AP News in Brief at 9:04 p.m. EDT

The U.S. destroyed 16 mine-laying Iranian vessels, though President Donald Trump said in social media posts that there were no reports of Iran planting explosives in the Strait of Hormuz.

The American military released the figure, along with unclassified footage of some of the vessels, after Trump earlier warned Iran against laying mines in the strait.

Both sides sharpened their rhetoric as the war entered its 11th day with Trump threatening to hit Iran at “a level never seen before” if the country failed to immediately remove any mines it might have deployed in the channel.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth promised the most intense strikes yet while the Pentagon detailed the broader toll of injuries sustained by U.S. troops.

Israel says Iran is using cluster munitions. What to know about the weapons

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel says Iran has been firing cluster munitions throughout their 10-day war — adding a complicated and deadly challenge to Israel’s already-stretched air defenses.

The warheads burst open at high altitudes, scattering dozens of smaller bomblets across a wide area. The smaller bombs, which at night can resemble orange fireballs, are difficult to intercept and have proven lethal.

Normally restrictive about releasing information on Iranian hits and damage, Israeli authorities in recent days have sought to educate the public about their dangers, which can persist as unexploded bombs on the ground even after civilians leave shelters. At least three people have been killed, including two at a construction site in central Israel on Tuesday.

Over 120 countries have signed an international convention banning the use of cluster munitions, although Israel, the United States and Iran are among the nations that have not joined the treaty. The weapon has been used for decades in conflicts around the world, including by Israel when it fought the Iran-allied Lebanese militant group Hezbollah in 2006.

Here’s what to know about cluster munitions:

US stocks hold steadier as Wall Street waits for the next signal on how long war with Iran may last

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. stock market held steadier Tuesday as Wall Street waited for the next signal on when the war with Iran may end.

The S&P 500 dipped 0.2%, a day after its latest wild swings caused by extreme moves in the oil market. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 34 points, or 0.1%, and the Nasdaq composite edged higher by less than 0.1%.

Oil prices, meanwhile, remained sharply below their peaks hit on Monday. Such spikes have been rocking financial markets worldwide because of worries that the war could block the global flow of oil and natural gas for a long time.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, settled at $87.80. That’s down 11.3% from its settlement price the day before, but much of that drop happened on Monday before the U.S. stock market finished trading. That’s why it did not give much of a boost to U.S. stocks Tuesday.

Oil prices plunged Monday afternoon from a high of nearly $120 per barrel, its most expensive level since 2022, after President Donald Trump told CBS News he thinks “the war is very complete, pretty much.” That raised hopes that the war may end relatively soon, which could allow oil to flow freely again from the Middle East to customers around the world.

Trump-backed Fuller and Democrat Harris move to Georgia runoff to succeed Marjorie Taylor Greene

ROME, Ga. (AP) — Democrat Shawn Harris and Republican Clay Fuller advanced to an April 7 runoff for Marjorie Taylor Greene’s former U.S. House seat in Georgia after no candidate won a majority in Tuesday’s special election.

President Donald Trump in February endorsed Fuller, a district attorney who prosecutes crimes in four counties, to succeed Greene.

Fuller has called Trump’s endorsement “rocket fuel” for his candidacy, but it did not boost him to a majority of the vote in a 14-candidate field that included nine Republicans, three Democrats, a Libertarian and an independent. All the candidates ran together regardless of party, with the top two moving on to the runoff.

Harris, a cattle farmer and retired brigadier general, is likely to face an uphill battle to win a majority in the heavily Republican district. Nevertheless, Democrats are likely to boast of his first-round showing as a further success in a period when they have focused on strong performances in special elections. Harris has promised moderation and a focus on the district’s problems, contrasting himself with Greene’s bomb-throwing style.

The winner will serve out the remaining months of Greene’s term. A Republican win in northwest Georgia’s 14th Congressional district would bolster the party’s majority in the House. The district stretches from suburban Atlanta to the Tennessee state line.

What to know about the Alabama man granted clemency two days before his execution

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Tuesday granted clemency to a man on death row who was scheduled to be executed Thursday even though he did not personally kill anyone.

Ivey commuted Charles “Sonny” Burton's death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Burton, 75, was convicted of capital murder for the shooting death of Doug Battle during a 1991 robbery. Another man, Derrick DeBruce, shot Battle after Burton had left the building.

The shooting occurred Aug. 16, 1991, during a robbery at an AutoZone auto parts store in Talladega. Doug Battle, a 34-year-old Army veteran and father of four, was shot and killed after entering the store during the robbery.

Before they went inside, Burton said if anyone caused trouble in the store that he would “take care of it,” according to testimony.

As the robbery was ending, Battle entered the store. He threw his wallet down, got onto the floor and exchanged words with DeBruce. LaJuan McCants, who was 16 at the time, testified that Burton and others had left the store before DeBruce shot Battle in the back.

What to know about the embezzlement charges facing a former Chaldean Catholic bishop in California

The bishop of a small Chaldean Catholic community in California has resigned and pleaded not guilty to embezzlement and money laundering after prosecutors said he took more than $270,000 from his parish.

Pope Leo XIV announced Bishop Emanuel Shaleta's resignation on Tuesday. Shaleta was arrested last week at San Diego International Airport while trying to leave the country, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Office.

Prosecutor Joel Madero said Shaleta is accused of embezzling from St. Peter Chaldean Catholic Cathedral in El Cajon, east of San Diego. But Shaleta's defense attorney says those allegations are false.

Here's what to know:

Shaleta, 69, was born in Faysh Kahbur, a small town in Iraq near the Tigris River and the Syrian border, according to a biography on the St. Paul Assyrian Chaldean Catholic Church website. He entered seminary at age 15, training for the priesthood at St. John Minor Seminary near Mosul and Pontifical Urbaniana University in Rome. He was ordained by Pope John Paul II in 1984.

In a time of war with Iran, Americans unite in aggravation over sticker shock at the gas pump

DE SOTO, Iowa (AP) — Standing alongside his son’s Ford pickup truck at a central Iowa gas station off Interstate 80, Francisco Castillo was not happy.

He had voted for President Donald Trump in the last election. He believed Trump had strengthened the economy in his first term, and he wanted more of that.

“I thought that he was going to bring some of those things back,” said Castillo, a 43-year-old factory worker. And now? “He said he was going to bring gas down, but the war in Iran is now making everything worse.”

It seems a country divided on so many fronts is finding common ground in pain at the pump, where the cost of the Iran war is hitting Americans squarely in the wallet and aggravating people across the political spectrum.

For Castillo and many others filling their tanks on Monday at gas stations in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Florida, North Carolina and Iowa, it was a reminder that politicians’ promises aren’t going to pay the bills.

FDA finds little evidence that a drug touted by Trump can help people with autism

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday approved a generic medication for a rare brain disorder, while walking back statements by President Donald Trump and other administration officials that the drug showed great promise for people with autism.

The agency said it approved leucovorin for children and adults with a genetic condition that limits delivery of folate, a form of vitamin B, to the brain. FDA officials estimate the ultrarare condition impacts fewer than 1 in a million people in the U.S.

It's a major step back from comments made at a White House news conference in September, when Trump and FDA commissioner Marty Makary announced the drug was under review to benefit patients with autism, some of whom have a form of the vitamin brain deficiency.

“It might be 20, 40, 50% of kids with autism,” Makary said at the news conference.

But senior FDA officials told reporters Monday that their review was narrowed to focus on the strongest evidence, which only supported the drug’s use by patients with the rare mutation that impacts folate levels in the brain.

Prosecutor says Rihanna, A$AP Rocky, 3 kids were home when woman charged with attempted murder fired

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Rihanna, her partner A$AP Rocky, their three children and her mother were all at home when a woman now charged with attempted murder and many other felony counts is alleged to have fired at the property, a prosecutor said Tuesday.

Ivanna Lisette Ortiz, 35, of Orlando, Florida, was charged with attempting to kill Rihanna, along with 10 counts of assault on a person with a semiautomatic firearm and three counts of shooting at an inhabited vehicle or dwelling, authorities said. No one was injured.

The singing superstar and her rap star partner were together in a trailer on the property at the time of the Sunday afternoon shooting, while other family members and staffers were in the Beverly Hills-area home, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said outside a court hearing.

Inside court, Deputy Public Defender Jamarcus Bradford, Ortiz’s attorney, at first entered a plea of not guilty on her behalf, but then withdrew it in favor of postponing arraignment until March 25. She was ordered held on $1.8 million bail. Ortiz wore blue jail clothes with her blond hair in braids and spoke to the lawyer through a glass divider.

Bradford didn't talk to reporters outside court.

Kenneth Walker III joins Mahomes in KC and Malik Willis starts QB reset in Miami, AP sources say

Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III is the new running back for Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City, Miami settled on Malik Willis for a reset at quarterback and receiver Mike Evans is headed to San Francisco after 12 years in Tampa Bay.

People with knowledge of the agreements told The Associated Press on Monday, the opening day of NFL free agency, that Walker was leaving Seattle after winning a championship and the Dolphins reached a deal with Willis after announcing earlier in the day that they were releasing Tua Tagovailoa.

The people spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because contracts can't be signed until Wednesday, the first day of the new league year.

The negotiating window opened with a flurry of significant deals, including the Indianapolis Colts keeping their top free agent in receiver Alec Pierce.

Edge rusher Jaelan Phillips and the Carolina Panthers agreed on a four-year, $120 million contract with $80 million guaranteed. Philadelphia was hoping to retain Phillips after sending a third-round pick to Miami for him at the trade deadline last season. Phillips had five sacks combined for the Dolphins and the Eagles.