Category Archives: US News

‘Censorship’: over 115 scholars condemn cancellation of Harvard journal issue on Palestine

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In an open letter, writers denounced abrupt scrapping of a Harvard Educational Review issue dedicated to Palestine

More than 115 education scholars have condemned the cancellation of an entire issue of an academic journal dedicated to Palestine by a Harvard University publisher as “censorship”.

In an open letter published on Thursday, the scholars denounced the abrupt scrapping of a special issue of the Harvard Educational Review – which was first revealed by the Guardian in July – as an “attempt to silence the academic examination of the genocide, starvation and dehumanisation of Palestinian people by the state of Israel and its allies.”

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Putin ready to make Ukraine deal, Trump says before Alaska summit

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US president’s comment that Russian and Ukrainian leaders may have to ‘divvy’ things up likely to raise alarm

Donald Trump has said he believes Vladimir Putin is ready to make a deal on the war in Ukraine as the two leaders prepare for their summit in Alaska on Friday, but his suggestion the Russian leader and Volodymyr Zelenskyy could “divvy things up” may alarm some in Kyiv.

The US president, who left the White House on Friday at 7.30am, implied there was a 75% chance of the Alaska meeting succeeding, and that the threat of economic sanctions may have made Putin more willing to seek an end to the war. “HIGH STAKES!!!” he posted on Truth Social as his motorcade idled outside the White House shortly after sunrise in Washington.

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Father of New Zealand woman held in US by Ice along with six-year-old son voices hope for release

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Rod Price recounts ‘frantic’ call he received from Sarah Shaw after her detention at US border while returning from Canada

The father of a New Zealand woman who has been held in a US immigration detention centre for three weeks with her six-year-old son is hopeful the pair will be released by the end of the week.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) detained Sarah Shaw and her youngest son after they attempted to re-enter the US from Canada on 24 July.

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Man accused of throwing sandwich at US border agent charged with assault

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Sean Dunn charged with assaulting federal officer over incident in Washington, which could result in a year in jail

A man accused of throwing a sandwich at a US Customs and Border Protection agent in Washington DC has been charged with assaulting a federal officer – a felony that could result in up to a year in jail and significant fines.

Captured in a now viral video, the man authorities have identified as Sean Charles Dunn, 37, could be seen yelling “Fascists!” and “Shame!” at a group of officers as they patrolled the district on Sunday night.

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Trump revokes Biden order promoting competition in the US economy

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Move further unwinds initiative to crack down on anti-competitive practices in agriculture, drugs and labor

Donald Trump on Wednesday revoked a 2021 executive order on promoting competition in the US economy issued by Joe Biden, the White House said.

The move by the Republican US president further unwinds a signature initiative by his predecessor, a Democrat, to crack down on anti-competitive practices in sectors from agriculture to drugs and labor.

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US warships patrol South China Sea after two Chinese ships collide

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USS Higgins and USS Cincinnati sailed near Scarborough Shoal after Chinese tried to drive away Philippine vessel

The US has briefly deployed two warships in a disputed South China Sea shoal where two Chinese ships collided earlier in the week while trying to drive away a smaller Philippine ship in a high-seas accident that raised alarms about maritime safety.

Both China and the Philippines claim Scarborough Shoal and other outcroppings in the South China Sea. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also lay overlapping claims in the contested waters.

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Trump defense official led thinktank that spread lies about Tren de Aragua

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Under Joseph Humire, the thinktank tracked alleged crimes by the Venezuelan gang in the US. A non-profit found multiple false entries

A senior official appointed to the defense department led a thinktank that promoted fake news about the Venezuelan Tren de Aragua (TdA) gang, according to InSight Crime, a non-profit analyzing organized crime.

Joseph Humire was appointed this summer to be the head of policy focusing on the western hemisphere within the office of the under secretary of defense for policy. He was previously the executive director of a conservative thinktank focused on global security. Humire’s appointment comes as the Trump administration is ramping up its aggressive strategy against organized crime in Latin America and the Venezuelan government, which it accuses of working with TdA.

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Alaska’s Juneau orders evacuations as record glacier flood looms

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Mendenhall Glacier outburst threatens homes, with scientists warning events are intensifying

Alaska’s capital city of Juneau is urging many residents to evacuate, bracing for the arrival of what could be record floodwaters flowing downstream from a basin dammed by the area’s Mendenhall Glacier, with the event being driven by climate change amid glacial retreat, according to a federal agency.

Summer glacial flooding, known as a glacial lake outburst flood, or GLOF, threatens parts of the city due to a combination of rainwater and snowmelt.

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Tennessee town approves plans to turn former prison into Ice detention center

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Officials in Mason voted to convert prison to Ice facility run by CoreCivic, US’s second-largest private prison operator

Officials in a rural Tennessee town voted on Tuesday to approve agreements to turn a former prison into an immigration detention facility operated by a private company, despite loud objections from upset residents and activists during a contentious public meeting.

The five-member board of aldermen in Mason, along with the mayor, Eddie Noeman, and vice-mayor, Reynaldo Givhan, met in a fire station garage to discuss converting the closed West Tennessee detention facility into a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) detention center run by CoreCivic Inc, America’s second-largest private prison operator.

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Brad Pitt break-in linked to gang targeting celebrities, Los Angeles police say

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Four teenagers have been arrested on suspicion of committing burglaries at the homes of several prominent residents, according to LA police

Los Angeles police have formally linked a break-in at Brad Pitt’s home in the city in June to a string of other burglaries at properties belonging to celebrities.

Los Angeles police chief Jim McDonnell announced the arrest of four suspects, saying they were a a crew that were committing burglaries at the homes of “various high-profile residents” throughout the city, adding that “some of the burglaries included homes of actors and professional athletes”.

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Tighter US border rules are putting European visitors off, says Tui

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Holiday company boss says tourists are opting instead for destinations such as Canada, Africa and Asia

Tighter border rules are putting European tourists off holidaying in the US, according to Europe’s biggest package trip operator.

Tui’s chief executive, Sebastian Ebel, said there had been a “significant decline” in travel to the US, due to a multitude of factors including “the atmosphere, what you hear from border control”.

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First Thing: National guard begins deploying on DC streets after Trump police takeover

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City’s mayor has hardened her stance on Trump’s ‘authoritarian’ actions. Plus, Israel intensifies bombing of Gaza killing 89 Palestinians in 24 hours

Good morning.

The Washington DC national guard began deploying on the city’s streets on Tuesday night, as the city’s mayor toughened her response to Donald Trump taking control of the city’s police force.

What did Washington’s mayor say? Muriel Bowser, the Democratic mayor of Washington, hardened her stance after treading a more diplomatic line earlier in the day. During a live event on social media on Tuesday night, she described the arrival of federalized national guard members as an authoritarian push. Other critics have said the move seeks to distract attention from political problems such as the Jeffrey Epstein files.

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Trump officials move to sanction lawyer who tried to block client’s deportation

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Justice department accuses Joshua Schroeder of ‘reckless misrepresentations’ and seeks financial penalties

The US Department of Justice is seeking sanctions against a lawyer who sought to block the deportation of his client, in another sign the Trump administration is ramping up its efforts to enact mass deportations.

Earlier this year, Joshua Schroeder, a California-based attorney, was able to briefly delay the deportation of his client, a Hmong man from Laos, through several court filings.

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National guard arrives in DC as mayors warn of Trump power grab

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The US president deployed troops after taking control of DC police, sparking fears of similar moves elsewhere

Muriel Bowser, the mayor of Washington DC, has pledged to work “side by side” with the federal government as national guard troops arrive at their headquarters in the capital.

The show of force came after Donald Trump announced that he was sending the national guard into the capital and putting city police under federal control, even though the violent crime rate is at a 30-year low.

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US court says Trump’s Doge team can access social security numbers and other sensitive data

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Court refuses to block ‘department of government efficiency’ from accessing data such as citizenship status

A US appeals court on Tuesday rejected a bid by a group of unions to block the Trump administration government downsizing team known as the “department of government efficiency” (Doge) from accessing sensitive data on Americans.

The Virginia-based fourth US circuit court of appeals in a 2-1 decision said the unions were unlikely to prevail on claims that Doge would violate federal privacy laws by accessing data at the US Department of Education, treasury department, and office of personnel management.

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Man develops rare condition after ChatGPT query over stopping eating salt

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US medical journal article about 60-year-old with bromism warns against using AI app for health information

A US medical journal has warned against using ChatGPT for health information after a man developed a rare condition following an interaction with the chatbot about removing table salt from his diet.

An article in the Annals of Internal Medicine reported a case in which a 60-year-old man developed bromism, also known as bromide toxicity, after consulting ChatGPT.

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EU leaders defend Ukraine’s freedom to decide future ahead of Trump-Putin summit

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Statement on Ukrainian sovereignty signed by all EU leaders except for Viktor Orbán before call with Trump

European Union leaders made a rallying call to defend Ukraine’s freedom to decide its own future in advance of their virtual summit with Donald Trump – convened to discuss US strategy before the president’s talks with Vladimir Putin on Friday.

With the exception of Hungary, all EU leaders signed a joint statement, with Kaja Kallas, the EU foreign policy chief, also calling for the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, to attend the Trump-Putin summit in Alaska on Friday.

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Colorado deploys more than 1,000 firefighters to battle two huge blazes

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Lee fire is one of largest blazes in state history after burning 130,000 acres, while Elk fire surpassed 14,000 acres

Firefighters in Colorado responding to one of the largest blazes in the state’s history are facing gusty winds and dry conditions that are expected to continue to drive extreme fire behavior.

More than 1,000 firefighters have been deployed, and while crews have gained containment on one fire, another has grown amid fire-friendly weather.

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Trump spreads false narratives about DC crime – just as he did with LA

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As mayor calls US president ‘hyperbolic’, experts say portrayal of crime rooted in false and misleading claims

Donald Trump is deploying the national guard in Washington DC and seizing control of its police force, claiming that the nation’s capital has become “lawless” and is “one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the world”.

The president portrayed himself as DC’s savior, vowing to rid it of “crime, bloodshed, bedlam, and squalor and worse”.

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Gunman in CDC attack fired over 180 shots at building and broke 150 windows

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Georgia man who blamed Covid vaccine for making him depressed and suicidal shot and killed a police officer

The man who attacked the CDC headquarters in Atlanta on Friday fired more than 180 shots into the campus and broke about 150 windows, with bullets piercing “blast-resistant” windows and spattering glass shards into numerous rooms, according to information circulated internally at the agency.

It may take weeks or even months to replace windows and clean up the damage, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention personnel said.

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