slams

Israeli opposition politicians have blamed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for eroding support for Israel in the United States after Democrats won control of Congress, and pledged to “strengthen bipartisan” ties if they form the next government.

The comments on Wednesday came after Democrats won majorities in both the Senate and the House on Tuesday in a sharp rebuke to US President Donald Trump, fuelled in part by deep frustration over the US and Israel’s war on Iran.

The vote came a week after Israel’s own election, in which Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition lost its parliamentary majority but did well enough to deny his main rival, Gadi Eisenkot, a clear path to replacing him.

Yair Lapid, a former prime minister whose party is part of the coalition seeking to unseat Netanyahu, said on Wednesday that the US results showed “Israel cannot afford” for Netanyahu to remain in office.

“It endangers our security, it jeopardizes our democracy, and it will ruin our standing on the global stage,” Lapid wrote on social media.

For decades, the US has been Israel’s staunchest ally for generations under presidents of both parties, providing billions of dollars a year in military aid since the 1970s. But unlike previous Israeli leaders, who carefully courted Democrats and Republicans alike, Netanyahu has openly sided with Republicans.

Some Democratic candidates made criticism of military aid to Israel amid its genocidal war on Gaza a central campaign theme. On Tuesday, Trump, who had endorsed Netanyahu in Israel’s election, pledged to halt $4bn in annual funding to Israel, saying the move would take away a “bad talking point” for Democrats.

Promise to restore ties

Lapid said Israel must go “back to the rule that worked for us for seventy years and broke in 2015, when Netanyahu went to speak in Congress” against then-President Barack Obama. He was referring to Netanyahu’s controversial speech to Congress that year, in which he warned against the nuclear deal Obama was negotiating with Iran, aligning himself with the former president’s Republican opponents.

“I said it then, I say it today: Israel doesn’t choose sides in America. We work with everyone,” Lapid wrote on X.

Lapid acknowledged that there was “no question” that the “anti-Israel core” in Congress “has grown,” but said it amounted to less than 10 percent of the Senate. He noted that Democratic lawmakers Hakeem Jeffries would lead the House and Chuck Schumer the Senate .

“Both are my friends; both voted with Israel this year even when the majority of their party caucus voted otherwise,” he said.

Eisenkot said that under his leadership, Israel would restore its bipartisan ties with Washington.

“We will renew and deepen that partnership, strengthen the bipartisan foundations that have long sustained it, and work with our allies to advance a Middle East defined not simply by the absence of conflict, but by the presence of opportunity and cooperation,” he wrote on X.

“Israel will remain one of America’s most reliable and capable strategic partners in the Middle East, a partnership that is mutually beneficial for both peoples, in every aspect,” he added.

Yair Golan, whose party is also part of the anti-Netanyahu coalition, said the US vote showed “just how toxic Netanyahu has become” among Democrats and Republicans alike.

He warned that if Netanyahu and his far-right government stayed in power, Israel would be on “a path toward international sanctions, global isolation, and a confrontation with the United States”.

Netanyahu did not immediately respond to the opposition’s criticism.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, the leading pro-Israel lobbying group, struck a similar note to Lapid.

In a post on X, it congratulated “the hundreds of pro-Israel Democrats and Republicans who won their elections last night,” saying that 234 candidates it had backed won.

It singled out Schumer and Jeffries and pledged to “increase its support for Democrats and Republicans who recognize that a strong partnership with Israel helps keep both countries secure”.

Alina Habba Mildon signed the lucrative contract while working at the Justice Department, before Trump pardoned the bank

US President Donald Trump has criticised one of his former lawyers for signing a contract worth more than $50 million with the family of a Venezuelan banker whom Trump later pardoned.

Alina Habba Mildon reportedly signed the lucrative deal while working as a federal prosecutor and later began working for the banker’s family while still being employed as an adviser to the US Department of Justice.

“I thought it was totally obnoxious and outrageous, and it’s not acceptable,” Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida on Saturday.

“Not acceptable at all,” he added.

According to The New York Times, Habba Mildon signed a four-year contract in October 2025 with a company owned by the family of Julio Herrera Velutini, a Venezuelan banker who was seeking a presidential pardon.

Herrera was accused of bribing former Puerto Rico Governor Wanda Vazquez Garced in exchange for removing a financial regulator who was investigating his bank. He was facing federal bribery charges in the US before reaching a plea deal with prosecutors in August 2025.

Habba Mildon’s contract with his family’s company guaranteed her more than $50 million over four years, including an annual salary of $10 million and bonuses.

When she signed the deal, Habba Mildon was the acting US attorney for New Jersey, a position Trump had appointed her to after working as his personal lawyer.

She left that position in December after a court ruled she could not legally serve in the role. She then immediately took another job at the Justice Department as a senior adviser to the attorney general.

On January 1 , Habba Mildon officially began working for the banker’s family while still employed by the Justice Department.

Two weeks later, on January 15 , Trump granted Herrera a full presidential pardon.

The arrangement has raised questions about potential conflicts of interest, given Habba Mildon’s government position and her ties to Trump.

The company that hired her, Concord Partners, has no public profile and its business activities remain unclear, according to The New York Times.

Habba Mildon has denied having any role in securing Herrera’s pardon.

Last week, she said she had never been paid to obtain a pardon, had never discussed one with anyone at the White House or the Justice Department and had never worked to secure a pardon for anyone.

Trump was reportedly furious when he learned about the size of her contract.

The New York Times reported that he told aides and allies that Habba Mildon should donate some of the money to his future presidential library or another Trump-related organisation.

He also reportedly told at least one ally that Herrera’s family should stop paying her the remainder of the contract.

Speaking on Saturday, Trump said he told Habba Mildon he did not want her to be paid, describing the situation as “terrible”.

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.

Former US president says Trump ‘chose to make a series of bad decisions’, highlighting the US-Israel war on Iran.

Former United States President Barack Obama has criticised the “cruelty and corruption” during President Donald Trump’s second term.

Obama slammed Trump’s foreign policies on Saturday during a midterm election campaign rally in Ohio to support the state’s Democratic candidates.

“The current president chose to make a series of bad decisions,” the 65-year-old Democrat said. “Most importantly, he decided to start an unnecessary war that nobody asked for,” he added, referring to the US-Israel war on Iran.

Obama urged Ohioans to vote against the Republican administration, saying: “After two years of chaos and cruelty and corruption and incompetence, the likes of which we have not seen in the modern era, you get a chance to say, ‘Enough is enough’.”

Heated Ohio races

The former president also addressed the recent controversy in Ohio’s gubernatorial race surrounding an attack advertisement by Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy against Democrat Amy Acton.

“In recent days, we’ve seen there is no line he will not cross, no low he will not sink to,” Obama said of Ramaswamy. “I don’t know what’s happened where the standards of behaviour are so low that somebody could run an ad like that.”

In the advertisement, Donna Arthur, Acton’s mother, disputes her daughter’s account of a childhood involving homelessness and ⁠⁠⁠⁠sexual abuse by her stepfather, urging Ohioans not to vote for her.

Acton says she has not seen her mother since 1978. Acton’s brother has supported her account of being sexually abused by her stepfather when she was a child. The stepfather, who died in 2004, was charged with rape.

Obama backed Acton, saying that she has “spoken movingly about her painful childhood and all she’s experienced: abuse, neglect and homelessness.”

The former president shared the rally stage with Acton and Ohio’s former Democratic senator, Sherrod Brown, who will attempt a comeback against incumbent Republican Senator Jon Husted.

Polls give Democrats a slight lead in both Ohio races, but results are expected to be close.

Alesha Dixon leapt to the defence of her The Voice UK co-star Cheryl Tweedy after a contestant on Britain’s Got Talent attempted to criticise the Girls Aloud singer

Alesha Dixon instantly supported Cheryl Tweedy following a scathing comment from a Britain’s Got Talent hopeful. Although Alesha is currently appearing on the ITV talent show as a judge, next year she will take on a new role.

The singer will join Stacey Solomon, taking over from Emma Willis, as the pair join forces to host The Voice UK. The singing competition, which also airs on ITV, has undergone a major shake-up, with longstanding coach Sir Jom Jones axed.

Instead, Will.i.am will be returning alongside Kelly Rowland. Girls Aloud singer, Cheryl Tweedy, will join the panel alongside rapper Aitch. And it appears Alesha has already formed a strong bond with Cheryl.

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During filming for Britain’s Got Talent in Blackpool, it’s reported that a contestant attempted to criticise Cheryl’s vocal abilities. The Sun reports that Alesha hit back instantly.

The Mis-Teeq star slammed her red buzzer halfway through the hopeful’s act and used her feedback to make it clear that she wouldn’t allow his comments. “You don’t come after a mate of mine,” the singer fumed.

Although fans won’t see Cheryl taking on her full-time role as a coach until next year, they were, however, treated to a glimpse earlier this month. The singer joined her pal Will during the Battles Round of the ITV competition.

During the episode, Will revealed that he had been trying to get Cheryl to join him for the past 13 years. Cheryl knows exactly what it takes to make it in the music industry, having found fame after being selected for Girls Aloud on Popstars: The Rivals in 2002.

Speaking to Team Will, the Call My Name songstress said: “I’m so excited for you. You couldn’t be in better hands than you are with my man Will. Will and I have collaborated a lot over the years, so we know what it’s like for two very different artists to come together. I wish you all the very best for what you’ve got today, and I’m excited to see you all!”

Reflecting on her own experience, having found fame on Popstars, Cheryl said during a solo interview: “I have stood in the shoes that the contestants are standing in, and I know what it feels like to perform in this environment. You’ve just got to know that you’re good, or you wouldn’t be here.”

Cheryl’s decision to sign up for the show marks a return to television after a lengthy break from the spotlight. In recent years, Cheryl has turned her attention to family life and has only taken on brief work spells, including her West End debut in 2:22 A Ghost Story.

While she once dominated the music industry and became the first female artist to have five records debut at Number One, her last single, Let You, was released in 2019 and peaked at Number 57 on the Official Charts Company.

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