Minimalist News

Minneapolis Shooting Sparks Explosive Blame-Game Between Democrats And Trump Admin A 37-year-old anti-ICE agitator who was armed with a handgun was shot and killed by federal Border Patrol agents on Saturday morning during what the Department of Homeland Security described as a targeted immigration enforcement operation, sparking immediate political outrage and street protests. Border Patrol officers were conducting a targeted operation against an illegal immigrant wanted for violent assault. According to the federal agency, a man approached officers with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun. Officers attempted to disarm the individual before he violently resisted, leading to an armed struggle.  > 🚨 JUST IN:

Tehran Rejects UN 'Protest Killings' Resolution, Blasts Western Moralizing Iran has flatly rejected a United Nations Human Rights Council resolution condemning what it described as the "violent crackdown on peaceful protests" by Iranian security forces, after two weeks of raging economic protests earlier this month, which also included a government enforced total internet shutdown. Following a closed-door session in Geneva on Friday, 25 council members - including France, Japan, and South Korea - voted in favor of the formal censure. SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images But there were significant voices among the seven that voted against, including China, India, and Pakistan. Fourteen others abstained. The council

Last Look At Snowfall Models As 'Snowpocalypse' Begins How Will This Weekend's Mega-Storm Compare to the Winter Blasts of 2016 and 1996? Meteorologist Ben Noll says this weekend's snowstorm could be similar to the Blizzard of 1996. For our more seasoned readers, 1996 was an unforgettable winter. Many younger readers, however, have grown up in snow droughts and years of corporate media narratives centered on Al Gore's global warming alarmism. Yet here we are on Saturday morning, looking over the latest weather models that show more than half the country under a winter storm warning. Noll wrote on X earlier that "55 percent of

Duffy's Nuclear Option Remains On The Table: California Could Lose Authority To Issue Any CDLs Authored by Rob Carpenter via FreightWaves.com, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy just dropped what I’ve been calling the nuclear option. In an appearance on Katie Pavlich Tonight Thursday, Duffy made clear that withholding $200 million in federal funding isn’t the end of this fight. If California doesn’t come into compliance on the non-domiciled CDL issue, Duffy said, “we will eventually pull their ability to issue commercial driver’s licenses to anybody in California.” Not just the 17,000 non-domiciled CDLs at the center of this fight. Every single CDL in the state. I’ve

Left-Wing NGOs Transition To Targeting 'Critical Economic Chokepoints' In Minneapolis Left-wing nonprofit groups in Minneapolis appear to have moved beyond pressure campaigns targeting ICE agents and federal law enforcement, shifting from street protests/riots toward actions that may disrupt critical infrastructure on Friday. The apparent objective is to target economic chokepoints and critical infrastructure, a pressure tactic consistent with the color revolution playbook previously deployed by dark-money funded NGO networks aligned with the Democratic Party’s protest-industrial complex and financed by left-wing billionaire foundations. Local media outlet The Minnesota Star Tribune reported on Friday evening that "at a demonstration outside Minneapolis–St. Paul International Airport's

Stablecoins: A Quiet Revolution In Finance Authored by Robert Burrows via BondVigilantes.com, With geopolitics taking centre stage, the seismic tremors of Stablecoin activity go largely unnoticed. Stablecoins sit at a fascinating intersection of finance and technology. They promise the speed and programmability of cryptocurrencies with the price stability of traditional money. What began as a niche settlement tool for crypto markets is now being discussed as a parallel monetary system—with profound implications for banks, credit creation, and financial stability. WHAT ARE STABLECOINS? Stablecoins are digital tokens designed to maintain a stable value, usually pegged to a fiat currency like the US dollar. While there are

Newsom Announces California Will Remain In WHO Despite US Withdrawal California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Friday that the Golden State will remain a part of the World Health Organization's network, even though the Trump administration just completed the United States' withdrawal from the WHO. “The Trump administration’s withdrawal from WHO is a reckless decision that will hurt all Californians and Americans,” Newsom wrote. “California will not bear witness to the chaos this decision will bring. We will continue to foster partnerships across the globe and remain at the forefront of public health preparedness, including through our membership as the only state in WHO’s Global

Niall Ferguson: How Trump Won Davos Authored by Niall Ferguson via X, There is a rapidly forming narrative in the European and liberal media that the Europeans “won Davos”: primarily by getting Trump to “de-escalate” his demand that the United States acquire Greenland from Denmark. This is a very wrong take. The reality is that Trump won Davos, hands down. And not only did he win it; he owned it. I have never before seen a single individual so completely dominate this vast bazaar of the powerful, the wealthy, the famous, and the self-important. Trump never seriously meant to annex Greenland or to impose new tariffs on

Judge Orders Release Of Minnesota Church Agitators Nekima Armstrong, Chauntyll Allen A federal judge on Friday ordered the release of two Minnesota women who stormed a Minnesota church last Sunday after the FBI and Homeland Security agents arrested them on Thursday.  Nekima Armstrong (L) and Chauntyll Allen celebrate after a federal judge ordered them to be released. US District Judge Laura Provinzino (Biden) said that the protesters, Nekima Armstrong and Chauntyll Allen, do not pose a flight risk - but must surrender their passports while they await trial. Provinzino found that the Trump administration offered "no factual or legal support" to justify their claim that this

FBI Data Reveal Historic Uptick In Arrests Amid "Full-Scale Reset' Of Agency Authored by Travis Gillmore via The Epoch Times, The first year of President Donald Trump’s second term saw historic reductions in violent crimes, while federal arrests soared by 100 percent, according to the FBI. The 2025 milestones were achieved as a result of a “full-scale reset of the FBI—operationally, culturally, and fiscally,” FBI Director Kash Patel told The Epoch Times. Murder rates fell by 20 percent nationwide, the largest decline on record, according to statistics released by the FBI on Jan. 22.  Four of the top 10 most wanted fugitives were captured, matching

"Let Our ICE Patriots Do Their Job": Trump Rages After Armed Suspect Shot By Border Patrol Dies Update (1430ET): President Trump has taken to social media to express his anger and frustration at the events in Minneapolis. Specifically, that the suspect was armed... and where were the police! > "This is the gunman’s gun, loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go – What is that all about? Where are the local Police? Why weren’t they allowed to protect ICE Officers? The Mayor and the Governor called them off? It is stated that many of these Police were not allowed to

DHS Says 5-Year-Old Was "Abandoned" By Parents During ICE Operation In Minnesota Authored by Aldgra Fredly via The Epoch Times, The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Jan. 23 refuted reports that ICE agents detained a 5-year-old boy in Minnesota, saying the child was abandoned by his parents during an immigration enforcement operation. Columbia Heights Public School District had previously said that 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos was taken into custody along with his father while in their driveway on Jan. 20. School officials said an ICE agent asked the child to knock on the door to see if there was anyone inside. DHS on

Shockwaves In Beijing: Xi Targets His Own Top General, Longtime Confidant, In Elite Purge Another significant military purge appears underway in China, as Saturday morning the West woke up to news that China's most senior military officer, who is second only to Xi Jinping, has been put under investigation over alleged "grave violations of discipline and the law." Gen. Zhang Youxia is a vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, the Communist Party body that controls China's armed forces, and this comes as somewhat of a major shock given he is widely regarded as President Xi's closest ally within the military - or at

Trump Says Canada Will Face 100% Tariffs if It "Makes A Deal With China" Authored by Omid Ghoreishi via The Epoch Times, U.S. President Donald Trump says Canadian goods exported to the United States would be hit with 100 percent tariffs if Canada makes a deal with China. > “If Governor Carney thinks he is going to make Canada a ‘Drop Off Port’ for China to send goods and products into the United States, he is sorely mistaken. China will eat Canada alive, completely devour it, including the destruction of their businesses, social fabric, and general way of life,” Trump said in a

Larry Fink Says Public Has Lost Trust In Davos Elites And He Blames "Capitalism" The intrinsic fallacy behind the Davos conference and its supposed mission to "save the world" by molding international policy is easy to describe:  Davos is made up largely of the corporate elites, banking moguls and corrupt politicians that created the world's problems in the first place, often deliberately in order to trigger chaos and gain power.  Why would the general public trust those people to fix the same problems they created? This is a question that needs to be posed to BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, who is currently serving

In Humiliating Retreat, Starmer Forced To Pull Chagos Bill After Trump Backlash Trump wins again - or rather, Europe caves again. On Friday UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer was forced into an abrupt and humiliating retreat after his plan for the Chagos Islands detonated backlash in Washington. Starmer had been preparing to ram the controversial legislation through the House of Lords on Monday, only for the bill to be yanked late Friday on growing fears it could unravel a 60-year-old US-UK treaty, which is the foundational Cold War-era deal that allows the US to operate the Diego Garcia military base on the

House Committee Calls On IRS To Crack Down On NGOs Funding Terrorists Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), The IRS must overhaul its oversight of the nonprofit sector amid the fraud scandal in Minnesota that has led to taxpayer funds being funneled for terror activities, Republicans on the House Ways and Means Committee said in a Jan. 20 statement. House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Rep. Jason Smith (R-Mo.) speaks during a hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on May 13, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times The lawmakers sent a letter to IRS Acting Commissioner Scott Bessent and CEO

DOE Orders Diesel Generators To Be Ready As Electric Sector Prepares For Historic Winter Storm By Robert Walton of UtilityDive Stakeholders across the U.S. electric sector are preparing for Winter Storm Fern, which is expected to impact an area stretching from Texas to New York, as far north as the upper Midwest and into parts of the Southeast. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration anticipates the storm to begin today and run through Sunday. Anticipating widespread power outages, local distribution utilities have been activating recovery plans and warning customers to be prepared. The North American Electric Reliability Corp. says it is “encouraged that

Military Presence At Davos "Much Larger Than Usual" As Security Posture Signals Rising Threats The private jets are departing, $2,500 per night sex workers have cleared out, and European globalist elites spent the week annoyed by the America First message from President Trump and Elon Musk at the World Economic Forum in Davos. The rationale for California Gov. Gavin Newsom's attendance remains unclear, but his presence and conduct were widely viewed as an embarrassment for the U.S. With the event concluded, attention now shifts to the weaponry deployed to protect heads of state and billionaires. On Thursday, Rebel News journalist Avi Yemini

US Pledges To 'Starve' Iraq Of Oil Revenue If Pro-Iran Parties Join New Government Via The Cradle Washington has threatened to block Iraq's access to its own oil revenue held in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York if representatives of Shia armed parties enjoying support from Iran are included in the next government, Reuters  reported Friday. "The US warning was delivered repeatedly over the past two months by the US Charges d'Affaires in Baghdad, Joshua Harris, in conversations with Iraqi officials and influential Shi'ite leaders," Reuters reported, citing three Iraqi officials and one source familiar with the matter. via AFP The threat is part of US President Donald

President also claims US refineries will process seized Venezuelan oil, saying ‘we take the oil’ Donald Trump on Saturday said he would impose a 100% tariff on all Canadian imports if the North American country makes a trade deal with China. Beside that tariff threat, another Trump foreign policy maneuver to make news on Saturday involved the president announcing the US had taken the oil that was on recently seized Venezuelan tankers. Continue reading...

Court says alleged abuse and trafficking offences occurred outside Spain, leaving it without jurisdiction Spanish prosecutors have shelved a complaint brought by two women who have accused the singer Julio Iglesias of sexual assault and human trafficking, arguing the country’s courts have no jurisdiction as the alleged offences took place outside Spain. Two female former employees who worked at Iglesias’s Caribbean mansions 10 days ago accused the veteran entertainer of sexual assault, saying they had been subjected “to inappropriate touching, insults and humiliation … in an atmosphere of control and constant harassment”. Continue reading...

Ryan Wedding turned himself in at US consulate in Mexico City and is due to appear in court in California on Monday Ryan Wedding, the Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned alleged drug kingpin, has been arrested after turning himself in at the US embassy in Mexico, law enforcement officials announced on Friday. Wedding, 44, had been sought by the FBI and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) for his role in overseeing what the US attorney general, Pam Bondi, called the “one of the most prolific and violent drug-trafficking organizations” in the world. Continue reading...

Interim leader Delcy Rodríguez told influencers of US threat to kill leaders if they did not cooperate after capture of Maduro The communications minister holds a phone up to a microphone before a gathering of regime-friendly influencers. On speakerphone is Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, who claims that when US forces captured the dictator Nicolás Maduro, she and other members of his cabinet were given 15 minutes to decide whether to comply with Washington’s demands – “or they would kill us”. Continue reading...

While leaders of many liberal democracies declined to sign on, Mark Carney had, before Davos, accepted in principle Donald Trump withdrew on Thursday an invitation for Canada to join his “board of peace” initiative aimed at resolving global conflicts. “Please let this Letter serve to represent that the Board of Peace is withdrawing its invitation to you regarding Canada’s joining, what will be, the most prestigious Board of Leaders ever assembled, at any time,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post directed at the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney. Continue reading...

In the search for stability, some western nations are turning to a country that many in Washington see as an existential threat If geopolitics relies at least in part on bonhomie between global leaders, China made an unexpected play for Ireland’s good graces when the taoiseach visited Beijing this month. Meeting Ireland’s leader, Micheál Martin, in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China’s president, Xi Jinping, said a favourite book of his as a teenager was The Gadfly, by the Irish author Ethel Voynich, a novel set in the revolutionary fervour of Italy in the 1840s. “It was unusual that

US policy document suggests South Korea take primary responsibility, as Pentagon prioritises defending US homeland The Pentagon foresees a “more limited” role in deterring North Korea, with South Korea taking primary responsibility for the task, a Pentagon policy document released on Friday said, in a move likely to raise concern in Seoul. South Korea hosts about 28,500 US troops in combined defence against North Korea’s military threat and Seoul has raised its defence budget by 7.5% for this year. Continue reading...

Rescue efforts at Mount Maunganui site switch to recovery operation that police say could take several days Efforts to rescue six people buried by a landslide at a New Zealand holiday park ended on Saturday, with police shifting into a recovery operation. Police Supt Tim Anderson said human remains had been uncovered on Friday night beneath the mountains of dirt and debris that crashed into a campsite in Mount Maunganui on Thursday, adding that it could take several days to locate all of the victims due to the unstable ground. Continue reading...

Conservationists hail the ‘desperately needed’ measures and urge greater protection after up to 11% of endangered Tapanuli orangutans wiped out The floods and landslides that tore through Indonesia’s fragile Batang Toru ecosystem in November 2024 – killing up to 11% of the world’s Tapanuli orangutan population – prompted widespread scrutiny of the extractive companies operating in the area at the time of the ecological catastrophe. For weeks, investigators searched for evidence that the companies may have damaged the Batang Toru and Garoga watersheds before the disaster, which washed torrents of mud and logs into villages, claiming the lives of more than 1,100

Search-and-rescue teams worked through the night at the campground, but there had been no progress in finding missing people, officials say New Zealand is ‘full of grief”, the prime minister has said, after landslides tore through a house and busy campground, leaving two dead and at least six victims still missing. Police said emergency crews were still searching for at least six people, including two teenagers, believed missing beneath the debris of a landslide which struck a Mount Maunganui campsite on Thursday morning. Police were attempting to contact another three people. Families enjoying the summer school holiday were among the campers. Recreational

Queensland government says pack linked to 19-year-old’s death pose ‘unacceptable public safety risk’ as Indigenous traditional owners say they were not consulted The dingo pack linked to the death of Canadian tourist Piper James on Australian island K’gari will be destroyed, the Queensland government has announced. Environment minister Andrew Powell said on Sunday that an entire pack of 10 animals would be euthanised. Continue reading...

This blog is now closed. * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Just rounding out the rest of the prime minister’s jam-packed Insiders interview, Anthony Albanese reiterated that Australia would give “further consideration” to Donald Trump’s invitation to join the his “board of peace” but said it was unclear what the objectives of the board are. (If you want to read more about the project first, you can turn to Ben Doherty’s from earlier this week:) It’s unclear what the objectives of this [the ‘board of peace’ are, which is why we will give it further consideration. My

Police deploy air support to search properties at Mount Hope, about 70km north of Lake Cargelligo, where shootings took place on Thursday * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast * Warning: This article contains references to Indigenous Australians who have died Police say a sighting of Julian Ingram, who is suspected of murdering multiple people in remote NSW, has been reported about 70km north of where the shootings occurred. The unconfirmed sighting was made early on Sunday morning at Mount Hope in the NSW central west. Continue reading...

Career public servant and former chief of staff to Malcolm Turnbull to represent Australia’s interests with Trump administration from April, including progression of Aukus agreement * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The head of the department of defence, Greg Moriarty, will succeed Kevin Rudd as Australia’s ambassador to the United States. The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, and foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, announced Moriarty’s appointment to the role on Sunday. A former chief of staff to Malcolm Turnbull and former Australian envoy to Iran and Indonesia,

Teachers who attended ‘compulsory’ creationist conference run by US-based fundamentalist group told radiometric dating techniques were flawed * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast Teachers employed by a large group of Queensland Christian schools were told to teach creationism in science classes, including that vegetarian baby dinosaurs would have been taken aboard Noah’s Ark. Last year, the Open Brethren organisation Christian Community Ministries (CCM) hosted a Christian science conference by the US-based fundamentalist group Answers in Genesis, which once built a replica of Noah’s Ark – with

Kyiv says Moscow used 396 drones and missiles in ‘another night of Russian terror’ on second day of talks in UAE Russia launched a major drone and missile attack targeting Ukraine’s two largest cities, Kyiv and Kharkiv, early on Saturday, as US, Ukrainian and Russian negotiators met in the United Arab Emirates for a second day of tripartite peace talks. “Peace efforts? Trilateral meeting in the UAE? Diplomacy? For Ukrainians, this was another night of Russian terror,” the country’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, said after the latest Russian assault on critical infrastructure. Continue reading...

Many of those moved into an asylum return centre have held jobs for years and can speak the language “Sweden did this for us,” said Sofiye*, making a supportive scooping up gesture with her hands. “And then, bam.” She dropped them to the ground. Sofiye, who has three children, arrived in Sweden from Uzbekistan as an asylum seeker in 2008, and for much of that time she was able to build a life in the Scandinavian country. The family lived in a flat in a Stockholm suburb and Sofiye worked for the municipality in the home help department. She learned Swedish and

this blog is now closed, you can read more on this story here India and Europe hope to strike the “mother of all deals” when EU chiefs meet prime minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi next week, as the two economic behemoths seek to forge closer ties, AFP reports. Facing challenges from China and the United States, India and the European Union have been negotiating a massive free trade pact – and talks, first launched about two decades ago, are nearing the finishing line. Continue reading...

Shift in relations and unpredictability of Donald Trump make it ‘risky to store so much gold in the US’, say experts Germany is facing calls to withdraw its billions of euros’ worth of gold from US vaults, spurred on by the shift in transatlantic relations and the unpredictability of Donald Trump. Germany holds the world’s second biggest national gold reserves after the US, of which approximately €164bn (£122bn) worth – 1,236 tonnes – is stored in New York. Continue reading...

Preliminary report suggests fracture could have existed before high-speed train derailed in Andalucía Experts investigating the deadly rail collision in southern Spain, which killed 45 people and left dozens more injured, believe the accident may have happened after one of the trains passed over a damaged section of rail. The disaster occurred near the Andalucían town of Adamuz on Sunday, when a high-speed train operated by Iryo, a private company, derailed and collided with an oncoming high-speed train operated by the state rail company, Renfe. Continue reading...

Ceasefire to be extended for one month to allow transfer of suspected Islamic State members from Syria to Iraq The Syrian government and Kurdish forces agreed to extend a ceasefire on Saturday, according to Syrian diplomatic sources, temporarily staving off a looming war between the two sides in the north-east of the country. Sources told Agence France-Presse the ceasefire would be extended for “a period of up to one month at most”, citing the need to facilitate the transfer of suspected members of Islamic State from Syria to Iraq. Continue reading...

US president says ‘we have a lot of ships’ going in that direction and that Washington is watching Iran closely Donald Trump has said an American “armada” is heading towards the Middle East and that the US is monitoring Iran closely, as activists put the death toll from Tehran’s crackdown on protesters at 5,002. Speaking on Air Force One as he returned from the World Economic Forum in Davos overnight, he said: “We have a lot of ships going that direction, just in case. I’d rather not see anything happen, but we’re watching them very closely … we have an armada …

Exclusive: Blueprints describe a ‘case study’ community where residents submit biometric data to gain entry The United Arab Emirates plans to fund “Gaza’s first planned community” on the ruined outskirts of Rafah, Gaza’s southernmost city. Palestinian residents there will have access to basic services like education, healthcare and running water, as long as they submit to biometric data collection and security vetting, according to planning documents and people familiar with the latest round of talks at the US-led Civil Military Coordination Center in Israel. The planned city would mark the UAE’s first investment in a postwar reconstruction project located in the part

Judge shelves inquiry into use of Israeli-made software to target ministers’ phones citing chronic lack of cooperation Spain’s highest criminal court has again shelved its investigation into the use of Israeli-made Pegasus software to target the mobile phones of senior Spanish ministers, including the prime minister, citing a chronic lack of cooperation from the Israeli authorities that has violated “the principle of good faith” between countries. The investigation began in May 2022 after the Spanish government revealed that the phones of the prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, and the defence minister, Margarita Robles, had been infected the previous year with the spyware, which,

Blueprint presented by Jared Kushner shows unified Gaza run by Palestinians, with Rafah crossing to open next week Amid the hullabaloo and self-congratulation of Donald Trump’s “board of peace” launch in Davos, his administration laid out specific plans for the short- and long-term future of Gaza, aimed at a lasting peace. The blueprint set out on Thursday was extremely ambitious. It envisages a unified Palestinian-run Gaza, which represents a rebuff to the aims of Israeli extremists, including some in the governing coalition, who have sought the deportation of Gaza’s population and the building of Israeli settlements in its place. Continue reading...

Third and final phase of voting taking place on Sunday in village just days after military airstrike killed 21 people Polling stations open on Sunday for the final stage of Myanmar’s three-phase election, a one-sided vote that has been widely derided as a sham, with politicians jailed, the main opposition party banned and conflict raging across parts of the country. Junta leader Min Aung Hlaing has defended the vote as “free and fair”, presenting it as a return to democracy and stability. The election is happening almost five years after the military seized power in a coup, ousting the elected government of

Eastern region on high alert as authorities try to track animal tearing through villages in Jharkhand after apparently becoming separated from herd Forest officials in India are on the hunt for an elephant that has killed more than 20 people in a days-long rampage through the eastern state of Jharkhand. Since the beginning of January, 22 people have been killed by a single-tusked elephant that has been tearing through forests and villages in West Singhbhum district of Jharkhand. Continue reading...

Delhi is world’s second largest purchaser of Russian crude, which is now cheaper than oil from Middle East Russia is already working to circumvent the latest US sanctions to ensure India can continue to import high levels of cheap Russian crude oil, according to industry analysts. Since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, India has become the world’s second largest purchaser of Russian crude oil, which has been heavily discounted due to the impact of western sanctions. Continue reading...

Police ask Paramjeet Singh Pamma to install security cameras and reinforce door locks at his home Police have advised a high-profile Sikh activist in the UK to install security cameras at his home and reinforce door locks because of threats from Hindu nationalist elements. Paramjeet Singh Pamma, 52, said he had been visited by police and received verbal advice to increase his security due to intelligence suggesting threats to his safety. Continue reading...

UN and many western countries as well as human rights groups say that in the absence of a meaningful opposition the election is neither free, fair nor credible Voters in war-torn Myanmar queued up on Sunday to cast their ballots in the second stage of a military-run election, following low turnout in the initial round of polls that have been widely criticised as a tool to formalise junta rule. Myanmar has been ravaged by conflict since the military ousted a civilian government in a 2021 coup and detained its leader, Nobel peace prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking a civil war

January is a prime time for people looking to get fit, so fraudsters create fake websites and apps A new year means a new start – it’s time to get fit and there are quite a few deals out there. On Facebook you see a local gym advertising a discount on membership if you sign up within the next few hours. There are limited spaces so you act quickly. It’s only after you pay that you realise the ad was a fraud: you’ve received no membership details and when you contact the gym it has no record of your payment. Continue reading...

Amelia, created to deter young people from extremism, has been subverted and is breaking out of niche online silos In certain corners of the internet, on niche news feeds and algorithms, an AI-generated British schoolgirl has emerged as something of a cultural phenomenon. Her name is Amelia, a purple-haired “goth girl” who proudly carries a mini union flag everywhere she goes and appears to have a penchant for racism. Continue reading...

Police said group breached HMP Wormwood Scrubs grounds where Umer Khalid is being held A group of protesters supporting a Palestine Action prisoner on hunger strike have been arrested after they breached prison grounds, the Metropolitan police has said. The force said on Saturday evening that it had detained a group of protesters outside HMP Wormwood Scrubs, in west London, and was in the process of making a number of arrests. Continue reading...

National Police Service will investigate organised crime, terrorism, fraud and online child abuse The government is setting up a National Police Service – dubbed the “British FBI” – to deal with organised crime, terrorism, fraud and online child abuse in a major change to policing in England and Wales. The new organisation, which will be announced by the Home Office in a white paper on Monday, means fraud, criminal gang and UK-wide counter terror investigations will no longer be carried out by a combination of existing agencies such as the National Crime Agency and regional organised crime units run by local police

Greater Manchester mayor has applied to stand for Labour in Gorton and Denton, setting up potential fight for PM’s political future Keir Starmer’s allies are urging him to block Andy Burnham from running in the Gorton and Denton byelection, after the Greater Manchester mayor declared his intention to stand, setting up a potential fight for the prime minister’s political future. Burnham said on Saturday he wanted to contest the seat after the sitting MP, Andrew Gwynne, said he intended to stand down. Continue reading...

Family releases statement saying: ‘Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump’s murdering and cowardly ICE thugs’ * Alex Pretti did not brandish gun, witnesses say in sworn testimony * Large protests spread across US after Alex Pretti fatally shot * Alex Pretti killing by federal agents: what we know so far Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has called out Trump administration officials for justifying Alex Pretti’s death at the hands of federal agents because he was in legal possession of a firearm. In criticising Department of Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem, Ocasio-Cortez alluded to the broad conservative support for Kyle Rittenhouse,

This blog is now closed. Our live coverage continues here * Man shot in Minneapolis by federal agents identified as nurse Alex Pretti * ‘How many more Americans need to die?’: mayor lambastes Trump In a statement sent to the Guardian, assistant secretary of homeland security Tricia McLaughlin said that at 9.05am local time, “as DHS law enforcement officers were conducting a targeted operation in Minneapolis” against a person they said was in the country illegally, who she said was “wanted for violent assault”, “an individual approached US Border Patrol officers with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun.” McLaughlin said that “the officers

Maxwell Alejandro Frost says attacker ‘told me Trump was going to deport me’ as police say suspect arrested The Florida congressman Maxwell Alejandro Frost said he was assaulted by a man who said Donald Trump would deport him at a party during the Sundance film festival in Utah. “Last night, I was assaulted by a man at Sundance Festival who told me that Trump was going to deport me before he punched me in the face,” Frost said in a Saturday post on X. “He was heard screaming racist remarks as he drunkenly ran off. The individual was arrested and I am

Announcement comes as anger toward DHS – which oversees ICE – intensifies after Alex Pretti fatally shot In the wake of another fatal shooting of a US citizen in Minnesota by a federal officer, the Senate Democratic leader, Chuck Schumer, said his party would block a funding package next week if it includes money for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The announcement, which dramatically escalates the potential for another partial government shutdown, comes as anger towards homeland security, which oversees ICE, intensifies among the party after a group of federal agents violently restrained and then fatally shot 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex

Pair testify that Pretti did not hold weapon and was trying to help woman federal agents had shoved to the ground Two witnesses to the killing of Alex Pretti have said in sworn testimony that the 37-year-old intensive care nurse was not brandishing a weapon when he approached federal agents in Minneapolis on Saturday, contradicting a claim made by Trump administration officials as they sought to cast the shooting of a prone man as an act of self-defense. Their accounts came in sworn affidavits that were filed in federal court in Minnesota late Saturday, just hours after Pretti’s killing, as part of

Ukraine and Russia ended a second day of ‍US-brokered talks in Abu Dhabi on Saturday without a deal but with more talks expected next weekend, even as overnight Russian air strikes knocked out power for over a million Ukrainians amid sub-zero winter cold. Statements after the conclusion of the talks did not indicate that any agreements had been reached, but Moscow and Kyiv both said they were open to further dialogue. “The central focus of the discussions was the possible parameters for ending...

A US immigration officer shot and killed a man on Saturday in Minneapolis, drawing hundreds of protesters onto the frigid streets and ratcheting up tensions in a city already shaken by another fatal shooting weeks earlier. Family members identified the man who was killed as Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse who had protested against US President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown in his city. After the shooting, an angry crowd gathered and protesters clashed with federal...

Uganda’s opposition leader Bobi Wine’s wife was taken to hospital after soldiers invaded their residence, partially undressed and choked her, the couple said. Wine, a pop star-turned-politician, was not at the property and is in hiding after he escaped a previous raid on his home last week ⁠hours before he was announced as the runner-up in the January 15 presidential election. Incumbent ruler President Yoweri Museveni, 81, president since 1986, was declared winner of ‍the vote with 71.6 per cent...

US President Donald Trump escalated trade tensions with Canada, Washington’s closest ally and second-largest trading partner, on Saturday by threatening to impose 100 per cent tariffs on all Canadian goods entering the United States. Canada fired back quickly, stressing that there is no pursuit of a free-trade agreement with China, framing recent moves as steps to resolve tariff disputes and bolster the Canadian economy, which was “under threat from abroad”. In a series of social media posts,...

Spanish police on Saturday said they had freed 15 Chinese women forced into prostitution in “conditions of slavery” in Palma de Mallorca, the capital of the Balearic Islands, and arrested 14 people. The network profited not only from sexual exploitation but also from selling stimulants and drugs to clients. “The victims were kept in conditions of slavery; they had to be available at all times,” the national police said. Some of the women were already on the Spanish mainland or “had travelled...

Heavy snowfall and rain in Afghanistan have killed at least 61 people and injured 110 others, the country’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said on Saturday. Spokesman Mohammad Yousuf Hammad said 458 houses had been completely or partially destroyed over the past three days of severe weather, affecting at least 360 families. Losses of livestock were also reported. Hammad said the figures were preliminary, adding that assessment teams were continuing surveys in affected regions and...

Snow fell over parts of Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas on Friday in ‌a frosty prelude to a monster winter storm expected to converge with bitter Arctic cold and engulf much of the United States over the weekend from the Rockies to ‍the Eastern Seaboard. Forecasts called for heavy snow, sleet and freezing rain, accompanied by dangerously frigid temperatures, to sweep the eastern two-thirds of the nation, threatening to upend travel and spawn widespread power outages. At least 14 states and the...

Iran will treat any attack “as an all-out war against ‌us”, a senior Iranian official said on Friday, ahead of ‍the arrival of a US military aircraft carrier strike group and other assets in the Middle East in the coming days. “This military build-up – we hope it is not intended for real confrontation – but our military is ready for the worst-case scenario. This is why everything is on high alert in Iran,” said the senior Iranian official, speaking on condition of anonymity. “This time we will...

Some weighty themes were addressed at the World Economic Forum in Davos, from the apparent return of the Monroe Doctrine and US “manifest destiny” in geopolitics, to a replay of the 19th-century “Great Game” among competing nations elsewhere. But one critical issue that did not receive sufficient attention was the prospect of a global financial system crisis undermining such monumental assumptions. These annual gatherings of the supposedly great and good, from national leaders to business barons...

A 17-year-old in the US who expressed interest in joining the Islamic State (Isis) has pleaded guilty to trying to kill one New Jersey police officer and attacking backup police with a knife. Fasihullah Safar, of Alexandria, Virginia, would be sentenced as an adult on charges of attempted murder, aggravated assault, aggravated assault of a law enforcement officer and motor vehicle theft, Burlington County prosecutors said on Friday. Safar was initially charged as a juvenile before the case...

Russian attacks on Ukraine killed at least one person and wounded 31 overnight into Saturday as negotiators from Ukraine, Russia and the United States were to meet in the United Arab Emirates for a second day of talks to end Russia’s nearly four-year full-scale invasion. One person died and four were wounded in drone attacks on the capital, Kyiv, according to Kyiv City Military Administration head Tymur Tkachenko. In Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, drone attacks wounded 27 people, said...

Powdered whole milk used to make ByHeart infant formula could be a source of contamination that led to an outbreak of botulism that has sickened dozens of babies, according to US health officials. Testing by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) found the type of bacteria that could cause the illness in two samples linked to the formula, officials said on Friday. The agency found that bacteria in an unopened tin of formula matched a sample from a sick baby. It also matched contamination...

The US military said on Friday that it had carried out a deadly strike on a vessel accused of trafficking drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, the first known attack since the raid that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro earlier this month. US Southern Command said on social media that the boat was “engaged in narco-trafficking operations” and that the strike killed two people and left one survivor. It said it notified the coastguard to launch search and rescue operations for that...

The former bassist of the legendary German rock band Scorpions has died at the age of 71, his family said on Friday. “We received a message to this effect from his daughter,” Scorpions spokesman Peter Lanz said. The internationally successful band from the northern city of Hanover parted ways with Buchholz in 1992 after a dispute. Buchholz died of cancer on Thursday, according to a social media post signed by his family, who said he “departed this world peacefully and surrounded by love”. “Our...

Ukrainian and Russian negotiators met ‌in Abu Dhabi on Friday to tackle the vital issue of territory, with no sign of a compromise, as Russian air strikes plunged Ukraine into its worst ‍energy crisis of the nearly four-year war. Kyiv is under mounting US pressure to reach a peace deal in the war triggered by Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, with Moscow demanding Kyiv cede its entire eastern industrial area of Donbas before it stops fighting. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky...

Having studied and lived in North America in my youth and now middle age, one thing I have come to realise is that there is not one Canada but several, not one United States but many. Another is the contrasting national sentiments about equality – a fundamental Canadian value enshrined in its constitution – and inequality, which is not only tolerated or ignored but even celebrated in many powerful circles in the US, including the current White House. Canadians are generally proud of their...

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a phone call late on Thursday, during which both leaders stressed the need to defend the authority of the United Nations (UN) and to strengthen cooperation across the Global South, according to official readouts. The call, confirmed by both governments on Friday, took place amid heightened geopolitical tension that has strained the multilateral system and produced new frictions in Latin America and...

US President Donald Trump’s administration has pushed out a Commerce Department official whose office effectively barred ‍nearly all Chinese cars from the US market for national security reasons, according to people familiar with the matter. Elizabeth “Liz” Cannon has resigned as executive director for Information and Communications Technology and Services, an office created in 2022 to investigate threats to the supply chain from foreign adversaries, the people said. News of Cannon’s impending...

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer called US President Donald Trump’s comments about European troops staying off the front lines in Afghanistan ‍insulting and appalling, joining a chorus of criticism from other European officials and veterans. “I consider President Trump’s remarks to be insulting and frankly appalling, and I’m not surprised they’ve caused such hurt for the loved ones of those who were killed or injured,” Starmer told reporters. When asked whether he would demand an apology from...

Valentino, Italy’s haute couture “emperor”, was laid to rest in Rome on Friday, with the distinctive red ‌he championed in his collections echoed in splashes of crimson among the black-clad mourners. The biggest ‍names in fashion – including Donatella Versace, Tom Ford and Maria Grazia Chiuri – gathered in the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli, a church designed by Michelangelo and built on the ruins of ancient Roman baths. Valentino’s co-founder Giancarlo Giammetti, dressed ⁠in a sharply...

Ryan Wedding, a former Olympic snowboarder for Canada who was among the FBI’s top fugitives and faces charges related to multinational drug trafficking and the killing of a federal witness, was arrested on Friday, two people familiar with the matter told Associated Press. Wedding, 44, is accused of running a drug trafficking operation and officials say he orchestrated several killings to further the drug crimes. He was on the FBI’s 10 Most Wanted list and authorities had offered a US$15 million...

Israel wants to restrict the number of Palestinians entering ‌Gaza through the border crossing with Egypt to ensure that more are allowed out than in, three sources briefed on the matter ‍said ahead of the border’s expected opening next week. The head of a transitional Palestinian committee backed by the US to temporarily administer Gaza, Ali Shaath, announced on Thursday that the Rafah Border Crossing – effectively the sole route in or out of Gaza for nearly all of the more than 2 million...

Despite a slowing economy, recurring trade frictions and intensifying price competition, the value of China’s exports rose in 2025 by 6.1 per cent, year on year, to a record 26.98 trillion yuan (US$3.87 trillion) – cementing its position as the world’s largest trading nation. Behind that growth, China’s export machine is increasingly being shaped by coastal concentration and industrial upgrading, with market diversification cushioning external shocks at the cost of weaker prices and thinner...

An investigation into last weekend’s high-speed train collision in Spain that killed 45 people suggests the track was cracked before the catastrophe, according to a preliminary report published on Friday. The shell-shocked country is searching for answers to one of Europe’s deadliest such accidents this century, which has raised doubts about the safety of the world’s second-largest high-speed rail network. The disaster struck in the southern region of Andalusia on Sunday evening when a train run...

US President Donald Trump stole the show at the World Economic Forum in Davos, but he may have also made the annual gabfest of the global elite relevant again – at least for a week. The relevance of the gathering of CEOs and political leaders in the Swiss Alps is regularly questioned by critics who deride it as an out-of-touch echo chamber where little gets done. But all eyes were on this year’s Davos as Trump barrelled into town with a geopolitical storm hanging over the picturesque ski resort,...

A 5-year-old boy arriving home from preschool in Minnesota was taken by federal agents along with his father to a detention facility in Texas, school officials and the family’s lawyer said, making him the fourth student from his Minneapolis suburb to be detained by immigration officers in recent weeks. Federal agents took Liam Conejo Ramos from a running car in the family’s driveway Tuesday afternoon, Columbia Heights Public Schools Superintendent Zena Stenvik told reporters on Wednesday. The...

In a week marked by the first anniversary of Donald Trump’s second inauguration as US president and a Davos-based melodrama over his ambitions to own Greenland, it is perhaps timely to review this first year of Trump 2.0 and look into the second. First, one has to be in awe of the frenetic energy of Trump, who celebrates his 80th birthday in June. Whatever one makes of his meandering, insulting, overbearing and frequently inaccurate address in Davos, made right off his flights from Washington,...

The economic benefits of China’s abundant and cheap supply of electricity were recognised by US tech billionaire Elon Musk and other speakers at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday. As the United States and the European Union contemplate how to catch up, Tesla CEO Musk said the artificial intelligence (AI) industry was facing an energy bottleneck around the globe – with AI chips being produced rapidly and electricity output struggling to keep up – apart from the notable...

US President Donald Trump withdrew on Thursday an invitation for Canada to join ‌his Board of Peace initiative aimed at resolving global conflicts. Trump’s about-face follows Canadian Prime ‍Minister Mark Carney’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where he openly decried powerful nations using economic integration as weapons and tariffs as leverage. “Please let this Letter serve to represent that the Board of Peace is withdrawing its ⁠invitation to you regarding Canada’s joining, what...

Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the settlement in Ukraine with US President Donald Trump’s envoys during marathon overnight talks, and the Kremlin insisted that the territorial issue needs to be resolved to reach a peace deal. The Kremlin meeting, which lasted past 3am on Friday, came hours after Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky sharply criticised his European allies on Thursday for what he cast as their slow and fragmented response to Russia’s nearly four-year full-scale...

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. Baby bust: China births plunge 17% in 2025 to historic low as population shrinks China’s birth count plummeted to a record low last year, falling by about 10 million from its 2016 peak and slashing the total by more than half in less...

California Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday said he was not surprised the Trump administration blocked his appearance at the World Economic Forum in Switzerland the day before, saying it was another example of the US president trying to stifle dissent. “Is it surprising the Trump administration didn’t like my commentary and wanted to make sure that I was not allowed to speak? No,” said Newsom, who is weighing a 2028 presidential run. “It’s consistent with this administration and their...

US President Donald ‌Trump said on Thursday that the United States has an “armada” heading towards Iran but hoped he would not have to use it, as ‍he renewed warnings to Tehran against killing protesters or restarting its nuclear programme. US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, say the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and several guided-missile destroyers would arrive in the Middle East in the coming days. One official said additional air-defence systems were also being eyed for...

The recent drama surrounding US action in Venezuela, its renewed interest in Greenland and tariff threats on governments that object, along with comments on Cuba, Colombia and Mexico, appear disjointed – part diplomacy, part law enforcement, part political theatre. Like many observers, I rely on the news to try to make sense of the policy logic and what it may mean for those who have to live with its consequences. Washington’s rationale for its actions in Venezuela was initially framed as law...

Photographs of fresh bruising on Donald Trump’s hand raised eyebrows on Thursday, but the 79-year-old US president dismissed renewed speculation over his health, saying he had simply hit a table. Trump has been seen with frequent bruising on his right hand since returning to the White House last year, often concealing it with bandages and make-up. The White House has said it is due to a combination of frequent handshaking and the aspirin he takes for his cardiovascular health, which can lead to...

China will closely monitor developments in Greenland as it seeks to become an important player in Arctic affairs. Still, Beijing is unlikely to respond with any major action in the near future to counter US President Donald Trump’s bid to annex the island, analysts said. “The Arctic is certainly a central matter for policy for China, and they know it’s going to be important in the future, especially with climate change,” said Eurasia Group’s China practice head, David Meale. In his escalated...

One year after President Donald Trump ordered the US to withdraw from the World Health Organization, the process was formally completed on Thursday, though the nation is leaving behind unpaid debt of roughly US$260 million. All funding to the health agency has been terminated and people working with the WHO have been recalled from all offices and its headquarters, the Department of Health and Human Services said on Thursday. The US has also ended all participation in WHO-sponsored leadership...

The Trump administration is allowing ‌China to purchase Venezuelan oil but not at “unfair, undercut” prices at which ‍Caracas sold the crude before the US removed President Nicolas Maduro, a US official said on Thursday. While the oil will be sold in the global marketplace, the administration has required that the majority be ⁠sold to the United States, the administration official said on condition of anonymity. The US says it will control Venezuela’s oil sales indefinitely after seizing Maduro...

The United States’ abrupt withdrawal earlier this month from dozens of international institutions, including the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, was more than another episode of diplomatic retrenchment. It was a reminder that the post-war architecture of global governance, particularly in environmental affairs, is under strain. Against this backdrop, China’s decision to nominate Xiamen as the host city for the secretariat of the new High Seas Treaty should not be read as a quest for...

Look for the US and Canada to move farther apart on China policy, even in areas where they were previously aligned, analysts say, days after Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a multifaceted deal with Beijing. In recent years, Washington and Ottawa had drawn closer together when it came to dealing with Beijing, from electric vehicle tariffs and research security to investment screening. But that convergence is now fraying, analysts say, as Canada signals a greater willingness to...

President Jose Jeri of Peru has vowed not to resign despite rising pressure over a widening scandal involving undisclosed meetings with Chinese businessmen, as opposition lawmakers say the affair has damaged public trust and senior officials insist no illegal acts took place. The controversy, known in Peruvian media as “Chifagate”, a reference to Chinese-Peruvian cuisine, centres on late-night encounters at a Chinese restaurant and a wholesale shop in Lima. The meetings were not recorded on the...

US President Donald Trump has filed a US$5 billion lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase on accusations of debanking, according to a complaint posted ‌on the CNBC website. Trump said JPMorgan violated its own policies by singling him out, in a bid to ride ‍the “political tide”, and terminating several of his accounts. He said the bank “unabashedly” boasted for 225 years it served customers with respect, and worked diligently to uphold its core values. “Despite claiming to hold these principles dear,...

Greenland’s prime minister said on Thursday that he was not aware of the contents of a framework agreement about the Danish autonomous territory that US President Donald Trump announced after a meeting with Nato’s chief, but stressed no deal could be made without involving the island. “Nobody else than Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark have the mandate to make deals or agreements about Greenland and the Kingdom of Denmark without us,” Jens-Frederik Nielsen told a press conference. “We have...

After back-to-back fatal train crashes sent shock waves through Spain, some good news arrived on Thursday: Boro, the missing dog, was found. Days earlier, Boro’s owner Ana Garcia issued a desperate plea to help find him after the dog bolted on Sunday in the aftermath of the high-speed train crash in southern Spain that killed at least 43 people. Garcia, 26, and her pregnant sister were travelling with Boro on the train that derailed. On Thursday, forest firefighters in southern Spain found the...

New federal nutrition advice has caused some confusion and controversy.

The National Institutes of Health failed to protect brain scans that an international group of fringe researchers used to argue for the intellectual superiority of white people.

Alex Honnold, who climbed a 1,667-foot-tall skyscraper in Taiwan on Sunday, is one of a dozen or so known skyscraper climbers worldwide.

Minneapolis has made it plain.

Canada’s prime minister sees the president all too well.

In a debate, Jasmine Crockett and James Talarico differed in their political styles but agreed that violent immigration agents needed to be held to account.

She was known for her lavish parties and her marriage to one of the richest men in San Francisco. After he left her, she found a new purpose: visiting world leaders to plead for peace.

The number of applicants has risen more than 40 percent over the last two years, despite new limits on student loans and uncertainty over how artificial intelligence will affect legal work.