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Canada will reach NATO’s defense spending target of two percent this year, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Monday, arguing the country had to revitalize its military “to defend every inch of our sovereign territory.”Carney’s speech at the University of Toronto included stark warnings about the global security order being shaken by US President Donald Trump. But it extended beyond his concern over future US relations. The prime minister warned Canada has not done enough to prepare itself for evolving threats from China, Russia, cyberattacks and the advancing national security implications of climate change. “The long-held view that Canada’s geographic location will protect us is becoming increasingly archaic,” Carney said.With threats facing the country multiplying, the prime minister said Canada “will achieve NATO’s two percent target this year — half a decade ahead of schedule.””We are too reliant on the United States,” he added. Trump has repeatedly pressured NATO members to increase defense spending, arguing the United States was paying more than its fair share for collective security. In April, the alliance announced that 22 of its 32 members hit the two percent spending target.But Trump has pushed NATO members to spend even more and warned the United States could refuse to protect countries that don’t commit what he considers enough resources to defense. Carney said Canada had become used to a post-war order with the United States as “the global hegemon,” and Canada’s “closest ally and dominant trading partner.””Now the United States is beginning to monetize its hegemony: charging for access to its markets and reducing its contributions to our collective security,” he said, condemning Trump’s trade war. Carney said Canada would pursue new security relationships with “like-minded partners,” with a specific focus on Europe. “We are actively seeking to strengthen transatlantic security,” he said, indicating a Canada-EU summit this month will be “will be more important than ever.”- ‘Vulnerable’ Arctic-Since taking office in mid-March, Carney has emphasized the changing security landscape in Canada’s Arctic, where receding ice caused by climate change is opening the region’s vast natural resources to fierce competition. Carney has previously announced plans to substantially expand Canada’s military presence in the region, and on Monday he said the “Arctic is becoming more accessible and vulnerable to commercial and military activities.”Russia and China are seen as two major rivals who could present increasing Artic security challenges in the years ahead. Carney framed Monday’s military spending announcement as a move designed “to protect Canadians, not to satisfy NATO accountants.”He noted the country’s military infrastructure was ageing, with only one of four submarines deemed seaworthy, and less than half of maritime fleet and land vehicles operational. 

Tensions flared again Monday among jurors in the sex crimes retrial of disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, raising the risk of a deadlocked jury and a mistrial.As court proceedings resumed Monday morning in the New York courtroom, Judge Curtis Farber read aloud two notes sent to him by the 12-member jury deliberating behind closed doors.In the first note, a juror expressed a desire to talk to Farber “about the situation that isn’t very good.”In the second, jurors wrote they “request the entire definition of reasonable doubt and rules of the jury especially to avoid a hung jury.”A hung jury occurs when a judge acknowledges that jurors have been unable to reach a unanimous decision after several days of deliberations. In that case, a mistrial is declared and a new trial may be held.On Monday morning, Weinstein, whose downfall in 2017 sparked the global #MeToo movement, looked on impassively from his wheelchair, as the judge, prosecutors and his lawyers engaged in tense discussions.The jury must decide whether Weinstein — accused by dozens of women of being a sexual predator — is guilty of sexual assaults in 2006 on Haley and former model Kaja Sokola, and of rape in 2013 of then-aspiring actress Jessica Mann.Weinstein is on trial again after a New York state appeals court threw out his 2020 convictions, citing irregularities in the original proceedings. The former movie industry titan’s 23-year prison sentence for the initial conviction was thrown out, but he remains imprisoned for separate offenses.On Friday, one juror came forward to report tensions between his fellow panelists, alleging “people are being shunned. It’s playground stuff.”He asked to resign as a juror, but Farber denied his request.

NATO head Mark Rutte on Monday urged a “quantum leap” in defence capabilities including a “400-percent increase” in air and missile defence to shield the alliance against Russia.His comments came as he pushes for NATO members to commit to ramping up defence spending at a key summit of the western military alliance later this month.”We see in Ukraine how Russia delivers terror from above, so we will strengthen the shield that protects our skies,” the NATO secretary general said in a speech to the Chatham House think-tank in London.To maintain credible deterrence and defence, NATO needs “a 400-percent increase in air and missile defence”, the former Dutch prime minister added.”The fact is, we need a quantum leap in our collective defence,” he said.Rutte is urging NATO members to commit to 3.5 percent of GDP on direct military spending by 2032, and an additional 1.5 percent on broader security-related expenditure.The proposal is a compromise deal designed to satisfy US President Donald Trump, who has demanded that allies each spend five percent of economic output on defence, up from a current commitment of two percent.Rutte said he “expects” leaders to agree to the proposal at the summit of the 32-country alliance on June 24-25 in The Hague.”It will be a NATO-wide commitment and a defining moment for the alliance,” he said in his speech.Russia condemned Rutte’s comments before he took to the stage, denouncing NATO as “an instrument of aggression”.NATO “is demonstrating itself as an instrument of aggression and confrontation”, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow.Rutte’s speech came after he met UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday, their second Downing Street talks since the Labour leader came into power in July 2024.Starmer’s government this year pledged to increase defence spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027, but has not yet set a firm timeline for further hikes.On Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Canada would hit two percent this year.US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth said last week the allies were close to an agreement on the split five-percent target.”That combination constitutes a real commitment, and we think every country can step up,” he said on Thursday.- ‘Fairer, more lethal alliance’ -NATO members have been scrambling to bolster their defence capabilities since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.Trump’s return to the White House in January, and question marks over his commitment to European security, has added urgency.”Danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends,” Rutte said at Chatham House.”We must have more forces and capabilities to implement our defence plans in full.” He added that Russia currently produces the same amount of ammunition in three months as “the whole of NATO produces in a year”.”Our militaries also need thousands more armoured vehicles and tanks, millions more artillery shells,” Rutte added.Britain announced plans last week to build up to 12 nuclear-powered attack submarines and six munitions factories to rearm the country in response to what it said were threats from Russia.Rutte also warned that China is “modernizing and expanding its military at breakneck speed”.”NATO has to become a stronger, fairer and more lethal alliance,” he added.And he warned that if countries cannot commit to 5.0 percent for defence spending “you could still have the National Health Service, or in other countries, their health systems, the pension system, etc, but you better learn to speak Russian. I mean, that’s the consequence”.

Los Angeles was on edge Monday after violent clashes between demonstrators and security forces over immigration raids, with the Californian governor vowing to sue President Donald Trump for deploying National Guard soldiers.Police stood watch after ordering people not to gather in the city’s downtown where cars were torched over the weekend and security forces fired tear gas at protesters.”This is exactly what Donald Trump wanted,” Governor Gavin Newsom said on social media. “He flamed the fires and illegally acted to federalize the National Guard.””We’re suing him.”The White House also ratcheted up the standoff between the hard-charging Republican president and California’s Democrat-led authorities.”Gavin Newsom did nothing as violent riots erupted in Los Angeles for days,” Trump’s Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted Monday. “President Trump has stepped in to maintain law and order.”She added that “America must reverse the invasion unleashed by (former president) Joe Biden of millions of unvetted illegal aliens into our country.”The protests in Los Angeles, home to a large Latino population, were triggered by raids and dozens of arrests of what authorities say are illegal migrants and gang members.Critics say Trump — who has made clamping down on illegal migration a key pillar of his second term — deliberately stoked tensions by sending in California’s National Guard, a stand-by military usually controlled by the state governor.”You have the National Guard with loaded magazines and large guns standing around trying to intimidate Americans,” protester Thomas Henning told AFP on the scene Sunday.- ‘BRING IN THE TROOPS!’ -On Monday morning, a heavy police presence patrolled mostly deserted streets. A few protesters remained overnight, with some lobbing projectiles and fireworks, according to TV coverage.Trump called the protesters “insurrectionists,” and demanded authorities arrest people in face masks.”BRING IN THE TROOPS!!!!” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.At least three self-driving Waymo cars were torched Sunday, and local law enforcement deployed tear gas and smoke grenades to disperse protesters.An Australian reporter was hit in the leg with a rubber bullet fired by a police officer on live television. Her employer later said she was unharmed.Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers set up containment lines to keep demonstrators separated from armed National Guardsmen from the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team in helmets and camouflage gear.At least 56 people were arrested over two days and three officers suffered minor injuries, the LAPD said.Police in San Francisco said on Sunday about 60 people had been arrested in similar protests in the northern Californian city.Trump was unrepentant when asked about the use of troops, hinting at deployment nationwide.”You’re going to see some very strong law and order,” he told reporters Sunday.Asked about invoking the Insurrection Act — which would allow the military to be used as a domestic police force — Trump said: “We’re looking at troops everywhere. We’re not going to let this happen to our country.”About 500 Marines were officially put in “a prepared-to-deploy status.”The National Guard is frequently used in natural disasters, and occasionally in civil unrest, but almost always with the consent of local authorities.Trump’s deployment of the force — the first over the head of a state governor since 1965 at the height of the civil rights movement — was criticized by Democrats, including Kamala Harris.The former vice president called it “a dangerous escalation meant to provoke chaos.” Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Monday condemned violence, while calling on the United States to respect migrant rights.Sheinbaum urged Mexicans living in the United States “to act peacefully and not give in to provocations.”

NATO head Mark Rutte was on Monday to urge a “quantum leap” in defence capabilities including a “400-percent increase” in air and missile defence to shield the alliance against Russia.”We see in Ukraine how Russia delivers terror from above, so we will strengthen the shield that protects our skies,” the NATO secretary general Rutte was to say in a speech to the Chatham House think-tank in London, according to comments released in a statement.To maintain credible deterrence and defence, NATO needs “a 400-percent increase in air and missile defence”.”The fact is, we need a quantum leap in our collective defence,” he was to say.Rutte will meet UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday ahead of his speech, their second Downing Street talks since the Labour leader came into power in July 2024.Rutte’s comments come ahead of a NATO summit in the Netherlands this month.But they were swiftly condemned by Moscow, which denounced NATO as “an instrument of aggression” ahead of Rutte’s speech.NATO “is demonstrating itself as an instrument of aggression and confrontation”, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow.US President Donald Trump is pressing alliance members to announce a major boost in their military budgets.He is pushing NATO members to increase their defence spending to five percent of their gross domestic product (GDP), up from the current target of two percent. US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth said last week in Brussels that the allies were close to an agreement on the five-percent target, which could be formalised at the summit in The Hague.”This alliance, we believe, in a matter of weeks, will be committing to five percent — 3.5 percent in hard military and 1.5 percent in infrastructure and defence-related activities,” Hegseth said on Thursday. “That combination constitutes a real commitment, and we think every country can step up.”- ‘Stronger, fairer alliance’ -NATO members have been scrambling to bolster their defence capabilities since Russia launched its war against Ukraine in February 2022.”Danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends,” Rutte was to say on Monday.”We must have more forces and capabilities to implement our defence plans in full.””Our militaries also need thousands more armoured vehicles and tanks, millions more artillery shells.”Britain announced plans last week to build up to 12 nuclear-powered attack submarines and six munitions factories to rearm the country in response to what it said were threats from Russia.Earlier this year, Starmer’s government pledged to increase defence spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027, but has not yet set a firm timeline for further hikes.”NATO has to become a stronger, fairer and more lethal alliance,” Rutte will add.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on Monday the world could not let the deepest oceans “become the wild west”, at the start in France of a global summit on the seas.World leaders are attending the UN Ocean Conference in Nice as nations tussle over contentious rules on mining the seabed for critical minerals and the terms of a global treaty on plastic pollution.US President Donald Trump has brought urgency to the debate around deep-sea mining, moving to fast-track US exploration in international waters and sidestepping global efforts to regulate the nascent sector.The International Seabed Authority, which has jurisdiction over the ocean floor outside national waters, is meeting in July to discuss a global mining code to regulate mining in the ocean depths.Guterres said he supported these negotiations and urged caution as countries navigate these “new waters on seabed mining”.”The deep sea cannot become the wild west,” he said, to applause from the plenary floor.Many countries oppose seabed mining, and France is hoping more nations in Nice will join a moratorium until more is known about the ecological impacts of the practice.French President Emmanuel Macron said a moratorium on deep-sea mining was “an international necessity”.”I think it’s madness to launch predatory economic action that will disrupt the deep seabed, disrupt biodiversity, destroy it and release irrecoverable carbon sinks — when we know nothing about it,” the French president said.The deep sea, Greenland and Antarctica were “not for sale”, he said in follow up remarks to thunderous applause.Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva called for “clear action” from the seabed authority to end a “predatory race” among nations seeking critical minerals on the ocean floor.”We now see the threat of unilateralism looming over the ocean. We cannot allow what happened to international trade to happen to the sea,” he said.- Wave of commitments -Macron said a global pact to protect marine life in international waters had received enough support to become law and was “a done deal”.The high seas treaty struck in 2023 requires ratifications from 60 signatory countries to enter into force, something France hoped to achieve before Nice.Macron said about 50 nations had ratified the treaty and 15 others had formally committed to joining them.This “allows us to say that the high seas treaty will be implemented,” he said.Other commitments are expected on Monday in Nice, where around 60 heads of state and government have joined thousands of business leaders, scientists and civil society activists.On Monday, the United Kingdom is expected to announce a partial ban on bottom trawling in half its marine protected areas, putting the destructive fishing method squarely on the summit agenda.Bottom trawling involves huge fishing nets indiscriminately dragging the ocean floor, a process shockingly captured in a recent documentary by British naturalist David Attenborough.Macron said on Saturday that France would restrict trawling in some of its marine protected areas but was criticised by environment groups for not going far enough.- Words into action -On Sunday, French environment minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher hinted at “important announcements” during Nice about the creation of new marine protected areas.Samoa led the way this past week, announcing that 30 percent of its national waters would be under protection with the creation of nine marine parks.Just eight percent of global oceans are designated for marine conservation, despite a globally agreed target to achieve 30 percent coverage by 2030.But even fewer are considered truly protected, as some countries impose next to no rules on what is forbidden in marine zones or lack the finance to enforce any regulations. Nations will face calls to cough up the missing finance for ocean protection.Small island states are expected in numbers at the summit to demand money and political support to combat rising seas, marine trash and the plunder of fish stocks.The summit will not produce a legally binding agreement at its close like a climate COP or treaty negotiation. But diplomats and other observers said it could mark a much-needed turning point in global ocean conservation if leaders rose to the occasion.”We say to you, if you are serious about protecting the ocean, prove it,” said President Surangel Whipps Jr of Palau, a low-lying Pacific nation.np-aag-fcc-fff/gil

Police ordered the public to disperse from downtown Los Angeles after further unrest, with cars torched and security forces firing tear gas at protesters, in the wake of Donald Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops to America’s second-biggest city. Protests in Los Angeles, home to a large Latino population, broke out on Friday, triggered by immigration raids that resulted in dozens of arrests of what authorities say are illegal migrants and gang members.Critics say the US president — who has made clamping down on illegal migration a key pillar of his second term — was deliberately stoking tensions with his deployment of California’s National Guard, a stand-by military usually controlled by the state governor.Demonstrators told AFP the purpose of the troops did not appear to be to keep order, with one calling it an “intimidation tactic.””You have the National Guard with loaded magazines and large guns standing around trying to intimidate Americans from exercising our First Amendment rights,” protester Thomas Henning said.California Governor Gavin Newsom called Trump’s order a “serious breach of state sovereignty” and demanded the president to rescind the order and “return control to California.”He also urged protesters to stay peaceful, warning that those who instigate violence will be arrested.”Don’t take Trump’s bait,” he said on social media platform X.Authorities declared downtown Los Angeles a place of “unlawful assembly” by late Sunday evening. Local media showed a heavy police presence blanketing mostly deserted streets in various areas. A few protesters remained scattered, with some lobbing projectiles and fireworks according to local aerial TV coverage.Trump called the protesters “insurrectionists,” and demanded authorities “ARREST THE PEOPLE IN FACE MASKS, NOW!” “BRING IN THE TROOPS!!!!” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.At least three self-driving Waymo cars were torched as demonstrators thronged around downtown Los Angeles earlier on Sunday, and local law enforcement deployed tear gas and smoke grenades to disperse protesters.An Australian reporter was hit in the leg with a rubber bullet fired by a police officer while on live television. Her employer 9News said she was unharmed.Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officers established containment lines some distance from federal buildings by Sunday afternoon, preventing contact between angry demonstrators and the scores of armed National Guardsmen from the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team who had gathered in helmets and camouflage gear.Law enforcement had arrested at least 56 people over two days and three officers had suffered minor injuries, the LAPD said.Police in San Francisco said on Sunday about 60 people had been arrested in similar protests in the northern Californian city.- ‘Troops everywhere’ -Trump was unrepentant when asked about the use of troops, hinting instead at a more widespread deployment in other parts of the country.”I think you’re going to see some very strong law and order,” he told reporters. Responding to a question about invoking the Insurrection Act — which would allow the military to be used as a domestic police force — Trump said: “We’re looking at troops everywhere. We’re not going to let this happen to our country.”US Northern Command, part of the Department of Defense responsible for national defense, said “approximately 500 Marines… are in a prepared-to-deploy status should they be necessary to augment and support” the ongoing federal operations.The National Guard is frequently used in natural disasters, and occasionally in instances of civil unrest, but almost always with the consent of local authorities.Trump’s deployment of the force — the first over the head of a state governor since 1965 at the height of the civil rights movement — was criticized by Democrats, including Kamala Harris. The former vice president called it “a dangerous escalation meant to provoke chaos.” Newsom said Trump was “putting fuel on this fire.””Commandeering a state’s National Guard without consulting the Governor of that state is illegal and immoral,” he said on X. “California will be taking him to court.” – ‘Intimidation’ -However, Republicans lined up behind Trump to dismiss the pushback.”I have no concern about that at all,” said  House Speaker Mike Johnson, accusing Newsom of “an inability or unwillingness to do what is necessary.”Demonstrator Marshall Goldberg, 78, told AFP that deploying Guardsmen made him feel “so offended.””We hate what they’ve done with the undocumented workers, but this is moving it to another level of taking away the right to protest and the right to just peaceably assemble.”Raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in other US cities have triggered small protests in recent months, but the Los Angeles unrest is the biggest and most sustained against Trump’s immigration policies so far.

“Maybe Happy Ending,” a South Korean musical adapted for Broadway about two robots who find connection, won big at Sunday’s Tony Awards, scooping up six prizes at the gala celebrating the best in American theater.Stars of the season Cole Escola and Nicole Scherzinger also won their first Tonys, on a night that celebrated Broadway’s revival after a years-long pandemic slump.Cynthia Erivo — the Oscar-nominated “Wicked” star who herself boasts a Tony — hosted the ceremony at Manhattan’s Radio City Music Hall honoring this year’s buzzy, diverse competitive slate .It was Broadway’s most financially lucrative year ever, she told the crowd.”Broadway is officially back — provided we don’t run out of cast members from ‘Succession,'” she joked, referring to the decorated TV dramedy about a family’s media empire.Sarah Snook — who scored an Emmy for her role in “Succession” — won the Tony for best leading actress in a play, taking on all 26 roles in the stage adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray.”A host of new shows and stars drew 14.7 million people to the Broadway performances this season, grossing $1.89 billion at the box office.Some of showbiz’s biggest names graced New York’s stages, including George Clooney, Denzel Washington, Jake Gyllenhaal — and Snook’s “Succession” co-stars Kieran Culkin and Jeremy Strong.”Please go to the theater, whether it’s a Broadway show or a school play,” said Michael Arden, who won a Tony for best direction of a musical for “Maybe Happy Ending.”Darren Criss of “Glee” fame — already an Emmy winner for portraying killer Andrew Cunanan in “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story” — won the Tony for lead actor in that musical. “I have such immense pride to get to be part of this notably diverse exquisite Broadway season this year,” he told the audience as he accepted his award.Scherzinger bested a packed field including the legendary Audra McDonald — the performer with the most Tonys in history — for best actress in a musical for her role as faded star Norma Desmond in “Sunset Boulevard,” which also won for best revival of a musical.”If there’s anyone out there who feels like they don’t belong or your time hasn’t come, don’t give up,” said an emotional Scherzinger, who once fronted the pop girl group The Pussycat Dolls.”Just keep on giving and giving because the world needs your love and your light now more than ever. This is a testament that love always wins.”- ‘Oh, Mary!’ -Even though Escola’s hit dark comedy “Oh, Mary!” was the favorite for best new play, the award went to intense family portrait “Purpose” by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, which also won the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.But Escola still won big for their unhinged performance in the one-act reimagining of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination through the eyes of his wife — a raging alcoholic who dreams of life as a cabaret star.Escola bested a stacked field that included Clooney.”Oh, Mary!” also snagged the prize for best direction, won by Sam Pinkleton.”You have taught me to make what you love and not what you think people want to see,” Pinkleton said in his speech, speaking directly to a tearful Escola.”We can bring joy to people at the end of a crappy day and that feels like a big deal to me,” Pinkleton added to ardent applause.The night’s rollicking performances included a gripping rendition of “Rose’s Turn” from McDonald, and a captivating performance of “As If We Never Said Goodbye” from Scherzinger.The gala also featured a much-touted reunion of the original cast of “Hamilton,” as that groundbreaking smash musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda celebrates its 10th anniversary.A heartfelt segment honored those the theater community lost over the past year, with Erivo and Sara Bareilles delivering the classic “Tomorrow” from “Annie.”The song’s composer, Charles Strouse, died last month.Some acceptance speeches made oblique references to ongoing political turmoil across the United States, as President Donald Trump’s immigration raids trigger protests. But Trump was not explicitly mentioned.

Demonstrators torched cars and scuffled with security forces in Los Angeles on Sunday as police kept protesters away from the National Guard troops President Donald Trump sent to the streets of America’s second-biggest city.Unrest broke out for a third day, with protesters angry at action by immigration officials that has resulted in dozens of arrests of what authorities say are illegal migrants and gang members.The raids — which began in broad daylight on Friday in a city with a large Latino population — were always likely to spark reaction among the public in the liberal city.But opponents say Trump, who has made clamping down on illegal migration a key plank of his second term, was deliberately stoking tensions with his deployment of California’s National Guard, a stand-by military usually controlled by the state’s governor, Gavin Newsom.”We didn’t have a problem until Trump got involved,” Newsom wrote on X.”This is a serious breach of state sovereignty — inflaming tensions while pulling resources from where they’re actually needed. Rescind the order. Return control to California,” he added.At least three self-driving Waymo cars were burned on Sunday, with two others vandalized as protesters roamed around a limited area in downtown Los Angeles.Traffic was halted on a key freeway for over an hour while scores of people thronged the roadway. They were moved off by California Highway Patrol officers, who used flash-bangs and smoke grenades.But after a limited early confrontation between federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security and a few dozen protesters at a detention center, the clashes all involved local law enforcement.By early afternoon LAPD officers established containment lines some distance from federal buildings, preventing contact between angry demonstrators and the scores of armed National Guardsmen from the 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, who had gathered in helmets and camouflage gear.As night fell a few dozen people — many wearing masks and hoodies — remained in hotspots, with some lobbing projectiles and fireworks.Law enforcement have arrested at least 56 people over two days, and three officers have suffered minor injuries, LAPD said.- ‘Troops everywhere’ -Trump, asked about the use of troops, was unrepentant, hinting instead at a more widespread deployment in other parts of the country.”You have violent people, and we are not going to let them get away with it,” he told reporters. “I think you’re going to see some very strong law and order.”Responding to a question about invoking the Insurrection Act — which would allow the military to be used as a domestic police force — Trump said: “We’re looking at troops everywhere. We’re not going to let this happen to our country.”US Northern Command, part of the Department of Defense responsible for national defense, said “approximately 500 Marines… are in a prepared-to-deploy status should they be necessary to augment and support” the ongoing federal operations.The National Guard is frequently used in natural disasters, and occasionally in instances of civil unrest, but almost always with the consent of local authorities.Trump’s deployment of the force — the first over the head of a state governor since 1965 at the height of the civil rights movement — was criticized by Democrats, including former vice president Kamala Harris who called it “a dangerous escalation meant to provoke chaos.” – ‘Intimidation’ -But Republicans lined up behind Trump to dismiss the pushback.”I have no concern about that at all,” said  House Speaker Mike Johnson, accusing Newsom of “an inability or unwillingness to do what is necessary”.Demonstrators told AFP the purpose of the troops did not appear to be to keep order.”I think it’s an intimidation tactic,” Thomas Henning said.”These protests have been peaceful. There’s no one trying to do any sort of damage right now and yet you have the National Guard with loaded magazines and large guns standing around trying to intimidate Americans from exercising our First Amendment rights.”Marshall Goldberg, 78, told AFP that deploying Guardsmen made him feel “so offended.””We hate what they’ve done with the undocumented workers, but this is moving it to another level of taking away the right to protest and the right to just peaceably assemble,” he said.Raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in other US cities have triggered small-scale protests in recent months, but the Los Angeles unrest is the biggest and most sustained against Trump’s immigration policies so far.A CBS News poll taken before the Los Angeles protests showed a slight majority of Americans still approved of the crackdown.

President Donald Trump’s sweeping new travel ban came into effect early Monday immediately after midnight, barring citizens from a dozen nations from entering the United States and reviving a divisive measure from his first term.The move is expected to disrupt refugee pathways and further restrict immigration as the Trump administration expands its crackdown on illegal entries.Many of the nations covered by the restrictions have adversarial relations with the United States, such as Iran and Afghanistan, while others face severe crises, like Haiti and Libya.In announcing his restrictions last week, Trump said the new measure was spurred by a recent “terrorist attack” on Jews in Colorado.The group had been protesting in solidarity with hostages held in Gaza when they were assaulted by a man the White House said had overstayed his visa.That attack, Trump said, “underscored the extreme dangers posed to our country by the entry of foreign nationals who are not properly vetted” or who overstay their visas.The move bans all travel to the United States by nationals of Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, according to the White House.Trump also imposed a partial ban on travelers from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Some temporary work visas from those countries will be allowed.New countries could be added, Trump warned, “as threats emerge around the world.”Mehria, a 23-year-old woman from Afghanistan who applied for refugee status, said the new rules have trapped her and many other Afghans in uncertainty.”We gave up thousands of hopes and our entire lives… on a promise from America, but today we are suffering one hell after another,” she told AFP.- World Cup, Olympics, diplomats excluded -The ban will not apply to athletes competing in the 2026 World Cup, which the United States is co-hosting with Canada and Mexico, or in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Trump’s order said.Nor will it apply to diplomats from the targeted countries.United Nations rights chief Volker Turk warned that “the broad and sweeping nature of the new travel ban raises concerns from the perspective of international law.” US Democratic lawmakers and elected officials blasted the ban as draconian and unconstitutional.”I know the pain that Trump’s cruel and xenophobic travel bans inflict because my family has felt it firsthand,” congresswoman Yassamin Ansari, who is Iranian-American, posted Sunday on X.”We will fight this ban with everything we have.”Rumors of a new travel ban had circulated following the Colorado attack, with Trump’s administration vowing to pursue “terrorists” living in the United States on visas.US officials said suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman, an Egyptian national according to court documents, was in the country illegally having overstayed a tourist visa, but that he had applied for asylum in September 2022. Trump’s new travel ban notably does not include Egypt.His proclamation said Taliban-ruled Afghanistan and war-torn Libya, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen lacked “competent” central authorities for processing passports and vetting.Iran was included because it is a “state sponsor of terrorism,” the order said.For the other countries, Trump’s order cited an above-average likelihood that people would overstay their visas.