Quote:Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s video message for travelers about the government shutdown is not being aired in at least five airports because it blames Democrats for the lapse in federal funding.
Oregon’s Portland International Airport, Washington’s Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and three airports in New York – Niagara Falls International Airport, Buffalo Niagara International Airport and Westchester County Airport – are not broadcasting Noem’s message because it is “political” and “inappropriate,” according to multiple reports.
“It is TSA’s top priority to make sure that you have the most pleasant and efficient airport experience as possible while we keep you safe. However, Democrats in Congress refuse to fund the federal government,” Noem says in the video, meant to play at TSA checkpoints in every public airport in the US amid the government shutdown.
“And because of this, many of our operations are impacted and most of our TSA employees are working without pay,” the DHS secretary adds.
Noem, who oversees the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), sent the video to airports last week.
“We will continue to do all that we can to avoid delays that will impact your travel,” Noem continues. “And our hope is that Democrats will soon recognize the importance of opening the government.”
The partial government shutdown began on Oct. 1, after all-but-three Senate Democrats refused to vote for a continuing resolution that would’ve kept Washington funded through Nov. 21.
A Port of Seattle spokesperson said the “political nature” of Noem’s video is why it won’t be playing for travelers at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
“The Port of Seattle will not play the video on its screens at SEA airport, due to the political nature of the content,” the spokesperson told The Seattle Times, adding, “We continue to urge bipartisan efforts to end the government shutdown and are working to find ways to support federal employees working without pay at SEA during the shutdown.”
A Portland International Airport official argued that the video might violate the Hatch Act, which restricts federal employees from engaging in certain political activities.
“We didn’t consent to playing it, as we believe the Hatch Act clearly prohibits using public assets for political purposes and messaging,” the official told a local ABC News affiliate.
“Additionally, Oregon law states that no public employee can promote or oppose any political committee, party, or affiliation. We believe consenting to playing this video on Port assets would violate Oregon law,” the official added.
Quote:White House Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino is poised to play an even larger role in President Donald Trump’s administration, the president announced Sunday.
Trump says Scavino, in addition to his current role, will now lead the White House Presidential Personnel Office. The office was previously held by Sergio Gor, who is now transitioning to become the U.S. Ambassador to India.
“I am pleased to announce that the great Dan Scavino, in addition to remaining Deputy Chief of Staff of the Trump Administration, will head the White House Presidential Personnel Office, replacing Sergio Gor, who did a wonderful job in that position, and will now become the Ambassador to India,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“Dan will be responsible for the selection and appointment of almost all positions in government, a very big and important position. Congratulations Dan, you will do a fantastic job!” he added.
Scavino’s new appointment comes as the Trump administration is in a pitched fight with Democrats to define the cause of the ongoing government shutdown.
Trump allies have pointed to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s refusal to work with Republicans.
The president also sought to mitigate damage on Saturday by ordering War Secretary Pete Hegseth to make sure military service members get paid next week, regardless of the shutdown.
“Chuck Schumer recently said, ‘Every day gets better’ during their Radical Left Shutdown,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “I DISAGREE! If nothing is done, because of ‘Leader’ Chuck Schumer and the Democrats, our Brave Troops will miss the paychecks they are rightfully due on October 15th.”
Quote:The sister-in-law of former presidential nominee and ex-Utah senator Mitt Romney was found dead on a street in a Los Angeles suburb Friday evening, according to officials and reports.
Carrie Elizabeth Romney was discovered dead on a street near a shopping mall parking garage in Valencia, Calif. at around 8:30 p.m., TMZ reported.
She was 64 years old. Her death is being investigated, and a cause and manner have not yet been determined, according to records from the Los Angeles County coroner’s office.
It’s “unknown at the moment” if Carrie “jumped or fell” from the multi-story parking garage or a nearby building, Los Angeles County Deputy Brenda Serna wrote in an email to The Post.
The medical examiner’s office and Mitt Romney did not immediately return requests for comment.
The Republican senator led a presidential campaign against former President Barack Obama in 2012. He made decent headway countrywide, making for a tight race that he ultimately lost.
He tried to organize a campaign for the 2008 race, but lost the Republican bid to the late Arizona Senator John McCain.
While in the Senate, Romney was the only one in his party who voted to convict President Trump during his first impeachment trial in 2020.
Quote:A Massachusetts monk claims “insidious lies” about him being a fake cleric and splurging on luxury items led the feds to bring multimillion-dollar COVID-relief fraud charges against him — which were later dismissed — but his church and reputation never recovered, new court papers show.
Rev. Father Andrew Bushell, an Orthodox Christian monk at St. Nicholas church, sued the Department of Justice, FBI agents and the town of Marblehead, Mass., after arresting him under false pretenses in 2022 for allegedly carrying out a $3.6 million fraud scheme — only to toss out the charges a year later, according to a federal lawsuit filed last Friday.
He and his church’s general counsel Tracey Stockton were accused of blowing the funds on $40,000 in antique furniture, $90,000 in audio video system equipment, a $40,000 Swiss watch, a $7,000 Goyard handbag, expensive wine and $2,400 in Hermes and luxury items.
Bushell told The Post in an exclusive interview that the accused parties to the suit should be “in jail” for what they put him through, which has caused donors to lose faith in his ministry, burdened him with legal fees and kept the construction of the monastic shrine and place of worship from being completed.
“[Former Massachusetts US Attorney Rachael] Rollins weaponized the DOJ, FBI and other federal agents to manufacture a pack of lies to destroy St. Nicholas, me and intimidate God-fearing Orthodox Christians,” he said.
Now, the monk is suing under claims of violation of religious freedom, conspiracy, retaliation and other related allegations — after the Trump administration acknowledged the extent of other anti-Christian discrimination and “weaponized” prosecutions under the Biden DOJ.
“Armed” federal agents “in tactical gear” busted into St. Nicholas church in a “military-style,” “pre-dawn raid,” taking him “away in handcuffs” while he was praying on Oct. 13, 2022, the civil suit claims.
“The timing and manner of the arrest were designed to maximize psychological pressure and public humiliation, not to serve any legitimate law enforcement purpose,” added Stockton in the 20-page filing.
He wasn’t provided with his prayer rope, rosary or Bible while he was locked up and he was forced to eat food that violated his “monastic dietary practices,” the filing alleges.
Rollins — who resigned from office after being faulted for an “extraordinary” abuse of power by federal ethics watchdogs in 2023 — claimed when bringing the case that Bushell’s conduct was “brazen, criminal behavior” that took advantage of taxpayer-funded relief.
Rollins left office on May 19, 2023, and was found the following day in a DOJ inspector general’s report to have improperly meddled in the Suffolk County district attorney’s race. In September 2025, she agreed to a public reprimand for her actions by the Massachusetts Bar.
Former FBI Boston field office special agent in charge Joseph Bonavolonta, who is named in the suit, claimed in a statement at the time of Bushell’s arrest that Bushell was “a purported Orthodox Christian monk” who spent “tens of thousands of dollars on exclusive memberships, expensive wine, property, renovations, and even a $40,000 wristwatch.”
Bushell said the charging documents were full of “defamatory and misleading fictions of misspent church funds that either mischaracterized $18 bottles of wine for church events, misconstrued clerical memberships donors gave to help serve the Church’s mission, or were simply not true.”
Quote:Indicted New York Attorney General Letitia James was defiant Monday in her first public appearance since being hit with federal charges over allegations she committed bank fraud and lied to a financial institution to obtain a lower mortgage rate.
“We see powerful voices trying to silence truth and punish dissent and weaponize justice for political gain,” James told supporters of Zohran Mamdani at a rally for the New York City mayoral frontrunner in Washington Heights.
“We are witnessing the fraying of our democracy, the erosion of our system of government,” the Empire State’s top prosecutor argued, describing the current state of politics as “a defining moment in our history.”
James, who is facing 60 years behind bars if convicted of the two charges against her, called on rally-goers to “stand together to defend our rights.”
“To protect every safeguard, every institution, every immigrant, every norm and every rule of law,” the indicted prosecutor continued.
“I know what it feels like to be attacked for just doing your job,” James said. “But I also know what it feels like to overcome adversity. And so I stand on solid rock.”
“I will not bow! I will not break! I will not bend! I will not capitulate! I will not give in! I will not give up!” she screamed.
“You come for me, you got to come through all of us! Every single – all of us. We’re all in this together.”
Amid her legal woes, James said that “over the last few days” she’s “summoned” the “strength” and “courage” of her ancestors.
Quote:Four people have been arrested in connection with a shooting spree at a Mississippi homecoming football game that killed six and injured more than a dozen, according to authorities.
Teviyon L. Powell, 29; William Bryant, 29; and Morgan Lattimore, 25, have been charged with capital murder, and Latoya A. Powell, 44, has been charged with attempted murder for Friday’s shooting, a spokesperson for the FBI’s Jackson Field Office announced Monday.
Earlier this week, the FBI announced they were seeking the public’s help in locating the whereabouts of four individuals in connection with the shooting.
On Sunday, the agency released photos of one female and three males shown in surveillance video and identified in an FBI poster as “unknown suspects.”
Other arrests are currently pending, authorities added.
The shooting occurred around midnight on Main Street in Leland, Mayor John Lee previously told The Post.
The four victims who died on the scene were identified by the county coroner as Oreshama Johnson, 41; Calvin Plant, 19; Shelbyona Powell, 25; and Kaslyn Johnson, 18, WBLT reported.
Amos Brantley, 18, and JaMichael Jones, 34, later died from their injuries at the hospital, the outlet reported.
Ten others were treated at the hospital. Their identities have not been released.
Several of the victims included recent graduates of Leland High School who returned for a popular annual reunion at the school’s homecoming football game.
The gunfire came out of nowhere, recalled witness Jennifer Buckner, who was enjoying the party with her niece and some friends.
The first round was just a few quick shots that didn’t completely disrupt the party, but it resumed several minutes later and delved into chaos.
“It was maybe 10 minutes of consistent, perpetual, automatic rounds being let off. …It went on for so long. And people just started running,” Buckner told The Post.
The FBI said the gunfire appears to have been “sparked by a disagreement among several individuals,” but has not disclosed an exact motive for the bloodbath.
Two other people were killed in a separate homecoming football game shooting on the east side of the state in Heidelberg Friday night.
Quote:A former student allegedly stabbed three staff members at a special needs school in California and planted two bombs in the surrounding area on Monday morning, according to authorities.
The ex-student is accused of knifing the three staffers at Switzer Learning Center, a private school in Torrance for neurodivergent students from kindergarten to 12th grade, at around 8:15 a.m., the Torrance Police Department said in a statement.
He was arrested after attempting to stab a fourth staff member and fleeing the scene, cops said.
While being cuffed, the former student told cops that he had planted two pipe bombs close to the school near 208th Street and Amapola Avenue, according to police.
The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department bomb squad responded and located two devices, which were found to be “incendiary,” cops said.
Officials detonated the two devices on the scene, the Los Angeles Times reported. The area was deemed safe after officials had warned residents to stay clear of the immediate vicinity.
Two staff members were brought to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The third staff member was treated on the scene, authorities added.
Additional details about the suspect or a motive in the attack are not yet known.
The knifeman — whose identity hasn’t been released — remains in custody, police said.
Mom Cristina Morales, 54, told the LA Times she had been waiting for hours for her 18-year-old son with autism to be released from the school.
“I’m nervous,” she told the outlet. “My son gets stressed out easily.”
Quote:WASHINGTON — House Speaker Mike Johnson has made overtures to firebrand Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene after she publicly revolted against the GOP’s strategy in the government shutdown fight and called for the enhanced Obamacare subsidies to be extended.
Johnson (R-La.) claims he reached out to Greene (R-Ga.) after she broke ranks and offered to let her sit in on the committee that deals with health care policy.
“I had a thoughtful conversation with my friend Marjorie Taylor Greene on the phone the other night … to inform her that there are many Republicans in Congress that have been working around the clock on this,” the speaker recalled on “Fox News Sunday.”
“They’re on the committees of jurisdiction that deal with this. Marjorie doesn’t serve on those committees, so I offered to have her come into the room and be a part of that discussion, if indeed she wants to.”
Last week, Greene blasted Johnson for not bringing the House back in session amid the partial government shutdown and chided GOP leadership for not nuking the Senate filibuster to reopen the government.
For the past two weeks, Democrats have been blocking a clean GOP spending patch to reopen the government while demanding Republicans cave to their healthcare demands.
Democrats have demanded Republicans reverse their reforms to Medicaid in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (now the Working Families Tax Cut Act) and permanently extend the enhanced Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire by the end of the year.
While Greene backed the Medicaid changes, the congresswoman declared last week that she wants to extend those enhanced subsidies, which were beefed up under the Biden administration during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I’m going to go against everyone on this issue because when the tax credits expire this year my own adult children’s insurance premiums for 2026 are going to DOUBLE, along with all the wonderful families and hard-working people in my district,” she said.
Quote:WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday that President Trump’s planned meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping is back on — after Trump threatened 100% additional tariffs Friday and said there “seems to be no reason” for a scheduled Oct. 29 summit.
“He will be meeting with party chair Xi in Korea — I believe that meeting will still be on,” Bessent told Fox Business in an interview after Beijing sought to blunt blowback to its new export controls.
Bessent helped broker a May cease-fire in the US-China trade war and said there was “substantial communication” over the weekend — after the Chinese government announced rules Thursday requiring companies to get permission to export products with rare-earth and critical minerals like batteries, magnets and computer chips to power artificial intelligence (AI) products.
Trump sought to thaw tensions some with China on Sunday, saying Xi “doesn’t want Depression for his country, and neither do I. The U.S.A. wants to help China, not hurt it!!!”
“Don’t worry about China, it will all be fine! Highly respected President Xi just had a bad moment,” he also claimed in a Truth Social post.
The Chinese Commerce Ministry said Sunday that the new rules are not intended as export bans and that there may be flexibility in enforcement, including “license exemptions to effectively promote legitimate trade.”
“This is China versus the world — they have pointed a bazooka at the supply chains and the industrial base of the entire free world, and we’re not going to have it,” Bessent said on Fox Business. “A group of bureaucrats in China cannot tell us and our allies how to run our supply system.”
Major US stock market indices were up Monday morning after plummeting Friday on fears of a renewed trade war.
Quote:The Clintons have pushed back their deposition dates for the House Oversight Committee’s investigation into notorious pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had been expected to testify before the panel last week on Oct. 9 — but did not appear — and former President Bill Clinton was slated to be grilled on his ties to Epstein on Tuesday.
But an Oversight Committee spokesperson told The Post Monday that the panel is “having conversations with the Clintons’ attorney to accommodate their schedules.”
“The deposition won’t occur tomorrow,” the spokesperson said of Bill’s upcoming testimony.
The Clintons were subpoenaed in early August by Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) as part of the panel’s review of the federal government’s probe into Epstein and his convicted accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell.
“Everybody in America wants to know what went on in Epstein Island, and we’ve all heard reports that Bill Clinton was a frequent visitor there, so he’s a prime suspect to be deposed by the House Oversight Committee,” Comer said of the former president’s subpoena during an interview with Newsmax in August.
The Kentucky Republican, who has led the Oversight panel since January 2023, described the Clinton summons as “the most challenging subpoena I’ve ever issued.”
“ut what makes this subpoena different is that the Democrats voted with Republicans,” Comer added.
Epstein, who died in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 while awaiting trial on child sex trafficking charges, visited the White House at least 17 times — beginning shortly after Bill Clinton was sworn into office in 1993.
The late financier also donated $10,000 to the in 1993 to the White House Historical Association, according to the former first lady’s files.
Quote:New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy — who was overseas for a wedding as a powerful nor’easter made its way up the coast to his home state — faced a barrage of criticism for his latest globe-trotting jaunt as his reps remained tight-lipped about whether he planned on cutting his trip short.
Saturday’s state of emergency declaration was made by Lt. Gov Tahesha Way — currently serving as acting governor of the Garden State — while Murphy and his wife, Tammy, were already long gone.
Spokesman Tyler Jones told The Post the state’s first couple were at a friend’s wedding in Europe and not coming home until Tuesday.
Jones declined to elaborate where in Europe the Murphys were traveling, nor whose wedding they were attending. The outgoing term-limited Democrat is known to have a villa in Italy where he takes frequent excursions with his family.
Murphy’s office didn’t return a request for comment Monday.
No public announcement was made prior to Murphy being out of town, although the governor’s office did send out his public schedule to a large number of reporters before the trip.
On Monday, Murphy’s post on X acknowledging Indigenous People’s Day — the woke left’s thumb-in-the-eye answer to Columbus Day — was met with a torrent of jabs over his frequent-flyer ways.
“Today, let us also honor New Jersey’s Indigenous communities – from the Ramapough-Munsee Lenape Nation in Ramapo to the Nanticoke Lenni-Lenape Tribal Nation in Bridgeton. #IndigenousPeoplesDay,” Murphy wrote.
Quote:A state of emergency has been declared in New York City, Long Island and Westchester County in New York as a powerful nor’easter that was tearing up the East Coast slammed portions of the Northeast on Sunday and Monday with powerful winds, heavy rain and coastal flooding.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul made the announcement on Sunday evening.
“Due to the ongoing nor’easter, I’m declaring a State of Emergency for NYC, Long Island and Westchester,” she said in a post on X. “We’re ready to assist local partners as damaging winds and heavy rain move in, with the potential for flooding and power outages.”
Because of the inclement weather and the state of emergency, New York City’s Columbus Day Parade was forced to be canceled.
“Due to the Governor’s declaration of a State of Emergency on the evening of October 12 in response to the dangerous weather conditions brought on by the nor’easter, including high winds, heavy rain and flooding in surrounding areas, we must cancel the 81st Annual Columbus Day Parade for the safety of all participants and viewers,” officials said in an announcement.
Officials said the parade cannot be rescheduled and will be held again in 2026.
Video recorded in Freeport, New York, on Long Island, showed flooded streets as the nor’easter continued to impact the area Sunday night and into Monday morning.
The nor’easter first slammed areas of the Southeast and Carolinas over the weekend, dumping several inches of rain and producing tropical storm-force wind gusts from an already-battered North Carolina coast up to the Jersey Shore.
Quote:Mayoral front-runner Zohran Mamdani fundraised for an infamous United Nations relief agency with well-documented ties to Hamas over the weekend — drawing outrage from Republican North Country Rep. Elise Stefanik.
Stefanik, who has said she’ll run in next year’s gubernatorial election, also tore into Gov. Kathy Hochul over her support for the Democratic mayoral nominee, Mamdani, as she denounced him as an “antisemite.”
“On the eve of all the living hostages held by Hamas terrorists finally returning home, @KathyHochul endorsed Antisemite Communist NYC Mayor candidate is raising funds for an organization that participated in the October 7th terrorist attacks and brutally held hostages captive,” Stefanik raged on X.
“Do not let the pro-Hamas jihadis win and destroy NY! FIRE HOCHUL.”
Mamdani had proudly posted an image of himself running the “New York City Gaza 5K” to raise money for the notorious UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) on Sunday.
The Big Apple mayoral frontrunner billed UNRWA as a benevolent organization that “delivers critical humanitarian aid and services to Palestinians in Gaza.”
Following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack against Israel, multiple investigations found that several planners and participants in the massacre were on UNRWA’s payroll.
UNRWA later fired 10 of the 12 staff members allegedly involved in the attacks after being informed by Israel. The other two were confirmed to have died.
Over 10% of UNRWA’s main and senior education staff in the Gaza Strip were members of Hamas or the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, according to a November 2024 report from the Israeli non-profit organization IMPACT-se.
In 2023, the US sent $154 million to UNRWA. Trump quickly yanked funding for the group after roaring back into the White House in January.
The Post reached out to Mamdani’s campaign for comment.
His wife, meanwhile, on Sunday publicly mourned the death of Palestinian influencer Saleh al-Jafarawi, who openly glorified the Oct. 7 attacks.
Jafarawi, who documented the war in Gaza, was confirmed killed Sunday in clashes between Hamas and other Palestinian factions, according to reports.
Quote:New York City mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani’s wife publicly mourned the death of a Palestinian influencer who openly glorified the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre in Israel.
Rama Duwaji, an animator who tied the knot with the socialist in a February civil ceremony, posted four broken-heart emojis on Instagram Sunday to grieve Palestinian influencer Saleh al-Jafarawi.
“Beloved Jafarawi,” she wrote on her Instagram story.
Jafarawi, who documented the war in Gaza, was confirmed killed Sunday in clashes between Hamas and other Palestinian factions, according to reports.
Jafarawi’s death was cheered by many Israelis, who saw him as a Hamas propagandist, though many pro-Palestinian activists mourned him.
The 27-year-old Palestinian became known as “Mr. FAFO” in Israeli media because he gleefully celebrated the Hamas terror attack.
He then posted a video of himself sobbing when Israel launched strikes on Gaza and began its war on Hamas.
Video posted to Jafarawi’s X account, where he had more than 250,000 followers, showed him dead — wearing a press vest.
MIDDLE EAST, YEAH, THIS REGION COULD NOT BE IGNORED
Quote:President Trump publicly urged Israeli President Isaac Herzog to pardon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of his bribery charges in a stunning off-script moment during his triumphant speech to the Knesset on Monday.
“Hey, I have an idea. Mr. President, why don’t you give him a pardon? Give him a pardon,” Trump said during his rousing address to the Israeli parliament, triggering big applause.
“By the way, that wasn’t in the speech, as you probably know, but I happen to like this gentleman right over here,” Trump continued.
“It just seems to make so much sense. You know whether we like it or not, this has been one of the greatest wartime [leaders].”
“And cigars and champagne, who the hell cares about that?”
Netanyahu, the longest-serving prime minister in Israeli history, had been indicted in 2019 on charges of breach of trust, bribery and fraud.
The charges revolve around three cases and include accusations that the PM and his wife reaped lavish gifts such as champagne and cigars from the wealthy Israeli elite.
Netanyahu is also accused of offering Yedioth Ahronoth, an Israeli newspaper, and telecom giant Bezeq assistance in exchange for more positive coverage of himself.
Prosecutors rested their case last year, and defense attorneys have cross-examined witnesses in a long, drawn-out process.
Netanyahu had been set to testify, but that has been delayed due to scheduling snarls.
The prime minister has vehemently denied the allegations against him. So far, the trial has featured testimony from over 140 witnesses, including once-close allies, and a wide array of evidence such as text messages and recordings.
Quote:WASHINGTON — President Trump boasted in a speech to world leaders that the Gaza peace agreement could be his “greatest deal” yet — claiming it could end 3,000 years of conflict in the region.
“All I’ve done all my life is deals. The greatest deals just sort of happen,” Trump, 79, said at a celebratory peace-deal signing attended by dozens of nations in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.
“And that’s what happened right here. And maybe this is going to be the greatest deal of them all.”
Trump basked in the praise of prominent NATO allies and Muslim world leaders in the Red Sea resort city after Hamas released 20 Israeli hostages held during the two-year war in exchange for a prisoner release and troop pullback by Israel.
The leaders of France, the UK, Germany, Italy, Canada, Turkey, Qatar, Pakistan, Indonesia, Jordan and Egypt attended the celebration in Egypt, which Trump heralded as about much more than Gaza.
The American leader said permanent peace could be achieved for the first time since the days of David and Goliath.
“From ancient times, this region has been extraordinarily mixed with respect to people, culture, religions and all of the different elements of national characters, unlike maybe anywhere else on Earth,” Trump said.
“And for 3,000 years, there’s been conflict. For whatever reason, there’s been tremendous conflict, always conflict. But today, for the first time anyone can remember, we have a once in a lifetime chance to put the old feuds and bitter hatreds behind us.”
With the world’s leaders looking on, Trump signed a document enshrining his 20-point peace plan, with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Qatari Emir Tamim ibn Hamad Al Thani, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signing as guarantors.
Quote:President Trump joked Monday that the Norwegian representative to the Gaza peace conference was hiding after the five-member Norwegian Nobel Committee snubbed him Friday by giving its prestigious peace prize to a Venezuelan opposition leader.
“We have Norway. Oh, Norway, aye aye aye! Norway, what happened? Norway, what happened?” Trump said during a celebratory speech on the peace agreement he helped broker between Hamas and Israel.
“Where’s Norway? I don’t think he wants to stand. Oh, he’s back there.”
It was not immediately clear who was representing the Nordic kingdom at the peace deal ceremony in Egypt.
Trump, 79, was snubbed three days prior despite a campaign by his US and foreign supporters to win him the honor, which controversially was given to former President Barack Obama during his first year in office.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee is chosen by the country’s parliament and decided to honor Maria Machado, a former member of Venezuela’s National Assembly who was barred last year from running for president against authoritarian socialist incumbent Nicolas Maduro.
Nominations for the Peace Prize technically were due Jan. 31, the same month Trump reclaimed power and before he brokered a growing list of international accords. Some of his advisers believe he stands a better shot next year.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, asked by Trump to address the Egyptian gathering, announced that he’s re-nominating Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, citing his role in ending four days of fighting in May with neighboring India.
The governments of Israel and Cambodia also nominated Trump for the prize this year, citing his role ending their fighting with Iran and Thailand, respectively.
The leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan, who in August jointly called for Trump to receive the honor for helping end their decades-old conflict, both attended the Gaza ceremony, with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan approaching Trump afterward to thank him.
“Today is one of the greatest days in contemporary history,” Sharif said Monday of the Gaza peace deal.
Quote:U.S. President Donald Trump has said that Iran is “tired" of war following June’s 12-day conflict between Israel and Iran, which included U.S. strikes on nuclear facilities. Speaking at the Knesset, Israel's parliament, on Monday, Trump said Washington is ready for peace, signaling a potential diplomatic shift after years of tensions.
“Iran, we are ready when you are and it will be the best decision Iran has ever made, and it’s gonna happen,” Trump said, emphasizing that peace would benefit both nations.
Newsweek has contacted the State Department and Iran's Foreign Ministry via email for comment.
Why It Matters
Trump’s visit to the Middle East comes at a moment when the region remains fragile amid the Gaza conflict, the release of hostages, and recent U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran. His remarks signal an attempt to convert military pressure into leverage, showing Tehran that continued escalation carries costs, while opening a possible path for diplomacy. The strikes and regional dynamics have left Iran weakened and more isolated, underlining the limits of its influence in the Middle East.
The trip also reinforces U.S. commitment to Israel and regional allies, underscoring Washington’s role in shaping security, deterring aggression, and influencing the balance of power across the region.
What To Know
During the 12-day war, Israel’s surprise airstrikes targeted Iranian positions, while the U.S. struck three major nuclear facilities at Natanz, Fordow, and Isfahan. Trump described the operation as a decisive move: “We dropped 14 bombs on Iran’s nuclear facilities, which has been confirmed to have obliterated those facilities.” He credited the campaign with preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons and reducing the broader threat to Israel and its neighbors.
At the same time, he suggested a potential diplomatic path, saying, “It would be great if we made a peace deal with them, wouldn’t it be nice, I think they want to, I think they’re tired,” signaling that Iran’s weakened position could create openings for negotiation.
Israel's Role
Praising Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said: “Great job and my people loved working with you. Many of Iran’s top terrorists, including nuclear scientists and commanders, have been extinguished from this earth.” He credited the coordinated operations for weakening Iran-backed forces across the region and shifting the balance of power in favor of Israel and its allies. Trump also highlighted the release of hostages from Gaza, held by Hamas for two years, as evidence of U.S.-Israeli cooperation and broader regional stabilization.
Quote:President Trump left the door open Monday for a potential Palestinian state, telling reporters “we’ll have to see” if a one-state or two-state solution would be the better path forward for Gaza.
The president made the remark on the future of the Palestinian enclave as he traveled back to Washington aboard Air Force One, after taking part in the historic signing of the first phase of an Israel-Hamas peace deal in Egypt.
“Well, we’re going to have to see,” Trump told reporters when asked about how the strip will be governed if the peace deal holds. “A lot of people like the one-state solution, some people like the two-state solution. We’ll have to see.”
Trump noted that he hasn’t publicly commented on the solution he prefers.
The president’s 20-point peace framework calls for Gaza to be governed by a “temporary transitional” Palestinian committee overseen by an international “Board of Peace”— headed by Trump himself – as the strip is redeveloped.
The framework notes that upon the redevelopment of Gaza, “the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood.”
“At some point I’ll decide what I think is right,” Trump told reporters. “But it would be in coordination with other states and other countries.”
Trump indicated that he didn’t discuss the political future of Gaza with the world leaders gathered in Egypt for the signing ceremony.
“I’m not talking about single state or double state … I’m talking about the rebuilding of Gaza,” he said.
“That was a power room,” Trump continued. “Those are the richest countries … really, seriously rich countries, and they can handle it.”
Quote:ABC’s “The View” lauded the safe return of Israeli hostages on Monday, with co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin praising her former boss Donald Trump and his administration’s key role in the historic moment.
If this deal holds, Griffin said, it is a “massive diplomatic achievement.”
“The whole world can breathe a sigh of relief,” she said. Earlier, co-host Whoopi Goldberg played clips of celebrations of the current peace in the war-torn area, saying, “we can all pray that it stays that way.”
Griffin said there were no Jews around the world who didn’t feel the impact of Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas terrorists went on a horrific rampage, killing more than 1,100 people and kidnapping 250 others, including young children.
“Whether you like Trump or not, I think he, I think [Special Envoy] Steve Witkoff, and I think Jared Kushner do deserve credit for this deal,” Griffin said, noting the direct negotiations between the latter two and Hamas. “I used to be of the mind that we don’t negotiate with terrorists, but sometimes the only way to get peace is to sit down with some of the most evil people and try to come up with what we can do to end the bloodshed. So thank God, I pray that this peace holds.”
Griffin pledged in January to wear a MAGA hat if Trump freed the Israeli hostages.
“If he gets the Israeli hostages out, I promise i will wear a MAGA hat for one day on the show, and say, ‘Thank you for doing it,’” she said on the show.
Co-host Sara Haines noted Monday that the deal had left Hamas, the terrorist group that governs Gaza, in a powerless position. The deal freed 2,000 Palestinian prisoners or detainees of Israel during the conflict as well, and there is a ceasefire as of Monday.
On Monday, Trump addressed the Israeli Knesset, where he celebrated the deal and basked in gushing praise from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for his support of Israel and role in getting the surviving hostages home to their families.
Trump called the moment a “historic dawn of a new Middle East” and called on the rebuilding of Gaza from the rubble of the war.
“Donald Trump went on record saying, there are things Israel now needs to do as well, so his deal was a compromise,” Haines said. “Neither side got everything they wanted, but most importantly those hostages are home.”
Quote:The mother of freed Israeli soldier Matan Angrest said her son was beaten so savagely by his Hamas captors that he blacked out — in one of many chilling accounts emerging since the release of 20 surviving hostages under the Israel–Hamas peace deal this week.
“He remembers being beaten so badly that he lost consciousness,” Anat Angrest told local media in Israel as she described her son’s ordeal after his abduction on Oct. 7, 2023.
“They covered him with black sacks and dragged him away,” she told Haaretz.
Angrest, an Israel Defense Forces soldier taken from his tank near Gaza, told his family that during airstrikes, tunnel walls collapsed around him.
“Many times they found themselves buried in dust under the rubble, trying to climb out and survive,” his mother said.
She added that for the last four months of captivity, he was confined to a dark tunnel.
Several of the freed hostages — among them Ariel Cunio and Rom Braslavski — were kept in complete isolation, Haaretz reported.
Cunio told Israel’s public broadcaster Kan that he spent his entire captivity alone, unaware for months that his brother David and partner Arbel Yehoud were still alive.
Braslavski, 21, was also held alone and told relatives he was starved, shackled, and forced to sleep barefoot on cold ground.
Survivors said Hamas guards ate in front of them while they went hungry.
“The treatment grew harsher once the IDF resumed ground operations in March,” Kan reported.
Channel 13 News said the hostages were never given shoes and that some were kept chained continuously.
The parents of Alon Ohel said their 24-year-old son was shifted through tunnels in Gaza until several weeks ago, when he was moved to serve as a human shield.
“They suddenly moved him to another tunnel in central Gaza,” his parents told Channel 12.
“The IDF had announced an operation to capture [Gaza] City, and they moved him to use him as a human shield.”
Quote:Hamas on Monday said it has recalled 7,000 members of its security forces to “cleanse Gaza of outlaws and collaborators,” including militiamen armed by Israel — sparking fears of a bloody civil war inside the war-torn enclave.
The terror group made the announcement after Israeli Defense Force began pulling back its troops as they fulfill their part of the historic peace deal brokered by President Trump, his son-in-law Jared Kushner and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff.
Without the IDF in control and Hamas struggling following two years of war with Israel, some experts caution that a struggle among the Palestinians is now brewing as factions seek to fill the power vacuum left behind.
“Gaza is flooded with arms. Looters have stolen thousands of weapons and rounds of ammunition from Hamas stores during the war, and some groups have even received supplies from Israel,” a former Palestinian Authority security officer told the BBC on Monday.
“This is a perfect recipe for civil war: weapons, frustration, chaos, and a movement desperate to reassert control over a shattered and exhausted population.”
Hamas in a statement claimed that it was “imposing order and restoring security and stability following the cease-fire.”
However, Hamas claims that it is “restoring order” to Gaza, with the terrorist group posting statements to its official media website quoting a group dubbed “The Gaza City Families Gathering” supporting them for “enforcing order and protecting the lives and property of citizens.”
“Gaza will rise again, strong with the will of its people, and capable of restoring life despite all the attempts at confusion and disruption directed by the occupation,” the group said.
Phase two of the peace deal calls for the disarmament of Hamas, but so far, the terrorist group has rejected the idea, seeking further talks before taking next steps.
Thousands of Palestinians have fought against Hamas throughout the war in Gaza, senior Israeli officials have told The Post.
Tensions have also been rising between Hamas and the Al Qaeda-linked Dughmush clan — one of Gaza’s most powerful factions that’s long been at odds with Hamas, the BBC reported.
Quote:GAZA STRIP — Senior Israel Defense Force commanders have warned dismantling Hamas’ terror tunnels under Gaza needs to be a top priority if the ceasefire is to hold.
Trump’s 20-point plan to end the Hamas-Israel war does not include details on how Hamas infrastructure such as its underground tunnels and weapons production facilities will be destroyed.
Israel Defense Forces Res. Brigadier General Danny Van Buren told The Post the eradication of the Hamas tunnels “is a major part of demilitarization of the Gaza Strip.
“In order to keep the ceasefire and put a foundation for peace in place, one necessary part is to eliminate Hamas infrastructure.
“The tunnel system is the major weapon Hamas still has… When I looked at the 20-point Trump plan, the weak part is the way we are going to demilitarize the Gaza Strip.
“I am not sure if there is a good mechanism to destroy the tunnels. They will not give up weapons voluntarily.”
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has said after the safe return of all 20 remaining living hostages Monday, the next phase is “the destruction of all of Hamas’ terror tunnels in Gaza.”
The “Gaza metro,” as it is known within Israel’s security establishment, contains more than 310 miles of tunnels, half the length of the New York Subway system.
Recently built tunnels were being discovered right up until the ceasefire went into effect on Oct. 10. The tunnels – often built below hospitals and civilian infrastructure – have been used by Hamas terrorists to hide, stockpile weapons, make bombs and get around Gaza unnoticed. The first tunnel networks were first discovered by the IDF in 2013.
The IDF granted The Post rare access to see a freshly discovered Hamas terrorist tunnel under a hospital compound firsthand in the nearly encircled Gaza City on October 3.
Amid the sounds of artillery fire and sporadic rifle shots in a near-gutted apartment building seized from Hamas terrorists in the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood, a senior IDF identified the newly discovered 1.5-kilometer-long and 18 to 25-meter-deep Hamas tunnel, which ran across the compound of the closed Jordanian Field Hospital.
“Hamas company commanders and fighters were with the Jordanians” in the Field Hospital, the official claimed.
Quote:An Indian student has become the first known national from his country to be detained in the Ukraine War after he was allegedly strong-armed into fighting for Russia to dodge a prison sentence, according to reports.
Sahil Majothi, a 22-year-old from Gujarat, was captured by Ukrainian forces and featured in a viral video posted to Facebook this week by Ukraine’s 63rd Mechanized Brigade, where he claimed he joined the Russian army in exchange for freedom after he was allegedly framed in a drug case last April, his mother told BBC News.
Majothi reportedly moved to Russia in January 2024, completed a language course in St. Petersburg, and then relocated to Moscow for college, the outlet reported.
While studying, he also worked as a kitchenware courier in Moscow.
In April 2024, his mother, Hasina Majothi, claims someone slipped drugs into a package while he was on a delivery run.
The young student was then arrested and held for six months before being sentenced to seven years in a Russian prison. His family hired a lawyer, but soon lost all contact, the mother recalled.
“The police caught him with it and charged him,” Hasina Majothi told the outlet.
In the clip released by Ukraine’s 63rd Mechanized Brigade, Majothi claimed he was given a choice to fight for Russia or rot in jail.
The exact date or location when the clip was taken cannot be verified.
“I don’t know how he ended up in Ukraine. I only found out through the viral video,” Hasina Majothi said.
Majothi also said he was promised sums ranging from 100,000 to over a million roubles for his military service, but never received a dime.
After just 15 days of basic training in September 2024, he was reportedly tossed into the war zone — and by Oct. 1, one day after being deployed, Majothi claims he split from his Russian unit following an altercation with a commander.
He then stumbled upon a Ukrainian dugout and asked for help, the outlet said.
After the video went viral, Gujarat’s Anti-Terrorism Squad questioned members of Majothi’s family, the outlet reported.
ATS officials in India confirmed details of his arrest and detention in Russia to the outlet.
His detainment comes amid rising concerns that Indian nationals have been recruited into the Russian military.
Quote:President Trump has invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Washington for discussions this week, fresh off the high of ending the war in Gaza, The Post can confirm.
Ukrainian Ambassador to the US Olha Stefanishyna confirmed that Zelensky received an “official invitation for the president of Ukraine to come to the United States for a meeting,” the embassy exclusively told The Post on Monday.
Zelensky later confirmed the White House meeting would happen Friday, when they “will discuss a series of steps that I intend to propose.”
First, a delegation of Ukrainian officials including Ukrainian Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko, Zelensky’s chief adviser Andriy Yermak and Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Rustem Umerov will arrive in the nation’s capital for a series of discussions this week with Washington leaders.
“There will be several other important meetings – with defense companies, and possibly with senators and members of Congress,” Zelensky said in a post to X. “I will also meet with energy companies.”
“This is necessary — it was President Trump’s proposal — and I will meet with these companies because there are pressing needs linked to various formats of attacks, not even the attacks that Russia has already carried out. In any case, we must be prepared. So, it will be helpful,” he added.
It comes after Zelensky and Trump held back-to-back calls on Saturday and Sunday, the Ukrainian president said in a post to X on Monday. The White House invitation was extended after the calls, per the Ukrainian embassy.
“Yesterday, we agreed on a set of topics to discuss today, and we covered all the aspects of the situation: defense of life in our country, strengthening our capabilities — in air defense, resilience, and long-range capabilities,” Zelensky said of the conversations.
“We also discussed many details related to the energy sector.”
Quote:Hungary has dropped its opposition to a proposed European Union-wide ban on liquified natural gas (LNG) from Russia, bringing the bloc's 19th sanctions package one step closer to reality as Brussels seeks a united front on raising the costs of Moscow's war against Ukraine.
Why It Matters
Landlocked Hungary and neighboring Slovakia remain the EU's top destinations for Russian fossil fuel, with imports totaling $450 million and $298 million in August, according to data compiled by the Finland-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.
Because EU sanctions require the support of all 27 members to proceed, both Budapest and Bratislava have used their leverage to secure an exemption, arguing that switching suppliers too quickly would jeopardize their economies.
The shift comes as Brussels and President Donald Trump—who pledged to end the war in Ukraine within 100 days of beginning his second term—put pressure on Russia as President Vladimir Putin rebuffs calls for a negotiated end to the conflict, now nearing its fourth year.
Newsweek reached out to the Hungarian and Russian foreign ministries and the White House for comment.
What To Know
The latest sanctions package, announced September 19, seeks to further restrict European revenues funding Russia's war chest.
In addition to closing the loophole on Russian LNG, the package would lower the oil price cap on Russian crude oil to $47.60, sanction over 100 additional vessels believed to be in the "shadow" fleet of sanctions-busting vessels, and implement full bans on business with Russian energy giants such as Gazprom and Rosneft.
For Budapest, the shift coincides with new efforts to diversify energy sources.
On October 2, state-owned MVM CEEnergy signed its longest-ever LNG contract—a decade-long deal with France’s Engie—to supply 400 million cubic meters of gas per year between 2028 and 2038, Hungarian media reported.
Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, who announced the Engie deal, called it “a pillar of energy security,” emphasizing that diversification “does not mean closing one route when another opens.” He stressed that energy independence “must remain a matter of national sovereignty.”
Meanwhile, Hungary is courting Turkmenistan as another potential source. Deputy Secretary of State for Eastern Affairs Adam Stifter said in an October 1 statement Turkmenistan is a "reliable partner" that Budapest hopes "will soon become a gas supplier to Europe—and, more precisely, to Hungary.”
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a right-wing populist and one of Trump’s closest allies in Europe, has long maintained that sanctions risk damaging Europe’s competitiveness more than Russia’s.
The central European country has increased its supply of Russian gas since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, and is contracted to receive 4.5 billion cubic meters of gas per year from Russian majority state-owned gas company Gazprom until 2036.
Quote:Former Russian President Dmitri Medvedev has said any U.S. delivery of long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles "could end badly" after U.S. President Donald Trump floated sending the missiles to Kyiv.
Why It Matters
Vice President JD Vance suggested last month the U.S. could consent to Ukraine's long-repeated request for Tomahawk sea-launched missiles, which would add significantly to Kyiv's ability to strike deep into Russia. The weapons have a range of roughly 1,550 miles, broadly similar to the Kalibr cruise missiles the Kremlin has frequently used against Ukraine.
Russia has warned it would destroy Washington's relations with Moscow and that the missiles can't be used by Ukraine without U.S. involvement.
What To Know
Medvedev, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the current deputy chair of Russia's security council, said on Monday the "delivery of these missiles could end badly for everyone," before adding: "Most of all, for Trump himself."
Newsweek has reached out to the White House for comment via email.
Trump and Medvedev have previously publicly clashed, including when Medvedev alluded to Russia's "dead hand" mechanism, which is designed to launch nuclear weapons even if Russia's most senior commanders are taken out by an enemy attack.
Trump then deployed two U.S. Navy nuclear submarines after what he called Medvedev's "highly provocative" statements. The Republican has labeled Medvedev, who is well known for his bellicose social media commentary, a "stupid person."
"One can only hope that this is another empty threat," Medvedev said in his Monday post to messaging app Telegram, adding: "Like sending nuclear submarines closer to Russia."
Trump said he "may" send the missiles when fielding questions from journalists on Air Force One, en route to Israel overnight into Monday. "We'll see," the U.S. president added.
"I might say 'Look: if this war is not going to get settled, I'm going to send them Tomahawks,'" Trump said.
Ukraine's President, Volodymyr Zelensky, said on Sunday he had spoken with Trump twice in two days and discussed "strengthening" Ukraine, including the country's long-range capabilities. The conversations were "productive," Zelensky added.
A spokesperson for Kyiv's foreign ministry had said last week there was a "very detailed and active discussion about the possibility of providing these missiles."
"For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ," 1 Thessalonians 5:9
Maranatha!
The Internet might be either your friend or enemy. It just depends on whether or not she has a bad hair day.
Quote:Republican Representative Anna Paulina Luna has said the Russian embassy in Washington, D.C. had given her Moscow’s report into the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
Luna, a congresswoman for Florida’s 13th district, posted on X that she had received the documents and they would be reviewed and translated by experts before being publicly released.
Russia's Embassy to the U.S. confirmed on X that it had provided Luna with the archives, adding the documents would be published in Russia in November.
Newsweek has contacted the Russian embassy in Washington, D.C. and the U.S. State Department for comment.
Why It Matters
John F. Kennedy was shot on November 22,1963 while traveling in an open-top motorcade in Dallas. Lee Harvey Oswald, a former Marine, was arrested over the killing but was himself shot dead before facing trial by Jack Ruby, a Dallas nightclub operator.
The 1964 Warren Commission concluded Oswald had acted alone, though the killing has been subject to conspiracy theories and public interest is likely to be stoked by Luna’s X post.
What To Know
Luna, who is chairwoman of the Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets, said in March the range of JFK theories was fueled because "the government was not transparent."
She also praised the executive order by President Donald Trump to declassify the assassination files of JFK, Senator Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.
Luna's X post will renew interest in the historic killing. She had recently teased that she would receive Russia’s report into the JFK assassination and her post on Tuesday confirmed she had received a hard copy of the 350-page report.
"We have been given access to them now for the first time in history," she said, adding that Congress had attempted to obtain these files in the 1990s but was denied access.
A team of experts—including investigative journalist and CIA expert Jefferson Morley—will translate and review the documents which would be uploaded as soon as possible to ensure the American people had direct access to them, she said.
Archive documents linked to the assassination had been handed to Luna when she was received at the residence of Russia's ambassador to the U.S., Alexander Darchiev, said his embassy on X.
The statement also said that many files had been presented by the Soviet representative at Kennedy’s funeral, Anastas Mikoyan.
Quote:The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to review a long-running challenge to a federal rule allowing certain spouses of H-1B visa holders to work in the United States, leaving intact a 2024 appellate decision that upheld the program’s legality.
Newsweek contacted immigration attorneys for comment via email outside of normal office hours on Wednesday.
Why It Matters
The Supreme Court’s decision to let stand a rule allowing certain spouses of H-1B visa holders to work in the United States preserves a key source of economic and family stability for thousands of immigrant households and the employers who rely on them.
By declining to hear a challenge from a group representing displaced U.S. tech workers, the justices effectively affirmed the government’s authority to grant work authorization to H-4 visa holders—a policy central to retaining high-skilled talent in a tightening labor market.
The outcome provides relief for families navigating long green-card backlogs and offers rare continuity in a politically charged area of immigration law that affects both the U.S. workforce and the country’s global competitiveness.
What To Know
In an order issued Monday, the justices denied a petition by Save Jobs USA, a group representing American technology workers who argued that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) overstepped its authority when it extended work authorization to holders of H-4 visas—dependents of H-1B skilled workers.
The Court did not provide an explanation for its decision, consistent with its usual practice.
Nearly A Decade Of Legal Challenges Ends
The denial marks the end of nearly a decade of litigation that began after the Obama administration adopted the “Employment Authorization for Certain H-4 Dependent Spouses” rule in 2015.
The regulation permits spouses of H-1B workers who are pursuing permanent residency to obtain work authorization.
DHS estimated at the time that roughly 180,000 individuals would benefit in the first year and about 55,000 annually thereafter.
Save Jobs USA’s petition, filed in August 2024, asked the Court to determine whether DHS could “grant work authorization for classes of nonimmigrants for whom Congress has refused to grant work authorization.”
The group contended that the agency’s interpretation of immigration law “creates a separate immigration system that subverts the one Congress put in place.”
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals had previously rejected that argument, holding in Save Jobs USA v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security that federal law gave DHS authority to permit employment for nonimmigrants in limited circumstances.
The appeals court said that a related 2022 decision upholding a work-authorization program for foreign students “squarely forecloses” the challenge to the H-4 rule.
Quote:John Bolton, a former national security adviser to President Donald Trump, was indicted on Thursday on charges of illegally storing and transmitting classified information.
Why It Matters
Bolton became a vocal critic of Trump after leaving the administration in 2019. The investigation into Bolton began before Trump's second term.
Other critics of the president have recently been indicted on federal charges. Prosecutors are accusing former FBI Director James Comey of lying to Congress and New York Attorney General Letitia James of committing bank fraud and making a false statement. Both deny the accusations.
What To Know
Bolton was indicted on 18 counts, eight counts of transmission of national defense information and 10 counts of retention of national defense information, according to the indictment obtained by PBS.
The case was filed by U.S. Maryland Attorney Kelly O. Hayes, who had been a career prosecutor in the office before being elevated to the current job.
The indictment alleges that Bolton sent "diary-like entries" to two individuals, who are not named in the document but whose identities are known by the grand jury, containing information classified up to the top secret level. Prosecutors allege that this activity happened from on or about April 9, 2018, to on or about September 15, 2019.
The indictment alleges that Bolton sent these individuals information from his personal non-governmental email accounts, such as ones hosted by AOL and Google.
Prosecutors also suggest that classified information was exposed when operatives believed to be linked to the Iranian regime hacked Bolton’s email account in 2021. A Bolton representative told the FBI his emails had been hacked, but did not reveal that he had shared classified information through the account, the indictment alleges.
When was John Bolton's House and Office Raided by the FBI?
The FBI searched Bolton's Maryland home and Washington, D.C., office in August. During the search, agents seized multiple documents labeled “classified,” “confidential” and “secret” from the office, according to previously unsealed court filings obtained by the Associated Press.
Quote:Former special counsel Jack Smith has been formally referred to the Department of Justice’s Office of Professional Responsibility and two state bar panels for potential misconduct and disbarment, following revelations that his team secretly obtained phone metadata from nine Republican lawmakers during the Biden administration’s investigation into 2020 election interference, the New York Post first reported.
In a letter sent Friday to Attorney General Pam Bondi, led by Republican Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn, GOP lawmakers accused Smith of violating constitutional protections by subpoenaing telecom companies for call logs, including time, duration, recipient, and location, without clear legal justification.
Newsweek reached out to Blackburn's office via contact form and Smith's attorney via email for comment on Friday afternoon. The Department of Justice declined to comment.
Why It Matters
The call for further investigation into Smith comes days after the former special counsel defended his investigations into President Donald Trump and denounced what he saw as growing politicization within and of the DOJ—something Trump complained about during his years out of office.
What To Know
The lawmakers allege that the data sweep targeted members of Congress solely for their support of Trump and breached the Speech or Debate Clause, raising concerns about the separation of powers and potential political retaliation.
The complaint also links Smith’s actions to the FBI’s “Arctic Frost” probe, which tracked dozens of conservative figures and groups, and calls for disciplinary review by legal authorities in Tennessee and New York, where Smith is licensed to practice.
“As part of Jack Smith’s weaponized witch hunt, the Biden DOJ issued subpoenas to several telecommunications companies in 2023 regarding our cell phone records, gaining access to the time, recipient, duration, and location of calls placed on our devices from January 4, 2021, to January 7, 2021," the group of senators, who were allegedly targeted by the probe, wrote.
The letter, seen by the New York Post, goes on to say that the public had yet to learn of any legal predicate for President Joe Biden's DOJ to issue such subpoenas. They also said that Smith's actions infringed on the constitutional rights of elected officials and trampled on the separation of powers, as they called on the same department he worked under to investigate him.
Friday's call to action comes after Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, who chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee, released details on the phone record seizures earlier this month. He called on Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel to hold those responsible accountable.
The Office of Special Counsel confirmed last month that it was investigating Smith following a referral from Senator Tom Cotton, who alleged that Smith had taken deliberate steps in his investigations of the president to influence the 2024 election.
Smith defended himself in an interview in London on October 8, saying that politics played no part in his work. He has denied any wrongdoing, insisting his team worked independently.
Quote:U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, an ally of President Donald Trump and former Fox News host, faced her latest legal setback after a jury found a woman not guilty of assaulting an FBI agent during an immigration raid.
In a statement provided to Newsweek, Pirro wrote, “The jury has spoken and we accept their decision.”
Why It Matters
Pirro's office sought to prosecute Sidney Lori Reid for allegedly assaulting an FBI agent during an immigration arrest of alleged gang members over the summer amid the Trump administration's heightened immigration enforcement. But the case proved to be challenging for prosecutors. Her office failed three times to charge Reid with felony assault; it's uncommon for prosecutors to fail to obtain a grand jury indictment. On Thursday, Pirro's office faced another setback when the jury found Reid not guilty on lesser charges.
What to Know
Prosecutors accused Reid of assaulting FBI agent Eugenia Bates in July while being detained, according to court documents. Reid was allegedly filming U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents who were conducting an arrest in Washington, D.C. Prosecutors charged her with misdemeanor simple assault after failing to obtain a felony indictment.
Pirro's office alleged that Reid began filming the arrest of two men, allegedly members of the 18th Street gang, on July 22, 2025. Officers allegedly instructed her to step back, but she allegedly placed herself between an agent and suspect.
ICE Officer Vincent Liang then allegedly pushed her against a wall and told her to stop when Bates got involved. Prosecutors said that Reid was “flailing her arms and kicking,” and that Bates’ hand was allegedly “injured from striking and scraping the cement wall causing lacerations” during the struggle, Pirro’s office said in a July press statement.
Quote:President Donald Trump’s Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is imposing a $1,000 fee on most immigrants seeking temporary parole into the United States, citing concerns that the program was exploited under the Biden administration.
Parole grants temporary protection from deportation, allowing individuals to stay in the country for a limited period.
Why It Matters
The fee places a financial burden on migrants seeking entry through parole, effectively making approval contingent on payment. For many families and vulnerable individuals, the cost could be prohibitive, potentially delaying or blocking access. While the administration frames it as a measure to prevent misuse, the policy raises questions about the consequences for migrants.
What To Know
The fee applies to all individuals granted parole under INA Section 212(d)(5)(A), including initial parole, re-parole, parole in place, or parole from DHS custody, unless they qualify for one of 10 statutory exemptions, the agency said. The fee is charged when parole is granted, not when a request for parole is submitted, according to DHS.
DHS said the fee is intended to strengthen oversight of the immigration parole system and reduce potential misuse.
“Through the implementation of this new fee, President Trump and Secretary Noem are guaranteeing that foreign nationals, who wish to stay here, have skin in the game and do not exploit the system," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said.
Morgan Bailey, a partner at Mayer Brown and a former senior official at DHS, told Newsweek that “the announcement was not unexpected" after the One Big Beautiful Bill Act was signed into law in July 2025, and it established a new $1,000 fee to be paid by any individual who is paroled into the United States.
"The new 'immigration parole fee' of $1,000 is in addition to any other applicable filing or biometric collection fee," Bailey said.
"Under the Trump Administration, DHS has highlighted operational burdens and vetting vulnerabilities associated with large-scale, categorical parole programs," she added.
“The Biden Administration abused America’s immigration system and turned parole into a de facto amnesty program, thereby allowing millions of unvetted illegal aliens into the U.S., no questions asked, to the detriment of all Americans,” McLaughlin said.
Quote:The U.S. State Department has released its November 2025 visa bulletin, revealing very little change for green card applicants hoping to take the next step toward becoming lawful permanent residents.
Why It Matters
The U.S. State Department’s Visa Bulletin is the central document guiding hopeful immigrants and their families through the green card process.
Changes to the bulletin determine when applicants can take critical steps in their pursuit of lawful permanent residency. For millions following the U.S. immigration system, the speed or stalling of visa cut-off dates can mean the difference between months or years of waiting.
The update provides guidance on when they may be eligible to adjust their immigration status, typically based on the priority date established when an employer or family member filed a sponsorship petition.
What To Know
The bulletin contains two charts: "Final Action Date" (FAD) or "Dates for Filing" (DOF). If an applicant's priority date is earlier than the DOF, they can file a Form I‑485 for adjustment of status. If it is earlier than the FAD, then a visa number is available, and a case could be approved.
While the dates in many categories remained stagnant, changes between October and November include:
FAD F2B (Unmarried Sons/Daughters of Permanent Residents) India moved by nine days from November 22, 2016, to December 1, 2016.
FAD F3 (Married Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens) Mexico moved from April 15, 2001, to May 1, 2001.
DOF F1 (Unmarried Sons and Daughters of U.S. Citizens) Mexico moved from October 8, 2006, to March 1, 2007.
DOF F2A (Spouses and Children of Permanent Residents) China, India, Mexico, Philippines moved by a month from September 22, 2025, to October 22, 2025
DOF F2B (Unmarried Sons/Daughters of Permanent Residents) China, India, moved from January 1, 2017, to March 8, 2017. Mexico moved from December 15, 2008, to May 15, 2009.
The FADs and DOFs for all employment-based categories remain static between the October and November updates.
Quote:During an appearance on Fox Business Network’s “Varney & Co.,” Whirlpool CEO Marc Bitzer discussed his company’s $300 million investment in Ohio and credited the Trump administration for making it possible.
“All we want is a level playing field,” Bitzer explained. “We’re not looking for subsidies or gifts. And in a level playing field, this factory, and all our factories, can compete very well, and that’s what the tariff policy does. And as such, we’re strong and supportive of tariff policy and actually very thankful.”
“So, is it because of the tariff policies that you’re seeing come to fruition that you’re able to make this significant investment and expand your factories here?” FBN’s Lydia Hu asked.
“Yes, absolutely,” the Whirlpool CEO replied. “I mean, basically, what the tariff policy does. It makes a business case, an economic business case, just much more attractive. Put it differently, this big investment, which we announced today, we would have either scaled down or made it later or hesitated, and now this is basically, you know, any investment is a bet for the future. So yes, our bet is these tariff policies stay: It creates a level playing field, and therefore these economic investments generate a profitable return.”
Quote:Former Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy recounted a “chilling” meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in his new book Life, Law & Liberty: A Memoir.
Newsweek reached out to Russia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Kennedy, appointed to the nation’s highest court by former President Ronald Reagan, published the new memoir on his experience serving as a justice and as a leading public figure in American politics. The book touches on a meeting with Putin, who has for years been an adversary of the American government. Relations between the United States and Russia remain strained amid Moscow’s war against Ukraine, launched by Putin in 2022.
What To Know
An excerpt of Kennedy’s memoir detailing his meeting with Putin was published on Tuesday by SCOTUSblog.
In the excerpt, Kennedy wrote about a trip to Russia “some years back” for an international law conference. During that meeting, Putin requested a meeting with the justice in which the two discussed capital punishment.
Putin allegedly said during the meeting that there “would be no capital punishment in Russia,” and then leaned across the table to deliver a message to Kennedy.
“I have sat across a table from murderers, closer to them than I am to you. And I could have strangled them with my own hands,” Putin allegedly said.
Kennedy wrote that the “interpreter hesitated a bit, leaving me to wonder if he substituted ‘could have’ for ‘did.’” He described it as “chilling” and reinforcing his view of Putin as “fearless in imposing his own will, using the law only if convenient,” SCOTUSblog reported.
The excerpt marks a rare comment from a Supreme Court justice about foreign political leaders. Kennedy joined the court in February 1988 and would serve for three decades until 2018, when he retired. He was succeeded by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, appointed by President Donald Trump.
He was considered a major swing vote on the Court, at times willing to break from the conservative justices on issues like Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage in every state.
Quote:Senior Ukrainian officials visiting the U.S. have met with major U.S. defense companies, including the manufacturer of the Tomahawk missile that Kyiv has repeatedly requested.
Ukraine's prime minister, Yulia Svyrydenko, Rustem Umerov—formerly Ukraine's defense minister, now the head of the country's national security and defense council—as well as Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.S. Olga Stefanishyna met with representatives from Raytheon and Lockheed Martin, said Andriy Yermak, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's chief of staff.
Why It Matters
Raytheon's Tomahawk cruise missile has an estimated range of roughly 1,550 miles—and Ukraine wants it. While the missile wouldn't be a gamechanger in itself, particularly not in the small numbers the White House would likely send if it greenlights the transfer, Tomahawks would still add significantly to how well Kyiv could hit vital Russian assets far over the border.
What To Know
"Their tech is saving lives: F-16s and advanced air defense systems are shielding Ukrainian skies, while their offensive solutions strongly support our forces on the front line," Yermak said of Lockheed Martin and Raytheon. Lockheed Martin is the main manufacturer of the F-16 fighter jet, the fourth-generation Western aircraft Ukraine first received more than a year ago.
Raytheon touts the Tomahawk missile as able to get past an enemy's layered air defenses. Russia's rough equivalent is its Kalibr cruise missile, which it has frequently fired at Ukraine.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested in recent days he may be willing to give Tomahawks to Ukraine, in what appears to be a result of increasing frustration with the Kremlin and the glacial pace his administration is making in brokering a ceasefire or peace deal. Observers say Trump is likely using the threat of providing Tomahawks to Kyiv to leverage Russian President Vladimir Putin into negotiations which have stalled, despite an in-person summit in Alaska in August.
Russia says it will damage relations with the U.S. if Trump greenlights the transfer, and that it would be an "escalation" of the conflict because Kyiv would need U.S. assistance to use the cruise missiles.
"I might say 'Look: if this war is not going to get settled, I'm going to send them Tomahawks,'" Trump said on Sunday, shortly after speaking with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for the second time in as many days. Zelensky said the two leaders had discussed "strengthening" Ukraine, including the country's long-range capabilities.
The Ukrainian leader is expected to join his country's delegation in Washington and meet with Trump to propose what Zelensky called a "series of steps" focusing on air defense and "long-range capabilities."
Quote:The mayor of a major Ukrainian city has been stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship after the country's security agency said it had evidence he held a valid Russian passport.
Gennady Trukhanov has served as mayor of the southern port city of Odesa, which has been heavily bombarded by Moscow, since 2014. He denied the accusations and said he would appeal at the country's top court.
Newsweek has reached out to the Ukrainian presidential office for comment.
Why It Matters
Ukrainian officials cannot hold Russian citizenship and several high-profile individuals have lost their Ukrainian citizenship since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of its neighbor in February 2022. Ukrainian media reported the Ukrainian presidential office had also revoked the citizenship of two other people on Tuesday, identified as former lawmaker Oleh Tsariov and Serhii Polunin, a professional dancer.
What To Know
Trukhanov is a Russian citizen and has a valid foreign passport for the country, Kyiv's SBU domestic security agency said in a statement on Tuesday.
Trukhanov received the passport in December 2015 and the document is valid for 10 years, the SBU said. Russia had annexed Crimea, the peninsula to the south of mainland Ukraine, from Kyiv the previous year. Moscow had also backed separatists in the eastern Luhansk and Donetsk regions of Ukraine, collectively known as the Donbas. Moscow currently controls most of the Donbas after more than three and a half years of full-scale war. Odesa, further south, is Ukraine's third largest city and has a long history of contact with Russia.
Trukhanov said in a statement he had never applied for Russian citizenship nor received a Russian passport and would take the decision to the country's supreme court and beyond, to the European Court of Human Rights.
"All speculations regarding my alleged Russian citizenship are due to the fact that citizens of the former Soviet Union automatically acquired citizenship of the Russian Federation under certain circumstances," Trukhanov said. "However, I did not have such circumstances!"
He has for years denied he has a Russian passport, including in the run-up to his election as Odesa mayor.
Quote:ROME (AP) – Italy´s top court has rejected the extradition to Germany of a Ukrainian man arrested on suspicion of setting off explosions that damaged Nord Stream gas pipelines between Russia and Germany in 2022, his lawyer said on Thursday.
Italy´s Cassation Court on Wednesday annulled a previous decision by a Bologna appeals court, which had ordered the extradition to Germany of the 49-year-old suspect, Serhii Kuznietsov.
The Italian top court has now demanded another panel of the same appeals court to reassess the case, said Kuznietsov’s lawyer, Nicola Canestrini.
Canestrini said the motivations of the Cassation court´s decision have not been filed yet and are expected in the coming weeks.
“In the meantime, I will evaluate whether the conditions exist to request my client´s release, since the legal basis for detention has ceased to exist,” Canestrini added.
The explosions ruptured the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which carried Russian natural gas to Germany under the Baltic Sea until Russia cut off supplies at the end of August 2022. They also damaged the parallel Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which never entered service because Germany suspended its certification process shortly before Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
German prosecutors opened an investigation after the explosions and officials have pointed to an interest in clearing up what happened.
Kuznietsov was detained on a European arrest warrant Aug. 21 at a campground near the Adriatic coastal city of Rimini, where he was vacationing with his family.
During his first hearing confirming his detention, Kuznietsov denied any involvement in the explosions, saying he was in Ukraine where he was serving in the army as a captain at the time of the blasts.
German prosecutors allege that Kuznietsov organized and carried out the detonation of at least four bombs between 14 and 27 kilograms (around 31 to 62 pounds) at a depth of 70 to 80 meters (230 feet to 263 feet) in the Baltic Sea near the Danish island of Bornholm on Sept. 26, 2022, according to the extradition papers.
Polish authorities last month arrested another Ukrainian citizen who is suspected of involvement in the undersea explosions. The Warsaw District Court is expected to rule on his extradition on Friday, but the decision can be appealed.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk said in early October that it was not “in the interest of Poland” to extradite the man.
Quote:A crowd of people gathering in St. Petersburg sang an anti-war song by a Russian musician deemed a “foreign agent” in a video that has gone viral.
The clips widely circulated on Telegram showed the group singing the song “Cooperative Swan Lake” by Noize MC, whose lyrics condemn the authorities, the population’s silence in the war in Ukraine and Kremlin propaganda justifying President Vladimir Putin’s aggression.
It was reported that the person leading the sing-along was arrested, and ultra-nationalist Russians have expressed anger at the scenes.
Why It Matters
Since Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia has faced a clampdown on freedoms, where public opposition to the war and the government is in effect banned.
Thus, gathering people to sing a song by a prominent anti-government musician is a significant expression of anger at the country’s authorities, carrying considerable risk.
What To Know
Footage shows a group of people in St. Petersburg singing the song by Noize MC, the stage name of Ivan Alekseev, 40, a Russian musician whose work condemns corruption and police abuse in Russia.
Critical of the Russian government and its actions in Ukraine, he has faced concert cancellations, censorship and surveillance and has been labeled a “foreign agent." He has since relocated to Lithuania, where he continues to support anti-war causes and has held benefit concerts for Ukrainians.
The nighttime footage in the center of St. Petersburg showed hundreds of people singing “Cooperative Swan Lake,” which was released in 2022 after the start of the war.
The lyrics take aim at Kremlin TV propaganda justifying the war, with lines like “I want to talk to you, but the TV is blaring, it’s pretending to be your head, its speaker is like your mouth.”
It continues, “I want to watch the ballet, let the swans dance,” in a nod to Tchaikovsky's ballet Swan Lake, which was broadcast on loop following the deaths in 1982, 1984 and 1985 of Soviet leaders Leonid Brezhnev, Yuri Andropov and Konstantin Chernenko.
In August 1991, Swan Lake was also performed during the fall of the Soviet Union. While the aim may have been to calm viewers, it is associated with political disturbance following each political death and instability.
Those gathered sang, “let my grandfather tremble in fear for his 'Ozero' (lake)" in a disparaging reference to Putin and his inner circle known in St. Petersburg as the “Ozero collective.”
“Where have you been these eight years, f****** monsters?” says another line in the song released eight years after the 2014 annexation of Crimea. “Get rid of Solovyov from the screen, let the swans dance,” the song ends.
Vladimir Solovyov is a prominent Kremlin propagandist and Putin ally on the Russia 1 channel. His surname also means "nightingale," adding a double meaning to the lyrics.
As of Wednesday, the clip had received at least 330,000 views and was met with criticism from pro-Kremlin Telegram channels.
“While our boys are shedding blood for their homeland, young people in the cultural capital are jumping up and down, chanting the lyrics of the foreign agent and traitor, Vanya Alekseev,” posted Vipuskayete Krakenaz.
Quote:The director of Russia's domestic FSB intelligence service has accused the U.K., a member of NATO, of direct involvement in attacks on Russia.
“Special units of the British Armed Forces (SAS) are directly involved in combat operations,” Alexander Bortnikov said on Thursday at a meeting of the CIS Council of Security Agencies and Special Services, state news agency RIA reported.
Bortnikov also said, originally in Russian, that "under the patronage of the British special services…acts of terrorism and sabotage are carried out on the territory of the Russian Federation."
He claimed that Ukraine's Operation Spiderweb, which hit airfields and strategic bombers deep inside Russia, was conducted "under the direct supervision of British intelligence".
Newsweek has contacted the British Foreign Office for comment.
NATO-Russia Tensions Rise Amid War Talk
The Russian intelligence services regularly accuse Britain of involvement in underhanded and hostile covert acts against Russia and its interests.
The U.K. typically brushes off the claims as Russian propaganda and part of Moscow's hybrid war against Western allies, and does not engage with what it says are conspiracy theories intended to spread disinformation.
But the latest round of accusations comes at a time of a sharp escalation in tensions between Russia and NATO.
Both sides—armed with vast arsenals of nuclear weapons—have characterized themselves as in a form of war with each other, though there has been no formal declaration.
NATO allies accuse Russia of waging a hybrid war against them through provocations such as airspace violations, sabotage plots, cyberattacks, and disinformation campaigns.
Russia says that NATO's involvement in aiding Ukraine's defense against Moscow's invasion—which the alliance does through the supply of materiel, intelligence, and training, as well as diplomatic support—means they are de facto at war.
Quote:The Kremlin shrugged off U.S. President Donald Trump's claim that India had assured it would no longer buy Russian oil.
Reacting to Trump's remarks, Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin, said Moscow is "guided by the official statements" of India and China regarding oil purchases, state news agency Tass reported.
Trump had said on Wednesday that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi "assured me there will be no oil purchased from Russia," adding: "He's not buying his oil from Russia."
India's Ministry of External Affairs would not confirm or deny Trump's version of a conversation with Modi.
Why It Matters
Since the start of Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, India has greatly increased its purchases of Russian oil, taking advantage of discounts offered by Moscow, eager to make up for lost market share due to sanctions.
Trump has said that these purchases have helped fund Moscow’s war machine and, in August, imposed an additional 25 percent tariff on India over Russian oil imports, on top of an existing 25 percent levy. This move had angered India, which pointed to China not getting punished despite its role as an even bigger importer of Russian energy.
Trump's latest comments and India's response will add to the anticipation over the outcome of trade talks with New Delhi over a trade deal.
What To Know
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov responded on Thursday to Trump's statement that the U.S. leader had been assured by Modi that New Delhi would stop buying Russian oil.
Trump had said in the White House that he was unhappy with India's purchases of Russian oil, that Modi had told him these exports would end and that he hoped China would "do the same thing."
Trump also said on Wednesday that it would take time for India to stop its purchases of Russian oil, but this process would be completed “soon” without specifying further, as he touted how Modi was a “friend of mine.”
However, Peskov said that regarding oil purchases, Moscow would be guided by the official statements from the governments of India and China.
The Kremlin spokesman also said that Trump has repeatedly reiterated his intention to persuade countries not to purchase Russian oil, but the positions of these countries needed to be taken into account, TASS reported.
The comment seems to dismiss Trump's remarks about what Modi had told him. India also responded on Thursday by stating that its import policies would safeguard the interests of the Indian consumer, according to The Indian Express.
Spokesperson for India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Randhir Jaiswal, said India and Washington were in talks about increasing energy procurement from the U.S. but would not confirm or deny Trump’s claim of a conversation with Modi.
Quote:Russia has reportedly decided to prohibit foreign ships from exercising the right of innocent passage—granted under an international treaty—in waters surrounding a disputed group of islands in the country's Far East that Japan claims as its territory.
The Sankei Shimbun reported that Tokyo has lodged a protest with Moscow through diplomatic channels. Newsweek has emailed Russia's Foreign Ministry for comment.
Why It Matters
The territorial dispute between Russia and Japan centers on the four southernmost Kuril Islands, located between Japan's island of Hokkaido and Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula. The islands, originally controlled by Japan as the Northern Territories, were seized by the Soviet Union in 1945 and have remained under Russian control since.
According to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which established an international legal framework governing activities for the world's oceans, ships of all countries enjoy the right of innocent passage through territorial waters, which generally extend up to 13.8 miles from a coastline.
Innocent passage is defined as "continuous and expeditious" and not prejudicial to the coastal country's peace, good order or security. The UNCLOS states that a coastal country may temporarily suspend the innocent passage of foreign ships in designated areas of its territorial waters if such a suspension is essential for its security.
What To Know
Citing Japan's Foreign Ministry, the Sankei Shimbun reported that Russia's suspension of the right of innocent passage around the disputed islands has been in effect since Monday, applying to foreign naval and government vessels not registered in Russia.
In addition to the remote islands—Shikotan, Kunashiri, Habomai and Etorofu—Russia has banned the right of innocent passage in waters east of Hokkaido, the northernmost of Japan's four main islands. It remains unclear how long the suspension will last.
While Russia did not provide reasons for the suspension, the report said the Russian military has scheduled "firing exercises" north of Shikotan Island from October 10 to November 1, coinciding with a Japanese war game set to take place across the country.
Innocent passage can be temporarily suspended if it is essential to safeguard the coastal country's security, including during weapons exercises, according to the UNCLOS. However, the suspension takes effect only after it has been duly published.
This was not the first time Russia has announced war games around the southern Kuril Islands, having done so in April, June, July and August, the report said. Japan protested that Russia's latest moves were "incompatible" with Tokyo's position on the islands.
Quote:Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday to make his case for the acquisition of long-range Tomahawk missiles for the Ukrainian military, which would mark a significant escalation in the conflict with Russia.
Zelensky's meeting comes after Trump held a telephone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, in which the Russian leader raised objections to Ukraine getting the Tomahawks, Trump said.
Why It Matters
Zelensky is seeking Tomahawks so Ukrainian forces can strike targets deep inside Russia, such as energy infrastructure, military bases and weapons factories. With a range of an estimated 1,550 miles, Tomahawks would also put Moscow in range of Kyiv's forces and, Zelensky hopes, apply more pressure on Putin to make peace two-and-a-half years after Russia's invasion.
Russian officials, including former Russian President Dmitri Medvedev, have warned that Ukraine’s acquisition of Tomahawks would "end badly for everyone" and destroy relations between Washington and Moscow.
What To Know
Trump, increasingly frustrated with a lack of progress in his effort to end Russia's war in Ukraine, said last week he had given Putin an ultimatum to either hold serious peace talks with Ukraine or the U.S. president would consider giving Kyiv the missiles.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday after his telephone call with Putin, Trump suggested that the U.S. would be reluctant to supply the missiles to Ukraine and run down its own stocks of the missiles.
"We need Tomahawks for the United States of America too. We have a lot of them but we need them. We can’t deplete for our country. They're very vital," Trump said.
Trump said he had even asked Putin if the U.S. could supply the missiles to Ukraine.
"I did actually say: ‘Would you mind if I gave a couple of thousand Tomahawks to your opposition?’ I did say that to him… He didn’t like the idea," Trump said, adding: "You have to be a little bit light-hearted sometimes."
Trump also announced on Thursday that he would hold a meeting with Putin in the Hungarian capital, Budapest, soon, although no date has been set.
Zelensky said on Friday he had met with representatives of the Raytheon defense company, which makes both the Patriot missile system and Tomahawks.
"I told them about the battlefield situation and Russia’s intensified attacks on our people and civilian infrastructure," Zelensky said in a post on X.
He said he also met representatives of Lockheed Martin, which makes the F-16 fighter jet, to discuss "opportunities to enhance Ukraine's protection from Russian aggression."
Quote:Russian President Vladimir Putin summoned the permanent members of the Russian Security Council late on Thursday night, immediately after his telephone call with President Donald Donald Trump.
Why It Matters
The surprise telephone call between Trump and Putin comes as the U.S. president is deciding whether to supply Ukraine with long-range Tomahawk missiles, which would mark a significant escalation in the two-and-a-half year conflict with Russia.
Trump is due to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky later on Friday. Zelensky is expected to argue his case for the acquisition of the missiles that will enable Ukrainian forces to strike targets deep inside Russia, such as energy infrastructure, military bases and weapons factories. Russia has warned against the transfer to Ukraine of Tomahawk missiles.
What To Know
"Yesterday evening, immediately following his telephone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin gathered the permanent members of the Security Council in the Kremlin and briefed them in detail on the content of the exchange of views with his American counterpart," Putin's aide Yuri Ushakov said, according to TASS, Russia's state news agency.
The call between Putin and Trump was their eighth telephone conversation this year and it lasted for nearly two-and-a-half hours, Tass reported.
The conversation was "substantive, extremely frank, and confidential," Tass cited Ushakov as saying.
Trump announced following Thursday's call with Putin that he would soon meet with the Russian leader in Budapest, Hungary, to discuss ways to end the war. The two also agreed that their senior officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, would meet next week at an unspecified location.
"Moscow and Washington will 'without delay' begin preparations for a new summit," Tass cited Ushakov as saying.
The meeting, which Trump said could happen "within two weeks or so," will be the first time Putin has been to a European Union country since the outbreak of the Ukraine war in February 2022.
"The conversation covered the settlement of the Ukrainian conflict, Washington's possible supply of Tomahawk missiles to Kyiv, bilateral relations between Moscow and Washington, and the situation in the Gaza Strip," Tass reported, adding: "Following the conversation, the presidents agreed to remain in touch."
Putin is also expected to speak to Hungary's prime minister, Viktor Orban, later on Friday to arrange details of the upcoming talks between himself and the U.S. president, Tass reported, citing Orban.
Quote:Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban has called his country an "island of peace" as he teased an upcoming summit there between President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.
Trump announced on Thursday that he would hold a meeting with Putin in Budapest soon, although no date has yet been set. The announcement came ahead of Trump’s scheduled meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington D.C. on Friday.
Orban responded to the announcement on X, writing: "Preparations for the USA-Russia peace summit are underway. Hungary is the island of PEACE!"
He added: "The planned meeting between the American and Russian presidents is great news for the peace-loving people of the world. We are ready!"
Quote:NATO’s newest member Sweden is launching its first national food stockpile since the Cold War to build grain reserves amid rising tensions with Russia.
Sweden’s government has allocated 575 million kronor ($60 million) for emergency grain storage with the initial priority given to the north of the country, which civil defense minister Carl-Oskar Bohlin said was strategically important for its military and defense.
The move follows warnings by nations situated on NATO’s eastern flank about the security threat posed by Russia, which is accused of sending drones into alliance airspace.
Why It Matters
The Swedish government statement did not mention Russia by name but since Stockholm joined NATO in 2024 it has been among the alliance’s eastern flank members which have warned about the threat posed by Moscow, amid its aggression in Ukraine.
What To Know
The Swedish government said it would set up emergency grain stocks in the north of the country paid for by money earmarked in next year’s budget.
A tender for the project has been launched in the northern counties of Norrbotten, Vasterbotten, Vasternorrland and Jamtland, which are dependent on grain transported from southern Sweden and risk being cut off in the event of a crisis or war.
Bohlin said that the Swedish Board of Agriculture would procure emergency stockpiling of grain in northern Sweden, which would be circulated so as not to disrupt market mechanisms and to avoid stocks perishing.
The Swedish government said up to 95 percent of the population could survive on grains for three months without any nutrient deficiencies in the plan which would provide people with 3,000 calories a day.
The Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB) has published a list of recommended foods that are high in fat and protein, and easy to store such as dried meat or fish, jam, chocolate, mashed potatoes, powdered milk and biscuits.
The policy comes as fears grow that Moscow is testing the West with drone incursions that have been reported in Poland, Germany, Denmark and Norway.Last month Estonia invoked NATO’s Article 4 after it said Russian aircraft entered its airspace.
Quote:A German woman who stole the top of an ancient Greek column more than half a century ago has returned it to Greece — ending a decades-long absence for the 2,400-year-old artifact taken from the birthplace of the Olympic Games.
The Ionic column capital, made of limestone and measuring about 9 inches high and 13 inches wide, was taken from the Leonidaion, a 4th-century BC guesthouse in Ancient Olympia.
Greek officials said the relic was handed back during a ceremony on Friday at the Ancient Olympia Conference Center, after the woman voluntarily surrendered it to the University of Münster in Germany, which arranged its repatriation.
The woman had snatched the artifact in the 1960s during a visit to the site and kept it for decades before deciding to return it. She said she was inspired by the university’s recent restitution of looted antiquities.
The Greek Culture Ministry praised her “sensitivity and courage” and said her act showed “it is never too late to do the right thing.”
The return marks the third major artifact the University of Münster has sent back to Greece in recent years.
In 2019, it repatriated the so-called Cup of Louis — linked to the Olympic champion of 1896 — and in 2024, it returned a marble male head from Roman-era Thessaloniki.
“This is a particularly moving moment,” said Culture Secretary General Georgios Didaskalos at the handover.
“This act proves that culture and history know no borders but require cooperation, responsibility, and mutual respect. Every such return is an act of restoring justice and at the same time a bridge of friendship between peoples.”
Quote:AFP — An Afghan man deemed psychologically ill faced a German court on Thursday over a deadly knife attack on a group of toddlers that his defence lawyer labelled the “deed of a madman”.
The stabbings nine months ago in a park in the southern city of Aschaffenburg killed a two-year-old boy and a 41-year-old man who tried to protect the children, and left three others wounded.
Prosecutors acknowledged that the 28-year-old who set upon the daycare group with a kitchen knife on January 22 was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia.
The attack, which came just a month before German national elections, inflamed an already heated debate on migration.
The suspect, who was arrested near the scene of the stabbing, has been only partially named as Enamullah O., in line with usual practice by the German judiciary.
Facing the court in handcuffs and foot shackles, he appeared groggy and subdued, wearing an open white shirt with a dark jacket.
He mostly stared at the table and yawned frequently, which his lawyer said was due to medication he has been taking.
Prosecutors are seeking to have him permanently confined to a psychiatric facility. They previously said there was no indication the suspect acted out of extremist or terrorist motivation.
Five toddlers from a kindergarten class were in a public park, accompanied by two teachers, when the assailant attacked them with a kitchen knife.
He also injured a two-year-old Syrian girl, one of the teachers as well as a 72-year-old man who had also tried to protect the children.
– Fits of delusion –
Defence lawyer Juergen Vongries told the court that O. was experiencing fits of delusion and had only vague memories of voices he heard at the time of the crime.
His client had expressed regret, but could offer no explanation for why he attacked the children.
A few minutes before the attack, he had allegedly watched a YouTube video with the Turkish title “Motivating Combat Music”, prosecutor Juergen Buntschuh said while reading the indictment.
The two-year-old boy was stabbed five times, and the man slain by the attacker was stabbed four times, he said.
Buntschuh said the attacker’s delusions and severe mental impairment meant he was not able to fully recognise the horrific nature of his actions.
Not long after the attack, German media reported that the authorities had tried and failed in 2023 to deport the man to Bulgaria — the first EU country he had arrived in.
In August 2024, he allegedly threatened a fellow resident at an accommodation for asylum seekers in the nearby town of Alzenau with a butcher’s knife and caused her minor injuries.
The Aschaffenburg stabbings, which followed a string of other bloody attacks in Germany, provoked intense political reactions.
Friedrich Merz, the leader of the centre-right Christian Democrats who went on to become chancellor, promised a “fundamental” overhaul of asylum rules and strict border controls if elected.
About a week later, Merz, then the opposition leader, relied on support from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) to/ach pass a non-binding resolution through parliament demanding stricter immigration and refugee policies.
Merz’s decision to rely on far-right support broke a longstanding taboo in post-World War II German politics, prompting fierce criticism and mass street protests.
Quote:France may be teetering on the verge of national snap elections, but the poll-topping sovereigntist leader Marine Le Pen is banned from even standing, a Paris court has confirmed, over a conviction her supporters say is a case of politically targeted lawfare.
The French Council of State, the body of top lawyers which provides legal advice to the government and supreme court, has rejected an appeal by National Rally leader Marine Le Pen to have her “ineligibility” order overturned, reports Le Figaro. The order that was imposed on the politician in March by a judge is considered unusual and controversial because unlike normal criminal punishments, it is being imposed immediately, despite the appeals process to have the conviction itself overturned not having been exhausted.
Supporters of Le Pen have called the move to block her from office a nakedly political move to get her off the ballot at any cost, at a time where her party leads the polls in France. Le Pen herself had said it is a bid by the judiciary to “steal” the next election.
Indeed, it is stated that many Members of the European Parliament break the particular rule Le Pen is accused of having contravened, yet almost none are ever punished for it, leading to a perception the law is only applied to shut down politicians who threaten the European Union itself.
Le Pen’s actual appeal against the conviction for what was said to be campaign financing fraud will take place early next year from January, meaning if the judgement is overturned then her eligibility to run for office will return in time for the next planned French Presidential election. However, crucially, France is undergoing a period of intense political instability, with governments collapsing within months, and as of this month even within hours of being founded.
The root of this instability is a deeply divided parliament with no single dominant party or faction, and no possibility for coalition building as the three major blocs come from totally exclusionary political positions. This has led for sustained and repeated calls for fresh national elections, and even for President Emmanuel Macron himself to step down and for the nation to choose a new leader.
This could be the key to returning to stability and avoided, as has been widely discussed, an end to the French Fifth Republic to make way for a whole new constitution and electoral system. Yet fresh elections while the leader of the country’s first-place-polling party, the National Rally, is banned from even running could very well intensify the crisis by further eroding the public’s trust in the quality of their democracy.
Quote:The French Prime Minister narrowly avoided having his government collapsed for a second time in two weeks in a Parliamentary vote on Thursday, prompting the left-wing opposition to say they’ll try and impeach Emmanuel Macron directly to bring him down.
Sébastien Lecornu, the now-two times French Prime Minister whose first government lasted just 12 hours last week faced two censure votes on Thursday morning — the French equivalent of a vote of no confidence which, if passed in the National Assembly, dissolves the government — by a narrow margin. Rebels needed 289 votes in the house of 577 and fell just short with 271 votes counted for dissolution in the first round.
The failure to bring down the government on this occasion is, by this point, notable for French politics which has become unmanageably fractured, unstable, and to the eyes of some now stumbling towards the need to re-write the constitution and declare a new Republic. Emmanuel Macron has now presided, as President, over nine consecutive cabinet governments under a multitude of Prime Ministers, a record since the 13-year-rule of François Mitterrand in the 1980s and 90s.
Yet even the dynamics of today’s votes clearly map onto the deep divisions in French politics which manifest in the composition of the Assembly, which leave it unable to build functional governing coalitions.
The largest party in French politics today is Marine Le Pen’s sovereigntist National Rally, which mixes right-wing ideas on border controls and national sovereignty and left-wing on government spending, welfare, and taxes. Le Pen is a leading voice against President Macrons’ centrist rule but no party of the left — who consider her the greater enemy — will cooperate on a National Rally initiative to bring down Macron or his government.
Speaking before the vote, Marine Le Pen said “This isn’t a political crisis, it’s a crisis of politicians, a crisis of tired old parties” created by their wrecking of political norms to keep her soverientrist party coming to power by any means.
Consequently, the motion considered most likely to have been able to succeed today was one brought by the rainbow leftist coalition La France Insoumise (France Unbowed, ‘LFI’). Yet it faltered because one of France’s constellation of small left-wing parties — who sometimes get along but quite often do not — was successfully bought off by the pro-Macron Lecornu government with promises to delay pension reform.
Quote:King Charles III and the Queen Consort will travel to the Vatican next week for a state visit, where the King and Pope Leo will pray together, the first time such a thing has happened in 500 years, if not longer.
Pope Leo XIV is to welcome King Charles III, the head of state of the United Kingdom and the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, to the Vatican on October 22nd and 23rd. While King Charles will not be the first British monarch to visit the Vatican — Queen Elizabeth II visited during her reign, for instance — the two men will pray together at the Sistine Chapel, reckoned by Buckingham Palace to be the first time this will have happened in some 500 years.
This claim dates back to King Henry VIII splitting from Rome in 1534, before there was even a United Kingdom, and Henry was the King of England only.
Yet King Henry VIII is not known to have ever visited Rome or met the then-Pope himself, so the date of the last time a ‘British’ King prayed alongside the Pope in Rome may have been hundreds of years before even that. King Canute, the Viking King of England, Denmark, and Norway certainly made a pilgrimage to Rome in 1027 — nearly exactly 1,000 years ago — and met Pope John XIX.
During the Sistine Chapel meeting planned for next week, priests from both the Catholic Church and Church of England will pray together — despite the Catholic Church not officially recognising Anglican priests as valid — in a show of Ecumenicalism that will also see a choir brought from Windsor Castle sing.
In another link to the pre-reformation relationship between Britain — then England — and Rome, King Charles will also be made a Royal brother of the confraternity of the Abbey at St Paul’s Outside the Walls, an ancient Church that was once closely linked to the English and even ancient pre-ancient monarchies which helped fund its upkeep. The King will receive a private seat at the Basilica with his coat of arms. As noted by Buckingham Palace:
In further celebration of this new bond, the Basilica of St Paul’s Outside the Walls has created a special seat for His Majesty, which will remain in the Basilica as a perpetual mark of mutual respect between Pope Leo and The King as Heads of State. The special chair is decorated with His Majesty’s Coat of Arms. The King will use this chair during the service, after which it will remain in the apse of the Basilica for future use by His Majesty and his heirs and successors.
The Times notes Saxon King Offa and Æthelwulf in the 8th and 9th centuries were supporters of St Paul’s, sending money for the protection of St Paul’s and St Peter’s tombs.
Quote:Tax raids on people they deem to be “wealthy” will be “part of the story” at the national budget next month, the UK’s Chancellor told the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The British government feels it needs to raise at least an extra £20 billion after it gave up on welfare reform over internal resistance from within the ruling Labour Party, and over poor economic forecasts eroding natural predicted growth of the tax take. Constrained by an election-time promise not to increase taxes on “working people” that sophistry might succeed in arguing they have managed to keep so far, Chancellor Rachel Reeves has said the focus will be on squeezing “wealthy people”.
The Times states she told the IMF this week that “I do think that those with the broadest shoulders should pay their fair share of tax” and that new taxes on wealth would be “part of the story”.
These would most likely be taxes on assets and consumption rather than income, as “Wealth is obviously different from income. So wealth is not about your annual salary”, she said. Reeves pointed to new taxes already levied last year that she says proves she can wok without simply “introducing a wealth tax”.
The problem for Britain as it approaches the November 26th budget is perceptions on what exactly counts as wealthy, who gets to decide, and how these definitions move with time and inflation. One of the measures Reeves cited from her 2024 budget was slapping a 20 per cent tax on private school education for children, playing to leftist prejudice that anyone who can afford the fees can also afford to shrug off a one-fifth price hike.
Unfortunately for Reeves’ projected tax take from this raid, and for many families impacted, not all users of privately-funded education are extremely wealthy and as is so often the case with government policy, the ‘squeezed middle’ of middle class professionals on survivable but not generous salaries were hit hardest. Indeed, once the policy was in effect the number of children being forced to leave the private school sector was considerably higher than the government had estimated.
Quote:ROME (AP) – A car belonging to one of Italy´s leading investigative journalists exploded outside his home overnight, prompting an investigation by Italy´s anti-Mafia authorities and condemnation Friday from Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and others. No one was injured.
The explosion late Thursday targeting Sigfrido Ranucci, lead anchor of state-run RAI3’s Report investigative series, occurred on the eighth anniversary of the car bomb slaying of Maltese investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.
The investigative program said the explosion was so powerful that it could have killed anyone passing by. Ranucci had just returned home at the time and his daughter had walked by a half-hour before, Report said in a statement. The blast destroyed the car, damaged another family car next to it, as well as the front gate of Ranucci’s home in Pomezia, south of Rome.
Police, firefighters and forensic crews reported to the scene and magistrates from the Rome district of the anti-Mafia police were investigating, Report said in a statement. Video shot by Ranucci, who has been under police protection since 2021 because of threats from his hard-hitting investigations, showed the mangled remains of the cars and gate.
Meloni expressed her solidarity with Ranucci and condemned what she called “the serious act of intimidation he has suffered.”
“Freedom and independence of information are essential values of our democracies, which we will continue to defend,” she said in a statement.
Italian journalist unions, politicians and others also expressed solidarity, with many noting that Ranucci had received other threats in the past that prompted the Interior Ministry to provide him a police escort.
Report is one of the few investigative programs on Italian television and regularly breaks news involving prominent Italian politicians, business leaders and public figures. Ranucci has been sued multiple times for defamation and just this week was absolved in the latest case he had faced.
“There have certainly been a series of incidents of intimidation, which I have always reported,” Ranucci said in comments provided by Report. “There is definitely a general climate of isolation and delegitimization toward me and the entire editorial staff of `Report´ from an editorial point of view.”
The blast occurred on the eighth anniversary of the Oct. 16, 2017 murder of Caruana Galizia, who wrote extensively about suspected corruption in political and business circles in Malta. Like Ranucci, she had faced dozens of libel suits intended to silence her reporting. Two men were sentenced to life in prison earlier this year after being convicted of complicity in the murder. Two other people pleaded guilty in 2022 to carrying out the murder and were sentenced to 40 years in prison.
Quote:Reform’s George Finch, the youngest council leader in Britain, was physically and verbally abused just minutes’ walk from his own Town Hall, an attack party leaders have blamed on the country’s left-wing government priming would-be assailants with lurid rhetoric.
The 19-year-old Nuneaton and Bedworth councillor who became the youngest leader of a county council in the country earlier this year was assaulted on a night out in an unprovoked attack, he said. Police confirmed they are investigating the incident.
George Finch said he and a lady in his company were “physically attacked” in Nuneaton town centre, and that after he was unexpectedly shoved the alleged assailant then unleashed a torrent of insults and tried to follow the two through the town until police were called.
The “man” — no other description was given — was said to have shouted “racist” and “fascist” at Finch.
The choice of words is conspicuous given it is the very language employed in recent coordinated attacks against the Farage-led party, its activists, and supporters by the British left in recent weeks. The intensity and frequency of the claims and their lurid nature invites violence against Reform, senior figures warned at the time, because such accusations may leave some easily influenced people to believe the intended are legitimate targets for political violence.
Party leader Nigel Farage responded to the alleged assault, reports The Daily Mail, to say the potential events he warned of in the wake of the rhetoric of the left were coming to pass. He said: “I’m deeply upset that our young council leader was assaulted. The words used against him echo the Prime Minister’s disgraceful attack on Reform during Labour conference week and wholly irresponsible comments from the leader of the Green Party.”
Finch, for his own part, was cited by the report as having called the alleged sudden, unprovoked attack a “massive shock” that was “completely out of the blue”.
He underlined the view that the rhetoric of left-wing political activists repeating claims of racism and fascism against Reform led to a member of the public believing them, and acting on them. He said: “‘It’s clear that the man who attacked us was wound up and sent into battle by the dangerous rhetoric of Labour and the Greens”.
He continued: “I’m extremely concerned about the state of political discourse in Britain. Reform UK activists at all levels are suffering intimidation and violence at the hands of Left-wing instigators.”
Quote:Free speech advocate peer Lord Young hailed a “huge victory” after the conviction of a man for burning a Koran outside the Turkish consulate was overturned by a superior court on Friday.
Criminal law does not exist to “avoid people being upset, even grievously upset” and freedom of expression is a right that includes the right to “views that offend, shock or disturb”, a British court ruled on Friday.
The forthright judgement from judge Mr Justice Bennathan at the Crown Court came as he overturned the conviction under the Public Order Act of Hamit Coskun in July for a protest staged in London outside the Turkish consulate where he set fire to a Qur’an.
The incident was less remarkable for the act of the burning, which has become a symbol of protest seen across Europe, but rather for the immediate violence visited upon Coskun. As he lit the book he was almost immediately set upon by two men.
The pair did not know each other, but were both so incensed by the sight of the burning book they moved quickly to attack. One man with a knife who shouted “I’m going to kill you… Burning the Koran? It’s my religion, you don’t burn the Koran” was later convicted but spared any jail time for slashing at Coskun.
A second man, a passing food delivery rider, kicked Coskun.
The Free Speech Union warned the conviction of Coskun created through precedent a defacto blasphemy law in Britain, a legal concept that had long ago been dispensed with by Parliament, and backed Coskun’s appeal.
The Union argued Coskun had been making a legal protest against political Islam under President Erdogan in Turkey and that the court had wrongly “conflated his political protest against Islam with hatred of Muslims, effectively reviving blasphemy law by the back door”.
Hailing the ruling today, the FSU said: “Had the verdict been allowed to stand, it would have sent a message to religious fundamentalists up and down the country that all they need to do to enforce their blasphemy codes is to violently attack the blasphemer, thereby making him or her guilty of having caused public disorder.”
Lord Young of Acton, freedom of speech advocate who founded the Free Speech Union which had launched a fundraising campign for Coskun’s appeal called today’s ruling a “huge victory”. He said “the Crown Court has sent the opposite message — that anti-religious protests, however offensive, must be tolerated.”
De facto Conservative leader Robert Jenrick had accompanied Coskun to court on Thursday for the first day of proceedings and promoted his cause. In his response to the ruling, he emphasised that while he found the burning of the Qur’an as a means to protest distasteful, nevertheless he absolutely supported the right to do it.
Jenrick said on Friday: “Hamit Coskun has been cleared. Good. I didn’t like what Mr Coskun did; burning a religious text was not pleasant. But it was also never criminal. So, this is an important victory for free speech.
“Parliament voted to abolish blasphemy laws 20 years ago. It was disgraceful that the authorities attempted to re-create them by the back door.”
Quote:Accusations of antisemitism followed the banning of Israeli football fans from attending an away game of a Tel Aviv team in Birmingham, England next month over concerns police would not be able to control protests against them.
Fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv football club are banned from a forthcoming Europa League game at Aston Villa in Aston, Birmingham on November 6th because of security concerns, Aston Villa revealed in a statement. They said that West Midlands Police had said they have “public safety concerns” over their “ability to deal with any potential protests on the night”.
Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were subject to what some observers called a “Pogrom” when their fans attended a game in Amsterdam earlier this year, and their presence was protested by pro-Palestine activists at a stadium in Greece where they played in September.
Aston politician Ayoub Khan MP, who is one of the group of pro-Gaza platform politicians elected last year and who campaigned against allowing Israeli fans to come to Birmingham celebrated the news on Thursday night. In a statement he emoted: “I welcome the news that Maccabi Tel Aviv fans will not be permitted to watch the match at Aston Villa! Well done to all those that signed our petition!”.
Both the decision to ban Israeli football fans from England’s second city and the jubilant response by the local Member of Parliament Khan came in for sharp criticism on Thursday night. Tory Jack Rankin MP was direct in his condemnation, calling Khan “an unintegrated, racist antisemite” for his work to block Israeli football fans.
Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar called the ban “shameful” and called on the UK government to act.
Reform UK’s Danny Kruger came forth with advice on how this might be achieved. Calling the decision “outrageous”, saying the Home Secretary had the legal option to sack the Chief Constable of the West Midlands Police if required. Party leader Nigel Farage said the decision “takes racial discrimination to a whole new level.”
The next article is very short because it's full of visual evidence of how wildlife takes advantage of abandoned facilities.
Quote:Saudi Arabia is negotiating a sweeping defense pact with the Trump administration that would bind Washington to treat any attack on the kingdom as a threat to U.S. security, according to a new report in The Financial Times.
Modeled on last month’s U.S.-Qatar agreement, the deal would deepen military and intelligence cooperation while carrying far-reaching implications for Middle East stability and America’s global strategic posture.
Newsweek has contacted the U.S. State Department and Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry for comment.
Why It Matters
The proposed pact reflects efforts by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, informally known as MBS, to secure long-term U.S. protection. As Saudi Arabia’s day-to-day ruler, MBS controls much of the kingdom’s political and military decision making, making a formal security agreement with the U.S. a key priority for Riyadh.
For Washington, the agreement would reinforce its influence in the Gulf amid growing Chinese and Russian involvement in the region through energy, investment, and security partnerships. The pact could also affect the trajectory of Arab-Israeli normalization efforts, including potential Saudi participation in the Abraham Accords.
What to Know
Saudi Arabia hopes to finalize the deal when MBS visits the White House next month. People familiar with the discussions described expectations for a “robust” agreement that expands intelligence sharing, joint defense planning, and counterterrorism operations.
A senior Trump administration official confirmed the talks to the FT, saying: “There are discussions about signing something when the crown prince comes, but the details are in flux.”
The White House and State Department have not issued an offical statement on the matter, though the State Department called U.S.-Saudi defense cooperation “a strong bedrock of our regional strategy.” It added that Washington “will continue to work with Saudi Arabia to resolve conflicts, promote regional integration and deny safe haven to terrorists.”
Quote:Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has sent a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin, signaling a deepening partnership between Tehran and Moscow amid escalating global tensions. The message, the contents of which have not been officially disclosed, was delivered by Iran's top security chief Ali Larijani on Thursday.
At the same time, President Donald Trump announced on social media that he will meet with Putin in Budapest “within two weeks or so” after a lengthy phone call, marking another high-level engagement between Washington and Moscow.
Newsweek has reached out to the State Department as well as the Foreign Ministries of Russia and Iran for comment.
Why It Matters
The developments highlight significant diplomatic activity involving the United States Russia, and Iran. Tehran’s outreach to Moscow and Washington’s planned summit with Putin are unrelated, but both place the Russian president in a complex position between two major diplomatic efforts. In addition to the upcoming Budapest meeting, the U.S. president has reached out to Iran in separate efforts to explore peace initiatives. However, Iran remains skeptical of Trump’s intentions, citing past tensions, sanctions, and his previous policies toward Tehran as reasons for caution.
What To Know
Larijani’s visit to Moscow featured discussions on economic and foreign policy cooperation at both regional and international levels. The meetings underscore Tehran’s intention to strengthen its strategic alignment with Moscow amid ongoing global uncertainties.
Meanwhile, Russia has also conveyed messages from Israel to Iran aimed at easing tensions, highlighting Moscow’s role as a key intermediary in regional diplomatic dynamics. Speaking at the Central Asia-Russia summit in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, on October 9, Putin noted Moscow’s ongoing “confidence-based contacts” with Israel and said the Israeli leadership wants to resolve issues peacefully.
This request follows Israeli strikes targeting Iran's nuclear facilities in June, which sparked a 12-day conflict ending with a unilateral ceasefire after Iranian retaliation.
Quote:President Donald Trump on Thursday issued a new warning to Hamas amid accusations from Israel the organization has already reneged on its ceasefire obligations.
in a message posted to Truth Social on Thursday, Trump wrote that if Hamas "continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the Deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them."
Newsweek reached out to the White House by email on Thursday afternoon for additional comment and clarification.
Why It Matters
The past few days have already tested Trump's ceasefire agreement, which has ended warfare in Gaza.
Hamas allegedly did not return all of the hostages within the originally mandated timeframe, leading Trump on Wednesday to say he would authorize Israeli forces to return to the streets of Gaza if Hamas did not release all of the hostages, living and deceased.
Hamas is also required to disarm and cede control of the territory as one of the key points in the ceasefire deal.
What To Know
The newest threat follows reports of fresh violence in Gaza as Hamas cracks down on gangs in the territory. Trump earlier this week said that Hamas had taken out "a couple of gangs," which "didn't bother me much, to be honest."
In his message posted Thursday on Truth Social, Trump wrote: "If Hamas continues to kill people in Gaza, which was not the Deal, we will have no choice but to go in and kill them. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
Hamas has clashed with armed groups and gangsters as the organization attempts to reassert control in the post-conflict Gaza Strip in areas from which Israeli forces have withdrawn. However, the show of force - welcomed by some Palestinians following months of lawlessness - could threaten the truce with Israel.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the war will not end until Hamas has been dismantled - going a step beyond Trump's requirement for the group to merely disarm and cede control to an international supervised body.
Hamas has not fully accepted the terms, saying further negotiations must take place, even as Hamas officials say they are willing to hand power to other Palestinians.
Quote:The Kremlin confirmed on Thursday that strongman Vladimir Putin engaged his Syrian counterpart, jihadist President Ahmed al-Sharaa, on Russia’s interest in maintaining its two military bases in the country.
Sharaa made a historic first visit to Moscow this week, meeting Putin in person on Wednesday. The exchange was anticipated as a tense and difficult interaction given Putin’s longstanding support to the decades-old Assad family regime in the country, which Sharaa and his al-Qaeda offshoot, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), toppled in December. Former dictator Bashar Assad fled Damascus on December 7 and has taken refuge in Moscow, where rumors suggest he has taken an interest in video games. Putin provided both diplomatic and military support to Assad, meaning Russia’s bases were strongholds actively fighting against HTS and similar Sunni anti-Assad groups.
Following the end of the Assad regime, Sharaa abandoned his jihadist nom de guerre, “Abu Mohammed al-Jolani,” and stopped wearing jihadi fatigues, opting for Western-style suits. While still defending the establishment of an Islamist government, Sharaa has emphasized in his public statements a desire to attract foreign investment into the country, particularly from the West and Gulf neighbors such as Saudi Arabia.
Through Saudi Arabia, Sharaa secured multiple in-person meetings with American President Donald Trump, who has referred to the jihadi leader as “attractive” and promising, vowing to lift sanctions imposed on the Assad regime to allow Syria to do business with the world. Sharaa has emphasized that he hopes to see private American and other Western investment participate in post-war reconstruction in his country.
While Syrian state media indicated that this was also the primary topic of discussion between Sharaa and Putin, Kremlin top spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Putin discussed Russia’s military bases in the country. Peskov offered few details, according to the Russian news agency Tass, stating only, “that topic was on the agenda.”
Russia maintains two military bases in Syria, in the port city of Tartus and in western Latakia province. The bases played a significant role in helping Assad fight the over-decade-long civil war against HTS and similar groups that ended in December. Tass, the Russian news outlet, claimed that Putin has attempted to address concerns regarding the use of those bases against the new regime by offering them to help bring military aid into some of the most devastated areas in the country.
The Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), the Sharaa government’s news outlet, did not mention the military bases in its coverage of Sharaa’s visit. It instead quoted Sharaa celebrating the “long-standing historical relation” between Moscow and Damascus, glossing over that decades of that relationship involved support for Assad and his father, late former dictator Hafez al-Assad.
“Syria and Russia share a long-standing historical relation, along with bilateral ties and mutual interests in several fields, including Syria’s energy sector, which heavily relies on Russian expertise,” Sharaa reportedly told Putin.
Sharaa did state that his government would “respect all past agreements,” failing to exclude agreements allowing the military bases to operate in that promise.
Speaking to Tass, Russian experts described those military bases as a priority for the Putin regime.
“Moscow needs a foothold in the Mediterranean for logistics and power projection there and in Africa,” Nikolay Sukhov, senior researcher at the Center for Middle East Studies under the Russian Academy of Sciences’ Institute of World Economy and International Relations, was quoted as saying. “Damascus needs a new legal and financial framework for cooperation, not one associated with Assad’s legacy.”
Syria, in turn, needs foreign investment for reconstruction.
SANA reported that Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak promised that investment support following the meeting between Putin and Sharaa.
"For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ," 1 Thessalonians 5:9
Maranatha!
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