AP Afternoon Wire Advancing the Power of Facts - By Amy Langfield February 03, 2026

 AP Afternoon Wire

Advancing the Power of Facts

Policy changes, but facts endure. AP delivers accurate, fact-based journalism to keep the world informed in every administration. Support independent reporting today. Donate.

By Amy Langfield

February 03, 2026

 

Good afternoon and welcome to your afternoon news update from AP. Today, the U.S. says it shot down an Iranian drone; a charity founded by Sarah Ferguson shuts down after release of Epstein emails with the former duchess; Pope Leo XIV faces a threatened revival of a schism; and the U.S. House passes a bill to end the partial government shutdown.

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UP FIRST

AP Morning Wire

The Pentagon is seen from the air in September, in Arlington, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

US shoots down Iranian drone that ‘aggressively’ approached an aircraft carrier, military says

A U.S. Navy fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone that was approaching the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea, U.S. Central Command said Tuesday, threatening to ramp up tensions as the Trump administration warns of possible military action to get Iran to the negotiating table. Read more.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

BREAKING: House passes bill to end the partial government shutdown, sending the measure to Trump

Judge blocks Trump administration from ending protections for Haitians

More departures at the US attorney’s office in Minnesota, AP sources say

Ed Martin removed as head of Justice Department’s ‘Weaponization Working Group’

Trump demands $1 billion from Harvard as a prolonged standoff appears to deepen

States scramble to gerrymander US House districts after Trump sought edge in midterm elections

Trump administration cuts number of sites for testing the 2030 census, focusing on the South

The wealthy ramp up spending while other Americans tread water, new study finds

House lawmaker raises new concerns over FDA’s ultra-fast drug review program

HHS unveils program to address homelessness and addiction, part of a set of new initiatives

Yet another judge rejects Trump effort to block offshore wind, saying NY project can resume

3 elections in 4 months and new US House map lead to confusion and voter fatigue in Texas district

Lawsuit accuses California doctor of violating Texas’ anti-abortion laws

Recreational marijuana and 21 other citizen initiatives fail to qualify for Florida’s 2026 ballot

Trump appointees ask about White House ballroom’s design and scale — and want to see models

Jill Biden’s first husband charged with killing wife in domestic dispute at their Delaware home

 

TOP STORIES

Charity founded by Sarah Ferguson shuts down after release of Epstein emails with former duchess

The charity founded by Sarah Ferguson, the former Duchess of York, is shutting down following the release of emails showing the depth of her friendship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Read more.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

Clintons finalize agreement to testify in House Epstein probe, bowing to threat of contempt vote

UK police open criminal investigation into politician Peter Mandelson over alleged leaks to Epstein

NFL says it will look into Giants co-owner Steve Tisch’s association with Jeffrey Epstein

Epstein victims want former Prince Andrew to testify before lawmakers. He’s unlikely to do so

Pope Leo XIV faces crisis as a traditionalist group plans bishop consecrations without consent

Pope Leo XIV is facing his first major crisis with traditionalist Catholics: A breakaway group attached to the traditional Latin Mass announced plans to consecrate new bishops without papal consent in a threatened revival of schism. The Swiss-based Society of St. Pius X has been a thorn in the side of the Holy See for four decades. Read more.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

Pope Francis’ problematic secret decrees in spotlight in Vatican’s ‘trial of the century’

Church and state investigate a cherub seemingly modeled on Giorgia Meloni

From southern India to Canada’s far north: New archbishop serves Indigenous Catholics

 

IN OTHER NEWS

Rotana al-Regeb, who was allowed into Gaza from Egypt following the long-awaited reopening of the Rafah border crossing, reunites with her children in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Tuesday. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)

Rafah border crossing reopens: Women returning to Gaza say Israeli troops bound and interrogated them

Savannah Guthrie’s mother: Signs of forced entry found at home of Nancy Guthrie 

Where’s Evo Morales?: Bolivia's ex-leader vanishes for nearly a month, alarming supporters

SpaceX buys xAI: Elon Musk joins his rocket and AI businesses into a single company 

Disney parks chief: Josh D’Amaro named to succeed Bob Iger as CEO 

Accused of assaulting hundreds of patients: Appeals court overturns former UCLA gynecologist's sex abuse conviction

Three Dog Night: Chuck Negron, voice behind ‘Joy to the World,’ dies at 83

WATCH: Teenage boy swims 4 kilometers to shore to save his family

TRENDING

Local students dressed as shrine maidens participate in the annual Bean Throwing Festival in Hakone, Japan, Tuesday. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Photos of akone Shrine marking Setsubun with bean-throwing to ward off evil spirits

Scores gathered at a shrine in Japan’s Hakone to try and catch “lucky beans,” hoping to ward off evil spirits as they celebrate the last day of winter in the Japanese lunar calendar. Setsubun is also known as “mame-maki,” or bean-throwing. It falls around Feb. 3, on the eve of Risshun, marking the beginning of spring in Japan. Long before modern calendars, the change of seasons was viewed as a vulnerable moment when illness and misfortune could enter lives. Setsubun was meant to contain that instability; people throw the same lucky beans at representations of demons to bring the loathed creatures misfortune.

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