News of the World
03-07-2026, 09:15 AM
MIDDLE EAST WAR
Quote:Kamala who?
A well-known Iranian-American activist who has survived several assassination attempts blasted Kamala Harris after the former vice president criticized President Donald Trump over the deadly US-Israeli strikes on Iran.
“Who are you?” asked Masih Alinejad, delivering the stinging rebuke while speaking with Fox News host Maria Bartiromo.
“I am tired of seeing some politicians here in America, especially Democrats, making this about their own politics, scoring political points like Kamala Harris,” she lashed out.
“Suddenly, she kept quiet about the massacre. Suddenly, she found the voice condemning the targeted military strike against the killers. So when ordinary people get massacred, you don’t have any problem?”
Over the weekend, Harris issued a statement describing the attack as “a war the American people do not want” after Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was killed in his fortified compound along with 40 top security and regime officials.
“Let me be clear: I am opposed to a regime-change war in Iran, and our troops are being put in harm’s way for the sake of Trump’s war of choice,” Harris said.
“This is a dangerous and unnecessary gamble with American lives that also jeopardizes stability in the region and our standing in the world. What we are witnessing is not strength. It is recklessness dressed up as resolve.”
Alinejad posted a clip of her Fox News appearance to her more than 816,000 followers on X, doubling down on her comments condemning Harris.
“No, honestly. Who are you? A Democrat who built a career talking about women’s rights, yet stayed silent when more than 30,000 people were massacred,” she wrote. “Now suddenly you’ve found your voice?”
Named by BBC Persian and Iran Wire as one of Iran’s 50 most influential women, Alinejad narrowly escaped a chilling murder attempt at her New York home in 2022.
Authorities foiled the hitman’s plan, arresting him near Alinejad’s Brooklyn home after he ran a stop sign. The suspect had made several errors and ultimately confessed, “I was there to kill the journalist.”
Alinejad, known for her outspoken criticism of the Iranian regime and its treatment of women, has survived multiple assassination attempts since fleeing the country after the contested 2009 elections.
Quote:Iranian drones hit an airport in Azerbaijan and a nearby school on Thursday, injuring two people, according to the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry.
“This attack against the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan constitutes a violation of the norms and principles of international law and serves to increase tensions in the region,” the ministry wrote in a statement.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said it demanded explanations from Iran and has summoned its ambassador in Baku to provide clarifications.
An Iranian drone exploded near a secondary school in the village of Shakarabad in Azerbaijan’s Babak District in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, according to Azeri outlet Report.
The Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic is an exclave of Azerbaijan, bordering on Iran’s northwestern tip and Armenia.
Azerbaijan is a close ally of Israel and possesses one of the Caspian basin’s largest and most modern armies. It has attempted to maintain constructive relations with its neighbor Iran while pursuing a close military cooperation with Israel, Turkey, and NATO member countries.
“We demand that the Islamic Republic of Iran clarify the issue within a short period of time, provide an explanation, and take the necessary urgent measures to prevent such incidents from recurring in the future,” the foreign ministry in Baku said.
In addition to Israel, Iran has hit targets in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates since the war began on Saturday.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday that a British Royal Air Force base in Cyprus was also targeted, though on Wednesday, the U.K. Defence Ministry said that “a Shahed-like drone which targeted RAF Akrotiri at midnight on 2nd March was not launched from Iran.”
Cypriot officials said the drone may have been launched from Lebanon, where Israel is fighting Hezbollah, a terrorist group that is an Iranian proxy, and which on Monday began attacking Israel in solidarity with Iran.
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto told his parliament on Thursday that his country, Spain, France, and the Netherlands will send naval assets to Cyprus following the incident, France24 reported.
Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit on Wednesday warned that the continued Iranian attacks against Arab countries constitute a mistake, urging Tehran to halt its operations immediately.
Quote:Iranian bombers came within two minutes of striking the largest base housing US troops in the Middle East before the Qatari air force shot down the aircraft, according to a new report.
The SU-24 planes from Iran’s Revolutionary Guard had targeted al-Udeid Air Base — which is home to around 10,000 US service personnel — on Monday until they were intercepted by a Qatari F-15 jet and the military’s warplanes, CNN reported.
One source told the outlet that the SU-24 planes were “carrying bombs and guided munitions.”
The Iranian planes dropped to an altitude of around 80 feet in a bid to avoid detection before Qatar responded by deploying its fleet after classifying the planes as “hostile,” that source said.
The SU-24s were downed in Qatar’s waters and a search for the crews was launched.
The operation marked the first time Qatar’s air force had engaged in air-to-air combat.
“Qatari fighters for the first time have shot down two Iranian bombers on route to their location,” Dan Caine, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters.
Qatar also intercepted seven ballistic missiles and five drones fired by Iran.
“The threat was addressed immediately upon detection, in accordance with the operational plan, as all missiles were shot down before reaching their targets,” the Qatar government said.
Iran hasn’t commented on the downing of two of its planes.
Quote:The US will “bitterly regret the precedent it has set” after an American submarine torpedoed an Iranian warship in an attack that left more than 80 sailors dead, the Islamic Republic’s foreign minister warned — while an ayatollah called for President Trump’s blood.
“The US has perpetrated an atrocity at sea, 2,000 miles away from Iran’s shores. Frigate Dena, a guest of India’s Navy carrying almost 130 sailors, was struck in international waters without warning,” Abbas Aragchi wrote on X on Thursday.
“Mark my words: The US will come to bitterly regret (the) precedent it has set.”
Iranian Ayatollah Abdollah Javadi Amoli called for the “shedding of Zionist blood, the shedding of Trump’s blood” in the wake of the deadly naval attack.
“We are now on the verge of a great test, and we must be careful to fully preserve this unity, to fully preserve this alliance,” Amoli said in a message aired on Iranian state television on Thursday.
“The Imam of the time says, ‘Fight the oppressive America, his blood is on my shoulders.’”
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the ship “thought it was safe in international waters” before it was struck by a Mark 48 torpedo, which costs an estimated $4.2 million.
“Instead, it was sunk by a torpedo — Quiet Death,” Hegseth said.
Hegseth said the strike was the first sinking of an enemy ship by a torpedo since World War II, when the USS Torsk sank a Japanese enemy vessel just one day before Japan’s surrender in August 1945.
“Like in that war, back when we were still the War Department, we are fighting to win.”
Video released by the Pentagon appeared to show the vessel being hit by a huge explosion, which ripped apart its rear. The impact of the blast caused the ship to lift and begin sinking from the stern.
Thomas Shugart, of the Center for a New American Security, explained that the torpedo — which he described as one of the most lethal anti-ship weapons in the US’ inventory — would create a “vapor bubble” under the vessel, causing it to split in half.
“This torpedo detonated underneath the stern of the Iranian ship and lifted it up out of the water, and so it sank in a matter of minutes,” he told Fox News Digital.
Sri Lanka’s navy recovered 87 bodies and rescued 32 people on Wednesday.
Buddhika Sampath, a Sri Lankan navy spokesperson, said there were no signs of the vessel when rescue crews arrived, “only some oil patches and life rafts.”
Quote:Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard claimed an attack Thursday on an American oil tanker in the northern reaches of the Persian Gulf.
The statement read on Iranian state television did not elaborate, but may be linked to an attack off the coast of Kuwait earlier in the day in which a tanker was targeted, according to a report from the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center.
Quote:KYIV — The United States has asked Ukraine to share its battlefield expertise in countering Iranian-made drones, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday.
Zelenksy said he gave instructions to “provide the necessary means and ensure the presence of Ukrainian specialists” who can help protect the US in the war against Iran.
“Ukraine helps partners who help ensure our security and protect the lives of our people,” he said.
The expertise could help the US and partner nations save not just lives but millions of dollars, as Ukraine has developed cheaper alternatives to shooting down the drones instead of relying on $4 million Patriot interceptor missiles, Kyiv officials said.
Asked about the development by The Post on Thursday, President Trump praised cooperation among allied countries responding to the threat.
“We’re having a lot of success. We have a lot of great champions,” Trump said of partner nations helping counter attacks linked to Iran. “We have a lot of winners.”
Countries in the Middle East have been facing strikes from Iranian “Shahed” drones — the same type widely used by Russia against Ukrainian cities since the start of the full-scale invasion.
“We received signals from partners in the Middle East. There have been strikes by Iranian ‘shaheds’ on civilians in those countries,” Zelensky also said in a post to X. “They are seeking our expertise.”
It was an Iranian drone strike that killed six US soldiers in Kuwait on March 1, as the US military was unable to intercept it in time.
Ukraine has spent years building up defenses against the long-range one-way attack drones, developing interceptor drones and other tactics to bring them down more cheaply than traditional air defense missiles.
In the post, which used remarks he made to Rai Italia, Zelensky said Kyiv would be open to sharing that experience.
“If their representatives come, we will provide the expertise,” he said, adding that requests have also come from European partners and the United States to share lessons learned from Ukraine’s defense against drone barrages.
Asked about Zelensky’s offer, Trump also told Reuters on Thursday he would “take any assistance from any country.”
Maj. Gen. Vadym Skibitskyi, deputy chief of Ukraine’s defense intelligence, told The Post in Kyiv on Monday that Kyiv’s approach is multi-pronged — a necessity for the complex threats of modern warfare.
“We have the expertise to know when and from which direction the Shaheds are launched, and the routes they fly,” he said. “We use different types of air defense systems in cooperation — mobile groups, missiles, anti-air defense systems and radio electronic warfare.”
Skibitskyi predicted that Kyiv would most likely provide Ukrainian troops to train partner militaries on how to address the threat.
Quote:The Canadian and Australian prime ministers on Thursday called for a de-escalation of the Iran war but added the Iranians must never gain a nuclear weapon.
Canada’s Mark Carney and his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese discussed the war during their meeting in Australia’s capital, Canberra.
The meeting came after news that a US submarine sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean and Turkey said NATO defenses intercepted a ballistic missile launched from Iran before it entered Turkey’s airspace.
“We want to see a broader de-escalation of these hostilities with a broader group of countries than just the direct belligerents involved,” Carney said at a press conference with Albanese.
“We stress that that cannot be achieved unless we’re in a position that Iran’s ability to acquire a nuclear weapon, develop a nuclear weapon, and to export terrorism, is ended. So that process must lead to those outcomes,” Carney added.
He said the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, which were “showing tremendous restraint,” should become involved in the de-escalation process.
Albanese said: “The world wants to see a de-escalation and wants to see Iran cease to spread the destinations of its attacks.”
“We’re seeing Gulf states, that have not been involved, attacked across the board, including the attacks on civilian and tourist areas as well. But we also want to see the objectives achieved. I want to see the possibility of Iran getting a nuclear weapon removed once and for all,” Albanese said.
Questioned by a reporter, Carney could not rule out the Canadian military ever becoming involved in the conflict.
“You’ve asked a fundamental hypothetical in a conflict that can spread very broadly,” Carney said.
“So one can never categorically rule out participation. We will stand by our allies when it makes sense,” he added.
Carney is in Australia on a trade-focused, three-nation visit that began in India last week. He addressed the Australian Parliament on Thursday and will fly to Japan on Friday.
Quote:Dramatic video shows 50 fighter jets destroying slain Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s secret underground bunker in Tehran early Friday — just days after he was killed without being able to crawl into his hideout.
Roughly 100 bombs were dropped in a wave of devastating blasts at the compound where the unsuspecting supreme leader and dozens of his top henchmen were wiped out last Saturday.
Those blasts came as Israeli forces also targeted a series of headquarters of Hezbollah in Lebanon Friday, officials said.
The Iranian underground bunker, which is said to have spanned multiple streets, was still being utilized by senior Iranian officials in the wake of Khamenei’s assassination, the Israel Defense Forces said.
Aerial footage released by the Israeli military shows the moment the bunker — described as “one of the Iranian leadership’s most important military command centers” — was obliterated in the strike.
“The underground bunker was built beneath the compound and was a secure emergency asset for managing the war by the leader, who was eliminated before he managed to use it,” the military said, according to the Times of Israel.
The site — located directly under Khamenei’s closely guarded headquarters — had “many entry points and rooms for gatherings of senior members of the Iranian terror regime.”
The compound is the same location where Israeli fighter jets launched the opening strike of the war — dubbed “Operation Epic Fury” — a week ago.
Israel used a powerful ballistic missile to turn Khamenei’s building into rubble — killing the despotic cleric, dozens of officials and several members of his family.
Quote:President Trump said late Thursday that a US ground invasion of Iran would be a “waste of time” because the Islamic Republic has already “lost everything” — after Tehran’s foreign minister said the regime was “waiting” for American and Israeli forces.
Trump called Abbas Araghchi’s claim a “wasted comment” in a phone interview with NBC News.
“It’s a waste of time,” the president said. “They’ve lost everything. They’ve lost their navy. They’ve lost everything they can lose.”
Earlier Thursday, CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper revealed that more than 30 Iranian warships have been sunk or destroyed since the US launched Operation Epic Fury Feb. 28 — including the Shahid Soleimani-class IRIS Shahid Sayyad Shirazi and the frigate IRIS Dena off the coast of Sri Lanka, with the latter operation killing at least 87 sailors.
The US also attacked a drone carrier — IRIS Shahid Bagheri — and set the vessel ablaze, according to footage released by CENTCOM Thursday evening.
Cooper added that B-2 bombers had dropped dozens of 2,000-pound bombs on buried ballistic missile launchers and that US forces had hit Tehran’s version of Space Command.
“The US military is in the process of dismantling Iran’s missile production capability for the future,” Cooper said. “We’re not just hitting what they have. We’re destroying their ability to rebuild.”
Israel’s military launched “a broad-scale wave of strikes” on Friday against Tehran and Beirut, while ground forces clashed with Iran-backed Hezbollah in southern Lebanon after the Islamic Republic fired drones and missiles into Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
In a separate interview with NBC Thursday, Aragchi said he was “confident” that Iran’s army would repel any ground invasion.
“We are waiting for them,” he said. “Because we are confident that we can confront them, and that would be a big disaster for them.”
Iran has the largest active-duty military of any Middle Eastern nation, with an estimated 600,000 personnel mobilized.
Also Thursday night, Trump said he had some candidates in mind to run Iran following the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in an Israeli airstrike on the first day of the war.
“We want to go in and clean out everything,” Trump told NBC News. “We don’t want someone who would rebuild over a 10-year period. We want them to have a good leader. We have some people who I think would do a good job.”
The president added that his administration was “watching” preferred candidates — whom Trump did not identify — to ensure they make it through the war alive.
Quote:An American bomber that can carry 24 missiles and reach speeds up to 900 mph landed at a UK base Friday — days after President Trump warned Iran this week that “the big one” could be imminent.
The B-1 Lancer reached RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, according to the BBC, after it was reported earlier in the week that a fleet of mighty US military aircraft was slated to arrive at that military site and Diego Garcia in the Chagos Islands.
The bomber’s presence comes after the British government initially rejected the Trump administration’s request to carry out strikes from the bases. Prime Minister Keir Starmer later reversed course.
The US fleet, including B-2 stealth bombers, was expected to reach the UK in a “matter of days,” the Telegraph reported Wednesday.
Starmer granted permission to use the sites for limited defensive purposes after Iran started shooting indiscriminately at allies in the Middle East, the outlet reported Friday.
Nicknamed “the Bone,” the B-1 Lancer is manned by four crew members and is the fastest bomber in the US Air Force, according to the BBC. It also boasts advanced radar and GPS systems to hone in on targets, as well as decoy apparatus and electronic jammers.
“Carrying the largest conventional payload of both guided and unguided weapons in the Air Force inventory, the multi-mission B-1 is the backbone of America’s long-range bomber force,” the Air Force says on its website.
“It can rapidly deliver massive quantities of precision and non-precision weapons against any adversary, anywhere in the world, at any time.”
Trump threatened Iran on Monday that “the big one is coming” as he vowed to ramp up strikes on the Islamic Republic after war broke out last weekend.
“We haven’t even started hitting them hard,” Trump said. “The big wave hasn’t even happened. The big one is coming soon.”
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth also said Thursday that firepower over Tehran was “about to surge dramatically” with the help of the UK bases, the Telegraph reported.
“When we say more to come, it’s more fighter squadrons, it’s more capabilities, it’s more defensive capabilities,” he said. “And it’s more bomber pulses more frequently.”
Meanwhile, Israeli military chief Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said in a televised statement Friday that the joint US-Israeli bombing campaign has “additional surprises ahead which I do not intend to disclose.”
But he noted the next phase in the war that reached its 7th day would “further dismantle the regime and its military capabilities”.
The B-2 stealth bombers, which targeted Iranian ballistic missile sites at the start of the conflict, cost about $2 billion each and are known as the world’s priciest aircraft, Fox News reported.
Quote:BEIRUT/WASHINGTON/JERUSALEM — Israel pounded Beirut on Friday after ordering an unprecedented evacuation of the entire southern suburbs of the Lebanese capital, a major expansion of the war against Iran it began a week ago alongside the United States.
Israel also launched a new wave of attacks on Iran, saying 50 of its warplanes had struck a bunker beneath the Tehran compound of slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, still being used by Iran’s leadership after he was killed on the war’s first day.
In one of the first signals since the war began of any possible diplomatic initiative to end it, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian posted on X: “Some countries have begun mediation efforts.” He did not identify the countries or provide further details.
“Let’s be clear: we are committed to lasting peace in the region, but we have not the slightest hesitation in defending the dignity and authority of our country. Mediation should address those who underestimated the Iranian people and ignited this conflict,” he added.
Under Iran’s system, the president is subordinate to the supreme leader, but Pezeshkian is now serving on a panel that has assumed Khamenei’s duties.
In an apparent escalation of his own war aims, President Trump demanded the right to help choose Khamenei’s successor.
Israel extends bombing to Lebanon
Israel has extended its bombing to Lebanon to root out Hezbollah, the Shi’ite militia allied to Iran that has been a dominant faction in Lebanese politics since the 1980s. Hezbollah fired on Israel this week to avenge the death of Khamenei.
Explosions lit up the night sky over Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The Israeli military said it carried out 26 waves of strikes overnight against Hezbollah command centers and weapons storage.
Quote:CNN was accused of pushing out “pro-Iran regime propaganda” by the Trump administration on Thursday after a reporter for the network said it appeared daily life was continuing despite the ongoing war.
Senior international correspondent Frederik Pleitgen said during a segment that all the shelves in shops are stocked, “even with fresh things,” as he casually held a cup of coffee.
“Fuel seems readily available, and you just don’t see any degree of panic anywhere,” he said.
Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson slammed Pleitgen’s report while sharing a 30-second clip of the segment.
“CNN appears to now be doing straight-up pro-Iran regime propaganda because someone gave this guy a coffee…” he wrote on X.
Pleitgen shot back at Johnson that he bought the cup of joe.
CNN is currently the only American media outlet in Iran – though the network noted it’s with permission from the Iranian government.
The State Department said in a statement to an NPR reporter that “we encourage media outlets to verify information with official US government sources before publication,” when asked why it considered CNN’s report propaganda.
CNN pushed back on the Trump official’s statement Friday, with a spokesperson stressing, “The role of journalism is to bear witness to events as they occur, to report out to audiences factually what a reporter is seeing, without agenda and with context.”
“Being able to do this from on the ground inside Iran during this conflict is of particular importance. Fred Pleitgen is providing valuable insight for CNN’s audiences, adding to our wider reporting that features multiple perspectives from civilians, opposition voices, as well as officials, alongside raw photos and video capturing what Iran is like today,” the CNN spokesperson said.
“Each report also provides full transparent disclosure that the team is reporting from inside Iran with government permission.”
In CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter’s newsletter, he called the criticism “unfair.”
Quote:Far-left “Squad” Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) were among dozens of House Democrats this week that voted against reaffirming Iran as the “largest state sponsor of terrorism.”
The resolution, introduced by Rep. Brian Mast (R-Fla.), passed in a 372-53 vote Thursday, with only Democrats opposing the nonbinding measure – which also declared that Iran “provides substantial financial and military support to groups including Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis.”
Lefty Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), Summer Lee (D-Pa.), Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) and Al Green (D-Texas), along with New York’s Yvette Clarke and Nydia Velázquez, were among the lawmakers joining Ocasio-Cortez and Omar in voting against the resolution.
The White House noted that “State Departments of both parties have declared since 1984” that Iran is a state sponsor of terrorism.
“Just 3 years ago, a resolution condemning the terrorist Iranian regime passed the House by a vote of 420-1,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote on X. “Now 53 House Democrats just refused to reaffirm that Iran remains the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism.
“Trump Derangement Syndrome is melting their brains.”
Mast’s resolution further stated that Iran “poses a direct and persistent threat to the United States and is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of American citizens.”
“Iranian-backed proxy militias are responsible for the deaths of at least 603 US service members in Iraq – roughly one in every six American combat fatalities,” the measure continued, adding that the regime has “amassed a large stockpile of enriched uranium and continues to block access to undeclared sites in Iran affiliated with their ‘big, ambitious nuclear weapons program.’”
Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.) indicated that she voted against the measure because of her opposition to President Trump’s military operation against Iran.
“Iran is obviously a state sponsor of terrorism. There’s no debate on that,” Jacobs wrote on X. “The issue is that Republicans are using this to claim that Iran is harboring Al Qaeda (sound familiar?) and is a direct and persistent threat to the US so they can legally justify this reckless war.”
Quote:London police said Friday that four men have been arrested on suspicion of aiding Iran by spying on the Jewish community.
In a statement, the Metropolitan Police said the suspects — one Iranian and three dual British-Iranian nationals — were taken into custody on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service.
The men, who were arrested at addresses in and around north London shortly after 1 a.m., are suspected of spying on locations and individuals.
Police said the men arrested are aged 22, 40, 52 and 55 and that searches are ongoing at the addresses as well as other properties nearby.
Six other men were also arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender and have been taken into custody, the force said.
“We understand the public may be concerned, in particular the Jewish community, and as always, I would ask them to remain vigilant and if they see or hear anything that concerns them, then to contact us,” said Commander Helen Flanagan, who is in charge of counterterrorism policing in London.
The arrests come as the US and Israel continue to strike Iran, which has kept up retaliatory strikes on Israel, US bases and across the region.
USA
Quote:WASHINGTON — President Trump announced Thursday that he is firing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem in the first cabinet shakeup of his second term — naming Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) as his nominee to fill the role.
Trump announced the move after two major flubs by Noem in her testimony before Congress this week. She failed to outright deny an affair with a subordinate. And she told Congress that the president approved $220 million in ads featuring herself, including one of her on horseback at Mount Rushmore. Trump accused her of lying before canning her.
“I am pleased to announce that the Highly Respected United States Senator from the Great State of Oklahoma, Markwayne Mullin, will become the United States Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), effective March 31, 2026,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“The current Secretary, Kristi Noem, who has served us well, and has had numerous and spectacular results (especially on the Border!), will be moving to be Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas, our new Security Initiative in the Western Hemisphere we are announcing on Saturday in Doral, Florida. I thank Kristi for her service at ‘Homeland.’”
Trump dedicated the remainder of his statement to praising Mullin.
Noem, 54, faced withering bipartisan grilling by senators Tuesday and by the House on Wednesday.
Neither appearance went well for her.
The former South Dakota governor stunningly declined to deny having “sexual relations” with her top aide, Corey Lewandowski, couldn’t say if he received any ad proceeds and denied that he approved contracts — despite significant evidence that he had.
The shocking questions about her sex life came as her husband, Bryon, made a rare public appearance to support her during her testimony. He had left the hearing by the time Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.) bluntly asked Noem: “Have you had sexual relations with Corey Lewandowski?”
“I am shocked that we’re going down and peddling tabloid garbage in this committee today,” Noem said in response. “I would tell you is that he is a special government employee who works for the White House. There are thousands of them in the federal government.”
Another lawmaker gave her chance to directly deny the allegation but Noem responded: “I think the ridiculousness of this and the tabloids that you are quoting and referencing are insane.”
Quote:Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass has been accused of gaslighting residents while “protecting” violent gangbangers — after the feds took down several members of the city’s largest gang in a daring, heavily-armed raid near MacArthur Park on Thursday.
The embattled leader previously blasted a federal operation in July, which saw immigration agents descend on the troubled park to root out MS-13 gangbangers and open-air drug markets, calling it “outrageous” and “un-American.”
She also insisted at the time that MacArthur Park, which has long been plagued by gang activity, homelessness and drug addicts overdosing on fentanyl, was a beloved children’s sanctuary.
“Minutes before, there were more than 20 kids playing — then, the MILITARY comes through,” Bass ranted on X, posting a time-lapse video of the agents marching across an empty soccer field inside the park.
The resurfaced comments irked many fed-up Angelenos — after the FBI helmed a multi-agency raid that nabbed 12 members and associates of the notorious 18th Street gang on Thursday.
The gang is a major player in the drug epidemic gripping LA. It is a top trafficker of methamphetamine and fentanyl, with a special focus of their operations in MacArthur Park.
Gloria Romero, former State Senate Majority Leader and current candidate for California Lieutenant Governor, swiftly called out Bass.
“Didn’t @MayorOfLA claim they were just picnicking? Anyone with eyes could see the total destruction, corruption, trafficking that was going on there. Thanks to @billessayli maybe we might be able to picnic there one day,” she sniped on X.
“Why didn’t you take care of this problem, @MayorOfLA? Another failure,” Kent Moyer, the CEO of private security company The World Protection Group, also seethed.
“You publicly promoted MacArthur Park as a safe, family-friendly place for the community — yet gangs were controlling the area. Angelenos deserve leadership that confronts reality and protects our neighborhoods, not photo ops and empty assurances.”
Quote:Former President Joe Biden told mourners at Rev. Jesse Jackson’s memorial service Friday that he is “a hell of a lot smarter than most of you,” a pointed remark that stood out during his tribute to the late civil rights leader.
Biden made the comment while recounting how he was mocked as a child for his stutter and how speech impediments are often mistaken for a lack of intelligence.
“If I told you I had a cleft palate or clubfoot, none of you would have laughed,” Biden said.
“But it’s OK to laugh at stuttering. … It’s the one place where people think you’re stupid.
“Oh, really? I’m a h— of a lot smarter than most of you,” he added, before quickly pivoting back to his broader point.
“But all kidding aside, it makes you feel really small.”
Biden made the remark during a memorial service in Chicago that brought together prominent Democratic leaders and civil rights figures to honor Jackson’s decades-long political influence.
Former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton attended the service along with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Vice President Kamala Harris and Rev. Al Sharpton.
The event was held at the 10,000-seat House of Hope arena, where hundreds gathered to celebrate Jackson’s life and legacy.
Jackson, who died at age 84, rose to prominence as a close associate of Martin Luther King Jr. during the Civil Rights Movement.
He later founded the Rainbow PUSH Coalition and mounted two Democratic presidential campaigns in 1984 and 1988 that expanded Black voter participation and reshaped the party’s electoral coalition.
Throughout the service, speakers praised Jackson’s ability to build political alliances and elevate issues affecting marginalized communities.
Biden, who has frequently spoken about working to overcome his childhood stutter, framed his remarks around resilience and the lasting impact of being ridiculed as a young person.
Quote:Desperate FBI agents returned to Nancy Guthrie’s neighborhood Thursday to question neighbors about problems with their internet — as the sheriff is said to have cut manpower focused on the shocking kidnapping case.
Agents were seen “talking to several different neighbors” Thursday, NewsNation’s Brian Entin said as he filmed some going door to door.
They also reportedly searched a house immediately west of Guthrie’s, talking to neighbors while looking in the garage, Entin reported.
Investigators asked locals whether they had any internet issues the night Guthrie went missing, NBC News reported Friday.
Agents told some neighbors that others in the area reported glitches in their connectivity that night.
Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said the FBI and his team had looked into whether the suspect had a WiFi jammer on him the night he kidnapped the 84-year-old matriarch.
While the FBI returned to the area, the manpower devoted to the high-profile case has already been scaled back 33 days into the search, a local police leader told the outlet.
“Everybody wishes that we had some hot leads, that the whole department’s working, trying to run down to solve this quickly,” said Sgt. Aaron Cross, president of the Pima County Deputies Organization.
“So the fact that we’re reducing the amount of manpower working it, I mean, it’s hard to say what kind of sign that signals.”
Guthrie, the mom of “TODAY” host Savannah Guthrie, was last seen Jan. 31 when she was dropped off at her home in the Catalina Hills neighborhood of Tucson following a family dinner.
Last month, police released surveillance footage of her alleged captor — but have so far failed to identify a suspect.
Quote:An Oklahoma mom and her 13-year-old daughter were tragically killed when a horrific tornado ripped through the region Thursday night, devastated family members confirmed.
Jodie and Lexi Owens were found dead inside their van after a raging twister struck their vehicle while they were driving near State Highway 60 and County Road 2430 in Fairview around 10 p.m., according to a GoFundMe launched by their loved ones and multiple reports.
The 47-year-old mom of eight was on the phone with her kids warning them to take cover when the call suddenly dropped — and she was later reported missing, her grief-stricken family said in the fundraiser.
Harrowing footage captured by News 9 showed the mangled vehicle in a deserted field after the deadly storm apparently hurled it off the highway.
“Severe weather struck Major County last night and tragically claimed the lives of a mother and daughter,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said in a statement on X Friday morning.
“I am praying for the family as they grieve this tragic loss, as well as those impacted by the storms. More weather risks are expected across Oklahoma this weekend. Please stay weather aware and follow guidance from local officials to keep your family safe.”
Authorities are investigating the cause of their deaths, KOCO reported.
At least four tornadoes tore through western Oklahoma Thursday night, the National Weather Service reported, with storm chasers capturing terrifying footage of one monster twister barreling through the area.
Quote:The Department of Homeland Security blasted Democratic Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger after a criminal illegal migrant with over 30 arrests was accused of stabbing a mother in the Washington, D.C.-area and now could be released from custody.
Abdul Jalloh, 32, was recently arrested for allegedly stabbing a 41-year-old woman to death at a bus stop in Fairfax County, Virginia, in late February. He was charged with murder, but Spanberger's office reportedly indicated she would not honor a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer. A governor's spokesperson told WJLA that DHS would need to take an extra step and seek a signed judicial warrant from a local judge instead in order to ensure that Jalloh is deported.
"Sanctuary [Gov. Abigail Spanberger] is fighting to protect a MURDERER over American citizens," DHS posted to X. "This monster is responsible for fatally stabbing Stephanie Minter."
"ICE does NOT need judicial warrants to make arrests," the post continued. "The heroes of ICE will continue to arrest and remove criminal illegal aliens across the Commonwealth while Governor Spanberger RELEASES them from jails into Virginia communities to commit more crimes and create more victims."
Jalloh, an illegal immigrant from Sierra Leone in West Africa, was arrested at a liquor store the day after allegedly murdering Stephanie Minter at a bus stop. An employee of the store called 911 accusing Jalloh of shoplifting.
DHS says Jalloh entered the country in 2012 and has more than a dozen arrests in northern Virginia alone, but he was released back to the streets on nearly every occasion.
DHS also says his criminal history "includes more than 30 arrests for charges of rape, malicious wounding, assault, drug possession, identity theft, trespassing, larceny, firing a weapon, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and pick pocketing."
In early February, Spanberger ended cooperation with state agencies and federal immigration authorities through an executive directive.
"I have serious concerns that chaotic federal law enforcement actions across the country are eroding years of trust built by our officers within the communities they serve," Spanberger said in a statement following the executive directive. "When state and local law enforcement are pulled away from investigating crimes and upholding our Virginia laws to do the job of federal agents, it weakens their ability to deepen trust within their communities."
"This contributes to a culture of fear and distrust that makes it harder for officers to do their jobs," Spanberger added.
Spanberger reversed an order, 287(g), which was issued by former GOP Gov. Glenn Youngkin. It allowed local law enforcement officers to perform specified immigration officer functions under ICE’s direction and oversight, which includes preventing criminal illegal migrants from being released back into the community and identifying illegal migrants already locked up in local jails.
"If, for some reason, this monster gets released, [Spanberger] will not let ICE know when he's being released," Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., said during a Senate hearing on Tuesday. "I would think in a different time and a different place that we could all actually agree that if somebody is here illegally, and they're being released from prison that we would let federal law enforcement know about it."
UKRAINE WAR
Quote:KYIV — Baby making has turned into a patriotic act in Ukraine.
Fighting back against massive population losses after four years of a Russian invasion, Ukrainian women are birthing little warrior babies in defiance of Vladimir Putin’s siege.
For 35-year-old Katerina Minder, that decision is existential. She’s having another baby during the war to resist the Russian invasion and continue the Ukrainian heritage.
“I think it’s my power,” Minder told the Post as she prepared for a C-section to deliver her second son on Monday. “It’s my help for my country. Yes, to keep life and to be Ukrainian. I am proud to be proud of it.”
The prolonged Russia-Ukraine war has accelerated a demographic collapse in the country. The death rate in 2025 outpaced the birth rate by about 3 to 1.
Millions have fled abroad, couples are separated, thousands have been killed and birth rates have plunged.
Before Russia’s invasion, Ukraine saw roughly 30,000 births per month, according to Kyiv School of Economics sociologist Tymofii Brik.
Now, that number has dropped to about 10,000 to 12,000 monthly, he told The Post — a staggering decline that underscores the long-term toll of the conflict.
Ukraine’s government recognizes the seriousness of the population losses, too.
Active-duty service members can now freeze their eggs and sperm for free to combat the wartime demographic crisis under a government program. This allows war fighters to prolong their fertility and permits their spouses to use frozen sperm and eggs even after their death to make babies.
In wartime, motherhood carries a heavier symbolism.
Mother Hanna Vanfundin said she decided to have a baby to “keep the Ukrainian population going.”
Having children has taken on added meaning amid fears that Putin’s war aims go beyond territory — but striking at Ukrainian identity itself, she said.
“Many people, not only militaries, but also civilian and adult and children, are dying because of war, so it’s very important for demography,” Vanfundin told The Post, while waiting in line at a refugee agency.
For these women, childbirth is not just a private milestone, but a declaration that Ukraine will endure.
Igor Sirenko, Minder’s doctor, said it was a great privilege to be an obstetrician in wartime. While some treat wounds, he brings life into the world.
But not every day is easy. Air alarms still spur expectant mothers into shelters, and there’s no real end to the conflict in site.
Quote:BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungarian authorities detained seven Ukrainian citizens and seized two armored cars carrying large amounts of cash across Hungary on suspicion of money laundering, officials said Friday.
Ukraine accused Hungary’s pro-Russian government of taking the Ukrainians hostage and illegally seizing millions of dollars in cash.
“We will not tolerate this state banditism,” Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote on X on Friday. “Everyone who is responsible for taking and holding our citizens hostage will be held accountable.”
The seven detained Ukrainians were employees of the Ukrainian state-owned Oschadbank, who were traveling in two armored cars that were carrying the money between Austria and Ukraine as part of regular services between state banks, Sybiha said.
The shipment apprehended by Hungary included 40 million US dollars as well as 35 million euros and 9 kilograms (19.8 pounds) of gold — worth around $1.5 million at current prices — according to a separate statement by Oschadbank.
Hungary’s National Tax and Customs Administration confirmed Friday that it had detained the Ukrainian citizens and seized the two armored cash-transport vehicles. It added that it was conducting criminal proceedings on suspicion of money laundering.
In a later statement, Hungary’s Government Information Center said the seven Ukrainians would be expelled from Hungarian territory on Friday. It said they included a former general of the Ukrainian Security Service, a former major of the Ukrainian Air Force and “individuals with military experience.”
The statement did not detail why, if the Ukrainians were suspected of money laundering, they would be released from custody and expelled.
The incident further inflamed rising tensions between Hungary and Ukraine, which are embroiled in a bitter feud over Hungary’s access to Russian oil through a pipeline that crosses Ukrainian territory.
CENTRAL ASIA
Quote:KABUL — Pakistani and Afghan troops exchanged fire at dozens of points along their border Friday as the UN said their week-old conflict has forced the displacement of more than 100,000 people.
The South Asian nations show no signs of rapprochement in their worst fighting in years, adding to the volatility in a region also contending with US and Israeli strikes on Iran — a nation that borders both Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Combat has included Pakistani airstrikes on Taliban government installations, such as the Bagram air base north of the Afghan capital, Kabul.
Homes shelled during Ramadan meals
Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defense said Taliban forces struck Pakistani military installations in more than two dozen locations along the 2,600-km (1,600-mile) border, destroying 14 posts and shooting down a drone.
It said seven Afghan civilians and three Taliban fighters were killed in overnight fighting.
Pakistani security sources said they carried out ground and air operations against military targets including Kandahar, the heartland of the Taliban and where its core leadership resides, and destroyed several Afghan border posts.
Dozens gathered in Kabul on Friday to protest Pakistan’s attacks on Afghan territory, chanting anti-Pakistan slogans, a witness said, while the Bakhter news agency said a large gathering in Laghman Province demonstrated against Pakistan’s recent attacks.
...
‘Nothing to talk about’
Several countries have offered to negotiate a truce, most recently Turkey, although the Iran war has diverted the attention of most Gulf states that had stepped forward.
Pakistani government spokesperson Mosharraf Zaidi said no negotiations were taking place to end the conflict.
“There is nothing to talk about. There will be no dialogue and no negotiations,” he told state-owned Pakistan TV. “Terrorism from Afghanistan has to end — that is Afghanistan’s problem. Pakistan’s responsibility is to protect its citizens.”
The conflict began last week with Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan that Islamabad said targeted militant strongholds. Afghanistan called the strikes a violation of sovereignty and announced retaliatory operations.
Islamabad has said Kabul provides safe haven to militants executing attacks on Pakistan from its soil. The Taliban have denied aiding such groups and said militancy in Pakistan is an internal problem.
CUBA
Quote:A blackout left millions of people without power in Havana and the rest of western Cuba on Wednesday in the latest outage on an island struggling with dwindling oil reserves and a crumbling electric grid.
Government radio station Radio Rebelde quoted an energy official as saying that it could take at least 72 hours to restore operations at one of Cuba’s largest thermoelectric power plants, where a shutdown sparked the outage.
The government’s electric utility said on social platform X that the outage affected people from the western town of Pinar del Rio to the central town of Camaguey.
Energy and Mines Minister Vicente de la O Levy wrote on X late Wednesday that the government was powering critical infrastructure in the affected region as two power plants came online. Such infrastructure includes hospitals and medical clinics.
“We are working to restore the National Electric System amid a complex energy situation,” he wrote earlier on X.
The US Embassy warned people to “prepare for significant disruptions” and conserve fuel, water, food and mobile phone batteries. “Cuba’s national power grid is increasingly unreliable, and scheduled and unscheduled power outages are prolonged and a daily occurrence across the country, including Havana,” it said on X.
‘We’ll have to eat bread again’
By late afternoon, the government said crews had restored power to 2.5% of Havana, or some 21,100 customers, noting that efforts were gradual and tied to what the system’s conditions would allow. It did not provide updated numbers by late Wednesday night.
“We trust in the experience and effort of the electrical workers to overcome this situation in the shortest possible time,” Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz wrote on X.
Quote:A top Justice Department prosecutor has launched an inquiry into Cuban government officials that could result in indictments against the Communist regime’s leaders, according to multiple reports.
The “working group” assembled by US Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Jason Reding Quiñones, includes federal prosecutors and officials with the Treasury Department, State Department, Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and other agencies, multiple outlets reported on Friday.
Quiñones’ aim is to build criminal cases against people inside the Cuban government, which could allow the Trump administration to forcibly remove some of the island’s top leaders in a manner similar to the operation that deposed Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro in January.
It’s unclear which Cuban leaders or people linked to the regime Quiñones’ office is targeting.
“Federal prosecutors from across the country work every day to pursue justice, which includes efforts to combat transnational crime,” the DOJ said in a statement, according to the Associated Press.
The US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
The move comes as President Trump has suggested Cuba’s Communist dictatorship is in its death throes.
“Cuba is gonna fall pretty soon, by the way, unrelated, but Cuba is gonna fall too,” Trump told CNN host Dana Bash in a phone interview.
“They want to make a deal so badly. They want to make a deal, and so I’m going to put [Secretary of State] Marco [Rubio] over there and we’ll see how that works out. We’re really focused on this one [Iran] right now. We’ve got plenty of time, but Cuba’s ready — after 50 years,” the president added. “I’ve been watching it for 50 years, and it’s fallen right into my lap — because of me, it’s fallen — but it’s nevertheless fallen right into the lap. And we’re doing very well.”
Meanwhile, Cuban-American lawmakers have pushed Trump to seek an indictment against Raul Castro – the 94-year-old Cuban general, ex-president and brother of dead dictator Fidel Castro.
"For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ," 1 Thessalonians 5:9
Maranatha!
The Internet might be either your friend or enemy. It just depends on whether or not she has a bad hair day.
![[Image: SP1-Scripter.png]](https://www.save-point.org/images/userbars/SP1-Scripter.png)
![[Image: SP1-Writer.png]](https://www.save-point.org/images/userbars/SP1-Writer.png)
![[Image: SP1-Poet.png]](https://www.save-point.org/images/userbars/SP1-Poet.png)
![[Image: SP1-PixelArtist.png]](https://www.save-point.org/images/userbars/SP1-PixelArtist.png)
![[Image: SP1-Reporter.png]](https://i.postimg.cc/GmxWbHyL/SP1-Reporter.png)
My Original Stories (available in English and Spanish)
List of Compiled Binary Executables I have published...
HiddenChest & Roole
Give me a free copy of your completed game if you include at least 3 of my scripts!
Just some scripts I've already published on the board...
KyoGemBoost XP VX & ACE, RandomEnkounters XP, KSkillShop XP, Kolloseum States XP, KEvents XP, KScenario XP & Gosu, KyoPrizeShop XP Mangostan, Kuests XP, KyoDiscounts XP VX, ACE & MV, KChest XP VX & ACE 2016, KTelePort XP, KSkillMax XP & VX & ACE, Gem Roulette XP VX & VX Ace, KRespawnPoint XP, VX & VX Ace, GiveAway XP VX & ACE, Klearance XP VX & ACE, KUnits XP VX, ACE & Gosu 2017, KLevel XP, KRumors XP & ACE, KMonsterPals XP VX & ACE, KStatsRefill XP VX & ACE, KLotto XP VX & ACE, KItemDesc XP & VX, KPocket XP & VX, OpenChest XP VX & ACE
Maranatha!
The Internet might be either your friend or enemy. It just depends on whether or not she has a bad hair day.
My Original Stories (available in English and Spanish)
List of Compiled Binary Executables I have published...
HiddenChest & Roole
Give me a free copy of your completed game if you include at least 3 of my scripts!
Just some scripts I've already published on the board...
KyoGemBoost XP VX & ACE, RandomEnkounters XP, KSkillShop XP, Kolloseum States XP, KEvents XP, KScenario XP & Gosu, KyoPrizeShop XP Mangostan, Kuests XP, KyoDiscounts XP VX, ACE & MV, KChest XP VX & ACE 2016, KTelePort XP, KSkillMax XP & VX & ACE, Gem Roulette XP VX & VX Ace, KRespawnPoint XP, VX & VX Ace, GiveAway XP VX & ACE, Klearance XP VX & ACE, KUnits XP VX, ACE & Gosu 2017, KLevel XP, KRumors XP & ACE, KMonsterPals XP VX & ACE, KStatsRefill XP VX & ACE, KLotto XP VX & ACE, KItemDesc XP & VX, KPocket XP & VX, OpenChest XP VX & ACE
