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Trump says Jack Smith is a ‘disgrace’ after special counsel resigned from DOJ: ‘He left town empty handed!’

Trump says Jack Smith is a ‘disgrace’ after special counsel resigned from DOJ: ‘He left town empty handed!’

President-elect Trump blasted special counsel Jack Smith as a “disgrace” to himself and the country following Smith’s resignation from the Justice Department. Smith’s resignation was announced in a court filing Saturday. “The Special Counsel completed his work and submitted his final confidential report on January 7, 2025, and separated from the Department on January 10,” a footnote in the filing said. Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social on Sunday to criticize Smith for his investigations into the incoming president. SPECIAL COUNSEL JACK SMITH RESIGNS AFTER 2-YEAR STINT AT DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE “Deranged Jack Smith was fired today by the DOJ. He is a disgrace to himself, his family, and his Country. After spending over $100,000,000 on the Witch Hunt against TRUMP, he left town empty handed!” Trump wrote. Smith was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland in November 2022 to investigate Trump’s role in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot and his mishandling of classified documents. Smith previously served as acting U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee in 2017 during Trump’s first administration. The resignation comes ahead of the release of Smith’s report on the case related to Trump’s role in the attack on the Capitol. A recent court filing revealed that Garland plans to release the report soon, possibly before Trump takes office next week. “As I have made clear regarding every Special Counsel who has served since I took office, I am committed to making as much of the Special Counsel’s report public as possible, consistent with legal requirements and Department policy,” Garland wrote in a recent letter to House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and ranking member Jamie Raskin, D-Md. A judge from a federal appeals court ruled on Friday against blocking the release of Smith’s report. After Trump’s presidential election victory in November, Smith filed motions to bring his cases against the president-elect to a close. Smith asked a judge in late November to drop the charges against Trump in the case related to the Capitol riot. Prior to that request, Smith filed a motion to vacate all deadlines in that case, which was anticipated after Trump’s electoral win. TRUMP PRESSES GOP TO SWIFTLY SEND ‘ONE POWERFUL BILL’ FOR HIS SIGNATURE ASAP Trump said after the cases were dropped that they “should never have been brought.” “These cases, like all of the other cases I have been forced to go through, are empty and lawless, and should never have been brought,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “It was a political hijacking, and a low point in the History of our Country that such a thing could have happened, and yet, I persevered, against all odds, and WON. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Fox News’ Andrea Margolis contributed to this report.

Top Foreign Affairs Republican predicts US won’t leave NATO but will strengthen it

Top Foreign Affairs Republican predicts US won’t leave NATO but will strengthen it

Top Foreign Affairs Republican Sen. Jim Risch predicted the U.S. would not abandon NATO under the Trump administration – and promised to work with the new president to strengthen it instead.  Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, who leads the powerful Foreign Relations Committee under the new Republican majority, said his number one priority is “getting Trump’s team in place.” He said he is “cautiously optimistic” that they can get Marco Rubio, Trump’s nominee for secretary of state, confirmed by Inauguration Day. Speaking with Fox News Digital one day after meeting with Trump, the chairman said he believes that Trump’s national security apparatus is going to be less frenzied this time around.  “Anybody you talk to will tell you it’s really different this time,” he said. “It’s gonna be a lot better.”  He said Trump discussed foreign policy priorities while meeting with senators on Wednesday, but declined to share details.  Risch seems to pay little heed to Trump’s threats to pull the U.S. out of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). “I think everyone’s recognized now with what Russia’s done, that the original founders of NATO were very right that we have to stand up and come together,” he said. “I don’t think anybody would have the idea that we should leave NATO.” “We had a vote here in the Congress on whether or not we should leave NATO,” he went on. “Overwhelmingly, that vote passed.”  RUSSIA MONITORING TRUMP’S ‘DRAMATIC’ COMMENTS ON GREENLAND ACQUISITION In December 2023, Congress passed legislation as part of the NDAA that barred any president from removing the U.S. from NATO without approval from two-thirds of the Senate or an act of Congress. That provision was spearheaded by Rubio.  Risch said that after Trump’s first term and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, nations “very slowly” began to boost their military budgets. Canada is not on track to hit the 2% target until 2032.  But now, 23 out of 32 NATO states meet the 2% target, which Republicans now say is not enough.  Risch said he’s long had plans to work to get allies to boost their spending.  “We’re going to have to do more. So there’s a lot of discussion about what that looks like, and President Trump and I think European countries are going to fall in line. They really need to.” Trump said in December that he would “absolutely” leave NATO if his terms weren’t being met. He’s long advocated for other members of the 32-member alliance to increase defense spending.  “If they’re paying their bills, and if I think they’re treating us fairly, the answer is absolutely I’d stay with NATO,” he said. HOUSE PASSES BILL THAT WOULD SANCTION INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT FOR TRYING TO ARREST NETANYAHU But to some, the comments were seen as leverage – a way to force nations lagging in defense spending to step it up. While NATO has long had a goal for its member states to spend 2% on defense, and many are still negligent, Trump recently moved the goalpost to 5% – more than any nation currently spends. “They can all afford it, but they should be at five percent, not two percent,” Trump said during an appearance at Mar-a-Lago on Tuesday. He complained that Europe had far more to lose than the U.S., given its geographical closeness to adversaries.  “Europe is in for a tiny fraction of the money that we’re in [for],” Trump said during an appearance at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida late Tuesday. “We have a thing called the ocean in between us, right? Why are we in for billions and billions of dollars more money than Europe?” Last year, the U.S. spent 3.4% of its GDP on defense. Poland spent the most, at 4.12%.  Risch, who last led the Foreign Relations Committee from 2019 to 2021, said he plans to work with Trump on returning to a “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran, tightening sanctions to squeeze the regime’s economic system.  “They are going to go back to the maximum pressure,” he said. “I’m encouraging it.”  “The Biden administration shoveled a bunch of cash at them, begged them to come to the table for an agreement.” “Iran is going to have to make some really tough decisions, because I just don’t see, with exterior pressure they’re getting, with the interior pressure they’re getting, that they can sustain what they’ve been doing.”

What’s next for Yemen as Israel attacks again?

What’s next for Yemen as Israel attacks again?

Air strikes across the country as Houthis target US naval ships in Red Sea. Israeli warplanes struck Yemen on Friday – with a power station, ports and residential areas among the targets. The same day, Houthi forces say they attacked a US aircraft carrier and naval vessels in the Red Sea. What’s the risk of further escalation? Presenter: Imran Khan Guests: Mustapha Noman – Former deputy foreign minister of Yemen Yousef Mawry – Political analyst based in Yemen Farea Al Muslimi – Research fellow at the Middle East and North Africa programme of Chatham House Adblock test (Why?)

Firefighters race to contain LA wildfires as winds expected to pick up

Firefighters race to contain LA wildfires as winds expected to pick up

Evacuation orders throughout the Los Angeles area cover 153,000 residents, with 57,000 structures at risk. Firefighters are racing to cut off spreading wildfires around Los Angeles before potentially strong winds return, while new evacuation warnings left more homeowners on edge. An intense effort was under way on Saturday in the upscale Los Angeles neighbourhood of Pacific Palisades, after the wildfire there expanded into additional areas overnight. Residents were warned of potential worsening weather conditions over the coming days that could further stoke the blaze. Cal Fire official Todd Hopkins told reporters at a news conference that the Palisades Fire had spread into the Mandeville Canyon neighbourhood and threatened to jump into Brentwood, an upscale neighbourhood. Cal Fire Operations Chief Christian Litz said a main focus on Saturday would be the Palisades Fire burning in the canyon area, not far from the UCLA campus. “We need to be aggressive out there,” Litz said. Meanwhile, evacuation orders throughout the Los Angeles area now cover 153,000 residents, with 57,000 structures at risk. Advertisement Another 166,000 residents have been warned that they may have to evacuate, said Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna. Luna added that his agency has dispatched 40 search-and-rescue team workers to work jointly with other agencies, including the use of cadaver dogs to search for remains of victims and to help reunite families that have been separated. A plane makes a drop as smoke billows from the Palisades Fire at the Mandeville Canyon in Los Angeles [Shannon Stapleton/Reuters] At least 11 killed Six simultaneous blazes that have ripped across Los Angeles County neighbourhoods since Tuesday have killed at least 11 people, and damaged or destroyed 10,000 structures – a term that includes homes, apartment buildings, businesses, outbuildings and vehicles. At least 13 people are estimated to be missing so far. The death toll is expected to mount when firefighters are able to conduct house-to-house searches. The fierce Santa Ana winds that fanned the infernos eased on Friday night. But the Palisades Fire on the city’s western edge was heading in a new direction as winds came off the Pacific Ocean and threatened the heavily populated San Fernando Valley foothills. The fire, the most destructive in the history of Los Angeles, has razed whole neighbourhoods to the ground, leaving just the smouldering ruins of what had been people’s homes and possessions. Before the latest flare-up, firefighters had reported progress in subduing the Palisades Fire and the Eaton Fire in the foothills east of the metropolis after it burned out of control for days. Advertisement On Saturday, the Palisades Fire was 11 percent contained and the Eaton Fire in the east was 15 percent contained, state agency Cal Fire said. The two big fires combined had consumed more than 36,000 acres (14,500 hectares), or 56 square miles (145.6sq km) – 2.5 times the land area of Manhattan. Seven neighbouring states, the federal government and Canada have rushed aid to California, bolstering aerial teams dropping water and fire retardant on the flaming hills and crews on the ground attacking fire lines with hand tools and hoses. Winds predicted to slow The National Weather Service said that conditions in the Los Angeles area would improve through the weekend, with sustained winds slowing to about 20mph (32km/h), gusting between 35mph and 50mph (56-80-km/h). “It’s not as gusty, so that should help firefighters,” NWS meteorologist Allison Santorelli said, adding that conditions were still critical with low humidity and dry vegetation. Officials have declared a public health emergency due to the thick, toxic smoke. Private forecaster AccuWeather estimated the damage and economic loss at $135bn to $150bn, portending an arduous recovery and soaring homeowners’ insurance costs. President Joe Biden has declared the fires a major disaster and said the US government would reimburse 100 percent of the recovery for the next six months. Adblock test (Why?)

Israel steps up Gaza attacks amid renewed ceasefire push

Israel steps up Gaza attacks amid renewed ceasefire push

At least eight people have been killed in an Israeli attack on a school sheltering displaced Palestinians in northern Gaza, as Israel sent several senior officials for talks on a potential ceasefire. An Israeli attack on Saturday hit the Zainab al-Wazir school in northern Gaza’s Jabalia al-Balad area, killing eight civilians, including two women and two children, according to the Palestinian civil emergency service. “The Israelis have targeted us without any prior warning,” a mother told Al Jazeera, as she searched through the debris. “They attacked us with a missile. I don’t know where our children are. I don’t know anything about them, whether they’re wounded or killed.” Al Jazeera’s Moath al-Kahlout described the scenes at al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, where dozens of the wounded were taken, as “bloody” and “dire”, noting the dearth of medical supplies under Israel’s ongoing siege of northern Gaza, which has been in place for more than 80 days. Later on Saturday, the official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported strikes on various locations across Gaza, including an attack on a house in the Daraj neighbourhood in Gaza City, which killed four Palestinians and wounded several others. Advertisement Israeli fighter jets also bombed a tent sheltering displaced families in Deir el-Balah, located in the centre of the enclave, killing three people, Wafa reported. Additional strikes reportedly killed one person near the Bureij refugee camp, also in central Gaza, and another in the southern town of Khan Younis. The intensified attacks came as Egypt, Qatar and the United States made renewed efforts to reach a deal to halt fighting in Gaza and free remaining Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. ‘Tough sticking points’ On Saturday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, who had travelled to Qatar earlier in the week. Witkoff had reassured Egyptian and Qatari mediators that the US would continue to work towards a fair deal to end the war soon, said Egyptian security sources cited by news agency Reuters. After the meeting, Netanyahu dispatched a high-level delegation, including the head of the Israeli Mossad intelligence agency, to Qatar in order to “advance” talks, according to a statement from Netanyahu’s office. “There are a lot of moving parts here,” said Al Jazeera’s Hamdah Salhut, reporting from the Jordanian capital, Amman. “Donald Trump said that he would be quite aggressive in trying to get a ceasefire if it didn’t happen before he took office … But you have to remember that there are tough sticking points on each side,” she said. “The Israelis say that they’re not going to end the war, and Hamas says that they want to see a comprehensive ceasefire that sees an end to the war and a withdrawal of Israeli troops. Advertisement “And you also have the Israeli public, which is constantly demonstrating against Benjamin Netanyahu, against the Israeli government, saying that he’s neither capable nor willing to make a deal fifteen months into this war,” she said. Israelis protest against the government, showing support for captives who were seized during the Hamas-led attack on Israel, on October 7, 2023 [Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters] Families of Israeli captives welcomed Netanyahu’s decision to dispatch the officials, with the Hostages and Missing Families Forum Headquarters describing it as an “historic opportunity”. ‘Impossible to stay alive’ As mediators prepare for more ceasefire talks, Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary said that Palestinians under attack in Gaza were also contending with severe food shortages, with Israel continuing to ignore United Nations demands on lifting its restrictions on supplies entering the Strip. “We’re seeing children with empty pots every single day searching for community kitchens, talking with families saying they are barely able to feed their children one meal per day,” said Khoudary, reporting from Deir el-Balah. “It’s not only the continuous air strikes, but also malnutrition is killing Palestinians in the Gaza Strip,” she said. Palestinians gather to receive aid food being distributed along the roadside at the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip, on January 11, 2025 [Eyad Baba/AFP] Vibe Klarup, head of Amnesty Denmark, said that Israel was committing “genocide”. “When we say Israel is committing genocide, it is not an opinion, it’s a conclusion on the basis of a legal, thorough analysis,” she told The European Palestinian Network conference in Copenhagen. Advertisement “It is increasingly impossible to stay alive in the Gaza Strip … Our role as people is to stop the genocide,” she added. At least 46,537 people have been killed in Israel’s war on Gaza since October 7, 2023, according to Palestinian health authorities. Adblock test (Why?)