Trump envoy Kushner meets Hamas leader to push Gaza peace plan

U.S. negotiator Jared Kushner, pictured in June, held a rare meeting with Hamas in Egypt, in a push to make progress on the stalled Gaza ceasefire plan. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption toggle caption Alex Brandon/AP CAIRO — U.S. negotiator and President Donald Trump 's son-in-law Jared Kushner held a rare meeting with the Hamas chief on Sunday in a new diplomatic effort to make progress in the stalled Gaza ceasefire. Kushner will meet with Israel's prime minister on Monday. The talks aim to salvage the new 15-point, U.S.-backed road map for Hamas to disarm in Gaza and Israel to withdraw from the Palestinian territory shattered by war. At stake are the lives of some 2 million people in Gaza and the reconstruction of the crowded enclave now largely controlled by Israeli forces, more than 10 months since the ceasefire ended major military operations. A meeting between Kushner, fellow envoy Steve Witkoff and Hamas leaders in Egypt last year helped clinch the ceasefire, whose progress until now had been stalled over the key issue of Hamas' disarmament. The rare meeting in Egypt with Hamas' Khalil al-Hayya was confirmed by a regional official and a Hamas official, both speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to reporters. Kushner was one of a trio of envoys meeting with al-Hayya, with officials from mediating countries Egypt, Qatar and Turkey also there. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week rejected the 15-point plan in a rare public show of defiance against the Trump administration, Israel's closest ally. Now Kushner, former British prime minister Tony Blair and the director of the U.S.-created Board of Peace overseeing the ceasefire, Nickolay Mladenov, are set to meet with Netanyahu on Monday, according to a source familiar with the plans and a diplomatic source. Both spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a closed-door meeting. Regional powers accuse Israel of obstructing peace effortsAhead of Monday's meeting, several regional powers including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates issued a statement condemning Israel's rejection of the road map, saying that "Israel now bears responsibility for obstructing the efforts to bring peace in Gaza." Other signers included Jordan, Pakistan, Indonesia and the ceasefire mediators. The statement by foreign ministers also called on the Board of Peace and the U.S. to take "immediate and concrete measures" to keep any party from obstructing the plan's implementation. Kushner's meeting with the Hamas leader aimed at ensuring the militant group's commitment to the road map, particularly disarmament, before his meeting with Netanyahu, the regional official said. The Hamas official said the group is committed and waiting for mediators to start the 14-day negotiation period to work out a timetable for implementation. That period requires all parties' approval of the road map to begin. The Hamas official also said the Hamas leader demanded that Israel halt its attacks on Gaza and withdraw to the so-called "yellow line" dividing the territory before beginning implementation. The yellow line was never precisely defined. Israeli forces have moved beyond it and now control about 60% of Gaza. In May, Netanyahu said the next step was to move to 70% control, with Israel "tightening the grip" on Hamas "from every direction." The White House had no comment on the talksThe White House referred questions about Kushner's meetings to the Board of Peace, which did not immediately comment. The Tony Blair Institute did not comment. Under the road map, Hamas would hand over weapons to the Palestinian technocratic committee meant to oversee daily operations in the territory. The committee has not yet entered Gaza. But Hamas has linked the surrender of its heaviest weapons to the creation of a Palestinian state, something Israel's current government rejects. The road map involves Hamas gradually giving up its weapons while Israeli forces halt a

The petition set to be discussed by Canada’s House of Commons in the latest sign of discontent with President Donald Trump’s policies.An official petition before Canada’s House of Commons has gained thousands of signatures in support of the expulsion of the United States ambassador, Pete Hoekstra.The signature tally, as of Saturday, surpassed 171,000, far exceeding the 500 needed for the petition to be discussed before Canada’s legislature.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Trump takes economic message to Michigan amid dwindling popularitylist 2 of 3Japan turns to Canadian crude as Asia feels Hormuz supply pinchlist 3 of 3Trump administration refunds $100bn in tariffs struck down by Supreme Courtend of listThe effort underscores the simmering discontent in Canada with the administration of US President Donald Trump.The petition accuses Hoekstra of “repeatedly making public statements undermining Canada-US diplomatic relations”.Hoekstra has defended Trump’s pledge to make Canada “the 51st” US state, and last year, he accused Canadian officials of seeking to interfere in US elections.Those remarks came in response to advertisements funded by the Ontario government criticising Trump’s tariff policies, which have disproportionately targeted Canada. Hoekstra warned that Canada cannot “expect that there will be no consequences or reaction” from the US following the ads.The petition also pointed to reported ties between Hoekstra and the founder of an application used by separatists in Calgary to rally support for their movement. Hoekstra has previously denied any ties between the Trump administration and the separatists.The petition makes three demands of the Canadian government. First, it calls on the House of Commons to “formally declare Pete Hoekstra persona non grata and request his removal as US Ambassador to Canada”.Second, it pushes for cross-border talks on “the pattern of conduct by Ambassador Hoekstra inconsistent with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations”, a 1961 international treaty on diplomacy.The third demand is that the Canadian government “direct a parliamentary committee to review US diplomatic interference in Canadian domestic affairs”.The petition was authorised by Elizabeth May, the leader of the Green Party and its only current member in the House of Commons, after being put forward by Calgary resident Leanne Walker.In Canada, any citizen can organise a petition for an issue to be addressed by the House of Commons. Residents and citizens must provide their province and territory and postal code, as well as a phone number, to participate in the petition.Such petitions can stay open for up to 120 days. The petition to expel Hoekstra was introduced on July 21.Reaching the 500-signature threshold requires that the issue be brought before the House of Commons, which must give an official response within 45 days.The petition, however, is non-binding, and it remains unclear how much traction it would ultimately gain among members of Canada’s Parliament.Still, the mass of signatures is the latest indication of entrenched discontent in Canada towards Trump’s policies, which include a push to assert greater US influence over the entire Western Hemisphere.In recent months alone, several areas of friction have emerged. In July, Trump imposed new 50 percent tariffs on certain Canadian goods, claiming “discriminatory treatment” in trade relations.In response, Canada cancelled a celebration ceremony for the new Gordie Howe International Bridge, which links Windsor, Ontario, with Detroit, Michigan. The bridge’s opening was itself cast in doubt, after Trump pushed for a greater US stake in the project, undertaken by Michigan and Canada.Trump also threatened more tariffs last month in response to wildfires across Canada, blaming it for poor air quality south of the border.A Pew Research survey in June found that Canadians’ views of the US as a reliable partner had plummeted.In 2022, 83 percent of Canadians rat

Tennessee munitions town loyal to Trump but divided on IranBySheila FlynnSenior US ReporterAs one local puts it, there's a "church on every street" of the Appalchian community of Kingsport, in the US state of Tennessee.Christianity reigns supreme in this working-class area. Above downtown's historic Lamplight Theatre, a sign proclaims "Jesus first in all things".And while more than 300 area churches may be providing spiritual sustenance to this town of 58,000 people, there's another institution that supplies it with economic nourishment.The Holston Army Ammunition Plant churns out explosives used in Patriot missiles, warheads and other heavy weaponry in the midst of the country's costly and prolonged war with Iran.The war, and its knock-on effects on everything from gas to groceries, has led to a steep decline in President Donald Trump's approval ratings. Recent polling has placed his approval at an historic low of 32% - down 14% from when he first took office in January 2025 - with many Republican respondents citing disillusionment with the president's policies.The plant employs around 1,000 people and is just one of many sprawling industrial complexes standing out starkly from the lush Appalachian Mountain landscape."The plant's going to be open regardless of whether we're at war or whether we're not," says Daniel Overstreet, 53, standing next to his Harley Davidson in downtown Kingsport. "It is what it is."He believes Trump and the administration are "doing a great job" but there are "too many people trying to fight him.""[He said] he would get the gas prices under control, and they were for a while," says Overstreet. "He said he was gonna get food prices down, but he

Heidi Beirich, an expert on far-right extremism, has been charged over the alleged misuse of donor funds to pay informants.A leading expert on far-right extremism expert in the United States has been charged by the administration of President Donald Trump for her alleged role in the use of donor money to secretly pay confidential informants.On Wednesday, the Justice Department served an arrest warrant to Heidi Beirich, 59, the former director of intelligence for the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a civil rights nonprofit based in Montgomery, Alabama.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4FBI cuts ties with civil rights watchdog SPLC after conservative pressurelist 2 of 4Trump administration sues Southern Poverty Law Center on fraud chargeslist 3 of 4How the US far-right weaponised ‘inshallah’ against Abdul El-Sayedlist 4 of 4Rights groups launch new legal challenge to Trump campaign against ICCend of listIt also issued a superseding indictment to include Beirich in its ongoing prosecution of the SPLC, which the Trump administration has accused of deceiving donors. An initial indictment was made against the group in April.Beirich has been charged with wire fraud, conspiracy to submit false statements to a bank and conspiracy to commit money laundering, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel said.“Heidi Beirich was at the center of our ongoing investigation into SPLC and their previously alleged criminal activity,” Patel wrote on the social media platform X.“SPLC knowingly misled donors, who believed their money was being used to dismantle violent extremist organizations – when in fact, part of those donations were instead being used to pay senior leadership within those extremist groups.”But critics have questioned the Trump administration’s motivations for pursuing criminal charges against the SPLC, which has historically worked with the FBI to track alleged extremist groups.The SPLC has been a frequent target of conservative critics who claim the nonprofit is politically biased.The group’s stated mission is to fight white supremacy and create a multiracial democracy, and it has issued publications that are critical of conservative groups like Turning Point USA, which it characterised as a “case study of the hard right”.Beirich’s lawyer, Michael Proctor, said his client is innocent of the charges and described the case as politically motivated. He accused prosecutors of trying to punish his client for her “decades-long record of success dismantling hate groups”.“A free and fair society does not use the justice system to silence its political opponent,” he said.The superseding indictment accuses the SPLC and Beirich of directing more than $4m in donations to “individuals associated with various violent extremist groups” between 2007 and 2023.That practice, according to the Justice Department, amounted to fraud.Beirich was part of the SPLC’s effort “to open bank accounts in completely fictitious companies’ names and make payments to individuals for reasons that were not accurate”, according to Attorney General Todd Blanche.The SPLC has acknowledged that it used confidential informants in the past to gather intelligence on extremist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and National Socialist Party of America, but the group said it no longer does so.The SPLC has also said that it shared information obtained from informants with local and federal law enforcement.“Violent extremists have not stopped or intimidated Dr Beirich from her vital work during her time at the SPLC,” Proctor said. “Dr Beirich won’t be silenced or intimidated by the government’s false and politicized allegations now.”

More than 70,000 Canadians have signed a petition calling for the US ambassador in Ottawa to be expelled for undermining diplomatic relations between the two neighbours.The online petition accuses Pete Hoekstra of "making repeated interventions in Canadian political discourse" and of having "normalised the Trump administration's threats to annex Canada as the '51st state'" of the US.In a statement to the BBC, the US embassy said it was aware of the petition but declined to comment further. Canada and the US are currently engaged in intense period of trade talks, aiming to reach an agreement before new US tariffs take effect next Wednesday. The petition, launched by a woman in Calgary, also raises concerns about meetings in Washington between the US state department officials and some Albertans who want the province to separate from Canada. It requests Ambassador Hoekstra be formally removed from his role, and a parliamentary committee review "US diplomatic interference in Canadian domestic affairs".Leanne Walker, who initiated the petition, said the response had been a surprise."It's beyond what I expected out of this," she told state broadcaster CBC News, external. "It tells me that it's not a fringe issue, and that a lot of Canadians are uncomfortable with how Hoekstra has been repeating Trump talking points about our sovereignty and Canada as a whole."A Republican and a Trump ally, Hoekstra has been a fierce defender of US President Donald Trump's trade policies, saying they are meant to secure the safety and prosperity of Americans. He has also described the relationship between the two countries critical.But his time in Canada has not been low key. There was a dust-up between Hoekstra and Ontario's trade representative, and the ambassador has been criticised for reposting Trump's comments about Canada becoming the 51st state and telling reporters it would be a "great discussion to be had", external by the leaders of the two countries. Most recently, he faced criticism for inviting one of the leaders of the 2022 Freedom Convoy movement to his official Fourth of July celebration. He has also described some of the political rhetoric in Canada as "anti-American" and has frequently expressed frustration at the decision by most provinces to remove US alcohol from store shelves - a key point of friction in the current trade talks. The petition for his recall will be tabled in parliament later this year by Green Party leader Elizabeth May. In a statement to the BBC, May's office said that "she has an obligation to sponsor petitions brought forward by citizens, regardless of whether she personally agrees with what the petition is asking for". The House of Commons allows for Canadians to submit petitions, and there are dozens open at any given time, many receiving just a few hundred signatures. Once a petition, which must be submitted by a Canadian resident, is authorised by member of parliament, it is posted on parliament's website. If it reaches at least 500 valid signatures, it is then presented in the House and requires a government response. The petition reached that bar as of Wednesday morning, garnering more than enough support to be presented in Canada's House of Commons.It comes at a time when Canadian negotiators are working urgently to avert a planned 50% American tariff on roughly $20bn to $28bn in Canadian goods.Last month, Trump announced the proposed tariffs in retaliation for what he called "unequal treatment" of US cars, dairy and alcohol.Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney warned in response that a potential further retaliation was on the table if the new tariffs were enforced. Canadian media have reported that an interim deal could be reached by Ottawa and Washington in the coming days.

Close Trump aides — but no Cabinet officials — made secret catering truck move The Washington Post Shoulder-fired missile threat prompted Trump’s plane ruse, source says CNN A top Cabinet secretary was with Trump when he took secret flight from Turkey CBS News Jimmy Fallon Recreates Trump’s Catering Container Escape The New York Times Why elaborate ruse Trump used in Turkey isn't like other secret presidential trips NBC4 Washington

Donald Trump secretly swapped planes as he left a Nato summit in Turkey last month, as part of an elaborate ruse in response to a possible Iranian threat, US media report.The US president boarded Air Force One in view of television cameras before being transported to a military aircraft with the help of a catering truck, the Washington Post said. Journalists and some White House staff on board did not know he had been smuggled out. Officials told the BBC's US partner CBS News that the US had detected a credible Iranian threat to fire a missile at the plane. The White House has not confirmed the secret switch.Trump had earlier said he was Iran's "number one target" during the summit in Ankara. The clandestine manoeuvre came a day after the US renewed military strikes on Iran following a breakdown of negotiations between Washington and Tehran to end the war.Trump had arrived in Turkey aboard a newer Boeing 747-8 donated by Qatar, but announced that he would leave on the old Air Force One "for old time's sake".On 8 July, footage showed him boarding the presidential jet at Ankara airport. But according to the Washington Post, he was then secretly taken to a smaller C-32A military aircraft - a modified Boeing 757 often used by the vice-president - via a catering truck which had been elevated to plane level on the opposite side to where he had boarded.Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth boarded the C-32A separately using external stairs in an effort to make the flight appear normal, according to the newspaper.Journalists and some White House staff boarded Air Force One and were reportedly told to close their window shades. They were unaware the president was no longer on board.Trump then flew to the UK en route to the US, where he reboarded the old Air Force One and was seen descending from the aircraft after it landed at RAF Mildenhall. It is unclear how he moved from the C-32A back to the legacy jet.

Contradicting public statements, Trump took secret flight from Turkey amid Iranian threat The Washington Post Trump used elaborate ruse to fly out of Turkey following summit because of Iran threat, report says SFGATE Trump hid in catering cart to board secret flight in Turkey amid Iran threat – reports The Guardian An Elaborate Ruse: Trump Secretly Used Military Jet to Leave Turkey Amid Threats The New York Times Trump used catering truck, Air Force One decoy to evade Iran threat: report Fox News

Trump and RFK Jr. try again to upend vaccines for kids Audio will be available later today. President Donald Trump speaks before signing an executive order that calls for changing the childhood vaccine schedule. Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images This is a developing story that will be updated. President Trump signed another executive order aimed at trying to upend the way US children are vaccinated against dangerous infectious diseases. The new executive order, signed Monday afternoon in the Oval Office, calls for reducing the number of childhood vaccines recommended by the federal government. It also calls for breaking up the shot known as the MMR, which that is now given as a single vaccination for measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox. The order advises breaking it up into separate shots. The order also directs the Justice Department to pressure states to reduce the number of vaccines required for school. The moves will likely be challenged in court as previous similar attempts to change the childhood vaccination schedule have been. At the signing ceremony, the president talked about vaccines needing to be studied in light of rising autism rates, a thoroughly studied and debunked theory. The news was welcomed by vaccines critics and denounced by many public health experts.