Brent crude falls as optimism rises that strait of Hormuz could reopen over the weekend
Global oil prices fell on Friday to lows not seen since the first week of the Iran crisis after Donald Trump claimed he was close to reaching a peace deal with Tehran.
The price of Brent crude began to tumble from about $93 a barrel in overnight trade after the US president called off further military strikes against Iran scheduled for the evening.
Continue reading...Trump administration created fund to resolve his lawsuit against the IRS over the leak of his tax returns
A US federal judge agreed on Friday to extend a court-ordered block on the Trump administration’s creation and operation of a $1.8bn settlement fund for compensating people who claim to be victims of a weaponized government.
Earlier this month, Todd Blanche, the acting US attorney general, told Congress that the government is scrapping its plans for the fund in the face of a fierce bipartisan backlash. Government attorneys have argued that lawsuits challenging the fund are now moot, but plaintiffs’ attorneys aren’t satisfied by Blanche’s assurances that the fund won’t move forward.
Continue reading...One man died in Iowa after a tree fell on him as nearly 700 severe weather events were recorded over three days
An Illinois man whose home was destroyed by a tornado on Thursday was pulled from the rubble by a police officer and a photojournalist, who captured the terrifying storm and subsequent rescue in dramatic video footage.
Scott Lasker, who describes himself as a storm chaser, recorded the tornado ripping through the town of Streator and was filming the damage it inflicted when he came across the man trapped in the debris of his house.
Continue reading...Flag bans, travel headaches and a religious regime video among bumps in road, as team prepares to be first to play in country with which it is at war
Iran will present a major challenge to Fifa’s “football unites the world” slogan on Monday by becoming the first country in World Cup history to compete on the soil of a host nation with which it is at war.
The national team’s opening match against New Zealand in Los Angeles will kick off amid continuing hostilities between Iran and the US that have intensified in recent days, as a fragile ceasefire has failed to hold and attempts at reaching a negotiated settlement have sputtered.
Continue reading...Arrest of Min Zin, who writes about Myanmar and Chinese foreign policy, comes just month after Trump visit to Beijing
China has arrested a US scholar who writes about Myanmar and Chinese foreign policy on suspicion of spying.
Min Zin was suspected of “engaging in espionage activities that endanger China’s national security,” China’s ministry of foreign affairs spokesperson, Lin Jian, said on Friday.
Continue reading...Board seeks to stay judge’s ruling that found Trump’s name was illegally added to Washington performing arts venue
Donald Trump’s hand-picked board at the Kennedy Center is mounting a last-minute effort to keep his name on the facade of the performing arts facility before a court-ordered deadline to remove it by Friday.
The board voted on Thursday to seek a stay of US district judge Christopher Cooper’s 29 May ruling that said Trump’s name was illegally added to the Kennedy Center, according to a person familiar with the move who requested anonymity to discuss a private meeting.
Continue reading...US president had faced widespread criticism of his decision to install a controversial ally, Bill Pulte
Donald Trump has nominated Jay Clayton, former head of the top US markets watchdog, to be the country’s leading intelligence official.
The US president faced widespread criticism of his decision to install a controversial ally, Bill Pulte, as acting director of national intelligence while searching for a permanent candidate.
Continue reading...Government urged to reconsider proposal for 1,100 Afghans, currently stranded in Qatar, who worked with US forces
Dozens of US lawmakers urged the Trump administration on Thursday to roll back any plans to ship to unsafe third countries Afghan nationals who worked with US forces during the war in their homeland.
In a letter seen by Reuters, more than 80 House of Representatives members, including at least three Republicans as well as Democrats, appealed to secretary of state, Marco Rubio, to reconsider plans for 1,100 Afghans who have been stranded in Qatar awaiting relocation.
Continue reading...Washington claims vessel was violating its blockade of Iranian ports and failed to comply with instructions
The Indian government has voiced a “strong protest” after three Indian seafarers were killed in US military strikes against oil tankers travelling through the strait of Hormuz.
US Central Command confirmed that its aircraft had fired two Hellfire missiles at the engine room of the MT Settebello as it sailed through the Gulf of Oman on Wednesday.
Continue reading...Suspect, 19, still at large after officer dies in hospital having been shot while searching an apartment
A Toronto police officer has been shot dead as police raided an apartment allegedly linked to the March attack on the US consulate, the city’s police chief, Myron Demkiw, said.
Demkiw said 43-year-old constable Marc Pinizzotto was shot while conducting an early-morning search warrant in the north-west of the city and later died at a hospital.
Continue reading...With some matches being held in nearby Miami, a Cuban response to US military action could mar the tournament
As Cuba crumbles under a nearly five-month-long US oil blockade, many on the island hope that the World Cup might save the island from US attack – or at least offer a respite until the competition ends on 19 July.
“The beginning of the World Cup will make it more difficult for the United States to carry out a military action in Cuba,” said Carlos Alzugaray, Cuba’s former ambassador to the EU. “Cuba is very close to the US, and can hit many targets inside the US, especially in south Florida, with drones or other weapons.”
Continue reading...Under US rules, even a distant strike can suspend a game – and some will take place in Florida, the thunderstorm state
Hot weather will be a major concern at the World Cup, but lightning may also prove a particular problem. Under US safety regulations, a strike within 10 miles (16km) of a stadium triggers a 30-minute suspension of the game, during which players must leave the pitch.
The size of the safety zone was dictated by research on the distance that lightning can strike from a storm even with no clouds overhead. This is more than a theoretical risk. During a game in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1998, an entire team was killed by a single bolt of lightning. There have been many other deadly incidents.
Continue reading...Environmental groups say exchange between US government and SpaceX would worsen ecological risks
Environmental groups on Wednesday sued in an attempt to stop the Trump administration from giving SpaceX more than 700 acres (280 hectares) of wildlife refuge in Texas, claiming it would worsen ecological risks to a Gulf coast region already transformed by billionaire Elon Musk’s rocket operations.
The US Fish and Wildlife Service this month approved moving forward with the deal with SpaceX, which would surrender 683 acres (276 hectares) the company owns in exchange for federal land in the Lower Rio Grande Valley national wildlife refuge. The 103,000-acre (41,700-hectare) refuge spans four counties along the Texas border and is home to animal habitats and historical landmarks.
Continue reading...Federal prosecutors unsealed indictment against activists trying to force the school to cut financial ties to Israel
Federal prosecutors unsealed an indictment on Wednesday against eight pro-Palestinian activists who are accused of conspiring to run a criminal intimidation campaign against University of Michigan officials while trying to force the school to cut financial ties to Israel.
The indictment also describes vandalism against some companies that operate in Michigan and against the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Detroit.
Continue reading...A cycle of threat, detente and deadlock repeats itself wearisomely as the president’s war in Iran drags on
As the story of the US-Iran war is written direct to social media, Donald Trump may be the genre’s premier unreliable narrator.
Since the war began, Trump has again and again threatened Iran with fearsome consequences if Tehran doesn’t come to the table and sign a peace deal that the US president said was imminent weeks ago. And he has also repeatedly claimed that an Iran deal is “close” – without any result. (A CNN tally put the number of times he’s claimed it at 38.)
Continue reading...US defense secretary continues ramp-up of pressure against country including sanctions and devastating oil blockade
Pete Hegseth has warned Cuba against acquiring weapons that could threaten the United States, during a visit to the US military base at Guantánamo Bay.
Washington has ramped up pressure against Cuba with sanctions and a devastating oil blockade, and Donald Trump has repeatedly signaled that the Cuban government could be the next after Venezuela to fall to US pressure.
Continue reading...Brad Lander and 10 other elected officials were arrested by federal agents at ICE facility last September
The trial against Brad Lander, a New York City Democrat, stemming from his arrest during an attempt to inspect rooms holding detained immigrants started on Wednesday in a Manhattan federal court
Lander was ticketed on a violation for allegedly blocking an elevator bank on the 10th floor of 26 Federal Plaza, the location of major immigration court located in Manhattan.
Continue reading...Oscar winner Mikey Madison and Jeremy Strong to star in film focused on fallout from whistleblower Frances Haugen
The first trailer for Aaron Sorkin’s eagerly anticipated follow-up to The Social Network has landed.
The Social Reckoning has been described as a film that isn’t a “straight sequel” but one that will still revisit Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook.
Continue reading...A Guardian analysis reveals how most of 39 countries facing US entry restrictions are most vulnerable environmentally
Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown is largely targeting people from the countries most vulnerable to displacement from climate-driven disasters, a Guardian analysis shows.
As the Trump administration pushes policies to boost planet-heating fossil fuels, millions of people are being forced to flee their homelands due to storms, floods and droughts worsened by the climate crisis.
Continue reading...Thai woman is in custody in connection with investigation after man was reportedly found dead at a hotel in Yangon
A US diplomat has been found dead in Myanmar’s largest city, and members of the diplomatic community in Yangon say a Thai woman has been detained by police in connection with the investigation.
US officials in Thailand and the US embassy in Myanmar referred questions on the case to the state department, which confirmed the “death of a US government employee” assigned to the embassy in Yangon, but gave no other details.
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