Author: Agencies

Obama Blasts ‘Bizarre’ Trump Claim of 2016 Election ‘Treason’

Donald Trump has accused Barack Obama of “treason”, claiming he plotted to sabotage his first presidency by linking him to alleged Russian election meddling.

“They tried to steal the election,” Trump said at the White House as he claimed Obama had sought to undermine his 2016 victory over Hillary Clinton.

A spokesman for Obama issued a rare retort, calling Trump’s attack “a weak attempt at distraction”.

Trump was referring to a report from US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard last week that accused Obama and his national security team of a “years-long coup against President Trump” – findings that Democrats have branded false.

Trump’s comments on Tuesday came as he faced questions from reporters about late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial.

The president’s administration has been under pressure to release more information about the well-connected convicted paedophile.

“The witch hunt that you should be talking about is they caught President Obama absolutely cold,” Trump told reporters.

“It’s time to go after people, Obama’s been caught directly,” he added.

“He’s guilty. This was treason. This was every word you can think of,” Trump said.

His comments came as he hosted Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr in the Oval Office.

Obama spokesman Patrick Rodenbush said: “Out of respect for the office of the presidency, our office does not normally dignify the constant nonsense and misinformation flowing out of this White House with a response.

“But these claims are outrageous enough to merit one. These bizarre allegations are ridiculous and a weak attempt at distraction.”

Obama and Trump pictured in January at the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter

Friday’s report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence declassified emails between Obama aides, and argued they had suppressed intelligence findings that Russia had failed in probing attempts to hack US election databases.

A declassified copy of the president’s daily briefing prepared by US security service chiefs for Obama weeks after Trump beat Clinton and dated 8 December 2016 said: “We assess that Russian and criminal actors did not impact recent US election results by conducting malicious cyber activities against election infrastructure.”

But the FBI dissented from the findings it had initially co-authored, and a meeting was held at the White House a day later with top officials, according to the report.

Afterwards an aide to then-Director of National Intelligence James Clapper emailed intelligence chiefs asking them to create a new assessment “per the president’s request” detailing the “tools Moscow used and actions it took to influence the 2016 election”.

Gabbard argued the emails showed evidence of a “treasonous conspiracy” to harm Trump, and she threatened to refer Obama administration officials to the justice department for prosecution.

But Obama’s spokesman said in his statement on Tuesday: “Nothing in the document issued last week undercuts the widely accepted conclusion that Russia worked to influence the 2016 presidential election but did not successfully manipulate any votes.”

The US intelligence community published an assessment in January 2017 concluding that Russia had sought to damage Clinton’s campaign and boost Trump in the vote three months earlier.

US officials found this effort had included Russian bot farms on social media and hacking of Democratic emails, but they ultimately concluded the impact was probably limited and did not actually change the election result.

A 2020 bipartisan report by the Senate intelligence committee also found that Russia had tried to help Trump’s 2016 campaign.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was a senator at the time, was among the Republicans who co-signed that report.

The first two years of Trump’s first presidency were overshadowed by an investigation from his own justice department into whether he had conspired with Russia to sway the 2016 outcome.

The resulting Mueller report found a lack of evidence that Trump or his campaign co-ordinated with the Kremlin, and no-one was ever charged with such crimes.

A subsequent special counsel inquiry, the Durham report, found the original FBI probe had lacked “analytical rigor” and relied on “raw, unanalysed and uncorroborated intelligence”.

July 23, 2025
Trump Claims Obama ‘Coup’ As Epstein Questions Mount

President Donald Trump sought Tuesday to distract from the growing furor over his administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein sex scandal by pushing extraordinary claims that Barack Obama tried to mount a coup.

The accusations, delivered in the Oval Office, followed a surprise announcement that Trump’s Department of Justice would question an imprisoned, key former assistant to Epstein.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement on X that disgraced British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, serving a 20-year sentence for her role in Epstein’s alleged pedophile scheme, would be queried for new information.

“No lead is off-limits,” Blanche said.

However, the show of transparency appeared to be part of a concerted effort by the White House and Trump’s allies to quell speculation about the convicted sex offender, who was long rumored to be a pedophile pimp to the powerful and who committed suicide in his prison cell in 2019.

While meeting with the Philippines’ president in the White House, Trump dismissed the Epstein case as “a witch hunt.”

“The witch hunt that you should be talking about is, they caught President Obama, absolutely cold,” he said, launching into a meandering series of unsubstantiated accusations around Obama trying to “steal” the 2016 election, when Trump defeated Hillary Clinton.

“Obama was leading a coup,” Trump said.

An Obama spokesman called the claim “outrageous.”

The coup accusation centers on claims that fly in the face of multiple high-level official probes by the US government. However, it resonates with Trump’s far-right base — in part thanks to blanket coverage by the popular Fox News network.

Trump’s attacks on Obama are “part of a larger strategy of distraction, but they also serve another function: to cast the president as a victim of Democratic treachery,” said Todd Belt, at GW University’s Graduate School of Political Management.

Obama’s spokesman echoed this, saying Trump engaged in a “ridiculous and weak attempt at distraction.”

In another ploy to bury the Epstein controversy, Speaker Mike Johnson, a key Trump Republican loyalist, said he would shut down the House of Representatives until September.

This was to avoid what he called “political games” over attempts by mostly Democrats to force votes on exposing more about the Epstein case.

– Entangled in conspiracy theory –

Epstein was awaiting trial on trafficking charges when he was found hanged in his New York cell.

Authorities declared it a suicide but the death super-charged fears, especially on the far-right, that a “deep state” cover-up is in place to prevent the names of Epstein’s clients from being made known.

Trump’s attempts to stop Epstein speculation clash with the fact that his own supporters are the ones who have most pushed conspiracy theories — and believed that Trump would resolve the mysteries.

They were outraged when Trump’s FBI and Justice Department said on July 7 that the death was confirmed a suicide and that Epstein never blackmailed prominent figures or even had a client list.

Trump tried numerous measures to placate his base, including ordering Attorney General Pam Bondi to try to obtain release of grand jury testimony in Epstein’s aborted New York case.

But the issue flamed up again last week when The Wall Street Journal reported that it had seen a birthday greeting penned in 2003 by Trump to Epstein on his 50th birthday.

The letter reportedly featured a hand-drawn naked woman, with Trump’s signature forming her pubic hair, and reference to their shared “wonderful secret.”

Trump insists he did not send the letter and has filed a lawsuit against the Journal.

Trump has never been accused of wrongdoing but was close friends with Epstein for years and was photographed attending parties with him.

Among the other celebrities with connections to Epstein was Britain’s Prince Andrew, who settled a US civil case in February 2022 brought by Virginia Giuffre, who claimed he sexually assaulted her when she was 17.

Giuffre committed suicide at her home in Australia in April.

Maxwell is the only former Epstein associate who has been convicted. She is appealing her sentence before the Supreme Court.

David Oscar Markus, Maxwell’s lawyer, confirmed on X that he was in discussions about her meeting with government representatives.

“We are grateful to President Trump for his commitment to uncovering the truth in this case,” Markus added.

(AFP)

July 22, 2025
Trump Administration Pulls US Out of UNESCO Again

The US has said it will leave the United Nations’ culture and education agency Unesco, accusing it of supporting “woke, divisive cultural and social causes”.

Unesco’s Director General Audrey Azoulay described the decision as “regrettable” but “anticipated”.

The move is the latest step in the Trump administration’s efforts to cut ties with international bodies, after removing the US from the World Health Organization and Paris Climate Agreement, as well as cutting funding for foreign relief efforts.

Unesco has 194 member states around the world, and is best known for listing world heritage sites. The US’ decision will take effect from December 2026.

The state department said Unesco’s “globalist, ideological agenda for international development” was “at odds with our America First foreign policy”.

It also described the inclusion of the Palestinians in Unesco in 2011, as “highly problematic, contrary to US policy, and contributed to the proliferation of anti-Israel rhetoric within the organization”.

Those claims “contradict the reality of Unesco’s efforts, particularly in the field of Holocaust education and the fight against antisemitism,” the organisation’s head Audrey Azoulay said.

“This decision contradicts the fundamental principles of multilateralism, and may affect first and foremost our many partners in the United States of America— communities seeking site inscription on the World Heritage List, Creative City status, and University Chairs,” she added.

The Unesco head said the agency had been preparing for Washington’s move, diversifying its sources of funding. Currently, she said, Unesco was getting about 8% of its budget from the US.

In 2017, during his first presidency, Trump pulled the US out of Unesco but the decision was later reversed under Joe Biden’s administration.

The Paris-based UN agency was set up in November 1945 – shortly after World War Two – to promote peace and security through global co-operation in education, arts, sciences and culture.

(BBC)

July 22, 2025
Trump Administration Releases Files on Martin Luther King Jr

US President Donald Trump’s administration has released a trove of records on the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr, including FBI surveillance files on the civil rights leader.

A court-imposed order had kept the documents, totalling 230,000 pages, blocked from public view since 1977.

Prominent members of King’s family had opposed the release. A statement from his two living children condemned “any attempts to misuse these documents in ways intended to undermine our father’s legacy”.

King, a Baptist minister, was shot in Memphis on 4 April 1968, at age 39. James Earl Ray, a career criminal, pleaded guilty to the killing, but later renounced his plea.

King Jr’s two living children, Martin III and Bernice, who were notified ahead of time about the release, said in a statement on Monday: “We ask those who engage with the release of these files to do so with empathy, restraint, and respect for our family’s continuing grief.

“The release of these files must be viewed within their full historical context.

“During our father’s lifetime, he was relentlessly targeted by an invasive, predatory, and deeply disturbing disinformation and surveillance campaign orchestrated by J Edgar Hoover through the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”

The statement said the government’s surveillance had denied King the “dignity and freedoms of private citizens”.

The family also cited a jury verdict in a 1999 wrongful death civil lawsuit that found the civil rights leader was the victim not of a lone racist gunman, but of a vast conspiracy.

In January, Trump ordered that documents from the assassinations of King and former President John F Kennedy be declassified, along with the records in the assassination of Robert F Kennedy.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) said in a press release on Monday that the King files had “sat collecting dust in facilities across the federal government for decades, until today”.

The documents include “internal FBI memos” and “never-before-seen CIA records” behind the hunt for King’s assassin, the DNI said.

The release was co-ordinated with the FBI, Department of Justice, National Archives and CIA.

“The American people deserve answers decades after the horrific assassination of one of our nation’s great leaders,” US Attorney General Pamela Bondi said.

King on the day he delivered his “I have a dream” speech in Washington DC in 1963

Not all of King’s family was upset about the release.

Referring to the civil rights leader as “my uncle”, Alveda King said: “I am grateful to President Trump and DNI Gabbard for delivering on their pledge of transparency.

“While we continue to mourn his death, the declassification and release of these documents are a historic step towards the truth that the American people deserve.”

Trump’s critics noted the release comes as the administration is accused of a lack of transparency over files relating to influential sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, whose 2019 jail death was ruled a suicide.

Civil rights leader Al Sharpton said the disclosure of the King files was “a desperate attempt to distract” from “the firestorm engulfing Trump over the Epstein files and the public unraveling of his credibility”.

Before his arrest, King’s convicted assassin, James Earl Ray, fled the country to Canada, Portugal and the UK, where he raided a bank.

Extradited to Memphis, he entered a guilty plea in 1969 and was sentenced to 99 years in prison.

He later claimed he had been framed by shadowy conspirators and tried to recant his guilty plea, but it was repeatedly upheld by the courts. Ray died in 1998 at 70.

(BBC)

July 22, 2025
How Fake AI Videos, Photos Are Making Captain Ibrahim Traore Popular

If viral videos online are to be believed, R. Kelly and Pope Leo XIV agree on one thing; that Burkina Faso’s junta leader, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, is a remarkable head of state.

The images, however, are artificial intelligence-generated propaganda, part of what experts describe as an extensive disinformation campaign designed to bolster the “personality cult” of the West African strongman.

Beyoncé and Justin Bieber are among other celebrities whose faces and voices have been digitally manipulated using AI to sing the praises of Traoré.

In one such video, attributed to disgraced R&B singer R. Kelly, the AI-generated lyrics glorify Traoré, who seized power in a 2022 coup, saying: “For the love of his people, he risked it all… bullets fly but he don’t fall… he’s fighting for peace in his motherland.”

American singer & songwriter R Kelly [Courtesy/Getty Images]

Kelly is currently serving a 30-year prison sentence in the United States for crimes including the sexual trafficking of minors, yet the song — produced entirely using AI — has amassed over two million views since its release in May.

The doctored content has been widely circulated across West African social media platforms.

This phenomenon emerges in the wake of a series of military coups in Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Guinea, with the region already grappling with growing instability fuelled by jihadist violence.

“These are influence and disinformation campaigns aimed at extending Captain Traoré’s personality cult into Burkina Faso’s English-speaking neighbours,” said an American researcher who requested anonymity.

Pledge of Control

After taking power in September 2022, Traoré vowed to swiftly restore control in Burkina Faso, which continues to suffer from jihadist attacks linked to both Al-Qaeda and Islamic State.

Nearly three years on, such attacks persist — and have even intensified — claiming thousands of lives.

In the meantime, several military officers accused of plotting coups have been arrested. Alleged comments by former US Africa Command head General Michael Langley, claiming Traoré was using Burkina Faso’s gold reserves for personal protection, triggered widespread public outrage and protests.

Soldiers loyal to Burkina Faso junta leader Capt. Ibrahim Traoré gather outside the National Assembly in Ouagadougou [Courtesy/AP]

It was around this period that a surge of AI-generated videos glorifying Traoré began flooding social media.

“Information manipulation has become a strategic tool for maintaining power and legitimising the junta’s rule,” said a Burkinabè specialist in strategic communication, who spoke anonymously for safety reasons.

A ‘Digital Army’

Viral campaigns combining propaganda and AI content are being amplified by activists and English-speaking influencers — particularly those criticising Langley while celebrating Traoré.

Some appear to be capitalising on the trend for financial gain, while others are reportedly affiliated with the junta’s cyber propaganda unit, known as the Rapid Communication Intervention Battalions (BIR-C), the Burkinabè expert noted.

“They truly operate like a digital army,” the source explained, adding that the unit is led by a US-based activist, Ibrahima Maïga, and asserting there are no direct ties to Russian actors.

Nevertheless, the group’s anti-imperialist messaging — portraying Captain Traoré as a saviour of Burkina Faso and the African continent against Western neo-colonialism — aligns with Russian interests and is consequently amplified by Russian networks.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Burkina Faso’s interim President Ibrahim Traore at a past meeting [Courtesy/Reuters]

Russian Connections

According to the American researcher, “some reports have indeed identified Russian connections behind the recent escalation in disinformation efforts”, particularly those targeting English-speaking countries like Ghana and Nigeria.

“Destabilising Nigeria could have far-reaching effects across the region,” he warned.

Nigerian journalist Philip Obaji, who specialises in Russian influence campaigns, agreed, stating that media outlets in Burkina Faso and Togo have allegedly accepted payments from agents tied to Russia to disseminate such propaganda.

Meanwhile, the Burkinabè junta has expelled foreign journalists from the country, while domestic media outlets increasingly self-censor for fear of arrest — or, in some cases, forced deployment to the frontlines of the conflict against jihadists.

Although some within the Burkinabè diaspora have sought to challenge the junta’s narrative — including by amplifying reports of jihadist activity — commenting on or sharing such posts is deemed to constitute glorification of terrorism, a crime punishable by between one and five years in prison.

(AFP)

July 21, 2025
Saudi’s ‘Sleeping Prince’ Dies At 36

Prince Al-Waleed bin Khaled bin Talal Al Saud, widely referred to as Saudi Arabia’s “Sleeping Prince,” has passed away at the age of 36, nearly 20 years after slipping into a coma due to a car crash in London.

As reported by TheSunUK, the royal suffered a brain haemorrhage in 2005 while attending a military college in the United Kingdom. His death was confirmed on Saturday by his father, Prince Khaled bin Talal bin Abdulaziz.

“With hearts believing in Allah’s will and decree, and with deep sorrow and sadness, we mourn our beloved son: Prince Al-Waleed bin Khaled bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, may Allah have mercy on him, who passed away today,” the bereaved father shared on X.

After the accident, Prince Al-Waleed was moved to King Abdulaziz Medical City in Riyadh, where he remained in a coma for two decades under constant medical supervision and life support.

Despite consultations with numerous international medical experts and occasional signs of minimal physical response that sparked hope, he never regained consciousness.

Throughout the years, Prince Khaled remained steadfast in caring for his son and continually declined recommendations to discontinue life support.

Prince Al-Waleed’s extended condition captured widespread attention within Saudi Arabia and internationally, with many following his rare movements and responses with enduring hope.

July 20, 2025
Astronomer CEO Andy Byron Resigns After Viral Coldplay Concert Incident

Andy Byron, the chief executive of New York-based tech company Astronomer, has resigned from his role after he was spotted embracing an employee at a Coldplay concert, according to a LinkedIn post from the company on Saturday.

Astronomer’s board of directors accepted Byron’s resignation, according to the LinkedIn post, and will begin searching for its next CEO.

Following the viral video of Byron, alleged statements from Byron acknowledging the situation began to circulate online.

Astronomer said in an earlier LinkedIn post that Byron “has not put out any statement” and “reports saying otherwise are all incorrect.”

That statement also addressed the misidentification of a third person seen in the clip circulating on the internet in the day following the video’s release.

On Wednesday, Byron was seen with Kristin Cabot, the company’s chief people officer, on the “kiss cam” screen at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, before both ducked out of view.

“As stated previously, Astronomer is committed to the values and culture that have guided us since our founding. Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability, and recently, that standard was not met,” the company said Saturday.

The data operations company, which was founded in 2018, acknowledged that “awareness of our company may have changed overnight,” but its mission would continue to be focused on addressing data and artificial intelligence problems.

The company on Friday said Astronomer’s co-founder and chief product officer Pete DeJoy would serve as interim CEO.

Byron’s LinkedIn account is no longer public and he was removed from the company’s leadership page following the announcement, which now lists co-founder DeJoy as CEO.

Byron is still listed on the company’s website as a member of the board of directors.

July 19, 2025
DR Congo, M23 Armed Group Sign Ceasefire Deal

The Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda-backed armed group M23 signed a ceasefire deal on Saturday to end fighting that has devastated the country’s mineral-rich but conflict-torn east.

The truce was agreed in a Declaration of Principles signed by the two sides after three months of talks in the Qatari capital, Doha, which follows a separate Congolese-Rwandan peace deal signed in Washington last month.

“The Parties commit to uphold their commitment to a permanent ceasefire,” including refraining from “hate propaganda” and “any attempt to seize by force new positions”, said the agreement.

The M23, which seized vast swathes of territory in eastern DRC in a lightning offensive in January and February, had insisted on seeking its own ceasefire deal with Kinshasa, saying the Washington deal left out various “problems” that still needed to be addressed.

The African Union hailed the new deal as a “significant development”, saying: “This… marks a major milestone in the ongoing efforts to achieve lasting peace, security, and stability in eastern DRC and the wider Great Lakes region”.

Under the deal, the warring parties agreed to open negotiations on a comprehensive peace agreement.

The deal, which the two sides said aligns with the Washington agreement, also includes a roadmap for restoring state authority in eastern DRC.

– Full accord to follow –

Congolese government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said the deal took account of the DRC’s “red lines”, including “the non-negotiable withdrawal of the M23 from occupied areas followed by the deployment of our institutions”, including the national armed forces.

He said a comprehensive peace agreement would follow “in the coming days”.

The deal said the two sides had agreed to implement its terms by July 29 at the latest, and to start direct negotiations toward a permanent agreement by August 8.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame and Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi are due to meet in the coming months to solidify the Washington peace deal, whose terms have not yet been implemented.

Questions remain over an expected side deal on economic issues after US President Donald Trump boasted of securing mineral wealth in the vast central African nation.

Tshisekedi said in April that he had discussed a deal for access to the DRC’s mineral wealth with US special envoy Massad Boulos.

Previous ceasefire agreements for eastern DRC have collapsed in the past.

Neighbouring Rwanda denies providing military backing to the M23, but UN experts say that the Rwandan army played a “critical” role in the group’s offensive, including combat operations.

Rich in natural resources, especially lucrative minerals, eastern DRC has been wracked by conflict for more than three decades, creating a humanitarian crisis and forcing hundreds of thousands of people from their homes.

Thousands were killed in the M23 offensive earlier this year, which saw the group capture the key provincial capitals of Goma and Bukavu.

The front line has stabilized since February, but fighting was still breaking out regularly between the M23 and multiple pro-government militias.

(AFP)

July 19, 2025
Why The Epstein Case Looms Large in MAGA World

When Jack Posobiec walked into the Department of Justice in Washington, DC last February, he thought he would finally get some answers about Jeffrey Epstein.

But when he and other MAGA supporters were given essentially just rehashed, already-public material – and when the government put a damper on the release of any new information this July – they balked.

“We were all told more was coming. That answers were out there and would be provided. Incredible how utterly mismanaged this Epstein mess has been. And it didn’t have to be,” Posobiec posted on social media on 7 July.

Now, Donald Trump is finding it hard to shake loose the conspiracy theories that have animated his base since he first broke through into Republican politics a decade ago.

Jack Posobiec is a vocal MAGA commentator with millions of followers

Posobiec, who emerged from the fringes of the internet in 2016 when he spread false rumours about a child abuse ring based in a Washington DC restaurant – a conspiracy theory that became known as Pizzagate – is just one of many MAGA die-hards who believes officials are hiding key truths about Epstein’s life and death.

The disgraced financier and convicted sex offender died by suicide in a New York prison cell in 2019 while he was awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges.

On a recent podcast hosted by Breitbart News editor Alex Marlow, Posobiec said the MAGA base see this case as shorthand for the thorough rot of the so-called “deep state”.

“It’s not that they care about Epstein personally,” he said. “It’s that they care that there’s this optic that Epstein was somehow involved with a shadowy system that actually has control over our government, control over our institutions, control of our lives, and really is a ruling power over us.”

Over the years, some have claimed that government officials possess files on Epstein that reveal sordid details, including that a “client list” exists with notable names on it who may have participated in some Epstein’s alleged crimes.

Trump has, in the past, played to that crowd. During last year’s election campaign, he said he would have “no problem” releasing Epstein case files, and after the election directly answered a question about whether he would “declassify” the files by saying: “Yeah, yeah, I would.”

Conspiratorial thinking has been a part of President Trump’s movement from the outset. His entry into the once-crowded world of Republican Party politics a decade ago came as he amplified the false theory that Barack Obama wasn’t born in the United States.

Now, however, the world of conspiracy is biting back.

Epstein’s crimes are real and horrific, and there remains the possibility that further information could emerge about them.

But they have also become subsumed by grander narratives – Pizzagate, and later QAnon, the sprawling interactive conspiracy theory that swamped the internet during Trump’s first term, pushing the idea that the highest echelons of society were controlled by a child-abusing elite cabal. The conspiracy theory spread through cryptic messages posted by a pseudonymous character called Q.

Mike Rothschild, author of several books on Trump-era conspiracies, including The Storm Is Upon Us: How QAnon Became a Movement, Cult and Conspiracy of Everything, said Epstein was mentioned in several such messages dating back to late 2017.

“Epstein is seen as one of the major players in a global ‘paedo elite’ that’s been trafficking children for centuries, and that Q and Trump were supposed to put an end to once and for all,” he told the BBC.

But after the justice department meeting in February, administration officials, including FBI director Kash Patel and his deputy Dan Bongino – who both stoked Epstein rumours for years – started to dampen talk of any major revelations.

Then, on 8 July, the Department of Justice and FBI said in a memo that Epstein’s cause of death was suicide and there was no evidence he had a “client list”.

The president seemed eager to move on, calling the Epstein case “sordid, but it’s boring” while also blaming Democrats for continuing to make it an issue.

Many Trump supporters are happy to follow the president’s lead. But a subset of extremely online MAGA supporters are still deeply passionate about the Epstein case.

Several MAGA voices, including former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, have alleged that Epstein was employed by the Israeli security services. And among more extreme elements of the movement, the conspiracy theories around Epstein sometimes veer into the antisemitic.

But Rothschild said most of the people in MAGA world are simply itching for more information – if it indeed exists – about the financier’s connections with Bill Clinton and other Democrats and Trump opponents. Epstein cultivated powerful people from both major US political parties.

The long history of MAGA’s Epstein obsession mean Trump is now finding it difficult to satisfy the conspiratorial elements in his base.

The story took another twist late on Thursday as The Wall Street Journal reported Trump had sent Epstein a “bawdy” birthday greeting in 2003. The pair’s one-time friendship is well-known, but Trump says he cut ties with Epstein long ago and filed a lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal’s parent company, its owner and two reporters following the report.

Meanwhile, Trump seemed more willing to indulge the conspiracy theorists, posting on Truth Social: “Based on the ridiculous amount of publicity given to Jeffrey Epstein, I have asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to produce any and all pertinent Grand Jury testimony, subject to Court approval.”

There is no doubt that conspiracy theories clearly have the power to motivate some of the president’s base. QAnon supporters were among some of the most visible participants at the January 2021 riot at the US Capitol.

In a survey conducted just before last November’s election, the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) think tank found that nearly a fifth of Americans agree with QAnon-linked statements, including most pointedly: “The government, media, and financial worlds in the US are controlled by a group of Satan-worshipping paedophiles who run a global child sex trafficking operation.”

Many see the Epstein case as a confirmation of those views, and the QAnon-believing population is heavily pro-Trump, the PRRI found, with 80% backing the president.

And with that support has come influence. Posobiec, the Pizzagate and Epstein conspiracy theorist who was at the DOJ meeting in February, reportedly accompanied Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on a recent trip to Europe.

He also has been photographed meeting with neo-Nazi’s, although he denies being a white nationalist himself.

He did not respond to the BBC’s request for comment.

He is adamant that Epstein’s case is connected to the wider conspiracy world.

“It ties to Covid, it ties to lockdowns, it ties to vaccines,” Posobiec said, on the Alex Marlow podcast, which was recorded at a conference last week where multiple speakers brought up Epstein and demanded further revelations.

“It ties to so many different buckets of the anger people are feeling.”

Rich Logis, a former longtime Trump supporter who broke ranks and started an organisation called Leaving MAGA, said that these outlandish theories serve “as ties that bind many within the MAGA community”, even amongst those who doubt them.

Logis says Trump’s dismissal this week of their concerns this left some supporters “feeling confused and stunned”.

“They expected Trump to keep his promise and reveal those who allegedly aided and abetted Epstein,” he said.

If the Epstein case presents a political quagmire for Trump, there is also a problem for his supporters, particularly the vocal influencer class, in figuring out where to funnel their rage. Targeting the president could backfire when it comes to their own followers.

“Many of the major influencers are furious,” Rothschild said, “and while they might not take it out on Trump, they might take it out on the GOP (Republican Party) in general.”

Trump has so far stood by Pam Bondi, his attorney general. But she, Patel and Bongino may increasingly feel the pressure if MAGA’s conspiracy wing continues to demand more files – whether or not they actually exist.

(BBC)

July 19, 2025
Top Policeman Shakes South Africa With Explosive Allegations About His Boss

A highly respected police officer has shaken South Africa’s government – and won the admiration of many ordinary people – with his explosive allegations that organised crime groups have penetrated the upper echelons of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s administration.

Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi did it in dramatic style – dressed in military-like uniform and surrounded by masked police officers with automatic weapons, he called a press conference to accuse Police Minister Senzo Mchunu of having ties to criminal gangs.

He also said his boss had closed down an elite unit investigating political murders after it uncovered a drug cartel with tentacles in the business sector, prison department, prosecution service and judiciary.

“We are on combat mode, I am taking on the criminals directly,” he declared, in an address broadcast live on national TV earlier this month.

South Africans have long been concerned about organised crime, which, leading crime expert Dr Johan Burger pointed out, was at a “very serious level”.

One of the most notorious cases was that of South Africa’s longest-serving police chief, Jackie Selebi, who was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2010 after being convicted of taking bribes from an Italian drug lord, Glen Agliotti, in exchange for turning a blind eye to his criminal activity.

But Gen Mkhwanazi’s intervention was unprecedented – the first time that a police officer had publicly accused a cabinet member, let alone the one in charge of policing, of having links to criminal gangs.

The reaction was instantaneous. Mchunu dismissed the allegations as “wild and baseless” and said he “stood ready to respond to the accusations”, but the public rallied around Gen Mkhwanazi – the police commissioner in KwaZulu-Natal – despite the province also being Mchunu’s political turf.

#HandsoffNhlanhlaMkhwanazi topped the trends list on X, in a warning shot to the government not to touch the 52-year-old officer.

“He’s [seen as] a no-nonsense person who takes the bull by the horn,” Calvin Rafadi, a crime expert based at South Africa’s University of Johannesburg, told the BBC.

South Africans have come to Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi’s support following his explosive claims

Gen Mkhwanazi first earned public admiration almost 15 years ago when, in his capacity as South Africa’s acting police chief, he suspended crime intelligence boss Richard Mdluli, a close ally of then-President Jacob Zuma.

Mdluli was later sentenced to five years in jail for kidnapping, assault, and intimidation, vindicating Gen Mkhwanazi’s view that he was a rotten apple within the police service.

Gen Mkhwanazi faced enormous pressure to shield Mdluli, with his political bosses assuming that the officer, aged only 38 at the time, would be “open to manipulation [but] they were grossly mistaken”, said Dr Burger.

Not only did he push ahead with Mdluli’s suspension, he also made claims of political interference during an appearance in Parliament.

While this move earned him brownie points with citizens, his public outburst did him no favours and he was axed barely a year into the job and shunted back into obscurity for a number of years.

The Richard Mdluli saga shaped public opinion on Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi in 2011

He made a dramatic comeback in 2018 when then-Police Minister Bheki Cele appointed him to the provincial police chief post, with one of his major tasks being to investigate killings in a province where competition for political power – and lucrative state tenders – is fierce.

It would be the disbandment of this investigative unit by Mr Mchunu that led to Gen Mkhwanazi’s explosive briefing a fortnight ago, complaining that 121 case dockets were “gathering dust” at the national police headquarters.

“I will die for this [police] badge. I will not back down,” Gen Mkhwanazi said, in line with his reputation of being a brave and selfless officer who cannot be captured by a corrupt political and business elite.

A survey by the Human Sciences Research Council (HSCRC) shows that public trust in the police stands at an all-time low of 22%,

The police force has long been plagued by issues of political interference, corruption and a seeming inability to effectively tackle the high crime levels.

The crisis has also reached the force’s upper structures, with about 10 different police chiefs since 2000 – one has been convicted of corruption and another currently faces criminal charges.

“The dysfunction is across all levels,” Gareth Newham of the Pretoria-based Institute for Security Studies (ISS) think-tank told the BBC, adding that “there are many dynamics within the police service that need to be fixed”.

But Gen Mkhwanazi’s tenure has not been without controversy. He was the subject of an investigation by the police watchdog, following a complaint that he interfered in a criminal investigation into a senior prisons official.

However, he was cleared of the charge last month, with the opposition Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) saying the complaint was “designed to derail a committed officer who has been unrelenting in his fight against crime and corruption”.

Gen Mkhwanazi’s team has also faced criticism for their heavy-handed approach towards criminal suspects, who are sometimes shot dead in confrontations with officers under his command.

Mr Newham said that with Gen Mkhwanazi seen as the “cop’s cop”, the public was willing to turn a blind eye to his officers’ alleged abuses because “they want to have a hero in the police”.

With Mchunu sent packing, South Africa will have a new acting police minister from next month – Firoz Cachalia, a law professor who comes from a renowned family of anti-apartheid activists, and served as minister of Community Safety in Gauteng, South Africa’s economic heartland, from 2004 to 2009.

In an interview with local TV station Newzroom Afrika, Cachalia said that Gen Mkhwanazi’s decision to go public with his explosive allegations was “highly unusual”, but if they turned out to be true then “we will be able to see in retrospect that he was perfectly justified in doing what he did”.

So Gen Mkhwanazi’s credibility is on the line – either he proves his allegations against Mchunu or he could fall on his sword.

But for now he has cemented his reputation as a brave police officer who took on his political bosses – twice.

(BBC)

July 19, 2025
Trump Sues Wall Street Journal, Rupert Murdoch Over Epstein Sex Bombshell

US President Donald Trump sued media magnate Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal on Friday over the publication of a bombshell report on his friendship with the infamous alleged sex trafficker of underage girls, Jeffrey Epstein.

The defamation lawsuit, filed in federal court in Miami, saw Trump trying to hit back at a scandal threatening to cause serious political damage.

The 79-year-old Republican had vowed to sue “the ass off” Murdoch and his newspaper after it reported that in 2003 the then-real estate magnate wrote a suggestive birthday letter to Epstein, illustrated with a naked woman and referring to their shared “secret.”

In another bid to dampen outrage among his own supporters about an alleged government cover-up of Epstein’s activities and 2019 death, Trump ordered his attorney general, Pam Bondi, to seek the unsealing of grand jury testimony from the prosecution against the disgraced financier.

In a filing in New York, Bondi cited “extensive public interest” for the unusual request to release what is typically secret testimony.

Epstein, a longtime friend of Trump and multiple high-profile men, was found hanging dead in a New York prison cell while awaiting trial on charges that he sexually exploited dozens of underage girls at his homes in New York and Florida.

The case sparked conspiracy theories, especially among Trump’s far-right voters, about an alleged international cabal of wealthy pedophiles. Epstein’s death — declared a suicide — before he could face trial supercharged the narrative.

When Trump returned to power for a second term this January, his supporters clamored for revelations about Epstein’s supposed list of clients. But Bondi issued an official memo in July declaring there was no such list.

The discontent in Trump’s “Make America Great Again” base poses a rare challenge to the Republican’s control of the political narrative in the United States.

It remained unclear whether a court would authorize the unsealing of the grand jury testimony.

But even if such material were made public, it was also unclear whether it would shed much, if any, light on the main questions raised in the conspiracy theories — particularly the existence and possible contents of an Epstein client list.

Asked Friday by reporters if he would pursue the broader release of information related to the case, Trump did not answer.

– Naked woman and signature –

Trump was for years close with Epstein and the two were photographed and videoed together at parties, although there has never been evidence of wrongdoing.

Jeffrey Epstein died by suicide in a New York prison in 2019 — but some supporters of Donald Trump believe he was murdered (HO)
HO/Florida Department of Law Enforcement/AFP

The Wall Street Journal article published late Thursday was damaging because it indicated a shared interest in sex.

The Journal reported that Trump had wished Epstein a happy 50th birthday in 2003 with a letter featuring a hand-drawn naked woman and referring to their “secrets.” The letter was reportedly among a slew of well-wishes from other rich and well-known figures for a birthday album.

A furious Trump said on his Truth Social platform that the purported letter was a “Scam” and “Fake.”

Trump also said that the Journal’s chief editor, Emma Tucker, had been told the letter was fake and that she shouldn’t publish it.

According to the Journal, the Trump letter contained the outline of a naked woman, apparently drawn with a marker, and had the future president’s signature “Donald” mimicking pubic hair. It ends, according to the newspaper, with “Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret.”

Trump reacted in a series of furious social media posts, saying “it’s not my language. It’s not my words.”

“I never wrote a picture in my life. I don’t draw pictures of women,” he said.

US media has published multiple drawings done by Trump in the past, with several dating to the early 2000s when he used his celebrity status to donate sketches for charity.

(AFP)

July 19, 2025
World Record Holder Ruth Chepngetich Suspended For Doping

Ruth Chepngetich, the women’s marathon world record holder, has been provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) after testing positive for a banned substance.

The diuretic hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) was detected in a sample collected from Kenyan Chepngetich on 14 March, the AIU said in a statement., external

Chepngetich, 30, broke the world record to win the Chicago Marathon in October 2024, clocking a time of two hours, nine minutes and 56 seconds.

HCTZ is used clinically to treat fluid retention and hypertension and is prohibited at all times under the World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) code.

Chepngetich’s time in Chicago surpassed Ethiopian Tigst Assefa’s previous record set at the 2023 Berlin Marathon by nearly two minutes.

Used commonly as a masking agent, HCTZ has a minimum reporting level of 20 nanograms per millilitre (ng/mL) in urine. Chepngetich’s sample showed 3,800 ng/mL.

Chepngetich was not provisionally suspended by the AIU at the time of notification on 16 April. However, on 19 April, she opted for a voluntary provisional suspension while the AIU’s investigation was ongoing.

“In the intervening months, the AIU continued its investigation and today issued a notice of charge and imposed its own provisional suspension,” AIU head Brett Clothier said.

July 19, 2025
Brazil Police Raid Home of Former President Bolsonaro, Accused of Plotting Coup

Brazilian police on Friday raided far-right ex-leader Jair Bolsonaro’s home, his son said, after a judge curtailed his freedom while he stands trial on coup charges that have vexed US President Donald Trump.

Son Eduardo Bolsonaro, a congressman who recently moved to the United States to lobby for his father, wrote on X that federal police carried out a “raid on my father’s home this morning.”

And he lashed out at Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes, a Bolsonaro adversary who on Friday ordered the ex-president to wear an electronic ankle bracelet and not leave his home at night.

Moraes, one of the judges in Bolsonaro’s trial for allegedly seeking to nullify leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva 2022 election victory, said the measures were necessary given the accused and his son’s “hostile acts” against Brazil.

This came after Trump announced a 50 percent tariff on the South American powerhouse for what he said was a “witch hunt” against his ally Bolsonaro.

Moraes, said Eduardo Bolsonaro, “has long abandoned any semblance of impartiality and now operates as a political gangster in robes, using the Supreme Court as his personal weapon.”

The judge was “trying to criminalize President Trump and the US government. Powerless against them, he chose to take my father hostage,” he added in a letter he signed as a “Brazilian congressman in exile.”

– ‘Supreme humiliation’ –

Bolsonaro described Morae’s order Friday as a “supreme humiliation.”

It also prohibited him from approaching foreign embassies or leaving his home between 7:00 pm and 6:00 am, on weekends or public holidays.

“I never thought about leaving Brazil, I never thought about going to an embassy, Bolsonaro insisted on emerging from the justice secretariat offices in Brasilia.

The former army captain denies he was involved in an attempt to wrest power back from Lula as part of an alleged coup plot that prosecutors say failed only for a lack of military backing.

After the plot fizzled, rioting supporters known as “Bolsonaristas” raided government buildings in 2023 as they urged the military to oust Lula. Bolsonaro was abroad at the time.

The case against Bolsonaro carries echoes of Trump’s failed prosecution over the January 6, 2021 attacks by his supporters on the US Capitol to try and reverse his election loss.

Both men have claimed to be victims of political persecution, and Trump has stepped in in defense of his ally, to the anger of Lula who has labeled the tariff threat “unacceptable blackmail.”

Washington also announced an investigation into “unfair trading practices” by Brazil, a move that could provide a legal basis for imposing tariffs on South America’s largest economy.

On Tuesday, prosecutors asked the trial judges of the Supreme Court to find Bolsonaro guilty of “armed criminal association” and planning to “violently overthrow the democratic order.”

The defense must still present its closing arguments, after which a five-member panel of judges including Moraes will decide the ex-president’s fate.

Bolsonaro and seven co-accused risk up to 40 years in prison.

He has repeatedly stated his desire to be a candidate in presidential elections next year, but has been ruled ineligible to hold office by a court that found him guilty of spreading misinformation about Brazil’s electoral system.

Moraes has repeatedly clashed with Bolsonaro and other rightwing figures he has accused of spreading fake news.

Last year, Moraes shut tech titan Elon Musk’s X network in Brazil for 40 days for failing to tackle the spread of disinformation shared mainly by Bolsonaro backers.

(AFP)

July 19, 2025
Libyan ICC War Crimes Suspect Arrested in Germany

German authorities have arrested a Libyan war crimes suspect accused of being a senior official at a notorious prison where inmates were routinely tortured and sometimes sexually abused, the International Criminal Court said on Friday.

Khaled Mohamed Ali Al Hishri, alleged to have been a member of the Special Deterrence Force armed group during Libya’s civil war, was arrested on Wednesday, German authorities said.

The ICC said he would remain in German custody, pending the completion of national proceedings.

Prosecutors at the ICC accuse Al Hishri of war crimes and crimes against humanity including murder, torture and rape from February 2015 until early 2020, a period during which he was allegedly one of the most senior officials in the Mitiga prison.

According to the prosecution, Mitiga was the largest detention facility in western Libya, where thousands of detainees were held in cramped cells without basic hygiene and were systematically subjected to brutal interrogations and torture.

Men and women held there also faced sexual violence including rape, the prosecution said.

It is a critical time for the ICC. Its prosecutor and four judges are facing U.S. sanctions in retaliation for an arrest warrant it issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza conflict. A number of European ICC member states, including Germany, have also criticised the warrant.

In addition to the sanctions, the ICC is also operating without its chief prosecutor Karim Khan, who stepped aside temporarily two months ago as he faced a probe by United Nations investigators into alleged sexual misconduct.

Khan denies the allegations, and his two deputy prosecutors are running the office in his absence.

In a statement on Friday, the office of the prosecutor said it expected Al Hishri to be transferred to The Hague and added that it stood ready to start his trial.

“This development is so needed at a time of unprecedented turmoil in the field of accountability generally and at the ICC specifically,” Kip Hale, an attorney who documented crimes in Libya for the UN, told Reuters.

“Yet, it is most important for the victims of the many atrocity crimes committed at Mitiga prison,” he added.

Italy arrested another Libyan ICC suspect, Osama Elmasry Njeem, in January but subsequently returned him to Tripoli, saying the arrest warrant contained mistakes and inaccuracies. He was also accused of crimes committed against detainees in Mitiga prison.

His release sparked outrage among Italian opposition parties and triggered a legal investigation into Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and several other government members.

The court has been investigating allegations of serious crimes committed in Libya since the outbreak of its civil war in 2011, following a referral by the UN Security Council.

(Reuters)

July 18, 2025
Snoop Dogg Now Co-Owner of Swansea City

Snoop Dogg has become a co-owner of Swansea City, a team in the Championship, marking an unexpected connection between rap and football, according to the Welsh club’s announcement.

The 53-year-old American artist joins former Real Madrid player and Croatia World Cup finalist Luka Modric in the club’s ownership.

Last week, Snoop Dogg made an unexpected appearance on the club’s social media platforms, showcasing the new home kit for the 2025-26 season, and the club revealed on Thursday that he has become an investor. His involvement follows the takeover of the club by American investors Brett Cravatt and Jason Cohen last November.

Swansea aims to leverage Snoop Dogg’s impressive 100 million-plus social media followers to enhance the club’s visibility as they strive to return to the Premier League, a feat they haven’t achieved since their relegation in 2018.

The owners of Swansea have indicated their desire to increase revenue, which would enable them to invest more in new players following the profit and sustainability regulations in British football.

“To borrow a phrase from Snoop’s back catalogue, this announcement is the next episode for Swansea City as we seek to create new opportunities to boost the club’s reach and profile,” Swansea’s owners said in a statement.

The rapper, whose real name is Calvin Broadus, expressed on the club’s website: “My passion for football is well known, but it is particularly special for me to become involved in club ownership with Swansea City.”

In April, Swansea announced that Modric, who recently joined AC Milan at the age of 39 after leaving Real Madrid, had acquired a stake in the club.

Swansea’s ownership noted in a statement: “To borrow a phrase from Snoop’s back catalogue, this announcement is the next episode for Swansea City as we aim to create new opportunities to enhance the club’s reach and visibility.”

Swansea’s Welsh rivals, Wrexham, have seen a remarkable rise to the Championship—the second tier of English football—since Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought the club in 2020.

July 18, 2025
Burkina Faso Military Rulers Scrap Electoral Commission, Taking Control Of Future Polls

Burkina Faso’s military rulers have disbanded the country’s electoral commission calling it a waste of money.

The interior ministry will handle elections in the future, state-run RTB TV reported.

Since seizing power in September 2022, the coup leaders have initiated sweeping reforms, including the postponement of elections which would lead to a return to civilian rule.

A nationwide vote was due last year, but the junta extended the period of transition to democracy until July 2029, allowing leader Capt Ibrahim Traoré to remain in power and free to contest the next presidential election.

The AFP news agency quotes Territorial Administration Minister Emile Zerbo as saying that the electoral commission was “subsidised” with around $870,000 (£650,000) a year.

Abolishing the commission would “reinforce our sovereign control on the electoral process and at the same time limit foreign influences”, he added.

After coming to power three years ago amid criticism that the civilian authorities were failing to deal with a growing Islamist insurgency, the military leaders have rejected the assistance of former colonial power France in favour of Russia.

Rights groups have since accused the army of targeting civilians in its attempt to quash the militants, as well as suppressing political activity and the freedom of expression.

There are also question marks over the effectiveness of the military operation. In the first half of 2025, jihadist group JNIM said it had carried out over 280 attacks in Burkina Faso – double the number for the same period in 2024, according to data verified by the BBC.

(BBC)

July 18, 2025
‪Netflix Profits Surge Off Ads, Higher Subscription Prices‬

Netflix reported stronger than expected second-quarter results Thursday, with profit jumping 45 percent year-over-year as the streaming giant benefited from subscription price increases and a growing advertising business.

Revenue climbed 16 percent to $11.1 billion in the quarter ended June 30, beating analyst estimates and the company’s own guidance, while net profit surged to $3.1 billion.

The company raised its full-year revenue forecast, noting that it expects revenue to be between $44.8 billion and $45.2 billion in 2025, up from a range of $43.5 billion to $44.5 billion.

Netflix highlighted strong performance from its content offers in the quarter, with major hits including the third season of “Squid Game,” which drew 122 million views.

It “has already become our sixth biggest season of any series in our history, with just a few weeks of viewing so far,” the company said in a statement.

Other standout titles included the third season of “Ginny & Georgia” with 53 million views and “Sirens” with 56 million views.

There was also the animated film “KPop Demon Hunters” with 80 million views, which became “one of our biggest animated films ever” and generated a soundtrack that topped music charts globally.

“Korean content continues to be popular with our audience,” the company said, pointing to the continued success of international programming that has become a hallmark of Netflix’s global strategy.

Netflix expressed optimism about the second half of 2025, highlighting an upcoming slate that includes the highly anticipated second season of “Wednesday,” the final season of “Stranger Things” and new films from major directors including Kathryn Bigelow and Guillermo del Toro.

The company has also announced plans to expand live programming with marquee boxing matches and NFL games, as it continues to diversify its content offerings beyond traditional on-demand entertainment.

Netflix shares have surged more than 40 percent year-to-date as investors have responded positively to the company’s shift toward profitability, which saw it crack down on password sharing and turn to ads for more revenue.

The company counted over 300 million subscribers last December, at the end of a particularly successful holiday season, when it gained almost 19 million new subscriptions.

But the company no longer discloses these figures, in order to focus on audience “engagement” metrics (time spent watching content).

In the quarter, Netflix continued to build out its advertising capabilities, saying that it expects to roughly double ads revenue in 2025, though it did not provide specific figures.

The service is forecasting $9 billion in revenues from its ad-based subscriptions by 2030.

“With another robust earnings showing in Q2, Netflix continues a winning streak going back several quarters and cements its place as the leader among streaming services,” said Emarketer analyst Paul Verna.

(AFP)

July 18, 2025
Donald Trump Diagnosed With Vein Issue After Leg Swelling and Hand Bruising

US President Donald Trump has been diagnosed with a common, benign vein condition, the White House said Thursday, following speculation about his heavily bruised hand and swollen legs.

The 79-year-old, who in January became the oldest person ever to assume the presidency, was found to have “chronic venous insufficiency,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.

The widely noted discolouration on Trump’s right hand, meanwhile, was “tissue irritation from frequent handshaking” and the use of aspirin as part of a standard cardiovascular treatment, she said.

Presidential physician Sean Barbabella said Trump “remains in excellent health” despite the condition, in a letter released by the White House.

The Republican frequently boasts of his , while the administration recently even posted an image depicting him as Superman.

Trump has alleged that Democrats covered up the mental and physical decline of his predecessor, Joe Biden, who was 82 when he left office in January.

Now Trump, who said after undergoing a routine medical check-up that he was in “very good shape,” has been forced to answer questions about his own health.

Leavitt’s revelations follow widespread online discussions about the president’s visibly swollen ankles, seen in particular at the recent FIFA Club World Cup final in New Jersey, and a bruised hand that often appeared to be covered with make-up.

“In recent weeks, President Trump noted mild swelling in his lower legs,” Leavitt said, adding that he was examined by White House doctors “out of an abundance of caution.”

Ultrasound tests “revealed chronic venous insufficiency, a benign and common condition, particularly in individuals over the age of 70.”

The condition involves damaged leg veins that fail to keep blood flowing properly.

Discoloration is seen on the hand of US President Donald Trump as he welcomes Bahrain’s Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad al-Khalifa to the White House at the West Wing entrance in Washington, DC, on July 16, 2025. [AFP]

Leavitt said Trump had asked her to share the diagnosis “in the effort of transparency.”

‘Pretty common’

Dr. Matt Heinz, an internist and hospitalist from Tucson, Arizona, told AFP that chronic venous insufficiency is “pretty common,” especially in older adults. It results from vein valves becoming less effective.

“It comes with age, gravity, and obesity doesn’t help if that’s a condition that people suffer from. I know the president’s been losing some weight, though, so I think that’s probably a little better,” he said.

The White House pressed home its message that the condition did not pose a serious risk to Trump, saying that “importantly, there was no evidence of deep vein thrombosis or arterial disease.”

Trump had “normal cardiac structure and function, no signs of heart failure, renal impairment or systemic illness,” added Leavitt.

Of the hand bruising issue, Leavitt said: “This is a well-known and benign side effect of aspirin therapy.”

For months, however, the dismissed questions about Trump’s bruised hand, saying that it was purely down to handshaking.

The health of US presidents has always been closely watched, but with the White House seeing its two oldest ever occupants since 2017, the scrutiny is now heavier than ever.

Biden’s health was a key issue in the 2024 election, and the then-president was forced to drop his campaign for a second term after a disastrous debate performance against Trump.

Republicans in the House of Representatives have issued subpoenas to several Biden aides, including his doctor, to get them to testify in an investigation into the Democrat’s mental fitness.

Biden was diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer in May.

As far as Trump was concerned, his condition was likely to be treated with compression socks, activity and maybe weight loss, rather than any “invasive” treatment such as prosthetic valves, Heinz said.

Swelling could indicate something more serious, such as heart issue,s “but I don’t have that information.”

(AFP)

July 18, 2025
She Took Me Back: ‪The Obamas Address Divorce Rumors

Former United States President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama have publicly addressed the swirling divorce rumours that have followed them for months, putting them to rest with trademark humour and warmth.

The Obamas joined Michelle’s brother Craig Robinson on his podcast, IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson, on Wednesday.

During the candid family chat, the couple dismissed speculation about their marriage breaking down and offered listeners a peek into their enduring bond.

“She took me back! It was touch and go for a while,” Barack joked, sparking laughter.

Michelle quickly added, “It’s my husband, y’all,” as her brother Craig ribbed them both: “It’s so nice to have you both in the same room together”. To this, Michelle replied, smiling, “I know, because when we aren’t, folks think we’re divorced”.

The light-hearted banter was the first time the Obamas have directly countered the persistent rumours, which intensified earlier this year when Michelle skipped the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter and did not attend President Donald Trump’s second inauguration.

Craig Robinson also recalled how deep the gossip runs — sharing how a stranger once cornered him at an airport asking urgently, “What did he (Barack Obama) do?”

The former President admitted he is usually unaware of the chatter: “These are the kinds of things I just miss. I don’t even know this stuff is going on. Then somebody mentions it and I’m like, what are you talking about?”

Michelle, however, gave a more heartfelt assurance. “There hasn’t been a single moment in our marriage when I thought about giving up on my man. We’ve been through tough times, but we’ve also had a lot of fun and had some amazing adventures. I’ve become a better person because of the man I married,” she added.

July 17, 2025
Samsung Boss Cleared of Fraud By South Korea’s Top Court

Samsung boss Lee Jae-yong has been cleared by South Korea’s top court of fraud charges, concluding a years-long legal battle over his role in a 2015 merger deal.

Lee, the grandson of Samsung’s founder and the de facto head of the company since 2014, had been accused of using stock and accounting fraud to try to gain control of the firm.

In its final verdict, the Supreme Court in Seoul upheld a not guilty verdict, after Lee was acquitted of all charges in two earlier trials.

The case drew widespread scrutiny of the technology giant, as the country grapples with corporate corruption scandals involving its powerful family-run conglomerates known as chaebols.

“Today, the Supreme Court has clearly confirmed through its final ruling that the merger of Samsung C&T and the accounting treatment of Samsung Biologics were lawful,” said Samsung’s lawyers on Thursday.

“We sincerely thank the court for its wise judgment following a thorough five-year trial process.”

Prosecutors accused Lee and his advisors of inflating the value of his pharmaceutical firm, Samsung Biologics, through fraudulent accounting.

They argued that the higher value allowed him to buy a larger share of a key Samsung subsidiary in a 2015 merger deal, which secured his succession.

Prosecutors also said the merger was designed to shift control of the company from Lee’s father, Lee Kun-hee. His father, who faced legal troubles of his own, suffered a heart attack in 2014 and died in 2020.

The younger Lee was first arrested in 2017 for bribing an advisor to former President Park Geun-hye to smooth his succession at Samsung.

Over the course of his legal problems, he had separate jail terms cut short – one due to a special presidential pardon when he was on parole from prison.

At the time, the government said the leader of the country’s biggest company was needed to spearhead South Korea’s economic recovery in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In 2024, a district court cleared Lee of all charges linked to the merger worth around $8bn (£5.97bn) of two of its subsidiaries.

Lee was cleared again after prosecutors appealed the case in the High Court.

The legal cases over the past decade have added to Samsung’s troubles as it struggled with intensifying competition.

Samsung Electronics, which has major operations making smartphones and computer chips, has been facing declining sales in recent years.

Last year during a trial, Lee acknowledged that Samsung faces major challenges.

“The reality facing [Samsung] is harder than ever, but I will overcome and take a step forward,” he said.

US President Donald Trump’s tariffs are another potential hurdle for Samsung, which exports a large number of products to America.

The court’s decision was welcomed by the country’s business community.

The Federation of Korean Industries said in a statement that the ruling will allow swift decisions at the top of Samsung, which will help the economy navigate trade turmoil with the US.

July 17, 2025