Iran stands poised to “quite dramatically” increase its stockpile of near weapons-grade uranium as it has started cascades of advanced centrifuges, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency warned Friday. The comments from Rafael Mariano Grossi came just hours after Iran said it conducted a successful space launch with its heaviest payload ever, the latest for its program that the West alleges improves Tehran’s ballistic missile program. The launch of the Simorgh rocket comes as Iran’s nuclear program now enriches uranium at 60%, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels of 90%.

The remains of a woman who fell into a sinkhole were recovered Friday, four days after she went missing while searching for her cat, a state police spokesperson said. Trooper Steve Limani said the body of 64-year-old Elizabeth Pollard was being taken to the Westmoreland County Coroner’s Office for an autopsy. Authorities planned a midafternoon news conference at a nearby fire hall to provide additional details. The announcement came in the fourth day of the search for Pollard, who had last been seen Monday evening, looking for the cat near a restaurant half a mile (0.8 kilometers) from her home in the village of Marguerite. Axel Hayes, Pollard’s son, said a state trooper told him and other family members that her body had been found.

A recent study of the Israel-Lebanon war’s impact on children and teens found that most have developed significant emotional challenges, made worse by a lack of proper adult guidance, Ynet reported. Noam (not his real name), a father of three and a mental health professional from northern Israel, described the war’s impact on his children. “Our oldest acts as if everything is normal, but she’s extremely tense and grappling with deep fears. Our middle child suffers from severe anxiety – at night, she curls up silently and cries, as if she wants to disappear. She’s terrified to be alone, even at home. Meanwhile, our youngest runs to the safe room at the slightest sound.” “It’s a roller coaster. The root of the problem lies in the system’s inability to handle the situation.

The reliability of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids has dramatically improved, narrowing a wide gap with gas-powered automobiles, according to the latest survey by Consumer Reports. But vehicles with internal combustion engines and gas-electric hybrids are still far more dependable, the survey found. Consumer Reports subscribers, who filled out surveys during much of 2024, reported that electric vehicles had 42% more problems than gas autos on average. But that was down from 79% more in the 2023 survey. The survey released Thursday measured reliability of vehicles mainly from the 2022, 2023 and 2024 model years.

The average rate on a 30-year mortgage in the U.S. eased again this week, slipping to its lowest level since late October. The rate dropped to 6.69% from 6.81% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 7.03%. Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners seeking to refinance their home loan to a lower rate, also eased this week. The average rate fell to 5.96% from 6.1% last week. A year ago, it averaged 6.29%, Freddie Mac said. Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, including the moves in the yield on U.S. 10-year Treasury bonds, which lenders use as a guide to price home loans. The average rate on a 30-year mortgage is now at its lowest level since October 24, when it was at 6.54%.

Mexico’s president said Thursday she will ask President-elect Donald Trump to deport non-Mexican migrants directly to their home countries, rather than dumping them at the Mexican border. President Claudia Sheinbaum said she hopes to reach an agreement with Trump so that “they send people who come from other countries to their countries of origin.” Mexico, like any other country, is not obligated to accept non-Mexican migrants, but it has agreed to do so in the recent past, especially from countries like Cuba and Venezuela, which often refuse deportation flights from the United States, but may accept them from Mexico.

One of the country’s largest health insurers reversed a change in policy Thursday after widespread outcry, saying it would not tie payments in some states to the length of time a patient went under anesthesia. Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield said in a statement that its decision to backpedal resulted from “significant widespread misinformation” about the policy. “To be clear, it never was and never will be the policy of Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield to not pay for medically necessary anesthesia services,” the statement said.

In a recent sermon delivered at the Muslim Community Center in Silver Spring, Maryland, Nihad Awad, Executive Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), urged American Muslims to actively “market Islam” to the broader public. Speaking to a congregation and a live YouTube audience, Awad outlined a strategic vision to reshape public perceptions of Islam in the United States. “No product in the United States can succeed without marketing,” Awad stated, asserting that Islam is often misrepresented by media, Hollywood, and academic institutions.

NASA announced more delays Thursday in sending astronauts back to the moon more than 50 years after Apollo. Administrator Bill Nelson said the next mission in the Artemis program — flying four astronauts around the moon and back – is now targeted for April 2026. It had been on the books for September 2025, after slipping from this year. The investigation into heat shield damage from the capsule’s initial test flight two years ago took time, officials said, and other spacecraft improvements are still needed. This bumps the third Artemis mission — a moon landing by two other astronauts — to at least 2027. NASA had been aiming for 2026. NASA’s Artemis program, a follow-up to the Apollo moonshots of the late 1960s and early 1970s, has completed only one mission.

Edison, New Jersey, has become the center of controversy after its township council introduced a rule banning “props,” including American flags and the U.S. Constitution, from public town meetings. The decision has sparked outrage among residents, leading to tense exchanges, police removals, and accusations of un-American policies. The controversy erupted after resident and attorney Joel Bassoff was escorted out of a council meeting by police for holding a small American flag in protest of the rule. Council President Nishith Patel defended the ban, claiming such items disrupt the meetings. Critics, however, argue the ordinance violates First Amendment rights and undermines free expression.