Dire warnings

in Venezuela

LA GUAIRA, Venezuela (AP) — Aid groups are warning that Venezuela’s healthcare system is at its breaking point nearly a week after two powerful earthquakes hit the South American country.

Damaged hospitals are overwhelmed, and conditions in the disaster zone are worsening. The government death toll has surpassed 1,900. A humanitarian crisis is also unfolding, with thousands of displaced people living in unsanitary conditions. On Tuesday, the U.N. expressed concern about the spread of infectious diseases. The healthcare system has been strained by years of underinvestment. Many hospitals are damaged, and specialist doctors are missing, adding to the chaos.

Roof collapse

kills children

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A roof collapse at a tutoring center under construction in Lahore, Pakistan, has killed at least 14 schoolchildren. Police and rescue officials report that the tragedy happened Tuesday. Eight other children are injured and receiving treatment at a hospital.

A senior police official says the owner of the tutoring center and another person have been arrested. Rescuers continue to clear the rubble, fearing more children could be trapped.

The center was in an aging building, and the roof of its second floor was under construction and collapsed due to poor construction. Building collapses are common in Pakistan due to poorly enforced construction standards.

Stocks end

rocky June

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rose and trimmed their losses in what had been a rocky June. The S&P 500 gained 0.8% Tuesday, though it still fell to its first losing month following two fabulous ones.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.3% to another record, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.5%.

Stocks in the artificial-intelligence industry were strong following sharp swings earlier in the month on worries they’d grown too expensive. Treasury yields rose in the bond market, and oil prices eased.

Stock indexes rose in much of Europe and Asia, while the Japanese yen fell near a 40-year low against the U.S. dollar.