Page 10 - Donald Trump Administration

More oil tankers turn away from Venezuela amid US threat to seize vessels

As part of Trump's pressure campaign, US forces have launched strikes on alleged drug trafficking boats that have killed more than 100 people, and seized two oil tankers

Trump orders divestment in $2.9 mn chips deal citing US security concerns

President Donald Trump on Friday ordered the unravelling of a USD 2.9 million computer chips deal that he concluded threatened US security interests if the current owner, HieFo Corp., remained in control of the technology. The executive order cast a spotlight on a business deal that drew scant attention when it was announced in May 2024 during President Joe Biden's administration. The deal involved aerospace and defence specialist Emcore Corp. selling its computer chips and wafer fabrication operations to HieFo for USD 2.92 million a price that included the assumption of about USD 1 million in liabilities. But Trump is now demanding that HieFo divest that technology within 180 days, citing credible evidence that the current owner is a citizen of the People's Republic of China. HieFo was founded by Dr. Genzao Zhang and Harry Moore. According to a press release that came out after the deal closed, plans for the technology acquired from Emcore were to be overseen by largely the same

'If you break the law…': US embassy toughens tone amid H-1B backlog

Advisory issued as visa backlogs and immigration scrutiny intensify

US sanctions 4 Venezuelan oil firms, 4 more tankers in Maduro crackdown

The U.S. on Wednesday imposed sanctions on four firms operating in Venezuela's oil sector and designated four additional oil tankers, which the U.S. accuses of being part of a shadow fleet serving Venezuelan President Nicols Maduro's government, as blocked property. The action is part of the Trump administration's monthslong pressure campaign on Maduro. U.S. forces also have seized two oil tankers off Venezuela's coast, are pursuing another and have conducted a series of deadly strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean. A set of strikes announced Wednesday increased the death toll from the attacks to at least 110 people since early September. And in a new escalation marking the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil, the CIA carried out a drone strike last week at a docking area believed to have been used by drug cartels. The latest sanctions from the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control target ships called Nord

Trump admin terminates lease for Washington's 3 public golf courses

The Trump administration has ended the lease agreement for three public golf courses in Washington, a move that offers President Donald Trump an additional opportunity to put his stamp on another piece of the nation's capital. The National Links Trust, the nonprofit that has operated Washington's three public courses on federal land for the last five years, said Wednesday that the Department of the Interior had terminated its 50-year lease agreement. The Interior Department said it was terminating the lease because the nonprofit had not implemented required capital improvements and failed to meet the terms of the lease. While it was unclear what the Trump administration's plans are for the golf courses, the move gives Trump, whose private company has developed numerous golf courses in the U.S. and abroad, the chance to remake links overlooking the Potomac River and in Rock Creek Park and a site that is part of Black golf history. Officials for the National Links Trust said in a ...

Department of Justice is reviewing over 5.2 mn documents related to Epstein

The Department of Justice has expanded its review of documents related to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein to 5.2 million as it also increases the number of attorneys trying to comply with a law mandating release of the files, according to a person briefed on a letter sent to U.S. Attorneys. The figure is the latest estimate in the expanding review of case files on Epstein and his longtime girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell that has run more than a week past a deadline set in law by Congress. The Justice Department has more than 400 attorneys assigned to the review, but does not expect to release more documents until Jan. 20 or 21, according to the person briefed on the letter who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it. The expanding scope of the disclosure and the additional legal firepower committed to it showed how the Epstein file investigation will continue to occupy significant attention in Congress and the White House, almost ..

US military strikes 3 suspected drug-smuggling boats, killing three at sea

The U.S. military said Wednesday it struck three more boats that were allegedly smuggling drugs, killing three people while others jumped overboard and may have survived. The statement by U.S. Southern Command, which oversees South America, did not reveal where the attacks occurred. Previous attacks have been in the Caribbean Sea and in the eastern Pacific Ocean. A video posted by Southern Command on social media shows the boats traveling in a close formation, which is unusual, and the military said they were in a convoy along known narco-trafficking routes and had transferred narcotics between the three vessels prior to the strikes. The military did not provide evidence to back up the claim. The military said three people were killed when the first boat was struck, while people in the other two boats jumped overboard and distanced themselves from the vessels before they were attacked. Southern Command said it immediately notified the U.S. Coast Guard to activate search and rescue .

Fight over Trump's $100,000 H-1B visa fee heads to US appeals court

The H-1B visa program is a cornerstone of employment-based immigration, allowing companies in the US to hire college-educated foreign workers for specialized occupations

Trump indicates US 'hit' Venezuelan facility linked to alleged drug vessels

President Donald Trump has indicated that the US has hit a facility in South America as he wages a pressure campaign on Venezuela, but the US offered no other details. Trump made the comments in what seemed to be an impromptu radio interview Friday. The president, who called radio host John Catsimatidis during a program on WABC radio, was discussing US strikes on alleged drug-carrying boats in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean, which have killed at least 105 people in 29 known strikes since early September. I don't know if you read or saw, they have a big plant or a big facility where they send the, you know, where the ships come from," Trump said. "Two nights ago, we knocked that out. So, we hit them very hard. Trump did not offer any additional details in the interview, including what kind of attack may have occurred. The Pentagon on Monday referred questions to the White House, which did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment. Defence Secretary Pete Hegs

Trump warns Iran against reviving nuclear programme amid Netanyahu's visit

President Donald Trump warned Iran against reconstituting its nuclear program as he welcomed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to his home in Florida for wide-ranging talks. The warning comes after Trump has insisted that Tehran's nuclear capabilities were completely and fully obliterated by U.S. strikes on key nuclear enrichment sites in June. But Israeli officials have been quoted in local media expressing concern about Iran rebuilding its supply of long-range missiles capable of striking Israel. Now I hear that Iran is trying to build up again, Trump told reporters as he welcomed Netanyahu to his Mar-a-Lago estate. And if they are, we're going to have to knock them down. We'll knock them down. We'll knock the hell out of them. But hopefully that's not happening. Iran has insisted that it is no longer enriching uranium at any site in the country, trying to signal to the West that it remains open to potential negotiations over its atomic program. But Netanyahu was expected

Trump Class battleships may not be a big hit: Why experts are doubtful

Donald Trump says the new Trump Class battleships will be the deadliest ever built, but experts warn they may not be as he has planned

California drops lawsuit against Trump's high-speed rail funding revocation

Originally planned for completion by 2020 at a cost of $33 billion, the project is now forecast to cost between $89 billion and $128 billion, with service now expected to start by 2033

China sanctions 20 US defence firms, executives over Taiwan arms package

Under the sanctions, the affected companies' all assets within China will be frozen and Chinese organisations and individuals are also prohibited from conducting transactions with these firms

'Merry Christmas to dead terrorists': Trump on ISIS strike, warns more to come

Trump claimed ISIS fighters in northwest Nigeria had been killing civilians, "primarily innocent Christians," and said US strikes would continue if the violence does not stop

'Sleazebags': Trump slams Democrats over Epstein files in Christmas post

Trump claimed that those facing scrutiny are largely Democrats, asserting that when names emerge from what he described as 'ongoing Radical Left Witch Hunt,' there would be a lot of explaining to do

US struck IS targets in Nigeria after group targeted Christians: Trump

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday night that he had launched a "powerful and deadly strike" against Islamic State forces in Nigeria, after he spent weeks decrying the group for targeting Christians. The president's post did not include information about how the strike was carried out and what effects it had and the White House did not immediately provide further details. "Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria, who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!" the president posted on his social media site. Last month, Trump said he had ordered the Pentagon to begin planning for potential military action in Nigeria following the claims of Christian persecution. The State Department then announced in recent weeks that it would restrict visas for Nigerians and their family members

Trump-backed candidate Nasry Asfura wins Honduras presidential election

Trump-backed candidate Nasry Asfura won Honduras' presidential election, the country's electoral authorities said Wednesday afternoon, ending a weeks-long count that has whittled away at the credibility of the Central American nation's fragile electoral system. The election is continuing Latin America's swing to the right, coming just a week after Chile chose the far-right politician Jos Antonio Kast as its next president. Asfura, of the conservative National Party, received 40.27 per cent of the vote in the Nov 30 election, edging out four-time candidate Salvador Nasralla of the conservative Liberal Party, who finished with 39.39 per cent of the vote. Asfura, the former mayor of Honduras' capital Tegucigalpa, won in his second bid for the presidency, after he and Nasralla were neck-and-neck during a weeks-long vote count that fueled international concern. On Tuesday night, a number of electoral officials and candidates were already fighting and contesting the results of the electi

Trump calls kids on Christmas, warns against infiltration by 'bad Santa'

President Donald Trump marked Christmas Eve by quizzing children calling in about what presents they were excited about receiving, while promising not to let a "bad Santa" infiltrate the country and even suggesting that a stocking full of coal may not be so bad. Vacationing at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, the president and first lady Melania Trump, participated in the tradition of talking to youngsters dialling into the North American Aerospace Defense Command, which playfully tracks Santa's progress around the globe. "We want to make sure that Santa is being good. Santa's a very good person," Trump said while speaking to kids ages 4 and 10 in Oklahoma. "We want to make sure that he's not infiltrated, that we're not infiltrating into our country a bad Santa." He didn't elaborate. Trump has often marked Christmases past with criticisms of his political enemies, including in 2024, when he posted, "Merry Christmas to the Radical Left Lunatics." During his first term, Trump wrote

One killed as US strikes another alleged drug-smuggling boat in Pacific

The US military said Monday that it had conducted another strike against a boat it said was smuggling drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing one person. In a social media post, US Southern Command said, Intelligence confirmed the low-profile vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations. Southern Command provided no evidence that the vessel was engaged in drug smuggling. A video posted by US Southern Command shows splashes of water near one side of the boat. After a second salvo, the rear of the boat catches fire. More splashes engulf the craft and the fire grows. In the final second of the video, the vessel can be seen adrift with a large patch of fire alongside it. Earlier videos of US boat strikes showed vessels suddenly exploding, suggesting missile strikes. Some strike videos even had visible rocket-like projectiles coming down on the boats. The Trump administration has said the strikes we

Judge orders Trump admin to allow court challenges for Venezuelan migrants

A federal judge ruled Monday that the Trump administration must give legal due process to Venezuelan migrants flown to a notorious prison in El Salvador, either by providing court hearings or returning them to the US. US District Judge James Boasberg ordered the government to come up with a plan within two weeks for the men, who have since been returned to Venezuela in a prisoner swap. Plaintiffs should not have been removed in the manner that they were, with virtually no notice and no opportunity to contest the bases of their removal, in clear contravention of their due-process rights, Boasberg wrote. It's the latest development in a case that's been a legal flashpoint in the administration's sweeping crackdown on immigration. It started in March, after Trump invoked an 18th-century wartime law to send Venezuelan migrants accused of being gang members to a mega-prison known as the Terrorism Confinement Center, or CECOT. Two planeloads of men were flown to the prison, despite a ver