Rubio says US can see 'finish line' on Iran war

By Kanishka Singh and Ismail Shakil

WASHINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday Washington could see the "finish line" in the ‌Iran war, which is now in its fifth week, and the United States ‌will have to reexamine ties with NATO after the conflict.

"We can see the finish line. It's not today, ​it's not tomorrow, but it is coming," Rubio told Fox News Channel's "Hannity" show.

The war began on February 28 when the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran. Tehran responded by launching its own attacks on Israel and Gulf states with U.S. bases.

Joint U.S.-Israeli strikes in Iran and ‌Israeli attacks in Lebanon have killed ⁠thousands and displaced millions. The war has also raised oil prices and shaken global markets.

Rubio said there were messages being exchanged between Iran ⁠and the U.S. and there is the potential to have a "direct meeting at some point" between the two sides.

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"There are messages being exchanged, there are talks going on. There is the ​potential ​for direct meeting at some point," Rubio said.

President ​Donald Trump - who has offered shifting ‌timelines and objectives for the war, ranging from toppling Iran's government to weakening its military and regional influence, said on Tuesday the U.S. could end its military operations within two to three weeks.

Rubio also said Washington will have to reexamine its relations with NATO after the Iran war.

"Ultimately, that's a decision for the president to make, and he'll have ‌to make it," Rubio said.

"But I do think, ​unfortunately, we are going to have to reexamine whether ​or not this alliance that has ​served this country well for a while is still serving that ‌purpose, or has it now become a ​one-way street where America ​is simply in a position to defend Europe, but when we need the help of our allies, they're going to deny us basing rights, and they're going ​to deny us overflight," he ‌added in reference to use of military bases.

European leaders have refused to ​get involved in offensive operations against Iran.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Ismail Shakil; ​Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Stephen Coates)

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March 31, 2026

Rubio says US can see 'finish line' on Iran war

By Kanishka Singh and Ismail Shakil WASHINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said ...

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Trump says he plans to attend Supreme Court hearing on birthright citizenship

President Donald Trumpis planning to make an appearance at theSupreme Courtas the justices weigh whether his administration canrestrict birthright citizenship.

Trump's daily schedule has him at the Court for oral arguments at 10 a.m. on April 1. He told reporters March 31 during an Oval Office event that he likely would attend the hearing.

"I'm going,"Trump said, adding: "I think so. I do believe. Because I've listened to this argument for so long."

"No Kings" protesters gathered with signs, chants and costumes on Saturday, part of the third such coordinated demonstration against President Donald Trump's actions and policies since he took office for his second term. More than 3,000 events are expected throughout the nation. See moments from the protests across the nation. See the signs protesters created.

The Roebling Suspension Bridge near Cincinnati stands tall in the background while a protester holds a sign that reads "Elvis forever Trump never," at a protest against President Trump and his administration's policies on March 28, 2026.

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Signs range from poignant to funny to critical at 'No Kings' protests

"No Kings" protesters gathered with signs, chants and costumes on Saturday, part of thethird such coordinated demonstrationagainst PresidentDonald Trump's actions and policies since he took office for his second term. More than3,000 events are expected throughout the nation. See moments from the protests across the nation. See the signs protesters created.The Roebling Suspension Bridge near Cincinnati stands tall in the background while a protester holds a sign that reads "Elvis forever Trump never," at a protest against President Trump and his administration's policies on March 28, 2026.

Trumppreviously saidhe was considering attending a Supreme Court hearing on his tariffs, but ultimately opted against it. He would make history if he follows through this time. No sitting president has attended a Supreme Court argument.

Trump on his first day back in office last yearsigned an executive orderdenying automatic citizenship to babies born in the U.S. unless they have at least one parent who is a citizen or legal permanent resident. The move is a dramatic reinterpretation of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution, which states "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside." The order was quickly challenged in court.

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The 14th Amendment has long been interpreted to give citizenship to nearly everyone born in the U.S., other than children of diplomats and invading armies. Native Americans also were excluded from birthright citizenship until a 1924 law.

"It is the craziest thing I've ever seen," Trump said March 31 in criticizing birthright citizenship. "It's been so badly handled by legal people over the years."

It could be a busy day for Trump. He also plans toaddress the nationabout the Iran war at 9 p.m. on April 1.

Contributing:Maureen Groppe, Bart Jansen

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Trump says he plans to attend Supreme Court hearing on birthright citizenship

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March 31, 2026

Trump says he plans to attend Supreme Court hearing on birthright citizenship

President Donald Trumpis planning to make an appearance at theSupreme Courtas the justices weigh whether his administrati...

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US journalist abducted in Iraq; State Department says she was warned of threats

The Iraqi government is now investigating after an American journalist was abducted in Baghdad on Tuesday.

The journalist, who was identified as freelancer Shelly Kittleson by one of the outlets she reported for, was abducted by "unknown individuals", Iraq's Ministry of the Interior said in astatement on Facebook.

According to the Ministry, security forces launched an immediate operation and were able to intercept a vehicle believed to be linked to Kittleson's abduction. Kittleson, however, was not found inside the vehicle.

One suspect has been arrested. Scripps News reached out to the Ministry to get more information about the suspect and is awaiting a response.

In a post on X, Dylan Johnson, the Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs for the U.S. State Department, said that the individual arrested is believed to be associated with Iranian-aligned militia group Kataib Hizballah.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT |Trump tells allies: 'Get your own oil' as Iran blocks Strait of Hormuz

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Without naming Kittleson, Johnson also added, "The State Department previously fulfilled our duty to warn this individual of threats against them, and we will continue to coordinate with the FBI to ensure their release as quickly as possible."

Scripps News understands Kittleson was contacted at least 4 times in recent days about credible threats, including Monday night by the FBI.

The search for Kittleson and others involved in her abduction is ongoing.

According to Kittleson's X account, her work primarily focuses on the Middle East and Afghanistan. Kittleson has reported for several news outlets, including Al-Monitor, BBC, Politico, Foreign Policy, and more.

In a statement on their website, Al-Monitor expressed concern over Kittleson's abduction, stating, "We call for her safe and immediate release. We stand by her vital reporting from the region and call for her swift return to continue her important work."

The Committee to Protect Journalists also called for Kittleson's safe return in a statement to Scripps News, saying "CPJ calls on Iraqi authorities to do everything in their power to locate Shelley Kittleson, ensure her immediate and safe release, and hold those responsible to account."

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March 31, 2026

US journalist abducted in Iraq; State Department says she was warned of threats

The Iraqi government is now investigating after an American journalist was abducted in Baghdad on Tuesday. The...

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NFL kickoff rules 2026: League makes changes to onside kick, more

The NFL made a significant change to its kickoff in 2024,instituting the "dynamic kickoff"to boost the percentage of returned kicks and make one of the league's most dangerous plays safer.

The league is continuing its efforts to refine the play by tweaking its kickoff rule ahead of the 2026 NFL season.

The most notable approved rule change will allow teams to attempt an onside kick at any point during the game. In 2025, teams were only allowed to try an onside kick when trailing, so the rule change will give clubs a bit more flexibility.

NFL REFS:NFL institutes new rule to aid potential replacement officials

OT Tytus Howard: Traded to Cleveland Browns (previous team: Houston Texans)

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> CB Trent McDuffie: Traded to Los Angeles Rams (previous team: Kansas City Chiefs)

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> RB David Montgomery: Traded to Houston Texans (previous team: Detroit Lions)

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> WR DJ Moore: Traded to Buffalo Bills (previous team: Chicago Bears)

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2026 NFL offseason tracker: Player signings, trades

OT Tytus Howard:Traded to Cleveland Browns(previous team: Houston Texans)

Despite this significant change, NFL teams will still have to declare an onside kick any time they attempt one. This is necessitated by the difference of alignment between the onside kick – which uses the NFL's traditional kickoff formation – and the NFL's dynamic kickoff, where a majority of the players from each team are lined up between the receiving team's 30- and 35-yard line.

With that in mind, surprise onside kicks – like the one Sean Payton famously dialed up to start the second half of the New Orleans Saints' Super Bowl 44 win over the Indianapolis Colts – will remain out of the sport.

It remains unclear whether the NFL's rule change will result in an uptick in overall onside kick attempts, or if the need to declare them – along with their overall lack of efficacy – will continue to limit their use.

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Just five of the NFL's 52 onside kicks were recovered in 2025, according todata from The Football Database. That was good for a mark of 9.6% and up from three total recoveries and a 6% recovery rate in 2024, the first year of the NFL's dynamic kickoff.

NFL LEAGUE MEETINGS:Latest news, updates, storylines, rule changes

NFL kickoff rule changes

The onside kick rule isn't the only major kicking change the NFL's competition committee has instituted for the 2026 season. The following two rules have also been approved:

• To eliminate the kicking team's incentive to intentionally kick the ball out of bounds when kicking off from the 50-yard line.

• To modify the kickoff alignment requirements for the receiving team players in the setup zone.

The first of these rule changes effectively closed a loophole in the 2025 kickoff rules. Last season, a team kicking off from the 50-yard line after a personal foul penalty on the receiving team would benefit more from kicking a ball out of bounds (which would place the ball on the receiving team's 25-yard line) than they would from kicking a touchback (which would place the ball at the 30-yard line).

Under the NFL's new rule, touchbacks on kicks from the 50-yard line will be brought back out to the 20, eliminating the incentive to purposely sail a ball out of bounds.

Meanwhile, the alignment modifications will simply adjust how receiving team players are allowed to line up within the setup zone. The new rule will require just five players, instead of six, to have their front foot on the setup line – though just two players will be allowed to have their foot off the line in each of the setup zone's three areas.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:NFL modifies onside kick rules, other kickoff bylaws for 2026

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NFL kickoff rules 2026: League makes changes to onside kick, more

The NFL made a significant change to its kickoff in 2024,instituting the "dynamic kickoff"to boost the percenta...

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Like Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson, Frank Ragnow reportedly forced to repay part of signing bonus to Lions

When longtime Detroit Lions center Frank Ragnowretired last Junewithtwo years left on his contract, the franchise made the four-time Pro Bowler pay back part of his signing bonus,according to the Detroit Free Press' Dave Birkett, who also reported Tuesday that the Lions previously forced Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson to make similar repayments.

In an interview with the Free Press at the NFL's annual meeting, Lions president Rod Wood didn't reveal exactly how much Ragnow had to return, but Wood reportedly confirmed that the franchise pursued "a portion" of his signing bonus proration.

Following a slew of injuries, including a fractured throat, Ragnow walked away from the game at 29 years old. Whilehe attempted a midseason comebackto help a Detroit offensive line that was struggling on the interior,he failed his physical that notably uncovered a Grade 3 hamstring strain.

"Our precedent goes all the way back to Barry Sanders," Wood told the Free Press on March 29. "And if Barry Sanders paid back money. … And I think the reality is, they're not paying back their money, they're returning our money. Cause they were paid in advance for services that they hadn't completed."

In the spring of 2021,Ragnow signed a four-year extension reportedly worth $54 million that made him the highest-paid center in the NFL at the time. The 2018 first-round pick out of Arkansas still had two years left on his rookie deal, so the extension kicked in during the 2023 season and was set to run through 2026.

That lucrative extension, per the Free Press, included a $6 million signing bonus, which counted $1.5 million against the cap each season from 2023-26.

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Not every team seeks signing bonus prorations when players call it quits early, the Free Press reported Tuesday. And the Lions doing so after Ragnow fought through injury after injury to play for the organization during a formative seven seasons is eliciting some frustration.

Retired center Jason Kelce, who was a six-time first-team All-Pro and seven-time Pro Bowler with the Philadelphia Eagles, took to X to unpack his disagreement with the Lions' handling of the situation.

"… The whole purpose of a signing bonus is to be a guarantee up front that insures a salary irregardless of performance metrics, or most importantly injuries that could compromise your career in the future,"Kelce wrote.

Kelce later added in that post: "So while I get that the team has a right to ask for money back, in the spirit of the agreement, I think it's bulls*** Frank is being asked to return money. This was clearly a player that the game had physically taken its toll on, and his body was clearly no longer holding up to the rigors of the NFL. It wasn't just some player deciding he didn't want to play anymore, it wasn't that simple, and these signing bonuses are there to protect players from the inevitable injuries they incur on the field."

Like Kelce, Ragnow found his way onto multiple All-Pro teams. He was a second-teamer in 2020, 2023 and 2024.

His efforts, particularly during the Dan Campbell era, have been greatly appreciated by the city and players across the league, especially the teammates he shared a locker room with. One of them, former Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone,chimed in on X as well:

Infamously, after Sanders retired just before training camp in 1999, the Lions took the Pro Football Hall of Fame running back to arbitration to force him to give back part of his signing bonus, more than $7 million of it, according to the Free Press.

That had a negative effect on his relationship with the Lions, and Johnson, a Hall of Fame receiver, had a similar experience when the franchise reportedly made him repay $1.6 million of his signing bonus after he hung up his cleats in 2016.

In the years since, Sanders and Johnson have seemingly made up with the Lions, but the franchise's contractual stubbornness is still ruffling feathers in the football world.

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March 31, 2026

Like Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson, Frank Ragnow reportedly forced to repay part of signing bonus to Lions

When longtime Detroit Lions center Frank Ragnowretired last Junewithtwo years left on his contract, the franchise made th...

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Tiger Woods pleads not guilty, is stepping away to seek treatment

Tiger Woods released his first public statement since his rollover crash on Friday, announcing he would step away from golf to seek treatment in hopes of "lasting recovery."

Woods' statement Tuesday came soon after his attorney entered a plea of not guilty in a Florida court to charges stemming from the accident.

Woods, 50, is charged with misdemeanor driving under the influence with property damage, and refusal to submit to a urinalysis, according to court documents.

"I know and understand the seriousness of the situation I find myself in today," Woods' statement read. "I am stepping away for a period of time to seek treatment and focus on my health. This is necessary in order for me to prioritize my well-being and work toward lasting recovery.

"I'm committed to taking the time needed to return in a healthier, stronger and more focused place, both personally and professionally. I appreciate your understanding and support, and ask for privacy for my family, loved ones and myself at this time."

"Tiger Woods is a legend of our sport whose impact extends far beyond his achievements on the course," the PGA Tour said in statement. "But above all else, Tiger is a person, and our focus is on his health and well-being. Tiger continues to have our full support as he takes this important step."

Attorney Douglas Duncan represented Woods, who was not present in Martin County Circuit Court in Stuart, Fla. Duncan submitted the plea as well as the demand for a jury trial.

The 15-time major champion waived his arraignment hearing that was slated for April 23. The defense has 10 days to file motions in the case, to be heard in Florida's 19th Judicial Circuit.

Woods told police he was looking at his cellphone and changing the radio station before his Land Rover crashed near his home in Jupiter Island, Fla., according to the arrest affidavit released on Tuesday by the Martin County Sheriff's Office. Woods said he didn't see a truck that was hauling a trailer slow down, per the affidavit, and his car clipped the trailer and rolled onto its side.

The golfer was jailed on a charge of suspicion of misdemeanor DUI with property damage following the accident and was released on a $1,000 bond about eight hours later.

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Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek said a breathalyzer test showed no signs of alcohol, but that Woods refused a urinalysis test for other drugs.

Woods was "sweating profusely" and his movements were "lethargic and slow" during an interview with sheriff's deputy Tatiana Levenar, she wrote in the arrest affidavit.

Another deputy "observed several signs of impairment and requested I conduct a DUI Investigation to ensure Woods was able to operate the motor vehicle in a safe manner at the time of the collision," Levenar wrote in the affidavit.

During the field sobriety exercises, the deputy wrote that Woods was "limping and stumbling to the right." Woods told the deputy he had undergone seven back surgeries and more than 20 operations on his right leg since a major car accident near Los Angeles in 2021.

Duncan also represented Woods in that case. Woods, arrested on suspicion of DUI, later pleaded guilty to reckless driving and agreed to enter a diversion program.

Woods had said in the 2021 incident that he had taken a bad mix of painkillers. In the Martin County arrest report from last week, Woods denied consuming any alcohol but said he had taken "a few" prescription pills that morning.

Names of the medications were redacted in the affidavit, however, another Martin County Sheriff's deputy found two hydrocodone pills in Woods' left pants pocket. Hydrocodone was found in Woods' system in his 2017 arrest.

Levenar noted in the report that Woods' eyes were "bloodshot and glassy" and his pupils were "extremely dilated."

"Based on my observations of Woods, how he performed the exercises and based on my training, knowledge, and experience, I believed his normal facilities were impaired, and he was unable to safely operate the motor vehicle," Levenar wrote.

--Field Level Media

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March 31, 2026

Tiger Woods pleads not guilty, is stepping away to seek treatment

Tiger Woods released his first public statement since his rollover crash on Friday, announcing he would step away from...

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Melissa Joan Hart Impressively Pulls Off Push-Ups in Heels with 15-lb Weights in Her Dressing Room

Melissa Joan Hart shared a video of herself doing push-ups with 15-lb weights while wearing stilettos

NEED TO KNOW

• The actress has been open about her health journey, losing nearly 20 pounds after lifestyle changes during perimenopause

• Hart credits cutting out alcohol and sugar with helping her feel stronger and healthier than she has in years

Melissa Joan Hartis showing off her strength — and doing it in style.

The actress, 49, shared avideo to Instagramon Tuesday, March 31, that shows her working out in her dressing room while wearing stilettos, jeans and a layered top with a sweater vest. In the clip, Hart performs push-ups using 15-pound weights, incorporating renegade rows into the move.

"Fun new project I'm working on... and I asked for 15lb weights in my room to get my pump on.... in my pumps," she wrote in the caption, adding the hashtags "#StayStrong ladies" and "#RenegadeRows."

The impressive moment comes as Hart continues to open up about her ongoing health journey.

In anexclusive interview with PEOPLEearlier this year, theSabrina the Teenage Witchalum shared that she initially believed perimenopause would prevent her from losing weight. Instead, she ended up dropping nearly 20 pounds after making lifestyle changes.

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"I actually feel stronger and better than I have in a really long time," Hart told PEOPLE atSteven Tyler's 7th Annual Jam for JanieGrammyviewing party on Feb. 1, an event benefitting the rocker'sJanie's Fund, which supports neglected and abused girls.

"I just wanted to feel better. It had nothing to do with losing weight," she said. "I really didn't think I could lose weight anymore, being in midlife and perimenopause and all those things, I was like, 'Can I really lose weight? I don't think I can.'"

Her approach started with small changes that made a big impact.

"I haven't had a drink in over a year," she said. "I just don't even enjoy drinking. So why bother? So I cut these things out of my life, and I started to feel better."

She added that cutting out both alcohol and sugar played a key role in improving her health.

"In doing that, I lost a lot of weight and kind of feel great," she added.

Read the original article onPeople

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March 31, 2026

Melissa Joan Hart Impressively Pulls Off Push-Ups in Heels with 15-lb Weights in Her Dressing Room

Melissa Joan Hart shared a video of herself doing push-ups with 15-lb weights while wearing stilettos NEED TO K...

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