approves

The DOJ argued that the federal judge did not have the authority to make the decision.

A United States judge in Texas has approved the Department of Justice’s request to dismiss a criminal case against Boeing despite his objections to the decision.

On Thursday, Judge Reed O’Connor of the US District Court in Fort Worth dismissed the case, which will allow the plane maker to avoid prosecution over charges related to two deadly 737 MAX crashes: the 2018 Lion Air crash in Indonesia and the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines crash.

O’Connor said he disagreed with the Justice Department’s argument that ending the case served the public interest, noting that he lacked the authority to overrule it.

The government argued Boeing has improved, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is providing enhanced oversight. Boeing and the government argued O’Connor had no choice but to dismiss the case.

He said the deal with the aerospace giant “fails to secure the necessary accountability to ensure the safety of the flying public”.

In September, O’Connor held a three-hour hearing to consider objections to the deal, questioning the government’s decision to drop a requirement that Boeing face oversight from an independent monitor for three years and instead hire a compliance consultant.

O’Connor said the government’s position is “Boeing committed crimes sufficient to justify prosecution, failed to remedy its fraudulent behaviour on its own during the [deferred prosecution agreement], which justified a guilty plea and the imposition of an independent monitor, but now Boeing will remedy that dangerous culture by retaining a consultant of its own choosing”.

The DOJ first criminally charged Boeing for the crashes in January 2021, but also agreed to deferred prosecution in the case.

The plane maker was charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud the US. Courts found that Boeing deceived the FAA about what is called the manoeuvring characteristics augmentation system, which affects flight control systems on the aircraft.

“Boeing’s employees chose the path of profit over candor by concealing material information from the FAA concerning the operation of its 737 Max airplane and engaging in an effort to cover up their deception,” acting Assistant Attorney General David P Burns of the DOJ’s criminal division said in a statement at the time.

O’Connor said in 2023 that “Boeing’s crime may properly be considered the deadliest corporate crime in US history”.

Under the non-prosecution deal, Boeing agreed to pay an additional $444.5m into a crash victims’ fund to be divided evenly per victim of the two fatal 737 MAX crashes, on top of a new $243.6m fine and more than $455m to strengthen the company’s compliance, safety, and quality programmes.

On Wall Street, Boeing’s stock was up by 0.2 percent as of 11am in New York (16:00 GMT).

Oct. 31 (UPI) — Ohio’s representatives approved a bi-partisan redistricting map that might help Republicans gain more seats, but Democrats OK’d the plan because the others offered were worse for them.

The Ohio Redistricting Commission approved the measure unanimously Friday.

“Coming to an agreement that is in the best interest of the state, not just the most vocal elements of either party, I think is some of the toughest things that we can do as elected leaders in 2025,” said state Rep. Brian Stewart, R-Ashville, the Columbus Dispatch reported.

But Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio said it was the best option among bad ones.

“Facing this impossible challenge with no certain path to preserve a fair map, we worked toward compromise,” said Antonio, D-Lakewood.

Democrats faced a Friday deadline because the Ohio constitution allows Republicans to create a map without Democrats in November. They were also concerned about a case before the U.S. Supreme Court on the Voting Rights Act.

Democratic Rep. Emilia Sykes of Akron will get a slightly more favorable northeast Ohio district, but it will still be very competitive, Punchbowl News reported.

Toledo Rep. Marcy Kaptur‘s district will be more difficult to win, but not impossible. She’s the longest-serving representative in the United States, and she won a close race in 2024. Her district chose President Donald Trump by seven points.

“Let the Columbus politicians make their self-serving maps and play musical chairs, I will fight on for the people and ask the voters for their support next year,” she wrote on X.

Cincinnati Rep. Greg Landsman also saw his chances at re-election diminished.

Ohio House Minority Leader Dani Isaacsohn, D-Cincinnati, said all of Ohio’s Democratic congresspeople could still win.

“This is a district Greg Landsman can and will win in, and that’s what the people of Cincinnati deserve,” Isaacsohn said.

Ohio had a failed ballot measure in 2024 that would have put residents in charge of making district maps.

“There’s a lot of anger and frustration in this room, and it’s not just the result of this most recent betrayal. The anger and frustration has been years in the making,” said Mia Lewis, associate director at Common Cause Ohio, the Dispatch reported.

“You have shown all of us, all of Ohio, that politicians cannot be involved in drawing district lines.”

Jen Miller, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Ohio, said the people were denied being part of the process. “Republican and Democratic voters feel like their parties sold them out — and they’re both right.”

The NBA board of governors unanimously approved Mark Walter’s bid to buy a majority stake in the Lakers on Thursday, the league announced, marking a major shift for one of L.A.’s most significant sports teams.

The Lakers had been a family-run team since Dr. Jerry Buss bought the franchise in 1979. When he died in 2013, control went into a family trust with daughter Jeanie Buss acting as the team’s governor. The Buss family built the team into one of the most recognizable brands in sports, eventually attracting a record-breaking $10-billion valuation. While the sale was finalized, Jeanie Buss will be the team’s governor for at least five years after the transaction officially closes, the league announcement stated.

“The Los Angeles Lakers are one of the most iconic franchises in all of sports, defined by a history of excellence and the relentless pursuit of greatness,” Walter said in a statement released by the team. “Few teams carry the legacy and global influence of the Lakers, and it’s a privilege to work alongside Jeanie Buss as we maintain that excellence and set the standard for success in this new era, both on and off the court.”

Walter, who also heads the group that owns the Dodgers and the Sparks, was seated next to Buss at the Lakers’ season opener on Oct. 21. Walter and Todd Boehly have been minority stakeholders in the Lakers since 2021 when they bought 27% of the franchise.

To represent the team as a governor, a minority owner must have at least 15% stake of their team. Buss will continue to oversee day-to-day team operations for the foreseeable future, the Lakers announced.

“Over the past decade, I have come to know Mark well — first as a businessman, then as a friend and now as a colleague,” Buss said in a statement. “He has demonstrated time and time again his commitment to bringing championships to Los Angeles, and, on behalf of Lakers fans everywhere, I am beyond excited about what our future has in store.”

During a recent Lakers game, when the camera panned to Buss and Walter sitting courtside, Buss held one finger up to show off a gaudy Lakers championship ring. In 2020, she became the first female controlling owner to win an NBA championship as the Lakers collected their 17th title.

With 11 championships under the Buss family’s watch, the Lakers became a global sports phenomenon with stars including Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant plus the latest wave of LeBron James and Luka Doncic. When Doncic signed a three-year, $165-million contract extension in August, the 26-year-old superstar thanked both Walter and Buss for their belief in his talent.

If bill is signed into law, Portugal would join several European countries which already have full or partial bans.

Portugal has approved a bill to ban face veils used for “gender or religious motives” in most public spaces that was proposed by the far-right Chega party and targets burqas and niqabs worn by Muslim women.

Under the bill, approved by parliament on Friday, proposed fines for wearing face veils in public would range from 200 to 4,000 euros ($234-$4,670). Forcing someone to wear one would be punishable with prison terms of up to three years.

Face veils would still be allowed in aeroplanes, diplomatic premises and places of worship.

According to local media reports, the bill is now set to be discussed in the parliamentary committee on Constitutional Affairs, Rights, Freedoms, and Guarantees – a body responsible for reviewing legislation related to constitutional matters.

If signed into law, it would put Portugal alongside European countries, including France, Austria, Belgium and the Netherlands, which already have full or partial bans.

President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa could still veto the bill or send it to the Constitutional Court for checks.

During Friday’s parliamentary session, Chega leader Andre Ventura was confronted by several female lawmakers from left-wing parties who opposed the bill, but it passed with support from the centre-right coalition.

“We are today protecting female members of parliament, your daughters, our daughters, from having to use burqas in this country one day,” Ventura said.

In a post on X, he wrote: “Today is a historic day for our democracy and for the safeguarding of our values, our identity and women’s rights.”

Andreia Neto, a lawmaker from the ruling Social Democratic Party, said before the vote: “This is a debate on equality between men and women. No woman should be forced to veil her face.”

Two out of the 10 parties in parliament abstained from the vote – the People-Animals-Nature party, and the Together for the People party, according to local media reports.

The parties have suggested that the proposal incited discrimination.

Only a small minority of Muslim women in Europe cover their faces, and in Portugal such veils are very rare.

But full-face coverings such as niqabs and burqas have become a polarising issue across Europe, with some arguing that they symbolise gender discrimination or can represent a security threat and should be outlawed.

Israel’s government has approved the plan ‘for the release of all captives’, fighting in Gaza to stop within 24 hours.

In the wake of mysterious drone incursions that forced the recent shutdowns of the Munich Airport, the German cabinet approved a measure to give police the authority to shoot down uncrewed aerial systems (UAS) posing a danger. The moves mark a big difference in how German authorities approach counter-drone defense, which has previously been limited to detection, not taking them down. The changes come as several European nations have been experiencing a rash of drone incursions, which Germany’s chancellor says are part of Russia’s ramped-up hybrid war efforts, a claim Moscow denies.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz took to social media on Wednesday to explain the need to update German law to meet the new drone threats.

“Drone incidents threaten our safety,” said Merz. “We will not allow that. We are strengthening the powers of the federal police so that drones can be detected and intercepted more quickly in the future.”

The new law would give police permission to take down drones that “violated Germany’s airspace, including shooting them down in cases of acute threat or serious harm,” Reuters reported. The measure awaits parliamentary approval.

In addition to kinetic counter-drone measures, the new law gives German authorities permission to use “lasers or jamming signals to sever control and navigation links,” the news outlet noted. The measure extends to all domains.

“In order to combat a threat posed by unmanned aerial systems on land, in the air or on water, the federal police may deploy appropriate technical means against the system, its control unit or its control connection if other means of combating the threat would be futile or otherwise significantly more difficult,” the new law states.

All this comes as Germany has seen a 33% percent increase in the number of drone-related air traffic disruptions this year. There were 172 such events between January and the end of September 2025, up from 129 in the same period last year and 121 in 2023, according to data from Deutsche Flugsicherung (DFS).

The new authority to take out drones is one of several measures Germany is taking in the wake of the incursions. 

German police are creating a new counter-drone unit to deal with the problem. To build up the expertise of this unit, German officials will talk to countries like Israel and Ukraine that have significant experience creating and fighting off drones.

Germany is also working out a system where the police and military would divide up counter-drone efforts, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt explained.

“Police would deal with drones flying at around tree-level, whereas more powerful drones should be tackled by the military,” Dobrindt said.

Germany has debated changing its Federal Police laws for years. They were last updated in 1994.

Discussion about how to defend against drones in many ways mirrors concerns expressed in the U.S., where current federal law restricts actions and collateral damage concerns limit how the military can respond. As a result, the U.S. military is not currently pursuing the use of lasers, microwaves, missiles or guns. The recent expiration of drone interception authorities provided to the departments of Homeland Security and Justice adds further restrictions to the ability of U.S. agencies to mitigate incursions.

For Germany, the issue is even more challenging, because by law, its military is a defensive force “whose role is explicitly limited to protecting the state from external military threats in war-like scenarios,” the German DW news outlet noted. Even in the case of the current drone problems, it is unclear if any pose a military threat or create a situation akin to war. Given concerns that a wider war could erupt, German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall is awaiting a multi-billion-dollar order from the German Armed Forces for its Skyranger anti-aircraft gun system, which has major counter-drone capabilities. These systems could also be used to actively defend sites from drone incursions during peacetimes under the new law, although their use would have to be tightly controlled and it would be only be applicable at all in certain situations. Regardless, the Skyranger deal is indicative of how serious Germany is beginning to take the drone problem.

As with the U.S., there are huge concerns in Germany about civilian harm from counter-drone systems, especially in heavily populated areas. Following reports of drone incursions over several European nations, Germany dispatched the German frigate FGS Hamburg to Copenhagen to help protect European Union meetings. It was one of several deployments of European counter-drone measures to the Danish capital.

Though the Hamburg is armed with missiles and guns, a spokesperson of the Bundeswehr joint force command told us prior to the EU meetings that the ship’s responses to any drone incursions would be limited to detection efforts by its sensors.

“The principle of proportionality and to minimize collateral damage are two important aspects we always keep in mind,” the spokesperson said in response to our questions about the Hamburg’s rules of engagement for its weapons systems, should a drone or drones be detected.

The increasing concern about protecting NATO’s skies began after more than a dozen Russian drones entered Polish airspace last month, with some being shot down. A flight into Estonian airspace by three Russian MiG-31 Foxhound interceptors further increased tensions, which have already been high with a brutal war raging in Ukraine and concerns that it could spill over its borders. The drone incursions over a number of European countries ramped up considerably around this time.

The latest wave of drone incursions began late last month when two Nordic airports were temporarily closed. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said the airspace violation over the Copenhagen Airport was “the most serious attack on Danish critical infrastructure to date.”

As we have explained in the past, it is quite possible that many, if not most of these sightings are mistaken identity. It is a pattern that emerged last year when thousands of people claimed to see drones in the New Jersey region of the U.S. The overwhelming majority of those sightings were airplanes, planets and other benign objects in the sky.

Still, just like in the New Jersey case, we do know that a significant number of the sightings over military bases were confirmed by the government. The reality is that these drone incursions over critical facilities in Europe have been happening for years, but just how much it has exploded in recent weeks is blurred by media reports and sightings not supported by independent analysis or corroborated by sensor data.

Regardless, German leaders say they are working to bring the nation’s law in line with other European countries, “such as France, Britain, Romania and Lithuania, which have extended the powers of their security forces to take out drones that are unlawfully in their airspace,” the Guardian pointed out.

“Today we are creating a strong law for the federal police,” proclaimed Dobrindt, introducing the new counter-drone measures. “We are reacting decisively, effectively and technically at the cutting edge.”

Contact the author: [email protected]

Uefa says it consulted stakeholders and found “widespread lack of support” for league matches to be played abroad, echoing concerns raised by fans, other leagues, clubs, players and European institutions.

But it said world governing body Fifa’s regulatory framework is “not clear and detailed enough” for it to block the plans.

Fifa set up a working group last year to look at the impact of playing competitive domestic matches overseas.

Last year, La Liga said it wanted to hold Barcelona v Atletico Madrid in Miami before dropping the idea because of time constraints.

In 2019, Barcelona also planned to stage a league match against Girona in Miami, but the idea was scrapped after opposition from Spain’s football association and its players’ union.

Other one-off matches, such as the Italian Super Cup and Spanish Super Cup, have been held abroad in recent years.

Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said in August there are no plans to play an English top-flight match abroad.

The idea of the Premier League playing an extra round outside England – the so-called ’39th game’ – was raised in 2008 but shelved after criticism from fans and media.

Oct. 3 (UPI) — The Trump administration can resume its deportation of Venezuelans after the Supreme Court again overturned a lower court’s block on ending the temporary protected status.

The Department of Homeland Security in August ended the TPS protection for about 300,000 “migrants” from Venezuela, which U.S. District Court for Northern California Judge Edward Chen blocked on Sept. 5.

Chen’s ruling is the second in which he blocked the Trump administration’s effort to end protected status for Venezuelans, which the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco upheld in August, The Hill reported.

The Supreme Court overturned Chen’s first ruling when the Trump administration sought an emergency hearing in May, according to The New York Times.

Chen, who was appointed by President Barack Obama, afterward said the Supreme Court ruling lacked detail and again blocked the Trump administration from ending the TPS protection.

The Supreme Court agreed to review the matter again and repeated its earlier ruling.

“Although the posture of the case has changed, the parties’ legal arguments and relative harms generally have not,” the unsigned Supreme Court order says.

“The same result that we reached in May is appropriate here.”

Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor said they would have denied the emergency relief request by the Trump administration.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson called the court’s ruling “another grave misuse of our emergency docket” in her dissenting opinion.

“We once again use our equitable power to allow this administration to disrupt as many lives as possible as quickly as possible,” Jackson said.

She accused the Supreme Court’s majority of GOP-appointed justices of “privileging the bald assertion of unconstrained executive power over countless families’ pleas for the stability our government has promised them.”

Shortly before leaving office, former President Joe Biden on Jan. 17 extended the temporary protected status for Venezuelans for another two years.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ended the protected status within days of the Senate confirming her nomination on Jan. 25.

The United Nations Security Council has voted to expand an international security force deployed to Haiti and transform it into a so-called “Gang Suppression Force”.

The resolution passed by the council on Tuesday provides a clear mandate for the force to work with local authorities to “neutralise, isolate, and deter” gangs, secure infrastructure, and seek to secure institutional stability. It would raise the personnel ceiling from 2,500 in the current mission, first approved in 2023, to 5,550 personnel.

The resolution also requests that the UN secretary-general establish a UN Support Office in Haiti to provide increased logistical support amid the Caribbean nation’s overlapping security, humanitarian and political crises.

“The result today allows us to have the necessary reconfiguration on the ground in order to face the gangs and, therefore, address the insecurity situation in the country,” Panama’s Representative to the UN Eloy Alfaro De Alba said following the vote.

“Today, we say to Haiti that, once and for all, you are not alone,” Alfaro De Alba said.

Panama and the United States first introduced the latest resolution in August. It passed on Tuesday with 12 votes in favour and none against. Permanent Security Council members China and Russia, along with rotating member Pakistan, abstained from the vote.

Following the vote, Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia said “the tools of international assistance to Haiti” previously approved by the Security Council had “failed to produce any sustainable results”.

He criticised the resolution for having a “virtually unrestricted mandate to use force against anyone and everyone labelled with the vague term ‘gangs’”, while further calling the plan “ill-conceived and rushed”.

Haiti has a controversial history when it comes to foreign intervention, particularly in light of rampant sexual abuses committed by peacekeepers deployed in the wake of Haiti’s 2010 earthquake. The forces were also responsible for a cholera outbreak that killed about 10,000 people.

But speaking last week, during the United Nations General Assembly General Debate, Laurent Saint-Cyr, the current chairman of the Transitional Presidential Council of Haiti, voiced support for a new force, noting that the Kenyan-led security support mission deployed for more than 15 months in the country remains woefully understaffed and underfunded.

Fewer than 1,000 police officers have been deployed under the mission, which is officially set to end on October 2, despite an initial pledge of 2,500. Nearly all of the capital, Port au Prince, remains under the control of powerful gangs.

“It is a war between criminals who want to impose violence as the social order and an unarmed population struggling to preserve human dignity,” Saint-Cyr said.

According to the UN, at least 1.3 million Haitians remain internally displaced due to violence, with 5.7 million facing food insecurity. At least 3,100 people have been killed in violent incidents between January and June 2025. At least 2,300 grave violations against children have been recorded.

The country is also in the midst of a political crisis that began with the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in 2021. A general election has been repeatedly postponed amid the unrest.

On Tuesday, acting Haitian Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime hailed the resolution’s passage.

“This decision marks a major step forward in the partnership between Haiti and the international community,” he said.

Rights observers have also offered tentative support for a renewed international mission to Haiti, with Human Rights Watch saying any operation must have adequate funding and human rights protections.

The resolution passed on Tuesday does not provide specific details on such safeguards, including clear rules of engagement, saying instead that parties must work to establish those rules in line with “Haiti’s sovereignty and in strict compliance with international law”.

Like the Kenyan-led mission, the new Gang Suppression Force will also mostly rely on often unpredictable voluntary contributions from UN members.

In a statement following the vote, Juanita Goebertus, Americas director at Human Rights Watch, said: “After months of reckless inaction, the UN Security Council has finally taken a step to respond to Haiti’s devastating crisis”.

“For the newly created ‘Gang Suppression Force’ to be effective and avoid repeating past abuses, it should have sustained and predictable funding, sufficient personnel, and robust human rights safeguards,” Goebertus said.

UN General Assembly votes 145-5, allowing President Mahmoud Abbas to address the UNGA next week by video after the US denied him a visa.

The United Nations General Assembly has voted to allow Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to address its annual gathering of world leaders next week by video link after the United States refused to grant him a visa to travel to New York in person.

“The State of Palestine may submit a prerecorded statement of its President, which will be played in the General Assembly Hall,” said the resolution, which passed on Friday with 145 votes in favour, five opposed, and six abstentions.

The move comes weeks after the Palestinian Authority urged Washington to reinstate Abbas’s visa so that he could travel to the United States to lead the Palestinian delegation and address the UNGA in person.

Abbas was among 80 Palestinian officials whose visas were revoked by the US State Department, citing national security concerns.

The General Assembly speeches are scheduled to begin on Tuesday after leaders gather on Monday for a summit — hosted by France and Saudi Arabia — that aims to build momentum towards a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.

“Gaza is issue number one at the UN General Assembly,” Al Jazeera’s Diplomatic Editor James Bays reported from New York.

“All leaders come here and give their speeches. But on this occasion … Mahmoud Abbas has been denied a visa … which is very unusual.”

Bays said the overwhelming vote in favour of Abbas addressing the UNGA by video was a “snapshot of international opinion on Palestine and Gaza”, and that it showed “very few countries that are backing the side of Israel and the US”.

The Trump administration’s decision has received widespread criticism, with the UN asserting that it violates the Host Country Agreement, under which the US is obligated to permit heads of state and government to travel to New York for annual meetings and diplomatic business.

The US visa curbs come amid growing condemnation of Israel’s war on Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and a wave of Israeli settler and military violence in the occupied West Bank.

In response to Israel’s devastating attacks over the past nearly two years, an increasing number of countries, mainly in Europe, have announced intentions to back Palestinian statehood at the UN this September.

According to local health officials, Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 65,141 people and wounded 165,925 since October 2023, with thousands more believed to be buried in the rubble.

The key NATO front-line state is bolstering its defence as the threat of a Russian incursion into its territory grows.

The United States State Department has announced it has approved the sale of Javelin Missile Systems and related logistical equipment to Poland for an estimated $780m, as the key NATO front-line state bolsters its defences with the threat of Russian incursions growing.

Announcing the potential sale in a statement on Thursday, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said the Polish government had requested to buy 2,506 FGM-148F Javelin missiles and 253 Javelin Lightweight Command Launch Units.

Javelins are a portable, shoulder-fired missile system used to target tanks, lighter armoured vehicles, bunkers, and low-flying aircraft.

In addition, Poland will receive non-MDE (Major Defense Equipment) as part of the package, including missile simulation rounds, battery coolant units, toolkits, spares support, as well as training and US government and contractor technical assistance.

The US agency said it had already notified Congress of the potential sale for approval.

“This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security of the United States by improving the security of a NATO Ally that is a force for political and economic stability in Europe,” the DSCA said in a statement.

“The proposed sale will improve Poland’s capability to meet current and future threats by upgrading its existing legacy Command Launch Units and increasing its defence inventory, thereby reinforcing its capability to protect Polish sovereign territory and improving its ability to meet NATO requirements,” it added.

Also on Thursday, Polish Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said Poland would sign a cooperation agreement with Kyiv for Ukraine’s military to train Polish soldiers and engineers in drone defence methods.

The announcement came just a week after Polish and NATO forces shot down more than 20 drones violating the country’s airspace during a Russian aerial attack on neighbouring Ukraine.

The September 10 incident was the first time that Polish and NATO forces had become engaged in the conflict, with Ukraine claiming that Moscow was using drone incursions to test the West’s willingness to respond to aggression.

Russia said its forces had not intended to hit Polish targets and had been attacking Ukraine at the time of the aerial incursion.

Denmark also announced this week that it will acquire long-range, high-precision weapons for the first time to deter Russia, in what Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen described as a “paradigm shift in Danish defence policy”.

Frederiksen said Russia constitutes a threat to Denmark for “years to come”, even if there is no imminent danger of an attack.

“With these weapons, the defence forces will be able to hit targets at long range and, for example, neutralise enemy missile threats,” she said.

Ukraine, meanwhile, is hoping to soon receive $3.5-3.6bn worth of weapons through the Priority Ukraine Requirements List initiative, a new mechanism allowing NATO states to finance the transfer of US-sourced weapons and technology to Kyiv.

Mass approval of nominees follows rules change that make it easier to approve lower-level Trump nominations.

The United States Senate has confirmed 48 of President Donald Trump’s nominees to government positions, following a recent rule change that allows the chamber to approve lower-level appointments in batches rather than individually.

Key political appointments on Thursday included Kimberly Guilfoyle, a former FOX News host and ex-fiancee of Donald Trump Jr, as US Ambassador to Greece.

Callista Gingrich, the wife of conservative political pundit Newt Gingrich, was also appointed ambassador to Switzerland and Liechtenstein. She previously served as US Ambassador to the Holy See during Trump’s first administration.

The Republican-controlled Senate also approved dozens of nominations to the departments of defence, energy, labour, and the interior, as well as the US ambassadors to Argentina and Sweden.

The mass vote has been portrayed in the US media as a significant win for the Trump administration, which has struggled to get approval for more than 100 appointees due to ongoing opposition from Democrats.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said the vote was possible thanks to a change in rules last week to “overcome Democrats’ historic obstruction” of the nomination process.

Under the new rules, the Senate can now approve lower-level nominations with a simple majority, according to The Associated Press news agency.

Previous rules remain in place for higher-level posts, including judicial and cabinet-level nominations.

Last week @SenateGOP took steps to overcome Democrats’ historic obstruction and restored the Senate’s longstanding practice of confirming nominees in batches.

Later today the Senate will confirm a slate of 48 nominees to get @POTUS‘ team in place to enact his agenda. pic.twitter.com/IcRmQLTz3K

— Leader John Thune (@LeaderJohnThune) September 18, 2025

Approving even non-controversial civilian nominations has become an increasingly contentious process for presidents in recent years, according to Thune, where they were once approved by near-unanimous consent or “voice vote”, which was a simple measure of vocal approval.

“[President Trump is] the first president on record not to have a single civilian nominee confirmed by unanimous consent or voice vote,” Thune told the Senate on Thursday, accusing Democrats of “delay for delay’s sake”.

The fight over Trump’s nominations escalated in August during a Senate recess, when the president told Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer to “GO TO HELL” in a post on Truth Social. Schumer said at the time that  Democrats opposed Trump’s nominations to government posts because they were “historically bad”.

The move to block nominations has also been portrayed by the US media as one of the few tools at the Democrats’ disposal due to holding a minority in both legislative houses.

Sept. 12 (UPI) — Republican Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe has the final say on a congressional redistricting map that would split an existing House district seat held by Democrat Rep. Emanuel Cleaver II.

The Missouri Senate voted 21-11 on Friday to approve the redistricting map that the state’s House of Representatives already approved, Roll Call reported.

Two GOP members of the Missouri Senate broke ranks and voted against the redistricting measure as several state legislatures scramble to revise their respective district maps ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.

Six of Missouri’s eight congressional districts are held by Republicans, which narrows the state GOP’s redistricting options.

The revised map would affect Cleaver’s district in the greater Kansas City area.

Missouri Senate and House members drafted the proposed redistricting legislation during a special session that was convened several weeks after Texas lawmakers approved a redistricting map there, according to NBC News.

California lawmakers likewise have revised the state’s congressional district maps to offset potential GOP gains of up to five seats from the Texas redistricting effort, which California voters would have to approve.

Virtually all of the respective states’ redistricting efforts are expected to face legal challenges.

President Trump has approved federal disaster aid for six states and tribes following storms and floods that occurred this spring and summer.

The disaster declarations, announced Thursday, will allow federal funding to flow to Kansas, North Carolina, North Dakota and Wisconsin, and for tribes in Montana and South Dakota. In each case except Wisconsin, it took Trump more than a month to approve the aid requests from local officials, continuing a trend of longer waits for disaster relief noted by a recent Associated Press analysis.

Trump has now approved more than 30 major natural disaster declarations since taking office in January. Before the latest batch, his approvals had averaged a 34-day wait from the time the relief was requested. For his most recent declarations, that wait ranged from just 15 days following an aid request for Wisconsin flooding in August to 56 days following a tribal request for Montana flooding that occurred in May.

The AP’s analysis showed that delays in approving federal disaster aid have grown over time, regardless of the party in power. On average, it took less than two weeks for requests for a presidential disaster declaration to be granted in the 1990s and early 2000s. That rose to about three weeks during the last decade under presidents from both major parties. During Trump’s first term in office, it took him an average of 24 days to approve requests.

White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told the AP that Trump is providing “a more thorough review of disaster declaration requests than any Administration has before him” to make sure that federal tax dollars are spent wisely.

But delays mean individuals must wait to receive federal aid for daily living expenses, temporary lodging and home repairs. Delays in disaster declarations also can hamper recovery efforts by local officials uncertain whether they will receive federal reimbursement for cleaning up debris and rebuilding infrastructure.

Trump’s latest declarations approved public assistance for local governments and nonprofits in all cases except Wisconsin, where assistance for individuals was approved. But that doesn’t preclude the federal government from later also approving public assistance for Wisconsin.

Preliminary estimates from Democratic Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers’ administration said more than 1,500 residential structures were destroyed or experienced major damage in August flooding at a cost of more than $33 million. There was also more than $43 million in public sector damage over six counties, according to the Evers administration.

Evers requested aid for residents in six counties, but Trump approved it only for three.

“I will continue to urge the Trump Administration to approve the remainder of my request, and I will keep fighting to make sure Wisconsin receives every resource that is needed and available,” Evers said in a statement in which he thanked Democratic officeholders for their efforts, but not Trump or any Republicans.

Trump had announced several of the disaster declarations — including Wisconsin’s — on his social media site while noting his victories in those states and highlighting their Republican officials. He received thanks from Democratic North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein and Republican officials elsewhere.

Trump’s approval of six major disaster declarations in one day would have been unusual for some presidents but not for him. Trump approved seven disaster requests on July 22 and nine on May 21.

But Trump has not approved requests for hazard mitigation assistance — a once-typical add-on that helps recipients build back with resilience — since February.

Lieb and Wildeman write for the Associated Press. AP writers Gabriela Aoun Angueira, Scott Bauer, Jack Dura and Gary D. Robertson contributed to this report.

Governor Greg Abbott is expected to quickly sign it into law, though Democrats have vowed to challenge it in court.

The Texas Senate has given final approval to a new Republican-leaning congressional voting map, sending it to Governor Greg Abbott for his signature.

The state senate voted along party lines to pass the map 18-11 shortly after midnight on Saturday, following more than eight hours of heated debate.

President Donald Trump has pushed for the map to help the GOP maintain its slim majority in Congress in the 2026 midterm elections. It has five new districts that would favour Republicans.

Abbott, a Republican, is expected to quickly sign it into law, though Democrats have promised to challenge it in court.

The effort by Trump and Texas’s Republican-majority legislature prompted state Democrats to hold a two-week walkout and kicked off a wave of redistricting efforts across the country.

The weeks-long showdown has roiled the Texas Legislature. Much of the drama unfolded in the House, where the map ultimately passed on Wednesday.

The showdown has also inflamed a broader, state-by-state redistricting battle, with governors from both parties pledging to redraw congressional maps.

California Democrats approved legislation on Thursday calling for a special election in November for residents to vote on a redrawn congressional map designed to help Democrats win five more House seats next year. Governor Gavin Newsom quickly signed it.

California’s map needs voter approval because, unlike in Texas, a nonpartisan commission normally draws the map to avoid the sort of political battle that is playing out.

On Friday, Abbott called California’s redistricting “a joke” and asserted that Texas’s new map is constitutional but California’s would be overturned.

Trump wants more states to revise maps

On a national level, the partisan makeup of existing districts puts Democrats within three seats of a majority. The incumbent president’s party usually loses seats in the midterms.

The Texas redraw is already reshaping the 2026 race, with Democratic Representative Lloyd Doggett, the dean of the state’s congressional delegation, announcing on Thursday that he will not seek re-election to his Austin-based seat if the new map takes effect.

Under the proposed map, Doggett’s district would overlap with that of another Democratic incumbent, Republican Greg Casar.

Trump has pushed other Republican-controlled states, including Indiana and Missouri, to also revise their maps to add more winnable GOP seats.

Ohio Republicans were also already scheduled to revise their maps to make them more partisan.

Redistricting typically occurs once a decade, immediately after a census. While some states have their own limitations, there is no national impediment to a state trying to redraw districts in the middle of the decade.

The US Supreme Court has said the Constitution does not outlaw partisan gerrymandering, only using race to redraw district lines.

Israel’s far-right finance minister has approved plans for thousands of illegal homes in the occupied West Bank — saying it ‘buries the idea of a Palestinian state’. Bezalel Smotrich announced 3,401 illegal housing units will be built in the controversial E1 settlement project.

Other one-off matches, such as the Italian Super Cup and Spanish Super Cup, have been held abroad in recent years.

AC Milan are also hoping to play their Serie A match against Como in Perth, Australia in February, as the fixture clashes with their San Siro stadium hosting the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics.

However, the plans have yet to receive approval from Fifa, Uefa, Football Australia and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

Fifa’s rules currently do not allow domestic league matches to be played abroad, but last year it set up a working group to look into the matter.

Last year, La Liga said it wanted to hold Barcelona v Atletico Madrid in Miami before dropping the idea because of time constraints.

In 2019, Barcelona also planned to stage a league match against Girona in Miami, but the idea was scrapped after opposition from the RFEF and its players’ union.

The Premier League has previously said it has no plans to play games overseas.

In 2008, then Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore proposed playing an extra round of fixtures abroad, but the plans were shelved after criticism from fans and the media.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu suggested earlier this week that Israel will ‘take control of all Gaza’.

Israel’s security cabinet has approved Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposal to occupy Gaza City, located in the north of the Palestinian enclave, according to news reports.

The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office has yet to publicly confirm the plan, which is a major escalation in the war-torn Palestinian territory and was first reported by the news site Axios on Friday.

Axios reporter Barak Ravid quoted the prime minister’s office as saying: “The Political-Security Cabinet approved the Prime Minister’s proposal to defeat Hamas. The [Israeli military] will prepare to take over Gaza City while providing humanitarian aid to the civilian population outside the combat zones”.

Al Jazeera correspondent in Washington, DC, Shihab Rattansi, said Israel’s move to occupy Gaza has been “telegraphed for several days now”.

“Donald Trump has all but green lit whatever Benjamin Netanyahu wants to do. He said it would be up to the Israelis,” he said

On Thursday, Netanyahu said Israel would “take control of all Gaza” in a television interview with American outlet Fox News.

Netanyahu also said in the interview that Israel doesn’t want to be “a governing body” in Gaza and would hand over responsibility to an unspecified third party.

“We don’t want to keep it. We want to have a security perimeter. We don’t want to govern it,” he said.

This followed reports in Israeli media earlier this week that the Israeli leader would imminently announce plans to fully occupy the entirety of the Gaza Strip.

“The decision has been made [to occupy Gaza],” Israel’s Channel 12 news outlet reported on Monday, quoting an unnamed senior official in Netanyahu’s office.

This is a breaking news story. More information to follow soon. 

The constitutional amendment also extends presidential terms from five years to six and scraps election run-offs.

El Salvador’s ruling party has passed a bill to overhaul how elections are run in the Central American nation, opening the door for President Nayib Bukele to serve another term.

On Thursday, 57 Congress members voted in favour and three voted against a constitutional amendment that will allow indefinite presidential re-election, extend terms from five years to six and scrap election run-offs.

Bukele won a second term last year despite a clear prohibition in the country’s constitution. El Salvador’s top court, filled with Bukele-backed judges, ruled in 2021 that it was the leader’s human right to run again.

After his re-election last year, Bukele told reporters he “didn’t think a constitutional reform would be necessary”, but evaded questions on whether he would try to run for a third term.

With Thursday’s constitutional reforms, Bukele, who enjoys enormous support at home for his heavy-handed campaign against criminal gangs, will be able to run again.

The overhaul will also shorten the president’s current term to synchronise elections in 2027, as presidential, legislative and municipal elections are currently staggered.

“Thank you for making history, fellow deputies,” said Ernesto Castro, the president of the Legislative Assembly from the ruling New Ideas party, after counting the votes on Thursday.

‘Democracy has died’

Speaking during the parliamentary session, opposition lawmaker Marcela Villatoro from the Republican National Alliance (ARENA) criticised the proposal being brought to parliament as the country begins a week of summer holidays and said “democracy has died in El Salvador”.

Opposition politician Claudia Ortiz from the Vamos party slammed the reform as “an abuse of power and a caricature of democracy”.

The constitutional reform has also drawn sharp criticism from international rights groups.

“The reforms lead to a total imbalance in the democracy that no longer exists,” Miguel Montenegro, director of NGO the Human Rights Commission of El Salvador, told the AFP news agency.

“The day before vacation, without debate, without informing the public, in a single legislative vote, they changed the political system to allow the president to perpetuate himself in power indefinitely, and we continue to follow the well-travelled path of autocrats,” Noah Bullock, executive director of rights group Cristosal, told the Reuters news agency.

The group recently left El Salvador, declaring itself in exile due to Bukele’s drive to consolidate his grip on power and crack down on critics and humanitarian organisations.

July 24 (UPI) — The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday announced its approval of Skydance’s $8 billion acquisition of Paramount Global, ending months of uncertainty surrounding the deal but inflaming allegations of corruption directed at the Trump administration.

The FCC voted 2-1 in favor of Skydance’s acquisition of Paramount and all of its subsidiaries, including Paramount Pictures, CBS television, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon.

Among the commitments Skydance made to the Trump administration was ensuring it will include news and entertainment programming that “will embody a diversity of viewpoints across the political and ideological spectrum” and that CBS News’ reporting “will be fair, unbiased and fact-based,” according to the FCC.

Skydance has also pledged that it will not establish any diversity, equity and inclusion policies — ideology that seeks to create inclusive environments that the Trump administration has been seeking to remove from both public and private sectors on allegations of discrimination.

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr described the merger as a change that will instill public trust in media.

“It is time for a change,” he said in a statement.

“That is why I welcome Skydance’s commitment to make significant changes at the once storied CBS broadcast network.”

Though the FCC said Skydance does not have any DEI programs, Carr said the agreement “marks another step forward in the FCC’s efforts to eliminate invidious forms of DEI discrimination.”

Skydance announced the deal in July of last year, but the merger has stalled amid frictions with the Trump administration, as President Donald Trump has sparred with CBS News.

Trump sued CBS News while campaigning for re-election in October for $10 billion in a lawsuit many saw as one he wouldn’t win over editing of a 60 Minutes interview with his political opponent, Democrat Kamala Harris. He then upped the amount in damages to $20 billion after winning re-election.

Earlier this month, Paramount Global reached a $16 million settlement with Trump that Democrats and critics of the Trump administration are calling a bribe and an affront to free speech — accusations that only intensified after Trump earlier this week said Skydance has pledged $20 million more in advertising, PSAs and “other Similar Programming, for a total $36 MillIon Dollars.”

Paramount Global told UPI that the $16 million, minus fees and costs, will be allocated to Trump’s future presidential library.

FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, the only Democrat of the three commissioners and the only one not appointed by Trump, dissented to the merger, and described Paramount’s settlement as “cowardly capitulation” and accused the FCC of losing its independence.

In her strongly worded dissent, Gomez warned that this merger will not be the last time the Trump administration threatens the First Amendment.

“The Paramount payout and this reckless approval have emboldened those who believe the government can — and should — abuse its power to extract financial and ideological concessions, demand favored treatment and secure positive media coverage,” she said.

“It is a dark chapter in a long and growing record of abuse that threatens press freedom in this country.”

Democrats were quick to lament their concerns online.

“Trump filed a sham lawsuit against CBS, but instead of fighting it CBS’ parent company, Paramount, paid Trump $16 million to his future library. So, you got to ask, why did Paramount do that if the suit was quote ‘meritless’?” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said in a video statement published online. “Well, maybe because they needed Trump to approve their multibillion-dollar merger, which Trump just did.

The appearance of this wink-wink deal basically let’s every other company and every other billionaire know that Trump is open for business, apparently happy to accept offers in exchange for favors.”

Warren has called for a full investigation into the deal.

Sens. Ed Markey, D-Mass, and Ben Ray Lujan, D-N.M., described Thursday as “a dark day for independent journalism” and called the approval of the merger “a stain on the storied history of the Federal Communications Commission.

“The FCC’s approval of the Paramount-Skydance merger reeks of the worst form of corruption. The timing speaks for itself: Paramount settled with Trump for $36 million on Tuesday and the FCC approved the merger on Wednesday,” they said in a joint statement.

“The stench of this transaction will linger over the commission for years.”