In the report, the U.S. Center for Countermeasures notes the action for using the laser was for the “evaluation of aircraft-based countermeasures, evaluation of counter-unmanned aircraft systems and development and evaluation of directed energy weapons” among other initiatives.

House lawmakers introduced a bill Wednesday to exempt military spouses from a return-to-office mandate, launching a bipartisan effort to retain telework and remote work arrangements for military families.

Some deaf federal employees at some agencies aren’t able to access American Sign Language interpreting services and other accommodations as a result of President Donald Trump’s orders to remove all positions related to diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility, according to advocates working with deaf federal employees and interpreters.

A sixth person has died as a result of a massive explosion of illegal fireworks over New Year’s in Honolulu, police said Wednesday.

The Trump administration is considering deputizing state and local law enforcement to arrest suspected undocumented immigrants at traffic stops and other locations, resurrecting a program that the Obama administration terminated amid allegations that it led to racial profiling.

A flight attendant who was killed in the midair collision last week near the nation’s capital was remembered Wednesday for his devotion to family and passion for travel, as Ian Epstein’s family and others start to hold memorials for loved ones who were among the 67 victims in the deadliest U.S. air disaster since 2001.

A winter storm approaching several mid-Atlantic states is threatening significant ice accumulations that could cause widespread power outages and disrupt travel, forecasters warned Wednesday.

Ten suspected Venezuelan gang members were among the first to arrive Tuesday at Naval Base Guantanamo Bay as about 300 U.S. troops worked to expand the center’s migrant capacity to hold thousands more deported migrants.

“This is the oldest known site on the east side of Upper Cook Inlet,” said Margan Grover, an archaeologist and Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson’s cultural resource manager. “JBER and the surrounding area have been used for a very long time.”

Rwanda-backed rebels gained ground in eastern Congo on Wednesday despite the unilateral ceasefire they declared earlier this week, taking control of a town 60 miles from the provincial capital of Bukavu, civil society officials and residents told The Associated Press.

President Donald Trump’s top diplomat and his main spokesperson on Wednesday walked back the idea that he wants the permanent relocation of Palestinians from Gaza, after American allies and even Republican lawmakers rebuffed his suggestion that the U.S. take “ownership” of the territory.

Ukraine wants to collaborate with partner countries on postwar projects worth billions of dollars not just in mining rare earth elements, but also in energy and construction sectors to help rebuild the country, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Wednesday.

U.S. allies expect President Donald Trump’s administration to present a long-awaited plan to end Russia’s war on Ukraine at the Munich Security Conference in Germany next week, according to people familiar with the matter.

The U.S. Treasury on Wednesday maintained its guidance on keeping sales of longer-term debt unchanged well into 2025, despite newly installed Secretary Scott Bessent having criticized the issuance strategy of his predecessor before he was picked for the job.

New Attorney General Pam Bondi on Wednesday ordered a review of the federal prosecution of Donald Trump as she unveiled a series of directives designed to overhaul a Justice Department the president claims is biased against conservatives.

The U.S. Military Academy has banned organizations centered primarily on ethnic and gender affiliation as part of what it says is compliance with the effort to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs in government.

President Donald Trump offered a jaw-dropping performance during his joint news conference Tuesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, suggesting that Palestinian refugees from the Gaza Strip could be permanently resettled elsewhere and that the U.S. might stage a long-term takeover of the vacated region — even leading redevelopment efforts to make it a seaside paradise in waiting.

The U.N. refugees and migration agencies on Wednesday expressed their concern over Pakistan’s decision to deport thousands of Afghan refugees awaiting relocation to the United States and elsewhere.

A European Union fund meant to help speed the deployment of troops, tanks and military equipment around the 27-nation bloc in times of conflict is too small and poorly managed to be effective, auditors said in a report Wednesday.