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US Interior Department to allocate more than $120 million to tribes to address climate-related threats

The Biden administration will be allocating more than $120 million to tribal governments to fight the impacts of climate change, the Department of the Interior announced Thursday. The funding is designed to help tribal nations adapt to climate threats, including relocating infrastructure. Indigenous peoples in the U.S. are among the communities most affected by severe climate-related environmental threats, which have already negatively impacted water resources, ecosystems and traditional food sources in Native communities in every corner of the U.S. “As these communities face the increasing threat of rising seas, coastal erosion, storm surges, raging wildfires and devastation from other extreme weather events, our focus must be on bolstering climate resilience, addressing this reality with the urgency it demands, and ensuring that tribal leaders have the resources to prepare and keep their people safe is a cornerstone of this administration,” Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna, said in a Wednesday press briefing. US HOUSE PANEL INVESTIGATES TIES BETWEEN US INTERIOR SECRETARY, ENVIRONMENTALISTS Indigenous peoples represent 5% of the world’s population, but they safeguard 80% of the world’s biodiversity, according to Amnesty International. In the U.S., federal and state governments are relying more on the traditional ecological knowledge of Indigenous peoples to minimize the ravages of climate change, and Haaland said ensuring that trend continues is critical to protecting the environment. “By providing these resources for tribes to plan and implement climate risk, implement climate resilience programs in their own communities, we can better meet the needs of each community and support them in incorporating Indigenous knowledge when addressing climate change,” she said. The department has adopted a policy on implementing Indigenous knowledge, said Assistant Secretary of the Interior Bryan Newland, a citizen of the Bay Mills Indian Community. “We are also investing in tribes’ ability to use their knowledge to solve these problems and address these challenges close to home,” he said. The funding will come from President Joe Biden’s Investing in America agenda, which draws from the Inflation Reduction Act, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and annual appropriations. INTERIOR SECRETARY ACCUSED OF ‘APPARENT ETHICAL BREACHES’ OVER OIL AND GAS DRILLING BAN The funding is the largest annual amount awarded through the Tribal Climate Resilience Annual Awards Program, which was established in 2011 to help tribes and tribal organizations respond to climate change. It will go toward the planning and implementation projects for climate adaptation, community-led relocation, ocean management, and habitat restoration. The injection of federal funding is part of Biden’s commitment to working with tribal nations, said Tom Perez, a senior adviser to the president, and it underscores the administration’s recognition that in the past the U.S. has left too many communities behind. “We will not allow that to happen in the future,” he said. In 2022, the administration committed $135 million to 11 tribal nations to relocate infrastructure facing climate threats like wildfires, coastal erosion and extreme weather. It could cost up to $5 billion over the next 50 years to address climate-related relocation needs in tribal communities, according to a 2020 Bureau of Indian Affairs study.

Lauren Boebert won’t ‘further imperil’ slim GOP majority by running in special election for Ken Buck’s seat

Populist firebrand Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., will not run in the special election for Colorado GOP Rep. Ken Buck’s seat, she declared Wednesday. Buck stunned Republicans Tuesday by announcing he will leave Congress on March 22, a move that triggers a special election on June 25 to temporarily fill the vacancy in Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District. His early retirement will reduce the House GOP majority even further.  Boebert, who currently represents Colorado’s 4th Congressional District, earlier this year announced she would run to succeed Buck in the 3rd. But on Wednesday, the congresswoman clarified she will not run in the special election to fill Buck’s vacancy, as doing so would require her to vacate her own seat.  In a post on X, Boebert called Buck’s announcement “a gift to the uniparty” and claimed establishment Republicans were attempting to “rig” an election “I’m winning by 25 points.”  GOP COLORADO REP KEN BUCK TO RESIGN FROM CONGRESS BY END OF NEXT WEEK “Forcing an unnecessary Special Election on the same day as the Primary Election will confuse voters, result in a lameduck Congressman on day one, and leave the 4th District with no representation for more than three months. The 4th District deserves better,” Boebert said. “I will not further imperil the already very slim House Republican majority by resigning my current seat and will continue to deliver on my constituents’ priorities while also working hard to earn the votes of the people of Colorado’s 4th District who have made clear they are hungry for a real conservative,” she continued. “I am the only Trump-endorsed, America First candidate in this race and will win the 4th District’s Primary Election on June 25th and General Election on November 5th.”  HOUSE GOP LEADERS TEAR UP BIDEN’S NEW $7.3T BUDGET PROPOSAL Buck will leave Congress after serving in the House of Representatives since 2014. He is currently assigned to the House Judiciary Committee and Foreign Affairs Committee.  Though he holds a conservative voting record, Buck has demonstrated an independent steak that has at times put him at odds with other Republicans. Buck was one of three House Republicans who opposed the impeachment of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. LAUREN BOEBERT SWITCHES DISTRICTS, ANNOUNCING RUN FOR COLORADO SEAT BEING VACATED BY KEN BUCK After his resignation, the breakdown of Congress will be 431 members with 218 Republicans and 213 Democrats. The GOP will only be able to lose two votes of their own on any given issue.  The next special election is for the seat occupied by former Rep. Brian Higgins, D-N.Y., on April 30.  If that seat stays in Democratic hands, the new breakdown is 432 members with 218 Republicans and 214 Democrats. That would mean the margin would effectively be one seat for the GOP. Should the GOP lose just two votes there is a tie, and by rule, the vote will fail in the House.  Fox News Digital’s Stepheny Price and Chad Pergram contributed to this update.  Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub

DeSantis claps back at Libs of TikTok in online feud: ‘Truth shouldn’t be a casualty’ to generate clicks

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis went after Libs of Tiktok – the popular social media account run by former real estate agent Chaya Raichik – for supposedly “lying” about a Florida law that does not permit illegal immigrants to obtain driver’s licenses. Raichik, whose account has nearly three million followers, posted a news video on X about three illegal immigrants from Guatemala who were arrested for forcing a woman into her car and sexually assaulting her. The post garnered over two million views on Wednesday. “Apparently FL also gives illegals drivers licenses!” Raichik posted. “Biden’s open borders allows v*olent criminals to terrorize Americans.” DeSantis, a staunch critic of President Biden’s handling of the border crisis, informed Raichik in a follow-up post that Florida law prohibits illegal immigrants from obtaining driver’s licenses, in addition to prohibiting “recognition of licenses issued to illegal aliens from other states.” Raichik’s post also received a “community note,” a feature on X that allows users to provide additional context or fact check. “Truth shouldn’t be a casualty of attempts to generate clicks and engagement farm,” DeSantis wrote on X.  FBI DIRECTOR WARNS OF ‘VERY DANGEROUS THREATS’ AT BORDER, SMUGGLING NETWORK WITH ISIS TIES  DeSantis’ press secretary, Jeremy Redfern, also chimed in and posted screenshots of users questioning why the governor would allow illegal migrants to obtain driver’s licenses. “This is the problem with posting things on the internet: people take you at your word, regardless of the truth,” Redfern posted.  “The idea that Florida would provide a drivers license to any illegal alien, especially under this governor, is absurd,” he said.  SENATE REPUBLICANS DEMAND DOCS, INFO ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CHARGED WITH LAKEN RILEY’S MURDER Prior to the responses, Raichik posted in a separate thread, “To clarify- Florida law does not allow illegals to get a drivers license.” The interaction received mixed reactions. Some X users questioned whether DeSantis made the post himself and defended Raichik, while others asked her to delete the original post. “This could have all been avoided with basic due diligence,” Jenna Ellis, a former member of Trump’s campaign legal team in 2020, wrote on X.  “@libsoftiktok should delete the tweet and apologize, more to preserve her own credibility than anything,” she wrote.  Libs of TikTok gained popularity beginning in 2021 for exposing controversial elements in the education system, such as sexually explicit material in books and LGBTQ+ resources. “Libs of TikTok” often reposts TikTok videos of left-wing users espousing their thoughts on cultural and racial issues. Earlier this year, Chaikik was appointed to a position in the Oklahoma State Department of Education. Fox News’ Joshua Q. Nelson contributed to this report. 

Members of Florida’s Disney district oversight board continue to shuffle a year after Gov. DeSantis’ takeover

The shakeup of Walt Disney World’s governing district more than a year after it was taken over by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ appointees continued Wednesday with the departure of its board chairman who had been highly critical of Disney. Martin Garcia’s departure as chairman of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District is coming a week after the district’s administrator, Glen Gilzean, left to accept an appointment by DeSantis as interim elections supervisor in Orange County, the home of Orlando, at half his district’s $400,000 salary. Martin didn’t respond to an email and phone message seeking comment on Wednesday. He was appointed by DeSantis last year to a term that was supposed to expire in February 2027. FOX CORPORATION PARTNERING WITH DISNEY, WARNER BROS. DISCOVERY FOR NEW SPORTS STREAMING SERVICE In an email, DeSantis’ communications director, Bryan Griffin, thanked Garcia for “successfully navigating” the transition of the district from a governing body controlled by Disney supporters to the current iteration controlled by DeSantis appointees. Garcia “developed a new district focused on transparency and the elimination of corporate welfare,” Griffin said. The Republican governor also recommended that a former senior advisor, Stephanie Kopelousos, be named the district’s new administrator. Kopelousos was a director of legislative affairs for DeSantis and previously served in other administrations of Florida governors. “We are glad to see her step into this leadership role as the District embarks upon the next chapter in its efforts to ensure an even and transparent playing field for the businesses that operate in Central Florida,” Griffin said. Since the takeover last year, the district has faced an exodus of experienced staffers, with many in exit surveys complaining that the governing body has been politicized since the changeover, and lots of litigation. The district provides municipal services such as firefighting, planning and mosquito control, among other things, and was controlled by Disney supporters for most of its five decades. A fight between DeSantis and Disney began in 2022 after the company, facing significant internal and external pressure, publicly opposed a state law that critics have called “Don’t Say Gay.” The 2022 law banned classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades and was championed by DeSantis, who used Disney as a punching bag in speeches until he suspended his presidential campaign this year. As punishment for opposition to the law, DeSantis took over the district through legislation passed by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature and appointed a new board of supervisors. Disney sued DeSantis and his appointees, claiming the company’s free speech rights were violated for speaking out against the legislation. A federal judge dismissed that lawsuit in January. Disney has appealed. A separate lawsuit over who controls the district is still pending in state court in Orlando. A settlement agreement over the “Don’t Say Gay” legislation was reached this week between Florida education officials and civil rights groups that had challenged the constitutionality of the law on behalf of parents, students and others. The law remains intact, but the deal spells out that the Florida law doesn’t prohibit discussing LGBTQ+ people, prevent anti-bullying rules based on sexual orientation and gender identity, or disallow Gay-Straight Alliance groups.

Race for Illinois prosecutor seat features former appellate judge, professor with Democratic backing

An open seat to lead the nation’s second-largest prosecutor’s office has become one of the most spirited races in the Illinois primary with a Democratic matchup between a tough-on-crime judge and an attorney with union and establishment backing. The Cook County state’s attorney primary features Eileen O’Neill Burke, a former appellate judge with a large campaign war chest, versus Clayton Harris III, a professor and former prosecutor who’s held government posts. The race is the latest example of how the legacy of progressive Democrats who swept into big city prosecutor offices over the past decade has fractured. Some, including in Los Angeles, face tough reelection bids with blame on progressive policies for perceptions that cities are less safe. Others have resigned or face possible impeachment. CDC SENDS RESPONSE TEAM TO CHICAGO MIGRANT SHELTER AMID MEASLES OUTBREAK In Chicago, Democrats hoping to replace outgoing State’s Attorney Kim Foxx are walking a line, saying they’ll uphold some of her progressive policies while also being critical of her tenure. “We should be booming, and we’re not because of crime,” said O’Neill Burke, who’s more openly critical of Foxx. “This is something we can fix.” Meanwhile, Harris says punishments must be appropriate and consider racial disparities: “We can focus on our communities being safe without sacrificing justice.” CHICAGO TEACHERS UNION URGES STUDENTS TO ATTEND POLITICAL RALLY FOR ILLINOIS PRIMARY Neither candidate has high name recognition. But the winner of Tuesday’s primary in heavily Democratic Cook County is expected to coast to victory in November. It’s an open race because Foxx, who easily won her first two elections, declined to run a third time. Her leadership was praised by reformers but also blasted for being soft on crime and the handling of high profile cases like Jussie Smollett. One campaign issue has been the future of Foxx’s controversial policy not to prosecute retail theft as a felony unless the value of the stolen goods is over $1,000. State law sets a $300 felony threshold. Harris said he’d continue the practice. “If someone came and took my cellphone, is that cellphone worth a felony on your record? I do not think so,” he said. “We look at recidivism. We charge everyone appropriately.” O’Neill Burke said she’d scrap it. “It doesn’t deter crime, it promotes it,” she said of Foxx’s change. In other cities, progressive policies are also being blamed for crime and homelessness. That’s even as violent crime, including homicides and shootings, has largely fallen in Chicago and nationwide to the same level as before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón survived a nonpartisan primary this month but expects a tough November election. Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner faces the possibility of an impeachment trial. In San Francisco, Chesa Boudin was recalled by voters, while St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner resigned. In the Chicago area, both candidates say Foxx made important strides. The state’s attorney’s office has more than 700 attorneys and is the largest after Los Angeles. O’Neill Burke said she’d continue restorative justice efforts for young people and credited Foxx with diversifying the workforce. Harris has held up Foxx’s conviction review unit, which has overturned wrongful convictions, as a national model. Harris says the prosecutor must improve the relationship with law enforcement. On the campaign trail, he’s talked about his personal life as a Black man raising children on Chicago’s South Side, as well as his professional experience in helping run government and lobbying elected leaders. “Being a Black man. I’ve been pulled over before for no reason,” he said. “We can have safe communities without being racially profiled.” Harris has scrutinized O’Neill Burke’s record as an assistant state’s attorney. He’s put a spot spotlight on a decades-old murder case where O’Neill Burke, who is white, helped prosecute a Black child on charges he murdered an older white woman when he was 10 years old. The conviction was thrown out by a federal judge who found the boy’s confession was coerced by police and taken without a parent or attorney present. O’Neill Burke now says she’ll advocate for stronger legal protections for children under interrogation, but she wouldn’t change her work on the 1994 case as the boy’s attorney and parents were in court when he took the stand and repeated the confession. “No one has ever questioned my conduct in this case or any case,” she said, calling Harris’ campaign ads about the case a “distraction” for voters. Harris disagrees. “Instead of acknowledging that mistakes were made, there has been a doubling down,” he said. “That’s the wrong attitude to have.” When it comes to fundraising, O’Neill Burke is ahead, with roughly double the amount of Harris, just under $2 million compared to roughly $750,000. Her sum includes money from top Republican donors. But Harris has picked up hefty endorsements from labor unions, progressive leaders and the Cook County Democratic Party. CHICAGO QUIETLY MOVES MIGRANTS FROM AIRPORTS AFTER SENATE COMMITTEE PROBE His Democratic ties are a top target for O’Neill Burke. Harris was briefly a chief of staff for former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, helping oversee the office after Blagojevich was arrested and ultimately convicted. Harris wasn’t accused of wrongdoing. O’Neill Burke deems Harris a “Democratic insider” while attempting to tie his lobbyist work to Republicans who oppose abortion. Her campaign promises including creating a unit within the prosecutor’s office to protect abortion rights. “I’ve spent every single day for the last 30 years in a courtroom from every vantage point. That’s a significant advantage,” she said in an interview. “He has spent a career answering to politicians and you cannot answer to a politician in this job.” Also running in the primary is Republican former Chicago Alderman Bob Fioretti, who lost a 2020 bid for the office.

Senators urge congressional leaders to make visas available for Afghans who aided the US

Senators from both major political parties are urging congressional leaders to ensure that more visas are made available to Afghans who worked alongside U.S. troops in America’s longest war before a crucial pathway to safety in the United States abruptly closes. In a letter obtained by The Associated Press, more than a dozen Republican and Democratic senators said Congress needs to raise the limit on the number of special immigrant visas the U.S. can process for Afghans. They said an additional 20,000 are needed before the end of the fiscal year in September. “This critical program has already saved the lives of thousands of Afghans who served with bravery and honor alongside United States troops and diplomats in support of the mission in Afghanistan,” the lawmakers, led by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat, wrote in the letter to Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. “We must now uphold our commitment to these individuals and ensure that those qualified applicants are able to find safety in the United States.” BIDEN PRIVATELY DEFIANT THAT HE DIDN’T BOTCH AFGHANISTAN WITHDRAWAL: BOOK State Department spokesman Matthew Miller also called on Congress last week to increase the visa cap, saying that it would allow the U.S. to “meet our obligation to those Afghans who put their lives on the line for the United States, make sure that they are not forgotten.” Senators included an increase in the annual cap of visas in a funding bill last year, but it’s unclear whether that provision will make it into the final package lawmakers are racing to finish by the March 22 government funding deadline. The special immigrant visa, or SIV, program allows eligible Afghans who helped Americans despite great personal risk to themselves and their loved ones to apply for entry into America with their families. Eligible Afghans include interpreters for the U.S. military as well as individuals integral to the American embassy in Kabul. While the program has existed since 2009, the number of applicants skyrocketed after the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021. With the Taliban now back in power, advocates say Afghans who helped the U.S. are often living in hiding and facing torture and death if they’re found. “Congress’ inaction to honor our commitments not only undermines our national conscience but erodes the very principles America claims to stand for,” said Shawn VanDiver, a Navy veteran and head of #AfghanEvac, a coalition supporting Afghan resettlement efforts. “It’s high time Congress proves its integrity is more than just lip service; our Afghan allies deserve nothing less.” Since the program’s inception, tens of thousands of visas have been issued to eligible Afghans, according to the State Department, with more than 30% of the total applications processed just since the withdrawal. A similar U.S. program exists for Iraqis, but both programs have come under criticism from lawmakers and advocates who say that cases move much too slowly, leaving applicants in a dangerous limbo. It’s up to Congress to set the cap on the number of visas available under the program. But when that cap is reached, Congress has had to go back periodically to increase the number of visas available. Andrew Sullivan, the director of advocacy for No One Left Behind, which advocates for SIV applicants, said they’re down to roughly 7,000 visas left and if the State Department keeps approving visas at the current rate, they could run out of visas by the end of summer. “It’s massive. It fundamentally amounts to a death knell for the program” if Congress doesn’t approve more visas, Sullivan said. “You’re going to have tens of thousands of people who are left behind through no fault of their own.” Advocates have previously complained about the slow pace of processing visas, but in recent months the numbers have been climbing and could hit 1,000 this month after the State Department streamlined the process for considering applications. The improvements have resulted in Afghans who helped the U.S. reaching safe harbor more quickly. ‘UNACCEPTABLE’: TALIBAN DEMANDED TREATMENT ‘SIMILAR TO RECOGNITION’ TO ATTEND UN MEETING But if lawmakers fail to authorize any more visas, hundreds of thousands of Afghan allies would remain in Afghanistan, where the Taliban has labeled them and their families as traitors. Sullivan said his nonprofit has identified more than 100 people who were killed by the ruling militant group and were either SIV applicants or were likely eligible for the visa program. Failure to approve more visas would be another disappointment for Afghans as they wait for more concrete action from Congress. A bipartisan effort to permanently provide a pathway to citizenship for Afghan allies fell apart last month, thwarted by larger disagreements between Democrats and Republicans over border policy. “For two decades, the U.S. military mission in Afghanistan relied on trusted Afghan allies who stood shoulder-to-shoulder with American troops,” Shaheen, the New Hampshire senator, said in a statement. “We promised to protect them — just as they did for us, yet they are now at grave risk as the Taliban continue to hunt for them.”

Support in Oklahoma for reducing cockfighting penalties rises 20 years after the bloodsport was outlawed

Before Oklahoma became one of the last places in the U.S. to outlaw cockfighting in 2002, it wasn’t uncommon to see hundreds of spectators packed into small arenas in rural parts of the state to watch roosters, often outfitted with razor-sharp steel blades, fight until a bloody death. More than 20 years after the ban took effect, some worry Oklahoma is starting to waver. A proposal to weaken cockfighting penalties cleared the Oklahoma House. A political action committee is raising money to support farmers who raise game fowl. And in a video since pulled from YouTube, Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt recorded a message supporting the group known as the Oklahoma Gamefowl Commission, saying he would “cheer you on from the sidelines.” GOOSE FOUND INSIDE OKLAHOMA MEDICAL HELICOPTER FOLLOWING CRASH THAT KILLED 3 CREW MEMBERS “They’ve tried to make an official sounding name,” said Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action, which two decades ago worked to turn out Oklahoma voters and outlaw the activity. “But they’re just a bunch of cockfighters.” He said before the ban, rural Oklahoma counties were peppered with cockfighting arenas set up in large barns with stadium-style seating, overhead lights and even concession stands. Events attracted hundreds of spectators, even children and families. After a major event, it wasn’t uncommon to see the property littered with dead bird carcasses after fights to the death. “We went from 42 arenas, to… maybe there are 10 or 15 pits in the state,” he said. The reemergence of cockfighting as an issue in the Oklahoma Capitol is frustrating opponents who, until recently, considered the matter long settled. Rooster fighting is illegal at the federal level, punishable by up to five years in prison for some offenses. But a spate of recent cockfighting-related arrests in both Oklahoma and elsewhere is also a reminder that the practice has not been eliminated so much as driven underground. Police in Hawaii have vowed to step up enforcement after one of the most serious mass shootings in that state’s history happened last year at a cockfight where five people were shot, including two who died. For his part, Stitt said he records dozens of videos each week and didn’t give his participation much thought. “Of course, I’m not for gamecock fighting in the state of Oklahoma,” he told The Associated Press. But he also suggested he is open to reducing penalties if the state’s GOP-controlled Legislature sends him a bill. The video unleashed bipartisan blowback across Oklahoma, including from former Gov. Frank Keating, a fellow Republican. Oklahoma football legend Barry Switzer — whose nickname in the state is simply “The King” after winning three national championships and a Super Bowl with the Dallas Cowboys — also came after Stitt. But the backlash doesn’t faze Anthony Devore, head of the Gamefowl Commission, who says his organization has 15,000 members and described them as mostly hard-working rural Oklahomans. His group has raised more than $70,000 to lobby lawmakers and is seeking to replicate the same model in several other conservative Southern states, including in Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky and Mississippi. Devore said he and others raise the birds to participate in poultry shows and sell them as breeding stock overseas. While cockfighting is illegal in many countries, it remains legal and popular in some Mexican states, the Philippines and some countries in southeast Asia. “We represent game fowl farmers who breed and raise game fowl, but not for fighting purposes,” said Devore, himself a game fowl breeder. But Devore acknowledged a former district director for his organization who has since resigned was arrested and charged with facilitating a cockfight after authorities in Carter County raided a cockfighting pit with more than 100 people in attendance. That criminal case is pending. Devore and other members acknowledge they’re operating in a gray area of the law and say reducing the penalties would remove the fear of felony criminal charges hanging over their heads. The effort is welcome news to Troy Thompson, a former high school teacher and coach who now works full-time raising thousands of birds every year on his 55-acre ranch dotted with white, tent-like structures near the town of Wilson in far southern Oklahoma, just 30 miles north of the Red River border with Texas. Thompson, 50, said the chickens on his farm, who are kept on foot tethers so they don’t fight with one another, are given vitamins, green grass year round and the highest quality feed he can buy. He said his chickens have a much better life than they would on a typical poultry farm, where they’re raised in a tiny cage and slaughtered at about six weeks old. “I had a rooster pass away last week that was 10 years old,” he said. “They have a lot better life living here than they’re going to have on a Tyson poultry farm.” Thompson said he grew during a time when rooster fighting was legal and dozens of farms dotted the rolling hills of southern Oklahoma. The name of his boyhood T-ball team was the Dillard Fighting Cocks. “Would that go over today?” he asked. “It’s mind blowing that you went from perfectly legal to facing a 10-year prison sentence.” And while some law enforcement officers and prosecutors have been cracking down recently on those who raise and fight birds, with busts recently in both urban and rural communities, prosecutors say it’s unlikely anyone has been sentenced to prison for cockfighting. “I would say there’s probably almost none (in prison),” said Greg Mashburn, the top prosecutor for three central Oklahoma counties. “In the 18 years I’ve been DA, we’ve only had two cases.” Still, Mashburn said it’s important to enforce anti-cockfighting laws because there is often a criminal element engaged in the activity that often involves illegal drugs and gambling. “It’s also cruel to the animals,” Mashburn said. “And where do you draw the line? If we allow that with chickens, why not dogs or other animals fighting to the death?” Still, some animal

Meet man whose kidneys failed at 21, is on dialysis since 26 years; founded India’s largest dialysis centre chain with..

But his health worsened and he was diagnosed with a life-threatening illness – Atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (AHUS) at just 21. The only solution was to undergo a kidney transplant, which he underwent. Thereafter, he underwent a live-donor transplant, which unfortunately was unsuccessful.

One nation, one election: Return to simultaneous polls recommended by EC in 1983, says Kovind panel

The panel led by former president Ram Nath Kovind submitted its report to President Droupadi Mumu on Thursday.

American nonprofit tied to UNRWA sued by Oct. 7 survivors for ‘aiding and abetting’ Hamas terrorists

An American nonprofit that has raised millions of dollars for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East – commonly known as UNRWA, – is being sued by 10 survivors and family members of slain victims of the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on southern Israel who argue the U.S.-based group knowingly provided material support for Hamas and terrorist activities for years.   The lawsuit was filed earlier this month in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware on behalf of Lishay Lavi, Noach Newman, Adin Gess, Maya Parizer, Natalie Sanandaji, Yoni Diller, Hagar Almog, David Bromberg, Lior Bar Or and Ariel Ein-Gal against the UNRWA USA National Committee., claiming that UNRWA USA and UNRWA are “[i]nextricably [l]inked” in supporting Hamas. “501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations generally do good work. They feed the hungry, help the poor, and house the homeless. But on some very rare occasions, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization finances an international terrorist plot that kills over 1,200 innocent people,” the lawsuit says. “This case involves one of those rare occasions.”  More than 1,200 Israelis were killed, more than 6,900 civilians are estimated to have been injured, and hundreds more were taken hostage when Hamas launched a surprise attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.  WHITE HOUSE PREPARING IN CASE CONGRESS MAKES UNRWA FUNDING PAUSE PERMANENT “During this attack, Hamas terrorists brutally beat, tortured, raped and murdered men, women, and children. But Hamas did not carry out these attacks alone. Rather, they were financed and aided by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and Defendant UNRWA USA National Committee, Inc. (“UNRWA USA”),” the suit says. Earlier this year, the Israeli government accused 12 UNRWA employees of having directly participated in the Oct. 7 attacks, prompting the U.S. and at least a dozen other countries to temporarily suspend funding to the agency amid a United Nations investigation.  But Mark Goldfeder, one of the attorneys for the plaintiffs, told Fox News Digital that UNRWA USA did not suspend sending money to UNRWA until March 1.  “Way too little, way too late. They funded it up until the point, even after the reports came out of UNRWA staff literally participating in the massacre,” Goldfeder said Wednesday. “Even after the United States suspended its own UNRWA donations, even after all of that, they continued fundraising, and they continued sending money.”  “This is the largest private donor to UNRWA, and they have been materially and knowingly, actively, systematically using their quote unquote, charity, to operate a terrorist financing scheme in violation of federal law,” Goldfeder said. “And it’s gotten to the point where the evidence is so overwhelming that even UNRWA USA has now suspended donations to UNRWA because they couldn’t deny it publicly anymore, but they knew all along what they were doing, and they need to be held accountable.”  The complaint alleges that UNRWA USA “has been and is fully aware that UNRWA works with and for Hamas, providing operational and financial support for their activities, and UNRWA USA aids, abets, and provides material support for those activities under the guise of humanitarian assistance.”  “UNRWA USA collects donations in the United States and then transfers nearly all its funds to UNRWA, which has significant operations in the Gaza Strip,” the lawsuit says. “Once the funds reach the Gaza Strip, UNRWA redistributes those funds to Hamas members on their payroll, some of whom are directly engaged in acts of terrorism, including but not limited to, the October 7th atrocities; to schools that are used to store Hamas’s weapons and other equipment; and to the production of educational materials that promote violence against Jews, including the destruction of the state of Israel.”  Fox News Digital reached out to UNRWA USA for comment on the lawsuit, but they did not immediately respond. AMERICAN SURVIVOR OF HAMAS ATTACK ON MUSIC FEST RETURNS TO SEE ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTS IN US: ‘I DON’T FEEL SAFE’ The lawsuit alleges that UNRWA USA “raises and transfers such funds knowingly, willfully, and with the intention that the funds be used by a designated foreign terrorist organization and its members for terrorist purposes” and “knowingly, willfully, and intentionally works directly and indirectly in confederation and agreement with UNRWA, Hamas, and other terrorist organizations to provide material support to the designated foreign terrorist organizations and their members and for their terrorist activities.”  The complaint also states that in addition to having “common missions, finances, and activities,” UNRWA USA and UNRWA “also employ overlapping staff.” It cites posts on social media platform X in which UNRWA USA described an UNRWA employee as a freelance content producer for UNRWA USA and described UNRWA employees as “colleagues.” The lawsuit also states that UNRWA USA board member Karen AbuZayd was appointed UNRWA commissioner-general in 2005, and that in April 2006 she “stated that she commonly met with Hamas and would continue to do so.” The plaintiffs accuse UNRWA USA of violating the Anti-Terrorism Act and the Alien Tort Statute.  A group of seven Republican senators penned a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland last month demanding the Justice Department open a criminal investigation into UNRWA USA, its principals and its leadership “for knowingly providing material support to foreign terrorist organizations, including Hamas.”  “This support facilitated and continues to facilitate terrorism, including the October 7 terrorist attack,” the letter penned by Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Roger Marshall, R-Ks., Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., Rick Scott, R-Fla., Pete Ricketts, R-Nebraska, and Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., said.  According to its 2021 annual report, UNRWA USA dispersed nearly $5 million in donations to UNRWA that year, making the organization UNRWA’s largest institutional donor. In 2004, the senators also noted, the then-UNRWA Commissioner-General Peter Hansen said in an interview, “I am sure there are Hamas members on the UNRWA payroll and I don’t see that as a crime.”  “That assessment is incorrect. It is in fact a crime,” the Feb. 15 letter from the senators