Minimalist News

Israel Launches Wave Of Strikes On Lebanon In Precursor To Potential Iran War Some analysts fear Israel is testing out a precursor for another multi-front war as the US appears poised to attack Iran. Technically a ceasefire has been in effect in southern Lebanon, but the IDF military has been testing - or more like blowing straight past - these truce barriers. The Israeli Army carried out at least eight airstrikes in eastern Lebanon on Thursday, focusing on the Baalbek area. Multiple buildings were hit, with casualty figures not initially confirmed. Lebanese media Lebanon's Health Ministry at one point specified that a "16-year-old Syrian

Google Disrupts China-Tied Cyber Campaign That Hacked 42 Countries Authored by Catherine Yang via The Epoch Times, Google Threat Intelligence Group (GTIG) said on Feb. 25 that Google and its cybersecurity partners disrupted a global espionage campaign that the group confirmed had hacked 42 countries and suspects infected at least 20 more. GTIG has tracked the group as UNC2814/Gallium since 2017 and suspects it to be Chinese. “This prolific, elusive actor has a long history of targeting international governments and global telecommunications organizations across Africa, Asia, and the Americas,” the report reads. The campaign is characterized by stealth tactics and the targeting of cloud-hosted products

AI Can Now Unmask Anonymous Internet Users, New Study Finds It looks like AI can now unmask any anonymous account on the internet. That’s according to a new study by Simon Lermen (MATS), Daniel Paleka (ETH Zurich), Joshua Swanson (ETH Zurich), Michael Aerni (ETH Zurich), Nicholas Carlini (Anthropic), and Florian Tramèr (ETH Zurich), published on arXiv. In the paper, “Large-Scale Online Deanonymization with LLMs,” the researchers show that modern large language models (LLMs) can re-identify people behind pseudonymous online accounts at a scale and accuracy that far surpass previous techniques. The core contribution is an automated deanonymization pipeline powered by LLMs, according to

A Montreal Narco Network Busted For Allegedly Smuggling Super Fentanyl Into America Submitted by The Bureau's Sam Cooper, An elite Montreal-based narco network allegedly exported carfentanil and next-generation synthetic opioids 100 times deadlier than fentanyl to American consumers via the dark web, leading to the arrest of four yesterday, after 13 months of joint surveillance by U.S. federal agencies and Quebec police, and a seizure of more than 600,000 tablets of synthetic drugs in December. The four suspects charged are reportedly connected, through their alleged street gang affiliate, to the Wolfpack Alliance — a network tied by DEA sources to a British Columbia

Lululemon Founder Blasts Board Again Amid Stock Collapse Lululemon Athletica founder Chip Wilson blasted the board in a fiery message to shareholders earlier and ramped up calls for activism as the athletic apparel retailer is set for a lost year, lagging behind competitors, losing market share, and entangled in multiple see-through-leggings quality-control controversies with customers. The nearly 70% collapse in Lululemon's market capitalization from its late-2023 peak of $511 per share to the current $186 level, compounded by 1.5 months of quality-control issues involving see-through leggings making headlines, has compelled Wilson to publish yet another update for shareholders, urging much-needed change at

Soaring Electricity Demand Meets Gas Turbine Shortage Authored by Irina Slav via OilPrice.com, * AI-driven power demand is surging far faster than expected, but a shortage of heavy-duty gas turbines is creating a bottleneck. * Turbine makers like Siemens, GE Vernova, and Mitsubishi are ramping up production, but expansion projects could take up to 5 years. * Without enough gas capacity, AI growth could slow or grids may turn back to coal, potentially delaying coal plant retirements. The surge in electricity demand in the world’s AI hotspots has prompted a comparable surge in the demand for reliable supply. That surge was not

Vance Says 'No Chance' Strikes On Iran Would Become A Prolonged War Just to underscore how close we are to witnessing an American military attack on Iran, this is the current scene at Israel's Ben Gurion International Airport... > I don’t think that people understand how unusual this picture is #Iran https://t.co/72itsQunEn > > — Nadav Pollak (@NadavPollak) February 27, 2026 On Thursday Vice President JD Vance issued some curious and eyebrow-raising comments to The Washington Post regarding the looming prospect of unprovoked attack on Iran. Vance asserted that there's "no chance" military strikes on Iran would result in the United States becoming involved in a prolonged

Bad Bets: Massive EV Subsidies Not Paying Off Authored by James Varney via RealClearInvestigations, The future was supposed to have arrived this year in a cluster of counties just east of Atlanta in the form of a state-of-the-art factory that would churn out 400,000 electric vehicles a year. But when JoEllen Artz looks about her lifetime neighborhood, all she sees are holes. “Those shovel holes they made in the ground? That’s it,” she said of the planned site of a Rivian manufacturing plant. “It’s awful, awful.” The problem is not a lack of funds. On the promise of thousands of jobs, elected officials in

Democrats Slam Democrats For 'Rigging' Democrat Primaries The party that won't stop lecturing America about democracy is once again rigging its own primary by endorsing - thereby biasing voters - towards certain candidates over others. On Monday, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) endorsed 12 candidates through its “Red to Blue” program to help Democrats win back the majority in the House of Representatives. “Today, the DCCC announced the first slate of 12 top-tier candidates added to its highly competitive ‘Red to Blue’ program for the 2026 cycle,” the committee said in a statement. “This initial group of candidates will receive strategic guidance,

Border, Ballots, Birthrights: Top Supreme Court Cases To Watch Authored by Joseph Lord, Stacy Robinson, Troy Myers via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), The Supreme Court is poised to hear arguments on major constitutional and legal issues over the next several months. The Supreme Court in Washington on Feb. 21, 2026. Madalina Kilroy/The Epoch Times BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP One of the term’s most consequential cases arises from a class-action lawsuit alleging that the president violated the 14th Amendment by withholding citizenship for children of illegal immigrants. The case, Trump v. Barbara, is set for oral argument on April 1. The clause of the 14th Amendment at issue

Iran Reportedly Agrees To Give Up Nuclear Material In Breakthrough: 'Peace Deal Within Reach' Update(1737ET): Absolutely huge late Friday developing news, if it's confirmed and assuming it sticks, via CBS: "Iran has agreed to give up its stockpile of enriched material - zero accumulation - and allow for full verification by the IAEA of its nuclear program according to US-Iran talks mediator, Oman's foreign minister Badr al Busaidi." The Iranian side also seems to be confirming its willingness to make this significant concession, also to stave off a massive US attack, given the immense build-up of Pentagon assets in the region. According

SpaceX Readies IPO Paperwork For March, Targeting $1.75 Trillion Valuation SpaceX is preparing to confidentially file for an initial public offering as early as next month, people familiar with the matter said, advancing plans for what could become the largest listing ever, according to Bloomberg. The Starbase, Texas-based rocket and satellite company is expected to submit draft IPO paperwork to the US Securities and Exchange Commission in March, potentially positioning it for a June debut. That timing would make it the first in a possible wave of mega-offerings, with OpenAI and Anthropic PBC possibly following. Deliberations are ongoing and plans could shift, the

'Sense-Making Seems Impossible...' Authored by James Howard Kunstler, THE MAN WHO MIGHT WRECK THE COUNTRY > “That a government’s primary responsibility is to its citizens should not be a controversial proposition.” > > - Coddled Affluent Professional on X The zeitgeist is a rough beast, hard to ride as it slouches into the unknown. Our country is trying to hang on while a party of goblins vexes and needles the beast from behind, and you cannot make them stop. Sense-making gets to seem impossible. We don’t have an explanation from Senate Majority Leader John Thune as to why he will not do what is within his power to

"Stop This Ridiculousness": Maryland Sheriffs Unite Against Unhinged Democrats Maryland sheriffs from across the deep blue state traveled to Annapolis on Wednesday to voice outrage over unhinged Democrats who control the state under one-party rule and continue pushing extremely unpopular policies that protect illegal aliens. "This is nothing more than POLITICS over PUBLIC SAFETY!" Wicomico County Sheriff Mike Lewis told reporters. He blasted left-wing immigration legislation in the General Assembly to block ICE cooperation with local law enforcement. Lewis continued, "We, as elected sheriffs, are FED UP with it! You don't see this many sheriffs in one location in the state at any

Watch: DSNY Heads Supplicate To Allah With Mayor Mamdani In Coercive Islamic Ritual Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news, New York City’s sanitation leadership has been caught on camera participating in an Islamic supplication ritual led by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a move critics slam as a blatant push toward Islamification. The scene, captured during a gathering with officers, shows DSNY brass raising hands in dua—a form of prayer to Allah—before wiping them over their faces as instructed in Islamic hadith, all prior to sharing a meal. While some mistakenly reported those involved as being NYPD, their core point is still salient. Why are the leaders of the

Pentagon Picks OpenAI To Replace Anthropic Update (2345ET): Sam Altman on Friday night announced that OpenAI and Department of War have struck a deal in which the DoW will be able to use the company's AI for military applications, and has agreed to abide by the company's red lines regarding safety (which were similar to rival Anthropic).  "Two of our most important safety principles are prohibitions on domestic mass surveillance and human responsibility for the use of force, including for autonomous weapon systems," Altman said on Friday night, adding "The DoW agrees with these principles, reflects them in law and policy, and we put them

'I Did Not Have Relations With That Man, Jeffrey Epstein': Bill Clinton Tries Ol' Lewinsky Trick On American Public Former President Bill Clinton on Friday told lawmakers that he had no clue about crimes carried out by Jeffrey Epstein, the late sex offender who visited the Clinton White House at least 17 times while Bill was president, before letting Clinton fly on the 'Lolita Express' dozens of times.  "I saw nothing, and I did nothing wrong," Clinton said in a statement prepared for a closed-door deposition in Chappaqua, New York. "I know what I saw, and more importantly, what I didn’t see." > Bill

Top Nike Distributor Sounds Profit Alarm As BNP Says China Remains "Red Flag" Nike has reported declining quarterly sales in China, where demand remains under pressure from mounting macroeconomic headwinds, and the brand continues to lose market share to newer competitors. This weakness has dented the shoemaker's broader turnaround efforts and suggests a much-needed reset in the Chinese market. The stock is down 65% from its 2021 peak and is now trading at 2017 levels, as investors hope management will accelerate a turnaround plan to reverse this devastating multi-year bear market. However, a profit warning from a major distribution channel and commentary

Trump: "Maybe We'll Have A Friendly Takeover Of Cuba" President Trump told reporters on Friday afternoon that the U.S. could pursue a "friendly takeover" of Cuba, a comment from the president that comes as his administration moves to secure the Western Hemisphere and intensifies pressure on the communist regime in Havana through a crude-oil blockade. "The Cuban government is talking with us. They're in a big deal of trouble, as you know. They have no money, no anything right now, but they're talking with us, Trump told reporters on the White House lawn. "Maybe we'll have a friendly takeover of Cuba. Trump repeated,

DOE Closes Massive $26 Billion Loan For Southern Co. Here comes more of those “Hundreds of Billions” > So much capital coming to this space next 3 years https://t.co/ZwTB0C2CUU > > — zerohedge (@zerohedge) November 18, 2025 The DOE announced Wednesday that its Office of Energy Dominance Financing (EDF) has closed a $26.54 billion loan package (the largest in the agency’s history) to two Southern Company subsidiaries. Georgia Power will receive $22.4 billion and Alabama Power $4.1 billion. The roughly 30-year loans, drawable through September 2033, will finance more than 16.7 GW of reliable generation and transmission upgrades across the Southeast. This new loan dwarfs

Riot police use teargas to disperse people gathering around wreckage of plane loaded with money from central bank At least 20 people have died and dozens have been injured after a military cargo plane carrying banknotes crashed while landing near Bolivia’s capital on Friday, damaging about a dozen vehicles on a highway and scattering bills on the ground, an official has said. Footage from local media showed people rushing to collect banknotes while police in riot gear tried to disperse them using teargas. Authorities were later seen setting the money alight in a bonfire at the scene of the crash. Continue reading...

As tensions between two countries reach new highs, US president says regime is ‘talking with us’ Donald Trump has suggested the US could carry out a “friendly takeover” of Cuba as tensions between Washington and Havana reach a new high after the capture of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro. As he left the White House for a campaigning event in Texas on Friday, Trump said: “The Cuban government is talking with us. They’re in a big deal of trouble.” Continue reading...

Second time in two weeks military used laser to attack what it mistakenly thought was a threat, disrupting air traffic * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox Democratic members of Congress have expressed astonishment and anger at what they claim is the incompetence of the Trump administration after the US military used a laser on Thursday to shoot down what it thought was a threatening drone on the US-Mexico border in Texas but later turned out to belong to US Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The apparent confusion between two entities in the

Javier Milei’s boosters say law will revive employment, but critics decry cuts to severance and longer working hours Argentina’s senate is poised to approve a sweeping overhaul of labour laws aimed at weakening trade unions and lowering labour costs for businesses. The government of the self-styled “anarcho-capitalist” president, Javier Milei, says the initiative will help revive formal employment, after 290,600 registered jobs were lost between December 2023, when he took office, and November 2025. Continue reading...

Cuban president says country will ‘defend itself with determination’ after deadly coastal assault by exiles * What we know so far about the deadly boat shooting off Cuba’s coast Cuba has vowed to defend itself against any “terrorist and mercenary aggression”, a day after border guards said they had killed four exiles on a Florida-registered speedboat that opened fire on a patrol. Cuba’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel, wrote on X that the Caribbean country would “defend itself with determination and firmness” after the incident in which six other people on the boat were injured. Continue reading...

Critics claim the operations are geared at social media, but police say they have enabled real arrests Police officers from Bangkok’s metropolitan bureau had less than 24 hours to prepare for their latest undercover operation. They would be starring as performers of a lion dance at a temple fair held for the lunar new year. Their mission: track down and arrest a suspected thief who had a history of evading officers. “The dance was spontaneous. We just did what we did,” said the police captain Lertvarit Lertvorapreecha, adding that nobody had time to practise. In his haste, he accidentally picked up his

Many observers believe North Korean leader has decided daughter Kim Ju-ae will succeed him, but others say gender politics could block her path to power When North Korea’s ruling party held a top-level meeting this month there were predictable boasts of unstoppable nuclear development and, more unexpectedly, a suggestion by Kim Jong-un that his country and the US “could get along” – provided that Washington recognised North Korea as a legitimate nuclear power. But for many North Korea watchers, the Workers’ party congress – held over several days just once every five years – was a rare opportunity to speculate over the

Graeme Kearns, chief executive of Foundation Theatres, says: ‘Our job in theatre is to absolutely defend the right to tell stories about culture’ * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The head of the theatre hosting the Shen Yun dance troupe in Sydney says the company would not be intimidated to pull the shows by any “outrageous” anonymous threats and that the publicity had increased interest in the show. On Monday, the Gold Coast venue for the Shen Yun performances was forced to evacuate after a bomb

Exclusive: Former New Zealand PM ‘based out of Australia’, according to spokesperson, after rumours she was looking for houses in Sydney The former New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern is living in Australia with her family, a spokesperson has confirmed. “The family has been travelling for a few years now,” her office told the Guardian. Continue reading...

Tommy Schaefer released early from sentence for murder of Sheila von Wiese-Mack and will face US federal charges Indonesia has freed and deported a US man after he spent 11 years in prison for the premeditated murder of his then girlfriend’s mother on the tourist island of Bali, and he will now faces federal charges in the US. Tommy Schaefer was sentenced to 18 years in prison in Bali for the 2014 murder of Sheila von Wiese-Mack, the mother of Heather Mack, during a luxury holiday, in a case that became known as the Bali suitcase murder. Prosecutors allege the couple were

Syaban Shadikillah told to get new driver’s licence after being issued one using photo of him with colander on his head * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A “Pastafarian” in rural Queensland has vowed to fight to keep his driver’s licence featuring a photo of him wearing a colander on his head, arguing it’s a matter of freedom of religion. But the state government has told him he must hand it in and get a new one, as it was issued “in error”. Continue reading...

SA premier Peter Malinauskas warns residents to prepare for heavy falls and possible flash floods * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Late summer rain is causing havoc across Australia, with South Australia on flood watch, Victoria cleaning up after a downpour, and Sydney issuing a shark warning after heavy falls. Almost all of South Australia, much of western Victoria and parts of western NSW were on flood watch as a slow-moving pressure system from central Australia moved east. Queensland had also seen severe rainfall. Continue reading...

Opposition leader Jess Wilson is under pressure to reveal her position on a deal with Pauline Hanson’s party as the state election approaches * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast While internal divisions have long been the Victorian Liberal party’s main obstacle to winning government, a new threat is emerging on its right flank: One Nation. Just four years ago, One Nation received just 8,077 lower house first-preference votes out of more than 3.6m cast in Victoria – equivalent to 0.22% of the total – and won a single seat in the upper house. Continue reading...

Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, Mercury, Neptune and Uranus will all be visible at same time in curved line across sky Six planets will parade across the sky this weekend in a rare celestial spectacle, experts have said. For the next few days, Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, Mercury, Neptune and Uranus will all be visible at the same time in the night sky – although binoculars or a telescope will be needed to spot the latter two planets. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Home affairs department intervened about the use of non-modified people movers after 500 detention centre staff flagged safety concerns * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The American private prison operator running Australia’s immigration network used an unsecured and unmodified Kia Carnival to transport a detainee who allegedly stabbed two of its staff during the journey and fled. Guardian Australia can also reveal that concerns about the vehicles being used by Management and Training Corporation (MTC) had prompted an intervention by the department of home affairs and warnings from almost 500 detention centre staff. Continue reading...

US threats to seize Greenland have created ‘new international fault lines’ that can be used to spread disinformation, Danish intelligence agencies say Denmark’s intelligence services have warned that a foreign power may try to sway the general election on 24 March, saying the main threat was from Russia over support for Ukraine but also citing the chaos caused by US efforts to seize Greenland. The PET police intelligence service and FE military intelligence said in a joint statement the election campaign could be marked by disinformation and cyberattacks “to sow division, influence the public debate or to target candidates, parties or specific

Investigation under way after vehicle ploughs into building A tram derailed and crashed into a building in Milan on Friday, killing two people and injuring 38 others. One of the dead was hit by the tram as it derailed while the second victim was a passenger, the city’s mayor, Giuseppe Sala, told reporters at the scene. Continue reading...

Designer’s first catwalk for the brand in Milan flirts with bad taste with short, tight dresses and a diamante G-string Demna is fashion’s dark lord of apocalyptic streetwear. Gucci is the glossy sex kitten of Milan. Put the two together, and what do you get? Sex appeal that flirts with bad taste. At Demna’s first Gucci catwalk show, staged in Milan on Friday afternoon in front of an audience including Donatella Versace and Paris and Nicky Hilton, dresses were so short and tight that Emily Ratajkowski periodically yanked down a handful of disco-ball sequins to cover her bottom as she walked. There

This live blog is now closed Trade between the EU and two South American countries may start within two months under a provision application of the Mercosur deal. “The law allows the provisional application of the deal can happen two months after notification has been exchanged between both sides in the form of a ‘note verbale’ that the deal will enter into provision application.” “The president reached out to member states and to MEPS, that’s what it means. She reached out to member states and MEPs, and I remind you that the member states as the European Council, endorsed and approved the EU

IAG reports record operating profits on margins of more than 15% at British Airways and sister airline Iberia British Airways’ owner, International Airlines Group, has announced a sharp rise in annual profits to almost £4bn despite a slight fall in passenger numbers in 2025. Pre-tax profits across IAG increased by 20% to €4.5bn (£3.9bn), with record operating profits on margins of more than 15% at BA and its sister airline Iberia. Continue reading...

Israel’s military sounded air raid sirens across the country ‘to prepare the public for the possibility of missiles being launched toward Israel’ in retaliation * Full report: Israel bracing for retaliation after strikes on Iran Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is not in Tehran and has been transferred to a secure location, an official told Reuters on Saturday. Israel said it launched a pre-emptive attack against Iran on Saturday, with multiple explosions reported in Tehran. Continue reading...

US president accuses Tehran of failing to ‘negotiate in good faith’ over its nuclear programme * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts direct to your inbox Donald Trump says he has not made a final decision on whether to launch strikes on Iran but is “not happy” with the situation and military force – including regime change – remains an option. “We’re not exactly happy with the way they [Iran] negotiated. They cannot have nuclear weapons, and we’re not thrilled with the way they’re negotiating,” Trump told reporters. Continue reading...

Tehran’s ICBMs cannot currently reach the US, experts say, and White House has claimed its nuclear programme has been destroyed * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox Donald Trump’s likely casus belli for an attack on Iran – which would be the largest US intervention since the Iraq war – is fraught with contradictions, and his top advisers have been left to cover for him as the White House makes the case for intervention. In his State of the Union address this week, Trump alleged that Iran posed a direct threat to the

Exclusive: memo came after Mike Huckabee’s remarks about Israel sparked alarm inside White House * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts direct to your inbox The US secretary of state Marco Rubio told ambassadors in the Middle East to stop making public comments that could inflame tensions and undermine Donald Trump’s pressure on Iran to relinquish its capacity to produce a nuclear weapon, according to a memo obtained by the Guardian. “Given rising tensions in the region, Chiefs of Mission and embassies at addressee posts must refrain from public statements, interviews, or social media activity that

This live blog is now closed. * Latest US-Iran nuclear talks conclude with claims of ‘significant progress’ * How Trump shifted from opposing foreign wars to threatening war in Iran The nuclear talks today are the third between the US and Iran since June 2025, when the US joined Israel’s war against Iran and bombed its nuclear and military sites. It effectively ended the US-Iran talks that were held in the weeks prior to the conflict aimed at reaching a nuclear peace agreement. As before, the negotiations are being mediated by Oman, which has maintained a policy of neutrality and assumed the

Taliban offer to resolve dispute via dialogue after Pakistan bombed cities in Afghanistan in latest escalation with its neighbour Washington endorsed Pakistan’s “right to defend itself” after it bombed major cities across Afghanistan amid heightened tensions between the two hostile neighbours. The Taliban government in Kabul stressed it was ready to negotiate on Friday as violence intensified between the two countries. Continue reading...

Military reckoned ‘good’ Afghan insurgents were separate from ‘bad’ Pakistani insurgents but distinction has blurred Days after the Taliban swept to power in 2021, Pakistan’s then spymaster appeared in Kabul on what looked to many like a victory lap. Sipping tea in the lobby of the Afghan capital’s fanciest hotel, Lt Gen Faiz Hameed told reporters: “Don’t worry, everything will be OK.” This week it became clear just how badly Pakistan had miscalculated how it could rely on the Taliban, as Islamabad unleashed airstrikes in Afghanistan and troops from both countries fought each other on the border. Continue reading...

Wave of strikes comes after Taliban forces attack Pakistani border troops following earlier action from Islamabad Pakistan has bombed major cities in Afghanistan including the capital, Kabul, with Islamabad’s defence minister declaring that the hostile neighbours were in a state of “open war” as a cycle of retaliatory attacks escalated further. Witnesses in Kabul and Kandahar, the southern Afghan city, reported explosions and jets overhead until dawn, while the Taliban government said later that Pakistani surveillance aircraft were still flying over Afghanistan. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed, you can read our full report here Both sides are reporting they have inflicted heavy casualties on each other, but it is difficult to know the true numbers when they are presenting sharply divergent figures. Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar claims 133 Afghan Taliban fighters were killed, with more than 200 injured. Of its own soldiers, Tarar says that two were killed in the cross-border fighting, while three were injured. The UK is deeply concerned by the significant escalation in tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan. We urge both sides to take immediate steps toward de‑escalation, avoid further harm

Escalation of violence between the volatile neighbours makes a Qatar-mediated ceasefire appear increasingly shaky Pakistan bombed Afghanistan’s capital of Kabul and two other provinces on Friday, hours after a cross-border attack, the latest escalation of deadly violence between the volatile neighbours who signed a Qatar-mediated ceasefire in 2025. Following months of tit-for-tat clashes, Afghan forces attacked Pakistani border troops on Thursday night in what the Taliban government said was retaliation for earlier deadly airstrikes. Continue reading...

Likelihood of winning to decrease after NS&I cut the proportion of the total invested amount paid out in prizes There was some bad news this week for Britain’s 22 million-strong army of premium bond holders: the odds of winning a prize are to get worse. National Savings and Investments (NS&I) says it is cutting the proportion of the total invested amount paid out in prizes from 3.6% to 3.3% a year with effect from April’s draw. Continue reading...

Case brought by 29 workers and backed by UVW union seen as test case that could lead to changes at other restaurants Harrods is facing legal action over its addition of a £1-a-head cover charge to diners’ bills that does not go to workers, in a test case that could lead to changes at a string of upmarket restaurants. Legislation, which came into force in October 2024, requires business owners to hand over all tips and service charges to staff. Some restaurants, including those at Harrods, add a mandatory cover charge as well as an optional service charge and only pass on

PM criticises ‘sectarian politics’ in byelection but party may fear Greens’ nascent leftwing political machine The Green party’s success at winning Muslim votes in Gorton and Denton has sent tremors through Westminster, prompting recriminations and accusations from opposition parties, who sense another major realignment in British politics. Experts say Hannah Spencer’s unexpectedly wide margin of victory was delivered in part by a significant shift of Muslim voters from Labour to the Greens. Continue reading...

Event’s first venture outside London aims to recognise geographical diversity of UK’s music talent Visitors to Manchester this week have been visibly amused to be arriving into Olivia Deansgate station, with many posing for selfies in front of the temporary sign. The tribute to the chart-busting musician is just one indication of how Manchester is embracing the arrival of the Brit awards on Saturday, the event’s first venture outside London in its five-decade history. Stacey Tang, theBrit awards chair, said the move to the Co-op Live arena was about recognising the geographical diversity of the country’s music talent. “Creativity doesn’t happen in

Home secretary will defy ‘plain wrong’ calls from unions and leftwing MPs that she is alienating Muslim voters Shabana Mahmood will press on with hardline immigration policies despite calls for a reversal from unions and left-leaning Labour MPs after the Green party’s byelection victory. Senior Labour sources insisted that the home secretary would continue to roll out changes to asylum policy, dismissing as “plain wrong” claims that it would further alienate Muslim voters. Continue reading...

Need something brilliant to read this weekend? Here are six of our favourite pieces from the last seven days Continue reading...

DoJ says it will not ask US supreme court to rehear tariffs case despite president’s complaint on Truth Social The Trump administration said refunds of tariffs struck down by the US supreme court “will take time”, according to court documents filed by the Department of Justice. Businesses including FedEx have lined up to demand reimbursement for US tariffs they have paid but that the court last week deemed were imposed illegally, prompting heavy criticism from Donald Trump. Continue reading...

The governor of California, Gavin Newsom, is widely regarded as one of the Democratic party’s leading contenders for the 2028 presidential election. He has also published a new book, Young Man in a Hurry, reflecting on his childhood and his path to the governor’s mansion. This week, Jonathan Freedland speaks to Newsom about why he believes the Democrats suffered such heavy losses in 2024, why the party needs to be less judgmental, and whether he intends to run for president in 2028 Continue reading...

Hours after exclusion of Anthropic, OpenAI announces fresh Pentagon deal, but says it will maintain same safety guardrails at the heart of the dispute * Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox Donald Trump said Friday he will direct all federal agencies to “IMMEDIATELY CEASE” all use of Anthropic technology in the latest instalment of a very public clash over AI safety. The Department of Defense and Anthropic hit an impasse with neither side backing down as a deadline for an agreement lapsed on Friday afternoon. The Pentagon had demanded the artificial intelligence company

‘I know what I did, and more importantly, what I didn’t do,’ former US president says after six-hour deposition Bill Clinton told a congressional committee on Friday he “had no idea of the crimes” Jeffrey Epstein was committing and insisted he “did nothing wrong” in his relationship with the convicted sex trafficker. The former president’s remarks came in his opening statement in a deposition to the House of Representatives’ oversight committee, a day after his wife, Hillary Clinton, appeared before the same body and called the proceedings “partisan political theater” and “an insult to the American people”. Continue reading...

President Donald Trump told the US government on Friday to “immediately” stop using Anthropic’s technology after the AI start-up rejected the Pentagon’s demand that it agree to unconditional military use of its Claude models. Anthropic insists its technology should not be used for the mass surveillance of US citizens or deployed in fully autonomous weapons systems, while the Pentagon says it operates within the law and that contracted suppliers cannot set terms on how their products are...

A New York businesswoman was sentenced on Friday to nine years in federal prison over a financial scheme that ripped off more than US$30 million from foreign investors and funnelled some of the stolen money into American political campaigns, including a fundraiser for US President Donald Trump. Sherry Xue Li was also ordered to forfeit US$31.5 million, as well as property at three locations, and to make restitution to her victims. The 54-year-old Oyster Bay resident, who has been detained since...

US President Donald Trump suggested a possible “friendly takeover of Cuba” as the White House looks to leverage the Communist-run island’s energy crisis to exert greater influence. “They’re in big trouble, and we could very well do something good, I think, very positive for the people that were expelled, or worse, from Cuba that live here,” Trump told reporters on Friday as he departed the White House for Texas. “You know, we have people living here that want to go back to Cuba.” “We could very...

German carmaker BMW said on Friday that it planned to deploy two AI-powered humanoid robots in a factory in a pilot programme for the first time this year. Dubbed Aeon and developed by the Swedish company Hexagon, the black-and-white robots stand 1.65 metres (5.4 feet) tall, weigh 60kg (132 pounds) and move on two wheels. They can autonomously manipulate and move components within a factory where the space has been previously fully scanned and digitised. A months-long pilot phase will start this...

Bill Clinton told American lawmakers on Friday that he “saw nothing that gave me pause” when he spent time with Jeffrey Epstein, as the former US president gave closed-door testimony about his relationship with the late sex offender. In a prepared statement, Clinton told the House of Representatives Oversight Committee that he would not have flown on the late financier’s plane if ‌he had known about his alleged sex trafficking of underage girls, and would have reported him if he did. “We are...

Nasa is shaking up its Artemis mission to the moon, cancelling a multibillion-dollar Boeing upgrade to the centrepiece SLS rocket and slotting in a test flight closer to Earth as the programme remains beset by delays and cost overruns. The changes announced on Friday mean that Nasa is essentially swapping the actual moon landing for an additional test mission staged closer to Earth – while insisting the 2028 deadline for a lunar touchdown remains unchanged. Artemis III, which was supposed to be...

US President Donald Trump voiced frustration on Friday with Iran’s stance in nuclear negotiations but said he had not yet decided whether to carry out a threatened attack, as US staff were authorised to leave Israel due to heightened risks. Trump has ordered the biggest military build-up in decades in the Middle East, with the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, approaching the coast of Israel, as he demands Iran agree to sweeping concessions on concerns starting with its...

British Defence Secretary John Healey has ordered a review of military files for any evidence that Jeffrey Epstein used airbases to traffic girls into the UK. Healey has tasked officials with trawling through more than two decades of Ministry of Defence (MoD) records and handing over to police any flight logs linked to the late paedophile financier. It comes after former prime minister Gordon Brown wrote to six police forces demanding investigations into whether Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor used...

On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address was a long and rambling preparation for the congressional midterm elections in November. If, as Trump claims, America “is back, bigger, better, richer and stronger than ever before”, what does it mean for the rest of the world? Is the global economy as a whole bigger, better, richer and stronger than ever? Or are we in what Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney argued in his stunning speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos last...

US Vice-President J.D. Vance has said he does not believe potential military action against Iran would drag the country into a years-long war in the Middle East, according to an interview with The Washington Post published on Thursday. Vance said he did not know how US President Donald Trump would decide on the Iran issue. Options, he said, range from military strikes “to ensure Iran isn’t going to get a nuclear weapon” to a diplomatic solution. “The idea that we’re going to be in a Middle...

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz visited China’s eastern tech hub of Hangzhou on Thursday and met leading figures including those from Alibaba Group Holding and Unitree Robotics, signalling growing international recognition of the country’s robotics and artificial intelligence technologies. Merz had lunch and took group photos with local entrepreneurs, including Alibaba CEO Eddie Wu Yongming and Unitree founder and CEO Wang Xingxing, according to a social media account run by Chinese state...

Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour Party suffered an embarrassing election defeat on Friday in an area of Greater Manchester that it had dominated for almost a century, a loss that underscores the breakdown of Britain’s two-party ‌politics. The loss of one of Labour’s safest seats, in the biggest electoral test in almost a year, puts further pressure on Starmer to prove that he should keep his job following weeks of political turmoil and calls for him to resign. The left-wing Green Party’s...

US President Donald Trump put his son-in-law Jared Kushner and long-time friend Steve Witkoff in charge of resolving the war in Ukraine and a stand-off with Iran. On Thursday, they juggled those momentous issues within hours of each other. Dispatched to Geneva, Switzerland, Kushner and Witkoff met Iranian officials at the Omani ambassador’s residence in a bid to seal a deal over Tehran’s nuclear programme and avoid what could be a massive strike by US and Israeli forces. Hours later, they...

We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Is China flexing its intelligence muscle by tracking US military moves near Iran? A Chinese private company has drawn the attention of security watchers after detailing US military deployments near Iran, a move experts say underlines...

The US military shot down a government drone with a laser-based anti-drone system, an accident that prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to bar flights on Thursday in an area around Fort Hancock, Texas, congressional aides told Reuters. Congressional aides told Reuters the Pentagon used the high-energy laser system to shoot down a Customs and Border Protection drone near the Mexican border, in an area ‌that often has incursions from Mexican drones used by drug cartels. The Pentagon,...

This year’s Munich Security Conference arrived as less of a shock to Europeans, who have largely accepted that the good old days are gone for good. A few might still have got teary-eyed when US Secretary of State Marco Rubio described America as eternally “the child of Europe”, but most in the audience understood the underlying message: “You are on your own now, Granny.” The difference between Rubio’s more measured phrasing and Vice-President J.D. Vance’s blunt remarks last year is largely a...

Paramount Skydance, run by pro-Trump technology heir David Ellison, was poised to take control of Warner Bros. Discovery after Netflix said it would not raise its takeover offer, ending one of the biggest media bidding wars in a generation. The deal puts a constellation of media properties - from CNN to Nickelodeon to HBO - under the control of the family led by Oracle tycoon and White House ally Larry Ellison. Netflix said it was “declining to match” Paramount’s latest offer after the Warner...

The United States has warned Syria against relying on Chinese technology in its telecommunications sector, arguing it conflicts with US interests and threatens US national security, according to three sources familiar with the matter. The message was conveyed during an unreported meeting between a US State Department team and Syrian Communications Minister Abdulsalam Haykal in San Francisco on Tuesday. Washington has been ‌coordinating closely with Damascus since 2024, when Syria’s now President...

Canadian Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said China cannot serve as a substitute for the US, rebuking Prime Minister Mark Carney’s recent outreach to the Asian superpower amid strained ties with the Trump administration. In a speech to business leaders on Thursday, Poilievre outlined his vision for the country’s relationship with the US and how his party would approach the trade war differently from the Carney government. “Canada’s prosperity and security are inseparable from a stable...

Britain’s ⁠government has agreed a framework with the police on which documents relating to the late 2024 appointment of former ambassador to the United States Peter Mandelson ‌can be released, the Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC) said on Thursday. Mandelson, 72, was released from custody after the Metropolitan Police arrested him on Monday on suspicion of misconduct in public office, following revelations over his ties to ⁠Jeffrey Epstein. Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein is at...

Iran and the United States held hours of indirect negotiations on Thursday over Tehran’s nuclear programme but walked away without a deal, leaving the danger of another Mideast war on the table as the US has gathered a massive fleet of aircraft and warships in the region. Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi, who mediated the talks in Geneva, said there had been “significant progress in the negotiation” without elaborating. But just before the talks ended, Iranian state television reported...

A judge on Thursday ⁠declined to block US President Donald Trump from proceeding with the construction of a US$400 million White House ballroom to replace the demolished East Wing, finding that a challenge from preservationists did not meet the high bar for a preliminary injunction that would halt the project for now. US District Judge Richard Leon’s ruling came in a lawsuit by the National Trust for Historic Preservation aiming to stop construction until the White House complies ‌with federal...

A social media content creator was arrested Thursday after New York City police said he was one of a number of people who pelted officers with snow and ice during a massive snowball fight in Washington Square Park this week. Gusmane Coulibaly, 27, was charged with obstructing governmental administration, a misdemeanour, and harassment, a non-criminal violation. He appeared in handcuffs and wearing an olive-green sweatsuit during his arraignment Thursday evening in Manhattan criminal court. He...

Hillary Clinton used her forced appearance Thursday before a Republican-led panel probing Jeffrey Epstein to go on the offensive and demand US President Donald Trump testify about his own links to the sex offender. Clinton said after her deposition when asked if she was confident that her husband did not know of Epstein’s crimes, Clinton said “I am”. “I don’t know how many times I had to say I did not know Jeffrey Epstein,” she added. “I never went to his island, I never went to his homes, I...

A second British island voted on Thursday to approve assisted dying, as a similar bill that would allow terminally ill adults in England and Wales to choose to end their lives is bogged down in the British parliament. The bill, which requires the formality of approval by King Charles, would allow terminally ill residents who have lived in Jersey for more than a year and are expected to have less than six months to live – or less than 12 months if they have a neurodegenerative disease – to end...

Suppliers to US aerospace and semiconductor ⁠firms face worsening rare earth shortages, with two turning away some clients, industry insiders said, weeks before US President Donald Trump is expected to meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for a summit in Beijing. The shortages centre on rare earths such as yttrium and scandium, niche members of the family of 17 elements, which play tiny but vital roles in defence technology, aerospace and semiconductors and are almost entirely produced in...

Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called an early election for March 24, betting a popularity boost from a stand-off with US President Donald Trump over Greenland will help secure her another term in office. The move comes after the US president revived claims over the Arctic territory in early January, causing a diplomatic rift with Europe. The rupture in relations bolstered Frederiksen’s domestic standing, reinforcing her image as a disciplined and steady leader during periods of...

The president and CEO of the World Economic Forum, Borge Brende, said he was stepping down on Thursday, a few weeks after the forum launched an independent investigation into his relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Brende, who became president of the WEF ‌in 2017, announced his decision in a statement following disclosures from the US Justice Department that showed the Norwegian had three business dinners with Epstein and had also communicated with the disgraced financier via email...

Four years after launching the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia has not achieved any of its strategic goals. The conflict – now lasting longer than the Soviet Union’s fight against Germany in World War II – has only caused Moscow to lose its influence dramatically in the post-Soviet space. Is there a way out of the Kremlin’s Ukraine adventure? In the early days of war, which erupted on February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that his “special military operation” in...

The ⁠US remains Poland’s most ⁠important partner in military ⁠cooperation and Warsaw has been and will remain a loyal ally, but it can’t be a “sucker”, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said in a speech to parliament on Thursday. His comments reflect the ‌delicate balancing act that Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s pro-EU government must perform in maintaining the strong transatlantic bond they see as crucial for national security at a time when US President Donald Trump is upending old...

Premier Li Qiang has called for deeper technological cooperation with Germany and highlighted opportunities under China’s latest five-year plan – a move that could help ease tensions with the EU over the war in Ukraine and years of trade disputes. “We support bilateral flows of innovation resources between enterprises and research institutions in both countries,” Li told a symposium attended by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and more than 60 business representatives from both sides. “We can...

A nearly blind refugee from Myanmar missing since his release from a Buffalo jail into the custody of US Border Patrol has been found dead on a downtown street, according to city authorities on Wednesday. Police officers in the upstate New York city located the body of Nurul Amin Shah Alam, 56, on Tuesday evening, the Buffalo Police Department said. Shah Alam had been missing since February 19, when US Border Patrol agents dropped ‌him off at a coffee shop miles from his home following his...

Beijing intervened and helped get charges dropped against three Chinese scientists at the University of Michigan who were accused of helping a colleague smuggle biological materials into the US, defence lawyers said. The materials turned out to be mostly tiny, transparent worms – nothing dangerous – though US officials last year hailed the arrests as a victory for national security. Attorney General Pam Bondi said the government must be vigilant when foreign nationals try to “advance a malicious...

There are few assets on earth as strategically sensitive as the ports flanking the Panama Canal. They sit at the hinge of global trade, where container ships glide between oceans and geopolitics moves just beneath the surface. That is why Panama’s seizure of two major port terminals operated by CK Hutchison, the Hong Kong conglomerate built by Li Ka-shing, deserves more than a passing headline. It is not simply a contractual dispute dressed up as constitutional housekeeping. It is a stress test...

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz travelled to Beijing with a delicate brief: vouch for a shrinking slice of big German firms still bullish on China, while defending the growing number being squeezed. On day one of his first official visit, Merz trod the line carefully – voicing openness to resetting beleaguered bilateral ties, even while gently nudging his hosts on bugbears including subsidies, currency devaluation and Russia. A day of meetings with Chinese Premier Li Qiang, President Xi Jinping...

Hilary Knight, captain of the victorious US women’s Olympic ice hockey team, said Wednesday it was unfortunate that a “distasteful joke” by President Donald Trump had overshadowed the achievements of US athletes at the Milan-Cortina Games. The US men’s ice hockey team took a congratulatory call from Trump as they celebrated their gold medal victory over Canada. The president invited them to his State of the Union address and added he would have to ask the triumphant women’s team as well or risk...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday that he and US President Donald Trump agreed that the next session of trilateral talks in March on a war settlement should lead to a meeting of the countries’ leaders. Zelensky, speaking after a phone conversation with Trump, said the three-sided talks with Russia and the United States would take place early next month. US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner also took part in the ‌phone call. “We expect this meeting to create an...

Cuba’s coastguard shot dead four people and injured six others travelling in a US-registered speedboat in an exchange of fire off the Cuban coast on Wednesday, the interior ministry in Havana said. The “illegal” Florida-registered boat was detected one nautical mile from Falcones Cay in Villa Clara province, the ministry said in a brief statement. As a coastguard vessel approached to identify the boat “shots were fired from the boat”, injuring the commander of the Cuban vessel, the ministry...

Former US Treasury secretary Larry Summers has resigned from his teaching post at Harvard University over his links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, the Ivy League institution said on Wednesday. Summers, who ran the US Treasury under former president Bill Clinton, was revealed in the Epstein files released by the Department of Justice to have had extensive exchanges with the now-deceased financier. Clinton will testify before a congressional committee on Epstein on Friday while his...

The Pentagon plans to spend an additional US$12.6 billion to improve surveillance of China’s military manoeuvres, submarines and satellites as the US tries to counter the “unprecedented Chinese military build-up” in Asia, according to a budget document sent to Congress. The funds, approved by Congress outside the normal budget process, are designed to improve US military readiness, offensive cyber capabilities and surveillance efforts across the Indo-Pacific. It will also help expand operations...

Bill Gates has admitted making a “huge mistake” in associating with Jeffrey Epstein, telling staff at his charity foundation that he had affairs with two Russian women but denying involvement in the disgraced financier’s crimes. The Microsoft co-founder is among the prominent names appearing in documents released by the US Justice Department that revealed close friendships, illicit financial dealings and private photos with convicted sex offender Epstein. In a town hall on Tuesday with staff at...

Canada’s aviation regulator certified the remaining Gulfstream private jet models that US President Donald Trump asked it to approve, a move which let the White House claim a win in its trade dispute with Canada. The certifications of Gulfstream’s GVIII-700 and GVIII-800 models, the largest business aircraft made by the unit of General Dynamics, were issued on Monday by Transport Canada. Trump said on January 29 that Canada had “wrongfully, illegally” refused to certify Gulfstream jets. Unless...

Ali Shamkhani, who taunted Israel after ⁠being pulled alive from the rubble of his Tehran home ⁠following a strike in June 2025, has survived at the centre of Iranian policymaking during ⁠its most testing military confrontations and diplomatic endeavours. The 70-year-old former Revolutionary Guard commander is a trusted adviser to Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a high-stakes stand-off with the US that could determine whether the Islamic Republic, born from revolution in 1979, survives...

The new year is not off to a good start. In January, US president Donald Trump ordered the abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and now there is a massive US military build-up in the Middle East, apparently aimed at Iran. One aircraft carrier strike group has arrived in the region, with another one on the way. However, there does appear to be a silver lining to the stand-off. Unlike last year, when US bombers struck Iranian nuclear facilities during the conflict between Iran and...

As the United States assembles its greatest military firepower in decades in the Middle East, Iranians are warily awaiting the next round of talks with the US in Geneva this week – negotiations that many see as a last chance for their ruling theocracy to strike a deal with US President Donald Trump. Some say the situation feels hopeless. Battered by decades of sanctions, heightened by Trump’s 2018 decision to withdraw from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers, Iranians also just suffered...

Alberto Carvalho, superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District, was placed on paid leave after F.B.I. agents raided his home and district office this week.

He sang and co-wrote some of the definitive teenage anthems of the 1950s and early ’60s, including “Breaking Up Is Hard to Do,” and then reinvented his career in the ’70s.

The singer and songwriter, who died on Friday at 86, gave voice to teenage dreams, then executed one of music’s most unexpected comebacks.

The endorsement from the former vice president, her most significant since leaving office, comes as Ms. Crockett is facing a competitive Democratic primary contest against James Talarico.

During a visit to Texas, President Trump made clear that he would be driving home his depiction of Democrats as out of step ahead of the elections in November.

From a Durham-area House race to three statehouse races, North Carolina liberals are signaling that their tolerance for Democratic stalwarts may be coming to an end.

Any Lucia López Belloza was deported by mistake. A judge ordered her return by Friday. When the Trump administration sent a plane, she decided not to get on.

Elmina Aghayeva has 114,000 followers on Instagram and has seemingly never posted about politics, unlike other Columbia University students detained by immigration officers.

The disabled man had been released from jail when federal officers showed up and drove him to a coffee shop. His family searched for him for days.

The newly indicted people join nine others, including Don Lemon, in facing charges in connection to a protest of President Trump’s immigration crackdown during a worship service.

Prime Minister Mark Carney visits India, Australia and Japan seeking deals to strengthen his country’s links to Indo-Pacific powers and break Canada’s dependence on the United States.

In a draft of his memoir, Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, laid out the secret negotiations that led to his imprisonment and a run-in with ICE.

Not long ago, Mr. Zaslav was widely criticized for his management of Warner Bros. Discovery. He overcame the doubters, cementing a blockbuster sale to Paramount.

Ms. Lacks’s family accused Novartis of profiting from her cells, which were taken from her without her consent in 1951, when she was dying of cervical cancer.

After a month with little visible progress, the sheriff in Pima County, Ariz., is sending some deputies back to their regular units.

The justice participated remotely in a closed-door session of a legal conference, a reminder of the heightened threats facing jurists in recent years.

Desktop Metal, a billion-dollar start-up, promised to revolutionize manufacturing. It went bankrupt, and now has much humbler ambitions as the 3-D printing industry takes a sober turn.

After a lifetime of settling for shame, secrecy and death onscreen, I had my doubts about “Heated Rivalry.” Then it seduced me, too.

Donald Trump promised voters that he would end wars, not start them.

Netanyahu and his government deserve the growing bipartisan opprobrium they’re receiving.

Parents will receive notifications if a child has used the platform repeatedly to search for terms related to suicide or self-harm, but users must opt in to get them.

On Friday, the state approved a settlement that included a $3,000 fine but no acknowledgment of guilt for a tree poisoning that riled people in scenic Rockport, Maine.

Greenpeace has said the verdict could bankrupt it. The lawsuit was over the group’s role in protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline.

The former officer traveled to China to train pilots of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force without approval from the State Department, the Justice Department said.