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Spanish officials are throwing up their hands over Donald Trump's contradictory ultimatums on military spending, with the country's top diplomat essentially dismissing the president's chaotic demands as inexplicable, Politico reported Friday.The confusion stems from Trump's erratic behavior at this week's NATO summit in Ankara, where he attacked Spain as a "terrible partner" for refusing to commit to spending 5 percent of its gross domestic product on defense. Then, on Wednesday, the president ordered Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to "cut off all trade with Spain, please, including visits"—a threat that appeared to be in earnest when a U.S. official confirmed Thursday that the Treasury and Commerce Departments were drafting "a menu of Spanish products that may be embargoed in the coming days."Trump then backed down after creating the international incident."I did have issues with Spain, and I still do, but Spain came back all the way today," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, claiming Madrid had "honored a request for lots of payment." He added, "They were very generous today -- you know, I told them I was going to stop trading."Pressed on what happened, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares expressed bewilderment, telling national broadcaster RTVE that he had no idea what Trump was referring to. "Only he can explain," the diplomat said dryly.Politico reported Spanish government officials were still scrambling to make sense of Trump's comments, ultimately concluding he must have been referring to Spain's compliance with existing NATO commitments to spend 2 percent of GDP on defense—not any new spending increases."No, we understand [Trump] was referring to the data showing we've satisfactorily complied with the 2 percent target," a Spanish government spokesperson told Politico.

Innocent man lynched by mob in West Bengal as police killing of suspect further escalates tensionsProtests have engulfed the Indian state of West Bengal after the rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl, the subsequent lynching of an innocent man and the police killing of one of the accused.Outrage erupted on Sunday after the body of a missing girl was recovered from a pond in a town just outside the state capital, Kolkata. Continue reading...

President Donald Trump's boast on Truth Social that his tariff war spurred Toyota to move its Tacoma truck manufacturing operations to the U.S. was drowned in derision by the editorial board of the Wall Street Journal this week.The conservative WSJ board on Thursday rained on Trump's parade by pointing out that the manufacturing move should be celebrated, but, in the larger picture, his tariffs have been a disaster and Americans are still furious."The President is right that his tariffs are at work—in destroying U.S. jobs and raising prices," the editors wrote. "Mr. Trump’s Section 232 national security tariffs on autos and parts have cost $35.2 billion through April of this year, and his steel and aluminum tariffs another $17.5 billion, according to U.S. government data."Since taking office in January, the U.S. has hemorrhaged roughly 75,000 manufacturing positions. More than one-third evaporated directly from the automotive and related parts sectors—the industries Trump claims to be protecting.The board argued the administration's tariff experiment has obliterated American manufacturing. "Mr. Trump and his advisers claim that foreigners pay his border taxes, but the evidence shows that U.S. companies, workers and consumers are picking up most of the tab," the board wrote.Add to that, they asserted Trump is forcing consumers to balk at buying new cars over economic uncertainty."Many are driving clunkers for longer—and paying more for repairs if they break down—or buying used cars," the editorial stated. "New vehicle sales have averaged 15.9 million in the first half of this year, down from the 17 to 18 million in the five years before the pandemic. "When people buy fewer cars, auto makers don’t need as many workers. His trade oscillations and border taxes are a major reason the economy hasn’t performed as well as during his first term, and why Americans are so unhappy."

Eleven reported dead as flooding also brings danger of snakes, while buildings collapse in Mumbai amid heavy rain As the first typhoon to make landfall in China for the 2026 season, Maysak has caused devastating damage in southern and central regions. The Guangxi region received intense downpours of up to 280mm in 12 hours, causing rivers to swell and dam walls to break. By Monday morning, flooding across the city of Nanning and surrounding areas had resulted in many people being stranded on rooftops.Flood waters pose additional threats in China because of the presence of wild and farmed snakes. On Thursday local media reported that hundreds of snakes, including cobras, had escaped from flooded breeding farms. Typhoon Maysak also aided the development of two destructive tornados that swept across central China later on Monday evening. This occurred when warm air from the south, brought up by Typhoon Maysak, collided with cold air in the north. Continue reading...

Florida travelers did not mince words after Palm Beach International Airport was rebranded as the Donald J. Trump International Airport on Thursday.MS NOW interviewed several people at the Florida airport to get their reactions. "I think it's patently absurd that we're spending taxpayer money to rename an airport after a criminal that's sitting in the White House," one traveler said. "I think it's disgusting, ridiculous, pompous and a lot of other bad things," another person said. "I do not like it at all." "I resent that the name is on every institution that we have, this included," another traveler told MS NOW. "I resent that we have to have every institution in this country being named after Donald Trump."Palm Beach is home to Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort.Trump is the first president seeking to trademark an airport. The Trump Organization has filed for trademark rights to the airport. No other sitting president has named an airport or roadway after himself during his current term — most are named after former presidents once they have served their term, and in some cases, after they have died, MS NOW reported.

President Donald Trump may call himself the master of making a deal, but four Wall Street Journal writers think he stinks at writing them. The Journal on Thursday published a stern rebuke of Trump's memorandum of understanding with Iran, arguing a single "poorly worded clause" resulted in the battle for the Strait of Hormuz. "The root of the dispute is Paragraph 5, which says Iran will make arrangements to restore shipping through the strategic waterway and then work with Oman to determine how to administer it in the future," the report states. "But it also includes an Iranian pledge to ensure safe passage and remove military obstacles such as mines." The pledge became a problem because it was open to different interpretations by both sides as the war ramps up again, the Wall Street Journal reporters argued."Trump administration officials saw that clause as unlocking the strait, the main accomplishment of the president’s deal." they wrote. "Iranian hard-liners, however, have used it to push a maximalist interpretation that gives the Islamic Republic exclusive control over the waterway as a key source of leverage."Geopolitical analyst Michael Horowitz agreed with their assessment. "Washington has tried to convince Tehran that compliance would be more profitable, but this framing misses the point," he reportedly said. "Iran's behavior isn't driven by financial motives but by security concerns and bargaining leverage. It's a power dynamic."Now the U.S. faces tough times ahead in the struggle, according to the analysis"Tehran has also repeatedly asserted that it will work out arrangements for future management of the strait with its weaker neighbor across the waterway, Oman," the Journal report stated. "The difficulty coming to terms on opening the Strait of Hormuz points to rough negotiations ahead."

President orders investigation after fictitious body given funding, triggering renewed scrutiny of alleged corruptionA fictitious federal entity that was allocated 1.3bn naira (£700,000) in Nigeria’s 2026 budget has precipitated a political storm in Africa’s largest democracy in the run-up to a general election set for January.The fake agency came to light last October when Femi Gbajabiamila, the president’s chief of staff, wrote to the police alleging that his signature, along with official seals and reference numbers, had been forged by Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, who was claiming to have been appointed by the presidency to head the presidential foreign intervention promotion council (PFIPC). Continue reading...

Lawrence Bishnoi, who is in prison in India, is accused of orchestrating assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in 2023US and Canadian authorities say they have “dismantled” the leadership of a notorious Indian criminal group, charging dozens of operatives who have “inflicted pain and cruelty on people, victims around the globe”, including a high-profile murder in Canada that strained diplomatic relations between Canada and India.At a press conference on Tuesday, members of the FBI and Canada’s Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said as part of Operation Hard Ball – a multiyear federal investigation into murder-for-hire plots, shootings, extortion and drug trafficking – they had charged 37 people, some of whom were already in custody. Authorities are still searching for seven fugitives in the US, two in India and one in Europe. Continue reading...