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

Army sergeant shot 5 soldiers before he was tackled and arrested at Fort Stewart, officials say

FORT STEWART, Ga. (AP) — A sergeant shot five soldiers Wednesday at one the country’s largest Army bases before he was quickly tackled by other Fort Stewart troops, forcing a brief lockdown, officials said.

Few details were immediately available about what led to the gunfire, but officials said the shooter was Sgt. Quornelius Radford, 28, who used a personal handgun, not a military firearm.

Radford opened fire where he worked but officials wouldn’t speculate about a motive, authorities said.

The injured soldiers are stable and expected to recover, said Brig Gen. John Lubas. The soldiers who tackled Radford helped ensure his arrest, said Lubas, who commands the 3rd Infantry Division.

“These soldiers, without a doubt, prevented further casualties or wounded,” he said.

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Military base shootings have ranged from altercations to workplace violence and terrorism

ATLANTA (AP) — The shooting of five U.S. Army soldiers at a base in Georgia on Wednesday is the latest in a growing list of violent occurrences at American military installations over the years. Shootings have ranged from isolated events between service members to attacks on bases to mass-casualty events, such as the shooting by an Army psychiatrist at Texas’s Ford Hood in 2009 that left 13 people dead.

Here is a look at some of the shootings at U.S. military bases in recent years:

In December, a National Guard soldier was charged with murder after authorities said he shot a man at a former girlfriend’s residence on the grounds of Fort Gordon. The base outside of Augusta, Georgia, is home to the U.S. Army Cyber Command. It was formerly known as Fort Eisenhower.

In December 2022, a soldier was charged with murder in a military court following the fatal shooting of a sergeant at Georgia’s Fort Stewart. Both soldiers served in the 2nd Brigade Combat Team of the 3rd Infantry Division. Fort Stewart officials said the soldier used a privately owned gun and that fellow soldiers subdued the gunman before his arrest.

In June 2020, a woman and a man were killed in a shooting at the Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota. The woman’s parents later told media outlet KJZZ in Phoenix that she was the victim of domestic violence.

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Trump could meet in person with Putin as soon as next week, White House official says

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump could meet in person with Russian President Vladimir Putin as soon as next week as he seeks to broker an end to the Russia-Ukraine war, a White House official said Wednesday.

The official cautioned that a meeting has not been scheduled yet and no location has been determined. The official was not authorized to speak publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss internal plans.

The White House said Trump was also open to a meeting with both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

A meeting between Putin and Trump would be their first since Trump returned to office this year. It would be a significant milestone in the 3-year-old war, though there’s no promise such a meeting would lead to the end of the fighting since Russia and Ukraine remain far apart on their demands.

Trump, appearing before reporters later at the White House, didn’t answer questions about a potential location for a meeting but when asked about a summit with Putin and Zelenskyy, said “there’s a very good prospect that they will” meet.

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Trump to put additional 25% import taxes on India, bringing combined tariffs to 50%

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday to place an additional 25% tariff on India for its purchases of Russian oil, bringing the combined tariffs imposed by the United States on its ally to 50%.

The tariffs would go into effect 21 days after the signing of the order, meaning that both India and Russia might have time to negotiate with the administration on the import taxes.

Trump’s moves could scramble the economic trajectory of India, which until recently was seen as an alternative to China by American companies looking to relocate their manufacturing. China also buys oil from Russia, but it was not included in the order signed by the Republican president.

As part of a negotiating period with Beijing, Trump has placed 30% tariffs on goods from China, a rate that is smaller than the combined import taxes with which he has threatened New Delhi.

Trump had previewed for reporters Tuesday that the tariffs would be coming. During an event in the Oval Office Wednesday with Apple CEO Tim Cook, Trump affirmed the 50% tariff number, not giving a specific answer as to whether additional tariffs on India would be dropped if there were a deal between Russia and Ukraine.

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Trump plans 100% tariff on computer chips, unless companies build in US

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he will impose a 100% tariff on computer chips, raising the specter of higher prices for electronics, autos, household appliances and other essential products dependent on the processors powering the digital age.

“We’ll be putting a tariff of approximately 100% on chips and semiconductors,” Trump said in the Oval Office while meeting with Apple CEO Tim Cook. “But if you’re building in the United States of America, there’s no charge.”

The announcement came more than three months after Trump temporarily exempted most electronics from his administration’s most onerous tariffs.

The Republican president said companies that make computer chips in the U.S. would be spared the import tax. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a shortage of computer chips increased the price of autos and contributed to higher inflation.

Investors seemed to interpret the potential tariff exemptions as a positive for Apple and other major tech companies that have been making huge financial commitments to manufacture more chips and other components in the U.S..

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Victims feeling exhausted and anxious about wrangling over Epstein files

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Women who say they were abused by Jeffrey Epstein are feeling skeptical and anxious about the Justice Department’s handling of records related to the convicted sex offender, with some backing more public disclosures as an overdue measure of transparency, and others expressing concerns about their privacy and the Trump administration’s motivations.

In letters addressed to federal judges in New York this week, several victims or their attorneys said they would support the public release of grand jury testimony that led to criminal indictments against Epstein and his former girlfriend, Ghislaine Maxwell — if the government agreed to allow them to review the material and redact sensitive information.

The Justice Department has asked the court to take the rare step of unsealing transcripts of that secret testimony, in part to placate people who believe that the government has hidden some things it knows about Epstein’s wrongdoing.

Other victims, meanwhile, accused President Donald Trump of sidelining victims as he seeks to shift the focus from Epstein, who killed himself in 2019 while awaiting trial on charges that he habitually sexually abused underage girls. Some expressed concern that the administration — in its eagerness to make the scandal go away — might give Maxwell clemency, immunity from future prosecution or better living conditions in prison as part of a deal to get her to testify before Congress.

“I am not some pawn in your political warfare,” one alleged victim wrote in a letter submitted to the court by her lawyer this week. “What you have done and continue to do is eating at me day after day as you help to perpetuate this story indefinitely.”

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Man accused of killing Israeli Embassy staffers indicted on federal hate crime and murder charges

WASHINGTON (AP) — The man accused of fatally shooting two staff members of the Israeli Embassy in Washington outside a Jewish museum has been indicted on federal hate crime and murder charges, according to court documents unsealed Wednesday.

The indictment, filed in federal court in Washington, charges Elias Rodriguez with nine counts, including a hate crime resulting in death. The indictment also includes notice of special findings, which would allow the Justice Department to potentially pursue the death penalty.

Elias Rodriguez is accused of gunning down Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim as they left an event at the museum in May. He was heard shouting “Free Palestine” as he was led away after his arrest. He told police, “I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza,” federal authorities have said.

Rodriguez had previously been charged with murder of foreign officials and other crimes, and the hate crimes charges were added after prosecutors brought the case to a grand jury. It means prosecutors will be tasked with proving Rodriguez was motivated by antisemitism when he opened fire on Lischinsky and Milgrim, a young couple who were about to become engaged.

Prosecutors have described the killing as calculated and planned, saying Rodriguez flew to the Washington region from Chicago ahead of the Capital Jewish Museum event with a handgun in his checked luggage. He purchased a ticket for the event about three hours before it started, authorities have said in court papers.

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Dozens killed seeking aid in Gaza as Israel weighs further military action

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — At least 38 Palestinians were killed overnight and into Wednesday in the Gaza Strip while seeking aid from United Nations convoys and sites run by an Israeli-backed American contractor, according to local health officials. The Israeli military said it had fired warning shots when crowds approached its forces.

Another 25 people, including several women and children, were killed in Israeli airstrikes, according to local hospitals in Gaza. The military said it only targets Hamas militants.

The latest deaths came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was expected to announce further military action — and possibly plans for Israel to fully reoccupy Gaza. Experts say Israel’s ongoing military offensive and blockade are already pushing the territory of some 2 million Palestinians into famine. A new U.N. report said only 1.5% of Gaza’s cropland is accessible and undamaged.

Another escalation of the nearly 22-month war could put the lives of countless Palestinians and around 20 living Israeli hostages at risk, and would draw fierce opposition both internationally and within Israel. Netanyahu’s far-right coalition allies have long called for the war to be expanded, and for Israel to eventually take over Gaza, relocate much of its population and rebuild Jewish settlements there.

U.S. President Donald Trump, asked by a reporter Tuesday whether he supported the reoccupation of Gaza, said he wasn’t aware of the “suggestion” but that “it’s going to be pretty much up to Israel.”

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Survivors of Israel’s pager attack on Hezbollah last year struggle to recover

BAZOURIEH, Lebanon (AP) — Her head heavy with a cold, Sarah Jaffal woke up late and shuffled into the kitchen. The silence of the apartment was pierced by the unfamiliar buzzing of a pager lying near a table.

Annoyed but curious, the 21-year-old picked up the device belonging to a family member. She saw a message: “Error,” then “Press OK.”

Jaffal didn’t have time to respond. She didn’t even hear the explosion.

“Suddenly everything went dark,” she said. “I felt I was in a whirlpool.” She was in and out of consciousness for hours, blood streaming from her mouth, excruciating pain in her fingertips.

At that moment on Sept. 17, 2024, thousands of pagers distributed to the Hezbollah group were blowing up in homes, offices, shops and on frontlines across Lebanon, remotely detonated by Israel. Hezbollah had been firing rockets into Israel almost daily for nearly a year in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

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MLB is calling up its first female umpire, promoting Jen Pawol for Saturday’s Marlins-Braves game

NEW YORK (AP) — Jen Pawol is set to become the first woman to umpire in Major League Baseball when she works games this weekend between the Miami Marlins and Atlanta Braves.

Pawol will work the bases in Saturday’s doubleheader at Truist Park and the plate on Sunday, MLB told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

“This historic accomplishment in baseball is a reflection of Jen’s hard work, dedication and love of the game,” baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “She has earned this opportunity, and we are proud of the strong example she has set, particularly for all the women and young girls who aspire to roles on the field.”

Pawol, a 48-year-old from New Jersey, worked spring training games in 2024 and this year. She will become the fifth umpire to debut this year.

“Baseball’s done a great job of being completely inclusive,” Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I’ll be watching. It’s good for the game.”