The U.N. Security Council has voted to authorize a much larger, 5,550-member international force to help stop escalating gang violence in Haiti. The resolution co-sponsored by the United States and Panama will transform the current Kenya-led force into a “Gang Suppression Force” with the power to detain suspected gang members, which the current force does not have. The vote on Tuesday was 12-0 with Russia, China and Pakistan abstaining. The first Kenyans arrived in Haiti in June 2024, and the force was supposed to have 2,500 troops, but it has been plagued by a lack of funding and its current strength is below 1,000.

As Gaza’s humanitarian crisis grows, some women say they have been exploited by local men promising food, money, water, supplies or work in exchange for sexual interaction. For an Associated Press report, six women described their experiences, each speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution from their families or the men. The women said they were desperate to feed their children. Several had run out of food. Others were single mothers unable to support their families. Psychologists and aid groups also spoke to AP about the accounts of women in Gaza. They described an increase of reports in exploitation, even as data is hard to gather.

As Gaza’s humanitarian crisis grows, some women say they're being exploited by local men promising food, money, or other aid in exchange for sexual interactions. Six women detailed their experiences to The Associated Press, each speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution from their families or the men. The women said some of the men were associated with aid groups or approached them during aid registration. They described some solicitation as blatant, with men asking to touch or have sex with them. Other times, they said it was culturally coded, with marriage or meetings suggested. Psychologists report similar accounts from patients. Six human rights and relief organizations said they're aware of reports of men associated with aid groups soliciting sex.

Irish police say no formal complaint has been filed regarding an early morning incident in Dublin involving Pittsburgh Steelers backup quarterback Skylar Thompson and that they haven’t established if there was a robbery. The Steelers said the 28-year-old Thompson was involved in a weekend “situation” in the Irish capital, but neither the team nor police have confirmed reports in Irish media that the player was robbed early Saturday. The Irish Independent newspaper reported that “a number of males were involved in an assault on Thompson near the Temple Bar area” and that the player’s phone was stolen. Police didn’t comment on reports of an assault.

A man convicted of killing eight people in metro Phoenix in 2017 is scheduled on Monday to start the sentencing portion of his trial, where prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Cleophus Cooksey Jr. was found guilty last week of murder, kidnapping, armed robbery and sexual assault charges in attacks over a three-week span that targeted random victims and his own mother and stepfather. Authorities say they linked Cooksey to the slayings through evidence found at his mother’s apartment in the aftermath of her killing. That evidence included vehicle keys belonging to a victim. Cooksey has maintained his innocence.

Trustees at Truett McConnell University in Georgia won't reinstate President Emir Caner. Caner had been on leave since June while the school investigated claims that a former administrator sexually assaulted a student and Caner ignored it. On Friday, the university announced that John Yarbrough will become interim president and the school will look for new permanent president. The investigation's findings were presented to trustees on Thursday, but haven't been made public. The case sparked rare protests among faculty and alumni, demanding Caner's removal. The former student discussed her allegations on a podcast in May.

A former Republican South Carolina House member has agreed to plead guilty to distributing child sexual abuse material. RJ May, who prosecutors say used the screen name “joebidennnn69,” signed court papers to change his plea. He is acting as his own attorney. May, who resigned earlier this year, is accused of exchanging 220 files involving children and graphic sex acts on the social media network Kik. He faces five to 20 years in prison on each of five counts. May has been in jail since June after a judge refused bond. He is scheduled to officially change his plea in federal court on Monday.

An Arizona man has been convicted on eight murder charges for a string of fatal shootings in Phoenix after a trial that spanned several months. The jury in Phoenix found 43-year-old Cleophus Cooksey Jr. guilty in the killings that targeted random victims and the defendant’s mother and stepfather over a three-week span in 2017. He was also found guilty of other crimes including kidnapping, sexual assault and armed robbery. The sentencing portion of the trial begins Monday, and prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Cooksey has maintained his innocence.

A man with a lengthy criminal history has been charged with murder in the 1973 killing of a woman in Connecticut, four years after he was arrested in another cold case. George Legere was arrested in a prison on Wednesday after police say he confessed to the stabbing death of 21-year-old Janet Couture in East Hartford. Police say he admitted he killed her while trying to steal money from her apartment to buy drugs. Legere was charged in 2021 with kidnapping and sexually assaulting another woman in Avon, Connecticut, in 1984 after new DNA evidence emerged. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison in that case.