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A picture of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is set alight by protesters outside the Iranian Embassy in London, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

The Latest: Iran eases some restrictions, allows calls abroad as death toll spikes

The Associated Press 5 minute read Updated: 3:31 AM CST

Iran eased some restrictions on its people and for the first time in days allowed them to make phone calls abroad via their mobile phones on Tuesday. It did not ease restrictions on the internet or allow texting services to be restored as the toll from days of bloody protests against the state rose to at least 646 people killed.

Although Iranians were able to call abroad, people outside the country could not call them, several people in the capital told The Associated Press.

The witnesses, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal, said SMS text messaging still was down and internet users inside Iran could not access anything abroad, although there were local connections to government-approved websites.

It was unclear if restrictions would ease further after authorities cut off all communications inside the country and to the outside world late Thursday.

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Tensions flare in Minnesota as protesters and federal agents repeatedly square off

Rebecca Santana, Mark Vancleave And Steve Karnowski, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Tensions flare in Minnesota as protesters and federal agents repeatedly square off

Rebecca Santana, Mark Vancleave And Steve Karnowski, The Associated Press 4 minute read 12:06 AM CST

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Days of demonstrations against immigration agents left Minnesota tense on Tuesday, a day after federal authorities used tear gas to break up crowds of whistle-blowing activists and state and local leaders sued to fight the enforcement surge that led to the fatal shooting of a Minneapolis woman.

Confrontations between federal agents and protesters stretched throughout the day and across multiple cities on Monday. Agents fired tear gas in Minneapolis as a crowd gathered around immigration officers questioning a man, while to the northwest in St. Cloud hundreds of people protested outside a strip of Somali-run businesses after ICE officers arrived.

Later that night confrontations erupted between protesters and officers guarding the federal building being used as a base for the Twin Cities crackdown.

With the Department of Homeland Security pledging to send more than 2,000 immigration officers into Minnesota in what Immigration and Customs Enforcement has called its largest enforcement operation ever, the state, joined by Minneapolis and St. Paul, sued the Trump administration Monday to try to halt or limit the surge.

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12:06 AM CST

Zohran Mamdani and his wife move into NYC mayoral mansion, leaving behind 1-bedroom apartment

Jake Offenhartz, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Zohran Mamdani and his wife move into NYC mayoral mansion, leaving behind 1-bedroom apartment

Jake Offenhartz, The Associated Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 7:44 PM CST

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and his wife Rama Duwaji began moving into the official mayoral residence on Monday, leaving behind their leaky, one-bedroom apartment in Queens for a fully staffed mansion in Manhattan.

As workers unloaded cardboard boxes stuffed with houseplants and rolled up carpets, Mamdani marked the latest inaugural rite of passage with a press conference on his new riverfront lawn.

“Today, Rama and I feel lucky to participate in a ritual that so many New Yorkers have experienced at various meaningful moments in their lives: Beginning a new chapter, by moving to a different part of the city that we call home,” Mamdani said.

Nearly all of the city’s mayors have slept — at least sometimes — in the stately, custard-colored 18th century home, known as Gracie Mansion, since its 1942 designation as the official mayoral residence.

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Updated: Yesterday at 7:44 PM CST

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, right, and his wife Rama Duwaji wave at members of media after a news conference at Gracie Mansion, Monday, Jan. 12, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)

Venus Williams loses in 1st round of Australian Open tuneup event in Hobart

The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Venus Williams loses in 1st round of Australian Open tuneup event in Hobart

The Associated Press 3 minute read Updated: 2:22 AM CST

HOBART, Australia (AP) — Venus Williams lost 6-4, 6-3 to Tatjana Maria in the first round at the Hobart International on Tuesday, less than a week before her appearance at the Australian Open.

The 45-year-old Williams received a wild-card entry for the first Grand Slam event of the year. She also had a wild card to play in Hobart, where she lost to sixth-seeded Maria in a match lasting almost 1 1/2 hours.

Williams also lost her first-round match at Auckland, New Zealand last week.

The seven-time Grand Slam singles champion, who is 576th in the world rankings, broke 38-year-old Maria's serve in the opening set. But Williams dropped serve twice, handing the set to Maria, who is 42nd on the WTA rankings.

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Updated: 2:22 AM CST

Venus Williams of the U.S. hits a backhand to Magda Linette of Poland during her singles match of the ASB Classic Women's Tennis Tournament in Auckland, New Zealand, Tuesday Jan. 6, 2026. (Andrew Cornaga/Photosport via AP)

Adelaide Writers Week canceled as 180 speakers withdraw after the exclusion of a Palestinian writer

Charlotte Graham-mclay, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

Adelaide Writers Week canceled as 180 speakers withdraw after the exclusion of a Palestinian writer

Charlotte Graham-mclay, The Associated Press 5 minute read 2:05 AM CST

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Organizers of Australia’s largest free literary festival canceled the event Tuesday after more than 180 writers and speakers withdrew over the scrapping of an appearance by an Australian-Palestinian writer and academic.

The uproar began when the board of the Adelaide Festival, which runs Adelaide Writers Week, announced on Jan. 8 that they had disinvited Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah from the event “given her previous statements” and citing cultural sensitivities “at this unprecedented time so soon after” an antisemitic mass shooting at Sydney’s Bondi Beach.

There was no suggestion that Abdel-Fattah or her writings “have any connection with the tragedy,” the board members added.

They didn’t cite any specific statements by the lawyer, academic and writer of fiction and nonfiction that prompted their decision. Abdel-Fattah decried the move as “censorship” and said the announcement suggested that her “mere presence” was culturally insensitive.

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2:05 AM CST

FILE - New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern gestures as she gives her victory speech to Labour Party members at an event in Auckland, New Zealand, Oct. 17, 2020. (AP Photo/Mark Baker, File)

Opening statements expected in double murder trial of Virginia man having affair with au pair

The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

Opening statements expected in double murder trial of Virginia man having affair with au pair

The Associated Press 3 minute read Yesterday at 11:06 PM CST

FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) — Opening statements are expected to begin Tuesday in the trial of a Virginia man accused of murdering his wife and another man while carrying on a romantic relationship with a Brazilian au pair.

Brendan Banfield is charged with aggravated murder in the February 2023 killings of Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan at the Banfields’ home in northern Virginia. He has pleaded not guilty and faces life imprisonment.

Brendan Banfield and Juliana Peres Magalhães, the family’s au pair, initially told investigators they shot Ryan after they found the stranger stabbing Christine Banfield in the bedroom. Prosecutors say Banfield and Magalhães lured Ryan to the house and staged it to look like they had shot an intruder. The two had begun a romantic relationship about a year earlier.

Both were initially arrested and charged with murder. In 2024, Magalhães pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter after cooperating with investigators.

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Yesterday at 11:06 PM CST

FILE - This image provided by the Fairfax County Police Department and taken on Oct. 13, 2023, was submitted as evidence in the murder case against Brendan Banfield shows a framed photo of Banfield and Juliana Peres Magalhães on his bedside table in Herndon, Va. (Fairfax County Police Department via AP, File)

Muhammad Ali will be honored with a commemorative US postage stamp

Susan Haigh, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

Muhammad Ali will be honored with a commemorative US postage stamp

Susan Haigh, The Associated Press 6 minute read Yesterday at 6:38 AM CST

Muhammad Ali once joked that he should be a postage stamp because “that’s the only way I’ll ever get licked.”

Now, the three-time heavyweight champion's quip is becoming reality.

Widely regarded as the most famous and influential boxer of all time, and a cultural force who fused athletic brilliance with political conviction and showmanship, Ali is being honored for the first time with a commemorative U.S. postage stamp.

“As sort of the guardian of his legacy, I’m thrilled. I’m excited. I’m ecstatic,” Lonnie Ali, the champ's wife of nearly 30 years, told The Associated Press. “Because people, every time they look at that stamp, they will remember him. And he will be in the forefront of their consciousness. And, for me, that's a thrill.”

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Yesterday at 6:38 AM CST

This image released by the United States Postal Service shows a commemorative Muhammad Ali stamp featuring a 1974 Associated Press photo of Ali. (United States Postal Service via AP)

New video shows the minutes before immigration officer fatally shoots woman in Minneapolis

Jesse Bedayn, The Associated Press 3 minute read Preview

New video shows the minutes before immigration officer fatally shoots woman in Minneapolis

Jesse Bedayn, The Associated Press 3 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 5:49 PM CST

A new video shows more of what happened before a federal immigration officer shot and killed a woman during an enforcement operation in Minneapolis, adding context to a shooting that has sparked national debate on whether the officer acted in self-defense or recklessly.

The video, which is 3 1/2 minutes long and was filmed by a bystander, was posted Sunday by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on X. It shows federal officers and vehicles on a snowy street as a car horn blares on and off, with the sounds of whistles adding to the cacophony.

The camera swings to the left, showing a red SUV sitting perpendicular and blocking part of the road, the woman inside, Renee Good, pressing the horn repeatedly. After over a minute, Good pulled the SUV back slightly, unblocking part of the road and appears to wave at cars to pass. Two vehicles drive past her down the street.

Good's wife is seen outside the red SUV, but the video doesn’t clearly show where she was in the proceeding minutes. Then, after a blare from sirens, a dark truck with a small flashing light pulls to a stop a few feet from Good's SUV. Two officers exit the truck and walk toward Good's car just before the video goes dark.

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Updated: Yesterday at 5:49 PM CST

Protesters gather outside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minn. (AP Photo/Tom Baker)

People inside Iran describe heavy security and scattered damage in first calls to outside world

Jon Gambrell, The Associated Press 6 minute read Preview

People inside Iran describe heavy security and scattered damage in first calls to outside world

Jon Gambrell, The Associated Press 6 minute read Updated: 2:56 AM CST

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranians could call abroad on mobile phones Tuesday for the first time since communications were halted during a crackdown on nationwide protests in which activists said at least 646 people have been killed.

Several people in Tehran were able to call The Associated Press and speak to a journalist there. The AP bureau in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, was unable to call those numbers back. The witnesses said SMS text messaging still was down and that internet users in Iran could connect to government-approved websites locally but nothing abroad.

The witnesses gave a brief glimpse into life on the streets of the Iranian capital over the four and a half days of being cut off from the world. They described seeing a heavy security presence in central Tehran.

Anti-riot police officers, wearing helmets and body armor, carried batons, shields, shotguns and tear gas launchers. They stood watch at major intersections. Nearby, the witnesses saw members of the Revolutionary Guard's all-volunteer Basij force, who similarly carried firearms and batons. Security officials in plainclothes were visible in public spaces as well.

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Updated: 2:56 AM CST

FILE - Protesters march on a bridge in Tehran, Iran, on Dec. 29, 2025. (Fars News Agency via AP, File)

Supreme Court takes up culture war battle over transgender athletes in school sports

Mark Sherman, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Supreme Court takes up culture war battle over transgender athletes in school sports

Mark Sherman, The Associated Press 4 minute read Yesterday at 11:10 PM CST

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court is hearing arguments Tuesday over state laws barring transgender girls and women from playing on school athletic teams.

Lower courts ruled for the transgender athletes in Idaho and West Virginia who challenged the state bans, but the conservative-dominated Supreme Court might not follow suit.

In just the past year, the justices ruled in favor state bans on gender-affirming care for transgender youth and allowed multiple restrictions on transgender people to be enforced.

The legal fight is playing out amid a broad effort by President Donald Trump to target transgender Americans, begnning on the first day of his second term and including the ouster of transgender people from the military and declaring that gender is immutable and determined at birth.

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Yesterday at 11:10 PM CST

Becky Pepper-Jackson poses for a photograph outside of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Consumer prices likely stayed elevated in December as data recovers from shutdown

Christopher Rugaber, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Consumer prices likely stayed elevated in December as data recovers from shutdown

Christopher Rugaber, The Associated Press 4 minute read Updated: 1:35 AM CST

WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation likely remained elevated last month as the cost of electricity, groceries, and clothing may have jumped and continued to pressure consumers' wallets.

The Labor Department is expected to report that consumer prices rose 2.6% in December compared with a year earlier, according to economists' estimates compiled by data provider FactSet. The yearly rate would be down from 2.7% in November. Monthly prices, however, are expected to rise 0.3% in December, faster than is consistent with the Federal Reserve's 2% inflation goal.

The figures are harder to predict this month, however, because the six-week government shutdown last fall suspended the collection of price data used to compile the inflation rate. Some economists expect the December figures will show a bigger jump in inflation as the data collection process gets back to normal.

Core prices, which exclude the volatile food and energy categories, are also expected to rise 0.3% in December from the previous month, and 2.7% from a year earlier. The yearly core figure would be an increase from 2.6% in November.

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Updated: 1:35 AM CST

A woman checks gas prices before she fills up her vehicle's gas tank at a gas station in Buffalo Grove, Ill., Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

AP News in Brief at 12:04 a.m. EST

The Associated Press 13 minute read Yesterday at 11:05 PM CST

Minnesota and the Twin Cities sue the federal government to stop the immigration crackdown

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota and its two largest cities sued the Trump administration Monday to try to stop an immigration enforcement surge that led to the fatal shooting of a Minneapolis woman by a federal officer and evoked outrage and protests across the country.

The state, joined by Minneapolis and St. Paul, said the Department of Homeland Security is violating the First Amendment and other constitutional protections. The lawsuit seeks a temporary restraining order to halt the enforcement action or limit the operation.

“This is, in essence, a federal invasion of the Twin Cities in Minnesota, and it must stop,” state Attorney General Keith Ellison said at a news conference. “These poorly trained, aggressive and armed agents of the federal state have terrorized Minnesota with widespread unlawful conduct.”

French far-right leader Le Pen faces appeal trial that could decide her 2027 presidential run

Sylvie Corbet, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

French far-right leader Le Pen faces appeal trial that could decide her 2027 presidential run

Sylvie Corbet, The Associated Press 4 minute read Yesterday at 11:04 PM CST

PARIS (AP) — France’s far-right leader Marine Le Pen returns to court Tuesday to appeal an embezzlement conviction, with her 2027 presidential ambitions hanging on the outcome of the case.

Le Pen, 57, is seeking to overturn a March ruling that found her guilty of misusing European Parliament funds. She was slapped with a five-year ban from holding elected office, two years of house arrest with an electronic bracelet, a further two-year suspended sentence and a 100,000-euro ($116,800) fine.

“I hope I'll be able to convince the judges of my innocence,” Le Pen told reporters Monday. “It’s a new court with new judges. The case will be reset, so to speak.”

She was seen as the potential front-runner to succeed President Emmanuel Macron in the 2027 election until last year's ruling, which sent shock waves through French politics. Le Pen denounced it as “a democratic scandal.”

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Yesterday at 11:04 PM CST

January 13, 2026

The Latest: Iran eases some restrictions, allows calls abroad as death toll spikes

Weather

Tensions flare in Minnesota as protesters and federal agents repeatedly square off

Tensions flare in Minnesota as protesters and federal agents repeatedly square off

Zohran Mamdani and his wife move into NYC mayoral mansion, leaving behind 1-bedroom apartment

Zohran Mamdani and his wife move into NYC mayoral mansion, leaving behind 1-bedroom apartment

Venus Williams loses in 1st round of Australian Open tuneup event in Hobart

Venus Williams loses in 1st round of Australian Open tuneup event in Hobart

Adelaide Writers Week canceled as 180 speakers withdraw after the exclusion of a Palestinian writer

Adelaide Writers Week canceled as 180 speakers withdraw after the exclusion of a Palestinian writer

Opening statements expected in double murder trial of Virginia man having affair with au pair

Opening statements expected in double murder trial of Virginia man having affair with au pair

Muhammad Ali will be honored with a commemorative US postage stamp

Muhammad Ali will be honored with a commemorative US postage stamp

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New video shows the minutes before immigration officer fatally shoots woman in Minneapolis

New video shows the minutes before immigration officer fatally shoots woman in Minneapolis

People inside Iran describe heavy security and scattered damage in first calls to outside world

People inside Iran describe heavy security and scattered damage in first calls to outside world

Supreme Court takes up culture war battle over transgender athletes in school sports

Supreme Court takes up culture war battle over transgender athletes in school sports

Consumer prices likely stayed elevated in December as data recovers from shutdown

Consumer prices likely stayed elevated in December as data recovers from shutdown

AP News in Brief at 12:04 a.m. EST

French far-right leader Le Pen faces appeal trial that could decide her 2027 presidential run

French far-right leader Le Pen faces appeal trial that could decide her 2027 presidential run

January 13, 2026

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