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Forecasters expect slightly fewer hurricanes than usual this year, but the risk of destructive storms is still high

People walk past damage from Hurricane Melissa in Black River, Jamaica on Thursday, Oct. 30, 2025. Federal forecasters predict 8 to 14 named storms, including tropical storms and hurricanes, will form in the Atlantic in 2026.

Forecasters expect 8 to 14 storms will form in the Atlantic between June 1 and November 30. But the danger is more serious than the numbers suggest.

(Image credit: Matias Delacroix)

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After the sirens: Lebanon's first responders swing between duty and grief

The father of Hussein Jaber, who was killed in an Israeli strike on Nabatieh, in southern Lebanon, on May 12, cries during the funeral ceremony in Sidon the following day.

Nearly 3,000 people have been killed and nearly 1 million have been displaced the war in southern Lebanon began in March. Nearly 400 have been killed since a ceasefire began in April.

(Image credit: Diego Ibarra Sánchez)

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A trillion dollar question: Will SpaceX's Starship launch go well?

SpaceX

Ahead of a much anticipated IPO, SpaceX is carrying out a critical test of its giant, stainless steel rocket. Investors will be watching closely.

(Image credit: Eric Gay)

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Smokers in China are being chided by anti-smoking women

Despite public smoking bans in a number of Chinese cities, smoking is still a big thing — mainly among men.

Many many many men smoke in China. A small but outspoken group of women are becoming anti-smoking advocates, confronting those who light up in public.

(Image credit: Johannes Eisele/AFP)

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Walmart plans price cuts using tariff refunds as shoppers get skittish

A customer shops at Walmart in Little Rock, Ark.

Now that the U.S. government must refund most tariffs, Walmart says it might put its refund money toward lowering store prices. Executives say the cost of gas has shoppers increasingly under stress.

(Image credit: Will Newton)

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Susan Collins brings federal dollars to Maine. She's hoping that's worth it to voters

Campaign signs sit next to a road in Rockport, Maine. Graham Platner is expected to be the Democratic nominee and would face off against incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins in the general election.

As Maine's Senate matchup is all but set, incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins urges voters to pick her over Democrat Graham Platner because she can fund state priorities due to her seniority.

(Image credit: Joe Raedle)

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GOP races to fund immigration enforcement. And, U.S. indicts former Cuban president

An individual jogs outside the U.S. Capitol building on April 13, 2026 in Washington, D.C.

Republicans are racing to pass a $72 billion immigration enforcement package. And, the U.S. has indicted former Cuban President Raúl Castro for his alleged role in the 1996 downing of two planes.

(Image credit: Heather Diehl)

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Amid allegations of abuse on Epstein's 'Zorro Ranch,' New Mexico opens new probes

The property once owned by Jeffrey Epstein and that he called the Zorro Ranch outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico, in March.

Epstein owned a 10,000-acre property with a mansion. After calls by the public, the state attorney general searched the property and the state House created a "Truth Commission."

(Image credit: Roberto E. Rosales)

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Researchers say the Trump administration is finding new ways to punish science

Harvard professor Sean Eddy, whose federal funding was terminated by the Trump administration last year, describes the loss as a "10-year hit to a lab."

Even with federal grants largely restored, scientists say the Trump administration is still preventing those funds from reaching them. The consequences, they say, are already becoming clear.

(Image credit: Jodi Hilton for NPR)

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Even as anxieties grow under Trump, these swing voters aren't ready to back Democrats

President Trump boards Air Force One after speaking to reporters on Wednesday.

Swing voters in North Carolina say they are frustrated with President Trump and the state of the economy, but aren't ready to abandon him or his party as the midterms inch closer.

(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla)

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The Education Department is hiring — while it's being dismantled

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The Federal Student Aid office lost half its staff last year as part of Trump administration downsizing. Now, it's hiring hundreds of new workers.

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As floods get worse, Britain tries a new solution: beavers

This beaver was released on Oct. 11, 2023, in Greenford, England, as part of the Ealing Beaver Project. A family of five beavers, two adults and three kits, was released into the 20-acre Paradise Fields nature reserve in West London, becoming the first beavers in the west of the British capital in 400 years.

About 400 years ago, beavers were hunted to extinction across Britain. Now they're being reintroduced as little climate warriors, as communities harness their dam-building skills to mitigate flooding.

(Image credit: Dan Kitwood)

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COVID is shaping Americans' reaction to Ebola and hantavirus

A medical professional from Children

Some Americans seem to be extra-alarmed about Ebola and hantavirus in the wake of COVID-19. But public health experts say they don't expect another pandemic this time.

(Image credit: Drew Angerer)

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TSA's new 'Gold+' program looks to increase private security screening at airports

Transportation Security Administration officers staff a checkpoint at O

The agency calls the program an update to the Screening Partnership Program, in which 20 U.S. airports currently use private security screeners rather than federal workers.

(Image credit: Scott Olson)

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Spencer Pratt is 'winning the internet,' but can he become mayor of Los Angeles?

Spencer Pratt speaks during an appearance on "Fox & Friends" at Fox News headquarters on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)

Pratt, a former reality TV star, is flooding social media with edgy humor, AI slop and combative rhetoric as a way of grabbing attention and winning the vote of the very online. It's a strategy some political experts see as the future of online campaigning.

(Image credit: Andy Kropa/AP)

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A guide to converting your lawn into a wildlife friendly garden

Three years ago, this garden near the Kansas City metro area was a lawn. Now it

Turning your grass into a garden isn't as complicated as you think, but it will take time and effort. This step-by-step guide breaks down the process, from killing your lawn to picking plants to grow.

(Image credit: Celia Llopis-Jepsen/KCUR)

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Morning news brief

Republicans work to pass reconciliation bill but ballroom money may get left out, Trump says Gulf allies persuaded him not to resume attacks on Iran, U.S. indicts Cuba's former President Raúl Castro.

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Officers who defended Capitol from rioters sue to block payouts from fund

FILE - Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington.

Two police officers who helped defend the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot are suing to block anyone from receiving payouts from a new settlement fund.

(Image credit: John Minchillo)

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Ex-prosecutor charged with sending to herself report on Trump classified probe

The U.S. Department of Justice logo is before a news conference, Monday, May 4, 2026, in Washington.

The former prosecutor faces federal charges over allegations that she sent a report on Jack Smith's investigation into President Trump's hoarding of classified documents to her personal email account.

(Image credit: Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

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Netanyahu scolds Israeli security minister for videos taunting flotilla activists

Israel

Israel's national security minister triggered a backlash after releasing videos taunting detained flotilla activists who tried to breach the blockade of Gaza, telling them they should be imprisoned.

(Image credit: Ohad Zwigenberg)

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Ebola fears surge on the ground in Congo over rapid spread of a rare type

Family members of people who died of Ebola stand next to coffins at a health center in Rwampara, Congo, Wednesday, May 20, 2026.

Healthcare workers in eastern Congo said Wednesday they are underprotected and undertrained in a rapidly spreading Ebola outbreak of a rare type of the virus in one of the world's most vulnerable places.

(Image credit: Moses Sawasawa)

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Liberal U.S. mayors team up with European counterparts to fight authoritarianism

Lacey Beaty, mayor of Beaverton, Ore., represented one of the U.S. cities that recently joined the Pact of Free Cities for its recent meeting in Bratislava, Slovakia. In the background (from left to right) are Omar Al-Rawi, member of the Vienna City Council; Audrey Pulvar, deputy mayor of Paris; Gergely Karácsony, mayor of Budapest; and Rafał Trzaskowski, mayor of Warsaw.

Ten U.S. mayors from cities such as Chicago and Cincinnati have joined a pact with European mayors to defend democracy and progressive values and fight right-wing populists and authoritarianism.

(Image credit: Courtesy of the city of Bratislava)

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Senate panel hears testimony on online sports betting, prediction markets

A Senate subcommittee lawmakers on Wednesday questioned sports betting industry officials during a hearing focused on recent cheating scandals, companies

(Image credit: Mariam Zuhaib)

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Advice for 2026 commencement speakers: Don't bring up AI

Real estate executive Gloria Caulfield (left) was the graduation speaker at University of Central Florida and Big Machine Records CEO Scott Borchetta spoke at Middle Tennessee State University

Commencement speakers who bring up the sweeping changes that artificial intelligence is driving are facing boos from the Class of 2026.

(Image credit: University of Central Florida and Middle Tennessee State University via Storyful)

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Elon Musk's SpaceX files paperwork for what's likely to be the biggest IPO in history

A SpaceX rocket is getting prepared for another attempt to liftoff at NASA

The company is on track to pull off the largest IPO in history — making CEO Elon Musk even wealthier.

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Supreme Court voting rights ruling could play a big role at the local level

The Supreme Court's recent ruling threatens the power of racial-minority voters in Voting Rights Act cases about not just Congress, but also at least 17 state and local governments, NPR finds.

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How to help children cope after shootings like the San Diego mosque killings

People hold hands near the scene of a shooting outside the Islamic Center of San Diego on Monday.

Children closest to an incident of gun violence have the most risk of lasting psychological effects. Here's what all parents should know about how to buffer trauma.

(Image credit: Gregory Bull)

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The U.S. threatens to revoke the Palestinian U.N. ambassador's visa

Palestinian Ambassador to the United Nations Riyad Mansour pats his heart during the Kuwait crown prince

A leaked State Department memo shows the U.S. threatened to revoke Palestinian visas if they pushed for a senior United Nations post.

(Image credit: Angelina Katsanis)

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Meta slashes 8,000 jobs as it pivots towards AI

A Meta logo is shown on a video screen at LlamaCon 2025, an AI developer conference, in Menlo Park, Calif., April 29, 2025.

Facebook and Instagram's parent company has been investing huge sums of money in AI, but it lags behind competitors.

(Image credit: Jeff Chiu)

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After the Kars4Kids ad is banned in California, we check in on nostalgic jingles past

Kars4Kids advertisements, like this TV commercial on a hot-pink set, feature children turning the charity

A California judge has given Kars4Kids 30 days to either take its ads off the air or update them to disclose its affiliations to a Jewish charity based in the Northeast.

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