Desmond Milligan

Iran is facing an intense water crisis, but help could soon come from an unlikely source – provided the "tyrants" are out of power. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a message to the people of Iran just days after Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned against excessive water usage, saying the country is on the brink of severe shortages. The Amir Kabir Dam on the outskirts of Tehran on July 29, 2025. President Masoud Pezeshkian on Sunday warned that parts of Iran face a "serious" water crisis.Here’s What A Post-ayatollah Iran Could Look Like If War With Israel Leads To Regime’s Fall Iran has faced electricity, gas and water shortages during peak-demand months due to mismanagement and overconsumption, according to Reuters. The outlet, citing the semi-official Tasnim news agency, reported that severe shortages could hit the country as soon as next month. "The thirst for water in Iran is only matched by the thirst for freedom," Netanyahu said in a video addressing the people of Iran. Netanyahu compared the regime’s treatment of its citizens to Israel’s struggle against it, saying, "Your dictators impose tyranny and poverty upon you – just as they impose war on us." Read On The Fox News App Netanyahu Calls On Iranian Citizens To Seize 'Opportunity' For Regime Change While he stopped short of explicitly calling for revolution or regime change, the Israeli leader dangled a clear incentive for Iranians to rise up: remove the regime, and Israel will help end the country’s water crisis. "So here is the great news: The moment your country is free, Israel's top water experts will flood into every Iranian city bringing cutting-edge technology and know-how. We will help Iran recycle water; we'll help Iran desalinate water." Iran expert and editor-in-chief of The Foreign Desk Lisa Daftari said Netanyahu's message was "a clear policy signal wrapped in humanitarian aid." "He told them that Israel has the technology, the expertise, and the willingness to end their water crisis, but that this help will flow only when Iran is no longer ruled by the current regime. It was a direct link between political change and tangible improvement in daily life, acknowledging the daily struggles of the Iranian people while putting the responsibility and the opportunity squarely in their hands," Daftari told Fox News Digital. "By tying water to freedom, he’s making the idea of resistance more immediate and personal. It is a nod to the commonalities shared by the Israeli and Iranian people who just want to live normal lives away from radicalism," she added. In June, Israel and Iran fought a 12-day war after Jerusalem acted against Tehran’s nuclear program. The U.S. eventually joined, aiding Israel in destroying nuclear facilities, including Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. Iranian flags fly as fire and smoke from an Israeli attack on Sharan Oil depot rise in Tehran, June 15, 2025.After the war, the Iranian regime intensified its crackdown on civilians. On Tuesday, Reuters reported that Iranian police claimed to have arrested as many as 21,000 people during the conflict. Despite the arrests, there have been no credible reports of mass demonstrations or coup attempts. Netanyahu is not the only one criticizing the Iranian regime; exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi has also condemned its handling of the nation’s water supply. "This regime has driven Iran’s water, land, air, skies, lives, and wealth to the edge of destruction. Iran’s rivers are dry, its soil eroding, its ground sinking, its air polluted, its skies in the hands of foreign forces, its economy in free fall, its people’s homes without water or electricity, and their lives held hostage to the sectarian delusions of an anti-Iranian regime and its foolish leader," Pahlavi wrote on X. In July, Pezeshkian rejected a government proposal to impose a midweek day off or a one-week summer vacation to curb shortages. He said "closing down is a cover-up and not a solution to the water shortage problem," according to Reuters. Original article source: Netanyahu sends message to people of Iran as country faces water crisis View the full article

Prosecutors will take “no further action” against a Florida sheriff's deputy in the arrest of a Black college student pulled from his car and beaten by officers during a February traffic stop. The actions of Officer D. Bowers of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office did not constitute a crime, according to an investigative report released by the State Attorney's Office for the Fourth Judicial Circuit of Florida. A video showing officers punching and dragging William McNeil from his car sparked nationwide outrage, though Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters has said there’s more to the story than the cellphone video that went viral online and that McNeil was repeatedly asked to exit his vehicle. In the investigative memo released Wednesday, prosecutors called the cellphone footage “incomplete in scope" and said Bowers made a lawful traffic stop when he pulled McNeil over and that Bowers' use of force was justified. “The State Attorney’s Office has reviewed this matter to determine whether any of Officer Bowers’ actions constitute a crime. We conclude they do not,” the report reads. According to the report, Bowers stopped McNeil for failing to turn on his headlights and buckle his seatbelt, after seeing his SUV parked outside a house the officer was surveilling for “drug activity.” Based on a review of officer body camera footage, interviews the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office conducted with the officers involved and statements by McNeil, prosecutors said Bowers gave McNeil a dozen “lawful commands," which he disobeyed. After Bowers pulled him over, McNeil questioned the stop and declined to provide his license and registration. Though he earlier had his car door open while talking with an officer, he later closed it and appeared to keep it locked for about three minutes before the officers forcibly removed him, the video shows. “It is the officers’ body-worn camera footage that provides the additional needed context of the circumstances preceding, surrounding, and following McNeil’s arrest," the report reads. A statement from McNeil’s lawyers, Ben Crump and Harry Daniels, called the report clearing the deputy “little more than an attempt to justify the actions of Officer Bowers and his fellow officers after the fact.” Crump is a Black civil rights attorney who has gained national prominence representing victims of police brutality and vigilante violence. “Frankly, we expected nothing less especially after Sheriff Waters announced their conclusions more than three weeks before the report was issued,” the statement said. “Since they are unwilling to seek justice, we will have to request that the U.S. Department of Justice investigate this incident and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.” Previously, Crump has fiercely criticized prosecutors' finding that officers did not commit any criminal wrongdoing, saying his client remained calm while the officers who are trained to deescalate tense situations were the ones escalating violence. Crump said the case harkened back to the Civil Rights movement, when Black people were often attacked when they tried to assert their rights. ___ Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. View the full article

Gov. Andy Beshear said more than 1,900 driver's licensing credentials had been revoked by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet because of irregularities. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Liam Niemeyer) Kentucky’s Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear and Republican Attorney General Russell Coleman say investigators have been looking into a whistleblower’s allegations that immigrants paid temporary contract workers to illegally obtain state driver’s licenses. Louisville TV station WDRB reported Monday a former clerk at a Kentucky driver’s licensing office said co-workers sold, for $200 each, state driver’s licenses to immigrants who couldn’t legally obtain them because they are in the country without permission. The whistleblower, Melissa Moorman, worked at Louisville’s Nia licensing office through the staffing agency Quantam Solutions. Moorman told the TV station she was fired when she reported the scheme to the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC). She filed a lawsuit against the cabinet and Quantum Solutions in April. Beshear in a Wednesday press conference told reporters the cabinet regularly reviews driver’s licensing credential applications and had revoked 1,985 credentials for irregularities. “KYTC immediately contacted law enforcement who are engaged in a criminal investigation, and it includes multiple offices that are both state and federal,” Beshear said. “The revoked credentials, if used, would not work at an airport, would be flagged if pulled over at a traffic stop. We are committed to getting all of the facts and holding anybody who violated the law accountable.” Beshear said all employees involved had been hired through a “temp agency and have been terminated.” When asked if Moorman was fired by the staffing agency Quantam Solutions or the cabinet after reporting the scheme, Beshear said he didn’t have that information and had not read the whistleblower lawsuit complaint. But he also said some statements in the complaint were “not factual.” Coleman, the Republican attorney general, at a roundtable with law enforcement in Shepherdsville on Wednesday said his office had been collaborating with Kentucky State Police and federal officials “for some time now on that investigation.” “The conduct as shared by the whistleblower, has been very concerning that the media has reported on in the last few days,” Coleman said. “It’s a several months-long investigation. It’s been ongoing since long before the media reports of the last couple of days. So that is a very ongoing, very robust investigation at present.” Attorney General Russell Coleman speaks during the Fancy Farm Picnic, Aug 2, 2025. (Austin Anthony for the Kentucky Lantern)The report of the whistleblower lawsuit has sparked calls from Republicans in the state legislature and Republican Auditor Allison Ball for investigations into the whistleblower’s allegations. “If these reports are accurate, this is fundamentally wrong on every level. It’s not just a breakdown in oversight but a betrayal of public trust,” said Sen. Jimmy Higdon, R-Lebanon, in a statement on the allegations. “The Kentucky General Assembly will raise concerns and take every action within our authority to correct this wrong and ensure it never happens again.” Higdon, the chair of the Kentucky Senate Transportation Committee, in his statement referenced previous frustrations Kentuckians have had at regional driver’s licensing offices, which the state legislature established through a law passed in 2020. Previously, circuit court clerks in each county issued driver’s licenses. The 2020 law, signed by Beshear, garnered support and opposition from both parties in the state legislature. Kentuckians have faced long lines at the offices, and another state law went into effect this year requiring drivers to pass a vision test to renew their licenses. Ball, the Republican state auditor, sent a letter Wednesday to Beshear and Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Secretary Jim Gray requesting a formal explanation regarding the allegations, saying she was troubled by reports of an “alleged black market within the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet.” Beshear, responding to a question from a reporter about if undocumented immigrants were receiving fraudulent driver’s licenses, said that it was a part of the investigation. “There are a number of different reasons people might try to get fake identification, and I want to make sure I don’t get in front of the Kentucky State Police in their current investigation,” Beshear said. “But when that’s complete, we look forward to sharing any and all of those facts.” This story was updated to add context regarding the passage of the 2020 law establishing regional driver’s licensing offices. McKenna Horsley contributed to this report. View the full article

Top 10 Minnesota State Fair food vendors ranked by 2024 revenue originally appeared on Bring Me The News. Sweet Martha's Cookie Jar was the highest-grossing food vendor at the Minnesota State Fair in 2024, and once again it wasn't particularly close. The purveyor of hot cookies by the bucket, which operates three locations across the fairgrounds, made $4.9 million in 2024, which was first reported by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal. That's the most it has brought in since the COVID-19 pandemic, topping its $4.6 million in 2023 and $4.5 million in 2022. Sweet Martha'sNicholas Upton, FlickrIn 2019, Sweet Martha's logged a record $5 million in gross sales, per the Minnesota State Fair. That's head and shoulders above the competition. Pronto Pups, which operates eight locations in the fair and regularly comes in second in gross sales, brought in $2.3 million last year. The company brought in almost $2.2 million in 2023 and $1.9 million in 2022. Here are the top 10 food vendors by sales at the 2024 fair: Sweet Martha's Cookie Jar (three locations): $4.9 million Pronto Pups (eight locations): $2.3 million Mouth Trap Cheese Curds (one location): $1.6 million The Perfect Pickle (two locations): $1.5 million Fresh French Fries (two locations): $1.4 million American Dairy Association of the Midwest (two locations): $1.4 million Corn Roast (one location): $1.3 million Que Viet (one location): $1 million Carousel BBQ (one location): $933,000 The Blue Barn (one location): $866,000 Pronto PupsPronto Pups, FacebookMouth Traps' $1.6 million is, according to reported numbers, one of just a few in the top 10 that topped its pre-pandemic numbers. In 2019, it brought in the second most money of all vendors with $1.5 million, per Axios. Three others topped their 2019 numbers, including Fresh French Fries ($1.1 million in 2019), the American Dairy Association ($1.1 million), and Carousel BBQ ($703,400). Of note, The Perfect Pickle has risen to fourth after ranking sixth in 2023 with $1.27 million and eighth the year prior with $928,000. The 2025 Minnesota State Fair will get underway on Thursday, Aug. 21. Related: The 10 new Minnesota State Fair foods we can't wait to try in 2025 This story was originally reported by Bring Me The News on Aug 13, 2025, where it first appeared. View the full article

A federal appeals court has ruled in favor of two medically fragile children from Indiana and their families who are fighting changes made by the state Family and Social Services Administration to a Medicaid waiver program. Indiana Disability Rights and the ACLU of Indiana filed a lawsuit last May alleging that the state's changes to its Health and Wellness Medicaid Waiver program, which impacted parents who were providing paid care to medically complex children, went against the Americans with Disabilities Act. The U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals on Aug. 11 affirmed a district court's prior preliminary injunction in favor of the families who sued. "As the district court concluded, plaintiffs have a high likelihood of succeeding on the merits of their ADA claims," according to the 50-page opinion. "Further, we find no abuse of discretion in the district court's balancing of the equities or its assessment that the public interest is best served by preserving plaintiffs' access to medically necessary care and enforcing federal antidiscrimination law." The decision doesn't apply to the whole state. It means that, for now, the two families can continue to serve as paid providers of "attendant care" for their children, according to a press release from the ACLU. Indiana Disability Rights said in a statement that the court's decision recognized the likelihood that parents would have to make an "unthinkable" decision of placing their child in an institution. “This decision reinforces the understanding that children with complex medical needs are best served when they can remain at home with their families," said Sam Adams, senior attorney for Indiana Disability Rights. "The court found that there are steps that FSSA can and must take to help ensure these children remain safely in their families’ homes.” The lawsuit stems back to the state Medicaid office's discovery in late 2023 that there was a nearly $1 billion budget shortfall, leading it to seek cost-cutting measures. The agency decided it would no longer pay for parents or spouses to care for elderly or disabled loved ones, which is the program referred to as "attendant care." FSSA later moved to a new model that pays service providers a flat daily rate and passes on some of that money to families who care for people. But the new model amounts to a steep pay cut, according to those families. The appeals court decision was, at times, scathing toward the state's arguments in the case. "To state FSSA's argument is to refute it," the decision reads at one point. At another point, the opinion states that the state has "offered only doomsday predictions" that are "difficult to reconcile with the state's apparent willingness to spend the same amount of money or more on other home-based services or to institutionalize plaintiffs and other waiver enrollees." The FSSA didn't immediately reply to IndyStar's request for comment about the impact of the federal court decision. Contact senior government accountability reporter Hayleigh Colombo at [email protected]. This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Federal appeals court rules in favor of families fighting FSSA Medicaid change View the full article

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has not divested certain assets as required under government ethics rules and needs to guard against conflicts of interests in policymaking, the Office of Government Ethics reported has said. In a letter to Senate Finance Committee Chair Mike Crapo dated Monday, OGE Deputy Compliance Director Dale Christopher wrote that Bessent "has failed to timely comply with certain terms of the ethics agreement he signed" before taking office in late January. The ethics office said it told Treasury ethics officials to remind Bessent "that it is his personal responsibility to avoid taking any action that could create a real or apparent conflict of interest with regard to his holdings," the letter said. Bessent, a key figure driving President Donald Trump's economic agenda from tariffs to tax cuts and deregulation, signed an ethics agreement in January that pledged to divest his Key Square Group hedge fund and other assets to avoid conflicts of interest. He was required to meet certain deadlines by April 28. OGE said Bessent amended his ethics agreement on May 2 and June 5, but further amendments were necessary. A U.S. Treasury spokesperson could not immediately be reached for comment. But in a subsequent letter to Crapo on Wednesday, Christopher said that Treasury ethics officials told OGE that Bessent was committed to completing the remaining asset divestitures by December 15, including farmland in North Dakota. Christopher said the Treasury officials had explained that the assets "are illiquid and are not readily marketable." Some assets also have restrictions on who can acquire them and Bessent has been working to divest them since January. Bessent will continue to recuse himself from certain matters affecting the remaining assets, and Treasury's ethics office has set up screening procedures to identify "potentially conflicting matters that would be seen by the Secretary," the letter said. (Reporting by David Lawder; Editing by Cynthia Osterman) View the full article

シドニー五輪出場権を逃した上、韓国にも敗れ、涙顔でコートを後にする（左から）津雲博子、江藤直美、満永ひとみら日本代表選手たち＝東京体育館で2000年6月25日、岩下幸一郎撮影 　自分が思ったことは曲げない。野球になると特にそうだ。その半面、意外と「おバカちゃん」なタイプでもあるという。 　かつて「世界ナンバーワンリベロ」と称された母が語る、仙台育英（宮城）のエース左腕・吉川陽大（あきひろ）投手（3年）の素顔だ。 「仏頂面だけど……」 　6日にあった鳥取城北との1回戦。吉川投手は持ち味のキレのあるスライダーを生かし、12奪三振で完封した。 　その様子を、母の博子さん（54）は三塁側のアルプス席でうれしそうに見つめていた。それまでなかなか息子の試合を見に行く機会はなかった。 　「周りの守備も頑張ってくれている。みんなが陽大をもり立ててくれているのかなと思います」 　博子さん（旧姓・津雲）はバレーボール女子日本代表のリベロとして、1998年の世界選手権などに出場。世界大会で個人タイトルを獲得し、「世界ナンバーワンリベロ」と称された。父の正博さん（62）も、女子日本代表の監督などを務めた。 　吉川投手は幼い頃、両親の影響を受けてバレーに興味を持っていた。両親のバレー教室に参加することもあった。 　ただ、博子さんは、バレーをやらせようとは思わなかったという。 　「同じ競技で結果が… View the full article

攻守でチームを支える仙台市・JR東日本東北の浦林祐佑内野手＝仙台市民球場で2025年6月28日、渡部直樹撮影 　28日に開幕する第96回都市対抗野球大会。全国12地区の厳しい予選を突破してきた代表チームの主役候補を紹介します。 　8回目は東北第1代表で5年連続31回目出場、仙台市・JR東日本東北の浦林祐佑内野手（23）。前回大会でチームが初の決勝進出を果たした刺激的なルーキーイヤーを糧に、成長を遂げた2年目の若手に注目しました。 　都市対抗野球大会の出場チームの主役候補を紹介する過去の記事は以下から読めます 　突然肩が上がらず…けが乗り越え最速150キロに　ENEOS・阿部雄大 　「芯を外しても飛ぶ」パワーアップした4番　SUBARU・外山優希 　「社会人で認められたい」　JFE西日本の20歳、田中多聞が抱く情熱 「長打が一本あれば…」 　走攻守3拍子そろった遊撃手。堅実な守備力に定評があるが、注目は確実性の高い打撃だ。 　「打てるイメージが去年よりもあって、打撃に自信がついてきました」。2年目の今季でつかんだ手応えをそう語る。 　東北2次予選では、全3試合で3番を担い、チーム最多の計7安打をマークした。七十七銀行との準決勝では5打数3安打と活躍。TDKとの第1代表決定戦では全打席で出塁し、3打数3安打でチームを勢いづけて優秀選手賞を獲得した。 　西村亮監督は「今年はチームを引っ張っていかなきゃい… View the full article

　ロシアの侵攻を受けるウクライナと欧米各国の首脳は13日、オンライン会合を開いた。主催したメルツ独首相らによると、ウクライナと欧州側は、米露首脳会談を15日に控えるトランプ米大統領に対し、ウクライナの領土を巡る協議の前に停戦を優先させることなどを求めた。ウクライナ抜きで領土交渉を行わないことも確認したという。 　トランプ氏は会合後、ワシントンで演説し、会合について「とても良かった」と述べた。米露ウクライナの3首脳による会談の実現にも意欲を示した。 Advertisement 　ロシアは停戦の条件として、ウクライナ東部ドンバス地域（ルハンスク、ドネツク両州）からのウクライナ軍の撤退を求めているとされる。一方、ウクライナのゼレンスキー大統領はこの要求を拒否し、欧州各国と共に、米露首脳が頭越しにロシアに有利な条件で交渉を進めることを警戒している。 　ロイター通信によると、会合に参加したフィンランドのストゥブ大統領は「（米露首脳会談では）領土は議題にならないことをトランプ氏が示唆した」と明らかにした。 【ロンドン福永方人】 View the full article

中国は原発の建設を加速している＝中国浙江省・三門県で2025年7月 　7月上旬、中国東部の浙江省。東シナ海を望む半島の町・三門（サンメン）県にある三門原発で、巨大な原子炉の建設が進んでいた。海沿いに太陽光パネルが並んでいる。 　広大な敷地には、オフィス棟のほか中国原発史の展示棟、食堂やレクリエーション施設もあり、従業員らであふれかえっていた。 　近くで飲食店を営む男性は「昔は小さな漁村だったが、原発で発展した」と満足げに話した。 　「三門は優れた地理的条件を持っている。原発建設を加速すべきだ」。2003年5月、当時、浙江省トップの書記だった習近平国家主席はこの地を視察に訪れ、そう述べている。 　三門原発では米ウェスチングハウス（WH）製の原子炉「AP1000」を導入。09年に1、2号機が着工し、18年に商業運転を始めた。22、23年に3、4号機が着工、今年4月には5、6号機の建設が認可された。習氏の言葉通り、まさに原発ラッシュの様相だ。 30年には米仏抜いて世界一 　中国で商用原発が営業運転を始めたのは1994年で、日本や欧米よりも後発。フランスや米国から原子炉を輸入しつつ、国内で自主開発も並行してきた。 　12年発足の習指導部は原発をエネルギー政策の根幹に据え、14～23年の10年間で新たに38基が運転を始めた。この間に世界で稼働した67基のうち、実に6割近くを中国が占める。今年4月には三門原発を含めて新たに5カ所10基、総投資額2000億元（約4兆円）のプロジェクトが認可された。 　見据えるのは世界一の原発大国だ。4月下旬に公表された「中国原子力発展報告書」によると、中国の商業運転中の原発は24年末時点で57基、総設備容量は5976万キロワットと米国、フランスに次いで世界3位。計画通りなら… View the full article

　歌手のマルシア（56）が13日放送のフジテレビ「ぽかぽか」（月〜金曜前11・50）にゲストとして生出演。大物芸能人の「カチンとなった」一言を明かした。 　番組ではゲストの「ブチギレ」エピソードを紹介。マルシアは「当時、私相当バラエティとかテレビ出させていただいている頃で、はっきり言って申し訳ないんですが、誰も私のことを知らない人はいないわけです。そのくらいピークなマルシアだったので」と冗談を交えて回想。 　「ある大物芸能人に…その方は私より年上でございますが、テレビに出始めた頃でございまして。堺正章さんの司会の番組で、ホテルで（収録を）やってみんなテーブルで座っているわけ。大きいテーブルに芸能人がわーっているんだけど、その方から“誰この子”って（言われた）」と告白し、「そこでカチンとなって。私のこと知らないの？って思って、そこから番組つまらなくて。もう（番組に）参加してない」と明かした。 　「誰この子」の言葉をマルシアが声真似したことで、MCの「ハライチ」澤部佑は「なんとなく分かっちゃいました」と苦笑い。相方の岩井勇気は「誰？誰？」と聞いたが、マルシアは「それはいいから。言えないから大物芸能人ってしてるの」と明かさなかった。 　さらに「（その後）何度か共演させていただいて、ある時、“あの時はね…”って言われた。そういうことはございました」と弁明されたことも明かした。 View the full article

元国民的タレント中居正広氏（52）の電撃引退からまもなく7カ月。引退の引き金となったフジテレビの元女性アナウンサー（以下、Aさん）のトラブルをめぐり、8月6日配信の「週刊文春電子版」ならびに7日発売の「週刊文春」で新たな展開がもたらされた。 「3月31日にフジテレビが設置した第三者委員会が公表した調査報告書では、トラブルが’23年6月に発生し、Aさんに対する中居氏の『性暴力』があったことがWHO（世界保健機関）の定義に基づいて認定されました。 詳細は双方の守秘義務の範囲のため伏せられていますが、中居氏の代理人弁護士は5月12日、『「性暴力」という⽇本語から一般的に想起される暴力的または強制的な性的行為の実態は確認されませんでした』とし、同委員会に対して証拠の開示を要求。同委員会はこれを拒否し続けていますが、以降、中居氏サイドは7月までに5回の反論を行ってきました。 今回の『文春』の記事では、《被害内容が記された通知書を入手》と題した記事が公開。この通知書は中居氏の事務所宛で、Aさんの代理人弁護士の名前と、印鑑が押印されているといいます。記事は、この通知書の内容を元に、Aさんが被害を相談していた友人や関係者への取材をもとに、’23年6月2日の夜に起こったとされるトラブルを再現するという内容です。 いっぽう、中居氏サイドは報道直後に発表した声明で、通知書を《出所⾃体や真偽も不明なもの》としたうえで、《『不同意性交等罪に該当しうる性暴力であり、不法行為』等をはじめとした記載は、当職らの認識とは大きく異なるものです。また、当時を再現したかのような描写も、同様に異なるものです》などと反論しています」（スポーツ紙記者） 報じられた「通知書」の真偽は現時点で定かではないが、第三者委員会と中居氏サイドの応酬は収束するどころか、激しさを増している。今回の報道に端を発し、SNSでも中居氏とAさんのトラブルが一段と関心を集めているが、文春以外にも、“独自の情報”を持っていることを仄めかしてきた人物がいる。元大阪府知事で弁護士の橋下徹氏（56）だ。 橋下氏といえば、5月14日放送の情報番組『旬感LIVE　とれたてっ！』（関西テレビ）で、調査報告書が公表されてから、中居氏の代理人弁護士以外の関係者に「助言した」と報告。そして、トラブルについて、「ちょっと把握しています。みんな、『これ性暴力なの？』って感じる人も多くなると思います」と違和感を語ると、「当日の状況を見てもらえれば、これだけ性暴力だとか、少なくともこれだけ社会的制裁を受けるような話ではないと感じる人も僕はすごく増えると思う」と主張した。 そのほか、「公表するかは別」としたうえで、「中居さんは当日の事実を全部しゃべりたいっていう気持ちがある」と告白していた。 この放送以降も、橋下氏は他のメディアでも、第三者委員会の調査報告書の内容に異議を申し立てたり、「関係者から聞いている限りだと、中居さんは女性を傷つけたくないから、裁判まではやらない」と話すなど、中居氏に対して“擁護的な”スタンスとして知られていた。 トラブルに関する橋下氏の発言はたびたび注目を集めていたが、6日の文春報道を含めて、ここ最近、SNSやメディアでの中居氏に関して言及する機会はめっきり減っている。そんななか、ある“異変”が起こっていたという。 「5月14日放送の『旬感LIVE　とれたてっ！』で橋下氏が発言していた場面は、関西テレビの公式YouTubeチャンネル『カンテレNEWS』でも公開され、同局の公式サイトにも動画が転載されていました。ところが、文春の報道があった翌日の8月7日までに、動画が閲覧できない状態になっていたんです。いつ削除されたのかは不明ですが、橋下氏が中居氏のトラブルに端を発するフジテレビの一連の問題を解説した他の動画はまだ残っているのに、なぜこの動画がピンポイントで削除されたのでしょうか」（前出・スポーツ紙記者） そこで本誌は関西テレビに、削除した理由や経緯などについて問い合わせたところ、「ニュース動画配信の詳細は、お答えしておりません」と回答が寄せられた。 View the full article

ST. LOUIS – An arrest warrant has been issued for a Shiloh, Illinois, man for a high-speed chase that began on the Illinois side of the Mississippi River and ended in north St. Louis. According to the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department’s probable cause statement, the chase happened on March 24 and began in Granite City, Illinois. Police said Michael Avery, 34, crossed the McKinley Bridge into St. Louis City and drove north. How an informant sent the St. Louis Mafia to jail Avery spun his vehicle around at North Broadway and Calvary Avenue to face pursuing officers. Police said he rammed through police vehicles and escaped. Avery’s vehicle was later found abandoned, with his fingerprints and ID inside. Police said Avery had run from the scene, but officers were able to identify him in a photo lineup. The St. Louis Circuit Attorney’s Office charged Avery with first-degree assault, armed criminal action, and leaving the scene of an accident. The warrant stipulates Avery be held without bond. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2. View the full article

The Virginia National Guard will mobilize 60 soldiers and airmen to provide statewide logistics and administrative support to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, with training to begin later this month. The Guardsmen will not conduct law enforcement operations nor make arrests, the Virginia National Guard stated in an Aug. 8 release. They will be providing manpower to ICE in terms of answering phones, data entry, basic vehicle maintenance, biometric collection and other clerical duties. “[Virginia National Guard] Soldiers and Airmen will report directly to ICE leadership at their assigned duty locations but remain under the control and direction of the Virginia Governor and Adjutant General of Virginia,” the release noted. The 60 service members will conduct training this month and are expected to be on duty as of early September, although this timeline is liable to change, the release said. “It’s logistics and administration and processing, not the field stuff ICE enforcement does,” Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin told reporters, according to a report by WHRO. “I believe strongly that the role of the Virginia National Guard is not law enforcement in this case, it’s to support the administrative side of things.” National Guard troops serve under the authority of their respective state governors, with few exceptions to this rule. In July, the Defense Department announced that Guard units supporting ICE would do so under Title 32 status, meaning that, although their role is being federally funded, the Guardsmen will remain under the control of their state governors. “Through active planning and collaboration with our ICE partners, the Department determined that specific operational needs may require direct interaction with individuals in ICE custody,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said in a July 25 statement. “This led to a reevaluation of DoD military personnel duty status, with Title 32 status providing the necessary authorities for these tasks.” Although levels of current National Guard support to ICE are unprecedented, the Guard has actively cooperated with law enforcement agencies across different states for decades performing non-law enforcement related tasks. The California National Guard, for example, has a robust counter-drug task force in which Guardsmen provide logistical support to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, including as backup to CBP at international ports of entry, which has been strongly supported by California Gov. Gavin Newsom. Similar task forces exist in other states, such as Colorado, where the Guard supports law enforcement with analysis, transportation, communications and other duties. These task forces have enabled law enforcement to perform separate functions while Guard troops provide manpower in basic clerical and mechanical tasks. The Virginia National Guard’s announcement comes as governors in other states, including Florida, have begun the process of mobilizing Guard troops to provide logistical support to ICE. The call-up of Guard troops is occurring amid a shift in approach towards ICE support at the Pentagon. In early July, 200 Marines deployed to Florida to provide support to ICE, Military Times previously reported. However, those troops, in addition to Navy Reserve personnel, have since been withdrawn by the Defense Department. View the full article

Two men got trapped in a boat filled with water at the edge of a waterfall in Oregon, deputies said. Multiple people called 911 at about 3 p.m. Aug. 8 to report the stranded men on the Santiam River near Mill City, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post. When rescuers got to the river, they saw the men “standing on the bow of a submerged drift boat pinned between rocks at the top edge of the falls,” deputies said. The teams used rescue boats below the falls to reach the men in the fast-moving river and then brought them to the shoreline, deputies said. They were both uninjured, deputies said, and they had been wearing life jackets at the time of the rescue. The pair was out on the drift boat that day when they took a wrong path on the river, causing the “nose of the boat” to “hit the rocks,” the sheriff’s office told McClatchy News on Aug. 13 by email. Drift boats are often used for fly fishing. “Rivers can change quickly, and hazards like waterfalls, submerged rocks, and strong currents can be dangerous even for experienced boaters,” deputies said in the post. Mill City is about a 30-mile drive southeast from Salem. Cries for help lead to dad and son struggling in Wisconsin river. ‘Very lucky’ Injured hiker heard yelling for 45 minutes on dangerous mountain pass, WA cops say ‘I’m still here.’ Teen survives 240-foot ravine fall and coma after MO accident View the full article

Andrew Abood, the attorney for Sandra Baxter, addresses Ingham County Circuit Court Judge James Jamo on June 17, 2025 where Baxter officially entered a plea deal offered by the Michigan Department of Attorney General in the Unlock Michigan dark money case. | Photo by Ben Solis Sandra Baxter, one of two individuals charged in the wake of the Unlock Michigan scandal, was sentenced Wednesday after accepting a plea deal from the Michigan Department of Attorney General. While Baxter was initially charged with perjury, she pled guilty in June to a lesser charge of knowingly providing a false or misleading statement to a police officer during a criminal investigation, a misdemeanor charge. Circuit Judge James Jamo sentenced Baxter to three months of reporting probation, 20 hours of community service and a $2,500 fine — the highest amount permitted by law. Baxter raised money for the Michigan! My Michigan! fund tied to former Michigan Senate Majority Leader Mike Shirkey (R-Clarklake), where authorities say she funneled funds to support the Unlock Michigan campaign committee, which aimed to repeal the emergency powers Gov. Gretchen Whitmer utilized during the COVID-19 pandemic. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX “For too long, dark money has operated in the shadows of Lansing with little accountability,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said in a statement Wednesday. “The Unlock Michigan investigation shed light on corruption in campaign finance that was long considered common practice. Fair elections depend on transparency and honesty, and attempts to skirt the system or mislead law enforcement and the people of Michigan will not be tolerated.” Baxter was accused of lying to investigators about the extent of her fundraising efforts for the fund, with the Department of Attorney General alleging she was given an opportunity to correct her statements under oath, and chose not to. Baxter was charged alongside Heather Lombardini, the head of Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility – also tied to Shirkey – and treasurer for the Michigan! My Michigan! fund. Lombardini faces charges of forgery and uttering and publishing, allegedly encouraging wealthy business people and political funds tied to large businesses to donate to Michigan Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility with the intention of moving that money to support Unlock Michigan’s signature gathering efforts. View the full article

Two South Texas bakery owners are guilty of concealing and harboring employees in the U.S. illegally, a jury found Wednesday afternoon following a trial that only lasted three days. Leonardo Baez and Nora Avila-Guel, a Mexican couple who have legal permanent residence in the U.S., were charged after being arrested at their bakery along with eight employees in February. It's a rare case in which business owners are charged with criminal offenses rather than just a fine. Six of the employees had visitor visas, and two were in the country illegally. None had permission to work in the U.S. Employees lived in a room with six beds and shared two bathrooms in the same building as the bakery, according to the federal affidavit. Baez and Avila-Guel were tried this week in Brownsville, a border city about a 20 minutes’ drive southeast of their Los Fresnos bakery. The jury heard from five government witnesses, including an agent who was present during the raid, before U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez, Jr. The defense presented no witnesses. Videos of the interviews with the two employees in the country without visas or work authorization were played during the trial. Both employees said they were not held against their will and were compensated for their work, according to local reporting. Baez and Avila-Guel were allowed to return to work while they awaited trial. When they reopened their bakery in April, the business had a steady stream of customers return to lend their support. They will continue to be released on bond until their sentencing, which is scheduled for November. View the full article

Current Boston Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck will no longer serve as lead governor following the team's $6.1 billion sale, ESPN's Shams Charania reported Tuesday. New owner Bill Chisholm, a managing partner at Symphony Technology Group, will assume the title of lead governor. One day after the revelation, the NBA announced its board of governors had unanimously approved the sale of the team. It's unclear whether the move is a change from the previously reported plan. When reports of the team's sale to Chisholm emerged in May, it was announced Grousbeck would remain the team's governor for three more seasons before handing things over to Chisholm. "[Chisholm] has asked me to run the team as CEO and Governor for the first three years, and stay on as his partner, and I am glad to do so," Grousbeck's statement read at the time. [Subscribe to Yahoo Fantasy Plus and get premium draft tools and player projections] There's enough ambiguity there to suggest this may have always been the plan. Grousbeck's original statement doesn't mention "lead governor," but does mention he would stay on as a partner for a few years. It sounds like that will still be the case. Grousbeck is giving up his "lead governor" title, but will remain the team's alternate governor and CEO through 2028. When the sale was announced in May, Grousbeck had nothing but good things to say about Chisholm, calling him a "terrific person and a true Celtics fan." Grousbeck, with the help of an investment firm, purchased the Celtics for $360 million in 2002. He served as the team's CEO and lead governor most recently. To the surprise of many, Grousbeck announced in 2024 that he was looking to sell his majority stake in the team. The announcement came just weeks after the Celtics defeated the Dallas Mavericks to win the NBA championship. It didn't take too long for a deal to come together. Months later, Grousbeck announced the franchise's sale to Chisholm. The sale was announced for $6.1 billion, a North American record at the time. View the full article

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歐洲超級盃周三（8月13日）在意大利舉行，由歐聯盟主巴黎聖日耳門（PSG）對陣歐霸盃冠軍熱刺。首度出戰歐洲超級盃的熱刺，在領先兩球下被追平，兩軍在法定90分鐘打成2：2， 靠互射12碼分勝負。結果由PSG在互射12碼階段以4：3逆轉勝。 2025年8月13日，歐洲超級盃賽事，羅美路（Cristian Romero）在下半場取得入球。（Getty Images）上半場39分鐘，雲迪尹（Micky van de Ven）為熱刺先開紀錄，助半場領先1：0。換邊後，羅美路（Cristian Romero）於第48分鐘接應柏度樸路（Pedro Porro）傳球破網，助熱刺擴大領先優勢。 2025年8月13日，歐洲超級盃賽事，雲迪尹（Micky van de Ven）入球，為熱刺為先開紀錄。（Getty Images）PSG於臨完場前的第85分鐘破蛋，由李康仁建功。至補時4分鐘，干卡路（Goncalo Ramos）在奧士文尼迪比利（Ousmane Dembele）助攻下，於關鍵時刻頭槌頂入，扳平對手2：2。 2025年8月13日，歐洲超級盃賽事，李康仁取得入球，助巴黎聖日耳門（PSG）破蛋。（Getty Images）歐超盃｜熱刺中場比蘇馬因一理由被踢出名單　主帥法蘭克親自解畫法甲｜當拿隆馬自行宣布離開PSG　安歷基稱獲球會全力支持歐洲波精選｜歐洲超級盃撼熱刺　巴黎聖日耳門慢功出「細」貨金球獎30強名單公布　巴黎聖日耳門成大戶　麥湯米尼驚喜入圍足球｜拜仁大勝熱刺　哈利卡尼12碼跣腳　回應舊拍檔孫興慜離隊 View the full article

L'incident en approche à Nice, le 18 août 2023, au cours duquel un A380 d'Emirates (vol EK77) a connu un dysfonctionnement attribué initialement à une collision aviaire ou avec un drone, vient d'être traité dans un rapport publié par le BEA. En approche face à l'est, à 3 500 pieds d'altitude et 212 nœuds, à quelque 15 kilomètres au large du cap d'Antibes, le pilote en surveillance sélectionne la configuration 1 des volets pour préparer l'atterrissage à Nice. Les pilotes entendent alors un bruit sourd, suivi de légères vibrations. Aucun signal d'alarme ne se déclenche et l'appareil se pose normalement. Une fragilité structurelleUne collision avec des oiseaux ou un drone est d'abord envisagée. Mais l'inspection au sol révèle un important dommage sur le bec de bord d'attaque n° 2 de l'aile droite : les revêtements supérieurs et inférieurs du bord de fuite sont déchirés sur près des deux tiers de la pièce et la structure en nid d'abeille est partiellement manquante. L'absence de plumes ou de débris écarte la thèse de l'impact en vol. L'enquête du BEA met en évidence un défaut de collage préexistant entre les revêtements et le noyau en nid d'abeille, ayant fragilisé la structure. « L'enquête a établi que cet endommagement n'est pas la conséquence d'une collision en vol », précise le rapport, ajoutant que l'incident n'a eu « aucune conséquence sur la sécurité du vol ». Des simulations Airbus ont confirmé que l'endommagement n'avait pas affecté la sécurité ni les pe [...] Lire la suite View the full article

An influential group of House Republicans has invited a chief architect of the hard-right push for deep Medicaid spending cuts to brief congressional aides Thursday as GOP leaders quietly map out a possible second party-line reconciliation package. Brian Blase, president of the Paragon Health Institute, will address a staff briefing on health care reform hosted by the Republican Study Committee, according to an invitation obtained by POLITICO. The RSC, composed of 189 House conservatives, has been a key force pushing for a follow-on to President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” that was signed into law last month. The group has invited several conservative experts to address staffers in recent weeks though it has yet to endorse any specific health care policies for any forthcoming package. Those staff-level meetings continue as House GOP leaders try to plot a way forward amid skepticism over whether another sprawling domestic policy bill is even possible given the difficulties Republicans had coming to agreement over the first one. House leaders discussed the topic with GOP chairs right before the chamber left for August recess, according to two Republicans granted anonymity to discuss the private gathering, tasking them with compiling lists of possible spending cuts and other ideas. What policies might be addressed in a second package is far from settled, though some House GOP factions are discussing further slashing Medicaid as well as possibly targeting Medicare funding. Blase was allied with conservative hard-liners earlier this year in pushing for significant cuts to Medicaid in the first GOP package. He was the initial author of a letter arguing for “structural” changes to the program that Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and 19 other hard-right members later sent to their House Republican colleagues. An RSC spokesperson declined to comment on Thursday’s briefing. But a person granted anonymity to discuss plans in advance said the meeting is set to cover enhanced tax credits for Affordable Care Act health insurance premiums, which are due to expire at the end of the year, as well as rules governing the percentage of Medicaid expenditures covered by the federal government and reimbursed to states. The briefing will also cover the 340B drug discount program; proposals to even out Medicare payments for outpatient services, known as “site neutral” payments; plans for expanding tax-advantaged Health Savings Accounts for medical expenses; and arrangements that allow employers to reimburse employees for insurance premiums and medical expenses with pre-tax dollars. Blase, who did not respond to a request for comment, served on the White House National Economic Council during Trump’s first term. He and other conservative health wonks launched Paragon in 2021, and it has rapidly gained influence in GOP policy circles. Former Paragon staffers are now top health aides to Speaker Mike Johnson and President Donald Trump. Blase will be joined by two other Paragon officials at the RSC briefing: Demetrios Kouzoukas, who is the director of Paragon’s Medicare Reform Initiative, and Gabrielle Minarik, a program manager. Kouzoukas, a former executive in UnitedHealth’s Medicare arm, also served as chief executive of the Medicare program at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services during the first Trump administration. While Republicans reaped hundreds of billions of dollars of cuts from Medicaid in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, they stopped short of the more ambitious changes that Blase and conservative lawmakers have advocated. Now, even senior Republicans acknowledge their options for new spending offsets are drastically limited, and both Medicaid and Medicare are likely to emerge as tempting targets as talks proceed. “It’s clear we’re scraping the bottom of the barrel for cuts,” said one Republican with direct knowledge of the early conversations around a second GOP-only package. But any push to further slash federal health care spending — let alone the politically explosive issue of Medicare changes — is likely to be met by fierce pushback by vulnerable House Republicans as well as some more conservative-leaning members. Some Senate Republicans, meanwhile, are deeply skeptical a second reconciliation package would have enough support to pass — especially absent a major, unifying centerpiece akin to the tax cuts embedded in the first package. Rep. Mike Flood (R-Neb.), chair of the business-friendly Main Street Caucus, recently warned there would be “severe pushback” to pursuing deeper Medicaid cuts in a second reconciliation bill. Flood said his group of 83 House Republicans supported implementing Medicaid work requirements and SNAP food aid changes in the first bill — savings that have now essentially been exhausted. Even House GOP leaders are unsure where Republicans will be able to successfully push through another party-line package this fall. A major fight over government funding looms, as well as the expiration of the ACA tax credits — which could lead to drastic hikes in some Americans’ health insurance premiums. View the full article

Ahead of Donald Trump’s scheduled meeting with Russia’s Vladimir Putin in Alaska this week, The New York Times appeared to give the American president something new to talk about with this Russian counterpart. The Times reported that U.S. investigators have uncovered evidence that Russia “is at least partly responsible for a recent hack of the computer system that manages federal court documents, including highly sensitive records with information that could reveal sources and people charged with national security crimes.” The report, which has not been independently verified by MSNBC or NBC News, went on to note that administrators with the court system recently informed Justice Department officials, clerks and chief judges in federal courts that “persistent and sophisticated cyber threat actors have recently compromised sealed records.” Those with sensitive documents within the system have apparently been advised to quickly remove them. The internal memo to Justice Department officials and staffers from the courts system, according to the Times, added: “This remains an URGENT MATTER that requires immediate action.” This was, in other words, a rather serious cyberoffensive. The day after the Times’ account was published, a reporter asked Trump about the story, and as CNBC reported, the Republican didn’t appear to care. President Donald Trump on Wednesday shrugged off a question about a new report that Russia is at least partially responsible for hacking the electronic system that manages U.S. federal court case documents. ‘Are you surprised?’ Trump said during a press event at the Kennedy Center, in Washington, D.C. ‘They hack in, that’s what they do,’ he said about Russia. After noting that he “could” bring this up during his scheduled talks with Putin, Trump added that Russian cyberattackers are “good at it.” In other words, there’s reason to believe a foreign adversary launched an offensive targeting highly sensitive U.S. court records, including cases related to national security — and when asked about this, the American president shrugged with indifference. Trump could’ve at least offered some kind of half-hearted condemnation, but he couldn’t bring himself to bother. The developments came on the heels of Trump backing off threatened sanctions on Russia — for the fifth time — and extending an invitation to Putin to come to American soil, giving the accused war criminal the validation he was looking for. It also follows the American president urging G7 leaders to reward Putin by welcoming him back into the international group, while blaming G7 members for having hurt Russia’s feelings. Trump often wonders why his critics accuse him of being weak on Russia, but it’s really not that complicated. This article was originally published on MSNBC.com View the full article

“This administration will preside over the largest transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich in history.” Molly Jong-Fast explains why constituents at Republican town halls across the country are furious at their representatives. Although GOP lawmakers don’t seem worried, Jong-Fast says they “should be” as new analysis from the CBO of Trump’s megabill proves a historic transfer of wealth from the poor to the rich. View the full article