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

Israel starts calling up reservists as it pushes into initial stages of Gaza City offensive

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel began mobilizing tens of thousands of reservists on Tuesday as part of its plan to widen its offensive in Gaza City, which has sparked opposition domestically and condemnation abroad.

The beginning of September call-up, announced last month, comes as ground and air forces press forward and pursue more targets in northern and central Gaza, striking parts of Zeitoun and Shijaiyah — two western Gaza City neighborhoods that Israeli forces have repeatedly invaded during the 23-month war against Hamas militants.

Zeitoun, once Gaza City’s largest neighborhood with markets, schools and clinics, has been transformed over the past month, with streets being emptied and buildings reduced to rubble as it becomes what Israel’s military last week called a “dangerous combat zone.”

Gaza City is Hamas’ political and military stronghold and, according to Israel, still home to a vast tunnel network despite multiple incursions throughout the war. It is also one of the last refuges in the northern strip, where hundreds of thousands of civilians are sheltering, facing twin threats of combat and famine.

At least 60,000 reservists will be gradually called up, Israel’s military said last month. It will also extend the service of an additional 20,000 reservists already serving.

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Afghanistan quake death toll rises to 900 as search for survivors continues in mountainous region

JALALABAD, Afghanistan (AP) — Rescue teams continued to scour Afghanistan’s mountainous east for survivors on Tuesday as the death toll from a strong earthquake rose to 900 with 3,000 people injured, an official said.

“The injured are being evacuated, so these figures may change significantly,” Yousaf Hammad, a spokesman for Afghanistan’s National Disaster Management Authority, told The Associated Press. “The earthquake caused landslides in some areas, blocking roads, but they have been reopened, and the remaining roads will be reopened to allow access to areas that were difficult to reach.”

The 6.0 magnitude quake struck late Sunday night in several provinces, flattening villages and leaving people trapped under the rubble of homes constructed mostly of mud bricks and wood and unable to withstand the shock.

The majority of casualties were in Kunar province, where many people live in steep river valleys separated by high mountains. Helicopters are being used to evacuate the injured to hospital, and aid agencies said their teams were making journeys on foot to reach the most isolated areas because of the rough terrain and ruined roads.

The Taliban government has appealed for international help.

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Xi and Putin reaffirm ‘old friend’ ties in the face of US challenges

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese leader Xi Jinping welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin as an “old friend” as the two held a series of meetings Tuesday at a time when their countries face both overlapping and differing challenges from the United States.

Relations between China and Russia have deepened in recent years, particularly following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. U.S. President Donald Trump’s unorthodox approach to the war has added a twist to the relationship but doesn’t appear to have fundamentally changed it.

Putin addressed Xi as “dear friend” and said that Moscow’s ties with Beijing are “at an unprecedentedly high level.”

In a sign of the importance China places on the relationship, their formal meeting was followed by tea with top aides at Zhongnanhai, the walled complex that is the center of power in China with residences and offices for its top leaders.

China announced after the talks that it would begin offering 30-day visa-free access to Russian travelers starting later this month.

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Sudan landslide kills more than 1,000 people after wiping out village in Darfur

CAIRO (AP) — A landslide wiped out an entire village in Sudan ’s western region of Darfur, killing an estimated 1,000 people in one of the deadliest natural disasters in the African country’s recent history, a rebel group controlling the area said late Monday.

The village was “completely leveled to the ground,” the Sudan Liberation Movement-Army said as it appealed to the U.N. and international aid groups for help to recover the bodies.

The tragedy happened Sunday in the village of Tarasin in Central Darfur’s Marrah Mountains after days of heavy rainfall.

“Initial information indicates the death of all village residents, estimated to be more than 1,000 people, “ the rebel group said in a statement. ”Only one person survived,” it added.

Abdel-Wahid Nour, the group’s leader, made an appeal on Tuesday for international help. “The scale and magnitude of the disaster are immense and defy description,” he said.

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14,000 US-bound migrants have returned south since Trump border changes, UN says

MEXICO CITY (AP) — More than 14,000 mainly Venezuelan migrants who hoped to reach the United States have reversed course and turned south since U.S. President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown began, according to a report published Friday by the governments of Colombia, Panama and Costa Rica.

The phenomenon, known as “reverse flow” migration, is largely made up of Venezuelan migrants who fled their country’s long-running economic, social and political crises only to encounter U.S. immigration policy no longer open to asylum-seekers.

Migration through the treacherous Darien Gap on the border of Colombia and Panama peaked in 2023 when more than half a million migrants crossed. That flow slowed somewhat in 2024, but dried up almost completely early this year.

Friday’s report, published with support of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that northward migration had dropped 97% this year.

Migrants traveling south interviewed in Costa Rica, Panama and Colombia by those countries’ ombudsmen offices were almost all Venezuelans (97%) and about half of them said they planned to return to Venezuela, according to the report. Nearly all said they were returning because they could no longer legally reach the U.S.

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North Korea’s Kim Jong Un travels to Beijing to watch military parade alongside Putin and Xi Jinping

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is heading to Beijing by train on Tuesday to attend a military parade with his Chinese and Russian counterparts, North Korea’s state media reported. The event could potentially demonstrate three-way unity against the United States.

Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin are among the 26 world leaders who’ll join Chinese President Xi Jinping to watch Wednesday’s massive military parade in Beijing that commemorates the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II and China’s fight against Japan’s wartime aggressions.

It’s set to be Kim’s first time attending a major multilateral event during his 14-year rule, and the first time Kim, Xi and Putin, all key challengers of the U.S., have gathered at the same venue. None of the three countries have confirmed a private trilateral leaders’ meeting.

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency reported early Tuesday that Kim left Pyongyang for Beijing by his special train on Monday to participate in the celebrations. KCNA, citing Foreign Ministry official Kim Chon Il, said that Kim Jong Un was traveling with top officials including Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui.

In a closed-door briefing to lawmakers, South Korea’s National Intelligence Service said Kim’s train entered China early Tuesday and was expected to reach Beijing later in the afternoon. The intelligence service said Kim will likely receive special protocol and security measures on par with those given to Putin, according to Lee Seong Kweun, a lawmaker who attended the meeting.

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From Trump to social programs: Mexico’s first female president takes stock after a year in office

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum celebrated her government’s handling of its tumultuous relations with the Trump administration, progressive gains and controversial judicial reforms in her first state of the nation address Monday.

Sheinbaum, who is nearing the end of her first year in office, notably left out some of the major problems still simmering in Mexico, including ongoing cartel violence plaguing much of the country and democratic concerns over wider concentration of executive power.

Mexico’s first female president took office in October and has led the Latin American nation of 131 million at a time of radical global shifts. Despite that, the 63-year-old progressive leader has enjoyed soaring approval rates between 70% and 80% in Mexican polls.

“Things are going well, and they’re only going to get better,” she promised.

Here are some of the top takeaways from Sheinbaum’s State of the Nation address.

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What to know about Guatemalan migrant children and efforts to send them home

WASHINGTON (AP) — Over Labor Day weekend, the Trump administration attempted to remove Guatemalan children who had come to the U.S. alone and were living in shelters or with foster care families in the U.S.

Advocates who represent migrant children in court filed lawsuits across the country seeking to stop the government from removing the children, and on Sunday a federal judge stepped in to order that the kids at least temporarily stay in the U.S.

The Trump administration has argued in court and on social media that they’re doing this to reunite the children with their families back home at the behest of the Guatemalan government and blamed advocates and the judge for stepping in.

Advocates who sued said the children they represent have said they fear going home, and that the government, by operating in the dead of night and by bypassing immigration courts, is not following laws designed to protect migrant children.

Here’s a look at where things stand now:

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Nonprofits face a tough funding landscape. They hope better storytelling will bring more donations

MIAMI (AP) — Cindy Eggleton has always believed in the power of a story.

But the CEO and co-founder of Brilliant Cities, a Detroit-based early childhood development nonprofit that supports learning in underserved communities, never expected someone to tell hers. And definitely not in a sleek documentary with a slick soundtrack and plenty of images of other Detroit institutions, such as General Motors, Diana Ross, and the historic Fox Theatre.

“It’s never been about me,” said Eggleton, adding that participating in the “Nevertheless: The Women Changing the World” documentary series on YouTube was her way of honoring her late mother, Geraldine, who inspired her to speak out and help others in their community.

However, as they face an increasingly uncertain funding landscape, nonprofits are focusing more on storytelling in outreach to donors – both big and small – and raising production values for videos and podcasts.

“Storytelling is how we’re able to draw people in and get them to connect to a deeper truth about themselves or about the world or a problem that needs to be solved,” said Elevate Prize Foundation CEO Carolina Jayaram Garcia. “It’s connecting those issues back to you as a human and not saying, ‘Well, that’s their problem. That’s all the way over there.’ The story allows it to be human.”

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Nestlé dismisses CEO after an investigation into a relationship with a subordinate

Swiss food giant Nestlé said Monday it dismissed its CEO Laurent Freixe after an investigation into an undisclosed relationship with a direct subordinate.

The maker of Nescafé drinks and Purina pet food said in a statement the dismissal was effective immediately. An investigation found the undisclosed romantic relationship with a direct subordinate violated Nestlé’s code of conduct.

Freixe, who had been CEO for a year, will be replaced by Philipp Navratil, a longtime Nestlé executive.

“This was a necessary decision,” said Chairman Paul Bulcke. “Nestlé’s values and governance are strong foundations of our company.”

The company didn’t give any other details about the investigation.