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USA: Juveniles charged with dousing acid on playground slides that injured 4 children

LONGMEADOW, Mass. (AP) — Two juveniles have been charged after several slides at a Massachusetts park were doused with acid in this summer and four children were injured, the Hampden District Attorney Anthony Gulluni said.

The juveniles, whose identities cannot be released due to their ages, have been charged with four counts of assault and battery on a child with injury and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon as well as vandalism, Gulluni said. His office did not say whether the pair have been arrested.

USA: Houston’s next mayor has big city problems to fix. Familiar faces want the job

HOUSTON (AP) — The challenges facing Houston’s next mayor are familiar to many big cities: crime, crumbling infrastructure, budget shortfalls and a lack of affordable housing.

But in November’s marquee mayoral election in the U.S., the top candidates promising to turn Houston around are two Democrats who have held power in the city longer than almost anyone, leaving outsiders scrambling to get a foothold as early voting is set to begin Monday.

USA: Biden says Hamas attacked Israel in part to stop a historic agreement with Saudi Arabia

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Friday he thought Hamas was motivated to attack Israel in part by a desire to stop that country from normalizing relations with Saudi Arabia.

“One of the reasons ... why Hamas moved on Israel, is because they knew I was about to sit down with the Saudis,” Biden said at a campaign fundraiser. The U.S. president indicated that he thinks Hamas militants launched a deadly assault on Oct. 7 because, “Guess what? The Saudis wanted to recognize Israel” and were near being able to formally do so.

USA: Visitors tour New Mexico atomic site in likely record attendance fueled by ‘Oppenheimer’ fanfare

WHITE SANDS MISSILE RANGE, N.M. (AP) — Visitors lined up Saturday to tour the southern New Mexico site where the world’s first atomic bomb was detonated in what officials believe could be a record turnout amid ongoing fanfare surrounding Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster film, “ Oppenheimer.”

USA: Woman returns from vacation to find Atlanta home demolished

ATLANTA (AP) — A homeowner is mulling the next step after a company mistakenly demolished a home she owned in southwest Atlanta.

Susan Hodgson said in an interview Saturday with The Associated Press that she found a pile of rubble in place of what used to be her longtime family property when she returned from vacation last month.

“I am furious,” Hodgson said. “I keep waking up thinking, ‘Is this all a joke or something?’ I’m just in shock.”

She said a neighbor called her while she was away and asked if someone had been hired to tear down the vacant house.

USA: Company bosses and workers grapple with the fallout of speaking up about the Israel-Hamas war

NEW YORK (AP) — Starbucks accused a union representing thousands of its baristas of damaging the brand and endangering co-workers with a pro-Palestinian tweet. The CEO of a prominent tech conference resigned amid backlash for his public statements suggesting that Israel was committing war crimes. Company bosses vowed never to hire members of a university’s student groups that condemned Israel.

US auto workers’ union boss says strikes will continue in bid for better offers from companies

DETROIT (AP) — United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain said Friday that while Detroit’s automakers have increased their wage and benefit offers, he believes the union can gain more if it holds out longer in contract talks.

In a Facebook Live appearance, Fain didn’t announce any more factories to add to those that have been on strike for up to five weeks. But he warned that the UAW could announce such an expansion of its strikes at any time, depending on how much progress it makes in its negotiations with the automakers.

USA: Biden asks Congress to secure $105 billion for Ukraine, Israel, the border and more

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House on Friday released a sweeping set of proposals to bolster Israel and Ukraine in the midst of two wars as well as invest more in domestic defense manufacturing, humanitarian assistance and managing the influx of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border.

The total cost of the supplemental funding request was pegged at just over $105 billion. President Joe Biden hopes Congress will move urgently on the legislation, and he made the case for deepening U.S. support for its allies during a rare Oval Office address on Thursday night.

USA: Venezuelans become largest nationality for illegal border crossings as September numbers surge

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Venezuelans became the largest nationality arrested for illegally crossing the U.S. border, replacing Mexicans for the first time on record, according to figures released Saturday that show September was the second-highest month for arrests of all nationalities.

Venezuelans were arrested 54,833 times by the Border Patrol after entering from Mexico in September, more than double from 22,090 arrests in August and well above the previous monthly high of 33,749 arrests in September 2022.

USA: Biden is dangling border security money to try to get billions more for Israel and Ukraine

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is trying to sweeten his pitch for more money for Ukraine by mixing in billions of dollars for securing the U.S.-Mexico border in the hope that it will bring more Republicans on board.

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