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Circumcision is to be classed as a potential form of child abuse under new guidance for prosecutors, amid concerns from judges and coroners about deaths and serious harms caused by the procedure. A draft document by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) on “honour-based abuse, forced marriages, and harmful practices”, classes circumcision as a potential crime alongside breast flattening, virginity testing, hymenoplasty and exorcisms. The wording of the document, seen by the Guardian, has alarmed some religious groups, with Jewish and Muslim leaders defending the cultural importance of the practice. The draft CPS guidance states that, unlike female genital mutilation, “there...

…Amid seismic changes in the Middle East, where new alliances are forming and old powers waning, Iraqi leaders face a daunting task: navigating relations with US-blacklisted pro-Iranian factions. The US has held significant sway over Iraqi politics since leading the 2003 invasion that ousted long-time ruler Saddam Hussein. But another spectre also haunts Iraq’s halls of power: Washington’s arch-foe, Iran. Iraq has long been caught between the two, with successive governments negotiating a delicate balance… A US State Department spokesperson, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “Iraqi leaders know well what is and is not compatible with a strong US-Iraq...

U.S. military superiority may delay Beijing's worst ambitionsIn our 50-year-long twilight struggle with the Soviet Union, it was often said — especially by those who leaned politically rightward — that the U.S. overestimated the capabilities of the Russians and consistently underestimated their threat.It was a short way of communicating that the Red Army looked a lot more imposing than it really was, but at the same time, the goals of the Russians were more ambitious than we appreciated.The recent strike on Venezuela made me think about that bit of received wisdom.It has been reported that the U.S. armed forces...

2017-2021 The Minnesota Supreme Court on Wednesday reversed the third-degree murder conviction of a former Minneapolis police officer who fatally shot an Australian woman in 2017, saying the charge doesn't fit the circumstances in this case. Mohamed Noor was convicted of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the death of Justine Damond, a dual US-Australian citizen who called 911 to report a possible sexual assault behind her home. He was sentenced to 12 1/2 years on the murder count but was not sentenced for manslaughter. Noor was later sentenced on the manslaughter charge: Manslaughter sentencing Quaintance sentenced Noor to the...

When President Trump sent American forces into Venezuela and walked out with Nicolás Maduro in handcuffs, the world took notice. Critics called it reckless. Supporters called it overdue. But while the chattering class debated the raid’s legality, the administration was already eyeing its next move on the global chessboard. The Arctic has quietly become one of the most contested regions on the planet. Russian vessels patrol waters they haven’t touched in decades. Chinese “research” ships appear with uncomfortable regularity near strategic chokepoints. And no, these aren’t fever dreams from hawkish think tanks — this is happening right now. Sitting in...

Bush’s second term in office ended in 2009, and he took up painting early on in his retirement, essaying his interest in portraiture with his depictions of world leaders. He then turned to his attention to war veterans. These newer portraits are thickly painted in the loose, vivid style Bush has developed since his early experiments with a more photorealistic technique. They were first shown at the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, Texas, in 2017. A book of the paintings, accompanied by the stories of the 98 men and women portrayed – their injuries, recoveries and lives afterward...

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was told over the weekend that a new Nick Shirley video being released soon - maybe even as early as Monday — is "ten times worse" than the "Quality Learing Center" daycare scam. In Shirley's previous video, he and his source, David Hoch, who has been investigating this billion-dollar-plus scam for years, discovered multiple daycare centers in one building without children in them for years. And this is where Hoch says is the heart of the ongoing continuing criminal enterprise. Hoch says the new video will show that most of these companies are Somali-owned, and...

Ranya Brooks will serve as the inaugural director of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Office of Belonging, Community, and Connection, Dean Jeremy M. Weinstein announced Friday afternoon in an email to students, faculty, and staff. Brooks, who most recently served as director of workforce engagement for Harvard University Campus Services, will begin her new role on Jan. 26. The appointment follows a six-month search launched after the departure of Robbin Chapman, who previously led the school’s diversity office. Chapman left during the broader rebranding of the Kennedy School’s diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts into what is now the OBCC. During the...

For him, extreme volatility and risk are not a problem but an opportunity.Is Iran next? That was the question the world was asking this weekend. As both protests and repression escalated, President Trump repeatedly warned that the U.S. would not stand idly by if the theo-thugocracy in Tehran fired on protesters. The mullahs’ response came from their usual playbook. They carried out a bloodbath and threatened to attack American bases and assets across the region if Mr. Trump raised a hand against them. As in Venezuela, Russia and China aren’t doing much either way. Joint exercises involving the Chinese, Russian,...

A billboard next to a Southern California freeway was hijacked with pro-ICE messaging and a chilling remark about the fatal federal officer-involved shooting of Renee Good.

A group of Australian scientists have revealed how we may be able to learn to speak with aliens, and the answer is found right here on Earth. If we do make contact with extraterrestrial life, it will likely require sending messages across vast distances of interstellar space. The question for astronomers looking out for distant civilisations is how this communication would even be possible if we don't share a language. Now, scientists say we might be able to develop a 'universal language' with an unlikely inspiration: The humble honeybee. With six legs, five eyes, and a radically different social structure,...

Several monuments on the Gettysburg Battlefield were recently defaced with oil, resulting in costly damage, according to park officials. In a release issued Friday, Jan. 9, 2025, the National Park Service at the Gettysburg National Military Park shared that several monuments on the Gettysburg battlefield had been "defaced with oil-based substances." "While possibly intended as symbolic or ritualistic, the damage is real and lasting," the release stated, adding that "porous stone absorbs oil deeply, making stains nearly impossible to remove."

Things I learned today … Elon Musk✓ @elonmusk

An online fundraiser set up to support the wife and three children of the woman shot dead by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent last week has closed, after raising more than $1.5 million in donations. The GoFundMe campaign to support Renee Nicole Good's wife, Rebecca, as well as Good's children amassed more than 38,500 donations in the four days since it was started. The crowdfunder sought $50,000 to support the Good family as they 'grapple with the devastating loss of their wife and mother'. But the campaign raised more than 28 times the requested amount, with one anonymous donor...

In Washington, the State Auditor's Office has found evidence that millions of dollars have been improperly disbursed to federally subsidized daycare centers. Over payments between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025 occurred due to missing attendance records and over-billed hours and days. Rep. Emily Randall (D-WA) called the overspent amounts "trifling compared to what has gone on in Minnesota" and asserted "we should be focusing on the much greater threat posed to this country by President Trump. His insistence on deporting undocumented immigrants and his abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro exposes his racism for all to see. The...

On Sunday morning's edition of The Weekend, MS NOW's double standard on the shooting of Renee Good was on dazzling display. The hosts and guest Ayanna Pressley, a Democrat congresswoman from Massachusetts and a Squad member, were highly critical of the Trump administration for characterizing Good. They singled out Tom Homan for saying that Good had committed a "crime." But when Pressley -- three times -- accused ICE of Good's "murder," tossing in a "brazen killing" for bad measure -- the silence from The Weekend hosts was deafening.Get the rest of the story and view the video here.

CNBC (MS NOW) host Joe Kernen confronted Democratic Virginia Sen. Mark Warner on Monday as the senator criticized the surge in arrests of illegal immigrants made by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The panelists on “Squawk Box” discussed the response to the death of Renee Good in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Wednesday, who was shot by an ICE officer while allegedly accelerating her vehicle forward during a confrontation with agents. Warner claimed that ICE agents are detaining illegal immigrants who have not committed any crimes, but rather are arresting mothers dropping off their kids at school and people heading to work....

Aimee Bock, the alleged mastermind behind Minnesota’s $250 million Feeding Our Future fraud scandal tied to the Somali community, is facing forfeiture of a Porsche, property, designer handbags and millions of dollars after a federal judge approved a preliminary order. A judge signed off on the preliminary forfeiture order last week, clearing the way for the government to seize assets that prosecutors say were purchased with ill-gotten taxpayer funds, according to MPR News, a Minnesota-based news outlet. The assets include about $3.7 million in bank accounts and cash, a 2013 Porsche and luxury items taken from her home, according to...

The move by the five GOP senators to curtail Trump’s powers as commander in chief represents one of the biggest schisms between the Senate Republican Conference and the White House during the president’s first year of his second term. The votes enraged Trump, who lashed out at Sen. Susan Collins (Maine), one of the five Republicans, in a “profanity-laced” phone call after she supported the measure, reading her the riot act, according to one source. The Senate will vote this week on a motion to proceed to the war powers resolution and spend a chunk of the week debating it....

Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has continued for as long as Nazi Germany’s war against the Soviet Union, with Moscow failing to achieve any decisive gains over more than three years. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy drew the comparison in his evening address on January 11. “We are not dragging out time, unlike Russia. They have dragged things out enough, to be honest. Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine has now lasted as long as Nazi Germany’s war against the Soviet Union,” Zelenskyy said. He noted that, as of January 11, the war has entered its 1,418th day and said Russia had...