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Good afternoon and welcome to your afternoon news update from AP. Today, a Navy admiral told lawmakers there was no “kill them all” order in a boat attack near Venezuela; a quiet corner of Arkansas has become a hot spot for the U.S, immigration crackdown; and Russian President Vladimir Putin says there are points he can’t agree to in the U.S. proposal to end Russia’s war in Ukraine.

UP FIRST

U.S. Navy Adm. Frank M. Bradley, accompanied by Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, right, walks to a meeting with senators on Capitol Hill on Thursday. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Admiral says there was no 'kill them all' order in boat attack, but video alarms lawmakers

A Navy admiral told lawmakers Thursday that there was no “kill them all” order from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth but grave questions and concerns remain as Congress scrutinizes an attack that killed two survivors of an initial strike on an alleged drug boat in international waters near Venezuela. Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., who heads the Senate Intelligence Committee, defended the attack to reporters as he exited a classified briefing. But Democratic lawmakers who were also briefed say they're deeply concerned by video of the second strike. Read more.

TOP STORIES

A quiet corner of Arkansas has become a hot spot for US immigration crackdown, AP finds

A corner of Arkansas best known as home to Walmart headquarters has emerged as a little-known hot spot in the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement crackdown. That's according to an Associated Press review of arrest data, jail records, police reports and interviews with residents, immigration lawyers and watchdogs. Benton County offers a window into what the future may hold in places where local and state authorities cooperate broadly with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Read more.

Putin says there are points he can’t agree to in the US proposal to end Russia’s war in Ukraine 

Russian President Vladimir Putin says some proposals in a U.S. plan to end the war in Ukraine are unacceptable to the Kremlin, indicating in comments published Thursday that any deal is still some ways off. Read more.  

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IN OTHER NEWS

The Talipot palm trees, native to India and Sri Lanka, in bloom in Aterro do Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro, on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Lucas Dumphreys)

Rare phenomenon: Decades-old palm trees in Rio de Janeiro flower for the first — and only — time

Middle East: The last hostage in Gaza was captured while fighting to save a kibbutz

Student media: University of Alabama shutters Black, female student magazines

Most mispronounced: Zohran Mamdani and the Louvre make the list of most mispronounced words of 2025

Can AI be funny?: Some comedians embrace AI tools but they’re still running the show

Skygazing: How to watch the last supermoon of the year

WATCH: Ralph Lauren unveils Team USA’s Milan Cortina looks

TRENDING

This combination of photos shows an Elf on the Shelf doll in various locations at the home of Antonia Katsanos in Totowa, N.J. (Antonia Katsanos via AP)

Parents under pressure offer creative tips for moving Santa’s spy Elf on the Shelf

Santa's spy known as Elf on the Shelf is turning 20 this year. That's two decades of family memories and parental creativity and the occasional panic over where to move the elf to. Some parents go low-key. Others get into the creative spirit and the pressure that comes with it.