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June 24 (UPI) — The United States has sanctioned five Cuban state companies and the wife of Raul Castro‘s son, as the Trump administration continues to apply economic pressure on the Caribbean nation.

Three of the companies blacklisted by the State Department on Tuesday are associated with Grupo de Administracion Empresarial, which the United States initially sanctioned during the first Trump administration on accusations of being a Cuban military-controlled umbrella enterprise with interests sprawling throughout the island nation’s economy.

The two other entities hit are accused of operating in Cuba’s mining sector with foreign investment from Australia as well as working in collaboration with Russia.

Annalie Lilliam Rueda Cadero was sanctioned for being the wife of Alejandro Castro Espin, the son of Raul Castro, Cuba’s former head of state. Alejandro Castro was sanctioned by the Trump administration earlier this month.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a social media statement that he was sanctioning GAESA network entities for diverting Cuba’s money and assets and the two other companies for exploiting its mineral and metal reserves.

“The situation in Cuba is devolving as the island’s corrupt, brutal and anti-American Communist regime continues to prioritize its own total control over the freedom, opportunity and basic well-being of the Cuban people,” he said.

Sanctions generally freeze U.S.-based property or interests in property under the control of those designated while threatening foreign businesses with secondary sanctions for doing business with them.

The United States has long imposed a blockade and sanctions on Cuba, but the economic punitive measures have starkly increased during the second Trump administration, exasperating the power and energy shortages in the country, causing blackouts. The supply shortages have forced more than 100,000 people, including 11,000 children, to wait for surgeries, according to the United Nations.

Tuesday’s designations come under an executive order Trump signed in May permitting the sanctioning of those operating in Cuba’s energy, defense, mining and financial services sectors, as well as those complicit in human rights abuses or corruption related to Cuba working or for providing services to the Havana government.

Trump has been increasing the political and economic pressure on Cuba since ousting Venezuela’s authoritarian leader in January, declaring a national emergency with respect to the island nation early this year.

Since signing the sanctions-related executive order in May, he has used it at least five times to designate Cuba-related entities and individuals.

Cuba’s foreign minister, Bruno Rodriguez, accused the Trump administration on Tuesday of increasing its sanctions regime against Havana, because Havana continues to prove it is “stronger, more capable and efficient than it expected.”

He accused the Trump administration of collectively punishing the Cuban people.

Ernesto Soberon, Cuba’s United Nations ambassador, accused the United States of lying about employing sanctions due to human rights abuses by Havana.

“No government, no person with even a shred of common sense — and certainly not the people of #Cuba, who are suffering the humanitarian impact of the U.S. economic war — can believe that the tightening of the blockade, the energy siege and the newly announced sanctions are intended to support the Cuban people,” he said on social media.

“Anyone who has doubts should ask the parents of the more than 12,000 children currently awaiting surgery in Cuba as a result of the U.S. government’s genocidal policy.”

June 24 (UPI) — Senate lawmakers have approved a war powers resolution directing President Donald Trump to halt U.S. hostilities with Iran or seek congressional authorization.

The Senate voted 50-48 on Tuesday, with four Republicans — Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Rand Paul of Kentucky — joining their Democratic colleagues in passing H.Con.Res. 86. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., was the only Democrat to vote against the measure.

The measure’s legal force was disputed. Though concurrent resolutions are non-binding, Democrats argue H.Con.Res. 86 is binding because it was adopted under the War Powers Resolution.

Either way, the measure shows the deepening fissure in support among Trump’s Republican Party for the war his administration unilaterally launched in late February.

Democrats have been forcing repeated war powers resolution votes for months, most of which have been stonewalled by Republicans. But GOP support for the war has waned as it has dragged on, culminating Tuesday when the Senate approved the measure that the House narrowly passed 215-208 earlier this month.

“Both chambers have now made clear that the president cannot continue this war of choice and must cease all hostilities against Iran,” Rep. Gregory Meeks, the resolution’s sponsor and ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said Tuesday after the vote.

“Regardless of what President Trump says, this measure is binding under the War Powers Resolution, and I will explore all legal avenues to ensure the Executive complies with the will of Congress.”

Democrats argue that the U.S. war with Iran — as well as other military actions taken by Trump, including attacks on suspected drug-trafficking boats in international waters — is illegal as Congress has not authorized war, a power the Constitution gives to Congress.

Trump has responded that he does not need authorization, and any war powers resolution is moot due to the fragile U.S.-Iran cease-fire that went into effect in early April.

Amid the cease-fire, Trump has been seeking an agreement to end the war, and his administration was actively negotiating terms with Iran when the vote was held Tuesday.

In a social media statement, Trump lambasted Congress over the vote, saying it was informing Iran that the United States does not support him while hee has “Iran on the ‘ropes,’ ready to go down for the fall.”

“Four Republican Losers voted with the Dumocrats,” he said, while calling the measure “poorly timed and meaningless.”

“These Senators have just made my job more difficult, but I will get it done, one way or the other, because I always get it done.”

June 23 (UPI) — Mamdani-backed progressives scored big wins Tuesday night in New York state’s Democratic primary, as voters cast ballots across the Empire State, Maryland, Utah and South Carolina.

New York State

Of the four states holding primaries, New York state’s was being closely watched to gauge the influence of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who had endorsed three progressive candidates in competitive Democratic races — all of whom appeared poised late Tuesday to win their races.

Brad Lander, a former city comptroller, was running against Goldman in New York District 10 with the endorsements of other big-name progressives, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.

Lander said he was drawn to challenge Goldman because Goldman had called for increasing U.S. support for Israel. Their differing views on support for Israel have been a key issue in the race. Goldman and Lander are both Jewish.

Preliminary results showed Lander with an overwhelming 65.3% vote share, compared to Goldman’s 33.7%, with all 417 districts reporting.

Lander claimed victory Tuesday night.

After being introduced by Mamdani, Lander told supporters that he believes he and Goldman have more in common than they have differences. And to Goldman’s supporters, he said he knows that they want to “rescue our country back from Trumpism,” renew U.S. democracy and find a humane path for the country on the world stage.

“Solidarity is the force that we need to vanquish Trump’s fascism, to abolish ICE and to stand up to the billionaires who are rigging our economy against us,” he said.

“This campaign here was born out of solidarity.”

In New York District 7, Mamdani-endorsed Claire Valdez appeared poised to succeed outgoing Rep. Nydia Velazquez, who backed Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso.

With all 393 election districts reporting, preliminary election results showed Valdez had secured 55.5% of the vote to Reynoso’s 35.4%.

And in New York District 13, Mamdani endorsed Darializa Avila Chevalier, who late Tuesday appeared to be edging out incumbent Rep. Adriano Espaillat.

Chevalier, who was a field organizer for Mamdani, had secured 48.59% of the vote to Espaillat’s 45.2%, according to preliminary results.

Mamdani did not endorse a candidate in District 12 in a stacked field that consisted of state lawmakers Alex Bores and Micah Lasher, Lincoln Project co-founder George Conway, President John F. Kennedy‘s grandson Jack Schlossberg, attorney Laura Dunn and health researcher Nina Schwalbe.

Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had endorsed Schlossberg and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg had endorsed Lasher.

Artificial intelligence has been a central topic in the District 12 race. The Leading the Future super PAC, funded by the heads of OpenAI and venture capital firms supporting the AI industry, funneled more than $10 million to a super PAC opposing Bores’ campaign. Bores has been supportive of establishing regulations on AI.

With all 410 precincts reporting, Lasher had secured nearly 39% of the vote, followed by Bores with 34.82% and Schlossberg with 10.7%.

South Carolina

The big race in South Carolina was the GOP gubernatorial runoff between notable candidates, South Carolina Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette and state Attorney General Alan Wilson.

Preliminary results indicate Wilson stormed his way to the nomination and likely the South Carolina governor’s mansion.

With all counties reporting, Wilson netted 68.5% of the vote to Evette’s 31.44%.

Wilson has claimed victory, and Evette has conceded defeat.

The runoff followed a dramatic turnaround by President Donald Trump, who had initially endorsed Evette, before rescinding his support.

Trump gave his “Complete and Total Endorsement” to Evette ahead of the state’s primary earlier this month. But after it was determined to be a runoff between Evette and Wilson, Trump, rather than continue his support for Evette, told voters that they “can’t go wrong” with either candidate.

Evette finished less than two percentage points ahead of Wilson in the Republican primary but neither candidate cracked 30% of the vote, let alone 50%. While Trump endorsed Evette, the other candidates who ran in the primary — Reps. Ralph Norman and Nancy Mace — have endorsed Wilson. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., also gave Wilson his endorsement on Friday.

“I’ve proudly stood with President Trump from the very beginning, defended him when others would not, and fought alongside him against the radical left,” Wilson said in a news release after Trump posted his support on social media. “I am deeply honored to have his support because he understands I am focused on making South Carolina more affordable for families and profitable for businesses.”

Evette’s campaign had highlighted her receiving Trump’s endorsement.

Wilson will face Democratic state Rep. Jermaine Johnson in November.

Maryland

In Maryland, Adrian Boafo was poised to succeed Rep. Steny Hoyer in the Democratic primary for District 5.

From among the two dozen candidates in the running, Boafo, Hoyer’s former field director, had nearly 32% of the vote, according to preliminary results, far exceeding healthcare CEO Quincy Bareebe, who was sitting second with 18% and former police officer Harry Dunn in third with 13.4%.

Dunn was among those defending the U.S. Capitol from attacks by pro-Trump rioters on Jan. 6, 2021. He is also a co-plaintiff in a lawsuit seeking to stop the Trump administration from establishing an “anti-weaponization fund” to pay rioters for being “targeted” by the Department of Justice.

Boafo had received Hoyer’s endorsement.

Utah

Former Rep. Ben McAdams appeared poised Tuesday night to win the Democratic nomination for Utah’s new District 1, created under Utah’s new congressional map.

Largely made up of Salt Lake City, the district went to Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election.

Preliminary results show McAdams with 60.2% of the vote, state Sen. Nate Blouin with 24.04% and Utah Democratic convention winner Liban Mohamed with nearly 12%.

June 23 (UPI) — Lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a sweeping bipartisan housing package that seeks to lower housing costs and expand homeownership access, sending the legislation to President Donald Trump to be signed into law.

The House voted 358-32 in favor of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act on Tuesday night, with 41 lawmakers not voting.

On Monday, the Senate passed the bill in a similarly overwhelming 85-5 outcome.

“This bill speaks to the real change that our constituents have been demanding, where everyone can afford a dignified place to call home, where tenants are protected and where working Americans can finally get ahead,” Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., ranking member of the House Committee on Financial Services, said from the House floor on Tuesday.

The vote follows months of haggling over the bill’s content by the House and Senate and Democrats and Republicans. In the end, the sweeping bill includes more than 60 pieces of legislation, 36 of which were sponsored by bipartisan lawmakers, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center.

The bill aims to increase housing supply while lowering costs, limiting corporate and institutional ownership for rental purposes and expanding financing for lower-income individuals.

Provisions target bureaucracy to hasten development while seeking to modernize federal housing programs and banking regulations to expand local lending and offer incentives to local governments that prioritize more housing.

Habitat for Humanity, the global nonprofit aimed at helping families build homes, applauded the legislation’s passage on Tuesday, saying it “will bring homeownership within reach for more Americans by tackling longstanding barriers in the housing system.”

“With the passage of this major legislative package, Congress has demonstrated strong, bipartisan leadership by coming to an agreement and taking a critical step in addressing the nation’s housing affordability challenge,” Jonathan Reckford, chief executive officer at Habitat for Humanity International, said in a statement.

The steeply divided Congress came together to pass legislation as the United States faces what some have called a housing affordability crisis.

The United States is facing a housing shortage that is disproportionately affecting lower-income individuals.

According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, the United States is experiencing a shortage of 7.2 million affordable units for low-income renters, with only 35 such rental homes in existence for every 100 low-income renter households.

The nonprofit said extremely low-income renters face the shortage in every state.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., described the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act as “transformational legislation” that will “help the housing affordability problem, reduce regulations so builders can build, limit institutional investing in the housing market and bring the American Dream back into reach for millions of young and working families.”

“Congress is paving a path back to homeownership for American families who have been locked out for far too long,” he said in a social media statement Tuesday night.

June 23 (UPI) — Federal air marshals have seized more than 300 drones during World Cup events in the United States, the Transportation Security Administration said Tuesday.

The TSA said the air marshals, working with state and federal officials, confiscated the devices, though the agency didn’t specify how many from each of the 11 U.S. World Cup venue cities.

“Flying a drone in a restricted zone is a federal crime and can result in fines up to $100,000, prison time and drone confiscation,” the TSA said in a post on X.

World Cup events are being held in 16 North American cities — two in Canada, three in Mexico and 11 in the United States. Among the U.S. cities hosting events are Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York City, New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Seattle.

June 23 (UPI) — Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., said he has subpoenaed Dr. Anthony Fauci after the former infectious diseases official backed out on an agreement to testify on the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Hill reported that this is the first subpoena issued by Paul as chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

“Last week, Anthony Fauci notified us that he will not voluntarily testify before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, even though he had previously agreed to do so,” Paul wrote in a post on X on Tuesday. “Therefore, today we have issued a subpoena for him to publicly testify.”

The post on X included a photo of Rand appearing to sign the subpoena.

Paul has repeatedly clashed with Fauci over policies and recommendations during the COVID-19 pandemic. The senator accused Fauci of covering up U.S. research at a lab in Wuhan, China, which he said caused the coronavirus outbreak.

“We’ve been negotiating with him for material and for testimony,” Paul said in an appearance on CNBC on Tuesday.

“This has gone on for some time. He slow-walked us and slow-walked us. Finally agreed to come in voluntarily … then last week he says he’s not coming in.

“With this subpoena power, we will bring him in, unless he fights this in court.”

Fauci was the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases during the COVID-19 outbreak until 2022. He was also a top medical adviser to Presidents Donald Trump and Joe Biden during the crisis.

A U.S. intelligence analysis initially found there was insufficient evidence to prove COVID-19 was leaked from a research lab in Wuhan. In 2025, the CIA adjusted its stance.

“CIA assesses with low confidence that a research-related origin of the COVID-19 pandemic is more likely than a natural origin-based on the available body of reporting,” an unnamed CIA representative said in a statement in January 2025.

During testimony in 2024, Fauci said he was open to both perspectives.

“I have repeatedly stated that I have a completely open mind to either possibility and that if definitive evidence becomes available to validate or refute either theory, I will readily accept it,” he said during his opening statement before a House committee hearing.

June 23 (UPI) — The Department of Justice subpoenaed four journalists for a grand jury hearing, though it later withdrew them after The Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal challenged them.

One subpoena was for Washington Post reporter Ellen Nakashima and was related to sensitive reporting on a national security matter, The Post said.

The department also issued subpoenas to three Wall Street Journal journalists, who also reported on national security issues, The Post reported.

“The government’s subpoenas to The Wall Street Journal and our reporters represent an attack on constitutionally protected newsgathering,” Ashok Sinha, chief communications officer for Dow Jones, said in May. “We will vigorously oppose this effort to stifle and intimidate essential reporting.”

At the time, the Journal said the Justice Department issued subpoenas for records on reporting about the Iran war, but it did not report at the time that federal officials were trying to force their testimony.

Olivia Petersen, spokesperson for The Washington Post, confirmed that Nakashima was subpoenaed, calling the move an unwarranted violation of press freedom and “another sign of the government seeking to compel journalists to become instruments of its investigations,” Politico reported.

The Post was fighting the subpoena in federal court in the Eastern District of Virginia in sealed proceedings when the department rescinded Nakashima’s subpoena, an official familiar with the matter told The Post.

The Justice Department also withdrew the subpoenas for the Journal, which had been fighting in the same court. None of the journalists testified before a grand jury, the official said. The reasons for the subpoenas are not clear, though the source said they relate to national security.

In January, the FBI raided a Post reporter’s home, and the Pentagon last year revoked journalists’ credentials for not signing an agreement about what they can report.

June 23 (UPI) — Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announced Tuesday that 455 people have been charged in a variety of healthcare fraud schemes totaling $6.5 billion.

Blanche held a press conference to discuss what he called the “2026 national healthcare fraud takedown.” He said 455 people have been charged since June 8 across 56 U.S. attorney’s offices and 45 states and territories.

“These individuals participated in healthcare fraud schemes involving more than $6.5 billion in false claims submitted to Medicare, Medicaid and other healthcare programs,” Blanche said.

Blanche highlighted some of the indictments, including one of a corporate executive in Arizona who was charged for being involved in a $1 billion fraud scheme involving wound grafts.

“This alleged scheme cost Medicare over $1 million per patient,” Blanche said. “In total, our indictment charges 11 defendants for over $2 billion in fraudulent claims in connection to alleged wound care schemes.”

Blanche adds that the money fraudulently claimed in these schemes was used to purchase “multi-million-dollar homes,” cars, jewelry and the construction of a $4.6 million seaside hotel on in the Philippines.

“We’re taking back the money, the luxury cars, the jewelry, and these alleged fraudsters will face justice,” Blanche continued.

Blanche said nine task forces, 57 U.S. attorney’s offices and 41 state attorney general’s offices partnered to investigate healthcare fraud schemes.

Blanche also announced the creation of the West Coast Strike Force and the deployment of more federal prosecutors to bring charges against 295 defendants in Medicaid fraud cases.

June 23 (UPI) — President Donald Trump lifted sanctions on Iran releasing millions into the Iranian economy Monday,

allowing American dollar trade for the first time since 1979.

The U.S. Treasury on Monday issued a 60-day exemption allowing Iran to produce and sell crude oil, petrochemical and petroleum products in U.S. dollars through Aug. 21.

Under this general license, boats and entities that were sanctioned are also cleared to operate. The waiver could also open up allowing U.S. imports of Iranian oil, which hasn’t happened since the 1990s.

Trump defended the move on Truth Social Tuesday morning, saying that the money to Iran is to be used for food and supplies purchased from the United States.

“Despite their protestations and false statements to the contrary, coupled with the drumbeat of the Fake News, which is doing everything possible to make the U.S. Victory as small and insignificant as possible, Iran has fully and completely agreed to highest level Nuclear inspections long into the future (Infinity!!!). This will insure ‘Nuclear Honesty.’ If they did not agree to this, there would be no further negotiations!” the president posted.

“Based on this and other major concessions being made by Iran, I have agreed to allow the Hormuz Strait to remain OPEN, with no further Naval Blockade. However, all ships are remaining in place should it be necessary to reinstitute the Blockade, which seems, at this point, highly unlikely. The Money and/or Sanctions that the U.S. Treasury is releasing goes into escrow, controlled by the U.S.A., and will be used for the purchase of food and medical supplies, exclusively from the United States, including Corn, Wheat, and Soybeans from our great American Farmers. These are things that are desperately needed by Iran. This is a humanitarian crisis, and I feel it is necessary to help, NOW, before it is too late. Talks are going well!” he said.

Vice President JD Vance said Monday that during peace talks on Sunday, Iran agreed to invite the International Atomic Energy Agency back into the country for inspections.

But Iran denied that concession Tuesday morning.

June 23 (UPI) — All four Coast Guard members aboard a helicopter that crashed in Alaska sustained only minor injuries, the maritime law enforcement agency said.

The Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crashed Monday morning during a training flight near Harbor Mountain, Sitka, Alaska, the Coast Guard said in a statement.

The first reports of the crash were received at the Arctic District command center shortly after 10 a.m. local time, officials said.

Deployed responders reached the aircraft at about 11 a.m. local time, the Coast Guard said, and were able to transport the helicopter’s four occupants to Mt. Edgecumbe Medical Center.

U.S. Coast Guard Arctic later Monday said that the four Coast Guard members involved in the crash sustained only minor injuries.

“We are incredibly relieved our crew members survived with only minor injuries,” Rear Adm. Bob Little, commander of the Coast Guard’s Arctic District, said in a statement.

“We are grateful for the swift response by the Sitka Fire and Rescue, who assisted us during this critical time.”

In response to the crash, Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak will be repositioning a helicopter and crews to Coast Guard Air Station Sitka to maintain operational readiness in the Southeastern Alaska region, officials said.

The crash is under investigation.

June 23 (UPI) — A federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration cannot allow states to bar federal food assistance recipients from using their benefits to buy soft drinks, snacks and candy, finding the Agriculture Department lacked the authority to approves such restrictions.

About 42.1 million low-income individuals across the nation receive federal food assistance through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, better known as SNAP, which allows recipients to use the benefits to purchase most foods, excluding alcohol, tobacco and hot prepared foods.

Amid soaring obesity rates across the United States, 22 states received waivers from the Trump administration to exempt certain foods and beverages from the federal definition of food to ban SNAP recipients from using the benefit to purchase these items. Though the waivers vary by state, they all target high-calorie, sugary foods, such as soft drinks, energy drinks, candy and others.

In March, five SNAP recipients in Colorado, Iowa, West Virginia, Tennessee and Nebraska sued the Trump administration over its approval of waivers, saying the restrictions were vague, complicated and counterintuitive, causing significant confusion for both them and retailers, while harming SNAP recipients who rely on sugary beverages to manage chronic health conditions, such as diabetes.

In her ruling Monday, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson found the Agriculture Department’s waivers violated the Administrative Procedure Act, stating the department acted in excess of its authority and without following public input noticed procedures as required by law.

“The secretary purports to waive not just a mere administrative or technical obstacle, but the very definition of ‘food’ as it was laid down by Congress,” the President Barack Obama appointee wrote in her 68-page ruling.

“Neither the USDA nor the states can force this square peg into a round hole to avoid the plain language of the statute and the requirement of 2026(k),” which requires SNAP projects to be consistent with the program’s food-assistance purpose.

The National Center for Law and Economic Justice, which filed the lawsuit, celebrated Monday’s ruling as “a major step in restoring essential food assistance to the millions of families that rely on SNAP nationwide.”

“This decision makes clear that the USDA cannot bypass the legal guardrails that establish how SNAP must operate across the country,” Katie Deabler, senior attorney at the NCLEJ, said in a statement.

“It affirms that families deserve a program that works without confusion.”

June 23 (UPI) — The June 2021 partial collapse of a Miami Beach oceanfront condominium tower that killed nearly 100 people began three weeks before the building completely failed, federal investigators announced Monday.

The four-decade-old Champlain Towers South condo in Surfside, Fla., collapsed June 24, 2021, prompting the deployment of first responders to scour the rubble for survivors. In total, 98 people were killed and many others were injured, making it one of the deadliest structural disasters in U.S. history.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology, which launched an investigation into the incident within days of the collapse, said Monday that it determined the collapse began in early June 2021, when two connections between garage columns and the building’s pool deck failed.

“These initial column failures caused cracks to grow and loads to redistribute in the pool deck over the next three weeks, resulting in the transfer of their loads to adjacent slab-column connections that were not strong enough to support them,” NIST said in a statement.

“This led to the larger catastrophic collapse on June 24.”

The 12-story Champlain Towers South building was constructed in 1981 under required codes and standards intended to ensure builders could support more load than they were expected to bear. But, Judith Mitrani-Reiser, who was a co-lead on the investigation, said the tower’s “margins against failure were not too narrow from the start.”

The investigators believe that the failure of the two connections then spread to other elements of the pool deck and street-level parking structure before unseating the southern edge of the pool deck slab from a supporting wall.

When the pool slab eventually broke away, it damaged two connections supporting that part of the tower, causing the failure to travel through the middle of the tower.

The investigators also found that loads added to the structure over the building’s lifetime, such as pool deck modifications, further narrowed the margins against failure on top of long-term degradation caused by corrosion.

The investigation team said it is now working on compiling a final report that will include recommendations for changes to standards, codes and practices, among other suggestions.

The announcement came after NIST in September released an update into its investigation stating that the condo had shown visible signs of structural strain weeks before the collapse, starting with the pool deck.

June 22 (UPI) — Federal authorities have arrested two additional suspects allegedly involved in last week’s foiled attack targeting the Ultimate Fighting Championship bout at the White House, prosecutors said Monday.

Both suspects made their initial court appearances Monday, the Justice Department said in a release. Jordan Rincker, 28, of St. Joseph, Mo. appeared in a Kansas City court, and William Lee Spartacus Falkner appeared before a judge in Tacoma, Wash.

They each have been charged by criminal complaint with one count of conspiracy to commit murder.

Prosecutors said Falkner was arrested midday Friday, while Rincker was arrested Sunday.

A total of seven people have now been arrested and charged in a sprawling scheme that federal authorities have said involved 23 people conspiring to attack the White House’s Freedom 250 event on June 14, staged in celebration of the United States’ 250th anniversary and the birthday of President Donald Trump.

According to federal prosecutors, the alleged conspiracy planned to attack the north side of the event with explosive-carrying drones, which would force an evacuation to the south side of the event, where snipers would be deployed to open fire on the fleeing crowd, court documents state.

Authorities learned of the alleged attack from the parents of Tycen Proper, who alerted police to their son’s purchase of weapons and online activities. Proper, 19, was among the initial batch of five suspects arrested and charged last week.

The court documents state the group’s alleged grievances appear to be purported government corruption and involvement of U.S. lawyers with Israel.

FBI agents reviewing Proper’s communications were able to identify several alleged co-conspirators, including Falkner.

Prosectuors alleged that Falkner indicated in those communications that he had experience manufacturing and piloting drones and discussed loading them with explosives.

Online communications reproduced in the criminal complaint against Falkner allegedly show discussions on logistics of the attack, including potential flight costs, 3D printing and shipping of the drones.

“I can fly 40+ drones at the same time at the same target,” Falkner is alleged to have said.

Federal prosecutors alleged that just two days before the alleged attack, Rincker met Abraham Alvarez, 31, who was arrested and charged last week along with Proper, in person and accepted $1,200 from him. Rincker then allegedly sent a $100 CashApp payment from the money he received to another previously arrested and charged suspect, Bryan Roa, 24, to pay for his drive from California to Washington, D.C.

Authorities identified Rincker as an alleged member of the conspiracy through information they received from Alvarez following his arrest, according to court documents. Authorities also learned that Rincker allegedly gave a 12-gauge shotgun to Alvarez during an in-person meeting they had in Omaha.

The FBI executed search warrants for Rincker’s residence and storage unit, uncovering a trove of weapons and related paraphernalia, such as a gas mask with cartridge, night vision goggles, ballistic plates, a 3D printer and more.

No attack occurred at the UFC event, at which Trump and other members of his Cabinet were in attendance.

Asked about the thwarted attack a day after the event, Trump told reporters that he had heard about it.

“The attack that I watched were the fighters,” he said, to laughs.

“They were as good a fights as I’ve ever seen. The best.”

June 22 (UPI) — The U.S. Senate on Monday passed a bipartisan bill aimed at lowering housing costs, sending it to the House of Representatives for a final vote.

The Senate voted 85-5 to pass the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act. Several senators missed the vote because of severe thunderstorms that affected Ronald Reagan International Airport, NBC News reported.

A deal on the act was negotiated by a bipartisan group including Sen. Tim Scott, R-Ariz.; Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.; Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., and Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif.

Scott and Warren both said before the vote that it showed that common ground is possible.

“Today’s vote proves that it is possible to find bipartisan, common ground on legislation that actually helps the American people,” Warren said on the Senate floor, The Hill reported. “And, importantly, it proves that bipartisan legislation doesn’t have to be the weakest, most milquetoast agreement that doesn’t offend anyone or do too much to help anyone either.”

The bill’s provisions include measures that encourage renovating older homes, encourage communities to build more housing through funding and grant programs, cut some red-tape issues around building housing and effectively ban private equity from buying up single-family homes. It restricts companies that already own more than 350 single-family homes from buying more.

The act had been stranded for a time after the Senate passed one version in March and the House of Representatives passed a different version in May. The final bill includes provisions sought by the House and drops a provision it objected to that would have required large investors that own or construct at least 350 single-family homes to sell them after seven years.

Those voting against it included Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., who told The Hill that housing is “a local issue.” Scott said he wanted to see Congress balance the budget and drive interest rates down.

If the House votes to approve the bill this week as expected, it will go to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign it.

June 22 (UPI) — Leaders in the House Energy and Commerce Committee announced a bipartisan agreement Monday to advance the Kids Online Safety Act.

Committee Chairman Rep. Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., and ranking member Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., announced the agreement that will set new standards for online platforms in respect to child users.

The committee passed the Kids Internet and Digital Safety Act in March on partisan lines but Monday’s deal brings some changes to the bill.

“Coming into this Congress, we knew that protecting children and teens online would be one of the most significant challenges this committee would have to address,” Guthrie and Pallone said in a joint statement. “Through empowering parents, establishing safety as a default, strengthening privacy for children and teens, increasing transparency around data brokers, and holding Big Tech accountable, the KIDS Act delivers the 21st century protections parents have demanded and our kids deserve.”

The updated bill is expected to be considered on the House floor next week.

The Senate is considering a different version of the Kids Online Safety Act. If the House bill passes, the differences between the bills will need to be resolved.

One of the key distinctions in the House version of the bill is the absence of a duty of care standard which would require social media companies to design their platforms with the safety of children in mind. This includes implementing measures that block children from consuming age-inappropriate content and assures the platform’s design does not contribute to compulsive use.

States would be allowed to implement stricter regulations.

June 22 (UPI) — The superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, Alberto Carvalho, has resigned months after the FBI raided his home and offices, the school board announced Monday.

The LAUSD Board of Education said it received Carvalho’s letter of resignation Sunday.

“The Board remains steadfast in its commitment to ensuring stability, continuity and continued progress through strong leadership,” a statement said. “Our focus remains unchanged: providing every student with a high-quality education, supporting our dedicated workforce and maintaining the trust of the communities we serve.”

The board said former teacher and principal Andrés Chait would continue as acting superintendent until a permanent hire to replace Carvalho is made.

Carvalho’s letter, obtained by the Los Angeles Times, said he resigned to allow the district to focus on students “without distraction.”

The district put Carvalho on administrative paid leave after the FBI executed search warrants at his home and the district’s headquarters in February. Agents were spotted leaving Carvalho’s San Pedro home with boxes at the time.

The raid was connected to an FBI investigation into LAUSD contracts and a failed artificial intelligence project, KTLA-TV in Los Angeles reported.

Attorneys for the former superintendent denied any wrongdoing.

Prior to heading up the LAUSD in 2022, Carvalho was superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools for nearly 14 years.

June 21 (UPI) — President Donald Trump said Sunday that work will begin “immediately” to repair the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, blaming vandalism for problems at the newly renovated Washington, D.C. landmark.

Trump repeatedly claimed over the weekend on social media that there had been arrests in connection with vandalism at the Reflecting Pool, which has been plagued by issues since undergoing a $15 million restoration ordered by the president.

From algae blooms to blue coating peeling off its bottom, the Reflecting Pool has been a target of criticism of the Trump administration, which has defended the restoration as necessary while blaming vandals for at least some of the damage.

In a social media statement on Sunday, Trump said he inspected the Reflecting Pool and was in disbelief at what he saw.

“I just inspected it, and could only say to myself, and those gathered around me, WOW, who would do such a thing? SICK, DERANGED PEOPLE!” he said.

It was unclear exactly what damage Trump was attributing to vandalism.

In a Saturday post, Trump referenced the need to drain the pool in order to conduct vandalism-related repairs, which was in addition to alleged vandalism to landscaping.

“They took some form of knife or blade, and put a 250 foot long gash into the beautiful facade of what took so much work, competence and money to build and complete,” he said.

“They also poured corrosive and destructive chemicals into the Pool.”

Trump first commented on the pool Saturday evening, saying in a statement that U.S. Park Police had arrested “multiple individuals for vandalizing our Nations magnificent Reflecting Pool.”

He then said hours later that “many additional people have been arrested having to do with the disgraceful Vandalism of our beautiful Reflecting Pool.”

UPI has asked U.S. Park Police for confirmation of arrests and damage to the pool caused by vandalism.

Trump first announced plans to restore the pool in November. Atlantic Industrial Coatings Limited was awarded $6.89 million in April to paint the bottom of the pool. The broader restoration has since been reported to cost about $15 million.

He announced June 6 that work on the pool was complete ahead of celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of the United States to be held alongside Trump’s 80th birthday.

But within days of the completion, the pool began experiencing issues. Videos posted online show the pool’s surface green with algae, while others show individuals reaching into the pool to handle the peeling blue paint.

On Friday, three-time U.S. Olympian David Hearn was arrested for allegedly damaging the pool. He has claimed in interviews with multiple news organizations that he only touched the edge of hardened paint that was peeling off the pool’s floor.

“I didn’t vandalize anything,” he said.

June 21 (UPI) — An unruly passenger bit a fellow flyer and started throwing punches aboard an American Airlines flight on Sunday, according to audio of a pilot’s conversation with air traffic controllers.

A recording first obtained by CBS News and then posted online by aviation industry monitors shows the incident happened aboard American Airlines flight AA3046 from Charlotte, N.C., to Philadelphia.

In it, the pilot of the Airbus A320 tells controllers to have emergency medics and law enforcement personnel ready meet the aircraft on arrival at Philadelphia International Airport due to a disturbance onboard allegedly created by a male passenger in his 70s.

“I don’t know… if he’s hallucinating or whatever, but he just bit a passenger and he’s trying to fight everybody,” the pilot is heard saying.

After getting confirmation from the control tower, the pilot adds, “What a day, huh?”

The controller responds, “Happy Father’s Day!”

American Airlines told CBS the passenger was experiencing a medical emergency and that he was “assisted” before the flight landed but did not confirm if police were present upon arrival.

June 20 (UPI) — The board of directors at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing told a judge this week that the venue has no plans to schedule new programming and will likely remain closed for renovations.

U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper in May ruled that the Kennedy Center’s board had decided to close the facility in July for two years of renovations and refurbishments without considering its responsibilities as a federal monument, ABC News and The Washington Post reported.

The May 29 ruling also ordered the center to remove President Donald Trump‘s name from the building, which it complied with last Friday, just hours before the court’s deadline to do so.

Trump made a sudden announcement in February that he planned for the center to be shut down for “construction, revitalization and complete rebuilding” over the course of a two-year period.

Matt Floca, executive director of the Center, told Cooper in a filing Friday that the board will be considering three potential paths forward — full closure, partial closure or a set of phased closures — but that public access to parts of the building would be maintained during any work there.

“Given present uncertainty as to future programming, management has deferred affirmative long-term programming or staff adjustments until the board selects a final operational path.

Performances and shows that were scheduled after the July closure date have already been canceled and are not expected to be rescheduled.

The public will continue to have access to various exhibits and smaller gatherings held there, including the John F. Kennedy exhibit — the facility was designed as a living memorial to the former president — during work there.

The Center’s board is expected to consider the three renovation options at a meeting in mid-July.

June 20 (UPI) — The National Parks Service announced that three people died this week in two separate heat-related incidents at Grand Canyon National Park.

Park rangers and emergency medical personnel responded to the two incidents, which occurred on June 12 and June 16, and both of which happened while hikers were on trails in the Inner Canyon, NPS said Friday in a press release.

All three of the people were deceased when officials arrived, and they were transported with aerial support to the Cococino County Medical Examiner’s office.

NPS said that trails in the Inner Canyon region, where all three were found, regularly top 109 degrees Fahrenheit during this time of year.

Earlier this month, an 18-year-old hiker experienced heat-related symptoms while hiking a different part of the park and, although park rangers and a helicopter rescue operations found him, life-saving measures were not successful.

“Hiking Grand Canyon can be a challenge for anyone, especially during the heat of summer,” NPS said in the release.

On June 12, a 72-year-old man was found on the South Kaibab Trail, and four days later, on June 16, a 67-year-old man and 68-year-old woman were found on the North Kaibab Trail.

On its website, NPS recommends that people planning to visit the park be aware that the Inner Canyon area of the park during the summer is “extremely strenuous and potentially dangerous due to intense heat, minimal shade and no water sources.”

As a result, Grand Canyon park officials recommend that hikers avoid trails in the area between 10 a.m and 4 p.m., when it is hottest there.

The agency also noted that because of a range of reasons, rescue efforts may not be immediately available.

In addition to carrying sufficient water, food and first aid supplies — and knowing their own physical limits — NPS also warns the hikers in many Inner Canyon locations be prepared to “self-rescue” and have a plan to do so.

“The recent increase in heat-related incidents comes as summer temperature in the Inner Canyon have reached dangerous levels, creating conditions that can quickly overwhelm hikers during the hottest parts of the day,” the agency said in Friday’s release.

June 20 (UPI) — Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Saturday issued a declaration of local emergency as the city continues to fight a major fire at a cold-storage warehouse in the city’s Boyle Heights neighborhood.

The fire erupted on June 17 and has since caused smoke to blanket the surrounding area as the warehouse continues to smolder, leading the city to open 24-hour-per-day smoke relief centers for resident who cannot shelter-in-place.

The fire, which was described by Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Jamie Moore as “a very unique challenge,” started around 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the 500,000-square-foot building, ABC7 and The Los Angeles Times reported.

Fire officials said that hazardous materials, including ammonia, have been removed from the building, but foam insulation inside of the building’s walls, among other things, continues to burn.

“While the LAFD continues making progress, this is a major, multi-jurisdictional incident,” Bass said in a statement announcing the declaration.

“The City and County have opened spaces for families seeking relief from the smoke, and we will continue working around the clock and doing everything possible to put this fire out completely,” Bass said.

The ammonia at the warehouse has been pumped out and transported elsewhere, Lineage Logistics, which operates the facility, said in a statement.

The company also said that it believes the fire started when a neighboring business tested a solar array on Wednesday.

Aside from the insulation, city officials said that they also concerned about the rooftop solar array and lithium-ion batteries at the warehouse catching fire, as well as eventually clearing out roughly 85 million pounds of decaying — if not also burnt — food products, most of which is meat.

The LAFD has worked since Wednesday to ventilate the building so that firefighters can more safely enter the building to suppress the fire, department spokesperson Lyndsey Lantz said in a series of updates posted on its website this week.

which carried with it warnings for residents in the surrounding area to avoid smoke inhalation.

Although much of the smoke from ventilating the building had started to clear by mid-day on Friday, an anticipated change in the wind on Friday after, which caused the fire to also flare up, made smoke more visible than it had been since Thursday.

“LAFD crews continue to work diligently on the warehouse fire in Boyle Heights,” Lantz said in an update at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday.

“The smell of smoke has reached most of the city, and we encourage everyone to limit exposure as much as possible.”

June 20 (UPI) — A former Olympian who was riding his bike near the Lincoln Monument Reflecting Pool was arrested after he stopped to look at the paint peeling off of its bottom.

President Donald Trump has blamed algae blooms and paint peeling off the bottom of the pool on vandalism and sabotage, The Washington Post, WUSA9 and WBNS reported that the paint has been seen peeling and floating to the top of the water for days.

David Hearn, a resident of Bethesda, Md., was arrested on Friday for damaging public property after reaching into the water to touch the peeling paint.

In several interviews, Hearn said that he went to look at the pool, the condition of which he’d read about in news reports.

Reporters at WUSA9 said they had witnessed people pulling paint off the pool during the last couple of days, including at least one that used kitchen tongs.

“I didn’t vandalize anything,” said Hearn, who posted a picture of the peeling paint he was looking at on social media after he was released by police.

Weeks after the Trump administration’s $13 million refurbishment effort on the pool ahead of the United States’ 250th birthday, algae could be seen growing throughout the pool, turning it green.

Park service officials added chemicals to kill the algae, but the next day, pieces of the paint applied to the bottom of the pool started floating to the top of the water.

When Hearn approached the pool, he said that he saw part of the paint peeling off the bottom of the pool and floating up, leaned down to touch it and then was suddenly being arrested.

“I reached in there, and I was able to grab the end of that flapping piece, the already peeling piece,” he said. “It was attached to the bottom. I didn’t remove anything.”

Emily Miller, a conservative journalist, posted video on X that showed Hearn near the pool, and then walking away from it before he was arrested for damaging public property.

Trump later in the afternoon said in a post on Truth Social that multiple people have been arrested for vandalizing the pool and that “work will begin immediately on its repair.”

“The United States Park Police have arrested multiple individuals for vandalizing our Nations magnificent Reflecting Pool,” Trump said in the post.

“Who would do such a thing?” he said. “These are very serious crimes having to the do with the destruction of National Monuments. Years in jail!”

Hearn, who competed in three Olympics in the canoe slalom and won two world championship in whitewater racing, is due in court on July 9.