Category: US politics

Leer en EspañolAs protests raged across Iran over the weekend, the authoritarian regime imposed a near-total internet blackout – and many demonstrators turned to Elon Musk’s Starlink in the hope that it could connect them to the outside world.
Tehran enacted the internet blackout on Thursday as part of a ruthless crackdown against the protesters, who are demonstrating against the country’s economic crisis. At least 646 protesters are reported to have been killed, according to human rights groups.
As concern mounts that the blackout is concealing atrocities against protesters, there have been growing calls for the US to assist in restoring connectivity in Iran. Donald Trump on Sunday promised he would speak to Musk about using his Starlink service to restore internet across the country.
open image in galleryProtesters have taken to the streets in Iran in response to the economic crisis, amid wider disapproval of the clerical regime (Middle East Images)But even Starlink appears to have..

President Donald Trump has implemented a 25 per cent tariff on all of Iran’s trading partners in response to a violent crackdown by Tehran on protesters.
Oil prices jumped to the highest levels since November in the aftermath of the announcement, sparking concerns about an impact on the global economy.
The US leader has been unequivocal about using military force in Iran if protesters are killed and will discuss “several options” with senior military officials on Tuesday.
Experts say his latest strategy is an attempt to strong-arm the country into compliance – but the Supreme Court has struck down his previous tariff policy.
The Independent looks at whether the announcement of new tariffs on Iran’s economic allies will have a widespread economic impact.
open image in galleryA crowd gathers during a pro-government rally on Monday in Tehran, Iran (Getty)What does Trump’s tariff policy entail?The US president’s announcement came in a characteristically bombastic Truth Social post on M..

CloseWhite House says Trump isn't ruling out miliary action against Iran over protestsDonald Trump says any country doing business with Iran will face 25 per cent US tariffs “effective immediately”.
The White House also reiterated its threat to use military action against Tehran over its violent crackdown against economic protesters.
At least 646 people have now died in clashes between demonstrators and security forces across Iran, according to a monitoring group.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has told reporters that airstrikes are among the “many, many options” that the US president is considering but that “diplomacy is always the first option for the president”.
“We are ready for war but also for dialogue,” Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi responded.
Mr Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyber-attacks and direct strikes by the US or Israel, according to two people familiar with inter..

CloseKyiv strikes oil rigs in Caspian Sea with dramatic drone footage releasedAt least four people have died in Russia's most intense aerial bombardment of Ukraine so far this year, with strikes targeting Kyiv and Kharkiv overnight.
Telegram channels monitoring the conflict suggested as many as 20 ballistic missiles were launched in the space of just an hour overnight, with Kyiv officials confirming the capital suffered a short but powerful onslaught.
In Kharkiv, the strikes claimed four lives and injured at least six others, with missiles striking targets on the outskirts of the northeastern city.
The attack came hours after Russia was roundly condemned at an emergency UN Security Council meeting for firing its Oreshnik hypersonic ballistic missile at Lviv, just 50 miles from the border with Nato member Poland.
US deputy ambassador to the UN Tammy Bruce accused Russia of a “dangerous and inexplicable escalation” of its nearly four-year war in Ukraine at a time when the Trump admi..

A chaotic scene unfolded in Los Angeles on Sunday after a man drove a U-Haul truck into a crowd protesting against the Iranian government, police say.
The incident happened around 3:30 p.m. local time near the federal building in the Westwood neighborhood of the city, ABC7 reports.
Footage from the incident shows protestors trying to pull the suspect out of his vehicle after the collision, according to The LA Times. The protestors continued to lash out at the suspect as police escorted him away.
A sign reading “No Shah. No Regime. USA: Don’t Repeat 1953. No Mullah” was then ripped off the truck, according to the outlet.
Police told the Associated Press that one person was hit by the truck but nobody was seriously hurt.
open image in galleryThe LAPD is working alongside the FBI to determine the motive of the driver, officials say (Getty Images)Two others were evaluated by paramedics and both declined treatment, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.
The driver of the truck, who has not..

CloseRussia unleashes ‘Oreshnik’ hypersonic missile on freezing civiliansThe Ministry of Defence has announced it will develop new tactical ballistic missiles for Ukraine, code-naming the initiative “Project Nightfall”.
Defence secretary John Healey said the UK was determined to arm Ukrainians with advanced weapons to fight back against Vladimir Putin's invasion.
The new missiles will have a conventional 200kg warhead and be capable of striking targets at a range of 500km – deep inside Russian territory.
Healey said last week's hypersonic missile strike on western Ukraine showed “how Putin thinks he can act with impunity, targeting civilian areas with advanced weaponry”.
The defence secretary was in the Ukrainian capital when that attack took place, and heard the air raid sirens at the time.
Later on Monday the UN Security Council is due to hold an emergency meeting to discuss Russia's use of its Oreshnik hypersonic missile just 60 miles from the border of Nato member Po..

CloseCell phone footage shows shooting of Renee Good from ICE agent's perspectiveProtests have erupted across the country after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, identified as Jonathan Ross, fatally shot 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good.
Demonstrators in Minneapolis and other cities across the U.S., including Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Raleigh and Washington, D.C., have turned out this weekend for nonviolent protests, being called “ICE Out For Good.” Photos showed demonstrators holding signs demanding ICE leave their cities or remembering Good’s legacy.
Large anti-ICE protests have been ongoing in Minneapolis, drawing hundreds of local and state law enforcement officers. A large crowd formed Saturday in the city’s Powderhorn Park, where protesters have chanted Good’s name and waved signs with slogans like “ICE will melt,” according to CNN.
While the Minneapolis protests have been largely peaceful, at least 29 individuals were arrested Friday evening after a hotel wa..

CloseCrowds take to streets across Iran after call to defy regimeUS president Donald Trump has reportedly been briefed on possible military strike options, as Washington weighs how to respond to Iran's crackdown on mass anti-government protests.
This comes as Iran’s security establishment moved to tighten its grip on the unrest. Iranian authorities warned that protesters could face the death penalty, while the military accused foreign “enemies” of fuelling the unrest. It urged citizens to remain alert to what it described as “enemy plots”.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said its intelligence wing had arrested a foreign national suspected of spying for Israel, as officials blamed the US and Israel for inciting unrest. State media also said around 100 people described as “armed rioters” had been detained.
Trump has meanwhile stepped up his rhetoric, saying on social media that the US “stands ready to help” Iranians protesting against clerical rule, after earlier warning th..

Protests against immigration enforcement are planned for cities and towns across the country on Saturday after one federal officer fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis and another shot and wounded two people in Portland, Oregon.
The demonstrations come as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security pushes forward in the Twin Cities with what it calls its biggest-ever immigration enforcement operation. President Donald Trump's administration has said both shootings were acts of self-defense against drivers who “weaponized” their vehicles to attack officers.
Indivisible, a social movement organization that formed to resist the Trump administration, said hundreds of protests were scheduled in Texas, Kansas, New Mexico, Ohio, Florida and other states. Many were dubbed “ICE Out for Good” using the acronym for the agency Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Indivisible and its local chapters organized protests in all 50 states last year.
In Minneapolis, a coalition of migrant rights groups..

CloseCrowds take to streets across Iran after call to defy regimeIran’s near-total internet blackout continued on Saturday as the country’s supreme leader warned of a harsher crackdown on a growing wave of protests.
In his first public address since demonstrations began on 28 December, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the Islamic Republic would “not back down”, accusing protesters of acting on behalf of foreign powers and blaming US president Donald Trump for unrest driven by Iran’s economic crisis.
Trump warned Khamenei that the US will “start shooting” if demonstrators in Iran are targeted by government forces as nationwide protests demanding regime change continued into their 13th day.
At least 62 people have been killed since the protests began, according to the Human Rights Activist News Agency (HRANA), which said the dead included 48 protesters and 14 security personnel.
Protesters have chanted “death to Khamenei” in cities across the country, including after calls by the son of the t..