LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) — The University of Wyoming approved a revised reopening plan less than two weeks before classes are due to resume. 

Officials say when the semester starts on Aug. 24, all courses will be online. Students who are not on campus will be encouraged not to come. 

Currently, there are approximately 1,500 students on campus, most of them freshmen. 

Some students will return on Sept. 7, including first-generation college students and students with lab requirements that cannot be done from home. 

Students will return to campus for in-person classes by Sept. 28. Then, courses will move exclusively online on Nov. 23 and will remain so through the end of the semester.&nbsp;

LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) — The University of Wyoming approved a revised reopening plan less than two weeks before classes are due to resume. Officials say when the semester starts on Aug. 24, all courses will be online. Students who are not on campus will be encouraged not to come. Currently, there are approximately 1,500 students on campus, most of them freshmen. Some students will return on Sept. 7, including first-generation college students and students with lab requirements that cannot be done from home. Students will return to campus for in-person classes by Sept. 28. Then, courses will move exclusively online on Nov. 23 and will remain so through the end of the semester.&nbsp;

University of Wyoming approves revised reopening plan

Washington —On Saturday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) to Yale School of Public Health for its SalivaDirect COVID-19 diagnostic test, which uses a new method of processing saliva samples when testing for COVID-19 infection, according to a media release from the FDA.

“The SalivaDirect test for rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 is yet another testing innovation game changer that will reduce the demand for scarce testing resources,” said Assistant Secretary for Health and COVID-19 Testing Coordinator Admiral Brett P. Giroir, M.D. 

“Our current national expansion of COVID-19 testing is only possible because of FDA’s technical expertise and reduction of regulatory barriers, coupled with the private sector’s ability to innovate and their high motivation to answer complex challenges posed by this pandemic.”

“Providing this type of flexibility for processing saliva samples to test for COVID-19 infection is groundbreaking in terms of efficiency and avoiding shortages of crucial test components like reagents,” said FDA Commissioner Stephen M. Hahn, M.D. “Today’s authorization is another example of the FDA working with test developers to bring the most innovative technology to market in an effort to ensure access to testing for all people in America. The FDA encourages test developers to work with the agency to create innovative, effective products to help address the COVID-19 pandemic and to increase capacity and efficiency in testing.”

SalivaDirect does not require any special type of swab or collection device; a saliva sample can be collected in any sterile container. This test is also unique because it does not require a separate nucleic acid extraction step. This is significant because the extraction kits used for this step in other tests have been prone to shortages in the past. Being able to perform a test without these kits enhances the capacity for increased testing, while reducing the strain on available resources. Additionally, the SalivaDirect methodology has been validated and authorized for use with different combinations of commonly used reagents and instruments, meaning the test could be used broadly in most high-complexity labs.

Yale intends to provide the SalivaDirect protocol to interested laboratories as an “open source” protocol, meaning that designated laboratories could follow the protocol to obtain the required components and perform the test in their lab according to Yale’s instructions for use. Because this test does not rely on any proprietary equipment from Yale and can use a variety of commercially available testing components, it can be assembled and used in high-complexity labs throughout the country, provided they comply with the conditions of authorization in the EUA.

This is the fifth test that the FDA has authorized that uses saliva as a sample for testing. Testing saliva eliminates the need for nasopharyngeal swabs, which have also been prone to shortages, and alleviates the patient discomfort associated with these swabs. Since the saliva sample is self-collected under the observation of a healthcare professional, it could also potentially lower the risk posed to healthcare workers responsible for sample collection. While FDA has seen variable performance in tests using saliva, Yale School of Public Health submitted data with its EUA request from which the FDA determined that Yale’s test meets the criteria for emergency authorization when used to test saliva samples for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 infection.

Washington —On Saturday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued an emergency use authorization (EUA) to Yale School of Public Health for its SalivaDirect COVID-19 diagnostic test, which uses a new method of processing saliva samples when testing for COVID-19 infection, according to a media release from the FDA.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">BREAKING: a saliva <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/COVID19?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#COVID19</a> test developed by <a href="https://twitter.com/YaleSPH?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@yalesph</a> researchers has recieved emergency use authorization by the FDA. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SalivaDirect?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SalivaDirect</a> is fast, inexpensive, and non-invasive. It can be a game changer for accessible testing. <a href="https://t.co/clk3mIciG1">https://t.co/clk3mIciG1</a>&mdash; Yale School of Public Health (@YaleSPH) <a href="https://twitter.com/YaleSPH/status/1294675119881834502?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 15, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>“The SalivaDirect test for rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 is yet another testing innovation game changer that will reduce the demand for scarce testing resources,” said Assistant Secretary for Health and COVID-19 Testing Coordinator Admiral Brett P. Giroir, M.D. “Our current national expansion of COVID-19 testing is only possible because of FDA’s technical expertise and reduction of regulatory barriers, coupled with the private sector’s ability to innovate and their high motivation to answer complex challenges posed by this pandemic.”“Providing this type of flexibility for processing saliva samples to test for COVID-19 infection is groundbreaking in terms of efficiency and avoiding shortages of crucial test components like reagents,” said FDA Commissioner Stephen M. Hahn, M.D. “Today’s authorization is another example of the FDA working with test developers to bring the most innovative technology to market in an effort to ensure access to testing for all people in America. The FDA encourages test developers to work with the agency to create innovative, effective products to help address the COVID-19 pandemic and to increase capacity and efficiency in testing.”SalivaDirect does not require any special type of swab or collection device; a saliva sample can be collected in any sterile container. This test is also unique because it does not require a separate nucleic acid extraction step. This is significant because the extraction kits used for this step in other tests have been prone to shortages in the past. Being able to perform a test without these kits enhances the capacity for increased testing, while reducing the strain on available resources. Additionally, the SalivaDirect methodology has been validated and authorized for use with different combinations of commonly used reagents and instruments, meaning the test could be used broadly in most high-complexity labs.Yale intends to provide the SalivaDirect protocol to interested laboratories as an “open source” protocol, meaning that designated laboratories could follow the protocol to obtain the required components and perform the test in their lab according to Yale’s instructions for use. Because this test does not rely on any proprietary equipment from Yale and can use a variety of commercially available testing components, it can be assembled and used in high-complexity labs throughout the country, provided they comply with the conditions of authorization in the EUA.This is the fifth test that the FDA has authorized that uses saliva as a sample for testing. Testing saliva eliminates the need for nasopharyngeal swabs, which have also been prone to shortages, and alleviates the patient discomfort associated with these swabs. Since the saliva sample is self-collected under the observation of a healthcare professional, it could also potentially lower the risk posed to healthcare workers responsible for sample collection. While FDA has seen variable performance in tests using saliva, Yale School of Public Health submitted data with its EUA request from which the FDA determined that Yale’s test meets the criteria for emergency authorization when used to test saliva samples for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 infection.

FDA gives emergency approval of saliva #COVID19 test 

Churches in California and Minnesota, backed by a conservative legal group, filed lawsuits this past week against the governors of their states challenging restrictions imposed due to the coronavirus outbreak that they contend are violations of religious liberty.

They’re the latest in a long series of legal challenges, many of them in California, pitting clerics and houses of worship who believe they should be exempt from certain restrictions on public gatherings against governors who insist the measures are needed to rein in the pandemic. Most of the suits have been rebuffed; some have succeeded.

In Minnesota, a lawsuit was filed Thursday in federal court challenging Gov. Tim Walz’s executive orders requiring 6-foot social distancing and the wearing of face masks at worship services.

“Gov. Walz, a former teacher, gets an F in religious liberties,” said Erick Kaardal, special counsel for the Thomas More Society. “Other states, including Texas, Illinois and Ohio, have excluded churches from COVID-19 mask mandates.”

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison reiterated his defense of Walz’s order, saying it was legally and constitutionally sound.

Teddy Tschann, spokesperson for Walz, said the governor was within his authority taking the action and added that all Walz’s actions have been grounded in the desire to keep Minnesotans safe.

Walz had been embroiled in a battle with Roman Catholic and Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod congregations across Minnesota over restrictions he placed on gatherings of more than 10 people. He relented and said they could hold services at 25% of capacity if certain conditions were met after they made it clear they planned to defy the order.

Earlier this month a pastor in Palmetto, Florida, filed a suit challenging Manatee County’s mask mandate. The Rev. Joel Tillis of Suncoast Baptist Church said the order shouldn’t extend to houses of worship because it hinders prayer.

The Thomas More Society, which specializes in litigation on religious issues, filed a lawsuit Wednesday in California Superior Court against Gov. Gavin Newsom and other officials. It seeks to prevent the enforcement of “unconstitutional and onerous coronavirus pandemic regulations” against Grace Community Church in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Sun Valley.

The pastor, John MacArthur, has been holding services in recent weeks attended by throngs of worshippers in defiance of state and county limits on gatherings.

“We will obey God rather than men,” MacArthur said in a message to his congregation. “He will be on our side.”

MacArthur was greeted with applause Sunday when he welcomed worshippers to his church’s “peaceful protest.”

One of the two Thomas More lawyers representing MacArthur and his church is Jenna Ellis, who also is a senior legal adviser to President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign.

“California’s edicts demanding an indefinite shutdown have gone now far past rational or reasonable and are firmly in the territory of tyranny and discrimination,” Ellis said. “This isn’t about health. It’s about blatantly targeting churches.”

The lawsuit contends that restrictions on large gatherings should not be enforced at churches because they were not enforced on large demonstrations against racism and police brutality.

Officials in California, where COVID-19 cases have been surging in recent weeks, say strict restrictions remain necessary in Los Angeles County and other counties that are on a state monitoring list for high rates of new infections.

Los Angeles County filed a lawsuit against the church Thursday seeking to have in-door, in-person worship services stopped. The lawsuit also seeks to have the church comply with health order requirements, including the use of face covers and physical distancing at outdoor services.

Attorney General Xavier Becerra’s office referred a request for comment to Newsom’s office, as the new lawsuit addresses the governor’s executive order. Spokesmen for Newsom did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Across the country the vast majority of churches have cooperated with health authorities and successfully protected their congregations. Yet from the earliest phases of the pandemic, and continuing to this day, some worship services and other religious activities have been identified as sources of local outbreaks.

A few churches have been openly defiant, including one in California’s Ventura County which held indoor worship services Sunday despite a judge’s temporary restraining order.

Pastor Rob McCoy of Godspeak Calvary Chapel in Newbury Park had vowed to continue in-person services even though the order cited “an immediate threat to public health and safety.”

On Tuesday a different judge declined a county request to order the immediate closure of the church, and scheduled a hearing for Aug. 21.

Earlier this year the U.S. Supreme Court upheld state COVID-19 restrictions on religious gatherings in a suit filed by South Bay United Pentecostal Church in Chula Vista, California.

Most recently, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected on July 24 an appeal by a rural Nevada church in a 5-4 decision joined by Chief Justice John Roberts but sharply criticized in three separate conservative dissents. In addition to lax enforcement of social-distancing at protests, Calvary Chapel Dayton Valley argued Nevada’s 50-person cap on worship services was unconstitutional because casinos and other businesses currently can operate at 50% of capacity. Justice Neil Gorscuch wrote, “There is no world in which the Constitution permits Nevada to favor Caesars Palace over Calvary Chapel.”

Religious plaintiffs have prevailed in some litigation, however. In June a federal judge blocked New York state from enforcing restrictions on indoor religious gatherings to 25% capacity when other types of gatherings were limited to 50%.

The plaintiffs, represented by the Thomas More Society, were two Catholic priests from Upstate New York and three Orthodox Jewish congregants from Brooklyn. They argued that the restrictions violated their First Amendment rights to practice their religion.

The society also claimed a victory in May when Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker withdrew certain pandemic-related mandates on houses of worship.

In the new Minnesota case, the plaintiffs were Protestant churches in the towns of Alexandria, Buffalo and Crosby, along with their pastors.

“Our people are commanded to meet together in fellowship,” Eric Anderson, pastor of Life Spring Church in Crosby, said at a news conference Thursday. “They can’t fellowship with masks on their faces.”

Kaardal, the Thomas Moore lawyer, argued that Walz’s executive order usurped the legislature’s lawmaking powers.

By DAVID CRARY, Associated PressChurches in California and Minnesota, backed by a conservative legal group, filed lawsuits this past week against the governors of their states challenging restrictions imposed due to the coronavirus outbreak that they contend are violations of religious liberty.They’re the latest in a long series of legal challenges, many of them in California, pitting clerics and houses of worship who believe they should be exempt from certain restrictions on public gatherings against governors who insist the measures are needed to rein in the pandemic. Most of the suits have been rebuffed; some have succeeded.In Minnesota, a lawsuit was filed Thursday in federal court challenging Gov. Tim Walz’s executive orders requiring 6-foot social distancing and the wearing of face masks at worship services.“Gov. Walz, a former teacher, gets an F in religious liberties,” said Erick Kaardal, special counsel for the Thomas More Society. “Other states, including Texas, Illinois and Ohio, have excluded churches from COVID-19 mask mandates.”Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison reiterated his defense of Walz’s order, saying it was legally and constitutionally sound.Teddy Tschann, spokesperson for Walz, said the governor was within his authority taking the action and added that all Walz’s actions have been grounded in the desire to keep Minnesotans safe.Walz had been embroiled in a battle with Roman Catholic and Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod congregations across Minnesota over restrictions he placed on gatherings of more than 10 people. He relented and said they could hold services at 25% of capacity if certain conditions were met after they made it clear they planned to defy the order.Earlier this month a pastor in Palmetto, Florida, filed a suit challenging Manatee County’s mask mandate. The Rev. Joel Tillis of Suncoast Baptist Church said the order shouldn’t extend to houses of worship because it hinders prayer.The Thomas More Society, which specializes in litigation on religious issues, filed a lawsuit Wednesday in California Superior Court against Gov. Gavin Newsom and other officials. It seeks to prevent the enforcement of “unconstitutional and onerous coronavirus pandemic regulations” against Grace Community Church in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Sun Valley.The pastor, John MacArthur, has been holding services in recent weeks attended by throngs of worshippers in defiance of state and county limits on gatherings.“We will obey God rather than men,” MacArthur said in a message to his congregation. “He will be on our side.”MacArthur was greeted with applause Sunday when he welcomed worshippers to his church’s “peaceful protest.”One of the two Thomas More lawyers representing MacArthur and his church is Jenna Ellis, who also is a senior legal adviser to President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign.“California’s edicts demanding an indefinite shutdown have gone now far past rational or reasonable and are firmly in the territory of tyranny and discrimination,” Ellis said. “This isn’t about health. It’s about blatantly targeting churches.”The lawsuit contends that restrictions on large gatherings should not be enforced at churches because they were not enforced on large demonstrations against racism and police brutality.Officials in California, where COVID-19 cases have been surging in recent weeks, say strict restrictions remain necessary in Los Angeles County and other counties that are on a state monitoring list for high rates of new infections.Los Angeles County filed a lawsuit against the church Thursday seeking to have in-door, in-person worship services stopped. The lawsuit also seeks to have the church comply with health order requirements, including the use of face covers and physical distancing at outdoor services.Attorney General Xavier Becerra’s office referred a request for comment to Newsom’s office, as the new lawsuit addresses the governor’s executive order. Spokesmen for Newsom did not immediately respond to a request for comment.Across the country the vast majority of churches have cooperated with health authorities and successfully protected their congregations. Yet from the earliest phases of the pandemic, and continuing to this day, some worship services and other religious activities have been identified as sources of local outbreaks.A few churches have been openly defiant, including one in California’s Ventura County which held indoor worship services Sunday despite a judge’s temporary restraining order.Pastor Rob McCoy of Godspeak Calvary Chapel in Newbury Park had vowed to continue in-person services even though the order cited “an immediate threat to public health and safety.”On Tuesday a different judge declined a county request to order the immediate closure of the church, and scheduled a hearing for Aug. 21.Earlier this year the U.S. Supreme Court upheld state COVID-19 restrictions on religious gatherings in a suit filed by South Bay United Pentecostal Church in Chula Vista, California.Most recently, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected on July 24 an appeal by a rural Nevada church in a 5-4 decision joined by Chief Justice John Roberts but sharply criticized in three separate conservative dissents. In addition to lax enforcement of social-distancing at protests, Calvary Chapel Dayton Valley argued Nevada’s 50-person cap on worship services was unconstitutional because casinos and other businesses currently can operate at 50% of capacity. Justice Neil Gorscuch wrote, “There is no world in which the Constitution permits Nevada to favor Caesars Palace over Calvary Chapel.”Religious plaintiffs have prevailed in some litigation, however. In June a federal judge blocked New York state from enforcing restrictions on indoor religious gatherings to 25% capacity when other types of gatherings were limited to 50%.The plaintiffs, represented by the Thomas More Society, were two Catholic priests from Upstate New York and three Orthodox Jewish congregants from Brooklyn. They argued that the restrictions violated their First Amendment rights to practice their religion.The society also claimed a victory in May when Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker withdrew certain pandemic-related mandates on houses of worship.In the new Minnesota case, the plaintiffs were Protestant churches in the towns of Alexandria, Buffalo and Crosby, along with their pastors.“Our people are commanded to meet together in fellowship,” Eric Anderson, pastor of Life Spring Church in Crosby, said at a news conference Thursday. “They can’t fellowship with masks on their faces.”Kaardal, the Thomas Moore lawyer, argued that Walz’s executive order usurped the legislature’s lawmaking powers.

More US churches sue to challenge COVID-19 restrictions

KANSAS CITY (AP) — Attorneys for a man accused of killing two brothers from Wisconsin are seeking to have two charges of abandoning a corpse dismissed in the case.

Garland Nelson, of Braymer, Mo., is facing the death penalty in the deaths of 24-year-old Justin Diemel and 35-year-old Nicholas Diemel, of Shawano County, Wisconsin. They disappeared after visiting Nelson's farm in July 2019 and their burned remains were later found in Missouri and Nebraska.

Nelson has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.

His attorneys wrote in a court motion that two charges of abandoning a corpse filed against Nelson should be dropped. They argue a person charged with murder cannot also be charged with abandoning the corpse of the alleged murder victim without violating his constitutional rights.

Prosecutors argue Nelson could have followed Missouri law by anonymously reporting where the brothers’ bodies were located.

Nelson’s next court date has not been scheduled because of COVID-19 restrictions. He is asking to appear in person at all court hearings and his defense team is seeking to meet with him in person at the Caldwell County Jail where Nelson is being held.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2019/7/1564610122687.png" alt="Nelson-photo Caldwell Co." />
 <figcaption>Nelson-photo Caldwell Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>KANSAS CITY (AP) — Attorneys for a man accused of killing two brothers from Wisconsin are seeking to have two charges of abandoning a corpse dismissed in the case.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2019/8/1565280147807.png" alt="Diemel" />
 <figcaption>Diemel</figcaption>
 </figure>Garland Nelson, of Braymer, Mo., is facing the death penalty in the deaths of 24-year-old Justin Diemel and 35-year-old Nicholas Diemel, of Shawano County, Wisconsin. They disappeared after visiting Nelson's farm in July 2019 and their burned remains were later found in Missouri and Nebraska.Nelson has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial.His attorneys wrote in a court motion that two charges of abandoning a corpse filed against Nelson should be dropped. They argue a person charged with murder cannot also be charged with abandoning the corpse of the alleged murder victim without violating his constitutional rights.Prosecutors argue Nelson could have followed Missouri law by anonymously reporting where the brothers’ bodies were located.Nelson’s next court date has not been scheduled because of COVID-19 restrictions. He is asking to appear in person at all court hearings and his defense team is seeking to meet with him in person at the Caldwell County Jail where Nelson is being held.

Man charged in killing of 2 brothers disputes 2 charges

WASHINGTON (AP) — No, Russia isn’t having a Sputnik moment.

The announcement this week by Russian President Vladimir Putin that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/fcda62ad992db414d65f23b2adb78e44">his country was the first to approve a coronavirus vaccine</a>&nbsp;did not provoke the awe and wonder of the Soviet Union’s launch of the first satellite into orbit in 1957. Instead, it was met by doubts about the science and safety.

But the claim underscored how, like the space race, the competition to have the first vaccine is about international rivalries as well as science. The first nation to develop a way to defeat the novel coronavirus will achieve a kind of moonshot victory and the global status that goes along with it.

That’s valuable to Putin, whose popularity at home has declined amid a stagnant economy and the ravages of the virus outbreak.

“To be the first one out of the block with a coronavirus vaccine would be a real — pardon the pun — shot in the arm for the Kremlin,” said Timothy Frye, a political science professor at Columbia University who specializes in post-Soviet politics.

Russia is not alone in viewing a vaccine in this light. China, where the virus first emerged, has also raced to make progress on a vaccine.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/93a7be6c6ac427e6211074ab9cfc9dbc">A state-owned Chinese company is boasting</a>&nbsp;that its employees, including top executives, received experimental shots even before the government approved testing in people.

President Donald Trump, whose handling of the coronavirus pandemic has put his political fate in grave jeopardy,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/7cc45cdcb3e53515b8ff4304a4ae5c06">is hoping to get credit for his administration’s aggressive push for a vaccine,&nbsp;</a>ideally one that arrives before Election Day in November.

It’s far from clear at this point whether Putin has beaten Trump to this medical milestone.

Putin said the Health Ministry gave its approval after the vaccine, named “Sputnik V,” underwent the necessary tests. He said one of his two adult daughters had been inoculated. “We should be grateful to those who have taken this first step, which is very important for our country and the whole world,” he said.

No proof was offered and scientists in Russia warned that more testing would be necessary to establish it is safe and effective. Nonetheless, officials said vaccination of doctors could start as early as this month and mass vaccination may begin as early as October.

Scientists around the world have been cautioning that even if vaccine candidates are proven to work, it will take even more time to tell how long the protection will last.

“It’s a too early stage to truly assess whether it’s going to be effective, whether it’s going to work or not,” said Dr. Michael Head, senior research fellow in global health at the University of Southampton.

It was also too soon to dismiss the Russian claim out of hand.

The country, though economically dependent on the export of natural resources, does have a history of achievement in science, medicine and aerospace — including becoming the first to put a person into space, in 1961.

“It is possible that they concentrated and could do this,” said Daniel Fried, a retired senior U.S. diplomat. “I’m not scoffing at it, but it doesn’t mean that the Russian economy is advanced.”

A vaccine would be the kind of significant achievement that would elevate Putin at home and in the international community.

“They would love to be able to claim credit because the first country to develop the vaccine will gain enormous prestige,” said Fried, a former assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs who is now a distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council.

It’s also possible Russia had help. The U.S., Britain and Canada l&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/47797e89ddb470b3244fae3a799481c5">ast month accused hackers working for Russian intelligence of trying to steal information&nbsp;</a>about a coronavirus vaccine from academic and pharmaceutical research institutions.

In any case, the public is eager for a vaccine as global deaths from the virus surpass 730,000. Some say they would even welcome one from Russia, provided it passes muster with the Food and Drug Administration, which approves vaccines used in the U.S., and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which recommends who should receive them.

“I can’t take it anymore. I’m getting crazy,” said Fernanda Henderson, as she strapped her infant into a car seat at a park in the Maryland suburbs of Washington for a break from quarantining at home. “I don’t think the CDC or the FDA would approve something that is not going to work.”

But to Vesna Jezic, a 79-year-old native of Croatia and immunologist who was taking her grandchildren to the same park, the suspiciously fast progress on the vaccine announced by Putin was reason to be doubtful. “You can imagine we don’t trust anything that comes from Russia,” she said.

The Russian president may face similar doubts at home. Frye noted a 2018 Gallup Poll that showed the former Soviet countries have some of the highest rates of anti-vaccination sentiment in the world.

“If it turns out not to work, it would be a real black eye,” he said.

WASHINGTON (AP) — No, Russia isn’t having a Sputnik moment.The announcement this week by Russian President Vladimir Putin that&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/fcda62ad992db414d65f23b2adb78e44">his country was the first to approve a coronavirus vaccine</a>&nbsp;did not provoke the awe and wonder of the Soviet Union’s launch of the first satellite into orbit in 1957. Instead, it was met by doubts about the science and safety.But the claim underscored how, like the space race, the competition to have the first vaccine is about international rivalries as well as science. The first nation to develop a way to defeat the novel coronavirus will achieve a kind of moonshot victory and the global status that goes along with it.That’s valuable to Putin, whose popularity at home has declined amid a stagnant economy and the ravages of the virus outbreak.“To be the first one out of the block with a coronavirus vaccine would be a real — pardon the pun — shot in the arm for the Kremlin,” said Timothy Frye, a political science professor at Columbia University who specializes in post-Soviet politics.Russia is not alone in viewing a vaccine in this light. China, where the virus first emerged, has also raced to make progress on a vaccine.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/93a7be6c6ac427e6211074ab9cfc9dbc">A state-owned Chinese company is boasting</a>&nbsp;that its employees, including top executives, received experimental shots even before the government approved testing in people.President Donald Trump, whose handling of the coronavirus pandemic has put his political fate in grave jeopardy,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/7cc45cdcb3e53515b8ff4304a4ae5c06">is hoping to get credit for his administration’s aggressive push for a vaccine,&nbsp;</a>ideally one that arrives before Election Day in November.It’s far from clear at this point whether Putin has beaten Trump to this medical milestone.Putin said the Health Ministry gave its approval after the vaccine, named “Sputnik V,” underwent the necessary tests. He said one of his two adult daughters had been inoculated. “We should be grateful to those who have taken this first step, which is very important for our country and the whole world,” he said.No proof was offered and scientists in Russia warned that more testing would be necessary to establish it is safe and effective. Nonetheless, officials said vaccination of doctors could start as early as this month and mass vaccination may begin as early as October.Scientists around the world have been cautioning that even if vaccine candidates are proven to work, it will take even more time to tell how long the protection will last.“It’s a too early stage to truly assess whether it’s going to be effective, whether it’s going to work or not,” said Dr. Michael Head, senior research fellow in global health at the University of Southampton.It was also too soon to dismiss the Russian claim out of hand.The country, though economically dependent on the export of natural resources, does have a history of achievement in science, medicine and aerospace — including becoming the first to put a person into space, in 1961.“It is possible that they concentrated and could do this,” said Daniel Fried, a retired senior U.S. diplomat. “I’m not scoffing at it, but it doesn’t mean that the Russian economy is advanced.”A vaccine would be the kind of significant achievement that would elevate Putin at home and in the international community.“They would love to be able to claim credit because the first country to develop the vaccine will gain enormous prestige,” said Fried, a former assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs who is now a distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council.It’s also possible Russia had help. The U.S., Britain and Canada l&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/47797e89ddb470b3244fae3a799481c5">ast month accused hackers working for Russian intelligence of trying to steal information&nbsp;</a>about a coronavirus vaccine from academic and pharmaceutical research institutions.In any case, the public is eager for a vaccine as global deaths from the virus surpass 730,000. Some say they would even welcome one from Russia, provided it passes muster with the Food and Drug Administration, which approves vaccines used in the U.S., and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which recommends who should receive them.“I can’t take it anymore. I’m getting crazy,” said Fernanda Henderson, as she strapped her infant into a car seat at a park in the Maryland suburbs of Washington for a break from quarantining at home. “I don’t think the CDC or the FDA would approve something that is not going to work.”But to Vesna Jezic, a 79-year-old native of Croatia and immunologist who was taking her grandchildren to the same park, the suspiciously fast progress on the vaccine announced by Putin was reason to be doubtful. “You can imagine we don’t trust anything that comes from Russia,” she said.The Russian president may face similar doubts at home. Frye noted a 2018 Gallup Poll that showed the former Soviet countries have some of the highest rates of anti-vaccination sentiment in the world.“If it turns out not to work, it would be a real black eye,” he said.___

Science, politics tied up in global race for a vaccine

Investigators with the Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) have arrested two people during a drug investigation in Albion.

This morning, NSP investigators executed a search warrant at a residence at 512 S. 6th&nbsp;street in Albion. Investigators located methamphetamine, marijuana, drug paraphernalia, and drug manufacturing equipment, as well as a knife/iron knuckles weapon. The home was approximately 111 feet from the Boone Central Schools building,

The residents, Devin Samuelson, 31, and Kristi Samuelson, 30, were both arrested for possession of methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, possession of marijuana, manufacturing a controlled substance, and violation of a school zone. Devin Samuelson was also arrested for possession of a deadly weapon by a prohibited person.

Devin and Kristi Samuelson are married. Devin Samuelson was lodged in Boone County Jail. Kristi Samuelson was lodged in Antelope County Jail.

News Release NSPInvestigators with the Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) have arrested two people during a drug investigation in Albion.This morning, NSP investigators executed a search warrant at a residence at 512 S. 6th&nbsp;street in Albion. Investigators located methamphetamine, marijuana, drug paraphernalia, and drug manufacturing equipment, as well as a knife/iron knuckles weapon. The home was approximately 111 feet from the Boone Central Schools building,The residents, Devin Samuelson, 31, and Kristi Samuelson, 30, were both arrested for possession of methamphetamine, possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, possession of marijuana, manufacturing a controlled substance, and violation of a school zone. Devin Samuelson was also arrested for possession of a deadly weapon by a prohibited person.Devin and Kristi Samuelson are married. Devin Samuelson was lodged in Boone County Jail. Kristi Samuelson was lodged in Antelope County Jail.

Albion couple arrested on numerous drug charges

DALLAS (AP) — With air traffic nearing a five-month high, airport security is finding guns in passenger carry-on bags at three times the rate recorded before the pandemic.

The discoveries at airports comes at a time when U.S. gun sales are surging, and analysts believe many of those purchases are being made by first-time buyers.

Officers seized just over 300 guns in July, or 15.3 guns for every million people screened, compared with 5.1 per million people in July of last year, the Transportation Security Administration said Monday.

TSA Administrator David Pekoske said there has been a significant increase in loaded guns at checkpoints. He said screeners are already working in conditions of heightened risks and that “no one should be introducing new ones.”

The number of loaded guns, Pekoske said, “is just an accident waiting to happen.”

Background checks on gun buyers have been rising every month compared with a year earlier since April 2019, but they picked up even faster this year. The number of checks topped 3 million in four of the last five months. They had not exceeded 3 million in one month since December 2015.

<a href="https://www.fbi.gov/file-repository/nics_firearm_checks_-_day_month_year.pdf/view" target="_blank">FBI figures show</a>&nbsp;that there were more than 3.6 million firearms background checks requested on buyers in July, a 79% increase from July 2019, following a 70% increase in June.

Cowen analyst Cai von Rumohr, who tracks gun sales, said the increases are likely due to fear about COVID-19 lockdowns, civil unrest, and former Vice President Joe Biden’s lead over President Donald Trump in polls ahead of the Nov. 3 election “given his more restrictive stance on gun control relative to President Trump.”

The analyst said an outsized rise in handgun sales in June and July indicates that many purchases are being made by first-time gun owners.

John Donohue, a Stanford University law professor who has served as an expert witness against efforts to weaken gun-control laws in California, said the increased sales are mostly a response to images of protests after the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers. He also cited warnings by Trump and the National Rifle Association about crime.

“Fear drives a lot of gun sales,” he said.

National Rifle Association spokesman Andrew Arulanandam said higher gun sales were due to widespread concern that, first because of the pandemic and later because of protests and riots, police might be slower to respond to emergency calls.

“It’s a natural reaction,” he said.

It is legal to transport guns in checked bags if they are unloaded and in a locked case. The TSA can impose civil penalties and suspend people from faster-screening programs such as TSA PreCheck, but decisions on whether to file criminal charges are usually left to local authorities.

The NRA’s Arulanandam said guns show up at airports because “people forget they have a firearm in their handbag or their backpack, and they go to the check-in counter and they realize, ‘Look, I forgot I had this in there.’”

Atlanta’s major airport had&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/sites/default/files/tsa-gun-catches-by-airport-july-2020.pdf" target="_blank">the most gun seizures last month,</a>&nbsp;with 27, followed by Dallas-Fort Worth and Denver at 13 each and 12 at the Nashville airport.

Last year, TSA seized&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/news/press/releases/2020/01/15/number-guns-brought-airport-checkpoints-2019-5-percent" target="_blank">a record 4,432 guns</a>&nbsp;in carry-on bags, or about 12.1 per day, and 87% were loaded.

TSA’s public appeal to follow gun rules occurred the same day that it reported&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/coronavirus/passenger-throughput" target="_blank">screening 831,789 people on Sunday</a>. It was the first time checkpoint traffic in U.S. airports has topped 800,000 since March 17. That is still down 69% from the comparable Sunday a year ago.

DALLAS (AP) — With air traffic nearing a five-month high, airport security is finding guns in passenger carry-on bags at three times the rate recorded before the pandemic.And 80% of the guns are loaded.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">On Saturday <a href="https://twitter.com/portlandjetport?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@portlandjetport</a> a <a href="https://twitter.com/TSA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TSA</a> officer discovered an improperly packed &quot;pink&quot; firearm during a checked bag search. The firearm case was unlocked and there was no declaration in the bag. Be sure you know the rules for travelling with guns. <a href="https://t.co/NuY8hJ70fX">https://t.co/NuY8hJ70fX</a> <a href="https://t.co/CcEPMNaxFz">pic.twitter.com/CcEPMNaxFz</a>&mdash; TSA_NewEngland (@TSA_NewEngland) <a href="https://twitter.com/TSA_NewEngland/status/1292891046242922497?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 10, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The discoveries at airports comes at a time when U.S. gun sales are surging, and analysts believe many of those purchases are being made by first-time buyers.Officers seized just over 300 guns in July, or 15.3 guns for every million people screened, compared with 5.1 per million people in July of last year, the Transportation Security Administration said Monday.TSA Administrator David Pekoske said there has been a significant increase in loaded guns at checkpoints. He said screeners are already working in conditions of heightened risks and that “no one should be introducing new ones.”The number of loaded guns, Pekoske said, “is just an accident waiting to happen.”Background checks on gun buyers have been rising every month compared with a year earlier since April 2019, but they picked up even faster this year. The number of checks topped 3 million in four of the last five months. They had not exceeded 3 million in one month since December 2015.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Travelers should never bring a firearm to a checkpoint, even if you have a concealed carry permit. Doing so will be an inconvenient &amp; expensive mistake. Civil financial penalty for bringing an unloaded gun to a checkpoint is $2,050 &amp; starts at $4,100 if the gun is loaded. <a href="https://t.co/WviQPH9Cch">pic.twitter.com/WviQPH9Cch</a>&mdash; TSA (@TSA) <a href="https://twitter.com/TSA/status/1293583019954012163?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 12, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><a href="https://www.fbi.gov/file-repository/nics_firearm_checks_-_day_month_year.pdf/view" target="_blank">FBI figures show</a>&nbsp;that there were more than 3.6 million firearms background checks requested on buyers in July, a 79% increase from July 2019, following a 70% increase in June.Cowen analyst Cai von Rumohr, who tracks gun sales, said the increases are likely due to fear about COVID-19 lockdowns, civil unrest, and former Vice President Joe Biden’s lead over President Donald Trump in polls ahead of the Nov. 3 election “given his more restrictive stance on gun control relative to President Trump.”The analyst said an outsized rise in handgun sales in June and July indicates that many purchases are being made by first-time gun owners.John Donohue, a Stanford University law professor who has served as an expert witness against efforts to weaken gun-control laws in California, said the increased sales are mostly a response to images of protests after the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers. He also cited warnings by Trump and the National Rifle Association about crime.“Fear drives a lot of gun sales,” he said.National Rifle Association spokesman Andrew Arulanandam said higher gun sales were due to widespread concern that, first because of the pandemic and later because of protests and riots, police might be slower to respond to emergency calls.“It’s a natural reaction,” he said.It is legal to transport guns in checked bags if they are unloaded and in a locked case. The TSA can impose civil penalties and suspend people from faster-screening programs such as TSA PreCheck, but decisions on whether to file criminal charges are usually left to local authorities.The NRA’s Arulanandam said guns show up at airports because “people forget they have a firearm in their handbag or their backpack, and they go to the check-in counter and they realize, ‘Look, I forgot I had this in there.’”Atlanta’s major airport had&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/sites/default/files/tsa-gun-catches-by-airport-july-2020.pdf" target="_blank">the most gun seizures last month,</a>&nbsp;with 27, followed by Dallas-Fort Worth and Denver at 13 each and 12 at the Nashville airport.Last year, TSA seized&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/news/press/releases/2020/01/15/number-guns-brought-airport-checkpoints-2019-5-percent" target="_blank">a record 4,432 guns</a>&nbsp;in carry-on bags, or about 12.1 per day, and 87% were loaded.TSA’s public appeal to follow gun rules occurred the same day that it reported&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tsa.gov/coronavirus/passenger-throughput" target="_blank">screening 831,789 people on Sunday</a>. It was the first time checkpoint traffic in U.S. airports has topped 800,000 since March 17. That is still down 69% from the comparable Sunday a year ago.___

Air traffic is down, gun seizures up at US airports

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The city of Omaha has agreed to pay more than a half-million dollars to the mother of a mentally ill man who died in a confrontation with police in 2017. 

The Omaha World-Herald reports that the city will pay $550,000 to Renita Chalepah, the mother of 29-year-old Zachary Bearheels, to settle her wrongful death lawsuit. 

Four city police officers were fired in the aftermath of Bearheels death on June 5, 2017, when the officers were called to an Omaha convenience store that Bearheels had refused to leave. 

Police cruiser video showed Bearheels being repeatedly shocked with a stun gun and punched in the face by officers, even after he was subdued. Three of the fired officers were later reinstated.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The city of Omaha has agreed to pay more than a half-million dollars to the mother of a mentally ill man who died in a confrontation with police in 2017. The Omaha World-Herald reports that the city will pay $550,000 to Renita Chalepah, the mother of 29-year-old Zachary Bearheels, to settle her wrongful death lawsuit. Four city police officers were fired in the aftermath of Bearheels death on June 5, 2017, when the officers were called to an Omaha convenience store that Bearheels had refused to leave. Police cruiser video showed Bearheels being repeatedly shocked with a stun gun and punched in the face by officers, even after he was subdued. Three of the fired officers were later reinstated.

Omaha to pay more than $500K in stun gun death settlement

LINCOLN&nbsp; — Nebraska State Troopers have arrested two drivers following two separate pursuits that occurred Wednesday evening and early Thursday morning.

At approximately 6:55 p.m. Wednesday, a trooper observed an eastbound Acura sedan speeding on Highway 59 south of Wausa. The same vehicle had been observed traveling at a high rate of speed on Highway 20 approximately 30 minutes earlier. The trooper attempted a traffic stop, but the vehicle accelerated to over 140 miles per hour as it fled. The trooper initiated a pursuit.

As the vehicle crossed Highway 81, it continued straight onto 872nd&nbsp;Road, which is a gravel road. The vehicle slowed to approximately 60 miles per hour, but continued for several miles before voluntarily coming to a stop. The driver, Jesus Santiago, 28, of Eagle Lake, Florida, was taken into custody without incident. Santiago was arrested for flight to avoid arrest, willful reckless driving, no operator’s license, and traffic violations. Santiago was lodged in Cedar County Jail.

At approximately 12:15 a.m. Thursday, a trooper observed a Chrysler 300 traveling at 96 miles per hour at mile marker 401 on Interstate 80 in Lincoln, which is a 65 mile per hour zone. The trooper attempted a traffic stop, but the vehicle fled. The vehicle exited at mile marker 399, ran the red light while turning onto eastbound Cornhusker Highway, and turned off its lights.

As the Chrysler approached Interstate 180, another trooper was waiting and was able to perform a traffic stop. The driver, Kielan Rice, 22, of Waverly, was arrested for flight to avoid arrest, willful reckless driving, carrying a concealed weapon, and traffic violations. Rice was lodged in Lancaster County Jail.

LINCOLN&nbsp; — Nebraska State Troopers have arrested two drivers following two separate pursuits that occurred Wednesday evening and early Thursday morning.At approximately 6:55 p.m. Wednesday, a trooper observed an eastbound Acura sedan speeding on Highway 59 south of Wausa. The same vehicle had been observed traveling at a high rate of speed on Highway 20 approximately 30 minutes earlier. The trooper attempted a traffic stop, but the vehicle accelerated to over 140 miles per hour as it fled. The trooper initiated a pursuit.As the vehicle crossed Highway 81, it continued straight onto 872nd&nbsp;Road, which is a gravel road. The vehicle slowed to approximately 60 miles per hour, but continued for several miles before voluntarily coming to a stop. The driver, Jesus Santiago, 28, of Eagle Lake, Florida, was taken into custody without incident. Santiago was arrested for flight to avoid arrest, willful reckless driving, no operator’s license, and traffic violations. Santiago was lodged in Cedar County Jail.At approximately 12:15 a.m. Thursday, a trooper observed a Chrysler 300 traveling at 96 miles per hour at mile marker 401 on Interstate 80 in Lincoln, which is a 65 mile per hour zone. The trooper attempted a traffic stop, but the vehicle fled. The vehicle exited at mile marker 399, ran the red light while turning onto eastbound Cornhusker Highway, and turned off its lights.As the Chrysler approached Interstate 180, another trooper was waiting and was able to perform a traffic stop. The driver, Kielan Rice, 22, of Waverly, was arrested for flight to avoid arrest, willful reckless driving, carrying a concealed weapon, and traffic violations. Rice was lodged in Lancaster County Jail.

Two arrested following separate pursuits in eastern Nebraska

RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — Rapid City police are now investigating a man's unattended death as a homicide after getting preliminary autopsy results. 

Police were called Tuesday night about an unconscious man. Police found the man dead inside the home. 

An autopsy was conducted Thursday, and police say that there was enough trauma to the man's body to indicate his death was not self-inflicted. 

That led police to now investigate the death as a homicide. 

The victim is identified as 63-year-old Joseph Bradford of Rapid City. 

The Rapid City Police Department and Pennington County Sheriff's Office are jointly investigating the death.

RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — Rapid City police are now investigating a man's unattended death as a homicide after getting preliminary autopsy results. Police were called Tuesday night about an unconscious man. Police found the man dead inside the home. An autopsy was conducted Thursday, and police say that there was enough trauma to the man's body to indicate his death was not self-inflicted. That led police to now investigate the death as a homicide. The victim is identified as 63-year-old Joseph Bradford of Rapid City. The Rapid City Police Department and Pennington County Sheriff's Office are jointly investigating the death.

Police: Man's death in Rapid City was homicide

WASHINGTON (AP) — With talks on emergency coronavirus aid having stalled out, both sides played the blame game Thursday rather than make any serious moves to try to break their stalemate. Official Washington is emptying, national politics is consuming the airwaves and the chasm between the warring sides appears too great for now.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pressed the case for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/eecd34df92249d8218bda442f76d47f6">funding for the U.S. Postal Service</a>, rental assistance, food aid and rapid testing for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak">the virus</a>&nbsp;at her weekly press event, blasting Republicans as not giving a damn and declaring flatly that “people will die” if the delay grinds into September.

“Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gave a damn,” Pelosi said when asked if she should accept a smaller COVID-19 rescue package rather than endure weeks of possible gridlock. “That isn’t the case.”

All of the chief combatants have exited Washington after a several-day display of staying put as to not get blamed for abandoning the talks. The political risk for President Donald Trump is continued pain in U.S. households and a struggling economy — both of which promise to hurt him in the September campaign. For Democrats, there is genuine disappointment at being unable to deliver a deal but apparent comfort in holding firm for a sweeping measure instead of the few pieces that Trump wants most.

At the White House, Trump suggested that one main holdup is the amount of money Democrats want for cash-strapped states and cities, which he dismissed as “bailouts.” It’s a view shared by top Republicans.

A modest Trump administration overture on Wednesday to restart talks generated nothing but stepped-up carping and accusations of bad faith.

“It’s a stalemate,” White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Thursday.

Across a nearly empty Capitol, the Senate’s top Republican sought to cast the blame on Pelosi, whose ambitious demands have frustrated administration negotiators like&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/39a57f0a4a784bff3fc0bf5ae7a89e67">White House chief of staff Mark Meadows</a>.

“They are still rejecting any more relief for anyone unless they get a flood of demands with no real relationship to COVID-19,” said Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. McConnell has kept the talks at arm’s length, nursing deep divisions among Republicans on the foundering relief measure.

Among the items lost is perhaps $10 billion in emergency funding for the Postal Service to help improve service as its role in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/Election2020">the fall election</a>&nbsp;takes on greater importance, given an expected surge in mail voting because of the coronavirus pandemic. Trump is against $3.4 billion demanded by Pelosi for helping states with the crush of mail-in ballots.

Trump seemed to take advantage of the stalemate to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/14a2ceda724623604cc8d8e5ab9890ed">press his case against voting by mail</a>. He said Thursday on Fox Business Network’s “Mornings with Maria” that among the sticking points were Democrats’ demand for billions of dollars to assist states in protecting the election and to help postal workers process mail-in ballots.

“They need that money in order to have the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots,” Trump said. “If they don’t get those two items, that means you can’t have universal mail-in voting because they’re not equipped to have it.”

The White House and congressional leaders are&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/767b6140f1b456a9db44eb6ca6512435">far apart&nbsp;</a>on the aid for shoring up households,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/1bd44b60f9bb9ea769146c97e5fcd0f1">reopening schools</a>&nbsp;and launching a national strategy to contain the virus, which has infected more than 5.2 million people in the United States and has killed more than 166,000, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html" target="_blank">figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University</a>.

Trump’s top negotiator, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, tried to revive stalled talks Wednesday, but Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer dismissed the overture, saying the Trump administration was still refusing to meet them halfway. Congressional Republicans are largely sitting out the talks.

With the House and Senate essentially closed, and lawmakers on call to return with 24 hours’ notice, hopes for a swift compromise have dwindled. Instead, the politics of blame have taken hold, as the parties focus on this month’s presidential nominating conventions and lawmakers’ own reelection campaigns.

All indications are talks will not resume in full until Congress resumes in September, despite the mounting coronavirus death toll.

For Americans, that means&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/f3caeadfc8c7f88900470ac96820a36c">the end of a $600 weekly unemployment benefit</a>&nbsp;that has expired, as has a federal ban on evictions.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/9282728e7dac47d8809264e1fb9c0598">Schools</a>&nbsp;hoping for cash from the federal government to help provide safety measures are left empty-handed. States and cities staring down red ink with the shattered economy have few options.

Trump’s executive actions appeared to provide a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/f67dd310113355f4effe13dfcf4ac3b8">temporary reprieve</a>, offering $300 in jobless benefits and some other aid. But it could take weeks for those programs to ramp up, and the help is far slimmer than what Congress was considering. More than 20 million Americans&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/833d91877e2f0fa913c5258978a9e83c">risk evictions</a>, and more are out of work.

The Democrats said they are waiting for the White House to put a new offer on the table: “We have again made clear to the Administration that we are willing to resume negotiations once they start to take this process seriously,” they said in a statement.

But Mnuchin shot back with his own statement, saying, “The Democrats have no interest in negotiating.”

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/8/1597401508692.png" alt="House Speaker Nancy Pelosi provided this poster to show what she said are the differences between the democrats and republicans in the virus relief negotiations.-photo courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>House Speaker Nancy Pelosi provided this poster to show what she said are the differences between the democrats and republicans in the virus relief negotiations.-photo courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — With talks on emergency coronavirus aid having stalled out, both sides played the blame game Thursday rather than make any serious moves to try to break their stalemate. Official Washington is emptying, national politics is consuming the airwaves and the chasm between the warring sides appears too great for now.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pressed the case for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/eecd34df92249d8218bda442f76d47f6">funding for the U.S. Postal Service</a>, rental assistance, food aid and rapid testing for&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/VirusOutbreak">the virus</a>&nbsp;at her weekly press event, blasting Republicans as not giving a damn and declaring flatly that “people will die” if the delay grinds into September.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/8/1597401420725.png" alt="House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during her press conference Thursday.-Image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during her press conference Thursday.-Image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>“Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gave a damn,” Pelosi said when asked if she should accept a smaller COVID-19 rescue package rather than endure weeks of possible gridlock. “That isn’t the case.”All of the chief combatants have exited Washington after a several-day display of staying put as to not get blamed for abandoning the talks. The political risk for President Donald Trump is continued pain in U.S. households and a struggling economy — both of which promise to hurt him in the September campaign. For Democrats, there is genuine disappointment at being unable to deliver a deal but apparent comfort in holding firm for a sweeping measure instead of the few pieces that Trump wants most.At the White House, Trump suggested that one main holdup is the amount of money Democrats want for cash-strapped states and cities, which he dismissed as “bailouts.” It’s a view shared by top Republicans.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/8/1597401777883.png" alt="President Trump spoke during Thursday's press briefing. He is offering $300 in jobless benefits and some other aid. But it could take weeks for those programs to begin. - Photo courtesy White House&nbsp;" />
 <figcaption>President Trump spoke during Thursday's press briefing. He is offering $300 in jobless benefits and some other aid. But it could take weeks for those programs to begin. - Photo courtesy White House&nbsp;</figcaption>
 </figure>A modest Trump administration overture on Wednesday to restart talks generated nothing but stepped-up carping and accusations of bad faith.“It’s a stalemate,” White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Thursday.Across a nearly empty Capitol, the Senate’s top Republican sought to cast the blame on Pelosi, whose ambitious demands have frustrated administration negotiators like&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/39a57f0a4a784bff3fc0bf5ae7a89e67">White House chief of staff Mark Meadows</a>.“They are still rejecting any more relief for anyone unless they get a flood of demands with no real relationship to COVID-19,” said Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. McConnell has kept the talks at arm’s length, nursing deep divisions among Republicans on the foundering relief measure.Among the items lost is perhaps $10 billion in emergency funding for the Postal Service to help improve service as its role in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/Election2020">the fall election</a>&nbsp;takes on greater importance, given an expected surge in mail voting because of the coronavirus pandemic. Trump is against $3.4 billion demanded by Pelosi for helping states with the crush of mail-in ballots.Trump seemed to take advantage of the stalemate to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/14a2ceda724623604cc8d8e5ab9890ed">press his case against voting by mail</a>. He said Thursday on Fox Business Network’s “Mornings with Maria” that among the sticking points were Democrats’ demand for billions of dollars to assist states in protecting the election and to help postal workers process mail-in ballots.“They need that money in order to have the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots,” Trump said. “If they don’t get those two items, that means you can’t have universal mail-in voting because they’re not equipped to have it.”The White House and congressional leaders are&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/767b6140f1b456a9db44eb6ca6512435">far apart&nbsp;</a>on the aid for shoring up households,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/1bd44b60f9bb9ea769146c97e5fcd0f1">reopening schools</a>&nbsp;and launching a national strategy to contain the virus, which has infected more than 5.2 million people in the United States and has killed more than 166,000, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html" target="_blank">figures compiled by Johns Hopkins University</a>.Trump’s top negotiator, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, tried to revive stalled talks Wednesday, but Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer dismissed the overture, saying the Trump administration was still refusing to meet them halfway. Congressional Republicans are largely sitting out the talks.With the House and Senate essentially closed, and lawmakers on call to return with 24 hours’ notice, hopes for a swift compromise have dwindled. Instead, the politics of blame have taken hold, as the parties focus on this month’s presidential nominating conventions and lawmakers’ own reelection campaigns.All indications are talks will not resume in full until Congress resumes in September, despite the mounting coronavirus death toll.For Americans, that means&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/f3caeadfc8c7f88900470ac96820a36c">the end of a $600 weekly unemployment benefit</a>&nbsp;that has expired, as has a federal ban on evictions.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/9282728e7dac47d8809264e1fb9c0598">Schools</a>&nbsp;hoping for cash from the federal government to help provide safety measures are left empty-handed. States and cities staring down red ink with the shattered economy have few options.Trump’s executive actions appeared to provide a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/f67dd310113355f4effe13dfcf4ac3b8">temporary reprieve</a>, offering $300 in jobless benefits and some other aid. But it could take weeks for those programs to ramp up, and the help is far slimmer than what Congress was considering. More than 20 million Americans&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/833d91877e2f0fa913c5258978a9e83c">risk evictions</a>, and more are out of work.The Democrats said they are waiting for the White House to put a new offer on the table: “We have again made clear to the Administration that we are willing to resume negotiations once they start to take this process seriously,” they said in a statement.But Mnuchin shot back with his own statement, saying, “The Democrats have no interest in negotiating.”___

Both sides play the blame game as virus relief talks stall

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration is undoing Obama-era rules designed to limit potent greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas fields and pipelines, formalizing the changes Thursday in the heart of the nation’s most prolific natural gas reservoir and in the premier presidential battleground state of Pennsylvania.

Andrew Wheeler, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator, signed the rollback of the 2016 methane emissions rule in Pittsburgh as the agency touted the Trump administration’s efforts to “strengthen and promote American energy.”

The EPA first proposed the rollback&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/e2872a46eb3e43bd928707bba2f2c031">last year</a>, accusing the Obama administration of enacting a legally flawed rule, and agency officials said it would save companies tens of millions of dollars a year in compliance requirements without changing the trajectory of methane emissions.

But states, including California, and a coalition of environmental advocacy groups warned that the changes are illegal — not to mention a setback in the fight against climate change — and expect to quickly sue to block it.

“It’s not only negligent, it’s unlawful,” California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a statement. “We won’t sit silently while the EPA allows this super pollutant to rapidly warm our atmosphere.”

The White House took the event to Pittsburgh, the headquarters for many companies exploring the Marcellus Shale, the booming reservoir that vaulted Pennsylvania to the nation’s No. 2 natural gas state, behind Texas.

“EPA has been working hard to fulfill President Trump’s promise to cut burdensome and ineffective regulations for our domestic energy industry,” Wheeler said in a statement.

Reflecting the pervasive politics of the presidential campaign, Wheeler cast blame onto the presumptive Democratic nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden, saying “regulatory burdens put into place by the Obama-Biden Administration fell heavily on small and medium-sized energy businesses.”

Pennsylvania is of prime importance in November’s presidential election, and the natural gas industry is playing a central role in TV attack ads being aired in the state by Trump’s allies.

In recent years, preventing methane leaks from well-site equipment and pipelines has become important for regulators because methane is a potent greenhouse gas.

The oil and gas industry was responsible for nearly 30% of the nation’s methane emissions in 2018, and methane accounted for 10% of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions, according to the EPA.

The Trump administration is eliminating the twice-yearly requirement for companies to inspect for methane leaks on equipment installed after 2015 at well sites and downstream segments, such as pipelines, compressor stations and storage tanks. Leaks must be fixed.

Supporters of the rule maintained that, based on reports the companies file, it seemed to be helping reduce methane emissions. They also pointed to the EPA’s acknowledgment in its technical analysis that its rule changes will increase emissions of methane and smog-forming compounds.

Operators will still have to check equipment for leaks of smog-forming compounds at some higher-producing well sites, but Thursday’s changes relaxed those standards and producers won’t have to inspect pipelines or downstream equipment anymore.

Any leaks they fix help capture methane, and companies say they have a financial incentive to voluntarily fix leaks to ensure that methane gets to customers, rather than going into the atmosphere.

But, far more importantly, killing the methane emissions rule also blocks a legal requirement for the EPA to extend the rule to cover many more pieces of equipment installed before 2015, environmental advocates say.

“We’ll see them in court because this is blatantly illegal,” said David Doniger, senior strategic director of the climate and clean energy program at the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Robert Howarth, an ecology professor at Cornell University, estimated that shale oil and gas production in North America accounted for one-third of the total global increase in methane emissions over the past year.

Rolling back methane measures now is “dangerously reckless,” Howarth said. “Methane emissions are increasing rapidly, and the oil and gas industry is clearly part of the problem.”

Peter Zalzal, an attorney for the Environmental Defense Fund, said that, without federal leadership, stronger state regulation will be even more important.

Some states — such as California, Colorado, Pennsylvania and Wyoming — have methane standards that are comparable or stronger than the EPA’s 2016 rule. But many big oil and gas states — such as Texas — do not, Zalzal said.

Oil and gas industry representatives pushed for the methane rollbacks, fearing more expensive rules covering emissions from older equipment. Smaller, independent operators hailed the changes as important to their survival.

“The issue for producers has never been whether regulations were necessary; it has always been whether the regulations were sound and cost effective,” the Independent Petroleum Association of America said.

Still, some companies opposed a rollback, noting they had pledged to reduce emissions or pointing out that they were already exceeding the rule’s requirements.

Some oil majors including BP, Shell and ExxonMobil have called on Trump to strengthen efforts to cap methane emissions. The Trump administration’s move is “frustrating and disappointing,” Shell’s U.S. president, Gretchen Watkins, said in a statement.

In 2016′s election, Trump eked out a win in Pennsylvania — the first Republican presidential candidate to capture it since 1988 — by piling up support with Pennsylvania’s rural areas and working-class whites.

Since then, Trump has eagerly promoted the state’s gas industry, underscoring his focus on shoring up his base as his appointees have moved to expand extraction on federal lands, boost the export of liquefied natural gas and restrict the ability of states to block pipelines.

Meanwhile, a pro-Trump super PAC, America First Action, is running TV ads in Pennsylvania accusing Biden of wanting to ban “fracking,” the process that along with horizontal drilling has unlocked a torrent of oil and natural gas across the United States in the past decade.

Biden’s campaign counters that that is flatly untrue.

Biden would only ban new gas-drilling permits on public lands, his campaign said, pointing out that about 90% of fracking is on private land.

And while Trump often ridicules the science behind increasingly urgent warnings for immediate action to stave off the worst of climate damage by cutting fossil fuel emissions, Biden’s campaign said it recognizes that “climate change is an urgent problem and that all Americans have the right to clean air and clean water.”

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration is undoing Obama-era rules designed to limit potent greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas fields and pipelines, formalizing the changes Thursday in the heart of the nation’s most prolific natural gas reservoir and in the premier presidential battleground state of Pennsylvania.Andrew Wheeler, the Environmental Protection Agency administrator, signed the rollback of the 2016 methane emissions rule in Pittsburgh as the agency touted the Trump administration’s efforts to “strengthen and promote American energy.”The EPA first proposed the rollback&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/e2872a46eb3e43bd928707bba2f2c031">last year</a>, accusing the Obama administration of enacting a legally flawed rule, and agency officials said it would save companies tens of millions of dollars a year in compliance requirements without changing the trajectory of methane emissions.But states, including California, and a coalition of environmental advocacy groups warned that the changes are illegal — not to mention a setback in the fight against climate change — and expect to quickly sue to block it.“It’s not only negligent, it’s unlawful,” California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a statement. “We won’t sit silently while the EPA allows this super pollutant to rapidly warm our atmosphere.”The White House took the event to Pittsburgh, the headquarters for many companies exploring the Marcellus Shale, the booming reservoir that vaulted Pennsylvania to the nation’s No. 2 natural gas state, behind Texas.“EPA has been working hard to fulfill President Trump’s promise to cut burdensome and ineffective regulations for our domestic energy industry,” Wheeler said in a statement.Reflecting the pervasive politics of the presidential campaign, Wheeler cast blame onto the presumptive Democratic nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden, saying “regulatory burdens put into place by the Obama-Biden Administration fell heavily on small and medium-sized energy businesses.”Pennsylvania is of prime importance in November’s presidential election, and the natural gas industry is playing a central role in TV attack ads being aired in the state by Trump’s allies.In recent years, preventing methane leaks from well-site equipment and pipelines has become important for regulators because methane is a potent greenhouse gas.The oil and gas industry was responsible for nearly 30% of the nation’s methane emissions in 2018, and methane accounted for 10% of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions, according to the EPA.The Trump administration is eliminating the twice-yearly requirement for companies to inspect for methane leaks on equipment installed after 2015 at well sites and downstream segments, such as pipelines, compressor stations and storage tanks. Leaks must be fixed.Supporters of the rule maintained that, based on reports the companies file, it seemed to be helping reduce methane emissions. They also pointed to the EPA’s acknowledgment in its technical analysis that its rule changes will increase emissions of methane and smog-forming compounds.Operators will still have to check equipment for leaks of smog-forming compounds at some higher-producing well sites, but Thursday’s changes relaxed those standards and producers won’t have to inspect pipelines or downstream equipment anymore.Any leaks they fix help capture methane, and companies say they have a financial incentive to voluntarily fix leaks to ensure that methane gets to customers, rather than going into the atmosphere.But, far more importantly, killing the methane emissions rule also blocks a legal requirement for the EPA to extend the rule to cover many more pieces of equipment installed before 2015, environmental advocates say.“We’ll see them in court because this is blatantly illegal,” said David Doniger, senior strategic director of the climate and clean energy program at the Natural Resources Defense Council.Robert Howarth, an ecology professor at Cornell University, estimated that shale oil and gas production in North America accounted for one-third of the total global increase in methane emissions over the past year.Rolling back methane measures now is “dangerously reckless,” Howarth said. “Methane emissions are increasing rapidly, and the oil and gas industry is clearly part of the problem.”Peter Zalzal, an attorney for the Environmental Defense Fund, said that, without federal leadership, stronger state regulation will be even more important.Some states — such as California, Colorado, Pennsylvania and Wyoming — have methane standards that are comparable or stronger than the EPA’s 2016 rule. But many big oil and gas states — such as Texas — do not, Zalzal said.Oil and gas industry representatives pushed for the methane rollbacks, fearing more expensive rules covering emissions from older equipment. Smaller, independent operators hailed the changes as important to their survival.“The issue for producers has never been whether regulations were necessary; it has always been whether the regulations were sound and cost effective,” the Independent Petroleum Association of America said.Still, some companies opposed a rollback, noting they had pledged to reduce emissions or pointing out that they were already exceeding the rule’s requirements.Some oil majors including BP, Shell and ExxonMobil have called on Trump to strengthen efforts to cap methane emissions. The Trump administration’s move is “frustrating and disappointing,” Shell’s U.S. president, Gretchen Watkins, said in a statement.In 2016′s election, Trump eked out a win in Pennsylvania — the first Republican presidential candidate to capture it since 1988 — by piling up support with Pennsylvania’s rural areas and working-class whites.Since then, Trump has eagerly promoted the state’s gas industry, underscoring his focus on shoring up his base as his appointees have moved to expand extraction on federal lands, boost the export of liquefied natural gas and restrict the ability of states to block pipelines.Meanwhile, a pro-Trump super PAC, America First Action, is running TV ads in Pennsylvania accusing Biden of wanting to ban “fracking,” the process that along with horizontal drilling has unlocked a torrent of oil and natural gas across the United States in the past decade.Biden’s campaign counters that that is flatly untrue.Biden would only ban new gas-drilling permits on public lands, his campaign said, pointing out that about 90% of fracking is on private land.And while Trump often ridicules the science behind increasingly urgent warnings for immediate action to stave off the worst of climate damage by cutting fossil fuel emissions, Biden’s campaign said it recognizes that “climate change is an urgent problem and that all Americans have the right to clean air and clean water.”___

Trump's EPA dumps methane emissions rule for oil, gas fields

BEATRICE, Neb. (AP) - A Nebraska county that owes $28.1 million to six people wrongfully convicted of murder reached a settlement with several insurance companies to help pay part of the judgment.

The Gage County board approved agreements with six insurers on Wednesday to secure $5.98 million to help pay the county's debt off sooner. Officials already increased property taxes and approved a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/9eb90139f3cd4e65a3b582eb4710b681" target="_blank">half-cent sales tax&nbsp;</a>to pay the judgment off over several years.

The people known as the Beatrice Six spent more than 70 years in prison collectively for a 1985 rape and killing in Beatrice, Nebraska, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) south of Lincoln. DNA evidence exonerated them in 2008. The slaying of 68-year-old Helen Wilson has since been linked to a former Beatrice resident who died in 1992.

The Beatrice Six sued Gage County after their release, alleging the county ran a reckless investigation. A federal jury awarded them&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/38d3a4bdb597403fb634dc5100eddaae" target="_blank">$28.1 million&nbsp;</a>in 2016, plus interest and attorney fees that raise the total to more than $30 million. The county wasn't properly insured when the six were convicted, and its appeals were all rejected.

"We started with an understanding that there may or may not be any coverage," County Board Chairman Erich Tiemann said. "We reached this point, and I think we all are in agreement that this is the best possible outcome at this time."

The county made the first payment to the former inmates last June, and officials now expect it to take about five years to pay off the judgment. One of the six was killed in a 2011 factory accident in Alabama, and several others are aging and have health problems.

Employers Mutual Casualty will pay the biggest share of the settlements, $3.9 million, and the Nebraska Intergovernmental Risk Management Association will pay $1.98 million, attorney Joel Bacon said. Four other insurers will pay the remaining $95,000.

BEATRICE, Neb. (AP) - A Nebraska county that owes $28.1 million to six people wrongfully convicted of murder reached a settlement with several insurance companies to help pay part of the judgment.The Gage County board approved agreements with six insurers on Wednesday to secure $5.98 million to help pay the county's debt off sooner. Officials already increased property taxes and approved a&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/9eb90139f3cd4e65a3b582eb4710b681" target="_blank">half-cent sales tax&nbsp;</a>to pay the judgment off over several years.The people known as the Beatrice Six spent more than 70 years in prison collectively for a 1985 rape and killing in Beatrice, Nebraska, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) south of Lincoln. DNA evidence exonerated them in 2008. The slaying of 68-year-old Helen Wilson has since been linked to a former Beatrice resident who died in 1992.The Beatrice Six sued Gage County after their release, alleging the county ran a reckless investigation. A federal jury awarded them&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/38d3a4bdb597403fb634dc5100eddaae" target="_blank">$28.1 million&nbsp;</a>in 2016, plus interest and attorney fees that raise the total to more than $30 million. The county wasn't properly insured when the six were convicted, and its appeals were all rejected."We started with an understanding that there may or may not be any coverage," County Board Chairman Erich Tiemann said. "We reached this point, and I think we all are in agreement that this is the best possible outcome at this time."The county made the first payment to the former inmates last June, and officials now expect it to take about five years to pay off the judgment. One of the six was killed in a 2011 factory accident in Alabama, and several others are aging and have health problems.Employers Mutual Casualty will pay the biggest share of the settlements, $3.9 million, and the Nebraska Intergovernmental Risk Management Association will pay $1.98 million, attorney Joel Bacon said. Four other insurers will pay the remaining $95,000.

Insurers to help pay 6 exonerated in Nebraska slaying

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United Arab Emirates and Israel have agreed to establish full diplomatic ties as part of a deal to halt the annexation of occupied land sought by the Palestinians for their future state.

The announcement makes the UAE the first Gulf Arab state to do so and only the third Arab nation to have active diplomatic ties to Israel.

Trump tweeted a statement from the countries, acknowledging the deal. He then told reporters in the Oval Office that it was “a truly historic moment.”

“Now that the ice has been broken I expect more Arab and Muslim countries will follow the United Arab Emirates,” he said.

The recognition grants a rare diplomatic win to Trump ahead of the November election as his efforts to see an end to the war in Afghanistan have yet to come to fruition while efforts to bring peace between Israel and the Palestinians have made no headway. Israel and the UAE also have been among Trump’s closest foreign allies.

For Israel, the announcement comes after years of boasting by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that his government enjoys closer ties to Arab nations than publicly acknowledged. 

Netanyahu said the announcement has ushered in a “new era” in Israel’s relations with the Arab world.&nbsp;

Netanyahu has sought to build settlements on lands sought by the Palestinians and embraced a Trump proposal that would allow him to annex large parts of the occupied West Bank while granting Palestinians limited autonomy in other areas.

For the UAE, home to skyscraper-studded Dubai and the rolling, oil-rich sand dunes of Abu Dhabi, it further burnishes its international campaign to be seen as a beacon of tolerance in the Middle East despite being governed by autocratic rulers. It also puts the UAE out first in a regional recognition race among neighboring Gulf Arab states.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2020/8/1597334632566.png" alt="President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday morning.&nbsp;White House senior adviser Jared Kushner is at right. The President said&nbsp;that the United Arab Emirates and Israel have agreed to establish full diplomatic ties as part of a deal to halt the annexation of occupied land sought by the Palestinians for their future state.- Photo courtesy White House" />
 <figcaption>President Donald Trump in the Oval Office at the White House, Thursday morning.&nbsp;White House senior adviser Jared Kushner is at right. The President said&nbsp;that the United Arab Emirates and Israel have agreed to establish full diplomatic ties as part of a deal to halt the annexation of occupied land sought by the Palestinians for their future state.- Photo courtesy White House</figcaption>
 </figure>DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United Arab Emirates and Israel have agreed to establish full diplomatic ties as part of a deal to halt the annexation of occupied land sought by the Palestinians for their future state.The announcement makes the UAE the first Gulf Arab state to do so and only the third Arab nation to have active diplomatic ties to Israel.Trump tweeted a statement from the countries, acknowledging the deal. He then told reporters in the Oval Office that it was “a truly historic moment.”<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Joint Statement of the United States, the State of Israel, and the United Arab Emirates <a href="https://t.co/oVyjLxf0jd">pic.twitter.com/oVyjLxf0jd</a>&mdash; Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1293922803419353088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 13, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>“Now that the ice has been broken I expect more Arab and Muslim countries will follow the United Arab Emirates,” he said.The recognition grants a rare diplomatic win to Trump ahead of the November election as his efforts to see an end to the war in Afghanistan have yet to come to fruition while efforts to bring peace between Israel and the Palestinians have made no headway. Israel and the UAE also have been among Trump’s closest foreign allies.For Israel, the announcement comes after years of boasting by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that his government enjoys closer ties to Arab nations than publicly acknowledged. Netanyahu said the announcement has ushered in a “new era” in Israel’s relations with the Arab world.&nbsp;Netanyahu has sought to build settlements on lands sought by the Palestinians and embraced a Trump proposal that would allow him to annex large parts of the occupied West Bank while granting Palestinians limited autonomy in other areas.For the UAE, home to skyscraper-studded Dubai and the rolling, oil-rich sand dunes of Abu Dhabi, it further burnishes its international campaign to be seen as a beacon of tolerance in the Middle East despite being governed by autocratic rulers. It also puts the UAE out first in a regional recognition race among neighboring Gulf Arab states.And for the Palestinians, who long have relied on Arab backing in their struggle for independence, the announcement marked both a win and setback. While Thursday’s deal halts Israeli annexation plans, the Palestinians have repeatedly urged Arab governments not to normalize relations with Israel until a peace agreement establishing an independent Palestinian state is reached.“Israel got rewarded for not declaring openly what it’s been doing to Palestine illegally &amp; persistently since the beginning of the occupation,” senior Palestinian official Hanan Ashrawi wrote on Twitter. She also said the UAE has come forward with its “secret dealings/normalization with Israel.”“Please don’t do us a favor. We are nobody’s fig leaf!” she wrote.The militant group Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, called the deal by the Emiratis “a stabbing in the back of our people.”The joint statement from the U.S., the UAE and Israel said delegations would meet in the coming weeks to sign deals on direct flights, security, telecommunications, energy, tourism and health care. The two countries also will partner on fighting the coronavirus pandemic.“Opening direct ties between two of the Middle East’s most dynamic societies and advanced economics will transform the region by spurring economic growth, enhancing technological innovation and forging closer people-to-people relations,” said the statement by Trump, Netanyahu and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the day-to-day ruler of the UAE. It said the leaders had a three-way call discussing the deal.U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo praised the deal.“This is a remarkable achievement for two of the world’s most forward leaning, technologically advanced states, and reflects their shared regional vision of an economically integrated region,” he said in a statement. “It also illustrates their commitment to confronting common threats, as small — but strong — nations.”He added: “Blessed are the peacemakers. Mabruk and Mazal Tov.”Netanyahu tweeted an Israeli flag with a short message in Hebrew: “Historic Day.”Among Arab nations, only Egypt and Jordan have active diplomatic ties with Israel. Egypt made a peace deal with Israel in 1979, followed by Jordan in 1994. Mauritania recognized Israel in 1999, but later ended relations in 2009 over the Israel’s war in Gaza at the time.In addition to Trump, the main U.S. mediators for agreement were the president’s senior advisor and son-in-law Jared Kushner, special Mideast envoy Avi Berkowitz and David Friedman, the U.S. ambassador to Israel.The UAE is a U.S.-allied federation of seven sheikhdoms on the Arabian Peninsula. Formed in 1971, the country like other Arab nations at the time did not recognize Israel over its occupation of land home to the Palestinians.“Arab oil is not dearer than Arab blood,” the UAE’s founding ruler, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, once pronounced when agreeing to an oil boycott over U.S. military support to Israel in the 1973 Mideast war.The UAE relied on white-collar Palestinians in creating its nation. Over time, it maintained its stance that Israel allow the creation of a Palestinian state on land it seized in the 1967 war.But in recent years, ties between Gulf Arab nations and Israel have quietly grown, in part over their shared enmity of Iran and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Prince Mohammed also shares Israel’s distrust of Islamist groups like the Muslim Brotherhood and the militant group Hamas that holds the Gaza Strip.The UAE’s state-run WAM news agency acknowledged the deal, framing it as not just a move that helps the UAE and Israel, but one that also carries benefits for the Palestinians. Top Emirati official Anwar Gargash said the move dealt a “death blow” to moves by Israel to annex Palestinian lands.It remains unclear what prompted Israel and the UAE to make the announcement now. In June, the United Arab Emirates’ ambassador to the U.S. warned in an Israeli newspaper op-ed that Israel’s planned annexing the Jordan Valley and other parts of the occupied West Bank would “upend” Israel’s efforts to improve ties with Arab nations.The agreement gives Netanyahu a domestic boost at a time when Israel’s shaky coalition government is plagued by infighting and facing the possibility of early elections in the coming months. Netanyahu has seen his popularity plummet as the country grapples with a renewed coronavirus outbreak and skyrocketing unemployment as the result of earlier lockdown measures.Netanyahu also delivered a valuable diplomatic achievement to his good friend, Trump, ahead of U.S. elections.Still, by dropping the annexation plan Netanyahu may be hedging his bets ahead of a possible change in the White House. Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, has made clear that he would oppose any moves by Israel to unilaterally redraw the Mideast map and annex lands sought by the Palestinians.Netanyahu also risked criticism inside his own hard-line Likud Party, whose members strongly supported annexation. Netanyahu appears to be betting that Likud members — and the small, but influential settler movement — will agree the peace agreement delivers more benefits than unilateral annexation. Opinion polls have shown that annexation is not a high priority for the vast majority of the Israeli public.Abandoning its annexation plan changes little on the ground. Israel already holds overall control of the West Bank and continues to expand its settlements there, while granting the Palestinians autonomy in a series of disconnected enclaves. Some 500,000 Israelis now live in the rapidly expanding West Bank settlements.Next year, Israel will take part in the UAE’s delayed Expo 2020, the world’s fair being hosted by Dubai. A secret synagogue also draws practicing Jews in Dubai. The UAE also has announced plans to build the Abrahamic Family House in Abu Dhabi, which will house a mosque, a church and a synagogue.Israelis traveling with Western passports routinely enter the UAE without a problem, though one still can’t make a phone call between the two countries. Israelis also work in Dubai’s gold and diamond trade as well.Emirati officials also have allowed Israeli officials to visit and the Israeli national anthem was played after an athlete won gold in an Abu Dhabi judo tournament. Israel also has a small mission representing its interests at the International Renewable Energy Agency in Abu Dhabi.___