AFP USA

US lawmakers wrote to Britain’s disgraced former prince Andrew on Thursday requesting he sit for an interview about his friendship with the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.The letter was disclosed as King Charles III formally stripped his younger brother of his titles after last week’s announcement that Andrew was being banished from the monarchy.Sixteen Democratic Party members of Congress signed a letter asking Andrew to participate in a “transcribed interview” with the House of Representatives oversight committee investigating Epstein, who took his own life in 2019 while facing sex trafficking charges.”The committee is seeking to uncover the identities of Mr Epstein’s co-conspirators and enablers and to understand the full extent of his criminal operations,” the letter read.”Well-documented allegations against you, along with your long-standing friendship with Mr Epstein, indicate that you may possess knowledge of his activities relevant to our investigation.”The letter asked Andrew, now known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, to respond by November 20.It was signed by Democrats who are in a minority in the House. US Congress also has no power to compel testimony from foreigners, making it unlikely that Andrew will give evidence.A spokesperson for the former prince did not immediately respond to a request for comment from AFP.Emails recently released by the committee as well as a posthumous memoir written by Andrew’s sexual assault accuser Virginia Giuffre reignited UK anger over Andrew’s ties to Epstein.It culminated in Charles deciding to remove all of Andrew’s royal titles and honours and announcing that he would be ousted from his 30-room mansion on the royal estate at Windsor, west of London.Charles has formally made the changes with an announcement published Wednesday in The Gazette, the UK’s official public record.Andrew has always denied that he sexually abused Giuffre, who alleged that she was trafficked to have sex with him on three occasions, twice when she was just 17.After she launched a lawsuit against him, he paid her a multi-million-pound settlement in 2022 without making any admission of guilt.Giuffre, a US and Australian citizen, died by suicide at her home in Australia in April.

A US man charged with using a sandwich to assault a law enforcement officer was acquitted Thursday after a jury decided that charges brought by President Donald Trump’s prosecutors were baloney.The prosecution made a surprise local hero of 37-year-old Sean Dunn, who was protesting Trump’s shock takeover of law enforcement in the capital Washington.He was accused of flinging a “sub-style sandwich” at an armed Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agent on August 10 in a busy nightlife district after shouting expletives at the officer.The officer was part of a huge crackdown ordered by Trump, with multiple agencies and troops deploying in Washington and several other Democratic-run cities, ostensibly to fight what the Republican president says are crime waves and anarchy.Prosecutors wanted serious felony charges, but a grand jury refused to indict Dunn — a rare occurrence. A misdemeanor charge was filed and Dunn faced a maximum of one year in prison if convicted.While prosecutors ultimately proved ham-fisted, Dunn had appeared to be in a serious pickle.Right after hurling his sandwich he was chased down, then released, only to be arrested in a raid on his home that was publicized by the White House.As video of the initial altercation went viral, Dunn was quickly dubbed “DC sandwich guy,” becoming a symbol of resistance to Trump. Stylized images of him in mid-sandwich-attack appeared on posters, graffiti, T-shirts and even a popular Halloween costume.  Trump’s much-touted crime crackdown has seen an increase in arrests and indictments, but US media analysis of the data shows much of that has come from pursuing minor offenses in court.The top Trump-appointed prosecutor for Washington, Jeanine Pirro, has pursued maximum penalties for all arrests since taking office, including in the Dunn case.Dunn was a paralegal at the Justice Department at the time of the altercation and was fired from his position.On Monday, as proceedings opened, Judge Carl J. Nichols noted that he expected the trial to be a short one as “this is the simplest case in the world.”Dunn’s defense did not dispute that he threw the sandwich at the officer, instead arguing that his action did not constitute an offense, and that the charges against him were a “blatant abuse of power.”Much of the case centered on the definition of key terms, including whether the throwing of a soft object constitutes an act that is “forcible,” and whether Dunn’s action impeded the officer in the conduct of their duties.On the first day of court proceedings, the defendant, dressed in a black-and-white patterned sweater, appeared subdued as his defense team engaged in feverish consultation.Dunn’s defense has contended that he was being selectively prosecuted due to his political views, having called the federal officers “fascists” before he threw the sandwich.

The US Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration on Thursday to require passport applicants to be identified on the document by their biological sex at birth rather than their gender identity.The move is the latest blow to the rights of transgender and nonbinary Americans from the conservative-majority court, which includes three justices appointed by Republican President Donald Trump.Trump, after taking office in January, issued an executive order declaring that only two genders would now be recognized — male and female — ending recognition of a third gender, denoted by an “X” on US passports.In line with the order, passports issued by the State Department are now required to state the biological sex — “M” or “F” — of their holder at birth.The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) challenged the move and a district court judge ordered the State Department to resume issuing “X” passports to transgender and nonbinary people affected by the policy change.An appeals court denied a Trump administration bid to overturn the district judge’s order, and the Justice Department asked the Supreme Court to issue an emergency stay.In a brief unsigned order, the top court said the Trump administration’s passport policy could remain in place for now while the case proceeds in the lower courts. “Displaying passport holders’ sex at birth no more offends equal protection principles than displaying their country of birth — in both cases, the Government is merely attesting to a historical fact without subjecting anyone to differential treatment,” the court said.The three liberal justices on the nine-member court dissented.The State Department first issued “X” passports in October 2021 under president Joe Biden, with the “X” gender marker reserved for nonbinary, intersex, and gender non-conforming individuals.Senior ACLU counsel Jon Davidson condemned the Supreme Court order and said the legal fight would continue.”This is a heartbreaking setback for the freedom of all people to be themselves, and fuel on the fire the Trump administration is stoking against transgender people and their constitutional rights,” Davidson said in a statement.”We will continue to fight this policy and work for a future where no one is denied self-determination over their identity,” Davidson added.Trump also issued an executive order in January banning transgender Americans from military service, and the Supreme Court ruled in June that the ban could take effect while litigation challenging it plays out.

Kazakhstan said Thursday it will join the Abraham Accords between Israel and mainly Muslim nations, in a largely symbolic move aimed at boosting US President Donald Trump’s push for Middle East peace.The central Asian republic has had diplomatic ties with Israel for decades, unlike the four Arab states that normalized relations with Israel under the original accords signed in Trump’s first term.But with Trump aiming to shore up his fragile Gaza ceasefire deal, Washington is pushing to get as much support as possible behind a wider peace initiative.The announcement comes as Trump hosts Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and the leaders of the other four central Asian republics — Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan.After the leaders arrived at the White House, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that he, Tokayev and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had held a “great call.”An official signing ceremony will be announced soon, Trump said, adding that “there are many more Countries trying to join this club of STRENGTH.”Kazakhstan said Thursday it was “natural and logical” for it to join.”Our anticipated accession to the Abraham Accords represents a natural and logical continuation of Kazakhstan’s foreign policy course — grounded in dialogue, mutual respect, and regional stability,” the country’s government said in a statement.US special envoy Steve Witkoff said earlier that a new country would join the accords, sparking initial speculation — later quashed — that it could be the elusive prize of Saudi Arabia.Kazakhstan will be the first country to join since the original Abraham Accords in 2020, when the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco normalized ties with Israel.- ‘Lot of people joining’ -Saudi Arabia had been in talks with the United States on normalizing ties with Israel, in what would be a historic milestone as the kingdom is home to Islam’s two holiest sites.But the Gulf kingdom stepped back after the Gaza war broke out following Hamas’s attack on Israel in October 2023.Saudi Arabia has long insisted it cannot normalize ties without progress toward an independent Palestinian state, a prospect long opposed by Netanyahu.Trump said at the America Business Forum in Miami on Wednesday: “We have a lot of people joining now the Abraham Accords and hopefully we are going to get Saudi Arabia very soon.”He then added jokingly to an audience which included the Saudi ambassador to the United States, Princess Reema bint Bandar Al Saud, “But I’m not saying that. I’m not.”The US-brokered Gaza deal has been in place since October 10 but remains shaky, with Israel accusing Hamas of dragging its feet in returning the bodies of hostages.Israel has also launched a number of attacks despite the truce, claiming that its forces have come under attack, and says Hamas is not doing enough to give up its weapons.Witkoff, one of the key negotiators, said Thursday he was still hopeful it could hold, adding that they were “right in the middle of standing up a decommissioning process of weapons” by Hamas.Hamas insisted this process would depend on the deployment of an international security force, which would be greenlighted under a draft UN Security Council resolution presented by the United States this week, Witkoff said.

Donald Trump loves few things more than tackling a new political foe. But has he met his match in New York’s incoming mayor Zohran Mamdani?The mouthwatering showdown between the Republican and the young Democratic socialist could define the next phase of Trump’s presidency.Trump has appeared to relish having Mamdani as a foil, branding him a communist, mocking the name of the first Muslim and South Asian to lead America’s largest city, and threatening to cut federal funding for New York City.But his rival has shown he can play Trump at his own game.It’s rare for former reality TV star Trump to see himself upstaged, but 34-year-old Mamdani managed it at his victory rally on Tuesday night.”Donald Trump, since I know you’re watching, I have four words for you — turn the volume up!” he said to huge cheers.White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed to reporters traveling with Trump on Air Force One the next day that the president had indeed watched Mamdani speak.- ‘Go through all of us’ -Trump and Mamdani are, at least partly, enemies with benefits.Leftist Mamdani used Trump as a bogeyman throughout his mayoral campaign, accusing him of “fascism” and comparing the billionaire property developer to the landlords he says are ripping off New Yorkers.He has also cannily positioned himself as part of the resistance to a president who has pushed his power to its limits and sent the National Guard into Democrat-run cities.”To get to any of us, you will have to go through all of us,” Mamdani said at the victory rally.For hapless Democrats who have struggled to find a winning message as Trump has savaged them in recent months, Mamdani represents a long-awaited chance to fight back. But for many on the right, Trump now has the ideal opponent to bash.As Republicans nursed their wounds from defeats in New York, Virginia and New Jersey, Trump said in a speech in Miami on Wednesday that Americans now faced a “choice between communism and common sense.”Trump also blew a dog whistle to the hard-right.”Mandami, whatever the hell his name is,” Trump said in the same speech — deliberately mispronouncing Ugandan-born Mamdani’s surname in the same way he did with his 2024 election rival Kamala Harris.- ‘Flashing red lights’ – Yet the stakes are far higher than a war of words.Trump has repeatedly threatened to put New York — his beloved home city — in the federal crosshairs like he has previously with Los Angeles and Chicago.”If he is a communist, there’s not going to be a lot of activity,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday. “So you wouldn’t need bridges and tunnels and all the different things that were being planned for New York.”Some allies meanwhile fear Trump could be playing with fire by focusing on a man whose rise was propelled by the affordability crisis that is now hurting Republicans in the polls.”There should be flashing red lights all over” for Trump, former White House strategy guru Steve Bannon told Politico. “People better understand they have a fight on their hands. This guy is a serious guy.”Both Trump and Mamdani have also indicated they may ultimately be ready to cool things off.Trump has veered between saying he wants to “make him succeed” because he loves New York, and in the same breath urging Mamdani to be “a little bit respectful of Washington.” And Mamdani will be aware that his campaign pledges of free city bus travel, childcare and city-run grocery stores will struggle if Trump cuts federal funding.”I continue to be interested in having a conversation with President Trump on the ways in which we can work together to serve New Yorkers,” he said on Wednesday.

A representative of a pharmaceutical company fainted Thursday during a White House announcement on slashing the cost of weight-loss drugs, forcing President Donald Trump to suspend the event.As one of the bosses of the two drug companies invited to announce the price deal was speaking, the man crumpled to the ground behind him.Trump, who was seated at the time, quickly stood up and remained behind his desk while several people attended to the man, whose identity was not made public.One of those helping him was Mehmet Oz, Trump’s administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and a medical doctor.”The White House Medical Unit quickly jumped into action, and the gentleman is okay,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said.The event resumed about an hour later.

Tesla shareholders on Thursday overwhelmingly endorsed a massive pay package for CEO Elon Musk that could reach $1 trillion. The pay package — crafted to ensure Musk’s continued service to Tesla as the company pursues breakthrough technology on artificial intelligence and robotics — won more than 75 percent support from shareholders, a Tesla official said at the company’s annual meeting.”I’d like to just give a heartfelt thanks to everyone who supported the shareholder votes,” a euphoric Musk told the gathering. “I super-appreciate it.”Cheers of “Elon” broke out after the vote result was announced at the gathering, which was held at the company’s factory in Austin.Musk has emerged as a lightning rod figure, in part due to his embrace of right-wing politicians including President Donald Trump. But Thursday’s vote marked the latest demonstration of the entrepreneurial billionaire’s resonance with investors.The package aims to ensure Musk stays at Tesla for at least seven-and-a-half years. It would lift Musk’s holding in Tesla from about 12 percent when the package was introduced in September to potentially more than 25 percent.Musk has described Tesla’s potential growth as nearly boundless, saying in July that it “will be the most valuable company in the world by far” if it delivers on envisioned advances on autonomous driving and AI.But Musk himself has hinted he could leave Tesla or take a back seat if his ownership share is not raised enough to give him the influence over its future that he desires.In urging shareholders to back the proposal, Tesla Chair Robin Denholm argued keeping Musk was essential to Tesla’s future, warning the company’s stock could dive if he exited.The board has shrugged off criticism that the billionaire’s embrace of contentious political figures has weighed on sales.- Base of shareholder support -Tesla investors have been reliable Musk supporters in past votes over Musk’s pay packages, including a 2018 deal for about $55.8 billion that has repeatedly been blocked by a Delaware court in response to shareholder litigation.Following the latest Delaware ruling, Denholm and the rest of Tesla’s board went back to the drawing board, first approving in August an “interim” compensation award worth about $29 billion for Musk and then unveiling the larger plan in September.Once again on Thursday, Tesla shareholders signed off on stratospheric pay for Musk and also handed the company victories on other key votes, including the reelection of board members.But Tesla Takedown, an activist group, blasted the vote result, noting the company’s drop in auto sales in recent quarters.”Elon Musk just got one trillion dollars for failure,” said the group, which rallied against the plan Wednesday in downtown Austin.”Sales are down, safety risks are up and his politics are driving customers away. This isn’t leadership — it’s the world’s most expensive participation trophy.”On the other side, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said the sweeping vote in favor of Musk cements his position as “the AI Revolution takes hold giving us greater confidence in the Tesla story moving forward.”Musk, witha net worth of more than $500 billion, is already the world’s richest person, according to Forbes’s real-time list of billionaires.He must hit 12 milestones related to market capitalization to receive the full pay package. The first tranche would be available when Tesla reaches $2 trillion in market value, up from its current $1.5 trillion.The plan also involves a series of operating profit and product goals, such as the delivery of 20 million Tesla vehicles.The pay proposal was panned by Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS). An ISS analysis last month criticized the rationale for the potential windfall, noting that Musk’s financial interests are already closely tied to Tesla’s fate.As structured, the separation of the overall package into tranches of “unprecedented” value “could undermine the necessity for all goals to be realized,” said ISS, which also flagged the lack of explicit requirements that the busy Musk keep focused on Tesla.

Former NBA player Damon Jones, once close to LeBron James having worked alongside him at the Los Angeles Lakers, pleaded not guilty Thursday in two separate cases involving illegal gambling.In the first case, he is accused with several others of participating in a rigged betting scheme based on sharing confidential information from the locker room.He allegedly advised members of the network to bet on the Milwaukee Bucks against the Lakers, knowing that LeBron was injured and would not play.Hours later, James announced his withdrawal, and the Lakers were defeated.The second case involves a national network of Mafia-linked rigged poker games involving around 30 people and the use of highly sophisticated cheating equipment including X-ray tables.Jones allegedly used his notoriety to lure victims into the rigged games, before receiving a share of the profits. Coach Chauncey Billups, who won the NBA championships in 2004 with the Detroit Pistons, is charged in the illegal poker case.Accompanied by his lawyer, Damon Jones — who is out on a $200,000 bond — appeared before the two judges handling the cases and plead not guilty to both.The undrafted 49-year-old former player joined the NBA for a modest career across 11 different teams, notably the Cleveland Cavaliers from 2005 to 2008, where he played alongside LeBron.He later became an assistant coach, working again for the Cavaliers from 2016 to 2018 during LeBron’s second stint in Ohio. Jones served as James’s personal coach during the 2022–2023 season after the star joined the Lakers, without being employed by the team.

The newest installment to the blockbuster “Grand Theft Auto” video game franchise has been delayed again, this time until November 2026, its creators announced Wednesday.”We are sorry for adding additional time to what we realize has been a long wait, but these extra months will allow us to finish the game with the level of polish you have come to expect and deserve,” Rockstar Games said in a post on X.Release of the game had already been pushed from late 2025 to early 2026. Rockstar said it will now come out on November 19 of next year.Shares of Rockstar-parent Take-Two Interactive sank more than eight percent in after-hours trades.Word of the delay came the same day dozens of people protested outside Rockstar offices in Edinburgh, Scotland, accusing the multi-billion dollar studio of “blatant union busting” by firing 31 people.Rockstar, whose upcoming sixth edition of the cash-cow series is among the hottest releases of 2026, has accused the employees of “distributing and discussing confidential information in a public forum, a violation of our company policies.”But the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB), which called the demonstration, rejected that claim, arguing that the sacked workers were all members of a private discussion channel linked to the union.Rockstar did not immediately respond to an AFP inquiry.”GTA VI” is on course to become one of the biggest entertainment product launches of all time. As popular as it is notorious for its sexual and violent content, the franchise has allowed players to roleplay as criminals doing dirty deeds across sprawling cityscapes since its first entry in 1997. – Outlaw couple? -The newest game was originally due to be released later this year, with a trailer having shown that it would be set in Miami-like Vice City and would feature a playable female protagonist for the first time.Set to the Tom Petty song “Love Is A Long Road,” it opens with a female character named Lucia being released from prison in what appears to be a fictionalized version of Florida.Near the close of the one-minute-and-30-second clip, she tells her male partner in crime: “The only way we are going to get through this is by sticking together, being a team.”The pair go on to burst into a store with pistols drawn and bandanas covering the lower halves of their faces.Fans saw the scene as confirmation that rumors of a “Bonnie and Clyde” type crime couple are coming true.Along with its wild success, the GTA series has faced criticism over its violent content.Critics have from the beginning accused Grand Theft Auto of glorifying violence and encouraging players to engage in criminal behavior –- allegations rejected by New York-based Take-Two Interactive.GTA players sell drugs, fight, rob, go on car rampages and more. Gameplay options also included assaulting sex workers and going to strip clubs, raising the ire of activists.

US President Donald Trump announced deals Thursday with pharmaceutical giants Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to lower the prices of some popular weight-loss drugs, in exchange for relief from threatened tariffs.Both companies “have agreed to offer their most popular GLP-1 weight-loss drug,” Trump said at the White House, “at drastic discounts.””Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk are committing to offer Zepbound and Wegovy at ‘Most Favored Nation’ rates for American patients,” Trump added, saying this would lower the costs of products for those eligible.During the announcement event in the Oval Office, a company representative standing behind Trump collapsed. He was later examined by Mehmet Oz, Trump’s administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, who said he was okay.The new generation of appetite-suppressing drugs using GLP-1 agonists — which include the brands Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro — have exploded in popularity in recent times due to their ability to help people lose weight.But the sky-high prices of such drugs, which can cost more than $1,000 a month in the United States, have raised concerns.- ‘A triumph’ -The latest move is set to cut costs of starting oral doses of GLP-1s to as low as around $150 for certain groups of people once approved, a senior US official said.”It’s a triumph for American patients that will save lives and improve the health of millions and millions of Americans,” Trump told reporters. This price would apply to those on Medicare — which is for seniors — the safety net Medicaid, or via the direct-to-consumer website TrumpRx once it launches, the official added.But the costs for injectables would be higher.US officials said that the direct-to-consumer channel will see costs of injectable GLP-1s start at an average of $350 per month, and that this should scale down over time.This would apply to drugs including Ozempic, Wegovy and Zepbound, according to a White House fact sheet.Starting around the middle of next year, Medicare and Medicaid coverage for the injectable drugs will be at $245 for those meeting certain medical criteria. Medicare copayment for eligible beneficiaries will be $50.The starting point for each Medicaid program depends on each state’s participation.”These low prices will enable Medicare to cover Wegovy and Zepbound for patients with obesity and related comorbidities for the first time,” the White House said.In exchange, the pharmaceutical companies will have certainty around tariff issues and access to beneficiaries who otherwise would not be covered by Medicare for obesity issues, an official added.- Fine print -Scott Kahan, director of a clinic called the National Center for Weight and Wellness, said the announcement “has the potential to be very valuable for many people.”But the final price to consumers once commercial insurance is factored in remains “unclear as yet,” he added.The three-year grace period from expected pharmaceutical tariffs threatened by Trump is similar to deals struck by Pfizer and AstraZeneca. Both had also reached agreements to lower drug costs in exchange for tariff relief.Trump has revived drug pricing efforts from his first presidential term, taking steps since returning to the White House to pressure pharmaceutical companies into voluntarily lowering their prices.Over the summer, he sent letters to 17 drugmakers, calling for them to lower prices or face punishment — a move meant to give Americans relief from medicine costs much higher than elsewhere in the world.Trump has previously threatened tariffs of 100 percent for branded pharmaceutical products unless companies were building manufacturing plants in the United States.The prevalence of obesity among American adults is estimated at 40 percent, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).