Trump urges judge to dismiss hush money case due to election victory

Trump urges judge to dismiss hush money case due to election victory
US President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with House Republicans at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Washington, DC, US on November 13, 2024. (Reuters)
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Updated 04 December 2024
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Trump urges judge to dismiss hush money case due to election victory

Trump urges judge to dismiss hush money case due to election victory
  • Trump’s lawyers argue having the case loom over his four-year presidential term that begins on Jan. 20 would cause “unconstitutional impediments” to the Republican businessman-turned-politician’s ability to govern

NEW YORK: Donald Trump on Tuesday asked a New York state judge to dismiss the criminal case in which he was convicted in May of 34 felony counts involving hush money paid to a porn star in light of his victory in the Nov. 5 US presidential election.
Justice Juan Merchan last month delayed Trump’s previously scheduled Nov. 26 sentencing indefinitely to give him the chance to seek dismissal. Trump’s lawyers argue having the case loom over his four-year presidential term that begins on Jan. 20 would cause “unconstitutional impediments” to the Republican businessman-turned-politician’s ability to govern.
Prosecutors with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office supported delaying the sentencing to give Trump the chance to make his case for dismissal, though they said they would oppose that bid. The prosecutors have until Dec. 9 to respond.
The judge has not indicated when he would rule on Trump’s motion to dismiss, and has not set a new date for sentencing. Bragg’s office has suggested he defer all proceedings in the case until Trump, 78, leaves the White House in 2029.
The New York case stemmed from a $130,000 payment Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels for her silence before the 2016 election about a sexual encounter she has said she had a decade earlier with Trump, who denies it.
A Manhattan jury found Trump guilty of falsifying business records to cover up his reimbursement of Cohen. It was the first time a US president — former or sitting — had been convicted of or charged with a criminal offense.
Trump pleaded not guilty in the case, which he has sought to portray as a politically motivated attempt by Bragg, a Democrat, to interfere with his presidential campaign.
Falsification of business records is punishable by up to four years in prison. Before he was elected, experts said it was unlikely — but not impossible — that Trump would face time behind bars, with punishments such as a fine or probation seen as more likely.
Trump’s victory over Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in the Nov. 5 election made the prospect of imposing a sentence of jail or probation even more politically fraught and impractical, given that a sentence could have impeded his ability to conduct the duties of the presidency.
Trump was charged in three additional state and federal criminal cases in 2023, one involving classified documents he kept after leaving office and two others involving his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss.
He pleaded not guilty in all three cases. None have gone to trial.
A Washington judge on Nov. 25 dismissed the federal criminal case over his attempts to hold onto power. Prosecutors had moved to drop both that case and the classified documents case due to a Justice Department policy against prosecuting a sitting president.
Trump also faces state criminal charges in Georgia over his bid to reverse his 2020 loss in that state, but that case remains in limbo.
As president, Trump would have no power to shut down the New York or Georgia cases because they were filed in state courts.
Trump in November nominated his defense lawyers in the hush money case, Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, to serve senior roles at the Justice Department during his administration.


Russia’s UN envoy accuses Ukraine of aiding militants in Syria

Russia’s UN envoy accuses Ukraine of aiding militants in Syria
Updated 45 sec ago
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Russia’s UN envoy accuses Ukraine of aiding militants in Syria

Russia’s UN envoy accuses Ukraine of aiding militants in Syria
  • Militants fighting with radical group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) “have not only not concealed the fact that they are supported by Ukraine, but they are also openly flaunting this,” Vassily Nebenzia told the Security Council

UNITED NATIONS, United States: Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations on Tuesday accused Ukrainian intelligence services of aiding militants fighting Syrian leader Bashar Assad’s government, saying some fighters were “openly flaunting” the association.
Militants fighting with radical group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) “have not only not concealed the fact that they are supported by Ukraine, but they are also openly flaunting this,” Vassily Nebenzia told the Security Council, saying there was an “identifiable trail” showing Ukraine’s GUR was “providing weapons to fighters” in northwest Syria.
 

 


Spain’s Canary Islands break migrant record in 2024

Spain’s Canary Islands break migrant record in 2024
Updated 03 December 2024
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Spain’s Canary Islands break migrant record in 2024

Spain’s Canary Islands break migrant record in 2024

MADRID: The number of migrants arriving in Spain’s Canary Islands by boat from West Africa hit a new annual record in 2024 for the second year in a row, official data showed on Tuesday.

With controls tightening in the Mediterranean, the Canaries route has become a favorite for people fleeing poverty and conflict in Africa, mostly on overcrowded, barely seaworthy vessels and without sufficient drinking water.

A total of 41,425 migrants entered the seven islands located in the Atlantic off the northwestern coast of Africa between Jan. 1 and Nov. 30, Interior Ministry data showed.

With one month of 2024 still to go, that is already more than the previous record of 39,910 migrants who arrived in the archipelago of 2.2 million people during all of 2023, a level that smashed the old mark set in 2006.

So far this year, a total of 610 boats carrying migrants have managed to arrive in the Canaries, up from 530 during all of 2023.

The regional government of the Canaries says it is overwhelmed, and Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in August went on a tour of West African countries in a bid to boost local efforts to curb illegal migration from Mauritania, Senegal and the Gambia, the main departure points for migrant boats headed to the archipelago.


Chinese man arrested in US for smuggling arms to N.Korea

Chinese man arrested in US for smuggling arms to N.Korea
Updated 03 December 2024
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Chinese man arrested in US for smuggling arms to N.Korea

Chinese man arrested in US for smuggling arms to N.Korea
  • The Justice Department said law enforcement seized two devices in August at Wen’s home that he planned to send to the North — a chemical threat identification device and a hand-held broadband receiver that detects eavesdropping devices

LOS ANGELES, United States: A Chinese man was arrested in California on Tuesday for allegedly exporting guns and ammunition to North Korea, the Justice Department said.
Shenghua Wen, 41, who was living illegally in the United States after overstaying his student visa, is charged with violating long-standing US sanctions against North Korea.
Wen and unidentified co-conspirators allegedly concealed firearms and ammunition inside shipping containers that were shipped from Long Beach, California through Hong Kong to North Korea.
The Justice Department said law enforcement seized two devices in August at Wen’s home that he planned to send to the North — a chemical threat identification device and a hand-held broadband receiver that detects eavesdropping devices.
In September, law enforcement seized 50,000 rounds of 9mm ammunition that Wen allegedly obtained to send to North Korea, the department said.
Wen also attempted to obtain a civilian plane engine from a US-based broker, it said.
He faces up to 20 years in prison for conspiracy to violate US sanctions laws.
 

 


Putin’s Kremlin planes took away Ukrainian children for adoption, report alleges

Putin’s Kremlin planes took away Ukrainian children for adoption, report alleges
Updated 03 December 2024
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Putin’s Kremlin planes took away Ukrainian children for adoption, report alleges

Putin’s Kremlin planes took away Ukrainian children for adoption, report alleges
  • The new research offers details of the alleged deportation program and individuals involved, including what its lead researcher said were new links to Putin
  • Nathaniel Raymond, Executive Director of Yale’s Humanitarian Research Lab, said he was scheduled to present the findings to the UN Security Council on Wednesday

THE HAGUE: Russian presidential aircraft and funds were used in a program that took children from occupied Ukrainian territories, stripped them of Ukrainian identity and placed them with Russian families, according to a report by Yale’s School of Public Health.
The US State Department-backed research, published on Tuesday, identified 314 Ukrainian children taken to Russia in the early months of the war in Ukraine as part of what it says was a systematic, Kremlin-funded program to “Russify” them.
Reuters was unable to confirm the report’s findings independently.
In March 2023, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and his child rights’ commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova, for the alleged war crime of deportation of Ukrainian children.
At the time, Lvova-Belova said her commission acted on humanitarian grounds to protect children in an area of military hostilities. Lvova-Belova’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Kremlin said it could not respond to questions sent on Monday, citing a lack of time.
The new research, reported first by Reuters, offers details of the alleged deportation program and individuals involved, including what its lead researcher said were new links to Putin.
The researcher, Nathaniel Raymond, Executive Director of Yale’s Humanitarian Research Lab, said he was scheduled to present the findings to the UN Security Council on Wednesday. The United States holds the rotating presidency of the 15-member body this month.
Raymond said the research offers evidence that would support additional charges by the ICC against Putin of “forcible transfer” of people from one national and ethnic group to another.
He further said the report proved “the deportation of Ukraine’s children is part of a systematic, Kremlin-led program” to make them citizens of Russia.
Forcible transfer is a crime against humanity under international law. Because they must be widespread and systematic, crimes against humanity are considered more serious than war crimes.
In response to Reuters questions, the ICC office of the prosecutor said the Yale report was useful “in our continued activities in this case.” It declined to provide information about charges or actions that may arise from its Ukraine investigations.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, reacting to the report, said in a statement on X: “Ukraine is tirelessly working to ensure our children return home and that all those responsible for these heinous crimes are punished.”
The country’s prosecutor general said Yale’s report complemented its own investigations into what had happened to the children, describing “a well-planned Kremlin policy with legislative changes, political decisions, and dedicated funding.”
In response to the ICC charges last year, Lvova-Belova said Russia had not moved anyone against their will or that of their parents or legal guardians, whose consent was always sought unless they were missing.
She said children were placed with temporary legal guardians and were not given up for adoption.
Russia, which does not recognize the ICC, has said the court’s warrants are meaningless. Court decisions could nonetheless limit travel by charged individuals because its 124 member states have an obligation to execute warrants.

CHILDREN IDENTIFIED
The research is based on data mined from three Russian government adoption databases over 20 months. Yale’s investigation then mapped out the alleged program’s logistics and funding and confirmed the identities of the 314 children, Raymond said.
The research is part of an initiative led by the State Department under President Joe Biden to document potential violations of international law and crimes against humanity by Russia and Russia-aligned forces in Ukraine.
The US State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The report said Ukrainian children brought to Russia had been subjected to “pro-state and militarised propaganda,” noting it had documented such “patriotic re-education” at all the facilities where the children were processed.
Reuters has documented the transfer of thousands of children to Russian camps, the forced naturalization of Ukrainians and the involvement of Belarus in the program.
Stephen Rapp, the US ambassador-at-large for war crimes under former president Barack Obama and formerly a prosecutor at the international tribunals for Rwanda and Sierra Leone, reviewed the report and told Reuters that “it proves their direct involvement, making changes to law and practice to allow and accelerate coercive adoptions that would have been illegal under Russia’s own law in February 2022.”
Kyiv estimates around 19,500 children have been taken to Russia or Russian-occupied Crimea since the invasion. Lvova-Belova has challenged Kyiv’s numbers and asked it to provide evidence.
She previously said 380 orphans and children not in the custody of parents were placed with Russian foster families between April and October 2022.

FLIGHTS
Russia began taking Ukrainian children from occupied Ukrainian territories in the days before the invasion in Feb. 2022, according to the report.
Russia’s Aerospace Forces and aircraft under the direct control of Putin’s office transported multiple groups of children from Ukraine on Russian Federation-flagged military transport planes between May and October 2022, the report said.
The report said at least two groups of children flew on aircraft managed by the Presidential Property Management Department within the Presidential Administration in May and October 2022.
Children taken to the Chkalovsky military airfield just outside Moscow on Sept. 16, 2022 had been transported from the occupied Ukrainian territories of Donetsk and Luhansk to the Russian city of Rostov, not far from Ukraine’s border, then flown on a plane with tail number RA-85123, the report said.
The aircraft is a TU-154M operated by the 223rd Flight Squad of the Russian Defense Ministry, it said. Flight tracking data on website Flightradar24.com also confirmed this.
Of the 314 Ukrainian children identified, 166 were placed directly with Russia citizens, the report said. The other 148 were listed in Russia’s child placement databases, with about a third of those now placed with Russian citizens. The remaining children were last known to be located at Russian institutions, the report said.


Bangladesh court defers Hindu leader’s bail hearing as tensions with India spike

Bangladesh court defers Hindu leader’s bail hearing as tensions with India spike
Updated 03 December 2024
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Bangladesh court defers Hindu leader’s bail hearing as tensions with India spike

Bangladesh court defers Hindu leader’s bail hearing as tensions with India spike
  • Krishna Das Prabhu, who was arrested in Bangladesh’s capital last week, faces charges of sedition after he led rallies in Chattogram
  • Hindu groups say there have been thousands of attacks against them since August, when secular government of PM Hasina was overthrown

DHAKA: A court in southeastern Bangladesh on Tuesday rescheduled a bail hearing for a jailed prominent Hindu leader who led large rallies in the Muslim-majority country demanding better security for minority groups.
Krishna Das Prabhu, who was arrested in Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, last week, faces charges of sedition after he led huge rallies in the southeastern city of Chattogram. Hindu groups say there have been thousands of attacks against Hindus since early August, when the secular government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was overthrown.
Prabhu’s arrest comes as tensions spiked following reports of the desecration of the Indian flag across Bangladesh, with some burning it and others laying it on the floor for people to step on.
Bangladesh’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned India’s envoy, Pranay Verma, a day after a group of Hindus in Agartala, the capital of the northeastern Indian state of Tripura, stormed a consulate office of Bangladesh in protest over Prabhu’s arrest.
Anti-India protests were held in Dhaka, where security at the Indian High Commission was increased, and elsewhere over the incident in Agartala.
Relations between India and Bangladesh deteriorated after Hasina fled to India in the wake of mass protests which left hundreds of protesters dead and thousands wounded. India has since stopped issuing visas for Bangladeshi nationals, except for medical treatment.
India, which sheltered 10 million refugees and helped Bangladesh gain independence through a nine-month bloody war against Pakistan in 1971, considers Hasina as a trusted friend. Hasina’s father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was the independence leader of Bangladesh, then the eastern part of present day Pakistan.
The detention of Prabhu sparked violent protests by his supporters. A Muslim lawyer was hacked to death near the court in Chattogram hours after the news of his jailing surfaced and his supporters clashed with security forces. The situation caused concern in Hindu-majority India and the Bangladesh interim government, led by Nobel peace laurate Muhammad Yunus.
No reason was given why Prabhu, also known as Chinmoy Krishna Das Brahmachari, did not attend Tuesday’s court hearing.
Public Prosecutor Mofizul Haque Bhuiyan told The Associated Press by phone that Chattogram Metropolitan Session Judge Saiful Islam ordered a bail hearing be held on Jan. 2 after the prosecution petitioned for more time to study the case. He also said no defense lawyer represented Prabhu in court.
Two Hindu leaders who are close to Prabhu said that they were afraid to attend the court as many of the lawyers who represented Prabhu had faced cases after last week’s violence.
“A group of lawyers stood last time for him (Prabhu). Cases have been filed against at least 70 of them and many others willing to take part in the hearing today have been threatened,” one Hindu leader in Chattogram told the AP on condition of anonymity.
“Why was he (Prabhu) not brought to the court today? He is in police custody. He could have spoken for himself before the court if he was taken to the court. It’s a ploy to delay his release from prison, this is not justice,” the leader said.
In Dhaka, a group of Islamists under the banner of Islamic Movement Bangladesh rallied in front of the country’s main Baitul Mukarram Mosque in protest at Monday’s incident in Agartala. Another group, under the banner of Bangladesh Citizens’ Society, separately marched through the streets.
Protests were also organized by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, headed by former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, in Barishal and Khulna cities. Hasina and Zia are arch rivals.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs said Monday that the attack on the Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in Agartala was “deeply regrettable.”
“Diplomatic and consular properties should not be targeted under any circumstances,” a ministry statement said.
It added that India was stepping up security arrangements at the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi and other diplomatic offices in the country.
Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the attack in Agartala and demanded security to prevent any further acts of violence against its diplomatic missions in India.
“The accounts received conclusively attest that the protesters were allowed to aggress into the premises by breaking down the main gate of Bangladesh Assistant High Commission in a pre-planned manner,” the foreign ministry said.
The Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, an umbrella organization of the country’s minority groups, has denounced the arrest of Prabhu and called for his release.
Prabhu is a spokesman for the Bangladesh Sammilito Sanatan Jagaran Jote group. He was also associated with the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, widely known as the Hare Krishna movement.
Hindus and members of other minority groups say they have faced attacks since the ouster of Hasina. Yunus has said the threat to Hindus has been exaggerated.
Around 91 percent of Bangladesh’s population is Muslim, with Hindus making up almost all of the rest.
Bangladesh has faced political and social tensions since Hasina’s fall after a mass uprising ended her 15-year rule. Her critics had accused her of becoming autocratic.
The interim government has been struggling to establish order amid a background of mob justice, street protests, police administration issues and political uncertainty, with Yunus repeatedly urging for calm.