List of All Articles with Tag 'eric'

The White House has said it will “make sure” Afghan veterans who supported the US are taken care of – while the British government continues to stall in the case of an Afghan pilot who has been threatened with deportation to Rwanda. The pilot, who risked his life on combat missions in support of coalition forces, has been left in limbo and has been threatened with removal after he arrived in Britain on a small boat because of the lack of safe legal routes. After the UK rejected his first application to remain, Washington is now considering his case after his US supervisor made a personal recommendation and described him as a “true patriot to his nation”. President Joe Biden’s spokesperson was asked about the speed at which Afghans were being brought to the US, especially from third countries, in light of The Independent’s campaign on behalf of Afghan veterans. Karine Jean-Pierre replied: “Our commitment continues to stand. To make sure that we take care of the folks who helped us during the longest war in this country that we have, we have seen that we have supported and the work continues.” The intervention turns up the heat on the UK which has still not removed the threat of deportation to Rwanda, despite the UK’s Court of Appeal ruling that the government’s agreement is illegal. Without the notice being removed, the pilot’s application for asylum cannot progress and he is still being refused safe haven. Dozens of military chiefs, politicians, diplomats and celebrities have joined in The Independent’s call for him to be given safe refuge after the sacrifice he made. The Afghan air force airman, whose wife and child are still in hiding in Afghanistan, served alongside coalition forces in the run up to the fall of Kabul two years ago. He described how he flew in missions coordinated and supported by British and US commanders to take out terrorists and eliminate drug production networks. When the coalition troops left in August 2021, the pilot was among those dangerously exposed. The Taliban took over their offices and uncovered every detail about him – his email address, his phone number and where he lived. He waited in hiding in Afghanistan for several months before making the heart-breaking decision to leave his family and find safe refuge. A long journey over land and sea culminated in a dangerous journey across the Channel last November. Thinking he would be welcomed and thanked for his sacrifice, the pilot was appalled to discover that he was threatened with deportation to Rwanda. He told The Independent: “I am really disappointed. We weren’t carrying out simple tasks in Afghanistan - we were doing your missions. Without our Afghan forces, the UK and US wouldn’t have been able to do their activities. “If the UK are abandoning us again, I hope the US may help. Many former Afghan pilots are even flying in the US, they are using their skills, unlike what the UK are doing with me. Maybe if I get to the US, I can work as a pilot again and have a future – which helps my family, who are still in danger in Afghanistan.” The pilot is not allowed to work in the UK while his asylum claim is paused and receives around £8 a week to live on while he is in government-funded hotel accommodation. He is being considered for possible sanctuary in the US under the P1 resettlement scheme, to which you have to be personally referred by a US official. His application to the Ministry of Defence’s Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy was rejected because the government said that his pilot role was not one in which “the UK’s operations in Afghanistan would have been materially less efficient or materially less successful if a role of that nature had not been performed”. Defence minister James Heappey had said that members of the Afghan air force would not qualify “in principle” for the scheme because they were not embedded with the British. Sign The Independent’s petition calling for UK to support Afghan war heroes who served alongside Britain He is among thousands of other asylum seekers who have arrived in Britain on small boats, and who could face removal to Rwanda by the UK Home Office. The notice of intent letter, issued by the government, said his asylum claim was “inadmissible” because he had travelled through a number of European countries before arriving in Britain. The £140m deal to deport asylum seekers from UK to Rwanda was ruled unlawful at the end of June, but the Home Office have refused to remove the pilot’s notice of intent – meaning his asylum claim cannot be processed. Prime minister Rishi Sunak has pledged to appeal the court’s unlawful ruling in the Supreme Court. The former head of the British Army, General Sir Richard Dannatt, has previously described the Rwanda plan as an “unpopular policy”, and blamed the home secretary Suella Braverman for “continuing to run down the remaining political capital of Rishi Sunak’s government” by pursuing it. A government spokesperson said: “Whilst we don’t comment on individual cases, we remain committed to providing protection for vulnerable and at-risk people fleeing Afghanistan and so far have brought around 24,500 people impacted by the situation back to the UK. “We continue to work with like-minded partners and countries neighbouring Afghanistan on resettlement issues, and to support safe passage for eligible Afghans.” Read More US pledges to investigate Afghan pilot’s case as UK stalls on offer to help Democrats and Republicans say they want to help Afghan veterans. So why haven’t they done anything? Afghanistan withdrawal may have left members of armed forces with ‘moral injury’ Biden arrives in UK to meet Sunak and King Charles amid Ukraine concerns Joe Biden to meet with the King at Windsor Castle Biden touches down in UK ahead of meeting with Sunak

Oregon officials have identified Jesse Lee Calhoun of Portland, as a person of interest in the deaths of four women that police say are linked, law enforcement sources told The Associated Press. The 38-year-old has not been officially named as a person of interest or charged with any crimes related to the investigation. On Monday, nine different police departments released a joint statement saying the deaths of Kristin Smith, 22; Charity Lynn Perry, 24; Bridget Leann (Ramsay) Webster, 31; and Ashely Real, 22, are linnked. All four women were found either near or on the sides of roads between February and May in the wider Portland area. Authorities have so far been unable to determine the victims’ cause and manner of deaths. Speaking anonymously with local media, officials have said the deaths could be the work of a serial killer. Read More Deaths of four women in Portland linked to person of interest, authorities say Police probe possible connection between deaths of six women in Oregon

By Rajesh Kumar Singh CHICAGO American Airlines and its pilot union have begun negotiations to improve the tentative

An elite liberal arts university has taken steps in re-evaluating its admission process by ending legacy preferences following the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down affirmative action. Wesleyan University, a private college in Connecticut, announced in a letter on Wednesday that terminating its use of legacy admissions would benefit diversity on campus and cited the Court’s ruling as a catalyst in the decision. “In the wake of the recent Supreme Court decision regarding affirmative action, we believe it important to formally end admissions preference for ‘legacy applicants,’” Wesleyan University President Michael S Roth wrote. “We still value the ongoing relationships that come from multi-generational Wesleyan attendance, but there will be no ‘bump’ in the selection process.” The school is the first prominent higher education institution to end legacy admissions following the Court’s decision to end affirmative action in June. Going forward, Wesleyan said it will promote a diverse student body by recruiting students from areas across the US outside of big cities and coasts, recruiting veterans and investing in a pipeline to recruit community college graduates. They also plan to increase financial aid support by normalising a three-year option, creating a scholarship program to recruit and support undergraduates from Africa and developing more free-credit bearing courses online. In his letter, Mr Roth clarified that an applicant’s connection to the university has never guaranteed them a spot and family members of alumni are admitted on their own merits “as has been almost always the case for a long time.” The announcement marks Wesleyan’s formal ending of any legacy-based admissions. Wesleyan joins a small group of other colleges and universities that have ended legacy admissions like Amherst College which concluded legacy preference in 2021, John Hopkins University which made the decision in 2020 and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) which has never considered legacy. For more than 20 years, colleges and universities have used affirmative action to help establish a diverse pool of accepted students. Race is not used as the sole factor in determining a student’s acceptance but it can be considered if there are two applicants with nearly identical qualifications that meet or exceed the school’s application standard. Mr Roth echoed this in his letter, saying Wesleyan “has never fixated on a checked box indicating a student’s racial identification” and has always taken a “holistic view” by looking at applicants’ records, letters of recommendation, college essays and more. But in a 6-3 decision last month, the Court struck down the long-used tool in two consolidated cases: Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard and Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina. Now, institutions of higher education can no longer consider race as a factor unless a student volunteers information about their race or culture in their personal essay. Advocates of affirmative action called on colleges and universities to re-evaluate their admissions processes and establish other methods of cultivating a diverse campus. President Joe Biden encouraged schools to “not abandon their commitment to ensuring student bodies of diverse backgrounds” and directed the Department of Education to analyse practices that hold diversity back. Those practices include legacy admissions which Mr Biden said, “expands privilege instead of opportunity.” Read More Supreme Court strikes down affirmative action, banning colleges from factoring race in admissions Slim majority of Americans support Supreme Court’s affirmative action ruling, but most believe politics rules the court Harvard sued over ‘legacy admissions’ after Supreme Court targets affirmative action Biden condemns Supreme Court striking down affirmative action: ‘This is not a normal court’

Former president Donald Trump being charged over the January 6 insurrection would mark the end of civilisation – that is, according to his eldest son. Donald Trump Jr made the comment during an interview with rightwing broadcaster Real America’s Voice, also suggesting that civilisation was actually due to end soon anyway. “This is like the end of the civilisation,” he said. “And, you know, if you look at the timing, most civilisations last 250 years, we’re at about 248 – so we are in serious trouble if we don’t right this ship.” His comments came as the former president took to Truth Social to reveal he had been notified by the Department of Justice of his status as a target of the investigation into the January 6 attack, the first real confirmation that he could face criminal charges for his role in the hourslong siege of Capitol Hill. “On Sunday night, while I was with my family ... HORRIFYING NEWS for our country was given to me by my attorneys,” said Mr Trump. “Deranged Jack Smith ... sent a letter (again, it was Sunday night!) stating that I am a TARGET of the January 6th Grand Jury investigation, and giving me a very short 4 days to report to the Grand Jury, which almost always means an Arrest and Indictment.” The exact number of charges Mr Trump may face related to the DoJ’s January 6 probe is not yet known, nor is the extent of the criminal accusations he may face. The House’s select committee investigating January 6 previously recommended a handful of charges at the conclusion of their hearings in 2022, including the charge of giving comfort to an insurrection. Mr Trump Jr shared his father’s statement on Twitter on Tuesday and added his own comment: “It never ends! The corrupted bureaucrats of the swamp will do anything to stop my father from fighting for you & putting Americans first. This is a mockery of justice & our constitution. We are a Third World nation in rapid decline, with only one cure. RE-ELECT DONALD J TRUMP!” Read More Judge denies Trump’s motion for a mistrial in E Jean Carroll sexual assault civil case Trump probe ‘subpoenaed CCTV from Georgia 2020 ballot counting centre’ Trump news – live: Trump claims he’s ‘not frightened’ by Jan 6 target letter as potential indictment looms

Chelsea have agreed a deal with Marseille to sell striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Donald Trump has claimed he is “not frightened” about his third potential indictment on criminal charges – after he revealed that he had been sent a letter by special prosecutor Jack Smith informing him he is the “target” of a grand jury investigation into his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. The former president took to Truth Social on Tuesday morning to say that he had been told to report to a grand jury over the January 6 Capitol riot, which he pointed out “almost always means an Arrest and Indictment”. The Independent has learned that the indictment could be handed down as soon as this week. Mr Trump spoke out about the potential looming indictment to Fox News’ Sean Hannity, admitting that “it bothers me”. “They want to try to demean and diminish and frighten people. But they don’t frighten us because we’re going to make America great again. That’s all there is,” he said. Meanwhile, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced criminal charges against 16 people who signed certificates falsely declaring Mr Trump won the 2020 election, part of a nationwide scheme to upend the results in states that the former president lost to Joe Biden. Read More Donald Trump brands US a ‘third-world hellhole’ run by ‘perverts’ and ‘thugs’ Ron DeSantis campaign fires staff as Florida governor trails Trump in the polls Fundraising takeaways: Trump and DeSantis in their own tier as Pence and other Republicans struggle RFK Jr revives antisemitic conspiracy theory that Covid-19 was ‘ethnically targeted’ to spare Jewish people

Long-time Donald Trump ally Rudy Giuliani has denied accusations that he may have flipped on his close friend. This comes on the heels of the former president’s announcement that he is readying himself for an indictment related to the Jan 6 riots and the revelation of three federal statutes, including conspiracy and obstruction, that could form the basis of fresh charges against him. “Any speculation that mayor Rudy Giuliani ‘flipped’ against president Donald Trump is as false as previous lies that America’s mayor was somehow a Russian agent,” tweeted Mr Giuliani’s adviser Ted Goodman. Mr Giuliani was previously New York city’s mayor, Mr Trump’s personal lawyer, and also a former US associate attorney general. “In order to ‘flip’ on president Trump – as so many in the anti-Trump media are fantasizing over – mayor Giuliani would have had to commit perjury because all the information he has regarding this case points to president Trump’s innocence,” he further said in his tweet. Mr Giuliani reportedly participated in a voluntary interview with prosecutors as part of what is known as a “queen for a day” deal, under which the ex-mayor can avoid indictment for anything he tells prosecutors about during the interview. The former Trump lawyer had his law license suspended in New York and Washington as a result of allegedly making multiple false representations while seeking to help Mr Trump overturn the 2020 election. In a critical turn for Mr Trump, prosecutors could ask a grand jury to return an indictment against him relating to the Jan 6 attack on the US Capitol and his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election as soon as this week, The Independent has learned. A source familiar with the special counsel’s probe and Department of Justice operating procedures told The Independent that the earliest an indictment could be handed down is late Thursday or Friday, after the deadline prosecutors set for Mr Trump to avail himself of their invitation to testify before the grand jury investigating crimes relating to the Capitol attack. Reports have said the charges could stem from three federal statutes: Conspiracy to commit offence or to defraud the United States, deprivation of rights under colour of law and tampering with a witness, victim or informant. The Independent has also learned that Mr Smith’s team is ready to bring charges against several of the attorneys who have worked for Mr Trump, including those who aided the ex-president in his push to ignore the will of voters and remain in the White House despite having lost the 2020 election. One of those figures is Mr Giuliani. Read More Next Trump indictment could drop as soon as this week Steve Bannon and Michael Flynn subpoenaed in Smartmatic lawsuits against Fox News and Newsmax Rudy Giuliani sparks backlash with bizarre appearance at Gilgo Beach murder suspect’s home Giuliani blames ‘deep state’ after Washington DC panel recommends he be disbarred over false 2020 claims Ex-Trump aide reportedly joins Giuliani in cooperating with special counsel in 2020 election probe

The letter Donald Trump said he had received from special counsel Jack Smith reportedly listed three federal statutes that could constitute charges against him over the Jan 6 riots. The three federal statutes mentioned in the letter by Mr Smith, according to several reports, are conspiracy to commit offence or to defraud the United States, deprivation of rights under colour of law and tampering with a witness, victim or informant. Mr Trump is the sole individual mentioned in the letter and there are no other names mentioned, according to a source with knowledge of the matter cited by Rolling Stone magazine. Mr Trump had earlier on Tuesday confirmed he had received a letter from Mr Smith in a Truth Social post. “On Sunday night, while I was with my family...HORRIFYING NEWS for our country was given to me by my attorneys,” he wrote. “Deranged Jack Smith...sent a letter (again, it was Sunday night!) stating that I am a TARGET of the January 6th Grand Jury investigation, and giving me a very short 4 days to report to the Grand Jury, which almost always means an Arrest and Indictment.” Meanwhile, Florida representative Matt Gaetz revealed on his podcast that he planned to introduce a bill in the near future to defund Mr Smith’s investigation into the former president. Mr Gaetz’s announcement came just hours after Mr Trump gave confirmation of him receiving Mr Smith’s letter. “In the coming hours, the coming days, I will be introducing legislation under my name, in the House of Representatives, as a freestanding bill, to defund the Jack Smith investigation,” Mr Gaetz said on Tuesday. “And one reason why is the election interference feature. Another reason why: the lack of transparency.” CNN reported that the former president has reached out to House of Representatives speaker Kevin McCarthy and House GOP Conference chair Elise Stefanik for political assistance with the fallout from the probe. Should Mr Trump face criminal charges related to his efforts to stop Joe Biden’s lawful assumption of power following his own failure to prove his countless conspiratorial allegations of election fraud, it would be the third criminal indictment to come down on the ex-president’s shoulders this year. A source familiar with the special counsel’s probe and Department of Justice operating procedures told The Independent that the earliest an indictment could be handed down is late Thursday or Friday, after the deadline for Mr Trump to avail himself of the invitation to testify before the grand jury has passed. Read More DeSantis fights to reset his stagnant campaign as Trump dominates the 2024 conversation Trump's target letter suggests the sprawling US probe into the 2020 election is zeroing in on him Trump fumes about ‘crooked’ DOJ after losing immunity in E Jean Carroll case Voting fraud claims spread ahead of Spanish election IRS whistleblowers to testify to Congress as they claim 'slow-walking' of Hunter Biden case A key part of Biden's strategy to control immigration at the US-Mexico border gets a court hearing

Las Vegas police confirmed Tuesday (18 July) that it has issued a search warrant in connection with the unsolved murder of rapper Tupac Shakur. Shakur (also known by his stage name 2Pac) was fatally shot in September 1996 in a drive-by shooting in the Nevada city; he was 25. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department told The Associated Press that a search warrant was executed for a home in the nearby city of Henderson. Police made entry into the home on 17 July; however, no further details on the search have been made available at this time. No arrests have ever been made in the case. Shakur had attended a boxing match with the now-incarcerated record executive Suge Knight in Vegas when a car pulled up alongside theirs on Las Vegas Boulevard and opened fire. The rapper was struck four times in the shooting and died six days later from internal bleeding.

Rep Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, ordinarily a strong supporter of Israeli policy, referred to the country’s “apartheid wall” during an address in the US House of Representatives. Israel has again been in the headlines in Washington this week after Rep Pramila Jayapal of Washington called Israel a “racist state” before walking her comments back over the weekend. The House overwhelmingly voted in favour on Tuesday of a resolution backing Israel that did not name Ms Jayapal but appeared to be crafted in response to her comments. Israeli President Isaac Herzog, meanwhile, is set to address a joint session of Congress on Wednesday that several progressive lawmakers have announced they will boycott. On Tuesday, Ms Greene waded into the fray. In a speech on the importance of borders, Ms Greene quoted from an article that referred to the giant wall Israel has constructed between its territory and the Palestinian West Bank as an “apartheid” wall. “Walls are very important for most countries,” Ms Greene began. “There’s many countries with walls. I have one article here that comes from earlier this month that says, talking about 65 countries that have erected fences on their borders, also talking about walls, talking about security fears, widespread refusals to help refugees have fueled a new spate of wall-building around the world. “They include Israel’s apartheid — “apartheid” — wall, India’s 2,500-mile fence around Bangladesh, and Morocco’s huge sand berm,” Ms Greene continued. “So many countries around the world agree that walls are important in protecting the people within the country.” It was not immediately clear which article Ms Greene was citing, but if the second-term lawmaker from Georgia chooses to stand by her characterisation of Israel’s policy towards the Palestinians as apartheid, she will be in good company. Two years ago, Human Rights Watch said Israel is guilty of crimes against humanity in the West Bank and Gaza including apartheid. Public opinion in the Democratic Party, meanwhile, has shifted to the point where more Democrats now say their sympathies primarily lie with the Palestinians rather than Israel. That change in opinion has not, however, been reflected in Congress. Only nine members of the House opposed Tuesday’s resolution on support for Israel, all progressives. With just a pair of exceptions, the rest of the Democratic caucus and all voting Republicans supported the resolution. Mr Herzog, the Israeli president, serves as head of state while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu serves as head of government. Mr Herzog visited President Joe Biden at the White House on Tuesday. Read More AOC and other progressives to boycott Israeli president’s joint address to Congress Republicans under fire for hosting Robert F Kennedy Jr on the Hill in wake of antisemitism claims

Steve Bannon and Michal Flynn have been subpoenaed by voting software firm Smartmatic as part of its defamation lawsuits against Fox News and Newsmax for spreading lies about the 2020 election. Smartmatic served the two Trump allies with orders to sit for interviews under oath that could happen as soon as this week, according to court filings in Delaware and New York seen by CNN. Mr Bannon, a senior White House adviser during Donald Trump’s presidency, must also turn over documents related to Smartmatic’s lawsuit, including any communications he had about the 2020 presidential election with Fox News, the Trump re-election campaign and the Trump administration. Smartmatic is suing Fox News for $2.7bn for spreading lies that it manipulated voting machines during the 2020 presidential election to flip votes in favour of President Joe Biden. The weeks-long claims by Fox personalities and guests represented a “continuous stream of falsehoods that harmed Smartmatic and negatively impacted the company’s business,” it said. Smartmatic is also suing Fox hosts Maria Bartiromo, Lou Dobbs and Jeanine Pirro, and Mr Trump’s lawyers Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell. The lawsuit bears strong parallels with the Dominion Voting Systems case against Fox, which resulted in a $787.5m settlement by the right-wing news network in April. Mr Flynn, a former Trump administration national security adviser, and Mr Bannon played prominent roles in efforts by the former president to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Mr Flynn was fired by Mr Trump after he admitted lying to FBI agents about his contact with Russian officials before the 2016 election. He later reversed his guilty plea, and was pardoned by Mr Trump after the Justice Department dropped the charges agains him. Meanwhile, Mr Bannon is facing fraud charges in New York for allegedly stealing money for personal use from the We Build the Wall charity, a fundraising effort to build a border wall along the US-Mexico border. According to Bob Woodward and Robert Costa’s 2021 book Peril, Mr Bannon was in regular contact with the former president between his election loss in November and the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol. On Tuesday, Mr Trump revealed on his Truth Social website that he has received a “target letter” from special prosecutor Jack Smith for alleged offences related to the January 6 attack on the US Capitol and attempts to overturn the 2020 election. Read More Steve Bannon confronted about ‘We Build the Wall’ fraud campaign at right-wing conference Trump news – live: Trump could be indicted for a third time as soon as this week in Jan 6 probe Jesse Watters’ mother just summed up everything wrong with Fox News Steve Bannon confronted about ‘We Build the Wall’ fraud campaign at conference Steve Bannon ordered to pay nearly $500K in unpaid legal bills Ex-Congressman suggests Hunter Biden alleged laptop data fabricated