U.S. Sanctions Russian Intelligence Services
The Trump administration on Thursday imposed economic sanctions on 19 Russians and two Russian intelligence agencies for their role in the 2016 election meddling and costly cyber attacks and penetrations.
Security
Trump administration blames Russian hackers with targeting energy grid, critical infrastructure
Russian government hackers have spent the last two years waging cyberattacks against U.S. government entities and multiple critical infrastructure sectors, the Trump administration said Thursday, marking the first time the White House has officially accused the Kremlin of attempting to breach its power grid amid rising tensions between Washington and Moscow.
Sentencing of Pastor Adds to Uptick in Persecution in Algeria
In the latest of a rash of persecution incidents in Algeria, a judge on Thursday (March 8) sentenced a pastor to a fine and a suspended prison sentence under a law that prohibits causing Muslims to doubt their religion, sources said.
‘He’s a Very Devout Christian’: Why Pompeo Is Perfect Pick for Secretary of State
Despite skepticism over the latest White House cabinet shakeup, observers say CIA chief Mike Pompeo’s replacement of Rex Tillerson as secretary of state will likely have a positive effect on US foreign policy.
Convening Israelis and Arabs, White House says Gaza central to peace effort
Trump administration officials worked the phones for weeks to bring Israeli and Arab diplomats around the same table at the White House, and finally succeeded in doing so for the first time on Tuesday.
White House to meet on Gaza crisis Tuesday, as it prepares to unveil peace plan
The Trump administration will convene a conference at the White House on Tuesday aimed at solving the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, with Jared Kushner and National Security Council staff outlining their plan for alleviating suffering in the coastal enclave.
Trump to inspect border wall prototypes, but won’t pick a winner yet
President Trump will visit San Diego on Tuesday to inspect the eight border wall prototypes that have been built, but the Department of Homeland Security agency tasked with overseeing the construction project says the media shouldn’t expect him to announce which of the prototypes will be used on the U.S.-Mexico border.
UNHRC report: Settlements are a war crime
Israeli settlement activity in the West Bank and east Jerusalem is a war crime, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein charged in a report he issued last week.
Poisoned Russian spy Sergei Skripal was close to consultant who was linked to the Trump dossier
A security consultant who has worked for the company that compiled the controversial dossier on Donald Trump was close to the Russian double agent poisoned last weekend, it has been claimed.
Trump says he’ll meet with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un
After months of trading insults and threats of nuclear annihilation, President Donald Trump agreed to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jung Un by May to negotiate an end to Pyongyang’s nuclear weapons program, South Korean and U.S. officials said Thursday. No American president has ever met with a North Korea leader.
Trump spares NAFTA partners from tariffs on steel, aluminum
President Trump ordered tariffs Thursday on foreign steel and aluminum, brushing aside objections in his own party but sparing Canada and Mexico temporarily while the U.S. pushes its neighbors for a more favorable free trade deal.
U.S. leaders at AIPAC hint Middle East peace plan is near
A comprehensive peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians will require compromise from both sides, leading voices from the Trump administration told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee this week.
Trump warns ‘world is watching’ after North Korea says it’s willing to give up nuclear weapons
President Trump said on Tuesday said ‘the world is watching’ North Korea after the regime promised not to use nuclear or conventional weapons against Seoul and expressed a willingness to hold talks with the United States on denuclearization.
Full text of U.S. President Trump and Israeli PM Netanyahu White House remarks
Read the complete texts of remarks by US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on March 5, 2018.
Pence at AIPAC vows Iran nuke deal to end ‘immediately’ if not fixed
US Vice President Mike Pence vowed the US would withdraw from the nuclear deal forged between Iran and six world powers in the coming months unless lawmakers move to fix the agreement, and called US President Donald Trump the most pro-Israel president the country has ever had.
Netanyahu says he told Trump Israel doesn’t want to rule over the Palestinians
Less than one-fourth of his meeting with US President Donald Trump on Monday was devoted to the Palestinian issue, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told reporters hours later in a briefing.
Republicans push Trump to exempt some countries from steel tariffs
House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady said Monday that he and other House Republicans will ask President Trump to exempt some countries from promised steel and aluminum tariffs, but stopped short of suggesting that Congress could pursue a legislative response.
Judge rules Trump’s DACA phaseout legal
A federal judge ruled Monday that President Trump’s phaseout of the Obama-era DACA program is legal, adding heft to the administration’s defense but doing little to solve the ongoing court quagmire.
ISIS Focuses on U.S. Embassy Attacks, Kidnappings of Westerners
The weekly Islamic State newsletter that usually focuses on internal headlines within remaining caliphate territory devoted a section to discussing attacks on U.S. embassies and kidnappings of westerners in locales not usually touched by the terror group.
North Korea threatens to ‘counter’ U.S. over military drills
North Korea threatened on Saturday to ‘counter the U.S.’ if the United States holds joint military exercises with South Korea, and said it would not beg for talks with Washington.