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New York CNN  —  Naomi Lin’s favorite high-end accessory is wildly popular, an acquired taste, and shockingly resilient in the face of a tariff onslaught. No, it’s not Manolos or the latest offering from Prada — it’s a gremlin-like plush. It’s a Labubu, a palm-sized Nordic elf with bright eyes, sharp teeth and puckish grin. Lin, a medical student in Nebraska, owns dozens — and the one attached to her Chanel bag is dressed to the nines in a tweed outfit, matching headband and a mini “Chanel” purse. And Lin isn’t the only one captivated by Labubus’ ugly charm. Labubus…

At least two people were killed and about 20 injured when a Mexican Navy training ship carrying 277 passengers struck the underside of the Brooklyn Bridge in New York Saturday night, officials said. Dramatic video shows the Cuauhtémoc’s masts hitting the underside of the bridge and breaking as the vessel passes underneath, with pieces falling down toward the deck. Here’s what we know: What happened: The incident occurred around 8:20 p.m. local time as the captain was departing from New York’s Pier 17. The ship’s masts struck the bridge, breaking on impact and sending debris falling onto the vessel’s deck.…

Libraries across the United States are cutting back on e-books, audiobooks and loan programs after the Trump administration suspended millions of dollars in federal grants as it tries to dissolve the Institute of Museum and Library Services.Federal judges have issued temporary orders to block the Trump administration from taking any further steps toward gutting the agency. But the unexpected slashing of grants has delivered a significant blow to many libraries, which are reshuffling budgets and looking at different ways to raise money. Maine has laid off a fifth of its staff and temporarily closed its state library after not receiving…

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romanians are casting ballots Sunday in a tense presidential runoff between a hard-right nationalist and a pro-Western centrist in a high-stakes election rerun that could determine the geopolitical direction of the European Union and NATO member country.Sunday’s race pits front-runner George Simion, the 38-year-old leader of the hard-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians, or AUR, against incumbent Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan. It comes months after the cancelation of the previous election plunged Romania into its worst political crisis in decades.Polls opened at 7 a.m. (0400 GMT) local time and will close at 9 p.m. (1800…

Rome CNN  —  Leo XIV, the first ever American pope, will be formally inaugurated as the 267th pontiff Sunday during a special Mass in St. Peter’s Square attended by world leaders, royalty, and thousands of believers. The May 18 service will be rich in symbolism and include the formal bestowing on Leo of the symbols of office including the pallium – a lamb’s wool vestment symbolizing his pastoral care for the church and role as shepherd to his flock – and the fisherman’s ring, which symbolizes the Pope’s authority as the successor of St. Peter, a fisherman by trade and…

LIMA CNN  —  As a missionary and bishop in Peru, the future Pope Leo came face-to-face with one of the most serious and far-reaching scandals in the church in Latin America. For years, there were allegations of abuse within the hugely influential Catholic society Sodalitium Christianae Vitae (SCV), which had deep ties to Peru’s powerful and wealthy. The scandal came to a head in 2015, the year after Leo, then known as Robert Prevost, was appointed bishop in the northern city of Chiclayo. A book written by one of the victims, Pedro Salinas, with journalist Paola Ugaz, “Half Monks, Half…

LONDON, Ky. (AP) — Storms that swept across part of the Midwest and South killed least 27 people including 18 in Kentucky, where another 10 were hospitalized in critical condition, authorities said. A devastating tornado in Kentucky damaged homes, tossed vehicles and left many people homeless. Seventeen of the deaths were in Laurel County, located in the state’s southeast, and one was in Pulaski County: Fire Department Maj. Roger Leslie Leatherman, a 39-year veteran who was fatally injured while responding to the deadly weather.Parts of two dozen state roads were closed, and some could take days to reopen, according to…

NEW DELHI (AP) — The Indian space agency’s mission to launch into orbit a new Earth observation satellite failed after the launch vehicle encountered a technical issue during the third stage of flight, officials said Sunday.The EOS-09 Earth observation satellite took off on board the PSLV-C61 launch vehicle from the Sriharikota space center in southern India on Sunday morning.“During the third stage … there was a fall in the chamber pressure of the motor case, and the mission could not be accomplished,” said V. Narayanan, chief of the Indian Space Research Organisation.Active in space research since the 1960s, India has…

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Leo XIV, history’s first American pope, vowed Sunday to work for unity so that the Catholic Church becomes a sign of peace in the world, offering a message of communion during an inaugural Mass in St. Peter’s Square before tens of thousands of people, presidents, patriarchs and princes.Leo officially opened his pontificate by taking his first popemobile tour through the piazza, a rite of passage that has become synonymous with the papacy’s global reach and mediatic draw. The 69-year-old Augustinian missionary smiled and waved from the back of the truck, but didn’t appear to stop…

Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. CNN  —  Archaeologists have uncovered evidence that four people, including a child, in the ancient Roman town of Pompeii used furniture to block a bedroom door and shield themselves from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79. Ultimately, the home became their final resting place, according to new research published in April in the E-Journal of the Pompeii Excavations. During the catastrophic eruption, the volcano spewed hot, lethal gases and ash into the air, slowly killing most of the city’s…