Top 8 today

Top eight stories for today including Ukraine is moving ahead with its first trial of a Russian soldier accused of war crimes; The Louisiana House of Representatives debated a bill that would make getting an abortion a crime of murder; The Biden administration quietly retired three offshore gas leases, and more.

National

Biden to retire three oil leases, including one in Alaska

The Biden administration quietly retired three offshore gas leases, fulfilling a campaign promise and invigorating environmentalists but drawing criticism from factions who say the administration is not doing enough to reduce soaring gas prices.

This 2011 photo shows the Perdido oil platform, located about 200 miles south of Galveston, Texas, in the Gulf of Mexico. (Jon Fahey/AP)

Judge asks Google, developers to be ‘willow trees, not redwoods’ ahead of antitrust trial

A federal judge urged Google to defer its requirement that all Android apps start using Google’s payment system for in-app purchases or face banishment from the Google Play Store.

This Wednesday, April 26, 2017, file photo shows the Google mobile phone icon, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

Americans cite inflation as top problem facing the country

A Pew Research Center survey released Thursday indicates that inflation is the most concerning issue facing the U.S. public, as a declining share of Americans say the Covid-19 pandemic, unemployment and racism are big problems.

A customer pumps gas at an Exxon gas station. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)

Regional

Louisiana lawmakers take up bill to make abortion a homicide crime

The Republican-controlled Louisiana House of Representatives debated a bill Thursday afternoon that would make women who end pregnancies subject to criminal homicide prosecution and would ban certain birth control and fertility options.

A woman naps, bundled up against the air conditioning, as she waits to have an abortion at Hope Medical Group for Women in Shreveport, La., in October 2021. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell, File)

Judge rejects lawsuit over California housing density bill

A California judge on Thursday rejected a petition by the nonprofit organization AIDS Healthcare Foundation and the Southern California city of Redondo Beach to block a new state law that makes it easier for cities to upzone certain neighborhoods.

An apartment building under construction in the Angeleno Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles (joey zanotti / Flickr)

Restaurants urge Ninth Circuit to revive challenge to Berkeley natural gas ban

Arguing before a Ninth Circuit panel Thursday, an attorney for a California restaurant trade organization doubled down on claims Berkeley’s novel ban on natural gas hookups in new construction is a roundabout way to ban gas-powered appliances in furtherance of the liberal city’s environmental goals.

A pot being heated by the blue flame of a gas stove. (Pixabay image via Courthouse News)

International

War crimes trials to begin in Ukraine, Finland moves toward NATO

Eleven weeks after Russia invaded its neighbor, Ukraine is moving toward putting the first Russian soldiers accused of war crimes on trial, a move that will bring into clearer focus allegations of war atrocities.