Investigators hunt for what went wrong after cargo plane crash in Miami kills at least 5

MIAMI (AP) — Federal investigators on Monday are detailing their plans for determining what caused an Amazon cargo jet to barrel off a runway at Miami International Airport, killing at least five people and injuring five others as it struck vehicles and was engulfed in flames.

The aircraft overran the runway around 2 p.m. Sunday after arriving from San Juan, Puerto Rico, and plowed across a road used by warehouse workers and other businesses that surround the airport. Five people were killed, three critically injured and two others hospitalized with less severe injuries, officials said.

It wasn’t immediately clear if the pilots survived or those killed were all in vehicles when the plane struck.

The crash, which sent thick black smoke billowing into the sky, trapped the pilot and copilot in the cockpit and some occupants in cars, said Miami-Dade Rescue Fire Chief Ray Jadallah. The agency said crews also had to extricate a person who was trapped under a vehicle.

The National Transportation Safety Board said Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy would hold a news conference Monday.

German chancellor faces pressure after far-right AfD party wins a landslide in a state election

BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Friedrich Merz was facing pressure Monday after his party was crushed by the Alternative for Germany party in a regional election that could result in it leading the first far-right state government since the Nazi era.

The AfD, classified by Germany's domestic intelligence agency as an extremist group in some regions of the country, fell just short of a majority in Sunday's election in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt.

Unlike other countries in Europe, modern Germany hasn’t yet had a far-right or right-wing populist party leading a national, state or major-city government — and due to the country’s Nazi past, far-right movements have always received strong scrutiny.

While Sunday's election was only regional, it has major national implications. Merz had vowed to weaken the AfD when he came to office, and the election result shows that he has been unable to deliver on that promise.

AfD's strong victory is also a major distraction for Germany and Merz at a time when Europe faces several challenges, including Russia's continued aggression against Ukraine and a suspected sabotage campaign targeting NATO countries, and difficult dealings with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Israeli airstrikes hit southern Lebanon village, killing 9, and other Mideast news

Lebanon ’s Health Ministry says Israeli airstrikes on a southern Lebanese village has killed nine people. Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Houthi rebels claim to have shot down a Saudi reconnaissance plane.

Here’s a look at the latest news in the Middle East. Full coverage can be found here.

Israel’s air forces carried out two airstrikes early Monday on a southern Lebanese village killing at least nine people, including women and children, the Health Ministry said.

The strikes came amid a new round of escalation between Israel and Hezbollah.

The ministry said one of the strikes hit a building killing eight people including a child and two women. It added that 11 people were also wounded, including four children and two women.

Israeli airstrikes on a village in southern Lebanon kill 9 people, wound 13

KFAR RUMMAN, Lebanon (AP) — Israel’s air force carried out two airstrikes early Monday on a southern Lebanese village, killing at least nine people and wounding others, including women and children, Lebanon's Health Ministry said.

Monday’s strikes came amid a new round of escalation between Israel and the militant Hezbollah group despite a truce reached more than two months ago. The strikes also came days after Israel’s military said it is in “operational control” of the strategic Ali Taher hill that overlooks several villages as well as main roads leading to the city of Nabatiyeh.

The Health Ministry said one of the strikes hit a building, killing eight people including a child and two women. It added that 11 people were also wounded, including four children and two women.

The ministry said that another strike on a car in the village killed a paramedic with the Lebanese Islamic Risala Scout Association and wounded two others.

“We have been living in constant anxiety amid shelling on the outskirts,” said Kfar Rumman resident Fouad Chakaron as he stood in front of the destroyed building. “Now they struck the heart of the town.”

Rescuers search for people trapped in a New Delhi building collapse as death toll rises to 6

NEW DELHI (AP) — Search and rescue teams combed through the debris of a collapsed building in New Delhi on Monday as the death toll climbed to six, officials said.

The five-story building, which housed a boys’ hostel, collapsed on Sunday in Satya Niketan, a densely populated neighborhood known for its private student accommodations near a Delhi University campus.

Police, firefighters and crews from India’s disaster response agency continued their search for a second day as earthmovers cleared debris and sniffer dogs worked the site to help rescuers reach those still trapped inside.

Rescue crews pulled at least 12 people from under the rubble, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta told reporters at the site on Monday. About 80% of the debris had been cleared and only rubble from the basement remained, she said, adding that six people died and six others were injured in the incident.

According to residents, the building was at least 55 years old and had been under renovation for months before reopening to tenants, mostly students, in August despite work remaining unfinished.

Nepal holds a day of mourning after floods kill at least 1,300 people

KATHMANDU, Nepal (AP) — Nepal held a day of mourning Monday to remember those killed in the Aug. 26 floods, with flags lowered at government offices and families concluding mourning rituals.

Monday was the 13th day since the flooding which killed more than 1,300 people in Nepal and Tibet and left some 5,000 missing, including foreigners, according to Nepal’s disaster management agency.

In predominantly Hindu Nepal, mourning periods last 13 days, during which close family members stay home and relatives visit to pay their respects. Rituals are held on the final day to pray for the souls of the departed.

Several people whose relatives remain missing performed symbolic funerals. Cremation is an important final rite in Hindu tradition, and performing the ceremony even without the bodies of their loved ones provided some families a sense of spiritual release.

The government had declared Monday an official day of mourning and ordered flags at government offices lowered to half-staff.

Fuel prices at record Labor Day high in US thanks to Iran War and refinery issues

It's never been more expensive in the U.S. to fill up the tank and take one last summer trip over the Labor Day weekend.

The average price of regular gas was $4.14 a gallon heading into the holiday, nearly a dollar higher than last year and well above the Labor Day weekend record of $3.82 from 2012, according to AAA motor club.

Nicole Collins planned to head from Philadelphia to South Carolina to visit friends, but she said her family has spent most of the summer close to home and not taking their typical weekend trips because driving has gotten so expensive.

“Gas is pretty high right now. It doesn’t help that we also have a baby, so we also have to pay for that,” Collins said outside a gas station in Claymont, Delaware, where regular gas was $4.199 a gallon.

Prices shot up after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran in February and have not settled down since. Crude oil traffic through the key Strait of Hormuz has plunged, and Iran has refused to reopen the waterway.

Trump administration makes another appeal to the Supreme Court to allow mail ballot restrictions

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration on Sunday renewed its appeal to the Supreme Court to allow new restrictions on mail ballots in time for the midterms.

The filing came after U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani extended an order against the Postal Service enforcing President Donald Trump’s executive order for the November elections.

The legal wrangling is happening even as states start sending out mail ballots, leaving the administration little time to make big changes in mail ballot rules.

“Ballots have already begun to be mailed in North Carolina, and more States will begin the mailing process as the injunction remains in place — including Alabama on September 9 and at least five States the week of September 13,” Solicitor General John Sauer said in the filing.

“Once those ballot envelopes enter the mailstream, there is no retrieving them. And while the injunction allows the Postal Service and the States to continue taking steps to ensure that their envelopes satisfy the Rule’s requirements … each day the injunction is in place risks sowing confusion and chaos because the injunction makes those preparatory steps voluntary, rather than mandatory.”

Far-right Alternative for Germany party wins big in regional election but falls short of majority

MAGDEBURG, Germany (AP) — The far-right Alternative for Germany party surged to a resounding victory in a regional election Sunday, but fell a little short of winning a majority in its quest to form the country’s first far-right state government since World War II.

The party of Germany’s unpopular leader, Chancellor Friedrich Merz, slumped to a disastrous result in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt. The anti-migration and Russia-friendly Alternative for Germany’s candidate for governor said that “we have written history” and the party had a clear mandate to govern.

Ulrich Siegmund, 35, told public broadcaster ARD that voters had sent a signal that “things cannot carry on like this.” He said that “a very good campaigner for us in this election campaign was Friedrich Merz.”

Alternative for Germany, or AfD, was seeking an absolute majority in the state legislature to govern alone and overcome the so-called firewall of mainstream parties’ refusal to work with AfD.

Final results showed AfD falling three seats short, with 39 lawmakers in an 83-member parliament. Siegmund said it wouldn’t engage in “games” such as a minority government. But it wasn’t evident how its divided opponents could assemble any stable government without it.

Germany fights Gaza genocide claims at the top UN court

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — Germany told the United Nations’ top court on Monday that a genocide case over weapons sales to Israel was improperly filed by Nicaragua and should be thrown out.

The Central American country accuses Berlin of violating the Genocide Convention and international humanitarian law by “facilitating” acts of genocide in Gaza by providing arms and other military support to Israel.

While the case centers on Germany, it indirectly takes aim at Israel’s campaign in Gaza in response to the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attacks by Hamas. Israel, which isn’t a party in the proceedings, strongly denies that its actions amount to acts of genocide.

“Nicaragua’s conduct indicates that it was not interested in hearing Germany’s view on its allegations, but simply in bringing Germany before this court,” Julia Monar, Germany's top lawyer, told the judges.

According to Monar, Nicaragua failed to properly notify the German government and gave her country less than a month to reply before launching proceedings. Countries are typically expected to attempt to resolve disputes before bringing them to the court.