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Novelist Salman Rushdie described Tuesday the moment a knife-wielding attacker stormed on stage and attempted to kill him in a frenzied attack that left him blind in one eye.”The Satanic Verses” author told jurors at the trial of his alleged attacker, 23-year-old American-Lebanese Hadi Matar, that Matar “was stabbing and slashing” at him.”I was aware of this person rushing at me on my right hand side,” he said, recounting how he was about to speak at an arts event in New York state in August 2022.”I only saw him at the last minute.””It was a stab wound in my eye, intensely painful, after that I was screaming because of the pain,” Rushdie said, adding that he was left in a “lake of blood.”He said it “occurred to me I was dying” before he was stretchered out of the cultural center and helicoptered to a trauma hospital.On Tuesday, Rushdie nodded and waved at his wife Rachel Eliza Griffiths, who was in court for her husband’s testimony on the second day of the trial.Matar’s legal team have sought to prevent witnesses from characterizing Rushdie as a victim of persecution following Iran’s 1989 fatwa calling for his murder over supposed blasphemy in “The Satanic Verses.”Matar is accused of stabbing Rushdie about 10 times with a six-inch blade.As on trial’s opening day, Matar said “Palestine will be free” as he was led into court Tuesday. He did not react as Rushdie began his evidence, biting his nails during the testimony.Rushdie, who wore distinctive glasses polarized in one lens to mask his damaged eye, described his treatment and current health.”The injuries were very serious and it took a long time to recover… the gash (in my neck) was so deep it had to be held together with metal staples,” he said.- Staff, guests fight attacker -Matar previously told media he had only read two pages of “The Satanic Verses” but believed the author had “attacked Islam.”New York-based British-American Rushdie, now 77, was rescued by bystanders.Venue employee Jordan Steves told the court Monday how he launched himself “with my right shoulder with as much force as I could manage” to help others subdue the attacker.He pointed to Matar, sitting just feet away in the ornate courtroom, when asked to identify the attacker.Steves’s colleague Deborah Moore Kushmaul said she picked up the discarded knife and gave it to police.The optical nerve of Rushdie’s right eye was severed, and he told the court that “it was decided the eye would be stitched shut to allow it to moisturize. It was quite a painful operation — which I don’t recommend.”Asked to describe the intensity of the pain over the attack, he said it was “a 10″ out of 10.His Adam’s apple was also partially lacerated, and his liver and small bowel penetrated.”The first thing I said on regaining the ability of speech was ‘I can speak’,” he said to stifled laughter from jurors.”How do you squeeze toothpaste onto a toothbrush with only one hand?” he explained when asked about injuries to his hand received as he tried to defend himself.- Freedom of expression case -Rushdie lived in seclusion in London for a decade after the 1989 fatwa, but for the past 20 years — until the attack — he lived relatively normally in New York.He became the center of a fierce tug-of-war between free speech advocates and those who insisted that insulting religion, particularly Islam, was unacceptable in any circumstances.Last year, he published a memoir called “Knife” in which he recounted the near-death experience.One of Matar’s lawyers, Lynn Schaffer, said Monday that prosecutors would seek to present the case as “open and shut” — but warned that police had made assumptions about Matar.The accused reportedly became more withdrawn and militant in his outlook following a 2018 trip to the Middle East.Iran-backed Lebanese Shiite militant organization Hezbollah endorsed the fatwa, the FBI has said, and Matar faces a separate prosecution in federal court on terrorism charges.Iran has denied any link to the attacker and said only Rushdie was to blame for the incident.

A suspension of US foreign aid and possible dismantling of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) will have a major impact on some of the world’s poorest countries, the Washington-based Center for Global Development (CGD) warned Tuesday.For more than 20 economies, a year-long pause on US aid could mean a loss of over one percent of their gross national income, the CGD said in a blog post.And eight economies including South Sudan, Somalia and Afghanistan could face a hit of three percent or more, the group added.The impact is especially severe for those eight economies as more than a fifth of their foreign assistance comes from USAID.The value comes up to 35 percent for Afghanistan, 36 percent for South Sudan and 40 percent for Somalia, the post added.While “US support is too large to be fully replaced,” the CGD noted that other providers’ official development assistance could be refocused and this could alleviate some of the worst effects.The poorest countries are among the main beneficiaries of aid from the International Development Association under the World Bank, which provides loans and grants to low-income countries.Other countries such as Germany, Canada, Japan and Sweden could also step up, the CGD added.”While there’s still time to change course and mitigate some of the worst effects, countries around the world would be wise to act now in response to a less globally engaged United States,” said the CGD blog post’s authors Ian Mitchell and Sam Hughes.US President Donald Trump has ordered a 90-day review of USAID, which runs health and emergency programs in around 120 countries, including the world’s poorest.Less than a week after Trump returned to the White House, USAID told non-governmental groups they would have to cease operations immediately because the new administration had frozen its budgets.

Pope Francis described Donald Trump’s migrant deportations as a “major crisis” Tuesday, prompting a rebuke from the US president’s border czar, who told the pontiff to “stick to the Catholic Church”.In a letter to US bishops, Francis, 88, said deporting people who had fled their own countries in distress “damages the dignity” of the migrants and could leave many vulnerable and defenceless.”I exhort all the faithful of the Catholic Church, and all men and women of goodwill, not to give in to narratives that discriminate against and cause unnecessary suffering to our migrant and refugee brothers and sisters,” he wrote.The letter, published by the Vatican, sparked a swift retort from the Trump White House.”I wish he’d stick to the Catholic Church and fix that and leave border enforcement to us,” the president’s border czar, Tom Homan, told reporters.”He wants to attack us for securing our border? He’s got a wall around the Vatican, does he not?… We can’t have a wall around the United States.”Homan also noted that he is a “lifelong Catholic” himself.The tiny Vatican City state is located in the middle of Rome, surrounded by a high wall punctuated by gates manned by the pontiff’s Swiss Guard.- ‘End badly’ -Francis has repeatedly defended the rights of migrants during his 10 years leading the Catholic Church, urging world leaders to be more welcoming to those fleeing poverty or violence.And he warned as Trump returned to the White House last month that the Republican’s pledge to carry out the largest deportation campaign in US history, by expelling millions of undocumented immigrants, would be a “calamity”.”I have followed closely the major crisis that is taking place in the United States with the initiation of a programme of mass deportations,” the Argentine pontiff wrote Tuesday.He acknowledged “the right of a nation to defend itself and keep communities safe from those who have committed violent or serious crimes while in the country or prior to arrival”.But he wrote that “the act of deporting people who in many cases have left their own land for reasons of extreme poverty, insecurity, exploitation, persecution or serious deterioration of the environment, damages the dignity of many men and women, and of entire families”.Deportation “places them in a state of particular vulnerability and defencelessness”, he wrote.”This is not a minor issue — an authentic rule of law is verified precisely in the dignified treatment that all people deserve, especially the poorest and most marginalised,” he continued.He added: “This does not impede the development of a policy that regulates orderly and legal migration. However, this development cannot come about through the privilege of some and the sacrifice of others.”What is built on the basis of force, and not on the truth about the equal dignity of every human being, begins badly and will end badly.”Francis has criticised Trump for his anti-migrant policies in the past.In February 2016, when asked about the then-US presidential hopeful’s stance, the pope said: “Anyone, whoever he is, who only wants to build walls and not bridges is not a Christian”.And last year Francis made a rare foray into the US election season to call harsh anti-migrant attitudes “madness” and criticise right-wing US Catholic figures for overly conservative stances.In May 2017, when Trump was in his first term, he was received at the Vatican for a half-hour meeting.burs-ar/ide/jhb

President Donald Trump slammed “highly political judges” Tuesday as his new administration veered closer to a constitutional clash over his plans to radically overhaul the US government.Trump’s remarks on his Truth Social network came after federal judges questioned the legality of some of the cost-cutting measures led by SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.The Republican president asserted in an early-morning post that “billions of Dollars of FRAUD, WASTE, AND ABUSE, has already been found in the investigation of our incompetently run Government.””Now certain activists and highly political judges want us to slow down, or stop,” added Trump.”Losing this momentum will be very detrimental to finding the TRUTH, which is turning out to be a disaster for those involved in running our Government. Much left to find. No Excuses!!!”In his first three weeks in office, Trump has issued a flurry of executive orders aimed at slashing federal spending, appointing Musk — the world’s richest person — to lead efforts that critics widely denounce as unconstitutional.But his plans, which have effectively shuttered some federal agencies and sent staff home, have sparked legal battles across the country. Multiple lawsuits seek to halt what opponents characterize as an illegal power grab.In the most recent case a federal judge in Rhode Island on Monday said the Trump administration had violated a previous order lifting a sweeping federal funding freeze.Trump’s team has angrily stepped up its attacks on the judiciary in recent days as they seek to assert unprecedented levels of executive power for the Republican.”If a district court judge wants control over the entire executive branch… he should run for president,” Stephen Miller, Trump’s hardline deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security advisor, said Tuesday on X.Vice President JD Vance — who has previously called for presidents to ignore court rulings that curb the White House’s power — had warned judges Sunday to back off.”Judges aren’t allowed to control the executive’s legitimate power,” he said on X, which is owned by Musk, comparing judicial intervention to a judge dictating military strategy to a general.”Judicial tyranny is grossly improper!” Musk said, echoing the White House pushback.

US President Donald Trump’s order to suspend most foreign aid has sent shock waves through the humanitarian sector, threatening to trigger mass layoffs at many NGOs and possibly destroy others altogether. Less than a week after Trump returned to power, the US Agency for International Development told NGOs they would have to cease operations immediately because the new administration had frozen USAID’s budgets. The US president has ordered a 90-day review of USAID — which runs health and emergency programmes in around 120 countries, including the world’s poorest. The campaign is being spearheaded by his billionaire ally Elon Musk, who has boasted of feeding USAID “through the wood-chipper”.Trump’s administration has since issued waivers for some “life-saving” aid, while the freeze included exceptions to funding for Israel and Egypt.But confusion reigns over how those waivers will be implemented and the uncertainty has already taken its toll.The order to stop work immediately hit “like a bombshell”, said a source at an NGO in Kenya. He asked to remain anonymous out of fear his charity could be punished by the Trump administration.”It threw people into panic mode,” the aid worker said of the freeze, pointing out that the lack of notice meant staff had no time to adapt. They were instantly put on compulsory unpaid leave and the organisation was no longer able to pay their rents or salaries, he said. “What’s that going to mean for people who have children?” he asked, aghast. – Impossible to compensate –  According to aid network ALNAP, more than 630,000 people were employed in the aid sector in 2020, more than 90 percent of them local staff. For many locals, the US freeze spells unemployment in countries with fragile economies where finding another job is almost impossible. Expatriates working for aid agencies also face disruption. “We notified everyone on US budgets that they had been suspended temporarily,” said a source at the European headquarters of an NGO mostly financed by US funds. The consequence for expatriates, she said on condition of anonymity, is that “they put you on a plane and you go back home”. Except, she added, “you don’t necessarily have a home” because many expat aid workers go from mission to mission, with no home base in their country of origin. USAID manages a budget of $42.8 billion — representing 42 percent of humanitarian aid disbursed worldwide. NGOs will have to “lay off employees in proportion to their dependence on US funds”, she said. “If an NGO depends 60 percent on USAID, it will have to lay off 60 percent of its employees. If it depends 40 percent, it will lay off 40 percent.” It would be “impossible to compensate for the loss of US funds”, she said. – ‘Brutal’ -The Norwegian Refugee Council, one of the world’s largest aid agencies, said on Monday it was forced to abruptly suspend US-funded “urgent humanitarian work for hundreds of thousands of people in nearly 20 countries affected by wars, disasters and displacement”. Just under 20 percent — $150 million — of its funding came from the United States last year, providing vital support for 1.6 million people.While the initial US funding freeze was set to last 90 days, the administration has already begun slashing USAID’s workforce, and many in the aid sector fear a drastic long-term drop in US support.Trump and Musk have publicly vowed to shutter USAID for good. “We’re not so vulnerable that we’ll just fold in 90 days. The problem is, will this last 90 days or go on much longer?” said Kevin Goldberg, head of Solidarites International, which is 36 percent US-funded. Local partners of international NGOs, “who depend on our ability to transfer part of the US aid allocated to us”, would also suffer, he added.Goldberg said he “feared for the entire humanitarian chain”. “There are a lot of players in the aid sector that will disappear” because European state funding is also decreasing, warned Jean-Francois Corty, head of Medecins du Monde. He told AFP the US decision was an “apocalyptic revolution” for a humanitarian ecosystem that was “being… strangled to death”. An executive from another international NGO said she feared the “brutal” Trump method would have repercussions in Europe, where far-right parties drawing from the US president’s playbook are gaining ground.”This earthquake… forces us to rethink everything,” she told AFP.dl-fv-al-jf/mr/gil

Jordan’s King Abdullah II faces a tense meeting with Donald Trump at the White House Tuesday as he leads opposition from Arab nations to the US president’s controversial Gaza takeover plan.The talks come a day after Trump said he could “conceivably” halt billions of dollars in US aid to both Jordan and Egypt if they refuse to take in Palestinians that he says should be moved out from their homeland.The meeting also comes as the Gaza ceasefire appears increasingly fragile with Trump warning that “all hell” would break out if Hamas fails to release all hostages by Saturday.Abdullah and Jordan’s Crown Prince Hussein will meet Trump in the Oval Office before having lunch, the White House said. Both meetings will be behind closed doors.The pair also met Trump’s National Security Advisor Mike Waltz on Tuesday, the Jordanian royal court said on X.King Abdullah is a key US ally but last week rejected “any attempts” to take control of the Palestinian territories and displace its people after Trump stunned the world with his proposal for Gaza.He also held talks with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas on the matter.Trump unveiled the proposal after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu became the first foreign leader to visit the White House since the US president’s inauguration.Trump said the United States would “take over” Gaza, envisioning rebuilding the devastated territory into the “Riviera of the Middle East” — but only after resettling Palestinians elsewhere, with no plan for them ever to return.The US president has pressed Jordan and Egypt in particular to take in the more than two million Palestinians from Gaza under the plan, while indicating other regional countries could also take them in.- Aid pressure -Trump doubled down on the pressure on the eve of his meeting with Abdullah, threatening US assistance to Jordan and Egypt if they continue to oppose the plan.”Maybe,” Trump told reporters on Monday when asked if he would suspend aid if the two countries did not take in the Palestinians. “If they don’t agree, I would conceivably withhold it.” Trump made clear in an interview with Fox News channel’s Bret Baier broadcast Monday that Palestinians would have no right of return to Gaza after leaving.His plan has sparked a global backlash and Arab countries have condemned the proposal, insisting on a two-state solution with an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel.Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who is expected to visit the White House later this week, urged on Tuesday the reconstruction of Gaza “without displacing Palestinians.”Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty also met with his US counterpart Marco Rubio in Washington on Monday. The Egyptian foreign ministry later issued a statement rejecting “any compromise” on Palestinians’ rights.Analysts say the issue is an existential one for Jordan in particular.Half of Jordan’s population of 11 million is of Palestinian origin, and since the establishment of Israel in 1948, many Palestinians have sought refuge there.In 1970 in what became known as “Black September”. clashes erupted between the Jordanian army and Palestinian groups led by the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO).It resulted in the expulsion of those groups.But Jordan is also keenly aware of the economic pressure Trump could exercise. Every year, Jordan receives around $750 million in economic assistance from Washington and another $350 million in military aid.

The Kremlin said Tuesday that a “significant part” of Ukraine “wants to be Russia,” hours after US President Donald Trump floated the idea that Ukraine “may be Russian someday.”Addressing the three-year conflict between Moscow and Kyiv in a Fox News interview that aired Monday, Trump said: “(Ukraine) may make a deal, they may not make a deal. They may be Russian someday, or they may not be Russian someday.”Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday that the situation in Ukraine “largely corresponds to President Trump’s words.””The fact that a significant part of Ukraine wants to become Russia, and has already, is a fact,” he told reporters, referring to Moscow’s 2022 annexation of four Ukrainian regions.”Any phenomenon can happen with a 50 percent probability — either yes or no,” Peskov added.Trump has said ending the fighting is one of his priorities for his first months in the White House, but is yet to outline specific proposals for how he plans to bring the two sides to the negotiating table.Both Moscow and Kyiv have publicly welcomed his focus on ending the conflict. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he is ready for direct talks with Trump on a possible agreement, while the New York Post reported over the weekend that Trump had told them he had already spoken to Putin privately over the issue.The Kremlin declined to confirm or deny the call.- Energy strikes -Both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky have previously ruled out direct talks with each other, and there appears to be little ground where the two could strike a deal.Kyiv fears that any settlement that does not include hard military commitments for its security — such as NATO membership or the deployment of Western peacekeeping troops — will just allow the Kremlin time to regroup and rearm for a fresh offensive.Putin is demanding that Ukraine withdraw from swathes of its south and east that Kyiv still has control over, and considers closer ties between Ukraine and NATO inadmissable.Zelensky has meanwhile rejected any territorial concessions to Moscow, though he has acknowledged that Ukraine might have to rely on diplomatic means to secure the return of some territory.Russia says it has annexed five regions of Ukraine — Crimea in 2014 and then Donetsk, Kherson, Lugansk and Zaporizhzhia in 2022 — though it does not have full control over them.Zelensky will meet US Vice President JD Vance at the Munich Security Conference on Friday, the Ukrainian president’s spokesman told AFP.Trump will also dispatch his special envoy Keith Kellogg to Ukraine later this month to further discuss a possible roadmap for ending the conflict.Both armies are trying to secure an advantage on the battlefield ahead of possible talks.Russia’s defence ministry said Tuesday its troops had captured the small village of Yasenove in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region.Overnight the two sides traded long-range attacks on each other’s energy infrastructure.Ukraine’s General Staff said its forces had struck an oil refinery in Russia’s Saratov region, sparking a fire.”Strikes on strategic targets involved in the Russian armed aggression against Ukraine will continue,” it said in a statement.The governor of the Russian region had earlier reported a drone attack on an industrial site, without specifying where.Russia’s defence ministry also said it had struck Ukrainian gas and energy sites that support Kyiv’s army in an overnight aerial attack.Naftogaz, the Ukrainian national gas company, confirmed one of its facilities in the eastern Poltava region had been damaged in the “massive” Russian attack overnight.Temporary power cuts — frequent across Ukraine — were put in place Tuesday morning following the strike.Moscow has pursued a months-long bombing campaign against Ukrainian energy infrastructure, claiming the attacks targeted facilities that aid Kyiv’s military.Ukraine has carried out its own strikes on Russian energy and military installations, and Moscow has accused it of using US- and British-supplied missiles to strike deep inside Russian territory. 

US President Donald Trump signed executive orders to impose 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from March 12, ramping up a long-promised trade war despite warnings from Europe and China.The European Union swiftly vowed to retaliate with “firm and proportionate countermeasures”.In an executive order released Monday, Trump said: “As of March 12, 2025, all imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Mexico, EU countries, and the UK shall be subject to the additional ad valorem tariff.” He issued a separate order for steel, which said it would apply to all imports from the same countries the aluminum tariffs hit, as well as to Brazil, Japan and South Korea. “I’m simplifying our tariffs on steel and aluminum,” Trump said earlier in the Oval Office. “It’s 25 percent without exceptions or exemptions.”The tariffs also appear to indirectly target China, with the executive orders detailing how certain countries — particularly Mexico — were “using” their exemptions to get Chinese imports into the United States. “Chinese producers are using Mexico’s general exclusion from the tariff to funnel Chinese aluminum to the United States through Mexico,” it said.Mexico’s increased volume of steel imports from China also “support a conclusion that there is transshipment or further processing of steel mill articles… from countries seeking to evade quantitative restrictions.”Canada, Mexico and Brazil are among the biggest steel importers to the United States, followed by South Korea. South Korea’s acting President Choi Sang-mok vowed Tuesday to protect domestic firms’ interests and reduce uncertainties “by building a close relationship with the Trump administration and expanding diplomatic options.”Trump had also signaled he would look at imposing additional tariffs on automobiles, pharmaceuticals and computer chips, and promised an announcement on Tuesday or Wednesday on broader “reciprocal tariffs” to match the levies other governments charge on US products.During his 2017-2021 presidency, he had imposed sweeping tariffs as he believed US industries faced unfair competition from Asian and European countries. – ‘Misguided path’ -Canadian steelmakers warned of “massive” disruption, while the European Commission said it would “react to protect the interests of European businesses, workers and consumers from unjustified measures.”EU chief Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday slammed Trump’s decision, vowing the bloc would retaliate.”Unjustified tariffs on the EU will not go unanswered — they will trigger firm and proportionate countermeasures,” she said in a statement. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the bloc will provide a united front to Washington, though “I hope that we are spared the misguided path of tariffs and counter-tariffs.”French President Emmanuel Macron vowed in an interview aired Sunday to go head-to-head with Trump over his wider tariff threats against the European Union, though he also said the United States should focus its efforts on China.Around 25 percent of European steel exports go to the United States, according to consultancy Roland Berger.Britain’s steel industry body called the tariff plan a “devastating blow.”Trump has already shown his fondness for weaponizing the United States’ power as the world’s largest economy, ordering tariffs on key trade partners China, Mexico and Canada soon after he took office.He paused 25 percent levies against Canada and Mexico for a month after both countries vowed to step up measures to counter flows of the drug fentanyl and the crossing of undocumented migrants into the United States.- Economic ‘pain’ to come? -But Trump went ahead with tariffs on China, the world’s second-biggest economy, with products entering the United States facing an additional 10 percent levy.Chinese retaliatory tariffs targeting US coal and liquified natural gas came into play on Monday. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said “there is no winner in a trade war and tariff war.”Trump also focused on steel during a visit by Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba last week. The American leader said he had secured an agreement for Japan’s Nippon Steel to make a major investment in US Steel, instead of seeking to take over the troubled firm.Trump has insisted the impact of any tariffs would be borne by foreign exporters without being passed on to US consumers, despite most experts saying the contrary.But he did acknowledge this month that Americans might feel economic “pain” from the levies.Wall Street’s main indices finished up Monday despite the tariff threat, though Asian and European markets were mixed by Tuesday.burs-dk/dhc/sco

US President Donald Trump signed executive orders to impose 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from March 12, ramping up a long-promised trade war despite warnings from Europe and China.”Today I’m simplifying our tariffs on steel and aluminum,” Trump said Monday in the Oval Office. “It’s 25 percent without exceptions or exemptions.”In an executive order released after, he said: “As of March 12, 2025, all imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Mexico, EU countries, and the UK shall be subject to the additional ad valorem tariff.” Trump issued a separate order for steel, which said it would apply to all imports from the same countries the aluminum tariffs hit, as well as to Brazil, Japan and South Korea.Canada and Mexico are the biggest steel importers to the United States, according to US trade data. Brazil and South Korea are also major steel providers.Trump also signaled he would look at imposing additional tariffs on automobiles, pharmaceuticals and computer chips.”President Trump has made it clear that an important part of an America First Golden Age is steel production,” National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett told CNBC.Trump also promised an announcement on Tuesday or Wednesday on broader “reciprocal tariffs” to match the levies other governments charge on US products.During his 2017-2021 presidency, Trump had imposed sweeping tariffs as he believed US industries faced unfair competition from Asian and European countries. – ‘Devastating blow’ -Canadian steelmakers warned of “massive” disruption, while the European Commission said it would “react to protect the interests of European businesses, workers and consumers from unjustified measures.”French President Emmanuel Macron vowed in an interview aired Sunday to go head-to-head with Trump over his wider tariff threats against the European Union, though he said the United States should focus its efforts on China.German economy minister Robert Habeck said a tariff conflict “only has losers.”Around 25 percent of European steel exports go to the United States, according to consultancy Roland Berger.Britain’s steel industry body called the tariff plan a “devastating blow.”Trump has already shown his fondness for weaponizing the United States’ power as the world’s largest economy, ordering tariffs on key trade partners China, Mexico and Canada soon after he took office.He paused 25 percent levies against Canada and Mexico for a month after both countries vowed to step up measures to counter flows of the drug fentanyl and the crossing of undocumented migrants into the United States.- ‘Tariff fatigue’ -But Trump went ahead with tariffs on China, the world’s second-biggest economy, with products entering the United States facing an additional 10 percent levy.Chinese retaliatory tariffs targeting US coal and liquified natural gas came into play Monday. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said “there is no winner in a trade war and tariff war.”Trump also focused on steel during a visit by Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba last week. The American leader said he had secured an agreement for Japan’s Nippon Steel to make a major investment in US Steel, instead of seeking to take over the troubled firm.Trump, who has promised a “new golden age” for the United States, insists the impact of any tariffs would be borne by foreign exporters without being passed on to US consumers, despite most experts saying the contrary.But he did acknowledge this month that Americans might feel economic “pain” from the levies.Wall Street’s main indices finished up Monday despite the tariff threat. London and Frankfurt set fresh records, while Asian markets were mixed Tuesday.”The fact that global equity indices are higher at the start of the week could be a sign of tariff fatigue,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading group XTB.The dollar also rose against the Canadian dollar, the Mexican peso and South Korean won on Monday.burs-dk/sst/jgc/sn/dhc

The US Justice Department on Monday ordered federal prosecutors to drop corruption charges against Democratic New York Mayor Eric Adams, US media reported, after his rapprochement with President Donald Trump.”You are directed, as authorized by the Attorney General, to dismiss the pending charges in United States v. Adams,” said the department memo obtained by the New York Times and CNN. The first sitting New York mayor to be criminally indicted, Adams in September pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud and bribery, and rebuffed calls for his resignation. The shocking corruption scandal bode ill for his reelection bid in the November mayoral race. Adams has also asserted, without evidence, that he was being punished for his criticism of former President Joe Biden’s immigration policies.And Trump, who himself was facing multiple legal troubles, expressed solidarity with Adams during his election campaign, saying the mayor was being prosecuted “for speaking out against open borders.”Adams’s lawyer Alex Spiro praised the move in an email statement to AFP.”As I said from the outset, the mayor is innocent — and he would prevail. Today he has,” Spiro said. “Despite a lot of fanfare and sensational claims, ultimately there was no evidence presented that he broke any laws, ever,” he added. “Now, thankfully, the mayor and New York can put this unfortunate and misguided prosecution behind them.”A man once touted as a future Democratic Party star, Adams has ramped up contact with associates of Republican US President Donald Trump in recent weeks. In December, he met with border czar Thomas Homan — charged by Trump with plans to deport undocumented immigrants — and some on the left suspect the mayor of seeking a presidential pardon in exchange for rapprochement with the administration. Emil Bove, the Justice Department’s acting deputy attorney general and a former lawyer for Trump, in the letter accused the former Manhattan federal prosecutor of pursuing Adams for his own political gains.He said the investigation was conducted too close to the Democratic primaries for the upcoming New York mayoral election in November. According to the New York Times, Bove also argued that the indictment had hindered Adams’s ability to cooperate with the Trump administration in its crackdown on immigration. Adams has been accused of wire fraud, soliciting illegal campaign donations and a bribery conspiracy involving Turkish citizens and at least one Turkish official.According to the charges, he accepted luxury international flights, hotel suites and free high-end restaurant meals including from Turkish associates in return for favors.In one example, prosecutors say Adams pressured the city’s fire department to approve Turkey’s new high-rise consulate in Manhattan despite safety concerns.