AP News Summary at 2:45 pm EDT

Ukraine and Russia work to gain advantage in annexed regions

ZAPORIZHZHIA, Ukraine (AP) — Regions of southern Ukraine that Russian President Vladimir Putin illegally annexed are seeing more heavy fighting. Ukrainian soldiers pressed a ground campaign to recapture one and Russian forces exploded long-range missiles and Iranian-made drones in another on Saturday. Ukraine’s power grid operator said a missile strike also seriously damaged a key energy facility in Ukraine’s capital region. Following mounting setbacks, the Russian military has worked to cut off power and water in far-flung populated areas while also fending off Ukrainian counterattacks in occupied or partially occupied areas. After a Russian missile attack in the city of Zaporizhzhia, a local hospital medic put a small Ukrainian flag on the broken windshield of his heavily damaged car.

Raleigh shooting rampage shatters quiet neighborhood’s peace

RALEIGH, NC (AP) — Police say a 15-year-old boy turned the gently curving streets of a Raleigh neighborhood and nearby greenway into a killing zone. When the shooting was over Thursday, five people were dead. Neighbors say Hedingham is much like most American neighborhoods. You may not know the name of every person on your block, but people greet each other across driveways and can always find something to chat about. But after the killings, people are reassessing. The husband of one victim says he’s not sure that he can continue to live there.

Violent week a grim sign as targeted killings of police rise

SEATTLE (AP) — It’s been an especially violent week for police across the US, including the deaths of two Connecticut police officers and the wounding of a third. Even as the number of officers has dropped in the past two years, the number being targeted and killed has risen. Organizations that track violence against police say 56 officers have been killed by gunfire so far this year — a number that is up 14% from this time last year and about 45% from this time in 2020. The country is on track to approach or surpass other top annual totals of recent years, including 73 officers killed in 2011 and 67 in 2016.

New UK Treasury chief: Mistakes were made, tax rises coming

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s new Treasury chief has acknowledged mistakes made by his predecessor and suggested that he may reverse much of Conservative Prime Minister Liz Truss’ tax-cutting plans, in order to bring stability to the country after weeks of economic and political turbulence . Jeremy Hunt was brought in Friday to replace Kwasi Kwarteng and restore order in Truss’ administration. He warned of “difficult decisions” to come, saying taxes could rise and public spending budgets would likely be squeezed further in the coming months. Truss had previously insisted that her tax-cutting plans were what Britain needs to boost economic growth. But a “mini-budget” which she and Kwarteng unveiled in September sent the British pound tumbling and left her credibility in tatters.

Biden’s late push across West aims to deliver votes for Dems

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — President Joe Biden’s trip to Oregon, California and Colorado is showing how he’s trying to turn out Democratic votes on Election Day. He’s flexing the levers of government to help boost candidates, promoting an agenda aimed at strengthening an uncertain economy and hauling in campaign cash. Biden is showing up for candidates when he can be helpful and steering clear of places where a visit from a president with approval ratings below 50% isn’t necessarily a good thing. Throughout the trip, Biden had to compete for the spotlight and contend with a troubling inflation report and rising gas prices.

Musk has a ‘super app’ plan for Twitter. It’s super vague

For months, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO has expressed interest in creating his own version of China’s WeChat — a “super app” that does video chats, messaging, streaming and payments — for the rest of the world.. At least, that is, once he’s done buying Twitter after months of legally fighting over the $44 billion purchase agreement he signed in April. Musk has claimed on Twitter that his acquisition of the company would speed development of an “everything app” he calls X by three to five years. But there are just a few obstacles.

‘Don’t Look Back’: Refugee, plans worker writes of survival

SIOUX FALLS, SD (AP) — When hundreds of Achut Deng’s colleagues at a South Dakota meatpacking plant were sickened by COVID-19, Deng spoke out to tell of the fear gripping the Sioux Falls workforce. Now, Deng is telling her whole story through a memoir that she hopes will bring awareness of both the hardships, as well as healing, for refugees. Her book ranges from detailing her flight from massacres in South Sudan to the trauma she experienced as a refugee in the United States. The book for young adults, co-authored with Keely Hutton, draws his name from the words Deng’s grandmother uttered as they fled when their village came under attack: “Don’t Look Back.”

Death toll rises to 41 in Turkey coal mine explosion

AMASRA, Turkey (AP) — Funerals for the miners killed in a coal mine explosion in northern Turkey have begun as officials raised the death toll to at least 41 people. There were 110 miners working in the mine when the explosion occurred Friday evening at the state-owned Turkish Hard Coal Enterprise’s mine in Amasra. The town is in the Black Sea coastal province of Bartin. Officials said 11 miners were injured and hospitalized while 58 others managed to get out of the mine on their own or were rescued unharmed. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan arrived at the scene Saturday after tweeting that any neglect would be punished.

In France, fuel crisis frays nerves and workers’ resilience

VERSAILLES, France (AP) — Chronic fuel shortages in France sparked by strikes and panic buying are fraying nerves and testing both the resilience and ingenuity of millions of French workers who depend on their vehicles to do their jobs. After runs on toilet paper, pasta and other essentials at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, fuel and where to find it are the latest obsessions in France. The government has urged motorists not to panic buy. Some gas stations have banned jerrycans. Nurses are among those hard hit, because they need their cars to visit patients at home. For nurses making their morning rounds on Saturday, gasoline was the No. 1 subject for discussion.

Apple workers in Oklahoma vote to unionize in 2nd labor win

NEW YORK (AP) — The National Labor Relations Board says workers at an Apple store in Oklahoma City voted to unionize, marking the second unionized Apple store in the US in a matter of months. The vote signaled another win for the labor movement, which has been gaining momentum since the pandemic. A preliminary tally shows 56 workers at the store voted to be represented by The Communications Workers of America, while 32 voted against it. Worker discontent has triggered labor movements at several major companies in the US in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which triggered tensions over sick leave policies, scheduling, safety and other issues.

FOX28 Spokane©