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The little village of Ghajar has been a sore point between Israel and Lebanon for years, split in two by the border between Lebanon and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. But after a long period of calm, the dispute has begun to heat up again. Israel has been building a wall around the half of the village in Lebanese territory, triggering condemnation from the Lebanese militiant force Hezbollah, accusing Israel of moving to annex the site. A recent exchange of fire in the area raised alarm that the dispute could trigger violence. The growing tensions over Ghajar add to the jitters along the Lebanese-Israeli border, where Israel and Iranian-backed Hezbollah fought a destructive 34-day war in the summer of 2006. The two sides have studiously avoided outright battle ever since, despite frequent flare-ups of tension -- but each constantly says a new conflict could erupt at any time. The dispute over a small village in the green hills where Lebanon, Israel and Syria meet brings a new point of worry amid broader unrest. The West Bank has seen increased bloodshed the past week, with a major two-day offensive that Israel says targeted Palestinian militants. Within Israel, moves by the hard-right government to overhaul the judicial system have sparked large anti-government protests. “This is Lebanese land, not Israeli,” said Lebanese shepherd Ali Yassin Diab, pointing to the half of Ghajar being enclosed by the Israeli wall as he grazed his sheep and goats nearby. Members of the U.N. peacekeeping force UNIFIL watched from a distance. Yassin used to take his herds to drink at a pond there. He now has to buy water for his sheep. The village’s division is an unusual byproduct of the decades of conflict between Israel and its neighbors. Ghajar was once part of Syria but was captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war as part of Syria’s Golan Heights, which Israel occupied and later annexed, with little world recognition. In the 1980s and 1990s, Ghajar’s population expanded north into nearby Lebanese territory, held by Israel in its 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon. When Israel withdrew from Lebanon in May 2000, U.N. surveyors delineating temporary borders ruled that Ghajar’s northern part was in Lebanon, its southern part in the Golan, dividing it in two. Six years later, Israeli troops moved into the northern part of Ghajar during the Israel-Hezbollah war. They have occupied it since, preventing people from entering it from Lebanon. Under the truce that ended the 2006 fighting, Israel agreed to withdraw from Ghajar, but it wanted to clinch an arrangement to keep Hezbollah from entering the village. Most of Ghajar’s around 3,000 residents hold Israeli nationality — some of them alongside Lebanese — and they largely identify as Syrians. Last year, Israel started erecting a concrete wall around the northern part of the village. It also began encouraging Israeli tourism to the village. In apparent reply to the near finishing of the wall, Hezbollah set up two tents nearby, including one in the area of Chebaa Farms, which both Israel and Lebanon claim as its territory. It is not clear what is inside the tents. Israel filed a complaint with the United Nations, claiming the tents were several dozen meters (yards) inside of Israeli territory. Hezbollah says the tents are in Lebanese territory. Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Lior Haiat told the AP that Israel has turned to UNIFIL and “other countries” to resolve the situation but did not identify the countries and did not immediately comment on the wall in Ghajar. On Monday, UNIFIL’s commander relayed an Israeli request to Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister and parliament speaker to remove the tent. They responded that Israel should withdraw its troops from the Lebanese part of Ghajar, according to Lebanese Foreign Minister Abdallah Bouhabib. Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said in a speech Wednesday night that Israel cordoned off Ghajar before Hezbollah set up its tents. “Over the past days, it became clear that they (Israel) have annexed it,” Nasrallah said. He added: “The land of Ghajar will not be left for Israel, and certainly not Chebaa Farms and Kfar Chouba,” another border area claimed by both countries. A female resident of Ghajar, speaking to the AP on condition of anonymity due to security concerns, said the villagers consider themselves Syrian but their main concern “is to stay in Ghajar, in this village, living in peace and security. No matter under who rules.” “There is a (border) line that was drawn by the United Nations. Why are they allowed to cross it while we as Lebanese citizens cannot?” Mohammed Rammal, the mayor of the nearby Lebanese border village of Oddeissi, said of Israel’s presence in Ghajar. Last week, an anti-tank missile was fired from Lebanon near Ghajar, with some fragments landing in Lebanon and others inside Israeli territory. Israel fired shells on the outskirts of the nearby village of Kfar Chouba. On Wednesday, an explosion elsewhere near the border slightly wounded at least three Hezbollah members. Nasrallah said the case is still under investigation. Late last month, Hezbollah said it shot down an Israel drone flying over a village in southern Lebanon. On Monday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with President Joe Biden’s special envoy for energy, Amos Hochstein, during which they discussed “regional issues,” according to the Israeli prime minister’s office. Some Israeli media said Netanyahu and Hochstein, who helped last year broker a maritime border deal between Israel and Lebanon, discussed tensions along the border with Lebanon. “We continue to monitor and engage with authorities in Lebanon and Israel on the issue of Ghajar,” UNIFIL spokeswoman Kandice Ardiel said. She added that UNFIL has repeatedly called on Israel to stop its works north of the line and that Israel’s occupation of northern Ghajar violates the U.N. Security council resolution that ended the 2006 war. Israel considers Hezbollah its most serious immediate threat, estimating it has some 150,000 rockets and missiles aimed at Israel. During a tour by an Associated Press team near Ghajar this week, more patrols by U.N. peacekeepers and Lebanese army along the border were visible. Residents in nearby villages appeared defiant and going on with life as usual during the summer season, when many expatriates come to spend time with their families. In Lebanese media, many analysts say neither side wants a new war. But Lebanese political analyst Faisal Abdul-Sater warned that the situation is very dangerous as Israel and Hezbollah are on alert. “Whoever fires the first shot will bear the responsibility for the consequences,” he said. ___ AP correspondent Josef Federman contributed to this report. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide AP Week in Pictures: Europe and Africa Stock market today: Asian shares buoyed by Wall Street's winning week as inflation eases For a group of Ukrainian women, painting is a form of therapy to help them cope with loss

Ericsson AB beat second-quarter earnings forecasts, as growth in India helped offset weak sales in more established markets

By Martin Coulter LONDON (Reuters) -Sweden's Ericsson reported a 62% fall in second-quarter adjusted operating profit on Tuesday, slightly beating

Lawyers for the president’s son Hunter Biden sent Donald Trump a cease-and-desist letter on Thursday, alleging that the former president’s frequent hostile comments about Mr Biden are defamatory and likely to inspire violence. “We are just one such social media message away from another incident,” the letter, obtained by Law360, claims, citing the violent attack on former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband as a cautionary tale of the dangers of online rhetoric. “You should make it clear to Mr Trump – if you have not done so already – that Mr Trump’s words have caused harm in the past and threaten to do so again if he does not stop,” the letter adds. The letter points to recent examples of Mr Trump’s aggressive statements about Mr Biden, such as a March social media post allegedly implying Mr Biden should get a “death sentence” and July message claiming cocaine found in the White House “was for use by Hunter”. The letter claims such provocations could inspire one of Mr Trump’s “easy-to-trigger followers.” Donald Trump’s lawyers Joe Tacopina declined to comment when contacted by The Independent. In June, Mr Biden reached a tentative agreement with federal prosecutors to plead guilty to two misdemeanour counts of failing to pay taxes and to admit the facts of a gun charge in exchange for likely avoiding jail time. The plea still needs to be approved by a federal judge, and a hearing is scheduled for later this month. Republicans in Congress and beyond have alleged that Mr Biden is benefitting from his famous name to avoid harsher prosecution. During a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee this week with FBI Director Christopher Wray, GOP members sharply criticised the agency, alleging a political bias. “Here’s what the American people know and believe about the FBI today, sir,” Rep Wesley Hunt told Mr Wray. “If you are a Trump, you will be prosecuted. If you are a Biden, you will be protected.” “I obviously disagree with your description of the two standards,” the FBI director said in response. “In my view, at least under my watch, we have one standard. And that is we’re going to pursue the facts wherever they lead, no matter who likes it. Read More Trump news – live: Hunter Biden lawyer warns Trump over ‘inciting violence’, as Kushner testifies over Jan 6 Secret Service ends probe into mysterious bag of cocaine found in White House: ‘No fingerprints or DNA’ GOP lawmaker compares Hunter Biden to glitter: ‘You cannot get rid of him. We’re sick of it’ GOP lawmaker compares Hunter Biden to glitter: ‘You cannot get rid of him’ FBI director set to clash with Republicans on the Trump case, Hunter Biden and more Gal Luft claimed he had dirt on the Bidens – now he’s facing charges

President Joe Biden signed an executive order on Thursday allowing the Pentagon to tap an additional 3,000 military reservists to support the US mission in Europe to bolster Nato amid the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. The additional troops will join the estimated 100,000 US service members already on the European continent. "These authorities will enable the department to better support and sustain its enhanced presence and level of operations,” Lt Gen Douglas Sims told Military.com of the move. The current US mission in Europe, dubbed Atlantic Resolve, began in 2014, as Russia annexed Crimea and put pressure on Ukraine’s Donbas region, a prelude to its wider invasion in 2022. So far, the US has sent more than $76bn in aid to Ukraine, according to the Council on Foreign Relations, more than $46bn of which has been military-related. The additional US forces came as President Biden made a high-profile swing through Europe for Nato summit in Lithuania on Wednesday. On Thursday, speaking from Helsinki, Mr Biden reiterated US support for Nato. “There’s overwhelming support from the American people. There’s overwhelming support from the members of the Congress, both House and Senate, in both parties,” he said, though he conceded “some extreme elements” of the Republican Party feel differently. The previous day, Mr Biden voiced his awe at the “unbroken” people of Ukraine,” who had shown “incredible dignity” in the face of Russia aggression. “One country cannot be allowed to seize his neighbour territory by force,” Mr Biden said. The US visit to Europe was not without its complications. Shortly before the Nato summit, Mr Biden threw cold water on the idea of Ukraine joining the defensive organisation in the near term. “I don’t think there is unanimity in Nato about whether or not to bring Ukraine into the Nato family now, at this moment, in the middle of a war,” he told CNN last week. The president also said that Ukraine would need to make reforms in terms of “democratization” before joining the alliance. Read More Thousands of Ukraine civilians are being held in Russian prisons. Russia plans to build many more Marjorie Taylor Greene’s antics show that the 2024 election will be about America’s role in the world Pentagon says cluster munitions have arrived in Ukraine The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

A number of Republican-led states spent their most recent legislative sessions relaxing child labour laws — while one state is already experiencing a rise in child labour cases. A report from WFTV in Orlando published Wednesday suggests that central Florida is already seeing a spike in child labour cases that dates back to the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. The nature of the cases reportedly range in scope and seriousness from having children working too many hours on school days to operating heavy machinery and beyond. “From [fiscal years] 2020 until 2022, we have seen more child labor that we had seen from 2011 to 2020,” Department of Labor District Director Wildalí De Jesús told WFTV. The Covid pandemic began in 2020 and upended the labour market — causing the service economy to contract and then leaving a number of employers without adequate staff when lockdown measures were relaxed and consumption habits returned to pre-pandemic levels. Still, the data shows an alarming trend in the illegal exploitation of minors in the workforce at a time when states across the country are working to roll back child labour laws that are a longstanding legacy of the children’s rights and labour movements. Already this year, numerous GOP-led states including Missouri, Ohio, Arkansas, and Iowa have passed laws weakening child labour laws — allowing companies to hire children without work permits and making it legal for them to working longer hours in more dangerous conditions. The push to weaken child labour laws has reportedly been led by a Florida-based think tank, the Foundation for Government Accountability, which drafted the model legislation for states to use to roll back their child labour protections. The data from Florida is not entirely clear on several points, including how many of the children in question are undocumented immigrants. In her comments to WFTV, Ms De Jesús said parents are not always in a position to know the exact details of the work their children are doing and how it aligns with child labour law. “We’re seeing a trend of much younger children… because sometimes the children don’t know what they’re supposed to do or not supposed to do,” Ms De Jesús told the television station. “A lot of times parents don’t know either. They may assume that it’s safe or that [the child is] working the correct hours and that there’s no limitations, but there are.” Earlier this year, the Department of Labor reported a 68 per cent increase in the number of children illegally employed by US companies since 2018. A number of those children may be undocumented migrants. Read More Wisconsin teen dies in sawmill accident in one of 14 states looking to roll back child labour laws

For the past two years, Ray Epps has been living a surreal nightmare, one born out of the same conspiracy theory universe that launched a riot in the halls of Congress, hundreds of criminal investigations, and a blockbuster defamation lawsuit against one of the most influential cable networks in the country. He cast his vote for Donald Trump weeks before he would end up at the centre of a conspiracy theory on that same network, one he loyally watched. Mr Epps traveled to Washington DC from Arizona to support the president while a joint session of Congress certified the results of an election he lost but refused to accept. He moved past exterior barricades as an unruly mob pushed through police and stormed the US Capitol. He never went inside, and he was never arrested, fuelling an ongoing conspiracy theory that the now 66-year-old was working with law enforcement to instigate a riot to entrap Trump supporters, part of a long-running belief among Republicans that federal authorities are using the levers of power to discriminate against them. Those claims have circulated across social media, among members of Congress – and in dozens of segments on Tucker Carlson’s Fox News platform, now the subject of a defamation lawsuit from Mr Epps. The man in the middle of the right-wing conspiracy theory surrounding January 6 has accused the far-right pundit of amplifying a “fantastical” story that has destroyed his family and his business, accusations that echo an historic $787m settlement between Fox and Dominion Voting Systems, which accused the network of spreading defamatory statements about the company in the election’s aftermath. A lawsuit filed in Delaware Superior Court on 12 July points to the mountains of allegations from that case, noting that “Fox’s role in creating and disseminating destructive conspiracy theories has already been well documented”. The complaint was signed by Brian Farnan – who served as the lead Delaware counsel for Dominion in its suit against Fox. “Defamation is defamation, so if Tucker and Fox News defamed Ray Epps, it doesn’t ultimately matter what happened with Dominion,” Michael Teter, an attorney for Mr Epps, told The Independent. “It certainly is possible for us to prove a pattern of disregard for the truth. I think it will resonate with a jury that there should be additional punitive damages associated with Fox’s behavior and conduct,” he said. “I believe that this case is ripe for punitive damages, not just because of the willfulness on the part of lying about Ray and the egregious lies but also because there’s a past conduct here of disregard for the truth.” Rodney Smolla, president of Vermont Law School who consulted for Dominion in its case against Fox, told The New York Times that when it comes to proving defamation “no case is easy” but the lawsuit from Mr Epps is “certainly, in my view, viable.” The challenge, Mr Smolla said, is for a judge to agree that the conspiracy theory is “so inherently, bizarrely improbable that only a reckless person would put it into circulation.” The lawsuit follows a cease-and-desist letter that Mr Teter sent to the network earlier this year, demanding that Carlson retract his “false and defamatory” statements about him and deliver a “formal on-air apology” for the “lies” he promoted. Fox did not respond, Mr Teter said. The extensive filings in the Dominion case documented how Fox employees “were harassed and intimidated and threatened by Fox viewers because of the lies that Fox was spreading about the company,” according to Mr Teter. “And if a company is going to feel the brunt of that, then an individual who’s singularly targeted by Fox is going to especially feel that, and so they acted with a heightened degree of malice and disregard for the consequences of their actions,” he said. The Independent has requested comment from Fox. On his Tucker Carlson Tonight, Carlson claimed there is “no rational explanation” why this “mysterious figure” who “helped stage-manage the insurrection” had not yet been charged, among more than two dozen statements collected in the lawsuit, which notes that the claims were not isolated to Carlson’s prime-time program. “Fox repeatedly published defamatory falsehoods about Epps, including by broadcasting and rebroadcasting defamatory statements by Tucker Carlson who devoted over two dozen segments to Epps and by republishing those falsehoods” across Fox platforms, according to the lawsuit. The House select committee that investigated the January 6 attack and efforts to overturn the 2020 election also dismissed the conspiracy theory surrounding Mr Epps. In his interview with committee investigators, he testified that he was not a federal agent, and that the “crazy” conspiracy theories surrounding him have torn his life apart. “It’s almost like an out of body experience like, ‘is this really happening to me?’” Mr Teter said. “They had one life that was serene and calm and happy and contented and busy and prosperous. And then within a matter of weeks or months, after lies started being told about them, all that disappeared, all of it.” Ray and his wife Robyn Epps received threatening messages, including death threats and a plastic bag with a bullet casing inside and voicemails threatening to burn their house down, according to the complaint, which includes several examples of harassing emails, letters and text messages. They were forced to sell their five-acre ranch in Arizona, out of which they ran their wedding business, according to the complaint. They moved into a 350-square-foot mobile home in Utah. “The business went with it,” Mr Teter said. “They didn’t get to sell the business separately. It just was part of the house going for the appraised value and that was it. There was no additional value of the business. So they’ve lost their business. They’ve lost their livelihood.” The lawsuit also seeks unspecified “significant” damages for the extensive emotional harm the couple has endured. The Epps’s story illustrates the depths of the conspiratorial coverage driving right-wing media – the irony of a Trump-supporting Fox News viewer turning into the star of a conspiracy theory is not lost on Mr Teter. “I think it demonstrates the extreme nature of conspiracy theories and that conspiracy theories are often born out of his political tool,” He said. “You could look at any amount of evidence existing prior to January 6 to see that Ray Epps and Robyn Epps supported Donald Trump and supported Republicans. The fact that they would turn against some of their own demonstrates that it really is about serving some other interests and other purpose.” Those claims have also been echoed by Republican members of Congress who have made Mr Epps the subject of investigative hearings. On the same day the lawsuit was filed, House Republicans grilled FBI director Christopher Wray about alleged federal agents at the scene of the attack. “I will say this notion that somehow the violence at the Capitol on January 6 was part of some operation orchestrated by FBI sources and agents is ludicrous and is a disservice to our brave, hardworking dedicated men and women,” Mr Wray said in his sworn testimony to the House Judiciary Committee. Carlson, in his first interview since his exit from the network in the wake of the Dominion settlement, said he doesn’t know why he was fired. The network announced that Carlson “agreed to part ways” days after Fox agreed to the settlement with the voting machine company over bogus claims that Carlson privately disputed but amplified on air. Fox also reached a $12m settlement with Abby Grossberg, a former producer for Tucker Carlson Tonight, who alleged a culture of misogyny at the network in a federal lawsuit that depicted an environment where women are routinely verbally violated “by a poisonous and entrenched patriarchy.” Speaking about her case, Ms Grossberg alleged that she was directed to find lawyers for January 6 defendants who would speak to and validate a conspiracy theory surrounding any alleged federal involvement in the attack. When none of them would, she was told to find someone else, she said. “Tucker was very set on finding an FBI person who was implanted in the crowd and spinning this conspiracy that they were ultimately the ones responsible for the Capitol attack,” she told MSNBC. An attorney told her, twice, “there is no conspiracy, get away from this stuff, this is dangerous, tell Tucker to stop,” she said. “The response was, ‘Find somebody else. Tucker is really intent on this,’” she said. Mr Teter said they are keeping the door open for potential settlement discussions, but attorneys have not had any communication from the network’s legal team after issuing the cease-and-desist letter in March. “They’ve had opportunities to reach out to us,” he told The Independent. “Maybe it takes the formality of a complaint to get those conversations started. And if they want to engage in those conversations, we are always open to them.” Ray and Robyn Epps face the prospect of a similar media circus that descended on the near-trial in the Dominion case, with media reporters and news outlets from around the US parked in front of the Delaware courthouse in Wilmington. “They’ve been scrutinized for two years. And so in some sense, having a framework and a forum that is fair and deliberate and meaningful will be much better for them than what they’ve had to experience,” Mr Teter said. “They’re open-eyed about it. They know their lives will never be the same as they were before.” Read More How conservatives turned Ray Epps into a Capitol riot scapegoat FBI director shoots down ‘ludicrous’ January 6 conspiracy theory Damning court documents reveal Rudy Giuliani knew claims about Georgia election workers were false Executives who helped create Fox News say network has become dangerous ‘disinformation machine’ Tucker Carlson doesn’t know why he was fired from Fox News Meet Jesse Watters, the Fox News host helming Tucker Carlson’s primetime slot Justice Department challenges prison sentences for Oath Keepers convicted on January 6 charges

Federal prosecutors investigating Donald Trump’s effort to overturn the 2020 election results have questioned his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, among other witnesses to see if the former president acknowledged he had lost. Mr Kushner testified in Washington DC last month, according to a report from The New York Times, and maintained that the former president believed the election was stolen, a source briefed on the matter said. It has also emerged that other key administration figures including Alyssa Farah Griffin and Hope Hicks were also questioned. Elsewhere, special counsel Jack Smith told a federal judge there is “no basis in law or fact” for indefinitely postponing the federal trial of Mr Trump and urged the court to proceed with jury selection in December. In a new court filing, Smith wrote that one of Trump’s legal arguments "borders on frivolous" and said there’s no evidence that waiting until after the 2024 presidential election would make the process any easier. Meanwhile, recent financial disclosure forms show Melania Trump was paid as much as $155,000 by a Super PAC linked to her husband for “event planning and consulting”. Read More Ron DeSantis rules out being Trump’s running mate: ‘I’m not a number two guy’ GOP lawmaker compares Hunter Biden to glitter: ‘You cannot get rid of him. We’re sick of it’ Trump sees democracy as ‘enemy territory’ says journalist who helped bring down Nixon Everything we know about Ray Epps, the man conservatives blame for the Capitol riot

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky’s obvious impatience over Nato’s slow-moving decision-making process has reportedly irritated US officials enough that they reconsidered Ukraine’s invitation to join the alliance. For months, Mr Zelensky has appealed to Nato leaders hoping they would accept his country’s application to join the alliance as they fight off Russian troops. But Nato countries have been reluctant – not wanting to rock the boat too much with Russia during the middle of the war. Then, after Nato countries failed to deliver a specific timeline to Mr Zelensky on Nato membership before the summit this week, Mr Zelensky’s frustration resulted in a more aggressive approach in the form of a tweet. “It’s unprecedented and absurd when time frame is not set neither for the invitation nor for Ukraine’s membership. While at the same time vague wording about "conditions" is added even for inviting Ukraine. It seems there is no readiness neither to invite Ukraine to NATO nor to make it a member of the Alliance,” Mr Zelensky wrote on Tuesday. “This means that a window of opportunity is being left to bargain Ukraine’s membership in NATO in negotiations with Russia. And for Russia, this means motivation to continue its terror.” He added: “Uncertainty is weakness. And I will openly discuss this at the summit.” Mr Zelensky’s strong message was a clear response to Nato’s unspecific and vague statement regarding Ukraine’s membership: “We will be in a position to extend an invitation to Ukraine when allies agree and conditions are met” However the Ukrainian’s message to Nato leaders left US officials feeling particularly “furious”, a source familiar with the situation told The Washington Post. Several US officials allegedly questioned whether the alliance should get rid of the passage which Mr Zelensky found “absurd”, The Post reported. The US has already given Ukraine more than $75bn in assistance. Most recently the Pentagon announced that they had sent the controversial cluster munitions to assist in Ukraine’s fight against Russia. Despite the hiccup, byy the end of the Nato summit on Wednesday, Mr Zelesnky had come to Nato’s accept decision calling it a “significant security victory” while still reiterating the preferred outcome would be an invitation to join Nato. Read More Pentagon says cluster munitions have arrived in Ukraine The Nato summit was not the triumph that Zelensky hoped it would be Nato could have sent a stronger signal on Ukraine’s future – Iain Duncan Smith Pentagon says cluster munitions have arrived in Ukraine Senators renew effort to bar future US withdrawal from Nato Republican senator should drop his 'irresponsible' protest and OK military nominees, Biden says

The House Ethics Committee has reportedly revived a probe into Representative Matt Gaetz (R-FL) regarding allegations of misconduct, as investigators have reportedly begun reaching out to witnesses. A witness from Florida told CNN they spoke with investigators recently about alleged “lobbying violations.” Other witnesses have also been contacted by the Ethics Committee, a source close to the matter told CNN. The Ethics Committee investigation is a continuation of their 2021 probe into Mr Gaetz’s alleged “misconduct” while serving as a representative. It is unclear what misconduct the witnesses were interviewed for, though the initial probe regarded sexual misconduct, illicit drug use, misuse of state identification records and bribery. Earlier this year, the Department of Justice (DOJ) declined to charge Mr Gaetz after a sex trafficking investigation that was deferred to them by the Ethics Committee upon request. Last year, an ex-associate of Mr Gaetz, Joel Greenberg, was sentenced to 11 years in prison after pleading guilty to six federal crimes, including sex trafficking of a minor. After the DOJ reached a conclusion, the Ethics Committee restored its own investigation. A spokesperson for Mr Gaetz directed The Independent to comments he made to CNN regarding the investigation. The Florida lawmaker said the investigation is “not something I’m worried about” adding that he’s “focused on the work.” “The Ethics Committee typically operates through leaks and so this is no surprise,” Mr Gaetz said. “But the Ethics Committee has never found me to be in violation of House rules, though they’ve been investigating me during my entire seven years in Congress.” He added: “It’s also funny that the one guy who doesn’t take the corrupt lobbyist and PAC money seems to be under the most Ethics investigation.” The committee’s decision to pursue the investigation by reaching out to witnesses marks the first time investigators have taken steps since the probe was revived. The Ethics Committee is currently led by Rep Michael Guest (R-MS). Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy declined to comment to CNN about the investigation claiming he doesn’t “know anything” regarding the details of it. Read More Gaetz and Boebert vow to force McCarthy into ‘monogamous relationship’ Matt Gaetz associate Joel Greenberg asks court to delay sentencing in trafficking case The debt limit vote signals the beginning of the end for Kevin McCarthy Matt Gaetz takes CPAC victory lap over sex trafficking probe: ‘Vindication looks pretty good on me’

Federal prosecutors investigating Donald Trump’s effort to overturn the 2020 election results have questioned his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, among other witnesses to see if the former president acknowledged he had lost. Mr Kushner testified in Washington DC last month, according to a report from The New York Times. During his testimony, the former president’s son-in-law maintained that Mr Trump believed the election was stolen, a source briefed on the matter said. Other people close to Mr Trump, including Alyssa Farah Griffin, the former White House director of strategic communications, and Hope Hicks, the former White House communications director were questioned as well. More follows Read More Zelensky’s Nato tweet infuriated US officials so much they reconsidered, report says Trump 2020 election interference probe hears from Michigan official – live California still has an anti-gay marriage law on the books. Voters could remove it next year

Evan Gershkovich appeared tense as he paced back and forth inside a glass cage in the Moscow City Court on 22 June. Gershkovich, 31, had been arrested and detained in Yekaterinburg, Russia, nearly three months earlier on 29 March on suspicion of espionage while on assignment for The Wall Street Journal. Wearing a black T-shirt and light blue jeans, Gershkovich was briefly paraded before cameras inside the courtroom box known as an “aquarium”, a relic of Soviet show trials. After the media was ushered out, he chatted to his parents in the public gallery while waiting for a judge to rule on an appeal challenging his pre-trial detention, according to an Associated Press report. The appeal was quickly dismissed, and Gershkovich was returned to the feared Lefortovo prison where he has reportedly been kept in solitary confinement since his arrest. “Evan continued to show remarkable strength and resiliency in these very difficult circumstances,” US Ambassador Lynne Tracy, who was present in court, told reporters afterward. Now in his fourth month in captivity on charges that have been widely condemned as spurious and politically motivated, diplomatic efforts to secure Gershkovich’s release are intensifying. On Thursday 13 July, President Joe Biden confirmed that US officials were in talks with their Russian counterparts to secure a prisoner swap for Gershkovich. “I’m serious about doing all we can to free Americans being illegally held in Russia or anywhere else for that matter,” Mr Biden said during a press conference in Helsinki. “And that process is underway.” In the meantime, Gershkovich’s contact with the outside is limited to a handful of visits from family, US officials and advocates, and weekly letters to his sister and close friends. The Federal Security Service (FSB), Russia’s top security agency and successor organisation to the KGB, has claimed that Gershkovich had been caught collecting information on “the activities of one of the enterprises of the military defence complex”. The Journal, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and the US Congress have denied the allegations and demanded his immediate release. The State Department has since designated Gershkovich as “wrongfully detained”, allowing its Office of the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs to lead the case for his release. Who is Evan Gershkovich? The son of Jewish immigrants from the Soviet Union who grew up speaking Russian at home in Princeton, New Jersey, Gershkovich graduated from the prestigious Bowdoin College in Maine. He later embarked on a career in the media and moved to Russia in late 2018, working for The New York Times, then The Moscow Times and then Agence France-Presse. In 2022, he joined the WSJ, where he began covering Russian affairs just a month before the invasion of Ukraine last year. The accomplished reporter “fell in love” with his parent’s homeland, according to the Journal. He was determined to tell important stories at a crucial juncture for the country, despite the risk. He would spend his weekends chatting to friends about news, politics and sport in saunas, and hanging out with punk bands in Moscow dive bars. At the time of his arrest, Gershkovich was reporting on the impact of sanctions on the Russian economy from the Ural mountains. His final report, published the day before his arrest, was headlined Russia’s Economy Is Starting to Come Undone. Gershkovich wrote that the Russian economy was feeling the heat of Western sanctions and faced a slowdown, adding that the government’s revenue was “being squeezed”. The arrest Evan Gershkovich was arrested in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg on spying charges, the FSB announced on 29 March. According to the Journal, Gershkovich texted a colleague at about 4pm that day to say he had just arrived at a steakhouse in the city. The first sign of trouble came in a vague Telegram post that FSB agents had arrested a diner at a restaurant in the city. Concerned colleagues tried desperately to reach Gershkovich. The next day, the FSB said it had “stopped the illegal activities” of a US citizen it identified as “Gershkovich Evan... who is suspected of spying in the interests of the American government”. Images on Russian state media showed the journalist being led from the restaurant surrounded by plain clothes FSB officers. The FSB claimed Gershkovich had been tasked “by the American side” with gathering information about “the activities of one of the enterprises of the military defence complex”, believed to refer to a factory, although the FSB declined to name the facility or its exact location or provide any documentary or video evidence of Gershkovich’s guilt. The journalist had reportedly been visiting Nizhny Tagil, the site of Russian battle tank producer Uralvagonzavod, according to Russian news website Meduza, which is based in Latvia. Dozens of companies producing weapons are based in the city. Russian foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova claimed that Gershkovich’s activities in Yekaterinburg were “not related to journalism”. The arrest sent a chill through other western journalists based in Russia. The Kremlin’s bullish spokesman Dmitry Peskov said other journalists working in Russia could remain provided they had the right credentials, adding: “Those carrying out normal journalistic activity will obviously keep working, if they have proper accreditation. There will be no problems with that.” What an authoritarian regime chooses to consider “normal journalistic activity” or otherwise, however, is open to question. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, many foreign journalists have pulled out of the country, particularly after Vladimir Putin’s administration enacted laws to punish anyone who discredits its forces taking part in the conflict. The State Department had repeatedly advised all Americans to leave Russia. Of the foreign correspondents still operating from Moscow, many remain uncertain about where precisely the line is, but saying anything critical about the Russian military or the economy being in a state of decline appears to carry a severe risk. Punishment without crime The detained journalist made his first court appearance at a closed hearing on 30 March, where he was ordered held in pre-trial detention until 29 May. Daniil Berman, a lawyer representing Gershkovich, said he would be taken to Lefortovo, the 19th century central Moscow jail notorious for torture and executions during Soviet-era purges. When Josef Stalin began the “Great Terror” of mass arrests in the 1930s, Lefortovo was one of the main holding centres for designated “enemies of the people”. Prominent former inmates at the prison included members of the attempted 1991 coup d'état, and Alexander Litvinineko, the Russian dissident who was poisoned by FSB agents with polonium-210 in London in 2006. “Lefortovo is the most isolated place to be, and this is the torture,” Litvinenko’s wife Marina told the Journal in April. Gershkovich pleaded not guilty to the espionage charges, but as the case was marked “top secret”, authorities have still not produced any evidence against him. Most espionage trials are carried out in secret in Russia, and almost always result in conviction. The Journal said it was “deeply concerned” for his safety and that it “vehemently denies the allegations from the FSB and seeks the immediate release of our trusted and dedicated reporter”. The White House echoed those sentiments, saying in a statement that the “targeting of American citizens by the Russian government is unacceptable”. It added: “We condemn the detention of Mr Gershkovich in the strongest terms. We also condemn the Russian government’s continued targeting and repression of journalists and freedom of the press.” Asked on 31 March about the matter, US President Joe Biden urged Russia to release Gershkovich. “Let him go,” he told reporters in Washington when asked if he had a message for the Kremlin. A Russian state prison monitor, Alexei Melnikov, revealed on 3 April that Gershkovich was in a quarantine cell while undergoing medical checks, had been reading a book from the prison library and had access to a TV, radio and refrigerator. On 4 April, lawyers were allowed to see the defendant for the first time. “Evan’s health is good, and he is grateful for the outpouring of support from around the world. We continue to call for his immediate release,” WSJ’s editor-in-chief, Emma Tucker, said in a note to her newsroom, adding that the newspaper was encouraged by the visit. Gershkovich’s family, she said, “are relieved to know we finally have contact with Evan.” His first meeting with a US official following his detention came on 17 April when Ambassador Tracy was granted access. “He is in good health and remains strong,” she told reporters after her meeting. On 18 April, Gershkovich appeared at a hearing on his appeal, where the Moscow City Court upheld his detention. Appearing before cameras inside the “aquarium”, Gershkovich smiled and appeared to be in good spirits. His wrists bore marks showing he appeared to have been kept in handcuffs. The court denied requests to grant Gershkovich bail, move him to another jail or put him on house arrest. On 23 May, Russian media reported that Gershkovich’s detention had been extended until 30 August. The court hearing where that decision was made had not been announced in advance and details remain scant. The next week, a Russian court upheld his pre-trial detention until at least 30 August. “Although the outcome was expected, it is no less an outrage that his detention continues to be upheld,” the Journal said in a statement at the time. The US House of Representatives has since passed a bipartisan resolution calling for Gershkovich’s immediate release. Potential prisoner swap As Gershkovich spent his 100th day in prison on 7 July, officials in both the United States and Russia confirmed they had been in talks about a possible prisoner swap. “We are prepared to do hard things in order to get our citizens home, including getting Evan home,” National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said. “I do not want to give false hope.” His comments came two days after Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed talks had been going on behind the scenes. “We have said that there have been certain contacts on the subject, but we don’t want them to be discussed in public,” Peskov said in a conference call with reporters, according to the Associated Press. “They must be carried out and continue in complete silence.” The AP noted that Russian officials had carried out consular visits with Vladimir Dunaev, a Russian citizen in US custody on cybercrime charges. Hopes were raised further on 13 July, when President Biden said he was seriously considering a prisoner exchange during a joint press conference with Finnish president Sauli Niinistö in Helsinki. Gershkovich’s sister Danielle, speaking at a panel discussion at the National Press Club in Washington DC on 13 July, said she received a letter from her brother about once a week. “I’m so proud of him…I don’t know how he’s staying so brave,” Ms Gershkovich said. Speaking to ABC News this month, Gershkovich’s parents Mikhail Gershkovich and Ella Milman said that Mr Biden had promised to do “whatever it takes” to bring their son home. The precedent Gershkovich’s arrest makes him the first American reporter to be arrested on espionage charges in Russia since 1986, when Nicholas Daniloff of The US News and World Report was arrested by the KGB. Daniloff was released without charge 20 days later in a swap for an employee of the Soviet Union’s UN mission, who had been arrested by the FBI, likewise on spying charges. But he is not the only American currently being held on spying charges by Russia. Former Marine and corporate security executive Paul Whelan was arrested on dubious espionage charges in 2018 and has since been convicted, although the US government and his family believe they are trumped-up and have called for his release. Brittney Griner was exchanged in December last year for arms dealer Viktor Bout after being jailed on spurious drug charges relating to the possession of cannabis vape oil. She has since called for Gershkovich’s release. Gershkovich is one of at least 59 American citizens wrongfully detained or held hostage abroad, according to the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation. The tributes The Reporters Without Borders group said it was “alarmed” by the arrest of Gershkovich and that it “looks like a retaliation measure of Russia against the United States”. Friends and colleagues were shocked by the news and took to social media to describe the defendant as a committed journalist, dismissing the allegations as bogus and ridiculous. “Journalism is not a crime,” they posted. Henry Foy, The Financial Times’ European diplomatic correspondent based in Brussels, tweeted: “Evan is an exemplary foreign correspondent, a brilliant reporter and a wonderful, kind-hearted friend.” Joshua Yaffa, a Russia-Ukraine reporter for The New Yorker, posted: “Evan was not unaware or naïve about the risks. It’s not like he was in Russia because no one bothered to tell him it was dangerous. He is a brave, committed, professional journalist who travelled to Russia to report on stories of import and interest.” Oliver Carroll, a foreign correspondent for The Economist and formerly of The Independent, tweeted that he hopes Gershkovich’s bravery “carries through in these very dark hours. It’s something you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy. Let alone Evan, who is one of the nicest guys in journalism.” Read More The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary Biden says he’s ‘serious’ about prisoner exchange with Russia for Wall Street Journal reporter Blinken says WSJ reporter 'wrongfully detained' by Russia Biden adviser says US is pressing for the release of reporter who has spent 100 days in Russian jail Lawyers meet with jailed American reporter in Moscow prison