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‘A miracle’: Canadian flight attendant ejected from plane survives New York crash
Solange Tremblay was ejected over 100 metres from the plane after collision at LaGuardia airport, her daughter saysTwo pilots killed after Air Canada jet collision at LaGuardia in New YorkSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter emailA flight attendant on the Air Canada Jazz flight that collided with a fire truck at New York’s LaGuardia airport on Sunday survived in what her daughter called a “complete miracle”, when she was ejected more than 100 metres from the plane while still strapped to her seat.The CRJ-900 jet, operated by Jazz Aviation, collided with a fire truck as it landed, killing both the pilot and co-pilot. Nine people were sent to the hospital with injuries, including Solange Tremblay, a flight attendant. Continue reading...
‘We consider every mile we drive’: how fuel shortages are affecting readers worldwide
From a shop owner in India to a community worker in New South Wales, rising fuel prices are forcing people to ration oil usageMiddle East crisis – live updatesAlagesan, 35, needs liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to run his roadside drink and snack shop in Coimbatore, India, but with the fuel shortage since the US-Israel attacks on Iran, he worries his business could fold.“I am far away from the Middle East, but my life is affected,” he said. “The gas cylinder is not available because of the war. I don’t know what to do.” Continue reading...
Trump's allies admit they're resorting to desperate 'gimmicks' to keep gas down: report
The Trump administration was reportedly looking for ways to drop gas prices at the pump, according to a Bloomberg report on Monday. President Donald Trump has touted lowering oil prices throughout his campaign and first year of his second term, but as the Iran war hits its fourth week and oil prices skyrocket, his allies are aiming to make new moves ahead of the midterms this fall, Bloomberg's Nancy Cook reported. "I’m told Cabinet members like Energy Secretary Christopher Wright, staff at the National Economic Council and the National Energy Dominance Council as well as other White House aides are soliciting ideas from policy experts, donors and energy executives as they struggle to limit the economic damage inflicted by the war," Cook wrote. "Today, Trump himself backed down from threats he made over the weekend to begin hitting Iran’s energy infrastructure in 48 hours after allies and Gulf countries warned the president about the consequences and oil prices spiked," Cook explained. Trump allies were apparently tasked with sharing potential remedies. "Among the myriad ideas floated to the administration for consideration are asking Congress to suspend the federal gas tax; releasing more oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve once the current release is finished and fast-tracking drilling permits, according to people familiar with the internal discussions," Cook reported. "A White House official said while there are many options on the table, the administration at this time isn’t pursuing a gas tax holiday or an additional SPR release.""One Trump ally acknowledged a lot of this was 'gimmicky' but said the White House has to show it’s taking action before the midterms, which inevitably will turn on the economy," Cook added. "With Republican control of Congress at risk, Trump has put his political team in a bit of a quagmire with ostensibly no clear strategy or timeline for ending the war."
Trump official ducks blame after another deadly airline disaster under his watch
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy tried to deflect responsibility on Monday after two pilots were killed and dozens more people were injured in a collision at LaGuardia Airport — calling on Congress to increase their funding for air traffic control workers at airports. Duffy was speaking at a news conference with several New York state and New York City leaders discussing the new details revealed around the moments that led to the fatal collision, which was still under a National Transportation Safety Board investigation. He dodged multiple questions about what happened and attempted to shift the blame. "Congress needs to do their job," said Duffy, who cited multiple requests to lawmakers to fund air traffic controllers. "I've been asking the Congress for additional money," Duffy said. "Many of you have reported that we need more money for air traffic control. We are modernizing our system, but we can't fully modernize it until the Congress gives us additional money. It's not a partisan issue. Both Democrats and Republicans agree, but they have to have the will to finish the funding. I'm not saying that this crash would have been prevented if we had all the equipment deployed, but it's important if we care about air travel safety, we care about having a brand new air traffic control system the best in the world with the best equipment, virtually all of it developed here in America." Duffy described the staffing conditions at LaGuardia Airport. "This airport has a target of 37 controllers at LaGuardia," Duffy said. "We have 33 controllers employed and certified at LaGuardia and we have six — seven actually in training, so as our airports go, LaGuardia is a very well-staffed airport. We are a couple controllers short in total, but it is a well-staffed airport."He added that the air traffic controller was apparently not the only person on the job at the time, although the NTSB investigation is expected to provide more information. "I did want to clarify, I've heard the rumor that there was only one controller in the tower, and that is not accurate," Duffy said. This was the second fatal crash under Duffy's leadership and in President Donald Trump's second administration. Duffy has been accused of putting safety at risk by not addressing the low staffing among air traffic controllers in the United States as calls have grown for his resignation.
‘Rats, sinking ships’: Quiet White House exit raises eyebrows
Vice President JD Vance's special adviser for the Middle East has left the Trump administration to take a new role at a lobbying firm, Bloomberg Government reported on Monday. Wesam H. Hassanein has joined Continental Strategy LLC, a firm connected to the Trump administration and the Republican Party, the outlet reported. The native Arabic speaker said he had apparently planned to leave the White House when the U.S.-Israeli joint strikes started on Iran on Feb. 28. “I’m not leaving because I oppose the president’s decision on Iran — I’m 100% supportive of President Trump’s decision to deny Iran nuclear weapons,” Hassanein said. “We should have done what President Trump is doing years ago.”Hassanein previously worked for the State Department before joining the Trump administration. He said he had been mulling over several offers before selecting the firm founded by Carlos Trujillo, former Ambassador to the Organization of American States. “Continental really, really stood out as family oriented, a family culture, with an excellent client base,” he said. “They are in total lockstep with the administration, working to advance America First policies.”Several people reacted to the news of the latest White House exit. "Rats, sinking ships...," Mehdi Hassan, editor-in-chief and CEO of Zeteo, wrote on X. "VP Vance's special adviser for the Middle East, Wesam H. Hassanein, leaves role for the private sector," Jonathan Guyer, Program Director of Institute for Global Affairs, wrote on X. "Why do they all leave when it gets hot in the kitchen?? Very weak appointees doing the Bongino," political commentator Johnny Law wrote on X."Why stay when POTUS does the bidding of another country to lie us into war. Get off the sinking ship," copywriter John Bethel wrote on X.
Trump throws Hegseth under the bus as war tanks stock market: 'You said let's do it'
President Donald Trump blamed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for pushing him into the war in Iran.During an event in Memphis, Tennessee, on Monday, Trump bragged about past gains in the stock market, which have recently taken a hit because of Operation Epic Fury."You know, our economy was fantastic. We had a Dow at 50,000," the president explained. "And then, unfortunately, I came -- I called Pete, I called General [Dan] Caine, I called a lot of our great people. We have great people. And I said, 'Let's talk. We got a problem in the Middle East. We have a country known as Iran, that for 47 years has been just a purveyor of terror, and they're very close to having a nuclear weapon."Trump noted that his success in the stock market would have continued if not for the war."We can keep going and get that 50,000 up to 55 and 60," he remarked. "Or we can take a stop and make a little journey into the Middle East and eliminate a big problem.""And, Pete, I think you were the first one to speak up. And you said, 'Let's do it,'' because you can't let them have a nuclear weapon," Trump added.The president went on to predict that the war could be over soon because of "very good discussions" with Iran.For their part, Iranian officials have denied having discussions with the Trump administration.
Trump's UN ambassador refuses to take bombing Iran's nuclear power plant 'off the table'
According to Donald Trump’s UN ambassador, the president should not be constrained from ordering the Pentagon to bomb Iran’s sole nuclear power plant located southeast of the city of Bushehr, situated on the waterfront of the Persian Gulf.During an appearance on “Face the Nation,” Ambassador Mike Waltz, who was shuffled over to the UN after he was caught up in the “Signalgate” scandal, was asked about Trump’s 48-hour threat to begin bombing Iran’s power plants unless the Strait of Hormuz is opened to shipping.In a post on Truth Social, the president wrote, “If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP”That led CBS host Margaret Brennan to ask Waltz, “The reason I'm asking you is when the President says he's going to bomb energy infrastructure, civilian energy infrastructure. Is he going to bomb a nuclear power plant or is that off the table?”“Well, I would never take anything off the table for the president, certainly not on national television,” Waltz replied. “However, there are larger plants. There's one outside of Tehran, there are others outside of other cities that are gas-fired, thermal, thermal-powered.”“I think the important point here is to understand,” he attempted. “The IRGC, a declared terrorist organization not only by us, but in a number of European countries, controls a huge swath of Iran's critical infrastructure, their economy and certainly many of their governing institutions, and so to the extent we're degrading their military capability and their defense industrial base, all options should be on the table, and the President's made that very clear.”
Trump is 'grappling with a lack of control' as his plans go awry: Axios
As Donald Trump’s war on Iran enters its 23rd day, the administration is putting out signals that it would like to begin peace talks at the same time that the president is raising the threat that he will destroy the country’s energy infrastructure within two days.Appearing on MS NOW, to discuss the mixed messaging, AXIOS reporter Eli Stokols stated that the president is clueless about the best path to proceed down, and events on the ground –– particularly the closing of the Strait of Hormuz –– show no signs of being easily resolved.Speaking with the hosts of “The Weekend, “ he explained, “Look, I think the president has been sort of all over the place. And I think the post overnight, with the threats if they don't, you know, open up the strait, we're going to blow their power plants to smithereens; the president's grappling with a lack of control. He started this conflict. He is not capable of ending it on his own.”“Iran has a say here,” he observed. “And I think, you know, he's frustrated about not getting more help from European allies, which, like we all know why that is. And I think there's a sense, as much as they are saying, 'Well, we need $200 billion, we need all this money to keep this war going.'”“There's a clear sense that the president would probably like to wrap this up, but that doesn't mean he can't escalate if he gets frustrated,” Stokols predicted. “And so I think there's a lot of uncertainty and incoherence in the strategy, because that reflects an uncertainty about how to proceed and what he can actually do to bring about an outcome that he'll be happy with a sort of clean ending to this war that he started.” - YouTube youtu.be
Trump's blistering ultimatum over the Strait of Hormuz astonishes analysts
President Donald Trump issued a blistering ultimatum to the Iranian regime on Saturday night, one that raised the eyebrows of multiple political analysts and observers. Trump posted on Truth Social that Iran has 48 hours to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or else the U.S. will strike multiple energy plants in the country. He made the threat as global energy prices continue to climb from the regime's effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz to U.S. ships. "If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!" Trump wrote. Over the last week, multiple power plants and energy fields in Iran have been struck by Israeli forces. The strikes became such a problem for the Trump administration that Trump demanded Israel stop striking Iran without telling the U.S. first. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has suggested that the Trump administration has been made aware of Israeli operations. "I'm old enough to remember when he said the U.S. doesn't care because we don't even use the Strait of Hormuz. It was, like, yesterday," space archaeologist Justin Walsh posted on Bluesky. "We’re not even a month into this war yet, and he’s already threatening to do war crimes on main," journalist Matt Novak posted on Bluesky. "Such a move would disproportionately harm civilians, something the regime has made clear it cares little about," journalist Yashar Ali posted on X. "From claiming the war is 'winding down' to threatening a new act of terror against a country of 90 million people," journalist Aaron Maté posted on X.
Strike on Sudan hospital kills at least 64 and wounds 89 more, WHO reports
Victims of army drone attack on East Darfur health facility included children and medical personnel A strike on a healthcare facility in Sudan has killed 64 people and wounded 89 more, the World Health Organization reported on Saturday.The UN’s humanitarian office in Sudan had earlier said it was “appalled by the attack on a hospital in East Darfur yesterday, reportedly killing dozens, including children, and injuring more”. Continue reading...
IAEA chief calls for ‘restraint’ after reported strike on Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility
The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog issued a fresh demand for restraint on Saturday after the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran announced that the Shahid Ahmadi-Roshan uranium enrichment complex in Natanz “was subjected to a renewed attack” as the United States and Israel continue to bomb the Middle Eastern country.The Iranian agency said that “technical assessments indicate that no radioactive material leakage has occurred and there is no danger to residents of the surrounding areas,” but the attack was a “violation of international laws and commitments,” including the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.The International Atomic Energy Agency “has been informed by Iran that the Natanz nuclear site was attacked today,” the UN watchdog confirmed on social media. “No increase in off-site radiation levels reported. IAEA is looking into the report.”“IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi reiterates call for military restraint to avoid any risk of a nuclear accident,” the agency added.The Times of Israel reported that “in response to a query... the Israel Defense Forces said that it did not conduct any strikes in the area and that it could not comment on American activities.”The Israeli newspaper also noted that “Israel’s Kan news reported that the US had indeed struck the facility, using ‘bunker buster’ bombs to target the site. It cited unspecified sources.”Later Saturday, The Times of Israel reported that at least 20 people were wounded in an Iranian ballistic missile attack on the Israeli city of Dimona, home to Shimon Peres Negev Nuclear Research Center.The United States previously bombed Iran’s Natanz facility last June. The Associated Press highlighted Saturday that satellite images also suggest the site was damaged during the first week of the current war, which President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched on February 28.Condemning the Saturday strike on Iran’s complex, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said that “this is a brazen violation of international law, the charters of the UN and the International Atomic Energy Agency, as well as relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council and the agency’s General Conference.”Russia has notably also generated fears of a nuclear accident with its ongoing invasion of Ukraine, launched in February 2022.Trump has sent mixed messages about the US-Israeli war on Iran, both sending thousands more troops to the region this week while also saying on his Truth Social platform Friday that “we are getting very close to meeting our objectives as we consider winding down our great Military efforts in the Middle East with respect to the Terrorist Regime of Iran.”According to the AP: “Iran’s capital saw heavy airstrikes overnight and into the morning, residents said, as thousands of worshippers converged on Tehran’s grand mosque for prayers marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said attacks would ‘increase significantly’ next week.”
Trump's 'massive political weakness' has him trapped with no way out: analyst
Over the past week, Donald Trump has cycled through claiming the United States needs no assistance from allies in its Iran conflict, then requesting their support, and finally expressing rage at their refusal—a pattern that reflects an escalating personal crisis as the war continues and public approval declines.Greg Sargent of The New Republic identifies this behavior as evidence of Trump's central "political weakness": his inability to control himself, which has trapped him in a corner regarding Iran with no path forward that serves his political interests.The Strait of Hormuz closure sits at the core of Trump's predicament, providing Iran with significant strategic advantage.The underlying dynamic reveals Trump's calculation: he recognizes that reopening the strait presents serious challenges and that escalating military action carries substantial political risks for both him and the GOP heading into midterms. His strategy involves enlisting allies to share both the political burden and potential blame for either failure to reopen the strait or any military setbacks.This approach lacks merit. Reopening the strait is genuinely difficult. The geographic reality presents a legitimate obstacle because its geography privileges Iran by enabling small vessels to inflict disproportionate damage and casualties. According to Tom Nichols, advisers informed Trump of all this in advance, but he assumed our strength would overwhelm such boring complexities, and he never developed a plan B.Trump's antagonism toward allies compounds the problem. He has spent the past year weakening alliances across the board, issuing repeated threats to invade territories like Greenland and imposing tariffs on allied nations seemingly motivated primarily by nationalist aggression.Trump faces a difficult position. He will bear responsibility for the global consequences of the strait closure—including rising prices on gas and other products affecting American consumers. However, military action to reopen it could generate its own political costs. This dilemma stems from geographic realities that strengthen Iran's capacity to cause significant damage despite its diminished military capabilities. Yet as Bill Kristol details, no one around Trump appears able to coax him to reason through these fundamentals.Voters are unlikely to hold NATO allies responsible for America's weakening commitment to the alliance or for declining to rescue the nation from a crisis of Trump's making. Instead, public blame will rest with Trump. This reality explains his intense frustration—he understands he will be held accountable for this failure, and he recognizes no clear path to resolution.
