Lebanon’s prime minister asks Iran to help secure a cease-fire

BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister on Friday asked Iran to help secure a cease-fire in the war between Israel and Hezbollah and appeared to urge it to convince the militant group to agree to a deal that could require it to pull back from the Israel-Lebanon border. As a top adviser to Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei visited Lebanon for talks, Lebanese officials said an American proposal for a cease-fire deal had been passed on to Hezbollah, aiming to end 13 months of exchanges of fire between Israel and the group. Iran is a main backer of Hezbollah and for decades has been funding and arming the Lebanese militant group. Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel the day after Hamas’ surprise attack into Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 ignited the war in Gaza – prompting exchanges between the two sides ever since.

Workers at Canada’s national postal service go on strike

TORONTO (AP) — Workers at Canada’s national postal service are on strike after failing to reach a negotiated agreement with Canada Post. Canadian Union of Postal Workers says approximately 55,000 workers are striking, claiming little progress has been made in the bargaining process. The Canadian Union of Postal Workers issued a 72-hour strike notice earlier in the week, saying it’s been asking for fair wages, safer working conditions and other improvements over nearly a year of bargaining. The government corporation released a statement confirming that customers will experience delays as a result of the strike.

At least 10 people were killed in a fire at a nursing home in northeastern Spain

MADRID (AP) — Authorities say at least 10 people have died and others were injured in a fire at a nursing home near the northeastern Spanish city of Zaragoza. The blaze broke out early Friday morning in Villafranca de Ebro, about 18 miles from the city. The cause of the fire is not yet known. Local media said 82 people had been living in the nursing home, which focused on treating people with dementia and mental health issues. The local mayor told reporters outside the center on Friday morning that intense smoke from the blaze was likely responsible for the deaths.

Belize on alert as Tropical Storm Sara moves along Honduran coast

SAN PEDRO SULA, Honduras (AP) — Belize issued tropical storm warnings for coastal areas on Friday as Tropical Storm Sara moved through the Caribbean, dousing Honduras’ northern coast with heavy rain. Sustained rain fell in the Honduran city of San Pedro Sula, though there were no signs of serious flooding. Sara was expected to scrape along northern Honduras’ Caribbean coast, bringing torrential rains across parts of Central America and southern Mexico after making an initial landfall overnight. The weather system had moved back out into the Caribbean overnight and by Friday morning was located just south of the island of Roatan.