POLLARD-SPY RELEASE

WASHINGTON — Jonathan Pollard, a former U.S. Naval intelligence analyst convicted of spying for Israel and passing along a trove of classified documents, has been granted parole and will be released from prison in November after nearly 30 years, his lawyers say. 

IRAN DEAL-CONGRESS

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State John Kerry warns skeptical lawmakers not to nix the contentious nuclear deal with Iran, insisting that it includes strict inspections and other safeguards to deter cheating by Tehran. By Deb Riechmann. 

LION KILLED

BLOOMINGTON, Minnesota — An avid American hunter accused of illegally killing a protected lion in Zimbabwe says that he thought everything about his trip was legal and wasn't aware of the animal's status "until the end of the hunt." 

ESCAPED PRISONERS

PLATTSBURGH, New York — A prison worker who was "in over her head" with two inmates convicted of murder tearfully pleads guilty to charges of aiding them by smuggling hacksaw blades and other tools to the pair, who later broke out in a brazen, elaborate escape that captured the world's attention for three weeks.

UNITED STATES-NORTH KOREA

WASHINGTON — Construction to upgrade North Korea's main rocket launch site now appears complete amid expectations in rival South Korea that a launch could take place in October, a U.S. research institute says. By Matthew Pennington.

SPACE TOURISM-ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION

WASHINGTON — The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board concludes that the developer of a commercial spacecraft that broke apart over the Mojave Desert last year failed to protect against the possibility of human error, specifically the co-pilot's premature unlocking of a braking system that triggered the in-flight breakup of the vehicle. 

COLORADO SHOOTING

CENTENNIAL, Colorado — The father of Colorado theater gunman James Holmes said he never suspected his son was mentally ill before the 2012 attack, but he and his wife became increasingly concerned about him when he stopped returning their phone calls. Robert Holmes said the call they did receive was from their son's psychiatrist, about a month before the shooting. She told them James Holmes was dropping out of his prestigious neuroscience graduate school program. Robert Holmes was testifying in an effort to persuade jurors to spare his son from the death penalty.