North America

WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawmakers from both parties in Congress demanded more information on the White House’s claims of rising threats in the Middle East, warning President Donald Trump off a dangerous escalation with Iran.

The top leaders in Congress — the so-called Gang of Eight— are to receive a classified briefing from the administration on Thursday. But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the White House has resisted a wider presentation for all lawmakers, part of what Democrats say is a pattern of stonewalling.

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama’s Republican governor signed the most stringent abortion legislation in the nation Wednesday, making performing an abortion a felony in nearly all cases.

“To the bill’s many supporters, this legislation stands as a powerful testament to Alabamians’ deeply held belief that every life is precious and that every life is a sacred gift from God,” Gov. Kay Ivey said in a statement.

UNITED NATIONS, May 15 (APP): Escalating religious-based violence in the North Western Province of Sri Lanka have prompted two senior United Nations officials to call for an end to “hateful attacks” directed towards the country’s Muslim minority.

In retaliation for the deadly violence on Easter Sunday, against Christians churches and upscale hotels in various parts of the country that left more than 200 people dead and hundreds of others injured, revenge attacks reportedly took place against mosques and Muslims’ homes on Monday.

15 May 2019; AA: The head of Turkey’s religious authority strongly condemned on Tuesday a recent arson attack on a mosque in the U.S.

"I strongly condemn such provocative acts that will hurt all Muslims and disrupt the world peace," Ali Erbas, head of the Religious Affairs Directorate (Diyanet), said on Twitter.

15 May 2019; AFP: Coalition forces in Iraq and Syria sent conflicting signals Tuesday over Iran's alleged threat, with a British general appearing to take issue with Washington's alarms over an imminent danger posed by Tehran to the US and its allies.

15 May 2019; DW: The US has warned the European Union that plans to boost defense cooperation within the EU could undo decades of trans-Atlantic cooperation and damage NATO. The EU's foreign policy chief said US concerns were unfounded.

The United States has decried "poison pills" embedded in proposed rules which could shut third country allies such as the United States out of European defense projects.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional Democrats are signaling a willingness to include major elements of President Donald Trump’s $4.5 billion request for humanitarian and security needs on the U.S.-Mexico border in an unrelated, widely backed disaster aid bill that appears to finally be breaking free of a partisan logjam.

Democratic aides said Tuesday that Trump’s request for additional Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention beds is off the table, but that Democrats are willing to fund care for more than 360,000 migrants apprehended since October.

NEW YORK (AP) — Former Rep. Anthony Weiner left a New York City halfway house on Tuesday after completing his prison sentence for illicit online contact with a 15-year-old girl.

“It’s good to be out,” the disgraced former congressman said, according to the New York Post . “I hope to be able to live a life of integrity and service. I’m glad this chapter of my life is behind me.”

SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Intel has revealed another hardware security flaw that could affects millions of machines around the world.

The bug is embedded in the architecture of computer hardware, and it can’t be fully fixed.

“With a large enough data sample, time or control of the target system’s behavior,” the flaw could enable attackers to see data thought to be off-limits, Bryan Jorgensen, Intel’s senior director of product assurance and security, said in a video statement.

HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Montana Gov. Steve Bullock announced Tuesday that he is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination, distinguishing himself among nearly two dozen candidates as the field’s only statewide elected official to win a state that President Donald Trump carried in 2016.