Assad last year. Trump says the effort at rapprochement came at the urging of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Trump says he hopes the new government succeeds and wishes ihem luck. He says, “Show us something special.”
Judge reduces Menendez brothers' murder sentences, putting them a step closer to freedom
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Erik and Lyle Menendez will have a new shot at freedom after 35 years behind bars for murdering their parents. A judge ruled Tuesday to reduce the brothers’ sentences from life without parole to 50 years to life. They were convicted of murdering their entertainment executive father and mother in their Beverly Hills home in 1989. The brothers’ attorneys said their clients have worked hard over the decades to better themselves and give back to the prison community. Prosecutors opposed their resentencing, arguing that the brothers had not taken full accountability for their crime.
Wisconsin judge Hannah Dugan is indicted on accusations she helped a man evade immigration agents
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A federal grand jury has indicted a Wisconsin judge accused of helping a man evade immigration authorities. Federal prosecutors charged Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Hannah Dugan in April with concealing an individual to prevent arrest and obstruction. A grand jury affirmed the charges after convening Tuesday to determine whether there was enough probable cause to continue the case. FBI agents arrested Dugan at the Milwaukee County courthouse a week after authorities said she directed Eduardo Flores-Ruiz out a back door in her courtroom when she learned immigration agents were in the courthouse searching for him. According to court documents, Flores-Ruiz illegally reentered the U.S. after being deported in 2013. Dugan's attorneys say she maintains her innocence.
Sean 'Diddy' Combs’ ex-girlfriend Cassie testifies at his trial about abuse and 'freak offs'
NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs' former girlfriend, the R&B singer Cassie, has testified that the mercurial music mogul beat her mercilessly and ordered her to have sex with strangers while he watched during drug-fueled, multi-day marathons he called “freak offs.” She said their turbulent 10-year relationship became consumed by Combs’ violence and his obsession with a form of voyeurism where “he was controlling the whole situation." Cassie sniffled and dabbed her eyes with a tissue, sighed heavily and paused to compose herself through about five hours of testimony Tuesday at Combs’ sex trafficking trial. Combs has pleaded not guilty.
Kim Kardashian testifies about being bound and held at gunpoint during Paris robbery
PARIS (AP) — Kim Kardashian says she feared she would be raped and killed during a 2016 armed robbery in Paris. She testified in the trial Tuesday, confronting for the first time the men accused of tying her up at gunpoint in her hotel suite and stealing more than $6 million in jewelry. She says she thought she was going to die. Her testimony marks the emotional climax of a trial that has reignited debates about the cost of fame and what it means to live publicly.
Zelenskyy says he will be waiting for Putin in Ankara on Thursday for talks
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says that he will be waiting for Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Turkish capital this week to conduct face-to-face talks about the more than 3-year war. Putin hasn’t yet said whether he will be at the talks. U.S. President Donald Trump has urged the two sides to attend the discussions as part of Washington’s efforts to stop the fighting. Zelenskyy told reporters in Kyiv he will be in Ankara on Thursday to conduct the negotiations. He said he plans to meet with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the two will wait for Putin to arrive. Zelenskyy said both leaders will travel to Istanbul if Putin chooses to hold the meeting there.
In one Indian city, reflective paint and bus stop sprinklers offer relief from killer heat
AHMEDABAD, India (AP) — Rising heat is a problem for millions of people in India, and one western city is pointing the way in figuring out some ways to deal with it. Ahmedabad, a city of more than 7 million people that sees temperatures as high as 45 degrees Celsius, suffered the shock of more than 1,300 deaths during a heat wave in 2010. Officials immediately began work on an action plan for responding to killer heat in the future. That includes low-cost measures and smart planning — from painting roofs and walls white to reflect the sun’s rays to setting up straw curtains and water sprinklers in public bus stops.
MLB reinstates Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson, making them Hall of Fame eligible
NEW YORK (AP) — Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson were reinstated by baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred on Tuesday, making both eligible for the sport’s Hall of Fame after their careers were tarnished by gambling scandals. Rose’s permanent ban was lifted eight months after his death and comes a day before the Cincinnati Reds will honor baseball’s career hits leader with Pete Rose Night. Manfred announced Tuesday that he was changing the league’s policy on permanent ineligibility, saying bans would expire after death. Under the Hall of Fame’s current rules, it appears the earliest Rose or Jackson could be inducted would be in 2028.
