WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged Wednesday and signaled that it still expects to cut rates twice this year, though more policymakers forecast fewer cuts. The Fed also now expects the economy to grow more slowly this year and next than it did three months ago, according to a set…… MORE
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have returned to Earth after being stuck in space for more than nine months. Their SpaceX capsule parachuted into the Gulf of Mexico early Tuesday evening, just hours after departing the International Space Station. The splashdown brought their space saga to an end.…… MORE
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel has launched airstrikes across the Gaza Strip that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says are “only the beginning” and “a necessary condition for freeing hostages.” The territory’s Health Ministry said the airstrikes killed at least 400 Palestinians, mostly women and children. Tuesday’s surprise bombardment shattered a ceasefire in place…… MORE
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House says President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed to an immediate pause in strikes against energy infrastructure in the Ukraine war. The White House described it as the first step in a “movement to peace” that it hopes will eventually include a maritime ceasefire in the…… MORE
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge ruled Tuesday that the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development likely violated the Constitution in an order that blocked Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency from making further cuts to the agency. U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang ordered the Trump administration to restore email and computer access…… MORE