World News
Former Hamas hostage released 491 days after he was kidnapped and his family was slaughtered
Eli Sharabi, who was ripped from his home in Kibbutz Be’eri by Hamas terrorists during the Oct. 7 attacks, has returned to Israel after 491 days in captivity. Sharabi’s family watched excitedly as he returned home, but three people were noticeably absent. Sharabi will not be greeted by his wife or daughters because Hamas terrorists murdered them during the 2023 massacre.
Sharabi and his family lived on Kibbutz Be’eri, a border community in southern Israel that was hit particularly hard on Oct. 7, 2023. In January 2024, just months after Hamas’ attacks, Israel confirmed that Sharabi’s brother, Yossi, who was also taken hostage, was killed in captivity.
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Kibbutz Be’eri saw 98 men, women and children slaughtered in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attacks and 30 kidnapped. Among them were Sharabi and Ohad Ben-Ami, who was also released on Feb. 8, 2025. The kidnapped and killed accounted for approximately a tenth of the population of Kibbutz Be’eri, which is less than four miles from the Gaza border.
It is unclear whether Sharabi knows what happened to his wife, Lianne, and daughters, Noiya, 16, and Yahel, 13. It is also unknown whether Or Levy, who was taken from the Nova festival and released to Israel on Saturday, is aware that his wife was killed on Oct. 7, 2023.
Sharabi is not the first hostage to be released from captivity to a reality without his wife and children. Yarden Bibas, who was taken from Kibbutz Nir Oz, was released from Hamas captivity on Feb. 1, after spending over 480 days as a hostage in Gaza. Yarden’s wife, Shiri, and their two young sons, Ariel and Kfir, remain in Hamas captivity.
The image of Shiri, Ariel and Kfir Bibas’ kidnapping went viral as the two red-headed boys were seen clinging to their mother. Kfir, who is now two years old, was just nine months old when he was kidnapped, making him the youngest hostage. Ariel and Kfir are the only children taken on Oct. 7 who remain in Gaza. The condition of Shiri, Ariel and Kfir remains unknown.
"Sadly, my family hasn't returned to me yet. They are still there. My light is still there, and as long as they're there, everything here is dark. Thanks to you, I was brought back - help me bring the light back to my life," Yarden said in a statement distributed by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum. This is his first statement since being freed.
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While in captivity, Bibas was forced to make a hostage film in which he was seen breaking down as Hamas claimed his wife and children had been killed. Hamas often uses these types of videos as part of what the IDF calls "psychological terror." However, the terror organization included Shiri, Kfir and Ariel on the list of 33 hostages set to be released in the first phase of the ceasefire deal.
Yarden referenced the video in his statement and made a plea directly to Prime Minister Netanyahu.
"Prime Minister Netanyahu, I'm now addressing you with my own words, which no one dictated to me: Bring my family back. Bring my friends back. Bring everyone home."
The release of Sharabi, Levy and Ben-Ami marks the fifth round of hostage releases. While they too were forced to participate in a ceremony with Hamas prior to leaving Gaza, the images of the three men were strikingly different from many of those who had been freed before them. The three of them looked starved and exhausted, with many on social media comparing them to Holocaust victims.
Israeli President Isaace Herzog said that the "emaciated and pained" men were a visual representation of a "crime against humanity." In response to the images of the men, Prime Minister Netanyahu vowed to take action, saying their condition would "not be ignored."
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Ruby and Hagit Chen, whose son Itay Chen remains in Hamas captivity, noted the "disturbing images" and demanded Netanyahu begin "intensive negotiations" to bring the remaining hostages, including their son, home.
There are still 76 hostages in Hamas captivity, many of whom are believed to be alive. So far, as part of the current ceasefire deal, Hamas has released 18 hostages. In exchange for the hostages, Israel has released more than 550 Palestinian prisoners.
New report by panel of experts claims killer nurse Lucy Letby is innocent
MANCHESTER, England — The trial of Lucy Letby made headlines around the world due to the sheer horror and scale of the crimes for which she was convicted, but some believe the neonatal nurse is innocent and the victim of a miscarriage of justice.
Letby, 35, was found guilty of murdering seven babies and attempting to kill seven more at the Countess of Chester Hospital in North West England during a year-long killing spree between June 2015 and June 2016.
She was portrayed by the prosecution as a "constant malevolent presence" on the hospital’s neonatal unit and a "calculating and devious" nurse who liked "playing God."
'COLD-BLOODED' NURSE LUCY LETBY FOUND GUILTY OF MURDERING 7 BABIES AT HOSPITAL NEONATAL UNIT
In an apparent handwritten confession note found by police, she said she had killed babies "on purpose."
She also wrote, "I am a horrible evil person" and "I AM EVIL I DID THIS."
Letby, considered to be the United Kingdom's worst serial child killer, was sentenced to 15 life prison terms and has lost two bids to appeal her convictions.
But there has been a growing clamor among leading medical professionals, legal experts and commentators that she is innocent.
Ex-Conservative cabinet minister Sir David Davis has also spoken out and called for a new trial, telling fellow members of parliament (MPs) there was "no hard evidence" against her.
This week, a fresh report presented by a panel of 14 international experts has claimed there is "no medical evidence" she murdered or harmed any of the babies in her care.
During her first ten-month trial — Letby later faced a second trial — she was accused of murdering four of the seven babies by injecting air into their bloodstreams and attempting to kill others by the same method.
The prosecution claimed other babies were harmed by insulin poisoning, being force-fed milk or by trauma to the liver.
But the experts’ report rules out any criminality and points to babies deteriorating due to natural causes or "bad medical care."
Therefore, it’s claimed Letby is the victim of "one of the major injustices of modern times."
Letby’s new lawyer, Mark McDonald, told The Guardian newspaper the report demolished the case against her, and there was "overwhelming evidence this conviction is unsafe."
The report’s findings have been sent to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC), the body that investigates potential miscarriages of justice, which is now formally examining the case.
The CCRC will also be tasked with reexamining the contentious medical evidence used to convict Letby.
In particular, questions have been raised about the prosecution’s main medical expert, Dr. Dewi Evans, who claimed babies died from having air injected into their bloodstreams, causing air embolism, a fatal condition.
During Letby’s trial, he pointed to skin discoloration in several victims as an indicator of air embolism, citing a 1989 academic paper.
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But retired Canadian neonatologist Shoo Lee, a co-author of the paper and chair of the panel, believes the research was misinterpreted by the prosecution, and Dr. Evans’ findings have "no basis in evidence."
The panel has also cast doubt on supposed insulin poisonings after Letby’s original defense team did not dispute them.
It’s claimed that babies were not properly cared for, and there were failures to carry out "basic medical procedures, delays in their treatment and the misdiagnosis of diseases."
Dr. Lee also claimed the hospital was overworked and inadequately staffed, saying, "If this had happened at a hospital in Canada, it would be shut down."
It will take many months for the CCRC to review the case, and there’s no guarantee it will be referred back to the Court of Appeal. So, Letby will remain in prison for the foreseeable future, with any bail application likely to be resisted by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
Meanwhile, a public inquiry examining events at the hospital is due to conclude next month while prosecutors are considering bringing further charges against Letby in other baby deaths at a second hospital, Liverpool Women’s Hospital.
A CCRC spokesperson told Fox News Digital, "We have received a preliminary application in relation to Ms. Letby’s case, and work has begun to assess the application.
"At this stage, it is not possible to determine how long it will take to review this application. A significant volume of complicated evidence was presented to the court in Ms Letby’s trials.
"We anticipate further submissions being made to us."
A CPS spokesperson told Fox News Digital, "Two juries and three appeal court judges have reviewed a multitude of different strands of evidence against Lucy Letby. She has been convicted on 15 separate counts following two separate jury trials.
"In May 2024, the Court of Appeal dismissed Letby’s leave to appeal on all grounds, rejecting her argument that expert prosecution evidence was flawed."
World's largest religious gathering in India underway as hundreds of millions visit 45-day festival
The Maha Kumbh Mela, or Great Pitcher Festival, is drawing hundreds of millions of pilgrims and tourists to India. The 45-day festival, which began Jan. 13, is the largest gathering of humanity in the world. It is expected to draw approximately 420 million.
That is about 200 times the number of Muslim pilgrims who participated in the annual Hajj in Mecca and Medina, Saudi Arabia, last year. It is so large it can be seen from outer space.
According to Hindu scriptures, gods and demons once churned the cosmic ocean in search of the nectar of immortality. During this struggle, drops of nectar fell at four sacred sites. The spiritual Hindu festival takes place once every 12 years at one of those four locations.
This year, it is being held in the city of Prayagraj in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. This year’s event is considered particularly special because it aligns with a rare, once-in-a-century celestial configuration.
Throngs of devotees have been descending on northern India to take a dip at the confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna rivers. Hindus, who account for nearly 80% of India’s more than 1.4 billion people, believe a third invisible river, the mythical Saraswati, also meets at the confluence.
Legend holds that a dip in the holy waters will cleanse them of sins and grant salvation. Bathing occurs daily, but on the most auspicious dates, Naga Sadhus, Hindu ascetics, head into the holy rivers at dawn.
Ava Poonawala, a resident of Mumbai, India, made the journey not as a pilgrim, but to "witness the world’s largest religious event in our lifetime," she explained to Fox News Digital. She took an early 6 a.m. dip just as the sun was rising.
After her chilly dip, she expressed feeling invigorated and at peace.
"Everyone seemed to be there with one purpose," she told Fox News Digital. "And that was spiritual awakening."
The Maha Kumbh Mela is a massive undertaking by any standard. To accommodate the tens of thousands of holy men, pilgrims and tourists, authorities have built a sprawling tent city on the riverbanks. It’s equipped with more than 150,000 tents and toilets, 3,000 kitchens and 11 hospitals, as well as roads, electricity, water and communication towers.
It covers some 15 square miles. About 50,000 security personnel, supported by artificial intelligence-powered cameras, are stationed in the city to maintain law and order and manage the crowds.
"I was blown away by the incredible magnitude of this event," Poonawala told Fox News Digital. "It’s just unimaginable how they put this all together."
A predawn stampede broke out at the festival last week, reportedly killing roughly three dozen people and injuring many more. Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered condolences to "devotees who have lost their loved ones" without specifying the number dead.
Police reported the stampede occurred as hundreds of millions of pilgrims rushed to dip in sacred waters on the most auspicious day of the festival. Uttar Pradesh’s chief minister said some devotees attempted to jump crowd management barricades, triggering the crush. The Kumbh’s grand processions, which had been curtailed last week, have since resumed.
Prior to the stampede, the festival saw a brief but large fire, which was quickly extinguished.
AT LEAST 30 DEAD IN STAMPEDE AT THE MASSIVE MAHA KUMBH FESTIVAL IN INDIA, POLICE SAY
For many, the marvel of the Maha Kumbh Mela lies neither in the religious nor spiritual experience, but rather the cultural extravaganza. It not only brings together ash-smeared monks, naked ascetics and priests dressed head-to-toe in saffron. It also attracts tourists with selfie sticks and awed foreigners.
Uttar Pradesh has gone to great lengths to promote this year’s festival as a tourist event, offering luxury packages and experiences. The government even organized helicopters to shower flower petals on the saints and seers taking a holy dip. The state has allocated more than $765 million for this year’s event.
The Kumbh has drawn people from all strata of society, whether it be billionaires like Laurene Powell Jobs, the wife of the late Steve Jobs, or athletes like Olympic boxer Mary Kom. Bollywood stars and celebrities like Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and his fiancée, actress Dakota Johnson, have descended on the festival.
Even royalty, like King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck of Bhutan, have made an appearance. On Wednesday, exactly a week after the stampede, Prime Minister Modi arrived in Prayagraj to take a sacred dip.
The Kumbh Mela’s popularity has steadily increased in size over the years as improved infrastructure and facilities have attracted more people. This year, for the first time ever, the massive event also boasts being plastic-free and eco-friendly. The festival is a significant test for India to showcase Hinduism and culture, as well as handle tourism and crowd management.
"The ground was buzzing at all hours, right through the night into the morning," Poonawala said. "It was so surreal with such purity. I can’t even begin to explain it."
Hamas frees 3 more hostages as part of ceasefire agreement with Israel
Hamas released three more hostages on Saturday in exchange for dozens of Palestinian prisoners as part of the ceasefire deal reached with Israel.
Or Levy, 34; Eli Sharabi, 52; Ohad Ben Ami, 56, were released by Hamas after they were abducted during the terror group's Oct. 7, 2023, attack against Israel that prompted the war in Gaza.
The trio were released from Deir al-Balah in the central part of the Gaza Strip. The hostages arrived at the hand-over point in a Hamas vehicle.
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Red Cross vehicles also arrived at the location.
This was the fifth time since the ceasefire began on Jan. 19 that Hamas released hostages in exchange for prisoners. Eighteen hostages and more than 550 Palestinian prisoners have been released thus far.
The ceasefire paused the 15-month war in Gaza sparked by Hamas' attack on the Jewish State, leading to military retaliation from Israeli forces.
Fox News' Yael Rotem-Kuriel and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
President Trump says 'we will have relations with North Korea'; it's a 'big asset' that he gets along with Kim
President Donald Trump hosted Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba at the White House Friday and said the U.S. will have relations with the North Korean regime of dictator Kim Jong Un.
"We will have relations with North Korea, with Kim Jong Un. I get along with them very well," Trump told reporters alongside Ishiba.
Trump, who first met Kim in 2018 in Singapore and became the first sitting president to meet with the leader of North Korea, is looking to build off his personal diplomacy he established with Kim during his first term.
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"We had a good relationship. And I think it's a very big asset for everybody that I do get along with them," the president said.
Trump met Kim again in 2019 and became the first president to step foot inside North Korean territory from the demilitarized zone.
Trump said Japan would welcome renewed dialogue with North Korea because relations between Japan and North Korea remain tense since diplomatic relations have never been established.
"And I can tell you that Japan likes the idea because their relationship is not very good with him," Trump said.
Ishiba said it's a positive development Trump and Kim met during Trump's first term. And now that he has returned to power, the U.S., Japan and its allies can move toward resolving issues with North Korea, including denuclearization.
"Japan and U.S. will work together toward the complete denuclearization of North Korea," Ishiba added.
Prime Minister Ishiba also addressed a grievance involving the abduction of Japanese citizens by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s. Although North Korea released some of the prisoners in the early 2000s, Pyongyang never provided Japan with any explanation for the abduction of its citizens, and there can be no normalization of relations between Japan and North Korea until the issue is resolved.
"And so our time is limited," Ishiba warned.
"So, I don't know if the president of the United States, if President Trump is able to resolve this issue. We do understand that it's a Japan issue, first and foremost. Having said that, we would love to continue to cooperate with them," the prime minister added.
Brazil's socialist president tells citizens not to buy expensive grocery items as food prices rise
Brazil's leftist president recently told the country's citizens not to purchase expensive grocery items in an effort to combat soaring food prices.
In a video being shared online, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva urged Brazilians to be frugal when grocery shopping.
"If you go to the supermarket in Salvador and you suspect that a certain product is expensive, don't buy it," he said. "Look, if everyone thought like that and didn't buy things they thought were expensive, whoever is selling is going to have to lower the price in order to sell it.
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"Because if they don't, it's going to spoil."
On Thursday, da Silva said he was worried about rising food prices but projected the increases would slow and voiced an optimistic tone about the economy.
"The Brazilian economy is living its best moment," Lula said during an interview with radio stations, Reuters reported.
The leftist leader noted that Brazil's real was still at a low level against the U.S. dollar but sees the rate "adjusting," according to Reuters.
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In January, Brazilian Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said he expected food prices to decline this year due to strong agricultural production.
Prices tend to stay at high levels until food production "corrects this price distortion to an adequate level," he told a local news outlet.
Haddad added that officials predict Brazil's economy will grow 2.5% in 2025, slowing from an expected 3.5% last year.
"I believe we have room to grow 2.5% by reducing inflation," he told RedeTV, according to Reuters.
Netanyahu: 'No future' in Gaza unless 'Hamas destroyed' amid concern for hostages
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday warned that the only way Gaza can see a peaceful future is if Hamas is "destroyed," though the tough rhetoric out of Washington this week has hostage families, and at least one former hostage, concerned that it could jeopardize the safe return of the hostages still held by the terrorist group.
"I was deeply moved by the reception that we got, the substantive things that we discussed, making sure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon, and also making sure that Hamas is destroyed," Netanyahu said in reference to his meetings with President Trump and lawmakers on the Hill. "We're not going to have a future for Gaza or for a future for peace in our part of the world if Hamas remains there."
Netanyahu’s comments came just three days after Trump sent geopolitical shockwaves by announcing his supposed plans for the U.S. to "take over" the Gaza Strip and called for the mass removal of millions of Palestinians living there.
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Netanyahu, who spoke alongside House Speaker Mike Johnson from the U.S. Capitol and championed their "warm personal bond," did not take any questions from the press.
Ruby Chen, father of American-Israeli hostage Itay Chen, an IDF soldier who was captured while fighting Hamas on Oct. 7, responded to Fox News Digital's questions and said, "Netanyahu needs to keep the eye on the ball: priority is the release of all the hostages and then the other issues."
"Netanyahu was responsible for Oct. 7 and needs to release the hostages taken," he added.
Hamas, along with dozens of other nations in the Middle East and across the globe, not only rejected the plans but on Friday delayed the release of names for the next round of hostages set to be freed on Saturday under the agreements of the ceasefire deal.
Following an hours-long delay, Hamas on Friday said it would release Eli Sharabi, 52, Or Levy, 34, and Ohad Ben Ami, 56, the Times of Israel reported.
Sharabi was taken from Kibbutz Beeri while his wife and daughters were killed in their safe room. Levy was taken from the Supernova music festival where his wife was killed. Ami was taken alongside his wife from Kibbutz Beeri, and his wife Raz Ben Ami was freed in the November 2023 hostage deal.
The delay came as reports suggested that families of the hostages still held in Gaza, at least one former hostage, as well as mediators involved in the ceasefire talks, have grown concerned the comments coming from the Trump-Netanyahu meeting could derail the continued release of hostages.
Just 13 of the 33 hostages slated to be released during the first phase of the ceasefire have been freed.
At least eight of the hostages scheduled to be returned during the first 42 days were confirmed by the IDF to have been killed while in Hamas activity, though the fates of Shiri Bibas and her two children, Ariel who was four years old when he was abducted alongside his brother Kfir, who was nine months old, remain unknown despite claims by Hamas that they were killed by an Israeli airstrike.
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At least nine hostages are still believed to be alive who are scheduled to be released in the first round, while the release of the remaining 65 hostages, at least 26 of whom are believed to also have been killed, will be negotiated for release following the initial 42-day period.
Reports have indicated that officials are still set to travel to Qatar on Saturday to begin negotiations for the second phase of the ceasefire – a process that was delayed one week.
A spokesman for Netanyahu on Friday said that the prime minister views Hamas’ delay in releasing the names of the hostages intended to be released on Saturday as "serious" and a "violation" of the ceasefire agreement.
The prime minister’s office confirmed to Fox News Digital that he will be monitoring the fifth hostage release scheduled for Saturday from Washington, D.C., where he will remain through the weekend.
Reports this week suggested that Netanyahu had presented Trump with a plan to end the war in Gaza in exchange for assurances from Hamas that it would relinquish its power in the war-torn region and that its leaders would go into exile.
Netanyahu’s office denied these claims to Fox News Digital.
Trump sanctions on ICC protects US military and government officials, former NSC staffer says
JERUSALEM - President Donald Trump's executive order sanctioning the Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) will prevent a slippery slope of U.S. military and government officials facing prosecution from a nebulous judicial bureaucracy in the Netherlands, argue critics of the global criminal body.
Richard Goldberg, a former Trump official who served on his first National Security Council, told Fox News Digital, "This is a critical first step in defending American soldiers and officials from further lawfare illegitimately waged by radical anti-Americans at what’s become an international kangaroo court. Israel may be in the news today, but tomorrow it will be the Americans who are still being wrongfully investigated by the court for supposed war crimes in Afghanistan."
Goldberg, a senior adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, added, "These ICC officials have crossed a line, they have entered the battlefield against the United States and Israel by perverting international law and using it as a tool of warfare. The president has preserved an escalation ladder here, too. These sanctions only apply to officials and service providers, not to the court itself. We could absolutely go the next step and shut down the court if this lawfare isn’t terminated."
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The ICC fired back in a statement and said it "condemns the issuance by the U.S. of an Executive Order seeking to impose sanctions on its officials and harm its independent and impartial judicial work. The Court stands firmly by its personnel and pledges to continue providing justice and hope to millions of innocent victims of atrocities across the world, in all Situations before it. We call on our 125 States Parties, civil society and all nations of the world to stand united for justice and fundamental human rights."
Trump signed the executive order punishing the ICC on Thursday in response to its May 2024 arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel's former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
Netanyahu praised the order in a statement. "Thank you, President Trump for your bold ICC Executive Order. It will defend America and Israel from the anti-American and antisemetic corrupt court that has no jurisdiction or basis to engage in lawfare against us. The ICC waged a ruthless campaign against Israel as a trial run for action against America. President Trump's Executive Order protects the sovereignty of both countries and its brave soldiers."
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Friday that Trump’s sanctions on the ICC are "absolutely understandable." He added the ICC has become "a biased political tool" and that the central European country was evaluating its cooperation with the ICC.
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Dozens of countries expressed their "unwavering support" for the ICC on Friday, a day after Trump authorized potentially far-reaching economic and travel sanctions against the court's staff.
"We reaffirm our continued and unwavering support for the independence, impartiality and integrity of the ICC," a group of almost 80 countries said in a joint statement. "The court serves as a vital pillar of the international justice system by ensuring accountability for the most serious international crimes, and justice for victims."
The signatories came from all parts of the world but make up only about two-thirds of the 125 member states of the permanent court for the prosecution of war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide and crimes of aggression.
Among the countries who agreed to the statement were France, Germany and Britain. Among those absent were Australia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Italy.
Goldberg said that "The president wasn’t going to wait around on Schumer’s games to act. The minute Senate Democrats blocked the bill it was a guarantee you would see an executive order follow. But if Schumer now says he supports the order, Senate Republicans should move quickly to codify it and force Schumer back to a vote."
Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer,D-NY., torpedoed a GOP-led bill to sanction the ICC in January.
Reuters and Fox News' Diana Stancy contributed to this article
São Paulo, Brazil small plane crash kills 2
Two people are dead in Brazil on Friday after a small plane crashed into a bus on a busy road in São Paulo.
Video taken at the scene showed firefighters surrounding the smoldering wreckage of the aircraft, which plunged from the sky shortly after taking off from a nearby private airport.
A piece of the plane hit a bus, injuring one woman inside, while a motorcyclist was struck by another piece of wreckage, according to local firefighters.
"Unfortunately, we began the day with this tragic plane crash in the capital of São Paulo, with the confirmed deaths of the pilot and co-pilot of the aircraft," São Paulo Governor Tarcisio de Freitas wrote on X.
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"Two people who were on the ground were injured and were taken to the Vergueiro Emergency Care Unit. It is worth highlighting the quick action of the Fire Department, which put out the flames of the accident in a few minutes, preventing an even greater tragedy," he added. "My condolences to the families and friends of the victims."
The plane went down in the busy Barra Funda neighborhood on the city's west side, near its downtown.
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Images on local media showed the plane’s fuselage and the bus on fire, with firefighters working to extinguish the blaze. The avenue is home to office buildings and there is a key bus, train and subway station nearby.
The aircraft was heading to the city of Porto Alegre.
It’s not immediately clear what caused the crash.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Iran's supreme leader says nuclear talks with Trump admin would not be 'wise'
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told air force officers in Teheran on Friday that nuclear talks with the U.S. "are not intelligent, wise or honorable."
Khamenei added that "there should be no negotiations with such a government," but did not issue an order to not engage with the U.S., according to The Associated Press.
Khamenei’s remarks on Friday seem to contradict his previous indications that he was open to negotiating with the U.S. over Iran’s nuclear program. In August, Khamenei seemed to open the door to nuclear talks with the U.S., telling his country’s civilian government that there was "no harm" in engaging with its "enemy," the AP reported.
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President Donald Trump floated the idea of a "verified nuclear peace agreement" with Teheran in a post on his Truth Social platform. In the same post, he also slammed "greatly exaggerated" reports claiming that the U.S. and Israel were going to "blow Iran into smithereens."
"I would much prefer a Verified Nuclear Peace Agreement, which will let Iran peacefully grow and prosper. We should start working on it immediately, and have a big Middle East Celebration when it is signed and completed," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
In 2018, during his first term, Trump exited the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran Nuclear Deal, saying that it was not strong enough to restrain Iran’s nuclear development. At the time, President Trump argued that the deal, which was made during former President Barack Obama’s second term, was "one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into."
Just days before his call for a "verified nuclear peace agreement" with Iran, Trump signed an executive order urging the government to put pressure on the Islamic republic. He also told reporters that if Iran were to assassinate him, they would be "obliterated," as per his alleged instructions.
According to the AP, on Friday, Khamenei slammed the U.S. because, in his eyes, "the Americans did not hold up their end of the deal." Furthermore, Iran’s supreme leader referenced Trump’s withdrawal from the JCPOA, saying that he "tore up the agreement."
"We negotiated, we gave concessions, we compromised— but we did not achieve the results we aimed for."
Iran has insisted for years that its nuclear program was aimed at civilian and peaceful purposes, not weapons. However, it has enriched its uranium to up to 60% purity, which is around 90% the level that would be considered weapons grade.
International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi told Reuters in December 2024 that it was "regrettable" that there was no "diplomatic process ongoing which could lead to a de-escalation, or a more stable equation."
In addition to his remarks on Iran, President Trump made global headlines with his proposal that the US take over Gaza as the Israel-Hamas war rages on. Khamenei, according to the AP, also seemed to reference the president’s remarks on Gaza without mentioning them outright.
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"The Americans sit, redrawing the map of the world — but only on paper, as it has no basis in reality," Khamenei told air force officers, according to the AP. "They make statements about us, express opinions and issue threats. If they threaten us, we will threaten them in return. If they act on their threats, we will act on ours. If they violate the security of our nation, we will, without a doubt, respond in kind."
Netanyahu gifts Trump controversial item that helped turned tide in war against Hezbollah
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave President Donald Trump an unusual gift during his most recent trip to Washington, D.C., this week — a gold-plated pager.
The present was a nod to the controversial mass attack believed to have been carried out by Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency against Hezbollah Sept. 17, 2024, in which thousands of pagers, walkie-talkie-like devices and radios simultaneously exploded across Lebanon and Syria around 3:30 p.m.
A statement from Netanyahu’s office to Fox News Digital said, "The pager symbolizes the prime minister’s decision that led to a turning point in the war and marked the beginning of Hezbollah’s strategic collapse.
"This strategic operation reflects Israel’s strength, technological superiority and tactical ingenuity in confronting its adversaries."
An image obtained by Fox News Digital showed the pager mounted to a wooden plaque with a message on the device that said, "Press with both hands," accompanied by a double downward arrow sign, the same message that reportedly showed moments before the devices detonated.
The plaque also came with a message to Trump calling him Israel's "greatest friend and ally."
The statement appears to be the first time Netanyahu’s office has publicly commented on the strike against the terrorist network in the summer.
Though the attacks were intended to target Hezbollah terrorists, the explosions also injured, maimed and killed civilians, including at least two children. In total, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) reported that 32 people were killed and 3,250 others were injured.
ALLIES AND FOES REJECT TRUMP'S 'RIVIERA' PLANS FOR GAZA: 'NEW SUFFERING AND NEW HATRED'
U.N. Human Rights experts condemned the operation and said the indiscriminate nature of the attacks amounted to "war crimes."
"These attacks violate the human right to life, absent any indication that the victims posed an imminent lethal threat to anyone else at the time," one expert told the OHCHR. "Such attacks require prompt, independent investigation to establish the truth and enable accountability for the crime of murder."
Despite the limited number of terrorists killed in the widespread attacks, Israeli officials have championed the operation as a successful psychological blow to Hezbollah.
Though Israel was immediately suspected of being involved in the reported years-in-the-making operation, Jerusalem had not officially confirmed its role publicly before.
However, by November 2024, Israeli reports revealed comments leaked from a Cabinet meeting in which Netanyahu was quoted as saying, "The pager operation and the elimination of [Hezbollah leader Hassan] Nasrallah were carried out despite the opposition of senior officials in the defense establishment and those responsible for them in the political echelon."
The prime minister’s comments were an apparent dig at former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who he fired just weeks prior to the comments over disagreements regarding the war effort against Hamas and Hezbollah.
Neither the White House nor the U.N. immediately responded to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.
Yael Rotem-Kuriel contributed to this report.
US ally accuses Biden admin of using USAID as a 'tool to interfere with domestic issues'
President Donald Trump’s second administration has made the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) a prime target for spending cuts. Under Trump, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, is taking a serious look at the foreign aid agency — and America’s allies and enemies alike are taking notice.
In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital at the United Nations, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó didn’t hide his disdain for USAID. While insisting that he was not interested in interfering with US domestic issues, Szijjártó did speak about what he saw from the agency under former President Joe Biden.
"The former administration couldn’t digest that we weren’t ready to give up our national positions. We were not ready to give up representing our national interests," Szijjártó told Fox News Digital. "And we were not ready to give up our non-liberal, patriotic, conservative type of approach."
'VIPER'S NEST': USAID ACCUSED OF CORRUPTION, MISMANAGEMENT LONG BEFORE TRUMP ADMIN TOOK AIM
Szijjártó also accused the Biden administration of using USAID to "destabilize the situation in other countries" and to fund "programs which were totally alien and strange compared to the culture and the heritage of other countries."
"If you ask me whether it’s good to us that there’s a revision period of 90 days when it comes to payments regarding USAID and others, we are very happy," Szijjártó added.
USAID HAS 'DEMONSTRATED PATTERN OF OBSTRUCTIONISM,' CLAIMS TOP DOGE REPUBLICAN IN LETTER TO RUBIO
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, a longtime ally of Trump, also ripped USAID after it was reported that the agency was funding Politico.
Prime Minister Orbán followed up in another tweet saying, "We had to endure for years that the ultra-progressive, self-proclaimed human rights champions of the mainstream media demonized Patriotic political forces for years. They did it because they were paid to do so by USAID and the previous, left-wing US administration. I agree with President [Trump]: this is too big and too dirty to hide from."
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed during Wednesday’s press briefing that "more than $8 million taxpayer dollars" went to Politico, adding that DOGE is "working on canceling those payments." However, the publication denied that it has ever been a "beneficiary of government programs."
Musk, who is heading up Trump’s cost-cutting efforts through DOGE, described the agency as a "viper’s nest of radical-left Marxists who hate America."
MEET THE BIDEN-ERA USAID LEADER FACING BACKLASH AMID MUSK'S DOGE CRACKDOWN
On Monday, Trump’s White House issued a list of examples of "waste and abuse" at USAID. This included $6M to fund tourism in Egypt, $1.5M in funding for DEI programs in Serbia’s workplaces, $47,000 for a "transgender opera" in Colombia and more.
The White House also accused the agency of spending "hundreds of millions of dollars" on "irrigation canals, farming equipment, and even fertilizer used to support the unprecedented poppy cultivation and heroin production in Afghanistan," adding that this was "benefiting the Taliban."
At the end of its list, the White House noted that the highlighted examples were part of a longer list of projects.
"Under President Trump, the waste, fraud, and abuse ENDS NOW," the White House added.
US military surveillance flight crashes in Philippines, killing 4
A U.S. military service member and three defense contractors died Thursday in the Philippines after their surveillance flight crashed, officials say.
U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said the aircraft contracted by the Department of Defense went down in the southern province of Maguindanao del Sur and "was providing intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance support at the request of our Philippine allies."
"The incident occurred during a routine mission in support of U.S.-Philippine security cooperation activities," U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement to Fox News.
"We can confirm no survivors of the crash. There were four personnel on board, including one U.S. military service member and three defense contractors," it added.
COAST GUARD USING SHIP, HELICOPTER TO SEARCH FOR MISSING CREW MEMBER IN EASTERN PACIFIC OCEAN
The aircraft involved in the crash was a U.S. Marine Corps Beechcraft King Air 350, a senior U.S. defense official told Fox News.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation. The names of those involved are being withheld pending next of kin notification.
Windy Beaty, a provincial disaster-mitigation officer, told the Associated Press that she received reports that residents saw smoke coming from the plane and heard an explosion before the aircraft plummeted to the ground about half a mile from a cluster of farmhouses.
A water buffalo on the ground was also killed as a result of the plane crash, local officials said.
U.S. forces have been deployed in a Philippine military camp in the country's south for decades to help provide advice and training to Filipino forces battling Muslim militants, the AP reported.
The region is the homeland of minority Muslims in the largely Roman Catholic nation.
Fox News' Jennifer Griffin and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Trump and 'no one else' can end the Ukraine-Russia war, US ally says
President Donald Trump, who echoes former President Ronald Reagan’s "peace through strength" mantra, has the credibility to end the nearly three-year war between Ukraine and Russia, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó told Fox News Digital.
"If he doesn’t have the ability, no one has the ability," Szijjártó said.
In the nearly three years since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, world leaders from several countries have tried to step in and end the conflict. Szijjártó believes there’s a reason that European leaders and the Biden administration "totally failed" to end the war. The foreign minister believes world leaders were fighting for an "impossible" victory, saying it was "obvious from the very beginning" that Ukraine could not win.
"If you look at the current situation, regardless of the huge money, regardless of the huge weapon deliveries which have been poured into Ukraine, the battlefield reality shows the advance of the Russians," Szijjártó said.
TRUMP'S ‘RARE’ PRICE FOR US MILITARY AID TO UKRAINE CALLED ‘FAIR’ BY ZELENSKYY
Szijjártó believes that Trump has credibility with both the Ukrainians and Russians, and that while other leaders have had this, they lost it by taking "a very clear position in favor of Ukraine against Russia."
The Hungarian official also accused European leaders of treating the war between Russia and Ukraine as their own, adding to the list of possible reasons why they have failed to bring an end to it.
"So, if you really think that Ukraine should negotiate in its best shape, then we have to stop the war today because tomorrow Ukraine will be in a weaker position than today," Szijjártó told Fox News Digital. He went on to accuse his European colleagues of not respecting the "reality" of the current state of the war.
This week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv would accept either a fast-track to NATO or nuclear weapons. However, retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump's envoy for Russia and Ukraine, doubts that the Ukrainian leader’s demands will be met.
"The chance of them getting their nuclear weapons back is somewhere between slim and none," Kellogg told Fox News Digital.
ZELENSKYY WANTS NUKES OR NATO; TRUMP SPECIAL ENVOY KELLOGG SAYS 'SLIM AND NONE' CHANCE
Late last month, Trump called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to make a deal with Zelenskyy to end the war. However, this has yet to happen. The president also said that Zelenskyy was ready to negotiate a deal to end the war.
"The only person that Putin will really want to talk to – because he’s kind of denigrated other leaders that are out there – is President Trump, and President Trump’s the only one who can bring this to a conclusion," Kellogg told "Fox & Friends Weekend" on Sunday. He described Trump and Putin’s relationship as "very transactional."
In September 2024, before he won re-election, Trump met with Zelenskyy in New York City at Trump Tower.
After meeting with Zelenskyy, Trump told Fox News, "We both want to see this end and we both want a fair deal made. And it’s got to be fair."
Fox News Digital's Caitlin McFall contributed to this report.
Experts slam UN action plan for combating antisemitism: ‘phony exercise in futility’
Last month, the United Nations (U.N.) released its "Action Plan to Enhance Monitoring and Response to Antisemitism," partially in response to a "surge in antisemitic incidents targeting Jews and Jewish institutions in Europe, the United States of America and elsewhere.
Anne Bayefsky, the director of the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust and the president of Human Rights Voices, told Fox News Digital that the Action Plan was a "phony exercise in futility," that was "produced by what she claimed is the leading global purveyor of antisemitism…to pretend to do something to combat antisemitism."
Developed by the U.N. Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), the U.N.'s Action Plan emphasizes that "the ability to understand and identify antisemitism is crucial to global efforts to combat hatred and prejudice." Despite the critical nature of understanding antisemitism, the plan wholly fails to define what constitutes antisemitism.
The Action Plan mentions, but does not adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism, which 45 member states have endorsed and which Bayefsky said "the vast majoriy of major Jewish organizations and institutions around the world accept," because it "recognizes the connection with Zionism and Israel."
ISRAELI PRESIDENT HERZOG HIGHLIGHTS ANTISEMITISM IN UN SPEECH AS NEW REORT SHOWS SHOCKING TREND
"The U.N. champions the idea that victims of hate and intolerance define their own experience of discrimination, isolation, and violence – except when it comes to Jews," she said.
UNAOC Director Nihal Saad was asked by Fox News Digital why the Action Plan does not define antisemitism and whether lacking this definition would hinder efforts to identify and curtail anti-Jewish prejudice.
Saad said that "the Action Plan underlines the importance of understanding antisemitism rather than focusing on the definition of antisemitism and entering into a debate about it, which proved distracting from the real goal here, which is enhancing our responses to antisemitism."
Referencing other issues where there is no consensus over "definition of the subject matter," Saad explained that a lack of a "definitive agreement among member states on the definition of terrorism" had not hindered the development of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy, which Saad called "a unique global instrument to enhance national, regional and international efforts to counter terrorism."
Edmund Fitton-Brown, a senior advisor to the Counter Extremism Project and a former U.N. Monitoring Team coordinator, told Fox News Digital that "the CT[counterterrorism] strategy is a mess."
Though he said that some U.N. efforts to counter terrorism are effective, he said that given the lack of agreement over what constitutes terrorism, the U.N. particularly struggles with identifying groups like Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis as terrorists. "If something really dramatic happens, then often a group will find it is being accused of being a terrorist group," Fitton-Brown said, noting how the U.N. condemned the Houthis in the aftermath of their 2022 attack on Abu Dhabi airport but failed to designate them as a terror group. "On Hezbollah, the U.N. has been hopelessly weak," he explained.
He said that Hamas was "a good example of where the absence of a definition is problematic because you get something like the 10/7 attack…and the U.N. just completely failed in its response to that, and that is partly because of its failure to judge that a group that adopts terrorist tactics is a terrorist group."
Bayefsky said that the U.N. Security Council "has never condemned Hamas for October 7th because they can’t agree on what counts as terrorism. That isn’t a success story. It’s a malevolent dereliction of duty."
Among the Action Plan’s proposals are the implementation of training modules to help staff "recognize and understand antisemitism," and the requirement that senior U.N. officials "continue to denounce antisemitic manifestations as and when they occur."
Bayefsky questioned the implementation of these plans. "The U.N. says it is committed to educating U.N. staff about antisemitism without knowing what counts as antisemitism. Any actual educator gives that lesson plan an ‘F,’" she explained.
From the highest levels, Bayefsky claimed that the world body is not currently standing up against anti-Jewish prejudice. Though U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the world on International Holocaust Remembrance Day that "we must condemn antisemitism wherever and whenever it appears," Bayefsky said that "if the when and the who are inside the U.N., [Guterres is] not only sitting down, he goes mute."
"Take the cases of U.N. Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese and U.N. Commission of Inquiry head Navi Pillay, both widely condemned for egregious antisemitic behavior," Bayefsky claimed. "The Secretary-General claims their ‘independence’ leaves him impotent. Nothing prevents him from using his platform to speak out about right and wrong. He’s mute by choice."
Fox News Digital asked Saad whether the Action Plan would allow for the U.N. to make critical comments when special rapporteurs make antisemitic remarks in the name of the institution. "Special Procedure Mandate Holders/Special Rapporteurs are independent human rights experts appointed by the U.N. Human Rights Council," Saad responded. "They act in an individual capacity, and exercise their functions in accordance with their mandate, through a professional, impartial assessment of facts based on internationally recognized human rights standards. The views expressed by special procedures mandate holders remain those of the mandate holder and may not represent positions held [by] the wider United Nations system."
Fox News Digital asked Farhan Haq, spokesperson for Guterres, whether the Action Plan would allow him to comment on antisemitism emanating from the U.N., including from its special rapporteurs. "The Secretary-General has no authority over the independent experts who report to the Human Rights Council, and he does not comment on their activities or remarks," Haq said. "But the UNAOC plan is designed to educate U.N. staff about antisemitism."
Bayefsky said that the U.N. "can’t combat antisemitism without acknowledging its guilt and starting with ‘mea culpa.’"
Neither Navi Pillay nor Francesca Albanese responded to Fox News Digital questions concerning the allegations of antisemitism leveled against them.
Zelenskyy wants nukes or NATO; Trump special envoy Kellogg says 'slim and none' chance
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this week said that if the U.S. cannot guarantee a quick path toward NATO membership, then there are alternative security options Kyiv would accept: nuclear weapons.
But don't think the United States is eager to agree to those terms.
"The chance of them getting their nuclear weapons back is somewhere between slim and none," retired Lt. General Keith Kellogg, special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, told Fox News Digital. "Let's be honest about it, we both know that's not going to happen."
In 1994, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine agreed to give Russia its nuclear arms in exchange for reassurances from Russia, the U.S. and the U.K. that its sovereignty and independence would be respected – a treaty Moscow has violated with its repeated invasions – and in an interview on Tuesday, Zelenskyy argued that Ukraine should be given its arms "back" if a timely NATO membership is off the table.
But Kellogg, the man tasked by President Donald Trump to help bring an end to the three-year war, said rearming Ukraine with nuclear weapons is a non-starter.
"Remember, the president said we're a government of common sense," he said. "When somebody says something like that, look at the outcome or the potential. That's using your common sense."
Zelenskyy on Tuesday confirmed his willingness to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin face-to-face if that is the best option for bringing an end to the war, though the Kremlin chief has not agreed to any in-person meeting with the Ukrainian leader.
Trump on Sunday said that initial talks had begun with both Ukraine and Russia, and Kellogg this week confirmed that Kyiv and Moscow will need to make concessions if there is going to be a peace deal.
TRUMP'S ‘RARE’ PRICE FOR US MILITARY AID TO UKRAINE CALLED ‘FAIR’ BY ZELENSKYY
The administration has been tight-lipped on what sort of compromises will need to be made, particularly when it comes to the biggest hot-button issue for both Zelenskyy and Putin: Ukrainian NATO membership.
Kellogg wouldn’t comment on where Trump lands when it comes to backing either Ukraine with a membership in the security alliance or Russia in denying its southern neighbor access to the top coalition.
"That’s one of the reasons I’m going next week to Europe, to actually see them face-to-face," he said. "I can bring that back to the president and say, ‘OK, Mr. President, this is their concern. This is what the issues are.’"
Kellogg is set to travel to the Munich Security Conference, which runs Feb. 14-16, where he said he will meet with world leaders to discuss Russia’s war in Ukraine and get a better idea of where nations like the U.K., Germany and Denmark, along with other top providers of military aid to Ukraine, stand on negotiations to end the war.
"As you develop the plans to end this carnage, you have to make sure that you've got the feel of everybody in play," Kellogg said. "Once we get to have these face-to-face discussions, then you can really kind of work … on concessions."
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte last month urged member nations to increase their support for Ukraine, an issue he said is vastly important when it comes to bolstering NATO deterrence in the face of the Russia, China, North Korea, Iran bloc.
"If we get a bad deal, it would only mean that we will see the president of Russia high-fiving with the leaders of North Korea, Iran and China, and we cannot accept that," Rutte said. "That will be geopolitically a big, a big mistake."
Rutte has urged NATO nations to ramp up defense spending and warned that if Russia comes out on top in this war, it will cost NATO allies "trillions" not "billions."
Kellogg will also press NATO allies to increase defense spending and, as directed by Trump, to start shouldering the burden of the war in Ukraine.
Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte impeached, faces senate trial as political battle rages
MANILA, Philippines — The lower house in the Philippines impeached Vice President Sara Duterte Wednesday, accusing her of a wide range of crimes that included plotting to assassinate the president, large-scale corruption and failing to strongly denounce China’s aggressive actions against Filipino forces in the disputed South China Sea.
The move by legislators in the House of Representatives, many of them allies of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., deepens a bitter political rift that involved the two highest leaders of one of Asia’s most rambunctious democracies.
Marcos has boosted defense ties with his country’s treaty ally, the United States, while the vice president’s father, Rodrigo Duterte, nurtured cozy relations with China and Russia during his stormy term that ended in 2022.
At least 215 legislators in the lower house signed the impeachment complaint against the vice president, significantly more than the required number to allow the petition to be rapidly transmitted to the Senate, which would serve as a tribunal to try the vice president, House of Representatives Secretary-General Reginald Velasco told a plenary House meeting in the body’s last session before a four-month recess.
US FLIES JOINT PATROL WITH THE PHILIPPINES NEAR SHOAL REGION GUARDED BY CHINA
Among the signatories of the impeachment complaint was the president’s son, Rep. Sandro Marcos, and cousin, House Speaker Martin Romualdez. The petition urged the Senate to shift itself into an impeachment court to try the vice president, "render a judgement of conviction," remove her from office and ban her from holding public office.
"Duterte’s conduct throughout her tenure clearly displays gross faithlessness against public trust and a tyrannical abuse of power that, taken together, showcases her gross unfitness to hold public office and her infidelity to the laws and the 1987 Constitution," the complaint said of Duterte.
The vice president didn’t immediately comment on the House decision to impeach her, but her brother, Rep. Paolo Duterte said that the move was "a clear act of political persecution." Rival lawmakers maneuvered to quickly collect signatures and push a "baseless impeachment case" to the Senate, he said.
Duterte ran as Marcos’s vice-presidential running mate in 2022 on a campaign battle cry of unity in a deeply divided Southeast Asian country. Both were scions of strongmen long in the crosshairs of human rights groups, but their strong regional bases of support combined to give them landslide victories.
Marcos is the son and namesake of the late dictator, who was ousted in a 1986 pro-democracy uprising. The vice president’s father and Marcos’s predecessor, Duterte, launched a deadly anti-drug crackdown that is being investigated by the International Criminal Court as a possible crime against humanity.
The whirlwind political alliance rapidly frayed after their electoral victories.
The impeachment complaint against the vice president, regarded as a possible presidential contender after Marcos’s six-year term ends in 2028, focuses on a death threat that she made against the president, his wife and the House speaker last year, irregularities in the use of her office’s intelligence funds and her failure to stand up to Chinese aggression in the disputed South China Sea.
She said in an online news conference on Nov. 23 that she has contracted an assassin to kill Marcos, his wife and Romualdez if she were killed, a threat she warned wasn’t a joke.
She later said that she wasn’t threatening him, but was expressing concern for her own safety. However, her statements set off an investigation and national security concerns.
CHINA IS ‘AGGRESIVE’ AND ‘INTRUSIVE’ IN THE WEST, HOUSE INTEL CHAIR SAYS
Allegations of graft and corruption against her also emanated from a monthslong and televised House investigation on the alleged misuse of 612.5 million pesos ($10.5 million) of confidential and intelligence funds received by Duterte’s offices as vice president and education secretary. She has since left the education post after her political differences with Marcos deepened.
She has also been accused of unexplained wealth and failure to declare her wealth as required by the law. She has refused to respond to questions in detail in tense televised hearings last year.
The impeachment complaint accused Duterte of undermining the Marcos government’s policies, including her description of the administration’s handling of territorial disputes with Beijing in the South China Sea as a "fiasco." The complaint also mentioned her silence over China’s increasingly assertive actions in the disputed waters.
"Her sheer evasiveness and silence on the West Philippine Sea issue, an issue that strikes at the core of Philippine sovereignty, is diametrically opposed to her being so loquacious as to other issues," the impeachment petition said, using the Philippine name for the disputed waters.
Duterte has repeatedly accused Marcos, his wife and Romualdez of corruption, weak leadership and attempting to muzzle her because of speculation she may seek the presidency in 2028.
Allies and foes reject Trump's 'Riviera' plans for Gaza: 'New suffering and new hatred'
The world reacted in unified shock on Wednesday after President Donald Trump announced his intention that the U.S. develop the Gaza Strip to create a "Riviera of the Middle East," and that millions of Palestinians living there would be relocated.
The bombshell proposal was made during a press conference on Tuesday when Trump, standing next to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, refused to rule out U.S. military intervention and said Washington "will take over the Gaza Strip."
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt looked to ease concerns on Wednesday and said the president has not "committed to putting boots on the ground" or to paying for the reconstruction plans.
But her assurances came after the president's proposal was met with swift resistance from leaders across the Middle East, Europe, Asia, South America and Oceania.
RAND PAUL RECOILS AT TRUMP'S GAZA TAKEOVER PLANS: 'I THOUGHT WE VOTED FOR AMERICA FIRST'
Saudi Arabia, which Trump has pushed to "normalize ties" with Israel, flatly rejected Trump’s proposal and in a statement issued by the foreign ministry said there could be no diplomatic relations with the Jewish state without a two-state solution for the Palestinians.
"Saudi Arabia rejects any attempts to displace the Palestinians from their land. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has affirmed the kingdom’s position in ‘a clear and explicit manner’ that does not allow for any interpretation under any circumstances."
The UAE, which did sign on to the Abraham Accords during the first Trump administration, responded to his remarks in a statement from the foreign ministry and issued a "categorical rejection of violating the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and attempting to displace them, and called for the need to stop settlement activities that threaten regional stability and undermine opportunities for peace and coexistence."
The ministry "stressed the importance of avoiding everything that could lead to the expansion of the conflict in the region, and explained that the priority now after the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip must focus on ending extremism, tension and violence, protecting the lives of all civilians, and delivering urgent, safe and sustainable humanitarian aid."
A senior official with the terror group Hamas, Sami Abu Zuhri, said, "Our people in the Gaza Strip will not allow these plans to pass. What is required is to end the [Israeli] occupation and aggression against our people, not to expel them from their land."
SAUDI ARABIA CONTRADICTS TRUMP, VOWS NO TIES WITH ISRAEL WITHOUT CREATION OF PALESTINIAN STATE
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas echoed the shared sentiment and said, "The Palestinians will not relinquish their land, rights and sacred sites, and that the Gaza Strip is an integral part of the land of the State of Palestine, along with the West Bank and East Jerusalem."
A senior Iranian official told Reuters, "Iran does not agree with any displacement of Palestinians and has communicated this through various channels."
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has been toeing the line when it comes to relations with the U.S. amid the second Trump administration, for the first time on Wednesday broke with Trump and said Palestinians "must be allowed home."
"They must be allowed to rebuild, and we should be with them in that rebuild on the way to a two-state solution," he added, speaking from the House of Commons, Politico EU reported.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock took a more direct approach and, in a statement, said, in accordance with international law, "It is clear that Gaza – just like the West Bank and East Jerusalem – belongs to the Palestinians. It forms the basis for a future state of Palestine.
"A displacement of the Palestinian civilian population from Gaza would not only be unacceptable and in breach of international law. It would also lead to new suffering and new hatred," she added.
'LEVEL IT': TRUMP SAYS US WILL 'TAKE OVER' GAZA STRIP, REBUILD IT TO STABILIZE MIDDLE EAST
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov reaffirmed Russia’s support for a two-state solution and said, "This is the thesis that is enshrined in the relevant U.N. Security Council resolution, this is the thesis that is shared by the overwhelming majority of countries involved in this problem. We proceed from it, we support it and believe that this is the only possible option."
French foreign ministry spokesperson Christophe Lemoine also released a statement warning that anything but a two-state solution would have destabilizing consequences for the entire region. "France reiterates its opposition to any forced displacement of Gaza’s Palestinian population, which would constitute a serious violation of international law," he said.
"Gaza’s future must lie not in the prospect of control by a third State but in the framework of a future Palestinian State, under the aegis of the Palestinian Authority."
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said, "China has all along believed that ‘the Palestinians governing Palestine’ is the fundamental principle of post-conflict governance of Gaza.
"We oppose the forced displacement of the people in Gaza, and hope that relevant parties will take the opportunity of the ceasefire and post-conflict governance in Gaza to bring the Palestinian question back to the right track of a political settlement based on the two-state solution, so as to realize lasting peace in the Middle East," he added, during a Wednesday press conference.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told local news outlets that Trump’s proposal was "unacceptable" and argued that plans to leave Palestinians "out of the equation" would lead to more conflict.
Turkish President Recep Erdoğan does not appear to have publicly commented yet, though his strong stance against Israel’s deadly operations in Gaza could signal the two leaders may geopolitically butt heads over how to handle the post-war era in the Gaza Strip.
Australia, which has become a chief ally of the U.S. in countering China – a push Trump has named one of his top priorities – made its position on Trump’s comments clear after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said, "Australia’s position is the same as it was this morning, as it was last year. The Australian government supports on a bipartisan basis a two-state solution."
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva called Trump’s comments "bravado" and said in an interview with local radio stations, "No country, no matter how important, can fight the entire world all the time."
"It makes no sense," he argued while defending a two-state solution. "Where would Palestinians live? This is something incomprehensible to any human being.
"Palestinians are the ones who need to take care of Gaza," he added.
Reuters contributed to this report.
EXCLUSIVE: US ally cautions world against doubting Trump's 'shockingly innovative' Gaza proposal
UNITED NATIONS — President Donald Trump’s suggestion that the U.S. "take over" the Gaza Strip has garnered negative reactions across the globe and even from within his own party.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó, however, doesn’t think the world should be so quick to dismiss President Trump’s proposal. Szijjártó compared the Gaza proposal to another one of Trump’s "shockingly innovative" ideas to a paradigm-shifting move the president made shortly before leaving office in 2020.
"I would like to remind everyone that when President Trump announced his plan regarding the Abraham Accords, there was hardly anyone in the world who would have believed in the success in those agreements, right? And at the end of the day, he made it, and the Abraham Accords have brought a totally new dimension to the life of the Middle East," Szijjártó told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview at the United Nations headquarters in New York.
TRUMP SAYS US WILL 'TAKE OVER' GAZA STRIP, REBUILD IT TO STABILIZE MIDDLE EAST
The Abraham Accords saw Israel sign treaties with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan. There was speculation that had President Trump won the 2020 election, Saudi Arabia would have been next to sign a treaty. However, the Saudis made it clear on Tuesday that the country would not forge ties with Israel without the establishment of a Palestinian state.
"This is maybe the most complicated issue nowadays in the world, how to make long-term peace in the Middle East," Szijjártó said, adding that "when it comes to President Trump, I would not exclude anything."
On Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu became the first foreign dignitary to visit the White House since President Trump’s return to the Oval Office. His visit came as Israel continues to grapple with the aftermath of Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre nearly 16 months later.
During a joint press conference with Netanyahu, Trump announced his proposal to have the U.S. "take over" the Gaza Strip, saying it would give the Palestinians an opportunity to "live out their lives in peace and harmony."
"The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it, too," Trump said. "We'll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous, unexplored bombs and other weapons on the site."
"Level the site and get rid of the destroyed buildings, level it out, create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area," he added. "Do a real job, do something different, just can't go back. If you go back, it's going to end up the same way it has for 100 years."
Hamas, the terrorist organization currently ruling over the Gaza Strip, broke its silence on Wednesday and slammed Trump’s proposal as a "recipe for creating chaos and tension in the region."
Middle East expert says Israel and the US are back on the same page — but that doesn't mean Hamas is deterred
President Donald Trump made a massive shift in Washington’s stance towards Israel and the Middle East, proposing a U.S. takeover of the Gaza Strip.
"The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too. We'll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous, unexplored bombs and other weapons on the site, level the site and get rid of the destroyed buildings, level it out, create an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs and housing for the people of the area," President Trump said during a joint presser with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday.
TRUMP'S MIDDLE EAST ENVOY EXPLAINS GAZA TAKEOVER PROPOSAL: 'MORE HOPE' FOR PALESTINIANS' FUTURES
Nearly 16 months after Hamas’ surprise attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, Israel has been grappling with the aftermath of the onslaught as it continues to fight the terror regime in control of Gaza. For much of the war, the question has been what will happen when Hamas is no longer in control, but through his surprise declaration, President Trump has given the Israelis an answer.
Even before he was officially in the Oval Office, Trump’s threat of "all hell to pay" seemed to work on Hamas, as the terror organization released hostages for the first time since November 2023.
"There is clearly a sense that Jerusalem and Washington are on the same page, illustrated by Netanyhu's upcoming visit to DC and being the first foreign dignitary to be invited to the White House since the election," Scholars for Peace in the Middle East Executive Director Asaf Romirowsky told Fox News Digital on Monday.
"The Trump administration is clearly helping on the hostage front and part of the discussions in DC this week will center on resuming the war and the rest of the hostages," Romirowsky added.
Despite the multiple rounds of hostage releases, Romirowsky is skeptical whether the terror organization is feeling the weight of the U.S. government.
"As far as Hamas goes it is not in their nature to be deterred by any U.S. government and they will try to push their agenda through Qatar and others," Romirowsky said. "That said, Israel seems to be getting the military support they need and the hope is that it also continues as it relates the war in Gaza and the Middle East at large."
Prior to leaving office in 2020, President Trump launched an initiative that seemed to have peace breaking out in the Middle East. Aimed at creating peaceful relationships between Arab nations and Israel, the Abraham Accords included the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Sudan and Morocco. Many speculated that a treaty with Saudi Arabia was on the horizon.
"There is no doubt that the goal is to expand the Abraham Accords especially as it relates to Saudi Arabia," Romirowsky said. "Saudi-Israel relations are also linked regarding their shared security concerns as they relate to Iran."
IF IRAN ATTEMPTS ASSASSINATION, 'THEY GET OBLITERATED': PRESIDENT TRUMP
Ahead of his meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu, President Trump signed an executive order ending U.S. engagement with the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).
Former President Joe Biden halted the funding of UNRWA following reports that some of the agency’s staff participated in the Oct. 7 attacks against Israel. Additionally, freed hostage Emily Damari, who was taken from her home in Kfar Aza, said she was held in UNRWA facilities, and that Hamas denied her medical care after shooting her twice.
In the joint presser with Netanyahu, Trump described the UNHRC as "antisemitic." President Trump also withdrew from the UNHRC during his first term. In 2021, the Biden administration rejoined the controversial international body.
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