USA

WASHINGTON, April 25 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden and Jordanian King Abdullah discussed efforts to stem violence in Israel and the West Bank on Monday, the White House said, after a flurry of American diplomatic contacts with regional leaders in recent days.

"The president welcomed recent steps to reduce tensions and expressed his hope that the final week of Ramadan will pass peacefully," the White House said in a statement.

NEAR THE POLISH-UKRAINIAN BORDER (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Monday after a secrecy-shrouded visit to Kyiv that Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy is committed to winning his country’s fight against Russia and that the United States will help him achieve that goal.

“He has the mindset that they want to win, and we have the mindset that we want to help them win,” Austin told reporters in Poland, the day after the three-hour face-to-face meeting with Zelenskyy in Ukraine.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear an appeal from Texas death row inmate Rodney Reed, who claims untested crime-scene evidence will help clear him.

Reed was sentenced to death for the 1996 killing of 19-year-old Stacey Stites. Prosecutors say Reed raped and strangled Stites as she made her way to work at a supermarket in Bastrop, a rural community about 30 miles (50 kilometers) southeast of Austin.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Firefighters were taking advantage of higher humidity and calmer winds Monday to work toward containing a wildfire in rural southwestern Nebraska that has killed one person, injured at least 15 firefighters and destroyed at least six homes, an official said.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — The judge overseeing jury selection for a man who murdered 17 people at a Florida high school declared that the process will start over Monday, conceding that she should have questioned 11 potential jurors who said they would not follow the law before she dismissed them.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Intelligence officials had gathered to brief select members of Congress on future threats to U.S. elections when a key lawmaker in the room, No. 3 House Republican Elise Stefanik of New York, tried to move the discussion to a new topic: Hunter Biden’s laptop.

(AP) --- Twitter’s board is negotiating with CEO Elon Musk over his bid to buy the social media platform and a deal could be announced as early as Monday, according to media reports.

Twitter and Musk negotiated into the early hours Monday over his bid to buy the social media platform, The New York Times reported, less than two weeks after the billionaire first revealed a massive stake.

Musk said last week that he had lined up $46.5 billion in financing to buy Twitter, putting pressure on the company’s board to negotiate a deal.

(AP) --- Jurors have heard — and rejected — an array of excuses and arguments from the first rioters to be tried for storming the U.S. Capitol. The next jury to get a Capitol riot case could hear another novel defense this week at the trial of a retired New York City police officer.

25 April 2022; MEMO: The United States has officially invited Israel to attend an emergency summit intended to boost security support for Ukraine, Haaretz reported on Sunday. As many as 40 countries have been invited to the summit, which could be held this week in Germany.

UNITED NATIONS, Apr 24 (APP): United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on Israel to respect the status quo of Jerusalem’s holy sites during a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, according to a statement issued by UN spokesman’s office.

The UN chief held telephonic conversations with the Palestinians and the Israeli government on Sunday during which he reiterated his commitment to support both sides in resolving the conflict, on the basis of United Nations resolutions, international law, and bilateral agreements.