Arizona Dem tears into her own party over trend she deems antisemitic: ‘Sick and tired’
A trend of Democrats rejecting money from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), one of the nation’s most influential pro-Israel groups, is garnering intraparty backlash after an Arizona state representative slammed the shift as “antisemitism under the guide of campaign virtue.” Democrats have been pulling back from AIPAC and cozying up with other, more liberal Jewish groups, like J Street, highlighting a shift in the historical bipartisan consensus that saw both parties treat support for Israel as a given. This changing consensus, particularly within the Democratic Party, became more clear following the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel by Hamas terrorists. While some Jewish groups have criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s approach to the subsequent war that followed the attack, AIPAC has stood behind Netanyahu’s strong response. AIPAC’s unwavering support for Israel after Oct. 7, 2023, was followed by a coalition of far-left Democrats, including Reps. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and other members of the “Squad,” who called for lawmakers to “REJECT AIPAC.” Since then, a handful of other Democratic Party lawmakers have also rejected or returned money from AIPAC. ATLANTIC CALLS OUT DEMS FOR FAILING TO TAKE ‘OWN ADVICE’ AND MODERATE THEIR POLICIES “I’m getting really sick and tired of Democratic candidates who are announcing they will not “accept” AIPAC money, as it’s apparently the cool thing to say when you are running now,” Democratic Arizona state Rep. Alma Hernandez said on X Wednesday. “Let’s be clear: most voters have no idea what that even means. AIPAC itself doesn’t make candidate contributions; its supporters, many of whom, like me, are pro-Israel Democrats. I can assure you that most of you who are publicly announcing this would NEVER receive a dime from any of us.” Following the cohort of radical Democrats in Congress launching their “REJECT AIPAC” coalition, other Democratic Party members of Congress took action to reject AIPAC money as well. Less than a year after his 2024 election victory, which was financially supported by AIPAC, Rep. Morgan McGarvey, D-Ky., said he would no longer take donations from AIPAC. Rep. Deborah Ross, D-N.C., and Rep. Valerie Foushee, D-N.C., made the same commitment earlier this year. Last month, Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., refunded past donations from AIPAC and pledged to reject any future funding from the group. HOUSE DEM LASHES OUT AT PRO-ISRAEL ‘MOTHERF—ERS’ DURING FIERY SPEECH: ‘WE AIN’T GOING ANYWHERE’ Hernandez had a stark message for any more Democrats thinking about doing the same. “There are plenty of elected officials and candidates who have privately sought support over the years, and yes, I have the receipts of your text and emails,” Hernandez said in her post on X. “So, to any of you who are thinking of jumping on that wagon because you think it sounds like the cool thing these days, think again. “Don’t mask antisemitism under the guise of campaign virtue.”
Observers stunned as Nikki Haley takes harder line than Trump on Chinese student visa plan
Former Trump U.N. ambassador Nikki Haley warned Thursday that President Donald Trump’s plan to allow 600,000 Chinese students to study in the United States would be a “massive mistake.” “That would be a huge gift to China and a threat to the United States,” Haley wrote on X. Haley’s criticism surprised many conservatives who said they did not expect her to take a harder line than Trump on China and immigration. “I did not have Nikki Haley being to Trump’s right on immigration issues on my 2025 bingo card,” wrote X user S.A. McCarthy, an editor at The American Spectator magazine. TRUMP’S CHINESE STUDENT VISA PUSH SETS OFF ALARM BELLS AMID RISING CCP ‘INFLUENCE’ IN US “I rarely agree with Nikki Haley. I think she is far too much of a throwback to failed George W. Bush era thinking,” wrote conservative analyst Greg Lawson. “BUT, on this specific issue, she is right.” Others questioned the economic logic behind the policy. “America has a shortage of workers in tech and we are training foreign nationals?” one user asked. “Holy s—! I haven’t agreed with anything Nikki Haley has said in I don’t remember when,” wrote another. “It is insane for the Trump administration to allow 600K foreigners into American colleges — not because they are Chinese, but because the cost of college is already too high. Reduce demand = reduce costs.” “When Nikki Haley is to the right of you, you’re making a big mistake,” another user quipped. “Ladies and gentlemen, Trump is now to the left of Nikki Haley,” added another. Trump first floated the 600,000 figure in August, alarming critics who have long warned about Chinese espionage at U.S. universities. More than 277,000 Chinese students studied in the U.S. during the 2023–2024 academic year, according to federal data. The White House later clarified that the 600,000 figure referred to two years’ worth of visas, meaning the proposal represented a continuation of current policy rather than a doubling of admissions. REP. GREENE RAISES RED FLAG AFTER TRUMP INDICATES US WILL ACCEPT 600,000 CHINESE STUDENTS Trump defended the plan Monday on Fox News. “We do have a lot of people coming in from China. We always have — China and other countries,” he said. “We also have a massive system of colleges and universities. And if we were to cut that in half, which perhaps makes some people happy, you would have half the colleges in the United States go out of business. “I actually think it’s good to have outside countries. Look, I want to be able to get along with the world — not the French, though.” Fox News host Laura Ingraham pushed back. “The Chinese, they spy on us, they steal our intellectual property,” she said. “Do you think the French are better?” Trump replied. “Yeah,” Ingraham shot back. “I’m not so sure,” Trump said, citing French tariffs. “It’s not that I want them, but I view it as a business. One thing you don’t want to do is cut half the students from all over the world who are coming into our country and destroy our entire university system. I don’t want to do that.” China’s 2017 National Intelligence Law requires all citizens and organizations to assist the Chinese Communist Party’s intelligence efforts in the name of national security, a key concern among U.S. lawmakers warning that Chinese students and researchers can be pressured to steal sensitive data on behalf of Beijing.
DOJ joins lawsuit against Newsom over ‘racial gerrymander’ of California map
The Department of Justice intervened Thursday in a lawsuit against Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom that is challenging California’s efforts to redraw the state’s congressional map in time for the next election. DOJ Civil Rights Division lawyers argued in a complaint that race was “used as a proxy” in California to justify creating districts favorable to Democrats, a move that served to offset the redistricting showdown in Texas that resulted in more Republican-leaning districts. “In the press, California’s legislators and governor sold a plan to promote the interests of Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections,” the DOJ lawyers wrote. “But amongst themselves and on the debate floor, the focus was not partisanship, but race.” CALIFORNIA REPUBLICANS SUE TO STOP NEWSOM, DEMOCRATS FROM PUSHING REDISTRICTING PLAN They added the Constitution “does not tolerate this racial gerrymander” and cited several remarks from lawmakers and others involved in the process about how they prioritized creating a Latino-majority district to counter Texas’ perceived attempt to “silence the voices of Latino voters.” The federal government has authority to enforce the Voting Rights Act, which has a provision designed to make sure voters are not disenfranchised based on their race. But the law’s language has long been a point of controversy and is now under review by the Supreme Court in a separate redistricting case about Louisiana’s map. California’s ballot measure, called Proposition 50, passed on Election Day, and clears the way for the state legislature to redraw districts that could flip five Republican seats. Newsom said in celebratory remarks after the measure’s passage that it was California’s answer to Trump “trying to rig the midterm elections before one single vote is even cast.” ‘DERANGED OBSESSION’: NEWSOM HIT WITH LAWSUIT OVER ‘RETALIATORY’ CALIFORNIA REDISTRICTING PUSH “One thing he never counted on, though, was the state of California,” Newsom said. “Instead of agonizing over the state of our nation, we organized in an unprecedented way, in a 90-day sprint.” California Assembly Member David Tangipa, a Republican, responded by suing, and the DOJ joined in that lawsuit Thursday. A spokesperson for Newsom told Fox News Digital, “These losers lost at the ballot box and soon they will also lose in court.” The legal battle comes as redistricting fights have intensified in the lead-up to the 2026 midterm elections. In addition to Texas and California, Louisiana’s fight before the Supreme Court could affect its map by the next election, depending on when the high court rules. In Utah, Republicans were just dealt a blow by a state judge who approved a new map that will tip one of the state’s four districts in favor of Democrats.
Former Rep. Gohmert blasts Jack Smith for allegedly targeting his personal phone records in J6 probe
EXCLUSIVE: Former Rep. Louie Gohmert blasted ex-Special Counsel Jack Smith for allegedly targeting his personal phone records as part of his investigation into the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riots, telling Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview that his action “destroys the checks and balances that the founders counted on.” Fox News Digital exclusively reported Thursday morning that Smith targeted then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s personal, private phone records, as well as Gohmert’s. JACK SMITH SOUGHT THEN-HOUSE SPEAKER MCCARTHY’S PRIVATE PHONE RECORDS IN J6 PROBE, FBI DOCS REVEAL Fox News Digital exclusively reviewed the document that FBI Director Kash Patel recently shared with Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley and Sen. Ron Johnson containing the explosive revelations. Grassley and Johnson have been leading a joint investigation into Smith’s “Arctic Frost” probe. According to the document, Smith, on Jan. 24, 2023, allegedly sought the “toll records for the personal cell phones of U.S. Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (AT&T) and U.S. Representative Louie Gohmert (Verizon.)” The information was included as part of a “significant case notification” drafted by the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division May 25, 2023. “It is astounding that Jack ‘Frost’ Smith went on this persecution,” Gohmert told Fox News Digital Thursday. “Apparently, this guy has never read the Fourth Amendment because you have to describe with particularity what it is you’re going after — there should be probable cause, and they had no probable cause. They were going on a witch hunt.” Smith had sought Gohmert’s personal cellphone records from November 2020 through the end of January 2021. “They don’t have any regard for the Fourth Amendment,” he said. “It makes Watergate look like school yard folly.” But Gohmert said it is the “principle.” “It is the separation of powers that is the problem,” Gohmert explained. “People and whistleblowers contacted me regularly from within the DOJ and the FBI about overreach within the FBI and DOJ. By grabbing my records, they could stifle reporting of potential crimes by people within the agencies.” JACK SMITH TRACKED PRIVATE COMMUNICATIONS, CALLS OF NEARLY A DOZEN GOP SENATORS DURING J6 PROBE, FBI SAYS “You can’t just go seize members of Congress’ records even with a warrant because of that separation of powers,” Gohmert said. “There has to be a wall and that’s what troubles me more than anything.” Gohmert told Fox News Digital that he didn’t remember who he spoke with during the time period Smith sought records, but said that “the last thing I want is for someone who trusted me to keep their name private to have some jack-booted thug like Jack ‘Frost’ Smith grab my records and find out who is tattle tailing on him.” He added: “It violates and destroys the checks and balances that the founders counted on.” Gohmert, though, told Fox News Digital that he trusts the current Justice Department and FBI leadership. “I trust the DOJ and trust the people running the FBI,” he said. “We’ll see if there were any crimes committed and, if following the Constitution, they can be properly prosecuted.” HAGERTY PRESSES VERIZON OVER FBI’S ACCESS TO HIS PHONE RECORDS DURING JACK SMITH PROBE Meanwhile, McCarthy said he will take legal action against Smith. “Jack Smith’s radical and deranged investigation was never about finding the truth,” McCarthy told Fox News Digital. “It was a blatant weaponizing of the Justice Department to attack political opponents of the Biden administration. Perhaps no action underscores this point more than the illegal attempt to access the phone records of sitting members of the House and Senate — including the Speaker of the House.” “His illegal targeting demands real accountability,” McCarthy continued. “And I am confident Congress will hold hearings and access documents in its investigation into Jack Smith’s own abuses.” HAGERTY PRESSES VERIZON OVER FBI’S ACCESS TO HIS PHONE RECORDS DURING JACK SMITH PROBE “At the same time, I will ask my own counsel to pursue all areas of redress so this does not happen to anyone else,” McCarthy said. The revelations come after Fox News Digital exclusively reported in October that Smith and his “Arctic Frost” team investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riots were tracking the private communications and phone calls of nearly a dozen Republican senators as part of the probe, including Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, Dan Sullivan of Alaska, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama and GOP Rep. Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania. An official told Fox News Digital that those records were collected in 2023 by Smith and his team after subpoenaing major telephone providers. Smith has called his decision to subpoena and track Republican lawmakers’ phone records “entirely proper” and consistent with Justice Department policy. “As described by various Senators, the toll data collection was narrowly tailored and limited to the four days from January 4, 2021 to January 7, 2021, with a focus on telephonic activity during the period immediately surrounding the January 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol,” Smith’s lawyers wrote in October to Grassley. Grassley, R-Iowa, and Johnson, R-Wis., have been investigating the matter. An FBI official told Fox News Digital that “Arctic Frost” is a “prohibited case,” and that the review required FBI officials to go “above and beyond in order to deliver on this promise of transparency.” The discovery is part of a broader ongoing review, Fox News Digital has learned. Smith, after months of investigating, charged President Donald Trump in the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C., in his 2020 election case, but after Trump was elected president, Smith sought to dismiss the case. Judge Tanya Chutkan granted that request. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Smith’s case cost taxpayers more than $50 million. Smith did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Kamala Harris-endorsed candidate in hot seat for million-dollar DC home hundreds of miles outside district
FIRST ON FOX: Former Vice President Kamala Harris’ pick for Massachusetts’ 6th Congressional District, Dan Koh, is facing scrutiny for owning a million-dollar home hundreds of miles from the district in Washington, D.C. Koh, who held several senior roles in former President Joe Biden’s White House, is running in a crowded race to replace Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton, who is running for the Senate. He has received the endorsement of Harris, who called him a “fighter” who “knows how to get things done.” Though running in a suburban Massachusetts district, Koh and his wife own a $1.3 million home in a swanky neighborhood by Capitol Hill, which they purchased in 2022, according to the website for the D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue. The two also own a home in Andover, Massachusetts, which sits within the 6th Congressional District, according to the North Essex Registry of Deeds. The Massachusetts home was purchased in 2019 for $810,000. KAMALA HARRIS SAYS DEMOCRATS TOOK BLACK WOMEN FOR GRANTED IN 2024 Amy Carnevale, chair of the Massachusetts Republican Party, knocked Koh over the home, telling Fox News Digital that “living full-time in D.C. with a no-show house in Massachusetts seems to be a family tradition amongst MassDems.” She also criticized another Massachusetts Democrat, Sen. Ed Markey, who she said is “known in the Bay State as the ‘Senator from Chevy Chase,’” because he “is rarely seen in his alleged hometown in Massachusetts.” “Dan Koh is now looking to follow in that tradition. What a shame for actual residents of Massachusetts who deserve better,” added Carnevale. In response, a spokesperson for Koh’s campaign told Fox News Digital that “Dan lives full-time at his home in Andover, which he and his wife have owned for over 6 years.” DEM SENATOR, 79, DRAWS PRIMARY CHALLENGE FROM REP. SETH MOULTON The spokesperson said that Koh “lived in D.C. during his time as a senior official in the White House during the Biden-Harris administration with his family.” Tax documents available on the district’s Office of Tax and Revenue’s website show that Koh and his wife still own the D.C. home as of August. Harris endorsed Koh on Oct. 28, saying: “During our time in the White House, I saw Dan’s steadfast drive to make life better — and more affordable — for working people.” “He knows how to get things done, will be the fighter you deserve, and is ready on day one,” said Harris, adding, “I’m proud to endorse him and encourage everyone in Massachusetts’ 6th District to support his campaign.” FORMER VP KAMALA HARRIS ADVOCATES FOR LOWERING THE VOTING AGE A statement by Koh’s campaign said that he is among the first candidates Harris has endorsed in the 2025-26 campaign cycle, which the campaign said demonstrates “the critical importance of electing a strong, effective Democratic leader to represent the 6th District.” Koh said he is “honored that Vice President Harris has endorsed our campaign for Massachusetts’ 6th District,” adding, “I personally witnessed the Vice President’s tireless dedication to the American people every day in the administration.” He added, “I’ll be ready on day one to bring the same brand of leadership to Capitol Hill, getting to work to deliver results for families of our commonwealth and our country.” Fox News Digital reached out to Harris for contact but did not immediately receive a response.
Camelot or Cringe?: Meet JFK’s grandson turned congressional candidate for the scrolling generation
Jack Schlossberg struck a serious tone in his campaign launch video this week, but his digital footprint tells a different story. As former President John F. Kennedy’s only grandson, Schlossberg is practically political royalty. But to New York City’s chronically online electorate, he is better known as the star of hundreds of satirical, and often absurd, viral videos. Sometimes he sings bizarre love songs to Second Lady Usha Vance or trolls her husband, Vice President JD Vance. As a surrogate for former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024, Schlossberg teamed up with Democratic candidates nationwide, including former Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., who lost to Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Pa., last year. Between satirical renditions of Taylor Swift’s “Love Story” and answering a lobster like a phone in a spoof news bit, Schlossberg has cultivated a following any aspiring influencer would envy, with close to 850,000 TikTok followers and nearly 770,000 on Instagram. NEW JERSEY DEMOCRAT BREAKS RANKS TO SUPPORT REPUBLICAN JACK CIATTARELLI FOR GOVERNOR “True or false: Usha Vance is way hotter than Jackie O,” Schlossberg said on X earlier this year, referencing his grandmother, former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. JOE KENNEDY III BLASTS RFK JR. AFTER FIERY SENATE HEARING, FUELING KENNEDY FAMILY INFIGHTING: ‘HE MUST RESIGN’ He later described his own comments as “weird” and “creepy” on former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki’s podcast “The Blueprint.” “The internet is a place where it’s difficult to break through, and it’s difficult to break through if you are not saying something controversial or at least somehow unexpected,” Schlossberg explained. “I see that Democrats play that game not as well as we could, and I think I use my judgment to make posts that I think are funny or silly but have a purpose…” Despite the followers and the Kennedy connections, Schlossberg has a slim résumé. He most recently served as a political correspondent for Vogue during the 2024 presidential election. He was also a Democratic National Committee delegate in 2024 and worked as a staff assistant at the U.S. Department of State in 2016. He is a graduate of Yale University and Harvard Law and Business Schools. According to his LinkedIn, Schlossberg has worked for the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation for 12 years, first as chair of the New Frontier Award, and now as chair of the Profiles in Courage Award. Schlossberg is the son of former U.S. Ambassador Caroline Kennedy. Schlossberg honored former Vice President Mike Pence with the Profiles in Courage Award earlier this year for defying President Donald Trump’s request to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. The 32-year-old Kennedy heir is a frequent Trump critic. And while he often experiments with accents in his online skits, Schlossberg did not mince words about the president in his campaign launch video. In the vertical walk-and-talk style video, Schlossberg clipped a mini microphone to his crisp, blue button-down shirt and accused Trump of turning his second term into “cronyism, not capitalism, and a constitutional crisis with one dangerous man in control of all three branches of government.” Earlier this year, fellow New Yorker Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer appointed Schlossberg to the America 250 Commission, claiming there was “no better person to push back” on Trump’s “ego” dominating the celebrations. Schlossberg has also been a vocal critic of his cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who ran a failed presidential campaign last year before endorsing Trump and securing a cabinet position as secretary of Health and Human Services. Schlossberg accused Trump of dismantling the Kennedy legacy and called RFK Jr. a “dangerous person” on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” Wednesday. While it’s clear that Schlossberg rejects Trump, his campaign priorities are not so obvious. In his campaign launch video, Schlossberg said he is running to replace the retiring Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., because New York’s 12th Congressional District “should have a representative who can harness the creativity, energy and drive” of the city and translate it into “political power and drive in Washington.” His campaign website includes a short biography and donation links, but no policy proposals, only a list of “12 promises” to the district’s residents. “I’m a big believer that if you don’t have something else to say in the race, you shouldn’t really jump in,” Democratic commentator Kaivan Shroff, a 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign alum, told Fox News Digital. “It’s unclear because he doesn’t have that policy page.” Fox News Digital reached out to Schlossberg for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
Gaza girl shares story of being found alive in morgue after Israeli attack
Raghad al-Assar, 12, continues to suffer trauma after her home in central Gaza was bombed, killing two of her sisters. Twelve-year-old Raghad al-Assar lay unconscious in a Gaza mortuary for eight hours after she was declared dead following an Israeli attack on her home in central Gaza last year. “We were sitting in our home like everyone else when suddenly bullets, planes and drones came down on us,” she told Al Jazeera. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list Al-Assar was saved by chance when a Palestinian man searching for his son’s body in the morgue saw the young girl’s fingers moving as she lay on a cold slab. “I was in a coma for two weeks, and when I woke up, my family told me that I had been placed in the morgue refrigerator,” she recounted. Two of al-Assar’s sisters were killed in the attack on June 8, 2024, and other members of her family were hurt as well. “All my family was injured, and two of my sisters were martyred. My eldest sister’s condition is worse than mine. She can’t see in one eye, has burns, deep wounds and stomach problems,” al-Assar revealed. Her story is one of the many to emerge from Israel’s war on Gaza, which United Nations experts have described as a genocide. According to the UN Children’s Fund, some 64,000 children have “reportedly been killed or maimed” in Israeli attacks on coastal Palestinian territory. Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 69,187 Palestinians and wounded 170,703 since its start in October 2023. ‘Changed her into another person’ Al-Assar’s father, Mohammed, was working when his house was attacked. A relative had called to tell him what happened. “News came to me that my house was targeted. I was at work, not at home. I rushed from work to the hospital to check what happened,” he said. Advertisement “We went to the house to look for Raghad under the rubble. We did not find any sign of her.” After he reunited with his daughter, Mohammed noticed the attack had completely changed her. “The incident that occurred to her changed her mental health and personality into another person,” he explained. “There would be incidents where we walk on the street, where she faints while we’re walking on the street.” Al-Assar told Al Jazeera she suffers from nightmares and anxiety whenever she recalls the day of the attack. “I don’t like to remember, don’t want to hear war sounds, and avoid things that bring back memories. If I hear bombing or planes, I get frightened,” she said. Her family is hoping to get al-Assar and her sister medical treatment abroad. “I want to go abroad for treatment. That is my dream,” al-Assar said. “It is a child’s right to live just like other people abroad — for them to have play and have wellbeing.” Two years of Israeli bombardment across Gaza have destroyed many health facilities and killed hundreds of medics, resulting in the collapse of the territory’s medical infrastructure. While Hamas and Israel agreed last month to a ceasefire, Israel continues to conduct attacks on the enclave, and at least 260 people have been killed since the truce began on October 10. Adblock test (Why?)
Italy’s PM Meloni determined to continue sending migrants to Albania
Giorgia Meloni’s plan to use detention centres in Albania has faced numerous legal challenges and human rights criticism. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has doubled down on her government’s plans to send migrants and asylum seekers to detention centres in Albania, despite opposition from Italian judges and the European Union’s top court. Speaking at a summit in Rome alongside Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, Meloni said her right-wing government was “determined” to forge ahead with its scheme of sending migrants and asylum seekers outside the EU while their claims are processed. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list “Certainly, the protocol will work when the new [EU] migration and asylum pact comes into effect,” Meloni said on Thursday, citing a legal framework slated for 2026. “When the migration and asylum pact comes into effect, the centres will operate exactly as they should have from the beginning.” In a separate deal approved by the Albanian Parliament in February 2024, Albania agreed to hold up to 3,000 migrants and asylum seekers at any one time in two Italian-run processing centres located near the port of Shengjin. Under the plan at the time, the migrants and asylum seekers would be held for periods of about a month. It was expected that up to 36,000 people a year could be sent from Italian custody to Albania over an initial period of five years. According to the deal, people would be screened initially on board the ships that rescue them before being sent to Albania for further screening. The centres were meant to be operated under Italian law with Italian security and staff. Italian judges would hear the immigration cases via video from Rome. Advertisement The agreement was denounced by rights groups, with the International Rescue Committee describing it as “dehumanising“. Amnesty International condemned it as “illegal and unworkable”. As of August 1, Italy saw 36,557 migrant arrivals in 2025. That number is slightly up from the same period of 2024, but far below the 89,165 recorded over the same time span in 2023. Following parliamentary approval, Italy sent its first ship carrying asylum seekers and migrants — 10 men from Bangladesh and six from Egypt — to Albania’s Shengjin port in October 2024. But very quickly, four of the men were identified as “vulnerable” and sent back to Italy. Within two days, the remaining 12 men were sent back too, after an Italian court ruled against their detention. Italy then sent ships of asylum seekers to Albania in January and April 2025, despite court challenges. Meloni’s plan has been mired in legal challenges from the start. Italian judges have repeatedly rejected deportations from the centres, ruling that the asylum seekers’ countries of origin were not safe enough for them to be sent back. The cases were referred to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), which had earlier established that asylum applicants could not undergo a fast-track procedure for repatriation if their home countries were not deemed safe. The ECJ ultimately backed Italian judges in a ruling in August, questioning Meloni’s list of “safe countries”. Meloni’s government had issued a decree establishing a list of 19 supposedly safe countries of origin, which includes Egypt and Bangladesh. However, the EU has not classified either as a safe country of origin. The ECJ said Italy is free to decide which countries are “safe” but warned that such a designation should meet strict legal standards and allow applicants and courts to access and challenge the supporting evidence. The ECJ also said a country might not be classified “safe” if it does not offer adequate protection to its entire population, agreeing with Italian judges who had raised the same issue last year. The detention facilities in Albania have been empty for months due to the judicial obstacles. Earlier this year, a report found that their construction cost was seven times more than that of an equivalent centre in Italy. Adblock test (Why?)
Journalist Sami Hamdi arrives in London after 2 weeks in ICE detention
NewsFeed British Muslim journalist and political commentator Sami Hamdi has arrived in London after being held in a US immigration detention centre for more than two weeks. He had been on a speaking tour in the US when his visa was revoked. Supporters say the Trump administration targeted him for his pro-Palestinian advocacy. Published On 13 Nov 202513 Nov 2025 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Adblock test (Why?)
Bihar election 2025: Meet Shashant Shekhar, IITian, IIM graduate-turned-dairy entrepreneur, Congress candidate from Patna Sahib, his net worth is Rs…
There has been curiosity about Congress candidate Shashant as he turned down a job offer of Rs 1.25 crore to contest from Patna Sahib constituency in Bihar.