World News

Trump Shares Edited Video Portraying King Charles as Uncaring

Trump

Trump Shares Edited Video Portraying King Charles as Uncaring

US President Donald Trump has shared an edited video on social media that appears to depict King Charles shrugging off a man who fainted during a royal visit.

The clip, posted on Trump’s Truth Social account, forms part of a wider montage that presents other leaders as behaving disrespectfully while highlighting Trump’s own actions. Alongside references to world leaders, it includes scenes of Trump honouring fallen US troops, hugging veterans and shaking hands with law-enforcement officers.
Edited Royal Footage
The portion featuring Charles was taken from a longer recording from 2020, when he was Prince of Wales and visited an Asda supermarket distribution centre in Bristol during the Covid pandemic in July 2020.
In the edited video Trump shared, Charles appears to walk away after the man collapses. However, the full footage shows Charles reaching out as the man fell and staying close while he received medical attention. Trump’s version cuts out the part in which the King remains by the worker.
Buckingham Palace said it was not something it would comment on. The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
Labour Day Montage
Trump posted the three-minute video on the US Labor Day holiday. It opens with footage of French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace, with a guardsman appearing to collapse behind him.
The Truth Social montage also shows former President Joe Biden apparently checking his watch during a military repatriation ceremony. It includes footage of former President Barack Obama stepping off the Marine One helicopter and saluting US marines while holding a paper cup.
The sequence then moves through further clips of Trump, including him picking up a US marine’s cap, saluting at a repatriation ceremony and comforting the families of fallen soldiers.
During some of the segments, on-screen captions appear, including phrases such as “the side of Trump the media doesn’t show you” and “the people’s president”. Music from Christina Perri’s A Thousand Years plays throughout the video.
Trump Cites Friendship With Charles
The video adds to Trump’s repeated public comments about his relationship with Charles. Trump has said he has a “great relationship” with the King and described him as “the greatest king in my book” following the King and Queen’s state visit to the United States in April.

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9 September 2026

• UK Monarchy

• 61 comments
• 147 views

webfact

Tuesday at 08:12 PM5 days

Israel Orders Closure of British Consulate in Jerusalem

Israel

Israel Orders Closure of British Consulate in Jerusalem

Israel has ordered the closure of the British consulate in occupied East Jerusalem, citing new UK sanctions on goods linked to illegal Israeli settlements.

Israel’s foreign minister, Gideon Sa’ar, said the consulate would be shut in response to the “sweeping” measures announced by the UK and described as retaliatory steps. He also announced entry bans for a number of UK MPs.
Closure and Entry Bans
The consulate, located in the Sheikh Jarrah area, deals with Palestinian issues in the occupied territories, including Gaza, the West Bank and Jerusalem. The British embassy in Tel Aviv hosts the UK ambassador to Israel.
Sa’ar’s announcement came as diplomatic ties between the two countries have sharply deteriorated.
Jerusalem Sovereignty Statement
Sa’ar said Jerusalem is Israel’s undivided capital and argued that foreign activity in the city must go through what Israel considers approved channels.
“United Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and is under its full sovereignty,” Sa’ar said. “Any foreign activity in the area must be conducted through accepted and agreed channels and without violating Israel’s sovereignty.”
Alongside the consulate closure, the Israeli foreign minister said Israel would stop British involvement in the training of Palestinian security forces on the West Bank. He also said Britain would be excluded from a US-led Gaza coordination mission based in Israel.
UK Sanctions and Retaliatory Claims
The entry bans cover mostly leftwing MPs, including former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, Your Party MP Zarah Sultana, Labour MPs Diane Abbott, Naz Shah, John McDonnell and Richard Burgon, and Green MPs Hannah Spencer, Carla Denyer, Siân Berry and Ellie Chowns.
Sa’ar linked the measures to comments by Ed Miliband, describing violent activity by Jewish settlers on the occupied West Bank as “ethnic cleansing” carried out with what he said was the tacit backing of the Netanyahu government.
He accused the UK of interfering in Israel’s affairs and political process, adding that sanctions were not the route Israel wanted. Sa’ar said: “Sanctions are not a solution – dialogue is. I say to all foreign governments: Stop. Step away from the dead-end of sanctions and boycotts, and turn toward constructive dialogue and toward cooperation.”
The UK sanctions were coordinated with 11 other countries, including France and Canada.
Israel said Britain’s actions were “morally distorted” and set against Israel’s government. In a further example of the wider political friction, Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel’s hardline public security minister and a settler leader, urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to recognise Argentina’s claim to the Falkland Islands.
International Reactions and Labour’s Shift
The US response diverged from those of the other coordinating countries. The US ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, who has long backed settlement expansion, said the UK sanctions were “discrimination against the Jewish people” and warned the UK could face “repercussions or retaliations” from the US.
In contrast, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said Washington would not block imports from Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory and did not want moves that could destabilise the West Bank.
Israel has faced repeated warnings from successive British governments over the risk of international isolation and sanctions linked to settlement activity in the occupied territories. Those warnings have intensified as violent settler activity has increased.
Britain’s Labour government previously sanctioned some Israeli settlers and illegal outposts after violence against Palestinians and unlawful development in the West Bank. In a change of approach, Miliband said on Tuesday that the UK considers Israel’s occupation of the West Bank illegal, not only the settlements.
The UK and partners said difficulties in agreeing an EU-wide position led countries to make separate decisions, culminating in a joint statement by 12 countries that they were starting a process for tougher sanctions.

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9 September 2026

• UK-Politics

• 28 comments
• 551 views

webfact

Tuesday at 07:55 PM5 days

Canada Escalates Trade War With New US Counter-Tariffs

Canada

Canada Escalates Trade War With New US Counter-Tariffs

Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on a range of American imports took effect on Tuesday, with no sign of a trade deal between Ottawa and Washington.

The counter-tariffs will apply to nearly C$28bn (£20bn; $15bn) worth of US goods, including items from steel and furniture to cotton T-shirts. Tariffs will reach as high as 50%, affecting hundreds of products coming from the United States from midnight on Tuesday, as Canada seeks “dollar-for-dollar” responses to the latest US measures.
Counter-Tariffs Apply to US Goods
Among the listed imports were fresh fish and lobster. However, Canada later dropped those items after pushback from its seafood industry, underlining the balance it is trying to strike while responding to its largest trading partner.
Both sides have said they want to reach an agreement, but talks have made no progress since they collapsed in late August.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said last week that Canada is still looking for a “durable” deal that serves both countries’ interests.
“We’re ready to sit down and and strike that deal when the Americans are ready,” he told reporters.
US Says Deal Offer Was Rejected
The US trade representative, Jamieson Greer, said on Thursday that responsibility for moving matters forward lay with Canada.
Greer said in an interview with Fox News that the US had put forward what it described as the best deal, adding that Canada “looked at it square in the face and turned around”. In the same interview, he said communications with Canadian counterparts had been limited since the talks broke down.
In an interview with Canadian broadcaster CBC, Greer also cautioned against further retaliation and suggested the US could respond by banning imports of some Canadian products.
His warning comes as President Donald Trump escalated pressure beyond tariffs. On Monday, Trump threatened to halt all US business with Bombardier, the Canada-based aircraft maker, unless it moved manufacturing to the US.
Bombardier is among the country’s largest companies, contributing more than C$7bn to Canada’s annual GDP in 2024, according to a report commissioned by the company and prepared by PwC.
Trump also posted criticism of Canada on Truth Social over the weekend, including a claim that Canada’s exchange rate with the US was “unacceptable”, and a map of North America showing Canada and Mexico, alongside Greenland, under a US flag.
Canada and the US run the world’s largest bilateral trading relationship, worth nearly $900bn in 2025.
Broader Tariff Measures and Economic Concerns
Tuesday’s Canadian counter-tariffs come on top of existing retaliatory taxes that Ottawa has already applied to finished US cars and trucks that do not meet terms under the USMCA trade pact—called USMCA in the US and CUSMA in Canada.
On the US side, Washington has an existing 25% duty on Canadian cars and trucks, along with taxes on Canadian steel, aluminium and lumber. In late August, Trump also imposed new 50% tariffs on additional goods including dairy, alcohol, hockey sticks and perfume.
While polls suggest many Canadians support retaliation, economists have warned that the new counter-tariffs could feed through to prices for everyday items such as clothing, food and furniture.
The Canadian Chamber of Commerce urged a “surgical” approach, warning against endless escalation. Its chief executive, Candace Laing, told the BBC that businesses understood retaliation but did not want a prolonged spiral, while adding that firms were preparing for the dispute to last.
In fisheries, the need to avoid unintended damage to Canada’s own economy contributed to the removal of dozens of seafood items from the counter-tariff list. The lobster sector in both countries is closely linked, with American-caught lobster frequently sent north to be processed before being shipped back to the US for sale.
Ahead of the latest tariff wave, Canada showed some resilience. GDP grew 3.3% in the second quarter, and Canada added 181,000 jobs between April and July, although around 41,000 jobs were lost in August—a period that coincided with new US tariffs and the collapse of talks.
Canada’s government attributed a modest rise in manufacturing to consumers and businesses buying more domestically produced goods. Carney has also said Canada will diversify trade away from the US, with July data showing the share of exports bound for the US falling to 66% from an average of 75% before the trade war.

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8 September 2026

• 30 comments
• 341 views

webfact

September 8Sep 8

UK Plans New Trade Curbs on West Bank Settlements

UK-Politics

UK Plans New Trade Curbs on West Bank Settlements

The UK government is preparing new restrictions on goods produced in Jewish settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband is expected to set out the measures in the House of Commons on Tuesday. They could include limits on trade in certain agricultural products from settlements.

Last week, Miliband said the UK would deliver a “comprehensive reset” of its policy on Israel. The Israeli government has previously warned it would retaliate if new UK measures were introduced.
Miliband Set To Outline Measures On Tuesday
Labour MPs who have received briefings on the plans believe the restrictions are designed to target trade linked to illegal settlements. They said the sanctions would extend beyond goods to include services as well.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham told Labour MPs at their weekly parliamentary meeting on Monday night that Miliband would make a statement in Parliament, according to several MPs present. Burnham was also said to have briefed international leaders about the proposals in phone calls on Monday afternoon.
No 10 said Burnham discussed the call with US President Donald Trump, with the prime minister stressing the importance of a two-state solution. An official summary of the conversation did not specify that the sanctions were among the topics, and the US has not commented, despite indications it is likely to oppose the proposals.
Scope Of Potential Trade Restrictions
The BBC has not seen the full details of the planned measures.
In July, Stephen Doughty, then Europe minister and now Middle East minister, told the business select committee that existing UK powers to impose restrictions were not sufficient. He said sanctions could be applied where evidence linked them to settler violence, but not, he argued, to other areas such as settlement contracting work. He said the government needed to widen its sanctions powers.
Ministers are also said to recognise that a ban on a relatively small quantity of mostly agricultural goods would be largely symbolic. However, the government is expected to present Tuesday’s announcement as a major reset in Britain’s broader approach to Israel.
E1 Settlement Plans And Two-State Pressure
The expected move comes after Israel published tenders for the construction of about 1,200 settlement homes in the E1 area, east of Jerusalem. The plans have drawn widespread international condemnation, and Israel has held back from developing the area for decades under global pressure.
In his first speech to Parliament as foreign secretary last week, Miliband said the E1 plans were “illegal under international law” and described them as crossing a “red line”, saying the development cuts through the heart of the West Bank and risks making a Palestinian state unviable.
Burnham also warned that the E1 announcement could “imperil or end” the two-state solution. The UK government believes the rapid expansion of settlements is jeopardising prospects for that outcome.
This intervention is coming just under a year after Sir Keir Starmer’s government recognised a state of Palestine and said the UK had a moral responsibility to support a peaceful future for Israelis and Palestinians.
Labour chair of the foreign affairs select committee Emily Thornberry said it was not enough for the UK merely to recognise Palestine, adding that the UK had to do what it could to protect the possibility of an independent Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel. She rejected the idea that the UK move would boost support for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in upcoming elections, telling BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that Israel “is a democracy with many different views”.
Peter Prinsley, a Labour MP and vice-chair of Labour Friends of Israel, said he backed a two-state solution but had concerns about the impact of the announcement, including its effect on the election. He also said he had warned Miliband that the move carried a risk of increased attacks on the British Jewish community.
Jonathan Hall KC, the UK’s independent reviewer of terror legislation, told Newsnight there was “a risk” that making Israel a pariah would fuel antisemitic attacks, pointing to recent years in which such incidents had surged. He said he hoped ministers would be careful in how they described any measures.

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8 September 2026

• 33 comments
• 208 views

webfact

September 8Sep 8

EU Warns of Online Youth Violence 25 Years After 9/11

EU

EU Warns of Online Youth Violence 25 Years After 9/11

Jihadist organisations remain a major security risk for Europe 25 years after the attacks on the United States, but EU authorities say a different danger is increasingly emerging online and is being driven largely by young people.

Ahead of the 25th anniversary of 11 September 2001, EU Counter-Terrorism Coordinator Bartjan Wegter said jihadists still pose “a major threat”, while warning that investigators have also been disrupting what is being described as nihilistic violent extremism. The exact scale of the online network behind the movement is not clear.
Disrupted URLs Linked To “The COM”
Police investigators from nine European countries identified about 4,340 URL addresses linked to “The COM”, the online community’s name. The activity was targeted in a disruption operation conducted in June and July, according to officials involved in the investigation.
Europol does not hold dedicated statistics for nihilistic violent extremism. The agency says definitions vary, and some incidents may fall under ordinary criminality as well as terrorism.
Terrorism Figures Across The EU
Overall, 45 terrorist attacks were reported across 10 of the EU’s 27 member states last year. None were described as major, mass-casualty incidents. About half of the plots were foiled or failed, and six people were killed.
Europol said 486 people suspected of terrorism links were arrested in 21 EU countries. Jihadist groups were behind 24 of the attacks and accounted for more than 70% of the arrests.
Among those taken into custody, around one third were aged under 18, mostly boys, the EU said.
Attacks With No Clear Political Motive
Authorities have pointed to cases in which perpetrators appear to seek notoriety or status through online audiences rather than a defined political agenda.
In Finland in 2025, a 16-year-old boy stabbed three female student colleagues. He allegedly shared a “manifesto” in WhatsApp groups, recorded the attack on Snapchat, and asked on social media for people to save and later receive the video after his release. The EU document on emerging nihilistic extremism said there was no political motive for the rampage.
Italy reported a similar pattern last year, when a 15-year-old boy planned a murder to gain recognition online. He kept images and videos of assaults, murders, school shootings and child sexual abuse material on his phone, according to Italian authorities relayed in the EU reporting.
Wegter said such incidents, which authorities say have been rising for two or three years, are not isolated and are organised through online networks that often involve young people, particularly boys. He said they can translate into offline violence, including stabbings carried out “for no reason whatsoever”, such as attacks on elderly people.
Encrypted Spaces And AI-Driven Propaganda
Investigators, Wegter said, face challenges in preventing or tracking attacks because many suspects have no criminal record and leave limited traces beyond the online environment. He said the activity often takes place behind encrypted platforms and closed communities.
Among the groups monitored by authorities is 764. The organisation was founded by Bradley Cadenhead, an American who dropped out of high school. Cadenhead is serving an 80-year prison sentence for child pornography and sex offences, but the group continues to operate.
In Germany last year, a 20-year-old man believed to be a leading member of 764 faced 123 charges involving murder, rape and the sexual abuse of children, the EU document said.
Europol said criminals also exploit images and audio to produce and edit propaganda, including through deepfakes, memes and GIFs. It said AI-powered bots have been used to boost recruitment and promote extremist ideologies, while AI-driven applications have supported research into attack preparation.
Wegter said the online environment remains “too permissive”, describing it as a setting where threats can connect and intensify. He argued that law enforcement must be equipped for an era in which 85% of investigations take place digitally, and said authorities need to work more closely with counterparts in other countries where such groups may operate beyond borders.

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8 September 2026

• 1 comment
• 152 views

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September 8Sep 8

Menendez Brothers Given March 2027 Parole Hearing

USA

Menendez Brothers Given March 2027 Parole Hearing

Erik and Lyle Menendez were granted on Monday an early parole suitability hearing, tentatively scheduled for March 2027. The brothers were originally sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for the 1989 murders of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez.

Relatives had spent years seeking resentencing and release. In May 2025, Erik and Lyle Menendez were resentenced to 50 years to life, making them eligible for parole. Because of the resentencing, they returned for parole consideration, but the board rejected their application in August 2025.
Early Parole Suitability Hearing
The hearing granted this week is earlier than the next opportunity they would have had to apply for a parole suitability review with the California Board of Parole in August 2028. Such hearings are used to assess whether someone serving a prison sentence can be considered for release.
In a statement to KABC, the brothers’ family said Erik and Lyle have spent almost 40 years taking responsibility for their actions, addressing abuse and trauma they say they endured, and working to grow while serving others. The family also said the men have set up a hospice programme and launched a beautification project during their more than three decades in prison. The statement added that the brothers were once sentenced to life without parole and that the family is grateful for the resentencing, saying it can now imagine them returning to everyday life.
Parole Denied Last Year
The brothers were denied parole in August 2025 after the board cited violations while in custody, including illegal cellphones. The parole board said it was not suitable to grant parole based on their conduct in prison, despite the family’s contention that they have been model prisoners. The board’s decision meant they did not move forward with parole at that time. Erik Menendez was reportedly linked to a prison gang at one time.
Trials, Convictions And Resentencing
At trial in 1993, prosecutors alleged that Erik and Lyle Menendez killed their wealthy parents for financial gain, after the slayings were followed by a spending spree. The defence argued that the brothers acted in self-defence after enduring years of sexual abuse by their father. Juries were deadlocked and mistrials were declared for both cases. A second trial in 1996, during which the judge barred much of the sex abuse evidence, led to convictions of first-degree murder and two consecutive life prison terms without the possibility of parole. Following further court proceedings, the May 2025 resentencing to 50 years to life reopened the possibility of parole hearings, culminating in the current suitability schedule.

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8 September 2026

• Crime

• 4 comments
• 212 views

webfact

September 8Sep 8

Trump Map Extends US Flag Over Canada, Greenland, Mexico

Trump

Trump Map Extends US Flag Over Canada, Greenland, Mexico

President Donald Trump posted a map on Monday morning showing an American flag pattern spread across much of North America, along with Greenland, Iceland and islands in the Caribbean. The post adds to a series of remarks and claims in which he has argued for expanding US control beyond existing borders.
Map Shows flag Over US, Canada And Mexico
The map displayed the American flag motif superimposed over the United States, Canada and Mexico, and extended over part of Central America. It also placed Greenland and Iceland under the same design, while covering Caribbean islands including Cuba and Jamaica.
Trump has previously pushed for the US to take over Canada and Greenland, and has also referenced ambitions relating to the Panama Canal.
Inclusion Of Mexico And Caribbean Islands Is New
While earlier comments and posts focused on Canada, Greenland and the canal, the latest map brings Mexico and some Caribbean islands into the territorial picture. The post therefore broadens the set of places depicted in his stated ambitions, beyond those mentioned in earlier pushes.
The move follows a period of heightened political activity in which Trump has repeatedly used public messaging to draw attention to his views on territorial control.
Canada Trade Dispute Adds Context
The map comes as the US faces tensions with Canada over trade. In the past month, Washington and Ottawa have imposed tariffs on each other’s goods, escalating a dispute between the two countries.
During this period, Trump also signed an executive order to rename Lake Ontario, which shares a name with a Canadian province, as “Lake America”.
Earlier Post Targeted “Mexico” In New Mexico
On Sunday, Trump posted another map, this time depicting the US state of New Mexico as “New America”. The earlier post followed the spread of an online hoax that had already been debunked, which claimed Trump had signed an executive order changing the state’s name.
RELATED
Trump Labels New Mexico ‘New America’ in Map Post
In that image, posted on Truth Social, a large “X” appeared over the word “Mexico” in the state’s name, with “America” shown underneath. The White House’s official account later reposted the same image on the social platform X.
Trump’s Monday map and the Sunday “New Mexico” post both reflect his continued use of symbolic imagery in social media messaging, alongside related official actions and statements that have been described as part of wider efforts to pursue territorial changes.

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8 September 2026

• 50 comments
• 516 views

webfact

September 8Sep 8

Trump’s Darker Hair Sparks Fresh Wig Debate

USA

Trump’s Darker Hair Sparks Fresh Wig Debate

President Donald Trump appeared to have a different hair colour in photos shared on September 4, renewing online interest in his long-running hair-related claims and commentary.

The images showed Trump stepping out of Air Force One in New Jersey on his way to Trump National Golf Club Bedminster. In the pictures, his hair appeared darker than it has in some previous photographs, looking more brunette than blonde. A similar set of photos taken at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, New Jersey, also suggested a change in tone compared with the lighter hair colour Trump is often shown with.
Trump Denies Wig Claims Days Earlier
The apparent shift came days after Trump denied allegations that he wore a wig.
Speaking on September 2 during a speech tied to a 2024 campaign rally, Trump said: “I don't wear a wig.” He added that officials had discovered he did not wear a wig and that, if he had, it would not have stayed on his head “very long”.
Trump’s Labor Day weekend trip also comes amid heightened tensions between the United States and Iran earlier this month. The dispute has pushed gas prices to above $4 per gallon on average for the holiday travel period, with diesel costs reaching record highs.
Photos Spark debate On Social Media
The September 4 photos spread quickly across social media, where users discussed the apparent colour and styling. Some commenters questioned whether anything had actually changed, while others argued it could be explained by photography and staging choices, including lighting and camera angles.
Yashar Ali, a social media commentator, said that without seeing the pictures directly, he would not have believed the change. Jeopardy! champion Hemant Mehta posted on X that continued mocking could lead to “hell toupée”. Other users expressed confusion or suggested the look may be due to how the images were taken or edited.
Hair Has Been Discussed For Years
The president’s hair has been a recurring topic online for years. In August, comedian Rosie O'Donnell said in a segment that Trump’s hair was a wig, telling viewers: “You've got to realize it's time to hang up your wig and let Natalie tuck you in,” referencing White House aide Natalie Harp during her appearance on ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”.
Questions have also followed Trump in earlier public appearances. After a speech about the economy in Las Vegas on August 5, several people noted that his hair appeared fuller than usual. Journalist Aaron Rupar immediately raised the issue, asking whether Trump was wearing a wig.
The debate has also drawn on earlier reporting about Trump’s medical history. In 2017, Dr. Harold Bornstein, a longtime doctor to Trump, told The New York Times that Trump took four medications daily, including finasteride, which is commonly used to address male-pattern baldness. The Mayo Clinic describes finasteride as a prescription medication used to treat hair loss in men and an enlarged prostate.

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8 September 2026

• 29 comments
• 628 views

webfact

September 7Sep 7

Trump Predicts GOP Will ‘Save America’ in Midterms

USA

Trump Predicts GOP Will ‘Save America’ in Midterms

President Trump said on Monday that he expects the Republican Party to win the upcoming midterm elections and renewed attacks on Democrats in a Labor Day message shared on social media.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump wished followers a happy Labor Day while accusing Democrats and their allies of trying to “destroy” the country. He also said Democrats should acknowledge that he knows how to win, and he urged voters to expect Republicans to carry the midterms.
Labor Day Message Sets a Winning Theme
Trump told supporters that Democrats would make one final push to “ruin” America, but said Republicans would prevent it. He said the party would win the midterms “big” and “save America”, framing the election season as a contest that will be decided in favour of the GOP.
The remarks came as the campaign enters the final stretch with summer drawing to a close.
Approval Slips as Democrats Lead in Polls
Trump’s message landed at a time when his political standing has softened. His approval rating is slumping, Democrats have led Republicans in recent polling for the race for Congress, and Americans have continued to express concerns about the economy.
It also comes as the conflict with Iran has passed the six-month mark, adding pressure to the political environment as the midterms near.
A polling average from Decision Desk HQ put Trump’s approval rating at 39.4% as of Monday afternoon, with his disapproval rating at 57.1%.
Campaign Push for Competitive House and Senate Races
Last week, Trump urged Republicans running in competitive midterm contests to focus their campaigns on his record. He also said he would campaign alongside them.
At a White House dinner with GOP lawmakers, Trump told them they had stories that voters would find persuasive in the remaining months of the election campaign. He said that by sharing those accounts, they would win.
Trump also reiterated plans for an aggressive campaign schedule. He said he intended to visit each of 35 locations, referring to 35 races that will shape whether Republicans retain control of the House and the Senate.
RNC Midterm Convention Next
Trump is set to address the Republican National Committee’s rare midterm convention on both nights later this week, as he continues to build momentum for the campaign ahead of Election Day.

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8 September 2026

• 4 comments
• 101 views

webfact

September 7Sep 7

US Slams UK Plan to Boost BBC and ITV Online Visibility

UK-Politics

US Slams UK Plan to Boost BBC and ITV Online Visibility

The Trump administration has said it has “serious concerns” about a UK plan to require YouTube and other digital platforms to give greater prominence to established broadcasters, warning the approach could enable censorship of online content.

In a statement issued through the US embassy in London, Washington argued that the proposed changes to social media feeds could create a “template” that authoritarian governments might use to justify tighter control of what users see. The administration also warned the plan could weaken the position of independent journalism, describing it as a form of “extraterritorial censorship” of Americans’ protected speech.
The comments come as ministers, regulators and public service broadcasters in the UK debate how to respond to misinformation online. They have argued that as more people use less regulated platforms such as X, YouTube and TikTok, new rules may be needed to improve the visibility of credible information.
What The UK Plans
The UK government has been consulting on proposals to encourage or require platforms to prioritise content from long-established media organisations in algorithmic recommendations. Under the plan, outlets such as the BBC and ITV would receive enhanced visibility.
The UK also signalled earlier this year that it would consider legislation if platforms did not voluntarily take action to ensure trustworthy content is promoted in digital feeds.
Supporters of the approach say it would help tackle misinformation and help protect culturally British programming, as well as support public service broadcasters facing financial pressure from the shift to online media.
US Concern Over “Censorship”
Washington said the UK’s framework could effectively remove the reach of independent reporters and media outlets by pushing them down in feeds in favour of established broadcasters. It argued that such an outcome would not be meaningfully different from removal when a less favoured speaker or publication loses visibility in practice.
The administration also urged the UK to spell out safeguards to ensure that any “biases and preferences” from UK officials or third-party organisations do not shape how content is surfaced in ways that disadvantage independent or minority-viewpoint journalism.
The US embassy statement said the administration would “likely consider such a measure as facilitating censorship”, and highlighted its willingness to challenge rules affecting largely US-based technology firms that run major global platforms.
UK Government Response
A spokesperson for the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said the department welcomed engagement and responses to the government’s media green paper. The spokesperson added that the government believes strongly in free expression and fair competition and said any action would aim to protect both.
Insiders cited in the wider reporting said any measures would apply only to the UK, with the US criticism framed as part of efforts to influence how major platform operators respond.
Trump’s Media Record And Wider Debate
The dispute also plays out against Donald Trump’s long-standing criticism of mainstream news organisations. The US president has frequently attacked established outlets, accusing them of “fake news” and describing coverage as biased, while using social media to reach supporters.
Trump is also still involved in a legal case involving the BBC over an edition of Panorama in which the programme was reported to have spliced together one of his speeches. The BBC apologised for the edit but said the show did not defame him.
Meanwhile, some creators and social media companies have questioned whether platforms should artificially promote traditional media. A UK YouTube creator, Simon Squibb, said he was encouraged that concerns had been raised by an organisation he believed politicians would heed and warned the UK risked moving in a “dangerous” direction. He said he was glad the US had intervened.

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8 September 2026

• USA

• 102 comments
• 574 views

webfact

September 7Sep 7

EU Unveils €200m Greenland Package Amid Trump Takeover Push

Greenland

EU Unveils €200m Greenland Package Amid Trump Takeover Push

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen unveiled a 200-million-euro ($232 million) investment package for Greenland on Monday, as the European Union seeks to strengthen ties with the Arctic island.

Von der Leyen signed an EU-Greenland declaration with Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen and Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen during the visit. Greenland is a semiautonomous territory and a NATO ally through Denmark.
“Greenland can count on the EU,” von der Leyen said after the agreement.
EU Pushes Deal Amid Heightened Disputes
The announcement comes as the EU has increased its focus on Greenland since US President Donald Trump began arguing that the United States should take control of the island for security reasons.
Von der Leyen said the investment partnership would create “new opportunities” and support a strong EU presence in Greenland and the Arctic, describing Greenland as a strategic ally and a trusted friend.
The plan seeks to boost practical capacity across several areas, while also reinforcing cooperation linked to critical supplies and infrastructure in the wider region.
Education, Fisheries and Critical Minerals Included
The package is designed to help Greenland improve education and fisheries, expand internet connectivity, and develop hydropower systems.
It also includes support for the use of critical raw minerals. In addition, the EU set out funding for better housing, assistance to small businesses and measures aimed at sustainable tourism.
The European Commission framed the measures as part of a broader investment partnership, intended to deepen engagement between the EU and Greenland’s authorities.
Trump Tariff Threats Raise Sovereignty Concerns
Trump’s repeated claims about Greenland’s future have fuelled sovereignty concerns and prompted pushback from Greenlandic and Danish leaders, as tensions have also increased among NATO allies.
In January, Denmark and seven other European countries sent a small group of military personnel to Greenland, publicly for military exercises intended to strengthen Arctic security. The move was also seen as a show of support for Greenland’s sovereignty.
In response, Trump threatened to impose new tariffs on Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
The governments involved said the tariff threats undermined trans-Atlantic relations and risked a “dangerous downward spiral”, adding that they were committed to upholding sovereignty. Trump later backed down after NATO agreed a security deal covering the Arctic region.
NATO Drills Start With No US Troops
Von der Leyen’s trip also coincided with military activity in Greenland. On Monday, 11 NATO countries began exercises in Greenland involving around 400 military personnel.
The drills include special forces troops trained to operate in Arctic conditions from Canada, Denmark and Finland. The exercises, known as Arctic Shield, run from Sept. 7 to Sept. 18, with no US troops participating.

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8 September 2026

• EU

• 4 comments
• 354 views

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September 7Sep 7

Austria’s New Headscarf Ban Sparks Muslim Backlash

Report

Austria’s New Headscarf Ban Sparks Muslim Backlash

Austria’s new school-year rules banning headscarves for girls under 14 have come into force, as pupils return to class.

The law prohibits “traditional Muslim” head coverings, including hijabs and burkas, in public and private schools across the country. It applies to students aged under 14.
Integration Minister Claudia Bauer, from the conservative People’s Party (ÖVP), said the headscarf is “a sign of oppression and a means of controlling girls from the earliest childhood”.
Opponents argue the measure risks driving anti-Muslim sentiment and may breach constitutional protections.
Coalition Government Sets Out Rationale
The ban was introduced by a conservative-led coalition of three centrist parties: the ÖVP, the Social Democrats (SPÖ) and the liberal Neos.
They said the policy is a “clear commitment to gender equality” and is intended to protect the rights of young girls.
Bauer and the government argue that the headscarf represents an unacceptable restriction on girls. Critics dispute the approach and say it targets a religious practice rather than addressing underlying concerns.
Islamic Community Opposes Ban
Carla Amina Baghajati, from the official Islamic Community in Austria (IGGÖ), told the BBC that the organisation “firmly opposes the ban”.
“We believe it unjustifiably restricts the fundamental right to freedom of religion and disproportionately affects Muslim girls,” she said.
She added that the law “singles out a specific religious practice” and could exclude children the government says it wants to protect.
The IGGÖ said it would support legal challenges brought by girls and their families “who believe that their fundamental rights are being infringed”. It said those cases would seek review by Austria’s Constitutional Court.
The court struck down an earlier headscarf ban in primary schools in 2020, saying it contravened Austria’s principle of religious neutrality.
Enforcement Involves Talks With Families
Teachers are expected to enforce the new ban if they see a child wearing a headscarf. The approach involves holding a series of talks with the student and their legal guardians.
Some teachers have expressed concern about being required to implement the policy in schools.
The Green Party’s Sigi Maurer accused Education Minister Christoph Wiederkehr, of the liberal NEOS, of “creating new conflicts and offloading them onto the teachers”.
She said teachers were “already under enormous strain” and that Wiederkehr wanted to “foist the role of police officers onto them” on top of their existing duties.
Far-Right Pushes For Wider Prohibition
The opposition far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) said the current ban does not go far enough. It is calling for a general prohibition on headscarves and face coverings in schools for both students and teachers.
Ricarda Berger, of the FPÖ, said there was “no place for political Islam in Austria, and certainly not in our schools”.
Christian Stocker, Austria’s chancellor and leader of the ÖVP, has also called for a constitutional ban on political Islam. In comments to Austrian broadcaster ORF, he said he did not “want to live in an Islamic state”.
Comparison With France And Existing Veil Rules
Austria’s law differs from legislation in France, where schools have barred the wearing of conspicuous religious symbols, including headscarves, turbans and kippas, for more than 20 years.
Austria, alongside countries including France, Belgium and Denmark, already bans full-face veils in public, including niqabs or burkas.
Baghajati said the IGGÖ was concerned about “a troubling trend” across Europe in which complex social challenges are reduced to symbolic measures aimed at minority groups. She said such approaches may attract political attention but “rarely solve the underlying problems”.

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8 September 2026

• 17 comments
• 552 views

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September 7Sep 7

King Says Harry And Meghan Remain Non-Working Royals

UK Monarchy

King Says Harry And Meghan Remain Non-Working Royals

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex will not be working royals allowed to carry out official engagements now they have returned to the UK, a letter sent on behalf of King Charles said.

The message sets out the status of Prince Harry and Meghan, who returned to Britain from California last month with their children, Archie and Lilibet.
It was sent by the Lord Chamberlain, the senior Palace official, and addresses how any Sussex appearances should be treated in official and administrative terms, Palace sources said.
Titles And Role After The Return
Under the arrangements described in the letter, Prince Harry and Meghan will continue not to use the titles “His and Her Royal Highness”. The letter says they remain “private citizens”.
It also reiterates that the position agreed in 2020, when the Sussexes left the UK, remains in force. That agreement, known as the Sandringham Agreement, ruled out any “half-in and half-out” arrangement, including the ability to pursue their own commercial interests while continuing as working members of the Royal Family.
The letter states that it is “well known” that in January 2020 the Duke and Duchess stepped down from undertaking representative duties on behalf of the sovereign, and are no longer working members of the Royal Family.
Engagements, Public Funds And Buckingham Palace
The letter makes clear that any engagements carried out by the Sussexes will be in a private capacity and will not represent the Royal Family.
It adds that the couple’s charitable work is a personal matter for them and should be undertaken privately rather than as part of their previous official roles.
The message also directs organisations with questions about arrangements for the reception of Prince Harry and Meghan, particularly where recourse to public funds might be required, to Buckingham Palace.
The letter was sent to Prince Harry’s team, government departments, military officials and Lord Lieutenants, according to Palace sources. Lord Lieutenants are the monarch’s local representatives and are often involved in visits and engagements involving senior members of the Royal Family.
Prince Harry appeared to have been photographed for the first time since his return to the UK, with an image circulated on social media showing him at a London TV and podcast studio.
Security And Unresolved Issues
The correspondence also addressed operational security in the UK, saying that any security issues should continue to be directed to the relevant police authorities.
Prince Harry has said he has not been given adequate police protection in the UK. The Palace says that security matters of that type have to be handled by the Royal and VIP Executive Committee, known as Ravec, which sets security arrangements for royals and public figures.
Palace sources said the decision to make the Lord Chamberlain’s letter public reflected a preference for transparency rather than letting it emerge through leaks.
The Sussexes are expected to make further public appearances later this autumn as they settle in Britain and support their charities. It is also expected that Prince Harry will support organisations including the Invictus Games, due to be held in Birmingham next year.
There have also been reports that Meghan is considering returning to acting. The letter does not address those plans.



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8 September 2026

• 1 comment
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September 7Sep 7

Trump’s Mass Deportation Plan Targets Noncriminals

USA

Trump’s Mass Deportation Plan Targets Noncriminals

Immigration arrests carried out by U.S. authorities under the Trump administration have reached record levels, with a large share of detainees having no criminal record, according to data cited by a deportation monitoring group.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers recorded back-to-back months of arrests above 50,000 for the second Trump administration, with more than 50,000 people taken into custody in July and August, according to figures obtained by the Deportation Data Project.
Arrests Include People With No Criminal Background
The figures challenge a long-standing claim by the administration that it is focusing removals on those described as having criminal histories.
Data show that 55% of people arrested had no prior interaction with law enforcement. Another 24% had faced charges but were never convicted, the Deportation Data Project said.
Several Republicans in Congress have raised concerns about the approach, warning against treating people who have not been convicted of crimes the same as those who have.
Representative Maria Elvira Salazar, a Republican from Florida, said the administration should not “conflate the gangster with the gardener, the nanny with the narco”, pointing to the size of the foreign-born population in her district.
Quota Pressure Draws Criticism
Under the strategy described by immigration advocates, enforcement has expanded beyond people described as public-safety threats to include others who are already known to authorities and who have immigration cases under way.
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow at the American Immigration Council, said the pattern shows the administration is moving “towards everybody else” to meet quotas set by the White House.
Reichlin-Melnick said authorities have increasingly targeted people with pending asylum claims or seeking to adjust status, including those already engaged with immigration processing. He argued some of those detainees are among the easiest to arrest because authorities already know where they live and who they are.
DHS Criminality Figures Disputed
The Department of Homeland Security has used social media to say that 70% of people arrested by ICE have criminal records. Reichlin-Melnick said that figure is not supported by the department’s own data.
“He [s]aid the 70 percent figure has not been true since May of 2025,” he said, adding that DHS had continued to use the number for at least a year while releasing data showing it was inaccurate.
DHS messaging has also varied in public remarks, with leaders appearing to step back from emphasising criminal histories. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in an appearance earlier this week that the administration’s position is to pursue people who cross the border illegally regardless of criminal background, describing it as the role of the department to hunt them down and send them back.
Border czar Tom Homan also addressed the issue in July, saying that “just over half” of those arrested are criminals, adding that the remaining group are noncriminals and that resources provided through a reconciliation bill could affect the figures.
Enforcement Tactics Shift, Leaving People Detained
Advocates cited a mix of enforcement tactics as part of the increase. David Bier, director of immigration studies at the libertarian Cato Institute, said street arrests have been combined with other elements including immigration court interactions, check-ins and arrests at airports. He also said Mullin arrived as funding and staffing levels were increasing, including large amounts of overtime.
Critics in Congress linked the approach to a change in tone after highly publicised raids carried out under former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. Representative Pramila Jayapal, the top Democrat on a House Judiciary immigration subcommittee, said the administration continued the strategy “quietly” after backlash to the louder version, arguing it has become focused on the overall number of arrests.
Bier said more people are being held without a final order of removal, leaving detainees in custody while they continue to fight their cases. He said that may make it harder to judge success based strictly on deportations following a final determination by an immigration judge.
Florida Republicans Call for Limits
Backlash has also emerged among some Republicans, including those in Florida where communities include naturalised citizens as well as residents without status.
Representative Mario Diaz-Balart said securing the border “had to happen” and has helped, but argued that some enforcement has gone too far and referenced his support for temporary protected status (TPS) for Venezuelans and Haitians. Salazar said the administration has not accounted for the economic contribution made by people without criminal records who have worked in construction, hospitality, agriculture, healthcare and manufacturing for years, arguing they are needed for the economy.

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7 September 2026

• 29 comments
• 482 views

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September 7Sep 7

Judge Criticizes Trump Pressure Over Pool Vandalism Case

USA

Judge Criticizes Trump Pressure Over Pool Vandalism Case

David Hearn, a former U.S. Olympian, returned to court to press a judge for a formal bar on federal prosecutors pursuing fresh charges after his Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool vandalism case was dismissed.

Hearn and his attorneys appeared before Judge Todd Edelman, who previously handled the case involving damage to the Reflecting Pool in Washington, caused in 2011.
Case Move Leaves Door Open, Defence Says
In late July, the District of Columbia U.S. Attorney’s Office sought to dismiss the criminal case. In its filing, it said the damage to the Reflecting Pool “was the result of flawed installation” rather than vandalism.
Although the government asked Edelman to dismiss the indictment, the motion requested dismissal “without prejudice”, which would allow prosecutors to potentially bring the matter back to a grand jury and seek new charges.
Hearn’s lawyers argued that public statements made by President Donald Trump and other officials in the weeks after the filing wrongly accused Hearn and others of vandalising the pool. They said the case should therefore be dismissed “with prejudice”, effectively preventing prosecutors from recharging him.
Trump said on 7 August in a post on social media that U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro “should re-visit her hastily made decision” to drop the case.
Judge Questions Need for Re-Prosecution
At Friday’s hearing, Edelman pressed Michael Spence, an attorney from Pirro’s office, on why prosecutors would oppose dismissal with prejudice when prosecutors had not yet presented evidence that Hearn committed a crime.
Spence replied that he did not know what the future might bring, adding that if evidence emerged later, there would be no reason for the court to prevent a future grand jury from returning an indictment.
Edelman asked where such evidence would come from, and Spence said he did not know.
The judge then asked whether prosecutors were still investigating Hearn’s conduct. Spence responded that they were not.
Trump Comments Scrutinised in Court
Edelman also focused on Trump’s public comments about Hearn’s case and suggestions that Pirro could be fired if she did not revisit the decision to dismiss. Edelman challenged how the judge should treat those remarks.
“How do I conclude these statements as anything other than statement by the chief executive urging your office to pursue a prosecution that you have told me is meritless?” Edelman asked. He added that it appeared to be a threat of “not just re-prosecution but meritless re-prosecution”.
Spence said it was premature to address whether prosecutors would seek new charges because the case had been dropped and was not being re-submitted to a new grand jury.
Spence further argued that if the government later moved to re-charge Hearn, the grand jury process would provide protection by preventing an indictment where there was no evidential basis.
Edelman expressed scepticism, pointing to the fact that Hearn had previously been indicted in a case the government now concedes was baseless.
Spence said the prosecution team believed, based on the evidence available at the time, there was probable cause, and that the grand jury agreed.

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7 September 2026

• 46 comments
• 391 views

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September 7Sep 7

Israeli Strikes Kill Nine in Southern Lebanon Village

Middle East

Israeli Strikes Kill Nine in Southern Lebanon Village

Israeli air strikes on a village in southern Lebanon have killed at least nine people, the Lebanese health ministry said, with the Israeli military saying it was reviewing the reports.
Deadly Strikes In Kfar Roummane
The ministry said eight people, including a child and two women, were killed in one strike that destroyed a residential building in Kfar Roummane overnight.
It said a second strike hit a vehicle and killed a paramedic.
Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency earlier reported an initial toll of 11 deaths from the two strikes.
The health ministry said the building strike also left 11 people injured, including four children and two women, as well as a paramedic from the Islamic Health Association, an emergency service linked to Hezbollah.
It said one of those injured was from the Islamic Health Association and that the total number of people killed was eight, before later details were provided about the vehicle strike.
The National News Agency said the first strike destroyed a three-storey residential building near the town’s Shuyuiya roundabout shortly after midnight.
Paramedics Targeted, Ministry Says
The ministry said the second strike hit a vehicle carrying paramedics from the Islamic Risala Scout Association, killing one and injuring two others.
It said the Risala Scouts is an emergency service affiliated with the Amal movement, a Shia political group allied with Hezbollah.
In its statement, the health ministry said the deaths were further evidence, in its view, of grave violations of international humanitarian law, including attacks on medics and children.
Israeli Response And Hezbollah Accusations
The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports.
While there was no immediate comment from the military on Monday’s strikes, the Israeli foreign ministry accused Hezbollah of repeated drone attacks and of trying to rebuild its military capabilities in southern Lebanon. It said Hezbollah had also violated the ceasefire arrangement.
On Sunday, Israeli strikes killed seven people across southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese officials, as Israel said it retaliated for drone attacks by Hezbollah on troops in areas it occupies.
Ceasefire Threats And Troop Movements
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said the escalation was putting June’s US-brokered ceasefire at risk. The ceasefire was intended to end fighting between Israel and Hezbollah, and Aoun urged the international community to press Israel to stop the attacks.
The strikes have intensified in recent days in areas near the strip of territory occupied by Israeli forces, where many residents have fled again.
The latest attacks targeted Kfar Roummane, in Nabatieh district, only a few hundred metres from what the Israeli military calls its “security zone”.
The trilateral framework agreed by Lebanon, Israel and the United States calls for Hezbollah to disarm, for Israeli forces to withdraw gradually from southern Lebanon, and for the Lebanese army to deploy across the area.
Wider War And Reported Death Tolls
Lebanon has been drawn into the conflict since 2 March, when Hezbollah, backed by Iran, launched rockets into Israel in retaliation for a strike that killed Iran’s supreme leader. Israel responded with a bombing campaign across Lebanon and an invasion of a significant part of the country’s south.
According to Lebanon’s health ministry, at least 4,362 people have been killed in Lebanon during the conflict, including 395 women and 259 children. The ministry’s figures do not distinguish between combatants and civilians.
Israeli authorities say 40 Israeli soldiers and four civilians have been killed during the conflict.
Sara Moallaem, 35, a resident of Kfar Roummane, told the BBC she was asleep with her five children in a rental home when the explosions began. She said she moved them to a “safe room” while they waited for the blasts and sirens to stop, and she said some of the dead were distant relatives of her husband. She said she planned to move her family to Sidon, on the coast.

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7 September 2026

• Israel

• 0 comments
• 89 views

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September 7Sep 7

Trump Labels New Mexico ‘New America’ in Map Post

USA

Trump Labels New Mexico ‘New America’ in Map Post

President Donald Trump has again moved to change the names used on the US map, posting a new image that replaces “Mexico” with “America” on New Mexico.

Over the holiday weekend, Trump shared a map on Truth Social on Sunday afternoon showing the southwestern state bordering Mexico. In the post, the word “Mexico” was crossed out and substituted with “America”, continuing a pattern of renaming geographic features that he has promoted through executive action and public demands.
New Mexico Map Post
The idea of “New America” echoes an earlier order in Trump’s second term that altered place names across North America. In January 2025, he issued an executive order titled “Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness”.
In that order, the president changed the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. He also renamed Denali, the highest peak in North America, back to Mount McKinley in Alaska.


Donald Trump via Truth Social
Lake Ontario Renaming in Trade War
Trump’s renaming campaign has also included the Great Lakes region. Late last month, he signed an executive order changing the name of Lake Ontario to Lake America. The move came as tensions in trade talks with Canada escalated.
Trump has previously argued that Canada should become the United States’ 51st state, a position he repeated in comments to Fox News. “They think they’re a state, but they’re not a state,” he said. “Why should we be subsidizing Canada?”
Despite his repeated claims about reshaping the map, the latest New Mexico effort is expected to draw criticism.
Reactions From Apps and Critics
On X, Republicans Against Trump responded quickly to Trump’s suggested New Mexico relabeling, writing: “WTF is wrong with him?”
When Trump pushed for Lake Ontario to be renamed, MapQuest said it would not update its navigation app. The company wrote on X that it was “not changing it”. MapQuest later reported that its app rose in rankings on the App Store, with general manager Doug Berger saying the company had taken a similar approach to its handling of the Gulf of Mexico name change. He said “hundreds of thousands of people” had signalled support by downloading the app.
Apple and Google, however, updated their maps for US users, switching Lake Ontario to Lake America, as they had done when Trump previously demanded the Gulf of Mexico be renamed the Gulf of America.
Other reactions have been mixed. Conservative journalist Eric Daugherty wrote on X: “This man is on a roll!”
Trump’s ambitions to remake place names appear to extend beyond the boundaries of the United States. Shortly after the New Mexico post, he shared an image of the moon on Truth Social with the caption: “The moon is ours.”
Legacy and Changes Across Washington
During his second term, Trump has focused heavily on legacy, including major renovations around Washington, DC, as well as efforts connected to his branding. These include updates to the White House, such as a large and costly ballroom, and changes more broadly across the capital.
He has also put his name and face on buildings in Washington. Most notably, his name was placed on the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, but a federal judge ordered it removed, and it was taken down.
In public opinion polling, many Americans have indicated that they do not believe he is prioritising pressing issues. A CNN poll conducted by research firm SSRS and published in late July found that 73% of Americans say Trump has not paid enough attention to the country’s most important problems.

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7 September 2026

• 39 comments
• 101 views

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September 7Sep 7

Trump Uses AI to Place Himself Alongside George Washington

USA

Trump Uses AI to Place Himself Alongside George Washington

President Donald Trump, 80, posted 37 times on Truth Social on Sunday, using AI-generated images and captions to move from current political difficulties into a series of fantasy scenarios.

The Republican president is facing weak polling and ongoing controversy surrounding his administration’s handling of Iran. In the afternoon, he turned to AI content that centred on George Washington, including a painting generated to depict Trump on horseback alongside the founding US president in a scene set more than 200 years ago.
In one post, Trump portrayed Washington as an onlooker looking up at him. In another, he shared an image captioned “President Washington visits President Trump”, showing the former general seated beside him inside the Oval Office.
Trump has previously highlighted himself as the “greatest” American president, a claim he made in a post last week. The Sunday sequence extended that theme into further AI prompts that placed him in other roles and settings.


Donald Trump/Truth Social
AI Fantasies with George Washington
Trump’s Washington-focused posts depict the first US president in ways that place him directly in Trump’s orbit, including scenes set in the Oval Office. The images were shared as part of a broader burst of AI-themed content posted over several hours.


Donald Trump/Truth Social
Trump in Hulk Hogan, Space and Robots
Trump also shared AI images that cast him as other characters and commanders. One post showed his face superimposed onto Hulk Hogan’s body. Another presented Trump as the leader of a dystopian robot army.
Other images placed him at the helm of a spaceship. Trump also used AI content to rename New Mexico as “New America”, and he made a claim about the moon in a separate post.

Among the military-themed items was an apparently AI-generated design board for a Space Force uniform. The layout and styling appeared to borrow elements associated with the Galactic Empire from the film franchise Star Wars, according to the description of the post.
Images from the Working World and Mar-a-Lago
Trump also used AI to depict himself in working-class settings. One image showed him leaning out of a McDonald’s drive-through window, while another depicted him behind the wheel of a large truck.
He ended the run of posts with a glowing tribute to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, presenting it as a prominent base for his political messaging. In the final post of the day, Trump wrote that the Mar-a-Lago Club was “the Best in the World” and said it served as a “Southern White House” that was “free of charge”, before adding “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” and signing the message with his name.
Trump has increasingly relied on extended bursts of Truth Social activity. Last month, he shared more than 1,000 posts, averaging roughly 33 a day.
Natalie Harp, an aide associated with Trump, has long been credited with helping shape his postings by providing potential prompts, which were described as being drawn from online material and right-wing websites. Harp is reported to receive a taxpayer-funded salary of $150,000.
Approval Ratings Raise Pressure for Midterms
The Sunday AI posting spree comes as Republicans prepare for the midterm elections amid concerns about Trump’s approval ratings. A Reuters/Ipsos survey released last month found that 33% of Americans approved of Trump’s performance, while 64% disapproved, the lowest approval level of his presidency.

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7 September 2026

• 16 comments
• 103 views

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September 7Sep 7

Far-Right AfD Surges To 44% In Germany State Vote

Germany

Far-Right AfD Surges To 44% In Germany State Vote

Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is on course for a record result in the eastern state of Saxony-Anhalt, according to initial projections, placing it well ahead of mainstream rivals. It remains unclear whether the party can form a government, but the AfD says it has secured a mandate to govern.
AfD Stands To Win 44% In Saxony-Anhalt
Projections indicate the AfD could win 44% of the vote, exceeding its previous high by a wide margin and putting it far in front of the conservative CDU, which is projected to take 17.8%. The state has a population of around 2.1 million.
The AfD’s Saxony-Anhalt leader, Ulrich Siegmund, said the result was “sensational” and indicated the party wanted to begin governing as soon as possible. He also rejected the domestic intelligence assessment describing the party in the state as “right-wing extremist”.
No far-right party has controlled a German state since the Second World War. If the AfD were to take power, it would gain responsibilities including policing, local education and culture.
Coalition Math Hinges On Smaller Parties
AfD leaders will not know whether they have enough seats to govern until it is clear which smaller parties enter the state parliament. Siegmund has so far declined to lead a minority government, but the party’s national leadership sees that as a possible route.
A key uncertainty is whether the left-wing populist party BSW clears the 5% threshold needed for parliament. If BSW fails to enter, the AfD’s path to a majority would improve. If BSW does enter, the AfD is currently projected to have 39 seats in the 83-seat assembly.
Other parties have said they would not form coalitions with the AfD, using a “firewall” aimed at keeping the far-right out of government. In Saxony-Anhalt, BSW has offered to cooperate with the AfD on certain issues if it wins seats.
Supporters celebrated at the AfD election-night party headquarters as projections appeared on screens, with some later singing Germany’s national anthem. Siegmund told supporters the result was “a signal for the whole of Germany”.
German And International Reactions Follow Vote
Opposition parties and commentators described the outcome as a major break with the past. Main television channel Das Erste cancelled a planned episode of its long-running crime drama Tatort to focus on what the result could mean.
Siegmund’s comments were echoed by political opponents and mainstream parties who said they would have to respond to the new balance of power. The CDU’s Sven Schulze conceded victory and said the party would have to deal with the result after an “extremely tough and intensive election campaign”. The Social Democrats (SPD), describing the result as “truly dramatic”, said it would serve as a warning nationally. Lars Klingbeil, leader of the SPD and a member of the federal government led by the CDU, said it was a “signal to Berlin” and that the government would hear it.
International reactions also followed the projections. US President Donald Trump posted a screenshot of the German TV result on Truth Social. Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev shared a screengrab of Trump’s post and praised what he called a “historic win for the pragmatic AfD”. Dmitriev had previously described the AfD in positive terms, and during Germany’s federal election campaign last year US Vice-President JD Vance endorsed the party, a move criticised in Germany as political interference.
Policies Draw Concerns Over Deportations And Education
AfD stands on an openly pro-Russia and anti-migration platform. Among its policies is “remigration”, widely understood as mass deportations of migrants, though the party says it means deporting criminals and people in the country illegally. The party says it would be limited by law if it is not able to control federal policy, but state-level powers could still affect implementation locally.
The party has also targeted the Bauhaus school of design, arguing it was a “dead-end of modernism” and referencing the Nazi regime’s closure of the school in Dessau in 1933, a framing some critics say echoes Nazi rhetoric.
Charlotte Knobloch, a Holocaust survivor and veteran head of the Jewish community in Munich and Bavaria, said she was frightened by the outcome and called on mainstream parties not to “stand by and allow this decline”.

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7 September 2026

• 62 comments
• 379 views

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September 6Sep 6

Lavrov Warns Germany Actions Signal Real War Start

Russia

Lavrov Warns Germany Actions Signal Real War Start

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow is at “the start of a real war” with the West, pointing to Germany’s response to what Berlin says was an attack on Leipzig airport using an explosive drone.
Berlin Expels Russian Diplomatic Staff
Germany accused Russia of carrying out the failed drone attack on Leipzig airport, which was discovered in early August. In response, Berlin expelled the Russian consulate general in Bonn and closed the Russian House, a cultural centre in Berlin.
Lavrov said the measures formed part of a wider pattern of German steps that he argued showed tensions were escalating. He also suggested that some of the actions resembled developments he said preceded the Second World War.
Lavrov Links Berlin Moves to Past Conflicts
Speaking on Russian state television, Lavrov described the latest German decisions as an escalation, including the expulsion from Bonn and the shutdown of the Russian House in Berlin. He said Germany wanted confrontation rather than negotiations, and compared the current situation to events he recalled from the lead-up to the Second World War.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Moscow has waged what it describes as a “hybrid” campaign against Germany and other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies supporting Kyiv. Hybrid warfare, as characterised in the reporting, combines conventional military methods with covert tactics such as cyber attacks, disinformation and sabotage intended to weaken an opponent without direct physical aggression.
US Envoys Push for Ukraine Talks
Lavrov’s remarks came as the Kremlin-friendly Alternative for Germany (AfD) was forecast to win a major share in a key regional election.
Meanwhile, US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner visited Moscow and Kyiv in an effort to revive peace talks. Their trip to Ukraine took place on Sunday and followed talks with Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Saturday. The meeting with Putin was their first in Moscow since January, after President Donald Trump’s policy on Iran shifted Washington’s attention away from Europe and towards the Middle East.
Volodymyr Zelensky met the US envoys in Kyiv’s Sophia Square, near the historic St Sophia Cathedral and opposite the headquarters of Ukraine’s intelligence service, which was hit by a Russian drone on Friday afternoon.
Zelensky said the talks in Kyiv would be “constructive”. In a post on Telegram, he said Kyiv wanted to bring an end to the war closer, adding that peace was needed alongside security guarantees and a “just and sustainable” post-war settlement, with Ukraine’s proposals already prepared.
Capital Strikes Pause, Other Attacks Continue
Both Russia and Ukraine agreed to halt strikes against each other’s capitals for three days during the visit by the US envoys. Ukrainian authorities said, however, that Russian forces continued to attack other locations across Ukraine.
It was unclear whether the weekend of US diplomacy would produce any progress after the Moscow meeting on Saturday ended without an announced breakthrough. The Kremlin said Putin also dined with the US envoys during the trip.
Witkoff, a real estate figure who has moved into high-level diplomacy, has previously been accused of coaching the Russian side on how to flatter Donald Trump in negotiations. He was reported to have used a similar approach during meetings at the Kremlin.

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7 September 2026

• 4 comments
• 543 views

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September 6Sep 6

Amazon Plane Overruns Runway And Catches Fire In Miami

Accident

Amazon Plane Overruns Runway And Catches Fire In Miami

An Amazon cargo aircraft landed at Miami on Sunday and overran a runway, hitting vehicles near the airport and catching fire, officials said.
Thick smoke billowed from the blue and white Boeing 767 as fire crews arrived at the scene. The plane had touched down at around 2.00pm local time (1800 GMT), after arriving from Puerto Rico.
Arrival, Landing And Impact
The incident was reported by the Federal Aviation Administration and Miami International Airport. Officials said there was no immediate update on casualties in the minutes after the crash.
Video footage shared from the airport showed the aircraft after landing, with smoke rising as emergency services responded. The Miami-Dade Fire Department later said the plane, operating as Prime Air Flight 7598, caught fire as a result of what it described as a crash.
Firefighting And Patient Assessment
According to the Miami-Dade Fire Department, firefighters were working to extinguish the fire and assess any patients following the incident.
The department said the aircraft overran the runway and struck multiple vehicles near the airport. More than 60 firefighters were dispatched to the scene, as fire trucks moved in to contain the blaze and address the aftermath of the impact.
Officials did not provide details on how many people were in the vehicles that were hit, nor on the number of injured reported at the time. They also did not release information on the condition of anyone affected.
Runway Closures At Miami Airport
Miami International Airport said all of its runways and taxiways had been shut down because of the accident. The closures were put in place as emergency crews worked at the site.
The airport’s statement indicated that operations would be affected while the aircraft and surrounding area were secured and while response efforts continued. Fire and rescue teams remained on site as they worked to manage the fire and carry out assessments connected with the incident.
The Federal Aviation Administration and the airport said they were monitoring the situation and provided no further immediate detail beyond the fact that the aircraft had overrun the runway and caught fire after colliding with vehicles near the airport.



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7 September 2026

• Updated

• 13 comments
• 331 views

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September 6Sep 6

Jaguar Land Rover to Cut 4,000 Jobs

UK

Jaguar Land Rover to Cut 4,000 Jobs

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has opened a voluntary redundancy programme that could lead to up to 4,000 job losses over the next two years as the carmaker looks to respond to weakening revenue and other pressures.

The company told employees and union representatives on Saturday that it is launching the scheme for salaried and management staff. The redundancies are intended to help JLR deliver savings of about £1.7 billion over the period, as it seeks to adapt to what it described as changing global market conditions.
Job Cuts Plan
JLR employs around 44,000 people worldwide, with about 30,000 based in the UK. Most of those workers are in the West Midlands, where the firm operates 14 plants and is one of the region’s largest employers.
The company’s global headquarters are in Whitley, Coventry. Manufacturing sites include facilities in Solihull, Wolverhampton and Halewood on Merseyside.
JLR said the savings target is aimed at reducing break-even to 300,000 vehicles. To achieve that, the spokesman said, the business would simplify its organisation, improve efficiency and strengthen resilience. The company said it has informed colleagues and trade union partners, and that it will provide further details first to those affected.
Government And Union Talks
The Unite union said it had previously warned of a “perfect storm” affecting the industry.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said she and business secretary Jonathan Reynolds would meet JLR chief executive PB Balaji next week following talks at the weekend aimed at reducing the impact on jobs. The business secretary is also understood to have spoken with West Midlands mayor Richard Parker about support for the company and its workers.
The announcement is likely to disappoint prime minister Andy Burnham, who has pledged to safeguard “sovereign manufacturing” and drive re-industrialisation in Britain.
Labour’s previous commitments to JLR also formed part of the wider context. In the aftermath of a cyber attack that halted production for several weeks last year, former prime minister Keir Starmer promised Labour would underwrite a £1.5 billion loan guarantee.
Cyber Attack And Sales Slump
JLR said the cyber attack and the loss of manufacturing contributed to a significant financial deterioration. The disruption was followed by a 27% fall in overall production and cost the company about £200m, with no vehicles produced for most of several weeks. Earlier financial results showed profit before tax of £14 million, down sharply from £2.5 billion the year before.
JLR later estimated that the total cost of the cyber incident and subsequent production losses was £1.9bn. At the time, it said the company would have to make savings, including through changes related to materials, warranty and fixed costs.
In addition, JLR said it had suffered a sales slump last month tied to a fire at a supplier’s factory and disruption associated with the US-Iran war. Revenues fell 9.6% year-on-year to £6 billion for the three months to 30 June.
The firm also described earlier interruptions to production. In March, it temporarily paused output of Range Rover and Range Rover Sport models at its Solihull plant after a fire at a component manufacturer in Norway. It also ended production on a number of diesel and petrol models, including the F-Pace.

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5 September 2026

• 4 comments
• 87 views

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September 6Sep 6

US Strikes Iranian Tankers After Carrier Missile Attack

Iranian Conflict

US Strikes Iranian Tankers After Carrier Missile Attack

US Central Command said on Saturday morning that U.S. forces struck three Iranian crude oil tankers after Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps launched ballistic missiles at an American aircraft carrier and a destroyer.

In a statement, CENTCOM said the operation left two of the tankers permanently inoperable and completely destroyed a third. The command added that neither of the American warships was hit and that no service members were injured, while also saying that the apparent targeting of an aircraft carrier was a notable provocation.
Missile Launches Prompt U.S. Strike Response
CENTCOM said the IRGC’s ballistic missiles were directed at the aircraft carrier and the destroyer. It then described a follow-on action in which U.S. forces engaged the three Iranian tankers. CENTCOM said two vessels were rendered permanently inoperable and the third was destroyed, presenting the tanker strikes as part of its response to the missile launches.
It also emphasised that the U.S. ships involved in the missile attack suffered no damage and that there were no injuries among U.S. personnel, while noting the significance of a carrier being targeted.
Tankers Part of an IRGC “Shadow Network”
CENTCOM said the three Iranian crude oil tankers form part of a multibillion-dollar “shadow network” that funds the IRGC and its regional proxies. In the same statement, it said Iran had no means by which to defend the tankers that were targeted.
The command’s account linked the shipping assets to the flow of money that supports the IRGC and activities carried out through its regional allies, and it said the vessels were therefore vulnerable to U.S. action.
Economic Cost and Further Deterrence
CENTCOM framed the strikes as an effort to impose an economic cost in response to attacks on U.S. ships. Adm. Brad Cooper, the CENTCOM commander, said the message to the IRGC was clear: if it fired on two American ships, the United States would raise the economic price by taking out three Iranian vessels.
Cooper said the United States would not hesitate to defend American forces and that, if necessary, it would go further in destroying what CENTCOM described as Iran’s limited and exposed oil fleet.


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6 September 2026

• 89 comments
• 411 views

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September 6Sep 6

Egypt TV Host Sarah Khalifa Sentenced To Death By Hanging

Report

Egypt TV Host Sarah Khalifa Sentenced To Death By Hanging

Egypt’s court has sentenced TV presenter Sarah Khalifa and 11 other people to death by hanging after convicting them on drug charges, according to state media.
Death Sentence For Khalifa And 11 Others
State-owned al-Ahram reported that Khalifa, 39, and the other defendants were found guilty of belonging to a criminal gang that imported materials used to make drugs with the aim of selling them. The paper said the group also had illegal firearms and munitions.
Khalifa is known for her television programme Mission Impossible, which has focused on crime-related issues. She denied the charges, and her lawyer said she would appeal against the death sentence.
Other Verdicts And Court Process
Alongside the 11 death sentences, nine other defendants were given life imprisonment, while seven were acquitted.
The verdict was first announced last month, but was confirmed a month later after the court obtained a religious opinion from Egypt’s grand mufti. Obtaining that opinion is described as a legal requirement for death sentences.
During the trial, the court heard that authorities seized more than 750kg of narcotics and the imported raw materials used to manufacture them, al-Ahram said. The paper added that 20 witnesses submitted statements to prosecutors, alongside electronic evidence including recorded conversations and video clips.
Claim She Had Not Seen Drugs
Akhar al-Youm, another state-run newspaper, reported that Khalifa told the court she had never seen any drugs before being photographed with them during a court appearance in September. It said she made the comment after claiming the photograph was taken inside the premises of Egypt’s anti-narcotics authority.
The newspapers did not indicate that the court accepted those claims, but they described the case as involving charges that included drug trafficking and rape.
Amnesty Raises Rights Concerns
A 2025 Amnesty International report cited by the article said there were 492 death sentences issued during the year, with 23 carried out. It added that the defendants were convicted of drug trafficking and rape, describing those as “crimes that did not amount to 'intentional killing'” and therefore did not meet international legal standards that require restricting the death penalty to the most serious offences.

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6 September 2026

• 12 comments
• 1,158 views

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September 6Sep 6

Masked Anti-Migrant Protesters Block Dover Port Access

UK-Asylum crisis

Masked Anti-Migrant Protesters Block Dover Port Access

Dozens of masked anti-migrant protesters shut down access to the Port of Dover in southern England on Saturday, blocking ferry and road traffic between the UK and France.

The Port of Dover said traffic entering and leaving the port had been stopped because of an ongoing public order incident. Police said they were engaging with the protesters at the scene.
The port authority added that the black-clad group was blocking all routes in and out of the terminal. Photos shared online showed dozens of people wearing balaclavas gathering on and around roads leading to the port, which provides a key crossing point between southern England and northern France.
Protest Halts Traffic at Dover
The disruption stopped movements to and from the terminal, according to the port’s statement. Local police confirmed they were dealing with the incident, without giving further details on how long it would continue.
The Port of Dover handles passenger and freight vehicles through the Channel corridor, and Saturday’s blockade prevented vehicles from reaching scheduled routes.
Reform UK Councillor Says It Was “Stop The Boats”
Paul King, a local councillor for the anti-immigration Reform UK party, said he had been told the protest was a “stop the boats protest”.
The Channel crossings have been a central issue in UK politics, with migrants and asylum seekers attempting to reach England by sea, often on overcrowded boats.
Labour Says This Summer’s Crossings Lowest Since 2019
Britain has been seeking ways to curb the perilous and politically contentious crossings. In recent years, thousands of migrants have arrived in southeast England by this route each year.
The issue has also been embraced by hard-right groups, which have gained support amid rising anti-immigration sentiment.
The centre-left Labour government has said the number of boats carrying migrants and asylum seekers across the Channel this summer is the lowest since 2019. It said this was partly linked to cooperation arrangements with the French government.
Port Role in Trade and Ferry Capacity
During summer months, the Port of Dover processes more than 10,000 freight vehicles and around 15,000 passenger vehicles a day. The port is also responsible for about a third of Britain’s goods trade with the EU.
The ferry operator P&O Ferries said its services were continuing as scheduled. In a post on X, it said: “If you miss your booked departure today, we will get you onto the next available.”

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5 September 2026

• 88 comments
• 405 views

webfact

September 5Sep 5