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The decision to charge Raul Castro is grimly reminiscent of the run-up to Trump's military operation in Venezuela. Meanwhile, the Cuban people are suffering needlesslyThe US war machine has turned its sights on Cuba. Marco Rubio, the Cuban-American secretary of state who has long craved the fall of the island's communist government, made that clear again last week. While professing a preference for a negotiated settlement", he said the chances of a deal were not high". A couple of months ago, I saw up close the economic devastation already inflicted by decades of US siege - and, since January, by a crippling oil blockade introduced by Donald Trump.The US has now charged the country's former president Raul Castro with conspiracy to kill US nationals, four counts of murder and two counts of destruction of aircraft over the downing of two planes in 1996. The evidence points increasingly in one direction: it is all grimly reminiscent of the indictment of Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro, used to justify his kidnapping by US forces.Owen Jones is a Guardian columnist Continue reading...

Some are bright and cosy, others are starkly depressing - these images of rooms used to pump breast milk expose the sometimes grim reality of being a new mum in the US Continue reading...

US president calls on US ally to behave ... or else we'll have to blow them up' in casual aside during cabinet meetingDonald Trump has threatened to blow up" Oman if it fails to behave" in a casual aside during a cabinet meeting, as the US scrambles to reopen the strait of Hormuz.The US president made the threat after reports of talks between Iran and Oman about jointly charging a toll for ships passing through the crucial waterway, which has been all but closed since the start of the US-Israel war on Iran. Continue reading...

Military claims boat targeted in second deadly attack this week was travelling along a known smuggling routeThe US military attacked what it called a drug trafficking boat on Wednesday in the eastern Pacific, killing two men, officials said.It was the second deadly attack in as many days in the Trump administration offensive that began last September and has now left almost 200 people dead. Rights groups say the attacks could amount to extrajudicial killings. Continue reading...

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Officials said to be examining whether Carroll committed perjury in 2022 deposition tied to lawsuits against presidentThe Trump administration has opened a criminal investigation into E Jean Carroll, the writer who accused the president of sexual assault, according to news reports.Prosecutors, the New York Times and CNN reported on Wednesday, are looking into whether Carroll, 82, committed perjury in a 2022 deposition during her civil lawsuits against Trump, in which she said she did not accept outside financial support for her legal battles. Continue reading...

State's governor looks to thwart US president's plan to divert money to allies, including January 6 riotersCalifornia governor Gavin Newsom is looking to thwart Donald Trump's $1.776bn anti-weaponization fund" by imposing a 100% tax on any payout received by state residents.In May, the Department of Justice (DoJ) announced a fund to compensate alleged victims of lawfare and weaponization". It's unclear who qualifies under this category. Continue reading...

Trump claims Iran intends to wait until US midterm elections in the hope of getting better deal - key US politics stories from Wednesday, 27 MayDonald Trump has accused Iran of trying to stall on making a peace agreement by running down the clock before November's US midterm elections in the hope of getting better terms.They thought they were going to outwait me, you know, we'll out-wait him, he's got the midterms'," the US president told a meeting of his cabinet at the White House on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Two people dead and another nine missing and presumed dead after paper mill tank holding chemicals implodedThe death toll from the tank-rupture incident at a Washington state paper mill on Tuesday rose to two, with nine people still missing and presumed dead, authorities said.The Longview fire department said in a statement on Wednesday afternoon that one person who was transported to the hospital following the disaster at Nippon Dynawave Packaging Co on Tuesday morning had died. Continue reading...

In CBS interview set to air Sunday, former first lady says she was frightened' during husband's debate with TrumpJill Biden said she had been frightened" as she watched Joe Biden's faltering performance during his 2024 presidential debate, and thought her husband might have suffered a stroke.I was frightened, because I had never, ever seen Joe like that before or since. Never," the former first lady said in a 30-second clip of an interview with CBS, set to air on Sunday. Continue reading...

Anthony Odiong, 57, charged in Texas with exploiting status to pursue sex with vulnerable female congregantsA Roman Catholic priest replied we are but men" when confronted after the son of a woman to whom he was providing spiritual guidance caught the clergyman having sex with his mother, according to court testimony in Texas on Wednesday.That version of events emerged at the second day of the trial of Anthony Odiong, who has been criminally charged with illicitly abusing his status as a clergyman to pursue sex with spiritually vulnerable female congregants. Continue reading...

Markwayne Mullin, DHS secretary, said move would come in response to protests outside ICE facility in New JerseyThe Trump administration has threatened to stop processing international flights in major cities around the country as a reaction to protests against immigration enforcement.Markwayne Mullin, the homeland security secretary, said during an interview with Fox News on Tuesday that the administration is drawing up plans" to take the action, in response to days of clashes at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center in New Jersey. Continue reading...

Across California, ballots sit unopened as voters struggle to decide who to back as their chosen candidate for governor. US senior political correspondent Lauren Gambino tells Kai Wright that the race has been a head-scratcher for Democrats. Despite a huge field of candidates, the race has been mired in scandal and few have managed to cut through. What does this say about the future of the Democratic party, and does this leave an opening for Republicans in the Golden state?

The satellite visuals reveal vast burn scars after blaze tore through rare ecosystems on Santa Rosa IslandImages from a Nasa satellite showcased the devastating scars left behind by a wildfire that consumed roughly a third of Santa Rosa Island, one of the five islands that make up Channel Islands national park off the southern California coast.Taken on 20 May, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (Modis) took the false-color image of the burn area, showing swaths of blackened land. Continue reading...

Federal agents deployed chemical irritants on protesters and journalists amid detainees' hunger and labor strike

A day after ICE officials pepper-spray senator, tensions ramp up outside facility on fifth day of hunger and labor strike

Refunds came after the supreme court ruled Trump overstepped his authority in enacting sweeping tariffsUS importers are expected to receive $85bn in tariff refunds after the supreme court struck down Donald Trump's tariffs in February, according to US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the agency that collects tariffs.Importers and shippers have so far been refunded $20bn, according to court documents filed on Tuesday, with about $65bn more on the way. Continue reading...

Authorities have said they are still investigating the motive of the attack on Kerry Sheron, 69, by Thomas ButlerA southern California man has died after an assault last week in front of his San Diego area home, which was well known for its extensive collection of US flags and signs supporting Donald Trump.Authorities confirmed on Monday that Kerry Sheron, a 69-year-old US army veteran, died days after he was attacked on Wednesday outside his home in Escondido. Police have arrested Thomas Butler, a 32-year-old who media outlets have identified as a navy veteran, on multiple charges including attempted murder, elder abuse and battery. Continue reading...

Some experts criticize White House approach and say not allowing Americans to return to US hurts treatment effortsThe Trump administration is building a quarantine and treatment center in Kenya for Americans affected by the Ebola outbreak, instead of bringing them home.The White House on Wednesday confirmed that the US was setting up a facility in Kenya for Americans to quarantine after Ebola exposure in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Continue reading...

Civilians including children are among the thousands to have died in this war, yet the world is paying remarkably little attentionLebanon was an afterthought when Israel and the US were bombing Iran, and remained one when they stopped. It still appears to be one even as Washington and Tehran speak of peace. The US has suggested that a deal is within reach, and Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday that a return to war was unlikely, thoughprofound differences remain evident. Tehran says that Lebanon must be part of any agreement.Yet this week, Lebanon's supposed ceasefire looks more threadbare than ever, with Israel intensifying its offensive as Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to crush" Hezbollah. Israeli strikes killed 31 people on Tuesday alone, and on Wednesday the military ordered the evacuation of the entire city of Tyre. Its troops have pushed out of the buffer zone that it established in the south, which far-right ministers want to annex. Israel may be intensifying attacks before the US reins it in, or in the hope of destabilising the talks. War allows MrNetanyahu to dodge accountability at home. Domestic demands for continued attacks on Hezbollah are also growing, given the mounting threat from its drones to soldiers in Lebanon and residents of Israel's north.Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...

Sign up now! Sign up now! Sign up now? Sign up now!As a football newsletter whose entire raison d'etre is sending people emails they are desperate to receive and read, Football Daily is fully behind Mauricio Pochettino. The Argentinian has taken a leaf out of our tried-and-trusted playbook by electing to use the medium of email to let assorted soccerball players around the world know whether or not they'd been selected to play for Team USA USA USA at this summer's Geopolitics World Cup. His method of communication has been criticised in some quarters due to its lack of a personal touch for those who have not made the cut, with some American hacks saying those left out were at least owed an explanatory phone call from the Argentinian. Defending himself, Pochettino pointed out that as a player, he wouldn't have wanted to converse with a manager who had just cut him from an international squad because ... well, why would you bother?This is an extract from our daily football email ... Football Daily. To get the full version, just visit this page and follow the instructions. Continue reading...

The US president's backing of Maga extremists turns off the very voters Republicans need to win over in the midtermsDonald Trump gave it a minute.At 9.01pm it was confirmed that the Texas attorney general, Ken Paxton - a hardliner backed by the US president - had triumphed over the incumbent John Cornyn in the state's Republican primary runoff for the US Senate. By 9.02pm, Trump had started celebrating on social media. Continue reading...

A report found that Brian O'Hara probably interfered with investigation in what mayor called a breach of trust'The Minneapolis police chief, Brian O'Hara, resigned on Tuesday after a report found that he probably interfered with an investigation into alleged sexual misconduct.O'Hara stepped down after a meeting with the Minnesota city's mayor, Jacob Frey, who earlier this month nominated him to serve a second term after his appointment in 2022 to steady a police department still in turmoil after the murder of George Floyd two years earlier. Continue reading...

Donald Trump moves quickly to unite Republicans behind the Texas attorney general as Democrats eye rare opening

Randy Hubbs died and Nicole Klein was injured after the two collided during a group jump at West Plains SkydivingA skydiver was killed and another injured after the two collided midair during a group jump in Washington state, authorities said this week.The Adams county sheriff's office said in a statement on Monday that authorities were called on Sunday evening regarding reports that two skydivers were needing medical attention". Continue reading...

State attorneys general say their deputies were turned away and criticized the White House for politicizing' fraud issuesThree Democratic state attorneys general said their deputies were turned away from a roundtable hosted by JD Vance on Tuesday, sowing confusion about what the White House has billed as a bipartisan crackdown on fraud.After attorneys general - including New York's Letitia James, California's Rob Bonta and New Jersey's Jennifer Davenport - declined a last-minute invitation to participate in the event alongside their Republican counterparts, they said representatives from their offices travelled to Washington to attend , but were shut out. Continue reading...

Former president says disclosure of recordings tied to classified files inquiry would violate his privacyJoe Biden, the former president, has filed a lawsuit to try to prevent the justice department (DoJ) from releasing transcripts and audio of interviews that exposed his frequent memory lapses and helped derail his 2024 re-election campaign.The decade-old conversations with the author of his biography ended up in the hands of Robert Hur, the special counsel who was appointed to look into allegations Biden improperly handled classified documents. Continue reading...

After a glitzy roster reveal event in New York, the US begin their World Cup journey in the suburbs of Atlanta

US supreme court ruling could eliminate two majority-Black districts and entrench Republican control from Congress to county school boardsAlabama has long been considered the birthplace of the voting rights movement in America.During a peaceful voting rights demonstration in 1965, an Alabama state trooper shot and killed church deacon Jimmie Lee Jackson. In response, about 600 marchers set out from Selma, across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, toward the state capitol building in Montgomery to demand the right to vote. What met them on the other side - state troopers on horseback, billy clubs, teargas and a sheriff's posse - was broadcast that evening on national television. Continue reading...

We would like to hear from people who have been affected by the rule changeForeigners seeking to adjust their immigration status in the US to secure green cards will have to do so from outside the country via the state department, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said on Friday.The new rule marks the latest significant move by the Trump administration on immigration policy as the green card process had been unchanged for more than 60 years. Continue reading...

Paxton's win, despite his history of scandals, signals the president's enduring grip over the state. Plus, one sex educator on why she doesn't define sex at all Don't already get First Thing in your inbox? Sign up hereGood morning.Ken Paxton, the scandal-ridden Texas attorney general who was backed by Donald Trump, beat the incumbent, John Cornyn, in the Republican primary runoff for senator, signaling how much sway the president still has in the deep red state.And Paxton's new opponent? As a Democrat, Talarico faces long odds in Texas, but he has built a groundswell of popularity through his message of peace and populism. Ahead of the primary, Cristina Tzintzun Ramirez, a former Democratic candidate for the Senate and a partner at Ascend Strategy Labs, a social justice consulting firm in Austin, said: If Ken Paxton becomes the candidate, Talarico has a shot."How much has funding declined? The WFP's funding was cut last year by a third, with the US, the largest donor by far, decreasing its contribution by more than half.How does the US-Israel war on Iran affect famine? Most directly, it drives up food prices, mostly because of transport costs, but some aid routes have also been blocked. Continue reading...

Impunity breeds popular cynicism, and cynicism undergirds autocracyAs his mentor Roy Cohn counseled, Donald Trump never admits wrongdoing or apologizes. But he occasionally evinces something resembling a qualm. In October, considering renewing claims against the government for $230m in compensation for federal investigations against him, he reflected on his own appointees deciding on the payout and him signing off on it. It sort of looks bad, I'm suing myself, right?" he said. So, I don't know."That month, when he demolished the White House East Wing to build his ballroom, he made it sort of look good by vowing that the now $400m project would be privately funded. It went without saying that the donors would expect gratitude in the form of government contracts or favorable regulatory rulings. Continue reading...

The Bananas started as baseball's most eccentric attraction. Now they are building something that increasingly resembles a traveling entertainment universe of their ownThe Savannah Bananas brand has, arguably, become bigger than the Savannah Bananas themselves. What would seem to be a crucial component of the Bananas experience - the actual team - is increasingly absent from games featuring the showboating version of baseball that the Bananas themselves popularized. By all accounts, however, fans don't care.When the Guardian last examined the Bananas in 2023, the organization had only just abandoned its amateur roots in collegiate summer baseball to focus strictly on bananaball", a funhouse-mirror reflection of baseball that focuses on trick plays, player antics and crowd engagement. At the time, bananaball was restricted to two teams - the Bananas and their forever foes, the Party Animals - who seemed prepared to follow a well-trodden path to long-term, if moderate success. Continue reading...

The 1994 World Cup transformed the domestic game in the US. MLS will hope a similar change can give the league a much-needed joltIn the thinking of the people who put them on, mega-events can never just be their own thing. They must leave a legacy, or, if possible, a Legacy. Remake the landscape; alter the course of history; change the whole world, if that isn't too much to ask.Most World Cups don't really leave much of one, once the dust has settled. Or if they do, it's a legacy of white elephant stadiums that burden the host nation for many years. The last World Cup in the United States, played in 1994, really did leave something tangible and positive behind: Major League Soccer, the creation of which was a condition for hosting the tournament.Leander Schaerlaeckens is the author of The Long Game: U.S. Men's Soccer and Its Savage, Four-Decade Journey to the Top, or Thereabouts, which is out now. He teaches at Marist University. Continue reading...

The Park Slope Food Coop boycott vote follows tensions and rifts among members and larger communityMembers of a storied food co-operative in Brooklyn have voted to boycott about a dozen products from Israel and Israeli settlements in occupied Palestine - capping years of contentious debate over a conflict half a world away that has threatened to rip apart a landmark institution for liberal New Yorkers.The Park Slope Food Coop vote, which took place Tuesday night during a three-hour virtual meeting attended by about 7,000 of the co-operative's 17,000 members, follows months of dueling campaigning that one local rabbi opposed to the boycott described as a proxy war". The boycott is supposed to impact some brands of tahini, peppers and persimmons as well as other products. Sixty-seven percent of participants voted in favor of the boycott. Continue reading...

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Nearly 200 people killed in Trump administration's deadly campaign as strikes draw widespread condemnationThe US military launched another strike Tuesday on a vessel suspected of transporting drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing one man and leaving two survivors.Video posted on social media by US Southern Command shows a boat speeding through water before exploding into flames. Southern Command said it immediately notified the US Coast Guard to activate the Search and Rescue system for the survivors". Continue reading...

Christian Menefee wins 18th district race after Republican gerrymandering carved up Green's reliably Democratic seatChristian Menefee, a freshman Democratic US representative, beat veteran congressman Al Green on Tuesday in a fierce runoff that was the product of Republican gerrymandering.Last year, the Republican-dominated Texas legislature unveiled a congressional map designed to flip seats in the GOP's favor. Donald Trump had urged the state's lawmakers to safeguard the party's congressional majority. Continue reading...

Race had wide implications for Trump's strength heading into midterms, where Paxton will face Democratic candidate James TalaricoKen Paxton, the Donald Trump-backed Texas attorney general, triumphed over incumbent John Cornyn in the Republican primary runoff for senator. His victory signals that even a scandal-plagued candidate can win over the deep red state with the support of the president.After a public service career lasting more than four decades and 18 consecutive campaign wins, tonight we've come up short in this primary runoff," Cornyn said shortly after the race was called. I've always supported the GOP ticket. I intend to do so again this general election." Continue reading...

According to the fire department, incident occurred when a tank containing white liquor, a chemical solution, ruptured

President says federal government must retain regulatory authority as concerns grow over addictive' platformsDonald Trump wrote in a social media post on Tuesday it was critically important" that the federal government retain control over the multibillion-dollar prediction market industry, as he cast a critical eye on state attempts to impose new restrictions.The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) should retain exclusive authority" over prediction markets, Trump said. Continue reading...

Despite attack that killed four Iranian soldiers, Tehran has not pulled out of talks that were continuing under the joint mediation of Pakistan and Qatar- key US politics stories from Tuesday 26 May at a glanceA proposed peace agreement between Iran and the US seemed to remain on the table on Tuesday despite US bombing Iranian targets.The Iranian foreign ministry denounced the US attack - aimed at missile launchers and efforts to lay fresh mines in the strait of Hormuz - as an act of bad faith" and a definitive violation of the ceasefire" and said it would not leave aggression unanswered. But it did not pull out of the talks that were continuing under the joint mediation of Pakistan and Qatar. Continue reading...

The venue is expected to host a mixed martial arts fight on 14 June to also mark the US's 250th anniversary

Attorney, speechwriter and confidante of King was involved in some of US civil rights movement's key momentsClarence B Jones, a former speechwriter and confidant of Martin Luther King Jr who helped pen his famous I have a dream" speech, has died. He was 95.Jones died on Friday at a senior living community in the San Francisco Bay Area suburb of Cupertino, according to a statement released by family members, who were at his side. Continue reading...

Bid to remake maps and reduce Democratic voters in Jim Clyburn's district before midterms fails in state senateRepublican lawmakers in South Carolina have defied Donald Trump and rejected a breakneck bid to redraw the state's congressional districts ahead of November's US midterm elections.In a 26-18 vote, state senators rejected mid-decade redistricting in a special session of the legislature, ending hope in Washington to split up congressman Jim Clyburn's district and add to the list of gerrymandered gains for Republicans. Continue reading...