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Lead: The Writers Guild of America reached a tentative agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers on Saturday, nearly a month before the WGA contract was set to expire on May 1. The deal runs four years, extending the typical three-year term and giving studios an additional year without strike exposure. Immediate … Read more

Lead On Saturday, April 4 at 5:09 p.m. CT at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, No. 3 seed Illinois (28-8) meets No. 2 seed UConn (33-5) in the men’s Final Four. The game will be televised on TBS/TNT/TruTV with Ian Eagle, Bill Raftery, Grant Hill and Tracy Wolfson on the call. Illinois arrives off a … Read more

Illinois (28-8) meets two-time defending champion UConn (33-5) on April 4 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis in a Final Four semifinal starting at 5:09 p.m. CT. The matchup pits Illinois’ historic offensive output against UConn’s top-10 defense, with the Illini listed as a 1.5-point favorite and an over/under of 139.5. The winner advances to … Read more

Published April 3, 2026; Updated April 4, 2026, 9:30 a.m. ET President Donald Trump is privately weighing additional alterations to his cabinet in Washington as he races against a shrinking window to get new nominees through the Senate before the November midterm elections. The moves follow abrupt departures of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in … Read more

Lead: A US Air Force F-15 was shot down over Iran on April 4, 2026, prompting an active search-and-rescue effort as Tehran and Washington both seek the fate of one missing crew member. One of the two aircrew was recovered and is receiving medical care in US custody; the other remains unaccounted for. The incident … Read more

Lead US and Iranian forces raced on 4 April 2026 to locate a crew member from an F-15 shot down over Iran, after Tehran said it downed the jet and state and US media reported one crew member rescued and one still missing. The incident unfolded days into a wider US‑Israel campaign of strikes across … Read more

US forces and Iranian authorities mounted competing searches after a US F-15E Strike Eagle was downed in southwestern Iran on Friday, leaving one crew member rescued and a second unaccounted for. US media and officials say a pilot was recovered but a weapon systems officer remains missing; Iran state outlets have urged civilians to help … Read more

Lead US and Iranian forces and civilians are searching in southern Iran after a US F-15E Strike Eagle was reported downed over Khuzestan province. US media say one of the jet’s two crew members was rescued and a second, identified by US sources as a weapon systems officer, remains missing. Iranian state channels have urged … Read more

Lead: In Phoenix on April 3–4, 2026, all four No. 1 seeds met expectations as UConn, South Carolina, UCLA and Texas converged for the Women’s Final Four at the Mortgage Matchup Center. South Carolina defeated UConn 62-48 in the opening semifinal, ending the Huskies’ 54-game winning streak and booking the Gamecocks’ third straight national title … Read more

Lead: United Airlines will raise the first checked-bag fee by $10 to $45 and the second bag to $55 beginning Friday on flights within the U.S., Mexico, Canada and Latin America, the carrier said. The move comes as jet fuel costs have climbed sharply since the conflict in the Middle East began on Feb. 28, … Read more

Lead: United Airlines announced on April 3, 2026, that it is raising checked-bag charges by $10 for tickets purchased on or after that date, the carrier said. The increase raises prepaid first-bag fees to $45 and first-bag fees paid within 24 hours to $50, with second-bag prepaid and within-24-hour prices set at $55 and $60 … Read more

Lead On April 3, 2026, U.S. forces recovered one of two aircrew after an F-15E Strike Eagle was downed over southwestern Iran, U.S. sources told CNN. The second crew member’s status remains unclear as search-and-rescue operations continued in the Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad region near Deh-e Ramezan and Dehdasht. Iranian state media and local officials said … Read more

Lead: A U.S. F‑15E Strike Eagle was shot down over Iran on Friday, and U.S. forces recovered one of the aircraft’s two crewmembers, sources said. The rescued service member is in U.S. custody and receiving medical treatment; the fate of the second crewmember remains unknown as search-and-rescue operations continue. President Donald Trump has been briefed, … Read more

Lead: More than 100 international law specialists published an open letter this week accusing the United States, Israel and Iran of serious breaches of international law in the current Middle East conflict. The signatories say recent military strikes and public threats—including high-level statements from US officials—undermine the United Nations Charter’s prohibition on force except in … Read more

Lead On Friday in Tokyo, oil prices surged and most Asian markets that were open rose modestly amid cautious trading driven by concerns about an extended conflict involving Iran. Benchmark U.S. crude climbed 11.4% to $111.54 a barrel while Brent rose 7.8% to $109.03. Equity moves were mixed: Japan’s Nikkei gained 1.3% and South Korea’s … Read more