AP News in Brief at 6:04 p.m. EST

The strikes opened a stunning new chapter in U.S. intervention in Iran, marking the second time in eight months that the Trump administration had attacked the country during talks over its nuclear program. The reported killing of Khameini after decades in power appeared certain to create a significant leadership vacuum given the absence of a known successor and because the Supreme Leader had final say on all major policies. He led Iran’s clerical establishment and its paramilitary Revolutionary Guard – the two main centers of power in the governing theocracy.

In a nationally televised address, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there were “growing signs” that the 86-year-old Khamenei had been killed when Israel struck his compound early Saturday. Shortly after the address, two Israeli officials said Israel had confirmed his death. The officials both spoke on condition of anonymity pending a formal announcement and gave no further details.

As reports trickled out about the death, eyewitnesses in Tehran told AP some residents were rejoicing, blowing whistles and letting out ululations.

The joint U.S.-Israel operation, which officials say was planned for months, took place Saturday during the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan and at the start of the Iranian work week.

The Latest: Trump says Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is dead

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a major attack on Iran launched by Israel and the United States, President Donald Trump said, calling it the “single greatest chance” for the Iranian people to “take back” their country.

The announcement came after a joint U.S. and Israeli aerial bombardment that targeted Iranian military and governmental sites. Trump said the “heavy and pinpoint bombing” was to continue through the week or longer. There was no immediate comment from Iran on Khamenei's status.

The strikes opened a stunning new chapter in U.S. intervention in Iran, marking the second time in eight months that the Trump administration has attacked the country during talks over its nuclear program. The reported killing of Khameini after decades in power appeared certain to create a significant leadership vacuum given the absence of a known successor and because the Supreme Leader had final say on all major policies.

Earlier, Iran had retaliated to the U.S. and Israeli attacks by launching missiles and drones toward Israel and U.S. military bases in the region.

Here's the latest:

War powers debate intensifies after Trump orders attack on Iran without approval by Congress

WASHINGTON (AP) — Key members of Congress are demanding a swift vote on a war powers resolution that would restrain President Donald Trump's military attack on Iran unless the administration wins their approval for what they warn is a potentially illegal campaign that risks pulling the United States into a deeper Middle East conflict.

Both the House and Senate, where the president's Republican Party has a slim majority, had already drafted such resolutions long before the strikes Saturday. Now they are ready to plunge into a rare war powers debate next week that will serve as a referendum on Trump's decision to go it alone on military action without formal authorization from Congress.

“Has President Trump learned nothing from decades of U.S. meddling in Iran and forever wars in the Middle East?” said Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., a leader in the bipartisan effort. He said the strikes on Iran were “a colossal mistake.”

In the House, Reps. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., are demanding Congress go on record with a public vote on their own bipartisan measure. “Congress must convene on Monday to vote,” Khanna said, “to stop this.”

Massie blasted Trump's own presidential campaign slogan and said: “This is not ‘America First.’”

World leaders react cautiously to US and Israeli strikes, death of Iran Ali Khamenei

BRUSSELS (AP) — How long will it last? Will it grow? What will the conflict and the death of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. mean to us — and to global security overall? Those questions echoed across the Middle East and the planet Saturday as world leaders reacted warily to U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on social media that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was dead, calling it “the single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their Country.” His death will not bring an end to the joint airstrikes, Trump added.

There was no immediate comment from Iran. Israeli officials previously told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity that Khamenei was dead. And Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a televised address, said there were “growing signs” that Khamenei had been killed when Israel struck his compound early Saturday.

The death of the second leader of the Islamic Republic, who had no designated successor, will likely throw its future into uncertainty — and exacerbate already growing concerns of a broader conflict. The U.N. Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting.

Perhaps cautious about upsetting already strained relations with Trump, many nations abstained from commenting directly or pointedly on the joint strikes but condemned Tehran’s retaliation. Similarly to Europeans, governments across the Middle East condemned Iran’s strikes on Arab neighbors while staying silent on the U.S. military action.

Pakistan carries out airstrikes inside Afghanistan as 'open war' on border continues

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s military, backed by artillery and air power, struck more military installations deep inside Afghanistan overnight after Pakistan said it was in “open war” with its eastern neighbor.

Pakistan on Saturday claimed more than 330 Afghan forces had been killed since fighting erupted Thursday night during a broad Afghan cross-border attack into Pakistan. Afghanistan rejected the figures as false.

The casualty figures provided by either side could not be independently confirmed.

The fighting was in response to Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan last Sunday. Pakistan said it was targeting the outlawed Pakistani Taliban, or TTP. The group is separate but closely allied with Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban. Afghanistan, however, said only civilians were killed in Sunday's airstrike.

After the Afghan attack, Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif declared Friday: “Our patience has now run out. Now it is open war between us.”

Worms in food, poor medical care, lights on 24/7: Families tell of life in Texas detention center

LAREDO, Texas (AP) — A month after ICE agents sent the young Ecuadorian mother and her 7-year-old daughter to a sprawling detention center 1,300 miles from their Minnesota home, they were finally free.

But when the bus pulled up to a migrant shelter in the border city of Laredo, dropping off a half-dozen families lugging bags stuffed with belongings, the stress of recent weeks tracked mother and daughter like the long shadows on that mid-February afternoon.

Night after night inside south Texas’ Dilley Immigration Processing Center with hundreds of other families, the grade-schooler wept and pleaded to know why they were being held.

“She would tell me, 'Mom, what crime did I commit to be a prisoner?' I didn’t know what to tell her,” said the 29-year-old, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear being identified could negatively affect their immigration case. Her husband was deported to Ecuador soon after they were taken into custody.

Many Americans were alarmed last month when photos circulated showing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Minneapolis detaining a 5-year-old boy wearing a bunny hat and carrying a Spiderman backpack. The concern followed Liam Conejo Ramos and his father when they were sent to Dilley, surrounded by chain-link fences on a dusty plain about 75 miles south of San Antonio.

A Supreme Court case over whether marijuana users can own guns is creating unusual alliances

WASHINGTON (AP) — Gun rights and cannabis legalization are usually on opposite ends of the political spectrum, but both movements have brought about seismic shifts in the United States in recent decades.

Now those forces are lining up for a rare overlap in a case coming before the Supreme Court on Monday, and it is not the only unusual alliance.

The Republican Trump administration will be defending a firearm restriction, with backing from gun-control groups typically more aligned with Democrats.

On the other side is a pairing of the National Rifle Association and the American Civil Liberties Union.

At stake is a federal law that bars people who regularly use marijuana from legally owning guns. It is an issue that has divided lower courts since a landmark 2022 Supreme Court decision expanded gun rights.

Racial slur at BAFTA awards stirs complex feelings for Black people with Tourette syndrome

For Black people living with Tourette syndrome, the British Academy Film and Television Arts Awards incident earlier this week where a vocal tic manifested as a racial slur while two Black stars of the movie “Sinners” were onstage has left them with complicated feelings.

“It’s been pretty difficult because I feel like there’s such a clash between both sides,” said Chloe Winston, 24, who experiences coprolalia, the same verbal tic as John Davidson, the BAFTA nominee and Tourette syndrome advocate who yelled the slur. “A tic is not intentional, but it still causes harm. And I think that does require accountability.”

Davidson's utterance just as Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo were presenting the first award of that night's ceremony ignited a firestorm that overshadowed Sunday's BAFTAs. There was immediate outrage that the actors and other Black attendees were subjected to the slur. Then there was frustration from the disability community at a lack of understanding about Tourette syndrome. But anger has been loud and widespread for broadcaster BBC because of its decision to allow the racial slur to air uncensored two hours after the live event. Most live awards shows like the Oscars operate on a seconds-long tape delay.

The BAFTA and BBC apologies also were criticized as insufficient. The BBC plans to edit it out of its iPlayer streaming service.

The ordeal has compelled Black people with Tourette syndrome, from politicians to content creators, to speak out. They assert that showing empathy for those dealing with the disorder doesn't minimize the pain felt by the Black community. There needs to be acknowledgment of the harm, some have said. Others also worry that misinformation or stereotypes about Tourette syndrome could exacerbate racial profiling or discrimination for Black people who live with it.

UN chief condemns US-Israeli attacks on Iran during emergency Security Council meeting

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations chief condemned the U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on Iran and called for an immediate return to negotiations “to pull the region, and our world, back from the brink.”

Secretary-General António Guterres told an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Saturday that everything must be done to prevent further escalation. “The alternative,” he warned, “is a potential wider conflict with grave consequences for civilians and regional stability.”

Guterres said the U.S. and Israeli airstrikes violated international law, including the U.N. Charter. He also condemned Iran’s retaliatory attacks for violating the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, insisted the U.S. military action was lawful.

“Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon," he told the council. “That principle is not a matter of politics. It’s a matter of global security. And to that end, the United States is taking lawful actions.”

Greg Abel praises Warren Buffett and promises Berkshire Hathaway won't retreat from investing

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Greg Abel paid tribute to his predecessor Warren Buffett while promising in his first shareholder letter that Berkshire Hathaway won’t retreat from investing or make significant changes in the way it operates.

Abel said he will always maintain Berkshire's financial strength but investors shouldn't look at the company's $373.3 billion cash as a sign that it's not interested in new investments. The number is actually down slightly from the third quarter's $382 billion. Abel said that cash acts as “dry powder” to ensure Berkshire is ready to act at a moment's notice.

“Our balance sheet is a strategic asset to be deployed at the right time. It allows us to act decisively, invest when others are tentative or fearful, and stand firm when financial storms roll through,” Abel wrote.

But Abel did say Berkshire will avoid buying any businesses “that undermine the fabric of society or could jeopardize Berkshire’s reputation” without explaining which companies that standard might exclude. CFRA Research analyst Cathy Seifert said she wonders whether Abel would consider AI companies as undermining society.

Abel acknowledged up front that “Warren is obviously a very hard act to follow,” and he didn't try to match Buffett's wit. Yet investor Adam Mead said he thinks Abel struck the right tone in his letter that seemed crafted to provide the details Berkshire's largest shareholder would want to know.