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American and Chinese naval vessels clashed near Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea on Wednesday, escalating tensions in the disputed waters, a Navy spokesperson confirmed to the Daily Caller News Foundation. China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) accused the USS Higgins, a guided missile destroyer, of encroaching on its waters surrounding Scarborough Reef, while the Navy called the claim false and vowed to operate wherever international law allows. The U.S. warships were deployed for a freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) following a Monday confrontation between Chinese vessels and the Philippine coast guard in the South China Sea.

And it’s not where Putin wants to be.Putin has decided to talk peace with Trump while he dominates the battlefield in eastern Ukraine. His troops are closing in on Donetsk’s main urban centers, whose capture would give him total control of Donbas, where he already fully occupies the province of Luhansk. But it could be looking to get the best deal possible while he is ahead.The prolonged sieges and intense urban warfare that capturing Donetsk’s cities of Kramatorsk, Kostyantynivka, and Sloviansk with a combined population of one quarter million and fortified by Ukrainian military engineers during months, risks dangerously...

Hundreds of employees are losing jobs at a grape nursery owned by Wonderful Co., one of the state’s biggest agricultural operations. The company says it is unrelated to a contentious battle by the United Farm Workers to unionize workers at the nursery in Kern County. One of California’s largest agricultural employers plans to close a Central Valley grape nursery by the end of the year after laying off hundreds of employees, including many supportive of a United Farm Workers effort to unionize the workforce. Wonderful Co., owned by billionaires Stewart and Lynda Resnick, plans to shut down the majority of...

SNIP Kirkland Evan Lehto, 27, sat motionless as Rogers' family described the effect of his murder, committed for reasons not even he could explain. He said he didn't remember pulling the trigger. He said "the voices, the witches" made him do it. Jurors rejected his insanity defense during his murder trial in June, but they didn't think the killing was premeditated, either. They convicted Lehto of second-degree murder instead, sparing him an automatic life sentence and leaving his penalty to the discretion of the judge. Lehto's family and team of public defenders urged Circuit Judge Daliah Weiss to sentence Lehto...

A federal appeals court panel cleared the way on Wednesday for the Trump administration to continue refusing to spend billions of dollars in foreign aid, finding that aid organizations that had sued to recover the money lacked the legal right to bring the challenge.The decision, which centered on President Trump’s authority to withhold funding already appropriated by Congress, handed the White House a significant legal victory. Since taking office, Mr. Trump and his advisers have consistently claimed expansive authority to freeze federal dollars allocated for projects they have endeavored to snuff out — an action known as impoundment that legal...

Billy Joel’s beloved Long Island motorcycle shop is closing down after nearly 15 years of offering fans a free peek at his personal collection of dozens of bikes.The music icon will be shuttering 20th Century Cycles in Oyster Bay, New York, in late September and auctioning off his collection later this year because of a brain disorder he has been diagnosed with, according to a spokesperson, Claire Mercuri.In May, Joel announced that he was canceling upcoming concerts after learning he has Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus, a fluid buildup in his brain that can affect thinking, concentrating, memory, movement and more, according...

"Seattle waterfront shooting of man in wheelchair over 'stolen valor'." Not much information other than the headline and video. Video at link.

A new documentary about the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel by Hamas has been booted from the Toronto International Film Festival — because organizers insist the filmmakers need the rights from the terrorist group to use their horrific footage of the massacre. The festival claims the movie, called “The Road Between Us: The Ultimate Rescue,” did not meet certain requirements to screen at the prestigious September event, widely attended by Hollywood stars and bigwigs, including not securing so-called “legal clearance” to use Hamas’ live-streamed video of the rape, murder and kidnapping of Jews. The stunned filmmakers, including Canadian director...

From today's decision in Melton v. City of Forrest City, written by Judge David Stras, joined by Judges Lavenski Smith and Ralph Erickson: Steven Melton is a pro-life, evangelical Christian. In June 2020, he reposted a black-and-white image on Facebook that depicted a silhouette of a baby in the womb with a rope around its neck. His intent was to convey that he was "anti-abortion." Others did not view the image the same way. Two weeks after he posted it, a retired fire-department supervisor complained to Melton that he thought it looked like a noose around the neck of a...

Former Gov. David Paterson has formally endorsed Mayor Eric Adams for reelection. Paterson made the announcement with Adams on the steps of City Hall on Wednesday afternoon. "Gov. Paterson is a well-respected leader throughout the city, in general, but specifically in the Harlem community," Adams said, "and I can't be any clearer that we have yet to tell our story and having Gov. Paterson being able to articulate and show us how to continue to get our story out, it's a real way. He's done it before." Paterson had supported former Gov. Andrew Cuomo during the Democratic primary, calling him...

Anna Conkling was recently in the town of Dobropillia in Eastern Ukraine, where the Russian military is making one of its most aggressive offensives in recent months.A significant military advance by Russia in Ukraine is forcing thousands of civilians to evacuate from towns near the frontlines. Recent reports indicate that Russian forces have surged as much as 10 miles past Ukrainian defenses in what officials characterize as one of the most aggressive offensives in recent months. This offensive appears to be strategically aimed at encircling critical cities that play a vital role in Ukrainian logistics and defense. Independent reporter Anna...

RUBAYA, Democratic Republic of Congo - Under the watchful eye of M23 rebels in the hills around the Congolese town of Rubaya, a line of men in rubber boots ferry sacks full of crushed rocks up winding paths cut into the slopes.The laborers are hauling coltan ore, a mineral that powers the modern world. The ore will be loaded onto motorbikes and eventually shipped thousands of kilometers away to Asia. There it’s processed into tantalum, a heat-resistant metal that fetches more than $300 a kilogram and is in high demand by makers of mobile phones, computers, aerospace components and gas...

CNN’s Abby Phillip has provided Donald Trump a new nickname - albeit accidentally and one his supporters quickly embraced. The CNN NewsNight host had been introducing a segment centered around Trump's deployment of federal troops to Washington, DC, Monday, when she compared the conservative to 'Batman' and the municipality to 'Gotham City.' The fictional metropolis is famously overrun by crime. The video player is currently playing an ad. Phillip, in turn, told Scott Jennings, Tara SetMayer, Ben Ferguson and Dan Koh: 'The President of the United States has declared himself crime-fighter-in-chief. 'He’s taking over Washington’s police force,' she further complained....

Americans are not a healthy bunch, neither physically nor mentally. And we we getting sicker. We have an unnaturally high level of mental illness…We are addicted to medicines…We are killing ourselves in record numbers. Yet Americans often miss the strength of Europe because they rarely stray beyond its touristy city centres. Big city Europe is in the process of being smoothed into a generic, boring singular entity. This soulless Americanisation has accelerated dramatically over the last few decades, driven by globalisation, tourism and secular capitalism. The result is McEurope — a chain of big cities where chunks of each are...

Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel admitted "repulsive" liberal voices are scaring people away from the Democratic Party during an appearance on the "Sarah Silverman Podcast" on Thursday. The comedians discussed cancel culture persisting on the left since President Donald Trump returned to office. They criticized those who continue to shun Trump voters who are now expressing regret for supporting the president. Silverman brought up how podcast host Joe Rogan has been attacked online for criticizing Trump's second term after supporting him in the 2024 election. She called it "ironic" that the party of "inclusivity" was "incredibly elitist." Anti-Trump Kimmel, who campaigned...

Join with fellow FREEPERS to pray for AMERICA: For those in Authority in Government, Family, Military, Business, Agri-Business; End to Sex Slavery; Healthcare, Education, Churches, and the Media. This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. (1 John 5:14)Forum threads labeled [Prayer] are closed to debate of any kind.

Argentine President Javier Milei channels his $1 million Genesis Prize into a groundbreaking alliance, bringing Israel closer to Latin America through the newly launched Isaac Accords. In a bold diplomatic move underscoring his unwavering support for Israel, Argentine President Javier Milei has announced the launch of the Isaac Accords – a visionary initiative aimed at boosting cooperation between Israel and Latin American nations

Trump takes a shot at "Adam Shifty Schiff" over the California Democrat's alleged plot to leak classified info to smear the president with debunked Russiagate claims. President Donald Trump on Wednesday cited bombshell witness testimony first revealed by Just the News that he said provided “irrefutable proof” that Democrat Sen. Adam Schiff had approved a scheme to leak classified information to harm him during his first term.A career intelligence officer who worked for Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee for more than a decade repeatedly warned the FBI beginning in 2017 that then-Rep. Schiff, of California, had approved leaking...

Rosie O’Donnell is still getting used to her “new, smaller body” after her Mounjaro-fueled weight loss transformation. The comedian posted an Instagram picture Wednesday of herself “shopping to [buy] a a comfy lounge wear outfit for [her] 22 hour flight to Australia.” The actress noted that she was initially “undecided” on the black ensemble she tried on, explaining, “I can’t see myself in this new smaller body.” However, the 63-year-old’s pals Camryn Manheim and Robin Ruzan snapped a picture of O’Donnell in the dressing room, which is the same image she showed her followers.

Harvard University students can learn about the “political mastermind” of Stacey Abrams this semester in a class that explicitly says it is taught through a critical race theory lens. “From First Lady Michelle Obama to political mastermind Stacy Abrams to Vice President Kamala Harris, Black women have left their stamp on 21st-century politics and grassroots organizing,” the course description for “Race, Gender, and Law through the Archive” says. Abrams is a former Democratic state representative who lost the 2018 and 2022 gubernatorial elections in Georgia. As noted by the Washington Free Beacon, she claims the 2018 election was “rigged” and...