North America

US does not want to see firefights in Gaza hospitals, Sullivan says

WASHINGTON, Nov 12 (Reuters) - The United States wants to avoid armed fighting inside hospitals in the Gaza Strip, which endangers the lives of civilians, and has conveyed its view to Israeli forces, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told CBS News on Sunday.

"The United States does not want to see firefights in hospitals where innocent people, patients receiving medical care, are caught in the crossfire and we've had active consultations with the Israeli Defense Forces on this," Sullivan told CBS News' "Face the Nation" program.

USA: Latvia’s president says West must arm Ukraine to keep Russia from future global adventures

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Latvia’s president says Russia is planning for a long war in Ukraine and he has a message for countries wavering on continuing military support to Kyiv: Keep supplying arms or the Ukrainians will lose and Russia will have a green light for threatening others in the future.

Edgars Rinkēvičs said in an interview with The Associated Press that “it is important to actually fight for international peace, and peace in Europe, because if we stop Russia in Ukraine, then Russia is not going to be able to challenge other countries.”

USA: Longtime Democrat from New York, Brian Higgins, to leave Congress next year

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — U.S. Rep. Brian Higgins, D-N.Y., will leave Congress in February after 19 years, a spokeswoman confirmed Sunday.

The Buffalo area Democrat scheduled a news conference for mid-morning.

In an interview with The Buffalo News published Sunday, Higgins said he has grown frustrated with the House of Representatives.

USA: Sen. Manchin is the last in a line of formidable West Virginia Democrats who promoted coal interests

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — Joe Manchin’s impending departure from the U.S. Senate marks the end of an era for West Virginia’s conservative Democrats, who for decades held outsize influence in Washington. It’s the latest sign of the party’s steady decline in the state that often has paralleled the demise of Appalachian coal.

USA: Trump joins media outlets in pushing for his federal election interference case to be televised

Hialeah, Florida . (AP) —Donald Trump is pushing for his federal election interference trial in Washington to be televised, joining media outlets that say the American public should be able to watch the historic case unfold.

Federal court rules prohibit broadcasting proceedings, but The Associated Press and other news organizations say the unprecedented case of a former president standing trial on accusations that he tried to subvert the will of voters warrants making an exception.

USA: What they want: Biden and Xi are looking for clarity in an increasingly difficult relationship

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and China’s Xi Jinping have no shortage of difficult issues to discuss when they sit down for their first talks in a year, even if expectations are low that their meeting will lead to major breakthroughs.

Each leader has clear objectives for the highly anticipated talks Wednesday on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, a meeting that comes after what’s been a fractious year for the world’s two biggest economies.

USA: There’s another wildfire burning in Hawaii. This one is destroying irreplaceable rainforest on Oahu

HONOLULU (AP) — A wildfire burning in a remote Hawaii rainforest is underscoring a new reality for the normally lush island state just a few months after a devastating blaze on a neighboring island leveled an entire town and killed at least 99 people.

USA: House Republicans look to pass two-step package to avoid partial government shutdown

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Mike Johnson unveiled his proposal on Saturday to avoid a partial government shutdown by extending government funding for some agencies and programs until Jan. 19 and continuing funding for others until Feb. 2.

The approach is unusual for a stopgap spending bill. Usually, lawmakers extend funding until a certain date for all programs. Johnson decided to go with the combination approach, addressing concerns from GOP lawmakers seeking to avoid being presented with a massive spending bill just before the holidays.

US military aircraft crashes over eastern Mediterranean Sea

WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. military aircraft has gone down over the eastern Mediterranean Sea, U.S. European Command said Saturday.

The command said in a statement that the aircraft crashed while conducting training operations. It said the cause is under investigation, but there are no indications of any hostile activity involved.

The command said that out of respect for the families affected, no other information would be released on personnel involved.

USA: Trump’s plans if he returns to the White House include deportation raids, tariffs and mass firings

NEW YORK (AP) — A mass deportation operation. A new Muslim ban. Tariffs on all imported goods and “freedom cities” built on federal land.

Much of the 2024 presidential campaign has been dominated by the myriad investigations into former President Donald Trump and the subsequent charges against him. But with less than a year until Election Day, Trump is dominating the race for the Republican nomination and has already laid out a sweeping set of policy goals should he win a second term.

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