The U.S. military said Tuesday it has following the crash of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter off the coast of Oman that U.S. President Donald Trump blamed on the Islamic Republic.
The helicopter went down after colliding with an Iranian drone, according to a U.S. official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation. It wasn鈥檛 clear whether the collision was intentional, and official statements only said the crash is under investigation.
The attack comes after President Donald Trump blamed Iran for downing the helicopter and vowed that the U.S. would respond.
Meanwhile, a bill to provide nearly $70 billion for narrowly passed the House on Tuesday and now goes to President Donald Trump for his signature, fueling the administration鈥檚 deportation agenda for the remainder of his time in the White House.
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US Army helicopter that crashed off the coast of Oman went down after colliding with an Iranian drone, US official says
A U.S. Army Apache helicopter that crashed off the coast of Oman went down after colliding with an Iranian drone, according a U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.
It is not clear whether the collision was intentional, and official statements only said the crash is under investigation. CNN, CBS 太子探花 and other outlets earlier reported the Iranian drone collision.
President Donald Trump said Iran shot down the aircraft while it was on patrol over the Strait of Hormuz and declared that the U.S. 鈥渕ust, of necessity, respond to this attack,鈥� in a post to social media.
The U.S. military later announced that it had begun strikes against Iran. Iranian state media is reporting that explosions have been heard on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz.
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鈥� Jon Gambrell, Darlene Superville, Konstantin Toropin
US says it has begun strikes against Iran following crash of Army Apache helicopter off Oman coast
The U.S. military announced that it has begun strikes against Iran following the crash of a U.S. Army Apache helicopter off the coast of Oman.
In a statement posted to social media, U.S. Central Command said the strikes would be 鈥渁 proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression.鈥�
It comes after President Donald Trump blamed Iran for downing the helicopter and vowed that the U.S. would respond.
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Cuba鈥檚 top envoy to US calls Trump鈥檚 sanctions on Cuban leaders a 鈥榩retext鈥� for military action
Recent and the are a 鈥減retext鈥� for the Trump administration to persuade the American people to support a military intervention, Cuba鈥檚 top diplomat to the United States told The Associated Press.
In an interview on Tuesday, Ambassador Lianys Torres Rivera repeated accusations against the Trump administration made by other Cuban officials, including the foreign minister and the president, and complained bitterly that the U.S. is targeting Cuban civilians with and new to the island.
鈥淭he sanctions against our leaders, we see as a pretext to make the American people think we are a threat,鈥� she said at Cuba鈥檚 embassy in Washington. 鈥淲e are not a threat to the U.S., and we don鈥檛 want confrontation.鈥�
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Speaker Johnson says he had a 鈥榲ery productive鈥� meeting at White House
Johnson met for several hours with the president as Congress is racing to ensure the FISA foreign surveillance tool does not expire by Friday鈥檚 deadline.
Lawmakers have objected to Trump鈥檚 pick of Pulte as director of the office of national intelligence putting the vote to reauthorize FISA at risk.
Pressed if he believed Pulte was qualified for the job, Johnson said, 鈥淲e talked about all that, I鈥檓 going to let the president speak.鈥�
Asked if Trump would dump Pulte, Johnson deferred to the president.
US tells Europe to step up measures to prevent spread of Ebola virus from Africa
The Trump administration is telling European nations that they need to step up their travel restrictions for people entering the continent from Ebola virus-hit countries in Africa, warning that failure to do so may result in increased U.S. regulations regarding travel from Europe, including for the World Cup football tournament.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday called European Commission President Ursala von der Leyen to convey the concerns, 鈥渢o discuss U.S. and European coordination and response efforts to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda,鈥� the State Department said in a statement.
鈥淭he department鈥檚 highest priority and focus remain protecting the health of the American people and preventing this Ebola outbreak from reaching our shores,鈥� it said.
There are relatively few direct flights between Africa and the United State per day but more than 300 direct daily flights between Europe and the United States.
Trump says US 鈥榤ust鈥� respond after Iran downed US Army helicopter near Strait of Hormuz
President Donald Trump blamed for downing a U.S. Army helicopter near on Tuesday and said the United States must respond to the attack.
A drone boat rescued two Army aviators who were aboard the Apache attack helicopter when it went down near the waterway that Iran has effectively closed during its war with the U.S. and Israel. Trump said in a social media post that both service members 鈥渁re safe and uninjured.鈥�
鈥淣evertheless, the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack,鈥� Trump wrote.
The helicopter went down as the Middle East was still reeling after the previous day in the biggest blow yet to the strained ceasefire in the Iran war. Iranian state television reported Tuesday that the Israeli attacks killed at least two members of the country鈥檚 air-defense units.
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Melania Trump tells students to 鈥榢eep using artificial intelligence as a muse鈥�
The first lady spoke at the White House while recognizing the winners of a nationwide contest in which students were asked to complete a project using an AI method or tool to address a challenge in their communities.
鈥淭oday is about opening doors,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hen new doors open, passions flow, courage blossoms and dreams are realized. AI inspires.鈥�
More than 20,000 students from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and more than four dozen Defense Department schools in 10 countries participated in the inaugural Presidential AI Challenge.
Melania Trump recognized six elementary, middle and high school champion teams, along with about 120 finalists.
The first lady is a proponent of using artificial intelligence in education and also has warned of the risks posed by the technology.
Trump鈥檚 push for healthcare price transparency aims to address a major concern for voters
The warnings are the latest example of Trump leaning into the message that his administration is fixing the problem of . It鈥檚 a calculated pitch ahead of the at a time when affordability is a top concern, and Trump is vulnerable on this after allowing for insurance, widely known as Obamacare.
Just 29% of U.S. adults approved of Trump鈥檚 healthcare policies in the by .
Price transparency could have a particular impact in the Republican strongholds of Texas, Florida, Indiana, Alabama and Louisiana, which have among the most hospitals warned about inadequate price information.
Trump administration warns more than 500 hospitals to provide more price information or face fines
The administration argues that the lack of for consumers to access is keeping higher than they should be.
The Associated Press obtained exclusively the list of hospitals that since April have either received letters of warning or requests to submit plans to provide transparent pricing. Penalties range up to $2 million annually for each hospital that doesn鈥檛 create a plan to post clear pricing data.
The letters are meant to fix a fundamental problem: Patients, employers and insurers might not know ahead of time the cost of blood work, an imaging test or another form of treatment, and as a result pay more than they should have. AP has that have received letters.
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House GOP leader says they鈥檙e 鈥榤oving forward鈥� on passing $70 billion immigration enforcement funds
Pressed if the Republicans would be able to approve the package during afternoon votes, Majority Leader Steve Scalise appeared confident, despite their already slim advantage potentially being narrowed as lawmakers from several states dash home to campaign on primary election day.
鈥淲e always have to deal with absences, a narrow majority, that鈥檚 life in the big city,鈥� Scalise, the Republican from Louisiana, told reporters.
Democrats oppose the package, which would fuel Trump鈥檚 immigration enforcement and deportation agenda through the rest of his time in the White House.
鈥淲e鈥檙e just going keep working through but, you know, we鈥檙e going to get our work done,鈥� he said.
Thune says White House 鈥榳eighing seriously鈥� a long-term DNI pick
Lawmakers in both parties are pressing the White House to reconsider its decision to install Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Tuesday he does not believe the administration is considering replacing Pulte in the acting role, and is instead weighing a permanent nominee to lead the intelligence community.
鈥淚 think they鈥檙e weighing seriously making a long-term pick,鈥� Thune told reporters.
Thune added that it鈥檚 his 鈥渉ope鈥� the decision would come sooner rather than later.
Salt Lake City lawsuit is latest against DHS plan to use giant warehouses to detain immigrants
Salt Lake City and its county are suing to block a giant warehouse where Homeland Security plans to detain as many as 10,000 immigrants. Their federal lawsuit is the around the country who were not consulted before DHS purchased industrial warehouses to convert into regional immigrant processing and detention centers.
The lawsuit targets the most expensive yet: $145.4 million for a warehouse roughly the size of 15 football fields. The March purchase, from a real estate group partially owned by Deutsche Bank, cost nearly 50% more than the property鈥檚 2025 assessed market value, records show.
In all, DHS purchased 11 warehouses for more than $1 billion in the final weeks of . The DHS Office of Inspector General is investigating whether that was wasteful, and Noem鈥檚 successor, , has .
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US military says a drone boat brought the 2 helicopter crew members to shore
A U.S. Navy drone boat rescued two Army aviators after their Apache helicopter went down near the coast of Oman, a U.S. military official said Tuesday.
Capt. Tim Hawkins, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, said a 24-foot unmanned boat located the crew members, who had spent two hours in the water, and brought them to shore.
Military officials have not said what caused the helicopter to go down. The military said the incident is under investigation.
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House Speaker Johnson at White House as US surveillance tool risks a lapse
Rep. Mike Johnson is meeting with Trump now that for director of national intelligence has upended debate over .
Lawmakers in both parties are pushing the White House to drop Pulte, saying he lacks the congressionally mandated national security expertise.
Johnson expects the Foreign intelligence Surveillance Act, known as FISA, will be part of the talks.
FISA is set to expire Friday, risking an interruption of the surveillance tool if Congress fails to extend it.
Trump says pilots are fine after US helicopter crashes near Strait of Hormuz
Trump says two U.S. Army members were not injured when their Apache attack helicopter crashed near .
鈥淭he pilots are fine,鈥� Trump said after watching the NBA finals in New York Monday night. 鈥淣obody injured.鈥�
What caused the crash remains unclear in a Middle East still reeling after the previous day in the biggest blow yet to the straining ceasefire in the Iran war. Iranian state television reported Tuesday the Israeli attacks killed at least two members of Iran鈥檚 defense units.
A statement from the U.S. military鈥檚 Central Command said the crew were rescued within two hours and were in stable condition.
Trump insists, again, that an Iran deal is coming
鈥淲e have a good chance鈥� of signing a deal in 鈥渢wo or three days,鈥� Trump said Monday night, without providing any detailed reason for new optimism.
Trump has repeatedly predicted that a deal is near over the two months since the U.S. and Iran agreed to an initial ceasefire. Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, however, said Monday that Trump鈥檚 remarks have 鈥渃ontradicted the agreed-upon sections, showing that (the U.S. is) neither seeking a ceasefire nor dialogue.鈥�
鈥淲e鈥檙e very close to having a very, very good, strong, powerful deal,鈥� the president said. 鈥淚f we go and bomb 鈥� which we could do very easily if we want, and we spend another two or three weeks bombing 鈥� they鈥檒l have nothing left whatsoever. But you won鈥檛 have the strait open for months.鈥�
He added: 鈥淚f we do the bombing, you know, a lot of people are going to be killed. Who wants to do that? I don鈥檛.鈥�
Trump鈥檚 enforcers are poised to ramp up deportations
last week, with Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska the only Republican to oppose it. If the House approves, Trump鈥檚 signature would all but assure an essentially uninterrupted flow of funds for his immigration enforcement and deportation agenda into 2029.
The Department of Homeland Security is under new leadership after Trump replaced with new . He to keep the department out of the headlines, but the administration is under pressure from anti-immigration advocates to deliver on Trump鈥檚 campaign promise of in American history.
So far, the administration has not hit its goal of 1 million deportations a year, but Trump鈥檚 border czar, Tom Homan, has promised more to come, including hinting at enforcement in New York, the nation鈥檚 biggest city, which is heavily Democratic.
House Majority leader says ICE funding is long overdue. Top Democrat calls it a blank check
鈥淲e have to fund border security and immigration enforcement, and it鈥檚 sad that Republicans have to do it on our own,鈥� Johnson said.
The Republican-controlled Congress already provided nearly $140 billion for ICE and Customs and Border Protection as part of .
Democrats wanted significant changes after the deaths of and in Minneapolis 鈥� insisting for example that agents be required to display their ID badges and get a judicial warrant before entering private property. Instead, the funding will come with virtually no strings attached.
鈥淲e believe that taxpayer dollars should be used to make life more affordable for the American people 鈥� not give ICE another $70 billion blank check so that they can unleash brutality on American citizens and violently target law-abiding immigrant communities,鈥� House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries said.
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