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EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans to hold hearing on DHS shutdown risks amid travel surge

EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans to hold hearing on DHS shutdown risks amid travel surge

EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans are sounding the alarm about the costs of a prolonged Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown as the funding lapse drags on with no end in sight.  The House Homeland Security Committee will hold a hearing next Wednesday examining the security risks and financial hardship many DHS employees are facing as a result of the shutdown, Fox News Digital has learned. Senior officials from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the U.S. Coast Guard and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) — agencies overseen by DHS — are expected to testify about how the funding lapse is impacting their operations and the well-being of their personnel. House Republicans have slammed nearly all Democrats for withholding their support for a full-year DHS measure amid a massive spring travel season and a heightened threat environment amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. The department is still expected to be shut down next week after Democrats panned the White House’s latest counteroffer on reforms to immigration enforcement, which Democrats have demanded to end the funding lapse. “Amid one of the busiest travel seasons and as we face heightened physical and cyber threats from the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism and other adversaries, it is deeply troubling that DHS’s core mission continues to be undermined by Democrats’ political games,” Rep. Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., said in a statement. “Each day this shutdown continues, it jeopardizes the safety of Americans and creates worsening financial hardship for the frontline DHS personnel who work hard every day to protect the homeland.” TSA PAY BILL UNVEILED AS SHUTDOWN LEAVES AGENTS UNPAID, STRAINS AIRPORT SECURITY The shutdown’s impact on air travel has become a growing headache for Americans — 170 million of whom are expected to pass through the country’s airports during the spring travel season this year. More than 50,000 TSA employees have not received their salaries during the prolonged shutdown, leading some to quit their jobs or not show up to work, according to the House Homeland Security Committee. Among that cohort, more than 360 TSA employees have resigned during the 34-day partial shutdown, and roughly 10% of agents did not report to work on Sunday, according to the TSA. MOST VULNERABLE SENATE DEM BLAMES REPUBLICANS FOR UNPAID TSA WORKERS AFTER OPPOSING FUNDING BILL These staffing constraints have led to hours-long security lines in some of America’s largest travel hubs, though some airports still appear to be processing passengers relatively quickly. Lines at New York City’s JFK and LaGuardia airports were under 20 minutes Wednesday evening. FEMA staff, 85% of whom worked through the shutdown in fall 2025, are likely reporting to work in similar numbers without pay. FEMA leadership has warned that the agency could struggle to respond to a major disaster event in a shutdown. The hearing comes as Democrats are proposing legislation that would fund every DHS sub-agency that does not handle immigration enforcement. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., announced Wednesday that Democrats intend to force a vote on the measure by filing a discharge petition. The petition would have to secure a handful of GOP signatures to trigger a vote on the underlying bill. Garbarino criticized Democrats’ proposal in a statement to Fox News Digital. “I hope my colleagues on the other side of the aisle recognize that there is far too much at stake to continue blocking full funding for the department, and that any piecemeal funding efforts simply fail to meet the moment,” Garbarino said. Senate Republicans have blocked similar legislation in the upper chamber, arguing that all of DHS — including its immigration enforcement functions — must receive full-year funding.

Saudi FM warns Iran that patience in Gulf not ‘unlimited’ amid attacks

Saudi FM warns Iran that patience in Gulf not ‘unlimited’ amid attacks

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister warns Iran that regional neighbours have ‘significant’ capabilities with which to respond to Tehran’s aggression. Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has warned Iran that tolerance of its attacks on his country and those of neighbouring Gulf states is limited, calling on Tehran to immediately “recalculate” its strategy. Warning that Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states have “very significant capacities and capabilities” that could be drawn on should they “choose to do so”, the foreign minister told a news conference early on Thursday that Iran had carefully planned its strategy for striking regional neighbours, despite denials from Tehran’s diplomats. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list “The level of accuracy in some of this targeting – you can see it in our neighbours as well as the kingdom – indicates that this is something that was premeditated, preplanned, preorganised and well thought out,” Prince Faisal said. “I’m not going to lay out what would and would not precipitate a defensive action by the Kingdom [of Saudi Arabia] because I think that is not a wise approach to signal to the Iranians,” the foreign minister continued. “But I think it’s important for the Iranians to understand that the kingdom, but also its partners who have been attacked and beyond, have very significant capacities and capabilities that they could bring to bear should they choose to do so,” he said. “The patience that is being exhibited is not unlimited. Do they [the Iranians] have a day, two, a week? I’m not going to telegraph that,” he added. “I would hope they understand the message of the meeting today and recalculate quickly and stop attacking their neighbours. But I am doubtful they have that wisdom.” Advertisement Prince Faisal’s warning followed a meeting of foreign ministers from Arab and Islamic countries in the Saudi capital earlier in the day to discuss the expanding war in the region, which on Wednesday saw Iranian attacks on Gulf energy sites, including Qatar’s Ras Laffan gas facility, where significant damage was reported, and the United Arab Emirates’ Habshan ⁠ gas facility. Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its “strong condemnation and denunciation of the blatant Iranian attack targeting Ras Laffan Industrial City”, located 80km (50 miles) northeast of the Qatari capital Doha, which is the world’s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) production facility, producing some 20 percent of the world’s LNG supply. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had warned earlier that oil and gas facilities in Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE would face retaliation for an Israeli strike on Iran’s South Pars gasfield. Iranian state media reported that facilities linked to the country’s huge offshore South Pars field – located off the coast of southern Iran’s Bushehr province – had come under attack. Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defence also said on Wednesday that its air defences had intercepted four Iranian ballistic missiles that targeted Riyadh and two launched towards the country’s eastern region. Air defences in the UAE dealt with 13 ballistic missiles and 27 drones, according to the country’s Defence Ministry, while operations ⁠were ⁠suspended at the Habshan ⁠gas facility as authorities responded to ⁠incidents caused by fallen debris after the successful interception of a ‌missile. The Saudi foreign minister also told the news conference on Thursday that while the war will end one day, it will take much longer to restore relations with Iran as trust “has completely been shattered” due to Tehran’s tactics of targeting its neighbours. “We know for a fact that Iran has been building this strategy over the last decade and beyond,” Prince Faisal said. “This is not something that is a reaction to an evolving circumstance where Iran is improvising. This has been built into their war planning: targeting their neighbours and using that to try and put pressure on the international community,” he said. “So when this war eventually ends, in order for there to be any rebuilding of trust, it will take a long time. And I have to tell you, if Iran doesn’t stop … immediately, I think there will be almost nothing that can re-establish that trust,” he added. Adblock test (Why?)

Three women killed in occupied West Bank missile attack

Three women killed in occupied West Bank missile attack

NewsFeed Three women in an occupied West Bank hair salon became the first Palestinian deaths of the US-Israeli war on Iran when they were hit by falling material. Published On 19 Mar 202619 Mar 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Adblock test (Why?)

‘Does America have a plan? Israel has a plan. Does America know?’

‘Does America have a plan? Israel has a plan. Does America know?’

Quotable Daniel Levy, President of the U.S./Middle East Project, says that the US-Israel war on Iran is reckless and harms allies, to Israel’s exclusive benefit. Published On 19 Mar 202619 Mar 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Adblock test (Why?)

State Department to ask for bonds of up to $15,000 for visa applications from a dozen more countries

State Department to ask for bonds of up to ,000 for visa applications from a dozen more countries

The U.S. State Department on Wednesday expanded its list of countries whose citizens will be required to post bonds of up to $15,000 to apply for U.S. business or tourist visas. The department added 12 nations to the growing list — Cambodia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Grenada, Lesotho, Mauritius, Mongolia, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Seychelles and Tunisia. Starting April 2, passport holders from these countries must pay a bond of $5,000, $10,000 or $15,000, which is refunded if the visa application is denied or, if granted, the traveler complies with the terms of the B1 or B2 visa. TRUMP ADMIN EXPANDS VISA BOND REQUIREMENT TO 38 COUNTRIES, WITH FEES UP TO $15K The cost of the bond depends on the applicant’s circumstances and is determined at the discretion of a consular officer during the visa interview. The requirement was first rolled out by the Trump administration last year, as part of an effort to crack down on visa overstays and illegal immigration, according to officials. TRUMP ADMIN HIT WITH FEDERAL LAWSUIT OVER IMMIGRANT VISA BAN AFFECTING 75 COUNTRIES WORLDWIDE With the latest additions, citizens from 50 countries will be subject to the bond requirement beginning April 2, although the policy has already been in effect for most of them. The majority of the countries are in Africa, which officials say have higher visa overstay rates, though the list also includes nations in Asia, Latin America and elsewhere. “The visa bond program has already proven effective at drastically reducing the number of visa recipients who overstay their visas and illegally remain in the United States,” the department said in a statement. Nearly 97% of the roughly 1,000 individuals who posted bonds complied with visa terms and did not overstay, according to the department. The Associated Press contributed to this report.