Author

admin

Browsing

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is coordinating with his colleagues in the House to push back against Senate Republicans’ efforts to ram President Donald Trump’s wish list of policy desires through the Senate.

In a letter to Senate Democrats on Sunday, Schumer, D-N.Y., laid out a multipronged strategy to inflict as much pain on Republicans as possible in the budget reconciliation process, the legislative strategy the GOP is employing to sidestep negotiating with Democrats to advance the president’s priorities.

While congressional Republicans don’t need Democrats to move the colossal bill to Trump’s desk, Schumer wants to make the process as uncomfortable as possible as Senate Republicans begin a roughly monthlong sprint to put their fingerprints on what Trump deemed a ‘big, beautiful bill.’

The top Senate Democrat is coordinating with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and the top Democrats on crucial House committees to ‘share firsthand insight from their process and key Republican fault lines’ with their Senate counterparts.

‘Based on Senate Republicans’ public comments, it’s clear that if this reckless reconciliation bill passes the Senate it is very likely to contain changes, forcing it to be sent back to the House of Representatives,’ Schumer wrote. ‘That’s why we must be united with our House Democratic colleagues to fight this assault on working families.’

Indeed, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said much of the debate and subsequent tweaks to the bill would focus on finding deeper spending cuts. The House’s offering set a goal of $1.5 trillion in spending cuts over the next decade, but some Senate Republicans want to hit $2 trillion, while a smaller cohort of fiscal hawks want to go even deeper.

Thune said that Republicans’ main focus during the next month would be ensuring that Trump’s first-term tax cuts are made permanent with the massive bill and not allowed to expire by the end of the year on the Senate floor, marking the Senate’s return on Monday. 

‘We are not going to let that happen, and our biggest focus this month is completing this tax relief legislation with the goal of getting the final bill to the president before the Fourth of July,’ he said. ‘It’s going to be a very busy month, Mr. President.’ 

In all, 10 Senate committees will be tasked with sifting through the massive bill’s contents, which include the president’s policy desires on taxes, immigration, energy, defense and the national debt.

Schumer’s edict comes as those committees gear up to make their own revisions to the bill to, in part, fall in line with their own policy and spending desires and to also comply with Senate rules.

He noted that Senate Democrats have been working ‘overtime’ to target a litany of policies in the GOP’s plan that ‘are in clear violation of the reconciliation rules and, in some cases, an assault on our very democracy.’

Some Republicans already have issues with certain policies in the bill, like cuts to Medicaid or the plan to move up the timeline to phase out green energy tax credits ushered in by the Biden administration.

Schumer also prodded Democrats to continue aggressively denouncing the bill on the ground in their home states and districts, arguing that ‘if the American people truly knew how deeply devastating, damaging, and deceitful this Republican plan is, they will reject it.’

‘Republicans’ ‘One Ugly Bill’ is a farce; an attack on the values that make America great,’ he wrote. ‘We know the first four months of Donald Trump’s presidency have been catastrophic for the American people. It is our duty to fight for American families, to stop the damage, and make certain Republicans are held accountable.’

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

So, Russia and Ukraine are still as far apart as ever, with the two warring countries unable to make a significant breakthrough in direct talks in Istanbul.

While there was agreement to exchange more prisoners, Moscow and Kyiv remain deeply divided over how to bring the costly and bitter Ukraine war to an end.

Russia has shown itself to be particularly uncompromising, handing Ukrainian negotiators a memorandum re-stating its maximalist, hardline terms which would essentially amount to a Ukrainian surrender.

Expectations were always low for a Kremlin compromise. But Moscow appears to have eliminated any hint of a readiness to soften its demands.

The Russian memorandum again calls on Ukraine to withdraw from four partially occupied regions that Russia has annexed but not captured: a territorial concession that Kyiv has repeatedly rejected.

It says Ukraine must accept strict limits on its armed forces, never join a military alliance, host foreign troops or aquire nuclear weapons. It would be Ukrainian demilitarization in its most hardline form, unpalatable to Ukraine and much of Europe, which sees the country as a barrier against further Russian expansion.

Other Russian demands include the restoration of full diplomatic and economic ties, specifically that no reparations will be demanded by either side and that all Western sanctions on Russia be lifted.

It is a Kremlin wish-list that, while familiar, speaks volumes about how Moscow continues to imagine the future of Ukraine as a subjugated state in the thrall of Russia, with no significant military of its own nor real independence.

This uncompromising position comes despite two important factors which may have given the Kremlin pause.

Firstly, Ukraine has developed the technical capability to strike deep inside Russia, despite its staggering disparity of territory and resources. The stunning drone strikes recently targeting Russian strategic bombers at bases thousands of miles from Ukraine is a powerful illustration of that. Ukraine, it seems, has some cards after all, and is using them effectively.

Secondly – and arguably more dangerously for Moscow – the Kremlin’s latest hardline demands come despite US President Donald Trump’s increasing frustrations with his own Ukraine peace efforts.

Trump has already expressed annoyance with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, who he said had gone “absolutely MAD” after massive Russian strikes on Ukraine last week.

But now, Trump himself is under pressure as a cornerstone of his second term foreign policy – bringing a rapid end the Ukraine war – looks decidedly shaky.

There are powerful levers to pull if Trump chooses, like increasing US military aid or imposing tough new sanctions, such as those overwhelmingly supported in the US Senate. One of the key backers of a cross-party senate bill that aims to impose “crippling” new measures on Moscow, Senator Richard Blumenthal, accused Russia of “mocking peace efforts” at the Istanbul talks and in a carefully worded post on X accused the Kremlin of “playing Trump and America for fools.”

It is unclear at the moment how the mercurial US president will react, or what – if anything – he will do.

But the outcome of the Ukraine war, specifically the brokering of peace deal to end it, has become inextricably linked with the current administration in the White House.

The fact that Putin has once again dug in his heels and presented an uncompromising response to calls for peace, may now force Trump to act.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

Canadian wildfires are hitting Manitoba hard, triggering the evacuation of over 17,000 people in province.

“This is the largest evacuation Manitoba will have seen in most people’s living memory,” Premier Wab Kinew said in a May 28 statement. He declared a province-wide state of emergency and confirmed that Canadian military aircraft would be deployed ‘imminently’ to assist with evacuations and firefighting efforts.

“For the first time, it’s not a fire in one region. We have fires in every region. That is a sign of a changing climate that we are going to have to adapt to,’ Kinew also noted in a press conference.

As of Monday (June 2), 188 active wildfires were burning across Canada, with more than half categorized as ‘out of control,’ according to the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Center.

Manitoba, BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario are all experiencing severe fire conditions, and the country has raised its National Preparedness Level to five — the highest — weeks earlier than in previous years.

Mining operations halted, evacuations underway

The escalating fire threat has forced mining companies to shut down or scale back operations.

Alamos Gold (TSX:AGI,NYSE:AGI) has temporarily paused activity at its Lynn Lake gold project, located near the Northwestern Manitoba town of the same name; it was ordered to evacuate on May 27.

In Southeastern Manitoba, fires have threatened Grid Metals’ (TSXV:GRDM,OTCQB:MSMGF) lithium and nickel projects, as well as Sinomine Resource Group’s (SZSE:002738) Tanco lithium mine. Grid suspended its activities in mid-May as wildfires approached, and Tanco mine personnel have reportedly evacuated the area.

Tanco is one of only two producing lithium mines in Canada.

In Northern Manitoba, the town of Flin Flon — home to around 5,000 residents — is on high alert as wildfires encroach. Only essential personnel, authorized by emergency services, remain to aid with emergency operations.

Though Hudbay Minerals (TSX:HBM,NYSE:HBM) ceased production there following the 2022 closure of its 777 mine, the company maintains support facilities, concentrate handling operations and fabrication shops in the area.

Hudbay has also paused exploration in the Flin Flon and Snow Lake regions while focusing on employee safety and support for local evacuation efforts. “The safety of our employees, their families and the communities we serve is our top priority,” said Rob Carter, vice president of Hudbay’s Manitoba business unit.

The company is securing alternative accommodations in Snow Lake — 200 kilometers east — for evacuated staff and deploying trained emergency responders to assist with firefighting.

In Saskatchewan, Foran Mining (TSX:FOM,OTCQX:FMCXF) has managed to keep its McIlvenna Bay project intact after aggressive firefighting measures and improving weather conditions. The firm evacuated about 540 non-essential personnel on May 22, retaining a core team of 44 employees and wildfire contractors to safeguard the site.

The company said in a Monday statement that reinforced firebreaks and natural barriers helped stop the fire within 1 kilometer of the tailings storage facility and 3 kilometers of main infrastructure.

The surge in wildfires is part of a worrying trend. The 2023 fire season was the worst in Canadian history, and experts warn that such seasons may become the norm due to climate change.

Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

The Trump administration is fighting to pause a second court ruling that blocked President Donald Trump’s sweeping and so-called reciprocal tariffs, the signature economic policy of his second term. 

The administration’s new appeal, filed Monday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, comes less than a week after a very similar court challenge played out in the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) in New York, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington.

At issue in both cases is Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to enact his sweeping ‘Liberation Day’ tariff plan. The plan, which Trump announced on April 2, invokes IEEPA for both his 10% baseline tariff on most U.S. trading partners and a so-called ‘reciprocal tariff’ against other countries. 

Trump’s use of the emergency law to invoke widespread tariffs was struck down unanimously last week by the three-judge CIT panel, which said the statute does not give Trump ‘unbounded’ power to implement tariffs. However, the decision was almost immediately stayed by the U.S.Court of Appeals, allowing Trump’s tariffs to continue. 

But in a lesser-discussed ruling on the very same day, U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras, an Obama appointee, determined that Trump’s tariffs were unlawful under IEEPA. 

Since the case before him had more limited reach than the case heard by the CIT – plaintiffs in the suit focused on harm to two small businesses, versus harm from the broader tariff plan – it went almost unnoticed in news headlines.

But that changed on Monday. 

Lawyers for the Justice Department asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit – a Washington-based but still separate court than the Federal Court of Appeals – to immediately stay the judge’s ruling.

They argued in their appeal that the judge’s ruling against Trump’s use of IEEPA undercuts his ability to use tariffs as a ‘credible threat’ in trade talks, at a time when such negotiations ‘currently stand at a delicate juncture.’

‘By holding the tariffs invalid, the district court’s ruling usurps the President’s authority and threatens to disrupt sensitive, ongoing negotiations with virtually every trading partner by undercutting the premise of those negotiations – that the tariffs are a credible threat,’ Trump lawyers said in the filing. 

Economists also seemed to share this view that the steep tariffs were more a negotiating tactic than an espousal of actual policy, which they noted in a series of interviews last week with Fox News Digital.

The bottom line for the Trump administration ‘is that they need to get back to a place [where] they are using these huge reciprocal tariffs and all of that as a negotiating tactic,’ William Cline, an economist and senior fellow emeritus at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, said in an interview.

Cline noted that this was the framework previously laid out by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who had embraced the tariffs as more of an opening salvo for future trade talks, including between the U.S. and China.

‘I think the thing to keep in mind there is that Trump and Vance have this view that tariffs are beautiful because they will restore America’s Rust Belt jobs and that they’ll collect money while they’re doing it, which will contribute to fiscal growth,’ said Cline, the former deputy managing director and chief economist of the Institute of International Finance.

‘Those are both fantasies.’

What comes next in the case remains to be seen. The White House said it will take its tariff fight to the Supreme Court if necessary. Counsel for the plaintiffs echoed that view in an interview with Fox News.

But it’s unclear if the Supreme Court would choose to take up the case, which comes at a time when Trump’s relationship with the judiciary has come under increasing strain. 

In the 20 weeks since the start of his second White House term, lawyers for the Trump administration have filed 18 emergency appeals to the high court, indicating both the pace and breadth of the tense court battles. 

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

The House Freedom Caucus is demanding the House of Representatives vote on the White House’s impending $9.4 billion federal spending cut proposal the same week it lands on Capitol Hill.

The conservative group, led by Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., is drawing its line in the sand on Monday with an official position on the coming package, which is expected to call for clawing back government funding for NPR, PBS and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

‘When the White House submits its first rescissions package to enact [Department of Government Efficiency] spending cuts to Congress, the House of Representatives should immediately move this to the floor for swift passage,’ the Freedom Caucus position said.

‘The House Freedom Caucus strongly supports these critical rescissions, and we will support as many more rescissions packages as the White House can send us in the coming weeks and months. These first DOGE cuts target taxpayer-funded public broadcasters notorious for their liberal bias like NPR and PBS, as well as billions in wasteful foreign aid dollars.’

It comes as Elon Musk’s time leading President Donald Trump’s DOGE effort comes to an end, with the tech billionaire shifting his focus back to Tesla and his other private ventures after his billions of dollars in proposed spending cuts drove a partisan wedge through Congress. 

‘Passing this rescissions package will be an important demonstration of Congress’ willingness to deliver on DOGE and the Trump agenda,’ the statement continued.

‘While the Swamp will inevitably attempt to slow and kill these cuts, there is no excuse for a Republican House not to advance the first DOGE rescissions package the same week it is presented to Congress then quickly send it for passage in the Republican Senate, so President Trump can sign it into law.’

The White House is expected to send its $9.4 billion spending cuts package to Congress on Tuesday.

The proposal is called a ‘rescissions package,’ a vehicle for the president to block funds that were already allocated by Congress in its yearly appropriations process. Once transmitted to Capitol Hill, lawmakers have 45 days to take it up before it’s voided.

And GOP officials have made clear that it’s the first of several such proposals that could come from the White House.

National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told Fox News Channel last week that there will ‘100%’ be further rescissions packages coming from the White House.

Bringing the first package to a House-wide vote within a week would require quick political maneuvering.

Under House GOP conference rules, lawmakers must get 72 hours to read a bill before the chamber weighs in – a provision that conservatives also fought for – putting a possible vote on Friday at the earliest and possible into the weekend.

But the House Freedom Caucus is not the only GOP group pushing for a swift vote. Republican Study Committee Chairman August Pfluger, R-Texas, said on Friday, ‘This brings fairness and accountability back to taxpayers who are sick of funding government waste while making progress towards our crushing $36 trillion national debt. Congress must promptly cement these cuts in law through rescissions and the FY26 appropriations bills.’

It comes just over a week after House Republicans pushed through Trump’s multitrillion-dollar tax and immigration bill via the budget reconciliation process.

That bill is now being considered by the Senate, and will have to go back to the House if the upper chamber makes any changes.

Republican leaders are hoping to have that bill on Trump’s desk by Fourth of July.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., noted both deadlines in an appearance on NBC News’ ‘Meet The Press’ on Sunday.

‘We’re going to have a second budget reconciliation bill that follows after this, and we’re beginning next week the appropriations process, which is the spending bills for government. And you’re going to see a lot of the DOGE cuts and a lot of this new fiscal restraint reflected in what Congress does next. So stay tuned, this is not the end-all, be-all,’ he said of the reconciliation bill.

Johnson said on X Friday that ‘Congress is working with the White House to codify DOGE savings to stop government misuse and misspending of our tax dollars.’

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Two foreign nationals have been charged for their role in a scheme to smuggle U.S. military equipment and technology — including missiles — into China, according to the U.S. Justice Department. 

The charges come as President Donald Trump and his administration have launched multiple efforts to beef up the vetting process for foreigners seeking visas in the U.S., particularly those from China. 

Cui Guanghai, 43, of China, and John Miller, 63, of the United Kingdom, were charged with interstate stalking and conspiracy to commit interstate stalking, conspiracy, smuggling and violating the Arms Export Control Act, the Justice Department announced Friday. 

Prosecutors believe that Cui was working on behalf of the Chinese government, according to court documents. 

Court documents allegethat Cui, who is based in China, and Miller, who is a permanent resident in the U.S., sought to procure military equipment including missiles, an air defense radar, drones and cryptographic devices starting in November 2023. The two allegedlycoordinated with two other individuals, who, unbeknownst to Cui and Miller, were working on behalf of the FBI, on ways to export the cryptographic device to China.

Cui and Miller allegedly discussed how to hide the cryptographic device in a blender, other small electronics or a motor starter — or ship the device to Hong Kong first — to avoid detection. They paid $10,000 as part of a deposit for the cryptographic device, court documents say. 

Additionally, Cui and Miller allegedlyrecruited two people to help them conduct a scheme that sought to silence an unnamed U.S. citizen from speaking out against Chinese President Xi Jinping’s appearance at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in November 2023, court documents say. 

Specifically, both Cui and Miller allegedly orchestrated a plot to surveil the U.S. citizen, install a tracking device on his or her car, slash the car’s tires, and purchase and destroy a pair of statues the U.S. citizen created of Xi and Xi’s wife. 

However, the individuals that Cui and Miller allegedly recruited were actually working in coordination with the FBI,according to court documents.

‘The defendants targeted a U.S. resident for exercising his constitutional right to free speech and conspired to traffic sensitive American military technology to the Chinese regime,’ Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement Friday. ‘This is a blatant assault on both our national security and our democratic values. This Justice Department will not tolerate foreign repression on U.S. soil, nor will we allow hostile nations to infiltrate or exploit our defense systems.’

Cui and Miller were arrested by Serbian law enforcement officials in April at the request of the U.S. government and are currently detained in Serbia. The Justice Department said it is working with the Serbian government regarding their pending extraditions. 

If convicted, Cui and Miller face up to five years in a U.S. prison for conspiracy, up to five years for interstate stalking, up to 10 years for smuggling, and up to 20 years for violating the Arms Export Control Act. 

The Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the U.S. did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. 

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the U.K.’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office told Fox News Digital that it is providing consular assistance to Miller following his arrest and ‘are in touch with the local authorities and his family.’ 

Separately, the State Department has unveiled a series of initiatives aimed at bolstering the screening process for various visa applicants seeking to come to the U.S. For example, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced in May that the agency was planning to ‘revise visa criteria to enhance scrutiny of all future visa applications’ for those originating from China and Hong Kong. 

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

Police investigating the disappearance of British toddler Madeleine McCann will carry out fresh searches near the Portuguese holiday resort she was last seen 18 years ago, authorities said on Monday.

The 3-year-old disappeared from her bed while on vacation with her family in the Praia da Luz resort, in southern Portugal, on May 3, 2007. She has not been seen since.

Detectives acting on a request from a German public prosecutor will carry out “a broad range” of searches this week in the area of Lagos, in southern Portugal, a Portuguese police statement said.

The main suspect in the case is a German national identified by media as Christian Brueckner, who is currently serving a seven-year prison sentence in Germany for raping a 72-year-old woman in Portugal in 2005.

He is under investigation on suspicion of murder in the McCann case but hasn’t been charged. He spent many years in Portugal, including in Praia da Luz, around the time of the child’s disappearance. Brueckner has denied any involvement in her disappearance.

Prosecutors in Braunschweig, Germany, who are responsible for the investigation, didn’t give details of the “judicial measures” taking place in Portugal, according to Germany’s dpa news agency. They said the measures are being carried out by Portuguese authorities with support from officers from Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office.

Britain’s Metropolitan Police said it was “aware of the searches being carried by the BKA (German federal police) in Portugal as part of their investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann.”

“The Metropolitan Police Service is not present at the search, we will support our international colleagues where necessary,” the force added, without giving more details.

The McCann case received worldwide interest for several years, with reports of sightings of her stretching as far away as Australia as well as books and television documentaries about her disappearance.

Almost two decades on, investigators in the UK, Portugal and Germany are still piecing together what happened on the night she disappeared. She was in the same room as her brother and sister — 2-year-old twins — while their parents, Kate and Gerry, had dinner with friends at a nearby restaurant.

The last time police resumed searches in the case was in 2023, when detectives from the three countries took part in an operation searching near a dam and a reservoir about 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the Praia da Luz resort.

Madeleine’s family marked the 18th anniversary of her disappearance last month, and expressed their determination to keep searching.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

Ukraine’s drone attack against Russian airfields was audacious and daring. But most of all, it was meticulously planned and flawlessly executed.

Kyiv struck where it could make a difference, damaging or destroying military aircraft that Moscow has been using to terrorize Ukrainian civilians with near daily aerial attacks.

The Ukrainian Security Service said 41 Russian aircraft were hit, including strategic bombers and surveillance planes, although it is unclear how many were taken completely out of action.

Justin Bronk, a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute in London, said the attack was “a stunning success for Ukraine’s special services.”

“If even half the total claim of 41 aircraft damaged/destroyed is confirmed, it will have a significant impact on the capacity of the Russian Long Range Aviation force to keep up its regular large-scale cruise missile salvos against Ukrainian cities and infrastructure, whilst also maintaining their nuclear deterrence and signaling patrols against NATO and Japan,” he wrote in a note.

This is what we know about how the attack unfolded.

Striking from within Russia

The attacks targeted four airfields deep inside Russia, with the farthest one, the Belaya base in Irkutsk region, some 4,500 kilometers (2,800 miles) from Ukraine’s border with Russia.

The other targets included the Olenya base near Murmansk in the Arctic Circle, more than 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) from Ukraine; the Diaghilev airbase in Ryazan Oblast, some 520 kilometers (320 miles) from Ukraine; and the Ivanovo air base, which is a base for Russian military transport aircraft, some 800 kilometers (500 miles) from the border.

A visual shared by the SBU, Ukraine’s security agency, also showed another base in the eastern Amur region as a target. It is not clear whether an attack on this base failed or was aborted.

It’s these huge distances from the border with Ukraine that likely made Russia complacent about protecting the sites.

Its most prized aircraft at the Belaya base were regularly parked in plain sight in the airfield, clearly visible in publicly available satellite images – including on Google Maps.

Moscow likely believed the distance itself was enough to keep the aircraft safe from Ukrainian attacks.

Russia maintains air superiority over Ukraine and while Kyiv’s allies have supplied Ukraine with some long-range missile systems, including US-made ATACMS and British-French Storm Shadows, neither has the range to strike this deep inside Russia.

Ukraine has been using drones against targets inside Russia, including in Moscow, but the low speed at which they travel makes them relatively easy for Russian air defenses to strike them.

This is where the audacity of the attack really played out: rather than trying to fly the drones all the way from the border, Ukraine managed to smuggle them right next to the sites it wanted to target and launched them from there.

Insufficient Russian defenses

Russia’s radar and air defenses at these bases were not prepared for such a low-altitude and sudden attack.

The only effective way to stop an attack like this is with heavy machine guns. Russia has been using these against Ukrainian sea drones in the Black Sea.

But these were either not available or not deployed quickly enough at the air bases targeted by Ukraine on Sunday – most likely because Russia simply didn’t foresee this type of attack.

Russia’s Defense Ministry confirmed in a statement that the attacks – which it called “terror attacks” were launched from the vicinity of the airfields.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said 117 drones were used in the operation.

According to the SBU, the drones were smuggled into Russia by its operatives. At some point, likely while already in Russia, the drones were then hidden inside mobile wooden sheds.

These wooden cabins were then placed on trucks and driven to locations near the bases.

Ukraine did not disclose how exactly it managed to get the vehicles into the vicinity of high-profile military targets without detection, but reports in Russian media suggested it was relatively simple.

Baza and Astra, two Russian Telegram channels, both reported that the trucks were bought by a Ukrainian man who lived in Russia who then simply paid a quartet of drivers to get them where he needed them.

Neither Russian nor Ukrainian authorities commented on these reports, but the Russian state news agency RIA reported that authorities in the Irkutsk region were searching for a man who was suspected of being involved in the attack. His name matched the name reported by Baza and Astra.

The Ukrainian Security Service said the operatives involved in the operation were safely back in Ukraine by the time the attacks started. Zelensky said they worked across multiple Russian regions spanning three time zones.

“They would have likely setup an internet hub allowing the pilots to (control them) remotely, each rapidly deploying each FPV (first person view drones), hitting each target one by one.”

The source said the communication hub could be “a simple Russian cell phone” which is harder to track than other systems, such as Starlink that is used widely in Ukraine.

A source briefed on the matter confirmed the attack was carried out via Russian telecommunications networks.

Once the trucks were in place and the drones ready to go, the cabin roofs opened and the drones flew towards their targets.

‘Brilliant operation’

They are seen heading towards the Belaya air base in the distance, where thick dark smoke is already billowing from a previous strike.

Another video from the same location shows the truck used to transport the drones on fire after what appears to be an explosion designed to self-destruct the truck.

Zelensky said on Sunday that the attack was in the making for one year, six months and nine days, and praised the security services for a “brilliant” operation.

Russian officials have downplayed the attack, saying strikes were repelled in the Ivanovo, Ryazan and Amur regions but that “several pieces of aircraft” caught fire after attacks in the Murmansk and Irkutsk regions. It added that the fires had since been extinguished.

It said there were no casualties. But while Russian authorities tried to downplay the attack, several high-profile Russian military bloggers have been vocal in their criticism.

Rybar, a high-profile Russian military blog, said the attack caused a “tragic loss for the entire Russian air fleet” and was a result of “criminal negligence.”

Ukraine said it destroyed several TU-95 and Tu-22M3 strategic bombers and one of Russia’s few remaining A-50 surveillance planes.

A source briefed on the matter said 27 Tu-95, four Tu-160, two Tu-22M3 and “probably” an A-50 were hit.

The Tu-22M3 is Russia’s long-range missile strike platform that can perform stand-off attacks, launching missiles from Russian airspace well behind the front lines to stay out of range of Ukrainian anti-aircraft fire.

Russia had 55 Tu-22M3 jets and 57 Tu-95s in its fleet at the beginning of the year, according to the “Military Balance 2025” report from the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank.

The Tu-95 joined the Soviet Union air force in the 1950s, and Russia has modified them to launch cruise missiles like the Tu-22.

Bronk, the RUSI expert, said that replacing some of these aircraft would be very difficult for Russia because they have not been produced for decades.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

Edward Sterck, director of research at the World Platinum Investment Council, reviews the organization’s latest quarterly report, honing in on supply and demand dynamics.

He also touches on platinum’s recent price move, highlighting its strong fundamentals.

Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Ohio GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno has sent a letter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation calling for the bureau to get to the bottom of questions surrounding possible terror ties of the man accused of committing a terrorist attack against a pro-Israel group in Colorado. 

‘Jewish Americans are under attack,’ Moreno wrote to FBI Director Kash Patel in a letter obtained by Fox News Digital. ‘We are now seeing the horrifying reality of that phrase played out on American streets. If Jews aren’t being murdered in cold blood in our nation’s capital, they are quite literally being burned alive by an illegal alien.’

Moreno’s letter comes in the wake of an attack on a pro-Israel group in Boulder, Colorado.

Mohamed Sabry Soliman, a 45-year-old Egyptian national in the country illegally, was arrested at the scene after he allegedly set his victims on fire as they peacefully rallied on behalf of Israeli hostages still being held by Hamas in Gaza. Soliman was heard yelling ‘Free Palestine’ and other anti-Israel slogans during the attack on victims ranging in age from 52 to 88.

Moreno thanked the FBI, which quickly labeled the violence as a ‘targeted terror attack,’ for its ‘swift action.’

‘As a member of the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs and the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, it is my responsibility to investigate and tell the American people the truth about how this illegal alien entered the country under the Biden-Harris Administration and was permitted to not only stay in the country but also commit acts of terror on Jewish Americans,’ Moreno wrote. 

Moreno’s letter asks the FBI to respond with answers to questions within 60 days about the potential terror ties of the suspect, including who was harboring him in the United States, who paid for his travel overseas, and what, if any, links does the suspect have to ISIS or Hamas. 

Moreno also asked about the vetting process for the suspect when he entered the country during the Biden administration, including how he was allowed to obtain a work authorization and what the basis was for any asylum claim that might have been filed. 

Fox News Digital reached out to the FBI for comment. 

‘The FBI is investigating the attack as a targeted act of terrorism and is working with the Boulder Police Department to process the crime scene, interview witnesses and gather evidence,’ the FBI said in a statement on Sunday.

‘Our strength as a society comes from our shared values, and our commitment to protecting one another. Any attempt to divide us through fear or harm has no place in Boulder – Colorado or anywhere in our nation,’ said FBI Denver Special Agent in Charge Mark Michalek. 

Federal court filings, according to Fox News national correspondent Bill Melugin in a post on X, show that Soliman, who has been charged with a federal hate crime, ‘admitted in an interview that he wants to kill all ‘Zionist’ people and had been planning the attack for a year, and that he would conduct the attack again if he could.’

‘This man was admitted into the country via a tourist visa during the Biden administration. He overstayed, filed an asylum request, and was granted work authorization by the Biden admin, which expired at the end of March of this year.’

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS