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Donald Trump threatened to deploy National Guard troops Sunday to yet another Democratic stronghold, the Maryland city of Baltimore, as the US president seeks to expand his crackdown on crime and immigration.The Republican’s latest online rant about an “out of control, crime-ridden” city comes as Democratic state leaders — including Maryland Governor Wes Moore — line up to berate Trump on a high-profile political stage.Trump this month deployed the National Guard to the streets of Washington, in a widely criticized show of force the president said amounts to a federal takeover of US capital policing. The Guard began carrying weapons in Washington on Sunday, the military said. Previously, their weapons were available if needed but kept in the armory.In June Trump controversially ordered nearly 5,000 troops to Los Angeles — ostensibly to quell protests against immigration enforcement raids — triggering ferocious opposition from California Governor Gavin Newsom, widely seen as a potential 2028 presidential hopeful.And US media is reporting that the Trump administration also is planning an unprecedented deployment of thousands of National Guard personnel to Chicago, the country’s third-largest city, prompting vocal pushback from Democrats there.As for Baltimore, “if Wes Moore needs help, like Gavin Newscum did in L.A., I will send in the ‘troops,’ which is being done in nearby DC, and quickly clean up the Crime,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform, using a derogatory nickname.Trump’s feud with Moore appeared to escalate dramatically this week, with the governor assailing Trump’s provocative suggestion of deploying troops in Maryland and Trump calling Moore “nasty” and threatening to revoke federal funds to help fix a collapsed bridge.On Sunday, Moore told CNN he had invited Trump to walk the streets of Baltimore with him so the governor could counter “this blissful ignorance, these tropes and these 1980 scare tactics” used by the president.”Hey Donald, we can get you a golf cart if that makes things easier,” Moore needled the 79-year-old Trump on X.Trump for his part said he would “much prefer that he clean up this Crime disaster before I go there for a ‘walk,'” as he cited Moore’s “very bad” record on crime.Moore said Maryland’s homicide rate has dropped more than 20 percent since he has been governor, “and the last time the homicide rate was this low in Baltimore City, I was not born yet.”Moore, 46, is a US Army veteran, best-selling author, and the third African-American person elected governor of a US state.- Chicago ‘next’ -The Pentagon meanwhile refused to confirm reports that Chicago would soon receive troops.Trump had said Friday that Chicago and New York — major Democratic-led cities — would receive National Guard deployments similar to Washington.”We’re going to make our cities very, very safe,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “I think Chicago will be our next and then we’ll help with New York.”Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, both Democrats, strongly rejected the idea.”Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans are trying to paint their party as one of ‘law and order,'” Pritzker posted on X. “That couldn’t be further from the truth.”Chicago recorded 573 homicides in 2024, according to city police, eight percent lower than the year before.

France’s foreign ministry said Sunday it would summon the US ambassador after he criticised the government for what he said was its insufficient action against antisemitism in a letter to President Emmanuel Macron.The letter from Charles Kushner, dated August 25 but leaked to the media on Sunday, echoed Israel’s criticism of France days earlier, which provoked a sharp response from Paris.Kushner’s letter to Macron noted that Monday was “the 81st anniversary of the Allied Liberation of Paris, which ended the deportation of Jews from French soil” under Nazi German occupation.He wrote: “I write out of deep concern over the dramatic rise of antisemitism in France and the lack of sufficient action by your government to confront it…”In France, not a day passes without Jews assaulted in the street, synagogues or schools defaced, or Jewish-owned businesses vandalized,” he added.While “antisemitism has long scarred French life”, the ambassador argued that hatred of Jews “has exploded since Hamas’s barbaric assault on October 7, 2023,” which triggered the ongoing war in Gaza.”France firmly refutes these latest allegations,” said a foreign ministry statement in response, hours after the letter’s contents were made public.”The allegations from the ambassador are unacceptable.”The ministry said the 1961 Vienna Convention meant ambassadors were not permitted to interfere in a country’s internal affairs. Kushner would be summoned to the foreign ministry on Monday, it added.- ‘Anti-Zionism is antisemitism’ -His remarks tally with those made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who on Tuesday accused Macron of fomenting antisemitism, saying it had “surged” in France following the French president’s announcement last month that he will recognise Palestinian statehood.Macron’s Elysee office was quick to hit back at Netanyahu, calling the Israeli leader’s allegation “abject” and “erroneous”.But like Netanyahu, Kushner denounced Macron’s criticisms of Israel over the war in Gaza and his planned recognition of a State of Palestine. Such moves, he said, “embolden extremists, fuel violence, and endanger Jewish life in France”.”In today’s world, anti-Zionism is antisemitism — plain and simple,” the ambassador added.”Surveys show most French citizens believe another Holocaust could happen in Europe. Nearly half of French youth report never having heard of the Holocaust at all.”What are children being taught in French schools if such ignorance persists?,” the letter read.France is home to Western Europe’s largest Jewish population at around half a million people, as well as a significant Muslim community sensitive to the plight of the Palestinian people in Gaza.Both communities have reported a spike in hate crimes since Israel’s retaliatory offensive against the Palestinian militant group Hamas in the besieged coastal strip.Macron’s announcement that France would formally recognise a Palestinian state during a UN meeting in September drew a swift rebuke from Israel at the time.With the move, France is set to join a list of nations that has grown since the start of the Gaza war nearly two years ago.France is among at least 145 of the 193 UN members that now recognise or plan to recognise a Palestinian state, according to an AFP tally.

The US ambassador to Paris has upped the pressure on President Emmanuel Macron over antisemitism in France with a letter calling the government’s action on anti-Jewish hatred insufficient, days after similar criticism from Israel.US envoy Charles Kushner’s letter to Macron was dated August 25, which he noted was “the 81st anniversary of the Allied Liberation of Paris, which ended the deportation of Jews from French soil” under Nazi German occupation.In the letter, a copy of which has been obtained by AFP, he wrote: “I write out of deep concern over the dramatic rise of antisemitism in France and the lack of sufficient action by your government to confront it…”In France, not a day passes without Jews assaulted in the street, synagogues or schools defaced, or Jewish-owned businesses vandalized,” he added.While “antisemitism has long scarred French life”, the ambassador argued that hatred of Jews “has exploded since Hamas’s barbaric assault on October 7, 2023,” which triggered the ongoing war in Gaza.His remarks tally with those made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who on Tuesday accused Macron of fomenting antisemitism, saying it had “surged” in France following the French president’s announcement last month that he will recognise Palestinian statehood.Macron’s Elysee office was quick to hit back at Netanyahu, calling the Israeli leader’s allegation “abject” and “erroneous”.- ‘Anti-Zionism is antisemitism’ -But like Netanyahu, Kushner denounced Macron’s criticisms of Israel over the war in Gaza and his planned recognition of a State of Palestine. Such moves, he said, “embolden extremists, fuel violence, and endanger Jewish life in France”.”In today’s world, anti-Zionism is antisemitism — plain and simple,” the ambassador added.”Surveys show most French citizens believe another Holocaust could happen in Europe. Nearly half of French youth report never having heard of the Holocaust at all.”What are children being taught in French schools if such ignorance persists?,” the letter read.France is home to Western Europe’s largest Jewish population at around half a million people, as well as a significant Muslim community sensitive to the plight of the Palestinian people in Gaza.Both communities have reported a spike in hate crimes since Israel’s retaliatory offensive against the Palestinian militant group Hamas in the besieged coastal strip.Macron’s announcement that France would formally recognise a Palestinian state during a UN meeting in September drew a swift rebuke from Israel at the time.With the move, France is set to join a list of nations that has grown since the start of the Gaza war nearly two years ago.France is among at least 145 of the 193 UN members that now recognise or plan to recognise a Palestinian state, according to an AFP tally.

Netflix’s monster animated hit “KPop Demon Hunters” ruled the North American box office with a special singalong event, raking in $18 million in a first victory in theaters for the streaming giant, industry estimates showed Sunday.Netflix refuses to report ticket sales data, so the amount is based on projections from rival studios and exhibitors, but it is a huge showing for the famously cinema-averse streamer, whose film has already topped music charts and smashed viewing records.Released in June, “KPop Demon Hunters” is already Netflix’s most-watched animated offering. The weekend singalongs at theaters in five countries were expected to draw legions of fans ready to watch the tale of a Kpop girl group that protects the world from demons with their music — and belt out the movie’s catchy bangers.”This weekend, a streaming production made for viewing at home is connecting on a level that theatrical hits rarely reach,” said analyst David A. Gross of Franchise Entertainment Research.”For 48 hours, this made-for-television film is playing to sold-out audiences who are singing, dancing, dressing up, and losing themselves in the fun. That’s pop entertainment at its best.”Buzzy horror film “Weapons” — which topped the box office for the last two weeks — will likely be the official winner again this week, given Netflix’s refusal to release official figures. The Warner Bros. movie — which tells the story of the mysterious disappearance of a group of children from the same school class — made $15.6 million from Friday to Sunday, Exhibitor Relations reported. In third place was Disney’s “Freakier Friday” starring Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis, the much-anticipated sequel to the 2003 body-swapping family film, at $9.2 million.”The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” Disney’s reboot of the Marvel Comics franchise, held in fourth place at $5.9 million.And in fifth place was Universal’s family-friendly animation sequel “The Bad Guys 2,” about a squad of goofy animal criminals actually doing good in their rebranded lives, earning $5.1 million.Rounding out the top 10 were:”Nobody 2″ ($3.7 million)”Superman” ($3.4 million)”Honey Don’t” ($3.0 million)”The Naked Gun” ($2.95 million)”Jurassic World: Rebirth” ($2.1 million)

Since returning to the White House, President Donald Trump has boasted of ending either six or seven wars — a matter of much dispute — and has been pushing with mixed success to bring peace to Ukraine.One hotspot not yet on his second-term radar has been North Korea, despite Trump’s unusually personal diplomacy during his first term when he met leader Kim Jong Un.Trump could find a chance to pivot on Monday as he welcomes to the White House South Korea’s new President Lee Jae Myung, an advocate of outreach with the North.Trump, who did not secure a deal on Ukraine during an August 15 summit in Alaska with Russian President Vladimir Putin, has an “appetite for big news,” said Victor Cha, a top advisor on Asia to former president George W. Bush.”Having the Alaska summit not go as well as he wanted may make the president much more interested in seeing this meeting with South Korea come off very well,” said Cha, Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.Trump had expressed striking fondness for Kim after their three meetings, once offering that he and the young totalitarian “fell in love.”But Trump could find a new Kim this time, one emboldened since their diplomatic love affair.North Korea, one of the most sanctioned and isolated countries, has cashed in with Russia by supplying more than 10,000 troops plus weapons to Moscow’s offensive in Ukraine, according to Western and South Korean intelligence.”If there is one reason why North Korea’s not interested in any of these dialogues with the South Koreans and the Americans, it’s because of all they’re getting from Russia,” Cha said.Former US president Joe Biden also offered dialogue with North Korea, albeit among lower-ranking officials, but Pyongyang rebuffed him.- Cautious start for Lee -Lee won election in June after a leadership gap due to the impeachment of his conservative predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol for briefly imposing martial law.The transition was awkwardly timed as Trump was taking office, although the new South Korean administration managed to secure a deal similar to other US allies on tariffs.Lee, a former labor lawyer, hails from the left but paradoxically may share more common ground with Trump than South Korea’s conservatives on some issues.Lee and Trump have both in the past questioned the US military commitment to South Korea, where some 28,500 US troops are stationed.But since taking office, Lee has stressed consistency, including by going ahead with joint exercises with the United States that angered North Korea. In a highly symbolic step, Lee traveled before Washington to Japan, reaffirming his commitment to a three-way alliance despite the South Korean left’s historic criticism of Japan over colonial history.His trip comes as tensions spike on the Korean peninsula, with Pyongyang on Saturday test-firing two new air defense missiles, according to the country’s state news agency.Earlier in the week, South Korean troops fired warning shots at several North Korean soldiers who briefly crossed the heavily militarized border separating the two countries.- ‘Nuclear power’ flexes -North Korea has always refused to get rid of its nuclear program, a stance likely only to have hardened following US and Israeli bombing of Iran’s sensitive sites.Since January, Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have both broken precedent by calling North Korea a “nuclear power,” although it did not appear they meant to recognize its right to nuclear weapons.Lee has spoken of a three-step approach of freezing, reducing and then dismantling Pyongyang’s nuclear program.Rachel Minyoung Lee, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center’s Korea program, said that Lee’s stance “likely will resonate with President Trump, who is keen to engage North Korea.””From the South Korean government’s point of view, getting the Trump administration’s buy-in on its North Korea policy would be a big diplomatic win, as it would not only put the two countries on the same page but also decrease the possibility of Seoul being sidelined from US efforts to engage North Korea,” she said.But she doubted North Korea would back diplomacy with an ultimate goal of denuclearization, phased or not.”It has no reason to be receptive to such a proposition given that the geopolitical situation is working in its favor and it sees longer-term opportunities in its relationship with Russia,” she said.

Civil servants, housewives and retirees alike lined up in Venezuela’s capital Caracas on Saturday as thousands volunteered to join the country’s militia in case there is a US invasion.President Nicolas Maduro called on citizens to respond to the current US “threat” and sign up over the weekend to the Bolivarian Militia, a civilian corps linked to the South American country’s armed forces. The show of force is also intended to send a message to Washington, which has issued a $50 million bounty for Maduro — who is accused by the Trump administration of leading a drug cartel — and has stationed three warships off Venezuela’s coast for what the US says are anti-drug operations.Militia registration centers were set up in the capital’s squares, military and public buildings and even in the presidential palace Miraflores.Volunteers could also sign up in the Mountain Barracks, which is home to the mausoleum of late socialist leader Hugo Chavez, in a densely populated area with large housing projects and crumbling brick houses.”Have you previously served?” a militia member dressed in camouflage asked Oscar Matheus.”I’m here to serve our country,” the 66-year-old auditor told AFP. “We don’t know what might happen, but we must prepare and keep resisting. “The homeland is calling us. Our country needs us,” said 51-year-old Rosy Paravabith.- ‘Long live the homeland!’ -Dubbed the Bolivarian Army by Chavez, the Venezuelan Armed Forces do not hide the militia’s political bent.”Chavez lives!” is now their official greeting. Former Venezuelan socialist president Chavez came to power in 1999 and died in office in 2013. Maduro has been in power since, though the US does not recognize the validity of his last two elections.It is unclear how many troops are in the Venezuelan militia.Maduro said this week that the militia alone has more than 4.5 million ready soldiers. However the most recent independent estimate tallied about 343,000 members in 2020, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies.”I sign up for Venezuela, long live the homeland!” shouted the volunteers upon registration.Police officers and military reservists also lined up to reaffirm their commitments.After registering, volunteers were shown a documentary about the European blockade on Venezuela’s coast between 1902 and 1903, after then-president Cipriano Castro refused to pay a foreign debt. The 2017 film showed armed farmers, some shooting guns while others analyzed maps, as warships loomed in the distance. Next, the volunteers were taken through a room with weapons on display: a US-made machine gun, a Swedish grenade launcher, a Soviet RPG launcher and a Belgian machine gun. An army lieutenant explained how to use each weapon. “Can this be shot at the sky?” an attendee asked.”It’s better to shoot it straight,” the soldier replied.- ‘Immoral, criminal, illegal’ -The United States has sent armed forces to the Caribbean in the past. But this time, the deployment coincides with US President Donald Trump’s administration increasing pressure on Maduro by doubling its bounty on him to $50 million earlier this month.The US alleges Maduro is leading the Cartel of the Suns, a drug trafficking group that has been designated a terrorist organization. On Friday, Maduro described the US moves as an “illegal” attempt at regime change.”What they’re threatening to do against Venezuela — regime change, a military terrorist attack — is immoral, criminal and illegal,” Maduro said.On the streets of Venezuela, the topic prompted jokes and worries alike, though experts say it is unlikely the US would take direct action.Maduro’s opposition has called for people not to enlist — though many were anyway.”I want to defend the homeland,” said Jesus Borquez, 19.”I know that because of my age I’m not going to carry a rifle,” 78-year-old Omaira Hernandez said. “But I’m willing to help them.”

Elon Musk’s SpaceX is gearing up for the next test of its Starship megarocket on Sunday, after a string of recent failures that has prompted some observers to question its viability.The world’s most powerful launch vehicle is set to lift off from the company’s Starbase in southern Texas at 6:30 pm local time (2330 GMT) for its tenth flight. The mission aims to put the upper stage through a series of trials as it flies halfway around the world before splashing down in the Indian Ocean.Unlike in recent attempts, SpaceX will not try to catch the booster stage with the launch tower’s giant “chopstick” arms.Starship is central to Musk’s ambition of colonizing Mars, while NASA is counting on a modified version to serve as the Artemis lunar lander for returning Americans to the Moon.But all three test flights so far in 2025 have ended in the upper stage exploding — twice in fiery cascades over Caribbean islands and once after reaching space. In June, another upper stage exploded on the ground during a “static fire” test.SpaceX’s “fail fast, learn fast” ethos has long been credited with its remarkable track record, giving it a commanding global lead in launches thanks to its Falcon rocket family. But the Starship setbacks have raised doubts over whether the company can repeat that success with the biggest and most powerful rocket in history.- ‘Lot of pressure’ -Dallas Kasaboski, a space analyst for consulting firm Analysys Mason, told AFP that the recent failures were beginning to take the sheen off SpaceX’s golden reputation. “I think there is a lot of pressure on this mission,” he said. “We’ve had so many tests and it hasn’t proven itself reliable — the successes have not exceeded the failures.”Will Lockett, a former engineer turned commentator went further, arguing on his Substack newsletter that the lack of heavy payload tests showed “the concept of Starship is fundamentally flawed.” He added: “SpaceX is building Starships that are lighter in an attempt to increase payload to usable levels but is therefore making them much weaker than they should be” — leading to structural failures seen during recent tests.Headlines such as “Is Elon Musk’s Starship Doomed?” in New York Magazine have amplified the scrutiny.Musk has staked the company’s future on Starship, planning to eventually retire its current generation of rockets and spacecraft in favor of the new system.Even if the tenth test succeeds, formidable technical hurdles remain — from making the system fully and rapidly reusable at low cost to proving it can refuel super-cooled propellant in orbit, a prerequisite for deep-space missions.Still, SpaceX is pressing ahead, increasing the frequency of launches despite criticism from environmental groups over ecological impacts, and building new facilities in Florida, including launch and landing pads at Kennedy Space Center.

The US government intends to deport a Salvadoran man at ground zero of President Donald Trump’s war on illegal immigration to Uganda next week, his lawyers said Saturday.In a filing, the lawyers asked courts to dismiss the case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia on grounds that it is a vindictive attempt to punish him for challenging his initial deportation to El Salvador.The attempt to deport Garcia to far-flung Uganda in East Africa adds a dramatic new twist to a saga that become a test case for Trump’s harsh crackdown on illegal immigration — and, critics say, his trampling of the law.His lawyers’ filing was an addition to an earlier one asking judges to dismiss the case.Word of the new press to deport him came a day after he was freed and allowed to go home to Maryland pending trial on human smuggling charges.This followed a tortuous saga in which he was mistakenly deported to a notoriously rough prison in El Salvador, then returned to US soil only to be detained again.A judge ordered his release Friday but the latest news means he might again be expelled, this time to Uganda under a new, harsh Trump administration scheme of sending undocumented migrants to distant, even war-torn countries where they know no one.Abrego Garcia denies any wrongdoing, while the administration says he is a violent MS-13 gang member who smuggled other immigrants.On Thursday when it became clear Abrego Garcia would be released the following day, government officials made him a plea offer: remain in custody, plead guilty to human smuggling charges and be deported to Costa Rica, his lawyers said in the filing. He declined the offer.”The government immediately responded to Mr. Abrego’s release with outrage,” the filing states.”Despite… assurances from the government of Costa Rica that Mr. Abrego would be accepted there, within minutes of his release from pretrial custody, an (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) representative informed Mr. Abrego’s counsel that the government intended to deport Mr. Abrego to Uganda and ordered him to report to ICE’s Baltimore Field Office Monday morning,” it added.The case has been a messy tug of war.The government admitted it had mistakenly sent him to El Salvador’s notorious maximum security prison in March.The US Supreme Court later ordered the Trump administration to “facilitate” the return of Abrego Garcia.He was returned in June, and then quickly arrested and charged with trafficking undocumented migrants. On Friday, he was released from prison in Tennessee on a judge’s order.At that point he had not seen his family in more than 160 days.The case has become emblematic of Trump’s rough crackdown on illegal migration.Right-wing supporters praise the Republican president’s toughness, but legal scholars and human rights advocates have blasted what they say is a haphazard rush to deport people without even a court hearing, in violation of basic US law.

US President Donald Trump praised a newly passed Texas electoral map Saturday as a “tremendous opportunity” to help his Republican Party retain control of Congress in next year’s midterm elections.Texas legislators overnight gave final approval to the redistricting effort engineered to create five new Republican leaning seats, as the state senate voted along party lines to pass the map 18-11, following more than eight hours of heated debate.Last week the state legislature’s lower chamber adopted the bill, after Democrats delayed the votes for weeks by denying Republicans a quorum to do legislative business.Trump, posting on his Truth Social platform, said the new map “will give the wonderful people of Texas the tremendous opportunity to elect 5 new MAGA Republicans in the 2026 Midterm Elections — A HUGE VICTORY for our America First Agenda.”Governor Gregg Abbott said he would swiftly sign the bill into law.Democratic Senator Carol Alvarado’s last-ditch plans to filibuster the map were thwarted when Republicans used a rare procedural motion to halt debate, end the filibuster, and proceed directly to the final vote.Fellow Democrat Sarah Eckhardt said shutting down a filibuster was “unprecedented.””This is not democracy, this is disgraceful,” she posted on X.The vote caps weeks of dramatic political theater that saw Democratic lawmakers flee the state in July to deny Republicans the quorum needed to pass the redistricting plan, and drew nationwide attention to partisan redistricting, known as gerrymandering.- California countermove -The Democrats claim the new electoral map dilutes the votes of African-American and Hispanic electorates who usually vote for them.The Texas Senate Democratic Caucus said Friday on X that the state “has a shameful history of racial discrimination. These maps are just the latest entry in that history.”That stance echoed in the floor debate.Democratic Senator Borris Miles denounced Republican complicity in “racist actions,” saying the new map “does not reflect the truth of Texas, but instead manipulates and whitewashes it.”Speaking on the floor, Republican Phil King was clear about the redistricting effort: “I’m convinced that if Texas does not take this action, that there is an extreme risk that the Republican majority will be lost.”The cutthroat political gambit spurred California’s Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, to launch a process for redrawing his state’s map — this time creating five potentially new seats for Democrats.”If Texas wants to play hardball, we’ll play hardball right back,” Newsom said in announcing the California initiative.Although Newsom hopes to cancel out the Republicans’ advantages gained in Texas, his plan still requires voter approval in an election this November.Both parties are now looking to other states where the rules might allow hasty redrawing of maps in ways that would create more seats.Beyond Texas, Trump encouraged Florida, Indiana and Missouri to redraw their maps to Republican advantage.The redistricting battle adds a volatile and high-stakes new element to next year’s elections.Republicans currently control the US Senate and the House of Representatives.Beleaguered Democrats hope the unpopularity of many of Trump’s policies will help flip the House. If Democrats did win, they would immediately gain power to investigate Trump and his controversial government members.

A US judicial commission denied parole Friday to Joseph Lyle Menendez, a day after his brother Erik was also ordered to stay in prison for the murder of their parents in a Beverly Hills mansion more than three decades ago.A California panel ordered the 57-year-old, who goes by his middle name, to remain behind bars along with his younger sibling, defying a campaign for their freedom waged by family, friends and celebrities including Kim Kardashian. “Joseph (Lyle) Menendez was denied parole for three years at his initial suitability hearing today,” read a brief statement from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR).The outcome of Lyle Menendez’s hearing is the latest blow to a movement that has swelled in recent years, amplified by Netflix’s smash hit dramatic series “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.”The show and myriad documentaries have fixated on the gory details of the 1989 shotgun murders, and the televised jury trial that captivated audiences with accounts of their abusive upbringings and posh lifestyles.Parole commissioner Julie Garland said the panel found that there were still signs that Lyle Menendez posed a risk to the public.She urged him not to give up hope, telling him that the denial of parole for three years was “not the end.””My mom and dad did not have to die that day,” an emotional Lyle Menendez told the parole board, adding that the decision to use violence was solely his and not his “baby brother’s” responsibility.”I am so sorry to everyone, and I will be forever sorry,” Lyle Menendez added in his final remarks to the panel.- An 11-hour hearing -Friday’s hearing came just over 36 years after the deaths of parents Jose and Kitty Menendez, in what prosecutors said was a cynical attempt by their sons to obtain a large family fortune.After setting up alibis and trying to cover their tracks, Erik and Lyle shot Jose Menendez five times with shotguns, including in the kneecaps.Kitty Menendez died from a shotgun blast as she tried desperately to crawl away from her killers.The brothers initially blamed the deaths on a mafia hit, but changed their story several times in the ensuing months.Erik, then 18, confessed to the murders in a session with his therapist. The pair ultimately claimed they had acted in self-defense after years of emotional and sexual abuse at the hands of a tyrannical father.During their decades in prison, changing social mores and greater awareness of sexual abuse helped elevate the men to something approaching cultural icons.Friday’s hearing, which was closed to the public, lasted 11 hours. It was held separately to Thursday’s hearing for his brother Erik, 54.Both brothers appeared by video link from the San Diego prison where they are being held.The panel members, whose identities were not released by CDCR, quizzed them on their behavior and attitude toward the murders.The parole hearings became possible when a judge earlier this year resentenced the men, reducing their original full-life punishment to one of 50 years with the possibility of release.