U.S. stocks surge after Trump pauses many of his tariffsNEW YORK -- U.S. stocks skyrocketed on Wednesday after the U.S. President Donald Trump announced a pause on certain "reciprocal" tariffs, triggering a powerful rebound in a market that had been under intense pressure over the past week.The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 2,962.86 points, or 7.87 percent, closing at 40,608.45. The S 500 surged 474.13 points, or 9.52 percent, to 5,456.90 - its largest single-day gain since 2008, while the Nasdaq Composite Index rallied 1,857.06 points, or 12.16 percent, to finish at 17,124.97. It was the Nasdaq's most significant one-day advance since January 2001 and its second-largest ever.Death toll from Dominican Republic nightclub collapse rises to 124PANAMA CITY -- The death toll from the roof collapse at a nightclub in Santo Domingo, capital of the Dominican Republic, has risen to 124, with at least 155 others injured, local authorities confirmed Wednesday.Dominican President Luis Abinader has declared three days of national mourning starting Tuesday.Yemen's Houthis say shot down 18 U.S. MQ-9 drones since Oct. 2023SANAA -- Yemen's Houthis have shot down another U.S. MQ-9 drone, the 18th since the start of the war in Gaza, said the military group on Wednesday."Our air defenses shot down a U.S. MQ-9 drone in the airspace of Al-Jawf province, using a locally manufactured surface-to-air missile," the group's spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in a televised statement aired by Houthi-run al-Masirah TV.5th batch of emergency humanitarian aid supplies by Chinese gov't arrives in MyanmarYANGON -- The fifth batch of emergency humanitarian aid supplies dispatched by the Chinese government arrived at Yangon International Airport in Myanmar on Wednesday.The aid supplies include 266 tents, 20,000 mosquito nets, 9,000 tarpaulins, and 2,000 boxes of instant noodles, with a total weight of over 91 tons.Germany's CDU/CSU, SPD reach deal to form new gov'tBERLIN -- Germany's conservative bloc CDU/CSU and the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD) on Wednesday agreed on a coalition deal to form a new federal government after weeks of negotiation.Following the coalition agreement, Friedrich Merz from CDU/CSU is expected to be elected chancellor next month.S. Korea's liberal opposition leader Lee resigns as party leader for expected presidential runSEOUL -- Lee Jae-myung, chief of South Korea's main liberal opposition Democratic Party, resigned as party leader on Wednesday amid wide expectations for his presidential run.Lee said at the party's supreme council meeting that he was grateful to party members, officials and lawmakers for achievements during his three-year party chairmanship.Israeli army seizes more territory in Gaza: defense ministerJERUSALEM -- Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Wednesday that the population of the Gaza Strip is being evacuated from the fighting zones, with many areas in the enclave being seized and annexed to Israel's security zones.Katz made these remarks during a tour with senior commanders of the 12-km "Morag Corridor," a route being paved by the Israel Defense Forces in southern Gaza to separate Rafah and Khan Younis, according to a statement from his office.60,000 Gazan children face life-threatening malnutrition: health authoritiesGAZA -- Health authorities in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday said that around 60,000 children are facing life-threatening malnutrition due to the continued closure of border crossings by Israel, which has prevented the entry of food, humanitarian assistance, and medical supplies.In a press statement, the Gaza-based health authorities said the persistent blockade has severely restricted access to essential nutrition and healthcare, further endangering the well-being of children in the enclave.Death toll from Egypt's building collapse rises to 9CAIRO -- The death toll from a building collapse in central Egypt's Asyut province rose to nine on Wednesday."Eight of the victims were females, including a six-month-old baby girl, in addition to an elderly man," a source at the province's emergency monitoring center told Xinhua.