Economy |
Trump Announces US Steel–Nippon Partnership |
2025-05-25 |
[Epoch Times] President Donald Trump announced on May 23 that he has approved the "planned partnership" between U.S. Steel and Japan’s Nippon Steel, stating that the company will stay in Pittsburgh and is expected to create at least 70,000 jobs.![]() Nippon Steel, the world’s fourth-largest steelmaker, announced in December 2023 that it would purchase U.S. Steel for $14.9 billion in an all-cash agreement. A few months later, U.S. Steel shareholders approved the takeover bid. However, President Joe Biden opposed the deal, citing national security concerns. "U.S. Steel has been an iconic American company for more than a century, and it should remain totally American," Biden told union workers during a speech at the United Steelworkers headquarters in Pittsburgh on April 17, 2024. Ironic, Joe and Trump agreeing. Except Trump made something positive happen. In February, standing alongside Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Trump said Nippon Steel would "invest heavily in U.S. Steel, as opposed to [owning] it," and welcomed the proposed capital infusion. "Investment is mutually beneficial," Ishiba said during the joint press conference at the White House. "Japanese technology will be provided, and better quality products will be manufactured in the United States." |
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Home Front: Politix |
Trump Insists Next Chinese Pandemic Must Be Made In America |
2025-05-24 |
According to President Trump, Americans deserve more than "cheap, knock-off kung flu." As such, the president also vowed to bring virus-manufacturing jobs back from Wuhan to the United States. "Why import these viruses when we can make them right here at home?" Trump said in brief remarks to reporters. "Everybody complains to me about these sad, cheaply made Chinese global pandemics. They say, 'Don, when are you going to bring virus manufacturing back from China?' We're going to stop this virus deficit with China and prioritize American jobs by making sure that the next Chinese pandemic is made right here, by Americans. It'll be much better when it's made right here at home." Insiders said Trump intends to raise tariffs on Chinese pandemics by at least 47%. Trump also expressed confidence that the U.S. can produce a much better pandemic. "What are we doing outsourcing the creation of our pandemics to Chinese labs, anyway?" Trump continued. "The mortality rate for their virus was, what, two-point-something percent? We can do a lot better than that, believe me." Sources close to the trade negotiations said China had already pushed back on Trump's demand, vowing to increase pandemic production over the next year. At publishing time, Trump had reportedly told White House staff that the production of any upcoming pandemic would be subject to government efficiency standards put in place by DOGE. |
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Government Corruption |
The Ingraham Angle 5-23-25 - Segment starts at 46 minutes in - verbatim] |
2025-05-24 |
FoxNews Anchors Continue to Dance Around the Big "O" [The Ingraham Angle 5/23/25 — Segment starts at 46 minutes in - verbatim] Lisa Boothe anchors. A clip is shown of The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart [YouTube Podcast — Thursday 5/22/25 Entitled OBAMA BRO: I WANTED BIDEN TO WIN] Lisa: A former Obama aide was admitting why he wasn’t honest about Joe Biden’s mental decline. Aide: It was April and he was rambling and was hard to follow and repeated a story, but we were assured that he was just exhausted by the people around him. I remember feeling I want to talk about this as a hugh liability, I want to talk something that Joe Biden can overcome. But I think that Joe Biden must drop out — he’s too old to be President, but I don’t know exactly what was going on behind the scenes. If Joe biden is the candidate, I want him to f__ g win! Because I care about the country. Lisa then interviews Jason Rantz, the Auto Radio(?) host and Terry Schilling, the President of some organization. Jason: They lie about Donald Trump so he loses. They will say and do anything if it satisfies some sort of political agena of theirs. I think you’ve got the point here. I wonder who writes this guy’s speeches. [Related: Rantburg 2025-05-21, see comment #5] https://rantburg.com/poparticle.php?D=05/21/2025&SO=&HC=4&ID=760913 |
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Home Front: Politix |
Voice of America layoffs to result in dozens of deportations |
2025-05-24 |
[TheDesk] Many independent contractors laid off by the broadcaster last week hold work visas that require continued employment to stay in the United States. Dozens of independent contractors who were laid off at the Voice of America (VOA) last week are likely to be deported within the next month as a result of their job losses, The Desk has learned. The contractors — around 60 in total — participate in the Exchange Visitor Program, which entitles them to J-1 visas to live and work in the United States as long as they are engaged in certain roles, including the production and distribution of journalism. The workers were among more than 500 whose contracts were terminated last week by the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the parent organization of VOA. The layoffs come about two months after President Donald Trump ![]() signed an Executive Order that required USAGM and six other agencies to significantly reduce their operations and fire employees accordingly. More than 1,000 VOA workers were laid off and hundreds of contracts were temporarily suspended, triggering legal challenges across the board. Those challenges have resulted in favorable decision by lower courts, some of which have been partially reversed by appellate judges. Earlier this month, USAGM special advisor Kari Lake said the agency intends to partner with right-of-center news broadcaster One America News (OAN), which will license news packages that VOA can use on its radio and TV networks and digital platforms. So far, VOA has yet to broadcast or publish any OAN material, but the partnership served as a partial catalyst toward the independent contractor layoffs last week. The 60 visa holders are required to maintain employment as part of their ongoing participation in the J-1 program. Their status remains in limbo after VOA ended their contract employment last week. Without new employment, many face the likelihood of having their work permits revoked, which would lead to deportations. In a note circulated to employees last Thursday, VOA Director Michael Abramowitz said he was "heartbroken to learn about today’s mass terminations of personal service contractors [PSCs] working for Voice of America." "PSCs have been a critical part of VOA’s mission, and they have made enormous contributions to VOA’s important work," Abramowitz wrote. "Some of VOA’s most talented journalists have been PSCs — many of whom have escaped tyranny in their home countries to tell America’s story of freedom and democracy. Many have served VOA’s viewers and listeners for years and are deeply versed in the markets in which VOA broadcasts." Abramowitz called the firings "inexplicable, and, to my knowledge, no rationale has been provided by USAGM for this decision." "We will continue to make efforts to help individual PSCs, especially those who face possible return to hostile countries, in any and every way we can during this difficult time. This remains among my most important priorities, and I hope it will be a priority for USAGM as well," he affirmed. Related: Voice of America: 2025-04-23 Court orders Trump to restore funding to Voice of America Voice of America: 2025-04-06 DOGE arrives at Peace Corps HQ, signaling possible cuts on the horizon Voice of America: 2025-03-25 'Brainwash like Hitler.' How American 'Freedom' Began Related: Kari Lake 04/23/2025 Court orders Trump to restore funding to Voice of America Kari Lake 03/16/2025 Trump admin axes US-funded media in shock move Kari Lake 01/30/2025 Senate easily confirms ex-LI Rep. Lee Zeldin as Trump''s EPA chief Related: Michael Abramowitz 10/18/2009 Obama Drops Plan to Isolate Sudan Leaders Michael Abramowitz 02/03/2007 'Democrat Party' Is A GOP Slur, A Smear, 'Jarring Verging On Ugly' Michael Abramowitz 12/20/2006 Bush faces off with 3 WaPo Hitmen |
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Home Front: Politix | ||||
Trump orders huge purge at crucial agency [NSC] that's pivotal for Americans' safety | ||||
2025-05-24 | ||||
The move will see the ouster of some political appointees and return many career government employees back to their home agencies. The number of staff at the NSC is expected to be significantly reduced, according to the officials, who requested anonymity to discuss the sensitive personnel matter. CNN reported over 100 employees are going to be given a pink slip in the mass reshuffle. The shakeup is just the latest shoe to drop at the NSC, which is being made over after the ouster early this month of Mike Waltz over the SignalGate scandal. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been serving as national security adviser since the ouster of Waltz, who was nominated to serve as Trump's UN ambassador. The move is expected to elevate the importance of the State Department and Pentagon in advising Trump on important foreign policy decisions. The NSC, created during the Truman administration, is an arm of the White House tasked with advising and assisting the president on national security and foreign policy and coordinating among various government agencies. Trump was frustrated in his first term by political appointees and advisers who he felt gummed up his 'America First' agenda. There were roughly 395 people working at the NSC, including about 180 support staff, according to one official. About 90 to 95 of those being ousted are policy or subject matter experts seconded from other government agencies. They will be given an opportunity to return to their home agencies.
Waltz was ousted weeks after Trump fired several NSC officials, just a day after the influential far-right activist Laura Loomer raised concerns directly to him about staff loyalty. Loomer told journalist Tara Palmeri earlier this month that she had sounded the alarm about Waltz's anti-Trump past and claimed he hadn't vetted his staff to weed out liberals. Waltz has been a lightning rod for controversy in the still-nascent second Trump administration. He has been to blame for accidentally leaking military plans to the press via an unfortunate Signal group chat. And the White House, days into the administration, sidelined about 160 NSC aides, sending them home while the administration reviewed staffing and tried to align it with Trump´s agenda. The aides were career government employees, commonly referred to as detailees. This latest shakeup amounts to a 'liquidation' of NSC staffing with both career government detailees on assignment to the NSC being sent back to their home agencies and several political appointees being pushed out of their positions, according to the person familiar with the decision. It wasn´t just Loomer who viewed Waltz suspiciously. He was viewed with a measure of skepticism by some in the MAGA world who saw the former Army Green Beret and three-term congressman as too tied to Washington's foreign policy establishment. On Russia, Waltz shared Trump´s concerns about the high price tag of extensive U.S. military aid to Ukraine. But Waltz also advocated for further diplomatically isolating President Vladimir Putin - a position that was out of step with Trump, who has viewed the Russian leader, at moments, with admiration for his cunning in dealings with Trump´s predecessors. His more hawkish rhetoric on Iran and China, including U.S. policy toward Taiwan, seemed increasingly out of step with Trump. Before getting rid of Waltz, the president fired several members of his National Security Council team. The individuals fired were Brian Walsh, Thomas Boodry and David Feith. The president - setting aside belligerent rhetoric about taking over Greenland from Denmark - has tilted more toward military restraint and diplomacy in facing some of the United States' most challenging issues with adversaries.
Related: National Security Council: 2025-05-21 New US intel suggests Israel readying to strike Iranian nuclear facilities; crude oil prices up on rumour National Security Council: 2025-05-19 Likud coalition backs bill to label Qatar ‘terror-supporting,’ amid hostage talks in Doha National Security Council: 2025-05-13 Trump Tower Damascus? Syria seeks to charm US president for sanctions relief | ||||
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Africa Subsaharan |
Biden-era reports, genocide group confirm Trump's human rights fears for South African farmers |
2025-05-24 |
[JustTheNews] Trump's video evidence of hate directed at Afrikaners met with quibbles about what genocide means. The tit-for-tat battle the news media has waged against President Donald Trump over his administration's South African refugee policy is masking a harsh reality: that the country's farmers do in fact face a crisis of violence. Even Biden-era government reports and genocide watch group have raised flags, mostly being ignored until now. The only question is whether race or greed is the motive for the crimes. “We have many people that feel they’re being persecuted, and they’re coming to the United States,” Trump said in the Oval Office meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Wednesday. “People are fleeing South Africa for their own safety. Their land is being confiscated, and in many cases, they’re being killed.” The problems that President Trump identified in his meeting with the South African president, from rural violence that affects white South Africans—known as Afrikaners or Boers—to a legal regime promoting race-based property seizures, are certainly real—but debate rages about whether it rises to the level of “genocide.” A BACKGROUND OF VIOLENCE A Biden-era State Department report on human rights conditions in South Africa cited data from a “civil society organization” that in 2021 and 2022 there were 748 total farm attacks and more than 100 killings targeting white South Africans. The report noted, however, though some advocacy groups asserted that white farmers were targeted for burglaries, home invasions, and killings because of their race, it is unclear whether the attacks are actually just part of South Africa’s exorbitant crime rate. The country is the most violent in Africa, boasting the world’s third-highest murder rate (according to 2023 data), leading many observers to suggest that the violence experienced by white South African farmers does not meet the traditional definitions of a genocide. Adding to defining the problem as everyday murder, “South Africa has one of the highest crime rates in the world. Its murder rate of 34 per 100,000 population, tenth in the world, is exceeded only by the narco-states of Central and South America. It has, by far, the highest murder rate in Africa,” Genocide Watch, a Washington-based organization founded by former State Department employee Gregory Stanton, wrote in a country report. “If the state's first duty is to provide personal security to its people, South Africa is a failed state,” the group wrote. Genocide Watch specifically cites a failure to prosecute murderers who targeted white farmers, which it says contributes to a culture of impunity as the general murder rate remains high. President Trump on Wednesday suggested the attacks were part of a “genocide” specifically targeting white South Africans, specifically forcing the unsuspecting South African president to watch videos showing calls from radical communist politician Julius Malema to “Shoot the Boers.” Malema was previously convicted under the country’s hate speech laws in 2011 for singing a song by that title, popularized deputy minister in Nelson Mandela’s government in the 1990s. Genocide Watch agrees that Malema and his Marxist Economic Freedom Front party “encourages these murders, which are meant to terrorize farmers into emigrating from South Africa” and noted “White farmers are defenseless because South Africa outlawed private gun possession and disbanded the mutual protection cooperatives.” Though Afrikaners make up roughly 8% of the population, they are the victims of only 2% of murders, veteran South Africa reporter Geof Hill reported in 2023. And, the problem may be even worse in urban areas—four of South Africa’s cities of over 300,000 people are among the world’s 50 most dangerous cities. LEGACY MEDIA CALLS THE RAMPAGE "INACCURATE" Trump's opponents largely reacted by challenging the existence of the attacks despite the videos. Instead, the headlines blared that South African President Cyril Ramaphosa was "ambushed" by Trump's video exposition, and then turned to denying the underlying facts that Trump's videos presented. |
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Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
Ukraine and Russia take part in biggest prisoner swap since 2022 invasion |
2025-05-24 |
[BBC] Russia and Ukraine have each handed over 390 soldiers and civilians in the biggest prisoner exchange since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022. They both returned 270 servicemen and 120 civilians on the Ukrainian border with Belarus, as part of the only deal agreed in direct talks in Istanbul a week ago. Both sides had agreed to an exchange of 1,000 prisoners and confirmed there would be further swaps in the coming days. Although there have been dozens of smaller-scale exchanges, no other handover has involved as many civilians. The Russian defence ministry said servicemen and civilians, including those captured by Ukrainian forces in Russia's Kursk border region during Kyiv's offensive in recent months, were among those handed over. They were currently on Belarusian territory and were to be taken to Russia for medical checks and treatment, the ministry said. "We are bringing our people home," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on social media. "We are verifying every surname, every detail about each person." Ukraine's co-ordination headquarters for prisoners of war said the 270 Ukrainian servicemen had fought in regions across the east and north, from Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy to Donetsk, Kharkiv and Kherson. Three of the 390 released on Friday were women, officials said, and some of the soldiers had been held since 2022. US President Donald Trump earlier posted his congratulations on his Truth Social platform, claiming that the swap was complete and that "this could lead to something big???". |
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Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
Iran-backed Palestinian terror groups said to leave Syria under pressure from Sharaa |
2025-05-24 |
[IsraelTimes] Flight of pro-Assad factions comes amid Trump’s demand that the new regime crack down on Palestinian terrorism as a condition for sanctions relief Leaders of Iran-backed Paleostinian terror groups in Syria close to former president Bashir Pencilneckal-Assad Leveler of Latakia... have left the country under pressure from the regime of Ahmed al-Sharaa, who led the ouster of the Iran-backed strongman in December, Paleostinian sources said Friday. The armed factions’ flight comes amid a White House demand that Sharaa crack down on Paleostinian terror groups as a condition for the removal of Washington’s sanctions on Damascus. There have also been unconfirmed reports that Syria’s new regime has held indirect talks with Israel on potential normalization between the two countries, despite Israeli leaders’ deep suspicion of Sharaa due to his jihadi past. The crackdown did not appear to affect the Syrian presence of Gazoo ...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppressionand disproportionate response... -based Hamas ..one of the armed feet of the Moslem Brüderbund millipede,... , which is also backed by Iran, nor that of Fatah, the secularist faction that dominates the West Bank-based Paleostinian Authority. The leader of one Iran-backed Paleostinian group, who left Syria after Assad’s overthrow, said on condition of anonymity that "most of the Paleostinian factional leadership that received support from Tehran has left Damascus" to countries including Leb ...an Iranian satrapy until recently ruled by Hassan Nasrallah situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel... . Another faction leader still in Damascus confirmed the development. The first faction leader said "the factions have fully handed over weapons in their headquarters or with their cadres" to the authorities, who also received "lists of names of faction members possessing individual weapons" and demanded that those arms be handed over. A third Paleostinian faction source in Damascus said that after Assad’s overthrow, "we gathered our members’ weapons ourselves and handed them over, but we have kept individual light weapons for protection... with the [authorities’] authorization." In Yarmouk, a Paleostinian refugee camp in the Damascus suburbs that was devastated during Syria’s civil war, factional banners usually displayed at the entrance were gone and party buildings were closed and unguarded, AFP photographers said. Factional premises elsewhere in Damascus also appeared closed. Many Paleostinians fled to Syria in 1948 following the creation of Israel, and from the mid-1960s Syria began hosting the leadership of armed Paleostinian factions. Iran-backed Paleostinian groups enjoyed considerable freedom of movement under Assad. Washington, which designates some of the factions as terrorist organizations, last week announced it was lifting sanctions on Syria. The White House had earlier said the new Syrian regime would have to comply with demands, including suppressing terrorism and preventing "Iran ...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneouslytaking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militiasto extend the regime's influence. The word Iranis a cognate form of Aryan.The abbreviation IRGCis the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA).The term Supreme Guideis a the modern version form of either Duceor Führeror maybe both. They hate and its proxies from exploiting Syrian territory." According to the White House, during a meeting in Saudi Arabia ![]() last week, US President Donald Trump ...Never got invited to a P.Diddy party... gave Sharaa a list of demands that included deporting "Paleostinian terrorists." The Iran-backed Paleostinian factions in Syria, along with other terror groups from Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen ...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of... , are part of Iran’s so-called Axis of Resistance®, which is openly committed to Israel’s destruction. Some Axis members fought alongside Assad’s forces when civil war erupted in Syria in 2011. In neighboring Lebanon, a government official told AFP that the disarmament of Paleostinian camps, where factions usually handle security, would begin next month based on an accord with visiting Paleostinian Authority President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ...aka Abu Mazen, a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial. While no Yasser Arafat, he has his own brand of evil, just a little more lowercase.... ’UNWELCOME’ The Iran-backed Paleostinian groups in Syria "did not receive any official request from the authorities to leave Syrian territory" but instead faced restrictions, the first faction leader told AFP. Some factions "were de facto prohibited from operating," or their members were arrested, he said, adding that the new authorities have seized property from "private homes, offices, vehicles and military training camps in the Damascus countryside and other provinces." Syrian authorities did not immediately provide a comment to AFP when asked about the matter. Earlier this month, officials from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Paleostine-General Command (PFLP-GC) said Syrian authorities briefly detained factional chief Talal Naji. In April, Islamic Jihad ...created after many members of the Egyptian Moslem Brotherhood decided the organization was becoming too moderate. Operations were conducted out of Egypt until 1981 when the group was exiled after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. They worked out of Gaza until they were exiled to Lebanon in 1987, where they clove tightly to Hezbollah. In 1989 they moved to Damascus, where they remain a subsidiary of Hezbollah... said Syrian official Khaled Khaled and organizing committee member Yasser al-Zafri were tossed into the calaboose "without explanation." A source from the group told AFP on Friday that they were still detained. The second Paleostinian faction leader, from a group that has remained in Damascus with limited representation, said there was "no cooperation between most of the Paleostinian factions and the new Syrian administration." "The response to our contact is mostly cold or delayed. We feel like unwelcome guests, though they don’t say that clearly," he added, also requesting anonymity. A Hamas official in Gaza told AFP that it had "channels of communication with our brothers in Syria." Hamas has minimal representation in Syria, having left the country after the civil war there began. Hamas’s ties with the Assad regime had deteriorated amid the terror group’s support for opposition demands. Yarmouk camp resident Marwan Mnawar, a retiree, said that "nobody knows what happened to the factional leadership," adding that "people just want to live, they are exhausted" by the conflict and factional infighting. |
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Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
After 5th round of nuclear talks, Iran says discussions with US ‘complicated’ |
2025-05-24 |
[IsraelTimes] Oman’s FM says ‘some but not conclusive progress’ made in negotiations Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Friday that Tehran’s discussions with the United States over its nuclear program were "complicated," as the fifth round of talks concluded in Rome. "The negotiations are too complicated to be resolved in two or three meetings," said Araghchi, who leads the Iranian negotiating team in the talks mediated by Oman. Araghchi said there was potential for progress in nuclear negotiations after Oman made several proposals. Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi said "some but not conclusive progress" was made. "We hope to clarify the remaining issues in the coming days to allow us to proceed toward the common goal of reaching a sustainable and honorable agreement." The talks, which began in April, are the highest-level contact between the foes since the United States quit a landmark 2015 nuclear accord during President Donald Trump ...The tack in the backside of the Democratic Party... ’s first term. Since returning to office, Trump has revived his "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran, backing talks but warning of military action if diplomacy fails. Iran ...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneouslytaking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militiasto extend the regime's influence. The word Iranis a cognate form of Aryan.The abbreviation IRGCis the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA).The term Supreme Guideis a the modern version form of either Duceor Führeror maybe both. They hate wants a new deal that would ease the sanctions, which have battered its economy. The fourth round of talks, in the Omani capital Muscat, ended with a public spat over enrichment. Witkoff said Washington "could not authorize even one percent" enrichment — a position Tehran called a red line, citing its rights under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Ahead of Friday’s talks, Araghchi said "fundamental differences" remained with the United States, while adding that Tehran was open to its nuclear sites undergoing more inspections. "We will not have an agreement at all" if the United States wants to prevent Iran from enriching uranium, he said. The talks came ahead of a June meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog, the Vienna-based ineffective International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and the October expiry of the 2015 accord. The deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, aimed to allay Western suspicions that Iran was seeking a nuclear weapons capability, an ambition that Tehran has denied, while enriching uranium to levels that have no civilian application. In return for curbs on its nuclear program, Iran had received relief from international sanctions. But the accord was torpedoed in 2018 when Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States and reimposed sanctions. Iran responded by ramping up its nuclear activities. It is now enriching uranium to 60 percent — far above the deal’s 3.67 percent cap but below, though close to, the 90 percent level needed for a nuclear warhead. Analysts in Tehran said Iran was unlikely to back down. "It’s quite simple; if the US expects Iran to halt nuclear enrichment, then there can’t be a deal," said Mohammad Marandi, a political scientist who was once an adviser on the nuclear issue. The Atomic Energy Organization of Iran says the country’s nuclear industry employs 17,000 people, similar to other countries where uranium is enriched for civilian use. "The Netherlands, Belgium, South Korea, Brazil and Japan enrich without possessing nuclear weapons," its front man Behrouz Kamalvandi said. Iran’s enmity with Israel, whose main backer is the United States, has been a constant backdrop to the talks. In a letter to the United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... , Araghchi wrote: "We believe that in the event of any attack on the nuclear facilities of the Islamic Theocratic Republicof Iran by the Zionist regime, the US government will also be involved and bear legal responsibility." The warning came after CNN ...formerly the Cable News Network, now who know what it might stand for... , citing unnamed US officials, reported Israel was making preparations to carry out such a strike. The White House said Trump had a "productive discussion" with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday about Iran and the fatal shooting of two Israeli embassy staff in Washington. Friday’s talks took place before an IAEA Board of Governors meeting in Vienna in June, during which Iran’s nuclear activities will be reviewed. The 2015 deal provides for the possibility of UN sanctions being reimposed through a mechanism called "snapback" if Iran fails to fulfil its commitments. The agreement’s three European parties — Britannia, La Belle France and Germany — have warned they will trigger the mechanism if the continent’s security is threatened. Araghchi said such a move would have "consequences — not only the end of Europe’s role in the agreement, but also an escalation of tensions that could become irreversible." Mosssd ![]() chief David Barnea and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer met US negotiator Steve Witkoff in Rome on Friday on the talks’ sidelines. Trump has repeatedly threatened to unleash ... KABOOM!... s targeting Iran’s program if a deal isn’t reached. Iranian officials increasingly warn they could pursue a nuclear weapon if the nation is threatened. "Iran almost certainly is not producing nuclear weapons, but Iran has undertaken activities in recent years that better position it to produce them, if it chooses to do so," a new report from the US Defense Intelligence Agency said. "These actions reduce the time required to produce sufficient weapons-grade uranium for a first nuclear device to probably less than one week." However, corruption finds a dozen alibis for its evil deeds... it likely still would take Iran months to make a working bomb, experts say. Asked about the negotiations, US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said "we believe that we are going to succeed" in the talks and in Washington’s push for no enrichment. "The Iranians are at that table, so they also understand what our position is, and they continue to go," Bruce said Thursday. One idea floated so far that might allow Iran to stop enrichment within the country but maintain a supply of uranium could be a consortium in the Mideast backed by regional countries and the US. There are also multiple countries offering low-enriched uranium that can be used for peaceful purposes by countries. However, corruption finds a dozen alibis for its evil deeds... Iran’s Foreign Ministry has maintained that enrichment must continue within the country’s borders, and a similar fuel-swap proposal failed to gain traction in negotiations in 2010. Related: Negotiations 05/22/2025 Israel said readying to quickly strike Iranian nuclear sites if US-Iran talks collapse Negotiations 05/22/2025 Israel, Turkey said to agree to prevent clashes in Syria, establish hotline Negotiations 05/22/2025 Columbia U president backs international students amid protests at commencement |
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Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
Katz Offers a Fight: Swinger Spies Tried to Kill Israeli Hawk |
2025-05-24 |
Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Leonid Tsukanov [REGNUM] Spy scandals in Israel have reached a new level: Israel Katz, the head of the Israeli Defense Ministry and one of the close associates of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is in the crosshairs of Iranian intelligence. ![]() The Israelis have uncovered an assassination attempt on Katz and are certain that its goal was to disrupt the operation to destroy the Iranian nuclear arsenal. However, the desire to emphasize the “Iranian trace” in the spy story rather suggests the opposite: Tel Aviv is desperately looking for a reason to disrupt negotiations between Tehran and Washington, and at the same time justify its own operations against Iran. CONSPIRATORIAL FRIENDS The main defendant in the case is considered to be Roy Mizrahi, a 24-year-old computer science student at the Technion, one of the oldest and leading engineering schools in the country. Mizrahi is known to have fallen into a honey trap and was recruited by Iranian operatives through the Haifa swingers' community he belonged to. Moreover, by the time of the meeting with the Iranians, the suspect had accumulated a lot of debt due to his passion for card games, which gave Tehran's special services another lever of influence. The young programmer found himself firmly entangled in a spy network. At first, he was entrusted with simple tasks: distributing propaganda materials and collecting information about the mood of Israeli youth. However, a little later they decided to use his computer engineer skills to his advantage. On the orders of the Iranians, Mizrahi installed a live camera near the Haifa port and gave access to it to his handlers. According to some reports, he also participated in organizing small DDoS attacks on city institutions several times. A few weeks later, when the new agent's loyalty was no longer in doubt, Mizrahi helped the Iranians expand their spy network by recruiting his friend Almog Atias. He worked as a driver-forwarder and was known as a gambling addict, and therefore needed money. To "deepen the acquaintance" the Iranians gave him a "starting allowance" of $300. At that time, Iranian intelligence apparently decided to entrust a promising agent with a truly big task. OPERATION HAWK The plotters were ordered to eliminate Israeli cabinet member Israel Katz. Since becoming defense minister in the fall of 2024, he has become one of the most ardent "hawks" in the coalition government and a lobbyist for a preemptive strike on Iran's nuclear infrastructure. His elimination was entirely in Tehran's national security interests. A few days after learning about the plan, the newly formed team was transferred to the south of the country, to the community of Kfar Ahim, where Katz lived permanently. There they were supposed to install a surveillance camera, ensuring constant monitoring of the minister's home. However, the appearance of a police patrol ruined their plans. Fearing surveillance, the conspirators destroyed the camera and switched to a backup plan: an attack on the ministerial motorcade. For this purpose, a rifle and a pistol with silencers were purchased on the black market, as well as several homemade bombs. Also, according to testimony, the accused tried to bribe the driver and security guard of the Minister of Defense in order to take his car away from crowded streets and eliminate strong resistance during the assassination attempt. The plan was to eliminate Katz on the eve of the country's Independence Day (from April 30 to May 1), turning the assassination attempt into a political manifesto and "revenge for the bloody operation" in the Gaza Strip. However, as further investigation showed, neither Mizrahi nor Atias shared the idea of Palestinian independence and voiced this version during interrogations only in the hope of creating international publicity. Be that as it may, they failed to carry out their plan: a few days before the alleged assassination attempt, both were arrested. The Israeli intelligence services did not make a fuss and preferred to first look for other leads in the Iranian network. Especially since the agents who were arrested began to give each other up, telling about caches of money, ammunition and special equipment. Subsequently, in the wake of the “Mizrahi-Atias affair,” several more investigations with a “Persian flair” were initiated, but Israeli operatives were never able to generalize them and discover a single spy network. OCTOPUS HEAD The Minister of Defense, by all appearances, took the news of the assassination attempt philosophically. His statements, made after the arrest of the conspirators (who were not yet officially known at the time), not only did not become more restrained, but, on the contrary, acquired a more militant tone. Among other things, Katz declared a vendetta against the leaders of the Yemeni Houthis and promised to destroy the leadership of Hamas and Hezbollah. He used the news of the foiled plot, announced by counterintelligence, as a basis for attacks on Iran. In particular, he called Tehran “the head of a terrorist octopus” and reaffirmed his commitment to “preventing at any cost” the Iranians from acquiring nuclear weapons. It is noteworthy that the Israeli minister announced his readiness to fight on the eve of a new round of Iranian-American negotiations on peaceful nuclear energy. Katz and his entourage have been pressing the White House for months to give the green light to an air operation against the opponent's nuclear facilities before the window of opportunity due to Iran's weakened air defenses closes completely. Washington is slow and trying to keep interaction with Tehran on a diplomatic track. As a gesture of goodwill, the United States even withdrew some of the strategic bombers from the Diego Garcia base in the Indian Ocean that were transferred there in March 2025, and also agreed to a ceasefire with the Yemeni Houthis. The easing of tensions between Washington and Tehran is weakening Tel Aviv's pressure. That is why Israeli military hawks led by Katz are desperately trying to use the "Mizrahi-Atias affair" as an argument to justify further confrontation. EASTERN HINTS The wave of criticism provoked by this spy story, at first glance, passed by the Iranians. Tehran had not reacted too violently to scandals with agents attributed to it before, and after the number of those arrested in spy cases exceeded fifteen, it began to essentially ignore the accusations of Tel Aviv. At the same time, Katz’s speech with promises to respond to Tehran’s actions at any cost received a comprehensive response. Official releases appeared (within a few hours of each other) on the websites of the Iranian Foreign Ministry, parliament and government; comments were given by high-ranking officers of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and intelligence officials. True, none of the agencies focused on the “Mizrahi-Atias affair,” limiting criticism to the inadmissibility of threats to Iran’s nuclear infrastructure. The Iranian position was summed up by the country's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. In one of his appeals to believers, he dressed up criticism of Israel in a religious story, emphasizing that "the one who constantly deceives will eventually become a victim of deception." Thus, he pointed out that in the event of aggression against Iran, it would be too naive for Tel Aviv to count on unconditional military support from the United States. Especially in light of Donald Trump’s desire to “castle” in the Middle East and focus on supporting Arabian allies rather than Israel. In general, the Iranian side made it clear to its opponents that Tel Aviv's speculations around spy stories do not frighten them and that Tehran is prepared to take a hit. In contrast, the Iranians put forward their own question: is Israel ready to face them one-on-one if something happens? And, apparently, official Tel Aviv does not yet have a clear answer to it. Related: Israel Katz 05/21/2025 Two Israelis suspected of collecting intel for Iran near defense minister’s home Israel Katz 05/19/2025 Security cabinet approves plan for high-tech security barrier along Jordanian border Israel Katz 05/18/2025 Israel, Hamas say hostage-ceasefire talks renewed after IDF initiates major new offensive |
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Home Front: Politix | |
Judge blocks Trump admin from revoking Harvard enrollment of foreign students | |
2025-05-24 | |
[GEO.TV] A US judge on Friday blocked the Trump administration from revoking Harvard University's ability to enroll foreign students, a move that ratcheted up White House efforts to conform practices in academia to President Donald Trump![]() 's policies. US District Judge Allison Burroughs' order provides temporary relief to the thousands of international students who were faced with being forced to transfer under a policy that the Ivy League school called part of the administration's broader effort to retaliate against it for refusing to "surrender its academic independence." The Trump administration may appeal Burroughs' ruling. Spokespeople for the Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In a lawsuit filed in Boston federal court earlier on Friday, Harvard called the revocation a "blatant violation" of the US Constitution and other federal laws, and had an "immediate and devastating effect" on the university and more than 7,000 visa holders. "Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard," the 389-year-old school said in the lawsuit filed in Boston federal court.
The termination of Harvard's Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification, effective with the 2025-2026 academic year, was announced on Thursday by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Related: Allison Burrough 05/14/2025 Harvard expands lawsuit after Trump terminates another $450 million in grants Allison Burrough 02/05/2023 Kenyan citizen among those sentence in US for 7 years in jail in a love scandal case | |
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Economy |
Trump threatens 25% tariff on iPhones, 50% tariff on EU goods amid trade tensions |
2025-05-24 |
[FoxBusiness] President Donald Trump is demanding that iPhone production takes place in America and accuses European Union of $250B trade deficit President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to impose fresh tariffs on both Apple and the European Union, saying that the iPhone manufacturer and the trading bloc have not heeded to his previous demands. In two quick-fire posts on Truth Social, Trump warned he would slap a 25% tariff on imported iPhones if Apple refuses to make the smartphones in the U.S. The move comes after Trump met with Apple CEO Tim Cook at the White House on Wednesday, Fox confirmed. Trump also threatened the EU with a straight 50% tariff, writing that the bloc has been very difficult to deal with in trade negotiations. "I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhones that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else," Trump wrote. "If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the U.S. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" Bringing back manufacturing jobs to the U.S. is a cornerstone of Trump’s "America First" agenda, with Trump also calling out Cook last week in Qatar, saying that he had a "little problem" with the tech giant using facilities in India to make iPhones for sale in the U.S. Apple has been turning to India for more future production of phones destined for the American market to try to reduce its dependence on China for manufacturing and deal with tariffs, according to Bloomberg. Meanwhile, Trump accused the EU of exploiting the U.S. through trade barriers, taxes, penalties and lawsuits. He said the U.S. has a trade deficit of more than $250 billion and that current trade negotiations are "going nowhere." Trump is proposing a 50% tariff on all EU goods starting June 1, unless they are made in the U.S. "The European Union, which was formed for the primary purpose of taking advantage of the United States on TRADE, has been very difficult to deal with," Trump wrote. "Their powerful trade barriers, vat taxes, ridiculous corporate penalties, non-monetary trade barriers, monetary manipulations, unfair and unjustified lawsuits against American companies, and more, have led to a trade deficit with the U.S. of more than $250,000,000 a year, a number which is totally unacceptable. "There is no tariff if the product is built or manufactured in the United States. Thank you for your attention to this matter!" |
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