AP News in Brief at 6:04 a.m. EDT

The US has made progress in reopening the Strait of Hormuz, but the Iran war is far from over

In recent weeks, the United States has succeeded in loosening Iran’s grip over the Strait of Hormuz while virtually shutting down Iran’s own oil exports, accelerating its economic free fall.

But the war launched by the U.S. and Israel in February — intended to last a few weeks — is still far from over, and the stalemate is costly for both sides. An agreement reached in June quickly crumbled, with no sign of diplomatic progress since then. Low-level fighting persists, and the U.S. does not seem to have an exit strategy.

The mounting economic pressure on Iran has yet to stoke an uprising, and if its leaders are backed into a corner, they may opt for military escalation rather than capitulation. Their Houthi allies in Yemen have meanwhile stepped up attacks on Saudi Arabia, helping to push oil prices back up.

The price of a barrel of Brent crude, the international benchmark, surged above $100 this week, and diesel — heavily used in transport and farming — hit a record, potentially stoking inflation. U.S. President Donald Trump has acknowledged that gas prices are likely to stay high through the midterm congressional elections.

“Unfortunately, the U.S. is not winning in the war with Iran despite its limited success in loosening Iran’s grip over the strait and the devastating impact on Iran’s economy,” said Mona Yacoubian, a Middle East expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.

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US marks 25 years since the Sept. 11 attacks

NEW YORK (AP) — Americans are commemorating the 25th anniversary of 9/11, remembering the shock, the dead and the sweeping consequences of the al-Qaida attacks on symbols of U.S. might and prosperity.

Friday’s milestone anniversary will bring memorial rituals — wreath-laying, flag-flying, moments of silence, vigils and readings of victims’ names — and volunteer projects in tribute to a day that about half of U.S. adults remember as the most historic event of their lifetime, according to a new poll.

For others it’s an occasion for private reflection — or, in many schools, education — about the attack that unfolded in a single morning but left nearly 3,000 dead and a decades-long trail of aftermath, from personal grief to far-flung wars.

Police Officer Casey Kloepfer plans to spend time Friday at the Brooklyn station house where his father, Officer Ronald Kloepfer, reported to work that day before being called to the World Trade Center. He didn’t make it home.

Casey Kloepfer was only 4, but he grew up hearing about his father’s affinity for helping people and for a job that enabled him to do so. He became an officer this past June.

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Analysis: Trump’s solution to Republicans’ midterm troubles is more Trump

WASHINGTON (AP) — During his first address to a Republican convention in 2016, Donald Trump had an audacious message to a nation yearning for change: “I alone can fix it.”

A decade later and nearing the midpoint of his final term, Trump is still pitching himself as America’s essential repairman. It’s a strategy that’s helped him overcome daunting odds before but now guarantees this year’s midterms will be a referendum on his unpopular presidency. And it previews how difficult it will be for his party to prepare for a future without him as he shows little interest in ceding the stage.

On Thursday, the final night of Republicans’ unusual midterm convention, Trump said he would speak for just a few minutes. Instead he held court for a half hour, repeating many of the points he made in a nearly two-hour speech the previous night, then lingered as balloons dropped from the ceiling and his favorite opera singer serenaded the crowd.

“You’ve got to do me a favor,” he implored at one point. “You’ve got to get out and vote, and you’re going to pretend I’m on the ballot. Because in a way, I’m on the ballot.”

That reflects Trump’s central challenge heading into the final stretch of the midterms. No one since Ronald Reagan has galvanized Republicans — and helped attract a broader range of voters to the party — quite like Trump. But that success only happens when Trump himself is on the ballot. He has repeatedly struggled to translate his personal popularity to success in competitive races when his election is not on the line.

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Trump and Vance team up at GOP convention as party faces midterm risks, and eyes what’s next

DALLAS (AP) — President Donald Trump and his Vice President JD Vance teamed up Thursday to close out the second and final night of the Republicans’ midterm convention in Dallas, imploring voters to stick together to save their party’s majorities in Congress.

Republicans know they are up against history, which traditionally rebuffs the party in power during midterms, but they’re relying on Trump’s personal appeal to voters. Vance, with a primetime speaking slot right before the president, was widely watched as a potential heir to the “Make America Great Again” movement.

Trump organized the convention hoping to rally voters who turn out for him, but not for other candidates.

“You got to do me the biggest favor you’ve ever done,” Trump told the crowd. “You’ve got to do this for me.”

At one point he led the crowd in a repeat-after-me pledge to swear to vote on Nov. 3.

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Philippine firefighters enter charred ferry as rescuers search for 84 missing

CORON, Philippines (AP) — Firefighters entered a charred ferry in Philippine waters on Friday after a fire two nights earlier left five people dead and 84 missing and produced heat and smoke that prevented search and rescue efforts onboard.

Images released by the coast guard around midday showed three smaller boats near the MV June Aster, which appeared to have stopped emitting smoke as personnel walked on the outer portion of the ship.

Coast guard communications officer Joy Dianne Gumatay said Friday they had not received updates from the firefighting team about what was found inside, including whether there were additional fatalities.

The ferry sailed from the capital, Manila, on Wednesday evening and was around 7.4 kilometers (4.5 miles) off the village of Turda near its destination of Coron in Palawan province when the fire was reported.

Rescuers struggled to get inside the burning, smoking vessel Thursday to search for passengers who may been trapped. The efforts were halted overnight.

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As Trump squeezes the International Criminal Court, more countries are leaving

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — As the United States ratchets up the pressure on the International Criminal Court, sanctioning two more high-ranking staff members in recent weeks, a small but growing number of the global tribunal’s member states have announced they will quit the institution.

The recent departure of Venezuela and Chad brings the number of countries to pull out of the court in the past year to five, joining Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. The surge in withdrawals comes as the ICC faces hostility from Washington and a leadership crisis after ousting its own chief prosecutor.

“Five countries so far have announced plans to withdraw from the Rome Statute, and we welcome more announcements in the future,” a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department told The Associated Press.

The Rome Statute established the ICC in 2002 as the court of last resort to prosecute individuals responsible for the world’s most heinous atrocities: war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and the crime of aggression. Based in The Hague, it takes on cases when nations are unable or unwilling to prosecute crimes on their own territory.

“The ICC regrets any decision to depart from the collective effort to end impunity for the most serious international crimes,” the court’s spokesperson Oriane Maillet told the AP.

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Under Trump, census eyes sweeping plan to omit immigrants, race data

The Trump administration is proposing a dramatic overhaul of the once-a-decade U.S. Census head count that could leave out millions of immigrants based on status and key racial and ethnic data, jeopardizing the allocation of resources and the country’s voting map.

The potential changes, announced Wednesday, would exclude undocumented immigrants, asylum seekers and anyone without permanent status. Certain demographic questions from the traditional questionnaire would also be eliminated.

It echoes Trump’s previous idea to add a citizenship question to the 2030 census.

The U.S. Census Bureau, in a post on the Federal Register website, argued “illegal aliens (among others) should not be included in the apportionment count, as they are not true inhabitants, members of the body politic, or persons with a ‘usual residence’ in the United States due to their lack of a sufficient tie and allegiance to the United States.”

The census also “should be colorblind and should not be distorted in any way by questions about immaterial personal characteristics, such as race,” the agency said. It also is considering nixing questions related to people who identify as part of the LGBTQ+ community.

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Houthis seize strategic Red Sea port in Yemen, and other Mideast developments

Iranian-backed Houthi rebels seized Yemen’s strategic Red Sea port city of Mokha, according to Houthi and Yemeni officials, bringing the rebels closer to controlling a critical waterway to the Red Sea.

Separately, an Israeli strike killed at least four people in northern Gaza, including two children, hospital officials said Thursday. The Israeli military said the attack killed a militant.

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

The Iran-backed Houthi rebel group on Thursday took over Yemen’s port city of Mokha, Houthi and Yemeni officials said.

Mokha is about 80 kilometers (50 miles) from the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a strategic waterway between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden through which about 12% of the world’s oil and other goods are shipped.

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Inflation report lands amid spiking oil prices, rising interest rates and Fed on fence

WASHINGTON (AP) — Friday’s inflation report is shaping up to be among the most consequential in years.

Oil and gas prices have spiked again on the back of renewed combat in the Middle East. The Federal Reserve is considering whether to lift its short-term interest rate next week, with some officials saying Friday’s report could swing them either way. And longer-term interest rates jumped Thursday, partly because of fears of higher inflation, pushing mortgage borrowing costs higher.

The Trump administration is seeking to counter voter concerns about high prices and rising interest rates as the midterm elections approach. President Donald Trump on Wednesday promised $5,000 payments to every American adult if the GOP keeps a majority in Congress, a move that would require congressional approval and could stoke inflation. And Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has stepped up buybacks of Treasury bonds in an effort to keep longer-term interest rates lower. Yet on Thursday the yield on the 10-year Treasury reached a nearly three-year high.

On Friday, the government is expected to report that headline inflation ticked down last month, to 3.3% from 3.4%, according to data provider FactSet, though that is still above the Fed’s 2% target. And higher gas prices will likely push inflation back up next month when September’s data is released.

On a monthly basis, prices are forecast to have risen 0.4% from July to August, a pace that if it continues would keep inflation far above 2%.

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Oil prices falls to $105 and Asian shares decline, tracking Wall Street losses

HONG KONG (AP) — Asian shares declined Friday tracking Wall Street losses, while oil prices fell with Brent crude trading at around $105 a barrel after hitting its highest level since May.

U.S. futures edged higher.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped 1.9% to 64,011.34. Shares of multinational investment holding firm SoftBank Group, an investor of OpenAI, fell almost 4%.

South Korea’s Kospi lost 1.8% to 6,909.91. Samsung Electronics slid 3.5%, while memory chipmaker SK Hynix declined 2.2%.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dipped 0.7% to 24,789.07. The Shanghai Composite index was down 1.2% to 3,888.11. Shares of Chinese AI chipmaker Enflame surged 179% in its trading debut in Shanghai.