WORLD NEWS
Trump unveils $12bn farm aid package amid global trade disputes
US President Donald Trump has unveiled a $12bn (£9bn) farm aid package aimed at helping farmers impacted by low crop prices and the administration’s ongoing trade wars.
Most of the money – $11bn – is earmarked for one-time payments to farmers for row crops as part of the agriculture department’s Farmer Bridge Assistance programme, with another billion reserved for crops not covered by the programme.
While farmers have broadly supported Trump, the agriculture sector has been disrupted by trade disputes during his second term, particularly with China.
Also on Monday, Trump threatened to hit Mexico with an additional 5% tariff in a row over water supplies to US farmers.
The White House says the aid package will help farmers suffering from “years of unjustified trade actions” and accumulated inflation.
Trump made the announcement during an event at the White House, alongside Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins.
Members of Congress and corn, cotton, sorghum, soybean, rice, cattle, wheat and potato farmers were also in attendance.
“Maximising domestic farm production is a big part of how we will make America affordable again and bring down grocery prices,” Trump said.
Sorghum and soybean farmers have been hit hard by the Trump administration’s trade dispute with China, the greatest importer of their crops.
According to a White House official, the payments are intended to help farmers market this year’s harvest and plan for next year’s crops, as well as act as a bridge until the administration’s policies “deliver a better market environment”.
Rollins said the last $1bn would be held back to help officials understand the state of “specialty crops” and ensure that the government is “making every forward moving position that we need to”.
When asked if further farm aid packages were planned, Trump said “it depends” on how the market develops.
“The farmers don’t want aid,” he said. “They want to have a level playing field.”
The announcement comes as polls suggest Americans are increasingly concerned about rising costs – an issue which Trump has at times characterised as a “hoax” and a “con job” perpetrated by Democrats.
It also followed complaints from US farmers after they lost access to customers in China as a result of Trump’s trade policies.
For example, China is the world’s biggest market for soybeans and has in recent decades been a major buyer from the US.
But Beijing effectively shut the door on American soybean imports for months after Trump hit Chinese goods with new levies earlier this year.
Later on Monday, Trump threatened to impose a new 5% tariff on Mexico, accusing it of violating an agreement that gives American farmers access to water.
“It is very unfair to our US Farmers who deserve this much needed water,” he posted on social media.
Trump was referring to a more than 80-year-old treaty that grants the US water from Rio Grande tributaries.
For decades the US has accused Mexico of not meeting the terms of the agreement.
Mark Legan, a livestock, corn and soybean farmer in Putnam County, Indiana, told the BBC that the government aid would “help our bottom line”
As crop prices have fallen and profitability has plummeted, he could use the funds to help replace tractors and other machinery – investments he has put on hold.
During his first administration, Trump also provided aid packages to farmers, including $22bn in 2019 and another $46bn in a 2020 package that also included relief from the Covid pandemic.
Mr Legan said he believed the new package would be similar to what he received during the first Trump term, in that it would not resolve persistent cost pressures and shrinking export markets, he said.
“The problem is still that we have high costs of production,” Mr Legan said, pointing to record high prices for crop protection chemicals and seeds.
“While some markets have opened up, we’re still not back to exporting as much ag products as we have in the past,” he added.
Another Illinois farmer, Brad Smith, heard news of the $12bn package while at the Illinois Farm Bureau State Convention in Chicago.
“None of us really love it, but we’re not in a position where we can be turning it down,” he said. “We hope we can reduce the need for anything like this going forward.”
If he does receive funds from the government, the money will likely be in his hands for three days, he said, before spending it to clear outstanding bills and hopefully buy seeds, chemicals and fertilisers for next year’s crop.
Mr Smith said that distributing government aid to farmers who need it the most, rather than to larger farms, has been a challenge in the past.
Following an October meeting between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea, the White House said China had committed to buying at least 12 million metric tonnes of US soybeans by the end of 2025, followed by 25 million metric tonnes annually for the next three years.
So far, China has only purchased approximately one-quarter of that amount.
Those purchases, however, have accelerated, and Bessent told CBS, the BBC’s US partner, that China is likely to meet the goal by the end of February.
Asked why a farm aid package was necessary, Bessent said “the Chinese actually used our soybean farmers as pawns in the trade negotiations”.
“We are going to create this bridge because… agriculture is all about the future,” he said. “You’ve got to start financing for planning next year when things will be very good.”
On Saturday, he signed an executive order creating food supply chain security “task forces” and assessing “anti-competitive behaviour” in the agricultural sector.
WORLD NEWS
Ukraine-Russia war live: Zelensky says he has no right to give up land after European allies pledge support
Zelensky leaves Downing Street after meeting Starmer and European leaders for Ukraine defence talks
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Volodymyr Zelensky says he has no right to give up Ukrainian land to Russia as part of any peace plan proposed by Donald Trump.
Zelensky was speaking after a meeting in London with Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz, where Kyiv’s European allies pledged their renewed support.
Talks between the US and Ukrainian officials ended at the weekend with a 20-point proposal to end Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, but the question of what to do with occupied territories in the eastern Donbas remains a sticking point.
“Do we envision ceding territories?” Zelensky asked late on Monday.
“We have no legal right to do so, under Ukrainian law, our constitution and international law. And we don’t have any moral right either.”
Trump accused Zelensky of having failed to read the latest version of the US-proposed plan, while insisting Putin was “fine with it”.
At the talks in No 10, the leaders discussed “positive progress” towards using frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine, Downing Street said.
No 10 said the leaders agreed that Europe must stand with Ukraine, strengthening its ability to defend against “relentless attacks that have left thousands without heat or light”.
Kremlin welcomes new US security strategy
The talks in London yesterday followed the publication of a new US national security strategy that alarmed European leaders and was welcomed by Russia.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the document, which spells out the Trump administration’s core foreign policy interests, was largely in line with Moscow’s vision.
“The nuances that we see in the new concept certainly look appealing to us,” Peskov said yesterday.
“It mentions the need for dialogue and building constructive, friendly relations. This cannot but appeal to us, and it absolutely corresponds to our vision. We understand that by eliminating the irritants that currently exist in bilateral relations, a prospect may open for us to truly restore our relations and bring them out of the rather deep crisis.”
The document released on Friday by the White House said the US wants to improve its relationship with Russia after years of Moscow being treated as a global pariah and that ending the war is a core US interest to “reestablish strategic stability with Russia”.
The document also says Nato must not be “a perpetually expanding alliance,” echoing another complaint by Russia.
It was scathing about the migration and free speech policies of longstanding US allies in Europe, suggesting they face the “prospect of civilisational erasure” due to migration.
Sir Keir Starmer’s government declined to comment on the document, calling it a matter for the US government.
Namita Singh9 December 2025 05:06
Obstacles remain after US-Ukrainian peace talks
The US and Ukrainian negotiators completed three days of talks on Saturday aimed at trying to narrow differences on the US administration’s peace proposal.
Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram that talks had been “substantive” and that National Security and Defence Council secretary Rustem Umerov and Chief of the General Staff Andrii Hnatov were travelling back to Europe to brief him.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and prime minister sir Keir Starmer outside Number 10 Downing Street, London (Jonathan Brady/PA Wire)
A major sticking point in the plan is the suggestion that Kyiv must cede control of the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine to Russia, which illegally occupies most but not all of the territory. Ukraine and its European allies have balked at the idea of handing over land.
UK prime minister Keir Starmer said he “won’t be putting pressure” on Zelensky to accept a peace settlement.
Donald Trump has had a hot-and-cold relationship with Zelensky since winning a second term, insisting the war was a waste of US taxpayers’ money. Trump has also repeatedly urged the Ukrainians to cede land to Russia to end the nearly four-year conflict.
Namita Singh9 December 2025 04:38
European leaders back Kyiv amid Trump’s frustration
Sir Keir Starmer, French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Friedrich Merz vowed to support Kyiv in their comments before Monday’s meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky, which lasted about two hours.
They met shortly after US president Donald Trump appeared to vent his frustration with Zelensky, claiming the Ukrainian leader “hasn’t yet read the [latest] proposal” for an end to Russia’s war.
Zelensky said on Monday that Trump “certainly wants to end the war. … Surely, he has his own vision. We live here, from within we see details and nuances, we perceive everything much deeper, because this is our motherland”.
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky, Britain’s prime minister Keir Starmer, France’s president Emmanuel Macron and Germany’s chancellor Friedrich Merz chat on the 10 Downing Street doorstep after a meeting in central London (AFP via Getty Images)
Starmer said the push for peace was at a “critical stage,” and stressed the need for “a just and lasting ceasefire”.
Merz, meanwhile, said he was “sceptical” about some details in documents released by the US. “We have to talk about it. That’s why we are here,” he said.
“The coming days – could be a decisive time for all of us.”
European leaders are working to ensure that any ceasefire is backed by solid security guarantees both from Europe and the US to deter Russia from attacking again. Trump has not given explicit guarantees in public.
Namita Singh9 December 2025 04:10
Anti-Ukrainian points removed from peace plan, says Zelensky
Volodymyr Zelensky said the current US peace plan differs from earlier versions in that it now has 20 points, down from 28, after some “obvious anti-Ukrainian points were removed.”
Responding to reporters’ questions on WhatsApp about security guarantees, Zelensky said the main questions to be resolved are: “What if after the end of the war, Russia will start another aggression? What will the partners be ready for? What could Ukraine count on?”
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky and prime minister Sir Keir Starmer outside Number 10 Downing Street, London (PA Wire)
The answers to these questions “must be in the core of the security guarantees for Ukraine,” he said.
Namita Singh9 December 2025 04:00
Video: Zelensky leaves Downing Street after meeting Starmer and European leaders for Ukraine defence talks
Zelensky leaves Downing Street after meeting Starmer and European leaders for Ukraine defence talks
Namita Singh9 December 2025 03:50
Kyiv needs more European cash for US weapons, says Zelensky
Ukraine is short of about $800m (£600m) to buy the US weapons it had planned to purchase this year with help from its European allies, President Volodymyr Zelensky says.
For next year, Ukraine would need about $15bn for the PURL (Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List) programme, which involves purchases of US weapons with European money, he said.
More than two-thirds of member states of Nato have committed to weapons for Ukraine through the scheme.
Jane Dalton9 December 2025 03:40
Zelensky and European leaders vow to keep up pressure on Putin
After the meeting, Keir Starmer, Volodymyr Zelensky and the other leaders called Kyiv’s European allies, urging them to keep up the pressure on Russian president Vladimir Putin.
“The leaders all agreed that now is a critical moment and that we must continue to ramp up support to Ukraine and economic pressure on Putin to bring an end to this barbaric war,” Starmer’s office said in a statement.
“This is the furthest we’ve got in four years, and we welcome the fact that these talks are continuing at every level,” said Starmer’s spokesman, Tom Wells.
He added that “intensive work” will continue in the days ahead, although “there are still outstanding issues”.
Macron’s office said the session allowed the leaders “to continue joint work on the US plan in order to complement it with European contributions, in close coordination with Ukraine”.
Namita Singh9 December 2025 03:24
The Independent View | There is still a way European leaders can help achieve a positive outcome for Ukraine
Still, no doubt, bathed in the warm, if also absurd, glow of being the first ever recipient of the Fifa Peace Prize, Donald Trump might be in the mood to promote a just and lasting peace in Ukraine, it would be nice to think. This would, aside from anything else, strengthen President Trump’s insistent claim on the Nobel Peace Prize, which has not quite been superseded in prestige by the cynical golden trophy that the president of Fifa, Gianni Infantino, presented to him.
Read The Independent’s view:
Alex Croft9 December 2025 03:00
Recap: Zelensky meets European allies in London
President Volodymyr Zelensky met with the leaders of Britain, France and Germany in London on Monday in a show of European support for Ukraine at what they jointly called a “critical moment” in talks to end the Ukraine war.
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer held talks with Zelensky, French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Friedrich Merz at No 10, with discussions focussed on ways to strengthen Ukraine’s hand amid mounting impatience from US president Donald Trump.
After the meeting, Starmer, Zelensky and the other leaders called Kyiv’s other European allies, urging them to keep up the pressure on Russian president Vladimir Putin.
Sir Keir Starmer (left) and Volodymyr Zelensky in Downing Street (Toby Melville/PA) (PA Wire)
“The leaders all agreed that now is a critical moment and that we must continue to ramp up support to Ukraine and economic pressure on Putin to bring an end to this barbaric war,” Starmer’s office said in a statement.
Namita Singh9 December 2025 03:00
Mystery drones near Zelensky’s plane to be investigated
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has confirmed that unidentified drones were spotted near his plane to Ireland last week.
“There will be an investigation… There were drones indeed,” he told reporters.
Irish local media reported on Thursday that a naval ship had spotted up to five drones operating near the flight path of the presidential plane.
Jane Dalton9 December 2025 01:30
WORLD NEWS
Kylie Jenner Twins with Timothée Chalamet in Matching Outfits at ‘Marty Supreme’ Premiere
NEED TO KNOW
- Kylie Jenner joined Timothée Chalamet for their second red carpet appearance at the Los Angeles premiere of his latest film, Marty Supreme
- At the Monday, Dec. 8 event, they arrived in matching custom Chrome Hearts bright orange ensembles
- The couple first made their red carpet debut at the 70th David Di Donatello Awards in May
Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner coordinated in custom Chrome Hearts for their second red carpet appearance.
On Monday, Dec. 8, the couple made a rare red carpet appearance together in style. Chalamet, 29, attended the Los Angeles premiere of his latest film, Marty Supreme, with Jenner by his side.
They arrived in matching custom Chrome Hearts ensembles. Chalamet wore a bright orange leather suit, with an orange silk shirt and orange boots. He also carried a Chrome Hearts black leather ping-pong paddle case draped over his shoulder.
The Kylie Cosmetics founder, 28, wore a floor-length orange gown with triangular cutouts below her bust and across her waist. The base of her deep V-neckline was cinched with a cross embellishment, which was then replicated on her necklace with several more crosses varying in size. She paired the look with orange pointed-toe pumps.
Jenner’s dedication to orange didn’t stop there. Her nails were painted a bright orange, while her blush had hints of orange hues. For her glam, her eyeshadow and blush blended with vibrant pops of pink and orange, while she wore a matte nude lipstick. Her hair was styled in a simple straight blowout.
Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner in Los Angeles, California, on December 8, 2025.
Frederic J. Brown / AFP via Getty
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Although the couple have been dating since the spring of 2023, this is only Jenner’s second time accompanying the actor on the red carpet. In May, they made their red carpet debut in Rome at the 70th David Di Donatello Awards, where the A Complete Unknown actor received the David for Cinematic Excellence honor.
Just as they did on Monday, the couple wore color-coordinated looks. Chalamet opted for a sleek velvet suit decorated with a boutonniere, while Jenner wore a curve-hugging dress with a plunging neckline, a design from the Schiaparelli Fall/Winter 2025 collection.
Jenner accessorized with a velvet clutch with gold embroidery and statement Schiaparelli earrings, one of which featured a gold brass finger topped with a pearl and rhinestone and the other a sculpted hand with a crystal-set nail and pearl pendant. Her hair was styled up in a slicked-back bun to show off her bling.
Kylie Jenner and Timothée Chalamet on May 7, 2025 in Rome.
Daniele Venturelli/WireImage
Long before their red carpet debut, Jenner accompanied the actor to the Golden Globes, the BAFTAs and the Oscars — each of which Chalamet was nominated for his role as Bob Dylan in the biopic A Complete Unknown.
At the 2025 Golden Globes in January, Jenner stunned in a silver chainmail dress that included a backless silhouette. She wore her black hair in loose curls around her shoulders and accessorized with Lorraine Schwartz jewels. Meanwhile, he rocked a black suit and a gray shirt underneath with a blue scarf.
The next month at the BAFTAs, she donned a slinky black gown with some sparkle. Chalamet wore a classic black Bottega Veneta suit with a black T-shirt underneath and black dress shoes. He accessorized with Cartier jewelry.
At the Oscars, Chalamet wore a custom Givenchy butter yellow suit. The model wore a skin-baring Miu Miu gown, which was decked out in beaded details that complemented her dazzling Lorraine Schwartz jewelry.
Marty Supreme hits theaters on Dec. 25.
Diana Ashmore often goes to bed at 6pm simply to stay warm
A pensioner claims she’s been left “deflated and depressed” after shelling out £150 weekly on electricity just to keep her modest two-bedroom flat warm during winter. Diana Ashmore, 70, believes a mix of inadequate insulation, costly energy rates and her housing estate’s pricey heating infrastructure is driving her bills through the roof.
Diane, who funnels nearly her entire pension into utility expenses, has been urging authorities to address insulation issues at her Doncaster housing estate. However, she maintains the primary culprit behind her enormous bills is the steep electricity tariff for the building’s district heating network, coupled with the two-bedroom flat’s single-brick construction and draughty windows.
Ms Ashmore revealed she allocates virtually all of her £460-a-fortnight pension towards heating costs. Between December 1, 2024, and March 1, 2025, she stated she had spent an eye-watering £3,500 maintaining warmth in the flat.
She said: “When I get up in the morning, my clothes feel damp because they’re that cold. It’s terrible and shocking that you should have to live life like this in the 21st century.”
Diane says she has been left “deflated and depressed” by eye-watering heating bills
Ms Ashmore explained that whilst the estate features a gas-fired boiler house situated across the road, the warmth arrives at her flat via electric pumps and prepayment meters, which means she iss charged for electricity to pump the hot water around. She explained the tariff stands at 28.9p per kWh, above the UK average of 26p for electricity.
Her housing block, Chevet House, is managed by St Leger Homes of Doncaster (SLHD), which she claims has ignored repeated requests for insulation upgrades.
Ms Ashmore said: “We’ve got single brick with no insulation, and we’re all getting drafts through our windows because they’re old. I’ve been fighting to get it fixed, but it’s like pulling teeth.
“They can’t give you an answer, it’s always they have to ‘write a report’ and then send it to this department or that department. I said to them last year that we need to get this sorted before next winter. But here we are again.”
READ MORE: Hotel hack saved me more than £6K in just one year at university’READ MORE: ‘World’ top doctors’ explain how they avoid getting sick
Ms Ashmore explained that Chevet House contains seven flats across three storeys, all facing identical problems. She added: “Some won’t put the heating on because it’s too expensive to run.
“Because of the draft coming through, I have to sit with a cover around my ankles when I’m watching TV. I take myself to bed at 6pm to keep warm. I’m putting all my money on the heating, so I’ve got no social life anymore.”
Diane also says she can’t get the winter fuel allowance. She says she has worked throughout her life, always paid full rent, and now battles to afford food, electricity, water, and rent from her modest pension.
Ms Ashmore said: “I can’t remember when I last bought myself some new clothes.”
Chevet House
Despite the situation, she has no desire to leave her flat where she has resided for 14 years, especially given its convenient location and her pending back operation. However, the steep charges and inadequate insulation have left Ms Ashmore feeling “deflated and depressed”, she confessed.
She further expressed her frustration, saying: “It has just knocked the stuffing out of me. It shouldn’t have to come to this, but no one is listening to me.”
Diane Ashmore says her flat becomes so cold she is forced to get into bed to simply keep warm
SLHD, in a previous statement, mentioned: “We have recently carried out surveys at Chevet House and we are reviewing the findings to determine what work may be recommended.”
They reaffirmed their commitment to their residents, stating: “We remain committed to supporting our customers and will continue to liaise directly with them and address any concerns.”
The housing provider was contacted for additional comments.
WORLD NEWS
Ukraine war: The signs Putin is expecting more conflict, not less – and the frank conversation Keir Starmer needs to have | World News
With more than a thousand troops being killed or wounded every day, there’s no sign that Donald Trump’s push to end Russia’s war in Ukraine is reducing the battles on the ground.
Quite the opposite.
Ukraine‘s military chief says Vladimir Putin is instead using the US president‘s focus on peace negotiations as “cover” while Russian soldiers attempt to seize more land.
That means much greater pressure on the Ukrainian frontline, even as Russian and American, or American and Ukrainian, or Ukrainian and European, leaders shake hands and smile for cameras before retreating behind closed doors in Moscow, Alaska, and London.
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This was not an upbeat meeting of Ukraine and its allies
Putin’s not counting on peace
The lack of any indicators that the Kremlin is looking to slow its military machine down also makes the risk of war spreading beyond Ukraine’s borders increasingly likely.
It takes a huge amount of effort, time, and money to put a country on a war footing as Putin has done, partially mobilising his population, allocating huge portions of government spending to the military and realigning Russia’s vast industrial base to produce weapons and ammunition.
Putin has been in India to shore up support from Narendra Modi. Pic: Reuters
But when the fighting stops, it requires almost as much focus and energy to switch a society back to a peace time rhythm.
Deliberately choosing not to dial defence down once the battles cease means a nation will continue to grow its armed forces and weapons stockpiles – a sure sign that it has no intention of being peaceful and is merely having a pause before going on the attack again.
The absence of any preparations by Moscow to slow the tempo of its military operations in Ukraine – where it has more than 710,000 troops deployed along a 780-mile frontline – is perhaps an indicator that Putin is anticipating more not less war.
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What is Putin trying to achieve in India?
How could the war end?
What happens next in Europe will depend on the content of any peace deal on Ukraine.
An all-out Russian defeat is all but impossible to conceive without a significant change of heart by the Trump White House and a massive increase in weapons and support.
The next best result for Ukraine would be a settlement that seeks to strike a fair balance between the warring sides and their conflicting objectives.
This could be done by pausing the fighting along the current line of contact before substantive peace talks then take place, with Ukraine’s sovereignty supported by solid security guarantees from Europe and the US.
But such a move would require Europe’s NATO allies, led by the UK, France and Germany, genuinely to switch their respective militaries and populations back to a wartime footing, with a credible readiness to go to war should Moscow attempt to test their support of Ukraine.
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Why Ukraine’s allies may welcome Trump walking away
Will Starmer level with the public?
That does not just mean increased spending on defence at a much faster rate – in the UK at least – than is currently planned. It is also about the mindset of a country and its willingness to take some pain.
France is already openly saying that parents may have to lose their children in a war with Russia, while Germany is requiring all 18-year-old men to undergo medical checks for possible national service.
No such tough but frank conversation is being attempted by Sir Keir Starmer with the British public.
The furthest his military chief has gone is to say “warfighting readiness” is his top priority.
But that is meaningless jargon for most of the public. Being ready for war is about so much more than what the professional armed forces can do.
Armies fight battles. Countries fight wars.
Read more:
UK unveils undersea tech
Navy chief offers chilling warning
Does Britain’s threat to Russia ring hollow?
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New UK military technology unveiled
Worst case scenario?
The other alternative when it comes to Ukraine is a scenario that sees a sidelined Europe unable to influence the outcome of the negotiations and Kyiv forced to agree to terms that favour Moscow.
This would include the surrender of land in the Donbas that is still under Ukrainian control.
Such a deal – even if tolerated by Ukraine, which is unimaginable without serious unrest – would likely only mean a temporary halt in hostilities until Putin or whoever succeeds him decides to try again to take the rest of Ukraine, or maybe even test NATO’s borders by moving against the Baltic States.
With Trump’s new national security strategy making clear the US would only intervene to defend Europe if such a move is in America’s interests, it is no longer certain that the guarantees contained in NATO’s founding Article 5 principle – that an attack on one member state is an attack on all – can be relied upon.
To have a sense of how a war with Russia might play out without the US on NATO’s side, Sky News and Tortoise ran a wargame that simulates a Russian attack on the UK.
In the scenario, Washington does not come to Britain’s defences, which leaves the British side with very few options to respond short of a nuclear strike.
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WORLD NEWS
Agent-tracking app ICEBlock sues Trump administration in free speech fight | Donald Trump News
The Trump administration has accused ICEBlock of making federal agents vulnerable to attack and called for its removal.
Published On 9 Dec 2025
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The developer of a popular app used to monitor and share alerts about immigration enforcement activities has sued the administration of United States President Donald Trump for pressuring Apple to remove it.
ICEBlock, whose name refers to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), had one million users before it was dropped from Apple’s app store, according to a lawsuit filed on Monday.
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Developer Joshua Aaron alleged in the complaint that the Trump administration’s campaign against the tracking app amounted to a violation of free speech.
“When we see our government doing something wrong, it’s our duty as citizens of this nation to hold them accountable, and that is exactly what we’re doing with this lawsuit,” Aaron said in the lawsuit.
The suit calls on the district court system to protect the Texas-based software company from “unlawful threats” under the Trump administration.
It also names as defendants some of Trump’s highest-level officials, including Attorney General Pam Bondi, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and ICE’s acting director, Todd Lyons.
First released in April, ICEBlock quickly became a widely used tool across the US as communities sought ways to share information about immigration raids.
Since returning to office for a second term, Trump has pushed a campaign of mass deportation, targeting a wide range of immigrants, many of whom are in the country legally.
Those raids, many carried out by heavily armed immigration agents in military-style attire, have also faced repeated accusations of human rights abuses.
Critics have questioned the violence used in some arrests, as well as the ICE officers’ use of face masks and plainclothes to conceal their identities.
There have also been reports of inhumane conditions once immigrants are in custody, including overcrowding, a lack of sanitation and faeces-smeared walls.
Human rights advocates have also questioned the speed with which deportations are being carried out, claiming the immigrants arrested have no opportunity to exercise their due process rights and are often prevented from contacting lawyers.
Even US citizens have been accidentally detained in the immigration sweeps. Some immigrants have been deported despite court orders mandating that they remain in the US.
The Trump administration has faced fierce criticism and judicial rebukes for its tactics.
But it maintains that software like ICEBlock puts federal immigration agents in danger of retaliation.
“ICEBlock is designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs, and violence against law enforcement is an intolerable red line,” Attorney General Bondi has said.
In October, ICEBlock was pulled from Apple’s app store, a popular platform for downloading mobile software. The Justice Department confirmed that it had contacted Apple to push for the removal.
The lawsuit states that the tech company told Aaron the app had been removed following “information provided to Apple by law enforcement”.
Aaron has countered that the app is an exercise of essential free speech rights and is meant to help protect people from overbearing government activity.
“We’re basically asking the court to set a precedent and affirm that ICEBlock is, in fact, First Amendment-protected speech and that I did nothing wrong by creating it,” Aaron told The Associated Press news agency in an interview.
“I mean, these are people that are wearing masks — which is the antithesis of everything about this country — and they are not identifying themselves, and they’re zip-tying children, and they’re throwing women into vans.”
The United States will allow chip giant Nvidia to export its advanced artificial intellegence chips to China, US President Donald Trump said on Monday, after he reached an agreement with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Nvidia is currently the largest US company by market value, having quickly risen with the AI wave.
The announcement marks a notable shift in US’ tech export policy, especially for advanced AI chips. Former US President Joe Biden’s government had heavily restricted the sale of advanced chips to China over concerns of its applications in the Chinese military.
Trump made the announcement in a post on Truth Social, saying he had informed Xi that Washington would permit Nvidia to export its H200 products to “approved customers” in China and other countries, “under conditions that allow of continued strong National Security.”
“President Xi responded positively! 25% will be paid to the United States of America,” he wrote, adding that the move would benefit US taxpayers, increase jobs and strengthen US manufacturing.
A White House spokesperson clarified that the 25% fee would be an import tax from Taiwan where the chips are made. They will be imported to the US for a security review before being exported to China.
Chipmaker NVIDIA profits up, despite trade war challenges
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Most advanced chips not part of the deal
The US president assured that the nation would maintain its lead in AI as US customers were already moving to the highly advanced Blackwell chips, followed by the next generation Rubin chips, “neither of which are part of this deal.”
“Offering H200 to approved customers, vetted by the Department of Commerce, strikes a thoughtful balance that is great for America,” Nvidia said in a statement. Its Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang has long lobbied the White House to reverse the Biden-era policy of restricting China’s access to powerful chips.
Jensen Huang’s Nvidia is currently the largest US company by market value [FILE: October 2025]Image: Jung Yeon-je/AFP
Trump said the Department of Commerce was finalizing the details but the “same approach will apply to AMD, Intel, and other GREAT American Companies.”
Democrats sound alarm bells
Several Democrats in the US Senate reacted to the deal by issuing a statement, “calling it a colossal economic and national security failure.”
“Access to these chips would give China’s military transformational technology to make its weapons more lethal, carry out more effective cyberattacks against American businesses and critical infrastructure and strengthen their economic and manufacturing sector,” the lawmakers said.
The senators cited a recent statement by Chinese AI company DeepSeek, which said the lack of access to advanced US-designed chips was their biggest challenge in competing withe American AI companies like OpenAI, Google, Microsoft and Perplexity.
Meanwhile, Washington-based Institute for Progress’ Alex Stapp, called the policy a “massive own goal,” in a football reference. He said the H200 was “6x more powerful than the H20, which was previously the most powerful chip approved for export.”
The deal’s announcement comes days after Massacheusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat, alluded to a backroom arrangement between Trump and Huang which involved a donation to build the East Wing Ballroom at the White House.
“I’m asking Microsoft, Nvidia, Meta, Apple, Amazon, Union Pacific, and Comcast about their donations to Trump’s ‘Big Gold Ballroom’,” she said in a post on X.
Ball in China’s court
China does not currently allow its companies to use US technologies, making it unclear if Trump’s announcement will prompt a policy change in Beijing.
“Chinese firms want H200s, but the Chinese state is driven by paranoia and pride — paranoia about backdoors and dependence on US chips, and pride in pushing domestic alternatives,” said Craig Singleton, a senior fellow at the Washington think tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
“Washington may approve the chips, but Beijing still has to let them in,” he added.
Edited by: Dmytro Hubenko
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An extensive organ-harvesting ring has been uncovered in Nigeria after weeks of covert surveillance, local officials have said.
In a statement shared on X, the Imo State Police Command said their investigation was launched after reports of a worrying spate of kidnappings near a hotel and mortuary in Ngor Okpala.
According to police, intelligence-led investigations went on to identify a man called High Chief Stanley Oparaugo, also known as “Morocco,” as the suspected leader of the criminal network and who is now on the run and wanted, per reports.
52 CATHOLIC SCHOOL STUDENTS IN NIGERIA KIDNAPPED BY GUNMEN IN LATEST ATTACK: REPORT
A man described as High Chief Stanley Oparaugo from the Jessy Best Hotel is now wanted.
Oparaugo is alleged to own Jessy Best Hotel in Ihitte Okwe and the nearby mortuary known as Ugwudi.
Police said victims were said to have been lured into the hotel before being robbed and abducted, with families also forced to pay ransom.
Authorities said some people who paid never saw their loved ones again.
The Command said abducted victims were then taken from the hotel to the mortuary, where they were allegedly killed and their organs harvested for sale.
GUNMEN ATTACK CHURCH IN NIGERIA, KILLING TWO AND KIDNAPPING OTHERS
Local Nigerian officials said a suspected secret organ-harvesting ring has been uncovered in Nigera following weeks of covert surveillance. (Imo State Command.)
When officers raided the Jessy Best Hotel, it was abandoned, but at the mortuary they found decomposed and mutilated corpses.
Police spokesperson Henry Okoye said more than 100 bodies had been found.
“A hotel and a private mortuary owned by the suspect, allegedly used by kidnappers and violent criminals, were inspected,” he said in a statement.
TRUMP ADMIN TARGETS ANTI-CHRISTIAN VIOLENCE WITH NEW VISA CRACKDOWN POLICY FOLLOWING NIGERIA ATTACKS
Victims were allegedly lured to hotel before being killed at nearby mortuary for organ sales.
“At the mortuary, decomposed and mutilated corpses were discovered in unhygienic conditions, raising suspicions of illegal organ-harvesting activities.”
He added that the suspect’s residence was also searched and “crucial exhibits” were recovered, with forensic teams documenting evidence for the ongoing investigation.
“Maximum security has been deployed along the Owerri–Aba Expressway. The Command assures travelers during the holidays of its commitment to their safety,” he added.
Nigeria has seen a rising amount of crime with kidnappings and abductions.
As reported by Fox News Digital, the government of Nigeria also secured the release of the 100 schoolchildren who were abducted, according to local media.
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Those children were taken from St. Mary’s School in Papiri, Niger state, on Nov. 21.
The news came as Christians face ongoing persecution in Nigeria, leading President Donald Trump to declare the West African nation a “country of particular concern.”
Emma Bussey is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital. Before joining Fox, she worked at The Telegraph with the U.S. overnight team, across desks including foreign, politics, news, sport and culture.
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On Monday, the Archdiocese of New York announced plans to establish a $300 million fund to compensate victims of sexual abuse who have filed lawsuits against the church.
In a statement, Cardinal Timothy Dolan said the fund would be financed through budget cuts and the sale of assets, including the completion of the sale of the archdiocese’s former Manhattan headquarters. The goal, he said, is for the fund to be “set aside to provide compensation to survivors of sexual abuse.”
The archdiocese has also appointed retired Judge Daniel J. Buckley as a mediator to facilitate settlements with victims. Buckley previously played a similar role in negotiations between the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and more than 1,000 claimants there.
A spokesperson for the archdiocese said church officials hope the fund would cover settlements for most, if not all the roughly 1,300 outstanding claims against the archdiocese. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Archive)
A spokesperson for the archdiocese said church officials hope the fund would cover settlements for most, if not all the roughly 1,300 outstanding claims against the archdiocese.
The announcement came as a federal judge on Monday approved a settlement for the New Orleans Archdiocese to pay $230 million to hundreds of victims of clergy sexual abuse. The New Orleans Archdiocese filed for bankruptcy in 2020 to avoid handling each of the abuse claims separately.
NEED TO KNOW
- Kris Jenner gave her seal of approval to Timothée Chalamet and Kylie Jenner’s relationship
- Kris suited up in a Marty Supreme hoodie in a photo posted a photo to her Instagram Stories on Monday, Dec. 8
- The actor stars in the upcoming film, in theaters on Christmas Day
Kris Jenner knows the power of a good outfit.
On Monday, Dec. 8, the 70-year-old mom of Kylie Jenner, 28, gave her seal of approval to her daughter’s relationship with Timothée Chalamet by wearing merch for his upcoming film, Marty Supreme, in theaters on Christmas Day.
In a photo posted to her Instagram Stories, the Kardashian-Jenner family matriarch could be seen standing in front of a Christmas tree, extending her arms, while wearing a blue Marty Supreme bomber jacket over a red dress.
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Kris Jenner.
Kris Jenner/Instagram
“MARTY SUPREME Christmas Day!!!!!!” she wrote over the photo.
The Josh Safdie-directed film follows Chalamet, 29, as “Marty Mauser, a young man with a dream no one respects, goes to hell and back in pursuit of greatness,” per an A24 synopsis.
The statement piece matches one in her 28-year-old daughter’s closet, as Kylie wore it while attending the Yankees-Jays game with her beau on Wednesday, Oct. 8.
Timothee Chalamet and Kylie Jenner during game four of the ALDS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs between the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium.
Brad Penner-Imagn Images
The Kylie Cosmetics founder opted for a more casual look, styling the jacket over a coordinating hoodie.
Chalamet wore the same jacket during a promotional video for the film that he shared on Instagram on Tuesday, Oct. 7.
The jacket was also seen on Tom Brady in an Instagram post shared by the actor on Wednesday, Nov. 19. Earlier in December, Chalamet revealed in a hilarious Instagram post that his mom even wanted her own Marty Supreme jacket.
Timothee Chalamet in Marty Supreme.
A24
He and Kylie have been dating since spring 2023, and made their red carpet debut in May at the 70th David Di Donatello Awards in Rome.
In early November, multiple sources addressed breakup rumors and confirmed to PEOPLE that they are not only together but are doing “great.”
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“Timothée talked about Kylie all the time while filming Marty Supreme,” one insider told PEOPLE exclusively, adding that “she even flew out to visit him on set in N.Y.C. They also met up in London while he was shooting Dune. They’re really in love.”
Train services between Surrey and London were disrupted by an emergency incident and all power to the track needed to be switched off in the affected area, causing major delays.
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