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Palantir is working on a tool for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that populates a map with potential deportation targets, brings up a dossier on each person, and provides a confidence score on the persons current address, 404 Media has learned. ICE is using it to find locations where lots of people it might detain could be based.The findings, based on internal ICE material obtained by 404 Media, public procurement records, and recent sworn testimony from an ICE official, show the clearest link yet between the technological infrastructure Palantir is building for ICE and the agencys activities on the ground. The tool receives peoples addresses from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) among a range of other sources, according to the material.The news comes after Department of Homeland Security (DHS) head Kristi Noem said the agency is sending hundreds more federal agents to Minneapolis amid widespread protests against the agency. Last week ICE officer Jonathan Ross shot and killed 37 year old U.S. citizen Renee Nicole Good. During Operation Metro Surge, which DHS calls the largest immigration operation ever, immigration agents have surrounded rideshare drivers and used pepper spray on high school students.Enhanced Leads Identification & Targeting for Enforcement (ELITE) is a targeting tool designed to improve capabilities for identifying and prioritizing high-value targets through advanced analytics, a user guide for ELITE obtained by 404 Media says. The tool aims to be nearly all encompassing when it comes to finding ICE targets, from identifying subjects in the first place, to building a list of people, to supervisors approving selections for officers to ultimately go into the field and apprehend.Do you know anything else about this tool? Do you work at ICE, CBP, or Palantir? I would love to hear from you. Using a non-work device, you can message me securely on Signal at joseph.404 or send me an email at joseph@404media.co.One feature of ELITE is the Geospatial Lead Sourcing Tab, according to the user guide. This lets ICE see people it may potentially want to detain on a map interface, based on various criteria such as Bios & IDs, Location, Operations, and Criminality. An ICE officer can then select people one by one, or draw a shape on the map to see people in that selected area.ELITE has already been used by ICE to target specific areas, according to sworn testimony from an ICE official in Oregon. In October, immigration officers waited in three unmarked SUVs outside an apartment complex in Woodburn. They went on to bust a drivers window and pull a 45-year-old woman from a van, used ICEs facial recognition app Mobile Fortify on her, and agents had the goal of making eight arrests per team per day, Oregon Live reported. Lawyers representing the woman say authorities arrested her and more than 30 other people in a dragnet.One of our apps, its called ELITE. And so it tells you how many people are living in this area and whats the likelihood of them actually being there, a deportation officer with ICEs Fugitive Operations Unit, identified in court records as JB, testified about the raid in early December. 404 Media purchased a transcript of JBs testimony from the court. Its basically a map of the United States. Its kind of like Google Maps.It pulls from all kinds of sources, JB continued. Its a newer app that was actually given to us in ICE. JB said ELITE is what ICE sometimes uses to track the apparent density of people at a particular location to target. Youre going to go to a more dense population rather than [...] like, if theres one pin at a house and the likelihood of them actually living there is like 10 percent [...] youre not going to go there. For that raid in Woodburn, JB suggested the immigration officers used ELITE to generate leads. Additionally, in a text thread of immigration officers, someone described the area as target rich, which JB explained meant the officials had run multiple license plates in that area and found vehicles registered to people who had either a criminal or immigration nexus.Screenshots of the ICE official's testimony. Image: 404 Media.JB and other officials were testifying in the case of MJMA, the woman pulled from the van during the Woodburn raid. She is being represented by attorneys from Innovation Law Lab.Once a person is selected on the map interface, ELITE then shows a dossier on that particular person, according to the user guide. That includes their name, a photo, their Alien Number (the unique code given by the U.S. government to each immigrant), their date of birth, and their full address. ELITE notes the source of the address (such as the government agency that supplied it), and gives an address confidence score. One address confidence score example in the guide is 98.95 out of 100; another is 77.25 out of 100. This score is based on both the source of the address and how recent the data is, the user guide says. (ICE is paying skip tracers, private investigators, and bounty hunters to help verify peoples addresses.)Those sources can include HHS, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and CLEAR. The guide does not provide any more specifics on what CLEAR might be, but ICE has repeatedly contracted with Thomson Reuters which sells a data product called CLEAR. Thomson Reuters did not respond to a request for comment. HHS did not respond to a request for comment.The documents dont say if those are the only entities providing data for ELITE. The user guide says ELITE is integrating new data sources to reduce officer workload.ICE can also use ELITE to look up people based on an unique identifier, such as their Alien Number, name, or date of birth. ELITE also lets ICE do this in bulk, selecting up to 50 people at once, according to the guide.ICE can filter the map by what the guide calls Special Operations. These are groups of pre-defined aliens specifically targeted by Leadership for action. ICE officers are told to consult ICE leadership or broadcasts on when to use these operation filters. DHSs surge in Minneapolis is focused at least in part on the citys Somali community after renewed focus on a COVID-19 fraud case. The overwhelming majority of Somalis who live in the Minneapolis and St. Paul area are U.S. citizens, PBS reported.These records give us behind-the-scenes insight into the kind of mass surveillance machine ICE is building with help from powerful tech companies like Palantir, Laura Rivera, senior staff attorney at Just Futures Law, told 404 Media. When combined with what we know from ICE testimony and other public information, it gives us a blueprint into how ICE is going into communities and identifying people for arrest in real-time.Senator Ron Wyden, who represents Oregon where ELITE was discussed, told 404 Media in a statement, The fact ICE is using this app proves the completely indiscriminate nature of the agency's aggressive and violent incursions into our communities. This app allows ICE to find the closest person to arrest and disappear, using government and commercial data, with the help of Palantir and Trump's Big Brother databases. It makes a mockery of the idea that ICE is trying to make our country safer. Rather, agents are reportedly picking people to deport from our country the same way you'd choose a nearby coffee shop.Screenshot of the Palantir contract, via highergov.com.The ELITE user guide does not say who developed the system. But the tools distinctive titleEnhanced Leads Identification & Targeting for Enforcementexactly matches one included in an addendum to a Palantir contract from last year. It says Palantir should continue configuration and engineering services for ELITE and some other ICE tools. That supplemental agreement for $29.9 million started in September and is planned to go on for at least a year.Palantir has worked with ICE for years and was focused on criminal investigations, supporting Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Investigative Case Management (ICM) system. That changed in the second Trump administration, with Palantir now working on ICEs deportation efforts.After participating in a three-week coding sprint, ICE updated an ongoing Palantir contract related to Enforcement Prioritization and Targeting, to support the development of an accurate picture of actionable leads based on existing law enforcement datasets to allow law enforcement to prioritize enforcement actions, according to an internal Palantir wiki previously obtained by 404 Media. The goal was to find the physical location of people marked for deportation, and Palantir said it believes its work with ICE is intended to promote government efficiency, transparency, and accountability.The leaked material described Palantirs deportation-focused work as concentrated on delivering prototype capabilities and lasting around six months. It left open the room for more work with ICE, and said Palantir has developed into a more mature partner for ICE. Documents ICE published described Palantirs work as building a tool called ImmigrationOS.More than eight months have passed since Palantir discussed the issue internally. Neither Palantir nor DHS responded to multiple requests for comment.In their testimony, JB said, its a tool that we use that gives you a probability. But theres never [...] theres no such thing as 100 percent. The user guide adds, As always, make sure you do your due diligence on each target to confirm removability prior to action.

A group of six Democratic lawmakers is proposing legislation that would dramatically rein in Immigration and Customs Enforcements (ICE) facial recognition app, according to a copy of the draft bill shared with 404 Media. ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) have been scanning peoples faces with the app, called Mobile Fortify, across the country, using it to verify their citizenship and claiming that a result in the app should be trusted over a birth certificate.The move signals the first potential legislative move against the app after 404 Media first revealed Mobile Fortifys existence in June based on leaked ICE emails. Since then, 404 Media has covered its continued use against U.S. citizens, the 200 million images it uses, and the Department of Homeland Securitys (DHS) plan to roll out a version of the app to local law enforcement.Do you know anything else about this app? I would love to hear from you. Using a non-work device, you can message me securely on Signal at joseph.404 or send me an email at joseph@404media.co.When ICE claims that an image it snaps and runs through an unproven app can be enough evidence to detain people for possible deportation, no one is safe, Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS), ranking member of the Committee on Homeland Security, and who authored the legislation, said. ICEs use of Mobile Fortify to determine a persons legal status is an outrageous affront to the civil rights and civil liberties of U.S. citizens and immigrants alike. DHS should not be conducting surveillance by experimenting with Americans faces and fingerprints in the fieldespecially with unproven and biased technology. It is time to put an end to its widespread use. We can secure the Homeland and respect the rights and privacy of Americans at the same time.The bill is being cosponsored by by Rep. Lou Correa (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Border Security & Enforcement; Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-MI), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations & Accountability; Rep. Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY), Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus; Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY), Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus; and Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. It follows some of the lawmakers demanding answers from DHS about the app in September.The proposed law, called the Realigning Mobile Phone Biometrics for American Privacy Protection Act, aims to curtail both Mobile Fortify and Mobile Identify, the local law enforcement version, in a few ways. First, it would ban use of the apps except for identification at ports of entry. As 404 Media showed, Mobile Fortify uses CBP systems that are usually reserved for identifying and taking photos of people as they enter the U.S. Mobile Fortify turned that capability inwards to American streets.The law would also require all photos and fingerprints of U.S. citizens captured before the practices introduced by the bill be deleted, and require that all photographs or fingerprints of U.S. citizens be destroyed within 12 hours of being taken. The law would also prohibit DHS from sharing the apps with non-DHS law enforcement agencies, effectively killing the local law enforcement version. (404 Media reported the app became unavailable on the Google Play Store in early-December.)When an immigration officer scans someones face with Mobile Fortify, the app runs their face against a bank of 200 million images held by DHS, according to the apps user manual previously obtained by 404 Media. If the app finds what it believes is a matching face, it returns a name, their nationality, age and date of birth, unique identifiers such as their alien registration, and a field titled Immig. Judge Decision, the manual says. This appears to refer to whether an immigration judge has ruled on this persons case, and may include a result that says remove.404 Media previously obtained an internal DHS document through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) which showed ICE does not let people decline to be scanned by the app. 404 Media has found likely cases of the app being used in Chicago. In a partnership with Reveal, 404 Media reported the app has been used on U.S. citizens.One video posted to social media this week showed an officer using the app to take a photo of an identification document in what the video said was Minnesota. 404 Media compared the app shown in the video to the user interface in the leaked Mobile Fortify user manual and they matched.The Trump Administration has weaponized federal agencies against the American people. This latest effort to use facial recognition to further target immigrant families is reckless and dangerous, said Rep. Espaillat in a statement. Im proud to stand with Ranking Member Thompson to introduce legislation to combat ICE and DHS, prohibiting the use of facial recognition as yet another ruthless tactic to further this administrations mass deportation agenda.The abuse of this type of technology by DHS agents is not only invasive, it is likely unconstitutional and certainly un-American, Rep. Meng added. Immigration enforcement should not be conducted by an app and DHS should not conduct dragnet operations that terrorize communities and violate people's constitutional rights. I am proud to have worked with Ranking Member Thompson and my colleagues to introduce this commonsense legislation.DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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WASHINGTONCalling her actions indefensible, Vice President JD Vance stated Thursday that Rene Good was brainwashed by the Bible into loving thy neighbor. The fact of the matter is that Rene Good was radicalized by these deranged, left-wing texts, said Vance, whose response to the death of the 37-year-old Minneapolis mother was reiterated across social media by MAGA voters and GOP lawmakers who emphasized that the blame for her slaying lay squarely on the Scriptures that had poisoned her mind. She was obsessed. I dont know who Matthew and Mark are, if those are even their real names, but they should know that they will not escape accountability. Frankly, we should deport everybody who follows this insanity. Theres no Golden Rule in U.S. immigration code. At press time, the Department of Justice had reportedly launched an investigation after receiving a tip that there was a whole fringe network of these so-called followers of Christ.The post Conservatives Say Rene Good Was Brainwashed By Bible Into Loving Thy Neighbor appeared first on The Onion.

Cindy Patton, 66, died Wednesday when a nugget of granola punctured her cyanide tooth.The post Cindy Patton appeared first on The Onion.

With its proposal of the first-ever $1 trillion defense budget, the White House has sought a dramatic increase in funding for the armed forces. Here, The Onion breaks down President Trumps military spending by the numbers.The post Trumps Military Spending By The Numbers appeared first on The Onion.

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CAIn an attempt to curb impulsive purchases made in periods of deep emotional distress, music store chain Guitar Center announced Thursday that it had instituted a 72-hour waiting period for all customers.Owning a guitar is a huge responsibility, and the last thing we want is for these instruments to fall into the wrong hands, said Guitar Center CEO Gabe Dalporto, who added that the mandatory cooling-off period was an easy, proven way to prevent customers from purchasing acoustic or electric guitars, basses, or keyboards and ultimately doing something they would regret forever. The fact is, we see many customers come in at their lowest point, hoping to commit unspeakable acts like starting a cover band, attending a jam session, or writing and recording their own music. Ive seen far too many disturbed young men ask me to help them learn the guitar lick from Black Sabbaths Iron Man. Make no mistake: These safety policies save lives.Dalporto added that Guitar Center would also be adding mandatory background checks to make sure customers had no prior mental health issues before purchasing a drum set.The post Guitar Center Institutes 72-Hour Waiting Period appeared first on The Onion.

WASHINGTONIn an abrupt termination that surprised many White House observers and raised questions about the fate of her remaining staff, first lady Melania Trump reportedly cast longtime aide Heather Schofield into the Well of Gloom on Thursday.Shortly after midnight, the 55-year-old Trump was seen upon the blasted, confounding landscape of the Glade of Sorrow, where Schofield, her advisor since 2017, groveled on her hands and knees in the mud, grasping at the hem of her employers dark cloak. When a flash of lightning illuminated an ancient cobblestone well that had not been there moments before, the aide is said to have pleaded for compassion, to which Trump replied: Do not beg for mercy, Heather. There is no such thing on this plane of existence.Trump was then heard muttering an incantation that caused fingers of black smoke to rise from the well and drag the screaming aide down into its limitless depths, an account denied by the Office of the First Lady.Any assertion that the first lady cast Ms. Schofield into the Well of Gloom as a flock of ravens shrieked overhead and blotted out the moon is a total fabrication, said East Wing spokesperson Nicholas Clemens, appearing ashen-faced and expressionless as he spoke in a flat monotone and maintained an unblinking gaze into the distance. Ms. Schofields departure from this realm was completely voluntary, and there is no truth to the claim that she faced retaliation at work for failing to procure the Necrostone and unlock the unfathomable powers of azogsoth.The first lady and all of us at the White House wish Ms. Schofield the best in her future within the Well of Gloom, he added.Sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of being cast into an otherworldly vortex themselves confirmed that Schofield was not heard hitting the bottom of the well. She is believed to be the first aide Melania Trump has sent down the eldritch structure since a group of White House social media interns went missing in 2020.According to staffers who claimed to have peered inside the well, its twisting interior is covered with impenetrable runes that spin downward into infinity. Saying their brief glimpse had driven them to the brink of madness, they speculated that Schofield was enduring unspeakable horrors that would permanently shatter her psyche while denying her the mercy of death.Tension had been flaring between Heather and Melania, and to be honest, the writing was on the wall, said one staffer who worked closely with Schofield, stating that Trump had frequently criticized the aides job performance. Once it became clear Heather couldnt conduct the arcane rites necessary to obtain the Necrostone, the atmosphere at work got really tense. Just last week, Melania rebuked her in a dead tongue in front of everybody, causing our eyes to roll back in our heads and making us lose consciousness. It was pretty awkwardand unprofessional too, I might add.The staffer added that since the aides ejection from the earthly plane, morale has been low in the first ladys offices, where an air sour with brimstone fills the halls and at least one staircase is awash in blood. In the East Wing, Schofields former coworkers can reportedly hear her warped, guttural moans inside their own minds, making it difficult to concentrate.Many in the White House described Schofield as a person who couldnt handle the stress of her job. One source noted her hair had suddenly and inexplicably turned pure white. Another stated that she would often come into work in a shirt that was mis-buttoned and drenched in a strange glowing ichor. But few expressed pity for her ceaseless torment.Yeah, its sad when someone loses their job, but you know the second the tattered remains of her soul are released shes going to cash in with a pathetic tell-all about Melania, said a source within the Office of Communications, suggesting publishers would be chomping at the bit to get their hands on a memoir by someone who had spent significant time in the Well of Gloom. Whatever. At least the well has been fed.The source added, Besides, Heather was clearly not the chosen one who, according to prophecy, will decipher the secrets of azogsoth, slay the First Elders with Igoras Blade, and allow the first lady to enter the Sphere of the Deathless, where she will reign supreme for all eternity.The post Melania Trump Casts Longtime Aide Into Well Of Gloom appeared first on The Onion.

It's time to refresh your living room.READ MORE...

Protesters participate in a demonstration in support of the nationwide mass protests in Iran against the government, in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)2026-01-15T10:03:05Z The U.N. Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting Thursday to discuss Irans deadly protests at the request of the United States, even as President Donald Trump left unclear what actions he would take against the Islamic state.Tehran appeared to make conciliatory statements in an effort to defuse the situation after Trump threatened to take action to stop further killing of protesters, including the execution of anyone detained in Tehrans bloody crackdown on nationwide protests.Irans crackdown on the demonstrations has killed at least 2,615, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported. The death toll exceeds any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the countrys 1979 Islamic Revolution.Iran closed its airspace to commercial flights for hours without explanation early Thursday and some personnel at a key U.S. military base in Qatar were advised to evacuate. The U.S. Embassy in Kuwait also ordered its personnel to temporary halt travel to the multiple military bases in the small Gulf Arab country. Iran previously closed its airspace during the 12-day war against Israel in June. Here is the latest: Trump hails good news on arrested Iranian shopkeeperU.S. President Donald Trump has hailed as good news reports that the death sentence has been lifted for an Iranian shopkeeper arrested in a violent crackdown on protests.Relatives of 26-year-old Erfan Soltani had said he faced imminent execution.Trump posed Thursday on his Truth Social site: FoxNews: Iranian protester will no longer be sentenced to death after President Trumps warnings. Likewise others. This is good news. Hopefully, it will continue!Iranian state media denied Soltani had been condemned to death. Iranian judicial authorities said Soltani was being held in a detention facility outside of the capital. Alongside other protesters, he has been accused of propaganda activities against the regime, state media said. Trump sent tensions soaring this week by pledging that help is on its way to Iranian protesters and urging them to continue demonstrating against authorities in the Islamic Republic.On Wednesday Trump signaled a possible de-escalation, saying he had been told that the killing in Iran is stopping.G7 warns of more sanctions for IranIn a joint statement, the foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Unions main foreign policy chief said the G7 members were gravely concerned by the developments surrounding the protests, and that they strongly oppose the intensification of the Iranian authorities brutal repression of the Iranian people.The statement, published on the EUs website Thursday, said the G7 were deeply alarmed at the high level of reported deaths and injuries and condemned the deliberate use of violence by Iranian security forces against protesters.The G7 members remain prepared to impose additional restrictive measures if Iran continues to crack down on protests and dissent in violation of international human rights obligations, the statement said. Chinese foreign minister speaks with Iranian counterpartChinas Foreign Minister Wang Yi has spoken with his counterpart in Iran, who said the situation was now stable, Chinas Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.Abbas Araghchi said he hoped China will play a greater role in regional peace and stability during the talks, according to the statement from the ministry.China opposes imposing its will on other countries, and opposes a return to the law of the jungle, Wang said.China believes that the Iranian government and people will unite, overcome difficulties, maintain national stability, and safeguard their legitimate rights and interests, he added. China hopes all parties will cherish peace, exercise restraint, and resolve differences through dialogue. China is willing to play a constructive role in this regard. Turkey says its opposed to any foreign military intervention in IranWe are against military intervention in Iran, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told journalists in Istanbul on Thursday. Iran must address its own internal problems They must address their problems with the region and in global terms through diplomacy so that certain structural problems that cause economic problems can be addressed.Ankara and Tehran enjoy warm relations despite often holding divergent interests in the region.Fidan said the unrest in Iran was rooted in economic conditions caused by sanctions, rather than ideological opposition to the government.Iranians mostly absent from annual religious rituals in IraqIranians have been largely absent from an annual pilgrimage to Baghdad, Iraq, to commemorate the death of Imam Musa al-Kadhim, one of the twelve Shiite imams.Many Iranian pilgrims typically make the journey every year for the annual religious rituals.Streets across Baghdad were crowded with pilgrims Thursday. Most had arrived on foot from central and southern provinces of Iraq, heading toward the shrine of Imam al-Kadhim in the Kadhimiya district in northern Baghdad, Adel Zaidan, who owns a hotel near the shrine, said the number of Iranian visitors this year compared to previous years was very small. Other residents agreed.This visit is different from previous ones. It lacks the large numbers of Iranian pilgrims, especially in terms of providing food and accommodation, said Haider Al-Obaidi.Lufthansa halts night flights to and from Tel Aviv and Amman Europes largest airline group said Thursday it would halt night flights to and from Tel Aviv and Jordans capital Amman for five days, citing security concerns as fears grow that unrest in Iran could spiral into wider regional violence.Lufthansa which operates Swiss, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings said flights would run only during daytime hours from Thursday through Monday due to the current situation in the Middle East. It said the change would ensure its staff which includes unionized cabin crews and pilots -- would not be required to stay overnight in the region.The airline group also said its planes would bypass Iranian and Iraqi airspace, key corridors for air travel between the Middle East and Asia.Iran closed its airspace to commercial flights for several hours early Thursday without explanation. A spokesperson for Israels Airport Authority, which oversees Tel Avivs Ben Gurion Airport, said the airport was operating as usual.State media denies man arrested during recent protests was condemned to deathIranian state media has denied claims that a young man arrested during Irans recent protests was condemned to death. The statement from Irans judicial authorities on Thursday contradicted what it said were opposition media abroad which claimed the young man had been quickly sentenced to death during a violent crackdown on anti-government protests in the country. State television didnt immediately give any details beyond his name, Erfan Soltani. Iranian judicial authorities said Soltani was being held in a detention facility outside of the capital. Alongside other protesters, he has been accused of propaganda activities against the regime, state media said.New Zealand says it is appalled with Iran situationNew Zealands Foreign Minister Winston Peters said Thursday that his government was appalled by the escalation of violence and repression in Iran.We condemn the brutal crackdown being carried out by Irans security forces, including the killing of protesters, Peters posted on X.Iranians have the right to peaceful protest, freedom of expression, and access to information and that right is currently being brutally repressed, he said.Peters said his government had expressed serious concerns to the Iranian Embassy in Wellington.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a joint press conference after a trilateral meeting with Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the Citadel of David Hotel in Jerusalem, Monday Dec. 22, 2025. (Abir Sultan/Pool Photo via AP)2026-01-15T12:15:42Z DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has cast the U.S. announcement that the fragile ceasefire in Gaza would advance to its second phase as largely symbolic, raising questions about how its more challenging elements will be carried out.Speaking late Wednesday with the parents of the last Israeli hostage whose remains are still in Gaza, Netanyahu said the governing committee of Palestinians announced as part of the second phase was merely a declarative move, rather than the sign of progress described by U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff.Israeli police officer Ran Gvilis parents had earlier pressed Netanyahu not to advance the ceasefire until their sons remains were returned, which Israels Hostage and Missing Families Forum said Wednesday.Netanyahu told Gvilis parents that his return remained a top priority. The announcement of the ceasefires second phase marked a significant step forward but left many questions unanswered. Those include the makeup of a proposed, apolitical governing committee of Palestinian experts and an international Board of Peace. The committees composition was coordinated with Israel, said an Israeli official speaking on the condition of anonymity.Questions also include the timing of deployment of international forces and the reopening of Gazas southern Rafah border crossing, as well as concrete details about disarming Hamas and rebuilding Gaza. In an interview on Wednesday with the West Bank-based Radio Basma, Ali Shaath, the engineer and former Palestinian Authority official slated to head the committee, said he anticipated reconstruction and recovery to take roughly three years. He said it would start with immediate needs like shelter.If I bring bulldozers, and push the rubble into the sea, and make new islands (in the sea), new land, it is a win for Gaza and (we) get rid of the rubble, Shaath, a Gaza native, said. Progress announced but hardship enduresPalestinians in Gaza who spoke to The Associated Press questioned what moving into phase two would actually change on the ground, pointing to ongoing bloodshed and challenges securing basic necessities.More than 450 people have been killed since Israel and Hamas agreed to halt fighting in October, Gazas Health Ministry said on Thursday.Those casualties, which UNICEF said include more than 100 children, are among the 71,441 Palestinians killed since the start of Israels offensive, according to the ministry, which does not say how many were fighters or civilians.The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The U.N. and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Israel disputes its figures but has not provided its own.We see on the ground that the war has not stopped, the bloodshed has not stopped, and our suffering in the tents has not ended. Every day there is suffering in the tents, in the rain and the sun, from sun to rain to death, said Samed Abu Rawagh, a man displaced to southern Gaza from Jabaliya. Hamza Abu Shahab, a man from eastern Khan Younis in southern Gaza, said he was waiting for tangible changes, such as easier access to food, fuel and medical care, rather than promises.We were happy with this news, but we ask God that it is not just empty words, he told the AP in Khan Younis. We need this news to be real, because in the second phase we will be able to return to our homes and our areas God willing, it wont just be empty promises.Gazas population of more than 2 million people has struggled to keep cold weather and storms at bay while facing shortages of humanitarian aid and a lack of more substantial temporary housing, which is badly needed during the winter months. This is the third winter since the war between Israel and Hamas started on Oct. 7, 2023, when militants stormed into southern Israel and killed around 1,200 people and abducted 251 others. Challenges lie aheadThe second phase of the ceasefire will confront thornier issues than the first, including disarming Hamas and transitioning to a new governance structure after nearly two decades of the groups rule in the stripThe United Nations has estimated reconstruction will cost over $50 billion. This process is expected to take years and little money has been pledged so far.Hamas has said it will dissolve its existing government to make way for the committee announced as part of the ceasefires second phase. But it has not made clear what will happen to its military arm or the scores of Hamas-affiliated civil servants and the civilian police.Bassem Naim, a member of the groups political bureau, said Thursday that Hamas welcomed the announcement of the committee as a step toward establishing an independent Palestinian state, but did not elaborate on the issues in question. He said on X that the ball is now in the court of the United States and international mediators to allow it to operate. Israel has insisted Hamas must lay down its weapons, while the groups leaders have rejected calls to surrender despite two years of war, saying Palestinians have the right to resist. ___Metz reported from Jerusalem. Josef Federman contributed reporting from Jerusalem. SAM METZ Metz covers Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and points beyond for The Associated Press. mailto

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L.A. is (again) the favorite, but with a month left until spring training, each team has work to do.

Any new detention would not come immediately, and Mr. Khalils lawyers plan to appeal. But the ruling is a major blow to Mr. Khalil, a Columbia graduate and prominent figure in the pro-Palestinian movement.

Bowing to pressure, the company said it would restrict X users from generating explicit images of real people in jurisdictions where such content is illegal.

After nearly two weeks at sea without being able to launch his drone, New York Times photographer Chang W. Lee finally captures Antarctica from the air.

Listen up before you fly.READ MORE...

NCAA logo displayed on the fence before an NCAA softball game between Jacksonville and FGCU, March 24, 2024, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Gary McCullough, File)2026-01-15T15:22:46Z PHILADELPHIA (AP) Federal prosecutors charged 20 people on Thursday, including 15 former college basketball players, in what they called a betting scheme to rig NCAA and Chinese Basketball Association games.Of the defendants, 15 played basketball for Division 1 NCAA schools as recently as the 2024-25 season. The other five defendants were described by authorities as fixers. They include two men who prosecutors say worked in the training and development of basketball players. Another was a trainer and former coach, one was a former NCAA player and two were described as gamblers, influencers and sports handicappers.The charges, filed in federal court in Philadelphia, include wire fraud.In the 70-page indictment, authorities say the fixers recruited the college basketball players with bribe payments usually ranging from $10,000 to $30,000 per game. The indictment follows a series of NCAA investigations that led to at least 10 players receiving lifetime bans this year for bets that sometimes involved their own teams and their own performances. And the NCAA has said that at least 30 players have been investigated over gambling allegations. More than 30 people were also charged in last years sprawling federal takedown of illegal gambling operations linked to professional basketball.

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks at a news conference at Harry Reid International Airport, Nov. 22, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill, File)2026-01-15T14:32:15Z WASHINGTON (AP) U.S. forces in the Caribbean Sea have seized another sanctioned oil tanker the Trump administration says has ties to Venezuela, part of a broader U.S. effort to take control of the South American countrys oil.Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote Thursday on social media, Motor Tanker Veronica had previously passed through Venezuelan waters, and was operating in defiance of President Trumps established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean.A social media post from U.S. Southern Command on the capture said that Marines and sailors launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford to make the capture while Noems post noted that, like in previous raids, a U.S. Coast Guard tactical team conducted the boarding and seizure.Noem posted a brief video that appeared to show part of the ships capture. The black-and-white footage showed helicopters hovering over the deck of a merchant vessel while armed troops dropped down on the deck by rope. The Veronica is the sixth tanker that has been seized by U.S. forces as part of the effort by President Donald Trumps administration to control the production, refining and global distribution of Venezuelas oil products, and the fourth since the U.S. ouster of Venezuela President Nicols Maduro in a surprise nighttime raid almost two weeks ago. Noem, in her social media post, said that the raid was carried out with close coordination with our colleagues in the military as well as the State and Justice departments. Our heroic Coast Guard men and women once again ensured a flawlessly executed operation, in accordance with international law, Noem added.As with prior posts, Noem and the military framed the seizure as part of an effort to enforce the law. Noem argued that the multiple captures show that there is no outrunning or escaping American justice. However, other officials in Trumps Republican administration have made clear they see it as a way to generate cash as they seek to rebuild Venezuelas battered oil industry and restore its economy.Last week, Trump met with executives from oil companies to discuss his goal of investing $100 billion in Venezuela to repair and upgrade its oil production and distribution. His administration has said it expects to sell at least 30 million to 50 million barrels of sanctioned Venezuelan oil.___This story has been corrected to show the Veronica is the fourth, not the third, tanker seized by U.S. forces since Maduros capture.

When an upstart ike Indiana wins, whispers of cheating are inevitable. Maybe they're just better.

The rosters are set, the rink is (mostly) ready. Here are the key players to watch at the 2026 Games.

The midseason rankings include nine new names, including two freshman. Sarah Strong remains No. 1.

Three future Hall of Famers have dominated the conversation. We break down who the king of the hill is for his generation.

Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga has demanded a trade away from Golden State, league sources told ESPN.

The Trump administration has signed $11 billion in agreements with African nations, in deals tied to foreign policy goals.

Since the fatal shooting of Renee Good in Minneapolis, administration officials have defended the use of deadly force, which agency guidelines say should be a last resort.

How a simple catchphrase sums up the presidents theory of executive power.

This week, Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo released fraught earnings reports as President Trumps threatened cap on credit card rates loomed large.