"Provisions in the House and Senate annual Defense authorization bills reduce restrictions on the Pentagon’s use of “forever chemicals.”

"Bobbi Stevenson Bauer loves her flowers. The Arlington, Virginia, resident often travels to downtown Washington, D.C., to visit the Enid A. Haupt Garden at the Smithsonian and the U.S. Botanic Garden, two of the many tourist destinations that are situated along the National Mall. ... “I haven’t seen it this empty since Covid,” she reported during a recent visit." 

"Congress is proposing to reverse measures that protect military service members, firefighters and others from harmful PFAS chemicals."

"BANJUL, Gambia — Kawsu Leigh writhed in pain on the fishing boat, his burned skin as mottled as the paint on the deck beneath him. Raw and slick, the burns covered large parts of his upper body."

"Two firefighters working on the Bear Gulch Fire [Wash.] were arrested by U.S. Border Patrol agents on Wednesday."

"Israeli strikes on a hospital in southern Gaza killed five journalists Monday, according to health officials, including one who days earlier had reported for The Associated Press on children being treated for starvation at the same facility."

"The Interior Department is deputizing federal border agents and sending them to National Park Service sites amid the federal law enforcement takeover of Washington, D.C., Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said Wednesday."

"Lawsuits after ICE raids and No Kings march say officers targeted reporters, raising alarms about press freedom even in states with strong protections" 

"Iran has warned that it could shut the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most critical oil transit chokepoints, in retaliation for U.S. involvement in its conflict with Israel."