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Two North Carolina state House Republicans have lost their caucus leadership positions following recent comments directed at Democratic colleagues questioning their religion and educational attainment. A top House GOP leader announced on Thursday that Reps. Keith Kidwell and Jeff McNeely, who are both white, are no longer deputy majority whips after their resignations were sought by other GOP leaders. The Democrats who were the subject of the comments are both Black. McNeely took criticism during debate last week on legislation to expand the state’s private-school voucher system when he asked a question about a colleague's time at Harvard University. A television station reported that Kidwell disparaged a colleague's religion as she debated a bill restricting abortion.

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Thousands of United Methodist congregations have been voting on whether to stay or quit one of the nation’s largest denominations amid intractable debates over theology and the role of LGBTQ people. The dividing line isn’t just running between congregations. It’s running right through the pews of individual churches, separating people who had long worshipped together. Those who come up on the short end of a disaffiliation vote face the dilemma of whether to stay or go. Some United Methodist regional conferences have begun designating what they call “Lighthouse” congregations – ones that actively welcome people who wanted to stay United Methodist but whose former churches voted to leave.

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A wave of newly approved abortion restrictions in the Southeastern United States has sent providers scrambling to reconfigure their services for a region with already severely limited access.  South Carolina’s governor signed a bill Thursday banning most abortions around six weeks of pregnancy, setting up an anticipated legal challenge from providers. The law Thursday goes into effect immediately. Pending bans at varying stages of pregnancy in North Carolina and Florida are threatening to further delay abortions for patients as appointments pile up and doctors work to understand the new limitations. The states had been holdouts providing wider access to the procedure in the region.

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Guam residents facing down the strongest typhoon to hit their remote U.S. Pacific island territory in decades had identical twin meteorologists helping them get ready and stay safe this week. The National Weather Service’s Guam office employs Landon Aydlett as its warning coordination meteorologist. His brother Brandon Aydlett is the science and operations officer. The 41-year-olds tag-teamed Facebook live broadcasts watched by thousands as Typhoon Mawar approached. Landon Aydlett said Thursday morning that working with his brother is like working with his best friend. He says they never planned to work together but the jobs fell in their laps and they followed their heart and passion for the work.

National & World AP Stories

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan won reelection in a runoff Sunday, following a nail-biter first round two weeks earlier. Having secured another five years, Erdogan now faces a host of domestic challenges in a deeply divided country. He must figure out how to boost a battered economy. He is under pressure to repatriate Syrian refugees. And he has promised to rebuild after a devastating earthquake.

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Explosions have rattled Kyiv during daylight as Russian ballistic missiles fell on the Ukrainian capital. The barrage came hours after a more common nighttime attack of the city by drones and cruise missiles. Debris from missiles intercepted by Ukrainian air defenses Monday fell in Kyiv’s central and northern districts during the morning. officials said the missile fragments landed in the middle of traffic on a city road and also started a fire on a building’s roof. At least one civilian was reported hurt. Air defenses brought down more than 40 targets during the previous night as Russian forces bombarded Kyiv with a combination of drones and cruise missiles. It was their 15th nighttime attack on the capital so far this month.

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Firefighters and other first responders are being credited with saving lives - at great risk to their own safety - after a six-story apartment building in Iowa partially collapsed. Authorities say there are no known fatalities after a section of the building crashed to the ground in the eastern Iowa city of Davenport. Fire Chief Michael Carlsten said workers searched for survivors throughout the night and rescued one person from the building. But he says “no known individuals” were believed to still be trapped as of Monday morning. Fire crews initially rescued seven people and escorted more than a dozen others from the building when they first responded on Sunday. The cause of the collapse was still unclear.