Category: World

Brent crude dropped below US$97 a barrel after both sides said talks had made progress.

Oil prices fell nearly 7 per cent on Monday (May 25) as optimism grew that the United States and Iran were moving closer to a peace deal that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz, even though Washington and Tehran played down hopes for an imminent breakthrough.

Brent crude futures LCOc1 were down US$7.24, or almost 7 per cent, at US$96.30 a barrel at 2:29pm ET (Tuesday, 2:29am, Singapore time) and US West Texas Intermediate CLc1 futures were down US$6.30, or 6.5 per cent, at US$90.88.

Trading volumes were light due to the US Memorial Day holiday.

Iran’s top negotiator and its foreign minister were in Doha for talks with Qatar’s prime minister on a potential deal with the US to end the three-month-old war, an official briefed on the visit said Monday.

Both sides said they have made progress on a memorandum of understanding that would halt the war and give negotiators 60 days to reach a final deal.

“GET SOME OIL MOVING”

“Even though it’s not done, there seems to be some hope that we will start to get some oil moving through the Strait of Hormuz,” said Phil Flynn, senior analyst with Price Futures Group.

But Rory Johnston, founder of the Commodity Context newsletter, sounded a note of caution.

“We’ve routinely gotten close and then collapsed on the details multiple times over the past couple of months and Hormuz remains closed,” Johnston said.

In a lengthy Truth Social post on Monday, US President Donald Trump said talks with Iran were going “nicely,” but warned of fresh attacks if they failed.

He urged more Arab and Muslim states to sign up to the Abraham Accords, which were brokered during Trump’s first term in office and aim to normalise ties between Arab and other Muslim-majority states and Israel.

“That could mean a significant reduction of risk premium in the Middle East, especially if a deal with Iran can be done and Iran gives up their nuclear material,” Flynn said.

Iran’s foreign ministry said on Monday Iran was negotiating an end to the war and was not currently discussing nuclear issues.

Even if a peace deal is reached, analysts expect a return to normal oil flows through the strait will take months, while damaged oil and gas facilities are repaired.

“The underlying supply shortfall of 10-11 (million barrels per day) of crude oil does not go away immediately and will see markets still drawing inventories until Middle Eastern crude production is back online, which is months away,” said Sparta Commodities analyst June Goh.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/business/oil-prices-us-iran-peace-deal-hormuz-6139536

WITH human faeces smeared on the walls and patients allegedly raped, campaigners say this is the most dangerous hospital in the world.

Guatemala’s only psychiatric hospital, Federico Mora, operates more like a prison than a hospital, a court revealed.

The sick abuse was exposed over ten years ago and the court ordered the facility to crack down on rampant abuse.

It found that 334 children and adults locked up inside were subjected to physical and sexual abuse, denied medical care and exposed to “serious and contagious” illnesses and infections.

Many contracted HIV – a problem compounded by the “widespread sexual abuse in the institution”.

“The stench of urine and faeces is overwhelming”, said one campaigner upon visiting the facility.

Some practices can be described as “torture” under guidelines of the UN.

Patients were shut into pitch-black isolation rooms for several days, and it was claimed that staff at the hospital set up a sex-trafficking ring and sold patients for sex.

Despite a crackdown, very little has changed in the last decade.

The Sun spoke to the lawyers and campaigners Eric Rosenthal and Priscila Rodriguez, who last visited Federico Mora in February of this year.

They got a court order to force the Guatemalan government to give them access to the facility.

Speaking to Rosenthal and Rodriguez, detainees claimed that they were victims of sex trafficking.

They said staff collected money from outsiders and forced the patients to have sex with them.

It is also claimed that outsiders would be brought to the hospital to rape the detainees, and patients were sometimes taken outside to be trafficked by hospital staff.

One woman told Rodriguez she was raped in exchange for a cigarette for the guard.

Officers from the National Civil Police patrol the facility with loaded guns.

There are no separate rooms in the facility, with just a long corridor with beds, according to Rodriguez.

Over 60 people are crammed into a space with half that capacity.

Rosenthal said: “People remain crowded in rooms with nothing but beds and nothing else to do. People have no privacy, almost no personal possessions, no control over their lives”.

“Many people spend their days laying on floors or on the ground outside or sitting in chairs with nothing to do but stare into space.

“We still saw some people tied to wheelchairs”.

People with disabilities are said to be locked up against their will, or beyond the time they were supposed to be detained.

Nurses in the hospital told Rosenthal and Rodriguez that some staff “have links to criminal gangs” operating in the area.

Others say they are “forced” to work there and angry at the conditions.

Despite the rampant alleged sexual abuse and bleak conditions, there are still 330 people living in the facility – and a long waiting list to get in.

Patients live in “inhumane and degrading conditions” with a “lack of food and water”, Rodriguez said.

What food they are given is often rotten and cooked in kitchens with visible mould.

“Of course they have to eat it or otherwise they starve”, Priscila said.

Gangs congregate around the Federico Mora hospital, which is located next to a prison in one of the most dangerous parts of Guatemala city, Zone 18.

Criminals are also sent to live with the hospital patients, and their wards are often cleaner and nicer than those in care, according to Rosenthal.

He said: “On our last visit, we did not see people covered in urine or feces”.

But he added: “There we’re powerful smells of cleaner in sections that had clearly just been washed before the visit”.

“Conditions are still bleak and utterly dehumanizing”, he concluded.

Now, a new lawsuit has been launched against the hospital by Disability Rights International and other human rights organisations – in America’s highest court.

“Federico Mora is the most violent and dangerous facility we’ve discovered anywhere in the Americas,” Rosenthal said.

He condemned the hospital as “a dumping ground for people with any kind of disability and none” – and criticised the Guatemalan government for having an “old-fashioned, 1950s era understanding of mental illness”.

For patients inside the hospital, they have no means to complain as they have to gain permission of their legal guardian to file a lawsuit.

However, their legal guardian is in fact the director of Federico Mora Hospital.

The new case demands that people with disabilities have the right to decide on their own treatment – and to not be imprisoned against their will.

They also want the government to investigate the violence and sexual abuse towards patients and to pay out thousands in compensation.

Advocates also seek punishment for the rapists and abusers within the facility.

Currently, the Guatemalan government blows most of its mental health budget on Federico Mora – estimated at over $12million a year.

But a chief psychiatrist told Rosenthal: “This is a facility you would never go to for your mental health”.

Rosenthal and Rodriguez estimate that about 70 per cent of patients are sent to the hospital because they have no place else to live.

“People need a place to live, get food”, explained Rosenthal.

Guatemalan disability rights advocate Silvia Quan said that there is “almost nothing set up for people with disabilities”.

“They are abandoned,” she added.

“Poor families cannot pay for their care… so the way the state takes care of them is to send them to Federico Mora”.

Extreme stigma, fuelled by myth and superstition, still surrounds people with disabilities in Guatemala.

Quan said that some Guatemalans believe a pregnant woman “cannot eat avocadoes because it could cause a malformation of the fetus”.

And disability in children is seen as a generational curse triggered from someone in the family doing wrong.

In Guatemala, people with disabilities are regarded as incapable of making their own decisions.

The new lawsuit – which will be heard in autumn of this year – hopes to overturn their lack of legal rights.

Disability Rights International hopes community care can become the norm for people with disabilities so that inhumane hospitals like Federico Mora can be shut down, once and for all.

The Sun has reached out to Dr Romeo Minera, the current director of Federico Mora.

He was fired in 2022 after accusations of mismanagement, leading to severe shortages of medicine and water, but subsequently re-hired.

Guatemala’s Ministry of Health said that the hospital was “committed to public health, continuous improvement of services, and unwavering respect for human dignity”.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16407131/worlds-most-dangerous-hospital-patients-sexually-assaulted/

THE US military launched a fresh wave of strikes on Iran overnight, as the fragile ceasefire between the two countries is pushed to the brink.

Explosions rocked the southern port city of Bandar Abbas and nearby coastal areas along the Strait of Hormuz late on Monday.

Targets included a missile launch site and two Iranian boats trying to lay mines in the Strait, according to US Central Command (Centcom).

In a statement, Centcom spokesperson Captain Tim Hawkins confirmed that the US conducted the hits in “self-defence”.

“US forces conducted self-defence today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” Hawkins said.

“Targets included missile launch sites and Iranian boats attempting to emplace mines.

“US Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire.”

A military official told Fox News forces “reacted” when they saw two Iranian boats laying mines and a missile site that was targeting American aircraft.

The official said the overnight blitz was not an effort to break the ceasefire.

This comes after Trump warned that Iran’s enriched uranium – used as a fuel in nuclear weapons – should be handed over to the US or destroyed.

As Iran and the US are still exploring a deal to end the war, the President outlined his conditions for handling the material – a major obstacle in the negotiations.

“The Enriched Uranium (Nuclear Dust!) will either be immediately turned over to the US to be brought home and destroyed or, preferably, in conjunction and coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran, destroyed in place or, at another acceptable location…” he wrote on TruthSocial.

Trump suggested that the Atomic Energy Commission – an agency of the US government – “witness” the event.

Iran stockpiles 440kg of 60 percent enriched uranium, and Israel and the US have ​long accused the country of building nuclear weapons.

Trump has said his key aim is to prevent Iran from developing the bomb – something that the regime has consistently denied it has plans to achieve.

In an earlier post online, he said talks with the Islamic Republic were going “nicely,” but added an ultimatum: “It will only be a Great Deal for all, or no Deal at all.”

But Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, said on Tuesday morning that negotiating a deal with Iran could still “take a few days.”

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16410332/us-strikes-iran-trump-warns-hand-over-uranium/

 

Rescuers are racing against time to free seven people who have been trapped for nearly a week in a flooded cave in Laos.

The seven were part of a group of villagers from the central province of Xaysomboun who had gone into the cave on Wednesday in search of gold and wildlife, but could not get out as rain and landslides blocked the cave’s entrance.

Footage shared by the rescue groups show the cave divers crawling into the cave through narrow, muddy passageways that are almost completely flooded.

Several experts involved in the dramatic rescue of a team of teenage footballers trapped deep inside a Thai cave back in 2018 are among those helping with the current rescue effort.

A survivor who had managed to escape alerted the authorities about those still trapped, according to reports.

The cave in question is frequented by villagers looking for gold deposits, Bounkham Luanglath, who leads the Laos’ Rescue Volunteer for People, told the Associated Press.

The cave system, which extends deep underground, is also extremely narrow, with some chambers measuring only about 50cm (20in) wide, rescuers say.

Rescuers are working to pump water out of the cave.

They managed to clear out some rocks at the front of the cave on Monday and were able to survey the deeper sections of it, but water levels have continued to rise, preventing them from going further, rescuers say.

They have not detected any signs of life so far, but Kengkard Bongkawong of the Thai rescue group Metta Tham Rescue believe they are reaching close to the point where they believe the people are trapped, saying he estimated they were “less than 20m (65ft) away”.

“All day, all night, water was still being pumped out,” Kengkard wrote on Facebook last night.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cglpp1g388zo

 

Luxury sports car maker Ferrari has unveiled its first fully electric car – the $640,000 (£474,320) Luce.

The new model departs from the look of typical Ferraris as the Italian brand’s first ever five-seater, created in collaboration with the LoveFrom agency founded by former Apple design chief Sir Jony Ive.

Responses on social media to the launch have ranged from describing it as “straight to the junkyard trash” to an “absolute masterclass in design”.

Supercar rivals like Lamborghini and Porsche have scaled back on their EV plans due to poor demand and intense competition from Chinese brands.

Ferrari chief executive Benedetto Vigna said in Rome that the Luce, Italian for “light”, has taken half a decade to develop.

Ferrari plans to roll out the electric vehicle (EV) after previously ruling out such a move, opting instead to make hybrid cars that are powered by both petrol and electricity.

The Luce runs with a Ferrari-made electric motor on each wheel, helping the car to hit 60mph (96km/h) in around 2.5 seconds.

The firm said that all of the components are made in-house, so that the car can be repaired by the company well into the future, protecting the Luce’s resale value.

The shift by motor industry giants to EVs has faced major obstacles in recent years.

Carmakers including Ford and Volkswagen have doubled down on petrol cars, especially in the US, due to poor demand and regulatory changes under President Donald Trump, who has cut incentives for EV buyers.

The launch of Jaguar’s electric concept car was heavily criticised for abandoning the British brand’s classic styling.

Ferrari’s unveiling of Luce has faced similar criticism.

One account on X said: “Ferrari just killed their brand just like Jaguar did. This is straight to the junkyard trash.”

“What is going on with European Luxury car manufacturers? First Jaguar and now Ferrari”, another account posted.

But not all commentators were felt negatively about the new car, with one post saying: “Absolute masterclass in design. Ferrari just unveiled the breathtaking LUCE concept, and it is a total game changer.”

Ferrari’s chief design officer Flavio Manzoni said in an interview with YouTuber Cleo Abram that critics are part of the innovation process.

He acknowledged the concept of an electric Ferrari with a new design is “polarising” but believes people will appreciate it in months to come.

Ferrari has also said it will continue offer petrol and hybrid cars along with its all-electric vehicle.

Meanwhile, Ferrari’s direct competitors have rolled back their EV ambitions.

Lamborghini abandoned its plans to launch all-electric cars, pivoting to hybrid models instead, citing low demand for high-end luxury EVs.

Germany’s Porsche has scaled back its EV plans due to weak demand, caught between poor sales in China and tariffs in the US.

Western carmakers have also faced intense competition from Chinese carmakers, which are able to produce vehicles faster and more cheaply.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy22rddy5no

Authorities say there are 1,933 missing children cases nationwide, up 6.8% from the year before. And, travellers in Germany seem nervous when it comes to air travel, amid the war in Iran, a survey suggests.

Arsenal finally got their ​hands on the Premier League trophy and Tottenham Hotspur managed to stay up to bring ‌joy to all sides of North London on Sunday, but there was despair in the east of the city as West Ham United were relegated on the final day of the season despite a 3-0 home win over Leeds ​United.
Having secured the title when Manchester City dropped points in midweek, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal received ​the trophy at Selhurst Park following a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace.

Arsenal finished top ⁠on 85 points, seven clear of Manchester City in second, with Manchester United seven points further ​back in third after a 3-0 win at Brighton & Hove Albion.
“That was beautiful,” Arteta said. “Look at the ​joy of all of the people, they have been waiting for this for so long. We have had difficult moments along the way, but it is all worth it when you see that kind of reaction.”
Villa’s win over City ​secured fourth place and Liverpool’s 1-1 draw with Brentford secured fifth place and Champions League football next ​term, but all eyes were on Pep Guardiola, who is departing after a trophy-laden 10 years in charge of ‌Manchester ⁠City.

“I leave with an incredible sense of peace, I gave everything. Good things, bad things, it’s part of the sport. I feel so much love, that is the truth,” Guardiola told the BBC after his emotional farewell to the home fans.
At the other end of the table, Tottenham survived a late onslaught to ​emerge with a 1-0 ​win over Everton that ⁠condemned West Ham to the drop, alongside Wolverhampton Wanderers and Burnley who played out a 1-1 draw.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/sports/soccer/west-ham-relegated-arsenal-lift-premier-league-trophy-emotional-final-day-2026-05-24/

HSBC appealed to staff not to fight ​AI on Wednesday, saying it would destroy jobs while creating new ones, as banking rival Standard Chartered sought to ‌calm workers over comments that the technology would replace “lower-value human capital”.
The predictions from two of the world’s biggest banks are the clearest sign yet about the upheaval from a technology that can consume and process vast swathes of data, completing tasks previously done by people.

CEO Georges Elhedery urged HSBC staff to make sure ​they were “not fighting us, not disenfranchised, not anxious, overwhelmed, and resisting the change,” pledging that AI could make them “more productive ​versions of themselves”.
“We all know generative AI will destroy certain jobs and will create new jobs,” Elhedery said.
Standard ⁠Chartered (STAN.L), said on Tuesday it would eliminate almost 8,000 jobs as it replaced what its CEO called “lower-value human capital” with technology.
Bill Winters ​said StanChart would cut 15% of its corporate function roles by 2030, highlighting how staff in so-called back office roles are particularly vulnerable.

HSBC ​employs more than 211,000 people, while StanChart has roughly 83,000 employees.
Underscoring the sensitivity of the issue, Winters sought to limit the fallout in a memo on Wednesday, saying staff were valued and any changes would be handled with “thought and care”.
Morgan Stanley analysts found that companies in banking, technology and professional services had shed ​one in 20 staff in the past year as a result of using AI.
Offshore workers, on which financial services firms rely to run ​many of their IT services at locations including India or Poland, and young, new workers are bearing the brunt, Morgan Stanley’s report said.
Banks have been ‌reluctant to ⁠publicly discuss the scale of job losses, although this is gradually changing.
Goldman Sachs told staff in October of potential job cuts and a hiring slowdown, an internal memo seen by Reuters showed, as the Wall Street giant embraced AI.

Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf said in December it has not reduced the number of people it employs as a result of AI, but was “getting a lot more done” because of the technology.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/legal/legalindustry/dont-fight-ai-hsbc-ceo-tells-staff-banks-begin-job-cuts-2026-05-20/

Russia pounded Kyiv and surrounding areas with hundreds of drones and missiles on Sunday in ​one of the heaviest bombardments of the city since the start of the four-year war, firing an Oreshnik hypersonic missile near the capital.
Russia’s hours-long overnight ‌barrage killed two people in Kyiv and two more in the surrounding area, and it wounded nearly 100, according to Ukrainian officials. Authorities said dozens of residential buildings and several schools had been damaged, many in the centre of Kyiv.

“It’s important that this does not remain without consequences for Russia,” President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on the Telegram messaging app, urging Ukraine’s allies to act. “Decisions are needed – from the United States, from Europe ​and others.”
Officials also reported strikes in other parts of Ukraine and two deaths in the southern region of Kherson.

EUROPEANS DECRY ‘ESCALATION’

European leaders condemned the Kyiv attack, with Britain ​and Germany describing the use of the Oreshnik – an intermediate range missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads – as an “escalation”.
Kaja Kallas, the European ⁠Union’s top diplomat, accused Moscow of resorting to “a political scare-tactic and reckless nuclear-brinkmanship”.

The attack caused minor damage to Ukraine’s cabinet building and to the Foreign Ministry.
Kyiv’s national art museum ​and philharmonic hall, both in the heart of the city, were badly damaged, officials said, with many other historic buildings in the city centre also affected.
“This is a war ​against our culture, memory, and identity,” Zelenskiy’s top aide Kyrylo Budanov said. “For centuries, Moscow has tried to destroy everything that makes us Ukrainian.”
One of the strikes destroyed a newly opened museum commemorating the 1986 Chornobyl nuclear disaster, eliciting angry words from Zelenskiy when he visited the scene.
At a city centre cafe which had celebrated its opening on Saturday, staff were sweeping up glass and rubble on Sunday. Despite the ​damage, they continued to serve customers, some of whom said they had come to show their support.

“Once the emotions die down a bit, we’ll think about whether to ​restore everything … or whether to work at all,” said Yevhenii Prusak, the cafe’s co-owner.

NUCLEAR-CAPABLE MISSILE

It was only the third time that Russia has used the Oreshnik missile against Ukraine since the war began ‌with Russia’s ⁠full-scale invasion in February 2022. The Oreshnik has a range of several thousand kilometres.
The previous two strikes had hit major cities, but Zelenskiy said this one had struck Bila Tserkva, a city of 200,000 people that lies about 40 miles (64 km) from the outskirts of Kyiv.
The Oreshnik’s warhead appears to have split into 36 submunitions, according to a review of Reuters footage of the strike by Rollo Collins, an investigator at the Centre for Information Resilience, an open-source investigation organisation.
In total, the air force said, Russia launched 90 missiles ​and 600 drones.
Zelenskiy said Russia had also ​targeted water-supply facilities, saying Moscow wanted to ⁠damage them before the summer increased demand.
Moscow said it had used Oreshnik, Iskander, Kinzhal and Zircon missiles in retaliation for Kyiv’s strikes on civilian targets in Russia. Ukraine says it does not target civilians.
Russia’s Defence Ministry said the strikes targeted Ukrainian military command facilities, ​including sites used by land forces and military intelligence, air bases and military-industrial sites.
Moscow also denies targeting civilians, although thousands have ​been killed by its ⁠bombardments of Ukrainian cities during the war.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/ukraines-capital-kyiv-hit-by-massive-missile-drone-attack-2026-05-23/

The building collapsed before dawn after a severe thunderstorm. Officials said rescuers reported “hearing voices” in the rubble.

At least 20 people are feared trapped after an under-construction building collapsed near the Philippine capital, Manila, on Sunday, officials said.

The nine-story building in Angeles city collapsed at around 3:00 a.m. local time (1900 GMT Saturday) after a severe thunderstorm.

There were no immediate reports of fatalities.

Some 26 people have been rescued, including two who were staying in an adjacent hotel that suffered damage.

Those individuals were in a “stable condition,” city information officer Jay Pelayo said.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/philippines-20-feared-trapped-after-building-collapse/a-77277732

The foreign ministers of the Group of Eight Arab-Islamic states on Sunday (May 24) strongly condemned the actions of far-right Israeli police minister Itamar Ben-Gvir towards participants in the Gaza-bound flotilla while they were in Israeli detention.

Governments have expressed outrage after Ben-Gvir posted a video in which he taunted activists who were pinned to the ground. Some of the detainees, who had intended to bring humanitarian aid to Gaza, later alleged that they were physically assaulted in detention, which Israel’s prison service denied.

The eight nations, which include Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Indonesia and Pakistan, said in a statement: “Ben-Gvir’s deliberate public humiliation of detainees is a disgraceful assault on human dignity and a clear violation of Israel’s obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, and international human rights law.”

Many other countries have condemned Ben-Gvir’s actions.

France has decided to ban Israel’s far-right police minister from French territory, Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Saturday, adding that this reflected growing anger among governments around the world over the treatment of an activist flotilla heading to Gaza.

“As from today, Itamar Ben-Gvir is banned from entering French territory,” Barrot wrote on X.

“Along with my Italian counterpart, I am asking the European Union to also take sanctions against Itamar Ben-Gvir.”

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/arab-islamic-states-condemn-israeli-minister-ben-gvir-over-gaza-flotilla-detention-6139261

 

TAYLOR Swift has been spotted covering her eyes as her fiance Travis Kelce downed beer on a big screen at an NBA game before falling asleep.

The couple attended Game 3 of the NBA’s Eastern Conference Finals on Saturday night as they cheered on his native Cleveland Cavaliers who were playing against the New York Knicks.

Travis, 36, appeared to be living his best life as he was seen on the big screen guzzling beer from a can.

Taylor, also 36, looked slightly embarrassed as she covered her eyes with her hand and giggled awkwardly.

The pair looked more in love than ever as they enjoyed a smooch while sitting court side.

The singer opted for a chic look with a black top with a chain detailing, which she paired with baggy jeans and a black jacket draped over her shoulders.

She dressed up her look with some black heels and went for a striking red lip.

Meanwhile, Travis wore a double denim look with a short sleeved open shirt with a white t-shirt and jeans.

He added some colour to his look with a red snap back cap and some Nike trainers.

However, it looked like things got too much for Travis as he was later seen having a snooze.

He flipped his cap to cover his head as he laid back in his seat, while Taylor looked on.

The two announced their engagement in August last year after two years of dating.

Sharing the exciting news on Instagram, they penned: “Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married.”

They’re gearing up for their wedding, which is reportedly taking place on July 3 in New York City.

It’s understood the singer’s best friends – including Selena Gomez and Gigi Hadid – want to honor her career and life achievements in different ways at what promises to be one of the most star-studded nuptials in recent history.

They are reportedly producing a video of approximately six or seven minutes to show the guests during the wedding.

This film will cover Taylor’s journey, the moment she met Travis, and private moments between them.

It features footage from their personal collections of photos and videos that has never been shown to the public, capturing a closer insight into their relationship.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/sport/16403752/taylor-swift-covers-eyes-travis-kelce-downs-beer/

A damaged chemical tank in Southern California has a crack, potentially lowering the risk of a cataclysmic explosion, though an evacuation order remains in effect for some 50,000 area residents with no timeline on when they can return, fire officials said Sunday.

Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Wayhowe Huang said that fire officials were able to evaluate the tank more closely overnight and discovered the tank had cracked.

Huang told The Associated Press earlier Sunday that it did not appear any of the highly volatile chemicals in the tank have leaked. “There’s still the danger of a possible explosion,” Huang said.

Firefighters have been spraying the tank with water in an effort to cool the chemicals inside and prevent an explosion. The inside of the tank reached 100 degrees (37.7 Celsius) Sunday, Democratic state Sen. Tom Umberg said, an increase of 10 degrees Fahrenheit (5.5 Celsius) since Saturday.

Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who declared a state of emergency Saturday, said in a post on X he had asked President Donald Trump to issue an emergency declaration to bolster federal support for local and state officials.

The pressurized tank overheated Thursday and began venting vapors at a company site in Garden Grove, about 40 miles (60 kilometers) south of downtown Los Angeles, according to the Fire Authority.

No injuries have been reported. Air monitoring tests have found that air pollution around the evacuation zone is within normal limits, and specialized equipment has been deployed to ensure no gas is released from the compromised tank, state and federal environmental officials said Saturday.

The streets were empty in the area Sunday, according to aerial photos taken by the AP.

Tank crack could mitigate damage

A crack could be a welcome development, as it could mean product or pressure inside the tank is being released, reducing the chance the tank explodes, said Andrew Whelton, an engineering professor at Purdue University.

“Think of a soda can. If you leave it in a hot car it can explode,” he said. “But if you put a hole in the can, the product is released and the can itself doesn’t explode.”

Elias Picazo, a chemistry professor at the University of Southern California, agreed that a crack could be a positive development.

“A strategic leak buys more time for the liquid within the tank to solidify as the reaction continues,” he said. “Depending on where the leak is, it can also be used to direct the unreacted liquid out of the tank in a controlled manner.”

Faisal Khan, head of the chemical engineering department at Texas A&M University, said a crack suggests an explosion could still happen — just not in the magnitude initially feared.

“Cooling is happening on the surface of the tank while runaway reaction may be occurring deep inside the tank,” he explained. “Yes, reaction is slowed compared to what it started. However, we are not out of explosive release risk.”

Several shelters for evacuees remained open. The parking lot was full Sunday at an evacuation center at a high school in neighboring La Palma. Some people, including a family of seven, slept in cars or on mats and sleeping bags on the asphalt. The large family also had nine cats with them. They stacked up cat carriers for a makeshift table as they waited around, sipping coffee and tending to the pets.

Meanwhile, some Garden Grove residents filed a class-action lawsuit on Saturday against GKN Aerospace Transparency Systems, the company that operates the facility where the tank is located.

Lawyers for residents living in the evacuation zone argued in their federal court lawsuit that regardless of what happens next, property values in the surrounding community are sure to be impacted.

Spokespersons for the company didn’t comment on the lawsuit itself, but pointed to a Saturday statement in which they apologized to residents and businesses that have been forced to evacuate.

On Sunday, the company released another statement saying it was monitoring the “condition of the affected material” and “working around the clock to mitigate the risk of a leak.”

Officials said the valves on the tank are broken or “gummed up,” which prevented crews from removing the chemical or relieving the pressure on the tank, said Craig Covey, Orange County Fire Authority division chief.

Firefighters’ first hope is to find a way to cool off the chemical inside the tank so it won’t leak or explode. If that is not possible, Whelton said it would be best if the tank sprang a leak so the chemical could be mostly contained. An explosion that could spread the chemical over a broad area and send shrapnel flying would be the worst-case scenario.

If the temperature inside the tank continues to increase, the pressure will continue to build as the methyl methacrylate converts from a liquid to a gas. Whelton said it’s unlikely that firefighters would consider creating a hole in the tank because of fears that could create a spark that might ignite the volatile and flammable gas.

Drones were monitoring temperatures at 10-minute intervals to watch for any spikes, Covey said on a social media post on X. Containment barriers have been set up to prevent the chemical from getting into storm drains or reaching creeks or the nearby ocean in the event of a spill, Covey said.

Exposure could lead to health problems

The damaged tank is located at GKN Aerospace, which makes parts for commercial and military aircraft. It holds 6,000 to 7,000 gallons (22,700 and 26,500 liters) of methyl methacrylate, used to make plastic parts.

GKN agreed to pay state regulators more than $900,000 in 2025 to settle violations involving recordkeeping, permitting issues and nitrogen oxide emissions, according to a report on the South Coast Air Quality Management District website.

Exposure to methyl methacrylate can cause serious respiratory problems and even render someone unconscious. It can also cause neurological problems and irritate the skin, eyes and throat, according to fact sheets about the chemical. But Orange County health officials said the chemical is easy to smell and residents may notice it over a large area without being harmed.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/california-chemical-tank-leak-evacuation-8dca2190fef3db508b9aa218e82d2b9e

 

China launched the Shenzhou 23 spacecraft Sunday night with three astronauts heading to its space station, including one set to stay in space for a year.

The spacecraft blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China. The much-anticipated launch comes as China prepares for its first crewed lunar landing by 2030.

The astronauts on the mission are Zhu Yangzhu, the commander, Zhang Zhiyuan and Lai Ka-ying, also identified by Chinese authorities as Li Jiaying using the Mandarin transliteration of her name.

Lai, who was born and raised in Hong Kong and has a doctoral degree in computer forensics, is the first astronaut from the city on a space mission.

The crew is set to conduct dozens of science and application projects, state media said. They are also expected to complete an in-orbit rotation with the crew of Shenzhou 21, who has been at the Tiangong space station for more than 200 days.

One of the three astronauts on the Shenzhou 23 mission is scheduled to stay at the orbiting space station for a year in what would be among the world’s longest single stays in space. The astronaut’s mission is to “explore human adaptability and performance limits” in long-duration spaceflight environments, state media reported.

As China steps up its space program, its astronauts have carried out multiple missions to the Tiangong space station, developed after China was effectively excluded from the International Space Station on U.S. concerns over national security.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/china-shenzhou-launch-space-station-1fc9b4cbb302debda6440a693d2c24d0

 

Angry young men stormed a hospital treating Ebola patients at the heart of the latest outbreak of the disease in eastern Congo on Sunday evening, forcing the medical staff to scramble to evacuate the patients as gunfire rang out in the area.

It was not immediately known if anyone was hurt in the attack on the Mongbwalu General Hospital but Dr. Richard Lokudu, the hospital’s medical director, told The Associated Press the attackers demanded that two bodies of their kin be handed over to them.

There was gunfire and the medics were trying to evacuate the patients and the staff, Lokudu said over the phone.

“Mongbwalu General Hospital is on general alert,” he added. He did not have any further details of the unfolding turmoil.

The attack — the third in a week’s time on health care facilities where medical workers struggle with lack of resources to treat suspected Ebola cases — underlined the challenges of the outbreak, which the World Health Organization has declared a public health emergency of international concern.

Bodies of those who died of Ebola can be highly contagious and lead to further spread when people prepare them for burial and gather for funerals. ‘

In response to the outbreak, Congolese authorities have mandated that the dangerous work of burying suspected victims be managed wherever possible by authorities, which can be met by protests from families and friends. On Friday, the government said funeral wakes and gatherings of more than 50 people would be banned in northeastern Congo in an effort to curb the spread of the virus.

On Saturday, a group of residents of Mongbwalu, located in Ituri province, attacked and set fire to a tent set up for suspected and confirmed Ebola cases by the Doctors Without Borders humanitarian group.

During that attack, 18 people with suspected Ebola infections left the facility and were now unaccounted for, Lokudu had said earlier.

On Thursday, another treatment center, in the town of Rwampara, was burned down after family members were banned from retrieving the body of a local man suspected to have died of Ebola.

WHO has said the outbreak poses a “very high” risk for Congo — up from a previous categorization of “high” — but that the risk of the disease spreading globally remains low.

Earlier on Sunday, the Congolese Ministry of Communication said on X that there were 904 suspected cases of Ebola, mostly in northeastern Ituri Province — a significant jump from the previously announced more than 700 suspected Ebola cases.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/ebola-congo-mongbwalu-funeral-bodies-attack-9c4237e6ed4e26dff22b242749e37e33

 

Alia – whose name we have changed for her safety – travelled hundreds of miles from her village to Kabul to escape marriage.

The journey by taxi last year with her female cousin – covered from head to toe, only their eyes visible, as the rules decree – was an exceptional thing to do, and risky in Afghanistan, where at any moment they might be caught by the Taliban inspectors enforcing rules banning women travelling long distances without a male relative escorting them.

But Alia, who is 19, and her cousin weren’t stopped at any Taliban checkpoints, and made it to the capital.

“I made up an excuse to my family saying I was coming here to meet my friends and former classmates. But that’s not true. They are not here. The actual reason is that if I stayed in Daykundi, I would be forced to get married.”

Instead, she arrived in Kabul with a plan: she enrolled in an English language course.

These short-term, narrowly-focused private courses – available only to those who can afford them – are, along with madrasas which focus on religious education, the only options for girls to learn past primary school in Afghanistan. But neither are close to being a substitute for formal schooling.

It has now been almost five years since the Taliban stopped girls over 12 going to school, with various reasons given to explain why the ban is still in place.

Years in which girls like Alia have grown up without the education they wanted and needed. Years in which the path to a career has been effectively shut off, narrowing their options until millions of girls in Afghanistan have been left with just one choice: marriage.

Alia’s story is unusual, not just for her bravery. But she also comes from a family which has the funds to pursue the few opportunities available to young women – a rarity in a country where three in four people cannot meet their basic needs, according to the United Nations.

It’s not that Alia’s family do not want her to study – they accepted she wanted to stay in Kabul, and are funding her English course even now – but even they are constrained by the realities of life in Afghanistan.

“Before the ban, my parents passionately encouraged me to go to school. They told me you can definitely achieve your dream of becoming a pilot.

“But now they say the best way for me is to get married because I can’t go to school, to university, I can’t even work.”

Alia has been receiving marriage proposals. She is afraid she might have to accept one, afraid that the family she marries into might not give her the freedom her parents do. “Some families can be very restrictive. It’s possible they could tell me to forget my dreams. I don’t feel positive at all about it.”

But her resolve is steely. “If my family don’t force me to get married, I will wait. I will resist it until my very last breath.”

But resisting is hard.

In a small, bare home in the west of Kabul, we meet Shama.

“If the Taliban had not taken over, I would have almost finished school by now. I would be close to my dream of becoming a doctor. That is what I wanted,” says Shama.

Instead, four years ago, aged 18, she was pushed by her mother to get married. Now she is the mother of an infant and a toddler – both girls.

We have changed the names of her and her family for their safety.

Her mother Kamila – who worked as a cleaner to put her daughters through school after her husband died six years ago – felt she had no choice. She feared that her daughter – a young woman of marriageable age – would attract negative attention and face difficulties if she stayed single.

“I was fearful that they [foot soldiers of the Taliban government] will question why I’m not getting her married,” Kamila tells us.

“I had wanted her to be educated, work and contribute to society. I am illiterate so I am like a blind person. But I wanted my girls to learn. She [Shama] had so many dreams. But it didn’t happen for her.”

The Taliban government’s ban on education has already had an irreversible impact on the lives of countless women and girls. According to the United Nations, if the ban continues until 2030, “more than two million girls will have been deprived of education beyond primary school in a country that already has one of the lowest female literacy rates in the world.”

“Having a husband is not the only dream a woman has. She needs to stand on her own two feet first, become independent and then she can marry and start a family. But I went into this new life with none of that. My dreams remain unfulfilled,” says Shama.

Before the Taliban takeover, Shama turned down many marriage proposals.

“I refused them because my education was more important to me than anything. What I wanted for myself was not what they [prospective husbands] wanted for me,” she says.

Now she says she is constantly stressed, triggered even when she watches movies in which female characters are depicted as working or studying.

She is treated well by her husband, but the grief of not having had the chance to achieve her potential never leaves her. “It is really difficult for me. I feel like I am trapped in my home. I only live for my children,” she says.

Her 18-year-old sister Nora now fears she too will face the same fate.

“I’m too young to get married. I want to continue my education. It’s like being in prison. I fear going out because of the government, and at home my mother tells me I must get married,” Nora, who often dreams of being back in school, says.

But she doesn’t believe she will ever return to school under a Taliban government.

“The Taliban government said that schools are closed for girls until further notice. But it has been four and a half years now. We have been waiting for that message every day.”

Since 2021, the Taliban’s government’s response to the question of when school will reopen for girls has veered from one reason to another, landing now on deflection and silence.

Back in September 2021, in our first interview with a Taliban spokesman after they seized power, the spokesman said schools for girls would open, adding they were “working to improve the security situation”.

A year later, the answer was that “religious scholars have issues with the safety of girls travelling to and from school”, but they were working on the problem.

In 2024, the Taliban government’s deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat told me: “We are awaiting the decision of the leadership.”

This month, I once again met Fitrat, who didn’t want to be pictured with a woman or sit across from me. I asked how they can continue to justify the ban on secondary school and university education for women.

He answered, pointing out “that around seven million boys and five million girls are currently studying”.

“The restriction on education beyond grade six is a separate issue,” he said, directing us to the ministry of education who would “hopefully… provide a satisfactory response”.

When I pressed further, saying women and girls in Afghanistan have told us they do not believe education will ever open under the Taliban government’s watch, his response once again was to ask the education ministry.

We did ask the education ministry the same question. They did not respond.

There are divisions within the Taliban government on the issue of women’s education which have been evident to us, but the supreme leader has only hardened his stance through the years.

The women and girls remember the day schools closed for them as clearly as it was yesterday.

“All I did was cry and sob the whole day and night,” Alia recalls. “I could not sleep for a week. I felt like I was walking around like a dead body.”

“When I see men my age who have graduated and are going to university – I feel very bad, I feel like I am burning in hell,” she adds.

Women face a slew of other restrictions imposed by the Taliban’s supreme leader, vigorously enforced in some places, with a bit more freedom in others.

But the diktats evoke fear among people. The collective impact of government enforcement, and in some cases self-imposed restrictions, is that women are all but absent from public life.

Defending his government, Fitrat says “We have issued thousands of permits to women to run businesses which is a positive step.”

He also claimed that the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice – the Taliban government’s morality police – resolved more than “2,000 cases in which women had been denied their rightful share in inheritance” and “2,500 women who were being forced into marriage, or underage were assisted”.

But in this past week, the Taliban government has written into law rules that imply legal approval of child marriage, and in which a minor girl’s silence is allowed to be interpreted as consent to marriage.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ce3pgn48wnqo

The Ebola outbreak is posing massive challenges for medical aid organisations, a senior humanitarian official has said.

Kate White, who is a programme manager for the charity Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), and is flying out to the Democratic Republic of Congo, says she is “extremely concerned about the inability to get resources” to the country.

Three Red Cross volunteers who died earlier this month were among the first known victims of DR Congo’s Ebola outbreak, and likely caught it while managing dead bodies.

The outbreak has resulted in more than 200 suspected deaths and more than 850 suspected cases.

White, who flew from Manchester Airport on Sunday as part of an international relief effort, said: “It really reinforces the need to make sure that we have all of the protective measures in place.”

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently said the disease may be spreading faster than originally thought and have declared a public health emergency of international concern.

There is no approved vaccine for this outbreak, however experimental ones are in development.

There are also no drugs that target it, making the illness harder to treat.

White, from York, who has worked on previous Ebola epidemics in Africa, said: “In terms of how many years we have been seeing these outbreaks for and we still don’t have comprehensive medical countermeasures… [treatment, vaccines, diagnostic testing that can be rolled out rapidly] says something about the state of the world right now.”

She added she was also concerned about the impact of closing airspace on transporting healthcare workers and resources to affected areas.

“The pure volume of what we need to get in right now is massive.”

Improvements in the ability to confirm cases were required “across all of the geographic areas where it’s impacting because we don’t want people stuck in treatment centres if they don’t have it”, she said.

“We want to be able to discharge them as soon as they recover from it so they can go back to their families and we’re not there yet.”

What is Ebola and what are the symptoms?

Ebola is a rare but deadly disease caused by a virus.

Ebola viruses normally infect animals, but outbreaks among humans can sometimes start when people eat or handle infected animals.

It takes two to 21 days for symptoms to appear. They come on suddenly and start like the flu or malaria, with fever, headache and tiredness.

As the disease progresses, vomiting and diarrhoea develop and it can lead to organ failure. Some, but not all, patients develop internal and external bleeding.

The virus spreads from one person to another by contact with infected bodily fluids such as blood or vomit.

Ebola outbreaks used to be small and contained to remote rural areas. However, urbanisation is pushing larger populations closer to these natural reservoirs of Ebola and increasing the risk of transmission.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy421wgr2mpo

At least 20 people have been killed and 70 others injured in an explosion targeting a train transporting military personnel in Pakistan.

The blast occurred while the train was travelling through Chaman Phatak station in Quetta, the capital of the western Balochistan region, on Sunday morning.

Railway officials told BBC Urdu that three coaches and the engine were derailed while two were overturned. The shuttle service had primarily been transporting service personnel and their families who had been returning home for Eid.

The regional government said that the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) separatist group was responsible for the attack, adding that it was a suicide bombing.

The BLA had earlier claimed responsibility for the attack.

Images from the scene show burnt-out and mangled carriages and nearby cars, as well as bomb damage to a nearby building.

“The train was moving and there were passengers on board when the explosion occurred,” Naseer Ahmed, a local resident, told the BBC.

He said that, as it had been a Sunday morning, his family had been asleep when the blast happened, shattering all his windows.

Eyewitnesses said a vehicle laden with explosives drove into the train, causing the explosion.

A police officer and civil administration official in Balochistan confirmed to BBC Urdu that 20 people had been killed, with fears the death toll could rise. Officials said three soldiers were among the dead.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the attack, saying “such cowardly acts of terrorism cannot weaken the resolve of the people of Pakistan”.

“The entire nation stands in solidarity with the people of Balochistan in this hour of grief,” he added.

An emergency has been declared in hospitals treating victims.

Those aboard the train had been on their way to Quetta’s main railway station from a nearby military encampment, officials said. From there, they were due to travel to Peshawar and then on to their home towns for the holiday.

It is not the first time the BLA has targeted trains in Balochistan. In the past two years, the Jaffar Express has come under attack from the armed group many times.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cm2pkd58xldo

US President Donald Trump says he has instructed negotiators “not to rush into a deal” with Iran, after earlier suggesting an agreement was close.

The deal under discussion reportedly involves a 60-day ceasefire extension, reopening the Strait of Hormuz and a plan for further negotiations over Iran’s nuclear programme.

In a social media post, Trump said “constructive” talks were proceeding but “both sides must take their time and get it right”.

Trump said on Saturday an agreement had been “largely negotiated”, prompting speculation an announcement could be imminent.

Iranian officials gave similar signals over the weekend, with foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei saying the two sides are both “very close and very far” from reaching an agreement.

According to US media, the mooted deal is not a final settlement and instead leaves some of the thorniest issues to be negotiated later, including the scope and timing of Iranian sanctions relief, the release of frozen Iranian funds, and Washington’s demands for Iran to curb its nuclear ambitions.

On Monday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking to journalists in Delhi, said there was a “pretty solid thing on the table in terms of their ability to open up the strait” and “enter into a very real, significant, time-limited negotiation on the nuclear matter.”

The reported deal has split Republicans, with some publicly arguing it is too lenient on Iran.

Senator Ted Cruz said it would be “a disastrous mistake”, while Roger Wicker, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, said a 60-day ceasefire would mean “everything accomplished by Operation Epic Fury would be for naught!”

But Representative Mike Lawler, who sits on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said the administration has managed to “force the remnants of this regime into a negotiation, a real negotiation”.

The US and Israel launched wide-ranging strikes on Iran on 28 February, sparking conflict across the Middle East. Iran responded by attacking Israel and US-allied states in the Gulf, and effectively closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas travels. The move sent oil prices soaring globally.

Shortly after a ceasefire was agreed in early April, the US established a blockade of Iranian ports which Trump says will remain “in full force and effect until an agreement is reached, certified, and signed”.

In Sunday’s post on Truth Social, Trump reiterated that Iran “must understand” it cannot develop a nuclear weapon. Tehran has repeatedly said its nuclear programme is solely for peaceful purposes.

Some reports in US media suggest the deal could see Iran agree to eventually hand over its highly-enriched uranium.

At the start of the war, Iran is thought to have had about 440kg (970 lbs) of uranium that was enriched up to 60% purity – a short process away from being enriched further to the weapons-grade 90%, which theoretically could allow it to create a nuclear bomb.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told state TV Iran was ready “to assure the world that we are not after a nuclear weapon.”

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/clyp0040x7po 

The insistence on financial compensation aligns directly with Iran’s controversial establishment of the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA)

Delivering a severe blow to international expectations of a swift diplomatic breakthrough, Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces, Field Marshal Asim Munir, departed from the Iranian capital on Saturday afternoon without securing a final peace agreement between Washington and Tehran. Acting as the critical “direct messenger” and official intermediary in the hyper-volatile US-Iran conflict, Munir’s high-stakes weekend sprint concluded with Iran’s leadership flatly refusing to sign a permanent truce without immediate economic concessions.

Despite the lack of an immediate signature, top diplomatic sources maintain that the peace track remains alive. Characterising the razor-thin margin of the negotiations, Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, noted that the two warring capitals are simultaneously “very far and very close” to a consensus. Tehran is currently bypassing long-term comprehensive treaties to focus narrowly on finalising a crucial Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Washington to prevent a catastrophic resumption of full-scale warfare.

The Dual Proposals: Tehran’s Hardline Leverage on the Table

According to highly placed diplomatic sources close to the backchannel circuit, the Iranian executive framework presented two distinct operational proposals to the Pakistani mediators and visiting Qatari interlocutors during the intense Saturday sessions. Both strategies are anchored to a resolute mandate: “No deal without cash.”

The strategic parameters of the twin Iranian proposals outline a strict transactional sequencing:

The Maritime Counter-Offer: Iran has formally offered to fully reopen the heavily blockaded Strait of Hormuz to international shipping—restoring the flow of a fifth of global energy supplies—but strictly in exchange for the United States paying massive, structured financial compensation to Tehran for port and trade damages.

The Sequencing Prerequisite: The Iranian delegation has demanded the total removal of unilateral US banking sanctions and the verifiable release of billions of dollars in frozen Iranian funds overseas before any final, direct bilateral peace talks can legally commence.

The Toll Gate Deadlock: Rubio and Ghalibaf Exchange Warnings

The insistence on financial compensation aligns directly with Iran’s controversial establishment of the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA). Managed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the authority has begun enforcing an aggressive tolling system, demanding up to $2 million per vessel for safe transit through the chokepoint.

The economic demand has met with fierce resistance in Washington. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio explicitly red-flagged the mechanism, warning that a permanent Iranian tolling system over an international waterway remains entirely “unacceptable” to the Trump administration. Rubio noted that while the White House prefers a negotiated solution, the President maintains “other options” on the table—a statement coinciding with intelligence leaks that the US military is actively evaluating fresh surgical strikes if backchannel diplomacy collapses.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/no-deal-without-cash-asim-munir-leaves-tehran-empty-handed-as-iran-demands-us-compensation-exclusive-details-10108757.html

Under a new rule, green cards will be issued in applicants’ home countries.

The US government announced a new rule on Friday requiring foreigners to leave the United States and apply for green cards from within their home countries.

The announcement is as the latest maneuver in a series of attempts the Trump administration has taken to restrict and limit immigration for people from dozens of countries.

What did the USCIS say about the new rule?

“From now on, an alien who is in the US temporarily and wants a green card must return to their home country to apply, except in extraordinary circumstances,” US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) spokesman Zach Kahler said in a statement.

“Nonimmigrants, like students, temporary workers, or people on tourist visas, come to the US for a short time and for a specific purpose,” Kahler said, adding, “Our system is designed for them to leave when their visit is over.”

“Their visit should not function as the first step in the green card process.”

Kahler said having green card seekers apply from their home nation “reduces the need to find and remove those who decide to slip into the shadows and remain in the US illegally after being denied residency.”

Announcement sows confusion

According to The Washington Post, more than one million green cards are issued each year in the US and, up until now, more than half of the applicants are already in the US.

Immigration experts are trying to understand the policy memo to decipher who it would apply to.

USCIS has not clarified the details about the new rule, like when the change would be implemented, whether individuals would be required to stay in another country throughout the entire process, or how the new rule would apply to foreigners whose green card applications are already underway.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/us-tells-green-card-seekers-to-apply-from-abroad/a-77270868

Authorities braced for the possibility that a damaged chemical tank in Southern California could leak or explode as an evacuation order continued into the Memorial Day weekend for 40,000 residents with no timeline on when they can return.

No injuries were reported after the pressurized tank overheated Thursday and began venting vapors at a company site in Garden Grove, according to the Orange County Fire Authority. Garden Grove is about 40 miles (60 kilometers) south of downtown Los Angeles. Several shelters remained open Saturday, including at three high schools.

But officials said the valves on the tank are broken or “gummed up,” so that prevented crews from removing the chemical or relieving the pressure on the tank, said Craig Covey, Orange County Fire Authority division chief.

Firefighters’ first hope is to find a way to cool off the chemical inside the tank so it won’t leak or explode. If that’s not possible, Purdue University engineering professor Andrew Whelton said it would be best if the tank sprang a leak so the chemical could be mostly contained. An explosion that could spread the chemical over a broad area and send shrapnel from the tank flying would be the worst-case scenario.

If the temperature inside the tank continues to increase, the pressure will continue to build as the methyl methacrylate converts from a liquid to a gas, because officials said the pressure relief valves on the tank were no longer working. Whelton said it’s unlikely that firefighters would consider creating a hole in the tank because of fears that could create a spark that might ignite the volatile and flammable gas.

In an early evening post on the social platform X, Covey said drones were monitoring temperatures at 10-minute intervals to watch for any spikes. Planning was underway to ensure that if there is a leak, it can quickly be prevented from spreading into waterways or the ocean, he said.

“Sitting back and allowing these tanks to fail is unacceptable,” Covey said, adding that there was no guarantee that tanks will not breach and leak. “Our goal is to protect your homes — no damage to them — and protect the environment.”

Tank wasn’t cooling as first thought

Efforts to cool the tank appeared to be working Friday, but Covey backtracked the following day, saying a reading conducted by drones actually showed the temperature on the outside of the tank, not the inside.

“Unfortunately I do have to report that the temperature was 90 degrees,” Covey said, up from 77 the previous morning.

Cooling the tank is important because the liquid chemical’s flashpoint is 50 Fahrenheit (10 Celsius), according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.

Residents are frustrated and stressed

Initially people in Garden Grove were ordered to leave. Evacuation orders were then expanded to some parts of five other Orange County cities — Cypress, Stanton, Anaheim, Buena Park and Westminster. Some people with pets planned to sleep in their cars.

Marco Solano, 32, spent Friday night at his parents’ home, frustrated by the situation and monitoring the news to see if he could go home.

“I don’t think that they should have dangerous chemicals in a neighborhood area, especially that dangerous that they have to evacuate people,” Solano said. “But again, it’s not up to me. I don’t make the laws. I don’t make the rules. We just have to do what is best I guess.”

Solano, who has multiple jobs, said he felt very tired and weak and believed the stress of the chemical leak was exacerbating his anemia and ulcerative colitis.

“This has been affecting me quite a bit,” he said.

Solano also said he went to his apartment after work Friday to grab belongings and saw other residents who had not evacuated, and he was worried for them.

Exposure could lead to health problems

The damaged tank is located at GKN Aerospace, which makes parts for commercial and military aircraft. It holds 6,000 to 7,000 gallons (22,700 and 26,500 liters) of methyl methacrylate, used to make plastic parts.

Exposure to methyl methacrylate can cause serious respiratory problems and even render someone unconscious. It can also cause neurological problems and irritate the skin, eyes and throat, according to fact sheets about the chemical. But Orange County health officials said the chemical is easy to smell, and residents may notice it over a large area without being harmed.

Whelton said the volume of chemical in the tank is much smaller than in the disastrous 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, which he studied when more than 115,000 gallons (435,000 liters) of vinyl chloride was released after officials blew open five tank cars and burned the chemical.

“Many of these are acute, fast-acting effects. But the longer somebody stays in contact with it, the more potential for significant damage that occurs,” Whelton said.

If there is an explosion, officials said they expect “severe structural damage and significant harm” in the blast zone closest to the tank.

If an explosion releases the chemical into the air, Whelton said, it will be crucial to conduct detailed air monitoring specifically for methyl methacrylate and not just generic tests for volatile organic compounds as officials did in East Palestine. General tests, often completed with handheld detectors, may not be capable of detecting the chemical. Indoor tests of buildings and homes may also be needed before residents return home.

The weather will be an important factor in determining where a plume of chemicals would go in the event of an explosion. Officials were developing maps to predict different scenarios about which areas would be most affected.

Meanwhile containment barriers have been set up to prevent the chemical from getting into storm drains or reaching creeks or the nearby ocean in the event of a spill, Covey said.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/california-chemical-tank-leak-c1f922cae0ddb142857d12aee08d2d6b

A gunman who fired at a White House checkpoint ‌was shot by officers and died after being taken to the hospital on Saturday evening, the Secret Service said.
The man approached the ​checkpoint at 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue near the ​White House, pulled a gun out of his bag ⁠and started shooting at officers, according to a Secret ​Service statement sent to Reuters. Officers returned fire and shot ​the suspect, the agency said.

A bystander was struck by gunfire, the statement said, but it did not make clear how badly the person ​was hurt. Another Secret Service statement, cited by multiple news ​outlets, said it was not clear whether the bystander was hit when ‌the ⁠gunman began shooting or during the subsequent exchange of gunfire.
The shooting suspect was identified as an emotionally disturbed person, a law enforcement official told Reuters, adding that a “stay-away order” had ​been issued ​to him previously.
No ⁠law enforcement personnel were injured, the Secret Service said, adding that President Donald Trump was ​at the White House during the incident.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-secret-service-investigates-reports-shots-near-white-house-2026-05-23/

Meta and Google enlisted trusted children’s brands such as Sesame Street, Girl Scouts and Highlights magazine to teach kids to use technology in moderation – even as the companies designed apps that made it difficult for those same young users to unplug, public statements and internal documents show.
Backed by tens of millions of dollars from ​the tech giants, these organizations delivered lessons about personal responsibility to hundreds of thousands of children and parents, using colorful magazines, popular characters and catchy songs, according to public statements.

Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O), Google and Meta’s (META.O), sponsorships of those lessons are fueling ‌criticism that the companies are finding new ways to encourage kids to become dependent on social media, particularly by partnering with brands aimed at children younger than 12, an age pediatricians say is often too young for smartphone ownership.
The partnerships also weaken trust in decades-old institutions families have relied on for advice on raising kids, parent advocates said, at a time when the tech giants are facing down multiple lawsuits accusing them of designing addictive products that harmed youth mental health. The first case to reach trial ended with a $6 million judgment against the two companies.

“It’s like Sesame Street teaming up with Philip Morris to teach kids how to smoke cigarettes safely,” said Rose Bronstein, ​whose 15-year-old son died by suicide after he was bullied online. “How is it any different?”
Meta and Google’s properties generate billions of dollars in advertising revenue from businesses marketing to minors. That economic incentive, critics say, makes it difficult for the companies to offer unbiased ​guidance on screen use.
“Their very business model relies on maximum time on device,” said Emily Boddy, co-lead of U.S. Smartphone Free Childhood, a parent group that advocates against phones in schools. “Their guidance or advice can’t be ⁠neutral, and we see that it’s not.”
Corporations, ranging from soda companies to the tobacco industry, have long made donations to “trusted institutions” to improve their reputations, said Nora Kenworthy, a public health researcher at the University of Washington Bothell.

Republicans in the U.S. Congress have revolted over President Donald Trump’s $1.776 billion fund for people he says ​were victims of government “weaponization,” setting the stage for a searing battle less than six months before midterm elections.
On Thursday, the Senate called timeout on a $72 billion spending bill on immigration enforcement, which ‌has become a battleground over the “anti-weaponization” fund, after many Republican senators demanded that it either be killed or subjected to tough guardrails.

Democrats, meanwhile, have also pledged to use the immigration bill to stage an attack on the fund.
Just one day earlier, Senate Majority Leader John Thune blocked $1 billion in federal funding for a lavish White House ballroom that Trump has already begun building. He said he did not have the Republican votes for it.
On Friday, Trump shot back.
“I am helping others, who were so badly abused by an evil, ​corrupt, and weaponized Biden Administration, receive, at long last, JUSTICE!” the president wrote on his social media platform.
This battle of wills between the president and his party, stoked by recent primary election victories of Trump-endorsed ​challengers over sitting lawmakers, threatens to intensify when Congress returns from recess next month, and could reverberate into the November midterms.

“The American people are going to reject this ⁠out of hand,” Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina said of the anti-weaponization fund, whose beneficiaries could include those convicted in connection with the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
While many Republican senators were uncharacteristically ​mum coming out of a Thursday meeting on the spending bill, Tillis and others were clear on just how politically unpalatable the president’s demands had become.
“(The fund) could potentially compensate someone who assaulted a police officer, admitted their guilt, ​got convicted, got pardoned and now we’re going to pay them for that? That’s absurd,” Tillis, who is not running for reelection, said in a Thursday interview with Spectrum News.

LAWMAKERS MANEUVER OVER ‘ANTI-WEAPONIZATION’ FUND

Republican Representative Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, who faces a tough reelection battle this fall, teamed up with Democratic Representative Tom Suozzi of New York on legislation to prohibit the payment of any claims submitted to the fund.

Retiring Representative Don Bacon of Nebraska said the ballroom and anti-weaponization funds in the immigration spending bill had become “poison ​pills” for House Republicans who face tough reelection campaigns.
With Republicans holding only slim majorities in both houses of Congress, it would only take a handful of defiant lawmakers to defeat Trump’s proposals.
But skepticism runs deep that congressional Republicans, who ​until recently have been loyal to the president on matters from tariffs to spending cuts to the Iran war, were ready to break ranks.
“We’ve heard this talk for 10 years now of rebellion and cracks in the coalition. It has never ‌happened,” said Doug ⁠Heye, a longtime Republican strategist.
He said Republicans are “constantly capitulating” on matters important to Trump, and that any revolt would be “light years” away.

Many of Trump’s backers in Congress, including Republican Representatives Abraham Hamadeh of Arizona and John Rose of Tennessee, have stepped up to defend him.
“Not a single congressional Republican was elected to oppose President Trump,” Hamadeh posted on X, adding: “Yet an insurgency is already brewing” in the Senate. “STOP slamming the brakes on the America First agenda.”
Peter Ticktin, an attorney representing more than 400 January 6 defendants, said he was confident his clients will receive payouts despite congressional pushback.
“They’re fools if they think this is going to work,” Ticktin said of Senate Republicans who oppose the fund. “It’s still ​going to go through, and those opposing the fund ​will suffer in future elections.”

DEMOCRATS IN CONGRESS WILL ⁠FORCE DIFFICULT VOTES

Meanwhile the Democrats, while largely powerless as the minority party in both houses of Congress, are seizing on what they see as the president’s politically tone-deaf proposals.
They have contrasted the plight of U.S. consumers struggling amid inflation to pay their bills, with Trump’s lavish ballroom plans and the large sums of government money he might direct to the ​January 6 rioters or other allies.
“Is it possible on May 21, 2026, Republicans finally found an ethical bridge too far?” Senator Dick Durbin, the second-highest-ranking member of ​the Democrats’ Senate leadership, said ⁠at a Thursday press conference.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer on Thursday portrayed Republicans as being in the throes of a “meltdown” over the ballroom and what they call a Trump “slush fund.”
One possibility for congressional Republicans after they return from recess on June 1 is to seek some sort of middle ground.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/us/republican-defiance-over-anti-weaponization-fund-sets-up-confrontation-with-2026-05-23/

DONALD Trump Jr. has officially married socialite fiancée Bettina Anderson days before the couple was set to enjoy an intimate island ceremony in the Bahamas.

The loved-up couple are still expected to celebrate in a small Memorial Day weekend ceremony in front of family and friends on a private island after quietly wedding on Thursday.

Real estate lawyer and Trump family friend Brad McPherson officiated the Palm Beach union, according to TMZ who published the marriage certificate on Friday.

It comes just hours after Trump Sr. confirmed he would remain at the White House for the weekend and not head to the Bahamas.

“While I very much wanted to be with my son, Don Jr, and the newest member of the Trump Family, his soon to be wife, Bettina, circumstances pertaining to Government, and my love for the United States of America, do not allow me to do so,” he wrote in a statement.

“I feel it is important for me to remain in Washington, D.C., at the White House during this important period of time. Congratulations to Don and Bettina!”

Trump Jr. popped the question to Anderson, 39, on her birthday trip to Camp David, a 125-acre country retreat for the President, on December 13 after two years of dating.

Their romance blossomed in 2024 just as his engagement to ex-Fox News host Kimberly Guilfoyle fell apart.

“I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with Bettina,” the 48-year-old reportedly said during a toast at Anderson’s Enchanted Garden-themed Mar-a-Lago bridal shower in April.

“She is smart, loving and caring.”

The exotic setting for the pair’s nuptials was a last-minute change, Page Six reported, after original plans to hold it at the White House were considered insensitive.

“They’re very aware that a lavish wedding at the White House while people are dying wouldn’t be well-received,” an insider told the news outlet.

Earlier this week, President Trump said that while he is one of the less than 50 people invited to the wedding, he could not confirm his attendance.

“He’d like me to go, but it’s going to be just a small little private affair, and I’m going to try and make it,” Trump told reporters.

“This is not good timing for me,” he added. “I have a thing called Iran and other things.”

Among the guests thought to have attended the ceremony are Ivanka Trump, Lara Trump, Tiffany Trump, and President Trump‘s ex-wife Marla Maples, all of whom previously attended the bridal shower.

Trump Jr.’s five teenage children with ex-wife Vanessa are also likely to have been in attendance as well as his brothers, Eric and Barron Trump.

However, the couple’s wedding comes at a painful time for the family, with Vanessa Trump, 48, revealing just days ago that she is dealing with breast cancer and has already had a procedure.

It is unclear whether Vanessa was invited to the wedding or if she attended given her recent diagnosis.

Vanessa and Trump Jr. were married from 2005 until 2018 and she has now moved on having found love with troubled golfer, Tiger Woods.

Meanwhile, this is Anderson’s first marriage but he was previously engaged to chewing gum heir Beau Wrigley.

“We’re all so excited for Don and Bettina as they start this new chapter together,” Ivanka Trump told Page Six, on behalf of the whole family.

“I’m incredibly happy for both of them,” Eric Trump added.

“Don and I have always been inseparable and I have a wonderful relationship and friendship with Bettina. They are fantastic together.”

On Friday, Bettina marked her birthday with an ultra-luxury dinner complete with a bottle of rare champagne worth around $1,300.

Sharing a glimpse of the indulgent evening on social media, she posted a photo of a waiter pouring the pricey bubbly alongside the caption, “S is for Spoiled.”

She also appeared to hint at her big day coming up, writing, “How sweet it is to be loved by you” while adding a James Taylor track to the post.

She then added a cryptic message, “IYKYK” — internet shorthand for “if you know, you know.”

Don Jr. also reportedly leaned into the romance, giving her a card that read: “I think you’re perfect.”

She also received a jaw-dropping diamond necklace: a 19-inch Y-shaped design crafted in 18-carat white gold and featuring more than 100 diamonds, said to be worth six figures.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16391050/donald-trump-jr-marries-bettina-anderson-wedding/

Over 240 miners were underground at the Liushenyu coal mine in Shanxi Province when the accident occurred on Friday night.

The death toll from a gas explosion at a coal mine in northern China’s Shanxi province has jumped to 90, state media reported on Saturday (May 23), in the country’s deadliest coal mine disaster in over a decade.

The blast occurred at 7.29pm on Friday at the Liushenyu coal mine in Shanxi province.

A total of 247 workers were underground at the time, most of whom were brought to the surface by Saturday morning, Xinhua said.

Nine people remain missing.

Chinese President Xi Jinping called on authorities to “spare no effort” in treating the injured and conducting search and rescue operations, while ordering a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident.

Premier Li Qiang echoed the instructions, calling for timely and accurate release of information and rigorous accountability.

The mine is operated by Shanxi Tongzhou Group Liushenyu Coal Industry, which was established in 2010 and is controlled by Shanxi Tongzhou Coal Coking Group, according to corporate database Qichacha.

Rescue operations were ongoing and the cause of the accident was under investigation, according to the local emergency management authority in Qinyuan. Shanxi is China’s coal-mining heartland.

Executives of the company responsible for the mine have been detained, Xinhua reported.

Footage published by state broadcaster CCTV showed helmeted rescuers carrying stretchers at the site, with ambulances visible in the background.

123 others were sent to the hospital for treatment, four of whom were in critical or severe condition, state broadcaster CCTV said.

Of those sent for treatment, 33 had returned home as of 2:00 pm on Saturday, it added.

A total of 755 emergency and medical personnel were dispatched to the site, with rescue efforts still ongoing Saturday afternoon, CCTV added.

“SULPHUR SMELL”

Survivor and injured miner Wang Yong told CCTV there was a “puff of smoke” and he smelled sulphur.

He recalled seeing people choked by the smoke before he fainted.

“I lay down for about an hour and woke up by myself. I called the people next to me and got out of the mine together,” Wang said, according to CCTV.

The death toll was a sharp rise from the eight fatalities reported on Saturday morning. Xinhua said in an earlier report that dozens were trapped underground after levels of carbon monoxide were found to have “exceeded limits”. Some of those trapped underground were in “critical condition”, the report said.

China has significantly reduced coal mine fatalities – often caused by gas explosions or flooding – since the early 2000s through more stringent regulations and safer practices. The Liushenyu incident, though, was one of the deadliest reported in China in the past decade.

According to official data from the National Mine Safety Administration (NMSA), over 3,000 mine accidents occurred in China between 2010 and 2025.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/china-coal-mine-blast-accident-shanxi-6136551

Police footage taken during Britney Spears’ March DUI arrest showed the princess of pop claiming to officers that her mother, Lynne Spears, once killed a man without facing consequences.

When one of the cops informed Britney that it is “extremely dangerous to drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs or both,” the “Toxic” hitmaker, 44, responded, “Yes, sir, I know. My mom actually killed a man on a bike, but I never did that before,” per video obtained by TMZ.

“And nothing happened to her! … Why didn’t they arrest her? How come my mom got away with everything?”

Britney went on to allege that her mother also “tried to kill” the pop star before starting a tense back-and-forth with cops after they told her she was being arrested.

The story is a true tale, apparently. In her 2008 memoir, “Through the Storm,” Lynne explained that she killed a 12-year-old boy named Anthony Winters in 1975 while in a hurry to rush her brother to a Kentwood, Louisiana, hospital.

“The roads were slick with rain, and as I was rounding the curve, an oncoming car was coming in the left lane,” she writes.

The book continues: “In a split second I could see two young boys riding their bikes on the road. In that flash of time, I had a sick sensation that I would hit one of them, that it would be impossible not to, as I knew my car would not stop, no matter how hard I slammed on the brakes. One boy managed to get his bike out of the way, but his friend, a 12-year-old boy whose house was right by the scene of the accident, was hit.”

Lynne, now 71, was not charged for the incident.

As Page Six reported on Thursday, additional footage taken at the scene showed Britney failing a field sobriety test and telling officers she had only had one mimosa earlier in the day while boasting of her tolerance.

“I could probably drink four bottles of wine and take care of you. I’m an angel,” she said.

Britney’s arrest report showed Britney also claimed that she had taken several prescription drugs, including the mood stabilizer Lamictal and anticonvulsant, antidepressant Prozac and Adderall.

Police caught up with Britney after several drivers reported the “Toxic” songstress, 44, to police when they saw her allegedly driving “erratically” and almost “sideswip[ing]” several vehicles while in Ventura County, according to 911 audio exclusively obtained by Page Six.

“I’m reporting an erratic driving person,” one person said in a 911 call.

The individual told the dispatch responder the location and told them how a BMW was allegedly moving “in and out of lanes” and “slamming on the brakes.”

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/05/22/celebrity-news/britney-spears-told-police-mom-lynne-killed-a-12-year-old-boy-in-dui-arrest-video/

A wedding guest for the upcoming nuptials of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce is furious after allegedly being told they’re not allowed to bring a plus-one.

“My invite did not let me bring a plus-one,” an unnamed guest claimed to the Daily Mail on Friday.

“I mean, what am I supposed to do? Go alone? That is so awkward. I don’t think I am going to attend because I don’t want to go by myself and I am not sure I will know too many people there. I mean, sorry, I am not friends with Gigi and Bella Hadid!”

The reported guest also complained that other guests appeared to have been allowed to bring a plus-one to the celebration, which is happening on July 3 in New York City.

“I know Selena Gomez is bringing her husband Benny Blanco, so she has a plus-one, but I am not allowed to have a plus-one because I am a single woman,” the guest added.

“I get it, the venue can probably allow for only so many people, but it’s not the best feeling.”

The alleged invitation request was so offensive to the guest, she said she was mulling over ditching the high-profile nuptials.

“It’s the wedding of the year, but I may sit this one out because I am shy,” the guest said of the upcoming event — which will take place at a venue only known to guests that morning.

“I get that too, she doesn’t want everyone knowing where she is getting married until the last minute for security reasons,” the insider said.

“Now it is one big guessing game, everyone is wondering where it will be. Probably a massive hotel like the Waldorf Astoria that has amazing security and access,” they added.

The pop star’s friend said she “loves” Swift, wants “the best” for her and “gets it” — but doesn’t wish to come off like a “major complainer,” per the outlet.

A rep for Swift did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment on Friday.

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/05/22/entertainment/taylor-swift-travis-kelce-wedding-guest-irked-by-alleged-invite-request/

US authorities allege Iraqi national Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi plotted to assassinate Ivanka Trump in revenge for the 2020 killing of Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani. Arrested in Turkey and extradited to the US, he is accused of ties to Iran-backed militias and multiple attacks. The report comes amid rising US-Iran tensions and discussions over possible US strikes on Iran.

First daughter of US President Donald Trump, Ivanka Trump, was allegedly targeted in an assassination plot by an Iraqi-operated, trained by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, according to a news report by the New York Post.

The suspect, identified as Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, 32, allegedly sought revenge for the 2020 US drone strike ordered by President Donald Trump in his earlier term that killed Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani.

See more

🇺🇸🇮🇷 About the IRGC-trained Iraqi national who was arrested for plotting to assassinate Ivanka Trump.

He posted a surveillance map of her Florida home on X with a threat in Arabic: “Our revenge is a matter of time.”

Mohammad Baqer Saad Al-Saadi, 32, was captured in Turkey on… https://t.co/FTgVl81twD pic.twitter.com/NLAq5FC6xb

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) May 23, 2026

According to the news report, Al-Saadi possessed a blueprint of Ivanka Trump’s Florida residence and allegedly posted online threats warning Americans that “neither your palaces nor the Secret Service will protect you.” Former Iraqi diplomat Entifadh Qanbar told the newspaper that Al-Saadi repeatedly spoke of killing Ivanka Trump “to burn down the house of Trump the way he burned down our house.”

The Iraqi national was arrested in Turkey on May 15 before being extradited to the United States. Authorities accuse him of involvement in 18 attacks and attempted attacks across Europe and North America, including alleged firebombings, shootings, stabbings, and attacks targeting Jewish sites and American diplomatic facilities.

The news report stated that Al-Saadi operated on behalf of the Iran-backed militia Kata’ib Hezbollah and maintained close ties with the IRGC. Researcher and former hostage Elizabeth Tsurkov reportedly said the suspect had close connections to Soleimani and later to his successor, Esmail Qaani.

See more

The IRGC tried to kill Ivanka Trump and had a blueprint of her house. This is likely why President Trump isn’t attending Don Jr.’s wedding. pic.twitter.com/8K6XU3lNgT

— Gina Milan (@ginamilan_) May 23, 2026

Investigators also allege that Al-Saadi used an Iraqi service passport and a travel agency as cover to move between countries and coordinate with terror cells. Despite his alleged covert role, he frequently posted on social media, sharing selfies from European landmarks and images involving weapons systems.

Al-Saadi is currently being held in solitary confinement at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn as US authorities continue their investigation, according to the New York Post.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump’s administration on Friday (local time) was preparing for a fresh round of military strikes against Iran, sources with direct knowledge of the planning told CBS News.

No final decision on strikes had been reached, the sources told CBS News.

Several members of the US military and intelligence community are said to have cancelled their plans for the Memorial Day weekend after the news of probable strikes.

As per CBS News, Trump had planned to spend Memorial Day weekend at his golf property in New Jersey but will now return to the White House, as per CBS News.

Trump on Friday (local time) said that he will be missing his son Donald Trump Jr’s wedding owing to ongoing twists and turns in the international community.

Source : https://www.freepressjournal.in/world/iraqi-national-with-alleged-irgc-links-accused-of-plotting-ivanka-trump-assassination-to-avenge-qasem-soleimani-killing-report

 

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in India on Saturday for a four-day visit amid geopolitical crosswinds and a global energy crisis triggered by the Iran war.

He arrived in the eastern city of Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) in the morning local time. His busy itinerary also includes visits to Delhi, Jaipur and Agra.

He is also due to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with energy likely to be high on the agenda.

Energy shipments through the Strait of Hormuz – a narrow waterway that has become a flashpoint since Israel and the US attacked Iran in February – have virtually ground to a halt.

Iran has used the closure of the strait as a pressure tactic in the fragile peace negotiations with the US.

India, which imports more than 80% of its energy needs, is one of the worst-affected countries as its vast population of more than 1.4 billion depends on overseas fuel supply, including cooking gas and petroleum products, to sustain daily life.

Rubio has already acknowledged the challenges facing Asia’s third-largest economy.

“We want to sell them [India] as much energy as they’ll buy. And obviously, you’ve seen, I think, we’re at historic levels of US production and US export,” he said.

There will be appetite in Delhi to boost its energy imports from the US as it will also help bridge the trade deficit that has been in India’s favour – something that has constantly irked US President Donald Trump.

The US goods trade deficit with India was $58.2bn (£43.3bn) in 2025, a 27.1% increase on 2024.

But it’s not a straightforward solution. It’s a much longer and expensive route for India to get energy shipments from the US.

And analysts say it is not logical for India to fill the current shortfall in its imports from the US.

“Energy security is going to be the key theme of this visit because the Iran situation is not going to be resolved anytime soon,” Vineet Prakash, associate professor of US studies at Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University, said.

“The US has already given a waiver to India on buying Russian oil, but Delhi is likely to push for more concessions.”

Rubio’s visit also comes under the shadow of prolonged tensions between Delhi and Washington over trade negotiations and conflicting claims on who settled the brief India-Pakistan conflict last year.

While Trump has repeatedly claimed that he brokered peace between the neighbours, Delhi has consistently denied this with its stated policy of not welcoming a third party to mediate between the nuclear-armed nations in South Asia.

What also appears to have displeased Delhi is Trump’s open affection for Pakistani army chief Asim Munir, whom the US president has called his “favourite field marshal”.

Pakistan’s peace mediation efforts between Iran and the US appear to have brought Islamabad and Washington even closer.

Prakash added that this wasn’t surprising, as Pakistan shares a long border with Iran and is strategically important for the US to keep the country close.

But Rubio is not likely to make statements around Pakistan on this trip.

“Any talks around Pakistan are likely to stay behind closed doors when Rubio meets leaders in Delhi,” Prakash added.

Meanwhile, the last few months have also seen Washington and Delhi offering an olive branch to each other.

Trump’s decision to lower reciprocal tariffs on India earlier this year from 50% to 18% after a 10-month impasse was met with a huge sense of relief in Delhi.

Following a US Supreme Court verdict against his sweeping duties, the levies were reduced to 10%, further easing pressure on Indian exporters.

The reduction in tariffs came after India committed to buy more American goods, including energy, aircrafts, technology and agricultural products worth $500bn, in an interim trade agreement in February.

The two sides are currently negotiating the final text of a broader bilateral deal, but further details of the negotiations remain sketchy.

Trade experts, meanwhile, are circumspect about the big numbers being thrown around because India’s current trade with the US is at a fraction of the $500bn figure and Trump’s announcements haven’t been met with tangible investment commitments from India yet.

For instance, Mukesh Ambani, one of India’s richest men, has been conspicuously silent on Trump’s pronouncement that his company Reliance Industries will back a $300bn oil refinery in Brownsville, Texas – the first in the US in 50 years.

But amid uncertainty around what the final text of the trade agreement with the US will entail, India’s exports to the US remained stable at $87.3bn in the year ended March 2026.

“Exports rose 0.9% year-on-year despite steep reciprocal tariffs between May 2025 and February 2026,” Ajay Srivastava of the Global Trade and Research Initiative think tank told the BBC.

And they have continued to rise further as the levies were brought down, with $8.5bn worth of Indian goods shipped to the US in April.

This reflected “continued positive impact of the lowered tariffs”, Crisil Research said, adding, though, that “given uncertainties around tariff levels, the trajectory of India’s exports to the US remains monitorable”.

Amid the uncertainties, India has also been forced to liberalise its notoriously protectionist trade policy. Delhi has expeditiously closed advanced free trade agreements (FTAs) with a range of other countries and blocs, including the UK, EU, Australia and Oman.

While Trump has said India will lower all tariff and non-tariff barriers on US goods to zero, these deals “provide a framework under which both parties could safeguard some sectors”, Pranjul Bhandari of HSBC said following the tariff withdrawal.

This shows that despite a broad opening up of the economy to US companies, sectors like agriculture and dairy could remain fiercely protected even once the final trade deal between India and the US is inked.

Beyond trade, what will be interesting to watch is what public statements the secretary of state makes on India’s role in the Iran war.

Rubio knows that India will always be reluctant to play any role beyond diplomacy in keeping the Strait open. Delhi is against Trump’s repeated exhortations to other countries to deploy military assets to ensure free shipping in the troubled waterway.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87qrwyyrn2o

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has tried to reassure allies over US decisions on troop deployments in Europe.

Rubio’s intervention at the end of a Nato foreign ministers’ meeting in Sweden came after President Donald Trump said the US would send an extra 5,000 troops to Poland.

That decision was a week after a planned deployment of 4,000 troops to the country was cancelled and days after an announcement that US troops would be pulled out of Germany.

The announcements have caused confusion among the allies of the trans-Atlantic defence organisation. However, at a news conference after the Nato meeting on Friday, Rubio said the US was constantly reevaluating its troop presence in view of its global commitments.

Some US troops are currently involved in the Middle East, following the US and Israeli conflict with Iran.

Trump made the announcement about the new Polish deployment as Nato ministers were in Sweden for talks.

Writing on his Truth Social platform on Thursday, Trump said the decision was based on the US’s relationship with Polish President Karol Nawrocki, whom he backed during presidential elections last year and who is a long-time supporter of his.

The US leader did not elaborate on whether the additional troops were part of the previous planned deployment or a different operation.

The US defence department abruptly said last week it was cancelling the deployment of 4,000 troops to Poland.

Earlier this month, the US announced it would withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany after a row between Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz over the war with Iran.

It is unclear whether the additional troops for Poland were part of those withdrawing from Germany or a separate group.

The Nato foreign ministers’ meeting in Helsingborg was held in the aftermath of the seemingly contradictory US announcements.

“It is confusing indeed, and not always easy to navigate,” Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard said as she hosted her colleagues.

However, her US counterpart said it was “well understood in the alliance that the United States troop presence in Europe is going to be adjusted”.

“That work was already ongoing and it’s been done in co-ordination with our allies,” Rubio said.

Acknowledging the unease, he added: “I’m not saying they’re going to be thrilled about it, but they certainly are aware of it.”

The US is by far the biggest and most capable member of Nato – the Euro-Atlantic alliance that includes 30 European countries as well as Canada.

It has maintained troops in European countries for decades – as a deterrent force originally meant to face off to the Soviet Union.

Since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the US’s European allies have urged Washington to remain committed to their defence.

The largest US presence is in Germany, where there are more than 36,000 troops on active duty. There are some 12,000 troops in Italy and 10,000 in the UK – and an estimated 10,000 in Poland, too.

Trump has often been critical of Nato – at times threatening to pull the US out of the alliance because of the low financial contribution of European allies and Canada compared to the US.

As a result, many countries have now agreed to raise their defence spending.

However, the US president has further been angered by the refusal of Nato countries to help the US in its conflict with Iran.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cedpz9669deo

The public health risk from the current Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been raised from “high” to “very high” by the World Health Organization (WHO).

In an update on Friday, WHO head Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus also said the risk in the wider region in Africa was “high”, but it remained “low” globally.

The rare species of Ebola, known as Bundibugyo, has no proven vaccine and kills about a third of those infected. So far, the outbreak centred on DR Congo has resulted in 177 suspected deaths and 750 suspected cases.

It comes as scientists at Oxford University in the UK are developing a new vaccine that could be ready for clinical trials within two to three months.

Based on the same technology they developed for the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine, there are no guarantees it will prove effective and it will take animal research and trials on people to know if it will be.

The BBC understands animal testing is already under way in Oxford.

The Serum Institute of India is lined up to mass produce the Ebola vaccine once Oxford can supply medical-grade material.

A separate experimental Bundibugyo vaccine is also in development, but it is expected to take six to nine months for any dose to be ready for testing.

Dr Vasee Moorthy, WHO’s research and development adviser, described that vaccine as “the most promising” earlier this week.

He said it would be the equivalent of Ervebo, which is already in use for the more common Zaire species of Ebola.

Speaking at Friday’s news briefing in Geneva, Tedros said: “We are now revising our risk assessment to very high at the national level, high at the regional level, and low at the global level.”

He said that “so far, 82 cases have been confirmed in DRC, with seven confirmed deaths”.

Tedros added the situation in neighbouring Uganda – where there have been two confirmed cases of the Bundibugyo species and one death – was “stable”, with both cases from people who had travelled from neighbouring DR Congo.

Ebola is a rare but deadly disease caused by a virus. Although less deadly than other Ebola species, the rarity of Bundibugyo means there are fewer tools to stop it.

Ebola viruses normally infect animals, typically fruit bats, but outbreaks among humans can sometimes start when people eat or handle infected animals.

On Sunday, the WHO declared a public health emergency of international concern, but said it was not at pandemic level.

The WHO chief also said on Friday it was crucial to build trust, warning that violence and insecurity in the war-ravaged region were hampering the response to the Ebola outbreak.

Some Ebola cases have also been confirmed in rebel-held areas of the DR Congo.

Tedros was speaking after angry relatives set fire to a hospital in the eastern DR Congo after health workers had refused to release the body of a patient, because of the risk of contamination.

“They started throwing projectiles at the hospital,” local politician Luc Malembe Malembe told the BBC about the scene he witnessed at Rwampara General Hospital.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cr7p30m1dn1o

Pounding rain and strong winds did not stop more than 5,000 spectators from turning up at a football stadium in Suwon, just south of Seoul, on Wednesday night.

Wrapped in raincoats, they cheered and booed, their screams sweeping across the stands as a rare match unfolded on the pitch: North Korea vs South Korea.

But there was something more unusual. Hundreds of South Koreans appeared to be cheering with loud cries of “Naegohyang”, the name of the visiting North Korean club. They had been brought together by local NGOs who did wanted them to cheer both sides.

The North Koreans’ participation was initially met with scepticism: the relationship between the two sides has soured in recent years as Kim Jong Un tested a record number of ballistic missiles and continued pursuing nuclear ambitions. In 2023, he formally abandoned Pyongyang’s long-standing goal of reunification with the South and has since designated it a “hostile state”.

But the team arrived as expected, the first athletes to travel south of the border since 2018 – and the Naegohyang Women’s Football Club marked the return with a win in the semi-final of the Asian Women’s Champions League.

They beat South Korea’s Suwon FC Women 2-1, with second-half goals from Choe Kum Ok and Kim Kyong Yong. Tonight they will face Japan’s Tokyo Verdy Beleza in the final.

For football fans and those who have followed North Korea’s record, the result did not come as a surprise.

North Korea has long held a strong reputation in women’s football. It stands 11th in Fifa rankings, the second-highest ranked Asian side after Japan.

Founded in Pyongyang in 2012, Naegohyang won the North Korean league title in 2022. The squad includes several players from the national team and is currently managed by a former head coach of the women’s national team.

“North Korea is highly focused on discovering and training young football talent,” said Kim Yong-hyun, a professor of North Korean Studies at Dongguk University in Seoul.

Kim Jong Un, who like his father is known for his strong interest in sports, pledged to turn North Korea into a “sporting powerhouse” soon after taking power in 2011.

The Pyongyang International Football School, built in 2013 on Rungna Island in the capital, is regarded as a cradle for elite football players, training promising youth from across the country.

“Even in the 1990s, when I was training in North Korea, there was already a well-established system in schools to nurture young athletic talent,” said Kim Sang-yoon, a former North Korean national boxer who defected in the 2000s.

“At elite sports schools, talented students were usually selected and trained from elementary or middle school.”

The reclusive dictatorship’s footballing success often stands out given its economy has been hit hard by Western sanctions over its nuclear programme, which takes up a large portion of its national budget.

Although the families powering the regime lead wealthy lives, North Korea is still one of the poorest countries in the world. The average person struggles to earn much in a state-controlled economy, and leaving for a better life elsewhere is a dangerous choice. If caught, they could end up in prison or a labour camp.

And yet the top-down emphasis on women’s football has paid off, analysts say, even serving as propaganda for a regime that is always looking for wins on the world stage.

For the athletes, success offers a rare opportunity to improve their social status.

In some cases, star athletes have reportedly been rewarded with luxury cars, apartments and even membership in the ruling Workers’ Party. The last is a huge boost in status in North Korea’s deeply hierarchical society.

The women’s success has also brought them a lot of public attention in the country, making the game very popular, said North Korean defector and former athlete Han Seol-song.

North Korean women’s football has already built an impressive record, including victories at the 2024 Fifa U-20 Women’s World Cup, the 2025 Fifa U-17 Women’s World Cup and the 2026 AFC U-17 Women’s Asian Cup: achievements that far outshine those of the men’s side.

“The biggest weakness of North Korean male athletes is their smaller physique,” said Heo Jeong-pil, who studies North Korean sports.

“To compete with Western athletes in terms of physical condition, they would need comprehensive management, including a meat-heavy diet and sufficient nutrition, but in most cases that is not possible.”

North Korean women, on the other hand, “are very tough and resilient”, Han said, reflecting a widely-held perception of them as hardworking and resourceful breadwinners in a country where everyday life can be incredibly hard.

He added, cautiously, that he did not want to sound “sexist” but he believed North Korean female athletes had a better chance of achieving strong international results than men because women’s sports leagues have not always been as competitive globally – especially at the time when Pyongyang decided to focus on developing the sport.

Some observers believe this goes back to the late 1980s when Fifa agreed to start a World Cup for women. “Maybe someone came to Kim Jong-il and said to him that we could use this,” Brigitte Weich, a filmmaker who followed the North Korean team for five years to make a documentary, told BBC Sport in 2024.

“North Korea is not the best in economics, science, human rights and the rest, but in countries like this they can be good at some sports because, from the top down, they can focus on training and nothing else.”

It’s impossible to know what ordinary North Koreans make of this week’s win, or how many of them were even able to watch Wednesday’s match given they have limited access to the internet or media.

But South Koreans will be watching – and on Saturday again, there will be a cheering squad, courtesy the Unification Ministry, although their decision to fund it has drawn some criticism.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cewpz05k941o

NATO foreign ministers are meeting in Sweden after Washington apparently reversed its plans to reduce its troop deployments to Poland. Meanwhile, Germany says defense spending will cross 4% of GDP.

An explosion in a coal mine in northern China has killed at least 82 people, with some still unaccounted for, state media say. President Xi Jinping has demanded an “all-out” effort to search for and rescue those missing.

At least 82 people have died after a gas explosion at a coal mine in northern China, state media reported on Saturday.

Rescuers were still searching “intensively” for nine people who remained unaccounted for, according to state news agency Xinhua.

The blast took place at 7:29 pm (1129 GMT/UTC) on Friday at the Liushenyu coal mine in Qinyuan county in Shanxi, one of China’s poorer provinces, with 247 ⁠workers ​on duty ​underground, Xinhua said

Xinhua reported that most had been brought safely to ​the surface by early Saturday.

What else do we know about the Chinese coal mine accident?

Earlier, Xinhua said that levels of carbon monoxide had “exceeded limits” at the mine. Some of those trapped underground were in “critical condition,” it said.

Chinese President Xi Jinping urged authorities to “spare no ‌effort” in treating the injured and conducting ‌search ​and rescue operations, according to Xinhua.

Xi also ordered a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident and strict ​accountability in accordance with the law.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/china-dozens-dead-in-coal-mine-blast-state-media/a-77270811

SpaceX’s 12th Starship test flight took place just two days after Elon Musk announced that he was taking the company public.

SpaceX on Friday launched its latest edition of the Starship spacecraft as Elon Musk’s rocket company is nearing a record-breaking public listing.

The voyage experienced a few minor issues, but SpaceX employees erupted in cheers in a livestream.

The trial flight comes as SpaceX prepares for what could be the biggest initial public offering in history next month.

SpaceX launches its 12th Starship

The third-generation Starship, dubbed V3, blasted off from the southern tip of Texas at just after 5:30 pm local time (2230 GMT).

The test ended about an hour later when the mammoth rocket reached the Indian Ocean before erupting in flames upon impact.

“You scored a goal for humanity,” Musk wrote on X.

At just over 407 feet (124 meters) when fully stacked, the latest design is bigger than the older Starship lines.

It’s the 12th test flight of the rocket designed for future NASA missions to the moon and even Mars.

NASA’s new Moon mission

Ahead of the launch, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said during the pre-launch SpaceX program: “We’re looking forward to seeing this fly, because hopefully at some point in the not too distant future we’re going to join up in Earth orbit.”

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/spacex-launches-biggest-starship-rocket-yet-in-test-flight/a-77270730

 

Online service providers will need to include safeguards that limit account registration and ownership by those under the age of 16. They will also need to implement stronger content governance on their platforms.

From Jun 1, Malaysia will require digital platforms to include safeguards that limit account registration and ownership by those under the age of 16.

They will also need to implement stronger content governance on their platforms.

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) announced these new rules on Friday (May 22) that seek to reduce youths’ exposure to harmful content on digital platforms.

They are aimed at “providing age-appropriate protections and restrictions for high-risk features on online platforms”, the MCMC said.

It added that a reasonable grace period would be given to service providers to complete verification processes and comply with the new requirements.

“The implementation approach under the codes remains outcome-based, allowing service providers the flexibility to adopt appropriate solutions that meet safety, privacy and legal requirements,” the regulator said, as reported by NST.

Malaysia has in recent years stepped up scrutiny of social media companies after finding a sharp rise in harmful online content, Reuters reported. Malaysian authorities consider online gambling, scams, child pornography and grooming, cyberbullying and content related to race, religion and royalty as harmful.

The government plans age verification for users in 2026, following similar moves around the world to limit social media use among minors.

CNA previously reported that countries around the world have been mulling social media bans for those under 16, even as tech firms have touted their own child safety features and warned of unintended effects in their bid to push back against more regulation.

In March, Indonesia started enforcing a social media ban for under-16s in a bid to shield some 70 million children from the threats of online pornography, cyberbullying and internet addiction.

And just this week, the country said that it is mulling an e-commerce ban for those under 16.

Experts said that while tech firms can highlight how they are already protecting children on their respective platforms, the debate has moved beyond safety tools to whether they can demonstrate systemic and enforceable measures.

Just this week, MCMC ordered TikTok to take action against “offensive and defamatory” content about Malaysia’s monarchy.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/malaysia-minors-harmful-online-content-regulation-6136566

Analysts say Islamabad is seeking to strengthen ties with Beijing while navigating relations with the United States and Iran.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s upcoming visit to China is being closely watched as Islamabad seeks to balance relations with major global and regional powers at a time of growing geopolitical uncertainty.

The visit, which comes as Pakistan and China mark 75 years of diplomatic ties, is expected to focus on economic cooperation and progress on infrastructure projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Observers say the timing of the trip – scheduled from Saturday (May 23) to Tuesday – holds diplomatic significance beyond Pakistan-China relations as it comes shortly after visits to Beijing by United States President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this month.

Sharif last visited China in September 2025, when both countries agreed to deepen cooperation across sectors including trade and infrastructure.

RAISING DIPLOMATIC PROFILE

Analysts say the upcoming visit reflects Islamabad’s broader foreign policy to strengthen relations with Beijing, while also raising Pakistan’s diplomatic profile on the global stage.

Pakistan and China have both called for de-escalation in the Middle East, where tensions have raised concerns over regional stability and energy security.

Islamabad has also increasingly positioned itself as a diplomatic intermediary between the US and Iran amid tensions involving the two countries, which escalated at the end of February.

“This is a very important year for (the) Pakistan-China relationship, and then in the context of the mediatory role which Pakistan is playing between (the) United States and Iran. So, we should expect something very important,” former Pakistani ambassador to Malaysia Shahid Kiani told CNA.

In March, Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar travelled to Beijing, where both countries jointly proposed a five-point initiative aimed at restoring peace and stability in the Gulf and the wider Middle East region.

The visit also carries economic significance, as China and Pakistan depend heavily on oil and gas shipments passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global energy route affected by instability linked to the Iran conflict.

Analysts warn that prolonged disruption in the strait could place additional pressure on Pakistan’s economy, which remains reliant on an International Monetary Fund bailout programme after a severe financial crisis.

TALKS ON ECONOMIC CORRIDOR EXPECTED

Discussions are also expected to focus on the CPEC, a flagship project under China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

The multi-billion-dollar initiative connects China’s northwestern Xinjiang region to Pakistan’s Gwadar Port on the Arabian Sea through roads, railways and energy projects.

Analysts expect both countries to review the progress of ongoing projects.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/pakistan-prime-minister-shehbaz-sharif-visit-china-6136246

Investigators said that Mohammad Al-Saadi had pledged to kill Ivanka Trump and even possessed a blueprint of her Florida residence where she lived with her husband Jared Kushner.

A recently arrested man accused of links with Iran-backed terror networks allegedly plotted to assassinate US President Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka Trump in an attempt to avenge the killing of Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani in the recent US-Israeli strikes, according to a report by the New York Post.

The suspect, identified as 32-year-old Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, was reportedly captured in Turkey and later extradited to the United States.

Investigators claimed that he had pledged to kill Ivanka Trump and even possessed a blueprint of her Florida residence where she lived with her husband Jared Kushner.

Revenge plot after Sasem Soleimani killing

According to the report, the Iraqi national targeted the Trump family following the 2020 US drone strike in Baghdad that killed Soleimani.

Entifadh Qanbar, a former deputy military attaché at the Iraqi embassy in Washington, told the publication that Al-Saadi had openly spoken about seeking revenge.

“After Qasem was killed, he went around telling people ‘we need to kill Ivanka to burn down the house of Trump the way he burned down our house,’” Qanbar said.

He also claimed that Al-Saadi had a plan of Ivanka Trump’s house in Florida.

Social media threats

Al-Saadi allegedly posted an image on X showing the Florida area where Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner own a 24-million-dollar home.

The post included a message in Arabic warning Americans that “neither your palaces nor the Secret Service will protect you” and claiming that surveillance and analysis were already underway.

US authorities say Al-Saadi is a senior figure within Iraq-Iran terror circles and an operative linked to both Kata’ib Hezbollah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Al-Saadi charged of multiple international attacks

The US Department of Justice has charged Al-Saadi over 18 attacks and attempted attacks across Europe and the United States.

Authorities accused him of involvement in the firebombing of the Bank of New York Mellon in Amsterdam, the stabbing of two Jewish victims in London and a shooting at the US consulate building in Toronto.

He is also accused of planning and coordinating attacks against Jewish targets, including the bombing of a synagogue in Liège, Belgium, and the arson of a temple in Rotterdam.

Officials further alleged that he was connected to several failed attacks in the United States linked to the Middle East conflict.

Links to Soleimani and IRGC

According to Qanbar, Al-Saadi had a close relationship with Soleimani and viewed him as a father figure after the death of his own father, Iranian brigadier general Ahmad Kazemi, in 2006. He reportedly grew up in Baghdad with his Iraqi mother before being sent to Tehran for training with the Iranian army’s IRGC.

Qanbar said that Al-Saadi later ran a travel agency specialising in religious tours, which allowed him to travel internationally and connect with terror cells. When he was arrested in Turkey on May 15, he allegedly possessed an Iraqi service passport usually issued only to government employees and civil servants with approval from Iraq’s prime minister.

Despite being described as a major terror operative, Al-Saadi maintained a visible presence on social media. Posts showed him posing near landmarks including the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur.

Court documents also included photographs allegedly showing him with Soleimani at what appeared to be a military facility studying maps and equipment. In a 2020 social media post following Soleimani’s death, Al-Saadi reportedly declared that he would leave social media “until the American enemy is defeated”. However, prosecutors said he later returned online and continued posting messages praising Soleimani and other Iranian military figures killed in US strikes.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/ivanka-trump-assassination-plot-iran-trained-terrorist-arrested-for-targeting-potus-daughter-ws-l-10107399.html

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte emphasised the need for Europe to assume greater responsibility for its defense as the US shifts its military focus globally.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said Europe must take “a bigger responsibility” for its own defence as the US gradually pivots focus to other global theatres. Rutte also acknowledged the reality of America’s global military commitments, saying the US “cannot be everywhere at the same time” as it balances Europe, the Middle East and the Indo-Pacific.

“We are not preparing” for a US exit from NATO, Rutte said, stressing that Washington remains “very strongly” committed to the alliance. But he added that Europe has become “overly reliant on one ally being the United States.”

“What you will see over the coming years is a gradual shift, where the Europeans take this bigger responsibility,” he said.

The remarks came amid discussions on ramping up NATO defence spending, military production and long-term support for Ukraine.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s election-security czar last year sought to ban voting machines used in more than half of U.S. states by asking whether the Commerce Department could declare their components national-security risks, according to two people ​with direct knowledge of the matter.
White House adviser Kurt Olsen, a lawyer Trump has tasked with proving widely debunked election-rigging conspiracy theories, pushed the plan to target Dominion Voting Systems machines.

The idea emerged, the sources said, as Olsen and other officials brainstormed about how ‌the federal government could take control over elections from U.S. states, an idea Trump publicly aired.
Olsen wanted a national system of hand-counted paper ballots, the sources said, a frequent Trump demand some election-security experts say would be less accurate and potentially riskier than the current system of machines with auditable paper trails that almost all cities and states use.
The plan to exclude the machines, reported here first, got far enough that in September, Commerce Department officials began exploring what grounds could be invoked to execute it, three additional sources said. It eventually collapsed, however, because Olsen and other administration staffers working with him failed to provide evidence to justify such a move, two of the sources said.

The episode is part of a far-reaching Trump ​administration push to encroach on state and local governments’ authority to run elections – which is granted to them in the U.S. Constitution to prevent the executive branch from seizing power.
Olsen is working with the nation’s top intelligence and law enforcement agencies to chase voting-rigging claims.
A Reuters investigation earlier ​this month found administration officials and investigators in at least eight states have sought confidential records, pressed for access to voting equipment and re-examined voter-fraud cases that courts and bipartisan reviews have rejected.
Trump and Republican allies are also ⁠pursuing unprecedented plans to redraw election districts earlier than usual to secure advantages in the November midterm congressional elections.

Olsen, who Democratic senators are seeking to remove from his post, aimed to invalidate Dominion voting machines before the midterms, the two sources said.
Others involved in the deliberations included Paul McNamara, a senior aide of Trump’s ​spy chief Tulsi Gabbard, who resigned on Friday, and Brian Sikma, a special assistant to Trump who works on his Domestic Policy Council, according to one of the two sources with direct knowledge of the matter. Olsen has worked closely with Gabbard’s Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI).
Early last summer, McNamara asked ​officials in the Commerce Department to consider the potential designation of Dominion chips and software as a national security risk, the two sources said.
At the time, McNamara headed an ODNI task force that worked with officials across the administration to investigate vulnerabilities in the nation’s voting machines. The two sources said McNamara spoke about the issue to senior officials at the U.S. Commerce Department, which is run by Secretary Howard Lutnick.

Reuters could not determine whether Lutnick was involved in or aware of those discussions.
A Commerce Department spokesperson said Lutnick never met or discussed election-integrity issues with McNamara and did not “engage in the topic at all.” The spokesperson declined to comment on whether Lutnick’s office or other officials were involved.
Olivia Coleman, a spokesperson ​for Gabbard’s agency, said ODNI, including McNamara, “did not brief on nor coordinate a plan with the Department of Commerce to take actions to ban Dominion voting machines.”
Olsen, McNamara and Sikma did not respond to requests for interviews. Responding to this story, Democratic U.S. Senator Alex Padilla said Olsen should be fired, calling ​him a threat to democracy in a post on X.

WORRIES ABOUT MORE ELECTION CHAOS

Democrats and election-integrity experts worry that, with Republicans expected to suffer losses in the midterms, the administration aims to suppress voting and pave the way to challenge losses with more baseless claims of election fraud.
More than 98% of U.S. election jurisdictions already produce a paper ‌record for every ⁠vote, the U.S. Election Assistance Commission said last year. Those votes are mostly cast on machines that print a paper record, or hand-marked but counted by electronic readers. Election-security experts broadly support the current combination of technology and paper ballots, which provides a voter-verified trail for post-election audits.
Proponents of hand-marked, hand-counted ballots argue they eliminate hacking concerns. But they pose different risks, said Alex Halderman, a University of Michigan computer-science professor, including counting mistakes and ballot-box stuffing.
“Changing to hand counting would be chaotic,” he said, “and it might facilitate cheating.”
White House spokesman Davis Ingle characterized the reporting for this story as selectively leaked and called it misinformation.

SCOURING VOTING MACHINES FOR TRACES OF ‘FOREIGN ADVERSARIES’

U.S. supply chain rules give the commerce secretary powers to restrict transactions with technology companies from nations designated “foreign adversaries,” including China, Russia, and, specifically, the government of Venezuela’s former President Nicolas Maduro, whom the U.S. military unseated from power in January.
A main focus of Olsen’s efforts to find evidence of foreign hacking ​is the debunked theory that Dominion machines were infected with code controlled ​by Venezuelans to steal the 2020 election from Trump, the two sources ⁠said.
Repeated investigations and lawsuits since 2020 have produced no evidence Dominion machines were hacked. In 2023, Fox News paid Dominion $787 million in a defamation case over false election-rigging claims.
In 2024, at least 27 states used Dominion machines, similar to the number in 2020. Denver-based Dominion was purchased last October by Liberty Vote USA of Colorado.
“Our total focus remains on working in partnership with our customers – the dedicated election officials across the nation who are utilizing our election systems to deliver ​secure, accessible and transparent elections,” Liberty Vote said in a statement.
Yet Trump continues to repeat the allegations, most recently on May 12 when he reposted a 6-year-old clip of a host on the far-right One America News ​network making the false claim that Dominion machines ⁠deleted millions of votes.
In May 2025, Olsen helped lead a federal mission that seized Dominion machines that Puerto Rico used in its 2024 gubernatorial election. An analysis of the machines by cyber contractor Mojave Research Inc. produced later that summer found some known vulnerabilities, but no Venezuelan-origin code or evidence of hacking.
Around the time McNamara’s conversation took place with Commerce Department officials, Olsen’s team took apart some of the Puerto Rico machines, believing that they would find components manufactured by countries designated as foreign adversaries, the two sources said.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/trump-officials-tried-ban-half-us-voting-machines-citing-conspiracy-theories-2026-05-22/

A Qatari negotiating team arrived in Tehran on Friday in coordination with United States to try to help ‌secure a deal to end the war with Iran and resolve outstanding issues, a source with knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Friday.
Doha, which has worked as a mediator in the Gaza war and other areas of international tension, had till now distanced itself from playing a mediation role in the Iran ​war after it came under attack from Iranian missiles and drones during the latest conflict.

“A Qatari negotiation team is in ​Tehran on Friday,” the source said, adding that the team had travelled in coordination with the United ⁠States and was there to help “reach a final deal that would end the war and address outstanding issues with Iran.”
The Qatari ​Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
While Pakistan has served as the official mediator since fighting began, ​Qatar’s re-engagement reflects its longstanding role as a U.S. ally in the region and trusted back-channel between Washington and Tehran.
A shaky ceasefire is in place in the war that began with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, but there has been no major breakthrough, with a U.S. blockade of Iranian ​ports and Tehran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz complicating negotiations.

A senior Iranian source told Reuters on Thursday that no deal ​had been reached but gaps have been narrowed, with Iran’s uranium enrichment and its control over the strait among the remaining sticking points.
Secretary of State ‌Marco Rubio ⁠noted some progress on Thursday: “There’s some good signs,” he said. “I don’t want to be overly optimistic … So, let’s see what happens over the next few days.”
Asked on Friday about the Qatari team in Iran, Rubio told reporters on the sidelines of a gathering of NATO foreign ministers in Sweden that Pakistan was the primary interlocutor in the Iran talks and they had done an “admirable job”.
He added: “Obviously other countries ​have interests, because especially Gulf ​countries that are, you know, ⁠in the middle of all this – they have their own situation going. And we talk to all of them. I would just say that the primary country we’ve been working with on all of ​this, is Pakistan, and that remains the case.”

Doha’s re-engagement comes despite Iran having pounded Qatar with ​hundreds of missiles ⁠and drones, targeting civilian infrastructure and its vital liquefied natural gas (LNG) production facility at Ras Laffan. That attack wiped out roughly 17 percent of Qatar’s LNG export capacity. The country had already halted LNG production on March 2 following Iranian strikes.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/qatari-negotiating-team-tehran-help-secure-us-iran-deal-end-war-says-source-2026-05-22/

Foreigners seeking to adjust their immigration status in the United States to secure green cards will ​have to do so from outside the country via ‌the State Department, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said on Friday, in a move criticized by aid groups.
USCIS announced the move in a ​policy memo, which directed officers to consider relevant factors and ​information on a case-by-case basis when determining whether extraordinary ⁠relief is warranted.

“An alien who is in the U.S. temporarily ​and wants a Green Card must return to their home country ​to apply,” said the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which has oversight of USCIS.
“This policy allows our immigration system to function as the law intended ​instead of incentivizing loopholes.”
The USCIS said the new policy will ​free up agency resources to focus on processing other cases.
HIAS, an aid group ‌that ⁠provides services to refugees, among other groups of immigrants, said USCIS was forcing survivors of trafficking and abused and neglected children to return to the dangerous countries they fled in order to ​process their applications ​for green cards ⁠granting them permanent residency in the U.S.

Friday’s policy change is the latest in a series of ​steps taken by U.S. President Donald Trump over the ​last year ⁠to tighten migration to the United States.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/uscis-tells-foreigners-seeking-green-cards-return-your-countries-apply-2026-05-22/

Russian President Vladimir Putin on ​Friday ordered his military to prepare options to retaliate against Ukraine for what he described as a drone attack on a student ‌dorm that killed six people and wounded dozens, with 15 still unaccounted for.
Putin said the attack had struck the dorm in Starobilsk in Luhansk, a Russian-controlled region in eastern Ukraine. He said Kyiv’s military must have known what it was targeting.

Ukraine’s military denied the Russian accusations and said it had struck an elite drone command unit in the area. It said that ​Kyiv complied with international humanitarian law.
Putin said in his own statement, which was carried by state TV, that there were no military ​targets near the dorm.
“There are no military facilities, intelligence service facilities, or related services in the vicinity. Therefore, there ⁠is absolutely no basis for claiming that the munitions struck the building as a result of our air defence or electronic warfare systems. The ​strike was not accidental; it came in three waves, with 16 drones targeting the same location,” Putin told officials.

The Russian military had been ordered to draw ​up options for Moscow to retaliate, he added.
Reuters was not able to independently verify what happened. Both sides deny deliberately targeting civilians in the war. Ukraine wants to recapture Luhansk, one of four eastern regions that Moscow unilaterally claimed as its own in 2022 in what Kyiv denounced as an illegal land grab.
Yana Lantratova, Russia’s human rights commissioner, said that 86 ​teenagers aged 14 to 18 had been asleep inside the hostel belonging to Luhansk Pedagogical University’s Starobilsk college when Ukrainian drones had attacked it during ​the night.
Leonid Pasechnik, the top Russian-installed official in Luhansk, said two people had been pulled from the rubble. Maria Lvova-Belova, presidential commissioner for children’s rights, said up to ‌18 children ⁠could still be trapped.

Republicans struggled Thursday to find the votes to dismiss legislation that would compel President Donald Trump to withdraw from the war with Iran, delaying planned votes on the matter into June.

The House had scheduled a vote on a war powers resolution, brought by Democrats, that would rein in Trump’s military campaign. But as it became clear that Republicans would not have the numbers to defeat the bill, GOP leaders declined to hold a vote on it. It was the latest sign of the slipping support in Congress for a war that Trump launched more than two months ago without congressional approval.

“We had the votes without question and they knew it, and as a result they’re playing a political game,” said Democratic Rep. Gregory Meeks, who sponsored the bill.

Republicans in the Senate are also working to ensure they have the votes to dismiss another war powers resolution that advanced to a final vote earlier this week, when four GOP senators supported the resolution and three others were absent from the vote.

The actions by congressional leaders showed Republicans are struggling to maintain political backing for Trump’s handling of the war. Rank-and-file Republicans are increasingly willing to defy the president over the conflict.

House Republican Leader Steve Scalise told reporters that the vote was delayed to give lawmakers who were absent a chance to vote. House Speaker Mike Johnson did not answer questions from reporters as he exited the House chamber.

Frustration with Iran war grows on Capitol Hill

On Capitol Hill, patience with the war has worn thin as the stalemate in the Strait of Hormuz disrupts global shipping and elevates gas prices in the U.S. Another House war powers resolution nearly passed last week, falling on a tie vote as three Republicans voted in favor.

Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said he had the votes “locked in” this time around.

“People are beginning to finally listen to the American people who don’t support the war in Iran, and I think there’s a growing number of Republicans who see how devastating the war has been for our country,” said Democratic Rep. Adam Smith of Washington state.

The lone Democrat who voted against the war powers resolution last week, Rep. Jared Golden of Maine, has said he will vote in favor of the legislation next time.

In a joint statement, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries and other caucus leaders said Republicans were “cowardly” to pull the vote.

“Even as we prepare to recognize our nation’s fallen heroes on Memorial Day, House Republicans refuse to show up and be accountable to the brave service members that have been recklessly put in harm’s way,” they added.

Republicans have been broadly supportive of Trump’s efforts to destroy Iran’s nuclear capabilities, but some are now saying the president’s legal timeline to wage a war without congressional approval has expired. Under the War Powers Resolution of 1973, presidents have 60 days to engage in a military conflict before Congress must either declare war or authorize the use of military force.

“We’re past 60 days so it’s got to be brought to us to vote on. We’re following the law,” said Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, a Pennsylvania Republican, adding that he plans to vote for the war powers resolution.

The dispute over war powers

The White House argues that the requirements of the War Powers Resolution no longer apply because of the ceasefire with Iran. At the same time, Trump has said he was just an hour away from ordering another strike on Iran earlier this week, but held off because Gulf allies said they were engaged in negotiations to end the war.

Still, Trump said on social media that military leaders should “be prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable Deal is not reached.” Trump has repeatedly set deadlines for Tehran and then backed off.

Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican who has so far voted against the war powers resolutions, expressed frustration with the Trump administration’s stance, especially from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

“The current status quo, Pete Hegseth demonstrates how incompetent he is,” Tillis told reporters, adding that he would be willing to vote for an authorization for use of military force.

Earlier this week, Democratic senators rallied outside the Capitol Wednesday alongside VoteVets, a left-leaning veterans’ advocacy group. They placed signs on the Capitol lawn noting that the nationwide average price of gasoline had risen to $4.53.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, an Illinois Democrat who served in the Iraq War with the Air National Guard, argued that the Iran war has amounted to a strategic blunder for Trump.

“Trump started a war, and he’s made things worse than before,” Duckworth said, pointing to Iran’s new leadership and the country’s willingness to put a chokehold on commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/iran-war-donald-trump-congress-vote-8038c7f9552186716d01f910d6a0d356

 

People set fire to an Ebola treatment center in a town at the heart of the outbreak in eastern Congo on Thursday after being stopped from retrieving the body of a local man, a witness and a senior police officer said, as fear and anger grow over a health crisis that doctors are struggling to contain.

The arson attack in Rwampara reflects the challenges of health workers trying to curb a rare Ebola virus by using stringent measures that might clash with local customs, such as burial rites. The disease has been spreading for weeks in a region lacking in adequate health facilities and where many people are on the move to escape armed conflicts.

The bodies of those who die from Ebola can be highly contagious and lead to further spread when people prepare bodies for burial and gather for funerals. The dangerous work of burying suspected victims is being managed wherever possible by authorities, which can be met by protests from victims’ families and friends.

Fear and anger grow

The center in Rwampara was burned by local youths who became angry while trying to retrieve the body of a friend who had apparently died of Ebola, according to a witness who spoke to The Associated Press by telephone.

“The police intervened to try to calm the situation, but unfortunately they were unsuccessful,” said Alexis Burata, a local student who said he was in the area. “The young people ended up setting fire to the center. That’s the situation.”

An AP journalist saw people break into the center and set fire to objects inside and also to what appeared to be the body of at least one suspected Ebola victim that was being stored there. Aid workers fled the treatment center in vehicles.

Deputy Senior Commissioner Jean Claude Mukendi, head of the public security department in Ituri Province, said the youths had not understood the protocols for burying a suspected Ebola victim.

“His family, friends, and other young people wanted to take his body home for a funeral even though the instructions from the authorities during this Ebola virus outbreak are clear,” Mukendi said. “All bodies must be buried according to the regulations.”

Hama Amadou, field coordinator for the humanitarian organization ALIMA, which had teams working at the center, said later that calm had been restored and that aid teams were continuing their work at the center.

The flash of anger underlined the complications faced by both Congolese authorities and an array of aid agencies trying to stem an outbreak that the World Health Organization has declared a public health emergency of international concern.

The outbreak is bigger than official figures show, WHO says

There were 160 suspected deaths and 671 suspected cases in Congo’s two provinces, Congolese authorities said on Thursday. Earlier in the week, the U.N. said there were two cases including one death in neighboring Uganda.

But the WHO has said the outbreak is almost certainly much larger and has also expressed concern over the speed of the spread.

“We are still in the phase where we are intensifying the investigation, searching for cases,” said Jean Kaseya, Director-General of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “I expect the number of cases to increase as surveillance becomes more and more rigorous.”

The risk of the outbreak spreading globally is low, the WHO has said, but high regionally with the Ituri Province at the center of the outbreak bordering Uganda and South Sudan.

Early detection of the virus is key in saving lives, but the region’s already weak health infrastructure and surveillance capacity has been further weakened by international aid cuts, experts say. There are over 920,000 internally displaced people in Ituri Province, according to the U.N.

Armed conflict in the region further complicates efforts to handle the crisis. Local leaders said an attack by militants linked to the Islamic State group killed at least 17 people on Tuesday in Alima, a village in Ituri.

Health workers and aid groups have said they are in dire need of more supplies and staff to respond. Also, there is no available vaccine or medicine for the Bundibugyo strain responsible for the outbreak.

An expert said this week it would be at least six to nine months before one would be available.

“The priority now is to act quickly and work closely with communities, as the coming days are critical,” said Ariel Kestens, the head of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies delegation in Congo.

Ebola is highly contagious and spreads in people through contact with bodily fluids such as vomit, blood, feces or semen. Symptoms include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, muscle pain and at times internal and external bleeding.

It has spread to a new province

On Thursday, the M23 rebel group that controls parts of eastern Congo reported that a person had died of the disease near the city of Bukavu, some 500 kilometers (310 miles) south of the outbreak’s epicenter in Ituri Province.

It was the first case confirmed in South Kivu Province, and another case was reported there later in the day. Previously, cases had been reported only in Ituri and North Kivu provinces and in neighboring Uganda.

The virus spread undetected for weeks following the first known death in late April as Congolese health authorities tested for a different Ebola virus more commonly responsible for outbreaks in the country. Health officials have not yet found “patient zero,” according to the WHO.

The scale of the outbreak so far suggests it “started probably a couple of months ago,” said Anaïs Legand, a viral hemorrhagic fevers expert at the WHO.

Source : https://apnews.com/article/congo-ebola-outbreak-who-spread-response-18537353976a958687e55f95434c918c

Washington has demanded that Tehran hand over nearly 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium and restrict nuclear operations to a single facility.

Even as signs of a possible diplomatic breakthrough emerged between the United States and Iran to end the ongoing conflict, the issue of Tehran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile has surfaced as a major sticking point in negotiations.

The fresh deadlock comes after Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei reportedly declared that the country’s near-weapons-grade uranium would not be sent abroad — directly clashing with one of Washington’s core demands in the talks.

Responding to the development, US President Donald Trump said the United States would not allow Iran to retain highly enriched uranium.

“No. We will get it. We don’t need it. We don’t want it. We’ll probably destroy it after we get it — but we’re not going to let them have it,” Trump said when asked whether Iran could keep its uranium stockpile.

See more

“Can they keep their highly enriched uranium?”@POTUS: “No. We will get it. We don’t need it. We don’t want it. We’ll probably destroy it after we get it — but we’re not going to let them have it.” pic.twitter.com/fHmF1UHXOe

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 21, 2026

The US president added that negotiations were continuing under the ongoing truce process, but reiterated that Tehran would never be allowed to acquire a nuclear weapon.

“Right now, we’re negotiating, and we’ll see, but we’re going to get it one way or the other. They’re not going to have a nuclear weapon,” he said.

US President Donald Trump claimed that Iran is losing nearly USD 500 million every day due to restrictions around the Strait of Hormuz, while praising the role of the US Navy in enforcing the blockade around the strategic waterway.

Trump said Washington wants the Strait of Hormuz to remain open and free for international shipping, rejecting any possibility of Iran imposing tolls on vessels passing through the route.

“We want it open, we want it free, we don’t want tolls,” Trump said, describing the strait as an international waterway.

According to Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency, Washington has demanded that Tehran hand over nearly 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium and restrict nuclear operations to a single facility.

Source : https://www.news18.com/world/will-destroy-uranium-but-wont-let-them-have-it-trump-reacts-to-mojtaba-khameneis-remark-ws-l-10104710.html

 

A SOUTH American beauty queen shared a shocking video showing her bloodied face after an alleged attack by her celebrity stylist.

Andrea del Val, 29, named Miss Venezuela in 2025, claimed Giovanni Laguna, 33, attacked her in their hotel room at the Cannes Film Festival.

Video said to be taken after the row shows model Andrea in the trashed room with blood pouring down her face.

Giovanni, a Venezuelan who was arrested over the attack, can be seen sitting on a chair behind her.

Andrea says: “Look, this is what Giovanni Laguna did. Congratulations, Giovanni, this is what I wanted, for you to show who you were.”

The model then pans the camera around the accommodation to show the room in disarray, with furniture scattered across the floor.

Guests at the luxury hotel reportedly called the cops after hearing shouting, blows and signs of a violent struggle coming from the room.

Andrea’s video shows severe wounds on her face as she directly accused Giovanni of causing her injuries.

Spanish journalist Jordi Martin later shared footage said to show the stylist being escorted away by officers in Cannes.

Andrea was reportedly given medical attention after the incident.

The exact cause of the row has not been confirmed, and French authorities have not yet released a detailed statement on the case.

It is also not yet clear what charges, if any, Giovanni may face following his arrest.

Giovanni, born in Churuguara, in Venezuela’s Falcon state, has worked for years in the beauty pageant and fashion world.

Since 2023, he has been creative director for Miss Universe Colombia.

He also has ties to Mexican Miss Universe 2025 winner Fatima Bosch, 25, although there is no suggestion she was involved in the incident.

He has been described in Latin American media as a stylist, designer and image adviser for beauty queens and celebrities.

Source : https://www.the-sun.com/news/16394747/beauty-queen-blood-face-attacked-stylist/

 

Trump said the decision to deploy more troops to Poland was influenced by nationalist Karol Nawrocki winning the Polish presidency last year. His announcement comes as the US scales back its military presence in Europe.

The United States is set to deploy an additional 5,000 troops to Poland, US President Donald Trump said on Thursday, saying the decision was based on his relationship with nationalist Polish President Karol Nawrocki.

“Based on the successful Election of the now President of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, who I was proud to Endorse, and our relationship with him, I am pleased to announce that the United States will be sending an additional 5,000 Troops to Poland,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.

US troops in Europe: contradictory messages

Trump’s announcement comes just two days after the Pentagon said that it was reducing the number of US Army Brigade Combat Teams (BCTs) in Europe from four to three.

Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement that the US was stripping back its military presence on the continent as a result of a “comprehensive, multilayered process” which is “designed to advance President Trump’s America First agenda in Europe and other theaters, including by incentivizing and enabling our NATO allies to take primary responsibility for Europe’s conventional defense.”

Vice President JD Vance also told reporters earlier this week that a US troop deployment to Poland had been delayed, with Parnell confirming the “temporary delay” as a result of a reduction of brigade combat teams to Europe.

Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz had previously denied that the reduction of US troops in Europe would affect Poland, saying: “The number of American soldiers in Poland is not being reduced.”

His deputy, Cezary Tomczyk, also said that any repositioning or redeployment of US troops would affect Germany, not Poland, adding: “Poland is continuously working on strengthening the American troop presence.”

Earlier in May, the US announced withdrawing 5,000 troops from Germany, amid an open spat between Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. Merz had said Iran was “humiliating” the US at the negotiating table, unleashing Trump’s wrath.

What is Trump’s relationship with Nawrocki?

Trump hosted Nawrocki at ​the White House in May last year and backed him at ​a crucial moment ahead of the Polish election in which the nationalist politician went on to defeat the candidate of Polish Prime ​Minister Donald Tusk’s ⁠centrist, pro-European party.

“President Trump said ‘you will win,'” Nawrocki told private broadcaster TV Republika at the time. “I read it as a wish for my success in the upcoming elections … and after this whole day I can say that the American administration is aware of what is happening in Poland.”

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/us-to-send-5000-additional-troops-to-poland-trump/a-77255103

New footage shows Britney Spears allegedly failing a sobriety test during her DUI arrest on March 4.

In dashcam footage obtained by TMZ Thursday, the Grammy winner was seen being questioned by police officers before she was placed in handcuffs.

Spears can be heard asking cops if they had her phone, which they claimed was still in her purse.

Page Six exclusively reported that several drivers reported the “Toxic” songstress, 44, to police when they saw her allegedly driving “erratically” and almost “sideswip[ing]” several vehicles while in Ventura County.

“I’m reporting an erratic driving person,” one person said in a 911 call.

The individual told the dispatch responder the location and told them how a BMW was allegedly moving “in and out of lanes” and “slamming on the brakes.”

“It almost sideswiped a couple of vehicles. It’s driving at high speeds. I’m worried they’re going to crash with somebody,” the caller said.

A second caller reported a “possible drunk driver” in a black BMW, saying how she allegedly “almost sideswiped three or four vehicles.”

Additionally, in a police report obtained by Us Weekly, officers smelled a “distinct odor of an alcoholic beverage” from inside Spears’ car.

The “Gimme More” singer allegedly told an officer that she had one mimosa several hours prior, before bragging about her tolerance level.

“I could probably drink four bottles of wine and take care of you. I’m an angel,” she said.

Spears also claimed to have taken prescription drugs, including the mood stabilizer Lamictal and anticonvulsant, antidepressant Prozac and Adderall.

“[An officer] located a brown purse that contained a bottle of pills labeled ‘Adderall,’ which were not prescribed to Spears,” the report read, adding that there was an empty wine glass in the car’s cup holder.

Spears also allegedly told officers that on the sobriety scale from zero to 10, she was a “zero.” Additionally, she didn’t want to complete field sobriety tests.

The hitmaker, however, passed several breathalyzer tests.

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/05/21/celebrity-news/britney-spears-fails-sobriety-test-in-dui-arrest-video/

Cuba poses a “national security threat” to the US and the likelihood of a peaceful agreement is “not high”, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said.

His comments come just a day after the US charged Cuba’s former president Raúl Castro with murder over the 1996 downing of two planes resulting in the killing of US nationals.

Rubio said Washington’s preference was “a diplomatic solution” but warned that President Donald Trump had the right and obligation to protect his country against any threat.

Cuba’s Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez accused Rubio of “lies” and said the island had never posed a threat to the US.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Rubio said diplomacy “remains our preference with Cuba”, but added: “I’m just being honest with you, you know, the likelihood of that happening, given who we’re dealing with right now, is not high.”

He also accused Cuba of being “one of the leading sponsors of terrorism in the entire region”, which Rodríguez vehemently denied in a post on X.

The Cuban foreign minister criticised Rubio for trying to “instigate a military aggression” and accused the US government of “ruthlessly and systematically” attacking his country.

Cuba is suffering from a fuel crisis exacerbated by an effective US oil blockade, while under pressure from the Trump administration to make a deal.

Its citizens have experienced extended blackouts and food shortages over the last few months.

Rubio said the country had accepted a US offer of $100m (£74.4m) in humanitarian aid.

Trump has repeatedly sought to exert pressure on Cuba and has openly discussed toppling its communist regime.

The US has demanded political and economic reforms but the specifics are unclear beyond a leadership change. They could include a pledge to open up the economy to more foreign investment and a commitment to end the presence of Russian or Chinese intelligence agencies on the island.

Wednesday’s indictment of the former Cuban president is seen by some as reminiscent of Trump’s seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January.

Asked by reporters whether – and how – his government would get Castro to the US to face the charges, Rubio replied: “I’m not going to talk about how we’re going to get him here, if we were trying to get him here, why would I say to the media what our plans are about that?”

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche, who announced the charges in Miami on Wednesday, said the US “expect he will show up here, by his own will or another way”.

On Thursday, Rubio also announced on X that the US had arrested Adys Lastres Morera, the sister of one of the top officials of a Cuban military-run conglomerate that controls most of the lucrative parts of the country’s economy.

Morera was living in Florida “while also aiding Havana’s communist regime”, Rubio alleged. She was arrested by immigration enforcement and will remain in custody pending deportation proceedings.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckgpzwkn5jko

 

LONDON – When Donald Trump warned Iran on April 7 that “a whole civilization will die tonight,” a European diplomat in Washington said his government wanted an urgent answer to a chilling question: Was the U.S. president contemplating the use of a nuclear weapon?
Across Europe and Asia, the concern went beyond whether Trump’s apocalyptic threat was real or bluster. One fear, the diplomat said, was that Russia could seize the moment to justify similar threats in Ukraine, triggering a nuclear crisis on two continents.
European governments immediately sought reassurance through a traditional channel: the U.S. State Department. But according to the diplomat, officials there gave an unsettling response: They didn’t know what Trump meant or what actions his words might portend.
The previously unreported episode points to a historic breakdown in American diplomacy. At a moment when a uniquely unpredictable U.S. president is rattling markets and capitals with dramatic pronouncements, governments around the world are scrambling for clarity, only to discover that their usual points of contact – at U.S. embassies or inside Washington – are missing, mute or out of the loop. At least half of America’s 195 ambassadorial posts worldwide are now vacant.

Margaret MacMillan, an Oxford University professor of international history, said the Trump administration is eroding America’s capacity to understand the world it operates in, raising the risk of global instability. “We’re not going to be able to use diplomacy as we have often done before: to build relationships, get agreements that benefit both sides, and avert and end wars.”
The Trump administration rejects the notion of a breakdown, saying the changes have strengthened U.S. diplomacy and streamlined decision-making. “The President has the right to determine who represents the American people and interests around the world,” said Tommy Pigott, a State Department spokesperson.
This account of America’s diplomatic upheaval is based on interviews with more than 50 senior diplomats, White House officials and recently retired ambassadors, as well as dozens of foreign officials, diplomats and lawmakers across Europe and Asia.
As America’s career diplomats are fired or sidelined, its allies are changing how they deal with Washington. Rather than rely on embassies or formal channels, foreign governments say they are rewiring their diplomacy around a small circle of people with direct access to the president, leaving many dependent on back channels to manage a superpower whose signals have grown erratic.

Some U.S. allies now believe the most effective response to a volatile president is to treat his rhetoric as background noise.
That calculus was evident after Trump’s threat to annihilate Iran stoked fears of nuclear war. In response, officials in Britain, France and Germany drafted what one European diplomat called a “harsh” joint statement later that day. But they chose not to release it, deciding Trump’s language was bluster and a public rebuke could prompt him to continue the bombing. By evening, Trump had announced a two-week ceasefire with Iran.
The British, French and German foreign ministries didn’t reply to requests for comment.
The episode, also previously unreported, illustrates an approach many allies now follow: restraint over confrontation. But diplomats said that repeatedly discounting Trump’s threats is also dangerous because it might leave them unprepared when another crisis looms.
More than a year into Trump’s second term, influence and information are increasingly flowing through a handful of envoys. Most prominent: Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and the president’s longtime friend, real estate developer Steve Witkoff. Kushner has no formal government title and Witkoff no prior diplomatic experience. But some foreign governments now prioritize communications with them over official channels, Reuters found.

Kushner and Witkoff did not respond to requests for comment.
Other countries have cultivated their own unconventional lines into the White House. South Korean officials bypassed U.S. trade negotiators to forge ties with White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles – a person they felt could explain Trump’s true intentions as they fought back against his 25% tariffs. And Japan found an unlikely intermediary in SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son – one of Trump’s golfing partners.

The State Department was an early target in Trump’s second term. In April 2025, Secretary of State Marco Rubio called it a “bloated” bureaucracy gripped by “radical political ideology” and announced a “comprehensive reorganization plan.” The effort was foreshadowed in Project 2025, a policy blueprint published in 2023 by the Heritage Foundation, a right-wing think tank in Washington, D.C. The plan called for a leaner State Department with more political appointees and the removal of career ambassadors deemed hostile to the administration.
About 3,000 employees left the State Department last year, nearly half fired and the rest taking buyouts – a roughly 15% cut to its U.S.-based staff. Then, in December, Rubio ordered the unprecedented recall of about 30 ambassadors worldwide.

Rubio promised last year that his overhaul would “empower the Department from the ground up, from the bureaus to the embassies.” But today, 109 of the 195 U.S. ambassadorial posts worldwide are vacant, according to the American Foreign Service Association, the diplomats’ union.
A White House official said the changes “have made our government more efficient and less bloated and more able to effectively execute the president’s foreign policy.”
The new structure leaves Washington with fewer top diplomats on the ground in a major war zone. Five of the seven countries bordering Iran, and four of the six Gulf States, have no U.S. ambassador.
Many U.S. embassies are now run by chargés d’affaires – diplomats who serve as acting heads – rather than Senate-confirmed ambassadors, which some countries regard as a diplomatic downgrade. Former U.S. ambassadors and State Department officials said the reduced diplomatic presence contributed to a chaotic scramble to evacuate Americans from the region when Trump started the Iran war.
“Those missions should all have ambassadors when you’re fighting a war,” said Barbara Leaf, a retired career diplomat who served as U.S. ambassador to the United Arab Emirates under the first Trump administration and as assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern Affairs under President Joe Biden. “At a moment of crisis – and it’s an open-ended crisis – this administration has left these missions in a parlous state.”
Pigott said U.S. embassies have performed well during the Iran war and are “more than appropriately staffed.”

DIPLOMATIC PURGE

For Bridget Brink, the fracture between the Trump administration and its far-flung diplomats was potentially a matter of life and death.
Brink was the U.S. ambassador to Kyiv when Trump returned to office. In March 2025, just days after Trump’s explosive encounter with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at the White House, the U.S. cut off military aid and intelligence sharing to Ukraine. The weapons included air defense munitions that helped protect not just Ukrainians but also U.S. embassy personnel from Russian drones and missiles, Brink said.
“I had 1,000 people, all civilians, on the ground,” Brink said in an interview. “And we were protected by Ukrainians using U.S. and other equipment.”

The halting of military aid came without warning, she said. “When we tried to find out why it was stopped, we got no answer.” Brink reached out to the Pentagon, the State Department and the White House – “everywhere that we could, because we were very concerned about what this meant not only for Ukrainians but also for our own security.” The Pentagon did not respond to a Reuters request for comment on her account.
Brink said her staff worked behind the scenes to persuade the Trump administration to resume the aid, which it agreed to do on March 11. But she said she never received official confirmation of why the aid was halted in the first place.
Layoffs at the National Security Council, which traditionally coordinates foreign and defense policy at the White House, further frayed relations between the Trump administration and its embassies. In 2025, Trump slashed the NSC from hundreds of people to just a few dozen.
For months, NSC staff held no regular meetings and faced a de facto ban on holding interagency meetings on national security and foreign policy, according to three current and former U.S. officials in Washington. The White House official said the NSC did not stop regular or interagency meetings but they were smaller and focused on Trump’s priorities.
During that period, multiple officials said, staffers received little formal guidance about major topics such as the Ukraine war or NATO’s future. Instead, they scrutinized Trump’s Truth Social account for policy signals. Many NSC staffers kept Trump’s account open on a dedicated screen and responded quickly when he posted, the officials said.
Under Biden, Brink had regularly joined NSC meetings to develop and coordinate complex wartime policy between Washington and the Kyiv embassy. Under Trump, those meetings stopped, Brink said. She was told instead to “just call people” – an ad hoc approach she described as inefficient and unworkable in a conflict zone where Russian attacks were routine. “We’re seven hours ahead and in the bunker almost every night.”
The final straw, she said, was Trump’s policy of “appeasement” on Ukraine – seeking closer ties with President Vladimir Putin while blaming Ukraine for Russian aggression. She resigned in protest in April 2025. Two months later she announced she was running as a Democrat from Michigan for the U.S. House of Representatives.

Her successor, Julie Davis, who served as chargé d’affaires, will also step down and retire in June, the State Department said on April 28. Department spokesperson Pigott said Davis is retiring after a “distinguished 30-year tenure” in the foreign service.
Many other career diplomats have had their ambassadorships abruptly cut short. A week before Christmas, about 30 were told to vacate their posts by mid-January – a recall that came largely without warning or explanation. Some departing ambassadors privately dubbed it “the Saturday Night Massacre,” a Watergate-era phrase now used to describe mass firings of officials.
U.S. ambassadors fall into two categories: career diplomats and political appointees. Both are nominated by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. Career diplomats traditionally pride themselves on being nonpartisan and often have decades of experience. Political appointees are usually major campaign donors, former lawmakers or close presidential allies, and may have little or no diplomatic background.
In U.S. administrations spanning nearly 50 years, career diplomats have typically made up between 57% and 74% of ambassadors, according to the American Foreign Service Association. In Trump’s second term, about 9% of his ambassadorial appointees are career diplomats – a dramatic decline in the institutional expertise that has historically guided U.S. diplomacy.
Most of the ambassadors recalled in December were career diplomats who were appointed to their current posts under Biden but had also served Republican administrations, including Trump’s. Ukraine envoy Brink, for instance, served five presidents, Democrat and Republican, including Trump in his first term.
The State Department said the mass recall was a “standard process” and that replacements would represent Trump and “advance the America First agenda,” which the White House says will “champion core American interests.”
More than 100 ambassadorships remain open worldwide. “We are conducting our diplomacy with one arm tied behind our back,” said Brian Nichols, an ambassador for Democratic and Republican presidents from 2014 to 2021, in Peru and Zimbabwe.
Against that backdrop, a new pipeline of diplomats aligned with Trump’s agenda is emerging.
The Ben Franklin Fellowship, founded in 2024, identifies and seeks to promote conservatives within the State Department and counters what its leaders describe as bias against them. “A lot of moderate officers come to us – men, white men – (and) they say, ‘I’m totally marginalized by DEI,’” said co-founder Phillip Linderman, referring to diversity, equity and inclusion programs under previous administrations.
The group now lists about 95 fellows on its website, including Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau. Another 250 members, mostly active diplomats, conceal their identities to avoid retaliation under future Democratic administrations, said Linderman, a former diplomat.
Among the fellowship’s largest financial backers is the Heritage Foundation, the architect of Project 2025. Last year Heritage gave the group a $100,000 grant, effectively helping to advance one of Project 2025’s main recommendations: to remake a workforce it views as hostile to conservative administrations. Heritage told Reuters it supported many U.S. organizations but exerted no “direct control” over them.

The fellowship aims to help Trump avoid appointing State Department staff who could obstruct his agenda, said Linderman and Matt Boyse, another ex-diplomat, fellowship co-founder and senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank. The group convenes networking seminars, recruits on college campuses and advises the Trump administration on which career diplomats they see as ideological activists. “We’re helping them know – if they want to know – if a person is part of the resistance,” Boyse told Reuters.
Eighteen former ambassadors expressed concern that Ben Franklin Fellowship members were being fast-tracked into senior roles ahead of more experienced people. Pigott said the State Department “does not make personnel decisions based on participation in outside groups or demographic quotas.”

THE RISE OF THE ENVOY STATE

Trump has increasingly bypassed embassies, entrusting sensitive diplomacy to special envoys, most prominently Kushner and Witkoff, his principal negotiators on the wars in Ukraine, Gaza and Iran.
In the lead‑up to the Iran war, Kushner and Witkoff met Iranian officials in Geneva in late February but didn’t bring along U.S. nuclear specialists, according to European officials involved in the discussions. In the previous nine months, the Trump administration fired at least a half dozen Iran nuclear experts, including Nate Swanson, a career diplomat who worked on Iran issues across administrations.
Swanson helped implement the Obama administration’s 2015 nuclear accord with Iran. The highly technical document, in which Iran agreed to significantly limit its nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of nuclear-related economic sanctions, was drafted by large teams of diplomats and experts. Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018. Swanson said Witkoff called in April last year to ask him to rejoin renewed talks with Tehran. At the time, Swanson was working at the State Department’s Office of Sanctions Coordination.
Weeks went by, however, without meetings on Iran, Swanson said. “He had a ton on his plate,” he said of Witkoff, who was also juggling talks over Ukraine and Gaza. “We just didn’t have any input.” Before long, Swanson said, the administration “just stopped asking for advice.”
Less than two months after joining Witkoff’s negotiating team, Swanson was dismissed after the right-wing influencer Laura Loomer derided him on social media as an “Obama holdover.” He has since joined the Atlantic Council think tank as a senior fellow. Loomer did not respond to a comment request from Reuters.

One senior European diplomat said that during last-ditch talks in Geneva, the U.S. team struggled to grasp the significance of different uranium‑enrichment thresholds and other elements of Iran’s nuclear program, forcing European officials to explain. “How can you negotiate when you don’t understand the fundamentals?” the diplomat said.
On February 28, after the Geneva talks failed, the U.S. and Israel started bombing Iran. On that day, and again on March 3, Witkoff briefed reporters on the talks. Those briefings suggested he had misread Iran’s proposal, exaggerating Iran’s nuclear threat by conflating limited enrichment of uranium with its near‑term weaponization, said Kelsey Davenport of the Arms Control Association, a Washington, D.C.-based group that advocates for effective arms control policies. She reviewed recordings and transcripts from participants in the briefings.
Davenport said Witkoff’s statements contained many errors suggesting “technical incompetence.” For example, he referred to Iran’s IR-6 uranium-enrichment centrifuge as “probably the most advanced centrifuge in the world,” when it’s not even the most advanced one in Iran. “Witkoff does not need to be a nuclear expert to negotiate a good deal. But if he’s not, he should be surrounded by people who are,” she said.
Trump’s top two envoys have also faced scrutiny of their potential conflicts of interest by Democrats in the U.S. Congress – Kushner for allegedly negotiating peace deals with countries with which he has billion-dollar business deals, and Witkoff for his family’s role in a Trump crypto firm seeking inroads in the Middle East. Both have denied any conflict of interest.
The White House official called such claims “a tired narrative” pushed by Democrats and said both men “fully understood” Iran’s proposals during negotiations.
More than 90% of ambassadors appointed by Trump this term have been political loyalists, not career diplomats, and wield unusual power due to their perceived connections with the president’s inner circle. Two European officials recalled how Kushner’s father, Charles, the U.S. ambassador to France, underscored his proximity to power by calling Jared directly in front of foreign counterparts at a meeting last year.

The U.S. embassy in Paris declined to comment.
As his ambassador in Beijing, Trump appointed another loyalist: David Perdue, a former Georgia senator and businessman who has echoed Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was rigged. Three U.S. government officials who focus on China said Perdue has called Trump directly to hammer out decisions and address unresolved diplomatic questions, while even senior U.S. diplomats were cut out of the loop. In planning high-level visits, they said, embassy staff often waited until Perdue had phoned Trump before committing to final arrangements – a break from the past when such decisions were done at lower levels.

Wolfgang Ischinger, a former German ambassador to Washington, said America’s current approach reflects a dramatic concentration of power over U.S. foreign policy in one person: Trump. “That person will take decisions, sometimes overnight, sometimes in a formal meeting, sometimes not,” he said. “That’s very different, and I’m not sure the Trump way of taking decisions actually offers a guarantee for good decisions.”
Some countries are forging unconventional routes into the White House.
In April 2025, Trump announced a 25% tariff on South Korea, threatening its export‑driven economy. In subsequent trade talks, South Korean officials were struggling to determine whether their U.S. counterparts were accurately conveying Trump’s position, Kang Hoon-sik, the presidential chief of staff, told a South Korean podcast. South Korean officials instead adapted by engaging directly with Wiles, the White House chief of staff. The arrangement was atypical. Kang is not the usual Korean counterpart facing the U.S. on foreign policy, security or trade, and Wiles is not a trade negotiator.
The South Korean president’s office and foreign ministry didn’t reply to a request for comment.
Japan turned to SoftBank founder and Trump golfing buddy Masayoshi Son.
Shigeru Ishiba, who served as prime minister until October 2025, told Reuters that while he was leader, Japan used the tech tycoon as a back channel to reach Trump – the first time Son’s role has been publicly acknowledged. Ishiba said Son was acting largely in his own business interests, but confirmed that his government passed messages to Trump through Son.
Reaching Trump directly was vital because “the people around him are all yes-men,” said Ishiba.
SoftBank and Son declined to comment. Japan’s foreign ministry denied using Son as a back channel, but declined to comment on whether Ishiba had done so.

Pigott, the State spokesperson, said he “rejects the premise that key decisions were made without meaningful input from experienced professionals.” He described Trump’s use of envoys and direct lines to the White House by some countries as effective. “The sustained direct engagement from the highest levels of this administration around the world is an asset,” he said, “and anyone claiming otherwise doesn’t know what they are talking about.”

Source : https://www.reuters.com/investigations/inside-unraveling-us-diplomacy-under-trump-2026-05-21/

Iran’s Supreme Leader has issued a directive that the country’s near-weapons-grade uranium should not be sent abroad, two senior Iranian sources said, hardening Tehran’s stance on one of the main ​U.S. demands at peace talks.
Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei’s order could further frustrate U.S. President Donald Trump and complicate talks on ending the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

Trump vowed on Thursday that the United States will not ‌allow Iran to have its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

“We will get it. We don’t need it, we don’t want it. We’ll probably destroy it after we get it, but we’re not going to let them have it,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
Israeli officials have told Reuters that Trump has assured Israel that Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, needed to make an atomic weapon, will be sent out of Iran and that any peace deal must include a clause on this.
Israel, the United States and other Western states have ​long accused Iran of seeking nuclear weapons, including pointing to its move to enrich uranium to 60%, far higher than needed for civilian uses and closer to the 90% needed for a weapon. Iran ​denies seeking nuclear weapons.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said he will not consider the war over until enriched uranium is removed from Iran, Tehran ends its support for ⁠proxy militias, and its ballistic missile capabilities are eliminated.
“The Supreme Leader’s directive, and the consensus within the establishment, is that the stockpile of enriched uranium should not leave the country,” said one of the two Iranian sources, who ​spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.
Iran’s top officials, the sources said, believe that sending the material abroad would leave the country more vulnerable to future attacks by the United States and Israel. Khamenei ​has the last say on the most important state matters.
When asked for comment for this story, White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales said : “President Trump has been clear about the United States’ red lines and will only make a deal that puts the American people first.”

DEEP SUSPICION AMONG TOP IRANIAN OFFICIALS

A shaky ceasefire is in place in the war that began with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, after which Iran fired at Gulf states hosting U.S. military bases and ​fighting broke out between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon.
But there has been no big breakthrough in peace efforts, with a U.S. blockade of Iranian ports and Tehran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global oil supply ​route, complicating negotiations mediated by Pakistan.
The two senior Iranian sources said there was deep suspicion in Iran that the pause in hostilities was a tactical deception by Washington to create a sense of security before it renews airstrikes.
Iran’s top peace negotiator, Mohammad ‌Baqer Qalibaf, said ⁠on Wednesday that “obvious and hidden moves by the enemy” showed the Americans were preparing new attacks.

Trump said on Wednesday the U.S. was ready to proceed with further attacks on Tehran if Iran did not agree to a peace deal, but suggested Washington could wait a few days to “get the right answers.”
The two sides have started to narrow some gaps, the sources said, but deeper splits remain over Tehran’s nuclear programme — including the fate of its enriched uranium stockpiles and Tehran’s demand for recognition of its right to enrichment.

IRAN HARDENS STANCE ON ENRICHED URANIUM STOCKPILE

Iranian officials have repeatedly said Tehran’s priority is to secure a permanent end to the war and credible guarantees that the U.S. and Israel will ​not launch further attacks.
Only after such assurances are in place, ​they said, would Iran be prepared to engage ⁠in detailed negotiations over its nuclear program.
Israel is widely believed to have an atomic arsenal but has never confirmed or denied it has nuclear weapons, maintaining a so-called policy of ambiguity on the issue for decades.
Before the war, Iran signalled willingness to ship out half of its stockpile of uranium which has been enriched to 60%, a level ​far higher than what is needed for civilian uses.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/supreme-leader-says-enriched-uranium-must-stay-iran-iranian-sources-say-2026-05-21/

Since President Donald Trump’s administration announced the creation of a $1.776 billion fund for Americans deemed to be victims of political “weaponization,” ​January 6 Capitol riot defendants and other Trump allies have scrambled to figure out how to get their share.

Enrique Tarrio, the Proud Boys leader sentenced ‌to 22 years for seditious conspiracy over the January 6, 2021 riot, said he planned to apply to the fund, assuming he could get between $2 and $5 million.

“I’m not greedy,” Tarrio said. “But my life was all fucked up because of this.”
Trump pardoned more than 1,500 January 6 defendants last year. Some have now begun to calculate the cost of their prosecution, jail time and businesses lost in the hope of compensation for ​what they regard as abuses by the Justice Department under former President Joe Biden.
Peter Ticktin, an attorney representing more than 400 January 6 defendants, said the fund ​may not be enough.
“People lost multi-million dollar businesses while they were locked up,” he said. “I don’t think the DOJ is ready for us ⁠yet.”
Trump also suggested the fund may be too small. “You’re talking about peanuts,” he told reporters at Joint Base Andrews. “It destroyed the lives of many, many people.”

Democrats and some Republicans ​have questioned the legality of the fund, as well as a part of the settlement “forever barring” the IRS from auditing past tax claims by Trump, his relatives and his businesses.
Two police ​officers who defended the U.S. Capitol from Trump supporters on January 6, filed a lawsuit on Wednesday seeking to halt the compensation fund, which they described as a “taxpayer-funded slush fund” for Trump followers who engaged in violence.
U.S. acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told lawmakers on Tuesday that even people who assaulted police on January 6 would not be barred from receiving money.
Tarrio, for his part, thinks those who assaulted police should get their ​share.
“The Justice Department overprosecuted for political gain,” he said. “So everyone deserves to get money.”

In a Wednesday letter, Democratic Representatives Jamie Raskin and Richard E. Neal asked Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, ​Blanche and IRS CEO Frank Bisignano, who negotiated the settlement, whether individual awards would be capped and what reports would be made public.
“Never in American history has a President pursued corruption this brazenly or ‌on such ⁠a colossal scale,” they wrote.
Democratic Senator Chris Coons of Delaware said on Wednesday he would try to block the fund through spending-bill amendments, though he acknowledged the issue might have to be resolved separately.
Ticktin, the January 6 lawyer, said he plans to file hundreds of claims once the Justice Department creates the application process and the attorney general appoints the five-member commission overseeing the fund. He said he suggested the idea to Trump, his high school classmate, in a March email, but doesn’t know if that had any impact on the creation ​of the fund.

Some January 6 defendants praised the ​Justice Department for adopting terms they ⁠have long used — including “lawfare,” “weaponization” and “victims” — and cast the fund as payback for years of injustice.
“Now liberals wanna cry about righting the wrong, too bad,” wrote Jennie Carso-Heinl, who pleaded guilty to parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building, on X. “Justice is coming.”
At least one Trump ally ​has already made a formal request: Michael Caputo, a former administration official, asked Blanche for $2.7 million in “restitution” over investigations by the Biden ​administration and special counsel ⁠Robert Mueller.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/im-not-greedy-january-6-rioters-trump-allies-eye-18-billion-weaponization-fund-2026-05-20/

Kyle Busch, a generational talent ‌whose aggressive driving style earned him the nickname “Rowdy” and won him two NASCAR Cup Series championships, has died at the age of 41, his family announced on Thursday.
News of his death came just hours after ​Busch’s family released a statement saying he had been hospitalized with a severe ​illness.

“We are devastated to announce the sudden and tragic passing of ⁠Kyle Busch,” his family, Richard Childress Racing and NASCAR said in a joint statement.

“Our ​entire NASCAR family is heartbroken by the loss of Kyle Busch. A future Hall of ​Famer, Kyle was a rare talent, one who comes along once in a generation.
“He was fierce, he was passionate, he was immensely skilled and he cared deeply about the sport and fans.”
Busch was ​in his 22nd full-time season in NASCAR’s top division, where he won two Cup ​Series titles (2015, 2019) and 63 races – a figure that ranks ninth on the circuit’s all-time win ‌list.
“Absolutely cannot ⁠comprehend this news,” fellow driver and rival Denny Hamlin said on social media.
“We just need to think of his family during this time. We love you KB.”

Born in Las Vegas, Busch entered the sport as a brash teenager with the nickname “Shrub” as the younger brother ​to Hall of Fame ​driver Kurt Busch.
But ⁠the alias of “Rowdy” – a nod to one of the main characters in the film “Days of Thunder” due to his aggressive style – ​is what stuck with him.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/sports/nascar-driver-busch-hospitalized-with-severe-illness-will-miss-coca-cola-600-2026-05-21/

The U.S. opening of a larger diplomatic hub in Greenland on Thursday was met by demonstrators opposed to President Donald Trump’s ambition for greater ​influence in the Arctic island, while local government ministers shied away from ‌the event.
Moving from a wooden cabin on the outskirts of Nuuk to a much larger downtown office, the new United States consulate has become a focal point for Greenlanders unhappy with Trump’s stated ​desire to control the island, a semi-autonomous part of Denmark.

Greenland’s Prime Minister ​Jens-Frederik Nielsen and a series of other politicians said that they ⁠had declined invitations to attend the opening of the new diplomatic mission.
“We haven’t ​made a decision in principle, but I won’t participate,” Nielsen told local daily Sermitsiaq.
Several ​hundred people demonstrated outside the consulate, carrying the island’s red and white flag and posters that said “USA, stop it”, while chanting “No means no” and “Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders”.

The new venue has greater ​capacity and offers an outstanding space for U.S. diplomatic engagement in Greenland, a ​State Department spokesperson said.

The White House in January said Trump was considering how to acquire Greenland, ‌including ⁠a potential use of the U.S. military, setting off alarm bells among NATO allies in Europe, although talks have since been moved to a diplomatic track.
Greenland’s government said on Monday that progress had been made in the high-stakes talks over the future of the territory amid ​U.S. threats of ​annexation, adding that the giant ⁠island belongs to its people and will never be for sale.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/greenlanders-demonstrate-against-trump-us-diplomats-open-new-consulate-2026-05-21/

The US military has been publicly broadcasting the location of military surveillance flights near Cuba on plane-tracking websites, as Washington continues to exert pressure on the island’s communist leadership.

Leaving flight transponders on “is likely deliberate”, said UK drone expert Dr Steve Wright, with the US intending to send “a clear message it has eyes in the sky to maintain the squeeze”.

BBC Verify analysis of data from flight-tracking website Flightradar24 shows at least five US Navy P-8A Poseidon surveillance aircraft and three MQ-4C Triton surveillance drones have been operating in the Caribbean near Cuba since 11 May. Some aircraft have flown as close as 50 miles (80km) from the island.

Flight-tracking data cannot give a complete picture of US activity off Cuba as military aircraft do not always broadcast their positions but share their location for portions of a flight.

The deployment of these aircraft comes as US-Cuba tensions have risen significantly in recent months, after Washington imposed an effective oil blockade on the Caribbean nation.

It has also been reported by news site Axios that Havana has acquired drones capable of attacking the US mainland, which Cuba’s foreign minister responded to by saying the country “neither threatens nor desires war” and accused Washington of building a “fraudulent case” for military intervention.

These accusations were followed by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio offering a “new relationship” with the Cuban people on Wednesday.

Speaking in Spanish on the anniversary of Cuba’s independence from the US in a direct address to the island’s population, Rubio blamed the island’s “unimaginable hardships” on its communist leadership – and not the US fuel blockade.

Experts told BBC Verify the public nature of these surveillance flights indicates the US is seeking to enforce the blockade and apply pressure on the Cuban government as well as deterring its allies like Venezuela from attempting to get energy shipments to the island.

The resulting fuel crisis has led to major power blackouts and triggered protests in Cuba. President Donald Trump has also put Cuba under significant pressure to “make a deal” and threatened its communist regime that the US could intervene like it did in Venezuela earlier this year when it captured President Nicolás Maduro.

What the flight-tracking data shows

BBC Verify has tracked several flights by US Navy P-8 Poseidon surveillance jets including one on 11 May when the aircraft got within 50 miles (80km) of southern Cuba, according to Flightradar24 data. The P-8 continued to operate into the following day, when it was seen flying to the north of Cuba’s capital Havana before returning to its base in Jacksonville, Florida.

On 15 May, two US MQ-4C Triton surveillance drones also operated off the coast of southern Cuba, with tracking showing them operating along a route similar to one previously flown by a Poseidon.

Mark Cancian, a retired US Marine Corps colonel and senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), told BBC Verify the recurrent flight paths of the surveillance aircraft “indicate an intention to spot ship arrivals from the south, primarily, and secondarily from the north”.

“None of the flights are over land, so this is not some preparation for invasion,” he said. Cancian added he doubts these flights are “routine”, given the number of P-8s and MQ-4C Tritons the US has at its disposal are “limited”.

BBC Verify also examined US military aircraft activity near Cuba between 1 and 7 February, which saw only one P-8 fly in the vicinity of Cuba and no comparable MQ-4C Triton activity near the island. However, a US Air Force RC-135V Rivet Joint reconnaissance aircraft did conduct two passes of the island over the period.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cjep1wx7w0ko

Two Russian warplanes “repeatedly and dangerously” intercepted an unarmed RAF spy plane over the Black Sea last month, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said.

A Russian Su-35 fighter approached the Rivet Joint surveillance aircraft, getting close enough to trigger its emergency systems, disabling its autopilot.

And a Su-27 jet also carried out six passes in front of the RAF plane, getting as close as six metres (19ft) from its nose.

Defence Secretary John Healey praised the “outstanding professionalism” of the RAF crew during “unacceptable” Russian flybys, which the MoD says is the most dangerous Russian action since 2022, when a “rogue” pilot fired a missile at a Rivet Joint over the Black Sea.

The MoD said the Rivet Joint had been conducting a routine international flight to aid in securing Nato’s eastern flank.

Condemning the airborne interceptions, Healey said: “This incident is another example of dangerous and unacceptable behaviour by Russian pilots, towards an unarmed aircraft operating in international airspace.

“These actions create a serious risk of accidents and potential escalation.”

He added: “This incident will not deter the UK’s commitment to defend Nato, our allies and our interests from Russian aggression.”

The MoD and Foreign Office have called on the Russian embassy to condemn the incident.

These latest interceptions come amid increased Russian aggression in the region, the MoD added, pointing to recent submarine activity over critical underwater British infrastructure in the North Sea.

This incident follows a similar one which saw a “rogue” Russian pilot attempt to shoot down an RAF Rivet Joint plane over the Black Sea in September 2022.

The Russian pilot fired two missiles, the first of which missed rather than malfunctioned as claimed at the time.

Russia had claimed the incident last September was caused by a “technical malfunction”.

Source : https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cq8p40e2zx1o

 

Two Munich residents have been arrested on suspicion of working for a Chinese intelligence service, seeking to obtain and pass on high-tech information with “military applications.”

Investigators on Wednesday arrested two Munich residents on suspicion of spying for China, the Office of the Federal Prosecutor (Generalbundesanwaltschaft) said.

The suspects are a married couple with German citizenship, identified as Xuejun C. and Hua S..

What are the couple accused of?

Prosecutors said the pair were suspected of working for a Chinese secret intelligence agency.

“In order to obtain access to scientific information about high-tech technologies with military applications, they built up contacts with numerous scientists at German universities and research institutes,” prosecutors wrote.

In particular, they focused on fostering contacts with “university professors in the areas of aerospace and space travel, IT and artificial intelligence.”

Among other roles, they are said to have posed as translators and employees of a German car parts supplier to gain access.

“Some scientists were lured to China on the premise of delivering lectures to the civilian audiences for remuneration,” prosecutors alleged. “In reality, these presentations then took place in front of associated of state-run weapons companies.”

What else happened in Wednesday’s operation?

The two individuals were arrested on Wednesday on the authority of a warrant issued a week earlier; federal prosecutors worked in conjunction with authorities in Bavaria.

The couple were taken to the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof) in Karlsruhe later on Wednesday for a decision on their being held in investigative detention.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/german-authorities-arrest-2-on-china-high-tech-espionage-allegations/a-77228979

What started as an internet joke is fast becoming young India’s newest symbol of resilience, survival and collective frustration. Meanwhile, PM Modi has reached Italy for the last leg of his tour.

Thank you for reading

And as it nears 10 p.m. local time in Delhi, we have decided to close out our India news blog for the day.

Thank you for reading and we hope to see you again soon for more India coverage!

India issues heatwave warning for next five days

India’s national weather agency warned residents in northwest and central India of severe heat wave conditions during the week and in eastern India during the next five days, on Wednesday.

The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) did not directly attribute the extreme heat to the El Nino phenomenon. However, it directed readers towards research on how the occurrence influences extreme temperature events and intensifies heat wave conditions.

“Heat waves in India are becoming longer, stronger, and more frequent,” it said, adding that “extreme temperatures can increase the risk of dehydration, heat exhaustion, and heatstroke, especially during outdoor activities and travel.”

The last El Nino helped make 2023 and 2024 the two hottest years on record.

India routinely experiences intense heatwaves between April and June.

The IMD declares a heatwave if the temperature reaches at least 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) or more for plains, and at least 30 degrees Celsius and more for hilly regions.

It categorizes a heat wave as a ‘severe’ one if the temperature is over 6.4 degrees Celsius higher than what’s normal for the region.

On Wednesday, temperatures in New Delhi were at about 43 degrees Celsius.

Lai Ching-te defended Taiwan’s sovereignty after US President Donald Trump suggested that arms sales to the island could be used as leverage in talks with China.

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said Wednesday the country’s future cannot be decided by “foreign forces” and vowed to boost defense spending to deter conflict with China.

“Taiwan’s future cannot be decided by foreign forces, nor can it be held hostage by fear, division, or short-term interests,” Lai said in a speech marking the second year of his presidency. “Taiwan must have the capability to protect itself and to uphold peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”

Beijing claims the self-ruled island as its territory and has not ruled out using force to seize it.

‘No country has the right to annex Taiwan’

Recently, President Donald Trump suggested in an interview with Fox News that US arms sales to Taiwan could be used as leverage in negotiations with Beijing following talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Trump also suggested he ​might call Lai.

Lai said if given the opportunity to speak with Trump, he would stress that Beijing was undermining peace and raising tensions in the region.

“No country has the right to annex Taiwan. The people of Taiwan pursue a democratic and free way of life, and democracy and freedom should not be regarded as provocation,” Lai said.

No direct, public conversation between the leaders of the two countries has taken place since Washington switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/taiwans-lai-rejects-china-pressure-pledges-stronger-defense/a-77223363

Aston Villa beat Freiburg 3-0 to win the Europa League final and end a 30-year trophy drought.

Aston Villa ended their 30-year trophy drought in style as spectacular goals from Youri Tielemans and Emiliano Buendia inspired a 3-0 win against Freiburg in the Europa League final on Wednesday (May 20).

Unai Emery’s side took the lead late in the first half in Istanbul through Tielemans’ thunderous volley.

Buendia increased Villa’s advantage with a sublime curler seconds before the interval.

Morgan Rodgers’ second-half goal finished off the outclassed Germans, sealing Villa’s first silverware since the 1996 League Cup and their first major European prize for 44 years.

That famous European Cup final upset of Bayern Munich in 1982, secured by Peter Withe’s goal in Rotterdam, has stood as the most iconic moment in Villa’s 152-year history.

But Villa’s current stars were determined to follow in the footsteps of the club’s golden generation.

Now Tielemans, Buendia, John McGinn and company can share the rarified air previously reserved for Withe, Tony Morley, Dennis Mortimer, Nigel Spink and the rest of the Class of ’82.

Fittingly, with Withe and Mortimer watching from the stands, Villa crushed Freiburg while wearing white shirts instead of their traditional claret and blue kit – just as they did against Bayern.

Villa’s long-awaited continental conquest was the latest Europa League masterclass for Emery, who has now won the tournament five times after victories with Sevilla in 2014, 2015 and 2016 and Villarreal in 2021.

Emery said this week that he didn’t feel like the “king” of the Europa League, but his team’s coronation got the royal seal of approval from Villa fan Prince William, who was celebrating along with around 20,000 ecstatic supporters in the Besiktas Stadium.

Hollywood actor Tom Hanks, another famous Villa fan, joined the party, sending a good luck message to the team before kick-off.

It has been a memorable finish to the campaign for Villa, who sealed qualification for next season’s Champions League with a win against Liverpool last week.

Villa’s success over the last six days would have been impossible to imagine when they started the season with a run of six matches without a win, scoring just twice in that dismal streak.

UNFORGETTABLE NIGHT

Their maiden win this season came in the Europa League against Bologna, the first of 13 victories in 15 games in the competition that culminated in their ruthless demolition of first-time European finalists Freiburg.

Despite losing in the UEFA Conference League semi-finals in 2024, and the Champions League quarter-finals and FA Cup semi-finals last year, Emery was convinced Villa would eventually cast off their ‘nearly men’ tag.

The 54-year-old Spaniard’s unshakable faith has been rewarded.

The Europa League triumph underlined Villa’s impressive renaissance since Emery took charge in October 2022 with the club languishing just three points above the relegation zone.

Relegated to the second tier in 1987 and 2016 and beaten in their previous four domestic finals prior to arriving in Istanbul, Villa have endured some torrid times since winning the European Cup.

Those miserable memories were banished forever on an unforgettable night on the banks of the Bosphorus.

Villa dominated from the start and should have been ahead in the opening moments when Noah Atubolu denied Rogers.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/sport/europa-league-final-aston-villa-freiburg-unai-emery-6132031

The UAE urged Iraq to “prevent all hostile acts” from its territory after accusing Iran-backed groups of launching a drone attack near Abu Dhabi’s Barakah nuclear plant.

The UAE demanded on Wednesday (May 20) that Iraq “immediately” prevent further attacks from its territory, following an accusation by the Emirates that a drone targeting a nuclear plant was launched from there.

The foreign ministry in a statement called on “Iraq to prevent all hostile acts originating from its territory urgently and without conditions”, saying there was a “need to address those threats promptly, immediately and responsibly”.

On Sunday, an unclaimed drone attack struck an electrical generator near the Arab world’s only nuclear power plant in Barakah in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, triggering a fire but causing no injuries or radiation leak. Two other drones were intercepted.

Last month, several Gulf countries – including Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE – and Jordan demanded in a joint statement that Baghdad act immediately to stop attacks from its territory by pro-Iran armed groups.

Along with the Gulf states, Iraq was dragged into the war between the United States, Israel and Iran, with strikes repeatedly targeting both US interests – especially the embassy in Baghdad – and pro-Iran groups in the country.

During the fighting, pro-Iran armed groups claimed to have launched daily attacks on “enemy bases” in Iraq and the wider region, but said they were suspending their actions after a temporary ceasefire was announced in April.

An Iraqi security official told AFP that “Arab countries have not provided precise information, only accusations” and that Iraq demands “evidence and precise information so that Iraqi authorities can take the appropriate measures”.

Iraqi government spokesperson Bassem al-Awadi told state media on Tuesday that Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi had ordered the formation of military committees to contact Arab states for “accurate information for verification”.

Source : https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/uae-iraq-nuclear-plant-strike-6131996

Sheryl Crow candidly shared how she learned that her ex-fiancé, Lance Armstrong, was dating a “real famous actress” while she was battling cancer in 2006.

“I was engaged, I had three beautiful stepchildren, I wanted to have kids with this person,” the “All I Wanna Do” songstress shared on Tuesday’s episode of Netflix’s “The Bobbycast” with host Bobby Bones.

“We split in the same week I got diagnosed with breast cancer, and I found out he was seeing a really famous actress,” she said.

“I went through about nine months of radiation and grieving and anger,” Crow, 64, who didn’t say Armstrong’s name, stated.

A rep for Armstrong, 54, wasn’t available to Page Six for comment.

The former road racing cyclist and the hitmaker started dating in 2003 and were engaged two years later.

However, they parted ways in February 2006 because of Crow’s desire to have kids when he wasn’t ready.

Armstrong detailed the breakup in his 2009 book “Lance: The Making of the World’s Greatest Champion,” writing, “She wanted marriage, she wanted children,” per Us Weekly.

“Not that I didn’t want that, but I didn’t want that at that time because I had just gotten out of a marriage, I’d just had kids,” he added, referring to his first marriage with Kristin Richard from 1998 to 2003, and their three kids, Luke, 17, and twins Grace and Isabelle, 15.

“Yet we’re up against her biological clock — that pressure is what cracked it,” Armstrong continued.

The former athlete tied the knot for the second time with Anna Hansen in 2022. They started dating in 2008.

The couple have two kids, Wyatt, 9, and Levi, 6.

Source : https://pagesix.com/2026/05/20/celebrity-news/sheryl-crow-found-out-ex-lance-armstrong-was-dating-real-famous-actress-in-wake-of-her-cancer-battle/

The tanker crew gathered their courage and carefully navigated along a route designated by Iran, hugging the coastline and maneuvering their hulking vessel between island checkpoints through the Strait of Hormuz.
The 330-metre-long Agios Fanourios I, laden with Iraqi crude oil and bound for Vietnam, had been bottled up off the coast of Dubai since late April. But on May 10 it set off for the strait after a direct deal with Iran overseen by Iraq’s prime minister.
Iran’s orders to the tanker were part of a complex, multi-tiered mechanism that the country has deployed for clearing vessels through the Strait of Hormuz. With Iran now in de facto control of the strait, the system can involve government-to-government arrangements, intense vetting by the Iranian government and sometimes fees in exchange for safe passage, Reuters has found.

In Vietnam, Iraq, Greece and beyond, the ship’s progress was monitored closely, including by two people interviewed by Reuters. Periodically, the transponder went dark but the Agios Fanourios I sailed on. Not far away that same day, another ship was hit with a projectile, causing a small fire, according to a British maritime safety agency.
Late on May 10, screens lit up with the icon for the Agios Fanourios I. But as the tanker passed Hormuz Island, it was stopped by Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps speedboats, according to an Iranian official.
The IRGC fighters patrolling the strait, who had initially let the vessel through, now ordered the ship to halt. The Iranian official said there was a suspicion of smuggled cargo and they wanted to inspect the ship.
Several hours later, the vessel received Iranian authorisation to continue, turning what is typically a five-hour transit through the strait into a two-day ordeal.
“Once we were informed Agios passed Hormuz, we breathed a sigh of relief,” said one of the people monitoring the journey.
No payments were made, said the ship’s manager, Eastern Mediterranean Shipping and six people with knowledge of the passage.
“We have reasons to believe that Iranians turned a blind eye to the transit of Agios Fanourios I, following pressure from Iraq and Vietnam,” Konstantinos Sakellaridis, operations manager for Eastern Mediterranean Shipping, wrote in a response to questions from Reuters.

Iran’s government did not respond to a request for comment about the new mechanism or the journey of the Agios Fanourios I.

Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz, the conduit for about a fifth of the global oil supply, has thrown the world economy into turmoil. To reveal how Iran has been consolidating control over this strategic chokepoint in recent weeks, Reuters interviewed 20 people with knowledge of the evolving mechanism, including Asian and European shipping sources and Iranian and Iraqi officials, reviewed Iranian documents related to the vetting process, and analysed movements of ships. Taken together, they offer rare insight into how the Iranian scheme functions, with the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps playing a central role.
All the sources asked not to be named because of the sensitivity of the subject. Some of the details of the journey of the Agios Fanourios I could not be independently verified, but they corresponded with accounts from multiple other maritime officials involved in managing and navigating the same route for both cargo ships and tankers.

Navigating the Strait

The Agios Fanourios I charted a contorted course with its cargo of Iraqi oil as it tried to leave the Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz in April and May. The ship was halted by U.S. forces in the Gulf of Oman from May 11-16 before heading for its destination, Vietnam.

By early May, around 1,500 vessels with about 22,500 sailors aboard were trapped in the Gulf, according to the U.S. military. That maritime bottleneck stems from Iran’s ability to strike ships in the strait from along the coast. Its grip has transformed the conflict into what the head of the International Energy Agency described as the world’s worst ever energy crisis. The U.S. Navy has responded by imposing its own blockade of Iranian ships and cargo with a cordon outside the strait.

Only a trickle of vessels have passed through the waterway. Between April 18 and May 6, fewer than 60 ships made it through, according to unpublished analysis by U.S. firm SynMax Intelligence. Before the war, some 120 to 140 ships traversed the strait on a typical day, about half of them oil tankers.
American citizens are prohibited from engaging in transactions with the Iranian government under U.S. sanctions laws. Non-Americans may also face “secondary sanctions” for dealing with Iranian entities. In addition, many Western governments maintain their own sanctions and restrictions relating to Iran.
The U.S. Treasury Department issued a statement on May 1 warning “about the sanctions risks of making these payments to, or soliciting guarantees from, the Iranian regime for safe passage.”

The new Iranian mechanism includes a tiered system giving preference to ships linked to its allies Russia and China, followed by countries such as India and Pakistan with close ties to Tehran, and then government-to-government agreements that let vessels like the Agios Fanourios I pass, Reuters found.

“The department is prepared to take action against any foreign company supporting illicit Iranian commerce,” the U.S. Treasury Department said in response to questions from Reuters about the system.
Reuters could not independently determine how many vessels have used the scheme so far. Iran has said ships linked to the United States or Israel, which launched aerial attacks on Iran in late February, may not cross the strait.
Two European shipping sources said some vessels that aren’t covered by government-to-government deals are paying Iranian authorities upwards of $150,000 to secure safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
Ships are sometimes charged security and navigation fees, which vary according to cargo, two senior Iranian officials told Reuters. Neither official provided specific figures, but one said “not all countries are subject to these charges.”
Reuters could not independently confirm the sums being levied on vessels or the total amount that has flowed into Iranian coffers.

‘THE NEW NORM’

Under international maritime law, governments cannot charge for safe passage through a strait. But there can be fees associated with security or services as long as ships of all countries are treated equally.
These payments and the names of ship owners who have paid Iranian authorities to extract their vessels are closely guarded secrets, as such payments would violate U.S. economic sanctions on Iran’s government. Reuters could not determine how the money was transferred or to which Iranian entity.
In addition to possible charges, violators would also lose their insurance coverage for making payments that could benefit the IRGC, because it is an internationally designated terrorist organisation, according to two maritime insurance experts.

“Some will get through because of political alliances, others will have to pay, others will be turned back. This is the new norm.”

Ship owners’ willingness to deal directly with Iran despite the risks shows the degree to which the strait is under the Islamic Republic’s control, said Danny Citrinowicz, a former Israeli intelligence officer who specialises in Iran research and analysis.
“The straits will be blocked or opened up only by the approval of the Iranian regime,” said Citrinowicz, who is now at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies think tank. “Some will get through because of political alliances, others will have to pay, others will be turned back. This is the new norm.”
In a response to the Reuters findings about Iran’s new control mechanism, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs called for Hormuz to be opened and said it was concerned about “future arrangements for the strait.”
“Such arrangements should comply with international law and practice, and take into account the legitimate security concerns of coastal states and the legitimate demands of regional countries and the international community,” the ministry’s statement said.

AFFILIATION CHECKS

Outside of government agreements, the process to secure Iranian permission to transit involves a detailed vetting procedure conducted by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran’s elite fighting force, according to three Iranian sources and a European shipping source. The IRGC reviews a so-called affiliation document supplied by a ship owner or operator and submitted through an intermediary, the sources said.
“The affiliation check is to identify if the vessel has any connection to the U.S. or Israel,” said the European shipping source. It takes about a week for the Guards to review documentation, and during the process they may want to physically inspect the ship, the source said.
The IRGC requires ship owners to disclose details including the value of the ship’s cargo, the flag, its origin and destination, the registered owner and manager, and nationalities of the crew, according to documents reviewed by Reuters that were sent to shipping industry sources by Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority. The authority was set up in recent weeks to approve and tax vessel transits.
The vetting is carried out by Iranian state institutions including the Ports and Maritime Organization, the Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade, the national shipping organisation, and the security overseer of the Supreme National Security Council, according to the three senior Iranian officials. The IRGC, which has broad oversight over Iranian security, is also involved in evaluating the ships, the officials said.
Bilateral arrangements for passage include an additional step: Countries contact Iran’s foreign minister to request permission. The minister forwards these to the Supreme National Security Council, which includes the IRGC and representatives of Supreme ‌Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, one of the officials said.
“A decision is then made and communicated to the relevant bodies, including the IRGC,” the official said. He added that the IRGC provides the coordinates and instructions needed for safe passage.
For the Agios Fanourios I, Iraq’s government worked alongside its state owned oil marketer, SOMO, to hammer out a deal with Iran under the supervision of then-Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, according to two sources with knowledge of the arrangement.

Three Iraqi oil ministry officials said they transmitted the manifest and crew information of the Agios Fanourios I to the Iranians before passage.
The Iraqi government did not respond to a request for comment about its arrangements with Iranian authorities or specifics about the Agios Fanourios.
Other countries have worked out different arrangements. Among them is India, which imports about 90% of its oil needs and about 50% of its gas, much of which passes through Hormuz.
New Delhi uses its embassy in Tehran to liaise with Iranian authorities, including the IRGC and the Iranian navy, which vets ships India wants to sail out of the Gulf, according to an Indian shipping ministry official.
“Once everything is verified, the ship captain is given a route to follow, and the ship sails out of the area with guidance from the Iran navy. The captains are strictly told to follow the given route,” the official said. Ships are told to turn off their location transponders and not use satellite communications, he added.
After Iran grants permission, the Indian Navy directly contacts shipmasters of Indian-flagged vessels in the Gulf and gives them waypoints, said an Indian shipping industry source with direct knowledge of the process.
“The Indian navy also told us that if the Iranians ask you to stop, then you should stop. If they ask you to move, you should move,” the source said, “And we’ve been following those instructions.”
So far, 13 Indian-flagged vessels have cleared the Strait of Hormuz, while 13 remain stranded west of the waterway, India’s Shipping Ministry said on May 14.
India, Russia, Pakistan and Vietnam did not respond to requests for comment about Iran’s controls of the strait.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/investigations/iran-is-consolidating-control-hormuz-with-island-checkpoints-diplomatic-deals-2026-05-20/

The United States announced murder charges against former Cuban President Raúl Castro on Wednesday, a major escalation in ​Washington’s pressure campaign against the island’s communist government.
The indictment marks a new low in relations between the longtime Cold War rivals and comes as U.S. President Donald Trump is pushing for regime change in Cuba, where Castro’s communists ‌have been in charge since his late brother Fidel Castro led a revolution in 1959.

The charges against Castro and five fighter pilots in the Cuban military stem from a 1996 incident in which Cuban jets shot down planes operated by a group of Cuban exiles.
Raúl Castro, 94, was charged with one count of conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals, four counts of murder, and two counts of destruction of aircraft. He appeared in public in Cuba earlier this month and there is no evidence he has left the island or that he ​will be extradited.
It is rare for the U.S. to file criminal charges against foreign leaders. The indictment was the latest example of the Trump administration’s aggressive efforts to expand U.S. influence in the ​Western Hemisphere.

“From the shores of Havana to the banks of the Panama Canal, we will drive out the forces of lawlessness and crime and foreign encroachment,” Trump said ⁠at a Coast Guard Academy event in New London, Connecticut, earlier on Wednesday.
Speaking at a ceremony in Miami to honor the victims of the 1996 incident, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche did not directly answer questions about ​whether the U.S. military would arrest Castro.
Blanche said he expected Castro to one day face the charges.
“There was a warrant issued for his arrest, so we expect that he will show up here by his own will or ​by another way,” Blanche said to applause in a packed auditorium of government officials and Cuban Americans.
In a post on X, President Miguel Diaz-Canel said Cuba had acted legitimately to defend its territory in shooting down the planes. He said the indictment appeared to be intended to justify military action against Cuba, which he said would be a mistake.

“It is a political maneuver, devoid of any legal foundation,” Diaz-Canel said.
Diaz-Canel said on Monday that the island does not represent a threat.
The charges come months after the U.S. ​capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3 to face drug trafficking charges in New York.
Maduro, a socialist aligned with Havana, pleaded not guilty.

TRUMP ASSERTS US INFLUENCE IN LATIN AMERICA

Washington’s more assertive role in Latin America, ​epitomized by the capture of Maduro, is shaping up to be a significant part of the legacy of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants who is seen as a possible contender for the 2028 Republican nomination for president.
His chief ‌Republican rival to ⁠succeed Trump, Vice President JD Vance, is a former Marine who has long argued against U.S. entanglements in foreign wars.
Under Trump, the U.S. has effectively imposed a blockade on Cuba by threatening sanctions on countries supplying it with fuel, triggering power outages and exacerbating its worst crisis in decades.
Rubio earlier on Wednesday offered Cuba $100 million in aid, and blamed Cuba’s leaders for shortages of electricity, food and fuel. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez called that offer cynical, citing the “devastating effect” of the economic blockade.

CUBA DEFENDS DOWNING OF PLANES

Born in 1931, Raúl Castro was a key figure alongside his older brother in the guerrilla war that toppled U.S.-backed dictator Fulgencio Batista.
After taking power, Fidel Castro struck an ​alliance with the Soviet Union, then seized U.S.-owned businesses ​and properties. The U.S. has since maintained an ⁠economic embargo on the nation of about 10 million.
Raúl Castro helped defeat the U.S.-organized Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961, and served as defense minister for decades. He succeeded his brother as president in 2008 and stepped down in 2018, but remains a powerful behind-the-scenes figure in Cuban politics.
He was defense minister at the time of the ​1996 incident, in which two small planes operated by Miami-based Cuban exile group Brothers to the Rescue were shot down, killing those aboard.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/us-expected-unveil-criminal-charges-against-cubas-raul-castro-2026-05-20/

First responders fighting Democratic Republic of Congo’s 17th Ebola outbreak say even basic supplies are scarce – from pain medicine, to motorbikes for contact tracing and face masks – complicating efforts to turn the tide on the ​disease.
The rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola circulated for weeks undetected in Congo’s remote northeast before the first samples tested positive last week. Aid groups are now scrambling ‌to rush in supplies to Ituri, the conflict-hit province where the outbreak originated.

Underinvestment in public health infrastructure is the norm for Ituri, although some aid agencies are blaming the current shortages partly on cuts to foreign assistance, notably the dismantling of USAID last year.
“Funding cuts have left the region dangerously exposed,” said Heather Reoch Kerr, Congo country director for the International Rescue Committee.
“Certain activities previously supported by donor funding, including the provision of PPE ​kits to health facilities, have been significantly reduced, and today many facilities in affected areas are operating without basic protective supplies.”

AID WORKERS TAP CONTINGENCY STOCKS

The World Health ​Organization declared the outbreak a public health emergency of international concern on May 16. As of Wednesday, there were 600 suspected cases and 139 ⁠suspected deaths in Congo.
The State Department announced on Tuesday that it would fund up to 50 “rapidly deployed” treatment clinics to fight Ebola in affected areas of Congo and Uganda, where cases have ​also been reported.
The decision, it said in a statement, highlights Washington’s “ironclad commitment to ensuring this response is fully resourced, rapid, and cooperative between key global health and humanitarian partners.”
Meanwhile, the WHO said ​it had airlifted 12 tons of medical supplies, with another six expected.
The aid can’t come soon enough, said Mamadou Kaba Barry, head of mission in Congo for ALIMA, an NGO that was already working in Ituri before the outbreak and was one of the first to mobilise supplies.

“We tapped into our contingency stocks, which include tents, protective equipment, medicines and laboratory equipment. These are not huge stocks, but they allow us to be ​agile and quick,” Barry said.
“The resources are far below what is needed today.”

LOCAL HOSPITALS ‘OVERWHELMED’

Congo’s health minister has announced plans to build treatment centres in three locations. As of Tuesday, 69 patients ​were under active treatment in existing health facilities that the government acknowledges are under-resourced.
There are no approved virus-specific therapeutics for the Bundibugyo strain, and treatment is palliative, centred on isolation, rehydration and pain management.
“We are ‌overwhelmed, we ⁠were not prepared to deal with an outbreak,” said Sandrine Lusamba, coordinator of SOFEPADI, a local NGO that runs a small hospital outside Bunia, the Ituri capital. The hospital has received several suspected cases since the outbreak was declared, and three have died, she said. Two nurses have fallen ill.

China and Russia condemned U.S. President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome missile defence shield plans and Washington’s “irresponsible” nuclear policy at a summit on Wednesday, a week after President ​Xi Jinping hosted Trump in Beijing.
A joint statement issued after Xi’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin served to underline that, while the Chinese leader seeks stable and constructive relations with ‌Trump, he differs fundamentally with him on key issues where China’s position is closely aligned with Russia’s.

The statement said Trump’s plan for a ground- and space-based missile interceptor system threatened global strategic stability and criticised Washington for allowing a treaty restricting the U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals to expire.
The treaty lapsed in February and Trump did not respond to Moscow’s proposal to extend its missile and warhead limits by a year – something that some U.S. politicians argued would have hindered the U.S. from responding to a nuclear build-up by China.
Yet while ​speaking in unison on global security issues, the two leaders failed to reach a breakthrough that Moscow has long been seeking – a contract for a new pipeline that would enable it to more than ​double the amount of natural gas it sells to China.

XI’S BACK-TO-BACK SUMMITS

Xi was wrapping up a remarkable week of diplomacy in which he met the leaders of China’s ⁠most powerful strategic rival and one of its closest partners.
With Trump seeking an exit from a war with Iran and Putin’s forces largely bogged down in Ukraine, the summits provided China’s leader with a chance to showcase Beijing ​as a pillar of global stability and an indispensable diplomatic player.
“Xi does appear to hold the stronger position relative to both Putin and Trump. Both leaders are grappling with conflicts of their own making that have proven far more ​difficult to resolve than initially anticipated,” said Patricia Kim, a foreign policy fellow at the Washington-based Brookings Institution.
“Xi, meanwhile, has been able to focus more squarely on strengthening China internally while projecting an image of a stable and confident great power on the global stage.”

While the summit with Trump was largely about managing tensions, the encounter with Putin posed a different challenge – how to demonstrate progress in a relationship that the two sides have already proclaimed is “without limits”.
Xi and Putin, who have met more than 40 times, both ​stressed the closeness of the Russia-China ties that they sealed in 2022 with the signing of a strategic partnership treaty, less than three weeks before Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Moscow had signalled ahead of the visit that it was ​seeking further energy agreements with China, the largest buyer of Russian oil, including pipeline supplies and sea-borne shipments.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said China was interested in long-term Russian oil supplies and increasing volumes, which he said were up 10% in ‌four months.

ELUSIVE ⁠GAS DEAL

During Putin’s last visit in September 2025, Russian gas giant Gazprom said both sides had agreed to move forward with Power of Siberia 2, a prospective 2,600-km (1,616-mile) pipeline to carry 50 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas per year from Russia to China via Mongolia.
China has said very little publicly about the project. While Xi said on Wednesday that cooperation in energy and resource connectivity should be the “ballast stone” in China-Russia relations, he did not mention the pipeline.
Key issues such as gas pricing remain unresolved, and analysts expect negotiations could take years.
The Kremlin said both sides had reached a “general understanding on the parameters” of the project, although no details or clear timeline were agreed. Novak said Russia and China ​were finalising contracts for supplies via the pipeline.
“The core disagreements ​on pricing, financing and contract terms do not ⁠appear to have been resolved,” said Daniel Sleat, senior policy advisor at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change.
“Russia needs this deal more urgently than China does after losing much of its European gas market, while Beijing still appears content to move slowly and preserve flexibility over future energy supply options.”

HONOUR GUARD AND GUN SALUTE

Xi welcomed Putin with ​an honour guard and a gun salute at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, as children waved Chinese and Russian flags. They later dined on ​Peking duck and Jinhua cured ⁠ham at a banquet, and drank tea together with a small number of close aides, before Putin’s plane departed.
Xi said the countries should focus on long-term strategy and promote a “more just and reasonable” global governance system, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua.
“China-Russia relations have reached this level because we have been able to deepen political mutual trust and strategic cooperation,” Xi said.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/china/xi-putin-meet-beijing-tea-diplomacy-after-trump-visit-2026-05-19/

The U.S. ​is pursuing a second criminal investigation into ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, ‌raising the possibility that he could face additional charges, according to a Justice Department official and another source familiar with the matter.
The second investigation, run out of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami, ​has been ongoing for months, according to the two sources, who spoke on ​the condition of anonymity to discuss a pending investigation.

The Florida probe ⁠was active at the time that President Donald Trump ordered the U.S. military raid that ​captured Maduro, 63, and his wife, Cilia Flores, 69, in January, according to the DOJ ​official. It has examined potential money laundering allegations, according to the other source.
A lawyer for Maduro and a Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
CBS News was first ​to report on the second investigation run out of Florida. It is not clear ​if that probe will lead to additional charges.
Maduro has already been charged in federal court in Manhattan ‌with narcoterrorism ⁠conspiracy and other offenses tied to alleged drug trafficking. He has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial in a Brooklyn jail.

The New York indictment, originally filed in 2020, was cited as legal justification for the U.S. special forces raid in Caracas that deposed ​Maduro as Venezuela’s leader.
The ​Florida investigation could ⁠give the Justice Department a fallback option if it faces legal complications in Maduro’s New York case. Trump in March suggested that ​Maduro will face additional charges in the U.S.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/us-pursuing-second-criminal-investigation-into-maduro-sources-say-2026-05-20/

The South Korean and Japanese leaders, whose nations have not always had good relations, have vowed deeper ties at talks. They reaffirmed stronger security coordination and energy cooperation in challenging times.

South ​Korean President ​Lee ‌Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi held a fourth meeting in about six months on Tuesday, with both leaders pledging to continue deepening bilateral ties.

The two countries have long had a turbulent relationship over issues related to Japan’s 35-year colonization of the Korean Peninsula before the end of World War II, but ties have recently been on the mend.

Both Lee and Takaichi are relatively new to their jobs, having taken office last year.

What did Lee and Takaichi agree?

Following the talks in Andong, Lee’s hometown, the two leaders said they would step up coordination to stabilize energy supply lines and expand cooperation with other Asian partners.

“Recent instability ‌in supply chains and energy markets stemming from the situation in the Middle East has further underscored the need for close cooperation between our two countries,” Lee said in a ‌joint press statement.

Takaichi said they also launched a bilateral initiative that aims to strengthen the resilience of ​the energy supply.

She said that included enlarging reserves in the Indo-Pacific region and “assessing energy, security through measures such as mutual swap transactions for crude oil, petroleum products and LNG.”

The two also reaffirmed their desire for stronger security coordination, including cooperation ​with the United States, in the face of several shared challenges.

Among other things, both Japan and South Korea feel themselves highly exposed to the threat posed by North Korea’s growing nuclear arsenal and by the strategic competition between the US and China.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/south-korea-japan-agree-to-boost-energy-cooperation/a-77209237

The EU reached a provisional agreement to remove import duties on US goods, keeping the bloc on track to meet Trump’s deadline to avoid higher tariffs on European exports.

The European Union reached a late-night provisional deal on Tuesday to remove import duties on US goods, a key part of the bloc’s trade pact with the United States.

This kept the EU on track to meet President Donald Trump’s July 4 deadline and avoid higher US tariffs on European goods.

“I am proud to announce that Europe has avoided a ‌damaging escalation of transatlantic trade tensions and protected European companies, investments and millions of jobs on ‌both sides ​of the Atlantic,” Zeljana Zovko, the lead trade negotiator in the European People’s Party group on the US deal, posted on X.

“I welcome the agreement reached by the European Parliament and the Council on reducing tariffs for US industrial exports to the EU. This means we ‌will soon deliver on our part of the EU-US Joint Statement, as promised,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen psoted on X.

“Together, we can ensure stable, predictable, balanced, and mutually beneficial transatlantic trade.”

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said an agreement showed the bloc was “delivering on its commitments.”

In a post on X, Merz said the deal meant “more security and stability for our businesses.”

What do we know about the US-EU trade deal?

The US-EU trade deal was agreed upon in July last year, after months of tariff uncertainty. Here are some of the most important things to know about it:

• The agreement imposes a 15% US tariff on most EU exports
• The EU pledged €514 billion ($596.3 billion) in investment into the United States, its largest trading partner
• The deal reduced the 25% tariff imposed on European automakers in April 2025
• Before President Donald Trump’s second term, the tariff on European autos stood at 2.5%
• The agreement helps the EU avoid a broader trade war that could  hurt business confidence and consumer spending on both sides of the Atlantic
• Several European political and business leaders criticized the deal as harmful to the 27-member bloc
• The EU had initially pushed for a lower 10% tariff rate
• In February, EU lawmakers delayed approval of the deal amid uncertainty over Trump’s tariff policies
• The delay followed a US Supreme Court ruling that struck down many of Trump’s earlier global tariffs
• Trump later imposed a new blanket 15% tariff in response to the court ruling

What concessions did the EU make?

EU lawmakers softened several demands during negotiations, including a proposal to suspend favorable tariffs for US exporters if Washington breached the terms of the deal.

The final text also gives the US until the end of the year to remove steel surtaxes above 15%, instead of making it a precondition for the agreement.

Lawmakers of the bloc had also pushed for stronger so-called “sunrise” and “sunset” clauses under which the EU would only cut duties when the ⁠US fulfilled its side of the deal and to end EU tariff concessions on March 31, 2028.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/eu-strikes-deal-on-us-trade-pact-ahead-of-trump-tariff-deadline/a-77222972

On May 10, 2025, the Pakistani military also used the Fatah-1 guided artillery rocket during the cross-border offensive. However, that was successfully intercepted and destroyed mid-air by India’s air defence network over Sirsa, Haryana.

In the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack last year, tensions between India and Pakistan escalated sharply, with Islamabad launching a series of drone and missile attacks aimed at Indian cities and defence infrastructure in response to Operation Sindoor.

As part of Pakistan’s Operation Bunyan Ul Marsoos, multiple incursions into Indian airspace were reported across Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat. On May 10, 2025, the Pakistani military also used the Fatah-1 guided artillery rocket during the cross-border offensive. However, that was successfully intercepted and destroyed mid-air by India’s air defence network over Sirsa, Haryana.

A video of a Pakistani military officer is making rounds online where he confidently boasts that their missile strikes on May 10 successfully hit two Indian airbases. But the airbases he mentioned simply don’t exist.

“We were assigned two targets, Rajouri Airbase and Mamun Airbase, and we successfully engaged them,” he said in the interview.

While Rajouri is indeed a district in Jammu and Kashmir, it has no operational Air Force base. Mamun, on the other hand, is actually a military cantonment located in Pathankot, Punjab, and not an airbase at all.

The military officer, identified as Captain Muneeb Zamal, said that the presence of civilians during missile launch preparation acted as a “confidence building” element during the operation.

The clip has since been widely shared and ridiculed on the internet.

One user took to X to write, “Archaeologists, cartographers, Google maps, and the Indian air force have launched a joint mission to locate legendary “Rajouri airbase and Mamun airbase”.

“Fateh-1 hits Rajouri and Mamun airbases so hard that they cease to even exist! Next Target: Atlantis?” read another sarcastic post.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/pakistani-officer-claims-2-indian-airbases-were-hit-they-dont-exist-11519523?pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

Hayden Panettiere revealed that the “very famous” and “undressed” man she was forced into bed with at just 18 years old was a “famous thirty-something British singer-songwriter.”

The actress divulged the information on his identity in her new memoir, “This Is Me: A Reckoning,” which was released on Tuesday, after she initially opened up about the incident on Jay Shetty’s “On Purpose” podcast.

Panettiere, 36, writes that the horrifying experience occurred during a trip to the South of France aboard what she describes as a “super yacht” filled with celebrities.

At the time, she was traveling with a close friend, whom she refers to only with the pseudonym Stella McAmis.

The trip took a dark turn towards the end when Panettiere says McAmis approached her during dinner and asked her to come downstairs to meet someone.

McAmis led the “Nashville” alum through a narrow hallway and into a private cabin where Panettiere discovered the “famous thirty-something British singer-songwriter” shirtless in bed under sheets.

“‘Oh my God,’ I thought. ‘Is he naked under there?’” she writes, claiming her trusted friend whispered to her, “I want you to get in bed with him. He has a huge dick,” before leaving them alone in the room.

Though Panettiere writes that her heart was “pounding” with fear, her “thoughts were a blur” and she initially followed the friend’s orders since she was so used to being “managed” by others as a child star.

However, once she was alone with the man, she realized she couldn’t let the situation go any further.

“Look,” she recalls saying, “I don’t know what she said to you, but this is not going to happen. Shen then hurried out of the room and made arrangements to leave the yacht as soon as possible.

“I wasn’t scared, but I felt like I’d been kicked in the face,” she writes of her former friend’s actions. “She’d confided in me, pampered me, and treated me like her best friend — then turned around and treated me like a call girl. I deserved better than that, by a lot.”

The “Heroes” alum has been keeping her friend’s true identity a secret, which initially led fans to speculate it was “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” alum Diana Jenkins.

But the former Bravo star shut down the rumors with a statement via her rep on May 13.

“Diana has had to deal with false online rumors before, and sadly this is just another example of that,” Jenkins’ spokesperson told TMZ. “So let me be 100 percent clear about this: It most certainly is not Diana, and anyone who claims it is her will be sued.”

When asked why she continues to keep the musician’s identity a secret, Panettiere admitted it is due to the fear of being sued.

Source: https://pagesix.com/2026/05/19/celebrity-news/hayden-panettiere-hints-at-identity-of-very-famous-naked-man-she-was-put-in-bed-with-at-18/

UK citizens are among dozens of nationalities who will soon have to apply for a visa if they wish to stay in Thailand for more than 30 days.

Tourists from 93 countries have been able to visit without needing a visa for 60 days since July 2024, as part of a government effort to boost the economy following the Covid pandemic.

But it approved plans on Tuesday to revoke this exemption, with how long travellers can stay to now be decided on a country-by-country basis. It cited security and a confusing visa scheme among reasons for the change.

There have been a series of high-profile arrests of foreigners in the south-east Asian nation, including cases linked to drugs and sex trafficking.

Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said the government found the policy needed revising “to be more suitable for the current situation, both in terms of the economy and national security”.

Nationals who have enjoyed the 60-day exemption include those from Australia, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Spain and the US.

Many of those countries’ citizens will have to apply for a visa for stays longer than 30 days, the Thai foreign ministry said, though some will have exemption periods shorter or longer than this based on reciprocal agreements with individual countries.

The new visa system will come into effect 15 days after it appears in the Royal Gazette, where legal and regulatory notifications are published.

The foreign ministry said it aimed to reduce instances of multiple visa exemptions applying to the same country “that confuse foreigners”.

Thailand is one of Asia’s top holiday destinations, with tourism a key component of the nation’s economy.

Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c78q3qjqnn5o

Secretary of State Marco Rubio will travel this week to a NATO foreign ministers meeting in Sweden, where U.S. plans to reduce troop levels in Europe coupled with President Donald Trump’s often inconsistent stance on the alliance have created concern while the world grapples with the fallout from the Iran war and rising energy prices.

The State Department said Tuesday that Rubio would attend the NATO meeting in Helsingborg on Friday, one of the last senior-level NATO gatherings before alliance leaders meet at a summit in Ankara, Turkey, in July.

Rubio will then travel on to India and plans to visit four cities, including Kolkata, Agra, Jaipur and New Delhi, where he will see Indian officials and is expected to meet with his Indian, Australian and Japanese counterparts, the other three members of the so-called “Quad” grouping of Indo-Pacific democracies.

In Sweden, Rubio will echo previous U.S. demands “for increased defense investment and greater burden sharing in the alliance,” the State Department said in a statement.

It added that he would also focus on Arctic issues and meet with NATO’s Arctic members “to discuss our shared economic and security interests in the Arctic and our strengthened posture in the High North.”

The statement did not mention Greenland by name, but Trump has rankled Europeans with persistent talk about wanting to take over the Danish territory. Trump’s special envoy for Greenland, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, visited the island this week.

Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said Monday that he had a respectful and positive meeting with Landry, but that he made it clear that the Greenlandic people insist on self-determination.

“The Greenlandic people are not for sale. Greenlandic self-determination is not something that can be negotiated,” Nielsen was quoted by Danish TV 2 as saying after meeting Landry.

For Europeans nervous about Trump, Rubio’s presence at transatlantic meetings has often been welcomed because of his less antagonistic nature and calm demeanor.

He has been dispatched on several such missions this year, including to the Munich Security Conference in February, and more recently to Italy, where he met with Italian officials and the pope after Trump criticized the pontiff for his stances on crime and the Iran war.

Ahead of the NATO foreign ministers meeting, the alliance’s top military officer said Tuesday that he doesn’t expect any more drawdowns of American troops from Europe — at least not anytime soon — beyond the 5,000 that Trump announced would leave the continent.

The remarks by U.S. Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich follow Trump’s surprise announcement of the move early this month. The U.S. leader has bickered with allies over the Iran war and called for changes.

The Pentagon later said it would draw down thousands of troops in Europe by canceling deployments to Poland and Germany as opposed to yanking out forces already stationed there.

Asked Tuesday about Trump’s plans regarding troop levels in Poland, Vice President JD Vance said the administration’s focus is on promoting “European independence and sovereignty.” He also disputed that the U.S. is reducing troop levels in Poland.

Source: https://apnews.com/article/nato-rubio-sweden-india-abd19ad20d6966f6b94fd15aa25d9027

Israeli forces on Tuesday intercepted all remaining vessels from an activist flotilla attempting to challenge Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza, the latest effort to highlight the grim conditions for nearly 2 million Palestinians with severe shortages of housing, food and medicine.

A live feed on the Global Sumud Flotilla website showed armed Israeli soldiers boarding the vessels as activists in life vests put their hands up. Soldiers then destroyed cameras mounted on the vessels.

Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani called for an urgent review of Israel’s use of force after Italian activists said soldiers fired rubber bullets at vessels. Flotilla organizers claimed Israeli soldiers fired on five boats during the interdictions, with some damage.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said that no live ammunition was fired. In a statement late Tuesday, it added that “non-lethal means” were aimed toward the vessels as a warning, but without targeting or injuring protesters.

Israeli forces had begun stopping the flotilla around 167 miles (268 kilometers) from the Gaza coastline, according to the flotilla’s website. The vessels departed last week from Turkey.

Israel has called the flotilla “a provocation for the sake of provocation” with no real intent to deliver aid to Gaza. The boats carry a symbolic amount of aid.

Detained activists being ‘forcibly transported,’ group says
On Monday, the Israeli navy stopped some 41 boats from the flotilla in international waters off Cyprus and detained those on board.

The flotilla said late Tuesday that 428 detained activists from over 40 nations remain “unaccounted for” as they have had neither contact with lawyers nor access to consular help and their families haven’t been informed of their whereabouts.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry Office said Tuesday night that “all 430 activists” had been transferred to Israeli vessels. The post on X, which called the flotilla “a PR stunt at the service of Hamas,” added that they were “making their way to Israel, where they will be able to meet with their consular representatives.”

More than a dozen Irish nationals were aboard the flotilla, including the sister of Irish President Catherine Connolly. Ireland’s Prime Minister Micheál Martin has called Israel’s interception of the boats in international waters “absolutely unacceptable.”

The flotilla urged governments and world leaders to demand the activists “immediate and unconditional release” and to ensure they get legal and consular help without delay.

Earlier Tuesday, the activist group said that the detainees were “being forcibly transported” by an Israeli ship to an unnamed port. It also warned of “grave and immediate concerns” about the activists’ physical safety after others detained during an April 30 interdiction detailed “patterns of torture, severe physical abuse and invasive sexual violence” by Israeli forces. Israel denies the allegations.

Turkey and the Palestinian militant group Hamas have called the interdictions an act of “piracy.” Italy, Spain and Indonesia called on Israel to release activists and ensure their safety.

The U.S. Treasury, however, imposed sanctions against European activists Saif Abu Keshek, Jaldia Abubakra Aueda, Hisham Abdallah Sulayman Abu Mahfuz and Mohammed Khatib, who were aboard the flotilla, which Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called “pro-terror.”

The Israeli defense body overseeing humanitarian aid to Gaza claims that sufficient aid is entering the territory, with around 600 trucks delivering assistance daily, similar to prewar levels.

But according a U.N. World Food Program report, the number of humanitarian and commercial trucks entering Gaza declined sharply in March compared with previous months following the start of the Iran war. A daily average of 112 trucks entered in March.

 

Source: https://apnews.com/article/gaza-israel-flotilla-intercepted-andros-40ef5c9b668c381448b871c384d2927e

As part of the Justice Department’s compensation fund deal, officials vowed not to pursue any matters, including those involving President Trump’s tax returns, that are pending.

The Justice Department has granted President Trump, his family and businesses immunity from ongoing inquiries into their taxes, a potentially lucrative arrangement that could shield the president from significant financial liability.

The provision, quietly inserted on Tuesday as a supplement to a remarkable deal that also created a $1.8 billion compensation fund aimed at benefiting Mr. Trump’s allies, protects the president, his relatives and his businesses from pending audits and tax prosecutions.

The one-page document, signed by the acting attorney general, Todd Blanche, said that the government would be “FOREVER BARRED and PRECLUDED from prosecuting or pursuing” pending tax claims against Mr. Trump, his family members and businesses.

The provision invited immediate criticism as tax experts raised the possibility that it was illegal.

That the addendum to the deal was posted, without fanfare, on the department’s website belied its bare-knuckled audacity. It revealed the determination of Mr. Trump and his appointees to ram through maximalist measures with minimum outside scrutiny at a moment when they still have uncontested control of government.

The provision was the latest in a series of maneuvers this week that blurred the all-but-vanished boundary between official department business and the private interests of a president intent on using his power to extract financial gain from the federal government for himself and his allies.

A day earlier, Mr. Trump agreed to drop his $10 billion lawsuit against the I.R.S. in exchange for the establishment of a fund for people he believes were wronged by federal investigations or prosecutions.

Justice Department officials had in part defended the creation of the fund by pointing to the fact that Mr. Trump and his family members would not be paid by it.

But protection from audit could be quite financially beneficial for Mr. Trump, who has always said that there was no wrongdoing in his tax filings. In 2024, The New York Times reported that a loss in an I.R.S. audit could cost Mr. Trump more than $100 million.

It is unclear if that examination has concluded or if Mr. Trump, his family members or affiliated entities are under other audits. I.R.S. procedures call for the mandatory audit of the president’s tax returns annually.

Neither the Justice Department nor the I.R.S. responded to requests seeking comment. The top lawyer at the Treasury, Brian Morrissey, resigned on Monday after the Justice Department announced the settlement with Mr. Trump.

Federal law prohibits the president, vice president and other executive officers from instructing the I.R.S. to start or stop specific audits. But that broad prohibition appears to include a carve out for the attorney general.

Brandon DeBot, a senior attorney adviser at New York University’s Tax Law Center, said in a statement that the audit protection may still be illegal.

“The I.R.S. would need to act to make the release of claims effective, which could raise additional questions about whether there has been unlawful political interference in the audit process,” he said. “The settlement and general release of claims is a breathtaking abuse of the tax and legal system.”

The disclosure of the provision came as blowback appeared to be mounting over the creation of the fund, including from a few Republican lawmakers typically wary of incurring Mr. Trump’s wrath.

Senator John Thune, Republican of South Dakota and the majority leader, offered rare criticism of the president, saying he “was not a big fan” of the fund and adding that he did not see a “purpose” to it.

The Times reported last week that Mr. Trump’s talks with the Justice Department and the I.R.S. had included a measure calling on the I.R.S. to drop any audits of the president, his relatives or businesses. But that provision did not appear in the nine-page agreement laying out the terms to dismiss the lawsuit, which the department released on Monday.

In January, Mr. Trump, along with two of his sons and the Trump family business, sued the Internal Revenue Service for at least $10 billion over the leak of their tax returns during the president’s first term. The Trumps argued that the I.R.S. should have done more to prevent a former contractor from disclosing tax information to The New York Times and ProPublica.

Even as the original nine-page agreement offered scant details of how disbursement would work or who would be eligible, it said that claimants could seek money from the government for having faced reprisals for “personal, political and/or ideological reasons.” It stated that a five-person commission would consider claims based on criteria like damages a person had incurred or any time they spent in federal custody.

The main agreement also indicated that claims would largely be handed out in secrecy, requiring the fund managers to provide the attorney general on a quarterly basis with a “confidential written report” of those who received any money. The fund would stop processing claims no later than Dec. 1, 2028, just weeks before Mr. Trump is scheduled to leave office.

Frank Bisignano, the chief executive of the I.R.S., signed the original, nine-page settlement. The provisions granting Mr. Trump immunity from existing audits, though, was signed only by Mr. Blanche, who has stepped up carrying out Mr. Trump’s campaign of retribution against his enemies.

During an appearance before a Senate appropriations subcommittee on Tuesday, Mr. Blanche defended the fund.

At one point, Senator Chris Van Hollen, Democrat of Maryland, repeatedly accused Mr. Blanche of behaving more like a Trump defense lawyer than an independent guardian of the public interest.

 

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/19/us/politics/trump-irs-doj-lawsuit-audit.html?unlocked_article_code=1.jlA.8rF_.f2PERJ-lWivq

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday revealed previously undisclosed details about his new bunker-like White House ballroom, saying it would have a drone base on ​the roof and a military hospital as part of a six-story subterranean complex.
Amid ‌the bang and clang of construction, Trump took a group of reporters on a tour of the project to try to bolster his argument that the U.S. Congress should allocate $1 billion to pay for security enhancements to the building.

Democrats ​and some Republicans are balking at the request, calling it extravagant as Americans grapple with ​spiraling gasoline prices and other fallout from Trump’s war on Iran ahead of November ⁠midterm elections.
Trump, a billionaire real estate developer, did not hold back in describing previously unknown ​details about the project, which at 90,000 square feet stands to dwarf the adjacent White House built ​in the late 18th century.
Trump has argued the ballroom is needed for large events of 1,000 people, far more capacity than the White House entertainment spaces can accommodate. He pressed his case for the ballroom after an apparent ​assassination attempt at a Washington hotel where he was attending a media gala, arguing that it would ​be a much more secure venue.

Trump detailed the ballroom’s security features, describing a bunker-like structure with a hardened roof ‌able ⁠to withstand a direct attack.
He said titanium fencing recently installed around the ballroom was so strong that “a bulldozer cannot knock it over.” The roof, he said, would be constructed of “impenetrable steel.”
Beneath the ballroom, there will be a complex extending six stories deep, he said, pointing to two that were already ​under construction.
The underground complex ​would include a military ⁠hospital and research facilities, although Trump did not explain the focus of the research. The White House declined to provide further details.
He spoke excitedly about ​installation of a drone base on the roof “set up for unlimited numbers ​of drones.”
“The ⁠entire roof is built for military,” he said. “They have a massive drone capacity. Not only is it drone-proof, if a drone hits it, it bounces off, it won’t have any impact. But it’s also meant ⁠as a ​drone port that would protect all of Washington.”

Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-reveals-new-details-bunker-like-ballroom-with-drone-base-2026-05-19/

U.S. President Donald Trump scored another victory in his campaign to punish disloyal Republicans on Tuesday as Representative Thomas Massie of Kentucky lost his primary race, underscoring ​the risks for lawmakers who defy Trump.
Massie, who angered Trump by leading a push to release Justice Department files tied to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and emerged as ‌an outspoken critic of the war with Iran, was defeated by Ed Gallrein, a former Navy SEAL backed by the president and bolstered by heavy spending by pro-Israel groups.

With 99% of the votes counted, Gallrein had won 54.9% of the total to Massie’s 45.1%, according to CNN.
The contest – the most expensive House of Representatives primary in history, with $32 million in ad spending – offered the latest evidence of Trump’s hold over Republicans. It followed the ouster in a primary on Saturday of another Trump critic, Senator Bill ​Cassidy of Louisiana, and losses for dissenting state lawmakers in Indiana primaries on May 5.
“Massie got Trumped. Donald Trump is the sun and the moon and the stars in the Republican Party ​in Kentucky,” said T.J. Litafik, a Kentucky-based Republican strategist.

But rather than signal wider appeal for the president, Massie’s defeat underscored Trump’s dominance among party activists who shape ⁠primary outcomes, even as his sagging approval ratings and high gas prices raise questions about the party’s chances with the broader electorate in November’s midterm elections.
Massie’s clashes with Trump began to build in 2025 when he was ​one of only two House Republicans to vote against the “Big Beautiful Bill,” the president’s signature tax and spending package, and when he successfully led a bipartisan push to force a public release of the so-called Epstein files.
His ​stance against the Iran war and aid to Israel further drew Trump’s ire and a surge of money from pro‑Israel groups, with the Republican Jewish Coalition, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, and a Trump‑aligned super PAC funded by pro-Israel donors spending more than $15 million to oust him.

At a White House event, Trump called Massie a “bad guy” who deserved to lose.
In his concession speech, Massie joked that he had to call Tel Aviv to reach Gallrein, drawing laughs from his supporters, who interrupted his ​remarks with chants of “No more wars!” “America First” and “2028!” urging him to run for president.
“We weren’t really running against Ed Gallrein. We weren’t running against Donald Trump. We were running for what we believe in,” Massie said. “What ​happened today was God’s will.”
Other primaries unfolded on Tuesday across Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Oregon and Pennsylvania, helping to shape the battlefield for November’s elections, when Democrats aim to take control of the House and potentially the Senate despite ‌Republican gains in ⁠a national redistricting fight.
In one of the night’s key races, Representative Andy Barr won the Republican nomination for the Senate seat in Kentucky held by Mitch McConnell for four decades. Bolstered by Trump’s endorsement, Barr defeated former Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron.

In the Georgia Republican primary for governor, Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones and healthcare billionaire Rick Jackson advanced to a June 16 runoff. Trump endorsed Jones last year.
The winner of the runoff will face former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who was declared winner of the Democratic primary by multiple U.S. media outlets.
Also in Georgia, Representative Mike Collins and former college football coach Derek Dooley advanced to the runoff in the Republican ​primary for U.S. Senate, with the winner to face ​Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff.
OUTSIDE GROUPS MAKE IMPACT
Combined spending ⁠in the Massie-Gallrein race topped $32 million, surpassing the $25 million spent in a 2024 race that ousted Democratic Representative Jamaal Bowman in New York, according to AdImpact.
The ads targeting Massie, whose fundraising relied more on grassroots donors, sought to portray him as disloyal to Trump and the party. One pro‑Gallrein ad used AI‑generated images to show ​Massie checking into a hotel with progressive Democratic lawmakers Ilhan Omar and Alexandria Ocasio‑Cortez, with a narrator claiming he had been “caught in a throuple.”
Gallrein had ​cast himself as a team ⁠player who would reliably back Trump, a strategy that proved successful in a state the president won in 2024 with 64.5% of the vote.
In a victory speech, Gallrein said he would bring the same audacity that caused him to become a Navy SEAL officer in 1983 to Washington.
“Now my focus is on advancing the president’s and the party’s agenda to put America first and Kentucky always,” Gallrein told his supporters.
Tim Hafer, a constituent in the district spanning Louisville’s ⁠suburbs, on the ​Kentucky side of the Cincinnati metro area, and rural counties to the east, said he once backed Massie but chose to ​follow Trump’s lead and vote for Gallrein.

Source: https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trump-targets-massie-tuesday-primary-purge-republican-critics-intensifies-2026-05-19/

The Iranian parliament is scheduled to vote on a bill offering rewards for the assassination of Trump and Netanyahu for the February 28 strikes on Tehran that killed the then-supreme leader Ali Khamenei.

Iran is reportedly discussing placing a $58 million bounty on US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Ebrahim Azizi, the Chairman of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of the Iranian Parliament, has announced that the body was preparing a bill titled “Counter-Action by the Military and Security Forces of the Islamic Republic” that would formalise payment of 50 million euros (approximately $58.23 million) to any individual or entity who would assassinate the United States and Israeli leaders, according to reports by Iran Wire and The Telegraph UK.

The Iranian parliament is scheduled to vote on a bill offering rewards for the assassination of Trump and Netanyahu for the February 28 strikes on Tehran that killed the then-supreme leader Ali Khamenei.

Azizi, according to Iran Wire, said that Trump, Netanyahu, and the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander Admiral Brad Cooper must be targeted for “counter-action” for their alleged “role in the assassination of Khamenei”.

Another member of the national security commission, Mahmoud Nabavian, also announced that the country’s parliament would soon vote on setting rewards for whoever “sends Trump and Netanyahu to hell”.

The reports of the bounty plan came days after a pro-regime media outlet, Masaf, claimed that the Islamic regime had secured $50 million in financial resources for a campaign dubbed “Kill Trump”.

Earlier, Iran’s state-sponsored cyberwarfare group “Handala” also issued a statement claiming it has allocated $50 million for the “elimination of the primary architects of oppression and corruption”– namely, Trump and Netanyahu– in response to the US Department of Justice offering a $10 million reward for its members. The hacking group claimed the money would be paid to any individual or group that takes “actual action” against the two state leaders.

Sign Of Iran’s Escalation

Tehran’s proposed bounty legislation marks a significant escalation from previous threats, including assassination calls from religious fatwas and propaganda campaigns, threatening the ongoing ceasefire between the US, Israel and Iran. Last year, the US president claimed that if Tehran attempted to kill him, the US would issue “very strict orders” to “wipe them off the face of the Earth”.

Source : https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/iran-war-news-iran-plans-58-million-bounty-for-whoever-sends-trump-netanyahu-to-hell-reports-11515040?pfrom=home-ndtv_topscroll

U.S. Treasury Secretary ​Scott Bessent on Monday announced another 30-day extension of a sanctions waiver allowing purchases of Russian seaborne oil to aid “energy-vulnerable” countries hit by the Iran war, reversing plans ‌not to grant an extension.
Bessent said in a posting on X that the Treasury was issuing the 30-day general license after a previous waiver lapsed on Saturday. This will allow temporary access to Russian oil and petroleum products stranded on tankers without violating severe U.S. sanctions on Russian oil majors, he said.

A source familiar with the decision had told Reuters that the second waiver extension was requested by poor and vulnerable countries that cannot get Gulf oil shipments due to ​the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
“This extension will provide additional flexibility, and we will work with these nations to provide specific licenses as needed,” Bessent ​said. “This general license will help stabilize the physical crude market and ensure oil reaches the most energy-vulnerable countries.”
Bessent, who last month told the Associated Press ⁠that no further extension of the Russian oil sanctions waiver was planned, on Monday argued that the measure would help reroute existing supply to countries most in need, allowing them to compete with China for ​previously sanctioned oil.

The action marks the second time the Treasury has allowed the sanctions waiver to lapse and subsequently extended it.
Two senior Democratic senators, Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, ​blasted the move as an “indefensible gift” to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“Every additional dollar the Kremlin earns from this license helps Putin finance his illegal war against Ukraine and kill innocent Ukrainians,” they said in a statement. They said the U.S. sanctions relief was also not driving down gasoline prices at home or stabilizing global energy markets.
The Trump administration last year slapped sanctions on Russian oil majors Rosneft and Lukoil to pressure Russia to end its war in Ukraine by depriving ​vital oil revenues to Moscow.
But after U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran drove up global oil prices, the Treasury first issued the temporary license in March in an attempt to ease oil supply shortages and mitigate price spikes ​by releasing sanctioned Russian oil and petroleum products stranded in tankers. The waivers do not apply to oil now being pumped by Russia.

LIMITED IMPACT

Analysts said the short-term waivers may help some individual countries dependent on Gulf oil supplies, ‌but would do ⁠little to drive down U.S. gasoline prices, a key goal of the Trump administration.
“It is not yet clear whether these short-term authorizations have had any meaningful impact on U.S. gasoline prices,” said Stephanie Connor, a former policy director at the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control and now a partner with Holland & Knight. She noted that British and European sanctions on Russian oil purchases remain in place.
As in the previous waiver, the license allowed purchases of Russian crude and petroleum products loaded on vessels as of April 17, limiting the volume of the sales and not allowing access to Russian oil that had ​been more recently loaded.
Charles Lichfield, deputy director of ​the Atlantic Council’s GeoEconomics Center, said that ⁠the waivers would boost Russia’s oil revenues, already bolstered by higher oil prices, while offsetting the impact of increased Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries and other infrastructure.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-treasury-extend-sanction-waiver-russian-seaborne-oil-source-says-2026-05-18/

Three months after the United States and Israel staged an attack on Iran, a U.S. blockade and Tehran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz have created a deadlock, with neither side bending, economic pain deepening and the risk of ​renewed war rising.
A growing concern among policymakers is not whether a deal is near, but how long tensions can persist before a miscalculation by Washington or Tehran triggers renewed conflict.

Calls for a fresh strike are growing louder in the U.S. ‌and Israel, with some officials arguing that increased pressure could weaken Tehran’s leverage and force Iran back to the negotiating table.
“There is one major problem with this theory: We have already tested it, repeatedly, and Iran did not capitulate,” said Danny Citrinowicz, a senior researcher on Iran at Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies and former head of the Iran branch in Israeli Defense Intelligence.
“We’re in a war of attrition with the prospect of a new U.S.-Israeli attack growing by the day,” said one regional official.

Iranian officials told Reuters concessions on their missile programme, nuclear capabilities or control of the Strait are not policy tools but ideological pillars ​of the Islamic Republic’s survival — giving them up is not compromise, it is surrender.
That explains, Citrinowicz said, why even prolonged military confrontation has failed to shift Tehran from its red lines, and why further escalation is unlikely to succeed.
Rounds of indirect talks mediated ​by Pakistan have produced no breakthrough. The gaps remain vast.

BOTH SIDES SEE TIME AS LEVERAGE, IMPEDING COMPROMISE

The United States wants Iran to halt uranium enrichment for 20 years and ship out its stockpiles ⁠to the U.S.
Iran wants an end to strikes, security guarantees, war reparations and recognition of its sovereignty over Hormuz — terms Washington has rejected.
Iran’s foreign ministry did not reply to a request for comment. The U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment ​on the issues raised in this article.

President Donald Trump has warned Tehran that the “clock is ticking,” saying they “better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them.” He threatened that if Tehran fails to reach a deal with Washington, it will face “a very bad ​time.”
Ali Vaez of the International Crisis Group said neither side has shown willingness to make “the painful concessions” needed for a deal. “Both believe time is on their side and they have the upper hand, and that perception is precisely what is making a deal impossible.”
The result is a war of endurance centred on one of the world’s most critical waterways. Before the war, the Strait carried roughly 25% of global oil trade and 20% of liquefied natural gas. Now, with the strait near-closed, the economic fallout is growing, disrupting supplies.
Former State Department Iran official Alan Eyre, who took part in past U.S.-Iran talks, said an agreement may be ​out of reach. “These two sides will never reach a deal. Trump doesn’t want to just win, he wants to humiliate Iran and be seen as having crushed Iran.”

Tehran sees its stockpile of enriched uranium and control of Hormuz as core strategic assets essential to survival. “Iran is therefore ​determined to use these assets to guarantee its interests,” a senior Iranian official said, adding capitulation is not an option.
“We fight, we die, but we don’t accept humiliation. Surrender is fundamentally incompatible with Iran’s identity.”

BEHIND DEFIANCE, RISING PRESSURE ON IRAN’S ECONOMY

A second Iranian official argued Tehran has already won — not ‌by defeating Washington ⁠militarily, but by refusing to submit. Weeks of U.S. and Israeli strikes failed to break Iran’s will, reinforcing its view that its nuclear stockpile and control of Hormuz remain the core of its deterrence.
Surrendering them would dismantle that balance. “Trump wants to declare victory but Iran won’t give it to him. Can the world economy withstand the pressure? That’s the question Trump owes the world an answer to,” he added.
More strikes would not change Iran’s calculus, only accelerate escalation, he said, adding that Iran will not abandon enrichment or bow to ultimatums without compromise from Washington.
Yet behind the defiant posture, Iranian sources close to the establishment describe a more conflicted reality: Tehran does not want a prolonged “no war, no peace” scenario as inflation rises, unemployment worsens and strikes on key industries bleed an already battered economy.
Instead, they said, Iran is seeking a ​preliminary deal to end the war — reopening Hormuz under Iranian oversight ​in exchange for lifting the U.S. blockade, before tackling harder ⁠issues such as sanctions relief and nuclear restrictions. The U.S. says ending the war must be deferred to later talks.
On the nuclear issue, Iranian sources say Tehran could dilute its stockpile of 440 kg of highly enriched uranium or send part of it abroad, preferably to Russia, arguing it could reclaim it if Washington violates any agreement. Washington has refused.
Iran is also pushing for a shorter halt to enrichment ​than Washington’s 20-year demand and full access to $30 billion in frozen assets, but Washington has only agreed to free a quarter of those assets under a timetable, the sources added.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/no-deal-no-exit-how-us-iran-standoff-risks-fresh-conflict-2026-05-18/

Meta (META.O), detailed its layoff plans for this ​week in a memo shared with employees on Monday, saying cuts to its workforce globally would be accompanied by ‌a fresh round of organizational changes aimed at improving the company’s AI workflows.
The Facebook owner is planning to lay off 10% of its employees on Wednesday, with additional deep cuts slated to come later this year, Reuters reported previously.

In the memo, which was seen by Reuters, Meta Chief People Officer Janelle Gale told employees the company ​plans to move 7,000 employees to new initiatives related to AI workflows and to eliminate managerial roles.
In addition, “many leaders will announce ​org changes,” she said.
“As org leaders worked on the changes, many of them incorporated AI native design principles ⁠into their new org structures. We’re now at the stage where many orgs can operate with a flatter structure with smaller teams of ​pods/cohorts that can move faster and with more ownership.”
A Meta spokesperson declined to comment on the plan.

AI OVERHAUL DRIVES RESTRUCTURING

The changes are part of a ​far-reaching overhaul planned at Meta this year, as the company surges its AI investments in a bid to center AI agents in both its product offerings and its approach to work internally.
They reflect a broader pattern of AI-linked job cuts among major U.S. companies this year, particularly in the tech sector.
In total, the layoffs and transfers ​will hit about 20% of the company’s workforce. Some of the transfers have already happened, while in other cases employees will be notified on Wednesday, ​Gale said in her memo. Employees in North America were told to work from home on Wednesday.
Meta has also closed an additional 6,000 open roles as ‌part of ⁠the process, she told employees in an earlier memo.
Headcount at the social media giant was 77,986 employees at the end of March, according to company filings.

EMPLOYEE TRANSFERS TO AI UNITS

New initiatives where Gale said employees were being transferred — or “drafted,” as many staffers refer to it — include Applied AI Engineering (AAI) and Agent Transformation Accelerator (ATA) XFN, two teams previously announced by CTO Andrew Bosworth as part of Meta’s “AI for Work” efforts.
Both are aimed at developing ​AI agents that can autonomously carry ​out tasks currently performed by ⁠human staffers.
Central Analytics, also a destination for transfer, was likewise mentioned in Bosworth’s earlier announcement and would aim to measure productivity and analytics for agent development.
Details on another new initiative called Enterprise Solutions would be shared ​soon, Gale said.
The changes have prompted a revolt from Meta employees, who have been protesting the moves with ​flyers at the company’s ⁠offices and in angry posts on its internal communications platform, Workplace.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/meta-lays-out-plans-may-20-layoffs-restructuring-internal-document-says-2026-05-18/

Pakistan has deployed 8,000 troops, a ​squadron of fighter jets and an air defence system to Saudi Arabia under a mutual defence pact, ramping up military cooperation with ‌Riyadh even as Islamabad serves as the main mediator in the Iran war.
The deployment, the full scale of which is reported here for the first time, was confirmed by three security officials and two government sources, all of whom described it as a substantial, combat-capable force intended to support Saudi Arabia’s military if the kingdom comes under further attack.

Pakistan’s military ​and foreign office and Saudi Arabia’s government media office did not respond to requests for comment on the deployment.
The full terms of ​the defence agreement, signed last year, are confidential, but both sides have said it requires Pakistan and Saudi Arabia ⁠to come to each other’s defence in the event of an attack. Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has previously implied that it places Saudi Arabia ​under Pakistan’s nuclear umbrella.
According to the sources, Pakistan has deployed a full squadron of around 16 aircraft, mostly JF-17 fighters made jointly with China, which were ​sent to Saudi Arabia in early April. Two of the security officials said Pakistan had also sent two squadrons of drones.

All five sources said the deployment includes around 8,000 troops, with a pledge to send more if needed, as well as a Chinese HQ-9 air defence system.
The equipment is operated by Pakistani personnel and financed by Saudi Arabia, ​they said.

THOUSANDS OF TROOPS

The military and air force personnel deployed during the Iran conflict will primarily have an advisory and training role, according to ​two of the security officials, who said they had seen exchanges between the two countries and documents on the military assets’ deployment.
The deployment adds to thousands of ‌Pakistani troops ⁠with a combat role that were already stationed in the kingdom under previous agreements, all three security officials said.
One of the government sources, who has seen the text of the confidential defence pact, said it provides for the possibility of up to 80,000 Pakistani troops being deployed to Saudi Arabia, to help secure the kingdom’s borders alongside Saudi forces.

Two of the security officials said the agreement also involved the deployment of Pakistani warships. Reuters was not ​able to determine whether any had ​reached Saudi Arabia.
The scale and composition ⁠of the deployment — combat aircraft, air defences and thousands of troops — mean Pakistan has sent far more than a symbolic or advisory mission, the sources said.
Reuters previously reported that Pakistan had sent jets to Saudi Arabia after ​Iranian strikes hit key energy infrastructure and killed a Saudi national, raising concerns that the Gulf kingdom might ​retaliate heavily and ⁠widen the conflict.

Source : https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/pakistan-deploys-jet-squadron-thousands-troops-saudi-arabia-during-iran-war-2026-05-18/

Hot on the heels of Donald Trump’s visit, Russian President Vladimir Putin travels to Beijing for talks with Xi Jinping. DW explores how China has been Russia’s financial lifeline since the Ukraine war.

Russia may celebrate its “no-limits” partnership with China — a phrase coined when President Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping met just before the Ukraine war — yet those relations are increasingly one-sided.

Although bilateral trade softened last year as a result of lower oil prices, Russia’s goods exports to China have nearly doubled since February 2022, when Moscow’s full-scale invasion began.

In 2024, Russia shipped roughly $129 billion (€111 billion) worth of goods to China — the overwhelming majority in crude oil, coal and natural gas sold at steep discounts.

The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air calculated that China has bought more than €319 billion ($372 billion) of Russian fossil fuels since the conflict began, giving Moscow vital hard currency to fund its military amid Western sanctions.

In return, China exported nearly $116 billion worth of goods to Russia in 2024, supplying machinery, electronics and vehicles that replaced Western suppliers who exited the Russian market.

Although Beijing has stopped short of direct exports to Russia of finished military hardware, China has supplied billions of dollars’ worth of dual-use goods — civilian products and technologies that also have military applications. These have also helped sustain Russia’s defense industry.

As Putin and Xi prepare to meet in Beijing this week for high-level talks — timed to mark the 25th anniversary of the two countries’ cooperation treaty— this growing imbalance leaves Moscow increasingly vulnerable to Beijing’s priorities.

Why is Russia increasingly reliant on Chinese technology?

Western sanctions, imposed since 2022 and repeatedly tightened, have severed Russia’s access to advanced Western technology.

The United States, European Union, United Kingdom and allies banned exports of semiconductors, microelectronics, precision machine tools and other dual-use goods critical for weapons production. These moves created acute shortages in Russia.

In response, Moscow turned to China, which, according to Bloomberg, supplied roughly 90% of Russia’s sanctioned technology imports in 2025 — up from 80% the previous year.

Obtaining goods like machine tools for missile and drone assembly is far more difficult and expensive than before the war. Russia must utilize complex evasion networks through third countries and often ends up paying premiums of nearly 90% above pre-war prices.

Beijing has also provided Russia with earth observation intelligence, satellite imagery for military purposes and drones, Bloomberg reported last year.

Chinese technology has enabled Russia to sustain and even expand its production of missiles, drones and other weapons, keeping the war economy running.

Why are Russia, China conducting more trade in yuan?

As the Ukraine war unfolded, the US, EU, and allies expelled major Russian banks from the SWIFT payment system and froze approximately $300 billion of Russia’s central bank reserves held abroad.

This effectively weaponized the dollar-dominated financial system against the Kremlin, making dollar or euro transactions risky or impossible. The move also exposed foreign banks, individuals and entities worldwide to secondary sanctions if they continued to work with sanctioned Russian entities.

In response, Moscow and Beijing accelerated so-called de-dollarization, the shift away from using the US dollar toward their own national currencies. According to Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, by late last year, the two countries were settling over 99% of their bilateral trade in rubles and yuan.

This trend has been reinforced by the BRICS group of emerging economies, which promotes local-currency settlements between its nearly dozen members and has even floated plans for a single BRICS currency.

Yuanization, as it’s known, has created new dependencies, however. Russia now faces occasional yuan shortages, higher borrowing costs and must tolerate Beijing’s upper hand in all bilateral negotiations.

China isn’t trying to replace the dollar overnight, but a more widely used yuan increases Beijing’s global economic influence. Countries that hold or borrow in yuan become more tied to China’s economy and policies.

Is China likely to increase its economic dominance over Russia?

Many top Russia-China analysts believe that Beijing’s leverage over Moscow is likely to grow further in the coming years.

During his visit this week, Putin is expected to push for progress on new and expanded pipelines that will further strengthen Russia’s export revenues and China’s energy security.

Boosting Russian pipeline capacity to China “would significantly enhance Beijing’s oil security in a Taiwan contingency,” Joseph Webster, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, wrote in a post on Substack on Sunday.

Webster was referring to China’s repeated threats to invade Taiwan, a move that could draw Western sanctions on Beijing or even a US naval blockade that disrupts China’s sea-borne oil imports.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/how-china-became-the-new-master-of-russias-economy/a-77193402

 

Authorities seek to vaccinate 19 million children against polio, in the latest effort to eradicate a disease that is endemic in Pakistan.

Two police officers died in Pakistan’s northwestern Bajaur tribal district while protecting health workers who were administering the polio vaccine to children on Monday, a security official said.

The two separate attacks took place in Bajaur, a district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan.

The killings came on the first day of Pakistan’s nationwide campaign to counter rising cases of polio.

“During the polio campaign in the tribal district of Bajaur District, two police officials assigned to protect vaccination teams were shot dead by motorcycle-riding militants in two separate attacks,” a senior security official based in Peshawar told the AFP news agency.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi condemned Monday’s attacks and offered condolences to the families of the officers who were killed.

Vaccine misinformation rife in rural areas

Polio is a highly infectious virus that mainly affects children under five. If caught, the virus can result in lifelong paralysis.

The disease is easily prevented by a vaccine, which can be administered orally with a few drops.

Prior to the development of the first vaccine in 1955, the poliomyelitis virus paralyzed and killed up to half a million people every year.

But misinformation about the vaccine has circulated in rural Pakistan and been spread by militants, who falsely claim the vaccination drives are part of a Western conspiracy to sterilize Muslim children.

More than 200 polio workers and police officers who have protected them have been killed in Pakistan since the 1990s.

Polio still endemic in Pakistan

The killings in Bajaur came as Pakistan kicked off a week-long vaccination campaign in 79 high-risk districts, where authorities hope to administer polio drops to more than 19 million children.

Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan are the only countries in the world where polio remains endemic, but militants have targeted hundreds of police officers and health workers over the past decade as part of a campaign against the Pakistani state.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/pakistan-2-killed-protecting-polio-workers-in-tribal-area/a-77202253