AP

U.S. highway safety regulators have opened an investigation into complaints that Tesla seat belts may not hold people in a crash. The investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration covers an estimated 50,000 Model X SUVs from the 2022 and 2023 model years. The agency says it has two complaints from Tesla owners that the front belts weren’t sufficiently connected at the factory. Documents posted by the agency Tuesday say the belt linkage and pretensioners, which tighten the belts before a crash, are anchored to the seat frames. Both complaints allege that the linkage and pretensioner separated from the frames when force was exerted. Neither involved a crash. A message was left early Tuesday for Tesla.

AP

A Mexican newspaper reports that at least three dozen migrants died in a fire at an immigration detention center in northern Mexico near the U.S. border. The Diario de Juarez newspaper citied unnamed sources in the Chihuahua state prosecutor’s office. It reported the fire occurred late Monday at a facility across the border from El Paso, Texas. Neither Mexico’s National Immigration Institute nor the Chihuahua state prosecutor’s office responded immediately to requests for confirmation. Ciudad Juarez is a major crossing point for migrants entering the United States. Its shelters are full of migrants waiting for opportunities to cross or who have requested asylum in the United States and are waiting out the process.

AP

In response to rising youth violence, Baltimore leaders are ramping up efforts to de-escalate conflicts between young people and protect students going to and from school. Officials last week announced an arrest in the March 6 killing of Izaiah Carter, a 16-year-old who was fatally shot in a park adjacent to his east Baltimore high school. He's one of three high schoolers killed within blocks of their schools so far in 2023 — even as Baltimore shootings and homicides overall have each decreased about 25% compared to this time last year. Carter's mother, Michelle Hines, questions whether the school system and law enforcement could have done more to protect her son.

AP

The man who inspired the film “Hotel Rwanda” and was freed by Rwanda last week from a terrorism sentence has arrived in Qatar on his way to reuniting with family in the United States. A U.S. spokesman says Paul Rusesabagina is currently in Doha and “he will soon be making his way back to the United States." The 68-year-old Rusesabagina, a U.S. legal resident and Belgian citizen who had left Rwanda after saving hundreds of countrymen in the country’s 1994 genocide, was convicted in 2021 of terrorism offenses and sentenced to 25 years in prison in a widely criticized trial.

AP

Singer-songwriter Angélique Kidjo, Island Records founder Chris Blackwell and Estonian composer Arvo Pärt have won the 2023 Polar Music Prize, a Swedish music award. The managing director of the annual prize said Tuesday that the three “all made such a global impact with their music.” The Polar Music Prize is awarded annually to individuals, groups and institutions in recognition of exceptional music achievements. It includes a cash award of 600,000 kronor ($57,700) each. An awards ceremony is scheduled for May 23 in Stockholm. Stig Anderson, the late Swedish music producer, lyricist and ABBA manager, established the award in 1989. The prize shares a name with the record label Anderson started. Polar Music.

AP

Prince Harry has returned to court for the second day of hearings to see if the phone hacking lawsuit he brought with Elton John and other celebrities can withstand a challenge from the publisher of The Daily Mail. A four-day hearing resumes Tuesday in the case alleging Associated Newspapers Ltd. hired private investigators to illegally bug homes and cars and record private phone conversations.  The publisher denies the allegations and is seeking to throw out the lawsuit, arguing the claims are too old and barred because they rely on information they turned over in confidentiality for a 2012 probe into media law breaking.

AP

Japan and the United States have reached an agreement on trade in critical minerals for electric vehicle batteries. The deal struck Tuesday is expected to make electric vehicles using metals processed in Japan to qualify for tax incentives under President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act. The two sides have agreed to not impose export duties on trade in lithium, cobalt, manganese, nickel and graphite _ all strategically important minerals. The U.S. and Japan have been seeking to diversify their supply chains in such resources to reduce their dependence on minerals sourced from or processed in China. U.S. Trade Representative said the deal with Japan showed the U.S. commitment to “building resilient and secure supply chains.”

AP

With water gushing through California’s rivers, some farmers have started devoting a portion of their land to capture these flows and let them seep into the ground. The move is part of a push to increase a practice known as on-farm recharge, where farmers divert floodwaters from rural communities fields used for grapes and nuts. The idea is to help replenish groundwater after years of pumping and drought. State officials don’t know how many farmers are involved in on-farm recharge, or how much water is being captured. But interest is booming as California muddles through an especially wet winter. A federal pilot program to encourage on-farm recharge in California could be replicated in other Western states.

AP

France’s government is unfurling ramped-up security measures for a new flurry of marches and strikes against unpopular pension reforms. The nationwide demonstrations on Tuesday are the 10th time since January that unions have called on workers to walk out and for marchers to flood the streets. The intense months-long firestorm of protest been triggered by President Emmanuel Macron's plan to push back France's legal retirement age from 62 to 64. Violence that has marred recent protests prompted a stepped-up police deployment Tuesday. France's interior minister charged that violent radicals intend to latch on to peaceful demonstrations “to destroy, to injure and to kill."

AP

Police officers in Belgium have arrested eight people during counterterrorism raids across the country as part of operations aimed at thwarting possible terror attacks. The federal prosecutor’s office said Tuesday that Antwerp police carried out five searches in Merksem, Borgerhout, Deurne, Sint-Jans-Molenbeek and Eupen on Monday night. The prosecutor’s office said five persons were arrested but could not give details about what was found. Brussels police carried out raids in the nearby localities of Zaventem, Molenbeek-Saint-Jean and Schaerbeek as part of a separate case and arrested three people.

AP

Greece’s center-right Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has called a general election on May 21 in the aftermath of a train disaster that has reduced his party’s long-standing majority in opinion polls. The Feb. 28 train crash in northern Greece left 57 people dead. The disaster stirred public anger to cut a lead by the conservative New Democracy party by about half to 4 points over its left-wing main rival Syriza. Mitsotakis said during a televised Cabinet meeting on Monday that “the country needs clear skies … our work continues more boldly and with fewer compromises.” The election is unlikely to produce a new government.

AP

The United Nations says an Afghan rights activist who has campaigned for girls' education has been arrested in Kabul. Activist Matiullah Wesa is the founder and president of Pen Path, a local nongovernmental group that travels across Afghanistan with a mobile school and library. There was no word from the Taliban government on Tuesday about his arrest and it was unclear when it happened. Afghan girls are barred from school beyond the sixth grade and women are banned from university education. Wesa has repeatedly called on the Taliban to reverse their ban. The U.N. is urging authorities to clarify his whereabouts, the reasons for his arrest and to ensure his access to legal representation and contact with family.

AP

A proposed French law for the 2024 Paris Olympics that critics contend will open the door for privacy-busting video surveillance technology in Europe faces an important hurdle with French lawmakers set to vote on it. The bill would legalize the temporary use of so-called intelligent surveillance systems to safeguard the Paris Games and Paralympics. The systems combine cameras with artificial intelligence software to flag potential security concerns such as abandoned packages or crowd surges. Watchdog groups argue that France will violate international law by becoming the first European Union country to legalize AI-powered surveillance. The National Assembly will vote Tuesday on the bill.

AP

Israel’s political factions opposed to embattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are setting up negotiating teams after he called for dialogue and paused his controversial judicial overhaul plan that had set off unprecedented mass street protests and a spiraling domestic crisis. But compromise appears elusive as the standoff remained the same on Tuesday: a dispute over the fundamental issue of what kind of country Israel should be. Positions only appear to have hardened in past days. Netanyahu said he wanted “to avoid civil war” and would seek a compromise with political opponents. He spoke after tens of thousands of people demonstrated outside the parliament building in Jerusalem.

AP

Former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou began a 12-day tour of China with a symbolism-laden visit to the mausoleum where the founding father of both China and Taiwan is entombed. Ma’s tour of China comes as tensions between Taiwan and China have continued to rise, egged on by an antagonistic U.S.-China relationship. He has framed the trip as one of increasing exchange, bringing Taiwanese college students with him on the visit, and has said he hopes that his trip could help lower tensions. Observers expect the visit to be more symbolic than substantive.

AP

An internationally lauded federation that provides community care for people with intellectual disabilities is grappling with revelations that its late founder perverted Catholic doctrine to justify his sexual abuse of women. Two expert reports commissioned by France-based L'Arche have rocked the organization to its core. They revealed that its late founder Jean Vanier built the organization to hide a mystical-sexual sect at its core. The Associated Press was given access to a retreat of L’Arche’s national and regional leaders this week who are meeting for the first time since the latest revelations to try to chart a path forward.

AP

Asian shares are higher as investors got some relief from worries over troubled U.S. lenders with a planned takeover of failed Silicon Valley Bank. Benchmarks rose in Tokyo, Sydney, Seoul, Shanghai and Hong Kong. Markets have been in turmoil following the second- and third-largest U.S. bank failures in history. Investors have been hunting for signs of weakness in other banks as the financial system creaks under the pressure of higher interest rates. Wall Street shares steadied Monday, with financial stocks the biggest gainers. First Citizens Bank's stock soared after it said it would buy most of Silicon Valley Bank.

AP

A downloadable app that has been voiced by “Star Wars” actor Mark Hamill is triggered when air raid alarms sound in Ukraine. He urges people with his grave but also calming baritone to take cover. He also tells them when the danger has passed by signing off with “May the Force be with you.” The actor told The Associated Press that he’s admiring Ukraine's resilience from afar in California. Ukraine's fight against the Russian invasion is now in its second year and it reminds him of the Star Wars saga. Hamill is also fundraising to buy reconnaissance drones for Ukrainian forces.

AP

Vice President Kamala Harris will speak Tuesday in Ghana from a monument, called Black Star Gate, that commemorates the nation's independence from colonialism. The speech is a highlight of her second full day in Ghana, part of a weeklong trip that will include visits to Tanzania and Zambia. In prepared remarks for the speech, Harris says, “Together, we will address the challenges we face, and the opportunities ahead." After her speech, Harris is scheduled to tour a seaside fort, the Cape Coast Castle, where enslaved Africans were loaded onto ships bound for the Americas.

AP

A new study says warming will fuel more supercells in the United States and that those storms will move eastward from their current range. The study says that makes it more likely that the lethal storms will strike more often in the more populous areas of Southern states. Supercells are nature's nastiest storms, producing most killer tornadoes and damaging hail. Even with moderate warming, the study projects a nearly 7% increase in supercells by century's end. The study author says what computer simulations show for the year 2100 seems to be here now. Scientists say Friday's Mississippi tornado fits the projected pattern but can't be blamed on climate change.

AP

One hand-crocheted blanket came with a note saying “Welcome to the USA" and advising the recipient to dress warmly in Vermont. It was among at least 86 blankets sewn, knitted and crocheted by crafters as gifts for refugees to welcome them to their new community in Vermont. It’s part of the national Welcome Blanket project, a crowd-sourced artistic action supporting refugees settling in the U.S. The crafters attach a note to their blankets with details about their own family history with immigration or migration. The blankets that were made for the Vermont project were on display at a local museum before they were given away to refugees and immigrants last week.

AP

Friends and neighbors say retirees Lonnie and Melissa Pierce lived a quiet life in the Mississippi Delta before a powerful tornado dropped a semi-truck onto their home like a bomb. The husband and wife from Rolling Fork, were among at least 21 people in Mississippi and one in Alabama killed by devastating storms that spawned tornadoes across the Deep South since Friday. More than half of those killed lived in Mississippi's Sharkey County, where Coroner Angelia Eason says it felt like “losing 13 family members.” Neighbors said the Pierces were “about the best” people they knew. Lonnie Pierce was a retired welder, and Melissa Pierce volunteered for a Christian charity.

AP

The former student who shot through the doors of a Christian elementary school in Nashville and killed three children and three adults had drawn a detailed map of the school, including potential entry points, and conducted surveillance of the building before carrying out the massacre. Metropolitan Nashville Police Chief John Drake did not say exactly what drove the shooter to open fire Monday morning at The Covenant School before being killed by police. But he provided chilling examples of the shooter’s elaborate planning for the bloodshed, including a manifesto and other writings that police are going over. The victims include three 9-year-old children, the school’s top administrator, a substitute teacher and a custodian.

AP

A new Georgia commission to discipline and remove wayward prosecutors would be the latest move by Republicans nationwide to ratchet up oversight. The Georgia measure got final approval by the state Senate after House passage earlier Monday. It now goes to Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, who has previously voiced support. The Georgia bill parallels efforts to remove prosecutors in Florida, Missouri, Indiana and Pennsylvania. It's also part of broader disputes nationwide over how certain criminal offenses should be charged. All the efforts strike at the question of prosecutorial discretion — a prosecutor’s decision of what cases to try and what charges to bring.

AP

Gwyneth Paltrow’s attorneys are expected to call a series of experts and read depositions from her two teenage children as the trial over her 2016 Utah ski collision with a Utah man enters its sixth day. The actor's defense attorneys are expected on Tuesday to continue arguing that the retired optometrist suing her crashed into Paltrow and that his injuries are less severe than he claims. They have less than three days to make their case to the eight-member jury that will decide on Terry Sanderson's lawsuit. He claims Paltrow's reckless skiing left him with lasting injuries and is asking more than $300,000 in damages.

AP

An Australian magistrate has released on bail a former elite soldier charged with murder for allegedly killing an unarmed man in Afghanistan. The magistrate agreed with the former soldier's lawyers that Oliver Schulz would face danger from Muslim extremists in prison. Australian Broadcasting Corp. broadcast helmet footage allegedly showing Schulz shooting a local man three times as he lay on his back in a wheat field in 2012. A military investigation found evidence that Australian troops unlawfully killed 39 Afghan prisoners, farmers and civilians during the 20 years Australian military personnel served in the country. Schulz is among 19 current and former special forces soldiers the report said could face charges for illegal conduct in Afghanistan.

AP

The nation’s top financial regulator is asserting that Silicon Valley Bank’s own management was largely to blame for the bank’s failure earlier this month and says the Federal Reserve will review whether a 2018 law that weakened stricter bank rules also contributed to its collapse. “SVB’s failure is a textbook case of mismanagement,” Michael Barr, the Fed’s vice chair for supervision, said in written testimony that will be delivered Tuesday at a Senate hearing. Barr pointed to the bank’s “concentrated business model,” in which its customers were overwhelmingly venture capital and high-tech firms in Silicon Valley. He also contends that the bank failed to manage the risks of its bond holdings.

AP

Russia's Defense Ministry says Moscow has test-fired anti-ship missiles in the Sea of Japan. The ministry said Tuesday that two boats launched a simulated missile attack on a mock enemy warship about 60 miles away. The ministry said the target was successfully hit by two Moskit cruise missiles. The Moskit, whose NATO reporting name is the SS-N-22 Sunburn, is a supersonic anti-ship cruise missile that has conventional and nuclear warhead capacity. It says the exercise took place in the Peter The Great Bay in the Sea of Japan but does not give more precise coordinates. Japan’s Defense Ministry had no immediate response.

AP

House Republicans plan to deliver a subpoena to Secretary of State Antony Blinken for classified cables related to the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Mike McCaul said Monday that he will be issuing the first subpoena as chairman. The Texas Republican said he had spoken with Blinken earlier and was notified the agency would not be turning over a so-called dissent cable. According to press reports, the July 2021 communication was written by diplomats at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul shortly before the August 2021 withdrawal and warned Blinken about the potential fall of Kabul via a special “dissent channel."

AP

Gautam Adani and his companies lost tens of billions of dollars and their stock plummeted after the businesses were accused of fraud and stock price manipulation. Despite Adani’s renewable energy targets accounting for 10% of India’s clean energy goals, some analysts say Adani’s woes are unlikely to hurt India’s energy transition. Analysts say that with a big government-favored player like Adani forced to scale down, companies that have been reluctant to bid for clean energy projects in India are likely to step up now. That can lead to a more competitive market that will lead to higher investments in green energy in India.

AP

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for his nuclear scientists to increase production of weapons-grade material to make bombs to put on his increasing range of weapons. The report in state media Tuesday followed a series of missile launches — seven in this month alone — and rising threats to use the weapons against his enemies. North Korea's weapons tests and U.S.-South Korea military exercises have intensified in a tit-for-tat cycle, underscoring heightened tensions in the region. State media said Kim met with officials and scientists at a nuclear weapons institute and stressed the need to ramp up bomb fuel production to meet his goals to expand his nuclear arsenal.

AP

The survivor of a mass shooting last July 4th outside Chicago rushed to the scene of the latest such tragedy in Nashville, expressing disbelief that one had occurred again. Ashley Beasley drove to the scene of the shooting Monday at The Covenant School that killed three children and three adults before the shooter was killed. She told the Chicago Tribune by phone, "I cannot believe this is happening.” Beasley stopped in Nashville on her way back from Washington to lobby members of Congress to pass a federal assault weapons ban.

AP

Donald Trump’s first wife, Ivana, was under an FBI counterintelligence inquiry into allegations about her connections in her home country of Czechoslovakia in the 1990s, according to excerpts from her FBI file obtained by Bloomberg News.

AP

ATLANTA — The Georgia Senate passed a bill Monday to ensure workers can take time off to cast a ballot either during early voting or on Election Day, sending the measure to Gov. Brian Kemp.

AP

The Central American nation of El Salvador has finished a full year under anti-gang emergency measures that were originally supposed to last only a month. Monday was the the first anniversary of President Nayib Bukele's request for special powers to pursue the gangs on March 27, 2022, following a surge in gang violence in which 62 people were killed in a single day. The country's legislature has voted every month since then to renew the measures, which suspend some rights. In the year since, a total of 66,417 people have been arrested. Of those, 4,304 have been released. Rights groups say there have been 5,802 suspected cases of rights violations.

AP

The U.S. Energy Information Administration announced that electricity generated from renewables surpassed coal electricity production in the United States for the first time in 2022. The growth of wind and solar significantly drove the increase in renewable energy and experts say these two resources will be the “backbone” of clean energy growth in the U.S. because of their reliability and affordability. Renewables passed nuclear electricity production for the first time in 2012 and continued to outpace it.

AP

A pediatric surgeon who left The Covenant School in Nashville moments before a shooter opened fire, killing six people, says she is horrified by the gun violence that has plagued the U.S. Britney Grayson had just finished regaling children about Kenya, where she works as a pediatric surgeon, when she drove out of the parking lot looking for a Starbucks. Moments later, a shooter entered the small religious grade school and opened fire, killing three children and three adults. She later posted to Facebook, questioning why such attacks remain so common in the U.S.