AP Top News at 6:23 a.m. EDT

Israeli strikes across Gaza kill dozens and force a main hospital to close, health officials say

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip killed at least 103 people overnight and into Sunday, hospitals and medics said, and prompted the main hospital in northern Gaza to close as Israel intensifies its war in the territory that, after more than 19 months, shows no signs of abating. More than 48 people were killed in airstrikes in and around the southern city of Khan Younis, some of which hit houses and tents sheltering displaced people, according to Nasser Hospital. Among the dead were 18 children and 13 women, hospital spokesperson Weam Fares said. In northern Gaza, a strike on a home in the built-up Jabaliya refugee camp killed nine people from a single family, according to the Gaza health ministry’s emergency services.

Russia launches biggest drone attack on Ukraine since start of war, killing at least 1

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia overnight into Sunday launched its most intense drone attack on Ukraine since the beginning of its full-scale invasion in 2022, after the first direct talks between Moscow and Kyiv in years failed to yield a ceasefire. Russian President Vladimir Putin spurned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s offer to meet face-to-face in Turkey after he himself proposed direct negotiations — although not at the presidential level — as an alternative to a 30-day ceasefire urged by Ukraine and its Western allies, including the U.S. Talks in Istanbul on Friday broke up after less than two hours without a ceasefire, although both sides agreed on exchanging 1,000 prisoners of war each, according to the heads of both delegations.

Pope Leo XIV vows to work for unity so Catholic Church becomes a sign of peace in the world

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV, history’s first American pope, vowed Sunday to work for unity so that the Catholic Church becomes a sign of peace in the world, offering a message of communion during an inaugural Mass in St. Peter’s Square before an estimated 150,000 pilgrims, presidents, patriarchs and princes. Leo officially opened his pontificate by taking his first popemobile tour through the piazza, a rite of passage that has become synonymous with the papacy’s global reach and mediatic draw. The 69-year-old Augustinian missionary smiled and waved from the back of the truck, but didn’t appear to stop to kiss babies and the crowd.

At least 18 killed as severe weather lashes Kentucky, and 9 more die elsewhere

LONDON, Ky. (AP) — Storms that swept across part of the Midwest and South killed least 27 people including 18 in Kentucky, where another 10 were hospitalized in critical condition, authorities said. A devastating tornado in Kentucky damaged homes, tossed vehicles and left many people homeless. Seventeen of the deaths were in Laurel County, located in the state’s southeast, and one was in Pulaski County: Fire Department Maj. Roger Leslie Leatherman, a 39-year veteran who was fatally injured while responding to the deadly weather. Parts of two dozen state roads were closed, and some could take days to reopen, according to Gov.

The FBI is investigating the explosion at a California fertility clinic as an act of terrorism

The person believed responsible for an attack targeting a Southern California fertility clinic Saturday posted rambling online writings before an explosion that investigators are treating as an act of terrorism, according to a law enforcement official. The suspect, who died in the explosion that tore through the clinic and rattled the upscale California city of Palm Springs, also attempted to record video or stream the attack, said the official, who was not authorized to discuss details of the attack and spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press. “Make no mistake: This is an intentional act of terrorism,” Akil Davis, the head of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office, told an evening news conference.

Mexican tall ship strikes Brooklyn Bridge, snapping masts and killing 2 crew members

NEW YORK (AP) — A Mexican navy sailing ship on a global goodwill tour struck the Brooklyn Bridge in New York on Saturday, snapping its three masts, killing two crew members and leaving some sailors dangling from harnesses high in the air waiting for help. New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the 142-year-old bridge was spared major damage but at least 19 people aboard the ship needed medical treatment. Two of the four people who suffered serious injuries later died, Adams announced on social media early Sunday. The cause of the collision was under investigation. In a scene captured in multiple eyewitness videos, the ship, called the Cuauhtemoc, could be seen traveling swiftly in reverse toward the bridge near the Brooklyn side of the East River.

Poles vote for a new president as security concerns loom large

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poles were voting Sunday in a presidential election at a time of heightened security concerns stemming from the ongoing war in neighboring Ukraine and growing worry that the U.S. commitment to Europe’s security could be weakening under President Donald Trump. The top two front-runners are Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski, a liberal allied with Prime Minister Donald Tusk, and Karol Nawrocki, a conservative historian with no prior political experience who is supported by the national conservative Law and Justice party. Recent opinion polls show Trzaskowski with around 30% support and Nawrocki in the mid-20s. A second round between the two is widely expected to take place on June 1.

Romanians vote in a tense presidential runoff that pits nationalist against pro-EU centrist

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romanians were voting on Sunday in a tense presidential runoff between a hard-right nationalist and a pro-Western centrist in a high-stakes election rerun that could determine the geopolitical direction of the European Union and NATO member country. The race pits front-runner George Simion, the 38-year-old leader of the hard-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians, or AUR, against incumbent Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan. It comes months after the cancelation of the previous election plunged Romania into its worst political crisis in decades. Polls opened at 7 a.m. local time and were to close at 9 p.m. By noon, more than 4.6 million people — or about 25% of eligible voters — had cast ballots, according to official electoral data.

Portugal holds its 3rd general election in 3 years but the vote might not restore stability

LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Voters in Portugal returned to the polls on Sunday for a third general election in three years, as the country’s increasingly fragmented political landscape defies efforts to unite behind policies on pressing national issues such as immigration, housing and the cost of living. Hopes that the ballot might end the worst spell of political instability in decades for the European Union country of 10.6 million people could be dashed, however. Polls suggest the election is poised to deliver yet another minority government, leaving the Portuguese back where they started. “What the polls indicate is that there will not be major differences from the last election results,” says Marina Costa Lobo, head researcher at Lisbon University’s Institute of Social Sciences.

Congo’s coltan miners dig for world’s tech — and struggle regardless of who is in charge

RUBAYA, Congo (AP) — Nestled in the green hills of Masisi territory in Congo, the artisanal Rubaya mining site hums with the sound of generators, as hundreds of men labor by hand to extract coltan, a key mineral crucial for producing modern electronics and defense technology — and fiercely sought after worldwide. Rubaya lies in the heart of eastern Congo, a mineral-rich part of the Central African nation which for decades has been ripped apart by violence from government forces and different armed groups, including the Rwanda-backed M23, whose recent resurgence has escalated the conflict, worsening an already acute humanitarian crisis.