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  • Trump threatens to charge U.S. tolls in Strait of Hormuz if final Iran deal not reached in 60 days

    Trump threatens to charge U.S. tolls in Strait of Hormuz if final Iran deal not reached in 60 days

    TYRE, Lebanon — Iran on Saturday said it closed the Strait of Hormuz because of Israel’s attacks in Lebanon and warned that while negotiators were going to Switzerland for talks with the United States on their interim agreement, not much is likely to happen if the fighting doesn’t stop.

    U.S. President Donald Trump, in response, threatened to impose American tolls in the crucial waterway if a final deal with Iran isn’t reached in 60 days, saying the money would be for “services rendered as the Guardian Angel to the countries of the Middle East.” His social media post underscored that the agreement calls for toll-free travel for 60 days.

    The announcements indicated a rough start to technical-level U.S.-Iran talks that key mediator Pakistan said will begin Sunday, with Qatari mediators also participating.

    U.S. Vice President JD Vance left for Switzerland on Saturday evening, just as Iranian state TV posted video showing Iran’s negotiators arriving there. They include parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, and central bank and oil officials, among others. The deal calls for billions of dollars of Iran’s assets to be unfrozen.

    Talks were meant to start Friday, but the Iranians initially canceled their plans to attend because of escalating fighting in Lebanon. Negotiators for the U.S. and Qatar, with help from Iran, worked out an agreement between Israel and Hezbollah to tamp down hostilities, according to U.S. and regional officials who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

    Vance told reporters he would be in Switzerland “for a day or two” but was optimistic on making progress in the nuclear talks and on a ceasefire in southern Lebanon.

    Negotiations toward a final agreement will begin once key commitments are upheld, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said. If they are not, “the memorandum of understanding as a whole will be jeopardized.”

    Strait once again becomes a challenge

    But the strait has emerged again as a focus. Iran’s joint military command said it was closed because of the U.S. “clear breach of its commitments” by failing to end the war. The interim deal is meant to stop fighting on all fronts.

    The U.S. disputed Iran’s announcement.

    “Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz. Traffic continues to flow, and U.S. forces are monitoring the situation to ensure this remains the case,” said Capt. Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for U.S. Central Command. The military said that 55 merchant ships transited Saturday with more than 17 million barrels of oil.

    The global economy braced for more uncertainty.

    Ships began transiting after the interim U.S.-Iran agreement was signed earlier in the week, a milestone that left plenty of questions unanswered. The U.S. lifted its blockade of Iran’s ports and now allows Tehran to sell its oil freely — terms that have left some in the U.S. Congress asking whether the war was worth it.

    Vance earlier confirmed that top negotiators Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff were already in Switzerland and working through technical details of anticipated negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program. The interim deal gives negotiators 60 days to reach a nuclear agreement, but the issue is intricate and the time can be extended.

    Israeli attacks in Lebanon kill at least 16

    A Hezbollah official told the Associated Press that Iran informed the militant group that Tehran will not reopen the strait until Israel announces publicly that it will comply with a “comprehensive ceasefire” in Lebanon and an end to military operations there. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

    The official said Hezbollah will commit to a ceasefire if Israel does.

    An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, later said the military had received “updated directives from the political echelon to cease fire.” The official said the military is operating in a defensive manner in Lebanon, which includes the right to respond to Hezbollah attacks.

    The official also said five Israeli soldiers had been killed in the past 48 hours in southern Lebanon.

    Earlier Saturday, Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon killed at least 16 people, including two children, hours after reports emerged of a ceasefire agreement there. Seven people were trapped under rubble after strikes hit the southern city of Nabatiyeh and nearby villages, Lebanon’s National News Agency said.

    The death toll in the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah has surpassed 4,000, Lebanon’s health ministry later announced.

    An Israeli military official said Hezbollah fired more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon overnight. Israel’s army said it struck dozens of Hezbollah targets and militants.

    On Friday, the Israeli ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, said Israel “remains firmly committed to an immediate ceasefire” if Hezbollah honors the agreement and ceases hostilities.

    Earlier Saturday, Hezbollah said it had committed to the ceasefire but blamed Israel for violating it Friday night and said it would repel attacks by Israeli troops.

    Conflict could sink the US-Iran deal

    Neither Israel nor Hezbollah are signatories to the deal between the U.S. and Iran.

    Hezbollah and Israel went to war two days after the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, with Hezbollah firing rockets and drones at northern Israel and Israel seizing large swaths of southern Lebanon.

    A new round of U.S.-backed talks between the Lebanese government and Israel is expected in Washington next week.

    Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to keep Israeli forces in southern Lebanon until any threat to Israel is eliminated. Hezbollah has refused to halt its attacks unless Israel commits to withdrawing from Lebanon.

    Fighting continues near the Israel-Lebanon border

    A strike on Lebanon’s Barish village killed four members of a family: parents and two children. In Arab Salim village, a body was pulled from a destroyed house, and in Doueir and Kfar Rumman villages, drone strikes killed a person on a motorcycle and a Lebanese soldier. Nine people were killed in strikes in Qannarit, Sohmor, and Shehour villages.

    Israeli jets flew low over the coastal city of Tyre. Residents told the Associated Press they were relieved that Tyre had been spared in recent days, but now they were reminded that the war is not over.

    “Our entire lives would change if there’s a ceasefire,” said one resident, Hussein Khoshman.

    Some residents of northern Israel doubted the fighting would stop. “I don’t believe in a ceasefire because it doesn’t exist,” said Miriam Hod in Metula.

  • FDA panel backs first-of-its-kind flu vaccine using mRNA technology

    FDA panel backs first-of-its-kind flu vaccine using mRNA technology

    WASHINGTON — A new kind of flu vaccine moved a step closer to the U.S. market Thursday as federal health advisers recommended approval of the first made with the same mRNA technology that was key to ending the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The Food and Drug Administration is evaluating Moderna’s new shot, dubbed mFlusiva, for older Americans ahead of the winter flu season. Moderna is seeking full approval for the vaccine’s use in people ages 50 to 64 — along with authorization for use in those 65 and older while it conducts additional testing.

    The FDA’s independent advisory committee evaluated Moderna’s studies of the vaccine and voted unanimously that its benefits appear to outweigh any risks for both age groups. The FDA will consider that recommendation in making a final decision by early August.

    Tens of thousands of Americans die from influenza every year, and older adults are among the most vulnerable. There are various types of flu vaccines already available in the U.S., including three specifically recommended for people 65 and older. But vaccines made with the Nobel Prize-winning mRNA technology are faster to manufacture than other types — something experts say might help if the shape-shifting flu virus mutates in a way that requires suddenly brewing new doses to match.

    “Having this technology available puts us in a better position to be prepared for emerging strains in the future,” said Flor Munoz-Rivas of Texas Children’s Hospital, one of FDA’s advisers.

    In a study of 40,000 people age 50 and older, Moderna’s mRNA vaccine reduced flu cases by about 27% compared with those given another routinely used vaccine brand. In a smaller study of people 65 and older, Moderna’s shot also generated a strong protective immune response compared with a high-dose flu vaccine already recommended for that age group.

    Data showing strong immune reactions “were very compelling,” said FDA adviser Anna Durbin of Johns Hopkins University, adding that “the vaccine looks very promising.”

    Moderna’s Rituparna Das told panelists that the company’s ability to quickly manufacture mRNA vaccines that closely match the latest flu strains could prevent thousands of hospitalizations in older Americans.

    Severe flu cases in the U.S. generally rise in years when the flu shot doesn’t closely match the circulating virus. Moderna officials noted that flu strains for each fall’s vaccines now are chosen several months earlier than the yearly recipe update for COVID-19 shots that mostly are mRNA-based — and there can be a mismatch if the flu virus mutates after the recipe is made.

    At the meeting, FDA vaccine reviewer Timothy Brennan suggested the agency was open to approving the vaccine for older adults ahead of the coming flu season, despite the need for more information about its use in frail seniors or people with weak immune systems.

    If it’s approved, Moderna is planning its required next-step study to include 400,000 people 65 and older, half given the mRNA vaccine and the rest given one of today’s special-for-seniors shots. It’s supposed to repeat that study for two flu seasons.

    Moderna’s data showed no major safety issues, although the shot did cause some temporary reactions including injection-site pain, fever, headache, tiredness, and aches. The latter reactions are common in a variety of vaccines, but occurred somewhat more often than with today’s flu shots. The FDA said that’s typical of mRNA vaccines.

    Those temporary reactions can be a signal that “your immune system is responding,” said Hayley Gans, a Stanford Medicine pediatrician and FDA adviser who stressed it will be important to explain that to vaccine recipients.

    Earlier this year, Moderna’s data was at the center of a highly unusual public dispute as a then-top FDA official blocked the company’s application for its first-of-its-kind shot.

    The embattled vaccine chief at the time, Vinay Prasad, said the company should have compared its shot to a high-dose flu vaccine recommended for seniors rather than a standard-dose brand. It was a sign of FDA’s heightened vaccine scrutiny under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

    Moderna challenged that decision, noting that FDA staff had approved that main study’s design and citing a separate, smaller study comparing the mRNA shot with a high-dose vaccine for seniors. Days after the spat, the FDA accepted Moderna’s application.

    Moderna also is studying the vaccine in younger adults and plans a separate study in 9- to 17-year-olds this fall.

  • Brass bands in Beijing make way for sticker shock at home as Trump returns to escalating inflation

    WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump returned from the spectacle of a Chinese state visit to a less than welcoming U.S. economy — with the military band and garden tour in Beijing giving way to pressure over how to fix America’s escalating inflation rate.

    Consumer inflation in the United States increased to 3.8% annually in April, higher than what he inherited as the Iran war and the Republican president’s own tariffs have pushed up prices. Inflation is now outpacing wage gains and effectively making workers poorer. The Cleveland Federal Reserve estimates that annual inflation could reach 4.2% in May as the war has kept oil and gasoline prices high.

    Trump’s time with Chinese leader Xi Jinping appears unlikely to help the U.S. economy much, despite Trump’s claims of coming trade deals. The trip occurred as many people are voting in primaries leading into the November general election while having to absorb the rising costs of gasoline, groceries, utility bills, jewelry, women’s clothing, airplane tickets, and delivery services. Democrats see the moment as a political opportunity.

    “He’s returning to a dumpster fire,” said Lindsay Owens, executive director of Groundwork Collaborative, a liberal think tank focused on economic issues. “The president will not have the faith and confidence of the American people — the economy is their top issue and the president is saying, ‘You’re on your own.’”

    The president’s trip to Beijing and his recent comments that indicated a tone-deafness to voters’ concerns about rising prices have suggested his focus is not on the American public and have undermined Republicans who had intended to campaign on last year’s tax cuts as helping families.

    Trump described the trip as a victory, saying on social media that Xi “congratulated me on so many tremendous successes,” as the U.S. president has praised their relationship.

    Trump told reporters that Boeing would be selling 200 aircraft — and maybe even 750 “if they do a good job” — to the Chinese. He said American farmers would be “very happy” because China would be “buying billions of dollars of soybeans.”

    “We had an amazing time,” Trump said as he flew home on Air Force One, and he told Fox News’ Bret Baier in an interview that gasoline prices were just some “short-term pain” and would “drop like a rock” once the war ends.

    Inflationary pain not a factor in how Trump handles Iran

    Trump departed from the White House for China by saying the negotiations over the Iran war depended on stopping Tehran from developing nuclear weapons. “I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation. I don’t think about anybody. I think about one thing: We cannot let Iran have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said.

    That remark prompted blowback because it suggested to some that Trump cared more about challenging Iran than fighting inflation at home. Trump defended his words, telling Fox News: “That’s a perfect statement. I’d make it again.”

    The White House has since stressed that Trump is focused on inflation.

    Asked later about the president’s words, Vice President JD Vance said there had been a “misrepresentation” of the remarks. White House spokesperson Kush Desai said the “administration remains laser-focused on delivering growth and affordability on the homefront” while indicating actions would be taken on grocery prices.

    But as Trump appeared alongside Xi, new reports back home showed inflation rising for businesses and interest rates climbing on U.S. government debt.

    His comments that Boeing would sell 200 jets to China caused the company’s stock price to fall because investors had expected a larger number. There was little concrete information offered about any trade agreements reached during the summit, including Chinese purchases of U.S. exports such as liquefied natural gas and beef.

    “Foreign policy wins can matter politically, but only if voters feel stability and affordability in their daily lives,” said Brittany Martinez, a former Republican congressional aide who is the executive director of Principles First, a center-right advocacy group focused on democracy issues.

    “Midterms are almost always a referendum on cost of living and public frustration, and Republicans are not immune from the same inflation and affordability pressures that hurt Democrats in recent cycles,” she added.

    Democrats see Trump as vulnerable

    Democratic lawmakers are seizing on Trump’s comments before his trip as proof of his indifference to lowering costs. There is potential staying power of his remarks as Americans head into Memorial Day weekend facing rising prices for the hamburgers and hot dogs to be grilled.

    “What Americans do not see is any sympathy, any support, or any plan from Trump and congressional Republicans to lower costs — in fact, they see the opposite,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York said Thursday.

    Vance faulted the Biden administration for the inflation problem even though the inflation rate is now higher than it was when Trump returned to the White House in January 2025 with a specific mandate to fix it.

    “The inflation number last month was not great,” Vance said Wednesday, but he then stressed, “We’re not seeing anything like what we saw under the Biden administration.”

    Inflation peaked at 9.1% in June 2022 under Biden, a Democrat. By the time Trump took the oath of office, it was a far more modest 3%.

    Trump’s inflation challenge could get harder

    The data tells a different story as higher inflation is spreading into the cost of servicing the national debt.

    Over the past week, the interest rate charged on 10-year U.S. government debt jumped from 4.36% to 4.6%, an increase that implies higher costs for auto loans and mortgages.

    “My fear is that the layers of supply shocks that are affecting the U.S. economy will only further feed into inflationary pressures,” said Gregory Daco, chief economist at EY-Parthenon.

    Daco noted that last year’s tariff increases were now translating into higher clothing prices. With the Supreme Court ruling against Trump’s ability to impose tariffs by declaring an economic emergency, his administration is preparing a new set of import taxes for this summer.

    Daco stressed that there have been a series of supply shocks. First, tariffs cut into the supply of imports. In addition, Trump’s immigration crackdown cut into the supply of foreign-born workers. Now, the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has cut off the vital waterway used to ship 20% of global oil supplies.

    “We’re seeing an erosion of growth,” Daco said.

  • Trump FDA chief is leaving after angering pharma CEOs, vaping lobbyists, and anti-abortion groups

    WASHINGTON — The head of the Food and Drug Administration, Marty Makary, is resigning after a rocky tenure that drew months of complaints from health industry executives, anti-abortion activists, vaping lobbyists, and other allies of President Donald Trump.

    News of Makary’s departure Tuesday came just 13 months after he was confirmed to lead the powerful regulatory agency.

    A surgeon and health researcher, Makary came to prominence among Republicans as an outspoken critic of COVID-19 health measures during the pandemic, when he frequently appeared on Fox News Channel. But he struggled to manage the FDA’s bureaucracy and failed to win the confidence of its staff after mass layoffs, leadership upheavals, and a series of controversies in which the agency’s scientific principles appeared to be overridden by political interests, including those of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

    “He’s a great doctor, and he was having some difficulty,” Trump told reporters outside the White House. “But he’s going to go on and he’s going to do well.”

    Trump later confirmed in a social media post that Kyle Diamantas, the agency’s chief for foods, is expected to take over as acting commissioner. Diamantas is an attorney with personal ties to Donald Trump Jr.

    In that post, the president included what appeared to be a text message from Makary submitting his resignation. In it, he noted that “I announced 50 major FDA reforms. Joe Biden’s FDA had none,” and thanked Trump for the chance to serve.

    The FDA commissioner, as the leader of an agency that regulates billions of dollars in consumer goods and medicines, is often required to juggle competing priorities that straddle science and politics.

    Makary faced a unique challenge in balancing calls by Trump and other Republicans to cut red tape at the FDA, while also tending to Kennedy’s interest in scrutinizing the safety of vaccines, drugs, and food additives. The decision to get rid of Makary was made by Kennedy, and then the White House signed off on it, according to an administration official who was granted anonymity because they were not authorized to describe internal dynamics.

    Virtually all of the FDA’s senior career officials resigned, retired or were forced out in the first year of the second-term Trump administration, leading to a steady stream of leaks and negative stories in the media cataloging low morale, dysfunction and frustration among staff.

    Makary’s handpicked deputy, Vinay Prasad, was pushed out of the agency twice in less than a year for running afoul of specialty drugmakers and groups for patients with rare diseases. Makary appeared poised to weather the controversy, despite an ongoing pressure campaign calling on Trump to fire him.

    Recent weeks brought fresh criticisms from other interest groups that the White House considers key to Republican chances in November elections.

    Anti-abortion groups have accused Makary of slow-walking an internal review of the abortion pill mifepristone, which has been on the market for 25 years but remains a target for conservative activists. They are seeking to roll back FDA rules that currently allow the pill to be sent through the mail.

    “We look forward to a new FDA commissioner who will put an end to the mail-order abortion drug regime,” said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America.

    Vaping executives told Trump that Makary was blocking approval of their products, including new flavored e-cigarettes seen as crucial to the industry’s survival.

    Last week, the agency abruptly changed course, authorizing the first fruit-flavored e-cigarettes and issuing guidelines that loosened marketing for major manufacturers. But it wasn’t enough to keep Makary in the job.

    A permanent replacement for the FDA job will need to be nominated by Trump and confirmed by the Senate.

    Faster drug reviews are overshadowed

    As a former regular on Fox News, Makary was aggressive about promoting his accomplishments on cable television and podcasts and in online opinion pieces.

    A string of initiatives from Makary aimed to speed up or streamline FDA drug reviews, including dropping certain study requirements, incorporating artificial intelligence into drug evaluations and offering expedited reviews to medicines that support “national interests.”

    But pharmaceutical executives rely on the predictability and consistency of FDA decisions, even more than speedy reviews. Makary’s efforts on drug reviews were overshadowed by internal conflicts and disputes that created headaches for drugmakers, investors and patients.

    More than a half-dozen drugmakers studying therapies for rare or hard-to-treat diseases said they received rejection letters or requests to run additional studies for drugs that had previously been given the go-ahead by FDA staff. Those drugs were primarily overseen by Prasad, who stepped down for a second time from his role as the FDA’s vaccine and biotech chief in April.

    Vaccine moves denounced

    Prasad repeatedly overruled vaccine staffers to restrict eligibility for new coronavirus shots. In February, Prasad initially refused to even consider Moderna’s mRNA shot for flu. The FDA was forced to reverse itself after Moderna pledged to formally challenge the decision and called for intervention by the White House.

    Some of Makary and Prasad’s most controversial vaccine proposals never came to fruition, despite stoking confusion and anxiety within the FDA and beyond.

    In an internal memo in November, Prasad claimed — without publishing evidence — that the FDA had linked COVID-19 shots to the deaths of 10 children. Prasad used that to justify a planned overhaul of the agency’s approach to approving vaccines.

    A dozen former FDA commissioners issued a scathing denunciation of the plan, warning it would “undermine the public interest” and decimate vaccine development. The FDA has not released its analysis of the deaths or its plan for the vaccine overhaul.

    FDA’s drug center had a revolving door

    In the FDA’s drug center, which is the agency’s largest division, Makary oversaw a revolving door of leadership changes. Six people served as director over the course of one year.

    Makary’s initial pick for the job, George Tidmarsh, was forced to resign after allegations that he used his FDA position to pursue a personal vendetta against a former business partner.

    His replacement, longtime FDA cancer specialist Rick Pazdur, announced he would retire after just three weeks on the job, after clashing with Makary on multiple issues surrounding drug reviews.

    With Makary’s departure, the fate of many of his fledgling initiatives is uncertain.

    Most of the programs Makary introduced have not gone through federal rulemaking required to enshrine them in U.S. law. Democrats in Congress have questioned the legality of some of those efforts, including a program that offers drugmakers expedited reviews for innovative medicines.

  • Denver airport security initially missed trespasser who was killed by plane on runway

    Denver airport security initially missed trespasser who was killed by plane on runway

    FORT COLLINS, Colo. — Workers at Denver airport initially missed a security breach by man who scaled an 8-foot perimeter fence and crossed a runway where he was hit and killed in a fiery collision by a plane with 231 people on board, authorities said Tuesday.

    The runway fatality underscores the longstanding challenge of keeping intruders out of major airports. Denver International Airport sprawls across 53 square miles — twice the size of Manhattan — on open prairie northeast of the city center.

    The 41-year-old trespasser triggered an alarm as he crossed into the airport in a remote area about 2 miles from the terminal late Friday night. But security personnel mistakenly attributed that alarm to a herd of deer that was nearby.

    Authorities said the man died by suicide. However, no note from the victim was immediately recovered. The manner of death was determined based on the investigation at the scene, a records review, and a postmortem examination, said Sterling McLaren, chief medical examiner for the city and county of Denver.

    The collision involving the Frontier Airlines plane as it was taking off for Los Angeles sparked an engine fire that forced passengers to evacuate via slides. Twelve people sustained minor injuries and five were taken to hospitals. Four have since been released, said airport Chief Executive Officer Phillip Washington.

    A black-and-white video released by the airport shows, from a distance, a figure walking toward the runway with arms swaying. The person crosses onto the runway at a slight angle and seconds later the plane is seen speeding past. It strikes the person with its right engine, which bursts into flame.

    Federal officials notified the airport

    A few minutes before the man scaled the fence, a ground-based radar system activated in the area, triggering an alarm. An airport worker checked a surveillance camera and saw a herd of deer in the same area but did not initially see the trespasser, Washington said.

    “The camera view was alternating between the wildlife and the individual. There are some ditches in the area, so the person was out of view for a bit as well,” Washington said.

    He said federal officials notified the airport about the trespasser. Because of the remote location and short time period between the man scaling the fence and crossing the runway, Washington said airport personnel were not able to intervene.

    The man crossed about 650 feet from the fence to the runway before being struck and killed by the Frontier Airlines plane traveling at 150 mph on takeoff.

    The plane’s engine caused the man’s death, McLaren said. She described it as “a purposeful act with a foreseeable fatal outcome.”

    Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas said investigators were contacting the man’s family and those who knew him to seek more information about his motivations.

    Trespassers breaching airport perimeters is a regular problem, with perhaps dozens annually nationwide, said security expert Jeff Price, who was assistant director of security at the Denver airport in the 1990s. The airport is surrounded by about 36 miles of perimeter fence, which airport officials say is continuously inspected.

    The vast majority of airport trespassers are intoxicated or simply “messing around just to see if they could do it,” said Price, adding that they typically don’t pose a real threat. Denver also gets the rare individual who will jump the fence seeking to prove a long-running conspiracy theory about a UFO base being based at the airport, he said.

    The Transportation Security Administration oversees airport security programs, including perimeter security requirements.

    “It’s really not that difficult to jump an airport perimeter fence,” Price said. “They meet the standards for TSA, but the standards are not that robust.”

    The fences are typically 6 to 8 feet tall with barbed wire at the top, he said. They must be approved by federal inspectors, but there are no set rules on their construction. Major airports such as Denver typically also have intrusion detection systems that include cameras and motion sensors, he said. Some systems detect the seismic impact of people dropping to the ground, Price said.

    Evacuation under scrutiny

    The person was killed on the airport’s easternmost north-south runway and at least 1.25 miles from any airport buildings. Empty fields and croplands surround Denver International Airport in most directions. Distant trees and structures in the video showed that the person was headed toward the airport when they crossed the runway.

    The Transportation Security Administration has regulatory oversight of airport security programs, including perimeter security requirements.

    Separately, the National Transportation Safety Board on Sunday said it is gathering information about the evacuation.

    An agency spokesperson said an investigation would be launched if it’s determined the injuries meet the agency’s definition for “serious.” That can include a person requiring hospitalization for more than 48 hours, suffering a broken bone or second- or third-degree burns affecting more than 5% of their body.

    This story includes discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, the national suicide and crisis lifeline in the U.S. is available by calling or texting 988. There is also an online chat at 988lifeline.org

  • Trump voices frustration with allies as Iran war and strait closure push fuel prices higher

    Trump voices frustration with allies as Iran war and strait closure push fuel prices higher

    DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — President Donald Trump lashed out Tuesday at allies who have been unwilling to do more to support the U.S. war effort against Iran, telling them to “go get your own oil” and saying it was not America’s job to secure the Strait of Hormuz.

    The president said the military could end its offensive in two to three weeks and that the U.S. “will not have anything to do with” what happens next in the strait that has been closed by the Islamic Republic. Instead, he told reporters, the responsibility for keeping the vital waterway open will rest with countries that rely on it.

    There’s “no reason for us to do this,” Trump said after signing an executive order that seeks to restrict mail-in voting. “That’s not for us. That’ll be for France. That’ll be for whoever’s using the strait.”

    The White House said Trump would deliver a prime-time address Wednesday evening to update the public on the war.

    In other developments, the closure of the strait sent average U.S. gas prices past $4 a gallon, and U.S. strikes hit the central city of Isfahan, sending a massive fireball into the sky. Tehran attacked a fully loaded Kuwaiti oil tanker in the Persian Gulf.

    The attacks showed the intensity of the war more than a month after the U.S. and Israel launched it. The conflict has left more than 3,000 dead and caused major disruptions to the world’s supply of oil and natural gas, roiling global markets and pushing up the cost of many basic goods.

    Trump, whose comments have vacillated between talk that diplomatic progress is being made with Iran and threats to widen the war, had earlier shared footage of the attack on Isfahan.

    Fuel prices rise, rattling global markets

    Iran’s stranglehold on the strait, the waterway leading out of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported during peacetime, has driven up global oil prices, as have Tehran’s attacks on regional energy infrastructure.

    Spot prices of Brent crude, the international standard, hovered around $107 a barrel Tuesday, up more than 45% since the war started Feb. 28.

    In a social media post, Trump directed blame at U.S. allies such as the United Kingdom and France that have refused to enter a war with no clear endgame that they were not consulted on.

    “You’ll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the U.S.A. won’t be there to help you anymore, just like you weren’t there for us. Iran has been, essentially, decimated. The hard part is done. Go get your own oil!” Trump wrote.

    He singled out France for not letting planes fly over French territory while taking military supplies to Israel.

    France has allowed the U.S. Air Force to use the Istres base in southern France because it had guarantees that planes landing there would not be involved in carrying out strikes.

    Allies have refused to get involved

    Spain, which has emerged as Europe’s loudest critic of the war, said Monday that it had closed its airspace for U.S. planes involved in the conflict.

    Italy recently refused to allow U.S. military assets to use the Sigonella air base in Sicily for an operation linked to the offensive, an official with knowledge of the matter said, confirming a local press report. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

    Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto wrote on X that Italy is still allowing the U.S. to use its bases, adding that there has been no cooling of relations between the two countries.

    Journalist kidnapped in Iraq identified

    An American journalist was kidnapped Tuesday in Baghdad, and Iraqi security forces are pursuing her captors, Iraqi officials said. The journalist was identified as freelancer Shelly Kittleson by Al-Monitor, one of the news outlets she worked for.

    A U.S. official blamed the Iranian-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah.

    Two cars were involved in the kidnapping, one of which crashed, and a person inside was apprehended. The journalist was then transferred to a second car that fled the scene, according to two Iraqi security officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the case.

    Dylan Johnson, U.S. assistant secretary of state for public affairs, said on X that the State Department had “fulfilled our duty to warn this individual of threats against them.”

    In a statement, Al-Monitor said it stands by her “vital reporting.” Kittleson has been a longtime freelancer in the region, reporting extensively from Syria and Iraq.

    Another aircraft carrier deploys to Middle East

    The aircraft carrier USS George H. W. Bush deployed Tuesday from Norfolk, Va., and is slated to head to the Middle East, two U.S. officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military plans.

    It would be the third carrier sent out to support the Iran war, along with the USS Gerald R. Ford, which is now undergoing repairs, and the USS Abraham Lincoln, which arrived in the region in January.

    Trump warned this week that if a ceasefire is not reached “shortly,” and if the strait is not reopened, the U.S. would broaden its offensive, including by attacking the Kharg Island oil export hub and possibly desalination plants.

    Speaking at the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth would not say if U.S. ground forces would enter the war. “We don’t want to have to do more militarily than we have to,” he said.

    A ground invasion could alienate Iranians who despise the ruling theocracy and who rose up in mass protests that were crushed earlier this year. Some could see it as an attack on Iran itself and rally around the flag.

    Since the Iran war began, 13 U.S. service members have been killed and 348 wounded, six seriously, according to a formal count provided Tuesday by Capt. Tim Hawkins, spokesman for U.S. Central Command.

    Iran hits oil tanker as Israel strikes Iran and Lebanon

    The Israeli military said early Wednesday that it had killed a senior Hezbollah commander and another senior leader in two separate strikes in the Beirut area.

    Military officials said they launched strikes targeting what they described as Hezbollah infrastructure in the Lebanese capital. Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel plans to control the area south of the Litani River — some 20 miles north of the border.

    Israel invaded southern Lebanon after Hezbollah began launching missiles into northern Israel days after the outbreak of the wider war. Many Lebanese fear another prolonged military occupation.

    In Iran, authorities say more than 1,900 people have been killed, while 19 have been reported dead in Israel.

    Two dozen people have died in Gulf states and the occupied West Bank. In Lebanon, officials said more than 1,200 people have been killed, and more than 1 million displaced.

    Ten Israeli soldiers have died in Lebanon, including four announced Tuesday.

  • Iran-backed Houthis enter the month-old war and could further threaten shipping

    Iran-backed Houthis enter the month-old war and could further threaten shipping

    DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iranian-backed Houthi rebels entered the month-old war in the Middle East on Saturday, claiming two missile launches at Israel. About 2,500 U.S. Marines arrived in the region. And Pakistan’s government said that regional powers plan to meet Sunday to discuss how to end the fighting.

    The war has threatened global supplies of oil and natural gas, sparked fertilizer shortages and disrupted air travel. Iran’s grip on the strategic Strait of Hormuz has shaken markets and prices. The United States and Israel continue to strike Iran, whose retaliatory attacks have targeted Israel and neighboring Gulf Arab states. More than 3,000 people have been killed.

    The Houthis’ entry could further hurt global shipping if they again target vessels in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait off the Red Sea, through which about 12% of the world’s trade typically passes.

    There could be limited relief after Iran on Friday agreed to allow humanitarian aid and agricultural shipments through the Strait of Hormuz following a U.N. request. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has given Iran until April 6 to reopen the strait.

    Witnesses in Tehran reported heavy strikes late Saturday. Israel’s military earlier said that it targeted Iran’s naval weapons production facilities, and said that it would finish attacking essential weapons production sites within “a few days.” Iran fired missiles toward Israel. The U.S. said that it has struck more than 11,000 Iranian targets in the war.

    And Ukraine’s president visited Gulf nations as his country offers defense help with drones.

    Houthi involvement sparks concerns

    Houthi Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree said on the rebels’ Al-Masirah satellite television station that they launched missiles toward “sensitive Israeli military sites” in the south.

    If the Houthis increase attacks on commercial shipping, as they have in the past, it would further push up oil prices and destabilize “all of maritime security,” said Ahmed Nagi, a senior Yemen analyst at the International Crisis Group. “The impact would not be limited to the energy market.”

    The Bab el-Mandeb, at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, is crucial for vessels heading to the Suez Canal through the Red Sea. Saudi Arabia has been sending millions of barrels of crude oil a day through it because the Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed.

    Houthi rebels attacked more than 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two vessels, between November 2023 and January 2025, saying that it was acting in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza during the Israel-Hamas war.

    The Houthis’ latest involvement would complicate the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford, the aircraft carrier that arrived in Croatia on Saturday for maintenance. Sending it to the Red Sea could draw attacks similar to those on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in 2024 and the USS Harry S. Truman in 2025.

    The Houthis have held Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, since 2014. Saudi Arabia launched a war against the Houthis on behalf of Yemen’s exiled government in 2015, and they now have an uneasy ceasefire.

    Diplomacy attempts as U.S. beefs up troop numbers

    Pakistan said that Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Egypt will send top diplomats to Islamabad for talks aimed at ending the war, arriving Sunday for a two-day visit. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that he and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian held “extensive discussions” on regional hostilities.

    But Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his Turkish counterpart by phone that Tehran was skeptical about recent diplomatic efforts. Iranian state-run media said that Araghchi accused the United States of making “unreasonable demands” and exhibiting “contradictory actions.”

    Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar later spoke with Araghchi and urged “an end to all attacks and hostilities.”

    Trump envoy Steve Witkoff has said that Washington delivered a 15-point “action list” to Iran for a possible ceasefire, with a proposal to restrict Iran’s nuclear program — the issue at the heart of tensions with the U.S. and Israel — and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran rejected it and presented a five-point proposal that included reparations and recognition of its sovereignty over the waterway.

    Meanwhile, U.S. ships with around 2,500 Marines trained in amphibious landings have arrived, adding to the largest American force in the region in more than two decades. And at least 1,000 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division, trained to land in hostile territory to secure key positions and airfields, have been ordered to the Middle East.

    Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that Washington “can achieve all of our objectives without ground troops.”

    U.S. troops wounded at Saudi base

    More than two dozen U.S. troops have been wounded in Iranian attacks on Saudi Arabia’s Prince Sultan Air Base in the last week, according to two people briefed on the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to comment publicly.

    Iran fired six ballistic missiles and 29 drones at the base Friday, injuring at least 15 troops, five of them seriously, they said.

    The base, about 60 miles from the Saudi capital Riyadh, was attacked twice earlier in the week, including a strike that wounded 14 U.S. troops, according to the people briefed on the matter.

    More than 300 U.S. service members have been wounded in the war. At least 13 have been reported killed.

    Death toll climbs

    Iranian authorities say more than 1,900 people have been killed in the Islamic Republic, while 19 have been reported dead in Israel.

    In Lebanon, where Israel has started an invasion in the south while targeting the Hezbollah militant group, officials said that more than 1,100 people in the country have been killed since the start of the war.

    In Iraq, where Iranian-supported militia groups have entered the conflict, 80 members of the security forces have died.

    In Gulf states, 20 people have been killed. Four have been killed in the occupied West Bank.

  • Thousands strike at one of the largest meatpacking plants in the U.S.

    Thousands strike at one of the largest meatpacking plants in the U.S.

    GREELEY, Colo. — About 3,800 workers for the world’s largest meatpacking company began striking Monday in Colorado, and if they don’t get a new contract soon, already costly beef could become even more expensive for U.S. consumers.

    As the sun rose, hundreds of strikers picketed outside the Swift Beef Co. plant in Greeley, owned by JBS USA and one of the largest slaughterhouses in the nation. Walking back and forth in the morning cold, bundled in blankets, some yelled “huelga!” — Spanish for strike. Others carried signs saying “please don’t patronize JBS.”

    The first walkout at a U.S. beef slaughterhouse in four decades follows accusations from union officials that the company retaliated against workers and committed other unfair labor practices. The union also said the company offered less than 2% more a year in wages, which is less than inflation in Colorado.

    A spokesperson at JBS USA denied any labor law violations and said its offer is fair. Each side blamed the other for an impasse before the contract ended Sunday night.

    “They don’t really value their workers and we’re the ones that help them get all their profit,” said Leticia Avalos, a 34-year-old union steward and Greeley native who has been working at the plant since 2020. She depends on the job to support her family including a 6-month-old baby, but said she’ll make sacrifices to get the company to listen.

    Union says workers pay to protect themselves

    The union says its workers perform some of the most difficult and dangerous jobs in the country, and deserve higher wages and better healthcare. It said JBS in many cases has charged workers $1,100 or more to offset the company’s expenses for personal protective equipment needed to ensure worker safety.

    Smoke rose from parts of the plant Monday but it was unclear if it was fully operating. JBS spokesperson Nikki Richardson said “many team members” reported to work, but did not provide a precise number.

    “Our team members want stability, they want to support their families, and they deserved the opportunity to vote on the company’s historic offer — an opportunity the union leadership has denied them,” Richardson wrote in an email.

    She said any employee who didn’t strike would have work and be paid. The company also has said it would move production as needed to other JBS facilities.

    A federal probe into soaring beef prices

    The strike comes at a 75-year low in U.S. cattle numbers, with a Jan. 1 inventory of 86.2 million animals — down 1% from the prior year. The decline has been driven in part by drought and low prices offered to ranchers. Meanwhile, beef prices have soared to record levels.

    President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Brazil, a major beef exporter, have also curbed imports. Pressed to act on “affordability” issues after Republican losses last November, Trump accused foreign-owned companies of driving up U.S. beef prices and asked the Department of Justice to investigate.

    The average price for 100% ground chuck beef more than doubled over the past two decades from $2.55 to $6.07 per pound, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The increase has added to economic anxiety in the U.S. The Trump administration has promoted a trade deal with Argentina in efforts to lower prices for food, including beef.

    The Greeley plant has about 6% of the total U.S. beef slaughterhouse capacity, said Abby Greiman, a livestock market adviser for industry consultant Ever.Ag.

    Most ranchers can still get cattle to market because the national herd is smaller, and that could give JBS some leverage in negotiations, since other slaughterhouses can absorb the Greeley plant’s work, Greiman said.

    Feedlots hold clues to consumer costs

    Yet an extended strike at Greeley could disrupt the industry, particularly in Colorado and neighboring states, said Jennifer Martin at Colorado State University’s animal sciences department.

    “The feedlots, the people who have the cattle right now — the longer they sit kind of in a holding pattern, the more expensive they become to feed,” said Martin. “For consumers, it means that prices will likely go up.”

    The strike follows the January closure of a meatpacking plant in Lexington, Neb., which was expected to ripple through the local economy and community. Tyson Foods cited the smaller herd and millions of dollars in expected losses this year.

    JBS, the world’s largest meatpacker, has a market capitalization of $17 billion on the New York Stock Exchange after being approved for trading last May, despite environmental opposition and a federal probe that led to its guilty plea in October to bribing Brazilian officials for the financing it used for its U.S. expansion.

    JBS is a top local employer

    At the Greeley plant, the company tried to intimidate workers to quit the union in one-on-one meetings, union general counsel Matt Shechter said.

    Despite the pressure, 99% of workers voted to authorize the strike, said Kim Cordova, president of the United Food and Commercial Union Local 7.

    It’s the first strike at a U.S. slaughterhouse since workers walked out at a Hormel plant in Minnesota in 1985, according to Cordova and Martin. That strike lasted more than a year and included violent confrontations between police and protesters, according to the Minnesota Historical Society.

    JBS is the top employer in Greeley, a city 50 miles northeast of Denver with a population of about 114,000 people.

    “It’s a huge impact in the community for us to be striking,” said union steward Avalos. “I know a lot of us are worried, and hope that nothing goes even more south.”

  • A bipartisan group of 13 attorneys general sues OneMain over hidden loan add-ons

    A bipartisan group of 13 attorneys general sues OneMain over hidden loan add-ons

    NEW YORK — A bipartisan group of 13 attorneys general sued the financial company OneMain Financial on Monday, alleging the company placed unwanted additional products and other hidden costs on its loans that led to higher costs for its borrowers.

    The lawsuit, filed in New York on Monday, says OneMain employees steered borrowers into purchasing credit insurance and other loan-related products while making deceptive claims about whether the products were required and how they could be canceled. The attorneys general say the conduct affected tens of thousands of borrowers and violated state consumer protection laws.

    The products include credit insurance, which claims to pay the loan if a consumer dies or becomes unemployed, as well as products like home and auto memberships that are similar to AAA. These companies are, in turn, owned by OneMain through a related company.

    These products increase the cost of the loan. The lawsuit alleges that OneMain does not check whether the consumer may already have a home or auto membership service through AAA as well.

    “OneMain targets people who are already struggling financially, saddling them with hidden fees and misleading loans to trap them in even more debt,” New York State Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement.

    OneMain said the practices involved with the lawsuit were already reviewed with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in 2023. In that settlement, OneMain agreed to repay $10 million to consumers and pay $10 million in fines and penalties for allegedly selling add-on products to consumers.

    “The states’ allegations are simply untrue — their case is wrong on the facts and wrong on the law and attempts to re-litigate issues that were already reviewed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and fully resolved. We will litigate this case vigorously and look forward to proving the truth in court.”

    OneMain, based in Evansville, Ind., is one of the largest U.S. non-bank installment lenders. It primarily offers loans to those with subprime credit scores, meaning much of its customers are already financially struggling when they come to OneMain.

    Along with New York, the other attorneys general joining the lawsuit include the states of Colorado, Nevada, Maryland, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Washington, Wisconsin, New Jersey, South Dakota, and New Hampshire, as well as the Commonwealths of Virginia and Pennsylvania.

  • Customs and Border Protection official says new process for tariff refunds could be ready in 45 days

    Customs and Border Protection official says new process for tariff refunds could be ready in 45 days

    NEW YORK — Government officials are getting closer to ironing out a refund process for the hundreds of thousands of companies that paid tariffs now deemed illegal.

    In a filing with the Court of International Trade on Friday, Brandon Lord, executive director of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s trade policy and programs directorate, said the CBP is working on a new system that will simplify the process. He said it should be ready in 45 days and require “minimal submission from importers.”

    The filing comes after a judge on Wednesday ordered the government to start paying back all importers the illegal tariffs they paid — with interest. Judge Richard Eaton of the U.S. Court of International Trade wrote that “all importers of record’’ were “entitled to benefit” from the Supreme Court ruling that struck down sweeping double-digit import taxes President Donald Trump imposed last year under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

    Eaton would have to approve the process before it proceeds.

    In the filing, Lord said that as of March 4, over 330,000 importers have made a total of over 53 million entries with CBP and paid about $166 billion in tariffs that now have to be refunded.

    Lord estimated that under the current system, refunds would take more than 4.4 million man hours to complete, and it isn’t feasible to divert all employees to the refund process full time, because “CBP’s other functions and responsibilities would be severely disrupted and the agency would not be able to continue to adequately perform its mission, including its revenue protection mandate and its vital national security functions.”

    But he said the agency is confident they can develop and implement a new process that will streamline and consolidate refunds and interest payments. The system should be ready in 45 days, he said.

    “This new process will require minimal submission from importers,” he wrote. “It will also minimize errors by ensuring accurate IEEPA refund calculations through system validations and allowing for a review period for CBP to resolve any discrepancies with the importer and to confirm no other outstanding enforcement issues or no revenue is owed.”

    Lord also noted that as of Feb. 6 the CBP only issues refunds electronically, but most importers haven’t completed signing up for the electronic system. Of the 330,566 importers who paid tariffs, only 21,423 have completed the setup process to receive their refunds electronically.

    “Until importers complete the process to receive refunds electronically, the refunds will be rejected,” he said.