North America

WASHINGTON (AP) — Two people who were critically injured in a lightning strike outside the White House have died, police said Friday. Two others remained hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.

James Mueller, 76, and Donna Mueller, 75, of Janesville, Wisconsin, died of their injuries after the lightning strike in Lafayette Park, located directly outside the White House complex, the Metropolitan Police Department said.

The two other people, a man and a woman, were in critical condition, the police department said. Their identities were not immediately released.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Facebook owner Meta is quietly curtailing some of the safeguards designed to thwart voting misinformation or foreign interference in U.S. elections as the November midterm vote approaches.

It’s a sharp departure from the social media giant’s multibillion-dollar efforts to enhance the accuracy of posts about U.S. elections and regain trust from lawmakers and the public after their outrage over learning the company had exploited people’s data and allowed falsehoods to overrun its site during the 2016 campaign.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats have agreed to eleventh-hour changes to their marquee economic legislation, they announced late Thursday, clearing the major impediment to pushing one of President Joe Biden’s paramount election-year priorities through the chamber in coming days.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., a centrist seen as the pivotal vote in the 50-50 chamber, said in a statement that she had agreed to revamping some of the measure’s tax and energy provisions and was ready to “move forward” on the bill.

WASHINGTON (AP) — China declared Friday it was stopping all dialogue with the United States on major issues, from climate change to military relations, in a day of rapidly escalating tensions over House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. The White House summoned China’s ambassador to protest what it called China’s “irresponsible” actions since the visit.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defying anxiety about a possible recession and raging inflation, America’s employers added a stunning 528,000 jobs last month, restoring all the jobs lost in the coronavirus recession. Unemployment fell to 3.5%, lowest since the pandemic struck in early 2020.

July’s job creation was up from 398,000 in June and the most since February.

MONTREAL (Canada), Aug 4 (NNN-XINHUA) — World health experts have vowed to act with courage to end AIDS at the just-concluded 24th International AIDS Conference.

The five-day conference, known as AIDS 2022, brought together scientists, clinicians, community leaders, advocates, people with lived experience of HIV, health providers, decision-makers and others from around the world to enhance the HIV and AIDS response.

WASHINGTON, Aug 4 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The US has urged its citizens to be vigilant against possible anti-American violence abroad following the killing of al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri.

His death could prompt al-Qaeda supporters or other linked terror groups to target US facilities and personnel, said the state department.

Zawahiri was killed by a US drone in the Afghan capital, Kabul, on Sunday.

He had helped mastermind the 9/11 attacks on the US in which nearly 3,000 people lost their lives.

UNITED NATIONS, Aug. 4 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday called for taxation on windfall profits of oil and gas companies to ease the impact of the energy crisis on the most vulnerable people.

"It is immoral for oil and gas companies to be making record profits from this energy crisis on the backs of the poorest people and communities and at a massive cost to the climate," said Guterres at the launch of the third report of his Global Crisis Response Group on Food, Energy and Finance over the Ukraine conflict.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — The U.S. Justice Department announced civil rights charges Thursday against four Louisville police officers for their involvement in the drug raid that led to the death of Breonna Taylor, a Black woman whose fatal shooting contributed to the racial justice protests that rocked the U.S. in the spring and summer of 2020, officials announced Thursday.

The charges are another effort to hold law enforcement accountable for the killing of the 26-year-old medical worker after one of the officers was acquitted of state charges earlier this year.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal grand jury investigating efforts to undo the results of the 2020 presidential election has subpoenaed the White House counsel under then-President Donald Trump and his top deputy, according to a person familiar with the matter.