HOT POINT

The FBI notified Minnesota state investigators that it will not share information or evidence related to the fatalshooting of Alex Pretti by federal agentsin Minneapolis, the state's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said in a Feb. 16 statement.

The revelation comes after Minnesota Gov.Tim Walzand other officialsexpressed hope that federal authorities would cooperatewith the state in an investigation into the killing of Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse whose death triggered nationwide protests andbipartisan calls for an independent investigation.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, which specializes in investigating police shootings and has often worked with federal authorities, vowed to move ahead with its own probe but acknowledged the challenges posed by the FBI's decision to withhold evidence.

"While this lack of cooperation is concerning and unprecedented, the BCA is committed to thorough, independent and transparent investigations of these incidents, even if hampered by a lack of access to key information and evidence," the agency said.

The FBI, which is leading its own probe into the Pretti shooting, declined to comment.

The move is the latest development in a series of battles between state and federal authorities over investigations into shootings by federal officers during amonthslong immigration enforcement surgein Minnesota.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension says it has also been stonewalled from evidence and case materials related to the fatal shooting ofRenee Nicole Good, a mother of three, and a shooting thatleft a Venezuelan maninjured.

Minnesota state and local authorities promised to independently investigate each of the shootings, but it remains unclear whether state prosecutors will be able to bring charges against the federal agents,who are largely protected from prosecution.

Independent investigations have been among the top demands from Minnesota state and local officials, as well as federal lawmakers from both parties, as outrage mounted over the shootings. Pretti's death prompted particularly intense pushback as footage of the incidentundermined assertions made by top Trump administration officialswho said Pretti had "brandished" a firearm and acted as an "assassin."

Videos show Pretti filming federal agents with his phone before he was taken to the ground, disarmed and shot in the back. The Department of Homeland Security said two agents opened fire, both of whom have beenplaced on leave.

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Within hours of Pretti's death, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and a local prosecutor's office went to court to gain access to the scene and even obtained a search warrant, a move officials in court records said was incredibly unusual.

"In my 20-plus years at the BCA, prior to 2026, I had never encountered a situation in which federal authorities blocked BCA access to an incident where there is concurrent federal and state jurisdiction," Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Superintendent Drew Evans said.

U.S. District Judge Eric C. Tostrud issued a restraining order barring federal authorities from destroying or altering evidence related to Pretti's death. In early February, Tostrud dissolved his initial order.

TheU.S. Justice Department openeda civil rights investigation into the Pretti shooting, which could potentially lead to criminal charges against the officers involved, though there is a high legal bar to bring such a case. Customs and Border Protection has opened an internal investigation into the shooting.

ICE, Border Patrol leaders face Congress over deadly Minnesota raids

The Justice Department declined to investigate the Good shooting, saying there's"no basis" for such an inquiry. That decision, and a push from top DOJ officials to instead investigate Good's wife, led to a wave of resignations at the U.S. attorney's office in Minnesota, according to multiple news outlets, includingThe New York TimesandNBC News.

ICE said it opened an internal investigation and is reviewing the conduct ofJonathan Ross, the agent who shot Good.

Separately, the Justice Department and ICE are investigating whether the two officers involved in a shooting that injured Venezuelan immigrantJulio Cesar Sosa-Celison Jan. 14 in Minneapolis lied under oath. Federal authorities launched the probe after video evidence appeared to contradict the officers' initial statements about the shooting.

Contributing: Reuters

Christopher Cann is a national breaking news reporter for USA TODAY. Contact him via email at ccann@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:FBI won't share evidence related to Alex Pretti shooting, state says

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Israeli prosecutors said Monday that they plan to charge a settler in the killing of a Palestinian activist during a confrontation that was caught on video, opening a rare prosecution ofviolence by Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank.

Attacks from settlers and home demolitions by authorities have spiked dramatically over the past two years, but the death in July of Awdah Hathaleen has drawn particular attention due to his involvement in the 2025 Oscar-winning film "No Other Land," which chronicled Palestinian villagers' fight to stay on their land. The case also stands out because the confrontation between Palestinians and Yinon Levi, an internationally sanctioned settler, was captured on video from multiple vantage points.

In a video that family members say wastaken by Hathaleen himself, Levi could be seen firing toward the person holding the camera. Anothershowed Levi firing two shotswithout showing where the bullets struck.

An Israeli judge released Levi from custody six months ago,citing a lack of evidencethat he fired the shots that killed Hathaleen.

Israel's State Attorney General's office confirmed in a statement Monday that it had initiated proceedings to indict Levi. It did not specify the charges.

Eitan Peleg, an attorney for Hathaleen's family, said the office had informed them it planned to indict Levi for reckless homicide, triggering a process that allows Levi to contest charges before they're formally filed.

"Enforcement of the law in cases like this involving Palestinians in the West Bank is very rare, so this is unique," Peleg told The Associated Press on Monday.

Israel's military referred questions on the indictment to police, who have not yet responded. Both bodies enforce laws in the area.

More than 3.4 million Palestinians and 700,000 Israelis live in the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem, territories captured by Israel in 1967 and sought by Palestinians for a future state. The international community overwhelmingly considers Israeli settlement construction in these areas to be illegal and an obstacle to peace.

Palestinians and rights groups say authorities routinely fail to prosecute settlers or hold them accountable for violence. Under National Security MinisterItamar Ben-Gvir,investigations into settler attacks have plummeted, according to the Israeli rights group Yesh Din.

Khalil Hathaleen, Awdah's brother, said the family was glad some measure of justice was being pursued but felt the charge of "reckless homicide" was insufficient.

"It was an intentional killing in broad daylight, with prior intent and premeditation," he said.

Levi's attorney, Avichai Hajbi, declined Monday to comment on the coming indictment, which he said he hadn't received. After the shooting, he told The Associated Press that Levi acted in self-defense, without elaborating. Levi did not answer phone calls Monday.

Parts of the confrontation were filmed

Video released last year by B'Tselem, an Israeli human rights group showed Levi firing a gun toward the person filming. At the moment that B'Tselem says Hathaleen collapsed, the visuals are jostled but moans of pain can be heard. The group said it obtained the video from the family of Hathaleen, who said he filmed it.

Additional footage obtained by the AP last year showed Levi waving a pistol during the standoff in Umm al-Khair that was with a group of Palestinians over an excavator that had rolled down from a nearby settlement and damaged Palestinian property earlier in the day.

Alaa Hathaleen, a cousin who filmed the encounter, told AP at the time that he had approached Levi to tell him the group was unarmed and to stop the bulldozing.

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In the video, one Palestinian insults Levi and another challenges him to shoot. Levi shoves someone just out of the frame, demands to know who threw stones, and later fires a shot, seemingly away from the crowd. He then fires again and yells toward the crowd to get away from the excavator.

The footage did not show where bullets struck, though other relatives said they saw Awdah Hathaleen fall immediately after shots were fired.

Levi was detained before being released to house arrest. That condition was eventually lifted, too.

Levi was among the Israeli settlerssanctioned by the United States and other Western countriesover allegations of violence toward Palestinians in 2024. U.S. President Donald Trump lifted the U.S. sanctions after taking office the following year.

Attacks spike as spotlight grows

Activists and crew members on the film "No Other Land" have said settler attacks have intensified on the village portrayed since the movie won the Oscar.

Hamdan Ballal, one of the film's directors, said his family home in Umm al-Khair was subject to another attack on Sunday. Four relatives were arrested during the confrontation, he said.

Ballal said a soldier, who came to their home accompanied by another soldier and a settler-herder, grabbed his brother by the neck and tried to choke him. Neither the army nor the police responded to requests for comment on the incident.

"The year after I won the Oscar, the assaults increased significantly. On a daily basis, settlers come and destroy the fields, destroy the trees, destroy the crops around the house," he said.

Israeli proof-of-ownership rules spark anger

As prosecutors move to indict Levi and violence persists across the West Bank, Israel is moving ahead with measures to deepen its control over land in the occupied territory.

On Sunday, it announcedit would resume a land registration processacross the West Bank to require anyone with a claim to land to submit documents proving ownership. Rights groups say the process could strip Palestinians of land they've lived on and farmed for generations and transfer vast swaths of land to Israeli state control.

Israel's Foreign Ministry said the steps countered Palestinian Authority land registration efforts in areas where Israel maintains civil and military control.

The measures follow years of accusations by Palestinians that actions by settlers and the military — campaigns of violence, harassment and demolitions — have pushed them from their land.

The decisions have drawn widespread condemnation as violations of international law, including from countries involved in the ceasefire process in the Gaza Strip and Trump's Board of Peace.

Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry in a statement on Monday said the measures were part of Israel's effort to impose a "new legal and administrative reality" that undermines prospects for peace and stability. Egypt's Foreign Ministry called the move a "flagrant violation" of international law, warning it would escalate tensions in the Palestinian territories and across the region.

U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres condemned Israel's decision, calling it not only destabilizing but unlawful according to the International Court of Justice, the U.N.'s highest tribunal, his spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said.

___ Associated Press writer Melanie Lidman contributed reporting from Tel Aviv.

Balance and control are important in any sport, but they're especially crucial at the highest levels, such as at the2026 Milano Cortina Olympics.

In the Winter Games, athletes often must be able to display the same skills while going forward and backward. In figure skating, ice hockey and snowboarding, for example.

But there have been times during these Olympics when athletes have gone out of control and turned completely around when theyweren'tsupposed to. And the moments have been magical.

In men's dual moguls on Sunday, Feb. 15, Japanese freestyle skier Ikuma Horishima nearly lost it on the final jump, but somehow remained upright to cross the finish line ... backwards.

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Horishima went on to claim the silver medal in dual moguls.

And in short track speed skating, Italy's Pietro Sighel − who had a big enough lead in an earlier heat that he turned around and crossed the finish line backward − had to do it again out of necessity in his 500 meter heat Monday when he was bumped as two skaters collided.

Sighel nearly won the race, but made it across the finish line to advance.

Unexpected surprises like these definitely have us looking forward to more as the Winter Games conclude.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Ikuma Horishima, Pietro Sighel cross Olympic finish line backwards

Geno Auriemma tied Tara VanDerveer for most appearances in the AP women's basketballTop 25 pollwhen UConn remained No. 1 on Monday.

Creighton UConn Basketball

Auriemma has led the Huskies to 654 appearances in the poll during his 41-year Hall of Fame career to match VanDerveer, who retired from Stanford in 2024. UConn has been ranked for the past 619 consecutive weeks, dating to the preseason 1993-94 poll, and once again was a unanimous choice at No. 1 from the 31-member national media panel. Monday was the 900th pollin the 50-year historyof the rankings.

UCLA and South Carolina remained second and third behind the Huskies. Texas and Vanderbilt were next as the top five remained unchanged. The Commodoresbeat the Longhornslast week before losing to Georgia on Sunday.

Michigan, LSU and Louisville were next. Duke moved back into the top 10 at No. 9 as the Blue Devils are riding a 16-game winning streakafter beating rivalNorth Carolina on Sunday.

Ohio State dropped two places to 10thafter losing toMaryland on Sunday. The Terrapins jumped up six spots to 14th.

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In and out

Minnesota entered the Top 25 for the first time this season as the Golden Gophers came in at No. 23. They have an eight-game winning streak but a difficult week ahead with games against Ohio State and No. 18 Michigan State. Minnesota was ranked for two weeks last season. Georgia also came back into the rankings this week, appearing at No. 24 after its win over Vanderbilt. Princeton and Washington fell out of the poll.

Conference supremacy

The SEC remained the top conference with 10 teams in the poll. The Big Ten is next with seven. The Big 12 has four teams, the Atlantic Coast Conference has three and the Big East one.

Games of the week

No. 6 Michigan at No. 13 Iowa, Sunday. A battle for second place in the Big Ten as the Wolverines and Hawkeyes are a game apart in the loss column in the conference standings, trailing UCLA.

No. 7 LSU at No. 17 Mississippi, Thursday. A key SEC matchup with the Tigers looking to rebound from a loss to South Carolina. The Rebels have a busy week with games against Tennessee, LSU and South Carolina this week.

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign uphere. AP women's college basketball:https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-pollandhttps://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball

Anthony Kim soared from 847th to 203rd in the Official World Golf Ranking released on Monday following his first tournament win since 2010.

The LIV Golf Adelaide champion still has a lot of work left to do but is back in the conversation for the Masters and other majors following a 12-year absence from the sport for injury and addiction recovery.

Kim, 40, has not competed in a grand slam event since he missed the cut at the 2011 PGA Championship at the Atlanta Athletic Club in Johns Creek, Ga.

The OWGR began awarding world ranking points to the top-10 finishers in LIV Golf events this season. Kim tied for 22nd at the season-opening event in Riyadh earlier this month before breaking through in Australia, where his final score of 23-under was three shots clear of Spain's Jon Rahm.

At No. 203, Kim would still need to climb another 153 spots to make the top 50 in the OWGR in time to secure an automatic invitation to the Masters (April 9-12). There are only three LIV Golf events between now and then: Hong Kong (March 5-8), Singapore (March 12-15) and South Africa (March 19-22).

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As for the May 14-17 PGA Championship at Aronimink, players ranked within the top 100 of the OWGR typically get invitations.

The world ranking is not the only pathway for Kim to qualify for the U.S. Open or The Open Championship.

Last year, the USGA announced a special exemption for the U.S. Open for LIV players. For the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills from June 18-21, "the top player who is not otherwise exempt and in the top 3 of the 2026 LIV Golf Individual Standings as of May 18, 2026" will get in.

The R&A also has an LIV-tailored exemption for the 2026 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale from July 16-19. One spot will be awarded to "the first player and anyone tying for that place, not otherwise exempt, in the 2026 LIV Golf Individual Season Standings on completion of LIV Golf Louisiana (June 25-28)."

Kim currently sits second in the LIV individual standings behind Rahm.

--Field Level Media

ROME, Feb 16 (Reuters) - A famous rock structure on Italy's Adriatic coast known as the "Lovers' Arch" collapsed ‌on Valentine's Day after days of bad weather, prompting ‌local officials to warn that other stretches of the fragile coastline could ​be at risk.

Drone view of Italy's 'Love Arch'

The natural arch, part of the Sant'Andrea sea stacks near the town of Melendugno in the southern region of Puglia, had long been a popular backdrop for wedding proposals ‌and tourist photos.

"This ⁠is an unwanted Valentine's Day gift," Melendugno Mayor Maurizio Cisternino told the local Corriere Salentino newspaper, ⁠calling the collapse "a very hard blow" for the area's image and for tourism.

Cisternino said days of heavy rain, strong winds and ​rough ​seas had battered the coastline ​and ultimately destroyed the arch. "Nature ‌has taken back what it created," he said.

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Officials have warned that other parts of the rocky coastline could also collapse, with cracks visible along the cliff, underscoring the growing threat of coastal erosion.

Storms and heavy rain in recent days ‌have also eaten away at long ​stretches of coastline on the Ionian ​Sea, from Ugento to ​the beaches of Gallipoli, damaging beach structures, ‌causing small cliff falls and harming ​ports.

Weeks of ​terrible weather this year have also caused damage estimated at well over a billion euros in southern Italy, including ​a landslide that ‌has forced more than 1,500 people to evacuate ​their homes in the Sicilian town of Niscemi.

(Reporting by ​Crispian BalmerEditing by Ros Russell)

A small "security force" will remain in Minnesota temporarily as the Trump administrationwinds down its immigration enforcement operationin the state, White House border czarTom Homansaid on Feb. 15.

In an interview onCBS News' "Face the Nation,"Homan said a limited number of agents would stay in Minnesota to respond if federal personnel find themselves "surrounded by agitators and things get out of control."

He did not say how many agents would comprise the rapid response force but said he's "hoping" they can be removed "fairly quickly."

Homan's comments come days after he announced theend of Operation Metro Surge, the immigration mission in the Midwestern state that drew nationwide and bipartisanbacklash against the Trump administrationafter the deaths of two U.S. citizens at the hands of federal officers.

Federal agents continue surge of immigration enforcement in Minnesota

In his announcement of the withdrawal, Homan cast the operation as a success, touting the arrests of 4,000 undocumented immigrants, some of whom had been charged with violent offenses. Homan credited the withdrawal to "unprecedented" cooperation between national authorities and Minnesota state and local officials.

"As a result of our efforts here Minnesota is now less of a sanctuary state for criminals," Homan said at a Feb. 12 news conference.

The move was welcomed by state and local officials in Minnesota, but several disputed Homan's claims and said no deals were struck to broaden cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

"We do not enforce federal immigration law, period. We do not cooperate with (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) or any agency around enforcement of federal immigration law," said Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey at a news conference after Homan made his announcement. "The notion there was a deal is false."

In a separate interview withFox News' "Fox and Friends," Homan on Feb. 15 said Minnesota officials "ought to be saying thank you."

Homan was sent to Minnesota in the aftermath of the killings ofAlex Pretti, an ICU nurse, andRenee Nicole Good, a poet and mother of three, which triggered nationwide protests andintense scrutiny on the tactics of agentscarrying out the administration's deportation agenda.

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The outrage led to a shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, as Democrats vowed not to support a funding bill for the agency without reforms to immigration enforcement. Republicans described the demands as unrealistic.

Among the major points of contention are themasks worn by federal agents. Democrats are calling for them to be removed while Republicans say they're necessary to protect personnel from being doxxed and otherwise harassed.

Homan told CBS News that he was not part of the ongoing Homeland Security negotiations but said he doesn't "like the masks either." Still, the border czar called the coverings necessary amid an uptick in threats and assaults on immigration agents.

"These men and women have to protect themselves," he said.

Homan has conceded that the operation in Minnesota needed reform. In recent statements, Homan highlighted a series of internal changes he made when he arrived in Minnesota, from refocusing enforcement on undocumented immigrants with criminal histories to dispatching more internal affairs agents "to make sure officers in the field was doing the right thing."

But despite the controversy over the Minnesota operation, Homan has not ruled out future surges.

"I think it depends on the situation," he told CBS News. "I have said from day one that, you know, we need to – we need to flood the zone in sanctuary cities with additional agents. The number of agents depend on the situation on the ground, how many known criminal targets are out there, because we know we have a problem with sanctuary cities, because we know they're releasing public safety threats in the public."

He added: "I'm hoping other sanctuary cities look at what happened in Minnesota and how we got to the place we're at, which I think is a good place."

Christopher Cann is a national breaking news reporter for USA TODAY. Contact him via email at ccann@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Security force to remain in Minnesota amid ICE withdrawal, Homan says