IMD high alert: Delhi, South India, Northeast to experience heavy rainfall, thunderstorm; heatwave in UP, Rajasthan
The western coastal region, including states like Kerala, Karnataka and Goa will experience heavy rainfall between May 18 and May 24. The southern region of India, including Tamil Nadu and Puducherry may experience heavy rainfall from May 18 to May 20.
Zee Media embraces new brand identity with purpose-driven ‘Z’ transformation
The new ‘Z’ is designed to symbolise clarity, consistency and trust, reflecting the network’s renewed focus on innovation, technological advancement and purposeful journalism.
Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ passes key House hurdle after GOP rebel mutiny
President Donald Trump’s “one big, beautiful bill” survived a key hurdle in the House of Representatives on Sunday night, putting it one step closer to a chamber-wide vote later this week. It comes after a rebellion by four House conservatives upended plans to advance the bill on Friday morning. Lawmakers on the House Budget Committee were summoned back to Washington for a 10 p.m. meeting to vote on advancing the legislation. It passed the panel in a nearly party-line vote, 17 to 16, with four Republicans voting “present.” Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., made a surprise appearance in the committee room shortly before the vote began, telling reporters, “We think this is going to go well tonight. We’re about to find out.” He said there would likely be “minor modifications” to the final bill before disappearing into a back room with the four GOP holdouts who sunk the bill on Friday morning. ANTI-ABORTION PROVIDER MEASURE IN TRUMP’S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ COULD SPARK HOUSE GOP REBELLION Johnson spoke to reporters again just before the vote began. “I think what is about to happen here is that every member, every Republican member, will give a vote that allows us to proceed forward, and we count that as a big win tonight,” he said. The speaker said he expects to have “productive discussions” with various factions of the House GOP, adding, “I am absolutely convinced we’re going to get this in final form and pass it in accordance with our original deadline.” It comes after a rebellion by four conservative House Freedom Caucus members on the committee blocked the bill from advancing on Friday, with the fiscal hawks seeking assurances that stricter crackdowns on Medicaid and green energy subsidies in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) would be in the final bill before a House-wide vote. The four conservatives voted “present” in an effort to move discussions forward on Sunday night. Advancing the legislation through the House Budget Committee is a largely procedural move. Lawmakers have signaled that some changes will be introduced as amendments in the House Rules Committee, the final gatekeeper before a House-wide vote, sometime early this week. Notably, two of the Budget Committee fiscal hawks who demanded further changes – Reps. Chip Roy, R-Texas, and Ralph Norman, R-S.C. – also sit on the House Rules Committee. “In an effort to move this bill forward, I’m excited about the changes we’ve made. And I will vote present,” Norman said as voting began. The House Budget Committee passed a framework earlier this year with “instructions” for various other committees to enact Trump policies under their jurisdictions. Following House and Senate-wide votes on their frameworks, House committees began crafting those policies, which have now been put back together into the massive bill the House Budget Committee advanced on Sunday night. BROWN UNIVERSITY IN GOP CROSSHAIRS AFTER STUDENT’S DOGE-LIKE EMAIL KICKS OFF FRENZY Republicans are working to pass Trump’s agenda via the budget reconciliation process, which allows the party controlling both Congress and the White House to pass vast pieces of legislation while completely sidelining the minority – in this case, Democrats. It does so by lowering the Senate’s threshold for passage from 60 votes to 51, lining up with the House’s own simple majority. The legislation must adhere to a specific set of rules, however, including only items related to federal spending, tax, and the national debt. Trump is having Republicans use the legislation to enact his campaign promises on tax cuts, immigration, energy, defense, and raising the debt limit. And while quelling Friday’s GOP mutiny is a victory for House Republican leaders, lawmakers will still have to sit through high-stakes negotiations on any changes made to the bill before the House Rules Committee considers it. Conservatives are opposed to aspects of the legislation’s crackdown on Medicaid, which Republicans have said they are only trimming for waste, fraud, and abuse. But Medicaid work requirements for able-bodied people are not set to kick in until 2029, and conservatives have argued that it was a large window of time for those changes to be undone, among other concerns. They’re also pushing for a more aggressive effort to repeal green energy tax subsidies passed in the former Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). The respective pushes have pitted them against moderates wary of significant Medicaid cuts, and Republican lawmakers whose districts have businesses that have benefited from the tax relief. Meanwhile, moderates in high-cost-of-living areas have also pushed for larger state and local tax (SALT) deduction caps, which red state Republicans have largely dismissed as subsidies to high-tax blue states. The Republicans in those seats, however, have argued that it’s an existential issue for their districts, where GOP victories were critical to winning and holding the House majority. But even after it passes the House, Republicans there likely won’t be done with the “big, beautiful bill” – Republican senators have already signaled they are likely going to make changes to the bill. Johnson said on Fox News Sunday that House and Senate leaders were “in close coordination” on the final product, adding, “we hope that they don’t make many modifications to it.” Any changes will have to go through the House again; identical bills must pass both chambers before getting signed into law by Trump. Republican leaders have said they hope to get a bill on the president’s desk by Fourth of July.
Top Lashkar-e-Taiba top commander Abu Saifullah mastermind behind THESE terrorist attacks in India, shot dead in Pakistan
Razaullah Nizamani, alias Abu Saifullah Khalid, a top commander of the Pakistan-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), was shot dead in Pakistan’s Sindh province.
Who is Priyanka Senapati? Odisha YouTuber under IB scanner in Jyoti Malhotra spy case
Priyanka Senapati, who travelled to Kartarpur in Pakistan three to four months ago, became friends with Jyoti.
Afghan Christian pastor pleads with Trump, warns of Taliban revenge after admin revokes refugee protections
As the Trump administration has moved to end protections for thousands of Afghan nationals, faith leaders and advocates are sounding the alarm over the potential deportation of Christian converts, who, they say, face severe persecution under Taliban rule. Pastor Behnam Rasooli, known as Pastor Ben, leads the Oklahoma Khorasan Church in Oklahoma City, a congregation primarily composed of Afghan Christian refugees. In an interview with Fox News Digital, he shared harrowing accounts of the dangers he says his Christian community faces. “If any of these Afghan Christians are deported back to Afghanistan, the first thing that will happen is the husbands will be killed, the wives will be taken as sex slaves,” Pastor Ben stated. “If they don’t kill them, they’ll put them in prison and beat them every single night.” The Department of Homeland Security officially ended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Afghan nationals, potentially forcing more than 9,000 individuals to return to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. EXCLUSIVE: AS AFGHAN CHRISTIANS FACE DEPORTATION, FAITH LEADERS URGE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION TO RECONSIDER Department of Homeland (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem cited an “improved security situation” and a stabilizing economy as justification. “This administration is returning TPS to its original, temporary intent,” Noem said. “We’ve reviewed the conditions in Afghanistan with our interagency partners, and they do not meet the requirements for a TPS designation.” Afghans’ protected status is set to expire on May 20, with the program formally ending on July 12. Noem added that terminating the designation aligns with the administration’s broader goal of rooting out fraud and national security threats in the immigration system. TPS allows foreign nationals from countries facing armed conflict, natural disasters or other emergencies to live and work legally in the U.S. Then-President Joe Biden had originally designated Afghanistan for TPS following the Taliban’s takeover in 2021. Among those at risk are members of Pastor Ben’s congregation, many of whom he says undertook perilous journeys to reach the U.S. legally. He recounted the story of a group that he claimed traveled from Brazil to Mexico, including a 76-year-old woman and a 7-month-old girl, waiting ten months in a Mexican church sanctuary for approval to cross the border legally via the CBP One app. “They didn’t have food for weeks, they didn’t have water for weeks, but they were willing to wait, face all those difficulties, to come to the United States with legal status,” he said. “Now, with the new administration, we heard that those parolees are being revoked. They’re not even giving work permits.” CHRISTIANS IN AFGHANISTAN FACE ROUTINE TORTURE, PERSECUTION FROM FAMILY MEMBERS: WATCHDOG GROUPS Fox News Digital reached out to the White House about the pastor’s concerns and received the following response: “In tandem with its failed Afghanistan withdrawal, the Biden administration illegally paroled tens of thousands of Afghans into the U.S., plus hundreds of thousands of other aliens. Parole, a temporary benefit, is granted case by case for urgent humanitarian reasons or public benefit—it is not a pathway to permanent residence or citizenship. Afghans lacking legal grounds to stay and fearing persecution on protected grounds may apply for asylum and have the courts adjudicate their cases,” said White House spokesman Kush Desai to Fox News Digital. Advocacy groups, including Help The Persecuted, have petitioned Noem to recognize Afghanistan as a Country of Particular Concern, and to allow Afghan Christians and minorities who have documented persecution due to religion or belief to have TPS while their asylum claims are properly vetted and processed. The petition stresses the Taliban’s active persecution of Christians, including arrests at border crossings, torture in detention and the enforcement of laws that make any practice of Christianity illegal. Pastor Ben urges fellow Christians to stand in solidarity with their persecuted brothers and sisters. “They need us today to be their voice,” he said. “We have the freedom; they do not. We have all the comfort; they do not. But all they want is the church to be part of it.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP He also addressed President Trump directly: “Mr. President, I fully support your deportation plan because we do not want criminals to live in the United States, but we have to be aware that among those people that you want to deport, some are not criminals. Some are people that are at the risk of being killed, being imprisoned, losing their wives, losing their kids.” “Please, let’s not let this happen to them,” said Pastor Ben. “Let’s keep the American Dream alive.” Fox News Digital’s Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.
Bruce Springsteen ignores question about Trump feud while signing autographs: video
Singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, also known as “The Boss,” ignored a question regarding his ongoing feud with President Donald Trump, while signing autographs for fans. Sporting a Deus Ex-Machina jacket and Ray-Ban sunglasses, “The Boss” worked his way down a line of fans hoping to get his signature on a piece of memorabilia when he was asked if he had a message for Trump. Rather than answer, Springsteen could be seen chuckling for a moment before raising his hand, and then moving onto the next fan. Springsteen tore into Trump on Wednesday during the first of a series of concerts in Manchester, England. TRUMP REIGNITES FEUD WITH TAYLOR SWIFT: ‘NO LONGER HOT’ BECAUSE OF ME “The mighty E Street Band is here tonight to call upon the righteous power of art, of music, of rock and roll in dangerous times,” he told the crowd. “In my home, the America I love, the America I’ve written about, that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years, is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration.” The crowd responded with applause when Springsteen continued to pontificate his stance on the current administration. “Tonight, we ask all who believe in democracy and the best of our American experiment to rise with us, raise your voices against authoritarianism and let freedom ring!” Springsteen added in a video posted on his YouTube page. TRUMP CALLS SPRINGSTEEN ‘HIGHLY OVERRATED’ AFTER ROCKER LABELS HIM ‘TREASONOUS’ OVERSEAS Trump responded by slamming Springsteen and calling him “highly overrated” on Friday. “I see that Highly Overrated Bruce Springsteen goes to a Foreign Country to speak badly about the President of the United States,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. “Never liked him, never liked his music, or his Radical Left Politics and, importantly, he’s not a talented guy — Just a pushy, obnoxious JERK, who fervently supported Crooked Joe Biden, a mentally incompetent FOOL, and our WORST EVER President, who came close to destroying our Country.” The president continued in his post, saying “Sleepy Joe didn’t have a clue as to what he was doing, but Springsteen is ‘dumb as a rock,’ and couldn’t see what was going on, or could he (which is even worse!)? This dried out ‘prune’ of a rocker (his skin is all atrophied!) ought to KEEP HIS MOUTH SHUT until he gets back into the Country, that’s just ‘standard fare.’ Then we’ll all see how it goes for him!” Springsteen declared last year that “I’ll be casting my vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz” in the presidential election. Harris ended up losing the race to Trump. The “Born in the USA” singer-songwriter, in an Instagram video endorsing Harris, attacked Trump as “the most dangerous candidate for President in my lifetime” with a “disdain for the sanctity of our constitution, the sanctity of democracy, the sanctity of the rule of law, and the sanctity of the peaceful transfer of power.” Fox News Digital’s Greg Norman, Lindsay Kornick and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
Political world reacts to former President Biden’s ‘aggressive’ cancer diagnosis: ‘Incredibly difficult’
Sympathetic messages rolled in from across the country after former President Joe Biden’s team announced that the 82-year-old was diagnosed with an “aggressive” form of prostate cancer. In a statement, Biden’s team said that the former politician “was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms.” “On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterized by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone,” the statement added. “While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management,” Biden’s team continued. “The President and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians.” ‘SMALL NODULE’ FOUND IN BIDEN’S PROSTATE DURING ROUTINE EXAM, SPOKESPERSON SAYS President Donald Trump reacted on Truth Social, writing: “Melania and I are saddened to hear about Joe Biden’s recent medical diagnosis. We extend our warmest and best wishes to Jill and the family, and we wish Joe a fast and successful recovery.” Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed her support in a post on X. “I’m thinking of the Bidens as they take on cancer, a disease they’ve done so much to try to spare other families from,” she wrote. “Wishing you a speedy, full recovery.” In a social media post, Meghan McCain expressed sadness over the news. Her father, former Senator John McCain, died of cancer in 2018. “Cancer is the absolute worst,” McCain wrote. “It is hell. It is incredibly difficult for any family, anywhere that has to deal with it.” “Wishing nothing but healing, prayers, light and strength to President Biden and his family,” she added. “I don’t believe times like these are appropriate for politics.” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., also expressed sympathy for Biden, writing that she was “sorry to see this news.” VIRGINIA REP. GERRY CONNOLLY ANNOUNCES CANCER DIAGNOSIS 2 DAYS AFTER WINNING RE-ELECTION “Cancer is truly awful,” the Georgia congresswoman wrote. “My Dad passed away in 2021 with cancer. Prays [sic] for Joe Biden and his family.” California Governor Gavin Newsrom wrote that he was “sending strength, healing and prayers [Biden’s] way.” “Our hearts are with President Biden and his entire family right now,” Newsom said. “A man of dignity, strength, and compassion like his deserves to live a long and beautiful life.” In another X post, Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., called the reports of Biden’s cancer “horrible news.” “Everyone please say a prayer for President Biden and his family,” Burchett said. Fox News Digital’s Stepheny Price and Peter Doocy contributed to this report.
Trump wishes Biden ‘fast and successful recovery’ after prostate cancer diagnosis
President Donald Trump said he and the first lady were “saddened” after learning that former President Joe Biden was diagnosed with prostate cancer, wishing him a “fast and successful recovery.” “Melania and I are saddened to hear about Joe Biden’s recent medical diagnosis,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. “We extend our warmest and best wishes to Jill and the family, and we wish Joe a fast and successful recovery.” Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr., also weighed in on the former president’s diagnosis. In a post on X, Trump Jr. shared another post that read, “BREAKING: Joe Biden has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. Politics aside, we wish him a speedy recovery!” JOE BIDEN DIAGNOSED WITH ‘AGGRESSIVE FORM’ OF PROSTATE CANCER WITH METASTASIS TO THE BONE “Agreed 100%,” he wrote on top of the post. Biden’s office confirmed on Sunday that he was diagnosed with an “aggressive form” of prostate cancer. “Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms,” Biden’s team shared in a statement. “On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterized by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone.” “While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management. The President and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians,” the statement said. Biden, 82, is the oldest living U.S. president. Fox News Digital’s Stepheny Price contributed to this report.
The UN says global hunger has hit a new high
Nearly 300 million people faced acute hunger in 2024. The world is dangerously off course, comes the stark warning from the United Nations after it found that more than 295 million people faced acute hunger in 2024. Fears are growing for the future as major donor countries are set to reduce funding this year. Climate change and economic crises are affecting 96 million people in 18 countries, including Syria and Yemen. Conflict and violence are the leading causes of the world’s largest humanitarian crisis in Sudan, after two years of civil war. In Gaza, Israel’s blockade of all food, water and medicine has entered a third month, creating a manufactured crisis. So is global food hunger a failure of systems – or a failure of humanity? Presenter: Guests: Chris Gunness – Former director of communications at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) Elise Nalbandian – Regional advocacy and campaign manager for Oxfam in Africa Sara Hayat – Specialist in climate change law and policy Adblock test (Why?)