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Basketball

Puerto Rico mourns José ‘Piculín’ Ortiz, a basketball legend, who has died at 62

The Associated Press 2 minute read Yesterday at 12:44 PM CDT

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — José “Piculín” Ortiz, a center who played briefly in the NBA but was considered one of the greatest Puerto Rican players of all time, died on Tuesday. He was 62.

The Puerto Rico Basketball Federation confirmed that Ortiz died. He had colorectal cancer since late 2023 and died at the Ashford Hospital in San Juan with his wife, Sylvia Ríos, and daughter Neira Ortiz present.

“Puerto Rico loses more than an athlete. It loses a legend,” the basketball federation said in a statement. “Thank you for so much joy, for representing our flag with pride, and for taking the island’s name to the highest level.”

Ortiz played for two years at Oregon State where he was the Pac-10 Conference Player of the Year in 1986-87, averaging 22.3 points and 8.7 rebounds. He was selected 15th in the 1987 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz.

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World

President Donald Trump speaks before signing a proclamation in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, May 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Trump again assails Pope Leo, potentially complicating Rubio’s visit to the Vatican this week

Matthew Lee And Nicole Winfield, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Trump again assails Pope Leo, potentially complicating Rubio’s visit to the Vatican this week

Matthew Lee And Nicole Winfield, The Associated Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 9:48 PM CDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump has renewed his criticism of Pope Leo XIV, potentially complicating a fence-mending visit that Secretary of State Marco Rubio plans to make this week to the Vatican.

In an interview with conservative commentator Hugh Hewitt, Trump said the first American-born pontiff is helping Iran and also making the world less safe with his comments about the importance of not treating immigrants with disrespect.

“The pope would rather talk about the fact that it’s OK for Iran to have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said in the interview on Monday. “And I don’t think that’s very good. I think he’s endangering a lot of Catholics and a lot of people.”

The pope, however, has not said Iran should obtain nuclear weapons. He’s called for more peace talks, and criticized war with Iran generally and Trump’s specific threats of mass civilian strikes. The pope also has emphasized that he’s reflecting biblical and church teachings, not speaking as a political rival to Trump.

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Updated: Yesterday at 9:48 PM CDT

Celebrities

Musician Alexey Khovalyg performs inside the Russia pavilion at the Venice 2026 Biennale Art, Italy, Tuesday, May 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

The Venice Biennale previews in chaos as war follows art into the world’s oldest exhibition

Colleen Barry, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

The Venice Biennale previews in chaos as war follows art into the world’s oldest exhibition

Colleen Barry, The Associated Press 5 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 11:44 PM CDT

VENICE, Italy (AP) — The Venice Biennale previewed its 61st and most chaotic edition ever on Tuesday, just days after the unprecedented resignation of its jury over the participation of Israel and Russia undermined the very structure of the world’s oldest contemporary art exhibition.

Tensions were evident as Ukrainian artists stood by a truck that had brought a statue of an origami deer from the war-ravaged eastern front to the Biennale's storied Giardini. Just meters (yards) away, a handful of participants in the Russian Pavilion danced to house music played by an Argentine DJ.

At the same time, a group of Palestinians marched through the Giardini wearing the names of artists who have been killed in Gaza. More protests were expected as the preview week continued.

Chaos puts national pavilions in the spotlight

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Updated: Yesterday at 11:44 PM CDT

Celebrities

Friends and relatives carry the body of a legendary Bollywood singer Asha Bhosle for the funeral outside her home in Mumbai, India, Monday, April 13, 2026 .(AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

The year in review: Influential people who have died in 2026

Bernard Mcghee, The Associated Press 10 minute read Preview

The year in review: Influential people who have died in 2026

Bernard Mcghee, The Associated Press 10 minute read Yesterday at 9:37 AM CDT

She was a beloved Bollywood singer whose voice resonated across a film-obsessed India for nearly eight decades.

Asha Bhosle, who died in April, was recorded on about 12,000 songs, becoming part of India's musical memory. She was widely mourned with even Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi praising her contributions.

April also saw the death of scientist J. Craig Venter, who mapped the first draft of the human genome, helping scientists understand how genes shape lives. Later, Venter was the first to publish his own sequenced genome, hoping researchers could scan it to learn what was inherited from each parent and where vulnerabilities to disease might lie.

Other noteworthy people who died in April include former Hawaii Gov. George R. Ariyoshi, French actor Nathalie Baye and the last surviving Ronettes singer, Nedra Talley Ross.

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Yesterday at 9:37 AM CDT

Science & Technology

Employees of Hana Bank celebrate in a photo opportunity to mark the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) of over 7,000 points at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

AI boom drives a rally in buying of tech shares, pushing South Korea’s Kospi to a record

Yuri Kageyama, The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview

AI boom drives a rally in buying of tech shares, pushing South Korea’s Kospi to a record

Yuri Kageyama, The Associated Press 2 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 10:50 PM CDT

TOKYO (AP) — South Korea’s Kospi soared nearly 7% to a fresh record on Wednesday as Samsung Electronics' stock jumped nearly 13% in a rally driven by expectations of strong growth in artificial intelligence and hopes for progress in ending the U.S.-Iran war.

Shares in SK Hynix, another major Korean computer chipmaker, shot up 10% early Wednesday. Both Samsung and SK Hynix are major manufacturers of the computer chips vital for AI applications.

News that Iranian officials were traveling to China ahead of a summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping lifted market sentiment. That also helped ease volatility in oil prices.

South Korea's market was closed Tuesday for a holiday and on reopening gained 6.7% early Wednesday to 7,398.34.

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Updated: Yesterday at 10:50 PM CDT

World

Members of Australian families at Roj Camp in eastern Syria, housing people with alleged ties to Islamic State militants, prepare to leave for Damascus as part of a second repatriation effort by Syrian authorities, at Roj Camp in eastern Syria, Friday, April 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)

Police say Australian women with alleged IS ties face charges on return from Syria

Rod Mcguirk, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

Police say Australian women with alleged IS ties face charges on return from Syria

Rod Mcguirk, The Associated Press 4 minute read Yesterday at 10:48 PM CDT

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — A number of Australian women with alleged ties to Islamic State group militants will be arrested and face criminal investigations if they return from Syria, police said Wednesday.

The Australian government had been alerted Wednesday that four women and nine children had booked flights from Damascus to Australia, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said. He did not say when they were expected to arrive.

Australian Federal Police since 2015 have been investigating the behavior of Australians who had traveled to the Islamic State group’s so-called caliphate that had been centered in Syria, Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett said.

Investigations had included potential terrorism offenses and crimes against humanity such as slave trading, she said.

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Yesterday at 10:48 PM CDT

World

Rep. Justin J. Pearson, D-Memphis, center, marches with protesters before a special session of the state legislature to redraw U.S. Congressional voting maps, in Nashville, Tenn., Tuesday, May 5, 2026. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

South Carolina joins Southern redistricting push after US Supreme Court ruling on minority districts

Jeffrey Collins, Travis Loller, Kim Chandler And David A. Lieb, The Associated Press 5 minute read Preview

South Carolina joins Southern redistricting push after US Supreme Court ruling on minority districts

Jeffrey Collins, Travis Loller, Kim Chandler And David A. Lieb, The Associated Press 5 minute read Yesterday at 11:06 PM CDT

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — An election-year redistricting movement has spread to South Carolina as Republicans attempt to redraw majority-Black congressional districts that have suddenly become susceptible because of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling upending protections for minority voters.

Urged on by President Donald Trump, South Carolina Republicans are attempting to redraw a district long held by a Black Democratic lawmaker in their quest for a clean sweep of the state's seven congressional seats.

Lawmakers already are meeting in special sessions in Alabama and Tennessee in a bid to change their U.S. House districts. And Louisiana lawmakers also are making plans for new congressional districts after the Supreme Court last week struck down the state’s current map.

The high court’s ruling said Louisiana relied too heavily on race when creating a second Black-majority House district as it attempted to comply with the Voting Rights Act. The ruling significantly altered a decades-old understanding of the law, giving Republicans grounds to try to eliminate majority-Black districts that have elected Democrats.

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Yesterday at 11:06 PM CDT

Featured

Census data does much more than determine population

MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS Census data helps define the socioeconomic makeup of neighbourhoods.

Peaking our interest: Winnipeg International Mountain Film Festival taps into crag craze

Supplied The doc K2 More follows a couple’s quest to paraglide off a mountain summit.

Jets gunning for NHL Draft Lottery luck

Ruth Bonneville / FREE PRESS Cypress River’s Carson Carels, who plays for the Prince George Cougars of the Western Hockey League, is predicted to be picked in the top 10, setting up the possibility the Winnipeg Jets could select the homegrown defenceman in the NHL draft.

The Week That Was: April 27 to May 2

The Week That Was: April 27 to May 2

Magical, moving Métis musical feels like homecoming ceremony

Dahlia Katz photo Cimmeron Meyer designed Rubaboo’s striking set.

Rhyme repository recognizes razed Métis enclave Rooster Town

MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS Bernie Kruchak erected the Rooster Town Poetry Shed, a structure that resembles a free little library but is instead devoted to poetry, as a reconciliation project.

Environment

A pile of debris is seen in the background as Roman Sandoli, right, prepares to putt at the East Potomac Golf Course, Sunday, May 3, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

White House East Wing debris dumped at nearby golf course has toxic metals, report says

Matthew Daly And Gary Fields, The Associated Press 4 minute read Preview

White House East Wing debris dumped at nearby golf course has toxic metals, report says

Matthew Daly And Gary Fields, The Associated Press 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 5:18 PM CDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Debris from the demolition of the White House East Wing that was dumped at a nearby public golf course has tested positive for lead, chromium and other toxic metals, the National Park Service said.

An interim report by a Virginia engineering firm says the toxic metals, along with PCBs, pesticides, petroleum byproducts and other chemicals were detected at levels above laboratory reporting limits in soil at the East Potomac Golf Links, a historic golf course that President Donald Trump plans to renovate.

The park service began dumping debris from the East Wing onto the golf course in October, and more than 30,000 cubic yards (810,000 cubic feet) of excavated soil had been transported to the site as of last month, the report by Jacobs Engineering Group Inc. said. The report was requested by the park service.

The nonprofit DC Preservation League has sued the Trump administration, arguing that the dumping was unlawful and possibly hazardous. The group also is challenging the Republican administration’s takeover of the golf course, about 2 miles (3 kilometers) southeast of the White House, and others in the city.

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Updated: Yesterday at 5:18 PM CDT

World

French President Emmanuel Macron addresses a media conference during the EU-Armenia summit at the Presidential Palace in Yerevan, Armenia, Tuesday, May 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Anthony Pizzoferrato)

Macron says US and EU are wasting time on tariff threats as Trump fumes over Germany

Lorne Cook, The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview

Macron says US and EU are wasting time on tariff threats as Trump fumes over Germany

Lorne Cook, The Associated Press 2 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 11:02 AM CDT

BRUSSELS (AP) — Europe and the United States have more important things to do than waste time on tariff threats, French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday, after U.S. President Donald Trump announced higher duties on European vehicles.

Trump said on Friday that he would increase the tariffs charged on cars and trucks from the European Union this week to 25%, a move that could further harm the global economy as it reels from war in the Middle East.

“Especially in the geopolitical period we are experiencing, allies like the United States of America and the European Union have much better things to do than to stir up threats of destabilization,” Macron told reporters in Armenia.

“For our businesses, our households, our populations, we should rather send a message of stability and confidence,” Macron said. He added that he hoped “reason will prevail soon.”

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Updated: Yesterday at 11:02 AM CDT

World

FILE - This image from video provided by U.S. South Command, shows a vessel accused of trafficking drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean shortly before it was destroyed by the U.S. military, killing two and injuring one, on Jan. 23, 2026. (U.S. Southern Command via AP, File)

US military strike on alleged drug boat kills 3 in the eastern Pacific

The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview

US military strike on alleged drug boat kills 3 in the eastern Pacific

The Associated Press 2 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 10:16 PM CDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military launched another strike Tuesday on a vessel suspected of transporting drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing three men.

The attack came a day after U.S. forces struck an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean Sea, killing two people.

The Trump administration’s campaign of blowing up alleged drug-trafficking vessels in Latin American waters has persisted since early September and killed at least 191 people in total.

Despite the Iran war, the strikes have ramped up again in recent weeks, showing that the administration’s aggressive measures to stop what it calls “narcoterrorism” in the Western Hemisphere are not letting up. The military has not provided evidence that any of the vessels were carrying drugs.

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Updated: Yesterday at 10:16 PM CDT

Faith

FILE - People attend a ceremony to mark the National Day of Reflection for victims and survivors, at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, following the Bondi shooting on Dec. 14. (AP Photo/Mark Baker,File)

New weapons charges filed against suspect in deadly shooting at Bondi Beach Hanukkah festival

Charlotte Graham-mclay, The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview

New weapons charges filed against suspect in deadly shooting at Bondi Beach Hanukkah festival

Charlotte Graham-mclay, The Associated Press 2 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 10:50 PM CDT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — An Australian man accused of killing 15 people in a massacre at a Hanukkah celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach will face 19 more charges related to the attack, officials said Wednesday.

Naveed Akram was already charged with 59 counts including murder, attempted murder and committing a terrorist act after two gunmen opened fire on the Jewish holiday event in December 2025. He hasn't yet been required to enter a plea.

The 24-year-old was shot and wounded and his father Sajid Akram, 50, was killed in a gunbattle with police that ended the attack. The massacre was inspired by Islamic State group, Australian police said.

The younger Akram was due to appear Wednesday in Sydney’s Downing Center Local Court via a video link from jail. The procedural hearing was scheduled to discuss a gag order that suppresses the identities of victims and survivors of the attack who have not chosen to identify themselves publicly.

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Updated: Yesterday at 10:50 PM CDT

Celebrities

Alysa Liu arrives at The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute benefit gala celebrating the opening of the

Inside the Met Gala, an Olympic champion learns just how famous she’s become

Jocelyn Noveck, The Associated Press 7 minute read Preview

Inside the Met Gala, an Olympic champion learns just how famous she’s become

Jocelyn Noveck, The Associated Press 7 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 2:18 PM CDT

NEW YORK (AP) — Alysa Liu surveyed the glittery crowd arrayed in front of her, sipping cocktails and chatting. It was her first Met Gala, and she hesitated for a second, searching for a word to describe it.

“It’s … BIG,” the Olympic skater finally said with a grin.

But what Liu, dressed in a blood-red custom Louis Vuitton gown with a full skirt and huge ruffles, couldn’t quite get was how big SHE had become. Even at a party full of very, very famous people, everyone wanted to greet her.

Some Met Gala guests have been famous for many years. Others have achieved fame with dizzying speed. For Liu, all it took was a gold-medal performance that charmed the whole world.

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Updated: Yesterday at 2:18 PM CDT

World

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

The Associated Press 12 minute read Yesterday at 11:05 PM CDT

China's top envoy meets with Iran's in Beijing as Trump pauses US effort in the Strait

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday evening he was pausing the U.S. effort to guide stranded vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz to allow time for a deal to end the Iran war, but that the American forces’ blockade of Iranian ports would remain in place.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, in Beijing on Wednesday morning, the official Xinhua news agency reported, without providing further details.

It was the first time since the start of the war that Araghchi has traveled to China, whose close economic and political ties to Tehran give it a unique position of influence.

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