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    Trump has pulled back from the brink on Iran – for now | Mohamad Bazzi

    When he returned to power last year, Trump was eager to negotiate a new deal with Tehran, but a diplomatic breakthrough has been elusiveWill Donald Trump order a US military attack on Iran? That question captivated the world for the past two weeks, as the US president issued bellicose threats warning the Iranian regime not to crack down on nationwide protests demanding economic and social reforms. On Tuesday, as he was scheduled to be briefed by Pentagon officials on various options for a strike, Trump posted a message on social media urging Iranians to continue their demonstrations and take over government institutions. The president signaled that he was leaning toward ordering an attack, telling protesters that “help is on its way”.But by Wednesday, Trump pulled back from the brink of a military intervention, saying he had received assurances from “very important sources” that Iran had stopped killing protesters and was not moving forward with executions. A group of US allies in the Middle East – including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman and Turkey – seem to have succeeded in a last-ditch effort to convince Trump not to launch airstrikes against Tehran, warning it could unleash a wider conflict in the region. While many Sunni-led Arab states resent Shia Iran’s influence in the Arab world, they are also worried about retaliatory attacks by Iran and its allies, an influx of refugees and a civil war that could lead to the collapse of the Iranian state. Continue reading… More

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    They couldn’t ‘Abolish ICE’ in Trump’s first term. Now more Americans are taking up the call

    To longtime immigrant rights activists, the reckoning around the fatal shooting in Minnesota may feel familiarUS citizens and permanent residents: have you been racially profiled by ICE?As mass protests erupted over the past week after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent killed Renee Nicole Good, thousands of Americans hoisted signs and marched to thunderous chants of “abolish ICE”.The mantra has quickly captured the bursting anger and grief of a nation; activists and progressive lawmakers like the representative Ayanna Pressley, and even the conservative commentator Bill Kristol have embraced the demand. Shri Thanedar, a Democratic representative from Michigan, said he planned to introduce the “Abolish ICE act”, a bill that would dismantle the federal agency and its current enforcement authority. For the first time, more US adults now support eliminating ICE than those who oppose it, according to a new Economist/YouGov poll. Continue reading… More

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    ‘I couldn’t save my husband’: the Minnesota families ripped apart by ICE

    Family members left stunned and bereft after their loved ones were spirited away by federal immigration agentsPeople in Minneapolis and St Paul: what is life like in the Twin Cities right now?Paulo Sosa Garcia and Ramona Cecilia Silva were heading to work in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, on Monday morning when federal immigration agents pulled them over and arrested them. By the next morning, they were detained in El Paso, Texas.Tomas Martinez Gregorio was driving his wife, Daisy Martinez, and their six-year-old son, Jayren, to a hospital in Brooklyn Park when federal agents pulled them over and took Gregorio. Jayren never made it to his tonsillectomy appointment. Continue reading… More

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    Trump-linked figures lead talks on $200m European pipeline contract

    Exclusive: Jesse Binnall and Joe Flynn, who campaigned to overturn 2020 election, seek to win Bosnia deal for little-known US firmLeading members of Donald Trump’s campaign to overturn the 2020 presidential election are seeking a huge European pipeline contract, the latest figures from the US president’s circle to mix business and geopolitics.Jesse Binnall, a lawyer who worked on legal actions advancing Trump’s baseless claim that the vote was stolen from him, and Joe Flynn, who also sought to undermine Joe Biden’s victory, have been in Bosnia this week to discuss the project. Continue reading… More

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    Is Trump regretting his battle with the Fed? – podcast

    Last week, Department of Justice opened a criminal investigation into the chair of the Federal Reserve – and longtime foe of Donald Trump – Jerome Powell. In an extraordinary move, world central bank governors and bank bosses in America pushed back against the Trump administration.This week, Jonathan Freedland speaks to the economist Heather Boushey about why a fight with Wall Street might be one the president regretsArchive: ABC News, PBS Newshour, Bloomberg Television, CBS News, Detroit Free Press, WWMT-TV, News Nation, CBC, Fox 9 Minneapolis-St Paul Continue reading… More

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    Three US citizens sue Trump with the ACLU over encounters with ICE agents – as it happened

    This live blog is now closed.Trump news at a glance: The medal may be in Trump’s hands, but peace prize is not his, Nobel officials sayDonald Trump is in Washington today. He’s due to meet with Mariá Corina Machado – Venezuela’s opposition leader – at 12:3opm ET. At the moment that’s closed to the press but we’ll let you know if that changes and bring you the latest.Later, Trump is set to host the champions of the 2025 Stanley Cup, the Florida Panthers, at the White House. We’ll be watching to get his reaction to the news of the day. Continue reading… More

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    Kyrsten Sinema sued by former bodyguard’s ex-wife over ‘alienation of affection’

    Heather Ammel says ex-Arizona senator pursued romantic relationship with her husband that led to couple’s breakupKyrsten Sinema, a former US senator from Arizona, had a romantic relationship with a member of her security detail that led to the breakup of the man’s marriage, his ex-wife alleges in a lawsuit seeking at least $75,000 from Sinema.Matthew and Heather Ammel had “a good and loving marriage” with “genuine love and affection” before Sinema interfered, pursuing Matthew Ammel despite knowing he was married, Heather Ammel alleges in her lawsuit. Continue reading… More