COLU @ CONCEPTS

NEW YORK (AP) — Sonia Sotomayor looked right at home in The Judge’s Chambers. Naturally. The Bronx-born U.S. Supreme Court Justice was in the Yankee Stadium crowd Thursday night for the opener of New York’s four-game series against the rival Boston Red Sox, which the Yankees won 6-2. Of course, she held court in The Judge’s Chambers , the rooting section out in right field for power-hitting rookie Aaron Judge. When the slumping right fielder came to bat in the second inning, television cameras showed Sotomayor wearing a big smile and one of the black robes handed out to fans in the faux jury box. In her grasp was one of those Styrofoam gavels stamped with “All Rise!” MLB   ✔ @MLB She’s still Sonia from the Bronx. 1:25 AM - Sep 1, 2017   20 20 Replies     380 380 Retweets     1,025 1,025 likes Twitter Ads info and privacy An inning later, Sotomayor high-fived fans on both sid...

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — The brick-built Center for Migrants in Bogota opened its doors as a haven for families displaced by Colombia’s then-raging internal conflict. So as peace came within reach two years ago, its work seemed to be coming to an end and the Scalabrinian nuns contemplated shuttering the 25-bed shelter. Now it’s bursting at the seams again, this time due to a flood of Venezuelan refugees. The plight of so many struggling people from the neighboring nation is likely to steal at least some of Pope Francis’ attention when he arrives in Colombia on Wednesday. While the trip is meant as a celebration of Colombia’s historic peace deal with leftist rebels, pressure is building on the first Latin American pontiff to speak out against the Venezuelan government for the worsening turmoil in that country during his six-day visit. Whether it’s running soup kitchens in poor barrios of Caracas or attempting to mediate a dialogue between the government and opposition, t...

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Pentagon has begun sending additional troops to Afghanistan to carry out President Donald Trump’s new war strategy, which will stick to his predecessor’s approach of supporting the Afghans’ fight against the Taliban rather than doing the fighting for them, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Thursday. “Yes, I’ve signed orders, but it’s not complete,” Mattis told reporters in an impromptu news conference at the Pentagon. He would not say how many additional troops are deploying or what their exact roles will be. Trump’s decision to deepen the American military commitment was taken after months of debate within the administration over whether the risk was worth the potential reward of eventually stabilizing Afghanistan to the point where its own forces can prevent a Taliban takeover and contain other militant threats. Mattis stressed that Afghan forces will remain in the lead, with the extra U.S. troops taking a support role. “By and large this is to ...

BAGHDAD (AP) — The northern town of Tal Afar has been “fully liberated” from the Islamic State group, Iraq’s prime minister said Thursday, further shrinking the territory controlled by the extremists who overran nearly a third of the country three years ago. The militants have suffered a series of major defeats in recent months, including the loss of Mosul, the second-largest city, in July. Iraqi troops “eliminated and smashed” the militant group in al-Ayadia district, northwest of Tal Afar, where they had fled last week, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said in a statement. “To Daesh criminals we say: Wherever you are we will come to liberate and you have to choose only death or surrender,” al-Abadi added, using an Arabic acronym for the group. With the fall of Tal Afar, all of Ninevah province is “in the hands of our brave troops,” he said. The ethnically mixed province was the first to fall to the Islamic State when its militants swept across large parts of Iraq and S...

WASHINGTON (AP) — Escalating a diplomatic tit-for-tat, the United States abruptly ordered Russia on Thursday to shutter its San Francisco consulate and close offices in Washington and New York, intensifying tensions between the former Cold War foes. Washington gave Moscow 48 hours to comply. The Trump administration described its action as retaliation for the Kremlin’s “unwarranted and detrimental” demand earlier this month that the U.S. cut its diplomatic staff in Russia. But Moscow declared it a major escalation, with a top Russian lawmaker saying the move heralded “the hot phase of diplomatic war.” “The United States is prepared to take further action as necessary and as warranted,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said. Still, she said the U.S. hoped both countries could now move toward “improved relations” and “increased cooperation.” It was a harsh welcome to Washington for new Russian Ambassador Anatoly Antonov, who arrived only hours after the U.S. ann...

Alexis Molina took a bullet to the chest, just above her heart, and was shot once in each leg as a gunman opened fire inside a public library in New Mexico. But trauma surgeons at the Texas hospital where she is recovering said Thursday that all she could think about was making sure her little brother was safe. The doctors told reporters that Molina, 20, is expected to make a full recovery, and they described her and fellow library patron Howard Jones as heroes. Jones, who was at the library with his granddaughter, was shot in the arm. The bullet traveled from his forearm along his radial nerve before lodging in the back of his arm, the doctors said. Dr. Sharmila Dissanaike, assistant medical director of the trauma center at Lubbock’s University Medical Center, said she was able to talk with both Molina and Jones after they were stabilized. They were not worried about their own futures but more about their loved ones making it to safety, she said. “They really are hero...

One man used his last words to save a friend’s life, warning him away from a live electrical wire. Another died checking on his uncle. Several others were last seen helping people out of floodwaters. They’re among Harvey victims who lost their lives trying to save others. Others died doing their best to survive the catastrophic disaster. They range from 6 years old to 89. Their stories are emerging as the death toll from the storm continues to mount. Twenty-five-year-old Andrew Pasek was on a mission to check on his beloved older sister’s cat when he stepped on a live electrical wire in ankle-deep water Tuesday, his parents said through sobs Thursday. Pasek then fell into the lamppost attached to the live wire. Pasek’s friend moved closer to help, but Pasek warned him away. “He said, ‘Don’t touch me. I’m dying,’” according to his mother, JoDell Pasek, who lost her other son to a drunk driver in the 1990s. Al Pasek said his son was “a remarkable young man” who was alway...