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By Sallee Ann Harrison

May 06, 2026

By Sallee Ann Harrison

May 06, 2026

 
 

Hello and welcome to your afternoon news update from The Associated Press. Today, how a deadly hantavirus outbreak unfolded on a cruise ship; the U.S. fires on an Iranian oil tanker as President Donald Trump pressures Tehran for a deal to end the war; and the FBI searches the Virginia Senate leader's office as part of a corruption probe.

 

UP FIRST

The MV Hondius cruise ship departs the port in Praia, Cape Verde, on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Misper Apawu)

The MV Hondius cruise ship departs the port in Praia, Cape Verde, on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Misper Apawu)

How a deadly hantavirus outbreak unfolded on a cruise ship for weeks before it was identified

A deadly outbreak of the rare hantavirus unfolded over the course of weeks on a cruise ship that sailed from Argentina toward Antarctica and then across the Atlantic Ocean, stopping at or near remote islands on the way as passengers and crew members fell sick, according to information from the cruise operator, the World Health Organization and ship tracking data. Read more.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

  • Live updates: Hantavirus outbreak cruise ship heads for Spanish islands after evacuating patients
  • 3 patients are being evacuated to Europe from cruise ship with hantavirus outbreak
  • Hantavirus is on the rise in Argentina, where a stricken cruise ship began its journey
  • Antarctica’s tourism boom raises concerns about contamination and disease
 

TOP STORIES

US fires on Iranian oil tanker as Trump pressures Tehran for deal to end war 

The U.S. military said Wednesday that it fired on an Iranian oil tanker as President Donald Trump sought to pressure Tehran into reaching a deal to end the war. An American fighter jet shot out the rudder of the tanker in the Gulf of Oman as it tried to breach the U.S. military’s blockade of Iran’s ports, U.S. Central Command said in a social media post. Read more.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

  • France moves nuclear-powered carrier toward Hormuz in potential mission
  • Gas price shock deepens a divide as low-income drivers cut back — but pay more

FBI searches Virginia Senate leader's office as part of corruption probe, AP source says

The FBI searched the Virginia state Senate leader’s office on Wednesday as part of a corruption investigation, a person familiar with the matter said. The search at Virginia Sen. L. Louise Lucas’s district office in Portsmouth comes after the Democrat helped lead the state’s recent redistricting effort. Read more.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

  • Live updates: Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick appears before House panel over Epstein ties
  • Trump’s Indiana victories send a warning to Republican dissenters
  • Trump's new counterterrorism strategy makes targeting Western Hemisphere cartels the top priority
  • For many Americans, Trump’s immigration crackdown is personal, new AP-NORC poll shows
  • Man charged in DC shooting was following the path of Vance’s motorcade, Secret Service agent says
 

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IN OTHER NEWS

Ted Turner speaks during the CNN World Report Contributors banquet in Atlanta in 1995. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Ted Turner speaks during the CNN World Report Contributors banquet in Atlanta in 1995. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

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Soccer players on the Rwanda Amputee team take part in a training session in Kigali, Rwanda, in March. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

Soccer players on the Rwanda Amputee team take part in a training session in Kigali, Rwanda, in March. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)