A cold snap gripping Europe continued to take a toll into the weekend, with three more deaths reported in Poland. The number of weather-related deaths in the country has risen to 18 since Monday, Anna Adamkiewicz of the Government Center for Security said Saturday. Authorities in Mantua, Italy, said Saturday that a homeless person, described as a foreign citizen, 52, was found dead the previous evening. Six people have also died in Spain, the Spanish Interior Ministry said Friday. The frigid temperatures of the past few days are starting to ease in parts of the continent, however. Warnings for wintry conditions remain in countries such as Ireland, Germany, Italy and Norway, according to Meteoalarm. But warnings for extreme low temperatures or snow and ice have been lifted in Hungary and Serbia. With the weather improving, some airports reopened Saturday after treacherous conditions had halted services the previous two days. These include Dublin and Cork airports in Ireland as well as Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands and Switzerland’s Geneva Airport. Passengers were warned their flights could be affected by the earlier disruption and cancellations. In the United Kingdom – where freezing winds from Siberia, dubbed the “Beast from the East,” combined Friday with Storm Emma to bring additional snow and ice – temperatures started to rise gradually Saturday. For many of us it will gradually turn less #cold over the coming days, but only a little pic.twitter.com/xm8gTetaG4 The UK Met Office forecast more rain, sleet and snow but said conditions would ease in southern England. Warnings are still in place in parts of northern England, Wales and Northern Ireland for ice and in Scotland for snow. London’s Heathrow Airport said it is working to “deliver a near full schedule” Saturday, while London’s Gatwick Airport said it is operating “a largely normal service with a small number of delays and cancellations.” Cardiff Airport in Wales and Edinburgh Airport in Scotland were also operating Saturday with some flight delays. Many road and rail passengers continued to suffer disruption across the United Kingdom on Saturday. Much of Europe has been blanketed in snow this week, with rare falls of the icy stuff in the south of France, Spain and Italy. Related video Snowball fights break out in Rome The current cold snap was triggered by a disruption to the stratospheric polar vortex – a doughnut of air 6,000 kilometers (3,800 miles) across that forms high up in the atmosphere above the Arctic Circle every winter, according to Simon Clark, a researcher of stratosphere-troposphere interactions in Bristol, England. Now and again – perhaps six times every decade – the vortex gets split in two, a phenomenon known as sudden stratospheric warming. The disruption allows icy Arctic air to spread farther south, often lowering temperatures across much of the Northern Hemisphere. “That big mass of Arctic air – which is normally trapped over the poles, so it’s really freezing cold – is then able to spill further south,” Clark told CNN. CNN’s James Masters and Judith Vonberg contributed to this report.


The US Navy is ramping up its presence in the Black Sea as part of a bid to counter Russia’s increased presence there, a US military official tells CNN. It’s a region that has become increasingly fraught with tensions as Russia has reinforced its military forces in the area following its seizure of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, a move rejected by the vast majority of the international community. On Saturday the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Carney joined the USS Ross in the Black Sea to “conduct maritime security operations,” according to a statement from the US Navy’s 6th Fleet, which oversees US naval operations in the region. It’s the first time two US Navy warships have been in the Black Sea since July 2017. “Our decision to have two ships simultaneously operate in the Black Sea is proactive, not reactive,” US Navy Vice Adm. Christopher Grady, the commander of 6th Fleet, said in a release announcing the Carney’s arrival. “We operate at the tempo and timing of our choosing in this strategically important region,” Grady said, adding that “the continued presence of the U.S. Navy in the Black Sea demonstrates our enduring commitment to regional stability, maritime security of our Black Sea partners, and the collective defense of our NATO allies” On Sunday Russia announced its own naval deployments to the area, with the Russian Ministry of Defense issuing a statement saying that a Russian frigate, the Admiral Essen, and two patrol ships had entered the Black Sea for a series of exercises. #USSCarney🇺🇸 transited #Bosphorus🇹🇷 to join #USSRoss for routine maritime security operations IAW int'l law. C6F Commander VADM Grady assured: "Decision to have 2 ships in #BlackSea is proactive not reactive & demonstrates our commitment to regional stability" #SteadyPresence pic.twitter.com/f1q1KfObk0 A US military official told CNN that the decision to deploy both the Carney and the Ross to the Black Sea was part of an effort to “desensitize Russia” to the presence of US military forces in the Black Sea, which sits between Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Western Asia. Two US defense officials based in Europe told CNN that Russia is particularly sensitive to US military operations in the Black Sea given recent Russian moves to militarize Crimea. US and NATO officials have accused Moscow of deploying large numbers of troops and military hardware to Crimea in recent years. Related article Kremlin dismisses Mueller's indictment of 13 Russians A NATO official told CNN that Russia had deployed submarines to Crimea, saying that while the Western alliance was not looking for a tit-for-tat deployment of military assets to the region, NATO was strengthening its position in southeastern Europe. “Basically anything new that they have they are putting in Crimea,” a US defense official based in Europe said of Russia’s military activity. The official told CNN that Russia was “putting in the full panoply of their weapons systems” in Crimea, saying Moscow had stood up a new Army Corps there and was deploying “a lot of their new anti-access missile systems, coastal defense, air defense” systems, in addition to the ground troops. Given Russia’s increased military presence, US officials say Moscow has become increasingly sensitive to US forces in the region, fearing that US military capabilities could undermine Russia’s advantages. Another US defense official based in Europe told CNN that the Russians “are very sensitive to our precision strike capability” as well as US ballistic missile defense assets such as the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System, which is deployed on both the Ross and Carney. Related article Tillerson works to repair ties with Turkey “You get ships up in the Black Sea, that makes them feel more threatened,” the official added. Officials say that same Russian sensitivity explains why Russian aircraft have appeared to perform more unsafe intercepts of US surveillance aircraft in the area than they do in other areas. US officials say the surveillance flights are necessary to better understand Russian military activity. “Russia is also not particularly transparent in what they do, which obviously requires us to then be able to monitor them by other means, and reconnaissance is one of those means,” one defense official said. An armed Russian Su-27 jet performed an unsafe intercept of a US Navy EP-3 surveillance plane while it was in international airspace over the Black Sea last month, flying within 5 feet of the US military aircraft, according to the US Navy. A similar incident took place in the skies over the Black Sea in November. Related article The oil field carnage that Moscow doesn't want to talk about Following the January incident, the US State Department issued a statement saying that such unsafe actions “increase the risk of miscalculation, danger to aircrew on both sides, and midair collisions.” The Russian Ministry of Defense said the intercept was “in accordance with international rules for the use of airspace” and that the Russian jet had prevented the US plane from entering claimed Russian airspace near Crimea. A Europe-based US defense official criticized Russia’s attitude of ownership over the Black Sea, noting that “NATO nations have more coastline by far on the Black Sea than Russia does, so it’s certainly not a Russian lake.” In addition to Russia, the Black Sea is bordered by NATO members Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania as well as NATO partners Ukraine and Georgia. NATO has boosted its activity in the area as part of its “tailored forward presence,” which is headquartered in Romania, one of only six NATO nations to spend 2 percent of its gross domestic product on defense. Related article Russia sanctions may force US to punish key allies Officials say that given the heightened tensions and increased military activity in the region it is important to increase the frequency of US activity in the area and desensitize Russia to the presence of US military forces there, helping to establish rules for how the two countries should safely operate in proximity to each other, as they did in the Cold War. “In the Cold War we had a dance we did and everybody knew their roles in the dance: You fly your bomber here, I’ll fly my bomber there. You put a ship here, I’ll put a ship there,” another US defense official in Europe told CNN. “I don’t think we’ve got to that level yet, and so we’re still trying to figure out what that dance looks like in the year 2018 versus what it was back in the Cold War, and I think there are some growing pains, obviously,” the official added.


Various defense witnesses have directly contradicted testimony prosecution's witnesses Menendez and his co-defendant deny all charges The defense team said it hopes to finish by Halloween Lawyers are often taught the defense has two options in a criminal trial – poke holes in the prosecution’s case to create reasonable doubt or provide a counter-narrative. A team of defense attorneys trying to keep Sen. Bob Menendez out of prison have opted to do both. Related article Sen. Bob Menendez's trial by the numbers Family members, former congressional staffers and a 40 year veteran of the Commerce Department took the witness stand in the New Jersey Democrat’s defense this week as his lawyers seek to chip away at the Justice Department’s bribery case. “It’s time for us to tell our side of the story, which I believe is the true side, and I have faith in the jury that they’ll hang in there,” Menendez told reporters walking into court Wednesday. Prosecutors accuse Menendez of corruptly using the power of his office to help a wealthy ophthalmologist from Florida – Dr. Salomon Melgen – resolve business disputes in exchange for political donations and a life of luxury the senator couldn’t afford. More specifically, prosecutors say Menendez pressured high-level officials within the Obama administration to change drug reimbursement policies in order to help Melgen resolve a $8.9 million billing dispute with Medicare, encouraged State Department officials to help Melgen settle a contractual dispute with the Dominican Republic government, and contacted an ambassador to secure travel visas for Melgen’s foreign girlfriends. Throughout the trial the men have maintained their innocence, but as the seventh week came to a close Thursday, the contours of the defense team’s three-pronged attack strategy came into sharper focus: show the two men are best friends without any possible corrupt intent; make the jurors believe that Menendez was motivated to act out of broader (and legitimate) policy concerns, not because he was being paid off by his friend; and then undermine the prosecution’s strongest witnesses with directly contradictory testimony. “It was commonly known in the office that Sal Melgen was his closest personal friend,” Jodi Herman, Menendez’s long-time foreign policy adviser, told jurors Thursday, echoing testimony from the senator’s son and Melgen’s wife earlier in the week. Herman deftly executed the defense team’s triple threat strategy, as she also directly contradicted one of the central disputed points prosecutors have hammered: the extent of Menendez’s efforts to push State Department officials to help resolve Melgen’s contractual dispute with the Dominican Republic. Herman said Menendez never threatened to hold a congressional hearing if the issue wasn’t resolved in the doctor’s favor – despite a prosecution witness telling jurors the exact opposite last month – and that the senator had been generally interested in port security issues throughout the Caribbean as a part of his role on the Senate foreign relations committee. Earlier in the week defense lawyers also played a short television commercial from Menendez’s senatorial bid – “Protecting New Jersey’s Ports” – to further illustrate for jurors that port security, not his friend’s contract, had been a priority for Menendez for years. Another defense witness tried to undermine the idea that Menendez’s “tone” had been “aggressive” when it came to lobbying an official from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on drug reimbursement policies in 2009. Witness describes ‘hostile’ conversations with Menendez, Reid, Sebelius “The senator is a strong advocate,” said Karissa Willhite, Menendez’s former deputy chief of staff, “but, it was not angry. There was no yelling. That is just not in his character at all.” Willhite also resisted efforts from the prosecution to paint the senator’s efforts as motivated solely by Melgen’s individual dispute – despite confronting her with multiple email exchanges to make her story implausible – instead emphasizing that Menendez was genuinely concerned about the fairness of the Medicare reimbursement policy, because he was not the only doctor affected. “(W)e did not work on the billing dispute itself,” Willhite told jurors repeatedly. “We worked on questions surrounding the policy that the case brought to our attention.” While the defense team has indicated it hopes to wrap up its case by Halloween, it remains to be seen whether Menendez takes the stand in his own defense. “(T)he wild card is do the defendants choose to testify. And if they do, that will take some time,” defense attorney Kirk Ogrosky told the judge in a sidebar earlier this week. Yet Judge William Walls has appeared frequently exasperated with the defense strategy at times, prompting lawyers to “move on,” and sharply limiting lines questioning, especially when he senses defense attorneys are unduly focused on trying to show Melgen’s billing practices were not actually improper. What the jury isn’t hearing in the Menendez bribery trial “They know what your defense is,” Walls said Tuesday, suggesting to defense lawyers that the jury is “probably is more perceptive of that than you give it credit.” But what remains unclear is whether the jury will, in fact, be able to piece together a coherent narrative in either direction until closing arguments given the sprawling and conflicting testimony from both sides at this point. “In longer trials, closing is even more important because you have to either remind the jury of what was said, or be able to provide them with an explanation,” says Michael Weinstein, a former trial attorney at DOJ and now at Cole Schotz law firm in New Jersey. “Memories fade, jurors are human and they need to be refreshed.” Notwithstanding the length of the trial, testy exchanges among the lawyers, and a cantankerous judge, the jurors seem to have gotten chummy over their many weeks together – often laughing as they shuffle into court from their back room. One was even spotted one chilly fall morning this week with a box of fresh Dunkin’ Donuts in hand to share with his new friends.


President-elect Donald Trump blasted the American intelligence community Sunday, calling its assessment that Russia interfered in the election “ridiculous.” “I think it’s just another excuse. I don’t believe it,” Trump said in an interview on “Fox News Sunday.” Trump’s direct criticisms of the intelligence community are unprecedented for an incoming commander in chief. His comments come as some leading Republicans call for an investigation into the CIA’s assessment that Russia directed the hacking of Democratic operatives and other moves intended to help Trump defeat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential race. Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain, R-Arizona, and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, joined incoming Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York and Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, in issuing a statement warning that “recent reports of Russian interference in our election should alarm every American.” Trump, though, said Democrats were “embarrassed” by the election’s results. He asserted the CIA has no idea who was involved in the hacking, and claimed it could have been other countries or individuals. “Once they hack if you don’t catch them in the act you’re not going to catch them,” Trump said. “They have no idea if it’s Russia or China or somebody. It could be somebody sitting in a bed some place.” He acknowledged that “it could be Russia” that hacked Democrats. “I don’t really think it is, but who knows? I don’t know either. They don’t know and I don’t know,” he said. “I don’t want anyone hacking us, and I’m not only talking about countries,” Trump said. “I’m talking about anyone, period. But if you’re going to do that, I think you should not just say ‘Russia.’ You should say other countries also, and maybe other individuals.” Trump also defended his decision to only occasionally receive the Presidential Daily Briefing – an intelligence assessment offered every morning to the President-elect, matching information delivered to President Barack Obama. Trump said he’s told intelligence officials to tell him when something changes, and that he receives the briefing “when I need it.” That remark drew derision from Rep. Adam Schiff of California, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence committee. “If Trump was as smart as he keeps telling us, he would appreciate all he has to learn. #TakeTheBriefings,” Schiff tweeted.


A week before the formal opening of the US Embassy in Jerusalem, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the decision to move the office as a “huge mistake.” Speaking exclusively to CNN in Ankara on Tuesday, Erdogan said that there was “nothing to gain” by the move and urged the US to reverse the decision while there was still time to do so, repeating his claim that “East Jerusalem is the capital city of Palestine” and will one day be home to an embassy serving Turkey’s interests in a Palestinian state. He also said that the decision had contributed to isolating the US diplomatically. Pointing to the United Nations vote in December, when 128 countries condemned the decision and just nine supported it, Erdogan said: “The United States is losing true friends right now.” During the interview, which took place shortly before Trump announced the US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, Erdogan also leveled strong criticism at the US on its approach to the Iran treaty, on allegations of “hostage diplomacy” and on interventions in Syria. Related article The earthquake unleashed by Trump's departure from Iran nuclear deal Echoing the position of many world leaders outside the Middle East, Erdogan criticized the US for abandoning the Iran deal, insisting that “you should respect an agreement that you have signed,” and said he feared “new crises” would break out as a result. He also said the move would jeopardize the global economy. “The United States might gain some certain positivity out of the withdrawal…or the rising oil prices, but many of the countries in poverty will be hit even harder and deeper.” By reimposing sanctions on Iran, Trump is declaring “an economic war” that the world can ill afford, the Turkish leader said. When asked if he has concerns of a geopolitical war breaking out as a result, he said: “That’s not what we would wish to see, of course … this is not what we’d like to expect. However, in my view, the US would be the ones to lose. Iran will never compromise on this agreement, and will abide by this agreement to the end … that’s what I think. However, the US will lose in the end.” Asked directly what he thinks about the US President, Erdogan said only that “as politicians, we need to abide by the boundaries of mutual respect.” Erdogan’s negative remarks about US policy speak to the growing tensions between the two nations. While they retain an important military alliance, their relations have become increasingly frayed as Erdogan has consolidated political power and aligned himself more closely with US foes such as Russia and Iran. The NATO allies have sparred over a slew of issues in recent years, with added friction coming from the continuing conflict in Syria. In January, Turkey launched an assault on Afrin, a town in northern Syria controlled by a US-allied group of Syrian Kurds called the YPG, which Turkey says is an arm of a designated terrorist organization that threatens Turkish sovereignty. US officials say Turkey’s military offensive there undermines the fight against ISIS. Speaking on Tuesday, Erdogan accused the US of giving weapons “free of charge” to members of the YPG and the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), whom Erdogan described as “terrorists.” He also criticized Trump directly for rejecting Turkey as a “strategic partner” in Syria. “Let’s fight together in Raqqa, was what I said to President Trump personally,” Erdogan said. “And stop supporting PYD and YPG. Don’t walk hand in hand with these terrorists or that’ll be a mistake. But unfortunately, the US preferred moving with them and set aside Turkey.” He also defended a series of trilateral meetings involving Turkey, Russia and Iran on Syria that have been widely criticized and boycotted by a number of Western countries and Syrian groups. “We’re taking strong steps forward,” Erdogan said. The Turkish-US relationship has been further strained by Turkey’s detention of North Carolina pastor Andrew Brunson, who was arrested in 2016. Trump has repeatedly called for the missionary’s release. Erdogan said Brunson is undergoing a fair judicial process in Turkey and “is not a hostage.” He accused the US of politicizing a judicial matter and questioned instead why the US was refusing to extradite Fethullah Gulen, an exiled cleric living in Pennsylvania whom the Turkish government accuses of being behind a failed coup attempt in July 2016. “He’s being harbored there. And he’s not a convict. He’s not even being detained,” Erdogan said of Gulen. “And we demand his extradition, and he’s not being extradited to us. But there is a Pastor Brunson here, who is being currently prosecuted – and he’s allegedly associated with terrorist organizations. And you’re asking for him?” “These two incidents are completely independent from one another,” he said, despite suggesting last year that the two men could be swapped. “This is not a hostage diplomacy … It’s not about that at all.” Becky Anderson reported from Ankara and Judith Vonberg wrote from London. CNN’s Kara Fox, Lindsay Isaac, Alireza Hajihosseini and Mohammed Al-Saiegh also contributed to this report.


Senior officials from the United States and Cuba will resume meetings next week with the goal of finalizing the diplomatic thaw that both sides hope will lead to the re-opening of embassies in each country. The talks, set to take place in Washington, come after President Barack Obama recommended Cuba be removed from the United States’ list of states that sponsor terrorism, a designation that had stalled the formal renewal of diplomatic ties that began late last year. Related video Raul Castro says he may join Catholic Church RELATED: Raul Castro may join Catholic Church A senior administration official said the talks – led by top Assistant Secretary of State Roberta Jacobson and her Cuban counterpart Josefina Vidal – are meant to set the stage for the re-opening of embassies. If those talks are successful – as officials believe they will be – the Obama administration is leaning toward naming the current head of the U.S. Interests Section, Jeffrey DeLaurentis, as ambassador to Cuba. The official said the administration specifically tapped DeLaurentis for his position in Havana in 2014 because it was believed he had the skills to oversee the transition of the Interests Section into an embassy, understanding that the confirmation of a new ambassador to Cuba might be difficult in a Republican-led Senate. RELATED: Ferries set to run between U.S. and Cuba Obama made the recommendation to remove Cuba from the terror list in mid-April, and Congress has a 45 review period to potentially block the move. While some lawmakers – including Cuban-American Republican Sen. Marco Rubio – have fiercely resisted Obama’s moves to restore ties with Havana, formal movement on blocking the terror list removal hasn’t yet been filed. Once the 45-day period has passed, administration officials say the reopening of embassies could begin. In Havana, the American embassy will likely occupy the same building where the Interests Section currently operates, White House aides have said. That’s the same structure, situated on the Havana waterfront, which housed the American embassy prior to the severing of diplomatic ties after the Cuban Revolution in the 1950s.


Forces are massing for an offensive to retake Raqqa, ISIS's headquarters in Syria Kurdish forces tell CNN there's been a big rise in the number of airstrikes nearby One commander says thousands of local tribesmen are prepared to join in the fight When Bahoz heard the blasts, he guessed they must have come from French jets. There were 14 of them, all around the time that President Francois Hollande said France had started bombing Raqqa. The capital of ISIS’s self-declared caliphate is eerily close to Bahoz’s position. A fighter with the Kurdish YPG units, he sits on a series of outposts along a lengthy earth trench that is essentially the front line with Raqqa – about 20 miles away, across flat, hostile ground. “Three days ago we saw 14 airstrikes suddenly hit just nearby, and then the French said they’d started bombing,” he told CNN, when we were given rare access to his position near the town of Ayn al Issa. “We will do our best to avenge Paris,” he vowed. Raqqa is now firmly in the sights not only of the U.S.-led coalition, but also the French and Russian militaries. And in a few hours along the front line, you can periodically hear distant thuds. On the day CNN was at the front, they could have come from some of the four Russian missiles activists’ group Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently reported hit the town, or the four homemade Katyusha rockets they also reported were fired by ISIS. Related video Will ISIS abandon Raqqa? The Kurdish fighters here are the defensive line put in place in case a ground invasion begins; there are anti-ISIS militia massing, CNN has repeatedly been told by Kurdish officials with the YPG fighting units, but the operation has yet to begin earnest. So for now these young men, who say they consider fighting ISIS a duty for humanity rather than a task of vengeance for the friends they have lost, are on the front line in a global battle. And they have very little in the way of weaponry. Mostly old AK-47s; one fighter told us his used to belong to a friend who died eight months ago. READ MORE: Who’s doing what in fight against ISIS? ISIS are just in the next village, visible under a mile away, and regularly fire mortars at one position we visited. Yet the Kurdish morale is high, lifted by a sense that their fight – which for months has been about protecting the territory they want to see become a Kurdish homeland called Rojava – has now taken on an international tone. “If French, Russian or American fighters come here to fight we will cooperate with them, as we are all fighting to clean the area of ISIS for humanity,” one commander there, Sarhad, told us. Related video First civilians killed by French airstrikes Graffiti on the base walls mocks ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in a crude caricature, and a plastic skeleton sits at the base entrance, a cigarette in its mouth. The move towards Raqqa will be difficult, given the open terrain between them and ISIS, but airstrikes will likely assist, if the Kurds ever decide to begin their advance. Fighting with the YPG is a new alliance called the Syrian Democratic Forces, a collection of Kurdish fighters and other Sunni Arab Syrian armed units. Many see the alliance as an American idea to try and secure Sunni Arabs as allies for the Kurdish units, so their advance into the predominantly Sunni areas ISIS currently holds is not seen as a land grab by Kurdish forces seeking to create their own homeland. These forces are the recipients of Pentagon training and equipment and are said to be where the 50 American special forces are applying their training efforts. A YPG commander in the Syrian Democratic Forces said coordination with the American special forces had begun, but would not confirm their presence in the area. READ MORE: Why there’s no easy answer in war on ISIS Another commander, one with the Sunni Arab group the Revolutionary Army of Raqqa, said that the preparation for the attack on Raqqa had secured a major victory because many of the local Sunni tribesmen had agreed to rise up against ISIS when the assault began. The commander, who did not want to be named, said: “We were not expecting this large number to join, but the numbers are now up to 4,000 tribesmen. When we want to move, all of them are ready and we’ve already managed to sneak weapons to them. We’re moving forwards.” CNN could not independently corroborate his claim, but if true it would answer one key question about the assault on Raqqa: where will they get the manpower? The Kurdish forces are strong and motivated, but lack the numbers and weaponry to take and hold an entire city, and the force that enters that Sunni Arab city will need local Syrian Arab support in order not to be seen as outsiders or risk being rejected by the population. READ MORE: Bergen: Syrian refugees are not a threat to U.S.


Watch CNN Special Report “The Trump-Russia Investigation” at 11 p.m. ET tonight. The White House says President Donald Trump met with Justice officials and White House lawyers Friday on the Democrats’ memo, is “weighing his options and will respond soon.” Trump said earlier Friday he plans to release the Democratic rebuttal to the Republican intelligence memo alleging FBI abuses of its surveillance authority. “It’s gonna be released soon,” Trump told reporters at the White House, adding, “We’re going to release a letter.” Related article White House says Trump will rely on FBI, intel advice on releasing Democratic memo The House Intelligence Committee voted unanimously on Monday to release the 10-page Democratic memo, and the committee rules give him five days – or until the end of the day Saturday – to decide whether to block or allow its release. The White House has suggested this week that the Democratic memo would be released, but with some redactions. “This afternoon, the President met with the director of the FBI, the principal associate deputy attorney general, and the White House Counsel’s Office to discuss the memorandum from the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and receive their input,” principal deputy press secretary Raj Shah said. “The President is weighing his options and will respond soon.” The memo from Rep. Adam Schiff of California, the top Democrat on the committee, was written to rebut the Republican memo released one week prior, which accuses the FBI of suppressing Democratic ties to an opposition research dossier on Trump and Russia used in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act warrant for former Trump campaign foreign policy adviser Carter Page. Schiff and other Democrats charge that the Republican memo led by House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes of California is misleading and omits key facts, including that the FISA application did state that ex-British intelligence agent Christopher Steele, the author of the dossier, was paid by a political entity. Related article Trump met with Rosenstein to discuss Democratic intelligence memo On Friday, the committee released a transcript of its Monday meeting when the vote was held. The hourlong meeting was a contentious affair where Democratic and Republican committee members fought over both the Democratic memo and the memo authored by Republicans. “This memo contains a large volume of classified information, including some touching on sources and methods heightening the potential damage to national security,” Nunes said. “In order to rebut the errors, omissions and distortions in the Republican-drafted memo, we have included certain details beyond the revelations made public by the release of the majority’s document,” Schiff said. CNN’s Steve Brusk, Veronica Stracqualursi and Jeremy Diamond contributed to this report.


Injuries are reported after a clash between Palestinians and Israeli police The area is a holy site for both Islam and Judaism The site of the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, also known as the Temple Mount to Jews, became the focal point for a clash between Palestinian youths and Israeli police on Sunday. Israeli police and the general director of the mosque had differing accounts of events, but both confirmed an incident occurred. Israeli police released a video showing rocks and other objects being thrown and officers responding. Eyewitnesses told CNN that Palestinians threw rocks while the police fired tear gas and rubber bullets. The compound is considered a holy site in both Islam and Judaism, and its administration reflects the difficult balance between the constituents in the region.  While Jordan is the custodian, Israel is in control of security.  Non-Muslims are allowed to visit the site in guided tours, but not to pray. In commemoration of the Jewish holiday Tisha B’Av on Sunday, members of the Jewish far right, who have called for Jews to be allowed to pray at the site, visited the al-Aqsa complex.  Palestinians often consider these police-escorted tours a provocation. According to Israeli police, Palestinian youths barricaded themselves overnight in the mosque. Police said the youths began throwing stones and shooting fireworks toward officers, injuring four. “In view of the harsh confrontation and escalation of the actions of the rioters and in order to prevent further injury to policemen … the force entered a few meters inside, managed to close the doors of the mosque with the rioters inside, [and] restored peace,” Israeli police said in a statement. However, the general director of the mosque, Sheikh Omar Kisswani, maintained that Israeli police “raided” the al-Aqsa complex, firing stun grenades, rubber bullets, and tear gas.  The director told CNN that officers injured over a dozen Palestinian worshipers, one of whom was severely beaten. CNN’s Kareem Khadder, Erin McLaughlin, Amir Tal, and Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report.


Secretary of State John Kerry went to Capitol Hill Tuesday to testify on the State Department’s proposed budget, but that topic was quickly swept aside as senators pressed the nation’s top diplomat on a myriad of crises facing every corner of the world. Jumping alternatively between issues of war and terrorism, human rights and disease, Kerry managed to stave off whiplash, but was frequently reminded of the complexity of modern diplomacy. Lawmakers were particularly keen to question Kerry on the state of nuclear negotiations with Iran, which continued over the weekend in Geneva. Kerry, who flew back to Washington just last night, warned critics to withhold judgment until the negotiations have run their course. “Anybody running around right now, jumping in to say, ‘Well, we don’t like the deal,’ or this or that, doesn’t know what the deal is,” said Kerry. “There is no deal yet.” READ: Report says Iran to resume nuclear talks with U.S. on Friday His testimony comes just one week before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to address the U.S. Congress about the dangers of loosening sanctions on Iran – a step the U.S. and its partners are considering in exchange for certain assurances from Iran that it won’t develop a nuclear weapon. Talks yielded an interim agreement in late 2013, but a longer-term deal remains elusive. Negotiations have already been extended twice, and the delegations are now coming up against a March 31st deadline. Still, in his testimony, Kerry focused on the progress made so far. “I don’t know anybody who looks at the interim agreement and doesn’t say, ‘Wow this has really worked,’ including [Netanyahu], who would like to see it extended, having opposed it vehemently in the beginning, calling it ‘the deal of a century for Iran,’” said Kerry. Nonetheless, lawmakers expressed concerns about the Iranian regime’s behavior on several fronts, from their support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to their influence over the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which the U.S. considers a terrorist organization. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, who chairs the appropriations subcommittee Kerry addressed, accused Iran of “wrecking havoc” in the Middle East; a notion Kerry wouldn’t echo, even as he agreed with Graham on specific points. “Do you agree with me that Assad is a puppet of Iranian regime?” Graham asked at one point. “Pretty much,” Kerry answered. “Do you agree with me that Hezbollah is a subcontractor of the Iranian regime?” Graham followed up. “Totally,” said Kerry. In one of the tenser exchanges of the day, Sen. Mark Kirk, R-Illinois, suggested the Obama administration has been cooperating with Iran to counter the terrorist group ISIS. “I would just point out that the notion of getting Iran to help fight ISIS is like hiring the local town psychopathic pyromaniac to join the volunteer fire department,” Kirk quipped. “Well, senator, we’re not hiring them,” Kerry said. Kerry said the topic of Iraq came up in recent talks with his Iranian counterpart, but that exchange was brief and revolved around their shared assessment that Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi was committed to promoting inclusivity in his government. The two governments are not engaged in broader cooperation on ISIS, he insisted. Related video Kerry: We will succeed against ISIS The Obama administration has launched a global effort to counter ISIS in Iraq and Syria. That effort includes airstrikes, as well as actions to disrupt terror financing and dissuade young people who might be tempted to join extremist groups. But the multi-faceted approach has been mocked by some, including lawmakers, who say the administration is focusing too much attention on counter-messaging and downplaying the importance of the military dimension. Kerry took aim at that criticism Tuesday. “The President’s goal is to degrade and destroy ISIS,” said Kerry, “That’s the goal.” “But the fact is, if all you do is do that, you’re not going to solve this problem,” he said. “Some secretary of state is going to be here in the future. Some president will be there. And there’ll be a different acronym, and you’re going to be talking about how you get rid of them. Because there’s a big pool of people out there waiting to be seduced into this.” Related video Kerry: Russia actions are 'simply unacceptable' Kerry also fielded questions on Russia, which the U.S. maintains is supporting separatists in eastern Ukraine with training, weapons and equipment. Those accusations have continued this month, in spite of a ceasefire agreement that yielded mixed results. The Russian government denies it’s providing this assistance, but on Tuesday, Kerry said Russia’s claims are lies. “Russia has engaged in a rather remarkable period of the most overt and extensive propaganda exercise that I’ve seen since the very height of cold war,” he said. “And they have been persisting in their misrepresentations, lies – whatever you want to call them – about their activities there to my face, to the face of others, on many different occasions.” He also emphasized that the U.S. and European Union are prepared to place additional sanctions on Russia if its interference in Ukraine continues, and suggested the U.S. would consider sending defensive weapons to the Ukrainian government. The array of threats facing the U.S. was further highlighted Tuesday by a series of State Department travel warnings sent out even as Kerry was testifying. The department updated its guidance for Americans traveling to Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Algeria - three extremist hotspots where Americans could become targets. Perhaps more concerning still was an emergency message sent to Americans in Afghanistan, which said “militants planned to conduct multiple imminent attacks against an unspecified target or targets in Kabul City.” The State Department would not provide additional information on that threat, but said it was unrelated to the three travel warnings that went out shortly after. Meanwhile, back on Capitol Hill, Kerry addressed the overall state of the world. “People need to be vigilant, but not scared,” he said. “Travel today is safer than it’s ever been.”


In the world of whale watching, being “mugged” is considered cute, while seagulls are murderous villains that need to be shot, and not just with a camera. For most though, there’s nothing quite like getting up close to a giant of the ocean, seeing a humpback breach or a minke eye you up. Here are some of the best places to grab your camera, point, click and “ooh”: Approximately 2,000 beluga whales visit Cunningham Inlet for about four weeks each year. Whales can be observed thrashing about, playing and making lots of noise just a couple of meters from the shore. If boats make you seasick, this is the whale watching spot for you. Richard Weber, who owns Arctic Watch Lodge with his wife, recommends the last week of July for visitors who want to see the highest concentration of belugas. Tours run from early July to early August. Box 1252, Yellowknife, NWT, X1A 2N9, Canada; +1 (819) 923-0932 Every schoolchild knows that blue whales are the biggest animals in the world – they can reach 30 meters in length and weigh up to 200 tons. From March to May, the Azores are one of the best places to catch a glimpse of these giants, whose tongues can weigh as much as an elephant. “When you see them through the water, they look like blue submarines,” says Lisa Steiner, a marine biologist with Whale Watch Azores. ” The size of the really large ones is indescribable.” Whale Watch Azores tours include six days’ whale watching, accommodation and most meals. Half-day tours are available during the summer, although the chances of seeing a blue whale then are much diminished. Rua do Paiol 12, Horta, Faial, Azores, Portugal; +351 292 293 891 These beautiful gray and white whales like to winter in Mexico. We can’t blame them. The calm lagoons of Baja California host these gray leviathans (up to 15.3 meters long) from mid-January to mid-April before they embark on an incredible 20,000-kilometer annual migration to Alaska and back. José de Jesús Varela Galván, oceanologist and director of Ecoturismo Kuyimá, particularly recommends visiting the San Ignacio lagoon for whale watching, where gray whales mate and give birth. Ecoturismo Kuyimá, SPR de RL, Morelos #23, esq. Miguel Hidalgo, Zona Centro, San Ignacio, BCS 23930, Mexico; + 52 615 154 00 70 Grown humpback whales can weigh 36,000 kilos and have distinctive knobbly heads. Hervey Bay is known as the home of the humpbacks, according to Jill Perry who owns Hervey Bay Whale Watch with her husband Brian. Humpbacks feed only in the summer, then migrate to new climates for the winter months where they mate and give birth while living off their fat reserves. As Hervey Bay is a top destination for summer feeding, whale sightings are guaranteed from mid-July to the end of October. Hervey Bay Whale Watch offer passes for one, two or three days, and runs daily whale watching trips in season. P.O. Box 7334, Urangan, Hervey Bay 4655, Queensland, Australia; + 61 7 4128 9611 The sleek black/gray minke whales are most common in the Antarctic Peninsula and can be seen from November to March. Bill Davis, the vice president of expeditions operations at Quark Expeditions, recommends whale watching during February and March, when the whales are the most interactive and friendly towards human spectators, sometimes approaching the boats of their own accord. Quark Expeditions offer tours from early November until early March. 3131 Elliott Avenue, Suite 300, Seattle, WA 98121, USA; +1 802 490 1731 The male narwhal’s ivory tusk grows in a spiral directly through the whale’s upper lip. We can only imagine the freaking out that must have ensued when sailors first viewed them centuries ago. June, with round-the-clock daylight, is the best month to observe narwhals in Nunavut. “The ice floe edge is a barrier that prevents the whales from migration further into the inlets,” says Thomas Lennartz, expedition director of Arctic Kingdom Polar Expeditions.“They congregate in ever greater numbers at this edge where we can see them from only meters away.” Arctic Kingdom runs eight-day/seven-night whale watching trips. PO Box 6117,  Iqaluit NU X0A 1H0, Canada; +1 888 737 6818 The waters surrounding San Juan Island are the No. 1 place in North America for seeing wild orca. Orcas – known as killer whales – are technically dolphins. They are drawn to the western coast of the United States thanks to a large supply of Chinook salmon and return to the San Juan Islands to feed around the middle of April, remaining until the end of September. Brian Goodremont, owner of San Juan Safaris Whale Watch & Wildlife Tours, suggests sunset tours for the most memorable whale watching photos. Or choose a high-speed zodiac tour for a higher-than-average chance of orca sightings. San Juan Safaris runs daily tours from February through November. 10 Front St., Friday Harbor, WA 98250, United States; +1 360 378 1323 Pilot whales are some of the most social whales around – they will sometimes strand themselves on beaches en masse rather than abandon fellow members of the pod. An abundant supply of food means that the Strait of Gibraltar is a year-round home for them. Katharina Heyer, president of FIRMM, an organization dedicated to research and protection of dolphins and whales, recommends that whale watchers allow several days in their itinerary to see the pilot whales, as strong winds can sometimes prevent boats from going out. Firmm (Foundation for Information and Research on Marine Mammals) runs two-hour boat trips. Pedro Cortés 4, E-11380 Tarifa, Spain; +34 956 62 70 08 Best places to swim with sharks Hermanus is one of the best whale watching spots in the world – there are plenty of whales that can be seen playing mere meters from the shore. Temperate waters and lots of sheltered bays make it an ideal mating and birthing site for the southern right whales. “The southern right whales start appearing one by one as early as May and normally leave towards the end of November, while a cow with calf that was born a bit later could still be seen in January,” says Robin Alcock of Southern Right Charters Whale Watching. The right whales perform a playful “sailing” exercise with their fluke (tail fins) – raising them to catch the wind. Southern Right Charters Whale Watching offers daily departures in season lasting between 1.5 and three hours. The Whale Shack, New Harbour, Hermanus, South Africa; +27 82 353 0550 Sperm whales can grow up to 20 meters and live for 70 years. Kaikoura, New Zealand, is one of the few places in the world where they can be seen year-round. “They congregate here because the two-kilometer-deep Kaikoura canyon runs right up against the coast, creating a rare system of sea currents that sustain an incredibly rich marine food chain,” says Lisa Bond, marketing and communications officer for Whale Watch Kaikoura. “The rich abundance of fish ensures they make the waters of Kaikoura their home.” Whale Watch Kaikoura offers tours all year round. The Whaleway Station, Whaleway Road, Kaikoura, New Zealand; +64 3 319 6767 The giant jaws of the whale shark (up to 1.5 meters wide) might look like they could swallow a human whole, but these creatures feed mostly on plankton and are undisturbed by nearby swimmers. Whale sharks aren’t strictly whales, but they’re some of the most astonishing marine creatures in existence – and swimming with them is a spectacular experience. Swimming with whale sharks in the Philippines “The best place to see whale sharks is the home of the largest aggregation of whale sharks in the world, Isla Mujeres, Mexico, just off the coast of Cancun”, says John Vater, co-founder of Ceviche Tours. As many as 420 whale sharks have been sighted here in a single day. The best time to catch them is from the middle of May to the middle of September. Ceviche Tours offers open boat tours (up to 10 people per boat) and private tours. Isla Mujeres, Quintana Roo, México; whatsapp +011 52 998 241 3345 Nell McShane Wulfhart lives in Uruguay and writes about travel. Editor’s note: This article was previously published in 2012. It was reformatted and republished in 2017.


Manchester mayor says US leaks are "not acceptable" British authorities say unauthorized disclosures threaten terror operations Manchester’s mayor Andy Burnham says he has contacted the US Ambassador to the UK over the leaks to the media from the investigation into Monday’s terrorist attack. “It’s not acceptable to me that here there is a live investigation taking place and we cannot have information being put in the public domain that’s not in the direct control of British police and security service,” Burnham told the BBC Wednesday. “To have information put in the public domain before it was put there by people here is just wrong.” Twenty-two people were killed in Monday’s attack at the Manchester Arena, when a 22-year-old man detonated an explosive device shortly after an Ariana Grande concert. British Prime Minister Theresa May is likely to meet with US President Donald Trump during Thursday’s NATO summit amid the stern reaction from UK authorities to the regular leaks. When asked about the leaks, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said that sharing intelligence was “of great importance. Sharing intelligence is based on trust.” Earlier Britain’s National Police Chiefs’ Council warned that leaks of potential evidence “undermines our investigations.” Home Secretary Amber Rudd said they were “irritating,” adding she had made it clear that it “should not happen again.” Within hours of Rudd’s statement, The New York Times published photographs purportedly showing remnants of the bomb detonated at the concert. They purported to show a detonator, battery, nuts and screws for shrapnel, and fragments of a backpack used in the attack. Related article Concert bombing victims: Eight-year-old girl among dead A Greater Manchester Police spokeswoman issued a very firm “no comment” to CNN on the photo publication. The Times, without specifying the source, said British authorities provided access to photos of materials found at the scene. Authorities value the trusted relationships they have with partners around the world, a spokesperson for the National Counter Terrorism Security Office said. “When that trust is breached it undermines these relationships, and undermines our investigations and the confidence of victims, witnesses and their families,” the spokesperson said. “This damage is even greater when it involves unauthorized disclosure of potential evidence in the middle of a major counter terrorism investigation.” A string of details about the deadly attack  have emerged from US law enforcement sources before being released by British police or officials. “The British police have been very clear that they want to control the flow of information in order to protect operational integrity, the element of surprise,” Rudd told BBC Radio 4’s “Today” program. “So it is irritating if it gets released from other sources, and I have been very clear with our friends that that should not happen again.” Asked whether the leaks from US officials had compromised the ongoing investigation, Rudd said she “wouldn’t go that far.” But, she added, “I can say that they are perfectly clear about the situation and that it shouldn’t happen again.” The UK terror threat level has been raised to critical for the first time in over a decade in the wake of the bombing – meaning more attacks may be imminent – as investigators seek to track down any associates of the suspect, named as 22-year-old Salman Abedi. Rudd earlier told Sky News that she expects the critical threat level to be temporary. She also said the bomber was known “up to a point” by the intelligence services. Related article Manchester attack: Who is Salman Abedi? Abedi is believed to have died in the powerful blast, though he has not yet been formally identified by the coroner, Manchester police said. The United States is one of Britain’s key intelligence partners. Both countries share sensitive information as part of the “Five Eyes” alliance, which also includes Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Details were quick to emerge from the US in the immediate aftermath of the bombing. For example, US officials told CNN that the attack appeared to be a suicide bombing and that a male at the scene had been identified as the probable suicide bomber. The US government has come under scrutiny over its handling of foreign intelligence in recent days following reports that US President Donald Trump shared top secret information originating from Israel during a White House meeting with senior Russian officials. Shashank Joshi, a senior research fellow at the London-based Royal United Services Institute think tank, told CNN the leaks of information from the US side seemed to be more frustrating than catastrophic to the Manchester investigation. “A lot of the information that leaked overnight Monday was fairly mundane, about casualty figures and the method of attack, but the leaking of the suspect’s name was more disruptive because it might have tipped off other suspects,” he said. Related video Manchester unites: We're stronger together Keeping the suspect’s name quiet for longer might have given the police more time to chase up other leads that would otherwise have shut down, he said. “It’s partly a function of modern counter-terrorism that places a premium on rapid sharing of information across borders in fast-moving investigations,” Joshi said. “That has its advantages, such as being able to piece together bits of information from different countries in a way you wouldn’t have been able to do 25 years ago. And it has disadvantages, like exposing your own information to more places where it can leak.” Joshi noted that the Manchester information seemed to have come from US law enforcement, rather than security agencies. It’s not the first time the US has faced criticism for leaking information on a UK terror investigation, Joshi said, citing the naming of the Kuwaiti-born Londoner Mohammed Emwazi, a ISIS fighter also known as “Jihadi John.” Part of the issue is the sheer size of the US national security bureaucracy, which means there are more points from which information can leak, he said. “That is the price, in a way, of dealing with world’s most capable national security operation,” he said, adding that the US is “by far and away” the most significant intelligence partner for Britain. Stern words will likely be directed to the US side, he said, but “on balance, it’s probably not going to change intelligence-sharing arrangements all that much.” CNN’s Laura Smith Spark reported and wrote from London, and Steve Almasy wrote from Atlanta.  CNN’s Richard Greene contributed to this report.


The Syrian regime and its allies have splintered the rebel-held enclave of Eastern Ghouta into three parts after the army intensified its onslaught in the region over the weekend, an activist on the ground and state media said. Syrian regime forces advanced Sunday to cut off Douma, the largest city in Eastern Ghouta and the main rebel supply route, media activist Bilal Abu Salah told CNN. The town of Harasta was also isolated from the rest of the enclave by regime forces, which additionally broke off several central and southern towns and villages in Eastern Ghouta, he added. Syrian state media reported on Sunday that “army units have completely cut off supply routes and movement lines of terrorist organizations between the northern and southern parts of Ghouta, which should accelerate the defeat of terrorists in the area.” Related article Mattis warns Syria on chemical weapons, doubts Russian missile claims Since launching its offensive against the enclave in mid-February, the Syrian regime has steadily been gaining territory, starting with villages and towns in the east. Analysts believe it is now a matter of time before the regime takes control of the entire enclave, one of the last major rebel-held areas in the country, which is situated on the outskirts of Damascus. Related: Syrian regime continues to gain ground Over 1,000 people were killed – an average of 71 per day – and 4,800 wounded in the first two weeks of the offensive, humanitarian group Doctors Without Borders, or Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), said last week. The numbers, which do not take into account people not treated at MSF medical facilities, are believed to be a fraction of the total death toll. The regime maintains that its offensive is against fighters affiliated with Jabhat al-Nusra – a former Qaeda affiliate that has rebranded itself several times and goes by several names – whom it accuses of holding civilians against their will to use as human shields. Armed rebel groups in the besieged enclave deny both accusations, saying al-Nusra’s presence is limited and that civilians fear regime retaliation if they leave. Jaish al-Islam, one of the armed rebel groups in the area, claimed on Monday that an agreement to evacuate the wounded from Eastern Ghouta had been reached. In a statement the group said the deal was reached with Russia – a key ally of the Syrian regime – through the mediation of the United Nations. It was unclear which parts of Eastern Ghouta the deal would cover. But Abo Ammar Alwan, head of the political bureau of Jaish al-Islam in Eastern Ghouta, told CNN that so far on Monday, no evacuations had taken place yet. Earlier on Monday, activists in the region told CNN that the humanitarian situation has gone from bad to worse. The ground offensive has triggered a “massive” influx of displaced people into the cities, may of whom have sought refuge underground. “Yesterday, after three days of being unable to bury our dead, we’ve had to put them in mass graves. The situation is very bad,” said Bayan Rehan, head of the women’s office at Douma’s Local Coordination Committee. Some residents have resorted to burying the dead in public parks, Firas Abdullah, a White Helmets spokesperson in Eastern Ghouta, told CNN. “People are burying the dead in public parks inside the city due to the regime imminently completely encircling the city of Douma, and its cutting off from the rest of Eastern Ghouta,” Abdullah said. “So the cemeteries are very close to the front lines and they are also full. So people have resorted to burying their dead in public parks.” Another activist in Eastern Ghouta told CNN that relief supplies have all but stopped because the main warehouse housing the supplies had been taken over by the regime and destroyed. Additionally, farmland that once provided food to residents had also been taken over by the regime. Thirteen aid trucks carrying much-needed food parcels and wheat flour finally reached Douma on Friday. The trucks were delivering materials that aid workers said couldn’t be offloaded from a first convoy earlier in the week, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross Syria. But the aid was just a tiny portion of what Eastern Ghouta needed, activists said. The convoys were intended for 70,000 people in Douma, far less than the broader suburb’s besieged population of 393,000. One activist told CNN that basements there were overcrowded as residents sought protection from the unrelenting airstrikes. One makeshift shelter has housed some 200 families. As food supplies have dwindled, many have taken to slaughtering their animals – mostly cows – to stave off hunger. Videos have emerged on social media showing Eastern Ghouta residents demonstrating in support of the regime. The activist told CNN that people support an end to the fighting more than anything else. “You might see civilians going out with regime flags, but it’s not because they want the regime – they just want an end to bloodshed,” the activist said. “They don’t want to see their children burning or dying in front of them.” CNN’s Kareem Khadder, Sarah El Sirgany and Hamdi Alkhshali contributed to this report.


Editor’s Note: Santiago Tobar Potes was brought to the United States by his parents from Colombia undocumented at age 4 and is now a student at Columbia University in New York. Follow him on Twitter: @stobarpotes. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. Santiago Tobar Potes: President Trump recently said he would announce a policy about DACA recipients Please, Mr. President, give us the opportunity that your family had to make this country our home as well, he writes I am one of an estimated 750,000 Dreamers, undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children, now facing possible deportation by President Donald Trump. I worry that the President – whose grandfather, mother and wife all immigrated to America – will turn my dream into a nightmare and throw me out of the land where I grew up. A few weeks ago I felt like I was dreaming when I was at a White House event  and met first lady Michelle Obama. I had just been appointed to the student advisory board for her Better Make Room initiative, which encourages young people to go to college. I am inspired by Better Make Room and want to help more young people improve their lives through higher education. But as I watched President Trump being inaugurated, I found it hard to believe he might make it impossible for me to go to college in this country. For the time being, I am here legally under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program created by President Obama through an executive order in 2012. But how long that will last is anyone’s guess. I came to America in 2002 as a 4-year-old, brought to Miami from my native Colombia by my parents. It should be obvious that at such a young age I did not ask to come here. Nor did I assist my parents in crossing the border without documentation. Nor did I assist my parents in overstaying our visas. It should also be obvious that while President Trump described undocumented Mexican immigrants as rapists, drug dealers and other criminals when he announced his candidacy in 2015, I was none of these things when I was a 4-year-old. And I have not become one in the years since. My family fled Cali in Colombia – home of the infamous drug cartel – after rebel forces of the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) killed my grandparents. My parents felt that our lives would be in danger if we stayed. Today I live in New York as a freshman at Columbia University. My education is funded by scholarships from the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, the Alexander Hamilton Scholars, Questbridge  and Golden Doors Scholars. These organizations have judged me by my ability rather than my birthplace. Related video Trump set to sign sweeping immigration orders I hope to go on to law school, study constitutional law and become a US citizen. It’s impossible to know if any of these things will happen, because it is impossible to know if President Trump will end DACA. He and his top aides have made numerous contradictory statements. During his presidential campaign, Trump said he would support a deportation force but at other times he has been far more conciliatory. In an interview with ABC News on January 25, President Trump said we Dreamers “are here illegally” but then said we “shouldn’t be very worried.” He refused to say if he will let us stay in the United States under DACA and said he’ll announce a policy in the next four weeks. With such uncertainty, how can we Dreamers not worry? Our future is in President Trump’s hands. For as long as I can remember, I have loved America. But I have felt overwhelming pain because America refused to accept me until President Obama signed the DACA executive order that President Trump may now revoke. Related article Why Trump on immigration is nothing like Obama Growing up undocumented meant living with a fear of going to school and being discovered. Telling teachers that I couldn’t sleep because I feared that my family and I would be deported was out of the question. Talking to friends about my undocumented status was too dangerous. I felt like a fugitive in hiding, branded a criminal who would never be accepted. But despite the fear that haunted me every day, I always viewed school as a place of endless inspiration and marvel. I poured all my energies into my studies, becoming a straight-A student and scoring at the highest levels on standardized tests. I can speak six languages. I held internships with Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, who has been a supporter of immigration reform, and I am a member of McKinsey & Co.’s Leadership Development Program. I became an accomplished violinist, playing an instrument given to me, and volunteered to give free violin lessons to impoverished Miami youth. I studied classical Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu and received a full scholarship from the Chinese government to travel to China to study Chinese. I read about President Barack Obama’s life right after the 2008 election, when I was in the fifth grade. Ever since, he has been an inspiration to me. I thought that if a person of color could be elected president of the United States, a boy born in Colombia could do anything in America. Related video Paul Ryan tells undocumented mom not to worry Yet I feared that going to college in the United States would be impossible, because many colleges don’t provide financial aid to undocumented students or refuse to even admit us. My family was too poor to pay my way. Fortunately, the scholarships I earned through hard work and good grades enabled me to come to Columbia University. With the threat of deportation hanging over me now, I wish I could have the opportunity to meet President Trump, as I met Mrs. Obama. I would ask him to look at me and other Dreamers protected under DACA as individuals, not as some menacing horde. I would tell President Trump that a small percentage of people from every nationality and ethnic group commit crimes, but the vast majority of Dreamers are law-abiding and we are strengthening America, not weakening it. We would have a conversation about how Dreamers have lived in the United States for the majority of our lives. Many have attended elementary, middle and high school here and speak English fluently. While I speak fluent Spanish, many Dreamers have little or no ability to converse in the language of the countries of their birth. Deporting us to homelands we barely remember or don’t remember at all would be an enormous hardship. Sign up for CNN Opinion’s new newsletter.Join us on Twitter and Facebook I would go on to tell the President that while we don’t have the papers stating we are American citizens, we live the same lives as our neighbors who were born here or immigrated legally. Growing up, we were taught to celebrate the same holidays, mourn the same national tragedies and celebrate the same national triumphs. Members of our families hold jobs and pay taxes to support government at all levels. And I would say that we Dreamers are just as American as anyone else, even though we lack a piece of paper to validate our American identity. Finally, I would tell President Trump that I’ve read that his grandfather came to America from Germany. And I would ask him how he would have felt as a young man to be sent to Germany with no money and told to learn a new language and start a new way of life because America had no room for him. President Trump has accomplished great things in America. We Dreamers can as well. Please, Mr. President, give us the opportunity that your grandfather, your mother and your wife had to make this country our home as well.


The strange collective reality show the country continues to live in during the Trump administration took an unexpected and odd turn Tuesday. The Indiana-born federal judge who President Donald Trump once said could not be impartial because he was “Mexican” cleared a major obstacle standing in the way of Trump’s long-promised border wall with Mexico. Read more about his 100-page order Tuesday that the current administration, like administrations before it, can waive environmental laws. The judge, Gonzalo Curiel, first entered the Trump political story long before the President came to the White House, back when Curiel got a class-action lawsuit concerning students who said they had been defrauded by Trump University. The case was ultimately settled after Trump won the White House. Trump said Curiel was not going to be impartial because he was “Mexican.” Curiel works in the Southern District of California but was born in Indiana. Trump’s attacks on Curiel weren’t a one-off thing, either. They were repeated and sustained and mean. “I have a judge who is a hater of Donald Trump, a hater. He’s a hater,” Trump said in San Diego in May of 2016, kicking off the controversy. Trump’s comments led to accusations of racism, including from Republicans. It was a very big deal. And he wouldn’t back down. Back then, Trump said Curiel wouldn’t give him a fair shake on anything specifically because of a perceived animus based on the wall. But despite Curiel’s ruling Tuesday, don’t look for Trump to apologize for his previous attacks and strike a note of respect for federal courts anytime soon. He’s long seen the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals, which sits above Curiel, as a bogeyman out to get him. And Trump was newly frustrated Monday that the Supreme Court had not stepped in to overrule a 9th Circuit hold on his decision to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals immigration program. “I mean, it’s really sad when every single case filed against us is in the 9th Circuit,” Trump told a gathering of governors Monday at the White House. “We lose, we lose, we lose, and then we do fine in the Supreme Court.  But what does that tell you about our court system? It’s a very, very sad thing.” Related article Judge denigrated by Trump as 'Mexican' will hear key deportation case It is totally worth going back to examine Jake Tapper’s interview in June of 2016 with then-candidate Trump, which got in-depth with Trump’s comments about Curiel. Trump was convinced beyond doubt that Curiel was biased against him, and he would not let it go. This transcript is incredible to read now in the context of Curiel ruling that Trump can set aside environmental restrictions to move forward with the wall: TAPPER: What does this have to do with his heritage? TRUMP: I’ll tell you what it has to do. I’ve had ruling after ruling after ruling that’s been bad rulings, OK? I’ve been treated very unfairly. Before him, we had another judge. If that judge was still there, this case would have been over two years ago. Let me just tell you, I’ve had horrible rulings, I’ve been treated very unfairly by this judge. Now, this judge is of Mexican heritage. I’m building a wall, OK? I’m building a wall. I am going to do very well with the Hispanics, the Mexicans – TAPPER: So, no Mexican judge could ever be involved in a case that involves you? TRUMP: Well, he’s a member of a society, where – you know, very pro-Mexico, and that’s fine. It’s all fine, but – TAPPER: Except that you’re calling into question his heritage. TRUMP: I think he should recuse himself. TAPPER: Because he’s Latino? TRUMP: Then, you also say, does he know the lawyer on the other side? I mean, does he know the lawyer? You know, a lot of people say – TAPPER: But I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about – TRUMP: That’s another problem. TAPPER: You’re invoking his race, talking about whether or not he can do his job. TRUMP: Jake, I’m building a wall. OK? I’m building a wall. I’m trying to keep business out of Mexico. Mexico’s fine. TAPPER: But he’s an American. TRUMP: He’s of Mexican heritage and he’s very proud of it, as I am where I come from, my parents. TAPPER: But he’s an American. You keep talking about it’s a conflict of interest because of Mexico. TRUMP: Jake, are you ready? I have a case that should have already been dismissed. I have thousands of people saying Trump University is fantastic, OK? I have a case that should have been dismissed. A judge that never, ever gives – now, we lose the plaintiff. He lets the plaintiff of the case out. So, why isn’t he calling the case? So, we thought we won the case. TAPPER: So, you disagree with his rulings. I totally understand that. TRUMP: I’ve had lawyers come up to me and say, you are being treated so unfairly. It’s unbelievable. You know the plaintiffs in the case have all said wonderful things about the school and they’re suing. You know why they’re suing? Because they want to get their money back. TAPPER: I don’t want to really litigate the case of Trump University. TRUMP: You have to, because if he was giving me fair rulings, I wouldn’t say that. TAPPER: My question is – TRUMP: Jake, if you were giving me fair rulings, I wouldn’t be talking to you this way. He’s given me horrible rulings. TAPPER: I don’t care if you criticize him, that’s fine. You can criticize every decision. What I’m saying, if you invoke his race as a reason why he can’t do his job. TRUMP: I think that’s why he’s doing it. I think that’s why he’s doing it. TAPPER: When Hillary Clinton says it’s a racist attack – TRUMP: Hillary Clinton is a stiff. If Hillary Clinton becomes president – TAPPER: Paul Ryan today – Paul Ryan today said he didn’t care for the way that you are attacking this judge. TRUMP: Look, I’m just telling you, Paul Ryan doesn’t know the case. Here’s the story – TAPPER: Isn’t it the – TRUMP: I should have won this case on summary judgment. This is not a – this is a case I should have won on summary judgment. You know, the law firm paid Hillary Clinton hundreds of thousands of dollars to make speeches. You know the law firm – TAPPER: I do. And we reported – we reported it on my show. TRUMP: OK. I’m glad. You’re the only one. (CROSSTALK) TRUMP: Wait a minute. A law firm paid hundreds and thousands of dollars to Hillary Clinton for speeches. TAPPER: Before either of you – TRUMP: She wasn’t working. Everyone fell asleep during a speech, OK? TAPPER: Before either of you were running for president, they did. But here’s the final fundamental question – TRUMP: Do you know they’ve contributed tremendous amounts of money to her campaign? TAPPER: Yes. TRUMP: Do you know they contributed a lot of money to Eric Schneiderman, the New York attorney general? TAPPER: Here’s my question – TRUMP: No, no, do you know that? TAPPER: I did not know that. TRUMP: Did you know they went to every attorney general practically in the country that they could and did you know this case was turned down by almost every attorney general from Texas to Florida and to many other states? TAPPER: Is it not – when Hillary Clinton says this is a racist attack, and you reject that – if you’re saying he can’t do his job because of his race, is that not the definition of racism? TRUMP: No. I don’t think so at all. TAPPER: No? TRUMP: No. He’s proud of his heritage. I respect him for that. TAPPER: But you’re saying you can’t do his job because of that. TRUMP: Look, he’s proud of his heritage, OK? I’m building a wall. Now, I think I’m going to do very well with Hispanics because they are going to get jobs right now. They are going to get jobs. I think I’m going to do very well with Hispanics. We are building a wall. He’s a Mexican. We’re building a wall between here and Mexico. The answer is, he is giving us very unfair rulings, rulings that people can’t even believe. This case should have ended years ago in summary judgment. The best lawyers, I have spoken to so many lawyers, they said, this is not a case. This is a case that should have ended. TAPPER: I – TRUMP: This judge is giving us unfair rulings. Now, I say why? Well, I’m building a wall, OK? And it’s a wall between Mexico. Not another country. TAPPER: But he’s not from Mexico. He’s from Indiana. TRUMP: He’s of Mexican heritage and he’s very proud of it.


Bannon's role has long eclipsed that of traditional political strategist He is one of the chief architects of the Trump movement's ideology To outsiders looking in, President Donald Trump’s decision to give his chief strategist Steve Bannon a permanent seat with the National Security Council’s most senior officials marked the startling elevation of a political adviser to a policy-making role. But for Trump administration insiders, Bannon’s appointment was little more than a natural evolution of his status as one of the President’s most trusted and influential advisers. That’s because Bannon’s role has long eclipsed that of traditional political strategist, with the former head of the right-wing Breitbart News site quickly taking custody of Trump’s political and policy agendas not just as tactician, but as one of its chief architects. That role will now officially extend to crafting the Trump foreign policy, placing a firebrand who has repeatedly targeted the Republican establishment and called for a radical reshaping of the US’ role in the world  in a prime position to reshape the current world order – not just for the term of Trump’s presidency, but for decades to come. Businesses, think tanks look to influence Trump Already in just the first week of Trump’s presidency, Bannon has steered Trump toward implementing many of the course-altering foreign policy actions Trump touted during the campaign, with Trump signing a series of executive actions to torpedo the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade deal, order the construction of a massive border wall and temporarily ban citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries while also suspending admissions of refugees into the US. Bannon was a particularly formidable force on the latter, overruling – with White House policy director Stephen Miller – the Department of Homeland Security’s more narrow reading of Trump’s executive order by directing federal officials to also bar green card holders from one of those seven countries from entering the US. Those legal US permanent residents will now need to apply for a waiver to leave and return to the US, for at least the next 90 days. The flood of first-week actions are typical of Bannon’s style, whose modus operandi is to always be on the offense, people familiar with his thinking said. “He wants to flood the zone,” a person who has worked with Bannon said. “If you can move fast to overwhelm the opposition, you’ll get a lot more gains than if you do it incrementally … That’s pure Bannon. It’s taking on real and imagined enemies and overwhelming them with stuff.” Bannon declined to be interviewed for this story. Trump is doing exactly what he said he would do The executive actions, though, are just an opening volley in a string of actions Bannon is revving up to implement as he looks to tailor US foreign policy to his ideology – and his seating on the National Security Council now gives him the direct access he needs to shape the most sensitive national security discussions. Already Bannon, a largely obscure figure during much of the campaign, has been an increasingly visible figure at Trump’s side, whether it’s sitting in the Oval Office while Trump speaks by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin or across the table in the State Dining Room with congressional leaders. Amid a fury of criticism even from some members of the President’s party, White House press secretary Sean Spicer sought to downplay Bannon’s role on the NSC on Monday, insisting Bannon is “not going to be in every meeting.” But his appointment is a sign of Trump’s trust in the top adviser and a sign that he wants Bannon to be his eyes-and-ears in the top level meetings, said Jason Miller, a former top communications adviser to the Trump campaign and transition. “He has the President’s ear. It only makes sense to have him in this role listening to what’s going on so he, too, can report back to the President,” Miller said. “He also has such a keen understanding of the President’s voice.” Trump move leads to confusion and chaos Bannon’s ideology is one that frequently jibes with Trump’s thinking on everything from combatting jihadist terrorism to better protecting the US from the economic whiplash of globalism and free trade deals – at the risk of isolating the US. But despite the overlap in the two men’s worldview, Trump is no ideologue. Bannon, by contrast, is arguably the most ideological member of Trump’s inner circle of top advisers and now finds himself in the position of filling that vacuum – and fleshing out Trump-ism with his own philosophy. While Trump arrived at his populist viewpoint seemingly by instinct, Bannon became the “economic nationalist” he now calls himself through a decades-long intellectual pursuit – one that took him through the pages of history and philosophy books that have profoundly impacted his worldview. Bannon has often leaned on history to argue for more extreme measures to counter “radical Islamic terrorism,” arguing the “Judeo-Christian West” is once again facing a “crisis” akin to the battles Europeans waged to fend off assaults by Muslim armies. It’s an ideology he’s since worked to spread in the US and abroad, through the Breitbart News platform, which has run Islamophobic stories and race-baiting headlines. Beyond US counterterrorism policy, Bannon is poised to be a driving force behind the radical reshaping of the US’s trade policy and its attitude toward China. The death knell to TPP last week was little more than a warning shot signaling to the world that Trump was serious about following through on the protectionist rhetoric that helped him win the presidency and Bannon, who has often cited his blue-collar roots, is gearing up to help craft those policies in line with his goals of shaping a movement that continues to draw the union workers who flocked to Trump’s candidacy in 2016 and can outlast Trump’s presidency. And he is taking his most outsized role in the administration’s foreign policy by helping to drive discussions on US-China policy. Privately, he has pushed to implement the border tariff Trump threatened during the campaign and invited comparisons between Trump’s populist inaugural address with its “America First” proclamation and the Chinese President’s defense of globalization just days earlier. While Bannon has no significant foreign policy experience that would earn him a seat on the National Security Council, he is a former US naval officer who worked on the Naval Operations staff at the Pentagon and the former Goldman Sachs banker and hedge fund manager  is well-versed in economic issues and global trendlines. Miller, the former Trump spokesman, argued Bannon is “one of the leading national experts on this global trend of economic populism and economic nationalism we’re seeing all across the entire world.” “Issues of economic geopolitical stability are national security issues also,” Miller said. CNN’s Sara Murray and Jeff Zeleny contributed to this report.


NEW: Netanyahu notes "substantive" talks, agreement to prevent "misunderstandings" with Russia NEW: Putin: Syria's government "is incapable of opening a new front" against Israel Israel is worried that Russian weapons in Syria could wind up in the hands of its enemies With Russia apparently beefing up its military presence in Syria, some countries are getting nervous about what could happen – including Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday to discuss “the Middle East peace process and the fight against the global terrorist threat,” the Kremlin said. But in a rare move, Netanyahu brought several top Israeli military and security officials with him to Moscow. Related video New Images purport to show building of Russian air base Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot, IDF Director of Military Intelligence Maj. Gen. Hertzi HaLevi and National Security Adviser Yossi Cohen accompanied the Prime Minster, Netanyahu’s office said. The meeting, which was closed to the media, came after satellite pictures showed a rapid buildup of an air force base in Syria, with loads of Russian military equipment moving in. Among the Russian  equipment are advanced Russian Sukhoi Flanker fighter jets. Afterward, Netanyahu called the talks “substantive” – noting that both countries had agreed to “a joint mechanism for preventing misunderstandings between our forces” in and around Syria. He said there was a “very big” need to prevent such “misunderstandings.” “Israel is constantly working to prevent the transfer of advanced and deadly weaponry from Syrian territory to Hezbollah,” said Netanyahu, who also alluded to a threat from the Golan Heights. “Israel is taking action and, when it does so, it is important for everyone – including Russia – to know that we are taking action.” The cause for Israel’s concern “relates to the provision by Russia of weapons systems to some of Israel’s most determined enemies,” said Middle East analyst Jonathan Spyer at the Global Research in International Affairs Center. Related video Syrian refugees running out of food Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoygu has said the recent Russian military buildup in Syria is “defensive in nature” and aimed at supporting Russian obligations to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Russia has been a staunch ally of Syria, even as much of the world decries al-Assad’s role in the country’s gruesome civil war. Israel’s policy has been to stay out of the Syrian civil war, which is raging nearby, right across the Golan frontier. But Israel says it has established red lines, such as making sure advanced military equipment such as Russian anti-aircraft missiles don’t fall into the hands of Hezbollah in Lebanon or other militant groups. It’s also about issues that go beyond the civil war and to groups and efforts that threaten more directly. According to Netanyahu, the Syrian government – the same one that’s getting Russian weaponry – has been involved by arming Hezbollah and working with Iran to try to “build a second terrorist front against us from the Golan Heights.” “Israel has been, in the course of the last four years, determined to prevent the provision of certain weapon systems from Syria to Hezbollah,” Spyer said. “And to achieve that, Israel has required complete air control – master of Syria’s skies to operate when and where it wants – anywhere over the skies of Syria.” Related video U.S. general reveals failure in Syria plan And while Israeli and Russian forces aren’t necessarily on a collision course, they want to make sure no inadvertent collisions occur. To this point, Putin insisted Monday that “all of Russia’s actions in the region will always be very responsible.” “We are aware of the shelling against Israel and we condemn all such shelling,” the Russian leader said. “In regard to Syria, we know that the Syrian army is in a situation such that it is incapable of opening a new front. Our main goal is to defend the Syrian state.” Israel’s not alone in its concerns about increased Russian military force in Syria. The United States has been at odds with Russia over Syria since the civil war started. U.S. leaders have said al-Assad must leave office after frequent attacks against civilians and the use of chemical weapons. But Russia, a close ally of al-Assad’s, continues supporting the Syrian regime. The U.S. has also been launching airstrikes to fight ISIS in Syria, and it now wants to avoid accidental military encounters with Russian forces in the country. At a news conference Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told CNN’s Elise Labott that his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, has assured him that Russian activities in Syria are aimed at fighting ISIS. But Kerry said he isn’t taking those assurances “at face value,” given the Russian military assets being moved into Syria. CNN’s Jamie Crawford, Barbara Starr and Radina Gigova contributed to this report.


It was meant to be a celebration. But after days of political protests, violence and arrests of key opposition leaders, the streets of Uganda’s capital were empty and the majority of businesses closed as President Yoweri Museveni was sworn in for a fifth term – extending his 30-year iron grip on power. Heavy security met party loyalists and visiting heads of state, including Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. Bashir, wanted on war crime charges by the International Criminal Court, received loud applause from those attending after Museveni introduced him. “Forget about this ICC useless thing,” Museveni said. “Earlier we thought the ICC was useful, but to us, now African leaders, we see it is useless. It’s a bunch of useless people.” It's done #M7SwearsIn gets all instruments of power @newvisionwire @UgandaMediaCent pic.twitter.com/FcNCNjGSSW Museveni has been in control of the country since 1986. In 2005, he changed the constitution to allow himself to remain in office. The lead-up to Thursday’s event in Kampala was met with strong government restrictions, including the detention of the opposition candidate, a heavy police presence and a clampdown on social media such as Facebook. A ban was also issued April 29 on all opposition activity around the inauguration by Deputy Chief Justice Steven Kavuma. Longtime opposition leader Kizza Besigye, who has been under house arrest or government supervision since before February’s presidential election, was arrested Wednesday after hosting his own swearing-in ceremony in Kampala. Besigye encouraged others to “boycott the sham coronation.” In recent days, police presence has been heavy in the capital. Locals noted patrols about every 20 feet close to the event site, and a video showing police beating civilians also emerged, which was shared widely on Twitter. Facebook was suspended, as occurred during the February election. Ugandans report that they were unable to access the site the day before the inaugural event and that it remained inaccessible midmorning Thursday. Uganda’s tense election: 5 things to know Opposition candidates and electoral observers have questioned Uganda’s February election, and rights groups have criticized what they call a violation of rights since Museveni’s victory. “The arbitrary detention of political opposition leaders and their supporters, the recent ban on live media coverage of opposition activities and the violent disruption of peaceful opposition gatherings in the lead-up to and since Election Day not only violate Uganda’s own Constitution but also fly in the face of its regional and international human rights obligations,” said Muthoni Wanyeki, Amnesty International’s director for East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes. Related gallery Africa's aging leaders The audience for Thursday’s ceremony was a who’s who of the continent’s longtime leaders, including the world’s longest-president; Teodoro Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea; President Pierre Nkurunziza of Burundi; and Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe. Also attending was President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, who will make his own controversial bid for a third term. Africa is young. Why are its leaders so old? Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair defended the Rwandan President’s decision to run again in an interview with CNN at the World Economic Forum on Africa in Kigali. “I personally think he is the right person for Rwanda at this moment in time,” Blair said. “The questions I always put back to people when they say to me in principle, third term or not, is it depends on the situation in the country and the job that’s being done by their leader.” Term limits continue to be a focus in a region where several leaders have extended their election mandates. In Burundi, Nkurunziza’s hold on power after a controversial third-term bid has pushed one of the world’s poorest countries into an economic and political tailspin, with thousands killed and hundreds of thousands more fleeing to surrounding countries. Museveni had a leading role in stalled mediations aimed at ending the conflict in Burundi. In his speech Thursday, he reiterated his stance that the region should solve its own problems before looking for outside assistance. “Let us African leaders sit down and resolve these issues. It is not right that Africans should suffer when we have the means to stop this hemorrhage in human life.” Inside Africa


Glenn Simpson and Fusion GPS have been at the center of the political firestorm Sen. Dianne Feinstein released a separate transcript from a different Simpson interview The House Intelligence Committee will vote Thursday on whether to release the transcript of the panel’s interview with Fusion GPS co-founder Glenn Simpson, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The committee has a business meeting scheduled for Thursday posted on its website, in which it plans to vote on whether to release the transcript of Simpson’s interview, which was conducted behind closed doors. Simpson has called for his interview transcripts to be released, as has the top Democrat on the intelligence panel, Rep. Adam Schiff of California. Rep. Mike Conaway, the Texas Republican leading the committee’s Russia investigation, said the panel would make a decision on that soon. “Mr. Simpson has requested that, I know the minority folks have requested it as well, and we’ll take it under serious advisement and have a decision soon,” Conaway told CNN Wednesday. Related article Read the Fusion GPS co-founder's testimony Feinstein released Simpson and Fusion GPS have been at the center of the political firestorm over the opposition research dossier on Trump and Russia, which Fusion GPS hired ex-British intelligence agent Christopher Steele to compile. Republicans have said that the dossier research, which was paid for by Hillary Clinton’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee, was a politically motivated document that got into the hands of the FBI. The Senate Judiciary Committee’s top Democrat, Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, released the transcript of her committee’s interview with Simpson, without the consent of Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley. Simpson testified last year behind closed doors with the House and Senate Intelligence Committees and the Senate Judiciary Committee. In his Judiciary Committee testimony, Simpson argued that Steele gave the dossier to the FBI on his own volition out of concern that then-presidential candidate Donald Trump was being blackmailed, though no evidence has emerged to suggest Trump was actually blackmailed. “Chris said he was very concerned about whether this represented a national security threat and said he wanted to – he said he thought we were obligated to tell someone in government, in our government about this information,” Simpson said.