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Acting DHS chief Kevin McAleenan will face questions on the separation of migrant families and conditions at overcrowded detention centers.

Thu, 18 Jul 2019 11:43:37 -0400

Germany's Foreign Ministry said Thursday it has opened an investigation after learning that the official Twitter account of the country's mission to the Palestinian territories had "liked" anti-Israel tweets. The comments came after top-selling Bild newspaper reported that the "likes" came from the verified Twitter account of German diplomat Christian Clages, @GerRepRamallah. The multiple "likes" included one for a video praising an attack on Israeli soldiers, and another for an exchange between American white supremacist David Duke and another user about an alleged massacre of Jews.

Thu, 18 Jul 2019 10:31:04 -0400

Russia has said it may join a European Union payment system aimed at salvaging the Iran nuclear deal if it is expanded to include oil purchases.  The system, called Instex, is designed to facilitate payments to Iran despite the US trade sanctions reimposed on the country after Donald Trump pulled out of the landmark agreement in 2018.  With its economy reeling from the US blockage of crucial oil exports, Iran said this month it would begin enriching more uranium than allowed by the “joint comprehensive plan of action”. Tensions with the United States and United Kingdom have risen following several attacks on tankers in the Gulf. Iran said on Thursday it had seized a foreign oil tanker that was “smuggling fuel”. In a not-so-subtle reference to the United States, Vladimir Putin's spokesman on Thursday called Instex an “important initiative” to protect European companies from “illegal attempts by third countries to limit their activities”. He said Russia was watching to see how well it functioned. “With consideration of the initial experience using this system when it is activated, we can't exclude our cooperation in this,” the spokesman said.  Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, however, complained on Wednesday that Instex was only covering deliveries of food, medicine and other humanitarian aid, “which aren't banned by the Americans anyway”. To bolster Iran's economy and ensure the survival of the deal, Instex would need to facilitate oil exports as well, he said.  “Payments of a few million dollars have been completed through this channel. That's nothing compared to the obligations that Iran's partners took on as part of the join comprehensive plan of action,” he said during a press conference with the foreign minister of Côte d'Ivoire. “These assume the unimpeded purchase of Iranian oil and the unimpeded transfer of payments for delivering this energy source.” German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov talk ahead a German-Russian forum on Thursday Credit: Marius Becker/AFP Another possibility for easing the situation around Iran emerged with reports this week that US senator Rand Paul, who is known for his opposition to US interventions abroad, had gotten Mr Trump's approval to sit down with Iran's foreign minister in an attempt to reduce tensions. Backed by 10 EU states, Instex was launched in January but only went online last month. It offers Iran a credit line of several million euros, far less than the €20bn in annual trade the EU did with Iran before the US sanctions. The EU has said it would welcome third countries to join Instex but is still deliberating over whether the system should include oil payments.  Saving the nuclear deal will require the continued support of Moscow, a key ally of Tehran that has fought alongside it to keep Bashar al-Assad in power in Syria. Russia is building two nuclear power plants in Iran and has sold it arms like surface-to-air missiles.  It is China, however, that may be able to do the most for Iran's economy by buying its crude oil in defiance of US sanctions. Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif attends a UN session on sustainable development on Wednesday Credit: Kena Betancur/AFP Mr Lavrov's comments echoed those of Iranian officials who said Instex was a positive development but insufficient to keep the county solvent.   The country's envoy to the United Nations called the system a “very lovely car but without any gasoline”. Russia was continuing talks with Iran, Europe and China to “find not symbolic but real ways of giving Iran the economic benefits that are an inherent part of the deal,” Mr Lavrov said.

Thu, 18 Jul 2019 10:24:07 -0400

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Thursday that the United States will create a new international body to campaign for religious freedom, following a major meeting in Washington. Dubbed the International Religious Freedom Alliance, Pompeo said that details of the group were still being worked out but that it would "bring like-minded countries together" to make the issue a priority. "It will provide a space for the work that we do here to flourish throughout the year and, importantly, it will defend the unalienable rights of all human beings to believe, or not to believe, whatever it is that they choose," Pompeo told the ministerial-level meeting.

Thu, 18 Jul 2019 09:51:40 -0400

Fox News host Jesse Watters appeared to a make a racially insensitive joke about the Democratic representatives who are members of “the Squad” on Thursday. During a guest appearance on Fox & Friends, the anchor was asked by a member of the live audience what he would do if he had the chance to sit down with Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and Ayanna Pressley (D-MA).“First, I’d grab my wallet,” Watters said, eliciting laughter from the audience.It’s possible that Watters was referring to progressives’ proposals to raise taxes on wealthy Americans, rather than suggesting one of them might be willing to pick-pocket him. But the comment seemed to highlight negative stereotypes of people of color, the morning after President Donald Trump elicited chants of “Send her back!” pointed at Rep. Omar at a widely condemned rally in North Carolina.Watters went on to explain that he didn’t think he would “get along too well” with the four women.Trump attacked the four congresswomen in a series of tweets on Sunday, saying they could leave the U.S. and go back to where they’re from even though all of the congresswomen are American citizens. The House of Representatives voted on Tuesday to condemn the president’s comments as racist.Trump Rally Crowd Launches Into ‘Send Her Back’ Chant Over Ilhan OmarRead more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.

Thu, 18 Jul 2019 09:46:38 -0400