ZAPOPAN, Mexico (AP) — The Mexican state of Jalisco on Thursday issued a health alert and mandated the use of face masks in schools as a measles outbreak hit the state capital, a key host city for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup.

The measures come on the heels of an epidemiological alert issued by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) earlier this week over the spread of the preventable disease across the Americas, particularly in Mexico, which leads the region with 1,981 cases confirmed by authorities this year and more than 5,200 suspected cases.

Jalisco is the epicenter of the outbreak, with 1,163 cases confirmed this year and 2,092 suspected cases, according to Mexico’s government.

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The measles outbreak in Mexico began last year in the northern state of Chihuahua, after a Mennonite child fell ill while visiting relatives in a region in Texas that was suffering an outbreak. Cases surged in Mennonite communities — which have high rates of vaccine hesitancy — and have rippled out across Mexico in the country’s biggest outbreak in decades. Scientists say rising outbreaks across the hemisphere are linked to declining vaccination rates.

Jalisco health authorities announced Thursday that masks will be required in Guadalajara schools across seven specific neighborhoods for the next 30 days.

Jalisco was the first Mexican state to take such measures as medical groups urged the local government to take urgent action, marking the country’s first such public health mandate since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Classes were also recently suspended in 15 schools in Jalisco and the central state of Aguascalientes due to outbreaks of the highly contagious airborne virus.

The outbreak comes as Mexico prepares to host visitors from across the world for the World Cup, which will be held simultaneously in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Guadalajara is one of the main venues in Mexico for the soccer tournament.

Canada lost its measles-free status in November and the U.S. and Mexico face the risk of meeting the same fate. Both governments have requested a two-month extension to try to control the outbreak, although in January the Trump administration withdrew from the World Health Organization, under whose umbrella PAHO operates.

In the first three weeks of this year, 1,031 additional measles cases were confirmed in seven countries in the Americas with no deaths reported — a figure 43 times higher than that recorded in the same period last year — PAHO said Wednesday in a statement.

The Mexican government has spent weeks encouraging the population to get vaccinated against the measles, which is preventable with two doses of the vaccine, and announced the launch of vaccination sites in places such as airports and bus stations.

The St. Croix County, Wis., Ethics Inquiry Board voted 2-1 on Wednesday night to dismiss a complaint against a person employed by the county, citing a lack of convincing evidence.

The board, which consists of three citizen members, determined that the complainant “failed to prove by clear, satisfactory, and convincing evidence that an ethics violation occurred,” a spokesman for the county said.

The meeting was a continuation of the Ethics Inquiry Board’s review process related to a complaint filed under the county’s code of ethics, the spokesman said.

The board reviewed three complaints in closed session at its Dec. 11 meeting. Two of those complaints were dismissed, one with prejudice and one without prejudice, the spokesman said.

“For the third complaint, the board dismissed one of the two alleged violations with prejudice and found probable cause on the second allegation,” according to the spokesman. “As a result, the board directed that a fact-finding hearing be scheduled to further address that allegation.”

As required by state law and county policy, details of the complaint, the individual involved, and the substance of the allegation are not made public until the board completes its work. The ethics board is required to draft its findings within 10 business days of the hearing, at which time the findings will be made public, he said.

The board is comprised of three appointed citizen members: Susan Gherty, James Parent and Gerry Ries.

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By STEVE KARNOWSKI

A Minneapolis man was arrested Thursday on charges of cyberstalking and threatening to kill or assault Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers involved in the crackdown in Minnesota.

Federal prosecutors said in a statement that Kyle Wagner, 37, of Minneapolis, was charged by complaint, and that a decision to seek an indictment, which is necessary to take the case to trial, would be made soon.

Court records in Detroit, Michigan, where the case was filed, do not list an attorney who can speak on Wagner’s behalf. The complaint was filed on Tuesday and unsealed Thursday.

Attorney General Pamela Bondi alleged in a statement that Wagner doxed and threatened law enforcement officers, claimed an affiliation with antifa and “encouraged bloodshed in the streets.”

President Donald Trump announced in September that he would designate antifa a “major terrorist organization.” Antifa, short for “anti-fascists,” is an umbrella term for far-left-leaning militant groups and is not a singular entity. It consists of groups that resist fascists and neo-Nazis, especially at demonstrations.

When Trump administration border czar Tom Homan announced Wednesday that about 700 federal officers deployed to Minnesota would be withdrawn immediately, he said a larger pullout would occur only after there’s more cooperation and protesters stop interfering with federal personnel.

According to prosecutors, Wagner repeatedly posted on Facebook and Instagram encouraging his followers to “forcibly confront, assault, impede, oppose, and resist federal officers” whom he referred to as the “gestapo” and “murderers.”

The complaint alleges Wagner posted a video last month that directly threatened ICE officers with an obscenity-laden rant. “I’ve already bled for this city, I’ve already fought for this city, this is nothing new, we’re ready this time,” he said, concluding that he was “coming for” ICE.

The complaint further alleges that Wagner advocated for physical confrontation in another post, stating: “Anywhere we have an opportunity to get our hands on them, we need to put our hands on them.”

It also details how Wagner used his Instagram account to dox a person identified only as a “pro-ICE individual” by publishing a phone number, birth month and year, and address in the Detroit suburb of Oak Park, Michigan. The complaint says Wagner later admitted that he doxed the victim’s parents’ house.

Federal prosecutors didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on why the case was filed in Michigan instead of Minnesota. The alleged doxing was the only Michigan connection listed in the complaint.

The U.S. Attorney’s office in Minnesota has been hit by the resignations of several prosecutors in recent weeks amid frustrations with the surge and its handling of the shooting deaths of two people by government officers. One lawyer, who told a judge that her job “sucks,” was removed from her post.

Trump’s chief federal prosecutor for Minnesota, Dan Rosen, told a federal appeals court in a recent filing that his office is facing a “flood of new litigation” and is struggling to keep up just with immigration cases, while his division that handles civil cases is down 50%.

Rosen wrote that his office has canceled other civil enforcement work “and is operating in a reactive mode.” He also said his attorneys are “appearing daily for hearings on contempt motions. The Court is setting deadlines within hours, including weekends and holidays. Paralegals are continuously working overtime. Lawyers are continuously working overtime.”

___

Associated Press reporter Eric Tucker in Washington contributed.

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When talks of a new multi-million dollar Minnesota Hockey Hall of Fame started circulating, it seemed like a miracle might be needed to get it off the ground.

Well, this group believes in miracles.

Plans for the new Hall of Fame passed through the Inver Grove Heights planning commission Wednesday night, clearing the way for the concept to hit the Inver Grove Heights City Council later this month.

Minnesota Hockey Hall of Fame organizers announced in December they had selected a site in Inver Grove Heights for the new $70 million facility. The proposed Hall of Fame calls for more than 120,000 square feet of hockey-related amusements, including 30,000 square feet of museum exhibits, a 20,000 square-foot performance hall, a bar and restaurant and an indoor ice sheet. The project developer is Consumer Science North.

The Inver Grove Heights city council also previously entered a purchase agreement to spend $8.75 million on a 46-acre plot south of Interstate 494 near Argenta Trail and 65th Street West.

“The majority of council has been looking for a transformational development in a project such as this,” Inver Grove Heights Mayor Brenda Dietrich told the Pioneer Press before Wednesday’s meeting. “We are just extremely excited. It’s going to be a place for residents to connect — for sports, community celebrations, family activities, events. We couldn’t be happier.”

Public comment

A rendering of the lobby of the future Minnesota Hockey Hall of Fame. (Courtesy of the Minnesota Hockey Hall of Fame)

For the concept to move forward, the planning commission hosted a public comment hearing on Wednesday and then considered a comprehensive plan zoning amendment, changing parts of the parcels from office use to mixed use.

The planning commission then recommended approval to the Inver Grove Heights city council. The council is now set to hear the project at its Feb. 23 meeting.

Two residents offered comment to the planning commission, specifically questioning if light pollution and noise pollution standards would change under the new mixed use zoning standards. They also expressed concern about future traffic impacts to the area.

Inver Grove Heights Community Development Director Jason Ziemer said to the Pioneer Press that the same light and noise pollution standards exist for both zoning types. As for traffic, he said a new interchange on I-494 would serve the site; an interchange footprint study already has been completed.

City expenditures

Early project plans commit the city of Inver Grove Heights to future infrastructure support, estimated at $22 million in the project narrative.

Ziemer said that estimate relates to site improvements like road construction and extending utility connections so that the plat is a “development ready site.”

“That number was based on an early conceptual understanding of the project,” Ziemer said.

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City staff are now working on identifying funding options for the Hall of Fame site, Dietrich said, which could include grants, county involvement and city tax dollars, as well as a future appropriation or bonding request to the Minnesota Legislature.

‘Everything sort of moves in steps, and things will become more defined and more detailed as the months move forward,” Dietrich said.

The city’s purchase agreement allows until Oct. 31 to officially close on the site.

In the meantime, if the project continues to move along as scheduled, a groundbreaking is estimated for this year, with construction lasting through 2027, and a preliminary grand opening set for June 2028.

Construction firms Mortenson and Greiner Construction have been announced as partners in project construction, along with ESG Architecture and Design.