NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! The Williams’ sisters’ return to competitive tennis as a duo is over before it started.In their first Grand Slam doubles competition together in nearly four years, Serena, 44, and Venus were forced to withdraw from the Wimbledon doubles after the younger Serena’s knee injury.Serena was injured during her singles return earlier in the week — in a three-set loss. “I’m heartbroken to have to withdraw from doubles. Coming back to compete again has been a gift, and the opportunity to play alongside @venuswilliams once more meant the world to me. I did everything I could but unfortunately my knee just isn’t ready to compete,” Serena said in an Instagram post.The post included images of four syringes that Serena said “shows the fluid they drained from my knee after my singles match.” An accompanying video showed her walking with strapping up and down her right leg and what appeared to be one of her daughters holding a cane for her.However, with the U.S. Open approaching, Serena indicated she could play again somewhere else soon.”All I can say,” Serena said, “is stay tuned to a city near you.” RORY MCILROY TURNS HEADS AT WIMBLEDON…

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Pope Leo XIV urged Americans to embrace the U.S.’s history of welcoming immigrants in a virtual address to the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia on Friday while accepting the 2026 Liberty Medal in recognition of his commitment to religious freedom.”In these past 250 years, for so many peoples throughout the world, it was the firm resolve to achieve the noble vision of the nation’s founders that made America a byword for freedom, as the country opened its doors to successive waves of immigrants, enabling them and their children to play their part in shaping the future of the nation,” Pope Leo, the Catholic church’s first American Pope, recited.”I would just like to recall the words signed by the founding fathers of the nation 250 years ago in Philadelphia in the Declaration of Independence. It said that we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men have received fundamental rights from our creator, and they include life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” he continued.AMERICA’S NEXT 250 YEARS DEPEND ON PASSING FAITH AND FREEDOM TO OUR CHILDREN”As a son of this great country, founded by courageous men and women who dreamed of…

A lot of people suggest that the Stuart tanks were underpowered for World War II. While this may be true when compared to tanks like the Panzer IV, the platform was still able to bring significant firepower to the battlefield in the form of the M8 Howitzer Motor Carriage. Howitzer Motor Carriage M8 during training maneuvers in England during 1944. The American self-propelled artillery vehicles were also known as the M8 Scott. Image: NARA The M8 Howitzer Motor Carriage was a self-propelled howitzer vehicle used by the United States Army. Built on the M5 Stuart light tank chassis, the M8 mounted a 75mm howitzer in an open-topped turret configuration. Similar to the M7 Priest used to support armored units, the M8 Howitzer was intended to provide mobile indirect fire support in mechanized cavalry reconnaissance squadrons. Fast-moving recon units couldn’t wait for towed artillery to catch up and deploy. When these units called for artillery support, they needed it right now. American 75mm self-propelled howitzer M8 Scott on the test site the company General Motors. Image: NARA The Cadillac Division of General Motors built nearly 1,800 M8 Howitzers by the end of the war. Crews took these motor carriages into battle across Europe…

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor apparently do not believe in love at first sight.The two superstars are the faces of a New York Mets team that was supposed to be a threat in the majors but is instead one of the worst teams in the league.Lindor joined the Mets via trade in 2021 and signed a 10-year, $341 million extension, the first major move for new owner Steve Cohen signaling a true change of the guard; roughly four years later, though, Soto joined the fray on a record-breaking 15-year, $765 million pact. Numerous reports circulated that the two did not get along last year, their first as teammates, and it was an issue that lingered into this season. Perhaps Soto’s deal, which includes boosted security, suites, and the potential to make another $50 million, caused a power trip between the two stars.In any case, the story had begun to die down until this week, when Cohen all but confirmed the reports to be true but said they were getting along better.”Frankly, I think that’s a story that was last year’s story,” Cohen told the New York Post. “I am told and believe…

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! President Donald Trump rang in America’s 250th birthday celebrations with a 28-minute speech at Mount Rushmore and a fireworks display that might have rivaled his words.”The American dream still lives, and the American flag still flies more proudly than ever before over the people who will not quit,” Trump said at the end of his lengthy — albeit shorter than his usual hours-long — speech. “The nation that will not fail, the country that will not fall no matter how hard the enemy tries, we cannot be beaten.”As Trump spoke, across the world, Iranians buried Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at funeral ceremonies with calls for revenge on the U.S.In perhaps the most iconic excerpt from Trump’s speech, American exceptionalism was highlighted.TRUMP KICKS OFF FOURTH OF JULY WEEKEND WITH SYMBOLIC SALUTE TO AMERICA’S LEGACY”Americans honor excellence; we admire boldness; we respect ambition,” Trump said. “We are a nation of dreamers and believers, warriors and explorers, doers and fighters and in every human endeavor Americans see an unfinished competition.”What is strong can be made stronger. What is fast can be made faster. What is great can be made greater than ever before. And that’s what’s happening…

A team of astronomers has discovered that the spiral arms of the Milky Way galaxy may stretch further out into space than was previously known.The scientists made precise distance measurements of dust clouds in the arms using data from two telescopes orbiting high above Earth’s atmosphere — NASA’s Chandra, the most powerful X-ray telescope ever built, and the European Space Agency’s XMM-Newton.Researchers took advantage of rare, powerful gamma-ray bursts in distant galaxies. As X-rays from those bursts traveled through the Milky Way, some of the light bounced off dust clouds, creating rings that could be measured with unusual precision. NASA ANNOUNCES THREE NEW MOON MISSIONS AS IT RACES TO BUILD LUNAR BASE BY YEAR’S END”This is a very direct way — relying only on geometry — to precisely measure distances to the Milky Way’s spiral arms,” said Beatrice Vaia, the Italian PhD student who led the study. “Most other methods rely on assumptions about how the Milky Way rotates, which become increasingly uncertain in the outer regions of our galaxy.”The dust cloud in the most distant arm of the Milky Way was estimated to be about 3,500 light-years wide, according to the data the team collected.Astronomers have been aware of…

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Patriotic artist Scott LoBaido is putting the finishing touches on what he calls the largest oil-on-canvas portrait ever of Old Glory at the Great American State Fair in D.C., but the outspoken Trump supporter says the message behind the massive American flag is completely apolitical.LoBaido told Fox News Digital the American flag “does not belong to any particular party” as he painted the 9-by-17-foot flag at the Made in America Pavilion during the Great American State Fair in the nation’s capital, part of the broader celebration surrounding America’s 250th birthday. The Staten Island artist said he believes the piece may be the largest oil-on-canvas American flag ever created.”I am a political person, but that’s irrelevant from this,” LoBaido said. “This flag is for everybody.”HOA THREATENS AMERICAN FLAG-FLYING HOMEOWNERS AS THEY FIGHT FOR OLD GLORY BEFORE NATION’S 250TH BIRTHDAY The New York-based, pro-Trump artist told Fox News Digital that some on the left “run away from the flag because they think it’s a MAGA symbol,” but LoBaido argued that view misses the point of both the flag and his painting.”This fair right now that we are at is the perfect example, because there are…

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! The hardest day in a wounded police officer’s life isn’t always the day they’re injured in the line of duty.For many, retired Las Vegas police Lt. Randy Sutton said, it’s the day they realize they’ve been forgotten.Sutton knows that feeling firsthand. After surviving a career-ending stroke, the former officer founded The Wounded Blue, the nation’s only nonprofit dedicated exclusively to injured and disabled law enforcement officers.HEROIC ICE OFFICERS, STAFF MEMBER OPEN UP ON GROWING DANGERS: ‘AM I GOING TO DIE?’ Over the past eight years, the organization has helped more than 17,000 officers nationwide through peer support, advocacy and critical resources.As America celebrates its 250th birthday, Sutton hopes the nation takes time to recognize not only those who wear the badge, but also those whose service continues long after they’ve left it behind.🔍 Help us uncover what’s happening in your community.📩 stepheny.price@fox.com📸 @fndstephprice🎥 @StephenyPriceThe best investigations often start with a viewer tip.”If you had asked me what I’d be doing in my retirement years after 34 years of police service, this never would’ve been in the informational packet of my own brain,” Sutton told Fox News Digital. “But fate works in very,…

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Democratic lawmakers said they believed the U.S. is still an extraordinary country despite expressing disagreements with President Donald Trump when asked by Fox News Digital if they were proud to be American citizens.”The freedoms that we have and the fact that anyone should be able to get ahead for them and their family based on the laws we have every now and then — in general, it’s sound,” Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wisc., said.The answers, which came ahead of the country’s 250th Independence Day celebration, highlight the deep distrust Democrats have of the administration’s leadership even as they expressed confidence in principles that have made U.S. prosperity possible.Just one, Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, declined to expand on why he was proud to be an American.WORLD CUP SOCCER FANS ARE DISCOVERING AMERICA’S GREATNESS. IT’S TIME AMERICANS DID, TOO “I am very proud to tell you that impeachment is an option to remove a reckless, ruthless, lawless president,” Green answered when asked if he was proud to be an American.”I’m proud that it exists,” Green added.Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, echoed his thinking.”I believe Americans are ready to defend our democracy and oppose authoritarianism so that…

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! House Democrats mostly sidestepped questions on the Supreme Court ruling that now allows states to ban student-athletes from competing on sports teams or in leagues that correspond with their gender identity rather than their biological sex.” I think we spend far too much time obsessing over that,” Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., told Fox News Digital when asked for his opinion on the ruling. “And what people should be focused on right now is the dysfunction here in Washington.”” I think the focus should be on this economy and getting us out of this war of choice and bringing down gas prices so that folks do not have to make real decisions about if they’re going to put food on their table or gas in their tank, to take their kids to the hospital or to school,” Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, D-Calif., said.DEMOCRATS STAY QUIET ON NEXT STEPS AFTER SUPREME COURT TRANSGENDER SPORTS RULING She continued, “I think that the culture wars that we allow to divide us don’t do anything to feed our kids.”The Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision marked a major victory for supporters of laws restricting transgender athletes from competing in girls’…