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Nov 5, 2026 - World

A federal judge warned the Trump administration she would start contempt proceedings if it deported Iranian detainees without first notifying her court, according to court records unsealed Thursday that reveal secret U.S. talks with Iran about deportations during the war, the Associated Press reported.“We are at war with a country where the President of the United States has said, as recently as two or three days ago, if not yesterday, that it is essentially lawless,” U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes said at the Oct. 15 hearing, pointing to Trump’s own accusation that Iran had killed tens of thousands of protesters.Reyes then asked whether the administration still planned to send people back to a country the U.S. was bombing, where she said they faced “a serious threat of certain death.”“Yes, your honor,” DOJ lawyer Dimitar Georgiev-Remmel replied. “The government is executing lawful orders of removal.”Reyes required the administration to alert the court when deportation plans are finalized and give five days’ written notice before carrying them out. In a filing Wednesday, the DOJ argued the threat of sanctions effectively turned the notice requirement into an injunction, according to the report.The Iranian American Legal Defense Fund, which brought the lawsuit, said Thursday Iranian consular officials had told at least 12 ICE detainees in the past week that they would be flown to Iran through Pakistan. The group said U.S. immigration authorities had given those detainees nothing in writing.The lawsuit alleges that U.S. immigration officials shared confidential information about Iranian asylum seekers with Tehran. The Department of Homeland Security has denied sharing asylum application records with Iran."Activists abroad have expressed concern about deportees returning to Iran, whose theocracy has been cracking down on intellectuals and where the government vociferously cracks down on any dissent," the AP reported Thursday.

Nov 5, 2026 - World

First lady Melania Trump faced a torrent of outrage after lavishing praise on a Kremlin official whose past has haunted Ukrainian families.Melania Trump hosted Russian and Ukrainian representatives at the White House on Thursday, where she thanked Russian human rights commissioner Yana Lantratova, saying her "dedication brings hope and dignity to those devastated by war," according to a video posted by journalist Aaron Rupar.Ukraine's security service accused Lantratova in 2024 of helping deport children from occupied Kherson to Russia, the Ukrainian news outlet Babel reported.The gathering followed a humanitarian ceasefire in the occupied city of Oleshky that the White House credited Melania with helping broker, the Associated Press noted.BBC local radio correspondent Euan MacDonald laid out the international penalties and Ukrainian charges Lantratova faces, asking if Melania was seriously thanking Lantratova, "who is under international sanctions by the EU, US, UK, and other nations, and who has been charged in absentia in Ukraine for her alleged role in facilitating the unlawful transfer and deportation of Ukrainian children from occupied territories to Russia?""What a disgusting spectacle," MacDonald blasted. "Shame on America."Nicolas Tenzer, a French foreign policy expert, similarly pointed out that Melania was "praising a person sanctioned by the EU, the UK, Ukraine...and the US for her active role in the deportation and forced russification of Ukrainian kids."Former U.S. ambassador Luis Moreno echoed the ire, lamenting, "You know, all kidding aside. FLOTUS not only invited this war criminal who kidnaps Ukrainian children to Russia, into the White House, but she's honoring and praising her. Beyond disgusting."Branislav Slantchev, a political science professor at the University of California San Diego, turned his fire toward the Trump administration for cozying up to Moscow."This entire f— administration is trying to normalize relations with the war criminals who created the humanitarian disaster these two are now 'solving,'" Slantchev railed.Retired NASA astronaut Terry Virts, a former International Space Station commander who now comments on politics, declared that "the Trump family and MAGA admiration of Russia and Putin is one of the most disgusting episodes in American history."

Nov 5, 2026 - World

First lady Melania Trump hosted a White House event on a Russian-occupied city’s ceasefire without mentioning President Donald Trump, the Daily Beast reported.The Thursday gathering marked a temporary, localized truce in Oleshky that ended Nov. 1. The Daily Beast reported it let humanitarian aid reach the city and covered the departure of roughly 800 people across six days, and the event came as the president has not made good on his claim that he could end the war in Ukraine on his first day back in office.Melania Trump said she was involved at each stage of what she called a “sophisticated ceasefire,” including reviewing roads and evacuation routes. The Beast said she learned of the crisis in September and served as the sole go-between.Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev credited her with a key coordinating role and said Vladimir Putin personally issued the needed instructions. He added that Putin appreciates the president’s peacemaking effort. Ukrainian politician David Arakhamia praised her work, and ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets gave her the Order of Princess Olga, 1st Class, on behalf of President Volodymyr Zelensky.She said the truce would not have happened without Putin or Zelensky and that their cooperation sets a “meaningful precedent.” She gave officials letters to carry to both leaders.Nobody in the room acknowledged Putin’s invasion caused the crisis, The Beast noted.Melania's role in the ceasefire agreement has been questioned by some observers, who point out that the Pope was involved in ceasefire discussions for Oleshky before Melania's involvement was ever publicly acknowledged.

Nov 5, 2026 - World

Hollywood star turned right-wing commentator Russell Brand has been convicted of rape and sexual assault by a London jury.Jurors at Southwark Crown Court returned guilty verdicts Thursday on one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault, TMZ reported. The jury found him not guilty of two other rape charges and one count of attempted indecent assault. Brand, 51, had denied all the charges.The judge signaled that prison time is all but certain. “Obviously a custodial sentence of some length will result,” the judge told Brand after the verdict. He is scheduled to be sentenced Monday.Best known for Hollywood comedies like "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" and "Get Him to the Greek," Brand reinvented himself in recent years as an online commentator popular on the right, building a massive following with anti-establishment videos. Deadline described him as a “MAGA outrider,” and after he was charged last year, Fox News host turned podcaster Tucker Carlson called on the Trump administration to “rescue” him from what Carlson called “political and absurd” charges.The trial featured testimony from several women who accused Brand of sexual misconduct, according to TMZ. One accuser, recalling an alleged 1999 assault, described his behavior as “lizard-like.” Another told jurors that after Brand raped her, he said he wanted to “push [her] further.”During the trial, the judge ordered a not-guilty verdict on one count of indecent assault, and prosecutors then brought a new charge of attempted indecent assault, on which the jury acquitted him.TMZ reported that Laura Brand, his wife, backed him throughout the proceedings and took the stand in his defense. She described him as a wonderful father and an “amazing, attentive husband.”

Nov 4, 2026 - World

The massive electoral wipeout Republicans suffered on Tuesday did not go unnoticed by Iran’s leadership.According to Politico, Tehran took a victory lap as voters dealt a resounding blow to President Donald Trump’s Republican Party.“Conscience or the cost of living, Americans said NO TO WAR, and we endorse this message,” Iranian parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf wrote on X as the results came in.Ghalibaf, who has played a prominent role in negotiations to end the monthslong war, also threatened retaliation if Washington resumes all-out fighting, Politico is reporting.“If the US govt betrays their public will to serve international paymasters and blackmailers, it will learn our NO comes with a Nightmare,” he wrote.Tehran had been anxiously watching the midterms for weeks. According to Politico, Iranian negotiators reportedly even stalled recent talks to keep gas prices high and fuel voter frustration with the Trump administration over affordability.Iranian state media also had a field day as Democrats flipped both the House and the Senate, according to the report.“War on Iran Emerges As Major Factor in Republicans’ Midterm Defeat,” read one headline from Tasnim News Agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.State-run IRNA led with a headline announcing a “heavy defeat for Trump and his supporters,” citing “an unprecedented level of dissatisfaction with US President Donald Trump,” driven in large part by the war.Some anti-war voices in Washington also declared the vote a win for Tehran, Politico also reported.“The Democrats didn’t win the midterms,” wrote Trita Parsi, co-founder of the anti-interventionist Quincy Institute. “Iran did.”