AP News in Brief at 6:04 a.m. EDT

Stampede at a political rally for popular actor Vijay in southern India kills 36, injures 40

NEW DELHI (AP) — A stampede at a rally for a popular Indian actor and politician in the southern state of Tamil Nadu killed at least 36 people and injured 40 others, the state’s health minister said late Saturday.

Ma Subramanian told The Associated Press that the victims were dead by the time they were taken to a hospital and that the injured were stable. The dead included eight children, Subramanian said.

The rally, which officials say was attended by tens of thousands of people, was being addressed by Vijay, one of Tamil Nadu’s most successful actors-turned-politician in the district of Karur.

Indian media reports, quoting local officials, said as Vijay spoke to the surging crowd, a group of his supporters and fans fell while trying to get close to his bus, causing the stampede. Supporters had gathered at the political rally amid intensely hot temperatures and Vijay arrived hours late, officials said.

“There was indiscipline” at the rally, Subramanian said, adding that an investigation had been ordered.

___

US braces for storm expected to hit the east coast as Hurricane Imelda in coming days

MIAMI (AP) — A weather system that is forecast to become Tropical Storm Imelda later in the day before approaching the coast of South Carolina as a hurricane early next week was causing disruption in the Bahamas and nearby islands on Sunday.

Meanwhile Hurricane Humberto weakened very slightly but remained a strong Category 4 storm in the Atlantic, threatening Bermuda.

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster urged people to monitor the weather closely and stay alert. And in North Carolina, Gov. Josh Stein declared a state of emergency in advance of the system, currently called Tropical Depression Nine.

Forecasters said the system was on track to become a tropical storm later Sunday and a hurricane by late Monday or Tuesday. It would be named Imelda.

As of 0900 GMT Sunday, the system was located about 100 miles (160 kilometers) west-southwest of the Central Bahamas and was headed north-northwest at 7 mph (11 kph). Its maximum sustained winds were 35 mph (55 kph).

___

Thieves steal $1M worth in craft whiskey from Washington distillery

Thieves who made off with 12,000 bottles of craft whiskey in a rare U.S. liquor heist this summer did more than just snag nearly $1 million worth of product — they also spirited away nearly half the stock of a single malt distillers had worked for more than a decade to make.

Now the Skagit Valley Sheriff’s Office is investigating, and whiskey aficionados are wondering if — and where — the coveted bottles of Westland Distillery’s first 10-year Garryana whiskey might turn up.

The bottles disappeared July 31, when someone in a freight truck showed up at Westland Distillery’s warehouse in Burlington, Washington, holding the paperwork that purportedly gave them the right to pick up a shipment of Westland single malt, Watchpost blended, and Garryana whiskies bound for New Jersey.

But the bottles never arrived at their intended destination, and the “sophisticated, fraudulent carrier scheme” was discovered a week later, said Jason Moore, the managing director of the Seattle-based distillery.

The 10th anniversary edition bottles of Garryana are irreplaceable, said Moore.

___

As Democrats prepare for a possible federal shutdown, their endgame is uncertain

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats who have struggled for months to counter President Donald Trump have settled on a bold, one-step strategy if they do not get significant concessions on health care before government funding runs out Wednesday: voting to shut down the government.

The plan is heartily endorsed by many frustrated voters in the base and party activists, some of whom called on Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York to resign in March after he provided support for Republicans to keep the government open at that time.

“America’s ability to endure this moment requires a Democratic Party driving a vibrant, impactful and public resistance,” Katie Bethell, executive director of liberal grassroots group MoveOn, wrote in a letter to party leaders.

Less clear is what’s in the minority party’s playbook after 12:01 a.m. EDT Wednesday, when the shutdown would start and the administration could begin laying off hundreds or even thousands of federal workers, if it carries through with plans laid out by the White House this week.

How does it all end? And what do Democrats do then?

___

Europe takes a record lead into Ryder Cup’s Sunday singles

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. (AP) — Team Europe already had demolished and disheartened the Americans in another Ryder Cup romp on Saturday, and it wasn’t finished.

The final match of a long, loud and obnoxious day at Bethpage Black was all square when Matt Fitzpatrick blasted out of a fairway bunker and heard European cheers when his ball spun back to 2 feet away. Next to play was Tyrrell Hatton, whose shot into the 18th hole spun back and nicked his teammate’s ball.

It summed up how the exquisite golf of Europe, which took on every challenge — starting with a gallery so hostile extra security was required — and wound up in the Ryder Cup record book for the largest lead in the modern format: Europe 11 1/2, United States 4 1/2.

“I didn’t really imagine this,” European captain Luke Donald said.

Europe needs only to win three of the 12 singles matches Sunday to take that precious gold trophy back home across the Atlantic Ocean. Donald has turned to 45-year-old Justin Rose to lead off against Cameron Young, followed by Tommy Fleetwood, who can become the first European to go 5-0 on the road.

___

What to know about Iran’s nuclear program as UN reimposes ‘snapback’ sanctions

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — United Nations sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program were reimposed Sunday, putting Tehran under new pressure as tensions remain high in the wider Mideast over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

At the U.N. General Assembly this week in New York, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi tried a last-minute diplomatic push to stop the sanctions. However, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei boxed in their efforts by describing diplomacy with the United States as a “sheer dead end.”

Meanwhile, efforts by China and Russia to halt the sanctions failed Friday.

A 30-day clock for the sanctions started when France, Germany and the United Kingdom on Aug. 28 declared Iran wasn’t complying with its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

Tehran has argued without success that the deal was voided by the United States’ unilateral withdrawal from the accord in 2018 under President Donald Trump’s first administration. Since then, Iran has severely restricted required inspections by the U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, particularly after the 12-day war Israel launched on Iran in June. That war saw both the U.S. and Israel bomb key Iranian nuclear sites.

___

Long, fraught timeline of Iran nuclear tensions

The United Nations reimposed nuclear sanctions on Iran Sunday, putting new pressure on Tehran’s ailing economy as tensions remain high in the wider Mideast over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi offered a last-ditch effort to try to halt the sanctions at the U.N. General Assembly met this week in New York. Efforts by China and Russia to stop the sanctions failed as well.

The clock started when France, Germany and the United Kingdom on Aug. 28 declared Iran wasn’t complying with its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers

Here’s a timeline of the tensions over Iran’s atomic program:

1967 — Iran takes possession of its Tehran Research Reactor under America’s “Atoms for Peace” program.

___

Trump to meet Monday with top four congressional leaders as government shutdown risk looms

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump plans to meet with the top four congressional leaders at the White House on Monday, one day before the deadline to fund the federal government or face a shutdown.

The meeting involving House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune as well as House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer was confirmed Saturday by a White House official and two other people familiar with the planning. They were granted anonymity to discuss a meeting that has not been announced.

“President Trump has once again agreed to a meeting in the Oval Office. As we have repeatedly said, Democrats will meet anywhere, at any time and with anyone to negotiate a bipartisan spending agreement that meets the needs of the American people,” Schumer and Jeffries said in a joint statement on Saturday night. “We are resolute in our determination to avoid a government shutdown and address the Republican healthcare crisis. Time is running out.”

The meeting was first reported by Punchbowl News.

The parties have been in a standoff for days as Democrats, namely in the Senate, have refused to offer the necessary votes to pass a funding measure that would keep the government open beyond Tuesday.

___

Trump says he will send troops to Portland, Oregon, in latest deployment to US cities

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — President Donald Trump said Saturday that he will send troops to Portland, “authorizing Full Force, if necessary” to handle “domestic terrorists” as he expands his deployments to more American cities.

Oregon Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek responded by saying Trump is abusing his authority by ordering troops into a city that she said is doing “just fine” on its own. She was joined by other government, police and business leaders who all said soldiers are not needed and Trump is presenting a patently false picture of the city.

Trump made his announcement on social media, writing that he was directing the Department of Defense to “provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland.” Trump said the decision was necessary to protect U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities, which he alleged are “under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for details on Trump’s announcement, such as a timeline for the deployment or what troops would be involved.

In an afternoon news conference, Kotek said she directly told Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem earlier in the day that troops are not needed and she believes he does not have the authority to deploy the military there.

___

The sparse indictment of Comey by Trump’s Justice Department belies a complicated backstory

WASHINGTON (AP) — The indictment of former FBI Director James Comey is only two pages and alleges he falsely testified to Congress in 2020 about authorizing someone to be an anonymous source in news stories.

That brevity belies a convoluted and contentious backstory. The events at the heart of the disputed testimony are among the most heavily scrutinized in the bureau’s history, generating internal and congressional investigations that have produced thousands of pages of records and transcripts.

Those investigations were focused on how Comey and his agents conducted high-stakes inquiries into whether Russia was helping Republican Donald Trump’s campaign during the 2016 presidential race against Democrat Hillary Clinton and her use of a private email server while she was secretary of state.

Here are some things to know about that period and how they fit into Comey’s indictment:

The indictment alleges that Comey made a false statement in testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee. The single quote from the indictment appears to be from an interaction with Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.