Republished May 17, 2026 - 3:05 PM
Original Publication Date May 16, 2026 - 9:06 PM
Drone strikes UAE nuclear plant as US and Iran signal they are prepared to resume war
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A drone strike sparked a fire on the edge of the United Arab Emirates’ sole nuclear power plant on Sunday in what authorities called an “unprovoked terrorist attack.” No one was blamed, but it highlighted the risk of renewed war as the United States and Iran signaled they were ready to fight again.
There were no reported injuries or radiological release. The UAE, which has hosted air defenses and personnel from Israel, recently accused Iran of launching drone and missile attacks. Tensions have risen over the Strait of Hormuz, a vital energy waterway gripped by Iran, which is under a U.S. naval blockade.
“For Iran, the Clock is Ticking, and they better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them,” U.S. President Donald Trump posted on social media shortly after a call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, whose attack on Iran with the U.S. sparked the war on Feb. 28.
Trump has repeatedly set deadlines for Tehran and then backed off.
“Our armed forces' fingers are on the trigger, while diplomacy is also continuing,” Mohsen Rezaei, a military adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, said on state television.
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WHO declares global health emergency over Ebola outbreak in Congo and Uganda
ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — The World Health Organization declared the Ebola disease outbreak caused by a rare virus in Congo and neighboring Uganda a public health emergency of international concern on Sunday, after more than 300 suspected cases and 88 deaths.
WHO said the outbreak doesn't meet the criteria of a pandemic emergency like COVID-19, and advised against the closure of international borders.
WHO said on X that a laboratory-confirmed case has also been reported in Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, which is about 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) from the outbreak's epicenter in the eastern province of Ituri, suggesting a possible wider spread. It said the patient had visited Ituri and that other suspected cases have also been reported in North Kivu province, which is one of Congo’s most populous and borders Ituri.
On Sunday, the rebel government of Goma, eastern Congo's largest city, said in a statement that the first confirmed case of Ebola was detected in the city. The infected person traveled from Ituri province and was currently under isolation, the statement said. Goma was the site of a rapid rebel offensive in early 2025, and the conflict between the Congolese armed forces and the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel paramilitary group has displaced hundreds of thousands.
Ebola is highly contagious and can be contracted via bodily fluids such as vomit, blood or semen. The disease it causes is rare, but severe and often fatal.
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Four crew members ejected safely after two Navy jets crash during air show in Idaho
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — All four crew members ejected safely after two Navy jets collided and crashed on Sunday during an air show at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in western Idaho, officials said.
The collision involved two U.S. Navy EA18-G Growlers from the Electronic Attack Squadron 129 in Whidbey Island, Washington, said Cmdr. Amelia Umayam, spokesperson for Naval Air Forces, U.S. Pacific Fleet.
The aircraft were performing an aerial demonstration when the crash happened, Umayam said in a statement. The four crew members from both jets safely ejected and the crash was under investigation, she said.
The crew members were in stable condition, base officials said.
Nobody at the military base was hurt, said Kim Sykes, marketing director with Silver Wings of Idaho, which helped to plan the air show.
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10 random weekend shootings leave 4 injured in Austin, Texas, mayor says
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Two suspects were being sought in at least 10 random weekend shootings in Austin, Texas, including at fire stations, that left four people injured, the city's mayor said Sunday.
The city ordered residents of a large part of southern area of the Texas capital city to shelter in place Sunday while the search continues.
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson spoke about the shootings at a news conference and said an investigation continues.
The shootings occurred Saturday night and Sunday morning, two of them at fire stations, leaving one person with serious injuries and three others with minor ones, Police Chief Lisa Davis said.
Davis said the suspects appeared to be stealing vehicles as they traveled.
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Cassidy tried to get along with Trump after his impeachment vote. Retribution came anyway
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — When Charles Wandfluh voted in Louisiana's Republican primary over the weekend, he could only conjure the unflattering image of a panicked rodent when talking about Bill Cassidy's desperate attemp t to cling to his U.S. Senate seat despite opposition from President Donald Trump.
“He’s just a squirrel running around the tree, chasing nuts to find whatever he can get to benefit him,” said Wandfluh, 57, in a suburb of New Orleans.
Cassidy's scramble was in vain, and his defeat on Saturday demonstrated the near-impossibility of a political future within the Republican Party without Trump's acquiescence. Despite outspending his rivals, Cassidy finished third in the primary, falling short of even making a runoff. The outcome was the latest and perhaps most spectacular failure by a Republican who tried to cross Trump and get away with it.
Even within a party notorious for its political contortions during the Trump era, Cassidy stood out. As a doctor, he overlooked Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s anti-vaccine activism to support his nomination as Trump's health secretary, only inevitably to clash with Kennedy once he took the job.
Cassidy was also unable to repair his relationship with Trump five years after voting to convict him during his impeachment trial over the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Although Cassidy tried to assure Republican voters that he remained committed to Trump's agenda, that did not satisfy their loyalty to the Republican president.
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Trump administration promotes program to check voter eligibility. Critics fear a midterm purge
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Even as Democratic officials fight the effort in court, the Trump administration has run millions of voter registrations through government databases to determine their eligibility in a process that critics worry could end up purging valid voters from the rolls before the November elections.
At least 67 million registrations, primarily from Republican-controlled states, have gone through a beefed-up verification program at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and tens of thousands of those have been flagged as potential noncitizens or people who have died. Some states allow only a month for people to prove their eligibility and others suspend it immediately.
The scanning of state voter rolls at the national level is part of a broader effort by Republican President Donald Trump to federalize certain election functions and promote his messaging that elections are marred by noncitizen voting, even though instances of that are rare. Voting and civil rights advocates say the DHS system is error-prone and can mistakenly flag people who are eligible to vote.
“If a voter is wrongly removed, by the time they learn about it and correct it, they may miss their opportunity to vote in that election,” said Freda Levenson, a lawyer with the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio. The group is challenging an Ohio law requiring monthly checks with the DHS system.
Voters such as 29-year-old Anthony Nel have been caught in the middle.
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With largest US commuter rail system shut down, New York governor urges unions to resume talks
NEW YORK (AP) — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul implored unions representing workers for the Long Island Rail Road, North America’s largest commuter rail system, to resume bargaining Sunday, saying a long strike hurts workers and hundreds of thousands of commuters.
“This is my official invitation. We didn’t want you to leave. You left. You’re welcome to come back. I’ll provide refreshments, whatever you like. Just c’mon back,” Hochul told a news conference as the strike — the first in three decades — entered its second day.
Hochul, appearing with the chief executive of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority that runs the railroad more commonly known by commuters as the “LIRR,” urged the unions to try to reach a deal before the Monday morning commute.
“We all know that the railroad is the lifeblood of Long Island. Without it, life as we know it is simply not possible. The bottom line is, no one wins in a strike. Everyone is hurt,” she said.
The LIRR serves hundreds of thousands of commuters who live along a 118-mile-long (190-kilometer-long) land mass that includes Brooklyn and Queens in New York City and the Hamptons, a summertime playground for the rich and famous near its eastern tip. The railroad has long provided commuters relief from its rush-hour clogged highways.
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Thousands flocked to the National Mall in Washington for an America-themed prayer rally
WASHINGTON (AP) — Thousands of people streamed onto the National Mall for a daylong prayer rally Sunday billed as a “rededication of our country as One Nation under God.”
Against the backdrop of the Washington Monument, worship music blared from a stage that made clear the event’s Christian focus. Arched stained-glass windows, set underneath grand columns resembling a federal building, depicted the nation’s founders alongside a white cross.
Most speakers celebrated Christianity’s ties to American history, a blending of ideas that critics flagged ahead of the prayer gathering as supporting Christian nationalism.
President Donald Trump read a passage of Scripture in a video shown at the rally. Filmed in the Oval Office, it was the same footage used during a marathon Bible-reading event last month. The verses from 2 Chronicles are often cited by those who believe America was founded as a Christian nation.
“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways,” Trump read, “then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
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Matti Schmid takes the PGA Championship lead at the turn. Justin Thomas posts a 65 and waits
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. (AP) — Justin Thomas made a 16-foot par putt on the final hole Sunday for a 5-under 65 in the PGA Championship, a round that became increasingly better once he stopped playing.
Thomas was one shot out of the lead when he finished. Nearly two hours later, he still was one shot behind and Aronimink Golf Club — with players facing the pressure of trying to win a major — was no longer giving up low scores.
Alex Smalley, who took a two-shot lead into the final round at 6-under par, was only on the second hole when Thomas finished at 5-under 275. Smalley made a mess of the sixth hole for a double bogey. The leader going to the back nine was Matti Schmid, another long shot who has yet to win on any tour.
Schmid was at 6-under par, with a host of players still very much in the mix. Aaron Rai birdied the 11th to get to 6 under.
Cameron Smith, the British Open champion at St. Andrews who left for LIV Golf at the end of 2022, came to Aronimink having missed the cut in six straight majors. He was 3 under on his round and bogey-free through 15 holes.
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Bulgaria gives its Eurovision winner Dara a grand welcome upon her return home
SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Hundreds of cheering fans waving Bulgarian flags welcomed Eurovision Song Contest winner Dara upon her return home on Sunday.
Visibly tired but smiling, the 27-year-old singer arrived at Sofia’s Vasil Levski Airport waving the Eurovision trophy. Bulgaria's major television stations made changes to their regular programs to air live coverage from the airport.
“This award marks the beginning of my future international career,” Dara said.
The singer won the 70th Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna on Saturday with her infectious party anthem “Bangaranga,” giving the southeast European country its first-ever victory in the competition.
“We have done something great for Bulgarian music, and I hope this sends a message that Bulgaria’s performers and artists deserve stronger support,” Dara said.
News from © The Associated Press, 2026