(NEW YORK) — More than 105 million Americans remain on alert for dangerously low temperatures after an arctic blast swept across the U.S.
At least nine weather-related fatalities were confirmed nationwide this week: six in Tennessee, two in New Jersey and one in Mississippi, according to authorities.
On Wednesday, the wind chill — what the temperature feels like — is forecast to fall to minus 25 degrees in North Dakota, minus 16 in Chicago and minus 12 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Austin, Texas, and San Antonio could break daily records for low temperatures on Wednesday at or around 10 degrees.
By the weekend, wind chills will remain below zero in Chicago. Wind chills could fall below zero in Memphis, Tennessee, and may drop to minus 22 degrees in Kansas City, Missouri.
Although conditions will be dry in the Northeast on Wednesday, areas around the Great Lakes are expected to get more snow. Lake-effect snow warnings were issued in Buffalo and Watertown, New York, where snowfall totals could reach 4 feet by Thursday night — on top of the more than 40 inches of snow that fell last weekend.
Another storm is also heading toward the Pacific Northwest. Ice storm warnings are in effect for more than 3 million people in Oregon, including Portland, where residents could wake up to as much as 3/4 inches of ice on Wednesday.
In the Cascade mountain range, there’s a chance for up to 7 inches of snow and 1 inch of ice.
The snow from this storm will move over the Rocky Mountains on Wednesday and Thursday, including in Colorado, where avalanche warnings are in effect through Thursday. The avalanche danger is high — at a level 4 out of 5 — because heavy snow and strong winds have created very treacherous conditions that could easily trigger large and dangerous avalanches.
High wind warnings are also in effect for parts of Colorado’s mountains, with winds up to 75 mph possible on Wednesday.
Colorado’s Rockies could get as much as 2 feet of snow from Wednesday to Friday.
The snowfall will move into Nebraska and Missouri on Thursday.
A separate weather system will bring snow to Kentucky on Thursday before combining with the moisture from the Plains to bring another round of snow to the Northeast on Friday, with an additional 1 to 3 inches in the forecast for the Interstate 95 corridor.
Houthi followers protest to condemn the U.S.-U.K. during a tribal gathering on Jan. 14, 2024 on the outskirts of Sana’a, Yemen. (Mohammed Hamoud/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — The State Department on Wednesday announced it was relisting Yemen’s Houthi rebels as a global terrorist group in response to the militants’ attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
“This designation seeks to promote accountability for the group’s terrorist activities,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement. “If the Houthis cease their attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, the United States will reevaluate this designation.”
The department said the designation will go into effect in 30 days.
White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said the designation is an “important tool” to impede funding to the Houthis, and said the U.S. is open to taking additional actions against the group “to protect our people and the free flow of international commerce.”
The Iranian-backed group was designated as a terrorist organization in January of 2021 — a move that was met with widespread concern from humanitarian groups who feared that the restrictions that accompany the designation would make it nearly impossible to provide aid to Yemen’s impoverished civilians.
President Joe Biden quickly delisted the Houthis when he entered office as part of his administration’s diplomatic push to end Yemen’s ongoing civil war.
The administration had been considering reimposing the designation for weeks, but some officials involved in the decision making were reluctant because of possible disruptions to humanitarian assistance and peace talks. An official familiar with the decision said these priorities will be safeguarded. However, only time will tell if they can create effective workarounds.
Secretary Blinken said Wednesday that the 30-day delay in implementing the change is for the U.S. to reach out to aid providers and other partners involved in facilitating such assistance.
“The Houthis must be held accountable for their actions, but it should not be at the expense of Yemeni civilians,” Blinken said. “As the Department of State moves forward with this designation, we are taking significant steps to mitigate any adverse impacts this designation may have on the people of Yemen.”
When asked about this topic, Biden recently brushed the label off as “irrelevant.”
“It’s irrelevant whether they’re designated,” Biden told reporters on Friday when asked how soon he would designate the Houthis as a terrorist organization after he said earlier in the day said he believed that’s what they were.
The designation comes as the Houthi attacks on ships in the Red Sea following Hamas’ Oct. 7 surprise terror attack on Israel have riled commercial shipping and threatened to dangerously escalate heightened tensions in the Middle East. In response, the U.S. has carried out airstrikes on Houthi targets, according to U.S. Central Command.
King Charles III departs after attending the Christmas Morning Service at Sandringham Church on December 25, 2023 in Sandringham, Norfolk. CREDIT: Stephen Pond/Getty Images
(LONDON) — King Charles III will undergo surgery next week to be treated for an enlarged prostate, according to Buckingham Palace.
“His Majesty’s condition is benign and he will attend hospital next week for a corrective procedure,” the palace said in a statement. “The King’s public engagements will be postponed for a short period of recuperation.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — A new meta-analysis of more than a dozen studies found that drinking 100% fruit juice is linked to weight gain in children.
ABC News medical correspondent Dr. Darien Sutton joined ABC News’ Good Morning America to explain the key findings from the new study, published Tuesday by the Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics, and shared some helpful insights for parents and caregivers to reduce their kids’ sugar consumption.
“What they found is just one glass of that 100% juice is associated with an increase in weight gain and increase in BMI (body mass index),” Sutton said. “This is important because more than almost 15 million children live with childhood obesity in this country and that’s correlated to other types of diseases, such as metabolic disease [and] liver disease, aside from obesity-related cancers.”
“It’s about controlling these habits now so we can have a better future,” Sutton added.
How much sugar is hiding in 100% fruit juice?
Juice labels may state “no added sugar,” but Dr. Sutton explained that because in 100% fruit juice, “there’s already enough sugar in it.”
“Orange juice has 4.5 teaspoons of sugar and one gram of fiber, as opposed to a whole orange which has three teaspoons of sugar and three grams of fiber,” he said, illustrating that the whole fruit would be a more nutritious choice than juice.
A cup of apple juice, Dr. Sutton further said, contains six teaspoons of sugar and zero grams of fiber, whereas a whole apple has three grams of fiber.
“The reason it’s important to address the fiber is because that helps children stay full,” Dr. Sutton explained. “As opposed to juices, fruits also break down more slowly in the body that leads to less spikes in your blood glucose, that leads to less spikes in your insulin. And that eventually will lead to, if you don’t treat it, insulin sensitivity which is the basis of diabetes.”
Healthy swap and alternatives to fruit juice
While it may be hard to entirely eliminate fruit juices from a child’s diet, Dr. Sutton suggests getting creative with water to reduce their intake.
For example, you can use sliced fruits — like strawberries, oranges and mangoes, for example — to provide some sweetness to water. You can also freeze sliced fruits to use as ice cubes, and add them to water or sparkling water to make it more flavorful.
Britain’s Catherine, Princess of Wales smiles as she arrives to attend the “Together At Christmas” Carol Service” at Westminster Abbey in London on Dec. 8, 2023. (CHRIS JACKSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
(LONDON) — Kate, the princess of Wales, is recovering after undergoing abdominal surgery, Kensington Palace confirmed Wednesday.
Kate, who turned 42 last week, was admitted Tuesday to The London Clinic for a “planned” surgery, according to the palace.
The surgery was “successful,” according to the palace, but Kate, the wife of Prince William and mom of their three young children, will remain hospitalized for 10 to 14 days before returning to the family’s home to recover.
The palace noted that Kate’s hospitalization means she is not likely to resume her public duties “until after Easter.”
“The Princess of Wales appreciates the interest this statement will generate,” the palace said in a statement. “She hopes that the public will understand her desire to maintain as much normality for her children as possible; and her wish that her personal medical information remains private.”
“The Princess of Wales wishes to apologise to all those concerned for the fact that she has to postpone her upcoming engagements,” the statement continued. “She looks forward to reinstating as many as possible, as soon as possible.”
A man holds the body of a small child as he and others mourn while collecting the bodies of friends and relatives killed in an airstrike on January 13, 2024 in Rafah, Gaza. (Photo by Ahmad Hasaballah/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — The end of the cease-fire came after Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that governs Gaza, freed over 100 of the more than 200 people its militants took hostage during the Oct. 7 surprise attack on southern Israel. In exchange, Israel released more than 200 Palestinians from Israeli prisons.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jan 17, 9:08 AM
IDF says it killed top militant in West Bank strike
The Israel Defense Forces said early Wednesday that it has killed a top Palestinian militant in an airstrike in the occupied West Bank, averting “an imminent, large-scale terrorist attack” he was allegedly planning.
Ahmed Abdullah Abu Shalal and members of his terrorist cell were “eliminated in a precision airstrike” at the Balata refugee camp in the northern West Bank city of Nablus, according to the IDF. It was unclear exactly how many individuals were killed in the strike.
“Abdullah was responsible for carrying out a number of terrorist attacks over the last year, including the shooting attack in the Shimon HaTzadik neighborhood in Jerusalem last April during which two Jerusalem residents were injured,” the IDF said in a statement. “Additionally, he was responsible for the bombing attack against IDF soldiers last October during which a soldier was injured.”
“Under Abdullah’s leadership, the terrorist infrastructure in the Balata camp in Nablus has received funding and guidance from Iranian sources who are in cooperation with terrorist headquarters in both the Gaza Strip and abroad,” the IDF added.
Jan 16, 3:35 PM
Qatar says it’s brokered deal to allow medicine, aid into Gaza
Qatar said Tuesday it has mediated a deal between Israel and Hamas to deliver medicine to Israeli hostages in the Gaza Strip.
Medicine and other humanitarian aid will also be delivered to civilians “in the most affected and vulnerable areas” of the Gaza Strip as part of the deal, Qatar said.
The medication and aid is expected to depart Doha on board two Qatari Armed Forces aircraft on Wednesday, bound for Arish, Egypt, before being transported to the Gaza Strip, Qatar said.
Jan 16, 3:22 PM
2 Israeli hostages who appeared in Hamas video confirmed dead: Kibbutz
Itay Svirsky, 35, and Yossi Sharabi, 53 — two hostages who appeared in a video released by Hamas earlier this week — have been confirmed dead, according to Kibbutz Be’eri.
“Their bodies are in the hands of Hamas, we will demand their return with the rest of our abductees,” Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the communities attacked by the terrorist group on Oct. 7, said in a statement on Tuesday. “Our hearts are with the families in their immense pain. May they rest in peace.”
Svirsky was at his parents’ home in the kibbutz when he was abducted, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
Hamas released a video on Sunday showing the two men, as well as 26-year-old Noa Argamani, while calling on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the war on Gaza.
Following the release of the hostage video, the IDF said they told the men’s families that “there is grave concern for their lives” and denied Hamas’ claims that Israeli forces shot Svirsky.
Jan 16, 12:07 PM
Jordan accuses Israel of hindering aid delivery to Gaza
Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi said Tuesday that Israel is creating hurdles to the entry of aid into the war-torn Gaza Strip.
Jordan is working in coordination with the United Nations to deliver aid to Gaza, but only 10% of the total needs of the more than 2 million Palestinians who live there are currently being met, according to Safadi.
“The reality now is that Israeli measures are preventing sufficient aid from arriving and only a fraction is being delivered,” Safadi said during a press conference in Amman.
ABC News’ Will Gretsky and Morgan Winsor
Jan 15, 1:27 PM
At least 1 dead, 17 injured in car-ramming attacks in Israel, police say
At least one person was killed and 17 others were injured on Monday afternoon in car-ramming attacks that took place in various locations across Ra’anana, Israel, authorities said.
Two suspects — identified as a pair of Palestinian men from the Hebron area in the Israeli-occupied West Bank — allegedly stole multiple vehicles before ramming them into crowds of pedestrians in Ra’anana, about 13 miles north of Tel Aviv, according to the Israel Police.
Both suspects have since been arrested. The incidents and the motive remains under investigation, police said.
The victim killed was an elderly woman, according to police.
Fourteen of the 17 injured remained hospitalized Monday evening, officials said. At least seven children were among the injured.
ABC News’ Jordana Miller, Bruno Nota, Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Jan 15, 11:59 AM
What life is like for displaced Palestinians in Rafah’s tent city
Ahmad Ismael said his “whole world turned upside down” after Oct. 7.
The Palestinian father of four now lives with his family in a tent in Rafah, the southernmost region of the Gaza Strip. They are among the almost 1.9 million people — 85% of Gaza’s population — who are displaced from their homes, nearly half of whom are crammed inside Rafah.
“We want the tragic situation we are living in to end,” Ismael told ABC News in an interview Sunday. “We hope from God that the war will stop.”
Ismael said Israel’s intense bombardment forced him and his family to flee their home in northern Gaza. They have been living in Rafah’s tent city for the past 70 days, he said.
“We fled with only our souls,” he told ABC News. “We didn’t bring anything with us.”
Ismael showed ABC News around his family’s makeshift shelter and explained what life is like there amid the latest outbreak of war between Israel and Gaza’s militant rulers, Hamas.
“People wake up at 5 or 6 in the morning,” he told ABC News. “You wake up to think about the situation of the tent. Is there water flowing or not? Because of the rain, how will we provide wood for the fire? How will we provide today’s food for the children?”
Ismael said they receive some canned food from a U.N. agency’s warehouse every two or three days. But it’s not enough to feed his family, so they must try to buy other food and cook it over an open fire.
“Everything is expensive and scarce,” he told ABC News. “We used to buy this oil for 7 or 6 shekels. Today, I buy this for 20 shekels. One day you find it and the next day you don’t.”
“Firewood is also very expensive, not cheap, and even I can no longer afford it,” he continued.
“What I’m telling you is not just about my life,” he added, “but the lives of all of us here.”
ABC News’ Rashid Haddou-Riffi, Morgan Winsor and Sami Zayara
Jan 15, 10:52 AM
Another communications blackout in Gaza
NetBlocks, a London-based nonprofit that covers internet connectivity around the world, said Monday that the Gaza Strip has been “largely offline” for the past 72 hours.
“The disruption is the longest sustained telecoms blackout on record since the onset of the Hamas-Israel war, and is likely to significantly limit visibility into events on the ground,” NetBlocks wrote in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
ABC News’ Will Gretsky and Morgan Winsor
Jan 15, 9:22 AM
At least 1 dead, 16 injured in car-ramming attacks in Israel, police say
At least one person was killed and 16 others were injured on Monday afternoon in car-ramming attacks that took place in various locations across Ra’anana, Israel, authorities said.
Two suspects — identified as a pair of Palestinian men from the Hebron area in the Israeli-occupied West Bank — allegedly stole multiple vehicles before ramming them into crowds of pedestrians in Ra’anana, about 13 miles north of Tel Aviv, according to the Israel Police.
Both suspects have since been arrested. The incidents and the motive remains under investigation, police said.
At least four of the wounded victims were hospitalized in critical condition, according to Israel’s rescue service MDA.
-ABC News’ Jordana Miller, Bruno Nota, Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Jan 15, 5:07 AM
What we know about the conflict
The Israel-Hamas war has reached the three-month mark.
In the Gaza Strip, at least 24,100 people have been killed and 60,834 others have been wounded by Israeli forces since Oct. 7, according to Gaza’s Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health.
In Israel, at least 1,200 people have been killed and 6,900 others have been injured by Hamas and other Palestinian militants since Oct. 7, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
There has also been a surge in violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Israeli forces have killed at least 297 people in the territory since Oct. 7, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Jan 15, 4:59 AM
Shots fired as crowd seeks humanitarian aid in Gaza
Gunshots rang out as hundreds of thousands of Palestinians sought food from humanitarian aid trucks in the war-torn Gaza Strip on Sunday.
Video of the incident in Sheikh Iljlin, a neighborhood in southern Gaza City, shows a large crowd gathering to receive flour from aid trucks parked near an Israeli military checkpoint. Then the sound of gunfire erupts and people are seen frantically running.
ABC News was not able to independently verify who fired the shots and whether anyone was killed or injured.
The Israel Defense Forces did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment on Monday.
-ABC News’ Felicia Alvarez, Nasser Atta, Helena Skinner and Morgan Winsor
Jan 14, 7:29 PM
Hamas releases video showing 3 Israeli hostages in captivity
Hamas released a video on Sunday showing three Israeli hostages who are still being held in captivity in Gaza.
The three hostages that appear in the video are 26-year-old Noa Argamani, 35-year-old Itai Svirsky and 53-year-old Yossi Sharabi.
The video released by Hamas called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to end the war on Gaza.
-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman
Jan 14, 6:47 PM
100 days into war, IDF says its ‘goals are complex to achieve and will take a long time’
As the Israel-Hamas war reached its 100th day Sunday, the Israel Defense Forces says it’s goals “will take a long time” to achieve.
“To achieve real results, we must continue to operate in enemy territory, not to allow extortion attempts for a cease-fire,” IDF Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said in a televised address Saturday.
“We must continue applying pressure and that is exactly what we are doing,” he said. “[Our] goals are complex to achieve and will take a long time. To dismantle Hamas, patience is both necessary and essential.”
The IDF also said it’s now moving to intensify its operations in southern Gaza, where it believes Hamas’ leadership is hiding.
-ABC News’ Patrick Reevell
Jan 13, 4:56 PM
Netanyahu says Israel will pursue war with Hamas until victory
Israel will pursue its war against Hamas until victory and will not be stopped by anyone, including the world court, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a defiant speech Saturday evening.
Netanyahu spoke after the International Court of Justice at The Hague held two days of hearings on South Africa’s allegations that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians, a charge Israel has rejected as libelous and hypocritical.
South Africa asked the court to order Israel to halt its blistering air and ground offensive in an interim step.
“No one will stop us, not The Hague, not the axis of evil and not anyone else,” Netanyahu said in televised remarks, referring to Iran and its allied militias.
The case before the world court is expected to go on for years, but a ruling on interim steps could come within weeks. Court rulings are binding but difficult to enforce.
Netanyahu made clear that Israel would ignore orders to halt the fighting, potentially deepening its isolation. Netanyahu also said a decision had yet to be made about a potential military takeover of the “Philadelphi Corridor” along the Gaza Strip’s border with Egypt.
-ABC News’ Bruno Nota
Jan 13, 2:44 PM
Israel-Hamas war reaches 100th day
Saturday marked 100 days since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, the deadliest conflict between the two sides in recent history.
The fighting began on Oct. 7 when Hamas launched a surprise attack in southern Israel. Since then, Israel has launched numerous airstrikes and a ground offensive. The Israeli government has previously claimed it is defending itself.
More than 23,300 people have been killed in Gaza since the war began, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry. Meanwhile, 1,200 people have been killed in Israel along with 520 Israel Defense Forces officers since Oct. 7.
Philippe Lazzarini, head of the U.N’s Palestinian Relief Agency, issued a statement marking 100 days of the war, saying there are now 1.4 million people in U.N. shelters in Gaza and facing a “looming famine.”
Meanwhile, families of the Israeli hostages still held in Gaza are holding a series of events Saturday to mark 100 days since their captivity began.
-ABC News’ Mary Kekatos and Patrick Reevell
Jan 13, 8:22 AM
More than half a million people are starving in Gaza, UN says
About 577,000 people in Gaza, equal to a quarter of the population, are now starving, Arif Husain, chief economist for the U.N.’s World Food program, told ABC News.
Hussain has worked as an expert assessing hunger crises for 20 years and said, in terms of scale of severity and speed, he has never seen what is unfolding in Gaza right now, calling it “unprecedented.”
Even before the war with Israel, Gaza relied on humanitarian assistance to meet around 75% to 80% of its needs. With Israel now allowing very few supplies into Gaza, it has quickly run into massive shortages.
“If things continue as they are, or if things worsen, we are looking at a full fledged famine within the next six months,” he said.
-ABC News’ Patrick Reevell
Jan 12, 12:59 PM
Deal reached to get medicine to hostages, Israel says
A deal has been reached to get medicine to the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza over the next few days, according to the Israeli Prime Minister’s office.
The families of the hostages are insisting that the Israeli war cabinet “demand visual proof that the medications did indeed reach the abductees, as a condition for any return from Israel.”
“After 98 days in the Hamas tunnels, all the abductees are in immediate danger and need life-saving medication,” the families said in a statement.
Jan 12, 9:30 AM
Israel rejects genocide charges at UN’s top court
Israel on Friday called on the United Nations’ top court to dismiss South Africa’s request to halt its offensive in the Gaza Strip amid “grossly distorted” accusations of genocide.
During opening statements to a panel of judges at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Israeli legal adviser Tal Becker said the country is fighting a “war it did not start and did not want.”
“In these circumstances, there can hardly be a charge more false and more malevolent than the allegation against Israel of genocide,” Becker added.
He noted that “Israel is in a war of defense against Hamas, not against the Palestinian people,” and that the suffering of civilians during wartime does not amount to genocide.
“The key component of genocide, the intent to destroy a people in whole or in part, is totally lacking,” he said.
-ABC News’ Edward Szekeres and Morgan Winsor
Jan 11, 12:18 PM
Blinken says he found new willingness to discuss Gaza’s future, denies conflict is escalating
As Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrapped up his trip to the Middle East, he said he encountered a new appetite among Middle Eastern leaders to discuss contributing to what he often refers to as “the day after” in Gaza.
“I have to say what was different about this trip is that on our previous trips here, I think there was a reluctance to talk about some of the day after issues and long-term stability and security on a regional basis, but now we’re finding that our partners are very focused on that and wanting to engage on those questions,” Blinken said.
On his major goal of preventing the Israeli-Hamas war from spreading across the region, Blinken was optimistic.
“I don’t think the conflict is escalating. There are lots of danger points; we’re trying to deal with each of them,” he said.
ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
Jan 11, 12:11 PM
Hostage families beg for Israel to ‘take the deal’: ‘This is hell’
The families of hostages held by Hamas came together for a news conference Thursday demanding that the Israeli war cabinet prioritize their loved ones’ return and approve any deal that would lead to their release.
“I demand the cabinet take any deal on the table,” said Shay Wenkert, whose son, Omer Wenkert, was kidnapped from the music festival on Oct. 7.
“My son has colitis,” Wenkert said. “This is hell. I’m begging you — you had opportunities for other deals and didn’t take them. Take action. You have to take the deal. Bring them home now.”
“No one is doing us any favors in Israel. They must do everything to release the hostages, at any price,” said Gilad and Nitza Corngold, parents of Tal Shoham, who was kidnapped from Kibbutz Be’eri. “I suggest anyone who says ‘It’s not worth it’ to bring a family member of theirs and make a personal exchange with me — to give me their son and take mine out. Their time is running out.”
Jan 11, 11:48 AM
Genocide case against Israel begins at UN’s top court
Israel is defending itself in the United Nations’ top court starting Thursday against allegations that its ongoing military campaign in the neighboring Gaza Strip amounts to genocide of the Palestinian people — a claim that Israel vehemently denies.
South Africa, which brought forward the allegations, is initially asking the Netherlands-based International Court of Justice to order an immediate suspension of the Israeli military offensive against Gaza’s militant rulers, Hamas, as part of a landmark case that is likely to take years to resolve.
“Genocides are never declared in advance, but this court has the benefit of the past 13 weeks of evidence that shows incontrovertibly a pattern of conduct and related intention that justifies as a plausible claim of genocidal acts,” South African attorney Adila Hassim told the panel of judges inside a packed courtroom in The Hague during Thursday’s opening statements. “Nothing will stop the suffering except an order from this court.”
South Africa insists Israel is committing genocide by design and that the country’s latest war in Gaza is part of its decadeslong oppression of Palestinians. South Africa’s ruling political party, the African National Congress, has a long history of solidarity with the Palestinian cause and sees parallels with its own struggle against the apartheid regime of white minority rule that ended in 1994.
“The violence and the destruction in Palestine and Israel did not begin on Oct. 7, 2023,” South African Justice Minister Ronald Lamola said. “The Palestinians have experienced systematic oppression and violence for the last 76 years.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has called South Africa’s allegations “atrocious and preposterous,” while Secretary of State Antony Blinken has dismissed the case as “meritless.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in response Thursday called South Africa’s allegations “upside-down.”
“Israel is fighting against murderous terrorists who have committed terrible crimes against humanity: they slaughtered, they raped, they burned, they dismembered, they killed children, women, the elderly, young men, young women. A terrorist organization that committed the most terrible crime against the Jewish people since the Holocaust, and now there are those who come to defend it in the name of the Holocaust,” Netanyahu said. “We will continue to fight the terrorists, we will continue to repel the lies, we will continue to maintain our right to defend ourselves and secure our future.”
Lawyers for Israel will address the court on Friday.
ABC News’ Joe Simonetti, Edward Szekeres and Morgan Winsor
Jan 11, 11:08 AM
Man who lost entire family sifts through rubble in Gaza
The main highway connecting south and north Gaza, Salah al-Din Road, which Israeli forces used for a civilian corridor, has become impassable in Deir al Balah in central Gaza.
“When we came here, we were surprised — Salah al-Din is a main road connecting the north and the south in four directions, 70 meters wide,” Gaza resident Yahya Deeb Al-Laham told ABC News. Now there’s “no infrastructure, no electricity, no roads, buildings and areas are non-existent … there is nothing here, there are no signs of life. Homes for families have completely disappeared and not a single one of them remains.”
The Israelis have recently left the area.
One of the families who followed Israeli military instructions, evacuating from northern Gaza to Deir al Balah, has been completely wiped out.
The surviving family member, Muhammad Fouad Abu Safi, returned to the site to sift through the rubble and try to find what might be left of his family.
“They left me no family member, no sister, no brother, no cousin, no child,” he told ABC News. “There were about 50 people here. Only three children, girls, came out alive … the rest here were taken out as body parts or decomposing bodies.”
“Humanity has ended, mercy has ended,” he said. “Neither from America nor from any country, there is no humanity or mercy.”
ABC News’ Samy Zayara
Jan 11, 8:32 AM
UN court opens hearings on South Africa’s accusation that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza
Israel is defending itself in the United Nations’ top court starting Thursday against allegations that its ongoing military campaign in the neighboring Gaza Strip amounts to genocide of the Palestinian people — a claim that Israel vehemently denies.
South Africa, which brought forward the allegations, is initially asking the International Criminal Court of Justice to order an immediate suspension of the Israeli military offensive in Gaza as part of a landmark case that is likely to take years to resolve.
“Genocides are never declared in advance, but this court has the benefit of the past 13 weeks of evidence that shows incontrovertibly a pattern of conduct and related intention that justifies as a plausible claim of genocidal acts,” South African attorney Adila Hassim told the panel of judges in a packed courtroom at The Hague during Thursday’s opening statements. “Nothing will stop the suffering except an order from this court.”
South Africa insists Israel is committing genocide by design and that the country’s latest war in Gaza is part of its decadeslong oppression of Palestinians. South Africa’s ruling political party, the African National Congress, has a long history of solidarity with the Palestinian cause and sees parallels with its own struggle against the apartheid regime of white minority rule that ended in 1994.
“The violence and the destruction in Palestine and Israel did not begin on Oct. 7, 2023,” South African Justice Minister Ronald Lamola said. “The Palestinians have experienced systematic oppression and violence for the last 76 years.”
Lawyers for Israel will address the court on Friday.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has called South Africa’s allegations “atrocious and preposterous,” while U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has dismissed the case as “meritless.”
Jan 10, 1:31 PM
Hamas official says hostages won’t return alive if Netanyahu doesn’t accept cease-fire
Hamas leader Osama Hamdan said in a statement that the Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza “will not return alive to their families” unless Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli leaders respond to Hamas’ conditions, “the first of which is a comprehensive and complete cessation of their aggression against the Gaza Strip.”
Jan 10, 11:50 AM
Israelis in Egypt for hostage talks: Egyptian security source
A delegation from Israel is in Egypt on Wednesday for new discussions on swapping Israeli hostages held by Hamas in Gaza for Palestinians in prison in Israel, an Egyptian security source confirmed to ABC News.
Jan 10, 11:18 AM
Israeli minister warns ‘Hamas will regain control’ if combat in Gaza stops
Israeli War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz warned Wednesday that “Hamas will regain control” of the Gaza Strip if the Israeli military ceases combat operations there.
“We must go on. If we stop now, Hamas will regain control,” Gantz, a retired army general who previously served as Israel’s defense minister and alternate prime minister, said during a press conference in Tel Aviv. “In most areas, we have completed the phase of operational takeover and now, we are deep in the phase of dismantling the terrorist infrastructure, which will lead to the demilitarization of the strip.”
However, Gantz noted that “the most urgent thing is the return of the abductees.” More than 100 Israeli citizens are believed to still be held hostage by militants in Gaza after being taken captive during the Hamas-led Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel.
“This has precedence over every move in combat,” he said.
Gantz also warned that the Israeli military “will act in southern Lebanon as we act in northern Gaza” if the neighboring country “continues to serve as an Iranian terrorist outpost.” His remarks came as Israeli forces continue to exchange fire with Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Lebanese militant group, amid fears that regional tensions could escalate into a wider war in the Middle East.
“This is not a threat to Lebanon,” Gantz added. “It is a promise to the residents of [northern Israel].”
Israel’s war cabinet is expected to meet on Wednesday evening, followed by a meeting of the wider security cabinet.
ABC News’ Dana Savir and Morgan Winsor
Jan 10, 10:06 AM
IDF claims to have found ‘further evidence of Hamas’ exploitation’
The Israel Defense Forces on Wednesday claimed to have found “further evidence of Hamas’ exploitation of the civilian population for terrorist activity across the Gaza Strip.”
The 55th Brigade combat team made the alleged discovery in recent days while “operating to destroy terror infrastructure” in the city of Khan Younis in southern Gaza, according to the IDF.
“During the operations on the military targets, the soldiers located a UAV launch post, a loaded rifle underneath a child’s bed, along with grenades, cartridges, Hamas uniforms, and many intelligence materials inside the residences of terrorist operatives,” the IDF said in a statement. “During the operation, the soldiers found a tunnel shaft near a school, a rocket launcher near a kindergarten, and a training compound near a mosque.”
Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that governs Gaza, has denied Israel’s claims that it deliberately shelters behind civilians by hiding its fighters, infrastructure and weapons in hospitals, schools and other areas populated by civilians.
ABC News’ Morgan Winsor
Jan 10, 9:49 AM
At least 40 killed in Israeli strike near Gaza hospital, Hamas says
More than 40 people, including a journalist, were killed Wednesday when Israeli forces bombed an inhabited house across the street from Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the central Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas Government Media Office.
Hamas claimed the Israeli military had declared the city of Deir al-Balah safe before striking the area.
There was no immediate comment from the Israel Defense Forces.
Earlier Wednesday, the IDF said its aircraft and ground troops were continuing to operate against Hamas in central Gaza within the area of the Maghazi refugee camp, a couple miles north of Deir al-Balah.
Former President Donald Trump speaks at his caucus night event at the Iowa Events Center, Jan. 15, 2024 in Des Moines, Iowa. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Former President Donald Trump is on trial this week in New York City to determine whether he will have to pay former Elle magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll additional damages for defaming her in 2019 when he denied her allegations of sexual assault.
Last year, in a separate trial, a jury determined that Trump was liable for sexually assaulting Carroll in the dressing room of a Manhattan department store in the 1990s, and that he defamed her in a 2022 social media post by calling her allegations “a Hoax and a lie” and saying “This woman is not my type!”
Trump has denied all wrongdoing and has said he doesn’t know who Carroll is.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jan 17, 7:37 AM
Carroll set to testify as first witness
Donald Trump is expected to be in the courtroom this morning when E. Jean Carroll takes the stand to testify about how the then-president’s defamatory denial of her sexual assault allegations in 2019 upended her life.
Trump “unleashed his followers to go after her online” after Carroll went public with her allegations, damaging her reputation as a writer and making her feel unsafe in her own home, Carroll’s attorney Shawn Crowley told the jury in her opening statement yesterday.
“Ms. Carroll bought bullets for the gun that she inherited from her father, and she now sleeps with it right beside her bed. She checks her surroundings every time she leaves her house or gets out of her car,” Crowley said. “She’s afraid — afraid that someday, somebody is going to make good on their threats and come after her in person.”
Despite sitting feet from each other in the courtroom yesterday, Carroll and Trump avoided eye contact and never interacted during the first day of the trial. However, when Carroll takes the stand to testify this morning, she will speak directly in front of the counsel table where Trump is seated.
Jan 16, 8:30 PM
Trump expected to attend trial Wednesday, sources say
Former President Trump, who was campaigning in New Hampshire Tuesday evening, is expected to return to New York to attend the second day of his defamation trial on Wednesday, sources tell ABC News.
Trump is then scheduled to return to New Hampshire later Wednesday.
Jan 16, 6:02 PM
Trial is ‘straight out of banana republic,’ says Trump attorney
Donald Trump’s legal counsel Boris Epshteyn briefly spoke to reporters outside court at the conclusion of Tuesday’s proceedings, calling the trial “straight out of [a] banana republic.”
“Manhattan is 90-95% Democrat,” Epshteyn said, despite voter registration records showing the borough is about 70% Democratic. “Does anybody think the President will get a fair trial here? Absolutely not,” he said.
Despite a jury last year finding Trump liable for sexually abusing Carroll, Epshteyn alleged that Carroll is making “false accusations.”
“President Trump has consistently stated that he did not commit the allegation and did not commit the acts that the plaintiff alleges. He has been steadfast in that. And it is right to defend himself from false accusations,” Epshteyn said.
Epshteyn declined to comment on whether Trump plans to attend court tomorrow.
Carroll did not speak to reporters when she left court.
Jan 16, 4:52 PM
Carroll seeking a ‘windfall’ over ‘mean Tweets,’ Trump attorney says
E. Jean Carroll is looking for a “windfall” over a series of “mean Tweets from Twitter trolls,” Trump attorney Alina Habba said during the defense’s opening statement, in which Habba sought to cast doubt on the severity of the alleged harm Carroll said she endured.
Habba told the jury they do not have to believe Carroll’s account of how she has suffered as a result of Trump’s defamatory statements.
“Her career has prospered and she has been thrust back into the limelight like she has always wanted,” Habba said, accusing Carroll of using her story “to obtain as much fame and notoriety as possible.”
The defense framed Carroll’s lawsuit as nothing more than an attempt to shake down Trump for money over scores of critical Tweets that have nothing to do with the defamatory statements by Trump that are at issue in the trial.
“She expects you as the jury to give her an award for every negative comment that was thrown her way,” Habba said. “She is looking for you to give her a windfall because some people on social media said mean things about her.”
Habba showed a photo of Carroll in the company of Trump critic Kathy Griffin and said Carroll is close with another critic of the former president, his niece Mary Trump.
“This is someone who craves fame and seeks fame wherever she can get it,” Habba said. “She got what she wanted.”
The proceedings were dismissed for the day after both sides concluded their opening statements. The trial will resume Wednesday with the first witness in the case.
Jan 16, 4:00 PM
Trump ‘unleashed his followers,’ Carroll’s attorney says
Donald Trump’s lies about E. Jean Carroll “unleashed his followers to go after her,” and as Trump campaigns for president he “continues to lie about Ms. Carroll,” Carroll’s attorney said in her opening statement.
“How much money will it take to make him stop?” Carroll’s attorney, Shawn Crowley, said. “He kept up those very same lies even after a federal jury sat in this courtroom and unanimously found that he sexually assaulted her and defamed her.”
Crowley reminded the jury that Trump “was president when he made those statements and he used the world’s biggest microphone to humiliate her” — the result of which was that he “wrecked” Carroll’s reputation in a matter of days, Crowley said.
“Donald Trump’s response was swift and brutal,” Crowley said. “Donald Trump did not just deny the assault. He went much, much further.”
She quoted Trump’s statements from June 22, 2019: “‘People should pay dearly for making up accusations” about him.
Crowley also quoted Trump saying “she’s not my type” on that day in 2019. “In other words, she was too ugly to assault. She must have been lying because she was too unattractive for Mr. Trump to sexually assault,” Crowley said.
Carroll, who is now 80, sat at the plaintiff’s table as her attorney showed the jury messages Trump’s followers posted calling her ugly and urging her to kill herself.
“When Donald Trump called Ms. Carroll a fraud and a liar, they listened and they believed and they decided to go after her,” Crowley said. “Donald Trump knew exactly what he was unleashing.”
Jan 16, 3:40 PM
‘This is not a do-over,’ judge instructs jury
Judge Lewis Kaplan told the nine jurors that they must accept as true that Trump forcibly sexually assaulted E. Jean Carroll and defamed her when he denied it.
“Ms. Carroll did not make up her claim of forcible sexual abuse,” Judge Kaplan told the panel. “His false statements tended to disparage Ms. Carroll or tended to expose her to hatred or to induce an unsavory opinion of her.”
The judge made it clear the jury was only determining damages related to two defamatory statements Trump made in June 2019 when he denied Carroll’s rape allegation. He said the trial was not an opportunity to re-litigate the prior trial, in which a jury found Trump liable for defamation and sexual assault.
“This trial is not a do-over of the previous trial which determined those facts,” Kaplan said.
Jan 16, 3:18 PM
Trump departs before opening statements
Former President Trump has departed Manhattan federal court prior to the delivery of opening statements in his defamation damages trial.
Trump voluntarily showed up to court for jury selection this morning, and did not return after the lunch break. He has a campaign event scheduled later today in New Hampshire.
His attorney suggested Trump would return to court for at least part of tomorrow’s proceedings, when E. Jean Carroll is expected to be the first witness.
The jury has been sworn in, with opening statements to begin following instructions from the judge.
Jan 16, 2:08 PM
2 election deniers don’t make cut as jury is seated
A jury of nine has been selected to hear the evidence in the case.
One juror is a married father of two grown children who works in the subway system. and said he is an avid local news viewer. Another juror is a German native who emigrated to the United States and said she does not watch the news.
The jury also includes a newlywed who works in property management and gets his news from social media, a woman with a master’s degree who works as a publicist for a tech firm, and a single man who works in television.
Two people who said they believed that the election was stolen from Donald Trump by President Joe Biden did not make the jury. Nor did a man who said he believed Trump was being treated unfairly by the United States court system.
Opening arguments will begin follow the lunch break. As they exited the courtroom, Trump and Carroll came within feet of each other but appeared to ignore one another.
Jan 16, 12:11 PM
Prospective jurors questioned about political leanings
Former President Trump has been twisting and turning in his seat at the defense table as prospective jurors answer the judge’s questions about their political affiliations, voting habits, campaign donations, and any experience with sexual assault — and whether they ever watched The Apprentice or read E. Jean Carroll’s advice column in Elle magazine.
As another columnist was known to say, “Only in New York, kids.”
One prospective juror, number 68, affirmed that he donated to Trump’s campaign, followed him on social media, and believed that the 2020 election was stolen from Trump by President Joe Biden.
Prospective juror 63 was excused after he said that his knowledge of Trump’s criminal indictments — of which there are four that the former president is currently facing — would impact his ability to be fair and impartial.
The majority of prospective jurors signaled they were registered to vote, prompting the judge to ask if they had voted in 2016 and 2020. Trump turned to look at those who answered in the affirmative.
Three prospective jurors said they had donated to Trump’s campaign. Eleven said they donated to either the Obama, Clinton or Biden campaigns. At least ten watched The Apprentice.
Jan 16, 11:32 AM
Judge explains case to prospective jurors
Judge Kaplan explained the case to prospective jurors, saying, “Ms. Carroll sued Mr. Trump for defamation for certain statements he made” shortly after she publicly accused him of raping her.
“This trial is limited to the issue of the money damages, if any, that Ms. Carroll should receive for those publications. The reason that’s so is that the court determined in a previous decision that Mr. Trump is liable,” Kaplan said. “It has been determined already that Mr. Trump did sexually assault Ms. Carroll.”
To whittle down the jury pool, Kaplan began with this question: “Having heard what you have heard about this case so far, would you be unable to give both sides a fair trial and to decide this case solely on the basis of the evidence you hear during this trial and the instructions I give you?”
Three prospective jurors were immediately excused for signaling they could not be fair.
One woman said she worked for Ivanka Trump’s company from 2017 to 2018. “Would that experience have any effect on your ability to be fair and impartial to both sides in this case?” Judge Kaplan asked regarding her connection to Trump’s eldest daughter. “No,” the woman replied.
After the judge asked if anyone else had worked for Trump or his family, a man indicated he was an officer in the U.S. Navy while Trump was commander in chief. The man said it would have no impact on his ability to be fair.
Jan 16, 11:23 AM
Prospective jurors enter courtroom to begin selection process
As prospective jurors filed into the courtroom for jury selection, Donald Trump surveyed the group. One woman appeared to smile upon recognizing Trump. A man leaned forward and appeared to stare for several seconds.
“You’ve been summoned for possible service in a civil case,” Judge Kaplan said before introducing the plaintiff and defendant. “This case is between a writer, advice columnist E. Jean Carroll, and former President Donald Trump,” he said.
Jurors were told the case is expected to last three to five days and that they would sit through Thursday and, if necessary, return on Monday. They were also told they will be anonymous.
“That means neither your names nor the names of the jurors who are ultimately selected will be made public,” Judge Kaplan said. He had earlier cited Trump’s rhetoric as among the reasons for the anonymous jury.
Jurors will assemble daily at an off-site location and be driven to court under guard, the judge said.
“This is for your own protection. As you may understand, this case has attracted media attention and that’s likely to continue,” Kaplan said.
Jan 16, 10:40 AM
Layout of courtroom has Trump sitting 2 tables behind Carroll
Unlike courtrooms where the counsel tables are arranged side by side, the counsel tables in the courtroom this morning are arranged behind one another, with Trump and his attorneys seated two tables behind Carroll and her counsel.
Trump appeared to take note of that arrangement when he entered the courtroom.
He appeared to point at Carroll, then he and his team asked a man seated at the table between them to slide over — possibly to block Trump’s view of Carroll, or to provide a better view of the proceedings.
Jan 16, 10:27 AM
Judge again declines to delay trial
On Friday, Judge Kaplan denied a request from Trump’s attorneys to postpone the trial for a week so Trump could attend Thursday’s funeral of Amalija Knavs, the mother of former first lady Melania Trump, who died last Tuesday after a long health battle.
In court this morning, Trump attorney Alina Habba repeated her request for an adjournment so Trump can attend Knavs’ funeral.
“You asked me for a week’s adjournment and I denied it,” Judge Kaplan said. “The repetition is not accomplishing anything.”
The judge said Friday that he would grant a continuance so the trial, which was initially scheduled to conclude this week, would be extended so Trump could testify on Monday, Jan. 22.
Jan 16, 10:12 AM
Defense lodges several objections as court gets underway
“The court has made a number of rulings precluding evidence and argument,” said Judge Lewis Kaplan as court got underway, asking each side’s lead attorney to affirm that the parties understood the rules.
The defense objected, arguing that the court lacked jurisdiction. Kaplan quickly dispensed with the objection, saying, “Overruled.” Kaplan, who has a reputation as a no-nonsense judge, also overruled several other defense objections.
“I do think these are issues that will become an issue on appeal. We still don’t know what witnesses are coming in and which aren’t,” Trump attorney Alina Habba said, before Kaplan interrupted, saying, “Ms. Habba you have had a witness list for months.”
Habba pressed on, with Kaplan noting her objections.
“I have heard you, I have considered what you have to say and I have ruled,” Judge Kaplan said.
Jan 16, 9:56 AM
Trump seated in courtroom
Donald Trump has taken a seat in court, where jury selection in his defamation trial is scheduled to get underway this morning.
His decision to attend this trial is a clear shift for the former president, whose lawyers portrayed his absence from last year’s defamation and battery trial as a service to New York City, saying the city would not have to suffer the “logistical and financial burdens” of Trump’s attendance.
Carroll’s attorneys, however, pounced on Trump’s absence.
“He didn’t even bother to show up here in person,” attorney Roberta Kaplan told the jury.
Writing on social media last month, Trump blamed his absence at the trial on “not good advice” from his then-lawyer Joe Tacopina.
“I was asked by my lawyer not to attend–‘It was beneath me, and they have no case.’ That was not good advice,” Trump wrote.
Trump attorney Alina Habba is serving as Trump’s lead defense attorney for this week’s trial.
Jan 16, 9:21 AM
Carroll arrives for trial
E. Jean Carroll has arrived at the courthouse for the first day of the trial.
She smiled to reporters as she entered court.
Jan 16, 9:03 AM
Trump arrives at courthouse
Following his victory in Iowa, former President Trump landed at 3:30 a.m. in New York and just arrived at his civil defamation trial in lower Manhattan.
Trump is not required to attend the trial, though his decision not to attend last year’s defamation and battery trial by the same plaintiff, writer E. Jean Carroll, was mocked by Carroll’s attorney.
Trump’s motorcade pulled up to the courthouse this morning at at 8:50 a.m. ET.
Jan 16, 8:51 AM
On heels of Iowa victory, Trump is back on trial
When Donald Trump’s federal defamation trial gets underway in lower Manhattan this morning, it will be only about 11 hours since the former president claimed victory in the Iowa caucuses.
The trial is expected to take about a week, which could take Trump right to the doorstep of the New Hampshire Primary, scheduled for next Tuesday.
Trump has said that he plans to attend the trial at some point during the week, but has not indicted when.
The former president did not attend last year’s trial, held at the same courthouse, where a New York jury found him liable for sexually assaulting E. Jean Carroll and defaming her when he denied her accusation in a 2022 social media post.
(NEW YORK) — Electric vehicle charging stations could spring up at gas stations and grocery stores throughout Wisconsin, after the state Senate passed a proposed bill on Tuesday.
The bill, which passed by a 30-2 vote, would ease restrictions on businesses that install chargers and impose a tax on electricity sold to electric vehicle owners.
The measure would also make Wisconsin eligible for nearly $80 million in federal funds for the installation of charging stations and other electric vehicle infrastructure.
Here’s what to know about the proposed expansion of charging stations and what happens next with the bill:
What does the tax aim to accomplish?
The number of electric vehicles registered in Wisconsin has exploded in recent years.
The state counted roughly 17,000 electric vehicles last year; that was up from some 3,500 electric vehicles registered in Wisconsin four years prior, according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.
In turn, some lawmakers want to expand the state’s network of charging stations in order to accommodate the uptick in drivers.
Currently, businesses that offer EV charging stations fall under a set of regulations that typically apply to utilities.
The proposed bill would exempt the businesses from such rules as long as they sell electricity based on the amount that customer receives instead of the duration of time spent occupying a charger.
This approach would allow the state to impose a tax on the amount of electricity sold to customers.
How would the tax on electric charging stations work?
The tax would slap a 3-cent levy on each kilowatt hour of electricity sold to a vehicle owner.
Electric vehicle chargers are categorized as level 1, level 2 or level 3, meaning a first-level machine charges the slowest while a third-level one charges the fastest. All existing level 1 and level 2 charges would be exempt from the tax, but it would apply to all new chargers, as well as pre-existing level 3 chargers.
A Tesla Model 3, for instance, carries a battery capacity of 50 kilowatt hours. The tax for a full charge of the vehicle would amount to $1.50.
By comparison, the average cost to fully charge a medium-sized electric vehicle in Wisconsin is currently $11.11, according to an analysis by electric infrastructure developer Enel X Way.
If the bill is passed, the tax is expected to generate $3.1 million in fiscal year 2025, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation said. That revenue would go to infrastructure projects like roads and bridges.
State Assembly Rep. Deb Andraca, D-Whitefish Bay, a backer of the measure, said the tax aims to make up for an expected decline in funds generated by the state’s fuel tax, according to Eau Claire, Wisconsin, ABC affiliate WQOW-TV.
The tax, Andraca added, risks burdening electric vehicle drivers with onerous costs.
“I do hope that at some point we will address the problem that we are over-taxing drivers of electric vehicles,” Andraca told WQOW.
What happens next?
After passing in the Wisconsin Senate, the bill will now head to the state Assembly for a vote.
It is unclear whether Democratic Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers will sign the bill if it passes both houses. Roughly a year ago, Evers touted ongoing efforts to expand the state’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
“These investments will be critical for bringing our infrastructure into this century,” Evers said at the time.
(NEW YORK) — More than 105 million Americans remain on alert for dangerously low wind chills after an artic blast swept across the United States.
There were at least nine weather-related fatalities nationwide this week — six in Tennessee, two in New Jersey and one in Mississippi, according to authorities.
As of early Wednesday, the National Weather Service had wind chill advisories or warnings in effect for 26 states, from North Dakota to Florida.
The wind chill — what temperature it feels like — was forecast to be -25 degrees Fahrenheit in parts of North Dakota on Wednesday morning, -16 in Chicago, Illinois, and -12 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Some of the coldest temperatures of the season were headed to the Northeast, with Wednesday morning’s wind chills expected to be in the single digits along the Interstate 95 travel corridor, though no alerts have been issued.
Typically warm Tampa, Florida, was also under a wind chill advisory on Wednesday morning as feels-like temperatures may reach near 20 degrees.
Meanwhile, Austin and San Antonio, Texas, could break daily records for low temperatures on Wednesday at or around 10 degrees.
In the coming days, wind chills on Saturday morning will reach -22 degrees in Kansas City and go below zero in Memphis, Tennessee. Morning wind chills in Chicago will remain below zero through the weekend.
Although conditions will be dry in the Northeast on Wednesday, areas around the Great Lakes were expected to get more snow. Lake-effect snow warnings were in effect for places like Buffalo and Watertown, New York, where the snowfall could amass to 4 feet by Thursday evening. That’s on top of the more than 40 inches of snow that fell over last weekend.
Another storm was already coming ashore in the Pacific Northwest on Wednesday morning. Ice storm warnings were in effect for more than three million people in Oregon, including Portland where residents could wake up to as much as 3/4 inches of ice. More than 65,000 customers in Oregon were without power as of 4:30 a.m. ET.
In the Cascade mountain range, there was a chance for up to 7 inches of snow and 1 inch of ice.
The snow from this storm will move over the Rocky Mountains on Wednesday and Thursday, including in Colorado where avalanche warnings were in effect through Thursday. The avalanche danger is high — at a level 4 out of 5 — because heavy snow and strong winds have created very treacherous conditions that could easily trigger large and dangerous avalanches.
High wind warnings were also in effect for parts of Colorado’s mountains, with winds up to 75 miles per hour possible on Wednesday morning.
Colorado’s Rockies could get as much as 2 feet of snow from Wednesday morning to Friday morning. The snowfall will then move in to Nebraska and Missouri on Thursday.
A separate weather system will bring snow to Kentucky on Thursday before combining with the moisture from the Plains to bring another round of snow to the Northeast on Friday, with an additional 1 to 3 inches in the forecast for the I-95 corridor.
(NEW YORK) — Deaths from cancer have declined by 33% since 1991, averting 4.1 million deaths. However, more people are being diagnosed with cancer than ever before, and at an earlier age, according to a major new report from the American Cancer Society.
Experts say one big reason cancer deaths have declined is due to decreases in smoking rates, as well as improved treatments and targeted therapies. Still, experts are worried about the increase in some cancers in adults 50 and under — and say it’s urgent to understand what’s behind the troubling trend.
Especially concerning is the rising number of deaths of young people from colon cancer — the same illness that killed Marvel actor Chadwick Boseman at the age of 43.
Colon cancer is now the number one cause of death among men younger than 50, and the number two cause of death in women of the same age group. Colon and breast cancer now exceed lung cancer as leading causes of cancer death for those under the age of 50.
“It’s something that wasn’t represented in statistics yet – that there has been a creep toward younger age of onset of certain common cancers. Colorectal and breast are the dominant ones,” said Dr. Larry Norton, oncologist and researcher at Memorial Sloan Kettering, and doctors and researchers have been noticing this in their practice and research.
For the first time, the projected number of new cancer diagnoses in the United States will top two million, which is equivalent to an alarming 5,480 diagnoses each day. Although the new data shows an overall continued decline in cancer death rates, the report reveals increased rates for 6 of the 10 most common cancers, including breast, prostate, uterine, pancreas, oral, liver, kidney and melanoma, as well as colorectal and cervical cancer in young adults.
Experts still aren’t sure why certain cancer rates are increasing in younger adults, but say it could be due to rising rates of obesity, and still unknown environmental factors.
“I think we’re all grappling with what is the broadly spoken environmental factor which is changing the cancer incidence and mortality amongst the young,” said Dr. William Dahut, the chief scientific officer at the American Cancer Society.
Colon cancer and breast cancer top lung cancer as leading causes of death in those under 50
The nationwide report is consistent with prior smaller studies that have pointed to this trend.
In recent years, health officials have dropped the age for people with average risk to start screening from 50 to 45 for colon cancer, and 50 to 40 for breast cancer.
“Early diagnosis is really critically important for curing cancer. I like to find things earlier because it’s not only an opportunity to cure people who otherwise might not be cured, but it’s also an opportunity to cure them with less noxious therapy,” said Norton.
For colon cancer, oncologists say that the trends in the U.S. are matched by other high-income countries and say it’s possible the increase could be due to new lifestyles or environmental exposures for younger generations.
Environmental factors, such as exposure to chemicals in foods and in the air, and other currently unidentified factors, such as the recent legalization of cannabis and increased cannabis use, can’t be ruled out as risk factors, said Norton.
“There are studies that even show that risk factors like whether or not you were breastfed, whether or not you had antibiotics at a high rate as a child — that these factors might be predicting your chances of getting cancer when you’re an adult,” said Dr. Folasade May, gastroenterologist and researcher at UCLA Health.
Still, 30% of diagnoses for those under the age of 50 are related not to outside exposures, but rather to an underlying family history or genetic mutation, putting them more at risk, according to the American Cancer Society.
Whatever the reason, oncologists say people must get a colonoscopy when recommended, or earlier if they have symptoms such as blood in their stool, losing weight without trying, or a change in bowel habits that lasts more than a few days. There are also newer colon cancer screening tools that some patients may prefer, such as at-home stool testing.
“A lot of these younger folks that are dying from colorectal cancer, it’s because they’ve had symptoms for a year or two before they finally talk to their doctor. And by the time they’re getting into my clinic and getting a colonoscopy, that cancer is advanced to stage four. Survival for stage four is 13%,” said May.
For breast cancer, the underlying reason for the higher death rates in younger Americans is likely due to a combination of factors. Researchers note that other trends such as a decrease in fertility and increasing obesity — are both risk factors for breast cancer.
Uterine cancer is the only cancer where survival has decreased, likely due to racial disparities
According to the new report, uterine cancer was the only cancer for which death rates across all age groups have been increasing over the past 40 years.
“There are a number of troubling statistics about this cancer,” said Dr. Ursula Matulonis, chief of the division of gynecologic oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
Compared to white Americans, the risk of dying of uterine cancer is 33% higher in Black people, and 51% higher in American Indians and Alaska Natives. This is primarily due to growing racial disparities.
Specifically, Black women are less likely to get a timely diagnosis — which dramatically decreases the chance they will survive their cancer. According to the report, 56% of Black women were diagnosed in earlier stages, versus 72% of white women. Black women were half as likely to receive diagnostic procedures that were in line with current medical guidelines.
According to oncologists, primary care doctors and the general public should understand these stark racial disparities for uterine cancer, so patients and doctors alike can advocate for potentially life-saving cancer screenings.
“I think we’re poised to develop new treatment paradigms, that I’m confident will impact how patients are treated – from a prevention standpoint, early detection standpoint. There’s not an early detection test for uterine cancer,” said Matulonis.
“Equity research and equity outreach is a very, very important part of our entire approach towards screening for cancer,” said Norton.
