USA

ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) — A gunman opened fire inside an Illinois bowling alley, killing three people and injuring three others Saturday night in what authorities believe was a random attack.

A 37-year-old male suspect was in custody after the shooting at Don Carter Lanes, Rockford police said in a social media post.

Two of those who were shot were teenagers, police Chief Dan O’Shea said during a news conference.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Federal agents converged Saturday on the home of a possible person of interest in the explosion that rocked downtown Nashville as investigators scoured hundreds of tips and leads in the blast that damaged dozens of buildings on Christmas morning.

22 Dec 2020; MEMO: The United States has passed a $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill to support industries and workers affected by the ongoing pandemic, of which hundreds of millions of dollars have been granted to Israel and its defence.

In the bill passed by US Congress yesterday – part of an overall $2.3 trillion package – the act under the heading of "Procurement, Defense-Wide" detailed a total of $500 million for the "Israeli Cooperative Programs".

WASHINGTON, December 26. /TASS/: It was the United States who started a ‘visa war’ with Russia and imposed the practice of personal visa exchanges, the Russian embassy in Washington said on its Facebook page, commenting on US media reports about problems that US diplomatic missions are facing in Russia.

NEW YORK, Dec 26 (NNN-XINHUA) — More than 100,000 New Yorkers woke up Christmas morning on Friday without electricity after a powerful storm lashed the northeast of the United States overnight.

Westchester, Rockland, Ulster, Orange and Dutchess counties were particularly hard hit, with 73,926 outages reported between the five of them as of 10 a.m. on Friday, according to PowerOutage.US, a service that tracks electricity disruptions nationwide.

PALM BEACH, Fla/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Millions of Americans saw their jobless benefits expire on Saturday after U.S. President Donald Trump refused to sign into law a $2.3 trillion pandemic aid and spending package, protesting that it did not do enough to help everyday people.

Trump stunned Republicans and Democrats alike when he said this week he was unhappy with the massive bill, which provides $892 billion in badly needed coronavirus relief, including extending special unemployment benefits expiring on Dec. 26, and $1.4 trillion for normal government spending.

BOSTON (AP) — A storm packing a mix of heavy rains and winds knocked out power to thousands of homes across the Northeast region Christmas morning.

There were more than 7,000 customers without power early Friday in Massachusetts. State officials and utility companies had warned that the winds could knock down trees, bringing power lines down with them.

Winds gusted more than 60 miles per hour (96 kilometers per hour) in some areas during the early morning hours.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — U.S. factories have been cranking out goods during much of the pandemic at rates that are remarkably close to normal. However, manufacturers are concerned they may not be able to keep pace until most of the country is vaccinated because the coronavirus continues to surge in areas where many plants are based.

RUTLAND, Vt. (AP) — The first Black president of an American college is being honored with a sculpture installed in the Vermont city where he was born in 1826.

The larger-than-life marble bust of Martin Henry Freeman, a scholar, sits on a stack of books in a downtown square as part of the Rutland Sculpture Trail.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge said the Justice Department unlawfully rescheduled the execution of the only woman on federal death row, potentially setting up the Trump administration to schedule the execution after president-elect Joe Biden takes office.