National News

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The economy expanded in nine Midwestern and Plains states last month despite mounting concerns about tariffs and trade skirmishes, according to a report released Thursday. The Mid-America Business Conditions Index slumped to 54.9 in October, from 57.5 in September , the report said. The October reading was the lowest since January 2017, but…

By MARYCLAIRE DALE ,  Associated Press PITTSBURGH (AP) — The anti-Semitic truck driver accused of gunning down 11 people at a Pittsburgh synagogue pleaded not guilty on Thursday to federal charges that could put him on death row. Robert Bowers, 46, was arraigned one day after a grand jury issued a 44-count indictment that charges him…

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Divers on Thursday recovered a flight data recorder from the crashed Lion Air jet on the seafloor, a crucial development in the investigation into what caused the 2-month-old plane to plunge into Indonesian seas earlier this week, killing all 189 people on board. One TV station showed footage of two divers…

By ZARAR KHAN and MUNIR AHMED , Associated Press ISLAMABAD (AP) — A Christian woman who spent eight years on death row under Pakistan's blasphemy law was acquitted and ordered released Wednesday by the country's top court, a ruling that raised fears of violence by religious extremists who held angry protests over the verdict. Asia…

By MARYCLAIRE DALE and ALLEN G. BREED , Associated Press PITTSBURGH (AP) — The suspect in the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday, four days after 11 people were killed and six wounded in the deadliest attack on Jews in American history. The indictment, which was expected, charges Robert Bowers…