Hart beats Baker to Paralympic dressage gold as USA wins three equestrian medals

PARIS (AP) — Rebecca Hart won the dressage gold medal aboard Floratina at the Paris Paralympics and the United States won two other equestrian medals on Tuesday.

Britain’s Natasha Baker, a six-time gold medalist, was the favorite but finished third in the Grade III category for riders with severe impairments in both legs but minimal or no trunk impairment.

“It’s been 25 years of trying to get to this point and being close many, many times,” said the 39-year-old Hart. “To actually get it, I feel like I’m going to wake up at any moment. It’s just surreal. It feels like a dream.”

Hart’s best previous result at the Paralympics was a team bronze medal in Tokyo.

Fiona Howard won gold for the U.S. in the Grade II category on Diamond Dunes and Roxanne Trunnell took silver on Fan Tastico H in Grade I — which has the most severely impaired riders.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better (horse) to do my first Paralympic Games,” the 25-year-old Howard said.

She praised the impact of team veterans Hart and Trunnell, who is also 39.

“It’s helped me so much,” Howard said. “All my teammates have been to at least one (Paralympic) Games and numerous world championships.”

Howard got distracted by her surroundings in the regal gardens at the Palace of Versailles, once the home of French royalty.

“I had to refocus myself," she said. "It’s such a beautiful venue.”

It was Trunnell's fourth Paralympic medal after two individual golds and a team bronze at the Tokyo Games in 2021. She contracted a virus in 2009 that caused swelling in her brain and left her needing a wheelchair.

The United States routed France 82-47 in men’s wheelchair basketball to advance to the semifinals.

The Americans, looking for their third straight gold medal, will face Canada on Thursday for a spot in the final.

Tuning out the spirited French crowd, the Americans never trailed and held France to just 36% shooting.

Jake Williams poured in 23 points and had 10 assists, and Brian Bell scored 20 and pulled down 14 rebounds. Christophe Carlier led France with 11 points.

Britain faces Germany in the other semifinal.

Alexandr Kostin won the T12 1,500 meters for athletes with minor visual impairment, in a Paralympic record time of 3 minutes, 44.43 seconds, four seconds faster than the previous mark.

“I haven’t realized that I have won gold yet," said Kostin, who, as a Russian, is competing as a neutral. "It feels like I’m sleeping through a magical dream.”

Yeltsin Jacques of Brazil also set a record in the T11 1,500 for athletes with severe visual impairments who use guides.

Jacques won in 3:55.82, breaking the world and Paralympic records he set in winning the Tokyo gold.

“After everything I’ve been through — injury, illness — to come here and get a medal, it’s very special," Jacques said.

Cuban long jumper Robiel Yankiel Sol Cervantes secured his second consecutive Paralympic gold at 7.41 meters, winning by nine centimeters.

China’s Hao Wang was second and Russia’s Nikita Kotukov third at 7.05 under a neutral banner.

“It means a lot to me to win back-to-back Paralympic titles," Cervantes said. "I only wish I could have improved my distance because I had trained for that.”

Cervantes dedicated his victory to his late grandmother.

“I have a debt to her because she left me a task that I couldn’t achieve today, to jump eight meters,” Cervantes said. “I was training a lot for that. It wasn’t today, but let’s move on.”

In the women’s 50 meters backstroke final, Chinese swimmers took the top three spots.

Lu Dong won the gold medal ahead of He Senggao and Liu Yu in the S5 class, for swimmers with severely impaired movement in the torso and legs or missing limbs.

The 32-year-old Lu, who lost both arms after being hit by a car at the age of six, is now an eight-time gold medalist and has achieved the feat of winning gold at each of the last four Paralympic Games.

“I’m really excited and happy to have the gold again today," Lu said.

”(Our secret) is to support each other," He commented when asked about China's sweep of medal in the category. "That’s how we got all the medals, we support each other.”

The men's 50 meters backstroke S5 final saw the same scenario as three Chinese swimmers also claimed all three medals.

Yuan Weiyi won the race at La Défense Arena, beating Guo Jincheng and Wang Lichao.

AP Sports Writer Jerome Pugmire in Versailles contributed to this report, as did Avery Hill, a Penn State journalism student.

AP Paralympics: https://apnews.com/hub/paralympic-games

Fiona Howard of the U.S. competes in the equestrian grade II individual event at the Palace of Versailles, taking home the gold medal in her first Paralympic Games at the 2024 Paralympics, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Kileigh Kane)

Rebecca Hart of the U.S. competes in the equestrian grade III individual event at the Palace of Versailles, taking home the gold medal at the 2024 Paralympics, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Kileigh Kane)

Rogier Dorsman, of the Netherlands, celebrates after winning at Men's 200m Individual Medley -SM11, during the 2024 Paralympics, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Roxanne Trunnell of the U.S. celebrates her silver medal in the equestrian grade I individual event at the Palace of Versailles, at the 2024 Paralympics, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Kileigh Kane)

Rebecca Hart of the U.S. competes in the equestrian grade III individual event at the Palace of Versailles, taking home the gold medal at the 2024 Paralympics, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Kileigh Kane)

Cuba's Omara Durand Elias competes in the women's 400 m. T12 during the 2024 Paralympics, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Switzerland's Catherine Debrunner celebrates after winning the women's 1500 m. T54 during the 2024 Paralympics, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Cuba's Robiel Yankiel Sol Cervantes competes at the men's long jump T47 during the 2024 Paralympics, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

Cuba's Robiel Yankiel Sol Cervantes celebrates after winning the men's long jump T47 during the 2024 Paralympics, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)

JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli military says there is a “high probability” that three hostages found dead months ago were killed in an Israeli airstrike.

The army on Sunday announced the conclusions of its investigation into the deaths of Cpl. Nik Beizer, Sgt. Ron Sherman and Elia Toledano.

It said investigations had determined that the three were likely killed in a November airstrike that also killed a senior Hamas militant, Ahmed Ghandour.

All three of the hostages were kidnapped in Hamas' Oct. 7 attack. Their bodies were recovered in December, but the cause of death was only recently determined.

In its report, the army said there was a “high probability” they were killed in the strike, based on where the bodies were recovered, pathological reports and other intelligence. But it said, "it is not possible to definitely determine the circumstances of their deaths."

The conclusions could add pressure on the government to strike a deal to bring home the remaining hostages held by Hamas. Critics say it is too difficult and dangerous to try to rescue them.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

JERUSALEM (AP) —

A missile fired by Yemen's Iran-backed rebels landed in an open area in central Israel early Sunday and triggered air raid sirens at its international airport, in the latest reverberation from the nearly yearlong war in Gaza. Israel hinted that it would respond militarily.

There were no reports of casualties or major damage, but Israeli media aired footage showing people racing to shelters in Ben Gurion International Airport. The airport authority said it resumed normal operations shortly thereafter.

A fire could be seen in a rural area of central Israel, and local media showed images of what appeared to be a fragment from an interceptor that landed on an escalator in a train station in the central town of Modiin.

The Israeli military said it made several attempts to intercept the missile using its multitiered air defenses but had not yet determined whether any had been successful. It said the missile appeared to have fragmented midair, and that the incident is still under review. The military said the sound of explosions in the area came from interceptors.

The Yemeni rebels, known as Houthis, have repeatedly fired drones and missiles toward Israel since the start of the war in Gaza between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, but nearly all of them have been intercepted over the Red Sea.

In July, an Iranian-made drone launched by the Houthis struck Tel Aviv, killing one person and wounding 10 others. Israel responded with a wave of airstrikes on Houthi-held areas of Yemen, including the port city of Hodeidah, a Houthi stronghold.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted at a similar response in remarks at a Cabinet meeting after Sunday's attack.

“The Houthis should have known by now that we exact a heavy price for any attempt to harm us," he said. “Anyone who needs a reminder is invited to visit the port of Hodeidah.”

Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a military spokesman for the rebels, said they fired a ballistic missile targeting “a military target” in the area of Tel Aviv.

The Houthis have also repeatedly attacked commercial shipping in the Red Sea, in what the rebels portray as a blockade on Israel in support of the Palestinians. Most of the targeted ships have no connection to Israel.

On Sunday, a European Union naval mission operating in the Red Sea said salvagers had begun towing a tanker that had been on fire for weeks after a Houthi attack. Operations Aspides said the Greek-flagged Sounion was being taken to a “safe location.”

The war in Gaza, which began with Hamas' Oct. 7 attack into southern Israel, has rippled across the region, with Iran and allied militant groups attacking Israeli and U.S. targets and drawing retaliatory strikes from Israel and its Western allies. On several occasions, the strikes and counterstrikes have threatened to trigger a wider conflict.

International carriers have canceled flights into and out of Israel on a number of occasions since the start of the war, adding to the war's economic toll on the country.

Iran supports militant groups across the region, including Hamas, the Houthis and Lebanon's Hezbollah, its most powerful ally, which has traded fire with Israel on a near-daily basis since the war in Gaza began. Iran and its allies say they are acting in solidarity with the Palestinians.

The military said around 40 projectiles were fired from Lebanon early Sunday, with most intercepted or falling in open areas.

In a separate incident, Israeli forces dropped leaflets over the Lebanese border town of al-Wazzani calling on residents to evacuate. The military later said there were no such evacuation orders, and that a local commander had acted without the approval of his superiors. It said the incident was under investigation.

It was not clear if anyone had evacuated the town, or if any message had been conveyed to residents that the leaflets were dropped in error.

The strikes along the Israel-Lebanon border have displaced tens of thousands of people on both sides. Israel has repeatedly threatened to launch a wider military operation against Hezbollah to ensure its citizens can return to their homes.

“The status quo will not continue,” Netanyahu said at the Cabinet meeting. “This requires a change in the balance of power on our northern border. We will do everything necessary to return our residents safely to their homes.”

Hezbollah has said it would halt its attacks if there is a cease-fire in Gaza. The United States and Arab mediators Egypt and Qatar have spent much of this year trying to broker a truce and the release of scores of hostages held by Hamas, but the talks have repeatedly bogged down.

In recent weeks, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted on lasting Israeli control over the Gaza side of the border with Egypt, which Israeli forces captured in May. He has said Hamas used a network of tunnels beneath the border to import arms, allegations denied by Egypt, which along with Hamas is opposed to any lasting Israeli presence there.

An Israeli military official said late Saturday that of the dozens of tunnels discovered along the border, only nine entered Egypt, and all were found to have been sealed off. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive intelligence, said it was not clear when the tunnels were sealed.

The discovery appeared to weaken Netanyahu’s argument that Israel needs to keep open-ended control of the corridor to prevent cross-border smuggling.

Egypt has said it sealed off the tunnels on its side of the border years ago, in part by creating its own military buffer zone along the frontier.

Melzer reported from Nahariya, Israel. Associated Press writers Samy Magdy in Cairo, Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Josef Federman in Jerusalem contributed to this report.

Find more of AP’s coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

A crater is seen after the military fired interceptors at what the Israeli army says is a missile launched from Yemen that landed in central Israel on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

A police officer inspects the area around a fire after the military said it fired interceptors at a missile launched from Yemen that landed in central Israel on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

A police officer inspects the area around a fire after the military said it fired interceptors at a missile launched from Yemen that landed in central Israel on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

A firefighter works in the area around a fire after the military said it fired interceptors at a missile launched from Yemen that landed in central Israel on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

A police officer inspects the area around a fire after the military said it fired interceptors at a missile launched from Yemen that landed in central Israel on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

Smoke rises from a fire in central Israel after the Israeli army said a missile fired from Yemen landed in an open area on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)