Event: US

Three International Criminal Court (ICC) judges have had their bank accounts frozen, lost their health insurance and were cut off from basic financial services as a result of sanctions imposed by the Trump administration, a complaint filed in a New York federal court reveals. US sanctions, imposed under Executive Order 14203 signed by President Donald Trump in February 2025, led to consequences that stretch far beyond the professional lives of the three judges. The measures have affected their freedom of movement, their physical security, their families and their ability to carry out basic daily transactions. Filed on 24 June in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, the complaint describes in detail the toll the measures have taken on Judges Kimberly Prost of Canada, Solomy Balungi Bossa of Uganda and Reine Alapini-Gansou of Benin. All three have served on the court since March 2018. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters They are suing the Trump administration to have the sanctions struck down and describe the measures as "tantamount to a financial death penalty". The judges were sanctioned for decisions they made in the course of their judicial duties. Prost and Bossa were designated for their participation in an Appeals Chamber ruling in March 2020 that authorised the ICC prosecutor to open an investigation into alleged crimes in Afghanistan, including by US personnel. ICC states should respect judges' report on prosecutor, says Norway’s deputy foreign minister Read More » Alapini-Gansou was designated for her role as a member of Pre-Trial Chamber I, which issued arrest warrants in November 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in…

A high-profile visit to Washington by Taiwanese Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu reflects a broader US effort to strengthen ties with the island’s main opposition Kuomintang (KMT), according to analysts.The succession of arrivals suggested Washington was preparing for political uncertainty after Taiwan’s 2028 leadership election by cultivating relationships across the KMT on issues ranging from defence spending to semiconductor cooperation, analysts said.Han arrived in the United States on Monday leading a seven-member, cross-party parliamentary delegation after invitations from congressional Taiwan caucuses.‘A milestone visit’: Xi and Trump set sights on stability for China-US relationsHan also held talks with a bipartisan group of seven senators and attended a congressional reception joined by 33 lawmakers, including former House speaker Nancy Pelosi.

More than 700 pro-Israel rabbis have signed onto an open letter published on Friday calling on New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani to retract his comments likening the pro-Israel lobbying group Aipac to "monsters". The American Israel Public Affairs Committee is among the most powerful advocacy groups working on foreign policy in the US, spending millions to oust political candidates who are critical of Israel. The letter was organised by the relatively new advocacy group The Jewish Majority, founded by an Aipac veteran of nearly two decades, Jonathan Schulman. "We are rabbis and cantors from across the United States. We serve different communities, hold different political views, and do not speak with one voice on every question concerning Israel, American politics or the war in Gaza," the letter began. "But we are united in our belief that Mayor Zohran Mamdani's recent speech about pro-Israel civic participation is dangerous, unacceptable and beneath the office he holds." In remarks at a rally with Democratic Senator Bernie Sanders on 18 June, Mamdani likened Aipac's actions to "monsters" who use "millions in dark money to accomplish a single goal: to preserve their power, so that they can turn us against one another". New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The rabbis called the rhetoric "an act of dehumanization" that furthers antisemitism in the US. "History demonstrates that campaigns against Jews often begin with rhetoric portraying them as uniquely sinister, uniquely powerful and somehow less deserving of equal treatment," the letter said. "Mr. Mamdani's words invoke a familiar story about Jewish power, Jewish money and Jewish manipulation of public life." Mamdani has long maintained that anti-Zionism and criticism of Israel are not antisemitism. Doubling down On Monday, Mamdani was…

Former Trump administration national security adviser John Bolton pleaded guilty on Friday to illegally retaining classified information, sealing a deal with federal prosecutors that could allow him to avoid a prison term.Bolton, who became an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump after serving in the Republican’s first administration, is scheduled to be sentenced on October 28 by US District Judge Theodore Chuang in Greenbelt, Maryland.Bolton, 77, pleaded guilty to a single count of illegally retaining classified information.His plea agreement with the Justice Department may enable him to avoid time behind bars, but the judge ultimately will decide his punishment.The plea agreement recommends capping any prison sentence at five years but the judge is not bound by that part of the deal.Former US National Security Adviser John Bolton arrives at court in Greenbelt, Maryland, on Friday. Photo: EPABolton can withdraw his guilty plea if the judge issues a longer prison sentence or a fine greater than US$2.25 million.

TPS recipients can legally live and work in the US for up to 18 months, subject to extensions. During this period, they can not be removed or detained by authorities on the basis of their immigration status.The US first provided TPS to Haitians after a major earthquake in 2010 and to Syrians after their country descended into civil war in 2012.Thursday's decision is likely to have implications for TPS holders from other countries too.In his ruling, Justice Samuel Alito wrote that the law governing TPS clearly prevents courts from reviewing government decisions. Justice Alito also said the Haitian migrants who sued were unlikely to prove that the administration's actions were racially discriminatory and violated US constitution's equal-protection rights under the Fifth Amendment. The three liberal justices in the top court dissented.Justice Elena Kagan said that the government's decision to remove these protections were racially motivated."The statements fairly shout, in their racial undertones and overtones alike, that race entered into the President's resolve to remove Haitians from this country," she said.The Trump administration welcomed the ruling."The T in TPS stands for TEMPORARY, yet many of these designations became de facto amnesty," James Percival, the general counsel for the Department of Homeland Security, said on X after the ruling."This is a win for the rule of law and common sense." During his 2024 presidential campaign, Trump amplified false rumours about Haitian immigrants, including that they were abducting and eating house pets.With this ruling, the court has now cleared the way for the Trump administration to remove legal protections for TPS recipients, meaning they could face deportation."Today's decision puts hundreds of thousands of people at risk", said Jill Habig, CEO and Founder of Public Rights Project, which filed amicus briefs on behalf of 47 local governments and leaders, urging the Supreme Court to…

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson met President Donald Trump on Thursday (June 25, 2026) in hopes of defusing a standoff with Congress ‌over a stalled package of national voting restrictions that the president views as his top legislative priority.A day after ​a contentious closed-door meeting between Mr. Trump and Senate Republicans, hardline Trump allies led by U.S. Representative Anna Paulina Luna effectively shut ⁠down the House floor until the Senate passes a voter ID bill, known as the SAVE America Act, which the Senate has tried and failed to pass five times since March.The Republican President used a similar tactic on Wednesday (June 24, 2026) to pressure Senate Republicans by pulling out of a signing ceremony for a popular bipartisan housing ‌bill. Republican leaders had hoped to showcase the bill as evidence they are addressing the high cost of living, the top issue for voters ahead of November’s midterm elections.Mr. Trump and Mr. Johnson were expected to discuss a legislative path forward for the SAVE ‌America Act and rescheduling the signing ceremony for the housing bill. Mr. Johnson is the top Republican in the House.Mr. Johnson told reporters after the ‌meeting ⁠that Congress would transmit the unsigned housing bill to the White House and move forward on other legislation, with Mr. Trump ⁠calling for an end to any further legislative roadblocks from Republican members.“He wants to ensure that we stop any blockade in the House. Congress has work to do and that’s what we’re going to do,” Mr. Johnson said without mentioning the SAVE America Act.“We’re on exactly the same page,” Mr. Johnson said of Mr. Trump and himself.The White House did not immediately ​comment on the meeting.Debate over priorities before electionsHours after ‌Senate Republicans met with Mr. Trump on Wednesday (June 24, 2026) , the chamber left…

Xi Jinping meets Bangladesh’s new prime minister on Friday, the latest in a wave of world leaders to visit Beijing this year as the Chinese leader builds his influence and economic ties, and seeks to “shift the balance of power” away from the west.Xi’s meeting with Tarique Rahman comes less than two weeks after the Chinese leader welcomed Myanmar’s military chief-turned-president, Min Aung Hlaing, in Beijing.In May, Xi hosted leaders from the US, Russia, Brunei, Serbia, Tajikistan and Pakistan, while a host of foreign ministers also came to China for lower level meetings.More than a dozen world leaders - including presidents and prime ministers - have visited so far this year, including Russia’s Vladimir Putin, the UK’s Keir Starmer and US president Donald Trump.“The long list of world leaders travelling to Beijing to meet with Xi reflects the growing recognition of China’s increasing global influence,” said William Yang, a senior analyst for the International Crisis Group.Xi Jinping hosted Canadian prime minister Mark Carney in January. Photograph: Xinhua/ShutterstockMany of the leaders to visit China this year, including Canada’s prime minister Mark Carney, framed their trips as a chance for “middle-power” countries to chart an independent relationship with Beijing against a backdrop of an increasingly capricious US.China can use such visits to “promote the alternative multipolar world order that it has been championing while weakening these countries’ trust and confidence in the US,” Yang said.China is presenting itself as a source of stability – and for many poorer countries, loans – at a time when from the perspective of many countries, the US is retreating from its leading position on the world stage.And despite Trump’s pomp-filled state visit, Beijing has not been shy about about courting leaders from authoritarian and Global South countries, either.Myanmar’s military chief-turned-president got the red carpet treatment in…

AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTYou have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.The court handed President Trump victories in his push to rescind deportation protections for hundreds of thousands of people and turn away migrants at the southern border.The Supreme Court’s 6-to-3 decision in two cases with broad implications divided along ideological lines, with the liberal justices dissenting.Credit...Haiyun Jiang/The New York TimesJune 25, 2026In a pair of sharply divided decisions on Thursday, the Supreme Court allowed President Trump’s aggressive crackdown on immigration to move forward, permitting the administration to expel hundreds of thousands of migrants from the country and to turn away others at the southern border.Taken together, the opinions from the court’s conservative majority signaled deference to the president’s ability to set the nation’s immigration policy, as the justices prepare in the coming days to issue more rulings that will decide how much power to give Mr. Trump across his boundary-pushing agenda.In one ruling on Thursday, the justices allowed the Trump administration to end humanitarian protections that have permitted people from Haiti and Syria to live and work legally in the United States for more than a decade.Mr. Trump has long pushed to terminate the program, known as Temporary Protected Status, as part of his efforts to restrict immigration. The program was created by Congress with bipartisan support in 1990 to provide temporary legal status to people whose home countries were deemed unsafe because of war, natural disasters or other crises.The court’s 6-to-3 decision, divided along ideological lines, clears a path for the potential deportation of 350,000 Haitians and 6,100 Syrians, and it is likely to have implications for T.P.S. holders from about a dozen other countries.The United States, which has a long history of political…

AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTYou have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.Deportees From the U.S. Won’t Find an Open Door to CanadaNew Canadian policies and a longstanding border agreement with the United States will make heading north a tough route for Syrians and Haitians.Prime Minister Trudeau welcoming Syrian refugees to Toronto in December 2015.Credit...Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press, via Associated PressJune 25, 2026Syrians and Haitians facing deportation from the United States after a Supreme Court decision on Thursday won’t find a smooth route to safety in the neighboring country typically associated with welcoming refugees.Canada’s immigration system is less generous than it was in 2015, when Justin Trudeau, then the prime minister, personally welcomed Syrian refugees at the airport.A combination of a souring public mood toward newcomers and a botched economic-immigration system after the pandemic have led to a drastic tightening of Canada’s borders. The new immigration policies affect all types of migrants, including asylum seekers, international students and economic migrants, and have resulted in the population of Canada shrinking for the first time after years of expansion.Canada’s border and immigration agreement with the United States, known as the Safe Third Country Agreement, means that the two nations routinely return people coming from the one attempting to seek asylum in the other.The premise of the agreement is because both nations are equally safe for people seeking international protection, asylum seekers should apply in the first country they enter. But that premise has come into question since the Trump administration has suspended most refugee pathways to the United States and implemented sweeping deportation policies.The agreement was upheld and strengthened after the 2023 arrival of thousands of migrants from the United States stirred frustration in Canada. Most were Haitian, and…

AdvertisementSKIP ADVERTISEMENTYou have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.A Glimpse at the Conditions Deportees May Face in Haiti and SyriaThe Supreme Court ruled that the Trump administration could end humanitarian protections for many Haitians and Syrians in the United States, clearing the way for their potential deportation.A Haitian physician who fled his homeland in 2021, at his home in Springfield, Ohio, in January. About 350,000 Haitians had received protection from deportation in the United States.Credit...Maddie McGarvey for The New York TimesJune 25, 2026The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed the Trump administration to end humanitarian protections that have allowed hundreds of thousands of people from Haiti and Syria to live and work legally in the United States while their home countries are in disarray.Without these protections, known as Temporary Protected Status, 350,000 Haitians and 6,100 Syrians face potential deportation. The ruling is also likely to have implications for others with that status.Congress created the T.P.S. program with bipartisan support in 1990 to provide limited legal status to people whose home countries are unsafe because of violence, natural disasters or other crises.Haiti and Syria have for years been battered by such emergencies, and the people who now face potential deportation from the United States could be returned to them.Here is a glimpse at what those people may soon face.HaitiThe Caribbean nation of Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere and among the poorest in the world. It has long struggled economically, its woes driven by foreign interventions, political instability, natural disasters, gang violence and historical French demands that the island make payments on an enormous debt.Since the assassination of its last elected president, Jovenel Moïse, in July 2021, the country’s troubles have only…