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Palestinian lives lost in the pursuit of food aid in Gaza, in photos

Palestinian lives lost in the pursuit of food aid in Gaza, in photos

Independent4 days ago
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House committee issues subpoenas for Epstein files
House committee issues subpoenas for Epstein files

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House committee issues subpoenas for Epstein files

Several of America's top political leaders have been issued subpoenas to testify about the 'horrific crimes' perpetrated by former financier and convicted sexual offender Jeffrey Epstein. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) today issued deposition subpoenas on Tuesday to several former Trump-era Department of Justice officials, as well as historical Democrat power players. Former President Bill Clinton and Former Secretary of State and First Lady Hillary Clinton have been called to appear before the Committee in October. Attorneys General Bill Barr and Jeff Sessions, who served under President Trump during his first term, are among the Republicans who have been subpoenaed for testimony. Chairman Comer also issued a subpoena to the current Trump-led U.S. Department of Justice for records related to Epstein. It's a spectacular move by Republicans to pressure Trump's Attorney General Pam Bondi to put out more documents as the administration has been embroiled in controversy over Epstein 'cover-up' claims. Bondi has been blamed by both Democrats and Republicans for stalling the release of the files. House Republicans voted in favor of subpoenaing former President Bill Clinton and his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for testimony about Jeffrey Epstein on July 23rd. A motion from Rep. Scott Perry to have Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., solicit the former first couple's testimony passed Wednesday afternoon amid a flurry of new developments around the saga that's consumed Washington. The effort also called for other high-profile Democrats with expected ties to the late sexual offender to be subpoenaed. Former Attorneys General Eric Holder and Merrick Garland will also be compelled to testify. So will former special counsel Robert Mueller, who oversaw Trump's Russia collusion case. The full list of officials called to appear before House Oversight also includes Former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, Former FBI Director Robert Mueller, Former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, Former U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland , and Former FBI Director James Comey. But Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell's testimony before Congress has been postponed pending her Supreme Court case. Maxwell had been in talks with the Trump administration and Congress about dishing on the disgraced financier and his relationships. The push for additional Epstein-related testimony comes amid heightened media scrutiny over the sexual offender's unreleased Department of Justice and FBI files. A federal judge last Wednesday denied the Trump administration's request to release the highly-secretive grand jury testimony from the Jeffrey Epstein case. Obama-appointed Judge Robin Rosenberg slapped down the request from Attorney General Pam Bondi to unseal proceedings related to Epstein and his accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell. The House Oversight Committee also announced last week that it had issued a subpoena to interview Maxwell at her Florida prison facility. Maxwell's attorney had not yet agreed to the committee's terms for an interview but indicated an interview was possible. Chairman Comer announced last week that Maxwell was set to testify before the panel on August 11 at the Tallahassee facility where she is serving her prison sentence.

Trump claims he had nothing to do with Bondi's grand jury order
Trump claims he had nothing to do with Bondi's grand jury order

Daily Mail​

time8 minutes ago

  • Daily Mail​

Trump claims he had nothing to do with Bondi's grand jury order

Donald Trump celebrated his Justice Department convening a grand jury in cases against officials from Barack Obama 's administration. The president said while he wasn't involved in the decision, he is 'happy' that Attorney General Pam Bondi decided to act this week on the criminal referrals from the Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. It's not yet clear which U.S. attorney the DOJ directed to bring the case and convene a grand jury, or which former Obama officials are being targeted. A source familiar with the action, however, speculated to the Daily Mail that the criminal referrals Bondi is acting on are likely for ex-CIA Directors John Brennan and former James Comey. 'They deserve it,' Trump told CNBC Squawk Box host Joe Kernen during a Tuesday morning interview. 'I was happy to hear it.' The victory lap comes after Bondi revealed on Monday that she signed an order directing an unnamed prosecutor to convene a grand jury in the revelations over the inception of the Russia collusion investigation. Gabbard submitted criminal referrals to the Justice Department last month for former Obama and his officials, including Brennan and former DNI Chief James Clapper. She unveiled evidence claiming that Obama and his team illegally conspired in the lead-up to the 2016 presidential election to link Donald Trump to Russian efforts to interfere in the campaigns. Some thought Gabbard's release of documents was a tactic to distract from the botched Jeffrey Epstein files review, which has the DOJ reeling with calls for Bondi to resign. The new grand jury directive from Bondi also follows FBI Director Kash Patel discovering last month a stash of bags in a secret room at the bureau with damning documents related to the Russia investigation that were meant to be burned. The documents were published by Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa and consist of the classified annex to former Special Counsel John Durham's final report on the origins of the FBI investigation into Trump's 2016 campaign. Bondi's move on Monday is an escalation that takes President Trump's administration a massive step closer to criminally charging Obama and his former administration officials. 'Pam is doing a great job. I had nothing to do with it,' Trump said to CNBC on Tuesday when asked if he was the one who called for Bondi to act on the referrals. 'I actually read it, just like you did,' he added. Trump lamented to Squawk Box host Kernen that the Durham report annex should have been released earlier. He blamed his former Attorney General Bill Barr for dragging his feet on getting to the bottom of election interference investigations. The president said this allowed former President Joe Biden to take over and his team to 'bury' the revelations. While serving as special counsel, Durham examined the FBI's investigation into potential links between Trump campaign officials and Russia during the 2016 election. He concluded the FBI did not have sufficient evidence to launch the investigation at the time.

Humza Yousaf and Nadia El-Nakla say family in Gaza 'waiting to die'
Humza Yousaf and Nadia El-Nakla say family in Gaza 'waiting to die'

STV News

time10 minutes ago

  • STV News

Humza Yousaf and Nadia El-Nakla say family in Gaza 'waiting to die'

Humza Yousaf and Nadia El-Nakla have said their family in the Gaza Strip feels like 'they're waiting to die'. Speaking to STV News on Tuesday, the former first minister and his wife said they feel angry and 'unbelievably helpless' as relatives starve in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Just last week, they said councillor El-Nakla's father's cousin was shot in the street. Some family members have managed to escape Gaza. But El-Nakla's cousin Sally, her husband, and their four children remain stuck. STV News Humza Yousaf and Nadia El-Nakla 'She feels like they're going to die, and they're just desperate to leave,' El-Nakla told STV News. 'She's begging me if there's anything we can do to leave. It's heartbreaking, it's unimaginable, and yet we're watching it. 'I send Sally a voice note through Instagram pretty much every day, but it's really hard because what they want to hear is that we can get you out, and I can't. And there are no words of comfort to fill their stomach.' Supplied Nadia El-Nakla's cousin Sally, her husband, and their four children remain stuck in Gaza, El-Nakla said that her dad's 44-year-old cousin was shot in the stomach and run over by a tank last week when he went out to get flour and food for his family. 'That's been really devastating. He was one of my dad's closest cousins,' El-Nakla said. 'He's got two young kids. He didn't need to die. There was no reason he got killed in the street trying to get food for his family. You wouldn't treat an animal that way. It's difficult to comprehend.' Scottish Government First Minister John Swinney John Swinney described the ongoing crisis in Gaza as a 'genocide' for the first time over the weekend after a Fringe show he appeared at was repeatedly disrupted by pro-Palestinian protesters. Yousaf said the First Minister is 'doing what he can' to raise awareness of the situation and put pressure on the Prime Minister, but he said 'calling it a genocide is the least any leader can do'. Yousaf said what the situation needs is 'meaningful action' from the UK and other governments. 'We need them to impose sanctions on Israel, we need them to stop selling arms and weapons to Israel, and they need to make sure Israel is isolated in the same way that apartheid South Africa was a number of years ago. That's the only way Israel will change its stance,' Yousaf said. In recent weeks, more than 100 aid agencies have warned that 'mass starvation' is spreading across Gaza as Israel is accused of not allowing enough food and other supplies into the area. Dozens of Palestinians were killed or wounded on Monday as desperate crowds headed toward food distribution points and airdropped parcels in the Gaza Strip, according to witnesses and local health officials. Several hundred Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since May while heading toward food distribution sites and aid convoys, according to witnesses, local health officials and the United Nations human rights office. 'People are slowly being killed,' Yousaf said. 'They know today is worse than yesterday, and they fear that tomorrow will be even worse than today. Every day is progressively getting even worse.' The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) says it has only fired warning shots and disputes the death toll. On Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would convene his Security Cabinet in the coming days to direct the army on the next stage of the war, hinting that even tougher military action was an option in Gaza. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country

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