Fourteen newborn babies died Wednesday in Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital, after a fire broke out in a nursery of the city’s largest hospital, according to officials, making it the deadliest disaster in years at a Pakistani healthcare facility.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif fired Pakistan’s health secretary, Aslam Ghauri, within hours of the fire, as the leading opposition party criticized the government for failing to provide basic safety measures in public hospitals.

The fire spread shortly before 7 a.m. after an air conditioning unit exploded in the maternity ward of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences, the local government said in a statement. Rescue teams sent six fire engines and four ambulances, but the fire spread so rapidly that only one baby in the nursery could be saved, according to Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, a government minister elected from Islamabad.

Among the victims were the twin daughters of Bahadur Khan, a vegetable seller who had left them with their mother at the hospital Tuesday night to get some rest at home. Khan’s wife was recovering in the intensive care unit Wednesday, he said, and was not aware of their daughters’ death. They were 3 days old.

Maryland

Court denies House redistricting plan

A Maryland court has ruled against a proposed constitutional amendment that could have paved the way for Democrats to redraw the state’s congressional districts ahead of the 2028 elections.

The ruling Wednesday by a judge in the state’s capital city marks another setback in Democrats’ national attempts to counter a Republican redistricting movement pushed by President Donald Trump ahead of this year’s elections. The judge ruled that the amendment cannot appear on the November ballot, but he paused the effect of that ruling to allow for an appeal to the state Supreme Court.

Democrats already control seven of Maryland’s eight congressional seats. Democratic Gov. Wes Moore called lawmakers into a special session in August with a goal of making it easier to claim that final seat.

An amendment referred to the ballot by lawmakers seeks to sidestep a court ruling that struck down a previous Democratic redistricting plan in 2022. It would declare that a constitutional requirement for districts to be compact and take into account “natural boundaries” applies only to state legislative districts, not congressional ones.

That would allow Democratic state lawmakers to draw congressional districts that cross the Chesapeake Bay, reshaping a district east of the bay that is held by Republican Rep. Andy Harris, chair of the conservative House Freedom Caucus.

Puerto Rico

U.S. declares drought disaster

The U.S. government announced a drought disaster on Wednesday for more than two dozen cities and towns in Puerto Rico as water woes deepen across the U.S. Caribbean territory, with no relief in sight.

More than 33% of Puerto Rico is under extreme drought, and another 30% under a severe drought. July was the driest month on record for San Juan in more than 120 years and the second hottest for the island’s capital.

Gov. Jenniffer González said she had formally requested the declaration from the U.S. Department of Agriculture more than two weeks ago.

“From the very beginning, we made clear the needs of our farmers,” she said.

Russia

Trump calls CIA chief visit ‘semi-routine’

The Kremlin said Wednesday that CIA Director John Ratcliffe held talks in Moscow with his intelligence counterparts, a rare and secretive visit at a time when relations with Washington remain strained over Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Ratcliffe did not meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was informed of the contacts that were “on the intelligence agencies’ level.”

“Of course, President Putin is immediately informed of everything,” Peskov added, refusing to say what was discussed.

Russian state news agencies reported that a U.S. military plane landed in Moscow’s Vnukovo airport on Tuesday and departed later that day.

U.S. President Donald Trump played down the significance of Ratcliffe’s trip, saying it was “sort of semi-routine.”

“I hate to disappoint people,” he said on conservative broadcaster Glenn Beck’s radio show Wednesday.

A senior Ukrainian official told The Associated Press that Washington informed Kyiv a delegation would be traveling to the Russian capital and asked it to suspend strikes until it left. The official said the request did not apply to all Russian territory, but specifically to Moscow, St. Petersburg and some northern regions. Strikes on other parts of Russia continued, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk publicly.

Pennsylvania

Police probe wrong-house fatal shooting

A 22-year-old college student killed by Pennsylvania police responding to a possible burglary had just realized he was at the wrong home and was waiting for friends to come get him when he was shot, his father said Wednesday.

Police in Upper Pottsgrove Township, northwest of Philadelphia, responded around 12:30 a.m. Sunday to a 911 call about a possible break-in attempt, according to the Montgomery County district attorney’s office. The office said in a statement that police found Glenwood Pysher IV at the rear of the home and ultimately shot and killed him.

A Montgomery County Department of Public Safety dispatch record shows police were dispatched at 12:30 a.m. and arrived at 12:34 a.m. Upper Pottsgrove Township Police Chief Al Werner declined to release any information, including the names of any officers involved in the shooting, until the investigation is complete. The Montgomery County Detective Bureau is investigating the shooting, the district attorney’s office said.

Washington

Judge says Bannon conviction stands

A federal judge on Wednesday rejected the Justice Department’s request to erase Trump ally Steve Bannon’s criminal conviction for refusing to testify before the congressional committee that investigated a mob’s Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. But it may not be a final decision on the matter.

U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols in Washington ruled that prosecutors failed to properly explain their motivations for seeking the dismissal of Bannon’s indictment. However, the judge said the government is free to renew its request in a manner that follows the law.

In a February court filing, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said her Washington-based office determined “in its prosecutorial discretion” that dismissing Bannon’s criminal case is “in the interests of justice.” Pirro, a Trump appointee, didn’t elaborate.

Trump, a Republican, appointed Nichols to the bench during his first term in the White House.

Britain

Charles, Camilla plan Caribbean tour

King Charles III and Queen Camilla will visit three countries in and around the Caribbean when he travels to the region for the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting, which begins Nov. 1 in St. John’s, the capital of Antigua and Barbuda.

Charles’ autumn tour will begin Oct. 27 in the Bahamas, one of the 14 countries other than the United Kingdom where he is head of state.

He will then travel to Guyana for a state visit marking 60 years of bilateral relations between Britain and the nation on South America’s northern coast. Guyana, a former British colony, became a self-governing dominion in 1966 and a fully independent republic in 1970.

Charles is the symbolic head of the Commonwealth, an association of 56 independent countries, many of which have historic ties to Britain.

BRITAIN

Harry, Meghan arrive from California

Prince Harry and his wife Meghan arrived in the United Kingdom on Wednesday, as they make a fresh start in Britain after six years in the United States, U.K. media reported.

The news comes less than a week after the couple surprised fans and critics alike with plans to return to Britain. Their arrival was reported by news organizations including the BBC and the Daily Telegraph, with the newspaper reporting that their plane landed at Birmingham International Airport around noon.

The couple’s children, Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, have already enrolled at British schools and will start classes in September. The family plans to live at a private, nonroyal residence outside of London, but haven’t said exactly where that will be.

Prince Harry’s representative declined to comment.

— From news services