Політика

Громадяни України зможуть самостійно створювати запит в мобільному застосунку та отримувати електронне направлення на ВЛК
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За даними норвезької влади, від початку повномасштабного вторгнення країна прийняла близько 85 тисяч українських біженців
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BATON ROUGE — Before plowing a pickup truck into a crowd of New Year’s revelers in New Orleans, killing 14 people, the man who carried out the Islamic State group-inspired attack had researched how to access a balcony on the city’s famed Bourbon Street and looked up information about a similar recent attack at a Christmas market in Germany, the FBI said. 

Nearly two weeks after Shamsud-Din Jabbar’s rampage, the FBI continues to uncover new information detailing the extensive planning by the 42-year-old Army veteran who scouted out the area multiple times in the months leading up to the attack. Authorities also have been piecing together a timeline of his radicalization. 

In the early hours of New Year’s Day, Jabbar could be seen on video surveillance placing two containers with explosive devices, which would remain undetonated, in the French Quarter. Shortly after, about 3:15 a.m., Jabbar sped a white pickup truck around a police car blockading the entrance of Bourbon Street, where partygoers continued to wander around the street lined with bars. He drove through revelers before crashing and being killed by police in a shootout. Fifty-seven people were injured, authorities said. 

Just hours before the deadly onslaught, Jabbar had searched online for information about an attack at a busy outdoor Christmas Market in east Germany that occurred just 10 days earlier and where a car was also used as a mass weapon, the FBI said on Tuesday. The attack in Europe left five people dead and more than 200 injured after a car slammed into a crowd. Police arrested a 50-year-old doctor from Saudi Arabia who has renounced Islam and supports the far-right AfD party. 

In other online searches, Jabbar had looked up how to access a balcony on Bourbon Street, information about Mardi Gras, and several recent shootings in the city, the FBI said. 

But Jabbar’s research ahead of the attack was not limited to online: He also made a one-day visit to New Orleans from Houston on Nov. 10, during which he looked for an apartment, the FBI said. While Jabbar applied to rent the apartment, he later told the landlord that he changed his mind. 

That was not his only visit to New Orleans, though. The FBI had previously reported that Jabbar had traveled to the city for a planning trip on Oct. 31, when he used glasses from Meta, the parent company of Facebook, to record video as he rode through the French Quarter on a bicycle. 

In a series of online videos, posted hours before he struck, Jabbar proclaimed support for the Islamic State militant group. The Bourbon Street attack was the deadliest Islamic State-inspired assault on U.S. soil in years. On Tuesday, the FBI continued to draft out a timeline of Jabbar’s radicalization, saying that he began isolating himself from society and became a more devout Muslim in 2022. By the spring of 2024, he began following extremist views. 

While investigations into the attack are ongoing and additional information continues to trickle out about Jabbar’s planning of the deadly rampage, city officials face questions about safety concerns. 

State and local authorities have launched probes into possible security deficiencies that left New Orleans vulnerable. The work is especially urgent since Carnival season, a monthslong celebration that attracts tens of thousands of visitors to the French Quarter, began last week. The city is also set to host the Super Bowl on Feb. 9.
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The White House says it has finalized rules that crack down on Chinese and Russian automobile technology effectively banning all personal smart cars from the two countries from entering the U.S. market.

In a White House fact sheet detailing the decision, the Biden administration Tuesday said that while connected vehicles offer advantages, the involvement of foreign adversaries such as China and Russia in their supply chains presents serious risks granting “malign actors unfettered access to these connected systems and the data they collect.”

“The Department of Commerce has issued a final rule that will prohibit the sale and import of connected vehicle hardware and software systems, as well as completed connected vehicles, from the PRC and Russia,” the fact sheet said.

PRC is the acronym for China’s official name, the People’s Republic of China.

Connected vehicles are smart cars that are designed to be convenient for consumers and provide safety for drivers, passengers, and pedestrians through the use of many connected parts such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cellular, and satellite connectivity.

“Cars today aren’t just steel on wheels; they’re computers,” said Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo when speaking on the rule.

“This is a targeted approach to ensure we keep PRC- and Russian-manufactured technologies off American roads,” said Raimondo.

The new rule is the “culmination of a year-long examination” of potential risks posed by connected vehicles and will “help the United States defend against the PRC’s cyber espionage and intrusion operations, which continue to pose a significant threat to U.S. critical infrastructure and public safety.”

The crackdown on cars follows Washington’s announcement earlier this month that the U.S. consider new rules aimed at addressing risks posed by drones that utilize technology from China and Russia.

The U.S. has repeatedly emphasized the need to balance technological progress with the protection of national security interests.
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GENEVA — U.S. President Donald Trump will take part virtually in the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos just days after his inauguration, the forum president said Tuesday. 

Borge Brende, a former Norwegian foreign minister who heads the Geneva-based organization, noted that Trump had twice attended the elite gathering of business, government and other leaders in person during his first term. 

“On Thursday afternoon, he will join us digitally, online, live in a dialogue with our participants,” Brende told reporters Tuesday as he presented the five-day program that will start Monday — the day of Trump’s inauguration. 

“We think that will be a very special moment,” he added, notably to help learn the administration’s “policy priorities.” 

Brende said he didn’t know whether Elon Musk, the multibillionaire who is poised to co-lead Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency, would attend, but said the forum expects “additional, high-level representation” from the administration once confirmation processes for Trump’s nominees get underway in the U.S. Senate as early as Monday. 

Forum organizers say a record of around 900 business leaders, including from important emerging markets, will take part in the annual meeting this year, which is expected to draw nearly 3,000 participants from over 130 countries. 

With climate change, war, global tensions, economic uncertainty and other issues in mind, Brende acknowledged that the 55th annual meeting of the forum will take place “against the most complicated geopolitical backdrop in generations.” 

“But still in that fragmented and partly polarized world, there are still areas where we can collaborate and … we have big opportunities and responsibilities to find those areas where there is a possibility to improve the state of the world,” he said. The theme of this year’s edition is “Collaboration for the Intelligent Age” — a nod to the growing importance of technology in the world. 

The WEF has long been derided as a gathering of world elites who plot the future at a cushy, snow-bound powwow in the Swiss Alps. Critics often argue the developing world gets less attention than global powers and big business in the West or Gulf states. 

Forum managing director Mirek Dusek insisted that the number of businesses from developing countries in the “Global South” was growing, and the attendance of their leaders was “on parity” with the participation of leaders in the developed world. 

Ursula Von Der Leyen, president of the European Union’s executive commission, plans to attend the opening day of meetings on Tuesday, after an introductory gala the night before. Other top envoys include President Javier Milei of Argentina, President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa, and Chinese Vice-Premier Ding Xuexiang. 

The vast array of topics will include the future of Syria — its new foreign minister is expected to attend — after the fall of President Bashar al-Assad last month; the fight against climate change; the threats and promise of artificial intelligence; global trade and economic growth; and wars in places like Ukraine, Sudan and beyond. 

“We are ready to roll up our sleeves to make the best out of a situation where we are faced with many, many challenges,” Brende said.
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«Також слідчі розпочали кримінальне провадження за наругу над державними символами»
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WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, vowed Tuesday to foster a “warrior culture” at the Pentagon, portraying himself as a “change agent” during a testy Senate confirmation hearing that drew protesters but also veterans in support. 

Hegseth did not initially address the allegations of sexual assault, excessive drinking or his derisive views on women in combat and minorities, as senators determine whether the veteran and TV news show host is fit to lead the U.S. military. Instead, he focused on his combat experience in the Army National Guard. 

“It’s time to give someone with dust on his boots the helm. A change agent,” Hegseth said in his opening remarks. 

“This is not academic,” he declared, wearing an American flag pocket square on his suit coat. “This is my life.” 

Asked directly about the sexual assault allegation, Hegseth dismissed it as a “smear campaign” and unfair attack. But he did not specifically address any of the accusations, or tell the senators that he did not drink or womanize. 

Senators immediately began drilling down on the questions surrounding Hegseth, with the Republican chairman of the Armed Services Committee acknowledging the “unconventional” choice and the top Democrat warning of “extremely alarming” allegations against him. 

Senator Roger Wicker, a Mississippi Republican, the chairman, compared Hegseth to Trump himself, dismissed the various allegations against him as unfounded and said he will “bring energy and fresh ideas to shake up the bureaucracy.” 

But Senator Jack Reed, a Democrat from Rhode Island, said flatly: “I do not believe that you are qualified to meet the overwhelming demands of this job.” 

Hegseth, 44, comes from a new generation of veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, and his military experience is widely viewed as an asset. But he also brings a jarring record of past actions and statements, including about women, minorities and “woke” generals. He has vowed not to drink alcohol if he is confirmed to lead the Pentagon. 

Trump backed his pick, saying Hegseth has “my Complete and Total support” in a morning post. 

The hearing at the Senate Armed Services Committee is the start of a weeklong marathon as senators begin scrutinizing Trump’s choices for more than a dozen top administrative positions. 

Hegseth is among the most endangered of Trump’s Cabinet choices, but GOP allies are determined to turn him into a cause célèbre for Trump’s governing approach amid the nation’s culture wars. Outside groups, including those aligned with the Heritage Foundation, are running costly campaigns to prop up Hegseth’s bid. 

In the audience were cadres of men wearing clothing expressing support for veterans or service in the military, but also protesters who momentarily disrupted proceedings but were removed from the room. 

The Republican-led Senate is rushing to have some of Trump’s picks ready to be confirmed as soon as Inauguration Day, Jan. 20, despite potential opposition to some from both sides of the aisle. With a narrow GOP majority, they need almost all Republicans to support Trump’s pick if Democrats oppose. 

Hegseth faces perhaps the most difficult path to confirmation. He was forced to confront allegations of sexual assault, which he has denied, and his own comments that are far from the military mainstream. 

Pressed on his opposition to diversity initiatives in the military and women serving in combat roles, Hegseth agreed that the military “was a forerunner in courageous racial integration.” But he argued that modern diversity and inclusion policies “divide” current troops and don’t prioritize “meritocracy.” 

And Hegseth had to answer for his comments that women should “straight up” not be in combat roles in the military, a view he has softened following recent meetings with senators. 

In one fiery exchange, Senator Kristen Gillibrand, a New York Democrat, told Hegseth: “You will have to change how you see women to do this job.” 

Gillibrand said of Hegseth’s comments: “They are brutal, and they’re mean, and they disrespect men and women” who fight for this country. 

Hegseth was combative at times, and scoffed as Reed asked him to explain what a “jagoff” was. Only after further pressure from Reed did Hegseth say it was a military lawyer, a JAG officer, who “put their own priorities in front of the warfighters.” 

Many senators have not yet met with Hegseth and most do not have access to his FBI background check, as only committee leaders were briefed on its findings. Reed said the background check on Hegseth was “insufficient.” It did not probe or produce new information beyond what’s already in the public realm about him, according to a person familiar with the situation who insisted on anonymity to discuss it. 

In many ways, the Hegseth hearing was following the template set during Trump’s first term, when one of his choices for Supreme Court justice, Brett Kavanaugh, came under intense scrutiny over allegations of sexual assault but turned the tables on his critics and recouped to win confirmation to the high court. 

“He will be ripped. He will be demeaned. He will be talked about,” said Senator Tommy Tuberville, a Republican from Alabama, at an event with former Navy SEALs, Army special forces and Marines supporting the nominee. “But we’re going to get him across the finish line.” 

Hegseth was largely unknown on Capitol Hill when Trump tapped him for the top Pentagon job. 

A co-host of Fox News Channel’s Fox & Friends Weekend, he had been a contributor with the network since 2014 and apparently caught the eye of the president-elect, who is an avid consumer of television and the news channel, in particular. 

Hegseth attended Princeton University and served in the Army National Guard from 2002 to 2021, deploying to Iraq in 2005 and Afghanistan in 2011 and earning two Bronze Stars. But he lacks senior military and national security experience. 

In 2017, a woman told police that Hegseth sexually assaulted her, according to a detailed investigative report recently made public. Hegseth has denied any wrongdoing and told police at the time that the encounter at a Republican women’s event in California was consensual. He later paid the woman a confidential settlement to head off a potential lawsuit. 

If confirmed, Hegseth would take over a military juggling an array of crises on the global stage and domestic challenges in military recruitment, retention and ongoing funding. 

Besides being a key national security adviser to the president, the defense secretary oversees a massive organization, with nearly 2.1 million service members, about 780,000 civilians and a budget of roughly $850 billion. 

The secretary is responsible for tens of thousands of U.S. troops deployed overseas and at sea, including in combat zones where they face attacks, such as in Syria and Iraq and in the waters around Yemen. The secretary makes all final recommendations to the president on what units are deployed, where they go and how long they stay. 

The secretary’s main job is to make sure the U.S. military is ready, trained and equipped to meet any call to duty. But the secretary also must ensure that American troops are safe and secure at home, with proper housing, health care, pay and support for programs dealing with suicide, sexual assault and financial scams. 

Pentagon chiefs also routinely travel across the world, meeting with international leaders on a vast range of security issues including U.S. military aid, counterterrorism support, troop presence and global coalition building. And they play a key role at NATO as a critical partner to allies across the region.
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У відомтстві очікують, що ці зміни вирішать складнощі, що виникали через 72-годинну паузу між завершенням попереднього терміну бронювання та оформленням нового
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Як повідомляє прокуратура, цьому ж експосадовцю торік повідомили про підозру в спробі розкрадання 1,5 мільярда гривень на закупівлі снарядів
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Предcтaвники Сухопутних військ вкотре спробувaли пояснити прaвa тa обов’язки мобілізовaних і прaцівників ТЦК
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На церемонію покладання квітів, організовану Молодіжною радою Дніпра вранці, прийшло кілька десятків людей
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DES MOINES, Iowa — More than 150 recipients of the Nobel and World Food prizes released an open letter Tuesday calling for a dramatic increase in research and a commitment to new food distribution efforts with a goal of producing more crops and avoiding a global hunger crisis in coming decades.

The letter notes that an estimated 700 million people now are “food insecure and desperately poor” but that without a “moonshot” effort to grow more and different kinds of food, far more people will be in dire need of food because of climate change and population growth.

“As difficult and as uncomfortable as it might be to imagine, humanity is headed towards an even more food insecure, unstable world by mid-century than exists today, worsened by a vicious cycle of conflict and food insecurity,” states the letter, signed by 153 recipients of the two prizes. “Climate change is projected to decrease the productivity of most major staples when substantial increases are needed to feed a world which will add another 1.5 billion people to its population by 2050.”

Corn production in Africa is expected to decline and much of the world could see more soil degradation and water shortages, the letter says.

“We are not on track to meet future food needs. Not even close,” it adds.

The letter grew from a meeting of food accessibility experts last fall. Despite the potential gloom, it holds out hope for an optimistic vision of the future if people take needed actions. The letter says that a dramatic increase in research funding coupled with more effective ways to share information and distribute food could prevent a hunger crisis.

Brian Schmidt, who won the Nobel Prize in physics in 2011, said the need to dramatically increase food production in the coming decades is a huge challenge. He calls it a “destination with destiny,” but one that can be achieved with proper funding to enhance existing knowledge as well as global leadership.

“It is an imminently solvable problem. It is a problem that will affect billions of people in 25 years. It is a problem that to solve it, there are no losers, only winners,” Schmidt said in an interview. “All we have to do is do it.”

Schmidt said he hopes governments in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere can commit to solving the problem, but he thinks private groups like the Gates Foundation may need to take the lead in funding initial steps that will draw attention and prompt action by politicians.

The letter calls for “transformational efforts” such as enhancing photosynthesis in essential crops such as wheat and rice, developing crops that are not as reliant on chemical fertilizers and lengthening the shelf life of fruits and vegetables.

Cynthia Rosenzweig, a climate research scientist at NASA who won the World Food Prize in 2022, said in an interview that researchers are already making progress toward breakthroughs, but their work needs to be turbocharged with more funding and emphasis from world leaders.

“It’s not that we have to dream up new solutions,” Rosenzweig said. “The solutions are very much being tested but in order to actually take them from the lab out into the agriculture regions of the world, we really do need the moonshot approach.”

The term moonshot refers to an unprecedented effort, stemming from President John F. Kennedy’s call in 1962 for Americans to rocket to the Moon. Rosenzweig, noting she works for NASA, said meeting the food needs of a growing population will take the kind of commitment the U.S. made in achieving Kennedy’s goal of reaching the Moon.

“Look at how the scientists had to come together. The engineers had to be part of it. The funding had to come together as well as the general public,” she said. “That base of support has to be there as well.”
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Збиті дрони завдали збитків на Сумщині, Київщині, Житомирщині Харківщині та Черкащині. Є поранені, за попередніми даними – без загиблих
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In a report to Congress released early Tuesday, special counsel Jack Smith said his office had sufficient evidence to “obtain and sustain” a trial conviction of President-elect Donald Trump for efforts to overturn Trump’s loss to President Joe Biden in the 2020 election.

Smith said Trump “resorted to a series of criminal efforts to retain power” after it became clear that he had lost and that legal ways to challenge the results had failed.

“This included attempts to induce state officials to ignore true vote counts; to manufacture fraudulent slates of presidential electors in seven states that he had lost; to force Justice Department officials and his own Vice President, Michael R. Pence, to act in contravention of their oaths and to instead advance Mr. Trump’s personal interests; and, on January 6 , 2021, to direct an angry mob to the United States Capitol to obstruct the congressional certification of the presidential election and then leverage rioters,” Smith said in his report.

Smith said Trump acted both in his private capacity as an election candidate, as well as with the help of multiple co-conspirators, and that Trump tried to use “the power and authority of the United States Government in furtherance of his scheme.”

The report further says that Trump’s false claims, such as votes being cast by large numbers of dead people or ineligible voters, or that voting machines had changed votes for Trump into votes for Biden, were “demonstrably and, in many cases, obviously false.”

Trump has repeatedly denied wrongdoing and attacked the special counsel’s work as politically motivated.

He responded to the report’s release early Tuesday with a post on his Truth Social platform calling Smith “a lamebrain prosecutor.”

“Deranged Jack Smith was unable to successfully prosecute the Political Opponent of his ‘boss,’ Crooked Joe Biden, so he ends up writing yet another ‘Report’ based on information that the Unselect Committee of Political Hacks and Thugs ILLEGALLY DESTROYED AND DELETED, because it showed how totally innocent I was, and how completely guilty Nancy Pelosi, and others, were,” Trump said.

Trump is set to be inaugurated for a new term next week after defeating Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election. During the 2024 campaign, Trump denied he lost the 2020 vote, including in a September debate with Harris. 

Tuesday’s report release came a day after U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon cleared the Justice Department to make public the portion of Smith’s report that dealt with Trump’s efforts to cling to power.

Judge Cannon, who was appointed by Trump, had earlier blocked the release of Smith’s full report, which also includes an unreleased section about accusations that Trump illegally retained classified documents after he left office.

Smith sought to prosecute Trump on both matters, while Trump denied wrongdoing.

Judge Cannon dismissed the classified documents case in July, ruling that Smith was illegally appointed.

The Supreme Court also ruled in July that presidents have broad immunity from prosecution for official acts, which blunted Smith’s efforts in the election interference case.

After Trump defeated Harris, the Justice Department dropped both cases against Trump, citing longstanding policy against prosecuting a sitting U.S. leader.

Some information for this story was provided by The Associated Press and Reuters
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За оцінкою аналітиків, російські сили, ймовірно, захопили решту Солоного (на південний захід від Покровська) у рамках цього наступу
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WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday turned back a push by the state of Utah to wrest control of vast areas of public land from the federal government, marking a small victory for land conservation advocates who worry that similar efforts may escalate in a Republican-controlled Washington.

The high court refused to let the GOP-controlled state file a lawsuit seeking to bring the land and its resources under state control. The decision came in a brief order in which the court did not explain its reasoning, as is typical. It marks the latest roadblock for states in a running feud with the U.S. government over who should control huge swaths of the West and the enormous oil and gas, timber, and other resources they contain.

Utah’s top state leaders said they have not ruled out taking their lawsuit to a lower court.

In the Western state known for its rugged mountains popular with skiers and red-rock vistas that draw throngs of tourists, federal agencies control almost 70% of the land. Utah argues that local control would be more responsive and allow the state access to revenue from taxes and development projects.

The complaint sought control of about half of federal land, which still amounts to an area nearly as large as South Carolina. The parcels are used for things like energy production, grazing, mining and recreation. Utah’s world-famous national parks and national monuments would have stayed in federal hands.

Monday’s decision by the high court comes as the newly Republican-controlled Congress adopted a rules package that includes language allowing lawmakers to more easily transfer or sell off public lands managed by federal agencies. The rules consider public lands to have no monetary value, meaning lawmakers will no longer need to account for lost revenue if they decide to give parcels to states or extractive industries.

While conservationists applauded the court’s rejection of what they called a land-grab lawsuit, many remained worried that the efforts will continue.

Public lands under state control could be vulnerable to privatization, degradation and oil drilling, said Steve Bloch, legal director for the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance.

“If successful, Utah’s lawsuit would result in the sale of millions of acres of public lands in red-rock country to the highest bidder, an end to America’s system of federal public lands and the dismantling of the American West as we know it,” Bloch said.

Utah’s Republican Sens. Mike Lee and John Curtis criticized the court’s decision and promised legislative action. Curtis, who campaigned on being a climate-conscious Republican, said the people of Utah should be entrusted to manage the land they have lived on for generations.

“Building roads, moving cattle and cleaning up campgrounds all require navigating a behemothic bureaucracy that’s stacked up against the average Utahn,” Curtis said.

In a joint statement with Utah’s Republican legislative leaders and attorney general, Gov. Spencer Cox said he was disappointed in the court’s decision to turn away the lawsuit.

“Utah remains able and willing to challenge any BLM land management decisions that harm Utah,” state leaders said. “We are also heartened to know the incoming administration shares our commitments to the principle of ‘multiple use’ for these federal lands and is committed to working with us to improve land management.”

While lawsuits typically start in federal district courts and eventually work their way up to the U.S. Supreme Court, disputes involving states can start at the nation’s highest court if the justices agree to hear them.

Utah leaders noted that the high court did not comment on the merits of their arguments or prevent them from filing the lawsuit in a federal district court. Conservation groups say they’ll remain ready to challenge any future lawsuits.

“This lawsuit is an assault on the country’s long-standing and successful history of safeguarding valuable and vulnerable landscapes in trust for all Americans,” said Chris Hill, who leads the Conservation Lands Foundation. “And while the Supreme Court’s decision to not hear the case is a reprieve, we fully expect this small group of anti-public lands politicians to continue to waste taxpayer dollars and shop their bad ideas.”

The federal Bureau of Land Management declined to comment.
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President Joe Biden laid out his foreign policy doctrine Monday in a sweeping speech just a week before he leaves office. He laid out his argument for staying the course just days before the return of President-elect Donald Trump, who has vowed to steer the ship in a different direction. VOA’s Anita Powell reports from the White House.
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