demand

California sued the U.S. Justice Department on Monday over its demand last week that local school districts ban transgender youth from competing in sports, arguing the federal agency had overstepped its authority in violation of both state and federal law.

The “pre-enforcement” lawsuit was filed “in anticipation of imminent legal retaliation against California’s school systems” for not complying with the agency’s directive by its Monday deadline, said California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta’s office, which is handling the litigation.

“The President and his Administration are demanding that California school districts break the law and violate the Constitution — or face legal retaliation. They’re demanding that our schools discriminate against the students in their care and deny their constitutionally protected rights,” Bonta said in a statement. “As we’ve proven time and again in court, just because the President disagrees with a law, that doesn’t make it any less of one.”

The lawsuit comes a week after Assistant Atty. Gen. Harmeet Dhillon, a Trump appointee and head of the federal Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, sent a letter to school districts across California warning them that they faced potential “legal liability” if they did not “certify in writing” by Monday that they will break with California Interscholastic Federation rules and state law to ban transgender athletes from competition in their districts.

Dhillon argued that allowing transgender athletes to compete “would deprive girls of athletic opportunities and benefits based solely on their biological sex,” in violation of the U.S. Constitution.

State Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond responded last week by saying in his own letter to schools that Dhillon’s warning carried no legal weight and that school districts were still obligated to follow state law, which requires transgender athletes be allowed to compete on teams based on their gender identity.

The California Department of Education sent a letter to federal authorities Monday, informing them that California’s school districts are under no obligation to provide certifications to the Justice Department.

“There are no changes in law or circumstances that necessitate a new certification,” wrote General Counsel Len Garfinkel. “Moreover, the DOJ letter references no law that would authorize the DOJ to require another ‘certification.’”

“All students — not just transgender students — benefit from inclusive school environments that are free from discrimination and harassment,” Garfinkel added. “When transgender students are treated equally, their mental health outcomes mirror those of their cisgender peers.”

Bonta’s lawsuit asks a federal court in Northern California to uphold the constitutionality of California’s antidiscrimination laws protecting transgender athletes, and to bar the Trump administration from withholding funds or taking other retaliatory actions against school districts that refuse to abide by the Trump directive.

The lawsuit falls along one of the fastest growing legal and political fault lines in America: Does the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment — the Constitution’s oft-cited guarantee against discrimination — protect transgender rights or undermine them?

Dhillon, other members of the Trump administration and anti-transgender activists nationwide have argued that the inclusion of transgender girls in youth sports amounts to illegal discrimination against cisgender girls.

Bonta’s office and other LGBTQ+ advocates argue that the exclusion of transgender girls is what constitutes illegal discrimination — and that courts, including the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which governs California and much of the American West, have agreed.

While Dhillon “purports that compliance with the Equal Protection Clause requires the categorical exclusion of transgender girls from girls’ sports, as courts have previously upheld, just the opposite is true: the Equal Protection Clause forbids such policies of total exclusion, as does California law,” Bonta’s office said.

State law that allows transgender students to participate in sports consistent with their identity “is squarely within the State’s authority to ensure all students are afforded the benefits of an inclusive school environment, including participation in school sports, and to prevent the serious harms that transgender students would suffer from a discriminatory, exclusionary policy.”

An attorney who supports keeping transgender athletes out of girls sports said the rights of female athletes are paramount in this situation.

Both the U.S. Constitution and federal statute provide protections for female athletes that California is violating by “allowing males into ‘girls only’ categories,” said Julie A. Hamill, principal attorney with California Justice Center, a law firm that has complaints pending with the federal Office for Civil Rights on behalf of young female athletes.

“By continuing to fan flames of division and play politics, leftist politicians and media outlets are causing further harm to American girls,” Hamill said.

Polls have shown that Americans generally support transgender rights, but also that a majority oppose transgender girls competing in youth sports. Many prominent advocates for excluding transgender girls from sports praised Dhillon’s actions last week as a bold move to protect cisgender girls from unfair competition.

Sonja Shaw, a Trump supporter who is president of the Chino Valley Unified Board of Education, has called on California school systems to adopt resolutions in support of the Trump administration order.

“The stakes couldn’t be higher,” Shaw said last week. “Our daughters deserve safe, fair competition … But radical policies are undermining that right, pushing boys into girls’ sports and threatening their opportunities. We’re not backing down.”

Shaw, a candidate for state superintendent of public instruction, said other school systems could model these resolutions on one passed by her school district.

A handful of the state’s 1,000 school districts have passed such resolutions.

The lawsuit’s claim that retaliation from the Trump administration could be imminent for schools that do not comply with the administration’s demands is not entirely speculative. It is based at least in part on repeated threats and actions the administration has already taken against states over its trans-inclusive sports policies.

President Trump has said outright that he wants to cut federal funding to California over its laws allowing transgender athletes to compete in youth sports. The federal Justice Department has announced investigations into the state and the California Interscholastic Federation over its inclusive policies for transgender athletes.

U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli in Los Angeles, a longtime ally of Dhillon and whose appointment has yet to be confirmed, recently threw his office’s support behind a private lawsuit challenging the inclusion of a transgender athlete on the track and field team at Martin Luther King High School in Riverside.

Dhillon issued her letter to California school districts after another transgender athlete from Jurupa Valley High School, 16-year-old AB Hernandez, won multiple medals at the state high school track and field championships despite President Trump demanding on social media that she not be allowed to compete.

The letter came despite attempts by the state to appease concerns.

After Trump’s online threats, for example, the CIF updated its rules for transgender competitors. As a result, Hernandez was allowed to compete at the state finals in the girls’ long jump, high jump and triple jump, but her qualifying did not result in the exclusion of any cisgender girl.

In addition, while Hernandez was awarded several medals, those medals were also awarded to cisgender girls who otherwise would have claimed them had Hernandez not been competing — with the girls sharing those spots on the medal podiums.

Supporters of the rule change said it eliminated concerns about cisgender girls losing opportunities to compete and win to transgender girls, but critics said the changes did not go far enough, and that transgender athletes needed to be fully banned from competition.

Dhillon’s letter demanding school districts certify that such bans were being implemented made no mention of the CIF’s rule change.

Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators have marched through the streets of the Italian capital, Rome, against the war in Gaza in a protest called by Italy’s main opposition parties, who accuse the right-wing government of being too silent.

At the start of Saturday’s march, protesters held a banner, reading: “Stop the massacre, stop complicity!”

The protest attracted a diverse crowd from across the country, including many families with children.

According to organisers, up to 300,000 people participated in the rally organised by the left-wing opposition to ask the government for a clear position on the conflict in Gaza.

“This is an enormous popular response to say enough to the massacre of Palestinians and the crimes of [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu’s government,” the leader of Italy’s centre-left Democratic Party, Elly Schlein, told reporters at the march.

“There is another Italy that doesn’t remain silent as the Meloni government does,” she said, referring to Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Meloni was recently pushed by the opposition to publicly condemn Netanyahu’s offensive in Gaza, but many observers considered her criticism too timid.

Earlier this week, the Italian leader urged Israel to immediately halt its military campaign in Gaza, saying its attacks had grown disproportionately and should be brought to an end to protect civilians.

Israel faces mounting international criticism for its offensive and pressure to let aid into Gaza during a humanitarian crisis.

Gaza has been under an Israeli blockade for nearly three months, with experts warning that many of its two million residents are at high risk of famine.

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 54,772 Palestinians and wounded 125,834, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health. An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks of October 7, 2023, and more than 200 were taken captive.

Thousands of Israeli protesters in Tel Aviv have again called for the return of captives held in Gaza and an immediate ceasefire, while hundreds of thousands of pro-Palestine supporters gathered in Rome denouncing the Italian government’s “complicity” in the war.

Captive families and antigovernment protesters gathered in front of Israel’s army headquarters on Saturday, several hours after Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that Israeli forces had recovered the body of a Thai captive.

In a statement, the Israeli army said on Saturday morning that the body of Nattapong Pinta was retrieved from the Rafah area in southern Gaza after he was taken captive during Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack.

The Hostages and Missing Families Forum wrote on X that it “bows its head in sorrow over the murder of Nattapong Pinta”.

“The time is running out for all 55 hostages. We must bring them all home, Now!,” the group wrote on X.

The spokesperson of Hamas’s armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, Abu Obeida, warned that an Israeli captive, Matan Zangauker, is being held in an area targeted by the Israeli army.

He warned that if Zangauker were killed during an attempt to free him, the Israeli military would be responsible.

The captive’s mother, Einav Zangauker, speaking at the Tel Aviv protest, criticised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for neglecting those being held in Gaza.

“The military pressure is closing in on [my son] and is placing him in immediate danger. The decision to expand the ground operation comes at the cost of Matan’s life and the lives of all the hostages,” she said.

“[Netanyahu] continues to sacrifice the hostages. He is using the [Israeli military] not to protect Israel’s security, but to continue the war and protect his government.”

Police prevented activists from the NGO, Looking the Occupation in the Eye, from reaching the protest area in Tel Aviv, according to reports in the Israeli media. The activists were reportedly carrying placards protesting against Israeli war crimes and ethnic cleansing in Gaza.

אלימות מצד המשטרה, דחיפות וצעקות לעבר מפגינים הנושאים שלטים הקוראים להפסקת המלחמה.

07.06.2025 תל אביב 🎥אריק סגל pic.twitter.com/2vJ3lFkXDl

— אלימות ישראל (@Alimut_Israel) June 7, 2025

Translation: Police pushing and shouting at protesters carrying signs calling for an end to the war.

During the Hamas attack, which killed 1,139 people in southern Israel, the group abducted 251 people; following a series of prisoner-for-captive exchanges with the Israeli government, the group are currently holding 55 captives in Gaza, a number of whom are dead.

Israel’s war on Gaza has now killed at least 54,772 Palestinians and injured 125,834 others, Gaza’s Health Ministry reported.

‘Enough to the massacre of Palestinians’

In the meantime, across Europe, pro-Palestine demonstrators called for an end to the Israeli genocidal assault in Gaza.

In Rome, hundreds of thousands of people marched through the city in a protest called by opposition parties slamming the government’s “complicity” in the war.

The leader of the main opposition Democratic Party, Elly Schlein, called the turnout “an enormous popular response” in opposition to Israel’s actions in the besieged and bombarded enclave.

The demonstration was “to say enough to the massacre of Palestinians, to say enough to the crimes of Netanyahu’s far-right government” and to show the world “another Italy”, Schlein told reporters.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has come under increasing pressure to take a stronger stance on the war in Gaza as she has backed Israel and Netanyahu throughout, while admitting difficult conversations with the Israeli leader of late.

In the British capital, London, antigovernment demonstrators held placards demanding “Cut war, not welfare.”

Speaking at the Whitehall rally, former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said with the “abominable, deliberate starvation of children in Gaza and the genocide that’s inflicted against the Palestinian people”, a world of “peace” was needed.

“We need a world of peace that will come through the vision of peace, the vision of disarmament and the vision of actually challenging the causes of war, which leads to the desperation and the refugee flows of today,” he said.

Pro-Palestine protests were also held Saturday in Denmark, Sweden, and Germany, where demonstrators raised banners calling for an end to the Israeli genocide against Palestinians.

Benedict Corpuz has always been a “day one” type of person when it comes to fueling his video game habit.

Beginning in his high school years, the 45-year-old flight attendant from Kent, Wash., has tried to get his hands on new Nintendo systems on the day of their release, whether it was the Nintendo 64 or its less popular successor, the GameCube. The new Nintendo Switch 2 was no different. He lined up at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Federal Way Best Buy in Washington, was allowed in the store at 9:01 p.m. and was back in his car with the coveted item — which he had preordered — by 9:13 p.m.

“It’s a good feeling to be one of the first,” he said. “I just really enjoy playing the games.”

Demand for the roughly $450 handheld device, which officially launched Thursday, was high as eager shoppers like Corpuz waited in line for hours to acquire the newest iteration of the Switch, which launched eight years ago to robust sales. “Let the games begin!” Nintendo of America posted on social media, showcasing photos of excited customers holding up their Switch 2 devices.

By afternoon in Los Angeles, there were reports of the devices selling out at some retailers, a clear indication of the console’s success. Shortages were reported in a number of international markets. The last time a console release generated so much attention was in 2020, when Sony’s PlayStation 5 and Microsoft’s latest Xbox were released during the same month.

“Realistically, it’s going to be sold out for quite a while,” Michael Pachter, a managing director at Wedbush Securities, said of the new Switch. “By January, maybe they’ll get supply and demand in balance.”

The popular device, which introduces several new games including “Mario Kart World,” will provide a boost to the global video game and game services market, which is expected to grow 1% to $201 billion this year, according to estimates from London-based Ampere Analysis. Video games are a massive business in entertainment, with gross revenues far exceeding annual worldwide box office ticket sales for movies, for example.

Console sales alone are projected to hit $16.5 billion this year, up from $13.4 billion in 2024.

Ronald Santa-Cruz, a research manager at Ampere, estimates that Switch 2 will sell 13.6 million units in 2025, and attributes its popularity to a large install base of Switch users ready to upgrade, improved performance and capabilities to support higher fidelity games, and the loyalty of fans to Nintendo’s franchises, which include “Super Mario Bros.” and “The Legend of Zelda.”

The original Switch, which launched in 2017, saw sales soar for Nintendo during the COVID-19 pandemic as people looked for ways to entertain themselves at home. Nintendo said it has sold 152 million units of Nintendo Switch hardware as of March 31.

Before launching the Switch, Nintendo’s future was uncertain. The video game pioneer, based in Kyoto, Japan, had struggled to compete in the intense consoles market against the likes of Sony and Microsoft, said Rob Enderle, principal analyst with advisory services firm Enderle Group. Nintendo’s onetime chief rival, Sega Corp., stopped making and selling consoles in 2001 after a series of failures.

But the Switch heralded a turnaround. Its hybrid design, which allowed for on-the-go playing, broadened its appeal beyond the typical console gamers.

“Back before the Switch, it was really kind of unclear whether Nintendo was going to survive,” Enderle said, adding that the Switch was different enough from the other offerings and portable. “The end result is it allowed them to restore their market opportunity. But without the Switch, I think they would have gone under.”

Nintendo is forecasting that Switch 2 hardware sales will total 15 million units in its fiscal year, with the goal of reaching the sales that the company had with the first Switch in the 10-month period from its launch in March 2017, said Shuntaro Furukawa, president of Nintendo Co. Ltd. in a briefing last month. Furukawa said that the tariff situation in the U.S. and the possibility of a recession did not reduce the company’s forecast.

“Our first goal is to get off to the same start we did with Nintendo Switch, and we are working to strengthen our production capacity so we can respond flexibly to demand,” Furukawa said.

“We appreciate the positive response from our fans,” Nintendo said in a statement, declining to share launch-day sales numbers.

Nintendo said it supplied its retail partners with “a significant amount of products for launch” and encouraged anyone who didn’t get a Switch 2 during preorder to visit their favorite retailers.

“We’ll work hard to replenish our retail partners with a steady stream of product as we make every effort to meet demand,” Nintendo said.

Nintendo of America President Doug Bowser told CBS News on Thursday that the company has been “delighted with the demand we’ve seen thus far” and that preorders sold out in a “very quick period of time.”

While the Switch is off to a strong start, its future pricing remains uncertain as the Trump administration imposes tariffs. Despite the uncertainty, analysts said that they think demand will remain strong for the device.

BBC Bargain Hunt viewers flocked to Twitter as the latest instalment of the beloved antiques show aired – and they were united in their frustration over the same issue

Bargain Hunt aficionados were left feeling miffed as they settled down for the latest instalment of the fan-favourite BBC show.

The episode whisked viewers away to Norfolk, specifically King’s Lynn and Swaffham, with stalwart auctioneer and TV personality Charlie Ross steering the ship alongside antiques aficionados Caroline Hawley and David Fergus.

However, no sooner had Charlie introduced the competing red and blue teams than did fans take to social media to express a sense of déjà vu plaguing the programme.

Disgruntled viewer took their frustration online, stating on X: “Bargain Hunt is so predictable. Needs a total shake up. Get rid of Charlie Ross would be first #bargainhunt.”

Complaints didn’t stop there, with another viewer chiming in during their midday break: “Just sat down at home to have some lunch with the wife before moving on to my next job and she’s watching Bargain Hunt on @BBC – I cannot believe that utter drivel is still going and it’s not changed since it first started!”, reports Cornwall Live.

READ MORE: Luke Humphries shows true colours with Luke Littler message after winning Premier LeagueREAD MORE: Clarkson’s Farm star Harriet Cowan’s partner revealed as stepsister shares verdict

An additional comment came from a disappointed fan: “@BBCBargainHunt love this programme but editing a bit off today.”

Within the episode’s narrative, we saw team members Kerri and Lorraine of the red team compete against Bruno and Tom of the blue team, all set on snagging profits from their antique finds procured at a King’s Lynn fair before hitting the auction block.

The red team’s eclectic mix of items, including a Norwegian brooch, a vintage typewriter, and some dinner-service china, sadly failed to rake in the expected cash, culminating in a disappointing £40 loss.

Despite their items not making a profit and ending up £58 down, Lorraine stayed cheery, commenting: “Ah well, we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves!” The blue team had banked on a vintage table football game, a captivating blue vase, and a duo of silver treasures to win over the bidders.

As Charlie declared the winners, the red team could not contain their excitement, which led to Charlie responding with amusement: “Shrieks of delight! So much joy despite not even making a profit.”

During the programme, viewers were treated to Dr Sue Gattuso’s intriguing stories about Howard Carter, shared with presenter Charlie Ross, revealing the exciting chronicles of the local legend and his significant find of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922.

Charlie took a deep dive into the world of the celebrated Swaffham archaeologist, as the episode played out amidst Norfolk’s picturesque backdrop.

TEHRAN — Iran’s top diplomat insisted Wednesday that Tehran will never stop enriching uranium, reinforcing the Islamic Republic’s hard line ahead of a new round of indirect talks with the United States over its fast-advancing nuclear program.

The comments by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi come after multiple rounds of talks between the two nations, including at an expert level over the details of a possible deal. However, none has been reached yet, and American officials, including President Trump, Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, maintain that Iran must give up enrichment — something it didn’t do in its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

“I have said it before, and I repeat it again: Uranium enrichment in Iran will continue — with or without an agreement,” Araghchi said, according to state television.

Araghchi added that Iran is “currently reviewing whether to participate in the next round and when to take part” in talks with the United States. Trump’s trip to the Mideast last week delayed any new meeting. Negotiators previously met in Muscat, Oman, and Rome.

Later Wednesday, Oman’s foreign minister announced that the fifth round of indirect talks between Iran and the United States would be held Friday in Rome. Neither Tehran nor Washington has confirmed the meeting or announced whether they will attend. The minister made the comment on social media. Oman has long served as a mediator, facilitating quiet diplomacy amid tensions over Iran’s nuclear program and regional security.

“We have never abandoned diplomacy. We will always be present at the negotiating table, and the main reason for our presence is to defend the rights of the Iranian people,” Araghchi said. “We stand against excessive demands and rhetoric at the table.”

Araghchi’s remarks came a day after Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said he didn’t expect the negotiations to produce a deal.

“I don’t think nuclear talks with the U.S. will bring results. I don’t know,” Khamenei said.

The talks seek to limit Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some of the crushing economic sanctions the U.S. has imposed on the Islamic Republic, closing in on half a century of enmity.

Trump has repeatedly threatened to unleash airstrikes targeting Iran’s program if a deal isn’t reached. Iranian officials increasingly warn that they could pursue a nuclear weapon with their stockpile of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels. Meanwhile, Israel has threatened to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities on its own if it feels threatened, further worsening tensions in the Mideast already spiked by the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers capped Tehran’s enrichment level at 3.67% and reduced its uranium stockpile to 661 pounds. That level is enough for nuclear power plants, but far below weapons-grade levels of 90%.

Since the nuclear deal collapsed in 2018 with Trump’s unilateral withdrawal of the U.S. from the accord, Iran has abandoned all limits on its program and enriched uranium to up to 60% purity — a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels. There have also been a series of attacks at sea and on land in recent years, stemming from the tensions even before the Israel-Hamas war began.

Vahdat writes for the Associated Press. AP writers Gabe Levin and Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, contributed to this report.