House Democrat calls Trump’s Maduro capture ‘welcome news’ as left labels it ‘illegal’
At least one House Democrat is praising President Donald Trump’s capture of Nicolás Maduro after the U.S. conducted surprise strikes in Venezuela overnight Saturday night. “The capture of the brutal, illegitimate ruler of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, who oppressed Venezuela’s people is welcome news for my friends and neighbors who fled his violent, lawless, and disastrous rule. However, cutting off the head of a snake is fruitless if it just regrows,” Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., wrote on X. “Venezuelans deserve the promise of democracy and the rule of law, not a state of endless violence and spiraling disorder. My hope is it offers a passage to true democracy and liberation. This action offers beleaguered Venezuelans a chance to seat their true, democratically elected president, Edmundo González.” She criticized the GOP administration for apparently failing to notify Congress beforehand, however. “I’ll demand answers as to why Congress and the American people were bypassed in this effort. The absence of congressional involvement prior to this action risks the continuation of the illegitimate Venezuelan regime. Congress must be properly informed and hold hearings on this invasion. As always, I will work to bring about the promise of a liberated Venezuela,” she wrote. Wasserman Schultz’s home state of Florida is notably home to a significant number of Venezuelan refugees, as well as refugees from other communist Latin American dictatorships like Cuba. Her response to the U.S. operation is far different from the majority of her colleagues on the left, however. Congressional Democrats are largely accusing Trump of green-lighting illegal actions in Venezuela after the U.S. carried out multiple strikes and captured Maduro and his wife. While some responses were more muted than others, the majority of Democratic lawmakers argued that the Trump administration undermined U.S. law with the operation. “The Trump administration launched a large-scale military attack on a sovereign nation and kidnapped its sitting president, without congressional approval and without consideration of any of the consequences their illegal actions may bring,” Rep. Yvette Clarke, D-N.Y., wrote on X. “This act of aggression is unconstitutional, un-American, and a direct threat to our democracy.” Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., who served with the U.S. Marine Corps during the Iraq War, echoed a similar line. LIVE UPDATES: TRUMP CONFIRMS OVERNIGHT STRIKES IN VENEZUELA, SAYS US HAS ‘CAPTURED’ MADURO “There is no justification for the United States to be at war with Venezuela. I lived through the consequences of an illegal war sold to the American people with lies. We swore we would never repeat those mistakes. Yet here we are again,” Gallego said in his own statement. Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va., another military veteran, accused Trump of running afoul of the Constitution. “Let there be no mistake, President Trump has started a war in Venezuela, without any congressional approval, and in violation of the Constitution. Over the past 2 decades, we have learned the hard way that wars are easy to start and hard to finish,” Vindman wrote on X. “A plan rarely survives first contact. Having served in Iraq, I’ve seen this firsthand. Trump is wrong to start a war in Venezuela. It is not what the American people want, it is not putting America first, and it is not worth American blood and treasure.” Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., was more blunt in his assessment. “When I talk to Californians, you know what ranks lowest on their priorities? Illegally going to war with Venezuela. Just lower the damn prices,” Swalwell wrote on X. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., wrote, “Trump’s illegal and unprovoked bombing of Venezuela and kidnapping of its president are grave violations of international law and the U.S. Constitution. These are the actions of a rogue state.” Other Democrats were more muted in their criticism, instead focusing on calling for more information from the White House. VENEZUELA ARRESTS MORE AMERICANS AS TRUMP RAMPS UP PRESSURE ON MADURO: REPORT “While I strongly oppose the illegitimate regime of Nicolás Maduro, President Trump’s military action was a serious constitutional violation,” said Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y. “The Trump administration does not have sole authority to commit such acts, and I reaffirm my position that Congress must be fully informed before the U.S. engages in hostilities towards another nation. I urge for an immediate and full briefing for Members of Congress following ongoing developments in Venezuela and the subsequent long-term consequences in the region.” It comes after Trump announced on Truth Social that the U.S. had “successfully carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela” and its leader. He said Maduro and his wife were captured and flown out of the country. Attorney General Pam Bondi subsequently said both were indicted in the Southern District of New York, one of the largest federal prosecutorial offices in the U.S.
Republicans line up behind Trump after US strikes Venezuela, Maduro arrested: ‘Changed the course of history’
Republican lawmakers are emphatically backing President Donald Trump’s administration after the U.S. struck Venezuela and captured its leader, Nicolás Maduro. Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., a member of the House Armed Services Committee whose district is home to a significant number of Venezuelan refugees, said he spoke with Secretary of State Marco Rubio after the operation was carried out. “President Trump has changed the course of history in our hemisphere. Our country & the world are safer for it. Today’s decisive action is this hemisphere’s equivalent to the Fall of the Berlin Wall,” Gimenez wrote in a statement on X. LIVE UPDATES: TRUMP CONFIRMS OVERNIGHT STRIKES IN VENEZUELA, SAYS US HAS ‘CAPTURED’ MADURO Rubio had apparently briefed multiple members of Congress after the operation was carried out as well. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., praised Maduro’s capture after speaking with Rubio and said he expected senators to be briefed when Congress is back from its two-week holiday recess starting Monday. “President Trump’s decisive action to disrupt the unacceptable status quo and apprehend Maduro, through the execution of a valid Department of Justice warrant, is an important first step to bring him to justice for the drug crimes for which he has been indicted in the United States. I am grateful for the brave men and women of our armed forces who carried out this necessary action,” Thune said. “I spoke to Secretary Rubio early this morning, and I look forward to receiving further briefings from the administration on this operation as part of its comprehensive counternarcotics strategy when the Senate returns to Washington next week.” House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., confirmed in a statement that the Trump administration “is working to schedule briefings for Members as Congress returns to Washington next week.” “Today’s military action in Venezuela was a decisive and justified operation that will protect American lives,” Johnson said. “President Trump is putting American lives first, succeeding where others have failed, and under his leadership the United States will no longer allow criminal regimes to profit from wreaking havoc and destruction on our country.” VENEZUELA ARRESTS MORE AMERICANS AS TRUMP RAMPS UP PRESSURE ON MADURO: REPORT A member on the Senate’s Armed Services panel, Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., said he also spoke with Rubio, who confirmed Maduro was in custody “and will face justice for his crimes against our citizens.” “The interim government in Venezuela must now decide whether to continue the drug trafficking and colluding with adversaries like Iran and Cuba or whether to act like a normal nation and return to the civilized world. I urge them to choose wisely,” Cotton said in a statement. Even Republicans who appeared skeptical at first seemed eased after conversations with Rubio. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, for instance, said he was keen to learn “what, if anything, might constitutionally justify this action in the absence of a declaration of war or authorization for the use of military force.” He later said Rubio “informed me that Nicolás Maduro has been arrested by U.S. personnel to stand trial on criminal charges in the United States, and that the kinetic action we saw tonight was deployed to protect and defend those executing the arrest warrant.” “This action likely falls within the president’s inherent authority under Article II of the Constitution to protect U.S. personnel from an actual or imminent attack,” Lee wrote. The majority of GOP lawmakers who spoke out on Saturday morning did so with emphatic backing of the administration, however. That includes both House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, R-Fla., and House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rick Crawford, R-Ark. “The operation carried out last night capturing Nicolás Maduro is another win by President Trump to protect our homeland and clean up the backyard of the United States,” Mast told Fox News Digital. Crawford said in a statement, “This is a historic day in the Western Hemisphere, 36 years after the capture of Manuel Noriega, when the U.S showed we will not allow cartels to take over countries in our shared neighborhood. The arrest of Cartel De Los Soles leader Nicolás Maduro shows this clearly.” House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., the No. 3 GOP leader in the lower chamber, told Fox News Digital, “Maduro worked with our greatest adversaries, supported dangerous cartels, and infiltrated our country with drugs, killing Americans. President Trump took on this threat head-on today and Maduro was indicted in a U.S. court for his actions leading to the death of innocent Americans. God bless our troops and law enforcement who conducted this mission.” House GOP Leadership Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., a senior member of both committees, said, “l am grateful for our brave troops, intelligence officers, and law enforcement who ensured a successful military operation in Venezuela leading to the arrest and indictment of the illegitimate narco terrorist Nicolás Maduro.” It’s a stark departure from the majority of Democrats who largely accused Trump of violating the U.S. Constitution and entering an illegal conflict with Venezuela. It comes after Trump announced on Truth Social that the U.S. had “successfully carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela” and its leader. He said Maduro and his wife were captured and flown out of the country. Attorney General Pam Bondi subsequently said both were indicted in the Southern District of New York, one of the largest federal prosecutorial offices in the U.S.
Minnesota faces funding deadline after Trump administration freezes childcare payments
Minnesota officials have until next week to turn over information on childcare providers and parents receiving federal funds or risk losing federal childcare funding, according to a notice sent to providers. Minnesota’s Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) told childcare providers in an email Friday that information about funding recipients must be sent to the federal government by Jan. 9, The Associated Press reported. The notification came after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said Tuesday it will freeze all childcare payments to Minnesota following fraud allegations involving some childcare centers. “We recognize the alarm and questions this has raised,” DCYF said in the email. “We found out about the freezing of funds at the same time everyone else did on social media.” MINNESOTA FRAUD COMMITTEE CHAIR CLAIMS WALZ ‘TURNED A BLIND EYE’ TO FRAUD WARNINGS FOR YEARS The DCYF instructed providers and families relying on the frozen funds to continue the program’s “licensing and certification requirements and practices as usual.” The email does not say if recipients need to take any action or provide any information. The state agency said it “did not receive a formal communication from the federal government until late Tuesday night,” after the DHS announced it would freeze all childcare payments to Minnesota. All states must submit additional verification before receiving more childcare funding. CNN ROASTED FOR ‘EFFORT TO DISCREDIT’ SHIRLEY’S VIRAL REPORTING ON ALLEGED FRAUD AT MINNESOTA DAYCARE CENTERS On Friday, the DCYF said the state Office of Inspector General conducted on-site compliance checks this week at nine childcare centers referenced in a viral video by independent journalist Nick Shirley, who was accusing them of committing fraud. In his video, Shirley visited several Minnesota childcare facilities, including the Quality Learning Center in Minneapolis, which he said appeared inactive despite receiving state childcare assistance funds. Investigators found the centers operating “as expected,” according to DYCF, and children were present at all sites except for one, which it said was not yet open for families at the time of the visit. The department said it has ongoing investigations at four of the centers, and has 55 open investigations involving providers receiving funding through the Child Care Assistance Program. INDEPENDENT JOURNALIST SAYS HE’S GOTTEN DEATH THREATS, TOLD HE’LL BE ‘KIRKED’ OVER MINNESOTA FRAUD VIRAL VIDEO At a news conference Monday, Minnesota DCYF Commissioner Tikki Brown said prior inspections of the centers did not uncover fraud, noting that regulators are conducting unannounced visits in response to concerns raised by the video. “We are aware of a video that’s being circulated that has gained local and national attention about childcare centers in Minnesota,” Brown said. “While we have questions about some of the methods that were used in the video, we do take the concerns that the video raises about fraud very seriously.” Fox News Digital has reached out to Minnesota’s Department of Children, Youth, and Families for comment. Fox News Digital’s Greg Wehner, Louis Casiano and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Trump-aligned super PAC enters 2026 midterms with nearly $300M war chest
A super PAC aligned with President Donald Trump has nearly $300 million in its war chest heading into the 2026 midterms, according to records filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on Thursday. MAGA Inc. reported $294 million in cash on hand in its latest campaign finance disclosure, which the super PAC said will be used to support candidates aligned with the president’s agenda. “Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, MAGA Inc will have the resources to help candidates who support President Trump’s America First agenda of securing our border, keeping our streets safe, supercharging our economy, and making life more affordable for all Americans,” a MAGA Inc. spokesperson said in a statement, according to the New York Post. The super PAC raised $102 million in the second half of 2025, including 25 donations of at least $1 million. NC SENATE SHOWDOWN ESCALATES AS TRUMP RALLIES BEHIND WHATLEY TO KEEP GOP SEAT The largest contribution came from OpenAI president and co-founder Greg Brockman, who donated $25 million in September. Brockman said in a post on X this week that he had become more politically active in 2025, including through political contributions that reflect “support for policies that advance American innovation and constructive dialogue between government and the technology sector.” The fundraising haul came even though Trump is not on the ballot this year, underscoring the super PAC’s focus on supporting Republicans in upcoming races. HOUSE GOP CAMPAIGN CHAIR WANTS TRUMP ‘OUT THERE ON THE TRAIL’ IN MIDTERM BATTLE FOR MAJORITY MAGA Inc. did not play a significant role in the 2022 midterms, opting instead to save its money for Trump’s 2024 campaign. The super PAC spent $456 million supporting Trump’s bid to return to the White House, according to OpenSecrets, a nonprofit organization that tracks campaign finance data. MAGA Inc. launched ads in November backing Republican candidate Matt Van Epps, who was endorsed by Trump and went on to defeat Democrat Aftyn Behn in a Tennessee congressional race. Elon Musk, the billionaire technology entrepreneur and chief executive of SpaceX and Tesla, has signaled an openness to supporting Republican candidates in the midterms. “America is toast if the radical left wins,” he posted on X on Thursday. “They will open the floodgates to illegal immigration and fraud.” Fox News Digital’s Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
Key takeaways from Jack Smith’s testimony to House Judiciary Committee
Former special counsel Jack Smith used a closed-door deposition with House Republicans last month to defend his investigations into Donald Trump’s alleged effort to subvert the 2020 presidential election and his alleged retention of certain classified documents, using the hours-long testimony to forcefully dispute the notion that his team had acted politically, and citing what he described as ample evidence to support the indictments that had been levied against Trump. “I made my decisions in the investigation without regard to President Trump’s political association, activities, beliefs or candidacy in the 2024 presidential election,” Smith told members of the House Judiciary Committee in the Dec. 17 interview. The interview was Smith’s first time appearing before Congress since he left his role as special counsel in 2024. And while much of the information was not new, the exchange was punctuated by sharp exchanges with Republicans on the panel, both on the strength of the case and on his own actions taken during the course of the probe — most recently, on the tolling records his team sought from a handful of Republican lawmakers over the course of the investigation. Republicans have assailed the records as being at odds with the speech or debate clause of the Constitution. “I made my decisions in the investigation without regard to President Trump’s political association, activities, beliefs, or candidacy in the 2024 presidential election,” Smith told the committee. “We took actions based on what the facts, and the law required — the very lesson I learned early in my career as a prosecutor.” Republicans on the panel ultimately opted to publish the redacted transcript on New Year’s Eve, a decision that may have helped dull the impact of any news the 255-page document may have generated amid the broader hustle and bustle of the holiday season. Here are some of the biggest moments and notable exchanges from the eight-hour hearing. TRUMP STRIPS SECURITY CLEARANCES FROM LAW FIRM TIED TO JACK SMITH CASES Smith was tapped by former Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2022 to investigate the alleged effort by Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 election, as well as Trump’s keeping of allegedly classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach after leaving office in 2020. Smith had brought charges against Trump in both cases. The charges were dropped after Trump’s election, in keeping with a longstanding Justice Department policy that discourages investigating sitting presidents for federal criminal charges, and Smith resigned from his role shortly afterward. If nothing else, Smith’s Dec. 17 testimony underscored just how much has changed since Trump’s reelection in 2024. Trump, for his part, has used his first year back in office to follow through on his promises to go after his perceived political “enemies,” including by revoking security clearances of many individuals, including employees of a D.C.-based law firm that represents Smith, and taking other punitive measures to punish or fire FBI agents involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, investigation. During his testimony last month, Smith fiercely disputed the notion that Trump’s remarks about the 2020 election results would be protected by the First Amendment. “Absololutely not,” he said in response to a lawyer for Republicans on the House Judiciary Committee. The lawyer then ticked through a “long list of disputed elections” in U.S. history and former presidents who have spoken out about “what they believed to be fraud,” or other issues regarding election integrity. “I think you would agree that those types of statements are sort of at the core of the First Amendment rights of a presidential candidate, right?” “There is no historical analog for what President Trump did in this case,” Smith said immediately. JACK SMITH SUBPOENAED FOR DEPOSITION WITH HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE Smith told members that the special counsel ultimately gathered evidence against Trump that was, in his view, sufficient to secure a conviction. “He made false statements to state legislatures, to his supporters in all sorts of contexts and was aware in the days leading up to Jan. 6th that his supporters were angry when he invited them, and then he directed them to the Capitol,” Smith said of Trump’ actions in the run-up to Jan. 6. “Now, once they were at the Capitol and once the attack on the Capitol happened, he refused to stop it. He instead issued a tweet that, without question in my mind, endangered the life of his own vice president,” Smith added. “And when the violence was going on, he had to be pushed repeatedly by his staff members to do anything to quell it.” Other possible co-conspirators had not been charged, as Smith noted at one point during the interview. But Smith said in the testimony that his team had developed “proof beyond a reasonable doubt” that Trump had “engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 election and to prevent the lawful transfer of power.” They’d also developed what he described as “powerful evidence” that Trump had willfully retained highly classified documents after leaving office in January 2021 at his private Mar-a-Lago residence, and had been obstructing the government’s efforts to recover the records. Smith said that, when the special counsel wound down in the wake of the 2024 elections, his team had not determined whether to charge the key Trump allies who may or may not have acted as co-conspirators, including Rudy Giuliani, Sidney Powell and John Eastman. “As we stated in the final report, we analyzed the evidence against different co-conspirators,” Smith said. Smith reiterated his allegation that Trump was “the most culpable” and “most responsible” person for the alleged attempts to subvert the 2020 election results. He said the special counsel had “determined that we did have evidence to charge people at a certain point in time.” But at the time the investigation was wound down, they had not made “final determinations about that at the time that President Trump won reelection, meaning that our office was going to be closed down.” FBI
Supreme Court tariffs case, Fed chair pick loom as twin tests for Trump’s economic agenda in 2026
Two key economic policy decisions are on the horizon in Washington: a Supreme Court ruling on tariffs and the White House’s expected announcement of the next Federal Reserve chair. Both developments carry significant implications for trade, markets and the future of U.S. monetary policy. At the Supreme Court, two cases, which President Donald Trump has called “life or death” for the U.S., have forced the nation’s highest court to confront how far a president can go in redirecting U.S. trade policy. The suits — Learning Resources Inc. v. Trump and Trump v. V.O.S. Selections Inc. — were brought by an educational-toy manufacturer and a family-owned wine and spirits importer challenging Trump’s tariffs. ‘PERCEPTION VS. REALITY’: TRUMP’S ECONOMY PICKS UP SPEED — BUT VOTERS AREN’T BUYING IT YET Both cases turn on a central question: whether the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) gave the president authority to impose the tariffs, or whether that move crossed constitutional lines. TRUMP DEFENDS TARIFFS, SAYS US HAS BEEN ‘THE KING OF BEING SCREWED’ BY TRADE IMBALANCE Tariffs are taxes the government places on imported goods. Although companies pay these taxes at the border, they often cover the added cost by raising prices, which means consumers ultimately shoulder much of the burden. Since Trump announced sweeping “Liberation Day” tariffs in April, total duty revenue has climbed to $215.2 billion in fiscal year 2025, which ended Sept. 30, according to the Treasury Department’s Customs and Certain Excise Taxes report. That revenue strength has carried well into the new fiscal year. Since Oct. 1, the government has collected $96.5 billion in duties, according to Treasury’s latest statement. Meanwhile, two candidates are vying for a role that would shape the direction of U.S. monetary policy: Kevin Hassett and Kevin Warsh. The appointment to lead the world’s most powerful central bank comes as persistently high living costs test Trump’s economic agenda. The Federal Reserve, which sets borrowing costs and influences inflation, remains one of the most consequential institutions for Americans’ day-to-day affordability. FROM MORTGAGES TO CAR LOANS: HOW AFFORDABILITY RISES AND FALLS WITH THE FED The next Fed chair would assume one of the most influential posts in U.S. economic policymaking, overseeing interest-rate decisions and the central bank’s efforts to keep inflation in check. Warsh, a former Morgan Stanley banker, has emerged as a vocal critic of current Fed leadership, sharpening his attacks as he positioned himself as a potential replacement for Chair Jerome Powell. He became the youngest person to serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in 2006. A LOOK AT THE UNFOLDING BATTLE BETWEEN TRUMP AND POWELL OVER FED POLICY Hassett is Trump’s top economic adviser and a loyal defender of the administration’s policies. He currently serves as director of the White House’s National Economic Council, and held two senior roles during Trump’s first term and advised the president on economic policy during the 2024 campaign. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who helped shape Trump’s shortlist for the Fed’s top job, said he has known Warsh and Hassett for more than 20 years and views both as equally qualified. Trump has called for sharp rate cuts and urged the Federal Reserve to bring its benchmark interest rate down to 1% to jump-start economic growth. Trump’s criticism of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, whom he appointed to the role in 2017, has at times turned personal, with the president giving the Fed chair mocking nicknames. Powell is set to finish his term in May 2026, when the next chair will take over.
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,409
These are the key developments from day 1,409 of Russia’s war on Ukraine. Published On 2 Jan 20262 Jan 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Here is where things stand on Saturday, January 3: Fighting Two people were killed, including a three-year-old child, and at least 31 people were wounded in a Russian ballistic missile attack on a five-storey residential building in the centre of Ukraine’s Kharkiv, the region’s governor Oleh Syniehubov wrote on Telegram. Russia’s Ministry of Defence denied responsibility for the attack, claiming it was caused by the detonation of Ukrainian ammunition and was meant as a distraction from a deadly attack the day before on the village of Khorly, in a Russian-occupied part of the Kherson region. The death toll from the drone strike on a hotel and cafe in Khorly rose to 28 people, the region’s Russian-installed governor, Vladimir Saldo, told Russia’s state-run TASS news agency. Saldo also said that more than 60 people were injured in the attack. Ukraine has responded to the strike by saying it does not target civilians. Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba said in a post on Facebook that Ukrainian authorities have decided to evacuate more than 3,000 children, along with their parents, from 44 front-line settlements in Ukraine’s Zaporizhia and Dnipropetrovsk regions due to Russian aggression. A Ukrainian attack on the electricity grid in the Russian-occupied Zaporizhia region of Ukraine left 1,777 households without power, Russian-installed regional governor, Yevgeniy Balitsky, wrote on Telegram. Russian forces shot down 64 Ukrainian drones overnight into Friday, Russia’s Defence Ministry said, according to TASS. Ukrainian monitoring site DeepState reported Russian forces seized more land in the Myrnohrad and Pokrovsk areas of Ukraine’s Donetsk region, as well as in Svitle in the Ternopil region. The Russian army captured more than 5,600 square kilometres (2,160 square miles), or nearly 1 percent, of Ukrainian territory in 2025, according to an analysis of data from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), which works with the Critical Threats Project. According to the AFP news agency, the land seized by Russian forces last year was more than in the previous two years combined, but less than the 60,000sq km (23,166sq miles) Russia took in 2022, the first year of its all-out invasion. Advertisement Politics and diplomacy Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy named Ukraine’s military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov as his presidential chief of staff on Friday, in the latest Ukrainian leadership shake-up. Zelenskyy also nominated Mykhailo Fedorov, a drone and digitalisation specialist who has served as first deputy prime minister and minister of digital transformation, as defence minister. Fedorov, whose appointment must be approved by parliament, will replace Denys Shmyhal, a former prime minister who was being offered a new government post. RecepTayyip Erdogan, the president of Turkiye, told reporters in Istanbul that he would hold a phone call with United States President Donald Trump on Monday to discuss peace efforts. Turkiye has been hosting intermittent peace talks during Russia’s war on Ukraine. Erdogan also said Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will attend a meeting of the “coalition of the willing”, a group of nations backing Ukraine, in Paris, in the coming days. Adblock test (Why?)
UN chief Guterres calls on Israel to reverse NGO ban in Gaza, West Bank
Guterres says pending ban targets groups ‘indispensable to life-saving’ work, undermines ceasefire progress. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on Israel to reverse a pending ban on 37 nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) working in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. In a statement on Friday, Guterres called the work of the groups “indispensable to life-saving humanitarian work”, according to spokesperson Stephane Dujarric. He added that the “suspension risks undermining the fragile progress made during the ceasefire”. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list Israel banned the humanitarian groups for failing to meet new registration rules requiring aid groups working in the occupied territory to provide “detailed information on their staff members, funding and operations”. It has pledged to enforce the ban starting March 1. Experts have denounced the requirements as arbitrary and in violation of humanitarian principles. Aid groups have said that providing personal information about their Palestinian employees to Israel could put them at risk. The targeted groups include several country chapters of Doctors Without Borders (known by its French acronym, MSF), the Norwegian Refugee Council, and the International Rescue Committee. To date, Israel has killed about 500 aid workers and volunteers in Gaza throughout its genocidal war. All told, at least 71,271 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since October 7, 2023. In his statement, Guterres said the NGO ban “comes on top of earlier restrictions that have already delayed critical food, medical, hygiene and shelter supplies from entering Gaza”. “This recent action will further exacerbate the humanitarian crisis facing Palestinians,” he said. Advertisement Nearly all of Gaza’s population has been displaced throughout the war, with many still living in tents and temporary shelters. Israel had maintained severe restrictions on aid entering the enclave prior to a ceasefire going into effect in October. Under the deal, Israel was meant to provide unhindered aid access. But humanitarian groups have said Israel has continued to prevent adequate aid flow. Ongoing restrictions include materials that could be used to provide better shelter and protection from flooding amid devastating winter storms, according to the UN. Earlier on Friday, the foreign ministers of Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkiye, Pakistan and Indonesia warned that “deteriorating” conditions threatened to take even more lives in Gaza. “Flooded camps, damaged tents, the collapse of damaged buildings, and exposure to cold temperatures coupled with malnutrition, have significantly heightened risks to civilian lives,” they said in a statement. They called on the international community “to pressure Israel, as the occupying power, to immediately lift constraints on the entry and distribution of essential supplies including tents, shelter materials, medical assistance, clean water, fuel, and sanitation support”. Adblock test (Why?)
Iran urges UN to respond to Trump’s ‘reckless’ threats over protests
Letter to UN chief, UNSC comes after Trump says US will intervene if Tehran violently suppresses protests. Published On 3 Jan 20263 Jan 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Iran’s United Nations ambassador Amir Saeed Iravani has written to the UN secretary-general and the president of the UN Security Council (UNSC), urging them to condemn “unlawful threats” towards Tehran from United States President Donald Trump amid ongoing protests in the country. The letter sent on Friday came hours after Trump said the US was “locked and loaded and ready to go” if any more protesters were killed in the ongoing demonstrations in Iran over the cost of living. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Iravani called on UN chief Antonio Guterres and members of the UNSC to “unequivocally and firmly condemn” Trump’s “reckless and provocative statements”, describing them as a “serious violation” of the UN Charter and international law. “Any attempt to incite, encourage or legitimise internal unrest as a pretext for external pressure or military intervention is a gross violation of the sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Iravani said in the letter, which was published in full by the IRNA state news agency. The letter added that Iran’s government “reiterates its inherent right to defend its sovereignty” and that it will “exercise its rights in a decisive and proportionate manner”. “The United States of America bears full responsibility for any consequences arising from these illegal threats and any subsequent escalation of tensions,” Iravani added. IRNA reported earlier that protests continued across Iran on Friday, with people gathering in Qom, Marvdasht, Yasuj, Mashhad, and Hamedan as well as in the Tehran neighbourhoods of Tehranpars and Khak Sefid. Advertisement The protests have swept across the country after shopkeepers in Iran’s capital Tehran went on strike on Sunday over high prices and economic stagnation. At least nine people had been killed and 44 arrested in the unrest. The deputy governor of Qom province on Friday said that another person had died after a grenade exploded in his hand, in what the governor said was an attempt to incite unrest. In his post on Truth Social, Trump said that if Iran “violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue”. Ali Larijani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, shot back that US interference “is equivalent to chaos across the entire region and the destruction of American interests”. Iran’s economic woes, including a collapsing currency and high inflation rates, follow years of severe drought in Tehran, a city with a population of some 10 million people, compounding multiple ongoing crises. Iranian leaders have struck a surprisingly conciliatory tone in response, with President Masoud Pezeshkian saying the government is at “fault” for the situation and promising to find solutions. Observers have noted the response is markedly different from the harsh reaction to past protests in the country. The United States bombed three Iranian nuclear sites in June this year during a 12-day escalation between Israel and Iran. Trump described the operation as a “very successful attack”. Last week, during a news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said the US will “knock the hell out” of Iran if it advances its nuclear programme or ballistic weapons programme. The statement came amid an Israeli push to resume attacks on Iran. Pezeshkian has pledged a “severe” response to any aggression. Adblock test (Why?)
Who is Barse Deva? Most-wanted Maoist commander and close associate of Madvi Hidma surrenders
Deva, aged 45 years, had been serving as the in-charge of Battalion Number 1 — considered the last core fighting unit of the Maoist organisation. He has held the rank of Area Zonal Committee Member (AZCM) since 2021. Deva was a close associate of top Maoist commander Madvi Hidma.