Everyone aboard an American Airlines jet that collided with an Army helicopter is feared dead
ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — A fire chief says everyone aboard an American Airlines jet that collided with Army helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington is feared dead. The Wednesday crash prompted a large search-and-rescue operation in the nearby Potomac River. The jet was carrying 60 passengers and four crew members.
The Latest: Passenger jet collides with helicopter while landing at DC’s Reagan National Airport
A jet with 60 passengers and four crew members aboard collided with an Army helicopter while landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, prompting a large search-and-rescue operation in the nearby Potomac River. There was no immediate word on casualties or the cause of the Wednesday collision, but all takeoffs and landings from the airport near Washington were halted as helicopters from law enforcement agencies across the region flew over the scene in search of survivors. U.S. Figure Skating said passengers on the jet included a group of figure skaters, their coaches and family members.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Passengers aboard the American Airlines flight that collided with an Army helicopter and crashed into the Potomac River included figure skaters returning from the U.S. Figure Skating Championships and two of their Russian coaches. U.S. Figure Skating said Thursday that several skaters, coaches and their family members were on the flight after attending a development camp that followed the championships that wrapped up Sunday in Wichita, Kansas. There were 60 passengers and four crew members on the American Airlines flight Wednesday and three soldiers aboard the training flight on the Blackhawk helicopter. The Kremlin confirms coaches Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were on the plane. It’s unclear if there were any survivors.
Hamas frees 8 more hostages as Gaza truce holds. Israel is set to release 110 prisoners
KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — Hamas-led militants have freed eight hostages in the latest release since a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip took hold earlier this month. Israel was expected to release another 110 Palestinian prisoners. The handover Thursday of some of the hostages was delayed by a chaotic scene in which a crowd of Palestinians surrounded and jeered at the captives as they were given to the Red Cross, drawing an angry protest from Israel. The hostages freed Thursday are three Israelis and five Thai nationals.
Donald Trump sounds the same. His White House — so far — couldn’t be more different
NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump 2.0 is, so far, very much the same as his first go around. But eight years after he was last sworn into office, the new president is emboldened, far more experienced and surrounded by a very different team. The marathon Q&A sessions are back, along with the cream Oval Office rug and old Diet Coke button. So, too, are the late-night social media posts that ricochet across the globe and swallow news cycles. He’s signed a barrage of executive orders that are testing the bounds of presidential power, sowing confusion and drawing fury from Democrats unsure how to stop him.
What to know about Guantánamo Bay, the base where Trump will send ‘criminal aliens’
President Donald Trump says he will use a detention center at Guantánamo Bay to hold tens of thousands of criminal immigrants in the U.S. illegally. While the U.S. naval base is best known for the suspects brought in after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, it also has a separate facility used for decades to hold detained immigrants. The U.S. has leased Guantánamo from Cuba for more than a century. Cuba opposes the lease and typically rejects the nominal U.S. rent payments. Trump signed a presidential memorandum and said he’d direct federal officials to get facilities ready. Border czar Tom Homan said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement would run the facility. Still, details of the plan weren’t immediately clear.
Donald Trump talks so much that White House stenographers and everyone else is struggling to keep up
WASHINGTON (AP) — The most obvious shift from Joe Biden to Donald Trump has been the flood of talking from the White House. Trump is speaking publicly far more than his predecessor, overwhelming his opponents and leaving them struggling to get a word in edgewise. Even the White House stenographers responsible for transcribing a president’s remarks are racing to keep up with him. According to Factba.se, Trump spoke 81,235 words in his first week in office, up from 24,259 in the same timespan for Biden. The Republican president’s admirers and critics agree that he’s skilled at harnessing the country’s undivided attention.
FBI wrestles with a spike in sexual misconduct claims and male-dominated culture
WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI has recorded a sharp spike in complaints that its own agents and employees have engaged in sexual misconduct, ranging from assault to harassment, despite a pledge by the bureau’s leaders to eliminate the longstanding problem. An Associated Press investigation found the FBI tallied a nearly 50% increase in sexual misconduct allegations since launching an agency-wide crackdown in 2021. Advocates say the increase shows the bureau is struggling to protect women in a male-dominated workplace. The FBI says the increase indicates its reforms are working by making it easier to report misconduct.
A nurse in Uganda has died from the Ebola virus, in the first outbreak since 2022
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — A Ugandan health official says a nurse in the capital, Kampala, has died of Ebola, in the first recorded fatality since the last outbreak ended in 2023. Diana Atwine, permanent secretary of the health ministry, told reporters Thursday that the 32-year-old male patient was an employee of Mulago Hospital, the main referral facility in Kampala. After developing a fever, the patient was treated at multiple locations in Uganda before multiple lab tests confirmed he had been suffering from Ebola. The patient died on Wednesday, and Ebola was confirmed following postmortem tests, Atwine said. Ebola, which is spread by contact with bodily fluids of an infected person or contaminated materials, manifests as a deadly hemorrhagic fever.
FireAid, a benefit for LA wildfire relief, is almost here. Here’s how to watch and donate
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Some of the biggest names in music will come together on Thursday to raise money for Los Angeles-area wildfire relief efforts. FireAid will take over two Inglewood, California venues on Jan. 30th. Those are the Kia Forum starting at 6:00pm PST and the Intuit Dome starting at 7:30pm PST. All proceeds will benefit those affected by the fires. The lineup includes Billie Eilish, Lady Gaga, Stevie Wonder and more. Between the performances there will be celebrity and non-celebrity speakers, including those who lost their homes, first responders and firefighters. There will also be packages spotlighting those impacted.…Read more by AP