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US President Donald Trump walked back his conciliatory tone on Friday after outrage over the killings of two American citizens in Minneapolis by federal agents, branding one of them, Alex Pretti, an “agitator.”Footage shared online this week reportedly showed intensive care nurse Pretti in a scuffle with federal agents 11 days before he was shot dead on Saturday by officers enforcing an immigration crackdown.The White House has scrambled to stem widespread outrage over Pretti’s killing, which came weeks after Renee Good, another US citizen and mother of three, was fatally shot by agents in the same city.Trump claimed he wanted to “de-escalate a little bit” in the fallout of the killings and appointed a new point man in Minneapolis, border chief Tom Homan, who said on Thursday that some federal agents could be withdrawn from the city after weeks of protests against immigration raids.On Friday, the US president said Pretti, 37, was an “agitator and, perhaps, insurrectionist,” on his Truth Social platform.”Alex Pretti’s stock has gone way down with the just released video of him screaming and spitting in the face of a very calm and under control ICE Officer,” Trump wrote, referring to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency.The video reportedly shows Pretti kicking the taillight of the federal agents’ car, before they emerge and tackle him to the ground.AFP could not immediately verify the footage.- Government shutdown -Backlash over the deaths of Pretti and Good has landed in Congress, with the Senate edging closer to a vote on Friday on a funding deal to avert a government shutdown over the crisis.Democrats have drawn a red line around funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), demanding it be stripped out and renegotiated to impose new constraints on immigration enforcement agencies.Meanwhile, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman urged more tech figures to “speak out” on Thursday against the Trump administration’s “excesses” after the killings, which have had a global impact.”We in Silicon Valley can’t bend the knee to Trump. We can’t shrink away and just hope the crisis will fade,” Hoffman wrote in an opinion piece Thursday in The San Francisco Standard.Trump held a cabinet meeting that same day, but the Minnesota unrest did not come up while reporters were in the room, and he did not call on Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem when asking some officials to give remarks.Trump sent Homan to Minnesota to take control of immigration operations with orders to report directly to him, effectively sidelining Noem.- ‘Improvements’ needed -Homan said at his first news conference in the Minnesota city on Thursday that “certain improvements could and should be made,” a marked difference from his predecessor Greg Bovino, who was removed.Homan urged Minnesotans to avoid “hateful rhetoric” against federal immigration officers.He said his staff was “working on a drawdown plan” for some of the more than 3,000 federal agents who have been taking part in “Operation Metro Surge.”One such measure, for example, would be notifying ICE agents about the release dates of incarcerated migrants considered “criminal public safety risks” so they could be detained by the agency, he said.”This is commonsense cooperation that allows us to draw down on the number of people we have here,” Homan said.Steven Gagner, a 41-year-old jewelry designer and “citizen observer” in Minneapolis, was skeptical about the drawdown.”This administration has proven time and time again that they just lie to us and they do not really hold themselves or anyone else accountable,” he told AFP.The two agents involved in Pretti’s shooting have been placed on leave, and Homan said any federal agents who breach standards of conduct “will be dealt with.”

Panama’s Supreme Court annulled on Thursday the concession allowing Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison to operate ports at the Panama Canal, a ruling that undermines Chinese sway over the waterway.As Beijing and Washington vie for global influence, container ports have become a prized currency — especially those situated in geopolitically strategic locations such as the Panama Canal. Just days into US President Donald Trump’s second term, he threatened to take back the canal — built by the United States and handed to Panama in 1999 — claiming Beijing was effectively “operating” it.Panama has rejected the claim that China had de facto control over the canal, which handles 40 percent of US container traffic, while taking actions to appease Trump.The firm has sought to sell its Panama Canal ports to a consortium led by US asset manager BlackRock. The status of that proposal is unclear following the court ruling.On Thursday the Supreme Court found the laws which allowed CK Hutchison Holdings to operate two of the five ports of the canal “unconstitutional,” according to a court statement.The CK Hutchison subsidiary concerned by the ruling rejected the judgement, saying that it “lacks legal basis”.The ruling “jeopardizes not only PPC (Panama Ports Company) and its contract, but also the well-being and stability of thousands of Panamanian families who depend directly and indirectly on port activity,” it said.Beijing, meanwhile, on Friday vowed to “take all necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies”.Hong Kong’s government also rejected the decision.The United States and China are the canal’s top users, with around five percent of global maritime trade transiting from there.Panama Ports Company — a CK Hutchison Holdings subsidiary — manages the ports of Cristobal on the canal’s Atlantic entrance and Balboa on the Pacific side.The concession was automatically renewed in 2021 for another 25 years.- Proposed sale status unclear -The lawsuit to cancel the concession was brought before the Panamanian high court last year on allegations that it was based on unconstitutional laws and that the Hong Kong business was not paying taxes.CK Hutchison Holdings is one of Hong Kong’s largest conglomerates, spanning finance, retail, infrastructure, telecoms and logistics.Shares in CK Hutchison declined more than 4 percent on the Hong Kong stock exchange on Friday.Chinese state media has previously slammed the proposed sale to BlackRock, while Beijing has warned parties involved to exercise “caution”, warning of legal consequences should they proceed without their clearance.In April, the Panamanian Comptroller’s Office accused the firm of allegedly failing to pay the state $1.2 billion from its operations, according to an audit by the agency in charge of overseeing public spending.Panama has been trying to avoid being dragged into what President Jose Raul Mulino last year called a “geopolitical conflict.”Mulino has insisted the canal’s neutrality is intact and has urged Washington not to entangle Panama in its rivalry with Beijing. Still, Panama has taken steps to ease the pressure from Washington.Last year it withdrew from China’s Belt and Road Initiative, and earlier this month it announced new joint US-Panama canal defense drills — the fourth since 2025 — aimed at boosting readiness around the 50‑mile (80‑kilometre) trade route.The canal has become a recurring flashpoint as Trump pursues what he calls the updated “Donroe Doctrine,” asserting expanded US authority in the Western Hemisphere.In his inauguration address, the US president said: “We didn’t give it to China, we gave it to Panama. And we’re taking it back.”At the same time, Beijing has sharply criticized moves against its assets in Panama, including the demolition late last year of a monument honoring Chinese workers who helped build the canal and the 19th‑century railway that preceded it.

US President Donald Trump walked back his conciliatory tone on Friday after outrage over the killings of two American citizens in Minneapolis by federal agents, branding one of them, Alex Pretti, an “agitator.”Footage shared online this week reportedly showed intensive care nurse Pretti in a scuffle with federal agents 11 days before he was shot dead on Saturday by officers enforcing an immigration crackdown.The White House has scrambled to stem widespread outrage over Pretti’s killing, which came weeks after Renee Good, another US citizen and mother of three, was fatally shot by agents in the same city.Trump said he wanted to “de-escalate a little bit,” and appointed a new point man in Minneapolis, border chief Tom Homan, who said on Thursday that some federal agents could be withdrawn from the city after weeks of protests against immigration raids. However, Trump said on his Truth Social platform on Friday that 37-year-old Pretti was an “agitator and, perhaps, insurrectionist.””Alex Pretti’s stock has gone way down with the just released video of him screaming and spitting in the face of a very calm and under control ICE Officer,” Trump wrote, referring to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.The video reportedly shows Pretti kicking the tail light of federal agents’ car, before they emerge and tackle him to the ground.AFP could not immediately verify the footage.- Government shutdown -Backlash over the deaths of Pretti and Good, and the mass deployment of ICE agents in Minneapolis, has landed in Congress, with the Senate edging closer to a vote on Friday on a funding deal to avert a government shutdown over the crisis.Democrats have drawn a red line around funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), demanding it be stripped out and renegotiated to impose new constraints on immigration enforcement agencies.Trump held a cabinet meeting on Thursday, but the Minnesota unrest did not come up while reporters were in the room, and he did not call on Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem when asking some officials to give remarks.Trump sent Homan to Minnesota to take control of immigration operations there with orders to report directly to him, effectively sidelining Noem.- ‘Improvements’ needed -Homan said at his first news conference there on Thursday that “certain improvements could and should be made,” a marked difference from his predecessor Greg Bovino, who was removed.Homan urged Minnesotans to avoid “hateful rhetoric” against federal immigration officers.He said his staff was “working on a drawdown plan” for some of the more than 3,000 federal agents who have been taking part in “Operation Metro Surge.”One such measure, for example, would be notifying ICE agents about the release dates of incarcerated migrants considered “criminal public safety risks” so they could be detained by the agency, he said.”This is commonsense cooperation that allows us to draw down on the number of people we have here,” Homan said.Steven Gagner, a 41-year-old jewelry designer and “citizen observer” in Minneapolis, was skeptical about the drawdown.”This administration has proven time and time again that they just lie to us and they do not really hold themselves or anyone else accountable,” he told AFP.The two agents involved in Pretti’s shooting have been placed on leave, and Homan said any federal agents who breach standards of conduct “will be dealt with.”However, Trump has not let up on his inflammatory rhetoric.The Republican president suggested that Somali-born Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan Omar could have staged an attack on Tuesday, when a man sprayed her with a liquid while she gave a speech.The man, Anthony Kazmierczak, faces state and federal assault charges for using a syringe to spray what appeared to be apple cider vinegar on the Democratic representative.

US President Donald Trump, Melania Trump and top administration officials attended the premier Thursday night of the first lady’s new movie promising a behind-the-scenes glimpse at her husband’s return to power.The documentary, titled “Melania” and funded by an extraordinary multimillion-dollar deal with Amazon, was given a red-carpet screening at the newly renamed Trump-Kennedy center in Washington.”Glamorous, very glamorous,” the president said of the film as he arrived at the event holding hands with his wife.”We need some glamour.”Melania Trump’s movie aims to document the 20 days leading up to Trump’s second inauguration through the eyes of the Slovenian-born 55-year-old first lady.But amid reports of soft ticket sales for the film, the huge fee paid by Amazon has raised questions about whether the US tech giant is merely trying to curry favor with the president.Top administration officials like Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, diplomatic envoy Steve Witkoff and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., as well as House Speaker Mike Johnson, attended the screening.Melania Trump has often been a mysterious figure since her husband’s return to the White House in January 2025, preferring to spend her time with their son Barron in New York and Florida.But she said the film, which goes on global release Friday and will later be shown exclusively on Amazon Prime, would give people a look behind the enigma.”They will see how I work, who I am, how I communicate with people, and they will know me a little bit more,” she told Fox and Friends on Wednesday.A teaser for the documentary released in December showed the former model looking to the camera just before her husband’s second swearing-in at the US Capitol and saying: “Here we go again.”The Trumps held a private screening at the White House on Saturday — hours after immigration agents shot dead protester Alex Pretti in Minneapolis in an incident that has sparked national outrage.In one of a series of promotional interviews this week for the film, Melania Trump called for “unity” after the Minneapolis killing.- ‘MUST WATCH’ -While it promises an “unprecedented” glimpse into her life, “Melania” has also given an insight into the way US business titans have lined up to pay tribute to the Trump administration in the past year.Amazon tycoon Jeff Bezos has grown notably closer to Trump, securing a prime seat at the inauguration and telling the Washington Post newspaper he owns to favor pro-business editorials.US media say that of Amazon’s $40 million licensing deal for the film, Melania, who served as executive producer, will receive 70 percent. The next highest bid, from Disney, was reportedly only $14 million.On top of that Amazon has reportedly paid for a stunning $35 million marketing campaign including television commercials, billboards and a simulcast in 25 theaters at the same time as Thursday’s premiere.”How can it not be equated with currying favor or an outright bribe?” Ted Hope, a former Amazon film executive, was quoted as saying by the New York Times. Billionaire Donald Trump has faced repeated criticism that his family members are profiting from deals made off the back of his presidency. The White House says Trump is already rich and makes no money from his position.The president said on his Truth Social account that “Melania” was “A MUST WATCH.”But across the rest of social media the film and its PR campaign have drawn ridicule, with several internet users posting screenshots showing cinemas that have sold no seats for screenings.South Africa’s main cinema houses have pulled the documentary, with the distributor citing “the current climate,” without elaborating, local media reported.The South African government has strained ties with Trump’s administration, which has repeated false accusations that Pretoria is behind a “white genocide” of the Afrikaans community.The film has also drawn controversy over its choice of director. It is the first major project for Brett Ratner since multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct in 2017, allegations he denies.”He was very talented,” Melania Trump told Fox. “He was the best one, and he was great to work with.”

The US Senate edged closer to a vote Friday on a funding deal to avert a government shutdown following a bitter standoff over President Donald Trump’s sweeping immigration crackdown.A partial government shutdown — affecting roughly three-quarters of the federal government — would be the second since Trump returned to office, threatening to furlough hundreds of thousands of public employees, interrupting government services and injecting fresh economic uncertainty just months ahead of the midterm elections.Current government funding lapses at midnight Friday.Democrats have said they are prepared to pass five of the six spending bills immediately, but have drawn a red line around funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), demanding it be stripped out and renegotiated to impose new constraints on immigration enforcement agencies.Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said Thursday that the White House had agreed to the demand, with Senate leaders from both parties hoping to bring the deal to the floor for a vote on Friday.Democratic backlash to Trump’s hardline immigration crackdown, sharpened by the killing of two protesters in Minneapolis by federal agents in recent weeks, had raised the prospects of a shutdown in recent days. Democrats are pushing to rein in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), an agency that has rapidly expanded its ranks under Trump and now commands more funding than all other US federal law enforcement agencies combined.That anger boiled over Thursday when Senate Democrats blocked a key procedural vote on a six-bill spending package designed to keep most of the government funded.”What ICE is doing…it is state-sanctioned thuggery and it must stop. And Congress has the authority — and the moral obligation — to act,” Schumer said in a speech on the chamber floor.- All eyes on the House -Any fix, however, would still have to be approved by the House of Representatives — which is not due back from recess until Monday — making at least a weekend gap in funding inevitable.Lawmakers in both parties privately acknowledged that a brief lapse could easily stretch on if Schumer’s agreement with the White House — enthusiastically endorsed by Trump on Thursday — hits roadblocks in the lower chamber.Shutdowns temporarily freeze funding for non-essential federal operations, forcing agencies to halt services and place workers on unpaid leave or require them to work without pay. Under the current plan, departments ranging from education and transportation to housing, health and defense could be affected, while pressure would mount quickly to resolve disruptions rippling through the economy.Ironically, ICE itself would be largely unaffected, since it was allocated some $75 billion over four years in Trump’s 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act.The confrontation was triggered by events in Minnesota, where Alex Pretti, an intensive-care nurse filming Trump’s deportation efforts, was shot dead by Border Patrol agents last weekend. His killing came just weeks after another activist, Renee Good, was fatally shot blocks away during a separate immigration operation.Those deaths detonated what had appeared to be a stable bipartisan funding arrangement and refocused congressional debate on the conduct of federal officers operating under Trump’s aggressive enforcement campaign. Democrats want to see an end to roving immigration patrols, tighter warrant requirements, a universal use-of-force code, a ban on officers wearing masks, and mandates for body cameras and visible identification. Their agreement with the White House does not address any of these demands but it gives Congress an extra two weeks to thrash out a deal.  

US President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday threatening to impose additional tariffs on countries that sell oil to Cuba, further increasing pressure on the communist-led island.The order did not specify the value of the tariffs or which countries would be targeted, leaving those determinations up to his secretary of commerce.Cuba, which has largely been under a US embargo since 1962, until recently received most of its oil from Venezuela.But the United States has moved to block the flow after removing Havana’s key ally Nicolas Maduro from power and effectively seizing control of Venezuelan oil exports.Following the Venezuela operation, Trump vowed to completely cut off oil and money going to Cuba.”I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE,” he threatened in a social media post.The United States has been mum on what kind of deal it is seeking with the island’s communist government.Havana’s foreign minister Bruno Rodriguez on Thursday called the latest move in a post on X a “brutal act of aggression against Cuba and its people, who for more than 65 years have been subjected to the longest and cruelest economic blockade ever imposed.”The order signed Thursday threatens added tariffs on any “country that directly or indirectly sells or otherwise provides any oil to Cuba.”The order invokes the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and calls the Cuban government an “extraordinary threat” to US national security.Other tariffs invoked under the IEEPA are currently being challenged at the Supreme Court.Declaring a “national emergency” related to Cuba, Trump made similar claims to those made against Venezuela, such as providing support nations hostile to the United States.”The regime aligns itself with — and provides support for — numerous hostile countries, transnational terrorist groups, and malign actors adverse to the United States,” including Russia, China, and Iran, as well as the militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah, the order said.The pressure comes as the communist island is in the throes of its worst economic crisis in decades, marked by recurring power outages of up to 20 hours a day and shortages of food and medicine that have created a mass exodus of Cubans.US neighbor Mexico has become a significant provider oil to Cuba, though media reports have suggested that flows could be slowing under pressure from Trump.Speaking at a press conference earlier this week, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum would neither confirm or deny the reports, but said Mexico would “continue to show solidarity” with Cuba.

A US government shutdown looked inevitable Thursday after Senate Democrats blocked a key vote to keep departments funded, escalating a standoff with the White House over President Donald Trump’s hardline immigration crackdown following the fatal shooting of two protesters.The failed vote stalled a six-bill spending package that would fund more than three-quarters of the federal government, and a partial shutdown is set to begin after midnight Saturday.Senators were expected to hold a second vote on a revised package, but even a successful outcome would still require approval by the House of Representatives, which is not due back from recess until Monday — more than two days after the Friday night deadline.Under congressional rules, identical bill texts must pass both the House and Senate before they can become law.It will be the second government stoppage since Trump took office a year ago, although hopes were high that it could be limited to the weekend, unlike last summer’s record-breaking 43-day closure.Democrats had been clear that they intended to block the six-bill package unless funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is separated out and renegotiated to impose new guardrails on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the most heavily funded federal law-enforcement agency.”What ICE is doing is state-sanctioned thuggery and it must stop. And Congress has the authority — and the moral obligation — to act,” Senate Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said.Schumer later announced that the White House had agreed to a temporary framework addressing Democrats’ demands on the DHS bill, though US media reported that a vote on the deal had been delayed until Friday.Trump urged lawmakers from both parties to back the agreement, calling for a “very much needed Bipartisan ‘YES’ Vote” in a social media post endorsing the proposal.A prolonged shutdown would likely place hundreds of thousands of federal employees on leave or force them to work without pay, with economic disruption spreading well beyond Washington.The confrontation has been fueled by outrage over immigration enforcement, a dispute carrying especially high political stakes in a midterm election year in which the entire House and roughly a third of the Senate are up for reelection.- Aggressive immigration crackdown -The immediate flashpoint came Saturday in Minneapolis, where Alex Pretti, an intensive care unit nurse monitoring and recording Trump’s deportation operation, was shot dead by federal border agents. The killing came just weeks after another activist, Renee Good, was fatally shot by immigration officers a few blocks away.The deaths shattered what had appeared to be a fragile bipartisan funding truce, refocusing congressional debate on the conduct of immigration agents operating under Trump’s crackdown.Democrats say they are prepared to pass the remaining five spending bills immediately — covering various departments including defense, health, education, transportation and financial services.But they are asking for a rewrite of the DHS bill to mandate an end to roving ICE patrols, tighter warrant requirements, a universal use-of-force code, a ban on officers wearing masks, mandatory body cameras and visible identification.None of those requirements are addressed in the White House agreement, which instead gives lawmakers two weeks to rewrite the Homeland Security funding bill before the department faces its own shutdown.Lawmakers from both parties have warned that a lapse in DHS funding could have serious consequences for agencies such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency as severe winter weather grips huge swaths of the country.

Donald Trump’s “border czar” said Thursday that some federal agents could be withdrawn from Minneapolis, the northern US city that has become the flashpoint for the president’s immigration crackdown.The Trump administration, facing a public backlash over the shooting deaths of two Americans by federal agents in Minneapolis, also eased immigration operations in the northeastern state of Maine.Tom Homan vowed at a press conference in Minneapolis to press on with the immigration crackdown in the city, but said more cooperation could lead to a reduction in the number of federal agents there.”We are not surrendering our mission at all. We’re just doing it smarter,” Homan said. “President Trump wants this fixed. And I’m going to fix it.”Minneapolis has been gripped by weeks of demonstrations against the roundup of immigrants by masked and heavily armed federal agents.Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, speaking to a conference of US mayors in Washington on Thursday, likened it to an “invasion.””People’s constitutional rights have been trampled,” he said. “Discrimination takes place only on the basis of ‘Are you Somali?’ ‘Are you Latino?’ or ‘Are you Southeast Asian?'””It’s not how we operate in America.”Trump held a cabinet meeting Thursday, but the Minnesota unrest did not come up while reporters were in the room, and he did not call on Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem when asking some officials to give remarks.Trump sent Homan to Minnesota to take control of immigration operations there with orders to report directly to him, effectively sidelining Noem.Homan’s appointment showed the administration was “pivoting,” Cass, a 43-year-old freelance medical professional in Minneapolis who did not wish to provide a surname, told AFP.”Just because one’s older and bigger doesn’t mean that it’s not as scary. It’s just now we’ve got somebody with better self-regulation.”The political battle has landed in Congress, with a potential government funding shutdown looming after Senate Democrats rejected a procedural vote to express anger over the killing of the two protesters in Minnesota.Democrats had vowed to block the measure unless funding for the Department of Homeland Security is renegotiated to include guardrails on ICE.- ‘Improvements’ needed -Homan struck a conciliatory tone at his first press conference, saying “certain improvements could and should be made,” a marked difference from the Border Patrol commander who previously headed the mission and has been removed.The border chief urged Minnesotans to avoid “hateful rhetoric” against federal immigration officers.Homan said his staff was “working on a drawdown plan” for some of the more than 3,000 federal agents who have been taking part in “Operation Metro Surge.”One such measure, for example, would be notifying ICE agents about the release dates of incarcerated migrants considered “criminal public safety risks” so they can be detained by the agency, he said.”This is commonsense cooperation that allows us to draw down on the number of people we have here.”Steven Gagner, a 41-year-old jewelry designer and “citizen observer” in Minneapolis, was skeptical about the drawdown.”This administration has proven time and time again that they just lie to us and they do not really hold themselves or anyone else accountable,” he told AFP.- Conduct warning -The two agents involved in Saturday’s shooting have been placed on leave, and Homan said any federal agents who breach standards of conduct “will be dealt with.”Trump has scrambled to stem outrage over the killings of Good and Pretti, saying earlier this week that he wanted to “de-escalate a little bit” in Minneapolis.But the Republican president has not let up on his attacks on Somali-born Minnesota congresswoman Ilhan Omar, even going so far as to suggest she may have staged an attack on Tuesday, when a man sprayed her with a liquid while she gave a speech.The man, Anthony Kazmierczak, faces state and federal assault charges for using a syringe to spray what appeared to be apple cider vinegar on the Democratic representative.

President Donald Trump on Thursday said all Canadian-built aircraft would lose their US certification until Canada approves American-made Gulfstream business jets, a stunning move threatening major travel disruptions if enacted.Writing on his Truth Social network, Trump charged that “Canada has wrongfully, illegally, and steadfastly refused” to grant certification to Gulfstream’s newest models — the 500, 600, 700, and 800.”We are hereby decertifying their Bombardier Global Expresses, and all Aircraft made in Canada, until such time as Gulfstream, a Great American Company, is fully certified, as it should have been many years ago,” Trump wrote.He additionally threatened a 50 percent tariff on all Canadian aircraft sold to the United States.It was not immediately clear through what process Trump could unilaterally decertify aircraft or what that decertification would entail.The US Department of Transportation (DOT) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) referred questions to the White House, which did not immediately respond to AFP’s requests for comment.- ‘Significant impact’ -Quebec-based Bombardier said in a statement that it had “taken note of the post” and was “in contact with the Canadian government.””Thousands of private and civilian jets built in Canada fly in the US every day. We hope this is quickly resolved to avoid a significant impact to air traffic and the flying public,” the company added.While the Global Express is a business jet, Trump’s threat to decertify “all” Canadian aircraft would also appear to include CRJ regional jets and Airbus A220s — used by several major US airlines for shorter range flights.The move is the latest in a string of verbal and commercial attacks on the United States’ northern neighbor since Trump’s return to power last year.Earlier in the week, Trump threatened Canada with 100-percent tariffs after Prime Minister Mark Carney traveled to China and struck several economic deals.Carney downplayed the threat, saying the comments should be viewed with an eye toward an upcoming review of the US-Mexico-Canada trade deal.Canada has been hit hard by Trump’s sectoral tariffs — especially in the auto, steel and aluminum sectors — but more than 85 percent of bilateral US-Canada trade has remained tariff-free through the ongoing trade war.Carney has enjoyed better ties with Trump, compared to his predecessor Justin Trudeau, whom Trump often referred to as a “governor” of what he declared should be the 51st US state, but their relationship has soured in recent days.The Canadian premier delivered a blistering denunciation of US global leadership at last week’s World Economic Forum in Davos, earning a rare standing ovation and capturing global headlines.Trump shot back in his own Davos address, telling Carney to watch his words, as “Canada lives because of the United States” and later referring to Carney as a “governor” in a social media post. 

Superstars Kendrick Lamar, Bad Bunny and Lady Gaga are primed to make history on Sunday in Los Angeles at the 68th Grammy Awards, honoring the best in music.All three are angling to add to their trophy cabinets by taking home the gala’s most coveted award, Album of the Year, for the first time.Lamar, the Pulitzer Prize-winning rapper who won five gramophones last year, has nine nominations this time around — the most of any artist — including for Record and Song of the year.Pop chameleon Lady Gaga and Puerto Rico’s Bad Bunny also are competing in all three categories.Also nominated for the top album prize are: pop princess Sabrina Carpenter; R&B singer-songwriter Leon Thomas; Tyler, the Creator; hip-hop duo Clipse (Pusha T and Malice); and pop superstar Justin Bieber — with his first studio effort in four years.Lamar is nominated this year for his album “GNX,” which includes the single “Luther” featuring R&B artist SZA. The 38-year-old has won 22 Grammys during his career.Lady Gaga, Bieber and Carpenter are set to perform, with more acts expected to be confirmed before Sunday.- Bad Bunny’s hot streak -Standing in Lamar’s way for Album of the Year is Bad Bunny, who is currently on a world tour in support of his album “Debi Tirar Mas Fotos” (I Should Have Taken More Photos).”It was a very exciting album,” musicologist Lauron Kehrer told AFP.”It touched on so much in terms of thematic material and musical material,” Kehrer said, pointing to the allusions to decolonization and use of traditional Puerto Rican rhythms.The 31-year-old Latin megastar, born Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, will headline the Super Bowl halftime show a week after the Grammys, where he is up for six awards.Last year, he completed a three-month residency in his native Puerto Rico and hosted the season opener of “Saturday Night Live.”His “Un verano sin ti” (2022) was the first Spanish-language album nominated for Album of the Year honors. A win on Sunday would give Bad Bunny another mention in the history books.Lady Gaga, 39, made a splashy comeback to touring with “Mayhem,” her collection of pop bangers with a dark edge that embraces her dramatic side. She has seven nominations.She has 14 Grammys to her name, but a win for Album of the Year would complete her hat trick of top awards. She took Record and Song of the Year honors seven years ago for the soundtrack hit “Shallow,” from “A Star is Born” — which also earned her an Oscar.This time around, Song of the Year — which honors songwriting — is a crowded category that includes Carpenter’s “Manchild” and “Golden” from the Netflix animated smash hit “KPop Demon Hunters.”Many pundits believe the energetic K-pop hit will triumph.Up for best new artist are Alex Warren, girl group Katseye, Britain’s Olivia Dean, TikTok dancer-turned-singer Addison Rae, The Marias, sombr, Lola Young and Thomas — who was already a Grammy winner two years ago for producing a song by SZA.- ‘Reactionary’ -For musicologist Kehrer, the infusion of rap, reggaeton and K-pop in the top Grammy categories reflects changes in the composition of the Recording Academy’s voting group.More than 3,800 new members have been admitted. Half of those new members are age 39 or younger, and 58 percent of them are people of color, the academy says.Invitations were also offered to all members of the Latin Recording Academy.”The Grammys are more reactionary than anything else,” said Kehrer.”These artists winning those major awards is more of an indication of climate, rather than trying to move or change the climate.”The Grammy Awards will once again be hosted by comedian Trevor Noah. The main broadcast begins at 5:00 pm (0100 GMT Monday), but many of the 95 awards will be handed out at a pre-gala event.