AP News in Brief at 11:04 p.m. EST

US, British militaries launch massive retaliatory strike against Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. and British militaries bombed more than a dozen sites used by the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen on Thursday, in a massive retaliatory strike using warship- and submarine-launched Tomahawk missiles and fighter jets, U.S. officials said. The military targets included air defense and coastal radar sites, drone and missile storage and launching locations, they said.

President Joe Biden said the strikes were meant to demonstrate that the U.S. and its allies “will not tolerate” the militant group’s ceaseless attacks on the Red Sea. And he said they only made the move after attempts at diplomatic negotiations and careful deliberation.

“These strikes are in direct response to unprecedented Houthi attacks against international maritime vessels in the Red Sea — including the use of anti-ship ballistic missiles for the first time in history,” Biden said in a statement. He noted the attacks endangered U.S. personnel and civilian mariners and jeopardized trade, and he added, “I will not hesitate to direct further measures to protect our people and the free flow of international commerce as necessary.”

Associated Press journalists in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, heard four explosions early Friday local time. Two residents of Hodieda, Amin Ali Saleh and Hani Ahmed, said they heard five strong explosions hitting the western port area of the city, which lies on the Red Sea and is the largest port city controlled by the Houthis. Eyewitnesses who spoke with the AP also said they saw strikes in Taiz and Dhamar, cities south of Sanaa.

The strikes marked the first U.S. military response to what has been a persistent campaign of drone and missile attacks on commercial ships since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. And the coordinated military assault comes just a week after the White House and a host of partner nations issued a final warning to the Houthis to cease the attacks or face potential military action. The officials described the strikes on condition of anonymity to discuss military operations. Members of Congress were briefed earlier Thursday on the strike plans.

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Who are the Houthis and why did the US and UK retaliate for their attacks on ships in the Red Sea?

WASHINGTON (AP) — When U.S. and U.K. warships and aircraft launched waves of missiles at Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen early Friday in Sanaa, it capped weeks of warnings to the militant group to cease their drone and missile attacks against commercial vessels in the Red Sea or face severe consequences.

Previously the U.S. had withheld striking back, reflecting larger U.S. concerns about upending the shaky truce in Yemen and triggering a wider conflict in the region. But on Tuesday the Houthis launched their largest-ever barrage of 18 one-way attack drones, anti-ship cruise missiles and an anti-ship ballistic missile at a host of international commercial vessels and warships in the Red Sea.

While the U.S. and partner military ships and aircraft now protecting the waterways were able to deflect Tuesday’s attack, the scope and severity of the launch drew international condemnation and left few options other than to carry through with international warnings that any further attacks would draw a substantial response.

In response, the U.S. and U.K. struck Houthi missile, radar and drone capabilities to degrade the group’s ability to conduct more attacks like Tuesday’s barrage.

In response to the strikes, which occurred in Yemen just before Friday 3 a.m. local time, the militant group has already pledged to retaliate.

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Donald Trump defies judge, gives courtroom speech on tense final day of New York civil fraud trial

NEW YORK (AP) — Barred from giving a formal closing argument, Donald Trump wrested an opportunity to speak in court at the conclusion of his New York civil fraud trial Thursday, unleashing a barrage of attacks in a six-minute diatribe before being cut off by the judge.

In an extraordinary move for any defendant, Trump not only sought to make his own summation but then brushed past a question from the judge about whether he would follow rules requiring him to keep his remarks focused on matters related to the trial.

“I am an innocent man,” Trump protested. “I’m being persecuted by someone running for office, and I think you have to go outside the bounds.”

Judge Arthur Engoron let him continue almost uninterrupted for what amounted to a brief personal summation, then cut him off for a scheduled lunch break.

Trump’s in-court remarks, which were not televised, ensured a tumultuous final day for a trial over allegations that he habitually exaggerated his wealth on financial statements, deceiving a bank and insurance companies into giving him plum deals.

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Palestinian viewers are captivated and moved by case at UN’s top court accusing Israel of genocide

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Palestinians across the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem spent Thursday captivated by the proceedings in a faraway courtroom, closely following the first hearing in an unprecedented case brought by South Africa that accuses Israel of committing genocide in the Gaza Strip.

Friends and family gathered before screens in living rooms and local coffee shops to watch the opening statements at the top United Nations court, located in the Netherlands. Cab drivers used their phones between shifts to tune into the International Court of Justice’s livestream from The Hague.

Televisions typically filled with images of bloodshed and destruction in Gaza instead broadcast foreign lawyers and judges holding forth in lofty halls. In at least one cafe in the West Bank city of Ramallah, some cheered as they watched South Africa’s justice minister expound on the decades-long “systematic oppression and violence” of Palestinians. Others wept.

“I am amazed at the fact that the international community is trying to hold Israel accountable,” Assalah Mansour, a 25-year-old lawyer, said from the northern West Bank city of Nablus. The hearing in The Hague was the talk of the town Thursday, she said.

“For the first time, I felt like this case restored the Palestinian people’s hope in the international community,” Mansour said.

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US-led strikes on Yemeni rebels draw attention back to war raging in Arab world’s poorest nation

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S.-led airstrikes on Yemen’s Houthi rebels over their attacks on shipping in the Red Sea pulled the world’s focus Friday back on the yearslong war raging in the Arab world’s poorest nation, even as shipping across the wider Mideast remains threatened.

As the bombing lit the predawn sky over multiple sites held by the Iranian-backed rebels, Saudi Arabia quickly sought to distance itself from the attacks as it seeks to maintain a delicate détente with Iran and a cease-fire in the Yemen war from which it hopes to finally withdraw.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Navy acknowledged an attack days earlier on a ship in the far reaches of the Indian Ocean — an attack that may signal Iran’s willingness to strike vessels as part of a wider maritime campaign over Israel’s war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Tehran on Thursday separately seized another tanker involved in an earlier crisis over America seizing oil targeted by international sanctions on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program.

It remained unclear how extensive the damage was, though the Houthis said at least five sites including airfields had been attacked. Hussein al-Ezzi, a Houthi official in their Foreign Ministry, acknowledged “a massive aggressive attack by American and British ships, submarines and warplanes.

“America and Britain will undoubtedly have to prepare to pay a heavy price and bear all the dire consequences of this blatant aggression,” al-Ezzi wrote online.

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Hunter Biden pleads not guilty to federal tax charges after an earlier deal imploded

LOS ANGELES (AP) — President Joe Biden’s son pleaded not guilty Thursday to federal tax charges filed after the collapse of a plea deal that could have spared him the spectacle of a criminal trial during the 2024 campaign.

Hunter Biden has been accused of nine felony and misdemeanor tax offenses. The charges stem from what federal prosecutors say was a four-year scheme to skip out on paying the $1.4 million he owed to the IRS and instead use the money to fund an extravagant lifestyle that by his own admission included drugs and alcohol.

“We’re here today because you’ve been accused by the United States of a criminal offense,” Judge Mark Scarsi said to Biden, who entered the not guilty plea himself.

The judge set a tentative trial date of June 20 during the half-hour-long hearing.

Meanwhile, Hunter Biden has also been charged in Delaware with lying in October 2018 on a federal form for gun purchasers when he swore he wasn’t using or addicted to illegal drugs. He was addicted to crack cocaine at the time. He’s also accused of possessing the gun illegally and has pleaded not guilty in that case.

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Haley’s frequent reference to new anti-DeSantis website falls flat with some supporters in Iowa

ANKENY, Iowa (AP) — Former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley revived some of the debate-stage critiques she leveled against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as she campaigned in Iowa on Thursday, even as some of her supporters said they didn’t think her performance the night before had been her strongest.

With just days to go before Iowa’s leadoff GOP caucuses, Haley spoke to a gathering of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit in Altoona before addressing a packed room of supporters in Ankeny. She was also set to meet with voters in Cedar Rapids on Thursday night.

In Ankeny, as she did multiple times in Wednesday night’s one-on-one debate, Haley directed supporters to a new website called DeSantisLies.com. Both Haley, a former South Carolina governor, and DeSantis have repeatedly accused the other of lying and misrepresenting their records.

“There’s a lot of lies and everything going on,” Haley told the crowd Thursday. “I finally just put it on a website, because I’m like, it’s just too big a thing. … Let’s focus on what we’re going to do to stop this drama, and to focus on what we need to do for the solutions.”

Some attendees said they supported Haley but weren’t thrilled with her latest debate performance, which they said ran counter to the above-the-fray style they said she’d maintained up to now.

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US investigating if Boeing made sure a part that blew off a jet was made to design standards

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating whether Boeing failed to make sure a panel that blew off a jetliner in midflight last week was safe and manufactured to meet the design that regulators approved.

Boeing said Thursday it would cooperate with the investigation, which is focusing on plugs used to fill spots for extra doors when those exits are not required for safety reasons on Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners.

One of two plugs on an Alaska Airlines jetliner blew out shortly after the plane took off from Portland, Oregon, leaving a hole in the plane.

“This incident should have never happened,and it cannot happen again,” the FAA said. “Boeing’s manufacturing practices need to comply with the high safety standards they’re legally accountable to meet.”

The FAA notified Boeing of the investigation in a letter dated Wednesday.

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Who was the revered rabbi whose New York synagogue was the scene of a brawl over an illegal tunnel?

The basement synagogue that was the scene of a brawl this week between worshippers and New York City police has a long and storied connection with a Brooklyn rabbi who led a global movement and remains revered three decades since his death.

The fight broke out Monday when authorities moved in to seal off a secret tunnel into the Chabad-Lubavitch synagogue, which some worshippers — described by the movement as “a small group of rogue youth” — said was intended to fulfill the wishes of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.

Here are some details about Schneerson and his impact within and beyond the Chabad-Lubavitch movement of Orthodox Judaism.

Schneerson led Chabad-Lubavitch from 1951 until his death in 1994. He was the movement’s seventh leader, know as Lubavitcher Rebbe.

He arrived in the United States during World War II after gaining a secular education in Europe, and he quickly set about rebuilding Chabad-Lubavitch and wider Jewish observance following the devastation of the Holocaust.

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The Patriots don’t just need a new coach. They need a quarterback and talent to put around him

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft will cringe when he turns on the TV — or perhaps even looks at the other Gillette Stadium sideline — and sees Bill Belichick wearing a ratty sweatshirt with another team’s colors.

But he has bigger things to worry about now.

The Patriots need a coach for the first time in almost a quarter century, and they need so much more, too: Belichick’s failure to develop a quarterback to replace Tom Brady — and surround him with talent — is the biggest reason for the struggles that led to a 4-13 record this season and the end of the Belichick era in New England.

“This is a move that we mutually agreed that is needed at this time,” Kraft said in a media availability on Thursday. “I thank coach Bill for his hard work and dedication. It’ll be difficult to see him in a cutoff hoodie on the (opposing) sideline, but I will always continue to wish him continued success — except when he’s playing our beloved Patriots.”

Belichick is the most successful coach in the Super Bowl era, with six NFL championships, nine conference titles and 17 AFC East wins in a 19-year span. His 332 victories is second all-time only to Don Shula.