Trump sends top official to Minneapolis after killing sparks backlash

US President Donald Trump dispatched his top border official Monday to Minnesota in a bid to regain control over an escalating crisis sparked by the second killing of a protester against his administration’s militarized immigration raids.Trump said that Tom Homan, his point man for border security, would arrive in the state later and “will report directly to me.”Minneapolis has become ground zero in the clash between Trump and growing numbers of Americans over his nationwide immigration crackdown.Trump’s deputy attorney general, Todd Blanche, described the city on Fox News as a “powder keg.”Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), an agency under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has been transformed under Trump into the United States’ most heavily funded law enforcement body. But polls show growing anger over its frequently brutal tactics.A huge rally took place despite bitter cold in Minneapolis on Friday to protest the raids and the point blank shooting by an ICE agent of protester Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother of three on January 7.Then on Saturday, immigration agents gunned down Alex Jeffrey Pretti, also 37, after having already tackled him to the ground. Like Good, the intensive care unit nurse was a US citizen.More rallies erupted after his death in Minneapolis, New York and other major cities.Opening a new front in the crisis, a federal judge in Minneapolis was hearing arguments Monday on whether the deployment of federal officers — often masked, heavily armed and unidentified — violates the state of Minnesota’s sovereignty.And in Congress, Democrats are threatening to hold up funding for the US government unless immigration enforcement agencies are reformed.- Trump defends tactics -Trump has so far dismissed concerns.The 79-year-old Republican’s first reaction to Pretti’s killing was to suggest that the nurse had come intending to shoot at the police.Pretti was carrying a pistol with him at the time but never removed it and had apparently already been disarmed when he was shot multiple times at point-blank range. He was licensed to carry a weapon.Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Sunday accused Trump of pushing a “flat-out insane” narrative.Trump repeated the insinuation that Pretti was to blame when he told The Wall Street Journal on Sunday: “I don’t like any shooting… but I don’t like it when somebody goes into a protest and he’s got a very powerful, fully loaded gun.”White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt indicated Homan would not focus on Pretti’s killing and instead lead efforts to arrest “criminal illegal aliens” and tackle alleged fraud by Somali immigrants — racially charged claims fueling the crackdown.Blanche told Fox News “it is extraordinarily important that we do not jump to conclusions,” while describing the incident as “a very violent altercation.”- Republican criticism -In Monday’s court action the judge was hearing arguments from state and city lawyers that the federal deployments amount to an occupying force. Also under consideration was a bid to force federal officials to preserve evidence related to Pretti’s killing.The lawsuits highlight the deep rift between local and federal law enforcement over the deployment, dubbed “Operation Metro Surge.”Trump’s immigration raids have focused deliberately on Democratic-run cities, pitting mayors and governors against the president.Local police have repeatedly confronted federal agents and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has even suggested he could call out the state’s National Guard to push back against Trump’s forces.Trump will also be watching signs of growing disenchantment from his Republican Party in Congress. The party is usually in lockstep with Trump but it has only a slender majority.One of the most prominent cautions came from House Oversight Committee chairman James Comer, who signaled Sunday that federal agents should withdraw from Minneapolis — an intervention that would normally be unheard of from a figure considered one of Trump’s staunchest loyalists.Trump told the Journal that the immigration agents would leave Minneapolis “at some point.”

Trois départements bretons maintenus en vigilance orange crues

Trois départements bretons, le Finistère, le Morbihan et l’Ille-et-Vilaine, sont maintenus jusqu’à mardi en vigilance orange crues, dont deux également en vigilance pluie/inondation, a indiqué Météo-France dans son bulletin de 16H00.La vigilance orange “pluie-inondation” dans le Finistère et le Morbihan est prévue jusqu’à mardi 06H00.Une nouvelle perturbation “va concerner la pointe bretonne en lien avec la dépression baptisée +Chandra+”, selon Météo-France.Cette perturbation va apporter, à nouveau, “des cumuls notables” de pluie, avec “un renforcement du vent”, “dans un contexte de sols saturés et de crues déjà en cours”.Concernant le risque de crues, les cours d’eau bretons concernés par la vigilance orange restent l’Odet, la Laïta et l’Oust, selon Vigicrues. Après une “accalmie” dimanche, l’organisme prévient que ce nouvel épisode pluvieux sera “de nature à faire repartir à la hausse” les niveaux de ces cours d’eau. Sur l’Oust par exemple, un pic de crue a été atteint dans le secteur de Malestroit (Morbihan) dimanche soir avant que les niveaux baissent lentement mais les pluies à venir pourrait entraîner une nouvelle “réaction importante” du cours d’eau, selon Vigicrues.Vigicrues rapporte par ailleurs des débordements “localisés” sur certains tronçons de cours d’eau du quart sud-ouest de la France, dans le piémont pyrénéen et sur le plateau de Lannemezan.A Redon, commune située dans le sud de l’Ille-et-Vilaine et qui avait connu d’importantes inondations en 2025, la situation était lundi “maîtrisée”.”Notre priorité est aujourd’hui l’anticipation : nous agissons en amont pour protéger les habitants et garantir la continuité de la vie locale”, a déclaré le maire Pascal Duchêne dans un communiqué de presse.Des dispositifs anti-inondation ont été installés lundi sur des quais qui “permettent de limiter les infiltrations d’eau”.

US deploys aircraft carrier as Iran warns against attack

A US naval strike group led by an aircraft carrier has deployed to Middle Eastern waters, the United States said Monday, as Tehran warned it was ready to hit back at any American attack launched in response to a crackdown on anti-government protests.A US-based rights group said on Monday that it had confirmed the deaths of nearly 6,000 people in the wave of protests suppressed by Iran’s security forces, but emphasised the actual toll could be several times higher.The protests started in late December, driven by economic grievances, but turned into a mass movement against the Islamic republic, with huge street demonstrations for several days from January 8.But rights groups have accused authorities of quelling the movement with unprecedented violence, shooting into crowds of protesters under the cover of an internet shutdown that has now lasted 18 days — the longest Iran has ever imposed.The clerical leadership who took power after the 1979 Islamic revolution remains in place despite the protests, with many opponents of the system looking to outside intervention as the most likely driver of change.US President Donald Trump has previously threatened to step in, saying last week that Washington was sending a “massive fleet” to the region “just in case”. The deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group dramatically boosts American firepower in the region.The United States backed and briefly joined Israel’s 12-day war against Iran in June, and while Trump last week appeared to step back from his threats of new military intervention, he has never ruled the option out. The Lincoln’s strike group has arrived in the region, US Central Command said in a post on X, adding the ships were “currently deployed to the Middle East to promote regional security and stability”. – ‘Regret-inducing response’ -Iran’s foreign ministry warned on Monday of a “comprehensive and regret-inducing response to any aggression”. Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Iran was “confident in its own capabilities”.In apparent reference to the Lincoln, he added: “The arrival of such a battleship is not going to affect Iran’s determination and seriousness to defend the Iranian nation.”Meanwhile, a new anti-US billboard has appeared in the central Enghelab Square in Tehran that appears to show an American aircraft carrier being destroyed. “If you sow the wind, you will reap the whirlwind,” its English-language caption reads.State news agency IRNA quoted the commander of the Iranian navy Shahram Irani as saying on Monday: “Iran’s naval power is not merely defensive but also acts as an anchor of stability in the region.”In Lebanon, Iran-backed Shiite militant group Hezbollah, whose capabilities and leadership were severely degraded in a war with Israel in 2024, organised a rally in support of the Islamic republic featuring an address by its leader Naim Qassem, who warned “a war on Iran this time will ignite the region”.Iran’s Gulf neighbour the United Arab Emirates, which hosts a US airbase, said it would not allow attacks on Iran to be launched from its territory.- Rising toll -NGOs tracking the toll from the crackdown have said their task has been impeded by the internet shutdown, warning that confirmed figures are likely to be far lower than the actual number.The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said it had confirmed that 5,848 people had been killed, including 209 members of the security forces. But the group added it was still investigating another 17,091 possible fatalities.  At least 41,283 people have been arrested, it said. Giving their first official toll from the protests, Iranian authorities last week said 3,117 people were killed, the majority of whom it described as members of the security forces or innocent bystanders killed by “rioters”.Confirming that the internet blackout remains in place, monitor Netblocks said the shutdown was “obscuring the extent of a deadly crackdown on civilians”.”Gaps in the filternet are being tightened to limit circumvention while whitelisted regime accounts promote the Islamic Republic’s narrative,” it added.Over the weekend, Persian-language TV channel Iran International, which is based outside the country, said more than 36,500 Iranians were killed by security forces from January 8 to 9, citing reports, documents and sources. It was not immediately possible to verify the report.Activists have said that the Revolutionary Guards, a military force separate from the regular army with the mandate of keeping the Islamic revolution alive, took a frontline position in putting down the protests.Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on Monday urged the European Union to list the Guards as a “terrorist organisation”, as Canada and the United States have done, saying the “the losses suffered by the civilian population during the protests demand a clear response”.

Qatar announces $430 mn in support for Lebanon

A visiting Qatari official on Monday announced a multi-million dollar aid package for Lebanon, primarily to support the country’s crumbling electricity sector.In a separate statement, the Qatar Development Fund said the package was valued at about $430 million, the majority of it to support the energy sector, adding that it would benefit some 1.5 million people.”The support includes a contribution of up to $400 million to support the energy sector,” of which 10 percent would be allocated as a grant, it addedAt a press conference in Beirut, Qatari state minister for foreign affairs Mohammed al-Khulaifi announced “a package of development and humanitarian projects” for Lebanon, including “a grant of $40 million to support the electricity sector”.Lebanon’s electricity sector has cost Lebanon more than $40 billion since the end of its 1975-1990 civil war, and successive governments have failed to reduce losses or repair crumbling infrastructure.Last year, Lebanon signed a $250 million deal with the World Bank to modernise the sector. Khulaifi also announced “the launch of a project supporting the voluntary and safe return of Syrians from Lebanon to Syria” in cooperation with the United Nations migration agency.The first phase of the project is worth $20 million and “targets some 100,000 people”, he told a joint press conference with Lebanese Deputy Prime Minister Tarek Mitri.The assistance will help secure housing in Syria ahead of the returnees’ departure “in addition to providing food and medicine for three months” after they arrive, as part of supporting their reintegration, he said.According to the UN refugee agency, more than 500,000 Syrians returned home from Lebanon last year. However, another 115,000 have fled to Lebanon since the December 2024 ouster of longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad.Around one million Syrian refugees remain in Lebanon, according to UNHCR.Lebanon has been urging the international community to help refugees return, particularly since an economic collapse began in late 2019 and amid international aid cuts.Lebanese officials have more recently raised the issue with the new authorities in Damascus.Qatar has been a supporter of Lebanon for years, in particular providing assistance for the country’s army, including for soldiers’ salaries.Doha is also a key supporter of Syria’s new authorities, and Qatari companies have signed major contracts in Syria including on energy, electricity and transport.

Fermeture du site de Bétharram: les modalités arrêtées d’ici l’été

Après quelques jours de cacophonie, l’enseignement catholique a confirmé lundi “souhaiter” fermer le site historique de Notre-Dame de Bétharram, au cœur d’un scandale de violences physiques et sexuelles, et prévoir de préciser les modalités “avant l’été”.”Nous souhaitons fermer le site”, “c’est clairement notre objectif”, a affirmé le secrétaire de l’enseignement catholique Guillaume Prévost lundi.Mais “nous ne souhaitons pas le faire dans n’importe quelles conditions, compte tenu de nos responsabilités” vis-à-vis des victimes et des familles notamment, a-t-il ajouté lors d’une conférence de presse, quelques jours après des déclarations contradictoires sur le sujet et qui laissaient planer une incertitude sur le devenir de l’établissement des Pyrénées-Atlantiques.M. Prévost s’est dit “confiant” sur sa “capacité à pouvoir (…) présenter un projet clair sur le plan logistique et éducatif avant l’été”. “Nous nous sommes donné trois mois pour aboutir”, a-t-il affirmé, assurant qu'”une seule chose nous guide, la responsabilité”.”C’est officiel, Bétharram va fermer”, s’est réjoui auprès de la presse Alain Esquerre, ancien élève de Bétharram à l’origine de la révélation du scandale.Depuis deux ans, près de 250 plaintes ont été déposées par d’anciens élèves de Notre-Dame-de-Bétharram auprès du parquet de Pau, visant des prêtres et des laïcs pour des faits commis entre la fin des années 1950 et le début des années 2000.- “Un symbole, un bâtiment” -Aujourd’hui, le groupe scolaire rebaptisé Le Beau Rameau compte plusieurs établissements sur deux sites : un collège à Lestelle-Bétharram, le site historique, et une école primaire, un lycée et un lycée professionnel à Igon, une commune voisine. S’y ajoutent deux internats: un pour les garçons à Lestelle-Bétharram, et un pour les filles à Igon. Il y a sur le site de Lestelle-Bétharram “un symbole, un bâtiment” qui “est la version négative qu’il faut quitter”, a affirmé Pierre-Vincent Guéret, président de la Fédération nationale des organismes de gestion de l’enseignement catholique (Fnogec).L’avenir des enfants scolarisés sur place “est sur le groupe scolaire du Beau-Rameau”, a-t-il expliqué. A Igon, où il existe déjà trois établissements, “il conviendra d’y rajouter un quatrième établissement, un collège. Voilà ce qui s’appelle la fermeture en bon ordre et proprement du site”.Pour les 160 collégiens aujourd’hui sur le site de Lestelle-Bétharram, “il faut leur trouver des salles de classe” et donc “réorganiser le site d’Igon”. Pour les onze élèves de l’internat de garçons, “il faut trouver sur le site d’Igon onze chambres, c’est possible”, a-t-il ajouté. Il a détaillé qu’il y aurait aussi des espaces à “re-concevoir” pour les activités sportives, et une “question à se poser” concernant un éventuel déménagement de la cuisine centrale du site de Bétharram.Pour M. Guéret, “ce type d’opérations est faisable, en profitant des temps fermés, donc de vacances”.M. Guéret avait annoncé la semaine dernière la prochaine fermeture du site de Lestelle-Bétharram, des propos avec lesquels le Secrétariat général de l’Enseignement catholique (Sgec) avait toutefois pris ses distances, assurant qu’il n’était “pas question de fermeture de l’établissement à ce stade”.Des violences à Bétharram avaient été dénoncées dès les années 1990 mais la parole des anciens élèves ne s’est libérée qu’à partir de l’automne 2023, dénonçant fellations et masturbations forcées, passages à tabac, humiliations et supplices.Concernant le devenir des bâtiments historiques et la possibilité d’en faire un lieu mémoriel, M. Prévost a indiqué que “ça n’appartenait pas” à l’enseignement catholique, le propriétaire des murs étant la congrégation de Bétharram.Le Sgec a également annoncé lundi le lancement d’une mission sur la “Qualité de la relation éducative” après “le traumatisme” de la révélation des violences dans des établissements catholiques.

Rushdie warns of political violence as he recounts his attack

The horrific knife attack that almost killed Salman Rushdie was an example of violence unleashed by unscrupulous political leaders, the author said Sunday, warning that “everybody’s in danger now” in the increasingly febrile United States. Speaking at the premiere of the documentary “Knife: The Attempted Murder of Salman Rushdie,” the writer pointed to events unfolding across the country, where a second protester was shot dead by federal agents 24 hours earlier.”The idea of danger and violence is close to everyone now in this country,” he told AFP at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.”I think everybody’s in danger now.” The film, directed by documentarian Alex Gibney, is the companion piece to Rushdie’s “Knife,” a memoir recounting the harrowing 2022 attack and its aftermath.The British-American author was at an event in Chautauqua, New York when 24-year-old Hadi Matar leapt onto the stage and stabbed him 15 times.The brutal assault left Rushdie with life-changing injuries, including the loss of his right eye.The comments on political violence come as President Donald Trump has surged militarized immigration raids into American cities, notably Minneapolis where federal agents have shot dead two US citizens this month. A man was arrested at Sundance on Saturday after allegedly punching Congressman Maxwell Frost in the face and screaming that Trump was going to deport him, the Florida lawmaker said on X.- Fatwa -Gibney’s film uses graphic video of the assault on Rushdie, shot by event organizers and attendees, as well as intimate footage filmed by his wife, Rachel Eliza Griffiths, over six weeks as the author lay in hospital grievously wounded.It also mixes in archival news reports and interviews with Rushdie detailing the furor in the Islamic world that greeted the publication of his 1988 novel “The Satanic Verses.”The following year, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa, telling Muslims worldwide it was their religious duty to kill Rushdie.For over a decade the author lived in hiding, protected by the British government, until a deal was reached in which the fatwa was officially rescinded in exchange for Britain’s granting diplomatic recognition to Tehran.As the immediate risk appeared to recede, Rushdie re-emerged, becoming something of a celebrity and continuing to create successful literary fiction.But the threat against him never vanished, and the animosity some bore him remained. – ‘Authoritarian’ -Hadi, who was sentenced last year to 25 years for attempted murder and assault, told a reporter before his trial that he believed Rushdie had “attacked Islam.” He admitted he had only read two pages of “The Satanic Verses.”Rushdie said the brutal attack on him was an example of a “larger thing.””Violence is that thing, violence unleashed by the unscrupulous using the ignorant to attack… culture.”For the authoritarian, culture is the enemy. Whether that’s journalism or universities or music or writing… the uncultured and ignorant, and the radical don’t like it, and they take steps against it, which we see every day.”Rushdie’s comments come in the wake of a crackdown Trump has launched on higher education, in an effort to stamp out what he claims is a “liberal bias” in university teaching.Trump also routinely derides journalism and journalists, blasting any report he disagrees with as “fake news,” while conservative US states increasingly ban books from school libraries.The Booker-Prize winning author said the film as conceived was not intended as a commentary on the here and now.”When you’re making the film, you’re making the film, and then the world does what it does, and sometimes the two things run into each other,” he said.”I’m now beginning to think that maybe the film is here at a kind of apposite moment, that maybe all of us now are feeling the risk of violence.”The Sundance Film Festival runs until February 1.