AP News in Brief at 9:04 p.m. EDT

Israeli Cabinet approves Trump’s plan for Gaza ceasefire and release of hostages held by Hamas

CAIRO (AP) — Israel’s Cabinet early Friday approved President Donald Trump’s plan for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the release of all the remaining hostages held by Hamas, a key step toward ending a ruinous two-year war that has destabilized the Middle East.

A brief statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the Cabinet approved the “outline” of a deal to release the hostages, without mentioning other aspects of the plan that are more controversial.

An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, said that, according to the agreement, the ceasefire should begin immediately after government approval. The Israeli military now has 24 hours to pull back its forces to an agreed-upon line.

The broader ceasefire plan includes many unanswered questions, such as whether and how Hamas will disarm and who will govern Gaza. But the sides appeared closer than they have been in months to ending a war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, reduced much of Gaza to rubble, brought famine to parts of the territory and left dozens of hostages, living and dead, in Gaza.

The war, which began with Hamas’ deadly attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, has also triggered other conflicts in the region, sparked worldwide protests and led to allegations of genocide that Israel denies.

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At a key moment in talks that led to the Gaza ceasefire deal, Trump refused to take no for an answer

WASHINGTON (AP) — After months of gridlock, the Israel-Hamas ceasefire in Gaza came together in a matter of days after a deft maneuver — or perhaps a misunderstanding — by President Donald Trump that boxed in the two adversaries.

Either way, efforts to wind down the devastating war unleashed by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel have seen a breakthrough, and the last 48 hostages — about 20 of them believed to be alive — are set to be returned under the agreement announced Wednesday.

Hamas saw hostages more as a liability than asset over time, providing an opening for the deal, according to two senior U.S. officials who briefed reporters on the condition of anonymity.

One of the officials added that negotiators, led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, had detected that “Hamas had enough.”

Major questions remain, including over governance and reconstruction of a territory that largely has been destroyed as well as whether Hamas will disarm — a key Israeli demand that the militants have not yet publicly accepted.

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Judge blocks National Guard deployment in Illinois for 2 weeks

A judge on Thursday blocked the deployment of National Guard troops in the Chicago area for at least two weeks, finding no substantial evidence that a “danger of rebellion” is brewing in Illinois during Trump’s immigration crackdown.

It’s a victory for Democratic officials who lead the state and city and have traded insults with President Donald Trump about his drive to put troops on the ground in major urban areas.

“The court confirmed what we all know: There is no credible evidence of a rebellion in the state of Illinois. And no place for the National Guard in the streets of American cities like Chicago,” Gov. JB Pritzker said.

The judge said the administration violated the 10th Amendment, which grants certain powers to states, and the 14th Amendment, which assures due process and equal protection.

It wasn’t clear what the troops will do now, including a small number outside a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Broadview.

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New York Attorney General Letitia James charged in fraud case after pressure campaign by Trump

WASHINGTON (AP) — New York Attorney General Letitia James was indicted Thursday on mortgage fraud charges in a case that President Donald Trump urged his Justice Department to bring after he vowed retribution on his biggest political enemies.

James, a Democrat who infuriated Trump after his first term with a lawsuit alleging that he built his business empire on lies about his wealth, was charged with bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution in connection with a home purchase in Norfolk, Virginia, in 2020.

The top federal prosecutor for eastern Virginia, a former Trump aide, personally presented the case to the grand jury weeks after she was thrust into the role amid the administration’s pressure to deliver charges.

The indictment, two weeks after a separate criminal case charging former FBI Director James Comey with lying to Congress, is the latest indication of the Trump administration’s norm-busting determination to use the law enforcement powers of the Justice Department to pursue the president’s political foes and public figures who once investigated him.

In a lengthy statement, James decried the indictment as “nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system.”

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Senators struggle to find a way forward as government shutdown enters ninth day

WASHINGTON (AP) — The consequences of a government shutdown setting in, senators labored Thursday to find a way forward but found themselves struggling to overcome a fundamental lack of trust between the two parties.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune on Thursday afternoon floated an “off ramp” to the government funding impasse, suggesting that he could hold a later vote on expiring health care subsidies if Democrats would first support a stopgap spending bill to reopen the government.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer quickly dismissed the idea. “It’s nothing new, they say it all the time. It doesn’t do anything to make sure we get health care.”

The exchange showed how congressional leaders remain trapped in a stalemate on the ninth day of the government shutdown despite the growing toll of federal closures. Government offices nationwide have shuttered, hundreds of thousands of federal employees have been furloughed and U.S. military troops and other government employees are on track to miss a scheduled payday.

Thune’s overture suggested one possible path forward, but it was unclear how serious the offer was or whether it would lead to any real negotiations with Democrats. Still, pressure is growing on congressional leaders to reach a deal as rank-and-file lawmakers grew anxious about the lack of progress on ending the shutdown.

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As Tropical Storm Jerry churns in the Atlantic, Priscilla and a nor’easter threaten US with flooding

MIAMI (AP) — Tropical Storm Jerry churned Thursday in the Atlantic on its approach to the Leeward Islands as Tropical Storm Priscilla and Tropical Storm Raymond moved along Mexico’s Pacific coast, threatening heavy rain and flooding in their paths, forecasters said.

Tropical Storm Raymond was announced midday Thursday by the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami, making it the third system now off the western coast of Mexico. Post-tropical cyclone Octave was also off Mexico’s Pacific coast, but weakening.

Raymond was about 115 miles (190 kilometers) south-southeast of Zihuatanejo, Mexico. It had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph (75 kph) and was traveling west-northwest at 14 mph (22 kph), forecasters said.

Priscilla could bring flash flooding through the weekend across the U.S. Southwest, the hurricane center said.

And off the coast of the U.S. Southeast, a storm without a name along with unusually high King Tides because the moon is closer than usual to the Earth threatened to bring days of heavy winds that could cause coastal flooding, especially along the vulnerable North Carolina Outer Banks and in frequently flooded Charleston, South Carolina.

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Texas appeals court again pauses execution of Robert Roberson in shaken baby case

HOUSTON (AP) — Texas’ top criminal court on Thursday again paused the execution of Robert Roberson, just days before he was set to become the first person in the U.S. put to death for a murder conviction tied to a diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome.

This was the third execution date that Roberson’s lawyers have been able to stay since 2016, including one scheduled nearly a year ago due to an unprecedented intervention from a bipartisan group of Texas lawmakers who believe he is innocent.

The latest execution stay was granted by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Roberson had been scheduled to receive a lethal injection on Oct. 16 for the death of his 2-year-old daughter Nikki Curtis.

Since his first execution date more than nine years ago, Roberson’s lawyers have filed multiple petitions with state and federal appeals courts, as well as with the U.S. Supreme Court, to stop his execution. They have also asked the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles and Gov. Greg Abbott to intervene, as part of their efforts to secure Roberson a new trial.

“He is actually innocent,” Gretchen Sween, one of Roberson’s attorneys, told reporters after the court ruling. “I would like to prove that and get him home one day.”

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Tesla hit with probe after crashes involving a self-driving feature that Musk has boasted about

NEW YORK (AP) — Federal regulators have opened yet another investigation into Tesla’s self-driving feature after dozens of incidents in which the cars ran red lights or drove on the wrong side of the road, sometimes crashing into other vehicles and causing injuries.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a filing that it is looking into 58 incidents in which Teslas reportedly violated traffic safety laws while using the company’s so-called Full Self-Driving mode, leading to more than a dozen crashes and fires and nearly two dozen injuries. The new probe adds to several other open investigations into Tesla technology that could upend Elon Musk’s plans to turn millions of his cars already on the road into completely driverless vehicles with a over-the-air update to their software.

“The ultimate question is, ‘Does the software work?’” asked Seth Goldstein, a Morningstar analyst with a “sell” rating on the stock. Added money manager Ross Gerber, “The world has become a giant testing ground for Elon’s concept of full self-driving, and it’s not working,”

The probe comes as Musk, whose fortune as the world’s richest man derives partly from Tesla’s levitating stock, has promised to roll out hundreds of thousands of driverless taxis in cities around the U.S. by the end of next year.

The new investigation covers 2.9 million vehicles, essentially all Teslas equipped with full self-driving technology, or FSD, a misnomer criticized for lulling drivers into handing full control over to their cars. Tesla has argued to regulators and in court cases that it has repeatedly told drivers the system cannot drive the cars by itself and whoever is behind the wheel must be ready to intervene at all times.

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Judge tosses out Drake’s defamation lawsuit against label over Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like Us’

NEW YORK (AP) — A defamation lawsuit that Drake brought against Universal Music Group was tossed out Thursday by a federal judge who said the lyrics in Kendrick Lamar’s dis track “Not Like Us” were opinion.

The feud between two of hip-hop’s biggest stars erupted in the spring of 2024, with the pair trading a series of vitriolic tracks that culminated in Lamar landing the “metaphorical killing blow” with his megahit that May, Judge Jeannette A. Vargas said in her written opinion.

While the track’s lyrics explicitly branded Drake as a pedophile, Vargas said, a reasonable listener could not have concluded that “Not Like Us” was conveying objective facts about the Canadian superstar.

“Although the accusation that Plaintiff is a pedophile is certainly a serious one, the broader context of a heated rap battle, with incendiary language and offensive accusations hurled by both participants, would not incline the reasonable listener to believe that ‘Not Like Us’ imparts verifiable facts about Plaintiff,” Vargas wrote.

After the decision Drake’s legal team said in a statement: “We intend to appeal today’s ruling, and we look forward to the Court of Appeals reviewing it.”

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LeBron James will miss opening night of his record 23rd NBA season due to sciatica

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) — LeBron James will miss opening night of his record 23rd NBA season due to sciatica that will be re-evaluated in three to four weeks, the Los Angeles Lakers announced Thursday.

The 40-year-old superstar will be sidelined at least until the end of October with sciatica — pain in the nerves running from the buttocks and down the back of the legs — on his right side.

James has yet to participate in a full practice since the Lakers opened training camp last week, and coach JJ Redick said James was “on his own timeline” Thursday after practice. An hour later, the Lakers announced an injury timeline that means James is likely to miss at least their first five or six games, and possibly several more.

The Lakers open the regular season at home Oct. 21 against Golden State. They have eight games in a 13-day span beginning Oct. 24.

James began camp for his unprecedented 23rd NBA season last week with the lower-body nerve injury keeping him off the court. The Lakers held their sixth full practice of camp Thursday without the top scorer in NBA history, who also missed both of their first two preseason games while he worked to get back into competitive condition.