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TUNIS, Tunisia (AP) — Gunmen opened fire Wednesday at a leading museum in Tunisia’s capital, leaving at least eight dead and six wounded, including foreign tourists, authorities said. It was the first attack on a tourist site in years in Tunisia, a shaky young democracy that has struggled to keep Islamic extremist violence at bay.

It wasn’t immediately clear who the attackers were, or if they took hostages.

Security forces filled the area around the National Bardo Museum after the attack. Tunisia’s parliament building, near the museum, was being evacuated, according to a tweet by parliament member Sayida Ounissi.

Private radio station Radio Mosaique said that three men dressed in military-style clothing may have taken hostages inside the museum.

Interior Ministry spokesman Mohamed Ali Aroui said on Wataniya television that eight were dead — seven foreign tourists and one Tunisian. He didn’t provide nationalities for the foreign victims. Poland’s Foreign Ministry announced that three Poles were among the wounded.

Tunisia recently completed a rocky road to democracy after overthrowing its authoritarian president in 2011. It has been more stable than other countries in the region, but it has struggled with violence by Islamic extremists in recent years, including some linked to the Islamic State group. It also has extremists linked to al-Qaida’s North Africa arm who occasionally target Tunisian security forces.

A disproportionately large number of Tunisian recruits — some 3,000, according to government estimates — have joined Islamic State fighters in Syria and Iraq.

The violence that Tunisia has seen in recent years has been largely focused on security forces, not foreigners or tourist sites.

The attack is a blow to Tunisia’s efforts to revive its tourism industry.

The National Bardo Museum, built within a 15th-century palace, is the largest museum in Tunisia with collections covering two floors, and it houses one of the world’s largest collections of Roman mosaics.

The museum is near the North African country’s parliament some 4 kilometers (2 ½ miles) from the city center. A new wing with contemporary architecture was built as part of a 2009 renovation, doubling the surface area. Some 8,000 works are displayed in the museum, according to the website.

The attack comes the day after Tunisian security officials confirmed the death in neighboring Libya of a leading suspect in Tunisian terror attacks and the killings of two opposition figures in Tunisia.

Ahmed Rouissi gained the nickname of the “black box of terrorism.” The information on his death was made public by security officials giving testimony in parliament and cited by the official TAP news agency.

Libya, which has devolved into chaos, is a source of major concern for Tunisia.

Also a major worry is the Mount Chaambi area on the border with Algeria where al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb has reportedly been helping a Tunisian group which has killed numerous soldiers.

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Elaine Ganley and Jamey Keaten in Paris and Monika Scislowska in Warsaw, Poland, contributed to this report.

BOSTON (AP) – Lawyers for Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev (joh-HAHR’ tsahr-NEYE’-ehv) have shown the jury that his older brother had receipts from an ammunition store and for two backpacks and a soldering gun purchased in the days and weeks before the attacks.

Tsarnaev faces the possibility of the death penalty in the deadly 2013 attack. His lawyers admitted he participated in the attack but portrayed his late brother, Tamerlan, as the mastermind.

While cross-examining a fingerprint expert Wednesday, Tsarnaev’s lawyers asked him to identify receipts found inside Tamerlan’s wallet. Also in the wallet was a MoneyGram receipt reflecting a $900 transfer to Russia by Tamerlan.

Prosecutors say the brothers planted pressure-cooker bombs inside two backpacks near the marathon finish line. Three people were killed and more than 260 injured.

The Federal Reserve is signaling that it needs to see further improvement in the job market and higher inflation before it raises interest rates from record lows.

At the same time, the Fed has at least opened the door to a rate increase later this year by no longer saying it will be “patient” in starting to raise its benchmark rate.

The statement appeared to catch investors by surprise in suggesting that a rate increase may be further off than many had assumed. Stock prices rose and bond yields fell in the minutes after the news.

The Fed has kept its key short-term rate near zero since late 2008 to bolster the economy after a devastating financial crisis and recession. A rate hike would push up consumer and business rates.

Since December, the Fed had said it could be “patient” in beginning to raise its benchmark rate from a record low near zero. Most analysts said that dropping “patient” from its statement would signal that the Fed was moving toward a rate increase, perhaps as soon as June, given the strengthening job market. A rate hike would ripple through the economy and could slow borrowing and possibly squeeze stocks and bonds.

Other economists had said that even if the Fed dropped “patient,” any rate increase would reflect the latest data and that the Fed would remain flexible. Key sectors of the economy have been less than robust of late, and inflation remains far below the Fed’s target rate. Some analysts foresee no rate hike before September. A few predict none before year’s end at the earliest.

In testimony to Congress last month, Yellen cautioned that even when “patient” is dropped, it won’t necessarily signal an imminent rate hike – only that the Fed will think the economy has improved enough for it to consider a rate increase on a “meeting-by-meeting basis.”

NEW YORK (AP) – Starbuck’s campaign aimed at encouraging people to talk about race relations in the U.S. is the latest example of a big company trying to tie its brands to big social issues.

But the move, which has sparked backlash on social media, also illustrates how those efforts can fall flat if customers don’t see a clear correlation between the cause and the company’s brand.

U.S. workers for the coffee chain that is best known for its Frappuccinos have been told to write “Race Together” on cups and the company plans to start publishing “conversation guides” on the topic, with questions like, “How have your racial views evolved from those of your parents?”

Starbucks, which announced the campaign earlier this week, says it will elaborate on the plans for its campaign at its annual shareholder meeting Wednesday in Seattle.

Already, people have been criticizing the move, saying it’s opportunistic and inappropriate for a coffee chain to try to inject itself into such an important issue. But it comes as executives say customers are drawn to companies that project some sort of feel-good image or embrace social causes.

At the annual meeting for Yum Brands Inc., the company that owns KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut,  CEO Greg Creed said in December that fast-food chains must evolve from being perceived as “impersonal and industrial” to being able to “demonstrate that we do care.”

Laura Ries, a branding consultant based in Atlanta, said that addressing big important, issues of the day has also become a way for companies to make themselves a part of the conversation. Otherwise, nobody is sitting around on Twitter discussing brands, she said.

Dove soap has generated widespread praise for its campaign celebrating “Real Beauty” by featuring women who don’t look like the typical models. Always, which makes products for women, also got praise for an ad that ran during the Super Bowl seeking to empower young girls. But those were messages that had ties to the products; people don’t associate their morning coffee with race.

“There’s nothing wrong with talking about race relations,” Ries said. “But is it something people naturally associate with Starbucks? It’s not.”

During the annual meeting, Starbucks says one of its board members, Mellody Hobson, will deliver a speech called “Color Blind or Color Brave.”

Patrick Delatore, 18, a customer at a Starbucks in New York City, said a national chain like Starbucks might be able to help change the minds of young people who will shape the country’s direction in the future.

Inserting itself into national issues is not new territory for Starbucks Corp. In late 2012, the chain asked workers to write “Come together” on cups to send a message to lawmakers about stalled budget negotiations.

And in 2013, the chain placed newspaper ads saying that firearms were not welcome in its cafes after they became the site of gun rallies. But the company stopped short of an outright ban.

CEO Howard Schultz said at the time that Starbucks was neither for nor against guns, underscoring that even a company that wants a voice in national conversations has to be careful about alienating customers.

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AP Business Writer Marley Jay contributed from New York.

NEW YORK (AP) – Significant changes to the use of video replay, including reviewing all fouls called by game officials, will be proposed by the NFL’s competition committee at next week’s owners meetings.

The committee is presenting a proposal by the Detroit Lions that would permit the instant replay system to correct an officiating error. That would include such judgment calls as pass interference.

Also to be discussed in Phoenix will be a proposal by the New England Patriots to place fixed cameras on all boundary lines. That would guarantee coverage of those lines regardless of where network cameras are positioned.

Other proposals include moving the extra point attempt to the 15-yard line and guaranteeing both teams a possession in overtime even if one scores a touchdown on its first drive. There is also a proposal to give teams that successfully convert a 2-point conversion the chance to immediately add another point from midfield.

SHEBOYGAN – One of the two suspects police believe to be connected to an armed robbery of a motel in Sheboygan, was arrested in Florida.

Douglas Berry, 22, was arrested on March 16 in Charlotte County on a warrant that had been issued in connection with the investigation in Wisconsin.

Berry is charged with one count of armed robbery in Sheboygan County. He will be transported back to Wisconsin following extradition procedures.

On March 8, Sheboygan police responded to an armed robbery call at the Fountain Park Motel. The victim reported two people walked in to the lobby and demanded money. One robber showed a handgun while the other robber took cash from a desk drawer. They then walked out of the motel.

Police continue to look for the second suspect who is also believed to be in Florida.

DE PERE (AP) – Nearly 2,200 people have applied to be the first 25 students at the Medical College of Wisconsin’s new Green Bay-area campus.

The new campus is at St. Norbert College in De Pere. Construction has finished and students are scheduled to arrive July 1.

Press-Gazette Media reports admission offers have been sent to prospective students. Matthew Hunsaker, dean of the Green Bay-area campus, says he expects admitted applications to make their decisions by the end of April.

Students at the new Medical College campus will take classes through video conferences as well as with in-person instructors from St. Norbert, University of Wisconsin-Green Bay and others.

The Medical College currently has a campus in Milwaukee. It plans to open one in central Wisconsin next year.

MILWAUKEE (AP) – A police officer who was fired after he shot and killed a man in a downtown Milwaukee park last year will try to try to get his job back this week.

Christopher Manney was fired by Milwaukee’s police chief for failing to following department rules in the encounter with Dontre Hamilton in Red Arrow Park. The Milwaukee County district attorney determined Manney’s use of deadly force was justified because Hamilton had grabbed the officer’s baton and was hitting him.

Manney’s discipline appeal will be heard by the city’s Fire and Police Commission beginning Thursday. Commissioners will decide whether to reverse, uphold or alter the discipline for Manney.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama is predicting that Kentucky will remain undefeated and take home the title in the NCAA Tournament.

The basketball fan in chief says there’s a good reason the Wildcats are the prohibitive favorite in the tournament after going 34-0 so far. He picked them to beat Villanova in the title game during an interview broadcast Wednesday on ESPN.

The president advanced Arizona and Duke to the NCAA Final Four, scheduled for April 4-6 in Indianapolis.

• Click here to see the president’s full bracket

Obama hasn’t picked the correct national champion since his first year in office, when North Carolina won the 2009 championship.

Obama also tells ESPN he would like to see the NCAA move the shot clock from 35 to 30 seconds and move back the lane and three-point line to mirror the NBA.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — The Michigan High School Athletic Association will give concussion testing kits to some football teams next fall as part of a pilot program aimed at improving player safety.

The association launched new rules for football practices in 2014 that sought to reduce head trauma by restricting the length of practices and limiting the number of days where so-called collision practices take place where contact in pads takes place.

The next step is having concussion testing kits on the sidelines, MHSAA Executive Director Jack Roberts told WOOD-TV. Players could read numbers off cards or an iPad, for example, and their times would be recorded during the preseason, after possible head injuries and after the season.

Longer reading times could indicate a possible problem. The association likely would give schools the option to use different tests, Roberts said. The MHSAA plans to start the pilot program in the fall, but it hasn’t yet decided which schools will receive the kits first.

“Some school districts will move far beyond that. They have the resources in their community to be even more sophisticated,” Roberts said. “But we need to have a baseline for all of our schools and then provide and after we provide it for a while, insist that all schools have it.”

Concussions are brain injuries that can result from a blow to the head. Under a 2013 Michigan law, sports coaches or volunteers are required to participate in a concussion awareness training program. Athletes suspected of having a concussion must be immediately removed from games and cannot return until they receive clearance from a health professional.

Concussions have drawn intense attention in the NFL and other professional sports. Just this week, San Francisco 49ers linebacker Chris Borland said he was leaving football after just one season in the league. Wary of head trauma, Borland said that he wanted to do what was best for his health.

When kits are distributed, Roberts said they will provide a quick way to get results and a way to send those results to the MHSAA so it can keep records.

“We want to make sure that those communities that have very few resources for sideline detection can get some,” Robert said. “If we can do that for our schools … then we have really made a contribution to detection and aftercare of our students.”

Track interest rates and other financial data since just before the Great Recession.

WAUPACA – Charges of homicide by intoxicated use of a motor vehicle and hit & run involving death have been filed in connection with a fatal crash Saturday.

Allen Guse, 39, was released on $50,000 cash bond after a court appearance Tuesday, according to online court records.

He returns to court March 26 for a preliminary hearing.

Guse’s pickup truck crossed the center line and struck a minivan, killing Matthew Egerer, 35. Guse walked away from the scene and was later arrested.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (AP) – Syracuse basketball coach Jim Boeheim will retire in three years and the university’s athletic director has resigned, the school announced Wednesday following a scathing NCAA report that imposed sanctions for violations that lasted more than a decade.

Chancellor Kent Syverud said Wednesday that Boeheim, a Hall of Famer and head coach for 39 years, decided to make the announcement to “bring certainty to the team and program in the coming years” and to allow for a smooth transition.

Athletic director Daryl Gross will take another marketing position with the school, while Pete Sala will serve as interim athletic director.

The violations involved academic misconduct, extra benefits and the university’s drug testing policy. Boeheim, 70, is already suspended for the first half of the next Atlantic Coast Conference season, a total of nine games. Syracuse will also have three scholarships taken away for four seasons and all wins vacated in which an ineligible player participated from 2004 through 2012.

The March 6 report by the NCAA Committee on Infractions found several violations, particularly with the men’s basketball program.

“Coach Jim Boeheim has been a mainstay at Syracuse University for more than one-third of our entire 144-year history,” Syverud said. “He enrolled as a student here in 1962 and has never left. He has been the embodiment of Orange pride.”

Boeheim has scheduled a press conference for Thursday morning, the school said.

Syverud also reiterated that although the university accepts some of the penalties it does not agree with all of the conclusions reached by the Committee on Infractions, as well as the penalties imposed, and intends to appeal the vacating of certain wins and the scholarship reduction in men’s basketball.

“The decision to appeal is not taken lightly. We remain disturbed by the severity of certain penalties and the characterization by the NCAA of certain facts surrounding the case,” Syverud said.

Gross will serve as vice President and special assistant to the Chancellor and adjunct professor in the David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics.

BRILLION – Members of the public are getting their first chance to speak out about the 2015-17 state budget.

The first of four regional public hearings – and the only one in Northeast Wisconsin – runs until 5 p.m. at Brillion High School. The hearing is being held by the legislature’s Joint Finance Committee, which will do most of the detail work on the budget. Gov. Scott Walker unveiled his $68 billion two-year proposal last month. The budget must be approved by the full legislature; that typically happens in summer.

People testifying will have a two-minute limit. Lawmakers have said they believe most speakers will focus on key areas.

FOX 11’s Robert Hornacek is covering the meeting in Brillion and will have a full report tonight on FOX 11 News at Five.

• Click here to read updates from Robert on Twitter

GREEN BAY – Measles cases continue to pop up across the country. Here in Wisconsin, we’ve seen some suspected cases. But testing showed that those cases were not, in fact, measles.

People in 17 others states, including Illinois and Minnesota, have contracted the disease. Still, some parents are standing by their decision not to vaccinate their children.

A Green Bay mother tells FOX 11 Investigates her decision not to vaccinate her child has nothing to do with the measles. Her decision has to do with abortion.

Like many parents, Jennifer Swalheim had no idea how vaccines were manufactured. Before her third child was born, she decided to do some digging.

“When I started reading over that list I was appalled because I’m like, ‘oh my goodness.’ I’ve given some of these vaccines to my boys and I totally disagree with how they were made,” Swalheim said.

Swalheim found that some vaccines, including the rubella portion of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (commonly referred to as the MMR vaccine), were made using cell lines that were derived from an aborted fetus.

Swalheim, who describes herself as a born-again Christian, says her faith is a big reason she did not give her third child the MMR vaccine.

“I know that abortion is wrong. I know that I’m supposed to abstain from anything that appears evil and to me, that appears very evil,” Swalheim said.

Just how is the MMR vaccine connected to abortion? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “The rubella component of MMR was grown in a human cell line derived from a legally aborted fetus, aborted in Europe in the early 1960s…”

But the CDC also points out that “…the MMR vaccine does not contain cells from aborted fetuses.”

The CDC isn’t alone. The National Catholic Bioethics Center says the cell line used is made up of what are called “…descendent cells…” And those “…descendent cells are not the cells of the aborted child.”

Plus, the federal government says vaccines go through “…multiple purification steps…” to make sure “…cells are not in the final vaccine…”

“My problem with it is that it was a purposeful taking of human life. And it was wrong and I don’t want any part in that,” Swalheim said.

Yet doctors, even some who are opposed to abortion, still recommend the vaccine.

“This is still better than letting our kids get measles and have kids die just because I don’t want to use this vaccine,” said Dr. Kurt Heyrman. He is a pediatrician with Affinity Health System. He is also a member of the Northeast Wisconsin chapter of the Catholic Medical Association.

Heyrman points to a study from the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life in 2005. The Catholic Church acknowledged that vaccines made using cell lines that were derived from aborted fetal cells “…pose ethical problems…” and that people have “…a duty…” to use “…alternative vaccines (if they exist)…”

But if there are no alternatives, like in the case of the rubella vaccine, then parents are “…morally justified…” in having their children vaccinated.

• Click here to read the full report

“I believe we should find a better way but right now it’s the only option and if it saves lives, that’s morally and ethically the best thing for our kids until something better comes along,” Heyrman said.

A spokesperson for Merck, the company that makes the MMR vaccine, issued the following statement to FOX 11 Investigates:

“Merck recognizes the origins of WI-38 cells and that ethical, moral and philosophical beliefs are personal. The use of WI-38 cells to produce the rubella component of measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine is essential in making a safe and effective vaccine. Merck shares the position of multiple public-health authorities that it is vitally important to prevent the serious consequences of all three infections:  measles, mumps and rubella. Without vaccination, the burden of infectious diseases on families and society would immensely greater.  Parents are strongly encouraged to follow the recommended CDC immunization schedule to protect their children and others from disease.”

While parents have the right to decline vaccinations, doctors say there’s a lot at stake.

“Measles is a severe illness. It’s not just a fever and a runny nose. It has serious complications,” said Dr. Michael Landrum, an infectious disease specialist with Bellin Health.

The CDC says for every 1,000 children who get measles, one will develop encephalitis or swelling of the brain, and one or two will die.

“I just would say to parents, why take the chance that your kid could become sick with the measles and develop one of the complications or even die from it when the vaccine is safe,” Landrum said.

Still, Swalheim is comfortable with her decision.

“Does that mean my child could get sick? Of course it does. But getting sick is part of life and a lot of these illnesses are not usually deadly,” she said.

Swalheim added, “I have good reasons for making the decisions I’ve made. And I believe other people have good reasons for making the decisions they make. But I’m the one that ultimately has to live with the decisions that I make. And I’m the one who is responsible for my children. It’s not the pediatrician. It’s not the government. It’s me.”

According to the CDC, so far this year, 176 people in 17 states have contracted measles. Most are part of the large outbreak linked to Disneyland.

Last year, there were more than 600 measles cases in the U.S. The CDC says the majority of people who get measles are not vaccinated.

MOSCOW (AP) — General Motors will slash production in Russia and pull its mass-market Opel brand completely in the face of plummeting sales in the economically troubled country.

Mainstream GM brands have been among the biggest losers as Russia’s auto market shrinks, with sales of Chevrolet down 74 percent year-on-year in February and those of Opel plunging 86 percent.

Opel will leave the Russian market by December, with Chevrolet production cut back significantly to focus on top-end products such as the Corvette sports car and Tahoe SUV, which are imported into Russia from the U.S.

The move is likely to result in around $600 million in one-off losses, around a third of which will be non-cash expenses, GM said Wednesday.

“This change in our business model in Russia is part of our global strategy to ensure long-term sustainability in markets where we operate,” GM President Dan Ammann said in a statement. “This decision avoids significant investment into a market that has very challenging long-term prospects.”

GM’s factory in St. Petersburg will halt production by the middle of 2015.

“There may be severance” for the 1,000 employees, and there is no current plan to restart production in the future, GM spokesman Dave Roman said.

The St. Petersburg assembly plant is GM’s only fully owned production facility in Russia and opened in late 2008 amid much fanfare at a time when foreign automakers were crowding into a booming market. The plant cost $300 million and has a capacity of 70,000 cars a year.

Production of Chevrolets under license by Russian firm GAZ will also end this year, while GM’s joint venture with Russia’s Avtovaz producing the Chevrolet Niva basic SUV will continue.

The Russian pullback is designed to preserve GM’s strong cash position by avoiding another drain on its capital. The company made a $2.8 billion net profit last year despite an expensive string of recalls and $1.4 billion in pretax losses in its European unit.

At the end of the year, GM was sitting on $25.2 billion in cash, but earlier this month the company agreed to a $5 billion stock buyback.

It faces cash drains later this year including a potential civil penalty from the U.S. Justice Department for concealing a deadly ignition switch problem and what could be an expensive contract settlement with the United Auto Workers union.

With Russia predicted to slide into recession this year on the back of low oil prices and international sanctions, the luxury car market has held up better than mass-market sales.

GM said it would focus on growing the Cadillac brand in Russia, whose sales are currently far behind those of premium European rivals such as BMW and Audi.

Just 72 Cadillacs were sold in Russia in January and February this year, according to Russia’s Association of European Businesses. That is less than half as many as a year before, and below 1 percent of the sales reported for Mercedes-Benz.

Russia’s central bank predicts the economy will contract by between 3.5 and 4 percent this year.

Car sales were down 38 percent in February year-on-year as Russian consumers shied away from regular price rises caused by the weak ruble, which has lost almost half of its value against the dollar since the start of last year.

The weak ruble affects not only cars imported into Russia, but also those made there, since most use a large number of imported components.

GM’s American rival Ford has also seen Russian sales plummet, down 78 percent annually in February.

By contrast, Korean sister brands Hyundai and Kia have kept prices mostly stable, as a result avoiding large drops in sales and vastly increasing their share of the shrinking Russian market.

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Tom Krisher in Detroit contributed to this report.

Photos of the aurora borealis as seen in Northeast Wisconsin and Upper Michigan, March 17, 2015.

GREEN BAY – Do you ever wonder what life would be like after the collapse of civilization?  Those are the tales being told in these books chosen by librarian Andrea Stepanik of the Brown County Library.

1. Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel, Science Fiction
2. The Passage, Justin Cronin, Science Fiction/Horror
3. The Dog Stars, Peter Heller, Science Fiction/Adventure
4. California, Edan Lepucki, Science Fiction

NEW BERN, N.C. (AP) – Police say three young people have been stabbed to death and two other people were hurt in an attack at a home in eastern North Carolina.

New Bern Police Lt. Ronda Allen says officers were called to a report of a person with a knife around 11 p.m. Tuesday. Allen says officers took a suspect into custody, then entered the home and found the dead and injured.

Allen says two juveniles were dead and a third died at a hospital. She says another juvenile and an adult were hurt.

She says the suspect and the victims knew one another, although the suspect was not a member of the victims’ family. Their names and ages haven’t been released.

Police say they will release more information about the stabbing later Wednesday.

Many people witnessed the Northern Lights overnight.

We want to thank everyone who shared their photos with us.

Here’s a few of them. Enjoy!