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

“Watch what happens to these deranged scumbags today," Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform Truth Social. “Iran’s Navy is gone, their Air Force is no longer, missiles, drones and everything else are being decimated, and their leaders have been wiped from the face of the earth.”

The comments came the day after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei vowed to “not refrain from avenging the blood” of Iranians killed, and warned Gulf Arab nations to shut U.S. bases, saying the notion of American protection was “nothing more than a lie.”

A large midday explosion rocked a Tehran square filled with demonstrators who were there for the annual Quds Day event in support of Palestinians, Iranian state television reported.

The cause of the blast in Ferdowsi Square wasn't immediately known, but came shortly after Israel had warned people to clear the area because it planned a strike. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

A US military refueling plane crashed in Iraq. Here's what to know

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The U.S. military says a KC-135 refueling aircraft supporting operations against Iran crashed in western Iraq and rescue operations are underway.

The U.S. Central Command, which oversees the Middle East, said the crash followed an unspecified incident involving two aircraft in “friendly airspace,” and that the other plane landed safely.

Here’s what is known so far about the tanker, which is the fourth publicly acknowledged U.S. aircraft to crash during the war against Iran:

The KC-135 Stratotanker is a U.S. Air Force aircraft used to refuel other planes in midair, allowing them to travel longer distances and maintain operations longer without landing. The plane is also used to transport wounded personnel during medical evacuations or conduct surveillance missions, according to military experts.

Based on the same design as the Boeing 707 passenger plane, the tanker has been in service for more than 60 years, supporting the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps as well as allied aircraft, according to an Air Force description. The aging plane is set to be phased out as the air force receives a full complement of next-generation KC-46A Pegasus tankers.

World shares decline, while oil pops above $100 a barrel over Iran war worries

HONG KONG (AP) — World shares retreated on Friday while oil prices again popped above $100 per barrel as anxiety remained over the Iran war and its impact on supplies of crude oil and gas.

U.S. futures slipped, with the futures for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.3%.

In early European trading, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.7% to 10,235.29. Germany's DAX lost 1% to 23,345.90, while France's CAC 40 dropped 1.2% to 7,887.18.

In Asian trading, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index slipped 1.2% to 53,819.61. Technology-related stocks saw some of the bigger losses, with SoftBank Group falling 4.5%.

South Korea’s Kospi fell 1.7% to 5,487.24.

Investigators work to determine exact reason for attack at Michigan synagogue

WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. (AP) — Investigators worked Friday to determine the exact reason a man with a rifle crashed into a large Michigan synagogue in what federal officials are saying was an attack carried out by a 41-year-old naturalized U.S. citizen born in Lebanon.

Ayman Mohamad Ghazali was killed by security after ramming into Temple Israel in West Bloomfield Township near Detroit, Michigan, and driving down a hallway in a vehicle that then caught fire, according to authorities.

The FBI, which is leading the investigation, described the attack on one of the nation’s largest Reform synagogues as an act of violence targeting the Jewish community.

The synagogue’s staff, teachers and 140 children at its early childhood center were not injured, according to Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard.

Ghazali came to the U.S. in 2011 on an immediate relative visa as the spouse of a U.S. citizen and was granted U.S. citizenship in 2016, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

US weather to go nuts with blizzard, polar vortex, heat dome, atmospheric river all at once

Nearly every part of the United States is getting walloped by wild weather or just about to be.

Days of downpours have begun in Hawaii. The Southwest will soon bake with day after day of record 100-degree-plus (38 Celsius-plus) heat. Two storms will dump snow by the foot over northern Great Lakes states. And the dreaded polar vortex will again invade the Midwest and East with soul-crushing Arctic chill.

This forecast of extremes comes as weather whiplash already hit much of the East. On Wednesday, Washington, D.C. residents walked around in shorts in record-breaking 86 degrees Fahrenheit (about 30 Celsius). On Thursday, it snowed.

“All of the country, even if you’re not necessarily seeing extremes, are going to see generally changing from cold to warm, or warm to cold to warm,” said meteorologist Marc Chenard of the weather service’s Weather Prediction Center in Maryland.

Former National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration chief scientist Ryan Maue said he expects extreme weather in all 50 states.

Gay Muslim influencer hosts inclusive Ramadan meal and calls for acceptance across faiths

BERLIN (AP) — Ali Darwich, a gay Muslim influencer in Berlin, picks up a date from his plate, takes a sip of water, and addresses the 15 friends sitting around the table and breaking the Ramadan fast with him.

The 33-year-old German with Palestinian and Lebanese roots — who goes by @alifragt or “Ali asks” on Instagram — has a quickly growing following on Instagram, where he draws attention to the difficulties of living as a young, queer Muslim and calls for more tolerance and inclusiveness.

“Tonight we want to send a message that no matter where a person comes from, no matter who that person loves, no matter how queer that person is, they cannot be too queer ... because they are exactly as they should be," Darwich says, smiling at the diverse group of Muslims and Christians, Germans and immigrants, gay and straight people sharing this meal with him as the sun sets over Berlin.

“I am a believer, I believe in God, and I find Islam beautiful, just like Christianity or Judaism and many other religions," he says. But he adds that it's not always easy for homosexuals to be accepted — not just for Muslims but also for queer Christians and believers of many other religions.

Indeed, attacks against LGBTQ+ people and gay-friendly establishments are rising across Germany, including in Berlin, a city that has historically embraced the community.

Old Dominion shooter convicted of Islamic State ties released from prison just 2 years before attack

Court documents show less than two years after Mohamed Bailor Jalloh was released from prison for attempting to aid the Islamic State, he opened fire in a classroom at Virginia's Old Dominion University on Thursday before ROTC students subdued and killed him.

The shooting that left one person dead and another two injured has raised questions about why Jalloh, who the FBI identified as the gunman, was imprisoned and the conditions of his release — with some elected officials questioning how someone with known ties to the Islamic State was able to carry out such an attack.

“The horrific tragedy that occurred today on ODU’s campus never should have happened,” U.S. Rep. Jen Kiggans, who represents the congressional district neighboring the university, wrote on Facebook.

After Jalloh pleaded guilty in October 2016 to providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization — the Islamic State group — a federal judge sentenced him in 2017 to an 11-year prison term with credit for time served retroactive to his July 2016 arrest.

Jalloh was released from federal custody Dec. 23, 2024. It wasn’t immediately clear why his release from prison was moved up. Inmates can get time off of their sentences for a variety of reasons, but it isn’t known if that happened in this case.

A 5.5 quake jolts central Turkey, sending residents into the cold streets

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — A moderately strong earthquake struck central Turkey on Friday, Turkey’s emergency response said. The tremor sent some residents rushing into the streets but no damage has been reported.

The magnitude 5.5 quake was centered in the town of Niksar in Tokat province, at a depth of 6.4 kilometers (4 miles), according to the Disaster and Emergency Management agency, AFAD.

It occurred at 3:35 a.m. and was felt in several provinces, AFAD said, adding that “no adverse developments” were reported.

Still, many residents were seen waiting in cars or in the streets despite the cold, afraid to return to homes, Haberturk news channel reported.

Turkey sits on top of major fault lines and earthquakes are frequent.

Democratic senators file war powers resolution to check Trump on Cuba

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democrats have filed legislation that would prevent the U.S. from attacking Cuba without congressional approval as they seek to force a vote on President Donald Trump's stated goal of a “takeover” of the Caribbean country.

Democrats have repeatedly used war powers resolutions to force debate on Trump's foreign policy moves, though Republicans have so far mostly backed the president. The resolution filed Thursday by Democratic Sens. Tim Kaine, Ruben Gallego and Adam Schiff would require the president to remove the military from any hostilities with Cuba and could potentially receive a vote by the end of the month.

"Only Congress has the power to declare war under the Constitution, but he operates with the belief that the U.S. military is a palace guard, ordering military action in the Caribbean, Venezuela, and Iran without Congress’ authorization or any explanation for his actions to the American people,” Kaine said in a statement.

Trump said earlier this week that Secretary of State Marco Rubio was negotiating with Cuba's leadership as the country faces a crippling energy crisis that has been exacerbated by a U.S. blockade of the island.

“It may be a friendly takeover, ⁠it may not be a friendly takeover,” Trump told reporters this week at a news conference in Florida. He added that he and Rubio would focus on that goal after the war with Iran.

Cuba will release 51 people from prison in an unexpected move

HAVANA (AP) — Cuba’s government said Thursday night that it would release 51 people from the island’s prisons in an unexpected move.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the release in the upcoming days stems from a spirit of goodwill and close relations with the Vatican.

The government did not identify who it would release, except to say that “all have served a significant part of their sentence and have maintained good conduct in prison.”

The announcement was made just hours Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel is scheduled to speak early Friday in another rare meeting with the press “to address national and international issues.”

The government said it has granted pardons to 9,905 inmates since 2010. It added that in the past three years, another 10,000 people sentenced to imprisonment were released.