ORLANDO, Fla. — Tropical Storm Chantal formed Saturday and picked up speed later in the day as it moved in the Atlantic toward the Carolinas, according to the National Weather Service.

What had been Tropical Depression Three that formed off the coast of Florida on Friday grew into the season’s third named storm by 8 a.m.

As of the National...Read more

NEW YORK — Sean “Diddy” Combs’ admitted track record of violently assaulting his girlfriends wasn’t enough to convince a jury that the same women were just as powerless when it came to fulfilling his extreme sexual demands.

Jurors in Manhattan Federal Court on Wednesday acquitted Combs of two sex trafficking counts that alleged he ...Read more

The scam began with a message, then a friendly exchange. A stranger directed the victim to a cryptocurrency investment site that appeared professional — slick design, charts, even customer support. The first deposit showed a modest profit. So did the next. Encouraged, the victim sent more, even borrowing money to keep up. Then, without warning...Read more

At least 32 people have died and dozens of children are missing in the Texas Hill Country after catastrophic flooding, with officials warning the casualty count will climb as forecasts call for more rain and the risk of further flash floods in the coming days.

Among those unaccounted for were at least 27 campers from Camp Mystic, an all-girls ...Read more

U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy traveled to Damascus to renew diplomatic relations with Syria on Saturday, eight months after the overthrow of former President Bashar Assad.

It marks the first visit in 14 years by a U.K. government minister to the Arab nation, which is trying to rebuild its battered economy after Assad was toppled by a group...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Many beachgoers enjoying the waters off Newport Beach on the July 4th holiday were in for a rude awakening. Lifeguards rescued 350 people Friday after the surf turned dangerous.

In one instance, multiple people were rescued from a "monster rip current," according to social media posts from the Newport Beach Lifeguards.

A group ...Read more

Seven people were left injured after a fiery boat explosion on Lake Lanier, a notorious body of water in Georgia where hundreds of others have perished, according to authorities.

Of those hurt, five were hospitalized, including a child who was airlifted to a nearby medical facility following the blast.

The incident occurred Friday, with first ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — A fire in rural San Luis Obispo County grew Friday night to nearly 80,000 acres and is California’s largest this year, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

The Madre fire started around 1 p.m. Wednesday, east of Santa Maria near the town of New Cayuma. More than 200 people were under ...Read more

LOS ANGELES — On the July 4 holiday, federal agents arrested more immigrants as part of ongoing raids that have rounded up more than 1,600 for deportation in Southern California.

In West Hollywood, video footage broadcast by NBC 4-LA showed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in bulletproof vests at the Santa Palm Car Wash on ...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — Tropical Storm Chantal formed Saturday as it slowly moved in the Atlantic toward the Carolinas, according to the National Weather Service.

What had been Tropical Depression Three that formed off the coast of Florida on Friday grew into the season’s third named storm by 8 a.m.

As of the National Hurricane Center's 5 p.m. ...Read more

At least 32 people have died and dozens of children are missing in the Texas Hill Country after catastrophic flooding, with officials warning the casualty count will climb as forecasts call for more rain and the risk of further flash floods in the coming days.

Among those unaccounted for were at least 27 campers from Camp Mystic, an all-girls ...Read more

Israel will send mediators on Sunday to restart talks with Hamas, after the militant group said it was ready to “immediately” negotiate a proposal by U.S. President Donald Trump for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza.

But the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said unspecified changes sought by Hamas were “unacceptable to Israel.”

...Read more

NEW YORK — As ICE agents continued arresting immigrants leaving their hearings at city courts, attorneys, advocates and lawmakers joined them in the narrow hallways ahead of the Fourth of July holiday, bearing witness to what they say is an obliteration of due process.

Democrat lawmakers filed into courtrooms on the 12th floor of 26 Federal ...Read more

DENVER — After months of stalemate, glimmers of hope have emerged for consensus on a new plan to manage the shrinking Colorado River.

Negotiators from the seven river basin states said in a series of meetings in recent weeks that they were discussing a plan rooted in a concept that breaks from decades of management practice. Rather than ...Read more

Israel will send a delegation aimed at restarting talks with Hamas, after the militant group said it was ready to “immediately” negotiate a proposal by U.S. President Donald Trump for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza.

Guy Levy, a spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud Party, confirmed on Saturday an Israeli television report ...Read more

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez vowed to “defeat corruption in and out” as he announced a reshuffle within Socialist Party ranks — even as an ally was forced to resign over sexual harassment allegations.

“My biggest mistake has been to trust who I shouldn’t have trusted, but my determination against corruption is total, wherever...Read more

BEIRUT — After a hastily cobbled together ceasefire between Israel and Iran took hold on June 24, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu jubilantly declared that the "existential threats" of Iran's nuclear program and ballistic missile arsenal had been destroyed. The "historic victory," he said, would "abide for generations."

But nearly ...Read more