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UN Secretary-General António Guterres seems to be bracing his staff ahead of possible changes in U.S. foreign policy under President Donald Trump. In a letter distributed to UN staff, Guterres warned of the "difficult challenge" facing the international body.

"I assure you that we are working closely with colleagues throughout the United Nations system to understand and mitigate the extent of its impact on our operations," Guterres wrote in the letter.

"Now, more than ever, the work of the United Nations is crucial. As we face this difficult challenge, your dedication and support will help us to overcome and move forward. Together, we will ensure that our Organization continues to serve people in need around the world with unwavering commitment."

In response to a Fox News request for comment, Guterres’ spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said, "From day one, US support for the United Nations has saved countless lives and advanced global security.  The Secretary-General looks forward to continuing his productive relationship with President Trump and the US Government to strengthen that relationship in today’s turbulent world."

WHITE HOUSE DETAILS USAID PROGRAMS UNDER ELON MUSK'S MICROSCOPE

"As President Trump has indicated, the UN plays a crucial role in taking on big challenges so that individual countries don’t have to do it on their own at far greater expense. With the letter, the Secretary-General was keeping staff informed," Dujarric added.’

Former Principal Deputy Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Hugh Dugan told Fox News Digital that "UN entities from the top down are feeling very anxious," citing someone extremely senior in the UN. Dugan believes that DOGE and his own organization DOGE-UN are causes of concern for Guterres due to "heightened accountability" from Washington. 

"And I think that they’re going to have to scramble to show that they’ve been trustworthy with those resources and have been careful in accounting for their ultimate disposition, because I expect that we’re going to find that’s not been the case," Dugan said.

This letter was sent just over two weeks after President Trump issued his Executive Order on Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid.

"It is the policy of the United States that no further United States foreign assistance shall be disbursed in a manner that is not fully aligned with the foreign policy of the President of the United States," Trump’s order reads.

While the order calls for a 90-day pause in foreign programs, it includes a clause giving Secretary of State Marco Rubio the authority to "waive the pause in Section 3(a) for specific programs."

Trump administration officials claim to have uncovered several areas of government waste when it comes to foreign funding. This includes a $1.5 million US Agency for International Development (USAID) project aimed at advancing DEI in Serbian workplaces and a $2 million program promoting "LGBT activism" in Guatemala.

In her first briefing, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that DOGE and OMB found "that there was about to be $50 million taxpayer dollars that went out the door to fund condoms in Gaza."

"That is a preposterous waste of taxpayer money. So that's what this pause is focused on, being good stewards of tax dollars," Leavitt told reporters at the briefing.

At first glance, the funding for condoms in Gaza could seem like it would be aimed at public health. However, Hamas has used condoms in the past to fly incendiary devices and IEDs into Israel, as the Jerusalem Post reported in 2020.

TRUMP CUTS US OFF FROM UN HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL, BANS UNRWA FUNDING

During his 2024 campaign, Trump took aim at government spending, ultimately introducing DOGE to tackle waste.

Following Trump’s order, Secretary Rubio paused all US foreign assistance programs funded by or through the State Department and USAID pending review.

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"Reviewing and realigning foreign assistance on behalf of hardworking taxpayers is not just the right thing to do, it is a moral imperative," the State Department statement read. "The Secretary is proud to protect America’s investment with a deliberate and judicious review of how we spend foreign assistance dollars overseas."

In the same statement, the State Department emphasized Secretary Rubio’s focus on ensuring the programs his department funds are working for Americans and are "consistent with US foreign policy under the America First agenda."

Mexico will not allow the U.S. government to send Mexican migrants to the Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, detention camp, Mexico's foreign minister said on Tuesday.

Foreign Minister Juan Ramon de la Fuente said Mexico would rather directly receive the migrants.

The Mexican government sent a diplomatic note to the U.S. embassy in Mexico to explain its position.

This comes after White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Tuesday that the Trump administration has begun flying detained illegal migrants from the U.S. to Guantánamo Bay, although she did not specify the nationalities of the people on those flights.

US BEGINS FLYING MIGRANTS TO GUANTANAMO BAY

"I can also confirm that today the first flights from the United States to Guantánamo Bay with illegal migrants are underway," Leavitt said.

"And so President Trump, Pete Hegseth and Kristi Noem are already delivering on this promise to utilize that capacity at Gitmo for illegal criminals who have broken our nation's immigration laws and then have further committed heinous crimes against lawful American citizens here at home," she continued.

U.S. President Donald Trump has promised to expand the detention camp to hold up to 30,000 "criminal illegal aliens." The U.S. military base has been criticized around the world for its inhumane abuse and torture of detainees, including in interrogation tactics.

One flight from Fort Bliss to Guantánamo Bay has roughly a dozen migrants on board, according to the Pentagon. An additional flight left the U.S. on Monday.

The migrants will be held in the detention camp that was set up for detainees in the aftermath of 9/11. The migrants will be separated from the 15 detainees who were already there, including planners in the 2001 terrorist attack.

EL SALVADOR AGREES TO ACCEPT US DEPORTEES OF ANY NATIONALITY FOLLOWING MEETING WITH RUBIO

Last week, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel called Trump's effort to send 30,000 migrants to Guantánamo an "act of brutality."

"In an act of brutality, the new US government announces the imprisonment at the Guantánamo Naval Base, located in illegally occupied territory [of Cuba], of thousands of migrants that it forcibly expels, and will place them next to the well-known prisons of torture and illegal detention," he said in a translated post on X.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Saudi Arabia said it would not establish ties with Israel unless a Palestinian state is created, shooting down U.S. President Donald Trump's claim that the Saudis were not demanding a Palestinian homeland when he floated the idea of the U.S. government taking control of the Gaza Strip.

Trump said on Tuesday at a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he wants the U.S. to take over the Gaza Strip, which has been ravaged by the Israel-Hamas war, after Palestinians are resettled in other countries.

"The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it, too," Trump said at the White House. "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 said. "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."

'LEVEL IT': TRUMP SAYS US WILL 'TAKE OVER' GAZA STRIP, REBUILD IT TO STABILIZE MIDDLE EAST

Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that the country rejects any attempts to displace the Palestinians from their homeland, stressing that its position on the Palestinians is not up to negotiation.

The statement noted that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has affirmed the kingdom's position in "a clear and explicit manner" that does not make other interpretations possible under any circumstances.

TRUMP'S MIDDLE EAST ENVOY EXPLAINS GAZA TAKEOVER PROPOSAL: ‘MORE HOPE’ FOR PALESTINIANS' FUTURES

Any proposed displacement of Palestinians, an idea Trump has suggested multiple times since retaking office last month, is a highly sensitive matter for both Palestinians and Arab countries.

Trump said on Jan. 25 that he wanted Jordan, Egypt and other Arab nations to accept more Palestinian refugees from the Gaza Strip, potentially moving out enough people to "just clean out" the area.

"You’re talking about probably a million and a half people, and we just clean out that whole thing and say, 'You know, it’s over,'" he said at the time.

Amid the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, Palestinians feared they would suffer from another "Nakba," meaning catastrophe in Arabic, which refers to the displacement and dispossession of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians during the 1948 war at the birth of the State of Israel.

'PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH': TRUMP AND NETANYAHU EXPECTED TO DISCUSS IRAN, HAMAS AT WHITE HOUSE MEETING

The U.S. had led months of diplomacy to convince Saudi Arabia to normalize ties with Israel and recognize the Middle Eastern country. But the war in Gaza, which began with Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on the Jewish State, prompted the Saudis to abandon the matter amid Arab anger over Israel's offensive.

Trump wants Saudi Arabia to follow in the footsteps of countries including the United Arab Emirates, a Middle East trade and business hub, and Bahrain, which signed the Abraham Accords in 2020 and normalized ties with Israel.

Saudi Arabia establishing ties with Israel would be a grand prize for the Jewish State because the kingdom has huge influence in the Middle East and the wider Muslim world, and it is the world's biggest oil exporter.

Reuters contributed to this report.

The White House on Monday released a list of projects overseen by the top U.S. aid agency it identified as "waste and abuse" as Elon Musk's cost cutters seek to dismantle the decades-old provider of foreign aid. 

Musk, a "special government employee," according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, oversees the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Despite its title, DOGE is not a government agency but has been tasked by the White House’s executive office with dismantling top spending initiatives, and the billionaire's most recent target is the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

"For decades, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has been unaccountable to taxpayers as it funnels massive sums of money to the ridiculous — and, in many cases, malicious — pet projects of entrenched bureaucrats, with next-to-no oversight," the White House said Monday. 

According to a list released by the White House, USAID allocated millions of dollars for programs the Trump administration considers controversial and that frequently involved diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives launched during the Biden administration.

WHAT IS USAID AND WHY IS IT IN TRUMP’S CROSSHAIRS?

At the top of the list was a $1.5 million program slated to "advance diversity, equity and inclusion in Serbia's workplaces and business communities" and a $70,000 program for a "DEI musical" in Ireland.

Initiatives that supported LGBTQI programs were also flagged as an inappropriate use of taxpayer funds, including $47,000 for a "transgender opera" in Colombia, $32,000 for a "transgender comic book" in Peru and $2 million for sex changes and "LGBT activism" in Guatemala.

Fox News Digital could not independently verify the initiatives detailed by the White House in Colombia or Guatemala. The White House referenced reports about these programs by the Daily Mail, the Daily Caller News Foundation and other outlets. 

The White House also detailed spending initiatives that launched during Trump’s previous administration, including a 2017-2019, $6 million agreement that it said was intended to "fund tourism" in Egypt. 

MUSK'S DOGE TAKES AIM AT ‘VIPER’S NEST' FEDERAL AGENCY WITH GLOBAL FOOTPRINT

However, the link referencing the Egyptian program detailed how it was intended to build on previous investments in North Sinai that provided potable water and wastewater services to hundreds of thousands of people and would provide further "access to transportation for rural communities and economic livelihood programming for families."

The White House also outlined USAID’s funding for coronavirus research, including millions of taxpayer dollars supplied to EcoHealth Alliance for coronavirus research, support for contraceptive initiatives and programs that it said benefited terrorists in several countries. 

The future of USAID remains unclear, though the doors to its headquarters were closed Monday, and thousands of employees across the globe sat waiting to hear whether they still had jobs after the apparent Musk takeover.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been named the acting director, and he agreed Monday with the White House that the agency needed an overhaul.

"The president made me the acting administrator," he told Fox News. "I’ve delegated that power to someone who is there full-time, and we’re going to go through the same process at USAID as we’re going through now at the State Department."

Questions remain over whether the White House has the legal authority to dismantle an independent agency, and Democratic lawmakers on Monday joined agency employees who stood outside the headquarters protesting the shutdown despite having been told to remain at home. 

Rubio took issue with the protests and referred to them as "rank insubordination."

"The goal was to reform it, but now we have rank insubordination," he said. "Now we have basically an active effort — their basic attitude is, ‘We don’t work for anyone. We work for ourselves. No agency of government can tell us what to do.’"

Hundreds of earthquakes that have rattled the Greek islands since last week have prompted the evacuation of thousands from the tourist hotspot Santorini.

Santorini Mayor Nikos Zorzos told The Associated Press that the tremors are a "seismic swarm" and could continue for weeks before eventually diminishing.

"This phenomenon may play out with small quakes or a single, slightly stronger one, followed by gradual subsidence," Zorzos said, adding he was cautiously optimistic after speaking to seismologists.

More than 200 undersea earthquakes up to magnitude 5 have been recorded in the volcanic region since Friday.

EMERGENCY CREWS DEPLOYED ON SANTORINI AS EARTHQUAKE SWARM WORRIES GREEK EXPERTS

Roughly 9,000 people have left Santorini since Sunday, with more emergency flights and ferries adding services to accommodate departures, the BBC reported.

Santorini has canceled public events, restricted travel to the island and banned construction work in certain areas. The quakes have caused cracks in some older buildings, but no injuries have been reported. The island has a population of approximately 15,500 residents.

EARTHQUAKE OFF COAST OF MAINE SHAKES NORTHEAST

Efthimios Lekkas, head of the state-run Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization, said the epicenter of the earthquakes in the Aegean was moving northward away from Santorini, and emphasized there was no connection to the area's dormant volcanoes.

"This may last several days or several weeks. We are not able to predict the evolution of the sequence in time," Lekkas told state-run television.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen repeated on Monday that Greenland is "not for sale," but she remained open to bolstering the American "footprint" on the Arctic island.

As European Union leaders convened for a meeting in Brussels, Frederiksen addressed President Donald Trump's prospect of acquiring control of Greenland, a self-governing territory of Denmark, a U.S. ally, through military or economic force. 

"I think we have been very clear from the Kingdom of Denmark, with great support from the European partners and the European Union, that everybody has to respect the sovereignty of all national states in the world, and that Greenland is today a part of the Kingdom of Denmark, it is a part of our territory, and it's not for sale," Frederiksen told reporters, speaking in English. "The chairman, the leader of Greenland, has been very clear that they are not for sale." 

Frederiksen signaled that Denmark would welcome Trump sending more troops to Greenland, where the U.S. Space Force already has a base to monitor missile threats. 

US FLIES JOINT PATROL WITH THE PHILIPPINES NEAR SHOAL REGION GUARDED BY CHINA

"I totally agree with the Americans that the High North, that the Arctic region is becoming more and more important when we are talking about defense and security and deterrence," Frederiksen said, as China and Russia have both been increasingly active in the region. "And it is possible to find a way to ensure stronger footprints in Greenland. They [the U.S.] are already there, and they can have more possibilities. And at the same time, we are willing to scale up from the Kingdom of Denmark. And I think NATO is the same. So if this is about securing our part of the world, we can find a way forward." 

Frederiksen also responded to Trump's threat of implementing tariffs on imports from the European Union. The Danish leader said EU members "are willing to help each other and to stick together, and I will never support the idea of fighting allies, but of course, if the U.S. puts tough tariffs on Europe, we need a collective and robust response."

Last week, her government announced a nearly $2 billion agreement with parties, including the governments of Greenland and the Faeroe Islands, to "improve capabilities for surveillance and maintaining sovereignty in the region." It would include three new Arctic naval vessels, two additional long-range surveillance drones and satellite capacity, the Danish Defense Ministry said.

Meanwhile, European Council President Antonio Costa, noting that the EU has stood beside Ukraine in defense of its borders, said of Greenland on Monday: "Of course, we will stand also for these principles, all the more so if the territorial integrity of a member state of the European Union is questioned."

Trump has said the United States needs control of Greenland, as well as the Panama Canal, for "national security purposes." While Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Panama this week, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino pledged to end his country's key Belts and Road project agreement with China. Trump had lamented Beijing's increased control of the strategic waterway, built by the United States, connecting the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea.

SECRETARY OF STATE RUBIO CONFIRMS BECOMING ACTING USAID CHIEF

In Brussels on Monday, Frederiksen also reacted to Vice President JD Vance recently asserting that Denmark has "not been a good ally." In an interview with Fox News on Sunday, Vance repeated that Greenland is "really important to our national security," as China and Russia increasingly traverse sea lanes near the island, and "frankly, Denmark, which controls Greenland, it's not doing its job, and it's not being a good ally." 

"You have to ask yourself, how are we going to solve that problem, solve our own national security if that means that we need to take more territorial interests in Greenland? That is what President Trump is going to do, because he doesn't care about what the Europeans scream at us. He cares about putting the interests of America's citizens first," Vance said, adding, "You've got probably 55,000 people living on Greenland who are not actually happy with Danish government. They've got great natural resources there. They've got an incredibly bountiful country that the Danes aren't letting them develop and explore. Of course, Donald Trump would take a different approach if he was the leader of Greenland." 

Speaking in Danish, Frederiksen told reporters that Danes "have fought side by side with the Americans for many, many decades," according to reports and an online translation. 

"We are one of the United States’ most important and strongest allies – and I will not accept the notion that Denmark is a bad ally. We are not, we never have been, and we never will be in the future. The Arctic Cooperation is important. It is something we are willing to prioritize," Frederiksen said, arguing that it would align with the interests of Denmark, the U.S. and NATO. 

"It is sensible, but it is also important that we work together against terrorism, against the destabilization we see in the Baltic Sea right now with sabotage, and it is important that we work together on NATO’s Eastern flank and thereby holding firm in relation to Russia," she added, turning to the Ukraine war. "So we would be able to work together in many ways, but I do not want to be sitting on Denmark’s name and remuneration that we should be a bad ally, because we are not." 

Trump's eldest son, Donald Trump Jr., visited Greenland's capital Nuuk, to meet with locals last month, weeks before his father took office.

Trump's 10% tariffs on Chinese imports into the U.S. took effect this week, as the administration aims to hold Beijing accountable for precursor chemicals said to be fueling the fentanyl crisis. He agreed to suspend a 25% additional tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico, and an additional 10% tax on energy imported from Canada, including oil, natural gas and electricity, by 30 days after both countries agreed to send additional troops to their borders with the U.S., among other stipulations. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The FBI released posters Tuesday seeking information about two senior Iranian intelligence officers involved in the disappearance of retired FBI Special Agent Robert Levinson as the agency is vowing to "hold every Iranian official involved in his abduction accountable." 

Levinson was working as a private investigator when he vanished in 2007 after traveling to Iran’s Kish Island. He had reportedly taken part in an unauthorized CIA mission and was presumed dead in 2020. 

"The FBI remains steadfast in our commitment to return Bob to his family," Sanjay Virmani, special agent in charge of the FBI Washington Field Office’s Counterterrorism Division, said in a statement. "Our extensive investigation continues to develop new leads and intelligence, and we will pursue all options to hold every Iranian official involved in his abduction accountable." 

The FBI said the two Iranian officers in the posters – Mohammed Baseri and Ahmad Khazai -- "allegedly acted in their capacity as officials of Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security during Bob’s abduction, detention, and probable death." 

IRAN’S COVERT NUCLEAR AGENCY FOUND OPERATING OUT OF TOP SPACE PROGRAM LAUNCH SITES 

"For nearly 18 years, the Iranian government has denied knowledge of Bob's whereabouts despite senior intelligence officials authorizing Bob's abduction and detention and launching a disinformation campaign to deflect blame from the Iranian regime," the FBI added. 

The Treasury Department sanctioned both officers in December 2020. 

TRUMP AND NETANYAHU EXPECTED TO DISCUSS IRAN, HAMAS AT WHITE HOUSE MEETING 

"According to the designation, Baseri has been involved in counterespionage activities inside and outside Iran, as well as sensitive investigations related to Iranian national security issues. He has worked directly with intelligence officials from other countries to harm U.S. interests," the FBI said. "Khazai has led MOIS delegations to other countries to assess security situations." 

A $5 million reward is still being offered by the FBI for information leading to Levinson's location, recovery and return. 

Uganda has begun a trial vaccination program for the strain of Ebola viral infection that is behind the country's latest outbreak, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), while the number of confirmed cases has risen to three.

Last week, the east African country announced an outbreak of Ebola in the capital, Kampala, with a single case, a nurse who died on Jan. 29.

CDC ORDERED TO IMMEDIATELY STOP COLLABORATING WITH WHO AFTER TRUMP BEGINS PROCESS FOR US WITHDRAWAL

The total number of cases has now risen to three, with the two additional cases from the family of the deceased man, Ministry of Health spokesperson Emmanuel Ainebyoona told Reuters late on Monday.

In a post on the X platform late on Monday, Matshidiso Moeti, WHO director for Africa, said Uganda had also started a clinical trial of a vaccine against the Sudan strain of Ebola.

Currently, there is no approved vaccine for that strain. The existing vaccination is for the Zaire strain, which is behind a recent outbreak in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo.

"This marks a major milestone in public health emergency response and demonstrates the power of collaboration for global health security," Moeti said. "If proven effective, the vaccine will further strengthen measures to protect communities from future outbreaks."

Bruce Kirenga, who heads Makerere Lung Institute, a research organization that is doing the trial, told local media during the launch of the vaccination that it had been developed by the International Aids Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) and that the institute had received about 2,460 doses.

The health ministry last week said that the trial would target contacts of confirmed cases.

A high-fatality disease, Ebola infection symptoms include hemorrhage, headache and muscle pains. The virus is transmitted through contact with infected bodily fluids and tissue.

At least four people were injured during a school shooting in central Sweden on Tuesday, according to police reports.

The condition of those injured remains unclear, and it is not known whether the shooter is among them. Police say the shooting took place at the Risbergska School in Orebro, Sweden, and they are urging local residents to stay away from the area.

"A major operation is currently underway at a school in Västhaga, Orebro," Swedish police said in a statement online, urging residents "to stay away from the Västhaga area."

"The operation concerns threats of deadly violence," police added.

THOUSANDS OF PROTESTERS RALLY ACROSS IRAQ FOR A 2ND DAY TO CONDEMN THE BURNING OF A QURAN IN SWEDEN

Police have made no statements regarding a potential motive for the shooting.

Police said they were alerted to a shooting Wednesday night at an apartment building in Sodertalje, near Stockholm, and found a man with gunshot wounds who later died.

Prosecutors said five people were arrested the following night on suspicion of murder. They said all were adults but gave no further details.

This is a developing story. Check back soon for updates.

TEL AVIV – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting with President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday is geared toward bolstering ties with and securing guarantees from the Trump administration primarily over Iran and the war against Hamas, according to current and former Israeli officials.

"Prime Minister Netanyahu’s historic visit to Washington will mark a significant moment in Israel-U.S. relations, setting a tone of close cooperation and friendship between the Israeli government and the Trump administration," Israeli Ambassador to the United States Yechiel Leiter told Fox News Digital.

"The prime minister will be the first foreign leader to visit the White House in President Trump’s second term, and his visit will spur bilateral efforts to promote security and prosperity in the U.S., Israel and the Middle East," he added.

AMERICAN AMONG THREE HOSTAGES FREED FROM TERROR'S GRIP AFTER NEARLY 500 DAYS

Leiter, appearing on "America's Newsroom" last week, told Dana Perino that Iran would be front and center during the Trump-Netanyahu meeting. "We will make the point that to allow Tehran to maintain its nuclear capabilities, which they can raise very quickly toward nuclear weapons, is simply unacceptable," he stated.

Netanyahu was last at the White House on July 25, 2024, with then-President Biden having only invited the Israeli leader some 20 months after his re-election. This was widely viewed as a snub by Biden, whose party has increasingly distanced itself from traditional bipartisan support for the Jewish state.

Netanyahu told reporters ahead of his departure that it was "telling" Trump chose to meet him first, describing it as "a testimony to the strength of the American-Israeli alliance."

"This meeting will deal with important issues, critical issues facing Israel and our region, victory over Hamas, achieving the release of all our hostages and dealing with the Iranian terror axis and all its components – an axis that threatens the peace of Israel, the Middle East and the entire world," he said. 

There are currently 79 hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, including six dual US-Israeli citizens. "Regarding agenda terms, Trump will want Netanyahu to proceed to the second phase of the truce agreement with Hamas. This is very difficult for Israel, since this basically leaves the terror group in power in Gaza," former Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren told Fox News Digital.

While Trump has said he was "not confident" the ceasefire deal would hold, his Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff visited Israel last week and reportedly pushed for the implementation of all three phases. According to Netanyahu, Trump has committed to supporting the resumption of the war if negotiations with Hamas prove "futile."

"There may also be discussion about the future of the Palestinian issue and ways in which the Trump peace plan unveiled during his first term can be revived, as well as how a normalization push between Israel and Saudi Arabia can be concluded," Oren said. "I think the major pressure point would be the ‘P’ word, which refers to the Saudis insisting on a pathway to Palestinian statehood. Parts of Netanyahu’s coalition and even some within his own party will not discuss the ‘P’ word."

IRAN HIDING MISSILE, DRONE PROGRAMS UNDER GUISE OF COMMERCIAL FRONT TO EVADE SANCTIONS

On this point, the two leaders may be aligned, with Trump insisting that Gaza be rebuilt "in a different way." He also indicated his desire to relocate Gazans to Arab countries. "You’re talking about probably a million and a half people, and we just clean out [Gaza] and say, ‘You know, it’s over,’" he said.

During his first term, Trump pulled Washington out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Tehran, which was orchestrated by the Obama administration. However, the Biden administration undid most of Trump’s "maximum pressure" campaign on Tehran – consisting primarily of crippling sanctions – by rehashing many Obama-era policies.

"I believe that Trump is prepared to immediately snap back paralyzing sanctions and issue a credible military threat to bring Iran back to the negotiating table for an agreement on its nuclear infrastructure, ballistic missile testing and terror financing," Danny Ayalon, former Israeli deputy foreign minister and ambassador to the U.S., told Fox News Digital.

"If not, the Iranians will be subject to a major operation that may be through an American-led coalition or different structures with or without Israel," he added, while referencing an Axios report last month that the U.S. president might "either support an Israeli military strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities… or even order a U.S. strike." However, Ayalon said Trump will express a preference for a diplomatic solution, possibly placing him at odds with Netanyahu.

BUSY WEEK AHEAD FOR TRUMP, CABINET PICKS

Ayalon also noted Netanyahu’s appreciation for Trump’s initiative to punish the International Criminal Court, which in November issued arrest warrants for the Israeli premier and then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over the prosecution of the war against Hamas, while suggesting that normalization between Jerusalem and Riyadh would be raised as part of a broader effort to reshape the Middle East.

"A potential economic corridor from Asia to Europe through Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, maybe even the Palestinian Authority, works very well with Trump’s agenda of countering aggressive Chinese expansionism through the Belt and Road Initiative," Ayalon said.

Other agenda items might include a possible U.S.-backed push to apply Israeli sovereignty over parts of the West Bank, also known by Israel as Judea and Samaria – a prospect Netanyahu shelved during Trump’s first term in favor of forging the Abraham Accords – and expanding overall defense ties, including by advancing the American president’s goal of developing an Iron Dome-like missile shield for the United States.

"It is very different from the Biden administration. Of course, it is more aggressive but that’s only part of it. Trump sees the problem of Gaza in a wider perspective" that includes the Saudis, Qataris, Egyptians and other regional players, Brig. Gen. (Res.) Hannan Gefen, the former commander of IDF's elite Unit 8200, told Fox News Digital.

"Trump, in his second term, is repeating his willingness to withdraw from the Kurdish-controlled northeastern part of Syria, which may contrast with Israel’s interest," he explained. "In Lebanon, there might be a disagreement if Israel sees Hezbollah [violating the ceasefire and] regaining power, and wants to strike terror bases. Regarding the Houthis in Yemen, Israel and the Saudis will try to direct Trump's policy to be more assertive than Biden was toward the Iranian proxy."

While any gaps between the sides will be overshadowed by the pomp and circumstance accompanying a visit by Netanyahu to D.C., Likud lawmaker Boaz Bismuth told Fox News Digital that the prime minister "won’t make any concessions on issues that relate to Israel’s national security.

"Our national interests come above all else – the state has an obligation toward its civilians and the right to defend itself," Bismuth said. "Fortunately, Trump has a thriving relationship with Israel and is a great friend of ours."

El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele has offered for illegal immigrants – of any nationality – facing deportation in the U.S. to be booked in his country's prison system in exchange for a fee.

This proposal comes after Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Bukele at his lakeside country house outside San Salvador on Monday.

"We have offered the United States of America the opportunity to outsource part of its prison system," Bukele wrote on X Monday night. "We are willing to take in only convicted criminals (including convicted U.S. citizens) into our mega-prison (CECOT) in exchange for a fee. The fee would be relatively low for the U.S. but significant for us, making our entire prison system sustainable."

Rubio said the Salvadoran president "has agreed to the most unprecedented, extraordinary, extraordinary migratory agreement anywhere in the world."

RUBIO HEADS TO PANAMA, LATIN AMERICA TO PURSUE TRUMP'S 'GOLDEN AGE' AGENDA

"We can send them, and he will put them in his jails," Rubio told reporters, referring to illegal immigrants behind bars in U.S. prisons. "And, he’s also offered to do the same for dangerous criminals currently in custody and serving their sentences in the United States, even though they’re U.S. citizens or legal residents."

While Bukele did extend the offer to include violent American criminals, it is highly unlikely that part of the offer would actually happen, since it is illegal to deport U.S. citizens. A U.S. official said the Trump administration has no plans to deport American citizens, but noted that Bukele's offer was significant.

The proposal with El Salvador, known as a "safe third country" agreement, could potentially be an option for Venezuelan gang members convicted in the U.S. if Venezuela refuses to accept them, and Rubio said Bukele offered to accept detainees of any nationality.

Bukele also said he would take back all Salvadoran MS-13 gang members in the U.S. illegally, and promised to accept and incarcerate criminal illegal aliens from any country, especially those affiliated with Venezuela's Tren de Aragua gang.

Manuel Flores, the secretary general of the leftist opposition party Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front, argued that the "safe third country" plan would paint the region as the U.S. government's "backyard to dump the garbage."

TRUMP ANNOUNCES VENEZUELA WILL TAKE CRIMINAL ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS BACK

Rubio was visiting El Salvador to push for more help in supporting President Donald Trump's mass deportation plan. He arrived in San Salvador shortly after watching a U.S.-funded deportation flight carrying 43 illegal immigrants leave from Panama for Colombia.

The deportation flight had 32 men and 11 women detained by Panamanian authorities after illegally crossing the Darien Gap from Colombia. The State Department said the deportations send a message of deterrence.

"Mass migration is one of the great tragedies in the modern era," Rubio said afterward. "It impacts countries throughout the world. We recognize that many of the people who seek mass migration are often victims and victimized along the way, and it’s not good for anyone."

Rubio's trip comes during a sweeping freeze on U.S. foreign assistance and stop-work orders that have shut down taxpayer-funded programs targeting illegal immigration and crime in Central America. The State Department said that the secretary had approved waivers for certain critical programs in countries he is visiting.

The secretary will continue to urge foreign leaders to do more to help the U.S. combat illegal immigration, including in his next stops in Costa Rica, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic, which are part of his five-nation Central American tour following the visits to Panama and El Salvador.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

A 17-year-old girl from Bribie Island, just north of Brisbane in Queensland, Australia, died Monday after being bitten by a shark nearly 100 meters offshore, according to reports.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Charlize Zmuda, a member of the Bribie Island Surf Life Saving Club, was bitten on her arm by a shark while swimming about 100 meters off the beach.

She was reportedly helped in, Nine News reported, where crews from the Queensland Ambulance Service eventually met her.

The stretch of beach where Zmuda was injured, Woorim Beach, is an unpatrolled stretch of sand, and crews met her there at about 4:45 p.m. local time. The area is popular with off-road enthusiasts and campers.

SHARKS: 12 INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE MARINE FISH 

While paramedics and witnesses tried to save her life, the wounds to her upper body were reportedly so significant that she was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Queensland Police Department will prepare a report for the coroner, according to the local outlets.

The publication reported that drumlines are used in the area where the reported attack took place, to attract and catch sharks in an effort to reduce the risk of shark attacks.

SWIMMING IN A SHARK'S HOME: TIPS FROM AN EXPERT FOR AVOIDING AND SURVIVING AN ATTACK

It was not immediately clear if the drumlines were baited when Zmuda was attacked.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Bribie Island Surf Life Saving Club for more information about Zmuda as well as the types of sharks that typically come through the waters, though the club did not respond.

Still, the Premier of Queensland, David Crisafulli, called the attack "devastating."

"What happened on Woorim Beach at Bribie Island late yesterday is devastating," Crisafulli said in a post on X. "For someone so young to lose their life in a shark attack is an unimaginable tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family, friends and Bribie community. Thank you to our first responders who were on the scene."

Mexican drug cartels are ordering their members to target U.S. Border Patrol agents with kamikaze drones and other explosives amid a crackdown at the southern border by the Trump administration. 

An internal memo titled "Officer Safety Alert" cited social media posts and other sources for the warning to federal agents, the New York Post reported. Agents were reminded to be "cognizant of their surroundings" and should be wearing their ballistic armor and utilizing their long firearms.

MEXICO AGREES TO DEPLOY 10,000 TROOPS TO US BORDER IN EXCHANGE FOR TARIFF PAUSE

"On February 1, 2025, the El Paso Sector Intelligence and Operations Center (EPT-IOC) received information advising that Mexican cartel leaders have authorized the deployment of drones equipped with explosives to be used against US Border Patrol agents and US military personnel currently working along the border with Mexico," the memo, obtained by the newspaper, states. 

"It is recommended that all US Border Patrol agents and DoD personnel working along the border report any sighting of drones to their respective leadership staff and the EPT-IOC," it said. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to the U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). 

News Nation, which first reported the memo, reported TikTok posts and other social media sites used by Mexican drug cartels have also advised illegal immigrants to spit and urinate on ICE agents and defecate in their vehicles. 

Other posts have urged assassins to target border personnel. 

NEW SECRETARY OF STATE MARCO RUBIO PAUSES REFUGEE OPERATIONS, RAMPS UP VISA VETTING 

Last week, Border Patrol agents received gunfire from cartel members in Mexico while patrolling in Fronton, Texas, the Texas Department of Public Safety said. The cartel members fled Mexico because of a military presence and sought refuge on an island between Mexico and the U.S., DPS said. 

The warning comes as the Trump administration has launched deportation raids targeting illegal immigrants with criminal records and enacted tougher measures to secure the southern border. 

Cartel leaders have realized a proactive U.S. presence on the border could cut into their drug and human smuggling profits, the memo showed, according to the Post. 

Last week, U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, suggested the idea of the U.S. green-lighting private parties to target drug cartels for profit.

"Congress could issue letters of marque and reprisal authorizing private security firms or specially trained civilians to intercept cartel operations, particularly those involving drug shipments or human trafficking across borders," Lee wrote on X. "Focus on disrupting supply lines, capturing high-value targets, or seizing assets like boats, vehicles, cash, gold, or equipment used in criminal activities."

Lee suggested it would lower costs to American taxpayers, since privateers would be paid a portion of what they capture and bring back to the U.S.

Excluding Ukraine from U.S.-led talks involving the withdrawal of Russian troops from Kyiv's eastern front would set a "dangerous" precedent to dictators across the globe, warned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

"If there will be direct talks between America and Russia without Ukraine, it is very dangerous, I think," Zelenskyy said in a Saturday interview with the Associated Press. "They may have their own relations, but talking about Ukraine without us – it is dangerous for everyone."

Zelenskyy argued that doing so would validate Russian President Vladimir Putin’s brutal invasion and "show that he was right" because he received "impunity" and "compromise." 

"This will mean that anyone can act like this. And this will be a signal to other leaders of the big countries who think about [doing]… something similar," he said. 

ZELENSKYY PRAISES TRUMP FOR 'JUST AND FAIR' RHETORIC TOWARD RUSSIA: 'EXACTLY WHAT PUTIN IS AFRAID OF'

The Ukrainian president's comments came before President Donald Trump on Sunday suggested that his administration had already begun talks with Moscow and claimed they were "going pretty well."

"We have meetings and talks scheduled with various parties, including Ukraine and Russia. And I think those discussions are actually going pretty well," he told reporters at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland. 

On Friday, Trump refused to say whether he had spoken directly with Putin and wouldn’t detail who in his administration had begun talks with Moscow, though he insisted the two sides were "already talking" and had engaged in "very serious" discussions.

Speaking with Fox News on Friday, Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, retired Army Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg said, "Everybody is pulling together" on ending the three-year-long war in Ukraine. 

"It’s important because we realize it is actually in our national security interest to get this war resolved," Kellogg said. "When you look at the money the United States has provided, which is over $174 billion, when you look at the alliance that has now formed with Russia, with North Korea, with China and Iran – that wasn’t there before."

TRUMP SAYS UKRAINE'S ZELENSKYY IS READY TO NEGOTIATE A DEAL TO END WAR WITH RUSSIA

Despite the U.S. pledge to send Ukraine more than $175 billion worth of military aid, Zelenskyy said over the weekend that Ukraine hasn’t received anywhere near this much support, telling the Associated Press that in terms of military aid, Kyiv has only received some $75 billion worth. 

It remains unclear where the remainder $100 billion in military support has gone, and the White House did not immediately return Fox News Digital's questions on the matter.  

Kellogg also told Fox News that Trump "will lead" the negotiations and said, "I think most people should be very comfortable in the fact that he knows exactly what he’s doing. He knows where to apply pressure, where not to apply pressure.  But more importantly, that he will create leverage, leverage both with Ukrainians and the Russians."

The special envoy didn’t specify how Trump will apply this pressure to both Moscow and Kyiv, though Putin and Zelenskyy have made clear that negotiating on Ukraine joining the NATO alliance is a non-starter. 

Zelenskyy argued Trump could get Putin to the negotiating table by threatening to increase sanctions on Russia’s energy and banking systems, along with continued military aid to Ukraine.

The Ukrainian president also argued that Trump should back Ukraine’s push to join the NATO security alliance as it would be the "cheapest" option for Ukraine’s allies.

Ukraine’s admittance into the NATO alliance would likely protect Kyiv against the threat of another Russian invasion, as it would grant the country security guarantees under Article Five, which says an attack on one nation "shall be considered an attack against them all." 

However, Putin has long threatened nuclear escalation should Ukraine be granted admittance to the international security alliance. 

North Korea is criticizing Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s description of the country as a "rogue state," calling it "nonsense" while vowing to take "tough counteraction" to any provocations from the Trump administration. 

Rubio made the remark last week during an appearance on "The Megyn Kelly Show," where he was speaking about the goals of U.S. foreign policy. 

"It’s not normal for the world to simply have a unipolar power. That was not – that was an anomaly. It was a product of the end of the Cold War, but eventually you were going to reach back to a point where you had a multipolar world, multi-great powers in different parts of the planet. We face that now with China and to some extent Russia, and then you have rogue states like Iran and North Korea you have to deal with," Rubio said, according to the State Department. 

North Korea’s foreign ministry said in response that Rubio "talked nonsense by terming the DPRK a ‘rogue state’ while enumerating the foreign policy of the new U.S. administration." 

TRUMP’S 'DENUCLEARIZATION' SUGGESTION WITH RUSSIA AND CHINA: HOW WOULD IT WORK? 

"The Foreign Ministry of the DPRK deems the U.S. State Secretary's hostile remarks to thoughtlessly tarnish the image of a sovereign state as a grave political provocation totally contrary to the principle of international law which regards respect for sovereignty and non-interference in other's internal affairs as its core and strongly denounces and rejects it," read a statement published by North Korean state media. 

"Rubio's coarse and nonsensical remarks only show directly the incorrect view of the new U.S. administration on the DPRK and will never help promote the U.S. interests as he wishes," the statement added, taking a swipe at the Trump administration. 

NORTH KOREAN SOLDIERS IN RUSSIA RESORT TO SUICIDE AMID CAPTURE OF FIRST POWS BY UKRAINE 

"We will never tolerate any provocation of the U.S., which has been always hostile to the DPRK and will be hostile to it in the future, too, but will take tough counteraction corresponding to it as usual," it concluded. 

Rubio said during the interview that "now more than ever, we need to remember that foreign policy should always be about furthering the national interest of the United States and doing so, to the extent possible, avoiding war and armed conflict, which we have seen two times in the last century be very costly.   

"They’re celebrating the 80th anniversary this year of the end of the Second World War. That – I think if you look at the scale and scope of destruction and loss of life that occurred, it would be far worse if we had a global conflict now. It may end life on the planet," he also said. "And it sounds like hyperbole, but that’s – you have multiple countries now who have the capability to end life on Earth. And so we need to really work hard to avoid armed conflict as much as possible, but never at the expense of our national interest. So that’s the tricky balance." 

Schools were closed and emergency crews deployed on the volcanic Greek island of Santorini on Monday after a spike in seismic activity raised concerns about a potentially powerful earthquake.

Precautions were also ordered on several nearby Aegean Sea islands — all popular summer vacation destinations — after more than 200 undersea earthquakes were recorded in the area over the past three days.

"We have a very intense geological phenomenon to handle," Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said from Brussels, where he was attending a European meeting. "I want to ask our islanders first and foremost to remain calm, to listen to the instructions of the Civil Protection (authority)."

EARTHQUAKE OFF COAST OF MAINE SHAKES NORTHEAST

Mobile phones on the island blared with alert warnings about the potential for rockslides, while several earthquakes caused loud rumbles. Authorities banned access to some seaside areas, including the island's old port, that are in close proximity to cliffs.

"These measures are precautionary, and authorities will remain vigilant," Civil Protection Minister Vasilis Kikilias said late Sunday following an emergency government meeting in Athens. "We urge citizens to strictly adhere to safety recommendations to minimize risk."

While Greek experts say the quakes, many with magnitudes over 4.5, are not linked to Santorini’s volcano, they acknowledge that the pattern of seismic activity is cause for concern.

Government officials met with scientists throughout the weekend and on Monday to assess the situation, while schools were also ordered shut on the nearby islands of Amorgos, Anafi and Ios.

The frequency of the quakes, which continued throughout Sunday night and into Monday, has worried residents and visitors.

"I have never felt anything like this and with such frequency — an earthquake every 10 or 20 minutes. Everyone is anxious even if some of us hide it not to cause panic, but everyone is worried," said Michalis Gerontakis, who is also the director of the Santorini Philharmonic Orchestra.

"We came out yesterday and performed. Despite the earthquakes, the philharmonic performed for a religious occasion," Gerontakis said. "When you are playing, you cannot feel the quakes but there were earthquakes when we were at the church. No one can know what will happen. People can say whatever they like, but that has no value. You cannot contend with nature."

Residents and visitors were advised to avoid large indoor gatherings and areas where rock slides could occur, while hotels were instructed to drain swimming pools to reduce potential building damage from an earthquake.

Fire service rescuers who arrived on the island on Sunday set up yellow tents as a staging area inside a basketball court next to the island's main hospital.

"We arrived last night, a 26-member team of rescuers and one rescue dog," said fire brigadier Ioannis Billias, adding that many residents, including entire families, spent the night in their cars.

Some residents and local workers headed to travel agents seeking plane or ferry tickets to leave the island.

"We’ve had earthquakes before but never anything like this. This feels different," said Nadia Benomar, a Moroccan tour guide who has lived on the island for 19 years. She bought a ferry ticket Monday for the nearby island of Naxos.

"I need to get away for a few days until things calm down," she said.

Others said they were willing to take the risk. Restaurant worker Yiannis Fragiadakis had been away but said he returned to Santorini on Sunday despite the earthquakes.

"I wasn’t afraid. I know that people are really worried and are leaving, and when I got to the port it was really busy, it was like the summer," Fragiadakis said. "I plan to stay and hopefully the restaurant will start working (for the holiday season) in three weeks."

South Korean tourist Soo Jin Kim, from Seoul, arrived Sunday on a family vacation.

"We had dinner last night at the hotel and felt mild shakes about 10 times. But at midnight we felt a big one, a big shake, so I checked the news report. We are half-worried and half-looking to see what the situation is," she said, adding she didn't plan to change her travel plans.

Crescent-shaped Santorini is a premier tourism destination with daily arrivals via commercial flights, ferries, and cruise ships. The island draws more than 3 million visitors annually to its whitewashed villages built along dramatic cliffs formed by a massive volcanic eruption — considered to be one of the largest in human history — more than 3,500 years ago.

That eruption, which occurred around 1620 B.C., destroyed a large part of the island, blanketed a wide area in feet of ash and is believed to have contributed to the decline of the ancient Minoan civilization, which had flourished in the region.

Although it is still an active volcano, the last notable eruption occurred in 1950.

Prominent Greek seismologist Gerasimos Papadopoulos cautioned that the current earthquake sequence – displayed on live seismic maps as a growing cluster of dots between the islands of Santorini, Ios, Amorgos, and Anafi — could indicate a larger impending event.

"All scenarios remain open," Papadopoulos wrote in an online post. "The number of tremors has increased, magnitudes have risen, and epicenters have shifted northeast. While these are tectonic quakes, not volcanic, the risk level has escalated."

In Santorini’s main town of Fira, local authorities designated gathering points for residents in preparation for a potential evacuation, though Mayor Nikos Zorzos emphasized the preventive nature of the measures.

"We are obliged to make preparations. But being prepared for something does not mean it will happen," he said during a weekend briefing. "Sometimes, the way the situation is reported, those reports may contain exaggerations... so people should stay calm."

JOHANNESBURG - President Donald Trump’s announcement that he plans to cut off all foreign aid to South Africa because he claimed it is "confiscating" land "and treating certain classes of people very badly" in "a massive human rights violation" has provoked strong reaction from the South African presidency and commentators. 

"The South African government has not confiscated any land", South African President Cyril Ramaphosa responded in a statement, adding "We look forward to engaging with the Trump administration over our land reform policy and issues of bilateral interest. We are certain that out of those engagements, we will share a better and common understanding over these matters". 

Last week, Ramaphosa signed a bill into law permitting national, provincial and local authorities to expropriate land – to take it -"for a public purpose or in the public interest," and, the government stated "subject to just and equitable compensation being paid". However, sources say no expropriation has happened yet.

SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT SIGNS CONTROVERSIAL LAND SEIZURE BILL, ERODING PRIVATE PROPERTY RIGHTS 

On his Truth Social Media platform, President Trump hit out at South Africa, posting "It is a bad situation that the Radical Left Media doesn’t want to so much as mention. A massive Human Rights VIOLATION, at a minimum, is happening for all to see. The United States won’t stand for it, we will act. Also, I will be cutting off all future funding to South Africa until a full investigation of this situation has been completed!" Trump later repeated his comments while speaking to the press on Sunday night at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.

Pieter du Toit, assistant editor of South African media group News 24, posted on X "The U.S. President, clearly advised by Elon Musk, really has no idea what he’s talking about." 

South African-born Musk is trying to expand his Starlink internet service into South Africa, but President Ramaphosa has reportedly told him he must sell off 30% of his company here to local broad-based so-called Black empowerment interests.

In response to the South African president’s statement, Musk fired back on X, asking Ramaphosa, "Why do you have openly racist ownership laws?"

INCOMING TRUMP ADMIN, CONGRESS SHOWDOWN LOOMS WITH SOUTH AFRICA OVER SUPPORT FOR RUSSIA, US FOES

Analyst Frans Cronje told Fox News Digital that President Trump may be referring to the ongoing killing of farmers in South Africa when he posted that certain classes of people are being treated very badly.

"President Trump's recent comments on land seizures in South Africa cannot be divorced from his past comments on violent attacks directed at the country's farmers. Whilst these comments have often been dismissed as false, the latest South African data suggests that the country's commercial farmers are six times more likely to be violently attacked in their homes than is the case for the general population." 

Cronje said there may be agendas in play behind President Trump’s statements.

"Such seizures may also apply to the property of American investors in South Africa. Cronje is an adviser at the U.S. Yorktown Foundation for Freedom. He added "with regards to land specifically, the legislation could enable the mass seizure of land which has been an oft expressed objective of senior political figures in the country. To date, however, there have been no mass seizures, in part because there was no legislative means through which to achieve such seizures." 

Now, with the bill having been signed into law, Cronje says that has changed. 

"The comments around property rights in South Africa must be read against broader and bipartisan US concern at developments in South Africa. In 2024 the US/South Africa Bilateral Relations Review Act was introduced (in Congress) amid concerns that the South African government's relationships with Iran, Russia, and China threatened US national security interests."

Cronje, who also advises corporations and government departments on economic and political trajectory, continued. "Last week, South Africa’s government, together with that of Cuba, Belize and four other countries supported the formation of the ‘Hague Group’ in an apparent move to shore up the standing of the International Criminal Court, amid the passage through Congress of the Illegitimate Court Counteraction Act that prescribes sanctions against any country that is seen to use the court to threaten US national security interests. South Africa has in recent years been prominent in employing both that court and the International Court of Justice in the Hague to press for action against Israel and Israeli leaders."

South Africa’s Ramaphosa played down the importance of U.S. aid, stating "with the exception of PEPFAR (The U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) Aid, which constitutes 17% of South Africa’s HIVAids program, there is no other significant funding that is provided by the United States in South Africa." President George W. Bush introduced PEPFAR in 2003.

Analyst Justice Malala, also speaking on ENCA, said that, under the Trump administration, "the United States is going to upend South Africa in many ways."

JERUSALEM – The seeming alliance between the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and the Hezbollah terrorist movement is adding greater urgency to calls for the Trump administration to pull the plug on its generous aid to the LAF, some analysts charge.

"Hezbollah and the Lebanese army are the same," Edy Cohen, a Lebanese-born Israeli scholar of Hezbollah, told Fox News Digital. Cohen, a researcher at the Eitan Center, added, "Trump must not fund the Lebanese." He noted the Lebanese army gave Hezbollah intelligence information about Israel. 

The London-based Times newspaper reported last week that an LAF chief sent a classified document to Hezbollah. The LAF‘s Suhil Bahij Gharb, who oversees military intelligence for southern Lebanon, secured the confidential material from a military facility run by the U.S., France and the U.N. interim force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), the newspaper reported.

LEBANON'S NEW PRESIDENT STRIKES A NATIONALISTIC TONE AMID REGIONAL SHIFTS, FURTHER WEAKENING OF HEZBOLLAH

On the day of President Donald Trump’s inauguration, the U.S. State Department posted a fact sheet about USA-LAF cooperation. "Since 2006, U.S. investments of more than $3 billion to the LAF enabled the Lebanese military to be a stabilizing force against regional threats," noted the document.

A senior Trump administration official told Fox News Digital that "Nothing really has been honored by Hezbollah since 2006" and "Lebanon has a chance because Israel destroyed Hezbollah's leadership." The official added there is a "historic opportunity" with President Aoun. In early January, the Lebanese Parliament elected the commander of the LAF, Joseph Aoun, as president of Lebanon.

The growing questions over the U.S.-LAF partnership come at a time when the U.S. agreed to Israel’s request to extend the ceasefire arrangement between Jerusalem and Hezbollah until Feb. 18. The U.S. government said in a statement, "The Government of Lebanon, the Government of Israel, and the Government of the United States will also begin negotiations for the return of Lebanese prisoners captured after October 7, 2023."

Hezbollah, however, seeks to inflame the fragile ceasefire, according to Israeli experts.

AP reported that Israeli forces killed two people and wounded 17 last Monday, according to Lebanese health officials. Hezbollah’s new leader Naim Kassem said his group won’t accept the extension of the ceasefire – a stinging indictment of the Lebanese government that agreed to extend the pause in combat.

CHRISTIAN LEADER IN LEBANON URGES US, ALLIES TO INTERVENE TO STOP HEZBOLLAH

"Israel has to withdraw because the 60 days are over," Kassem said. "We won’t accept any excuses to extend one second or one day."

"Any delay in the withdrawal is the responsibility of the United Nations, the U.S., France and Israel," he added.

Last week, pro-Hezbollah Shiite residents of southern Lebanon defied Israeli army orders and sought to storm into their villages. As a result, at least 22 people were killed and 124 others injured by Israeli forces, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. Hezbollah has used the Shiite villages and residents to attack Israelis since its ally, Hamas, massacred over 1,200 people in southern Israel. Hezbollah launched its attack one day after the Hamas invasion.

A spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) told Fox News Digital about the fast-moving developments in Lebanon that there is "nothing new on that front except what you saw from PMO."

The PMO is an abbreviation for the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office. Fox News Digital reported on Friday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, "Since the ceasefire agreement has not yet been fully enforced by the Lebanese government, the gradual withdrawal process will continue, in full coordination with the United States."

When asked about the collusion between the LAF and Hezbollah, the IDF spokesperson said, "We won’t comment on that."

Walid Phares, a leading expert on Hezbollah and Lebanon, told Fox News Digital, "It is clear that Hezbollah has had a massive opposition to its military presence in Lebanon at least since May 2008 when they invaded half of the capital and parts of the mountain to bring down the government of the ‘Cedars revolution’ after the Syrian withdrawal in 2005."

ISRAEL DEGRADES IRAN-BACKED HEZBOLLAH TERRORISTS IN SPECTACULAR PAGER EXPLOSION OPERATION: EXPERTS

Phares, who has previously advised candidate Trump, added, "In Washington, D.C., there is a debate about arming or not the Lebanese army. Hezbollah has a lot of influence in the LAF. Some lawmakers want to stop the support to the army, others preach that maintaining that support will keep it away from Hezbollah." 

He recommended a new policy: "Rerouting the money to new units in the Lebanese army dedicated only to disarm Hezbollah. These units should report to the command of the army and the president of the republic and should be funded on projects only."

Phares said, "When Israel eliminated the leadership of the terror militia most Lebanese hoped it was the moment to end Hezbollah and have the army disarm it. People hoped Lebanon will be able to free itself and join the Abraham Accords. But again, the Biden administration didn't help because of the Iran deal."

Foreign policy critics of the Biden administration argued that he was wedded to the Iran nuclear deal and did not want to pick fights with Iranian regime allies, so he rekindled the Obama-era nuclear agreement with Tehran. Trump withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal because, he argued, it did not stop Tehran from building a nuclear bomb.

IDF Lt. Col. (Res.) Sarit Zehavi, president and founder of the Israel-based Alma Research and Education Center, told Fox News Digital, "Hezbollah is coming back in south Lebanon [and is] opposed to the arrangement. The Lebanese Army is not fulfilling its mission to deploy effectively in south Lebanon to prevent Hezbollah from coming back."

A spokesman for Lebanon’s embassy referred Fox News Digital to a spokesperson in Beirut, who did not answer multiple press queries.

Zehavi, who lives close to the Lebanese border, said, "We did not see the Lebanese Army disarming Hezbollah. Hezbollah is coming back to those towns. If there are still weapons in those towns, I believe there is, it means that they will be capable of executing terror attacks."

She said, "It is within the interests of Hezbollah to cause death, to cause friction to its own Lebanese civilians. And to present the IDF as a force that should not be in Lebanon." She warned, "We should not fall into the fake message of Hezbollah." Zehavi said after the second war in Lebanon between Hezbollah and Israel it was agreed that Hezbollah should not be in south Lebanon. UNIFIL has ignored the Hezbollah military buildup since the Second Lebanon War in 2006, according to Israel.

A U.S. State Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital press query about whether the American government will end aid to the LAF.

THE Associated Press contributed to this report.

Panama's president vowed Sunday to end a key development deal with China after meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and after complaints from President Donald Trump that the Latin American country had ceded control over its critical shipping canal to Beijing.

José Raúl Mulino, Panama's president, said his nation's sovereignty over the 51-mile waterway, which connects the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, will remain unchanged. But he said he would not renew a 2017 memorandum of understanding to join China’s Belt and Road global development initiative and that Panama would instead look to work more closely with the U.S.

"I think this visit opens the door to build new relations … and try to increase as much as possible U.S. investments in Panama," Mulino told reporters after meeting with Rubio on his first international trip since being confirmed.

Rubio, who was a senator representing Florida before Trump tapped him to be America's top diplomat, said his team is ready to push the U.S. agenda.

'TAKING IT BACK': INTERNAL HOUSE GOP MEMO OUTLINES CASE FOR TRUMP TO Y PANAMA CANAL

"Had the pleasure of meeting the incredible @USEmbPAN team during my first embassy meet and greet in my new role as Secretary of State!" Rubio wrote in a post on X. "Thankful for their dedication and ongoing efforts to promoting President Trump’s vision of an America First foreign policy."

During his visit, Rubio wrote in a post on X that "the United States cannot, and will not, allow the Chinese Communist Party to continue with its effective and growing control over the Panama Canal area." 

Trump has complained that China exerts control over the canal and charges U.S. ships six-figure premiums to cross Panama's isthmus. The canal was built over several decades by the U.S. and completed in 1914 but handed over to Panama during the Carter administration.

Trump has made regaining ownership of the Panama Canal a priority in his administration. House Republicans introduced a bill for the United States to repurchase the Panama Canal after Trump raised concerns that the critical waterway is under Chinese control. 

The bill, named the Panama Canal Repurchase Act, was introduced by Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., a member of the Select Committee on China and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

"President Trump is right to consider repurchasing the Panama Canal," Johnson said in a statement. "China’s interest in and presence around the canal is a cause for concern. America must project strength abroad – owning and operating the Panama Canal might be an important step towards a stronger America and a more secure globe."

HOUSE REPUBLICANS INTRODUCE BILL TO REPURCHASE PANAMA CANAL AFTER TRUMP RAISES CONCERNS OF CHINESE CONTROL

If it becomes law, the bill would give the president authority to act in coordination with the secretary of state to "initiate and conduct negotiations with appropriate counterparts of the Government of the Republic of Panama to reacquire the Panama Canal."

CHINA’S INFLUENCE ON PANAMA CANAL POSES ‘ACUTE RISKS TO US NATIONAL SECURITY,’ SEN CRUZ WARNS

The U.S. Department of State estimates around 72% of all vessels that travel through the Panama Canal are coming from or going to a U.S. port.

Noting the canal's strategic importance to the United States, Johnson's office also noted how the waterway is a key transit point for U.S. Coast Guard and Department of Defense vessels. 

Without access to the canal, ships would be forced to travel 8,000 additional miles around South America. 

"More than 10,000 ships use the Panama Canal each year, generating billions of dollars of tolls which would economically benefit America," Johnson's office said.

While the canal and China's role in the region topped the agenda, Rubio had other items to raise.

"We also discussed efforts to end the hemisphere’s mass migration crisis and ensure fair competition for U.S. firms," Rubio added.  

Fox News Digital reached out to the State Department but did not immediately receive a response.

Fox News Digital's Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.

FIRST ON FOX: Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who was jailed last month on charges of corruption, is being compared by supporters to President Donald Trump given the way they say authorities in Pakistan have persecuted him. 

Many have linked his situation to Trump’s and blamed the government for jailing the popular former prime minister. Khan’s plight has also been highlighted by longtime Trump ally and adviser Richard Grenell, who took to social media late last year when he tweeted, "Free Imran Khan!"

A Pakistani court sentenced Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, to 14 and seven years in jail after finding them guilty of corruption. They were convicted for allegedly accepting land as a bribe through the Al-Qadir Trust, which they had set up while Khan was in office. Khan, however, maintains his innocence, describing the events as a "witch hunt" in exclusive comments to Fox News Digital. It is just one of the more than 100 cases he is facing.  

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In response to Fox News Digital questions about Khan's conviction, Pakistan's federal minister for information and broadcasting, Ata Ullah TararIn, defended Khan's conviction. "The 190 million pound case is one of the biggest corruption cases in the history of Pakistan, and it is a mega scam in which former Prime Minister Imran Khan, and his wife, Bushra Bibi, have been found to be guilty. There is irrefutable evidence that they not only used the official position to grant illegal favor to a property tycoon, but they also received gratification and formed a sham trust in order to grant this favor to a property tycoon."

He continued, "This is corruption of the highest order, and the former prime minister has been convicted on the basis of irrefutable evidence of corruption and this, this scam, which is the biggest scam in the history of Pakistan, has reached its legal conclusion."

Khan has denied the charges and says his 2023 arrest and consequent sentencing was a plot to stop him from returning to office.

Khan's responses to Fox News Digital questions came via his spokespeople, who communicated them with the former prime minister. Khan noted the parallels between himself and Trump, saying the two shared similar experiences. "The world today needs steadfast leadership that champions peace, democracy, and human rights, and I hope that his leadership can contribute to that vision". 

Trump's and Khan's experiences with the authorities share are a key similarity, but their stories mirror each other in ways that go beyond just that.

While Trump transformed the U.S. political scene with his "Make America Great Again" movement, Khan energized Pakistanis with his "Naya Pakistan" (New Pakistan) vision. And in a manner similar to Trump, Khan did away with the elitism of politics, focusing on the average person instead.

Khan told Fox News Digital that his political party "is an inclusive party that represents the diverse fabric of Pakistan." He noted that while Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was initially perceived as a party of the educated elite, that notion was "quickly dispelled."

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Khan continued, the "PTI resonates with people from all walks of life – rural and urban, middle class and marginalized – and it’s because our policies prioritize inclusion, merit and justice." He added, "We represent all provinces, castes and religions, ensuring that every voice has a place in shaping Pakistan’s future. This inclusivity is what makes us the largest national party, uniting Pakistan under the principles of equity and fairness." 

Zuhair Ahmed, a waiter from Lahore, told Fox News Digital, "Imran Khan resonates with a diverse crowd from all ethnic groups and religious sects. We have never seen a leader who has this much grassroots support-base. That’s the beauty of it, and we are confident that he will return to power and make the country better."

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In Pakistan’s turbulent politics, it has been observed by some analysts that "Allah, the army and America" are the key to rule. Since Trump's return to office, the South Asian nation has been buzzing with speculation and hope over whether he will force Khan's release. The two have a friendly relationship, with Trump calling Khan "a very good friend of mine" at a 2020 forum in Davos. The two first met in Washington in July 2019, which at the time was considered a reset for U.S.-Pakistan relations.

Shortly after Trump's win in November, Grenell wrote on X "Watch Pakistan… Their Trump-like leader is in prison on phony charges, and the people have been inspired by the U.S. Red Wave. Stop the political prosecutions around the world!" 

Zulfikar Bukhari, special assistant to Khan, told Fox News Digital "They say Grenell seems to be the second most popular man in Pakistan due to his tweet supporting Khan." He added that Trump prevailed in a similar situation, and "it's only a matter of time before Khan also returns."

Khan tweeted his congratulations to Trump on winning November's presidential election, noting, "The will of the American people held against all odds." 

When it comes to national priorities, Trump and Khan have put the economy at the forefront. Khan has also asserted that Pakistan will thrive when he makes his comeback. The country’s economy has teetered on the verge of collapse over the past few years. 

"Economic diplomacy will be central to my approach. Pakistan is rich in natural resources, yet we have barely scratched the surface of our potential in agriculture, industrialization, and IT," Khan stated. "These sectors hold immense promise, both domestically and globally."

Explaining his aspirations, Khan concluded, "Rather than relying on handouts, we must focus on self-sufficiency and leveraging our strengths to build sustainable economic relationships. With a population of 250 million, what succeeds internally can and should be positioned globally, creating opportunities for trade and investment that benefit the nation and our international partners alike." 

Khan's message to his supporters and foes alike, "The people of Pakistan have never been more awake or more determined. They see with clarity what is happening to their nation, and they understand the forces at play. I firmly believe that truth and justice will ultimately prevail. And as long as I have breath, I will continue to fight for this cause and for a Pakistan that reflects the will and aspirations of its people."