The United States has imposed sanctions against three Palestinian human rights groups that asked the international criminal court to investigate Israel over allegations of genocide in Gaza, according to a notice posted to the US treasury department’s website on Thursday.
The three groups – the Gaza-based Palestinian Centre for Human Rights and Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, and the Ramallah-based Al-Haq – were listed under what the treasury department said were international criminal court-related designations.
The groups asked the ICC in November 2023 to investigate Israeli air strikes on densely populated civilian areas of Gaza, the siege of the territory and displacement of the population.
A year later, the ICC issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defence chief, Yoav Gallant, as well as a Hamas leader, Ibrahim al-Masri, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Donald Trump’s administration has imposed sanctions against ICC judges as well as its chief prosecutor over the Israeli arrest warrants and a past decision to open a case into alleged war crimes by US troops in Afghanistan.
US imposes sanctions on Palestinians for requesting war crimes investigation
Minnesota man freed after 27 years in prison for murder he did not commit
A Minnesota man wrongly convicted of murder who spent nearly three decades in prison after being falsely implicated by a woman who has since confessed to the crime has been released.
State district court judge Marta Chou had vacated Bryan Hooper Sr’s first-degree murder conviction the day before. He was released on Thursday morning from Stillwater correctional facility, a Great North Innocence Project spokesperson said.
“Today, the courts have affirmed what Bryan Hooper, his family, his loved ones, and his advocates have always known: Mr Hooper is an innocent man,” Hennepin county attorney Mary Moriarty said in a statement. “It is our duty as prosecutors to hold the correct individuals responsible for their actions, and that duty demands that we acknowledge our mistakes and make things right as quickly as we can.”
Hooper reunited with his children and planned to enjoy a meal with them and spend time with family, Project spokesperson Hayley Poxleitner said. He also plans to make his home for now in the Twin Cities area, where his children live.
Trump expected to order rebrand of Pentagon as ‘Department of War’
Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order on Friday authorizing the US Department of Defense to rebrand itself as the “department of war”, the White House said, as part of an attempt to formalize the name change without an act of Congress.
The order will designate “department of war” as a “secondary title”, an administration official said, as a way to get around the need for congressional approval to formally rename a federal agency.
But the order will instruct the rest of the executive branch to use the “department of war” name in internal and external communications, and allows the defense secretary Pete Hegseth and other officials to use “secretary of war” as official titles.
The order – seemingly in recognition of the limitation of the executive action alone – also directs Hegseth to recommend potential legislative moves the administration could take to permanently rename the defense department.
Justice Department Launches Criminal Investigation Into Fed Governor Trump Wants Fired
The U.S. Justice Department has launched a criminal mortgage fraud probe into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook and has issued grand jury subpoenas out of both Georgia and Michigan, according to documents seen by Reuters and a source familiar with the matter.
The investigation followed a criminal referral from Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte, and is being conducted by Ed Martin, who was tapped by Attorney General Pam Bondi as a special assistant U.S. attorney to assist with mortgage fraud investigations involving public officials, along with the U.S. Attorneys’ offices in the Northern District of Georgia and the Eastern District of Michigan, according to the person, who spoke anonymously since the matter is not public.
Pulte, who was appointed by Trump, has accused Cook of committing fraud by listing more than one property as a primary residence when she applied for mortgages, potentially to secure lower interest rates. Cook owns properties in Michigan, Georgia and Massachusetts.
Trump terminated Cook over Pulte’s mortgage fraud allegations against her, prompting her to file a lawsuit challenging his effort to oust her.
Federal judges anonymously criticize Supreme Court over Trump cases
A dozen federal judges across the political spectrum have spoken out against the Supreme Court’s handling of cases involving President Trump amid intense public scrutiny of lower court rulings.
The 12 judges spoke to NBC News on condition that they not be identified out of fear of retaliation, so it’s unclear who they are or where they located. NBC reported the slate includes judges “appointed by Democratic and Republican presidents, including Trump, and serving around the country.”
They pushed back on what they described as a pattern of emergency rulings from the conservative-leaning high court in response to lower court decisions on contentious cases involving the Trump administration. Three of the Supreme Court justices were picked by Trump during his first White House term.
Federal judges who spoke to NBC News said the Supreme Court should better explain its emergency rulings.
They told NBC News they fear that the Supreme Court’s handling of cases involving Trump has validated the president’s criticism of lower court judges.
Utah’s congressional map must be redrawn now, judge rules
A judge has ruled that Utah lawmakers must proceed with redrawing the state’s congressional district map right away, pointing to Texas and California in rejecting their argument that the job can’t be done in time for the 2026 midterm elections.
The ruling keeps Utah firmly among states where partisan redistricting battles stand to tilt the outcome of the next congressional election.
Utah lawmakers were wrong to disregard an independent commission’s map in drawing one that has been used for the 2022 and 2024 elections, Salt Lake County District Judge Dianna Gibson ruled Aug. 25.
The map did away with a district in the Salt Lake City area that has swung between Republicans and Democrats in favor of a map where four districts, each with a piece of the urban corridor, have been won by Republicans with wide margins.
Judge strikes down Minnesota law banning religious tests for college credit program
Religious colleges that require students to sign a statement of faith cannot be excluded from a popular Minnesota program that lets high school students take college courses for credit, a federal judge has ruled, tossing a state law that she called an unconstitutional violation of religious freedom.
The ruling late Friday from U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel was a victory for two conservative Christian colleges in the state: Crown College in St. Bonifacius and the University of Northwestern in Roseville. Those two institutions require their students to pledge to follow the school’s values and conduct rules, effectively barring students who aren’t Christian or who are LGBTQ+ from campus activities.
The 2023 law was sought by the state Department of Education and advocates for LGBTQ+ rights. In defending the change at a hearing in December, the state argued that it rightly protected high school students who are not Christian, straight, and cisgender — those whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth.
Religious colleges that require students to sign a statement of faith cannot be excluded from a popular Minnesota program that lets high school students take college courses for credit, a federal judge has ruled, tossing a state law that she called an unconstitutional violation of religious freedom.
Legendary Italian designer Giorgio Armani dies
The Italian fashion designer and billionaire brand owner Giorgio Armani has died at the age of 91.
He was the archetype of Italian style and elegance, reimagining men's and women's suits for a modern audience.
His company Armani expanded from fashion into an empire spanning beauty, fragrance, music, sport and even luxury hotels, bringing in more than £2bn a year.
Donatella Versace paid tribute to the late designer on her Instagram page, posting a picture of him, saying: "The world lost a giant today, he made history and will be remembered forever."
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In a statement on the brand's Instagram page, it said Armani "worked until his final days, dedicating himself to the company, the collections and the many ongoing future projects".
It also said he was "indefatigable to the end" and "driven by relentless curiosity and a deep attention to the present and to people".
UAE warns Israel that annexing West Bank would cross 'red line'
The United Arab Emirates has warned Israel that annexing the occupied West Bank would cross a "red line" and undermine the spirit of the Abraham Accords that normalised relations between the two countries.
A senior Emirati official, Lana Nusseibeh, said such a move would be the death knell of the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The Palestinian Authority's foreign ministry said it welcomed the UAE's position.
The Israeli government has not commented. But Nusseibeh's remarks came after far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich unveiled a proposal for the annexation of approximately four-fifths of the West Bank.
Israel has built about 160 settlements housing 700,000 Jews since it occupied the West Bank and East Jerusalem - land Palestinians want, along with Gaza, for a hoped-for future state - during the 1967 Middle East war. An estimated 3.3 million Palestinians live alongside them.
The settlements are illegal under international law.
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