Reuters US Domestic News Summary

Kirby, speaking to reporters at a news briefing, also said the U.S. will arrange charter flights to Europe starting on Friday for Americans wanting to leave the Israel. U.S. judge upholds suspension of right to carry guns in some New Mexico parks A U.S. federal judge on Wednesday ruled as valid a temporary suspension by the governor of New Mexico of the right to carry guns in parks and playgrounds in parts of the state, court records show, in a victory for Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham.

Following is a summary of current US domestic news briefs.

Over 7 million Americans have gotten updated COVID vaccines

More than 7 million Americans had rolled up their sleeves for the updated COVID-19 vaccines as of Wednesday, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, despite reports that some people are still finding it difficult to book vaccination appointments or find the shots at no cost. The updated vaccines from Moderna or Pfizer and BioNTech are single-target shots aimed at the XBB.1.5 Omicron subvariant of the coronavirus, which was the dominant variant in the U.S. for much of this year but has since been overtaken as the virus continues to evolve.

US Senator Bob Menendez charged with acting as unregistered agent of Egypt

Prosecutors pursuing a corruption case against U.S. Senator Bob Menendez on Thursday brought a new criminal charge against him that he conspired to act as a foreign agent for the Egyptian government. The new charge was included in a revised indictment filed against the New Jersey Democrat in federal court in New York that includes four counts against Menendez. His trial on corruption charges will begin in May.

US will offer charter flights to help Americans leave Israel starting Friday

The U.S. State Department will begin offering charter flights to Europe to help Americans leave Israel if they want starting Friday, the White House said, after extensive talks with U.S. airlines and pressure from Congress. Reuters reported details of the plan earlier.

US says Iran cannot access its $6 billion in Qatar any time soon

The United States said on Thursday that Iran would not gain access any time soon to $6 billion in Iranian funds parked in a Qatar bank last month as part of a prisoner exchange and that Washington retained the right to completely freeze the account. The question of Iranian access to the funds has been in the spotlight since Iran-backed Palestinian Hamas militants attacked Israel on Saturday, killing more than 1,300 people and taking scores of hostages back to the Palestinian Gaza Strip.

Sam Bankman-Fried trial: scenes from Caroline Ellison's time on the stand

When star witness Caroline Ellison first took the stand on Tuesday at Sam Bankman-Fried's fraud trial, she needed longer than previous witnesses to point out the 31-year-old former billionaire - her onetime boss and boyfriend - at the defense table. That may have been because the indicted founder of now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, once known for his mop of unkempt curly locks and trademark shorts and T-shirts, had trimmed his hair and donned a suit for his trial on charges of stealing from FTX customers to prop up his Alameda Research hedge fund.

Republican dissension in US House threatens Steve Scalise speaker bid

Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives spent hours in closed-door talks on Thursday but appeared no closer to resolving divisions that have prevented them from installing Steve Scalise as speaker of the chamber, which has been leaderless for nine days. Scalise, the No.2 House Republican, has secured his party's nomination to replace ousted Speaker Kevin McCarthy but is still short of the 217 votes needed to be elected on the House floor, as several of his fellow Republicans said they would not support him.

Split verdict for Colorado police officers tried in death of Elijah McClain

A jury in Colorado on Thursday found police officer Randy Roedema guilty of criminally negligent homicide in the 2019 killing of Elijah McClain, a young Black man who died after being roughly restrained and injected with the sedative ketamine. The same jury found Jason Rosenblatt, another officer involved in the case and jointly tried with Roedema, not guilty on manslaughter and assault charges.

US to help Americans evacuate Israel as confirmed deaths rise - White House

The number of U.S. citizens confirmed dead in the Hamas attack in Israel over the weekend has risen to 27, with 14 more still unaccounted for, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said on Thursday. Kirby, speaking to reporters at a news briefing, also said the U.S. will arrange charter flights to Europe starting on Friday for Americans wanting to leave the Israel.

U.S. judge upholds suspension of right to carry guns in some New Mexico parks

A U.S. federal judge on Wednesday ruled as valid a temporary suspension by the governor of New Mexico of the right to carry guns in parks and playgrounds in parts of the state, court records show, in a victory for Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham. U.S. District Court Judge David Herrera Urias declined to block the governor's heavily criticized temporary suspension, saying the government has an interest in protecting a vulnerable population, "such as children" in "sensitive places" such as playgrounds.

Contract talks break down between Hollywood actors, studios

Negotiations between Hollywood studios and the SAG-AFTRA actors' union were suspended on Wednesday as the two sides clashed over streaming revenue, the use of artificial intelligence and other issues at the core of a three-month work stoppage. The breakdown in talks interrupted attempts to end labor tensions that have put most U.S.-based film and television production on hold, cost the California economy billions and left thousands of crew members without work.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)