Florida Rep Byron Donalds vows ‘I’m not going to be intimidated’ after tense town hall
Florida Rep. Byron Donalds vowed to Fox News that he is “not going to be intimidated by any of these protesters” after he was captured on video shutting down a woman yelling about Israel during a town hall he hosted this week. Footage showed the individual being escorted away by security at Estero High School in Florida on Monday night. Donalds, a staunch ally of President Donald Trump, is running to succeed term-limited Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. “This is why Donald Trump supports me to be Florida’s next governor. Because I will take the message of common sense and conservatism anywhere, any place, any time, in any audience. I’m not going to be intimidated by any of these protesters,” Donalds said during an appearance on “Hannity.” “Members of Congress should not be intimidated by these people. They want to shout you down to try to deflect and distract from their terrible policy and how they left America really at the bottom in the pit because of the terrible presidency of Joe Biden,” he continued. “We shouldn’t put up with it. We should confront it head-on, and if they are going to be rude and disrespectful, then kick them out of the room, it’s that simple.” FLORIDA PROTESTER SCREAMS AT REP BYRON DONALDS DURING TENSE TOWN HALL Donalds also said, “Local Democrats are being organized about coming into congressional town halls” and that he has never seen so many show up at his events. HOW DEMOCRATS INFILTRATED ‘THUNDEROUS’ GOP TOWN HALLS “That’s OK. If they want to show up now, you are going to hear the truth, you are going to hear the facts. You are not going to hear Democrat talking points. You are not going to hear spin, and they want to yell and be upset because they want you, quite frankly, to reverse course, reverse your positions, stand against things that are right, stand against deporting illegal aliens, stand against Israel,” he added. “That is what they want you to do.” “But when you don’t bend to their will, then they yell and they get upset like they did last night,” Donalds said. Donalds later shared the Fox News segment on his X account, writing that “ALL REPUBLICAN MEMBERS should hold Town Halls to confront them DIRECTLY.”
Supreme Court likely to side with parents in letting them opt out of LGBTQ storybooks, expert says
Several Supreme Court justices signaled sympathy Tuesday toward Maryland parents who are seeking to opt their children out of LGBTQ-themed classroom materials. One education expert said the case could lead to a ruling that expands parental rights in public schools nationwide. “This looks pretty promising for the parent petitioners in this case,” said Sarah Parshall Perry, vice president and legal fellow of the grassroots organization Defending Education. “I heard a lot of very aggressive questioning from the three liberal justices, but no matter how you slice this apple, it looks to be a very clear violation of the First Amendment, as exercised through the 14th Amendment’s right to direct a child’s religious upbringing.” Perry previously served as the lead lawyer to the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education from 2020 to 2021, where she drafted the Office for Civil Rights’ (OCR) annual report to Congress. THE SUPREME COURT APPEARS TO SIDE WITH PARENTS IN RELIGIOUS LIBERTY DISPUTE OVER STORYBOOKS “They’re very malleable,” Perry said of the 4-and 5-year-olds in the case. “They’re very much shaped by their environment, by what they’re exposed to, and they don’t have the meaningful agency to be able to opt out or object or push back. And so these individuals are learning their own familial values while being exposed to material that is, as Justice [Amy Coney] Barrett and Justice [Neil] Gorsuch pointed out, designed to influence their thinking.” At the heart of Mahmoud v. Taylor is a lawsuit brought by religious parents—Muslim, Roman Catholic, and Ukrainian Orthodox—who argue that the school district’s policy violates their First Amendment rights by forcing their children to engage with instruction that contradicts their faith. The Fourth Circuit Court, a federal appeals court, ruled last year that there was no violation of religious exercise rights, stating that the policy did not force parents to change their religious beliefs or conduct and that parents could still teach their children outside of school. Several conservative justices, including Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, appeared sympathetic to the parents’ concerns during the two-and-a-half-hour oral debate. Alito questioned the moral messages conveyed by books like “Uncle Bobby’s Wedding,” suggesting that such content might conflict with deeply held religious beliefs. Justice Brett Kavanaugh also pressed the school district’s attorneys on why opt-out provisions, similar to those in sex education, could not be extended to these storybooks. PARENTS TELL SCOTUS: LGBTQ STORYBOOKS IN CLASSROOMS CLASH WITH OUR FAITH Meanwhile, the liberal justices argued that mere exposure to these books may not constitute coercion or a violation of religious freedoms. The school district contended that the policy promotes inclusivity and exposure to LGBTQ viewpoints does not equate to forced belief changes. “I think it was highly sort of predictable,” Perry said of the liberal justices’ arguments. “They are trying to prove that there is going to be too much of a burden on the school district to allow these children to opt out because the consequences could, for example, be catastrophic for the ability of a public school to manage its own affairs.” “The reason we see an issue like this at the Supreme Court is because these are issues directly related to religious liberty and directly related to the very early cognitive stages of development for minor children,” Perry said. “And it’s very clear … that a burden of religious liberty within public education has to be treated quite seriously by the court and deference must be given to religious parents if the burden is very clear.” “I think in this instance, it is indeed crystal clear,” she added. LAWSUIT TRACKER: NEW RESISTANCE BATTLING TRUMP’S SECOND TERM THROUGH ONSLAUGHT OF LAWSUITS TAKING AIM AT EOS Among the storybooks at the center of the case is “Prince & Knight,” a modern fairy tale aimed at children ages 4 to 8, which tells the story of two men who fall in love after joining forces to defeat a dragon and later marry. Another book frequently referenced during oral arguments was “Uncle Bobby’s Wedding,” which follows a young girl processing her favorite uncle’s decision to marry another man. “Because parental rights have become sort of the cultural zeitgeist for where we are in this political day and age, I think we are certain to see more litigation, not less, and more pushback,” Perry said. The Supreme Court is expected to issue a ruling in the case by late June.
Venezuelan government uses Tren de Aragua as proxies to undermine US public safety, FBI assessment finds
EXCLUSIVE: The FBI assesses that some Venezuelan government officials “likely facilitate” the migration of members of the violent gang Tren de Aragua from Venezuela to the United States to advance the Maduro regime’s objective of undermining public safety in the U.S., Fox News Digital has learned. A senior administration official exclusively shared with Fox News Digital Wednesday unclassified portions of the FBI’s classified intelligence assessment of the Venezuelan government’s relationship with Tren de Aragua. TRUMP ISSUES WARNING TO MADURO AS VENEZUELAN LEADER ENTERS THIRD TERM, US EXPANDS SANCTIONS President Donald Trump, upon taking office, designated Tren de Aragua, as well as several other migrant gangs present throughout the U.S., as a foreign terrorist organization. Fox News Digital has learned that the FBI assesses that some Venezuelan government officials are likely using Tren de Aragua members as proxies for the Maduro regime in an effort to destabilize Chile, Ecuador, Peru, Colombia and the United States. The official said the FBI assesses that this demonstrates Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s willingness to violate the territorial sovereignty of Venezuela’s neighbors to advance his regime’s policies. The FBI assesses that in the next six to 18 months, Venezuelan government officials likely will attempt to leverage Tren de Aragua members in the United States as proxy actors to threaten, abduct and kill members of the Venezuelan diaspora in the United States who are vocal critics of Maduro and his regime. The FBI expects an expansion of similar activities throughout South America. TRUMP ADMIN FILES FIRST RACKETEERING CHARGES AGAINST MASSIVE MIGRANT TERRORIST GROUP PRESENT IN US “These findings should shock Americans but not the law enforcement community,” a senior administration official told Fox News Digital. “They reflect the sentiments of numerous other intelligence assessments across multiple agencies.” Any further details or specific examples remain classified. “Nicholas Maduro is a Marxist dictator who hijacked a once-prosperous Venezuela and brought in nothing but total economic collapse and gang takeover,” the official said. “He crumbled Caracas, now overrun with drugs and violence, and wants to do the same across the United States by sending his most violent and dangerous criminals into our communities.” The Venezuelan leader, deemed a “dictator” by American lawmakers, is set to hold office until 2031. “The Trump administration will continue to use every authority in our power to make sure these TdA terrorists, who are some of the worst in the world, are kept out of our country,” the U.S. official said. “The American people voted overwhelmingly to make America safe again, and that is exactly what we will do.” Fox News Digital also spoke to an official from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence Wednesday, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The ODNI official told Fox News Digital that the FBI’s assessment is based on its domestic law enforcement operations against Tren de Aragua in America. “This information and intelligence are the most robust and accurate given their focus on domestic security and crimes, versus limited intelligence assessments from other intelligence elements who by law focus solely on foreign intelligence collection and who, until President Trump took office, had very limited resources focused on TdA,” the official said. Meanwhile, the ODNI official briefed Fox News Digital on unclassified information from its assessment on Tren de Aragua’s relationship with the Venezuelan government. The official said ODNI assesses that Tren de Aragua leaders historically have been “located and broadly benefited from conditions in Venezuela created by the Venezuelan government.” “The Venezuelan government gives sanctuary to TdA, aiding and abetting their crimes and terrorist activities against the United States by enabling them to thrive,” the ODNI told Fox News Digital. The official said that unlike most countries, the Maduro regime has “been eager to welcome violent TdA criminals back to Venezuela, providing further proof they see them as allies. Again, this mirrors the behavior of the Taliban in Afghanistan and other Middle Eastern failed states like Syria and Libya that have welcomed terrorists with open arms.” The Associated Press recently reported on a classified assessment from the National Intelligence Council, citing anonymous sources, that its assessment found no coordination between Tren de Aragua and the Venezuelan government. But Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard blasted the report, saying the officials who illegally shared the classified information weaponized the intelligence to undermine Trump. “The weaponization of intelligence to undermine the President’s agenda is an assault on democracy,” Gabbard said. “Those behind this illegal leak of classified intelligence, twisted and manipulated to convey the exact opposite finding, will be accountable under the full force of the law.” The ODNI official said the unclassified assessment information shared with Fox News Digital Wednesday “are facts based on intelligence that the illegal leakers and propaganda media conveniently did not include because it gets in the way of their biased narrative and attempt to deceive the American people.” The release of the unclassified information to Fox News Digital comes after the Trump administration filed its first racketeering charges — also known as RICO charges, which include conspiring to commit murder, sex-trafficking, assault, dealing drugs and more — against Tren de Aragua members and its associates in New York Tuesday. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE That case was part of “Operation Take Back America,” which it said is a “nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Justice Department to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.” The charges filed against 27 alleged current and former Tren de Aragua members include human smuggling, sex trafficking and murder. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York said that 21 of the 27 alleged gang members and associates are currently in federal custody. The statement said that 16 were already in federal criminal, immigration or state custody, and five were arrested in the past couple of days. U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi commented on the RICO charges, saying: “Today’s indictments and arrests
Trump says ‘inflammatory’ Zelenskyy statement on Crimea prolongs war with Russia
President Donald Trump slammed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s statement on Crimea, saying it was “very harmful” to peacemaking efforts. “It’s inflammatory statements like Zelenskyy’s that make it so difficult to settle this war,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. “He has nothing to boast about! The situation for Ukraine is dire — He can have peace or, he can fight for another three years before losing the whole country.” Trump also rejected Zelenskyy’s red line in the Truth Social post, saying it was “not even a point of discussion,” as the territory was “lost years ago” under then-President Barack Obama. VANCE ISSUES ULTIMATUM TO RUSSIA, UKRAINE ON PEACE NEGOTIATIONS American officials have apparently floated the idea of recognizing Russia’s control of Crimea, a territory that Russia seized in 2014, as part of a ceasefire proposal. This would also involve the freezing of current frontlines. In 2022, Zelenskyy said that the “Russian war against Ukraine and against the entire free Europe began with Crimea and must end with Crimea — and its liberation,” Axios reported. He reiterated this stance on Tuesday, shutting down the idea that Ukraine would recognize Russian control of Crimea. “Ukraine will not legally recognize the occupation of Crimea,” Zelenskyy said at a press conference here on Tuesday, according to the Wall Street Journal. “There’s nothing to talk about here. This is against our constitution.” NIKKI HALEY ON RUSSIA AND UKRAINE SAYS US SHOULD ‘WANT TO BE ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF HISTORY’ This is not the first time Trump has criticized Zelenskyy’s statements about the war. During their infamous meeting in the Oval Office on Feb. 28, Trump said that Zelenskyy’s “hatred” of Russian President Vladimir Putin was making it “very tough” to make a deal. “You see the hatred he’s got for Putin, it’s very tough for me to make a deal with that kind of hate, he’s got tremendous hatred,” Trump told reporters. “And I understand that, but I can tell you the other side isn’t exactly in love with, you know, him either.” TRUMP INSISTS UKRAINE-RUSSIA PEACE DEAL IS CLOSE, BUT MISTRUST IN PUTIN LEAVES EXPERTS SKEPTICAL Trump appeared to allude to the Oval Office meeting in his Truth Social post, calling Zelenskyy “the man with no cards to play.” This echoed Trump’s remark during the tense February meeting in which he said that Zelenskyy didn’t “have the cards” to make major demands in peace talks. While Zelenskyy has made his demands clear, it remains uncertain what might persuade Putin to agree to a ceasefire. Although Trump administration officials have stated that they have had productive conversations with Putin, they have yet to get Russia to agree to a ceasefire proposal. Earlier on Wednesday, Vice President JD Vance suggested that the U.S. was prepared to walk away from peace talks if Ukraine and Russia did not reach a deal soon.
Top Trump officials file charges against illegal immigrant after Fox News exposes early release plans
The Trump administration is filing federal charges after hearing that an illegal immigrant convicted of manslaughter is set to be released over six years early by the California state government. Oscar Eduardo Ortega-Anguiano was driving drunk, high, and speeding at nearly 100mph on the 405 freeway in Orange County in November 2021, when he crashed into a car being driven by a young couple, 19-year-old’s Anya Varfolomeev and Nicholay Osokin, which killed them both as they burned alive. In spring 2022, he was convicted of two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. Fox News reported on Wednesday morning that Ortega-Anguiano will be released by California state government on July 19 after serving just 3.5 years of his 10-year sentence, and the families of the victims were informed of the early release on Easter Sunday. ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CONVICTED OF KILLING TEENS IN HIGH-SPEED CRASH TO BE RELEASED EARLY: ‘IT’S DISGUSTING’ “My office has filed a felony immigration charge against this defendant. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison if convicted for 8 USC 1326. If the State of California will not seek the full measure of justice against this individual, the [DOJ] will,” Bill Essayli, United States Attorney for the Central District of California, tweeted. Attorney General Pam Bondi also weighed in following the exclusive Fox News report. “This is absolutely unconscionable. What about Justice for these teens? What about the rights of their parents? [The DOJ] will work with ICE to make sure this illegal alien receives full punishment for his crimes,” Bondi tweeted. MARYLAND ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARRESTED AFTER WOMAN FOUND MURDERED IN WOODS: OFFICIALS Immigration and Customs Enforcement has put out a detainer for his arrest following his likely release by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. However, California’s sanctuary policies led to questions about whether the state will end up complying with the detainer. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE CDCR does typically cooperate with ICE detainers, but border czar Tom Homan swiftly said federal authorities would step in after his release. “I will work with [Homeland Security] Secretary Noem on this case, and I guarantee you, if they don’t honor the detainer, we’ll have ICE agents outside that facility to take custody of this individual and deport him,” Homan said Wednesday on “America’s Newsroom.” ANGEL MOM OF RACHEL MORIN CONDEMNS DEMS’ TRIP TO SEE DEPORTED MIGRANT, MAINSTREAM MEDIA BIAS According to a notice reviewed by Fox News, he is set to be released to Garden Grove, a suburb in Orange County just south of Los Angeles. “For safety and security reasons, CDCR cannot provide information on an incarcerated person’s release date or location in advance of their release. Incarcerated persons may earn credits for participating in rehabilitative programming, which may move their parole dates to an earlier date,” the department stated. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The families of the teens killed said they’re writing to the state to keep him locked up. “It’s disgusting. You have two young, unbelievable future, productive American citizens killed for nothing and that illegal immigrant who already has been deported twice is going to be released again? For what? If even he is deported, he will come back,” Anatoly Varfolomeev, the father of Anya, told Fox News in an interview. “I hope he’s going to stay in prison. I hope that he’s gonna get old in prison and I hope he’s getting kicked out from our country in the end,” Pavel Osokin, Nicholay’s father, said. “Three years for killing two kids! It’s confusing to me. Why you give them 10 if they’re gonna spend five, and then three? Give them three in the beginning, at least we know what to expect. It’s sort of spitting in my face,” he said.
Trump unfurls plans for double 100-foot flagpoles during White House lawn walk
President Donald Trump on Wednesday revealed plans to install two “beautiful” 100-foot flagpoles on the White House lawns that will each fly an American flag. Trump told reporters about the plans after he was spotted touring the North Lawn of the White House with Dale Haney, head White House groundskeeper. “We’re putting up a beautiful, almost 100-foot-tall American flag,” Trump said, adding that the two flagpoles will be “top of the line.” “And they’ve needed flagpoles for 200 years,” Trump told reporters. “It was something I’ve often said. You know, they don’t have a flagpole, per se. So we’re putting one right where you saw us, and we’re putting another one on the side on top of the mounds. It’s going to be two beautiful poles.” TRUMP TO CREATE TASK FORCE TO PLAN ‘EXTRAORDINARY CELEBRATION’ FOR 250TH ANNIVERSARY OF AMERICA’S INDEPENDENCE The president noted that the flagpoles will be “paid for by Trump,” and should arrive at the White House in about a week. PENNSYLVANIA GOV. SHAPIRO SAYS TRUMP CALLED HIM ABOUT ARSON ATTACK: ‘VERY GRACIOUS’ The White House currently flies an American flag from a flagpole on its rooftop. The flag is always flown there, no matter the president’s location. The POW/MIA flag has also been flown at the White House since 2019.
Illegal immigrant charged with murder of Maryland mom days after Van Hollen’s El Salvador return
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) charged an illegal immigrant with the murder of a mother in Maryland on Wednesday, just five days after Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., returned to the state from his high-profile El Salvador visit to try to retrieve a deported alleged MS-13 member. ICE arrested Keycy Robinson Alexis Barrera-Rosa, a 23-year-old Guatemalan national on April 5 in Charles County. He was later charged on April 23 after the body of Lesbia Mileth Ramirez Guerra from LaPlata was discovered buried near a state forest. ICE said Barrera-Rose would be “fully prosecuted” for the alleged murder, according to ICE. NOT A MARYLAND MAN: GOP BLASTS DEMOCRAT SENATOR FIGHTING TO RETURN SALVADORAN NATIONAL Van Hollen, who returned to Maryland on Friday after trying to bring deportee Kilmar Garcia back from El Salvador, has not appeared to make any public comments on the news regarding Guerra. He has, however, commented on illegal immigrant crime in the past, including in a January statement explaining his no vote on the Laken Riley Act. “We must keep our communities safe and prioritize the detention of violent offenders,” Van Hollen said on Jan. 20. Meanwhile, Van Hollen and the several House Democrats who followed his lead in traveling to Central America to aid Garcia have become the focal point of the GOP’s derision in recent days. For instance, the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) launched a fake tourism ad saying Democrats “should feel free to make their trip to hang out with MS-13 gangbangers one-way.” DEMOCRAT’S EL SALVADOR TRIP LAMPOONED IN SENATE GOP FAUX TOURISM AD: ‘BIENVENIDOS’ The ad came after serious crimes at the hands of illegal immigrants cropped up around the Old Line State. Most recently, Victor Martinez-Hernandez was found guilty of killing Rachel Morin on the Ma & Pa Trail in Bel Air. Morin’s mother, Patty, was later invited to speak from the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, where she lambasted Van Hollen for traveling to El Salvador to help Garcia. On Sunday, Van Hollen told “Fox News Sunday” that what happened to the Morin family “was awful and unacceptable.” Last week, a jury took less than an hour to convict another Maryland illegal immigrant murder suspect – Victor Martinez-Hernandez – on first-degree premeditated murder charges in Harford County. Also last week, ICE arrested Guatemalan national Rene Pop-Chub in Hyattsville, Maryland, outside Washington. Pop-Chub had pending murder, assault and reckless endangerment charges, and was the subject of an ignored detainer by a county corrections office, according to an ICE statement. “The arrest of Rene Pop-Chub underscores the critical importance of cooperation between federal and local counterparts,” ICE Baltimore Acting Field Office Director Nikita Baker said in a statement. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP In a 2024 case in Montgomery Village, a northern suburb of Washington, ICE detained an “unlawfully present” Honduran national and previous deportee named Madai Gamaliel Amaya. Amaya’s arrest marked what ICE said was a record of 153 arrests of noncitizen sex offenders in Maryland in FY-2024. An ICE official called the case a “landmark arrest” for the Baltimore field office, and said in a statement that Amaya was previously arrested in the same county in 2009 and charged with second-degree rape. He was deported in 2013 and 2018, albeit from other states. Despite the high-profile cases in Maryland, Gov. Wes Moore told Fox News Digital the state has seen “significant drops” in violent crimes. “Our law enforcement officials work hard every day, in coordination with federal partners, to root out violent crime in our state. This is exactly what happened in this case, and what we do every day to keep Marylanders safe – hold perpetrators accountable for their crimes, regardless of immigration status,” Moore added, referring to the Guerra case. Fox News Digital reached out to Van Hollen, DHS and ICE for comment but did not immediately hear back.
China-US trade war: Can Trump win?
Singaporean geostrategist Kishore Mahbubani argues that China has benefitted from globalisation – but so has the United States. Veteran Singaporean diplomat Kishore Mahbubani argues that it’s “legitimate” for US President Donald Trump to be worrying about the widening gap between rich and poor in the United States, but his idea to force factory jobs back to the US is probably not going to work. Mahbubani tells host Steve Clemons that China will be damaged by the current trade war with the US, but “the Chinese are prepared to accept short-term pain for long-term gain”. The disarray in US policy is “a gift to China,” says Mahbubani. “I don’t see countries walking away from China.” Adblock test (Why?)
‘I grabbed my cat and ran’: Istanbul panics as earthquake hits
Istanbul, Turkiye – For five terrifying seconds, buildings shook, shelves toppled, and panic rippled through Istanbul, Turkiye’s cultural and economic heart. The ground beneath Istanbul trembled at 12:49pm (09:49 GMT) on Wednesday, sending millions scrambling into the streets as a magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck in the sea off the city’s western coast. Several smaller aftershocks have followed, with magnitudes of between 3.5 and 5.9. No major damage was reported according to authorities, although Istanbul Governor Davut Gul said that at least 151 people were injured after jumping from heights to escape in a panic. Many in Istanbul are worried the city will be eventually be hit with a large earthquake, as has happened in the past [Elis Gjevori/Al Jazeera] The quake, centred near Silivri in the Sea of Marmara, revived painful memories of past disasters and left residents grappling with fear over what might come next. In the upscale Nisantasi district, 69-year-old Bilge was at home when her building suddenly rattled. “People in the building screamed ‘earthquake!’ and ran outside. My hands wouldn’t stop shaking,” she told Al Jazeera, describing crowds spilling onto the sidewalks, clutching phones to check on loved ones. Advertisement Nearby, coffee shop workers rushed out into the street. “We were just calling our families,” one said, as aftershocks continued to ripple across the city. The earthquake coincided with National Sovereignty and Children’s Day, a public holiday, leading to the cancellation of events and heightened public anxiety. Parents were seen walking through the streets with their children still dressed for celebrations. “I was on the seventh floor, just about to make lunch,” said Zeynep Karatas, 41, a freelance designer from Sisli who had come to Nisantasi’s Macka Park with hundreds of others who wanted the safety of an open space. “The walls in my building cracked, the glasses clinked. I didn’t wait – I grabbed my cat and ran,” said Karatas. She joined dozens of neighbours already gathered outside. Some clutched pets, others their phones, trying to contact relatives. “We all ran out together. Strangers were helping elderly people down the stairs. I felt like crying,” she added. Some in the park are anxious, and say they will stay awake as long as possible at night. Others are planning to pack a small bag in case they need to leave their home quickly. Turkiye’s emergency authority AFAD has warned residents to stay alert, as aftershocks can continue for hours, even days. History of earthquakes While initial reports indicated little structural damage, the psychological impact was immediate. “Everyone was talking about 2023,” said Baran Demir, 62, referring to the devastating earthquake that killed more than 53,000 people in southern Turkiye, and another 6,000 people in Syria. “You could see it on people’s faces, that same fear. My building didn’t collapse then, but the memory came rushing back.” Advertisement In Nisantasi, 35-year-old cafe worker Mehmet was helping usher customers outside when the aftershocks hit. “Everyone stayed calm, but the mood shifted fast. We just kind of held our breath. We thought this was the big one we’ve been waiting for.” Residents of Istanbul have long feared a major earthquake hitting the city, as has happened in the past. Earthquakes with a magnitude greater than 7 have hit Istanbul in 1509, 1766 and 1894, causing thousands of deaths and large-scale destruction. A 1999 earthquake in Izmit, approximately 100 kilometres (62 miles) east of Istanbul, killed more than 17,000 people. The city lies near the North Anatolian Fault, a major fault line that regularly triggers earthquakes. Improved building codes in recent decades are designed to counteract the effect of earthquakes in the densely populated city, but many are still worried. “I’m scared to sleep tonight,” said Gokhan, an elderly man who lives alone. “What if there are strong aftershocks tonight, I can’t move quickly,” he says with a wry smile. “If it’s my time, it’s my time.” Adblock test (Why?)
Video: Russian attack on bus in Ukraine kills 9 as peace talks falter
NewsFeed Nine people were killed in a Russian attack on a bus in southern Ukraine. It was one of dozens of drone strikes launched overnight. It comes as Russia-Ukraine peace talks falter and the US threatens to “walk away.” Published On 23 Apr 202523 Apr 2025 Adblock test (Why?)